Malaysia flight MH370: China jets boost Indian Ocean hunt

Two Chinese military planes have arrived in Perth in Australia to join international search operations for the missing Malaysia Airlines jet.

Crews are scouring vast areas of the southern Indian Ocean for a fourth day.
Two sets of satellite images showing floating objects in the area have raised hopes that the jet may be there.
Most of the 239 people on board were Chinese. Beijing has criticised Malaysia's handling of the search for the plane, now missing for 15 days.
The two Chinese aircraft have been flown in from Malaysia, where they were helping with the search further north.
Six other planes are already at the Perth base, and scoured an area of the Indian Ocean the size of Denmark on Saturday.
But the mission found no debris.
Ships supporting the search are already in the area, or are on their way.
The Australian navy's HMAS Success, which is large enough to recover any debris if needed, has arrived in the search area.

The two Chinese planes will join six other jets in the search team

A Japanese military plane left Malaysia for Australia on Sunday

Crews had another day of fruitless searching on Saturday

Malaysian officials suspect the plane, en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing, was deliberately taken off course.
The Boeing-777 disappeared on 8 March; two thirds of the passengers were Chinese.
China on Saturday released a satellite image showing an object floating in the southern Indian Ocean near to the area already being searched, some 2,500 km (1,550 miles) south-west of Perth.
The grainy image was released by China's State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense.
The find was announced by Malaysia's Acting Transport Minister Hishammuddin Hussein amid a routine briefing in Kuala Lumpur.
The Xinhua state news agency said the latest satellite image was taken at about 04:00 GMT on 18 March and showed objects about 120km "south by west" from the first site.
Other satellite images of possible aircraft debris in a nearby area were released earlier in the week.
Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott said the sightings were encouraging signs.
"Obviously we have now had a number of very credible leads and there is increasing hope - no more than hope, no more than hope - that we might be on the road to discovering what did happen to this ill-fated aircraft," he said.

After operations ended for the day on Saturday, Australia's Maritime Safety Authority said an aircraft had reported sighting a number of small objects with the naked eye within a radius of five kilometres, including a wooden pallet.
However the floating object seen in the new satellite image was not spotted.
At his briefing, Acting Transport Minister Hussein also said investigations of the plane's cargo manifest did "not show any link to anything that may have contribution to the plane's disappearance".
He also referred to the angry scenes as Malaysian officials briefed Chinese relatives in Beijing.
"Government of Malaysia, tell us the truth - give us back our loved ones," relatives shouted at the Lido Hotel.
Mr Hussein admitted the briefing had been "tense" and an investigation was under way to try to improve the situation.
The search has been in two distinct corridors - one stretching to the north-west of the last known location in the Malacca Straits and one to the south-west.
The locations were based on a data "ping" apparently sent to a satellite from the missing plane hours after it vanished from other indicators.
However, on Saturday, Mr Hussein said that China, India, Pakistan, Myanmar (Burma) and several other nations had informed Malaysia that analysis of their radar records had revealed no evidence of flight MH370 crossing their airspace.

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Hungarian sex gang turned university halls of residence into a brothel and trafficked women into Britain to work as prostitutes

Prostitutes were working from University of Sussex accommodation

Girls were blackmailed into working in brothels across the UK

Four Hungarians and a British woman found guilty at Hove Crown Court

Gang jailed for a total of 25 years, but two of them remain on the run

An organised crime gang was jailed today after they trafficked dozens of women from Hungary to the UK to work in brothels, including one on a university campus.

Almost 50 women were brought to Britain in two years and forced to work as prostitutes, including inside a University of Sussex halls of residence.

The sex ring also set up brothels in hotels and flats and uploaded their victims' profiles on to a website advertising sexual services for sale, Hove Crown Court heard.

Hungarians nationals Mate Puskas, Zoltan Mohacsi, Istvan Toth and Peter Toth, and Puskas’s former girlfriend Victoria Brown were all jailed for 25 years in total for running the operation. The Toth brothers remain at large after breaking bail.

Mate Puskas and Victoria Brown, a former couple in the gang that organised the trafficking of young women and forced them to work as prostitutes in brothels across the UK

The university's found out when building manager Martin West saw an email advertising escorts on the campus and recognised the campus curtains and bedding in the pictures that the prostitute was posing in.

Further investigation revealed a scantily-clad young woman in one of the student rooms along with wet wipes and large amount of condoms. 

People would respond to the adverts by calling mobile phones controlled by the gang, who arranged meetings with the women in brothels.

 

Puskas, was jailed for six years, Brown for three years, and Mohacsi for four years for conspiracy to traffic women into the UK.

Istvan and Peter Toth were jailed for five years and four years respectively for the same offence, but both had nine months added to their sentences after being convicted of Contempt of Court for breaking bail.

Judge Richard Hayward said they had committed offending behavior which 'society finds repugnant'.

Istvan and Peter Toth, who have been found guilty of exploiting and bullying young girls into prostitution, blackmailing many of the girls and threatening others

Defendant Zolton Mohacsi outside of Hove Court

In many cases the women had come to the UK to escape financial difficulties at home.

When they arrived in Britain they were coerced into the prostitution, with the gang threatening to put up posters of them in their home towns denouncing them as sex workers if they didn't work for them. 

They were forced to work for up to 12 hours a day to pay off the debt to the crime ring who paid for their flights to the UK. 

Women saw 10 to 15 clients every day, each being charged £100 per hour. But the gang took 90 per cent of their earnings. 

Prosecutor David Walbank said: 'They were not kidnapped or kept in slavery but once they came to this country they were not free agents.'

Puskas had arrived in the UK in 2008 and took on menial jobs like working at a car wash.

He met Victoria Brown and together they had a child, who is now 21 months old and has been in the care of its maternal grandparents since the couple were arrested.

Park Village, one of the student accommodation complexes in Sussex University, was the base for part of the prostitution ring

Portia Ragnauth, Acting Chief Crown Prosecutor CPS South East, said: 'None of us can imagine how desperate the victims were in this case.

'In many instances, they came to the UK to try to escape financial difficulties at home.

'Payments for their flights were often made by one of the five individuals convicted today. Once in the UK these “debts” were used as a hold over the women who were forced to work for up to 12 hours a day.

The gang used this flat in Eastbourne, East Sussex as one of the locations for the prostitution activity

'When the women told the group they did not want to work as prostitutes, threats would be made against them and their families back in Hungary.

'Threats were also made to expose the work they had been doing in the UK in their home country.

'I would like to take this opportunity to pay tribute to the bravery of the victims who gave evidence in this case, one who gave evidence from behind a screen in the UK and two others who gave evidence via a live video-feed from Hungary.

'We know how incredibly difficult it was for them, especially as we know that the reach of this criminal group extends back to Hungary.

'It has not been easy for them, but we hope that today’s verdict brings them justice and allows them to now move on with their lives.

'The CPS was assisted greatly by the police and judicial authorities in Hungary to bring this prosecution. Without this cross-border cooperation achieving justice for these women would have been considerably more difficult.'

A University of Sussex spokeswoman said the case did not relate to activities by staff or students but that a flat on its campus was one of many locations across the region used for prostitution purposes.

She said: 'Through the vigilance and swift actions of our staff, the police were able to piece together the wider operations of this criminal gang and bring a case against them to court.

'More than 4,000 students live on our campus and their safety is of paramount importance to us.

'This was a one-off incident, involving people not connected in any way to the university. We continue to maintain high levels of vigilance to ensure that the residences are not misused and that our students are able to enjoy living in a very safe and secure environment.'

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French President Francois Hollande accused of having affair with actress Julie Gayet

Francois Hollande, centre, with the Foreign Affairs Minister Laurent Fabius, left, and Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian at the Elysee Palace in Paris this week. Photo: Reuters
Francois Hollande, the French president, is facing a private and political crisis after a celebrity magazine published photographs alleging a "secret love affair" with a film actress almost 20 years his junior.
Closer magazine released pictures it says show the 59-year-old socialist leader entering an apartment block near the Elysee Palace with Julie Gayet, 41.
Valerie Trierweiler, the "official" first lady to whom the president is not married, recently took up residence in one of the wings of the palace.


Rumours: Julie Gayet pictured at the Cannes Film Festival in 2009. Photo: AFP
Closer carried a seven-page report on the alleged infidelity. The magazine claims that the president arrives on a chauffeur-driven scooter to spend nights in the flat.

A woman whom the publication said was Gayet is seen arriving at the apartment block at night.
The pictures then show the arrival of a man resembling Hollande’s bodyguard. A second man - which Closer said was Mr Hollande, whose face is obscured by a helmet - then arrives on the back of a scooter.

Other pictures show the first man arriving in the morning with what Closer said was a bag of croissants, then the second man in a helmet emerging from the building and jumping on the back of a scooter.
Another photograph shows a woman resembling Gayet leaving the building and walking down the street.

The magazine wrote: "It's a real passion that has turned their lives upside down and makes them take insane risks."
The magazine angered many in Britain in 2012 when it published topless pictures of the Duchess of Cambridge.
Its latest allegations led to a rebuke from the President. However, he failed to deny the liaison.
A source close to Mr Hollande said he "greatly deplores the invasion of his privacy, to which he has a right as any other citizen does".
The President was "studying what action, including legal action, to take".
Late on Friday, Laurence Pieau, the editor of Closer, announced it was withdrawing the photographs from its website upon request from Gayet's lawyer.

The socialist leader, struggling against record unpopularity levels, does not need another sex scandal.
Already, the two women in his life - Miss Trierweiler and Segolene Royal, the mother of his four children - have caused him immense trouble.

Miss Gayet filed a complaint in March over rumours of an affair with Mr Hollande, which she said were a breach of her privacy. The mother of two, who is separated from their Argentine father, is an established actress.
She has appeared in more than 70 films, some of them with sex scenes. She had a leading role last year in Quai d'Orsay, a satirical film about the French foreign ministry in which she plays a vampish aide.

Her film credits include the titles Shall We Kiss? and My Best Friend.
In December, Stephane Guillon, an actor and comic, dropped heavy hints about the affair during a chat show when he and Gayet were invited to promote a film. She appeared uneasy but laughed when he said: "The President loves the film [Miss Trierweiler] likes it a lot less."
Gayet, a Socialist Party supporter, openly backed Mr Hollande during the 2012 presidential race, describing him in a gushing interview as "fantastic", "humble" and "really ready to listen".


Affairs are nothing new for French presidents. Valerie Giscard d'Estaing had a crash at dawn with a milk float while returning from a night with a lover. His approval ratings soared. Jacques Chirac was privately known as "five minutes, shower included".

Francois Mitterrand, the previous socialist president, kept secret the child he had with his mistress, Anne Pingeot, for most of his two terms.
But Nicolas Sarkozy learnt to his expense that the French can be very unforgiving about their presidents living it up while the country is suffering. His woes began just as his whirlwind romance with Carla Bruni took flight.
More worrying than the polls for Mr Hollande is how his official partner, nicknamed "Rottweiler", will respond.

She was last photographed at the Elysee three days ago.
The daily newspaper Le Figaro reported on Friday that Miss Trierweiler would not be accompanying Mr Hollande on a state visit to the Vatican this month.
France's political class expressed outrage at the "invasion" of Mr Hollande's privacy, punishable with a year's jail and a fine of 45,000 euros ($70,000).
Caroline Roux, a commentator for Europe 1 radio, said the disclosure relegated the president "to the same level as a minor reality TV star".

In years past, when the belief in privacy rights for French public officials was a bit stronger and when the French news media was a bit more chaste, the rumours about a love affair involving the president might have remained the unwritten gossip of Parisian journalists and the well-connected.


The amorous lives of public officials were long considered off limits for French journalists, many of whom have themselves become involved with politicians. This was the case, for instance, with Ms Trierweiler, who began a relationship with Mr Hollande while covering French politics for the magazine Paris Match.
Mr Hollande has four children from a previous relationship with Ms Royal, a senior member of his Socialist Party and a 2007 presidential candidate. Ms Royal and Mr Hollande separated shortly after she lost the 2007 election to Nicolas Sarkozy.

But the expectation that journalists will protect the privacy of the powerful has eroded steadily, if by no means completely, over the past two decades. In 1994, Paris Match published photographs of Mr Mitterrand with Mazarine Pingeot, his daughter from a long-running affair. Ms Pingeot’s existence had been kept hidden from the public but was an open secret among French journalists.

More recently, the 2011 arrest on sexual assault charges of Dominique Strauss-Kahn, then a prominent politician and likely presidential candidate, caused a broad debate among French news media and society at large. Journalists had long gossiped about Mr Strauss-Kahn’s allegedly promiscuous and sometimes aggressive sexual behaviour, including at least one allegation of rape.

There were questions about whether those rumours should have been investigated and made public, given Mr Strauss-Kahn’s prominent place in politics, but those questions have not been resolved. At the time, many French journalists defended the choice not to report on Mr Strauss-Kahn’s behaviour, arguing that to do so would have been voyeuristic and not in the public interest.

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She can't be a fan! Rihanna 'refused to let hit show Girls use her song' reveals programme's music supervisor

It appears Rihanna is no fan of HBO's hit show Girls.

For it has emerged that the singer refused to allow one of her songs to feature on the series.

The show's music producer Manish Raval revealed that they were snubbed by the Barbadian beauty after they sought permission to use her tune Talk That Talk.

It had been chosen to feature in a drug addled scene starring Lena Dunham in a nightclub in the programme's second series.

No chance: Rihanna was not interested in boosting her feminist credentials by having a song featured in Girls

However he insisted it was a blessing in disguise as they ended up with an even better number by Swedish electro group Icona Pop, which he thought was one of the best uses of sound in the whole of the second series.

He told Radio.com: 'You know, honestly, I don’t know. The scene that she denied it for was the Icona Pop scene. 

'They didn’t give a reason, we didn’t ask for a reason. So I can’t speculate as to why, but you know, it’s a happy accident.

'She said no and we happened to find the Icona Pop song.'

Famous scene: Icona Pop ended up reaping the rewards of being used for this noted clubbing sequence

Music to his ears: Girls music producer Manish Reval said the snub ended up working out for the best

Perhaps Rihanna was intimidated at the thought of her song featuring in a scene alongside self-styled feminist icon Lena.

The scene in question saw her character Hannah snort lines of cocaine, before dancing in a nightclub with her roommate Elijah.

And Manish said he was delighted with how things turned out, adding: 'The Icona Pop scene was something I was really proud of.

'You know after we had shot it and edited it, I was just waiting for it to come out. People responded so much to the Robyn song ["Dancing On My Own"] in season one, I knew people were going to have the same response to the Icona Pop thing.

'And also because, they were an unsigned band and no one knew the song. It was going to be an inherently original moment. Even when I hear the song now I think of the scene.'

Personal snub? Perhaps Rihanna felt intimidated her song would feature in a scene with Lena Dunham

While Rihanna is in no need of any exposure, it certainly helped the Swedish group to have a tune in one of the America's trendiest shows.

The song ended up reaching number three on the Billboard charts, and did even better in the UK, where it topped the charts.

It has also continued to do well in the soundtrack market, as it has been used in The Vampire Diaries, and the film Ladies Man: A Made Movie, and was used in trailers for the movie's Fun Size and the movie The Heat starring Melissa McCarthy and Sandra Bullock.

Reaping the rewards: Saucy Swedish duo Icona Pop have done very well out of their song I Love It

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'He's exhausted and overwhelmed': Dennis Rodman 'enters rehab for alcohol addiction treatment' following drunken TV appearance in North Korea

He caused outrage after claiming an American citizen deserved a sentence to hard labour in a drunken television appearance during his recent visit to North Korea.

So perhaps it should be no surprise Dennis Rodman has subsequently checked himself into rehab.

The controversial former basketball player is now staying at a treatment centre in New Jersey to try and curb his long-standing addiction to alcohol.

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Rant: Dennis Rodman has entered rehab following his controversial CNN interview during his North Korea visit

A source told TMZ he entered the facility a few days ago after returning from his much criticized trip to the insular communist country.

The insider added the former Chicago Bulls star is 'beyond exhausted and overwhelmed' and will receive care for 30 days.

It comes hot on the heels of his infamous interview on CNN's New Day show, on which he said Kenneth Bae may have done something to deserve his sentence of 15 years of hard labour.

He claimed alcohol was one of the reasons for his bizarre outburst about his fellow American citizen, who was convicted by by the regime on charges of planning to overthrow the North Korean government.

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Little and large: Dennis has become a close friend of North Korea's infamous head of state Kim Jong-un

He was sentenced to 15 years of imprisonment, and is the longest-serving United States prisoner of North Korea since the end of the Korean War.

Following a complaint from Mr Bae's family the five-time NBA champion apologised, claiming he was under stress and had been drinking when he was interviewed.

Dennis led a team of former professional basketball players in an exhibition match in North Korea, and even sang Happy Birthday to the country's infamous new leader Kim Jong Un.

He has had multiple stints in rehab, including a visit to a Florida facility in 2008, as well as appearing on the third season of Celebrity Rehab in 2009, relapsing soon after the show premiered.

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Bikini wars! Karrueche Tran posts sexy swimwear snap at the same time as Rihanna... as Chris Brown stays in rehab

After their moist, confronting tongue-to-tongue selfie on New Years Day, it seems Karrueche Tran has still got Chris Brown's heart.

However, when both she and Rihanna uploaded sexy bikini snaps to Instagram within mere minutes of one another on Saturday, it seemed plausible that the pair's subtle jousting for the troubled singer's attention may still be alive and kicking.

The thinly veiled social media competition came just one day after Karrueche enjoyed a boisterous girls night out at Hollywood's Laugh Factory comedy venue with a gaggle of her famous girlfriends, including Christina Milian, Amber Rose and Priscilla Ono... while Chris presumably remained in his rehab facility.

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Showing off for anyone in particular? While her boyfriend Chris Brown is presumably still in rehab, Karrueche Tran posted a bikini shot just minutes after Rihanna posted one of her own on Saturday

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Competing interests? Chris Brown's ex-girlfriend Rihanna happened to post a saucy bathing suit photo on the same day that his new girlfriend did the same

In Karrueche's upload, she poses seductively in an orange bikini with the straps pulled down, with a thin collection of gold chains drawing attention to her flawless neckline.

Throwing the camera a casually saucy gaze, the model makes sure to remind her boyfriend just what he's got on his hands.

Meanwhile, within the same hour, Rihanna uploaded sexy bikini photos - captioned as being taken in Brazil - in which she too looks as delectable as can be in minimal clothing.

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In case you were wondering what was back there: The Stay singer also posted a photo of her derriere

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Cheeky! In another shot Rihanna pulled her bikini out flashing a bit more than expected

From the front, Rihanna shows off ample cleavage and in another shot taken from behind, a G-string design shows off her pert derriere for all to see, as she stands in what looks to be a mystical waterfall.

Whether or not the ladies were competing for any sort of attention from the Mechanical Dummy singer is uncertain, but if nothing else it's an eerie coincidence.

Perhaps Karrueche was soaking up the sun as a way to recover from the night before.

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Girls night out! Previously, on Friday night, Karrueche hit the town to enjoy a night out at the Laugh Factory with gal pals Amber Rose and Christina Milian

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Supporting! Priscilla Ono, Amber Rose, Karrueche Tran and Christina Milian (L-R) were all at the Hollywood comedy venue to see their friend Amy Schumer perform

The pretty model spent the night out and about with a troupe of other famous ladies, taking in the best of LA's comedy at the world famous Laugh Factory.

The group of girls seemed to be having a whale of a time watching their comedian friend Amy Schumer perform, snuggling together in their sexy, revealing outfits to pose for happy snaps.

Karrueche was adorable in a white flowing strapless dress, which featured billowing sleeves and gave her somewhat of a prairie girl aesthetic.

'You're no angel either baby!' Karrueche enigmatically captioned this photo of herself in her gorgeous prairie girl dress whilst out and about with the girls on Friday

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'Getting chrae on New Years Day!' Karrueche posted this happy snap of herself eating Chris Brown's tongue on New Years day, suggesting there is happiness in the Tran/Brown camp

And they weren't just silent spectators, either.

As evidenced in an Instagram video, Christina Milian and Amber Rose took the stage at one point to introduce their comedian friend Amy Schumer.

Karrueche has been standing by her man Chris Brown while he undergoes his stint in rehab, after a judge revoked his probation during a probation violation hearing due to his arrest in Washington for allegedly punching a man's face.

As part of his punishment, Brown must complete 1,000 hours of community labor in addition to serving out his three-month stint in rehab.

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'Merry Christmas from us!' The pretty model also posted a loved up snap of she and Chris on Christmas Day

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Not out of the jungle yet: Chris Brown faced court in Washington last Wednesday to continue dealing with the case in which he was accused of hitting a man

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Not dope and not fresh. Will.i.am obviously wouldn't press his buzzer and turn round for The Voice, by Jim Shelley

The Voice’s flaws have become so glaring, even Will.i.am made it obvious how useless he thought the the performances were – both by the contestants and his fellow mentors.

While Tom Jones, Ricky Wilson and Kylie Minogue were scrambling to build their teams by raining praise on the most mediocre singers, Will.i.am didn’t bothering buzzing for any of the first five contenders.

‘Does he just instinctively know something that the rest of us just don’t know?!’ gasped Kylie, still not getting the message. Yes, that most of the acts were terrible !

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Kylie Minogue, Tom Jones and Ricky Wilson wonder when Will.i.am is actually going to like one of the contestants on The Voice - the answer being when one of them was any good

Then, when two clearly promising young singers finally DID appear, even Will was astonished to find that he was the only one of the judges to recognise their talent.

‘I don’t know what they’re hearing - and what they’re not hearing,’ he said, virtually shaking his head in disbelief and shrugging as if he had given up on them. ‘Sophie has all the makings of a superstar and no-one turned !’

He was referring to Sophie May Williams, a 17 year-old jazz fan from Wakefield whose version of Cyndi Lauper's Time After Time was, if nothing else, different, much like Sophie herself. She also had a voice that was so incredibly ‘mature’ for a teenager if anything it lacked the energy of youth.

Will.i.am recognised an original talent when he saw it although, telling her she was 'fresh.'

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Will.i.am's attention begins to drift on to subjects he finds more entertaining such as aliens and pancakes while his fellow mentors are mesmerised by the dross on view

As the others dallied, Will snapped her up with one second to go – a tactic he then deployed for Jermain Jackman, a musically/politically unusual 18 year-old R&B singer from Hackney, and flagrantly the only other cool kid on the show.

If Kylie, Tom and Ricky didn’t respond to Jermain and Sophie May, you'd wondered - as Will obviously did - what they were doing there.

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Will.i.am acts the innocent, leaving it until the very last second before pressing his buzzer for the best singers on the show - Sophie May Williams and Jermain Jackman

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Will.i.am couldn't believe how easy it to snag the best singers- or how stupid the other mentors were

The answer in Kylie and Ricky’s case was constantly mouthing to each other things like: ‘shall I press it?’, ‘I might go’, and ‘you should buzz.’

They were so busy enjoying themselves doing this that they neglected to turn round and try to get Jermain and Sophie on their teams.

Given it’s poor ratings last year, it’s a pity the format for The Voice wasn’t changed so that the judges cannot see the others' reactions or know whether they've buzzed.

All the judges are too pally.

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Ricky Wilson and Kylie spent so long talking to each other rather than just make their own minds up, they neglected to buzz for the best two singers

When she’s not checking what to do with Ricky, Kylie spends most of her time continuing where Jessie J left off, ostentatiously dancing/grooving on down in her chair but then not buzzing, or promoting herself as the nation’s new People’s Princess, hugging children or going on stage to console singers she had herself just rejected. Cute - but not alot of use.

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'Attention-seeking ? Moi ?' Kylie's ostentatious grooving on down and singing along is worse than Jessie J's

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