GEORGE CLOONEY - CLOONEY HAILS HALLIWELL AS AN 'INSPIRATION'

CLOONEY HAILS HALLIWELL AS AN 'INSPIRATION'

Hollywood star GEORGE CLOONEY has cited SPICE GIRL GERI HALLIWELL as an unlikely source of inspiration for his charity work. The pop star became a United Nations goodwill ambassador in 1999, and Clooney claims her philanthropy efforts have spurred him on to campaign for issues which matter to him. He says, "She was always my favourite Spice Girl; I loved her feisty approach and the fact she wasn't afraid to have an opinion. "Her work with Unicef and (sexual health charity) Marie Stopes in the Third World was inspiring. And her address at a UN Youth summit in 2000 was brave - it's so easy to not get involved and she just gritted her teeth and went for it." Clooney was named a United Nations Messenger Of Peace on Friday (18Jan08) in honour of his humanitarian work on behalf of refugees in the Darfur region of Sudan.