Kate wants her light hidden under a Bushel

Kate Bush has a small request:

I have a request for all of you who are coming to the shows

And what is that request, Kate?

We have purposefully chosen an intimate theatre setting rather than a large venue or stadium. It would mean a great deal to me if you would please refrain from taking photos or filming during the shows. I very much want to have contact with you as an audience, not with iphones, ipads or cameras. I know it's a lot to ask but it would allow us to all share in the experience together.

There's three reactions to this.

First, obviously yes about the iPads. Why would you use an iPad? It's not like you're going to be at the gig by surprise and only have an iPad to hand. Why? Why would you do that?

Secondly: it's a fair request. It's not much to ask, is it, that you live in the moment, and enjoy the gig, and take away the memories rather than some jpegs?

Third: Or is it, actually? Leave aside the fact that the cost of the tickets and booking fees would buy many sandwiches for many days, this is something a lot of people are really excited about. Why is grabbing a few photos so bad? I've been to a lot of gigs in my life, and have a lot of memories. I really, really wish I had photos for a lot of them, too. And not just because it would mean I'd have an awful lot of pictures of Mark Gardener's fringe to keep me warm during the cold nights at sea (although that's part of it); but also a lot of the memories that don't fire directly into my synapse would probably be sparked by the odd photo. Also I really wish I had pictures of the bouncers beating the crap out of that guy at Nottingham Rock City back in the 90s because, well, evidence.

I'm giddily excited about going to see Kate Bush. I'm disappointed that apparently there's an approved way to enjoy the experience.

Rihanna naked photos 'worst thing ever'

You'd have thought that with the wringer Rihanna's been through this year, she'd be taking the lesson from Edgar that while you can still say it, you ain't seen the worst. But she has, and... it was the leak of the nude pictures which was the low:

R&B singer Rihanna has said the "humiliating" leak of naked photographs of her was "the worst thing that could possibly ever happen to me".

It is a pretty nasty thing to have happened - although, frankly, if you so much as think as attaching a photo of your underpants zone to a text message, you might as well just email a copy to TMZ these days, cutting out the shit of a middleman you'd mistaken for an intimate.

But it was even worse than you could imagine:

"It was humiliating and it was embarrassing - especially my mum having to see that. It was two days before Mother's Day, so I was nervous.

"I sent her flowers first before I called and then she texted me - when the world is against me she's always there supporting."

Curses - imagine ruining the two-days-before-Mother's-Day day for everyone. Is there no level to which people won't stoop? Couldn't they at least have waited until three-days-after-Mother's-Day, when parents are much more comfortable having their kids' vaginas smeared all over the internet?

Flickr flickr flickr flickr flickr flickr, here you are: Zavvi

Hmm. Not entirely sure this exciting new section name is going to work, so this might be a one-off: The sign left by Zavvi staff as they closed the Sheffield branch.

Glastonbury Flickr dip

TimS has posted a snapshot of a flipchart with the latest Glasto stats on: 342 crimes, 33 transfers to hospitals, 1 arrested tent thief and "crime virtually zero" (although what the tent thief was doing isn't clear, then.)

Hey, you sass that Norman Cook? There's a man who knows where his towel is. Photo by Whiper under a creative commons license.

Meanwhile, it seems that Adam Buxton hasn't completed the BBC training video on location filming and this is as close as anyone got to Shakin Stevens and survived.

[Part of Glastonbury 2008]

Hang about - who's running London?

Boris Johnson isn't: He's in Glastonbury, hanging out with very dubious company indeed.

Sandi Thom reveals marketing plan B

Since the "internet superstar" angle is a busted flush now, how on earth can Sandi Thom flog her second album?

Hey! How about naked pictures in a magazine? That'll work, right?

Oh, look, Mariah Carey's clothes have fallen off

What's more interesting than the naked picture of Mariah Carey on the cover of the latest Interview (naked if you don't count airbrushing as clothes, of course) is that she seems to have done a complete about-face on the breakdown that never happened. Now, it seems, it happened - but it was a learning experience:

“I consider the breakdown a breakthrough - I needed to hit rock bottom, however it happened.

“I needed to understand the cost of pushing so hard, fighting so hard against the system.

“You just can’t beat the system when they’re against you and are that strong…. But was I out of control at that moment? Yes. I believe that it happened for a reason.”

It's too early in the morning for us to ring round a representative cross-section of community activists, but it's surprising to discover that Mariah fought the system - like a Chuck D in a push-up bra. We could have sworn she just had a falling-out with the bloke who told her to build a career on something other than jiggling her breasts and instead went out jiggle her breasts. Submitting to that seems to be less "fighting the system", more like lubing yourself to help glide the system on its way.

Almost literally.

But perhaps we're being unfair. We await discovery of Carey's part in the Faslane Peace Camp.

Spears: Oh no, whoever knew my topless shots would appear in the papers?

We're being asked to believe that Britney Spears is distraught that pictures she posed for have appeared in all the newspapers:

[T]he singer is furious about the timing of the pictures - she has just embarked on a comeback trail, performing live in a series of comeback gigs this week in California.

Gosh, yes, how frustrating that so much free publicity of you looking all sexy and come-hither should have appeared just before your big comeback gigs. What terrible timing.

Isn't it terrible that you'd posed with your nipples covered, and thus meant the photos were possible to run in most places without pixelation or disfiguring black stripes over them? What rotten luck.

Britney does an Eve

Clearly, Britney didn't really pay very much attention during RS: her latest bemusing photoshoot has cast her as a half naked Eve in some sort of Garden of Eden, covering her topless breasts with flowers. Which looks like a set-up for a "beesting tits" gag if we ever saw one.

Meanwhile, her comeback has run into the sand - the second night show consisted of her lip-synching as well as she could manage through a mouthful of gum (see, if she'd paid proper attention at school she'd have known gum in the bin before we start work is a kind of global rule) and people are reported as demanding their money back. Although since the high ticket price is for the rarity of a Spears gig, complaining about the quality thereof seems to miss the point. It's like early Jesus and Mary Chain gig-goers complaining "there was two minutes of noise and then there was a riot..."

It's not proper, dancing around with no shirt on at your time of life

Some wonderful - and extraordinary - shots of Iggy Pop and the Stooges live in New York over on Brooklyn Vegan's site. It does seem the only concession Pop has made to being an older man is to keep the old man tucked away.

Dannii Minogue: Terror at 35,000 feet

One of the problems of being famous - or, more honestly, the sister of someone famous - is that people will see you as public property, and think nothing of taking photos of you. So, when a bloke saw Dannii Minogue on a plane, he whipped out his camera and shot some video. Rather than being surprised that he'd recognised her, Dannii is trying to work this up - with help from Victoria Newton - into being just shy of some sort of rape:

DANNII MINOGUE has revealed she was spied on by a pervert in a first-class cabin at 35,000ft.

She said: “As I was about to leave the plane, a man said to me, ‘A guy has been filming you with his cellphone while you slept.’

“A flight attendant approached the guy about it and he admitted filming me but claimed he’d deleted it. I was shaking I was so creeped out.

“He was some sort of sicko, I guess."

Interesting - shouldn't cellphones be switched off during flight? And what was Dannii doing in first class? You're meant to use the toilets in your own cabin, Dan.

But what's most odd about this, of course, is that Victoria Newton now apparently thinks its perverted to take photos of people without their permission in slightly exposed situations. Oddly, though, that hasn't stopped her running papparazi snaps of Mel B crossing the road while pregnant, or Brad and Angelina pushing their kids through the streets, or...

First night: The Long Blondes

The Long Blondes started their UK tour on Friday night. Popstarz was full of indie kids wearing berets (we bet), the odd journo and a smattering of bloggers.

The NME was there on expenses, and went to the effort of compiling a set list:

'Lust In The Movies'
'Weekend without Makeup'
'Once And Never Again'
'Giddy Stratospheres'
'Five Ways To End It'
'Separated By Motorways'

Obviously not the full set, as this was one of those halfway-through-a-clubnight jobs.

Dave AP got a little skin-on-skin action:

stood at the very front,
was literally 2ft away from the band
an directly in front of kate jackson
an she sang to me
an held my hand while she was singing motorways!
it was great

Mind you, that was nothing compared to what Lubey's mate got at the first night proper in Brighton:

Wow tonight was just wow! Me and Vix went to see The Long Blondes at the Old Market and we were highly impressed, Brilliant live!!! was so so random though seeing as Vick interupted a butt sniffing junkie in the toilets haha getting a whole eye full.

That's the sort of thing you seldom get in a Daily Telegraph review, isn't it? But considering nothing's meant to happen in the world without it being blogged from sixteen different angles, it's slightly disappointing that there's barely a word about their twin opening nights.

Luckily, Flickr doesn't let us down: Stephen Burch supplies some gorgeous shots of the band on stage at the Brighton Old Market. And, if you're really keen, there's some cameraphone footage, too - although, erm, with no sound.