Ibumped into singer-songwriter and radio host Jim Corcoran at the launch party for Zachary Richard's Last Kiss Thursday evening at the Savoy club and we were talking about how we both did a bit of a double-take when we saw Céline Dion's name on the album credits. Let's just be polite and say it's not the most obvious concept to think of notre Céline nationale in a duet with rootsy Cajun auteur-compositeur Richard.

But you know what? Their version of Acadian Driftwood, the classic Robbie Robertson song about the Acadian people's forced exile down south to Richard's neck of the woods in Louisiana, is brilliant and deeply moving. By the time it climaxes with the two oh-so-different singers belting out the couplet "J'arrive, Acadie/J'ai le mal du pays," it's impossible not to be touched by the performance.

In a chat in his absurdly cramped dressing room Thursday - just before he took the stage for a passionate, but short unplugged set - Richard talked of how he hooked up with the superstar Québécoise songbird. Late last summer, Richard - who splits his time between his homes in Montreal and Louisiana - thought he had wrapped the album, his first English CD in 17 years, but then Dion changed his plans.

"I thought (the album) was over until August of last year when I sang with Céline on the Plaines d'Abraham, and inspired by the passion of the moment, I asked her if she wanted to do something and she said, 'yeah,' and that turned into another three months of work. I knew the girl had great pipes and she had a lot of soul, but I didn't know how she would do in my world, a more roots (world). We did this tune (at Dion's show on the Plains of Abraham) called La promesse cassée, which is something I wrote about Katrina, and then I understood that not only could she come in my world and be comfortable, but she could also rock in that style.

"Then I was knocking around, (wondering) what we could do. I mean my record was finished. And I've been playing Acadian Driftwood for at least 20 years, at the house, on the piano. I'm the biggest Robbie Robertson fan of all time. That song, which means a lot to me, being of Acadian heritage, is also about the possibility of creating a message of compassion and courage and forgiveness, which is, I think, at the heart of the Acadian story."

Last Kiss is Richard's first album in the language of Dylan since Snake Bite Love in 1992. In the years since then, Richard re-introduced himself to francophone fans on both sides of the Atlantic with a series of popular, critically acclaimed albums en français.

But as Richard was quick to point out during our conversation, he has always moved between the two languages in his oeuvre. His first album, High Time, was recorded for Electra Records in the early '70s, though it was a victim of record-company politics and only saw the light of day in 2000. That setback was part of the reason Richard segued into the franco world, recording seven albums in French in the late 1970s and '80s, a run that turned him into a well-known figure in both Quebec and France.

During his set at the Savoy Thursday, Richard showcased that bilingual/bicultural heritage by talking on stage mostly en français, singing the English songs from Last Kiss, and trying to explain his mixed roots to this mostly franco crowd.

"For the language-challenged, now I'm going to talk in that other language," he said, in English, adding: "I know it's sensitive, but part of me is proud to be American, particularly since November," a reference to the election of Barack Obama.

"There are kids in Manitoba who call themselves bilinguals," said Richard, in our chat before the show. "Not bilingual as an adjective, but bilingual as a noun. It's a mark of identity I understand really well coming from Louisiana and being able to navigate with a great deal of ease between the two languages.

"Here in Quebec, the first question I get is: 'Why an English record?' And I'm going - 'It's more surprising that I sing in French.' After all, I am an American and I come from Louisiana.

"It's never been a conscious decision. Through this fog will come a sound and I'll jump on that sound like a falcon on a pigeon - I'm going to get that thing. But that sound is

already in a language. It already sounds like a word in one of the two languages I speak. So I don't choose. There's no volition on my part."

© Copyright (c) The Montreal Gazette

Shy, retiring and timid are not words you’d usually associate with John Barrowman, and that’s unlikely to change with his latest show.

The flamboyant performer, best known to most for his role as Captain Jack in Doctor Who and Torchwood, is presenting new BBC One series Tonight’s The Night.

The show’s premise is simple – people write in and ask for their dream to be made reality, then 42-year-old John and the team make it happen.

It might sound eerily similar to 80s hit show Jim’ll Fix It, but John is unfazed.

“I don’t mind any comparisons to shows like that because I was a huge fan of it, and shows like that are the ones I grew up with – so they’re the best of British television,” he says.

“But, we’re very different in the sense that if someone wants to write in and ask how to skid a bus, that’s not going to happen. However you might learn how to skid a bus while singing Summer Holiday with a team of dancers behind you, so there’s a twist to it. Everything is performance based. It’s not just about someone saying it’s my dream to go to Ibiza!”

The programme is all about giving deserving people a chance to shine – for example, someone who’s dreamed of being a ballroom dancer will get lessons before performing live on the show.

All-singing, dancing and acting John is a natural choice to present such a performance-based programme.

“I wanted to do a show like this,” he says.

“I’m a guy fortunate enough to be able to live my dreams, I am doing what I thought I’d be doing when I was a kid, so to be able to turn around and give other people their dreams and make theirs come true is a huge thing for me.”

Surprisingly though, John didn’t always dream of becoming a performer.

“At the age of nine I wanted to be an airline pilot,” he says.

“That’s when I realised I was gay because it was because I really liked the outfit, and the guy who was wearing it.”

With a change of heart a career in the performing arts beckoned, and John set off to make his dream a reality with the full support of his parents.

Even though they’re now living on the opposite sides of the Atlantic he says his mum and dad are still a big influence on his life.

“They’re my biggest fans, my mum and my dad.

“I speak to them almost every other day, sometimes every day. Last year they went on my concert tour with me, this year they’ll be doing the same thing. I see them about every three or four months, as I fly them over. They’ve come to all the West End shows I’ve been in except one and they’ve seen them between 13 and 26 times!”

John’s committed to continuing to make his parents proud and keep performing. He won’t be stepping aside to let others hog all the limelight on Tonight’s The Night.

“I’ll be challenged within the show itself by a mystery celebrity guest each week where my performance will be put to the test, for example in one show I’m challenged to juggle fire,” he explains.

John is keeping tight-lipped about the celebrity guests, but he reveals that Ronan Keating and The Saturdays will be helping make people’s dreams come true.

His own dream guest would be Canadian singer Celine Dion, but admits he’d probably “collapse with excitement” if she turned up.

“I really don’t know what song I’d do with her, but I’d just be so gob-smacked that she was there to sing with me I’d probably have to take something to calm me down.”

It’s not just the thought of doing a duet with Celine that makes John break into a sweat – despite his confident image he suffers terribly from nerves.

“I always get nervous – even when we’re recording these shows I’m a bundle of nerves before we go on because I’m a perfectionist and that’s to my own detriment. I always think about getting it right, doing it right and giving the best performance and that’s what makes me nervous.”

But it’s a small price to pay for doing what he loves – and it seems he’s not keen to give it up any time soon.

There’s a concert tour on the way, festival appearances, a third series of Torchwood and a potential return to Doctor Who.

“All I can say is that Captain Jack will return to help the doctor when he needs assistance or help with an alien or when someone’s trying to destroy the earth. That’s my official answer! You can read what you like into that one!”

John Barrowman – Extra Time

:: John and his partner Scott divide their time between London and Cardiff.

:: His pet dog appears in an episode of Tonight’s The Night when they’re surprising a vet.

:: John has no complaints about being a celebrity – he says he loves walking down the street and hearing people say ’that’s John Barrowman’.

:: While he was born and brought up in Scotland he and his family moved to the US when he was eight years old.

Posted on April 2nd, 2009 in Celebrity Plastic Surgery by Jet H. Ross

Songstress Celine Dion turned 41 earlier this week and looks as good as she did when she first entered the US music scene back in the early 1990s. As most women in the spotlight that are her age have been under the knife, or at least the needle, at least once, Make Me Heal decided to investigate whether or not Celine stays young with some careful plastic surgery.



(Left: Before, Right: After)


Celine Dion is one of the music industry’s top earners and is notorious for sparing no expense on her creature comforts, whether it for the upkeep of her many homes around the world or her own impeccable wardrobe. Because half of a celebrity’s job is to look good, some of Celine’s money likely goes to taking care of her appearance, from personal trainers to tanning sessions. But given the fact that the high-note hitting performer looks good, if a little more mature than she used to, it seems that Celine’s nearly flawless appearance is the result of healthy living and good skincare, not plastic surgery.


Noting that Celine’s eyebrows have always been high, Dr. Paul S. Nassif, a facial plastic and reconstructive surgeon and a rhinoplasty specialist in Beverly Hills, California says, “I don’t think Celine has undergone any plastic surgery. She looks naturally good.”

Manhattan plastic surgeon Dr. David Shafer agrees that Celine’s plastic surgery is minimal, saying, “Celine Dion looks great and does not look like she has had any major plastic surgery. She may have had Botox Cosmetic injections, since her forehead seems very smooth compared to previous pictures and her eyebrows are slightly wider apart when compared to previous. She obviously takes good care of her skin and should keep using whatever treatment she currently uses.”

On the other hand, Celine’s nose seems a little smaller than it did when she first began, which could be a conservative nose job, or better contouring make-up. Her eyelids also appear to be a little lifted, an indication of a possible eyelid lift.

According to plastic surgeon Dr. Jennifer Walden, “Celine Dion appears to have had a nicely done rhinoplasty and the possiblity of an eyelid lift (blepharoplasty) in the past exists. Regardless, she looks radiant and well put together.”

Celine has always been thin and fit and likely spends time off-stage in the gym with a personal trainer. She also probably invests in the best skin products and takes care not to wear heavy make-up when offstage or off the red carpet. Celine probably routinely gets facials and skincare treatments to ward off aging and it has certainly worked for her.


Beyond some fine lines and softened look around her jowls and neck, Celine looks much the same as she did when America first fell in love with her.


Make Me Heal wishes Celine a happy birthday and commends her on looking well, with or without some careful plastic surgery.