The wedding rush continues. The latest showbiz couple to announce their marriage is actress Yada Akiko (27) and actor/singer Oshio Manabu (28), who registered their marriage at a Tokyo city office yesterday. Oshio, who sings under the name Liv, made the first announcement on his official fan club website immediately afterwards. Yada’s management agency, who anticipated the usual speculation by saying that she is not pregnant, then sent a fax to the media. The couple started going out after co-starring in last year’s TBS drama “Yume de Aimashou”. Last December the media speculated whether their New Year trip to Hawaii and California was to get married in the sun (including that trip, they have been to Hawaii three times already). The couple, seeming pretty annoyed by the attention, made no attempt to hide their relationship but refused to speak to reporters. Even now that they’ve tied the knot, they have no intention of holding a press conference and there are no plans for a wedding ceremony. Yada has been working a lot less since their romance became public and has not done any TV work since the “Top Caster” drama series in the summer. Oshio has put his acting career on hold and is said to be working on an album as Liv.
• Comedian Murata Nagisa was found dead of a brain haemorrhage at his Tokyo home on Sunday. He was just 35. A member of the popular comedy duo Folk Dance DE Narukozaka in the 1990s, he went solo in 1999. Last year he formed the manzai duo Hana Engine. They were returning from a regional radio show last Friday when Murata complained to his partner that he was feeling unwell. When he failed to answer his cell phone the following day, his agency contacted the caretaker at his apartment building, who found him face down in his futon.
• Shinjo Tsuyoshi (34) has his first job since retiring as a champion baseball player – he’s set to appear on next Monday’s edition of the popular SMAPxSMAP variety show. Ever stylish, Shinjo is likely to draw as much attention to his choice of fashion as much as anything else.