Don't forget to vote for your track of the year. Just email us your favourite track released this year and a couple of sentences saying why you love it to [email protected].

MET CRITICISED FOR OKAYING BOUNTY KILLER GIG
Yeah, lots of music related criticism of the London Metropolitan Police this week, isn't there? Following Feargal Sharkey's claims that the Met might be preventing live music from going ahead in the capital by being overly bureaucratic in the licensing process, today there's criticism that the Met might let some live music go ahead by not being bureaucratic enough. Or something like that.

The latest criticism comes in particular from Peter Tatchell and his gay right group, OutRage!, and centres on that long running controversy, the performing in the UK of dancehall artists known for advocated violence against homosexuals in their music. One such artist, that Bounty Killer bloke, is scheduled to play a gig in East London this weekend, and the Met have given the show at the Stratford Rex the green light to go ahead, despite the police force previously giving its backing to the Tatchell-organised Reggae Compassionate Act.

As previously reported, the RCA was developed last year after growing anger in the gay community and elsewhere over the homophobia of some in the dancehall genre led to a string of cancellations of gigs by accused artists, especially in the UK, US and mainland Europe. The Act followed negotiations between the Stop Murder Music campaign (formed by OutRage!, the Black Gay Men's Advisory Group, and Jamaican gay rights organization J-Flag) and key reggae/dancehall record labels who were keen to avoid the homophobia controversy. The plan was that artists would sign up to the agreement and in doing so advocate tolerance and commit to not perform homophonic songs any more. In return Tatchell et al wouldn't lobby to have said artists' gigs cancelled.

Despite various groups on both sides of the dispute lending their support to the RCA, a number of artists from the genre accused of inciting hatred against the gay community were uncomfortable with the wording of the document, and either refused point blank to sign it, or offered vague support which they subsequently backtracked on.

Bounty Killer was one of the artists who refused to get involved with the RCA from the start, hence why he remains a target for gay rights campaigners, and why Tatchell et al are so angry the London police have okayed his Stratford gig.

Tatchell told reporters yesterday: "The Metropolitan Police is hypocritical on hate crimes. It allows homophobic singers to perform in London, but not racist ones. Racist artists are banned on the grounds that they are a threat to public order and good community relations. This is a case of double standards".

Reports suggest that promoters of the gig have told Bounty Killer he must not perform any of his homophonic songs at the event, and the Met say their officers will be allowed into the venue to ensure that no "inciting hatred or violence" crimes are committed. Nevertheless, Tatchell is still calling for the gig to be cancelled, and is urging people to write to both the head of the Met and the Home Secretary making demands to that effect.

The outrage over the Bounty Killer gig in London follows the cancellation last week of a gig by another controversial reggae artist, Capleton, in Basel, Switzerland. He did sign up to the RCA last year, but campaigners say they have evidence of him continuing to perform homophonic songs since doing so, and as such successfully lobbied for the Swiss gig to be cancelled.

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COUNTRY STAR SUES MANAGER
Grammy-award winning country star Clint Black is suing his manager/accountant, Charles Sussman, who, he alleges, has been negligent in the management of the singer's finances.

According to the Nashville Post, Sussman is accused of being "repeatedly engaged in self-dealing, negligence, and/or gross negligence" with regards his management of Black's finances and business affairs. In particular, Black seems to be annoyed that Sussman persuaded him to assign over half a million dollars of royalties to the indie label in which both the singer and manager have a minority ownership, Equity Records. Black says he was misled regarding that deal, which basically saw him provide the label with an interest free unsecured loan. He also alleges that Sussman has been taking monthly payments from Equity without his knowledge.

The dispute between Black, Sussman and Equity Records may have come to a head over the loss of the label's hottest signings, rising country stars Little Big Town, who have left the indie to sign to EMI's Capitol Nashville. Black says he was told the band were signed to a long term deal with Equity, which may have been why he agreed to bankroll the venture, but it was only when the band jumped ship to Capitol that he found out they'd only signed a two album deal.

The country star is seeking unspecified compensatory and punitive damages. Sussman is yet to respond.

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HOPPUS DISCUSSES PLANE CRASH AND BLINK 182 REUNION
Blink 182 and +44 frontman Mark Hoppus has written on his official website, hisnameismark.com, about having to cope with the deaths of several friends in recent months, including two in the plane crash which DJ-AM and his Blink 182 and +44 bandmate Travis Barker survived in September. He also revealed that, since the crash, all three members of Blink 182 have met up for the first time in four years.

Hoppus said: "It's been a long time since I've posted anything here on the himynameismark site. I haven't had it in me. These past two months have been the hardest times that I can remember, and I hope that we never see anything like this ever again. First losing our dear friend and longtime producer Jerry Finn, and then the plane crash that happened in September, taking our friends Chris [Baker] and Che [Still]. Even two months later, I still can't believe what happened".

On the subject of Blink 182, he continued: "In the midst of everything else that has happened lately, Tom, Travis, and I have all spoken together. First through a number of phone calls, and then a couple of weeks ago we all hung out for a few hours. They've all been great, very positive conversations. We're just reconnecting as friends after four years of not talking. It's a good thing. Obviously the first question for a lot of people will be "Does this mean a Blink-182 reunion?" The answer is none of us know. We haven't talked about it at all. Right now it's just good for the three of us to see one another, reconnect, and let the past be the past. The events of the past two months supersede everything that happened before. Life is too short".

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LCD SOUNDSYSTEM STILL NOT OVER
Now, as you all know, LCD Soundsystem is not being disbanded. James Murphy told you so just the other day. And just in case there was any doubt, now the man who was originally credited with making the original claim that the group was to split, Hot Chip member and LCD Soundsystem live guitarist Al Doyle, has also said it's not true.

Writing on Hot Chip's official website, Doyle said: "A news article has appeared [on the BBC website] and elsewhere, quoting me as saying that LCD Soundsystem is over, or that they have split up. I would like to clarify that LCD have not disbanded, nor could the entity be disbanded in the sense that it has always had a revolving cast of players - it would be like saying that The Fall had disbanded, or Prince has split up. LCD Soundsystem is James Murphy, and he's allowed to take time off, do other things, and come back, or not come back. And he doesn't have to tell you or anyone else about it".

He continues: "I didn't know if anything was going on with LCD next year, which is the truth, and that's all I should have said, but I gabbled on a bit because that's the way I am and I didn't imagine in million years that anyone would concoct a story out of it... Anyway, I should probably stop doing interviews after this, which is already my second chance. But the main point to take away is that more LCD music is in the pipeline, which is surely good news for everybody".

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LEONA ROBBED OF NO. 1 BY LABEL
Leona Lewis will not hit the number one spot in the UK charts this Sunday after her label, SonyBMG, reportedly forgot to release her new single, a cover of Snow Patrol's 'Run'.

According to The Sun, the single had been planned for a digital release this week to follow her performance of the song on 'X Factor'. But the single wasn't made available and now the release has been shelved. This is the second time the label has messed up the release of one of the singer's singles in recent weeks, claims the tabloid. She recently went up against Beyonce, Britney and Christina in a so-called 'Diva day' showdown, but Leona's song, 'Forgive Me' wasn't released until a day after the others, leaving her playing catch-up.

A source said: "It's an absolute cock-up. It was due out as a download and would have walked to number one".

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LONDON TO HOST AFRICA MUSIC AWARDS
The first ever Africa Music Awards will take place in London, obviously, at the Troxy in East London on 27 Dec. The aim of the show is to "expose the incredible richness of African music and culture, showcasing the breath-taking performances from the continent's music giants and top musicians", which sounds like a pretty good aim to me. There will be five panel-voted and eight public-voted awards distributed on the night.

Founder of the awards, Eric McKaiser, told reporters: "African music is the eternal bond between millions of others like me and our roots; motherland Africa. Over the many years, I have observed that it is the magnificent medium of African music which is an enduring and lovable link between Africans in the Diaspora and their folks back home. Be they following the latest stars and songs, or cherishing old classics. The music lovers in the UK and elsewhere are in close touch with the industry's happenings in Africa. By staging Africa Music Awards in the UK, African entertainers will get the opportunity to acquire global exposure on the greater level, whilst audiences get the opportunity to see and party with Africa's top performers, most of whom are so far unknown outside of Africa. Among its many aims, the AMA will raise funds to support HIV/AIDS Orphans in Africa".

More info on it all at www.africamusicawards.com

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SINGLE REVIEW: Frankmusik - 3 Little Words (Universal)
The third single from the Pop Justice endorsed (and rightly so) Vincent Frank sees him hook up with producer of the moment (that moment being sometime in 2005-6) Stuart Price. It's a welcome match - the effervescent main track recalls, amongst other thing, Stuart Price's Zoot Woman outfit, although this is far more hyperactive than ZW's slick, chilled soul pop. There's also a brief but rather fun squelchy synth funk middle bit, which wouldn't have been out of place on Chromeo's 'Fancy Footwork'. Meanwhile the accompanying Black Gardenia version - just Vincent and a piano - shows that there is a songwriter of promise to admire once you strip away all the bells and whistles. Elsewhere, 'Better Of As Two' crams all sorts of pop ideas into its brief, thrilling life, whilst 'Run Away From Trouble' is an icy synth rock ballad with a touch of the epic about it but never overblown. Good stuff. MS
Release Date: 24 Nov
Press Contact: Universal IH [NP, RP], Bang On [O]

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CHINESE DEMOCRACY STREAMING ON MYSPACE
You'd think that after 17 years, people could handle waiting a few more days to hear the new Guns N' Roses album. But Axl and co aren't so confident in the public's ability to contain their excitement, and so have made the album available to stream in full on MySpace ahead of the official release next week.

So, the time has come, friends. A historical moment. Click here to listen to 'Chinese Democracy' by Guns N' Roses.

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METALLICA MAN ON CHINESE DEMOCRACY
One man who reckons he can contain his excitement for a little while longer is Metallica frontman James Hetfield, who has said he will be listening to the long awaited new Guns N Roses album 'Chinese Democracy' when it's launched next week, but adds "I haven't lost sleep waiting for it".

Asked about the new GNR album by the Houston Chronicle, Hetfield, whose band once toured with Axl Rose et al, said: "I thought we took a long time to make an album. But you know he's late for everything, so it makes total sense".

Despite having been critical of GNR's live show after their 1991 joint tour, Hetfield was more generous to Axl's live performance this time, saying: "We saw him play at a festival in Germany two years ago. He's a good frontman. He's eccentric, but all artists are. If they don't show that they're quirky, they're lying to you. They're either pretending they're not or they're pretending they're an artist".

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KILLERS MAN ANGRY OVER MISHEARD LYRIC
Killers frontman Brandon Flowers is annoyed that people are mishearing the lyrics of the band's new single, 'Human', because they took him ages to write. Apparently, some idiots think the line he sings in the chorus is "Are we human, or are we dancer?" but, in fact, oh no, that is the correct line. Flowers is upset because people think he's saying "denser". Idiots.

The singer told The Daily Star: "That sucks a bit. I don't like, 'Are we denser?' as an alternative. I really care what people think but people don't seem to understand 'Human'. They think it's nonsense. But I was aching over those lyrics for a very long time to get them right".

Flowers told MTV last month that the line is inspired by a quote from Hunter S. Thompson: "We're raising a generation of dancers". Obviously, the difference between the two is that Thompson was a proper writer and had a massive drug habit to use as an excuse when the things he said didn't make much sense.

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MACCA ON FIREMAN ALBUM
Paul McCartney has been talking about the third instalment of his collaboration with producer Youth, under The Fireman moniker, which is released next week.

He previously said of new longplayer 'Of Electric Arguments': "The Fireman takes your hand and takes you through the blaze to places you didn't know you wanted to go".

Asked what the hell that meant by 6music's Sean Keaveny, Macca admitted: "When I get asked, I tend to say stupid stuff like that. You know, in some ways it is true - because if you haven't heard The Fireman, you won't know, then you might like it, and I think it sort of grows on you. In some ways it's true but I was just asked to make something up. It was ever so quick".

On his collaborations with Youth, he added: "I first met him because he was doing a mix of a track of mine and we just got to like each other. He's an unusual kind of guy, only in as much as he's very artistic. He likes painting, drawing, poetry, we like a lot of the same things, music obviously".

On the Macca/Youth creative process he continued: "I say, 'I dunno, let me just do a bit of electric guitar or something,' so we'll put down a little of that. Then I'll play some stuff and he starts to piece it together. On this album it was different, he started to say, 'well, what about a bit of vocals?' So I said, 'well I haven't got any words or melody or anything.' He keeps quiet and he knows I'll go, 'But I'll give it a try'".

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RUBELLA BALLET ANNOUNCE ANTHOLOGY
Day-glo death rockers Rubella Ballet have announced details of a 24 track anthology, 'Anarchy In The UV', via Overground Records on 8 Dec. It will include two unreleased tracks, their debut cassette tape 'Ballet Bag' (1982), the 4 track 7" EP 'Ballet Dance' (1982), their debut album 'At Last It's Play Time' (1985) and the 12" version of 'Money Talks' (1985).

Fact fans might be interested to know that Rubella Ballet formed at a Crass gig in 1979, where Crass invited members of the audience to get up on stage and finish the show. Flux Of Pink Indians' Sid Ation and his girlfriend Zillah Minx leapt up, grabbed the band's equipment and Rubella Ballet was born.

Tracklisting:

Napalm
The Night Russia Died
T
Belfast
A Dream Of Honey
Newz
Slant & Slide
Me
Krack Trak
Blues
Exit
Ballet Dance
Unemployed
Something To Give
Intro
Love Life
Tangled Web
TV Scream
Death Train
See Saw
Games Of Life
Trial 13
Twister
Money Talks

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ALICE RUSSELL ALBUM RELEASE AND TOUR DATES
UK soul singer Alice Russell will release her new album, 'Pot Of Gold', on Monday and has announced a string of dates to coincide with the release, including a show at The Scala in London on 26 Nov.

Tour dates:

21 Nov: Manchester, Mint Lounge
22 Nov: Edinburgh, Voodoo Rooms
25 Nov: Brighton, Komedia
26 Nov: London, Scala
3 Dec: Cambridge, The Junction
4 Dec: Bristol, Thekla
10 Dec: Nottingham, Brownes
11 Dec: Birmingham, Hare and Hounds

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RANGER3 ANNOUNCE DEBUT ALBUM
London electro-folk duo Ranger3 are set to release their excellent debut album, 'Old Simplicity', via Bigo & Twigetti on 1 Dec. Intricately mixing folk instruments and electronics the duo, Jim Perkins and Ronan Burke (ex-Cane 141), play folk songs, which they then chop up into little pieces and put back together in a far more pleasing order.

Listen to tracks from the album on the band's MySpace page: www.myspace.com/ranger3uk

Press info from [email protected]

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ALBUM REVIEW: Damon & Naomi - More Sad Hits (20/20/20)
Boston-based duo Damon & Naomi know how to make sad songs. Whether they are hits or not remains to be seen; regardless of being on the indie circuit for almost two decades, the band are still relatively little-known, unfairly outshined by the likes of fellow Sub Pop-ers Low and The Jesus And Mary Chain. Despite this fact, the twosome boasts a fair sized legion of dedicated fans, and this reissue of 'More Sad Hits', it seems, is a special dedication to them. Recorded in 1992, a year after former Galaxie 500 bandmate Dean Wareham split from the pair, 'More Sad Hits' is a slowcore slice of avant garde dream pop goodness - heavenly and simple in a way that other records were not those fifteen years ago. Since releasing the album, Damon & Naomi have recorded seven studio albums, the last of which (and this reissue) was released on their own label, 20/20/20. 'This Changing World' is especially worth listening to for the innovative, almost jazzy criss-cross of sounds and and minute-long drum solo at the beginning; a true representation of the band's bold creativity and need to please themselves rather than setting out to please the masses. 'More Sad Hits' is a melancholy and near-timeless piece of work; a great reflection of what the band stand for and an essential introduction for those who have never come across their music before. TW
Release Date: 1 Dec
Press Contact: Stone Immaculate [all]

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COLLECTING SOCIETIES FAIL TO GET SUSPENSION OF EU RULING
The battle between European regulators and the publishing collecting societies of the EU continues, with the latest victory being scored by the former. As much previously reported, the European Commission has been moaning for some time about Europe's collecting societies, like the UK's MCPS-PRS, who, they argue, operate a virtual cartel system restricting cross-European Union competition in the music licensing domain. They also want each society to offer more pan-European licenses, which would make life easier for multi-territory digital music services, and in itself introduce more competition to the market.

Despite some collecting societies, like MCPS-PRS, working with some major music publishers to introduce more multi-territory licences, the EC earlier this year passed a ruling forcing societies to become more competitive in terms of the way they work with both songwriters and licensees. The societies object to ruling, arguing the EC's measures threatens the survival of some of the smaller collecting bodies, and, ironically, makes it harder to launch pan-European licences. Or something like that.

22 of Europe's 24 collecting societies are appealing the ruling, but as that process will take sometime, five of the 22 applied to the European Court Of First Instance to have the EC ruling suspended pending the appeal, arguing the rules will damage some collecting societies before the full appeal is even considered. However, said court wasn't convinced, so the rules will stay in place while the appeal goes through the motions.

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BUG MUSIC BUY SELECTRACKS
Music publishing firm Bug Music continues to grow through acquisition. Having acquired rival publisher Windswept Music last year, they have just bought US-based Selectracks, a production studio and custom music service. The deal sees Bug acquire both Selectrack's catalogue of production music, plus its music production facility which will continue to offer a range of music production services, but now under the Bug Music banner.

Music Week quote Bug Music CEO John Rudolph thus: "Our new relationship with Selectracks furthers our commitment to an overall growth strategy at Bug on being an innovative full service music publisher. This partnership allows us to offer our artists and clients substantial creative opportunities from studio and production facilities through to digital retail release with one of our partners globally".

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YOUTUBE GOES LIVE THIS WEEKEND
YouTube is going live this weekend, though I'm not sure Philip Schofield or Sarah Green are involved. The video sharing platform will stage it's first ever live streaming event, webcasting its own big bash from San Francisco where a whole load of artists known for their YouTube fanbase will perform, including Soulja Boy, Katy Perry, Will.i.am and Akon. And I ought to mention the lovely Spito Band will be playing because they just emailed me to tell me. This being a live stream from the East Coast of America means it will all happen in the middle of the night (overnight Saturday/Sunday), but I'm assuming highlights will be available once we all wake up on Sunday morning. Which kind of defeats the point of the live stream thing, though American readers and insomniacs will be able to experience that bit. More info on all this is available at www.youtube.com/live

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INGROOVES SIGN UP TO 7DIGITAL
San Francisco-based digital music distributor and marketing firm INgrooves, which is backed by the Universal Music Group, has reached a deal with 7Digital, meaning artists represented by the US firm will now appear in the catalogues of the London-based download store. Among the artists represented by INgrooves are Dolly Parton, Thievery Corporation, Paul Oakenfold, John Michael Montgomery, Lady Sovereign, Too $hort, The Cool Kids, Tila Tequila and John Digweed. 7Digital top man Ben Drury says: "INgrooves works with some big name artists and labels and we are pleased to add these to our 4 million strong catalogue of tracks".

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NEW MICROSOFT BID FOR YAHOO! EXPECTED
As expected, speculation is already rife that Yahoo! will be taken over following the news the web firm's CEO Jerry Yang will step down.

As previously reported, Yang has been resistant to growing support amongst some of the firm's shareholders for a sell out, and some of those shareholders were angry when they thought Yang scuppered a takeover offer from Microsoft earlier this year. Yahoo! confirmed Yang would step down earlier this week, the decision coming soon after news that an advertising partnership between Yahoo! and rivals Google, something Yang had hoped would help turn round the company's fortunes, collapsed when Google got cold feet because of regulator concerns the deal may be anti-competitive.

Gossipers are now gossiping that Microsoft might now make a new bid for Yahoo! once Yang is out of the way (though he'll still be on the web firm's board so presumably will still have some influence). Microsoft are refusing to comment on the speculation, but investment types say Yahoo!'s low share price and relatively weak position at the moment make this the ideal time for the IT giant to have another stab at acquiring web firm as part of its strategy to expand its content and advertising assets.

The Guardian quote UBS Investment Research analyst Ben Schachter thus: "We still believe Microsoft will eventually own Yahoo - Jerry moving out of the CEO role may accelerate this. Yahoo is a key strategic asset in the online space, and given the scarcity of key players of size, we see value here not reflected in the stock's current valuation".

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ROUGH TRADE AND DIS LAUNCH BEST ALBUM POLL
Rough Trade shops have teamed up with DrownedinSound.com to celebrate the best album releases of the year. Staff at the indie record store have put together their Top 50 albums of the year, and are now inviting DiS readers to vote on which are their favourites so to select the overall winner of what is being called the Rough Trade People's Voice Prize. So, if you're a person you ought to go use your voice.

Artists whose albums appear on Rough Trade's list include TV On The Radio, Crystal Castles, Vampire Weekend, Bon Iver, Fleet Foxes, Friendly Fires, Kings of Leon, Portishead, Foals, Last Shadow Puppets and the good old Fuck Buttons.

Everyone who votes will be entered into a competition to win all fifty albums, while the band who win will be given a grand to spend in Rough Trade, with their shopping list published by DiS. For more information and to vote go here.

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BBC ONE AND TWO TO BE SIMULCAST
BBC One and BBC Two will be webcast live online from 27 Nov, Jana Bennett, Director of BBC Vision, announced yesterday, joining the already simulcast BBC channels BBC Three, BBC Four, CBBC, CBeebies and BBC News. The channels will all be made available via their channel sites on bbc.co.uk and the BBC iPlayer.

Announcing the move, Bennett said: "The launch of BBC One and BBC Two online completes our commitment to make our portfolio of channels available to watch on the internet. From 27 November licence fee payers will be able to watch BBC programmes, live, wherever they are in the UK on their computers, mobile phones and other portable devices. Through iPlayer and series stacking, they'll have the option to catch up with them later."

Simon Nelson, Controller of BBC Vision Multiplatform and Portfolio, added: "Simulcasting BBC One and BBC Two is a huge advance in making our portfolio of multiplatform channels available to our audiences, and giving them the opportunity to discover the wealth of associated content the BBC is able to offer through our channel and programme sites".

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TALKSPORT DROP SERVICES OF BNP LISTED PRESENTER
Having fired presenter Jon Gaunt for calling a councillor a "nazi" (a decision which, Gaunt's people have said, has "bemused" the presenter), TalkSport yesterday announced they would not be re-hiring the services of Sony Award winning freelance presenter Rod Lucas after his name appeared on that list of BNP members that was leaked earlier this week.

TalkSport insist they haven't sacked Lucas, and, of course, as a freelance fill-in presenter for the station Lucas isn't on the payroll, so can't be sacked. But the fact the station has decided to stop using his services just as the BNP list is published (they were still using his services last week) suggest that the list is behind their decision regarding not hiring Lucas' services.

Lucas, for his part, insists he joined the far right political party for research purposes as part of an investigation, undertaken with three other journalists, into political and pressure groups with a reputation for extremism. Said investigation also involved joining the Communist Party.

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OSBOURNE ENGAGEMENT CONFIRMED
Kelly Osbourne's boyfriend Luke Worrall has confirmed rumours the couple are engaged by changing the status on his Facebook page to "engaged to Kelly Osbourne". Worrall reportedly told someone: "We're planning to tie the knot in the next few months - it won't be a long engagement. The wedding will be in the UK".

Elsewhere in Kelly news, Osbourne appears in a new advert for Virgin Media, albeit in animated form, attending a spoof rehab clinic called The Friary, which treats "sados", the sons and daughters of stars. The cartoon therapist in the ad suggests Osbourne "gets her kicks" watching Virgin Media rather than going out partying.

Commenting on the ad, Kelly told reporters: "I am thrilled with the animation. The likeness is uncanny and they've even got all of my tattoos in the right places".

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PRINCE MAY OR MAY NOT THINK GAY MARRIAGE IS OKAY
What does Prince think about gay marriage? Who knows. According to The New Yorker, he's against it. According to Prince's people, The New Yorker doesn't know what it's talking about.

In a profile on the star, The New Yorker quoted Prince as saying: "So here's how it is: You've got the Republicans, and basically they want to live according to this [points at a Bible]. But there's the problem of interpretation, and you've got some churches, some people, basically doing things and saying it comes from here, but it doesn't. And then on the opposite end of the spectrum you've got blue, you've got the Democrats, and they're, like, 'You can do whatever you want.' Gay marriage, whatever. But neither of them is right".

However, a "source close to the rocker" apparently contacted Perez Hilton (obviously) to say that this was a misquote. Says Hilton: "Apparently, the interviewer did not even use a recorder when she spoke with His Holy Purpleness, and that when she called his people to fact check, it turned out she had several factual inaccuracies. ... What His Purpleness actually did was gesture to the Bible and said he follows what it teaches, referring mainly to the parts about loving everyone and refraining from judgment".

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GALLAGHER THWARTS BOND GIRL DOG-NAPPING
Noel Gallagher recently stopped a gang who were attempting to steal a dog owned by former Bond girl Caroline Munro, which she had left tied up outside a supermarket near his central London home.

According to The Mirror: "Noel gave them a right ear-bashing and threatened to take them all on".

A neighbour added: "Noel was so brave. The blokes could have been carrying knives but he just didn't care. He's a tough bloke and he doesn't like people taking what isn't theirs. So, he tackled them and they quickly did one".

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DAVE STEWART SOUNDTRACKS SEX TOY
Dave Stewart has written a new song which is being made available exclusively to people who buy a new sex toy. Purchasers of the 'Little Something' vibrator, manufactured by JimmyJane, will be able to download the track, 'Let's Do It Again', and special editions of the toy will have the lyrics of the song printed on it.

JimmyJane, which is also featuring a "provocative video" for the track on its website, says the pairing is "a multi-faceted mashup of design, luxury, sex and music".

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GET ON THE FAGS IF YOU WANNA BE A SINGER
It's an age-old question. How does one singer become successful and another not? What separates someone good from someone great? Well, asked how she has achieved her distinctive tone, Duffy told The Mirror: "Smoke 40 cigarettes a day and you get a rough idea".

So, just to clarify, the best way to get a rich, bankable tone to your voice is to smoke two full packs of cigarettes a day. And the best thing is, it'll make you look cooler, too.

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ASDA APOLOGISES FOR SWEARY MUSIC
An Asda store in Preston has been forced to issue an apology after a member of staff played Rage Against The Machine's 'Killing In The Name Of' in the store during opening hours. The song, of course, features the line "Fuck you, I won't do what you tell me" sixteen times at increasing volume.

Shopper Nicola Gahagan told the Lancashire Evening Post: "A member of staff must have put the song on himself in the entertainment section - he was nodding his head. All they needed to do was switch the stop button. I spoke to another woman who had a child - I would be surprised if other people have not complained. If I was watching television I would not have to put up with that. It was awful".

A spokesman for Asda said: "Quite frankly this shouldn't have happened and we're very sorry. We're taking this very seriously and doing everything we can to make sure this doesn't happen again. We'd like to take this opportunity to apologise to Nicola and any other customers who found the song offensive".

Not losing any sense of proportion whatsoever, here's a local politician comparing the Asda-gate incident to Sachs-gate.Preston City councillor Jennifer Greenhalgh said: "I am absolutely appalled. They have got to take responsibility, and that is not being responsible in any shape or form. It is insupportable and, like the BBC, somebody has to be held to account. Children now are open to all sorts, but to get it from Asda is ridiculous".

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