Non-Wedding of The Year

 News comes that Aussie supermodel Andrej Pejic has wed his boyfriend, the charmingly named Rembrandt Duran in a 'pop-up' service in Nevada.
Alas, it also seems same-sex marriage isn't legal in the gambling state so perhaps it's all a bit of fun although a wedding snap and 'marriage certificate' has been posted on Instagram.

wedding snap

Androgynous Perjik is one of the stars of the European catwalks and is able to model both male and female fashion.. He was born in Bosnia with a Croatian mother and Serbian father, and the family fled to Australia as political refugees when Andre was 9 years old.

Discovered working in McDonald's in Melbourne, so the rumour goes, he now models for Jean Paul Gaultier and Marc Jacobs. What a sweet story !


left : the 'wedding certificate'

Laughing at Politicians

Dr Karl & Mary Dobbie

Tanya Pliberseck MP

The much loved BBC hit TV series Yes Minister is now a hilarious new stage play Yes Prime Minister and has become London’s biggest hit comedy in decades.
Enter Jim Hacker’s world of hung parliaments, a nation in financial crises, a world of global warming, illegal immigrants and oil rich dictators. Yes, Prime Minister is a side-splitting foray into the comedy of politics and intrigue.

Set in the present day, in the oak panelled drawing room of the British Prime Minister’s country residence, the embattled PM, Sir Humphrey and Bernard are back – this time facing their greatest challenge yet!


 Opening night at the Sydney Opera House was attended by Federal Minister for Health Tanya Plibesek and her significant other Tim Woods, Shadow Minister Joe Hockey and wife Melissa, the Minister for Gaudy Shirts Dr Karl Kruszelnicki (his wife makes them) and former MP Bruce Baird.
                                       right : Joe & Melissa Hockey  
   Yes Prime Minister runs until March 2nd. Tickets here.

Pics : Latte Life.                  

Mama Mia !

 Check out some fab photos of local actress, the gorgeous Mia Wasikowska at a press conference for her new film  Stoker. Go to the Mail Online.

Why Mel B Fled Oz

Just as the Shuttle exclusively revealed that Mel B and husband Stephan Belafonte had moved into a Vaucluse apartment, overlooked by the Double Newspaper editor Jane King of Latte Life, we can also reveal why the family are now packing up just 6 weeks after moving in and Scary Spice has flown to the USA..

And it isn't as the woeful daily newspapers reported because she was having visa problems ( people like Mel B don't have visa: problems- Mel and Stephan are taking out Australian citizenship) it's because Mel is to become a judge on America's Got Talent along with radio jock Howard Stern and Howie Mandel.


So many times we tell News Ltd & Fairfax to check details with us first but do they ?. No. The UK's Daily Mail does though.

Grin And Bear It at Tiffany

All roads lead to Westfield, literally. As the uber shopping strip of Paddington loses boutiques by the day (30 empty shops between Whitlam Square and Bondi Junction at last count) the giant Bondi Westfield booms.

Lisa Cooper

 It was inevitable that Tiffany would end up there along with all those other luxury brands that the masses now embrace. And they threw a cocktail party to celebrate. Artist Lisa Cooper collaborated with the jeweler to produce a range of custom sculptures which are on display there and best of all, Tiffany's has heaps of beautiful silver jewelry by the great Elsa Peretti. Above : Romance Was Born designer Luke Sales shows the latest in Bear Wear.                             

Sunburnt Superstar

 Tropfest 2013 was held for the last time yesterday in The Domain. In it's 21st year founder John Polson announced a change of venue- Centennial Park and date- December.
100,000 viewer turned up for the evening of short films and this year's judges included a sunburnt Sam Worthington, Magda Szubanski , Richard Roxburgh and Rebecca Gibney

 Nicholas Clifford's We've All Been There  won first prize while second prize went to the only documentary, Better Than Sinatra.

Indiana Evans

Josh Thomas

Magda Szubanski

Richard Roxburgh and Silvia Colloca

Kate Miller Heidke

Rebecca Gibney

New Romantic Revealed

And here he is, our New Romantic photographed at Warwick University in 1981 who is in fact the urbane, handsome man-about-town Neale Whittaker, editor of design and decor magazine Belle and a judge on the top rating TV series The Block.
Whittaker says he was 'obsessed' with singer David Sylvian of the band Japan at the time. The Shuttle feels tinged with guilt- we once participated in shameless publicity campaign to name Sylvian as the 'sexiest man on Earth", which was so successful poor David spent years trying to live down the title.
At least Neale was demonstrating excellent taste at an early age!

Guess Who? #1

An occasional quiz where we bring celebs as they were...(and tomorrow as they are today)

Who is this cool looking dude  channeling David Sylvian (Japan) from a  1981 snap at Warwick University in the UK?.
These days he runs a critical eye over the decor down Bondi way.

Paul Hogan Sells Malibu Mansion

Hogan's Malibu house (left) and the Byron Bay house at Possum Creek

Crocodile Dundee star Paul Hogan and wife Linda Koslowski have listed their magnificent Malibu property for sale for $US5.25M. 

 Although Hoge's later films were financial flops, he has made a fortune by parlaying his Dundee profits into a property empire valued at around $400M.

  Hogan and his film production partner John Cornell invested heavily in the NSW uber resort of Byron Bay building a beach side hotel and buying up plots of land in the hinterland.

Linda & Paul ( centre ) with business partners John Cornell and Delvene Delaney

His Possum Creek mansion and acres were reminiscent of the Malibu property. It was eventually sold to Hong Kong banker Duncan Mount who parceled up blocks and sold them on for a tidy fortune. Hoges was inducted into the 'hall of fame' at last month's G'Day USA in LA.

Meanwhile at the opening of last week's exhibition for fashion identity Vivian Chan Shaw, Hogan's first wife Noelene Hogan attended the party but remained silent on her ex-husband's life. Noelene and Paul divorced in 1981 and she received their Northern Beaches Sydney property which again was similar to the Malibu and Byron properties. Obviously Hoges likes the 'Southern Mansion' style home with a few hundred acres. Hogan keeps in regular touch with his grown-up sons and their families from the first marriage and they visit him and Koslowski's son Chance in the USA. left : Noelene Hogan with Claudia Chan Shaw last week.

The Guardian (Oz Version) Marches On

News today (but old news for Shuttle readers) : 2 political heavyweights have fled Fairfax Media to join the coming new on-line Australian  newspaper The Guardian which is soon to launch just in time for the September General election.

Lenore Taylor is to be Political Editor and Katherine Murphy to be her Deputy. This is a blow to Fairfax no matter how they spin it- these are 2 of the very best political writers in the country who are rarely vehicles for political propaganda but are known to delve behind the scenes unlike the current Canberra mob who comprise the Press Gallery in Parliament who often sound like an echo chamber.  Nothing illustrated that more than Prime Minister Julia Gillard's famous 'misogyny' speech which had the press gallery in a twitter of disapproval while the Youtube film of her speech swept the world's media to a chorus of approval.

In March the Fairfax titles will change to tabloid size and a former editor Andrew Jaspan has claimed they will attempt to emulate the UK Daily Mail.
Today Murphy and Taylor twiittered their intentions:

Sign Of The Times?

Rumours are swirling around the ritzy art galleries of Paddington and Woollahra that 2 of the areas most important galleries and dealers are to join forces.

Tim Olsen, the amiable owner of the Tim Olsen Gallery and son of Australian artist John Olsen is said to be teaming up with respected dealer Rex Irwin.
Irwin would possibly have one of the countries best client lists and Tim has impeccable connections in business, social and show biz circles. Together they would form a formidable duo.               
The pair were recently spotted in a huddle at Tim's exhibition of new works by actor Noah Taylor (right) a fortnight ago, as our exclusive picture shows. That's one of Noah's paintings behind the 2 dealers. Can't quite work out what it says.

Wacky Hairstyle Of The Month

It has to be Al Pacino with this wondrous plumage that rumours say was modeled on the El Alamein Fountain in Kings Cross.

 Pacino is starring in a bio-pic about music great Phil Spector currently incarcerated for murder.
 The movie concentrates on Spector's trial where he would turn up wearing equally fab rugs.


                                          

Diamonds Are Forever

Top jewellery designer Stefano Canturi who has been wowing them in New York threw a cocktail party to launch an exhibition of artworks and accompanying creations at the MiCK Gallery in Paddington, featuring some of his best works from the past 25 years (he began when he was just 17).

Neale Whittaker, Stefano Canturi, Patricia Canturi , David Novak Piper

Jessica Rowe

Of special interest is the amazing 'Satine' necklace commissioned by movie director Baz Luhrmann and Academy Award winning costume designer Catherine Martin. This amazing necklace was worn by Nicole Kidman in Moulin Rouge. Other confirmed Canturi fans include Oprah Winfrey, Kylie Minogue, Linda Evangalista and Miranda Kerr.

 The Louis XVI inspired Satine design features open lace patterns,scrolls and a splendorous bodice with 1308 diamonds totalling an awe inspiring 134 carats ! .Nice.
Stefano's exhibition is worth seeing for that alone but there are a wealth of beautiful sketches and wondrous jewels on display and it's a must see for everyone.
The exhibition Journey is open until the 12th February at 44 Gurner Street, Paddington. Tel : 02 9231 1799

Mel B : Out of Frying Pan into Fire

Inset : Jamie Fawcett

Fun loving Sydney resident and ex-Spice Girl Mel B has found new digs in the ritzy Eastern Suburbs after tiring of her harbour-side house which has become well known to the media.

Jane King

Mel and hubby Stephen Belafonte hope for more privacy and to shield their family from the gaze of paparazzi Jamie Fawectt.  Mel has already obtained an interim apprehended violence order (AVO) against the photographer.

Alas, Melanie has moved into the orbit of the local newspaper Latte Life. Editor Jane King discovered the identity of her new neighbours when she went to see why her 2 children were dancing in the garden of her Vaucluse house to the strains of Wannabe. There was Mel and her brood, sunbathing on their balcony in full view of the King house.
Fortunately a regular visitor to the King home, Latte Life social photographer Bill Ranken (right) is far too much of a gentleman to photograph Mel from over the back garden fence. He's very observant though. Mel. you have been warned.                           below : the Spice Girls and Wannabe:

In A Neo Situationist Situation

Claudia Karvan

Noah & partner Dionne Harris

Actor Noah Taylor has been in showbiz most of his adult life, best known for his acting roles he has also been making music and painting since his teens but has only been exhibiting his work in the last five years, primarily in the UK.

Noah lives and works on the south coast of England and is the father of a four year old girl, politically and artistically he has been describing himself as a non committed catholic neo situationist.. Whatever that means




His latest exhibtion was at the Tim Olsen Gallery in Woollohara.

Says Noah   :"These images have dogged me all my life and I tend to avoid over analyzing  them or any creative endeavor for that matter. I never plan an image but often start with a template background of an isolated landscape that recurs in most of my work, it's an Australian landscape but nowhere in particular
The characters tend to be lonely isolated figures, but their situation is ambiguous, I prefer to keep the work untitled generally so as the viewer can read into it whatever they like. Religious art and comic books are my two primary sources of inspiration and influence".
 The show was a sell-out  so it seems neo situationism is all the rage. fellow actors and pals Jack Thompson and Claudia Karvan were on hand to lend support.