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Tom Hardy has bought a £2 million mansion in the same neighborhood as Sir Mick Jagger and Richard Ashcroft. The 'Dark Knight Rises' star is said to be in 'good company ' with his rock and roll neighbours - with The Rolling Stones and The Verve musicians living 'just up the road' from his new south west London property. A source said: 'Tom's going to keep good company among the rock elite - Mick and Richard are literally both just up the road. 'He'll have his work cut out before any entertaining starts, though, as it needs a fair bit of work. It's a stunning property with a huge ballroom, which he's up for renovating.' The 35-year-old actor has plans...

Update: Share your reactions to tonight's episode here.

"Bittersweet Symphony" is, in its most popular form, a well-known punk alternative wonder from popular 90s band The Verve, sweeping strings cascading against lyrics vetting the harrowing inability to fit into the world. The band's biggest hit by far, a Grammy-nominated success highly regarded as one of the best alt songs ever made, definitive of the era and an awfully brilliant declaration of the choking hopelessness of simply wanting to be more. "I can't change my mold," lead singer Richard Ashcroft sadly confesses in the middle of emptying his frustations. "I can't change my body, no, no, no."

Tonight, "Bittersweet Symphony, Part 2" is the title that looms over the continued season premiere of Degrassi, a teenage drama filled with riddled angst and known for its suprising flashes of unfathomable horror. Over 12 seasons of pairing every episode with a cryptic song, generation after...

It either works or it doesn’t. It can be a major leap of faith for a musician to leave the comfort of being a member of a really successful band in search of pastures new in the form of a solo career. Without the backing of the musician’s band members it can be a daunting prospect to try and achieve. But if the artist is the brains behind the outfit and wrote most of the music for their group it usually means they have it in them to pen a great solo record.

And that is exactly what the following 5 singers were able to achieve.

5. Richard Ashcroft (The Verve)

The Verve were a massive Indie Rock band. However they were prone to the odd break up every now and then. This was – as their famous song goes – a Bittersweet Symphony as it meant Ashcroft could work on his solo material.

Noel Gallagher has admitted that he found it hard starting a solo career. The former Oasis member revealed that following the band's split in 2009, he hated the idea of starting from square one again at age 42. "I was at a party two summers ago, when Oasis had split, and Richard Ashcroft was there. He said, 'I bet it's a relief'. I said, 'No, actually it's a f**king pain in the arse'," he told Q magazine. "[Ashcroft] said, 'I remember The Verve, when I left it was relief'. I said, 'I don't give a f**k about The Verve. I've got to start again from scratch'." Gallagher continued: "I was 42 at the time. I'm not a frontman, now I have to be the (more)...

Blimey, he's not one for taking a holiday is Alex Turner. Much like Woody 'film a year' Allen, the Arctic Monkeys main man seems incapable of stopping to smell the roses, instead preferring to keep churning out song after song. His band will be on their fourth full album in five years with this summer's Suck It And See, but he's also spun off The Last Shadow Puppets and only chucked out his 'Submarine Ep' a few weeks ago. The awkwardly-titled 'Dsdcimyc' kicks off with a trebly guitar line and Turner's most psychedelic/Britpoppy vocals (think Richard Ashcroft) to date before it all gets oh-so-heavy. Producer James Ford sounds (more)...

Liam Gallagher and his band, Beady Eye, closed their celebrity charity concert for Japan in London last week with a special rendition of The Beatle’s Across The Universe, and have now recorded the song to raise further money for victims of the Japanese tsunami disaster.

Liam and his band were joined at the concert at Brixton Academy by Paul Weller, Blur’s Graham Coxon, Primal Scream, Richard Ashcroft and many others, with a crowd of approximately 5000 raising £150,000 for the British Red Cross.

“It’s not just because we’re popular in Japan,” Liam explained to The Independent prior to the gig. “As a human, you just think it’s heavy. We’ve always had close ties with Japan and great affection for our fans out there. Our hope is that this benefit concert can help the people of Japan.”

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Beady Eye, Primal Scream and Paul Weller have raised over £150,000 to help the victims of Japan's recent earthquake and tsunami. The benefit gig was held on Sunday (April 3) at Brixton's O2 Academy and was organised by Liam Gallagher and Weller. The concert also featured appearances from The Coral, Richard Ashcroft and Graham Coxon. "Thanks for coming tonight and helping our brothers and sisters in Japan," Weller told the crowd, reports NME. He was then joined (more)...

Sex Pistols bassist Glen Matlock joined Primal Scream on stage last night during a benefit concert for victims of the recent tsunami and earthquake in Japan. The show at London's O2 Brixton Academy was headlined by Beady Eye, with support from Primal Scream, Richard Ashcroft, Kelly Jones, Paul Weller, Graham Coxon and The Coral. In the absence of Gary 'Mani' Mounfield, Matlock played bass for Primal Scream in their Screamadelica-heavy (more)...

Live music promoters Sjm have criticised those reselling tickets for an upcoming Japan tsunami benefit gig. Primal Scream, Beady Eye, Blur's Graham Coxon, Richard Ashcroft, Paul Weller and The Coral have been confirmed for the show on April 3 at London's Brixton Academy. All proceeds from officially-purchased tickets are being donated to the British Red Cross Japan Tsunami Appeal. According to BBC Newsbeat, a statement from Sjm read: "We strongly disapprove of profiteering from the misery and suffering (more)...

Former Oasis star Liam Gallagher will perform with his new band, Beady Eye, at a special celebrity charity gig in London next month to raise money for victims of Japan’s tsunami.

Beady Eye will be joined by Paul Weller, Primal Scream, Richard Ashcroft and Blur’s Graham Coxon. Blur’s Damon Albarn is also rumored to perform, and Primal Scream will be joined by Sex Pistols legend Glen Matlock.

“Liam has been shocked by the footage of the devastation in Japan,” reports Britain’s The Sun newspaper. "Oasis were, and still are, hugely popular out there. The band have always been treated like kings so he wants to do his bit.

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Beady Eye and Primal Scream have been confirmed for a benefit show to help those affected by the recent earthquake and tsunami in Japan. They are joined by Paul Weller, Graham Coxon, The Coral and Richard Ashcroft. The show takes place on April 3 at London's O2 Academy Brixton. "Beady Eye - who still have fond memories of their concert in Sendai with Oasis in 2002 - are delighted their idea for a benefit gig has come together so quickly and with such fantastic support," a message on the (more)...

“You know I’m losing my grip / I lost my touch,” Richard Ashcroft sings on United Nations Of Sound, perhaps a bit too tellingly. The former Verve frontman goes on to explain he’s “got the crown” and he’s “never gonna lay it down,” which only proves how loose his grasp actually is on his first solo record in five years. Especially on a clunker like “Beatitudes,” a half-assed bid for Gorillaz-dom that winds up sounding like an Mor slab of treated guitars and canned synths. Top-40 rap producer No I.D. tries to bring some juice to United ...

Spring has sprung and so has the bounty of new releases. March 22 features a wellspring of new titles including fresh sets from The Strokes, Chris Brown, Green Day and Jennifer Hudson. Richard Ashcroft, “United Nations of Sound” (Razor & Tie): The Verve frontman’s first solo album in four years, and first since the band officially parted ways in 2009, has a little bit of everything from live orchestration to major beats, but probably no Rolling Stones samples. We kid. Chris Brown, “F.A.M.E.” (Jive): Latest from Brown includes “Deuces,” which was originally from his mixtape with Tyga, as well as first...

Punk icon Debbie Harry was inspired to throw herself into charity work after she saw Sir Elton John using his fame to highlight good causes. The Blondie singer performed alongside Richard Ashcroft and Jeff Beck at an all-star gig at London's HMV Hammersmith Apollo in January to help U.K. charity Killing Cancer. And she now puts philanthropy at the top of her list of priorities after witnessing Sir Elton's tireless work for HIV and AIDS projects.

Harry tells Britain's The Sun, "These things are important to my life now. I have the privilege of being able to get involved, so I do. I applaud people like Elton John, who have used their position to do so much good. I could really feel his power and see how effective it was in helping to highlight causes like HIV/AIDS and I thought I should get up off my fat a** and do something too.

Photograph courtesy of Razor and Tie Records.Two years after breaking up the Verve for the third time, Richard Ashcroft is back with a new band, Rpa & the United Nations of Sound and a new record (also called United Nations of Sound), partially recorded in New York City with hip-hop producer No I.D. (of Jay-z’s “D.O.A.”). The latest chapter in a particularly unpredictable career, it’s a concept album about the American soul in the age of Obama, and is full of hip-hop beats (“Third Eye”), 70s Motown strings (the single, “Are You Ready”), blues (“How Deep Is Your Man”), and precious little Brit pop. Here Ashcroft discusses the President, the Tea Party, and why the Verve’s 1997 single “Bittersweet Symphony” is one of the biggest hip-hop songs of all time.

The Jonas Brothers have a very clear, straight-ahead sound, but the individual members have more esoteric aspirations that come alive in their individual work. Last year's album by Nick Jonas and the Administration traded in power pop for a throwback brand of synthed-up funk rock, and Joe Jonas' upcoming solo project promises to dive headlong into a more electronic place. In a recent conversation with MTV News, Joe revealed that his biggest inspirations lately have been acts like Daft Punk and Justice. "Artists you can dance to, electro stuff, DJs in Europe — they're all very exciting to me," he explained while sitting next to producer Danja.

Of course, dance music crossed over into the pop world in a big way in 2010, with a handful of DJs grabbing mainstream attention (like David Guetta and the members of Swedish House Mafia) and many high-profile stars (including Usher, whose "Omg" was declared...

Rock legends The Who will hit the stage alongside Jeff Beck, Blondie singer Debbie Harry and The Verve’s Richard Ashcroft in a charity concert against cancer early next year.

Charity Killing Cancer will host the massive concert at London’s Hammersmith Apollo on January 13 to raise funds for its goal of raising £50m to fund further trials into Photodynamic Therapy, a treatment that can help cure some forms of cancer by killing cells through a combination of drugs and light. Pdt is a unique treatment that has garnered support from celebrities such as Robert Plant, Stefanie Powers,Alex Fergusson and many more.

“Robert [Plant] and I had lived through the final months and days of close friends battling with cancer,” said The Who manager Bill Curbishley. “But also fighting to overcome the effects of their treatments. Only later we discovered that Pdt could perhaps have saved their lives – and certainly...

The Who are teaming up with Debbie Harry, Richard Ashcroft and Jeff Beck to put on a charity concert to raise funds for a pioneering new cancer treatment. Legendary promoter Harvey Goldsmith and The Who's manager Bill Curbishley have organized the gig at London's HMV Hammersmith Apollo in January 2011 to help U.K. charity Killing Cancer.

Proceeds from ticket sales will go towards funding the installation of groundbreaking light therapy lasers in British hospitals. And Goldsmith admits the cause is close to his heart following the recent death of his beloved mother.

He says, "I lost my mother to cancer in the past 12 months. I saw how she struggled but finally lost the fight. The funds Bill, myself and some great friends in the business have already pledged, is giving pancreatic cancer patients real hope".

The Who and Richard Ashcroft are to take the stage at the HMV Hammersmith Apollo in London for a special gig to benefit charity. According to Reuters, the rock legends will take part in a one-off concert on January 13, 2011 to help raise funds for the Killing Cancer charity. The Who's manager Bill Curbishley explained that he hopes the event will raise awareness for a promising cancer treatment called Photodynamic Therapy (Pdt). (more)...

Richard Ashcroft has said that The Verve's second reunion did not "massacre" their past. The Wigan band formed in 1990 and first broke up in 1995 before reforming for 1997's Urban Hymns. They split again in 1999 but reunited in 2007. They released Forth the following year before parting ways a third time. Of their second reunion, Ashcroft told The Independent: "We didn't massacre the past. "And X amount of people from a generation got to see us who never got to see us before. So, I'm trying to look at the positives now." However, Ashcroft reportedly claimed (more)...

Richard Ashcroft's manager Jazz Summers has denied reports that the rocker stormed off stage during a festival appearance because of being annoyed by the crowd. The former Verve frontman ended his set at Splendour in the Grass in Queensland, Australia following only 15 minutes on Sunday after giving the explanation that he was having issues with his voice. Summers has insisted that the vocal problems were not an excuse but rather a serious matter that prevented Ashcroft from (more)...

Richard Ashcroft reportedly stormed off stage during a performance at an Australian music festival. The former Verve frontman was performing a set at the Spendour in the Grass event with his new band United Nations of Sound in Queesland. The Sydney Morning Herald reports that just 15 minutes into set Ashcroft kicked his microphone stand and threw a tamborine at a drum (more)...

Richard Ashcroft has admitted that he doesn't think Liam Gallagher's new band Beady Eye will be bigger than Oasis. The former Verve frontman did however reveal that he is "really excited about Liam's stuff". He told Xfm: "We all talk a little bit like that because we’re all imbued with the sporting/boxing promoter way of doing interviews. That’s the way we were brought up. "I'm really excited about Liam’s stuff, and Noel’s stuff too. (more)...

Richard Ashcroft has claimed that it is unlikely The Verve will ever reform. The band's former frontman, who recently formed new group United Nations Of Sound, believes reuniting would be pointless because the band already achieved a lot during their time together. He told Shortlist: "I can't see any reason why, after headlining Glastonbury, headlining Coachella, headlining in Japan and making an album that's better than 99 per cent of other bands' albums, The Verve would get back together." On the group's brief reforming in 2007, he said: "Our reunion was more reassuring for our audience than a nice tidy situation. (more)...

Oasis' break-up will give brothers Liam Gallagher and Noel Gallagher a "new lease of life", rocker Richard Ashcroft has claimed. The former frontman of The Verve, who is close friends with both siblings and played a number gigs with Oasis when both bands were starting out in the early '90s, believes last year's split will lead the pair into exciting new musical projects.

"I spoke to Noel a couple of days ago," he told ShortList magazine. "He's going to go through similar questions to the ones I went through in 2000. But he wrote the songs in the biggest band of the '90s, so he's got nothing to worry about. It'll be a new lease of life for both of them. I'm quite excited about it."

But Richard, whose band initially split in 2000 before reforming in 2007 and disbanding again in 2009, has ruled out the possibility of collaborating with either Liam or Noel,...

Tom Hughes has revealed that rock stars Richard Ashcroft and Liam Gallagher inspired his Cemetery Junction character. Speaking to Digital Spy, Hughes admitted that he drew from the Verve and Oasis frontmen when playing the rebellious Bruce in Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant's directorial debut. He said: "I'm massively into my music so often my terms of reference would be music. It'd be, (more)...

Richard Ashcroft has revealed that the working title for his upcoming fourth solo album is Redemption. The former Verve singer has been working with No ID, who produced Jay-z's 'Run This Town' and 'Doa (Death Of Autotune)', on the record, which is being mixed by long-time collaborator Chris Potter. According to NME, Ashcroft will return this year with (more)...

Actor and screenwriter Emma Thompson explains how rage fuelled her role as the voice of conscience in The Journey, Richard Jobson's violent and powerful short film about the experiences of one sex worker

To buy Richard Ashcroft's theme music to The Journey click here. All proceeds from the sale of the single go to the Helen Bamber foundation

Warning: The video in this article contains strong sexual and violent images that viewers may find disturbing

How did you become involved in The Journey?

I've known Helen Bamber for about 25 years. When I was still a comedian, and doing stand-up, I would do a lot of benefits for the various foundations she was involved in. And when she started this new foundation, campaigning for the victims of human-rights abuse, she asked me to get involved - so I became chair.

The reason I've become particularly involved in this campaign...

The daughter of Glastonbury organiser Michael Eavis has denied claims that her father was opposed to The Verve performing at the festival. Speaking to the crowd during the band's headlining set at the weekend, frontman Richard Ashcroft claimed that Eavis's daughter Emily had gone against her father's wishes by booking them. "I hope her dad realises why she booked us now," Ashcroft said. "I think he was a bit worried we wouldn't be as good as Keane or something." However, (more)...

The Verve frontman Richard Ashcroft took a shot at Glastonbury organiser Michael Eavis during the band's headlining set, the BBC reports. Ashcroft admitted that Eavis's daughter Emily had booked them for the Somerset festival as her father was "worried we weren't going to be as good as Keane or something". During their Pyramid Stage performance on Sunday night, Ashcroft hinted that Eavis opposed their headline slot, saying: "I (more)...