Search This Blog

dinsdag 1 januari 2013

Celebrity Big Brother: Jim Davidson says he's not going in... but we don't believe him!


Jim Davidson has denied going into Celebrity Big Brother 2013, although we’re not quite sure we buy his comments!

It was reported last month that the controversial comic was being lined up to take part in the show, with bosses hoping for fireworks.

An insider claimed: “Jim often says what he thinks, even if his views are at odds with most people.

“He got himself into a lot of trouble when he was on Hell’s Kitchen with Brian [Dowling] but hopefully he will be on better behaviour with him this time. It’s true to say there is no love lost between the pair of them but Brian is a professional and this is part of his job.”

However Jim ‘took to Twitter’ yesterday to claim he wasn’t taking part.

Asked by his followers if the rumours about him entering the house were true, he wrote: “Not had the call yet. I don’t think it’s me!”

And after being told the bad news that bookies had made him an outsider to win even before the launch night, he replied: “Don’t you have to be in the show to be betted on? ”

We’re not convinced!

Celebrity Big Brother starts on Thursday night at 9PM on Channel 5.


Charlie Sheen Apologizes, Kind of, for Homophobic Slur


Charlie Sheen has managed to get one more public relations gaffe in before the year runs out. The star of the FX sitcom “Anger Management” has been caught on video delivering a homophobic slur while emceeing the opening of a rooftop bar at a hotel in Mexico.

"How we doing?" the 47-year-old actor can be heard asking the crowd at the El Ganzo Hotel in San Jose del Cabo, near Cabo San Lucas, after taking the microphone Friday night. "Lying bunch of f---got a---s, how we doing?"

The incident came to light Saturday via a video posted by TMZ. Sheen later apologized for the slurs, telling the site, “I meant no ill will and intended to hurt no one and I apologize if I offended anyone."

But the sincerity of his mea culpa came into question with his follow-up, “I meant to say maggot but I have a lisp."

Sheen was on stage to introduce several music acts, including guitarist Slash.

One celeb who probably wishes he hadn’t made the scene would be Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. The mayor’s presence at the bash got the full Twitter splash on Saturday, when Sheen tweeted a photo of himself (above) and the politician with the message, “"From Boyle Heights 2 Mayor of LA..! @hotelelganzo 2 party w/SHEEN at SheenZ..! Antonio Villaraigosa knows how to party!"


AMC Networks, Time Warner Cable Agree to Temporary Extension for IFC, WE tv


Could the cheer and goodwill of the holiday season be bringing a cease-fire in the cable carriage wars?

At least for the time being, it seems so.

AMC Networks and Time Warner Cable have agreed to a temporary extension for TWC to carry AMC's WE tv and IFC, a Time Warner spokeswoman told TheWrap on Monday.

The extension, which comes ahead of a midnight deadline, will give the two companies more time to hammer out a longer-term deal, and prevents IFC and WE tv from going dark for TWC customers early next year.

It is not known how long the extension lasts for, or how close the two sides are to reaching a more lasting pact.

Meanwhile, as TWC customers await word on how long they'll be able to keep watching such IFC and WE tv fare as "Portlandia" (pictured) and "Bridezillas," TWC said Monday that it has come to a more permanent agreement with Crown Media Family Networks to carry Hallmark-related programming.

Like the TWC/AMC stopgap measure, details on the Hallmark agreement were scant.

"Time Warner Cable and Crown Media Family Networks have reached a mutually beneficial long-term agreement for carriage of Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movie Channel," TWC and Crown said in a joint statement. "Additional terms of the agreement were not disclosed."


Union J to hire JLS singer Oritsé Williams as manager?


Union J are rumoured to be considering signing up JLS star Oritsé Williams as their manager.

The boyband are trying to decide whether to hire Williams or their X Factor mentor Louis Walsh for the role, according to The Sun.

A source said: "The boys had a massive wobble over Louis Walsh.

"Louis has management experience but Oritsé has youth and the knowledge of being in their shoes on his side.

"People think Louis is past it for a band like this."

Union J - who finished fourth in the latest X Factor series - recently signed a record deal with Sony.

Williams's JLS bandmate JB Gill won the Christmas edition of Strictly Come Dancing on Christmas Day.


The 5 Best TV Shows of 2012


"Louie" is still TV's best comedy. The final season of "30 Rock" is filled with everything we love about "30 Rock." "Homeland" has some magnificent acting, and who am I to argue with all those Emmy wins?

But none of them made my list of the five best shows of 2012. Neither did very good shows like "Girls," "Modern Family," "Veep" or "Justified."

"Nashville" is my favorite new drama -- and maybe the best network drama overall -- but it didn't make the list either, despite an engaging mix of soapy stories, engaging stories and gorgeous songs.

Maybe next year.

The word "best" is subjective. But these are the five shows I never, ever miss. I didn't choose them for the list. They chose me. I can't miss them. I can't go to sleep without thinking about them. I can't believe the time is near that one of them will end.

Here they are.

AMC
5. "The Walking Dead"
We hear a lot about mindless hordes making hits of terrible shows. But maybe the masses aren't so mindless after all. "The Walking Dead" began its best season this year even as millions of new viewers discovered the show, making it television's top-rated drama. (The AMC series also has a legitimate shot at becoming the top-rated scripted show.) The show has finally lived up to the compulsively readable comics that inspired it -- and it hasn't hurt that their writer, Robert Kirkman, is one of its executive producers. Everything about "The Walking Dead" came together in season 3: The acting is top-notch. The pacing is ferocious. And the zombies have never looked so revolting.  Of course, nothing good ever lasts forever. Showrunner Glen Mazzara, who has worked hard to achieve the show's fast pace, is leaving at the end of the season. Whoever takes over will have a very hard act to follow.

AMC
4. "Mad Men"
I'm grateful that the show's fifth season even happened. Creator Matthew Weiner threatened to walk in a contract dispute with AMC, leading to a 17-month break between seasons. But Weiner and his team seem to have used every spare second coming up with mesmerizing moments, from Jessica Pare's performance of "Zou Bisou Bisou" to the British-to-the-end tragedy of Lane Pryce (Jared Harris.) "Mad Men" was exquisite this season. Even the rare missteps (we still don't believe Joan would sleep with a client like that) were welcome, because they helped us recognize the perfection of nearly every other scene. Why is an almost-perfect show only at No. 4? Because I'm spoiled by four past brilliant seasons of "Mad Men." The wow factor has worn off, and now "Mad Men" is only coasting on its excellence.

HBO
3. "Game of Thrones"
No show does better spectacles. Actually, no anything does better spectacles. This was the year "Game of Thrones" sank an armada with green fire. But the show has also created a new world that feels vivid, fantastical and authentic enough to be terrifying. It's a great series if you like dragons and swordplay, but an even better one if you like cutting dialogue and politics. Every second Tyrion Lannister (Peter Dinklage) appears on screen feels like a gift. And despicable teen king Joffrey Baratheon (Jack Gleeson) is single-handedly making me reconsider my position on the death penalty for minors. Novelist George R.R. Martin's thousands of pages gave showrunners D.B. Weiss and David Benioff plenty to work with, but also handed the show scads of information to convey. The writers have made a wonderful game of it, giving us backstory through sex scenes, swordfights -- anything but voiceovers.

AMC
2. "Breaking Bad"
Creator Vince Gilligan seems to be every bit as diabolical as his antihero, Walter White (Bryan Cranston). But Gilligan seems to be having a lot more fun. "Breaking Bad" is probably the best show ever made (sorry, "The Wire,") but this season felt like the ramp up to the real chaos: The final eight episodes air next year. One of the most thrilling things about "Breaking Bad" is how quickly its clear, methodical storytelling takes sudden, violent turns -- but the simple moments can be just as devastating, like the one in a bathroom that ended the first half of season five. Every turn, no matter how shocking, is earned, through TV's most naturalistic acting and  storytelling as carefully plotted as any I've seen. (Yes, this is the third AMC show on this list, which is especially impressive given the network's difficult relationships with its showrunners. Let's hope it will learn to keep them happy.)

HBO
1. "Boardwalk Empire"
"Boardwalk Empire" is even good at being boring. Despite its cavalcade of jumpy gangsters, the Prohibition gangster epic could easily have been one of those shows where dandy people speak pretty lines. In past seasons, it sometimes has been. But this year, "Boardwalk" found the perfect mix of romanticism, crime, politics and tragedy. Especially tragedy. It seemed impossible that the show could stay as good as it was in its first two seasons after dispatching one of its most beloved characters. But somehow, in season 3, it got better. Sometimes it lulled us into thinking nothing was happening -- what's this bit about the Treasury Department? -- until someone was doused in gasoline. It was beautiful and grotesque. Steve Buscemi's Nucky Thompson found himself, Al Capone (Stephen Graham) made friends with Chalkie White (Michael K. Williams), a beautiful girl perished in an horrible, gorgeous explosion. And am I the only one who just realized the kid who did the botched heroin delivery grows up to be Bugsy Siegel?


Once Upon a Time Casts Walking Dead Actress — But Who Is She Playing?


Once Upon a Time is adding Sonequa Martin-Green to its ranks for Season 2 — if not beyond.

We have  learned that the actress, whose TV credits include The Walking Dead and The Good Wife, will appear this season in multiple episodes as Tamara. No further details on the character were made available, though previous intel indicates that Once was initially angling to cast an African-American with a British accent in the part, and that Tamara could spill over into Season 3 of the ABC drama.

Martin-Green recently debuted on The Walking Dead, just before the hiatus, as Sasha, one of the prison newcomers Carl sequestered from his group. On The Good Wife, she enjoyed a run as Courtney, the assistant Alicia poached from Martha Plimpton’s Patti Nyholm. She also played Army Wives‘ Kanessa.

Once Upon a Time resumes Season 2 this Sunday at 8/7c. What’s your knee-jerk speculation on the mysterious “Tamara”?


CBS' 'The Job' Gets Premiere Date


"Survivor" maestro Mark Burnett's latest reality TV venture, "The Job," will premiere Feb. 8 at 8 p.m. on CBS, the network said Thursday.

The series, executive produced by Burnett and Michael Davies (of "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" renown) and Jay Bienstock, will give contestants the chance to score jobs at prestigious American companies through several rounds of elimination challenges that will be observed by a panel of executives. As representatives from companies offer the competitors positions, the candidates will have to decide if they'll take the jobs or continue on in pursuit of the big gig.

Former "The View" co-host Lisa Ling will host "The Job," which is produced by Sony Pictures Television and Embassy Row.

CBS will announce the featured companies participating in the series early next year.

"The Job" will air in the time period of the network's other work-related reality series, "Undercover Boss," which returns April 19.


Rylan Clark already favourite to win Celebrity Big Brother


Former X Factor star Rylan Clark is favourite to win Celebrity Big Brother.

Although the lineup for the Channel 5 reality show has not been officially announced, Clark already has odds of 3/1 of winning the series.

Clark made it through to the quarter finals of the ITV singing competition but bookmakers predict that he will emerge victorious from the Big Brother house.

According to Ladbrokes, he is in front of Ryan Moloney, famous for playing Toadfish in Neighbours, and jockey Frankie Dettori, who both have odds of 5/1.

Former EastEnders star Gillian Taylforth, Coronation Street's Sam Robertson and Steps singer Claire Richards follow them with odds of 8/1.

The current odds for the winner of Celebrity Big Brother 2013 are as follows:

Rylan Clark 3/1
Ryan Moloney (Toadie) / Frankie Dettori 5/1
Gillian Taylforth / Sam Robertson / Claire Richards 8/1
Tricia Penrose 10/1
Lacey Banghard 12/1
Heidi Montag / Spencer Pratt 14/1
Paula Hamilton / Jim Davidson 20/1


10 Most Anticipated New Shows for Midseason 2013


Did you know that when the clock strikes January and 2012 calls it a year, the network TV season continues? It's true, and those in the know call it "the midseason." That's when the reinforcements arrive to take the place of their fallen brethren (R.I.P. Made in Jersey) and shows that just didn't fit into the fall lineup get their chance to shine with less promotion than the new fall series did. And to cable networks, the midseason is known as "just another time of the year because we don't play by stupid network rules because we're cooler than that." And to us it means that a bunch of brand-spankin'-new shows will be released into the wild.

But with so many new shows knocking on your DVR's front door, you might need to know which ones to let into your living room. Here's a list of the ones we're most looking forward to inviting in.

10. Africa (Discovery)

When it's on: Tuesdays starting January 8
Who's in it: Animals and things
What it's about: The creators of Planet Earth and Life could make a documentary series about the crisper drawer in a refrigerator and make it fascinating, but for their latest project, they took their HD cameras and patience to that giant continent in the middle of your world map. There, they stalked and filmed rhinos, cheetahs, chimps, lizards, giraffes, and other critters you've only seen in boxes of Animal Crackers. Fire up your viewing-enhancement goodies and learn a thing or two.

9. Out There (IFC)

When it's on: February 2013
Who's in it: Ummm.. we're not sure?
What it's about: This is a bit of a mystery project to us, but would you rather see ABC's Family Tools on this list? NO. IFC is making great original television, and this animated show from South Park lead animator Ryan Quincy looks like a trip. It's about young guys (or monster-beings, whatever they are) growing up in that awkward time between childhood and adolescence. This one is for indie animation fans.

8. Zero Hour (ABC)

When it's on: Wednesdays starting February 13
Who's in it: Anthony Edwards, Scott Michael Foster, Addison Timlin, Jacinda Barrett
What it's about: Is it okay to anticipate a show that looks like it's going to be a complete disaster, simply to get your own sinister and perverse kicks? Yes. Possibly the next The Event, Zero Hour stars Anthony Edwards as one of those geeky conspiracy theorists with a way-too-hot wife who gets abducted over a very important clock that may have been built by Nazis and I'm just gonna take a shot and say aliens are involved, too.

7. Legit (FX)

When it's on: Thursdays starting January 17
Who's in it: Jim Jeffries, DJ Qualls, Dan Bakkedahl
What it's about: Australian comedian Jim Jefferies stars as Australian comedian Jim Jefferies in this raunchy comedy about a guy trying to grow up and be "legit." Expect misadventures aplenty with his friend Steve and Steve's crippled brother (played by Qualls). There will be dick jokes.

6. The Carrie Diaries (The CW)

When it's on: Mondays starting January 14
Who's in it: AnnaSophia Robb, Austin Butler, Chloe Bridges, Brendan Dooling, Katie Findlay, Ellen Wong
What it's about: Do you, like, remember the '80s? Fluorescent sunglasses, asymmetrical hair, weird pants, popular music played by people pushing buttons on a keyboard... you know, kinda like the cool kids today who think they're original and ironic and hip because they're stomping on our childhoods by listening to that "classical music" known as New Order. The CW goes into Depeche Mode with a prequel to Sex and the City that follows a teenage Carrie Bradshaw as she lives a life of floozily cavorting around New York City and making out with the fresh meat at her high school. Expect every single high-school plotline you've seen elsewhere on the network but flair'd up with terrible fashion and "Now That's What I Call Music: '80s Edition" turning your ears into blood fountains on repeat.


5. Defiance (Syfy)

When it's on: April 2013
Who's in it: Grant Bowler, Julie Benz, Tony Curran, Jaime Murray, Mia Kirshner
What it's about: This massive project for Syfy is a big risk and harkens back to the old days of when Syfy was SciFi and the network was dedicated to science-fiction. Defiance is set in the near future and plays "What if?" with a collective of alien species trying to move to Earth after their sun explodes. It's basically a metaphor for immigration except this time, Ellis Island is closed, bitches. *cocks shotgun* Expect impressive special effects and a unique video-game tie-in, too.

4. Hannibal (NBC)

When it's on: Midseason date TBD
Who's in it: Hugh Dancy, Mads Mikkelsen, Caroline Dhavernas, Laurence Fishburne
What it's about: What happens when TV weirdo Bryan Fuller, the same man who brought the fluffy cutesy-wutesy Pushing Daisies and Wonderfalls to the small screen, adapts a prequel to The Silence of the Lambs for NBC? We're betting on really weird stuff. This chapter follows FBI criminal profiler Will Graham and his early relationship with forensic psychiatrist Hannibal Lecter pre-fava beans and Chianti.

3. Continuum (Syfy)

When it's on: Mondays starting January 14
Who's in it: Rachel Nichols, Victor Webster, Erik Knudsen, Stephen Lobo, Roger Cross
What it's about: Continuum has already aired on Canada's Showcase but is being imported for American audiences because it's actually quite good. Rachel Nichols stars as a cop from the year 2077 who is accidentally time-traveled back to 2012 along with a group of escaped terrorists. The bad guys are trying to change the future by changing the past, and the hot cop works with a young tech genius to make sure they don't. Intriguing questions about terrorism, right and wrong, and the dangers of out-of-control corporations abound!

2. The Following (Fox)

When it's on: Mondays starting January 21
Who's in it: Kevin Bacon, James Purefoy, Maggie Grace, Natalie Zea
What it's about: The highest-profile network show of the midseason will also be its bloodiest and Baconest. Kevin Bacon stars as an alcoholic former FBI agent who gets pulled back into the job when a serial killer (a fantastic James Purefoy) he put away starts killing again in a unique way: by recruiting a cult of copycats via his blog or Facebook or something online related! We've seen the pilot and it's some dark shiznit that your grandmother will not like.

1. The Americans (FX)

When it's on: Wednesdays starting January 30
Who's in it: Keri Russell, Matthew Rhys, Noah Emmerich
What it's about: Russell and Rhys star as a couple of Russian KGB spies who live in 1980s suburban America in this drama that will quench your thirst for more Homeland. They pose as a married couple so that they can become deeply embedded sleeper agents, but will they end up being a real couple? Will they end up starting a real family? Will they end up becoming real Americans? And will this end up being a really good show? It's on FX and doesn't star Charlie Sheen, so we say yes.


Simon Cowell 'wants Kate Moss as X Factor style consultant'


Simon Cowell reportedly wants to hire Kate Moss as a style consultant on the next X Factor series.

The TV producer is said to be hoping to land the British model to help with contestants' fashion choices, while also bringing in new advertising deals for the show, reports The Mirror.

A source claimed: "Simon is looking at ways of refreshing the show and one idea he will bring to the table is getting Kate Moss on board.

"He knows how important the styling of the ­contestants is and having a supermodel and a world-famous name on board would certainly raise the bar.

"Kate could give the contestants advice and ideas on how they want to look and also how to look after themselves and still look great in the years ahead."

Cowell's spokesperson is quoted as saying that "no firm plans had been made" over Moss's role, but that meetings will be held in January.

The X Factor producers are rumoured to be planning big changes for the next UK series following a further dip in the ratings for its latest run.

Rihanna was recently named as a potential new judge on the panel, while Digital Spy readers have voted for Nicole Scherzinger to return next year.


Development Update: The 1st of January


HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER (CBS) - The Eye and producer 20th Century Fox Television are reportedly set to move forward with a ninth season of the veteran comedy. Said development is the result of deals being worked out with its five principal cast members - Jason Segel, Josh Radnor, Cobie Smulders, Neil Patrick Harris and Alyson Hannigan - as well as co-creators Craig Thomas and Carter Bays. All parties were game for another season, save for Segel who "got turned around today at the last second." Due to the holiday weekend however, no formal announcement is expected until next week at the earliest. (Deadline.com)

SHORELINE (E!, New!) - Carolyn Ingber ("The Mentalist") has sold a new drama to the cable channel about "the golden child of a small coastal town in South Carolina who, after a scandal in New York, returns home to see that a major Hollywood primetime soap, The Shore Line Yacht Club, is the biggest employer in town." Fox Television Studios is behind the hour, with Becky Hartman Edwards ("Switched at Birth") on board as an executive producer. (Deadline.com)

WHEN THE WOMEN COME OUT TO DANCE (USA) - Stephen Root and Cotter Smith have both boarded the drama pilot, about "a Miami businessman (Bryan Greenberg) who, contemplating a run for political office, tries to increase his chances of being elected by marrying a Colombian woman (Stephanie Sigman)." The former will play Avery Boomer, "a savvy political power broker, long-time Miami campaign manager, and family friend who decides to take on Billy's political aspirations"; while Smith will guest as Pruitt, "a wealthy U.S. senator and the father of Billy's ex, Melody (Amanda Schull)." Universal Cable Productions-based Hypnotic and executive producers Nicolas Falacci and Cheryl Heuton are behind the hour, which is based on Elmore Leonard's short story of the same name. (TVLine.com)

CHOSEN (FX, New!) - "Eastbound & Down" executive producers Danny McBride, Jody Hill and David Gordon Green are set to re-team for a new animated comedy about "a rapper who comes out of the joint with a new message and new skills - which he will use in his quest for redemption and domination." Grant Dekernion will pen the script to the project, which has a pilot commitment, as well as voice the lead role. Floyd County Productions and FX Productions will co-produce alongside the aforementioned trio's Rough House Pictures banner. (Deadline.com)

L.A. COMPLEX, THE (The CW) - The netlet has formally passed on a third season of the Canadian import. Original broadcaster Bell Media pulled the plug earlier this month, however producer Epitome Pictures had hoped to continue the series on The CW. The show's final two episodes aired on September 24, averaging a modest 520,000 viewers. (Deadline.com)

LEGENDS (TNT) - Cyrus Voris and Ethan Reiff ("Eleventh Hour") has been tapped as showrunners of the potential drama, about a deep-cover operative named Martin Odum (Sean Bean), who has an uncanny ability to transform himself into a different person for each job. They'll serve as executive producers alongside Howard Gordon, Jeffrey Nachmanoff, Alexander Cary and Jonathan Levin for Fox 21. Steve Harris, Amber Valletta, Rob Mayes, Tina Majorino and Lux Haney Jardine also star. (Deadline.com)

SHERWOOD (The CW, New!) - Tze Chun ("Cashmere Mafia") has sold a period drama to the netlet "set in 1072 England and revolves around a young noblewoman who sets out to free her serf boyfriend, who has been wrongfully imprisoned by ruthless Norman occupiers. Seeing help from the vanished Robin of Locksley, she inadvertently reunites - and joins - the fabled Robin Hood and his Merry Men, inspiring new hope for the oppressed people of Nottingham." CBS Television Studios is behind the hour with Dan Jinks executive producing. (Deadline.com)

SUPER FUN NIGHT (ABC) - John Riggi ("30 Rock") is set to helm the comedy pilot's single-camera incarnation. Rebel Wilson, Lisa Lapira and Lauren Ash star in the project, about three nerdy female friends on a quest to have "super fun" every Friday night. Wilson penned the half-hour, which comes from the Warner Bros. Television-based Conaco Productions. Kelen Coleman and Kevin Bishop also star. Mark Cendrowski helmed the original multi-camera version for CBS during the last development cycle. (Deadline.com)

GATES, THE (NBC) - Kathleen Rose Perkins, Diana Maria Riva, John Grisetti and Justin Chon are the first to be cast in the comedy pilot, based on the U.K. series about the hijinks that ensue when parents drop off and pick up their kids at school each day. Perkins will play the type-A Helen (Perkins), "who just moved to town with her husband Mark and their eight year-old daughter for her big new job"; with Riva as Lindsay, "the head of the PTA who is very easily pissed off"; Grisetti as Nat, "the young-ish school principal, who thinks he's beloved"; and Chon as a "manny" who serves as a buddy/confidant to Mark. Marc Buckland is helming the 20th Century Fox Television-based half-hour from a script by Cathy Yuspa and Josh Goldsmith. (Deadline.com)

S.H.I.E.L.D. (ABC) - Chloe Bennet ("Nashville") will round out of the cast of the pilot, a drama set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, following the small screen adventures of the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division, better known as S.H.I.E.L.D. She'll play Skye, "a confident woman who is slightly obsessed with superhero culture and the shadow organizations that exist within it." Ming-Na, Clark Gregg, Brett Dalton, Elizabeth Henstridge and Ian De Caestecker also star in the ABC Studios-based hour, from Jed Whedon, Maurissa Tancharoen and director Joss Whedon. (THR.com)

TWILIGHT ZONE, THE (New!) - Bryan Singer ("Mockingbird Lane") is looking to revive the anthology franchise, pending a deal with creator Rod Serling's estate. He'll executive produce and potentiall direct the project, which has yet to be pitched to the networks, for CBS Television Studios. The search is underway for a writer to pen the script. Concurrently, director Matt Reeves and writer Jason Rothenberg are spearheading a feature incarnation at Warner Bros. Pictures. (Deadline.com)

UNTITLED MICHAEL J. FOX PROJECT (NBC) - Wendell Pierce ("Treme") has joined the cast of the Michael J. Fox-led comedy, about a husband and father of three from New York City dealing with family, career, and challenges - including Parkinson's - all loosely drawn from Fox's real life. He'll play Mike's boss Harris, "a slick, twice divorced man." Will Gluck is helming the pilot, which was ordered directly to series back in August. Sam Laybourne co-wrote the script alongside Gluck. (Deadline.com)

UNTITLED SEAN HAYES PROJECT (NBC, New!) - Sean Hayes ("Will & Grace") has inked a new deal with the Peacock to star in a potential multi-camera comedy at the network. Victor Fresco ("Better Off Ted") is penning the half-hour, which "centers on Sean (Hayes), who must figure out how to parent his 14-year-old daughter, who just moved in, while navigating a temperamental new boss at work." They'll both also executive produce alongside Todd Milliner for the Universal Television-based Hazy Mills Productions. (Deadline.com)

STICK FLY (HBO, New!) - Lydia R. Diamond's play - about "the secrets of prejudice, hypocrisy and adultery that are exposed during an African-American family's weekend at Martha's Vineyard" - is being developed as a drama by the pay channel. Diamond herself is set to pen the hour and executive produce alongside Alicia Keys and Nelle Nugent. Dule Hill, Mekhi Phifer and Tracie Thoms starred in the Broadway production, which wrapped back in February. (THR.com)

TURF (Starz, New!) - Patrick Macmanus has sold a new drama to the pay channel "charting the birth of hip-hop from the violence of gang life in 1970s Bronx." He'll write and executive produce the hour. No studio was indicated. (Deadline.com)

UNTITLED NATASHA LYONNE PROJECT (FOX, New!) - Natasha Lyonne ("New Girl") is set to star in a potential comedy at the network about Stella (Lyonne) "who, fresh out of rehab and committed to starting a new life as a sober, responsible adult, is forced to move in with her conservative brother and young family." Alex Barnow and Marc Firek ("Mr. Sunshine") are penning the half-hour for Sony Pictures Television where they'll executive produce alongside 3 Arts Entertainment's Dave Becky and Jonathan Berry. Lyonne will also receive a producing credit. (Deadline.com)

AMERICAN GUNS (Discovery) - The cable channel has pulled the plug on the reality series, about a family of gun makers in Denver, after two seasons. Said decision reportedly was made a while ago, but only made public after Friday's elementary school shooting in a Connecticut. The show's 16-episode sophomore run averaged 1.135 million viewers and a 0.5 rating in adults 18-49. Gurney Productions was behind the series. (FoxNews.com)

BETWEEN TWO KINGS (ABC, New!) - Jeff Kahn has sold a new comedy to the Alphabet about "a divorced and devoted father with sole custody of his 11-year-old son who moves into his narcissistic father's house to care for his ailing dad and finds himself torn between the constant needs of both his self-centered father and his demanding son." The project is set up at Ben Stiller's ABC Studios-based Red Hour Television with Stiller, Debbie Liebling and Stuart Cornfeld executive producing alongside Kahn. (Deadline.com)

GALLERINA (E!, New!) - Michelle McGrath has sold a new drama to the cable channel about "a young woman determined to make her name at the Bettencourt Gallery, which symbolizes L.A. as the prestigious new center of the art world." FremantleMedia North America is behind the hour with Watermark Pictures' Mark Waters and Jessica Tuchinsky as well as Tollin Productions' Mike Tollin among the executive producers. The latter company's Ben Spector also serves as a co-executive producer. (Deadline.com)

HOT MESS (MTV) - Jake Sandvig ("Weeds") has joined the cast of the comedy pilot, about Amanda Marshall (Annabelle Stephenson), "who is caught between her current and former boyfriend, and her close circle of friends from college." He'll take over for Matthew Atkinson as Nick, "a member of Amanda's crew who is a veteran womanizer with no problems getting girls to fall in his lap." No reason was given for the change. Production on the pilot, from Lauren Iungerich, starts today. Johnny Pacar, Mathew Botuchis and Shoshana Bush also star. (Deadline.com)

LEGENDS (TNT) - Steve Harris ("Awake") has boarded the drama pilot, about a deep-cover operative named Martin Odum (Sean Bean), who has an uncanny ability to transform himself into a different person for each job. He'll play Yates, "the director of the DCO Task Force who reinstates Martin to an undercover job." Amber Valletta, Lux Haney Jardine, Rob Mayes and Tina Majorino co-star in the Fox 21-based hour, from director David Semel, writers Howard Gordon, Jeffrey Nachmanoff and Mark Bomback and based on a book by master spy novelist Robert Littell. (Deadline.com)

SUPER FUN NIGHT (ABC) - Kevin Bishop is set to reprise his role on the comedy pilot, about three nerdy female friends - Kimmie (Rebel Wilson), Helen-Alice (Lisa Lapira) and Marika (Lauren Ash) - on a quest to have "super fun" every Friday night. He'll play Richard, "a recent transplant to Kimmie's office who ignores her to focus on her attractive co-worker Felicity (Kelen Coleman)." The Warner Bros. Television-based Conaco Productions is behind the single-camera project, which was shot as a multi-camera effort during the last development cycle at CBS. (Deadline.com)

UNTITLED TOM GORMICAN/RICHIE KEEN PROJECT (FOX, New!) - Tom Gormican and Richie Keen have booked a new comedy at the network about Richie, "a mediocre professional tennis player who returns to his college town, the scene of his greatness, in order to reboot his life, only to be caught between a lifestyle he never got to live - embodied by his carefree, bar-owning, younger brother Tom - and Kirsten, the love of his life he will have to grow up in order to get." Universal Television-based Deedle-Dee Productions is behind the half-hour with Greg Daniels and Tracy Katsky executive producing alongside 3 Arts Entertainment's Howard Klein and Oly Obst. (Deadline.com)

YOU'RE NOT DOING IT RIGHT (ABC, New!) - Michael Ian Black is set to topline a potential comedy at the Alphabet about "modern marriage and parenting and takes a hard look at what happens when you wake up, look around, and don't recognize the life you are living as your own." Said effort, to be penned by Black, is based on his recent book of the same name, subtitled "Tales of Marriage, Sex, Death, and Other Humiliations." ABC Studios-based Red Hour Television is behind the single-camera project with Ted Schachter, Ben Stiller, Debbie Liebling and Stuart Cornfeld executive producing alongside Black. (Deadline.com)

ALMIGHTY JOHNSONS, THE (Syfy, New!) - The cable channel is looking to import James Griffin and Rachel Lang's New Zealand drama, about Axl Johnson, "who on his 21st birthday discovers he and his family members are reincarnated Norse gods." Chris Dingess ("Chaos") is spearheading the project, which is set up at Entertainment One. All3Media's South Pacific Pictures was behind the original incarnation. (Deadline.com)

FOSTERS, THE (NBC, New!) - Gary Anthony Williams ("Boston Legal") is set to star in a potential comedy at the Peacock about a father with numerous foster children. He'll also co-write the half-hour alongside Sindy McKay based on an idea they conceived with Larry Swerdlove and Scott Ward, all of whom will serve as co-executive producers. Al Roker is also on board to executive produce via his Al Roker Entertainment banner, as is Tracie Brennan. No studio was indicated. (Deadline.com)

HELIX (Syfy, New!) - Ronald D. Moore ("Battlestar Galactica") is developing a new drama at the network about "a team of scientists investigating a possible disease outbreak at an Antarctic research facility." Said effort is set up at Sony Pictures Television, home to Moore's overall deal. (Deadline.com)

HOW THE F--- AM I NORMAL (ABC) - Writer Adam F. Goldberg and director Seth Gordon's project - "a family comedy set in the '80s that centers on an in-your-face mother and hot-tempered father who love their three eccentric kids so much, they can't bear to see them grow up" - has formally been ordered to pilot by the Alphabet. Said duo is executive producing alongside Doug Robinson for the Sony Pictures Television-based Happy Madison Productions. Bill Wee is co-executive producing. (Deadline.com)

LEGENDS (TNT) - Amber Valletta, Rob Mayes, Tina Majorino and Lux Haney Jardine have all been cast in the drama pilot, about a deep-cover operative named Martin Odum (Sean Bean), who has an uncanny ability to transform himself into a different person for each job. Valletta will play Martin's ex-wife and mother to preteen Aiden (Jardine) with Mayes as Troy, "a former Special Ops guy with a mission-first mentality," and Majorino as Maggie, "the newest member of the field support team." Fox 21 is behind the hour, with Howard Gordon, Jeffrey Nachmanoff, Alexander Cary and Jonathan Levin executive producing. David Semel is directing. (Deadline.com)

LINDA GREEN (FOX, New!) - Alex Borstein ("Shameless") is looking to import Paul Abbott's U.K. dramedy, about a thirty-something woman who works as a car saleswoman by day and sings in a club at night. Sony Pictures Television is behind the hour, which will now be set in Boston and revolve around "the eponymous character and her four best friends as they navigate their way through their 30s, tackling love, marriage and stability." Abbott himself is on board to executive produce alongside Borstein and BBC Worldwide Productions' Jane Tranter and Julie Gardner. (Deadline.com)

LORIMER (HBO) - The pay channel has given the Michael Lannan-penned comedy - about "three thirty-something friends living in San Francisco who grapple with all the options in contemporary life and the complexities of the modern gay experience" - a pilot order. David Marshall Grant, Sarah Condon and Andrew Haigh serve as executive producers on the half-hour, the latter of which will direct, with Lannan as a co-executive producer. (Deadline.com)

PEOPLE IN NEW JERSEY (HBO, New!) - Bruce Eric Kaplan ("Girls") has scored a pilot order from the pay channel about an adult brother and sister living in New Jersey, "struggling to get through the day, asking themselves the big questions, the little questions, and everything in between." Right of Way Films' Jason Reitman and Helen Estabrook as well as Broadway Video Television's Andrew Singer and Lorne Michaels are on board to executive produce the half-hour, with Reitman also attached to direct. (Deadline.com)

UNTITLED JUSTIN BIEBER PROJECT (ABC, New!) - Matt Wolpert and Ben Nedivi ("Entourage") have sold a new single-camera comedy to the Alphabet based on pop superstar Justin Bieber's life. Bieber himself will executive produce the project with his manager, Scooter Braun, for ABC Studios and Scooter Braun Films. Said half-hour, about "a future pop star's awkward teenage years and his unorthodox family," was originally set up at the network last year and has subsequently been revived. (TVGuide.com)

Z (USA, New!) - Whit Brayton and Zack Rice have sold a potential "Zorro" revival to the cable channel set in modern-day Los Angeles, about "the rise of Diego Moreno from an orphaned teen and raising his sister with little supervision, to an infamous hero fighting to save the city." Naren Shankar ("Grimm") and Louis Leterrier ("Clash of the Titans") are on board to executive produce the hour - the latter of which will direct - which would be ordered directly to series should its pilot script merit. Georgeville Television and Zorro Productions are co-producing with John Gertz also serving as an executive producer. (Variety.com)


'Made in Chelsea's Spencer, Louise still in a relationship?


Made in Chelsea's Spencer Matthews and Louise Thompson have taken pictures of themselves as a couple on holiday,

The pair were believed to have split up in the final episode of the Channel 4 reality show.

After it was revealed by co-star Millie Mackintosh via Francis Boulle that Matthews had cheated on Thompson, viewers thought the couple would split.

However, the pair have now tweeted photos of themselves enjoying a holiday together on the island of St Barts at Matthews's father's hotel.

Underneath a picture of Matthews jumping into the sea, Thompson tweeted: "My boy Spencer."

The reality star then uploaded a photo of herself by the pool in a bikini, with the caption: "Can't complain."

Made in Chelsea is famed for the complicated love lives of the cast members, prompting show star Jamie Laing to comment that "everyone is incestuous in Chelsea" .


Michael Buerk slams BBC, calls Tess Daly a 'pneumatic bird-brain'


Michael Buerk has slammed the BBC's coverage of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee.

Buerk, an employee of the corporation for more than 40 years, called the event's female presenters "airheads".

The former newsreader wrote in an end-of-year commentary for the Mail on Sunday: "The one enduring British institution [the Monarchy] was mocked by another that had shamefully lost its way.

"On the screen, a succession of Daytime airheads preened themselves, or gossiped with even more vacuous D-list 'celebrities'.

"With barely an exception, they were cringingly inept.

"Nobody knew anything, nobody cared. The main presenter couldn't even work out what to call the Queen."

Buerk went on to criticise the BBC's coverage of the Thames Jubilee Pageant and Tess Daly's presenting skills.

He wrote: "The Dunkirk Little Ships, the most evocative reminders of this country's bravest hour, were ignored so that a pneumatic bird-brain from Strictly Come Dancing could talk to transvestites in Battersea Park."

Buerk's career highlights include the 1984 report on the drought bringing famine to Ethiopia, which prompted singer Bob Geldof to launch Band Aid and Live Aid.

He quit his estimated £175,000-a-year newsreading job in 2002, but still presents the Radio 4's ethical programmes The Moral Maze and The Choice.


TV Tonight 1st of January 2013


The daily list in alphabetical order, of all the new episodes airing.

Anderson Live S02E75: "Anderson's Live New Year's Day Special!"
Borgen S03E01: "Season 3, Episode 1"
Celebrity Mastermind S11E06: "Series 11, Episode 6"
Charlie Brooker's Screen Wipe S05E10: "Series 5, Episode 10 (Review of 2012)"
Chopped S13E15: "Belly Up"
Dance Moms S03E00: "The Smoke before the Fire"
Dance Moms S03E01: "The Beginning Of The End"
Days of our Lives S48E36: "Ep. #11992"
Deal Or No Deal (UK) S08E122: "Episode 2115"
Doomsday Preppers S02E09: "No Such Thing As a Fair Fight"
Dual Survival S03E01: "Mars on Earth"
Dual Survival S03E00: "Unbraided"
EastEnders S29E01: "January 1, 2013"
Emily Owens, M.D. S01E08: "Emily and… the Car and the Cards"
Emmerdale S42E01: "January 1, 2013"
Extreme Homes S07E13: "Greenhouse, Nest, Secret Agent"
Generator Rex S03E14: "Mind Games"
Hardcore Pawn S06E21: "TBA"
Hardcore Pawn: Chicago S01E01: "Something's Missing"
HGTV Dream Home S07E02: "HGTV Dream Home 2013"
House Hunters S51E01: "Neighborhood Versus Lots of Land in Little Rock, Arkansas"
House Hunters International S35E01: "Starting a New in Nassau, Bahamas"
Match of The Day S48E23: "Season 48, Show 23"
Million Dollar Decorators S02E07: "Designer to the Stars"
Miranda S03E02: "What A Surprise"
Mrs Brown's Boys S03E01: "Mammy's Spell"
Nature's Weirdest Events S02E01: "Series 2, Episode 1"
NFL Road Tested: The Cleveland Browns S01E05: "Steelers Finale"
Nightmare Next Door S03E04: "Wrong Way Home"
Parenthood (2010) S04E12: "Keep on Rowing"
Property Virgins S12E15: "Out'a Space"
Sin City Rules S01E05: "Let's Call a Truce"
SpongeBob SquarePants S08E38: "Eek, An Urchin! / Squid's Defense"
Sterren dansen op het ijs S07E01: "Season 7, Episode 1"
Storage Wars: NY S01E02: "Lady Luck Comes to Harlem"
Storage Wars: NY S01E01: "Beg, Borough, or Steal"
Storage Wars: Texas S02E31: "What Do Women Want?"
Storage Wars: Texas S02E30: "Fast Times at Texas High"
The Project S05E01: "Season 5, Episode 1"
The Real Housewives Of Atlanta S05E10: "First Look"
The Young and the Restless S40E196: "Ep. #10065"
Thuis S18E92: "Season 18, Episode 92"
University Challenge (1994) S19E27: "Celebrity University Challenge"
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (UK) S30E11: "New Year Special"


Heidi Montag, Spencer Pratt arrive in London, fuel CBB rumours


Former The Hills stars Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt have fuelled rumours that they will be appearing on Celebrity Big Brother after arriving in London.

There has been a copious amount of speculation surrounding contestants for the Channel 5 reality TV show, which will begin this week.

According to the Daily Star, Montag and Pratt could enter the house as one contestant.

A source said: "Just like when Jedward were in the house, Spencer and Heidi will be considered to be one housemate."

Last year, Pratt spoke to The Daily Beast, revealing that money was tight and that he and wife Montag - who met while filming American reality TV series The Hills - were living at his parents' home.

Pratt said: "Reality TV is not a career. Anyone who says, 'Oh, you can have a career in reality' - that is a lie."

Despite the lineup for the reality show not being confirmed, former X Factor contestant Rylan Clark was this week revealed to be the bookies' favourite to win the series.

Meanwhile, Lindsay Lohan and Katie Price have allegedly confirmed that they will not be starring in the show.

Celebrity Big Brother 2013 launches on Channel 5 on Thursday, January 3 at 9pm.