In an apparent effort to cement his reputation as the Zsa Zsa Gabor of hip-hop -- she does, after all, share his appreciation for bitch-slapping law enforcement officials -- Dr. Dre is said to be throwing a hissy fit about having his birthday marked in England later his month. Dre, who's going to hit the big four-oh in less than two weeks, isn't averse to collecting some celebratory swag from his pals at the BBC, but he went into diva mode when the radio folk suggested that they'd like to mention just how many candles he'd be blowing out. According to an e-mail circulated among staffers, the Beeb chose to back down and simply congratulate the former N.W.A leader on an unnamed birth anniversary. If we were in charge of assembling Dre's gift basket, we'd be sure to add some classic Jheri Curl in honor of his stint in World Class Wrecking Cru, which -- according to his math -- took place while he was in pre-school.

Since we often find ourselves hard-pressed to meet our minimum daily requirement of four-letter words and flung fecal matter, we're pleased as punch to know that we can get our fill simply by turning to the bad-ass rockers of Blur -- or at least drummer Dave Rowntree. The perverse percussionist is the brains behind a new British cartoon series called Empire Square, which promises to makes South Park look like Davey and Goliath, thanks to storylines involving bestiality, cannibalism and selling babies over the Internet. While Rowntree and his mates are planning to launch the series in Britain later this month, we'd advise a delay before hitting the states -- after all, viewers might not be able to tell whether they were tuning into their series or coverage of the Michael Jackson trial . . .

While we normally don't get our knickers in a twist over the Grammy Awards, we must admit that we've developed a rooting interest this year, thanks to one nominee's insistence on going above and beyond the call of duty in "keeping it real." Our hat's off to Manuel Seal, Jr. -- who could collect one of those nifty little paperweights as co-producer of Usher and Alicia Keys' "My Boo" -- who was arrested last week on charges that he tried to rob an auto repair shop in Georgia. Rather than try to jack an entire car, or even a set of pricy rims, all Mr. Seal allegedly wanted was a set of grime-encrusted used tires -- which he says an employee named "Larry" gave him permission to walk off with. And that's why they call him Manny from the Block . . .

Folks with a hankering for the good old days of book burnings and riding evildoers out of town on a rail no longer need to go to Alabama to satisfy those cravings, thanks to the nice folks who own the Great Western Forum arena in Los Angeles. The venue, which is operated by the Faithful Central Bible Church, has put the kibosh on a planned appearance by Lamb of God, insisting that morally offensive material has no place under its roof. A spokesperson for the church admitted to be unfamiliar with the band's catalog, but noted -- with surprisingly rock critic-esque acumen -- that "this is a band that was formerly known as Burn the Priest, so it's a fair assumption that some of the stuff they are singing may be antithetical to our beliefs." We're assuming that Motley Crue -- who for some reason, seem to meet the decency requirements of the church -- will be suing for defamation as a result of not having their gig canceled . . .