Keira Knightley has redeemed herself with her return to London’s West End stage, winning over critics with her performance in “The Children’s Hour” The British actress was mauled after making her stage debut in “The Misanthrope” in 2009, but she refused to let the bad reviews stop her from signing up for a stint in Lillian Hellman’s 1934 play. And when the curtain went up, the “Pirates of the Caribbean” star managed to impress the audience and draw praise for her role as a headmistress accused of having a lesbian affair with her colleague. Charles Spencer of Britain’s Daily Telegraph wrote that Knightley “displays confidence throughout before rising in the final act to dramatic heights that are shattering in their intensity.” The Guardian’s theatre critic Michael Billington said Knightley and her co-star Elisabeth Moss “prove as potent a combination on stage as at the box office”, adding: “(The) atmospheric, slow-burning and ultimately enthralling production proves far more compelling than I expected.” Meanwhile, filmmaker Gurinder Chadha, who made Knightley a film star after casting her in “Bend It Like Beckham”, was blown away by the actress’ performance. She tells the Press Association, “I thought it was very powerful, I’m a bit overcome. I’m so proud of Keira.”

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Keira Knightley has spent more than £2 million on a house. The 25-year-old actress’s new 18th Century property – located in east London – is said to boast some amazing features, such as a cinema room, dressing room, library and music parlour. The splurge comes shortly after the “Never Let Me Go” star split from her long-term boyfriend Rupert Friend, whom she dated for five years. To get over the break-up she was seen on a night out with her actress pal Sienna Miller last month, eating at Soho restaurant Bocca Di Lupo before hitting the Lucky Voice karaoke bar for some fun in London’s Soho area.

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Keira Knightley has sparked rumours she’s found romance again after she was pictured arm-in-arm with a mystery man just weeks after her split from Rupert Friend. The actress’ five-year relationship with her “Pride & Prejudice” co-star came to an end by mutual agreement shortly before Christmas. But she’s now fuelled gossip about her love life by stepping out with an unidentified man in London. Knightley was photographed linking arms with the man as they strolled through the British capital’s Chinatown district after enjoying drinks at a cocktail bar.

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Keira Knightley refuses to keep a TV in her house because she’s convinced she would become an addict if she had access to reality shows. The “Pirates of the Caribbean” star prefers to read or sketch, and is even considering cutting off her internet connection to ensure she makes the most of her free time. She tells Britain’s Elle magazine, “Do you know what it is? It’s that I’m the laziest f**ker in the entire world. It’s true. And stagnation is always really, really imminent. “I can literally just sit and not do anything for hours and hours and hours and if there is something completely mind-numbing to do, like surfing the internet or watching cr**py TV, I’ll do it and then I’ll feel s**t about myself. So I try and get rid of it.” Knightley now counts TV as a guilty pleasure, and admits she is fascinated by U.K. ballroom dance competition “Strictly Come Dancing”. She adds, “A lot of my friends don’t have TVs either. It might be spreading. But what’s nice is that when I do see it, it’s such a treat. I did a photoshoot in Cornwall recently and a friend of mine was on the shoot and we literally just sat in my room watching “Strictly Come Dancing”. We were like, ‘This is amazing.’ We were talking about that for weeks afterwards.”

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Keira Knightley is a nightmare party guest – the actress insists she is “paralysed with shyness” when chatting with strangers. The “Pirates of the Caribbean” star admits she is hopeless at socialising since she began making movies as a young girl and missed out on spending time with people her own age. She tells Britain’s Elle magazine, “I had an amazing time (starring in films), it was extraordinary, but the difference was between my age and experience. I’d experienced a lot, work-wise, but as far as normal progression… I’d never sat in pubs with friends, I’d never been out clubbing. Any of the things you normally do at uni, I’d bypassed. So on one level I was very grown-up and on another level with the whole social thing, I was really far behind.” Now Knightley dreads attending parties – because she struggles to make conversation and ends up looking like an “ice queen”. She adds, “Going into a room full of people at a party I find one of the most terrifying things in the entire world. I normally last about 10 minutes. I’m a complete failure. I went to one the other day. Standing in the corner, couldn’t find anything to say, just ran out. Awful. My friends are like, ‘What are you – an idiot? What’s the matter with you?’ I just can’t. I get completely paralysed with shyness, just totally paralysed. “One of my friends was like, ‘You turn into an ice queen. What is it? You just turn into a b***h.’ And I don’t mean to look like a b***h, but I just don’t know what to say. This is the problem with a shy person being famous.”

Source: Contactmusic