If you have something to say...
Say it on the Huffington Post
If you have something to say...
Say it on the Huffington Post
Heading off to play a series of gigs is a little like coming out of hibernation - it's a different way of life. The van is the mothership and the gigs are like the bits in Star Trek when they beam down to a new planet for a bit - without us losing the bloke who you've never seen before. There's the fun of looking up some record shops and old friends who've moved to the places we're visiting - I used to spend time with Anton Newcombe from The Brian Jonestown Massacre when I was living in LA, he's lived in Berlin for a few years and has offered to be out tour guide while we're there.
The collective worship of millions - even billions - across the planet is bound to send you a tiny bit peculiar. Maybe that's what prompted John Lennon to say that the Beatles were 'more popular than Jesus'. Could it be? Is Justin Bieber bigger than God?
When I look back at my time on Shameless over the last three years, I honestly feel a warmth. The shows spirit, the characters, the writing, the crazy story lines, the constant pushing of boundaries. I am filled with a sense of pride, that I was part of such a groundbreaking iconic show. Like they say..." All good things, come to an end.
Whilst many could claim that Eurovision has become dated and over politicised, very few could argue that it produces some of the most dramatic, outlandish and sometimes downright bizarre outfit choices.
So your kid likes acting and singing and wants to be famous? You want them to be the next Harry Potter? Justin Bieber? Well, as a film director I have to say that the first thing you need to do is... STOP!
Force-feeding causes the birds' livers to balloon to up to 10 times their normal size and become diseased with what is known as hepatic steatosis. In addition to being miserably ill with a painful and debilitating disease, the geese can barely breathe because their grotesquely enlarged livers displace their lungs and other internal organs... geese can be seen panting constantly in a vain attempt to suck oxygen into their squashed lungs. Veterinarian Holly Cheever has compared what force-fed birds endure in their final days to being smothered.
This week Eva Longoria invited me to co-chair the Global Gift Gala that she organizes every year in Paris, Cannes, London, Marbella, LA and Mexico. It is an amazingly generous event where she honors a charity and this year they are honoring the charity I established with Mariella Frostrup fighting for gender equality in the world.
So here we are: I'm going to be flying the flag for the United Kingdom at the 58th Eurovision Song Contest this year in Malmo, Sweden. And what's more - I am completely honoured to do it! I have to be honest, I wasn't sure at first - but then it suddenly dawned on me that this is an incredible thing. It's an amazing opportunity to represent your country for doing something you love. In actual fact my husband Robert had represented the UK in the Olympic Games at judo in 1972. So we are two halves of a couple who have both done something for their country. Now that can't be bad!
I am so proud of The Ricky Gervais Show. Not just because of how well it turned out or how successful it was, or the awards, or even how much fun I had producing it. I'm proudest of the fact that it was just another experiment that got out of hand - The Ricky Gervais Show Series Three was released on DVD this week. To celebrate this final chapter I thought I'd tell the lovely readers of The Huffington Post the story of how we got here...
How daring, really, is Angelina Jolie's decision to write about her recent operation? Is she really rebelling against celebrity culture or conforming to it? I think it's the latter
Angelina Jolie's personal account of being told she has a fault in her BRCA1 gene and decision to have a double mastectomy to reduce the risk of her developing breast cancer has struck a chord with many individuals and families.
I would argue that too many businesses are reluctant to take the risk on a young person without any experience. Turned on its head, that small risk could actually be a life-changing opportunity to set a young person on course for a truly bright future. So, I think every business needs to consider whether they are doing enough to support young people in their communities to first gain work experience, and then to move into employment. We cannot expect schools or parents alone to support a young person into work. In my view, businesses are a vital part of the equation.
Sadly, there are millions of humans who want to see rhinos dead. Most of them are in the Far East. Humans who think the horn of the white or black rhino can be ground down and ingested to improve their sex lives, cure cancer or ward off evil spirits. Humans who are prepared to pay heavily-armed poachers to shoot and maim these animals, hack off their horn and ship it half way around the world to China. It's the new drug trade in Africa, a multi-million dollar industry that commands $65,000 a kilo for rhino horn. An average rhino horn is about 5kg. It's not hard to do the maths.
I was giving a lift to one of the greatest Bollywood legends of all time, Indian cinema's legendary heartthrob, the man we called our Gregory Peck. Dev Anand needed a lift to his hotel and I was the only one who could easily and quickly get my car our of the rammed, snow filled car park, (damn why hadn't I worn my nice sari?)
If two of a nation's biggest cultural icons are face-changing aliens it should be considered more than a coincidence. Born in the public imagination within six years of each other David Bowie and Doctor Who have taken strangely similar journeys.
I've just hit 40. People use words like 'hit' when talking about this age (you 'turn' 21 or 30). Personally I'm rather enjoying it. Bits of me are aching, but it's ok. In the days leading up to my 40th I got tweets from people saying 'hey, it's just a number' and I noticed all of these were sent by people whose avatar wasn't their own face. I do seem to have a lot more ointments and lotions now. I wish Black and Decker or De-Walt did them for men so my bathroom would look a bit more manly.
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