name	QVC
logofile	QVC.svg
logosize	200px
logoalt	QVC Logo
launch	July 1986
picture format	480i (SDTV)1080i (HDTV)
network	QVC
Owner	Liberty Media
founder	Joseph Segel
slogan	Quality, Value, Convenience
country	USA
broadcast area	Worldwide
headquarters	West Goshen Township, Pennsylvania
web	QVC.com
sat serv 1	DirecTV
sat chan 1	Channel 275
sat serv 2	Dish Network
sat chan 2	Channel 137
cable serv 1	Available on many cable systems
cable chan 1	Check local listings for channels
adsl serv 1	Sky Angel
adsl chan 1	Channel 333
online serv 1	QVC
online chan 1	Watch live (US only) }}

QVC is a multinational corporation specializing in televised home shopping. Founded in 1986 by Joseph Segel in West Goshen Township, Pennsylvania, United States, QVC broadcasts in five countries as QVC US, QVC UK, QVC Germany, QVC Japan and – QVC Italy to 200 million households. The name is an acronym standing for Quality, Value, Convenience.

Corporate history

QVC was founded on June 13, 1986 by Joseph Segel. One of the first brands to sign a two year deal with QVC was Sears products. Its first live broadcast took place at 7:30 PM ET on November 24 of that year, reaching 7.6 million TV homes. The corporation later set a new record for first full-year fiscal sales for a new public company of $112 million. Its competitor is the Home Shopping Network (HSN).

Initially broadcast live from 7:30 PM ET until midnight each weekday and all day Saturdays and Sundays, the channel extended its live programming to 24 hours in January 1987. QVC acquired its top competitor, the Cable Value Network (CVN), in 1989. The $380 million deal contributed to a loss of $17 million during the next fiscal quarter, and then to difficulties in the couple of years that followed.

On February 2, 1995, Comcast purchased a majority shareholding in QVC, Inc., taking control of the corporation. QVC kicked off the "Quest for America's Best: 50 in 50 Tour," a 50-week nationwide product search. QVC.com was founded in 1996.

In July 2003, Comcast sold its majority share to Liberty Media.

In May 2009, QVC became the first multimedia retailer to offer a native high-definition service. As with HSN, the 4:3 cut for analog viewers in this 16:9 presentation is made to the extreme right of the screen rather than on both sides of the 4:3 frame, allowing the network to place their graphics fully to the left and lower portions of the screen to maximize camera presentation space.

On September 23, 2007, QVC U.S. rebranded itself, changing its logo on-air and online. The rebranding was accompanied by an advertising campaign with the tagline "iQdoU?" ("I shop QVC, do you?") that had preceded the rebrand with billboards in major U.S. cities.The iQdoU? campaign also included a "teaser" website found at iQdoU.com.

On September 30, 2010, at 11pm, QVC began broadcasting in Italy, both on satellite and digital terrestrial television.

Operations

All of QVC's operations (U.S., UK, Germany, Japan and Italy) run 24 hours a day, although live programming hours vary between each region.

Headquarters

QVC has its headquarters in West Goshen Township, Pennsylvania, near West Chester and by U.S. Route 202. The $100 million QVC Studio Park complex, located on an plot of land, opened in 1997.

QVC US

QVC's U.S. operations are based in the Studio Park complex, which houses its corporate headquarters, studio and broadcasting facilities. Studio Park is the former corporate offices of Commodore Business Machines. Call center facilities are located in Chesapeake, Virginia; Port St. Lucie, Florida; and San Antonio, Texas. QVC's distribution centers are situated in Lancaster, Pennsylvania; Suffolk, Virginia; Florence, South Carolina; and Rocky Mount, North Carolina.

QVC U.S. also operates a series of retail stores across the country, including outlet stores that are located in Bloomington, Mn.; Lancaster, Pa.; Frazer, Pennsylvania; Prices Corner, Del.; Rehoboth Beach, Del.; and Myrtle Beach, S.C.

QVC broadcasts live in the United States 24/7, apart from the Christmas show which is pre recorded to more than 100 million households, and ranks as the number two television network in terms of revenue (#1 in home shopping networks), with sales in 2010 giving a net revenue of $7.8 billion.

QVC UK

QVC UK was launched in October 1993. QVC UK's headquarters and broadcasting facilities are located at Marco Polo House in Battersea, London, while call center and distribution facilities are situated in Knowsley, Merseyside. QVC UK also runs two outlet stores, one in Warrington, the other in Shrewsbury. QVC has a second channel in the UK: QVC Beauty.

QVC UK broadcasts live 17 hours a day (although the channel runs 24 hours a day), 364 days a year.

QVC Germany

QVC Germany, incorporated in Düsseldorf, runs call centre operations from two sites in Bochum and Kassel, whilst distribution is handled from a dedicated site in Hückelhoven.

QVC Germany broadcasts live 24 hours a day, 363.5 days a year (off-air Christmas Eve (no program after noon) and Christmas Day). QVC has a second channel in Germany: QVC Plus.

QVC Japan

QVC Japan is based in Makuhari, where its corporate headquarters and call center facility are located. Distribution facilities are located in Sakura City.

QVC Italy

QVC Italy was launched in October 2010. QVC Italy's headquarters and broadcasting facilities are located at Brugherio, near Milan.

QVC Italy broadcasts live 17 hours a day (although the channel runs 24 hours a day), 364 days a year. The primary distribution platform for QVC Italy is satellite and digital terrestrial television both.

Hosts

QVC’s live broadcast is supported by 26 program hosts. They come from a variety of different backgrounds and work three-to four-hour shifts on-air, four to five days a week.

Embedded below is a list of QVC's current hosts in the United States, along with their signature shows:

Jill Bauer (joined QVC in 1993)

*You're Home with Jill

*Just Desserts with Jill

Sandra Bennett (joined QVC in 2006)

*Whole You with Sandra

Rachel Boesing (joined QVC in 2011)

Jayne Brown (joined QVC in 1999)

*Downtown Style with Jayne Brown

*QVC This Morning Fashion Forum

*QVC This Morning Fashion Friday

Courtney Cason (joined QVC in 2010)

Rick Domeier (joined QVC in 1994)

*techCONNECT with Rick

*Get Fit with Rick

*Home Projects with Rick and Dan

*Rick & Easy Cooking

*Rick & Easy Solutions

Sharon Faetsch (joined QVC in 2003)

Jacque Gonzales (joined QVC in 2003)

*Electronics with Jacque & Friends

Carolyn Gracie (joined QVC in 2005)

*Garden Party with Carolyn

*Kitchen Unlimited with Carolyn

Nancy Hornback (joined QVC in late 2009)

Dan Hughes (joined QVC in 1989)

*QVC This Morning

*For Race Fans Only

*The Great Outdoors with Dan

Albany Irvin (joined QVC in 2009)

*Electronics Made Easy with Albany

*Bright Ideas with Albany

Dave James (joined QVC in 2004)

*Seriously Late on QVC

Pat James-DeMentri (joined QVC in 1989)

*QVC This Morning

*QVC This Morning Fashion Forum

*QVC This Morning Fashion Friday

Gabrielle Kerr (joined QVC in 2007)

Shawn Killinger (joined QVC in 2007)

*"No Problem!" with Shawn

*Shawn Says, "Accessorize!"

Antonella Nester (joined QVC in 2004)

*Antonella's Italian Kitchen

Jonathan Redford (joined QVC in 2009)

Lisa Robertson (joined QVC in 1995)

*Ask Lisa About Style

*PM Style with Lisa Robertson

*What the Tech? with Lisa

Mary Beth Roe (joined QVC in 1990)

*My Time with Mary Beth

*Handbags with Mary Beth

Amy Stran (joined QVC in 2009)

Jane Treacy (joined QVC in 1986 as one of the original hosts)

*Shoe Shopping with Jane

*Enjoyable Entertaining

*Jane's Rock Stars

*Now That's Cool! with Jane

David Venable (joined QVC in 1993)

*Dining With David

*In the Kitchen with David

*In the Kitchen with David PM Edition

*Merry Memories with David (seasonal show)

Dan Wheeler (joined QVC in 1991)

*Home Projects with Rick and Dan

Leah Williams (joined QVC in 1996)

*AM Style with Leah Williams

References

http://www.qvc.com/qic/qvcapp.aspx/app.html/params.file.|cp|mainhqpress,html/left.html.file.|nav|navhqabout,html

http://www.multichannel.com/article/263755-QVC_HD_Now_100_High_Def.php

External links

QVC US

QVC Germany

QVC Japan

QVC UK

QVC Studio Tours Page US

QVC Italy

Category:Shopping networks Category:American television networks Category:Companies based in Pennsylvania Category:Television channels and stations established in 1986 Category:English-language television stations in the United States Category:Clothing retailers of the United States Category:Retail companies of the United States

de:QVC it:QVC ja:QVC

name	Lisa Robertson
birth date	July 22, 1961
birth place	Toronto, Ontario
known for	Poems, essays
influences	Djuna Barnes, Mina Loy, Marguerite Duras, Nicole Brossard, Erin Mouré, Gail Scott, Lyn Hejinian, Susan Howe, bpNichol, Steve McCaffery, Charles Bernstein
footnotes	}}

Lisa Robertson (born on July 22, 1961 in Toronto) is a Canadian poet who is best known for a collection a poem entitled ''The Weather'', which was inspired by the shipping forecasts announced on BBC radio. She currently lives in France.

Life

In 1979, she moved to British Columbia, where she remained for twenty-three years. During her time there, she was a member of The Kootenay School of Writing, which is a non-profit society that offers an alternative to the mainstream pedagogy of most Canadian universities.

She has been integrally involved in Vancouver's art scene and is an honorary board member of Artspeak Gallery. She has written on and reviewed exhibitions and pieces by Kelly Wood, Robert Garcet, Liz Magor, Allyson Clay, Kathy Slade, and Hadley+Maxwell, among others. She has also written on architecture and sites in British Columbia. Robertson contributed the "Beneath the Pavilions" column to ''Mix'' from 1997-1999.

She co-edited the poetry journal ''Raddle Moon'' with Susan Clark in Vancouver, and has worked as an arts journalist, a book seller, a copy editor, an astrologer, a guest lecturer, and an essayist. She has written on the work of Robin Blaser, Denise Riley, Dionne Brand, Peter Culley, Ted Berrigan, John Clare, Lorine Niedecker, Pauline Reage, Michele Bernstein and Albertine Sarrazin.

In 2006, she was a judge of the Griffin Poetry Prize and Holloway poet-in-residence at UC Berkeley. From 2007- 2010 she taught at California College of the Arts in San Francisco. In Fall 2010 she was writer-in-residence at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver.

Work

Her work is a deep questioning of language, history and gender.

She intentionally alters her writing style for each book-length work, although tends to not to stray too far from the form of the sentence and the issue of civic referentiality. Robertson refers to pronouns and self-referentiality as masques or puppets.

Many poets and writers have influenced Robertson. She has mentioned Djuna Barnes, Mina Loy, the French feminists, Marguerite Duras, Nicole Brossard, Erin Mouré, Gail Scott, Lyn Hejinian, Susan Howe, bpNichol, Steve McCaffery, and Charles Bernstein.

The Weather

One of her best known works, ''The Weather'' was written following her six-month Judith E Wilson visiting fellowship at the University of Cambridge. Variously described by others as a collection of poems inspired by BBC shipping forecasts, Wordsworths's ''The Prelude'' based upon a poetics derived from British meteorology and its importance in contemporary culture and history, Robertson herself suggests "the weather" can refer to culture-specific customs, the problematic concepts of the universal, sincerity, friendship, the constitution of the English subject, and the historical merging of Romantic conceptions of identity and language.

In preparation for its completion, she researched pastoral poetry, meteorological prose, and Anglo-centric subjectivity, guided by authors like Wordsworth, Reverend Blomefield, Luke Howard, Thomas Forster, Aikin, Aratus, John Constable, and William Cobbett.

Selected bibliography

''The Apothecary'' (Vancouver, BC: Tsunami, 1991; reissued 2001)

''The Barscheit Horse'' with Catriona Strang and Christine Stewart (Hamilton, Ontario: Berkeley Horse, 1993)

''XEclogue II-V'' (Vancouver: Sprang Texts, 1993)

''XEclogue'' (Vancouver, BC: Tsunami Editions 1993, reissued by New Star Books, 1999)

''The Glove: An Essay on Interpretation'' (Vancouver: UBC Fine Arts Gallery, 1993)

''The Badge'' (Hamilton, Ontario: The Berkeley Horse/Mindware, 1994)

''Earth Monies'' (Mission, BC: DARD, 1995)

''The Descent'' (Buffalo, NY: Meow, 1996)

''Debbie: An Epic'' (Vancouver, BC: New Star, 1997; UK: Reality Street, 1997)

''Soft Architecture: A Manifesto'' (Vancouver: Artspeak Gallery, 1999)

''The Weather'' (Vancouver, BC: New Star, 2001; UK: Reality Street, 2001)

''A Hotel'' (Vancouver: Vancouver Film School, 2003)

''Occasional Work and Seven Walks from the Office for Soft Architecture'' (Astoria, OR: Clear Cut Press, 2003)

''Face/'' (New York: A Rest Press, 2003)

''Rousseau’s Boat'' (Vancouver, BC: Nomados, 2004)

''First Spontaneous Horizontal Restaurant.'' Belladonna 75. (Brooklyn: Belladonna Books, 2005)

''The Men: A Lyric Book'' (Toronto: BookThug, 2006)

''Lisa Robertson's Magenta Soul Whip'' (Coach House Press, 2009)

''R's Boat'' (University of California Press, 2010)

Selected Essays

"Coasting" with Jeff Derksen, Nancy Shaw, and Catriona Strang. ''Telling it Slant: Avant Garde Poetics of the 1990s''. Ed. Mark Wallace. (Tuscaloosa: Alabama UP, 2002)

"The Weather: A Report on Sincerity," from ''DC Poetry Anthology 2001''.

"How Pastoral: A Manifesto." ''A Poetics of Criticism''. Ed. Juliana Spahr. (Buffalo: Leave Books, 1994)

"My Eighteeneth Century." ''Assembling Alternatives''. Ed. Romana Huk. (Middletown, CT: Wesleyan UP, 2003)

"On Palinode." ''Chicago Review'' 51:4/52:1 (2006)

Selected Interviews and Conversations

"Correspondence" with Steve McCaffery. ''Philly Talks #17''. (Philadelphia: Kelly Writers House, 2000)

"Lifted" with Kai Fierle-Hedrick. ''Chicago Review'' 51:4/52:1 (2006)

References

Notes

External links

''Chicago Review'' special issue (51:4/52:1) on Lisa Robertson (poems, essays, interview)

Dispatches from the PoetryFoundation.org Journal

Readings from The Office For Soft Architecture

Test Reading: from The Men

Lisa Robertson reads at a Toronto Value Village

"Mostly Experimental: Recent Writings By and About Contemporary Women Poets & Writers" review of ''American Women Poets in the 21st Century: Where Lyric Meets Language'', ed. Claudia Rankine and Juliana Spahr.

Steve Evans reviews ''Rousseau’s Boat'' This piece, titled "Solitary and Free", appeared in "Jacket Magazine", #27 (April 2005)

"Wooden Houses" poem by Robertson in "Jacket Magazine", #27 (APR 2005)

Review @ ''Village Voice'': 09/29/06 Alan Gilbert discusses ''The Men''

Joshua Corey discusses ''The Men'' extended piece from the popular weblog ''Cahiers de Corey''

Conversation review of 'The Men' by Melissa Flores-Bórquez and Edmund Hardy at poetry mag "Intercapillary Space"

See also

Canadian poetry

Category:Canadian poets Category:Canadian feminists Category:1961 births Category:Living people Category:Canadian women writers

lt:Lisa Robertson

name	Charlie Brooker
birth name	Charlton Brooker
birth date	March 03, 1971
birth place	Reading, Berkshire, England
nationality	British
occupation	Broadcaster, writer, columnist, comedian, critic
spouse	Konnie Huq (2010–present)
years active	1998–present
residence	Hammersmith, London
alma mater	Polytechnic of Central London
religion	Atheist }}

Charlton "Charlie" Brooker (born March 03, 1971) is a British journalist, comic writer and broadcaster. His style of humour is savage and profane, with surreal elements and a consistent satirical pessimism. He presents TV shows ''Screenwipe'', ''Gameswipe'' and ''Newswipe'', wrote a review column for ''The Guardian'' newspaper, and is one of four creative directors of comedy production company Zeppotron. His five-part horror drama ''Dead Set'' for ''E4'' earned him a nomination for a BAFTA. Brooker won Columnist of the Year at the 2009 British Press Awards for his column, and the Best Newcomer at the British Comedy Awards 2009. He is co-presenter of ''10 O'Clock Live'' on Channel 4 and presents the documentary series ''How TV Ruined Your Life'' on BBC Two.

Early life and education

Brooker was born in Reading, Berkshire. He first worked as a writer and cartoonist for ''Oink!'', a comic produced in the late-1980s.

Brooker attended the Polytechnic of Central London (which became the University of Westminster during his time there) — studying for a BA in Media Studies — he did not graduate.

Career

''PC Zone''

Brooker wrote for ''PC Zone'' magazine in the mid-1990s. Aside from games reviews, his output included the comic strip ''Cybertwats'' and a column titled "Sick Notes", where Brooker would insult anyone who wrote in to the magazine and offered a £50 prize to the "best" letter.

In February 1998, one of Brooker's one-shot cartoons caused the magazine to be pulled from the shelves of many British newsagents. The cartoon was titled "Helmut Werstler's Cruelty Zoo" and professed to be an advert for a theme park created by a Teutonic psychologist for children to take out their violent impulses on animals rather than humans. It was accompanied by photoshopped pictures of children smashing the skulls of monkeys with hammers, jumping on a badger with a pitchfork, and chainsawing an orang-utan, among other things. The original joke was supposed to be at the expense of the ''Tomb Raider'' games, known at the time for the number of animals killed, but the original title, "Lara Croft's Cruelty Zoo", was changed for legal reasons.

In October 2008, Brooker and several other ex-writers were invited back to review a game for the 200^th issue. Brooker reviewed Euro Truck Simulator.

SuperKaylo

A number of Brooker's artworks were available to the public on his website. This body of work is drawn both from the commissions of his various patrons, and began as a paper comic that was sold to customers at Brooker's former workplace CeX. In addition to its counter presence, Brooker sold issues to mail order customers when they called up to place orders for games.

One aspect of the SuperKaylo site was a series of recorded phone conversations, that had originally started from a commissioned featured for ''PC Zone'' on technical support phonelines. Brooker took things further than this half serious investigation, when in 1999 he called up the then editor of ''Edge'' magazine, Jason Brookes. Pretending to be an angry father, he phoned up enraged by an advert that had appeared in a previous issue for CeX, one that Brooker himself had written and drawn.

TVGoHome

From 1999 to 2003 he wrote the satirical ''TVGoHome'' website, a regular series of mock TV schedules published in a format similar to that of the ''Radio Times'', consisting of a combination of savage satire and surreal humour and featured in technology newsletter Need To Know. A print adaptation of the site was published by Fourth Estate in 2001. A TV sketch show based on the site was broadcast on UK digital station E4 the same year.

Newspaper columns

Brooker began writing a TV review column titled "Screen Burn" for ''The Guardian'' newspaper's Saturday entertainment supplement ''The Guide'' in 2000, a role he continued through to October 2010.

From the autumn of 2005, he wrote a regular series of columns in ''The Guardian'' supplement "G2" on Fridays called "Supposing", in which he free-associated on a set of vague what-if themes. Since late October 2006 this column has been expanded into a full-page section on Mondays, including samples from TVGoHome and Ignopedia, an occasional series of pseudo-articles on topics mostly suggested by readers. The key theme behind Ignopedia was that, while Wikipedia is written and edited by thousands of users, Ignopedia would be written by a single sub-par person with little or no awareness of the facts.

On 24 October 2004, he wrote a column on George W. Bush and the forthcoming 2004 US Presidential Election which concluded:

''The Guardian'' withdrew the article from its website and published and endorsed an apology by Brooker. He has since commented about the remark in the column stating: }}

Brooker left the "Screen Burn" column in 2010. In the final column, he noted how increasingly difficult he found it to reconcile his role in mainstream media and TV production with his writing as a scabrous critic or to objectively criticise those he increasingly works and socialises with. Long time covering contributor Grace Dent took over the column from him permanently. He continues to contribute other articles to The Guardian on a regular basis.

Television

From 1999 to 2000, Brooker played hooded expert 'the Pundit' in short-lived show Games Republic hosted by Trevor and Simon on BSkyB.

In 2000, Brooker was one of the writers of the Channel 4 show ''The Eleven O'Clock Show'' and a co-host (with Gia Milinovich) on BBC Knowledge's ''The Kit'', a low-budget programme dedicated to gadgets and technology (1999–2000). In 2001, he was one of several writers on Channel 4's controversial ''Brass Eye'' special on the subject of paedophilia.

Together with ''Brass Eye'''s Chris Morris, Brooker co-wrote the sitcom ''Nathan Barley'', based on a character from one of TVGoHome's fictional programmes. The show was broadcast in 2005 and focused on the lives of a group of London media 'trendies'. The same year, he was also on the writing team of the Channel 4 sketch show ''Spoons'', produced by Zeppotron.

In 2006, Brooker began writing and presenting his signature television series ''Charlie Brooker's Screenwipe'' on BBC Four, a TV review programme in a similar style to his ''Screen Burn'' columns in ''The Guardian''. After an initial pilot series of three editions in April of that year, the programme returned in the autumn for a second run of four episodes plus Christmas and Review of the Year specials in December 2006. A third series followed in February 2007 with a fourth broadcast in September 2007, followed by a Review of the Year in December 2007. The fifth series started in November 2008 and was followed by another Review of the Year special. This series was also the first to be given a primetime repeat on terrestrial television (BBC 2), in January 2009.

''Screenwipe'''s format mostly consists of two elements. The first is the playing of clips from other television shows – both mainstream and obscure – interspersed with shots of Brooker, sitting in his living room, delivering witty critiques on them. The second is where Brooker explains, again with a slice of barbed humour, the way in which a particular area of the television industry operates. Also occasionally present are animations by David Firth and guest contributions, which have included the poetry of Tim Key, and segments in which a guest explains their fascination with a certain television show or genre.

Brooker has regularly experimented with ''Screenwipe'', with some editions focusing on a specific theme. These themes have included American television, TV news, advertising and children's programmes. (The last of these involved a segment where Brooker joined the cast of ''Toonattik'' for one week, playing the character of "Angry News Guy".) Probably the most radical departure from the norm came with an episode focused on scriptwriting, which saw several of British television's most prominent writers interviewed by Brooker.

As per the development of his career with ''The Guardian'', a similar show called Newswipe, focusing on current affairs reportage by the international news media, began on BBC4 on 25 March 2009. A second series began on 19 January 2010. He has also written and presented the one off special Gameswipe which focused on video games and aired on BBC4 on 29 September 2009.

Brooker has appeared on three episodes and one webisode of the popular BBC current affairs news quiz ''Have I Got News for You''. He appeared on an episode of the Channel 4 panel show ''8 Out of 10 Cats'', The Big Fat Quiz of the Year 2009, Never Mind the Buzzcocks and Would I Lie To You?. In December 2006 reviewed two games written by the presenters of ''VideoGaiden'', on their show. He also made a brief appearance in the third and final instalment of the documentary series ''Games Britannia'', discussing the rise and popularity of computer games.

Brooker wrote for the BBC Three sketch show ''Rush Hour''.

In 2009, Brooker began hosting ''You Have Been Watching'', a panel comedy TV quiz on Channel 4 which discusses television. It is in its second series.

On 6 May 2010, Brooker was a co-host of the Channel 4 alternative election night, along with David Mitchell, Jimmy Carr and Lauren Laverne. The telethon was interspersed with contributions from Brooker, some live in the studio but mostly pre-recorded. Notably, an "Election Special" of ''You Have Been Watching'' and two smaller segments in an almost identical style to ''Screenwipe'' (the only noticeable difference being that Brooker was sitting in a different room). Brooker described the experience of live television as being so nerve-wracking he "did a piss" during the broadcast. A spin-off series, ''10 O'Clock Live'', started in January 2011 with the same four hosts.

Brooker's "2010 Wipe", a review of 2010 in the style of Screenwipe/Newswipe/Gameswipe, was broadcast on BBC2 on 27 December 2010, and a new documentary series ''How TV Ruined Your Life'' started on BBC 2 on 25 January 2011.

Dead Set

Brooker wrote ''Dead Set'', a five part zombie horror thriller for E4 set in the Big Brother house. The show was broadcast in October 2008 to coincide with Halloween and was repeated on Channel 4 in January 2009 to coincide with Celebrity Big Brother, and again for Halloween later that year. It was produced by Zeppotron, which also produced Screenwipe.

Brooker told MediaGuardian.co.uk it comprised a "mixture of known and less well known faces" and "Dead Set is very different to anything I've done before, and I hope the end result will surprise, entertain and appall people in equal measure." He added that he has long been a fan of horror films and that his new series "could not be described as a comedy". "I couldn't really describe what it is but it will probably surprise people," Brooker said, adding that he plans to "continue as normal" with his print journalism.

Jaime Winstone starred as a runner on the TV programme, and ''Big Brother'' presenter Davina McCall guest starred as herself. Dead Set received a BAFTA nomination for ''Best Drama Serial''.

Radio

Beginning on 11 May 2010, Brooker presented a 5-part BBC Radio 4 series celebrating failure titled ''So Wrong It's Right'', in which guests compete to pitch the worst possible ideas for new franchises and give the 'most wrong' answer to a question. Also featured are guests' recollections about their own personal life failures and their complaints about life in general in a round called 'This Putrid Modern Hell'. Guests have included David Mitchell, Lee Mack, Josie Long, Frank Skinner and Richard Herring. A second series was confirmed, and it began airing on 10 March 2011.

Personal life

Brooker became engaged to marry former ''Blue Peter'' presenter Konnie Huq, after dating for 9 months having met whilst filming an episode of Screenwipe. They married on 26 July 2010 at the Little White Wedding Chapel in Las Vegas.

Brooker is an atheist and contributed to The Atheist's Guide to Christmas.

Awards

Brooker won Columnist of the Year at the 2009 British Press Awards for his ''Guardian'' column, where the judges described Brooker as "edgy, entertaining and wonderfully surreal, he has the explosive writing skills that can turn your thinking upside down. A definite destination read and a jewel of a column. Acerbic, nasty, spiteful, yet clearly in love with every subject he writes about at the same time. Must read stuff." He won Best Newcomer at the British Comedy Awards 2009 and the Royal Television Society award 2010 for Best Entertainment Programme (''Newswipe'') beating ''The X Factor'' and ''Britain's Got Talent''. His show (''Newswipe'') won best comedy entertainment show at the 2011 British Comedy Awards.

Publications

''TV Go Home'', 2001 (ISBN 1-84115-675-2)

''Unnovations'', 2002 (ISBN 1-84115-730-9)

''Screen Burn'', 2004 (ISBN 0-571-22755-4)

''Dawn of the Dumb: Dispatches from the Idiotic Frontline'', 2007 (ISBN 9780571238415)

''The Hell of it All'', Charlie Brooker, 2009 (ISBN 9780571229574)

References

External links

Charlie Brooker's Official Biography Page on zeppotron.com

Charlie Brooker's Agents and Production Company – zeppotron.com

TV Go Home

Charlie Brooker's Guardian columns

Shuffle's Cue & Ehh? with Charlie Brooker

Charlie Brooker's made-up film awards

Charlie Brooker Interview about You Have Been Watching

Charlie Brooker's page, Conville and Walsh literary agents

Category:1971 births Category:Living people Category:20th-century writers Category:21st-century writers Category:Alumni of the University of Westminster Category:British television critics Category:English atheists Category:English comedians Category:English comedy writers Category:English satirists Category:English television presenters Category:English television producers Category:English television writers Category:People from Reading, Berkshire Category:The Guardian journalists

name	Marie Osmond
background	solo_singer
birth name	Olive Marie Osmond
alias	Marie Osmond
birth date	October 13, 1959
origin	Ogden, Utah, United States
genre	Country, pop
occupation	Singer, actress
years active	1962–
label	MGMCurbPolydor
website	}}

Olive Marie Osmond (born October 13, 1959) is an American singer, actress, doll designer, and a member of the show business family The Osmonds. Although she was never part of her family's singing group, she gained success as a solo country music artist in the 1970s and 1980s. Her best known song is a cover of the country pop ballad "Paper Roses." In 1976, she and her singer brother Donny Osmond began hosting the TV variety show ''Donny & Marie''.

Early life

Born Olive Marie Osmond in Ogden, Utah to Olive and George Osmond, Marie Osmond was raised as a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The only daughter of nine children, her brothers are Virl, Tom, Alan, Wayne, Merrill, Jay, Donny, and Jimmy Osmond. From an early age, her brothers maintained a career in show business, singing and performing on national television. Osmond debuted as part of her brothers' act The Osmond Brothers on the ''The Andy Williams Show'' when she was three, but generally did not perform with her brothers in the group's television performances through the 1960s.

Music career

1970s

Aside from her two older brothers (who are deaf), Marie was soon the only family member not involved in the music business. After the initial success of The Osmonds in 1970, Marie's older brother Donny was gaining success as a solo artist on the Pop Music charts and was becoming a teen idol. The Osmonds' management convinced Marie to try her hand as well. She signed with the family's record label, MGM Records and began making concert appearances with The Osmonds. Her style was more directed towards country music, in contrast with her brothers' pop music.

In 1973, Osmond cut her first single as a solo artist, "Paper Roses". The recording became a #1 country hit, reached the Top 5 on the ''Billboard'' magazine pop chart, and achieved crossover success. The song earned a gold record as did the album of the same name. Osmond released another single, "In My Little Corner of the World", and a same-name album in 1974, with both entering the ''Billboard'' Top 40 in 1974. The title song on her next album ''Who's Sorry Now'', released in 1975, went to #20 the month after its release. The title song from Osmond's final solo album of the seventies, ''This Is The Way That I Feel'', reached #39 within two months of its 1977 release.

In 1974, Osmond had two pop music duet hits with brother Donny: "I'm Leaving It All Up to You" and "Morning Side of the Mountain." The former song was a Top 20 country hit.

1980s

In the early 1980s, Osmond's music career went into a brief hiatus while she pursued a career in acting. She turned down the lead role as Sandy in ''Grease'' because she didn't approve of the script's moral content, and the role went to Olivia Newton-John. She appeared in some TV movies and did voice-over work for children's cartoons. Prior to the comeback success of her brother Donny in the late 1980s, Marie made a comeback in country music as a solo artist by signing a deal with Curb Records in Nashville. In 1985, Marie and Dan Seals sang a duet called "Meet Me in Montana" which became a #1 country hit that year.

Her follow-up to "Meet Me in Montana" was a solo hit called "There's No Stopping Your Heart," which reached #1 in early 1986 for Marie. Her singles mainly focused on the more-popular Countrypolitan style. In late 1985, she released the "There's No Stopping Your Heart" album of the same name. In 1986, the single "Read My Lips" became a Top-20 country hit. She hit #1 again with a duet with Paul Davis with the song "You're Still New to Me." The Top-10 hit "I Only Wanted You," became her last major hit on the Country charts, to date. Osmond continued to release singles throughout much of the '80s, including "I'm In Love And He's In Dallas". In 1984, Marie had a single on RCA Records called, "Whos Counting." The single charted to only #82 on Billboard's Hot Country Singles. The single did receive a significant amount of airplay for a couple of weeks.

1990s

The last charting single came in 1995 with "What Kind of Man (Walks On a Woman)".

Acting career

In 1976, Osmond and brother Donny began to host their variety show ''Donny & Marie'', which ran on ABC until 1979.

Osmond's first "made for TV" movie was ''The Gift of Love'' which originally aired on ABC December 5, 1978. The movie was loosely based on the O. Henry story "The Gift of the Magi." Her co-star in the movie was Timothy Bottoms and she received her first on-screen kiss in this movie.

In 1978, she and Donny released their film ''Goin' Coconuts,'' which was not a financial success. The following year, Marie starred in a sitcom pilot titled "Marie." which did not make the new season schedule and in 1980 she had her own variety show on NBC, also titled ''Marie,'' which only ran for half a season.

Osmond had a recurring role as co-host with Jack Palance on ABC's documentary series ''Ripley's Believe It or Not!'' for two seasons (1985–86), replacing Jack's daughter Holly Palance. She introduced and narrated segments based on the travels and discoveries of oddity-hunter Robert Ripley.

The singer played her mother, Olive, in the TV movie ''Side By Side: The True Story Of The Osmond Family''. She also starred in the TV movie ''I Married Wyatt Earp''.

She returned to television first in the short-lived 1995 ABC sitcom ''Maybe This Time'' and then with brother Donny in 1998 to co-host ''Donny And Marie'', a talk/entertainment show that lasted two seasons.

She appeared as herself in the 2001 TV movie ''Inside The Osmonds'', which showed how the brothers' egos, their father's fiscal mismanagement, and the family's quest to build a multimedia empire led to their downfall. The film was produced by her younger brother, Jimmy Osmond.

In 2006, she was a judge on the short-lived Fox celeb reality show competition ''Celebrity Duets''.

Osmond had a radio show syndicated to adult contemporary radio stations, ''Marie And Friends'' that was canceled after 10 months.

It is reported by Entertainment Tonight that Marie will join the daytime cast of The Bold and the Beautiful, a long running CBS soap opera. A date has not been announced.

Broadway

She appeared in the Broadway musicals ''The King and I'' (as Anna) and ''The Sound of Music'' (as Maria) in the mid-1990s. Marie and her brother Donny recently starred in a new holiday production called ''Donny & Marie – A Broadway Christmas'', which was originally scheduled to play on Broadway at the Marquis Theatre from December 9 – 19, 2010. The show was then extended till December 30, 2010 and again till January 2, 2011.

Other work

''Donny & Marie'' in Las Vegas

The 750-seat showroom at the Flamingo Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada is currently home to "Donny & Marie," a 90-minute variety show. The singing siblings are backed by eight dancers and a nine piece band. Donny and Marie sing together at the beginning and end of the show, and have solo segments in between. They recently extended their contract until October 2012.

''The Marie Osmond Show''

In 2008, Osmond had a new talk show in the works that was to have been taped in Las Vegas, Nevada. However, this project was cancelled before airing.

''Dancing with the Stars''

On August 29, 2007, it was announced that Osmond would appear as a celebrity contestant on the fifth season of the ABC show, paired with Jonathan Roberts, 2004 US Rising Star Latin Champion. On November 27, 2007, Osmond came in third place on the fifth season of Dancing with the Stars.

Doll business

In 1991, Osmond debuted her doll line on QVC. While QVC continues to be a primary source of distribution for her dolls, Osmond also carries her line in retail stores, through internet sales in the USA and worldwide, and direct response. In 2009, Osmond also debuted her dolls on The Shopping Channel in Canada.

Her first sculpture, a toddler doll she created and named after her mother, "Olive May," set a collectible record on QVC. Since then, Osmond has sculpted several dolls, including "Remember Me," "Baby Adora Belle," "Kissy and Huggs" and her hallmark doll, "Adora Belle."

In 2006, Osmond launched an embroidery machine line, a sewing machine line, and embroidery designs through Bernina. She has been featured on the cover of ''Designs in Machine Embroidery''.

In 2009, a 16" vinyl Fashion Doll of Marie Osmond "Grand Finale Fashion" was debuted at Osmond's 50th Birthday party in Las Vegas in celebration of her 50th birthday.

Osmond's doll collection has garnered numerous award nominations, including "Trendsetter of the Year" and Dolls magazine's "Awards of Excellence."

Crafting

In 2010, Osmond published a book of handcrafted project designs, ''Marie Osmond’s Heartfelt Giving: Sew and Quilt for Family and Friends'' (Martingale & Company,). The book contains step-by-step instructions for more than 20 projects, all designed by Osmond. Projects include her “Paper Roses” quilt, bags, aprons, and gifts for babies, teens, friends, and pets. The book also features several childhood photos.

Osmond has a line of sewing machines with Janome and a fabric line with Quilting Treasures.

Children's Miracle Network

Along with actor John Schneider, Osmond co-founded the non-profit organization Children's Miracle Network in 1983. The CMN is dedicated to saving and improving the lives of children by raising funds for children's hospitals across North America.

Nutrisystem spokesperson

As part of the ''Slimsational Stars'', Osmond is currently promoting the Nutrisystem brand of weight loss meals. She has starred in a number of commercials over the past five years.

Personal life

Osmond has been married three times, to two men, and divorced twice and has eight children in total from the two marriages. She married her first husband Stephen Craig, a Brigham Young University basketball player, in 1982. Their only child, Stephen James Craig, was born on April 20, 1983. They divorced in 1985. On October 28, 1986, Osmond married Brian Blosil. While married to Blosil, Osmond had two more children, Rachael Lauren (b. August 1989) and Matthew Richard (b. July 1999). They also adopted five children: Jessica Marie (b. November 1987), Michael Bryan (May 4, 1991 – 2010), Brandon Warren (b. November 1996), Brianna Patricia (b. November 1997), and Abigail Michelle (b. September 2002).

In 1999, Osmond revealed that she had suffered from severe postpartum depression. She co-authored a book called ''Behind the Smile'' with Marcia Wilkie and Dr. Judith Moore which chronicles her experiences with postpartum depression. In August 2006, it was suggested by several U.S. tabloids that she had attempted suicide. These reports were denied by her publicity team, which claimed she had suffered an adverse reaction to a medication she was taking.

On March 30, 2007, Osmond and Blosil announced they were divorcing.

On April 29, 2009, Osmond revealed that her daughter, Jessica, is a lesbian and had been living with her girlfriend for the prior three years in Los Angeles. In interviews Osmond has expressed support for her daughter.

On February 26, 2010, Osmond's son Michael committed suicide by jumping from the eighth floor of his apartment building in Los Angeles. He had reportedly battled depression for most of his life and had been in rehabilitation at the age of 12. The autopsy released on April 21, 2010 revealed that no drugs were found in his system.

On May 4, 2011, Osmond remarried her first husband, Stephen Craig, in a small ceremony in the Las Vegas Nevada Temple wearing her dress from the 1982 wedding.

Discography

1973: ''Paper Roses''

1974: ''In My Little Corner of the World''

1975: ''Who's Sorry Now''

1977: ''This is the Way That I Feel''

1985: ''There's No Stopping Your Heart''

1986: ''I Only Wanted You''

1988: ''All in Love''

1989: ''Steppin' Stone''

2010: ''I Can Do This''

Filmography

''Perry Como Sunshine Show'' (1974) – Guest

''Hugo the Hippo'' (1975) – Vocalist

''Donny and Marie'' (1976) – Herself

''Goin' Coconuts'' (1978) – Marie

''The Gift of Love'' (1978) – Beth Atherton

"The Big Show" (1980) – Host

"Marie" (1980) TV Series – Herself

''The Osmond Family Christmas Special'' (1980) – Herself

''Side by Side: The True Story of the Osmond Family'' (1982) – Olive Osmond

''Rooster'' (1982) – Sister Mae Davis

"The Love Boat" (1982) – Maria Rosselli (2 episodes)

''I Married Wyatt Earp'' (1983) – Josephine 'Josie' Marcus

''Rose Petal Place'' (1984) – Rose Petal

''The Velveteen Rabbit'' (1984) – Fairy Princess and Velveteen Rabbit

''Ripley's Believe It or Not!'' (1985–86) – Co-Host

''Rose Petal Place: Real Friends'' (1985) – Rose Petal

''Marie Osmond's Merry Christmas'' (1986) – Herself

''Television's Christmas Classics'' (1994) – Host

"Maybe This Time" (1995–96) – Julia Wallace

''Buster & Chauncey's Silent Night'' (1998) – Queen (voice)

''O' Christmas Tree'' (1999) – Star (voice)

"Donny & Marie" (1998) – Host

"Dancing With The Stars" (2007) – Third Place

"Dr.Phil" (2007) – Guest

"The Paul O'Grady Show" (2009) – Guest

"The Oprah Winfrey Show" (2010) – Guest

References

External links

Marie Osmond – Official Website

Marie Osmond Dolls – Marie Osmond Dolls News

Marie Osmond Getting Divorced – People Magazine, March 30, 2007

Category:1959 births Category:20th-century actors Category:Actors from Utah Category:American country singers Category:American female singers Category:American Latter Day Saints Category:American musical theatre actors Category:American musicians of English descent Category:American people of Welsh descent Category:American pop singers Category:American television actors Category:American television personalities Category:Living people Category:Musicians from Utah Category:Participants in American reality television series Category:People from Ogden, Utah Category:The Osmonds members

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