Zayn Malik says he is worried that he has let One Direction fans down by leaving the band, but that he could not have carried on in a role that made him unhappy. Malik quit the group on Wednesday, March 25 saying he wanted "to be a normal 22-year-old". He had earlier pulled out of One Direction's world tour, which arrives in Dubai on Saturday, citing stress, and returned to the United Kingdom. He told Britain's The Sun newspaper that "I did try to do something that I wasn't happy doing for a while" to keep fans happy. "I only ever tried to do it for the fans, and it was only ever for them," he said. He added that he felt upset that "I may have let them down in some sort of way. It's not that I've turned my back on them or anything, it's just that I can't do that anymore because it's not real to me". He said his bandmates had been "really supportive" of his decision. "They still want to do it for a while," he said. "I think they're going to be cool." One Direction formed in 2010 after teenagers Harry Styles, Liam Payne, Niall Horan, Louis Tomlinson and Malik auditioned individually for British TV talent show The X Factor and Simon Cowell put them together. They didn't win but went on to top charts and build a devoted following. – AP
Furious 7 ‘deserves an Oscar’, says Vin
Vin Diesel says Furious 7, which was partly filmed in Abu Dhabi, deserves a Best Picture Oscar, but it has two strikes against it with the Academy: it's an action flick and it's a sequel. "Do I shy away from aiming high? No, I don't," said the 47-year-old, who was in Beijing for the Chinese premiere of the latest film in the Fast and Furious franchise. "And yet, we all know that there's a little stigma towards action films. We know it, we've heard people complain about it, we've heard Marvel complain about it, we've heard DC complain about it, and now Harry Potter, The Hunger Games, Batman have never gotten a shot at that." Alluding to the fact that many of the recent Oscar Best Picture winners haven't fared well at the box office, Diesel added: "The Oscars have been somewhat criticised in the past couple of years for maybe not being as populist as they could be, but we have a very powerful movie here." Furious 7, which was produced with local partners Abu Dhabi Film Commission and twofour54, will be released on Thursday. – AP
Spandau Ballet set Dubai date
The British band Spandau Ballet, one of the leading bands of the 1980s New Romantic era, are bringing their Western World tour to Dubai World Trade Centre on Thursday, September 17. "Spandau Ballet are one of the great iconic bands of the 1980s, yet these guys still retain their youthful swagger when on stage," said Thomas Ovesen, the chief operating officer of concert organiser Done Events. "People still talk about their amazing 2010 Dubai show, where together with Rod Stewart they sold out the 20,000-capacity Sevens Stadium." The band have sold more than 25 million records, scored numerous multi-platinum albums and amassed 23 hit singles since they formed in the late 1970s. Tickets start at Dh350 and will go on sale from Sunday, April 12. Visit www.doneevents.com. – The National staff
Clarkson gets job offer from russian tv
A TV station owned by the Russian defence ministry has offered former Top Gear host Jeremy Clarkson a new job. The BBC announced on Wednesday that it wouldn't renew Clarkson's contract after an incident during which he subjected a producer on the show to a sustained torrent of verbal abuse before punching him in the face, because he was angry that there was no hot food being served when he arrived at a hotel during location filming. The Zvezda TV channel published a letter to Clarkson on its website inviting him to visit Moscow next month to discuss launching a motoring show in Russia. – AP
Downton Abbey closing its doors
After weeks of rumours and speculation, the producers of Downton Abbey have confirmed that the forthcoming sixth season of the British TV drama will be its last. It will be broadcast towards the end of this year, with the finale on Christmas Day, and the American screening will follow in the New Year. "Our feeling is that it's good to quit while you're ahead," said the executive producer Gareth Neame. – AP
Obama talks drug strategy with Creator of The Wire
Talk of overhauling the criminal justice system is serious business – but before diving into the subject, US president Barack Obama had something else he wanted to say – he told David Simon, the creator of the acclaimed HBO crime drama The Wire, that he was a huge fan of the programme about life in drug-plagued Baltimore. Obama and Simon sat down last week at the White House for a 12-minute discussion about the arguments for reducing the incarceration rates of nonviolent drug offenders and the need to make cities safer. A video of their conversation was shown at Thursday's Bipartisan Criminal Justice Summit in Washington. Obama said The Wire is not only one of the greatest TV shows ever made, it is one of the greatest "pieces of art" in recent years. –AP
Bond movie hits businesses in Mexico City’s historic downtown
The leader of a group representing small businesses in Mexico City's historic downtown district says owners complained of a 60 per cent drop in sales during the first week of filming of the new James Bond movie, Spectre. Officials announced some streets would be closed in the nearly 500-year-old colonial district between March 19 and April 1. Gerardo Lopez Becerra, head of the city's small business chamber, says his group appreciates the publicity generated by the film but that some employees haven't been allowed to go to work and the street closures scared away customers. He said the city should help business affected by frequent closures in the downtown area due to street protests, festivals and filming. –AP
Renowned Pentangle guitarist John Renbourn dies
The masterful acoustic guitarist John Renbourn, a founding member of British folk-jazz band Pentangle in the 1960s, has died at his home in Scotland. He was 70. His manager, Dave Smith, called him “a huge character”, and said it was thought he had suffered a heart attack. “He was always playing and teaching. That is what he loved doing and he never stopped,” Smith added. Scottish police said the musician’s body was found on Thursday night at his home in the Scottish Borders region. There were no suspicious circumstances. Renbourn teamed up with the late Bert Jansch to form the backbone of the band Pentangle, which played contemporary and traditional folk songs. They played complicated ballads and folk tales from the Renaissance era, bringing centuries-old music to contemporary audiences. “He was a very inspirational performer, widely known all over the world, even though it was not mainstream music,” said Smith. He added that he had become concerned when Renbourn failed to show up for a concert with guitarist Wizz Jones in Glasgow and asked police to check his home. – AP
Nobel-winning Swedish poet Tomas Transtromer dead at 83
The Swedish poet and Nobel Literature Prize-winner Tomas Transtromer has died at the age of 83. Anna Tillgren, a spokeswoman for Publisher Bonniers, said that the reclusive writer died on Thursday after a short illness. In famous collections such as the 1966 Windows and Stones, Transtromer used imaginative metaphors to describe the mysteries of the human mind. His work has been translated into more than 50 languages and influenced poets across Europe, the Middle East and the Americas. In 2011 he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature. Transtromer debuted at age 23 with the collection Seventeen Poems and later divided his time between poetry and his work as a psychologist. He is survived by his wife Monika and their two daughters, Emma and Paula. –AP
