A Particularly Sweaty Thumb

Mel B’s been giving some genuinely interesting tell-all interviews recently in order to promote her similarly tell-all autobiography – but Mel has not always been known for such commitment to truth-telling.

Years ago, in her Spice Girls days, a reporter called up the Spice camp with a story they’d heard that Mel had just had a boob job in LA. Mel’s people promised to look into it, checked with Mel and then called back to say that Mel flatly denied having any such procedure.

The hack thought that was odd, because – as they went on to explain – they were currently sat by the pool at the Four Seasons hotel in LA, on a sunbed across from Mel B.

Who was busy showing off the bandages around her tits to friends, loudly talking them through the boob job she’d just had done.

Have Virgin Radio got a new signing up their sleeve? Not content with pinching Chris Evans away from the BBC, they appear to have recently added a new, currently content-less, page to their website.

For Fearne Cotton.

[See for yourself]

The editor of which well-respected fashion magazine is being paid a sneaky side-packet to promote things on her social media, but is being extremely lax with her #spon and #ad hashtags?

On Monday night, ITV will broadcast a Sir Cliff Richard special called Sixty Years In Public And Private. It promises to be the most intimate interview with him since the televised police raid on his house in 2014.

Cliff has been practicing for this very moment for years now. Shortly after the raid, he engaged the services of a crisis management team who staged a series of unbroadcast dummy interviews to help him prepare for the camera’s glare.

We’ve seen the feedback document they sent Sir Cliff after his test interviews and it makes for some pretty interesting reading, but it seems that – in the years since – he’s forgotten some of the good advice he was offered. So perhaps a little refresher is in order?

[Read ‘Wired For Soundbites’ on Popbitch]

If you haven’t seen Justin Timberlake around recently, there’s probably a reason for that.

JT’s disguise of choice when in public is to wrap himself up like a Canadian lumberjack with big boots, a furry trapper hat, jacket and scarf (true ‘Man Of The Woods’ stuff) – both indoors and out.

Obviously at this time of year, when the nights draw in and the days get cold, this disguise works a treat. He blends in perfectly.

It has rather the opposite effect in the summer though, when he still insists on wearing the full gear, as he sticks out like a particularly sweaty thumb.

Jermain Defoe isn’t the only footballer who used to be a cavalier Blockbuster Video renter. One Popbitch reader who worked at a Liverpool branch of the rental store in the late 90s remembers vividly the day that Louise Nurding (yet-to-be Redknapp) came in, irate, with a chastened Jamie in tow.

Louise had been away on tour and had asked Jamie to make sure he returned their video to the shop like she asked. When she came home to find it still in the living room, she was so mad she got him to drive her straight there so she could return it – making him fork out for the £40+ in late fees while she vented to the assistant about what a bad boyfriend he was.

It’s surprising that Blockbuster ever went down the pan, given the level of celebrity support it had over the years. But it seems some star-struck staff weren’t so keen on enforcing company policy when it came to their famous clientele.

Multiple people emailed us this week to tell us about Prince Naseem Hamed, who was a regular patron of the Sheffield branch back in the day. He would regularly rack up huge late fees, £80+, that staff were instructed to waive because he was their most high-profile customer (and local hero) at the time.

Waiving fines is one thing, but one punter said they once spotted him trying to shoplift a family packet of Skittles. When they pointed this attempted theft out to staff, the assistant on duty shook his head, pretended he hadn’t seen it and let him get away.

We thought we’d have at least another week to write stories about Noel Edmonds before he came out of the jungle and was able to alert his lawyers to them, so it looks like we’ll have to change tack and settle for John Barrowman stories instead.

Those who have had the pleasure of Barrowman’s intimate company tell us that he is forever getting his pecker out and flashing it about. But it’s not just the odd bit of willy-waving. He has it do party tricks too.

There was the time he used his erection to cut a birthday cake, for example (not into particularly neat slices, it must be said). Or the time he had it do a rather graphic impression of Spider-Man onto his breakfast bar for the amusement of friends.

We hear a lot about how the modern generation is too easily offended and quick to cancel anyone who does anything remotely controversial. So it’s weird to see quite how well rapper 6ix9ine is doing this week.

Most notorious for filming himself groping a naked 13 year old girl, getting hauled up in court to plead guilty to a charge of “use of a child in a sexual performance”, narrowly avoiding having to register as a sex offender, and currently in US federal prison facing a racketeering trial and possible life sentence, 6ix9ine saw 10 of his tracks make Spotify’s Top 100 last Friday.

And is now celebrating a top five single in the UK midweeks.

Another week, another case filed to the Popbitch Collection Agency against another famous scrounger.

During the vote count at the Stafford Riverside Centre in the ’97 election, the unsuccessful Conservative candidate and his new wife spent a large portion of the evening hanging around with representatives from the Monster Raving Loony Party – continually cadging their fags and cans of bitter.

The Loonies were generous enough, but their hospitality only stretched so far. When they asked him if he wouldn’t mind chipping in, the candidate (displaying a shocking lack of local constituency knowledge) said he didn’t know how to buy any cigarettes that late at night. So he palmed one of them a tenner and sent them off to track him some down.

While that covered the fags, he didn’t cough up for any of his beer. So if David Cameron would like to hand over some cash for his cans, it might go some way to scrubbing at least one black mark from his name.

Arguably a little late to this but, then, what could be more timeless that Ian Beale hip-hop?
[Marvel at Beale Hip-Hop]

Quick, interesting web game which shows what peculiar taste the British public has
[Play on YouGov]

Media Masters podcast guest this week is James Ledbetter, editor-in-chief of American business magazine Inc
[Download at Media Masters]

Tourette’s Guy joins MIA, James Brown and the Village People
[Listen on YouTube – NSFW]

George R R Martin’s guide to NYC pizza
[Watch on YouTube]

Do a good thing this holiday season: support Syria Direct’s project to train Syrian journalists
[Donate at Chuffed.org]

Frosty the Snowman: Yewtree version
[Read on Manchester Evening News]

Frank Sinatra’s Malibu estate goes on the market
[Buy at Sinatra Beach House]

The Popbitch Annual 2018 is OUT NOW
[Download it here]

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