announcement

Countryfile’s veteran star John Craven made a big announcement during Sunday evening’s episode of the popular BBC show

Countryfile viewers were stunned as presenter John Craven delivered thrilling news during this evening’s broadcast.

On Sunday’s episode (January 11) of the BBC programme, John revealed that the latest Countryfile calendar was available for purchase and had already generated over £1million for Children in Need, much to the presenter’s delight.

The prestigious Countryfile calendar competition has become a cornerstone of British photography competitions throughout the last three decades.

Last year, Ursula Armstrong’s stunning photograph entitled ‘Seal of Approval’ secured first place and featured on the cover of the 2025 Countryfile calendar.

The cherished BBC show then sought 12 fresh and remarkable photographs for the 2026 edition, all captured by viewers from around the country, reports the Express.

Images featured everything from wildlife and insects to flora and scenery, as long as they were shot within the UK. Winners secured their place in the magnificent new calendar, available for £11.99 including postage.

Sunday’s programme was marking a new beginning to the year in Northumberland, when John promoted the latest calendar and revealed its achievements to date.

He announced: “If you haven’t picked one of these up yet, well, they are on sale until January 31st. And I’m delighted to announce that so far the 2026 Countryfile Calender has raised for BBC Children in Need an incredible £1,776, 082.”

John continued: “So from all of us, to everyone who has bought one of our calendars and helped us raise that amount, a very, very big thank you.”

Despite the fantastic news that the calendar has generated such a substantial sum for charity, some Countryfile viewers found it amusing that it was being advertised during the second week of January.

**For the latest showbiz, TV, movie and streaming news, go to the new **Everything Gossip** website**

Taking to X, one viewer posted: “Omg late calendar plug #Countryfile”, whilst a second responded with laughing face emojis.

A third enquired: “Do we get the calendars cheaper as it’s almost the end of January ? #countryfile,” whilst another commented: “Probably not, everyone would do that, it’s what I do though, get my favourite calendar half price Boxing Day.”

The invitation for submissions to the new calendar was revealed in June 2025 during a Countryfile episode, with presenter Anita Rani observing: “The weird and wonderful landscape of Spurn Point would certainly make for an evocative photograph that could be entered into our photographic competition.”

John added: “Our country is blessed with an incredible array of beautiful settings and opportunities to capture on camera its wonderful wildlife.”

He went on enthusiastically: “So now, with summer upon us and the splendour of nature in full swing, it’s my great pleasure to launch our photographic competition. The theme this year is wild encounters.”

Countryfile airs Sundays at 6pm on BBC One and iPlayer.

Jan. 9 (UPI) — Some leaders of the Southern Transitional Council in Yemen announced the dissolution of the group that controlled southern Yemen territory, but others in the separatist group say it is still active amid peace talks Friday.

STC Secretary-General Abdulrahman Jalal al-Sebaihi announced the STC’s pending dissolution on Yemeni TV while attending peace talks in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. His counterparts in Yemen said his declaration was made under duress and was not true.

“The decisions relating to the Southern Transitional Council cannot be taken except by the Council in its entirety, with all its institutions, and under the chairmanship of the president,” STC spokesman Anwar al-Tamimi said in a social media post.

“This will happen as soon as the STC delegation present in Riyadh is released,” he said.

“The STC will continue positive and constructive engagement with all political initiatives, which give the southern people the opportunity to determine their future.”

A coalition backed by Saudi Arabia has taken control of the territory in southern Yemen that formerly was held by the STC, which is supported by the United Arab Emirates.

The conflicting statements regarding the STC were made after STC leader Aidarous al-Zubaidi secretly left Yemen on Tuesday night with the help of the UAE instead of traveling to Riyadh to negotiate matters in Yemen.

Instead, he was taken to Abu Dhabi on Wednesday, which raised tensions between Saudi and UAE officials.

In addition to leading the STC, al-Zubaidi was a member of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council, which expelled him on Wednesday when he did not show up in Riyadh to discuss matters in Yemen.

The UAE and Saudi Arabia recently worked together to oppose Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen, and the STC wants to have an independent state recognized in South Yemen.

The STC’s dissolution could imperil efforts to re-establish a former north-south divide in Yemen, which existed prior to the nation’s unification in 1990.

Saudi Arabia supports the PLC, which is the internationally recognized government in Yemen, while the UAE backs the STC.

Spencer Pratt, a reality television star who lost his home in the Palisades fire and then emerged as a sharp critic of Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and Gov. Gavin Newsom, announced Wednesday that he will run for mayor.

The former star of “The Hills” has spent much of the last year firing off social media posts blaming the mayor and governor for the Palisades fire, which killed 12 people and burned more than 6,800 homes.

• Share via Close extra sharing options

Pratt made his announcement at the “They Let Us Burn” event in Pacific Palisades on the one-year anniversary of the fire.

“We’re going to expose the system. We’re going into every dark corner of L.A. politics and disinfecting the city with our light,” he said to a crowd of hundreds, many of whom cheered.

Former L.A. schools Supt. Austin Beutner, who is running against Bass, has also attacked the mayor’s performance on the fire, saying she has not accepted responsibility for the city’s failures.

Community organizer Rae Huang, who is running from Bass’ left, has offered her own critique, saying the mayor has engaged in too much finger-pointing.

Still unclear is whether real estate developer Rick Caruso — another outspoken critic of Bass on the fire — will launch a second mayoral bid. Bass defeated him in 2022 by a comfortable margin.

L.A. County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath, who represents the areas that burned in the Palisades fire and who has also criticized the city’s response to the fire, said Monday night that she is still considering her own run for L.A. mayor.

Speaking with CNN’s Elex Michaelson, Horvath said she is “listening to a lot of the people who are encouraging me to get into this race, people who are looking for a different kind of leadership.”

“You know, there are a lot of people who are asking me about running for mayor,” Horvath said. “And I think it’s because they see that we are setting up in the county a different structure of accountability, and that’s long overdue for the region.”

The Palisades fire has become a serious political liability for Bass as the mayoral race gains momentum. She was out of the country on a diplomatic mission to Ghana when the fire ignited.

Since then, she has faced criticism over a series of issues surrounding the city’s emergency response, including LAFD deployment, the fact that the Santa Ynez reservoir was empty, and the Fire Department’s failure to put out a New Year’s Day fire that eventually rekindled into the Palisades fire.

Bass, for her part, said Tuesday that she is using the full extent of her mayoral powers to “restore the Palisades community and return families home as quickly and safely as possible.”

Bass’ campaign team did not immediately respond to an inquiry about Pratt’s announcement. But earlier this week, they took direct aim at Pratt and other critics, accusing them of using the disaster for their personal benefit.

“For the first time ever we saw a major wildfire politicized by MAGA leaders and monetized by social influencers making tens of thousands of dollars per month and hawking books on the backs of a devastated community,” said Bass campaign spokesperson Doug Herman. “While some may choose to divide people and tear down the progress that’s being made, Mayor Bass will continue to work to unite people and focus on doing everything that she can to get everyone in the Palisades back in homes, business re-opened, and beloved community spaces up and running again so that the Palisades can once again thrive.

Pratt and his wife, reality television personality Heidi Montag, sued the city in January after their Palisades house burned down, arguing that the Santa Ynez reservoir should not have been offline and empty when the fire erupted.

As recently as Tuesday, Pratt posted on X saying he was “shocked that 7% of Angelenos have ‘a great deal of confidence’ in their city and state government.”

“Have they looked around?” he wrote.

In the past, Pratt has also hinted at a run for governor. On his website, he still advertises “Spencer for Governor” shirts for $20, at a more than a 50% discount.

Pratt became famous in the aughts for his role on “The Hills,” where he was known as Montag’s boyfriend-turned-husband. He has also appeared on “Celebrity Big Brother” and “The Hills: New Beginnings.”

Ryan Murphy’s The Beauty centres around a brand new medicine that promises to keep users looking youthful, but it comes with a dark price

A brand new Sci-Fi series from the creator of American Horror Story has had a major update just days before its release.

Ryan Murphy’s ‘The Beauty’, based on a comic book series, is set to centre around a brand new medicine that promises to keep users looking youthful, but it comes with a dark price.

Premiering on Disney Plus on January 22, fans will be treated to the first three episodes, but those wanting to binge watch will have a wait on their hands. The 11-episode series will see new instalments released weekly every Thursday, with two episodes releasing in each of the final two weeks.

When supermodels start dying in gruesome and mysterious deaths, FBI Agents Cooper Madsen (played by Evan Peters) and Jordan Bennett (played by Rebecca Hall) are sent to Paris to uncover the truth.

Today, a brand new trailer has been released with Disney Plus teasing the short clip: “One shot makes you hot.”

The explosive trailer shows a variety of people taking the so called beauty shot before things start to go tragically wrong. In it, it is claimed: “It’s an STD that people will actually want…”

Disney Plus teases: “As they delve deeper into the case, they uncover a sexually transmitted virus that transforms ordinary people into visions of physical perfection, but with terrifying consequences.

For the latest showbiz, TV, movie and streaming news, go to the new **Everything Gossip** website.

“Their path leads them directly into the crosshairs of “The Corporation” (Ashton Kutcher), a shadowy tech billionaire who has secretly engineered a miracle drug dubbed “The Beauty,” who will do anything to protect his trillion-dollar empire—including unleashing his lethal enforcer, “The Assassin” (Anthony Ramos).

“As the epidemic spreads, “Jeremy” (Jeremy Pope), a desperate outsider, is caught in the chaos, searching for purpose as the agents race across Paris, Venice, Rome, and New York to stop a threat that could alter the future of humanity. “The Beauty” is a global thriller that asks: what would you sacrifice for perfection?”

Viewers have previously been quick to call out the show’s similarities to award-winning horror film The Substance starring Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley, which also features an injectable wonder drug that can make people youthful.

But now, fans have wondered whether the show will follow the graphic novel it is based upon as one person wondered on Reddit: “So in the comics, it’s an STD that over half the world contracts….but in this adaptation, it’s a super drug so that the show can reel in people who enjoyed The Substance?”

Fans will recognise some familiar faces including Amelia Gray Hamlin, Ari Graynor, Bella Hadid, Ben Platt, Billy Eichner, Isabella Rossellini, Jaquel Spivey, Jessica Alexander, Jon Jon Briones, John Carroll Lynch, Julie Halston, Lux Pascal, Meghan Trainor, Nicola Peltz Beckham, Peter Gallagher and Vincent D’Onofrio.

The Beauty is available to stream exclusively on Disney+ from January 22