Queima das Fitas

A Queima das Fitas de Coimbra, que arranca esta noite com a Serenata Monumental, prevê gastar cerca de 1,5 milhões de euros, valor semelhante ao do ano passado, segundo fonte da organização. A contenção de custos é a palavra de ordem entre as hostes estudantis que, apesar de se tratar do 110º aniversário da festa académica, não embarcam em grandes voos.
'O sucesso desta edição irá depender, acima de tudo, da nossa capacidade de agradar à comunidade estudantil, com espectáculos de interesse. Mas há factores como o medo da crise e a contenção de despesas das pessoas que podem determinar uma maior adesão à queima', explicou ao CM Rita Borges, presidente da Comissão Central da Queima das Fitas.
Este ano, por se assinalar o aniversário, é especial para a organização por coincidir com um ano negro para a economia dos estudantes: 'Até agora, a venda de bilhetes não tem sido má. Este será o ano em que vamos ver a real importância da Queima das Fitas para os estudantes e para a cidade. Apesar da crise instalada, se tivermos o mesmo número de pessoas que em anos anteriores, significa que é algo de que as pessoas não estão dispostas a abdicar'.
Milhares de pessoas são esperadas hoje à noite junto à Sé Velha de Coimbra para assistir à Serenata Monumental. As condições meteorológicas é que parecem não querer ajudar à festa. Segundo o Instituto de Meteorologia são esperados períodos de chuva durante a noite para a região de Coimbra.
O momento alto dos festejos é domingo com a realização do Cortejo dos Grelados, no qual participam 110 carros alegóricos. Para esse dia o Instituto de Meteorologia aponta para céu limpo e temperaturas a rondar os 25 graus.

PORTO COM 2 MILHÕES
Outra Queima das Fitas que está pronta a arrancar é a do Porto. O orçamento para este ano é de dois milhões de euros.

Gripe Suína

Fã Matthew Perry quer actuar Lost

Matthew Perry, que interpretou o Chandler Bing na extinta série Friends, quer atuar em Lost. Fã de carteirinha do seriado de mistério e ação, Perry revelou que não perde um episódio. Por isso, não hesitaria aceitar um papel na trama. "Eu quero participar de Lost, mas acho que muitas pessoas perguntariam: 'O que o Chandler está fazendo nesta ilha'? Sou viciado na série. Inclusive, vivo entrando nos blogs e foros, para saber mais sobre ela", contou.

Miguel Gomes recebe prémios em Guadalajara

"Aquele querido mês de Agosto", segunda longa-metragem de Miguel Gomes, conquistou dois prémios do júri internacional no festival de Guadalajara (México). O filme continua a sua caminhada vitoriosa a nível mundial.
Estreado mundialmente há quase um ano, em Cannes, "Aquele querido mês de Agosto" - que nos conta uma história de amor no meio de uma digressão pelos bailes populares de Verão na Beira Baixa, além de reflectir sobre o próprio processo de produção - continua a sua caminhada vitoriosa em vários festivais de todo o Mundo. Depois de ser premiado em Viena, Valdivia (no Chile), São Paulo e Las Palmas, o filme conquistou nada menos que dois prémios do júri internacional, presidido pelo prestigiado cineasta mexicano Arturo Ripstein, na 24.ª edição do Festival Internacional de Cinema em Guadalajara, hoje um dos mais importantes eventos cinematográficos do espaço ibero- -americano.
Em representação do realizador, que já não se encontrava em Guadalajara, Luís Urbano, produtor do filme, subiu primeiro ao palco do auditório TelMex para receber a menção honrosa referente ao som, premiando o traba-lho de Vasco Pimentel, que mandou uma mensagem a saudar a primeira vez que um filme seu fora visto por um júri que não era surdo. Mais tarde, e na companhia do actor Joaquim Carvalho, Luís Urbano teve o momento da noite, ao partilhar o Prémio Especial do Júri com o cantor Manu Chao, protagonista do escândalo do festival, ao denunciar um massacre por parte das forças policiais ocorrido há três anos numa pequena localidade mexicana.
Entretanto, "La teta asustada", da peruana Cláudia Llosa, obteve o prémio de Melhor Filme na secção competitiva ibero-americana.

The world

Kadjugama village, Sri Lanka: Three-wheeler taxis for sale line up along the main Kandy highway, waiting for buyers. The economic slow down in Sri Lanka has seen many taxi owners trying to sell their vehicles while the number of buyers has dwindled

Smangus, Taiwan: A Taiya aboriginal villager walks through a sustainable bamboo forest

Guwahati, India: A leopard growls after it fell into a well while in search of food. The leopard was tranquilised by zoo officials and taken to Guwahati Zoo. This is the second leopard that has been rescued from this populated area within a month

Gothenburg, Sweden: Students in fancy dress sit on a bench to participate in the Earth Hour climate campaign

Jakarta, Indonesia: A computer keyboard lies covered in mud, inside a house damaged when a dam burst

Dark Knight scoops Empire Awards

The second film in the rebooted Batman franchise, The Dark Knight, has taken home three prizes at the Empire Awards.
Christopher Nolan and Christian Bale won best director and actor, while the movie won the title of best film.
The late Heath Ledger also received a special commemoration award for his life works at the ceremony in London.
Voted for by readers of the monthly film magazine, the awards attracted luminaries such as Tim Burton, Danny Boyle, James McAvoy and Gemma Arterton.
Arterton won best newcomer - a prize for which she had been nominated two years running.
"It's quite scary, because now I'm a proper actress," she told the BBC.
Danny Boyle on the success of Slumdog Millionaire
"But it's actually nice to have moved on from being a newcomer."

Bond movie Quantum Of Solace, in which Arterton had a brief role, took home Best Thriller, while McAvoy collected the best sci-fi prize for Wanted.
Helena Bonham Carter dedicated her best actress prize for Sweeney Todd to her partner - and the film's director - Tim Burton.
"I always wanted to be in a musical, always wanted to sing, always wanted to be in something written by Stephen Sondheim and I always wanted a baby girl," she said.
"I got all of those, thanks to Tim Burton". Slumdog Millionaire director Boyle was presented with the Outstanding Contribution To British Film prize by Andy Bishop, Paul Scott and Alan Knill from his favourite football team, Bury.
The director said the award marked the end of his duties for the Mumbai-set drama and that he was "going to start work tomorrow morning" on his next project.
"It's a lovely feeling getting all these awards," he said, "but you've got to get back on the bicycle at some point".

Australian actor Russell Crowe was also present at the ceremony to collect the Actor Of Our Lifetime prize.
He took to the stage and recited Rudyard Kipling's poem If - a sly reference to the 2002 Bafta awards, where his recitation of Patrick Kavanagh's Sanctity was edited out of the television broadcast.
"Thank you for this honour," he concluded, "and the opportunity to read some poetry at a British awards ceremony.
"It's one of my favourite things to do. Thank you and good night."
Viggo Mortensen, best-known as Aragorn in the Lord Of The Rings trilogy, was also named Empire Icon for his contribution to world cinema.
Other awards on the night went to coming-of-age tale Son Of Rambow, which won best comedy, and gangster caper RockNRolla, which took home Best British Film.
Director Guy Ritchie was present to accept the award, but refused to speak to the press - on the day that his ex-wife Madonna arrived in Malawi, where she wants to adopt a young girl called Mercy James.
None of the stars of The Dark Knight were able to pick up the film's awards in person, but both Nolan and Bale sent video messages.
"When you make a film like Dark Knight you really hope it reaches a lot of people, and Empire and its readers are really a great audience," said Nolan. "Thank you very much."

Film composer Maurice Jarre dies

French composer Maurice Jarre, best known for his music for Hollywood films, has died in Los Angeles at 84, after suffering from cancer.

His breakthrough came in 1962 when he wrote the score for Lawrence of Arabia, for which he was awarded an Oscar.
He won two further Oscars for Doctor Zhivago and A Passage to India, and composed music for more than 150 films.

Robbie meets Take That in studio

Robbie Williams has started recording his new solo album - at the same studio complex where Take That are working.
Williams' album, due out this autumn, is being produced by Trevor Horn, who has crafted hits for Frankie Goes To Hollywood, ABC and Seal.
Horn's west London headquarters is also being used by Gary Barlow.
"They're all in the building. Gary is in one of the rooms and Robbie's there, so they bump into each other and they get on brilliantly well," Horn said.
Horn, whose Sarm West complex has four recording studios, described Williams and his former bandmates as "really good friends".
Williams recently said it would be "fun" to rejoin his old bandmates, and that a return was "looking more likely by the week".

It is possible that the fivesome will get back together on stage as a one-off appearance, potentially during the group's summer stadium tour.
But Williams' spokesman stressed that there were no current plans for him to take part in full concerts with the group or record new material with them.
"He is fully focused on getting the album together and there are no plans for a Take That reunion," the spokesman said.
Speaking to BBC News, Horn described Williams as "without a doubt one of the best singers I've ever worked with".
Williams has been largely out of the spotlight since 2006, when he released his last album Rudebox and went on a world tour.


Rudebox was a relative commercial and critical disappointment, ending up as the 41st best selling album of 2006 in the UK.

The forthcoming release will be his last album under his current contract with EMI.
Horn has been in the bands The Buggles, Yes and Art of Noise, and won the Brit Award for best British producer three times in the 1980s and '90s.
He helped shape the 1980s pop sound through production work including Frankie Goes To Hollywood's Relax and Two Tribes, and ABC's chart-topping 1982 album The Lexicon of Love.
He won a Grammy Award in 1995 for Seal's Kiss from a Rose and produced the Pet Shop Boys' 2006 album Fundamental.
On Friday, Horn received a lifetime achievement award from the Radio Academy at its Radio & Music Forum in London.

Tibete reabre ao turismo mundial dia 5 de Abril

A reabertura foi noticiada pela agência oficial chinesa, citando um funcionário do turismo local.
"O Tibete voltará a receber turistas a partir de 05 de Abril e nós vamos saúda-los calorosamente", disse Bachug, líder da Administração de Turismo da Região Autónoma do Tibete,
Segundo o mesmo responsável, o "trabalho preparatório" para o território voltar a receber turistas "foi suspenso em Março para garantir a segurança dos viajantes", mas "agora o Tibete está harmonioso e seguro".
"Agências de viagens, resorts e hotéis estão bem preparados para os turistas", acrescentou.
Até agora -- disse também Bachug -- "mais de cem grupos de turistas estrangeiros registaram-se para visitar o Tibete".
Em Março de 2008, o Tibete foi palco de violentos tumultos e este ano assinala o 50º aniversário da frustrada rebelião que levou ao exílio do dalai-lama, em 10 de Março de 1959.