Sunday, Jul 6, 2008
Was Princess Di a groupie? Did Prince Charles do something that could bring down the monarchy? And what does Hugh Grant have to say about puke? Plus: J.D. Salinger is mad at the BBC!
Nov 7, 2003 |
It's all about the Brits today ...
Princess Diana may be in heaven, but they're still arguing about her on earth. Last week her butler revealed a letter from Di predicting her own death. This week it's Bryan Adams' ex-girlfriend saying he had an affair with the princess after the divorce from Prince Charles. The butler, of course, figures into this story too. Even though Adams denies the story, Paul Burrell has claimed that, after her divorce, Diana had nine suitors -- including "a Hollywood actor, a novelist, a sportsman, a politician, a lawyer, an entrepreneur, a billionaire, a surgeon -- and a musician." What, no Indian chief? (IMDB)
And, speaking of Chuck, the whole of his empire are on the edge of their seats awaiting word of what he supposedly didn't do. For weeks now, British newspapers have been saying they have a story that could "bring the monarchy down" but they're bunkered with their lawyers on what they can and can't print, due to tough libel laws. The Daily Mail was going to go to press this week with a story based on testimony from an ex-servant and was stopped by a lawsuit by another former servant. Last night, Charles sent his private secretary out to deliver a denial: "I just want to make it entirely clear, even though I can't refer to the specifics of the allegation, that it's totally untrue and without a shred of substance" -- anticipating a Sunday story in the Mail. Could this be more "Upstairs, Downstairs"? (MSNBC)
I don't care if the new movie "Love, Actually" is good or not. I want a holiday bonbon! The cast is so charming, I just want to see them move and talk. When you've got Emma Thompson, Liam Neeson, Hugh Grant and Colin Firth in the lineup, what more do you need? Grant -- who plays the prime minister -- PR'd it thusly: "The reason it succeeds rather than being puke-making is that it is funny as well." (BBC)
And in British magazine news, Hello! was just ordered to pay rival OK! more than £1 million for taking unauthorized shots of the Michael Douglas-Catherine Zeta-Jones wedding because the couple had an exclusivity agreement with OK! The couple also got £14,600 for their pain and suffering, which they'll donate to charity. Hooray! (Ananova)
Hot U.S.-British literary news: The BBC2 show "Big Read" ran a program last week that included film of dramatized scenes from "The Catcher in the Rye." This is a big no-no for author J.D. Salinger, who has denied everyone -- including Elia Kazan in 1961 -- permission to dramatize his work. The BBC says it's fair use, the U.K.'s Society of Authors says it could be an infringement of copyright. Meanwhile, the program caused sales of the book to jump. Maybe J.D. is more of a marketing genius than he gets credit for. (Publishing News) via (Moby Lives)
Hot architecture news: It looks like Jet Blue and the Port Authority are headed toward doing the right thing -- saving the spectacular Eero Saarinen-designed international terminal at JFK airport in New York. That space is one of the few in the world that can make a weary traveler excited about getting on an airplane. (Manhattan Users Guide)
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