Hefner marries his runaway bride

On New Year's Eve, Playboy mogul Hugh Hefner married his fiancée Crystal Harris in a private ceremony in his 'Playboy Mansion'.

Flanked by only a select few witnesses, the 86 year-old publishing mogul and 26 year-old model exchanged vows on December 31st, taking to Twitter afterwards to confirm their news.

Before the ceremony, Harris tweeted 'Today is the day I become Mrs. Hugh Hefner. Feeling very happy, lucky, and blessed'. After exchanging vows, Hugh Hefner updated his page, writing 'Crystal & I married on New Year's Eve in the Mansion with Keith as my Best Man. Love that girl!'

The pair planned to marry in July 2011 but Harris called off the ceremony days before the wedding, and was subsequently dubbed 'runwaway bride' by the magazine, and the wider press.

The couple reconciled in 2012 before announcing that their engagement and wedding preparations were back on track.

Hefner has been married twice before - first to Mildred Williams in the Fifties, and then to Kimberley Conrad between 1989 and 2010. Hefner had a son and daughter, Christie and David, with Williams. Conrad and Hefner had two sons together, Marston and Cooper, before separating in 1999. Hefner filed for divorce ten years later.

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RTÉ TEN's Top 5 telly picks today

Check out RTÉ TEN's pick of the day's TV.

Entertainment: Gary Barlow and Friends, 9.00pm, UTV

After Take That split up, Gary Barlow suffered a surprise solo career slump, but in recent years since the band reformed he can simply do no wrong. Here the X Factor judge has his own New Year's Day special as Barlow brings some of his superstar friends together for a one-night only musical spectacular in the Manchester Apollo. Guests include: Peter Kay, James Corden, Mark Owen, Nicole Scherzinger and JLS. I wonder will Peter Kay bring Tony Christie along?

Drama: Sherlock, 9.30pm, RTÉ Two

Season two of this superb, modern-day version of Arthur Conan Doyle's great sleuth starring Benedict Cumberbatch as Holmes and Martin Freeman as Doctor John Watson opens with A Scandal in Belgravia. Loosely based on Conan Doyle's A Scandal in Bohemia, the episode depicts Holmes' quest to retrieve compromising photos of a minor royal held on the camera phone of Irene Adler (Lara Pulver), a ruthless and brilliant dominatrix who also trades in classified information extracted from her rich and powerful clients.

Entertainment: The Great Northern Songbook, 10.00pm, BBC TWO

The 150th anniversary of Belfast's Ulster Hall was marked with a one-off event The Great Northern Songbook - 150 Years Of The Ulster Hall. This special concert, held in May, features some of Northern Ireland's most popular musical talent joining with the Ulster Orchestra to perform ten favourite songs composed by local songwriters - as voted for by the public and BBC Radio Ulster and BBC Radio Foyle specialist music presenters. The acts include Cara Dillon, Brian Kennedy and The Answer.

Factual: David Attenborough's Galapagos, 7.00pm, Sky One

Using pioneering 3D-techniques and technology to explore the unique environments and species of the Galapagos, this groundbreaking new series takes viewers on a voyage to understand the stunning archipelago which changed the way we see the world and has long-remained a place of true interest with the nation's favourite naturalist. This opening episode looks at how the islands rose explosively from the ocean four million years ago. And, of course, the series is led by the legendary David Attenborough. Say no more.

Comedy: Miranda, 9.00pm, BBC ONE

Back for a new run, Miranda Hart's comedy kicks off with Penny (Patricia Hodge) embarrassing Miranda by running for local councillor with Tilly (Sally Phillips) as her wing man. Gary (Tom Ellis) has put himself on the dating scene and Miranda decides she has to do the same. They both want dates for Stevie's (Sarah Hadland) birthday party. Will they find partners or end up back in each other's company? The result is a big surprise for Stevie.

John Byrne

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RTÉ Ten review: The Impossible

The remarkable true-life story of how a family survived the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami opens today. Read RTÉ Ten's review here.

Watch Alan Corr's interview with Ewan McGregor and Naomi Watts here.

Watch Alan Corr's interview with director J.A. Bayona here.

There's been a lot of talk recently about film makers tackling "un-filmable" books. It's as if pieces of art, long resistant to cinema's need to re-package and simplify, have become the Holy Grail for certain directors, a monster to challenge, conquer, and, godammit, bend into movie-form. Ten years ago, Peter Jackson proved that this was indeed very possible with his extraordinary LOTR trilogy and recently Ang Lee's adaptation of The Life of Pi has arrived onto the big screen.

However, the sad fact is that CGI has made even the most "un-filmable" works possible as films. Not visually convincing mind, but possible, and that's enough, right? It has the cumulative effect of making these "un-filmable" films seem far less impressive than the Herculean struggles of the pre-CGI age. Far too many modern movies look like elaborate action cartoons where the suspension of disbelief is no longer a concern. But whatever about un-filmable books, here's a film about an un-filmable event - the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami which engulfed Thailand and many other countries and killed over 280,000 people.

Amazingly, director J.A. Bayona's true-life story of one family's battle to survive does not use any computer-rendered effects. There is not one moment in The Impossible (a title with a triple meaning) that will have you thinking with a shug that the digital boffins have been working overtime in an air-tight lab. This is a triumph of old-fashioned film making. Shot in many of the places where the tsunami struck and using locals and, in some scenes, actual survivors as extras, this is incredibly physical movie-making that never loses sight of the human story. It makes filming a big book about a bloke in a boat with a tiger seem rather less impressive.

Based on the true story of the Spanish Alvarez Belon family, the story is Anglicized for maximum box office ker-ching and stars Naomi Watts and Ewan McGregor as Maria and Henry Bennett, a husband and wife who arrive in beautiful Thailand with their three young sons to see in Christmas and the New Year. All is blissful as gifts are shared and Chinese lanterns are set adrift to become a mini constellation high above the placid Indian Ocean. Of course, no metaphorical calm before the storm is needed - the next day, as the Bennetts relax by the hotel pool, the ground begins to vibrate and a terrifying roar rises up from the ocean.

Naomi Watts and Tom Holland in The Impossible

It is the start of a twenty-minute action sequence that by rights should take every Oscar for technical accomplishment this February. The decimation of the hotel and the sight of flailing human bodies is horrifyingly realistic. That giant wave of water engulfs everything, snapping towering palm trees like twigs, crashing through concrete, and swallowing up human lives remorselessly. Bayona had his actors spend three months in a giant pool in Spain to film these scenes and they are never less than very real. The aftermath is just as horrifying and from here, The Impossible becomes a story of brute survival.

McGregor and Watts, two very good actors well used to roughing it for their art, have worked hard here but they are both in danger of being acted off the screen by film newcomer Tom Holland. As the slightly distant eldest son, Lucas, he has to take on the adult role and care for his injured mother and it is largely Holland who carries the movie as he becomes the character around which events revolve. Bayona is very good at small moments amid the huge canvas of natural disaster - as the tsunami subsides, there is a touching scene when an elderly survivor played by Geraldine Chaplin comforts one of the younger sons atop a mountain on a starlit night. "Many of those stars are dead," she tells the young boy, a poetic acknowledgment of the unknowable scale of human loss all around them.

This is a gripping and inspiring story of blind faith and amazing fate made with real technical flair and serious-minded dedication from the director and cast. The very brave Bayona deserves huge respect for making The Impossible possible.

Alan Corr

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Thousands turn up for New Year's Eve concert

Over ten thousand people turned up last night for the Dublin New Year's Eve Countdown Concert in College Green.

Singer-songwriter Imelda May, Bell X1 and Ham Sandwich were among the acts that performed on the night.

Miriam O'Callaghan and Aidan Power were there to present live coverage of the event on RTÉ, if you missed the show you can watch it on the RTÉ Player here.

Check out some photos of the New Year's Eve Countdown Concert below.

Imelda May

Imelda May performing with The Dubliners

Bell X1

Miram O'Callaghan, Imelda May

Imelda May performing with The Dubliners

Ham Sandwich

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Maggie Gyllenhaal for comedy Frank

Maggie Gyllenhaal is set to star in the forthcoming comedy movie Frank, it has been revealed.

The cast list was leaked by newspaper Albuquerque Business First and contained Gyllenhaal's name, although not the part that she will play.

The film will be directed by Lenny Abrahamson (Adam & Paul, Garage, What Richard Did) and also stars Michael Fassbender and Domhnall Gleeson.

It tells the story about a wannabe musician (Gleeson) who finds out he has bitten off more than he can chew when he joins an eccentric pop band led by the mysterious Frank (Fassbender).

The script was written by Jon Ronson (The Men Who Stare at Goats) and Peter Straughan (Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, The Men Who Stare at Goats).

Frank is due to begin shooting in New Mexico and Dublin later this year.

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Winslet 'honeymoons in Scotland'

Kate Winslet and her new husband Ned Rocknroll are reportedly on their honeymoon in Scotland.

The newlyweds married in New York in December and spent the New Year with a traditional Hogmanay celebration.

Winslet's uncle Mark Bridges confirmed that the couple were in Scotland.

He told The Mirror: "They're in Scotland now. We don't know any more about what happened at the wedding because none of our family were there."

According to the newspaper, the actress's parents only found about the wedding, which was attended by Winslet's two children and a small number of family and friends, at Christmas.

Bridges added: "I didn't know anything about it until Boxing Day. I think the whole family was only told about it recently. It was a surprise for everyone."

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RTÉ TEN's Top 5 telly picks today

Joe Dolan: Sweet Little Rock `n' Roller, RTÉ One, 6.30pm

It's five years since the great Joe Dolan passed away on St Stephen's Day, 2007 and in this film, those who knew him best - family members, colleagues and friends alongside key musicians and songwriters recall the life and times of this legendary, much-loved performer. Even now there is still "no show like a Joe show". Joe Dolan was Ireland's Elvis Presley. The only Irish singer to register chart hit's over five successive decades, he evolved from being a rural Rocker in the early sixties to become Ireland's first international pop star.

House Party NYE, Channel 4, 11.50pm

RTÉ One has The Gathering, over on Beeb Two, they're throwing ye olde Scottish Hootenanny, Beeb One has eh, Gabby Logan with some fireworks, and UTV is showing the news but check out the hipsters on Channel 4. House Party is back for a 2012 send off which invites viewers to throw parties with live DJ sets by six top international acts, including Annie Mac, Frankie Knuckles, Norman Jay, Hercules and the Love Affair, Charlie Sloth and Toddla T Sound. The event brings house parties together from around the UK, and, by turning the television or laptop into the ultimate DJ booth, gives everyone the opportunity to celebrate the New Year with their personal line-up of world-class DJs and VJs, who are playing directly to the TV audience, rather than a packed studio. Bleedin' hipsters! What's wrong with Auld Lang Syne and a bottle of year-old cooking sherry? Tsk!

Top Of The Pops New Year's Eve Special, BBC One, 7.00pm

This New Year's Eve sees the return of Top Of The Pops for a special hour-long celebration of all things pop. Hosts Reggie Yates and Fearne Cotton will review the year in pop, taking in 2012's greatest hits and brightest chart stars. The show will feature special performances from some of the year's biggest acts including the final number one of 2012. Now that the charts have become unpredictable again why don't they just bring it back every week?

Jools' Annual Hootenanny 2012/2013, BBC Two, 11.10pm

The Dubliners bring their 50th anniversary year to a rumbustious close with an appearance on Jools' annual Hootenanny and they'll be performing a couple of their classic tunes, including the barnstorming The Irish Rover. Also on hand for the knees up is Petula Clark who performs two of her biggest songs along with a surprising cover of Gnarls Barkley's Crazy from her upcoming album; the biggest selling act of 2012, designer soul singer Emeli Sandé will perform numbers from her million-selling Our Version Of Events. Also in the studio will be Soul legend Bobby Womack with a track from his recent album The Bravest Man In The Universe along with a number or two from his vast back catalogue. The lovely Lianne La Havas will perform her ode to going out with an older man in Age plus an Ella Fitzgerald number; King of the charts in the early Eighties, Adam Ant will perform some of his classic pop tunes along with a number from his upcoming album. The Hives will be dropping in to dazzle with their rock and roll tunes including crowd favourite Hate To Say I Told You So; from Detroit, soul singer Bettye Lavette will be performing her 1965 tune Let Me Down Easy along with her take on The Black Keys I'm Not The One from her new album. Frontman of Dexys Midnight Runners, Kevin Rowland, will be reprising a couple of their classic Eighties tunes along with a number from their 2012 album. And Nottingham's newest star, singer-songwriter Jake Bugg who had huge success in 2012 with his debut album. Sounds good!

Unclaimed Baggage - the Unrevealed Story of Marilyn's Last Trunk, TG4, 10.05pm

This investigation is looking for a legendary Louis Vuitton trunk which contained something of great historical importance - Marilyn Monroe's wardrobe. This journey brings us from Paris to Tokyo, via New York and Hollywood, where we cross the path of Louis Vuitton's grandchild, as well as families of the East Coast Establishment, a famous heiress, celebrities, and a Japanese "Lady Gaga". The film we will try to open this legendary trunk, to discover Marilyn's life, her intimacy, her travels and her secrets.

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Kardashian, West expecting their first child

Singer Kanye West announced that his girlfriend, reality star Kim Kardashian, is expecting their first child, during a performance in New Jersey yesterday.

West stopped mid-song [Lost in the World] to deliver the news: "Stop the music...Make noise for my baby mama right here".

According to the Daily Mail, a representative for Kardashian, 32, confirmed the news that she and West, 35, who have been dating since April 2012, are expecting a baby.

Kardashian's sister and The X Factor USA presenter Khloe tweeted: "Keeping secrets is hard with so many family members! Especially when you are so freaking excited!!!!! LOVE is everything!!!! [sic]".

Meanwhile, 33-year-old sibling Kourtney, who is a mother-of-two, added: "Been wanting to shout from the rooftops with joy and now I can! Another angel to welcome to our family. Overwhelmed with excitement! [sic]".

Kim Kardashian and Kanye West are expecting their first child

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Ring in the New Year on RTÉ

RTÉ is preparing to ring in the New Year with John Creedon's Radio 1 coverage of the New Year's Eve Dublin Countdown Concert in College Green tonight in addition to Miriam O'Callaghan's coverage of The Gathering on RTÉ One.

Ahead of tonight's concert, with headliners Imelda May and BellX1, Creedon said: "We'll be soaking up all the atmosphere, hosting a gathering in our studio in College Green to ensure RTÉ Radio 1 listeners around the country and the world, can join us for the Dublin New Year's Eve countdown, wherever they are!"

Speaking to RTÉ TEN he added: "New Year's is a fresh start for all of us and God knows, we could all do with a decent run of luck. Here's to 2013!"

NYE Dublin is the first event of the Gathering Ireland 2013, a year long calendar of Gatherings, special festivals and events.

John Creedon, who will host RTÉ Radio 1's New Year celebrations at 10pm, pictured here with Miriam O'Callaghan who will host RTÉ One's TV show, New Year's Eve Show Live - The Gathering at 10.30pm

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Mooney 'loved' Mrs Brown's Boys role

Derek Mooney has said that playing the role of a hypnotist on the new series of Brendan O'Carroll's RTÉ One hit show, Mrs Brown's Boys was "bizarre".

Speaking to RTÉ TEN about the new series, he said: "I was watching The Late Late Show one Friday night in September [2012] when out of the blue I got a text message asking me if I would like to appear in an episode of Mrs Brown's Boys.

"At first I didn't know who it was from but moments later another text arrived which read 'by the way this is Brendan O Carroll'.

"You can imagine my excitement. Mrs Brown's Boys is the biggest sitcom on TV in Britain and Ireland. I would go even further to say that [it] is the biggest show on TV, full stop."

Derek Mooney pictured with Eilish O'Carroll, Mrs Brown's Boys Winnie

He added: "Playing the part of a hypnotist in Mrs Brown's Boys has got to be the single most bizarre thing I have done on TV to date, but I loved every minute of it.

"Brendan [Mrs Brown] and the crew [his family] are the hardest working bunch of people I've encountered in a long time and I'm in this business over 30 years!

"Rehearsals for my episode started on Monday finished on Wednesday and then it was into the BBC studios in Glasgow to record the same episode twice in front of a live audience on Thursday.

"It was one the happiest working weeks of my life. Everyone on the production team [was] so positive and proud of the show and it was wonderful to experience such joy in the workplace".

Mrs Brown's Boys is on Saturday nights 9.35pm on RTÉ One.

Watch the Christmas episode of Mrs Brown's Boys on the RTÉ Player here

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