Auditions were held for the lead female role in next season's Fuji TV drama "Haikei, Chichiue-sama." Actress Saki Fukuda landed the part, in which she plays a restaurant owner's daughter. Fukuda will co-star with Kazunari Ninomiya.

"Haikei, Chichiue-sama" is the latest work by writer Sou Kuramoto. The drama is scheduled to start on January 11 in the Thursday 10:00pm time slot.

It was announced on Friday that actress Haruka Igawa has married fashion designer Ato Matsumoto. The two filed their marriage registration on Wednesday. Igawa says she plans to continue working.

The Miss Keio Contest 2006 was held on Thursday during Keio University's annual Mita Festival. The winner this year was third-year law student Yoshie Takeuchi, who is also a manager for the school's boxing club. Takeuchi stated that she hopes to become a TV announcer.