Time for some new clothes! Britney exposes her behind in ripped leggings at the upmarket Beverly Hills Hotel

No one could accuse Britney Spears of squandering her fortune.
The pop princess is rich enough to splurge on whatever designer item she fancies. But instead the blonde prefers to wear her comfy old favourites.
And even though her leggings were falling apart Britney still chose to wear them for an outing at the upmarket Beverly Hills Hotel on Thursday.

Time to go shopping! Britney Spears stepped out at the upmarket Beverly Hills hotel in a pair of torn leggings on Thursday, with her behind clearly visible through the tear

The black lycra skin-hugging outfit had visible holes in the behind, through which her bottom could be seen.
Britney teamed her ripped old leggings with a pair of patterned socks, trainers and a simple sweatshirt.
But while her outfit looked thrown on, her pet dog Hannah was carefully dressed.

Stepping out: Britney was carrying her Yorkshire Terrier Hannah, who is a favourite of the singer

The tiny Yorkshire Terrier, which Britney acquired just two months ago, was snazzily dressed in a pink and black dress and jewelled collar.
While the star has other pets Hannah is firmly established as her favourite, with a twitter account updated more regularly than Britney's own.
Britney clutched the puppy close to her chest, along with a packet of Marlboro cigarettes.
Smoking is hardly recommended for a singer, but compared to her previous troubles an addiction to cigarettes is perhaps understandable.

Read More

'Our ten-year fight to win justice from film scheme fraudster with four aliases'

Fraud: Anastasia St Raphael, who is also known as Trisha Allison, Patricia Potterton or Catherine Potterton

The woman from the glamorous world of film production had her audience hooked.
High-flying executives from City banks and management consultancies listened intently to Anastasia St Raphael explaining what she boasted was a ‘unique  low risk, high return investment proposition’.
But the scheme, apparently designed to take advantage of Government film tax breaks, has turned out to be anything but.
Ten years after the gathering at the Institute of Directors’ imposing headquarters in Pall Mall, central London, one of the investors has finally won compensation after the High Court ruled he was defrauded by St Raphael, who has been ordered to repay £185,000.

At the heart of the story is a woman who has gone by four different names. She is listed on the electoral roll as Trisha Anastasia Allison, but she has also been known as Patricia Catherine Potterton and Catherine Patricia Potterton in addition to Anastasia St Raphael.
As many as 60 investors bought into St Raphael’s pitch. Investors were told to reclaim the tax they had paid for the past two years and put the rebate into the film scheme.
The money would be invested in qualifying films and they could get back 20 per cent of their tax rebates.
But Judge Richard Seymour said in a judgment on the case delivered last week that the scheme ‘appears to describe a fairly uncomplicated fraud on the Revenue, with an “investor”, through Allison [St Raphael], making an inflated claim for losses sustained in investment in the production of films – two and a half times the amount of his potentially available tax refund – and the proceeds being paid to a vehicle controlled by Allison [and her business partner] out of which 20 per cent was paid back to the “investor”.’

Celebrating the victory: Dennis and Claire Horner with son, Jack, and surrogates Cheryl Richardson and Cathy Sidaway, right

He added: ‘The beauty of it, from the perspective of whoever devised it, was that it was largely free of risk to them. If the Revenue accepted without question the claim for refund of tax paid, the loss was sustained by the Revenue.
‘If the Revenue accepted a claim and made a refund, but then disallowed the claim, it would be up to the taxpayer, and not to whomever devised the scheme, that the Revenue would look for reimbursement.’

 

St Raphael had not reckoned, however, on the steely determination of one of her victims to pursue her for the cash. Dennis Horner, who put his tax rebates from 2001 and 2002 into the scheme, and his wife Claire were last week celebrating a judgment that has taken them ten years, while suffering numerous heartaches, to obtain.
Horner’s first wife died of breast cancer – and Claire is currently going through treatment for the same disease, the fourth time she has had it. In 2010 the pair went through the process of having a baby through a donated egg and a surrogate mother in what was said to be a first in British fertility care.
A management consultant and chartered accountant, Horner is the chair of trustees at the Bowel Cancer UK charity while his wife works as a part-time magistrate and nurse. Dozens of other investors were also persuaded to put their rebates in the scheme, but only the Horners have fought to reclaim their cash. The High Court ruled last week that St Raphael had deceived Horner over the nature of the scheme at the Pall Mall meeting.
The judge said: ‘Her evidence concerning the events of January 13, 2003 was simply not true. She had given various accounts at different times and each of her accounts seemed to be inconsistent with whatever documents survived which appeared to shed light on the matter.
‘The position Allison adopted at the trial – that she had not attended a meeting on January 13, 2003 at the Institute of Directors and had never met Horner – just made no sense.’
The investment funds that Horner and others put their money into were closed down shortly after being set up – and accounts for them filed at Companies House do not give any indication of where the money was invested.
At the time of the schemes the Revenue adopted a ‘process now, check later’ policy for rebates. The taxman began an investigation into investors’ tax returns in 2004 and quickly concluded that the film partnerships were ‘a sham’.
Investors were told to repay the tax rebates and to sue St Raphael if they wished to recover their cash.
St Raphael of Plumstead, South London, and who currently goes by the name of Trisha Allison, told Financial Mail she is planning  to appeal against the High Court judgment.

Read More

Be my Valentine! Bar Refaeli poses in sexy black bra and panties with red high heels for stunning new underwear campaign

With her perfect figure and stunning good looks, she would be many man's ideas of a perfect Valentine.
And Bar Refaeli gets into the spirit of the special day in a new advertising campaign for Passionata.
The blonde 27-year-old sports sheer black underwear and bright red heels teamed with an oversized red bow for the new campaign picture.

Dotty for lingerie: Bar Refaeli looks stunning in a black bra and pair of sheer black panties for the Passionata Valentines Day campaign

The striking shot shows her standing by a white letterbox with red spotted background, collecting her Valentine's post with a broad smile on her pretty face.
Although Bar is rumoured to be currently single after being linked with snowboarder Shaun White, it's likely she won't be short of cards come February 14.
Bar recently appeared as a fifties housewife in another set of stunning photographs which showed her sporting an array of underwear carrying out stereotypical housewife chores.

Dotty for lingerie: Bar Refaeli looks stunning in a black bra and pair of sheer black panties for the Passionata Valentines Day campaign

For its new Spring-Summer 2013 Collection, Passionata reveals its seductive campaign with Refaeli as the gorgeous pin-up.
The top model stars as an ultra-glamorous lady of the house and wears strong fifties make up complete with feline flick eyeliner and glossy red pout.
Modelling the Sweet Love lingerie set, featuring rounded curves and plunging necklines, Bar strikes an inquisitive pose picking up a cookery book and placing an index finger up to her lips.

Modeling the Sweet Love lingerie set, featuring rounded curves and plunging necklines, Bar strikes an inquisitive pose picking up a cookery book and placing an index finger up to her lips

While wearing the So Pretty lace sets in lilac and white, we see her gleaming with happiness at her success at baking cupcakes and a raspberry tart

Bar looks effortlessly stunning as a housewife from the golden era of glamour

While wearing the So Pretty lace sets in lilac and white, we see her gleaming with happiness at her success at baking cupcakes and a raspberry tart.
In another photograph Bar is seen wearing the Lovely set, leaving up against a candy floss pink retro fridge and sucking on a milkshake.

Posing against a SMEG fridge - a retro icon in its own right - Bar sucks on a milkshake wearing the Lovely set

Bar 'catches' her apron in her white picket fence in the 'Home Sweet Girl' Passionata campaign

Almost Katy Perry-style, Bar poses in the Malice set with tulle skirt against a giant purple, pink and yellow pastel coloured cake with ribbons.
With an adorable Jack Russell by her side, Bar picks up a paintbrush and starts painting his house while wearing a delicate peach set and headscarf.
In another photograph Bar smiles and picks up a wheelbarrow to do some gardening while wearing the Casual Sexy set and some Daisy Duke denim shorts.

[caption

Bar looks out into the distance happily with her furry friend leaning against the dog house

Modeling the Delight 'invisible' lingerie, Bar demonstrates how it blends seamlessly to the figure

Read More

Morbid gallery reveals how Victorians took photos of their DEAD relatives posing on couches, beds and even in coffins

Dressed in his Sunday best, a Victorian gentleman with a faraway look in his eyes sits in a chair while his photograph is taken.
But if his posture seems rather unnatural, it is for good reason. He is dead.
These remarkable pictures show the morbid way that the deceased were remembered in the late 19th century

The Victorians experimented with different types of photography - and even took snaps of dead relatives

Known as post-mortem photography, Victorians had pictures taken of the recently deceased - sometimes staged to look as if they were still alive

Children were often shown in repose on a couch or in a crib

The invention of the daguerreotype - the earliest photographic process - in 1839 brought portraiture to the masses.
It was far cheaper and quicker than commissioning a painted portrait and it enabled the middle classes to have an affordable, cherished keepsake of their dead family members.  
Known as post-mortem photography, some of the dearly departed were photographed in their coffin.

 

This particular style, often accompanied by funeral attendees, was common in Europe but less so in the United States.
However, in others, they were made to look like they were in a deep sleep or even life-like as they were positioned next to family members.
It was an age of high infant mortality rates - and children were often shown in repose on a couch or in a crib, while adults were more commonly posed in chairs.

The invention of the daguerreotype - the earliest photographic process - in 1839 brought portraiture to the masses

The remarkable images were uploaded to photo-sharing website Reddit

Sometimes the subject's eyes were propped open or the pupils were painted onto the print to give the effect they were alive.
In early images, a rosy tint was added to the cheeks of corpses.
By the early 20th century, the practice fell out of fashion as photos became more commonplace with the arrival of the snapshot.

The images were uploaded to photo sharing website Reddit.

Sometimes, the subject's eyes were propped open or the pupils were painted onto the print to give the effect they were alive

Read More

It's the latest slimming trick: the bigger the bag, the thinner you look!

Giant shoulder pads. Big hair. A broad-shouldered, tall husband. Boyfriend jackets.
Women will do almost anything to look thinner than they are - and the latest trompe l'oeil is carrying a giant tote the size of a small hippo.
Victoria Beckham is Queen Bee when it comes to this particular optical illusion, and she's invariably seen out and about looking tiny behind her Titanic tote.

Women will do almost anything to look thinner than they are - and the latest trend is carrying a giant tote

These monster bags can be frustrating - finding something inside one can require you to disappear inside it for large amounts of time - and  they're heavy.
Not only are we struggling to stay upright on mega heels, we're lugging bags that weigh as much as a toddler fed from birth on KFC, causing us to be lopsided and in occasional pain.

 

I have just placed my big orange leather Prada tote on the scales - it contains my laptop, wallet, make-up, flip-flops, two  phones, keys and a paperback - and it weighs a whopping three stone!
Like its fashionable predecessor, the designer rucksack, which is making a comeback, the super-shopper causes casualties in the aisles of aeroplanes.

Victoria Beckham is Queen Bee when it comes to this illusion, she's seen looking tiny behind her Titanic tote

It takes up so much room in the car that your children have to walk to school and requires its own seat in the cinema.
But who cares, as long as our bag makes us look thin?
Keen to perpetuate the trend, everyone from Victoria Beckham to Givenchy, Jil Sander to Marc Jacobs and Zara are supersizing their bags.

Victoria is embracing the tote rather than putting it over her shoulder: Is this to make her thighs look thinner?

Victoria Beckham's biggest tote is her black-and-tan shopper.
She was spotted out and about with it in London last week: the bag has a price tag of £1,995 and is plenty big enough to contain all your possessions when your home is repossessed and you officially become a bag lady.
Note that Victoria is embracing the tote rather than putting it over her shoulder.
Is this to show the bag how much she loves it? Or to make her thighs look thinner?

Read More

Back for good? Eduardo Cruz is spotted leaving Eva Longoria's home over a year after they split

Eva Longoria dated Penelope Cruz's brother Eduardo for about a year before splitting in March last year after what seemed like months of being inseparable. 
But it looks like the Fat Lady's only started clearing her throat as far as these two are concerned because guess what? They appear to be back together.
On Thursday morning both parties were spotted leaving Longoria's L.A. home.

Reconciled? Eva Longoria and Eduardo Cruz looked to have spent Tuesday night together in L.A. despite their apparent split

The actress and 27-year-old musician sneakily left the house separately but were sprung by photographers as they headed to their respective cars.

Their split last year was a surprise, so a reconciliation is not unlikely.

After celebrating their year anniversary enjoying an amorous afternoon on a boat in Miami, looking more in love than ever in February, the 37-year-old confirmed the split just weeks later.

A source close to the couple told the US magazine: ‘It was a mutual decision. They are staying friends.’
‘She's focusing on work and the end of Desperate Housewives.’

Rumbled: Eva left her house separately to Eduardo, but their exits were recorded by photographers

Low-key: Eva's former toy-boy, Eduardo is ten years her junior, didn't want to be spotted either

She's off: Eva looked like her hair was still a bit wet from the shower as she made a dash for it

Making a getaway: Eduardo wasn't quick enough on his feet to throw off the photographers

The pair met through Eduardo's sister, actress Penelope Cruz who introduced her brother to Eva at a party.

After going public as a couple in February 2011 the pair quickly became inseparable despite the 10 year age gap.

However, they became acquainted back in October 2010 - when Cruz was spotted visiting her Los Angeles restaurant Beso, shortly before the actress announced her split from ex-husband Tony Parker.

The Desperate Housewives star had spoken of her joy at being in a relationship with her younger man after her divorce from basketball player Parker after three years of marriage.

The other man in her life: Eva was wearing a pair of pants with a message of support to the President, she was a key member of his media team

Pun-derful: The cheeky trousers show Eva's allegiance in the funniest fashion

'Love did not work with that person [Tony]. But it can work with another,' she told Vanity Fair.

'The only thing I will say is I was very lucky to find Edu.'

Eva's marriage to Tony was her second walk down the aisle. She was married for two years to her first husband, actor Tyler Christopher but they divorced in 2004.

While the reason for the split is not clear the beauty has previously confessed she is “not good with dating”.

Eva explained: 'I'm not very approachable. I'm not good with dating, I get really nervous. It's probably strange that I've never been a dater. I've been married or in a relationship, and

Read More

It's a juggling act for Jason Bateman as he jets out of Los Angeles with wife and two daughters in tow

As a father of two little girls aged six and 11 months, Jason Bateman certainly had his hands full as he lead his family through the airport.
Fortunately the Identity Thief star had his capable wife Amanda Anka along to help as the family jetted out of LAX on Tuesday.

Big rush: Jason Bateman handled the luggage as he jetted out of LAX on Tuesday with wife Amanda and their two daughters Francesca, six, and baby Maple, 11 months

While Jason, 44, oversaw the unloading of luggage from the car, Amanda, also 44, minded their daughter Francesca and the baby, Maple.
Amanda carried Maple in a carrier strapped to her chest and held the hand of her elder daughter.
Maple looked cute as a dumpling in her grey cardigan, grey tights and beige Ugg booties.
The bouncing baby girl wasn't concerned with the time at all; she was just enjoying the ride.

Loaded up: Jason's wife Amanda wore baby Maple in a comfortable carrier and held the hand of Francesca; Jason sorted out the rest of the bags

So exciting: Maple looked really eager to get going while Jason and Amanda fussed over her

Francesca, meanwhile, was fashionably dressed in light grey sweater and black and white striped leggings, along with comfy grey Uggs.
Naturally Amanda appeared a bit harried with the wind blowing her long brown hair in her eyes.
Jason was bundled up in a black padded jacket, red plaid shirt and black jeans, and cosy trainers to get across the airport terminal fast.

Tough job: Someone's got to do it and Jason put himself in charge of all the last minute details

Windy city: Amanda seemed a little harried especially when the breeze blew her hair over her eyes

While it's uncertain where the family was heading, they looked like they were making it into a fun family affair.
The Horrible Bosses star praises Amanda, who is the daughter of singer Paul Anka, for helping him turn his life around and quit the heavy drinking and partying. 
'Meeting my wife Amanda was the best thing that could ever have happened to me,' Jason has said.
'She wasn't going to let me screw around my life anymore, so I stopped drinking and started behaving like a decent human being.'
Jason also has the support of his famous father-in-law.
'He's a very smart boy,' Paul Anka told ET Canada. 'A wonderful guy for my daughter.'

Read More

A little slice of heaven: Stunning Candice Swanepoel models an array of tiny two-pieces at Victoria's Secret photo shoot

She is one of the most successful Victoria’s Secret Angels around and it isn’t hard to see why.
Candice Swanepoel proved she is worthy of her wings when she was spotted at a photo shoot for the lingerie giant on Tuesday.
The 24-year-old slipped into a staggering five different bikinis and posed on the beach in St Barts.

Truly angelic: Candice Swanepoel was spotted at a photo shoot for Victoria's Secret in St Barts on Tuesday

Candice’s two-pieces ranged from ultra-sexy to frilly and girly, but she expertly pulled off each one.
A black and metallic bikini was particularly racy, consisting of a halterneck top with silver trim and bottoms held together by three slim gold straps.
There was plenty of embellishment on the swimwear – one two-piece was metallic green while another was white and adorned with pink and green gems.

Smoking hot: The model slipped into an impressive five different bikinis during the day of shooting

She's just heavenly: The stunning South African showcased the figure that helped her land her wings

Hot metal: A particularly sexy two-piece had bottoms which were held together by three thin gold straps

Later the South African star slipped into some flirtier numbers.
She wore a bikini with a striped top that boasted scalloped edges, and later modelled a frilly pink camouflage creation.
Candice was seen lounging around on the sand, reclining against a hammock and pulling a series of sexy poses for the camera.

She's an expert: Candice knew just how to pose to best accentuate her toned body

So seductive: Candice lounged in the sand for most of the shots and it's clear being in paradise wasn't lost on her

Never off-duty: The blonde bombshell was every inch the professional and never stopped posing

She may be in paradise, but Candice has been hard at work while in the tropical location.
She spent the day before in front of the camera too, wearing a monochrome monokini followed by a red two-piece.

Some tricks of the trade were revealed as it was evident that the star was sporting a flesh-coloured push-up bra under her bathing suit.

Life's a peach: Candice displayed her pert bottom as she frolicked in the sand for the photographer

Making everyone else green with envy: One of the other looks for the day consisted of a metallic green bikini

Dipping her toes in: Candice wasn't afraid of getting covered in sand as she did whatever it took to get a great shot

Enjoying her time in the Caribbean, Candice spent the evening after the shoot in the company of her crew members.
Uploading a picture of herself to her Twitter page via Instagram, she tweeted: 'Fab dinner with my @victoriassecret crew.'

She earned her stripes: One of the other bikinis had a striped top with scalloped edges

Mixing business with pleasure: Candice may have been at work but she looked like she was having a great time

Keeping her curves in check: Candice was seen with her hand on her bottom as she worked the camera

On Sunday night Candice also sent a special shout out to her fellow Angel Rosie Huntington-Whiteley.
Earlier in the day Rosie tweeted: 'My whole heart @angelcandice- miss you and milo already x', alongside an image of her and Candice.
Returning the sentiment and re-posting the same picture, Candice replied: 'Pajama party with my sister. We miss you too x'

Not much of a cover-up: At one point Candice slipped on a beach dress but her bikini was still visible underneath

Flirty and feminine: Candice looked lovely in a frilly pink number flecked with various other bright colours

Colour pop: A fifth and final bikini was white and adorned with pink and green gems

Read More