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PAMELA Anderson hosted an anti-animal cruelty award bash at Stella McCartney’s London boutique on Wednesday night - and criticised Hollywood stars for wearing fur.

The former Baywatch star was one of several big names, including Louise Redknapp, former X-Files actress Gillian Anderson and jumpsuit-wearing Sadie Frost to attend the event.

The actress handed out awards to celebrities who had fought against animal cruelty for the campaigning group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (Peta).

Wearing a flowing white dress, she said: "My message would be to please start using fake fur. It’s terrible because people see stars like J.Lo and Beyonce wearing fur and they don’t think about the cruelty that goes into it."

She added: "I’m here to hopefully raise a lot of money and if we raise enough I’ll strip naked in the shop window."

Frost, whose jumpsuit was slashed down the middle, said: "I’ve always been an animal lover. People should be made aware of all the issues. Some people think that the whole wearing fur thing is glamorous but you can look good without it. Hopefully people will stop wearing it."

Other names at the event included Siouxsie Sioux and Martina Navratilova, who received an award for campaigning on the issue.

The former tennis star said: "I’ve been an animal lover all my life and I don’t think people know about the stuff that goes on."

via

A Frenchman made a 686-kilometre (426-mile) round-trip from Paris to London and then back again purely to place a 10,000-euro (6,900-pound, 12,600-dollar) bet on Brazil to win the World Cup, bookmaker William Hill has said.

The mystery punter is said to have been "hopping up and down" outside the chain’s branch at Waterloo station, where Eurostar trains linking London and Paris start and terminate, waiting for staff to open up.

He then handed over a stash of Euros before rushing off to catch the train back to France, leaving the manager to chase him with the betting slip.

"The man was clearly in a hurry to catch the train back. He told us that he would be back on July 10 (when the World Cup final is held) to collect the winnings," said William Hill spokesman Rupert Adams Tuesday.

"We didn’t have the heart to tell him that he could have placed the bet on either the telephone or on the Internet."

The man staked 10,000 euros at odds of 11 to four and will collect 37,500 euros if Brazil lift the trophy.

Unlike Britain, where wagers can be placed at a number of privately-owned chains, betting in France is more tightly controlled with two franchises, one running bets on horseracing, the other lottery and scratchcard games.

NUREMBERG, Germany - There was no glory for the United States at this year’s World Cup, only frustration and failure.

The Americans were eliminated in the first round, losing to Ghana 2-1 Thursday in a game they had to win to advance to the tournament’s knockout phase.

With thousands of red, white and blue-clad fans cheering them on in Franken-Stadion, the Americans fell flat against a Black Stars team that was stronger and faster. Surprising Ghana advanced along with Italy from Group E.

It was a bitter ending for the United States, which carried high hopes — and a No. 5 world ranking from FIFA — onto soccer’s biggest stage. Four years ago, the Americans made the quarterfinals of the World Cup.

Haminu Draman put the Africans ahead in the 22nd minute, breaking in alone on goalkeeper Kasey Keller after colliding with Claudio Reyna, who crumpled to the ground in pain.

The United States, which has never won a World Cup game in which it trailed, tied it when Clint Dempsey scored in the 43rd minute with a smashing 10-yard shot off a perfect feed from DaMarcus Beasley. But Ghana captain Stephen Appiah converted a penalty kick in the second minute of first-half injury time after American defender Oguchi Onyewu was called for a foul in the penalty area.

In order to advance, the Americans needed a victory and some help. They got the needed assistance when Italy defeated the Czech Republic 2-0 in a game played simultaneous in Hamburg. But the United States (0-2-1) didn’t come through and finished the tournament with one point — its first in a World Cup played in Europe, but not enough to escape the basement in Group E.

Italy (2-0-1) won the group with seven points and Ghana (2-1), making its first World Cup appearance, advanced with six points.

The Associated Press.

HAGATNA, Guam (AP) — Three aircraft carriers filled the skies with fighters as one of the largest U.S. military exercises in decades got underway Tuesday off this island in the western Pacific.

For the first time ever, a Chinese delegation was sent to observe the U.S. war games. But as the show of American military power began, North Korea — one of the region’s most unpredictable countries — was rattling some swords of its own.

The maneuvers, dubbed "Valiant Shield," bring three carriers together in the Pacific for the first time since the Vietnam War. Some 30 ships, 280 aircraft and 22,000 troops will be participating in the five-day war games, which end Friday.

The exercises are intended to boost the ability of the Navy, Air Force and Marines to work together and respond quickly to potential contingencies in this part of the world, U.S. military officials said. Even U.S. Coast Guard vessels were joining in the maneuvers.

"The exercises are taking place on land, sea, air, space and cyberspace," said Senior Master Sgt. Charles Ramey. "They cover the whole spectrum."

The maneuvers mark the first major operation in this remote U.S. territory about halfway between Hawaii and Japan since the announcement last month that 8,000 Marines would be moved here from Okinawa in part of the biggest realignment of the U.S. forces in Asia in decades.

Though planned months ago, they come amid heightened concern in Asia over North Korea.

Officials in the United States, South Korea and Japan say they believe North Korea is preparing to test launch a Taepodong 2 long-range ballistic missile. The missile is believed be able to reach parts of the western United States.

The Associated Press.

Starting next week, MySpace, the popular online hangout, will make it harder for strangers to send messages to younger teenagers.

The site, which has more than 70 million members, has been under pressure because members are frequently subjected to lewd or inappropriate messages and occasionally lured into dangerous real-world encounters.

The site will also stop showing advertisements for certain products — like online dating sites — to those under 18.

The owner of MySpace, the News Corporation, has been working to address concerns about the safety of the many teenage users of the site, while not clamping down on the freewheeling and flirtatious interchanges that are the source of its appeal.

Next week, the site will restrict how users over 18 can contact those aged 14 and 15. Older users sending a message asking to become friends with younger users will have to enter the recipients’ actual first and last names or their e-mail addresses, rather than simply their user names.

The new policy still allows people under 18 to send messages to those under 16 without knowing their full names or e-mail addresses.

MySpace will also start to allow all members to designate their profiles as private and thus available only to their named list of friends. MySpace had allowed and encouraged those under 16 to set their profiles to be private, but profiles of anyone older than that have been available for any visitor to the site to read.

via NYT.