Madonna’s brother Christopher Ciccone feuded with his famous sister for a while after he published a memoir about her life and career in 2008.
Fortunately, they were reconciled before his death earlier this month, with the singer forgiving him for spilling the beans on her romances with celebrities, including Warren Beatty.
One affair that didn’t make it into the book – but which Chris was happy to share – was between superstar singer George Michael and himself.
The fleeting romance took place around 1989 – the year Madonna made headlines for kissing George on stage at the MTV Awards.
Newspapers at the time incorrectly reported that she and the former Wham! man was an item, with one article quoting the Material Girl saying to a friend, “I really love George.”
Madonna with her brother Christopher Ciccone who had a feud with his famous sister for a while after publishing a memoir about her life and career in 2008
George Michael who died on Christmas Day 2016 from natural causes related to heart and liver disease
In reality, the British pop star (who only came out as gay in 1998, after being arrested while on a cruise for having sex in a Beverly Hills restroom) was more interested in her brother.
A friend of his said this week: ‘Christopher loved to tell all about it.
“He enjoyed bringing up his affair with George Michael in conversation.”
Christopher, an artist and designer, died on October 4 in Michigan after a battle with cancer, at the age of 63.
Madonna paid tribute to him, saying: ‘He was the closest human being to me for so long, it’s hard to explain our bond. But it came from realizing that we were different, and that society would make things difficult for us because we didn’t follow the status quo.
‘We took each other’s hands and danced through the madness of our childhood. In fact, dance was a kind of super glue that kept us together.
“Discovering dance in our small Midwestern town saved me – and then my brother came along, and it saved him too. My ballet teacher, also named Christopher, created a safe space for my brother to be gay, a word that was not spoken or even whispered where we lived.”
George died on Christmas Day 2016 from natural causes related to heart and liver disease.
New star Mikey is in pole position thanks to her father
Image released by Neon shows Mark Eydelshteyn and Mikey Madison, right, in a scene from Anora
Mikey Madison called on director Sean Baker and his wife Samantha Quan to work on love scenes in the film Anora, in which she plays a New York sex worker who marries the idiot son of a Russian oligarch.
Baker and his wife reenacted the sex scenes fully clothed for Madison and, unusually, there were no intimacy coordinators on set because the cast and director didn’t think they needed them.
In London for Anora’s UK premiere at the BFI London Film Festival, Madison said she had full confidence in Baker and wanted to work with him because of his “dark sense of humor.” The film is a comedic triumph and receives five-star reviews. . . and Oscars buzz around his star.
Madison (pictured left on the red carpet and right in the film) previously revealed that her father installed a stripper pole for her at home, no questions asked, so she could practice.
She also read a number of memoirs and shadowed dancers at the Headquarters Club in Midtown Manhattan.
Local girl Darci brings our Cilla back to life
Darci Shaw as Cilla Black in Midas Man. Cilla Black’s beginnings as a gay icon (and ally) are revealed in the film about Beatles manager Brian Epstein
Cilla Black’s beginnings as a gay icon (and ally) are revealed in Midas Man, a new film about Beatles manager Brian Epstein.
Cilla – once the plaid girl from the Cavern Club in Liverpool, where The Beatles made their name – was propelled to stardom by Epstein. She is played in the film by rising Scouse star Darci Shaw.
Shaw previously played the young Judy Garland in Judy.
Producer Brigit Grant says: ‘Brian’s sexuality was a topic that was never discussed, even though they were good friends. Brian once asked her if she knew, and he was devastated when she said she knew because he wanted to keep his two lives separate. But she kept his counsel, she kept his secrets.”
Grant adds: ‘Darci is from Liverpool and grew up with that music. It’s personal to her. She is beautiful and very talented.’
The film can be seen on Prime Video from October 30.
Netflix lawyer aims her guns at the ‘real Martha’
A legal expert hired by Netflix says Fiona Harvey – the ‘real Martha’ in the Baby Reindeer drama – could have faced up to eight years in prison for stalking Richard Gadd, and another three years for sexually assaulting him.
Leading British lawyer Louise Oakley has been brought in by the streamer and has reviewed emails, letters, Facebook posts and statements from Gadd and his boss at the pub, as well as other evidence.
Martha played by Jessica Gunning in the bus stop scene from Baby Reindeer. Fans have scoured the internet for her outfits, including this cardigan with purple hearts
Oakley sits on a CPS advisory panel and was appointed Senior Treasury Counsel (part of the team that prosecutes the most serious cases) in the spring. As such, she regularly assesses the strength of the evidence and the appropriateness of the allegations.
She made a statement in a Los Angeles court as part of Netflix’s defense against a $120 million defamation lawsuit from Harvey.
Oakley said: ‘Fiona Harvey could have been in no doubt that her conduct amounted to the harassment of Richard Gadd.
‘The starting point for a single offense would be five years’ imprisonment, with a category range of three and a half to eight years.’
She added that Harvey could have received another sentence for “the unwanted sexual touching (including squeezing Richard Gadd’s buttocks).”
‘In my view, the repetitive nature of Fiona Harvey’s conduct exceeds the threshold for custody and a prison sentence of up to two to three years may be appropriate.’
Harvey’s legal team has sought to have Oakley’s statement expunged from the file. But in a ruling two weeks ago, the judge said her observations were “relevant and material” to the action.
The judge had already sided with Netflix in some parts of Ms Harvey’s case, dismissing her negligence claims and her request for damages – which she wanted to set at $50 million. However, he refused Netflix’s request to drop the lawsuit. They are now appealing.
Saoirse Ronan is an East Ender in the new film Blitz, and in real life she also lives in East London.
But while Shoreditch Park used to have “rows and rows of houses” just like the ones in the film, she says the area was “wiped out” by Hitler’s bombings and is now completely middle class.
Ronan sighed that she and her actor husband Jack Lowden are walking the dog in the local park “and there’s a dog named Macchiato.” You know: “Macchiato, come here!”
Filmmaker Gints Zilbalodis is behind the seductive animated film Flow, Latvia’s international Oscar entry.
It takes place in a world without people: the hero is a cat, accompanied by a lemur, dog, bird and a capybara (a large South American rodent).
Still from Gint’s Zilbalodis film Flow
There is no dialogue, but there is sound. Zilbalodis says: ‘Our approach was to use real animal voices.’
The capybara was tricky though.
‘They only make noise when you tickle them. So it was a lot of fun work for one person to tickle a capybara. But it sounded more like a scared little dog. It didn’t fit the character. That’s why we used the sound of a baby camel.’
A heartthrob and a showstopper – both from these shores – will cause a sensation on Broadway.
Kit Connor, the 20-year-old star of the hit coming-of-age TV drama Heartstopper, plays Romeo to Rachel Zegler’s Juliet in a production now in previews and debuting Thursday.
Meanwhile, Jamie Lloyd’s smash hit remake of Lloyd-Webber’s Sunset Boulevard, starring Nicole Scherzinger, makes its first night on Broadway on Sunday.
Stanley Tucci has rediscovered his love for acting, thanks to Ralph Fiennes.
Ralph Fiennes as Cardinal Lawrence, left, and Stanley Tucci as Cardinal Bellini in a scene from Conclave
Tucci, 63, is known as a foodie, writes books and presents TV shows, but he is back in front of the camera in the film Conclave.
He plays one of the cardinals who would become pope – opposite Fiennes as Dean Lawrence, who is responsible for the voting process.
Before its screening at the BFI London Film Festival, Tucci (inset with Fiennes) said: ‘I fell in love with it again because Ralph is so brilliant.’
Saoirse Ronan is an East Ender in the new film Blitz, and in real life she also lives in East London.
But while Shoreditch Park used to have “rows and rows of houses” just like the ones in the film, she says the area was “wiped out” by Hitler’s bombings and is now completely middle class.
Gary Smith cartoon by Saoirse Ronan
Ronan sighed that she and her actor husband Jack Lowden are walking the dog in the local park “and there’s a dog named Macchiato.” You know: “Macchiato, come here!”
Following on from my story last week about Netflix developing a TV series adaptation of Jane Austen’s Pride And Prejudice, written by Dolly Alderton, it turns out they are also developing a film based on a book called Pride – which itself is a take on Austen romance.
Pride is a young adult novel about an Afro-Latina teenager in New York; and Barack and Michelle Obama’s production company Higher Ground is involved in efforts to adapt it for the screen.