MARBELLA CLUB

Fans are being given the chance to see the .
The star – who shot to fame during the 1990s as the lead singer of the Manchester band – will be performing hits such as Moving on Up and One Night in Heaven alongside tracks from her solo albums, including Proud which became the theme for the Oprah Winfrey show.


Guests will have a five course dinner followed by an intimate concert at the event which takes place on June 7 and 8.

Evidence collected from the scene of an explosion on Thursday in the Moroccan city of Marrakesh confirms it was a bomb attack, the interior ministry said.
"Analysis of the early evidence collected at the site of the blast that occurred on Thursday at a cafe in Marrakesh confirms the theory of an attack," the ministry said in a statement carried by the official MAP news agency.
The blast in the iconic Jamaa el-Fna square is Morocco's deadliest bombing in eight years.
Earlier reports suggested that the blast may have been caused by a gas canister catching fire.
Witnesses reported rescue services pulling casualties from the cafe.
"There was a huge bang, and lots of smoke went up, there was debris raining down from the sky. Hundreds of people were running in panic, some towards the cafe, some away from the square. The whole front of the cafe is blown away," Andy Birnie, of north London, told The Associated Press by telephone. Mr Birnie is honeymooning in Marrakech.
"It was lunchtime so the square was very busy. We had just walked into the square, but were shielded by some stalls. The locals are telling us it was gas bottles exploding."
Morocco's interior ministry said the explosion appeared to be a "criminal act", according to the state news agency MAP.
Portuguese tourist Alexandre Carvalho, a 34-year-old call centre worker from southern Portugal said: "I had just arrived at the square, the area where most cafes are located.
"Suddenly I heard this massive explosion, I had my back turned to it, I turned around to see it the explosion had happened on the veranda of a cafe.
"There were at least 10 injured people, lots of debris, things flying up in the air. I saw people in a panic running towards the area with fire extinguishers, some people being carried away. I believe the injured were mostly tourists, judging by what they were wearing."

The City of London police and the Financial Services Authority are warning investors to be on their guard.
The low interest rate environment has made Middle England savers the perfect targets for the scams, known as "boiler room" fraud.
"Middle-aged, middle England is the prime target," said Det Supt Bob Wishart of City of London police. "This group of people is vulnerable at the moment because interest rates are so low and investors are being attracted by the high yield they are being offered.
"These firms use really high-class mass-marketing techniques – this type of fraud is a great threat."
The police warning comes as several Telegraph readers have come forward to Jessica Gorst-Williams, Your Money's consumer champion, asking for her help and concerned that they have fallen victim to a boiler room scam.

DH, a Telegraph reader lost £400,000 to such a scam. He was conned by a company that appeared to be genuine – it had an FSA authorisation number and an HSBC bank account, albeit offshore. He has little hope of recovering a penny..
Jonathan Phelan, the head of unauthorised business at the FSA, told the Telegraph that "cloning" was the latest tactic used by boiler room scammers. He said he had come across 80 cloning cases in the past year.
Traditionally, boiler rooms would use a company name that was similar to a well-known high street brand. Only last month the FSA published an alert warning people not to be tricked by a company going by the name of Skipton Asset Management and purporting to be linked to Skipton Building Society. In reality it has no links with the building society and is not authorised by the regulator.
Mr Phelan said: "Don't accept the caller's word for it. Check our register, but then call the company back on its switchboard number. You have to do a little bit of homework to be sure."
For the first time the FSA is seeing boiler rooms asking victims to transfer money to British-based bank accounts. In the past, bogus companies asked investors to transfer money overseas.
However, because of raised publicity about boiler rooms, many potential victims have got wise to this tactic and have refused to send money overseas, fearing they are being conned.
To try to counter this, the fraudsters have set up British bank accounts in the hope that they will stand a greater chance of getting their hands on savers' cash.
Mr Phelan said: "Boiler rooms have always used offshore bank accounts but never UK ones – until this year, that is. We have unearthed 10 such scams since this January. However, although they might use UK bank accounts, the operation is still likely to be based overseas, often in Spain. Once the bank account reaches a certain balance, say £100,000, it is cleared out and the money moved overseas."
Mr Phelan added that the regulator was working with an overseas authority on getting their hands on a master list that contains the names of tens of thousands of would-be targets – such lists are termed "sucker lists" by boiler rooms.
Different boiler rooms are known to trade lists, which are compiled from publicly available shareholder registers, for thousands of pounds. In previous cases, as many as 150 boiler rooms have been discovered to be using a single list.
Over the past year the FSA has written to about 95,000 people warning them that they are on boiler room master lists.
Research suggests that boiler rooms target older people (50pc of investors today are aged over 65) with previous experience of investments or owning shares. The average amount of money lost is £20,000, but the biggest individual loss to date recorded by the police is £1.2m.
Supt Wishart said: "The con men target people who have built up a nest egg, who may have taken early retirement or may have retired already. It's not just those over 50 – I remember one young victim who invested a redundancy pay-off into a scam."
He said the tactics used by the fraudsters followed a pattern and that there were telltale signs of a scam. If, for example, the investment sounded too good to be true then it probably was. And be on your guard if you are asked for money up front to pay unexpected fees (such as taxes or charges) before your "profits" can be released.

Kate and her extended brood will be checking in on Thursday, which is prompting the hotel to close its doors to the public through Saturday. Tight-lipped staffers, who didn't want to disclose their full names, say the top floor of the 60-plus-room hotel -- which is just a stone's throw from the modest estate owned by their future in-laws (that'd be Buckingham Palace) -- has been under extensive renovation since January to convert it into one giant suite. One can only wonder what that might cost considering that simple rooms at the five-story hotel run from $800 to $2,600 a night.

While shuttering the hotel may seem extreme, it certainly makes it easier to handle security matters for the family whose daughter is marrying the future heir to the throne. Afterwards, no doubt the hotel will discreetly make it known that Prince William's betrothed stayed here on the night before her wedding. There's already a prominent life-size statue of hotel founder O.R. Goring -- whose descendants still run the enterprise -- in the lobby, as well as signage proudly passing on the fact that when the place opened in 1910, it was the first such establishment in the world in which all rooms came with a bathroom and central heating. In the chilly London of that era, that indeed was luxury fit for royalty.

This dusk ‘'il dawn event will bring the glamour and music of Las Vegas to Marbella and is sure to become an important annual fixture on the social calendar.

An Evening from Las Vegas Live is the a perfect excuse to combine a sunshine holiday with an unforgettable night out.
This glamorous event will take place in the exquisite, jasmine scented gardens of the privately owned Finca la Concepción, in Marbella, on Saturday, 30 July 2011.

If tickets are purchased before the end of May, guests will be entered into a fabulous prize draw.
A musical extravaganza

An Evening from Las Vegas will be pay homage to the glitz, glamour and incredible music of Las Vegas in its heyday.

The organizers are flying over three exceptional musical performers, a 22 piece "Basie" style Big Band Orchestra and dancers straight from Vegas for a night full of music and excitement.

The event will also be supporting the Red Cross' Japan Tsunami Appeal by raffling a number of fantastic prizes, including two watches from sponsor Chopard.

The amazing Maxine Barrie will open the show singing the powerful songs of Shirley Bassey accompanied by a full orchestra. A troupe of Vegas showgirls will then perform for the guests.

They will be followed by an incredible singer, Stephen Triffitt, who is acknowledged to be the world’s best Sinatra performer. He will be singing all the classic songs with the backing of a 22 piece orchestra, under the stars.
The second half of the evening will be more up-tempo, with American singer Eric Conley paying homage to the late, great Barry White.

He will be setting the mood for a party hosted by International DJ Rusty Egan, who will be playing classic Studio 54 disco tracks which will guarantee everyone up and dancing until the early hours.

It will be presented by the charismatic Oscar Horacio of "Marbella Te Quiero" and sponsored by Chopard and Veuve Clicquot. This will truly be a night to remember.
The event will run from dusk 'til dawn in the grounds of the exclusive Finca La Concepción, and will be a full night of entertainment.

An Argentinean Steak Grill, a Goyo concession, Veuve Clicquot Champagne bars and general bars will be at the event to serve refreshments throughout the evening. 

Exclusive prize draw
Tickets can be requested via the website www.millionairessummerparty.com for 120€ per ticket, which will include a reception cocktail of Veuve Clicquot champagne and canapés from Goyo.

Guests purchasing tickets before the 31 May 2011, will be entered into an exclusive prize draw to win a number of fantastic prizes. Including:
Lunch for two at the boutique beach club Buddha Beach Puerto Banus
A meal for two at Puerto Banus' exciting La Sala restaurant and bar
A free hydrothermal circuit at the Meliá La Quinta YHI Spa
Two green fees for the stunning La Quinta Golf course, worth 92€ per person
A weekend at hip and chic Sisu Boutique Hotel from September
A VIP table on Friday, 29 July at the exclusive and glamorous Pangea Night club in Puerto Banus for six people
Buy tickets for The Millionaires' Summer Party Marbella on the website, email enquiries@millionairessummerparty.com or call 0034 637 155 145 and be entered into the draw to win these great prizes. Winners will be announced 3 June 2011.
Getting there and away

Travelling from the UK to Marbella is quick and direct. Many airlines fly from the UK to Malaga including British Airways, easyJet, Monarch, Ryan Air and Aer Lingus and average flight times are less than three hours.

There are direct buses from the airport to Marbella bus station, or you can hire a car from the airport.

Marbella Club on Spain’s balmy Costa del Sol is the sweetest remedy for those annoying late-March snowstorms. Shrouded in sweaters for months, my skin is the colour of Metamucil and I’m feeling woefully subpar. Nothing a good seawater drenching can’t fix.

The Spanish have long been obsessed with sea bathing, and Marbella Club Spa is one of their best for thalassotherapy – the use of heated seawater to restore vitality. While most upscale facilities feature snazzy showers, few offer fresh seawater Vichy – a horizontal shower with jets adjusted to alternate between vigorous and gentle massage.

Spanish Government has announced a new plan to attack the country’s submerged or black economy. It’s one of the obligations being placed on Spain by Brussels.

Minister for Employment, Valeriano Gómez, is preparing the plan, according to a statement made from the Moncloa on Wednesday this week, with the Government saying the measures are part of the Euro Pact which is currently under debate in the European Council.
Few details have been released as yet, although the plan is expected to offer some form of amnesty for those who come into legality.

Gómez claimed that there is not much more hidden economy in Spain than in other countries such as Germany or Sweden, and he said the plan would be revealed once the talks on the wage round have been closed with the unions. He declined to put a figure on the extent of the black economy in Spain, although Hacienda has estimated it amounts to 20% of Spain’s GDP.

José María Ruiz-Mateos, the owner of the troubled Nueva Rumasa group, has been called to court next Monday, where he’ll be questioned as a suspect as part of an investigation for alleged fiscal fraud into the Rayo Vallecano football club.

His son, Javier Ruiz-Mateos Rivero, must also report to Court No. 45 in Madrid on Monday.

They are understood to face charges of three fiscal crimes including allegedly falsifying documentation relating to the minutes of Rayo’s Vallecano’s shareholders’ meetings. Europa Press reports that another relates to the alleged appropriation of income generated by advertising for another of the Nueva Rumasa companies, Clesa, on the Rayo Vallecano football shirts.

The third is an alleged tax crime over a massive debt owed to the Hacienda tax authority and Social Security over the financial years between 2004 and 2008. The total amount is more than 21 million €.

The investigation by Court No. 45 is at an advanced stage and has already questioned Ruiz-Mateos’s wife, Teresa Rivero, who is also the President of Rayo Vallecano, the club’s administrator and its legal consultancy.

company which manages Jerez racing track, Cirjesa, has decided to apply for bankruptcy protection as a way of gaining time for the re-negotiation of their debt which has been put at 18 million €.

Most of the money is owed to FCC and Serviobras, the companies which carried out a new design of the track nine years ago. It comes after Cirjesa failed to pay the annual payment for 2010 of 2.5 million € agreed with Jerez Ayuntamiento and the Junta de Andalucía.

The law allows three months for the talks and then a further month to liquidate if no agreement is reached.

It comes just a week ahead of the Spanish Motorbike GP which is to be held at the track next weekend.

New drivers who have just passed their test in Spain can, from Saturday, travel at the same speed limit as other drivers.

Although they will still be obliged to show the green and white learners ‘L’ sign for a year, they no longer have to respect the previous 80km/h maximum speed limit.

The 80km/h limit was placed on new drivers in Spain for safety reasons in 1974.

I am thankful to the Minister for Employment, Valeriano Gómez, for making me laugh this morning
Valeriano Gómez - EFE

with his claim that there is little more black economy in Spain than in Germany or Sweden. What planet is this man on?

I have no doubts as to the size of the submerged economy in Spain and consider the Hacienda estimate that it represents 20% of GDP to possibly be below the mark. Were that not the case, we would have seen far more social unrest across Spain if all those unemployed had no chance to earn a bit on a side.

If you want to send other cases of politicians disconnect, I’d love to hear from you. Perhaps we should start a monthly award?

Castellón has officially opened its new 150 million € airport, but there is only one problem. It has no flights.

The project has come from the Ministry for Development, and is within 50kms of any resident of the province, occupying a 542 hectare site between Vilanova and Benlloch.
It facilities include a 9,600 square metre two story passenger terminal a 2.7km long and 43 metre wide runway.

The deputy President of Airport Concessions, Pedro Gimeno, has commented that it will be at least six months before any airlines operate normally from the facility, which never the less has been opened on Friday to escape the ban on such ceremonies and openings in the run up to the local elections on May 22.

The airport was opened on Friday by the PP

Brit tourists face holiday hell as Spain's airport workers threaten devastating walkouts | Mail Online: "British tourists are facing holiday mayhem after airport workers in Spain threatened walkouts which could total nearly three weeks.

Unions announced 19 strike days in a move aimed at bringing the country’s tourism industry to its knees in a row over airport privatisation.

The industrial action was timed to coincide with the peak periods of Easter and summer, with strikes starting on April 20 and continuing into May, June and July."

FUERTEVENTURA EMBRACES VISITORS FOR THE ISLAND’S CARNIVAL SEASON: "Carnivals were temporarily abolished in mainland Spain under General Franco’s rule for over four decades. However in Fuerteventura, they continued unabashed to this very day due to the people’s indomitable spirit and love of a great party.

From March 5th to 13th in Puerto del Rosario and from March 16th to 27th in Corralejo parades featuring extravagantly decorated floats adorned with lavishly costumed locals wind their way through the towns’ ancient streets.

Local fiestas spring up en-route wherever residents and tourists congregate to watch the colourful spectacle with each village in the area decorating their own float in their own inimitable style.

But the priority is on having fun, so with masks, capes, face-paint, fishnets and fedoras, a wild, random procession of conquistadors and showgirls, pirates, pharaohs and clowns, rolls loudly through each town to the accompaniment of music and cheering."

Gary Moore’s funeral set for Brighton » Inside Ireland: "The body of former Thin Lizzy guitarist Gary Moore will be flown from Spain to Britain today.

The lunchtime flight from Malaga to London will be accompanied by Moore’s girlfriend and his brother Cliff."

Celebs Kick Off NYC Fashion Week at Glamorous amfAR Gala - OK! Magazine - The First for Celebrity News: "Celebrating Fashion Week in NYC isn’t hard to do, but it’s great that celebs like Marc Mezvinsky and Chelsea Clinton, Richard Gere and Iman can also bring attention to a great organization! The stars stepped out last night in the Big Apple to attend the amfAR New York Gala, which kicked off Fall 2011 Fashion Week, at Cipriani Wall Street."

'True Grit' stars minded manners with teenage actress < German news | Expatica Germany: "Fourteen-year-old Oscar nominee Hailee Steinfeld kept her 'True Grit' co-stars on a tight leash on set, actor Jeff Bridges said at the opening of the Berlin film festival Thursday.
Bridges, who is also nominated for his role in the Western by director Joel and Ethan Coen, said he and fellow actors Matt Damon and Josh Brolin had to mind their manners around Steinfeld.
'She kept us all in line,' he told reporters. 'She had a cursing cup and if any of us used the s-word, I think it was five bucks.
'I ran a tab so I still owe her quite a bit of money,' joked Bridges, who picked up his first Academy Award last year for his role in 'Crazy Heart'.
'She made much more money from that jar than she did from the movie,' Brolin quipped."

How the Egypt Crisis Has Shut Down Show Business - The Hollywood Reporter: "The political crisis in Egypt has had a devastating impact on the entertainment industry in the country that has been called the 'Hollywood of the Middle East.'

'Everything is shut down; life is at a standstill,' producer Marianne Khoury, who runs MISR International Films (September 11, El Medina) with her brother Gabriel, told The Hollywood Reporter. 'People are glued to their TVs.'
Khoury supports the protesters and, with her company's work shut down, decided recently to help in whatever way she could. She took a carload of blankets to support the anti-Murbarak demonstrators, but her car was attacked by 'thugs paid by the government,' she said.
'It was an extremely traumatic experience,' Khoury added. 'People in the street saw the car full of blankets and guessed who they were for. The whole street attacked us with unbelievable violence and people started banging on the windows.'
She was pulled from her car by her hair before being rescued at the last second. 'Finally,' a shaken Khoury recalled, 'I was taken in a truck to an army checkpoint and sent home.'"