BILLIE LOSES POPULARITY POLL

Billie Piper has had a bad start to 2007.The Doctor Who star, fresh from a series of acting successes in 2006 culminating in her appearance on BBC1's The Ruby In The Smoke, has failed to win the hearts of her home town.She won just 14 per cent of Swindon's award for person of the year, losing out to the leader of the local council, Councillor Roderick Bluh.The victorious Cllr Bluh was magnanimous in victory but said that he thought his stirling work improving the Wiltshire town probably had something to do with it."It isn't usually middle-aged politicians who win these type of polls. To be honest I'm a little bit stunned, but I'd like to thank everyone who took the time to vote for me," he told the Swindon Advertiser newspaper, which carried out the poll.In contrast to his hard work, Billie failed to turn up to a book signing in the town recently, incurring the wrath of Swindoners who have shown their anger in the survey.It is not clear how Billie has responded to the news of her terrible defeat.