baby

Brace yourself, Coronado. The hospitality maven who brought San Diego its most over-the-top maximalist hotel — the Lafayette in North Park — is back with another glitzy project, this time in the wealthy island city known for its traditional bent.

Opening Thursday, Baby Grand includes a 35-foot faux rock wall, a 20-foot waterfall, a Mediterranean restaurant that feels like a Greek ruin being consumed by a jungle and a hidden oyster bar full of crystal and mirrors. All of this, including the Spanish statuary, Moroccan fixtures and Murano glass, is squeezed onto an Orange Avenue lot that once held a 1950s motel. If Liberace had run away with an art historian, they might have landed here.

The idea was “to create this little mirage within the mirage that is Coronado,” said Arsalun Tafazoli, founder of CH Projects, the group behind a multitude of design-intensive establishments across San Diego including the speakeasy Raised by Wolves, the hi-fi listening bar Part Time Lover and the Middle Eastern restaurant Leila.

The Baby Grand hotel and its restaurant Night Hawk stands along Orange Avenue about a block from the Hotel del Coronado.

The patio dining area of Coronado’s new Night Hawk includes seating for about 150.

Baby Grand’s high-density, high-gloss environment, which cost about $17 million and took about five years to complete, will come as no surprise to those who have followed Tafazoli’s earlier ventures.

Asked about the design philosophy behind the 2023 renovation of the Lafayette — the company’s first hotel — Tafazoli had a simple answer: “More is more.”

The Baby Grand project, put together in collaboration with design studio Post Company, is cut from the same cloth, describing itself as a “polychromatic pastiche” on its website. The goal, Tafazoli said, is to enrich Coronado’s culture and give people a respite in an anxiety-ridden time. But “it is different,” he said. “I don’t know if it is going to be embraced.”

Getting the necessary city permissions “was definitely a struggle,” Tafazoli said. “Had I known how difficult this was going to be, I don’t know …”

In the days before the hotel’s opening, Tafazoli, 44, led a tour of the site. The entrepreneur, whose heritage is Persian, wore his hair in braids and a button-down Supreme shirt featuring Barack Obama.

The Baby Grand hotel’s guest rooms feature separate tub and shower.

“I have a very one-dimensional existence. I’m single. I have no kids. This is what I do,” said Tafazoli, who grew up in San Diego and studied at UC San Diego. He lives now in downtown San Diego’s East Village, where his company is based and where his first CH venture, Neighborhood, opened in 2007.

Though his company started with eating and drinking establishments, Tafazoli said, his goals were always to create and run hotels, “the pinnacle of hospitality.” As a child of divorce, he said, he may have a heightened awareness of when the energy feels right in a room and when it doesn’t. Creating social environments, he said, gives him some control over that. Moreover, he added later, “beauty is important to me, because it conveys care.”

To make the most of Baby Grand’s compact location (2/3 of an acre), the CH team has exported parking. Instead of leaving their cars on site, guests will hand keys to valets who will deposit vehicles in a Bank of America parking structure a block away. That move freed up space for not only palm trees, torches, tables, booths and 21 pieces of statuary from Spain, but also a little faux beach with a 4-foot-deep wading pool that can hold a handful of people.

“I can’t tell you how many iterations of sand were brought in and taken out,” Tafazoli said. “Sand is its own universe. You want local sand. But local sand was not conducive to that feeling.” So the sand is from Turkey.

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1. Guest shower in an en suite bathroom. 2. Hotel design touches include guest bathroom door handles. 3. Fiberglass clamshells serve as headboard in guest rooms.

The property’s main restaurant, Night Hawk, is Mediterranean, with cooking by open fire, a Greek ruins vibe and seating for about 150. The second restaurant lurks behind the lobby — a hidden oyster-and-Champagne bar that holds about 35 people, reservation only. The space, called Fallen Empire, features red mohair booths, built-in Champagne buckets, mirrored walls and chandeliers, sconces and lamps from the Italian glass-blowing island of Murano. The floor is a custom mosaic of sea creatures.

There are 31 guest rooms, beginning at $350 per night. Each is dominated by a custom-made clamshell headboard (fiberglass). Beds are surrounded by animal-print seating, parquet oak flooring, marble tables, mirrored cabinets and custom wallpaper. The rooms measure roughly 300 square feet each, nearly half of that space taken up by their elaborate bathrooms, each with separate tub and shower, sinks from Morocco.

Now picture all of that placed in the heart of Coronado (population 20,192), which sits next to Naval Air Station North Island and is known for attracting well-heeled retirees. The median home value is $2.5 million.

Up the block from the Baby Grand is the grand dame of San Diego County tourism, the Hotel del Coronado, which went up in 1888, completed a $550-million renovation last year and starts its rates north of $600. Another option is the Bower Coronado, also a dramatically upgraded motel that reopened in 2025 with prices similar to Baby Grand’s but a much more buttoned-down style.

This view from above at the Night Hawk restaurant space shows a stone booth, elaborately patterned cushion and table top.

All of those properties stand close to Coronado’s wide, sandy beaches — which means they all face challenges as waters are often fouled by the northward flow of untreated sewage from greater Tijuana. The longstanding problem has worsened in recent years, and Coronado’s Central Beach was closed to bathers on 129 days in 2025 because of unsafe bacteria levels. The U.S. and Mexican government say they have sewage-treatment projects in progress, with improvements expected by the end of 2027.

“We are, unfortunately, not marine scientists just a group of deeply overcaffeinated hoteliers with strong opinions about lighting, linen textures, and good design. So please check local water conditions before swimming,” Tafazoli wrote in a statement.

Asked his target market for the new hotel, Tafazoli said he was looking close to home.

“I see this as a staycation for locals” from San Diego County, Tafazoli said. “The big risk is that we don’t get locals and it doesn’t resonate with tourists who like the status quo.”

That said, Baby Grand and Coronado might be a better match than some imagine. Christine Stokes, executive director of the Coronado Historical Assn. and Museum, sees at least a few parallels to Baby Grand in local history, beginning with the historical association’s own building. From the 1950s into the 1990s, Stokes noted in an email, Marco’s Restaurant operated in the space, with a “Roman Room” bar — “a dark and immersive hidden gem where bartenders performed sleight-of-hand magic tricks.”

Guest rooms, including No. 103, are labeled with inscribed brass clamshells.

Then there was the Hotel del Coronado’s Circus Room restaurant, open from the 1930s into the 1960s. That was “an immersive environment, using specialized murals and striped tents on the walls,” Stokes wrote. It’s also where, in 1950, the manager of an L.A. TV station spotted a promising young piano player and decided to give him a chance on screen. The pianist’s name was Liberace.

However people respond to the particulars of the new hotel, Tafazoli said, he knows that the larger setting of Coronado is a special place.

From his office in San Diego’s East Village, “it’s a six-minute drive,” he said. “I come off that bridge, and I feel like I’m in a different place.” It’s amazing, he said, “to be so close and feel so far away.”

Trading Places aired on Channel 5 this weekend with dramatic scenes, as luxury-loving sugar baby Saffron broke down in tears.

Channel 5’s brand new series Trading Places got off to a dramatic start, with emotions running high from the very first episode.

The show takes a fresh group of young people each week, plucking them from their comfort zones and dropping them headfirst into a completely different way of life.

On Sunday night (May 10), viewers watched as self-confessed shopaholics Saffron, Umar, and Bridie swapped their lavish lifestyles for a 1960s-inspired, off-grid existence in Cornwall.

Things quickly became overwhelming for Saffron, however, when the reality of her new surroundings hit home upon arrival.

The moment she stepped into their accommodation with her suitcase in tow, the 26-year-old broke down in tears, reports Wales Online.

She commented: “I can’t do this, I don’t like any of it. I don’t want to do this anymore. No, I really don’t want to do this anymore. It’s too much, I can’t.”

Farm resident Babu stepped in to comfort a distressed Saffron, who struggled to articulate just how overwhelming she found the whole experience. She added: “The bees, the walking, the climbing. I’m not used to quiet at all.”

With some gentle encouragement from Babu, Saffron ultimately decided to stick it out and embrace farm life. Throughout the episode, viewers also gained a fascinating insight into her life back home.

Speaking candidly to the camera, she revealed: “I am a sugar baby. A sugar baby is basically a companion. When I have a long-term sugar daddy, then the items per month would be a few Chanel handbags or a few Christian Louboutins.

“The men that I’ve dated, they’ve always looked after me, I’m just a 24/7 princess, so I don’t know what life is without that.”

Saffron explained to the group at the farm that their relationships remain platonic, focusing primarily on conversation rather than anything physical.

After a difficult beginning, Channel 5 audiences witnessed a transformation in Saffron as she threw herself into producing fresh organic apple juice for sale at a farmers’ market.

The 26 year old became emotional later in the programme when discussing the bullying she endured in her younger years, though the experience appeared largely beneficial for her overall.

Reflecting as the episode concluded, she admitted: “The biggest challenge of this week has been the whole bl***y week! I know that everyone thought I was going to leave day one, myself included, but no, I stayed the week! I’m not proud of myself this week, no.”

She continued candidly: “I’m going to be real, I think there’s a lot more I could’ve tried, but there was so much emotion that kept coming over me every time in every single activity, I was finding bits of myself that I’d hidden for so long.”

Trading Places is available to watch on Channel 5.

Beanie Feldstein and Bonnie-Chance Roberts are expecting a baby, the “Booksmart” actor and her wife announced Monday on social media.

“Limited Edition Scouse Beanie Baby coming soon!!” the couple said in a joint Instagram post, captioning a carousel of pictures showing Feldstein with and without her wife, both dressed in shades of pink and white, plus a white-frosted cake ringed with the pink inscription “B+B are having a baby.”

Anyone want to place a bet on whether it’s a girl?

The “Beanie” in the baby caption is self-explanatory, while “Scouse” is a reference to the accent in Roberts’ Liverpool home town.

Feldstein and film producer Roberts, who met in 2018 during preproduction on the 2019 movie “How to Build a Girl,” made their red-carpet debut at the movie’s premiere and then got married in June 2023. The wedding festivities spanned two days in New York’s Hudson Valley and incorporated a summer camp theme.

Feldstein told Vogue at the time that the ceremony’s outdoor and rustic nature was inspired by “our happy place together.” The “Lady Bird” actor grew up going to summer camp and said her family has a history of finding love in those childhood spaces.

“To get married at a camp was a truly beautiful emotional homecoming,” she said.

Friends including Whitney Cummings, Kaitlyn Dever, Ben Platt, Olivia Wilde, Uzo Aduba, Joey King and Monica Lewinsky chimed in with glee in comments on the joint post.

“Luckiest baby,” wrote Wilde, who directed “Booksmart.” “And I’m finally a grandma!!!!”

Times staff writer Alexandra Del Rosario contributed to this report.

NEW YORK — John Sterling, the longtime New York Yankees radio broadcaster known for extravagant, individualized home run calls, died Monday. He was 87.

Sterling had undergone heart bypass surgery this winter and after the procedure was attended to by health care aides at his home in Edgewater, New Jersey. He died Monday at Englewood Hospital, according to his former wife, Jennifer.

“John Sterling breathed life and excitement into Yankees games for 36 years while wearing his passion for baseball and the Yankees on his sleeve,” the team said in a statement. “He informed and entertained generations of fans with a theatrical and unapologetic style that was uniquely his own. John treasured his role as the voice of the New York Yankees, and his enthusiasm for the art of broadcasting perfectly complemented our city and our fans. The symmetry between John and his audience was both undeniable and magical, and his signature calls will resonate for as long as we put on pinstripes — especially after every Yankees win.”

He had called 5,631 games — 5,420 regular season plus 211 postseason — when he retired in April 2024 just after the season’s start, citing fatigue. Sterling broadcast 5,060 consecutive games from September 1989 through July 2019 after beginning with the Yankees as a pregame host. He came out of retirement to broadcast Yankees games during the 2024 postseason.

Sterling’s call for a player’s home run became as treasured a part of a Yankees identity as an initial set of pinstripes or a championship ring. As rookies prepared for debuts and former opponents arrived in trades, fans speculated how he would label the newcomer’s first longball.

From “Bernie goes boom! Bern, baby, Bern!” for Bernie Williams, to “It’s a Jeter jolt!” for Derek to “It’s an A-bomb from A-Rod!” for Alex Rodriguez, “The Giambino!” for Jason Giambi and ”A thrilla from Godzilla!” for Hideki Matsui, Sterling created personal stamps resonating from the clubhouse to the bleachers.

“It wasn’t meant that way. I just happened to do something for Bernie Williams. He hit a home run and I said, `Bern, baby, Bern!′ And it kind of mushroomed from there,” Sterling said at the time of his retirement. “But it never was intended for every player, because, frankly, I’m not smart enough to do something for every player. But I did the best I could, and it’s amazing what started out as — became so big.”

“I did say `A-bomb from A-Rod!′ when he hit a home run and I did say: `Robbie Canó, don’t you know,′ and I think those were pretty good,” Sterling said of calls for Rodriguez and Robinson Canó.

Born Josh Sloss on July 4, 1938, Sterling grew up in Manhattan and left college to work for radio stations. He had wanted to be a broadcaster since hearing “The Eddie Bracken Show” in the 1940s.

“I didn’t want to be Eddie Bracken. I wanted to be the guy who says: `Live from Hollywood!’” Sterling said. “And I knew that maybe a year or two later, but before puberty I knew I was going to be on the air. And it really helped me because I didn’t worry about school, because I knew what I was going to do. And it was a good thing because I was a terrible student — terrible.”

He started his radio career in 1960 at a station in Wellsville, New York.

“I was preparing this all my life. It was easy,” he said. “I could always open my mouth and talk.”

Sterling cited Mel Allen, Russ Hodges and Jim Karvellas as influences. He wound up joining Allen in the history of memorable Yankees broadcasters along with Red Barber, Phil Rizzuto, Bill White and Frank Messer.

Sterling announced the NBA’s Washington Bullets and Morgan State football in his early years and gained notoriety for shrieking “Islanders goal! Islanders goal!” during the hockey team’s games from 1975-78. He broadcast for the NBA’s Nets from 1975-80.

Sterling’s first connection with the Yankees was during WMCA pregame radio talk shows from 1971-78. He moved to Atlanta and worked for the Braves from 1982-87 and Hawks from 1981-89 before switching to the Yankees, where he replaced Hank Greenwald.

Sterling was seldom in the clubhouse and dressed in Brooks Brothers suits even though he was on the radio.

He partnered with Jay Johnstone (1989-90), Joe Angel (1991), Michael Kay (1992-2001), Charley Steiner (2002-04) and Suzyn Waldman (since 2005). Sterling and Waldman were inducted into the New York State Broadcasters Hall of Fame in 2016.

He was married to the former Jennifer Contreras from 1993 to 2004. In addition to her, he is survived by triplets Bradford, Derek and Veronica, and daughter Abigail.

Sterling was proud of his unique style.

“Harry Caray told me some years ago,” he recalled in 2024 of the famous Chicago Cubs and White Sox broadcaster, “and he says, ‘John, all the guys are great. We just have different styles.’ And no one has a more different style than I have.”

BBC fans are urging everyone to watch Half Man with Richard Gadd’s next drama hailed as “phenomenal”.

“Gruesomely compelling” Half Man has arrived and it’s already been labelled “incredible” by Baby Reindeer fans.

Richard Gadd ’s new six-part drama Half Man may have made its BBC iPlayer debut last week but many viewers have only just watched the first episode which aired on BBC One last night, Tuesday, April 28.

The gritty series follows the lives of mild-mannered Niall (played by Jamie Bell) and fierce Ruben (Richard Gadd), exploring their complicated 30-year friendship.

Described as an “explosion of violence”, Half Man kicks off with an intense moment between the men at Niall’s wedding before taking fans back to when they were teenagers.

Baby Reindeer creator Gadd not only stars in the drama but is the mastermind behind Half Man with fans loving his latest dysfunctional hit.

“If Baby Reindeer” left us in shock, I think #HalfMan even more so…the first episode was incredible!”, a fan posted on X.

A second echoed: “I’m shocked. If this is just the first episode, I don’t dare to think about what will happen in the others.”

“Gave me a heady mix of revulsion and discomfort… but in a good way?”, a third remarked.

Someone else labelled it “phenomenal”, before writing: “Can’t fault this. The writing, acting and filming are all excellent.

“I’ve only seen one episode so far but I’m totally hooked.”

A user said they were “obsessed” with Half Man and Euphoria season three, another commented, “Can’t wait to go mentally insane over this”, while a fan simply ordered: “Everyone go watch Half Man.”

Scoring 76% on Rotten Tomatoes, the six-part drama will continue to air episodes first on BBC iPlayer every Friday, followed by a BBC One release every Tuesday night.

The official synopsis for episode two reads: “1989. Niall is struggling at university when he invites Ruben to join him and his flatmates for freshers’ week

“ What begins with excitement ends in devastating consequences.”

Half Man is available to watch on BBC One and BBC iPlayer

NICOLA Roberts has revealed she underwent secret surgery at 22 weeks into her pregnancy.

The Girls Aloud singer, 40, is currently expecting her first child with fiancé Mitch Hahn and is set to give birth in the coming months.

In a new post, Nicola shared a myriad of pictures from the last week, and revealed she had actually recovering after undergoing a medical procedure.

Sharing that she had surgery to “keep the baby in” at 22 weeks, Nicola didn’t expand on what had gone on, but did say she was in recovery mode.

The singer wrote to her page: “Some pics I took this week.. Hasn’t it been so nice to really feel spring..

“I’ve been under instruction not to do much since I had the surgery at 22 weeks to help keep baby in.

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“Hitting that 34 week mark was a big relief. I now only have a few weeks left. Safe to say, this last bit is not the easiest is it?!

“In one breath, it will be nice to feel more comfortable again but I will also really miss my bump and having this tiny little thing in there”.

In her carousel of pictures, Nicola snapped a selfie in bed with a hot drink as she displayed her blossoming bump.

Whilst another showed the Moses basket she has prepared ahead of the little one’s arrival, with other snaps giving a glimpse into the pregnant star’s relaxed week at home.

Nicola didn’t reveal which surgery she had undergone or why, but there are several procedures which can be carried out mid-pregnancy to prevent problems further down the line.

The singer revealed on Christmas Day that she was set to become a mum for the first time.

At the time, she said in a sweet post: “Mitch and I have had the most magical Christmas Day sharing the most precious news with our families.

“We’ve been keeping a secret. We are five months pregnant!

“We can’t wait to meet our little one in the spring.”

She has been dating businessman and semi-professional footballer Mitch since 2022, with the pair getting engaged two years later.

In April, she reunited with her Girls Aloud co-stars and a number of famous pals for a Bridgerton themed baby shower.

She will have no doubt been getting some parenting advice from her fellow bandmates, who are all doting parents themselves.

Eddie Murphy is celebrating not just his lifetime achievement award, but also the arrival of his third granddaughter, perhaps the funniest baby alive.

Murphy’s son Eric and Martin Lawrence’s daughter Jasmin have welcomed their first child together, baby Ari Skye.

On Saturday, Murphy was honored with the 51st AFI Life Achievement Award at a gala in Hollywood and told reporters that he had recently celebrated back-to-back milestones.

“I just had my first grandson two months ago, and I had my third granddaughter two weeks ago. And I turned 65 a month ago,” he told “Entertainment Tonight” ahead of the gala. “It’s raining blessings on me.”

The ceremony celebrated his storied career across comedy and film, and featured tributes from fellow funnyman Dave Chappelle and “Shrek” co-star Mike Myers. The special will premiere May 31 on Netflix.

The “Dr. Dolittle” star also gushed about his new grandbaby to E! News, and told the outlet that being honored for his work was “a wonderful thing” but that his legacy wasn’t his work.

“My legacy to me is my children,” he said.

Asked whether he or Lawrence offered their kids any parenting advice as they prepared to welcome Ari Skye, Murphy said he’s more of a lead-by-example kind of dad.

“You don’t give advice like that,” he told the outlet. “Your kids don’t go by your advice. Your kids go by the example you set. They watch you. Stuff you be saying, they don’t even pay that no mind. They watch and see what you do.”

In March, Jasmin and Eric posted photos from their lavish baby shower on social media. The shindig included a three-tiered pink cake, pink cocktails garnished with meringue that looked like clouds and balloons galore. “The most beautiful and special celebration for our baby girl,” the couple captioned the post. “Thank you to our parents and everyone that made this day so magical! Ari Skye Murphy, you are SO loved already!!”

Excitement around Ari Skye’s arrival had been brewing in the media long before the couple even announced they were expecting. Murphy joked about a potential grandbaby when Jasmin and Eric were dating back in 2024, during an interview with Gayle King.

“They’re both beautiful,” he said. “They look amazing together. And it’s funny — everybody’s like, ‘That baby gonna be funny!’ Like our gene pool is just going to make this funny baby.”

Murphy agreed, saying: “If they ever get married and have a child, I’m expecting the child to be funny.”

JENNIFER Aniston has shown support for her ex Justin Theroux after he welcomed a baby with his younger wife.

The actor, 54, and his other half Nicole Brydon Bloom, 32, became parents for the first time on Saturday with the arrival of their baby boy.

The couple took to Instagram to share a black and white photo of the tot lying on his dad’s chest.

They captioned it: “He’s here. We are so in love.”

As hundreds of their fans flocked to like and comment on the post, one of the well-wishers was his ex-Jennifer, 57, who showed her subtle support by pressing like on it.

The Hollywood star didn’t comment but her like shows she’s happy for her ex as he celebrates this milestone moment in his life.

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It was confirmed back in December that Justin and Nicole were expecting their first child.

The pair got married in a secret ceremony on a beach in Tulum, Mexico in March last year.

Pictures published by TMZ, showed Justin in a cream jacket and black bow tie kissing Nicole, who looked great in a backless white wedding dress.

The bride went barefoot on the sand and at one point was twirled around by smitten Justin.

The couple began dating in early 2023 but didn’t go official until December of that year.

They got engaged in Summer 2024 in Italy, while Justin was on the promo trail for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice at the Venice Film Festival.

The pair posed for pictures at the glitzy event and a huge diamond ring could be seen glistening on Nicole’s finger.

The actress is the daughter of late journalist David Bloom who died from a blood clot in 2003 while covering the Iraq war.

Justin and Jennifer first met in 2007, before beginning their relationship in 2011.

They married in 2015, announcing their split two years later and their subsequent divorce.

“This decision was mutual and lovingly made at the end of last year,” the two shared in a statement.

“We are two best friends who have decided to part ways as a couple, but look forward to continuing our cherished friendship.”

Justin eventually opened up to the New York Times about the divorce, saying, “The good news is that was probably the most — I’m choosing my words really carefully — it was kind of the most gentle separation, in that there was no animosity.

“Again, neither one of us is dead, neither one of us is looking to throw hatchets at each other…. It’s more like, it’s amicable.

“It’s boring, but, you know, we respected each other enough that it was as painless as it could be.”

He added: “It was heartbreaking, only in the sense that the friendship would not be the same, as far as just the day to day.

“But the friendship is shifting and changing, you know, so that part is something that we’re both very proud of.”