MAMBA GOSSIP

Lance Bass gets buff

Openly gay former ‘N Sync band member, Lance Bass has clearly been spending his free time (and with an apparently not-so-busy career, he must have a lot of that) working out. The singer looks pretty darn hot – and downright mean and nasty – in a new kickboxing inspired photo shoot. We’re not sure what it’s for, but the picture was released by celebrity makeup artist Chris Lanston who worked on the shoot. Here at Mamba Mansions, we’re suddenly all clambering to get into the ring with Lance.

Mad Men’s Bryan Batt not getting married – yet

Hunky daddy Bryan Batt, who plays the closeted gay character Salvatore “Sal” Romano in Mad Men has denied reports that he’s getting married to boyfriend Tom Cianfichi anytime soon. The National Enquirer had claimed that the two were planning a Christmas wedding in Canada. Bryan’s representative issued a statement soon after saying that there are “currently no plans for the couple to get married at this time”. He did add: “Their goal is to eventually marry, but the time has yet to be determined and will not happen this year”. We’d like an invite please…

Could Whitney Houston be a desperate housewife?

Believe it, don’t believe it, but there are rumours doing the rounds in Hollywood that Whitney Houston might be joining the cast of Desperate Housewives. Some of you may remember that in her heyday Whitney wasn’t just a singer but also had a few fairly successful acting gigs, so there might be some truth to this. After all, she’s got her recording career back on track with her new CD I Look to You, why not make a few appearances on a hit show – full of fierce women – to test the acting waters again.

John Barrowman a drag ‘natural’

John Barrowman, star of the sci-fi series Torchwood, has impressed audiences in a drag performance as Zara in La Cage Aux Folles in the West End. John follows in the footsteps of Graham Norton who also recently donned a wig and a frock for the role. The usually quite masculine actor apparently “has really taken to his new role,” a source told The People. “He did not hesitate to get into character and try on the costumes. He’s a natural,” the source added. John, who married his partner Scott Gill in 2006, has also been in the news for revealing that he was once told by TV producers that he would have to hide his sexuality if he wanted to be a successful actor. He sure showed them!

Madonna and Lady Gaga fight it out…

Madonna and Lady Gaga made an appearance on Saturday night Live last weekend in the US. The two gals, dressed in very similar outfits, start out dancing together but are soon at each other’s throats in a mock catfight. “What the hell is a disco stick?” yells out Madge, while Gaga proclaims “I’m totally hotter than you!” Ultimately, the blonde duo almost end up kissing – ala Britney and Madonna. It’s all meant in jest and it’s great that the two stars can laugh at themselves and their similarities, but it all came across as stilted, unrehearsed and… uhhh, silly.

It’s not easy being Graham Norton

You’d think that being an international celebrity would make it rather easy to find a man to date, but not so, says gay Brit talk show host and occasional actor Graham Norton. “I’m single at the moment,” he told the Daily Mirror. “On the one hand being on the TV makes it easier to meet people. But no intelligent person would want to go out with someone off the telly. Because that would be a nightmare. So, that’s the Catch-22. I’d think they were an idiot for agreeing to go out with me.” He added that there were also few role model relationships in his life. “I know about two couples who I look at and think, ‘I could cope with that…’ I’d prefer to be miserable alone than miserable in a relationship,” said the star. Would you date Graham Norton?

Kylie takes on the US

Kylie Minogue is in the midst of her first ever American tour. Reaction in the land of the free and the brave has been mixed, with fans wetting themselves but many critics being less than impressed by her vocal talents and lack of dancing skills. Critic Jim Harrington wrote that the show “…resembled what it must be like to watch Madonna’s stand-in run through an early tour rehearsal” and that it featured “…a sea of numbing dance numbers that contained little personality and even less charm”. Ouch! He added: “This same show would go over great in Europe, for reasons that most Americans (this critic included) will never fully understand. That’s OK – some things, like Kylie Minogue, just don’t translate.” Audience members included Paris Hilton, Howard Stern, Perez Hilton and boyfriend Andres Velencoso. Kylie, who has sold more than 40 million albums worldwide, has struggled to crack the US market, but over the years she has built up a loyal (and very gay) fan base in America which has resulted in her US shows selling out.

Mario Lopez looks hot in lingerie

It’s sort of uncomfortable to admit, but we think Mario Lopez looks kinda sexy wearing women’s lingerie – as evidenced by this picture. The actor dons the skimpy outfit in the new season of Nip/Tuck in which he reprises his guest role as Dr Mike Hamoui. This comes after Mario exposed his rather appealing butt in a 2006 episode of the show. Now we have a reason to keep watching the antics of those wacky plastic surgeons. Sadly, instead of getting hot and heavy with his male colleagues in the outfit, he instead hooks up with Kimber Henry played by Kelly Carlson. Oh well, we can’t have everything…

Pete Wentz takes it all off

The delicious “I’ve kissed boys” Pete Wentz took it all off on stage recently. Sadly it wasn’t his clothes (although we’ve seen that before), it was his hair. At a Fall Out Boy concert in New York, Blink 182’s Mark Hoppus gave Pete a surprising haircut on stage in front of the audience – who apparently loved it. Pete later commented on his blog: “…this is the death of the emo swoosh.” Those crazy rock stars! Do you approve, or has Pete lost his charm along with his locks?