Tributes have been paid to renowned boxing commentator Harry Carpenter, who died on Saturday at King's College Hospital in London. He was 84.

Dubbed as the ‘Voice of Boxing’, Carpenter leaves a son and a widow.

In his lengthy career, Carpenter became well-known for his rapport with boxer-turned-celebrity Frank Bruno, whose famous line ‘Know what I mean, 'arry?’ was featured during their post-match interviews.

Bruno ‘was clearly shocked and upset’ when his manager Dave Davies broke the news, the Sky News Online reported.

"Frank has many acquaintances but not many real friends. Harry Carpenter was a friend", Davies added

Carpenter’s career started as a national newspapers sports reporter before he joined the BBC, where he became a commentator in major sporting events such as the university boat race and Wimbledon. He became best known as the distinctive voice behind BBC’s boxing coverage.

Boxing promoter and manager Frank Maloney called him ‘the voice of boxing’ and “probably one of the greatest commentators of all time”.

Terry Edwards, the former national coach GB boxing team considered him ‘a true legend’.

“He was Mr. Boxing as far as commentary goes”, Edwards added. “If you were to ask me now who would take Carpenter's place there is nobody who could truly take his place - not with the same passion and professionalism.

Carpenter’s lawyer David Wills said the family funeral has not been scheduled, but confirmed that a memorial service in London is set to honour his contributions.

Katie Price has paid substantial undisclosed damages to Claire Powell after she made false allegations that her former manager had an affair with her former husband Peter Andre.

Powell filed a legal suit against Katie, who divorced Andre in October 2009, after the British celebrity made defamatory remarks on BBC One’s ‘The Graham Norton Show.’

According to Mike Brookes, Powell’s solicitor, Katie told Norton, guests Jo Brand and Jackie Collins, and 600 live audiences that his client had an affair with Andre, though Powell was engaged to the father of her child, Neville Hendricks.

Brookes told Justice David Eady at the High Court of London that BBC ”quite sensibly” edited the allegation from the broadcast but it was immediately picked up by several tabloid newspapers.

“To be accused of infidelity, with one of her long-standing and high-profile clients, was obviously very damaging and distressing for Ms Powell – the most obvious reason being that the allegation was completely untrue,” Brookes said.

He said Katie admitted that her allegation was not true, unreservedly apologised and agreed to pay her client’s legal fees and substantial compensation.

Powell had issued proceedings against Katie to clear her name and ask for damages for the "substantial distress and embarrassment" caused by the remarks, he said.

Katie’s lawyer Keith Ashby said, "She greatly regrets what has happened, and joins in the making of this statement in order to assist in setting the record straight."

Outside the court, Powell said, "I'm just glad it's been sorted.

American pop singer Christina Aguilera feels she has become “more sexual” after giving birth to a son in January 2008.

Aguilera, whose husband is Jordan Bratman with whom she had a two-year-old son named Max, said that her self-confidence increased since she got pregnant.

”I'm more confident and comfortable in my own skin. I think I'm even a more sexual Christina”, said the ‘Dirrty’ singer.

Aguilera and Bratman both considered nudity as a normal part of a child’s life and regularly strip off during ‘Naked Sundays’.

The 29-year-old singer feels proud to be a highly sexual person and was insistent that the level of her sensuality remained though she is now a mother.

We're art collectors, there are a lot of female nudes around the house. It's only weird when you shame it”, said Aguilera.

While the pop singer would love to extend her family in the future, she insists that she considered her album ‘Bionic’, due to be released in June, her new baby.

Aguilera also counters the criticism that she imitates Lady Gaga’s music style.

During her interview on the Atlanta radio station Q100’s Bert Show, she said it is a waste of breath to give comments regarding the issue, adding that she had been around the music industry for more than a decade now and she thinks she had her own style.

Selected News Zealand celebrities will trade their day jobs for an apron and a serving platter at The Hayatt in Auckland on 21 May to support the Dress for Success Celebrity Waiters Dinner.

Famous faces including Tina Cross and Monty Betham will help serve an evening filled with entertainment, dining, celebrity performance, and unique auction items.

Some celebrities will sing for the supper, including entertainer and actor Shane Cortere, presenter Jayne Kiely, Olympic medallist and ‘Dancing with the Stars’ favourite Barbara Kendall, and actress Jennifer Ward Lealand

Dress for Success Auckland is a foundation aiming to help women who are going through economically difficult circumstances, bringing them back to the workforce by giving them free clothing of high quality and advising them in connection with job interviews and training.

The charity’s executive manager Julie Mackey considered the event a perfect opportunity of having a great time with a good purpose.

“The star studded Celebrity Waiters Dinner is set to be a fabulous evening and guests can enjoy the night knowing that the proceeds are going towards helping women in the local community”, Julie says.

The upcoming event is going to feature an auction where participants are allowed to bid for dresses designed by famous designers in New Zealand including Jane Daniels, Trelise Cooper, Annah Stretton, Stitch Ministry, and Liz Mitchell.

Guests will also witness the show stopping performance of The Ladykillers, composed of female entertainers of the country Suzanne Lynch, Tina Cross, Taisha, and Jackie Clarke.

Scotland’s Roman Catholic Church wants Susan Boyle to sing for the pope during his visit to the UK later this year, said a spokesperson for the Church on Sunday.

According to the spokesman, the Scottish singing sensation will be a “great asset” to the events set for Pope Benedict XVI’s UK visit in September.

He added that there were hoping to hold a conference to discuss the star’s possible involvement at a Glasgow public mass during the papal visit.

"She certainly would be a great asset to the programme on the day and we hope to be able to discuss the possibility of her participation soon", the spokesman said.

However, there was no confirmed deal with the singer yet and no official approach or invitation had been made.

The pontiff will visit the UK on 16-19 September. Apart from Glasgow, the world’s Catholic leader will visit Coventry and London.

Boyle, a 49-year-old plain, single and unemployed from Blackburn, Scotland, was catapulted to international stardom after she stunned the judges of ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ with her rendition of ‘I Dreamed a Dream’.

Although she ended being a runner-up in the talent show, footage of her performance became a hit in YouTube, with viewings of over 100 million.

‘I Dreamed a Dream’, her first album, was the best-selling debut album in the history of British charts. It also topped the charts in the US.

Boyle has also become the centre of enormous media attention since her success in the talent competition.

Cuban singer-songwriter Carlos Varela is set to launch a six-city US tour in May, with hopes to bring the two countries a bit closer.

Varela, often dubbed as Cuba’s Bob Dylan, last performed a concert tour in the US in 1998 but staged an impromptu show for Congress members in Washington last December while they lobby for new US policy on communist-led Cuba.

The 47-year-old Nueva trova artist along with his band will tour the US amidst latest tensions caused by the arrest of a US contractor who was suspected of espionage in Cuba last December, and the death of a Cuban political prisoner while on a hunger strike earlier this year.

In a recent interview with Reuters, the bearded-black-clad singer said that his music, known for its metaphorical social criticism, cannot bridge by themselves the political gap arising between the two nations.

”But they can touch a man's heart.

Varela’s concert tour is the latest in a string of cultural exchanges under the administration of US President Barack Obama, which considers them as a way to boost people-to-people contact with Cuba.

Varela believes that the cultural exchanges will live through the renewed US-Cuban hostility and foresees more US musicians will soon perform in his country.

In addition to LA, Varela’s other US stops include Boston, Oakland, Chicago and New York. He is also set to perform in a concert in San Juan, Puerto Rico on 16 May and in private events in Sonoma and San Francisco, California.

Bestselling British novelist Philip Pullman offended the Christian community with his new fictional book ‘The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ.’

Pullman, one of Britain's most outspoken atheists, first enraged few members of the Catholic Church in his highly-acclaimed ‘His Dark Materials’ trilogy, in which he thinly criticised the organised religion.

However, his latest book features further and more direct examination of the moral foundations the Church and Christianity, combined with the power of storytelling and fascination.

In the book, Jesus has a twin brother named Christ, who records and exaggerates the teachings of his brother secretly.

Speaking to a group of audience in Oxford last Sunday, Pullman said that the novel would probably cause offence.

Nobody has to read this book ... and no one has the right to stop me writing this book".

Even before his novel hits the bookshelves, Pullman revealed he has received several letters that accused him of blasphemy. He was escorted by security personnel to the Oxford event where he publicised his short novel.

"The world is a strange place and getting stranger", he told the media when asked about the heightened security measures. "These are the times we live in and it's very regrettable".

‘The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ’ is set to be released in April by Canongate Books as part of the Myths Series.

Reality TV star and rock singer Bret Michaels remains in the intensive care of the hospital after suffering a brain haemorrhage, but has now improved to stable condition from critical, said his publicist on Tuesday.

The 47-year-old front man of the Poison band and a competitor on the latest season of the reality show ‘The Celebrity Apprentice’ had been in a serious condition when he was rushed to the hospital Friday. According to the doctors, he suffered a huge subarachnoid haemorrhage, a bleeding at the lowest part of a brain stem.

Michaels’ publicist said he was still going through medical examinations but his condition has now stabilised.

Wally Sychak, Michaels' father, told Extra news site Tuesday that he had talked with his son by phone. "He sounded a little slow, but fine.

The best as they could expect at this time", added Sychak.

Fans and celebrity friends of the star sent messages of support to his official website.

"It's devastating", stated Sharon Osbourne, British rocker Ozzy Osbourne’s wife and Michaels co-contestant on the reality show.

"Your heart goes out to his family, your heart goes out to him. He's the nicest guy in the world", she said to Us Weekly.

Michaels became popular in the 1980s as a member of the band Poison. He was then featured in the VH1's dating contest entitled ‘Rock of Love’ and appears on the latest season of the reality show ‘The Celebrity Apprentice’.

Singer-turned-reality star Bret Michaels is “awake, in good spirits and talking”, after he was hospitalised due to brain haemorrhage, a report by TMZ Web site claimed.

The former Poison lead vocalist was reported to be in critical condition after he was rushed at an undisclosed hospital in Los Angeles area due to bleeding at his brain stem

However, Ambre Lake, the season two winner of Michaels’ reality dating show ‘Rock of Love’, told the entertainment Web site that she had spoken with the person who claimed he was conscious and in stable condition.

Another source claimed that though he is now stable, it is believed that the next 24 to 48 hours will be crucial in the rocker’s recovery.

People unable to receive appropriate medical treatment after a subarachnoid haemorrhage have 20-30% chance of suffering a second bleed in the first month of recovery – and the chances of surviving after second bleed are very slim, according to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center.

Joann Mignano, Michael’s spokeswoman, confirmed a report by People magazine that the 47-year-old musician was rushed to intensive care unit after a severe headache, doctors then determined that he had suffered a massive subarachnoid hemorrhage

Michaels shot to fame during the 1980s at the helm of glam-rock band Poison whose hits included ‘Every Rose Has Its Thorn’.

In recent years, he become popular as a reality TV star in shows like ‘Rock of Love’ and in the current season of ‘Celebrity Apprentice’.

‘American Idol’ finalist Crystal Bowersox has done it again, earning the highest praise from judges at the Fox singing contest on Tuesday.

With her own rendition of ‘Me and Bobby McGee’ by Janis Joplin, Simon Cowell told the 24-year-old single mother he would not have changed anything, but bigger reaction was what the other judges wanted.

"These people love you", Ellen DeGeneres pleaded.

Meanwhile, Paige Miles still has a long way to get the attention of the judges, who were against the Houston preschool teacher. Randy Jackson said her version of ‘Against All Odds’ by Mariah Carey was ‘honestly terrible’, while DeGeneres only complimented on Miles standing on-stage in high heels.

Also falling further from the judges’ favour was 20-year-old Tim Urban form Duncanville, Texas. He slid across the stage on his knees to punctuate his rendition of ‘Crazy Little Thing Called Love’ by the Queens.

DeGeneres and Kara DioGuardi compared his move to an awful audition of ‘High School Musical’, while Jackson said: "The dopest thing that you did was the slide, dude".

Several singers were able to stay on the judges’ good graces, such as Lee Dewyze with her The Box Tops' ‘The Letter’; Aaron Kelly with Aerosmith's ‘I Don't Want to Miss a Thing’; and Casey James with ‘The Power Of Love’ by Huey Lewis and The News.

Unless the panel makes a decision to save a finalist, another will be eliminated on Wednesday based on votes from viewers.