Showbiz: Quiz show accused of inciting hate

A Hungarian version of hit television quiz show The Weakest Link has been attacked as "wicked" by a child- protection group.

The Hungarian Child Protection Movement said the programme was anti-social and encouraged hatred, and demanded that it be screened late at night instead of at 7 pm.

"It is possibly the most hatred-inducing programme in its category and can have a negative influence on children's personality," said the movement.

The Hungarian version of the show - first hosted in Britain by acid-tongued presenter Anne Robinson, and since sold to 28 countries including the United States - began screening last week. Initial ratings showed it was a big hit.

The New Zealand version, hosted by Louise Wallace, has not provoked such a strong reaction, but its ratings have declined every week since it debuted in mid-July.

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TV presenter Rolf Harris has accused modern artists of conning the public.

The 71-year-old star, whose quickfire sketching was a feature of his early shows, said high-profile pieces such as Tracey Emin's My Bed were putting the public off visiting galleries because they failed to understand the exhibits.

Harris, about to launch a new BBC series, Rolf On Art, in which he looks at the work of 19th-century Impressionists, said: "I've always imagined that something to do with art should have something to do with something artistic.

"Getting out of bed, leaving the bed unmade, putting it on show and saying that's worth £31,000 [$98,000] ... I don't believe it, I think it's a con."

Harris, who will be trying to re-create the scenes painted by artists such as Monet, Van Gogh, Degas and Gauguin, in his new series said people were frightened by art they did not understand.

"I think most members of the public are afraid to go into galleries because they don't know why these things are regarded as important and valuable."

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HBO has signed Albert Finney and Vanessa Redgrave to play Winston Churchill and his wife, Clementine, for its new TV movie A Lonely War.

The film offers an intimate look at the life of the British statesman in the years preceding the Second World War, when Churchill found himself on the fringe of British politics and was a lone voice as he warned of the Nazi threat. Production is due to begin in early October.

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Will & Grace star Sean Hayes ripped off his shirt and stuffed it against a bullet wound to stop a man from bleeding after an apparent robbery attempt.

Hayes was driving in the Wilshire area of Los Angeles when he saw the wounded man at the side of the street and pulled over to help, said his publicist. "He called 911 on his cellphone, alerted neighbours, took off his shirt and pressed it against the wound to stop bleeding."

Hayes, who plays an extravagantly gay character on the sitcom, left the scene after paramedics and police arrived.

The man was treated for a leg wound at a nearby medical centre and released.