D Tuesday, November 10, 2009 METRO 11 Islamic rebels behead teacher MUSLIM militants beheaded a school principal on a remote island in the Philippines after holding him for ransom for three weeks. The victims head was found at a petrol station on Jolo island. He had been kidnapped by al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf rebels who had demanded 2million pesos (28,500) ransom. Elsewhere, Irish priest Fr Michael Sinnott, 79, remains in captivity after his kidnap on October 11, with authorities blaming another, much bigger Muslim rebel group. The government and his Columban order have rejected 1.35million ransom demand. Fans storm out during mimed gigBRITNEY SPEARS is extremely up- set over reports that 100 Australian fans stormed out of her Perth concert after complaints of miming. The embarrassed star said reports of the walk out were totally inaccurate after her show was dubbed boring and stiff by local press. Hitting back, her Circus tour promoter Paul Dainty said: Britney is aware of all this and shes extremely upset by it. Shes a human being. Im embar- rassed... to be part of the Australian me- dia when I see that kind of totally inac- curate reporting, he said. But it wasnt just the media who were disappointed with the show one con- cert goer Wendy Di Renzo, 36, moaned after splashing out 92 ($148Aus) for her ticket. It was so impersonal. She did not interact with her audience, she said. But Mr Dainty said it was a total fabri- cation to suggest that fans had stormed out of the show as early as the third song after paying between 125 to 930 to see the 27-year-old singer who has rebuilt her career after a high-profile meltdown. Spears has been at the centre of debate over lip-synching since she arrived in Australia last week, with New South Wales Fair Trade Minister, Virginia Judge, igniting the debate by saying Australians would not tolerate a Mickey Mouse performance by Spears, who rose to fame as a member of Disneys Mickey Mouse Club TV series. Ms Judge suggested concert tickets should carry disclaimers about whether parts of concerts were pre-recorded and mimed. But Mr Dainty said it was well known that part of Spears concert was lip-synched. Its been all over the internet for nine months, he said. This show is about an incredible spectacle, which it is. Spears manager Adam Leber took to Spears Twitter account to defend the singer to her 3.7million followers. Its unfortunate that one journalist in Perth didnt enjoy the show last night. Fortunately, the other 18,272 fans in at- tendance did Adam, he wrote. The management from Perths Burswood Dome, where Spears show was staged, said that they had not re- ceived any complaints from the 17,000 people who were at the show. Thousands of fans on Spears website and Twitter described her Perth shows as amazing, awesome and brilliant. by andrei harmsworth incredible spectacle: it is well known that spears lip- synches parts of her concert, her manager adam Leber said Britney may be one more mime Only when I laugh... haha, bonk, zzzzzz COMEDY is no laughing matter for Mike Hallowell. If ever you meet him in a pub, whatever you do dont tell him a joke a rib- tickler could make him collapse. Mr Hallowell suffers from a rare condition called cataplexy if he experiences strong emotions, such as laughter, his muscles weaken and he falls to the ground. I was watching Rab C Nesbitt and the phone rang. I stood up, just as there was a really funny bit which made me laugh and then I just fell to the floor, said the 52-year-old, from Newcastle, in the UK. When I fall, it happens really quickly. I just crumple and then Im down. He believes the problem stems from a tooth operation six years ago which affected his brain patterns. But it is not just a cracking episode of Frasier he has to steer clear of. Mr Hallowell also suffers from narcolepsy meaning he falls asleep at odd times. I fall asleep seven or eight times a day but have no recollection of it said the father of three. index.html2.html3.html4.html5.html6.html7.html8.html9.html10.html11.html12.html13.html14.html15.html16.html17.html18.html19.html20.html21.html22.html23.html