MICHELLE OBAMA VISITS MADAME TUSSAUDS LONDON
TO CELEBRATE BARACK'S FIRST YEAR AS PRESIDENT

19th January 2010 - Michelle Obama joined her husband at Madame Tussauds London today to mark the first anniversary of his inauguration as US President.  The wax figure of the First Lady will be at Madame Tussauds for a limited period only, featuring alongside Mr Obama’s figure which was unveiled at the world famous attraction exactly one year ago.
 
Guests will have the opportunity to meet America’s first couple in a painstaking recreation of the legendary Oval Office but with a touch of domesticity – a selection of family photographs showing some of the Obamas key moments from their first 12 months in the White House will adorn the iconic Resolute desk.  Michelle lives up to her fashion icon status in a stylish sleeveless red dress with black belt and pearl necklace, while President Obama is in a typical informal and relaxed pose, smiling with arms casually folded, dressed in a tailored suit. 
 
Liz Edwards, PR Manager for Madame Tussauds London, said:  “We are thrilled that Michelle is joining Barack in the attraction to celebrate an historic year in office.  President Obama is one of our most popular figures and guests particularly enjoy being able to step into the Oval Office.  Now they get to meet not just Mr President but the Mrs too, and we’re sure it will be a big hit.”
 
The First Lady will be in residence in London until the end of February, when the stunningly life like wax figure will make its way to its permanent home, Madame Tussauds’ latest new attraction, opening in Bangkok this summer.
 
And coming up...
 
DAME HELEN MIRREN AWARDED LATEST ACCOLADE –
A PLACE AT MADAME TUSSAUDS LONDON

Madame Tussauds London announced today that it is creating a wax figure of one of Britain’s most celebrated and best loved actresses, Dame Helen Mirren.  The figure will debut at the world famous attraction in April. 
 
Her inclusion will be yet another accolade for the ever youthful Dame, who has won numerous awards in a career spanning five decades, including four Baftas, four Emmys and a Best Actress Oscar in 2007 for The Queen.
 
Mirren is one of the most prolific and versatile performers in the world with a diverse body of work.  Her performance as Tolstoy’s wife Sofya in the forthcoming film The Last Station, has earned her a Best Actress nomination for both the Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards taking place later this month.  With other titles including The Debt and The Tempest due for release over the coming months, she is set to continue to enthral audiences in 2010.
 
The actress will look her sophisticated best in a floor length black dress by Asprey which she donated to the attraction.  The gown was originally worn at the ITV3 Crime Thriller Awards and is teamed with black six inch heels.  She has already given a sitting for the Madame Tussauds studios team, where over 300 measurements and a catalogue of reference shots were taken; the figure will take four months to create and will cost £150,000.

Simply Red have just announced that they will perform at Broadlands in Hampshire next summer. Tickets for this date on Sunday 27th June are available now!

Tickets to Simply Red's concert as part of Epsom Live at Epsom Downs Racecourse in Surrey are also available.

Simply Red are an English pop band, formed in the mid 1980s.

Simply Red’s roots originate from the notorious 1976 Sex Pistols gig at the Lesser Free Trade Hall in Manchester. Manchester art student Mick Hucknall was one of the many young music fans present (along with original members of The Fall, Joy Division, The Smiths and Buzzcocks) who was inspired to form a band after witnessing that gig. The first incarnation of the band was a punk group called The Frantic Elevators. This band existed for 7 years, with limited releases on local labels, but split in 1984 with only limited local attention and critical acclaim for their final single, “Holding Back the Years”.

After the demise of The Frantic Elevators, Hucknall linked up with manager Elliot Rashman. By early 1985 Hucknall and Rashman had assembled a band of local session musicians and began to attract record company attention. Around this time the group adopted the name Simply Red (after Hucknall’s nickname, which denoted hair color, football allegiance to Manchester United and left-wing political affiliation). They signed to Elektra in 1985, with the somewhat changeable line-up of Hucknall, Tony Bowers (bass), Fritz McIntyre (keyboards), Tim Kellett (brass), Sylvan Richardson (guitar) and Chris Joyce (drums). Their first single, released in 1985, was “Money’s Too Tight (To Mention)”, a cover of a soul standard originally recorded by The Valentine Brothers. This single had moderate success, reaching the UK Top 20.

Tickets to Keane performaning in Suffolk, Kent, Glouestershire, Nottinghamshire, North Yorkshire and Staffordshire as part of the 2010 Forestry Commission shows will be available here at 9am Friday 4th December.

Keane has announced a tour of spectacular woodland locations next summer as part of the Forestry Commission Live Music series.

Keane have had three consecutive Number One albums “Hopes and Fears” (2004), “Under The Iron Sea” (2006) and “Perfect Symmetry” (2008), garnering Brits, Grammy’s and Ivor Novello Awards. Their collection of hits including ‘Everybody’s Changing’, ‘Is It Any Wonder?’, ‘Crystal Ball’, ‘Somewhere Only We Know’ and ‘Spiralling’, has secured Keane’s place as one of Britain’s best-loved bands. As well as selling an impressive ten million albums the band’s live reputation is marked by their huge sold out Arena tours and critical acclaim.

Money generated by Forestry Commission Live Music ticket sales is spent directly on the nation’s woodlands, benefiting everything from butterflies to mountain bikers.

Keane performances:

• Thursday 10th June - Thetford Forest, Suffolk.
• Friday 11th June - Bedgebury Pinetum & Forest, Kent.
• Friday 18th June - Westonbirt Arboretum, Gloucestershire.
• Saturday 19th June - Sherwood Pines Forest Park, Nottinghamshire.
• Friday 25th June - Dalby Forest, North Yorks.
• Saturday 26th June - Cannock Chase Forest, Staffordshire.

RockNess 2010 Early Bird tickets and Festival date announced.
 
Next summer's ROCKNESS music festival has been confirmed to take place on 11-13 June 2010 at Dores, Loch Ness, and tickets will be available here from 9am Monday 7th December.
 
THE STROKES
2 MANY DJ's FRIENDLY FIRES
ANNIE MAC SOULWAX ROB DA BANK
ROCKNESS 2010 LAUNCHES WITH PROMISE OF BEST FESTIVAL YET

The Strokes, 2 Many DJ's, Friendly Fires are all confirmed for what's shaping up to be the best RockNess ever. In addition to those exciting artists BBC Radio One DJ's Annie Mac and Bestivals Rob Da Bank will also host their own huge tented arenas, with line ups soon to be revealed. Scotlands "most beautiful festival" will be breaking new ground too in 2010 with a fantastic never been seen before production accompanying 2 Many DJ's set, while Glastonbury's signature ARCADIA ARENA with its stunning pyrotechnics will make its Scottish debut at this years event.

THE STROKES - recent recipients of ALBUM OF THE DECADE by NME for 'Is This It' are confirmed to headline the Highland music festival in June. It will be their first Scottish shows for over four years and RockNess are proud to be bringing one of the most exciting bands of the last 10 years back in front of one of the best audiences in the world. Widely acknowledged as one of the finest exponents of alternative garage rock in a generation, the band's RockNess assault comes with the tantalising news of a new album on its way.

2 MANY DJS are lined up as the official house band of this year's festival in a unique new production that is yet to be unveiled, but promises to take their great live reputation into another level. In a weekend-long sonic assault, the prolific duo are confirmed as hosting 2 MANY DJS live in their own arena on the Saturday and performing live as SOULWAX on the Sunday. What's more, the good time vibes and exemplary mash ups will continue throughout the weekend with the news that for the first time RADIO SOULWAX will be broadcast online from the site.

Adding to this exciting first announcement is the news that FRIENDLY FIRES, the Mercury-nominated electro popsters will be bringing their epic soundscapes to the epic landscapes of The Highlands in another RockNess debut.

In a hugely exciting new development, which bears testament to the kudos and blossoming popularity of RockNess, BBC RADIO 1 is today announced as the OFFICIAL RADIO PARTNER to the festival. The station's hottest names du jour including Annie Mac and Rob da Bank are all set to head north with the two each hosting their own unique arenas. Expect an array of awesome talent to be revealed over the coming months!

In true RockNess style, the proverbial envelope continues to be pushed to the max for 2010 with more new arenas added that once again promise to deliver an exceptional soundtrack signalling the start of summer as well as the most festival fun to be had over any weekend.

In a monstrous Scottish festival exclusive, the spectacular sensory overload known as the ARCADIA ARENA makes its big, bold RockNess debut. This world class audio and visual feast, orchestrated by the Arcadia collective of artists, technicians and engineers, blew Glastonbury into orbit this year with the brand new Afterburner Mk2 set and was one of the most spectacular night time shows the festival had ever seen. Now the extravaganza is heading to RockNess where a mind boggling array of post-apocalyptic pyrotechnics, dramatic podiums extending into the crowd, multi rave platforms and truly awesome fire performance displays will all be set against a cutting edge music offering from the world's top DJs including Bestival's Rob da Bank . This is one of the few times the ARCADIA ARENA will have been witnessed outside of Glastonbury, and set against the iconic backdrop of Loch Ness, expect to be well and truly blown away!

TORVILL & DEAN'S DANCING ON ICE - THE TOUR RETURNS TO ARENAS ACROSS THE UK NEXT APRIL AND MAY

Torvill & Dean's Dancing on Ice Tour returns to anreas across the UK next Apirl and May.

Returning for it’s 4th year, this ice spectacle will feature all the thrills, spills and sensational ice dancing you’ve come to expect from the line up of celebrity skaters and professionals! Add to this some absolutely stunning professional routines and a tension packed dance off finale makes this a family show that you can’t afford to miss!!

Once again, the audience will be invited to vote on the night for your favourite celebrity, making YOU part of the show!

Tickets go on general sale soon, book early and make sure you don’t miss out on the show of the year.

Jeff Dunham UK Tour: Tickets On Sale NOW!

Jeff Dunham, will be playing dates in London, Manchester, Sheffield, Glasgow and Wolverhampton.

Madchester veterans The Charlatans return with a UK tour in the winter of 2009 still hot and sweaty following a successful spree in the US in support of their latest long player 'You Cross My Path', released in the autumn of 2008.

Following on from his first UK arena tour, James Morrison has announced he will be performing a number of outdoor concerts in 2010 including as part of Forestry Commission Live Music and Epsom Live.

James Morrison’s debut album ‘Undiscovered’ established him as an undeniably talented singer-songwriter. It has sold over two million copies yielding no fewer than five singles – ‘You Give Me Something’, ‘Wonderful World’, ‘The Pieces Don’t Fit Anymore’, ‘Undiscovered’ and ‘One Last Chance’. James was the biggest selling British male solo artist of 2006 and Brit Award winner in the Best Male category in 2007.

James’s second million plus selling album, 'Songs For You, Truths For Me' continues on the success of his first. Still in the charts over a year since its release it includes the hit singles ‘You Make It Real’, 'Please Don't Stop The Rain' and 'Broken Strings' featuring Nelly Furtado.

Tickets to James Morrison are now available here for the following concerts:
Saturday 3rd July - Delamere Forest, Delamere, Cheshire
Thursday 8th July - Epsom Downs Racecourse, Surrey
Sunday 18th July - Westonbirt Arboretum, Gloucestershire

Disney's Ultimate Ticket 14 Days for the Price of 7. Fourteen days of admission for the price of 7, is your passport to an unlimited holiday at Disney World!

Ultimate flexibility, unbeatable value!*

Looking for the one ticket that allows you to experience all there is to see and do at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida along with all the flexibility and freedom you need to make your dream holiday come true? A ticket that is valid for the whole duration of your holiday* and is also fantastic value? Then look no further than Disney’s Ultimate Ticket!

Each day the 14-Day Disney’s Ultimate Ticket for 2010 Arrivals is used at any park or attraction constitutes one full day of use. Ticket expires 14 days after the date of first use of the Ticket. Parking is not included.

Whether you like to plan out each day perfectly or simply go wherever the mood takes you, with the ability to hop between all the Disney Theme Parks throughout the day, this ticket really let’s you play Disney your way.

You can do as much or as little as you please - for example, take an early morning safari at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park, then a refreshing swim at a Disney Water Park in the afternoon, followed by the fireworks at Epcot in the evening – it’s up to you, and there’s no need to plan.

Disney’s Ultimate Ticket is valid for either a two or three week break, and combined with a stay at a Disney Resort Hotel, you can also take advantage of an exciting range of benefits. It all adds up to the ultimate Florida holiday.

Best for you
Exclusively designed for UK guests visiting Florida for two or three weeks, Disney’s Ultimate Ticket is only available in the UK.

Best value for money
Double the fun! For only a few pounds more than Disney’s Premium Ticket, enjoy all the advantages of this dream ticket for the whole of your holiday* as opposed to just 7 days! See price table for details.

Best flexibility
With unlimited admission, Disney’s Ultimate Ticket provides complete freedom to come and go as you please, and visit more than one Park on the same day. Experience everything Walt Disney World Resort has to offer for your entire holiday – this is your ticket to play Disney your way!

Disney’s Ultimate Ticket gives unlimited access to:
• Magic Kingdom Park, Epcot, Disney’s Hollywood Studios and Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park
• Disney’s Blizzard Beach and Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon Water Parks**
• Disney’s Oak Trail Golf Course (tee time reservations are required and subject to availability)
• Disney’s Wide World of Sports Complex† (valid only on event days; some events require an additional admission charge).
• DisneyQuest Indoor Interactive Theme Park††