A prince, a pub and a poet

Poundbury, England – Prince Charles has opened a pub called the Poet Laureate in honor of his friend, the late Ted Hughes.

The pub is part of Poundbury, a village on the edge of Dorchester in southwest England that has been constructed in keeping with Prince Charles’ vision of a community with industry, offices, shops, houses and leisure facilities.

The prince was joined by area residents and Carol Hughes, widow of the former poet laureate, Wednesday at the pub’s opening.

Ted Hughes, who became poet laureate in 1984, died of cancer in 1998. His books included “Birthday Letters,” a collection of passionate and mournful poems about his marriage to the celebrated American poet Sylvia Plath, published only months before his death. Plath committed suicide in 1963.

Elton John trashes 007 theme

Elton John has branded Madonna’s single “Die Another Day” the worst Bond theme ever, reports London’s Sun.

John said movie bosses on the Pierce Brosnan blockbuster would have been better off asking Shirley Bassey, or Sir Elton himself, to record a song instead.

“It hasn’t got a tune,” John said. “James Bond themes are usually very camp and this one’s different. It is the worst Bond tune of all time.

“I don’t think it’s the best Madonna record – and I’m a big fan,” John added.

John’s rant, on the BBC’s Liquid News, wasn’t over when he was through with Madonna. The singer went on to rip trendy television.

“I hate reality TV,” he said. “I can’t watch ‘Big Brother’ and stuff like that, or ‘Survivor.’ I’ve got better things to do with my time.”

Kline enjoys ‘juggling act’

Long Beach, Calif. – Actor Kevin Kline calls the film industry a circus.

To succeed as an actor, you need to play along with the circus part, he says, but that opens the way to exploring the art form of acting.

“It’s nice to be able to get the big paycheck, so I can afford to do the theater, where you make no money at all. It’s a juggling act. That’s the American way; we all do a little whoring in order to be faithful to our muse,” Kline said in an interview published Thursday in the Long Beach Press-Telegram.

Kline, 55, currently appears in “The Emperor’s Club,” a film about a prep-school teacher’s relationship with a troublesome teen.

Britney backs out of restaurant

New York – Whether Britney Spears is a girl or a woman, she’s no longer a restaurateur.

Spears has pulled out of Nyla, the midtown Manhattan restaurant she opened just five months ago.

The pop star, who turns 21 Monday, said in a statement that she had “terminated her relationship” with the restaurant she formed a partnership with in March because of mismanagement and “management’s failure to keep her fully apprised.”

The restaurant at the Dylan Hotel, which she named for New York and her home state of Louisiana, served Southern-inspired cuisine. But it was plagued by lousy reviews and slow business.