Graham Norton

The singer, whose real name is Darina Yotova, said at a press conference after her win: “I want to thank my husband, because he was the one to push me to come to Eurovision.

Because in the beginning I was not sure if I want to come or not, because I had anxiety and doubt with myself, and he was the one that he just pushed me, and he was like, ‘you need to go right now to Eurovision, right now, pick up your phone tell them you’re going’.”

The Eurovision Song Contest is back once again and viewers around the world will be looking forward to their annual fix of the international music competition when it all kicks off this week

The Eurovision Song Contest is back once again – with several acts from around the world ready to wow viewers in the hopes of winning the international competition.

Last year, JJ won for Austria with Wasted Love, meaning that this year, all the action takes place at the Wiener Stadthalle in Vienna, with Cosmó taking the reins for the country’s capital city with Tanzschein.

In total, 35 countries will take part in the semi-finals whilst 25 will make it to the grand final of the whole thing, which will take place on Saturday 16 May. For the United Kingdom, YouTube star LookMumNoComputer will be on hand with Eins, Zwei, Drei, following on from entrants of recent years like Sam Ryder, Mae Muller, Olly Alexander and Remember Monday.

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With current bookies’ odds of 5/4, Finland look set to become victorious this time round. The song is titled Liekinheitin, and it will be performed by violinist Linda Lampenius and singer-songwriter Pete Parkkonen.

Speaking about the track, the pair told The Independent: “The story behind this song is actually quite deep and sad. It’s about when you get involved with someone and let them fall in love with you, but when they get too close, you turn ice cold.

“The protagonist in Liekinheitin can either be seen as the victim of someone’s behaviour, or as a person who becomes addicted to other people, even when they know that the relationship will never evolve. It symbolises the passion these two people are experiencing, but it’s also the desperation that could kill you.”

Hot on their heels is Greece, with bookies giving the country odds of 6/1 after it was announced that Akylas will be representing them with the track Ferto. Over the years, Finland, who have competed a total of 58 times since debuting in 1961, have finished in last place on 11 occasions and won in 2006 with Hard Rock Hallelujah, which was performed by Lordi.

Just one year before their victory, Greece won with Helena Paparizou, who performed the track My Number One four years after she initially finished in third place with Die For You when she was part of the Eurodance duo Antique alongside Nikos Panagiotidis.

For the UK, odds vary drastically from 33/1 all the way to 250/1 – implying that the current entry is set to fall rather low down in the pecking order.

The semi-finals will kick off on Tuesday 12 May at 9pm on BBC One and will be hosted by Rylan Clark and Angela Scanlon, who will return to front the second heat at the same time on Thursday evening. Over on the radio, Sara Cox will be on hand with her commentary at the same time, and will also occupy a Wednesday slot from 4pm to 7pm.

Friday will see Murder on the Dancefloor singer Sophie Ellis-Bextor head up Eurovision Kitchen Disco for BBC Radio 2 from 9pm to 11pm, and will be back at 1pm on Saturday afternoon for Your Ultimate Eurovision Superstar! She will follow on from Dermot O’Leary, who will take to the airwaves from 8am until 10am and celebrate the song contest with his Radio 2 show.

Everything will come to a head at 8pm on Saturday 16 May when Graham Norton will be back to provide coverage as one country will be crowned the latest champion of the contest. International viewers may be able to stream the contest on its official YouTube channel but, in the UK, it remains exclusive to BBC One.

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Graham Norton’s ITV series The Neighbourhood has been pulled from its primetime slot less than a fortnight since its launch and will be replaced by repeats

Graham Norton’s ITV series The Neighbourhood has been pulled from its primetime slot less than a fortnight since its launch. The presenter, 63, is front and centre on the broadcaster’s new gameshow format in which real-life households have gathered in a purpose-built neighbourhood to be in with a chance of winning a £250,000 cash prize.

There were clearly high hopes for the series as it premiered in between both segments of the explosive I’m A Celebrity…South Africa final on April 24, and has been airing at 9pm on Thursdays and Fridays ever since, where it has managed to pull in just half a million viewers.

But now, new schedules have revealed that, going forward, the programme will air at 10.45pm which takes it away from the coveted slot it was initially given, implying that it has not lived up to expectations in terms of viewing figures.

READ MORE: ITV’s bid to lure Graham Norton away from BBC ‘backfires’ after ‘shock’ new show ratingsREAD MORE: Graham Norton explains why he’s breaking Terry Wogan’s famous rule at Eurovision

This Thursday, viewers tuning in at 9pm will instead see a repeat of Davina McCall’s Long Lost Family, and an episode of Beat The Chasers: Celebrity Special, which was initially aired in 2021, will be shown instead. A spokesperson for ITV confirmed the schedule shift as they said said: “The full box set of The Neighbourhood is now available to stream on ITVX. Additionally, the show will continue to air in an evening slot on ITV.”

But sources have claimed that whilst the broadcaster pulled out all the stops to make the programme into a hit, it just hasn’t gone that way in the end. An insider told The Sun: “They threw everything at The Neighbourhood to make it a big success, but it’s ended up a bit of a damp squib.”

The six households competing are The Bradons, The Kandolas & Samra, The Lozman-Sturrocks, The Pescuds, The Scouse Haus and The Uni Boys. Challenges put every neighbour to the limit as they try and eliminate one another without becoming unpopular enough to get the axe themselves.

Opening up on his first reaction when he saw the entirety of the set, Graham said: “Arriving in Derbyshire and seeing the set, I’d seen pictures but I didn’t quite understand the scale of it. It really is like being on a movie set, except it’s 360 – everywhere you look, it’s real.

“The art department did an extraordinary job of building up that town square where we do the removals, the pub, the cafe, the interiors of the houses. It really took my breath away!

“It made it even more exciting. I thought – this is serious! We’re making a big show. Then add on top of that, what Derbyshire does when the drone goes up and we see the Neighbourhood and the nature and the rest of it, it’s so beautiful, those big driving shots. It’s just gorgeous.

BAFTA award-winning broadcaster Graham continued: “One of the loveliest things about the show is seeing households who would never meet in real life, not only meeting but forming proper bonds of friendship. There are a few moments in the show that really do bring a tear to my eye because it’s just so genuine, so lovely and properly heartwarming.

“It’s such an odd word to describe a show like this but it’s properly wholesome. There’s something about the bright colours, being out in the countryside and the genuine bonds that you see created.”

The Neighbourhood is available to watch on ITVX

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The Neighbourhood is an ever-revolving door as another household will be moving into “KeepYourEnemies” Close.

The Neighbourhood’s latest residents have opened up on the real reason they want to win the massive cash prize.

Situated in the stunning Peak District, Graham Norton’s family-friendly reality game show returned tonight, Sunday, April 26, where another household was brutally kicked off.

But their home won’t be empty for long as three sisters from Bradford, known as The Khans, are moving in, describing themselves as “competitive and tactical”.

Community engagement worker Maryam, 24, is the eldest of the three, followed by Oxford University student Iman, 21, and 19-year-old Tara who is an aesthetics practitioner.

Despite their “feisty” personalities, they shared with ITV why they wanted to star on The Neighbourhood and for them, it’s all about providing for their loved ones.

Iman explained: “We’d want to help out our family. Like we said, we’re from a single-parent household and my mum as of now is a carer for our nan.

“I think even for my mum to have a bit of money to do whatever she would want to do with it.

“She has always spent her time, her energy and her own money on us and my nan.

“If she wants to splash it on a holiday or get a new house, buy a car – genuinely just invest it in her.”

Tara then went on to elaborate that they would want a “more accessible house”.

She continued: “We currently live in a four-storey house, so it’s a bit tricky getting about if you’ve got mobility issues.

“If we win the £250,000 then we’ll definitely use it on a more accessible house.”

The Neighbourhood fans are going to have to wait a little while longer before they get to see how the Khans fare in the show though.

While the ITV series has been airing consecutively over the past few nights, The Neighbourhood will be taking a break, returning on Thursday, April 30.

The Neighbourhood is available to watch on ITV and ITVX.

The Neighbourhood has arrived and a new family has already moved into the area.

The Neighbourhood welcomes another household after one family was kicked out of the cul-de-sac in an unexpected exit.

After all of the drama that went down in I’m A Celebrity last night, Friday, April 24, a new show has landed on ITV to fill that void.

Graham Norton’s The Neighbourhood has debuted with its second episode airing this evening, Saturday, April 25, introducing a new household with big plans.

Who are the Campbell Grahams?

Moving into The Neighbourhood with the remaining five families are the Campbell Grahams, made up of Donna, Ken and Thai.

Mum Donna, 43, is a firefighter with her 20-year-old daughter Thai working in hospitality and catering.

Donna is married to 43-year-old youth mentor and sports coach Ken and they’ve got major plans for the cash prize even before stepping into “KeepYourEnemies Close”.

“We are looking to move to Thailand, so that would help”, Donna told ITV when asked about the £250,000 prize pot.

Ken agreed: “I want to retire in Thailand and open my own chip shop in Thailand.”

However, not everyone seems to be on board with this plan as Thai jokingly exclaimed: “Oh my God – no one is going there, I’ll tell you that for free! It’s going to have one star on the food rating.”

Describing themselves as “happy, funny, genuine and competitive”, the Campbell Grahams shared that they don’t have a game plan.

Ken said: “We just want to enjoy the experience”, with Donna adding: “And be ourselves.

“That’s our strategy, to go in and be ourselves.”

Although Thai might not entirely agree it’s all about having fun as she admits she “can’t stand losing”.

Last night, one household’s journey in the Peak District came to an abrupt end.

The Kandolas and Samra house received the most votes and were eliminated from the show, forcing them to move out of the idyllic cul-de-sac for good.

So how will the Campbell Grahams fare when they move into the area tonight?

The Neighbourhood is available to watch on ITV and ITVX.

Claudia Winkleman explains it was a very emotional moment when she left Strictly Come Dancing with Tess Daly last year

They will be watching the new series of Strictly Come Dancing together. But Claudia Winkleman says she and Tess Daly decided to bow out from the BBC show because they worried about becoming complacent in their roles.

No one ever doubted the pair loved BBC’s ballroom series. But speaking in-depth about their decision to leave, Claudia says she started to see signs that they needed to go ahead with their pact to quit at the same time.

“You want to leave on a high,” says Claudia. “And you want to leave when you are loving it. We were tiny cogs in this huge sparkly, glittery thing. We were tiny as we had props guys holding Eiffel Towers, the amazing band, the dancers, the costume and hair and make-up and everything else and the lighting.

“We thought it was time to leave. Years earlier they said Gloria Estefan was playing in Blackpool and we were like ‘I cant believe it’. I phoned my husband and said ‘I have to practice the Conga’.”

By then end of their run though, even big names and learning new dances were commonplace. She explains: “We thought it was time to leave. You know, not that I was not excited at the end, but both of us were a bit like ‘Oh yeah…cool. Alright, so then I do that…(routine)’.

“It deserves ‘new’ (change). But what shocked me was, we did the last live show. All week was like ‘We are fine’ but I could not stop crying as it has been my entire life. You know sometimes when you decide something like ‘Let’s move house’. Then you pick up the final box. Not that you have done something wrong but it just feels big.”

For Strictly’s launch in 2026, it will be all change in terms of hosts but also with some things still be the same. Claudia and Tess will be together, but snuggled up away from the cameras.

“Tess and I have already planned. We are having jacket potatoes and I am having the salmon. She is coming to ours, her and Vern(husband Vernon Kay). I am not joking. I am going to set her up with a nightie and we are going to watch and support and love it.”

For many years now, pretty much every TV show Claudia Winkleman has touched turned to gold.

Her Strictly Come Dancing stint on the main show for 15 years, hosting The Traitors and now huge spin off hit Celebrity Traitors too, as well as smaller shows like The Piano which won critical acclaim for Channel 4.

For her other major project The Traitors, Claudia says it requires very different skills compared to fronting Strictly, where she says a lot of the credit should go to Tess.

“Tess did all the heavy lifting on Strictly and I am grateful for it. But on Traitors I had to be strict. I was worried about that. I am in life a cheerleader like if my kids fill the dishwasher I am like ‘Lets film it’. So I am a cheerleader and I am able do that on Traitors when they do the missions. I want to feed them chocolate as I am on their side.

“But I have to get a bit strict like when my kids have not done their homework. I love the game so much so that is how I have to be. The producers did tell me to push it.”

Whilst she will continue to front the series, she admits it has made her more thoughtful about lying and deceit in real life.

“Traitors makes me cry. I am not that harsh. I want the traitors to win and the faithful to get them in equal measure. Also it is a lot of money if it is for charity or for them individually.

I have learned a lot of things that I wish I had not. It has made me realise there is no such thing as gut instinct. It is all about what you tell yourself afterwards. And I have learnt you can know the truth but you can persuade people to follow you and that makes me heartbroken. Will I do a children’s version? No.”

After referencing her kids, Claudia, at a charity Q&A event, is asked more about her own family.

She has been married to film producer Kris Thykier since 2000, and they have three children: Jake, Matilda, and Arthur. But there appears to be no risk of nepo babies in the Winkleman household.

With a grin Claudia says: “I told them to nepo up. One wants to work in hospitality, one wants to be a doctor and one wants to be a chemist. I said ‘I can navigate you work experience’ and they were like ‘No thanks mum.’ They are not interested in film (husband’s work) like they say ‘Not unless it comes in a test tube’. So no. That is not what they have asked for.”

Claudia was giving a rare interview to TV director Ben Winston at St John’s Wood Synagogue in London in aid of Lira Winston Fellowships, which focus on identifying and nurturing Jewish school educators

Asked about her thoughts on rising anti semitism, she said: “How do I navigate the industry? The industry itself does not feel anti-Semitic to me. That is my experience. But the growing anti-Semitism and the growing Islamophobia and racism that we see everywhere is really, really terrifying I suppose.

“I don’t want to say terrifying in front of my kids, but it is worrying. And that is why it is so important that we have got to look after each other and people from other communities.”

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