TV Chatting

Gwen Stefani and the rest of No Doubt are slated to make an appearance on the May 11 episode of Gossip Girl.  They will perform a cover “Stand and Deliver," a song made famous by 80’s pop star Adam Ant.

Their Gossip Girl appearance is part of the band’s return from an extended hiatus.  They will also embark on a 45 city summer tour - their first in more than five years. The tour kicks off on May 3 at the Bamboozle Festival in East Rutherford, New Jersey, and runs through August 1 in Irvine, California.

The group has also been working on a follow up to their 2001 release, “Rock Steady” for the past year.  No release date for the new album has been announced, but it would be customary for such a release to coincide with a tour.

Gossip Girl can be seen on the CW on Mondays at 8 p.m. ET.

Gossip Girl creators Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage are working on a spinoff of the popular CW show. The spinoff will be set in 1980s Los Angeles and will serve as a prequel to the current series. It will focus on the wild teenage years of Lily van der Woodsen.

The basic premise sees a young Lily moving in with her “black sheep” sister after a falling out with her parents.  She has to adjust from living a life of luxury and going to boarding school to living in the San Fernando Valley and going to public school.  Caught between her two worlds, Lily seeks the fast-paced Sunset Strip and the Hollywood lifestyle of the ’80s, allowing her to sneak back in to the lifestyle she used to call her own. 

Casting is underway now for the “backdoor pilot” which will air as an episode of Gossip Girl on May 11.

According to Entertainment Weekly’s Michael Ausiello, The CW has ordered more episodes of three of their biggest hit series.  Just two weeks ago they extended Gossip Girl from 22 to 24 episodes and now they are asking for one more for a total of 25 for the season.

They have also ordered two additional episodes of both One Tree Hill and 90210, extending their seasons to 24 episodes each. One Tree Hill has been making a big comeback this year, retaining much of their Gossip Girl lead in audience. 90210 has been a solid performer for the network, especially with their target audience of women ages 18-49.

Former Moonlighting star and four-time Emmy nominee Cybill Shepherd will guest on the season premiere of  Samantha Who? on Monday, Oct. 13. Also on the episode will be Dancing with the Stars pro Mark Ballas. Sam ( Christina Applegate) enters a dance competition with her mom, Regina (Jean Smart), in hopes of beating Regina’s rival Paula, played by Shepherd. Paula, however, has hired a ringer (Ballas) to help her win.

Grey’s Anatomy is adding several new recurring players. L Word alum Janina Gavankar will join the cast as a new intern and Journeyman star Kevin McKidd will play a former Iraq doctor and love interest for Cristina. Also cast is Brandon Scott who will play a "junior McDreamy," according to EW’s Ausiello.

Former LOST actress Tania Raymonde, who played Ben’s dearly departed daughter, Alex, is joining the cast of Cold Case as a lab tech and potential love interest for Danny Pino.

Another Olympian is trying her hand at acting. Gymnast Nastia Lukin will guest on an episode of Gossip Girl. She is set to begin filming in mid-October. 

Gary Cole (Desperate Housewives) has been cast as the Sarah’s con-man father on Chuck. His guest spot will air during November sweeps.

Breckin Meyer will guest star on House later this season as a struggling artist whose disease causes him to get wildly aggressive. Of course, House and his crew set out to solve his medical mystery. Meyer and his buddy Seth Green will also guest star on Heroes as a couple of comic book geeks. They started filming this week.

Gail O’Grady, who starred as secretary Donna Abandando on NYPD Blue and mom Helen Pryor on American Dreams, will be joining the cast of Desperate Housewives in a recurring role this season. Gail’s character will reportedly be a "Mrs. Robinson" type who seduces one of Lynnette’s rapidly aged teenage twins.

Looking to relive their glory days, ER has announced that several former cast members will be making guest appearances on the 15th and final season of the show. Noah Wyle (Dr. John Carter) will return for 4 episode and, shockingly enough, Anthony Edwards will return as Dr. Mark Greene. "Isn’t he dead," you ask?  Well yes, he is, and he is staying dead. Dr. Greene will return in flashbacks that will establish a County General history for the new chief, played by Angela Bassett.

30 Rock’s list of guest stars keeps growing. Gossip Girl stars Leighton Meester and Blake Lively are close to a deal to guest-star in a November sweeps episode of 30 Rock.  Ausiello is reporting that the girls will play former high school classmates of Liz Lemon’s in a flashback sequence which will reveal that she was a Mean Girl! Blake’s older sister, Robyn Lively, is being considered to play the older, high school reunion version of Blake’s character.

Olympic gold medalist Shawn Johnson will try her hand at acting on an episode of ABC Family’s new hit show, The Secret Life of the American Teenager. The gymnast will play herself in the episode that airs next Tuesday, September 9.

Watch the first five minutes of the Gossip Girl premiere right here!  The CW has released this preview and it waste’s no time living up to everyting those steamy promo posters promised.

Gossip Girl premieres on Monday, September 1st at 8pm ET.

TV Guide has put together a photo gallery featuring some of the hottest young couples to grace our televisions over the years.  Current fan favorites like Serena and Dan and Blair and Chuck from Gossip Girl and Troy and Gabriella from High School Musical are there as well as past couples like Zack and Kelly from Saved by the Bell; Joanie and Chachi from Happy Days; Brenda and Dylan from Beverly Hills: 90210; and Buffy and Angel from Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

To see if your favorites made the list, check out the full gallery over at TVGuide.com.

Photo: Hot couple Blair and Chuck from Gossip Girl