Gangnam Style becomes most-watched clip ever

Plus Björk undergoes throat surgery, Dallas to continue without Larry Hagman, Elton John backs charity song for Lily-Mae Morrison and Les Miserables receives rapturous reception.

The rapper Psy's Gangnam Style clip has exceeded 805 million views on YouTube. Danny Moloshok / Reuters
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The pop sensation Psy's Gangnam Style has overtaken Justin Bieber's song Baby to become the most viewed YouTube clip ever. The video by the South Korean rapper has now been seen more than 805 million times and counting. YouTube said the video has "been a massive hit at a global level unlike anything we've ever seen before". Also, whereas Baby took more than two years to register its 800 million-plus views, Gangnam Style reached that milestone in just over four months. * AP

Björk undergoes throat surgery

The Icelandic singer Björk says she has had successful surgery to remove a vocal cord polyp. The eccentric 47-year-old singer says on her official website that she had been trying to tackle the problem with exercise and diets since doctors first discovered the benign growth on either one or both of the vocal cords several years ago. Björk said she eventually had to opt for laser surgery, which has worked, though she had to stay quiet for three weeks. * AP

Dallas to continue without JR

The producers of the newly revised version of Dallas have vowed to carry on despite star Larry Hagman's death. Hagman, who played the ruthless oil baron JR Ewing on the TNT soap opera, had continued working on the show even after his announcement in October that he was diagnosed with cancer. According to Entertainment Weekly magazine, Hagman completed filming a number of episodes and will appear in season two of the series. His death will be written into the storyline, the producers said. * The National staff

Elton John backs charity song

The British singer Elton John has thrown his support behind the single Tiny Dancer: A Song For Lily-Mae, which aims to raise money for a 4-year-old Irish girl who is battling cancer. A total of 300 Irish musicians recorded a cover of John's 1971 song in support of Lily-Mae Morrison, who suffers from a rare cancer of the nervous system. John was so touched by the plight of the girl that he urged his Twitter followers to buy the song, reports contactmusic.com. * IANS

Les Misérables receives rapturous reception

The first screening of a movie version of the hit musical Les Misérables in New York received a standing ovation. The Huffington Post reported that audience members also applauded many of the film's big musical numbers, including Anne Hathaway's I Dreamed a Dream and Hugh Jackman's Bring Him Home. In the movie, the director Tom Hooper, whose previous films include The King's Speech, has opted to make the actors sing the tunes live on film rather than lip-sync them to pre-recorded tracks. * The National staff