Main Page                                                 Archive

BOTTOMLINES

     

Charles' marriage registrar divorced her hubby in a car  (Go To Top)

     London: The registrar who is to marry Charles and Camilla had reportedly demanded a divorce from her husband on her way to a friend's wedding. Clair Williams, 45, asked for a divorce from husband Michael Williams after 20 year of marriage, as they drove to a friend's wedding in the year 2002. "We'd drifted apart.If someone wants a divorce there's not much point throwing your toys out the pram", The Mirror quoted Michael Williams, 60, as saying. Michael Williams, of Marlow, Bucks, and his wife, now superintendent registrar for the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, have two daughters from the marriage. Clair Williams is to marry Prince Charles and Camilla on April 8 and her ex-husband thinks, "she will make a damn good job of it.She is confident and intelligent and gets on well with people".

Guests to relish Charles' favourite fruitcake on his wedding (Go To Top)

     London: The guests on the list of Prince Charles' wedding reception can look forward to nibbling at some of his favourite fruitcake in Windsor Castle on April 8. Prince Charles who loved the taste of Etta Richardson's secret cake recipe after he tasted some at her stall at Llansteffan Market in Carmarthenshire, has asked her to prepare 20 for his wedding party. "It's lovely that Charles enjoys my cake so much,but it was still a surprise to be asked to bake 20 for his wedding.I am very honoured but it is a very good cake, even if I say so myself", Hello magazine quoted 74 year old Etta Richardson as saying.

Caning can cure everything from drug addiction to depression (Go To Top)

     London: Russian scientists have claimed that beating on the naked buttocks with a cane can cure everything from drug abuse to alcohol addiction and from depression to suicidal tendencies. The researchers at Novosibirsk said that caning releases endorphins, the body's natural 'happiness hormones', which lead to feelings of euphoria, a reduction of appetite, the release of sex hormones, an enhancement of the immune response and prevents drug and alcohol addiction. "The treatment works. I'm not sadistic, at least not in the classical sense, but I do advocate caning," Fox News quoted lead researcher Dr Sergei Speransky as saying to Izvestia daily. The scientists recommend a standard treatment course of 30 sessions with 60 of the best, delivered on the buttocks by a person of average build. Another researcher, Dr Marina Chuhrova, said that she had 10 patients she caned regularly. "At first they didn't like it, but when they started to feel the benefits they kept asking for more." The Russian team will now start charging for the caning sessions getting 57 pounds per patient for a standard treatment.

Orlando Bloom to play young Bond (Go To Top)

     London: The Pirates of the Caribbean heart-throb, Orlando Bloom, has confirmed that he is all set to play the young OO7 spy in a prequel to the next James Bond film titled "Casino Royale". Orlando will play a teenage Bond who is still studying at Eton in the film and displays exemplary skills as an amateur spy. "I love the idea, in principle, as he can be far more adventurous and do more stunts. This is as near as I think I will get to playing the grown-up Jamesfor the next 20 years", Hello magazine quoted him as saying. Meanwhile, speculations over who will replace Pierce Brosnan as the next grown-up OO7 continues. Goldeneye's Martin Campbell has signed on to direct Casino Royale, the cast of which will include names like Ewan McGregor, Clive Owen and Jude Law.

Bedroom TVs aggravate children's indulgence in drugs etc (Go To Top)

     London: Kids in their teens with a TV in their bedroom are more likely to indulge in drugs, binge drink, smoke cigarettes and sex, claims a new study from the University of California . The study of more than 1,000 teenagers revealed that TV replacing the much-needed interaction between parents and children contributed to digressive and reclusive behaviour in them.Parents of teenagers with TV sets in their rooms were also less likely to know where their child spent their after-school hours, and with whom. Over 50 per cent of the teenagers aged between 12 and 16 told researchers at the University of California that they had a TV set in their bedroom, and were found to watch more television than those without a set. 52 per cent of teenagers in Britain have a set in their room and the per cent is only rising by the day. However Cary Cooper, a professor of organisational psychology and health at Lancaster University, said that TV should not be branded as the only cause for a child's strange behaviour. "There may be a relationship between the television and this sort of behaviour, but it is not TV itself that causes it. TV is a passive medium, I would be be more worried about children playing interactive, violent video games", he said.

     The study revealed that the child who keeps to his room watching TV all the time, tends to become reclusive or remains depressed most of the time and consequently starts taking to mild drugs and smoke but the seeds of phychological digression or any sort violent behaviour lies in the child and not the television. "The question you need to ask is who is the kind of child that has a television in their room and watches it constantly? It would tend to be a child that is withdrawn, has difficulty with relationships, gets depressed, then smokes and possibly takes some mild drugs.Television is unlikely to stimulate any of these dispositions, unless the child already has the disposition to a certain degree. It is unlikely to be the cause of the anger in the first place", he added. Professor Alex Gardner, a clinical psychologist in Glasgow, confirmed that while children will tend to watch things that adults do not want them to, its isolative effects are a greater danger. "The worry is why the child is not outside socialising with friends. But different kids will have different experiences. The village kid, for example, might have less options of something to do than the town kid," he said.

Heidi Klum fired because she is pregnant (Go To Top)

     London: Supermodel Heidi Klum will not be seen as the face of a German fashion catalogue - because she's pregnant. Klum, who is expecting fiance Seal's child due in September, claims that her contract with Germany's largest mail order catalogue, Otto, was terminated due to her pregnancy. "The company used a clause in my contract and has terminated it because I'm pregnant", Femalefirst quoted her as saying. However, Otto communications director Thomas Voight said they had terminated Klum's contract because she was facing difficulty in taking out time for the contract. Heidi, who modelled for the fashion firm for 15 months, was pregnant with her first child, Leni, from Formula One head Flavio Briartore, when she had launched their new range in December 2003. Earlier this month, Klum's fiance Seal confirmed her pregnancy stating that the couple's biggest dream was about to come true. "Heidi, myself and especially Leni are proud to tell you that we recently found out that we are expecting our second child. There is nothing that gives us greater happiness than the realisation of our dream. Thanks to all of you that have been sending us happy thoughts", the report quoted him as saying.

Russell Crowe is a born boxer (Go To Top)

     London: Hollywood macho Russell Crowe has the potential of becoming a professional boxer, claims his boxing trainer Angelo Dundee , who trained Crowe for his role as Jim Braddock in the Ron Howard film Cinderella Man. Dundee, who has trained Muhammad Ali and worked with Will Smith in the film "Ali" in the past , says that Crowe has an alternative career choice of professional boxing, as he has an innate talent for the sport. "I'm tellin' ya, the kid has a great left hook. He could have been a fighter, sure he could. He loves boxing", Femalefirst quoted him as saying to Empire magazine.

---