Meanwhile, the Unsung Hero award returned this year with two winners. Anne McNulty was recognised for her work as casting director of the Donmar Warehouse, while Chris Isherman was recognised for his work as theatre manager at the West End's Duchess Theatre. The awards will be presented later this month.
Old Gold - Unpublished colour photographs of The Beatles during their first tour of the US are to be auctioned. The 65 slides include many stage shots, including George Harrison with his red Rickenbacker guitar, which appeared in the film A Hard Day's Night. They were taken by award-winning physicist Dr Robert 'Bob' Beck. The band played a string of sell-out concerts in the US in August 1964 following an appearance on the Ed Sullivan show in February that year. Dr Beck was a researcher and inventor who died in 2002, leaving a huge archive of photographs and slides in his Hollywood home.
Get Well Soon - Claude Nobs, who founded the Montreux Jazz Festival, is in a coma following a skiing accident. The 76-year-old "fell while practising cross-country skiing" during the Christmas holidays, said a statement on the festival's official website. He had surgery in Lausanne, Switzerland, but remains unconscious, the statement continued.
Birthday Song - David Bowie has released a single on his 66th birthday, following years of silence and speculation. The recording Where Are We Now? is available as a video and download. It will be followed by a new album, The Next Day, in March. The new track was recorded in New York and produced by the singer's long-time collaborator Tony Visconti. Bowie has not performed live since 2006 and has rarely been seen in public since then.
Fire Out - The stage version of Chariots of Fire at London's Gielgud Theatre has closed a month early. In a statement, the producers said, "The cast of Edward Hall's critically acclaimed production of Chariots of Fire will have collectively run over 1,700km when they take their final victory lap of the Gielgud Theatre track on January 5, 2013. In the Olympic year we were delighted to have brought such a relevant and poignant production to the West End and plans are afoot to tour the production in 2013/14."
(Jim Evans)
