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Emmerdale’s latest episode revealed that Jimmy King had secret voice messages hidden on his laptop, sent to his ex Sadie King before his death and found by his wife Nicola

Jimmy King’s secret voice messages to Sadie King left his widow Nicola King distraught on Emmerdale on Friday.

But the truth behind the messages could be bad news for Sadie, who’s hiding some secrets of her own. Sadie returned after Jimmy’s death in a car crash recently, and she claimed to Nicola she was in a three-year relationship with Jimmy behind Nicola’s back.

Of course viewers soon found out that Sadie had faked images of her and Jimmy together, and she was trying to get her hands on his money. That said, voice messages found on Jimmy’s laptop appeared to confirm he had been in contact with Sadie right before his death.

As Nicola found out from her son Carl that the messages were on the laptop, she decided to listen. She heard her late husband’s voice, talking to Sadie.

As Jimmy spoke, he asked Sadie whether she was comfy and in a hotel, leaving Nicola fearing they were meeting up just like Sadie had claimed. He then told her he had “the money”.

While this confirmed that Jimmy was giving Sadie money, it’s what he said next that sparked confusion over the reasons. The message also suggested Nicola’s fears that Jimmy was cheating might be nothing to worry about.

Nicola had stopped listening hen he mentioned the money, and she got upset and ran off. But a the earphones dropped, the audio kept playing.

It’s then that Jimmy vowed this would be the one and only time he gave her any money. He said he loved his wife to pieces and she would rightly “kill him” if she found out what he was doing with Sadie.

Jimmy appeared to rule out any other meetings, and his words almost suggested he was doing her a favour. So, clearly he wasn’t planning to run off with Sadie or leave the family behind, like Sadie had implied at some stage.

The true reasons for him seeing Sadie and giving her money has not been explained. But surely this voice note could dispute Sadie’s claims about what Jimmy was up to, and prove Sadie is hiding something.

So will Nicola or someone else hear the rest of the voice message, and confront Sadie? We know there may have been more than one message, as Carl had found messages. plural.

So, is there even more to find out from these that will expose the truth?

Emmerdale airs weeknights at 8pm on ITV1 and ITVX. * Follow Mirror Celebs and TV on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads .

When it comes to scary movies, the motion picture academy has historically been a bit squeamish. Horror has been a cornerstone of the industry since the beginning, but Oscar voters have rarely embraced it. Only one horror film has ever won best picture: 1991’s “The Silence of the Lambs.” Even “Sinners,” which made history this year with a record 16 nominations, couldn’t close the deal.

Now, though, horror has gotten inside the house.

Opening Saturday and running through July 25, 2027, the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures’ new exhibition, “The Horror Show,” explores more than a century of horror, from silent-era landmarks “The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari” (1920) and “Nosferatu” (1922) through “Psycho” (1960) and “The Exorcist” (1973) to “Midsommar” (2019) and “Weapons” (2025). Drawn from the academy’s collection and 62 private lenders around the world, it brings together costumes, props, prosthetics, creatures and production art.

An original facehugger from Ridley Scott’s “Alien” (1979), part of the exhibition’s collection of creatures and production materials from the sci-fi series.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

Introducing the exhibition at Thursday’s press preview, Robert Englund, who played the razor-fingered Freddy Krueger in the “Nightmare on Elm Street” films, recalled how the genre was once regarded in Hollywood. “Back when I started, we would sort of get the lousy table in the commissary by the kitchen door,” he said. Now, with the academy mounting an exhibition devoted to horror and the genre continuing to thrive at the box office, Englund added, “I think we’re getting some respect.”

Rather than a simple chronological tour through the genre’s history, the exhibition is organized into six themed “chambers” devoted to Gothic horror, psychological horror, science, slashers, religion and ghosts, with settings ranging from a shadowy crypt to a killer’s house and a haunted living room.

Storyboards from 1973’s “The Exorcist,” a clapperboard from 1976’s “The Omen” and the original Necronomicon from 1987’s “Evil Dead II” are among the artifacts in the exhibition’s religion-themed chamber.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

Senior exhibitions curator Jessica Niebel says the idea was to walk a line between a traditional museum exhibition and a haunted-house experience.

“Horror films are about evoking an emotional response and we’re hoping the exhibition will do the same,” she says. “These are all original objects and they tell a story. We wanted to place them in an environment that brings them to life and activates them.” (The museum advises parental guidance; a smaller, family-friendly “Zombies!” exhibition is next door.)

So what’s lurking inside? Here are 10 sights worth braving. Read on, if you dare.

See Bela Lugosi’s original Dracula cape

Bela Lugosi’s original cape from 1931’s “Dracula,” on public display for the first time after undergoing an extensive restoration.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

Nearly a century after Bela Lugosi first swept it around his shoulders, Dracula’s cape doesn’t need much introduction. Worn by Lugosi in Universal’s 1931 “Dracula,” the simple black cape became as inseparable from the character as his hypnotic stare and Hungarian accent, establishing the visual language of the screen vampire for generations to come. Lugosi, who had first played the Count onstage in 1927, kept the cape after filming and continued wearing it for stage and public appearances until his death in 1956. Now part of the Academy Museum’s collection, the nearly century-old garment underwent an extensive restoration before “The Horror Show.” Remarkably, this is the first time it has ever been put on public display.

Come face-to-face with Hannibal Lecter

Anthony Hopkins’ Hannibal Lecter costume and restraints from 1991’s “The Silence of the Lambs” are on display, including the serial killer’s unmistakable mask.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

Anthony Hopkins’ Hannibal Lecter, the brilliant psychiatrist and cannibalistic serial killer at the center of Jonathan Demme’s “The Silence of the Lambs,” is unsettling enough standing perfectly still. When he has to be moved, the precautions are extreme. Hopkins wore this orange prison uniform, straitjacket and muzzle when Lecter is transported under heavy security, strapped upright to a hand truck. Costume designer Colleen Atwood devised the ensemble, while Ed Cubberly created the famous fiberglass muzzle, deliberately leaving it uncoated to evoke the look of dried, taut skin. Seeing the outfit up close is a reminder of just how little Hopkins needed to work with: Even with virtually his entire body immobilized and much of his face obscured, Lecter somehow became more frightening.

Trace the evolution of the Xenomorph

A towering Xenomorph created by Legacy Effects for 2024’s “Alien: Romulus” offers an up-close look at one of horror’s most enduring monsters.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

Nearly half a century after Ridley Scott’s “Alien” introduced H.R. Giger’s nightmarish vision to moviegoers, the creature still looks like nothing else in science fiction. The exhibition brings together original Giger artwork depicting the alien egg and an original facehugger from the 1979 film, the spidery parasite whose method of reproduction helped make “Alien” a landmark of body horror. There’s also an original drawing by James Cameron, who took over the franchise with 1986’s “Aliens.” But the hardest thing to miss is a towering Xenomorph created by Legacy Effects for 2024’s “Alien: Romulus.” Up close, its elongated head, skeletal body and glistening double set of jaws reveal just how much unsettling detail goes into a creature often glimpsed onscreen in darkness.

See Dracula’s armor go from page to screen

Eiko Ishioka’s blood-red armor for Gary Oldman’s Count Dracula in Francis Ford Coppola’s 1992 “Bram Stoker’s Dracula.”

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

Before Gary Oldman’s Dracula became a pale, bewigged count, he was Vlad the Impaler, encased in one of the most striking costumes in Francis Ford Coppola’s 1992 “Bram Stoker’s Dracula.” Eiko Ishioka designed the blood-red battle armor with a ribbed surface evoking both exposed human musculature and an armadillo’s shell, while the pointed helmet foreshadows the wolf Dracula later becomes. Displayed alongside several of Ishioka’s original design drawings, the armor offers a fascinating look at how her ideas evolved from pencil on paper into something almost anatomical. Ishioka, a celebrated Japanese graphic designer making her first foray into Hollywood costume design, won an Oscar for her work on the film.

Log on to the original ‘Blair Witch’ website

Visitors can explore the groundbreaking viral promotional website for 1999’s “The Blair Witch Project,” which blurred the line between the film’s fictional story and reality.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

Long before viral marketing had a name, 1999’s “The Blair Witch Project” was using the still-young internet to convince moviegoers that three student filmmakers might actually be missing in the woods. Directors Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sánchez created the film’s promotional website in 1998, filling it with fake police reports, evidence photographs and an elaborate mythology while carefully avoiding any suggestion that their story was fictional. They posted on message boards and continually updated the site before the film’s release, helping turn a tiny found-footage horror movie into a grassroots phenomenon. Here, you can sit down at a chunky late-’90s computer and explore the original site yourself. Nearby is one of the movie’s crudely constructed stick figures — a reminder that sometimes a few twigs and some twine are all it takes to lodge an image permanently in the culture.

Meet the slashers

Costumes and props from some of horror’s most notorious killers fill the exhibition’s slasher chamber, including Candyman, Ghostface, Michael Myers, Freddy Krueger and Art the Clown.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

Slasher movies have always depended on a memorable killer, and the genre has produced some of horror’s most instantly recognizable figures. Freddy Krueger, Michael Myers, Ghostface and Art the Clown are gathered here in full costume, looking less like museum pieces than a welcoming committee you’d rather not encounter. Nearby cases turn slasher movies’ grisly tools of the trade into artifacts, with masks and weapons from “Saw,” “Us,” “M3GAN,” “The Black Phone” and other films. It’s a reminder of how little a slasher movie really needs to get under your skin.

Open the Babadook’s book

The handmade “Mister Babadook” pop-up book created by illustrator Alex Juhasz for Jennifer Kent’s 2014 “The Babadook.”

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

Sometimes the scariest special effect is a pop-up book. In Jennifer Kent’s 2014 “The Babadook,” the sinister children’s book “Mister Babadook” heralds the arrival of the top-hatted creature that terrorizes a widowed mother and her young son, while giving physical form to the grief consuming them. Kent turned to illustrator Alex Juhasz to create the handmade book, drawing inspiration from the eerie silhouetted animation of German filmmaker Lotte Reiniger from the 1920s. Opened to one of its more elaborate spreads, the original prop is both beautifully crafted and deeply unsettling, its seemingly innocent children’s-book mechanics revealing a grinning black figure and the ominous command: “LET ME IN.”

Take a selfie with Norma Bates

A re-creation of the mummified Mrs. Bates from Alfred Hitchcock’s immortal “Psycho” gives visitors a chance to pose with Norman Bates’ dearly departed mother.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

The Academy Museum wanted the original mummified Mrs. Bates head from Alfred Hitchcock’s “Psycho,” but there was one problem: She was too fragile to travel. The Cinémathèque Française, which owns the 1960 prop, declined the museum’s loan request. “I was really disappointed about that, but it’s totally understandable,” Niebel says. “We probably wouldn’t have lent her if she were in our collection.” So the museum commissioned Oscar-winning makeup artist and sculptor Mike Hill, fresh off his work on Guillermo del Toro’s “Frankenstein,” to research and create a full-body Mrs. Bates instead. Unlike the many delicate original artifacts elsewhere in the exhibition, this one was made to let visitors get close and take home their own slightly unsettling family portrait. Just don’t get too close. As a nearby sign warns, “Mother isn’t quite herself today — do not touch, she needs her space.”

Get grossed out by Monstro Elisasue

The spectacularly gross Monstro Elisasue bust, created by makeup and special-effects artist Pierre-Olivier Persin for Coralie Fargeat’s 2024 “The Substance.”

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

By the time Coralie Fargeat’s 2024 “The Substance” reaches its gloriously grotesque climax, Demi Moore’s Elisabeth Sparkle and Margaret Qualley’s Sue have effectively fused into the spectacularly deformed creature known as Monstro Elisasue. The exhibition puts designer Pierre-Olivier Persin’s bust of the creature alongside the syringes, vials and other medical paraphernalia from the mysterious Substance kit that sets the movie’s nightmare in motion. Fargeat has described body horror as a “weapon of expression” for confronting the pressures placed on women’s bodies, particularly as they age. As Fargeat puts it in the exhibition’s wall text, she wanted audiences to see that women’s “pearly smiles are made of so many horrendous things that we have to keep within ourselves.”

Make your escape through the Blood Room

The Blood Room, streaked and splattered with cinematic gore, provides the only way out of “The Horror Show.”

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

Fittingly, there is no clean getaway from “The Horror Show.” Every visitor must exit through the Blood Room, a gruesomely immersive space whose walls are streaked, smeared, splattered and practically dripping with the red stuff. To get the gore just right, Niebel turned to Oscar-winning special makeup effects artist Howard Berger, a veteran of such splatterific films as “Evil Dead II” and “Kill Bill.” Berger worked with the museum and its fabricators to create the room’s layers of fake blood, varying the colors and consistencies to suggest everything from dark, dried stains to fresh blood still running down the walls. Just when you think you’ve made it through, the exhibition has one last gruesome touch: To escape, you have to push your way through a set of bloody butcher curtains.

Big Brother continues to be plunged into chaos with explosive rows almost daily

ITV’s Big Brother has certainly been delivering plenty of drama and chaos since it launched earlier this month, from explosive rows to clear divides and feuds.

Just last night (September 24) yet another row broke out as Rochelle and Johanne went head to head following concerns over uncooked chicken.

Wanting to cook her chicken further, Rochelle hit back at Johanne to say this would be against the rules for this week’s shopping task.

But things soon took a turn when the two started to shout at one another, with Johanne calling Rochelle an “old hag” and Rochelle calling her “nasty”.

Rochelle also hit back at Johanne before she was called into the Diary Room and warned against making “threats to violence”.

But with all the chaos to keep viewers entertained, fans cannot help but be distracted with one background detail, which they say continues to make them feel sick.

That detail is the state of the house, with housemates leaving clutter in each room. Taking to Facebook, one person wrote: “How can BB not sit there and punish them all for the living conditions of the house.

“Ok they cleaned ABIT last night but my god it’s a squat, and putting it on TV is embarrassing. How can adults not know how to clean up and make there home clean. Which it is now there home it’s madness.”

One person replied: “There should be house rules and that be part of one”, as another branded it as “disgusting”. A third added: “I don’t understand how they can relax and be comfortable and eat and sleep in such squalor.” A fourth echoed: “Totally agree, I keep getting distracted by the absolute state of the bedroom, I mean it’s disgusting.”

They then continued: “When Big Brother said last night the punishment for talking about nominations would be to clean the house I thought thank God for that . It should be part of the rules to keep it half decent at least !!”

A fifth fumed: “Should be made to tidy bedroom and make beds. Hang clothes in wardrobes”, as another penned: “Didn’t they normally have to clean every now and then back in the day.”

The living conditions were also picked up on The Group Chat spin off show when hosts GK Barry and Kate Lawler took a secret trip to the house.

It’s not just viewers though that are appearing to struggle with the messy conditions, with housemate Rochelle often seen in tears over the lack of cleaning.

Earlier this week she was seen crying to Big Brother needing a vacuum cleaner, with last night’s instalment saw her raising concerns over the mess in the kitchen.

The concerns come as Pauline and Chelsey face the live eviction tonight (September 25) with only one housemate being forced to say their goodbyes.

Big Brother continues tonight at 9pm on ITV2 and ITVX

“You only need to find one person in this entire world who doesn’t find you completely insufferable.”

That’s the wisdom Taylor Swift dispenses near the end of “Cleveland!,” one of four new songs on a newly expanded edition of “The Life of a Showgirl,” and if that exclamation point doesn’t tell you she’s found that person then I don’t know what would.

Released Thursday night, almost exactly a year after the original album came out, “The Life of a Showgirl: The Encore” tacks four bonus songs onto the blockbuster 2025 LP that set a new record for the biggest opening week of all time even as it drew the harshest reviews of her career. It also follows Swift’s high-profile wedding in July — her husband, the NFL star Travis Kelce, grew up in Cleveland Heights — and comes just as Grammy voters are about to decide on nominations for February’s awards ceremony, where “The Life of a Showgirl” is eligible for Swift’s eighth album of the year nod. (In case you haven’t been keeping track, that would tie her with Frank Sinatra for the most in Recording Academy history.)

In a statement ahead of “The Encore’s” release, Swift said she’d taken a trip to Sweden to celebrate “Showgirl’s” success with Max Martin and Shellback, her two principal collaborators on the album. “Really we just wanted to reflect and take in how grateful we were for the moment we were in,” she wrote, “but there was a studio there and we did what we do when we feel anything at all: We wrote more songs.”

Here are the four “Encore” tracks, ranked from worst to best.

4. ‘Cleveland!’
The exclamation point really is hilarious. (No shots at Cleveland.) I kind of dig the airy jangle-pop production, which reminds me a bit of “Ruin the Friendship,” by far the best song on the original “Showgirl.” But writing about her and Kelce’s romance as a bulwark against all the hate she receives as a rich and powerful pop star feels pretty uninspired, at least as rendered here. “The taste of me is acquired, but it’s his favorite dish”? Alas, no.

3. ‘Patient Zero’
“Encore’s” lead single — with a splashy music video set to premiere during Sunday night’s MTV Video Music Awards — has Swift fielding a phone call from a woman who’s dating one of the singer’s exes and could use a little advice. (“I’ve gotta be honest — I’ve been expecting your call,” Swift tells her.) That’s a rich premise, and I like the way the unexpected fiddle lick scrapes against the glossy synths. Again, though, the lyrics lack the emotional sophistication with which she once would have told a story like this one. And the song’s central image — a guy with a “devil on his shoulder under his halo” — is downright awkward.

2. ‘Pink Clouding’
OK, now we’re getting somewhere. This shimmering electro-pop number takes its title, as I just learned, from a term used among people experiencing addiction to describe the temporary euphoria one might feel in the early stages of recovery. (Recall that Swift wrote “Lavender Haze” a few years ago after hearing the phrase on “Mad Men.”) Here she’s looking back with regret at a relationship that she can see now was clearly a rebound: “You met me at a cursed time / I told you I was fine / And you were so good / That’s why you haunt me like you should.”

1. ‘Babylon’
Look, I’m not crazy about “liberated libertine.” And “Love is ice upon the ladder that you need to climb”? It’s giving Airbnb wall art. But man, oh man, does Swift finally tap into something deep in “Encore’s” closer: a trembling acoustic-guitar ditty about someone who’s realized only too late what they let slip away. Listen for yourself to hear how she sings it — this is a beautifully tender vocal performance — but the verse about the all-but-abandoned young mom sneaking into the bathroom to call her mom is an absolute killer. Taylor Swift: good songwriter!

Big Brother housemate Chelsey has “become one of the shortest-priced contestants in history in eviction betting”

The second housemate to be evicted from the Big Brother house will be revealed tonight.

Hosts AJ Odudu and Will Best will share the name of the contestant who has received the most public votes during Friday’s (September 25) live eviction show.

Chelsey and Pauline are both at risk of being sent packing and according to the bookies, the odds “do not look good” for one of the housemates.

Bookmaker Coral makes Chelsey 1-20 to be evicted from the Big Brother house this evening. Those odds indicate there is a 95% chance she will lose the public vote. Pauline is 8-1 to depart.

Coral’s John Hill: “The odds do not look good for Chelsey. We think there is a 95% chance she will be evicted this evening, making her one of the shortest-priced contestants in history in our Big Brother eviction betting.”

Pauline had the most votes with six housemates nominating her; Chelsey, Charlotte, Omar, Frankie, Rochelle and Philip and Sam, Harry, Pauline, Johanne and Rob nominated Chelsey, leaving her with five votes.

Millie became the first housemate to be evicted from this year’s series last Friday (September 18) after facing a public vote alongside fellow housemates Pauline and Rochelle.

Speaking after her eviction, Millie admitted she was surprised by the result, telling presenters AJ and Will: “I am actually quite shocked, I’m not going to lie but do you know what, I had the best time and I love absolutely everyone in there.”

She added: “I could hear the reaction from out here, and Rochelle doesn’t want to be in there. It’s a mix of everything, but I’ve made friends for life in there. So I’m happy.”

Since her exit, Millie has appeared on spin-off show Big Brother: The Group Chat, where she revealed her very honest opinion housemates Omar and Rhianna’s romance.

When hosts GK Barry and Kate Lawler asked Millie if she was a fan of the pair, she instantly replied: “No, I’m not.” She was then asked if she thought their romance was for convenience as there was no one else in the house.

She said: “100%. Number one, [Rhianna] she’s a very boring person herself. And I think the only way she knows she’ll get kept in is if she hooks up with someone. I genuinely think that’s what it is.”

Kate then asked if Rhianna was playing a game with Omar and Millie replied: “She is playing it 100% because she is not interested in Omar at all. When I was watching and I watched them kissing under the covers, I was like, ‘Sorry, what? Make it make sense’.”

Omar and Rhianna are not the only housemates sparking up a romance in the house. Nominated housemate Chelsey has also been getting to know Lynx leaving fans moaning “This is not Love Island“.

Big Brother continues tonight on ITV2 and ITVX at 9pm

CLAUDIA Schiffer showed off her age-defying looks as she stripped down to tiny bikinis on her luxury break away.

The OG supermodel, 56, looked timeless as she teased fans with a slew of sexy holiday snaps which saw her show off her enviable physique.

Claudia captioned the photos from her sun-soaked Grecian vacation with: “An endless summer.”

In one photo the model was seen showing off the body that made her famous in a sexy bikini, with a beautiful sunset background behind her.

In another stunning snap, Claudia was seen posing in another two-piece, this time in front of an idyllic ocean.

Other bikini shots saw her showcasing her toned figure as she got out of the sea after a dip.

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During her heyday in the 90s, and along with the likes of Naomi Campbell and Kate Moss, Claudia helped to launch the world of supermodels.

The blonde bombshell was first scouted aged just 17 while partying in a Dusseldorf nightclub with a pal.

Previously speaking about this moment that changed her life, she told Elle magazine: “I thought they were making a mistake and would find out I was the wrong girl and send me home once I arrived in Paris.”

Soon, Claudia was one of the most in-demand models on the ’90s catwalks, modelling for Chanel, Versace and Yves Saint Laurent and fronting an ad campaign for Guess Jeans.

During her career, the sexy star has appeared on more than 1,000 magazine covers.

After quitting the catwalk to focus on starting a family, she soon welcomed Caspar, now 23, Clementine, 21, and Cosima, 16, with her English filmmaker husband, Matthew Vaughn, 55.

The family live in Coldham Hall, a 14-bedroom haunted Tudor mansion in Suffolk.

In an otherwise empty compartment of a regional train on its way to a small town in Germany last month, a friendly passenger asked if I was headed to Halberstadt for “the note change.” He was an Australian law professor based in Hong Kong who was traveling with his Swiss mother for the irregular ritual every few years of a new note being sounded on a decommissioned old church’s diminutive modern pipe organ in what feels like the middle of nowhere.

He was hardly alone. The audience the next day in the packed late-Romanesque St. Burchardi “John Cage Organ” Church had come from seemingly everywhere, along with international media, to witness a barely distinguishable new note added to a sustained chord in Cage’s “Organ2/ASLSP.”

“ASLSP” stands for as “As Slow(ly) and Soft(ly) as Possible,” adapted from the opening line of the final paragraph in James Joyce’s “Finnegans Wake”: “Soft morning City! Lsp.” Cage had meant his organ piece to enjoy the indeterminacy of neither the performer nor the audience knowing how long the score, in eight parts, would last. In Halberstadt, they are stretching it out 639 years! The performance began in 2001 with the intent that each note change would be a great event.

Four years ago, Times columnist Nicolas Goldberg wrote an opinion piece about his fascination with what to him sounded like a profound project about the meaning of time. I tried to talk him out of what I believed to be a gimmicky violation of the being-in-the-moment spirit of Cage. But what mattered to Nick was the idea, not the intent, and he used me in his column as a foil. Still, Cage has been central to my practicing what some people (not me) call music criticism, and I contended wild horses couldn’t drag me to Halberstadt.

Nevertheless, early August’s “From 7 to 8,” as the note change was advertised, occurred almost exactly to the day, as when, 50 years earlier, I filed my first music review in the Los Angeles Herald Examiner. This was also to be my last summer and 121st season on staff of the Los Angeles Times. I step down as music critic Friday. (I still plan to contribute to The Times on an irregular basis.)

I happened to be visiting the Salzburg Festival in August and, in a spirit of endgame, hopped on a train to Halberstadt. On the seven-hour ride, my half-century Cage-suffused career passed through my mind.

I thought about how Cage had once told me that when he was a boy in Los Angeles, he loved Grieg with no need to know why. When he studied music, reason replaced love. It was only regaining the ability to hear music as music that he could compose.

Cage described this as an example of the celebrated Zen koan about reality: First there is a mountain, then there is no mountain, then there is.

When I accidentally stumbled into music criticism with an academic penchant for music analysis, my crutches for writing about music were technical and of little use in a newspaper. I had to find a way to simply listen. It gave me new ears, and I was hooked.

Cage solved my next problem by insisting that the way to discover new things is to overcome our dependence on our likes and dislikes, those supposed pillars of criticism. College taught me to investigate the “great” composers who mattered and disdain those of no value. Consequently, I had never paid attention to the likes of Rachmaninoff and Shostakovich but discovered that they moved listeners deeply. Again, for me, so-called criticism proved a pathway to opening the mind, and writing about discovery is an ancient pleasure. Cage put it this way: “It’s not what I don’t know that scares me, it’s what I do know.”

The great enticement to return to L.A. after spending nine years in New York (and periodically reporting on Cage from the East Coast and Europe for The Times) was the prospect of Walt Disney Concert Hall. Construction hadn’t yet begun and fundraising was iffy; the community was scared about what it didn’t know. I came armed with another Cage-ism: Every seat is the best seat in the house.

I tried to get the Music Center to make that the motto of the hall. After all, Cage was born at Good Samaritan Hospital about a mile from Disney. That didn’t fly. Still, thanks to Frank Gehry, every seat meant every view inside and out was the best. Every way of seeing also meant every way of hearing. Disney taught L.A. the joy of architecture in a way many of us had never known in this haphazardly built town. Once it was built, there was no choice but to embark on an ongoing love letter to L.A.

Such thoughts on the Cage train poorly suited arriving in the heart of the state of Saxony-Anhalt. One of the first things to catch my eye was a campaign billboard for a far-right Alternative for Germany candidate. A month later AfD would win a landslide victory, dividing Germany and alarming much of Europe.

The streets were mostly deserted. There wasn’t much open, giving the handsome and well-preserved Halberstadt a “Twilight Zone” aura.

In the St. Burchardi Church in Halberstadt, Germany, “The Cage Organ Project” is to be played for 639 years.

(Mark Swed/Los Angeles Times)

Dawn, though, attracted life. “The Cage Organ Project” proved marvelous, to use one of Cage’s favorite words. Whether they were 200-euro ticket holders who had journeyed long and far to be in the church for the note change or the hundreds on complimentary folding chairs outside on the lawn, unshaded in the hot sun watching on large video screens and listening with the assist of a fine amplification system, the aura was now calmness, grace and gratitude.

Nick had been right all along. Time became grounded. The note change is a marker, but the organ, in which air is electronically blown through the pipes day and night for all to hear, has become an endearing sound that connects you to your being. Here and now and hear and now are the same.

ASLSP, moreover, reflects the magical unhurriedness the world craves, be it the slowing down of AI or turning down the volume on social media and politicians’ bully pulpits. None of this may have been on Cage’s mind when “Organ2/ASLSP” had its premiere in Metz, France, in 1987, five years before Cage’s death. That performance lasted a half hour. But Cage is no longer with us, and “Organ2/ASLSP” now has a marvelous life of its own.

One of my most memorable interviews at The Times was with the Dalai Lama in 1999. He had never given one about music and appeared at first sorry he had agreed to. Every question about music got a negative response. The only need he expressed for it was as a fundraising tool for his Tibetan government in exile.

Noting my distress, he explained the problem with music is how easily we get attached to it, and at the heart of Buddhism is nonattachment. Then, breaking the tension with his trademark belly laugh, he admitted his problem was attachment to Buddhism.

At Halberstadt, I may have found my way of letting go. But I also leave The Times with the gratitude not only for the freedom it allowed me to champion causes but also to be part of a very long, quirky process that makes this newspaper unique.

Going back to 1925, there have only been four Times classical music critics in 101 years, and arriving here in 1996, I immediately discovered my roots in Isabel Morse Jones. A violinist who covered music from 1925 to 1947, she was a modernist with her finger on the pulse of the times and stood in refreshing contrast to the fussy East Coast male critics.

She was said to have provided an intellectual awakening of music on the West Coast. She put the Hollywood Bowl on the map. She championed new music and not just the stellar locals, Stravinsky and Schoenberg, but also the avant-garde and world music no one else gave the time of day. After leaving The Times, Jones founded the Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara originally modeled after the Salzburg Festival.

She threw her lot in with the society page editor, who covered women’s clubs. Together they became a power duo who campaigned to build a home for the Los Angeles Philharmonic, which three decades later led to the Music Center. That society editor — who chronicled and illuminated the social, political and artistic issues in L.A. in the 1930s from the women’s perspective — was Crete Cage. John Cage’s mother was a must-read for all women in L.A.

We cannot hold on to Cage, but we can’t escape him either. Times look bad. L.A. feels in the dumps. It was like that, as well, when I arrived at The Times in 1996. The city was still recovering from the 1992 riots — the beating of Rodney King had caused a profound social reckoning — and the 1994 earthquake. There was a recession. The L.A. Phil, now the model arts institution in the country if not the world, was millions of dollars in the hole.

Today, catastrophe is wherever you look. The Olympics, the environment, the damn developers, self-driving cars, LAX. The news business isn’t so hot either.

But let history — and John Cage — remind us that opening our ears can be the conduit to opening our minds. We have a wealth of new artistic leadership on the way at the L.A. Phil, L.A. Opera, L.A. Chamber orchestra and Pacific Symphony; new management at the L.A. Master Chorale and the Wallis and Long Beach Opera. And new ideas all around us.

Just as Disney Hall spread joy when we needed it most, one of Gehry’s final masterpieces is taking shape, the Colburn Center on 2nd Street a block from Disney. I took a hard-hat tour after returning home from Halberstadt and experienced the same combination of awe and promise. When it opens next year, it will be a game changer.

And even here, Cage the connector can’t keep out. At the press opening of Peter Zumthor’s new LACMA building, I buttonholed the architect, telling him I see John Cage all over the place. He looked startled for a moment and then with an uncharacteristic grin replied that he considered that a welcome compliment. Chance, he said, is very important.

Across town, one of MOCA’s most successful exhibitions was its 1993 Cage celebration, “Rolywholyover A Circus.” Cage asked for natural light, so that paintings would always look different whenever you saw them. He wanted the surprise of artwork hung in an unpredictable fashion. He wanted to let the outdoors in and the indoors out.

It is no coincidence that this describes aspects of the new LACMA. “Rolywholyover” traveled to the Guggenheim in New York’s SoHo district the next year, and the young curator in charge was Michael Govan, LACMA’s visionary head behind the Zumthor galleries.

Along with the new LACMA building we have a new Metro D Line stop nearby. Now a direct connector between LACMA and the Colburn Center passes almost directly under Good Samaritan Hospital.

Let me make my last suggestion as “music critic.” How about naming the new D Line connection between LACMA and the Colburn Center the John Cage Express?

Not everything has to be as slow as possible.

WHEN Joey Essex was pictured getting close with newly single Love Island star Priya Jaswal earlier this month, many hoped it was the start of the latest reality TV romance. 

But The Sun can reveal that despite their late-night flirtation things have not been heating up between the Towie icon and the Surrey-born beauty for one very surprising reason. 

Even though Joey has acquired something of a lothario reputation – dating a bevvy of beauties including Jesy Potts and Sam Faiers, since rising to fame on the ITV reality show in 2011 – he’s got his eyes on a very different sort of prize, I’m told. 

A source tells me: “Priya and Joey spent the evening laughing and joking away so many assumed it could turn into something more serious.

“But Joey is taking a break from women and sex at the moment. In fact, he’s taken a vow of chastity.

“He’s got this big boxing match next month and he’s taking it very seriously.

“He is determined to win and has been sweating it out in the gym and is going to give it everything he has got.

“So Joey is on a strict sex ban until after the fight.”

The 36-year-old TV star is scheduled for a Misfits Boxing match on October 10 against comedian Dapper Laughs – real name Daniel O’Reilly – at the Copper Box Arena, London. 

Misfits was launched in 2022 by YouTube star KSI and his manager Mams Taylor as the home for celebrity-style crossover bouts.

The effectiveness of sex bans before big sporting bouts is contested, but it is thought that Muhammad Ali abstained for six weeks prior to matches, as he believed avoiding sex preserved testosterone, focus and leg strength.

Joey is not the only modern day boxer to take a pre-match vow of chastity.

Tyson Fury has also switched to no-sex preparations, instead of his previous method of masturbating furiously before matches. 

In 2022, ahead of his fight against Derek Chisora, Fury told Barstool Sports: “You know how I used to masturbate seven times per day to give me power?

“This time I’m celibate. I’m celibate for seven weeks until the fight. It’s a new method, I’m trying something out.

“I’m going in there with a loaded gun, someone’s getting in severe trouble.

“I’m gonna be testosteroned out of my head completely. Seven weeks’ worth.”

Joey’s stringent new regime will be a bitter blow for gorgeous Priya, 25, who is newly single after splitting from Love Island villa beau Aidan Murphy hours before the NTAs. 

Joey and Priya were inseparable at the after party at London’s O2 arena, looking cosy as they chatted for hours and then left the bash together.

They then carried on partying at the after-after party in the Skybar at the nearby Intercontinental Hotel.

A source said at the time: “Joey and Priya really hit it off and got close. We’ll have to see what happens.

“Obviously Priya is very fresh to showbiz and just out of her connection with Aidan so we’ll see.”

However, according to sources, the pair swapped numbers and exchanged messages since their fun night out together. 

It is not the first time that Joey has been linked to a Love Island beauty. 

The London-born star even did his own stint in the villa in 2024, entering on the evening of Day 1 as the first “bombshell” of the series. Essex was the first celebrity to appear on the revived version of the show.

Joey was linked to model Grace Jackson, with whom he reportedly enjoyed a whirlwind romance for around six weeks in early 2024 after meeting in Dubai.

However, their relationship ended abruptly, leaving Grace feeling “hurt and confused” by Joey’s decision to break up.

The situation took an unexpected turn when Grace entered the Love Island villa on June 13, 2024, much to Joey’s shock.

It certainly called fireworks and became the drama of the season.

He was initially coupled up with Samantha Kenny, but later swayed toward bombshell Grace, leading to explosive arguments and mixed signals.

Joey then later turned his attention to another bombshell, Jessy Potts. This transition caused massive fallout with Grace, resulting in explosive arguments that dominated the screen time.

But it was not meant to be. Joey Essex and Jessy Potts confirmed their split on September 18, 2024.

The break up came just seven weeks after they left the Love Island villa together.

Despite their initial connection, both Joey and Jessy cited their busy schedules as a significant factor contributing to their breakup.

Jessy said that they “tried to make it work”, but the demands of their post-villa lives made it challenging to maintain their relationship.

More recently Joey confirmed on The Sun’s Showbiz Fix that he is a single man, and if his boxing career continues to thrive, it might just stay that way.

RONAN Keating stripped naked and flashed his bum in a desperate attempt to flog tickets for his solo tour, after the recent Boyzone reunion controversy.

The star, 49, who shot to fame in the early 90s in the famous Irish boyband, gave his loyal fans a cheeky thrill in his latest Instagram video.

In the short video Ronan can be seen in his plush kitchen mixing himself a cocktail.

The star is wearing just an apron, with his bare chest visible underneath.

“Been working hard in the gym, getting ready for the World Tour,” Ronan tells fans.

“Treating myself, you know, to a little cocktail.”

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The star adds: “Tickets go on sale tomorrow, UK and Europe.”

Ronan then picks up his drink and turns around to reveal he is fully nude underneath the apron.

The singer then flashes his bottom as he walks off with his cocktail.

Fans rushed to comment on the cheeky video, with one saying: “Ok I just spat my drink out!”

While another joked: “Rear of year winner 2003!”

Ronan is gearing up for his solo tour, after performing in Boyzone’s last ever gigs in June.

The singer shot to fame in the Irish boyband in the early 90s, along with Shane Lynch, Keith Duffy, Mikey Graham and the late Stephen Gately, who passed away in 2009.

But during their recent reunion gigs there was some controversy after one of the remaining four bandmates went “missing”.

Fans were left in uproar when Mikey only appeared on stage midway through the concerts to perform only a handful of songs.

During their time together, Boyzone racked up 18 Top Ten singles, with six No1s including 1998’s No Matter What.

However, in 1999, while still a member of Boyzone, Ronan released When You Say Nothing At All which became part of the soundtrack for the movie Notting Hill.

The song topped the UK charts and launched his solo career.

Not everyone has to pay – and there’s a simple and legal way to avoid paying this £180 annual fee

People with a Netflix subscription – regardless of their tier – may need to pay a fee of £180, depending on what they watch.

UK households currently pay £180 a year for a colour TV Licence, or £60.50 for a black-and-white set, after the fee increased on April 1, 2026. Failure to pay when needed could land people in hot water, and a fine of £1,000.

Although many people assume a TV Licence only applies to watching the BBC, that is not true. A TV Licence covers far more than BBC content, including:

• All TV channels like BBC, ITV, Channel 4, U&Dave and international channels
• Pay TV services like Sky, Virgin Media and EE TV
• Live TV on streaming services – like YouTube, Netflix, and Amazon Prime Video
• Everything on BBC iPlayer
• Watching, recording and downloading on any device

Do I need a TV Licence to watch Netflix?

It depends. Officials note: “If you are watching a TV programme that is being broadcast live on Netflix, you need to be covered by a TV Licence. You don’t need a TV Licence to watch on-demand programmes on Netflix.”

If you want to keep watching Netflix and avoid paying the Licence fee, simply do not watch any live TV or events on the platform and watch your usual on-demand content. This means you can watch classics like Gilmore Girls, Manifest, Breaking Bad, and the latest competition series, Wonka’s The Golden Ticket – without the need for a TV Licence.

If you live in a shared household, the UK Government confirms: “You need your own TV Licence if you have separate tenancy agreements and you watch TV in your own room.”

You can have one TV Licence for the whole household if you either:

• watch TV in a single shared area
• have a joint tenancy agreement

I have a Netflix subscription – so why do I need a TV Licence?

TV Licensing explains: “Paying for a Netflix subscription grants you access to a large and varied catalogue of movies, series, documentaries and more. Paying for a TV Licence lets you legally watch and record TV on any channel via a range of TV services, including Sky, Freeview, Virgin and Freesat.

“With a TV Licence, you can also watch live on streaming services (e.g. Amazon Prime and Channel 4) and access the full suite of award-winning movies, series and documentaries on BBC iPlayer.

“Some households enjoy having access to Netflix as well as being covered by a licence. Other households prefer to only pay for a TV Licence to watch live on TV and streaming services, including iPlayer, on any device.”

Netflix isn’t the only streaming service you may need to buy a TV Licence for, on top of the subscription fee. TV Licensing further states: “If you’re watching TV showing live on Amazon Prime, you need to be covered by a TV Licence. You don’t need a TV Licence if you’re only watching on-demand programmes on Amazon Prime.”

You could be fined £1,000

You can be fined up to £1,000 if you watch or record live TV without a Licence. TV Licensing warns: “You could be prosecuted if we find that you have been watching, recording or downloading programmes illegally.

“The maximum penalty is a £1,000 fine plus any legal costs and/or compensation you may be ordered to pay. The maximum fine is £2,000 in Guernsey.”

The Damned United tells an unbelievable true story that’s perfect for Ted Lasso fans.

Netflix’s The Damned United stars legends from the worlds of Harry Potter, The Good Omens and Adolescence.

After dropping on Netflix at the weekend, sports drama The Damned United has soared into the streamer’s Top 10 most-watched list and continues to rise in the charts.

Originally released in 2009 and based on a novel by David Peace three years prior, The Damned United tells the turbulent tale of Brian Clough and his disastrous run as the manager of Leeds United in 1974. Only lasting 44 days in the job, Clough was quickly able to alienate the players and the board, leading to the collapse of his professional football career.

As Netflix subscribers continue to discover the classic sports film, here’s everything there is to know about The Damned United cast.

The Damned United cast in full

Brian Clough – Michael Sheen

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Arrogant and fiercely outspoken Brian Clough wasn’t quiet when it came to criticising Leeds United’s former manager Don Revie.

So it took Clough by surprise when he was asked by the team’s board to take over managing the reigning champions.

Actor Michael Sheen has starred in an abundance of hit shows and films throughout his career including The Queen, Good Omens, Masters of Sex, The Twilight Saga and Frost/Nixon.

Peter Taylor – Timothy Spall

Peter Taylor is Clough’s loyal assistant manager and best friend who helps ground the fiery manager when needed.

He is portrayed by actor Timothy Spall who is best remembered for his work in Mr Turner, The King’s Speech and in the Harry Potter franchise as the villainous Peter Pettigrew.

Billy Bremner – Stephen Graham

Billy Bremner is the hard-working captain of Leeds United who is Clough’s main antagonist, leading the resistance that brings about the manager’s infamously short 44-day run at the club.

Bremner is brought to life in The Damned United by Emmy Award-winning actor Stephen Graham, renowned for his work in Netflix’s Adolescence, This is England, A Thousand Blows and Boardwalk Empire.

John O’Hare – Martin Compston

John O’Hare is the team’s striker, known for his aggressive team spirit while playing under Clough.

He is portrayed by none other than Martin Compston, famed for starring as DI Steve Arnott in the unforgettable Line of Duty.

Before becoming a household name in the BBC crime drama, Compston was a professional footballer in Scotland and made a couple of appearances playing for Greenock Morton.

Don Revie – Colm Meaney

Don Revie is the legendary, formidable Leeds United manager who leaves to manage the England national team. It is his exit from the team that leads his rival Clough to begin his chaotic short stint at Leeds.

Don is played by actor Colm Meaney who stars in Remarkably Bright Creatures, In the Land of Saints and Sinners and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

Sam Longson – Jim Broadbent

Prior to Clough joining Leeds United, he was the manager of Derby County with Sam Longson acting as its chairman.

Actor Jim Broadbent is recognised for starring in the Harry Potter and Bridget Jones franchises, as well as Game of Thrones and Only Fools and Horses.

The Damned United is available to watch on Netflix.

I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! hosts Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly have been at the helm of the ITV reality show since it first launched in 2002, and over the years they have had their fair share of campmates who have caused them frustration

The next instalment of I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! (Series 26) is just around the corner, and although ITV is yet to officially announce the full line-up, a number of details about the schedule and strongly rumoured contestants have already emerged.

The series has reportedly been affected by a minor scheduling change this year. While the programme traditionally kicks off on a Sunday evening, ITV’s coverage of the UEFA Nations League clash between England and Spain on Sunday, 15 November has forced a reshuffle. Consequently, the new series is widely expected to launch on Monday, 16 November 2026.

As ever, Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly will be returning to the Australian jungle to front the main three-week reality show. With Dec celebrating his 51st birthday today (Friday, 25 September), we’ve decided to revisit some of the previous contestants who rubbed hosts Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly up the wrong way.

While Ant and Dec typically maintain a light-hearted and professional approach with contestants on I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! , they’ve occasionally revealed some candid opinions about those they deemed troublesome or underwhelming. Though the presenting duo seldom single out individuals as their “worst” on a personal level, certain campmates have left their mark for entirely the wrong reasons.

Katie Hopkins (2007)

Ant branded media personality Katie Hopkins as one of his ‘least favourite’ because she “didn’t really shine” and left minimal impact during her stint on the programme. Katie, 44, gained notoriety on The Apprentice in 2007 before featuring in that year’s series of I’m A Celebrity.

Ant, 43, went on to explain why audiences barely saw her on their screens. He told The Sun: “Katie Hopkins was in I’m A Celebrity but you wouldn’t really remember her doing it, as she didn’t really shine.”

Matt Hancock (2022)

From the second former Health Secretary Matt Hancock was announced, the presenters anticipated “uneasy tensions”. Fans also claimed they showed “favouritism” by being warmer towards other contestants while maintaining a conspicuous distance from Hancock during trials.

The hosting pair also wielded their signature humour to land subtle digs at Hancock throughout the series. During one task, Ant mocked Hancock for being a “typical politician who wouldn’t stop talking” as he provided running commentary on every element of the trial to his partner.

After Hancock performed a few lines of Ed Sheeran’s “Perfect,” Dec joked that the singer would be “gutted” to discover Hancock was a fan.

The duo also displayed genuine annoyance when Hancock allowed the camp’s rice to burn, with Ant noting it had been Hancock’s job to monitor it, stating it would make him “very angry” if he were in the camp. After the programme, Dec revealed to HuffPost UK it was “very, very difficult” to remain impartial, considering everyone nationwide, presenters included, had been affected by Hancock’s decisions throughout the pandemic.

He also acknowledged that critics who questioned whether a serving MP should feature on the show had an argument with “some validity”. Ant disclosed that while they tease everyone on the programme, they made every attempt to handle Hancock like any other contestant once he arrived in the jungle, allowing him the opportunity to share his own narrative.

Dean McCullough (2024)

The relationship between Ant and Dec and radio presenter Dean McCullough throughout the 2024 series of I’m A Celebrity was marked by apparent exasperation that steadily transformed into “tough love” and ultimate commendation.

During the early stages of the series, Ant was visibly annoyed by Dean’s efforts in the Bushtucker Trials, especially after Dean pulled out prematurely from both the “Sinister Sarcophagus” and “Drown in the Dumps” challenges.

The host subsequently confessed on companion show Unpacked that he felt “unprofessional” for letting his frustration become visible on screen, admitting he was “angry” because he thought the trials Dean quit were “doable”.

Ant and Dec eventually gazed straight into the camera to urge viewers to cease voting for Dean, noting it was “good to see other faces” and that witnessing the same contestant repeatedly struggle was becoming “boring”. Ant also playfully stated he would “never” follow Dean on Instagram.

Following Dean’s departure from the jungle, the hosts made it clear their no-nonsense strategy was intended to push him towards better performances.

During his post-exit interview, Ant told Dean: “I was so angry at you for calling ‘I’m A Celebrity’… then that tough love kind of got you through”.

Ant went on to commend Dean’s performance in the “flying challenge,” calling him “brilliant” and expressing pride in how Dean concluded his jungle journey.

Kelly Brook (2025)

Ant and Decare reported to have a long-running “feud” with Kelly Brook dating back to her brief appearance on Britain’s Got Talent. The tension stems from 2009, when Kelly Brook was drafted in as a fourth judge on Britain’s Got Talent (BGT) but was axed after just two days of filming.

In their autobiography Ooh! What a Lovely Pair, Dec recalled trying to reassure a nervous Kelly on her opening day. When he suggested the show would be fun, she allegedly replied, “And what do you do on the show?”

Ant and Dec were reportedly annoyed that Simon Cowell had brought in a fourth judge without consulting them. Dec wrote they couldn’t find a “good reason” why she was on the panel.

The presenters addressed their long-rumoured dispute with Kelly during the 2025 series of I’m A Celeb, chiefly by poking fun at it on the spin-off show Unpacked. While chatting about the campmates’ cooking prowess, Ant quipped that every dish they’d rustled up appeared “rancid”.

When it was pointed out that Kelly Brook and Martin Kemp were handling kitchen duties, Dec cheekily questioned Ant, “What’s your problem with Kelly Brook?”

Ant quickly fired back, “Don’t you start! I don’t have a problem with Kelly Brook, thank you!”

Despite their complicated past, the presenting duo remained thoroughly professional and polite throughout their on-air interactions, including Kelly’s post-elimination chat.

‘Worst’ season

Ant and Dec officially branded the 2022 contestants the “worst ever group” following their woeful performance in trials across the entire run.

The initial 10 famous faces who ventured into the jungle at the series start were singer Boy George, former Lioness Jill Scott MBE, ex-rugby player Mike Tindall MBE, Hollyoaks actor Owen Warner, ITV News’ Charlene White, radio DJ Chris Moyles, comedian Babatúndé Aléshé, Coronation Street actress Sue Cleaver, A Place in the Sun’s Scarlette Douglas and Love Island’s Olivia Attwood.

Former Health Secretary Matt Hancock MP and comedian Seann Walsh subsequently entered as latecomers.

During a live Instagram session called Jungle Club, Ant and Dec didn’t hold back after the stars consistently flopped at Kev’s Deals on Wheels trials.

Dec told followers: “I think they’re officially the worst at the challenges,” while Ant agreed, branding them the “worst ever!” Ant went further still, labelling the 2022 stars a “bunch of idiots” after they botched 7 out of 10 questions. One moment that particularly irked the presenters was when the campmates failed to correctly name how many studio albums Adele has put out.

Ant also criticised their survival abilities early on in the series, calling them “helpless”.

Strikingly, while the presenters grew frustrated with their challenge performances, they’d shown tremendous excitement when the lineup was first announced, with their reaction video showing them shouting “Yes!” and “Oh he’s going to cry!” upon initially seeing the cast list.

What celebs are rumoured to be taking part in I’m A Celebrity this year?

The most prominent celebrities rumoured to be entering the Australian jungle for I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! 2026 include former footballer and pundit Wayne Rooney, singer Jesy Nelson, and Kaiser Chiefs star Ricky Wilson.

Other names who have been mentioned include Gavin & Stacey star Joanna Page and Love Island’s Chloe Burrows.

Rumours have also circulated that ITV bosses have put Jeremy Clarkson at the top of their dream casting list.

While ITV typically holds off on making official announcements until closer to the November launch date, several high-profile names are reportedly in advanced negotiations.

BIANCA Censori’s sister Angelina soaked up the sun in a tiny string thong during a Greece getaway.

The Aussie native channeled her sister’s usually super sexy attire and stripped down into skimpy lingerie in new photos.

Angelina, 22, took to Instagram on Thursday to share multiple pictures from her Mediterranean vacation.

Some of those pics captured the model sitting on the pavement, hugging her knees into her chest while sporting a G-string thong.

She paired the bottoms with a black string bra with a vertical chain link connecting the straps.

Angelina kept her back facing the camera, showcasing her thin figure and bare butt as she sat on the ground.

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Her hair was pulled into a tight bun as she gazed at her shadow on the concrete beside her.

“Basking,” Bianca‘s sister wrote in her caption.

Angelina often uses the platform to share sultry photos of herself in revealing attire.

Earlier this month, the brunette posted a series of snapshots of herself wearing a skintight white corset bodysuit.

She also shared a pic of herself in July, flaunting her pin-thin physique in a tiny gold bikini while lounging by the pool in Madrid, Spain.

Angelina blew fans away last November when she shared several photos of herself in a heavily cut-out lace dress.

She modeled the outfit, which showed her underboob with its massive opening at her midsection, in the mirror.

The ensemble also exposed her backside and legs with its sheer fabric, which she showcased in an overhead shot of her lying on a bed.

Bianca, 31, has often drawn attention with her revealing wardrobe after completely switching up her style when she married Kanye West, 49, in December 2022.

The Yeezy architect is usually seen sporting skintight bodysuits that display her curves, and other sexy looks.

She most recently posted several photos of herself in a gold string bikini top and skirt that barely covered her breasts or butt cheeks.

Bianca also underwent a dramatic hair transformation, swapping out her usual brown hairstyle for a platinum blonde wig.

The designer has been accused of “public indecency” numerous times over the years while repeatedly stepping out in public in barely-there attire.

Many have also blamed Kanye for pulling the strings on her fashion choices, after doing the same with his ex-wife Kim Kardashian’s style.

Angelina shut down rumors last year that her family didn’t approve of Bianca and Kanye’s marriage, telling The Herald Sun that they supported the Donda rapper.

Toyah Battersby was briefly recast in Thursday night’s episode of ITV soap Coronation Street as part of a sad twist in Debbie Wester’s long-running dementia storyline

Toyah Battersby was briefly recast in Thursday night’s episode of Coronation Street. The Bistro waitress is normally played by Georgia Taylor, and she made her debut on the programme in 1997 alongside stepsister Leanne Batterbsy (Jane Danson), her stepfather Les and mother Janice (Vicky Entwistle).

But on the latest instalment of the world’s longest-running TV soap, the character was briefly played by another actress for a matter of seconds amid a stylistic twist to portray Debbie Webster’s dementia spiral.

The hotelier (Sue Devaney) is at the centre of a long-running storyline involving vascular dementia and in recent weeks, her condition has worsened. Debbie approached a woman and said: ” Excuse me, which way is the Rovers?”

The woman looked a little bit confused, and said: “It’s just round the corner…Are you OK, Debbie?” But Debbie immediately asked how the woman knew her name, and refused any further help as she stormed off.

It was then that it was revealed that the woman Toyah all along and, wearing the same costume, Georgia Taylor was stood in her place looking very concerned.

In the credits, the character is simply listed as Stranger, and she was played by actress Anya Williams.

Reacting to the scene, one fan wrote on Reddit: “I enjoyed that scene today. It hit hard. My first thought when debbie said how do you know my name. Was why didn’t the woman explain. Then when it panned to it being toyah I was like, wow.”

Taking to X, a second viewer said: “Very heartbreaking #Corrie scene Debbie not recognising Toyah. Dementia is a cruel disease,” and a third wrote: “Powerful scene with Debbie not recognising Toyah and us seeing it from Debbie’s POV.”

In recent years, Coronation Street has favoured the use of numerous storytelling devices like flashbacks, flashforwards, and dream sequences that have rendered it away from the naturalistic approach that made it famous.

Emmerdale has also tried this method before when dementia sufferer Ashley Thomas struggled to recognise Aaron Dingle.

For Debbie, the incident was just the latest in a series of bad turns amid her diagnosis, having recently believed she was back in the 1980s and working as a hairdresser.

It was previously confirmed that actress Sue Devaney will be leaving the soap in 2027 and, Debbie, more than aware of her mortality, recently told sister-in-law Abbie that she wanted to film her own eulogy for her funeral.

Sue previously spoke of the erratic nature of playing Debbie and wanted to make sure she was telling the story with “full impact.”

She said: “I find it really interesting to play and going into that deeper, next journey of the illness.

“It’s that thing of who’s gonna look after her around that time? Some days she’ll be lucid and normal and then other days she will have a bad day.

“That’s how it happens, so it’s been really interesting to play, it’s really moving. I speak to my friend who is a dementia specialist and she tells me the journey I’m going on and if I am doing it correctly.

“You wanna do it right and I don’t want to not tell the full impact that dementia has on somebody.”

Coronation Street airs Monday to Friday at 8:30pm on ITV1 and is available to stream from 7am on ITV X.

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Big Brother was also forced to issue a warning to the housemate

Big Brother housemates were forced to intervene after a huge row broke out once again and “threats of violence”.

There has been plenty of chaos in the Big Brother house in just over a week since the show returned to screens. Already, viewers have witnessed heated clashes and a live evictions as personalities continue to clash.

Last night’s instalment (September 23), saw the housemates nominate for the first time this series as they told Big Brother who they wished to face eviction this week. After receiving the highest number of votes, Pauline will once again face this week’s eviction alongside fellow housemate Chelsey.

Viewers are being asked to choose who should leave as one housemate will be forced to say their goodbyes in tomorrow’s live eviction (September 25).

But before that, the drama continued in tonight’s instalment with more explosive rows and rule breaks forcing Big Brother to dish out the punishments.

For this week’s shopping task, Big Brother has transformed the House into Noah’s Ark. Each housemate was assigned an animal persona and must take part in a range of different challenges, with Philip and Charlotte in charge as Noah and his wife.

Samuel and Johanne were lions; Pauline and Omar were elephants; Yasmin and Harry were sharks; Chelsey and Frankie were crows; Lynx and Rhianna were rabbits and Rob and Rochelle were bugs.

It didn’t take long before things turned sour as tensions started to rise. When tasked with cooking, Rochelle appeared to struggle with her and Rob required to cook for the whole house.

Getting increasingly stressed, Rochelle could be heard saying: “This isn’t my thing” as she fought back tears. But when served their food, the housemates noticed things were not quite as it seemed.

Concerns were raised over whether the chicken was cooked properly, meaning Johanne wanted to cook her own chicken – however this was against the rules.

Convinced the chicken was uncooked, Johanne said she was going to put the chicken in the airfryer for a while longer – which was against the rules.

Rochelle fumed: “I don’t think you’re allowed to… the chicken is cooked.” However, Yasmin hit back that people would not eat raw chicken.

Stating she wanted to cook her own chicken, Rochelle hit back she was not allowed to, but Johanne fumed: “Who are you talking to? I’m not eating it. I’m not eating it. Now what?”

She added: “Sit your a** down. Who the hell are you talking to? I want to cook my chicken longer – I can do that. Who are you talking to? Your craziness needs to really calm down.”

Fuming that Rochelle was “unstable”, Johanne then fumed: “It’s not my fault you didn’t take cooking classes….You started screaming like a crazy woman. I’m not your child.”

Rochelle replied: “The minute you walked in, you were going to say it was sh*t.” Johanne commented: “You need to learn how to cook.”

After a heated exchange, Johanne said: “You’re a self-entitled 80-year-old woman. I’m not the one. Get your old a** together. You old hag!”

The back and fourth continued to become heated as Philip was forced to intervene, telling his co-stars to “calm down”. The other housemates were stunned by what they witnessed as Rochelle was soon called to the Diary Room. Big Brother then warned Rochelle against threats of violence which was deemed unacceptable.

Big Brother continues tomorrow at 9pm on ITV2 and ITVX

Sept. 24, 2026 3:39 PM PT

Naked Eyes lead singer Peter Byrne died in Los Angeles on Sept. 14, according to the group’s website.

Byrne, who co-founded the synth-pop band with Rob Fisher in 1982, died “peacefully … after a brief illness,” the statement reads.

Naked Eyes’ Pete Byrne performs onstage in Los Angeles in 2019.

(Scott Dudelson / Getty Images)

Naked Eyes, a high note for the MTV generation, scored ’80s hits with their synth-pop version of Burt Bacharach and Hal David’s “Always Something There to Remind Me” and their original song “Promises, Promises,” with the former hitting No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1983 and the latter reaching No. 11 that same year. “When the Lights Go Out” and “(What) in the Name of Love” also reached the Hot 100’s Top 40, hitting No. 37 in 1983 and No. 39 in 1984, respectively.

Byrne was born in Islington, North London, and began his music career in the mid-’70s. From 1979 to 1982, he was a member of the band Neon, which included Fisher and future Tears for Fears founders Curt Smith and Roland Orzabal. Byrne and Fisher released their debut album as Naked Eyes in 1983, according to the group’s website.

After Fisher died in 1999, Byrne released his 2001 solo album “The Real Illusion” and Naked Eyes albums “Fumbling With the Covers” in 2007 and “Disguise the Limit” in 2021. A remastered version of their self-titled debut album was released in 2025.

Byrne is survived by his siblings Eileen, Sandy, Carol and Steve; his three children, Merlin, Dylan and Chloe; and his ex-wife, Elena.

Gary “Angry” Anderson, front man for the Australian rock band Rose Tattoo, has died. He was 79.

News of Anderson’s death came via the band’s Instagram account, which said he died Monday in Sydney. The vocalist had suffered cardiac arrest weeks earlier during Rose Tattoo‘s farewell tour in Europe.

“Angry was a devoted father, and much-loved member of his friends, bandmates and the wider music and entertainment community. His loss will be deeply felt by all those who knew and loved him both here in Australia and overseas,” the band said.

Reports of Anderson’s health problems first came to light when the band canceled an appearance at the Alcatraz Metal Festival in Kortrijk, Belgium, on Aug. 9, stating on their Instagram account that the singer was in the hospital due to a “medical issue.”

By Aug. 10, Rose Tattoo had canceled all remaining shows on the band’s European tour as Anderson stayed in the hospital. Three weeks later, it was revealed via the band’s Instagram that the rocker’s medical issue was cardiac arrest and that he was receiving treatment and care.

Anderson was the most veteran member of Rose Tattoo, a hard rock and blues band that formed in Sydney in 1976. The group is known for tracks including “Rock ‘n’ Roll Outlaw” and “Bad Boy for Love,” and some of their discography was covered by Guns N’ Roses early in their career, including “Nice Boys” for the 1986 EP “Live ?!*@ Like a Suicide.” Rose Tattoo would later open for the L.A. hard rock band while on tour in Australia in 1993 for their Use Your Illusion Tour.

In the band’s bio, bandmates are described as as “four tall, gaunt men with unnaturally spikey red hair” — which at the time included Pete Wells on slide guitar, Ian Rilen on bass, Dillas “Digger” Royall on drums and Mick Cocks on guitar. Anderson was described as the “fifth out front stocky and furiously shaven” member, standing at 5 feet, 1 inch tall.

“[They] aren’t an average sight,” the biography states. “Even in the realm of Rock ’n’ Roll excesses.”

Apart from his role in the band, Anderson gained fame internationally as a solo artist when his debut 1987 single, “Suddenly,” earned critical acclaim and appeared on the charts in Australia, Belgium, New Zealand, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.

The track was used as the wedding theme in an episode of the Australian soap opera “Neighbours,” in which characters Scott Robinson and Charlene Mitchell got married.

Anderson was also a youth advocate, reportedly serving as an ambassador for national child protection campaigns. According to the Australian Broadcasting Corp., he has been connected to numerous children’s hospitals, the Starlight Children’s Foundation, as well as the Make-a-Wish Foundation and Canteen, a support organization for youths with cancer.

In 1993, he was made a member of the Order of Australia for his role as a youth advocate.

After longtime members of Rose Tattoo died from various forms of cancer, Anderson became an advocate for men’s health and conducted campaigns to raise awareness about prostate cancer in 2007. Wells, the guitarist, died of prostate cancer in 2006 at age 59.

Anderson stirred controversy with forays into politics. In 2007 he espoused controversial views about immigration and Muslim communities in Australia. In 2016, he was endorsed as Senate candidate by the Australian Liberty Alliance, a right-wing group that opposes Muslim immigration.

Anderson’s son Liam was killed in 2018. The singer is survived by children Galen, Roxanee and Blaine Anderson.

Fans of dark crime dramas have a new thriller to look forward to, with a familiar face set to lead Sky’s latest big adaptation.

Fans of dark, gripping crime dramas have a new series to add to their watchlists.

David Oyelowo is set to lead the cast in Sky’s new series The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, alongside rising star Viola Prettejohn, who is known for playing young Princess Elizabeth in the sixth season of The Crown.

The eight-part Sky Original is adaptation of Stieg Larsson’s bestselling Millennium novels. It could be perfect for viewers who enjoyed shows such as The Fall and The Capture, with a dark mystery, complex characters and a dangerous investigation at its heart.

David, who is known for his roles in Selma and Interstellar will take on the role of investigative journalist Mikael Blomkvist. Viola Prettejohn will play Lisbeth Salander, the brilliant but troubled hacker at the centre of Larsson’s story.

The story follows Blomkvist as he is hired by wealthy businessman Henrik Vanger to investigate the disappearance of his niece Harriet.

Harriet vanished more than 30 years earlier from the Vanger family’s isolated island home, but Henrik remains convinced that a member of his own family was responsible.

Blomkvist soon teams up with Salander, an exceptionally talented hacker with a complicated past and a fierce determination to uncover the truth.

Together, they begin to uncover secrets buried within the Vanger family, leading them towards a far more dangerous mystery than they initially expected.

The new adaptation will bring Larsson’s story into the modern day, exploring themes including power, misogyny, secrecy and technology.

The original Girl with the Dragon Tattoo novel was published in 2005 and went on to become an international bestseller. The Millennium books have sold more than 100 million copies worldwide and have already been adapted for both Swedish and English-language audiences.

The first English-language film adaptation was released in 2011 and starred Daniel Craig as Blomkvist and Rooney Mara as Salander, with David Fincher directing.

The new Sky series will offer a fresh interpretation of the characters and story for a new audience and it comes from Left Bank Pictures, the production company behind The Crown and The Day of the Jackal.

Meghan Lyvers, Managing Director, Scripted Originals, Sky, said: “Lisbeth Salander and Mikael Blomkvist are two of modern fiction’s most iconic and compelling characters, and we’re thrilled to have Viola and David bringing them to life for a new generation.”

She added: “Our brilliant writing team, Reinaldo Marcus Green’s bold vision and our fantastic partners at Left Bank Pictures are creating a series that honours everything audiences love about The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, while taking its characters, mystery and themes into a world that feels unmistakably of the moment. We can’t wait for audiences to experience it.”

Filming is due to begin in Lithuania next month, with the series set to air on Sky and NOW in the UK and Ireland, as well as Sky platforms across Italy, Germany, Switzerland and Austria.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo lands on Sky soon

Sean Gunn has no plans to continue his motion capture role for “Guardians of the Galaxy” character Rocket raccoon.

The physical demands involved in creating Marvel Cinematic Universe’s masked bandit often included the 52-year-old actor being in a catcher’s crouch position, which hurt his ankles and feet due to constant pivoting, Gunn revealed in an interview on “The Brandon Davis Show.”

“I think it had a little bit of an effect on my physiology. My knees are fine, but since I turned 50 a couple years ago, I am retired from playing Rocket,” Gunn said in the podcast episode published Monday. “I don’t think I can do the motion reference anymore for Rocket. I think I’m too old.”

The veteran actor is now ready to pass on his deadly laser cannon to another rising star. Rocket’s creators should “give a younger actor a shot at it, right?” he said.

While actor Bradley Cooper has voiced the small, sharp-tongued creature since the first “Guardians of the Galaxy” film in 2014, Gunn has worked alongside animators behind the scenes to capture the subtle actions with motion capture technology, or mocap, which animates 2D or 3D computer characters using the actor’s physical movements.

Gunn described the process as a relay race in a 2024 interview with Adam Lupis; once a script is handed to him, he passes the baton to the visual effects team, who then tie it all together with Cooper’s voice acting.

“Rocket is sort of a character by committee in that way. I think he’s a good microcosm for movies where they get this whole community of people coming to make something with love and care,” Gunn shared in the interview with Lupis. “It’s been a crazy process.”

Alongside his role as on-set Rocket, Gunn also portrayed Ravager Clan space pirate Kraglin Obfonteri in “Guardians of the Galaxy”; its two sequels, “Vol. 2” and “Vol. 3”; “Avengers: Endgame”; and “Thor: Love and Thunder.” Rocket also appeared in 2018’s “Avengers: Infinity War.”

NOTHING But Thieves have spent the past decade playing arenas and huge festivals around the world.

But it’s been coming home to play to smaller crowds that’s reminded them just how far they’ve come.

On Saturday, the Essex band played three gigs in three countries to celebrate the forthcoming release of their fifth studio album, Stray Dogs.

“Sweaty and close enough to see everybody’s faces,” is how frontman Conor Mason described the final gig of the day at Camden’s Underworld following earlier gigs in Netherlands and Belgium.

“In London, there was nowhere to hide. You can feel every flaw, every moment of tension.

“The whole day was about letting a little chaos back in and seeing what survives when we take it back to the bigger rooms.”

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The whirlwind day followed the band’s homecoming show at Chinnerys in Southend earlier in the month, which reminded the five-piece of the journey they have been on.

“When you see that in your home town, it’s quite bizarre,” says Mason. “It makes you appreciate how far we’ve come.”

For guitarist Joe Langridge-Brown, it led to a moment of reflection outside the venue, right on Southend’s seafront. “I was just looking out at the estuary at one point, thinking, ‘This is f***ing mental’,” he says.

I meet Mason and Langridge-Brown in their East London local where they are enjoying a quiet day at home before the new album is released.

Taking a sip from his pint, Langridge-Brown says that whenever they started working on previous albums, they always asked each each other what Nothing But Thieves actually sound like.

But on this new album, the band deliberately tried to capture their live sound rather than making a record and then figuring out how to play it live.

Guitarist/lyricist Langridge-Brown says: “Every record, we’ve always been trying to reinvent ourselves.

“But I feel like we’ve answered the question — I know what we are in 2026.

“I feel like now we’ve done it with this album. It’s like a foundational reset.

“In a way, it’s not going back to roots. It’s figuring out what they always were.”

That confidence extended to the studio, with guitarist and keyboardist Dom Craik taking the lead on production while the band retained creative control.

“Dom produced the record, but we controlled the record,” says Langridge-Brown.

“If you’ve written a record that is meant to sum up how you sound live, no one knows how we sound better than we do at this point.”

With Stray Dogs, Mason and Langridge-Brown said they also wanted to rebel against the short attention spans of their fans.

Mason says: “You’re told all the time by your label and just by the world that if you don’t make something within the first five seconds that someone’s going to love, they’ll move on to the next thing.

“We’ve made something specifically quite slow in moments and intentionally long-form.

“If people want to get it, they have to sit and really listen to it.

“That’s how you listen to albums. Like the first time you listen to [Pink Floyd’s] The Dark Side Of The Moon, it was from start to finish.”

“Not that it’s as good as that record,” interjects Langridge-Brown. “I just want to get that clear for everyone.

“I don’t want people to only listen to a song for five seconds — it’s our job to try and buck this trend.”

He continues: “This is definitely the best quality of work we’ve created. There’s a lot of attention to detail on this record.

“When you listen to it, it runs as a Nothing But Thieves show — the track list is a set list. We’ve taken crowd noise from our own shows and put it within the record.”

That attention to detail was also important for the album’s lyrics, with the band turning their focus closer to home rather than looking at the wider world.

“Moral Panic and Dead Club City were both very outward-looking,” Langridge-Brown says.

“With Moral Panic, I was basically studying Twitter and seeing this moral panic, this fear and anxiety spread.

“Then Dead Club City was almost the continuation of it, looking to the future.

“So this was, like, ‘OK, let’s not look outwards for now. Let’s look inwards and see what’s in our world and what we’ve created’ — on a bit more of a personal level.”

The first song written for the album was the intense, heavy-guitar title track.

“Stray Dogs was the first song and the lyrics were great,” he continues. “We were like, ‘This feels right. This feels like where we’re heading’.”

Elsewhere on the album, the band push that experimentation in different directions. On Baby Kool (Evelyn), they deliberately throw different sounds together.

“It’s got a glam verse and then it goes into this really grungy Sonic Youth chorus,” says Langridge-Brown.

“Those two worlds don’t naturally mix, but sometimes that’s where the magic is.”

Other standouts include the cinematic Death In The Backseat, the experimental #5 (Dehumanised) and the emotionally vulnerable If You Don’t Have Someone To Love.

AI.Jesus tackles their unease about artificial intelligence and what it could mean for humanity and creativity.

While Testosterone turns its attention to masculinity, with one of its lyrics inspired by a drunken comment Langridge-Brown overheard at a wedding.

Mason says: “I don’t think we are able to be fully macho, and I wouldn’t want to be.”

A Different Kind Of Happiness brings the record to a close, completing an album deliberately structured like a live show, with Stray Dogs opening the “set” and A Different Kind of Happiness as the finale.

The album was also the first to be written in one focused period rather than while on tour.

“We wrote the whole record in the building across the road and we’d have a drink in here after work,” says Mason. Langridge-Brown adds: “This record was very different in that we wrote it in a five-month period once all the touring was finished. We’d never done that before.

“It was always written on the road before — on the back of a tour bus or in between tours.

“But the touring got so huge and so extensive that we just couldn’t give it the time it needed.

“We’ve written about pack mentality in a negative way before, so I’d say this was probably more about community and the pack in a positive light.

“I think Stray Dogs really sums up what we do and who we are — our world, our crew and the fans. We have our own lives and when we meet up, we make a load of noise together.”

The band’s relationship with their fans comes with a huge sense of responsibility on stage.

“People pay a lot of good money to come and see us,” says Mason.

“If we’re not up to scratch, we make sure we are. It’s important.”

For the singer, this means taking care of his voice, which is central to the band’s sound.

He says: “Early on, I used to go out all the time with the boys and I just ruined my voice.

“A producer gave me a slap on the wrist so now, on tour, I treat myself like an athlete. I look after my body and get as much sleep as I can.

“I’m also classically trained so I look after my voice on stage for that hour-and-a-half.”

“He sounds amazing,” Langridge-Brown adds. “On that last tour, he sounded the best he has in years, which is great.

“The central thread running through all our music is Conor’s voice. As a writer, it’s amazing to have that to write for.”

Despite the success of their previous albums — Dead Club City gave them their first No1 in 2023 — chart positions have never dictated what Nothing But Thieves write.

“We never went out to chase a No1 record,” says Langridge-Brown. And Mason adds: “It wasn’t an intention and it wasn’t that commercial. We just write what we want to write.”

In February, Nothing But Thieves will head out on their biggest ever UK arena tour, returning to The O2 six years after their first headline show at the venue.

“The next day, we were, like, ‘What now?’,” says Mason. “I just want to wake up to my job every day in my life and be, like, ‘This is awesome’.

“There’s a lot of people that don’t get to do this so I feel very privileged.” And with five albums now behind them, the band have enough material to be more creative with their live set, building different moods throughout a show.

Stray Dogs also reflects a band increasingly secure in who they are.

That growing sense of self has been personal for Mason, who says that his thirties have changed his outlook on life.

“I had my 30th birthday and it was almost like the next day, I said to myself, ‘It’s time to grow up now’.

“I want to live my life with real gratitude for what I have and presence for what I have.

“I want to just be who I am as a man here and now and enjoy this.

“That was a really big shift for me.”

The band members all grew up together and while things have changed over the years, their friendship has remained a constant.

“We’re constantly evolving,” says Mason.

Langridge-Brown adds: “If you look at the lyrics throughout our career, change is mentioned a lot. It’s just something that we’re drawn to.

“There can be a bit of an identity crisis, but we are grounded as a band because we were mates first.

“And with success you don’t want to lose that.” Mason adds: “You hear a lot of horror stories about bands who break up almost every album, and it’s just, like, ‘How the hell do they function?’.

“The personal relationships and the working relationships were so, so integral to keep alive and to nurture, and that’s been a real foundation for us.”

That closeness continues away from the band. Four of the five still live within roughly a mile of each other and they still socialise regularly.

“You need to come off tour and have some time to yourself,” says Mason.

“But we still meet for gigs, trips to the pub, football and Wimbledon,” adds Langridge-Brown

“We went and watched Queens Of The Stone Age together the other day and our wives and partners are friends as well.

“It’s still quite tight-knit in that way.”

As our chat comes to an end, it’s clear that enduring friendship has kept the band together, but it hasn’t dulled their ambition.

“Stray Dogs is definitely the best album we’ve made, but I don’t think we’ve made our classic album yet,” says Langridge-Brown.

“That’s kind of the aim still — there’s more in the tank.” 

Mason agrees: “I’m really excited to further press this process. We’re not done yet.” 

Nothing But Thieves 

Stray Dogs 

★★★★☆

A FLORIST has hit back after being slammed by a Love Island star – who branded a bouquet of flowers they sold him ‘pathetic’.

Finley Tapp, who won the show back in 2020, took to Instagram to record himself buying flowers for his partner Jess Hale to celebrate her first day back to work after giving birth to their son.

But Finley was left unhappy with the bouquet he was given by the local florist he visited – admitting it was smaller than he expected.

Recording himself, the reality star told his 984K followers: “I’m not being funny, right, I’m just in the back of the car after getting some flowers.

“Since when does £20 get you that? I thought I was going to walk out of there with a big bouquet of flowers.

“Oh well, it’s the thought that counts… that’s pathetic.”

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The comment didn’t set well with the florist, who has now responded with a statement.

Taking to their own page, The Flower Boutique in Woburn Sands wrote: “Recently we served an influencer (unbeknownst to us) with almost 1 million followers. They came into our shop and requested a £20 bouquet.

“They made no complaint in the shop when the received their flowers and took them away happily. However, they then made a video of their bouquet, deeming it ‘pathetic’.”

The florist went on to list things they think are pathetic – including filming staff without consent and bashing small businesses.

They concluded: “The moral of the story… don’t attack a small business on social media because at the heart of it is a real person. Real people. A family.

“(And also, sometimes the flowers aren’t pathetic… sometimes it’s the £20 budget)”.

Finley also received a wave of backlash in the comments of his post, with many slamming him for his comments on the flowers.

It’s a good thing Mogwai don’t seem to age — “Gremlins 3” has been delayed until 2028.

Warner Bros. on Wednesday shared a brief teaser of the upcoming movie on Instagram along with its new release date. “Gremlins 3” will now hit theaters on Oct. 8, 2028, instead of Nov. 19, 2027.

The brief social media clip features Gizmo rustling around inside a backpack in an indiscernible location.

“Uh-oh,” the adorable furry creature says while peering through the unzipped opening as the new release date appears. Hopefully he doesn’t snack on anything he isn’t supposed to while he awaits his big-screen return.

“Gremlins 3” was officially announced by Warner Bros. Discovery boss David Zaslav during an earnings call in 2025. Original “Gremlins” writer Chris Columbus will helm the feature, which is produced by Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Entertainment. Spielberg is an executive producer.

It has been decades since Gizmo’s last big-screen adventure. The Mogwai and his misbehaved progeny debuted in the 1984 holiday classic “Gremlins” and returned in the 1990 follow-up, “Gremlins 2: The New Batch.” Directed by Joe Dante, the films established three key rules for handling the mysterious, big-eared creatures: Don’t get them wet, feed them after midnight or expose them to light. Gizmo’s origin story was explored more recently in the HBO Max animated series, “Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai.”

The release date shift follows the recent settlement with California Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta that has cleared the way for Paramount Skydance to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery. According to Deadline, the change is unrelated to the pending merger.