The I’m A Celebrity and The Only Way Is Essex star is moving up the channels after impressing bosses with his stint on Take Me Out: The Gossip on ITV2.
He will join presenter Melanie Sykes on My Man Can, an offbeat challenge where women find out how useful their fellas are.
In the show being filmed in Cologne — the format is already a hit in Germany — blokes will be set challenges such as eating a plate of raw chillies and limbo-dancing. Their other halves have to guess how well they will do.
Mel will be the main host while Mark will oversee the bonkers challenges.
A source said: “Mark is thrilled ITV are taking a chance on him. He’s wanted to be a presenter for years. If this works, he’ll be exactly that.
“It’s a non-broadcast pilot at the moment but it’s pretty much guaranteed a decent slot. My Man Can is big in Germany and is on TV across the world. It’s one of the biggest shows in China.”
Mark has been teasing his Twitter followers with his new plans, writing: “Omg!! Just seen the set. Very big and exciting, nerves kicking in now though!”
The Sun told how Mark has already made his first million since leaving TOWIE last year. He was runner-up on I’m A Celebrity and his career is being guided by Myleene Klass’s agent.
Source: www.thesun.co.uk
Bopara laments injury woes - SkySports
The Essex right-hander was at the head of the queue to fill England's number six position against the Windies in this summer's Investec Test series, only to suffer a calf injury on the eve of the squad announcement for the first match last month.
That place was filled at Lord's, and in two subsequent Tests, by Yorkshire's Jonny Bairstow - and Bopara's calf trouble was the latest in a series of minor but untimely niggles over the past eight months.
The middle-order batsman is expected to be back at number four in the first of three 50-over matches against the Windies, at the Ageas Bowl on Saturday.
"I'm really looking forward to it," he said.
"I haven't played a lot of cricket for England recently because of injuries. So it's exciting for me, and I'm in good form."
Frustration
Bopara returned to action at the start of June with a 50-over century, and then one in four-day cricket too, for Essex.
He is not about to start worrying unduly either about a run of injuries, which may be pure coincidence.
"It's very frustrating. It's only recently I've started to get a few injuries," he said.
"Before that, I very rarely missed games through injury ... it's probably a sign of me getting old.
"It is annoying. It is frustrating. But whatever's meant to be is meant to be."
Bairstow has endured a tough start to his Test career posting scores of just 16, 4 and 18 in his three completed innings to-date.
And Bopara, while aware others are profiting from his absence, knows that at 27, time is not on his side as much as it once was.
"I guess what it does is it gives someone else an opportunity to cement their place, and that's not ideal.
"But it means when I get my opportunity, I've got to cement my place. Let's hope I get it soon."
Source: www1.skysports.com
Get an Eiffel of Jennifer and Justin - The Sun
The pair were spotted cosying up under an umbrella as they shopped in Rue St. Honoré on Tuesday, but reappeared last night suited and booted for a meal at the exclusive Jules Verne restaurant, situated on the first floor of the Eiffel Tower.
Looking fresh-faced and showing no signs of jet-lag after their long flight, Jen and Justin held hands as they headed out for an evening of top nosh.
The couple, who have been together since May 2011, looked more loved-up than ever, arousing further suspicion that they may be on the brink of tying the knot.
In April, Jen flew back to her roots in Greece, reportedly to check out potential wedding venues.
She is said to have hinted to staff at the Elounda Beach Hotel about a July wedding.
It seems the former Friends star may even pip ex-husband Brad Pitt — who announced his engagement to Hollywood beauty Angelina Jolie in April — to the matrimonial post.
The 43-year-old actress has had a string of bad luck when it comes to love, but fans and friends are hoping that Jen has found her Mr Right at last in actor Justin, 40.
Source: www.thesun.co.uk
Ministers rule out state aid for Coryton oil refinery - BBC News
The government has ruled out applying to the European Commission for permission to use state aid to keep open the Coryton oil refinery in Essex.
Coryton's parent company has gone into liquidation, putting 850 jobs at risk.
The Labour Party and unions have pressed ministers to consider putting up cash to keep the refinery going until administrators can find a buyer.
But ministers said overcapacity in the refining industry meant it would not be sustainable to provide government help.
The future of the Thames Estuary refinery has been in doubt since January, when its Swiss-based parent company, Petroplus, became insolvent.
The plant supplies about 20% of London and south-east England's fuel.
Two weeks ago administrators PricewaterhouseCoopers said they had failed to find a buyer and operations would be run down.
Labour MPs and local Lib Dem MP Bob Russell tabled a Commons motion on Monday calling on the government to step in to allow the refinery to remain open until a buyer is found.
They said the refinery was an important national infrastructure asset and that its closure would have "a devastating impact on the people of Essex" and risk making the UK more dependent on foreign fuel imports.
They have been calling on ministers to approach the European Commission to find out if short term state aid could be offered to the refinery.
But the Department for Energy and Climate Change said that overcapacity in the refining industry meant it would not be sustainable for the government to provide assistance even if the EU allowed it to do so.
Workers stage protestsSome redundancies are expected to be made next week. The government says this is regrettable, but that it was working with local agencies and Jobcentres to help the refinery's skilled workforce find new positions.
About 100 workers protested at the site and in Corringham town centre on Monday.
A demonstration was also held on Thursday outside London's Royal Courts of Justice where Prime Minister David Cameron was giving evidence to the Leveson Inquiry.
In February, a group of financiers agreed to pay to refine their own oil at the plant for three months, giving administrators more time to find a new buyer.
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Sussex to decide over future of bowler Steve Magoffin - BBC News
Sussex must come to an agreement with Australian side Queensland if they wish to retain the services of seam bowler Steve Magoffin.
The 32-year-old has taken 24 County Championship wickets during his seven-game spell with the Hove outfit.
Coach Mark Robinson told BBC Sussex: "He's been everything we want from an overseas player. We'd like him to stay.
"But Queensland are worried about his workload. It's whether we can come to some type of agreement."
He added: "It will be a real shame if we lose him."
Magoffin, who took figures of 9-55 on his debut against Lancashire in April, says the matter is out of his hands.
"Queensland want me back and there are a few things to work out for that to change," Magoffin said. "It's in the hands of Sussex at the moment.
"I'll be heading back to Queensland in a few weeks time to have pre-season.
"They have to make a few decisions so we'll wait and see."
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
At Dale Farm it took ten years. Yesterday this farmer and his digger saw off invading travellers in just three hours! - Daily Mail
- Dave Dawson threatened to remove travellers by force himself after declaring: 'I won't tolerate it.'
- Police say travellers left of their own accord in two hours 50 minutes after Mr Dawson's intervention
By Luke Salkeld
|
Not having it: Dave Dawson, left, responded to travellers moving on to his land by leaping into his digger and threatening to move them by force
When he found travellers’ caravans had arrived on his land, Dave Dawson had two options.
He could either alert the authorities and wait for the slow turning of the wheels of justice and officialdom.
Or he could rely on the somewhat quicker wheels of his digger – and remove the caravans by force.
Taking the second course of action, Mr Dawson put in a call to the police to inform them of his intentions, which risked leading to his arrest.
Officers arrived to oversee what appeared to be a few heated exchanges before – remarkably – the travellers left of their own accord.
His swift action stands in stark contrast to the decade-long battle to shift travellers from the notorious Dale Farm site in Essex, which only came to an end in October last year.
Mr Dawson, whose farm is near Shoreham in West Sussex, discovered the intruders early yesterday morning. ‘I would have used any force possible to get them off my land,’ he said. ‘I got down here about 6am and told them to move off. There were four vans there at the time and more parked up outside.
‘I came down with the digger and tractor and told them if they didn’t move I was going to move them.
‘I just won’t tolerate it. It is my land. I bought it and I have worked hard for it. I called the police and told them I was going to get the digger and move them.
‘I didn’t care if they got squashed, flattened or left on their own, but one way or another I was going to get them off my land.’
'It's my land': Undeterred by the sudden arrival of the travellers, Mr Dawson called police and told them he was prepared to remove the intruders by force
'I would have used any force possible': Officers were forced to stand between Mr Dawson's digger and the travellers' caravans to prevent him from carrying out his threats
It is believed that the went to Lancing Green, West Sussex, three miles from Mr Dawson's land
He said that at one point in the clash the officers had to stand between the two sides.
‘The police told me that once they are on the land they have rights. But what about my rights?’ Mr Dawson added.
‘If I had left it to the authorities they could have been on my land for weeks. I wasn’t going to wait for a court order to get rid of them.
‘As it was, the police threatened to arrest me. It has already cost me a day’s work and about 500 to repair the damage. They cut through a metal gate and put their own lock on it.’
A spokesman for Sussex Police said: ‘Six caravans turned up on land at 6.45am. The landowner also turned up and threatened to evict the travellers.
Furious: Officers oversaw what appeared to be several heated exchanges between Mr Dawson and his uninvited guests
A traveller talks to officers: Mr Dawson feared that if he left the eviction to the authorities, the caravans could have been left on his land for weeks
‘Police attended and remained on scene to prevent a breach of peace. The travellers left the site of their own accord at 9.35am.’ Removing travellers who have occupied land without permission is usually a much more costly and time-consuming exercise.
At Dale Farm, the decade-long legal battle cost taxpayers an estimated 18million.
A total of 43 people were arrested and several injured after protesters fought running battles with riot police over the eviction of about 80 families from what was the UK’s largest illegal traveller settlement.
As soon as Basildon council had declared a final victory, there was a massive leap in the number of caravans pitched on the legal Oak Lane site next door – and an adjoining road – prompting more expensive legal action.
In 2009, a convoy pitched up at another controversial travellers’ site just hours after a group had been evicted following a six-year legal battle costing 400,000.
The new arrivals rolled on to a field adjoining the notorious Smithy Fen site at Cottenham, Cambridgeshire, where travellers had set up an illegal camp.
Bye bye: The travellers eventually moved off Mr Dawson's land at 9.45am - three hours after they had arrived
Source: www.dailymail.co.uk
Cops arrest fake IPS trainee who cheated women on matrimonial sites - Times of India
Claiming himself as an trainee IPS officer, he approached Nithya, who had posted her profile on the matrimonial site, with a marriage proposal. After finalising the wedding, he asked the woman to financially help him to complete his training and took 10 sovereigns of gold and Rs 10,000 from her. He then went into hiding.
Based on the complaint of M Nithya (29) of Saidapet, CCB police registered a case and launched a search for the man.
Central crime branch police are hunting for the man who they believe was earlier arrested by the Madurai crime branch police in connection with a similar offence. He was then remanded in judicial custody at the Madurai central prison.
He had cheated 16 girls in a similar manner conniving with his relative Perumal.
Police said he had created several fake IDs and posted his profile on matrimonial sites. He used a number of SIM cards to talk to different women. Police said he might have also misused the credit cards of women.
Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com
Good on you Sir I salute you!
- Super Kev, London England, 14/6/2012 16:23
Report abuse