Reality TV star Jade Goody dead at 27

Reality television star Jade Goody died in her sleep today aged just 27, her mother and publicist said, after a very public battle with cervical cancer.
Goody, a mother of two, died at her home in Upshire, Essex, at 3.14am on Mother's Day, with new husband Jack Tweed and mother Jackiey Budden by her side.
"My beautiful daughter is at peace," Budden said. Goody's publicist Max Clifford added: "She was a very, very brave girl. And she faced her death in the way she faced her whole life - full on, with a lot of courage".
Goody, an ex-dental nurse from south London, first found fame on Britain's Big Brother reality television programme in 2002.
But her rags-to-riches career was nearly ruined when she subjected Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty to racist bullying on the celebrity edition of the show in 2007, referring to her as "Shilpa Poppadom".
The two subsequently made peace, with Goody appearing on the Indian Big Brother - Bigg Boss, hosted by Shetty - although she pulled out after her cancer diagnosis.
Prime Minister Gordon led the tributes to Goody, saying he was "deeply saddened" by her death.
"She was a courageous woman both in life and death and the whole country has admired her determination to provide a bright future for her children," Brown said.
"She will be remembered fondly by all who knew her and her family can be extremely proud of the work she has done to raise awareness of cervical cancer."
He added: "I was deeply saddened by the news, but in hindsight glad she is out of pain and passed away peacefully in her sleep."
Goody's decision to live out her final weeks in the public eye prompted many commentators uncomfortable with the coverage to raise questions about the ethics of reality television.
But she won the hearts of many Brits and was responsible for a huge jump in the number of young women taking tests for cervical cancer.
She married Tweed -- a 21-year-old aspiring footballers' agent jailed last year for attacking a 16-year-old with a golf club -- on February 22, nine days after he proposed in hospital following her terminal diagnosis.
Media rights for the lavish ceremony at a country house hotel north of London were reportedly sold for one million pounds sterling ($2 million).
Goody, plus sons Bobby, 5, and Freddy, four - who she had with her ex-boyfriend, television presenter Jeff Brazier -- were christened on March 7, another event captured by a magazine.
The christening was one of her final requests and her publicist Clifford said she wanted to do it so her sons "know about Jesus and hopefully in the years ahead they'll be able to keep in touch with (her) through Jesus".
Last week her publishers said they would publish a diary of her dying days.
Even her funeral, to be held at her local church in the next 10 days, is set to be highly public. Clifford said Goody planned it herself and that it would be "very much a Jade Goody production".
Goody always said she was seeking publicity not for herself but to make her sons financially secure when she was gone.
Although some found the spectacle ghoulish, others leapt to her defence.
Her case reportedly led to a 20 percent rise in the number of young women taking smear tests that can detect cervical cancer.
Robert Music, director of cervical cancer charity Jo's Trust, told British media he had "never seen anything like it".
"The Jade effect has been nothing short of phenomenal," he said. "Quite simply, Jade Goody will end up saving lives."
Goody's body was taken out of her home shortly before 8am as mourners started leaving floral tributes at the gates of her home.
Speaking outside the house, her mother said: "Family and friends would like privacy at last.".

Natasha Richardson dies at 45 after skiing accident

Actress Natasha Richardson has died in hospital in New York following a skiing accident.

The famous family of the acclaimed actress had gathered at Lenox Hill hospital amid reports that a head injury she suffered during the accident had left her near death.
Richardson's husband Liam Neeson released the following statement: "Liam Neeson, his sons, and the entire family are shocked and devastated by the tragic death of their beloved Natasha.
"They are profoundly grateful for the support, love and prayers of everyone, and ask for privacy during this very difficult time."The statement did not give details on the cause of death.
A neurologist told the LA Times that Richardson most likely died from delayed bleeding from an artery in her brain.
Christopher Giza, from the Brain Injury Research Centre at UCLA, said the condition was known as "walk and die" syndrome and followed an injury.
Patients appeared unaffected immediately after the injury, but symptoms developed within an hour and usually included impaired speech and vision, Dr Giza told the LA Times.
Patients fall into a coma soon afterwards and can die in severe cases, he said.
"In general, to have this kind of hemorrhage, you have to experience a significant amount of force," Dr Giza said.
A neurosurgeon told the newspaper such injuries were uncommon but did happen.
"That's why, when a person has a head injury, we like to observe them for 24 hours to make sure no delayed bleeding occurs," Cedars-Sinai Medical Centre surgeon, Keith Black, said.
The only way to fix a blood clot when it formed was to perform emergency surgery and relieve pressure by draining the blood, Dr Giza said. Dr Black also said it was possible Richardson tore an artery in her neck, which would trigger similar symptoms but pose a more lethal threat.
London's Daily Telegraph reported that Richardson, a novice skier, was not wearing a helmet, which are mandatory for children, but discretionary for adults.
Richardson, 45, was flown to Lenox Hill hospital on Manhattan's Upper East Side from Montreal on a private jet yesterday, accompanied by her husband.
She was transferred from Montreal "at the request of the family", Josee-Michelle Simard, a spokeswoman for Sacre-Coeur hospital said.Family members had been seen coming and going from the New York hospital where Richardson was taken.Vanessa Redgrave, Richardson's mother, arrived at the hospital in a car with darkened windows and was taken through a garage. An hour earlier, Richardson's sister, Joely, arrived alone and entered through the back of the hospital.Monday's mishap occurred at the Mont Tremblant ski resort where Richardson fell during a skiing lesson on a beginner's trail.

"She did not show any visible sign of injury," the resort said. But, following strict procedures, the local skiing patrol and her instructor accompanied her back to her hotel and "insisted she should see a doctor".
An hour later, Richardson "was not feeling good" and an ambulance was called to take her to the Centre Hospitalier Laurentien in Ste-Agathe, Quebec. She was later transferred to Sacre-Coeur hospital in Montreal, the resort said.
Neeson, who has been married to Richardson since 1994, flew from the set of the movie Chloe in Toronto to be with his wife.In 1998, Richardson won a Tony award for her role in the musical Cabaret, and she appeared in films such as The Parent Trap, Maid in Manhattan and Evening.
Other movie credits include The Handmaid's Tale, Gothic, A Month In The Country and Nell, in which she appeared with Neeson, whose most celebrated screen turn was in Schindler's List.
Born in May 1963, Richardson was educated in London and trained at the Central School of Speech and Drama in the city, which has groomed a host of British actors.
Her extensive stage experience included a number of Shakespearean roles, among them Ophelia in Hamlet and Helena in A Midsummer Night's Dream.
The Redgrave clan is one of Britain's most famous stage and screen dynasties.
Vanessa, Corin and their sister Lynn are the children of Rachel Kempson and Michael Redgrave, who played in such British classics as the 1938 film The Lady Vanishes and the 1969 film Goodbye, Mr Chips.
Joely is also an actress and is starring in the television drama Nip/Tuck.