SHOW BIZ

A Married At First Sight UK couple have hinted at their baby plans as they shared their emotional final vows during the E4 dating show

A couple from Married At First Sight UK have shared their thoughts on starting a family during an emotional vow exchange.

As the experiment draws to a close, the remaining pairs are faced with the pivotal decision of whether to continue their relationships outside of the programme.

Abigail and John’s relationship has been blossoming beautifully since they felt an immediate connection on their wedding day.

Each Commitment Ceremony has brought them even closer together, with both confessing that they’re ‘falling’ for each other and even declaring their love.

In tonight’s episode of the E4 dating show, viewers were treated to the first part of the finale, as the couples are whisked away to stunning locations for their vow renewals, reports OK!.

Abigail and John were among the first to recite their final vows, deciding whether they will commit to a lifetime together or if their marriage concludes here.

John was left spellbound as Abigail approached him in a long white dress and a sparkling headband.

While delivering her final vows, she revealed that her husband has helped her regain her confidence. After hearing John say ‘I love you’, she confessed that it was a life-changing moment for her.

The bride hinted at plans to start a family, saying: “I came into this experiment wanting to find love. I found John, a husband and a happily ever after. I just know you’re going to be the most amazing father.”

John said his wife had transformed everything for him, with a family, home and future now feeling within reach.

He said: “I feel amazing. This is the perfect way to end the first chapter of our journey.” The delighted groom added: “let’s go spend the rest of our lives together.”

But it was a different story for fellow couple Leigh and Leah, whose relationship crashed to a dramatic end during their final vows after a furious row.

Standing in a wisteria-filled garden to exchange their vows, the atmosphere was far from romantic as Leigh declared that “a true loving relationship shouldn’t take this much effort and force”.

Her choice to end the marriage came as no surprise. Leah echoed similar feelings, noting that her wife’s “past hurt was often projected” onto her. She too decided to walk away from the relationship.

You can catch up on Married At First Sight on Channel 4

A NEPO baby daughter of a Hollywood legend looked stunning in her racy TikTok video, as she stripped down to a corset and stockings.

The rising star, 25, is following in her dad’s footsteps into the world of film – but can you guess who her famous father is?

Did you guess the nepo baby in question is Hollywood director Martin Scorsese’s daughter Francesca?

The 25-year-old is the iconic filmmaker’s youngest daughter, who he had when he was 56 with his third wife Helen Morris.

The 82-year-old director also has two other daughters, Cathy, 58, and Domenica, 49, from his previous marriages.

Francesca is known for her sexy TikToks and recently shared one of herself strutting through the streets in a yellow corset, that she was almost bursting out of.

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She finished off her eye-popping look with sexy stockings.

Francesca, who has previously revealed “grew up on film sets”, graduated from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, which is also her father’s college.

Following in her dad’s film director footsteps, she released her own picture, Fish Out of Water, in June 2023.

She has also flexed her acting chops and played Britney Orton in HBO‘s We Are Who We Are and appeared in several of her dad’s movies including The Departed, The Aviator and Boardwalk Empire.

Speaking about her famous father’s influence on her career, Francesca said: “He is the best teacher, guide, just overall mentor.

“Also, he’s literally my best friend. I tell him everything.”

Martin also previously reflected on his relationship with his youngest daughter.

Speaking to SiriusXM last year, the director said that after he met his now-wife Helen, they were “gifted with this pregnancy.”

“It was extraordinary and by that point, I was 56 and it was a different perspective on life,” he told host James Corden.

“It suddenly became the most important thing, her and this little one that was coming.

“We didn’t know whether it was a girl or boy and then in the middle of the night, five weeks early.”

Reflecting on being a dad, now he is getting older, he added: “I’m 80 now, so you only have a certain amount of time left.

“That time has got to mean something.”

Nearly a decade after his 2016 novel, “All That Man Is,” was passed over for the Booker Prize, David Szalay has taken home gold with his latest work, “Flesh.”

“Flesh,” Szalay’s sixth novel, follows István, a socially isolated Hungarian teen who through circumstances beyond his control is thrust into London’s upper echelon. In the coming decades, he finds himself caught between his traumatic past and growing appetite for prestige. Szalay is the first Hungarian British writer to receive the prestigious award, which he accepted at Monday’s ceremony in London with visible surprise.

“I felt ‘Flesh’ is quite a risky novel, a risky book. It felt risky to me writing it,” Szalay said in his acceptance speech.

“I think it’s very important that the publisher — the novel-making community, if I can put it like that — embraces that sense of risk rather than shuns it,” he said.

In the judges’ view, Szalay’s risks more than paid off, yielding an “extraordinary, singular novel.”

“The judges discussed the six books on the shortlist for more than five hours,” said Roddy Doyle, chair of the judging panel. “The book we kept coming back to, the one that stood out from the other great novels, was ‘Flesh’ — because of its singularity.”

“We had never read anything quite like it. It is, in many ways, a dark book but it is a joy to read,” he said.

Despite chronicling decades of István’s life, “Flesh,” through narrative omissions, leaves readers with an inscrutable protagonist they nonetheless remain deeply invested in.

“I don’t think I’ve read a novel that uses the white space on the page so well,” Doyle said, adding that in “Flesh,” “Every word matters; the spaces between the words matter.”

The Booker Prize is an annual award given to the best English-language novel published in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

“Flesh” triumphed over five other shortlisted books: Kiran Desai’s “The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny,” Andrew Miller’s “The Land in Winter,” Susan Choi’s “Flashlight,” Katie Kitamura’s “Audition” and Ben Markovits’ “The Rest of Our Lives.”

“Flesh” has also received praise from writer Zadie Smith and singer Dua Lipa, who selected the novel for her Service95 Book Club.

“I don’t think I’ve ever encountered a character who has so little to say as István and yet by the end of it I cared about him so deeply,” Lipa told Szalay in an October interview at the New York Public Library.

During their conversation, Szalay shared that while “Flesh” was the file name for the book on his computer, he never expected it to get to the final press.

Yet his team couldn’t think of another title more fitting for the novel.

“The kind of slight unease that I think it provokes, that sense of tawdriness, I think that they really fit the book, ultimately,” Szalay said.

I’m A Celebrity bosses will make a major change to proceedings this year on the ITV jungle show to stop one person hogging the limelight in a huge rule shake-up

I’m A Celebrity bosses are clamping down on celebrities doing repeated trials and hogging the limelight in a major rule shake-up. We can reveal how contestants will now no longer be able to do more than two Bushtucker trials in a row.

Insiders claim it gives more celebs the chance to shine on the show and endear themselves to the public. But it also comes after a row last year over Dean McCullough, who was voted to do a total of seven Bushtucker Trials, two of which he ended early.

Even Ant McPartlin expressed his frustration with Dean repeatedly being put up for trial, saying: “Who’s still voting for Dean, I don’t get it.”

At the time, some fans were convinced he was faking his tears to ensure he was repeatedly voted for by the public. Dean later insisted his tears were “100 per cent real.”

Nigel Farage, who took part in 2023, has previously lamented how those doing challenges got “25 percent of the airtime”.

The rule change will also effectively prevent the public targeting certain celebrities as much as before. Stars such as Helen Flanagan and Gillian McKeith were repeatedly picked on by viewers who were keen to see them suffer in trials.

Viewers will be unable to vote for that person for a third consecutive day, but then the system will be “reset” allowing that person to be voted for again.

A source said: “Celebrities all want the opportunity to take on a Bushtucker Trial and bring home stars for camp. Viewers would much prefer to see different celebrities take on the iconic Bushtucker Trials as opposed to the same person every day.”

Bosses are keen for more contestants to shine in the camp, and have taken on feedback from previous celebs on the show who want the trials to be spread more evenly.

A source added: “This is a great move for fans of the show so we don’t see the same faces doing the trials, as well as uncovering new favourites. Plus it’s a win-win for the celebs too, who are keen for more chances to get their personalities across.”

Several contestants have done multiple trials over the years.

Waterloo road actor Adam Thomas performed 12 trials when he took part back in 2016, while Scarlett Moffat and Janice Dickinson undertook 10 in 2016 and 2007 respectively. Jacqueline Jossa did 10 Trials in 2019, while Helen Flanagan did seven trials in 2012, of which a number were aborted.

Celebs flying Down Under include Emmerdale’s Lisa Riley, YouTuber Morgan Burtwistle, known as Angry Ginge, EastEnders actress Shona McGarty comedian Ruby Wax, TV presenter Alex Scott and Jack Osbourne. They are to be joined by rapper Aitch, and presenter Vogue Williams.

Ant and Dec are returning to host the hit series, which is in its 25th year. A source close to the show said: “Producers are expected to pull out the stops to ensure the 25th series is the most memorable yet.”

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DESPITE claims Ariana Grande and Ethan Slater had called it quits after two years, I can confirm they are very much still together.

But the speculation surrounding their relationship is taking its toll.

Insiders have told me the pair were aware of the talk around their romance and spent the night after the Wicked: For Good premiere in London holed up in her suite at the Mandarin Oriental hotel.

A source said: “Ariana and Ethan are still a couple but they’ve seen the chatter online and it’s not been easy.

“They were both at the ­Leicester Square premiere and the ­after-party at Brasserie Zedel but made sure they weren’t seen together.

“Obviously it fuels the ­speculation around them but they don’t want their relationship to play out in public.

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“When Ariana left the after-party, she went back to her hotel suite.

“Not long after, Ethan was taken there and went up to see Ariana to spend time with her.

“They are aware of what is being said and it’s not easy for them but they’re doing the best they can to snatch some quiet moments when no one is watching.”

Yesterday they rejoined the rest of the cast, including Cynthia Erivo, to fly to Singapore for the next leg of the promo run ahead of the second movie’s release next Friday.

It has been a couple of months since speculation about their relationship went into overdrive, with fans questioning why Ethan didn’t join Ariana at the MTV VMAs in New York in September.

The pair, who met on the set of Wicked in 2022, have also not been ­photographed together since before the summer, leading to an explosion of rumours on social media.

My insider added: “Once this next round of promo is completed for Wicked: For Good, Ariana and Ethan will be spending some time together out of the public eye.

“They’ve always preferred to be low-key and are happier just chilling at home together.

“No one is saying the past few months have been totally rosy but their relationship is still very much on.”

Hopefully this will shut down the TikTok trolls for a while.

Jacob Elordi – the star of ­Saltburn and Frankenstein – will next year star in a Wuthering Heights remake opposite Margot Robbie.

But the Australian actor admits his own film tastes are much simpler.

He told French website brut.media: “I watch a lot of Scooby Doo.

“I love the Scooby Doo movie Spooky Island so much.

“It’s a great film – a great whodunnit.”

Bonehead teases Oasis tour return

Oasis guitarist Paul “Bonehead” Arthurs is back with the band and raring to go.

I’m thrilled he is returning to the reunion tour after he dropped out of the global jaunt to undergo cancer treatment.

He will be on stage in Buenos Aires this Saturday, having missed the legs in Asia and ­Australia.

He had to step away from the gigs last month for prostate cancer treatment.

Bonehead was diagnosed with the disease before the tour kicked off in July and was “responding well” to treatment.

He then took a planned break for the next phase of his care.

Teasing his return, he tweeted an image of a flight path from London to Rio de Janeiro with the caption, “Incoming”, which was then reposted on Oasis’s official website.

The band have pulled off the seemingly impossible by making it through the tour without a mammoth bust-up between Liam and Noel Gallagher.

With that success, I’m sure these final five shows in Argentina, Chile and Brazil won’t be the last we hear from them.

You too can now look like Shakira – well, get locks like her anyway – as she has launched her award-winning haircare brand Isima in the UK.

It has been made available for the first time in Selfridges stores in London, Birmingham and Manchester after winning a string of awards in the States.

Kelly blasts boss’s boob

Kelly Clarkson has revealed she was once told to get a boob job by her manager.

Speaking on stage during her Las Vegas residency, the US singer said: “I had some d**k manager one time tell me to get a boob job. I was like, ‘Why don’t you get a d**k job?’

“Like, what? I’m fine with my itty-bitty t*tties. Get out of here. Who says that s**t? People say that s**t.

“They say it all the time to people in the industry. They say the craziest s**t.”

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On how many stars in the music business have had cosmetic surgery, Kelly continued: “I’m like, ‘This is not normal. You’ve normalised crazy’ . . . everybody’s out here looking like they’re in The Capitol in The Hunger Games.

“[Just] do you. Don’t make me do you. I like my itty-bitty t*tties. They’ve served me well.”

“It’s f— World War III out there,” says Gilberto Martinez Jr. as he skateboards while holding on to a car partway through Paul Thomas Anderson’s acclaimed crime drama “One Battle After Another,” about a group of revolutionaries being hunted by the U.S. government.

Driving the vehicle is Sensei Sergio St. Carlos (Benicio del Toro), who enlists the help of Mexican American “vato skateboarders,” the neighborhood watch, to guide his friend Bob (Leonardo DiCaprio), as he tries to escape the authorities during a chaotic protest when a sanctuary city comes under attack.

Gliding through tight indoor spaces and nimbly jumping across rooftops under the night’s sky, the courageous skating quartet is composed of El Paso natives cast locally: Martinez (34), Luis Trejo (30), Elijah Joseph Sambrano (27) and Julian Corral (29). That Anderson included them in this searingly political narrative as a heroic force felt validating.

“As skateboarders we’ve kind of always been the underdogs, seen as the outcast or the rebels,” says Martinez during a recent video interview with the whole squad gathered. “But in a way we’re showing freedom, we’re not trying to be put in a box, we express ourselves through this skateboard. We’re trying to give hope to other kids like us.”

Their skill set on the board landed them the part, but their presence influenced the production beyond their screen time.

“We all speak Spanish, and we were helping them on set to translate a lot of the things that they needed,” Martinez said.

Martinez and Trejo, who’ve been “homies” for a decade, learned about the opportunity from a mutual friend, Mark Martinez, involved in the El Paso film industry. Sambrano found out from a bartender pal, while Corral got word from the owner of the tattoo shop where he works. The four of them knew each other from hanging around the border town.

The group first met with casting director Cassandra Kulukundis, who read them their lines and asked them to recite them back to test their memorization skills.

“She pulled out her iPhone and we just started skating around her and giving her the lines,” Martinez recalls. “That’s pretty much what she showed Paul. And that’s when he was like, ‘These are our guys.’” [Laughs].

Though they had heard rumors that DiCaprio and Del Toro were in town, they couldn’t know for certain. “I was like, ‘It’s not true,’ just so I would not be so nervous about it,” Martinez said. It was only after signing nondisclosure agreements that they were made fully aware of the artists involved.

“They took us up to Sensei’s apartment to get an idea of the perimeter and what everything looks like,” says Martinez. “That’s when we first saw P.T.A. with his Adidas shoes and we were like, ‘Whoa.’”

Shot over the course of 11 days, their scenes took place in downtown El Paso, just a few minutes from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, on the other side of the border. “Every single day was just magic,” says Trejo, who is also a musician. “This movie made us feel like we’re part of something on a big scale. It blew our minds that each of us had his own purpose in it.”

The “vato skateboarders,” as the production referred to them, recall speaking with stunt coordinator Brian Machleit ahead of their scenes. “He was very honest with us and said we needed to take this seriously,” Martinez says. “We really focused, and we weren’t playing around.” They practiced their stunts during the daytime, so that they could be prepared for shooting at night.

Anderson, they say, asks for multiple takes — often around 10 — changing his direction to have plenty of options to choose from when editing.

“Paul is always experimenting,” Trejo said. “He’s like a scientist, and he’s doing his poetry.”

Martinez revealed that his big moment, when he skates holding onto Sensei’s vehicle, transformed as they filmed it.

“My direction at first was to do it scared towards Sensei, like asustado,” he said. “After watching the dailies, Anderson came in with new notes.

“Paul’s like, ‘Hey Gil, this sounds like a zombie apocalypse. It’s not a zombie apocalypse, it’s a riot. Pretend like you’re going to go grab a beer and drink it on a rooftop, and then just say some s— like, ‘It’s f— World War III out here.’ And I was like, ‘Yeah, I like that. That sounds more me.’”

To personalize his close-up, Martinez had a suggestion of his own. “I was like, ‘Can I add some Spanish?’”

“Paul really let us use our lingo,” Martinez adds. “Leo was like, ‘Hey, how do I say ‘brothers’?’ And we told him, ‘Carnalitos,’”

In the film, DiCaprio’s Bob refers to the skaters as such.

Throughout the conversation, the group often refers to DiCaprio and Del Toro by their characters’ names: Bob and Sensei. Sharing the screen with A-listers they’ve grown up watching on screen was shocking at first, but then grew to feel a genuine closeness.

“I’d freak out when I got home,” Martinez said. “But on set, the first couple days you had to show them that you were like a brother to them. You can’t be like, ‘Hey man, we got to take a picture.’ It was more like, ‘We’re here to do our job.’ I never called him Leo. I always called him Bob. We just stayed in character. And then he’d be like, ‘What’s up bros?’”

Corral recalls a day when his foot hurt, and the production sent him to rest for a bit on his own. “Next thing you know, they put the other vatos in there and then they put Leonardo in there and we are just like, ‘How should we break the ice?’” Corral says. “And he did. He is like, ‘So what’s good around here to eat?’”

A musician like Trejo, and once involved with El Paso Kids-N-Co, a nonprofit community theater, Sambrano recalled sharing a moment with Del Toro.

“Benicio was like, ‘You play music? What kind of music is it? And I was like, ‘Alternative.’ And he said, ‘Oh, like the Mars Volta.’ And I thought, ‘Oh he knows of the culture, the Mars Volta is from El Paso.’”

Sambrano explains they were allowed to wear their own clothes on set. Early on, he happened to be wearing a T-shirt he got from Goodwill emblazoned with the image of the late wrestler Eddie Guerrero, also an El Paso native, and his nickname, “Latino Heat.”

“They were bouncing off each other, improvising,” Sambrano says. “And that’s when Benicio was like, ‘What if I just say Latino Heat?’ And then they were like, ‘OK, that’s the shirt he’s going to wear.’”

For the “vato skateboarders,” seeing their hometown depicted at the forefront of the resistance in such a high-profile film has strengthened their pride. “We’re from a frontera, a border city, and I’ve lived here my whole life. The community is amazing, people are friendly,” Sambrano said. “And seeing them highlight that is pretty awesome.”

And it’s not lost on them that immigration, and the relationship between the U.S. and Mexico, especially in a place like El Paso, are key subjects in Anderson’s film.

“Paul did do justice to how real life is in a comedic way so that maybe it reaches a different type of audience that is not tapped into these situations,” Trejo said. “The movie touches on things that a lot of people are afraid to talk about. They are afraid to get too political.”

The four skaters watched “One Battle After Another” for the first time at a cast and crew screening in El Paso at the Plaza Theater. “It was really special to watch it in a historic building in El Paso,” Martinez Jr. says. “And having our friends and family there to watch it a week before the movie came out was a beautiful moment for all of us.”

The friends wish to continue acting, and they already have other projects lined up, thanks in part to Jacob Cena, a location assistant on “One Battle After Another,” who is pushing them to seize this breakthrough.

For now, however, they’ve been diligently studying Anderson’s work. “We got pretty obsessed; these are all his movies,” says Martinez Jr. with a smile holding up a stack of the director’s movies on physical media.

Eddie Murphy is set to star in his own Netflix special Being Eddie, which will take a look at his life and career for the first time.

Eddie Murphy might be amongst the most celebrated comedy legends of our time, but his early years were overshadowed by his father’s tragic and unexpected passing.

Being Eddie, a brand-new Netflix documentary launching on Wednesday, November 12, will offer an unprecedented glimpse into the life of the beloved actor and comedian Eddie Murphy.

Viewers will not only hear directly from the star himself but will also be introduced to his loved ones and given exclusive access to his opulent Beverly Hills mansion.

However, his upbringing in Brooklyn, New York, was worlds apart from his current lifestyle, as he emerged from a fractured household following the separation of his father Charles Edward Murphy and mother Lillian Murphy when he was just three years old.

The Coming to America legend previously revealed to Rolling Stone that he retained only “very dim memories” of his father due to the divorce and Charles’ untimely demise five years afterwards.

In 1969, Eddie Murphy’s father Charles was allegedly killed in a stabbing by a woman consumed with jealousy.

The performer revealed: “He was a victim of the Murphy charm ‘chuckles’.

“A woman stabbed my father. I never got all the logistics.

“It was supposed to be one of those crimes of passion: ‘If I can’t have you, then no one else will’ kind of deal.'”.

He went on: “Someone said to me one day, ‘That’s why you don’t trust women.'”.

“Get the f**k outta here. What are you, a f*****g psychiatrist?

“I don’t think the two have anything to do with each other.

“But I was really f-ked up about his death. It was really traumatic.”

Eddie has faced more than his fair share of loss in his life.

His uncle and father figure, Raymond Leon “Uncle Ray” Murphy, passed away in October 2013 at the age of 74.

In Eddie’s early career days, Uncle Ray was the head of his security and even had minor roles in some of his nephew’s films like Coming to America and Beverly Hills Cop II.

Tragedy struck again when Eddie’s older brother, fellow actor and comedian Charlie Murphy, died from Leukaemia in 2017 at just 57 years old.

Charlie was a talented individual who wrote and starred in the sketch comedy series Chappell’s Show and featured in the sitcom Black Jesus.

Being Eddie is set to premiere on Netflix on Wednesday, November 12.

BROOKLYN Beckham and wife Nicola Peltz are willing to end their feud with David and Victoria – if they issue a public apology.

The once impenetrable Beckhams have been split apart with eldest son Brooklyn and wife Nicola Peltz adrift in California.

Hot sauce entrepreneur Brooklyn was notably absent from dad David’s knighthood celebrations last week as Golden Balls marked the honour, given to him by King Charles inside Windsor Castle, with a Michelin star meal at pal Gordon Ramsay‘s Chelsea restaurant.

Prior to that, Brooklyn failed to congratulate his dad on achieving the lifelong dream when the honours list was announced, and he missed a number of events celebrating Becks’ 50th birthday.

One of which, David’s fishing trip to Scotland with sons Cruz and Romeo, saw the dad-of-four write on Instagram afterwards: “You were missed @brooklynpeltzbeckham.”

An insider has now said that while a public apology won’t thaw the ice overnight, it would go a long way to healing the feud which is said to be fuelled by ‘anti-Nicola’ stories briefed to the media.

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A source told the Mail: “There is an obvious first step which would be a public acknowledgement [by David and Victoria] of what they did, and an apology. It cannot be a performative thing. There is no realistic chance of a reconciliation without that happening first.”

The insider added: “It is hard to understand the intensity and the escalation. It seems that they thought they could heap abuse on Nicola without any consequence. They did not let up.

“It matters what was written. It seemed as if things were being said without any regard being paid to the impact on Brooklyn. He is loyal to his wife.”

Publicly, David and Victoria haven’t directly addressed the fallout, though Victoria did hint at her feelings in an interview ahead of the release of her Netflix documentary.

In it, she spoke about seeing Oasis at Wembley Stadium after brothers Liam and Noel Gallagher reconciled for an epic tour.

Many drew parallels between the warring Manc brothers and the Beckham siblings, who have traded online digs amid the feud.

“I just think their mum must be so happy,” Victoria told The Sunday Times.

“It must have been really tough on the mum, the boys not talking for all those years.

“And I just think as a mum, that must be … she must feel so happy to see her boys getting on.”

The designer is described as having become “lost in thought for a moment” by the interviewer.

The Beckham family feud dates back four years to Brooklyn and Nicola’s lavish wedding.

There are contrasting stories over a wedding dress row, which saw Nicola wear Valentino instead of her mother-in-law’s label, with some claiming Nicola snubbed Victoria’s brand while others say it was Victoria who U-turned on the idea.

Relations were dealt a further blow when Beckham ally Marc Anthony called Victoria the “most beautiful woman in the room” ahead of her first dance with Brooklyn, a statement the Peltz’s found disrespectful.

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In the years that followed there were happy family selfies and united fronts at events attended together, but this year tensions ramped back up.

In August, the clearest indication of unrest came as Brooklyn and Nicola renewed their vows, which were presided over by Nicola’s billionaire dad Nelson, and none of the Beckhams were invited

This week, Lionsgate is betting that the odds will be in their favor when “The Hunger Games: On Stage” opens at London’s Troubadour Canary Wharf Theatre.

The play, which is based on the young adult novel by Suzanne Collins and 2012 film that catapulted actor Jennifer Lawrence into the mainstream, is just the latest film-to-stage adaptation from Hollywood.

This isn’t a new playbook. After all, Disney revolutionized the space by adapting its animated films like “The Lion King,” “Beauty and the Beast” and “Aladdin” into Broadway musical hits. But it is one that studios are turning to again, particularly as they look to connect more deeply with audiences and expand the fan base of their franchises.

Last year, Universal Theatrical Group debuted a musical stage adaptation of the 1992 film “Death Becomes Her” on Broadway.

In addition to “The Hunger Games,” Lionsgate has several other theatrical shows in the works, including a stage adaptation of the 2017 film “Wonder” opening in Boston in December, as well as “Now You See Me Live” opening that same month at the Sydney Opera House.

Next year, there will be a stage version of “La La Land,” as well as a new production of the iconic classic “Dirty Dancing.” (Of course, the opposite is also happening, with “Wicked” as the most recent example of a book-to-stage-to-film pipeline.)

“When you look at the way that fans are engaging with entertainment, there are so many different mediums that are important now, and experiential is a big one,” Jenefer Brown, Lionsgate’s president of global products and experiences, said an interview. “With all of us spending so much time online and in digital mediums, the idea of that shared live experience in a theater is something that’s highly appealing.”

But getting “The Hunger Games” to the stage wasn’t easy — the process took almost seven years from the inception of the idea to first previews. As part of the show’s development, the producers also built a custom theater in London. Brown spoke with The Times about why the dystopian franchise was a good candidate for live theater and why communal experiences are so important.

This interview has been edited for clarity and length.

What made “The Hunger Games” ripe for the stage?

It’s an enduring story that has so much relevance to occurrences that happen in the world today. I think that there’s just a ton of cultural significance.

And what we know about “The Hunger Games” is that there’s always a new wave of fans that discover it. Now we’re seeing Gen Alpha reading the books and watching the movies, and of course, we have Gen Z fans and millennial fans, and parents from other generations who have been on the journey with their children. It’s a way to bring aspects of the book to life, maybe in a different interpretation, or to let fans be able to explore certain things in a greater depth than we were able to do on a movie screen.

What does a stage play do for audiences that, say, a series or ride does not?

When you’re seeing something live, we don’t have the tricks that we have behind a camera in a movie.

You have to really find ways to bring the audience on a journey, and you can’t hide anything. That’s part of the magic of the experience, and for fans to be there and be mesmerized by some of the things that we’re executing in real time on a stage with special effects and illusions and real people doing the stunt choreography and the stunt work right in front of you, I think that there’s a lot of value in that type of experience.

Does this allow you to reach different audiences than those who already saw the films?

Obviously, a lot of fans are interested, but I think theatergoers in general, who maybe haven’t been as exposed to “The Hunger Games” or aren’t super fans, are going to be interested from the theater side of it. There’s been a lot of buzz and excitement in London, in the theater world, knowing that we had a new theater being built.

In general, lots of of people want to engage with experiences. We’re seeing just a huge sort of upward trend in interest, particularly amongst Gen Z and Gen Alpha audiences. Someone who maybe has read the books but hasn’t seen the movie yet will come see the stage show and then watch the movie. And I think this idea of all of it feeding each other, depending on which entry point you choose, is a really interesting thing for us as a studio to think about.

Did the pandemic turbocharge interest in live entertainment?

It’s an interest in live stage and live entertainment, and the idea of getting out again, supporting the arts and supporting shared experiences. We’ve definitely seen, thankfully, a recovery and an upswing in that area.

How big of a business is the stage aspect of Lionsgate global products and experiences?

We have three shows opening before the end of this year, and about that number slated for next year. So it really is a very busy and active space for us, and I think more in the pipeline. We probably are spending about a third of our time in this space, and I don’t see that changing.

Stuff We Wrote

Film shoots

Number of the week

$80 million

After a sleepy October, Walt Disney Co. and 20th Century Studios’ “Predator: Badlands” conquered the box office this past weekend, grossing $40 million in the U.S. and Canada for a total of nearly $80 million worldwide.

The haul is the highest global opening for any film in “Predator” franchise history, surpassing 2018’s “The Predator,” which notched $73.5 million.

The strong start for the Elle Fanning-led “Predator: Badlands” provides a hopeful start for November’s theatrical fortunes. So far this year, domestic box office revenue is about $7.2 billion, up 3.1% compared with the previous year, according to Comscore. But when compared with pre-pandemic 2019, that number is still down 24.7%.

Finally …

My colleague, Malia Mendez, wrote about a TV writer who found a second career in ceramics after the slowdown in Hollywood left him out of work. His most popular workshop — Tattoo a Mug.

EastEnders fans have been left furious after a online release of a new episode was delayed ahead of a major twist on the long-running BBC soap opera following a dramatic storyline

EastEnders fans have been left furious after a online release of a new episode was delayed. Fans of the BBC soap are normally able to catch all the latest Walford action from 6am when it is released on iPlayer, but several complained that their morning routine had been severely disrupted when the latest instalment did not appear.

Warning, this article contains spoilers from Tuesday night’s episode now available on BBC iPlayer.

One fan wrote: “Someone’s messing up my morning routine by forgetting to flip the switch on the 6am iPlayer release of today’s Eastenders,” and a second said: “It’s 9 minutes PAST six where is #eastenders!”

A third raged: “where the f*** is my eastenders?? this is throwing off my morning routine ffs,” whilst a fourth pointed out that more than two hours later, the episode still hadn’t dropped.

They wrote: “Hello @BBCiPlayer, it’s 8.10am you haven’t released today’s episode of Eastenders. What do I pay tv licence for?” Another said: “They didn’t fire everyone at the @BBC did they? Where’s #EastEnders,” and another angry viewer wrote: “No iPlayer release of #EastEnders this morning. Damn it BBC I could have had an extra half an hour in bed this morning.”

Some speculated that the content of the episode could be the reason behind the delay. One said: “I need commissioners to upload Eastenders to iPlayer on time. If not because of sensitive content, please let us know. Some of us start our day at 6am and look forwards to this!”

Another wrote: “I guess something big is happening as no early release, but if it’s the death spoiler that’s already been confirmed then what the point.”

The episode did eventually become available though, and fans were impressed with it despite the delay. One fan wrote: “Best episode in quite a while that one today,” and another said: “Okay I thought tonight’s episode was the first good one in ages!” As the episode progressed, Harry, having left the house to buy drugs, received a message and went to check on friend Koji, who was being held at knife point by Okie.

Harry Mitchell got involved in a violent tussle, and was knocked unconscious but when he came around, he realised that he had accidentally stabbed Okie. He panicked and tried to help Okie but it was too late as he was already dead, and when Harry’s dad Teddy rushed onto the scene, he decided to take the blame for his son.

Just before the credits rolled, Teddy was arrested and was seen being driven off in a police car. The dramatic scenes were part of a conclusion of a cuckooing storyline, which has seen Okie take part in the criminal practice of taking over the home of a vulnerable person with the intent to deal drugs.

Speaking about the storyline, executive producer Ben Wadey said: “At EastEnders, we’re proud to tell stories that reflect the real challenges people face, and Kojo’s cuckooing storyline is one that feels especially important. Cuckooing is a form of exploitation that too often goes unseen and hasn’t featured on EastEnders before.

“Through Kojo’s experience we hope to have shined a light on how easily vulnerable people can be manipulated and isolated – something that can happen in any community, but feels particularly resonant in a city like London, where people live side by side and yet can still slip through the cracks.

“Working closely with experts and charities, our aim has been to tell this story with care and authenticity, and to raise awareness as to how to identify the signs of exploitation and the importance of reaching out for help.”

EastEnders airs Mondays to Thursdays at 7:30pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.

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GOLDEN Globe winner Sally Kirkland has died at the age of 84.

The actress was in hospice care and had been battling dementia.

Kirkland starred in hit movies such as Bruce Almighty, The Haunted and The Sting.

Michael Greene, her representative, revealed she took her final breath at 1:50pm PT this morning, as per TMZ.

Kirkland died days after entering hospice care and had battled ill health in recent years.

This year, she fractured bones in her neck, right wrist, and left hip.

glam girl

Kim Kardashian looks incredible in sparkly dress for Kris Jenner’s 70th birthday

And, she had battled two separate life-threatening infections.

Kirkland was left bruised and injured following a fall while she was in the shower unattended, according to a GoFundMe post from October.

Her acting career spanned more than 60 years.

She won the Best Actress Golden Globe Award and Best Actress Independent Spirit Award in 1988 for her role in Anna.

Kirkland was nominated for the Best Actress in a Leading Role gong in the 1988 Oscars.

She starred as Anita in the movie Bruce Almighty, which was released in 2003.

Kirkland, from New York City, also played Crystal in The Sting – a movie which also featured Paul Newman, Robert Redford, and Robert Shaw.

The actress also made cameo appearances in shows such as Kojak, Starsky and Hutch, and Charlie’s Angels during the 1970s and 1980s.

She appeared in one episode of General Hospital in 1982.

Alongside her role in Anna, she appeared in movies such as Cold Feet, Talking Walls, White Hot, and High Stakes.

Kirkland played Helen Lawson in Valley of the Dolls in 1994, appearing in 65 episodes.

And, she appeared in a 1995 episode of Murder, She Wrote.

Kirkland starred as Tracey Simpson in 31 episodes of the series Days of Our Lives in 1999.

One of her final roles was in the movie Sallywood, where she played herself.

She won a best acting gong at the 2024 Santa Clarita International Film Festival.

moving fast

MAFS couple PREGNANT days after they get married as strangers on show

WEDDING RIFT

Adam Peaty’s family feud escalates as he BANS mum from wedding to Holly Ramsay

Away from the big screen, Kirkland was named one of Andy Warhol’s 13 Most Beautiful Women in 1964.

She made history in 1968 by becoming the first woman to appear fully naked in the off-Broadway production, Sweet Eros.

Destin Conrad didn’t expect to release a jazz project so early in his career — let alone just a few months after dropping his debut album, “Love on Digital.”

The 25-year-old singer-songwriter, who first made millions of people laugh on Vine when he was a preteen, entered the music industry as a fresh-faced R&B artist, following in the footsteps of the artists he grew up listening to such as Brandy, Musiq Soulchild and Usher. His first official EP “Colorway” (2021) and the slew of bite-size projects that followed were melodic and honest meditations on love, lust, queer identity and simply having a good time.

But during the summer, Conrad found himself gravitating to jazz, the genre he was introduced to in high school when he was enrolled in jazz choir. He was inspired by all of the greats and contemporary work by artists like Vanisha Gould, and decided that it was time for a slight departure in his own sound.

“I feel like it’s always kind of been in me,” Conrad says over Zoom during an off day from his second headlining tour in support of “Love on Digital.” “It’s always been a tool that I never really got to exercise that I knew I really wanted to.”

After a two-week whirlwind in L.A. filled with studio sessions with some of his bucket list collaborators like Gould, trumpeter Keyon Harrold and beloved L.A. saxophonist Terrace Martin, Conrad unveiled “Whimsy,” an 11-track alternative jazz detour. Rich with songwriting tinged with sensual winks, live instrumentation (piano, horn section and drums) and a spoken word interlude by Bay Davis (that is reminiscent of Meshell Ndegeocello), “Whimsy” is a masterclass in following your own intuition and creating freely — a testament to his Cancer sun.

“I think it’s some of my best work actually,” Conrad says, adding that it was the most fun to make, which is evident on tracks like “Whip,” a cheeky double entendre about trading places in the bedroom and “A Lonely Detective,” which explores the life of a man living a double life. “Things that I’ve spent more time on, I don’t feel as connected to, but I really love “Whimsy.”

Conrad, who performs at the Wiltern on Nov. 14, phoned in the day before Grammy nominations were announced to talk about why he was nervous to release “Whimsy,” why he thinks jazz deserves more attention and what he’s still learning about being an artist in the digital age. Little did he know that by the next morning, he’d receive his first solo Grammy nod for progressive R&B album.

Now that your debut album, “Love on Digital,” has been in the world for a few months and you’ve experienced fans singing it back to you at shows, how does it feel to look back on the journey of releasing it?

It’s been amazing. I think it’s made me look forward to putting more music out. I feel like this tour taught me a lot. While making this album, I had touring in the back of my mind, so I’m really excited that it’s being received well. Also, it’s kind of wild that I put out another project a [few] months later but I’m glad I have such cool fans that receive me in a good way.

Speaking of that, you turned around and released “Whimsy” in August. Can you talk about how that all came together and how your single “Wash U Away” inspired it?

I made the majority of it in a two-week span. “Wash U Away” and “Whip” I had, but they weren’t jazz songs. So I had “Wash U Away” in the tuck for years — I think I made it in like 2021 — but we had it replayed by actual musicians because before, it was just a very bare beat. Then the rest of it I made within those two weeks. I also had “The W” with James Fauntleroy and Joyce Wrice already, but same thing — it wasn’t a jazz song. I knew I wanted to make a jazz album. I didn’t know I was going to do it so soon after my debut album, but I was kind of on a wild one and was like “Why not?” But I’m really glad I did it because I feel like my fans really like that album and I really like that album as well. I think it’s some of my best work actually. Things that I spent more time on, I don’t feel as connected to but it’s something that I’m really proud of.

Take me back to those two weeks in L.A. when you starting working on this project. Was it summer time?

It was summertime, yeah. I live in Brooklyn now, so I was like “I’m going to fly to L.A. and stay there for two weeks to knock this project out.” I told my managers, “Get me in with everybody. Here’s my list of people I want to work with. Let’s figure it out.” We flew out Vanisha Gould, who’s one of my favorite jazz musicians. I was so ecstatic that she was down. She’s such a jazz head. She was kind of like “What the f— am I doing? Are they going to kidnap me? I’m just flying out here to work with this random ass R&B singer.” But I’m so glad she came and we low-key became besties. Same with Terrace Martin. I’ve been a fan forever. He’s the G.O.A.T. James [Fauntleroy]. All these people who I was very adamant about working with. And eventually I want to do another jazz [project]. Maybe a “Whimsy 2” and just keep that world alive because I feel like jazz is such a special genre that gets overlooked and it’s something that I really feel passionate about. Especially because I was in jazz choir in high school and it kind of taught me more about soul music and the origins and how there’s so many synchronicities within other genres like gospel, and how R&B and all of them just tie into each other. I think it’s just really cool.

What was going on in your world when you started making “Whimsy?” Were you listening to a lot of jazz at the time?

Yeah, I was listening to a lot of jazz music. I was listening to a lot of Vanisha Gould and I was like, “I need to do this jazz album.” I thought I was just going to start it and be like “I’m not done.” But I was like “No, I’m done. This is it. This is what I have to say.” But yeah, I always listen to jazz. As I said, I was in jazz choir in high school. My jazz instructor Mr. O put me onto hella jazz. He showed me Frank Sinatra and all these jazz standards. I have videos that I’ll eventually show the world of me performing at my jazz Christmas show. I feel like it’s always been within me. It’s always been a tool that I never really got to exercise but I knew I really wanted to. But like I said, I didn’t know I’d make it in two weeks and that it’d be such a quick thing. It was so fun to make. It’s probably one of the most fun projects I’ve made.

You can definitely hear how much fun you were having on tracks like “Boredom” and “Lonely Detective.” I feel like jazz was once viewed as a genre that older people listened to, but that’s been changing within the last few years. It feels like it’s becoming more popular with younger audiences. What do you think about this?

Personally, I don’t think it’s becoming more popular. I would love to be part of some sort of push of making it more of a thing and I feel like a lot of my fans are younger. I’d like to say in my head that I’m helping push the genre forward.

It’s just not super prominent. There’s not a lot of new jazz artists. If you look at the jazz charts, a lot of what’s still charting is like Frank Sinatra [and] Miles Davis. Laufey is one of the newer faces of jazz that I feel like is pushing it aside from like Robert Glasper. But I don’t know. I feel like a lot of the jazz even that I listen to is the older stuff. There’s a very select few of newer jazz artists that I’m like “Yes.” Like Vanisha Gould, a perfect example. I’m obsessed with her. I think she’s one of the most talented musicians that I know, period.

How did you feel about dropping “Whimsy”? Were you nervous about how people would receive it?

Umm I thought about it [but] what I really thought about were the jazz heads. I thought the real, super crazy into jazz people were gonna be like, “This s— ain’t f— jazz” because I do consider it an alternative jazz album. I remember talking to Terrace [Martin] about that because he’s a jazz head and he’s also older than me and he’s been in it for longer. I was telling him [that] I feel like people are going to have s— to say about it because it’s not traditional and I’m not a trained musician. I don’t know how to read music. I just go with my [gut], and he was like, “That’s why it’s so fire. That’s what makes people feel it.” He was like, “I can tell that you’re young and when I listen to this, I hear a 25-year-old,” and I’m like, “Tight.”

You’ve essentially grown up online and in the public eye. How has that evolution shaped the way you see yourself as an artist, and what have you learned about navigating visibility over the years?”

I feel like it’s an advantage. I always talk about that especially with my artist homies. I was an internet baby so I kind of have just a slight advantage because I knew really early how it worked. I feel like I’m still learning how to promote my music because I know how to get on the internet and be an idiot all day. I can do that literally in my sleep, but being an idiot who knows how to promote his music is different. [laughs] So yeah, I’m still learning that. I used to think it harmed me because I was so scared that people wouldn’t take my music seriously. But no, I use it to my advantage for sure.

We’re at a time in music where it’s common for artists to be open and proud about their identity and sexuality without feeling like they need to use coded language. I think of artists like Frank Ocean, Steve Lacy and Durand Bernarr. Can you talk about why talking about your queerness is important to you?

I feel like I’m a pretty honest person in general. I try not to lie and I feel like all I can do really is just keep it a bean. Most of the time, I try to write about my personal experiences and I deal with men, so that’s just my truth [laughs]. I do also write from other perspectives like things that my friends or my homegirls tell me. I don’t always write from my point of view, but when I do, it’s about a man and that’s all I can really do.

Sean Combs, the disgraced music mogul convicted of prostitution-related offences, has been accepted into a drug abuse rehabilitation program that could reduce his sentence by up to a year

Disgraced hip hop mogul Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs has entered into rehab behind bars – a move that could cut up to a year from his sentence.

The I’ll Be Missing You hitmaker is currently being held at the Federal Correctional Institution in Fort Dix, New Jersey, a low-security prison after he was convicted on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution. He was sentenced on October 3 to 50 months in prison and received 14 months’ credit for time already served.

Now, his spokesman, Juda Engelmayer, has confirmed the Bad Boy Entertainment founder had entered the programme and is “committed to sobriety, healing and trying to set an example for others”. He added: “Mr Combs is an active participant in the Residential Drug Abuse Program (RDAP) and has taken his rehabilitation process seriously from the start.”

Engelmayer said the rapper has been accepted into the programme and is working in the prison’s church library.

“He works in the chapel library, where he describes the environment as warm, respectful, and rewarding,” he said. According to the federal inmate locator, Combs is scheduled for release in May 2028.

Successful completion of RDAP could reduce that date, though he would still be subject to five years’ supervision after release, alongside drug testing and mental health treatment conditions. He is currently appealing his sentence.

Prosecutors had sought more than 11 years, citing what they described as a sustained pattern of coercion, manipulation and violent sexual abuse.

During the trial, former girlfriend Cassie Ventura testified that Combs used violence to force her participation in so-called “freak-offs” – drug-fuelled sex sessions involving sex workers he hired. She told the court she felt “disgusted” and “humiliated” afterwards.

At sentencing, US District Judge Arun Subramanian told Combs he “abused the power and control with women you professed to love” and said: “You abused them physically, emotionally and psychologically.” Combs apologised to Ventura and another former girlfriend, calling his conduct “disgusting, shameful and sick.”

Combs’ legal team reached out to President Donald Trump for a pardon after the conviction, according to a source close to the defence.

In an interview with Newsmax on August 1, Trump said he had once been “very friendly” with Diddy, but claimed Combs “was very hostile” during his presidential campaign.

Asked whether he would pardon the artist, Trump replied, “I would say so.”

Combs is living in a nine-person room inside a larger 200-bed unit.

Engelmayer said he has restarted “Free Game with Diddy,” a class designed to help inmates build confidence, learn entrepreneurial skills, and plan for employment after release.

He previously ran the programme while held at the Metropolitan Detention Centre in Brooklyn.

ADAM Peaty’s aunt has hit out at his wife-to-be Holly Ramsay in a furious Instagram rant.

The social media outburst came after Adam’s mum, Caroline, was banned from Holly’s hen do and the couple’s upcoming wedding at Bath Abbey – despite her once close relationship with her son and nurturing his record-breaking swimming career.

While Caroline was absent from Holly’s celebrations at Soho Farmhouse, Oxfordshire at the weekend, the bride’s mum Tana and close family friend Victoria Beckham were in attendance, while father-of-the-bride Gordon Ramsay was invited to Adam’s stag do.

Louise Williams wrote on Instagram: “@hollyramsayy I’m so glad that you had a great hen do. As a bride, you deserve that. However, as a person you were divisive and hurtful towards a woman, who I have loved and continue to love deeply.

“A woman who opened her home and heart to you. You decided, for whatever reason, not to invite her, your prospective mother-in-law to your hen night yet Adam invited his father-in-law, your dad, to his stag night.”

She continued: “You invited your mum (quite rightly) and even your mum’s assistant, your sisters, your friends, my niece, but not my sister, your future mother-in-law.

WEDDING RIFT

Adam Peaty’s family feud escalates as he BANS mum from wedding to Holly Ramsay

double take

Holly Ramsay is the double of mum Tana as she poses in white at hen do

“I have also seen messages passing between her and Adam about this and other matters and, quite frankly, I expected better of you and definitely of Adam. You have inflicted a hurt on my sister that will take a very long time to heal if ever.”

According to the Mail, the post is said to have deeply upset Holly, 25, and infuriated Adam, 30, who now wants to cut ties with his family.

Caroline, 59, made her feelings known by sharing an Instagram post that read: “Crying is a way your eyes speak when your mouth can’t explain how broken your heart is.”

While the hen was in full swing, Caroline was at home in Staffordshire looking after Adam’s son George, five.

An insider said: “Caroline is devastated by the rift and doesn’t know what she has done wrong.”

Another insider told the Mail that Adam’s relationship with his working class parents began to change after he became part of the Ramsay fold and more enamored with the celebrity lifestyle.

Guests at the couple’s wedding in Bath next month are expected to include Holly’s chef dad Gordon, as well as recently knighted Sir David and Lady Victoria Beckham.

Adam’s sister Bethany, who was also at Holly’s hen party, is said to be the only member of his family attending the wedding.

A family pal told The Sun: “Adam’s relationship with Caroline and his dad Mark are at an all-time low — it’s heartbreaking.

“It’s at a point now where Caroline has been told she should not come to the wedding.

“There is a feud rumbling on and it’s been absolutely devastating for everyone involved.”

In a shock twist, a source close to Adam and Holly said there were “jealous people desperate to ruin their happy day”.

They added: “There are wider problems in the Peaty family, with horrible threats of violence against both Holly and Adam from one individual. It’s gone too far and with real concern for the couple’s safety the police are now involved.”

Tech scion David Ellison marked his 96th day running Paramount by disclosing an upbeat financial outlook for next year and a plan to reduce an additional 1,600 workers.

Monday’s conference call with analysts was the first time Ellison, Paramount’s chairman and chief executive, directly addressed Wall Street after merging his production company, Skydance Media, with Paramount in August — an $8-billion deal that ushered the Redstone family from the entertainment stage.

One of Ellison’s top priorities will be to reverse decades of under-investment in programming. Paramount plans to increase content spending by $1.5 billion next year, including nearly doubling the number of movies that it releases. The Melrose Avenue studio intends to boost output from eight releases to 15 that are planned for next year.

Investing in technology is another priority, which Ellison referred to as one of its “north stars.” Executives want to build streaming service Paramount+ as the economics crumble for Paramount’s once profitable cable television division, which includes Nickelodeon, MTV and Comedy Central. Paramount also owns CBS stations and the CBS broadcast network.

Paramount announced it will be hiking streaming subscription fees — Paramount+ plans now are offered at $7.99 a month and $12.99 a month — although executives declined to say how much. The goal is to turn its streaming operations profitable this year.

Paramount said the workforce reduction of 1,600 people stemmed from the company’s divestiture late last month of television stations in Chile and Argentina. This comes on top of 1,000 job cuts last month, primarily in the U.S. The company said one of its goals was to operate more efficiently.

More than 800 people — or about 3.5% of the company’s workforce — were laid off in June, prior to the Ellison family takeover.

Ellison and his team have been looking to reduce the company’s workforce by 15%.

On Monday, Paramount executives said they should be able to realize about $3 billion in cost cuts — $1 billion more than initially advertised. The company’s goal is to complete its cost reductions within two years.

The earnings report comes as Paramount has been pursuing Warner Bros. Discovery, a proposed merger that would unite two of Hollywood’s original film studios and bulk up Paramount by adding the HBO Max streaming service, a larger portfolio of cable channels, pioneering cable news service CNN and the historic Warner Bros. studio lot in Burbank.

Paramount executives declined to discuss its dealings for Warner Bros. Discovery, which has rejected three offers, including a $58-billion bid for the entire company. Ellison’s father, billionaire Larry Ellison, has agreed to back Paramount’s bid.

However, his son spoke broadly about its motivations for any acquisition during the conference call.

“First and foremost, we’re focused on what we’re building at Paramount and transforming the company,” David Ellison said. “There’s no must-haves for us. …. It’s always going to be, how do we accelerate and improve our north-star principles?”

Total revenue for Paramount’s third quarter was $6.7 billion, flat compared with the year-earlier period. Paramount reported a net loss of $257 million for the quarter.

Paramount+ and other streaming services grew by 1.4 million subscribers to 79 million, although 1.2 million of those consumers benefit from free trials. Quarterly Revenue for the streaming operations, including Pluto TV, was up 17%.

The cost-cutting comes as Ellison, 42, has accelerated spending in other areas, including agreeing to pay $7.7 billion for the rights to UFC fights and $1.25 billion over five years to Matt Stone and Trey Parker to continue creating their “South Park” cartoon.

His team, including former Netflix programming chief Cindy Holland, also lured Matt and Ross Duffer, the duo behind “Stranger Things,” away from Netflix. Paramount also paid $150 million to buy the Free Press and bring its co-founder, Bari Weiss, to the company as CBS News editor in chief.

The company also signed a 10-year lease on a film and television production facility under construction in New Jersey, a move that will give the entertainment company access to that state’s tax incentive program.

In a blow, however, Taylor Sheridan, the prolific creator behind the “Yellowstone” franchise, will be packing his bags. Sheridan, who is under contract with Paramount through 2028, made a deal to develop movies and future shows for NBCUniversal after executives he worked with at Paramount departed the company when Ellison took over.

For 2026, the company expects to generate total revenue of $30 billion and adjusted operating income before depreciation and amortization of $3.5 billion.

Shares closed at $15.25, up 1%, before the earnings were announced.

BBC Breakfast hosts Jon Kay and Sarah Campbell shared heartbreaking news on Tuesday

A BBC Breakfast star shared a devastating update after the tragic death of a “trailblazer” on Tuesday (November 11).

During today’s edition of the popular morning show, presenters Jon Kay and Sarah Campbell brought viewers the latest developments from across the UK and beyond.

They were accompanied in the studio by Emma Vardy, who delivered employment and salary updates, whilst Carol Kirkwood provided regular weather bulletins throughout the programme.

Later in the show, Jon and Sarah honoured Dorothy Lawrence, a journalist who masqueraded as a male soldier to reach the frontline during World War I.

“More than a century later, she’s finally received a headstone at her grave in North London,” Jon disclosed, before a moving segment was broadcast, reports the Express.

“Dorothy Lawrence wasn’t just forgotten about. A journalist determined to report from the trenches during the First World War, she was arrested, silenced and committed to an asylum for almost 40 years,” correspondent Tim Muffett revealed.

“During the First World War, women were not allowed to report from the frontline.”

Nevertheless, Dorothy was determined to alter that situation. She purchased a bicycle and travelled across the Channel, befriending British troops during her journey.

The journalist concluded that the only method she’d successfully reach the Western Front was to disguise herself as a man. After a gruelling ten-day stint in the trenches, Dorothy fell “very ill” and was forced to reveal her true identity.

She was promptly arrested, shipped back to Britain and instructed to keep quiet about her experiences until after the war.

“She was gagged until the end of the Armistice, and in 1925, she was put in an asylum, deemed mad, and died there in 1964. That’s not right. I think that’s terrible,” said army veteran Steve Davies.

Dorothy was laid to rest in an unmarked pauper’s grave in what is now New Southgate Cemetery & Crematorium in North London, one of over 40 owned and operated by Westerleigh Group.

Since then, Dorothy’s grave has been restored, with a special ceremony held to pay tribute to the journalist and officially unveil her headstone. As part of this project, Dorothy’s relatives were traced.

“She’s a trailblazer, isn’t she? Frontline female journalist, brave. 40 years confined to a lunatic asylum and died there unrecognised and unknown, no visitors. Very sad and this will make up for it, I hope,” expressed Dorothy’s great niece, Gill Barber.

Former Royal Engineer Angus Donaldson chimed in: “Amazing. She went to extremes to do what she did. We are eternally grateful for her service,” while Cliff Belsey concluded: “[She was] a very brave lady. Great respect… Very emotional and extraordinary.”

BBC Breakfast airs daily on BBC One at 6am

FORGET the Oscars, the Met Gala or a Royal wedding.

This weekend saw the VIP event to rule them all, in the form of Kris Jenner’s 70th star-studded black-tie birthday party.

Make no mistake, every celebrity worth their diamonds can gather a gaggle of A-listers, but this event was something different.

The 007-themed bash collected some of the world’s biggest names in business and tech, movies and music for a night of total luxury and couture-costumed backslapping.

Hosted by Amazon boss Jeff Bezos at his and new wife Lauren Sanchez’s Hollywood megamansion, it was proof to the guests — and millions of fans now lapping up every detail they can via Instagram — that Kris Jenner is the unrivalled queen bee.

She is bigger in power and influence than any other fellow guest in attendance, including talk show legend Oprah Winfrey, tech pioneer Bill Gates, multi-platinum singer Mariah Carey, Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg and Kris’s own daughter, Kim Kardashian.

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And getting on her guestlist is the equivalent of getting a glowing write-up in the Who’s Who of modern-day heavyweights.

Essentially, Kris can make or break you — but if she likes you, you’re really winning.

It’s a truth that was etched proudly across Meghan Markle’s face as she smiled her way into Kris’s exclusive birthday bash.

Flanked by her less enthusiastic husband Prince Harry, Meghan looked like the cat who had got the cream — which, for her, has been a long time coming.

Meghan may have rejected royal life before hightailing it to the US in 2020, but Buckingham Palace is a long way from Beverly Hills — and across the pond, Kris has more influence, cachet and showbiz know-how than any British monarch.

Since stepping down as senior royals, Meghan and Harry have done their best to ingratiate themselves in the up­per echelons of LA, mingling with the likes of Gwyneth Paltrow, Cameron Diaz, Beyonce and actress Kerry Washington.

But they have fallen out with the likes of power couples Victoria and David Beckham and George and Amal Clooney — both of whom have cut them from A-list social functions.

Grandiose pitches

Meanhwile, Meghan apparently pursued her own goal: An actual friendship with Kris, who, as well as holding influence, knows better than most about the art of rebranding.

Let’s remember, her family were once jokingly labelled “the Kartrashians”, known for flogging slimming teas on Instagram and attending the opening of an envelope.

But the joke’s now firmly on all their critics, since they turned themselves into the one of the most lucrative family brands the world has ever seen — one to rival a royal fold.

And it’s Kris who has masterminded the whole thing — a fact immortalised the day she was filmed cooing at Kim, “You’re doing amazing, sweetie!” while her daughter posed nude for a Playboy magazine shoot in 2007.

Back then, she had already launched the entire family on network TV with their own reality series, Keeping Up With The Kardashians, building on the infamy of Kim’s sex tape.

And though the family’s fame in the early days was easily mocked, they’ve since each cemented themselves as aspirational power players in their own right.

Kim and her sister Kylie Jenner are billionaire business moguls with their respective fashion and beauty lines SKIMS and Kylie Cosmetics, while Kendall Jenner is one of the biggest fashion models in the world.

As for Kourtney and Khloe, everything they touch also turns to gold.

Momager Kris still takes ten per cent of her family’s earnings and is well worth the levy, because having a steer and a nod from her is worth its weight in Hollywood opportunities.

Meghan’s long known this, but her efforts so far have mostly been met with muted interest.

Last year, she sent a batch of her home-made jam to Kris, and before that she and her own mum Doria Ragland previously rubbed shoulders with Kris and Kim at various charity dos.

But getting an invite to THE party of the year is the ultimate seal of approval for Meghan, and a sign that her and Harry’s luck might now be changing after all.

So far, they have been slammed by insiders for not following through on lucrative brand deals and mocked for constantly going back on grandiose pitches and promises.

In 2023, Spotify pulled the plug on their $20million audio deal after Meghan produced just 12 episodes of content for her podcast Archetypes, with one exec at the audio streamer labelling them “f***ing grifters”.

And even though Netflix has now produced two series of the universally mocked cookery and lifestyle series With Love, Meghan, it’s been reported that she and Harry are no longer the streaming giant’s golden couple.

Their $100million deal with the streamer has now been downgraded to a “first-look deal” with a reportedly massive pay cut.

In the past week, we revealed how Meghan is returning to acting with a role in the upcoming movie comedy Close Personal Friends.

Having shunned the showier side of showbiz post-royal life, it’s clear she now needs Hollywood’s endorsement more than ever — so getting through the door of Kris’s VIP-packed party is a pretty momentous achievement.

Devotedly loyal

Jeff Bezos’s role as host attests to Kris’ social standing. Not content with putting on their lavish three-day wedding in Venice which was attended by the Kardashian clan, the Amazon boss and his wife Lauren proved there’s nothing they wouldn’t do for their dear friend Kris.

So it only stands to reason that Jeff would be all-ears to any film or TV ideas Meghan might have for his Prime streaming service — provided she has Kris’s seal of approval.

Other heavyweights who donned their gladrags for Kris included Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Microsoft founder Bill Gates, who arrived carrying a perfectly wrapped, rectangular gift (prompting the internet to wonder just what a billionaire brings as a birthday present).

Bill has a lot to thank Kris for, as she recently invested in Phia, an AI shopping start-up co-launched by his daughter Phoebe.

Kris knows what The Godfather taught us long ago: Make sure people owe you enough to remain committed and devotedly loyal.

But the night wasn’t all about business deals, and it’s safe to say that every star who attended the function — many of them dressed in red — had a night to remember.

Maintaining the party’s James Bond theme, Kris brandished a tiny pistol — stressing the point that she’s the one who wields the power.

Dressed in a frilled, hot-red ballgown and dramatic black gloves, the mum-of-six proudly displayed her most expensive purchase — a new facelift, which reportedly cost between $150,000 and $230,000.

She unveiled the results earlier this year, saying, “This is ageing gracefully, my version.”

And she certainly looked delighted with herself on the night, as did her younger actor boyfriend, Corey Gamble, 45, who lovingly followed 70-year-old Kris around all night.

Among the other VIPs attending were Motown legend Stevie Wonder, Oscar nominee Naomi Watts, socialite Paris Hilton, rapper Snoop Dogg, singer Adele and fashion designer Tommy Hilfiger — while hitmaker Bruno Mars performed live.

The night was so eventful that police were called to the premises several times after neighbours complained about loud music.

Cameras were strictly forbidden, but the birthday girl did later post a carousel of photos on Instagram which showed red roses, sweeping scarlet drapery, flowing champagne, 007-themed lighters and poker chips.

It was all accounted for, and Kris was royally venerated like the modern-day monarch she has risen to be.

The rise itself is pretty spectacular, considering her modest beginnings.

Born in San Diego in 1955 to an aircraft manager dad and children’s clothing store owner mum, Kris briefly worked as an air hostess for American Airlines.

Her only “proper” job, she said it made her “see what hard work and great service looked like”.

While married to Hollywood lawyer Robert Kardashian, who represented OJ Simpson during his 1995 murder trial, she became the standard LA wife who knows all the right people and places, but still stands behind her more successful husband.

But after she divorced Robert and married Bruce Jenner, now Caitlyn, she became the former athlete’s manager and turned his faded Olympic career into lucrative brand deals.

Yet it wasn’t until she pitched her family to E! for reality TV glory that she really proved her mettle.

Coining the term momager, she has now leveraged a C-list family to Hollywood royalty.

The Kardashians now run some of the most exclusive rooms in the world — and for Meghan Markle, getting access to them is crucial.

Attending Kris’s party might just be the start of a beautiful friendship.

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And if Meghan really plays her cards right, she’ll finally hear those four words that mean so much: “You’re doing amazing, sweetie.”

In the meantime, Meghan — and the rest of Hollywood — know the drill: Curtsey, kiss the ring, and never say no to a Kris Jenner invitation.

The official cause of death for Ace Frehley, the guitarist who was a founding member of hard-rock band Kiss, has been released, confirming details his family shared in October.

The medical examiner for New Jersey’s Morris County said in a report, published by TMZ, that Frehley died of “blunt trauma injuries” to his head suffered during a fall. His death was ruled an accident. The report listed injuries including a brain bleed and fractures to his skull.

Frehley’s death on Oct. 16 was announced by his family, which said he had recently suffered a fall. “In his last moments, we were fortunate enough to have been able to surround him with loving, caring, peaceful words, thoughts, prayers and intentions as he left this earth,” the family said in a statement at the time. Frehley was 74.

“We cherish all of his finest memories, his laughter, and celebrate his strengths and kindness that he bestowed upon others,” the statement continued. “The magnitude of his passing is of epic proportions, and beyond comprehension.”

Frehley, known also for his Spaceman alter ego, died less than two weeks after canceling the remainder of his 2025 live performances due to undisclosed “onging medical issues.” He was also hospitalized in late September after suffering a “minor fall” in his studio, his tour manager John Ostrosky announced. Though the rocker was “fine,” doctors urged him to take time from the road to recover, prompting him to cancel his appearance at the Antelope Valley Fair.

The musician was among the original members of Kiss, playing with the band for about a decade, from 1973 — when he formed the group in New York with Paul Stanley, Gene Simmons and Peter Criss — until 1982, when he quit not long after Criss left.

The band, which had its final show in 2023, was known for flamboyant performances, and costumes and heavy makeup. Despite his relatively short tenure, Frehley proved instrumental in creating the band’s stomping and glittery sound, as heard in songs like “Detroit Rock City,” “Rock and Roll All Nite,” “Strutter” and “I Was Made for Lovin’ You.” He was part of a reunion tour with the band from 1996 to 2002.

“He was an essential and irreplaceable rock soldier during some of the most formative foundational chapters of the band and its history,” the band said of Frehley following news of his death. “He is and will always be a part of KISS’s legacy. Our thoughts are with Jeanette, Monique and all those who loved him, including our fans around the world.”

The 2014 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee is survived by his wife, Jeanette; his daughter, Monique; his brother, Charles; his sister, Nancy; and several nieces and nephews.

Times pop music critic Mikael Wood contributed to this report.

Emmerdale villain Celia Daniels won’t be around forever, with actress Jaye Griffiths teasing she was told her role on the ITV soap would be limited due to her dark storyline

Despite playing the latest villain on Emmerdale, actress Jaye Griffiths has shared her joy playing the ITV soap role – but warned an exit looms.

The star said there’s something “freeing” about her villainous character Celia Daniels, who fans were introduced to back in June, before her dark crimes and link to fellow villain and ‘son’ Ray Walters were unearthed last month. Jaye, 62, admits feeling challenged by the role, but says Celia’s lack of a conscience is great fun.

Speaking to The Mirror, she said: “It’s joyful. The reason Celia works is because she has no little voice in her head. You know that little voice that tells women, particularly, that you’re not enough, you’re too tall, you’re too short, you’re too fat, you’re too thin, you’re too old, you’re too young.

“That self-critical, nasty voice that stops us doing many things. Celia doesn’t have one of those. That is very freeing. If there are no consequences internally, if there’s no conscience, you can do anything you want.”

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Recently we’ve seen Celia and Ray drag teens April Windsor and Dylan Penders into their dodgy drug deals, while also trying to force poor April into sexual exploitation. It’s certainly a different type of role to what Jaye is used to, having played respectable characters in shows including Casualty, Silent Witness and Doctors.

“I usually get the upstanding, morally robust people,” she told us. “Celia, her compass is buried. She doesn’t need one, she just needs to make money.” While it’s all fun and games, the dark nature of Jaye’s latest plot has been draining to film.

She shared: “When you have to shut down all feelings, shut down any regard you have for the people you’re with, it’s exhausting. When we do rehearsals, particularly if I’m going to be violent, and you hear the crew go, ‘ooh’ and then you have to go, ‘oh, I’m nice, really, I’m not really a sociopath’, it’s very freeing, but very tiring. Empathy for your fellow humans is what makes life, life. So to not have that, I get very lonely sometimes.”

More could be revealed about Celia’s past too, as Jaye said she wasn’t always so evil. She told us: “Something very, very bad has happened to her. Not to excuse her, but it would explain everything. She didn’t come out of the womb like this.”

While Jaye is having the time of her life with the show, she confirmed an exit would happen at some point. “I knew it was finite from the start, which I am very sad about,” she confesses. “I would like to stay forever, but it’s such a strong arc.”

As the soap tackles modern slavery in its latest hard-hitting plot, missing character Bear Wolf’s link to the storyline being revealed is just the start. Jaye said of the topic: “It’s just utterly depressing that we treat our fellow humans like this.”

Jaye hopes viewers will recognise that Celia is a character, and not remotely similar to who she is away from the soap. “I want to remind people that it’s just pretend and I am really nice and I’m not a sociopath,” she said.

As for Celia’s magnificent wardrobe, Jaye explained a secret, gory detail about her character’s famous cravats worn in most scenes, while also confessing the farmer persona is just an act.

Jaye tells us: “I love my scarves. I love my hat. I love it more than anything that she just walks around with this stick. It is glorious. I think she went through a catalogue going, ‘what do farmers wear? Oh, great, I’ll buy that!’ She doesn’t do farm work, I don’t think she’s been in a field in her life. Do you know why she wears a cravat?

“Someone tried to cut her head off. So it’s very subtle, and it’s only halfway across, because obviously they didn’t succeed. I asked our execs if they would not tell scripts, because I don’t want it ever mentioned. It’s just a hint of a former life elsewhere where bad things happened to her.”

Celia’s meddling in the village is set to continue, as she comes between son Ray and his new love interest Laurel Thomas. “Laurel goes to kiss him, and he won’t kiss her. That breaks Celia’s heart, because that means she’s not a floozy, she’s not a one-off.

“He’s so serious about her, he won’t even kiss her. He likes her that much, and that is too real for Celia. So now the possibility is he might leave her, and I think that would come close to breaking Celia.”

Emmerdale airs weeknights at 7:30pm on ITV1 and ITVX, with an hour-long episode on Thursdays. * Follow Mirror Celebs and TV on TikTok, Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads.

POP icon has posted a massive apology to fans after being forced to pull out of a show at the last minute.

The New Zealand singer, 29, shared a statement on Instagram on Sunday, explaining she had to cancel her scheduled appearance at Luxembourg’s Rockhal after falling sick.

She explained: “Luxembourg, I am so sorry to have to tell you that I came down with ruthless food poisoning last night, and I’m still too sick to play for you today.

“I’ve been resting all day, hoping I’d be well enough, but I can hardly stand up, and you deserve more.”

“My sincerest apologies to anyone inconvenienced or upset by this,” the singer continued. “I can’t tell you how much I was looking forward to it. Our first ever Lux show, first night at Ultrasound EU, our one show with OK Lou, it’s beyond gutting.”

“Please know that if there was any way I could pull it off, I’d be out there. We are actively working with the promoter on rescheduling, so hold on to your tickets for now.

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“Refunds will be offered if the new date’s no good for you. Thank you for your grace tonight. Love, from a very weak girl.”

The tour cancellation comes as Lorde – real name Ella Yelich-O’Connor – kicks off the European leg of her Ultrasound World Tour.

She is scheduled to appear in Paris, France, tonight as scheduled, before making her way over to the UK and Ireland.

The upsetting cancellation comes after Lorde made her triumphant return to music this year by dropping her fourth album, Virgin, back in July.

It was her first release since 2021’s critically acclaimed Solar Power.

Her new release, led by single What Was That?, was so highly anticipated that a surprise set at Glastonbury caused an entire area of Worthy Farm to be shut down as fans dashed to see her at the Woodsies tent.

The album later shot to the top of the album charts, with What Was That peaking at number 11.

She’s also since noted she doesn’t intend to take such a big break again from making music.

The star, who first shot to fame with smash hit Royals at the age of 16, told Variety: “I’m definitely feeling very active and not needing a break from being creative. I’m feeling kind of insatiable, to be honest.

“So I don’t know, but I’ve thrown the gauntlet down that it’s not going to be four years [again], so I’ve gotta keep to that.”