News Round-up: Tittensor, George, Spandau Ballet

EMMERDALE actor admits teenager attack
Luke Tittensor, 19, who plays Daz Eden in the ITV1 soap EMMERDALE, admitted inflicting grievous bodily harm on the boy in Rochdale on February 15. Bolton Crown Court heard the boy was left badly injured and needed surgery after the attack. Tittensor, of Ryecroft Avenue, Heywood, was given unconditional bail and will be sentenced on April 29. Mark Ford, prosecuting, told the court his victim suffered a displaced fracture to his lower jaw which needed corrective surgery.

Broadcast TV or Cable, It's All the Same to Consumers
"Kids and teenagers and even people under 35 don't really differentiate between cable and broadcast. It's just TV," said Jim Spiropoulos, VP-research director of marketplace analytics at Publicis Groupe's MediaVest.

And that view is starting to travel from consumers to advertisers, said Mr. Spiropoulos, who said he suspects more changes are on the way. He predicted that all but the most premium broadcast shows will end up with ratings on par with some cable options within a few years. "The way things are going, we could see the broadcast networks air prime-time shows in repeats in different dayparts the way the cable networks do to keep audiences and keep selling those viewers."

Northern lights up Lifetime
Northern Lights, Lifetime's latest Nora Roberts adaptation, premiered to 4.5 million viewers Saturday, making it the network's top-performing telepic so far this year. Strong ratings were perhaps enhanced by tabloid reports of an onset romantic relationship between stars LeAnn Rimes and Eddie Cibrian (ex-Cole, SUNSET BEACH; ex-Matt, THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS).

ATWT's Traci Godfrey (Dr. Schiller) was once a Letterman announcer
"It was in 1999. My agent called me and said the Letterman show was looking for a temporary announcer because Alan Kalter was taking time off for a personal reason. They were looking for a male announcer with a deep voice, but my agent really pushed me. I was known for having a voice that cut through. I went to the audition and got the job!” said Traci Godfrey, who grew up in Houston, went to Robert E. Lee High School and the University of Houston and then straight to New York City to chase her acting dream.

“I’m usually not nervous. I’d been on a stage in front of thousands of people many times. But that night I was nervous. I got there early and walked onstage to check out where I’d be standing and things like that. It was freezing. I had heard that David keeps the studio cold, but nothing like that. It was about 45 degrees. While I was just standing there, David walked out. He was wearing a T-shirt with the sleeves cut off. There was a football on his chair. He asked if I wanted to play catch with him. So there I was, tossing the football in an empty studio with David Letterman.”

Hindus urge Brazilian popular TV soap makers to depict “authentic Hindu culture”
Hindus have urged the makers of CAMINHO DAS INDIAS (A Passage to India), a popular Brazilian television soap opera, to show the Hindu culture in its authentic form. Acclaimed Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement today, said that Hindus world over were happy that Brazil’s largest TV channel “TV Globo” was propagating Hindu culture in South America, but he urged it to do thorough research into Hindu traditions before presentation and depict genuine Hindu culture and not the re-imagined version focusing just on audience ratings.

EASTENDERS' Mohammed George sues The Sun
Mohammed George, who played Gus Smith in EASTENDERS for five years, has started a High Court libel action against The Sun after it branded him a "woman beater". George said the paper accused him of "acting like a wild animal" during a fight with his girlfriend. The actor was arrested in 2006 after a a row with his partner, Emma Archibald. George's lawyer said the reports had "damaged his prospects as an actor". The Sun is contesting his claim.

Spandau Ballet (including EASTENDERS Martin Kemp) set for comeback
Spandau Ballet, stars of the New Romantic movement in 1980s pop, look set to reform. The band will make a "very special announcement" on HMS Belfast in London on Wednesday, expected to include details of a world tour. After the band split in 1989, two members - brothers Martin and Gary Kemp - went into acting, starring as East End gangsters Ronnie and Reggie Kray in the 1990 film The Krays. Martin Kemp also starred as villain Steve Owen in EASTENDERS in the late 1990s.

AMC's Aiden Turner and Wife Expecting
ALL MY CHILDREN’s Aiden Turner has announced that he and wife Megan Marshall are currently expecting their first child. “Megan is four months pregnant,” shared Aiden, who also revealed that the baby is a little girl and that he is “totally gobsmacked!” Turner's starring turn in Manhattanites will be released later this spring when the film comes out on DVD.

HOLLYOAKS was 'hell on earth' says James Corden
GAVIN & STACEY comedian James Corden has said he would 'rather die' than work again on HOLLYOAKS after branding the show 'hell on earth.' The 30-year-old had a small role in the Channel 4 soap more than eight years ago playing a college caretaker. He said working on the show was like being locked in prison.

The secret to TEENAGER's success: Realism
THE SECRET LIFE OF THE AMERICAN TEENAGER delivers in more ways than one. The first season closes tonight when 15-year-old Amy (Shailene Woodley) gives birth to a boy, just about nine months after the premiere. At the same time, the second half of TEENAGERS's split season has delivered the biggest audience to date (3.4 million viewers) for the rising ABC Family channel, including basic cable's top numbers among young viewers (ages 12 to 34). It beats its much touted time-slot competitor, CW's GOSSIP GIRL, in both total audience and younger viewers.

Woodley, 17, says TEENAGER feels real to its youthful audience: "A lot of teens respond to it because it's so true to life in so many ways." Another lure: "It has cute guys."

Grant Show lands a new pilot
Grant Show and Lennon Parham have joined CBS' comedy ACCIDENTALLY ON PURPOSE. Show will play the owner of the paper where Jenna Elfman's character works. Parham will play her younger sister.

Brian Austin Green in CW pilot
Green joins FNL's Minka Kelly in BODY POLITIC.