You do know that Parrot makes more than just the AR.Drone, right? It was at CES earlier this year that we first caught a glimpse of – and subsequently began geeking out about — the Parrot Zik by Starck. For those unfamiliar, these headphones are jam-packed with enough technologies to make even the geekiest audio lovers smitten. Priced at about $400, they feature Near Field Communication (NFC), Bluetooth connectivity, on-board capacitive touch-control, active noise cancellation, head detection, a jawbone sensor for speech and Parrot’s audio-enhancing DSP app for iOS and Android — not to mention a striking design by the renowned Philippe Starck.

This isn’t the first time Parrot and Mr. Starck have worked together, but this does mark their debut in the portable audio market (as opposed to home-based speaker systems). In the case of this review, not one, but two Engadget editors spent some time testing the product. So, do they impress? More importantly, are they worth the $400 asking price? You know the drill: meet us after the break where we’ll lay it all out.

Despite all the high-tech features crammed inside the Zik, it appears more dapper than geeky from the outside. Up top, there’s a flexible headband made of synthetic leather embossed with the Parrot logo. Continuing down the sides, the band connects to curvaceous, skeletal-like metal headrails that meet at swiveling joints with the half-wishbone yokes. Aside from being eye-catching, these earpieces can swivel just over 90 degrees to fold flat for storage in the included travel pouch. Look closely and you’ll see the inner portions are scooped out to reveal the cabling leading down to the cups. The clicky headrails drop down from the headband, but retract if you’re adjusting the headset for a smaller skull. Aside from the metal’s semigloss finish, you’ll notice subtle orange accenting — a Starck trademark — underneath where the inner edges of the headband meet the rails. Additionally, there’s laser-etching to mark the right and left sides, adjustment points and a tasteful “By Starck” logo on the headband.

That brings us to the earcups — where all the magic happens. While the Zik generally looks bony, the ear cups are dense and plush — disproportionately so in relation to the rest of the headset, but attractive nonetheless. The outer edges are mostly finished in a soft-touch matte plastic, and we’re very happy about that decision. Why, you ask? The outside of the right ear cup contains a capacitive touch-panel for controlling music playback and taking calls, while there’s an NFC sensor embedded within the left ear cup. Even after swiping the headset hundreds of times per day, we only noticed the slightest trace of oil and fingerprints.

Swiping vertically controls volume, while swiping horizontally lets you change tracks. Beyond that, tapping the panel controls playback, and allows you to start and end calls. Unless you’re changing the volume, your various swipes will produce a clicking sound in the earpieces, some audio feedback letting you know the tap was registered. Aside from a hint of lag, it’s generally an intuitive way of inputting commands. Annoyingly, though, the current firmware doesn’t support long taps to enable voice control on smartphones — a common feature on Apple- and Android-compatible inline remotes.

On the outer edge of the earcups, you’ll notice two chrome vents. Aside from adding some visual spice, they serve as bass vents for the headphones. It’s visually clear they each have a different shape, with the chrome leading into the bottom edge of the right earcup. Here you’ll find a micro-USB port, a 3.5mm headphone jack, a single microphone and a backlit power button. We’re happy to report that both ports coupled extremely tightly with the included cables (each of which feature a thick, braided shielding, by the way). Of course, that wired option is mainly there in case the battery dies, or if you want to conserve power by not using Bluetooth. As a final note, the audio cable features a thick right-angled tip, which you might appreciate when you have a mobile device sitting in your pocket.

We’re disappointed that there’s nothing in the way of an inline remote on the included cable, meaning that phone calls and playback control are out of the question when the battery dies. The power button has a very slight wiggle, with enough tension for a pleasingly tactile push. A point of contention we have with many Bluetooth headsets are their annoying blinking lights, but these — these are very soft, and won’t illuminate the surfaces around you in a dark situation, like an overnight flight. The button glows white when the headset is on and powered, and red when it’s charging, but it can’t be turned off like headphones such as the SYNC by 50.

Circling back to the left ear cup, you’ll notice two more microphones on its bottom edge. Think three mics would’ve been enough? Well, Parrot didn’t — there’s even two more, one in each ear cup. If you’ve been counting, yes, that’s a total of five microphones. According to Parrot, two of the outer microphones analyze the sound around you for noise cancellation, while the ones planted within each earcup work to find any residual noise that may need to get taken care of as well. That leaves one of the three external microphones on the Zik for handling voice calls.

Of course, that’s only half of how the Zik picks up on voices. Located near the bottom of the left earpad, you’ll notice two square sensors, one of which is that jawbone sensor. As Parrot explains it, when the Zik notices that your mouth is moving it tells the microphone to focus on vocals, so that you’ll be heard over any background noise. So while its name makes it seem similar to Jawbone’s bone conductivity magic, that’s about all they have in common.

That leads us to the claimed “motion sensor,” one of the most unique features on the Zik. Simply taking it off your noggin or putting it back in place will cause the music to start and stop automatically. It’s especially convenient when you need to talk to someone on the fly, and it’s certainly more intuitive than fiddling for the play / pause button on an inline remote. That said, it’s actually more of a pressure sensor than a motion sensor. It may seem at first blush that the headphone is using some sort of accelerometer to determine when the headphones are coming on and off. But in reality, it’s merely activating a button within the right earpad. Thankfully, no matter how much this editor shook his head around, the sensors were intelligent enough to realize that the headphones hadn’t, in fact, come off. There were a handful of instances where the music took a second or two to turn off as the pads expanded, however.

One less obvious feature of the Zik is that the outside of the left ear cup is actually a magnetic cover. There’s no indentation for pulling it off, as you might find on a smartphone battery cover, but it’s easy enough to remove nonetheless. The magnets keep it from budging unless you actually try to take it off, meaning you won’t have to worry about it falling onto the train tracks in the middle of your commute. Pulling the cover back reveals a slot for the proprietary 3.7V, 800mAh lithium-ion battery. Though it’s included, it will also be sold separately for $30. Parrot claims you’ll get between five and 20 hours of use depending on how many of the Zik’s features you use. Specifically, we got between five and six hours of battery life after enabling Bluetooth and all the audio features. If you want the full experience — and at least a full day’s worth of use — you’re going to need at leastone spare battery.

Unfortunately, despite the head sensor, leaving the headphones on and around your shoulders doesn’t put them in any sort of low-power mode. So regardless of whether music is playing or not, battery life remains the same. Thankfully, turning off active noise cancellation should increase runtime, and we can report that the headphones provide enough passive noise isolation that sometimes we didn’t need ANC enabled anyway. We should also note that the Zik comes with noise cancellation enabled out of the box. For the moment, the app for controlling its audio features is only available on iOS, but Parrot expects proper Android and iPad versions will be available in the coming weeks.

Here’s something frustrating: batteries can’t be charged outside of the headphones. So, while it’s convenient to charge the headset if you happen to be sitting near a PC with a spare USB port, it’s going to be an issue for folks on the go. Parrot says it has no current plans for an external charger, so you’ll need to have them fully charged before heading out on a long trip. This is a major sticking point that puts the headphones at a severe disadvantage, especially since headphones by Sony, Bose and Klipsch can last 20-plus hours on AAAs. The Zik’s battery life is acceptable considering everything that’s going on inside, but we do hope Parrot eventually offers better ways to stay juiced — or, at least, a spare battery in the box.

SETUP, BLUETOOTH AND NFC CONNECTIVITY

For the most part, the days of frustrating Bluetooth pairing are over, and the Zik is no exception. Whether we connected an iPhone 3GS, Galaxy Nexus, Samsung Galaxy S III, iPad 2, Nokia Lumia 900, ASUS PadFone, HTC One X or a MacBook, we never had to go into a specific pairing mode or enter any codes. It’s as simple as selecting “connect to device” from the device. This convenience does come at a cost, however — the headset can’t pair with multiple gizmos at once. This is burdensome if you tend to juggle gadgets, as you’ll need to manually disconnect before attempting to pair with another device. Then again, we don’t expect this to be a problem for most shoppers.

As we mentioned, the Zik is equipped with an NFC sensor on its left earcup for Bluetooth pairing. While there aren’t too many NFC-enabled devices available here in the US, four of the devices we listed do have it built in, which allowed us to test this feature extensively. On the Nexus, simply tapping the handset to the left earcup completed the pairing, while a second tap disconnected it. However, anytime we tried to carry out the same process with the GS III and One X we were met by an error message. It’s likely that this is an OS-based problem, and we’re waiting on more clarification from Parrot. Aside from that hiccup, the feature works great and it’s nice to see this technology in something other than Nokia’s Play 360 speakers.

Update: Parrot got back to confirm that the NFC pairing only works with Android Jelly Bean.

Getting more specific about that Broadcom Bluetooth chipset, the Zik merely sportsBluetooth 2.1 + EDR with A2DP – there’s no current support for codecs like aptX. This may be an issue if you’re looking for more advanced Bluetooth audio, but as we’ll explain soon, the headphones do sound pretty good usually. Discerning listeners might notice a humming noise from the right side, where the radio is located; it’s only apparent when audio isn’t playing through headphones, but may be an issue if you’re solely planning to use the noise cancellation functionality.

Before we sign off on the subject, we’d be remiss not to mention a few Bluetooth issues that came up on both of our Zik test units. With a laptop, the connection proved to be a hit-or-miss affair. The headphones worked reliably with incoming audio, but as soon as we tried to enable the mic, our signal transfer would cease in both directions. At that point we had to completely kill our connection and restart it to at least get incoming audio again. Making Skype calls with the Zik on a computer is simply out of the question, unfortunately.

Aside from occasional drops in audio, we did notice that planting a phone inside a pocket often causes brief drops in the signal as well. Depending on our location, our range varied from about 33 feet, as promised, down to just a few steps away. Suffice it to say, the Bluetooth implementation here would benefit from some fine-tuning.

If you’ve been following our coverage of the Zik, you know we found it plenty comfortable during early hands-on opportunities. Still, if you’re concerned that all the tech inside may make for a heavy fit, we’re happy to report the Zik is supremely comfy. The headphones feature a pleasing circumaural design. Unlike the Astro A50 gaming headset, though, it won’t leave your ears floating inside of the earcups. The memory foam within the earpads is super supple, and there’s even more padding inside of the earcups in front of the drivers. If you were to press your finger against the part of the earcups where the microphones live, you could easily feel them, but you shouldn’t notice them when you’re actually wearing the headset.

To explain further, the shape of the headrails help balance out the fit, keeping it firmly affixed to your noggin. If anything, some users might find that the headband could use a bit more padding. Our main concern is whether the earpads will stay this supple after months of use, as they’re not replaceable. However, the clamping force of the headphones is comfortable, and just enough to keep ‘em planted on your head without crushing your ears enough to cause cartilage cramps. Naturally, the synthetic leather pads don’t exactly play nice in hot weather, though — things will get sweaty, but it didn’t seem to erode the build quality in any way. Source: engadget

The result is out! The winner of The X-Factor Winner is: Samantha Jade! Her new single is out in 7 December 2012.

Now that the True Blood season 5 finale has set things in motion for an extremely exciting sixth season, it’s time to find out what exactly we can expect as our stay in Bon Temps is extended one more year.

True Blood’s bloody finale left fans wanting answers to even more questions, chomping at the bit to find out the more about the mysterious Warlow. With almost a year’s wait until True Blood season 6, series creator Alan Ball exits the series by revealing some things that fans can expect to see next season.

Speaking with TV Line, Ball brings some hope to Bill’s (currently) bleak situation, throws a twist in Pam and Tara’s relationship, explains the type of man vampire Eric Northman truly is, while also providing some answers as to why a fan favorite character (Hoyt) was written off the show. If you’re hoping for more visual True Blood extras, you can check out the bonus scene from the True Blood season 5 finale (above). Picking up in the Vampire Authority elevator, we see Jason and everyone attempting to make their exit – but not before the name “Warlow” comes up.

After seeing Bill bloodily transform into Bill/Lilith (Bililith?), everyone is wondering exactly what kind of monster Sookie and friends will have to deal with in season 6. Though Bill showed a brief bit a fear before spontaneously exploding, his demeanor after being reborn was anything but friendly.  Touching about this aspect, Ball hints that Bililith may not be completely gone, even if he is terrifying:

“Who’s to say what Lilith really is? He is still Bill but he is something different.

It is Bill, but it is a transformed Bill. He is not a completely new person. It’s not like his memories or his experiences have been left out and he’s just a baby.

Is he going to be evil? What does he want? What is he going to do? Will he be able to revert back to Bill? That’s for future seasons. The implication, certainly, is that he is more ferocious.”

Though having to fight the always present supernatural inhabitants of Bon Temps, perhaps a former lover turned vampire god isn’t the best thing to have hanging around Sookie. While there’s no doubt that Bill will somehow have to fight off the power that Lilith’s blood brings him, we can only guess how much destruction will have come before that moment. And even if Bill somehow rights himself, there’s still one mysterious name left to deal with: M. Warlow.

Ball will only say that Warlow will play a big part of True Blood season 6. Even fans of the books are left in the dark on this mystery, as Sookie’s parents were murdered by a pair of fairies in the novel, and the name “M. Warlow” never comes up. That being said, there were still a few hints given about what type of creature Warlow might be. Having been able to present himself to Sookie, it’s clear that Warlow has some kind of supernatural power, likely fairy. Combine that with the fact that we already know he’s a vampire and there’s a very good chance that Warlow is some kind of vampire-fairy hybrid.

Taking a turn for the romantic, the surprising relationship between Tara and Pam caught many off guard. As many will wait and see what comes from television’s most powerful women coupling, Ball quickly puts a stop to any type of “happily every after” the future lovebirds may have:

“They both were, if not full-on lesbians, than bisexual. They both were characters with real attitude. And they both hate each other — at least they did at the beginning of the season. And that, to me, felt like it could create a lot of tension that could turn romantic towards the end.

…here’s the thing with relationships on True Blood: Once they happen then you have to throw a monkey-wrench into them, because to have people be happy is not that exciting.”

Now that Bill is an evil vampire god, the heroic light is shining even greater on the one-time villainous Eric. Putting a different spin on the former vampire Sheriff, Ball reveals what his longtime stance has been on the allusive Northman:

“Eric was kind of like a mischievous cad, but I don’t think he was ever, like, a true villain the way that Russell was or the way that Maryann was. And he’s done a lot of really heroic things himself. So I never really looked at Eric as the bad guy and Bill as the good guy – at least not since the very early seasons.”

Essentially bringing any True Blood season 6 information to an end, Ball talks about one of the great losses from this season. As one of Bon Temps fan favorites, fans couldn’t help but mourn the departure of Hoyt Fortenberry. Though still very much alive, Ball reveals why he decided to write Hoyt off his series:

“I felt like we had told his entire story. There weren’t many places we could go with him that we hadn’t been, but I love that character and I love Jim [Parrack] so much I didn’t want to kill him. He’s always been such a good soul. I wanted to have the possibility for him to return as well. But he fell in love and he couldn’t let go.”

To wrap things up, Ball gives his final thoughts on working on True Blood, and why he decided to move on.

“It’s bittersweet. It’s been such a big part of my life for so long; of course it’s hard to step away. But running that show is such a huge job and I’ve been doing it for five years straight. I just don’t think I have another season left in me. I need to re-charge. And then I’m interested in doing something new — something with different characters and a different tone. As a writer, it’s fun to create. And once you get into a long-running show with very established characters and a very established tone and format, after a while it’s a really great job but that’s what it is — a job. You’re just continuing to create the same show. I’m at the point in my life where I don’t want to work as hard. Actually, I’ve had to take a good hard look at workaholism and it’s effect on one’s mental health. [Laughs] And, also, there are things I want to do that are different. I want to try something completely different.”

True Blood season 6 premieres on HBO in 2013.

Source: TVLine.

Mark Zuckerberg announced overnight that Facebook has reached one billion monthly active users. Can you believe it got there not only without spending money on advertising itself, but also by fooling us into looking at other companies’ ads? So it’s not weird at all that Facebook is celebrating by comparing itself to chairs in an ad of its own.

The warm and fuzzy 90-second clip is part of a wider ad campaign that will see Facebook promoting itself on Facebook through sponsored posts and ads on the login page. Zuckerberg wrote in a news post:

This morning, there are more than one billion people using Facebook actively each month.
If you’re reading this: thank you for giving me and my little team the honor of serving you.
Helping a billion people connect is amazing, humbling and by far the thing I am most proud of in my life.
I am committed to working every day to make Facebook better for you, and hopefully together one day we will be able to connect the rest of the world too.

Rebecca Van Dyck, Facebook’s head of consumer marketing, told the Advertising Age that the aim is to get even more people on board. “We feel like we need to be respectful and introduce ourselves and to say ‘This is what we believe in’ and ‘Come on board’.”

Since its launch in February 2004, it has clocked up 1.13 trillion Likes, set up 140 billion friend connections and currently hosts 219 billion photos. Facebook says that the median age of new users today is 22, while sign-ups in Australia peaked in October 2007 when Facebook reached 50 million users.

As much as we like to give Facebook shit over privacy issues, unwanted redesigns, crappy apps, making money off us and turning us into addicts, there’s no denying the ginormous impact it’s had on my own life let alone a billion others around the world. It feels like it came out of nowhere and all of a sudden we can’t imagine life without it. Can you imagine anything being anywhere near as ubiquitous? Probably not in our lifetime.

 

Source: Gizmodo

The very anticipated operating system Windows 8 will have a feature that was never found on PC’s before: A kill switch that can remotely delete software and edit code without the user’s permission. Although Microsoft claims the switch would only be used for software that is downloaded from its app store, no official policies clearly define the actual purpose of the kill switch. In other words, nothing is truly considered “illegal” and that includes issues regarding spying, censorship and free speech. Although the kill switch is promoted as a “tool against malware” it can potentially accomplish much, much more. In fact, it would not be impossible to have all smart-phones and Windows PC’s simultaneously shut down at any given time. The following article from Business Week also mentions the infamous case of Amazon that remotely deleted from user’s Kindle e-readers illegal copies of two books. Which ones? Prepare for intense irony…George Orwell’s 1984 and Animal Farm.

The Kill Switch Comes to the PC

A feature common in phones will let Microsoft remotely disable malware

Janne Kytömäki, a Finnish software developer, was cruising Google’s (GOOG) Android Market for smartphone apps last year when he noticed something strange. Dozens of best-selling applications suddenly listed the same wrong publisher. It was as if Stephen King’s name had vanished from the covers of his books, replaced by an unknown author. Kytömäki realized the culprit was a piece of malware that was spreading quickly, and he posted his findings online.

Google responded swiftly. It flipped a little-known kill switch, reaching into more than 250,000 infected Android smartphones and forcibly removing the malicious code. “It was sort of unreal, watching something like that unfold,” says Kytömäki, who makes dice simulator apps. Kill switches are a standard part of most smartphones, tablets, and e-readers. Google, Apple (AAPL), and Amazon (AMZN) all have the ability to reach into devices to delete illicit content or edit code without users’ permission. It’s a powerful way to stop threats that spread quickly, but it’s also a privacy and security land mine.

With the rollout of the Windows 8 operating system expected later this year, millions of desktop and laptop PCs will get kill switches for the first time. Microsoft (MSFT) hasn’t spoken publicly about its reasons for including this capability in Windows 8 beyond a cryptic warning that it might be compelled to use it for legal or security reasons. The feature was publicized in a widely cited Computerworld article in December when Microsoft posted the terms of use for its new application store, a feature in Windows 8 that will allow users to download software from a Microsoft-controlled portal. Windows smartphones, like those of its competitors, have included kill switches for several years, though software deletion “is a last resort, and it’s uncommon,” says Todd Biggs, director of product management for Windows Phone Marketplace.

Microsoft declined to answer questions about the kill switch in Windows 8 other than to say it will only be able to remove or change applications downloaded through the new app store. Any software loaded from a flash drive, DVD, or directly from the Web will remain outside Microsoft’s control. Still, the kill switch is a tool that could help Microsoft prevent mass malware infections. “For most users, the ability to remotely remove apps is a good thing,” says Charlie Miller, a researcher with the security company Accuvant.

The history of kill switches on smartphones and e-readers suggests they’re double-edged swords for the companies that wield them. In 2009, Amazon reached into users’ Kindles to delete e-book copies of George Orwell’s 1984 and Animal Farm that had been sold by a publisher without the necessary rights. The ensuing backlash caused Amazon Chief Executive Officer Jeff Bezos to call the move “stupid, thoughtless, and painfully out of line with our principles.”

The reluctance of tech companies to set explicit policies for when they will and will not use kill switches contributes to the fear they’ll be abused. Civil rights and free speech advocates worry that tech companies could be pressured by governments to delete software or data for political reasons. “You have someone who has absolute control over my hard drive in ways I may have never anticipated or consented to,” says Eric Goldman, director of the High Tech Law Institute at Santa Clara University’s law school in California. “If they use that power wisely, they actually make my life better. We don’t know if they use the power wisely. In fact, we may never know when they use their power at all.”

Hiroshi Lockheimer, Google’s vice president of Android engineering, says the search company reserves the use of the kill switch for “really egregious, really obvious cases” of harmful content. Microsoft’s Biggs says the company has used the functionality in its smartphones only for “technical issues and content issues.” Apple declined to comment. Amazon did not respond to several messages.

Like many in his profession, Kevin Mahaffey, co-founder of the San Francisco startup Lookout, which makes security software for smartphones, expresses mixed emotions about the emergence of kill switches. “The remote removal tools are very much a response to the mistakes of the PC era,” he says. “Whether or not it’s an overcorrection, I think history will tell us. It can be done right, but we as an industry need to tread carefully. It’s easy to imagine several dystopian futures that can arise from this.”

One supporter is Janne Kytömäki, the Finn who discovered the Android malware outbreak. He says Google did the right thing by deleting the malware without users’ permission. “What was the alternative?” he says. “Leave those apps installed on 200,000 people’s mobiles? This is something that had to be done.”

His blundering appearance on a zip line over Victoria Park immediately swept across Twitter, so it was only a matter of time before Boris Johnson’s latest stunt went viral.

The Mayor of London had appeared yesterday on a zip line in central London, only for the stunt to backfire when he became stranded in mid-air above bemused onlookers.

And as with any eye-catching news picture which captures the internet’s imagination, it wasn’t long before the dangling mayor had been subjected to some serious Photoshop work.

Another viral pciture closer to home shows Mr Johnson hanging in the place of one of the pods of the Emirates cable car next to the 02 Arena.

Mr Johnson became stuck when he tried out the 45-metre high, 320-metre long zip wire at the London Live event in Victoria Park, where visitors can watch the Games action on a big screen or try their hand at a range of Olympic sports.

Onlookers began taking photographs on their mobile phones, and one shouted: ‘I heard Ken Livingstone set up the zip line.’

Mr Johnson, waving a couple of Union flags, responded: ‘This is great fun but it needs to go faster.’

He shouted to helpers: ‘Get me a rope or a ladder.’

Eventually event staff pulled him to safety.

MaCaulay Culkin’s representatives have issued a fiercely-worded denial over claims the Home Alone star has a $6,000-a-month drug habit.

A spokeswoman for the 31-year-old actor branded the claims published in the National Enquirer as ‘ridiculously fictitious’ and ‘insulting’.

The American tabloid reported today that Culkin regularly shoots up heroin and the highly addictive painkiller oxycodone – dubbed hillbilly heroin.

The article went on to say the former child star turned his Manhattan apartment into a drug den where he gets high either by himself or with friends.

Drug addict? Macaulay Culkin is said to be spending $6,000 a month on hard drugs and prescription pills, according to a new report, pictured here in February

Responding to the allegations, Culkin’s publicist Michelle Bega told MailOnline: ‘The report in the National Enquirer that Macaulay Culkin is addicted to heroin and assorted hallucinogenics is not only categorically without merit, but it is also impossibly and ridiculously fictitious.’

Iconic role: Culkin as cheeky Kevin McCallister in 1990 film Home Alone

Ms Bega added that the story was ‘destructive and insulting,’ to her client.

The Enquirer claims Culkin’s drug use intensified 18 months ago – around the time he split from long-term girlfriend Mila Kunis, who is now dating Ashton Kutcher.

A source told the publication: ‘Macaulay Culkin is hooked on drugs and it’s killing him.

‘He’s been hooked for a year and a half, and his drug of choice is either heroin or oxycodone.

‘Mac is surrounding himself with junkies and lowlifes. It’s a real tragedy.’

The source – described by the Enquirer as a ‘close friend’ – also claimed Culkin has had a close brush with death in the past year and almost overdosed.

‘Mac suffered a near overdose, and needed help,’ the insider said.

‘Fortunately he didn’t need to call 911 and the near-OD was kept quiet among his pals. But Mac got very sick.’

In February, pictures of of Culkin looking emaciated and shockingly made headlines.

At the time his representatives strenuously denied the actor was addicted to prescription drugs or heroin amid reports the 5-foot-7 star’s weight had dropped to 104lbs.

Life imitating art? Macaulay played a drug-addled club hopper in the 2003 film Party Monster alongside Seth Green

Macaulay is best know for his roles as cheeky Kevin McCallister in the 1990 film Home Alone and the 1992 sequel, Home Alone: Lost In New York.

He also starred in the likes of Uncle Buck, My Girl and Richie Rich.

But his adult career has failed to match the blockbuster success of his childhood days.

In 2003 he played a drug-addled club hopper alongside Seth Green in Party Monster, while his last film role was in 2007 in the Indie flick Sex And Breakfast.

Healthier looking: The actor’s drug addiction is said to have intensified after his split from long-term girlfriend Mila Kunis, around 18 months ago, pictured in 2005

These days he earns a living DJ-ing at clubs around New York.

Culkin’s half sister Jennifer Adamson died of a drug overdose in 2000.

In another tragic twist, the National Enquirer reports that a female friend of Culkin’s died earlier this year of a heroin overdose.

Elijah Rosello died in March aged 24, with a family source telling the publication that she would do drugs with Culkin on occasion.

Thanks to Getty Image and Daily Mail.

She was a classic beauty who oozed sophistication, elegance and grace and poise at all times.

Si it’s hard to imagine Elizabeth Taylor suffering a wardrobe malfunction that would have exposed her modesty – unlike Lindsay Lohan.

The young actress was snapped filming new scenes for her upcoming movie Dick and Liz, in which she plays the late Hollywood star, when her breast popped out of her dress.

 

Lindsay, 25, was seen on board a boat that had been built to replicate Taylor and Richard Burton’s romantic trip to the Bay of Naples in Italy in 1965.

The pair are playing the star-crossed lovers, who not only married twice but had a turbulent relationship that was the talk of Hollywood for a Lifetime TV movie.

Oops! Lindsay suffers an obvious wardrobe malfunction as she films the arguments scenes with Bowler

Let me fix myself! Lindsay was either in character or shouting at her co-star to let her protect her modesty and sort her dress out

Talk to me! Bowler, as Burton, pleads with Lindsay but she had bigger problems such as keeping her assets under control

But no one would have expected Lindsay to give away more than she intended as she and her Ugly Betty co-star reenacted an argument between the couple on the boat.

Lindsay was seen pulling away from Bowler on the deck but as she turned around to head into a door, her dress stayed where it was but unfortunately her left breast didn’t and it popped out of the neckline.

Take that! Lindsay whacks him with her book

It was soon rectified though and filming continued on the movie, which is due to be broadcast this autumn.

Elizabeth and Richard met while filming Cleopatra in 1962 and began a romance even though Liz was still married to Eddie Fisher  while Burton was wed to Sybil Williams.

And even though this is Lohan’s first lead role since her flop Labor Pains in 2009, everyone appears to be really impressed with her so far.

Executive producer Larry Thompson told Perez Hilton that Lindsay is ‘more than ready’ to start shooting and after their last rehearsal, she went from ‘unfocused’ to being ‘so excited and into it’.

He added to E! News that during the first scenes shot on the yacht, docked at Marina del Rey, the cast was in good spirits.

He said: ‘A little first-day jitters for everyone, but it went well.’

And Lohan’s spokesperson Steve Honig added to the New York Daily News: ‘I was standing there last week for publicity shots and prep when Lindsay and Grant  walked on set for the first time in full makeup and costume, and it took everyone’s breath away.’

Hey down there! Lindsay was either taking a break or filming a party scene as she waved down with a cigarette in one hand and a drink in the other

Source: xposurephotos

He was not shy when it came to showing off his toned physique on I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!

And it seems that Mark Wright has figured out exactly what attracts viewers, as he’s not holding back with his stripping off while shooting scenes for his new reality show Mark Wright’s Hollywood Nights.

As he camped with a group of friends at the Yosemite National Park in scenes for the show, Mark was seen shedding his clothes to go for a swim.

Where are your trunks? Mark Wright wore just a pair of pants as he enjoyed a camping trip in North Carolina last week

Splashing around: The boys couldn’t resist a bit of splashing each other in the lake

Huddle time: After the swim, Mark and his mates enjoyed a hug as they reflected on the experience

However, despite the fact that Mark knew he was going on a camping trip, he appeared to have forgotten to pack his trunks.

The former TOWIE star was seen wearing just a pair of Bjorn Borg pants as he and his male friends enjoyed a huddle before plunging into the lake.

Mark has been shooting scenes in a variety of locations for the upcoming ITV2 show, which premieres on the channel on 3rd June.

Diving in: But he soon got over the shock of the temperature and enjoyed a swim in the lake

Making a dash for it: Mark, who is no stranger to showing off his toned physique, appeared to find the water a bit too cold

And instead of team Marg, which saw him and best friend James ‘Arg’ Argent team up on TOWIE, it seems Mark has a group of new friends, judging by pictures of him and his ‘entourage’.

Talking recently about the show, Mark said: ‘Me and the boys are going to smash it.

What’s going on down there? Mark appeared to be having difficulty with the pants at one point, and had a crafty rearrange

Heading back: Mark and his mates headed back to their tent after the swim

‘I’ve got lots of things lined up – this holiday is not just about partying. I want to explore LA, discover what it has to offer and I’ve got a few cheeky surprises up my sleeve also.’

And, of course, the boys weren’t on their own as they were also joined by some female friends for the camping trip.

As well as enjoying dips in the lake, the boys were also seen indulging in some beers by their tents, as well as messing around with a shopping trolley.

Mark has been keeping fans updated about his Stateside exploits on his Twitter page over the past few weeks.

Ready for action: Mark and his friends were seen arriving at the Yosemite National Park armed with tents and camping supplies

Female company: As well as his male friends, Mark was joined on the trip by a couple of female pals

All for one: The boys marked the camping trip with several beers before the night drew in

Time for horror stories! The group settled around the campfire for the night as they enjoyed the peace and quiet

During the camping trip, which came after a lengthy road trip, Mark tweeted: ‘We have been driving for 24hr across america luckily we r in a big RV. Less than 2 weeks now for #markwrightshollywoodnights 3rd june @itv2′

He then later added: ‘Just getting into bed in north california in a tent while the uk is getting up. Good night from me and good morning 2 u all. Much love x’

Easy rider: One of Mark’s friends pushed him along in a shopping trolley as they stocked up on supplies before the trip

Eurovision 2012 is over, but the public want  more of Ivi Adamou.

The Cyprus Eurovision finalist has successfully delivered Love to all over the world with her top hit “La La Love”. To all the La La Lovers, expect more remixes to hit your nightclubs.

Ivi made it clear on her official twitter that; All will be ok! “Nothing to fear when you are near” la la lovers!

La La Love (Official Video Clip)

Ivi Adamou – La La Love (Live at Eurovision 2012 Opening Party)

Eurovision 2012 Ivi Adamou La La Love Live Performance.

Instrumental BalladPiano version

And perhaps a Jazz version.

La La Love (SwingJazz Version)

Lyrics:

Lala lalalalalala lalalalalalala love
Lala lalalalalala lalalalalala love

Love the way you fill me up with life
Baby we can break the speed of light
Nothing to fear when you are near
Just gimme more

Reaching for the sky, I’m aiming high
Close my eyes and then it’s almost like you fly
Up in the air, let’s take it there
Never let go

Oh oh oh, I feel the energy between you and me, baby it’s so right
Oh oh oh, I feel the energy just taking over me, over me

How I’ve been waiting for this
Lala lalalalalala lalalalalalala love
Oh I’ve been waiting for this
Lala lalalalalala lalalalalalala love

From Paris to LA over the night
All around the world just you and I
Nothing to fear, when you are near
We’re on a roll

And we do it again, no stop no end
Out of control

Oh oh oh, I feel the energy between you and me, baby it’s so right
Oh oh oh, I feel the energy just taking over me, over me

How I’ve been waiting for this
Lala lalalalalala lalalalalalala love
Oh I’ve been waiting for this
Lala lalalalalala lalalalalalala love

Nothing to fear… when you are near…

Oh oh oh, I feel the energy between you and me, baby it’s so right
Oh oh oh, I feel the energy just taking over me, over me

How I’ve been waiting for this
Lala lalalalalala lalalalalalala love

Lala lalalalalala lalalalalalala love
Oh, I’ve been waiting for this
Lala lalalalalala lalalalalalala love