Some celebrities manage to get newpaper coverage just by being themselves, whether trashing a hotel room or going to the right kind of parties. Many, however, hire PR specialists or image consultants in to ensure they get the right kind of media coverage, especially in a world where the media can be favourable or harsh in equal amounts.

If a celebrity feels their marketability is on the wane, their best option is to do something to make their public see them in a completely new light. Singers especially are prone to re-invent themselves at points during their careers, usually to promote a new "adult" image that supercedes the teenage pop-orientated image that made their name in the first place.

This change of image is more impactful if it is courts some kind of controversy which will be the cause of mass complaints and therefore discussion. As an example, Christina Aguilera's exhibitionist "Dirrty" video was a deliberate statement wishing to appeal to a more adult audience, re-inventing herself as a raunchy rebel seemingly overnight.

More controversial, however, was Madonna and Christina Aguilera playing tonsil hockey at the MTV Video Music Awards. Even this didn't receive as many column inches as when, at the 2004 Super Bowl, Justin Timberlake ripped a piece off Janet Jackson's black bustier costume, exposing her right breast to an estimated 92 million viewers.

Both the promoters and audience of the Super Bowl were outraged and Jackson duly apologised for the stunt.

Janet Jackson's statement was as follows: "The decision to have a costume reveal at the end of my halftime show performance was made after final rehearsals. MTV was completely unaware of it. It was not my intention that it go as far as it did. I apologize to anyone offended including the audience, MTV, CBS and the NFL."

Far from being bad press, this "costume reveal" catapulted Ms. Jackson into search-engine record books, conveniently just two weeks in advance of her first album in three years

FLAKEY PHOTO? A Cadburys spokesperson said that they had supplied chocolate for the wedding, on request from the magazine, but had not insisted on photos with it.

When television presenter Anthea Turner married Grant Bovey, the photographic rights were bought by celebrity magazine OK! The magazine afterwards issued a photograph of them eating Cadbury's chocolate bars together at their wedding. It was claimed the wedding photographs with the Snowflake bar were part of a sponsorship deal with Cadburys, which came across strongly as both a considerably tacky endorsement and also a move of PR desperation on the part of the couple. The Sun's gave the story the headline "Sickener". The moral of this story is - always be careful who or what you are photographed with.

The saying goes "there's no such thing as bad press". Even when personalities are shown in a disreputable light it brings them into the news and therefore raises their household name profile.

But, hey, celebrities: forget the rules or you'll think about it far too much and stop having a good time. Just make sure before you go to bed tonight you: 1) Shag a prostitute and get arrested 2) Sign up for Celebrity Naturist Farm (Series 5) 3) Record a charity song with Orville the Duck

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