CATFIGHT: Ali Larter vs Beyoncé

Catfight is a new idea I'm going to trial for awhile, as a bit of fun for summer. It also works as a progression of the Hotlight feature I put on ice a month ago. Basically, every week I'll pick two sexy stars from the world of showbiz who have a reason to "fight" (i.e, they have competing movies/singles on release, are rivals in a film, etc.) There'll be a brief blurb about each starlet, and then you get the opportunity to pick your favourite in a poll. Simple! The inaugural catfight is between pop diva Beyoncé Knowles and Heroes' hottie Ali Larter, who appear together in the new movie Obsessed as love rivals of Idris Elba's character...

Alison Elizabeth Larter

Model-turned-actress with a career that's primarily targeted the teenage market (Legally Blonde, Resident Evil: Extinction, TV's Heroes.) The classically beautiful Ali got her break as part of a hoax in Esquire magazine, where she portrayed a fake model called Allegra Coleman and was reported to be the new girlfriend of Friends' David Schwimmer. The 2000 horror movie Final Destination propelled the leggy star to a legitimate acting career and she hasn't looked back since, gaining lots of fans along the way. She is currently engaged to Rob Buckley Hayes MacArthur.

Date of Birth: 28 February 1976
Place of Birth: Cherry Hill, New Jersey, USA

Beyoncé Giselle Knowles

Mononymed, voluptuous singer-songwriter who launched to fame as one third of Rn'B girl group Destiny's Child in 1998 (although the trio formed in '93). Years of #1 singles, platinum albums and Grammy awards soon followed, but a few years after Beyonce started a parallel solo career, Destiny's Child split up. Beyoncé's success as a modern Tina Turner-like "diva" soon started to surpass her Child's achievements, thanks to a combination of catchy tunes, big vocals, obvious stage presence and sexy music videos. The thunder-thighed star also dips her toe into the world of acting every so often, having appeared in Austin Powers 3, The Pink Panther remake, Oscar-winning musical Dreamgirls, and Obsession. In 2008, she married rapper Jay-Z.

Date of Birth: 4 September 1981
Place of Birth: Houston, Texas, USA