lifestyle TUESDAY, JANUARY 6, 2015 GOSSIP Liam Neeson: Taken fans too scared to travel ake Gyllenhaal enjoys making difficult movies. The 34-year-old star has iam Neeson has received letters from people appeared in a wide array of films during his career, such as ‘Donnie too scared to travel after watching the ‘Taken’ JDarko’, ‘Brokeback Mountain’ and ‘Nightcrawler’, and Jake says it’s impor- Lfilms. The 62-year-old actor stars as retired CIA tant to him to take on challenging roles. He explained: “I love movies that agent Bryan Mills in the action franchise and have currency. Movies are political, whether they’re escapist or tackle some- admits fans have written to him saying they’re thing head on. There’s a responsibility in telling a story. There’s a responsibil- frightened of travelling abroad due to the story- ity to know your own mind. “One of the things that changes in your career is lines in which his wife and daughter are kidnapped. that, at the beginning, people are telling you what you fit into, and later, if He said: “Just the other day I got a letter from a you do some things that people like, you make the decisions yourself. You school teacher in Texas who had tried to take 60 have to know yourself well enough to make those decisions.” Jake also students to Europe and the families of 40 of them insists he’s not in the movie industry to win awards, saying it helps him to got the kids out of it because they had seen ‘Taken “learn about life”. He told The Independent newspaper: “I don’t do the job 2’. “And then this year she wanted to take 20 of [for awards]. I do it to learn about life. I think acting is an incredibly imma- them and the parents all said, ‘No, because we’ve ture, selfish profession, but on the flipside of that, it helps you practice seen that movie!’ “ The ‘A Million Ways To Die In The empathy. When you do your research, you see what real people are doing in West’ star also confessed he was reluctant to return the world.” for the upcoming third instalment until the prem- ise was altered slightly from the first two films. Speaking on ‘The Graham Norton Show’ - which Gyllenhaal reveals his reveals Gyllenhaal love of difficult movies of difficult love airs tonight on BBC One at 10.15pm - he explained: “I said the second one wouldn’t happen and I said I wouldn’t do a third one if someone got taken. “It’s insulting to an audience as well as me. It’s a good storyline and I’m the hunted instead of the hunter.” However, Neeson is disappointed so much of the film has been given away in the previews. He added: “I hate trailers, they give everything away. There’s no mystery anymore.” ‘Taken 3’ is set for release in the UK on January 9. Sarah Jessica Parker does DVD workouts arah Jessica Parker does work out DVDs to help her stay in shape. The ‘Sex and the City’ actress - who is known for Sher toned and slender physique - has confessed she has been able to “maintain a relationship with exercise” after trying out celebrity trainer Anna Kaiser’s 60-minute exercise dvd ‘Happy Hour’, in which she demonstrates her famous AKT in Motion routines. The 49-year-old star - who has James, 12 and five-year-old twins, Tabitha and Marion, with her husband atrick Stewart admits he missed a lot of his in August 2000, but their union ended in divorce Matthew Broderick - tells fitness guru Anna in a trailer for the children’s lives when they were growing up three years later. The 74-year-old actor has been wed new work out video: “It’s the energy that you bring that on Pbecause of his career. The ‘X-Men: Days of to Sunny Ozell, since September 2013 and the cou- countless occasions has kind of held me up. “I think if people Future Past’ star has two kids, son Daniel and daugh- ple set up home in Brooklyn, New York, where she commit to the idea of the DVD, they’ll find that they’re enjoy- ter Sophia, with his first wife Sheila Falconer and was based before meeting Patrick. Although he was ing it. That there is a reality to the results. “AKT is the reason I was hard on my kids on my hard was although he sees a lot of them now they’re adults he born in Yorkshire, Northern England, Patrick admits have maintained a relationship with exercise.” Anna - who also wishes he could have spent more time with them he feels more at home in ‘The Big Apple’ than any- trains US-born actress Kelly Ripa - puts the success of the work during their formative years. However, it was a sacri- where else in the world. Recalling his first impression Patrick Stewart: My career Patrick out DVD down to its ‘trifecta’, which means it includes cardio, fice Patrick had to make because he was trying to of Park Slope, the Brooklyn neighborhood where he flexibility and strength-training. She explained: “In order to establish himself in his chosen profession and then lives with singer/songwriter Sunny, he revealed: “I get the best results you really need the trifecta - you need car- when he landed the role of Captain Jean-Luc Picard saw someone look up at us (with recognition) and I dio, strength and flexibility, you can’t just do one or the oth- in sci-fi TV series ‘Star Trek: The Next Generation’ in thought, ‘Oh, I don’t want to have to deal with this. er.”—Bang Showbiz 1987 his shooting schedule was grueling. In an inter- And, as we drew abreast, this guy said, ‘Hey, Mr view with the New York Daily News newspaper, he Stewart, welcome to the neighborhood. Enjoy.’ I said: “When I got married and I had children, I missed thought, ‘Ooh, I like this place.’ “Remembering his huge amounts of time. I would see my kids on first trip to New York in 1971 as a member of the Sundays if I was lucky. It was hard on my kids.” Royal Shakespeare Company that toured ‘A Patrick divorced Sheila in 1990 after 24 years of Midsummer’s Night Dream’, he added: “I was never marriage and went on to marry Wendy Neuss - one intimidated or frightened by New York. For a long of the producers on ‘Star Trek: The Next Generation’ - time, I felt more at home here than I did in London.” Akon to release five albums kon will release five albums this year. The ‘Lonely’ hitmaker has announced plans for a multi-genre project, entitled A‘Stadium’, which will be comprised of a number of LPs, each in a different style, released over the course of the next 12 months. He tweeted: “Thru out this long wait, there has been fans who stuck with me. This Album is for you! 5 Albums 5 genres equaling STADI- UM. (sic)”. Akon - who hasn’t released an album since 2008’s ‘Freedom’ - has shared a track from each record on his official web- site. ‘To Each His Own’ will feature on a pop album, while Euro fans can enjoy a song called ‘Bounce’, which also features Niko the Kid. On his island album, Akon has teamed up with Damian Marley for a song named ‘Just a Man’, while the world album’s first track is called ‘Feeling a Nikka’ and features D’Banje. Finally, the urban album is lead by a song titled ‘Whole Lot’. The artwork featured on his web- site shows the five records all have the same artwork - an image of Kesha wants to the topless singer performing for a crowd - but in different colors. Clarkson confirms new pop album be taken seriously elly Clarkson will release a new pop album this year. The ‘Breakaway’ hitmaker took a break from music to get married esha dropped the dollar sign from her name in a bid to be taken more seriously. Kto Brandon Blackstock and have their daughter River Rose, The 27-year-old singer decided to change the stylization of her name from Ke$ha now six months, but she has returned to the recording studio and Kearlier this year because she wants to be perceived as a serious recording artist will bring out the first single from her new LP later this month. She rather than a “one-trick pony” party animal. The star’s friend Lady Lloyd exclusively told tweeted: “People keep asking. My next album is pop. But I am BANG Showbiz: “I hope she goes back to her old ways when we go out because we have always influenced by music I love, which is pop- a great time, but I think she’s now trying to change her image because she doesn’t get to rock/country/r&b/dance #whoknowswhatsnext. “2 clues for the first release the best songs. “On her albums, there’s gorgeous ballads but she hasn’t released single...Proof of life & Dr Dre #TheNextEpisode.(sic)” When a fan one yet! The management [stop] her and don’t her release them, but that damages her asked if the new single will be released this month, she replied: “Yes sales a bit because people think she’s a one-trick pony. “That’s why she’s dropped the dol- :)” And quizzed if the Dre reference meant she was planning a sur- lar sign in her name because she’s going for a bit more of a [mature] image.