Sophie Monk suing driver over 2010 car crash.

AUSTRALIAN singer and actress Sophie Monk is reportedly suing the driver allegedly responsible for a 2010 car crash that left her temporarily in a wheelchair.

Monk, once a member of pop group Bardot, has filed papers at Los Angeles County Superior Court claiming she was left with “severe injuries” when a Ford Explorer collided with the Prius she was riding in, according .

The website says Monk is suing the driver of the Ford, Delvinder Sing Bains, alleging she was unable to work after the the crash and also faced hefty medical bills.

Days after the crash Monk was spotted being rolled around in a wheelchair with her foot wrapped in bandages.

Logies stars rocked frocks with very few shocks.

DEMURE was the main order on the fashion menu (well, for almost everyone) when the red carpet was last night rolled out for Australia’s answer to The Emmy Awards – The Logies.

Classic summer evening wear was on display at Melbourne’s Crown Casino complex but don’t go getting jealous – it was one night but weeks in the making for the small screen stars and models who turned out for the annual TV gongs.

“I can hardly breathe,” Natalie Bassingthwaighte joked to Confidential.

Our best-dressed accolades would have to go to Asher Keddie, Carrie Bickmore and Lisa Wilkinson, with the “What The?” award firmly in the hand of new mum Kat Stewart.

Weird.

While many skipped the yellowfin tuna entree and rib-eye main in order to stay sleek, LA rapper Flo Rida was spotted backstage tucking into some pre-performance fried chicken … as you do.

For the first time network stylists – besides Channel 7, who this year did not dress their stars – asked talent that all borrowed frocks be returned before the after parties to prevent them being sent back to the designers, as Alex Perry explained, “virtually unrecognisable”.

Speaking of Seven, the absence of their stars did not go unnoticed, with the likes of Brian McFadden, Grant Denyer and Brynne Edelsten sent to the taping of Dancing With The Stars in an attempt to pull focus from Nine’s crowd-pulling coverage.

Many high-profile celebrities opted to take the safe route by donning black gowns with simple silhouettes.

The Voice roars into top ratings

The irony of being discovered during the “blind” auditions of the hottest new talent search series in local TV history is not lost on the cheeky teen, who won over the superstar coaches with her voice before they heard her inspiring story.

The emotion-charged episode touched local diva Delta Goodrem, moving her to share her own against-the-odds victory over cancer.

Goodrem went on to say: “Rachael is an extraordinary human being who has a very unique talent – her voice. Her voice left me no other choice but to turn my chair.

“Rachael has a gift which is truly special and her story is an inspiration. I have no doubt that we will be a great team and I am honoured that she chose me as her coach.”

It was a mentoring match made in TV heaven – with Leahcar’s angelic performance of Edith Piaf’s La Vie En Rose now set to be a guaranteed YouTube and iTunes hit.

While SuBo struggled with her instant fame at 48, the Adelaide teenager has embraced her reality TV opportunity with humour.

“I was the first to draw their attention to the irony of (the blind auditions). I think it’s hilarious,” she said last night. But the overwhelming reaction from the live audience was almost the young singer’s undoing. “When I first heard them cheering I was just overwhelmed with emotion that people would be cheering for me,” she said. “It was the best feeling in the world, ever, for anyone to experience.” Her performance should also cement The Voice as the breakout hit of 2012, setting a ratings record for the biggest audience ever for a talent show on debut. Despite competition from Channel 7’s stalwart celebrity series Dancing With The Stars, Nine has fought its way back in the ratings race with The Voice peaking at more than 4 million viewers nationally on Sunday night (averaging 2.18 million for the five-city metro audience). Even with the sensational return of Kerri-Anne Kennerley to the small screen and a stunning routine by Mrs Russell Crowe, Danielle Spencer, DWTS was forced to settle with just 1.076 million viewers.

The Voice’s second song just as strong

Pulling at heart-strings during The Voice premiere, Central Coast teen Karise Eden, a former State ward turned soul singer, scorched her way into Team Seal on Sunday night.

Chanelling every dark moment of her disrupted childhood, Eden said her success on the show had even brought her to tears.

“I’ve actually been getting a bit teary watching it back, going ‘gosh that was me…I’m one of those people off TV now.”’

With a sound compared to Janis Joplin, Amy Winehouse and Joss Stone, the 19-year-old found herself flying up the iTunes single charts with her performance of Joplin’s It’s A Man’s World.

The sales response, sitting her at number 20 last night, at one stage put her ahead of established music names including Justin Timberlake, Flo Rida and Chris Brown.

The power of the program also pushed Regina Spektor’s Samson single back into the charts, after it was performed by The Voice contestant Casey Withoos.

Eden was at the centre of a four-way battle between the celebrity coaches, with Seal winning out and sweeping the teen up in the air.

“He picked me up and I felt like Simba (in The Lion King). In my head, I was singing (starts to hum Circle Of Life). I felt like Simba and he was presenting me, in a sense, to the world. It was pretty awesome,” she laughed.

Eden says “pure determination” is what has helped her turn her troubled past into a brighter future.

“If anything I know this has helped grow me. I wouldn’t be the singer I am today if I didn’t have the life that I’ve lived. I wouldn’t have the emotion, I wouldn’t have the baggage…I wouldn’t sing from that spot that brings the raw emotion.

“At the end of the day, as much as it may depress me what’s happened in my past, to just stand here and see there’s a lot of people who like how I sing and what I do means it did me a greater good…to channel that emotion.”

More raw talent was uncovered in episode 2, with these six singers moving through to the battle rounds:

SARAH DE BONO, 19, Melbourne for Team Joel

PERFORMED: Jessie J’s Price Tag

SARAH’S passion for music and bright personality were hard to miss when she took to The Voice stage. With a shock of dyed scarlett hair and a voice to reflect her pop, soul and R&B talents, the primary school music teacher is determined to leave her mark.

CAM TAPP, 40, Melbourne for Team Keith

PERFORMED: Five For Fighting’s Superman

CAM the family man loves his life as a stay-at-home-dad to twin sons. But the desire to chase his musical dreams lead him to audition for The Voice. Winning early attention from Seal and Keith Urban, he caused some friction when he finished his performance by singing “I’m so glad that’s over.” Seen as a negative by Seal, it was explained later by Joel Madden as Australians “taking the piss out of themselves.”

LAURA BUNTING, 24, Sydney for Team Joel

PERFORMED: Kate Bush’s Wuthering Heights

LAURA has found herself a place on the stage, scoring roles in the recent production of Wicked. But is ready to take the next step in her musical career. Inspired by the style of Kate Bush, herself the discovery of UK talent series, Opportunity Knocks, Bunting will add the quirk factor to The Voice Australia.

BRETT CLARKE, 26, Tamworth for Team Keith

PERFORMED: Keith Urban’s Making Memories Of Us
BRETT has idolised Keith Urban almost his whole life. So to stand in front of his musical hero and perform one of the global superstar’s biggest hits was a risk – that paid off. Urban praised his bravery for attempting the song he penned and making it his own. The road to Nashville for Clarke starts here.

YSHRAEL PASCUAL, 33, Melbourne for Team Seal

PERFORMED: The Rolling Stones’ Miss You

YSHRAEL has been a carpet cleaner in his family’s business since leaving high school. It’s not the life or the dream he wants to follow, braving The Voice audition for a new shot and new direction. With a flamboyant style, reminiscent of Adam Lambert on American Idol, the singer has come close to musical fame before: offered a publishing deal with Mushroom Records in 2008. Will he make it this time around?

CHRIS SEBASTIAN, 33, Melbourne for Team Seal

PERFORMED: Beyonce’ Halo
CHRIS is desperate to step out from the shadow of his famous brother, Australian Idol winner Guy Sebastian. A singer in his own right since the age of 15, it has been difficult to establish his own career outside of his semi-professional roles as a singing teacher and music producer. Recognised instantly by Guy’s gal pal Delta, he instead chose Seal who promised to make him work hard to win the competition.

RACHAEL LEAHCAR, 18, Adelaide for Team Delta

PERFORMED: Edith Piaf’s La Vie En Rose

RACHAEL is the first to joke she put the blind into this series’ blind audition. With just 10 per cent vision, the sometime wedding singer took to the stage with the aid of a producer. Her angelic captivated all four coaches who turned their chairs around before discovering the young singer had no idea if she had been successful. Her inspiring story touched Delta Goodrem, who bonded with her young fan over her own battle with cancer.

Thieves strike during bridal fashion show, take models’ gear

Thieves took advantage of the commotion during preparations for a hotel bridal fashion show to steal high-end electronic gadgets, jewelry and cash worth close to P200,000 in Makati City on Wednesday.

Bridal gown retailer Jacqueline Periquet, 33, of Salcedo Village in Makati City, filed a complaint in a Makati City police station claiming that six of her companions, including two fashion models, a modeling agency owner, and a photographer, were robbed of their belongings at the Joaquin Guerrero holding room of the Manila Peninsula Hotel along Makati Avenue in Barangay Urdaneta.

PO2 Julio Valle Jr, of the Makati City police station investigation and detective management branch, said the thieves could have stolen the items sometime between 4:30 p.m. and 6 p.m. during the fashion show at the hotel’s conservatory function room.

Valle said that before the incident, Periquet and her group left their belongings inside the holding room to join the fashion show.

Make-up artist Janina Dizon, who was the last to leave the room, however, forgot to lock the door.

When the group returned two hours later, they discovered their belongings were missing.

Commercial model Joy Hendrickson said she lost a Macbook Air laptop computer, her Blackberry phone and P3,000 in cash; Tanya Dizon of Aleo modeling agency  also lost P5,000 in  cash; ramp model Maffy Soler lost a Samsung Galaxy mobile phone; modeling agency staff Bernice Recto, a Toshiba laptop computer; fashion photographer Owee Salva, his professional camera lens, while Dizon  lost a diamond ring and P2,000  in cash.

Valle said the thieves could have discovered   the unlocked  door to the room and helped themselves to the belongings inside.

He said  he has requested the hotel’s security manager, Raul Mangubat, for copies of the hotel’s closed circuit television footage to check the suspects’ identities.

Chloe Glassie crowned Girlfriend Rimmel Australian Model of the Year

A 13-YEAR-old girl boasting Irish, Croatian and Pacific Islander heritage today won the same competition that launched the careers of international Australian models Abbey-Lee Kershaw, Catherine McNeil and Ruby Rose.

Sydney’s Chloe Glassie was named the Girlfriend Rimmel Australian Model of the Year at this afternoon’s event at Circular Quay’s ECQ Bar and will feature on the cover of the magazine’s December issue.

The prize also nets her a two-year local modelling contract, Rimmel products and the opportunity to meet with a New York modelling agency.

Girlfriend editor Sarah Tarca said: “There is no doubt that Chloe possess the qualities the competition embodies – she’s outgoing, confident, bubbly, and possesses a vibrant fresh, diverse look.

“In a year when we had more interest than ever before, it’s a wonderful achievement for each of the girls. We wish Chloe the very best of luck.”

In an earlier interview with her local paper, the 178cm tall girl from Kellyville Ridge in northwest Sydney said she had always wanted to be a model:

“I love taking photos and doing the catwalk and trying on different clothes,” she told the Rouse Hill Times.

The other finalists were: Queensland’s Dominique Roussetos and Monique Jensen; from New South Wales Yasmeena Osman, Isabella Vick, Rebecca Dupain and Zara Dobbie-Smitham and South Australia’s Claudia Reed.

GIRLS as young as 13 are being sought by a Australian modelling agencies which has described 16-year-olds as “too old” for the international industry.

Gear Model Management director Dragan Dimovski said other Australian modelling agencies were “very conservative” about the minimum age of the girls they employ, The Daily Telegraph reported.

In a bid to find young models to add to its books, the boutique agency is launching a talent search across Sydney next month and is inviting entries from males and females between the ages of 13 and 19.

Head booking agent Naomi Fitzgerald de Grave, a former model, said girls were missing out on international modelling work because they were not starting young enough.

“I know people may think that 13 is very young, but that’s what the international brands are currently looking for in Europe. Models are too old at 16 now,” she said.

“Australians are precluding themselves (from international modelling). They start later and then build up a reputation here, but they go to Asia or Europe and get shut down.

“From personal experience I know I didn’t really make it until I was 18, and the opportunities were limited due to my age and size.”

Ms Fitzgerald de Grave said international catwalks were after smaller sizes than local designers. “Australian modelling agencies is going towards the healthy body image and that’s great for Australia and New Zealand,” she said.

“But in Europe the demand is for smaller girls.”

Australian modelling agencies currently has a number of teenagers on its books, the youngest being 14.

Mr Dimovski said decisions about any work the girls take would be made by the models and their parents. “We also firmly believe in the girls staying at school,” he said.

The agency’s search for young models comes three years after public outrage at plans for 14-year-old model Monika Jagaciak to appear on the catwalk at Australian Fashion Week.

As a result, AFW organisers dumped the model and imposed a minimum age limit of 16 on models appearing on the catwalk at the event.

Social commentator Melinda Tankard Reist yesterday described plans to employ 13-year-old models as “exploitative”. “It’s teaching girls from a young age that physical appearance is the only thing that matters,” she said.

“It’s also putting pressure on them to conform to a certain body shape when there is already a huge amount of pressure on girls to look a certain way.”

The Gear model search will be launched on December 10 and will feature events across Sydney with prizes worth $20,000 up for grabs.

Sara Tetro is used to dealing with models – as owner of the Auckland agency 62 Models and as judge of New Zealand’s Next Top Model - but she’s also familiar with models of the four-wheeled variety.

Over the past 16 years, Sara has owned a variety of Audi models – first an A4, then a couple of all-road Quattros, an A6 wagon with a TV screen for rear passengers (a hit with her young daughters), and a Q7.

But as a recently appointed ambassador for Audi New Zealand, Sara’s had the chance to judge some new Audi S5s, first the sportback, then the cabriolet (again, a hit with her daughters), plus an A5 diesel that wins Sara’s praise for its thriftiness.

Sara joins MasterChef judge and restaurateur Simon Gault and Huffer designer Steve Dunstan as an Audi ambassador – a move by the marque to extend its profile.

“Sara’s values align beautifully with Audi’s values and she’s genuinely passionate about our brand and about sharing it with New Zealanders,” says Audi NZ’s Fiona Woolley.

“For us it was a natural progression to invite Sara to join us as an official Audi ambassador.”

Sara was already a confirmed Audi owner, so when she was approached about the ambassador role, she initially didn’t think it needed to be formalised.

“My first reaction was ‘I love the product … you guys have always made me feel like an important customer, I’m more than happy to just help’.”

But Audi NZ has big plans for Sara and, since she’s officially become an ambassador, she’s filmed extensively for the company’s website – racing at Waikato’s Hampton Downs track, reporting from NZ Fashion Week and at Queenstown for the Audi Ice Experience.

On Thursday, Sara was back at Hampton Downs as Audi ambassadors took to the race track as part of a Facebook promotion for the company.

The three official representatives picked three celebrities to join them in a series of exercises on the track, while fans on the social media site had a chance to become part of the teams.

Team Tetro was Jay-Jay Feeney from The Edge radio station, racing driver Mitch Evans, rugby player Anthony Borich and two Facebook fans, Joanne Wedding and Shannon Zaloum.

Last week, Sara polished her skills at Hampton Downs during Audi’s Ladies Day at the track, where female owners had the chance to learn all about the car’s safety features.

For Sara, such an experience for any driver is invaluable.

“They put us on skid pads and turn off the ESP – which I discovered wasn’t a misspelling of a television network – and you really have no control over the car.

“To learn to be able to use the tools that are in the car, the reasons they are there and to understand how the vehicle responds under different conditions [is vital]. If you are unfortunate enough to find yourself in trouble, it’ll be second-nature rather than panic.”

Sara knows first-hand how such lessons can help. She was driving in Auckland a couple of years ago when a car pulled out of a side street ahead of her.

She knew she couldn’t stop in time, so instead stepped on the accelerator and drove around the offending vehicle before safely coming to a stop.

“I had my daughter in the car at the time, in her booster seat, and if the other driver had hit my car, she would have been the one to be injured,” says Sara.

Sara’s an advocate for keeping children in booster seats until they are aged 12, or more than 148cm tall – as her daughters know very well.

She also firmly believes drivers should hold on to the steering wheel correctly and not sit so far back from the controls that they can’t apply the brakes correctly.

Not that Sara was braking much on Thursday as Team Tetro took to the Hampton Downs track.

Vietnam names contestant for modeling competition

MAVADO MODEL AGENCY’S ‘A Night at the Opera/Cabaret’, held on Sunday, Nov. 20, was an entertaining and delightful night with well choreographed routines and amazing designs.

Jason Amory, CEO and Director of the Agency and choreographer of the modeling and dance routines, in the opinion of many, had outdone himself with this production.Amory said that he has been receiving positive feedback from those who attended the event.

“People have been meeting me and telling me how great the show was and I’m very happy for that,” he said.Amory extended gratitude to the sponsors including National Bank and Lime and also to the models who have been working hard.It is true that hard work pays off and that was definitely the case as Amory had the models preparing for the event since February of this year.The designs showcased were those of Island Hopper, Caribelle Batik, SK Fashion Plus, Kielroy Wear, Zacumba (African Designs), Brown Sugar and i-Rep SKN.

The models performed their dance routines which included a market dance and a rhumba dance, wearing designs by Gem’s Fashion.The well attended event, which was held at the Sir Cecil Jacobs Auditorium at ECCB was part of the Tourism Month of Activities.One of the segments featured the models adorned in lovely gowns as they flowed on the stage in unison.Amory, whose name is synonymous with fashion and modeling, is also skilled in choreography and runway training.  He said that his love for classical music was the setting of the show.Some of the models included National Carnival Queen, Iantavian Queeley who also did a duet dance performance with male model Yanero Henry.For some time the Bank had been having talks about promoting the ‘Black Credit Card’ with male and female models dressed in fierce black outfits.A special modeling segment to advertise the St. Kitts-Nevis-Anguilla National Bank’s new credit card was also a part of the show. The fashionable dance promotion came to reality and made a splash on stage at the show.

The timeless designs of Judith Rawlin’s Brown Sugar pieces were superb! Her various silk and urban pieces with trendy, sleek and sexy styles were showcased instead of her usual signature linen cuts.

The audience loved her showing.

Amory also extended thanks to his team and to photographers Akema Gillard and Wendell Pemberton.

Mavado Model Agency has been around for 11 years and celebrated their 10th annual fashion event.

Amory has been modelling for over two decades and started his career with Classique Model Agency which was the brainchild of his friend, Angela Benjamin.

Five modelling agencies may appeal against fines

Five of the 10 modelling agencies fined this week by the Competition Commission of Singapore (CCS) for price-fixing are considering an appeal against the decision.

Bees Work Casting, Diva Models, Impact Studio, Looque Models Singapore and Quest Model Management said in an email statement that they were “disappointed” with the decision of the CCS.

Their coming together to form the Association of Modelling Industry Professionals (AMIP) in early 2005 was to “uplift and upgrade” the image and professionalism of the modelling industry, they said. The CCS had said in its ruling that the forming of the AMIP was part of the agencies’ attempt to fix prices.

“Our hope was that, through the AMIP, we would be able to collectively address and resolve the concerns and problems that beset the modelling industry and to provide a measure of discipline, regulation and professionalism to the industry,” the five agencies said in a statement.

“In this regard, it is regrettable that whilst the actions of the AMIP had managed to bring local wages for models closer in-line with regional rates, this seems to have brought us into legal difficulty.”

The competition watchdog on Wednesday slapped 10 modelling agencies with fines ranging from S$3,000 to S$132,000.

The five agencies said that they would be conferring with their legal counsel whether to appeal against the decision.

Today understands that the AMIP has been inactive since 2006.