The latest of the possible projects attached to Cate turned up this week in the Aussie press, which mentioned her possible involvement in the film of "Cold Mountain".

This brilliant novel by Charles Frazier was a best-selling odyssey of one Confederate soldier's attempt to reach home, and his true love, after being wounded in the War.

The proposed film has been a topic of lots of buzz in Hollywood in that the novel is held in such high regard, and it is seen as having such cinematic possibilities. There has been much discussion in the trades of numerous A-list actors begging for the lead, including Tom Hanks, Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt.

The only thing certain at this point is that Anthony Minghella will direct. The fact that he is so very fond of Cate, based on their collaboration on The Talented Mr. Ripley, has led to rumours that Minghella desires Cate to play the coveted role of Ada, the Charleston society gal who left the city for the country of North Carolina and has struggled to maintain the family farm during the War.

It is hard to believe there is anything Cate can't do, and if she can nail a Long Island accent in Pushing Tin, who would dare to think she couldn't master a Carolinian accent. But, boy, would the tongues wag if an Aussie was, indeed, cast as a Belle of the Confederacy!

For more of Minghella's earlier observations on Cate, see A Date With Cate.

STILL IDEAL

An Ideal Husband continues to cruise right along in the States. After three weeks in release, it is now approaching the $10 million mark.

What is even more encouraging, Miramax began a new ad campaign late last week on television that is quite effective, energetically edited and featuring many rave quotes from around the country. It wisely reminds viewers that there is an alternative out there to the normal summer cinema fare.

It is reminiscent of the spirited ad campaign Miramax threw behind Shakespeare In Love, and coming three weeks after the picture's opeing attests to Miramax's belief that the picture has some legs, as it were. Go Cate Go!!

Mmmmm FASHION!

ELLE and the Guardian UK are jointly calling on readers to vote for who they think are the most stylish people in the world. As you might guess, our Cate is in the running in the Actress category.

For a complete rundown on the various categories, just in case you want to get REALLY involved, go to Elle Style Awards. However, look to the left banner for the Vote Here box, if you just want to make a quick vote for Cate. Don't worry about filling in the personal info request, it doesn't seem to matter.

Speaking of Style and Fashion, Elle also did a feature last week looking at the top stylists in the world. For those too busy to shop and browse for themselves, having a paid stylist on the payroll seems to be a growing trend.

Of course, with plays and films and such, and a reputation of incredible style to uphold, our Cate can use a little assistance and one of the world's most astute stylists counts Cate amongst her clients.

Jessica Paster, whose represents Cate, Minnie Driver, Dylan McDermott and others makes these "must-have" recommendations in the ELLE article:

Must-haves: black flat slides, Maharishi sport pants, Jimmy Choo stilettos, classic black cocktail dress, T-shirts in an array of colors. Hope this helps. :-))

The Times UK had an interesting feature story last week examining that all-consuming topic, "Who are the most cherished party guests?".

According to The Times, The Duke of York, aka "Eligible Andrew". is Britain's most eligible bachelor and is experiencing a massive surge in popularity. The duke, who was divorced from the Duchess of York in 1996, was the most wanted celebrity guest at Britain's high society parties in this year's social calendar, according to a survey by society magazine, Tatler.

The popularity chart was based on the invitation lists from 250 parties ranging from the premiere of the film Notting Hill to the society wedding of Count Alessandro Guerrini-Maraldi and Catrina Skepper. It was not based on the number of invites accepted.

Summarising the trend of this year's list, It girl Tara said: "Whereas last year hosts wanted to court the new Establishment, this year they want glamour and the interest has shifted to royals and celebrities."

Celebrities who do not live in Britain but are heavily sought after included James Bond star Pierce Brosnan, actress Cate Blanchett, pop legend Madonna and actor Rupert Everett.

We have a birthday party coming up, and Cate has already been sent an invite, so apparently there is some veracity to this story.

TRIVIA TIME

No puzzle this week, but, rather, an observation on a ongoing phenomena, that being the marketing of Cate-related memorabilia on internet auction sites such as ebay.

There is, no doubt, a variety of very interesting materials that may be purchased. The only ones that concern us are the countless autographed items that can be found. We find it rather amazing that certain locations, particularly in the Midwest US, can find multiple copies of pictures of Cate that have been autographed. I imagine it all stems from that four week layover Cate had in Tulsa Oklahoma last year. *laugh*

The variety of signature styles has also been noted here in the past. We would just hope people would exercise a little caution when purchasing some of these items. Cate and her management seem to be more than cooperative when it comes to getting pieces signed, so perhaps "going direct' is the best approach. In any case, don't let your sincere affection for Cate lead you to throw caution to the wind, and perhaps be taken advantage of.

On a related note, and we have no reason to believe this gent did not score a truly authenticated Cate treasure, The Times UK last week reported on a bloke who had purchased a few prize items on the internet, one of the most cherished being a £200 copy of Peter Carey's novel Oscar And Lucinda, not only signed by the author but by Cate Blanchett and Ralph Fiennes. Now THAT sounds like a gamble that paid off!

Okay, we're sorry. When we resort to puns, it's time to cash in. Whoops! There we go again. Quick! Remember...when all else fails, double down!! Nooooo! When all else fails, PLAY A VOLTA!!! See you next week!