Charlotte Church and Coldplay were among the winners at Tuesday's GQ Awards in London.

The soprano-turned-pop singer was the only female winner at the men's magazine's annual awards, picking up the trophy for Woman Of The Year, while Chris Martin and his bandmates were named Band Of The Year.

Rocker and campaigner Bob Geldof was honoured with the Outstanding Contribution Of The Year gong for his tireless campaigning against world poverty and his organisation of the Live 8 gigs in July.

Road To Perdition star Daniel Craig was named Actor Of The Year for his performances in L4yer Cake, Enduring Love and The Jacket, while former James Bond hunk Pierce Brosnan picked up the Editor's Special Award at the star-studded ceremony in the British capital's Royal Opera House.

The full list of winners is:

Actor Of The Year – Daniel Craig

TV Personality Of The Year – Simon Cowell

Radio Personality Of The Year – Chris Moyles

Solo Artist Of The Year - Morrissey

Sportsman Of The Year – Frank Lampard

Outstanding Contribution Of The Year – Bob Geldof

Armani Mania Man Of The Year – Leo Gregory

Woman Of The Year – Charlotte Church

Designer Of The Year – Christopher Bailey

Chef Of The Year – Gordon Ramsey

Writer Of The Year – Ian Rankin

Comedians Of The Year – Matt Lucas/David Walliams

Most Stylish Man Of The Year – Carlo Brandelli

Band Of The Year - Coldplay

International Man Of The Year - Jay-Z

GQ Inspiration Award- Burt Bacharach

Special Award – Pierce Brosnan.

Coldplay paid a touching tribute to the victims of Hurricane Katrina during their show in New York on Tuesday night (06 September 05) when they dedicated their hit The Scientist to the survivors.

The British group tweaked fans' consciences by showing harrowing footage from America's storm-ravaged southeast on huge screens at Madison Square Garden while they performed the tune.

Frontman Chris Martin also dedicated songs to Johnny Cash and Paris Hilton during the sold out show.

The group performed Cash's Ring Of Fire after explaining he had dismissed their tune Kingdom Of Heaven, which they offered to the late country legend before he died - because "he thought it was shit."

And Martin explained meeting Hilton at the recent Mtv Video Music Awards was refreshing because she didn't have a clue who they were.

Read several full MSG reviews here

Hollywood star she might be, but Toni Collette is no stranger to a little bit of casual philanthropy.

One lucky Confidential reader in Sydney was treated to a Collette castoff when he pulled up next to the Aussie actor at the lights on Pacific Highway, Chatswood, at the weekend.

"This woman was waving at me, so I wound the window down," he said. "She'd just bought the new Coldplay X&Y CD, thought it was crap and asked me if I wanted it. I said, 'Sure', and she threw it across to me. I asked her if she was Toni Collette – she said, 'Yes', smiled, and drove off."

An androgynous New York-based artist who sings haunting ballads about gender confusion beat Grammy Award-winners Coldplay to win one of Britain's most prestigious music prizes on Tuesday.

Antony Hegarty, whose quavering voice has been likened to Billie Holliday and Nina Simone, won the Mercury music prize with his band, Antony and the Johnsons, for their album "I Am a Bird Now".

Widely-acclaimed by the critics but little known in the mainstream music world, Hegarty has been described as the "gayest thing ever recorded".

The 20,000 pounds prize is awarded each year by an independent judging panel to the best album by a British or Irish band.

Antony and the Johnsons only qualified for nomination because Hegarty was born in Sussex, southern England, before moving to the United States.

"I am completely overwhelmed," Hegarty, 34, said after accepting the award at a central London ceremony. "I think they must have made a mistake. I think that is insane."

Losing nominees included Coldplay for their bestselling album "X&Y", guitar band Kaiser Chiefs for "Employment" and London newcomers The Magic Numbers.Hegarty said trying to pick between such different nominees was like choosing between an "orange and a spaceship and a potted plant".

At well over 6 feet tall (183 cm) and with a ghost-white face and straggly hair covering his face, Hegarty's looks are as unusual as is his voice.

Rolling Stone magazine described his voice as "an instrument of delicacy and rapture in which Nina Simone, Morrissey and Joni Mitchell seem to inhabit the same breath".

The Mercury judges often award the prize to rising stars rather than established names.

Past winners include Scottish rock band Franz Ferdinand, rapper Dizzee Rascal, indie band Pulp and singer-songwriter PJ Harvey.

The Live 8 concerts staged around the world in July are to feature on a DVD which will raise money for charitable causes in Africa.

Organiser Bob Geldof put out a rallying cry in a bid to make the four-disc DVD the biggest seller of all-time. The full line-up from the UK and US Live 8 concerts will be featured, including Madonna and Coldplay, along with excerpts from the other concerts.

The DVD set will go on sale in the UK on 7 November.Geldof said the DVD "deserved" to be the biggest-selling DVD of all time.

"More importantly, perhaps, it should be, for it will help us achieve our goal of changing the lives of the extreme poor for the better and making our generation the one that helped end the disgrace of poverty," he said.

More than 150,000 watched the concert in London's Hyde Park, with 9.6 million watching it on TV.

About 150 TV channels and 400 radio stations around the world broadcast the concerts.

Unlike the original Live Aid, Live 8 was not about raising money but raising awareness of the plight of Africans living in poverty.

A percentage of profits from the DVD will go towards charities working in Africa.

It took nearly 20 years for Live Aid gigs to be released on video or DVD.

Source: BBC

London - Their latest album may have topped charts around the world, but British rockers Coldplay were expected to lose out to less celebrated rivals on Tuesday in the race for their home country's most prestigious music award.

Kaiser Chiefs are tipped as hot favourites to win the Mercury Prize for their debut album Employment, while Coldplay's X and Y is seen by bookmakers as a 16-1 outside shot.

The prize - for the best album by a British act that year - carries a £20 000 cheque, but more important is the attendant publicity, which generally sees the record sell many thousands of extra copies. The 12-strong shortlist covers the worlds of jazz and folk as well as pop and rock, although, as ever, the titles from the lesser-known fields are considered rank outsiders.

Coldplay, whose latest album, their third, has topped the charts in 29 countries, were initially seen as one of the favourites when the 14th Mercury shortlist was announced in July.

However, their case has not been helped by a lukewarm critical response to X and Y, despite its massive sales.

US critics have been particularly fierce, with the New York Times labelling Coldplay "the most insufferable band of the decade" whose singer Chris Martin - the husband of US actress Gwyneth Paltrow - possesses a voice somewhere "between a yodel and a hiccup".

In contrast, Kaiser Chiefs' album has been well-received, and the guitar-based band were boosted by appearing at the US leg of the massive Live 8 charity concerts in July.

Eight of the 12 nominees were recognised for debut albums, something critics said highlighted the current vitality of the British music scene.

Also on the shortlist are the likes of retro-tinged guitar group The Magic Numbers, and suburban chroniclers Hard-Fi, both of whom had released their first albums only weeks before the nominations were revealed.

Another act up for the prize is M.I.A., the moniker of dance music innovator Maya Arulpragasam, a Sri Lankan Tamil who left her home nation for Britain with her family as a baby.

Chris Martin has admitted he is affected by negative reviews of Coldplay. The singer told the New York Post, "The truth is it really does affect us."

Chris Martin, 28, said two bad reviews of the group's latest album "X&Y", a scathing piece in the New York Times and a negative Rolling Stone review "knocked us sideways."

He added: "And this is the first time that we've responded to it. That's why we're having trouble knowing how to answer. There's no harm admitting that you're human and these things bring you down. That New York Times thing, yeah, it was f***ing devastating for us.'"

Source: ultimate-guitar.com

[Thanks Lifelight]

September 4, 2005 -- Coldplay frontman Chris Martin's on the phone with The Post, desperately trying to avoid wrecking his car on a stretch of California highway halfway between L.A. and his show in San Diego.

"Listen, mate, can I call you back?" asks Martin, the Brit singer, pianist, husband to Gwyneth and daddy to little baby Apple. "I've got about six paparazzi on my tail here, weaving in and out behind my car. I'm about to go off the road. It's just not safe."

Martin hangs up and makes a quick exit off the interstate, losing his pursuers on side streets. About four hours later, he calls again, this time from backstage.

What did he say? It doesn't matter.

Because four days after that, Martin calls back a third time, totally out of the blue, to say he'd been lying.

Read the full article here

Coldplay's Chris Martin is seeking advice on how to improve his faltering memory.

Chris is researching memory enhancement techniques as his recall for words during live gigs has become progressively unreliable. The 28-year-old has forgotten the lyrics to several songs while performing live at almost every gig he's played at in the last six months.

There are reports that Chris may resort to rote-learning which is apparently how he passed his Ancient History exams at University College London.

Source: channel4.com

[Thanks Daryl]

Chris Lowe of Pet Shop Boys explained why Coldplay were responsible for their album delay, in an NME interview out this week.

You're qorking with legendary G4 producer Trevor Horn. When will the album be ready ?

Unfortunately, what happened is that we thought we'd written all the songs and then we heard Coldplay's and we realised we didn't have one song better than theirs, so we had to go away and rewrite them all, which is where we are now.

[Thanks LifeLight]

Coldplay's UK tour has sold out within minutes of going on general sale.

Pandemonium hit ticket outlets as switchboards were jammed and websites were forced to shut down, as demand for tickets outstripped supply.

If you are still looking for tickets for the London, Newcastle and Manchester shows, click on the google ads on this page or here for details of tickets still on sale for all venues.

Celebrities are notorious for demanding perks backstage -- and Sunday night's MTV Video Music Awards in Miami were no exception.

Rapper 50 Cent's reps asked for two boxes of condoms, reports the New York Daily News, as well as the obligatory bottles of Cristal. When it came to food, however, his tastes were simpler: chicken from KFC and Boston Market, and mac and cheese.

Fiddy had a kosher request, as well. ''There is to be no pork in the food or in the vicinity of 50 Cent's dressing room,'' said his demands.

Red Bull was the energy drink of choice for Green Day and Coldplay [pictured], along with plenty of booze. Green Day wanted a fifth of silver tequila, a fifth of whiskey (Jameson or Bushmill's), a fifth of vodka (Grey Goose, Vox or Belvedere) and four bottles of wine.

Coldplay wanted vodka and wine, plus no fewer than 48 bottles of lager -- specifically demanding that no American beers be included. The band's menu was healthier, with organic soup and free-range chicken on the table.

Kanye West may have a big ego, but he made few demands: He just wanted water, salad and Pepsi.

Source: miami.com

Justin Timberlake is so impressed with Coldplay's new album X&Y, he wants to change his musical direction so he sounds like the British band.

The singer has spent hours trying to learn their latest single Fix You, and wants to try his hand at writing some Coldplay-style tracks of his own. He says, "It's completely inspiring. I love that record and I'm still trying to learn it."

A source adds, "Justin's started working on his new album and has a track which is piano-led and very Coldplay-like. He'll still do pop and R+b songs, but he wants to broaden his sound."

More UK dates have been added to the Christmas tour. The full list is as follows

Wed 14th Earls Court, LONDON

Thu 15th Earls Court, LONDON [NEW]

Fri 16th Earls Court, LONDON [NEW]

Sun 18th Telewest Arena, NEWCASTLE

Mon 19th Evening News Arena, MANCHESTER

Wed 21st The Odessy Arena, BELFAST

This list will be updated as and when new dates are announced.

Former Verve frontman Richard Ashcroft, who performed with Coldplay at Live 8, has been lined up as a support act for the London, Newcastle and Manchester gigs, report u.tv

You may have noticed our Google ads showing new UK tour dates for December for the last few weeks.

Having recently toured Europe, Japan and the US (where they are in the middle of a 2 month leg of the tour) and following their sell-out UK and Ireland summer shows, Coldplay have finally confirmed they will be playing further UK dates this December in London, Manchester, Newcastle and Belfast.

Wed 14th Earls Court, LONDON

Sun 18th Telewest Arena, NEWCASTLE

Mon 19th Evening News Arena, MANCHESTER

Wed 21st The Odessy Arena, BELFAST

More on this story here

Coldplay could release a new album as early as next year, as a follow up to X&Y (pictured).

Speaking in the US, Coldplay's manager Dave Holmes said that the band will tour North America again in February 2006, and there may be an album too.

He told Billboard: "They're definitely hungry to get back in the studio to make another record; they've got a lot of material. So for next year we're looking at building a tour around their recording schedule. Ultimately it could potentially mean we end up releasing another record [next year] and continuing to tour well into '07."

Coldplay are strongly rumoured to be returning to the UK in December for a tour.

More on this story here

[thanks sa_spurs_tx]

Chris Martin and Gwyneth Paltrow are leaving the UK after being frightened by the recent terror attacks on London.

The pair have decided that a new home in Los Angeles will be the perfect location to bring up their one-year-old daughter, Apple. As well as the recent London bombings, an attempted break-in has also scared Coldplay singer Chris. "Chris thinks LA will provide a better quality of life," one friend told the Daily Star.

Gwyneth is also pleased that she will be close to Hollywood, which she hopes will help her career.

Source: digitalspy.co.uk

'Dylan's a freak, Chris Martin's a wimp and I don't get The Beatles'

Charlotte Church has launched an astonishing attack on some of the biggest names in pop music.

The classical singer turned rock chick branded Bob Dylan "a freak", claimed Chris Martin of Coldplay was "a bit wimpy" and said she never understood The Beatles' appeal. The Voice of an Angel vocalist also accused Beyonce of singing out of tune and claimed she had no time for the Rolling Stones.

Only Jimi Hendrix is praised. Charlotte, 19, said: "I can't stand Bob Dylan. He sounds like a freak. And that Chris Martin isn't any good either. I don't mind Coldplay and know that that conversational singing style is very modern but it's a bit wimpy."

Charlotte who recently released her first pop album Tissues and Issues, admitted she had no respect for pop reputations. She added: "You know that song Jumpin' Jumpin' by Destiny's Child? Beyonce's going nuts in it and she's so out of tune it does my head in."

Even bands like The Beatles and the Rolling Stones, who last week kicked off their latest world tour, fail to impress the Cardiff-born star.

"I never got The Beatles," she said. "People say they're great but they don't do it for me. I never listen to the Stones, I'm not fussed about old rock music apart from Hendrix."

Source: mirror.co.uk

NASHVILLE (Billboard) - Coldplay's ongoing Twisted Logic tour is doing huge business at the box office in North America, but the group already has its sights set on a return engagement.

After the December 20th close of a European tour, Coldplay will return to North America in February for an arena tour that will run through mid-April, the group told Billboard.

The current tour is proving as successful as Coldplay's third Capitol album, "X&Y," which in 11 weeks has sold 1.9 million copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

Read more on this story here

Lindsay Lohan [pictured] finally ended her feud with love rival Ashlee Simpson during Coldplay's Irvine, CA concert on Sunday.

The teen stars have been embroiled in a bitter fight since Lohan accused Simpson of "stealing" her boyfriend Wilmer Valderrama last year. But the pair agreed to put their differences aside after spending quality time together backstage at the gig in Irvine, California.

Lohan's spokesperson adds, "They never really had such issues - it's all fodder."

Music fans won't want to miss the 2005 MTV Video Music Awards.

This year's show airs Sunday, August 28th, and is positively packed with musical goodness. Scheduled to perform at the event are Coldplay, Green Day, Mariah Carey, Kanye West, Kelly Clarkson, the Killers, 50 Cent, Shakira, Ludacris and R. Kelly.

Some of the artists hoping to take home a Moonman include Green Day, who's up for eight VMAs including the Viewer's Choice Award, and Gwen Stefani who nabbed six nominations. To see all the nominees, visit mtv.com

James Blunt's five-week run at the top of the U.K. singles chart with "You're Beautiful" (Atlantic) was ended yesterday (Aug. 21) by boy band McFly, who opened at No. 1 with "I'll Be OK" (Universal Island). But Blunt continues to rule the album chart with "Back to Bedlam," which tops the survey for a seventh week.

The entire top five on the album chart was unchanged, with Coldplay's "X&Y" (Parlophone) still at No. 2 behind Blunt. Madeleine Peyroux's "Careless Love" (Rounder/Universal Classics & Jazz) made its first top 10 appearance, climbing 11-7, while British modern rock staples Supergrass had the week's highest new entry with "Road to Rouen" (Parlophone) at No. 9.

Coldplay takes its reign over the European Top 100 Albums chart into double figures, with "X&Y" in a tenth week at No. 1. Crazy Frog's "Axel F" (Mach1) leads the Eurochart Hot 100 Singles tally for a ninth week.

'X&Y' has been out for only two months, but it seems Coldplay are already thinking about their next CD, with Chris Martin explaining in an interview that he want things to get a lot darker in the future.

Speaking to the Chicago Sun Times, Chris Martin has explained his intentions to make Coldplay’s next album – the band’s fourth - a much more disturbing proposition than its predecessors.

When asked what it was like working with legendary Roxy Music keyboardist and Bowie and U2 collaborator Brian Eno, Chris Martin downplayed his involvement, but confessed it has influenced the possible future sound of the band.

“Well, working with Eno is really kind of an overstatement,” Chris explained, “He came in for one evening. The reason why it's good to have him on the record sleeve is that a lot of the music he wasn't there for was sort of inspired by the records he made 10 or 20 years ago. His presence adds a bit more to it, and also knowing about the way he works.

"This is all stuff I think we're about to embrace. We learned an awful lot making the last record, and hopefully we'll put it into practice if we ever go into the studio again. I want to get fast, dark and heavy, with no pianos. Not necessarily heavier in terms of Metallica, just a bit more powerful."

Source: XFM

Coldplay frontman Chris Martin hates the fact he was 22-years-old before he lost his virginity and blames his teachers and parents for not teaching him about sex sooner.

The 28-year-old Coldplay frontman and is hideously embarrassed about his lack of sexual experience, despite marrying Hollywood beauty Gwyneth Paltrow and believes his sexual turmoil could have been averted if he had been educated about sexual intercourse during his teenage years.

He says, "I wish somebody would have come to me when I was 14 and explained how to give an orgasm."

But he admits he wasn't irresistible during his school years, "Well, I used to walk funny and, to be quite honest, I was a bit of a knobhead - I wouldn't have liked me either."

Source: http://people.monstersandcritics.com