show biz

TALENTED Emilia Jones and Daisy Edgar-Jones share more than a name — they are starring in a film together as sisters.

The English actresses will play Irish migrants who escaped the devastating potato famine to tough 19th century New York in drama Bad Bridgets.

BAFTA-winning Emilia, 23, is currently on screen in a reboot of 1987 Arnold Schwarzenegger future world classic The Running Man.

Daisy, 27, got her big break in TV series Cold Feet as Olivia the daughter of David and Rachel played by Robert Bathurst and Helen Baxendale.

She was recently seen in the 2024 storm chase movie Twsiters and starred opposite Gladiator II hunk Paul Mescal in romantic drama Normal People,

The new film takes inspiration from best selling historical book Bad Bridget: Crime, Mayhem, and the Lives of Irish Emigrant Women by Irish professors Elaine Farrell & Leanne McCormick.

read more on Emilia Jones

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WALKING IN THE AIR

Inside the rise and rise of Aled Jones’ daughter Emilia Jones

Emilia is the daughter of Aled Jones, famous for his song Walking In The Air from The Snowman.

Aged eight, Emilia’s acting career began in 2010 when she appeared as Jasmine in the film One Day.

She then made her professional stage debut in the musical Shrek alongside Amanda Holden.

The actress is best known for her lead role as Ruby Rossi in the Academy Award-winning 2021 film CODA for which she has received a Bafta nod for Best Actress.

Tom Stoppard, frequently hailed as the greatest British playwright of this generation, had both a remarkable life and a remarkable career.

Born in Czechoslovakia in 1937, his family fled to Singapore when the Nazis invaded. When Japan threatened their new home, his mother took him and his brother to India. His father stayed behind in Singapore but died when the ship he was aboard was sunk. His mother later married a British officer and the family relocated to England, where young Stoppard took his stepfather’s surname and “put on Englishness like a coat,” he later said.

Stoppard quickly became known for his clever, witty and intellectually curious work, earning three Olivier Awards, five Tony Awards and an Oscar (for “Shakespeare in Love”). He was even knighted in 1997 by Queen Elizabeth II for his contributions to theater.

Starting with “Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead” in 1966, through his final full-length play “Leopoldstadt” in 2020, Stoppard crafted a body of work that would be the envy of most countries, let alone one writer.

Below are some of Stoppard most important plays, with observations from Times critics:

The 2022 Broadway production of “Leopoldstadt” in a family scene from 1924.

(Joan Marcus)

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead (1966)

After working as a journalist, Stoppard had a breakthrough when this absurdist romp debuted at the Edinburgh Fringe. Times theater critic Charles McNulty reviewed a 2013 production at the Old Globe’s Shakespeare Festival in San Diego, describing it as a “metapharcical romp (to coin a genre), in which ‘Hamlet’ is glimpsed through the oblique perspective of the prince’s twin buddies, sent to spy on him by Gertrude and Claudius in that Elsinore castle of murder, adultery and occult intrigue. … Stoppard’s fertile wit keeps this three-act drama pulsing along without too much strain. A subtle pathos, along with the playwright’s verbal sophistication, prevents the play from degenerating into a collegiate vaudeville.” In 1990, Stoppard himself directed a film version starring Gary Oldman and Tim Roth.

Jumpers (1972)

This satire set in an alternative universe in which British astronauts land on the moon and “Radical Liberals” have taken over the nation’s government, premiered at London’s Old Vic starring Michael Hordern and Diana Rigg. Two years later, Times theater critic Dan Sullivan reviewed an American Conservatory Theater production of it in San Francisco. “Stoppard’s new play can’t be hung with one of those preprinted tags that theater critics carry in their pockets for easy labeling,” he wrote. “You might call it a Metaphysical Spoof With Acrobatic Prelude, or you might not. The only general thing you can say about it is that it’s very bright and very funny, and sometimes rather touching.”

Travesties (1974)

The Royal Shakespeare Company staged the first production at the Aldwych Theatre in London, starring John Wood, John Hurt, Tom Bell and Frank Windsor. Stoppard was fascinated with the idea that James Joyce, Vladimir Lenin and Dadadist poet Tristan Tzara were all living in Zurich in 1917. He placed these zeitgeist figures in the orbit of a more humble historical figure named Henry Carr, who figured into Joyce’s “Ulysses.” The Times’ Sullivan took in the 1975 New York production, calling it “dazzling” and wondered if Broadway audiences would be able to keep up with it. “Like Stoppard’s last play ‘Jumpers’ (which didn’t do very well here), this is a vaudeville show where the language does tricks as well as the actors,” wrote Sullivan. “And to do the tricks as well as ‘Travesties,’ John Wood [as Carr], a playwright’s language has got to be pretty accomplished.”

The Real Thing (1982)

Felicity Kendal and Roger Rees originated the lead roles in Stoppard’s very personal examination of love and marriage, truth and honesty. The playwright significantly reworked the script for its Broadway run, starring Glenn Close and Jeremy Irons directed by Mike Nichols, to great success. Linda Purl and Michael Gross assumed the roles for the 1986 L.A. production at the Doolittle Theatre. ”Without spoiling its surprises, the reviewer can say that not every scene in ‘The Real Thing’ is what it seems to be, including the first one,” wrote Sullivan. “Stoppard’s characters are theater people, professional makers of scenes, and some of these scenes get swept into the play. … ‘The Real Thing’ has wit, surprise and characters you care about. … If you like plays written in full sentences, you’ll like ‘The Real Thing.’

Arcadia (1993)

Moving between the 19th century and the present, Stoddard balanced tragedy and comedy with a healthy dose of science and mathematics. The play opened at the Royal National Theatre in London directed by Trevor Nunn with a cast including Rufus Sewell, Felicity Kendal, Bill Nighy and Emma Fielding. Two years later, in New York, Nunn directed a new cast that included Billy Crudup, Blair Brown, Victor Garber as Bernard, Robert Sean Leonard, Jennifer Dundas and Paul Giamatti in his Broadway debut. “‘Arcadia’ is a great play not because it seamlessly meshes serious ideas and the intense pleasure of a literary detective story,” wrote Times critic Laurie Winer, reviewing director Robert Egan’s 1997 Mark Taper Forum production. “It is a great play because, by the end, Tom Stoppard touches ineffability, just as his heroine touches genius.”

The Invention of Love (1997)

For this portrait of poet A. E. Housman, Stoppard once again turned to historical figures for his cast. The play premiered at the Royal National Theatre, London, with Housman played as an old man by John Wood and as a young man by Paul Rhys. It was directed by Richard Eyre. The play opened on Broadway at the Lyceum Theatre in 2001, directed by Jack O’Brien. “Stoppard has written an essentially undramatic dreamscape,” wrote Times critic Michael Phillips.” The recently deceased Housman (Richard Easton), about to cross the River Styx, assesses his recessive life and great unrequited love for the athlete Moses Jackson (David Harbour), a fellow Oxford man. En route, the elder Housman runs into his younger self (Robert Sean Leonard). There’s a long scene near the end of Act 1 shared by the two Housmans. As they discuss the niceties and textual flaws of the classics they love as much as life itself, Stoppard’s playfulness is tinged with rue; the older man cannot prevent the younger’s heartbreak to come.”

The Coast of Utopia (2002)

This trilogy of plays, “Voyage,” “Shipwreck” and “Salvage,” zeroed in on philosophical debates in 19th century Russia. They premiered at the National Theatre’s Olivier auditorium in repertory, directed by Nunn. The plays debuted on Broadway, directed by Jack O’Brien, at the Vivian Beaumont Theater at Lincoln Center in 2006. “A nearly eight-hour drama about the Russian intelligentsia that received mixed reviews when it premiered in London in 2002, ‘The Coast of Utopia’ isn’t for the theatrical faint of heart,” cautioned Times critic McNulty. “Stamina is a prerequisite for the company and audience alike. … Stoppard’s play enacts a moment in history when thinkers and writers set out to redirect the future. Ideologies were conceived and pressed immediately into service, sometimes at the expense of the individual lives they were theoretically meant to serve. [It] dramatizes both the ebb and flow of conditional life and the hunger for unconditional solutions to its woes.”

Rock ‘n’ Roll (2006)

Stoppard looked to his Czech roots with this drama, connecting the Prague Spring of 1968 with the Velvet Revolution of 1989 through music. The play premiered at the Royal Court Theatre, London, once again directed by Nunn and featuring Rufus Sewell, Brian Cox and Sinéad Cusack. The cast moved to Broadway in 2007. “You might want to arrive a bit early and study the timelines in the lobby, which detail Czechoslovakia’s turbulent political history from 1968 to 1990 and key events in the rock music scene during that era,” wrote reviewer F. Kathleen Foley of Open Fist’s 2010 production. “Read them carefully. Otherwise your head just may explode at some point during this Los Angeles premiere, which presupposes an intimate familiarity with Czech history, the early rock scene and, oh, did we mention Sapphic poetry? It’s all a bit ostentatious and difficult to follow — but even at his most intellectually prolix, Stoppard is flat-out brilliant, arguably our greatest living playwright.”

Leopoldstadt (2020)

The final play of Stoppard’s brilliant career was sparked by the playwright learning of the plight of his Jewish ancestors upon his mother’s death in 1996. It debuted at Wyndham’s Theatre in London’s West End, but was interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic and debuted on Broadway in 2022 starring Davis Krumholtz with Patrick Marber directing. The play “unfolds as a series of oil paintings magicked into life,” wrote Times critic McNulty. “The play, which features a cast of 38 actors, moves from turn-of-the-century Vienna, where Freud, Mahler and Schnitzler are the talk of the town, to 1924, when the scars of World War I are clearly visible. Performed without intermission, the action ominously leaps to 1938, as the Nazis are ransacking the homes of Jewish citizens. The play concludes in 1955, when three family survivors reunite to piece together the fates of their murdered relatives. … It’s not just that the work mirrors aspects of his personal history. It’s also the virtuosic way that he conjures the shifting cultural zeitgeist of Vienna in the first half of the 20th century through stylized conversation alone.”

You can find audio dramas by L.A. Theatre Works of “Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead,” “The Real Thing” and “Arcadia” on Spotify.

Many of the films Stoppard wrote or co-wrote are available for streaming, including “Brazil” (1985),” Turner Classic Movies, and for rent on Apple TV and Prime Video; “The Russia House” (1990), for rent on Prime Video; “Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead” (1990), for rent on various platforms; “Empire of the Sun” (1987), for rent on various platforms; and “Shakespeare in Love” (1998), Paramount+ and Kanopy, and for rent on various platforms.

Stoppard is also certainly a playwright whose work is a joy to read. Most of these plays can be found at your local public library or favorite bookstore.

Strictly Come Dancing 2025 is flying by, and another star will be shown leaving the BBC series on Sunday night, filmed on Saturday, but the leak has already revealed who left

Another star has left Strictly Come Dancing 2025, and the result has left fans “absolutely devastated”.

While the result has not been confirmed by the BBC and doesn’t air until Sunday night, as per usual a leak has given the game away. With the results show filmed on the Saturday night after the live show, each week the booted off celebrity gets revealed online hours before the BBC announce it.

This week is no different, and the Strictly mole has revealed all – with the result dividing fans. As usual, Mirror has chosen not to state the name given, but fans have reacted to the supposed result online.

Taking to social media fans confessed they were “absolutely devastated” and some didn’t see it coming. Others even went as far as to say they wanted a second opinion, while some were “not surprised”.

One fan said: “Holy – that I was NOT expecting. absolutely the correct decision though.” Another said: “I can’t believe it!!!!! I’m absolutely devastated.”

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A third fan said: “I am gutted with this elimination,” while one fan said: “Not the biggest surprise after this evening’s show, but overall they have been lovely to watch.” Another added: “Absolutely the right decision.”

One fan didn’t believe it to the point they wanted a “second opinion”. “I’m sorry, I want a second opinion here. I don’t believe for one minute they would save the person in question between those two,” they claimed.

It comes a week on from La Voix leaving the show due to an injury. Initially only missing out on one week, the drag artist sadly had to quit the show altogether meaning an elimination was cancelled.

After sustaining a food injury, La Voix and pro dance partner Aljaz had hoped she would recover and continue their Strictly journey, but sadly this was not to be. She broke down in tears as she spoke out about her sudden exit.

The star said: “This has been the most extraordinary experience of my entire life. What I loved most, don’t hate me, it’s not the dancing but it’s just being welcomed by everyone.

“I came into the show as a minority, as a redhead, and you’ve embraced me wonderfully. I cannot thank you enough, it’s been amazing.” La Voix added: “I’m just so lucky. What you see on that dancefloor is a fraction of the love and the passion this man has for dance.

“You have made me carry on when I’ve questioned myself, made me laugh on the toughest day and when I thought I couldn’t do something, you never gave up on me. Not once. I am leaving this show more confident, and that’s because of you.”

Meanwhile, fans were left fearing fellow celebrity contestant Alex Kingston would be next to withdraw, after an injury. After claims she had sustained a rib injury, Alex spoke out to assure fans she was going nowhere, and had no plans to quit the series.

Strictly Come Dancing continues next Saturday on BBC One. * Follow Mirror Celebs and TV on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads .

THE bodyguard who inspired the Minder TV character Terry McCann has died aged 75, it was revealed last night.

Michael “Danny” Francis was a former boxer and one-time drug dealer.

The Londoner guarded stars including Paul McCartney, Cher and members of Led Zeppelin and Kiss.

McCann — played by the late Dennis Waterman in the 1980s — was based on his combination of brawn and charm.

Millions of ITV viewers loved the fictional bodyguard and his wheeler-dealer boss Arthur Daley — the late George Cole.

Gary Webster, 61, and Lex Shrapnel, 46, later played other minders in reboots of the hit show.

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Waterman wrote of Francis in his autobiography: “If push came to shove, boy could he sort things out.”

Francis is survived by his wife June — who he married in 1970 — and their three children.

The show was set in working-class west London and was largely responsible for introducing the word “minder” into British slang.

Minder brought London’s criminal underworld to millions.

Waterman left the role in 1989 after his seventh series

He even sang the theme tune for the iconic telly show.

It was not a good day for Dr. Phil.

Phillip McGraw, the genial celebrity psychologist who spent a career calling out the behavior of others and doling out zingers, found himself upbraided by a bankruptcy judge.

Merit Street Media, McGraw’s new network, had filed for bankruptcy protection in July, a little more than a year after he launched the media startup, and then sued its distribution partner, Trinity Broadcasting Network.

During a nearly three-hour hearing in Dallas last month, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Scott Everett said that he’d “never seen a case” like the Chapter 11 filing McGraw’s company was attempting.

Everett cited evidence indicating McGraw had “violated” a court order by deleting “unflattering” text messages that allegedly described his plan to use the bankruptcy to “wipe out” creditor claims.

“What makes this case unique, unfortunately, is that it has been plagued with the attempted destruction of relevant evidence and less than truthful testimony by some of the key players,” said Everett, alluding to McGraw and his associates in the case.

Everett ruled that Merit Street be liquidated.

Following the hearing, a spokesperson for McGraw’s production company vigorously denied the accusation that he destroyed evidence and said he is appealing the ruling.

“Dr. McGraw’s excellent record of integrity, success and service to millions over two decades speaks for itself,” said Chip Babcock, attorney for McGraw’s production company.

The unraveling of McGraw’s media venture was a gut punch for the celebrity therapist who has assiduously built a reputation — and tremendous personal wealth — as one of the most trusted voices on television. But his fortunes faded amid a dying market for syndicated TV and clashes with a distributor and partner.

After 21 years as host of the successful syndicated talk show “Dr. Phil,” McGraw went out on his own last year. He launched Merit Street Media in Texas, a company that he said would promote “family values” and serve as an antidote to “woke” culture, only to find that his ambitions collided with a new television reality.

Unlike “Dr. Phil,” Merit Street was untethered to the well-oiled machine of Paramount Studios in Los Angeles, where it was filmed, and top-tier distribution partner CBS.

Moreover, the sheer force of McGraw’s personality could not overcome the fact that linear TV is on the wane. Syndicated daytime TV shows are no longer the cash cows they used to be as most viewers consume content through streaming and other digital outlets such as YouTube and TikTok.

“By the time he put this new company together, the ‘Dr. Phil’ era had kind of ended,” said Robert Thompson, director of the Bleier Center for Television and Popular Culture at Syracuse University. “There is a shelf life to these characters and he reached his.”

An Oprah favorite

McGraw rose from clinical psychologist to an American living room staple and self-help guru in the late 1990s after Oprah Winfrey anointed him as her protégé.

Television’s then-reigning queen hired McGraw to prepare for her libel case brought by Texas cattlemen in 1997. They claimed her comments during an episode about mad cow disease disparaged them and caused beef prices to drop.

Winfrey prevailed, but it was McGraw, a former linebacker with the commanding presence of a sheriff from an old-time western, who emerged victorious.

Oprah Winfrey launched “Dr. Phil” after he advised her during her Texas cattlemen’s libel trial in the late 1990s.

(Christopher Smith / Invision / AP)

Much like books, pajama sets and certain chocolate brands, McGraw became one of Oprah’s favorite things. Recast as “Dr. Phil,” she featured him during weekly segments on her hugely popular talk show, starting in 1998. By 2002, a “Dr. Phil” spinoff began airing five days a week, produced by Winfrey’s Harpo Productions.

The show was distributed by CBS Media Ventures and filmed on a soundstage at Paramount studios on Melrose Avenue with a live audience, and it became the de facto voice for home viewers.

McGraw quickly earned a massive following for dispensing advice to cheating spouses, drug addicts, troubled teens, meddling in-laws, infamous criminals and celebrities. He delivered his no-nonsense, often blunt assessments wrapped in folksy Southern sayings such as “No matter how flat you make a pancake, it’s still got two sides.”

For more than two decades, “Dr. Phil” was a top-rated syndicated daytime talk show — 11 of those seasons at No. 1 — garnering 31 Daytime Emmy nominations. He was catapulted to stardom, appearing everywhere from late-night talk shows to sitcom cameos, even a character on “Sesame Street,” Dr. Feel. In 2020, he received a star on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame.

Dr. Phil McGraw with his wife, Robin McGraw, his son Jay McGraw and his wife, Erica Dahm, as well as their two children, London and Avery, at the ceremony celebrating Dr. Phil receiving a star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame.

(Getty Images)

McGraw leveraged “Dr. Phil” as a launching pad for his ever-growing empire of bestselling books and various ancillary businesses, including a virtual addiction recovery program, a telemedicine app and production company, Stage 29, with his son Jay McGraw that produced shows like daytime’s “The Doctors.”

But as McGraw’s popularity and influence grew, so did the controversies.

The family of Britney Spears criticized him after he visited the troubled pop star when she was hospitalized on a psychiatric hold and issued a news release saying she was “in dire need of both medical and psychological intervention.”

A spokesperson for the Spears family said, “Rather than helping the family’s situation, the celebrity psychologist caused additional damage.”

McGraw later told viewers on his show that “I definitely think if I had it to do over again, I probably wouldn’t make any statement at all. Period.”

Claims of conflict

Questions were also raised that McGraw used his show to promote businesses and products connected to his family and affiliates, sometimes without fully disclosing those ties.

In 2006, McGraw settled a lawsuit for $10.5 million with consumers who alleged that he defrauded them by making false claims about a line of nutritional and weight-loss supplements that he endorsed on “Dr. Phil.”

He faced a Federal Trade Commission investigation into false advertising and the line was eventually discontinued.

McGraw denied the allegations and did not admit to wrongdoing or misrepresentation in the settlement.

“Dr. McGraw’s career stands among the most successful in television history,” Babcock said. “His programs always have been completely transparent, with all brand integrations under full network oversight and full FCC compliance.”

The on-air promotion of McGraw’s family businesses, such as his wife Robin McGraw’s skincare line and lifestyle brand and his son Jay McGraw’s books during “integrations,” also drew scrutiny.

Dr. Phil McGraw and son Jay McGraw.

(Jason LaVeris / FilmMagic)

“Dr. Phil” episodes frequently featured guests suffering from addiction who were often offered the opportunity to check into a treatment facility at the end of the episode.

In 2017, an investigation by STAT News and the Boston Globe alleged that the show highlighted specific treatment facilities in exchange for those recovery programs purchasing various products affiliated with McGraw.

A spokesman for the show had denied the allegations, saying that “any suggestion that appearances on Dr. Phil’s show are linked to the purchase or use of this program is false.”

McGraw’s wattage remained undimmed. He continued to branch into new ventures. He launched a podcast in 2019, “Phil in the Blanks,” and prime-time TV shows like “Bull,” a legal drama on CBS based on his experiences as a trial strategist, and another CBS legal drama, “So Help Me Todd.”

The “Dr. Phil” show has said that since its premiere, it has provided $35 million in resources to its guests after they appeared.

During the last years of “Dr. Phil,” staffers and viewers noticed that programming began to shift away from advising relationships, parenting and money issues to more conservative and cultural issues such as immigration and transgender athletes.

“He took a political slant already, but once COVID hit, [the show] skewed more and more political,” said one former longtime “Dr. Phil” staffer who declined to be named out of fear of retaliation.

During an appearance on Fox News in April 2020, McGraw said that pandemic lockdowns would be more fatal than the virus, drawing a widespread backlash on social media.

McGraw later posted a video saying he supported CDC guidelines but was concerned about the mental health effects of long-term quarantine.

“He was very good about getting big stories, but we had no input, and believe me, if we ever wanted to or tried, we’d be just told ‘no,’” said a former executive at CBS, who declined to be named due to the sensitivity of the subject matter.

Starting over in Texas

In 2023, McGraw announced that he was leaving CBS and returning to Texas to launch a new venture and broaden his audience, citing “grave concerns for the American family” and that he was “determined to help restore a clarity of purpose as well as our core values.”

Merit Street built a studio in a former AT&T call center in Fort Worth. Many of the staffers were veterans of “Dr. Phil” or had worked on McGraw-related content and relocated from Los Angeles to Texas.

Dr. Phil and President Trump at the National Day of Prayer event at the White House in May.

(Mandel Ngan / AFP via Getty Images)

The network, whose name was derived from meritocracy (with shades of main street), premiered in April 2024.

“Merit Street Media will be a resource of information and strategies to fight for America and its families, which are under a cultural ‘woke’ assault as never before,” McGraw said in a statement.

McGraw aired “exclusive” interviews with Donald Trump and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on his flagship, “Dr. Phil Primetime.”

Programming consisted of a slate of news, entertainment and conservative commentary programs with former syndicated television stars Nancy Grace and Steve Harvey, whose Steve Harvey Global had a 5% stake in the company, according to Merit’s bankruptcy filings.

In January, McGraw made headlines when he taped interviews with Trump’s top border policy advisor Tom Homan during controversial immigration raids by ICE agents in Los Angeles.

But Merit struggled to find an audience; only 27,000 viewers tuned into the network weekly during 2024, placing it at 130 out of 153 U.S. channels, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

“It’s totally false to say Merit had bad ratings,” Babcock said. “For a startup, it was like a rocket ship; at one point it passed CNN in the first few months of its existence.”

Merit soon scrapped the live audience for “Dr. Phil Primetime” and eventually production on its original programming came to a halt.

Four months after the network’s debut, the company cut 30% of its staff, including workers who had relocated from Los Angeles.

Facing mounting debts, Merit filed for bankruptcy protection in July, listing liabilities of at least $100 million.

“You could see the writing on the wall,” said the former CBS executive. “Ratings for syndication were dropping.”

While still a household name, McGraw was part of a waning breed of TV syndication stars — Judge Judy, Maury Povich and Ellen DeGeneres among them — whose shows were fast becoming nostalgic relics.

Former McGraw staffers from his CBS days said it appeared that he thought he could simply translate his name recognition and longtime popularity to the new venture, but failed to grasp the new digital media landscape.

“The programming model that he launched in 2024 was more appropriate two decades earlier,” said Syracuse University’s Thompson.

Merit Street faced internal strife as well, according to former staffers and court filings.

Former employees described tensions between Los Angeles transplants and less experienced nonunion crews.

“It was total disorganization,” said one former field producer who had worked for the “Dr. Phil” show and then relocated to Texas to work for Merit Street, who declined to be named out of fear of retribution. “Everyone kept saying this was a startup, and maybe it was. People made decisions but had no idea what they were doing,” the producer added.

A representative of McGraw’s production company conceded the startup had growing pains.

“The company thought they could produce the same quality production with less people,” he said.

Compounding matters, relations between Merit and its business and broadcast partner TBN also soured.

Merit alleged in its lawsuit that TBN provided “comically dysfunctional” technical services, with teleprompters and monitors blacked out during live programs before a studio audience.

The suit further alleged that TBN failed to pay TV distributors and had reneged on its promise to cover $100 million in production services and other costs.

McGraw, through his production company, bankrolled the struggling enterprise from December 2024 to May 2025, lending it $25 million, according to Merit’s lawsuit.

For its part, TBN accused McGraw and his production company Peteski Productions of “fraudulent inducement,” alleging in a countersuit that it had invested $100 million into Merit and that McGraw and Peteski had failed to bring in promised advertising revenue.

TBN said McGraw reached out to the company as a potential replacement for CBS as a distribution partner during the latter half of 2022.

“McGraw specifically represented to TBN that he wanted to change networks because of what he perceived to be CBS’s censorship of the content aired on the ‘Dr. Phil Show.’ As McGraw put it, ‘I don’t want snot-nose lawyers telling me what I can and can’t say on TV,’” the lawsuit states.

Instead, they claimed in their complaint, McGraw and his company engaged in a “fraudulent scheme” to fleece TBN, a not-for-profit corporation.

In a statement to Variety, a spokesperson for McGraw and his production company called TBN’s lawsuit “riddled with provable lies.”

TBN did not respond to a request for comment.

Merit also clashed with another partner: Professional Bull Riders, which in November 2024 canceled its four-year contract with Merit and pulled its content, claiming the company had failed to pay the fees it owed.

Professional Bull Riders claims Merit Street stopped paying its broadcast fees and is owed $181 million.

(Anadolu via Getty Images)

PBR, which later signed with Fox Nation and CBS, alleged in a separate lawsuit that Merit breached their contract and is seeking $181 million.

“We’re glad he’s being held accountable,” said Mark Shapiro, the president and chief operating officer of TKO Group Holdings, parent company of PBR, in a statement to The Times.

“Merit Street agreed to work out its differences with PBR in a confidential proceeding which is ongoing. We were therefore surprised that PBR would publicly accuse us of violating our agreement when the facts are in dispute,” the company said in an earlier statement.

Two weeks after Merit filed for bankruptcy, McGraw announced the launch of another new network, Envoy Media Co., that would include live, “balanced news,” original entertainment programming and “immersive viewer experiences,” as well as original programming from friend and former Merit stakeholder Steve Harvey.

Last month, Envoy struck a distribution deal with Charter Communications.

“Dr. McGraw remains deeply proud of his past work and the millions of people it has reached. He’s now turning that same purpose and energy toward Envoy Media,” Babcock said.

But the Merit legal drama is far from over.

TBN has since alleged that Merit Street filed for bankruptcy in bad faith as a way to secure funding for Envoy.

A spokesperson for Peteski called TBN’s allegation “blatantly false” and said Envoy is independently financed.

Earlier this month, Judge Everett rejected Merit’s motion to pause the company’s liquidation while his ruling is appealed. He cited deleted texts in which McGraw described plans by Merit to file for bankruptcy protection to “wipe out” debts from its main creditors, TBN and PBR.

“Candor to the court is critical,” said Everett during his original ruling, and then declared that Merit Street Media “was as dead as a door nail when the bankruptcy was filed.”

I’m A Celebrity star Alex Scott opens up about being taken to the medical tent during a wide-ranging interview with the Mirror after she left the jungle

TV presenter Alex Scott was forced to go to the medical tent in scenes not aired by ITV. She says that she was left “panicking” after a tic burrowed into her shoulder – and Kelly Brook demanded she sought help,

She said: “I was sitting next to Martin after carrying the logs and I felt my shoulder, and I was like, ‘Oh, that’s a big spot that’s come up.’ I asked him to have a look, then Kelly jumps up and says, ‘It’s a tick.’ I was panicking as she was shouting that I needed to get to medical. I knew about ticks and leeches, but I always thought it wouldn’t happen to me. They got it off but no one else has had one.”

She also revealed that Ginge was affected by leeches too in the wet conditions. Alex opened up to the Mirror as part of a wide-ranging interview. In it she told how her heart sank when she realised Jess Glynne wasn’t waiting for her when she left. The former England star already knew there was a chance that her popstar partner wouldn’t be waiting.

Before she even flew to Australia, Jess’s mum had suffered a stroke, and Alex agonised over whether to pull out of the show. In the end, it was Jess who told her she had to go. “It’s been a tough time for us and obviously her family, and it was a tough decision to come into the jungle, but then Jess never wanted me to step away from not doing it,”

Alex said. “I knew there was always a possibility of her not being across the bridge, if her mum hadn’t got better, or if things had been getting worse, which they have been. But it was a big decision for me to not pass this opportunity, and Jess was the one that pushed me to be here.”

Hours after Alex left the jungle, Jess posted on social media as to why she wasn’t there to greet her. In an emotional statement, she told how over the last few weeks her mother had “suffered a major stroke and needed urgent brain surgery.” She added: “It’s been a really serious, life-altering time for my family, and I’ve had to stay close to home. Alex would always want me to be where l’m needed most. I can’t wait to have her back by my side.”

Asked if she considered pulling out of the show, Alex said: “Oh, yeah, absolutely, 100 percent. But Jess was the one that wanted me to do this, so that’s why I wanted to go in and still make her proud.”

Alex also opened up about being embroiled in one of the camp’s biggest talking points: her salt smuggling operation. The camp had a star taken away after she was spotted sneaking seasoning on crocodile feet.

“I felt like such a naughty schoolgirl, like I should have been put in detention or something,” she laughs. “We had stopped at a service station, and they just had all these little sachets of salt and pepper. I was staring at them for ages, like, ‘Shall I? No… they’ll frisk me.’ But I put them down my socks and didn’t get checked.” And she reveals that a string of other campmates knew about her secret contraband stash. “Jack knew about it, Ginge saw me one night… he just kept giving me the eye. Shona knew about it from early days,” she admits.

As for who she thinks will be crowned this year, Alex says it’s likely to come down to the fan favourites. “Personally, I think, from the public and how the trials have been going, it’s going to be Ginge or Aitch between those two. Because of their fan base and how they’ve come across. I’d love for Shona to win, that would be a beautiful story. But I think it’ll be between one of the boys.”

JACK Fincham has been caught snogging a MAFS star after his split from Towie’s Chloe Brockett.

The former Love Island star can be seen passionately snogging a new woman – and she’s a very familiar face.

The Sun can exclusively reveal that it’s dental nurse turned reality star Leisha Lightbody.

She appeared on the most recent UK series of Married at First Sight and was paired with Reiss Boyce.

The MAFS UK couple split just weeks after their emotional final vows, with the distance between Essex-based Reiss, 33, and 31-year-old Leisha, who lives in Scotland, proving too much for them. 

And now it appears that Leisha has moved on with Jack.

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The video shows the pair in a quiet corner of the Tulley’s Christmas event going in for a passionate snog.

A source said: “Jack and Leisha were all over each other for the whole night and didn’t seem to care who was watching. 

“Leisha is clearly no longer heartbroken over Reiss and it looks like Jack’s definitely moved on from Chloe. 

“It looked like a lot more than a drunken kiss.”

Jack and Leisha’s reps have been contacted for comment.

It’s been a tough time for Jack after his split from Chloe, with him recently revealing he’s lost a £1m.

The reality star, 34, has had a tough year which saw him narrowly avoid prison after being arrested while serving a suspended sentence at the time.

In a candid Instagram post, Jack penned: “I’ve been quiet for a long time — maybe too long. Truth is, I haven’t known what to say.

“I lost over £1 million chasing the wrong things — and in the process, I lost over a million followers too. That hurt. But I get it.

“I wasn’t myself. I was lost, struggling, and making the kind of mistakes that feel impossible to come back from.

“But I’ve learned this — you don’t need millions of followers to find your voice again. You just need to tell the truth.”

Explaining more, Jack said: “I took a lot of bad advice over the years and had a lot of the wrong people around me.

“I’ve made some massive mistakes. I’ve learnt some really, really proper painful, really painful lessons over the years. Every mistake that I’ve made, I own them all.”

LONDON — British playwright Tom Stoppard, a giant of modern theater and Oscar-winning screenwriter known for erudition and wit, has died. He was 88.

In a statement Saturday, United Agents said Stoppard died “peacefully” at his home in Dorset in southern England, surrounded by his family.

“He will be remembered for his works, for their brilliance and humanity, and for his wit, his irreverence, his generosity of spirit and his profound love of the English language,” it said. ”It was an honor to work with Tom and to know him.”

The Czech-born Stoppard was often hailed as the greatest British playwright of his generation and was garlanded with honors, including a shelf full of theater gongs. Dizzyingly prolific, he also wrote radio plays, a novel, television series and many celebrated screenplays, including 1998’s “Shakespeare in Love,” which won an Academy Award.

His brain-teasing plays ranged across Shakespeare, science, philosophy and the historic tragedies of the 20th century. Five of them won Tony Awards for best play: “Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead” in 1968, “Travesties” in 1976, “The Real Thing” in 1984, “The Coast of Utopia” in 2007 and “Leopoldstadt” in 2023.

Stoppard biographer Hermione Lee said the secret of his plays was their “mixture of language, knowledge and feeling. … It’s those three things in gear together which make him so remarkable.”

The writer was born Tomás Sträussler in 1937 to a Jewish family in Zlín in what was then Czechoslovakia, now the Czech Republic. His father was a doctor for the Bata shoe company, and when Nazi Germany invaded in 1939 the family fled to Singapore, where Bata had a factory.

In late 1941, as Japanese forces closed in on the city, Tomás, his brother and their mother fled again, this time to India. His father stayed behind and later died when his ship was attacked as he tried to leave Singapore.

In 1946 his mother married an English officer, Kenneth Stoppard, and the family moved to threadbare postwar Britain. The 8-year-old Tom “put on Englishness like a coat,” he later said, growing up to be a quintessential Englishman who loved cricket and Shakespeare.

He did not go to a university but began his career, aged 17, as a journalist at newspapers in Bristol, southwest England, and then as a theater critic for Scene magazine in London.

He wrote plays for radio and television including “A Walk on the Water,” broadcast in 1963, and made his stage breakthrough with “Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead,” which reimagined Shakespeare’s “Hamlet” from the viewpoint of two hapless minor characters. A mix of tragedy and absurdist humor, it premiered at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 1966 and was staged at Britain’s National Theatre, then run by Laurence Olivier, before moving to Broadway.

A stream of exuberant, innovative plays followed, including meta-whodunnit “The Real Inspector Hound” (first staged in 1968); “Jumpers” (1972), a blend of physical and philosophical gymnastics; and “Travesties” (1974), which set intellectuals including James Joyce and Vladimir Lenin colliding in Zurich during World War I.

The musical drama “Every Good Boy Deserves Favor” (1977) was a collaboration with composer Andre Previn about a Soviet dissident confined to a mental institution — part of Stoppard’s long involvement with groups advocating for human rights groups in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe.

He often played with time and structure. “The Real Thing” (1982) was a poignant romantic comedy about love and deception that featured plays within a play. “Arcadia” (1993) moved between the modern era and the early 19th century, in which characters at an English country house debated poetry, gardening and chaos theory as fate had its way with them.

“The Invention of Love” (1997) explored classical literature and the mysteries of the human heart through the life of the English poet A.E. Housman.

Stoppard began the 21st century with “The Coast of Utopia” (2002), an epic trilogy about pre-revolutionary Russian intellectuals, and drew on his own background for “Rock ’n’ Roll” (2006), which contrasted the fates of the 1960s counterculture in Britain and in communist Czechoslovakia.

“The Hard Problem” (2015) explored the mysteries of consciousness through the lenses of science and religion.

Stoppard was a devoted champion of free speech who worked with organizations including PEN and Index on Censorship. He claimed not to have strong political views otherwise, writing in 1968: “I burn with no causes. I cannot say that I write with any social objective. One writes because one loves writing, really.”

Some critics found his plays more clever than emotionally engaging. But biographer Lee said many of his plays contained a “sense of underlying grief.”

“People in his plays … history comes at them,” Lee said at a British Library event in 2021. “They turn up, they don’t know why they’re there, they don’t know whether they can get home again. They’re often in exile, they can barely remember their own name. They may have been wrongfully incarcerated. They may have some terrible moral dilemma they don’t know how to solve. They may have lost someone. And over and over again I think you get that sense of loss and longing in these very funny, witty plays.”

That was especially true of his late play “Leopoldstadt,” which drew on his own family’s story for the tale of a Jewish Viennese family over the first half of the 20th century. Stoppard said he began thinking of his personal link to the Holocaust quite late in life, only discovering after his mother’s death in 1996 that many members of his family, including all four grandparents, had died in concentration camps.

“I wouldn’t have written about my heritage — that’s the word for it nowadays — while my mother was alive, because she’d always avoided getting into it herself,” Stoppard told the New Yorker in 2022.

“It would be misleading to see me as somebody who blithely and innocently, at the age of 40-something, thought, ‘Oh, my goodness, I had no idea I was a member of a Jewish family,’” he said. “Of course I knew, but I didn’t know who they were. And I didn’t feel I had to find out in order to live my own life. But that wasn’t really true.”

“Leopoldstadt” premiered in London at the start of 2020 to rave reviews; weeks later all theaters were shut by the COVID-19 pandemic. It eventually opened in Broadway in late 2022, going on to win four Tonys.

Stoppard’s catalog of screenplays included the Terry Gilliam dystopian comedy “Brazil” (1985), the Steven Spielberg-directed war drama “Empire of the Sun” (1987), Elizabethan rom com “Shakespeare in Love” (1998) — for which he and Marc Norman shared a best adapted screenplay Oscar — code-breaking thriller “Enigma” (2001) and Russian epic “Anna Karenina” (2012).

He also wrote and directed a 1990 film adaptation of “Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead,” wrote the 2013 TV series “Parade’s End” and translated numerous works into English, including plays by dissident Czech writer Václav Havel, who became his country’s first post-communist president.

He was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1997 for his services to literature.

He was married three times: to Jose Ingle, Miriam Stern — better known as the health journalist Dr. Miriam Stoppard — and TV producer Sabrina Guinness. The first two marriages ended in divorce. He is survived by four children, including the actor Ed Stoppard, and several grandchildren.

Comedian Bob Mortimer shared a “sad” update on the Gone Fishing favourite’s health.

Bob Mortimer has shared a “sad” update on his beloved Gone Fishing co-star, their dog Ted. The comedian has fronted the beloved BBC programme with Paul Whitehouse since 2018.

Over that period, with the eighth series currently airing, Ted has frequently joined them, but during an appearance on Saturday Kitchen today, (29 November), Bob shared a concerning update.

When host Matt Tebbutt asked how Ted was doing, Bob jokingly put on a voice, imitating: “I’m alright mate.”

He then added: “No, he’s knocking on a bit.”

Bob revealed Ted was 15 years old, saying: “He still loves coming out with us, and he seems very happy.”

“I was quite sad when I saw him being wheeled around,” Matt replied.

Bob continued: “He doesn’t have to be wheeled around all the time, but for longer journeys, up the river bank, we put him in a pram now.”

Teasing the final episode of Gone Fishing, Bob went on to say “it’s a beauty,” adding: “It’s odd that people like it so much, but I kind of get it.

“We make the UK look really pretty – it’s nice to be reminded occasionally.”

This comes after Bob addressed his own health, revealing he’s ignored doctor’s orders to cut back on cheese after suffering a health scare.

The 66-year-old admitted he would rather “have three years less” than change his diet after having a triple heart bypass surgery.

Bob underwent the operation in 2015 after thinking he was suffering from a chest infection, and he later discovered 95% of his arteries were blocked.

He had been warned by his doctor that he would have had a heart attack on stage, and was forced to cancel tour dates with comedy partner Vic Reeves.

Despite the scare, he’s willing to take risks when it comes to giving up one of his favourite foods, telling The Daily Mail: “The dietitian said, ‘You can have a matchbox-size [piece] every week’.

“That broke my heart. There are probably those who do stick to it, but I’m probably in the school of thought that I’d rather have three years less.”

Last year, Bob opened up about his health struggles after facing shingles, and having to use a wheelchair while filming Mortimer & Whitehouse: Gone Fishing.

He revealed he “wasn’t very well” and had to be “looked after” by co-star Paul after he was left unable to walk due to a six-month battle with the condition.

He said: “I wasn’t very well and it made it a bit of a struggle but, as always, Paul looked after me and pulled me through.”

The Last One Laughing star went on to say that he was getting better, while trying to “grow muscle back”.

He previously shared: “I got a bit unlucky with it, I lost the use of one of my legs but it’s coming back now, I’m a bit limpy but I’m very grateful to be back up and going.”

Saturday Kitchen airs at 10am on BBC One and iPlayer.

DAME Esther Rantzen has shared a heartbreaking health update after stopping treatment for lung cancer.

The veteran TV star, 85, was diagnosed with stage four lung cancer in January 2023 and had been undergoing experimental medication, though is no longer receiving any treatment.

She had previously joined a Swiss assisted dying clinic, Dignitas, in late 2023, stating her desire for a peaceful death if her treatment failed.

She has now revealed in a heartbreaking health update that she is celebrating Christmas early this year in case she doesn’t make the actual day.

Speaking to The Times, she said: “This year I am planning an ‘official’ Christmas with my children and five grandchildren, slightly ahead of the real Christmas so that there will be more chance that I am actually alive to enjoy it with them.

“Although I live alone, Rebecca (her daughter) will come and decorate the house beautifully, as she has done every year with all my old baubles and bits of tinsel.”

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In the candid interview, Dame Esther said: “When I was diagnosed with lung cancer in January 2023, I did not expect to last until the next Christmas, so the fact that I am still here and looking forward to this one is a wonderful surprise.”

She then revealed how she is no longer receiving treatment, and her cancers are progressing.

“Right now I am not receiving any treatment, which was my doctor’s decision, as the side-effects outweigh the benefits,” she explained.

“So the cancers are progressing but, according to my most recent scan, very slowly.

“Incidentally, I have also discovered a mental health issue I never expected, scanxiety,” she added.

Dame Esther went on to explain: “Since I have no idea what is actually happening inside my own body, but every scan, every three or four months, carries with it the possibility of bad news, as the date approaches my anxiety levels rise — and we cancer patients have christened it scanxiety.”

She also revealed her “great hope” for the coming year, and what she would really want to happen.

“My great hope for 2026, which I do not expect to survive long enough to witness, is the final passing of the Assisted Dying Bill through all its stages in parliament,” she said.

Dame Esther is a big supporter of the Assisted Dying Bill, which narrowly passed through Parliament back in June.

At the time of the Bill passing through the House of Commons in June 2025, Dame Esther said the terminally ill are “truly voiceless” and face an “agonising death” – adding: “This is a crucial debate for the truly voiceless.”

She went on to say: “They are the terminally ill adults for whom life has become unbearable and who need assistance, not to shorten their lives but to shorten an agonising death – and their loved ones who under the current law will be accused of committing a crime if they try to assist or even stay alongside to say goodbye.”

Dame Esther also spoke about how she is in the midst of planning her memorial service, in her most recent interview this weekend.

She said how it is “quite fun to put together” as she is ruthless about asking favours from friends.

“Fortunately I have friends who are wonderful readers, Tom Conti, for instance, and Imelda Staunton and Judi Dench.

“It’s going to be quite an event!

“Pity I can’t be there myself,” she added.

Dame Esther previously questioned whether her stage four lung cancer might have been caused by exposure to asbestos at the BBC’s Lime Grove Studios in West London, where she filmed That’s Life! for 21 years.

Speaking to The Times in 2023, Dame Esther said: “Some time in the late-Eighties or early-Nineties, workmen wearing white spacesuits arrived to take down walls and ceilings along the corridors where I wrote our scripts to remove the asbestos.

“This did not surprise any of us since my team had called our route to the canteen ‘asbestos alley’.”

A popular guest on today’s Saturday Kitchen was called an “idiot” by his co-star for disliking a particular cuisine

Bob Mortimer’s Gone Fishing co-star Paul Whitehouse branded him an “idiot” in a cheeky message sent into this week’s edition of Saturday Kitchen.

On today’s programme (Saturday, 29th November), presenter Matt Tebbutt welcomed the beloved comedian and writer alongside celebrity chef Jamie Oliver.

Whilst fans of the BBC cookery programme were thrilled to see Bob return to the kitchen, his selection of food hell sparked controversy.

Opting for a traditional steak and kidney pie with double peas as his food heaven, his admission that he isn’t keen on Italian cuisine triggered some criticism in the studio.

Bob’s mate and Gone Fishing co-star joined the scolding in his video message, branding the comedy icon an “idiot” for his dislike of pasta and pizza, reports the Express.

Paul’s message kicked off with another dig at Bob’s food preferences, as he remembered the “preposterous and quite disgusting” kebab he created in the latest series of Gone Fishing.

He then dared Matt to prepare a “really nice one with lots of chilli sauce” to compensate for the culinary catastrophe by the lake.

The fellow comedy icon continued lambasting his co-star: “Also, Bob, you claim that Italian food is rubbish.

“I mean, you’re just an idiot. What are you going to do about that?”

Paul then delivered his trademark impersonation of the third member of the Gone Fishing team, Ted the Patterdale Terrier, whom he joked is “after” Bob. “I’m gonna get you Mortimer,” he declared, mimicking Ted’s charming underbite.

“Where’s my briefcase? It’s full of pasta!”

Back in the studio, Bob took the jest in stride, flashing a mischievous grin as Matt laughed.

“That looked like the ramblings of a madman!” the host quipped.

Bob concurred: “He packed a lot in there, didn’t he? He told me he enjoyed the kebab on the day, so…”

He then defended his contentious food preferences: “I’ve been set up with this Italian thing. I said I didn’t like pizza and somehow it’s become all Italians.

“That’s my fault,” Matt admitted. “But it’s funny, let’s run with it!”

Luckily, Bob got his wish and was served a scrumptious steak and kidney pie by guest chef Jamie after 67 percent of viewers voted for food heaven.

Saturday Kitchen airs from 10am on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.

AFTER separating from her husband Eamonn Holmes, Ruth Langsford has opened up about needing therapy in the aftermath of their shock split.

Ruth and Eamonn, both 65, were together for 27 years and married for 14 when they decided to part ways last year.

It was revealed that the pair were over and they were in the process of divorcing back in May 2024, with this still currently ongoing.

Ruth, who is known for hosting Loose Women on ITV, has now opened up about needing therapy after their split.

While Eamonn moved on and got into a relationship with counsellor Katie Alexander, who is 22 years his junior, Ruth was attending counselling sessions and focused on her healing.

Speaking to woman&home, Ruth said: “I started counselling when Eamonn and I separated, and I’m still having it.

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“It is very powerful and very useful. It gives me tools to deal with things.”

She went on to say: “My counsellor has probably seen us on TV, but she doesn’t know either of us so doesn’t get involved and doesn’t judge.

“She just listens and says, ‘Have you thought about this?’ or ‘Why did you feel like that?’ 

“I think I know myself very well, so it has just been calming.

“It makes me question how I’m feeling,” she added.

Ruth then added: “When my sister died, friends suggested counselling and I said, ‘I don’t [want] just [for someone] to tell me that I’m really sad,’ and I still feel like that. 

“The end of a very long relationship takes a lot of unravelling. Counselling helps you move on from it, to not be held back.”

Ruth and Eamonn announced their split in the spring of 2024 after months of arguing.

Leaving their £2.5million family home in Weybridge, Eamonn soon went public with his new partner Katie.

Asked about whether she would get into a new relationship, Ruth said: “Never say never.”

Speaking to the magazine, she said: “I haven’t been put off having a relationship.

“I haven’t even been put off marriage, but I’m definitely not actively looking, and part of that is because I’ve realised I’m actually quite good on my own.

“I am independent and quite strong.”

Ruth went on: “It has taken me a bit of time [to realise that] and I don’t know what lies ahead, but that chapter now feels quite exciting.

“It’s not as scary as I thought.”

Elsewhere in her interview, Ruth said she once saw “darkness” but now sees light where she did not before.

“Do you crumble? Do you lay down and die? Oh no, not I. I will survive,” she said.

Ruth and Eamonn are not yet officially divorced, with reports swirling that they are currently at war over their money.

The January issue of woman&home is on sale December 4 2025

Apple TV has launched a rare Black Friday deal that sees the subscription cost cut in half for six months.

Apple TV has unveiled a rare Black Friday deal that’s slashed its subscription cost by half. Across this Black Friday weekend, new and eligible returning subscribers can join Apple TV for £4.99 per month for six months.

This marks a 50% discount from the usual £9.99 and grants full access to series such as Slow Horses, Severance, Ted Lasso and The Studio, all while saving a cool £30. However, Apple TV has issued a ‘last chance’ warning to claim the deal before it expires on Monday, December 1.

It makes Apple TV the most affordable major streaming service when compared to the basic plans of Netflix, Disney+ and Prime Video, which all now cost £5.99. After the six-month promotional period, Apple TV will revert to its usual price of £9.99 per month unless cancelled.

Those who take advantage of this offer will be able to stream every episode of titles including Pluribus, the new sci-fi drama from Breaking Bad creator Vince Gilligan. Emma Thompson’s mystery thriller Down Cemetery Road, based on Slow Horses author Mick Herron’s debut novel, is also streaming now.

Coming to Apple TV soon are Brad Pitt’s F1 (December 12), Hijack season two (January 14), and Godzilla series Monarch: Legacy of Monsters season two (February 27). It comes as Apple’s streaming service quietly underwent a significant change in October, dropping the ‘+’ from its name and rebranding simply as Apple TV, reports Wales Online.

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TV fans can get Apple TV half price for six months as it drops from £9.99 to £4.99 until December 1.

The Apple TV half price deal is also available for Sky customers when subscribing via the Apple TV app, as part of Sky’s Black Friday sale. The provider has cut several TV packages to their ‘lowest ever price’, offering free Netflix subscriptions and more than 100 channels with options like the Essential TV and 500Mbps Full Fibre Broadband bundle (£35).

Apple TV has had a record-breaking year for its original content, with season two of Severance surpassing Ted Lasso to become the platform’s most-watched series ever. It also dominated the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards, bagging a total of 22 wins for Severance, Slow Horses and The Studio.

The latter made Emmys history by scooping 13 awards – the highest ever for a comedy series – including Outstanding Comedy Series and Outstanding Lead Actor for Seth Rogen. However, while Apple TV’s library is brimming with original content, it doesn’t offer the endless blockbusters and classic films found on rivals like Netflix or major Disney+ franchises such as Star Wars and Marvel.

What it does provide are exclusive titles featuring some of Hollywood’s biggest stars, including Jennifer Aniston, Jake Gyllenhaal, Gary Oldman, Brad Pitt and Matthew McConaughey, as well as legendary filmmakers like Martin Scorsese. Customers can enjoy 50% off Apple TV when signing up by December 1.

A nepo baby with two very famous actor parents has bagged herself a role in the new Peaky Blinders movie – can you guess who her mum and dad are?

Ruby, 27, has followed in her parents footsteps as an actor and according to IMDB, she’s set to star as Agnes Shelby in the upcoming film, Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man.

The highly-anticipated project is a direct continuation of the BBC One television series and has an epic cast.

Cillian Murphy is back in the role of Thomas Shelby alongside Stephen Graham, Sophie Rundle, Ned Dennehy, Packy Lee and Ian Peck.

Ruby joins other actors who are new to the Peaky Blinders world, including Rebecca Ferguson, Tim Roth, Jay Lycurgo and Barry Keoghan.

Her actor and filmmaker father is best known for his motion capture roles working with animation and voice work for computer generated characters.

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He’s starred in massive Hollywood films including The Lord of the Rings trilogy, King Kong and the Planet of the Apes reboot series.

His work has garnered him several BAFTA awards, a Daytime Emmy Award and a Golden Globe nomination.

Meanwhile, his wife also has an impressive resume, having appeared in massive shows including The Crown, Bridgerton and Grantchester.

And she most recently entertained fans in the BBC drama Riot Women, written by Happy Valley’s Sally Wainwright.

Have you guessed who Ruby’s famous parents are?

That’s right, it’s none other than Gollum actor Andy Serkis and his wife Lorraine Ashbourne.

As well as the projects previously mentioned, Andy has starred in other big projects including Avengers: Age of Ultron, The Batman and Venom: Let There Be Carnage.

The couple got married back in 2002 and live in London with their three children, Ruby, Sonny and Louis.

Ruby Ashbourne Serkis has already starred in some big productions, having bagged small roles in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies thanks to her dad.

She’s since carved out her own career with projects such as drama comedy film La Cha Cha and most recently, Netflix film Steve, alongside Cillian.

Ruby is also set to appear on stage at The Hampstead Theatre in Indian Ink, alongside Felicity Kendal and Gavi Singh Chera.

A synopsis for the play reads: “Satirising the self-importance of both academia and the ruling class, Tom Stoppard’s Indian Ink is an evocative meditation on art and love, exploring how creativity can bridge even the most profound cultural barriers.”

Both of Ruby’s brothers, Sonny and Louis, have also bagged the nepo tag and ran with it, and are also acting.

Sonny has appeared in mini series Masters of the Air, The Witcher, The War Below and Young Wallander.

While Louis is best-known for his role as Alex in the 2019 fantasy adventure film The Kid Who Would Be King.

Back in 2017, Andy directed the film Breathe, which is a true story about the love between Robin and Diana Cavendish.

Many fans thought the film was inspired by Andy and Lorraine’s own love story, having been married for 23 years.

However, Andy has clarified the project was inspired by the Cavendish’s story and the power of their love to overcome adversity.

Joseph Kosinski didn’t want to direct “F1” unless he was able to do it the hard way. That was the germ of an idea for what would eventually become one of the biggest hits of 2025: Create a movie about an underdog Formula One team that didn’t fake being at F1 races, but actually became a part of them.

“It was kind of like, ‘Yes, this is a little insane,’” said Kosinski, “‘but if we can pull it off, we’ll get something totally unique.’”

Kosinski doesn’t present as your average adrenaline junkie. He’s mellow and looks like he could work at a bank — in fact, he pursued architecture before finding a calling in film as a David Fincher protégé. Kosinski was trusted with blockbusters from his debut, 2010’s “Tron: Legacy,” and in 2022 broke through with “Top Gun: Maverick,” which strapped Tom Cruise and other insurance liabilities into actual fighter jets as an alternative to relying on CGI.

“I think on ‘Maverick,’” Kosinski said, “I found out that the audience does appreciate when you shoot something for real. They can tell the difference between something done on a soundstage and done in a real situation. It’s something we are very attuned to and connect to.”

“F1” tells the story of Sonny Hayes (Brad Pitt), a leathery road dog of a driver who gets called back into Formula One by an old racing friend (Javier Bardem), who’s now the owner of a struggling team, desperate for a Hail Mary. The film is partially based in reality; the Hayes character is inspired by Martin Donnelly, whose promising career was cut short in 1990 by a gruesome crash. It’s also partially based in a fantasy in which someone old enough to have seen the 1966 epic “Grand Prix” in theaters would be allowed to sit in the driver’s seat of a modern F1 team.

Director Joseph Kosinski on the set of “F1.”

(Apple TV)

But the fantasy elements were designed to be offset by a hyperrealism that’s rarely afforded to film productions — not just in the ability to feature the actual teams and drivers, but also to film a significant portion of the movie at the races themselves. It helped that the production had Lewis Hamilton, one of the best drivers in the history of the sport, on board as a producer to help grease the wheels with the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile, the governing body of F1. Even with Hamilton, though, Apple — which ultimately spent over $200 million on the movie — had to prove to the FIA that they could set up at an event like the fabled British Grand Prix at Silverstone and not cause a pileup.

“We had to rehearse the blocking and staging for about two weeks with a stopwatch in front of the FIA to prove to them that we could actually shoot a scene and get off the track before the race started,” said Kosinski, referring to a crucial scene when the characters played by Pitt and Tobias Menzies first meet.

Unlike “Maverick,” in which military pilots flew the jets, “F1” features driving from Brad Pitt and co-star Damson Idris, in some sense because it was the only way to get the shots they needed. “They’ve got four cameras in front of them that are whipping around and they’re having to do their lines and perform,” said Kosinski. “But mostly they’re trying not to die in front of 100,000 people.”

Every department — from the actors to craft services — had to learn how to operate at dangerous speeds and with higher stakes. Ben Munro, who did the production design with Mark Tildesley, explained that, normally, his department would have two weeks to build a set; in some cases on “F1,” such as a scene filmed at the McLaren headquarters, they would have just 12 hours, overnight.

“When you try to integrate with the real world, ultimate control becomes harder,” Munro said. “And as filmmakers, we’re used to being in ultimate control.”

The “F1” team developed new cameras to capture the film’s ultra-realistic high-speed racing.

(Apple TV)

The camera team too had to be adaptable and mobile (no VistaVision here), all while figuring out how to capture footage at 180 miles per hour that couldn’t be covered with more than a few takes. “First, we had to make a camera that didn’t exist yet,” said Claudio Miranda, the film’s cinematographer.

Miranda, who won an Oscar for “Life of Pi,” worked with Sony to develop small, agile “sensor-on-a-stick” cameras with Imax-worthy lenses to place around the cars. Coverage became essential — there were 16 camera positions to capture as much as possible. With both the racing itself and the hoopla around race weekend, the usual filmmaking mindset simply had to change: “I’m not always able to shoot sunset for this shot, or backlight for this quarter,” said Miranda, describing his thinking. “We traded all that in for the realism of the movie. But I think that’s unbeatable.”

Other than a few spinouts (and a stray Brad Pitt fan ruining a shot to get a selfie), the production was miraculously accident-free, despite taking almost two years to film. That may be due in part to the fact that, if you squint, it turns out that a film crew is similar enough to an F1 team to fit right in.

“Everyone had to be prepared for those nine-minute shoot windows in the same way that you’d have to be ready for a pit stop,” Kosinski said. “There was a really interesting kinship. And we really did feel like the 11th team after spending two seasons with them.”

The moment that sticks with Miranda is from the end of the production, in Abu Dhabi, when all the real F1 teams got their cars out for one grand scene together — a million-dollar setup, to undersell it by a few digits. “In the beginning, it did feel like we were this annoying little buzzard,” Miranda said. “I think that’s why I got really emotional when everyone wanted to help us out in the final race and bring the cars out. Because it felt like, at the end, we were kind of loved.”

An incredible double bill of musical classics is available to watch for free this weekend

Film4 is airing a stunning double billing of hit movies that musical fans won’t want to miss. On TV from 4:45pm today (Saturday, 29th November), the original hit 1990s film will be immediately followed by its sequel at 6:50pm.

After that, both films will be available to stream for free on Channel 4 for a limited time. The toe-tapping cinematic treats in question are 1992’s classic nun on the run comedy Sister Act, starring Whoopi Goldberg as lounge singer Deloris, who is forced to hide out in a convent when her gangster boyfriend turns on her.

Fans of the original will be delighted to see that the sequel, Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit, which some consider to be even better, will also be airing straight afterwards.

This time, Deloris reunites with her nun friends, portrayed by legends such as Downton Abbey and Harry Potter’s Maggie Smith, Kathy Najimy and Wendy Makkena, to help save their struggling school with a stirring performance from their students.

R&B legend Lauryn Hill makes her film debut in the underrated sequel, which had one IMDb user claiming: “Not often is the sequel better than the original but Sister Act 2 breaks that stereotype.

“The music, acting, singing are all incredible. My favorite movie of all time and Whoopi once again showed up and showed out.”

Another wrote: “I loved this so much, even better than the first movie. So much talent and energy with a great story line.

“Once again, Goldberg delivers. This is a movie I could watch every year, so glad it is on every Christmas!”

As for the original? Movie buffs certainly agree it holds up more than 30 years later. One user said in a 10/10 review: “I feel that this movie should be a classic someday. The music is outstanding. I love the way that Whoopi sings. She has a fantastic voice for the movie.

“This movie is timeless and priceless. It is one of Whoopi’s finest movies.” Praise continued on Letterboxd where someone said: “I’m not ashamed to admit I was almost brought to tears at the end there…seeing Maggie Smith in anything still hits hard. Gone too soon.

“This was such a perfect comedy, I can’t believe I spent all these years and knew nothing of this film. A new favorite for sure!”

“This film is a camp masterpiece, if you can watch it with a crowd as rowdy as mine, it will not disappoint,” another wrote.

And a final fan made a bold claim: “This MIGHT be the best movie ever made.” Are you after a religious viewing experience this weekend? Look no further than Film4’s incredible musical double bill.

Sister Act and Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit are airing from 4:45pm on Saturday, 29th November on Film4 and will be available to stream on Channel 4.

POP princess Sabrina Carpenter has the making of a great queen, says a butler who taught her how to behave like a royal.

Grant Harrold gave the US star etiquette lessons before an awards bash.

He said the Espresso singer “rolled her eyes” at the start but was “very natural”.

Footage unearthed by The Sun shows Sabrina, then 18, learning to serve afternoon tea.

She also balanced books on her head to improve posture.

Grant, who worked for the then-Prince Charles from 2007 to 2011, said the stunt ahead of the 2017 MTV Awards was more “Downton Abbey than Mean Girls”.

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He added: “She’s very chilled, laid-back and didn’t act like a superstar.

“If we could’ve got her into a tiara, she’d have been up for it. She began eye-rolling at the start. She wasn’t too sure.

“Her curtsy was a bit too theatrical. Perfect for one of her shows, not for meeting the King. But she was very natural. I didn’t have to confiscate anything. She was very good about her phone.

“She could pass at the Palace quite easily.

“I can see her getting along with William and Kate, and the King.

“She’s charming, confident, assertive. She’d make a future great queen. A few etiquette lessons and she’d be there.”

Sabrina was joined by US comedians the Dolan twins at a London hotel — perfecting the skills of pauper-turned-socialite Eliza Doolittle — Audrey Hepburn in 1964 film My Fair Lady.

Now 26, Anglophile Sabrina recorded much of new album Man’s Best Friend in the Cotswolds.

And she posed with a sparkly Union Jack on her tour in March.

Do you have a similar story? Email [email protected]

There goes West Canaan High School’s hero.

“Varsity Blues” actor James Van Der Beek donned a familiar uniform to toss around a pigskin amid his cancer battle in an Instagram video shared Monday, and his wife Kimberly was in the comments to cheer him on.

“You’re a Wizard. Bouncing back baby!!” she wrote in response to the post. Her comment was accompanied by three heart-eyes emoji. Van Der Beek revealed last year that he had been diagnosed with Stage 3 colorectal cancer.

In the short clip, Van Der Beek wears a white football jersey with the number 4 and the name Moxon on the back. He played backup quarterback Jonathan “Mox” Moxon in the Texas-set 1999 coming-of-age film.

“Maybe it was all fun plays we got run in the football sequences for the away games… but I always loved putting on the varsity whites,” Van Der Beek wrote in the caption of the video featuring his “favorite jersey.” He also shared that limited quantities of the commemorative jersey are available for fans to purchase with or without his autograph. The actor sold a similar offering last year. The proceeds will “go directly to families undergoing cancer treatment,” according to his website.

Van Der Beek went on to thank his fans for their outpouring of support since he shared his diagnosis.

“Last year when I released the Blues jersey, I was blown away by the love and support I received from all of you,” he wrote. “It has meant more than I can ever express. … Thank you — for the love, the prayers, the support, and for making this jersey mean something far bigger than a movie. Endlessly grateful for all of you.”

Earlier this month, the “Dawson’s Creek” actor announced that he is also auctioning off memorabilia from his personal collection to help pay for his cancer treatments.

EastEnders’ Sam Mitchell actress Kim Medcalf has discussed her return to the BBC soap, involving a worrying new health storyline and a long-awaited reunion with Zoe Slater

It’s been almost two years since Sam Mitchell last graced our screens, fleeing EastEnders after severing ties with brother Phil and the Mitchell clan. But Sam may need her family now more than ever, when she returns to Albert Square as part of an important and emotional new storyline.

Sam faces a breast cancer scare after she discovers a lump. It’s her late mother Peggy Mitchell’s own battle with the disease, and her death in 2016, that leaves Sam convinced it’s serious.

Actress Kim Medcalf shared: “This is the second time Sam has found a lump in her breast and 20 years ago, she felt very lucky that it wasn’t anything serious. This time Sam assumes it’s going to be a different outcome because of Peggy’s history. Sam feels like the same thing is going to happen to her and so she’s putting her head in the sand.”

Hiding her turmoil from her loved ones and refusing to be checked by a doctor, Sam instead begs her brother Phil for money. Viewers will recall that the pair aren’t currently on good terms, given last year her dramatic exit saw her expose his affair with Emma Harding to the entire Square.

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“She’s nervous, especially how things were left with Phil!” Kim revealed. “But then again, Sam’s not the kind of person who spends a lot of time thinking about the past, she lives in the moment.”

Kim teased that Nigel Bates, who revealed his devastating dementia diagnosis earlier this year, soon gets caught up in Sam’s scheming too. As Sam attempts to steal money from Phil’s safe, Nigel lets her, after sadly mistaking her for his daughter Clare.

Of course scheming Sam avoids correcting him, but it’s not long before her brother realises the truth. Sam will attempt to flee once more with the cash, before confiding in former flame Jack Branning, son Ricky’s dad, about her health secret.

Kim hopes this will lead to Sam seeking help, as she shares the importance of getting checked early. “We all need to encourage each other to regularly check our breasts because if you can catch breast cancer early enough, it can make a big difference to the prognosis and treatment,” Kim said. “To be given a storyline where I can play a small part in raising awareness is a real privilege. As a woman in my 50s, it’s something me and my friends talk about because we all know people affected by breast cancer and it feels very relevant and important.”

Of course Sam’s long-awaited return to the soap will also see an exciting reunion fans have been desperate for, between herself and Zoe Slater. The last time they were onscreen together back in 2005, the pair, joined by Chrissie Watts, were involved in the brutal murder of Dirty Den, who was buried under the floor of The Queen Vic.

Sam was sent to prison over the death, while the pair believed Zoe killed Den during their violent showdown. She was soon released though when Chrissie’s guilt was unearthed, while Zoe fled Albert Square until her own comeback earlier this year.

It’s safe to say Sam isn’t thrilled by the reunion, and it will open up some old wounds for both characters that they would rather remain closed. Kim explained: “Coming face-to-face with Zoe is triggering for Sam and brings up a whole series of memories that she’d much rather forget.”

It leads to Zoe wondering if Sam is behind her ongoing stalker ordeal, and a showdown ensues. “You can’t blame Zoe for suspecting Sam, they’ve got history!” admitted Kim. “They both shared this terrible experience that traumatised them in their own different ways.”

Kim confirms though that her character has nothing to do with Zoe’s torment. “Sam is adamant that she’s got her mind on other, far more important things. I think Zoe is convinced by Sam’s protests, but Kat isn’t quite so sure about her.”

Kim has loved the chance to work with Michelle Ryan, who plays Zoe, again two decades on from their iconic plot. “It has had us taking a trip down memory lane to remember where our characters were when we were last in the show, and what was going on in our lives in Walford,” Kim shared. “Having this chance to reminisce together has been lovely.”

EastEnders airs Mondays to Thursdays at 7:30pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer. * Follow Mirror Celebs and TV on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads .

KELLY Osbourne has shared a heartbreaking clip of dad Ozzy as he missed out on festive family tradition. 

Ozzy sadly passed away aged 76 on July 22, with the cause of death later revealed to be a cardiac arrest.  

And Kelly, 41, revealed The Osbourne’s festive tradition of putting up the Christmas tree together was missing the unmistakable presence of Ozzy this year.

The mum took to Instagram to share a sweet video of her late father detangling Christmas lights. 

The scene shows the musician comically swearing as he struggles to undo a string of lights for the Christmas tree. 

Ozzy eventually shouts up to his beloved wife Sharon, 73, for help as he walks away.

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Kelly reposted the video from another online user adding an emotional caption over the top.

She penned: “We are meant to be putting up the Christmas tree today! It won’t be the same (crying emoji)”

The mom-of-one will be heartbroken to be spending her first Christmas without her father alongside the rest of the Osbourne clan.

Kelly has been supporting her mother through their loss, previously revealing she slept in her parents’ bed for two months after Ozzy passed away.

In a special episode of their family podcast titled Remembering Ozzy, Sharon confessed she “hates” going to bed at night.

Kelly said: “I mean, I slept with you for the first two months so that you weren’t on your own.

“But then I felt like you needed some space.”

Kelly and Sharon will also be missing son and brother Jack, 40, over the beginning of the Christmas period as he is currently taking part in I’m A Celebrity.

Jack recently left fans concerned as he ended up in tears while discussing Ozzy.

During a discussion with Eddie Kadi, Jack was asked what he missed most about Ozzy.

As he attempted to answer the question, Jack became overcome with emotion as he tried to compose himself.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to bring it out like that,” Eddie expressed as Jack said: “No it’s fine.”

“I haven’t experienced what you’ve experienced,” he told the grief-stricken star before asking him: “What do you miss most about your pops?”

Again, Jack was unable to answer the question as he held his face into his hands and sobbed.

He finally expressed: “Just his energy. He had this force, so hard to describe. But he had this energy.”