show biz

Hope for peace

TODAY marks the dawn of a new era of hope for the Middle East.

As US Vice-President JD Vance said yesterday, a truce brokered by Donald Trump has brought the region to “the cusp of true peace”.

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While other world leaders postured and bewailed, the US President used his extraordinary power of persuasion to force Hamas and Israel to strike a deal to end two years of bloodshed.

It means thousands of Palestinians will return to what is left of their homes and get the food and medical aid they need, and Israelis can welcome back loved ones taken hostage during the terrorist massacre which started the conflict.

The 19th Century German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck once said that politics is “the art of the possible”.

But hard-nosed businessman President Trump has proved it can also be “the art of the deal”.

The path to lasting peace is still littered with pitfalls.

Hamas must be made to disarm and Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu will have to be persuaded to drop his opposition to a future, self-ruling Palestinian state.

More tears will be shed in the days to come.

Much trauma awaits Israeli families whose loved ones return alive but emaciated or, tragically, in body bags.

There will also be anger if terrorist killers are freed as part of the deal.

Yet despite these hurdles, this is the brightest glimmer of hope the region has seen in a generation.

And if, one day, it leads to a lasting peace, the whole world will rejoice.

Win for justice

THE phrase “justice must be seen to be done” is as relevant today as when it was first uttered in court a century ago.

That is why The Sun challenged an order banning a child rapist from being identified as an asylum seeker.

In a shocking example of two-tier justice, both the prosecution and the offender’s lawyer had opposed our attempt to report his status.

But this newspaper chalked up a landmark victory for open justice and Press freedom by fighting to have the order overturned.

Judge Maria Lamb gave an instant ruling that we were right.

The jury took just two-and-a-half hours to convict the serial offender.

A double triumph for common sense.

Silly Mili

ED Miliband’s fixation with Net Zero gets more desperate and costly by the day.

The Energy Secretary is targeting well-off families with £7,500 “bribes” to fit green heat pump systems most of us can’t afford.

His barmy campaign confirms what we already knew about Mr Miliband’s obsession with meeting unrealistic carbon emission targets.

It’s a waste of money — and he is a waste of space.

“Days of Our Lives” actor Arianne Zucker has reached a settlement with the producers of the show after her 2024 lawsuit alleging sexual harassment and discrimination on the set of the soap opera.

Notice of the settlement was filed Thursday in Los Angeles County Superior Court. No further details about the settlement were included. Zucker’s attorney could not be immediately reached for comment.

Zucker had starred on “Days of Our Lives” since 1998, playing the character Nicole Walker. In her February 2024 lawsuit, she alleged that now-former executive producer Albert Alarr subjected her and other employees to “severe and pervasive harassment and discrimination, including sexual harassment, based upon their female gender.”

Zucker claimed that Alarr would grab and hug her, “purposely pushing her breasts onto his chest” while moaning sexually, according to the lawsuit. She also alleged that he would make “sexually charged comments” to her.

“Our client continues to deny the allegations set forth in the complaint,” Alarr’s attorney, Robert Barta, said in a statement. “However, in order to bring the litigation to the end, he has agreed to settle. This decision was made solely to end the dispute and move forward.”

Zucker’s lawsuit also named Corday Productions, which oversees the show, and its owner, Ken Corday, as defendants in the lawsuit, alleging retaliation. Zucker alleged that her pay was decreased and her travel stipend revoked after she voiced concerns. In June 2023, she said her character was written off the show after 20 years.

Several months later, Corday Productions offered to renew Zucker’s contract but allegedly did not negotiate with her representatives for higher pay, the lawsuit said.

Attorneys for Corday and Corday Productions did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Corday Productions previously told The Times in a statement that Zucker’s claims “are without merit” and that she was offered a pay increase upon an offer to renew her contract. The company said at the time that complaints about Alarr’s on-set behavior were “promptly investigated” and the company “fully cooperated with the impartial investigation and subsequently terminated Mr. Alarr.”

“Days of Our Lives” aired on Comcast-owned NBC from Nov. 8, 1965, to Sept. 9, 2022, before moving to the Comcast streaming platform Peacock in 2022.

The Strictly Come Dancing ‘curse’ has taken many victims, but musical theatre contestant Amber Davies is confident that she and Nikita will not be a part of it

For years, the Strictly Come Dancing ‘curse’ has haunted the ballroom, blamed for break-ups, busted engagements, and headline-making scandals. But while the dancefloor has seen its fair share of heartbreak, Amber Davies is confident she won’t be a victim of the ‘curse’.

Musical theatre and former Love Island star Amber is currently paired up with professional dancer and one of Strictly’s favourites, Nikita Kuzmin. Amber, 29, has revealed that she is good friends with Nikita’s partner, model Lauren Jaine, and has also introduced her boyfriend Ben Joyce to Nikita and Lauren.

Amber said: “I’ve met Nikita’s girlfriend. I love her, she is so supportive, so easy-going. She met Ben and my sister too. It was lovely.”

READ MORE: Strictly Come Dancing’s Jowita Przystal breaks silence on emotional exit with Ross KingREAD MORE: Strictly Come Dancing fans ‘totally flabbergasted’ by ‘ridiculous’ dance-off

Lauren has also hit back at viewers who claimed that they wanted Amber and Nikita to succumb to the curse and said: “Please be respectful to the real-life partners and let them have a good experience of the show too.”

Amber and Nikita appear to be going from strength to strength in the competition and scored a whopping 35 for their American Smooth. They danced to the track Sixteen Going on Seventeen from The Sound of Music, which put them second on the leaderboard.

A source has since revealed that Amber is going to be taking the competition ‘one week at a time’ and that she ‘isn’t complacent’. The source also gave an insight into Amber’s thoughts on the ‘Strictly curse’.

They said to The Sun: “As for the curse, she’s madly in love with Ben and he is 100 per cent supportive of her. They are both performers and know how to block out the noise. They have zero doubt the curse won’t touch them. Amber and Lauren get on really well. They swapped numbers early on.”

Amber has been sharing some behind-the-scenes footage on her social media and revealed that her beau Ben has been watching her videos every day.

She said in a TikTok live video: “He is always like ‘let me see the tapes from today’. Sometimes Ben will make me bits and bobs for lunch. Contestants can stay in hotels but I don’t before a live show. I want to be in my own bed with my dog and my boyfriend.”

Amber didn’t even know she was going to be on Strictly until 48 hours before her first dance when she was whisked into the cast of the BBC show as a replacement for fellow Love Island winner Dani Dyer, who had sustained an injury in rehearsals before the first live show.

Just days before she was announced as Dani’s replacement, it was revealed that she will be taking on the tough role of Elle Woods, the part originally made famous by Reese Witherspoon in the 2001 classic, in a new UK tour of Legally Blonde.

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MAFS newcomers bring the drama with them as the groom says he’s been “disrespected” by his wife at an explosive dinner party.

Reiss and Leisha walked down the aisle on the E4 show last week but its been a bumpy ride.

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They got off to a bad start at their wedding reception when Leisha pummelled him with questions about his life.

But after a in-depth conversation in tonight’s show the couple seemed to have put their differences aside and appeared happy again.

Reiss explained: “I like the stage I am at with Leisha, she’s got a heart of gold.”

Leisha agreed: “I’m happy. Complete. I’ve fallen for Reiss hard.

“He’s everything I have asked for.”

However, in a preview for tomorrow night’s dinner party things seem to have gone off the boil again.

The couple steal the spotlight as Leisha complains to Reiss: “Everyone else is holding hands.”

“I stopped holding your hand because you said don’t hold my f***ing hand and stormed off.” replies Reiss.

Then things take a turn for the worse when Leisha is asked: “Do you think you should be sat on a plane talking to a boy?”

Leisha replies: “I’ve had past relationships. That’s never been a problem.”

Julia-Ruth chimes in: “Babe, you’ve just had a honeymoon with this man.”

Then Reiss snaps: “I felt disrespected.”

Earlier in last night’s show, Leisha’s questions continued to baffle painter and decorator Reiss.

In an effort to get her husband to open up she asked: “Do you feel like you are falling for me though? Do you like me?”

Married at First Sight’s best moments

Married at First sight has brought eight explosive series of drama to the small screen. These are some of the best moments

• When series 8 couple Rozz Darlington and Thomas Kriaras brought secretly brought a sex toy to the couple’s dinner party. Unbeknownst to their fellow cast members who they were having dinner with, Rozz wore a vibrating egg gadget whilst husband Thomas had the controls.

• Nikita’s exit in series 6. Nikita was removed from the show early on due to her behaviour, which led to her husband Ant re-entering the experiment with Alexis.

• A slightly more heart warming highlight from series 6 was watching Dan and Matt’s relationship unfold. Dan and Matt were the first same-sex couple on the show, and their relationship was both ground-breaking and adorable.

• Emma and James’ wedding in series 1. They were the first couple to ever get married on the UK version of the show. Emma and James, had a beautiful ceremony that set the tone for the series.

• The dinner party showdowns are always a MAFs highlight with explosive arguments and unexpected alliances forming.

The question was met with an awkward silence until Reiss giggled and said: “Easy girl. It’s been two days.”

Then during a boat trip she asked: “”Do you visualise me in your future?”

An annoyed Reiss threw an epic strop and responded: “I can’t cope! You’re too much.

“I don’t need pressure yet, it’s so early.

“I don’t like it. I know you’re saying you want to see the real me you aint going to find that out over night.

“You know I’m a closed book. If you’re constantly pressuring me you’re just going to keep me closed.”

Fans will have to wait until tomorrow night to see if the couple can patch things up after their latest row.

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Paramount, backed by billionaire Larry Ellison and his family, has officially opened the bidding for rival Warner Bros. Discovery — a potential massive merger that would dramatically change Hollywood.

Warner Bros. Discovery’s board rejected Paramount’s initial bid of about $20 a share, but talks are continuing, according to two people close to the companies who were not authorized to speak publicly.

One of the knowledgeable sources said Paramount was preparing a second bid.

Warner Bros. Discovery owns HBO, CNN, TBS, Food Network, HGTV and the prolific Warner Bros. movie and television studio in Burbank.

Ellison, one of the world’s richest men, is committed to helping his 42-year-old son, David, pull off the industry-reshaping acquisition and has agreed to help finance the bid, two people close to the situation said.

The younger Ellison, who entered the movie business 15 years ago by launching his Skydance Media production company, was catapulted into the major leagues this summer with the Ellison family’s purchase of Paramount’s controlling stake.

Since then, David Ellison and his team have made bold moves to help Paramount shake more than a decade of doldrums. Buying Warner Bros. Discovery would be their most audacious move yet. The merger would lead to the elimination of one of the original Hollywood film studios, and could see the consolidation of CNN with Paramount-owned CBS News.

Representatives for Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery declined to comment.

CNBC reported Friday that two companies have been in discussions for weeks following last month’s news that Paramount was planning a bid. Bloomberg reported Saturday that Warner Bros. Discovery had rejected Paramount’s bid of about $20 a share.

Industry veterans were stunned by the speed of Paramount’s play for Warner Bros. Discovery, noting that top executives had begun working on the bid even as they were putting finishing touches on the Paramount takeover.

One of Paramount’s top executives is a former Goldman Sachs banker, Andy Gordon, who was a ranking member of RedBird Capital Partners, the private equity firm that has teamed up with the Ellisons and has a significant stake in Paramount.

Paramount’s interest prompted stocks of both companies to soar, driving up the market value for Warner Bros. Discovery.

Paramount’s offer of $20 a share for Warner Bros. Discovery was less than what some analysts and sources believe the company’s parts are worth, leading the Warner Bros. Discovery board to rebuff the offer, sources said.

But many believe that Paramount needs more content to better compete in a landscape that’s dominated by tech giants such as Netflix and Amazon.

Paramount has reason to move quickly.

Warner Bros. Discovery had previously announced that it was planning to divide its assets into two companies by next April. One company, Warner Bros., would be made up of HBO, the HBO Max streaming service and the Burbank-based movie and television studios. Current Chief Executive David Zaslav would run that enterprise.

The other arm would be called Discovery Global and consist of the linear cable television channels, which have seen their fortunes fall with consumers’ shift to streaming.

The Paramount bid was seen as an attempt to slip in under the wire because other large companies, including Amazon, Apple and Netflix, may have been interested in buying the studios, streaming service and leafy studio lot in Burbank.

However, Netflix’s co-chief executive Greg Peters appeared to downplay Netflix’s interest during an appearance last week at the Bloomberg Screentime media conference. “We come from a deep heritage of being builders rather than buyers,” Peters said.

Some analysts believe Paramount’s proposed takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery could ultimately prevail because Zaslav and his team have made huge cuts during the past three years to get the various businesses profitable after buying the company from AT&T, which left the company burdened with a heavy debt load. The company has paid down billions of dollars of debt, but still carries nearly $35 billion of debt on its books.

Others point to Warner Bros.’ recent successes at the box office as evidence that Paramount is offering too little.

Despite the tumult at the corporate level, Warner Bros.’ film studio has had a successful year. Its fortunes turned around in April with the release of “A Minecraft Movie,” which grossed nearly $958 million worldwide, followed by a string of hits including Ryan Coogler’s “Sinners,” James Gunn’s “Superman” and horror flick “Weapons.”

Meanwhile, Paramount has been on a buying spree.

Just in the last two months, Paramount made a $7.7 billion deal for UFC media rights and closed two deals that will pay the creators of “South Park” more than $1.25 billion over five years to secure streaming rights to the popular cartoon.

Last week at Bloomberg’s Screentime media conference, Ellison declined to comment on Paramount’s pursuit of Warner Bros. or even whether his company had already made a bid. But he did touch briefly on consolidation in Hollywood, saying, “Ironically, it was David Zaslav last year who said that consolidation in the media business is important.”

“There are a lot of options out there,” he added, but declined to elaborate.

After news of Paramount’s interest surfaced, Warner Bros. Discovery‘s stock jumped more than 30%. It climbed as much as $20 a share, but closed Friday at $17.10, down 3.2%.

Paramount also has seen its stock surge by about 12%. Shares finished Friday at $17, down 5.4%

Warner Bros. Discovery is now valued at $42 billion. Paramount is considerably smaller, worth about $18.5 billion.

Strictly Come Dancing’s Karen Carney has shared her heartbreak after another star was booted off the series

After performing a Thunderbirds themed routine for Movie Week, Ross King became the second celebrity to be eliminated from Strictly Come Dancing.

He failed to impress the judges as he faced Balvinder Sopal in the dreaded dance-off.

Fellow Strictly Come Dancing star Karen Carney took to Instagram to share their heartache over Ross’ exit.

Alongside a snap of her with Ross in their Movie Week outfits, Karen penned: “Absolutely gutted. Since the beginning of this show @therossking has been a rock for me and is one of the most genuine and funny people I’ve ever met.

“Have loved every minute of our @bbcstrictly journey and will miss you loads but know I’ll have a mate for life.”

Speaking on the Strictly results show, Ross said about his time on the show: “I have loved every single minute of it.

“I would like to say thank you to everyone who has supported us, all the people who voted – they’ve been amazing.

“I want to thank everyone here in this room, backstage, the judges, the crew – every single person here has made me so, so welcome.

“And, I want to thank a very special lady who has been with me through it all and has been absolutely everything: she’s been a mentor, teacher, carer and I could not have wished for a better partner, and I could not have wished to be on a better show. Thank you judges for all your remarks.”

Meanwhile, Jowita shared: “Thank you so much for all of your work. For everything you have done during rehearsals.

“We laugh a lot – but we also cried! Thank you so much, and I hope I’m going to be a little part in your life forever.”

Both Jowita and Ross will appear on It Takes Two on Monday in their first TV interview after their elimination.

Ross also shared a number of snaps from his time on the show on Instagram as he reflected on his journey.

Strictly Come Dancing returns on Saturday 18 October at 6:30pm, with the results show on Sunday 19 October at 7:15pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer

EX-FOOTIE star and manager Iain Dowie faces being made bankrupt after being taken to court by the taxman.

Cult hero Dowie, 60 – who coined the term “bouncebackability” – has been hit with the bankruptcy petition by HMRC with a hearing due at the High Court.

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It comes almost two decades after ex-Luton, Southampton and West Ham striker Dowie was clobbered with a huge legal bill after leaving Crystal Palace as manager.

A court ruled in 2007 that Dowie deceived Palace into waiving a £1 million compensation clause when he quit.

And a source said: “It looks like Iain’s financial problems might date back to that legal action – there doesn’t seem to be any other reason for it.

“It is a shame for him as he’s such a likeable bloke, but he hasn’t cashed in with punditry as much as some other ex-players and he probably could have done.

“But Iain is a bright bloke and I am sure he will bounce back.”

After leaving Palace, Dowie joined Charlton – but left the Addicks after just 15 games.

His contract contained a clause that Palace would receive £1 million in compensation if Dowie left to join another club.

The 59-cap Northern Ireland international worked as a sales manager and a Sky Sports pundit since his football career ended.

In 2023, Dowie told how he had landed a new position – as a mortgage advisor at a law firm.

He joined Alexander Grace Law, based near Burnley, as a business director leading its re-mortgaging team.

Dad of two Dowie, whose wife Debbie was also working for the company, said: “While people may wonder how I’ve gone from the football pitch to the office I have been working within the conveyancing arena for some four years now and when I was asked if I would come on board with them it was a no-brainer.”

Last year Dowie – who scored 105 goals in 388 league games – said he was lucky to be alive after suffering cardiac arrest during a spin class at a gym in Chorley, Lancs.

After he was treated by other gym-goers and paramedics, Dowie backed calls for more people to learn CPR and said he survived due to the “brilliance of everyone involved”.

Dowie famously used the word “boucebackability” to describe a Crystal Palace comeback and it entered the Oxford dictionary in 2005.

A spokesperson for the star did not respond to a request for comment.

In the late 1990s and early aughts, the conservative Parents Television Council struck fear in the hearts of network TV executives for its high-profile campaigns against shows it deemed too raunchy.

The watchdog group, founded by conservative commentator L. Brent Bozell III, railed against Fox’s “Melrose Place” and “Family Guy”; NBC’s “Just Shoot Me”; and the CW’s “Gossip Girl.” It also singled out CBS following the infamous Janet Jackson-Justin Timberlake “nipplegate” controversy during the 2004 Super Bowl halftime show when the singer’s breast was briefly exposed.

But the Parents Television Council Inc. — whose members lodged thousands of indecency complaints with the Federal Communications Commission — has folded. Earlier this month, the Burbank-based nonprofit filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in Delaware court, saying it had $284,823 in liabilities, which include staff member salaries, insurance payments and credit card debt. The filing lists $91,874 in assets.

The group’s demise reflects broad cultural changes, including a fractured media environment and consumers’ shift to streaming and social media apps such as TikTok for entertainment. Parents also have tools, including the ability to configure settings on streaming accounts to try to shield children from inappropriate content.

The PTC’s power came, in large part, from its ability to flood the FCC with indecency complaints. But the FCC, which licenses broadcasters, does not regulate streaming services, YouTube or TikTok.

The council had clout with advertisers, which put pressure on network programmers to minimize shows that would raise the group’s ire and threats of boycotts.

“I’m disappointed but I’m still very proud of what we did and what we achieved,” Tim Winter, former president of the group, said Friday. “We were able to raise awareness about so many important issues — issues that are still out there.”

“Like most businesses, it came down to money,” said Winter, who retired three years ago. “It’s just a slog out there to fundraise.”

Decades ago, the group hauled in millions of dollars in donations. The PTC boasted more than 653,000 members and supporters by 2000. However, in 2023, the most recent year of available tax reports, the Parents Television Council raised just $1.6 million, down from $4.7 million in 2007.

The group, which also went by Parents Television and Media Council, was formed in 1995 by Bozell as the Hollywood arm of his Virginia-based Media Research Center.

Bozell, long a booster of President Trump, now serves in his administration as ambassador to South Africa.

One of the PTC’s early efforts was to urge broadcasters to reserve the 8 p.m. hour for family-friendly fare. That was the custom of the networks in the 1970s; but two decades later, there was a rise in sexually suggestive content.

Over the years, the group hired analysts to monitor TV programming, published detailed reports and TV show rankings. Winter testified before a U.S. Senate committee hearing in 2007 on the impact of media violence on children.

Advertisers were sensitive to the PTC’s warnings.

“We were able to redirect tens of millions of dollars away from more explicit programming and into more family-friendly shows,” Winter said.

The PTC also spoke out against media consolidation, which accelerated in the 1990s, “the problem of having too few voices hold the microphone,” Winter said.

While it initially focused on broadcast shows, the group went after others, including Netflix when it offered the show “13 Reasons Why,” based on a book about a 17-year-old girl who died by suicide. The PTC, and other organizations, decried the series, fearing it would encourage more deaths.

Netflix responded by deleting a graphic suicide scene, and the show was later canceled.

“The media culture is no less toxic than it was years ago. And in some ways, it is more toxic,” Winter said, adding that other organizations will have to carry the mantle. “The mission is more important than ever.”

Gogglebox star Georgia Bell has opened up about the ‘chaos’ of filming the hit Channel 4 show

Recording Gogglebox proves utterly chaotic for Georgia Bell, with the mum frequently allowing her two youngsters to join her on the settee – and they don’t always play ball.

She told the Daily Star: “It’s good fun having the kids with me. But sometimes it is chaos. I have to tell my boyfriend to take them out.”

Georgia’s co-star and mate Abbie Lynn revealed: “It’s hard for a three-year-old to sit and focus on The Traitors. They’d rather have Bluey on. Mind you, they do love Britain’s Got Talent!”

Despite the difficulties of having children present during recording, Georgia remains delighted she’s included them, as the programme provides her with precious footage she can treasure forever.

She explained: “In years to come, I’ll be like, ‘Sit down boys, this is you two when you were so young’.

“Ralphie was only a few weeks old when he was first on the show and Hugh was a few months old. I just think it will be an amazing thing to be able to look back on when they’re older.”

Georgia and Abbie have featured on the programme for seven years and remain eager to continue, with Abbie declaring: “I will stay on the show until I die.”

Last year Georgia revealed that she had welcomed her second child, sharing a snap of the tiny tot whilst radiating happiness as she provided an update on how he was getting on. In the photograph, the tiny bundle was spotted tucked up in a white baby grow with little white fluffy socks and a sweet little collar round his neck to keep him cosy.

He was pictured having a snooze in a Moses basket wrapped in a soft woollen blanket as he slumbered peacefully after arriving into the world.

Penning the caption, Georgia revealed all the crucial details fans would have been desperate for.

“Ralphie James Newby,” she wrote, “our precious boy – born November 10th at 11:27pm, weighing 7lbs 10oz.

“Settling into the life of a family of 5, we all love you unbelievable amounts little one,” Georgia continued.

Followers were thrilled to discover that the Geordie star had finally welcomed her baby into the world after months of anticipation, but this wasn’t the first time it was suggested she had given birth.

AMY HUNT is prioritising “medals over men” as she adapts to life as a superstar athlete.

The 23-year-old shot to fame last month after claiming a silver medal at the World Championships in Tokyo.

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Following her achievement, Hunt claimed that she would celebrate with some karaoke.

Quizzed what she’d be singing, the confident star said: “Probably Maneater.

“That’s really boring but I feel like that was the vibe tonight, just sexy and aggressive.”

Hunt, who has a degree in English Literature from Cambridge, continues to have her eyes firmly set on further prizes.

Speaking to The Times, the 200m specialist said: “Obviously, as a female athlete, you also have to plan when you think motherhood is a feasible thing for you.

“But the world is very open to me and I will get a sense of what I want to do when the moment is right.

“I actually always joke to my coach, ‘medals before men’, that’s the quote of the day!”

Hunt has not ruled out balancing her blossoming athletics career with further studies.

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She added: “I change my mind on it every year. Immediately after coming out of university I thought about the V&A and doing a Masters — with the hope of maybe going on to do a PhD, because I always thought being ‘Dr Amy’ would be pretty cool.

“But then my mind changed and I think I’d want to actually work at a museum or gallery and curate.

“But then I’m like, no, maybe I’d do a law conversion because a lot of my friends did a law conversion out of English.

“And then maybe I’d do that, or maybe an Amal Clooney kind of thing.

“So my mind is always changing on that and I think I’ll only decide when I get to the end.”

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There’s something about Thai cuisine that is warm and welcoming.

Perhaps it’s the fire that bird’s eye chili brings to a dish, or maybe the bold punchiness of tom yum soup.

My colleague and food critic Bill Addison referred to Thai as “a pillar cuisine of Los Angeles.”

And why not?

The city boasts the world’s largest Thai population outside of Thailand. Those who open restaurants open our palates to a diverse range of flavors and sensations from their micro-regional cooking styles.

Addison is wary of using the term “best.” Instead, he crafted a list of his 15 favorite Thai restaurants in Los Angeles. Here, we’ll highlight a handful of those choices, in Addison’s own words.

(Mariah Tauger / Los Angeles Times)

Anajak Thai (Sherman Oaks)

If you’ve had any passing interest in Los Angeles dining culture this decade, you probably know the story: Anajak Thai was founded in 1981 by chef Ricky Pichetrungsi, whose recipes merge his Thai upbringing and Cantonese heritage, and his wife Rattikorn.

In 2019, when Pichetrungsi suffered a stroke, the couple’s son Justin left a thriving career as an art director at Walt Disney Imagineering to take over the restaurant.

It changed his life, and it changed Los Angeles, with Justin’s creative individualism — specifically his Thai Taco Tuesday phenomenon.

That’s when the menu crisscrosses fish tacos lit up by chili crisp and limey nam jim with wok-fragrant drunken noodles and Dungeness crab fried rice. Add what has become one of L.A.’s great wine lists, and the restaurant has catapulted into one of the city’s great dining sensations.

The restaurant closed for a couple of months over the summer for a renovation, revealing a brighter, significantly resituated interior — and introducing an open kitchen and a second dining room — in August.

The menu didn’t radically alter: It’s the same multi-generational cooking, tracing the family heritage, leaning ever-further into freshness, perfecting the details in familiar dishes.

Fried chicken sheathed in rice flour batter and scattered with fried shallots, the star of the Justin-era menu, remains, as does the sublime mango sticky rice that Rattikorn makes when she can find fragrant fruit in season and at its ripest.

(Bill Addison / Los Angeles Times)

Ayara Thai (Westchester)

Owner Andy Asapahu grew up in a Thai-Chinese community in Bangkok.

Anna Asapahu, his wife, was raised in Lampang, a small city in the verdant center of northern Thailand.

They melded their backgrounds into a sprawling multi-regional menu of soups, salads, noodles and curries when they opened Ayara in Westchester in 2004.

Their daughters Vanda and Cathy oversee the restaurant these days, but Anna’s recipe for khao soi endures as the marquee dish.

Khao soi seems to have become nearly as popular in Los Angeles as pad Thai. This one is quintessential: chicken drumsticks braised in silky coconut milk infused with lemongrass and other piercing aromatics, poured over egg noodles, sharpened with shallots and pickled mustard greens and garnished with lime and a thatch of fried noodles.

The counterpoints are all in play: a little sweetness from palm sugar and a lot of complexity from fish sauce, a bump of chile heat to offset the richness.

Pair it with a standout dish that reflects Andy’s upbringing, like pad pong kari, a stir-fry of curried shrimp and egg with Chinese celery and other vegetables, smoothed with a splash of cream and served over rice. The restaurant has a spacious dining room.

Note that lunch is technically carry-out only, though the family sets up the patio space outside the restaurant for those who want to stick around.

(Silvia Razgova / For The Times)

Holy Basil (Atwater Village)

Wedchayan “Deau” Arpapornnopparat and Tongkamal “Joy” Yuon run two wholly different Holy Basils.

Downtown’s Santee Passage food hall houses the original, a window that does a brisk takeout business cranking out Arpapornnopparat’s visceral, full-throttle interpretations of Bangkok street food.

His pad see ew huffs with smokiness from the wok. The fluffy-crackly skin of moo krob pops and gives way to satiny pork belly underneath. Douse “grandma’s fry fish and rice” with chile vinegar, and in its sudden brightness you’ll understand why the dish was his childhood favorite.

Their sit-down restaurant in Atwater Village is a culmination of their ambitions. The space might be small, with much of the seating against a wall between two buildings, but the cooking is tremendous.

Arpapornnopparat leaps ahead, rendering a short, revolving menu of noodles, curries, chicken wings, fried rice and vegetable dishes that is more experimental, weaving in elements of his father’s Chinese heritage, his time growing up in India and the Mexican and Japanese flavors he loves in Los Angeles.

One creation that shows up in spring but I wait for all year: fried soft-shell crab and shrimp set in a thrilling, confounding sauce centered around salted egg yolk, browned butter, shrimp paste and scallion oil. In its sharp left turns of salt and acid and sultry funk, the brain longs to consult a GPS. But no map exists. These flavor combinations are from an interior land.

If you enjoyed those selections, check out the full list here. Happy dining.

The week’s biggest stories

(Carlin Stiehl/For the Times)

Palisades fire and other blazes

Trump administration policies and reactions

Crime, courts and policing

More big stories

This week’s must-reads

More great reads

For your weekend

(Illustrations by Lindsey Made This; photograph by Kevin Winter / Getty Images)

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Get wrapped up in tantalizing stories about dating, relationships and marriage.

Have a great weekend, from the Essential California team

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How can we make this newsletter more useful? Send comments to [email protected]. Check our top stories, topics and the latest articles on latimes.com.

Graham Norton has finally revealed the Hollywood star he deemed to be his worst guest while hosting his BBC chat show as he describes the interview as ‘hell’

It is one of the main questions asked of TV chat show hosts and now, Graham Norton has finally revealed who has been his worst guest on The Graham Norton Show. He has welcomed huge A-listers onto his red sofa for over 18 years but not all of them have been a joy to be around.

Step forward Hollywood royalty Mark Wahlberg. The legendary actor was invited on to the BBC show back in 2013 to promote his movie Broken City. And Graham believes that the star was under the influence, making the interview “hell.”

Presenter Graham, 62, was speaking at the Henley Literary Festival last week Friday when the claim was made. In a revealing admission, he shared: “Mark Wahlberg was a weird one because when he arrived, he didn’t seem drunk.”

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He added: “He told me about his film, told me a couple of stories about stunts going wrong or whatever, and then it was only 15 minutes into the show when whatever the hell was in his system really took hold – and it was hell.”

Things became so bad, Mark interrupted other guests when they were asked questions, until Mark reportedly fell asleep while actor Michael Fassbender, was in the middle of recalling an anecdote.

According to The Independent, Graham continued: “I thought, ‘this one is going well – I wonder why’ and I looked over at Mark Wahlberg and he was asleep, so yeah, we don’t encourage that.”

Earlier this month, the future of his TV show was announced and it looks as though fans of the show can breathe a sigh of relief as it has been commissioned for another three series. The 34th series is set to air next year.

Speaking of the return of his hugely popular show, the legendary presenter said of the news: “Getting to host my own chat show is a huge pleasure as well as a privilege. I’m thrilled that the BBC are allowing me to continue for another three years. The whole team is looking forward to bringing the world’s brightest stars into the homes of the great British public!”

And Head of Entertainment Kalpna Patel-Knight said: “We are thrilled that The Graham Norton Show will remain a flagship part of the BBC’s entertainment offering for another three series. Graham sets the gold standard for celebrity interviews and continues to attract the best global talent to his sofa, it’s no wonder that the show remains so beloved by our audiences.”

Graham will continue to work with So Television production company as well as the BBC. Managing Director of So Television Graham Stuart, went on to say: “We began the Norton Talk Show journey in 1998 and have never felt like stopping. So happy the BBC feel the same way.”

But it’s not just his work life that appears to be busy, so too is his home life as the TV star is currently in the middle of moving home after selling both his London and New York properties. Informing his podcast fans of the move, he said that the whole situation has left him “frazzled.”

Addressing the move on his Wanging On with Graham Norton and Maria McErlane, he said: “I’m very frazzled. We are attempting to move. We are very lucky in that we are able to move slowly, bit by bit. But the house we are moving out of, which I didn’t think had that much stuff in it.”

READ MORE: Shoppers say hair removal device ‘results speak for themselves’ and it’s £140 off

Like this story? For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Threads.

A NON-LEAGUE club has demolished the wall that was struck by former Arsenal star Billy Vigar leading to his tragic death.

The Chichester City ace collided with the pitchside barrier during the Isthmian Premier Division game at Wingate and Finchley last month.

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Vigar, 21, was placed into an induced coma following the accident after he hit his head against the wall.

The game was suspended just 15 minutes in and was abandoned completely after he had been airlifted to hospital.

He had suffered a serious brain injury, and an operation was unable to save his life.

He sadly died just days later on September 25.

Following the tragedy, the FA insisted that it would carry out a safety review of perimeter walls in the National League.

But officials at Wingate and Finchley have already made steps to increase safety around the pitch at the Maurice Rebak Stadium.

The Daily Mail has reported that work has been commissioned to make improvements.

The ground did comply with current regulations, but the club has now demolished the wall completely.

It follows on from a petition calling on brick walls around pitches to be banned reached over 4,000 signatures.

On the immediate review, a FA spokesperson said: “[It woudl] include looking at ways we can assist National League system clubs to identify and implement additional measures at their stadiums that they determine will help to mitigate any potential safety risks.”

Meanwhile, the PFA called for an investigation and demanded that players should “not be put at unnecessary and avoidable risk”.

Vigar, from Worthing, West Sussex, spent his youth career with Arsenal after joining at age 14 and signed a professional contract in July 2022.

He worked his way up to the U21 team in North London, alongside loan spells with Derby County U21 and Eastbourne.

He left the club permanently in 2024 after being unable to progress to the senior team, joining Hastings United in the Non-League Premier before his move to Chichester.

Full statement from Arsenal

Everyone at Arsenal Football Club is deeply sorry to hear of the tragic passing of Chichester City forward and former Arsenal academy player, Billy Vigar.

Billy joined our academy on schoolboy terms aged 14, after being scouted at his hometown club Hove Rivervale FC and excelled as a striker at Hale End, scoring 17 goals in his debut season.

In 2020, his performances earned him a scholarship and joined us full-time for the 2020/21 season, his intake including current players Charles Sagoe Jr, Remy Mitchell and others such as Omari Hutchinson, Charlie Patino and Brook Norton-Cuffy.

Quick, powerful and fiercely determined, his first season as a scholar was blighted by a serious hamstring injury, but he made up for it in his second, scoring four goals in 18 under-18 appearances and signed professional terms for the club at the end of that 2021/22 season.

Billy went on to appear for us in the PL2 and EFL Trophy and proved to be an asset across the forward positions and even deputised in defence – his versatility illustrating his commitment to the coaching staff and his team.

He enjoyed loan spells at Derby County and Eastbourne Borough and at the end of the 2023/24 season,  headed back to his native south coast, signing for Hastings United – prior to a move to Chichester just last month.

As well as his significant talent, Billy will always be remembered for his love of the game, pride at representing our football club – he once called the day he was spotted by our scouts as ’the most Important of his life’ – and a character beloved by teammates and coaches alike.

Our deepest condolences go out to the Vigar family and his many friends at this extremely difficult time.

An immigrant drama by Rudi Goblen about two brothers born in Nicaragua, “littleboy/littleman,” now receiving its world premiere at the Geffen Playhouse, is an American story at its core.

Lest we forget our past, America is the great democratic experiment precisely because it’s a land of immigrants. Out of many, one — as our national motto, E pluribus unum, has it. How have we lost sight of this basic tenet of high school social studies?

Our tendency to ghettoize drama — along racial or immigrant lines — reflects the failure to understand our collective story.

Goblen, who (like a.k. payne, author of “Furlough’s Paradise”) was a playwriting student of Geffen Playhouse artistic director Tarell Alvin McCraney at Yale, has created not a conventionally worked out two-hander, but an intuitively structured performance piece. Infused by live music and inflected with hip-hop style poetry, “littleboy/littleman” crashes through the fourth wall to make direct contact with theatergoers, who are seated on three sides of the playing area and always just a high-five away.

Marlon Alexander Vargas, the dynamic, sweet-faced performer who plays Fito Palomino, the more creative and mercurial of the two brothers, is on stage interacting with the audience before the play begins. As the musicians — music director Dee Simone on drums and Tonya Sweets on bass — warm up the crowd from their platform at the back of the playing area, Vargas, ever-in-motion, greets theatergoers and counts down to the start of the show.

Rules are spelled out at the top that make clear that this isn’t one of those docile theatergoing experiences, in which the audience is expected to keep mum as the actors do all the work. Spectators are encouraged to make some noise — to show love when they want to show love and to show it even when they don’t.

These friendly instructions are impishly delivered by Vargas, whose performance outside the play has an effect on our experience of his character inside the play. The fate of Fito is the emotional crux of the drama, and what happens to him matters all the more to us because of our theatrical connection to Vargas, our de facto host and impromptu buddy.

Goblen sets up a drama of fraternal contrasts. Bastian Monteyero (Alex Hernandez), the older and more straitlaced of the two brothers, has a tough, no-nonsense demeanor that’s all about discipline and conformity. He’s a bit of a recluse, but he plays by the rules and demands the same from Fito.

A street performer, Fito dreams of opening a vegan restaurant that will offer his community access to affordable, healthful meals. This idea seems far-fetched to Bastian, and he tells Fito that if he wants to continue living with him, he’s going to have to get a real job.

Bastian hooks Fito up with a friend who’s employed at a cleaning service. But scrubbing public toilets isn’t Fito’s idea of an alternative course. Bastian wants his brother off the streets. There are dangers afoot in Sweetwater, Fla., far worse than unpleasant paid work.

A law officer in town, a sadist who demands complete subservience, has it in for Fito, who describes this menacing figure as “a gangster with a badge.” He also calls him “brown on the outside, white on the inside,” and bemoans to his brother the Latino infighting (“the worst thing they ever did was give us all flags”) that only divides people who have political reason to be in solidarity.

Bastian, who affects a white-sounding Midwestern voice when he hustles donations in his telemarketing job, can’t help taking the latter comment personally. He’s made no secret that he wants to change his name so his resume won’t be ignored when he applies for management jobs.

The two brothers have different fathers, and Fito doesn’t have the option of passing. In any case, he’s more embracing of his identity as a person of color than Bastian. What both of them have in common is that they survived both their harrowing childhoods in Nicaragua and their unrelentingly challenging journeys in America, having been raised by a single mother, whose death still haunts them.

Bastian and Fito love each other, but don’t always like each other. Hernandez’s Bastian is a formidable presence, angry, strict and domineering — the qualities he’s needed to navigate a bureaucratic system that has little concern for the feelings of immigrant outsiders. Vargas’ Fito, by contrast, has his head in the clouds and his heart on his sleeve. Goblen never loses sight of their affection even as their conflict grows louder and more bruising.

Bassist Tonya Sweets, from left, Marlon Alexander Vargas and drummer Dee Simone in “littleboy/littleman” at Geffen Playhouse.

(Jeff Lorch)

“littleboy/littleman” is tricky in its theatrical rhythms. It’s like a piece of music that keeps switching harmonic structures, not wanting to get stuck in the same groove. Goblen’s manner of writing is closer to free jazz or freestyle hip-hop than traditional drama.

Director Nancy Medina’s staging, circumnavigating a theatrical circle, lifts the audience out of its proscenium passivity into something almost immersive and definitely interactive. Tanya Orellana’s scenic design and Scott Bolman’s moody lighting create a performance space that is well suited to a work composed as a series of riffs. The influence of McCraney’s “The Brothers Size” is palpable not only in the thematic architecture of the play, but also in how the piece moves on stage.

The staccato nature of the writing is helped enormously by the entrancing acting of both Vargas, who breezes through different theatrical realms as though he had wings, and Hernandez, who locks realistically into character. It’s a credit to the play and to the performers that, by the end of “littleboy/littleman,” the differences between the two brothers seem less important than what they have in common.

Not all the dramatic elements are smoothly integrated, but the production ultimately finds a coherence, not so much in the music (composed by Goblen himself), but in the emotional truth of the brothers’ pressure-cooker lives. Vulnerability unites not only Bastian and Fito, but all of us witnessing their story who hope against hope that compassion will somehow win the day.

The All Creatures Great and Small star has opened up on her latest role which is a far cry from her character in the family drama

All Creatures Great and Small returns for its sixth series, featuring the beloved Rachel Shenton as Helen Herriot.

The performer boasts an impressive portfolio and gained recognition for her Academy Award-winning short film, The Silent Child.

During her appearance on Love Your Weekend with Alan Titchmarsh, she discussed her upcoming ventures beyond All Creatures, acknowledging her newest character represents a dramatic shift from Helen Herriot.

Following a preview of her latest series, The Rumour, Alan remarked: “This is not a cosy drama, is it?”

“No, it’s a bit of a departure from All Creatures isn’t it”, Rachel acknowledged whilst explaining her passion for varied roles.

READ MORE: All Creatures Great and Small’s Rachel Shenton shares update on son as she confirms show returnREAD MORE: All Creatures Great and Small star admits ‘we’re not ready’ as they open up on show’s future

In her fresh production, she portrays Joanna, following a mum who relocates to a small community only to suspect a child murderer resides nearby.

The character couldn’t be more different from Helen Herriot in All Creatures, yet Rachel explained that range is precisely what drew her to performing.

She disclosed she’s currently crafting a theatrical piece – her newest professional venture, stating: “It’s hugely important to me, variety is what you get into this business for, to tell stories and to do them in whatever medium that is.

“I love all sorts of stories, I love feature films and short films.

“At the moment I’m writing a play and all of it is so important to me, that you just get to tell your version of the story in whatever way that is.”

The actress has made a comeback to the horror genre, featuring in The Strangers – Chapter 2, the fourth instalment of The Strangers film series.

She portrays Debbie, the elder sister of the main character Maya (Madelaine Petsch), who is a survivor of the Strangers.

The most recent film premiered in September 2025.

All Creatures Great and Small airs on Thursdays on Channel 5 at 9pm

TOURISTS were left stunned as a man brazenly urinated on a Vatican altar during Holy Mass – in full view of hundreds of worshippers.

The shocking act of desecration unfolded inside St Peter’s Basilica on Friday morning.

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The unidentified man climbed the steps of the Altar of Confession – one of the most sacred spots in Catholicism, where the pope himself traditionally celebrates mass.

Once at then top, he dropped his trousers to his ankles and began urinating over the holy site, according to Corriere della Sera.

The disgusting scene took place during the 9am Holy Mass where stunned visitors looked on in disbelief.

Security officers raced towards the man as the crowd gasped.

Cops grabbed him and dragged him away from the altar as he finished his vile act.

But before they could escort him out, the man bent down so he could pull up his jeans – flashing his bare backside to the horrified onlookers.

The clip, filmed by shocked tourists, has since gone viral online.

“That is absolutely shocking and deeply disrespectful,” wrote one viewer.

“This is vile,” said another.

“There is definitely not enough security here,” a third person added.

It remains unclear whether Pope Leo XIV was present at the time.

The Vatican has not yet released an official statement.

But according to reports, the Pope was “shocked” when he heard what had happened.

The Altar of Confession sits directly beneath Michelangelo’s dome and is considered one of the holiest places in the catholic world.

It’s where the pope often celebrates major masses – and where, in April, Pope Francis was laid in response for public viewing before his funeral.

Because of its significance, the Altar has repeatedly been targeted by intruders in recent years.

In February, a man climbed onto the same altar and knocked six candelabras to the floor.

In February, a man climbed onto the same altar and knocked six candelabras to the floor.

In June 2023, a naked Polish man leapt onto the altar during Mass.

He didn’t speak or cause further damage, but he had the words “Save children of Ukraine” scrawled across his back.

Following that stunt, the Vatican held a penitential rite to cleanse the grounds – a ceremony required under canon law to restore sanctity after desecration.

Friday’s incident has sparked renewed questions about security inside one of the world’s most sacred and most visited churches.

St Peter’s Basilica attracts millions of visitors each year, with tourists often crowding the altar area to witness the grandeur of Vatican ceremonies.

Authorities have not said whether the man has been arrested or charged.

The Vatican’s Holy See Press Office is yet to comment publicly.

The shocking desecration comes amid a wider crackdown on tourists and foreign visitors in Italy.

Earlier this year, the Italian government tightened citizenship laws, making it far harder for Australians and other foreigners to get passports by descent.

In Venice, officials doubled the entry fee for day-trippers and expanded the days it applies.

Last year, two unruly tourists caused outrage after stripping off and swimming in front of a cemetery.

They were spotted by commuters leaving their clothes on the banks of the San Michele Cemetery before plunging into the water.

The Isola di San Michele is home to both a cemetery and a church, and is the burial site of several famous figures, including Russian-born composer Igor Stravinsky.

The repeated stunts and security breaches at major religious sites have raised concerns about how well such locations are being protected.

Friday’s stunt – carried out at the heart of the Vatican – is likely to intensify calls for a security overhaul.

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After last week’s worrisome Season 51 debut with Bad Bunny, it seemed like a 50/50 chance on whether the second episode of the season with guest host and beloved “Saturday Night Live” alum Amy Poehler would turn things around. Would the writing feel sharper and less obvious in the hands of a veteran sketch performer?

Poehler, host of the popular podcast “Good Hang,” made all the right moves and may have even overextended herself, appearing in almost every sketch, including the cold open and “Weekend Update” for a joke-off. You could (and should) give Poehler lots of credit for her boundless energy, which lifted weaker sketches, like one about a menopausal mom who goes goth and one where Poehler and Bowen Yang are the composers of the “Severance” opening theme (the joke is that their theme songs always start with a “Fresh Prince of Bel-Air”-like rap as their first draft).

But Poehler also benefited from much stronger sketch premises compared to last week’s, from a beautifully performed sketch about a TV psychic, Miss Lycus, who rushes everyone because she has a hard out at 7 p.m., to a spot-on parody of Netflix’s “The Hunting Wives,” with a guest appearance from Poehler’s “Parks & Recreation” co-star Aubrey Plaza. The writing afforded Poehler with big, broad characters, like a CEO giving birth during a meeting with her employees, the matriarch in a family of jerks called The Rudemans and an elderly lawyer who interrupts a TV commercial to one-up other lawyers on the basis of having the most experience.

Poehler also got a little help from some long-time friends and alums, including Tina Fey, appearing as Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem in the cold open, and Seth Meyers, returning to the “Weekend Update” desk with Poehler and Fey.

Maybe podcasting has allowed Poehler to store some stage energy to burst-fire on “SNL”; she put in a great performance for a solid episode overall.

Musical guests Role Model performed “Sally, When The Wine Runs Out,” with a surprise appearance from Charli XCX as Sally, and “Some Protector.” Before the close, “SNL” memorialized Diane Keaton, whose death was announced Saturday, in a title card. She never hosted “Saturday Night Live” but was portrayed on the show multiple times.

The cold open this week parodied Atty. Gen. Pam Bondi’s contentious meeting this week with the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee. Poehler appeared as Bondi and responded to questions from Democratic senators with a series of withering insults she described as “roast-style burns I have on this piece of paper.” After mocking them and avoiding questions about the indictment of James Comey and the Jeffrey Epstein files, Bondi makes way for Noem (Fey, returning to “SNL” cold open politics), who joins in the mocking, telling one senator, “That makes me laugh more than the end of ‘Old Yeller.’ ” After being reminded that a dog gets shot at the end of that film, she responds, “Dogs don’t just get shot. Heroes shoot them.” While the first half of the cold open was shaky, with insults that weren’t landing despite Poehler’s forceful delivery, Fey’s appearance livened things up and ended strong with a call-and-response between Fey and Poehler that made fun of ICE recruitment ads. “Do you take supplements that you bought at a gas station?” Noem asked, “buckle up and slap on some Oakleys, big boy, and welcome to ICE!”

Poehler’s monologue was sweet, wistful and self-deprecating. “I found my first love here,” she said, “being famous.” She went on to describe her life now, saying, “I am a podcaster. If that’s not a recession indicator, I don’t know what is.” She also pointed out that this episode marked the actual 50-year anniversary of “SNL,” which first aired on Oct. 11, 1975. “Just like (host) George Carlin, I am extremely high,” she said. Poehler poked fun at AI actors who’ve been in the news and might want to take her job. “You’ll never be able to write a joke, and I am willing to do full frontal, but nobody’s asked me, OK?” she concluded defiantly.

Best sketch of the night: The thigh squeezes are bigger in Texas, too

It may be a little late to the party (the show came out in July), but this mock trailer for Netflix’s “The Hunting Wives” hits all the right notes with Poehler as frequently topless Margo and Chloe Fineman as Sophie (Malin Ackerman and Brittany Snow, respectively, on the series). The trailer promises that as the women get hornier and drunker, thighs will be squeezed and guns will be drawn. Aubrey Plaza appears as a new wife from California and soon she’s being caressed by all the other women in the cast as they make mimosas. A few great lines from this one: “It’s like ‘Call Me By Your Name’ for women who shop at Bass Pro Shop,” and “Don’t watch it on a plane.”

Also good: Don’t settle for just 100 years of legal experience

Pohler’s character in the Psychic Talk Show sketch was very funny, but the sketch about one-upping lawyers edges it out only because it goes to some extremely weird and dumb places for much longer than needed and incorporates what looked like the entire cast. What starts as a basic personal injury lawyer commercial explaining how the firm has 50 years of combined experience ends up including long-living turtles, Sarah Sherman as a vampire attorney named Dracu-Law, and an ageless tree, Yggdrasil (Yang), who once represented Zeus.

‘Weekend Update’ winner: Someday, that 13-pound baby is going to watch this

On a packed “Weekend Update,” Sherman debuted over-caffeinated Long Islander Rhonda LaCenzo, who rails against New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani. And Marcello Hernández and Jane Wickline returned as a seemingly mismatched couple discussing their Halloween plans. But it was an epic joke-off featuring past “Update” anchors Poehler, Fey and Meyers facing off against current ones Colin Jost and Michael Che to make fun of the birth of a nearly 13-pound baby born in Tennessee. “It was so big that he slapped the doctor on his ass!” Poehler began. Some of the better jokes: “The woman zipped around the room like a deflated balloon.” “Did she give birth or did it drive out?” “The baby’s name is AHHHHH!” Poehler rounded out the contest by declaring, “The record was for loosest vagina and the previous held… by me!”

Prior to his first appearance on this year’s Strictly Come Dancing, Tom Skinner revealed he had a two-week “fling” behind his wife Sinead’s back, just weeks after their wedding.

Thomas Skinner’s wife has revealed that after his affair, she kicked him out of their family home. He made headlines for all of the wrong reasons prior to his short stint on Strictly Come Dancing after admitting to having a “fling” behind his wife Sinead’s back, and now Tom‘s other half has revealed exactly what happened when he came clean about the affair to her.

One week before his first appearance on the BBC One show, The Apprentice star, 34, confessed to a “two-week fling” with a beauty clinic boss and said, “it was the biggest mistake of my life.”

Speaking about her husband’s infidelity for the first time, Sinead admitted she kicked him out of the family home after being left devastated by the news. She explained: “When he first told me what had happened, I made him leave. I was devastated.

“I will never forget Thomas telling me. I remember thinking, ‘I never thought this would happen to me’. It was one of the worst days of my life. I only told one friend, nobody else.”

READ MORE: Strictly Come Dancing results leaked and fans ‘wasn’t expecting’ who’s in bottom twoREAD MORE: Strictly star Stefan Dennis’ wife details ‘frantic call’ after health scare

Sinead added to The Sun: “But we eventually worked it out. I just knew how much I love him and I wanted to work it out. He made a mistake. It was a tough time. One of his friends had just died.”

She explained that the cheating was in the past for them and they are now “stronger than ever”. Despite his scandal, Sinead admits that the couple are stronger than ever and have gone on to welcome their twin daughters together. But it was his stint on Strictly which brought the cheating to light. “It has been hell,” she revealed.

The mum-of-three went on to explain that it’s been “horrendous” having to re-live that chapter all over again, especially since the pair had put it behind them in an effort to start again.

Back in September, the BBC star said that he had a two-week fling with Amy-Lucy Rourke, 35, and “it is the biggest mistake of my life.” He continued: “I met her in a pub. She was a single mum. We chatted on the phone, and she offered me some kind of cosmetic slimming treatments.”

He told The Sun: “It was nothing more than that. It was the one time; it was a mistake. I woke up feeling absolutely terrible about it. I felt so guilty. I told my wife. I let her down in that brief moment of madness where I wasn’t thinking, where I didn’t appreciate what I had. I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry.”

However, just days after he went public with the affair, Amy came forward and claimed he had told her she was the “love of his life” and the fling had actually been three months long.

She claimed to the Daily Mail: “We were originally friends, but with his sweet-talking and his lies, he made me believe we were in love. He would stand in the mirror with me and say, ‘Look, we’ll be Mr and Mrs Skinner’. That is actually traumatising to me.

“You don’t say that to someone when you’re already happily married. I fell in love with him, but Thomas is nothing but a liar and a cheat.” Thomas and Sinead first met at a bar in London in 2018 and got engaged two years later. The fling occurred shortly after their wedding in May 2022, when they were already parents to their son, now four years old.

The pair also now have identical twin daughters who are two years old. Tom and his Strictly partner Amy Dowden were the first to be eliminated from this year’s show after landing in the bottom two with Chris Robshaw and Nadiya Bychkova. All four judges unanimously decided to save Chris over Tom.

During his exit interview with Tess Daly, he gushed: “Thank you, Amy – sorry that we haven’t done too good, ’cause you’re a different class.

“I’ve never danced before and my stay was short, but Amy’s amazing. It’s been great fun and I’ve enjoyed it. I can’t really dance that well but I’ve had fun!”

Strictly Come Dancing continues on Sunday night at 7:15pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.

Like this story? For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads .

TWO BIG Brother stars seemingly broke the rules in an unaired live stream moment.

A television news and fan account on X has revealed that two of the housemates broke Big Brother‘s rules by using code names to talk about who they wanted booted out next.

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One of the biggest rules in the Big Brother house is talking about nominations.

In a livestream which aired this weekend, Sam and Nancy were the two housemates to break the rules.

Using code names, the pair said that one of their fellow co-stars was “fake” while using a code name to describe her.

The TV news and fan account said on X: “So I’m just catching up on what’s gone down on the first hour of live streaming…

“Sam and Nancy broke the rules using code names, and they said they want Jenny evicted next, and that she’s fake – all of which Big Brother read back to the house.

“Jenny has then been left ‘so angry’ that she cried, and that she knew she’d get nominated if the house is split in two or something.

“Also Tate was involved in a convo with Nancy slagging off Jenny and Nancy got caught lying about it literally on the live stream????

“And to top it off, Elsa is jealous that Jenny confided in Marcus about it all.”

Fans reacted to the revelation, with one saying: “First and only time I want Jenny to face eviction. She would be iconic in the secret room.”

Another added: “Jenny is a threat, that’s my only explanation for the Jenny slander.”

While a third said: “I don’t understand why contestants break the rules. The rules were explained to them. If they’ve seen past seasons they know housemates get in trouble for rule breaking.”

And a fourth penned: “Ew nancy is so bitter, why is she being like this ??”

This comes after three housemates – Richard, Elsa and Cameron B – faced possible elimination in Friday’s episode.

Cameron B ultimately became the third housemate to be evicted this series.

The 25-year-old from Bolton entered the House on Day Two, alongside three other newcomers.

Axed star George Gilbert, 23, had also been on the chopping block before his shock exit.

The Sun revealed how the parish councillor was removed after ‘unacceptable language and behaviour’.

Sources told The Sun that George left his co-stars horrified after making offensive comments which could be interpreted as antisemitic and was immediately called to the Diary Room and ejected from the house. 

“Everyone was absolutely disgusted,” an insider said.

“Nobody could believe what he said – he was clearly out to shock people.”

3

Diane Keaton, the actor who made film history — and won an Oscar — as the title character in Woody Allen’s beloved 1977 romantic comedy “Annie Hall,” died Saturday. She was 79. Tributes poured in from those who worked with and admired Keaton, including Bette Midler, Kate Hudson, Steve Martin and Josh Gad.

Here are some notable social media posts:

Bette Midler, the actor, singer and comedian who starred with Keaton and Goldie Hawn in the 1996 comedy “The First Wives Club,” about three divorced women who seek revenge on their ex-husbands: “The brilliant, beautiful, extraordinary Diane Keaton has died. I cannot tell you how unbearably sad this makes me. She was hilarious, a complete original, and completely without guile, or any of the competitiveness one would have expected from such a star. What you saw was who she was …oh, la, lala!”

Kate Hudson: “We love you so much Diane ❤️🕊️”

Steve Martin, who co-starred as Keaton’s husband in the “Father of the Bride” films, reposted an exchange between Keaton and Martin Short:

Short: “Who’s sexier, me or Steve Martin?

Keaton: “I mean, you’re both idiots.”

Martin then commented on the post: “Don’t know who first posted this, but it sums up our delightful relationship with Diane.”

Josh Gad: “What a monumental loss. Diane Keaton in many ways defined my love of movies. From Annie Hall to the Godfather films, from First Wives Club to Baby Boom, from Father of the Bride to Something’s Gotta Give, here resume was nothing short of iconic and hall of fame worthy. I was very fortunate to work with her many years ago on an unproduced HBO pilot and what I found was one of the most humble, ruthlessly funny, and unbelievably talented human beings I’ve ever come across. In many ways, this year will be defined by the loss of a Hollywood we will never again see. There simply are no replacements for a Gene Hackman or a Robert Redford or a Diane Keaton. They were the mavericks who helped redefine movies for a generation. … My heart goes out to Diane’s entire family during this impossible moment. RIP”

Kimberly Williams-Paisley, the actor, author and director who played Keaton’s daughter in the “Father of the Bride” films: “Diane, working with you will always be one of the highlights of my life. You are one of a kind, and it was thrilling to be in your orbit for a time. Thank you for your kindness, your generosity, your talent, and above all, your laughter. 🙏🏻🕊️💔❤️❤️❤️”

Rosie O’Donnell: “oh this breaks my heart – love to her children- what style what grace – she will be missed #ripdianekeaton”

Octavia Spencer: “Today we lost a true original. @diane_keaton wasn’t just an actress: she was a force. a woman who showed us that being yourself is the most powerful thing you can be. From Annie Hall to Something’s Gotta Give, she made every role unforgettable. But beyond the screen, she brought joy, laughter, and style that was all her own… Thank you, Diane, for reminding us that authenticity never goes out of fashion.”

Elizabeth Banks: “She was beloved in her industry. Every one of us idolizes her. Her influence on culture, fashion, art and women can’t be overstated. She was a delight. I am proud I have a career that allowed me to meet her and breathe her air.”

Viola Davis: “No!! No!!! No!! God, not yet, NO!!! Man… you defined womanhood. The pathos, humor, levity, your ever-present youthfulness and vulnerability — you tattooed your SOUL into every role, making it impossible to imagine anyone else inhabiting them. You were undeniably, unapologetically YOU!!! Loved you. Man… rest well. God bless your family, and I know angels are flying you home”