Michael*

Thanks to all for the pics.

Merged. (Y)

Threads merged. (Y)

Two Laura Marling numbers from Tuesday evening's live broadcast of Later with Jools Holland. And a great tune by recent Sub Pop signings Still Corners.

I only figured out how to do this a couple of days ago. It's a case of taking the eight-digit number at the end of the URL (in this instance, 29760445) and wrapping it in 'vimeo' tags. So the code should look something like this... [vimeo]29760445[/vimeo] Which should then give you this...

The more I see of the plot, the more excited I get about this. The Joker has caused the anarchy in Gotham, only now it appears that he's feeling the effects of the Titan formula he injected in the previous game, and is unable to keep his stranglehold of the city. Thus, virtually every miscreant in the Batman universe should make an appearance during the ensuing power struggle. It's a magnificent premise. Also, since Mark Hamill has apparently claimed that this is the last time he'll be on voiceover duties, the thought occurs that Joker might actually die in this game.

Batman: Arkham City Batman: Arkham City is the sequel to Batman: Arkham Asylum, based on DC Comics' Batman. It is being developed by Rocksteady Studios and published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment for release on the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii U, Microsoft Windows and OnLive. The game was officially announced during the 2009 Spike Video Game Awards and is scheduled for a worldwide release, beginning in North America on October 18, 2011. Plot The story for Arkham City takes place approximately one year after the events of Arkham Asylum. Quincy Sharp, former warden of Arkham Asylum, has taken credit for stopping the Joker, and used the notoriety to become mayor of Gotham City. As neither Arkham nor Blackgate Prison are in any condition to detain inmates, Sharp buys out a large section of Gotham's slums and arms the perimeter with private military contractors from a group called Tyger in order to create 'Arkham City'. The prisoners are brought into Arkham City and are given free rein, as long as they do not attempt escape. To oversee the city, Sharp hires psychiatrist Hugo Strange who appears to have his own secret agenda for the city. Batman maintains a vigil over the city, worried that the situation may get out of hand. The events of the game are set in motion when Two-Face, seeking to gain notoriety among the inmates and other villains outside the city, devises a plan to publicly execute Catwoman. Batman decides for both the safety of Gotham and of his past relationship with Catwoman that he must stop the execution by entering Arkham City. Catwoman takes advantage of the chaos in Arkham City to acquire jewelry, and a few high tech gadgets; much like how Batman receives new tools and upgrades. A teaser trailer was released that featured Joker being nursed by Harley Quinn from the effects of the Titan formula (and the explosive gel punch from Batman) while Arkham City descends into chaos. The sequel was described by veteran Batman voice actor Kevin Conroy as "really, really dark". While relating the game's dark nature to the animated movie Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker, Conroy also said, "It involves a lot of the villains and it goes to that area – it's that dark." Cast Some of the voice actors reprised their roles from Batman: Arkham Asylum. Batman is portrayed again by Kevin Conroy, Joker by Mark Hamill, Riddler by Wally Wingert, Poison Ivy by Tasia Valenza, Harley Quinn by Tara Strong (replacing Arleen Sorkin) and Commissioner Gordon and Quincy Sharp by Tom Kane. Danny Jacobs and James Horan also return as the voices of Victor Zsasz and Jack Ryder, respectively. Edge magazine confirmed that Bane returns in Arkham City, but this time he is an ally of Batman's. New playable characters include Catwoman (voiced by Grey DeLisle) in the main storyline and Robin currently as a pre-order bonus character in the challenge maps. Hugo Strange is voiced by Corey Burton, Two-Face is voiced by Troy Baker, and Penguin, voiced by Nolan North, with a Cockney accent. Additionally, Maurice LaMarche and Stana Katic revealed that they voice Mr. Freeze and Talia al Ghul in the game, respectively. Calendar Man is also expected to appear in the game. Alfred Pennyworth joins Oracle on the communicator. Solomon Grundy is also included as seen in Penguin's trailer.

Model: Behati x3 Actress: Kirsten x3 Pose: Maryna x2, Nicole x1 Original: Julia x1, Malgosia x2 Group: Vogue Germany x3

Fan x3

Kate Beckinsale [8] Jennifer Aniston [2]

Happy birthday!

Snoop Dogg praises Welsh gardener's record-breaking swede Rap star Snoop Dogg was so impressed with a Welsh gardener's record-breaking swede that he took to YouTube to congratulate him. The LA rapper, wearing a Cardiff City FC shirt, also invited Ian Neale, 68, to come backstage when he performs in the Welsh capital later this week to pass on some tips on growing vegetables. Mr Neale, who has previously produced a 52lb beetroot, is currently waiting for confirmation from Guinness World Records after growing an 85lb swede. 'What up? Shout out to my homeboy Ian Neale,' Snoop Dogg exclaims in the video while standing in front of a cannabis leaf-covered background. 'I want to tell you something, when I do my show in Cardiff, I want you to come backstage and see me because I do vegetation myself and I want to know your secret so I can show you my vegetables and see if you can grow that into a real big vegetable. Come see your boy Snoop Dogg, I've got two tickets for you when I get to town.' 'Mr Neale, from Newport, South Wales, has since said he's flattered by the offer of tickets to the show but won't be accepting. 'I'm more of a country and western man myself,' he said. Snoop Dogg plays Cardiff's Motorpoint Arena on Saturday October 8 as part of a UK tour promoting his eleventh studio album, Doggumentary' Source: Metro

Olivia

Sara Sampaio [5] Amanda Streich [6]

Erm, Michael's going to have to explain this one to me. This news hasn't come as a total shock - it's long been rumoured that Niall was looking to end his day-to-day duties at the club, having originally planned to act as chairman for no more than five years. With that said, the timing of it is indeed odd. There's a suggestion in the local press that it's a way to weaken Bruce's position at the club without Quinn having to do the dirty on his mate* but I'm not sure it's as cut-and-dried as all that. I personally think that if Ellis Short had wanted to sack Bruce before now, he could easily have done it. As owner he would have that right, irrespective of Quinn's presence as chairman. Still, there's no denying Bruce has lost a close ally in Quinn and unless things improve on the park sharpish, Short will be far less forgiving. We may not be alone in our current mediocrity, but we're in no position to deny that we're in a relegation scrap. So anyway, so long Niall and thanks for singlehandedly dragging us out of complete freefall. A contribution that won't be equalled in a hurry. *(Author's note: Niall may have form in this department - in 2005, Mick McCarthy was bizarrely and unceremoniously sacked shortly before Quinn's consortium took over. That isn't to say MickMac didn't do a crap job - in fact he was clueless, but it was long after the horse had bolted. When the buyout eventually happened, I put it down to Niall being reluctant to show his old Republic manager the door.)

Current favourites: Fringe Doctor Who Merlin Spiral (French detective show) Modern Family Six Feet Under (season 3 re-runs) Checking out occasionally: Outnumbered Still finding it impossible to get into: Boardwalk Empire

Very good stuff. When I heard it, I figured a Jack White collaboration would be inevitable, but a quick Googling suggests that it's already happened. Trying to quickly redeem himself after the Insane Clown Posse debacle, no doubt.

Fabulous Magazine (September 2011) -

Europe: 3

Distinctly NSFW video for 'Suck It And See' by Arctic Monkeys. (nudity)

Until this week, I'd never actually seen ANTM before. There I was thinking Zoolander was a comedy when in actual fact it's a documentary.

6

High Style x3