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Sinclair Broadcast Group has made an unsolicited bid to buy rival station owner E.W. Scripps just a week after disclosing it had acquired shares of the company’s stock.

Sinclair filed a statement Monday with the Securities and Exchange Commission saying it will offer Scripps $7 per share, consisting of $2.72 in cash and $4.28 in combined company common stock. The price is a 200% premium over the 30-day average for Scripps shares as of Nov. 6.

Sinclair revealed on Nov. 17 that it gained a stake in Scripps through the acquisition of publicly traded shares. Scripps, which operates 61 TV stations and owns the ION network, is valued at around $393 million.

The Cincinnati-based Scripps said in a statement saying the company’s board of directors “will carefully review and evaluate any proposals, including the unsolicited Sinclair offer.”

The statement added that the board will “act in the business interest of the company, all of its shareholders as well as its employees and the many communities it serves across the United States.”

The company’s stock was up around 7.5% on the news of the Sinclair offer, closing at $4.43 a share Monday afternoon.

A takeover of Scripps would be culturally jarring for the local newsrooms at its stations. The company was founded in 1878 with a chain of daily newspapers that defined itself through journalistic independence. The company’s longtime motto is “Give light.”

The Baltimore-area Sinclair is known for the conservative politics of its owners, led by David D. Smith, who have had their views amplified through the company’s local TV news coverage over the years.

Sinclair most recently tried to flex its muscle when it pulled “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” off its ABC-affiliated stations in September after the late-night host made comments about the political affiliation of the man accused of killing right-wing political activist Charlie Kirk.

Sinclair demanded that Kimmel make “a meaningful donation” to Kirk’s organization Turning Point USA in addition to an apology. None was offered, and after a week, Sinclair put the program back on its air with zero concessions from ABC.

Regardless of political leanings, all major TV station ownership groups have urged the Federal Communications Commission to lift the limit on how much of the country their outlets can cover.

TV station owners are limited to reaching 39% of the country, which companies say puts them at a disadvantage in competing against tech giants that have no such restriction in their media endeavors.

While consumer advocates believe consolidation will reduce the diversity of voices in communities, TV executives have argued that it’s no longer economically viable to have multiple station owners in a single market, often covering the same major stories.

Consolidation would also give TV station owners more clout in their negotiations for carriage fees they receive from cable and satellite providers. Such fees are vital as TV stations have struggled to maintain ad revenues due to a decline in ratings and more consumers turning to streaming video platforms.

Sinclair’s attempt to buy Scripps comes after its failed effort to acquire Tegna Inc., which agreed to a $6.2-billion deal to merge with Nexstar Media Group. The deal will require regulatory approval as it would give Nexstar’s stations the ability to reach 80% of the U.S.

Station owners calling for consolidation have been hopeful they had an ally in Trump-appointed FCC Chairman Brendan Carr.

But a social media post suggested that President Trump may be wary of consolidation, saying it could give greater influence to broadcast networks NBC and ABC. The president has been highly critical of the news coverage of both networks, even threatening to go after their TV station licenses.

With the days getting shorter (and colder), it’s tempting to go into hibernation mode. But winter can feel like a special time of year if you get out and embrace it. We’d love to hear about your favourite UK-based outdoor winter activity, whether it’s cold-water swimming, stargazing, birdwatching or simply wrapping up and going for a bracing walk or off-road bike ride.

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Dick and Angel Strawbridge shared an exciting filming update as fans react to how grown up their children Arthur and Dorothy look in new pictures

The Strawbridge clan have shared an exciting filming development.

Dick and Angel Strawbridge are recognised for featuring on the restoration programme, which debuted in 2016 following the pair’s acquisition of a French château in 2015.

The reality TV series documented Dick, Angel and their brood as they purchased and refurbished the 19th-century estate in France, whilst bringing up two youngsters and launching a venture hosting nuptials and various occasions.

Throughout the years, audiences adored witnessing the household transform the residence to their taste.

Supporters were thrilled last month when it was revealed the programme would be making a return with series 10 currently being produced, reports the Liverpool Echo.

A fresh development has been shared by the household ahead of the upcoming instalments.

Taking to Instagram on Sunday (November 23), the official profile of the Strawbridge family posted a photograph of Dick and Angel positioned in the snow, before their French residence and additional images of their offspring, Arthur and Dorothy.

The post was captioned: “Hello to you on this Super Sunday! Christmas came early this weekend at the Chateau…Not only did it snow and Arthur and Dorothy got to catch snowflakes with their tongues.

“We got to film something rather special with the perfect weather conditions! We can’t wait to share it with you. Have a lovely evening!”

Viewers of the Channel 4 programme shared comments and demonstrated their backing for the family. Numerous fans were astonished by how mature the children had become, having first graced our screens as youngsters.

One viewer remarked: “Oh my goodness how grown up are the kids now” whilst another contributed “Such beautiful pictures, Arthur and Dorothy are growing up so quick.”

An additional response quipped “Are you two shrinking, or are these kids getting real grown up” while others penned “Your family is growing up. Happy Holidays” and “Cannot wait to watch the Strawbridge Family Christmas magic again! ! ! Thank you so much for coming back to us!”.

Revealing the news of series 10 last month, the family declared: “We are delighted to announce that we are officially back in production for Escape to the Chateau, Series 10!”.

“It’s been wonderful welcoming back our Escape filming family – the unsung heroes behind the cameras. Since we first fell in love with the Chateau in 2014, it has taken us on the journey of a lifetime.

“In 2022, we made the important decision to take a break from filming and concluded Series 9 with the most incredible and magical celebration we could have ever imagined.”

The announcement shared by the family continued: “Now, as a family, we’ve stepped into a new era. With Arthur and Dorothy happily settled into college, Series 10 brings more change and growth than the Chateau has ever seen!

“We promised that when the time was right for our family, we’d invite the cameras back in to give you an update – and maybe even a Christmas Special…and that time is now! Thank you for being part of our story – we can’t wait to share this next magical chapter with you.”

Dick and Angel along with their two youngsters, Arthur and Dorothy, have called the estate home for over 10 years and continue to make their mark on the magnificent property. The pair frequently post pictures of their breathtaking grounds on social media and offer glimpses into parts of the château that viewers seldom saw during the programme.

Escape to the Chateau is available to stream on Channel 4 online

Gogglebox returned once again on Friday night on Channel 4

Gogglebox stars Dave and Shirley Griffiths shared some huge news just minutes into Friday’s episode.

As the episode started, Dave was seen surprising Shirley by letting off a loud confetti cannon, leaving his wife shocked.

Shirley said: “What have you got there?” before adding after the confetti cannon went off: “You stupid cow! You d**k!”

This prompted a beaming Dave to declare: “Happy anniversary!” before kissing his wife. He continued: “We’ve got to celebrate, haven’t we, 50 years!”

To which a giggling Shirley pointed out: “I was going to say, you’ve covered the b****y dogs!” as their pet dogs were seen covered in the confetti.

It comes as the duo also celebrated the milestone on Instagram as they shared a throwback snap on their joint account, writing: “50years on November 15th I wed the lovely Shirley, Happy anniversary darling here’s to making more happy memories.”

Gogglebox also celebrated the anniversary as they posted on their own Instagram: “How it started… how it’s going” with yellow heart emojis.

They added: “Happy 50th Wedding Anniversary @dave_shirl_gogglebox #50years #Golden #Wedding #Anniversary #Gogglebox #FreshEveryFriday 9pm @channel4.”

The couple’s fans and Gogglebox viewers were quick to react to the lovely news and incredible milestone.

“Happy golden wedding anniversary you lovely pair,” commented Ellie Warner, whilst her sister Izzi contributed: “Congratulations both! Wishing you many more years of wedded bliss.”

Simon Minty wrote: “Hid your names and asked Jane to guess. Took a couple of clues and then she cried, ‘Jeepers!’ She guessed you first Shirl and I guessed you first Dave. A very happy anniversary to you both.”

Ex-Gogglebox star Mica Ven added: “Happy anniversary you beauties,” whilst Jenny Newby and Lee Riley joked: “Awhhhhhh Happy Anniversary to you lovely pair but who gets the medal.”

Meanwhile, one fan commented: “Happy anniversary to you both, may you share many more in the years to come,” whilst another viewer added: “Gorgeous!! Happy Anniversary to a beautiful couple.”

The Welsh couple, who first appeared on the Channel 4 programme back in 2015, have quickly secured themselves as fan favourites.

Gogglebox airs on Friday nights at 9pm on Channel 4.

As another year nears its end, it’s worth taking stock of the new places we’ve discovered in 2025. Perhaps it was a quiet seaside resort, an exceptional gallery or museum, an unforgettable restaurant, a wonderful hiking route or vibrant nightlife in a small town. We’d love to hear about your finds in Europe and the UK – the more unusual the better!

The best tip of the week, chosen by Tom Hall of Lonely Planet wins a £200 voucher to stay at a Coolstays property – the company has more than 3,000 worldwide. The best tips will appear in the Guardian Travel section and website.

Keep your tip to about 100 words

If you have a relevant photo, do send it in – but it’s your words we will be judging for the competition.

We’re sorry, but for legal reasons you must be a UK resident to enter this competition.

The competition closes on Monday 24 November at 10am GMT

Have a look at our past winners and other tips

Read the terms and conditions here

If you’re having trouble using the form click here. Read terms of service here and privacy policy here.

Lukewarm performances at the box office from the likes of “The Fantastic Four: First Steps,” “The Roses” and “Freakier Friday” dented Walt Disney Co.’s entertainment business for its fiscal fourth quarter, the company reported Thursday.

The Burbank media and entertainment company reported $10.2 billion in revenue for its entertainment segment for the three-month period that ended Sept. 27, down 6% compared with the same quarter a year earlier. Entertainment operating income for the fourth quarter totaled $691 million, down 35% compared with last year.

The softer box office showing during the fourth quarter was being compared with the strong performance of the irreverent superhero flick “Deadpool & Wolverine” in the year-earlier period, as well as the tail end of the theatrical window for the animated juggernaut “Inside Out 2,” each of which would go on to gross more than $1 billion globally.

For the full year, however, Disney’s entertainment segment — which includes movies, TV, Disney+ and Hulu — posted revenue of $42.5 billion, up 3% compared with fiscal year 2024. Operating income totaled $4.7 billion, an increase of 19%.

Though the company saw a 16% decline in revenue for its linear networks in the fourth quarter due to lower ad dollars and viewership, Disney did see an increase for its streaming services. The company reported fourth-quarter streaming revenue of $6.2 billion, an 8% jump compared with the previous year, and operating income of $352 million, up 39%.

“This was another year of great progress as we strengthened the company by leveraging the value of our creative and brand assets and continued to make meaningful progress in our direct-to-consumer businesses,” Disney Chief Executive Bob Iger said in a statement. “I’m pleased with our many achievements this fiscal year to position Disney for the future.”

Disney’s fourth-quarter revenue totaled $22.5 billion, about flat compared with the previous year. That put the company’s year-end revenue at $94.4 billion, up 3%.

Earnings, excluding certain items, for the fourth quarter totaled 73 cents per share, up from 25 cents a year earlier. For the full year, earnings per share was $6.85, up from $2.72. The company’s income before taxes in the fourth quarter was $2 billion, up from $948 million last year; for the full year, it was up 59% to $12 billion.

Disney’s experiences segment, which includes its theme parks, cruise line and Aulani resort and spa in Hawaii, was a bright spot for the fourth quarter. The company reported revenue of $8.8 billion, an increase of 6% from the previous year’s fourth quarter, with operating income rising 13% to $1.9 billion.

Operating income for domestic parks and experiences for the quarter was up 9% to $920 million, which Disney attributed to growth at its cruise line. Disney also got a boost from its international parks and experiences segment, largely due to an increase in attendance and spending at its Disneyland Paris resort.

For the full fiscal year, Disney’s experiences business reported revenue of $36.2 billion, a 6% bump, with operating income increasing 8% to nearly $10 billion.

Disney’s sports business, which includes ESPN, reported quarterly revenue of nearly $4 billion, up 2%, with operating income decreasing 2% to $911 million. The company said the decline in operating income was due to higher marketing costs associated with the August launch of the new ESPN direct-to-consumer service and increases in programming and production costs.

The sports business closed out the year with revenue of $17.6 billion, roughly flat compared with the previous fiscal year, and a 20% jump in operating income to $2.9 billion.

From ornately frescoed churches in Florence, to rock-hewn chapels in Greece, stained-glass filled sanctuaries in France or tiny seaside shrines in Cornwall, the UK and Europe has a stunning variety of churches and cathedrals. Whether it was a small rural discovery or a grandiose urban affair, we want to hear about favourite discoveries on your travels.

The best tip of the week, chosen by Tom Hall of Lonely Planet wins a £200 voucher to stay at a Coolstays property – the company has more than 3,000 worldwide. The best tips will appear in the Guardian Travel section and website.

Keep your tip to about 100 words

If you have a relevant photo, do send it in – but it’s your words we will be judging for the competition.

We’re sorry, but for legal reasons you must be a UK resident to enter this competition.

The competition closes on Tuesday 18 November at 10am GMT

Have a look at our past winners and other tips

Read the terms and conditions here

If you’re having trouble using the form click here. Read terms of service here and privacy policy here.

Warner Bros. Discovery reported a $148 million loss in the third quarter, hitting a sour note as the company began fielding interest from would-be buyers as Hollywood braces for a transforming deal.

Earnings for the entertainment company that includes HBO, CNN and the Warner Bros. film and TV studios fell short of analyst expectations. A year ago, the company reported profit of $135 million for the third quarter.

Revenue of $9.05 billion declined 6% from the year-ago period. The company swung to a loss of 6 cents a share, compared to last year’s earnings of 5 cents a share.

Still, Chief Executive David Zaslav spent much of Thursday’s call with analysts touting his company’s underlying strengths — while avoided giving details about the company’s sale.

“It’s fair to say that we have an active process underway,” Zaslav said.

Warner Bros. Discovery on Thursday reiterated it is forging ahead with previously announced plans to split into two separate entities by next spring. However, the Warner board acknowledged last month that it was also entertaining offers for the entire company — or its parts — after David Ellison’s Paramount expressed its interest with formal bids.

Paramount has made three offers, including a $58 billion in cash and stock for all of Warner Bros. Discovery. That bid would pay Warner stockholders $23.50 a share.

The Ellison family appears determined to win one of Hollywood’s most storied entertainment companies to pair with Paramount, which the Ellisons and RedBird Capital Partners acquired in August.

But Warner Bros. Discovery’s board, including Zaslav, voted unanimously to reject Paramount’s offers and instead opened the auction to other bidders, which is expected to lead to the firm changing hands for the third time in a decade.

Board members are betting the company, which has shown flickers of a turnaround, is worth more than the offers on the table. Despite its rocky third-quarter results, Warner’s stock held its ground in early morning trading at around $22.60 a share.

“Overall we are very bullish,” Zaslav said of the company’s business prospects.

“When you look at our films like ‘Superman,’ ‘Weapons’ and ‘One Battle After Another,’ the global reach of HBO Max and the diversity of our network’s offerings, we’ve managed to bring the best, most treasured traditions of Warner Bros. forward into a new era of entertainment and [a] new media landscape,” he said.

But the company’s results underscored its business challenges.

The studio witnessed a major decline in advertising revenue in the third quarter, reporting $1.41 billion, down 16% from the previous year, which executives attributed to declines in the audience for its domestic linear channels, including CNN, TNT and TLC.

Distribution revenue also took a hit, as the company reported sales of $4.7 billion, a decrease of 4% compared to last year.

Studio revenue increased 24% to $3.3 billion, powered by the success of DC Studios’ “Superman,” horror flick “Weapons” and the latest installment of “The Conjuring.” But even those box office wins couldn’t totally offset shortfalls in other areas of its content business.

Last year, the company was able to sub-license its rights to broadcast the Olympics in Europe, which pushed content revenue to $2.72 billion. But this year, revenue was down 3% to $2.65 billion.

Burbank-based Warner Bros. has had a string of success in theaters, with nine films opening at the top spot globally at the box office. The studio recently surpassed $4 billion in worldwide box office revenue, making it the first studio to do so this year. Warner Bros. last achieved that milestone in 2019.

Zaslav would like to continue with Warner’s break-up plans, which were announced last June.

The move would allow him to stay on to manage a smaller Hollywood-focused entity made up of the Warner Bros. studios, HBO, streaming service HBO Max and the company’s vast library, which includes Harry Potter movies and award-winning television shows such as “The Pitt.”

The company’s large portfolio of cable channels, including HGTV, Food Network and Cartoon Network, would become Discovery Global and operate independently.

Beyond Paramount, Philadelphia-based Comcast, Netflix and Amazon have expressed interest in considering buying parts of the company.

The company said its third quarter loss of $148 million was the result of a $1.3 billion expense, including restructuring costs.

Long winter hikes, cottages with roaring fires, lazy lunches in a cosy pub … the days might be shorter but that doesn’t need to dampen the holiday fun. We’d love to hear about your favourite places in the UK for a winter rural break. Perhaps it was a cabin stay in the Lakes, a west country hotel with walks on the doorstep, an off-season seaside weekend or a hiking holiday in Wales that’s great at this time of year.

The best tip of the week, chosen by Tom Hall of Lonely Planet wins a £200 voucher to stay at a Coolstays property – the company has more than 3,000 worldwide. The best tips will appear in the Guardian Travel section and website.

Keep your tip to about 100 words

If you have a relevant photo, do send it in – but it’s your words we will be judging for the competition.

We’re sorry, but for legal reasons you must be a UK resident to enter this competition.

The competition closes on Wednesday 12 November at 10am GMT

Have a look at our past winners and other tips

Read the terms and conditions here

If you’re having trouble using the form click here. Read terms of service here and privacy policy here.

Beyond tourism hotspots such as Venice, Amalfi and Rome, Italy has no end of enticements – whether its historical sites, delicious food or impressive landscapes that you’re looking for. We want to hear about your discoveries in less well known parts of the country – perhaps it was a small mountain resort, an overlooked coastal town or a wild hiking trail.

The best tip of the week, chosen by Tom Hall of Lonely Planet wins a £200 voucher to stay at a Coolstays property – the company has more than 3,000 worldwide. The best tips will appear in the Guardian Travel section and website.

Keep your tip to about 100 words

If you have a relevant photo, do send it in – but it’s your words we will be judging for the competition.

We’re sorry, but for legal reasons you must be a UK resident to enter this competition.

The competition closes on Monday 10 November at 10am GMT

Have a look at our past winners and other tips

Read the terms and conditions here

If you’re having trouble using the form click here. Read terms of service here and privacy policy here.