Showbiz: Trio aim for new Destiny

Singer Beyonce Knowles says she and Destiny's Child cohorts Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams will reunite next year.

The last studio record by the Grammy-winning rhythm and blues trio was Survivor, which sold more than three million copies.

The three singers parted company two years ago to pursue solo projects. Knowles cemented her celebrity status as Foxxy Cleopatra in the Austin Powers film Goldmember, then scored a hit this year with her solo record, Dangerously in Love.

Rowland made her solo debut with last year's Simply Deep, while Williams released a gospel/soul record titled Heart to Yours.

More modest Britney

Britney Spears wore only knickers for the cover of the new Rolling Stone, and was famously seen playing tonsil hockey with Madonna at the MTV Video Music Awards.

But the former teen pop star says she's been acting more demurely these days.

"I'm not gonna come out on this record and show my crotch or anything," she told the rock mag. "That's not me. I would never do anything like that."

Hollywood's Holy Grail

The surreal gags of Monty Python are to turn up on Broadway.

According to website EOnline, director Mike Nichols has signed on to helm Spamelot, a musical adaptation of Monty Python's wacky cult film Monty Python and the Holy Grail that is planned for a 2005 debut. The project is the brainchild of former Python Eric Idle.

Baby for Scary duo

Charlie Sheen and Denise Richards are going to be parents.

The former client of Hollywood madam Heidi Fleiss and his actress bride are expecting their first child in spring, according to their publicist.

Sheen, 38, who co-stars in the forthcoming CBS sitcom Two and a Half Men, has an 18-year-old daughter, Cassandra, from his first marriage. He and Richards, 32, married last year, and they co-star in Scary Movie 3.

Beat goes on

Gerry Marsden, of the 1960s band Gerry and the Pacemakers, had triple-bypass surgery this week, said the singer's daughter, Yvette Marsden.

She said her 60-year-old father had been anxious before surgery at Liverpool's Cardio-thoracic Centre, but added: "The operation is supposed to be routine, so hopefully he'll be out soon." The hospital said Marsden was recuperating in intensive care.

Gloria's reclusive role

Gloria Estefan is to star in a Hollywood biopic of 50s singing star Connie Francis.

Francis chose Estefan to play her in the movie, which will chart her troubled life.

The biggest female star of the 1950s, Francis had a string of hits including Lipstick On Your Collar, Stupid Cupid and Who's Sorry Now.

She sold more than 80 million albums and her wholesome image captivated fans on both sides of the Atlantic.

But her life was nearly destroyed in 1974 when she was raped and beaten at knifepoint in a New York motel room after a show.