Life doesn’t stop for Nicole Scherzinger: right after finishing the US version of The X Factor, hair care brand Herbal Essences has announced that she is its new global ambassador.
   Commercials featuring the former Pussycat Dolls singer will break in July, in print and online formats. It is expected that some of her music will feature in them.
   Herbal Essences’ marketing director Kevin Crociata said in a release, ‘Nicole is such a beautiful, talented woman who lives every aspect of her life to the fullest. Her sense of self and her zest for life is a terrific fit with the spirit of the Herbal Essences brand.’
   Procter & Gamble’s Herbal Essences line features shampoos and conditioners, as well as styling products. The company says the brand is about innovative technology, performance ingredients and fragrance.
   In New Zealand, Herbal Essences Botanicals (RRP NZ$6·12) are available nationally. For more information, visit www.clairol.co.nz.

The première of Madonna’s new single ‘Give Me All Your Luvin’’ in Piccadilly Circus did not go particularly well: not only was the video late, but it ran without sound.
   The music video, which features Nicki Minaj and MIA in cheerleaders’ outfits, was directed by Megaforce. It makes references to a lot of Madonna’s past work and is meant to be tongue in cheek.
   Despite the malfunction in London, fans were generally very positive toward the new video when it hit the internet.
   Less contentious is the news that Back to the Future might head to Broadway. Broadway has, in recent years, been very kind to film-to-stage adaptations, including The Producers and Xanadu, which arguably did better there than in the cinemas in 1980.
   Writer–director Robert Zemeckis is in negotiations to pen a new script for the stage, according to ITN.

Top Beth Ditto with John Demsey, Group President, the Estée Lauder Companies Inc., in Paris. Above The Feeling Alive collection from Jane Iredale.

Beth Ditto is MAC’s latest collaborator, with her collection to be released in June. Along with Vanessa Paradis, Catherine Deneuve, Dita von Teese, Christian Louboutin, Juliette Binoche and Grace Jones, Ditto attended the Gala Sidaction dîner de la mode in Paris on January 26 as part of the MAC Aids Fund’s work, and to make the partnership public.
   Jane Iredale is launching a make-up collection called Feeling Alive, with two eye glosses, two Lip Plumpers, a lip-defining pencil and a rosy bronzer available from March. It’s a perfect beauty collection for the winter months.
   We’re wondering how many ‘unique’ shopping events Auckland can take later in February. In the spirit of Vogue’s Fashion Night Out—we’ve already been covering New York, Tokyo and Berlin editions—an event called Shop One Night hits New Zealand from February 23 at 5 p.m., running till midnight in the Britomart precinct, and has been realized by ShopWhatsNew.co.nz.
   The following evening, to kick off the New Zealand Fashion Festival, a shopping event called First Light takes place at Auckland’s High Street, O’Connell Street and the surrounding lanes. Karen Walker reveals her spring 2012 collection, while Ruby launches its Liam collection, all complemented by a shopping experience in the area. More details are at www.highstdistrict.co.nz.
   The winner between these two events: shoppers, who get more fashion than they would normally get on two days in Auckland.
   Finally, we hear that Bodyhaven Spa in the James Cook Hotel Grand Chancellor in Wellington is offering a Valentine’s couple’s massage for NZ$160 per couple for an hour, with bubbly and a copper tub soak, or pamper yourself for NZ$99. Call 64 4 495-3255 extension 8542 or visit www.bodyhaven.co.nz.

Copyright ©2012 Danjaq, LLC, United Artists Corporation and Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. All rights reserved.

The first official image from Skyfall, the 23rd Eon Productions James Bond picture, has been released on the movie’s website at 007.com.
   The photograph sees Daniel Craig as James Bond, in a scene set in Shanghai.
   The film sees Craig joined by Javier Bardem, Dame Judi Dench, Naomie Harris, Bérénice Marlohe, Ben Chaplin, Albert Finney, and Ralph Fiennes. Sam Mendes directs.
   The plot is a closely guarded secret, but the official statement from Sony, released in January, read: ‘In Skyfall, Bond’s loyalty to M is tested as her past comes back to haunt her. As MI6 comes under attack, 007 must track down and destroy the threat, no matter how personal the cost.’
   Regular scriptwriters Neal Purvis and Robert Wade, with Gladiator’s John Logan, penned the script, which has no connection to an Ian Fleming novel.
   The James Bond films celebrate their 50th anniversary this year. In 1962, Dr No, the first big-screen Bond movie, was released, starring Sean Connery, Ursula Andress and Joseph Wiseman.
   Skyfall will be released October 26 in the UK and Éire, and November 9 in North America.

Keira Knightley’s question: do the British like spanking?
   We already mentioned the sado-masochistic scenes in her new movie, A Dangerous Method, back in October. According to the actress, spanking was never mentioned after the original première, and only slightly at the Toronto Film Festival. But, now with A Dangerous Method having a gala première in London at the Mayfair Hotel yesterday, it’s being brought up regularly.
   ‘In England it’s got mentioned all the time. I don’t know what that says about us! We obviously like spanking, I don’t know!’ she said.
   The period drama, directed by David Cronenberg and based on the book A Most Dangerous Method by John Kerr and a stage adaptation by Christopher Hampton (who also penned the script), deals with the birth of psychoanalysis and stars Viggo Mortensen as Sigmund Freud, with Vincent Cassel as Otto Gross.
   Knightley wore Burberry to the première, accessorized by jewellery from Chanel, and Christian Louboutin heels.

Jones New York has launched its optical eyewear collection in New Zealand, available through Visique. The range features tailored frames that are masculine in style, with a selection of fashionable colours and modern materials.

   Brancott Estate, meanwhile, has released a new smartphone application, called World’s Most Curious Bottle. There are 14 ‘unique consumer experiences’ on the app, including entertainment and wine information, that users can unlock when they scan the QR code on the new Brancott Estate labels. The app is compatible with Apple and Android.
   Opening today at the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao is The Inverted Mirror: Art from the Collections of la Caixa Foundation and MACBA, representing movements such as Dau al Set, the El Paso group, the Vancouver School and the Düsseldorf School. It features 93 works by 52 artists who worked with various media, especially photography, video and large-format sculpture. Artists include Antoni Tàpies, Sigmar Polke, Julian Schnabel, Jeff Wall, Martha Rosler, Michelangelo Pistolletto, Thomas Ruff, Gillian Wearing, Bruce Nauman, Andreas Gursky, Martí­n Chirino and Antonio Saura.
   The introduction below from curator Alvaro Rodríguez Fominaya is in Spanish, while the walk through the gallery is silent.

As reported elsewhere, Steve Jones has already confirmed on Twitter that he will not return for the second season of the US version of The X Factor as creator Simon Cowell tinkers with the show.
   The UK media, meanwhile, are speculating that Nicole Scherzinger will also get the boot, and there’s even a hint that Paula Abdul will be on her way out.
   One possibility is that Kelly Rowland will head to the US version after performing well on the original. Naturally, Cheryl Cole has been mentioned as another possibility, but that may well be down to wishful thinking and her undeniable support among Britons.
   Mariah Carey’s and Fergie’s names have also been mentioned.

Michael Buckner/WireImage

John Shearer/WireImage

Top Octavia Spencer and Viola Davis—Best Actress in a Supporting Role and Best Actress in a Leading Role—at the 18th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards. Above Mary Tyler Moore receives a lifetime achievement award from former co-star Dick van Dyke.

The Screen Actors’ Guild (SAG) Awards are often looked to, in order to figure out which film and which actors take out the top awards at the Oscars.
   If this year’s ceremony in Los Angeles is any indication, it will be civil rights’ drama The Help, which has won best cast, best actress for Viola Davis, and best supporting actress for Octavia Spencer.
   In accepting the ensemble award (above), Davis inspired the audience with her speech. ‘I just have to say that the stain of racism and sexism is not just for people of colour or women. It’s all of our burden, all of us … I don’t care how ordinary you feel, all of us can inspire change, every single one of us,’ she said.
   The Artist did not do as well, though star Jean Dujardin picked up the best actor prize.
   Christopher Plummer won best supporting actor for Beginners.
   Among the TV prizes, Paul Giamatti won best actor in a TV film or miniseries for Too Big to Fail, which covered the 2008 financial crisis. As at the Golden Globes, Kate Winslet won best actress for Mildred Pierce.
   Boardwalk Empire won the TV drama ensemble award, and its star Steve Buscemi won best actor in this category. Jessica Lange won the best actress in a drama series award for American Horror Story.
   Modern Family won best ensemble for a comedy series, while Alec Baldwin won best actor in a comedy series for 30 Rock. Betty White, 90, won best actress for Hot in Cleveland.
   Dick van Dyke presented a lifetime achievement award to Mary Tyler Moore—an actress his self-titled show in the 1960s brought to prominence—who wound up producing and starring in her own show in the 1970s. Her MTM Enterprises brought numerous series and dramas to the screen, including Lou Grant, Hill Street Blues and Remington Steele.

Dimitrios Kambouris, Kevin Mazur, Lester Cohen, John Shearer, Michael Buckner, Christopher Polk/WireImage