Gladiator actor Russell Crowe and his wife of nine years, Danielle Spencer, have separated, according to a report in Sydney last weekend. The 48-year-old Oscar-winning actor and his 43-year-old singer wife have gone their separate ways, with Crowe turning his undivided attention to his acting career after the split, said the report. The couple, who have two children — Charles and Tennyson, aged eight and six — have parted on friendly terms, with the children remaining with Spencer while her now-estranged husband continues filming the biblical epic Noah in the US.

The report has come as a shock to show business circles in Australia because the couple were regarded as having a strong marriage despite the demands of their careers, with New Zealand-born Crowe in constant demand for film roles while his wife, whose mother is English, has managed caring for the children as well as singing and appearing on Australian TV. They were married in a chapel on Crowe’s farm in the hamlet of Nana Glen, in northern New South Wales, in 2003. They lived in a penthouse on the shores of Sydney harbour before moving into a £6-million mansion in the posh harbourside suburb of Rose Bay. But the demands of his acting career have kept him away from Spencer for much of this year. He has also missed most of the games of the Sydney rugby league club in which he has a financial interest and has left his wife to care for their children. He has six films coming out in the next 12 months — Man with the Iron Fist, Les Miserables, Broken City, Superman, Noah, and the Winter’s Tale.

— Daily Mail

Easy rider!

As he sits astride his shiny black motorbike, it’s hard to tell where Robocop ends and his vehicle begins. Fans got a first glimpse at the fighting machine’s revamped transport as Joel Kinnaman filmed scenes for the remake of the classic action movie on Saturday. The epic Robocop remake has been filming in Toronto, Canada, for the past month. The 32-year-old actor looked fierce in his futuristic all-black body armour while perched on the powerful machine. In the full-body fighting suit, Robocop became one of the most iconic heroes of the 1980s. As the eagerly anticipated film progresses in Toronto, set pictures from the Toronto shoot have flooded the media including those of Kinnaman wearing the Robocop suit as he storms onto various crime scenes. The first Robocop made more than $54 million, spawned two sequels, a television miniseries, and even gathered Oscar nominations.

— Daily Mail

Eddie steps out with mystery blonde again

It seemed that Eddie Murphy was back to his womanising ways when he stepped out with a mystery blonde last month.

But it appears that the actor’s new pretty squeeze may be one for keeps. For the 51-year-old was spotted out with the flaxen-haired beauty again on Saturday. Murphy and his ladylove were seen stopping by a local Coffee Bean for some Java over the weekend. The couple were beaming as they left the coffee house and got into the Coming To America star’s flash Mercedes sportscar. Murphy’s very slender companion took a walk on the side wearing a pair of tight-fitting tiger print trousers teamed with a black T-shirt. She wore the jeans tucked into a pair of boots and had on minimal jewellery. Meanwhile, Murphy was sporty for the occasion dressed in a black Adidas tracksuit. The couple’s outing comes after Murphy took the beauty for a steak dinner last month. The move prompted speculation that his romance with TV presenter Rocsi Diaz had definitely ended.

— Daily Mail