Shameless! Publicity Stunts
From game attempts to get our attention to the most shameful self-promotion imaginable - we reveal the 20 most infamous publicity stunts in Celebdom.
Rex FeaturesLiz Hurley’s safety pin dress
The original and, some may argue the best stunt in style history. When Liz Hurley turned up to the 1994 Four Weddings And A Funeral premiere wearing a Versace dress held together (just) by safety pins, she was a complete unknown. By the following morning, she was the most famous person in Britain. That, ladies, is how it’s done!
PA PhotosJanet Jackson and Justin Timberlake in ‘Nipplegate’
The 2004 Superbowl – Janet’s “wardrobe malfunction” caused half of America to have a meltdown (500,000+ complaints, no less) and the other half to hit the pause button. Was it fluke that Janet had an album to plug? Mere coincidence that Justin happened to sing the line: “bet I have you naked by the end of this song” as he reached for her latex cup? Just a bizarre twist of fate that Janet had adorned her nipple with an impressively-oversized metal sunburst that day? Sorry guys, we’re not convinced.
Rex FeaturesPosh and Becks’ post-Loos holiday
While Rebecca Loos was busy selling her allegations to all and sundry, Victoria Beckham was busy arranging a ‘we are family’ holiday in the French Alps to prove to the paps and the public that she was standing firmly by her man. The pair made a huge show of hugging and kissing for the awaiting press, with Vic telling them: “We’re definitely going to get through this.”You’ve got to admire her guile.
PA PhotosLady Gaga’s meat dress
Say what you like about Lady G, but the woman sure knows how to hit the headlines. Renowned for her kooky style, just when you thought the Poker Face starlet couldn’t top Kermit The Frog ensemble, Gaga raised eyebrows (and blood pressure) the world over when she stepped out in this frock made of decaying raw meat, complete with a steak hat and fillet booties. A media frenzy ensued. Take note fledgling popstrals.
PA PhotosMadonna and Britney kiss
It started as a tribute to Madonna’s ‘1984 “Like A Virgin” performance and ended as one of the most talked-about music moments in history. The crowd went wild; cameras went crazy; Justin Timberlake looked less than impressed, and it was official: the pop torch had been passed. The acres of press didn’t do Britney or Madge’s new album sales figures any harm either.
PA PhotosMegan Fox/Fergie/Christina Aguilera: “I’m bisexual too!”
May 2009 - the month of the bisexual celebrity. Intellectually-challenged men the world over began salivating into their lagers when starlets Megan, Fergie, Christina and Pink all announced within days of each other that they were attracted to women. It was, of course, pure coincidence that they all had albums/movies to promote.
Paris Hilton’s sex tape
It wasn’t released by Paris, but the party-loving socialite turned what might have been a crushingly embarrassing experience into the kind of publicity money can’t buy. The “cleverly” titled One Night In Paris has sold over 600,000 copies to date and raked in $15 million.
Rex FeaturesKatie Price goes back to the jungle
Queen of self-promotion, Pricey’s profile took a knocking in 2009 when she split with her popular hubby, Peter Andre. To get the public back on side, Katie ventured back into the I’m A Celebrity… jungle. Sadly, the public weren’t so willing to forgive and forget, and Katie found herself voted to do a record seven terrifying ‘Bushtucker’ trials before quitting. A classic case of the publicity stunt gone awry.
PA PhotosThe Sex Pistols’ Silver Jubilee celebrations
Back in 1977, in the feverishly patriotic climate of the Queen’s momentous Silver Jubilee, Malcolm McLaren arranged for punk rockers The Sex Pistols to sail down the River Thames blasting God Save The Queen to The House Of Commons – a stroke of subversive genius, no? The police boarded the boat and arrested Malcolm. He didn’t care: the single rocketed to Number 2 in the charts and achieved cult status.
PA PhotosJustin Timberlake tells Britney to ‘Cry Me A River’
A nation of teens wept into their Britney/N*SYNC tees when Brit and Justin called time on their fairytale romance. Amid rumours that Britney had cheated on JT and left him broken-hearted, Justin kicked off his solo career with this humdinger of a music video, showing him breaking into the home of an ex (played by a Britney-lookalike, no less) and filming himself getting naughty with another girl on her bed, before watching her in the shower. Creepy? Yes. Sheer publicity genius? Absolutely! Justin scored a GRAMMY for the song, and even Britney herself said: “So he got what he wanted. I think it looks like such a desperate attempt, personally. But that was a great way to sell the record…Smart guy."
PA PhotosGingergate
Geri Halliwell broke a million pre-teen hearts when she left the Spice Girls at the height of their fame in ‘98. While many wrote her off, Geri wasn’t ready to throw in the pop towel. A well-timed, tabloid-friendly whirlwind romance with fellow infamous redhead, Chris Evans, helped power The Artist Formerly Known As Ginger Spice to the front pages, and to the top slot in a well-publicised chart battle with ex-bandmate Emma Bunton.
Rex Features[b]Katie Price and Alex Reid are in love, okay?</b >
Following a much-publicised split from hubby Peter Andre, Katie Price went on a mission to prove she was well and truly over her ex with a PDA-fest featuring shirtless new man, Alex Reid. The pair puckered up for the paps before asking them to join in a game of rounders - cue lots of cute family fun snaps of the new couple plus Pete and Katie’s children. Ouch.
Rex FeaturesJohn and Yoko’s Bed-In
Back in swinging ‘69, John Lennon and Yoko Ono invited the press to room 702 of the Amsterdam Hilton to help them share in their unconventional honeymoon. The ‘peace, love and understanding’ pairing were partaking in a week-long ‘bed-in for peace’ protest against the Vietnam War. The stunt also propelled their single Give Peace A Chance to Number 2 in the British charts. Savvy.
PA PhotosKanye West and 50 Cent’s war of words
Back in 2007, hip hop rivals Kanye and ‘Fiddy’ created a feud that helped to rocket sales of their albums, Graduation and Curtis respectively, into the multi-millions. 50 threatened to retire from music if Kanye sold more than him when the records were released on the same day, and the pair even squared up to each other at the MTV Video Music Awards that year. Kanye later confessed the feud was a publicity stunt, but not before the duos LPs achieved platinum status.
Rex Featurest.A.T.u's ‘lesbianism’
Back in early 2003, Russian pseudo-lesbians Lena and Julia donned their school uniforms and frolicked in the rain to the delight of teen boys everywhere. However, a mere year later it was revealed that the pair were not gay after all: "It's not fun playing lesbians any more", they moaned, informing us that they had both boyfriends back in Moscow. No matter - All The Things She Said spent four consecutive weeks at the number 1 spot in the UK Singles Chart, and topped the charts internationally.
PA Photos/ WENNMadonna’s SEX book
SEX was not your archetypal coffee table book. In fact, it’s unlikely the sealed, soft-porn catalogue ever ended up on a coffee table in its life. Featuring photos of Madge and her celebrity bosom buddies (no pun intended) engaging in all manner of naughtiness - including sadomasochism and analingus – SEX was released a day before Madonna’s fifth studio album, Erotica hit shops as a, ahem, ‘taste’ of what was to come. Despite the negative reviews and several Middle-American organisations’ attempts to ban it, SEX sold 150,000 copies on day one in the US alone, and rocketed Erotica to No.2 in the charts.
SplashR-Patz and K-Stew: Are they? Aren’t they?
Twilight was always going to be huge - no doubt – but the franchise’s popularity and publicity machine has been given a massive helping hand by the never-ending saga that is Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart’s romance/show-mance. We ourselves have spent hours debating the existence of their love while pouring over pics of the couple and, what’s more, both Rob and K-Stew continue to keep schtum. Come on guys, tell us already!
Rex FeaturesJodie Marsh’s belts
Zero talent and even less dignity, yet Miss Marsh’s belt ‘outfit’ has become the stuff of Z-list legend. So trashy, we regret even giving her the publicity now.
Rex FeaturesS Club’s Tina steps out of Rachel’s shadow
Perhaps miffed by how much attention Rachel Stevens had been garnering, 'the other one' from S Club – a recent graduate from the Liz Hurley school of red carpet dressing - decided to turn up to the gang’s premiere in a controversially barely-there dress - just as the rest of the band had decided it was ‘Dress Down Day’. The results was acres of column inches for little Miss Barrett. Smart, eh?
WENNThe Kim Kardashian sex tape
Nobody had even heard of LA socialite Kim Kardashian in 2007. That was until a sex tape she had made with then-boyfriend, little-known R&B singer Ray J, was "leaked". A mere matter of weeks later, both stars had netted their own reality TV shows and multi-million dollar settlements. Not bad for a night’s work.
PA PhotosSpencer Pratt and Heidi Montag
The Hills’ Speidi’s very public relationship became increasingly bizarre before the pair “split” in summer 2010. The publicity-hungry pairing garnered column inches through surgery-obsession, pap-organised photo ops and a series of wacky outbursts – including the time Spencer informed the press he’d banned his wife from watching TV. After their “split”, the aptly-named Pratt attempted to sell their sex tape, saying the footage "makes Kim Kardashian look like an amateur." Nice. The pair are now reconciled, so expect more outlandish attempts for our attention in the near future.
