Australian rockers INXS call it quits

Plus: Taylor Swift and Justin Bieber triumph at MTV awards; Anne Hathaway says husband helped her get through gruelling time on Les Misérables; Skyfall makes box-office record; and Robbie Williams tops UK charts.

INXS in 1997. The band announced they have decided to call it quits 15 years after their frontman Michael Hutchence died. James Minchin / AP Photo

The Australian rock band INXS have called it quits, 15 years after the suicide of their original frontman Michael Hutchence. The band, who formed in 1977 and have sold more than 30 million records, made the announcement at a concert in Perth on Sunday evening. The band's drummer Jon Farriss broke the news and admitted: "I'm getting teary," before they launched into one of their biggest hits, Need You Tonight. Since Hutchence's death, INXS have hired several other singers and performed with the likes of Terence Trent D'Arby and the Australian rocker Jimmy Barnes, but they were never able to revisit their early success. – AFP

Swift, Bieber prevail at MTV EMA

Taylor Swift beat Rihanna at the 2012 MTV Europe Music Awards held in Frankfurt on Sunday, taking three out of a possible five awards. Rihanna and Swift topped the nominations with six and five nods respectively, but the 22-year-old Swift walked away with Best Female, Best Live and Best Look. Rihanna went empty-handed, while Justin Bieber earned Best World Stage, along with repeat wins for Best Pop and Best Male. The South Korean sensation Psy's Gangnam Style won the award for Best Video. The Best Song prize went to Carly Rae Jepsen for Call Me Maybe, while Lana Del Ray claimed Best Alternative Act and Nicki Minaj won for Best Hip Hop. – AP

Hathaway says Les Mis made her feel deprived

Anne Hathaway credits her husband Adam Schulman for helping her get through the gruelling filming of the screen adaptation of Les Misérables, where the 30-year-old actress plays Fantine, a struggling mother forced into prostitution in 1800s Paris. Hathaway lost 11 kilogrammes and cut her hair for the role. She tells the December issue of Vogue magazine US that the part left her in a "state of deprivation, physical and emotional". She felt easily overwhelmed and says Shulman was understanding and supportive. The couple married in September. – AP

Bond soars to box-office record with Skyfall

James Bond returned to cinemas in record fashion this month, blowing away box office rivals with US$87.8 million (Dh322m) in ticket sales for the US and Canadian debut of Skyfall – the biggest opening in the franchise's history. Globally, the movie starring Daniel Craig as 007 has now earned $518.6m. "We've always been very bullish about the film, but I don't think anyone expected the kind of stunning numbers that we've seen," said Rory Bruer, the president of worldwide distribution for Sony Pictures. – Reuters

Williams takes UK pop charts crown

Robbie Williams is the king of this week's British pop charts after he took top place in both the UK single and album charts. His album Take the Crown gave him his 10th No 1 album in 15 years as a solo artist. In the singles chart, Williams enjoyed his second week at the top with Candy, written with his Take That band mate Gary Barlow. Labrinth and Emeli Sandé stayed second with Beneath Your Beautiful, with the boy band The Wanted new in third with I Found You. – Reuters