Pop Buzz UK

Tonight should have seen the launch of the latest series of Celebrity Big Brother, but due to the race rows which blighted last year, that has now been replaced by Big Brother: Celebrity Hijack.

The new format launches tonight at 9pm on E4, and features 12 housemates between the ages of 18 and 21.

The celebrity part comes from various celebrity guests who will play the part of Big Brother, and going on the most recent reports, also play an active role in the show itself.

I previewed the show in full a few weeks ago, but since then some new details have been revealed, and some definite changes have been made to the original format.

First of all we have the 12 housemates, all young, all gifted, and all chosen to argue and fight in the same way as every normal Big Brother housemate is.

We have seven boys, and five girls, which includes circus performers, a boxer, a beauty queen, an entrepreneur, a racing driver and a politician.

Some of the celebrities have also been revealed, with the show kicking off under the guidance of Little Britain star Matt Lucas. Others to be given a role include art critic Brian Sewell and comedians Jimmy Carr and Joan Rivers.

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Michael Parkinson has been simultaneously interviewing the biggest celebrities, and delighting audiences around the world for over 30 years now, but every career has to come to an end, and Parkinson is no exception.

Earlier this year he announced, via his Radio 2 show, that he would be making this latest ITV1 series of his chat show, the last ever. So to commemorate the occasion there will be three specials to end his reign as the king of chat show hosts.

The second of the specials, to be shown on ITV1 on December 15th is the big one, as it comprises Michael Parkinson’s wish list of guests. He hand picked every person who would appear, a mixture from his many years, and people he looked up to, enjoyed interviewing, and counted as personal friends.

While filming the show, he is reported to have had to fight back tears, no surprise seeing as this seems to be Parky’s final bow in broadcasting, with him also quitting his radio show to write an autobiography and do some travelling.

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The new series of ‘I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here’ kicks off tonight, and the line up has now been confirmed. Ten celebrities are going to be heading in to the Australian jungle and facing two weeks of pure hell, with torrential rain, camp beds, snakes and creepy crawlies.

They will also have to face the notoriously cruel Bushtucker Trials, which producers are promising will be given a higher budget and therefore be even more humiliating than normal.

The ten celebrities to sign up to the reality show are:

• Gemma Atkinson: Former Hollyoaks actress.
• Malcolm McLaren: Sex Pistols former manager.
• Rodney Marsh: Sky Sports Football pundit.
• Cerys Matthews: Former Catatonia singer.
• Janice Dickinson: 1970s supermodel.
• John Burton Race: Celebrity chef.
• Marc Bannerman: Ex Eastenders actor.
• Lynne Franks: PR guru.
• Jason ‘J’ Brown: Ex Five boy band member.
• Anna Ryder Richardson: Changing Rooms designer.

Last year’s edition of the show saw Matt Willis, ex Busted band member, walk away as the winner, but it was David Gest’s transformation from freak show to fan favourite which kept people hooked.

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It’s Adam and Shelley is a new sketch show which starts on BBC3 next Monday. I’ve been lucky enough to already watch the first two episodes on DVD, so here is a quick run-down of what to expect in the series.

First of all I should point out that I have a very silly sense of humour. You’ll already know this if you are a regular reader of Pop Buzz UK and have seen some of the videos I’ve put up over the last year. So this sort of sketch show appeals to me more than it might my Gran for instance. I don’t think she’d appreciate some of the humour which borders on adult at times.

Adam and Shelley Longworth are a brother and sister duo who have already appeared in shows independently but now put their heads together to produce an original sketch show in the mould of (but not copying) Little Britain. As soon as you see a clip from the show you’ll recognise Shelley from TittyBangBang, another innovative BBC3 show.

It’s Adam and Shelley follows the basic sketch show format of a combination of characters in different settings. Some of the characters work, and some don’t, and I found it a bit more hit and miss than both Little Britain and The Catherine Tate Show, which are two cult comedy shows which made the crossover to mainstream. For this reason I don’t know if it will repeat that success, but it’ll certainly have its fans who lap it up.

My favourite characters from the plethora on show here are the Goth twins Jake and Tilly. There’s something strangely funny about seeing a grown man and woman dressing up in the garb of the latest teenage trend, but they pull it off… just. The situations the pair get themselves in through daring and taunting each other are brilliantly conceived, and the characters will strike a chord with both kids and their parents.

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Heroes is due back on our TV screens on September 24th 2007, with the première of the 2nd series. I thought we should take a look at what to expect from the second series, and also it’s a great excuse for me to share some sexy pictures of Hayden Panettiere.

The first series is still currently being shown on BBC2 in the UK, so if you haven’t yet seen the final episode, you may want to stop reading now, although if you do, you’ll miss out on those pics I mentioned earlier…

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After the successful adaptation of Terry Pratchett’s ‘The Hogfather’ novel to the small screen last Christmas, Sky One have turned their attention to the author’s first Discworld novel ‘The Colour Of Magic’.

Filming began on the version a few weeks ago, with some of the same cast who appeared in ‘The Hogfather’ appearing once again. Christopher Lee will return as the voice of Death, and what a good choice that is. David Jason meanwhile will appear as the wizard Rincewind, after putting in a great performance as Death’s faithful servant Albert last year.

Joining the legendary actors this time around will be Rocky Horror Picture Show star Tim Curry and Sean Astin who has recently been in 24 as well as the Lord Of The Rings movies.

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This is the trailer for Jamie Oliver’s new show called ‘Jamie At Home’. I love this trailer as unusually for Jamie, it’s funny and very cleverly thought out. Call me gullible… “Dave, you’re gullible,” but this actually made me want to watch the first episode of the new show.

I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with Jamie. On the one hand I think he’s done some great stuff for the politics surrounding food, especially when it comes to kids. His mission to get schools to provide better dinners for kids up and down the country was inspired, and has hopefully prevented the next generation from being a bunch of fat gits.

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The latest Harry Potter film ‘The Order of the Phoenix‘ was given it’s European premiere on Wednesday and received almost universal praise from everyone present.

The film of the 5th book aired in London’s Leicester Square, and expectant fans flocked to catch a glimpse of the young stars despite the heavy rain which barraged them through the day. J.K. Rowling was also in attendance and revealed her feelings on finally completing the 7th and last book of the series “Finishing it was very, very emotional. It was a combination of relief and sadness really,” she said.

David Yates has directed this film and early reviews say a grittier, darker edge comes out, following the book quite closely as a coming of age story. Emma Watson, who plays Hermione said “The Order of the Phoenix is the most genuine of all the films so far, David wanted to find the truth from within all the characters.”
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The follow up to British classic ‘28 Days Later‘ came out last Friday 11th May, and is already biting Spider-man 3 on the ass at number 2 in the charts.

The 2002 film was directed by Danny Boyle, wheras this one named quite obviously ‘28 Weeks Later‘ is directed by Juan Carlos Fresnadillo, and even more obviously is set 28 weeks after the initial virus outbreak from the first film.
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This is a review of the new film written and directed by Shane Meadows called ‘This Is England‘. It’s set in 1983, and tells the story of a young 12 year old boy, and his experiences with a group of older skinheads who take him in, and treat him as one of their own. It’s based on Shane’s own experiences growing up, and it shows in the maturity and way in which it’s told.
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The first new proper book by J.R.R. Tolkien for twenty years was released worldwide yesterday and immediately sold out in many stores throughout the UK. The Children Of Hurin deals with the race of men, and Hurin, a hero of the first age. Set long before the time of The Lord Of The Rings, it’s set in middle earth long before there was any sign of Hobbits. The story features Elves and Dwarves, though a more sinister race than the ones we know and love from the Lord Of The Rings. In this book, Sauron is only the lieutenant of Morgoth, the fallen Valar, rather than being the uber villain we have grown up with.
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This is Muse with their brand spanking new single ‘Invincible’ out in the UK on Monday 9th April. It’s the fourth single to be released from the haunting yet brilliant album ‘Black Holes And Revelations‘ which itself came out last July. The song is a fantastic floaty journey through what seems to be a person’s doubts and their need to overcome obstacles and come out the other side. It has a kind of romantic feel to it, yet the almost march like drum beat moves the pace of the song on nicely. About half way through the song, the strong bassline which is one of Muse’s strengths, comes in and from there the song builds up to a crescendo. (more…)

This is the new film called ‘300′ which came out last Friday in the UK. It looks an intriguing film, being an adaptation of the graphic novel 300 by Frank Miller, which was itself inspired by ‘The 300 Spartans’, a 1962 film starring Richard Egan.

Directed by Dawn Of The Dead’s Zack Snyder, it’s a semi historical account of the Battle of Thermopylae in 480 BC in which 300 spartans fought to the last man against Persian King Xerxes (played by Rodrigo Santoro). The odds are stacked heavily against Spartan King Leonidas (Gerard Butler) as the oposing army number 1 million soldiers. The film delves into historucal fantasy as all manner of fantastical creatures are introduced to the plot. (more…)

Becoming Jane is the new period costume drama inspired and based on Jane Austen’s life. We have ‘Devil Wears Prada’ star Anne Hathaway playing the young Jane, controversial not because she’s a bad actor but because yet again we have an American actress playing a very English character. The story is based on Austen’s private letters and follows the story of her lovelife, as well as showing her being on the cusp of what was to be a great literary career. (more…)

This is the new fantasy thriller movie and big US hit which hits UK cinemas today Friday 2nd March. Starring Nicholas Cage as the eponymous ‘Ghost Rider’ and his alter-ego Johnny Blaze, this is the latest comic book conversion to hit the big screen.

Cage’s Johnny Blaze is a daredevil stunt biker who, as a kid, sells his soul to Mephistopheles (played by the legendary Peter Fonda) to spare his dad from cancer. So the Devil kills his Dad in an accident instead and laughs his head off. In return, Blaze has been turned into the Ghost Rider – a mystical figure who collects on other contracts made by the devil with desperate souls who turn to Satan in a bid to avert disaster. (more…)