Posted In: Why only you can choose the perfect perfume
Scientists have discovered why we all have so much trouble buying the ideal fragrance for a love-one. According to new research, we are all drawn to perfumes that complement our own natural smells, making it near impossible to second-guess the right scent for a partner. Findings to be presented at a conference in London next week show that when people chose their own fragrance they become much more attractive to the opposite sex. Dr Jan Havlicek, a smells expert based at Charles University in Prague, says that perfume is rarely chosen to mask our natural body odour and instead we all chose the fragrance which work best with our own smell. He told the Sunday Telegraph: 'Perfumes have been used by people for thousands of years and the prevailing view has been that this was to mask our natural body odour to make us smell more attractive. 'In fact, what we have found is there is a strong individual interaction between perfume and body odour. People choose fragrances to complement their own odour. It is probably why buying perfume as a gift is so difficult and why they end up lying in the bathroom not being used.'
Posted In: British warship chases Spanish boat out of Gibraltar waters
British warship chased a Spanish customs vessel out of British territorial waters at Gibraltar, a spokesman for the British military command in the contested territory said Wednesday. The frigate HMS Argyll was leaving Gibraltar on Tuesday on deployment to the Middle East when it spotted the Spanish ship in British waters off the territory, the spokesman at the British military command said. "Argyll turned and followed the customs vessel round Europa Point and into the Bay where the customs vessel exited British Gibraltar's territorial waters," he said. The Spanish vessel, a large corvette-type vessel named "Fulmar", then sailed to the Spanish port of Algeciras on the other side of the bay, he added. It was the latest in a series of maritime face-offs in the waters off Gibraltar, which is strategically placed at the western entrance of the Mediterranean. In April Gibraltar police charged one of its boats was damaged in a clash with Spanish police vessels that illegally entered its waters in pursuit of alleged drug traffickers. Britain claims a strip of three nautical miles (5.5 kilometres) surrounding Gibraltar as its territorial waters. But Spain does not recognise any waters off Gibraltar as belonging to the territory apart from its ports. Spain ceded Gibraltar to Britain in 1713 under the Treaty of Utrecht but has long argued that it should be returned to Spanish sovereignty. Britain has said it will not renounce sovereignty against the wishes of Gibraltarians.
Posted In: Former BB star Imogen Thomas has launched a blistering attack on Katie Price – telling pals: “She looks like a transvestite.”
And in the latest salvo of what I’m calling Dannygate after the ex-model’s dalliance with rugby player Danny Cipriani, 23, furious Imogen has told pals: “Out of every woman in the world, her?! She’s such a slag.” Imogen, 28, has been with Danny since July. She thought they had a future. But now all Imogen’s plans are off after pictures showed him leaving his home barefoot with Katie the morning after an evening together. Former Miss Wales Imogen fumed: “He’s such a liar. You don’t spend ages telling someone about your issues and how women have treated you then go do something like that.” Imogen was putting on a brave face when she appeared at the Inspiration Awards For Women in London on Friday – but photos of Danny cosying up to mum-of-three Katie, 33, had her tweeting in fury on Thursday: “Danny Cipriani is the biggest bull******r out there.” It’s not their first clash over guys – Katie dated Jermain Defoe after Imogen split with him in 2009. Now I can’t wait to hear what Katie has to say about all this.....
Posted In: X Factor Kitty was once a £500-a-night stripper
X FACTOR eccentric Kitty Brucknell worked in a string of seedy nightclubs as a £500-a-night lapdancer. The desperate singer charged £20 a time to strip naked for customers for up to four nights a week as she struggled to get her music career off the ground. She was disliked by the other strippers and was attacked by one girl for making an obscene remark about her body. Advertisement >> Yet Kitty was a hit with customers, who would laugh at her bizarre, “out of time” pole-dancing routines and extravagant burlesque outfits. And last night she belted out a dramatic, emotionally charged version of Queen’s Who Wants To Live Forever to an estimated 10 million TV viewers in the first live show. Desperately hoping Louis would vote to keep her in the contest, she shook with tension as she towered above the stage on elevated podium, dressed in a silver basque. She received a mixed response from the crowd and the judges. Tulisa called her a “complicated character,” adding “No one can argue that performance wasn’t absolutely captivating.” Louis told her: “You’re controversial, you’re dramatic and you’re trouble.” She was just as dramatic in her previous career as a lapdancer. One girl who worked with her said: “Kitty stuck out like a sore thumb and did some of the weirdest things I’ve ever seen a stripper do, but she was always saying she wanted to go on the X Factor and never stopped singing. “All she wanted was attention. She’ll clearly do anything it takes to be famous and win the show.” It’s the latest in a series of revelations about the larger-than-life hopeful. When she needed cash to pay rent on her flat in 2007, privately educated Kitty, 26, from Cheltenham, Glos, worked at strip clubs in and around London. Her dreams of becoming a famous singer were not working out and her other job as a Lady GaGa impersonator didn’t cover her costs. CRAZY At first she took a job lapdancing at the LA Confidential gentlemen’s club in Ealing, West London. One fellow dancer said: “Kitty was very shy at first when she was working here. She was like a choir girl but she had a very distinctive dancing style which I remembered the minute I saw her prance around the X Factor stage in her auditions.” Kitty left after just two weeks, but later the same year found a new job at Spearmint Rhino. An ex-stripper from the club in Slough, Berks, said: “When she first came in she told us she wanted the money to make her a famous singer and launched into an array of Christina Aguilera songs. She was good but it seemed strange. We knew straight away she was a bit crazy and it got worse. Kitty clearly had a lot of confidence. The men who came to the club loved it when she was called to dance. “She always picked Christina’s songs and used to do the most jerky, out-of-time dances. She didn’t seem to have any pole-dancing training as she was always too fast for the music. “It used to make the whole club roar with laughter. She would also sing so loudly you could hear her over the music without a mike. The bosses weren’t too happy, but men liked it. And she flounced around the bar talking to every man possible just to make extra cash.” Kitty (real name Kimberley Edwards) has stunned X Factor viewers with her outfits, including the £2,000 leotard that lit up during one performance. Her odd clothes were noticed at the strip club too. The Spearmint Rhino source said: “Her dress sense was appalling. Kitty always wore corsets and feathery dresses to make her stand out.” Kitty worked from 9pm till 4am three or four days a week, and took £12 of every £20 dance fee. After tips and private dances, she could earn £500 a night. But she was not popular with the other girls. Weeks before she quit, she was involved in a 4am dressing room bust-up with another dancer after making a rude comment about her private parts. Our source said: “No one liked Kitty so everyone stuck up for the other girl. We kept them apart so they didn’t come to blows.” In March 2008, Kitty left to work at one of London’s Secrets lapdancing clubs. Since her first X Factor days, her fragile nervous state has caused concerns for her welfare, and this week police probed internet death threats aimed at her. But our lapdancer source said: “Girls at the club used to think she was mad. “She will stop at nothing to make sure she is the one being talked about even if it means pushing herself to the edge of a breakdown so she can get sympathy. Kitty just wants fame.”
Posted In: 000 damages in hacking case Posted In: Kelly Hoppen accepts £60
Interior designer Kelly Hoppen has accepted £60,000 in damages over the News of the World phone-hacking case. Her lawyer told the High Court the settlement was for "misuse of private information and breach of confidence". Ms Hoppen is the former stepmother of Sienna Miller, whose relationship with fellow actor Jude Law was of huge interest to the now defunct tabloid. News International and News Group Newspapers agreed to pay the money as well as her costs. Numerous articles published in the News of the World between 2004 and 2006 contained "intrusive and private information" relating to Ms Hoppen, her lawyer Mark Thomson told the court. "The claimant did not know the source of this information at the time of publication and often could not understand how it was possible for the News of the World to obtain such private information," he said. New evidence "In 2009, as a result of the claimant's long held concerns, her solicitors, Atkins Thomson, wrote to the Metropolitan Police Service asking whether they had any evidence that the claimant had been targeted by News Group Newspapers Limited in 2004-2006." He said his client was at first told the police had no evidence to suggest she had been a target, but that changed in February 2011 after further evidence emerged. The court heard that News Group Newspapers admitted liability in April. Michael Silverleaf QC, counsel for the newspaper group, told Mr Justice Vos that he wanted to repeat the "sincere and unreserved apology" made to Ms Hoppen in April. Ms Hoppen is one of a number of celebrities and public figures pursuing civil cases against Rupert Murdoch's media group. In January, the High Court is due to hear claims from a handful of test cases involving those who say their phones were hacked into. They include former footballer Paul Gascoigne, Jude Law, sports agent Sky Andrew, and MP Chris Bryant. The mother of a 7/7 bombing victim will also pursue a separate civil case against News International. Sheila Henry's son, Christian Small, was killed in the 2005 Russell Square explosion.
Posted In: 'Fast Eddie'
Davenport set up Gresham Ltd in 2005 and pretended it was a respectable business with 50 years of sourcing huge commercial loans. He charged companies advance fees for loans of up to £157million but the money never materialised. The scam conned at least 51 victims and from 2007 to 2009 Gresham Ltd received more than £4.5million from unsuspecting clients, the court heard. ‘To outward appearances it was long-established, wealthy and prestigious,’ said Simon Mayo QC, for the prosecution. ‘It was essentially worthless. Its only business was fraud.’ Davenport owns Sierra Leone’s former high commission at Portland Place, London, used in The King’s Speech – and a gay porn film. The 45-year-old is pictured on his website with celebrities including Cowell and Hugh Grant, Knightley, Beckham and Mick Jagger. He boasted of 'beautiful homes and a collection of sports cars which would make any man jealous including a Ferrari 360 Spider, an Aston Martin Virage Volante, a Rolls-Royce Phantom and a Lamborghini'. Davenport was banned last year from using his home for activities including a ‘porn disco’, sex party and pole-dancing lessons. He was jailed last month for seven years and eight months with accomplice Peter Riley, 64, of Brentwood, Essex. They were convicted of conspiracy to defraud. Borge Andersen, 66, of South Kensington, got 39 months for the crime. According to Gresham Ltd accounts, Andersen received £159,564 from the fraud, Riley £695,407 and Davenport £773,000. A total of £349,025 vanished, the court heard. The convictions at Southwark crown court can be revealed because a reporting order was lifted yesterday. Princess Diana's wedding dress designer Elizabeth Emanuel - who had been one of Davenport's victims - welcomed his sentence. The 58-year-old turned to him in 2008 in the hope of raising £1m for her business, Art Of Being, and was asked to pay £20,000 - later reduced to £5,000 - for his company to complete due diligence. 'I think justice has been served,' she said. 'The amount I lost was nothing compared to everybody else but he was happy to take my £5,000. It sums up the sort of person he is.'The businessman had many high-profile friends including socialite Tamara Beckwith (right) (Picture: Rex Features)
Con victim: Royal dress designer Elizabeth Emanuel was among those who paid money to Davenport (Picture: PA)
Posted In: Drug-dealing killer: Chicago cop stopped DEA investigation of me
high-level drug trafficker admits he was involved in three killings after a Chicago Police officer scuttled a federal investigation into his illegal activities in the mid-1990s, according to a recent court filing. Saul Rodriguez, who pleaded guilty last month to federal drug conspiracy charges, was an informant for Officer Glenn Lewellen for years. But Rodriguez told authorities he and Lewellen were also longtime partners in crime. They allegedly worked together to rip off other drug dealers, splitting millions of dollars in loot. Lewellen recruited Rodriguez as a police informant in early 1996. Rodriguez’s undercover name was “Bill Pager.” From 1996 to 2001, the Chicago Police Department paid him $807,000 for information that led to seizures of drugs and cash, prosecutors said. All the while Rodriguez was making cases for the police, however, he was committing crimes. And Lewellen repeatedly stepped in to keep Rodriguez out of jail, prosecutors said. Rodriguez’s statements to authorities are included in a 188-page document containing evidence prosecutors intend to present against Lewellen and other defendants who face trial in the same case. Rodriguez has agreed to testify against them. According to the document, Lewellen in mid-1996 persuaded the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration to stop investigating Rodriguez after 154 pounds of marijuana were seized from a secret compartment in his Buick. Lewellen told the DEA its investigation would harm ongoing Chicago Police Department cases, prosecutors said. Lewellen, who joined the police force in 1986, retired in 2002 to become a homebuilder. But he still managed to obstruct a separate DEA investigation of Rodriguez, prosecutors said. In 2006, Lewellen warned Rodriguez not to speak to a drug courier whose phone was wiretapped, Rodriguez said. At the time, the DEA was investigating Rodriguez’s ties to a cocaine wholesaler, prosecutors said. Lewellen told Rodriguez he got the information from an “agent” who previously worked in Colombia, but didn’t say what agency was involved in the investigation, according to Rodriguez. As Lewellen was allegedly protecting Rodriguez from the DEA, Rodriguez was involved in the murders of three men, prosecutors said. Rodriguez has confessed to orchestrating the slayings in 2000, 2001 and 2002. Rodriguez has also told authorities he arranged for a friend to “escape” from a prison in Mexico in 2003. He said he met with the prison warden while on vacation in Mexico and promised to pay him a $250,000 bribe in exchange for his friend’s freedom. In addition to his career as a drug dealer, Rodriguez became involved in managing boxers and developing real-estate in Chicago and Nevada, records show. The document detailing Rodriguez’s statements to federal prosecutors, filed last month, provides new details about Rodriguez’s relationship with Lewellen. For example, Rodriguez said he bought Lewellen a Ford Crown Victoria equipped with a siren. Lewellen allegedly drove the car while posing as a legitimate cop during drug rip-offs, Rodriguez said. Rodriguez has told authorities that another Chicago Police officer participated in at least one rip-off, but he believes the officer is now deceased. The prosecution’s evidentiary document also provides more information about the three murders in which Rodriguez admits to having a role. Rodriguez said he persuaded Lewellen to frame Juan Luevano with a drug case in 1999. Luevano, who was dating Rodriguez’s former girlfriend, was released from jail after posting bond in the case. Rodriguez said he then met with a high-ranking Satan Disciples gang member who was in prison. The gang leader was angry Luevano was dating his wife, Rodriguez told authorities. The gang leader asked Rodriguez to find someone to “get” Luevano. So Rodriguez said he hired a high-school pal, Manuel Uriarte, to kill Luevano. Uriarte and Andres Flores allegedly shot Luevano to death in 2000 near his home in Cicero, prosecutors said. They’re charged with murder in the same federal drug conspiracy case. Rodriguez also admitted he arranged for the 2001 murder of Michael Garcia. Rodriguez said he acted at the request of a friend who suspected Garcia had killed his brother, prosecutors said. And Rodriguez said he was involved in the 2002 murder of Miguel De La Torre. Rodriguez said he arranged the kidnapping of De La Torre to scare him into providing information about the location of cocaine and money. Rodriguez said he hired Miguel Uriate and his brother Jorge Uriate to squeeze the information from De La Torre, a drug dealer. If De La Torre refused to talk, they agreed the Uriates would kill him, Rodriguez said. Rodriguez admitted he provided Uriate brothers with an electrical cord they used to strangle De La Torre in a garage. Jorge Uriate also faces murder charges in the same case. Lewellen, who is free on $1 million bail awaiting trial, is not charged with any of the killings.
Posted In: Feds indict 23 Texas Syndicate gang members
Federal authorities Tuesday announced the indictment of 23 reputed Texas Syndicate gang members and associates on charges including four murders, drug trafficking and extortion. Those charged are primarily in the Uvalde and Hondo areas, but the prison-born criminal group has members throughout the state. Their alleged crimes were committed over the past nine years, according to the indictment, which details the structure and goals the gang, which is led by officers with ranks. The indictment also delves into the gang's strict rules and penalties, including being killed, for going against the organization or disobeying orders. "The (Texas Syndicate) will not hesitate to kill anyone who interferes with the business of the gang or who commits a violation of Texas Syndicate rules. Among those charges under RICO, the acronym for Racketeering Influenced Corrupt Organization: Cristobal "Little Chris" Velasquez, 33, of Uvalde; Sotero Rodriguez Martinez "June", 41, of Uvalde; Chuco Mario "Mariachi" Martinez, 35, of Uvalde; Larry "Little Larry" Munoz, Jr.,36, of Uvalde; Brian "Tata" Esparza, 31, of Uvalde; Charles "Horse" Esparza, 32, of Uvalde; Ervey "Mad Max" Sanchez, 31, of Uvalde; Mark Anthony Vela, 35, of Hondo; Charles Olan Quintanilla, 32, of Hondo; George "Curious" Sanchez,36, of Uvalde; and, Inez "Bebito" Mata, 41, of Uvalde. Others charged in the case are not accused of violating the RICO law.
Posted In: Dancehall star Vybz Kartel has been charged with the murder of Jamaican promoter Barrington Burton
Jamaican dancehall star Vybz Kartel has been charged with murder. A police statement issued in Kingston on Monday said that the 35-year-old artist was charged with murder, conspiracy to murder and illegal possession of a firearm. Investigators accuse the rapper, whose real name is Adijah Palmer, of conspiring with others to kill a 27-year-old promoter who was murdered earlier this year. "The allegation is that on Monday, July 11, 2011, Palmer, along with other men, conspired to murder Barrington Burton o/c 'Bossie', a 27-year-old businessman/promoter of a Gregory Park address in St Catherine. Burton was murdered while he was standing with friends along Walkers Avenue in Gregory Park," the police release said. A preliminary hearing is scheduled to take place on Tuesday. Kartel's defence attorney was reported to have said that his client was prepared to fight the charges. Kartel was initially arrested on Friday for marijuana possession. Kartel has previously been arrested on charges including assault and illegal gun possession. Those charges were later dropped. A long-running feud with fellow artist Mavado is alleged to have fuelled mob attacks in inner-city neighbourhoods of Kingston. In December 2009, the two met government ministers in an attempt to calm the situation. Kartel has worked on collaborations and remixes with the likes of Jay-Z, Rihanna and MIA. His international hits include Ramping Shop, Dollar Sign and Clarks. The success of the latter song last year sent sales of the British shoes soaring in Jamaica. A businessman in his own right, Kartel also has his own brands of rum and condoms as well as his owncontroversial range of skin-lightening cosmetics. Recently, the singer also became the star of locally produced reality TV show Teacha's Pet. Officials from the telecommunications company that sponsors the show were said to be discussing the new charges levelled against Kartel last night.
Posted In: The Duchess of Alba with her new husband Alfonso Díez outside Dueñas Palace in Seville.
She is a frizzy-haired 85-year-old eccentric and hugely wealthy aristocrat with a squeaky voice and an impossibly long name. He is a lowly civil servant 25 years her junior. Today the two were married, prompting a frenzy of excitement in this southern Spanish city. Crowds formed outside Seville's Dueñas Palace – just one of several regal residences the Duchess of Alba owns around Spain – as she, her family and a few friends gathered for a small ceremony for her marriage to Alfonso Díez in the palace's private chapel. The billionaire duchess, who has been known to ask the media for money in the past, allowed in just two news agencies – for free. "She is an amazing woman. She does whatever she wants and doesn't give a damn what people say," said 18-year-old tourism student Ana Trigo, as she fought for space on the pavement outside the Dueñas's imposing gates. "I know she's got lots of money, but that's just the luck of birth isn't it?" A neatly groomed priest, a flamenco singing troupe, innumerable bunches of roses, sunflowers and carnations, and at least two bullfighter guests made their way into the palace complex as security guards pushed back the crowd of gawping, shouting Sevillanos. "I've written a paso doble and want to sing it for her," said composer Vicente Tarrancón, who travelled the 300 miles from Alicante with an electric piano and a violinist but who remained firmly outside the palace gates. Onlookers mostly were not disturbed by the duchess's inherited wealth, estimated at up to €3.5bn (£3bn), even though one in five Spaniards are currently unemployed and the economy is heading towards a double-dip recession. Apart from her palaces, the duchess owns huge tracts of land all over Spain and has a collection of paintings that include works by Goya and Velázquez. "She gives a lot of money to charity and employs a lot of people. And she repaired the church of the Christ of the Gypsies," said housewife Mari Luz González. "She's wonderful." Cries of "Guapa!" or "Good-looking!" welcomed the pallid duchess when she appeared dressed in a pink wedding dress with a green ribbon around her waist at the palace gates with her new husband. She responded by dancing a few flamenco steps. Most people, however, seemed to be taking a tongue-in-cheek attitude to the duchess's latest romance and using it as an excuse to indulge in Seville's favoured pastime of partying. At least one onlooker had dressed in a bridal gown. Another came disguised as Spain's monarch, King Juan Carlos, who was reportedly petitioned by the duchess's children to see if he could dissuade their mother from remarrying. "Let's face it, the scandal is not that he is younger, but that she is so old," said Margarita Ruibal. "It's not every day you hear of someone of that age getting married." An unemployed man who called himself Buti came dressed as a yoghurt carton to protest at the €40 a day paid to farmworkers. "Here they are, living it up in their palaces while 300 families a day lose their homes in Spain," he said. The duchess's attempts to stop her six children from squabbling with her husband-to-be over money – by making her will public before the marriage – failed to appease them all, prompting the duchess to call one daughter-in-law "lying, wicked and covetous" on a television gossip show. The daughter-in-law and her husband were among the few guests who turned down the wedding invitation. "Alfonso doesn't want anything. All he wants is me," the duchess said earlier this year. Newsstands, meanwhile, displayed the front cover of Interviú magazine – which showed topless pictures of the duchess taken three decades ago on an Ibiza beach. The publicity-loving aristocrat was said to be formally furious, but privately delighted, by the flattering figure she boasted when she was a mere fifty-something. The magazine said it had held on to the pictures for 30 years so as not to upset the duchess, but thought them now worth publishing. Local shops were selling duchess-themed "I love DQS" T-shirts featuring her trademark frizz of white hair. The regional CanalSur TV station beamed live coverage into the city's bars, where unemployed men sold postcards of the Virgin Mary statues that populate Seville's churches. The duchess, whose full name is María del Rosario Cayetana Victoria Alfonsa Fitz-James Stuart y de Silva, boasts 49 inherited aristocratic titles – at least 20 of which allow entry into the select club of Spanish Grandees. She also claims the title of Duchess of Berwick and boasts blood ties to the British royal family and Winston Churchill. Twice widowed, her last husband Jesús Aguirre, who had previously been a leftwing Catholic priest, died in 2001
