Celebrities are invading Australia - Dave Grohl and Jack Black the latest stars to travel Down Under

Proving that Australia has become the hot celebrity destination for the world this season, Jack Black and Dave Grohl flew into Perth on the weekend to kickstart their joint tour - The Foo Fighters headlining with the self-described "greatest band in the world" Tenacious D in support.

While Black aped for photographers, Grohl and his band were looking much cooler, refusing to acknowledge photographers in theirs midst.

The two stars have long enjoyed a mutually beneficial arrangement - Black cast Grohl as Satan in his hit comedy film Tenacious D And The Pick of Destiny.

Now the boys are on the same music bill and are headed to Sydney on December 8.

Black's musical offsider Kyle Gass also flew in but slipped almost undetected through the airport.

They are just the latest megastars to accept invitations to play Down Under and join a slew of artists, including actors Antonio Banderas and Salma Hayek, the cast of The Great Gatsby, Kevin Spacey, Elton John, Stevie Nicks and Dolly Parton in the country at the moment.

Lara Bingle LOOKS GREAT Sunbaking topless in Sydney

Sunbaking topless in Sydney without a care in the world, the 6 kilos Lara admitted to putting on recently have served her well!

"I like having boobs and a bum: I don't want to look like a bony boy with no hips," she told Who Magazine last month.

We think she looks amaze and why not flaunt it if you got it? Let us know what you think by leaving a comment below.

George Clooney Turns on Charm for Sydney

GEORGE Clooney's first Sydney appearance yesterday was an understated affair. There was no red carpet to greet the Hollywood star, nor were there crowds of hyperventilating fans.

Instead, a mostly female audience of business executives gathered at the Sydney Convention Centre in Darling Harbour to hear the famously handsome Clooney speak about his humanitarian work in Southern Sudan.

Welcomed with roaring applause, Clooney joked with his audience. "Thankyou for the weather," he quipped, as Sydney's spate of unseasonably cold and overcast days continued.

Clooney held court for about an hour, to the delight of the crowd.

"Any woman on the planet is going to be excited about meeting George Clooney," said Emma Isaacs, CEO of women's networking firm Business Chicks.

"I admire his philanthropic work and that he is using his profile to benefit the world ... his social work is what I'm interested in hearing about today."

Clooney was speaking at the Global Leadership Forum in his capacity as co-founder of Darfur aid organisation Not on Our Watch - which he created in 2007 with fellow actors Don Cheadle, Matt Damon and Brad Pitt - and as co-founder of the Satellite Sentinel Project, which tracks war criminals in Sudan.

Other speakers at the event included entrepreneurs Jeff Taylor, hip-hop magnate Russell Simmons and domestic queen Martha Stewart.

For celebrity chef and author Maggie Beer, there were two good reasons to attend. "I'm here to see Martha Stewart and George Clooney," she said with a laugh.

When asked if she had offered to cook Clooney dinner, she replied: "If I had have been quick enough thinking, I would have."

Merril Skyring, a director at Deloitte, paid $1400 for a VIP ticket to the event. "I'm interested really in leadership and innovation so it's a great day for that ... and George Clooney, of course," Ms Skyring said. "I think people think he's just a movie star but he's actually a really strong political activist and human rights activist.

"I was really pleased to see him represent himself that way and then still be the Hollywood star at the end of it and make all the ladies swoon - it was gorgeous."

Clooney spoke about collaboration and the art of making things happen.

Fashion photographer Leah McQueen, who flew from New York to hear Clooney speak, said, "He kept me captivated for the whole time.''

After paying $1100 for a ticket, and leaving immediately after Clooney's appearance, was it worth it? "Yes, I think so," she said, smiling.

Clooney, who flies out of Sydney today, has made the most of his whirlwind trip. He saw Cate Blanchett in Sydney Theatre Company's Gross und Klein on Sunday, saying the Australian star was "very, very good".

Tony Robinson makes history in Newcastle

TO many he is Baldrick of Blackadder fame, to some he is children’s favourite Fat Tulip and to others he is that documentary-maker from the History Channel.
British television presenter Tony Robinson was filming in Newcastle yesterday for an episode in his next series Tony Robinson’s Time Walks.

In the ten-part series Robinson will uncover the hidden histories, characters and untold stories of some of Australia’s oldest cities, including Newcastle, while walking its streets.

Robinson expects to be in town until Wednesday.

They have already been to Hobart, Woolloomooloo, St Kilda, Carlton, The Lanes, Bendigo and in the new year will visit Brisbane, Adelaide and Fremantle.

The series follows Robinson’s hugely successful Tony Robinson Explores Australia.

Robinson said he had always been intrigued by Newcastle and how it compared to its British namesake.

‘‘I know it’s a coal town but the idea of a Newcastle with a beach did not quite compute,’’ he said.

‘‘When a town is known for one thing there are other histories buried away in there. That’s what I wanted to learn.’’

Robinson said he hoped to teach Novocastrians about their past for example, that a convict wrote Australia’s first dictionary in Newcastle.

‘‘I do know Captain Cook, when he got here found Nobbys but totally missed the magnificent harbour behind it.’’

He said there were similarities with Newcastle, England.

‘‘It’s got the same sense of grittiness about it,’’ he said.

More than 20 years since cult hit Blackadder finished Robinson said people still called out lines to him, which was nice because the show established his career.

People also asked him about his documentaries and the ABC hit archaeological series Time Team, which created demand for his work Down Under.

Crews would also be talking to people on Newcastle’s streets, he said.

‘‘So, if they do see me please do not sneak away.’’

This Celebrity Journey Makes its Way Down Under

HIGH School Musical sweetheart Vanessa Hudgens is bound for Australia with Hunger Games teen Josh Hutcherson.

The pair will be arriving in Melbourne next month before walking the ruby rug for the world premiere of new movie, Journey 2: The Mysterious Island 3D on January 15.

The sequel to Journey to the Centre of the Earth will see Hudgens play the "beautiful, strong-willed" daughter of a helicopter pilot as the pair rescue the lone inhabitant of a strange island.