From

http://www.sacbee.com/2011/08/13/3835562/u...-rejection.html

 

 

U2 rocker sues over rejection of Malibu house plans

 

By Martha Groves

 

Published: Saturday, Aug. 13, 2011 - 11:28 am

 

LOS ANGELES — U2 guitarist the Edge, whose real name is David Evans, and three other Malibu property owners filed separate lawsuits Friday seeking to set aside the California Coastal Commission's denial of their applications to build ridge-top homes above Malibu.

 

The plaintiffs, who own four adjacent parcels of land zoned for residential development in the unincorporated Sweetwater Mesa area, allege that the coastal panel's June 16 denial represented an unconstitutional taking of property without just compensation. (Another owner withdrew an application for a fifth home at the site just before the panel's vote and did not file suit.)

 

The action "denied (the owners) any economically viable use of their properties and will establish a sweeping new basis for denying other landowners the ability to use their properties in California," the landowners said in a statement.

 

Despite the Edge's assertion that the homes would meet the highest environmental standards and would be designed to minimize effects on views and natural resources, the project has sparked intense controversy. Critics say the project would destroy sensitive habitat and pave the way for more development.

 

Among other contentions, the owners say the commission's staff incorrectly claimed that the properties were under common ownership and therefore had to be considered as a single project. The suits assert that the properties are under separate ownership. Coastal commissioners stated at the June 16 hearing that the Edge had initially talked to them about his dreams for a sustainable, unified development.

 

 

The view ain't all that much to write home about -_-

 

http://i56.tinypic.com/szhetz.jpg

It looks like the aftermath of a mud slide :unsure:

From

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-08-15/u...n-spending.html

 

 

 

U2 Invests in Irish Music Schooling as Government Cuts Education Spending

 

By Finbarr Flynn - Aug 16, 2011 12:01 AM GMT

 

 

U2, the rock band that headlined Glastonbury’s music festival this year, is investing its own money to fund music schooling for Irish children as the state cuts spending on education.

 

The band, which started out in Dublin, is funding musical equipment and the hiring of teachers to tutor thousands of children across the country, supporting a series of projects.

 

While lead singer Bono is well known for his activist work in raising awareness of issues in Africa, the property market crash in Ireland has left the one-time Celtic Tiger with problems of its own. In a country renowned for its musical heritage and for producing contemporary acts such as Westlife and the Corrs, only about 1 percent of secondary pupils receive music tuition.

 

“While we have a very rich musical culture and heritage, access to music tuition is like a geographic lottery, it depends on where you live and it depends if your parents can afford it,” said Rosaleen Molloy, director of Music Generation, which is funded by U2 and international charitable network The Ireland Funds. “There is an assumption that music is being provided for in mainstream schools, while in the reality it is not.”

 

With Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny’s government needing to make 6 billion euros ($8.6 billion) in savings this year to meet the terms of the country’s bailout, finding funding to expand education initiatives is difficult. Education Minister Ruairi Quinn said after taking office in March he was “very grateful to U2” at a time when the state isn’t “in a position” to provide more investment in education.

Music Program

 

U2 is providing 5 million euros through 2015 on a phased basis for the music program, together with an additional 2 million-euro commitment from the Ireland Funds, which is supported by people of Irish ancestry across the world. The aim is for the government to later take over that funding.

 

The government has cut comparable expenditure on education by about 3 percent between 2008 and 2011, according to figures from the Education Ministry. Quinn told teachers in April “further difficult measures” can’t be avoided even as student numbers are expected to rise by about 100,000, or 10 percent, in the next seven years.

 

“U2 had been looking for some time for a way to invest and support access to music education in Ireland,” said Molloy. “U2 wanted to give something back.”

‘Tax Efficient’

 

The donation came after the band drew criticism for moving their music publishing company to the Netherlands in 2006, to save tax. The Labour Party’s Joan Burton, now welfare minister, said at the time that move “seemed odd.” Lead guitarist David Evans, known as The Edge, said the band was trying to be “tax- efficient. Who doesn’t want to be tax-efficient?”

 

The members of the band have a combined fortune of 455 million pounds ($741 million), according to this year’s Sunday Times Rich List.

 

A Dublin-based spokeswoman for the band said nobody was available to comment on this story.

 

In 2001, the government commissioned a report into the feasibility for a publicly supported music education program, which failed to get beyond two pilot programs, one in Dublin and the other in Donegal, in the northwest of the country.

 

U2 is adopting the model to provide 50 percent financing for projects developed by local educational groups. Music Generation selected three Irish counties -- Sligo, Mayo and Louth -- for funding in May after receiving proposals, according to Music Generation’s Molloy.

‘Many Westlifes’

 

“It wouldn’t be happening without the funds” from U2, said Shaun Purcell, head of Sligo’s Vocational Educational Authority, which is partnering with Music Generation in the county. The funding will be used to provide music tuition to 16,000 children through classes after regular school hours.

 

Purcell said he hopes the funding will help produce “many Westlifes” :drama: :drama: :drama: -- the Irish pop band, which has had 14 No. 1 hits in the U.K. and some of whose members came from Sligo -- as well as providing children with better social skills.

 

While U2 have received plaudits for their work on the music project, some warn about relying on a famous rock band to support education initiatives.

 

“What is so special about education is that it is the way through the mess, it’s the way out of the recession,” said Pat King, general secretary of Ireland’s largest second-level schooling union, ASTI, which is calling on the government not to implement a 350 million-euro round of cuts on education.

 

“What U2 are doing is symbolically very important, but we should never come to depend on the benevolence of private individuals,” he said. “It’s the state’s responsibility to invest in education and to ensure there is equity and equal access to all children.”

From

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/ireland...-facebook-stake

 

 

Bono's Facebook stake worth nearly $1bn

 

Elevation Partners' stake is now valued at $975m - more than four times the $210m it paid in November 2009

 

 

U2 frontman Bono's investment firm could be looking at a profit of almost $800m on its stake in Facebook, it has emerged.

 

The social networking site has just been valued at an eye-popping $65bn - up from $50bn in January - following the sale of a stake by advertising and marketing giant Interpublic Group.

 

Interpublic was an early investor in Facebook and has just sold half of its 0.4% share in the group for $133m (£81m), valuing the site at more than $65bn.

 

This values the U2's Elevation Partners' stake at $975m - more than four times the $210m it paid in November 2009.

 

Interpublic Group chief executive Michael Roth said an "attractive opportunity" to sell some of the stake had presented itself and it "made sense" to do so.

 

IPG did not reveal the number of shares it is selling but said that the sell-off would see a pre-tax gain of about $132m.

 

Facebook is now one of Elevation's stellar investments. When it bought the stock - which is difficult to get hold of - the company was hot but worth a relatively "meagre" $9bn.

 

In June last year it was worth $23bn and by December last year Goldman Sachs, which canvassed its wealthy private clients about a possible investment opportunity, had valued it at $50bn.

 

So it looks like Elevation Partners got stuck in quite a profitable moment.

 

Earlier this year Forbes named U2 as one of the world's highest paid musicians, having taken $736m - and profits of around $195m - from record sales and concert receipts over the last two years.

 

He must be richer than many small countries by now....

 

 

 

 

(Including Ireland)

From

http://movies.ndtv.com/movie_story.aspx?Se...&nid=127390

 

 

U2's Bono to join the billionaire club

 

Thursday, August 18, 2011 (London)

 

U2 rocker Bono is reportedly set to become a billionaire thanks to his shares in social networking site Facebook.

 

The 51-year-old singer's investment company Elevation Partners, which he co-founded with former Apple boss Fred Anderson, spent a huge $210 million buying up shares in the world's top social networking site in 2009 -- and the gamble has paid off, reported Contactmusic.

 

After Facebook was valued at $65 billion earlier this week, Bono's portion of the company has been boosted to $975 million.

 

U2 are already one of the world's highest-earning groups, pulling in more than $736 million on their recent 360 Tour.

 

 

:mellow:

:mellow: wow, is there anything that he isn't involved in

U2 have been getting some bad press recently regarding their methods of avoiding having to stump up for their Irish tax bill so I guess this is the 'sweetner' to keep everyone quiet <_<

Bono brought to hospital over chest pain scare

 

Bono has suffered a health scare after experiencing heart palpitations while on holiday in the south of France.

 

The U2 frontman was taken to hospital in Monaco by his wife Ali Hewson when he complained of chest pains.

 

The star spent a number of hours at the Princess Grace Memorial Hospital in Monaco but fans will be relieved to hear he wasn't kept in overnight.

 

The health scare came shortly after Bono had finished an exhausting world tour -- during which the band played to 7.1 million fans in 30 countries -- and was enjoying his summer holidays with family and friends.

 

"As I understand it he was seen by a doctor -- he is okay now but he got a fright," said a source.

 

After 48 hours of medical tests last Wednesday and Thursday, the U2 singer was spotted unwinding in Monaco's exclusive nightspot Saas Cafe last Friday night.

 

Joined by his wife Ali, his close friend Julian Lennon and Irish designer John Rocha, a weary-looking Bono, without his trademark sunglasses, dined in a quiet part of the glitzy restaurant.

 

Renowned for his partying, Bono uncharacteristically left early in a new Audi A8 while his pals Lennon and Rocha followed in a Mercedes behind.

 

Bono and Ali have a villa in Eze-sur-Mer, an exclusive village of billionaires just outside the Monaco tax haven.

 

It is understood that the Beautiful Day singer was examined by a top heart specialist and told to get plenty of rest.

 

The hospital visit comes only months after a separate health scare when the rocker was forced to undergo emergency back surgery for an injury sustained during training for the band's physically demanding tours.

 

The star was said to have been in great form after recently attending a party in Tinakilly House in Co Wicklow before returning with Ali to the south of France.

 

The U2 frontman is renowned for his socialising on the French Riviera, inviting celebrities from far and wide to his luxury mansion, which he co-owns with The Edge.

 

The duo have been mingling with A-listers on the French playground for the rich and famous since 1993, when they splashed out a reported €3.8m on the coral-coloured seaside pad.

 

The rocker hit the headlines most recently when his fortune soared after one of his Facebook stake quadrupled in value to nearly $1bn (€700m).

 

The U2 singer's investment firm Elevation Partners paid $210m (€146m) for a stake in Mark Zuckerberg's social networking site in November 2009.

 

But after another investor sold his stake, pushing up the price, Elevation's stake soared to around $975m (€670m) in value, a staggering 400 per cent increase on the initial investment.

 

 

Source.. Irish Independent

Edited August 21, 201113 yr by Sacramento

Toronto film fest ramps up wattage

 

Watch for U2, George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Gerard Butler and more at movie marathon

 

U2 U2 frontman Bono will be among the celebrities at this year's Toronto International Film Festival.

 

 

TORONTO — Celeb watchers will have a field day at next month’s Toronto International Film Festival, with George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Jane Fonda, Ryan Gosling, Jon Hamm and Keira Knightley among the stars set to attend the glitzy bash.

 

Festival organizers revealed a high-wattage guest list Tuesday that also includes a hefty contingent of pop and rock heroes, all with cinematic projects: Madonna, Neil Young, Pearl Jam and Irish supergroup U2.

 

Festival co-director Cameron Bailey said the lineup — which includes 268 features and 68 shorts — is a reflection of how welcoming Canada has been to stars in the past.

 

“When the big stars come to this festival I think what they really like is that it’s a public festival,” said Bailey.

 

“Unlike some of the big industry festivals in Europe, they can actually really connect with the fans here. And the Toronto fans are cool — they’re not going to go crazy with them but they really admire and appreciate their work.”

 

Other luminaries expected to walk the red carpet include Catherine Deneuve, Glenn Close, Geoffrey Rush, Ralph Fiennes, Hugh Laurie, James Gandolfini, Gerard Butler, Salman Rushdie and Jason Reitman.

 

Then there’s Clive Owen, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Rachel Weisz, Seth Rogen, Evan Rachel Wood, Viggo Mortensen and Gael Garcia Bernal, along with dozens more actors, musicians and filmmakers.

 

Bailey said he was pleased to see a mix of veteran and emerging stars bound for the movie marathon, which runs Sept. 8 to 18.

 

“It’s always great to have a legend like Jane Fonda coming back and young stars who I think are going to have breakout years like Ryan Gosling, who has two films at the festival this year: Drive and The Ides of March. And he’s Canadian. He’s coming home in a way, that’s always great.”

 

For the first time in its history, the fest will open with a documentary, Davis Guggenheim’s look at U2 entitled From the Sky Down.

 

More screenings were also announced Tuesday, including the final instalment in Jonathan Demme’s documentary trilogy about legendary rocker Young; a cinematic take on Christopher Plummer’s tour-de-force stage turn in Barrymore; and a sneak peak at Deepa Mehta’s adaptation of the Rushdie novel Midnight’s Children. The screenings will be paired with onstage conversations as part of the festival’s Mavericks program.

 

Organizers say the Mavericks program will also feature talks with director Francis Ford Coppola, actress Tilda Swinton and Maldives President Mohamed Nasheed, whose first year in office is the focus of the film The Island President.

 

Bailey said he’s particularly excited to see Coppola, the acclaimed director of The Godfather and Apocalypse Now.

 

“He’s a legend, one of the greatest filmmakers ever,” said Bailey, who will moderate a conversation with Coppola on Sept. 11.

 

“It’s great to have him in Toronto.”

 

 

 

Canadianpress.com

On RTE tonight there was a programme called Reeling Back The Years , they went back to 2-- when U2 got the freedom of the city of Dublin which allows them to graze their sheep on St Stephen's Green <_< ... looking at the sheep in Bono's arms I am not too shure the sheep is too happy about it :unsure:

 

 

Ali Hewson: It's a wonderful life being Mrs Bono

 

 

 

For nearly three decades, 50-year-old Hewson has been the other, some will say better, half of U2's swaggering frontman, staying at home with the kids, pets, home repairs and school run while Bono (51) struts his stuff on stages around the world for months at a time.

 

With a €572m personal fortune at her disposal, Hewson could live a designer-label-wearing, luxury-spa-going life of indulgence that would make the housewives of Wisteria Lane weep with envy. And yet we never see her shopping like a WAG, or appearing on reality TV.

 

Just what do we know about the lady behind the man once voted one of the world's most powerful?

 

Everyone has an opinion on Bono. Over the years, the singer has garnered a wealth of eclectic labels, from hero to hypocrite and pain in the ass.

 

But ask anyone who has met, interviewed or socialised with his wife and it's hard to find one with a bad word to say about her -- or indeed any words at all.

 

"She's very non-showbiz, very down to earth and genuine," says one reporter. "She's sharp, realistic and very normal. With someone of her status you would think there would need to be a certain level of schmoozing, but there's no bulls*** about her.

 

"If anything, she'd be turned off by empty flattery."

 

The sentiment has been echoed by her business partner Bryan Meehan, who was introduced to her when she was first setting up her make-up range, Nude.

 

He said: "The first thing I felt about Ali was how down to earth she was -- everyone says that after meeting her. You think about someone who is a rockstar's wife and the life she must lead, but she's the opposite to that person."

 

But then Hewson never signed up to be a rockstar's wife. She met her future husband when he was plain old Paul Hewson at Mount Temple Comprehensive School. She was dark-eyed Alison Stewart, a quiet girl from Raheny, daughter to housewife Joy and dad Terry, who was in the electrical trade.

 

Keen-eyed Bono spotted her on her first day and made up an excuse to talk to her, for which she branded him "an eeijit". Loquacious, even at a young age, Bono talked her round and became Hewson's 'first real boyfriend' when she was just 15 and he 16.

 

Their relationship developed after the death of Bono's mum, Iris, from an aneurysm in 1973. Caring and practical, Hewson stepped in, making sure he got to school, washed his clothes and ate well by bringing him to her own home for dinner or cooking his meals herself.

 

To her parent's horror, the couple married when Hewson was just 22, in the Old Guinness Church of Ireland in Raheny on August 21, 1982, with Adam Clayton as best man.

 

The band was taking off and newly wed Hewson decided to shelve her dreams of becoming a nurse to support her new husband and his rock 'n' roll dreams.

 

Instead, she concentrated on sitting her finals at DCU to get her degree in politics and sociology -- which she achieved while severely sleep deprived having given birth for the first time just two weeks previously.

 

As Bono's profile grew, the frontman developed unashamedly expensive tastes. Dinners out at the best restaurants around the globe routinely run into thousands of euro, and the bon viveur maintains he can only drink pricey vintage wines because he's allergic to the lower-end booze that wrecks his voice.

 

He covers extensive air miles in his group's Airbus A320 jet, Vertigo 3, reportedly part-owns a ¤15m yacht, and zips around Dublin in his Italian Maserati Quattroporte, worth a cool ¤83,133. "The job of art is to chase away ugliness," he says.

 

Not so, Mrs Hewson. For years, she was happy to rattle off on the school run in a 1991 Volkswagen Golf, only recently upgrading to a Mercedes estate. Even then she made sure to ask for the 'basic model', explaining to the salesman she'd no interest in anything flashy.

 

When she travels to business meetings in London, New York, Peru, Madagascar and Kenya she usually eschews the private jet, opting for more environmentally friendly commercial airlines.

 

As a youngster, she was something of a tomboy with little interest in fashion, content to wear clothes -- and even a wedding dress -- handmade by her mum. She says: "I've never been interested in things that sparkle and shine, I'm more interested in people."

 

But that's not to say she hasn't enjoyed some of the trappings that come with being South Co Dublin's most wealthy housewife.

 

First off, she's a wife with some fabulous houses. Her main base is a Victorian mansion on Vico Road, Dalkey, with sweeping views over Scotsman's Bay.

 

Palatial to begin with, Hewson has overseen extensive renovations to the Temple Hill home, most recently an additional floor to accommodate a sprawling bedroom, wraparound terrace and new roof.

 

She wanted to make the house more eco-friendly and in recent years developed an underground plant room with a new energy-efficient boiler.

 

In 2004 they added to the 6,000sq ft home by buying miniature castle, Lios Beag, next door and linking the properties by corridor. Prior to that, a swimming pool had also been added.

 

Her holidays involve lazing on yachts in Australia and the Mediterranean, often as a guest of super-wealthy pals such as Microsoft billionaire Paul Allen and Roman Abramovich.

 

The family often escapes to exclusive island paradises such as St Barts, but when there's no cruiser to charter or five-star hotel to check into, there's always their ¤5m beachfront villa on Millionaire's Row, Eze-sur-Mer in France -- where the couple are currently staying, celebrating their 29th wedding anniversary -- with its six bedrooms, sprawling open-plan ground floor and celebrity neighbours including bandmate The Edge.

 

Increasingly, with half the family based across the pond -- eldest daughter, Jordan is studying at Columbia and, until recently, Memphis Eve was at NYU -- Hewson's base has shifted to the New York pad, a sumptuous duplex penthouse on the 27th floor of the exclusive San Remo building on the Upper West Side.

 

It was purchased in 2005 off another friend, Apple boss Steve Jobs, for a modest $14.9m (¤10.3m) and boasts the unusual claim to fame of being so exclusive that not even Madonna was allowed to live there.

 

Despite its terrace looking on to Central Park, the apartment, with its bronze doors and floor-to-ceiling windows, is said to be cold rather than welcoming, but it boasts amenities appealing to Hewson, who enjoys shopping at nearby Saks and Barneys, walking in Central Park, brunching at bustling French bistro Balthazar and dining at Michael White's Osteria Morini.

 

In Dublin, favourite food haunts include the Town Bar and Grill and Cliff Town House, as well as local organic fish restaurant Cavistons in Dalkey. In Eze-sur-Mer, it's everyone down to Club 55 in St Tropez for grilled fish.

 

She may be insistent that airports are the only place she gets time to shop, but Hewson boasts an enviable wardrobe by any standards. Since the homespun togs of her youth, Hewson's style has evolved, something she says comes from becoming a mother and more comfortable in herself.

 

Black has always been a staple, but the understated chic comes courtesy of some heavyweight names such as Dolce and Gabbana, Helmut Lang, Prada and Balenciaga. Like Madonna, Hewson is a big fan of Rogan jeans and can count the designer as a friend, ditto another of her favourites, John Rocha.

 

Of course, she also sports her own 'anti-bling' range, Edun, and fits into the sample size thanks to a healthy wheat-free diet, keen interest in homeopathy and regular yoga sessions, though a knee injury has made her give up on the more intensive Ashtanga form of the discipline.

 

Helping hone expensive tastes are stylish friends such as former supermodel Helena Christensen, who introduced Hewson to Danish designers Munthe Plus Simonsen and milliner Linda Grant.

 

By and large, Hewson's friends are Bono's friends and the group, which includes singer Gavin Friday, Simon Carmody and director Jim Sheridan and artist Guggi, is long established and not easily penetrated. Her closest friend is Larry Mullen's partner of 30 years, Ann Acheson, who also went to the same school.

 

"I would never talk about Ali's personal life, and you'll have a hard time finding one of her friends that will," says one pal who has been friends with the couple for well over a decade. "She's very private and the people who know her know and respect that."

 

One friend who admits responsibility for thrusting her publicity-shy pal into the limelight is campaigner Adi Roche. The founder of the Chernobyl Children's Project persuaded Hewson to visit Belarus in 1993 and work on Oscar-winning documentary 'Black Wind, White Land: Living With Chernobyl'.

 

Roche says: "Ali was a very quiet mother-of-two at the time I was trying to make the documentary. I tried to get hold of her for ages and eventually she agreed to meet me in Dublin."

 

She pays tribute to the "Trojan work" by Hewson, who has since made more than 10 aid trips to the region, helping raise millions of euro. Hewson later became godmother to Anna Gabriel, now 18, one of the first children to be brought from the disaster zone 15 years ago and adopted in Ireland.

 

First-hand experience of the devastation at Chernobyl saw her turn her attentions to the threat of Sellafield, spearheading a ¤1.2m postcard protest demanding the British government close the facility, though without the desired response.

 

Her altruism sparked rumours of a presidency bid, but Hewson ruled herself on the basis that she can't speak Irish and Bono could never live in a smaller house. More likely, she felt the limelight that comes with the job would just be too much to deal with because, even though she put herself in the public eye to save other children with her charity work, her own children remain her primary concern.

 

Once asked in an interview why he never talked about his kids, Bono replied that he was under strict instructions not to. "My wife, Ali, is pretty private and she tries to keep all this away from them," he explained. "She's concerned about them I suppose. But I would love to talk about them."

 

As mild-mannered and warm as everyone says Hewson is, she's a lioness when it comes to her kids. "It's a well-known rule with her that you don't ask about the family," says one reporter. "She's perfectly friendly, but as soon as you start down that road the shutters go down and the interview is over."

 

It's well documented that her passport gives her occupation as 'Mother', although she has help at home, with nannies and tutors, when required, to help the household run smoothly, particularly when Bono's away. But she's been determined to make sure Jordan (22), Memphis Eve (20), Elijah (12) and John (10) live as normal a life as possible.

 

The girls went to State school St Andrew's in Blackrock, while the two boys are still at primary school. She says: "Although they have so much more than myself and Bono did while growing up, we definitely don't spoil them." To that end, they took their children to townships in Africa to drive home first hand how lucky they are.

 

After dedicating such energy to shielding her brood from the public gaze, it's no wonder Hewson was less than enthusiastic when her second eldest came to her with plans to go into acting.

 

"I said don't do it," she admits frankly of Memphis Eve, who has since stared alongside Sean Penn in 'This Must Be The Place' and briefly dated James Lafferty of 'One Tree Hill'. "No mother really wants that. It's hard if you're in a band like her dad, you have four or five in a group. But when you're on your own, you're taking on others' personalities and you're vulnerable to the whims of editors, directors and producers." he's supporting her daughter, but woe betide the director that would dare to take advantage.

 

In 2005, Hewson launched the ethical fashion range Edun. The wider notion behind the range was to encourage trade, rather than aid, in Africa, but the real impetus was Hewson's maternal concern that someone else's child could be making clothes for her own children.

 

Media used to launch the range made it clear that she hadn't got any more comfortable with being a public figure. In one US TV interview, Bono takes the lead but tries to explain that the brand is his wife's project to promote. He refers to her as 'lead guitar' in the operation, but she replies she'd rather be in the back on drums.

 

She often hides behind a wave of jet black hair, but it would be unwise to mistake publicity shyness with being weak.

 

A savvy businesswoman, she's not averse to making difficult decisions. Edun was floundering, haemorrhaging money poured into it by Hewson, so in 2009 she agreed to sell a 49pc stake to corporate luxury goods giants LVMH (which also owns a 70pc stake in her Nude make-up range), and moved elements of production to more efficient factories in China.

 

To get things done, she likes to do them herself. A few years ago, a pop-up shop for the brand was set up in Dublin. Customers calling in would have seen the wife of one of the most famous singers in the world organising the rails, chatting to customers and manning the tills.

 

Those who work with her on Nude are unequivocal about the extent of her input. "She is very, very heavily involved in the brand," said one member of the team. The range was set up 2007 and has won the highest ever accolade in the 'Anti-Ageing Beauty Bible' for its Replenishing Night Oil.

 

Hewson's passion for the brand insured claws were drawn when Stella McCartney dared to call a perfume Nude back in 2009.

 

Those close to the couple suggest Hewson has a major hand in the running of the family's investments which, aside from Nude and Edun, include property, a hotel, a stake in 'Forbes' magazine, ¤688m worth of shares in Facebook and a wealth of business dealings tied in with Bono's billion-dollar private equity fund, Elevation Partners.

 

She's also the brains of the operation when it comes to the day-to-day running of the family and the long-term success of the couple.

 

U2 biographer Eamon Dunphy memorably stated "the best thing about Bono is Ali". And many would tend to agree. "Bono's famously a nightmare after he comes off a tour," says one source close to the couple. "He's a child at heart and if Ali wasn't there he'd be out every night. She can talk him down and keep him focused."

 

Every year, the family goes to the St Stephen's Day races at Leopardstown, with Hewson marshalling them out on to the stands for photos before sending down Champagne to the waiting snappers and journalists.

 

She's sure of herself and has never worried about losing Bono to another woman. She once said: "I don't feel threatened. You can live your life being scared of losing someone and, at the end of the day, if he is going to leave you, he'll leave you and that's it."

 

Friends maintain theirs is one of the strongest marriages in showbiz and that the canoodling so often snapped by paparazzi through restaurant windows and on walks is 100pc genuine.

 

For his part, Bono seems to know how lucky he is and that, in this group at least, he's not the star player. He said: "I feel our relationship has changed a lot. For a while I thought I was in charge. I was the hunter-protector. A few years ago it became clear somebody else was in charge and I feel I hold on a lot tighter to her than she does to me, and that slightly bothers me.

 

"She's so independent and sometimes I wish she wasn't."

 

 

Source...Irish Independent

Bono To Be On Dancing With The Stars?Bono To Be On Dancing With The Stars? . 30 August 2011

 

 

According to a leaked list of participants, U2 front man Bono is set to join Kristin Cavallari from reality TV show "The Hills" and Rob Kardashian on the hit US TV show Dancing with the Stars.

 

The official announcement for the new cast is set for Monday night, but USA Today has leaked it via a tweet from DWTSGossip.

 

Ricki Lake, soccer star Hope Solis and basketball player Ron Artest will also be among the celebrity dancers, according to the leaked list.

 

Reports suggest Cher's daughter Chaz Bono, who recently underwent sex change treatment to become a man, will be dancing with a female professional on the show.

 

We'll soon find out if the rumours prove to be true! We wouldn't mind seeing Bono attempt a mean cha cha though!

 

 

 

take40.com

That's got to be a wind up surely :lol:

 

Probably crossed wires what with Cher's son/daughter also being called Bono.

 

 

Let's hope so anyway :mellow:

Apparently Bono and family are currently staying in George Clooney's pad in Lake Como

 

 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/artic...home-Italy.html

The Birth of U2 (A Top Story)

 

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On Thursday The Birth of U2 was a top story. Here is the recap: (Gibson) On this day in 1979, U2 released their very first record, an EP titled U2-3. Gibson takes a look back: Before The Joshua Tree, War or even Boy, there was Three – U2's debut release that consisted of (as the title suggests) three songs. Although only sold in Ireland, the EP marked an important milestone. On September 1, 1979, as a precursor to stadium-rocking concerts, multi-platinum albums and world-saving crusades, U2 would release their first songs to the public.

The story, however, begins about three years earlier, on September 25, 1976, when 14-year-old Larry Mullen Jr. posted a note on a school bulletin board saying that he was looking for people who were interested in starting a band. According to the drummer, it was to be called The Larry Mullen Band for about 10 minutes, until a boy named Paul Hewson showed up. With Bono in the band, there was little chance of little Larry being the leader.

 

Although guitarist Dave Evans (soon to become The Edge) and bassist Adam Clayton were in the group from the get-go, the band also included Dave's older brother, Dik Evans, and Mullen's friends, Ivan McCormick and Peter Martin. After a few weeks, McCormick and Martin had dropped out, and U2 were a quintet. Of course, they weren't called U2 at the time. Initially, they took the name Feedback and then changed to The Hype in 1977

 

Before The Joshua Tree, War or even Boy, there was Three – U2’s debut release that consisted of (as the title suggests) three songs. Although only sold in Ireland, the EP marked an important milestone. On September 1, 1979, as a precursor to stadium-rocking concerts, multi-platinum albums and world-saving crusades, U2 would release their first songs to the public.

 

The story, however, begins about three years earlier, on September 25, 1976, when 14-year-old Larry Mullen Jr. posted a note on a school bulletin board saying that he was looking for people who were interested in starting a band. According to the drummer, it was to be called The Larry Mullen Band for about 10 minutes, until a boy named Paul Hewson showed up. With Bono in the band, there was little chance of little Larry being the leader.

 

Although guitarist Dave Evans (soon to become The Edge) and bassist Adam Clayton were in the group from the get-go, the band also included Dave’s older brother, Dik Evans, and Mullen’s friends, Ivan McCormick and Peter Martin. After a few weeks, McCormick and Martin had dropped out, and U2 were a quintet. Of course, they weren’t called U2 at the time. Initially, they took the name Feedback and then changed to The Hype in 1977.

 

Over the course of the next year, The Hype played songs by their punk rock heroes – The Jam, The Clash and the Sex Pistols. After Dik and the other four members began to grow apart (Dik was older and in college at the time), The Hype played a farewell show in March of 1978. For the first half of the concert, Dik played covers with the other four guys. For the second half, the remaining members only played original songs, and they announced their new name: U2.

 

Shortly after the concert – on St. Patrick’s Day, to be exact – the newly christened U2 won a talent contest, receiving £500, time in a recording studio and a chance to be heard by the Irish branch of CBS Records. The boys recorded their first demos in May, which would result in the Three EP (also known as U2-3), released by CBS in September, but only in U2’s home country.

 

Consisting of three songs, the EP’s A- and B-sides were decided by legendary Irish DJ Dave Fanning’s listeners. U2 came on his radio show every night for one week, and the listeners eventually chose “Out of Control” for the A-side (and first single) and “Stories for Boys” and “Boy/Girl” for the other side. Released on this day in 1979 with an initial run of only 1,000 copies, Three would peak at #19 on the Irish charts. The EP has since been reissued four times, but remains rare.

 

Fans outside of Ireland wouldn’t hear two of these songs until the release of U2’s debut LP Boy, in October 1980, after the band signed with Island Records. The album featured re-recorded versions of “Out of Control” and “Stories for Boys,” which along with “Boy/Girl” were often performed on early tours. As the band became a worldwide sensation, all three would be phased out of U2’s regular set lists, although “Out of Control” lasted the longest and even made infrequent appearances on the Elevation and Vertigo tours, sometimes played with local bands.

 

Today, fans can hear Three’s original recordings as bonus tracks on the 2008 special edition re-release of Boy.

 

 

 

antimusic.com

 

 

Edited September 4, 201113 yr by Sacramento

 

0..Bono: U2 won't be back for a while

 

 

:wacko: after rigorous world tour leaves him in need of some rock star rest.

 

 

Bono says it was heart-wrenching to wave goodbye to U2’s 110-date monster tour but says he’s done with life on the road... for a while.

 

 

In a rare interview with Guilty Pleasures, the singer lifted the lid on the Irish band’s two-year 360° Tour during an evening when he was hounded and rounded on by other stars at the GQ Men of the Year Awards.

 

Pining for his travels across five continents, the charity campaigner told me: ‘They say every tour is ten days too long. Not with this one. We genuinely loved every single night and at the end we were so sad.’

 

 

Despite the nostalgia, the 51-year-old says he needs a breather and says the Joshua Tree rockers won’t be back ‘for a while’. :cry:

 

 

He earlier told the audience: ‘Growing up is not what is meant to happen to a rock band. It has happened, we are now men.’

 

 

He then apologised for the absence of 49-year-old drummer Larry Mullen Jr, who opted to skip the bash. ‘He hasn’t aged very well,’ he joked. ‘He tries to avoid the red carpet.’ Bono was also forced to laugh off the jibes from comedian Michael McIntyre, who taunted him: ‘Bono, when it comes to coolness you always have the edge.’

 

 

He then asked the Dubliner if he had watched Simon Cowell’s new Red or Black? TV show and quipped: ‘Bono you would have been dealing with peace.’

 

 

Kylie was the next to single him out when she went on stage to present an award and treated Bono like a roadie by asking him to adjust the height of her microphone.

 

 

Even his own camp turned on him, when U2 guitarist The Edge mocked him for stealing all the limelight.

 

 

Hoping for some of the attention himself, the 50-year-old told the crowd: ‘I am a middle child. I am in a band with Bono. If there are any members of the print media here, please hack into my phone.

...

 

Metro.co.uk

What about the friggin new album????? :angry: :angry: :angry: :angry:

Awwwww

 

Bono has a pet mongrel :wub: :wub: :wub:

 

 

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/showb...9368/Bonio.html

 

 

 

I demand photos of said doggie :w00t: