MARK WAHLBERG - WAHLBERG FIGHTS FOR NEW ROLE

Actor MARK WAHLBERG has taken up boxing for a new movie role - and has enlisted his friends to help him train.
The rapper-turned-actor has landed the starring role in boxing film The Fighter and is working hard to perfect his skills in the ring.
But Wahlberg insists it has been difficult training with his pals - because they all seem determined to give him painful beatings.
He says, "I hire my friends as sparring partners. But then you realise how much your friends have it in for you.
"You see them lining up around the block ready to take my head off."
The Fighter is slated to hit theatres later this year (08).