Well dressed celebrities turned up last night in London at former South African President and human rights champion Nelson Mandela’s 90th birthday dinner. Naomi Campbell was there with boyfriend Marcus Elias despite the rumors that Mandela has banned her from presenting at his birthday concert gala to be held Friday night. The concert will be hosted by Will Smith and will take place in London’s Hyde Park. It will feature such greats as Queen + Paul Rodgers, Razorlight, and Annie Lennox, and is expected to be one of the biggest concerts of the year. Proceeds will benefit Mandela’s Aids charity, 46664, named after his prisoner number when he spent more than 27 years in a South African jail for activism. [Details from Telegraph.co.uk]

Last night’s dinner included an auction which raised more than $10 million for Mandela’s charities. Elton John performed and Oscar winning actor Forrest Whitaker gave a moving speech.

Shown outside the dinner last night are Robert DeNiro and wife Grace Hightower, Oprah, Richard Branson, Uma Thurman and Arpad Busson, Pierce Brosnan, The Sugababes, Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith, Naomi Campbell, Neil Diamond, Forrest Whitaker and his wife Keisha, Leona Lewis, Denzel
Washington and his wife Pauletta Pearson Washington, Kim Catrall, Annie Lennox, Bob Geldof, and Joan Baez. Nelson Mandela is also shown meeting Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace earlier in the day. Thanks to WENN for these photos.

Boy you really do learn something new every day. So far my most surprising revelation is that Nelson Mandela and Naomi Campbell have been longtime friends. I just cannot imagine two such polar opposites. But apparently their history goes way back, with Campbell hosting several events for 46664 – Mandela’s prison number while he was jailed for 27 years, and now the name of his AIDS awareness campaign.

Mandela was so upset, disappointed, and embarrassed by Campbell’s recent arrest for assaulting two police officers during a scuffle on a British Airways plane that he has personally banned her from his upcoming 90th birthday celebration concert in London.

Nelson Mandela intervened personally to ensure Naomi Campbell does not appear on stage at his 90th birthday concert. He told organisers to take her off the line-up for Friday’s Hyde Park charity event. The former South African leader, who met the Queen at Buckingham Palace today, made his decision after Campbell, 38, was fined and sentenced to 200 hours’ community service last week for assaulting two police officers on a BA flight at Heathrow in April.

A source close to the event said: ‘The man himself intervened and she was pulled off the list. He was disappointed with her recent arrest - particularly as she was wearing a 46664 baseball cap at the time.’ The model, who calls Mr Mandela her ‘honorary grandfather’, has been deeply involved with his charity.

‘Naomi was on the list to play quite an integral role, such as introducing acts on stage. ‘But all plans were scrapped when pictures emerged of her being arrested wearing the baseball cap with the Mandela number on it. She will be allowed to sit in the grandstand and watch the performances, but that is as far as it goes.’

‘Everyone hopes this may teach her a lesson as the concert means so much to her.’

[From the Daily Mail]

Naomi’s rep of course denies the whole thing. Her response was that Naomi never planned on going to the concert in the first place. Which seems to be utter hogwash, considering she’s been at all the important 46664 events of the last ten years. We’re supposed to believe she was never going to attend the biggest one yet? Right. Way to save face.

I doubt anything will ever teach Naomi Campbell a lesson. But if anything could, it’d be this.

Here’s Nelson Mandela leaving the Dorchester hotel in London today in preparation for some of his birthday festivities this weekend. Naomi Campbell is shown at the ‘African Rising’ festival announcement held at the Royal Albert Hall in London today. Header of Nelson Mandela with Naomi Campbell at his home in Cape Town in 1998. Images thanks to WENN.

A lot of bad ideas don’t seem like bad ideas until you’re half way through them. Then you think back with that beloved 20/20 hindsight and wish you would have thought whatever it was through a little better. But there are some ideas that are so obviously terrible that you’ve got to wonder what kind of moron would go through with it. Case in point: booking Amy Winehouse to perform at the prestigious concert celebrating Nelson Mandela’s 90th birthday.

Nelson Mandela just scored a coup of a birthday guest…that is, if she shows up. Amy Winehouse has officially been added to the lineup of artists set to perform at a special London concert marking the former South African president’s 90th birthday.

In addition to the “Back to Black” singer, Leona Lewis, Queen, Razorlight, Annie Lennox and Shirley Bassey are set to perform at the three-hour June 27 event in Hyde Park, which Mandela himself is set to attend. Proceeds will go toward his 46664 charity, a global campaign to raise awareness of HIV and AIDS.

“We are delighted Amy will be appearing at Hyde Park,” Tim Massey, the international director of the charity named after Mandela’s prison number, said.

The gig—which, fitting with the theme of the night, will have an audience that’s 46,664-strong—will mark Winehouse’s first full set onstage since last November, right before she called off her tour.

[From E! News]

What a fabulous idea. Who better to promote AIDS awareness than a famous IV drug addict? Now in all fairness the likelihood that Winehouse will actually even show up is almost nil. And to further ensure that she makes a fool of herself and increases her reputation as being unreliable, Amy is also scheduled to perform at the Glastonbury Music Festival the next day.

Two high profile concerts in two days? When in the world will she have time to snort and shoot? I can guarandamntee you that at least one of those concerts isn’t going to have Amy Winehouse singing. It might have Amy Winehouse passed out in a porta potty, but singing isn’t going to happen.

Here’s Amy Winehouse arriving at Pentonville Prison to visit her husband Blake ahead of her performance this weekend at the ‘Rock in Rio’ festival in Portugal. I honestly did not cherry pick the worst photos. This is the lot of them. Images thanks to WENN.