Blade 2 slices up box office

Blade 2, starring Wesley Snipes as a modern-day vampire hunter, has shot straight to the top of the UK and Ireland box office charts.

The fantasy and horror film knocks comedy Ali G indaHouse into third place after just a week at the top.

Animated adventure Ice Age remains in second place, while Crossroads, starring Britney Spears, only manages fourth position.

A re-released 20th anniversary edition of ET: The Extra-Terrestrial is the only other entry in the top 10, at number seven.

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Author Bradbury honoured

Science fiction author Ray Bradbury has been honoured with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

The writer behind such books as Fahrenheit 451 and The Martian Chronicles became the 2,193rd star on Hollywood Boulevard.

The 81-year-old, who has lived in Los Angeles since the 1930s, said he was delighted to be honoured.

He said: "I received so much inspiration from this city that it is a wonderful feeling to be a permanent part of my home town."

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Restaurant for 'Broccoli Spears'

Pop star Britney Spears is opening a restaurant in New York.

The bistro in midtown Manhattan will be called Nyla and is due to open in May.

It will occupy space in the Dylan Hotel that formerly housed Virot, a French restaurant.

Morris Moinian, owner of the Dylan Hotel, told the New York Times: "Virot didn't have the hipness I was looking for. Right now we have the ultimate celebrity associated as a partner with the restaurant.

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Streisand's mother dies

Singer Barbra Streisand's mother, Diana, has died at the age of 93.

She died at a Los Angeles hospital of complications from an accident she suffered at home last November, reports publicist Dick Guttman.

She was involved in a number of charitable causes and had worked in New York city schools for many years.

In a statement Mr Guttman said: "The daughter of a cantor, she had a beautiful singing voice, a legacy passed on to her daughters."

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ET fan's out of this world devotion

A UK woman is claiming to be ET's biggest fan, having watched the Steven Spielberg movie 773 times.

Sian Thurkettle, 25, who first saw the film at the cinema in 1982, has also collected more than 80 ET figures and 300 items carrying the extra-terrestrial's image, reports the Sun newspaper.

The movie returned to the big screen last month and Ms Thurkettle said she is keen to add to her tally.

She said: "I've bought a month-long pass at my local cinema so I can see it as often as possible."

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Sopranos star faces May trial

Actor Robert Iler, who plays the troubled son of a mob boss on the hit TV show The Sopranos, is to stand trial on robbery charges on 6 May.

Mr Iler and two others have been charged with second-degree robbery after two tourists were robbed of $40 (£28) on Manhattan's Upper East Side in July.

Mr Iler was 16 at the time of crime, which carries a sentence of up to 15 years.

In a statement released after the incident, Mr Iler said he was "terribly embarrassed" by the arrest and regretted putting his family and friends through an "extremely difficult" time.

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Robinson asked to represent university

TV quiz host Anne Robinson has been invited by students at St Andrews University, which is attended by Prince William, to stand for the post of rector.

The Weakest Link presenter said she would be delighted to take on the role at St Andrews.

She told the Sunday Times: "We get a lot of students from St Andrews on The Weakest Link. I really like them and like to know whether they have met Prince William."

If she is elected by students, Robinson would follow an illustrious line of rectors at the Fife university including publisher Andrew Neil, author Rudyard Kipling, and actor John Cleese.

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