goodbye

Married At First Sight UK couple Sarah and Dean called time on their troubled marriage in an emotional commitment ceremony after weeks of tension, criticism, and viewer backlash over their rocky relationship

A dramatic exit rocked Married At First Sight UK as Sarah and Dean became the latest couple to quit the experiment following a tense and emotional commitment ceremony.

The pair’s relationship had been hanging by a thread for weeks, marked by awkward exchanges, lack of affection, and mounting viewer complaints over Sarah’s remarks about Dean’s weight.

During the ceremony, Sarah insisted she wanted to give their marriage “one more week,” telling the experts: “For me things have been moving positively… I want to see if romance develops. I think we’re at that point now. If I take a step back, I worry I’ll regret not trying.”

But her plea was met with firm opposition from the panel. Relationship expert Mel Schilling cut in, saying: “Sarah, I think you know how you feel. You’re clutching at straws here. We’re halfway through this experiment.”

READ MORE: MAFS couple admit ‘they can’t keep their hands off each other’ in giggly ceremonyREAD MORE: Married At First Sight UK’s Dean breaks silence on most awkward in-laws moment

Sex and relationships expert Charlene Douglas agreed, adding: “I think perhaps you’re making excuses. There isn’t any desire here at all. At what point do you call it quits? You’ve said the affection is too much. You’re both in denial.”

Paul C Brunson then chimed in on the whole situation, telling clashing Sarah and Dean: “We all see it.”

After a series of brutally honest interventions, Mel told the couple: “You two know what the smart thing to do is. You’re just not ready to say it.”

Initially, both Sarah and Dean wrote “stay” on their commitment cards, but changed their decisions after the confrontation.

Through tears, Sarah admitted: “I don’t want to hurt you anymore. I just don’t think we’re right for each other romantically.” Dean quietly replied: “Thank you for being honest,” adding that he “just wanted to be loved.”

Their relationship had been strained since the wedding day, when Sarah admitted she wasn’t physically attracted to Dean.

In one uncomfortable exchange, Dean asked if she had ever dated someone “overweight,” to which she bluntly replied: “No, never.” When asked what he could do to change that, she said: “Get some tattoos and lose some weight.”

Dean handled the comment with grace, later revealing he had “never been the boyfriend, always the best friend.”

However, Sarah’s behaviour drew much criticism from viewers, who accused her of fat-shaming and unforgivable disrespect.

Despite brief attempts to show a lighter side of their relationship, including honeymoon photos captioned “TV gave you the drama but here’s the real Maldives… fun, drinks & a lot of laughs”, tensions only deepened between Sarah and Dean.

Sarah later told the cameras: “I don’t think I can do this anymore,” before confirming their split at the ceremony.

Their departure brings an end to one of the show’s most turbulent marriages the show has ever seen, with both Sarah and Dean leaving the experiment in tears.

Follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads.

READ MORE: Maura Higgins says affordable £10 root spray ‘saves her life’ and covers grey hairs

Over the last decade or so, publishers of American genre fiction have borrowed a page from Hollywood’s playbook by essentially packaging novels like films, grafting together collaborators from two different A-lists: those that feature bestselling novelists and major celebrities. Large commercial rewards have been reaped from these crossbred literary partnerships. Bill and Hillary Clinton, to name just two examples, have both enjoyed bestsellers with big-time writing partners James Patterson and Louise Penny, respectively.

Now we have Reese Witherspoon, already a major force in American publishing, teaming up with Harlan Coben, one of the world’s biggest selling thriller writers, to create “Gone Before Goodbye,” a book that taps into our fascination with the follies of the impossibly rich at the same time that it ponders real questions about the ethics of social engineering via medical advances in organ regeneration.

Now, it must be said that book critics are cynical snobs by nature, and something like “Gone Before Goodbye,” which at first blush seems to have been a project drummed up in a talent agency conference room, is prone to be received with a derisory scoff and a stiff-armed shove from those who are just waiting to sink their teeth into the new Thomas Pynchon novel. But this is Harlan Coben and Reese Witherspoon we’re talking about here, two formidable talents whose track record for delivering smart entertainment is unimpeachable. “Gone Before Goodbye” is not some magpie creature patched together from shopworn thriller tropes, even if certain plot elements feel a bit much. Instead, what the two authors have delivered is a story that pulls the reader deep into a rarefied world where ethics are mere technicalities and the needs of the rich take precedence over petty trivialities like, say, morality.

The book’s protagonist, Maggie McCabe, a brilliant Army combat surgeon who, along with her husband, Marc, and their friend Trace, teamed up after college to create WorldCures Alliance, “one of the world’s most dynamic charities, specializing in providing medical services for the most impoverished,” working as field surgeons risking their lives on the front lines in Afghanistan and the Middle East. The trio once had big plans centered on the prototype of an artificial heart they designed, THUMPR7, which they were convinced would change the world by extending the lives of millions, rich, poor or otherwise.

When the book begins, these plans have been torn asunder: Marc, as it transpires, has been killed in a rebel attack on a refugee camp in Libya. Trace has gone missing along with the artificial heart prototype. And Maggie has lost her medical license due to a hiccup of bad judgment on her part. At loose ends and broke, Maggie, and the reader, are then swept into a strange adventure when a successful cosmetic surgeon named Evan Barlow approaches her with an offer to wipe out her family’s debts in exchange for Maggie committing to perform surgery for a client in Russia who is willing to pay her millions.

Off Maggie goes into the dirty world of the Russian oligarchy, in a city called Rublevka, “perhaps the wealthiest residential area in the world,” where a shady creep named Oleg Ragoravich, one of the 10 wealthiest and most reclusive Russian billionaires, has a job for her. It’s well below Maggie’s pay grade: Oleg wants augmentation mammoplasty for his mistress Nadia. Ragoravich is predictably oleaginous, a man with a file cabinet full of hidden agendas, but he is charmingly persuasive, and the money has already been wired into Maggie’s account. She is in before she even has a chance to back out.

Naturally, there is a great deal more involved than a simple boob job. Without giving too much away, Witherspoon and Coben in this novel have tapped into the wealthy’s obsession with using technology to foster super-agers. As the stakes get higher, the plot ripples out into larger and larger concentric circles that envelop Maggie’s life and everyone in it. But there is so much to take in while this happens, so much voyeuristic pleasure to be had as Maggie acclimates into an almost impossibly lush and lavish world that toggles between Russia and Dubai, the de facto playground for raffish oligarchs intent on bad behavior.

Witherspoon and Coben revel in the details. The plane that spirits Maggie from New York to Russia is a “full-size 180-seat Airbus A320 renovated for private use,” kitted out with a 65-inch contoured TV, a gourmet kitchen and a marble ensuite bathroom with an “oversize rain showerhead.” Ragoravich’s dacha is a “garish and almost grotesque” palace clad in marble that makes Maggie think of Versailles, but in a way that makes Versailles seem dumpy. Everything within is “not so much an attempt to classily suggest opulence and power as to batter you with it.” This is the kind of thriller that invites you into a gilded empyrean that compels you and repels you in equal measure.

The book’s plot mechanics hum along with great pace and verve, even if a few of its particulars are too far-fetched to swallow. With “Gone Before Goodbye,” the two authors deliver a fun ride into a shadow land where the rich are convinced that money can insulate them from everything, including their own mortality — even if they have to murder a few people to get there.

Weingarten is the author of “Thirsty: William Mulholland, California Water, and the Real Chinatown.”

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Bad Bunny fans drowned out memories of Hurricane Maria in one booming voice on the anniversary of the devastating storm.

Saturday was a concert for Puerto Ricans by Puerto Ricans to remind the world about the power of la isla del encanto — the island of enchantment.

“We’re not going to quit. The entire world is watching!” Bad Bunny thundered into his microphone as he looked into a camera streaming his last show in Puerto Rico this year to viewers around the world, concluding a historic 30-concert residency in the U.S. territory.

The crowd roared as thousands watching via Amazon Music, Prime Video and Twitch joined them, marking the first time Bad Bunny was streamed across the globe.

The residency was more than just a series of concerts. Saturday marked the end of an extended love letter that Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio sang to his homeland. He tapped into what it means to be Puerto Rican, to delight in the island’s beauty, to defend its land and fight for its people.

“This is for you,” Bad Bunny said from the rooftop of a famed Puerto Rican house installed at the concert venue as he raised his glass and the crowd raised their glasses in return.

‘We are still here’

Saturday marked the eighth anniversary of Hurricane Maria, which slammed into Puerto Rico as a Category 4 storm on Sept. 20, 2017.

An estimated 2,975 people died in the sweltering aftermath of the storm that crippled the island’s electric grid, leaving some communities without power for up to a year. Anger and frustration over the pace of reconstruction continues to simmer as chronic power outages persist.

In a report issued Sept. 11, the U.S. Office of Inspector General found that 92% of approved and obligated projects related to Puerto Rico’s crumbling grid were incomplete and that $3.7 billion of available funds had not been obligated.

“Over seven years after Hurricane Maria, FEMA does not know when Puerto Rico’s electrical grid will be completely rebuilt. The grid remains unstable, inadequate, and vulnerable to interruptions,” the report stated.

On Saturday, the number of estimated deaths was printed on the backs of T-shirts and written on Puerto Rican flags that the crowd waved.

“We are still emotional and carry the trauma of having gone through a horrible thing,” said Marta Amaral, 61, who attended Saturday’s concert. “Beyond the sadness and remembering the negativity of having gone through a traumatic event, this is a celebration that we are still here, standing.”

A surprise guest

At every concert this summer, Bad Bunny invited new celebrities — among them LeBron James, Penélope Cruz, Darren Aronofsky, DJ Khaled and Kylian Mbappé — and sang with different musicians, including Rubén Blades, Residente, Gilberto Santa Rosa, Rai Nao and Jorge Drexler.

But Saturday, the noise from the crowd hit new levels as Bad Bunny rapped with Puerto Rico heavyweights Ñengo Flow, Jowell y Randy, Dei V and Arcángel and De la Ghetto. Thousands of fans flexed their knees in unison to thumping rap and reggaetón.

Then, the crowd gasped in disbelief as Marc Anthony appeared on stage after Bad Bunny pleaded with his fans to join him because he was going to sing a song he hadn’t sung in public in some 20 years.

“Yo te quiero, Puerto Rico!” the crowd cried as the two singers embraced at the end of the iconic “Preciosa,” whose lyrics say, “I love you, Puerto Rico.”

‘An emotional night’

Thousands gathered outside the concert venue Saturday hours before the concert, with Puerto Rico’s national flower, the flor de maga, tucked behind their ears and the traditional straw hat known as a pava set at a jaunty angle on their heads.

But not all were celebrating.

Darlene Mercado milled around, asking strangers if they knew of anyone with tickets she could buy for herself and her daughter, who had flown in from New Jersey.

They were around number 122,000 in a virtual waiting line to buy tickets for Saturday’s sold-out concert and weren’t able to get any after waiting eight hours online.

“This is not only the anniversary of the hurricane, but it’s also the anniversary of me no longer having cancer and it’s my birthday. We wanted to celebrate everything with a bang,” Mercado said.

Saturday’s concert was open only to residents of Puerto Rico, as were the first nine concerts of Bad Bunny’s residency, but the others were open to fans around the world.

Overall, the concerts attracted roughly half a million people, generating an estimated $733 million for Puerto Rico, according to a study by Gaither International.

Most foreign visitors came from the Dominican Republic, Colombia and Spain, with an average stay of nearly nine nights, the study found. Overall, about 70% of concertgoers were female, with an average age of 33, according to the study.

Among those attending was Shamira Oquendo. “It’s going to be an emotional night,” the 25-year-old said, noting that Hurricane Maria was her first hurricane. “It was very sad. A lot of people around me lost their things.”

‘Yo soy boricua!’

Puerto Rico’s party with Bad Bunny ended early Sunday, but the superstar who recently clinched 12 Latin Grammy nominations will go on a worldwide tour in December, with concerts planned in Costa Rica, Mexico, Brazil, Australia, Spain, France and Sweden. Notably, he is skipping the mainland U.S., citing concerns over the federal government’s immigration arrests.

On Saturday, Bad Bunny thanked his fans for their love.

“I’m going to miss you a lot. I’m going to miss this energy,” he said as he urged the crowd to embrace love no matter the situation.

At that moment, friends and family in the crowd began to hug one another, some with tears in their eyes.

After more than three hours of singing with Bad Bunny, fans were not quite ready to let go. As the crowd filed down the stairs and into the night, one man yelled, “Yo soy boricua!” and the crowd responded, “Pa’ que tú lo sepas!”

It’s a traditional cry-and-response yell that lets people around them know they’re Puerto Rican and proud of it.

Coto writes for the Associated Press.

CORONATION Street star Adam Hussain has broken his silence after quitting the soap.

The 24-year-old, who played Dev and Sunita Alahan’s son Aadi for five years, insisted it’s “not goodbye forever”.

2

2

The ITV actor joined Corrie in 2020 when he took over from Zennon Ditchett, who had already played the character for ten years.

He announced his plans to leave in April this year – and has now revealed he’s landed a role in a new feature film.

In a video message shared by Coronation Street, Adam says: “I just want to say thank you so much to everyone for watching Aadi on Corrie over the years.

“These past five years have been so educational and such an experience.

“I’ve made friends that will last a lifetime.

“And I’ve grown not just as an actor, but as a person as well.

“But I just want to say that it’s not goodbye forever, more like a see you later.

“And if you want to keep watching me, then I will be around in other stuff so keep your eyes peeled.”

In an interview with the Mirror, Adam – who has been auditioning for new roles since filming his final scene in June – said: “I want to spread my wings a little, go out in the big world and see what else I can do.

“I am really excited as I’ve got a new role in a horror feature film. I can’t say too much yet, but I am looking forward to it.

“It’s very relieving to know I can always return whenever I want to.

“And they’ve told me the door will always be left open if I ever want to come back.”

He was flooded with support from fans in the comments.

One said: “Such a huge talent… all future tv and film dramas should count themselves very lucky that he is now available!”

Another added: “Wish you were staying! Your character had so much potential and would have loved to see your journey but wish you well in the future.”

Someone else wrote: “You are an amazing actor so we hope to see you back on TV very soon. All the very best buddy.”

It’s an end of an era as Neighbours cast members film their final scenes of the Australian soap opera as cast member break their silence on the show ending after four decades

Neighbours has officially wrapped with the cast filming their last day at at Nunawading studios.

This chapter of the iconic Australian soap opera will be brought to a close in December 2025, celebrating over 40 years of entertainment, heart, and history.

Amazon had previously saved the soap in 2022 with it returning the following year, but sadly the deal has now come to an end.

Cast members have been sharing their memories of the soap which recently turned 40, with Paul Robinson actor Stefan Dennis saying: “I never thought a single show would give me the greatest adventures of my career, spanning 40 years.

“Without Neighbours I would not have meet the people, been to the places and lived the experiences of a lifetime. Thank you all.”

Susan Kennedy actress Jackie Woodburne continued: “It’s impossible to measure the gratitude I feel for the gift of 30 years on Neighbours.

“To do so I would have to calculate the number of extraordinary cast and crew I have been privileged to work with, count the number of laughs I have shared with them, measure the pride I feel for the diverse, dramatic (and sometimes outrageous!) storytelling we have all been a part of.”

“We are the best version of ‘family’. It has been a wild ride into a happy life. Wouldn’t change it for quids!”

Alan Fletcher, who play Karl Kennedy, added: “Neighbours has been my happy place for over 30 years. I will always treasure the creative freedom and enthusiasm amongst the whole team that has allowed us to produce a brilliant show for so long.”

Candice Leask, who plays Wendy Rodwell, explained: “It took me 10 years and five auditions to land the role of Wendy Rodwell.

“The three years playing Wendy and being on Neighbours has changed my life, not only as an actor but also as a person. The people that I have gotten to know so closely from production to crew to cast have allowed me to see how amazing this industry can be.”

Executive Producer, Jason Herbison, said: “Neighbours is a special show and it’s been a privilege to make the recent seasons for our loyal viewers around the world. We have added 460 episodes to our legacy of over 9000 episodes, something we all feel proud of.

“Once again, we will be resting the residents of Ramsay Street on a hopeful note, with some tantalising possibilities for a future chapter.”

Neighbours is available to stream on Amazon Freevee

James Martin confirmed that ITV’s Saturday Morning would be taking a break with him and the rest of the crew for the summer holidays

James Martin has announced he’s taking a well-deserved break from his popular ITV cooking show, Saturday Morning, as he and the team enjoy some summer downtime.

Wrapping up today’s episode, the celebrity chef expressed his gratitude: “That’s all we have got time for today, a massive thank you to all of my guests.”

He gave a shout-out to his culinary squad: “My food team, you can sleep better now. Daniel and Sally, and of course, Harry Redknapp and Carly Paoli.”

James then revealed the season’s end: “That is also for the series. Me and the crew are heading off on sunny holidays. Different climates.”

In a light-hearted exchange with one of the crew, James inquired about holiday destinations, learning that one was off to Portugal, while he himself would be heading to Yorkshire, reports Devon Live.

He promised viewers more culinary delights upon their return: “Yorkshire for me. But we will be back here with more top chefs, other brilliant guests, and more delicious recipes later on in the year.”

Signing off, James wished everyone a splendid summer: “Until then, thanks for watching. Have a wonderful, fantastic summer. I’ll see you out there wherever you are.”

He concluded with a friendly farewell: “Thanks for watching, see you again soon, goodbye for now.”

Earlier in the show, James had informed the audience of a shorter episode due to the Derby broadcast on ITV1: “Because of the Derby on ITV1 this afternoon, it is a shorter episode than usual today. But we still have time for one more dish,” he explained.

During a segment filmed in Italy, James even joked about retiring there after tasting a local chef’s traditional fish dish, much to the delight of viewers.

“Can I just say if your two sons don’t want to do this, you call me,” he offered.

He then laughed and mused over an enticing possibility: “I might retire here. I could be over there, I could be doing this, it is fantastic.”

James Martin’s Saturday Morning is available to watch on ITVX.

United States President Donald Trump has bid goodbye to Elon Musk at a White House event marking the billionaire’s departure from his role in government.

Speaking from the Oval Office on Friday, Trump showered Musk with praise for his work as the head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), an initiative to reduce federal bureaucracy and spending.

“ I just want to say that Elon has worked tirelessly helping lead the most sweeping and consequential government reform programme in generations,” Trump said.

He credited Musk with delivering “a colossal change in the old ways of doing business in Washington” and called Musk’s service “without comparison in modern history”.

Still, the president also assured reporters that DOGE would continue its work even after Musk is gone.

“With Elon’s guidance, [DOGE is] helping to detect fraud, slash waste and modernise broken and outdated systems,” Trump said.

The joint appearance comes as the two men seek to downplay reports of a growing rift, particularly after Musk criticised Trump’s signature budget bill on CBS News. It also coincides with the publication of a New York Times report alleging that Musk has struggled with increasing drug use and personal turmoil behind the scenes.

Musk declined to comment on the Times report during his Oval Office appearance. He also avoided remarking on speculation that his departure was connected to tumbling sales at his car company, Tesla.

Instead, he pointed out that, as a special government employee, he cannot work in the Trump administration for a period exceeding 130 days without facing stricter disclosure and ethics requirements.

He also focused on promoting his work with DOGE and criticising those on the political left who would impede Trump’s agenda.

“This is not the end of DOGE, but really at the beginning,” Musk said, clad in a black T-shirt emblazoned with the phrase “The Dogefather”, written in the style of the gangster film The Godfather. “The DOGE team will only grow stronger over time.”

Trump, meanwhile, emphasised that his relationship with the billionaire – a prominent backer of his 2024 re-election campaign – would continue.

“Elon’s really not leaving. He’s going to be back and forth, I think,” Trump said.

Unclear accounting

Despite White House claims about its efficacy, the extent of DOGE’s cost-savings has remained foggy.

As of Friday, the panel claimed it had achieved an estimated $175bn in savings, made up of “asset sales, contract/lease cancellations and renegotiations, fraud and improper payment deletion, grant cancellations, interest savings, programmatic changes, regulatory savings, and workforce reductions”.

But DOGE’s transparency and methodology have been repeatedly questioned. The only accounting made available to the public adds up to less than half of the claimed figure.

An analysis published on Friday by the news agency Reuters also suggests the actual sum is much lower. Using US Treasury summaries, Reuters found that only $19bn in federal spending had been cut, though it noted that some savings may require more time to be reflected in the Treasury Department’s data.

Regardless, all of those figures fall far short of the goal of $2 trillion saved that Musk initially set out to achieve.

When asked about the discrepancy on Friday, Musk maintained that $1 trillion in savings remained a long-term goal.

“I’m confident that over time, we’ll see a trillion dollars of savings, a reduction – a trillion dollars of waste and fraud reduction,” he said.

But critics have questioned if DOGE will continue with the same verve following Musk’s departure.

Musk and DOGE have long been lightning rods for public criticism, as they implemented sweeping changes to the federal government. Since Trump started his second term as president in January, organisations like the US Agency for International Development (USAID) have seen their funding cut and their staffing slashed.

As a result, employees, contractors, labour groups and state officials have sued to block DOGE’s efforts, with varying levels of success.

Behind the scenes, there have also been reports that Musk clashed with members of Trump’s cabinet, who may seek relief from cuts to their departments after Musk’s exit.

Musk’s foray into government has caused blowback for his companies as well, with protests at Tesla dealerships spreading across the country. Profits plunged 71 percent at Tesla in the first three months of the year, with shareholders calling for Musk to return to work.

When asked by a reporter if Musk’s time in government was “worth it”, he was circumspect. He explained that he felt DOGE had become seen as a “boogeyman”, blamed for any effort to overhaul the federal government.

But he reaffirmed his commitment to being a “friend and adviser to the president” and said the experience was worthwhile.

“I think it was. I think [it] was an important thing,” he added. “I think it was a necessary thing, and I think it will have a good effect in the future.”