GEMMA Collins’ fiancé Rami Hawash has admitted to having a drinking problem.
Gemma, 45, has revealed viewers will see how Rami’s alcohol dependency impacted their relationship in Gemma Collins: Everything. All At Once.
Gemma Collins’ fiancé Rami Hawash has opened up about his alcohol dependencyCredit: Instagram/@rami_hawash_Her reality series Gemma Collins: Everything. All At Once debuts on September 15Credit: Getty
The upcoming reality series officially debuts on Sky and NOW on September 15.
Speaking at the show’s launch, Rami shared: “I drink, I’ve got a drink problem and I don’t want to hide it.
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“I wanted people to know it is a problem. I’ve got a problem and life is not that great.
“I don’t know why, but I find the drink, it was like, kind of my friend. You know, I have a few drinks and I’m forgetting everything.”
The couple originally met in 2011 and got engaged in 2013, but this was later broken offCredit: InstagramThe couple are thought to have gotten back together in 2023Credit: Getty
Meanwhile, Gemma said of her experience in the documentary: “You can see I’m unwell.
“You can see I’m not in my best, and life just got progressively worse as I let the cameras in. It was hell.
“But you know, one thing my mum taught me wasresilience, I’m resilient to get through all this really.
“It can get better. So let’s hope everything starts to get better now because I can’t take any more. I need a break.”
With high rates here to stay, CFOs rely on internal cash and working capital for stability.
In August, U.S. Treasury yields reached multi-decade highs. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent responded by doubling the size of buyback operations for 10- to 20-year and 20- to 30-year securities to a floor of $4 billion each, effective Sept. 9 — a stopgap lasting through November 4, when the Treasury releases its next official policy statement.
Yet while Washington intervenes to stabilize government debt, finance chiefs must reckon with higher costs of capital.
“Higher rates have changed the math and, more importantly, reduced the margin for error,” Thomas DeFabrizio, CFO, Americas at Impellam Group, said in an email. “The hurdle rate should move when the cost of capital moves. Otherwise, you are pretending the financing environment has not changed.”
This reality is forcing companies to look inward, turning operational efficiency into a primary source of funding. “Every dollar released from receivables or inventory is a dollar you do not have to borrow at today’s rate,” DeFabrizio said — a meaningful gap when investment-grade credit is yielding around 5.5% and broad high-yield debt is near 7%, with lower-rated credit running considerably higher.
“That makes working capital much more than a finance housekeeping exercise,” DeFabrizio added. “It becomes a capital-allocation decision.”
Era of Cheap Capital Ends
Elevated borrowing costs directly filter down into corporate balance sheets and consumer demand, sparking broader concerns over whether public and private debt issuance has reached a tipping point. Rather than waiting for a rate relief cycle that may never materialize, finance leaders are taking direct defensive action.
Duncan Young, principal at San Francisco-based consulting firm Saorsa Growth Partners, specializes in providing fractional CFO services to companies. Businesses, he told Global Finance via email, are now prioritizing balance sheet durability over aggressive expansion.
To hedge against benchmark rate risks, companies are restructuring their short-term obligations and shifting benchmark exposure.
Duncan Young, Saorsa Growth Partners
“This is likely a function of risk-off bondholders and bank balance sheets, shifting away from Treasuries towards corporates. We’re pricing off SOFR when possible, to avoid the Treasury rate risk,” he said.
Instead of speculating on interest rate cuts, companies with near-term debt maturities are moving quickly to lock in fixed terms to insulate themselves from further upside volatility in yields.
“Our ‘current debt’ revolvers are being paid back [or] termed out to give us more resilience, heading into uncertainty. We aren’t expecting yields to ease,” Young said.
That posture is showing up across the broader CFO community.
Companies Are ‘Stretched Thin’
Middle-market companies, firms that typically generate less than $1 billion in annual revenue, have even less room to maneuver. Nick Araco, CEO of CFO Alliance, hears that many CFOs “are stretched thinner on what their current options are.”
As a result, they’re watching the Federal Reserve more closely, he added. “They don’t have the same flexibility to just refinance on their own timeline.”
“The ones sitting on debt maturing in the next 12 to 24 months are largely not betting on yields easing meaningfully,” Araco said, describing conversations across the group’s roughly 9,000 members.
This conservative stance is fundamentally altering capital allocation strategies. Rather than relying on leverage to fuel aggressive top-line targets, firms are relying on internal cash generation. They’re scaling back capital expenditures and holding cash as a strategic buffer.
“Return on cash gives us some benefit — for example, it softens the opportunity cost of us paying off debt. Terming out on a fixed rate and sitting on the cash so we can stay liquid in the next liquidity crisis is insurance worth paying,” Young added. “Given the AI outlook and the consequences of a bubble pop, we’re prioritizing resilience over growth rate, and this means less leverage and a more liquid balance sheet.”
Preparing for Double Shock
Government debt continues to test the limits of market capacity. An August 30-year Treasury auction drew below-average demand and record dealer absorption as yields hit 5.2% — the highest since 2001. Meanwhile, foreign investors’ share of U.S. debt has slid to about 30% from a 2008 peak of 49%, according to the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget and the Bipartisan Policy Center.
That combination — elevated base yields sitting alongside historically tight credit spreads — is unsettling CFOs more than the headline numbers suggest.
“Tight spreads feel almost like a false sense of calm,” Araco said. CFOs aren’t treating today’s all-in cost of debt as the new normal, he added. They’re stress-testing what happens if spreads normalize on top of already-elevated base rates.
“It’s less about action today and more about scenario planning,” Araco said, “and making sure that their capital structure isn’t fragile if that spread compression reverses.”
Corporate leaders are taking matters into their own hands. By prioritizing liquidity, extending duration, and managing leverage, CFOs are ensuring their organizations remain resilient regardless of where government bond yields head next.
“If Treasury yields remain elevated and spreads widen at the same time, the all-in borrowing cost can change quickly. I would model that combined shock now,” DeFabrizio warns. “Once you need the capital, your negotiating position has already changed.”
Anthony Noto covers corporate finance and private credit. Contact him at anoto@gfmag.com
FROM #ad posts to children launching their own fashion lines, the world of influencing is no longer reserved for reality stars and celebs – but their mini-mes too.
Amy Childs’ revealed recently that her nine-year-old daughter was launching her own fashion brand of gym and athleisure wearCredit: amychilds1990 and mypollyuk/ InstagramFerne McCann is often seen promoting products with her daughters Sunday and FintyCredit: instagram
The announcement didn’t go down quite as positively as Amy had hoped, with many fans slamming her for ‘exploiting’ the youngster for the money-spinning venture – leaving her ‘devastated’.
It comes as a whole host of celebs have welcomed their offspring into the world of business.
Molly-Mae Hague’s daughter Bambi joined her in promoting Persil and Comfort laundry productsCredit: PersilRochelle Humes’ children are often seen in social media adverts for her brand, My Little Coco
PR expert Luana Riviera says celeb parents are a ‘goldmine’ when it comes to money-making, as she says: “Being seen with their children makes even the most famous faces seem more down-to-earth and relatable.”
However, fans have been left concerned over the rise in celeb children on their screens.
Amy Childs’ was flooded with comments about ‘exploitation’ after revealing daughter Polly’s clothing brand.
Something feels off about this. Sorry but it’s a money making thing and doesn’t seem right.
“She isn’t old enough to do this sort of thing and have the maturity to understand,” said one.
Another echoed: “God let her be a child a little longer.”
Molly-Mae faced similar backlash after showing daughter Bambi in the bath on her Amazon Prime series and taking part in campaigns together.
“From a PR point of view, the use of families is appealing and will certainly get people talking about the brand and the marketing campaign,” explains Launa, who is the founder of Dauntless PR.
She continued: “But it is important to remember that these decisions are forever and when children get older they may wish they had been given more privacy and normality in their younger years.”
“Whether or not celebrities SHOULD put their children in the public eye in this way is an area which people will have lots of opinions on.
“Some will argue it is a safety risk and that the children themselves aren’t old enough to fully consent or understand the implications of establishing a level of fame in their own right.”
With the move such a controversial one, will the young stars see any of their hard-earned profits?
PR expert Carla Speight believes they will reap the rewards, just not anytime soon.
“These industry savvy parents will be making sure their kids won’t work for free, especially in the case of Molly Mae’s Bambi in the Comfort ads.
“Bambi will have been paid for that and the money will sit in a trust earning interest until she’s at least 16, which gives her a good financial head start.
“Just like most of the celeb children, they’ll either have shares in the brands or they’ll get a wage for each time they showcase the brands and in the case of their parent’s brands, it’s likely they’ll get both.”
Nquthu, South Africa – When Zwelibi Jack Ngubane died at the age of 105, he had already made one thing clear to his family: he wanted to be buried as a Muslim.
Hundreds of family and community members gathered for his funeral in Nquthu, a rural part of northern KwaZulu-Natal where Christianity and traditional African beliefs are dominant and Muslims are a tiny minority. Ngubane had converted to Islam late in life after observing the faith of his young grandson.
When he died, his family honoured his wishes. His funeral was conducted according to Muslim burial rites before he was laid to rest in the family burial plot in his village. For a community largely unfamiliar with Islamic burial practices, the funeral was a novelty.
But it wasn’t a controversy. That distinction has become increasingly important in South Africa.
In recent months, anti-Muslim rhetoric has become more visible online, intersecting with a heated national debate about immigration and anti-migrant movements. Posts have accused Muslims of attempting to take over South Africa, questioned their belonging in the country and accused Muslim organisations of using charity and poverty to convert Black South Africans to Islam.
One social media post complained that humanitarian organisation Gift of the Givers had been “getting on our nerves with their insistence on pushing their Muslim beliefs in South Africa”. Another claimed: “Most foreigners in South Africa are Muslim and if you look most countries experiencing war are Muslim countries not Christian ones.” Others have accused Muslims of “targeting poverty-stricken communities and converting them to Islam”.
But in the rolling hills and villages of Nquthu, the picture is different.
For Samukelisiwe Ngubane, her first encounters with Muslims came through Indian shopkeepers in a nearby town. “We have never had a problem. Some people are curious about what they [Muslims] do, but there have been no problems,” she told Al Jazeera.
When her brother, Khethukuthula Dlame, converted to Islam in 2012 as a teenager, it was hardly an issue. Dlame, now 26 and one of only a handful of Muslims known in his village, is familiar enough to his neighbours that his Islamic clothing is a source of teasing rather than hostility. One neighbour jokes that he wears a dress.
“In these communities, there’s harmony and respect. People really respect my religion,” he told Al Jazeera, standing alongside his grandfather’s gravesite.
The contrast raises a question: is South Africa experiencing a rise in Islamophobia, or is social media making a marginal phenomenon appear much larger than it is?
Muslims make up a small minority in South Africa. The country’s 2022 census counted less than one million Muslims, or approximately 1.6 percent of the population. South African Muslim leaders give higher estimates, with some putting the country’s Muslim population at between two million and five million people.
Samukelisiwe Ngubane, a community activist in Nquthu, holds a photograph of her grandfather, Zwelibi Jack Ngubane [Qaanitah Hunter/Al Jazeera]
But Islam’s presence in South Africa stretches back centuries. Muslims came to the Cape through several routes, including enslavement and political exile, from parts of Asia and the Indian Ocean world under Dutch colonial rule from the 17th century. Muslims were already present at the Cape before the arrival in 1694 of Shaykh Yusuf of Macassar, a Muslim scholar and political exile.
Today, the community includes descendants of enslaved Muslims brought to the Cape centuries ago, South Africans of Indian ancestry whose families have lived in the country for generations, Black African Muslims, converts and more recent migrants.
Dlame believes attempts to mobilise people against Muslims are not primarily emerging from rural communities.
“The move to orchestrated hate towards Muslims is not at a community level. If you’re looking at people when they’re mobilising, it’s not people from the villages. It is people in cities and in hostels.”
“The people behind this understand the flash points. If you really want to cause divisions, you use tribal rhetoric and the people you mobilise and agitate are in hostels because the living conditions are not good.”
South Africa has repeatedly experienced outbreaks of xenophobic violence since the end of apartheid, with migrants from elsewhere on the African continent often bearing the brunt. The question is whether some of that anti-migrant rhetoric is also being directed at Muslims.
‘No widespread Islamophobia’
Thembisa Fakude, a South African political analyst and journalist who is Muslim, told Al Jazeera that fears of widespread Islamophobia are being overstated.
“I’ll argue that there is no widespread or any orchestrated, well-planned Islamophobia directed towards Muslims. We don’t have that.”
He acknowledges anti-Muslim rhetoric online, but argues that it should not automatically be interpreted as evidence that South African society itself has become Islamophobic.
“It’s true, but it’s not only South Africa. This is global … In South Africa, yes, it’s true. You find that there will always be bigots, you know, and others will be, you know, ultra-Zulu nationalist or ultra-nationalist.”
Fakude also argues that Muslim communities need to confront allegations of racism and exploitative labour practices within their own ranks rather than characterising every criticism as religious prejudice.
“It is a storm in a teacup. And I think what’s concerning me is this othering by Muslims wanting to position themselves as victims and taking this course by themselves. It’s extremely dangerous.”
What starts online does not always stay there
Muslim religious leader Moulana Sulaiman Ravat told Al Jazeera that, while ordinary South Africans are largely not Islamophobic, he is more cautious about what could happen next.
“At the same time, I think on the ground, South Africans in the main are not Islamophobic, and there’s a variety of indicators to substantiate that.”
Samukelisiwe Ngubane says Muslims have long been part of everyday life in the rural KwaZulu-Natal community [Qaanitah Hunter/Al Jazeera]
But Ravat warns that online rhetoric can influence attitudes over time.
“I don’t think we can go to the other extreme. We must understand that there are certain global political realities, and the Islamophobia project aligns with those global agendas. And therefore, if we become complacent or nonchalant about it, what people are exposed to online could start impacting their psyche and how they think.”
Ravat argues that Muslim identity is sometimes being presented as evidence that a person is somehow less South African. For him, the premise is false.
“I would think I would say they are deeply religious and deeply patriotic, and there is no contradiction between the two.”
His own children, he said, are fifth-generation South African Muslims of Indian heritage.
“They don’t speak the language any more. They are as South African as anyone else.”
Two South Africas?
Back in Nquthu, Islam does not arrive through a social media algorithm. It arrives through a neighbour, where Dlame’s mother cooks a halal meal for this reporter and other guests. Earlier, at a community meeting, Dlame explained that Muslims, too, believe that Jesus was a prophet of God. Ordinary villagers listened attentively and joined in Zulu melodies in praise of God.
For now, the distance between the online conversation and life in communities such as Nquthu remains significant. But Ravat says that does not mean the possibility of deeper hostility should be dismissed.
“Better be proactive than reactive. It’s a global reality. It has been for the last 20 years. And the fact that it could increase in South Africa and could have serious consequences, you could argue, is unlikely but not impossible.”
The British game show was first hosted by the legendary Cilla Black before Paul O’Grady took over
13:15, 26 Aug 2026Updated 13:28, 26 Aug 2026
Blind Date was originally hosted by Cilla Black(Image: LWT)
The reboot of eighties game show Blind Date has finally found its host.
Originally hosted by the late Cilla Black, the show saw total strangers getting to know each other on stage with a barrier between them. The format saw three aspiring daters quizzed by a single contestant of the opposite sex with a live audience watching on.
Over the course of the episode each contestant would reveal more about themselves and eventually one of the three would be chosen to go on a date. Only then would the newly-matched pair be revealed to each other face-to-face.
The show sparked some iconic moments which still go viral today, including no-nonsense host Cilla’s brutal takedown of a Cosmopolitan journalist who had gone undercover on the show for an article.
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“I feel awfully, deeply saddened by this,” Cilla began while the cameras were still rolling. “But you don’t work as a temporary secretary, I know for a fact that actually you’re an undercover journalist and you’ve robbed somebody of coming on a proper blind date,” prompting boos from the live audience.
Cilla hosted the original series from 1985 until 2003, with Paul O’Grady cast as host when it was once against revived in 2017. Now, Disney Plus are rebooting it again and this time Love Island, I’m A Celebrity and Traitors US star Maura Higgins will be at the helm.
Irish TV personality Maura shot to fame on the fifth series of ITV2 reality show Love Island back in 2019. She shared the iconic villa with the likes of Molly-Mae Hague and Tommy Fury – who went on to marry – as well as the season’s eventual winners, Amber Gill and Greg O’Shea.
Announcing the news today (August 26), Angela Jain, Head of Content, Disney+ EMEA, commented: “Maura is the perfect match for our version of ‘Blind Date’. Her distinctive straight-talking humour, coupled with her experience as a reality dating show contestant, means we know she has the gravitas plus the wit to bring ‘Blind Date’ to new audiences. We’re very much looking forward to Maura helping our daters navigate their own journeys to find love as she steps into the famed ‘Blind Date’ host role.”
Meanwhile, speaking at Edinburgh TV Festival, Sean Doyle, Vice President of Unscripted Originals at Disney+ also confirmed: “We have Maura Higgins hosting Blind Date which is great.”
He continued: “I was concerned that we had such a great track record of hit shows and dating shows is such a crowded market.
“I thought it was risky launching a brand new dating show and I think bringing Blind Date to Disney+ is head turning and will feel completely different to the original format.”
Disney Plus announced it was rebooting the hit game show back in 2025. At the time they teased that it would “bigger, better and bolder than ever.”
Its synopsis continued: “The new series will begin in a secret Blind Date location, where contestants must choose between three potential suitors, hidden from view behind the legendary Blind Date wall, the only thing standing between them and their potential true love just metres away.
‘With a host of unique, innovative and head-turning format twists, our daters will see if forever love can truly grow as they spend the summer living together but potential new partners are always lurking behind the wall…”
A release date for Blind Date is yet to be announced.
Tenerife has long been an extremely popular destination for holidaymakers from the UK. Not only is it just a few hours away by plane – but there are plenty of deals on package holidays too
14:19, 23 Aug 2026Updated 14:19, 23 Aug 2026
Tenerife is one of the most popular holiday destinations for Brits (stock image)(Image: Getty Images)
Tenerife is one of the most popular holiday destinations for Brits, with around 2.3 million people from the UK flocking to the sun-drenched island every single year. Just a few hours away by plane, the Spanish island is famous for its beautiful beaches, hot temperatures, and cloudless skies.
But, according to one Brit living in the Canary Islands destination, there’s one thing about the holiday hotspot lots of people don’t know. Andrew Knight, known on social media as The Knightsrider, runs a bar and a car hire business in Tenerife, and frequently shares looks into life on the island with his followers on social media.
In a recent clip on TikTok, Andrew revealed something he claimed “the internet isn’t telling you”. “That is the fact that this weather, the gorgeous ocean, the boat trips, the excursions, and everything, all run all year round,” he said.
What is Tenerife like in the winter?
Andrew said: “So many people message, or they call me up, or they ask me on the live streams, ‘Is this running in the winter?’, ‘Is this running in November?’, ‘What is open in December?’ Remember, Tenerife is 365 days a year.”
He continued: “So whether it’s winter, November, January, Christmas Day – everything is running. You’re gonna have average temperatures in the winter months of like 23 degrees in the daytime.”
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Andrew added “the sea temperature doesn’t change much”, and the beaches remain busy in the winter. “We have a big rush and a big influx in the summer, but the winter months are actually our most solid months for me,” he said.
“That’s our busiest with the cars. We’re mad busy with the excursions then as well. So bear that in mind.
“It’s not spoken about enough, it’s not made clear enough online when you’re booking holidays and things. The Canary Islands, and Tenerife in particular, especially the south, is fantastic in the winter months, and we are an all-year-round amazing place to visit.
“So have a look, get it booked. You can find some great winter sunshine. Four hour flight from the UK, five hours from Germany, Sweden, etc, and you’ll be here in the sunshine rather than freezing, miserable, raining at home.”
Concluding, he said: “You can get some great deals, have a look at it. But Tenerife is an all-year-round destination. Ignore what the internet says.”
Why is Tenerife such a popular holiday destination for Brits?
Tenerife has long been an extremely popular destination for holidaymakers from the UK. Not only is it relatively nearby – just a few hours away by plane – but there are plenty of deals on package holidays to the island available too.
The south of the island is known for its stunning beaches, luxury resorts, and vibrant nightlife, as well as a wealth of places to eat and drink, but there’s more to see and do too. Tenerife is also home to the Mount Teide National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site filled with volcanic rock formations surrounding an active volcano, while the north of the island offers a more authentic local experience, with beautiful architecture and incredible food and drink.
Siam Park, a huge Thailand-themed water park, and Loro Parque, an animal and conservation park home to wildlife including lions, dolphins, penguins, gorillas, hippos, and much more, are also popular with visitors of all ages.
Direct flights to Tenerife are available from most UK airports.
