Paper Monitor
12:23 UK time, Tuesday, 16 March 2010
A service highlighting the riches of the daily press.
Another one bites the dust, another celebrity marriage that is. This week it's Kate Winslet and Sam Mendes.
Both would probably dislike the celebrity tag. While their careers as an actress and film director put them in the limelight, they have said on many occasions that they do not seek publicity in any other way. They are "normal" - albeit with a joint fortune of about Β£30m.
But with their split making it onto nearly all of today's front pages, they may have to accept they are "celebrities" - whether they like it or not. "Kate Winslet: Marriage to Sam Mendes is over" says the Daily Telegraph, and "Winslet in Split" is the headline in the Sun.
But while most papers just tell the story in a straightforward manner, with the couple's separation being announced last night, two go into overdrive.
The Daily Mirror claims to have the "secrets of Winslet's marriage split". This basically means covering all bases. It says the divorce is because the couple spent too much time together when filming on Revolutionary Road, which he directed and she starred in. It then says they spent too much time apart when Mendes was away working on another film. Finally, it says they decided to spend more time together, but not work together, and found that difficult too. Keep up, keep up.
The other paper all over the split is the Daily Mail. From the headlines it looks like it is taking sides already and is firmly in Team Mendes. "Why IS Kate Winslet dumping Sam?" it asks on its front page. Two further pages of analysis inside pose the question: ""
It wouldn't come as much of surprise if it was siding with Mendes, as the paper has previously had a relationship with Winslet rather like a bad marriage mixed with a messy divorce. There have been accusations, arguing, court action and a big payout. And that's just over claims about her exercise regime.
But maybe the biggest shock about this split is that the Mail is being quite gentle on Kate. According to journalist Alison Boshoff:
"Kate, intense and sincere, does appear to have been desperate to make it work, but no amount of reheating via romantic holiday and date nights would persuade this soufflΓ© to rise again."
And she concludes that:
"Maybe Mendes, hailed as a directorial wunderkind but now slightly lost, found it harder to deal with her successes than has been supposed?"
So while it is undoubtedly a hard day for Winslet in many ways, maybe that's one unexpected crumb of comfort she can take from her failed marriage being splashed across the papers.
The 
