The Grammy Awards will go ahead as normal on 10 February after the striking Writers Guild of America agreed to let writers work on the show. The guild says it wants to offer support to musicians also facing challenges getting "compensation for the use of their work in new media." The strike began in early November over payments for DVD sales and downloads. It has already derailed the Golden Globes ceremony and leaves a question mark hanging over the Oscars.

Academy president Neil Portnow said it was "gratified by the WGA's decision to grant the interim agreement we requested for our milestone 50th annual Grammy Awards". He added: "Having our talented writers on the team further ensures the highest level of creativity and innovation, something our audience has come to expect every year." The writers' strike is now in its 13th week. Informal talks are continuing between guild leaders and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which represents more than 350 production companies. It follows a similar procedure used to resolve a dispute with the Directors Guild of America. But the writers want about three times as much money for DVD releases and downloads than the directors achieved.
 

Paintings and statues used in The Da Vinci Code movie are being auctioned to raise money for Lincoln Cathedral. The building was transformed into Westminster Abbey for the 2005 film after authorities in London refused to take part. The items, which include 43 wall hangings based on abbey frescos, have been part of an exhibition at Lincoln since the film crews left. The sale, which ends on 31 March, will be conducted through sealed bids. It is believed Lincoln Cathedral was paid about $300,000 to host the film crew. Sally Crawford, fundraising officer at the cathedral, said she had no idea how much the sale would raise. "Not everybody has a great big stately home for the wall hangings but the great thing about them is that you can take the nice bits and frame them as a picture," she said. "If you walk into the Chapter House they (the wall hangings) really look like part of the wall as they are such good comparisons to the frescos of that period. "The monuments are polystyrene so of course they are very light when you pick them up." The monuments are based on tombs found in Westminster Abbey. The 8ft hangings are painted on heavy cloth and mounted on wooden batons. In the summer of 2007 it reprised its role as the abbey for the film The Young Victoria.
 

Barack Obama's campaign to become the Democratic candidate for US president received a major lift with the coveted backing of Senator Edward Kennedy. The seal of approval from the patriarch of one of America's most prominent political dynasties could give fresh momentum to Obama, analysts say. The elder statesman made his endorsement public at a rally in Washington with the Illinois senator.

Kennedy has reportedly been unhappy with the tone of the Clinton campaign. The last surviving brother of assassinated President John F Kennedy, Senator Kennedy is now expected to campaign with his son, congressman Patrick Kennedy of Rhode Island, for the man who would be the first US black president. In a prepared statement on Monday, Edward Kennedy praised Obama as a "man with extraordinary gifts of leadership and character", adding: "I feel change in the air." Nobel laureate African-American author Toni Morrison, who once dubbed Bill Clinton the "first black president", also endorsed  Obama on Monday. Obama, 46, decisively beat his rival, Senator Hillary Clinton, in South Carolina's party nomination battle on Saturday, after Mrs Clinton won in New Hampshire and Nevada. Analysts say  Kennedy's backing appears linked to criticism that ex-President Clinton's campaigning on behalf of his wife in South Carolina may have been overly aggressive.

Obama has been hoping for some time for the endorsement of the 75- year-old but Mrs. Clinton's camp has been lobbying for  Kennedy to at least remain neutral. After news of Kennedy's backing for Obama broke, the Clinton camp distributed a statement from Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, the daughter of Robert F Kennedy. The former Maryland lieutenant governor pledged her support to Mrs. Clinton. Democratic sources told Monday's Washington Post that Edward Kennedy had been seriously considering backing  Obama since he won Iowa's caucuses on 3 January. Obama beat Mrs. Clinton in the weekend's South Carolina primary election by 55% to 27%, with John Edwards third on 18%. In the tally of primary and caucus contests so far, the two Democratic front-runners have each won a brace -  Obama at Iowa and South Carolina, while Mrs. Clinton triumphed in New Hampshire and Nevada. Analysts say the contest could extend beyond Super Tuesday next week, when two dozen states hold primary elections.

Vending machines distributing the drug marijuana are to begin operating in the US state of California. The machines can only be used by people who have been prescribed the drug for health reasons. Patients will have to provide a prescription, and be fingerprinted and photographed before being allowed to use the facilities. Eleven US states allow the medicinal use of marijuana, primarily for pain relief, but it remains controversial. Vince Mehdizadeh, owner of the Herbal Nutrition Centre in Los Angeles, where one of the two first machines is based, said it would allow patients to buy extra supplies whenever needed. Once the users have been photographed, fingerprinted and have shown their prescription, they will be issued with a card which can be used in the machines, he told KWTX News 10 in the US. "They'll be greeted by a security guard right there. They'll slide the card in and they'll fingerprint in to verify that it's them," he was quoted by KWTX News 10 as saying. "A camera takes a picture of them, verifying that they're actually at the machine. And they get the medicine and they move on." The operators think that vending machines issuing prescription drugs could become a common sight in the US. Proponents say marijauna is a valuable tool for relieving pain and stimulating appetite in the sick. However, it remains banned by the 1970 Controlled Substances Act and the US federal government does not currently recognize any legitimate medical use.