My job is seriously cool at times. I get to meet some great up and coming names of the future. So step forward emerging Hollywood A-Lister Paula Patton, who’s married to musician Robin Thicke.

We met through mutual friends yesterday and had a quick hi and hello while she picked up a friend in her SUV. She’s delightful – and strangely similar to Halle Berry in looks. Although I would say fresher and hotter!

You may have seen Paula as the lead female in Denzel Washington film Deja Vu. But you are going to be seeing a whole lot more this young lady soon. She will soon star opposite Kelsey Grammar, Dennis Hopper and Kevin Costner in Swing Vote, is the female lead in Mirrors opposite 24’s Keifer Sutherland, stars in Push with Lenny Kravitz and is just starting work on a new flick called This Wednesday.

She’s the big star of the future and THE one to watch. Take note, people.

Before Britney Spears’ notorious meltdown towards the end of last year Britney’s then manager Larry Rudolph was in negotiations with hotels in Las Vegas about the pop star having a residency at one of the plush hotels.

Then during her meltdown everything was called off when Britney ditched Larry. Well, he was actually always more of a lawyer than a music manager anyway….

Anyway, now Britney’s getting better – I am told it’s going to be a long process of recovery – she’s taken Larry back on as her manager and the idea of a residency in Las Vegas is back in the pipeline. A source reveals: “Larry had the deal ready to sign before but this time round it’s being re-negotiated. The money’s bigger this time too. You are talkign $60 million if she were to do a six month residency.” Not bad money for Britters – not that she needs it.

It would be ace to see her back on stage – especially now he’s back working out in the gym so much and looking better every day! You go, Brit.

Victoria Beckham announced she was designing a range of up market dresses with French designer Roland Mouret back in March. Well I hear the collection, apparently named The Little Black Dress” range, will be a little too expensive for pretty much everyone to afford!

A source reveals: “The dresses will retail for about $1,000 each in the US and probably a little bit more in the UK. Hardly anyone will be able to afford them. There’s definitely nothing mass market about the range.”

Oh, and don’t think it was a friendship between the pair that joined the two together to create the range. Apparently Simon Fuller’s company 19 owns Mouret’s company. So it’s more of an inter-house money making venture….

Let’s hope the dresses sell better than Posh’s jeans – they flopped so badly in the star’s hometown of Los Angeles that they’ve even  been taken off the shelves. Eeeeek.

How skint exactly is the King of Pop? I ask you this because I hear Michael Jackson is adding the term ‘fashion designer’ to his multitude of skills. MJ is working with Ed Hardy and Von Dutch creator Christian Audigier on a full range of clothes. The pair signed the deal over the past few weeks and MJ even turned out to support Christian at his birthday recently with the likes of Britney Spears and Fergie of the Black Eyed Peas.

A source out here in LA reveals: “Michael was keen to venture into fashion and loves Christian’s bling clothing of the past. So Christian’s designing the range with Michael – it will include bling gloves, jeans, sweats, hoodies and t-shirts. Everyone involved is very excited – and the range will be available initially all over LA at high end stores.”

Don’t all rush at once!

I’m currently sitting pretty in the Virgin VIP Lounge waiting for my flight to Los Angeles. I’m going out to the sun to attend the MTV Movie Awards and speak to all the stars on the red carpet. Yeeeehah! I’ll be giving you the gossip as I progress into the LA showbiz world.

UPDATE: Geri Halliwell was in the Virgin Lounge with me! She was a bit cagey about where she was flying when I said hi, wore shades everywhere, continually typed into her blackberry and was carrying some incredibly ‘out there’ luminous pink luggage. Well actually she wasn’t carrying the luggage – Virgin staff were doing it for her…..

Get ready for a musical version of Ugly Betty. Michael Urie – who plays camp assistant Marc St James just told radio station Heart that the idea keeps growing. And it’s no surprise when the likes of Vanessa Williams – who plays Wilhelmina Slater – are trained stage performers. He confessed: “I don’t know about an Ugly Betty movie but they do want to do an Ugly Betty musical – a full on Broadway musical, but it’s all hush hush.”
“I think it would be great and they should use the cast from the show. I think we would all do it although we maybe don’t dance and sing as well as professional singers and dancers. I think it would be fun for us to do it for a while and then they could get real people in.”
He added: “They definitely want to do an episode that is a musical one but then
they want to do a full stage show. I think it’s a great idea. It would definitely work.”

I think it’s a seriously fabulous idea!

Michael, pictured with me above at the Globes, also revealed he loved having Victoria Beckham on set – and that the Spice Girl even gave him a parting gift when she left the set. He reveals: “She was absolutely delightful and really cute, really hot. I mean she came, and David was there that day too and I think everyone who worked on the show popped in at some point or another to just look at them because they are so gorgeous.
“They brought their gorgeous Beckham spawn also….they are so adorable, the little boys. It was fun, she’s just great. She’s teeny tiny, she’s so hot and she’s sweet sweet sweet! They gave me some Beckham cologne. It was a nice parting gift. She’s the only guest star who’s ever been on the show and given gifts!”

The Beckham cologne isn’t that bad – but how tight is that gift!?

Mark Ronson told me at the Ivor Novellos last week that working with the Kaiser Chiefs has gone very well indeed. Mark said: “I’m working in the studio with Lily Allen this week so we will have to see what we can do. And I’ve just finished working with the Kaiser Chiefs.”
Asked what he was going to bring to the Kaiser’s rock sound he replied: “Erm, trumpets. No seriously, I’m a huge fan of the band so it was great to do.” I bet it was.

Phil Collins tells me he’s not planning on recording or performing any new music from now on. So I guess he’s retired! Winning a lifetime achievement gong at the Ivor Novello Awards last week, he told me: “This award is a full stop to my career. I won’t say ‘nothing more’ but it’s definitely a time where the priorities in my life have changed and I have too little boys. I did the final farewell tour and the kids are the most important thing I have right now. My world revolves around them. I’m staying at home with them.
“I will still write – that’s something I can’t stop. But there will be no performing for the foreseeable.”
And talking of his award he added: “I have got song writing awards from the eighties and nineties. Getting awards like an Ivor feels like it’s something that still has some legitimacy about it. I’m proud to receive it. It’s about song writing and the craft rather than people voting for you or anything like that.”
Don’t worry Phil – I will keep you alive in spirit and continue to request Easy Lover with my pal Alice at Raffles!