Will and Kate are 'huge Downton Abbey fans and can't wait for second series'

-Royal couple tell actress they watched the hit ITV show


By Daily Mail Reporter


Despite having one of the busiest year's of their lives, it appears the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge still manage to relax in front of the television from time to time.

The royal couple - who recently returned from their first official overseas trip to Canada and America - have admitted to enjoying the hit ITV period drama Downton Abbey.

The pair made the confession to talented actress Jessica Brown-Findlay - who plays Lady Sybil Crawley in the show - while at a party in Los Angeles.

TV fans: Prince William and Kate, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, have revealed they enjoy watching Downton Abbey


The 21-year-old star told the Sunday Express: 'They said they'd watched the show and were excited to see the second series.

'Prince William is very handsome and Kate is a gorgeous girl. They make a perfect couple. They seemed really at ease and so in love.

'I didn’t think when I was watching the wedding at home on TV that I’d get to meet them. I was nervous the whole night, but what an honour! I’ll never forget that.'

The first series of Downton Abbey hit the TV screens last year.

It was watched by 13 million viewers and sold around the world, transforming Miss Brown-Findlay from an unknown actress into a global star.

Hit show: Jessica Brown-Findlay, left, with fellow Downton Abbey actresses Michelle Dockery and Laura Carmichael


The show has received 11 Emmy nominations and the second series - which is set during the First World War - will return to the screens in September.

Miss Brown-Findlay's character is the youngest daughter of Lord Grantham, who is played by actor Hugh Bonneville in the show.

And she gave some revealing insights into how Lady Sybil's character will develop during the new series.

'She’s still got that rebellious streak in her,' Miss Brown-Findlay told the paper. 'That doesn’t disappear. But with the weight of the First World War comes a lot more responsibility.

'The biggest change in Sybil is in that young naivety of ‘surely everything could change’. She’s forced through her own will and by circumstance to see and experience the real world outside the house.

'It’s great that my character is developing like that. You don’t often get the chance to do that.'

Meanwhile, this year's Emmy Awards promise to be fascinating as two great dames go head to head in a clash of the costume dramas.

Dame Maggie Smith and Dame Eileen Atkins are both nominated in the category for supporting actress in a mini-series or movie for their roles in Downton Abbey and Upstairs, Downstairs respectively.

Veteran actress Jean Marsh is nominated for lead actress in a mini-series or movie after she reprised her role as Rose Buck in the BBC1 remake of the hit show and is up against London-based American actress Elizabeth McGovern, who plays the Countess of Grantham in Downton Abbey.


source:dailymail

Work of art or a pervert's paradise? Risqué 26ft statue of Marilyn Monroe is unveiled in the Windy City

By Amy Oliver


That pose, that dress, the blonde hair, the luscious lips ...

A 26-foot tall statue of Marilyn Monroe towering above tourists in the middle of Chicago was unveiled on Friday to much applause.

Bemused shoppers stopped and stared, a boy tried to crawl up her leg and the men from a wedding party could not resist taking a few photos from all angles.

Scroll down for videos

High and mighty: The curious gather around Seward Johnson's 26ft sculpture of Marilyn Monroe in Chicago


Desperate to keep her identity a secret until Friday, workers who put the statue in place on Thursday had to put a rather unsightly cloth bag over the poor girl's head, albeit it one in red, white and blue.

The statue, by artist Seward Johnson, replicates the actress's famous subway scene in 1955 film The Seven Year Itch and was unveiled on Chicago's Pioneer Court.

In the scene Monroe stands over a subway grate as a breeze from a train passing below blows her skirt over her panties.

It was shot in New York but as the Windy City, Chicago seems like the second best location for such an art work.

Cameras at the ready: While their wives and girlfriends were not there, the men from a wedding party took scores of photos from all different angles

Now THAT'S a Kodak moment! Or at least an iPhone moment

Simply irresistible: A cheeky boy tries to scale her leg while some really enjoy the rear views


It will be on show through the Spring of 2012.

The stainless steel and aluminium sculpture, which weighs a whopping 34,000lbs, has raised more than a few eyebrows.

Not least because visitors to the plaza are at once confronted with Monroe's pert bottom in gleaming white panties and her perfect pins bedecked in white, open-toe kitten heels.

Covered up: A worker puts the finishing touches to the statue on Thursday

What did you do at work today darling? One man touches up the statue's under carriage with paint

Breathtaking views: A worker is seen spraying the statue's panties before the great unveiling on Friday

You missed a bit: Well, Monroe always did have men at her feet


Men have been spotted gawping while their wives get cross and attempt to shield their eyes and lots of people have stopped to take a quick snap of the giantess before she goes public tomorrow.

Not all are happy of course. Abraham Ritchie wrote on Art Chicago Blog the statue was a 'creepy schlock from a fifth-rate sculptor that blights a first-rate public art collection.'

But the Zeller Realty Group, which owns the plaza and now its statue, wants Marilyn to make people think.

...And the real thing: Monroe cools off via the subway in front of Tom Ewell in The Seven Year Itch


'(Paul Zeller) likes to bring in things that cause a conversation,' said a spokesman from the company. 'They might be controversial, but he likes art that makes people think.'

And if that fails at least her skirt will be a good place to shelter from the rain.

Watch the statue midway through construction






source:dailymail

Work of art or a pervert's paradise? Risqué 26ft statue of Marilyn Monroe is unveiled in the Windy City

By Amy Oliver


That pose, that dress, the blonde hair, the luscious lips ...

A 26-foot tall statue of Marilyn Monroe towering above tourists in the middle of Chicago was unveiled on Friday to much applause.

Bemused shoppers stopped and stared, a boy tried to crawl up her leg and the men from a wedding party could not resist taking a few photos from all angles.

Scroll down for videos

High and mighty: The curious gather around Seward Johnson's 26ft sculpture of Marilyn Monroe in Chicago


Desperate to keep her identity a secret until Friday, workers who put the statue in place on Thursday had to put a rather unsightly cloth bag over the poor girl's head, albeit it one in red, white and blue.

The statue, by artist Seward Johnson, replicates the actress's famous subway scene in 1955 film The Seven Year Itch and was unveiled on Chicago's Pioneer Court.

In the scene Monroe stands over a subway grate as a breeze from a train passing below blows her skirt over her panties.

It was shot in New York but as the Windy City, Chicago seems like the second best location for such an art work.

Cameras at the ready: While their wives and girlfriends were not there, the men from a wedding party took scores of photos from all different angles

Now THAT'S a Kodak moment! Or at least an iPhone moment

Simply irresistible: A cheeky boy tries to scale her leg while some really enjoy the rear views


It will be on show through the Spring of 2012.

The stainless steel and aluminium sculpture, which weighs a whopping 34,000lbs, has raised more than a few eyebrows.

Not least because visitors to the plaza are at once confronted with Monroe's pert bottom in gleaming white panties and her perfect pins bedecked in white, open-toe kitten heels.

Covered up: A worker puts the finishing touches to the statue on Thursday

What did you do at work today darling? One man touches up the statue's under carriage with paint

Breathtaking views: A worker is seen spraying the statue's panties before the great unveiling on Friday

You missed a bit: Well, Monroe always did have men at her feet


Men have been spotted gawping while their wives get cross and attempt to shield their eyes and lots of people have stopped to take a quick snap of the giantess before she goes public tomorrow.

Not all are happy of course. Abraham Ritchie wrote on Art Chicago Blog the statue was a 'creepy schlock from a fifth-rate sculptor that blights a first-rate public art collection.'

But the Zeller Realty Group, which owns the plaza and now its statue, wants Marilyn to make people think.

...And the real thing: Monroe cools off via the subway in front of Tom Ewell in The Seven Year Itch


'(Paul Zeller) likes to bring in things that cause a conversation,' said a spokesman from the company. 'They might be controversial, but he likes art that makes people think.'

And if that fails at least her skirt will be a good place to shelter from the rain.

Watch the statue midway through construction






source:dailymail

Royal crumpet! Artist creates collage of Pippa Middleton using 15,000 breakfast snacks

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER

Tasty: Pippa Middleton's bottom and face made from a staggering 15,000 crumpets


It took 15,000 crumpets and 24-hours of work from more than a dozen tireless workers.

But this ingenious tribute to arguably Britain's most famous face and bottom using one of the UK's favourite breakfasts is complete.

Cheeky artist Laura Hadland has proved Royal bridesmaid Pippa Middleton really is a tasty bit of crumpet, using more than 100 jars of spreads, including butter, jam and Marmite to create the shading on the 13 metre by 20 metre giant mosaics.


Working up an appetite: A team of 15 helpers spent over 24 hours designing creating the collages of Pippa's face and bottom


The crumpets themselves weighed more than a ton.

Laura, 28, recreated the iconic wedding day picture after Pippa topped a Beefeater Grill poll to find the female celebrity Britons would most like to 'wake up to breakfast with'.

She secured 21 per cent of the vote in the survey of 2,000 people.


Famous: Workers put the finishing touches to the collage, based in part on the iconic image of Pippa entering Westminster Abbey behind her sister (right)


David Murdin, from Beefeater Grill, said: 'It's no surprise that someone as striking as Pippa has ranked as the country's top bit of crumpet.

'Sadly we may not be able to guarantee Pippa as part of our breakfast offering to guests but feel confident they'll enjoy our very own tasty crumpets and spreads, none-the-less.'

Fearne Cotton came second in the poll ,with 17 per cent of the vote, and Cheryl Cole came third, with 15 per cent.

The least favoured breakfast guests were reality TV star Katie Price and newlywed Kate Moss, both 3 per cent, and Caggie Dunlop, of Made In Chelsea fame, with two per cent.


Pretty: Pippa rides in the carriage from Westminster Abbey towards Buckingham Palace with bridesmaid Margarita Armstrong-Jones on her sister's wedding day


source: dailymail

Royal crumpet! Artist creates collage of Pippa Middleton using 15,000 breakfast snacks

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER

Tasty: Pippa Middleton's bottom and face made from a staggering 15,000 crumpets


It took 15,000 crumpets and 24-hours of work from more than a dozen tireless workers.

But this ingenious tribute to arguably Britain's most famous face and bottom using one of the UK's favourite breakfasts is complete.

Cheeky artist Laura Hadland has proved Royal bridesmaid Pippa Middleton really is a tasty bit of crumpet, using more than 100 jars of spreads, including butter, jam and Marmite to create the shading on the 13 metre by 20 metre giant mosaics.


Working up an appetite: A team of 15 helpers spent over 24 hours designing creating the collages of Pippa's face and bottom


The crumpets themselves weighed more than a ton.

Laura, 28, recreated the iconic wedding day picture after Pippa topped a Beefeater Grill poll to find the female celebrity Britons would most like to 'wake up to breakfast with'.

She secured 21 per cent of the vote in the survey of 2,000 people.


Famous: Workers put the finishing touches to the collage, based in part on the iconic image of Pippa entering Westminster Abbey behind her sister (right)


David Murdin, from Beefeater Grill, said: 'It's no surprise that someone as striking as Pippa has ranked as the country's top bit of crumpet.

'Sadly we may not be able to guarantee Pippa as part of our breakfast offering to guests but feel confident they'll enjoy our very own tasty crumpets and spreads, none-the-less.'

Fearne Cotton came second in the poll ,with 17 per cent of the vote, and Cheryl Cole came third, with 15 per cent.

The least favoured breakfast guests were reality TV star Katie Price and newlywed Kate Moss, both 3 per cent, and Caggie Dunlop, of Made In Chelsea fame, with two per cent.


Pretty: Pippa rides in the carriage from Westminster Abbey towards Buckingham Palace with bridesmaid Margarita Armstrong-Jones on her sister's wedding day


source: dailymail

Royal crumpet! Artist creates collage of Pippa Middleton using 15,000 breakfast snacks

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER

Tasty: Pippa Middleton's bottom and face made from a staggering 15,000 crumpets


It took 15,000 crumpets and 24-hours of work from more than a dozen tireless workers.

But this ingenious tribute to arguably Britain's most famous face and bottom using one of the UK's favourite breakfasts is complete.

Cheeky artist Laura Hadland has proved Royal bridesmaid Pippa Middleton really is a tasty bit of crumpet, using more than 100 jars of spreads, including butter, jam and Marmite to create the shading on the 13 metre by 20 metre giant mosaics.


Working up an appetite: A team of 15 helpers spent over 24 hours designing creating the collages of Pippa's face and bottom


The crumpets themselves weighed more than a ton.

Laura, 28, recreated the iconic wedding day picture after Pippa topped a Beefeater Grill poll to find the female celebrity Britons would most like to 'wake up to breakfast with'.

She secured 21 per cent of the vote in the survey of 2,000 people.


Famous: Workers put the finishing touches to the collage, based in part on the iconic image of Pippa entering Westminster Abbey behind her sister (right)


David Murdin, from Beefeater Grill, said: 'It's no surprise that someone as striking as Pippa has ranked as the country's top bit of crumpet.

'Sadly we may not be able to guarantee Pippa as part of our breakfast offering to guests but feel confident they'll enjoy our very own tasty crumpets and spreads, none-the-less.'

Fearne Cotton came second in the poll ,with 17 per cent of the vote, and Cheryl Cole came third, with 15 per cent.

The least favoured breakfast guests were reality TV star Katie Price and newlywed Kate Moss, both 3 per cent, and Caggie Dunlop, of Made In Chelsea fame, with two per cent.


Pretty: Pippa rides in the carriage from Westminster Abbey towards Buckingham Palace with bridesmaid Margarita Armstrong-Jones on her sister's wedding day


source: dailymail

Princess Charlene of Monaco 'spent honeymoon sleeping 10 MILES away from husband Albert' in different hotel

By Peter Allen


All smiles: Princess Charlene and Prince Albert II of Monaco step out at the Oyster Box Hotel, where they were due to stay, but it has now been claimed the couple slept ten miles apart during their honeymoon


Further embarrassment has been heaped on Prince Albert of Monaco after claims his new wife spent their honeymoon sleeping 10 miles away in a separate hotel.

It follows the news that Albert, 53, and his 33-year-old bride of one week returned home early from their South Africa holiday so he can undertake DNA tests as part of a possible multi-million-pound paternity claim.

In turn, reports of the tests prompted Charlene, a former Olympic swimmer, to try and 'escape' the Mediterranean enclave three times before their glittering marriage.


Now City Press, the third biggest selling newspaper in South Africa, has stirred up the scandal by providing astonishing revelations about their first trip as man and wife.

'It was supposed to be their fairytale honeymoon in Africa, but Princess Charlene slept alone in a bedroom 16km from her prince,' wrote journalist Gavin Prins.

The couple were expected to be staying in a £4,000-a-night suite at the luxurious Oyster Box Hotel in Umhlanga Rocks, near Durban.

Billionaire Albert was said to have booked the President's Suite, set on two floors with an ornate-leafed bed, its own swimming pool and a freestanding marble bath overlooking the Indian Ocean.

Awkward? Princess Charlene and Prince Albert II of Monaco put on a show by kissing each other during their honeymoon in South Africa


But Mr Prins reported that Charlene in fact stayed all alone in a cheaper suite, while Albert went off to sleep 10 miles away.

He wrote: 'It has been confirmed by hotel spokesperson Joanne Hayes that Princess Charlene stayed in the Buthelezi suite… Prince Albert stayed at the Hilton Hotel in Durban.'

The report even suggested that when the couple 'met President Jacob Zuma they arrived in the same car but left in two separate vehicles'.

Miles apart: Princess Charlene stayed at the Oyster Box Hotel, while Prince Albert was at the Hilton Hotel in Durban

Plush: Princess Charlene is said to have stayed at The Oyster Box Hotel, where the couple were supposed to have their honeymoon, alone

Urban: Prince Albert is said to have moved to the Hilton Hotel, in Durban, which is 10 miles away from where his wife slept


Mr Prins added: 'When photographers urged the royal couple to kiss, it was another of those awkward moments - Charlene turned her head away and Prince Albert ended up giving her a peck on the cheek.

'Pictures of Charlene taken this week showed an unhappy woman who rarely smiled. The only time she showed real delight was when Archbishop Desmond Tutu hugged her.

'Charlene and Albert cut short their South African stay on Friday, citing urgent business in Monaco as their reason.'

Results of the DNA tests were not released during the couple's South Africa honeymoon because Charlene could have refused to return to Monaco if they pointed towards Albert having been unfaithful.

Comforting: Princess Charlene shared a moment with South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu during a visit in Cape Town during her honeymoon

Meet and greet: Princess Charlene also met children during several organised trips during her honeymoon in South Africa


Albert has a six-year-old son named Alexandre through Togolese former air hostess Nicole Coste, and a 19-year-old daughter, Jazmin, with Tamara Rotolo, an American estate agent.

Now at least one other woman is expected to claim she too has an illegitimate son with Albert - and, like Ms Coste and Ms Rotolo, she wants millions to help her bring the child up.

A constitutional expert last week suggested to French magazine VSD that Princess Charlene had a 'pact' to produce a legitimate heir with her new husband before the couple can go their separate ways.

'It's the main reason for this peculiar marriage,' said a professor teaching at the lycee Albert 1 in Monaco, adding: 'Once the succession of the dynasty is assured, each of them can be free again. Divorce is a tradition in the Grimaldi family.'

Both of Albert's sisters, Princesses Caroline and Stephanie, have a number of high-profile divorces behind them, while Albert himself has been through numerous failed relationships before finally tying the knot for the first time in his 50s.

Despite confirmation that the DNA tests will take place, and that they had a pre-wedding crisis, Charlene told the latest edition of American Vogue magazine: 'It is a shame that those rumours came at such a bad time, but I think they were timed to sabotage such a happy occasion.

'They are categorical lies. I won't dignify them with any response other than to say that the photographs of me and Albert in love and getting married will speak louder than any vicious gossip and empty rumours.'

The Big Day: The official wedding photograph of Prince Albert II of Monaco and Princess Charlene


source:dailymail

Princess Charlene of Monaco 'spent honeymoon sleeping 10 MILES away from husband Albert' in different hotel

By Peter Allen


All smiles: Princess Charlene and Prince Albert II of Monaco step out at the Oyster Box Hotel, where they were due to stay, but it has now been claimed the couple slept ten miles apart during their honeymoon


Further embarrassment has been heaped on Prince Albert of Monaco after claims his new wife spent their honeymoon sleeping 10 miles away in a separate hotel.

It follows the news that Albert, 53, and his 33-year-old bride of one week returned home early from their South Africa holiday so he can undertake DNA tests as part of a possible multi-million-pound paternity claim.

In turn, reports of the tests prompted Charlene, a former Olympic swimmer, to try and 'escape' the Mediterranean enclave three times before their glittering marriage.


Now City Press, the third biggest selling newspaper in South Africa, has stirred up the scandal by providing astonishing revelations about their first trip as man and wife.

'It was supposed to be their fairytale honeymoon in Africa, but Princess Charlene slept alone in a bedroom 16km from her prince,' wrote journalist Gavin Prins.

The couple were expected to be staying in a £4,000-a-night suite at the luxurious Oyster Box Hotel in Umhlanga Rocks, near Durban.

Billionaire Albert was said to have booked the President's Suite, set on two floors with an ornate-leafed bed, its own swimming pool and a freestanding marble bath overlooking the Indian Ocean.

Awkward? Princess Charlene and Prince Albert II of Monaco put on a show by kissing each other during their honeymoon in South Africa


But Mr Prins reported that Charlene in fact stayed all alone in a cheaper suite, while Albert went off to sleep 10 miles away.

He wrote: 'It has been confirmed by hotel spokesperson Joanne Hayes that Princess Charlene stayed in the Buthelezi suite… Prince Albert stayed at the Hilton Hotel in Durban.'

The report even suggested that when the couple 'met President Jacob Zuma they arrived in the same car but left in two separate vehicles'.

Miles apart: Princess Charlene stayed at the Oyster Box Hotel, while Prince Albert was at the Hilton Hotel in Durban

Plush: Princess Charlene is said to have stayed at The Oyster Box Hotel, where the couple were supposed to have their honeymoon, alone

Urban: Prince Albert is said to have moved to the Hilton Hotel, in Durban, which is 10 miles away from where his wife slept


Mr Prins added: 'When photographers urged the royal couple to kiss, it was another of those awkward moments - Charlene turned her head away and Prince Albert ended up giving her a peck on the cheek.

'Pictures of Charlene taken this week showed an unhappy woman who rarely smiled. The only time she showed real delight was when Archbishop Desmond Tutu hugged her.

'Charlene and Albert cut short their South African stay on Friday, citing urgent business in Monaco as their reason.'

Results of the DNA tests were not released during the couple's South Africa honeymoon because Charlene could have refused to return to Monaco if they pointed towards Albert having been unfaithful.

Comforting: Princess Charlene shared a moment with South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu during a visit in Cape Town during her honeymoon

Meet and greet: Princess Charlene also met children during several organised trips during her honeymoon in South Africa


Albert has a six-year-old son named Alexandre through Togolese former air hostess Nicole Coste, and a 19-year-old daughter, Jazmin, with Tamara Rotolo, an American estate agent.

Now at least one other woman is expected to claim she too has an illegitimate son with Albert - and, like Ms Coste and Ms Rotolo, she wants millions to help her bring the child up.

A constitutional expert last week suggested to French magazine VSD that Princess Charlene had a 'pact' to produce a legitimate heir with her new husband before the couple can go their separate ways.

'It's the main reason for this peculiar marriage,' said a professor teaching at the lycee Albert 1 in Monaco, adding: 'Once the succession of the dynasty is assured, each of them can be free again. Divorce is a tradition in the Grimaldi family.'

Both of Albert's sisters, Princesses Caroline and Stephanie, have a number of high-profile divorces behind them, while Albert himself has been through numerous failed relationships before finally tying the knot for the first time in his 50s.

Despite confirmation that the DNA tests will take place, and that they had a pre-wedding crisis, Charlene told the latest edition of American Vogue magazine: 'It is a shame that those rumours came at such a bad time, but I think they were timed to sabotage such a happy occasion.

'They are categorical lies. I won't dignify them with any response other than to say that the photographs of me and Albert in love and getting married will speak louder than any vicious gossip and empty rumours.'

The Big Day: The official wedding photograph of Prince Albert II of Monaco and Princess Charlene


source:dailymail