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Prince to pay £2M over scrapped Irish gig

March 27, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

London, March 27 (ANI): Prince has reportedly been ordered to pay 2 million pounds in damages over his decision to pull out of a 2008 concert in Ireland just days before the event.

The 51-year-old singer had landed in a legal dispute with bosses at Irish promotions company MCD after cancelling a show at Dublin”s Croke Park in June 2008.

He was said to have agreed on a settlement with MCD outside the court but allegedly failed to pay the amount following which the MCD chiefs dragged the star back to the court, The Daily Express reported.

Dublin”s High Court Justice Peter Kelly ruled against Prince, revealing the details of the agreement in a bid to force the star to follow the ruling, according to the Irish Times.

MCD’s legal team has apparently vowed to approach the European courts if Prince refuses to hand over the money. (ANI)

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$2m on offer for V8 grand slam

March 13, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

The V8 Supercars bosses have upped the stakes for drivers, introducing a grand slam incentive.

If a driver manages to win the Adelaide 500, Bathurst, the Gold Coast and Sydney 500 in one season, they will take home $2 million.

V8 Supercars chairman Tony Cochrane says the races are the most challenging of the tour and winning all four deserves an added bonus.

“They are very difficult, very different events that require a huge amount of fitness and a massive amount of concentration and a huge element of luck,” he said.

“It’s these four that challenge drivers and their teams the most due to the fatigue of both man and machine, not to mention the strategy involved.

“You have to have everything going right for you with the car as well.

“We wouldn’t be putting it up it we didn’t think it would go off and quite frankly I want it to go off, what a great headline.”

Reigning V8 Supercars champion Jamie Whincup has welcomed the incentive.

“It’s a lot of money, the competition’s extremely tough, it’s going to be massively tough for one driver to win all four, but if I was to win the $2 million I think I’d blow it as quick as I possibly can and enjoy it,” he said.

“My team will be giving it a good shot, no doubt about that.

“I guess after Adelaide we’ll find out who is still in the running.”

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Flawless blue diamond sells for record 6.2m at auction

May 13, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, May 13 (ANI): A flawless blue diamond weighing 7.03 carats has fetched a record 10.5 million Swiss francs (6.2 million pounds) at auction, Sotheby’s said.

According to Sotheby’s, the selling price of the rectangular-shaped blue stone is the highest price paid per carat for any gemstone at auction.

The celestial stone, mounted on a platinum ring, was found in Cullinan mine in South Africa last year, and was the centrepiece of Sotheby’s semi-annual sale in Geneva, reports The Telegraph.

The anonymous phone bidder, who won after a 15-minute war, has yet to name the gem.

“I was a little bit concerned in this market,” said David Bennett, head of jewellery for Sotheby’s Europe and Middle East.

The previous record price for a fancy vivid blue diamond was 5.2 million pounds, including commission, for a stone weighing 6.04 carats at sale in Hong Kong in October 2007, also by Sotheby’s. (ANI)

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Iraq cuts May OSP crude prices for all buyers

April 14, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Iraq will cut its May official selling price for its Basra Light and Kirkuk crude to buyers worldwide, a senior Iraqi oil official said on Sunday.

Iraq cut the price of Basra crude for U.S. buyers from the April price by $6.20, bringing it to a discount of $4.90 a barrel below the second-month futures contract for U.S. crude benchmark WTI, said Falah Alamri, head of the State Oil Marketing Company (SOMO).

The price of Basra crude for European buyers was cut 10 cents to a discount of $1.15 below the North Sea spot crude marker, known as BFOE, Alamri said.

The price for Asian buyers fell 65 cents to a discount of 50 cents below the average of Oman/Dubai quotes, he said.

For U.S. buyers of the heavier Kirkuk crude, exported from the Turkish Mediterranean terminal of Ceyhan, Iraq cut the May price by $5.80 from April to a discount of $3.95 below first-month WTI. To European buyers, Iraq cut the price by 25 cents to BFOE minus $1.10.

Below is a table containing prices for April and May. All prices are listed in dollars below or above the benchmark.

Basra Light: May ’09 April ’09

European buyers Dtd BFO -1.15 -1.05

U.S. buyers WTI 2M -4.90 +1.30

Asian buyers Oman/Dubai -0.50 +0.15

Kirkuk:

European buyers Dtd BFO -1.10 -0.85

U.S. buyers WTI 1M -3.95 +1.85

(Reporting by Ahmed Rasheed; Editing by Missy Ryan and Mike Nesbit)

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Buy Charles Dickens’ ‘Bleak House’ for 2M

April 6, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, April 6 (ANI): Victorian novelist Charles Dickens’s former home Bleak House in Broadstairs, Kent, is up for sale.

The cliff top building, which has six bedrooms, is being sold for two million pounds.

It went on the market with estate agent Terence Painter Properties.

The fort-like building is the same house where Dickens wrote one of his most famous novels David Copperfield.
“Bleak House commands one of the most prominent positions – high up on the cliffs on the coast of Kent. This mansion is known far and wide as the seaside residence of the great novelist, Charles Dickens,” the Telegraph quoted a spokesman for the estate agent as saying.

“The Grade II Listed house was built in 1801 and has to be one of the country’s most renowned homes,” he added.

Bleak House underwent a 40,000-pound restoration after being damaged by fire in 2006.

While it has yet to be determined why the house has been put up for sale, the paper suggests that the family business of its current owner, local jewellery tycoon Richard Hilton, is in a difficulty for mislabelling their wares.

His daughter Kelly is said to be awaiting sentencing after admitting offences under the Hallmark Act before local magistrates last month. (ANI)

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WWII Spitfire up for sale at £2m

March 30, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, Mar 30 (ANI): A fully functioning Second World War Spitfire has been put up for sale at 2milllion pounds.

While the plane was originally, a single-seater, it has been refitted with a passenger seat.

The 1944 Supermarine-designed aircraft was uncovered from a scrap yard by an aviation enthusiast, late Charles Church in 1970.

It was sold in 1989 to Alan Dunkerley, who eventually resold it to the late Paul Portelli in June 2002.

The plane is being sold for 1.5m-2m pounds by a private owner.

“We are greatly honoured to be entrusted with the sale of such a distinguished and historic aircraft,” the Telegraph quoted James Knight, MD of Bonhams Collector’s Motoring Department which is managing the sale of ‘G-ILDA’.

This not the first time that a Spitfire has been put on sale, last September the same auction house sold a non-airworthy 1945 Supermarine Spitfire for a record price of 1.1 million pounds. (ANI)

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Taleban now controls Swat’s emerald mines

March 25, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, Mar.25 (ANI): A pact between the Pakistan Government and theTehreek-e-Nafaz-e-Shariat-e-Mohammadi (TNSM), a Pakistani militant organisation with Wahabi and Deobandi leanings, has allowed the Taleban to take control of emerald mines in the Swat Valley.

According to the BBC, emeralds of international quality are produced in these mines, and they have now been taken over by the Taleban following a ceasefire between TNSM-affiliated militants and the government.

The mines, along with the Panjshir mines in Afghanistan, hold the largest known deposits of emeralds in South Asia.

“It is for the benefit of the public that we have reopened the mines,” a senior Taleban commander told the BBC during a visit to the mines while they were under operation.

“They are open to anybody who wishes to mine them as long as they follow our rules,” he added.

The mines cover an area of nearly 8km (4.9 miles). When fully operational, they yielded a quarter of a million carats of emeralds between 1978 and 1988, according to official statistics.

The last official estimate put the projected yield at about 13.2m carats. (ANI)

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George Michael can demand 2.2m dlrs for private gigs

March 18, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, Mar 18 (ANI): Brit singer George Michael can now demand 2.2 million dollars for a private gig, as revealed by newly published accounts.

Michael, 45, had fuelled rumours that he was retiring with his The Final Two August concert in 2008 at London’s Earl Court.

But touring company Twentyfive Live has revealed he could make a fortune performing private gigs for the super-rich, reports Contactmusic.

The accounts show that the star made a staggering 2.2 million dollars for a 13-song set at the New Years Eve party of Russian nickel magnate Vladimir Potanin in 2006.

He also banked a 2.1 million dollars pay packet for singing his classics at the 55th birthday bash of British retail tycoon Sir Philip Green.

The accounts, obtained by Britain’s Daily Mail website, also show the star garnered a huge 67.2 million dollars from touring between April 2006 and March 2008. (ANI)

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Mayer’s ‘£2m engagement ring’ for Aniston

March 12, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

New Delhi, Mar 12 (ANI): John Mayer is said to have splashed out 2 million pounds on an engagement ring for actress girlfriend Jennifer Aniston.

The musician is reported to have contacted US jeweller Lorraine Schwartz about designing a special engagement ring.

According to reports, Mayer had presented Aniston with a commitment ring during their Valentine’s Day break in Barbados, reports The China Daily.

And now, a source said: “Money is no object for John. He is creating a vintage-style classic ring for Jennifer. He’s looking at 18-carat flawless diamond so he will have to pay around 2 million pounds.

“When he does get down on one knee he wants to be completely sure he gets the right answer and he knows a ring like that would be hard to refuse.”

The 31-year-old musician is refusing to rush into the proposal and is working tirelessly to ensure everything is perfect when he asks Jennifer, 40, to be his wife.

The source added to Britain’s Daily Mirror newspaper: “He’s just waiting for the most romantic setting to put the ring on her finger – busy schedules permitting.” (ANI)

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Britney to fork out $7.2M on staff in 2009

February 23, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, Feb 23 (ANI): Pop princess Britney Spears will be forking out a hefty 7.2 million dollars on her staff this year.

Spears, 27, is expected to make 100million dollars from her comeback tour ‘The Circus’, beginning on March 3, reports the Daily Star. he newspaper suggests that the Toxic singer will be paying her dad Jamie, who has been running her finances since her 2007 meltdown, a 200,000 dollars salary.

Her mum Lynne will be paid 180,000 dollars, while the singer’s manager Larry Rudolph, who had been fired when she took ill and then re-hired last year, will be getting the biggest amount, upto 1.5million dollars a year.

A personal security bill of 1.2million dollars is divided up among eight bodyguards, who work in shifts round the clock, each earning 150,000 dollars.

Over that Spears pays her ex-husband Kevin Federline 480,000 dollars a year, the amount coming to 20,000 dollars per month in “spousal support”, and spends 15,000 dollars a month on nannies for their sons Preston, three, and Jayden, two.

Federline, 30, will also get a 5,000 dollars-a-week “bonus” for letting the kids join Spears, on her Circus tour which kicks off in New Orleans.

When the massive show hits the road, Spears’ staff wage bill will soar to 616,000 dollars a month, and the tour will also include a psychiatrist, and constant companion assistant Brett Miller, who will be paid 100,000 dollars-a-year. (ANI)

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Paris Hilton buys £2m London home

February 1, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, Feb 01 (ANI): Paris Hilton has reportedly bought a house in Camden, which is worth a whopping two million pounds.

The townhouse is within walking distance of pads owned by Girls Aloud singer Sarah Harding, cool comedians Noel Fielding and Leigh Francis, and Blur’s Graham Coxon.

Hilton was very impressed with the six-bedroom house and now wants to spend another 250,000 pounds to make the house “Pure Paris”.

The hotel heiress has told friends that she has plans to have pole-dancing equipment installed in her living room, just as she has in LA.

“Paris started looking for a base when she was last in the UK to film her ITV2 reality show, ‘Paris Hilton’s British Best Friend’,” the Mirror quoted a friend, as saying.

“She initially thought about living near Hampstead and Belsize Park, but moved on to Camden, where she could get more bedrooms for her money.

“She wanted lots of room for her friends from LA to sleep over. She will be spending a lot of time in the UK, so she wants somewhere comfortable and quite similar to her girl palace in LA,” the friend added. (ANI)

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Wikipedia exceeds $6m donation goal

January 4, 2009 By Rajiv Gupta Leave a Comment

Enough hearts to keep the ubiquitous online encyclopedia running for another fiscal year – and then some, have been melted by a personal plea for cash by Wikipedia’s founder, Jimmy Wales.

It was recently announced by the Wikimedia foundation that it has risen over $6.2m since launching a fund-raising campaign in early November. With more than 125,000 donors contributing worldwide, the website exceeded its goal of approximately $6m to fund operations through June 30, 2009.

The non-profit organization appeared to be falling short of its financial target in late December until Wales posted a personal appeal for donations in place of Wikipedia’s standard fund-raising banner. The foundation said, “In the remaining eight days of the month, Wikimedia pulled in more than 50,000 contributions totaling $2m.”

Wales reported, “Surplus revenue will be placed into a reserve fund for offsetting operating costs beyond the fiscal year.” Furthermore, the foundation also provides a breakdown of Wikipedia’s 2008/2009 budget, which totals $5,974,000.

The site call itself as the fourth most visited site on the internet according to numbers by comScore and employs only 23 workers. However, it should be noted that Wikipedia’s donation box is still open – so there’s still plenty of opportunities to raise more cash.

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