Entertainment News Roundup: Bradley Cooper’s ‘Maestro' a tale of music, marriage and multitasking; Shane MacGowan, hard-drinking poet of The Pogues, dies at 65 and more

A passion project years in the making, "Maestro" is the follow up to Cooper's directorial debut, "A Star Is Born". Conductor Gergiev, shunned in West, becomes head of Russia's Bolshoi Russian conductor Valery Gergiev, no longer welcome in Western concert halls since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, was named on Friday as director of Moscow's Bolshoi Theatre.

Following is a summary of current entertainment news briefs.

Shane MacGowan, hard-drinking poet of The Pogues, dies at 65

Shane MacGowan, the London-Irish punk who transformed Irish traditional music with The Pogues and penned some of the 1980s' most haunting ballads before sinking into alcohol and drug addiction, died on Thursday. He was 65. MacGowan brought Irish traditional music to a huge new audience in the late 1980s by splicing it with punk, and achieved mainstream success with his bittersweet, expletive-strewn 1987 Christmas anthem "Fairytale of New York".

Bradley Cooper’s ‘Maestro' a tale of music, marriage and multitasking

Co-writing, directing, producing and starring in his Leonard Bernstein biopic "Maestro" was a terrifying undertaking for Bradley Cooper that turned into a journey of joy and courage. A passion project years in the making, "Maestro" is the follow up to Cooper's directorial debut, "A Star Is Born".

Conductor Gergiev, shunned in West, becomes head of Russia's Bolshoi

Russian conductor Valery Gergiev, no longer welcome in Western concert halls since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, was named on Friday as director of Moscow's Bolshoi Theatre. The appointment puts the 70-year-old in control of Russia's two pre-eminent opera and ballet houses, as he has also headed the Mariinsky Theatre in St Petersburg since 1996.

Apple, Paramount discuss bundling their streaming services - WSJ

Apple and Paramount Global have discussed bundling their streaming services at a discount, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday. The companies have talked about rolling out a combined Paramount+ and Apple TV+ offering that would cost less than subscribing to both services separately, the report said, citing people familiar with the discussions.

Soccer-Sinclair welcome at Wrexham, says Reynolds

Striker Christine Sinclair could have a job waiting for her after she plays her last game for Cananda with Ryan Reynolds saying on Friday that international soccer's all-time leading goalscorer would be welcome at Wrexham. Sinclair, who helped Canada to three Olympic medals including gold at the 2020 Tokyo Summer Games, will call time on a glittering international career, which includes 190 goals, with two friendlies against Australia on Friday in Victoria and Vancouver on Tuesday.

Pharrell Williams takes Louis Vuitton to Hong Kong harbour runway

Pharrell Williams took to Hong Kong for his second Louis Vuitton runway outing, showcasing the label’s latest menswear designs on a runway overlooking the city's harbour at night. The event drew crowds to the Victoria Dockside, a waterfront promenade lining a sprawling complex of shopping malls, exhibit halls and hotels built by Adrian Cheng, the scion of one of Hong Kong’s top property developers.

'Leave The World Behind': Strangers, danger and layers, says Julia Roberts

U.S. actress Julia Roberts says her new film "Leave The World Behind" is a multilayered disaster thriller that allowed her to play someone very different from herself. Executive produced by former U.S. President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama, the movie is written and directed by "Mr. Robot" creator Sam Esmail and based on the best-selling novel of the same name by Rumaan Alam.

New book reignites British royal race row

Almost three years after Prince Harry and his wife Meghan's interview with Oprah Winfrey sent shockwaves through the British monarchy, their most sensational claim which provoked a royal race row has been reignited by a new book. In a dramatic interview with the U.S. talk show host in 2021, Meghan, whose mother is Black and father is white, said while she was pregnant with son Archie there were "concerns and conversations about how dark his skin might be when he's born".

(With inputs from agencies.)