Arctic Monkeys' Alex Turner learns to chill over fan selfies

Arctic Monkeys frontman Alex Turner loves being in fan-made videos. The heartthrob doesn’t mind when they whip out their smartphones to take ‘selfies’ during his gigs – as long as he is in them too.

‘I have noticed now a new thing that is very 2013 at shows, which is people making videos of themselves on people’s shoulders, but I am quite into it,’ the 27-year-old said ahead of the Barclaycard Mercury Music Prize in Camden last night.

He said he had to be selfless when it comes to selfies because he wants to boost fans’ kudos on Facebook and the Vine mobile app.

‘I just want to be in the post. I want to get the ‘‘like’’, I want to contribute to the ‘‘likes’’ that they may, or may not, get,’ he said.

The approach marks a shift in opinion for the singer after he told an audience during a summer gig to ‘wake the f*** up’ after fans failed to show enthusiasm as they fiddled with smartphones instead of dancing.

‘A lot of things used to bother me which don’t any more,’ the Sheffield hunk said.

The band are touring Britain in support of their most recent record, AM, which topped the charts in September and secured them their third Mercury nomination.

Having recorded it in the US, Turner has noticed another change.

‘We spent a year there and I get recognised a little bit more. You have to pick the circles you move in. If I am going to walk around Glastonbury I will get recognised, but I might be able to do it in Norwich,’ he joked.

Bandmate Matt Helders says he and the other two members of Arctic Monkeys, Jamie Cook and Nick O’Malley, have no issues with Turner taking all the limelight.

‘I’m happy for him to be a sex symbol. It’s what I’ve always wanted for him,’ Helders joked.

[Originally published Metro, Guilty Pleasures, Thursday 31 October 2013]

Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman and Joss Whedon at Thor: The Dark World premiere

Chris Hemsworth is thankful he doesn’t need to take his top off for gratuitous thrills when starring in Thor films.

The hunky Australian actor, 30, may have the body of a god for starring in the Marvel series, but gave a sigh of relief when the film script didn’t have him posing unnecessarily.

‘I’m topless for all of four seconds! Four seconds is fine,’ the blonde star said, revealing there are only a few seconds of bared flesh in Thor: The Dark World.

While the comic sequel sees the Norsk god facing an interstellar threat in the form of Christopher Eccleston’s villainous Malekith the Accursed, who threatens to destroy the nine realms of the universe, Hemsworth is keen to highlight that the film is not as far-fetched as it sounds.

‘We try to make it truthful and ground it in reality otherwise these things drift off into the stratosphere of the fantastic,’ he said on the red carpet of the film’s World Premiere in London’s Leicester Square this evening.

Elsewhere on the red carpet his on-screen love interest Natalie Portman sparkled and was overwhelmed by the support of fans who braved aptly stormy weather to cheer on the cast.

‘It’s incredible. There’s so much enthusiasm and its great to share this with the fans,’ the 32-year-old actress gushed.

‘Chris is great! He’s the loveliest of men both inside and out and it’s a luxury to work with him,’ she went on, praising Hemsworth.

Indeed it was a bit of a love-in for the film’s cast in general with the stars’ hero also praising his co-stars.

‘We support each other and we’re all thankful to be part of it,’ Hemsworth said before rushing into the Odeon cinema to introduce the film.

A surprise on the red carpet came in the form of Avengers Assemble director Joss Whedon who will soon direct Hemsworth again in sequel Avenger: Age Of Ultron.

The next film reunites the Thor star with fellow Marvel heroes Captain America and Iron Man while adding new characters Scarlett Witch, Quicksilver and Ultron – giving Whedon something of a headache to squeeze them all in.

‘It’ll be a six or six and a half movie!’ the director joked.

Thor: The Dark World will be in cinemas from October 30.

[Originally published Metro Guilty Pleasures, Tuesday 22 October 2013]

Foxes: Kinky tweets make me feel like a Vixen

Emerging music star Foxes has revealed she delights in receiving kinky tweets from fans.

The doe-eyed beauty, 23 – whose real name is Louisa Rose Allen – has been inundated with indecent proposals on social media, and has been guilty of accidentally whipping fans into a sexual frenzy herself.

‘Once I tweeted the word “boobs” and it got the biggest response I’ve ever had on Twitter. Boobs. Lots of retweets,’ she laughed before disclosing some of the saucier replies she gets from fans.

‘They get so explicit, it’s brilliant,’ she told us during a trip to LA. ‘The other day someone said I want to drink your bath water and lick your toes. People want to marry me a lot as well, which is nice.’

Foxes has so far declined to accept any of the proposals she has received online, but she does appreciate that she can use the medium of Twitter to debunk any rumours before they take hold.

‘There is this thing going around that I’ve had lip injections,’ she told me, horrified.

‘I’m not big enough to have rumours about me yet, but I found that hilarious. I put a picture up online and someone said “Oh, lip injections already. So sad. So sad.” And I messaged back and was like “What? No! I would never do that!” So that was weird. But we can clear that up now – I’ve definitely not had surgery.’

With her debut single, Youth, out this week – which has been livening up the recent Debenhams adverts – the singer has seen her hopes of performing on the X Factor so far dashed.

‘I don’t think I’m going to be on The X Factor, no,’ she laments, adding: ‘Simon hasn’t called. But it is quite early days for that kind of thing so hopefully by the time my album is ready I’ll be on shows like that.’

[Originally published Metro Guilty Pleasures Monday 21 October 2013]

X Factor Tamera: James Arthur asked me to marry him

X Factor’s Tamera Foster has revealed that last years’ winner James Arthur asked her to marry him.

The 16-year-old singing hopeful was surprised when 25-year-old Arthur popped the question after watching her perform on Saturday night’s live show.

‘He came to the studio and met everyone,’ Foster told Guilty Pleasures ahead of the Sunday night results show.

‘I was a little bit shocked by the outcome of the Flash Vote and Kingsland Road being in the bottom two on Saturday night and James could see I was upset about it so he started joking about,’ she said, revealing the You’re Nobody ‘Till Somebody Loves You singer was keen to raise her spirits after her fellow contestants were dealt their bad news.

‘He said “I’ve been tweeting about you and I want to make you smile – will you marry me?” I didn’t give him an answer – I was just laughing,’ she said.
While Tamera didn’t exactly say no – she was too busy laughing – she is unable to commit to Arthur as she is already taken.

‘I already have a boyfriend. He’s lovely and very supportive and he was here on Saturday to watch the show as well. It’s at the early stages of the relationship,’ she said.

With the competition heating up now that contestants are being voted off week after week, Tamera reports that the atmosphere in the X Factor house is so far still upbeat – even if still a little crowded.

‘It’s noisy but it’s fun in the X Factor house. I’ve got earplugs for when I’m sleeping!’ she told us.
She also revealed that she would be able to put in some extra rehearsals with show heartthrob Sam Callahan – who she can hear through the paper thin walls.

‘My room is right next to Sam and he rehearses in his bathroom. When I’m in my bathroom I can hear literally every word he says, clear as day,’ she said.

‘His shower singing is the best!’ she went on, adding: ‘We could duet in the mornings because we could hear each other.’

The perky teen is also handling her shift to fame well. Having weathered accusations of shop lifting and experimenting with drugs in the past since appearing on the show, Tamera is determined not to let negative stories knock her confidence.

‘Performing on the stage, there is such an amazing atmosphere and vibe. It really makes me feel like I’m at home. It takes you away from all the chaos around you off stage. Singing is my favourite part,’ she said.

‘I love the group performance. It’s like a big party with everyone. I love it! It is nerve racking every time you get on the stage. But if you didn’t get nervous you wouldn’t be human.’

[Originally published Metro Guilty Pleasrues, Monday 21 October 2013]

London Grammar: Horrifying accidents almost impacted career

Accident-prone band London Grammar have overcome a string of horror mishaps to hit the big time.

Hannah Reid, Dan Rothman and Dot Major claim they are the walking wounded after the group climbed to No.2 in the charts with their debut record, If You Wait.

First up is Dot Major, who is lucky to be able to still see the group’s fans after a gun accident at the age of 14. ‘Someone shot me in the eye. Well, my godfather, actually,’ the 22-year-old said during a catch-up with Guilty Pleasures in LA.

While the ordeal was nothing short of nerve-racking, it did have an unexpected side-effect.

‘It actually corrected my vision slightly because I was short-sighted. It’s really weird. But I wouldn’t recommend it if you have bad vision,’ he laughed.

Singer Reid has a similarly gristly tale of falling off a horse when she was seven – a tumble that threatened her ability to play piano and guitar.

‘The bone came out [of my left elbow] and severed all the nerves and they didn’t think I would be able to use my hand ever again. I don’t horse-ride anymore,’ the 23-year-old singer said.

Not to be outdone, bassist Rothman, 22, recalled a trip to the bowling alley which almost ended in limb loss, Kingpin-style.

‘I once got my hand stuck in a bowling machine. It was actually terrifying,’ he said. ‘You know they have a little sign that says don’t put your hand in here – I somehow managed to do that. And what happens is the ball comes out and then it lodges your hand between the top of the machine and the bowling ball and your hand is stuck.

‘Luckily they shut off the machine immediately. What was going through my mind was that they were going to have to cut off my arm, not cut off the machine. So this guy came with a wrench and busted open the machine so I was able to get my hand out. I didn’t even break the wrist or sprain it at all.’

The band are currently on tour in America but will be back on British shores this month to showcase tracks from their debut cut on their first British headline tour.

[Originally published Metro Guilty Pleasures Wednesday 2 Ocotber 2013]

Foxes: I get hunted down as Zooey Deschanel

Rising British singer Foxes is being hunted down on the streets of America – but mainly by fans of ‘lookalike’ celebrities.

The 23-year-old – real name  Louisa Rose Allen – has cracked the Billboard top ten with her track Clarity, in collaboration with German music producer Zedd.

‘I have been chased down the street,’ she told Metro, while by the pool in Los Angeles.

‘There was one time it was because they thought I was Zooey Deschanel. So that’s the reality of it.

‘I was just walking down Hollywood Boulevard and someone was like, “Oh my God, Zooey. Is that you?” And I was like “Um… no?” and then they got aggressive shouting, “It is. You’re lying!” and then chased me,’ she recalled.

Another well-wisher was ‘a crazy man, old, with a limp and a peg leg’, she recalled.

‘David Guest – that is probably the other one I get. We have the same eyes. I also get a bit of Hagrid from Harry Potter.

‘When I’m hungover, I get Hagrid hair,’ she added.

Foxes was speaking before taking to the stage to entertain the likes of Kelly Osbourne at the British Airways and Variety bash in Tinseltown on Wednesday.

She is preparing to release her single Youth on October 20 and her debut album early next year, after featuring on tracks with Fall Out Boy and Rudimental this summer.

‘I am now banned from features,’ she laughed. ‘Lots of DJs have approached me but my manager said “no”. It has been a running joke that it would be a Featuring Foxes album if I put it out in light of everything I’ve done this year.’

However she is holding out for one US superstar to call.

She admitted: ‘If Eminem asks, then I’m game.’

[Originally published Metro Guilty Pleasures Friday 27 September 2013]