People News Roundup: Ed Sheeran must face plagiarism claim: judge; Broadway's Diana musical to be shown first on Netflix and more

Ghislaine Maxwell faces new charges as U.S. expands sex crime case U.S. prosecutors on Monday expanded their criminal case against Ghislaine Maxwell, saying the British socialite helped procure a fourth underage girl for the late financier Jeffrey Epstein to sexually abuse.

Following is a summary of current people news briefs.

Ghislaine Maxwell faces new charges as U.S. expands sex crime case

U.S. prosecutors on Monday expanded their criminal case against Ghislaine Maxwell, saying the British socialite helped procure a fourth underage girl for the late financier Jeffrey Epstein to sexually abuse. An amended indictment against Maxwell now covers alleged crimes stretching from 1994 to 2004 in New York and Florida, including accusations that she paid the girl, known as Minor Victim-4, hundreds of dollars for each sexual act with Epstein.

Broadway's Diana musical to be shown first on Netflix

A new musical about Princess Diana will premiere on Netflix before a planned opening on Broadway in December, producers said on Tuesday, in an innovative move to promote the project. In one of the first Broadway shows to announce a firm date following a pandemic-induced shutdown of more than a year, "Diana: The Musical" will have its opening night on stage on Dec. 16.

Ed Sheeran must face plagiarism claim: judge

A U.S. judge on Tuesday rejected English singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran's bid to dismiss one of three lawsuits accusing him of lifting his 2014 smash "Thinking Out Loud" from Marvin Gaye's 1973 classic "Let's Get It On." U.S. District Judge Ronnie Abrams in Manhattan said Structured Asset Sales LLC, which owns one-third of "Let's Get It On" co-writer Ed Townsend's estate, can sue Sheeran, Sony Music Publishing and other defendants over its April 2020 copyright registration for a studio recording of the song.

Black Britons should get the COVID-19 vaccine, stars urge

Some of Britain's best-known Black celebrities united on Tuesday to urge the country's Black communities to have a COVID-19 vaccine after figures showed far fewer were getting the shot compared to the rest of the population. The Office for National Statistics said on Monday that while overall more than 90% of those aged over 70 had received their first vaccine shot, take up rates among people identifying as Black African and Black Caribbean were just 58.8% and 68.7% respectively.

'Captain Underpants' author pulls book due to racist imagery, apologizes to Asian readers

Publisher Scholastic Corp has halted publication of a book by children's author Dav Pilkey, best known for his "Captain Underpants" series, who offered an online apology for the title's unintended "racist imagery." Pilkey, author of more than 40 books, said "The Adventures of Ook and Gluk: Kung-Fu Cavemen from the Future," first published in 2010, would be pulled from retail and library shelves.

(With inputs from agencies.)