role

A GROUP of office workers were left shocked when they learned their colleague is a former child star, and had a role in an iconic festive film.

The actor now keeps a low profile working as a Logistics Manager for the upcoming 2026 Commonwealth Games, which will take place in Glasgow. But do you recognise him?

Joe Lane appeared in 2009 hit Nativity!, which featured Martin Freeman, Jason Watkins and Ashley Jensen.

He portrayed schoolboy Edward in the film, which is centred around a heartbroken primary school teacher’s journey to make his class’s nativity play reach Hollywood, and win his ex-girlfriend back in the process.

In a TikTok shared by Joe’s colleagues, the former actor was left red-faced when they figured out his famous past.

The clip showed Joe, dressed in a Christmas jumper and a festive headband, as he is shaken by his colleagues.

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It then cuts to clips of him in the movie, before his colleagues recreate a hilarious moment by his character Edward.

Joe’s starring moment in the film saw him take to the microphone during the final Nativity performance and impersonate fart sounds with his armpit.

The former child star had his head in his hands when his co-workers cornered him at his desk and re-enacted the funny moment in the TikTok video.

“When you find out your colleague was in the nativity films,” read the video, with the caption adding: “The most exciting office development this week”.

The film was cast by producers holding open calls for local kids in Coventry, with the aim to use non-professional actors for an authentic feel.

After appearing in the first movie, Joe appears to have steered away from continuing an acting career.

He went on to become a semi-professional rugby player, before moving into logistics for sporting events.

Coventry-born Joe is now living in Glasgow after spending time in Australia and London.

It appears he has been keen to keep his famous past under wraps in the workplace.

One TikTok user commented on the video to reveal that they had previously worked with Joe, and had no clue of the connection.

“I worked with Joe at Coventry Rfc and unless I was out of the loop he kept this very well hidden!” they said.

Another commenter joked “So he didn’t become shrek??”, referencing the scene in Nativity! where character Mr. Poppy told Edward, “You could be Shrek”.

A number of the children who appeared in Nativity! returned to their normal lives following the movie, and despite its massive success, have gone into regular jobs.

Cadi Mullane, who played Crystal – one of the main children in the film – previously detailed what filming was like in a TikTok video.

She said: “I was part of an agency called Stagecoach, they were looking for kids who were really chatty, who could dance a little bit and sing a little bit. Apparently that was me.

“There was about seven auditions. But I’m from Wales so I had to keep travelling up to London which was a bit annoying, but it was OK because I really wanted to be in a film.

“They looked at how well we could sing and how well we got on with the other kids, cause that was important, obviously.”

Cadi went on to recall how the movie filmed throughout the summer, with no scripts for the children.

She said: “It was filmed in Coventry but obviously I’m not from Coventry so we all stayed in a hotel together. It was like The Suite Life Of Zach and Cody, honestly.

“There was no scripts. Everything was improvised, except from some bits. We basically just spoke loads of rubbish, and then we were asked to say it again on camera.”

South Korea on Thursday called on China to play a role in fostering conditions to resume dialogue with North Korea, with China reaffirming its commitment to ensuring stability on the Korean Peninsula, Seoul’s foreign ministry said.

First Vice Foreign Minister Park Yoon-joo made the call when he met with Ma Zhaoxu, China’s executive vice foreign minister, during the bilateral strategic dialogue in Beijing, the ministry said in a release.

The talks came as South Korea seeks to stably manage its ties with China, its largest trade partner and key economic benefactor of North Korea, amid the strategic rivalry between China and the United States, and Seoul’s drive to mend ties with Pyongyang.

“Vice Minister Park explained the government’s policy direction for peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula, and asked for China’s role in fostering conditions to resume dialogue with North Korea,” the ministry said in a release.

Ma reaffirmed that China will “continue its constructive role in ensuring peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula,” according to the ministry.

They also agreed to work together to enhance “political and friendly” mutual trust, continuing the positive momentum in bilateral relations to further develop their ties.

It marked the first such talks since the launch of the Lee Jae Myung government in June.

The two sides exchanged opinions on issues of mutual concern, including China’s steel structures built in the overlapping sea zone in the Yellow Sea. The steel towers have raised speculation that China has installed them to lay territorial claims to the area, as was done in the South China Sea.

Noting that bilateral relations have recovered with the recent summit talks between President Lee Jae Myung and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Gyeongju, they agreed to implement follow-up steps in a substantive manner, through robust exchanges both at the government and private sector levels.

They also discussed ways to revitalize cultural exchanges between the two countries in a way that will “narrow the emotional distance between their peoples,” the ministry said.

Although China has never officially confirmed it, it has restricted the inflow of Korean cultural content and exchanges between relevant industries, including K-pop concerts and Korean films.

Copyright (c) Yonhap News Agency prohibits its content from being redistributed or reprinted without consent, and forbids the content from being learned and used by artificial intelligence systems.

U.S. senators peppered Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr with questions during a wide-ranging hearing exploring media censorship, the FCC’s oversight and Carr’s alleged intimidation tactics during the firestorm over ABC comedian Jimmy Kimmel’s comments earlier this fall.

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) called Wednesday’s hearing of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee following the furor over ABC’s brief suspension of “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” amid social media backlash over Kimmel’s remarks in the wake of conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s killing.

Walt Disney Co. leaders yanked Kimmel off the air Sept. 17, hours after Carr suggested that Disney-owned ABC should punish the late-night comedian for his remarks — or face FCC scrutiny. Soon, two major TV station groups announced that they were pulling Kimmel’s show, although both reinstated the program several days after ABC resumed production.

Progressives were riled by the President Trump-appointed chairman’s seeming willingness to go after broadcasters in an alleged violation of their First Amendment rights. At the time, a few fellow Republicans, including Cruz, blasted Carr for suggesting to ABC: “We can do this the easy way or hard way.”

Cruz, in September, said that Carr’s comments belonged in the mob movie “Goodfellas.”

On Wednesday, Carr said his comments about Kimmel were not intended as threats against Disney or the two ABC-affiliated station groups that preempted Kimmel’s show.

The chairman argued the FCC had statutory authority to make sure that TV stations acted in the public interest, although Carr did not clarify how one jumbled sentence in Kimmel’s Sept. 15 monologue violated the broadcasters’ obligation to serve its communities.

Cruz was conciliatory Wednesday, praising Carr’s work in his first year as FCC chairman. However, Democrats on the panel attempted to pivot much of the three-hour session into a public airing of the Trump administration’s desire to punish broadcasters whom the president doesn’t like — and Carr’s seeming willingness to go along.

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) called Wednesday’s Senate committee hearing.

(Associated Press)

Carr was challenged by numerous Democrats who suggested he was demonstrating fealty to the president rather than running the FCC as an independent licensing body.

Despite the landmark Communications Act of 1934, which created the FCC, the agency isn’t exactly independent, Carr and fellow Republican Commissioner Olivia Trusty testified.

The two Republicans said because Trump has the power to hire and fire commissioners, the FCC was more akin to other agencies within the federal government.

“Then is President Trump your boss?” asked Sen. Andy Kim (D-N.J.). The senator then asked Carr whether he remembered his oath of office. Federal officials, including Carr, have sworn to protect the Constitution.

“The American people are your boss,” Kim said. “Have you ever had a conversation with the president or senior administration officials about using the FCC to go after critics?”

Carr declined to answer.

Protesters flocked to Hollywood to protest the preemption of “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” after ABC briefly pulled the late-night host off air indefinitely over comments he made about the fatal shooting of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.

(Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

The lone Democrat on the FCC, Anna M. Gomez, was frequently at odds with her fellow commissioners, including during an exploration of whether she felt the FCC was doing Trump’s bidding in its approach to merger approvals.

Trump separately continued his rant on media organizations he doesn’t like, writing in a Truth Social post that NBC News “should be ashamed of themselves in allowing garbage ‘interviews’” of his political rivals, in this case Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.).

Trump wrote that NBC and other broadcasters should pay “significant amounts of money for using the very valuable” public airwaves.

Earlier this year, FCC approval of the Larry Ellison family’s takeover of Paramount stalled for months until Paramount agreed to pay Trump $16 million to settle a lawsuit over his grievances with edits of a CBS “60 Minutes” pre-election interview with Kamala Harris.

“Without a doubt, the FCC is leveraging its authority over mergers and enforcement proceedings in order to influence content,” Gomez said.

Parts of the hearing devolved into partisan bickering over whether Democrats or Republicans had a worse track record of trampling on the 1st Amendment. Cruz and other Republicans referenced a 2018 letter, signed by three Democrats on the committee, which asked the FCC to investigate conservative TV station owner Sinclair Broadcast Group.

“Suddenly Democrats have discovered the 1st Amendment,” Cruz said. “Maybe remember it when Democrats are in power. The 1st Amendment is not a one-way license for one team to abuse the power.

“We should respect the free speech of all Americans, regardless of party,” Cruz said.

Melissa Barrera is no stranger to a certain type of espionage. Dangerous missions. Sometimes starting in the dark of night. One particular covert operation she regularly took part in is one many daughters have had to take with their resolute mothers — Black Friday shopping.

She recalls crossing the border from her hometown in Monterrey, Nuevo León, in the wee hours of the morning to McAllen or Brownsville in Texas to score primo deals at the big-box stores.

“It felt like a treasure hunt for me,” she recalled. “In my mind, it was like a mission, getting the things that we had to get. I like challenges and being given instructions. That was very satisfying for my personality type.”

That experience prepared the Mexican actor for her role as a spy juggling secret identities in Peacock’s “The Copenhagen Test,” premiering Dec. 27. The espionage thriller stars Simu Liu as an intelligence analyst whose brain has been hacked, putting his thoughts and memories in the hands of unknown perpetrators. Barrera co-stars as Michelle, a spy tangled in the web of deceit.

“It was a challenge. I’d never done anything like this before, in the sense that you really don’t know who Michelle is,” said the actor, who chatted over Zoom from Barcelona where she’s filming another thriller, “Black Tides.”

“It was also confusing for me as an actor, because we didn’t have all the scripts at the beginning, so I had made up who I thought Michelle was — and then I would get more scripts and I was like, ‘Well, that goes out the window.’ It was a constant construction.”

Those Black Friday missions weren’t the only ways in which Barrera was innately prepared for the role. Growing up, she devoured the Jennifer Garner spy series “Alias.” She spent hours as a teen watching and rewatching episodes on DVD. It was Garner’s ass-kicking turn as Sydney Bristow, and her many stealthy alter egos, that planted a seed in Barrera.

“I was obsessed with that show,” she says. “As a young teenager, I was like, ‘I want to be a spy.’ I would research online: ‘How do you get recruited as a spy?’ That’s how obsessed I was.”

She longed for intrigue, for covert operations, for wigs. Not just the kind of spy business that equates to elbowing señoras at Best Buy for a deeply discounted TV. And then came “The Copenhagen Test.”

“I just thought that it was so fun, the role playing within the role playing that happens,” she said. “I read the scripts, and they were really good. And I got to be a spy. I was like, this is a no-brainer for me. I’ve been asking for this since I was 12, so it was a dream come true for young me.”

From “Episode 101” of “The Copenhagen Test”: Melissa Barrera as Michelle and Simu Liu as Alexander.

A spy series is just the latest in a long wishlist of roles for Barrera, who got to flex her dramatic side in “Vida,” her vocal and dance prowess in the musical “In the Heights,” and dive into scream queen territory in “Scream V” and “Scream VI.”

“I think it’s valuable for Latinos onscreen to bring in some of their background when it fits, and when it doesn’t, there’s no need to push it — I’m representing Latinos just by being there,” said Barrera, with a nod to ongoing discussions surrounding Latino inclusion in Hollywood. “[Yet] I’ve always wanted to explore all parts of myself. I’ve always wanted to try different things. I think it’s been happening, because I do believe that whatever you put out into the universe comes to you.”

It’s not just dream acting roles that Barrera puts out into the universe, hoping it produces something good. The 35-year-old is an outspoken advocate for Palestinian rights, wearing her beliefs quite literally on her chest — during our call she sports a hoodie with the phrase “words not actions” in the shape of a watermelon, a symbol of perseverance and resistance for Palestinian people. She’s never shied away from using her voice, in particular for this specific human rights issue, and it’s come with its consequences.

Two years ago, Barrera was fired from the forthcoming installment of the Scream franchise, “Scream VII,” as well as dropped from her agency for posts she shared and wrote on social media calling Israel’s attacks on Gaza acts of genocide and ethnic cleansing.

“Gaza is currently being treated like a concentration camp,” read one of her Instagram stories in following the events of Oct. 7. “Cornering everyone together, with no where to go, no electricity no water … People have learnt [sic] nothing from our histories. And just like our histories, people are still silently watching it all happen. THIS IS GENOCIDE & ETHNIC CLEANSING.”

Her firing drew widespread attention and critical discussion over what was viewed by many as the latest form of Hollywood blacklisting. Last year, Barrera spoke to De Los about the backlash, saying, “It wasn’t easy to be labeled as something so horrible when I knew that wasn’t the case. But I was always at peace because I knew I had done nothing wrong. I was aligned with human rights organizations globally, and so many experts and scholars and historians and, most importantly, Indigenous peoples around the world.”

Over a year later, her stance hasn’t changed. In fact, that period changed everything for Barrera.

“I’ve always had that inner inquietude, that kind of yearning for equality and for justice and for eliminating any kind of prejudices and racism and colorism, which is very prevalent in Mexico,” she explained. “But I honestly think it was Palestine that did it for me, that crumbled everything for me. After that, it’s been a before and after in my way of thinking and my way of viewing the world; in my way of viewing the industry and the way that I want to move forward.”

As Barrera moves forward, using her platform to speak up for injustice is inextricable from her sense of self and her place in Hollywood. What she brings to the screen is her full self, regardless of the role; to play a spy, or a scream queen, or any other character takes knowing who you are and what you stand for. Now, more than ever, Barrera is firmly grounded and ready for action.

Four years after the family of deceased Angels pitcher Tyler Skaggs filed a wrongful death suit against the Angels, and two months into often contentious testimony in an Orange County Superior Court courtroom, jurors are set to begin deliberations on whether Skaggs’ widow and parents deserve hundreds of millions of dollars.

During closing statements Monday, plaintiffs lawyer Daniel Dutko argued that the Angels were negligent in failing to supervise Eric Kay, the drug-addicted team communications director who gave Skaggs the fentanyl that killed him in 2019.

However, Angels lawyer Todd Theodora insisted that Skaggs was a selfish, secretive opioid addict who for years manipulated Kay into obtaining drugs for him. Theodora told the jury that the Angels didn’t owe the Skaggs family any award.

“He died when he was doing things we teach our children and grandchildren not to do — do not chop up and snort pills from the street,” Theodora said.

But it’s not just Skaggs’ family and the Angels who have a lot riding on the jury’s decision. Among those powerful stakeholders who have been watching the proceedings closely are the agencies that insure the Angels.

According to people with knowledge of the Angels’ defense, the team is insured by several companies that each provide coverage with various limits, and it’s possible that those insurers could facilitate a case settlement even before the jury reaches its verdict.

“Insurance companies are in the business of mitigating risk; they don’t like uncertainty,” said Brian Panish, a Los Angeles personal injury lawyer who was not involved in the case but has won several landmark jury verdicts. “They calculate risk and proceed from there. In this case we are talking about multiple insurance companies, a tower of insurance.”

Even though the insurance companies represent the Angels, they ultimately could reduce risk for the Skaggs family and their lawyers through an 11th-hour settlement.

Legal experts say that in cases where enormous sums of money are at stake, the two sides can reach what is called a high-low agreement, with the insurance companies promising to pay plaintiffs an agreed-upon sum even if the jury awards nothing. In exchange the plaintiffs accept an agreed-upon cap to their award — even if the jury thought they deserved more.

A nightmare outcome for the Skaggs family would be the jury awarding them nothing, meaning that in addition to widow Carli Skaggs and parents Debbie Hetman and Darrell Skaggs leaving empty-handed, their high-powered legal team that has spent thousands of hours on the case wouldn’t be paid. Their contingency fee — typically 35% to 40% of an award — would be zero.

A high-low agreement with the Angels would ensure that Skaggs’ lawyers are paid and the family gets some money even if the jury denies them anything.

Both sides are scrambling to assess risk before the jury returns a verdict. Another source of information for the Angels has been a “shadow jury,” a half-dozen or so people hired by the insurance companies to sit in on the trial and provide feedback to the Angels lawyers on their reactions to the testimony.

Next could come negotiations with little time to spare.

“Who is going to blink first?” Panish said. “The posturing and maneuvering is over. The hay is in the barn. The bricks have been laid. I’d be very surprised if they aren’t talking already.”

A person with knowledge of backroom negotiations between the two sides said one insurance company with a relatively low limit on its coverage of the Angels — near the bottom of the tower — has blocked progress toward a settlement. The insurance companies eventually made a “lowball offer” more than a month ago that was rejected by the Skaggs family.

“If a settlement proposal is within the insurance policy limits, there will be pressure on the defense to settle,” Panish said. “But if it is above the limits, say coverage is for $50 million and the demand is $100 million, the insurance companies can’t force the Angels to settle because they would have to pay the excess amount.”

The facts regarding Skaggs’ death are not in dispute. An autopsy concluded the 27-year-old left-hander accidentally died of asphyxia after aspirating his own vomit while under the influence of fentanyl, oxycodone and alcohol the night of July 1, 2019, when the Angels were in Texas for a three-game series against the Rangers.

Kay provided Skaggs with the counterfeit oxycodone pill laced with fentanyl and is serving 22 years in federal prison for his role in the death.

The Skaggs family legal team, led by attorneys Rusty Hardin, Shaun Holley and Dutko, argued that several Angels employees knew about Kay’s own years-long addiction to opioids and ignored team and Major League Baseball policies by failing to report or punish Kay.

Dutko said Kay was operating within his scope of employment when he gave Skaggs and several other players opioid pills — a stance vigorously opposed by Theodora. Dutko referred to testimony that Kay did anything he could to please players — obtaining Viagra prescriptions and marijuana vape pens for them, booking tee times and massages, and humoring them by taking a fastball off his knee and eating pimples off the back of star outfielder Mike Trout.

“From Viagra to vape pens to opioids. Eric Kay’s job responsibility was to get the players anything they wanted,” Dutko said.

Theodora continually portrayed Skaggs as a conniving drug addict who callously pressured Kay to obtain pills for him and doled out pills to teammates, even pressuring Kay to deliver opioids shortly after the longtime employee and admitted drug addict came out of rehab.

On Monday, Theodora reviewed testimony from five of Skaggs’ teammates dating back to 2011 and argued that not only had Skaggs’ drug use escalated over a nine-year period, but that Skaggs had introduced Kay to them and personally obtained pills for the players.

“It’s called the chain of distribution,” Theodora said.

The Skaggs family is seeking not only lost earnings and emotional distress damages but also punitive damages. California law doesn’t allow punitive damages in a wrongful death case, but precedent going back to the O.J. Simpson case makes an exception if the person suffered property damage before death. Skaggs lawyers believe Kay was responsible for fentanyl contaminating the pitcher’s iPad, which was confiscated and never returned to the family.

“The jury first must find the defendant liable for economic and emotional distress damages, and then a second deliberation will determine if punitive damages are appropriate,” said Edson K. McClellan, an Irvine lawyer who specializes in high-stakes civil and employment litigation. “The purpose of punitive damages is to send a message to the defendant: Don’t do this again.”

McClellan said a purpose of closing statements is to “sway hearts,” to persuade jurors who might not have made up their minds. Both sides gave impassioned arguments that the case they presented over two months validated a verdict in their favor.

MICKEY ROURKE is trying to get his movie career back on track – despite his Celebrity Big Brother disgrace.

The veteran Hollywood star was booted off the ITV reality show earlier this year for his “unacceptable behaviour.”

But luckily for Mickey his name has been linked to two big-screen biopics.

One is about the life of Black Sabbath legend Ozzy Osbourne while another will be on US country legend Johnny Cash.

One of my Hollywood insiders said Mickey’s name had repeatedly come up in meetings about the films when discussions turned to casting the older versions of the music legends.

They told me: “Producers here don’t even know about the Celebrity Big Brother thing, Mickey is golden in the States.

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“This town also loves an underdog, and movie bosses think Mickey still has an Oscar-worthy performance they can wring out of him.

“He was a top actor back in the day — he would have been on a par with James Dean and Marlon Brando if he hadn’t taken wrong turns and gone down a bad path.

If the evil overlords of Hollywood give us the green light we could be filming in the spring

Jack Osbourne

“There are scripts in the pipeline on Ozzy and Johnny, and Mickey’s name has come up in meetings about both projects.

“They want to portray Ozzy’s final days before that amazing show at Villa Park, and they want a performance like Mickey gave in The Wrestler.

“They’re confident he could do it.”

It’s understood streaming giants Amazon MGM and Apple are interested in both projects, with big-name directors in the frame to oversee it — including Martin Scorsese.

Ozzy’s son Jack Osbourne first told me they were working on a film about his dad’s life before Ozzy’s homecoming show back in July.

Jack said: “We do have the film on the way. We have a lot of good forward momentum on the Ozzy biopic.

“We have a director attached now and the script is done and Sony Studios is going to be producing it.

“We are really excited about it so maybe we will do the premiere here in Birmingham.

“If the evil overlords of Hollywood give us the green light we could be filming in the spring so maybe it will be out summer 2027 — fingers crossed.”

I’m sure Mickey will be crossing his toes, as well as his fingers, that he gets the part.

JAMIE LEE: IT’S FREAKIER ONLINE

HER long-awaited sequel to 2003’s Freaky Friday – imaginatively titled Freakier Friday – went down a storm with fans.

And Hollywood legend Jamie Lee Curtis says she knows exactly why we are seeing a resurgence in sequels and prequels.

Speaking to comedian Geoff Norcott on this Times Radio show, Jamie said: “Nostalgia is very hot right now.

“Because people are feeling so freaked out by what’s happening that you cling, you cling to nostalgia to make you feel safe.”

Jamie, whose new film Ella McCay is out now, went on to slam cancel culture and attacks on free speech.

She added: “We’re all trying to figure out, what can we say? What can’t we say?

“The echo chamber is awful. Social media is awful. You say something that you believe in, you get hammered for it. I mean, hardcore.

“It’s hard to hold on to both the frustration you’re feeling but the sense of optimism and hope.

“I feel hope because I believe that the hatred is imploding, and I think we’re seeing it.”

IT’S STAR SHREK

THE life of a Bizarre reporter isn’t all red carpets and bubbly – sometimes you end up in a swamp with an ogre and a talking donkey.

Our Jack was invited backstage at the latest adaptation of Shrek: The Musical at Colchester’s Charter Hall to meet the cast before they kicked off their near sold-out run at the venue.

With Red Dwarf’s Danny John Jules as Donkey and CITV’s Chris Edgerley as Lord Farquaad, the show is based on the hit 2001 film starring Mike Myers and Eddie Murphy.

Shrek and Princess Fiona are played by Joseph Rawlings and Rachel Jerram.

A refreshing change from the annual festive panto, the cast delivered a brilliant version of the big screen hit with a seriously impressive set to match.

Shout out to Ceris Hine as the perfectly executed Gingy, delivering our favourite Gingerbread Man performance of the year.

Chatting backstage about playing the pint-sized villain, Chris explained how spending the show on his knees left him in agony at times.

He said: “I’m a lot taller than Farquaad so I’m knee-padded up to the hilt but it’s worth it.

“Halfway through rehearsals we had to add extra padding as it was hurting too much.

“Hopefully the audience will have as much fun as we do.”

Unlike the fairytale dictator, this musical certainly doesn’t come up short.

JAMIE’S SO FESTIVE

Jamie Cullum: The Pianoman At Christmas @ Royal Albert Hall, London

★★★★★

THERE’S nothing more festive than a trip to London’s Royal Albert Hall at Christmas – although a Jamie Cullum show there beats anything else to get you in the spirit.

Inspired by his criminally underrated 2020 album The Pianoman At Christmas, his two-hour seasonal spectacle, backed by a big band – “this is what expensive musicians sound like,” he half-joked – was an absolute treat.

And soon there will be more. He said of himself and wife Sophie Dahl : “We are trying to write the film of the Pianoman At Christmas.

“I told her I was going to announce it tonight so now we have to finish it.”

His voice is as smooth as a pricey whiskey and sounded just as great doing his original numbers as it did with family favourites Frosty The Snowman and Jingle Bells.

And as for Hang Your Lights, it deserves to be a modern Christmas classic.

Forget the turkey and mistletoe, Jamie Cullum’s annual festive show should be a staple of everyone’s Christmas.

HOWELL DAVIES

LILY’S SKIT ON STRANGER FLINGS

DAVID HARBOUR has another TV show to avoid, after his ex-wife Lily Allen called up Dakota Johnson to bring her infamous “Madeline” to life on Saturday Night Live.

During the show, Lily performed her explosive track Tennis – with Dakoka playing the “other woman” Madeline.

At the end of Lily’s performance, Dakota brought Madeline to life and appeared to reveal for the first time what this other woman may have told Lily about allegedly getting with David behind her back.

Dakota said: “I hate that you’re in so much pain right now.

“I really don’t want to be the cause of any upset.

“He told me that you were aware this was going on and that he had your full consent.

“’If he’s lying about that, then please let me know.

“Because I have my own feelings about dishonesty. Lies are not something that I want to get caught up in.”

Dakota then planted a kiss on Lily’s cheek as she said: “Love and light, Madeline.”

Former Grimsby Town and Barrow boss Michael Jolley has stepped down as manager of non-league side Bury after just two days following a backlash against his appointment.

It relates to an incident in 2009, when Jolley pleaded guilty to having sex with a 15-year-old girl.

He was sentenced to a year’s probation and placed on the Sex Offenders’ Register for 12 months.

Jolley has always maintained the girl did not disclose her true age to him, telling him she was 19. In a statement on X on Sunday, he said subsequent investigations established he was “deceived, and at no time did I act maliciously”.

He has not been prevented from continuing his career in football and has worked at seven clubs since the incident, including two in the Football League.

Bury, who play in the eighth-tier Northern Premier League Division One West, announced the 48-year-old’s appointment on Friday.

It drew criticism on social media and Bury fans chanted for his removal as he watched Saturday’s 2-1 win against Mossley in the stands at Gigg Lane. The away team’s supporters also sang derogatory songs about him.

In a statement on Sunday, Bury said the club recognised “the strength of feeling expressed in recent days by supporters, staff, partners and players, and the very real impact the board’s decision to appoint Michael has had on individuals connected to the club”.

They included a statement from Jolley, which said: “I do not wish my presence to deter the board from its mission of returning the club to its rightful place in the EFL.”

In his statement on X, Jolley said his appointment had become a “distraction” for the club and he would “relinquish the opportunity to become first-team manager”.

Bury said he had been “relieved of his duties by mutual consent”.

In response, some fans called on board members to resign.

Bury said assistant manager Tim Lees would take charge of the side on an interim basis while the board undertakes “a wider review of club operations”.

“We will also be engaging directly with players, staff and stakeholders to listen, learn and ensure that appropriate support is available,” the club added.

“Our immediate priority is the welfare of our people and the stability of the club and our community.

“We believe this step is necessary to help restore confidence, create space for reflection and allow Bury FC to move forward in a way that reflects our values and responsibilities.”

The club said it remained committed to “acting with integrity, transparency and respect”.

Samantha Harman – a Her Game Too ambassador for the club’s supporters’ group – said there had been no advance notice of Jolley’s appointment.

“At the time the news was released, I was away with work and flew back immediately,” Harman posted on X. “I went straight to the game and made my feelings very clear to members of the board at the earliest possible opportunity.

“Since the announcement, I have had to manage the very real impact this decision has had on our volunteer base, including volunteers stepping down. This has been an extremely difficult situation to navigate.

“As volunteers, we are required to adhere to a social media policy, which limits our ability to publicly express personal feelings or opinions online.

“However, I want to be absolutely clear – the Her Game Too team at Bury FC was fully aligned with the concerns raised by supporters and did not stand by the decision made in this appointment.”

Jolley was put in charge after Dave McNabb stepped down as manager earlier this month to become head of football operations.

Announcing his appointment on Friday, a Bury statement said: “Michael’s blend of strategic expertise, coaching pedigree and global management experience makes him the right leader to inspire our squad and unite our supporters.”

In his statement on X, Jolley said: “I am grateful to have had the opportunity to work at seven fantastic professional clubs since 2009. On joining each of those clubs, I have always proactively raised this incident after being offered employment. All those clubs considered the evidence and reached their own judgement based on the facts.

“Now in 2025, 16 and a half years later, my CRB [Criminal Records Bureau] check has long since shown as clear but in the interests of transparency and openness, I still ensure that any prospective employers have visibility of the issue if I do receive any offer of employment, and I did so once again in my discussions with Bury FC.

“If prospective employers wish to view the evidence or character references that were heard in court in 2009, I also ensure these documents are made available to them.

“Football being what it is, I have become accustomed to being abused in stadia and online by people unwilling or unable to accept the facts. Since I have a clear conscience regarding the incident, I have always believed that it is right that I stand my ground in the face of the abuse I have received during my football career.

“However, now with a young family of my own who wish to attend matches and support the club, I naturally place their wellbeing above my own and take a different perspective on this issue.”

California’s potential to lead a national Democratic comeback was on full display as party leaders from across the country recently gathered in downtown Los Angeles.

But is the party ready to bet on the Golden State?

Appearances at the Democratic National Committee meeting by the state’s most prominent Democrats, former Vice President Kamala Harris and Gov. Gavin Newsom, crystallized the peril and promise of California’s appeal. Harris failed to beat a politically wounded Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential race and Newsom, now among President Trump’s most celebrated critics, is considered a top Democratic contender to replace the Republican president in the White House in 2028.

California policies on divisive issues such as providing expanded access to government-sponsored healthcare, aiding undocumented immigrants and supporting LGBTQ+ rights continually serve as a Rorschach test for the nation’s polarized electorate, providing comfort to progressives and ammunition for Republican attack ads.

“California is like your cool cousin that comes for the holidays who is intriguing and glamorous, but who might not fit in with the family year-round,” said Elizabeth Ashford, a veteran Democratic strategist who worked for former Govs. Jerry Brown and Arnold Schwarzenegger and Harris when she was the state’s attorney general.

Newsom, in particular, is quick to boast about California being home to the world’s fourth-largest economy, a billion-dollar agricultural industry and economic and cultural powerhouses in Hollywood and the Silicon Valley. Critics, Trump chief among them, paint the state as a dystopian hellhole — littered with homeless encampments and lawlessness, and plagued by high taxes and an even higher cost of living.

Only two Californians have been elected president, Republicans Ronald Reagan and Richard Nixon. But that was generations ago, and Harris and Newsom are considering bids to end the decades-long drought in 2028. Both seized the moment by courting party leaders and activists during the three-day winter meeting of the Democratic National Committee that ended Saturday.

Harris, speaking to committee members and guests Friday, said the party’s victories in state elections across the nation in November reflect voters’ agitation about the impacts of Trump’s policies, notably affordability and healthcare costs. But she argued that “both parties have failed to hold the public’s trust.”

“So as we plan for what comes after this administration, we cannot afford to be nostalgic for what was, in fact, a flawed status quo, and a system that failed so many of you,” said Harris, who was criticized after her presidential campaign for not focusing enough on kitchen table issues, including the increasing financial strains faced by Americans.

While Harris, who ruled out running for governor earlier this year, did not address whether she would make another bid for the White House in 2028, she argued that the party needed to be introspective about its future.

“We need to answer the question, what comes next for our party and our democracy, and in so doing, we must be honest that for so many, the American dream has become more of a myth than a reality,” she said.

Many of the party leaders who spoke at the gathering focused on California’s possible role in determining control of Congress after voters in November approved Proposition 50, a rare mid-decade redrawing of congressional districts in an effort to boost the number of Democrats in the state’s congressional delegation in the 2026 election.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass rallied the crowd by reminding them that Democrats took back the U.S. House of Representatives during Trump’s first term and predicted the state would be critical in next year’s midterm elections.

Mayor Karen Bass speaks at the Democratic National Committee Winter Meeting at the InterContinental Hotel in downtown Los Angeles on Friday.

(Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)

Newsom, who championed Proposition 50, basked in that victory when he strode through the hotel’s corridors at the DNC meeting the day before, stopping every few feet to talk to committee members, shake their hands and take selfies.

“There’s just a sense of optimism here,” Newsom said.

Democratic candidates in New Jersey and Virginia also won races by a significant margin last month which, party leaders say, were all telltale signs of growing voter dissatisfaction with Trump and Washington’s Republican leadership.

“The party, more broadly, got their sea legs back, and they’re winning,” Newsom said. “And winning solves a lot of problems.”

Louisiana committee member Katie Darling teared up as she watched fellow Democrats flock to Newsom.

“He really is trying to bring people together during a very difficult time,” said Darling, who grew up in Sacramento in a Republican household. “He gets a lot of pushback for talking to and working with Republicans, but when he does that, I see him talking to my mom and dad who I love, who I vehemently disagree with politically. … I do think that we need to talk to each other to move the country forward.”

Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks as his wife Jennifer Siebel Newsom looks on during an election night gathering at the California Democratic Party headquarters on November 04, 2025 in Sacramento.

(Justin Sullivan / Getty Images)

Darling said she listens to Newsom’s podcast, where his choice of guests, including the late Charlie Kirk, and his comments on the show that transgender athletes taking part in women’s sports is “deeply unfair” have drawn outrage from some on the left.

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, another potential 2028 presidential candidate whose family has historically supported Newsom, was also reportedly on site Thursday, holding closed-door meetings. And former Transportation secretary Pete Buttigieg, also a possible White House contender, was in Los Angeles on Thursday, appearing on Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night show and holding meetings.

Corrin Rankin, chair of the California Republican Party, cast the DNC meetings in L.A. as “anti-Trump sessions” and pointed to the homeless encampments on Skid Row, just blocks from where committee members gathered.

“We need accountability and solutions that actually get people off the streets, make communities safer and life more affordable,” Rankin said.

Elected officials from across the nation are drawn to California because of its wellspring of wealthy political donors. The state was the largest source of contributions to the campaign committees of Trump and Harris during the 2024 presidential contest, contributing nearly a quarter of a billion dollars, according to the nonpartisan, nonprofit organization Open Secrets, which tracks electoral finances.

While the DNC gathering focused mostly on mundane internal business, the gathering of party leaders attracted liberal groups seeking to raise money and draw attention to their causes.

Actor Jane Fonda and comedian Nikki Glaser headlined an event aimed at increasing the minimum wage at the Three Clubs cocktail bar in Hollywood. California already has among the highest minimum wages in the nation; one of the organizers of the event is campaigning to increase the rate to $30 per hour in some California counties.

“The affordability crisis is pushing millions of Americans to the edge, and no democracy can survive when people who work full time cannot afford basic necessities,” Fonda said prior to the event. “Raising wages is one of the most powerful ways to give families stability and hope.”

But California’s liberal policies have been viewed as a liability for Democrats elsewhere, where issues such as transgender rights and providing healthcare for undocumented immigrants have not been warmly received by some blue-collar workers who once formed the party’s base.

Trump capitalized on that disconnect in the closing months of the 2024 presidential contest, when his campaign aired ads that highlighted Harris’ support of transgender rights, including taxpayer-funded gender-affirming surgery for inmates.

“Kamala is for they/them, President Trump is for you,” the commercial stated. The ad aired more than 30,000 times in swing states in the fall, notably during football games and NASCAR races.

“Kamala had 99 problems. California wasn’t one of them,” said John Podesta, a veteran Democratic strategist who served a senior advisor to former President Biden, counselor to former President Obama and White House chief of staff for former President Clinton.

He disputed the argument that California, whether through its policies or candidates, will impact Democrats’ chances, arguing there’s a broader disconnect between the party and its voters.

“This sense that Democrats lost touch with the middle class and the poor in favor of the cultural elite is a real problem,” said Podesta. “My shorthand is, we used to be the party of the factory floor, and now we’re the party of the faculty lounge. That’s not a California problem. It’s an elitist problem.”

While Podesta isn’t backing anyone yet in the 2028 presidential contest, he praised Newsom for his efforts to not only buck Trump but the “leftist extremists” in the Democratic party.

The narrative of Californians being out of touch with many Americans has been exacerbated this year during the state’s battles with the Trump administration over immigration, climate change, water and artificial intelligence policy. But Newsom and committee members argued that the state has been at the vanguard of where the nation will eventually head.

“I am very proud of California. It’s a state that’s not just about growth, it’s about inclusion,” the governor said, before ticking off a list of California initiatives, including low-priced insulin and higher minimum wages. “So much of the policy that’s coming out of the state of California promotes not just promise, but policy direction that I think is really important for the party.”

The global green transition has long been seen as a critical path to addressing climate change and reshaping economies. Yet, since 2020, this vision has faced a growing backlash. Rising energy prices, inflation, and the mounting financial strain on the middle class have made green policies increasingly unpopular in many developed nations. In the U.S., for instance, under the Trump administration, the green transition has been delayed under the pretext of inflation and job security. In Europe, despite some countries’ continued commitment to green initiatives, conservative political forces have begun to push back, casting doubt on the future of the green agenda. Even frameworks like Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) policies, once seen as a driving force for the green transition, are now under attack for “greenwashing”, further undermining their credibility.

What was once an ambitious, unified global vision for a greener future is now splintering into a series of competing political agendas. Against this backdrop of uncertainty, China’s green transition has shown a distinctive sense of continuity.

Unlike many Western nations, China’s green transition is not just about international agreements or ideological alignment. It is driven by deep, internal imperatives to address chronic pollution, improve public health, and upgrade its industrial base. The need for cleaner air and a more sustainable economy is not just a policy choice for China but an urgent requirement for the country’s reality.

This internal drive gives China a unique position to lead the charge in creating a “non-politicized global green coalition”, focused not on ideological divides, but on pragmatic, shared solutions.

With the U.S. scaling back its green subsidies and Europe facing political fragmentation, a leadership vacuum is emerging in global climate governance. In countries like France, Italy, and the Netherlands, right-wing forces are calling for delays to energy taxes and carbon-reduction targets, seeing the green agenda as an economic burden. Meanwhile, in the Nordic countries, while policies remain green, their influence is limited by their small size and capacity to drive global change.

This creates an opportunity for China to step in.

If China can embrace a pragmatic and non-politicized approach, it can work to rebuild cross-regional cooperation on green policies and lay the foundation for a new global green alliance. Such a coalition, focusing on technology, green finance, and shared standards, could bring together countries from East Asia, the Middle East, and emerging economies in Africa and Southeast Asia.

China’s green transition is driven by urgent domestic needs. In 2024, official statistics indicate that the proportion of days with good air quality in China reached 87.2 percent last year, up 1.7 percentage points from the previous year, though pollution remains a problem to be tackled. As China strives to reduce healthcare burdens and improve the quality of life for its citizens, its green transition becomes a necessity, not just a global strategy.

Unlike countries that frame their green policies in ideological terms, China’s approach is rooted in a concrete need for environmental and public health improvement. This focus on sustainabilitypositions China as a potential leader in advocating for non-ideological global cooperation on climate issues.

Indeed, China has already made significant strides in “green diplomacy”. Its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has increasingly focused on green development, with projects in clean energy, sustainable transportation, and ecological conservation now spread across over 100 countries. China’s leadership in renewable energy production, from photovoltaic modules to electric vehicles, gives it a competitive advantage in driving the green agenda forward. China is already the world’s largest producer of clean energy technology, with production capacities for solar panels, wind turbines, and batteries outpacing any other country.

But China’s green transition is not just about technology. The country is also emerging as a leader in green finance. China accounts for 60% of Asia’s green finance, which is roughly $200 billion. Its ability to offer affordable, high-quality green technologies to developing nations, combined with its leadership in green finance, makes it well-positioned to spearhead a new global green coalition.

While China has significant advantages, there are still challenges ahead. Some countries may perceive China-led green initiatives as another form of geopolitical influence. Western nations still control many critical certification systems and intellectual property related to green technologies, which could limit its ability to fully shape the global green agenda. Additionally, the long investment cycles and uncertain returns of green projects could stretch China’s financial resources.

To mitigate these risks, China could focus on building trust through joint projects with other nations and involving Western capital as investors or observers. Focusing on less politically sensitive areas, such as energy storage, carbon trading, and climate education, would also help to avoid ideological conflicts and build a more inclusive global green network.

The global green transition is not just an economic challenge. It is an opportunity to redefine international governance based on shared survival pressures. If China can lead the way with a focus on non-ideological cooperation and pragmatic action, it can help the world move beyond the current political fragmentation and build a greener, more sustainable future for all.

Kym Marsh is set to star in her sexiest role to date in the new Channel 5 drama The Imposter as she says she’s proud of her portrayal as she prepares to celebrate her 50th birthday

Actress Kym Marsh has been known for playing a variety of roles over the years. But now, viewers will have to brace themselves for her latest role in the Channel 5 drama The Imposter, as she undertakes her raunchiest role to date.

The 49-year-old mother of three has revealed that some of the sex scenes had to either be cut or toned down in a bid to make it appropriate for TV viewing. The former Coronation Street star, who shot to fame on Pop Stars in 2000 as part of the group Hear’Say, is now playing a “villainous heartbreaker in the gripping TV drama, set in an Australian seaside hotel.

In a recent interview, she said: “Episode two was particularly raunchy. It’s the flashback to London where she first meets her Australian lover. There was quite a lot of stuff that I believe they’ve had to tone down.

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She added: “I spoke to the executive working on it and he said, ‘Hey, you did it so convincingly’, and I was like . . . thanks.” The drama takes viewers on a journey of sibling rivalry with “deadly consequences.”

And according to the singer turned actress, she plays the seductive role of Amanda in the four-episode drama. Speaking of her role, she proudly stated that she felt “brave and powerful”, taking on a sexy role as she prepares to celebrate her 50th birthday next June.

She told The Sun on Sunday: “I’ve done a few things on stage, but they are very tame in comparison to this role. The crew and the cast were so respectful, and the director was brilliant. Everyone just made you feel very safe, and obviously, we had an intimacy co-ordinator on set. “

She continued: “But you know what? I went into it, and I was a bit like, ‘I’m 49 years old, I’m not as body confident as I used to be’ because as you get older, you’ve got that kind of thing going on. And I’m on screen, kind of barely dressed. “

She admitted to feeling nervous in certain parts of filming the drama, but due to the relaxed nature of the production staff and her co-stars, she was put at ease. Kym flew to Australia and was there on her own, leaving behind all her comforts for six weeks.

In an interview with the Mirror, she said: “I am a 49-year-old woman, but it was the furthest I’d ever gone before alone. I was all by myself flying off for six weeks without any of my family, but they very quickly put me at ease. It felt like I had known everybody forever.”

She stars alongside Jackie Woodburne, who is well known for playing Susan Kennedy in Neighbours and TV personality Dannii Minogue. Speaking about her co-sta,r Jackie, she added: “Jackie was just incredible. She’s a bit of a royal, really, in terms of the TV world and she’s done a lot of stuff and she’s this very seasoned actress and then to work with her like that, she did take me under her wing because she knew I didn’t know anyone in Australia and we worked together a lot.”

And she went on to say: “A lot of our scenes were together and she was just very supportive and lovely. I went out for dinner with her and I just felt very welcomed. And I think Jackie will be a friend forever, actually.” In one part of the drama, viewers will see Kym film a sex scene where her co-star had his head between her legs as they pretended to act out a sex act.

Kym said that she was able to film the scene because she had built up a level of trust with her co-star. Having a strong support system around her but this may now prove slightly tricky as her son David has expressed that he wants to see her latest drama.

She told the publication that was felt compelled to warn him of the scenes. On the back of her admission, her 30 year old son quickly told her she will have to skip past those scenes and just fill him in.

Kym has been in a number of roles, including Coronation Street and Waterloo Road, as well as stage performances, where she has earned a legion of fans.

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