Dickens Live - The forthcoming West End production of Great Expectations is to be broadcast live to cinemas around the UK on February 7, which was Charles Dickens' birthday. It will be shown live from the Vaudeville Theatre in more than 150 cinemas across the UK and Ireland, with screenings also being held in Europe, Canada, the US, Asia and Australia. The live broadcast marks the launch of The Dickens Legacy, which has been set up alongside the stage show to receive a share of the box office. It will distribute funds to projects that deal with issues Dickens was concerned with, such as prison reform, adoption and literacy.
High Street Blues - Music and DVD chain HMV is to appoint an administrator, making it the latest casualty on the High Street and putting about 4,350 jobs at risk. Deloitte will keep HMV's 239 stores in the UK and the Republic of Ireland open while it assesses the prospects for the business and seeks potential buyers. Trading in HMV shares on the London Stock Exchange has been suspended, HMV said in a statement. HMV, which was started in 1921, has struggled against online retailing.
Sales Statistics - Releases from Emeli Sande and Ed Sheeran meant pop was the most popular type of music for UK album buyers for the second year in a row in 2012. Rock claimed its largest share of the market since 2008. It was up to 31.3% in 2012, from 29.4% in 2011, according to figures from the BPI. Albums from Mumford & Sons and Coldplay were credited for helping the increase. Pop claimed 38.5% of the overall singles market - it's largest portion since 2002. Second was rock (20.7%), which was driven by the success of tracks like Gotye's Somebody I Used To Know and Fun's We Are Young according to the BPI, which represents the UK's major record labels.
Farewell - Claude Nobs, who founded the Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland, has died after a skiing accident. The 76-year-old suffered a fall while practising cross-country skiing during the Christmas holidays. He had been in hospital but passed away on 10 January, a statement on the festival's website said. "For all of us, who were fortunate enough to cross your path, you will always remain the one who questioned certainties," the statement said.
(Jim Evans)
