admission

HER sixth album Brat topped the charts and won her five Brit Awards, but Charli XCX feared her label was going to drop her over it because it is so out there.

In a new interview, she explained: “I think when I was making it, I wasn’t thinking about the response at all.

“I actually made this record being like, ‘OK, I’m just going to do this one for me.

“And maybe I’m going to get dropped by my label and that’s fine’.

“That was kind of the headspace that I was in.

“There’s a lot of luck with timing and the way that culture is moving.

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“I think when I released this record, it’s like people were wanting something that felt very real and messy.

“And I think that’s just the way that culture was swinging.”

Charli previously suggested she was going to have a lengthy break from music following the success of the record, released in June last year, but she has now teased that she’s working on “inherently different” tracks.

The Guess singer continued: “I’m really interested to see what comes next in pop culture, especially in the music space, what people are ­craving.

“I really like to work in contrast. I think whatever I do next will just inherently be different to Brat because that’s what feels natural.

“I’m exploring a lot of stuff with strings at the moment, which I’m really enjoying and I haven’t really worked in that space before.”

And with a series of movies on the way — including Faces Of Death and I Want Your Sex, Charli said she is committed to becoming an actress.

Speaking to Gwyneth Paltrow on her Goop podcast, she said: “I’ve been making music since I was 14.

“And don’t get me wrong, I love making music, but I think there was just a point where I was kind of like, OK, I really need to exercise my creativity in a different way.

“I don’t actually really listen to that much music ever. I never really have.

“But what I am doing is I’m always watching films.”

And Charli also reflected on the prospect of starting a family, having mused on her indecision about ­becoming a mother on her song I Think About It All The Time, which was on the Brat album.

The Brit, who wed The 1975 drummer George Daniel in July, said: “There is, I think, still a bit of stigma perhaps around women who don’t really want to have ­children, you know, and I think for me it’s like I’m always swinging between the two.

“Right now, I’m on the side of, like, actually I’m not sure that that is for me, but that could go back.”

BENSON BACK

BENSON BOONE shook off illness and returned to the stage for a killer sold-out show at London’s O2 Arena.

The American singer had to cancel his gig in Birmingham on Saturday after struggling with his voice but he was on song on Monday when he sailed through tracks including Sorry I’m Here For Someone Else, Young American Heart and Mr Electric Blue along with a cover of Coldplay‘s Sparks.

Welcoming out his friend and photographer McLean Long to the stage armed with a T-shirt cannon, Benson said: “Every night I sing one song that is a cover song.

“I love this song very much, so we’re going to have a friend come out and help us figure out which song we’re singing.”

Another poignant moment in the evening came when Benson performed In The Stars, which he wrote as a tribute to his great-grandmother who died aged 96.

Benson said: “I think the loveliest thing about this song is this is a song about me, about my life.

“My experiences, somebody that I know, something I felt, something I went through, but when you listen to it it’s no longer about me, it’s about you.”

RITA’S A PINK LADY

THERE was no missing Rita Ora in this pink dress at the Music Industry Trusts Awards, but it was Jessie J who stole the show with an amazing rendition of Whitney Houston‘s I Have Nothing.

Speaking at the ceremony on Monday night, Jessie referenced her breast cancer diagnosis and said: “This is one of my favourite songs to sing. There is no hiding in this song. It’s very exposing.

“This year has changed my whole world – my perspective, what battles I’m going to pick.

“You know, death comes knocking at your door and you kind of dance and f***ing kick it away.

“It just changes everything.

““I will say this, I don’t care how old you are or how long you have been doing this, enjoy your f***ing life.

“Be kind to each other.”

Ashley Tabor-King, founder of Global Media, whose radio stations include Heart and Capital, was honoured on the night, with video messages from Ed Sheeran and Taylor Swift.

Rita flew in especially from Los Angeles to perform, and Olly Murs was there for a night out after becoming a dad for a second time.

“Albert is nine weeks old now,” Olly said.

“Another one next year? We are happy with two at the moment.

“Who knows, in a few years’ time we will see.

“I have got time next year to spend a bit more time with the family.

“It has been a busy few years.”

KATY HAS A POP AT BLOOM

KATY PERRY is returning with a new single tomorrow and it sounds as though it will hint heavily at her split from Orlando Bloom.

The Roar singer announced the track Bandaids last night, following a tricky year which saw her break-up with the English actor after almost a decade, and start dating ex-Canadian PM Justin Trudeau.

Insiders have claimed she worked on it with top writer and producer Cirkut, who worked on her No1s Part Of Me and Roar, as well as Greg Kurstin, who co-wrote Adele’s heartbreak singles Hello and Easy On Me.

Last night, Katy played the latest show on her Lifetimes tour in Paris, ahead of the end of the 91-show jaunt next month.

I’M imploring the BBC to put cash behind another series of Daisy May Cooper‘s brilliant TV series This Country.

Daisy told Fearne Cotton on her Happy Place podcast: “It’s difficult and we get asked all the time.

“If we got paid enough to do another series, we’d f***ing do it but that’s all it comes down to.”

Tim Davie, sort it out.

OASIS GET ONE OVER TOUTS DOWN UNDER

OASIS have scored another victory over the vile ticket touts – this time in Australia.

Thanks to the Major Events law in Victoria, ­scalpers were shut out of their three sold-out shows there.

The rules in the Australian state means that anyone flogging tickets for more than ten per cent above face value at an event ­protected by the Major Events Act faces a fine of up to £270,000.

In a statement, Noel and Liam Gallagher‘s management team told me: “It’s great to see Victoria’s Major Events declaration doing exactly what it’s meant to – Viagogo can’t list our Melbourne shows – and that’s a huge win for real fans.

“When government and the live industry work together, we can stop large-scale scalping in its tracks.

“We’d love to see other states follow Victoria’s lead so fans everywhere get a fair go.”

The success of the law means that the 180,000 tickets sold for the shows in Victoria went to genuine fans for the right price.

The brothers will play two more shows in Australia this week, with back-to-back sold-out gigs in Sydney on Friday and Saturday, before they take their Oasis Live 25 tour to South America.

COLDPLAY OFF TO CHURCH

IF you missed out on Coldplay tickets earlier this summer then fear not.

The band’s Chris Martin and Jonny Buckland have announced a one-off, intimate show on Wednesday, December 3, in aid of War Child and Crisis.

But it will be even harder to get in than catching one of their ten nights at Wembley, as it will take place at Hackney Church in East London, with a public ballot for 150 pairs of tickets is now open online.

Last year Chris and Jonny’s Hackney Church performance raised £350,000 for charity.

I’m sure kind-hearted fans will dig deep again this year.

ED-ING WHERE IT BEGAN

ED SHEERAN headed back to Dublin for a special ­concert to celebrate his songs which had clocked up more than one billion streams.

And he had plenty to pick from, with the star performing hits including Thinking Out Loud, Castle On The Hill, I See Fire and Galway Girl.

The gig saw the 2,000 fans packed into Industries Hall at the Royal Society Dublin going wild – and I got to join them after my lovely friends at Spotify flew me out on Monday.

Speaking at his Billions Club Live set, Ed said: “The reason I wanted to do it in Dublin is this is the place where I decided I wanted to be a singer- songwriter when I was a kid.

“It’s a special place for me with my family but it’s also a ­special place for me musically.

“I feel like this is where it all began.”

Ed also used his time on stage to remind the crowd that he last headlined Glastonbury back in 2017, which makes me think he’s a sure-fire bet to return to Worthy Farm in 2027 to ­mark ten years.

Watch this space.

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ARIANA GRANDE was forced to miss the world premiere of Wicked: For Good in Brazil last night after a safety issue with her private jet.

She was on board her plane to fly to Sao Paulo yesterday but had to get off when a fault was found, leaving her “beyond devastated” because there was no other way to make the journey in time.

Timothy West died last November and now his wife Prunella Scales has tragically passed away. The pair spoke fondly of one another in their final ever interview

Prunella Scales and Timothy West spoke of their deep love for another in their final interview together. The EastEnders actor revealed that he had spotted a potential sign of his wife Prunella’s dementia years before her diagnosis was confirmed.

In November, it was confirmed that Timothy – known for his roles in shows like EastEnders – had died at the age of 90. Prunella’s death was announced today, just months after her husband’s sad passing.

In what is believed to be one of his last interviews, conducted in 2023, Timothy opened up about his wife Prunella’s battle with dementia. The couple appeared on BBC Breakfast for an interview together, in what would be their last appearance on TV.

Prunella, who is most recognised for her role as Sybil Fawlty in the classic sitcom Fawlty Towers, received her dementia diagnosis in 2014. However, Timothy suggested that he first noticed signs of the condition as early as 2001.

Reflecting on the moment he first observed his wife’s decline, he shared: “I came to see a play that Pru was doing in Greenwich. I went to see the first night and it was good, much enjoyed by the audience, and then I went to see it again a bit later on and I thought ‘Pru’s not … it’s strange. She’s not totally with it.'”

Despite these early signs, her official dementia diagnosis didn’t come until over a decade later. Timothy recalled: “We went to see a specialist who just said ‘I’m sorry this is just something that happens to you when you get older’. It’s not going to get any easier but you can cope with it. We manage.”

Despite the tough landscape they found themselves in, Prunella said: “I have got to know him better and better and better.”

Timothy added: “I know that things are going to change a little bit, but it has been a long time and we have managed pretty well really. I don’t think we ever think ‘oh no.'”

Prunella then shared: “I have been asked to live the rest of my life with somebody I respect very much and agree with a lot of things and argue with about a lot of things quite happily.”

During a chat with the BBC, which was conducted prior to the launch of Timothy’s book, he was questioned about his wife Prunella’s vascular dementia diagnosis. He said that “somehow” they have “coped” over the years.

“Pru doesn’t really think about it,” he added. Timothy and Pru have been husband and wife since 1963. The couple have two sons together, actors Samuel West and Joseph West. Their family also includes Timothy’s daughter Juliet West from a previous marriage.

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Reality TV star and social media influencer Kim Kardashian made a bombshell admission about the future of her career in the spotlight as she revealed she is planning a new path

Kim Kardashian has revealed exactly when she will give up her famous life in a bombshell admission. The reality TV queen, 45, has been entertaining fans for years thanks to her shows alongside her famous family.

She has a staggering 354million followers on Instagram and is even embarking on an acting career. Kim’s latest venture, her shapewear and clothing company SKIMS, has been valued at an eye-watering $4billion and she often rocks the internet with her viral products.

However, it seems Kim may be ready to take a step back from the limelight. Away from the spotlight, Kim has been busy working on her law career and is currently awaiting the results of her California bar exam.

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She has expressed her interest in becoming a lawyer, having already completed a six-year legal apprentice programme. Her hard work has even inspired her acting career as she stars in new series All’s Fair on Disney+.

Kim promoted her acting debut on the Graham Norton Show on Friday night, where she made a surprise admission. Host Graham asked: “You are very nearly qualified aren’t you?”

She replied: “Yes, I am. I took the bar exam in July and I get the results a few days after our premiere. So in two weeks. Everyone please pray for me. I worked really, really hard on this.”

Fellow guest Bryan Cranston asked Kim: “Was this something you always wanted to do? Are you going to actually practice law?” In a surprise admission, Kim revealed: “I hope to practice law. Maybe in like 10 years, I will give up being Kim K and be a lawyer. A trial lawyer. That’s what I really want.”

Kim’s dad Robert Kardashian defended OJ Simpson at his trial when she was 14-years-old. She revealed she was invited by her dad to go to court for one session as he said it was “a piece of history”.

This week, Kim revealed she has been diagnosed with a brain aneurysm. She shared how she had a routine MRI that revealed a small aneurysm in her brain, which she said doctors attributed to the stress of her divorce from Kanye West.

Kim decided to make her health scare public on the season seven premiere of The Kardashians while speaking with sister Kourtney Kardashian. “They found a little aneurysm,” Kim said, before a visibly shocked Kourtney placed her hand over her chest and replied: “Whoa.”

The episode showed Kim at a medical facility and being rolled into an MRI machine as images of her brain appeared on a monitor. In a later scene, the mother-of-four became tearful on the phone, as she asked: “Why the f**k is this happening?”

According to the NHS, an aneurysm is a ballooning of a blood vessel in the brain. If it ruptures, it can lead to severe internal bleeding and be life-threatening.

Small aneurysms that have not ruptured are usually monitored with regular check-ups rather than immediate surgery. Kim has long dealt with autoimmune conditions, including psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis.

In 2022, she revealed that a rapid 16-pound weight loss to fit Marilyn Monroe’s gown at the Met Gala triggered a psoriasis flare that led to arthritis. She has discussed the psychological toll of her marriage to West on her new series, describing feelings similar to “Stockholm Syndrome,” – a condition where victims form attachments to their abuser.

Kim admitted: “I’m happy it’s over,” but she added: “People think that I have the luxury of walking away. My ex will be in my life no matter what. We have four kids together.”

Kim and Kanye were married from 2014 until 2022 and share four children together – North, 12, Saint, 9, Chicago, 7, and Psalm, 6.

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Vanessa Feltz, who was sometimes seen on This Morning on ITV, engaged to musician Ben Ofoedu in 2006 but, despite planning to tie the knot in the years since, never got married

Vanessa Feltz has admitted she feels “demoralised and unattractive” when potential relationships don’t work out.

The broadcaster has been introduced to men following her split with musician Ben Ofoedu, 53, earlier this year, but despite the rendezvous, nothing significant has stuck, it is thought. Vanessa, 63, became tearful when she confirmed she and Ben ended things in 2023, having been together for nearly 20 years.

Speaking this week, the unlucky-in-love presenter said she doesn’t use dating websites and prefers friends to introduce her to potential partners. However, she added: “It’s hard. I’m too famous to be on websites. I would like to be introduced by a friend, but when it doesn’t work it is hard not to feel demoralised and unattractive.”

Vanessa, originally from north London, was married to Michael Kurer, a surgeon, for 15 years until their divorce in 2000. She shares two children and four grandchildren with Michael. Recalling her split with Michael, Vanessa said in a previous interview she “was too open” with her daughters “about information and how I was feeling”.

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But Vanessa began dating Ben as her children grew older, and enjoyed a long relationship with the singer. They became engaged in 2006 but, despite planning to tie the knot in the years since, never got married and parted ways in 2023. Speaking about the split, Vanessa previously said: “It’s clear that it’s over and I really do feel that once the trust in a relationship is gone then you can’t really get it back and that’s what I would tell anyone else to do.

“And so I just wanted to say that obviously I feel incredibly sad and I am pretty disappointed and shocked and all those horrible things but also full of resolve. I am not going to let this defeat me.”

Her followers on Instagram showed huge support for the star, who was on Celebrity Big Brother in 2001, around one year after her divorce.

The latest heartbreaking admission, said to a Daily Mail reporter at an event this week, comes as Vanessa continues to present her self-titled TV show on Channel 5. Devised as a chat show to rival Loose Women in the lunchtime slot, the programme sees Vanessa discuss topical issues and debates with a panel of guests, often including model Nicola McLean, presenter Sarah Cawood and journalist Afua Hagan.

The programme has been renewed for a second series, and TV sources say Vanessa is tipped to take some of the Loose Women audience when the ITV show goes down from 52 weeks to 30 next year.

SACRAMENTO — Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday vetoed legislation that would have allowed public and private colleges to provide preferential admissions to applicants directly descended from individuals who were enslaved in the United States before 1900.

The governor thanked the bill’s author for his commitment to addressing disparities and urged educational institutions to review and determine “how, when, and if this type of preference can be adopted.”

“This bill clarifies, to the extent permitted by federal law, that California public and private postsecondary educational institutions may consider providing a preference in admissions to an applicant who is a descendant of slavery,” Newsom wrote Monday in his veto. “These institutions already have the authority to determine whether to provide admissions preferences like this one, and accordingly, this bill is unnecessary.”

The legislation would not have required applicants to belong to any particular race or ethnicity — a crucial detail that proponents said distinguished it from affirmative action, which is banned at California colleges. Critics, however, argued the term “slave” was used as a proxy for race.

Legal experts told The Times last month the measure probably would have faced challenges in court if the governor signed it into law.

“The question with this sort of provision is does this count as on the basis of race?” said Ralph Richard Banks, professor at Stanford Law School and the founder and faculty director of the Stanford Center for Racial Justice. “A secondary issue is going to be whether, even if it is not formally about racial classification, was it really adopted to get around the no-racial-classification rule? The law prohibits indirect methods of doing something that would be prohibited if you were to do it directly.”

Race-based college admissions are banned by federal and state law.

Proposition 209, which California voters approved nearly three decades ago, amended the state Constitution to bar colleges from considering race, sex, national origin or ethnicity during admissions. The U.S. Supreme Court in 2023 in effect ended race-conscious college admissions nationwide, ruling in Students for Fair Admissions vs. Harvard that such policies violate the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment.

California became the first state government in the country to study reparations, efforts to remedy the lingering effects of slavery and systemic racism, after the 2020 killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer sparked a national conversation on racial justice.

Newsom and state lawmakers passed a law to create a “first in the nation” task force to study and propose effective ways to help atone for the legacy of slavery. That panel spent years working on a 1,080-page report on the effects of slavery and the discriminatory policies sanctioned by the government after slavery was abolished, and the findings became the genesis for a slate of legislation proposed by the California Legislative Black Caucus.

Last week, Newsom signed Senate Bill 518, which will create a new office called the Bureau for Descendants of American Slavery. That bureau will create a process to determine whether someone is the descendant of a slave and to certify someone’s claim to help them access benefits.

Assemblymember Isaac Bryan (D-Los Angeles), who introduced Assembly Bill 7, said his legislation would have allowed colleges to grant preference to the descendants of enslaved people in order to rectify a “legacy of exclusion, of harm.”

Andrew Quinio, an attorney specializing in equality issues for the Pacific Legal Foundation, believes AB 7 was blatantly unconstitutional. The foundation is a conservative public interest law firm that seeks to prevent government overreach.

“This was a bill that was born out of the Reparations Task Force recommendations; it was part of the package of bills of the Road to Repair from the California Legislative Black Caucus so this has a very clear racial intent and racial purpose and it will have a racial effect,” he said. “[Legislation] doesn’t have to benefit the entirety or even the majority of a demographic in order for it to be unlawfully based on race.”

Lisa Holder, a civil rights attorney and president of the Equal Justice Society, a progressive nonprofit that works to protect policies that promote diversity, argued the measure’s framing made it highly likely to satisfy legal challenges.

“This (legislation) is very specifically tailored to correct the harms that we have seen, the harms from the past that continue into the present,” she said. “… Because this bill seeks to erase those harms by focusing specifically on the descendant community, it is strong enough to establish a compelling interest.”

Gary Orfield, a law and education professor and co-founder of the Civil Rights Project/Proyecto Derechos Civiles at UCLA, agreed the legislation was carefully written in a way that could have withstood legal challenges. He pointed out California allows university programs that support Native American students because they were narrowly tailored to focus on tribal affiliation — which is considered a political classification — instead of race or ethnicity.

Orfield said applicants of various races could have potentially benefited from the new admissions policy, as many Native Americans were enslaved and Asiatic coolieism, or Asian indentured servitude, was declared a form of human slavery in the state constitution in 1879.

“All Black people weren’t slaves and all slaves were not Black,” he said. “I think there is a good argument to say that slavery isn’t defined strictly by race and is not just a proxy for race and there certainly is a legitimate concern when you are thinking about remediation for historic violations.”

Orfield, however, said convincing the public was a different matter.

“I don’t think all people will easily understand this,” he said. “Americans tend to think that discrimination doesn’t cross over multiple generations. But I think that it does — I think there has been a long-lasting effect.”

Staff writer Melody Gutierrez contributed to this report.

Big Brother housemates got to buy some luxury items in the Eyedeal Mini Mart

Big Brother viewers were quick to ask ‘is she for real’ as Elsa made a bizarre confession.

The ITV hit reality show made a return to screens on Monday (October 13) night for a brand new episode and the housemates got to buy some luxury items in the Eyedeal Mini Mart.

Big Brother gathered the Housemates in the living area and announced: “Housemates, today you will have another opportunity to spend your eye currency in the EyeDeal Mini Mart.

“Big Brother has restocked the shelves with even more goodies, luxuries and some new surprise temptations. It’s up to you whether you want to splash the cash now or save it for a rainy day… Richard, Nancy and Sam, as you have zero eyes, you will not enter the shop today.”

One by one the housemates entered Big Brother’s EyeDeal Mini Mart however their was a major twist as Big Brother told each housemate who entered: “Big Brother would like to draw your attention to an incredible buy-one get-one free deal in the shop today.

“A very special item. An Immunity Pass. If you buy this deal, you get not one but two weeks immunity from eviction.”

Marcus wasn’t tempted by the immunity pass as he opted to use his eye balls to get a romantic dinner to enjoy with fellow housemate Elsa.

Later on, Marcus and Elsa were seen in the garden having a romantic dinner for two because Tate bought a jail pass for Marcus, which meant he had to spend his half of the date from his jail cell.

The couple were treated to a cooked dinner and Caroline couldn’t help but come outside and ask: “Is it gorgeous?” Elsa replied: “It’s lovely.”

As they enjoyed their romantic moment together, Marcus took the opportunity to confess: “This is the best date I’ve ever been on.” Caroline asked: “Really?” Marcus responded: “Yeah.”

There was one moment that caught viewers’ attention as Marcus was seen cutting Elsa’s food after she revealed that her mum cuts all her food for her at home.

It didn’t take long for viewers to rush straight to social media to share their reaction as one fumed: “Is Elsa for real.. she still has her mum cut up her food.. is she for real or is she taking the p***.”

Another commented: “Elsa “I have to get my mum to cut my food” F****** hell.” A third asked: “Um..why can’t Elsa cut up her own food? #BBUK #BigBrother.”

One fan commented: “Please save the airtime for the drama. I don’t care about this Marcus/Elsa facade.”

Meanwhile another added: “Elsa is a grown woman — does she really think acting like a child makes her more interesting?! Getting Marcus to cut her food for her and bragging that her mum does it too is wild #BBUK #BigBrother.”

Big Brother airs weekdays from 9pm on ITV2 and ITVX

Big Brother fans believe they have worked out that Elsa is heavily encouraging a narrative of love between her and Marcus in a desperate bid to land brand deals on exit from the show

Big Brother fans are convinced that Elsa is desperate to force a love narrative between her and fellow housemate Marcus in order to secure couple brand deals. The blonde housemate revealed following this week’s eviction, that she was prepared to drop a love bombshell on Marcus if she was evicted from the show.

She told her housemates that she was prepared to tell him that she loved him, leaving her housemates in utter shock. And this has caused a stir among fans on X, who now believe that she entered the house with an agenda.

One person wrote: “Elsa was going to tell a dude she’s known for two weeks she loves him. She wants those couples brand deals BAD #BBUK.” Another person said: “I’ve had ‘relationships’ in primary school more realistic than Marcus and Elsa #bbuk.”

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Meanwhile a third person added: “if i was gonna go i was gonna tell marcus i loved him” ..elsa girl please chill you bunny boiler you’ve known him less than 3 weeks #bbuk.”

And a fourth person chimed in saying: “marcus please your not going to get with elsa your just saying that to make good tv but we don’t care this is big brother not love island.”

A fifth said: “Marcus has no intentions of seeing Elsa after this. You can see it on his face #bbuk.”

In a private conversation her fellow housemate Zelah, Elsa confessed that she was in love with him, leaving the wannabe star in utter shock. A coy looking Elsa simply smiled.

However, further into the evening shown in tonight’s show Zelah and Marcus found themselves in a conversation in the garden where the pair were talking about his feelings for Elsa. And it seems he does not share the same feelings for the reality TV star.

When asked if the location between the two would be an obstacle that they would have to overcome, Marcus made it clear that his doubts were more focused on the dynamics within the house.

Marcus appeared concerned that the feelings the pair have for one another in the house may change in the outside world when the reality of their situation is put to the test.

The couple have been heavily flirting with one another since entering the iconic Big Brother house. At one point, Caroline is seen telling Marcus: “I think she’s in love.”

Marcus then quipped: “I know, I don’t blame her.” Beckoning for her to come over to him he shouted out “come here Elsa.” And Caroline then joked: “The romance is coming.”

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AMY HUNT is prioritising “medals over men” as she adapts to life as a superstar athlete.

The 23-year-old shot to fame last month after claiming a silver medal at the World Championships in Tokyo.

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Following her achievement, Hunt claimed that she would celebrate with some karaoke.

Quizzed what she’d be singing, the confident star said: “Probably Maneater.

“That’s really boring but I feel like that was the vibe tonight, just sexy and aggressive.”

Hunt, who has a degree in English Literature from Cambridge, continues to have her eyes firmly set on further prizes.

Speaking to The Times, the 200m specialist said: “Obviously, as a female athlete, you also have to plan when you think motherhood is a feasible thing for you.

“But the world is very open to me and I will get a sense of what I want to do when the moment is right.

“I actually always joke to my coach, ‘medals before men’, that’s the quote of the day!”

Hunt has not ruled out balancing her blossoming athletics career with further studies.

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She added: “I change my mind on it every year. Immediately after coming out of university I thought about the V&A and doing a Masters — with the hope of maybe going on to do a PhD, because I always thought being ‘Dr Amy’ would be pretty cool.

“But then my mind changed and I think I’d want to actually work at a museum or gallery and curate.

“But then I’m like, no, maybe I’d do a law conversion because a lot of my friends did a law conversion out of English.

“And then maybe I’d do that, or maybe an Amal Clooney kind of thing.

“So my mind is always changing on that and I think I’ll only decide when I get to the end.”

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“Full House” actor Lori Loughlin and her designer husband, Mossimo Giannulli, have separated.

The Times confirmed Thursday that the longtime couple “are living apart” but “no legal proceedings are underway,” according to Loughlin’s representative. The news that Loughlin and Giannulli are taking a break from their marriage was first reported by People.

Loughlin and Giannulli have been married for nearly 28 years and share two daughters, including influencer Olivia Jade.

The couple were among the most prominent figures implicated in the Varsity Blues college admission scandal in 2019. Loughlin and Giannulli each pleaded guilty to fraud in 2020 for paying $500,000 to have their daughters gain admission to USC as recruits for the rowing team, even though neither had any experience with the sport. Loughlin was sentenced to 2 months in prison, while Giannulli served 5 months. (Both daughters left the school amid the scandal.)

A familiar face from various television films, Loughlin is best known for portraying Aunt Becky in “Full House,” which originally aired from 1987 to 1995, as well as its 2016 reboot “Fuller House.” She most recently appeared on the Prime Video series “On Call.” Giannulli founded Mossimo, a clothing brand once associated with Target.

Loughlin and Giannulli reportedly listed their L.A. home for sale in February.

This Morning’s Cat Deeley appeared to make a shock confession regarding the ITV show’s competitions during Monday’s episode

A cringe-worthy moment unfolded on This Morning when Cat Deeley seemed to confess she and co-presenter Ben Shephard “cheat” whilst hosting one of the programme’s competitions.

The pair returned to television screens on Monday (September 29) with a fresh edition of This Morning, where regular contributors Gyles Brandreth and Ashley James joined them.

Cat and Ben started concluding the episode’s news section and revealed details about This Morning’s Spin To Win competition, which invites viewers to ring in for a chance to participate in a game and secure cash prizes on the ITV programme.

Ben outlined all the competition’s terms and conditions, whilst Cat disclosed that viewers could bag up to £12,000, with both wishing fans the best of luck.

“Yes, good luck!” Cat exclaimed, before turning to Ben and enquiring: “Are you saying that to me? Because of the competition?”

He responded: “Well, we know what happened when we’ve done this in the past,” prompting Cat to suddenly blurt out: “We cheat a little bit!”

Gyles appeared stunned by her admission and swiftly protested: “I don’t think we do!”.

“We know, we never have, we never will. We can’t!” Ben also interjected. Beaming, Cat declared: “We will never cheat! Sometimes, people don’t pick up the phone..”

Gyles and Ashley burst into laughter whilst Ben kept attempting to silence his co-presenter, with Cat smirking directly at the camera, reports Wales Online.

“You know Ralf [Little] and Will [Mellor] have that button that they can hit when someone’s going to say something… Someone should’ve hit that!” Ben remarked to Cat, who carried on chuckling.

The competition segments on This Morning are typically hosted by Andi Peters or Jeff Brazier, with stars like Kate Lawler occasionally stepping in to announce the competitions.

Cat and Ben helm This Morning from Monday to Thursday each week, while Alison Hammond and Dermot O’Leary usually present the ITV show on Friday mornings.

Gyles and Ashley are frequent guests on the programme, offering their insights on the latest news and headlines.

Other regular contributors include LBC’s Nick Ferrari, Nicola Thorpe and Tom Swarbrick. The ITV programme recently invited former GMB host Piers Morgan to discuss the day’s news.

This Morning airs on weekdays at 10am on ITV1

Dancer Dianne Buswell announced she was expecting her first child with partner Joe Sugg earlier this month as she performed her first dance with Stefan Dennis on Saturday night

Strictly Come Dancing kicked off it’s first couples dances on last night’s show (Saturday 27 September) and one particular person who was glowing was pregnant dancer Dianne Buswell. She and her celebrity partner Stefan Dennis took to the dancefloor to perform a Foxtrot to the Neighbours theme song as she showed off her growing baby bump.

The Aussie native, 36, announced her pregnancy with partner Joe Sugg earlier this month and despite questions being raised about whether she would be able to still compete, Dianne proved she can do it all as she showed off her pregnancy glow.

For her performance, she wore a flowy blue dress with flower detailing and a v-neck, which perfectly held her growing baby bump. The pair received a score of 22 from the judges, putting them in eighth place on leaderboard out of the 15 contestants.

Dianne’s pregnancy didn’t go unmentioned on the live show as her co-stars flocked to congratulate her and make her feel special. Following their performance, host Tess Daly exclaimed: “Dianne, we can not let you leave the floor without saying congratulations.”

She responded gleefully: “Thank you so much! “That’s why we’re in blue tonight,” she laughed before saying: “Not really, but lets pretend!”

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As she and Stefan made their way upstairs, Claudia Winkleman decided to throw her an impromptu baby shower. Pro dancer Neil Jones came out wearing an animal costume and she was presented with balloons, a teddy bear and some cupcakes.

Fans flocked to X to compliment the mum-to-be during the live show as one person gushed: “Dianne’s baby bump awwwww,” Another fan said: “Dianne’s baby bump. So happy for Dianne and Joe. They met on Strictly 7 years ago and now a baby is on the way.”

Somebody else commented: “Stefan and Dianne were incredible and Dianne looked so beautiful! And her little bump showing,” while a fourth added: “Love this when the #strictly cast congratulated Dianne on her baby news, she is going to be an amazing mum.”

Her baby bump television debut comes after vile trolls complained about seeing her pregnant on the show. One troll in particular wrote on social media: “I don’t want to see her dance being pregnant, it’s already feeling uncomfortable and she’s only starting to show. It’s really not appropriate.”

Dianne posted it on her Instagram story and responded: “”I can’t believe in 2025 things like this are still being said.”

Her fans rushed to her defence, with one writing: “Saw @diannebuswell’s story and just had to say something. Her dancing pregnant in Strictly this year is nothing short of beautiful and magical. Women’s bodies are INCREDIBLE and I don’t actually think people realise that.

“This will show all of those people who believe this weird twisted notion that women should hide away when they’re carrying a baby that women are capable of much more & can do anything.

“You’re inspirational and incredible. We as a family cannot wait to watch you doing what you love and were born to do again every weekend. And we will be cheering you on as always beautiful.” Dianne reposted the comment with a series of happy crying and heart emojis.

She makes history as the first ever dancer to be pregnant while competing on the BBC One show.

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Waterloo Road star Tillie Armatey has not ruled out the possibility of replacing Dani Dyer on Strictly Come Dancing after the reality TV star fractured her ankle during rehearsals

Dani Dyer’s exit from Strictly Come Dancing had the entire nation in shock as she had been one of the few tipped to make it all the way to the final. But sadly, after fracturing her ankle during rehearsals, the 29 year old daughter of renowned actor Danny Dyer, was forced to bow out of the competition while focusing on her recovery.

And since news broke of her departure many names have been thrown into the hat as her replacement, namely Waterloo Road star Tillie Armatey.

When approached at a recent fashion event and asked if the rumours had some weight behind them, the 22 year old actress refused to shut down speculation.

And this has left many believing that BBC bosses have been in talks with her to become a late addition. Tillie attended the SHEIN clothing event alongside former Love Island star Shaughna Phillips, Phoebe Tomlinson and Meryl Williams. Other guests included TOWIE’s Ella Rae Wise and Dani Imbert.

Speaking to the Daily Mail, Tillie confessed: “It’s all sequins, sparkles and speculation at the moment but the Christmas special was very special for me. I had the best time.”

She added: “I would never say no to strictly. I will 100% clear my diary always, but I’m a great believer in leaving it to the universe and obviously the main priority is Dani having a speedy recovery!”

Tillie reportedly quit her role on the BBC drama, which if true, would leave her open to join Strictly at any given moment.

An insider had told The Sun: “Tillie recently quit her role on Waterloo Road telling pals it was to make way for ‘another big’ project, which could be a game changer for her career. She’s been making several trips from her Leeds home to London for discussions with TV execs in recent weeks. “

They added: “The feeling is that if she is filling the shoes vacated by Dani, the programme needs another young, glam woman to take her spot. There is already an imbalance in the genders among the celebrities as there are nine men taking part and six women.”

The source concluded: ” It’s essential the number of females taking part doesn’t drop further, and they want to try and maintain a similar balance in terms of the variety of ages too.”

However, according to the Daily Mail a decision has not been made over Dani’s position on the show. A source told the publication: “Tillie hasn’t had any contact with Strictly Come Dancing. Bosses still don’t know if they are replacing Dani yet.”

Tillie has played Stacey on the school drama since last year and was part of the line-up in the dancing show’s Christmas special, two years ago.

At the time of the Christmas special, Tilly was partnered with professional dancer Neil Jones and said: “I am feeling really overwhelmed, but so privileged to be part of such an amazing show. “

She added: “You can’t say no to Strictly. I want to prove to myself and other younger people, that you can do anything you put your mind too. Yes I’m an actress and a presenter, but why can’t I dance as well?!”

Addressing the fact she had a glimmer of dancing experience when younger, she continued: “When I was seven, maybe six, I did one dancing competition, because my mum was a dancer, and I did the competition, but then she asked me if I wanted to horse ride, so I took that instead as I didn’t do too well… so I’m going to say no!”

Sadly, Tillie was pipped to the post by former EastEnders actor Jamie Borthwick and his pro dance partner Nancy Xu. In a statement confirming the uncertainty over Dani’s return to the competition, it was made clear that the door had been left open for her.

Dani also addressed her fans by posting a video on social media. In her statement she said: “I had a fall on Friday in rehearsals and landed funny. I thought I had rolled my foot but it swelled up badly over the weekend and after an MRI scan yesterday, it turns out I have fractured my ankle.”

She added: “Apparently doing the quickstep on a fracture is not advisable (!!) and the doctors have said I am not allowed to dance so l’ve had to pull out of the show. To say I’m heartbroken is the biggest understatement. I am so going to miss dancing with Nikita but will of course be watching closely and cheering all the couples on.”

Sarah James, Executive Producer for BBC Studios said: “Dani has brought so much passion, joy and enthusiasm to Strictly, and her partnership with Nikita was off to the most sensational start. Everyone on the show is incredibly sad that she’s no longer able to compete in this year’s series. We send her all our love and best wishes for a swift recovery, and we very much hope to welcome her back to the ballroom in the future.”

READ MORE: Coco&Eve launches ‘must have’ bonding hair mask that makes hair ‘so soft’

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A federal judge Thursday said she was “inclined to extend” an earlier ruling and order the Trump administration to restore an additional $500 million in UCLA medical research grants that were frozen in response to the university’s alleged campus antisemitism violations.

Although she did not issue a formal ruling late Thursday, U.S. District Judge Rita F. Lin indicated she is leaning toward reversing — for now — the vast majority of funding freezes that University of California leaders say have endangered the future of the 10-campus, multi-hospital system.

Lin, a judge in the Northern District of California, said she was prepared to add UCLA’s National Institutes of Health grant recipients to an ongoing class-action lawsuit that has already led to the reversal of tens of millions of dollars in grants from the National Science Foundation, Environmental Protection Agency, National Endowment for the Humanities and other federal agencies to UC campuses.

The judge’s reasoning: The UCLA grants were suspended by form letters that were unspecific to the research, a likely violation of the Administrative Procedure Act, which regulates executive branch rulemaking.

Though Lin said she had a “lot of homework to do” on the matter, she indicated that reversing the grant cuts was “likely where I will land” and she would issue an order “shortly.”

Lin said the Trump administration had undertaken a “fundamental sin” in its “un-reasoned mass terminations” of the grants using “letters that don’t go through the required factors that the agency is supposed to consider.”

The possible preliminary injunction would be in place as the case proceeds through the courts. But in saying she leaned toward broadening the case, Lin suggested she believed there would be irreparable harm if the suspensions were not immediately reversed.

The suit was filed in June by UC San Francisco and UC Berkeley professors fighting a separate, earlier round of Trump administration grant clawbacks. The University of California is not a party in the case.

A U.S. Department of Justice lawyer, Jason Altabet, said Thursday that instead of a federal district court lawsuit filed by professors, the proper venue would be the U.S. Court of Federal Claims filed by UC. Altabet based his arguments on a recent Supreme Court ruling that upheld the government’s suspension of $783 million in NIH grants — to universities and research centers throughout the country — in part because the issue, the high court said, was not properly within the jurisdiction of a lower federal court.

Altabet said the administration was “fully embracing the principles in the Supreme Court’s recent opinions.”

The hundreds of NIH grants on hold at UCLA look into Parkinson’s disease treatment, cancer recovery, cell regeneration in nerves and other areas that campus leaders argue are pivotal for improving the health of Americans.

The Trump administration has proposed a roughly $1.2-billion fine and demanded campus changes over admission of international students and protest rules. Federal officials have also called for UCLA to release detailed admission data, ban gender-affirming healthcare for minors and give the government deep access to UCLA internal campus data, among other demands, in exchange for restoring $584 million in funding to the university.

In addition to allegations that the university has not seriously dealt with complaints of antisemitism on campus, the government also said it slashed UCLA funding in response to its findings that the campus illegally considers race in admissions and “discriminates against and endangers women” by recognizing the identities of transgender people.

UCLA has said it has made changes to improve campus climate for Jewish communities and does not use race in admissions. Its chancellor, Julio Frenk, has said that defunding medical research “does nothing” to address discrimination allegations. The university displays websites and policies that recognize different gender identities and maintains services for LGBTQ+ communities.

UC leaders said they will not pay the $1.2-billion fine and are negotiating with the Trump administration over its other demands. They have told The Times that many settlement proposals cross the university’s red lines.

“Recent federal cuts to research funding threaten lifesaving biomedical research, hobble U.S. economic competitiveness and jeopardize the health of Americans who depend on cutting-edge medical science and innovation,” a UC spokesperson said in a statement Thursday. “While the University of California is not a party to this suit, the UC system is engaged in numerous legal and advocacy efforts to restore funding to vital research programs across the humanities, social sciences and STEM fields.”

A ruling Lin issued in the case last month resulted in $81 million in NSF grants restored to UCLA. If the UCLA NIH grants are reinstated, it would leave about $3 million from the July suspensions — all Department of Energy grants — still frozen at UCLA.

Lin also said she leaned toward adding Transportation and Defense department grants to the case, which run in the millions of dollars but are small compared with UC’s NIH grants.

The hearing was closely watched by researchers at the Westwood campus, who have cut back on lab hours, reduced operations and considered layoffs as the crisis at UCLA moves toward the two-month mark.

In interviews, they said they were hopeful grants would be reinstated but remain concerned over the instability of their work under the recent federal actions.

Lydia Daboussi, a UCLA assistant professor of neurobiology whose $1-million grant researching nerve injury is suspended, observed the hearing online.

Aftewards, Daboussi said she was “cautiously optimistic” about her grant being reinstated.

“I would really like this to be the relief that my lab needs to get our research back online,” said Daboussi, who is employed at the David Geffen School of Medicine. “If the preliminary injunction is granted, that is a wonderful step in the right direction.”

Grant funding, she said, “was how we bought the antibodies we needed for experiments, how we purchased our reagents and our consumable supplies.” The lab consists of nine other people, including two PhD students and one senior scientist.

So far, none of Daboussi’s lab members have departed. But, she said, if “this goes on for too much longer, at some point, people’s hours will have to be reduced.”

“I do find myself having to pay more attention to volatilities outside of our lab space,” she said. “I’ve now become acquainted with our legal system in ways that I didn’t know would be necessary for my job.”

Elle Rathbun, a sixth-year neuroscience PhD candidate at UCLA, lost a roughly $160,000 NIH grant that funded her study of stroke recovery treatment.

“If there is a chance that these suspensions are lifted, that is phenomenal news,” said Rathbun, who presented at UCLA’s “Science Fair for Suspended Research” this month.

“Lifting these suspensions would then allow us to continue these really critical projects that have already been determined to be important for American health and the future of American health,” she said.

Rathbun’s research is focused on a potential treatment that would be injected into the brain to help rebuild it after a stroke. Since the suspension of her grant, Rathbun, who works out of a lab at UCLA’s neurology department, has been seeking other funding sources.

“Applying to grants takes a lot of time,” she said. “So that really slowed down my progress in my project.”

With the Taliban barring women from college in her native Afghanistan, Bahara Saghari set her sights on pursuing higher education in the United States.

Saghari, 21, practiced English up to eight hours per day for several years, eventually winning an offer to study business administration at a private liberal arts college in Illinois. She was hoping to arrive this fall, but her plans were derailed again, this time by President Trump’s travel ban.

“You think that finally you are going to your dream, and then something came up and like, everything’s just gone,” Saghari said.

Thousands of students are among the people affected by the Trump administration’s travel ban and restrictions on citizens from 19 countries, including many who now feel stranded after investing considerable time and money to come to the U.S.

Some would-be international students are not showing up on American campuses this fall despite offers of admission because of logjams with visa applications, which the Trump administration slowed this summer while it rolled out additional vetting. Others have had second thoughts because of the administration’s wider immigration crackdown and the abrupt termination of some students’ legal status.

But none face bigger obstacles than the students hit with travel bans. Last year, the State Department issued more than 5,700 F-1 and J-1 visas — which are used by foreign students and researchers — to people in the 19 ban-affected countries between May and September. Citizens of Iran and Myanmar were issued more than half of the approved visas.

U.S. still the first choice for many

Pouya Karami, a 17-year-old student from Shiraz, Iran, focused his college search entirely on the U.S. No other country offers the same research opportunities in science, he said. He was planning to study polymer chemistry this fall at Pittsburg State University in Kansas, but he had to shelve those plans because of the travel ban.

Karami deferred admission until next year and is holding out hope. He is still preparing for his embassy interview and reaching out to U.S. politicians to reconsider the travel ban’s restrictions on students.

“I’m doing everything I can about it,” he said.

The full travel ban affects citizens from 12 countries spanning Africa, Asia, the Middle East and the Caribbean. It blocks most people from obtaining new visas, although some citizens from the banned countries are exempt, such as green card holders, dual citizens and some athletes. Seven other countries have tighter restrictions that also apply to student visas.

When Trump announced the travel ban in June, he cited high visa overstay rates and national security threats from unstable or adversarial foreign governments as reasons for putting countries on the list. He has called some of the countries’ screening processes “deficient” and said he plans to keep the ban in place until “identified inadequacies” are addressed.

‘This kind of breaks my heart’

In Myanmar, the family of one 18-year-old student made his education their top priority, saving paychecks for him to go abroad for college. They risked their stability so he could have the chance to live a better life, said the student, who asked to be identified by only his nickname, Gu Gu, because he is worried about being targeted by the Myanmar or U.S. government for expressing criticism.

When he shared a screenshot of his acceptance letter to the University of South Florida in a family group chat, it exploded with celebratory emojis, Gu Gu said. He had been waiting for visa appointments to be announced when, one night, his mother woke him to ask about news of a U.S. travel ban. In an instant, his plans to study at USF this fall were ruined.

Many students his age in Myanmar have been drafted into the military or joined resistance groups since the military ousted the elected civilian government in 2021. While a civil war rages, he had been looking forward to simple freedoms in the U.S. like walking to school by himself or playing sports again.

“I was all in for U.S., so this kind of breaks my heart,” said Gu Gu, who was unable to defer his acceptance.

Students forced to look elsewhere

Saghari, the Afghan student, postponed her July visa interview appointment in Pakistan to August after learning of the travel ban, but ultimately canceled it. Knox College denied her request to defer her admission.

She later applied to schools in Europe but encountered issues with the admissions process. A German university told Saghari she would need to take another English proficiency test because an earlier score had expired, but taking the test the first time was already a challenge in Afghanistan’s political climate.

She has been accepted to a Polish university on condition she pay her tuition up front. She said her application is under review as the school validates her high school degree.

Amir, a 28-year-old Iranian graduate who declined to provide his last name for fear of being targeted, wasn’t able to travel to the U.S. to take a position as a visiting scholar. Instead, he has continued to work as a researcher in Tehran, saying it was difficult to focus after missing out on a fully funded opportunity to conduct research at the University of Pennsylvania.

His professor at Penn postponed his research appointment until next year, but Amir said it feels like “a shot in the dark.”

He’s been looking at research opportunities in Europe, which would require more time spent on applications and potentially learning a new language. He still would prefer to be in U.S., he said, but he isn’t optimistic that the country’s foreign policy is going to change.

“You lose this idealistic view of the world. Like you think, if I work hard, if I’m talented, if I contribute, I have a place somewhere else, basically somewhere you want to be,” he said. “And then you learn that, no, maybe people don’t want you there. That’s kind of hard to deal with it.”

Seminera writes for the Associated Press. AP writer Todd Feathers contributed to this report.

Rylan Clark and Rob Rinder got emotional as they discussed having kids on the new series of their BBC show Rob and Rylan’s Passage to India, where they travel across the unique country

Rylan Clark has revealed more about his desire to have children amid his new romance with a fairground worker. It was recently revealed that Rylan is dating a new man, four years on from his split from his husband Dan.

Teasing the new romance, Rylan revealed: “At this time I’m very happy. Recently I have gotten into a relationship and it’s great. And it feels very different to anything I’ve had before, which is a good sign to me.”

He didn’t reveal who it was but the man is believed to be called Kennedy and the pair are said to have become “inseparable” this summer and have already met each others families.

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Speaking in an emotional chat on their show Rob and Rylan’s Passage to India, the former X Factor star explained: “What this trip has done is invigorate in my head how important family is. I want one day, fingers crossed, to have kids. What about you?”

“Don’t forget, I’m older than you. It’s quite a lot [older]. So when I was coming out, it wasn’t a possibility and I’ve got to a stage now where I’m so set in my ways…,” Rob then replied as Rylan quizzed what would happen if he met the right man tomorrow.

Rob then admitted: “I just think I’d be too afraid – I don’t think I’m good enough,” before Rylan added: “Let me tell you one thing, you are good enough. But it’s alright not to want kids. It’s just always been my plan. Get the husband, get the Range Rover, get the kids.

The Good Morning Britain star admitted he feared he was too “selfish” to raise kids. Rylan replied: “But I think the second, you had kids you’d change … You know what Rob, you’d never feel love like it.”

“As long as they were kind and had nice manners,” Rob added, with Rylan then quipping: “They would be because they’d be raised by you – and me probably,” as he joked about being uncle Rylan.

Meanwhile, Rylan has been forced to deny he and Rob are dating. He said: “Like, so many people keep asking, everyone keeps asking me – because there’s all these fake news stories about me and Rob Rinder – we’ve gotten married and all of this. Rob’s my friend. I adore him, and Rob and Rylan’s just about to come out again, and I just thought, ‘Let’s just put the record straight.'”

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SACRAMENTO — State lawmakers on Friday advanced a plan that would allow California colleges to offer preferential admission to students who are descended from enslaved people, part of an ongoing effort by Democrats to address the legacy of slavery in the United States.

The legislation, Assembly Bill 7, would allow — but not require — the University of California, Cal State and private colleges to give admissions preference to applicants who can prove they are directly related to someone who was enslaved in America before 1900.

If signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom, the effort could put the Golden State on yet another collision course with the Trump administration, which has diversity initiatives and universities in its crosshairs.

“While we like to pretend access to institutions of higher learning is fair and merit-based and equal, we know that it is not,” said Assemblymember Isaac Bryan (D-Los Angeles), who authored the bill, before the final vote Friday. “If you are the relative or the descendant of somebody who is rich or powerful or well connected, or an alumni of one of these illustrious institutions, you got priority consideration.”

But, Bryan said, “There’s a legacy that we don’t ever acknowledge in education … the legacy of exclusion, of harm.”

The bill is a top priority of the Legislative Black Caucus, which introduced 15 bills this year aimed at addressing the lingering effects of slavery and systemic racism in California.

Although California entered the Union as a “free state” in 1850, slavery continued in the Golden State after the state Constitution outlawed it in 1849. Slavery was abolished nationwide by the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution in 1865 after the Civil War.

California voters barred colleges from considering race, sex, ethnicity or national origin in admissions nearly three decades ago by passing Proposition 209. Two years ago, the U.S. Supreme Court found that affirmative action in university admissions violates the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment.

Bryan and other backers stressed that the language of the bill had been narrowly tailored to comply with Proposition 209 by focusing on lineage, rather than race. Being a descendant of a slave is not a proxy for race, they said, because not all enslaved people were Black, and not all Black Americans are descended from slaves.

“The story of our country is such that people who look like me and people who do not look like me could be descendants of American chattel slavery,” said Bryan, who is Black, during a July debate over the bill.

Supporters of the measure say that Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas noted in his concurrence in the 2023 affirmative action case that refugees and formerly enslaved people who received benefits from the government after the Civil War were a “race-neutral category, not blacks writ large,” and that the term “freedman” was a “decidedly underinclusive proxy for race.”

Andrew Quinio, an attorney for the conservative Pacific Legal Foundation, told lawmakers during earlier debates on the bill that lineage is, in fact, a proxy for race because being a descendant of an American slave is “so closely intertwined” with being Black.

Instead, he said, the bill could give colleges a green light to give preference to “victims of racial discrimination in public education, regardless of race,” which would treat students as individuals, rather than relying on “stereotypes about their circumstances based on their race and ancestry.”

Were California “confident in the overlap of students who have experienced present discrimination and students who are descendants of slaves, then giving preference based on whether a student has experienced present discrimination would not exclude descendants of slaves,” he said.

Earlier this week, the Democratic-led Legislature also passed Senate Bill 518, which would create a new office called the Bureau for Descendants of American Slavery. That bureau would create a process to determine whether someone is the descendant of a slave and to certify someone’s claim to help them access benefits.

The legislature also approved Assembly Bill 57, by Assemblymember Tina McKinnor (D-Hawthorne), which would help descendants of slavery build generational wealth by becoming homeowners.

The bill would set aside 10% of the loans from a popular program called California Dream for All, which offers first-time home buyers a loan worth up to 20% of the purchase price of a house or condo, capped at $150,000.

The loans don’t accrue interest or require monthly payments. Instead, when the mortgage is refinanced or the house is sold, the borrower pays back the original loan, plus 20% of its increase in value.

McKinnor said during debates over the bill that the legacy of slavery and racism has created stark disparities in home ownership rates, with descendants of slaves about 30 percentage points behind white households.

The Legislature also passed McKinnor’s AB 67, which sets up a process for people who said they or their families lost property to the government through “racially motivated eminent domain” to seek to have the property returned or to be paid.

Nonpartisan legislative analysts said that the bill could create costs “in the tens of millions to hundreds of millions of dollars,” depending on the number of claims submitted, the value of the properties and the associated legal costs.

California became the first state government in the country to study reparations after the 2020 killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer sparked a national conversation on racial justice.

Newsom and state lawmakers passed a law to create a “first in the nation” task force to study and propose remedies to help atone for the legacy of slavery. That panel spent years working on a 1,080-page report on the effects of slavery and the discriminatory policies sanctioned by the government after slavery was abolished.

The report recommended more than 100 policies to help address persistent racial disparities, including reforms to the criminal justice system and the housing market, the first of which were taken up last year by the Legislature’s Black Caucus.

Hamstrung by a budget deficit, lawmakers passed 10 of 14 bills in the reparations package last year, which reform advocates felt were lackluster.

How Californians feel about reparations depends on what is under discussion. A poll by the L.A. Times and the UC Berkeley Institute for Governmental Studies in 2023 found that voters opposed the idea of cash reparations by a 2-to-1 margin, but had a more nuanced view on the lasting legacy of slavery and how the state should address those wrongs.

Most voters agreed that slavery still affects today’s Black residents, and more than half said California is either not doing enough, or just enough, to ensure a fair shake at success.

California banned slavery in its 1849 Constitution and entered the Union as a “free state” under the Compromise of 1850, but loopholes in the legal system allowed slavery and discrimination against formerly enslaved people to continue.

California passed a fugitive slave law — rare among free states — in 1852 that allowed slaveholders to use violence to capture enslaved people who had fled to the Golden State. Slavery was abolished by the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution in 1865, ratified after the end of the Civil War.

Census records show about 200 enslaved African descendants lived in California in that year, though at least one estimate from the era suggested that the population was closer to 1,500, according to the report drafted by the reparations task force.

You Bet! host and TV favourite Stephen Mulhern has made a rare admission about his father following his death as he revealed how he gave him his start in magic

Stephen Mulhern has made a rare admission about his father following his death. The magician, 48, was left devastated in November last year when his father Christopher passed away at the age of 76.

In the weeks that followed, coupled with a reaction an anaesthetic, the former Dancing On Ice host collapsed in front of diners at Pizza Express in Sunningdale, Berkshire. It is believed Stephen had the bad reaction to some medication after having a few drinks with his meal. Earlier in the day, he underwent a procedure, for which he was administered the anaesthetic.

Since then, the TV star has remained relatively private about the tragedy, but during an appearance on Friday’s This Morning, he was able to open up about his father when host Dermot O’Leary sensitively reminded him about his dad, who was also a magician, played a major part in kickstarting his career.

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Dermot began: “There’s a lovely story, I remember we were eating dinner together and you were telling me about what a great man your dad was. He was almost responsible, wasn’t he?”

Stephen replied: “My dad loved magic and he was a brilliant magician. I started when I was 11 and he would teach me tricks.”

Dermot added: “Wasn’t one of the acts ill or something?” and Stephen, shocked at what the TV star could remember replied: “God, you’ve got a good memory!

“Yeah, so [at Butlin’s] one of the acts didn’t turn up and my dad said, ‘Well my son’s a magician and he’ll fill in for you.’ I got my spot on stage and I feel incredibly lucky.”

Just weeks after losing his father, Stephen was back on screens at the Royal Variety. He took to the stage at the Royal Albert Hall, performing a magic trick in front of His Majesty The King and millions of viewers at home.

Upon completion, the star dedicated the performance to his late father saying: “That was for you dad.”

Following his two-year stint as a Redcoat, Stephen joined The Magic Circle as its youngest-ever member at the age of just 17, and gained an appearance on Blue Peter off the back of this.

After appearing on The Big Big Talent Show with Jonathan Ross in the late 1990s, he was invited to perform at the Royal Variety before becoming a regular on CITV alongside Holly Willoughby.

In more recent years, he has hosted Britain’s Got More Talent and regularly fronts Catchphrase, but due back on the box with a new series of You Bet for ITV1, in which stars such Josie Gibson, Josh Widdecombe and Alesha Dixon bet on of members of the public and their ability to carry out certain tasks.

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Charity Dingle is fiercely protective over her children and grandchildren in Emmerdale. Emma Atkins can relate, but she reveals she has another concern for her son Albert.

Charity Dingle’s family is on the verge of implosion in Emmerdale – but Emma Atkins is more concerned about her son’s education.

Soap legend Emma Atkins admits that her own experience as a mother helped her bring depth to Charity Dingle’s antics in Emmerdale. Emma welcomed her son Albert, now 10, with long-term partner Tom in 2015.

“I’m fiercely loyal,” she says, “My love for Albert runs very deep but at the same time, I want him to be his own person. In that regard, Charity and I are similar.” For Emma, parenting is a balance between protecting her son while letting him learn to navigate the world by himself.

“I want him to stand on his own two feet and grow up knowing that I have given him that freedom to make decisions for himself, even at an early age,” Emma says.

“I don’t want to be telling him what to do all the time. I try not to be possessive over my own child. I’ll be there to steer him and encourage him in the right direction.”

Emma’s nurturing instinct extends beyond family. She has stayed close with many of her Emmerdale co-stars over the years, particularly Charley Webb, who played her daughter Debbie for nearly two decades. “If I’ve worked with them, you can bet your life that I’m still in touch with them,” she says.

She’s equally bonded with current cast members. “I’m very close to Katie Hill, we share a dressing room. We’re like sisters,” Emma says. Her friendship with Belle Dingle actress Eden Taylor-Draper is just as strong. “We’ve been friends for years,” she says.

And despite John Sugden being one of the most sinister villains in recent Emmerdale history, Emma only has praise for Oliver Farnworth, who plays the sinister surgery receptionist.

“He’s such a gorgeous human being and so different to John,” she says, “Whenever we’re on set together we spend our time talking about animals because he’s a big animal lover and so am I.”

Over the years, Emma’s portrayal of Charity has won her a loyal following and recognition from critics and fans alike. She has been nominated for multiple TV awards and eventually scooped Best Soap Actress at the TV Choice Awards as well as Best Actress at the Inside Soap Awards.

But Emma insists the real secret to her success is knowing how to separate her on-screen havoc from her off-screen serenity. “I’ve learned to keep it simple,” she says, “But Charity’s world is too chaotic for me.”

READ MORE: Aftershave that ‘turns heads’ and ‘smells more expensive than it is’ now 15% off

Things are about to take yet another drastic turn. The Woolpack landlady faces another storm as she desperately tries to keep her clandestine fling with Ross Barton (Mike Parr).

The tryst is threatening to blow apart her entire family as Charity once vowed to act as a surrogate for her granddaughter Sarah and her boyfriend Jacob – but the baby Charity is now carrying may not even be theirs.

If that wasn’t enough, she’s also reeling from the apparent loss of her husband Mackenzie, who was seemingly bludgeoned to death by John Sugden in a recent and chilling instalment – until it was revealed the hunk was alive and kept hostage in a mystery bunker.

For Emma, who has played Charity for more than 20 years, Mackenzie’s return was never in doubt, despite ITV viewers predicting the worst.

“I had no doubt that Mackenzie would be okay because he’s so good, Lawrence is incredible,” she says. “I knew it would be very exciting for the audience to wonder what his fate would be.

They built a special set for the bunker. We were both very excited.” She adds: “This storyline is proving to be my favourite at the moment. But how will Charity find out Mackenzie is in danger?

Away from the chaos of the Dales, Emma leads a far more peaceful life. She’s even got an unexpected passion – and a special interest for trees. “I’ve always loved taking pictures,” she says.

“I had a Canon 5D and the shutter broke so I turned to my iPhone and decided to take photos of wherever I’d go in nature. It was a good therapy tool.”

That escape to the outdoors is key for Emma, who spends much of her screen life in the middle of brawls, fiery arguments and messy romances.

“I spend most of my time walking the dog out in nature,” she says, “That’s the best way to decompress, it’s what I love doing the most.Trees are beautiful in all seasons. The older and taller, the better.”

On-screen, Charity is defined by her fiery personality and protectiveness, especially when it comes to her children and grandchildren. But her determination to keep them out of trouble sometimes triggers more hassle and harm than intended.

Now, with affairs, betrayals and deadly secrets, Charity Dingle is facing one of the most dramatic times of her life in Emmerdale. Will she come out of it unscathed?

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We’ve made it to September. It’s a transitional time in SoCal gardens as well as in our daily lives. It’s the end of summer! The beginning of school! The triumphant return of pumpkin spice! 🤮

In this year of seemingly ceaseless transitions, let’s just take a minute to catch our breath.

Below, you will find, as always, a list of plant-related workshops and events, but I’d first like to consider this lightning-fast year, where titanic changes keep coming with bewildering speed, from devastating and deadly wildfires to ICE raids, tariffs and gut-wrenching international conflicts, to name several.

If you pitched this stuff for a movie (even turmoil with Canada?), it would seem too preposterous to be made. Except we’ve been living this preposterous movie, and it’s been a lot.

A volunteer tomato plant — variety unknown — grows like a champion against a fence, sans any kind of tending, yet it’s outproducing all the other vines planted in carefully prepared beds full of compost and other amendments. To the left is a huge colander of tomatoes picked off the plant with many more left to ripen.

(Jeanette Marantos / Los Angeles Times)

But here’s the thing: Our gardens don’t care, and there’s a certain beauty and reassurance that comes with that. Take the volunteer tomato plant that appeared in a corner of my yard last winter. It grew up and over my fence, while I was preoccupied with everything else going on in the world. Since July, it has been happily producing tons of tomatoes, which are particularly delicious when they’re roasted with garlic and olive oil.

Or consider how at the fire sites in L.A. County, many oaks and other venerable trees survived next to houses destroyed in the flames. I’ve visited burned properties where tall tangles of native sunflowers literally emerged from the ashes to delight native bees, and even roses, supposedly the fussiest of flowers, are blooming on scorched properties sans water, tending or expectation.

Our gardens can’t change the turmoil in our world, but they can help us cope. Even if all you have is a balcony with room for a couple of pots, find a way to plant something this September that can sustain you with fragrance or food or just plain beauty.

Winter veggies

Yvonne Savio ran Los Angeles County’s UC Cooperative Extension Master Gardener program for 25 years before she retired. She’s been gardening for nearly 60 years, so I’d put her in the expert category. For many years, she’s been sharing her wit and wisdom on her website GardningInLA.net, and just recently she started writing for L.A. County’s Master Gardeners’ online newsletter, offering timely tips for plant lovers.

Savio has a huge, envy-inspiring garden in Pasadena. She considers September a transitional time to plant the last of her fast-growing warm-season crops such as green beans and summer squash, and the first of her cool-season crops such as lettuces, kale, peppery greens like mustard and arugula, beets, broccoli and peas (edible) and sweet peas (not edible but beautifully, deliciously fragrant).

For those with smaller gardens, she recommends focusing on cool-weather crops. Even a wide container can grow a thick crop of loose-leaf lettuce — just trim a few leaves from each plant to fill your salad bowl.

At Urban Homestead, a family farm in residential Pasadena, salad mix seeds are planted thickly in narrow trenches, so when the plants emerge they can be easily harvested just a few leaves at a time.

(Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)

Remove spent warm-season plants first. Bag any diseased plants and put them in the landfill trash so you don’t taint compost piles. Then, she said, enrich your soil with a few inches of compost and mix in some slow-release organic fertilizer such as earthworm castings or Dr. Earth.

Now comes the fun part — choosing your plants. Browse your local nursery for starter packs of greens, lettuces or brassicas like broccoli. But be sure to pick up some packets of seeds as well, especially for beets, which are a double treat with delicious leaves — a bounty in soups! — and colorful roots. They are so good roasted.

You can also order excellent seeds online from California companies such as Renee’s Garden seed in Felton or the Ojai-based Plant Good Seed Co.

Sweet peas such as Renee’s Garden varietal ‘Fire and Ice’ come in a huge mix of colors, but almost all offer a similar prize: an unforgettable sweet fragrance that fills a room with happiness.

(ReneesGarden.com)

Spring blooms

Bulbs are a miraculous boon of color in snow country, when early spring is otherwise grim and gray. They’re easy to plant, and once established, they spread and return year after year, making that initial sometimes pricey investment seem very worthwhile.

Sweet peas such as Renee’s Garden varietal ‘Fire and Ice’ come in a huge mix of colors but almost all offer a similar prize: an unforgettable sweet fragrance that fills a room with happiness.

(ReneesGarden.com)

But here’s the scoop about bulbs: Although most will grow in SoCal, many require freezing temperatures to spread and thrive, Savio said.

If you have the cash and patience to treat bulbs like annuals and replant them every year, that’s great. But for the rest of us, Savio recommends focusing on bulbs purchased from Southern California nurseries that do well in our climate. Find out your hardiness zone on the USDA Hardiness Zone Map (most of the Greater Los Angeles Area has a zone around 10, meaning our low temperatures generally stay above freezing) and be sure to choose bulbs that will thrive in your zone.

Some of Savio’s tips for choosing bulbs: Buy the biggest, firmest, driest bulbs you can, without any mold, early in the season. Avoid end-of-season sales because those are usually smaller bulbs that didn’t sell from the previous year.

Savio said she’s found that frilly double-type varieties or late-season bloomers don’t do as well in warmer climates. Try a few by all means, she said, but invest most of your budget in simpler varieties that bloom early in the spring and will likely spread and flourish to give you years of repeat blooms with just one planting.

She said daffodils, paperwhites and fragrant colorful freesias do particularly well.

Her favorite bulb sellers include EasyToGrowBulbs.com, based in Oceanside, and Telos Rare Bulbs in Felton. Most native plant nurseries offer native bulbs, and you can find native Pacific Coast irises and (nonnative) tall bearded irises at Matilija Nursery in Moorpark (which does not do mail order) and Greenwood Daylily Nursery in Somis (which does).

And finally, don’t forget to order some sweet peas! Renee’s Garden and Enchanting Sweet Peas in Sebastapol, Calif., have an inspiring selection. Get some now and be sure to plant them before Thanksgiving as a little happiness insurance for next spring.

Need gardening help?

The UC Master Gardeners of Los Angeles County are once again offering their modestly priced Grow LA Gardens classes, a series of four basic gardening classes in September and October in Boyle Heights, Van Nuys, Hollywood, San Marino, West Adams, Long Beach and South Pasadena. The classes are on Saturdays or Sundays. Times and prices vary, but most cost $70 for all four classes (the highest rate), or $30 for those who need financial assistance.

Upcoming events

Sept. 6 and ongoing
The new Little Tokyo Farmers’ Market from Food Access Los Angeles and the Japanese American Cultural & Community Center opened Aug. 30, and will continue to operate every Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the JACCC’s Isamu Noguchi Plaza in downtown Los Angeles. Admission is free. foodaccessla.org

Sept. 6, 7 and 13
Santa Monica Mountains Fund’s free milkweed giveaways provide four to six narrow-leaf milkweed plants per household that were grown and distributed by the Los Angeles Parks Foundation. Milkweed is the host plant for endangered monarch butterflies whose caterpillars dine exclusively on their leaves. Plants will be given away, with instructions on how to put them in the ground, at the Tarzana Community & Cultural Center from 9 a.m. to noon Sept. 6; at the Encino Farmers Market in Encino from 9 a.m. to noon Sept. 7; and at the Pacoima Back-to-School Resource Fair at Vaughn Global Green Generation Elementary from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sept. 13. Admission is free, but registration is required. eventbrite.com

Sept. 7
Gardening 101: The Whys of Gardening in San Diego is a free class at City Farmers Nursery in San Diego from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m. that will offer growing advice and plant tips for gardeners. Admission is free, and no RSVP required. cityfarmernursery.com

Sept. 11
Intro to California Native Plant Garden Design with Theodore Payne Foundation Horticulture Director Tim Becker. It’s from 9 a.m. to noon at the foundation in Sun Valley. Register online, $103.22 ($81.88 members). eventbrite.com

Sept. 12, 19 and 26
3-Part California Native Garden Design with landscape designer Carol Armour Aronson of Seco Verde. It’s from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. each day at the Theodore Payne Foundation in Sun Valley. The prerequisite course, Right Plant, Right Place, is available online on Sept. 10 from 6 to 8 p.m. for $37.66. The design course is in person. Register online, $396.11 for one; $471.96 for couples working on one design. events.humantix.com

Sept. 13-14
Southern California Begonia Society’s Begonia Show & Sale is from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. both days at Sherman Library & Gardens in Corona del Mar. The show includes free talks and demonstrations about growing begonias in terrariums at 11:30 a.m. Sept. 13, basic begonia culture at 11:30 a.m. Sept. 14 and a tour of the garden’s begonia collection at 1:30 p.m. Sept. 14. The show is free with a $5 admission to the garden (members and children 3 and younger enter free). thesherman.org

Sept. 13
Re-wild: Site Design and Establishing New Plants, led by Tree of Life Nursery co-founder Mike Evans, is from 10 a.m. to noon at the nursery in San Juan Capistrano. Learn how to design a native plant landscape. The class is free, but registration is required. eventbrite.com

Avocado 101 Seminar, a free class about avocado varieties and best practices for growing the trees in your garden, is 10 to 11 a.m. at Otto & Sons Nursery in Fillmore. Reservations are not required. ottoandsonsnursery.com

California Native Plant Container Gardening, taught by Theodore Payne Foundation nursery technician Terrence Williams, is at the nursery in Sun Valley. Register online, $55.20 ($44.52 members). eventbrite.com

Monrovia Community Garden’s Green Care Day is from 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. at the garden in Monrovia. Help weed, mulch and otherwise improve the garden with raised bed maintenance and soil topping. Participation is free. monroviacommunitygarden.org

Your Backyard Orchard, a free class about planning and caring for fruit trees taught by the UC Master Gardeners of Orange County, is from 9 to 10:15 a.m. at the Santa Margarita Water District in Rancho Santa Margarita. ucanr.edu

Rose Care Basics, a free class at City Farmers Nursery in San Diego, is from 9 to 10 a.m. and will offer tips about growing roses in San Diego. Admission is free, and no RSVP required. cityfarmernursery.com

Native Plant Summer Maintenance Basics with Theodore Payne Foundation horticulture educator Erik Blank is from 9 to 11 a.m. at the foundation’s demonstration garden in Sun Valley. Register online, $55.20 ($44.52 members). eventbrite.com

Sept. 14
California Biodiversity Day Free Day is from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. at California Botanic Garden in Claremont. The event includes bilingual tours of the garden’s production nursery at 9:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m.; a native plant loteria game with help from the Chino Basin Water Conservation District from noon to 1 p.m.; and activities provided by exhibitors from various community organizations between 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tickets are free but must be reserved in advance. calbg.org

Horticulturist Andrew Hankey discusses four new ledebouris species from the Steenkampsberg, Mpumalanga in east South Africa, at the September meeting of the South Coast Cactus & Succulent Society at Fred Hesse Jr. Community Park’s McTaggart Hall in Rancho Palos Verdes. The meeting starts at 11 a.m. and ends at 2 p.m. Admission is free. southcoastcss.org

Gardening for Wildlife, a free class at City Farmer’s Nursery in San Diego, is from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m. and covers how to create a wildlife-friendly sanctuary garden for birds, pollinators and small mammals in San Diego. Admission is free, and no RSVP required. cityfarmernursery.com

Sept. 19
Propagating California Native Plants From Cuttings, a Theodore Payne Foundation class led by Horticulture Director Tim Becker, is from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the foundation’s new Los Angeles satellite Los Nogales Nursery at the Audubon Center at Debs Park in Montecito Heights. Each participant will leave with a flat of a few starts for their own garden. All materials provided. Register online, $108.55 ($81.88 members). eventbrite.com

Sept. 20
Southern California Horticultural Society’s 2025 Annual Awards Banquet is from 5 to 9 p.m. at the La Cañada Flintridge Country Club and honors native plant horticulturist Katherine Pakradouni with the society’s first-ever Pathmaker Award, created to recognize forward-thinking individuals breaking new ground in horticulture. Pakradouni developed the native plant nursery for the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing project, collecting about 1 million native seeds from the surrounding region, and has developed several micro forests and other ecological landscapes through her business Seed to Landscape. The society’s Horticulturists of the Year award will go to native plant horticulturist Melanie Baer Keeley, who is developing Alta Vista Natives Nursery in Three Rivers, and her husband, botanist and fire management scientist Jon E. Keeley. Banquet tickets, which include dinner, are available online, $80 ($70 members). socalhort.org

Sept. 20-21
Carbon Culture Workshop: Hands-On Hugelkultur is from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. in Granada Hills and led by Studio Petrichor’s regenerative garden designers Leigh Adams and Shawn Maestretti. Learn how to build hugelkultur berms out of logs and layers of wood chips and soil; and lasagna mulching to tamp down weeds. Bring gloves and a water bottle; lunch provided. Register online $44.52. eventbrite.com

Sept. 26 and 27
California Botanic Garden’s Seeds Walking Tour involves guided tours through the state’s largest botanic garden dedicated to California native plants to learn about what seeds can tell us about their native plants. Tours available from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m. and 10 to 11 a.m. both days at the garden in Claremont. Register online, $20 ($10 members). calbg.org

Sept. 26-28
44th Edition of the Fascination of Orchids International Festival of Orchids & Exotic Plants is 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. all three days at the Santa Ana Zoo in Santa Ana. The event includes thousands of orchids and exotic plants on display as well as classes about growing orchids and vendors selling supplies. Purchase tickets online, $5.49 per person, valid for all three days. ticketleap.events

Sept. 27
Love Your Lands: National Public Lands Day Event with Palos Verdes Peninsula Land Conservancy is from 9 a.m. to noon at the conservancy’s White Point Nature Preserve in San Pedro. It will be a day of helping to remove nonnative plant species, watering new native plantings, seed preparation, garden walks and activities for children. Participation is free, but registration is required. pvplc.volunteerhub.com

Re-wild: Planting Design and Installation, led by Tree of Life Nursery co-founder Mike Evans, is from 10 a.m. to noon at the nursery in San Juan Capistrano. Learn how to implement your native plant landscape design. The class is free, but registration is required. eventbrite.com

What we’re reading

After two winters of next-to-no rain, SoCal is heading back into drought conditions. Is this the year you finally remove your lawn? If you need inspiration, here are two of our latest stories about Angelenos who pulled out their turf to create native plant landscapes, with the help of an ocean-conscious designer in Long Beach and a creative DIY couple in Harvard Park determined to transform their dead lawn into a vibrant habitat.

Altadena was lush with plants before the Eaton fire, and resident Laurie Scott is intent on replacing that green — and lifting her community’s spirit — with her Regrow Altadena project, which gives free plants to residents to plant around their fire-damaged properties.

Finally, in The Times’ series Imagining a Future L.A., my colleague Patt Morrison predicts a “frond farewell” to L.A.’s iconic fan palms.