Cannes Film Festival may have been blighted of late by some criminal activity, but the glitz and the glamour have prevailed in a charity event that saw a man buy a trip to space with Leonardo Dicaprio for $1.5m.

Vasily Klyukin, 37, a Russian living in Monaco – and enjoying all the tax benefits that come with that - said he had always wanted to go into space. "I want to be a bit daring," Klyukin - who works in real estate and also bought a gold and diamond necklace for $517,000 - told Reuters. "I will have to give up smoking now for sure!" The money will go to amfAR, the Foundation for AIDS Research, and The Great Gatsby star will board a Virgin Galactic flight into space with a mystery guest; someone who was willing to spend $1.5m to be shot into space with him. Sound maybe a little bit weird? Nah. Actress Sharon Stone explained that the winning bidder would spend three days in training with DiCaprio in New Mexico bfore the trip. "You don't get to go to outer space every day with a handsome movie star," she explained.

This year’s Cannes has seen Leo’s film, The Great Gatbsy, directed by Baz Lurhmann, receive mixed reviews. It was already struggling before hand, having been handed a rare Cannes opening spot despite already opening elsewhere, but given that many were waiting for the spectacle of the Cannes showing, its deficiencies were highlighted further.

Leonardo DiCaprioLeonardo DiCaprio arriving for a nice yacht party

Leonardo DiCaprio

Carey Mulligan, Tobey Maguire, Isla Fisher are lead by Leonardo Dicaprio in Gatsby