Sarah Harding in Rehab. Sad times

Sarah and me in Cannes for the
annual film festival

I love Sarah Harding. We've always supported her in our showbiz column, even back in the day, years ago when I had only just started at the Daily Star.
Hardcore Harding, as we nick-named her, always put us to shame with her canning ability often calling it a night hours past sunrise.
I've spent many a boozy night with Sarah in London, at Alton Towers, in Cannes and she could seriously drink most men under the table.
However, there's obviously a fine line between swigging out of a bottle of Jack Daniels while flicking the paparrazi your middle finger, to not realising your life's spiralling out of control.
So it was a sad day when we got the call to say she'd checked into an American rehab centre for alcohol addiction and depression.
Get well soon fellow party pal.
 

Sarah and me at the BAFTA awards earlier this year



Without poking my nose in too much, I'm really glad she's sorting everything out.
I was worried she was heading for a Lindsay Lohan/ Britney Spears style meltdown.
There's been a lot of gossip/ whispers about Sarah on the showbiz scene for months.
Ever since she seemed totally out of in at the BAFTA awards back in Feb.

Then she split up with her fiance Tom Crane amid speculation of someone being unfaithful. I won't say who.
A lot of people have been worrying about her, and not just her friends and family.

Good luck Harding, I hope to see you with a smile on your pretty mug again soon.



Fellow Goss girl Sonja, Sarah and me at V Festival in Essex

Kerry Katona strikes again

Only fame leach Kerry Katona could turn something as heartbreaking as Amy Winehouse dying into a possible moment to grab attention.
Kerry's more than happy to constantly let the world know she's had it tough, she battled against all odds and is still here to tell her sorry tale.

However, she's taken the proverbial biscuit this time.
No not a disco biscuit, although she's probably necked that with a bag of Columbian marching powder too.


I bumped into her manager Max Clifford at a party this week who told me: "As soon as Amy died Kerry phoned me up sobbing 'that could have been me'. She was distraught. She knows how lucky she is to turn her life around."

He's a shred business man Max, from the Simon Cowell school of training. Never one to miss a showbiz opportunity.
I'm surprised they didn't dye Kerry's hair black, lob it into a beehive and make get her to do a tribute act.
If she turns up in a magazine shoot  next week styled/ dressed as Amy talking about their similarities and struggles it's going to be a very bleak day in showbiz.

I won't know wether to laugh, cringe or cry.

Oscars day...Day Seven

The day of the Oscars….dun dun dun.

I was staying on Sunset Boulevard which means I was literally in the hub of everything happening.

There were film crews, transmission trucks, glamourous TV news reporters everywhere.

There was also a man dressed as Jesus wandering around blessing everyone with “love and gratitude”. Only in LA.

Here's a quick run down on what happened on Oscar night…

Anna Hathaway was a brilliant host, which was quite surprising for all. She revealed her secret weapon was to “change my dress as often as possible, so people pay more attention to what I’m wearing than my nerves.”

Leonardo DiCapro plans to move in on Russell Brand’s older woman Helen Mirren revealing: “Id love to work with Helen, she’s an amazing actress and seems fun. I’m gonna try and get it sorted tonight.”

Florence Welch gushed: “I'm so excited, I never dreamt I’d be in Hollywood at the Oscars doing a duet with Sir Elton John.”

After scooping best actress Natalie Portman admitted she will not be calling her unborn baby Oscar saying: “That’s really funny, no one’s asked me that yet, but no, there’s absolutely no change I will choose Oscar. We can stop that rumour, right now.”

Russell Brand has officially turned his back on his rock n roll routes. He proudly brought his Mum to the Oscars instead of wife Katy Perry.

Scarlett Johansson admitted: “The ceremony’s so long people sneak food into the theatre, I know it’s not very glamorous but it’s true”

And Gwyneth Paltrow shocked everyone by announcing she wants to turn her talents to hip-hop. “I would love to do a duet or collaboration with Jay Z," she said, "he’s a genius and I’m a massive fan.”

The after party everyone wanted to go to was at the Vanity Fair party…which looked like this from outside our hotel.

Still no signs of Cheryl Cole….

Oscars Eve...Day six

We started the day with a quick drive up to see the Hollywood sign in the hills and had a general cruise around Melrose Avenue and Beverly Hills

in our Beetle. The sun was out, so naturally the roof had to come down. Come on, we’re Brits abroad after all.

Me and my column mate Sonja attended the Golden Raspberry Awards in Los Feliz on the evening.
It was the biggest waste of time imaginable. Not one celeb, seriously not one.

Not to worry tomorrow is the big Oscars day.

Los Feliz is cool though. A compact bohemian area about 15 minutes out of town.
Littered with men sporting beards, tattoos and old skool Adidas jackets, hanging around in quirky bars with their Mac books.

We met our LA based showbiz journo pal Nadia and whipped out our laptops over some tea... Chamomile and honey to be precise.



Nadia, Me and Sonja



Baftas: The Aftermath. Drunk and disorderly. Not me (this time).

So I chatted to Girls Aloud's Sarah Harding, who got heroically stuck into the free plonk, unlike her relatively sober band mate Kimberley Walsh.
After getting engaged, on NYE, in the Maldives, to her fella of three years Tom, Sarah was quick to put an end to the Girls Aloud rift rumours.
(Just to get you up to speed... the band are on a 'break', rumours and evidence suggest Nadine and Cheryl hate each other, Nadine never attends girlie Girls Aloud bonding session, or her bandmate’s birthdays, or anything similar. The others stick together like orphan lambs. Smells a bit fishy, hey?)


Anyway Sarah told me, insistently, Nadine Coyle will definitely be at her wedding. Along with Chezza, Nicola and Kimberley. Hmmm.

Sarah also claimed she was dying her hair brown the morning after the Baftas saying, "I'll be the same colour as you tomorrow, dark brown."
Haven't seen any pictures of her yet.

However, Sarah was completely blotto'ed and probably would've believed Jimmy Hendrix had risen from death if I’d put on a convincing enough face.
I like Harding. A lot. But she was more wasted at the Baftas than I’ve seen her for ages.

I don't think she'd appreciate the Amy Winehouse references which were being mutter around the room,.

Meanwhile Kimberley had been presenting live on the red carpet for the E! channel, greeting A-list stars as they arrived. She admitted she'd never been so nervous.

Apparently half way through one of the interviews she asked to edit the interview and start again, forgetting it was live. Eeek.

Showbiz dining with Jamie Oliver

I'm on the count down to LA for the Oscars. Just eight work days left. Sweet.
The showbiz scene in London is quiet at the moment, the calm before the storm.
January and February are notoriously derelict party-wise.
As soon as a sniff of Spring arrives the celeb boozers re-emerge and the whole showbiz scene revives for another year.
I sampled some Jamie Oliver food today for the first time.
My friend and PR Alex Wilkinson took me out for a business lunch at Barbecoa restaurant in St Pauls, owned by my favourite culinary wide boy Jamie Oliver.
Alex works for M&CSaatchi PR and organises events like the BAFTAS and Glastonbury.
He's a bloody good egg and should definitely moonlight for a Arctic Monkeys tribute band. Scruffy hair, stubble, casual-chic. You get the picture.
The food was amazing, I had sea bass, Alex had the house burger, big enough to comatose most lads for a few hours after.
Monsieur Oliver wasn't present, do these celeb owners actually visit their restaurants? I like to think so.


Jamie and American chef Adam Perry Lang doing their thang  in Barbecoa kitchen



One of the favourite's pork belly, Brambley apple and water cress salad

 I've since decided I want to go on a food eating tour and visit all the celebrity chef's gaffs. Next stop Gordon Ramsay.