The past few days have been extra-busy for news stories - so, at the expense of trawling through pages of mundanities, here are some of the biggest:
Take That have scored the third biggest-selling album in chart history with 'The Circus', while Britney has announced an eight-date residency at London's O2 next summer, as part of her 'Circus' tour.
UK-based distribution firm Pinnacle were declared bankrupt last week. This will have major repercussions to small and independent labels such as One Little Indian, Rough Trade and Fierce Panda - all of whom relied on the company to distribute their records. 94 people lost their jobs in the UK.
Doves will release their new album in 2009, the long-awaited follow-up to 2005's 'Some Cities'. Lead singer Jimi Goodwin told Billboard.com that recording of the as-yet-untitled album is almost finished, but songs to be included are 'Kingdom of Rust', 'Jetstream', 'Winter Hill' and 'The Outsiders'. It's expected sometime around March/April.
Ex-Long Blondes guitarist Dorian Cox's future in music has been thrown a lifeline. The guitarist suffered a stroke earlier this year which resulted in the right side of his body being paralysed - which ultimately meant that the band could not continue. However, he has reportedly begun to use a rehabilitative device called a SaeboFlex glove, which may assist his ability to play guitar in the future - even if he will look a bit like the Bionic Man.
Scottish folkie James Yorkston will play Crawdaddy on January 22nd, with support from good mate and kindred spirit Adrian Crowley. Tickets are €14 and on sale now.
And finally, The Boy Least Likely To have announced details of their second album. The follow-up to 2005's 'The Best Party Ever' is called 'The Law of the Playground', and will be released in early March. The English duo - Pete Hobbs and Jof Owen - have previously toured with Razorlight, but don't hold that against them.
