Briefsfromshittu

Wednesday, April 6, 2016

Tom Hiddleston Wants James Bond Rumours To Stop

Actor Tom Hiddleston has said speculation he is in line to play the next James Bond is becoming "overwhelming" and wishes he could make the rumour mill stop.

:: Craig: More Bond? I’d Rather Slash My Wrists

Responding to gossip that he is favourite to take on the iconic role at the US premiere of his hit TV series The Night Manager in Los Angeles on Tuesday night, he said: "People have very strong opinions about Bond and why shouldn't they?

"But it's difficult to talk about because it's a completely unreal conversation in a way.

"I haven't spoken to anyone who makes those films.

"It's just an idea in people's minds so it's quite hard to engage with because it hasn't come from me if that makes sense.

"It's odd because it's becoming overwhelming - not the thing of it, but the number of people per day who bring it up, it's actually becoming a weird thing to deal with.

"I feel like, I want to just make it stop because I have no power over it, but that's what being famous is. You have no power over other people's opinions."

:: Bond Makers: 'We're Not Going To Let Craig Go'

Hiddleston is the bookies' favourite ahead of Tom Hardy, Damian Lewis, Idris Elba, Aidan Turner and Henry Cavill.

Although speculation on who will be the next Bond is hotting up, Daniel Craig is yet to officially rule himself out of returning as 007.

PM At Risk Of "Betrayal" Over Press Regulation

Victims of media intrusion have accused David Cameron of failing to keep his promise to implement a system of press regulation with "real teeth".

In an open letter, published in the Guardian newspaper, a number of signatories – including Kate and Gerry McCann – claim the Prime Minister is at risk of "betraying" the public.

The McCanns have received libel damagesafter false stories were published about their daughter Madeleine’s disappearance in 2007.

Other signatories include Christopher Jefferies, who was wrongly accused of the murder of Joanna Yeates, and relatives of people who died at Hillsborough.

Mr McCann told the Guardian: "Feelings are very strong among those of us to whom the Prime Minister publicly and privately made his pledges.

"If he does not keep his promises to implement the cross-party agreement in full, allow the Leveson Inquiry to be completed and put the needs of the public before press proprietors, we will have been betrayed by him."

Culture Secretary John Whittingdale announced last year that he was considering scrapping plans to force newspapers to pay court costs in libel and privacy cases, whether they won or lost.

The idea had been part of a cross-party agreement.

A spokesman for the department of culture, media and sport told the Guardian: "No decision has been taken about when to commence the cost provisions. The matter is still under consideration."

The signatories of the letter say they wrote to Mr Cameron in November, requesting a meeting to discuss their concerns. They say the PM declined.

Instead, they claim Mr Cameron met newspaper proprietors, including Sun and Times owner Rupert Murdoch and his editors, "on no fewer than seven occasions" between June and December 2015.

The letter states: "We believe that it is not just us whom you are at risk of betraying, but Parliament, the public at large and the future victims of a press industry which was condemned by Leveson for 'wreaking havoc in the lives of innocent people'.

"If your promises are not kept, history tells us that newspapers will wreak that havoc again. It is not too late. Please honour your promises."

Downing Street told the Guardian it would not be commenting until it had received the letter.

Gwyneth Paltrow Lets Bees Sting Her For Beauty

Hollywood actress Gwyneth Paltrow has revealed her latest unusual beauty regime: letting herself be stung by bees.

The Iron Man star said that the treatment - apitherapy - had been used for thousands of years but had fallen out of fashion in recent times.

In an interview with The New York Times where she shared beauty advice, she described herself as being "generally open to anything".

"I'm always the guinea pig to try everything. I've got to try them all."

The 43-year-old said that apitherapy is used to "get rid of inflammation and scarring" and that it was "actually pretty incredible if you research it".

"But, man, it's painful."

Apitherapy also covers the use of honey for medicinal purposes as well as being stung - bee venom therapy.

It involves angering the bees so that they sting a person on the affected area of the body.

Any benefits have not been scientifically proven but it has been used to treat arthritis and multiple sclerosis.

Paltrow also said she "loves" acupuncture and is keen to try cryotherapy, the use of extremely low temperatures to treat medical issues.

The actress also has a history of subscribing to fad diets, spending her 20s on the macrobiotic diet, eating mostly beans and vegetables and chewing her food more thoroughly than most people.

She told The New York Times that she has "a slightly easier philosophy, all around, than 10 years ago".

She added: "I think I see now that life is really a balance. And it's great to eat nutrient-dense organic food, if you can.

"It’s also really great to drink a vodka and have French fries. Your metabolism does slow as you get older, though.

"If I have to get into tiptop shape, I have to be more careful. But I also don’t seem to care as much as I did."

WhatsApp Extends Encryption To All Services

WhatsApp has applied "end-to-end" encryption to all its services to boost user security.

The Facebook-owned messaging service announced the move amid fierce debate surrounding privacy versus security.

It follows Apple's battle with the US government over FBI demands for data on an iPhone - used by a gunman in California - to be unlocked.

End-to-end encryption automatically encodes each message with an algorithm that can only be unlocked by the sender and recipient.

WhatsApp said: "The idea is simple: when you send a message, the only person who can read it is the person or group chat that you send that message to.

"No one can see inside that message. Not cybercriminals. Not hackers. Not oppressive regimes. Not even us. End-to-end encryption helps make communication via WhatsApp private - sort of like a face-to-face conversation."

WhatsApp, which has more than one billion users globally, added they must download the latest version of the app for full encryption, and that it works across all major devices.

It is the biggest major network to offer it - with less popular services such as Wickr, Telegram and Signal also deploying full encryption.

Google, Facebook and Yahoo use less extensive encryption to protect emails and messages while they're in transit but retain the ability to scan messages.

Apple uses end-to-end encryption for its iMessage service but some experts told the AP news agency that WhatsApp's method may be more secure because it provides a security code that senders and recipients can use to verify a message came from someone they know - and not from a hacker posing as a friend.

Gucci Ad Banned Over 'Unhealthily Thin' Model

A Gucci advert has been banned by the advertising watchdog because it featured a model who appears "unhealthily thin" and "gaunt".

The advert included two models - one leaning up against a wall in a colourful dress and another in a yellow outfit sitting on a sofa.

A complaint was made about about both, who appeared in stills at the end of a video on The Times website in December 2015.

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) upheld the complaint saying the "torso and arms" of the model standing up "were quite slender and appeared to be out of proportion with her head and lower body".

It went on: "Further, her pose elongated her torso and accentuated her waist so that it appeared to be very small.

"We also considered that her sombre facial expression and dark make up, particularly around her eyes, made her face look gaunt.

"For those reasons, we considered that the model leaning against the wall appeared to be unhealthily thin in the image, and therefore concluded that the ad was irresponsible."

The Italian fashion house has been told the advert must not appear again in its current form.

Gucci told the ASA the advert was aimed at an older, sophisticated audience and that it felt the model appeared "toned and slim".

It said nowhere in the ads were any models' "bones" visible.

It said their make up was natural and the lighting uniform and warm to ensure there were no hollows caused by shadows and their clothes were not revealing.

Gucci UK told Sky News: "We take our responsibilities as an advertiser very seriously in the way models are selected for and presented in our advertising campaigns.

"We have noted, but are not in agreement with, the assessment of the UK Advertising Standards Authority, an independent regulator, in relation to one model featured in one image from our Cruise 2015 campaign.

"The campaign itself expired at the end of December 2015."