Corrie star arrested after assault

Coronation Street star Ian Mercer was arrested and cautioned by police after a fracas at a leisure club near Oldham.

Mercer, who plays taxi driver Gary Mallett, was at a friend's stag night at the Tara Leisure Complex in Shaw when the incident happened.

A 27-year-old barmaid was cut on the head after being hit by an ashtray. Mercer was arrested at his home in Oldham and cautioned before release.

A Coronation Street spokeswoman said 37-year-old Mercer "has apologised and sent flowers" to the woman.

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Blige backs victims of police shooting

Grammy-winning singer Mary J Blige is offering support to the families of two black men fatally shot by police officers in the US during a drug raid.

Blige briefly attended a rally on Friday at the restaurant where Earl Murray and Ronald Beasley were shot by police while unarmed on 12 June.

Police justified the shootings saying Murray tried to ram officers with his car, but civil rights activists have suggested police used excessive force.

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Melanie Griffith's moneyspinner

Actress Melanie Griffith has said she hopes to make as much as $100m (£67m) from her internet business to secure her family's future.

Griffith told the LA Times that she co-founded One World Networks in January to be sure she and her relatives would always be provided for.

Griffith is married to Spanish movie heart-throb Antonio Banderas and they have a two-year-old daughter.

One World Networks sells everything from cosmetics to protein powder, specialising in merchandising and promotions for celebrities and health experts.

"It's a great place for celebrities to be able to control their image," Griffith told the US newspaper.

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Cameron Douglas in drug movie

Michael Douglas' son Cameron, who was ordered to perform community service after being arrested for cocaine possession last year, is making his film debut in a story about drug dealing.

Cameron, 21, is playing a rapper in Pot Luck, which stars British actor Jason Isaacs and is being filmed in a New York night club which police once called a drug supermarket.

A professional disc jockey, Cameron maintains he is drug free: "I'm very concentrated on my music," he says.

He adds: "I'm not really into partying right now. It's a nice natural high when your career is going well."

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Coppola's West End ambition

Francis Ford Coppola, director of the Godfather trilogy, is planning to bring his musical Gidget to London, before taking it to the American stage.

The director has been rehearsing the show at a Californian high school for several weeks to fine tune the project, which he eventually intends to film.

As well as writing the script, directing and producing it, Coppola has also co-written the production's beach-themed songs with veteran composer John Farrar, who wrote several hits for Olivia Newton-John.

"There's nothing fixed yet but it would be great if we could do it in London," he told the Los Angeles Times.