LATEST SHOWBIZ NEWS - BBC NEWS

SOAP STAR 'TRIED TO END IT ALL' - Thu 18 Mar
Actor Bruce Jones, who played Les Battersby in Coronation Street, grabbed the wheel of his wife's car and threatened to crash it, a court hears.

CULT MUSICIAN CHILTON DIES AT 59 - Thu 18 Mar
Singer and guitarist Alex Chilton, whose band Big Star influenced acts from REM to Primal Scream, dies in New Orleans.

RECORD-BREAKING MONTH FOR IPLAYER - Thu 18 Mar
February 2010 proved a record-breaking month for BBC iPlayer, with an increase of 81 per cent in show requests.

BBC WORLD MUSIC DJ GILLETT DIES - Thu 18 Mar
BBC Radio 3 DJ Charlie Gillett, renowned as a champion of world music, has died aged 68 after a long illness, his family confirms.

HOBBIT FILMING TO BEGIN IN JULY - Thu 18 Mar
Shooting of the long-awaited film version of JRR Tolkien's The Hobbit is set to begin in New Zealand in July.

BANDERAS IN GLOBAL POVERTY FIGHT - Thu 18 Mar
The Spanish-born actor is appointed a Goodwill Ambassador by the United Nations.

JACK WHITE RECORDS WITH JAY-Z - Thu 18 Mar
The White Stripes frontman has revealed that he's recorded a new track with the Brooklyn rapper in a magazine interview.

FRENCH 'GAME SHOW' MIMICS TORTURE - Thu 18 Mar
A French TV documentary shows people in a spoof game show giving what they think are huge electric shocks to contestants.

BULLOCK PULLS OUT OF PREMIERE - Wed 17 Mar
The UK premiere of The Blind Side is scrapped after its Oscar-winning star Sandra Bullock pulls out of the event, organisers say.

FRENCH PHOTOGRAPHER WINS £30,000 PRIZE - Thu 18 Mar
French photographer Sophie Ristelhueber has won this year's Deutsche Borse Photography prize.

TUBE BANKSY WORK REGAINS ITS HALO - Wed 17 Mar
A Banksy poster that was censored for use on the Tube is restored by an unidentified graffiti artist.

RECORD ESTIMATE FOR PICASSO WORK - Wed 17 Mar
A painting owned by Andrew Lloyd Webber's Art Foundation should fetch at least £40m when it is sold in June.

MANTEL ON ORANGE PRIZE LONGLIST - Wed 17 Mar
Booker Prize winner Hilary Mantel is longlisted for this year's Orange Prize for Fiction for her historical novel Wolf Hall.

WE ARE SAILING - CORNISH SEA SHANTY SINGERS NET A RECORD DEAL - Thu 18 Mar
A group of Cornishmen sign a deal with Universal Records after catching the ear of a visiting music mogul.

NET PIRACY TAKES 'TOLL ON JOBS' - Wed 17 Mar
The growth of illegal file-sharing could cost European countries 1.2m jobs and 240bn euros by 2015, an industry report says.

NEW RECORD DEAL FOR JEDWARD - Wed 17 Mar
X Factor finalists John and Edward Grimes have switched record labels after just one single, it is announced.

KEYS AND PEAS LAUNCH WORLD CUP - Wed 17 Mar
Alicia Keys and Black Eyed Peas are to perform at a concert in South Africa that will officially kick off this year's World Cup football tournament.

JACKSON IN 'BIGGEST' RECORD DEAL - Tue 16 Mar
The estate of Michael Jackson agrees a deal worth $200m (£160m) with the record label Sony, US reports say.

COREY HAIM LAID TO REST IN CANADA - Wed 17 Mar
A private funeral service is held in Toronto for actor Corey Haim following his death at the age of 38 last week.

ALICE STAYS TOP OF UK BOX OFFICE - Tue 16 Mar
Fantasy film Alice In Wonderland remains top of the UK and Ireland box office for the second week in a row.

SEGEL 'TO STAR IN MUPPETS MOVIE' - Tue 16 Mar
Forgetting Sarah Marshall star Jason Segel is to star as the lead human actor in the new Muppets film, according to reports.

WINSLET AND SAM MENDES SPLIT - Mon 15 Mar
Actress Kate Winslet and her film director husband Sam Mendes have split up, their lawyers announce.

TV BOSSES SORRY AFTER PORN MIX-UP - Wed 17 Mar
US TV bosses apologise after preview clips of the Playboy channel were accidentally played out on two children's channels in North Carolina.

FAMILY SCATTER PAINTING'S ASHES - Wed 17 Mar
The ashes of the late Norman Painting, best known for playing Phil Archer in BBC Radio 4's The Archers, are scattered in a private ceremony.

BBC TRIUMPHS AT TV AWARDS - Wed 17 Mar
The BBC wins 18 prizes out of 25 main categories at the RTS Awards, including best soap for EastEnders.

KRANKIES BACK AFTER PANTO TUMBLE - Wed 17 Mar
The Krankies return to pantomime in Glasgow for the first time since "Wee Jimmy" almost died in an on-stage accident.

TALKING SHOP - Thu 18 Mar
Meet the man who dresses Cher in her outrageous costumes

IN THE FRAME - Thu 18 Mar
Who carried out the biggest art heist of all time?

SHOCK TELEVISION - Thu 18 Mar
French fake show turns contestants to electrocutioners

UNSUNG HERO - Thu 18 Mar
Primal Scream pay tribute to Alex Chilton

IN PICTURES - Thu 18 Mar
Robert Pattinson on the red carpet

WINSLET SPLIT - Mon 15 Mar
Film couple's career and marriage in profile

GOMP/ARTS - Thu 18 Mar
The soldiers who aren't appearing on British stamps