keep for now

British actor Ben Whishaw will reprise the character of high-tech weapons specialist Q in the upcoming James Bond film Skyfall, a role previously played by actors Desmond Llewelyn and John Cleese, media outlets reported on Friday.

Stalking children, rummaging through bins, bullying and deceit -- the tricks of the tabloid newspaper trade are being laid bare at a public inquiry that is giving Britons a sobering insight into how their appetite for gossip and scandal is satisfied.

Television host Piers Morgan became a father for the fourth time on Friday after his wife gave birth to a baby girl, Morgan announced on Twitter.

Country singer Keith Urban underwent successful throat surgery to remove a polyp from his vocal cord earlier this week and is doing fine, the singer's spokesman said on Friday.

British singer George Michael has been forced to postpone the rest of his European tour due to ongoing treatment for severe pneumonia, his spokeswoman said on Friday.

Michelle Williams takes on the iconic role of Marilyn Monroe in the indie film My Week with Marilyn. Currently in theaters, the film is based on Colin Clark's book of the same name and chronicles his time spent working with Monroe while she was in England shooting the romantic comedy The Prince and the Showgirl in 1956.

Harry Potter author JK Rowling told a public inquiry into British media standards on Thursday she was forced to move house because of tabloid harassment and had been made to feel like a hostage in her home after she gave birth.

Revenues for U.S. states may be getting better, but generally they are still not good enough.

There's no avoiding a ballot showdown over paring public employee pensions in California's third-largest city, its mayor said on Wednesday.

British singer George Michael has postponed a series of concerts after falling ill with pneumonia, his website said on Wednesday.

Charles Frazier's novel Cold Mountain was a bestselling and critical phenomenon in 1996 and later became an Academy Award-winning movie, which is not bad considering it was the 46-year-old's debut.

Singer Robin Gibb of the Bee Gees Wednesday said he is on the road to recovery after being very unwell in recent days, and he thanked fans for their support in a message posted on his website.

She didn't go easily, but Faye Dunaway has agreed to vacate her rent-stabilized apartment on the Upper East Side following an eviction action by her landlord, court documents showed.

George Clooney will be called as a defense witness at former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's trial on charges he paid for sex with a minor, court officials said Wednesday.

The world's biggest annual arts extravaganza is gearing up to lure fans from the London 2012 Olympics up to the Scottish capital for three weeks of comedy, music, art, theater, the skirl of massed pipe bands and fireworks over Edinburgh castle.

Move over, Santa, there's a new colorful dresser in town.

Singer and rapper Nicki Minaj was named Billboard's 2011 Rising Star on Wednesday, following her international success this year with her album, Pink Friday.

Actress Sienna Miller said on Thursday she had been placed under a web of surveillance by a tabloid newspaper which listened into her messages and read emails, prompting her to accuse family and friends of leaking stories to the press.

Adam Holm has been looking to sell his three-bedroom Victorian house in San Francisco's Potrero Hill neighborhood all year, but he needs one thing to happen first: gaming-company Zynga's initial public offering.

Prosecutors on Wednesday asked a judge to sentence Michael Jackson's former doctor to the maximum four years in prison for his involuntary manslaughter conviction in the singer's 2009 death.

When police ordered anti-Wall Street protesters out of a vacant lot in Oakland this week, the group responded as it does to nearly every challenge it has faced -- with a lively debate.

British actor-directors Ralph Fiennes and Kenneth Branagh will be honored at the British Independent Film Awards next month for their contribution to movies.

Last year's holiday movie season seemed to belong to filmmaker David Fincher. His The Social Network, struck the zeitgeist among movie goers, critics and awards groups.

Legendary musician Jimi Hendrix was named the greatest guitar player in history on Wednesday by Rolling Stone magazine in a list compiled by a panel of music experts and top guitar players.

Wounded war veteran J.R. Martinez claimed victory on the 13th season of the hit TV show Dancing With the Stars on Tuesday, winning with a jive and a samba that thrilled audiences.

Bank of America Corp (BAC.N) has reached a settlement with former Countrywide Financial Corp institutional investors who decided not to join a $624 million class-action case that won court approval in February.

Grammy-winning singer Rihanna may soon be headed to the top of the album charts after her latest record, Talk That Talk reached No. 1 on iTunes on Tuesday, one day after its release.

The Black Eyed Peas have denied rumors that they are breaking up but say they are taking a break from making music together for a while.

French film pioneer Georges Melies directed over 500 movies at the turn of the 20th century, but few of them survived.