IANA Zubiri is glad to be part of the Valentine show that Annabelle Rama's Royale Era Productions is staging on February 8, Friday, at the Crowne Plaza Hotel Ballroom, with dinner at 7:30 p.m. and show at 9 p.m.

“Not a lot of people know that I can sing so I welcome this chance to be able to show them na kaya ko ring kumanta,” she says. So who will be her date on Valentine's Day? “No one. Lie-low muna ang lovelife ko ngayon habang maraming trabaho. If ever, ayoko na uli ng taga-showbiz. Mas prone sa tsismis, e.”

Diana was last linked to Vhong Navarro but she followed the advice of her manager, Jojo Gabinete, and dumped him as his marriage to Bianca Lapuz has yet to be annulled. “I realize Kuya Jojo is right. Mas mabuti na ‘yung walang sabit.”

Diana remains very active as an actress. She does comedy in “Bubble Gang” and after co-starring with Robin Padilla in “Asian Treasures,” she now plays the plucky Carmela in GMA-7's hit sci-fi adventure show, “Zaido, Pulis Pangkalawakan.” She figures in an intriguing love triangle relationship with Dennis Trillo who plays Gallian or Zaido Blue and Raymart Santiago who plays Alvaro, aka Gamma. This week, Carmela loses consciousness while she is fighting the evil Kuuma, but she regains it for some reason with the help of Gallian who realizes he loves her very much and can't afford to lose her. But Lyvia (Pauleen Luna) dies and this makes her parents, Zion and Luna, so sad. Alexis (Marky Cielo) blames himself for what happened to her and he has a hard time proving that he is an ally of the Zaidos now that it's been revealed that his real father is Drigo (Jay Manalo) of the Kuuma.

Meantime, the evil Lear is revived and he now plans to conquer the entire world using the body of Ramiro (Tirso Cruz III.) The Zaidos also have a new enemy, Shigeki, an enemy of previous Zaidos who got imprisoned in ice and is now freed to fight the new Zaido sheriffs. Gallian will try his best to reunite all the Zaidos for this new impending battle.

NINA RETURNS, WILLING TO GO SEXY

REMEMBER Nina Jose, she's the tall and sexy PBB Celebrity Teens discovery from Assumption who was featured for a while in “Pedro Penduko?” Folks wondered where she hid after her stint in that show.

“I went back to school and took up European Studies in La Salle ,” she says. “I really want to get a college degree kasi, after my contract with ABS expired. But si Direk Manny Valera, pinahanap ako and presented a plan on how to build me up. Ang galing, I got excited, so heto ako, ready to join showbiz again. Akala ko noon, showbiz is not for me. Now I know it's my calling.”

One reason she quit then was she refused to go sexy. Is she willing now? “Yes, but it has to be a classy kind of sexy, sophisticated, ayoko ng cheap. Na-miss ko rin talaga ang showbiz after I left it. Hinahanap ko na.”

Nina stands 5'8", has flawless fair skin and measures 37-27-36. ”I need to lose at least two more inches on my waistline. When I was with ABS, they wanted me to join Miss Earth but I felt I wasn't ready then. Now, Direk Manny wants me to join the Bb. Pilipinas pageant, pero baka next year na. I want to prepare for it muna and lose some weight pa. I'm taking up dance lessons to keep fit, also in preparation for a special show I'd do with Boyz.Com in March where I'll do a number ala-Britney Spears. May alok din for me to pose sa FHM and we're still studying it. Sa Regal, may offer din for me to do the movie “My Sweet Papa” about sugar daddies. Sana matuloy kasi makakasama ko raw si Rufa Mae Quinto kaya excited ako.”

She was wearing a revealing red dress and her boobs seem to have grown bigger in size. Did she resort to breast augmentation? “Ay, hindi po. Dati nang ganyan ‘yan but I wasn't wearing sexy clothes naman before showing my cleavage kaya ngayon lang napansin. There's nothing retokada sa akin.”

Nina is detemined to make it big in showbiz so she broke up with her non-showbiz boyfriend of one year. “Career muna. Boys can wait.”

If ever, she wants to be like Scarlett Johanson or Catherine Zeta-Jones. “They're both so sexy but respectable looking, di ba?”

NIKKI ON DISNEY CHANNEL

CONGRATS to Nikki Gil, one of the regular host-singers of “ASAP.” The other year, she was chosen to sing the Asian version of one of the hit songs in the movie “High School Musical”. Last year, the movie had a sequel and some of its songs are now being recorded for an Asian version. Nikki feels very lucky as she was once again chosen to sing one of the songs in the sequel, including its music video. And not only that. Last time, she's one of three Asian girls in the song she did. Now, she has gone solo, which means the Disney people really appreciated her first performance. Nikki is singing “Gotta Go My Own Way” and it's now being shown in the Disney Channel, including the scenes involved in the making of the music video. It has entered the Top Ten in 20 Pinoy Weekly Countdown of the MYX Channel. Disney Channel Asia just called up Nikki to say that her music video is now also being shown in the U.S. , which means she has gone international. We hope this opens more doors for the very talented young singer-actress.

THE WOMEN OF ‘PALOS'

CESAR Montano and Jake Cuenca may topbill “Palos” but the series also has a formidable roster of actresses known as the fighting women of “Palos.” First is Sunshine Cruz who plays Grazella, the wife of Cesar who later becomes the mother of Jake. Then there's Jodi Sta. Maria, who'll now be seen twice on primetime since she also plays the ghost Ruth in “Patayin sa Sindak si Barbara”. In “Palos”, she plays an inventor in Neptune, the crimebusting agency where Cesar works, and is married to Alessandro (Jomari Yllana.) Carla Humphries of “Abt Ur Luv” plays Stella, the childhood friend of Fabio (Cesar).

Roxanne Guinoo has starred with Jake in “Natutulog Ba ang Diyos” and “Lastikman.” She now plays Anna, the beautiful orphan whose ambition is to be the best agent in Neptune. Valerie Garcia, better known as Bangs in teen show GoKada where she played a punk rocker girl whose face was covered by bangs, now becomes more daring and sexier as Sylvia, the leading lady of Jake.

PBB Housemate Wendy Valdez plays the sexy adopted daughter of Redford White and Dennis Padilla, two hilarious inventors in the show. Regine Angeles is the female winner in Be Bench Model Search and she now gets her first major assignment as Paola, the alluring fashionista agent who can be fierce but still graceful in combat.

The star-studded cast of “Palos” also includes the original Palos, Bernard Bonnin, as Ninong, the influential ex-general of Neptune Agency; Gloria Romeo as Alfonsina, the chambermaid of Sunshine Cruz; Jay-R Siaboc as Enzo, a mysterious Neptune agent; Vandolph as Giuseppe, the computer whiz sidekick of Jake and Julia Barretto as Pamela, a girl who accompanies Jake in his operations and an expert acrobat. All of them will make your weeknights exciting on ABS-CBN Primetime Bida starting January 28 in place of “Lastikman.”

VHONG CHALLENGED BY LASTIKMAN

VHONG Navarro says he's lucky to be given the chance to play Pinoy Superhero “Lastikman.” “It's one of the most challenging characters I've ever played dahil hitik sa action,” he says. “But it's worth it. I'm glad that in 2007, I got to play both Agent X-44 sa big screen and Lastikman on TV.”

Now on its last week, Vhong faces his ultimate opponent, Elemento, the villain who caused the death of his loved ones. Elemento is very powerful as he controls the different elements: water, air, fire, and Lastikman's weakness: ice. Will this be the end of “Lastikman”? Find out in the action-packed final episodes of this thrilling fantaserye after “TV Patrol World.”

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