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Heather Mills-McCartney’s very public meltdown and parliamentary attack on the hostile media

Sussex is fast becoming one of the most talked about counties around for celeb gossip – take one week in the news for example.

Hove-based Heather Mills- McCartney (soon to become Mills again) literally blasted the media in a quite spectacular outburst while perched on the GMTV sofa (if you didn’t get to see it then you can log onto gm.tv – I promise you it’s worth it!). This of course caused unprecedented tabloid coverage on exactly what message Heather was trying to get across.

Heather is currently trying to pass a bill in the European Parliament to make the British press be more transparent about their sources when they print stories. She claims to be a victim of a hate campaign by the media as well – of course we all have opinions on the press in this country, but sometimes maybe it’s better to keep a demure silence!

Corrie killer latest victim of Scissorhands

Actor Brian Capron may not have lasted long on the current series of Strictly Come Dancing, but he has not been sitting around doing nothing.

Last week Hove based Brian was a guest punter on BBC3 show Celebrity Scissorhands where he was treated to a manicure and pedicure. I should imagine he probably needed a foot treatment after all that foxtrotting around!

Rickaaaay!

Also in the headlines was the welcome return of two sorely missed characters in BBC1’s EastEnders. Ricky and Bianca first appeared in 1993 and were played by actors Sid Owen – who has just moved to Rottingdean (where I live and consequently now see him all the time shopping in Tesco Metro!) – and Patsy Palmer, who lives in Brighton.

The couple had a traumatic break up, which culminated in a one-off special – having millions glued to the screen. Ricky returned to Walford shortly in 2002 but moved on again in 2004. In real life Sid learned how to cook, wrote a book and lived in France, while Patsy married and brought up three children.

The couple are likely to appear on screen later this year – we can’t wait!

Jo Brooks is director of Brighton-based PR company JBPR Ltd,
01273 622555, www.jb-pr.com

Teachers star James Lance models for Brighton boutique Minky’s new store

I was recently invited to the relaunch of one of Brighton’s most popular boutiques, the fabulous Minky, formerly of Sydney Street but now relocated to beautiful new premises right in the heart of The Lanes.

I’ve known Minky’s owner Ian Peggs since he first opened the store back in early 2000, and so I was delighted to hear that he was opening a new store on Ship Street and lost no time in heading down there to pass on my congratulations. Guests browsed the fantastic fashion items on display while enjoying delicious canapés and a complimentary glass of fizz.

And what launch party in Brighton would be complete without one of our resident population of celebrities turning up? This time, it was the very lovely Teachers star James Lance, who stopped by to see the new shop and also have a look at Minky’s new range of model shots, starring – you guessed it – James Lance!

Kitted out head to toe in Minky’s finest, James certainly cuts a dashing figure in the photos, one of which I’m printing for you here. Of course, if you want a closer look, you can always pop down to the shop yourself. Tell Ian I sent you!

Katona incognito

Spotted! On my weekly trip to London, a very dowdy looking Kerry Katona with her husband Mark Croft in the ITN News reception. In a big leather jacket with a woolly beanie hat pulled right down over her eyes, Kerry was clearly trying to travel incognito – and after the week she’s had, who can blame her.

From ITN HQ I went straight for a meeting at the fabulous Shoreditch House (Soho House’s East End sister) where we had dinner in the very same restaurant that Posh Spice had graced with her presence the evening before. With its Cowshed spa and heated rooftop pool (complete with sign reading ‘No Heavy Petting’) this is one venue I’ll definitely be revisiting…

Love’s labours won

I hear that, since his recent show-stopping appearance on Channel 4 series Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares, former thespian Allan Love has been so fully booked that he’s had to turn diners away from his Kemp Town restaurant Love’s. In the show, viewers saw struggling restaurateur Allan totally lose his rag with celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay, to the extent where he actually kicked the entire film crew out of the St James’s Street restaurant, yelling: “He ain’t God! He’s Gordon Ramsay! Screw him!” Now it’s a few months since Love’s (formerly known as Ruby Tate’s) received the Ramsay treatment, and the hungry diners of Brighton and Hove just can’t get enough of Allan’s posh fish and chips, and business is truly booming. So now I reckon that Allan Love’s Gordon!

Jo Brooks is director of Brighton-based PR company JBPR Ltd,
01273 622555, www.jb-pr.com

Local entrepeneurs out the frying pan, into the fire

One of the high points of the current television week has to be the hare-brained business schemes showcased on BBC 2 series Dragon’s Den, which recently made a triumphant return to our screens with its fifth hit series.

I hear one of the more fiery Dragons, silver-tongued entrepreneur Theo Paphitis, recently swooped in to everyone’s favourite Italian restaurant Donatello, where he was seen enjoying dinner with diminutive ex-Chelsea star Dennis Wise. I wonder whether Dennis was doing a private audition for the show, perhaps seeking business advice on his patented WAG magnet!

Brighton has been massively represented on the Den already this series, with at least two local business people pitching their ideas to the stony-faced team of entrepreneurs.

First up was Dominic Ponniah, the owner of Brighton’s eye-catching fleet of tuk-tuks, who put himself at the mercy of the Dragons to ask for funds to keep his show on the road. Unfortunately, the panel shot him down in flames and he left without a penny. Never fear though; I’m sure the tuk-tuks will be back on our streets very soon!

The next Brightonian up in front of the Dragons was much more successful, securing a highly impressive £35,000 in return for 25 per cent of her very unusual business. Freelance designer Sarah Lu came up with the idea for Youdoodolls, small, canvas, unisex dolls complete with trousers, skirts and other clothes. The beauty of Sarah’s invention is that the dolls can be customised to resemble anyone, by printing photos of friends and family onto a special paper, which is then ironed on to your new little friend.

I think we can expect great things from Sarah and her dolls, particularly as I hear she recently secured a deal with high street giant Topshop, who will be trialling the product in 25 of their stores nationwide. Watch this space!

Katie and Peter: the new Richard and Judy?

Staying on the theme of TV, you may have noticed a couple of more famous Sussex-residents have been getting their fair share of the ratings recently, with the launch of Katie and Peter: Unleashed on ITV2.

The new chat show is different, in that it mixes the celebrity chat with behind-the-scenes footage of guests and Katie and Peter themselves. Knowing this couple, I’m sure there are lots of twists and turns in store!

Big Yin mobbed by female admirers, likes it

Spotted! Hibernian funny-man Billy Connolly being molested in the car park outside The Brighton Centre. Apparently, the bearded Scot was pounced on by no less than four scantily-clad vixens, dressed in stockings, suspenders and very little else. The girls asked to have their photos taken with him, and looked like they certainly made his day!

The best fest

Samantha Maxwell-Reed (Expand Recruitment), Annalisa Hammond (Lime), Nick Harvey (Harvey Marketing), Lynne Richards (Brighton Dome & Festival Ltd), Catherine Anderson (Oriental Hotel)

A slightly more sober picture to round off this week – of the lovely Brighton Festival team and guests at Hotel du Vin. The Festival held a business to business reception in the Ship Street hotel, where guests were treated to fantastic canapés and a rousing speech by Festival Chief Exec, Nick Dodds. This year’s festival broke all records in terms of sales and media coverage and attracted massive investment to the City. Roll on May!

Jo Brooks is director of Brighton-based PR company JBPR Ltd,
01273 622555, www.jb-pr.com

Soho draws the art lovers in for a star-studded auction

It’s currently high season on the UK art scene, with more art fairs, gallery openings, and general creative ‘happenings’ than you can shake a canapé at. But by far the hottest ticket in London so far this year has been the Lazarides Soho Auction, which made its unforgettable debut in the capital last week.

Held at exclusive gay nightspot The Shadow Lounge on Brewer Street, the basic premise of the event was as follows. They took one Basquiat, three Warhols, some new pieces by Banksy and Damien Hirst, and threw in an incredible range of artworks by some of the UK’s most popular urban artists, and then put it all up for auction in front of a specially invited audience of 200 leading art buyers.

But this was an auction with a difference, because also on hand were some buxom burlesque beauties, complete with nipple tassles and showgirl plumes, who kept the audience glued to their seats for the duration.

As I was lucky enough to be promoting the auction itself, I lost no time in assembling a cadre of paparazzi photographers and staking out the celeb-studded event from neighbouring gay bar Village. Imagine the snappers’ delight, then, when I looked up and pointed out a young girl with a very distinctive beehive hairstyle walking down the street outside. That’s right; it was none other than ‘Rehab’ singer Amy Winehouse, looking as skinny as ever and clutching a packet of fags in one hand.

Quicker than you can say “Look at the birdie!”, the four photographers we were sitting with leapt to their feet and hightailed it outside and down the street in hot pursuit, leaving me and Will from my office sitting there alone at a table with six drinks on it!

But it seemed our spotting of the Winehouse was just an aperitif, as news of the auction had drawn half the celeb population of London to Soho, a bit like moths swarming round a bright light. Hollywood child actress and self-confessed Banksy mega-fan Mary-Kate Olsen was one of the first to arrive, grabbing a seat in the front row and having her leather ‘spanking paddle’ ready to hold up whenever she wanted to bid for a lot.

Not far behind was legendary US actor Dennis Hopper, who spent most of the auction taking snaps of the lots with his digital camera… or was he taking shots of the big-boobed burlesque dancers who were carrying the paintings in? No, no, it was probably the art!

There were famous faces everywhere: musician Paul Young, presenter Jamie Theakston, and Lord Andrew Lloyd-Webber, who I must confess looked less than amused when we started humming the theme to The Phantom of The Opera within earshot. There goes my casting call to be his next Maria!

But the real stars of the show were the artworks themselves, which went from anywhere between £20,000 to an astonishing £600,000. Of course, I’m not allowed to say who bid for what, but I will say this: it’s a very lucrative time to be an artist!

Jo Brooks is director of Brighton-based PR company JBPR Ltd,
01273 622555, www.jb-pr.com