Author Archives: Catherine Balavage

Golden Globes 2011. George Clooney and Meryl Streep Win.

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Ricky Gervais hosted the Golden Globes for the second time, despite his controversial first effort.

However, the Los Angeles Times  says this time Gervais was “surprisingly subdued”. In 2011, Gervais shocked with comments about the Hollywood elite. It lead the Hollywood A-lister to comment on the jokes being “mean-spirited and mildly sinister”.

Gervais said the Globes were to the Oscars what US reality TV star Kim Kardashian was to Kate Middleton – “a bit louder, a bit trashier, a bit drunker and more easily bought, allegedly”.

The Los Angeles Times noted that the British fared well.

Downton Abbey won best TV mini-series and Kate Winslet won for lead actress in a TV mini-series or movie, for Mildred Pierce.

They also said: “When Idris Elba took to the stage to accept the award for lead actor in a miniseries for Luther, one did begin to wonder how many Brits it takes to screw in a Golden Globe.”

 

Meryl Streep also swore in her acceptance speech and looked shocked when she won. A full list of winners is below.

 

MOTION PICTURES
– Picture, Drama: “The Descendants.”
– Picture, Musical or Comedy: “The Artist.”
– Actor, Drama: George Clooney, “The Descendants.”
– Actress, Drama: Meryl Streep, “The Iron Lady.”
– Director: Martin Scorsese, “Hugo.”
– Actor, Musical or Comedy: Jean Dujardin, “The Artist.”
– Actress, Musical or Comedy: Michelle Williams, “My Week With Marilyn.”
– Supporting Actor: Christopher Plummer, “Beginners.”
– Supporting Actress: Octavia Spencer, “The Help.”
– Foreign Language: “A Separation.”
– Animated Film: “The Adventures of Tintin.”
– Screenplay: Woody Allen, “Midnight in Paris.”
– Original Score: Ludovic Bource, “The Artist.”
– Original Song: “Masterpiece” (music and lyrics by Madonna, Julie Frost, Jimmy Harry), “W.E.”

TELEVISION
– Series, Drama: “Homeland,” Showtime.
– Series, Musical or Comedy: “Modern Family,” ABC.
– Actor, Drama: Kelsey Grammer, “Boss.”
– Actress, Drama: Claire Danes, “Homeland.”
– Actress, Musical or Comedy: Laura Dern, “Enlightened.”
– Actor, Musical or Comedy: Matt LeBlanc, “Episodes.”
– Miniseries or Movie: “Downton Abbey (Masterpiece),” PBS.
– Actress, Miniseries or Movie: Kate Winslet, “Mildred Pierce.”
– Actor, Miniseries or Movie: Idris Elba, “Luther.”
– Supporting Actress, Series, Miniseries or Movie: Jessica Lange, “American Horror Story.”
– Supporting Actor, Series, Miniseries or Movie: Peter Dinklage, “Game of Thrones.”

PREVIOUSLY ANNOUNCED
Cecil B. DeMille Lifetime Achievement Award: Morgan Freeman.

Photo: Capital M.

The May Fair Hotel Plays Host To London Fashion Week.

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This February will see the illustrious fashion set descend on the capital as London Fashion Week takes hold.  The May Fair Hotel is proud to announce its status as the official hotel of London Fashion Week, for the fifth year running. Last year Frost had lots of fun at the venue learning to walk in high heels.

A hotel located in the heart of the Mayfair village, the May Fair is THE fashion hotel. An ideal location for industry stalwarts to conduct impromptu meetings, host events and off course the ultimate place for those looking for some respite from the relentless round of parties. The hotel has a stunning selection of world- class signature suites in which to showcase collections, fashion brands and more besides. Its plush portfolio of offerings also includes a stunning Penthouse, the Crystal Room, the Danziger Suite, the Quince Salon, plus a private cinema for special event screenings.


For those who feel in need of some reviving spa time, the May Fair Spa has created a number of express treatments to deal with LFW fatigue, in particular The Crystal ‘Face of Fashion’ Massage (30 mins £55), which will leave you feeling fresh-faced and glowing with radiance. For those suffering with tired, aching feet the Fashion Eco Chic Pedicure (50 minutes £65.00) nourishes and softens. Only organic products are used, leaving you revitalised with aromas of peppermint, lavender and geranium.

The London Fashion Week experience continues in to the hotel’s May Fair Bar, where you can sample the latest cocktail creation from the bar’s renowned mixology team – The Show Stopper.

For further information please visit http://www.themayfairhotel.co.uk/fashionweek

The evian® Alpine Experience hits the South Bank

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This January sees evian® bring all that is pure from

The Alps to London

 

The evian® Alpine Experience hits the South Bank, London

 

Wednesday 11th to Sunday 15th January

 

www.facebook.com/evianUK


This January evian® is putting a fresh twist on the traditional New Year detox by shipping the positive spirit and tranquillity of its Alpine source to London in the form of a pure Alpine retreat.

With the post-Christmas and January blues setting in, evian® is transporting Londoners from the grimy crowded London cityscape to its pristine Alpine source, leaving them feeling purified and revitalised.

 

evian® is packing all of the best elements from The Alps into one derelict container and shipping it to London so participants can immerse themselves in a one-off pure experience.  Londoners will be able to book in for a slot in the container via the evian® UK Facebook page. Each 45 minute journey is designed to stimulate your five senses – leaving you feeling purified through sight, sound, touch, smell and taste.

 

From bursts of fresh mountain top air and the fragrant scent of an Alpine forest, to the warmth of a cosy log fire with stunning views over The Alps, consumers will be transported to the untouched source of evian® Natural Mineral Water for the ultimate purifying experience.

 

The purifying eating and drinking journey, includes cleansing ‘snow melt’ concoctions and edible purifying creations such as liquid nitrogen nibbles – the grey English Winter never felt further away as enjoy whilst gazing across stunning views of the Alps! All cocktails and canapés have evian® right at the heart – Natural untouched Mineral Water straight from The Alps.

 

From liquid nitrogen infused Alpine Air Crunch Bites designed to cleanse the palette and the body with antioxidants, to a rush of bubbles which burst to release a pure flavour and stimulating aroma, and a refreshing evian® Snow Melt mocktail, consumers will be educated on the health benefits that Natural Mineral Water has for your body.

 

For the first time ever, evian® will open a retreat for consumers with an interactive online twist. Six guests at a time will enter into the space and sit in the luxury surroundings of the cosy wooden Alpine lodge – with the scenery interchangeable by online Facebook polls, with fans able to trigger a snowball fight, send in a troop of lederhosen dancers or even a litter of huskie puppies. All experiences are designed to provide some light relief for consumers, leaving them feeling relaxed and happy, purifying them in unexpected ways.

 

The space is open from 11th to 15th January – the perfect time to purify your body and mind after the indulgences of the festive period.

 

To find out more and to apply for a slot for you and up to five friends go to www.facebook.com/evianUK

 

 

How Much Does Valentine's Really Cost?

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Who says romance is dead?

Standard Life’s ‘Your Commitments, Your Future’ report reveals the nation’s true spending on their other half – a clue to what we might expect this Valentine’s Day.

Spend on your partner:
– Each month couples splash out an average of £34 treating each other, with men leading the way, spending £42 compared to women spending just £26
– However, 18-24 year old males spend only £20 a month on their partners on average.  To put this in perspective, 18-24 year old males spend an average of £27 a month on paid for TV subscriptions
– But there is good news; as men get older their generosity increases, with men aged 45-54 spending nearly £50 (£49) on average each month on their partners
– Women are at their most generous when aged 25-34, where they spend an average of £32 a month on their partners

Thinking about your partner
– Men and women devote nearly an hour each day (50 minutes) to thinking about their other half

– 18-24 year old men are the least romantic, thinking about their partners for only 36 minutes a day on average, whereas 18-24 year females spend over 59 minutes on average every day thinking about their partner (this is more than one whole day a month)
– Men over 55 are spending almost an hour (55 minutes) a day thinking about their partners, the highest of any male age group, while women spend the most time thinking of their partners when they are 18-24
– Nearly a quarter of people think that if they spent as much time thinking about their finances as they do on their emotional relationships then their finances would be in far better shape.

John Lawson, Personal Finance Expert at Standard Life said: “Despite the tough economic climate, it’s good to know we are still able to spoil the most important people in our lives. We devote a lot more to time thinking about our loved ones than we do to our finances, but it’s worth remembering that planning our future finances plays a key role in our relationships.  Whether it’s starting a family, a home in the sun, a romantic break or a financially secure retirement, budgeting and planning ahead is essential to a happy life. And with the end of the tax year looming, it’s a great time to sit down with your partner and think about how your finances can help you enjoy your life together.”  

To help people better understand their financial and emotional commitments, Standard Life has published knowyourcommitments.co.uk with an interactive tool and thoughts on financially preparing for the future. Further help with financial planning is also available at yourfuturemoney.co.uk

 

 

Vivienne Westwood's 'Frozen Planet' Collection

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 Autumn – Winter 2012/13

 

Our collection is in support of David Attenborough’s documentary series ‘The Frozen Planet’, which will go to America but unfortunately without the final episode where he explains that we humans are responsible for the ice melt. So we took the polar explorers as our heroes and we love polar bears. Barack Obama never mentions the words climate change.

If our leaders would admit the fact of climate change and conduct their politics from that perspective then we might have a chance – we have 10 years at the most to stop it.

 

How impossible it is for us to imagine ourselves victims of disaster.  We suffer for the poor people who were thrown into the sea from their cruise ship off the coast of Tuscany, some losing their lives.  Imagine a world of accelerating natural disasters, one after the other so that nobody can help anyone else.

 

Public opinion is the only thing that will save us.

 

 

GreenUp! Europe Campaign

 

I was approached by the United Nation Environmental Programme to design a t-shirt for their GreenUp! campaign – when you start doing things you find people come to you. They’re starting with a terrific idea which is to plant corridors of trees to link Europe’s forests. This new initiative is about triggering new habits for a greener Europe and for greener economies.  I have created a design for UNEP in support of the project.  It’s a really practical idea and it raises public awareness – it’s great for the environment, great for people, great for animals.

 

My design has been printed on a t-shirt provided by sustainable manufacturers, ANVIL. The ‘Tree-shirts’ will be sold exclusively through YOOX.com on a worldwide level and in our Milan shop during menswear fashion week with all proceeds to be donated to the GreenUp! fund, helping to re-plant trees in Europe’s worst affected regions.

 

 

For more information on the project please visit www.unep.org

 

Love and Facebook

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Heartbroken men take four weeks to change their Facebook status following a break-up – while women do so almost straight away, it has emerged.

The majority of fellas (63 per cent) “prolong the misery” of updating their profile from ‘In a Relationship’ to ‘Single’ for a month or more, while some (eight per cent) fail to do so at all.

If and when they do, only a third admits if they were dumped – and even fewer (15 per cent) reveal the reasons why.

Women, on the other hand, tend to ‘go public’ within a few days, often with a new description and photograph to reflect their “happy single” status.

The study by new dating site ALovingSpace.com was based on a survey of 1,000 unmarried 18-65 year-old male and female members across the UK.

It found that male respondents generally coped with splits far worse than women, and were more likely to bottle-up their emotions and “present a tougher front” to pals.

Almost 20 per cent of female respondents, on the other hand, admitted they had or would change their social media profiles immediately – often in order to hurt or humiliate their ex-partners.

A spokesman for ALovingSpace.com said he was “not surprised” about the results, which appear to overturn the widespread assumption that women are more vulnerable after a break-up.

“On the face of it, men are the tough talkers and the ones who present a tougher front but that is just societal conditioning. Behind the façade they hurt just like women, but because they suppress their emotions it ends up hurting even more,” he said.

“Our research appears to suggest that men are hit the hardest by relationship break-ups and, as a result, prolong the misery of telling the world about it on social media platforms such as Facebook.

“Women, on the other hand, seem to see things in a more positive light, viewing a break-up as an opportunity to move on and find someone who they are more compatible with.”

Earlier this year, disagreements about money was named as one of the biggest causes of relationship breakdowns in the UK.

Figures showed that just under 60 per cent of single people blamed money for the split, compared to 21 per cent for infidelity.

Some 17 per cent said they had fallen out of love, and 15 per cent said work had got in the way of their relationship.

A spokesman for AlovingSpace.com – which adapts ancient and modern wisdom, including psychological astrology, to help members find a partner and become more self-aware – said a “significant proportion” of relationships break down because couples enter into “shallow” partnerships based purely on looks and “compatibility”.

He added: “Don’t get me wrong, compatibility is nice because it provides a measure of comfort. It’s a component we consider carefully when matching our members. However, it really has very little to do with self-awareness and good relating. Lots of people are completely compatible on paper but when it comes to being in a partnership it doesn’t actually help them at all.

“There is no question that relationship breakdowns cause an immense amount of heartache for all involved. The purpose of ALovingSpace.com is to minimise this heartache by making it incredibly simple for people to meet a new partner and giving them the tools to help them better understand themselves and each other.”

The Sitter Film Review

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I love Johan Hill. It doesn’t really matter what he is saying, but the way he says it. I think he is a comedic genius. He very much deserves this lead role.

 

Hill plays a lovable loser. He is in love with a girl who uses him, and still lives at home with his mum. He has failed in life but his heart is in the right place. He agrees to babysit three spoilt children, each with their own problems, so his mother can go on a date. This isn’t a film to watch with your parents (the opening alone is not for a child’s eyes). It is quite adult but kooky and funny enough for me not to get upset when it was a little rude or crude (something I’m not a fan of). Hill also plays subtle drama well, the scene where he goes to visit the father who left the family home for a younger women and had another family is played perfectly.

 

Sam Rockwell is great in everything he does, and in this he plays a psycho drug dealer. The three kids in the movie are great too. The acting and the script are all good.

 

I really liked this film and I’m giving it four stars. I dare you to go see it and not laugh.

 

Women reassured with safe alternative to breast implants

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Externally worn breast forms are never dangerous, says world leader in breast care

 

Women concerned about the recent health scares over the controversial PIP breast implants can rest assured that the silicone used to manufacture its externally worn prostheses will never pose any danger to health, says world-leading manufacturer of prosthetic breast forms, Amoena.

 

Amoena manufactures silicone breast forms, a globally recognised medical device worn in the cup of a bra to replace a woman’s breast once she has undergone breast cancer surgery.

 

In the UK, around 48,000 new incidences of breast cancer are diagnosed each year*, with most women undergoing breast surgery as part of their treatment.  Many use a prosthetic breast to restore their appearance and provide the balance that helps prevent postural problems, although surgical solutions, such as breast reconstruction, are on the increase.

 

However, while women may be concerned about possible risks associated with surgical procedures, there is never any danger of health scares if women use an externally worn prosthesis.

Amoena invented the externally worn silicone breast form in 1975, revolutionising the level of post-operative care that was offered to women following breast cancer surgery.

 

“Since then we have dedicated ourselves to research and development,” explains Helmut Wild, vice president of research and development at Amoena, “working closely with medical specialists and breast-operated women to ensure that we incorporate the latest technology into our designs.  The result is innovative breast forms of the highest quality.”

 

One of these innovations offers women a realistic alternative to breast reconstruction.  The Amoena Contact breast form adheres directly to a woman’s chest wall and stays securely in place all day long.  “Contact looks, feels and behaves just like a real breast,” says Wild.  “It offers women the freedom of movement and the choice in clothes and lingerie that they had before surgery.  We’ve had feedback from thousands of delighted customers, telling us that it has quite literally changed their lives.”

 

Over the decades Amoena has established manufacturing processes that produce the most durable, skin-friendly, lifelike breast forms in the industry.  “For a woman who has suffered the trauma of breast cancer, our breast forms are the closest thing to a real breast,” says Wild.  “And our state-of-the-art manufacturing plant and patented processes ensure that her safety is paramount and her peace of mind is assured.”

 

As long ago as 1992, Amoena was the first breast prosthesis manufacturer in the world to set up a certified quality management system that conformed to BS5750/2, the internationally recognised quality standard at the time.

 

“Today’s standard for medical device manufacturing is ISO13485, and our rigorous quality management process ensures that we remain fully compliant today,” continues Wild.

 

“Each Amoena breast form is certified as a medical device globally, which requires biocompatibility testing according to international standards, to ensure that materials coming into contact with the skin are completely safe, non-toxic and non-irritant.”

 

“Only the very best materials are considered after passing our intensive testing in production conditions and fulfilling all biocompatibility requirements. Amoena has the widest experience in producing silicone breast forms, the highest number of product and process patents and we have developed our own bespoke production technology that ensures rigorous end-to-end quality control.”

Wild concludes:  “I think it’s important to emphasise that no external breast form poses any health risk whatsoever to the women who wear them.  For women who have suffered the trauma of a breast cancer diagnosis, and who do not want to undergo further surgery, we are pleased to be able to provide a solution that is totally safe and of the very highest quality.  It’s a reassuring and realistic solution at what is undoubtedly a very stressful time in any woman’s life.”

 

* Based on figures for 2008, published by Cancer Research UK – www.cancerresearchuk.org