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Ellen DeGeneres, Alexandra Hedison split

HOLLYWOOD, Dec. 11 (UPI) -- Syndicated U.S. TV talk show host Ellen DeGeneres has split with her girlfriend, photographer-director Alexandra Hedison.

The New York Daily News reported Saturday that a source close to the couple told People magazine that Hedison had moved out of DeGeneres' Hollywood Hills home.

"It's difficult for both of them and very sad," said the source. "They were a private couple, and they hope they can separate privately."

Hedison, the daughter of soap opera actor David Hedison, met DeGeneres via mutual friends in 2000, after DeGeneres' romance with actress Anne Heche broke up.

Shakespeare experiment in London

LONDON, Dec. 11 (UPI) -- Australian director Baz Lurhmann coached a group of teens and young adults with no theatrical experience in a performance of "Romeo and Juliet" in London.

Lurhmann guided the cast -- recruited via leaflets in a London immigrant neighborhood -- to perform the play after four weeks, as an experiment to see if an underprivileged group could understand and communicate Shakespeare, reported the Daily Telegraph.

The British television adventure from "Shine" challenged players from the Afro-Caribbean Harlesden neighborhood to perform the play in the main theater at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in the heart of London's theater district.

The reality-TV-like experience will be broadcast in a two-hour program, "My Shakespeare," Dec 27.

Lurhmann, who directed Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes in his movie version of "Romeo and Juliet" in 1996, did most of his guidance via telephone in Australia.

British actor Paterson Joseph was the director of the production.

'True Dads with Bruce Willis' examines dads

LOS ANGELES, Dec. 11 (UPI) -- U.S. cable's Spike TV examines the rewards of being a father in a two-hour special "True Dads with Bruce Willis."

The special, hosted by actor and father of three Bruce Willis, is scheduled for Friday at 9 p.m. EST/PST.

"Today's men are looking for new role models about how to be a dad -- you can't just come home and watch TV anymore," says Albie Hecht, president of Spike TV. "According to research from Spike TV's recent nationwide study of men, we found that nearly half of the men surveyed said they don't spend as much time as they would like with their kids -- we hope this documentary will help to inspire a new generation of fathers."

One out of every four U.S. homes has no father.

The show examines fatherhood from the perspective of six dads via their personal stories and experiences, including: NASCAR's Kerry Earnhardt; Dr. Jonathan Clark, husband of late astronaut Laurel Clark who was killed in the 2003 Columbia Space Shuttle tragedy; and Joseph Jones, a one-time heroin addict and deadbeat dad.

British dance show sparks dance craze

LONDON, Dec. 11 (UPI) -- The British TV show "Strictly Come Dancing" -- featuring celebrities dancing -- has sparked a ballroom dancing craze in the United Kingdom.

It's estimated the number of people taking dance lessons in Britain has risen from 175,000 to at least 260,000, since the show began, reported the Daily Telegraph Saturday.

One of the judges on "Strictly Come Dancing," Len Goodman, who operates dance schools, described the public response to ballroom dancing as "overwhelming."

"I run two dance schools and we've had an increase in business of around 40 percent since 'Strictly Come Dancing' started," he told the Telegraph. "Friends with dance schools tell me their numbers have gone up by as much as 80 percent."

Unlike many of today's niche music tastes, the new dance recruits range from age 17 to nearly 70. The favorite dance is the jive, although ballroom and Latin are very popular, according to the dance schools.