Jones

Ben Jones, the actor best known for portraying trusty mechanic Cooter Davenport on “The Dukes of Hazzard” before serving two terms in Congress as a representative from Georgia, has died. He was 84.

Jones died Sunday of a heart attack at his home in Virginia, his wife, Alma Viator, said on social media.

“I lost the love of my life today,” Viator wrote on Facebook. “Ben passed from a massive heart attack. He was home resting in his favorite chair waiting for the Braves to come on and whoop the Yankees. Ben had the most amazing rich full life. He loved and was loved by so many. He will be missed. I loved him so so much.”

A character actor whose earliest credits include films such as “Together for Days” (1972) and “Moonrunners” (1975), Jones’ break came when he landed the role of “Crazy Cooter” Davenport on the CBS action comedy “The Dukes of Hazzard.” The series, which aired from 1979 to 1985, primarily followed close-knit cousins Bo (John Schneider) and Luke Duke (Tom Wopat), as well as those in their orbit in the fictional Hazzard County, Georgia.

“The Dukes of Hazzard lost another integral part of their cast today,” Wopat wrote in his tribute to Jones on Instagram. “Ben Jones was a fine friend and a fierce advocate of all the best things we can offer in the entertainment business. He will be sorely missed… Denver Pyle frequently said to Ben, ‘I’m not your Uncle Jesse!’ But I feel like we lost a Duke cousin today.”

Initially introduced as a gruff wild man without much regard for the law, Davenport eventually settled into a loyal, fun-loving “honorary Duke” beloved by fans. The mechanic would often help repair the show’s signature vehicle, an orange 1969 Dodge Charger known as General Lee.

Despite mixed reviews from critics — former Times television critic Howard Rosenberg denounced it in 1980 as “a spittoon of a series about hotrod-speeding, card-carrying hicks somewhere in the South” — “Dukes” was one of the most-watched television shows of its time. Jones would return to play Davenport after his political career in the TV films “The Dukes of Hazzard: Reunion!” and “The Dukes of Hazzard: Hazzard in Hollywood,” where the character was also revealed to have ventured into politics as a congressman.

Born Aug. 30, 1941, in Tarboro, N.C., Jones grew up in Virginia and North Carolina before eventually attending the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, to study writing. He was open about his struggles with alcohol and told The Times in 1993 that he had been sober since 1977.

After his time on “Dukes,” Jones was persuaded to run for office, challenging a popular Republican incumbent, Pat Swindall, for his seat representing Georgia in the U.S. House of Representatives. Though he lost his first attempt in 1986, Jones won their rematch two years later after Swindall had been indicted for perjury in relation to a money-laundering scheme. (Swindall was later convicted.)

Jones, a Democrat, served two terms representing Georgia’s 4th Congressional District before redistricting took his seat. He later attempted to challenge then-Rep. Newt Gingrich for his seat but lost in the primary. He ran for office again after moving to Virginia, challenging Republican incumbent Eric Cantor for his seat in 2002 but was again unsuccessful.

“I think there are a lot of similarities between politics and entertainment, even more so with the advent of television,” Jones told The Times in 1993, shortly after leaving office. “It’s all about communication.”

Proud of his Southern heritage, Jones was also known for his controversial defense of the Confederate flag, which he described in a 2015 essay published by the New York Times as “a symbol of a non-racist Southern spirit” that had been “appropriated and desecrated” by racists.

Jones is survived by Viator, his fifth wife; his three children, Rachel, Jeanne and Walker; three stepchildren and 10 grandchildren, according to the New York Times.

Sept. 7, 1994–Former Rep. Ben Jones (D-Ga.), who was running against Rep. Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.), files a complaint alleging that Gingrich used tax-exempt groups for political purposes.

Dec. 6, 1995–House Ethics Committee decides the allegations merit further inquiry.”

Dec. 22–James M. Cole is hired as special counsel to the Ethics Committee to investigate the conduct of Gingrich.

Sept. 26, 1996–The Ethics Committee expands its investigation to include whether Gingrich supplied the panel with accurate, reliable and complete information” when questioned about links between his partisan activities and tax-exempt organizations.

Oct. 1–The Ethics Committee requests additional information regarding apparent discrepancies between the facts of the case and information supplied by Gingrich.

Dec. 21–Gingrich admits the violations in a signed statement. He says he did not intentionally mislead the committee and should have sought legal advice about avoiding the mix of tax-deductible contributions and partisan activities.

Jan. 7, 1997–With few votes to spare, the House votes 216-205 to retain Gingrich as speaker.

Jan. 17–After 5 1/2 hours of televised hearings, the Ethics Committee votes 7-1 to recommend that the House reprimand Gingrich and orders him to reimburse $300,000 of the cost of its investigation.

Jan. 21–The House of Representatives votes 395-28 to follow the Ethics Committee’s recommendations, reprimanding Gingrich for bringing discredit on the House by using tax-exempt money to promote Republican goals and then giving the committee untrue information for its inquiry. It is the most severe rebuke leveled on a presiding officer of the House in its 208-year history. It is unclear if Gingrich is supposed to reimburse the House with campaign or personal funds.

April 17–Gingrich announces he will pay a $300,000 ethics penalty with a loan from former Sen. Bob Dole, ending the saga 31 months after the investigation began.

Ongoing–The Internal Revenue Service is still investigating whether tax-exempt organizations provided money to finance Gingrich’s political activities and the college course he taught.

ALEX Jones, 49, has revealed that she hurled four pints of milk across her kitchen in a perimenopause rage as she deals with ‘perimenopause “delayed symptoms.”

Speaking on the Dig It with Jo Whiley and Zoe Ball podcast Alex explained that she was slighly in denial about being in that stage of her life.

When Zoe asked her if she was perimenopausal yet, she replied: “I don’t know, I mean am I? I don’t know.

“I’m slightly in denial, I suppose I had my youngest child at 44 and so I don’t know whether my body is confused because have I tricked it into thinking it’s younger than it is?

“Because I kind of think I really haven’t had that many symptoms.

“But then when I threw a four pint of milk accross the kitchen the other day, I thought oh my God here we are. The rage has started.”

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Alex continued: “So you know what I don’t know. Some days I think and it’s like that isn’t it?

“It’s so vague and thankfully and I think this is brilliant, we are talking about it more and more now.”

Perimenopause refers to the period leading up to menopause, during which the ovaries gradually produce less oestrogen.

It typically begins in a woman’s early to mid-40s but can start earlier or later, and may last from a few months to 10 years 

Alex also revealed that she’s normally a calm person and wants to be the best mother, wife, friend and colleague that she can be.

She said: “Maybe I do need to embrace and go and see about it. It’s just time though, like when do you fit that in?”

Alex shares children Teddy, nine, Kit, seven and Annie, four, with her husband Charlie Thomson.

Charlie is an insurance broker, originally from New Zealand and the pair first met at a party back in 2011 and four years later announced their engagement.

The happy couple tied the knot in 2015 and celebrated their 10th wedding anniversary in Auckland last year.

Mohamed Salah edging towards a move to Trabzonspor, Bayern Munich keen on Manchester United striker Benjamin Sesko and Man City boss Enzo Maresca wants to work with Chelsea winger Pedro Neto again.

Egypt forward Mohamed Salah, 34, is close to joining Turkish side Trabzonspor despite having verbally agreed to join Besiktas after leaving Liverpool this summer. (Foot Mercato), external

Bayern Munich remain interested in signing Manchester United striker Benjamin Sesko, 23, as the Slovenia forward will allow England’s Harry Kane, 33, to play a deeper role in the future. (CF Bayern Insider), external

Aston Villa and England defender Ezri Konsa, 28, is interested in a move to Arsenal. (Caught Offside), external

Man City boss Enzo Maresca wants to work again with Chelsea winger Pedro Neto, with City exploring a move for the 26-year-old Portugal forward valued at £70m. (Sun), external

Chelsea and Tottenham have joined Newcastle in the race to sign Atalanta centre-back Giorgio Scalvini, 22, with the Magpies prepared to open with a £34m bid for the Italy defender valued at £42m. (Sun), external

Liverpool midfielder Curtis Jones is ready to push for a move to Inter Milan after a deal worth 25m euros (£21m) was rejected for the 25-year-old, but discussions remain ongoing over a package worth around £30m that would match the Reds’ valuation of the England international. (Teamtalk), external

Paris St-Germain have stepped up their pursuit of Ajax winger Mika Godts, who is valued at £52m, with Premier League sides Arsenal, Liverpool, Manchester United and Tottenham all being informed of the 21-year-old Belgium forward’s growing interest. (Teamtalk), external

Chelsea forward Joao Pedro, 24, is set to receive a new contract despite his current deal running until 2032, following previous interest from Barcelona in the Brazil international. (The Athletic), external

Manchester United are unlikely to sign Everton attacker Iliman Ndiaye, 26, with Al-Hilal willing to pay the £75m that the Toffees want for the Senegal international. (Football Insider), external

Fulham are interested in making a move for Republic of Ireland striker Troy Parrott, 24, from Eredivisie side AZ Alkmaar, but face competition from Ajax, PSV Eindhoven, Real Betis and Como. (Talksport), external

Benfica striker Franjo Ivanovic is close to joining Hull City after talks began over the terms of a deal that will likely see the 22-year-old Croatia forward join initially on loan. (Record), external

AC Milan make Ethan Nwaneri contact, Inter Milan increase Curtis Jones bid and Cristian Romero explores Spanish move.

AC Milan have been in contact with Arsenal over a potential deal for English winger Ethan Nwaneri, 19. (Corriere dello Sport – in Italian), external

Inter Milan are willing to pay £30m for England midfielder Curtis Jones, but Liverpool value the 25 year-old at £35m. (Mail), external

Inter Milan’s move for Tottenham‘s Cristian Romero has stalled over his personal terms and the Argentina defender’s representatives are now exploring a move to Spain, with Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid all interested in the 28-year-old. (Teamtalk), external

Real Madrid have no plans to increase their latest renewal offer to Vinicius Jr and are open to selling the Brazil forward, 26, if he does not agree a new contract. (ESPN), external

Newcastle United are closing in on the £25m signing of Czech Republic goalkeeper Lukas Hornicek, 24, from Braga. (Talksport), external

Hull City face a fight to secure the signing of Neom’s Amadou Kone as Leeds and West Ham are among the other clubs interested in the Ivorian midfielder, 21. (Teamtalk), external

West Ham are looking to sign English winger Morgan Whittaker, 25, from Championship rivals Middlesbrough before the start of the new season. (Talksport), external

Middlesbrough are finalising an agreement to sign USA wing-back Max Arfsten, 25, from Columbus Crew in a deal worth up to £5.6m. (Goal), external

Wolves have rejected a bid from Real Sociedad for Czech Republic centre-back Ladislav Krejci, 27. (Fabrizio Romano), external

Real Madrid confident in securing a deal for Manchester City‘s Rodri, Inter Milan could rekindle move for Liverpool‘s Curtis Jones and Aston Villa have bid for Palmeiras forward Allan rejected.

Real Madrid are confident of signing 30-year-old Spain midfielder Rodri – who has one year left on his contract with Manchester City – for 40-50m euros (£34m-£43m) and a deal could be finalised after a meeting on Thursday. (AS – in Spanish), external

Inter Milan could rekindle their efforts to sign England midfielder Curtis Jones, 25, from Liverpool. Meanwhile, the signing of England centre-back John Stones, 32, on a free transfer could scupper 28-year-old Argentina defender Cristian Romero’s hopes of joining the Italian club from Tottenham. (Gazzetta dello Sport – in Italian), external

Juventus have agreed a deal with Paris St-Germain to sign France striker Randal Kolo Muani from the French champions. The move is for a loan with an obligation to buy and the fee could reach 50m euros (£43m) with add-ons. (Sky Sports Italia – in Italian), external

Brentford are close to signing Lens and Mali midfielder Mamadou Sangare, 24, as a replacement for Jordan Henderson. (Evening Standard), external

Aston Villa have had a 30m euro (£26m) offer for Brazilian forward Allan, 22, rejected by Palmeiras. (ESPN), external

Hull City are in talks with Aston Villa to sign 28-year-old Jamaica winger Leon Bailey on a permanent transfer. (Sky Sports), external

Fulham are getting closer to signing Spanish duo Cesar Palacios, a 21-year-old attacking midfielder, and 22-year-old Gonzalo Garcia, who is a striker, from Real Madrid, where new Cottagers boss Alvaro Arbeloa had a stint as manager last season. (Athletic – subscription required), external

Nottingham Forest have had a 20m euro offer for 21-year-old Israel international Anan Khalaili, who can play as a right-sided wing-back or winger, rejected by Belgian club Royale Union Saint-Gilloise. (Athletic – subscription required), external

Manchester United are open to selling 22-year-old Czech goalkeeper Radek Vitek and English defender Harry Amass, 19, while English midfielders Toby Collyer, 22, and Dan Gore, 21, are also surplus to requirements. (Mail – subscription required), external

Nottingham Forest are in line to sign Portuguese midfielder Gustavo Sa from Famalicao, with the 21-year-old then expected to move to Greek side Olympiacos on loan. (Athletic – subscription required), external

Crystal Palace‘s move for Augsburg’s 24-year-old French defender Chrislain Matsima has stalled and the Eagles are looking at other targets. (Standard), external

Ipswich Town are eyeing a move for Standard Liege’s English defender Henry Lawrence, 24, who previously played for Chelsea. (Football Insider), external

Britain’s Francesca Jones made it back-to-back wins on the Challenger Tour by successfully defending her title at the Palermo Ladies Open.

The top seed beat Fiona Ferro 6-0 4-6 7-6 (8-6) in two hours and 43 minutes.

Jones, who had dropped one set all tournament, took the opener in just 21 minutes.

The 25-year-old then fought back from 3-0 down to lead 4-3 in the second, but Ferro reeled off three straight games to level the match.

A tight deciding set went all the way to a tie break, where the French seventh seed spurned match point at 6-5, allowing Jones to close out victory.

It was her fourth career win on the Challenger Tour and second in eight days, following a victory at the ATV Rome Open.

“We both deserved to win. It was a close match until the end, and we did everything we could,” said Jones, who beat Anouk Koevermans of the Netherlands to win the title in 2025.

Bradford-born Jones will rise from 113 to 110 in the WTA rankings on Monday following this success.

CHICAGO — Jonquel Jones had 22 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists, helping Caitlin Clark and Team Spoon outlast Marina Mabrey and Team Coop 129-122 in the WNBA All-Star Game on Saturday night.

Dominique Malonga had a first-half dunk for Team Coop, but Team Spoon had eight players score in double figures in an All-Star Game that featured 127 three-point attempts and very little defense. Allisha Gray had 19 points for Team Spoon, and Clark finished with 17.

The WNBA celebrated its 30th season by holding its first All-Star Game in Chicago since 2022. This time, the marquee event was played in front of a record crowd of 19,783 at the United Center instead of the smaller Wintrust Arena in downtown Chicago, a sign of how much the league has grown.

Jones, a 32-year-old center for the New York Liberty, was named MVP. Nneka Ogwumike scored 11 points for Team Spoon while passing Maya Moore (119) for the most career points in All-Star Game history.

Kelsey Mitchell had 28 points for Team Coop, and Mabrey scored all of her 23 points during a red-hot first half. Malonga finished with 12 points and 13 rebounds.

WNBA greats Cynthia Cooper and Teresa Weatherspoon drafted the All-Star teams from players that were either voted as starters by fans, media and fellow players or chosen as reserves by the league’s coaches. Las Vegas’ Becky Hammon coached Cooper’s team, and Minnesota’s Cheryl Reeve was in charge of Weatherspoon’s squad.

Clark went 5 for 15 from beyond the arc and had five assists in her return to the All-Star game. The Indiana Fever guard missed last year’s event in Indianapolis because of a groin injury.

The 24-year-old Clark came out firing, connecting from 33 feet and 37 feet on her way to 11 points in the first 2 1/2 minutes. She buried another three early in the second quarter off a slick no-look pass from Minnesota Lynx guard Olivia Miles, the only rookie selected for the game.

Clark and Mabrey each put on an offensive show, but Malonga got the biggest cheer of the night. The 6-foot-6 center from the Seattle Storm ran down the lane, got a pass from Angel Reese and threw down a right-handed jam with 6:24 left in the first half.

Reese jumped up and down as Malonga finished the play, and the two exchanged a mid-air chest bump on their way back down the court.

It was the first dunk in a WNBA All-Star Game since Sylvia Fowles in 2022. Lisa Leslie (2005), Jones (2017), Brittney Griner (2019) also have accomplished the feat.

Leslie was on hand for the festivities, along with South Carolina coach and former WNBA guard Dawn Staley. Former NBA star Dwyane Wade also was courtside.

Cohen writes for the Associated Press.

Inductees into the National Baseball Hall of Fame by definition have plenty of marvelous memories when reflecting on the career accomplishments that led them to Cooperstown.

Bumps in the road were inevitable as well.

One big bump for Jeff Kent and Andruw Jones came with the Dodgers in 2008, Kent’s last of 17 MLB seasons and Jones’ first following 12 years with the Atlanta Braves.

Suffice to say neither will enter the Hall of Fame wearing a Dodgers cap.

Kent signed with the Dodgers ahead of the 2005 season fresh off a National League Championship Series Game 7 loss with the Houston Astros. Already recognized as perhaps the top power-hitting second baseman of all-time, he yearned for a championship ring to make his career complete.

Jones, a center fielder from the Caribbean island of Curaçao, signed a two-year, $36-million contract with the Dodgers at age 31 only three years removed from leading the National League with 51 home runs and 128 runs batted in. Already the winner of 10 Gold Gloves, he also was chasing a title after losing twice in the Fall Classic.

“It’s one of those things where we didn’t sign to make the Hall of Fame, we played this game because we love it and because we wanted to win championships,” Jones said Friday.

The Dodgers had high expectations in 2008. Joe Torre, with four World Series championships as manager of the New York Yankees on his resume, was in his first year in L.A. The roster was a blend of accomplished veterans (Nomar Garciaparra, Greg Maddux, Derek Lowe and midseason pickup Manny Ramirez) and budding stars (Matt Kemp, Russell Martin, Andre Ethier, James Loney and midseason call-up Clayton Kershaw).

Kent was the resident no-nonsense, old-school veteran whose bat remained potent at age 40. Near the end of the previous season he had gone public with his frustrations about the approach of some of the young players.

“A lot of kids in here, they don’t understand that … you hate to waste an opportunity, even if it’s one and even if it’s your first time,” he said at the time. “It’s hard to get them to understand that because they haven’t been there.”

By spring training in what he acknowledged would be his final season, Kent had gotten over it and was ready for a last try.

“So much is made of the idea that we should be hugging, that we should all go out to dinner, but more important is the translation of talent and knowledge, with the older guys showing what they know and the younger ones asking for it,” he said.

Jones was expected to lock down center field and provide leadership. But a poor start and a midseason knee injury torpedoed his performance. He batted .158 with three home runs and 14 RBIs in 75 games and suffered torn cartilage in his right knee that required surgery and landed him on the disabled list for the first time in his career.

Kent, as always, was consistent at the plate, batting .280, but he also sustained a knee injury that required arthroscopic surgery and sidelined him for all of September.

In what could have been a legit postseason opportunity, Jones did not play and Kent came off the bench to go 0 for 9 during an NLDS sweep of the Cubs and five-game loss to the Phillies in the NLCS.

Kent will wear a Giants cap into Cooperstown. His six seasons playing alongside Barry Bonds vaulted him into the conversation as the best-hitting second baseman of all-time. He drove in more than 100 runs eight times, was NL MVP in 2000 and finished his career with 55.4 wins above replacement (WAR).

In a video call with reporters Wednesday, Kent made it clear that his heart belongs not to San Francisco or L.A., but to Austin, Texas, where he lives on a ranch.

“I’m a boring guy,” he said. “I chase grandkids and chase cows and ride motorcycles. When I retired I kind of went into my hole in Austin and I like living in my hole.”

Jones will don a Braves cap. He made his debut at 19 in 1996 and hit 25 or more home runs in 10 consecutive seasons beginning in 1998, finishing his career with 434 homers and 62.7 WAR.

“When I came [to Atlanta] at the young age of 19, they welcomed me in,” he said. “I never moved from here. I made Atlanta my home.”

The Hall of Fame induction ceremony takes place Sunday, July 26 at 10:30 a.m. PDT. Outfielder Carlos Beltrán will be inducted along with Kent and Jones.

“It’s a bigger emotional deal than I ever thought it would be, absolutely,” Kent said. “I still tear up talking about it.”

Added Jones: “Thinking that this kid from Curaçao who came here chasing a dream, gets a chance to play a sport he loves and ends up in Cooperstown, is wild.”

Exclusive: The much-loved actor travelled halfway across the world to find out whether a hunch his dad had about his past was true

Toby Jones has told of his delight at discovering that his late father’s conviction that he had Indian heritage was true.

Delving into his family tree for Who Do You Think You Are?, the actor discovered that his great x 3 grandmother Mary was described as Indo-British on her marriage certificate in 1821, meaning that one of her parents must have been Indian.

“That’s so wonderful because I was told as a child by my father that there was this connection, that there was some Indian heritage that we had, and one of the questions I had on this journey was – where did this idea come from?” he said. “I’m not sure that I thought he was making it up, but I wondered if he was exaggerating it.”

Toby, best known for his Bafta-winning turn in comedy The Detectorists and also for his titular role in ITV drama Mr Bates Versus the Post Office, said that growing up he and his two brothers would tease their father, Freddie, about his “romantic” notion of having an exotic bloodline.

“My dad was absolutely convinced he had some Indian ancestry which we all slightly took the mickey out of, because he was a romantic,” Toby explained. “He loved other cultures and the idea that he might have some other ancestry, I think would have been absolutely fantastic for him.

“He felt a kinship with Indian culture and we’d all take that with a pinch of salt and think that he was projecting it because that’s what he wanted to happen.”

In the BBC programme, which airs on Thursday, Toby admits he knows nothing of his father’s side of the family beyond his grandparents, Charlie and Ida. But after discovering that his great x 2 grandmother Jane had been born in India, he is thrilled to go back to the country he last visited as an 18-year-old in the 1980s.

His travels take him from the potteries in Stoke on Trent, which is where his actor dad grew up, to Northern India, as he follows in the footsteps of his great, great grandfather John Jones. John was a private in the British army when he and Jane married in 1855, living in Meerut, near to Delhi.

In Meerut, Toby meets writer Gillian Wright, who explains how John came to India from Stoke. Military records show John enlisted in Newcastle-under-Lyme and a memoir written by an officer paints a vivid picture of John’s journey on foot over 500-miles from Calcutta to his station in the north.

In 1857, John was among the first troops sent to quash the 1857 Uprising against the rule of the British East India Company, now known as the First War of Indian Independence.

A staggering 800,000 Indians are thought to have perished and many soldiers also lost their lives. By 1860, having been injured, John was back in Stoke-on-Trent with Jane, working as a labourer. There is a great deal of sadness in the story when he discovers the Jane, aged 31 in 1860, had previously been widowed and that all four of the children she had with her first husband seem likely to have died in childhood or infancy, with at least two of them succumbing to cholera.

He finds out that Jane had been born in India, with her father Samuel Burns also in the military. One expert Toby meets tells him Samuel’s mixed-race wife Mary was “most likely” to have had a British father and an Indian mother.

Toby, 59, is given the result of a DNA test he has already taken for the programme’s research team and learns that while he is 87% English, he is also 1% Indian. “Well, I’m very proud of that 1%,” he declared. “I know for a fact that it was a big part of my father’s sense of himself.”

After making the episode he said he had a lot to process. “It’s amazing to have the past tilled over like this and to meet, even obliquely, these people who I knew nothing about.”

Toby, who has two daughters Madeleine and Holly with wife Karen, said that discovering his dad’s theory about his Indian ancestry was correct felt “vey moving”. “That was the most thrilling thing I found out,” he added. “It was always a bit of a joke in our family that my father couldn’t prove anything, but he constantly claimed a connection with India.”

Freddie died in 2019. “I’m a little sad that I can’t go back to him with hard scientific fact but I also know he wouldn’t have cared anyway – he knew who he was – and I’m really enthusiastic to share it with my own children.”

– Toby Jones’ episode of Who Do You Think You Are? airs on Thursday 16 July, BBC1, 9pm

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BBC Morning Live presenter Gethin Jones co-hosts the show alongside Helen Skelton and Michelle Ackerley

Gethin Jones has been a co-host of BBC’s Morning Live for more than five years.

The 48-year-old has won over audiences with his approachable demeanour as he fronts the daily magazine programme alongside Helen Skelton and Michelle Ackerley.

However, the former Blue Peter host has now been reminded of the BBC’s editorial guidelines after he reportedly contravened broadcasting rules while on air.

Gethin is a longstanding ambassador for the Welsh heritage jewellery brand Clogau and has appeared in numerous promotional campaigns for the company. He even has a Clogau ‘wife’ – model Nikki Chislett, with whom he promoted last Christmas’s festive jewellery range while sporting a wedding band.

But The Mail on Sunday has now reported that Gethin has also been seen wearing various timepieces from Clogau while hosting Morning Live – which places him in breach of stringent BBC guidelines, reports Wales Online.

The corporation’s regulations stipulate that presenters ‘must not appear on-air wearing clothing or using products or services which they have been contracted to promote’.

BBC Studios told The Mirror: “We have clear guidelines around presenters’ commercial activities while working with the BBC, and Gethin has been reminded of these guidelines.”

According to The Mail on Sunday, throughout the past eight months Gethin has sported numerous Clogau watches on Morning Live, including a £550 model featuring a stainless-steel case and black bezel. Another timepiece, priced at £420, features a polished stainless-steel case with gold plating and is accompanied by a black leather strap.

He has additionally been spotted sporting a stainless-steel watch displaying a textured black dial alongside contrasting silver-tone hands and numerals.

Gethin becomes the most recent personality to seemingly flout BBC regulations. Monty Don, 70, received a reprimand last month following his appearance in a £300 Barbour jacket while filming Gardeners’ World – having previously featured in an advertising campaign for the brand.

The Mirror revealed that the jacket features in promotional material for Barbour’s Way of Life campaign, which prompts fans to “shop the look” showcased by the television presenter.

At the time, the BBC stated: “We have clear guidelines around presenters’ commercial activities while working with the BBC, and Monty has been reminded of these guidelines.”

Morning Live is on BBC One weekdays at 9.30am and BBC iPlayer

In early June, hundreds of fans dressed to the nines were in attendance at a rock star’s sold-out show at New York’s Beacon Theatre. There was lace everywhere and leather too. Chains dangled from belt loops and wrists. Some attendees arrived with dyed crimson hair, others with orange or pink.

Sheer black outfits that looked pulled from the pages of a gothic romance novel were draped on bodies. If “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” had collided with a modern concert, it might have looked something like this.

Then a man took the stage. Was it Lestat de Lioncourt, the immortal vampire-cum-rock star, or was it actor Sam Reid?

Moments earlier, attendees had watched the first episode of AMC’s “The Vampire Lestat,” the rebranded third season of “Interview With the Vampire” that premiered earlier this month. This season adapts Anne Rice’s novel of the same name, which is told from the perspective of Lestat, played by Reid, and transforms him into a touring musician.

Now Reid, dressed in black with his chest partially exposed beneath an open jacket revealing a scar, stepped on stage and into the role of Lestat in front of the audience. As he moved across the stage, phones shot into the air. Fans screamed. People sang along to a slew of songs, and for a moment, the line between actor and character seemed to disappear.

At first glance, the assignment to turn Lestat into a rock star seemed straightforward. The vampire at the center of Rice’s beloved novels has flirted with music before. In 2002’s “Queen of the Damned,” he emerged as a leather-clad nu-metal frontman capable of commanding massive crowds. But bringing Lestat into the present introduced a different challenge. Rock music no longer occupies the same place in popular culture. Fame is fragmented. Audiences are skeptical of celebrity. Social media can build a star overnight and tear them down just as quickly.

Yet “The Vampire Lestat” asks viewers to believe something as audacious as a centuries-old vampire still being able to captivate people, launch a music career and inspire a movement. Reid thinks part of what drives the character is something surprisingly modern.

“Nobody cares that I exist, nobody cares that I’m not relevant,” Reid said of Lestat’s mindset entering the season. “It’s really fun to see him struggle with that and see him try to find his place in the world and not immediately get world domination.”

Making that fantasy feel believable required far more than putting Lestat in leather and handing him a microphone. To pull it off, the show’s creative team had to build a rock star from the ground up, crafting a visual identity, creating music that could stand on its own outside the series, and transforming Reid into a performer capable of owning a crowd rather than simply acting in front of one.

Sam Reid’s Lestat de Lioncourt crowd-surfs in “The Vampire Lestat.”

(Sophie Giraud / AMC)

“Dropping Lestat down into 2025 and making the decision for him to play rock ‘n’ roll was a really great dramatic switch because while there are many great rock bands that are alive and kicking right now, their hold of the cultural landscape is quite small,” showrunner Rolin Jones said. “You couldn’t think of a worse way to get your message out than going to be a rock star right now.”

That challenge became the foundation of the season.

Step 1: Making the music

A polished aesthetic, marketing and, in Lestat’s case, book buzz can only take a musician so far. It’s the music that had to make diehard fans believe he’s an artistic genius, or at least a star in the making.

That challenge landed with composer Daniel Hart long before a single script was finished. In an unusual twist, many of the songs that would eventually appear throughout the season were written before the writers’ room fully mapped out the story.

“There were so many unknowns when we started,” Hart said. To find a way in, Hart and Jones started with their familiar reference point: David Bowie.

“We settled, I think sort of obviously, on David Bowie as the launch pad for our Lestat,” Hart said. “The way that Bowie was so mercurial, and he was a chameleon. He reinvented himself throughout his career.”

Hart also looked to artists as varied as Kurt Cobain and Chappell Roan, while drawing inspiration from classical music, blues and the old-world sound Lestat would have absorbed over his long life. One early writers’ room exercise even involved breaking down the influences embedded within “Long Face,” the Bowie-coded first single released from Lestat’s fictional album.

“‘Long Face’ feels like a Bowie rip-off to Daniel Molloy [played by Eric Bogosian], and so then Lestat breaks the song down for him and goes into all the other influences that are in there,” Hart said. “ ‘Long Face,’ you could say, was in some way influenced by Bach, and then [he] talked about Willie Dixon, and how the blues had influenced Lestat when he was around the … 1920s and ‘30s.”

“He’s been alive for 250 years,” Hart continued. “He’s seen and heard a lot of music.”

The creative team never set out to replicate the hard-rock sound that defined “Queen of the Damned.” If anything, Jones felt trying to outdo that soundtrack would have been a losing battle.

In “The Vampire Lestat,” Sam Reid sings every song himself, including “Long Face,” “Butterscotch Bitch,” “Your Biggest Fan,” “All Fall Down” and “Black Licorice.”

(Sophie Giraud / AMC)

“I mean, that soundtrack is deservedly very famous,” Jones said. “And I think if we decided to out-Korn Korn, we were going to be in trouble.”

Instead, their Lestat was a musician still searching for his voice. Jones says the season begins in a more performative glam-rock space before gradually evolving into something more personal.

“We thought ‘70s Bowie is where we would start, and that we would musically make a journey with him as we went deeper and deeper,” he said. “He would put his band on one tour, what a normal band would do, over four albums. The music just keeps changing. And as he gets more and more vulnerable, the songs begin to change. They get more raw. They get more exposure, and the music style evolves.”

Reid sang every song himself, including “Long Face,” “Butterscotch Bitch,” “Your Biggest Fan,” “All Fall Down” and “Black Licorice.”

“The more bombastic, the more over-the-top songs — he doesn’t seem to like them by the end of this season,” Hart said. “The more introspective songs that come later on are more in his new wheelhouse.”

That journey also shaped how Reid approached the material. While audiences will ultimately see the songs unfold within the context of the show, Reid encountered many of them before he fully understood where Lestat’s story was heading.

“I think in the beginning, he’s coming from an artificial kind of construct,” Reid says. “As the show goes on, the music becomes more personal, and he becomes less interested in actually finding love through his audience and more about finding who he is as an individual and as an artist.”

When Jones first began adapting “The Vampire Lestat,” he briefly considered making the character the sort of arena-filling superstar audiences might expect, like a Beyoncé or Taylor Swift. But the more the writers discussed it, the less interesting that version felt.

“If we were gonna start chipping away at all the armor that Lestat had, one of the great repetitive ways of a tour is you just can’t seem to break a ceiling,” Jones said. “He’s a niche star. And I think that is part of the gas that fuels this little journey.”

Hart also had the impression that Lestat would be a massive star.

“But it became more apparent that [he might] not exactly have the kind of success that he wanted and desperately felt like he needed — that was a more interesting story to tell,” he said.

Step 2: Getting the rock star look

While the audience has to believe Lestat is a rock star, they also have to believe he’s someone with the look — and worth staring at.

Lex Wood, the show’s costume designer, said that the challenge began long before cameras rolled on Season 3. Jones first floated the idea of rock star Lestat while the team filmed Season 2 in Prague in 2023, giving Wood time to begin imagining what a nearly 300-year-old vampire might wear while reinventing himself as a singer. During a production trip to Paris, she started sourcing pieces and collecting references that would eventually make their way into this season years later.

“The main aim of building costumes for Lestat was to maintain an element of the unachievable,” says show costumer designer Lex Wood. “To emphasize that Lestat is untouchable.”

(Sophie Giraud / AMC)

Being fashionable wasn’t the only goal.

“The main aim of building costumes for Lestat was to maintain an element of the unachievable,” Wood said. “To emphasize that Lestat is untouchable. Hence, building specific costume build shapes and patterns that we adapted throughout the season.”

That idea guided nearly every aspect of the wardrobe. While the first two seasons often presented Lestat through structured tailoring and muted palettes, Season 3 arrives in a much louder world.

“A big thing really was that we wanted to push more color into the season in general,” Wood said.

Wood said the choice reflected where Lestat finds himself emotionally. No longer confined to drawing rooms and period silhouettes, he’s navigating celebrity, performance and self-reinvention. Leather remains. Black remains. But so do bursts of color, softer fabrics and strange patterns.

“We wanted to break Lestat free of the suiting,” Wood said. “Though we wanted to remain true to his roots in the 18th century, we also wanted Lestat’s pieces to feel slightly otherworldly at times.”

That meant weaving in elements of garments from the 18th century and making them feel contemporary. This could look like a very specific cut of a sleeve of a shirt that nods to that time.

Wood also studied the backstage photography of Mick Rock, pulling references of Bowie, Iggy Pop and Freddie Mercury. She blended that with punk-inspired designs from Vivienne Westwood and Jean Paul Gaultier. Goth icon Siouxsie Sioux also became an influence, particularly in the use of layering, texture and attitude.

Wood said the scattered references reflect a character actively trying to figure out who he wants to be.

“He’s investigating social media himself,” she said. “As he’s discovering his presence as a rock star. He’s investigating what it means to be a rock star.”

“He’s finding his persona,” she continued. “And trying on different personas.”

That idea extends all the way down to accessories, with Lestat’s jewelry blending old and new — a custom necklace created by a U.K. silversmith recalls one worn by Mercury during Queen’s early years, while rings featuring sculpted teeth serve as subtle reminders of his vampiric nature.

“We purposefully wanted some of his wardrobe to not be recognizable to any particular brand — at other times, we wanted to celebrate high-end fashion, to explore his playfulness and unpredictable character through his clothing,” Wood said.

Even the shoes became part of the transformation. One of Wood’s earliest conversations with Reid centered on abandoning the heeled footwear that helped define earlier versions of the character. This Lestat needed something heavier for a performer who could pace a stage.

“He wanted something that felt more grounded,” Wood said. “Something he could bounce around more in.”

Wood said the redesigned footwear altered Reid’s posture and movement, helping create a version of Lestat that she noted feels more volatile and more comfortable captivating a crowd than charming one.

Step 3: Becoming the rock star

For all the work that went into the costumes, music and scripts, none of it mattered unless the watchers believed the actor tying it all together.

Reid had already spent two seasons playing Lestat through other characters’ memories and perspectives. This time around required him to carry the character’s story through his own reflections. More importantly, he had to answer a deceptively difficult question: Why would anyone follow Lestat in the first place?

“It’s not fame that he’s after,” says Reid of his character in “The Vampire Lestat.” “Fame is totally temporary for a creature that lives forever.”

(Sophie Giraud / AMC)

The surface answer might be fame. The character launches a music career, records songs and steps into the spotlight. But Reid doesn’t think that’s what drives him.

“It’s not fame that he’s after,” Reid said. “Fame is totally temporary for a creature that lives forever.”

Reid sees Lestat as someone searching for validation.

“Not for the vampire that he is, but for the human being that he was,” he said. “He’s been pretty heavily rejected. From Louis through the book, and then his mother knows exactly how to string him along, when to give him love and when to take it away. So he’s really looking for validation and going into an audience space is where he first experienced that.”

While developing the season, Reid says he became increasingly interested in the gap between the public version of Lestat and the person underneath it.

“His whole life has been performance,” Reid said. “His whole life has been a lot of adversity, and the way that he kind of climbs out of that is to build a construct that he can perform and operate in. It makes a lot of sense for him to do this rock star persona. Through this season you start to see him realize that the music and the art can allow him to access himself as opposed to it just being a performance.”

“He’s trying to discover his sound as a musician,” Reid continued. “But he’s also trying to discover who he is.”

Throughout the season, viewers see a musician struggling to connect.

“Why can’t I sell out 5,000 seats?” Jones says, describing the character’s mindset. “I used to be able to walk into a room and everyone would love me.”

For Jones, that’s ultimately what makes Lestat feel like a contemporary artist. Sure, he may be an immortal vampire, but he’s navigating the same questions that confront plenty of artists: How much of yourself to reveal? How much should one perform? Can admiration ever substitute for genuine connection?

By the time the season reaches its conclusion, Lestat is still larger than life. But he’s also a more complicated performer forced to reckon with the distance between being seen and understood. Jones said none of this would be possible without Reid in the role.

“I think his performance in Season 3 is one of the 10 greatest American TV performances of all time,” Jones says. “I’d put him right next to Carroll O’Connor, Walter White [played by Bryan Cranston] and James Gandolfini.”

“And I’d look at all of them and say, ‘You guys didn’t sing.’ ”

Hello! I’m Mark Olsen. Welcome to another edition of your regular field guide to a world of Only Good Movies.

Recently, I don’t exactly know why, I was overtaken by a concern that because of the impending merger of Paramount and Warner Bros., Olivier Assayas’ 2022 series adaption of his own film “Irma Vep” would be removed from the HBO Max streaming platform. With no official physical release, the series — starring Alicia Vikander as a Hollywood movie star making a project in Paris — could be effectively vanished from existence.

This is sadly inevitable, though some superfans have gone to extra-legal measures to ensure otherwise (not that we would ever endorse this). Most famously it’s happened with the original “Star Wars” trilogy. Billed as the “Grindhouse Edition,” these are discs of the first three “Star Wars” films sourced from scans of original film prints before the digital fixes and polish of the more recent official releases. Reengaging with these works in this way, scratches and all, is (I’m told) a strong reminder of why they hit so hard in the first place, similar to how it might be to reread a text in the original language instead of a more recent translation.

‘Indiana Jones’ marathon

Harrison Ford and Karen Allen on the set of 1981’s “Raiders of the Lost Ark.”

(Lucasfilm Ltd.)

The same deep understanding of genre filmmaking that went into the original “Star Wars” also went into “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” the first adventure of the character of Indiana Jones. Directed by Steven Spielberg from a script by Lawrence Kasdan and story by George Lucas and Philip Kaufman, the film is playful, thrilling and self-aware. It is made with such care, attention to detail and sense of fun that I remember how disappointed I was to discover not all movies would be like this.

There have of course been diminishing returns with the more recent run of Indiana Jones sequels, but the first three installments all have a real spark. And so the Secret Movie Club will present “Raiders,” 1984’s “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom” and 1989’s “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade,” all on 35mm at the Million Dollar Theater in DTLA on Sunday in celebration of Father’s Day.

In her original review of the first film, Sheila Benson described that while watching it, she felt “a rush of gratitude which almost brought tears of contagious joy and — not to be corny about this — the strength of the film’s positive vision. If this is an era in which the heroic is lacking and the mediocre threatens us from every side, then ‘Raiders,’ which has no pretensions to importance, which is unabashedly wide-eyed and exaggerated and true blue but somehow cherishes the best in life and filmmaking — is a high-water mark.”

Plenty of jokes could be made about the movies having settled into what might be thought of as part of the dadcore canon: action-adventure movies that play well on TV and maybe you can take a short nap and not miss anything. So be it.

From one master to another

Cary Grant and Eva Marie Saint in Alfred Hitchcock’s 1959 thriller “North by Northwest.”

(Sunset Boulevard / Corbis via Getty Images)

Filmmaker Guillermo del Toro has been making waves of late for his strong public stance against the use of AI in feature filmmaking. But it is worth remembering that he is also a deep and incisive thinker about older movies, a true fan, which makes his upcoming appearances at the Academy Museum a special occasion.

Del Toro will present five films by Alfred Hitchcock — 1946’s “Notorious,” 1943’s ‘Shadow of a Doubt,” 1959’s “North by Northwest,” 1953’s “I Confess” and 1972’s “Frenzy” — along with delivering a lecture on each of them. To see one great filmmaker reflect with such depth into the work of another is just remarkable. This is some genuine only-in-L.A. type stuff.

Comedy + politics = good fun

A scene from the 1976 movie “Car Wash.”

(Margaret Herrick Library / Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences)

A raucous comedy set around the location of the title, “Car Wash” is also a sharp, politically minded satire about labor and money. Directed by Michael Schultz from a screenplay by Joel Schumacher, the film has an extended ensemble cast that includes Richard Pryor, Franklyn Ajaye, George Carlin and many others.

In his original review Charles Champlin compared “Car Wash” to films such as “American Graffiti” and “Nashville” and called it “light but not foolish. … The experience is exhilarating.”

A 50th anniversary screening at the Academy Museum on Saturday of a new 4K restoration will include a panel with Schultz and actors Bill Duke, Antonio Fargas, Melanie Mayron, Garrett Morris and Pepe Serna.

Collision report

James Spader in the 1996 movie “Crash,” directed by David Cronenberg.

(Jonathan Wenk / Fine Line Features)

The controversy that surrounded David Cronenberg’s “Crash” when it premiered at Cannes in 1996 and received a U.S. release in 1997 tended to overwhelm the actual movie. Shockingly explicit, the film is about a secret underground world of people who create a sexual fetish out of car crashes. An adaptation of the novel by J.G. Ballard, Cronenberg’s movie explores the cinematic obsession with sex and violence.

Over time, “Crash” has been evolving from a seemingly cursed object dogged by scandal into something that audiences can come to appreciate and admire — even if it is not a movie you can ever exactly fully understand. Part of Cronenberg’s brilliance is how enigmatic and unknowable his work can be: strange, inviting and enveloping while refusing easy or direct analysis.

The movie is playing twice locally this week, on Saturday at Vidiots in partnership with the Cinegogue, with special giveaways and exclusive merch, and again on Monday at the Academy Museum in 4K. Who will be brave (or perverse) enough to go twice?

A different view of Rio

Milton Gonçalves, center, in the 1974 movie “The Devil Queen.”

(Kino Lorber)

A drag queen (Milton Gonçalves) rules the criminal underworld of Rio de Janeiro in Antonio Carlos da Fontoura’s 1974 gangster drama “The Devil Queen,” an unlikely mix of camp aesthetics and gritty violence. Among the film’s many fans is Kleber Mendonça Filho, the filmmaker behind the recent Brazilian hit “The Secret Agent,” who referred to “The Devil Queen” as “bloody, nasty and full of personality.”

The movie is playing in a new 4K restoration at the Lumiere Cinema in Beverly Hills.

A musical melodrama returns

Raul Julia, left, and Teri Garr in Francis Ford Coppola’s 1981 movie “One From the Heart.”

(Rialto Pictures / American Zoetrope)

We have talked before about Francis Ford Coppola’s “One From the Heart,” a movie of such delirious audacity that it nearly ruined the filmmaker‘s career. A throwback musical about two lovers who break up in search of more excitement, the film stars Teri Garr, Frederic Forrest, Nastassja Kinski and Raul Julia.

On Saturday the film will screen at the American Cinematheque’s Aero Theater in a 70mm print for the first time in L.A. since 1990. The event is being dedicated to Dean Tavoularis, Coppola’s longtime production designer, who died in April. For “One From the Heart,” Tavoularis re-created the Las Vegas Strip on a studio back lot.

New this week

• Amy Nicholson is not a fan of the new “Toy Story 5,” writing in her review, “Pixar has continued adding shades to the same plot outline like a child with a box of 128 crayons (or a company clinging to its billion-dollar idea).”
• Glenn Whipp cast back into the “Toy Story” universe for a highly personal ranking of his 10 favorite “Toy Story” toys.
• Two gay teenage boys attempt to survive a supernatural entity and conversion therapy in Adrian Chiarella’s debut feature “Leviticus.” Jen Yamato spoke to the filmmaking team.
• I spoke to writer-director Michael Sarnoski about his new “The Death of Robin Hood,” starring Hugh Jackman in a subversively revisionist telling of the last days of the medieval bandit.

Welsh TV presenter Gethin Jones has opened up about his love life over the years

Gethin Jones is a much-loved Welsh TV presenter.

The 48-year-old played rugby union while studying at Manchester Metropolitan University and, upon graduating, kicked off his television career on Welsh language channel S4C, where he hosted children’s shows including Popty, Mas Draw and Uned 5.

In 2005, Gethin became the 31st presenter of the BBC’s beloved children’s programme Blue Peter. Then in 2020, he took on the role of host on the BBC’s weekday magazine show Morning Live, which is broadcast from studios in Salford.

He regularly appears on the programme alongside Helen Skelton, Michelle Ackerley, Gaby Roslin, and Janette Manrara.

That’s not all, as Gethin has also featured on Celebrity MasterChef, comedy drama Stella, and even took to the Strictly Come Dancing dance floor during season 5. What may come as a surprise to some fans is that Gethin once had a very well-known ex-fiancée, so here’s everything you need to know about the star’s romantic history, reports Wales Online.

Who is Gethin Jones’ famous ex-fiancée?

Gethin had a serious romance with Welsh opera singer Katherine Jenkins after the pair first crossed paths in 2007, while he was competing on Strictly.

The couple announced their engagement in February 2011. However, by December of that same year, both confirmed they had decided to part ways.

Reflecting on the break-up, Gethin previously opened up on Tom Bryant’s Outdoors in Mind podcast, saying: “I was engaged and then breaking up, afterwards, or even during that period, it was just awful… I definitely had a bad bout of depression during that time.” He continued: “It was horrible… a lot of what I read about myself wasn’t right.”

Gethin notably sought counselling in a bid to work through his emotions, explaining: “I saw someone, I had therapy for a couple of years and I still do my homework on that.”

Katherine has since moved on with American painter Andrew Levitas, with the pair tying the knot in 2014 and going on to have two children together.

Past romances and rumours

Three years after his separation from Katherine, Gethin enjoyed a brief romance with former TOWIE star Lucy Mecklenburgh. The pair reportedly began dating in August 2014 after crossing paths at a Give Me Sport event.

Lucy later confirmed the relationship was short-lived, saying: “We went out a few times a while ago but it was bad timing for both of us.”

Gethin also dated model Katja Zwara in 2017, and was rumoured to have been linked to First Dates waitress Cici Coleman – though neither have confirmed a relationship.

There has also been considerable speculation in recent years surrounding a potential romance between Gethin and his Morning Live co-star Helen Skelton, though both have firmly denied they are dating.

When addressing the speculation in December 2025, Helen moved to quash the rumours, saying: “We just work together, we are not together. No, no, no. We are just work friends. They printed pictures of us at work and that we’re together because we are at work together.”

Speaking candidly about his friendship with Helen last year, Gethin revealed to The Sun: “We are very supportive of each other, we like to look out for each other. I think that’s fair to say on and off camera. You sometimes could get… you might need a little pep talk every now and then. Because she’s very passionate.”

Morning Live airs weekdays on BBC One at 9.30am

Paula Corbin Jones’ lawyers asked a judge in Little Rock, Ark., to order President Clinton to pay nearly $500,000 in legal reimbursements after he was found in contempt of court in her sexual harassment case. Their proposal came a month after U.S. District Judge Susan Webber Wright found Clinton in contempt for giving intentionally false testimony about his relationship with Monica S. Lewinsky. Wright ordered Clinton to pay Jones’ lawyers any expenses they incurred as a result of his false testimony. In a letter to Wright, Clinton lawyer Robert S. Bennett said Clinton will “object to the amount of the claim by Ms. Jones’ attorneys.”

TIKTOK star Becki Jones has revealed what she REALLY eats in a day on holiday at an all inclusive hotel.

Showing off her 10 stone weight loss in Tunisia, Becki, 32, could be seen eating yummy food and enjoying herself following the news of her engagement.

Becki, who has denied having used fat jabs or having surgery to shed the weight in around six months, began her day with some scrambled eggs and one slice of toast.

The slimmed down star then looked at the yummy cakes and pastries before opting for a bowl of yogurt with jam on top of it, a sprinkling of cereal and a tiny cupcake.

After breakfast, Becki headed outside and enjoyed a carton of apple juice.

She later sipped a fruity cocktail, which looked as though it had the consistency of a smoothie.

star’s joy

TikTok’s Becki Jones engaged to convicted con boyfriend after beachside proposal

WEIGHING IN

Sad truth behind Becki Jones’ weight loss after hols snaps as fans turn on her

Becki and her husband-to-be then looked at some of the food that was on offer on the beach.

Sitting down, Becki then zoomed into what was on her partner’s plate, which was fries and chicken nuggets, though it is not known if Becki ate anything.

Later on in the day, Becki ate a bowl of food that looked like minced beef, coleslaw, fries and some baguette without any butter.

She then headed outside again and enjoyed a yummy frozen cocktail.

Lounging beneath the sunshine, Becki opted for an ice cream which was in the flavour of ‘berries and cream’.

Back in her room, Becki had showered as she tucked into a packet of savoury snacks with some water.

Heading out again, Becki had a wander around before sitting down to eat two chunky spring rolls with a chilli dip.

She then ate what looked like mashed potatoes with a chicken kiev and broccoli.

Becki then enjoyed what looked like a creamy risotto dish before tucking into a berry-flavoured cake for dessert.

One fan commented on the post: “That risotto looked lush not gonna lie.”

While another said: “Great day of food!!! Looks so yum!”

This comes after Becki confirmed that her partner Chris Beattie had popped the question to her during a dreamy beachside proposal on their holiday.

Becki took to Instagram to share the moment that Chris got down on one knee to pop the question to the TikTok legend.

“We’ve been keeping a secret. I said yes. My fiancé, my Chrissy. What a surprise!!

“I was shocked, emotional, nervous laughing and we’ve been in a little bubble since Monday,” she penned online.

“You’ve not only shown me love but you’ve shown me kindness, respect and what it feels like to be treated like a princess.

“This was so special, romantic and the best kept secret.

“I love you Chrissy so so so much.

“Here’s to the future and making more memories.”

The BBC star was absent from her usual space on the green sofa as JB Gill and Angelica Bell fronted the programme.

Things looked slightly different during the latest episode of The One Show as people were quick to notice Alex Jones’ absence.

The Welsh star usually fronts the programme alongside a plethora of rotating presenters, including Roman Kemp, Vernon Kay and Clara Amfo.

However, on Wednesday night (June 10), BBC fans saw Angellica Bell and JB Gill opening the programme as they explained where the 49-year-old was.

Angellica said: “If you’re wondering where Alex is tonight, she’s at the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition before it opens to the public next Tuesday.

“Last night, we revealed the successful artists, both amateur and professional, who were selected to have their work displayed in the world-famous gallery. Tonight, we’ve been invited to a special launch party to celebrate.”

The camera then cut to a clip of Alex inside Burlington House, where the event is taking place, as she walked through one of the rooms holding the artwork.

She said: “It’s one of my favourite nights of the year. Oh my goodness, there is so much to see here. Now, we’ve been following some of the artists all week who are hoping to get their work on the wall.

“Tonight, after 22 years of submitting, Vincent will finally see his on one of these walls, it’s going to be quite an emotional moment, I think.

“Also, you should see the guest list! There are celebrities everywhere here, and I might just get one for a chat later, who knows.”

The BBC star later spoke with Vincent who was overcome with emotion when he saw his artwork on the wall after two decades trying to achieve his goal.

Elsewhere on the show, Nikki Fox informed viewers that they won’t be seeing her on-screen for a while as Watchdog was taking a hiatus.

She told viewers: “We’re having a little break now. Going to have a little lie down and a bacon roll!

“But we are going to be back very soon with plenty more investigations from me, Matt and our new team members! We’ve got Nick Stapleton, who you saw tonight and Amanda Haque.”

As she wrapped up, Angellica told fans the Watchdog segment would return again in September.

The One Show is available to watch weeknights on BBC One from 7pm

Real Madrid to join Mateus Fernandes race, Brighton reject Spurs’ second Jan Paul van Hecke bid and Harry Maguire could leave Manchester United.

Real Madrid are set to join the race to sign Portugal midfielder Mateus Fernandes, 21, following West Ham‘s relegation from the Premier League. (Sun), external

Brighton have rejected a second bid from Tottenham Hotspur for Netherlands centre-back Jan Paul van Hecke, 25. (Talksport), external

Harry Maguire could be allowed to leave Manchester United this summer, just months after the England defender, 33, signed a new contract. (Football Insider), external

Inter Milan have made an offer for England midfielder Curtis Jones, 25, but are currently some way short of Liverpool‘s valuation. (Gazzetta dello Sport – in Italian), external

Liverpool could use Netherlands forward Cody Gakpo, 27, as leverage in their bid to sign Ivory Coast winger Yan Diomande, 19, from RB Leipzig. (Teamtalk), external

Bayern Munich have said they have no intention of selling Michael Olise after Real Madrid said they would offer £130m for the France winger, 24. (Bild – in German), external

Bernardo Silva says that joining Barcelona is “an option” after leaving Manchester City but the Portugal midfielder, 31, is yet to make a decision on his future. (Marca – in Spanish), external

Tottenham‘s Italy international Guglielmo Vicario, 29, has emerged as the frontrunner as Juventus look to sign a new goalkeeper. (Gazzetta dello Sport – in Italian), external

Coventry City have submitted a club-record £20m bid for Carl Rushworth, the 24-year-old English goalkeeper who helped the Sky Blues win the Championship while on loan from Brighton last season. (Talksport), external

Vinnie Jones is best known for playing villains on screen, but the actor and former footballer has shown a touching side.

Fans of Vinnie Jones are not used to seeing this side of him in his documentary series.

Celebrated actor and footballer Vinnie Jones is primarily recognised for portraying violent offenders and hardmen, but he has subsequently revealed a gentler nature.

The star presents a Clarkson’s Farm-style documentary series entitled Vinnie Jones in the Country, which follows him undertaking substantial projects at his extensive West Sussex rural property while confronting his own personal struggles.

In the third series of the programme, which broadcasts on Discovery+, he discussed acquiring the estate from its former owner and the commitments he made to her.

He was filmed clearing the barn at the property’s perimeter when he discovered some vintage photographs which had been abandoned by the woman. He explained how the former owner acknowledged it was a “struggle” to maintain it, noting: “She was terrified of losing her legacy.

“She didn’t want people coming in and splitting it up,” he stated. Numerous individuals had expressed interest in the property, but the owner was determined to sell to Jones.

He purchased the property while she remained alive and promised she could reside there until her death.

Handyman Paul Worby remarked on his friend’s compassionate character, observing: “That is a side of Vincent that not a lot of people see. He has got a very kind side.

“You know, he was very good to me when I was down. He kind of resonates with people who are at a bad stage in their life and tries to give them a bit of a pat on the back.”

Jones revealed one of the touching gestures he made honouring the former owner, explaining: “Part of the deal was, there is a little field down there called Mum’s Field. Her mum is buried down there. I put the ashes down there with her mum.”

While Worby and Jones examined the woman’s belongings, Worby remarked: “It’s someone’s life isn’t it, it’s someone’s memories.

“That’s why I get emotional about it all,” Jones responded. The actor purchased the property in Petworth, West Sussex, in 2022, several years following the death of his wife, Tanya.

She passed away after a battle with cancer and Jones has previously spoken about how relocating to the countryside “saved him”.

Vinnie Jones in the Country is available to stream on Discovery+

Jones’ performance wrote another chapter in his Wembley story, which started when he helped Coventry win the EFL Trophy in 2017 and being on their books when they won the League Two play-offs in 2018.

His previous visit for Notts involved him scoring a penalty in the National League promotion final shootout against Chesterfield in 2023.

He followed that up by representing Malta as a substitute against England in November 2023 before going on to be named League Two player of the year in 2024 after breaking a record shared by Thierry Henry and Kevin de Bruyne with 24 assists.

“I’d like to think there’s another chapter at Wembley coming for me,” said Jones. “I haven’t lost with a club. I’d like to think Wembley is a good place for me.”

County’s promotion was their 14th in EFL history, one short of the all-time record held by Grimsby Town, and Jones says there is no reason why they cannot be optimistic about the future.

“My godfather said to me when I went to Notts, ‘I really believe you can do something similar to what you did at Coventry and go up the leagues. Notts seem like the sort of club who would do something like that, they are a massive club’,” said Jones.

“It wasn’t that long ago that I was a Coventry City player and we got promoted against Notts in the play-offs. I hope they have forgiven me for that.

“Who knows where we can go. We are a fantastic club and I’m sure we’ll attract a lot of talent who will want to come and join us.”

As for it being a third major success among his significant clubs, Jones said he spoke about Arsenal, Coventry and Notts County having fruitful campaigns in a family group chat at the start of the season, saying it “would be amazing”.

“And it’s happened, fantastic.”

Vinnie Jones says one career moment is way above all others

Vinnie Jones believes winning the FA Cup will be written on his gravestone. Footballer and actor Jones, 61, was part of the Wimbledon team that stunned Liverpool in 1987 with their victory at Wembley. A new Netflix documentary looks at his extraordinary career working as a hod carrier and playing semi-pro football to becoming a Premier League star and then a Hollywood actor.

Looking back, Vinnie said: “I think the biggest achievement is the FA Cup. The odds, you know? Leeds was magnificent, but we built a good team and that was “shit or bust”—we had to get up that season. But Jack and the Beanstalk was a great story of mine as a kid, and that’s what we did at Wimbledon when we beat Liverpool.

“I remember the first round being 1-0 down against Mansfield away. Fast forward a few months, and you’ve beaten one of the greatest teams in the last 50 years. 1-0 in front of a hundred thousand people. It was some achievement. It will probably be on my gravestone, I should think.”

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Vinnie is still making movies and also now has his own reality TV show In The Country, detailing his life after taking on 2,000 acres of West Sussex countryside, but it hasn’t all been plain sailing. His wife Tanya died in 2019 with cancer, having beaten the disease several times in the past.

Asked if his attitude in life was all about proving people wrong, he said: “Not prove people wrong, but to keep trying to get to the summit. When you get to the ledge, there’s another ledge and another ledge. I don’t really know where the summit is, to be honest. So I’ll go to the next ledge and the next ledge. Hopefully one day I’ll get there and go, “There’s no more ledges.

“We’re happy in life right now. I’ve got a couple of great movies and TV shows. It’s been a long road; the last six years has been a long road for me. You can’t stay on the same ledge. You’ve got to look up.”

Vinnie admits in the doc he has a “big ego” but also that he had periods in his life when he struggled due to trouble he got into but also heavy drinking, with no one to talk to about his problems. He recalls how he considered suicide when he took a shotgun into the woods near his home and was struggling with his mental health.

He says in the film: “I was on the bed and I was just curled up like the baby position and I was like, enough. I can’t keep doing this to people, can’t do it to the family. So far, I thought I could go for a walk up the wood…. I took the gun, walked up the wood, and then all stupid things go through your head. And the easiest thing to do was just to stop it right there and then, that would be it.

“And then I sort of came round, like being knocked out I suppose like in boxing, when you come around and miss all the scream and the shouting and everything is slow motion and you’re kind of back, you go right f*** this.”

Later in the film he adds: “I’ve taken as many knocks as I’ve given, but I’ve grabbed every opportunity that’s come my way. Be someone, make your mark. I’ve made my mark.”

Asked what people should take away from his story in the documentary, Vinnie says: “I can remember back when I was cutting the grass at the Masonic School in Bushey, just looking up and thinking: give me one chance, one chance, wherever it is, third division, fourth division, please, I want to be a professional footballer. You’re saying that every day. And then all of a sudden, a bolt of lightning or a flash or a spark gives you that chance.

“Talk to the universe and be straight with the universe. Ask for what you want and don’t let it down when it gives you that chance. That’s what it is. There’s a reason why the chance to win the lottery is a billion to one. To build on your dreams is up to us. I think we’re the bricklayers and the carpenters of our own dreams.”

Asked about mistakes in his life, he said: “The biggest regret is not giving up drinking probably 20 years beforehand. I tried it but never stuck at it. I think I’d have achieved a lot more without the booze. When I first went to Wimbledon on that trial, I never had a drink for a year. I wanted to be the fittest I could be. And then I fell into the culture.”

He added: “I wasn’t a drinker or a smoker growing up; it was just football. It was all part of being part of the Crazy Gang. I think I’d have been a lot better player if I hadn’t drunk through my career. But when you’re a young lad from a building site and the next minute you’re playing in front of 50,000 people, you never think it’s going to end.

“Older people say, ‘I hope you’re putting money away because this won’t last forever,’ but they’re talking to a brick wall. You think it’s going to last forever.” Thankfully for Vinnie he found a new career and big paydays in films including Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels.

* Untold UK: Vinnie Jones is on Netflix from Tuesday May 26.

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