fix

ITV viewers took to social media to complain after watching Jamie Redknapp on the Christmas special of Ant & Dec’s Limitless Win on December 27

Viewers of ITV were left divided on Saturday night (December 27) as they settled in to watch the Christmas edition of Ant & Dec’s Limitless Win.

The festive episode saw two unsuspecting members of the audience receive a delightful shock when they were called up to take on the Limitless ladder alongside celebrity partners.

Throughout the programme, mother-of-two Brooke teamed up with Amanda Holden, but her journey ended prematurely after getting stuck on merely five questions.

In contrast, former soldier Nigel was matched with footballing icon Jamie Redknapp, and their partnership proved far more successful. Their performance was so impressive that the pair managed to nail three questions in a row with perfect accuracy.

Among the challenges they tackled was: “How many holes does a standard golf course have?” to which they correctly responded 18.

They also encountered the question: “How many mm wide is a standard Lindt Lindor chocolate truffle?” For this particular challenge, the duo opted to use their advantage card, submitting one response whilst Ant and Dec provided another, with the system removing whichever answer was furthest from the truth, reports the Express.

Jamie and Nigel put forward 32 as their response, whilst the presenting pair underestimated with 28, which turned out to be spot on.

Their third perfectly accurate answer came when asked “How many stripes does Where’s Wally have on his T-shirt?” correctly identifying the number as 10.

However, after the tense scenes aired, viewers took to social media in droves to voice their frustrations over the perceived ease of the show’s questions, with many labelling it a “fix”.

One disgruntled viewer wrote: “P*** easy questions, such a fix” while another echoed the sentiment, saying: “Come on chaps, they have got through with the equivalent of asking what comes after C in the alphabet.”

A third chimed in: “The golf course question was a bit of a gimmie,” and a fourth jested: “Three exact answers in a row! Woahhhhh! [laughing emoji]”.

Meanwhile, another fan quipped: “Happy Christmas, the next question is… what is your house number? [cry-laughing emoji].”

After achieving an impressive hat trick, the amy vet decided to cash out with an impressive £30,000 in the bank, which left the guest almost in tears. He couldn’t help but thank Jamie for his help throughout the nail-biting game, as they walked out arm in arm.

The festive special arrives just weeks before the new series returns next month, as part of a double recommission announced earlier this year. Since launching in 2022, Limitless Win has given away over an astonishing £3.5million and has been streamed 13million times, reaching over 25 million viewers.

Ant & Dec’s Limitless Win is on ITV1 and ITVX

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

The recent strikes by the United States on alleged ISIL (ISIS) targets in northwest Nigeria have been presented in Washington as a decisive counter-terror response. For the supporters of the administration of US President Donald Trump, the unprecedented operation signalled his country’s renewed resolve in confronting terrorism. It is also making good on Trump’s pledge to take action on what he claims is a “Christian genocide” in Nigeria.

But beneath the spectacle of military action lies a sobering reality: Bombing campaigns of this nature are unlikely to improve Nigeria’s security or help stabilise the conflict-racked country. On the contrary, the strikes risk misrepresenting the conflict and distracting from the deeper structural crisis that is driving violence.

The first problem with the strikes is their lack of strategic logic. The initial strikes were launched in Sokoto in northwest Nigeria, a region that has experienced intense turmoil over the past decade. But this violence is not primarily driven by an ideological insurgency linked to ISIL, and no known ISIL-linked groups are operating in the region. Instead, security concerns in this region are rooted in banditry, the collapse of rural economies, and competition for land. Armed groups here are fragmented and motivated largely by profit.

The Christmas Day strikes appear to have focused on a relatively new ideological armed group called Lakurawa, though its profile and any connection to ISIL are yet to be fully established.

The ideological armed groups with the strongest presence in northern Nigeria are Boko Haram and the ISIL-affiliate in West Africa Province (ISWAP). The centre of these groups’ activity remains hundreds of kilometres from Sokoto, in the northeast of Nigeria – the states of Borno, Yobe and Adamawa – where insurgency has a long history. This begs the question: Why strike the northwest first? The logic is unclear.

Equally concerning is the uncertainty surrounding casualties. So far, we have no authoritative figures. Some social media accounts claim there were no human casualties, suggesting the bombs fell on empty targets. Security analyst Brant Philip posted on his social media platform X: “According to a private source familiar with the US operation against the Islamic State in Nigeria, several strikes were launched, but most of the individuals and groups targeted were missed, and the actual damage inflicted remains mostly unknown.”

Nigerian news platform Arise TV reported on X that locals confirmed the incident caused widespread panic; according to its correspondent, at least one of the attacks happened in a district that had not suffered from violence before. They also noted that the full impact of the attack, including whether there were civilian casualties, is yet to be determined.

Other social media accounts have circulated images alleging civilian casualties, though these claims remain unverified. In a context where information warfare operates alongside armed conflict, speculation often travels faster than facts. The lack of transparent data on casualties from the US government risks deepening mistrust among communities already wary of foreign military involvement.

Symbolism also matters. The attack took place on Christmas Day, a detail that carries emotive and political significance. For many Muslims in northern Nigeria, the timing risks being interpreted as an act of supporting a broader narrative of a Western “crusade” against the Muslim community.

Even more sensitive is the location of the strikes: Sokoto. Historically, it is the spiritual seat of the 19th-century Sokoto Caliphate, a centre of Islamic authority and expansion revered by Nigerian Muslims. Bombing such a symbolic centre risks inflaming anti-US sentiment, deepening religious suspicion, and giving hardline propagandists fertile ground to exploit. Rather than weakening alleged ISIL influence, the strikes could inadvertently energise recruitment and amplify grievance narratives.

If air strikes cannot solve Nigeria’s security crisis, what can?

The answer lies not in foreign military intervention. Nigeria’s conflicts are symptoms of deeper governance failures: Weakened security, corruption, and the absence of the state in rural communities. In the northwest, where banditry thrives, residents often negotiate with armed groups not because they sympathise with them, but because the state is largely absent to provide them with security and basic services. In the northeast, where Boko Haram emerged, years of government neglect, heavy-handed security tactics, and economic exclusion created fertile ground for insurgency.

The most sustainable security response must therefore be multi-layered. It requires investment in community-based policing, dialogue, and pathways for deradicalisation. It demands a state presence that protects rather than punishes. It means prioritising intelligence gathering, strengthening local authorities, and restoring trust between citizens and government institutions.

The US strikes may generate headlines and satisfy a domestic audience, but on the ground in Nigeria, they risk doing little more than empowering hardline messaging and deepening resentment.

Nigerians do not need the US to bomb their country into security and stability. They need autochthonous reform: Localised long-term support to rebuild trust, restore livelihoods, and strengthen state institutions. Anything less is a distraction.

The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera’s editorial stance.

The film tells the truth. The Lakers are not a good defensive team, evidenced by the sight of the NBA’s top guards blowing past Lakers defenders into the paint during a 10-game defensive swoon that ranks among the league’s worst.

Yet when coach JJ Redick shows his team the tape and then backs it up with the numbers, there’s still cautious optimism that the Lakers can improve.

“I don’t think there’s anybody in that meeting room that thinks we’re a good defensive team right now,” Redick said, “but I also don’t think there’s anybody in that meeting room who thinks we can’t be a good defensive team. We’ve got to get better.”

In the 10 games since LeBron James returned to the lineup, the Lakers have scored 121.8 points per 100 possessions, a significant increase in their offensive rating of 115.4 during the first 14 games of the season. While their offensive rating ranks fifth in the league during the last 10 games, their 120.9 defensive rating ranks 27th. It’s a dramatic increase from their previous 113.7-point defensive rating.

The most glaring issues are the team’s defense in transition and early in the opponent’s offense, Redick said. The Lakers give up 1.19 points per possession in transition, fifth-worst in the league.

Sunday’s game in Phoenix against the Suns, who scored 28 fast-break points against the Lakers on Dec. 1, will be a significant test as the Lakers (17-7) try to avoid their first losing streak this season.

Led by Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves — who is out for at least a week because of a left calf strain, the team announced Friday — and the 40-year-old James, the Lakers are not destined to be a fast team on either side of the court. They were outmatched against San Antonio’s dynamic backcourt led by the speedy De’Aaron Fox and Stephon Castle, who combined for 50 points Wednesday as the Spurs scored 27 fast-break points and knocked the Lakers out of NBA Cup contention.

Losses like that exposed the Lakers’ lack of speed on the perimeter, but the team also has shown flashes of excellence against the best guards. The Lakers held 76ers star Tyrese Maxey to five points on two-for-six shooting in the fourth quarter of the Lakers’ four-point win at Philadelphia on Dec. 7.

“It’s less of scheme stuff. A little more of urgency,” guard Gabe Vincent said. “A little more of doing all the little things. If you don’t do them, like I said, there are some great players in this league that will expose you.”

One of the team’s top defensive options is on the bench. Forward Jarred Vanderbilt has played only three minutes in the last 10 games. He entered the game against Philadelphia only after Jake LaRavia took a shot to the face that loosened a tooth.

Vanderbilt, an athletic forward, has been a consistent force on defense during his career but struggles to contribute on offense. While he impressed coaches with how hard he worked in the offseason to improve his shooting and ballhandling, Vanderbilt made only four of 14 three-point shots in the first 14 games. He averaged 5.6 rebounds per game before James returned to the lineup Nov. 18, pushing Vanderbilt to the bench.

Before the Lakers’ last game against the Suns, Redick said part of it was a numbers game with James’ return and felt the team would settle on a nine-man rotation. Vanderbilt had tasks he “needed to be able to do consistently to play” even before James returned, Redick said.

Spurs guard De’Aaron Fox, scoring against Lakers guard Luka Doncic, and teammates continually drove past their defenders during an NBA Cup game Wednesday at Crypto.com Arena.

(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

But making changes at that time was difficult, the coach acknowledged. The Lakers were in the midst of a seven-game winning streak. But they’re 2-3 in the last five games, which have laid their defensive struggles bare, and coaches are “looking at everything.”

“If this continues,” Redick said Friday, “he’ll definitely get his opportunities.”

After practice Friday, Vanderbilt stayed on the court shooting extra three-pointers with staff members.

Meanwhile, Reaves will be reevaluated in approximately one week, the Lakers said after practice.

The guard averaging 27.8 points, 6.7 assists and 5.6 rebounds has led the Lakers in total minutes played as the team weathered stretches without James and Doncic. Reaves responded with a career-best start. He is ninth in the NBA in scoring and could be on track to earn his first All-Star nod as he enters a critical contract decision this offseason.

Reaves will miss at least Sunday’s game at Phoenix, Thursday’s game at Utah and a Dec. 20 game at the Clippers. After another game at Phoenix on Dec. 23, the Lakers begin a stretch of five consecutive home games, starting with a marquee Christmas Day matchup against the Houston Rockets.

Etc.

The Lakers assigned guard Bronny James to the G League on Friday.