Mukai Osamu & Kuninaka Ryoko announce the arrival of their baby son

Mukai Osamu and Kuninaka Ryoko announced the arrival of their baby son through their respective agencies' official websites on 30 September. In Kuninaka's statement, she revealed that she had given birth to a boy in a Tokyo hospital recently and revealed how she was touched and happy beyond words to see the latest member of her family. She asked for the support of everyone around her as she strives to take on the biggest responsibility of her life as a mother while juggling other things in life.

As for Mukai, he expressed thanks for everyone who had supported him and his wife throughout her pregnancy and he was grateful that mother and son are doing well now. He also commented that he was touched to be able to pass on the baton of life and would work even harder in future.

Mukai and Kuninaka got married in December and announced her pregnancy in April this year.

Source: Oricon

Preview of "Godan" 誤断 (Misjudgement) - Autumn 2015

Title: Godan 誤断 (Misjudgement)
Official website: here
O.A. Start Date: 22 November 2015
Timeslot: Sundays 10pm
Broadcast by: WOWOW
Original novel by: Doba Shunichi
Cast: Tamayama Tetsuji, Renbutsu Misako, Yanagiba Toshiro, Kobayashi Kaoru, Ozora Yuhi, Adachi Rika, Koichi Mantaro, Nakada Yoshiko, Ichige Yoshie, Izumiya Shigeru, Nakamura Atsuo

Preview of "Umi ni furu" 海に降る (Descending into the sea) - Autumn 2015

Title: Umi ni furu 海に降る (Descending into the sea)
Official website: here
O.A. Start Date: 10 October 2015
Timeslot: Saturdays 10pm
Total number of episodes: 6
Broadcast by: WOWOW
Original novel by: Akeno Kaeruko
Cast: Arimura Kasumi, Inoue Yoshio, Itaya Yuka, Tsutsui Michitaka, Takahashi Kazuya, Ishida Takuya, Mizusawa Shingo, Iida Kisuke, Tokito Saburo, Nishioka Tokuma, Hiraizumi Sei, Takenaka Naoto, Harada Tomoyo and Endo Kenichi

Fukuyama Masaharu & Fukiishi Kazue get married

Fukuyama Masaharu and Fukiishi Kazue got married on 28 September which also happens to be the latter's birthday. The couple were first romantically linked in January 2012 and there were rumours of them getting married when Fukuyama ended his long-running radio show in March this year. Both artistes' agencies released fax statements to the media.

In Fukuyama's statement, he mentioned that he and Fukiishi had been dating for a few years after they started off as friends. Gradually, they came to realise the importance of each other as life partners thus leading to them getting married. Fukuyama asked for the support and advice of everyone around them including fans and staff members as they strive to build a happy family. He also mentioned that he is in preparations for his year-end concert and will continue to work hard as before.

On the other hand, Fukiishi began her statement by apologising for having to announce the news of their marriage through a written statement due to the short notice. She mentioned that she had been in showbiz for 20 years since she was 13 and has no plans to stop working even after marriage. However, she is planning to take things slow for the time being but hopes that everyone will continue supporting her in future.

Source: Huffington Post Japan /  Oricon

Preview of "Gisou no Fuufu" 偽装の夫婦 (Fake Couple) - Autumn 2015

Title: Gisou no Fuufu 偽装の夫婦 (Fake Couple)
Official website: here
Official Twitter page: here
O.A. Start Date: 7 October 2015
Timeslot: Wednesdays 10pm
Broadcast by: NTV
Scriptwriter: Yukawa Kazuhiko
Theme Song: What You Want by JUJU
Cast: Amami Yuki, Sawamura Ikki, Uchida Yuki, Kudo Asuka, Sakai Maki, Sato Jiro, Shibamoto Yuki, Tanaka Yoji, Kimura Midoriko, Fuji Sumiko

Kawashima Naomi passes away due to bile duct cancer

Kawashima Naomi passed away at 7.55pm on 24 September at a Tokyo hospital due to bile duct cancer. She was 54 years old.

Kawashima made her debut in 1979 as a singer while she was a student at Aoyama Gakuin University and became popular as a DJ for her radio show "Miss DJ Request". Later, she began work as an actress and was known for her roles in movies such as 1994's "Shin Gokudo no Tsumatachi Horetara Jigoku" and dramas such as 1996's "Iguana no Musume" and 1997's "Shitsurakuen". She got married in 2009 to patissier-chef Yoroizuka Toshihiko.

In 2014, Kawashima underwent an operation after she was diagnosed with bile duct cancer and only made an appearance in early September this year with her husband during a public event. As Kawashima had lost a lot of weight due to her illness, it attracted a lot of speculation on her well-being but she insisted that she was fine. News of her quitting an upcoming musical "Christmas Carol" came out subsequently which sparked concern over her condition again but the reason was said that she wanted to recover fully before making her comeback. However, things were not meant to be as Kawashima never managed to recover and realise her dream of returning to stage.

Kawashima's husband, Yoroizuka posted a message via his restaurant's Facebook page on 24 Sep where he announced his wife's demise. He mentioned that up to a week before her death, Kawashima was still working on her stage play and wanted to do her best as an actress right to the end. He thanked everyone for supporting his wife and praised her for being a respectable woman till she breathed her last.

Source: Sponichi

Maki Yoko announces her divorce

Maki Yoko announced her divorce from her former actor-husband Katayama Reo through her agency on 26 September. The couple who got married in November 2008 and have a six-year-old daughter born in May 2009, filed their divorce application at a ward office in Tokyo earlier this month. Maki retains custody rights of their daughter.

It was reported that the reason for the breakdown of their marriage was due to differences in their lifestyles and thinking as the years went by. As their daughter is due to enter primary school next April, the couple were said to have decided to go their separate ways before that and mutually agreed that Maki will be the one to raise their daughter. Katayama used to be an actor but had quit before marrying Maki and is said to be in preparations to become a writer.

Source: Yomiuri Hochi

Preview of "Shingari ~ Yamaichi Shouken Saigo no Seisen ~" - Summer 2015

Title: Shingari ~ Yamaichi Shouken Saigo no Seisen しんがり ~ 山一證券 最後の聖戦~ (Shingari ~ The Last Holy Battle of Yamaichi Securities ~)
Official website: here
O.A. Start Date: 20 September 2015
Broadcast by: WOWOW
Timeslot: Sundays 10pm
Original novel by: Kiyotake Hidetoshi
Cast: Eguchi Yosuke, Hagiwara Masato, Hayashi Kento, Matobu Sei, Katsumura Masanobu, Sato Bsaku, Yajima Kenichi, Miura Masaki, Kirishima Reika, Itagaki Mizuki, Okochi Hiroshi, Shinagawa Toru, Tanaka Ken, Sano Shiro, Mitsuishi Ken, Hirata Mitsuru, Kishibe Ittoku

Kato Ai gives birth to baby girl in the US

Kato Ai had given birth to her first baby girl in the United States as announced by her agency on 14 September. Both mother and daughter are said to be doing well. According to her agency, Kato wanted to keep her pregnancy a secret until she gave birth so as to avoid the media attention. In her statement, Kato said that although she had her fair share of worries during the pregnancy, she was glad about the smooth delivery and is filled with gratitude. She hopes to keep this feeling in mind as she tries to learn how to be a mother and thanked everyone for their support.

Kato married a company director who is 7 years older than her on 22 November 2013.

Source: Oricon

Preview of "Ishi no Mayu" - Summer 2015

Title: Ishi no Mayu 石の繭 (The Stone Cocoon)
Official website: here
O.A. Start Date: 16 August 2015
Broadcast by: WOWOW
Timeslot: Sundays 10pm
Original novel by: Asami Kazushi
Cast: Kimura Fumino, Aoki Munetaka, Watanabe Ikkei, Hira Takehiro, Kitami Toshiyuki, Koyanagi Yu, Furukawa Yuki, Kanno Misuzu, Danta Yasunori, Nakamura Toru

Totsugi Shigeyuki & Ichikawa Yui get married after dating for 1 year and 2 months

Totsugi Shigeyuki and Ichikawa Yui got married on 8 September after dating for 1 year and 2 months and announced it through their official websites 2 days later. The couple met last spring while working on the NHK BS Premium drama "Owanko TV" and started dating in July the same year. As for the reason why the couple chose to get married on 8 September, it was the birthday of Totsugi's late mother.

In Totsugi's statement, he commented that he had been branded as a guy who could never be able to get married so he never imagined that he could make such an announcement. Nonetheless, it had been 41 long years before he could do so. Totsugi said that as he and Ichikawa are working in the same industry, there are many things which they can identify with and understand . In addition, Ichikawa's cheerful character has helped him in many ways so he hopes to do the same for her and that they can progress together in life.

Source: Sponichi 1 / Sponichi 2

TOKIO's Kokubun Taichi announces his marriage through card to fanclub members

TOKIO's Kokubun Taichi announced his marriage on 11 Sep and submitted the marriage application with his wife before he went for the filming of his daily morning programme at TBS "Hakunetsu Life Vivit" on the same day. According to reports, Kokubun's wife is a former TBS employee who is three years younger than him and they met through work 10 years ago in 2005. The couple started dating in May 2008 before Kokubun admitted to this relationship in March 2009 when news of this first appeared in a female's magazine. His wife left TBS at the end of 2010 and the two of them have been living together for some time.

After TOKIO finished the celebration activities for their 20th anniversary last year, Kokubun was said to have discussed with his agency on the topic of marriage and thought that it was good timing to move on to the next stage of his life since he is already 41. Before the announcement, he had arranged for the sending of cards to TOKIO fanclub members to let them know the news first. Although Kokubun had planned to hold a press conference to share the news on the day of his marriage after the airing of his programme, he postponed it in consideration of the ongoing floods in the Kanto and Tohoku regions brought about a typhoon and the people affected by the natural disaster. When interviewed about Kokubun's marriage, fellow TOKIO members offered their congratulations readily.

Here is a list of Johnny Jimusho's artistes who got married in recent years (numbers in brackets refer to ages at the time of the marriage):

June 1994 - Kondo Masahiko (29) & a former company employee (28)
December 2000 - Kimura Takuya (28) & Kudo Shizuka (30)
September 2007 - Inohara Yoshihiko (31) & Seto Asaka (30)
March 2008 - Yamaguchi Tatsuya (36) & former model (31)
October 2010 - Higashiyama Noriyuki (44) & Kimura Yoshino (34)
May 2013 - Kazama Shunsuke (29) & former company employee (35)

Source: Sponichi 1 / Sponichi 2 / Sponichi 3 / Sponichi 4

Preview of "Napoleon no Mura" - Summer 2015

Title: Napoleon no Mura ナポレオンの村
Official website: here
Official Facebook page: here
Official Youtube page: here
Official Twitter page: here
Official Instagram page: here
O.A. Start Date: 19 July 2015
Broadcast by: TBS
Timeslot: Sundays 9pm
Theme Song: Kimi no koudou wa kimi ni shika narasenai by Hirai Ken
Cast: Karasawa Toshiaki, Aso Kumiko, Yamamoto Koji, Muro Tsuyoshi, Iwamatsu Ryo, Hoshida Hidetoshi, Nagase Tasuku, Yamashita Kenjiro (Sandaime J Soul Brothers), Hamano Kenta, Hashimoto Manami, Mizutani Kaho, Senga Yukiko, Yoshida Yuki, Kajihara Takuto, Urashima Koji, Satsuki Haruko, Kayashima Narumi, Tani Hayato, Ogata Issey, Sawamura Ikki

Preview of "Omotesando Koukou Gasshobu!" - Summer 2015

Title: Omotesando Koukou Gasshobu 表参道高校合唱部! (Omotesando Senior High School Choir)
Official website: here
O.A. Start Date: 17 July 2015
Broadcast by: TBS
Timeslot: Fridays 10pm
Theme Song: Sukida by Little Glee Monster
Cast: Yoshine Kyoko, Shison Jun, Yoshimoto Miyu, Morikawa Aoi, Horii Arata, Takasugi Mahiro, Hagiwara Minori, Izumisawa Yuki, Shibata Kyoka, Kojima Riria, Hasegawa Nina, Kabira Jay, Horiuchi Keiko, Kanda Sayaka, Debitto Ito, Tateishi Ryoko, Hiraizumi Sei, Takahata Atsuko, Shirota Yu

Preview of "37.5 degrees Celsius no namida" - Summer 2015

Title: 37.5 degrees Celsius no namida (さんじゅうななごぶの涙)
Official website: here
Official Facebook: here
Official Twitter: here
O.A. Start Date: 9 July 2015
Broadcast by: TBS
Timeslot: Thursdays 9pm
Original manga by: Shiina Chika
Theme song: Daijoubu by wacci
Insert song: EGG by Kimura Kaela
Cast: Renbutsu Misako, Narimiya Hiroki, Hayami Mokomichi, Triendl Reina, Suzuki Rio, Mikami Kensei, Takizawa Saori, Nishimura Kazuhiko, Kubota Maki, Fujiki Naohito, Miho Jun, Mizuno Miki, Asano Atsuko

Preview of "Hotel Concierge" - Summer 2015

Title: Hotel Concierge ホテルコンシェルジュ
Official website: here
O.A. Start Date: 7 July 2015
Broadcast by: TBS
Timeslot: Tuesdays 10pm
Theme Song: Desperado by Honey L Days
Ending Theme: Stars by ERIHIRO
Cast: Nishiuchi Mariya, Miura Shohei, Omi Toshinori, Natsuna, Koseki Yuta, Yamada Yuki, Atsushi, Minoshima Hiromi, Tsujimoto Koji, Ichiyama Kyoka, Inukai Atsuhiro, Suzuki Ameri, Uesugi Shuhei, Yuasa Keisuke, Itakura Takeshi, Moriyama Asuka, Kayama Keisuke, Tanaka Kiyotaka, Ikezu Shoko, Takeda Kohei, Asari Yosuke, Wakamura Mayumi, Ibu Masato, Takahashi Katsunori