HARRY POTTER star EMMA WATSON has a secret artistic hobby - she loves to paint portraits of friends and family. The 20-year-old actress will turn her focus to her studies when she enrols at the prestigious Brown University in Rhode Island later this year (09).   She plans to schedule her filming commitments to Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the final two-part film of the wizard franchise, around her school holidays, but admits she would happily trade in the camera for an easel.   She tells America's Interview magazine, "I love painting people and expressions and faces. I've always done art, though not a lot of people know it."

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ZAC EFRON keeps HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL posters in the trunk of his car - so he can bribe security guards at Hollywood studios to shield him from paparazzi. The actor is hot property in Tinseltown - thanks, in part, to his romance with actress Vanessa Hudgens - and is among the top targets for Los Angeles' intrepid tabloid photographers, who stalk his every move.   Efron endures daily battles with snooping snappers, but is convinced he has found the ideal hiding spot - he disappears into an un-named L.A. studio lot whenever he's being followed.   The 21-year-old explains to GQ magazine, "I've kinda got it figured out. I just pull into the lot, and they can't follow me."   But the High School Musical star admits there's a cost to the cunning hiding spot - he has to pay off security guards with signed memorabilia.   Efron adds, "The first time I did it, they weren't going to let me in. The guy at the gate was like, 'What are you gonna do for ...

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Disney star DEMI LOVATO is calling upon education chiefs to take urgent action against school bullies - to curb teen suicides. The 16 year old actress/singer was targeted by thugs in the classroom and eventually resorted to taking lessons at home to avoid her tormentors.   And now she has called on officials to act against the scourge of bullying after reading the heartbreaking story of an 11 year old victim who took his own life.   In a posting on the social networking website Twitter.com, Demi Lovato writes: "THIS is what verbal harassment can cause. Something HAS to be done. It honestly amazes me how schools refuse to take action in verbal abuse... they SAY they do, but this (is) what ends up happening. So, so sad.   "I can't explain what I went through when I left public school to start homeschooling. One day I will. But right now... Just know what you say to someone can effect (sic) them for the rest of their life."

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ROBERT PATTINSON fears he has ruined his chances of finding love - because his life is so crazy, he would never expect a girlfriend to put up with it. The actor has enjoyed a meteoric rise to fame after landing the lead role of Edward Cullen in cult vampire movie Twilight.   Despite becoming one of Hollywood's hottest hunks overnight, Robert Pattinson insists fame and fortune haven't come without a price - because the constant interest in his life has made him a "paranoid wreck".   And the actor isn't sure he could bring a partner into his spotlight because the pressure of having a famous boyfriend would be too hard.   He admits to Entertainment Tonight, "I'm always really worried about ruining their (girlfriends) lives.   "Especially with people that aren't famous. It's such a massive change. I'm kind of a paranoid wreck.   "It's getting photographed. You have people who analyse your facial expressions to the tiniest ...

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Heartthrob ZAC EFRON is ready to ditch his pretty boy image and star as a crime fighter in a big screen cop drama. The actor is frustrated he only gets offered roles in teen comedies and musicals - but accepts he needs to earn the right to get meatier parts.   Zac Efron tells GQ magazine "A guy I worked with recently told me, 'You have to earn the right to hold a gun.' And that completely made sense. Can you imagine me running around with a gun in a film?   "I noticed the second I started that the things you want to be involved with are always just out of reach. Most parts you'd want, people won't really consider you for, because you have to earn that respect."

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Actress EMMA WATSON is planning her movie career around her university schedule - she will film HARRY POTTER scenes during school holidays. The 20-year-old vowed to put acting on hold to concentrate on her degree, which she'll begin later this year (09).   But Emma Watson will have to work through her Christmas and Easter breaks as she's required on the set of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the final two-part film of the wizard franchise.   She tells Interview magazine, "We’re filming both the seventh and eighth movies at once, and I’m trying to do all of my scenes now and through the summer so I’ll be available for university come September - though it already looks like I’ll be working on Christmas and March breaks."

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JESSE McCARTNEY and RYAN TEDDER have been honoured for penning LEONA LEWIS' smash-hit BLEEDING LOVE - they've received the top prize at the American Society of Composers, Authors + Performers (ASCAP) Pop Music Awards. The duo was handed the the Song of The Year prize at Wednesday night's (22Apr09) ceremony.   Music moguls Simon Cowell and Clive Davis picked the song as Leona Lewis' breakout hit after she won British talent show X Factor - and she took it to the top of the charts all over the globe.   A thrilled Jesse McCartney told the Los Angeles gala, "Being recognised by ASCAP is a great honour as a songwriter, and I am very grateful for this award. The success of this song would not have been possible without Leona's stunning vocals and amazing approach."

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MILEY CYRUS is celebrating another number one - the soundtrack to HANNAH MONTANA: THE MOVIE has crept to the top of the album charts four weeks after it was released. The compilation, which features songs by Miley Cyrus, her dad Billy Ray Cyrus and pal Taylor Swift, has reached topped  the Billboard chart with impressive fourth-week sales of 133,000.   The Hannah Montana film debuted at the top of the box office over the Easter weekend (10-12Apr09).   Rap mogul Diddy's boy band creation Day26 crash into the new album chart at two with Forever In a Day and last week's chart-topper, Unstoppable by Rascal Flatts, falls to three on the new countdown.   The Twilight soundtrack and the Now 30 compilation round out the top five.

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MILEY CYRUS refuses to seek dating advice from her dad BILLY RAY - because the country singer is rarely sympathetic when it comes to his daughter's love life. Miley Cyrus split from Jonas Brothers star Nick Jonas last year (08) and is currently dating model/musician Justin Gaston.   But the 16-year-old singer/actress admits she keeps her relationship woes to herself - because her father is never any help when she is troubled by romance.   She tells Hello magazine, "Dad just doesn't get it. He's just like, 'Suck it up and get over it! You'll find another one! There's more fish in the sea and he wasn't that good-looking anyway!' He actually did say that once. He's a harsh man to my boyfriends. He's usually cool with them when they're with me... But once it's over - once they dump me or I dump them - then he's always down for bashing them."

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HEROES star HAYDEN PANETTIERE has lost $15,000-worth of gems - after thieves raided her Los Angeles home. The 19-year-old actress reportedly returned to the property in the Hollywood Hills last Wednesday (15Apr09) after a vacation to find the gems missing.   There was no sign of forced entry, according to TMZ.com.   The teenage actress has notified police of the raid.

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