Sarah Brightman to fly to space

    British singer Sarah Brightman is scheduled to begin training this year for a 2015 flight to the International Space Station where she hopes to become the first professional musician to sing from space, the company arranging the trip said on June 12.

    Brightman will pay about US$52 million for a 10-day stay aboard the space station,

    Brightman, who would become the eighth privately funded space tourist, is slated* to fly in September 2015.

    ‘Star Wars’ film to be made in U.K.

    Another “Star Wars” film will be made in Britain next year, U.K. Chancellor George Osborne has confirmed.

    He made the announcement during a visit to the set of the “Star Wars: Episode VII” film which began shooting at Pinewood Studios, near London, in May.

    The new movie will begin filming in 2015, also at Pinewood.

    Spice Girl to judge ‘X Factor’

    Former Spice Girls band member Melanie B has joined the judging panel of the 11th season of “The X Factor” in Britain, which airs on ITV.

    Mel B, 39, who appeared as a guest judge on the show in 2012, joins fellow judges music manager Louis Walsh, Simon Cowell and singer Cheryl Cole. Dermot O’Leary hosts the show. Mel B reportedly signed a deal worth US$1.67 million.

    Shanghai film fest opens

    Shanghai on Saturday kicked off its annual film festival, a nine-day event with a heavy emphasis on Chinese cinema.

    At the opening ceremony, actress Nicole Kidman who is promoting “Grace of Monaco” at the festival, received an award for outstanding contribution to film.

    Chinese actor and director Jiang Wen received a similar award for his outstanding contribution to Chinese film.

    (SD-Agencies)