Hot Topics:

Winfrey readying S. Africa school

Leadership Academy for Girls at Meyerton to open

Utah critics honor Cohen, Cuaron

Oklahoma critics name best, worst of 2006

Rolling Stones year's top grossing act

McGuire returns to TV as quizshow host

'New Moon' wins Thanksgiving box office(3828 views)

Hollywood sea of change(1768 views)

Invictus(1474 views)

'New Moon' crosses $200 million(1368 views)

Paramount lands 'Area 51'(1309 views)

JOHANNESBURG -- Oprah Winfrey hosted a celebrity-studded New Year's party at the Sun City casino resort in northwest South Africa, two days before she was due to open her exclusive Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls at Meyerton south of Johannesburg on Tuesday.

The talkshow host's guests included Sidney Poitier, Spike Lee, Chris Rock, Quincy Jones, Mariah Carey, Billy Ocean and Mary J. Blige. Winfrey had booked out most of the luxury Palace of the Lost City hotel for her guests at the resort, situated next to a game reserve.

Winfrey has made frequent visits to South Africa over the years, hosting Christmas parties for underprivileged children with Nelson Mandela and donating huge sums to charity projects.

Her Leadership Academy for Girls was established after a suggestion from Mandela about what she could do to make a real difference in the country.

She reportedly has invested more than $40 million in establishing the boarding school, situated on nine hectares of land.

The academy will cater for talented but disadvantaged girls handpicked by Winfrey during interviews across the country over the past few months. The first intake will consists of 150 seventh- and eighth-grade girls who were selected from the 3,000-plus who applied.