Rachel Christie Becomes First Black Miss England

Last night, at the Metropole Hilton Hotel in London, 20-year-old Rachel Christie made it into history books for winning the title of Miss England 2009 and thus becoming the first black woman ever to do so. At the same time, Christie, niece of the famous gold medalist Linford Christie, also became the first Miss England with high hopes of winning a medal in the 2012 Olympics, as The Telegraph can confirm.
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Speaking of her win, Christie said she was surprised she was actually crowned Miss England, despite the fact that, before the pageant, bookies had her as the favorite.

Being black and becoming the first black woman to hold the beauty title means a lot for Christie, since she hopes other girls her age will find in her example the motivation to pursue her dreams no matter the race. In this sense, her winning was a victory, the beauty queen explained after she was crowned Miss England.

“I don’t know why so few black girls enter. I think they think they won’t win because beauty queens always have blond hair and blue eyes. I think they need to advertise more to change that.” Rachel Christie said. Moreover, the beauty also revealed that, just because she had won the pageant, she did not mean to have her life limited only to it. In other words, Christie again restated her desire and efforts to win a gold medal at the Olympics in 2012.

“My ambition in life is to compete and win gold in the 2012 Olympics. I would also love to do well in Miss England, I want to be successful in whatever I choose to do in life.” Christie added. According to the protesters gathered outside the venue to boycott the event, the latter part is not a sign of progress. Quite on the contrary, taking part in a beauty contest is a clear sign – the clearest, they say – that she was succumbing to misogynist attitudes around her, those that tell women that beauty is on the outside and that they need some form of validation for their good looks.

Sandrine Leveque of the feminist campaign group Object, for instance, told The Telegraph that beauty pageants were actively encouraging sexism and should therefore be banned to prevent that from happening, drawing a parallel to what happened with racism. According to Leveque, beauty contests are sending out the wrong message to young girls and society as a whole, namely that it’s OK for them to be treated like objects. “This is not progress. Fundamentally beauty contests have no place in 2009.” Leveque concluded by saying.

Shahid Kapoor Will Receive the Rajiv Gandhi Award

These days Bollywood cutie Shahid Kapoor is living the good life, with his career on a high after a number of hit films. With the success of his career it's no surprise that Shahid has received numerous awards for his work and now he's receiving perhaps the most prestigious award in his career thus far - the Rajiv Gandhi award. The award is given to a person who shows prominence in his or her chosen field. Plus the award show will take place in the second week of August, just in time for the release of Shahid's highly anticipated film, 'Kaminey' costarring Priyanka Chopra. No doubt this will be a welcome source of positive press for the film.

Shahid was quoted as saying this about receiving the award - "I was pleasantly surprised to get the news about my being chosen for the prestigious Rajiv Gandhi award. I'm only 28 years old and it's really early in my career. I feel humbled and honored to be chosen by the jury."

Previous recipients of the award include Sunita Williams, Sachin Tendulkar, Mukesh Ambani and Amitabh Bachchan, so it looks like Shahid has some legendary company!
So we want to know what you guys think. Do you think Shahid deserves the award at such a young age and at this stage in his career? Drop us a comment with your thoughts!

Publicist: Mischa Barton ‘Making Improvements

Spokesman Craig Schneider says the 23-year-old actress is “still seeking treatment but making improvements.”

He would not elaborate on Barton’s condition, but said Tuesday that Barton planned to report to work on the new CW series “The Beautiful Life” later this month. A CW spokesman for the show, which stars Barton as a pill-popping supermodel, said production was scheduled to begin July 31.

Police say they removed Barton from her home last Wednesday for an undisclosed medical problem. The department will not say what it was.

Copyright 2009 by Associated Press. All rights reserved.
This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed

Padma Lakshmi to Get a Sitcom?

Beautiful model, TV host and actress Padma Lakshmi is best known for her hosting duties on Top Chef, being Salman Rushdie's ex wife, her modeling and of course that sexy burger commercial. Well now she might be known for something more.

Variety magazine is reporting that Padma has signed a deal with US television network, NBC to do a half hour comedy sitcom! The show will be about a woman who works in the culinary world, but Padma and the executive producer Charlie Corwin are still looking at other ideas.

In the past Padma has been seen in Mariah Carey's major flop, 'Glitter' and some bloggers are suggesting that Padma just doesn't have what it takes to be at the helm of her own sitcom. But what we want to know is what our viewers think. Do you think Padma will be able to rock her own comedy sitcom? Will you watch it? What do you think it should be about? Drop us a comment with your thoughts!

Report: Eddie Cibrian & LeAnn Rimes Still Seeing Each Other

According to the magazine, Cibrian and Rimes, who starred together in “Northern Lights” on the cable television network earlier this year, met up on July 17 at a friend’s Malibu, Calif., home, where they were pictured getting ready for a motorcycle ride.

“They were very affectionate and very excited,” an eyewitness claimed in the mag of the two, who earlier this year were the subject of infidelity rumors, first reported in Us Weekly.

Both denied the rumors following the first report.

On Tuesday, a rep for Rimes and no comment on the report they are continuing a romance.

A rep for Cibrian, however, issued a statement for the actor, who is set to guest star on “CSI: Miami” next season, calling for privacy.

“Eddie is a devoted and loving father first and foremost and the speed bump he and Brandi are experiencing needs to be worked out privately,” his rep said in a statement.

Brandi Glanville, however, who has two children with Cibrian – Mason, 6; and Jake, 2 — told the mag the two are taking time away from each other.

“Eddie and I have decided to take some time apart,” the 36-year-old told the magazine. “I want to do what is best for our children. Eddie and LeAnn [Rimes] deserve each other.”

Glanville’s latest comment comes a little over a month after she claimed in the same publication that Rimes was a “stalker.”

While Rimes has refused to be drawn into the fray, she told Shape magazine last month that being in the tabloids has been difficult.

“I’ve been in the tabloids recently too, and it’s been really hard for me,” Rimes, who is married to dancer Dean Sheremet, said. “I’ve been in the public eye since I was 14, so I have a tough skin. It’s fine dragging me through the mud, but don’t drag my loved ones through it. They’re my family, and it hurts them. All I’ll say is, I know what’s in my heart and what’s true.”

Copyright 2009 by NBC Universal, Inc. All rights reserved.
This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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