Women Affairs

Britney Spears will appear on the X Factor tonight for her first UK television performance for more than four years. The pop singer will perform her current single Womanizer , while the five remaining finalists will each cover one of her songs. Her appearance is part of a whistle-stop tour to promote the release of her sixth studio album, Circus, which is out in the UK next week. Spears, who is 27 on Tuesday, recently announced two concerts in London next summer as part of her world tour. She is scheduled to play at the O2 Arena in London on June 3 and 4. The new album and tour mark a comeback for the singer, who in recent years has hit the headlines for her turbulent private life. In January this year police took her to a psychiatric hospital, fearing she would harm herself. Her parents said at the time that they believed her life was at risk. A representative for Spears said she would only be performing on X Factor and would not coach the show's contestants, as previous guests ha...

Britney Spears' new single called "Womanizer", which has been leaked three days ago, was supposed to hit the airplay today, but has been pushed back for another week. A publicist from Jive/Zomba Records named Wendy Washington says that the release delay happens because the song "needs more mixing and editing." The track, which record company bosses had been desperate to keep secret until the singer's big relaunch in November, was discovered on YouTube by an LA radio station. The station played a 40 second clip of the song, which has now been picked up by hundreds of thousands of fans. The revelations follow reports of a fake leak which appeared last week when new website BritneySpearsCircusLeak claimed to have a leaked version of single Candy from Strangers, from the singer's new album Circus. It was later proved to be a fake. The record company are now trying to track down the insider who posted the version of 'Womanizer' on the internet, along ...

Spears was taken to the UCLA Medical Centre about 1.30am Los Angeles time to be held against her will because she was deemed a danger to herself or others. A psychiatrist treating the singer contacted Los Angeles police to set the events in motion, celebrity website TMZ.com said, quoting law enforcement sources. A Los Angeles Fire Department ambulance transporting the 26-year-old was escorted by dozens of police on motorcycles, accompanied by a police helicopter, the Los Angeles Times said. The operation appeared to be thoroughly planned, it said. A motorcade the length of a football field surrounded the pop star and kept photographers and onlookers at bay. Spears was told of her impending confinement by her psychiatrist and did not resist when paramedics arrived and placed her on a gurney, TMZ said. The doctor told police of concerns about her reckless driving and erratic behaviour. Spears had not slept since Saturday, the website said. Continue Below Video By Reuters She was stripped...

A JUDGE has refused to restore Britney Spears' right to visit her two sons, a court spokesman said, after the troubled pop star showed up outside court but never made it into the hearing. Superior Court Commissioner Scott Gordon left in place a ruling that barred Spears from visiting with her young sons at least until another hearing on February 19, lawyers for her ex-husband Kevin Federline said outside court. Mr Gordon issued the original order earlier this month, after police were summoned to the troubled pop star's home when she became distraught and refused to return the boys to Federline's representatives. Spears, 26, was taken away on a stretcher and hospitalised for two days. She arrived hours late for today's hearing and was mobbed by photographers as she stepped out of a sport utility vehicle outside the downtown Los Angeles courthouse. But instead of heading into the building where the hearing was under way with Federline in the courtroom, Spears climbed quic...

Britney Spears has fled the U.S. after fearing her family were about to take drastic action to force her into emergency psychiatric care. The singer hit the road with her Brummie photographer boyfriend and apparently resurfaced in Mexico. The star was with Ghalib and at least one of his colleagues. And late last night video of Britney and the photographer hit the internet and appeared to show the pair in Mexico. Britney's camp staged an elaborate plan in an attempt to throw the media off her scent. The word went out that the pop superstar was flying to New York - as well as Hawaii, Las Vegas, Barbados and Mexico. It involved at least two private jets, several teams of security, numerous limos - and even police. One insider said: "She has lost contact with her two sons and her family is so scared for her mental health they fear she's a suicide risk and she's out flying or driving around the world playing games. "It's just beyond belief." Britney and Adnan ...

Britney Spears was taken to a Los Angeles hospital early today, after police spent about four hours at her house trying to mediate a custody dispute, according to witnesses. Two ambulances left Britney Spear's house, both headed for Cedars-Sinai Medical Center -- one transporting Britney, the other had two-year-old Jayden James in it! A car carrying Jayden's older brother Sean arrived at K-Fed's home a short time later. No word on what Jayden was being treated for. Spears reportedly refused to turn over her sons Sean Preston, two, and Jayden James, one, to the bodyguard of her ex-husband, Kevin Federline, as planned. LAPD spokesman Jason Lee said police were called to her house about an hour later to try to resolve the dispute. Spears, whose professional and private life has spiralled out of control in the last few years, lost primary custody of the boys in October. A media circus quickly formed outside the security gate to the Summit gated community where Spears lives, wit...

Britney Spears' lawyers in her custody battle with ex-husband Kevin Federline are quitting. The law firm Trope and Trope asked a court on Wednesday to be relieved as Spears' attorneys. The firm says there's been a "breakdown" in communication with the pop princess that makes representing her "impossible", according to the filing, obtained by CelebTV.com. A message left with a publicist for Spears' record label was not immediately returned. Spears and Federline have been wrangling for months over custody of their sons, 2-year-old Sean Preston and 1-year-old Jayden James. Federline has temporary custody because Spears, who has limited visitation rights, has defied court orders. The two were married in October 2004 and finalised their divorce in July. On a separate legal front, an attorney for Spears wants the city attorney's office to prove that the pop star is a permanent California resident and is subject to state laws that require her to have a ...

It's a queer business, but showbiz circles are abuzz with rumours troubled pop star Britney Spears is planning to marry again. The groom-to-be is reported by American celebrity magazine Staras Sam Lufti. Lufti is variously described as her "personal assistant", "manager" and "close friend and confidant". The tabloid-style magazine reports that Spears recently shouted: "I'm eloping with Sam" in a tete-a-tete with her ex-husband Kevin Federline. The magazine reports a "source close to Britney' saying "Britney is completely under Sam's spell". "It's not like she hasn't eloped before. She pays for his food, his bar and restaurant tabs and his clothing," the source reportedly said. "They begged her to at least get a prenup, but she didn't seem to be listening." There is a high degree of scepticism about the claims, however, even among the tabloids. Website gaysocliates.com is claiming ...

Britney Spears 16-year-old sister Jamie Lynn is pregnant. I've heard of keeping things in the family, but this is ridiculous. In an interview with OK! magazine due out tomorrow, Jamie Lynn confirms she is pregnant. If it wasn't so tragic, it would be hilarious. A source tells TMZ that Jamie Lynn gave OK! an exclusive interview and goes on the record to state that she is indeed with child. She also names the baby's father, who she has been dating and living with for some time, as Britney's former love, Casey Aldridge. The teenager, who stars in Nickelodeon's Zoey 101 plans to keep the baby. Nickelodeon issued the following statement: "We respect Jamie Lynn's decision to take responsibility in this sensitive and personal situation. We know this is a very difficult time for her and her family, and our primary concern right now is for Jamie Lynn's well being." Bang goes another Spears sister that's destined to dream her dreams through a sea of pr...

There are three things guaranteed to sell a story in the world of celebrity gossip: birth, death and incarceration. This year's hot list of limelight hogs queued up to face arrest ( Paris Hilton, Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan, Nicole Richie, Amy Winehouse), get knocked up or adopt ( Brangelina, Cate Blanchett) encounter the Grim Reaper (Anna Nicole Smith) or bounce back from a close brush ( Kylie Minogue). One thing that rarely sets tongues wagging are high achievers - with the exception of Blanchett, who reprised her queenly role in Elizabeth: The Golden Age and is now on the throne of the Sydney Theatre Company, and Big Brother reject Krystal Forscutt, now queen of the lads' mags. Any media studies textbook will tell you that tragedy sells, says University of Sydney media and communications lecturer Marc Brennan. "Additionally, it is often when tragedies impact on celebrities that they are perceived as being all the more human - more like us," he says. Measuring the...

The singer was reportedly granted custody of two-year-old Sean Preston and 14-month-old Jayden James for Christmas Day during a closed Los Angeles court hearing yesterday, according to TMZ.com. It is believed the 25-year-old singer was granted custody of the boys by Superior Court Commissioner Scott M. Gordon for the holiday because her ex-husband Kevin Federline, 29, had the boys for Thanksgiving last Thursday. Britney currently has three weekly visits with her sons, including one overnight stay, all supervised by a court-appointed parenting coach, while Kevin has been awarded temporary full custody. The couple's next hearing has been scheduled for January 23. Also discussed at yesterday's hearing, which was attended by Britney's lawyer Anne Kiley and Kevin's attorney Mark Vincent Kaplan, was the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services' request for access to the former couple's case file - in particular documents, which have been sealed. A...

A lawyer for Britney Spears today asked a court commissioner to keep Los Angeles County authorities from reviewing court filings in the pop star's child custody dispute. It would be best for her two young sons that the case remain sealed, Thomas Paine Dunlap argued. The Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) and its representative, the county counsel's office, are a "large bureaucracy with thousands of employees" where the details of the case could easily leak out, he said. Kevin Federline's lawyer, Mark Vincent Kaplan, argued that if the court was going to turn files over it should identify and only release relevant issues in the case that are connected to the county investigation of Spears' parenting skills. A county lawyer representing DCFS asked for the hearing to be closed and Superior Court Commissioner Scott Gordon's decision on the matter was not disclosed. Spears, 25, and Federline, 29, were married in October 2004. T...

Luxury goods maker Louis Vuitton has won a lawsuit accusing Britney Spears of violating counterfeit laws by showcasing a pink Vuitton-upholstered dashboard in a music video. A Paris civil court ordered Sony BMG and MTV Online to stop broadcasting or marketing the video for Do Something in any form, and fined them 80,000 euros apiece, a spokeswoman for Paris-based Louis Vuitton said today. The ruling was handed down last week. In the opening scenes of the clip, Spears appears in the driver's seat of a hot pink Hummer floating on make-believe clouds. One multi-second shot shows fingers drumming on a dashboard covered with what looks like Vuitton's "Cherry Blossoms" design: dark pink blossoms on a pale pink, weblike background, embossed with the "LV" logo.

Samantha Brett Kate Moss lurches from Pete Doherty into the arms of another unsuitable man. Sienna Miller falls for confirmed cheater Jude Law. Britney Spears marries white trash poster boy K-Fed. And Simone continues to return to Shane Warne, despite shenanigans with blow-up dolls, X-rated video footage and way too many text-sex affairs. So why does this happen? Why is it that so many girls wax lyrical over dating some bloke who refuses to return their calls, won't be caught dead meeting her folks, never buys her gifts (unless he wants something in return) and hardly remembers her name? Introducing the bad boy - aka the blokes beautiful women tend to fall hopelessly in love with. But why? There's a brilliant line in the recent Hollywood flick Perfect Stranger, starring Halle Berry, that poses that very same question. "What is it about powerful women and shitty men?" a character asks. Perhaps Kate Moss would know the answer. The waifish supermodel seems as addicted to...

Britney Spears has been ordered to pay ex-husband Kevin Federline's legal bills in his fight against her for custody of their two children. According to court documents obtained by celebtv.com Kevin Federline requested attorney's fees in the amount of US$160,000. LA Superior Court Commissioner Scott Gordon ordered Spears to pay US$120,000 of that, noting the "disparity between the parties income" and that "the vast majority of the ... litigation deals with [Spears's] conduct." Celebtv.com says the papers stipulate that Federline, a self-employed performing artist, "does not earn any income" but does get US$20,000 per month in spousal support and US$15,000 per month in child support from Spears. Last week in documents related to the custody battle, it was revealed that Federline grossed US$7,436 in 2006 after business expenses. Spears, however, earned approximately US$737,000 per month. People.com listed Britney and Kevin's spending habits i...

A Judge today dismissed a hit-and-run case against pop star Britney Spears after her lawyer revealed an out-of-court settlement was reached with the person whose car she struck in a parking lot. But the 25-year-old performer is still on the hook for a misdemeanour count of driving without a valid licence in connection with the August 6 fender bender in Los Angeles, said City Attorney spokesman Frank Mateljan. Spears's lawyer today entered a not guilty plea on her behalf for that charge. She was not in court and is not required to be present for the next hearing, set for November 26. Britney had faced jail sentence Spears had faced up to six months in jail and a $US1000 fine on each of the two counts she was originally charged with. But the judge agreed to drop the hit-and-run case once the civil claim stemming from the incident was resolved, Mr Mateljan said. Details of the settlement were not disclosed. Video footage on TMZ.com of Spears's auto mishap shows her driving a conve...

After making headlines for everything but music, Britney Spears is back with an album industry insiders say should top the charts despite her. Over the past year the one-time Mouseketeer shaved her head, spent time in rehab, went through an ugly divorce, lost custody of her children and attacked a photographer's car. And in an odd habit yielding endless tabloid references to the title of her biggest album - Oops!... I Did It Again - she kept getting photographed without her underwear. Now Spears is hoping that the release of Blackout, her first studio album in four years on Oct. 30, will revive her reputation. The album has already produced Gimme More, which topped US digital charts and critics expect a hit. But some critics who have heard her latest opus say the album's likely success has little to with her abilities and more to do with the producers. The New York Daily News noted all the "studio trickery" made her sound like a "Brit-Bot" machine. "If ...

Britney Spears' friends have begged her fans to not buy her latest album, Blackout, until she cleans up her act. The unnamed pals have set up their own group, Be Proactive to Help, to urge the public to boycott the troubled star's new LP. Writing on their MySpace page, they begged: "Our message is simple, don't buy her stuff until she's better." The group - who include a former bodyguard, a backing dancer and a make-up artist, as well as several old friends  want fans to contact Britney's record label Jive, her management team and MTV to air their concerns. They said: "Let them know you'll buy her album, but not until she is clean and sober and realises the amazing life she has created for herself. "Let them know you'll be around to buy her music and her merchandise when she sets a better example of how to be a performer." Britney has seen her life spiral out of control since splitting from ex-husband Kevin Federline last November. ...

Britney Spears has regained temporary visitation rights of her sons, her lawyer said today. "Yes, she has visitation with the children," her lawyer, Anne Kiley, said in an email to The Associated Press, without elaborating. Spears was seen driving with the boys, Preston, two, and Jayden James, one, yesterday in California, People magazine reported on its website. A presumed court-appointed monitor was in the passenger seat, and her sons were in the back seat. A court commissioner told Spears on Wednesday she may not visit her two children without a parenting coach present until she complies with a court order. The ruling was the latest move in a custody battle between Spears and ex-husband Kevin Federline. Among other things, Spears was ordered to undergo random weekly drug testing. A hearing in the matter was scheduled for this Friday. A phone message left with Federline's lawyer, Mark Vincent Kaplan, was not immediately returned today.

Following an emergency hearing called by Kevin Federline’s attorney, Mark Vincent Kaplan, yesterday in the ongoing custody battle between Kevin Federline and Britney Spears, there are indications that Britney has lost the one-night-a-week custody of her two children. The L.A County Commissioner Scott Gordon suspended her visitation rights due to her refusal to comply by the court orders to provide the drug testing people with contact information so they could reach her to facilitate the random tests. The hearing took place behind closed doors at a Los Angeles Superior Court and legal representatives for both teams were present by 9:20am (PDT.) Both attorneys refused to comment on yesterdays proceedings as did a representative for the court. In an earlier report, Gordon temporarily stripped Spears of physical custody of sons Sean Preston, 2, and Jayden James, 1. But after hearing a personal appeal from Spears last week, Gordon eased up on his restrictions and allowed her one overnight v...