Nappies to change: two an hour (v bad). Alcohol intake: none (v good). Books to write: one. Yes, folks, Bridget Jones is coming back, but not as you know her. Author Helen Fielding (pictured) is hard at work on a third Bridget Jones novel, which flashes forward 10 years to show our heroine as a mum (good reason for this - Fielding now has two babies of her own with Simpsons writer Kevin Curran). Working Title has already agreed to make the film, I'm told, with Renée Zellweger keen to reprise her role. The second film, Bridget Jones: the edge of reason, took £10.4m at the UK box office in its first week, after all, and while Fielding is said to be worth £17m, she would still be v v v stupid to miss this opportunity.
Another 'sleb who has taken to motherhood is Katie Price, aka Jordan who I hear is following up her dire adult novel Angel with some children's books. As with Angel, the mother of Harvey and Junior will have even her kids' effort ghosted.
Those of an unkind disposition would say that legendary director Trevor Nunn has a face, or at least the beard, for radio, but he's never actually directed a play for the medium . . . until now. He's agreed to work on Tom Stoppard's play The Real Thing for Radio 4 and it will be one of the station's centrepiece offerings this Christmas. Simon Armitage is also writing a play for the station based on Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. Sir Ian McKellen (who seems to turn nothing down these days) stars.
The days of the polemical anti-war pop video are not over. UK trip hoppers Faithless's new track "Bombs", which is out this week, has a great promo with coffins draped in US flags being buried next to children building sandcastles. Should be explosive - especially in the US.
bendowell@btinternet.com
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