HE made his name with 2005 No1 single You’re Beautiful.
But now James Blunt is branching out — as he prepares to launch himself into the world of TV.
I can reveal the singer has been signed up to take part in a new series which will pit small breweries against one another to see who brews the best pint.
James, who is partial to a decent beer or two, will oversee the competition.
A source close to the crooner said: “James owns his own boozer, The Fox & Pheasant in London, and is a bit of a beer connoisseur.
“The main premise of the series is going to be brewers showcasing some of the best small breweries in the world.
"It won’t just be in the UK either — the idea is to try to get a number of competitors from across the globe signing up. Once on board, each of them will compete to see who has the best beer.
“James will be front and centre of the competition but there will be a judging panel of experts too, who will be the ones to make the decisions.”
The insider went on: “It is something totally different and a really fun concept that James wanted to get behind.
"Everything is still in the early stages and casting for the judging panel and the breweries is starting this summer.
“It’s likely the show will end up on one of the streaming platforms like Amazon because it’s more niche.
“Those working on the series are really excited. They think they’ve got something really special with this concept and know filming will be a blast.”
LOCAL GEM
As well as being a huge musical success, with two No1 albums and four Top Ten singles under his belt, James is more than qualified to head up this show.
He bought The Fox & Pheasant back in 2018 with socialite wife Sofia Wellesley and transformed the run-down Chelsea boozer into a proper local gem once again.
As a big beer fan myself, I’ll be giving this show a try when it gets to air. And I’ll definitely have a pint — or two — in hand.
MIMI'S APPY WITH CHARLI
TIKTOK has revolutionised the way young people discover new music, so rising British star Mimi Webb Got the boost of a lifetime when the platform’s most-followed user helped launch her on the app.
Singer-songwriter Mimi, from Canterbury, is flying high in the charts with two songs – Good Without and Dumb Love – in the Top 20. It’s the first time a female UK artist has done this since Dua Lipa in 2017.
But it was US TikTok sensation Charli D’amelio, who has a whopping 120million followers, who helped give her career a kick-start.
Mimi, who paid a visit to Bizarre HQ on Friday for a chat, said: “Charli made my TikTok account – I never really knew how to do it.
"We went for dinner in 2019 in New York – me, my manager Rob, and her and her family. I was like, ‘I don’t know how to do it’ and she was like, ‘Trust me.’
“With the pandemic and the way TikTok works, everyone wanted to hear those emotional songs and ballads. I like doing TikToks – that’s how it clicked into place because people could see my personality. I’m real, I’m someone you can approach, like the girl next door.”
Mimi is currently working on her debut EP for release at the end of the summer – and has huge plans for the future.
She explained: “I’d love to do a Bond theme song. I’ve been going on about that for years. I’d love to be able to sing on it and write it.
“Right now I’m very focused on music, but I love acting so I would like to jump into that at a later date.
“Maybe I can be the Bond girl, too!”
And she already has the backing of one famous 007 theme singer, Sam Smith, after her mum messaged on social media telling the star to check out Mimi’s tracks.
She added: “Sam messaged me on Twitter and I was like, ‘Oh my God!’ I was freaking out.
"Sam just said to say hello and thank you to my mum, and I was like, ‘Yeah I will!’ To work with Sam, that would be amazing, the dream. I’d love to do that.”
The sky’s the limit for Mimi.
IT'S RHI ON THE KAT-WALK
RIHANNA did her best impression of EastEnders legend Kat Slater at the weekend as she donned an animal-print furry coat.
The Work singer wore the tiger- striped jacket and matching bucket hat while on a music video shoot in New York.
It comes after I revealed she was making a comeback to music after five years and would be filming a clip to go with it.
Rihanna is expected to soon release her ninth studio album, her first since 2016’s Anti.
She was on set with rapper boyfriend Asap Rocky, who recently called her “the love of my life”.
The pair were spotted looking loved up and holding hands as they strolled down a street.
Rihanna made a number of outfit changes for the music video, with looks including a Del Boy-style coat, a red and white bikini top, a dressing gown and a headache-inducing black and white top and trousers which looked like a visual effect.
Now for the audio effect please, Riri.
ED GIFT FLAMING BIG LOSS
MY heart goes out to Ed Sheeran after a prized guitar that his hero Eric Clapton gave him was badly burnt in a fire.
Ed said: “My hero is Eric. When I was 11 I heard Layla, picked up a guitar and went from there. I got to know him in 2015 and we’ve been friends ever since.
“I went to his house and he took his guitar off the wall and just gave it to me.
“He signed the back and said, ‘Keep my guitar’. I was like, ‘F. Cool.’ ”
Ed told the Hot Ones podcast: “It was the only guitar in my studio at home and I was on tour and the person looking after my house phoned me up and said, ‘Your music studio is on fire’, and I was like, ‘F! The guitar is in that studio.’
“The guitar comes out and it’s burnt to a crisp.”
Miraculously a pal managed to fix it. Ed added: “He brought it back totally restored, but now it smells like a burnt house.
“But it plays amazing, looks amazing, actually kind of smells amazing and it still has Eric’s signature on it. That’s my favourite guitar.”
What an emotional rollercoaster.
TOP 10 FOR ENGLAND KITTS
ATOMIC KITTEN look set for their first Top 40 single in 16 years thanks to the group’s reworking of 2001 hit Whole Again.
Southgate You’re The One (Football’s Coming Home Again) is currently on for the tenth spot, an early look at the UK Official Chart reveals, having been at No 86 the previous week.
There are also expected to be three new entries in the Top Ten, with Dave and Stormzy’s banger Clash, BTS’s Permission To Dance and The Kid Laroi and Justin Bieber’s Stay in fourth, fifth and seventh places.
Ed Sheeran is certain to top the chart again as his Bad Habits is 10,000 units ahead of the rest of the pack.
They include Olivia Rodrigo’s Good 4 U, which will likely trail in second spot.
QUEASY RIDER
HAPPY MONDAYS singer Shaun Ryder Has developed two cysts in a tender spot and is popping painkillers – though he is too terrified to have the growths removed in hospital.
He said: “I had one, now I’ve got f***ing two, and they are an absolute pain. I just keep taking the tablets and painkillers as they are hitting the nerves in my b**ks.
“They did cancer tests – I got the all-clear.”
Shaun, whose first solo album in 20 years, Visits From Future Technology, is out in August, is set to tour with his band Black Grape from September.
He added: “It’s like having really bad toothache in your balls. I can have the growth chucked out but I should’ve gone before lockdown.”
Get well soon, Shaun.
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