Lee Jung Hyun to make March comeback

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Last summer, singer Lee Jung Hyun led promotions with her mini-album and title track Vogue It Girl. Now over half a year later, it’s been revealed that she’ll be making a comeback this month with her 7th album.

If you recall, Lee also recently appeared on the late night talk show Asia Uncut and was even compared to world famous American artist Lady Gaga.

Last time around, this singer gained quite a lot of attention for her unique fashion sense and music, so many eyes are on this upcoming comeback. It’s been revealed that some of Korea’s top composers are currently working on the album.

The album will have a unique style and have a fun new dance. But she’ll also be changing things up a bit as she’ll also feature a ballad track. The main concept will be something different but bold as ideas are being brainstormed.
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K.Will releases a teaser for his upcoming single

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Last year November, K.Will released his second album titled Miss, Miss and Miss. Well, he is going to make a comeback by releasing a new single titled Gift on March 10th!

Today, K.Will released a one minute teaser of Gift which featured a crying scene of the child actress Jin Ji Hwe from MBC’s High Kick Through the Roof. Other than Jin Ji Hwe, U-Kiss‘ Dongho, BEAST’s Lee Gi Kwang, MBLAQ’s Thunder and Speed Scandal’s child actor Wang Suk Hyun were all also seen crying. It is unclear whether or not they are crying because of happiness or sadness, but it will be something to anticipate for nevertheless. In the one minute teaser, you will get to hear a 30 second preview of Gift.

In the teaser, here are some of the “titles” they were given.

Thunder – “The male who makes chocolate.”

Wang Suk Hyun – “The male who gifts roses.”

Jin Ji Hwe – “The female who receives confessions of love.”

Dongho – “The male who loves teddy bears.”

Gi Kwang – “The male who sends video messages.”

Stay tuned to K.Will’s new track Gift, which will be released on March 10th!
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John Park eliminated from American Idol

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It was a proud day for Koreans everywhere when Korean American John Park made the Top 24 on American Idol.

John had his second live performance last night, singing John Mayer’s Gravity. However, he received a bit of a harsh review from all the judges. Although he was highly praised for his voice, they commented that the song choice was not appropriate for his vocals.

The judges’ opinion probably influenced the voters’ decision because John Park was one of four that were sent home on today’s episode of the show.

Perhaps John Park should have stuck to singing something like this:

Even if you don’t watch the show, this was a big step for Koreans breaking into the American media. Although it would have been a glorious moment for John to win, he had to pack his bags and go back to Chicago. Luckily he went home happy saying that he had absolutely no regrets.

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John Lennon's son defends his mother for allowing Citroen to use images of father in car ad

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By Chris Johnson

Sean Lennon with mother Yoko Ono, pictured together in New York last August, has defended her for allowing footage of his father to be used in a Citroen car ad


John Lennon's son has denied that Yoko Ono is cashing-in on his father's legacy by allowing images of the murdered Beatle to be used in a TV commercial.

Faced with a growing storm of protest Sean Lennon is claiming the Citroen car ads are being screened as the family's way of keeping Lennon's memory alive.

Yoko Ono gave permission for archive footage of a John Lennon interview to be used in a UK advert for the Citroen DS3 hatchback.

But Beatles fans have accused the pair of cheapening the name 'Lennon' and branded them Yoko and Sean as 'leeches'.

One disgusted fan, named only as 'Stew' fired a stream of abuse over the ads at Sean, 35, via the social networking site Twitter.

Stew told Sean: 'You and Ono have sold John out allowing Citroen to use him to sell their cars. English fans are disgusted at you both.

'You and your mother are a talentless pair of leeches. You're not fit to use the surname Lennon. Enjoy the money...can't buy you love!'


John Lennon as he appears in footage for the ad

Stung Sean initially hit-back, branding his critics 'peasants' and 'a**holes' but claimed he had not seen the ad.

Now Sean has viewed he commercial and has confessed that he understands why fans were so upset, but denied that making money was the family's motive.

Speaking via Twitter, Sean said: 'Look, TV ad was not for money. It's just hard to find new ways to keep Dad in the new world. Not many things as effective as TV.

'Having just seen the ad I realise why people are mad. But intention was not financial, was simply wanting to keep him out there in the world.'


The Citroen DS3 hatchback, pictured here at the opening of the Geneva Motor Show in Switzerland today

Citroen has defended its use of John Lennon by saying that permission was sought and given by Yoko Ono and the Lennon estate.

The campaign, by London-based advertising agency Euro RSCG, is billed as 'anti-retro' and also features legendary screen siren Marilyn Munro.

Some Beatles fans have challenged Yoko to explain why she gave her permission and told her 'Shame on you!' But defending his mother's decision, he continued: 'She (Ono) did not do it for money. Has to do with hoping to keep dad in public consciousness. No new LPs, so TV ad is exposure to young.'
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Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No... it's a man in a flying KAYAK: Daredevil claims to be world's first 'skyaker'

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By Mail Foreign Service

Making a splash: Skyaker Miles Daisher is ready to launch out of the Caravan at 13,500 ft above the ground

Danger man Miles Daisher casts a bizarre image paddling across the sky - 13,000 feet up in a kayak.

The daredevil has turned extreme sport skydiving on its head after deciding to jump out of a plane in equipment normally used only in water - giving birth to 'skyaking'.

His spin on the risky hobby means anyone looking up will draw a blank when they ask: 'Is it a bird? Is it a plane?'

But the answer will become clear when Miles swoops in at 50mph and lands on the water in spectacular fashion.

His unbelievable antics are set to explode onto the worldwide silver screen in a sensational new 3D film on skydiving, base jumping, wingsuit flying and skyaking.

The 40-year-old, from Twin Falls, Idaho, decided to put a twist into has favourite pastime when looking for new ideas to take it even more extreme.

And as these pictures 13,000 feet over beautiful Lake Tahoe show his efforts are both incredible and hilarious.

'It took us nearly a year before we could get our wish to come true as no-one was really looking to throw a kayak out of an aeroplane.

'To begin with we did it off a 600ft bridge on a static line, and landed in Feather River, California.'


Up a creek with no paddle: Miles uses his arms to get his ballance and keep the Skyak stable while falling towards Earth at 101 mph

Static lines connect the jumper to the point they are jumping from - such as a plane or in Miles' case the bridge - and automatically pulls their parachute as they fall away.

He continued: 'A year later I got permission to jump out of an aeroplane and so since that time I have jumped out of four different aircraft, including a helicopter.

'We have taken it all over the world from Mexico to Abu Dhabi and I have been skyaking for nearly eight years now.'

Over the years father-of-two Miles and his team have slowly perfected the art of skyaking.

'There are a lot of things that can go wrong in skyaking and so you have to be prepared,' he said


The daredevil has turned extreme sport skydiving on its head after deciding to jump out of a plane in equipment normally used only in water


'In skyaking I usually put the chute quite high. With skydives I will pull at 2,000 ft above the ground whereas with skyaking I will pull at 5,000 ft above the ground incase anything starts to go a little crazy.

'That way I have a time to sort things out, get out of the boat and then pull the chute for the kayak.' And he has noted some strong differences in regular skydiving.
'The rate at which you fall is a lot different,' he said.

'Instead of falling flat on your belly you are sitting up right in an L position. I liken it to sitting on a space hopper, balancing front to back and side to side.

'It does take some decent balance skills. And because the boat has such a big surface area your fall rate is a lot slower.

'If you are lying on your belly, a normal sized human will fall at 120 mph.

'If you go into a stand up or a head down then you can build the speed up to 160-180 mph.

'But with this boat, that has so much surface area and weighs 35 lbs, meaning that I fall at only 98 mph.

The reduced rate of Miles' descent through the clouds means that cameramen wishing to film him need to wear special wingsuits to increase drag and reduce their own fall rate - so they don't just hurtle past skyaking Miles.

Wingsuits are specially adapted bodywear for skydivers and base jumpers. Flaps of material running across the gaps between arms and legs increase drag for jumpers and allow them to glide like a flying squirrel.

Danger-hungry Miles has completed more base jumps than anyone in the world with 2,570 and has completed a whopping 3,000 skydives since he quit his job and took up the sport in 1995.


Water landing: Miles Skyaks into the ditch for a perfect splashdown, water landing at Skydive Sebastian, Florida
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Byul returns with her Sweet Love single

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Korean singer Byul returns to the k-pop scene after being on break for almost half a year. She releases her single album Taste of Love with her title track Sweet Love.


Byul is most famous for her work on the OST of the 2004 Korean drama Full House. The song I Think I gained an immense boost in popularity due to it being played over and over again on the drama. You may also know her for her 2007 hit Cupid. Dressing up in pink and cute clothing, Star took the summer of 2007 by storm with her addictive beat and peppy choreography.

Now she returns with her latest track, featuring the rap of Rhyme Bus. A lot of artists in the k-pop scene are transitioning to the electric hip-hop genre but Byul is staying faithful to her original talents as she brings about another loving happy track. It’s got a nice feel good vibe about it that’s bound to have you smiling aimlessly.
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Kara takes the M! Countdown stage with Lupin

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After starting off with an explosive series of comebacks on last week’s M! Countdown, Kara is back on stage to perform their latest infectious hit Lupin!

Though the rising competition from fellow kpop groups and idols is coming from all sorts of directions, this girl group has continued to maintain their high positions on various online music charts, even surpassing some big names! Like several other groups and entertainers, Kara has worked hard to accomplish all that they have up until this point and all their hard work is being paid off with the abundant love they are receiving from fans in the crowd.

As the girls strutted their stuff on stage, gyrating their hallo-worthy sexy figures for their Lupin performance, cheers once again drowned out the majority of the performance. The girls are on a roll and so far, momentum seems to be on their side!
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Skinput gadget turns your own ARM into a touchscreen display

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By Claire Bates

Skinput could solve the problem of ever shrinking gadget screens

Those who find the touchscreens on their ever shrinking gadgets too fiddly to handle, will be glad to hear scientists are developing a new touch surface... your own arm.

Developers at Microsoft Research and Carnegie Mellon University are working together to create an armband that projects an interface directly on to your skin.

They have combined a mini projector which creates a changing display with a sophisticated sensor that can tell which part of your arm is being tapped


A video showed how Skinput could recognise a telephone number being typed out on a hand


The researchers showed Skinput can be used to control audio devices, play simple games like Tetris, make phone calls and navigate simple browsing systems.

Lead researcher Chris Harrison from Carnegie Mellon University told the Mail Online: 'This is cutting edge technology and we really are seeing the future here.

'The project is going very well and I think you'll begin to see such interfaces emerge within the next five years.'

The gadget effectively turns your arm into a touchscreen surface by picking up various ultra-low sounds produced when you tap different areas.

Different skin locations are acoustically distinct because of bone density and the filtering effect from soft tissues and joints. The team then used software that matched sound frequencies to specific skin locations.

If the prototype isn't resting on the arm, it uses wireless technology like Bluetooth to transmit the commands to the device being controlled, such as a phone, iPod, or computer


Researchers said our skin is perfect as it is a display surface that we always take with us

Writing in a paper for Microsoft Research, Chris Harrison, Desney Tan and Dan Morris, said: 'Our skin has been overlooked as an input canvas and is one that happens to always travel with us.

'Furthermore, proprioception - our sense of how our body is configured in three-dimensional space - allows us to accurately interact with our bodies in an eyes-free manner.

'We can readily flick each of our fingers, touch the tip of our nose, and clap our hands together without visual assistance.'

The sensor picks up two two types of acoustic signals - transverse waves created by the rippling of skin as it's tapped and longitudinal waves that travel through the soft tissue of the arm and excite the bone.


The armband prototype can be combined with an MP3 player and used to change the song or volume level


Skinput will be presented at a computer conference in April

Currently, the acoustic detector can detect five skin locations with an accuracy of 95.5 per cent, which would be high enough for many smartphone applications.

Mr Harrison told the Mail Online: 'We achieved high input accuracy in the lab with about one error in 20 key presses, which is similar to what you might find on an iPhone keyboard.'

Twenty volunteers who have tested the system said they found it easy to navigate.
The researchers added that Skinput also works well when the user is walking or running.

There are many potential markets for the device. Mr Harrison said: 'One example is an audio player on your upper arm. Perhaps it has no buttons at all, and only uses the skin as the finger input canvas.

'You could then just tap your fingers to advance to the next song, change the volume, or pause the current song. You wouldn't even need a projector for most of these types of interactions.'

The researchers plan to present their work in April at the Computer-Human Interaction meeting in Atlanta, Georgia.

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Jung Yonghwa and Yoon Si Yoon’s CF for NII

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Rising rookies Yoon Si Yoon of High Kick Through the Roof and Jung Yonghwa of CNBLUE shot a CF, “2010 S/S Season TV commercial,” and photos for their endorsement of the clothing line NII.

Jung Yonghwa has been getting a lot of attention as the leader of CNBLUE and their hit song I’m a Loner. Yoon Si Yoon has been making a name for himself as “Junhyuk Student” in High Kick Through the Roof.

The filming of the commercial took place in Bangkok, Thailand and the CF was inspired by the movie Avatar. Does this mean our boys are appearing as blue creatures?

Not quite. The two turn into a cooler looking version of themselves, their avatars, to go out with people.

Check out the 15s CF:







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BEAST’s Junhyung shares a fake kiss with a nun?

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MBC High Kick Through the Roof had BEAST’s main rapper Junhyung make a cameo on March 1st’s episode. In the episode, Junhyung filmed a music video with In-na, played by Yu In-na.

In-na was supposed to film a kiss scene with Junhyung after getting her nun outfit, a habit, ripped off, but she got scared because she knew Kwang-su would get jealous. Julian poked Kwang-su in the eye while people were replaying the kiss scene so that he wouldn’t be able to watch her kiss Junhyung.

Because the scene in which In-na’s habit was ripped off as well as the kiss itself weren’t actually broadcast, people were confused and a bit annoyed. The episode just showed In-na’s habit strewn on the floor and said they had a kiss scene.

Netizens commented, “It’s a problem that they didn’t air it but pretended it all happened,” and “Everyone is pretending.” Other viewers are cutting High Kick some slack, saying, “It’s just imaginary,” and “It’s a sitcom. Have fun as you watch it. Don’t blow things out of proportion.”



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MC Mong and Seo In Young will sing a duet [updated with MV teaser]

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MC Mong and Seo In Young will be getting together for a duet.

The two have been chosen to sing composer Jo Young Su’s Bubble Love for his third signature album, All Star 2.5. Jo Young Su is a renowned composer in the music industry and recently won the Best Composer award at the 2009 Cyworld Digital Music Awards.

This song is said to be about an innocent love shared between a couple, and Jo Young Su chose Seo In Young for her strong vocals and MC Mong for his charismatic rapping. However, Seo In Young will have to take her strong vocals down a notch and project a more cute image for the song.

MC Mong and Seo In Young have been known as being best friends, but they have never had the time to record a song together. But with Jo Young Su’s request, the two best friends will finally share a special song together.

The recording of the song almost had to be delayed or a new male rapper had to be chosen due to MC Mong’s recent facial injury, but in order to keep his word, MC Mong showed up to the recording instead of resting.

Other renowned artists such as SG Wanabe, VOS, Seeya’s Kim Yeon Gi, Navi, and Su Ki will be part of Jo Young Su’s All Star 2.5.
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T-ara’s music video has over a million hits

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Last week, girl group T-ara made their comeback with their repackaged album Breaking Heart. Following the album release, they also unveiled the music video for their title track I Go Crazy Because of You. It’s now been revealed that the music video has had over a million hits!

It hasn’t even been a full week and the girls have already dominated the charts. The music video has received over a million hits on GomTV, alone.

But does it even come as a surprise? For their previous hits they’ve usually gone for a cute image but they ditched the lollipops and kitty cats as they went for a full on sexy bad girl concept.

And although their sexy title track is quite the hot issue, I’m Really Hurt, another song off their repackaged album, is receiving an enormous amount of love as well.

Currently the girls are pulverizing the competition with their title track. T-ara is currently #1 on various online charts and is beating out big name idol groups like 2NE1, Big Bang, Kara and SNSD.
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More than 5,000 Australians strip on the steps of the Sydney Opera House in the name of art

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By Mail Foreign Service

Titled Mardi Gras: The Base, the installation had been commissioned by the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, which took place over the weekend


More than 5,000 people turned up at the Sydney Opera House today to get naked in the name of art.


Braving an early morning chill they shed their clothes, abandoned any embarrassment, and posed naked for renowned American nudist photographer Spencer Tunick.

People came in all shapes and sizes and one heavily pregnant woman even postponed the birth of her twins so she could take part.


As the sun rose over the harbour, Mr Tunick instructed his subjects to adopt a number of poses, from standing, lying, and even embracing cheek to cheek


Titled Mardi Gras: The Base, the installation had been commissioned by the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, which took place over the weekend.

Mr Tunick, 43, who has taken nude crowd pictures all around the world, said the project was about sending a positive message that no one should shun other people.

'Gay men and women lay naked next to their straight neighbours and this delivered a very strong message to the world that Australians embrace a free and equal society,' he said.

The organisers had only expected about half the number of people to turn up.


The Sydney Harbour Bridge is visible in the background as the thousands of Australians parade naked along the seafront


More than 5,000 people turned up at the Sydney Opera House today to get naked for a project by American nudist photographer Spencer Tunick


Mr Tunick, 43, who has taken nude crowd pictures all around the world, said the project was about sending a positive message that no one should shun other people


'We thought we'd get a couple of thousand people turning up - but to get 5,200 is just amazing,' said one of Mr Tunick's assistants.

As the sun rose over the harbour, Mr Tunick instructed his subjects to adopt a number of poses, from standing, lying, and even embracing cheek to cheek.

'I want all couples to embrace and kiss, all friends to kiss and all strangers to, well, do whatever they want,' said the photographer.

Anna Bruce, 28, who signed up for the photo shoot with a friend, described the event as a 'once in a lifetime' opportunity.


People came in all shapes and sizes and one heavily pregnant woman even postponed the birth of her twins so she could take part


A wide-angle lens shot of the 'installation'

'It was easier than I expected. It was really normal - there was no problem in getting our kit off. I'd say the hardest part was the embracing poses.'


Mr Tunick maintains his work is not about exhibitionism or eroticism but instead he reveals the vulnerability of life in a rough city landscape


Student Art Rush admitted that he was expecting old people and nudists to turn up 'but everyone arrived from all over the place.

'It's a great adrenalin rush and I'll never get a chance to do anything like this again. It's not worth being inhibited.

'It doesn't feel sexual - more like a feeling of being tribal, a gathering of humanity.'

The artist said today’s installation 'went well'.

'I’m just so lucky to be able to work with so many naked gay, straight and transgender people,' he said.

This is Mr Tunick's first installation in Australia following projects in the U.S., Brazil, France, England, Spain, Switzerland, Holland and Austria.

The artist has been documenting the nude figure in public through photography and video since 1992.

His largest work to date involved 18,000 people posing in Mexico City in 2007.

He has said the title of the work refers to the sameness of individuals, regardless of their sexual preferences.

Mr Tunick maintains his work is not about exhibitionism or eroticism but instead he reveals the vulnerability of life in a rough city landscape.

However sometimes authorities have disagreed, particularly in the U.S., where Tunick has been arrested seven times.
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Chile earthquake: Santiago airport remains closed as tour operators cancel holidays

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Split in two: A damaged apartment block in Concepcion, Chile, after Saturday's earthquake


The Foreign Office is warning Britons against 'all but essential travel' to the regions worst affected by the earthquake in Chile over the weekend.

The epicentre of the quake, which measured 8.8 on the Richter Scale and struck in the early hours of Saturday was some 30 miles off Chile's coast. The cities of Concepcion, Talca and the capital Santiago have seen the worst damage with 700 people already confirmed dead, a number that is expected to rise say Chilean officials.

Hundreds of thousands of people in 53 countries were evacuated from their homes and millions more put on alert after a tsunami from the quake raced across the Pacific.

The FCO website is advising that the regions of Maule and Biobio are currently 'states of catastrophe' and should be avoided by travellers. Phone links to The British Embassy in Santiago are down and Britons in Chile are being asked to 'follow the advice of the local authorities'.

Those due to travel to the country this week have been forced to change their plans as much of Chile's infrastructure, particularly south of Santiago, has been damaged with transport links, including the Pan-American Highway, severely affected.

The country has long been popular with independent travellers and backpackers with around 65,000 Britons visiting Chile every year.

The main gateway for flights, Santiago Airport, has been closed since the earthquake but there are reports that it may reopen later today. Iberia and LAN Chile, which both fly from the UK to Santiago via Madrid, have suspended flights as has American Airlines which flies from Miami.

Frances Tuke of ABTA, The Travel Association told TravelMail: "As far as we know there are only a few hundred Britons currently on holiday in Chile and our members are all reporting that they're safe and well in their hotels."

Adventure tour operator Explore has cancelled a 16-day 'Atacama to Paine' itinerary and elsewhere, cruises to the Galapagos Islands were also disrupted as the threat of a tsunami prevented boats from landing or anchoring off the islands.

Although aftershocks are still being felt across southern Chile, a giant tidal wave which could have spread as far as Australia, Hawaii, Philippines and Russia hasn't materialised although large waves have hit land - amateur video footage taken in Hawaii shows a beach being flooded.

Meanwhile, fears are growing for four British backpackers missing in Chile. Kirsty Duff and Dave Sandercock were on a surfing holiday round South America but have not been heard from since Thursday. They were in Pichilemu, a surf resort about three hours from Santiago, when it was rocked by the quake.


Missing: Kirsty Duff and Dave Sandercock both arrived in the surfing town of Pichilemu last week and have not contacted family since the quake


Kirsty’s cousin Clare Slipper, 19, said: 'We have not heard from them since Thursday. They arrived in Chile three weeks ago from Peru, and were living in the town, which is between the two cities badly affected by the earthquake.

'They are both really into surfing and had been travelling and they went there to surf. The good news is there have been no reported fatalities or casualties in the town.

'But it has been quite badly damaged and because we have not heard from them, the family is getting worried. We are just waiting to hear from the British Embassy in case there has been any news.'

Another couple, Andre Lanyon from Guernsey and Laura Hapgood, both 29, also went to Pichilemu on Friday.

For more information on the Chile earthquake, visit www.fco.gov.uk or call the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on +44 207 008 0000.
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Shin Se Kyung is a doll

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYBW-Kh_Ymsendofvid
[starttext]

Shin Se Kyung, one of the stars of High Kick through the Roof, stirred up the media a couple of months ago singing “A Doll’s Dream.”

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Clean and Clear CF featuring Seohyun and Krystal released!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CkJHzbZwXi0endofvid
[starttext]
As previously reported, SNSD / Girls’ Generation maknae Seohyun and f(x) member Krystal collaborated to film a CF for Clean and Clear.

About a month ago, a behind the scenes look was released through an MBC interview, but the CF took it’s sweet time to hit TV screens across Korea!

Well it’s out now and made available for view on your computer screen:

Both Seohyun and Krystal really do give off an innocent charm, don’t they? The CF depicts a much different feel from their American counterparts as well. It’s almost blasphemous how they don’t use huge celebrities to promote their products, but “scientific studies” and “personal accounts” instead, to attract the consumers.

Personally, I’m more convinced to buy their products by the two beautiful girls.
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