This Morning returned to screens today after it was pulled from air
This Morning returned to screens(Image: ITV)
This Morning returned to screens today after it was suddenly pulled off air yesterday.
Ben Shephard and Cat Deeley addressed the chaos that took place on Wednesday, which resulted in This Morning being removed from the schedule altogether.
Cat said: “Hello there and welcome to your Thursday’s This Morning. Back up and running, someone’s stuck 50p in the meter, we are all good to go.”
Ben added: “There was a power cut across the whole of Covent Garden apparently, which meant that we weren’t on air. But despite that, your hair is looking rather lovely this week.”
He added: “Even when there’s a power cut, you still get our hair done”, as Cat replied: “There was one lamp working so we did it by lamp light, the water was still working at that point.”
Ben later commented: “Thank you to the team that managed to get everything back up and running again because it was a lot of hard work. But fingers crossed we are fully charged and ready to go.”
It comes after ITV was plunged into chaos yesterday (Wednesday, November 4) following an unexpected event which led to a last-minute scheduling change.
Three popular daytime programmes, Lorraine, This Morning and Loose Women, were pulled off air shortly before they were due to begin as ITV viewers were left confused.
Due to a power outage at ITV’s central London studio, Lorraine was the first show to be pulled off air, with Good Morning Britain hosts Susanna Reid and Ed Balls confirming the news on their live show.
As a result, GMB was extended until 10am. However, in further disruption, This Morning was then pulled from TV schedules, instead airing a pre-recorded best bits programme, followed by Loose Women also being pulled.
At the time, ITV issued a statement on social media, with the programmes expected to be back to their normal scheduling today (Thursday, November 5).
They wrote: “Following a power cut overnight in the wider area where our Covent Garden studio is based, we are unable to broadcast Lorraine, This Morning and Loose Women live today. We will return to our normal schedule as soon as possible.”
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EXCLUSIVE Strictly judge Anton Du Beke says a big name is ready to leave the hit BBC One Dance show saying, ‘It’s getting a bit much.’
The Strictly judges scoring another dance.(Image: PA Wire)
Anton Du Beke has shocked Strictly Come Dancing fans by revealing a big name star is looking to waltz away from the BBC series for good.
The former pro dancer who is now an established judge on the series, revealed that one famous face on the show has already spoken to him about potentially leaving at the end of the 2026 series. His comments, as he promoted his new memoir Steps In Time, are sure to start a guessing game amongst fans.
Speaking on stage in Bath, Anton, 60, said: “I spoke to somebody the other day and they were like ‘It’s getting a bit much’.
“It’s somebody who’s been on it not that long, a little while, and I understood that. I thought about it for a while and I wondered if they will be on it or whether they will decide to step away or carry on.”
The comments could refer to a number of the new pro dancers or the new show hosts, Emma Willis, Josh Widdicombe and Johannes Radebe, who only joined this year.
There have also been reports than judge Shirley Ballas may consider walking away from the UK version of the show if she landed a full time role on US series Dancing With The Stars. She was recently a guest judge on the series but insisted in an interview last month she was “100 percent not leaving Strictly”.
Anton is not seemingly referring fellow judge Craig Revel Horwood, as the pair still love being on the show and are veterans having been on the series since it began in 2004. On his love for Strictly, Anton said: “I was there from Day One. Craig and I, we are the only ones left. I am so proud of that. It is one of my greatest things.
“I am so proud to have been on the show since the beginning and still loving it as well. I love it as much now as I always have. It is the most brilliant show. I love being a judge. I loved being a professional.
Referring to the late great former host Bruce Forsyth, he added: “I loved working with Brucie. He was my hero growing up. Brucie would come out and do his own warm up and I used to stand in the wings and watch him before the show began. I watched him every week for about 15 years. He was a genius.”
Anton was speaking at the Bath Forum to promote his book Steps In Time, his first memoir. The book, which is released tomorrow, is described by publishers as a “coming-of-age story” which reflects on Anton’s youth, and his rise as a pro dancer before then joining Strictly and becoming a TV star.
He left school as a teenager with no qualifications and took on a variety of jobs to pay for dance classes. after competing as a pro he then hit the bigtime when he landed a spot on Strictly. Once there he danced with celebrities including Kate Garraway, Ruth Langsford, Jerry Hall, Judy Murray and the late Ann Widdecombe.
* Steps In Time by Anton Du Beke is out on November 5 from Blink Publishing.
The line-up for the quarter finals was confirmed during the latest episode on Tuesday, November 3 following a decision by the judges. Paul Hollywood and Nigella Lawson were once again on hand to provide comments and criticism as they chose who should make it as part of the final five contestants.
The competition entered its seventh week as the pressure mounted on the remaining contenders. Hosted by Noel Fielding and Alison Hammond, the bakers were first challenged in the signature to serve up gluten-free, dairy-free or vegan delicacies in what was dubbed ‘party week’.
This task aimed to prove that different foods can still be full of flavour, despite any special dietary requirements. The first challenge saw them make “delicious gluten free laminated pastries, perfect for a children’s party”.
One effort, Mo’s toastie parcels, even received a handshake from Paul Hollywood. Nigella added: “I salute Paul saluting you.” While for the technical challenge was set by Nigella.
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They were made to use some ingredients they may not have expected as Alison explained the judges wanted them to create an “adorable animal cake”. Essentially a plant-based chocolate cake, Noel added it had to include ganache and butter cream, while they had to go for a lucky dip to decide which design they would have to create.
Tom, who was star baker last week, came out on top again. Nigella commented: “Oh, it’s getting quite boring.” All that was left was the showstopper, which saw the bakers make a “spectacular children’s birthday cake”.
It had to be either dairy free, gluten free, or plant based and also have an interactive element. Although they could choose their type of sponge and flavours.
While Gabe was named star baker for his bug party cake, Paul and Nigella ultimately chose to send home Gary. The 67-year-old from Nottinghamshire said an emotional goodbye before leaving the tent as they responded: “No worries.”
The retired garment technologist added: “I’m very proud. It was my time to go. This was probably one of the best experiences I’ve had in my life.” That means, the quarter-final line-up includes: Connie Lewis, Gabe Capes, Mo Mahirr, Moyin Odeniran and Tom Whittaker.
Channel 4 viewers watching along at home wasted no time before sharing their own view on the results and latest elimination. One posted on social media: “Gutted for Gary going to miss him but i’m glad Connie got through.”
Another added: “Much as I love Connie, Gary’s showstopper was much better. Totally unfair.” While someone else replied:”So happy for Gabe!! I did think it was Gary’s time but he was a lovely guy.”
Meanwhile, some dedicated fans had similar complaints as previous weeks as they were unconvinced with the nature of some challenges. One person said: “Hate to say it but some of the themes for bake off this series have been questionable.” Someone agreed: “Nahhh two cakes in a non cake week is boring.”
The Great British Bake Off continues next Tuesday at 8pm on Channel 4 and streaming online.
There are many metrics by which to measure the success of “Oh, Mary!,” the Tony Award-winning play that has taken the stage by storm. And here’s a new one: Effusive hype and high ticket demand has resulted in Center Theatre Group booking the show for its 2028 60th anniversary season even before its national touring production hits the Ahmanson Theatre on Nov. 10.
As evidenced by Tuesday’s announcement, the current tour, starring drag queen Alaska Thunderf— is set to arrive in L.A. next week with sky-high expectations. Ironically, director Sam Pinkleton originally resisted the idea of a tour, feeling the show might lose some of its charm on the road.
“I was convinced it was a bad idea,” Pinkleton said with a laugh during a recent interview. “But when we went to Broadway, I also thought that was a terrible idea, and I was absolutely wrong.” The director was originally concerned the scrappy little show with a cast of five wouldn’t play as well in larger houses. “But seeing how well it works on Broadway, I think it’s actually better than in the small room. It’s not a play I would call subtle; it really fills a room. So that gave me a lot of confidence about a national tour.”
Written by and originally starring Cole Escola, “Oh, Mary!” is a revisionist take on former First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln’s life in the days leading to Abraham Lincoln’s assassination. Historical accuracy be damned, the show presents Mary as a wannabe star repressed by her closeted husband. Premiering off-Broadway in February 2024 and set to run six weeks, the show was given multiple extensions before transferring to Broadway, where it won Tony Awards for Escola’s performance and Pinkleton’s directing. Escola was also a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in drama that same year.
Cole Escola and James Scully in “Oh, Mary!” on Broadway. Many actors have since taken on the role of Mary Todd Lincoln.
(Emilio Madrid)
But “Oh, Mary!” has achieved much more than gold statues and box office receipts — it’s a genuine pop-culture phenomenon, a familiar meme and a show beloved by seemingly all demographics.
“I think a turning point was early in the run when Steven Spielberg, Tony Kushner and Sally Field all came together,” Pinkleton said. “We were all like, ‘What is happening?’”
Other notable audience members, including Madonna and Michelle Obama, followed, while actors such as Maya Rudolph, Bowen Yang and Tituss Burgess signed up to don Mary’s ringlet wig as the Broadway run stretched on. “It’s wild to think that tonight, you can see it in three different places,” says Pinkleton, referring to the productions in New York, London and the national tour.
If the tour’s leading lady is feeling any pressure, she’s not showing it. Alaska admits that even she was skeptical of the show’s advance hype. “I kept hearing, ‘Oh, you have to see this play, this play is so good,’” she recalled during a Zoom interview from the show’s San Francisco stop. “And I thought, ‘How good can a play be? What is everyone talking about?’”
But the moment she saw it, she understood. “I was immediately enamored, I was hooked.”
“Oh, Mary!” star Alaska says the show feels written for her, even thought she knows it’s not.
(Gabriela Hasbun / For The Times)
When it came time to cast the tour, Pinkleton immediately thought of Alaska, known to most audiences as the winner of the second season of “RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars.” Pinkleton had worked with her before, most notably in the 2021 production of the Go-Go’s musical “Head Over Heels” at the Pasadena Playhouse. “I knew for a fact that Alaska could do this in her sleep,” he said. “As the kids say, I have receipts. She’s the real thing and she was made for this.”
Following an early Zoom work session, Alaska was on board. “I feel like it was written for me, but I know it wasn’t,” she said. “And that’s a testament to Cole writing something very true and anchored in real emotion. I think anyone who has ever felt underestimated or misunderstood or overlooked can really identify with this role.”
In many ways, the joy of playing Mary is that different actors bring different aspects and personality nuances to the role. “It’s a big, juicy part that works in the hands of radically different people,” Pinkleton said.
Asked what she feels she brings to the role, Alaska said she didn’t go in thinking about how to make it her own. “I really just approached it truthfully,” she said, noting that while the show is a comedy, the circumstances Mary finds herself in are genuinely tragic, and she wanted to be true to that. “This isn’t jokey to me — it’s really serious, intense and high-stakes. I wanted to do it like an Ibsen play or Shakespeare.”
The show doesn’t play like a tragedy, however. It’s a roller coaster ride from the start, and Pinkleton said he always wants the audience to have a great time.
“Oh, Mary!” star Alaska puts on makeup backstage at the Curran Theatre during the San Francisco stop of the show’s national tour.
(Gabriela Hasbun / For The Times)
“I know there’s a lot of amazing theater being made about various traumas, but I can only control my corner of things and I just feel that most of us have had a bad day in one way or another,” he said. “And it would be awesome if our time at the theater was joyous. And I take that really, really seriously.”
Both director and star are well aware of the expectations that come with a show so beloved and discussed. “I try not to think about it,” said Alaska. “I just trust in the show being so beautifully constructed and it truly has something for everyone, whoever you are.”
For his part, Pinkleton said with a laugh, “There’s definitely some element for me of, ‘Like, it’s just a play, calm down.’” But part of maintaining its heart and charm is remembering that at its core, “it’s kind of a small operation.”
“It was made with a really hands-on approach by a very small group of people who cared a lot and that spirit has remained even as we’ve scaled it up,” Pinkleton said. It hasn’t been easy work; Pinkleton credits several people for their contributions, particularly the tour’s associate director Sunny Min-Sook Hitt, who occupied the same role during the original production. “It’s taken a lot of worthwhile work to keep it what it is. There’s just not a world where ‘Oh, Mary!’ can turn into ‘Jersey Boys,’” Pinkleton said. The national tour is already selling out houses across the country and receiving a rapturous response. “Every night has a different energy and the audience is definitely a part of the show,” Alaska said. “In San Diego, we were in a 3,000-person theater, we’ve never played one that size. It felt like the stadium version of ‘Oh, Mary!’”
Pinkleton said he makes “a lot of big, gay shows” and people have asked him how he thinks “Oh, Mary!” will play in smaller cities. “Honestly, I was a weird, loud, gay kid in Richmond, Virginia, and I’m excited to bring it to places that might not get this kind of thing,” he noted. And sometimes silly comedies can be the most meaningful, particularly to marginalized communities. “It’s meaningful that there will be some people for whom ‘Oh, Mary!’ is also a kind of a life raft.”
‘Oh, Mary!’
Where: Ahmanson Theatre, 135 N. Grand Ave., Los Angeles
When: Nov. 10 to Dec. 6. Check website for days and times.
Angel City and “Ted Lasso” both came to life in the summer of 2020 when the rest of the world was preoccupied with something far more serious, the global COVID-19 pandemic.
Angel City, meanwhile, would play its first NWSL game two years later, by which time “Lasso” and Jason Sudeikis, the title character of the Apple TV series about a fictional Premier League team and its manager, had already won multiple Emmys.
Hollywood is a small town, so it wasn’t long before Sudeikis reached out to Kara Nortman, a venture capitalist who co-founded Angel City in 2020, and asked to talk about women’s soccer.
Angel City co-founders Natalie Portman, left, Kara Nortman and Julie Uhrman speak during the team’s equity summit in Australia during the 2023 Women’s World Cup.
(Hanna Lassen / Getty Images)
“And I was like, ‘You had me at hello,’” Nortman said.
What was supposed to be an hour-long phone call turned into four-hour meeting in person, Nortman said.
“The most fun conversation I’ve had in a long time,” she remembered last month. “It really started as a shared passion and interest in women’s sports and building communities and new leadership models and all the things that ‘Ted Lasso’ is about that are far beyond football.”
What the conversation led to was the foundation for the just-completed fourth season of “Ted Lasso,” which focused on the unique challenges faced by women’s soccer teams and players — challenges Nortman knows only too well as the co-owner of a team. That’s why she was credited as a consultant on the series.
And the collaboration comes at a time when the soccer team and the soccer TV series are both at the top of their game, with “Lasso” drawing record audience numbers this summer and Angel City advancing to this weekend’s NWSL playoff quarterfinals after the most successful season in its history.
“They could have continued writing about the men’s team,” Nortman said. “They chose to write about women’s football.
“I’m super proud that we were part of what helped them really understand how to write a beautiful script that was really representative of a lot of challenges we went through.”
The challenges go beyond just salaries, media attention and funding to things as serious as child care and the rash of ACL injuries in the women’s game and as frustrating as hand-me-down uniforms and locker rooms. In “Ted Lasso,” the women’s team Sudeikis coaches — a man coaching women? That topic is addressed, too — uses a dressing room abandoned by a men’s team, one with urinals but without enough working showers.
Angel City captain Sarah Gorden dribbles the ball in front of Boston Legacy’s Sarah Schupansky at Dignity Health Sports Park on Sunday.
(Katelyn Mulcahy / Getty Images)
One player nearly misses a game because she can’t find a babysitter, something that really happened to Angel City captain Sarah Gorden. Another player is recognized by a fan while working for a food-delivery company to supplement her tiny soccer salary, something that really happened to English star Lucy Bronze in her early playing days.
For many viewers, the “Ted Lasso” plot lines were their introduction to those real-life issues.
“The vibe of authenticity,” Nortman calls it.
“They got right the ACLs, they got right the locker-room dynamic, they got right the training facility,” she said. “I think they got all those things right.”
Sudeikis and Brendan Hunt, the creative geniuses behind “Ted Lasso,” declined to be interviewed for this story, as did everyone involved with the series. But Sudeikis has long denied the show is about soccer.
“This show is as much about soccer as ‘Rocky’ is about boxing,” said Sudeikis, who described the eponymous title character as a cross between John Wooden and Mister Rogers.
Actors Jason Sudeikis, center, and Tanya Reynolds, right, lead a professional women’s soccer team through authentic challenges during the fourth season of “Ted Lasso.”
(Colin Hutton / Apple TV)
But the series has always had soccer in it. So it was natural that Sudeikis and Hunt, who both have long supported women’s sports, would turn their massive spotlight on women’s soccer and bring attention to the glaring inequalities that had slowed the development of the game.
And Nortman wasn’t the only one from NWSL to join that cause. The “Lasso” season opener, shot largely in Kansas City, Mo., was a paean to that city’s women’s soccer team, the Current, and its stadium, where the team has sold out every game over the last three seasons and is unbeaten in its last 32 matches there. (Angel City opens the playoffs in Kansas City on Saturday.)
The synergy helped both sides, with “Lasso” shattering viewership records, trailing only Amazon Prime Video’s “Reacher” as the most-streamed series overall in September, while NWSL’s viewership numbers through the first half of the season jumped 61% on ABC and ESPN. The average season attendance of 11,032 was the second-highest in history.
“Once we knew that Jason and the cast were going to feature a season about women’s soccer and start that season at one of our stadiums with one of our teams, the authenticity with that just lent itself to doing an integration,” said Jennifer Levine, the league’s vice president for public relations and communications.
Kansas City Current fans cheer during the team’s first match at CPKC Stadium in 2024. It is the first stadium built solely for a pro women’s soccer team and was featured in the latest season of “Ted Lasso.”
(Jamie Squire / Getty Images)
“There was a lot of crossover between what they were doing and what we’re doing. So it kind of created a perfect storm for us. Being a part of the cultural conversation as part of ‘Ted Lasso’ will only add to the excitement around the NWSL.”
But will it solve the problems and level the inequities that continue to plague women’s soccer?
“I like to hope it helps,” Levine said. “They have been honest. … I think the writing team and the cast did an incredible job portraying what it’s like to be a women’s footballer.
“Everything that we’re doing at the league with investing in infrastructure and building more purpose-built stadiums and building training facilities, it’s all to improve the experience that viewers are seeing in ‘Ted Lasso.’”
Or as Sudeikis’ character once put it, “doing the right thing is never the wrong thing.”
⚽ You have read the latest installment of On Soccer with Kevin Baxter. The weekly column takes you behind the scenes and shines a spotlight on unique stories. Listen to Baxter on this week’s episode of the “Corner of the Galaxy” podcast.
I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! is soon back on our screens and many fans of the ITV show all had the same remark after claims that the ‘full 2026 line-up has been revealed’
I’m A Celeb is set to return to screens on November 16(Image: James Gourley/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)
Fans of I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! will be delighted to learn the show returns to ITV on Monday, 16 November 2026, with Ant & Dec reprising their roles as presenters. The I’m A Celebrity line-up is typically kept tightly under wraps until launch, but according to The Sun, this year’s cast has now been disclosed.
The publication claims the 12 celebrities taking part this year are Big Brother presenter AJ Odudu, former footballer and pundit Wayne Rooney, model Leomie Anderson, actress Claire Sweeney, comedian Leigh Francis, Love Island star Chloe Burrows, Kaiser Chiefs frontman Ricky Wilson, Gavin and Stacey’s Joanna Page, TV presenter Ade Adepitan, YouTuber Sharky, journalist Mariella Frostrop and comedian Jack Skipper.
Despite The Sun’s claims, show bosses say the line-up is “just speculation” and that the official announcement about this year’s I’m A Celebrity campmates will come closer to the show’s launch.
As the line-up claims circulated on X, numerous fans of the show has the same remark – suggesting that producers had ‘blown the budget’ on Rooney, 41, as they were unfamiliar with many of the other celebrities.
One wrote: “Just say it, they blew the budget on Rooney.”
While another added: “So in other words they’ve spent the full budget on Wayne Rooney and had to skimp out on the rest.”
A third chimed in: “Couldn’t name a single person other than Rooney.”
While another added: “Wayne Rooney and a bunch of Z-listers.”
Despite such remarks, AJ Odudu, Claire Sweeney, Leigh Francis, Ricky Wilson and Joanna Page are all familiar faces who have worked in the entertainment sector for years and have featured on some of Britain’s leading TV programmes.
Many fans said that they were backing Rooney to claim victory following his wife Coleen’s near-miss in 2024, when the 40-year-old finished as runner-up to McFly’s Danny Jones.
This year, Ade Adepitan will make history as the first campmate to use a wheelchair. Producers have adapted the jungle layout and camp walkways to ensure accessibility while maintaining the core rustic environment.
After gaming YouTuber Angry Ginge’s triumph in 2025, producers have recruited Beta Squad creator Sharky and stand-up comedian Jack Skipper to maintain appeal with digitally-native viewers.
The initial 12-strong lineup leaves space for the show’s traditional mid-series surprise arrivals. Speculation has already linked names including retired cricketer Ben Stokes and Mis-Teeq singer Su-Elise Nash.
Who has won I’m A Celebrity in the past?
Series 1 (2002) – Tony Blackburn
Series 2 (2003) – Phil Tufnell
Series 3 (2004 – early) – Kerry Katona
Series 4 (2004 – late) – Joe Pasquale
Series 5 (2005) – Carol Thatcher
Series 6 (2006) – Matt Willis
Series 7 (2007) – Christopher Biggins
Series 8 (2008) – Joe Swash
Series 9 (2009) – Gino D’Acampo
Series 10 (2010) – Stacey Solomon
Series 11 (2011) – Dougie Poynter
Series 12 (2012) – Charlie Brooks
Series 13 (2013) – Kian Egan
Series 14 (2014) – Carl ‘Foggy’ Fogarty
Series 15 (2015) – Vicky Pattison
Series 16 (2016) – Scarlett Moffatt
Series 17 (2017) – Georgia ‘Toff’ Toffolo
Series 18 (2018) – Harry Redknapp
Series 19 (2019) – Jacqueline Jossa
Series 20 (2020) – Giovanna Fletcher
Series 21 (2021) – Danny Miller
Series 22 (2022) – Jill Scott MBE
Series 23 (2023) – Sam Thompson
Series 24 (2024) – Danny Jones
Series 25 (2025) – Angry Ginge (Morgan Burtwistle)
I’m A Celebrity will begin on Monday 16th November at 9pm on ITV1 and ITVX.
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With nine new players on the roster still working on maximizing their on-court chemistry, the Lakers are taking a patient approach to the start of the NBA season.
For now, it looks as if they’re fine with following Luka Doncic‘s lead.
The Lakers’ star had another sensational performance, finishing with 45 points in a 131-125 victory over the Toronto Raptors at Crypto.com Arena on Sunday night.
Doncic was key in helping the Lakers build a 26-point lead in the third quarter. He shot 12 for 23 on the night, going eight for 12 from three-point range. He made all of his 13 free throws and also had 15 rebounds, six assists and five steals.
Not bad for 35 minutes of work on Doncic bobblehead giveaway night.
And his teammates did follow his lead, with Austin Reaves collecting 19 points and Walker Kessler producing a double-double with 16 points on six-for-six shooting and 15 rebounds to go along with three blocks. Collin Sexton came off the bench to score 14 points. Rookie Cameron Carr played his first game of the season, but he didn’t score.
The Lakers were sloppy with the basketball, turning it over 22 times. Scottie Barnes finished with 29 points and six rebounds for Toronto (3-3).
In the eyes of Lakers coach JJ Redick, each game the Lakers (5-2) play is a step in a process aimed at becoming a championship-contending team.
“Frankly, this entire season is about becoming a great team,” Redick said. “Like, we believe we can become a great team and I think as coaches, players, we all have to participate in patience with that. Doesn’t mean you allow things to happen and say, ‘Oh, that’s fine. That’s OK.’ No. No. No. You address those things. I think the guys are very, very open to that dialogue, both with each other and with the coaching staff.”
Lakers star Luka Doncic prevents the ball from going out of bounds in front of Toronto forward Scottie Barnes during the first half Sunday at Crypto.com Arena.
(Scott Strazzante / Associated Press)
Doncic is certainly doing his part to bring a championship mood to L.A. He made a three-pointer with 0.5 seconds left before halftime to give the Lakers a 66-54 lead. He blew a kiss to the fans and waved his hand toward them, prompting cheers from the crowd.
The Lakers play the Miami Heat at home Monday night.
Injury update
Ziaire Williams missed his third consecutive game, but Redick said a scan on the forward’s ailing left foot was “clean.”
“I would describe it [as] soreness that just pops up in the morning and he’s feeling a lot better,” Redick said. “I think just being, again, cautious with the back to back.”
FOLLOWING his dramatic eviction from the Big Brother house on Friday, Philip Regan was a no-show on spin-off The Group Chat.
The sister series, hosted by Kate Lawler and GK Barry, welcomes freshly-evicted housemates to dissect their time in the house.
Following his dramatic eviction from the Big Brother house on Friday, Philip Regan was a no-show on spin-off The Group ChatCredit: Shutterstock EditorialThe sister series, hosted by Kate Lawler and GK Barry, welcomes freshly-evicted housemates to dissect their time in the houseCredit: ITV
But Philip was not featured on the latest instalment, having last been seen during the brutal double eviction on Friday, which descended into chaos as he furiously turned on the heckling crowd during his exit interview.
Fellow evictee Rhianna Collins appeared solo, as did house guest Tiffany Pollard; yet Philip was absent, with the hosts saying he “is needed at home with his family.”
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On Friday night, the Liverpudlian housemate was met with a barrage of boos after being booted out of the ITV2 house ahead of Rhianna.
When Philip sat down with hosts AJ Odudu and Will Best for his exit chat, things got spicier, with audience members continuing to shout and jeer throughout the interview.
Philip was last seen during the brutal double eviction on Friday, which descended into chaos as he furiously turned on the heckling crowd during his exit interviewCredit: Shutterstock EditorialHouse guest Tiffany Pollard featured on the spin-off, but Philip was absentCredit: ITVWhen Philip sat down with hosts AJ Odudu and Will Best for his exit chat, things got spicier, with audience members continuing to shout and jeer throughout the interviewCredit: itvThe evicted star was left fuming after discovering that fellow housemate Rochelle had nominated him, before hitting back at the audienceCredit: Shutterstock Editorial
The evicted star was left fuming after discovering that fellow housemate Rochelle had nominated him, before hitting back at the audience, declaring: “It’s a game, we signed up for it and you know what, I bet every one of you wish you could have been in there. I lived it.”
As the crowd erupted into boos, Philip shouted “Hang on!” and attempted to quieten the hecklers.
The drama continued when he was questioned about his explosive bust-ups with Celebrity Big Brother legend Tiffany, snapping: “She came for me, she’s been paid to come for me.”
He added: “I’m proud, no matter what anyone thinks, it was hard work.”
Philip then turned his attention to fellow housemate Twinks, admitting he initially disliked her because he felt she expected everyone to approach her when she first entered the house.
Defending his attitude, he insisted “it’s our house”, prompting the audience to chant back: “It’s Big Brother’s house!”
Clearly irritated, Philip fired back “oh alright love, you’ve had your five minutes,” sparking yet more boos.
He then declared: “It is what it is, I can’t be arsed talking about it. It’s all about me.”
WHEN crusading journalist Chris Hansen told his guests to “have a seat” they really did need to sit down – because they were men who’d been caught discussing having sex with children.
His hit US TV show To Catch a Predator spawned hundreds of copycats across the globe, where online vigilante groups snare alleged paedophiles in similar stings.
Robert Pattinson as Chris Hansen in PrimetimeCredit: PAChris Hansen confronting a man who stripped naked thinking he was meeting a 13-year-oldCredit: FX Channel
Now Hansen is considering suing Robert Pattinson for the way the British actor has portrayed him in a controversial new movie called Primetime.
That’s because the Batman star’s Oscar-tipped film makes the reporter, who confronted potential child sex offenders in front of the cameras, the bad guy rather than the abusers his ground-breaking program exposed.
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In the mid-2000s Hansen’s show To Catch a Predator worked with law enforcement and an online vigilante group to reveal the depraved men thinking of having sex with under 16s.
Nearly 200 men were arrested, including an agent for the Department of Homeland Security, a teacher and a firefighter.
The NBC show ended in 2007 after a district attorney with an interest in teenage boys shot himself before Hansen could quiz him.
To many predator hunters Hansen is a hero.
But Batman star Pattinson depicts the 67-year-old journalist as an ego driven prima donna chiefly interested in ratings and getting To Catch a Predator onto prime time telly.
Emmy award winner Hansen, who is still bringing alleged child abusers to book on a different show, is angry about Primetime, which is in UK cinemas now.
He raged: “I think it’s an insult to the thousands of men and women who work hard every day to protect children from predators.
“They turn something that is very positive, very challenging and not without risk into what is essentially a horror film.
“I guess it’s not surprising that a Hollywood studio would act in such an exploitative or predatory manner.
“We’re talking about an industry that was led by perhaps one of the biggest predators to walk the planet, Harvey Weinstein.”
In 2004 when To Catch a Predator set its first trap, Hansen didn’t even know if any child abusers would fall into it.
Back then social media was still in its infancy, with Facebook only available to university students.
But an US online vigilante group called Perverted Justice realised that depraved men were using chat rooms on sites such as AOL and Yahoo to contact minors.
Hansen decided to link up with them to expose this danger.
Perverted Justice used adult males and females who looked like children to set up profiles as under 15s in the chat rooms.
They then waited for the men to make the first move, with many of the digital deviants quickly sending explicit questions.
Chris Hansen in the documentary PredatorsCredit: Paramount +Chris Hansen with his first wife Mary Joan in 2007Credit: Getty
Perverted Justice’s decoys strung them along, hoping they would ask to visit them.
Rather than going to the ‘children’s’ homes, though, they were turning up at a suburban house filled with hidden cameras.
The decoy greeted them at the door, led them to the kitchen and made an excuse to leave the room.
At that point Hansen would walk in and ask them to “have a seat.”
He recalled: “In the first investigation, we didn’t know what was going to happen. We had partnered with Perverted Justice and I didn’t know if we were going to get anybody showing up.
“Yet, there we were over two and a half days in Long Island and 17 guys surfaced, including a New York City firefighter.”
Even more potential sex offenders turned up for the next sting in the capital Washington DC.
One of them was rabbi David Kaye, who was later jailed for six and a half years for trying to solicit sex from a 13-year-old boy over the internet.
Chris made his name by hunting down potential paedophilesCredit: GettyHe would then film the police stingCredit: Paramount +
Wishing to make sure more of these men were brought to book, the NBC show teamed up with the police.
Cops in Harris County, Texas were waiting to arrest the men after Hansen confronted them in 2006.
This was dangerous work for all involved, because two of the alleged offenders were serving soldiers.
When one of the men did a runner he was tasered.
Hansen was praised in Congress for his work, with the show leading the House of Representatives to investigate the threat of online predators.
As To Catch a Predator’s ratings climbed and climbed, human rights lawyers started to question its ethics.
In many parts of the US it was an offence to attempt to entice a minor to have sex, but there were suggestions of entrapment.
There were calls for catching criminals to be left to the professionals.
That’s exactly what Hansen’s show appeared to do when Perverted Justice realised that Texan prosecutor Bill Conradt was the man messaging someone pretending to be aged 13.
When Conradt wouldn’t go to the To Catch a Predator house in Murphy, Texas in November 2006 the police chief decided to go to him.
District Attorney Bill Conradt shot himself as cops and host Chris Hansen raided his homeCredit: Paramount +Armed police about to enter Conradt’s home in 2006Credit: Paramount +
With Hansen’s TV crew following them, the armed officers smashed their way into his home.
But when they arrived Conradt shot himself dead.
The prosecutor’s relatives sued NBC, winning a £75million out of court settlement.
Charges against 23 other men in Murphy, Texas were dropped because the online chats had not taken place in the county.
To Catch a Predator was scrapped.
It is the build up to Conradt’s death that forms the tense finale to Primetime, which has been a hit at the US box office.
It depicts Hansen as desperate to snare the powerful district attorney at all costs.
Pattinson’s version of the veteran journalist sneers, snarls and shouts at his team.
Variety magazine described the actor’s portrait of Hansen “as a horror villain” and Hansen thinks it is “unhinged.”
Primetime shows little interest in the sex offenders and focuses more on the journalist’s alleged affair with a younger woman.
In 2011 the paparazzi caught the married father-of-two meeting TV news reporter Kristyn Caddell, who was 21 years his junior.
Hansen denied cheating on his wife Mary Joan, who divorced him seven years later.
He has talked about suing the film’s producers, which include Pattinson, but isn’t keen to get caught up in a legal case.
The actor defended his movie, commenting: “The fact that people are still discussing the ethics of it, of a 20-year-old TV show, it’s absolutely insane.”
Robert Pattinson in PrimetimeCredit: AlamyAcademic Mark de Rond joined UK vigilantes trying to catch child sex offendersCredit: Damien McFadden
The reason the ethics of To Catch a Predator are being discussed so keenly is that predator hunting is even more relevant today than it was two decades ago.
According to the children’s charity the NSPCC over 9,000 child sex abuse offences in the UK a year “involved an online element.”
Hansen continues to name and shame such offenders on an online TV channel called TruBlu.
It is estimated that 140 vigilante groups in the UK are also trying to snare paedophiles online.
Cambridge University academic Mark de Rond, who last year appeared in a documentary titled Predators about the impact of Hansen’s show, spent time working with these secretive organisations.
He questions the way that To Catch a Predator “commercialised” the “public humiliation” of the men the show caught.
But he defends the groups which are trying to expose online sexual offenders, telling The Sun: “Paedophilia is a crime, it’s kind of the lowest of the low and it’s the kind of crime that really almost any means can justify when you are trying to stop it.
”Because what can be more important to keep a kid safe?”
That, though, is not the perspective of Primetime.
Near the end of the film, Pattinson says to one of his doubters “your definition of bad and my definition of bad are vastly different.”
Many cinemagoers watching the movie are likely to think the same thing, but for different reasons.
Just in time for next week’s midterms, Brooklyn-based artist Phil Buehler has unveiled another one of his series of public art installations critiquing modern politics on a stretch of chain link fence between a coffee shop and a bar in Bushwick. The 50-foot-long, 10-foot-high piece, “Wall of Crazy,” features 1,516 of President Trump’s social media posts — selected from more than 70,000 — and arranged chronologically, with color-coded statement categories aligning with the American Psychiatric Assn.‘s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fifth edition.
These include: social-emotional incongruity (“Happy Thanksgiving to all including the racist and incompetent Attorney General of New York State”); divine favor/ magical thinking (an AI photo of Trump seated beside Jesus Christ in court); catastrophizing (“This miscarriage of justice will destroy America if they don’t change their absolutely insane decision”); contradictions and reversals (a 2019 post calling Atty. Gen. Bill Barr “fair and reasonable” vs. a 2023 post calling him “dumb, weak, slow moving, lethargic, gutless and lazy”); hostility, humiliation and threats (calling Tucker Carlson a “very low IQ individual. He could barely get out of college and maybe he didn’t.”); grandiosity (“I am far healthier than Clinton, Bush, Obama, Biden, but especially, Kamala”); extraordinary and implausible claims (“The U.S.A. is locked and loaded and ready to go against the Islamic Republic of Iran at levels of military strength and power not seen since World War II”); persecution and victimhood (“Only 25 percent want the president impeached, which is pretty low considering the volume of fake news coverage, but pretty high considering the fact that I did nothing wrong”); and conspiracy thinking (“Wayne County (Detroit) Michigan is one of the most corrupt voting areas in the United States, if not the world”).
In a recent phone interview, Buehler said he made the wall over a period of months beginning in July, using his day-job background in market research and data analysis and statistics to search for patterns in large amounts of data in order to distill it down to something simple. Buehler’s first foray into making a wall of public art came in 2020 with the “Wall of Lies,” which documented more than 20,000 false or misleading claims made by Trump.
A detail shot of the “Wall of Crazy” by Brooklyn-based artist Phil Buehler, featuring 1,516 of Donald Trump’s social media posts.
(Photo from Phil Buehler)
At that time, he said, he was struck by the massive volume of falsehoods. “I wanted to dramatize that in a way that brought the sheer scale of it to life,” he said, noting that the same objective holds true for the “Wall of Crazy.” People have known that Trump tells lies since the 2020 presidential election, Buehler said, adding that it’s a story that is continuously told and has simply become part of the daily news cycle that people move on from.
“Making something into a public artwork brings it back into that cycle because I think it comes into people’s heads in a different way,” Buehler said. Plus, because it’s sandwiched between a coffee shop and a bar, it gets both the thinking morning crowd and the more raucous and celebratory evening crowd. The piece, which is being presented by the independent community radio station Radio Free Brooklyn, has been up for about two days, but will be officially unveiled during a modest neighborhood ceremony today at noon EDT.
“The scale of it is important,” Buehler said. “By attracting your eye and attention and then allowing you to walk up to it and read … Trump’s posts.”
In photos Buehler shared, people are doing just that. Some pass by quickly, others stay immersed for quite some time.
The “Wall of Crazy” is the fifth such collaboration between Buehler and Radio Free Brooklyn. After the “Wall of Lies” came the “Wall of Liars and Deniers” (2022), “featuring 381 Republican election-denying candidates”; then the “Wall of Shame” (2025), “documenting 1,575 January 6 defendants pardoned by Trump”; and “Wall of Tears” (2026), “memorializing 18,457 children documented killed in Gaza.”
The “Wall of Lies” was extensively vandalized by Proud Boy protesters, but the others have been mostly left alone, Buehler said.
“The Wall of Crazy shows how Buehler and Radio Free Brooklyn use public art to spotlight our political climate. Calling out the inflammatory, incoherent, divisive and obscene rhetoric under this administration is critical to democracy,” said Orie Givens, president of the Radio Free Brooklyn Board, in a news release. “Like earlier walls, it captures our political culture and urges action before Election Day: voters can change the country’s direction. And it shows why we must support free media — especially independent outlets — that expose this administration’s actions and impact nationwide.”
I’m Arts editor Jessica Gelt, wishing us all a peaceful and sane midterm election and a Happy Halloween. This is your arts and culture news for the week.
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The week ahead: A curated calendar
FRIDAY
Singer Lila Downs.
(Berenice Bautista / AP Photo)
Lila Downs The singer blends Mexican tradition with jazz, cumbia, folk and contemporary rhythms in a celebration of Día de Muertos, featuring Ballet Folklórico de Los Ángeles and songs from Downs’ new album “Cambias mi Mundo.” 8 p.m. Walt Disney Concert Hall, 111 S. Grand Ave., downtown L.A. laphil.com
Hercules vs. Vampires LA Opera presents a musical reimagining of Mario Bava’s 1961 cult film “Hercules in the Haunted World,” starring Reg Park and Christopher Lee, with an original score by Patrick Morganelli, conducted by Blair Salter. 8 p.m. Friday-Saturday. United Theater on Broadway, 929 S Broadway, downtown L.A. laopera.org
Kiki Smith “Untethered Journey,” the artist’s first solo show in L.A. in 30 years, includes historical and recent works. Opening reception, 6-8 p.m. Friday; exhibit continues through Jan. 23. Jeffrey Deitch, 925 N. Orange Drive. deitch.com
SATURDAY
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Organist Brett Valliant performs the score live with John S. Robertson’s 1920 silent horror film starring John Barrymore. 3 p.m. Walt Disney Concert Hall, 111 S. Grand Ave., downtown L.A. laphil.com
Día de los Muertos Forest Lawn celebrates the Mexican holiday at four of its locations, with marigolds, handcrafted Catrina and alebrijes (spirit guide) artworks and brightly colored community ofrendas (altars), plus folklorico dance and mariachi music performances, arts & crafts, face painting, food and refreshments. A free family-friendly event. Noon-3 p.m. Sunday. Forest Lawn Covina Hills, 21300 Via Verde Drive, Covina, Forest Lawn Cypress, 4471 Lincoln Ave., and Forest Lawn Glendale, 1712 S. Glendale Ave.; 5-8 p.m. Monday. Forest Lawn Cathedral City, 69855 E. Ramon Road. forestlawn.com
Harriet Sansom Harris in “Werewolf by Night.”
(Marvel Studios)
Werewolf by Night & Headless Michael Giacchino hosts an evening featuring the premiere of “Headless,” a musical by the Academy Award-winning composer and collaborators Elyssa Samsel and Kate Anderson, based on “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” followed by a live-to-picture screening of his 2022 film “Werewolf by Night,” with Sarah Hicks conducting the Los Angeles Philharmonic. 8 p.m. Walt Disney Concert Hall, 111 S. Grand Ave., downtown L.A. laphil.com
SUNDAY
Building Bridges: The Master Chorale in Concert With the National Chorus of Korea Two world-class choral organizations team up for a cross-cultural program uniting more than 100 singers. 7 p.m. Walt Disney Concert Hall, 111 S. Grand Ave., downtown L.A. lamasterchorale.org
Family Fest: Día de los Muertos A free event featuring activities, festive music, dance and foods. 11 a.m.-2 p.m. The Wallis, 9390 N. Santa Monica Blvd, Beverly Hills. thewallis.org
TUESDAY
Singer Lyle Lovett.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
Lyle Lovett and His Small Large Band The four-time Grammy-winning Texan performs his greatest hits. 8 p.m. Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts, 18000 Park Plaza Drive. ccpa.cerritos.gov
WEDNESDAY
Daniel Passer direct “The Farce Awakens: Ferdeau x 2” at Odyssey Theatre Ensemble.
(Odyssey Theatre Ensemble)
The Farce Awakens: Feydeau x 2 Cirque du Soleil clown Daniel Passer directs “Going to Pot” and “Stark Naked,” two one-acts by Georges Feydeau. Through Jan. 17, 2027. Odyssey Theatre, 2055 South Sepulveda Blvd. odysseytheatre.com
The Laugh Track Playwright Wendy MacLeod’s comedy goes behind the scenes of “I Love Lucy,” the groundbreaking 1950s sitcom starring Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz. Directed by Brian Shnipper. Through Nov. 22. International City Theatre, 330 E. Seaside Way, Long Beach. ictlongbeach.org
The SoCal scene
The Endeavour shuttle is on display in launch position at the Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center in Exposition Park.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
ICYMI: The best of this week’s L.A. Times arts coverage.
Artist Barry McGee poses for a portrait at Jeffrey Deitch gallery.
(Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)
San Francisco artist Barry McGee is back in L.A. after February’s wild takeover of a 99 Cents Only Store. This time he’s staging a show called “Another Round” at Jeffrey Deitch gallery on Santa Monica Boulevard.
Branden Jacobs-Jenkins poses in the press room with the award for best revival of a play for “Appropriate” during the 77th Tony Awards.
(Evan Agostini / Invision / AP)
London’s Royal Court Theatre announced that playwright Branden Jacobs-Jenkins’ 2025 Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize-winning “Purpose,” directed by Phylicia Rashad, will launch its new season in January, marking the hugely successful Broadway show’s first staging outside of the U.S. (“Purpose” opens at Geffen Playhouse next month.)
During the latest edition of the ITV morning programme (October 30), Ranvir Singh and Paul Brand announced the death of Sir Patrick Stewart. The legendary Star Trek and stage actor died at his home in Los Angeles on Wednesday (October 28) at the age of 86, following a “brief and poignant journey” with Alzheimer’s and dementia.
Just moments into GMB, Ranvir said: “Sir Patrick Stewart, the star of everything from Star Trek to Shakespeare, has died at the age of 86. Born in Yorkshire, he conquered the world of acting.”
Ranvir went on: “I think there was a whole nation going, ‘Oh no,’ about Sir Patrick Stewart, what a giant of stage and screen. [He has] sadly died at the age of 86, following a short battle with dementia. Friends have paid tribute to the actor, calling him a titan of his craft.”
Paul added: “Sir Patrick’s talent saw him move effortlessly from performing Shakespeare, to delivering epic Hollywood performances, becoming one of the most loved performers of his generation.”
Philip Sime then looked back on Sir Patrick’s career in a pre-recorded segment. He began: “To millions around the world, he is Jean-Luc Picard, the calm and courageous commander of the USS Enterprise.”
Sir Patrick was born in Yorkshire, into a home marred by poverty and domestic abuse. Acting first on stage, then on screen, was his escape. He would go on to play Professor Charles Xavier in the blockbuster X-Men films, securing his position as one of Hollywood’s brightest stars.
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William Shatner said: “He brought intelligence, grace, and a deep sense of humanity to everything he did.” Hugh Jackman simply called the star “one of the greats of stage and screen”.
Philip went on: “Sir Patrick’s swansong, though, will be the upcoming Avengers film. One last appearance alongside a lifelong friend.”
Back in the studio, Ranvir said: “A remarkable man, an absolute hero… He was an ambassador for Women’s Refuge, because, of course, his mother suffered domestic abuse at the hands of watching his father attack his mother when he was young. He spoke about it so openly, and it definitely changed lives, especially for young boys growing up in those environments. So many people want to thank him this morning.”
GMB viewers were quick to pay tribute across social media, with one X user writing: “A Yorkshire legend who will be forever immortalised in Sci-fi, Shakespeare, and comics.” Another added: “Not just a sci-fi actor but brilliant comedy actor and his classical work would leave you breathless. I was SO affected by his role of Macbeth at Gielgud Theatre. I still have the framed poster on my living room wall.”
A third said: “I don’t think I realised just how much Patrick Stewart meant to me until I saw this news tonight. Been sitting here watching old clips with tears in my eyes. My childhood, my heroes, my Captain. Thank you for everything, Sir Patrick.”
Good Morning Britain airs weekdays on ITV1 and ITVX at 6am
More information about dementia is available via organisations including the NHS and Dementia UK
“The idea of doing that got me through the whole experience because you feel as a Traitor sometimes, when you see people have real life reactions that are bigger than the game, you feel bad, and I would have to remind myself they don’t have a game without you, literally, if no one’s doing this stuff, they can’t play, and they all want to play,” he said. “So you are doing an important job here, so they all have something to do, and when they catch you, they’ll be really happy and they’ll like it, and it will feel good to just tell them and see that reaction.”
And no Angeleno with an L.A.-centric social media algorithm could forget Jason Radovan and Hannah Webb, who reigned as “The Mother & Father of the 110” on Halloween 2023. Radovan, an artist and actor, said the idea came to him after driving past the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra mural countless times on his commute, and then Webb, also an artist, suggested adding a freeway and cars, which “really cemented the concept.” Finding inspiration while in traffic? Now that feels like L.A.
This Halloween, if you’ll be debuting a costume inspired by weird and wonderful Los Angeles, we’d love to see it. Upload a photo below, along with a few words about it, and we may feature it in an upcoming story.
Here’s everything to know about the UK dates and how you can get tickets.
Credit: AP
When are U2’s 2027 UK concerts?
So far the group has announced two UK stadium gigs:
18 June – London, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
19 June – London, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
U2’s full European dates
April 26 STOCKHOLM, Sweden – Strawberry Arena April 28 STOCKHOLM, Sweden – Strawberry Arena May 05 PARIS, France – Stade de France May 08 PARIS, France – Stade de France May 27 LISBON, Portugal – Estadio da Luz June 05 AMSTERDAM, Netherlands – Johan Cruijff ArenA June 06 AMSTERDAM, Netherlands – Johan Cruijff ArenA June 18 LONDON, UK – Tottenham Hotspur Stadium June 19 LONDON, UK – Tottenham Hotspur Stadium June 30 BERLIN, Germany – Olympiastadion July 05 MILAN, Italy – Stadio San Siro July 06 MILAN, Italy – Stadio San Siro
How to get tickets for the U2’s UK dates?
The Ticketmaster presale is taking place on Thursday, November 5 from 10am till 10pm. During the presale, you’ll be able to purchase up to 4 tickets per show.
In order to be part of the presale you must sign up via the Ticketmaster U2 presale page before 22.59 on Sunday, November 1.
CHRISTINA Aguilera was branded a “smokeshow” as she stripped completely naked for a sizzling bath selfie showing off her rock hard abs.
The popstar flaunted her recent weight loss as she perched in her cream standalone tub, with her blonde hair brushed over her eyes.
Christina Aguilera was branded a ‘smokeshow’ as she posed for a sizzling new bath selfieCredit: xtina / instagramShe flashed her toned figure after her three stone weight lossCredit: Shutterstock Editorial
She has re-vamped her lifestyle with daily exercise and tracking her caloriesCredit: GettyShe first showcased her new look ahead of her Las Vegas residency in 2024Credit: Getty
A third then wrote: “OMG!!!”
The 45-year-old singer, who had her first hit with Genie in the Bottle in 1999, is no stranger to posing starkers in the suds.
The story of “Small Prophets” — the gentle, magical, nostalgic British comedy streaming on Apple TV — begins and ends in a garden shed. The show’s creator, writer and director, Mackenzie Crook, and the animator Ainslie Henderson have been friends for at least 20 years. One day, Henderson went to visit Crook in the shed at the end of his garden.
It’s “a big mess of a creative little place,” Henderson said, where Crook makes things. He writes in there, but it’s a workshop too: he illustrates and he crafts. He made many of the props in the show by hand. Both the shed and his house are peppered with his “beautiful little objects.” “If I’ve got a whole day with no other interruptions, that’s where I am,” Crook said.
When Henderson walked into the shed that day, a weird, white, papier-mâché creature on the shelf caught his eye. It was, as Crook told Henderson, a homunculus: one of a set of tiny prophets, or magical spirits, who lived in glass jars full of water. They could answer any question, and they had to answer truthfully.
“Small Prophets” follows Michael Sleep (Pearce Quigley), who works in a DIY store (a British term for a home improvement store), visits his dad Brian (Michael Palin) in a retirement home, and yearns for his girlfriend Clea to come home. Clea vanished seven years ago, and Michael’s dad suggests that the homunculi — which he learned about from an Italian alchemist in Egypt — might be able to tell him what happened to her.
The show premiered on BBC Two in February, when it quickly became the BBC’s biggest new scripted launch of the year. (It was renewed for a second season in September, this time on BBC One.) In the U.K., Crook is well-known for playing Gareth Keenan in the original British version of “The Office” (Gareth’s an analogue to Dwight Schrute in the U.S. version) — and for writing, directing and starring in “Detectorists,” which won the 2015 BAFTA for television scripted comedy.
“Detectorists” and “Small Prophets” share a singular comedic sensibility, which arose from Crook’s realization that some shows at that time, like “The Office” or “The Inbetweeners,” were drawing humor from cruelty, embarrassment and awkwardness. This is how he stumbled upon his genre: gentle comedy.
“I didn’t like the word ‘gentle’ at first,” Crook said on a video call earlier this month from Leeds, Yorkshire, where he’s directing his first feature film. “It’s taken me a while to make my peace with that. But now I realize that it’s something to do with being uncynical, being optimistic, but hopefully that doesn’t mean bland or unfunny. … It’s sort of a surprise to find that this is what I do, and this is what I’ve become known for. But I’m thankful for it, as well, because I think this world does need more optimism and hope than it presently has.”
He worries that “gentle” might suggest something not particularly funny or challenging, and would like to clarify that was not his intent. It wasn’t the outcome, either: “Small Prophets” is about some of the most challenging subject matter — grief and loss — while remaining genuinely funny and rather extraordinary.
Mackenzie Crook, who created “Small Prophets,” plays Gordon, Michael’s boss at the DIY store. (Apple)
Michael (Pearce Quigley) befriends Kacey (Lauren Patel), his co-worker at the store. (Apple)
Michael has the epitome of an ordinary life, living a mundane existence in a suburban cul-de-sac, dutifully eating his Malted Squares cereal each morning, and evading his boss at the DIY store (played by a ponytailed, bespectacled Crook). He befriends Kacey (Lauren Patel) at work, a May-December friendship somewhat based on Patel and Quigley’s own (they met working on a radio play). But somehow, Michael is simultaneously “a magnet for beautiful, crazy things,” Crook said.
When oil spills from his dusty, beat-up blue car, it pools into the shape of a big, black rabbit. A shooting star, or rather a meteor, may or may not have landed somewhere inside his house. A room inside is frozen in time, forever decorated for an ‘80s-themed Christmas — a surprise that Clea never got to see. And then there are the homunculi.
The inspiration came from a short passage in “Clea,” the fourth book in Lawrence Durrell’s “Alexandria Quartet,” which references the creatures. “It just fascinated me that he put it in this novel apropos of nothing else,” Crook said. “It didn’t add to the plot.” He squirreled the idea away until he knew what to do with it. Crook is a big fan of David Lynch, and referenced an old trick of his: To make a movie, first come up with 70 ideas.
The homunculi were one of those seed ideas for “Small Prophets.” Crook knew he wanted to set the show in modern-day suburbia, in a cul-de-sac. He knew he wanted to work with Quigley, who plays Michael. And he knew he wanted to work with Henderson, his animator friend, on those homunculi. (In the early stages of design, Crook made illustrations of what the prophets might look like. “They’re like Francis Bacon paintings,” Henderson said. “They’re mad-looking things.”)
Henderson worked on the show with Will Anderson, the former as a stop-motion animator, the latter on digital animation, 2-D animation, compositing and finishing shots. (Glen Southern designed and sculpted the creatures themselves, and they collaborated with Mackinnon & Saunders, a puppet fabricator that has worked on Guillermo del Toro’s “Pinocchio,” Wes Anderson’s “Fantastic Mr. Fox” and Tim Burton’s “Corpse Bride.” There were seven total puppets for three homunculi.)
As much as possible, Crook wanted this world to feel tangible; to achieve it, the team used in-camera effects and props as much as possible, rather than CGI. “It feels a bit more authentic … when it’s stop-motion. You can see the mark of the maker in every movement,” said Anderson in a video call with Henderson. The prophet puppets float “behind this warped glass, which is slightly abstracted and a bit more magical, and separates you from them in a really interesting way with reflections and inks.”
It’s almost as if the flesh-colored prophet puppets were actors, and Henderson directed them, Anderson said, manipulating their silicon bodies into position over and over again. In this analogy, Anderson would be ironing out logistics like camera angles or lighting. He made their garments, like the queen’s billowing cape (“ethereal clothes,” Henderson called them), digitally after the fact.
Crook knew that he wanted the homunculi to be almost still, as if someone had fallen into icy water, their cold, wet clothes clinging to them, barely wanting to move. Near-stillness is one of the hardest things to animate, Anderson pointed out. But “when it’s done well, it really binds, because they are thinking, alive things; they are. That’s our job to animate.”
For many, stop-motion holds a real nostalgia, Henderson said — another theme of the show, dovetailing with Michael’s yearning. Production designer Lucy Spink wove nostalgia into “Small Prophets,” especially in the Christmas room. She texted her sisters pictures of wallpaper options. “Which one makes you cry more?” she asked. “Or makes you feel like you remember being there?”
From a production angle, creating gentle comedy is “a tonal thing,” Spink said on a video call from the Yorkshire Dales. “You know how far to take it. That it isn’t extreme fantasy, but you’re pulling somewhere back from that. And it was a visual serendipity, is what I felt was what we tried to do, which was like the world was saying there’s a little something strange going on.”
If someone described this show as magical realism, Crook would “find that a compliment.” The first time he heard the phrase was about the 1992 Mexican romantic drama “Like Water for Chocolate,” which really struck him. “I just thought, wow, OK, you can do stuff like that, impossible stuff” — like a crocheted bedspread flying in a swirl of colors for a kilometer behind a carriage — “and ask people to believe it.”
“Like Water for Chocolate” is based on Laura Esquivel’s 1989 novel by the same name, which folds recipes into its story. One is for quail in rose petal sauce, which Crook made for his girlfriend at the time, whose name was Clea. She cried because she found the tiny bird so sad.
Kacey (Lauren Patel) gazes at one of the homunculi in a scene from the series.
(Apple)
There’s a quote from “Justine,” the first novel in the “Alexandria Quartet,” that I shared with Crook. It reminded me of how he had spoken about wanting to believe in the unexplained: “We are all hunting for rational reasons for believing in the absurd.”
“I’d not even picked up on that, but that’s it,” Crook said. “I’ve never believed in ghosts, but I would love to see one. And if I did, it would flip my world upside down. I’d have to reevaluate everything, and that would be an exciting thing. And I think ‘Small Prophets’ is a lot about that.”
The “Small Prophets” finale, dropping on Apple TV Nov. 4, channels that essence of storytelling — inexplicable but undeniably real — back into a garden shed. This time it’s Michael’s, engulfed by his wild garden, built with the exact same footprint as Crook’s own.
“That spirit that’s in the show: that gentle, warm funniness — that’s what he’s like to be with,” Henderson said. “Will and I went and stayed in his house, and he made us dinner, and we sat ‘round and drank wine and had a fun time storyboarding. That’s cool. That’s how life should be when you’re making stuff with people.”
PRINCESS Andre has been given another major career boost after landing a FOURTH series of her hit show in less than two years.
The TV star is quickly becoming an ITV fan-favourite thanks to her reality TV show, The Princess Diaries.
Princess Andre has landed a fourth series of her ITV reality showCredit: GettyThe Princess Diaries has been a major success for ITVCredit: ITV
Now, The Sun can exclusively reveal that the programme is coming back for a fourth series.
Our insiders revealed that filming for the next edition is already underway with Princess and everyone around her delighted that the show will be coming back again.
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A source told us: “Everyone’s thrilled Princess is doing another series, it’s been so successful for ITV.”
With filming already underway, it is expected that new episodes could land early next year.
The star’s parents have appeared alongside her on the programmeCredit: Shutterstock EditorialPeter has appeared a number of times on the programmeCredit: Getty
So far, three series of The Princess Diaries have aired since the programme launched in summer 2025.
It originally followed Princess as she turned 18 and entered into adulthood and stepped outside of the shadows of her parents, Peter Andre and Katie Price.
Mum Katie was originally banned from appearing in the show in series one but dad Peter made several appearances.
Both her parents were then absent for the second series before Katie’s ban was overturned for the third series where she began filming for the first time.
Peter also made a return to the series around this time as well.
Her own show isn’t the only TV appearance the young influencer has going on with the star currently appearing in Celebrity Race Across The World with her brother Junior.
Ernie Johnson, the bow-tie-wearing, peace-keeping host of “Inside the NBA,” is leaving the show after 37 years.
“It’s just time,” the 70-year-old broadcaster said in a video posted Wednesday on social media.
“So why now? Total honesty here. I’ve always prided myself on my preparation, the hours I put in every day getting ready for the next show. I’ve always loved that part of my job, but I’ve always vowed that if that ever became more of a challenge than it is a joy, then I’ll know it’s time to step away. And now, after 37 seasons, it’s time.”
“Inside the NBA” started on TNT in 1989, and Johnson became host the following season. Over the years, he was joined by analysts Kenny Smith (1998), Charles Barkley (2000) and Shaquille O’Neal (2011) in a lineup that has become beloved to generations of basketball fans — so much so that the show switched over to ESPN when TNT lost its NBA rights.
“Few people have shaped the way fans experience the NBA as profoundly as Ernie Johnson,” NBA commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement. “His brilliance as a broadcaster is matched by his character, compassion and generosity, which have been evident throughout his 37 years as host of ‘Inside the NBA.’ We are grateful for Ernie’s extraordinary impact on our league and look forward to celebrating him during his final season.”
Johnson repeated his announcement to open the crew’s appearance on ESPN’s “NBA Tip-Off” on Wednesday, then asked a clearly emotional Barkley how he was doing.
“That was tough,” Barkley said. “We knew the day was coming — still tough. Been here for 26, 27 years, and it’s been an honor and a privilege to work with you all this time, and Kenny and Shaq and the amazing people behind the scenes. …
“It’s been an amazing journey. You’ve been our leader. Our unquestionable leader. The question I’m asked the most … is, is Ernie Johnson as good a person as he seems? And I say, man, he’s better than that. So I just want to say thank you. Thank you for being our leader for all these years. … All I can say, Ernie, is thank you.”
Smith gave Johnson a standing ovation, and O’Neal said Johnson was the reason he joined the crew.
“You are the controller of this thing people call the circus — the best circus in town, but without you, it’s going to be very, very difficult,” O’Neal said. “Chuck made a great point. All we can say is thank you, and we appreciate you. We’re gonna miss you, and we will see you around, but thanks for the great run.”
In a video posted on X, Golden State Warriors forward and frequent “Inside the NBA” guest Draymond Green perfectly summed up Johnson’s role on the show.
“He is the best point guard I’ve ever played with — that’s no disrespect to the great Steph Curry,” Green said in a video posted Wednesday on X. “Ernie Johnson on a set is as incredible as they come. He sees everything. He’s like, ‘Man, this guy hasn’t spoke for a while. Let me toss it to him. Man, this conversation is going off the rails a little bit’ — as it can on that show — ‘let me rein it back in.’ … This guy is amazing.”
Johnson also shared that he’s been dealing with “heart issues” for almost two years, including undergoing bypass surgery two months ago, and that it was a “contributing factor” in his decision.
“Still trying to get this thing to beat exactly the way it should, and we’re getting it,” Johnson said. “I mean, I feel great. So this isn’t a case where my doctor said you need to stop working. It’s nothing like that. But here’s the deal: Going through that has made me treasure even more every second with my amazing wife of 44 years, Cheryl Ann, and being Poppy to our five grandchildren. So I just want to slow down a bit, spend more time enjoying that.
“Just to be clear, I’m not retiring; just cutting back. I’ll still do March Madness and other projects for TNT and CBS, and I’ve just started a new production company called 32 Bowties, geared toward telling feel-good stories in sports. So this is by no means the end. It’s just a turning of the page.”
“The Daily Show” writer Kevin Bleyer died in a car crash on Sunday. He was 54.
The death was confirmed via his wife, Nella Vera, who shared the tragic news on her Instagram account on Tuesday. Multiple news outlets report that the Oct. 25 crash occurred in Millrift, Pa., a rural town near Bleyer’s country home.
“The last eleven years have had their ups and downs, as life does, but above all, they have been filled with immense love, laughter, dogs, and travel,” Vera wrote in her Instagram caption. “I was in awe of his intellect, dazzled by his wit, amazed by his fearlessness and spirit of adventure, besotted by his loving heart, and smitten by his beautiful blue eyes.”
The two met in 2010 at a production of “Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson” at the NYC Public Theater and shared a love for political comedy. Bleyer was an esteemed staff writer on “The Daily Show With Jon Stewart” for nine years, during which he won four Emmys for writing for a variety, music or comedy program.
The couple began dating in 2015 and married in June 2025.
“I feel incredibly lucky to have shared the past decade with such a brilliant, complicated, funny, stubborn, and wonderful man,” Vera added in her caption. “He had many public accomplishments and awards throughout his long and successful career, but to me, he was my soulmate, my partner in crime, and the one who made life so much more fun.”
Prior to “The Daily Show,” Bleyer also wrote on the satire show “Politically Incorrect” led by comic commentator Bill Maher, the improv comedy show “Significant Others” and late-night talk show “Dennis Miller.”
In 2010, Bleyer co-wrote the book “Earth (The Book): A Visitor’s Guide to the Human Race,” a comedic travel guide for aliens that details the history of humanity, alongside Stewart and dozens of other comics. He was also the solo author of 2012‘s “Me the People: One Man’s Selfless Quest to Rewrite the Constitution of the United States of America,” which poked fun at the way in which Americans choose to interpret the historic document.
In 2013, he moved to Kyrgyzstan, where he was the executive producer of “Studio 7,” the first political satire news show in Central Asia, according to his website. When he returned to the States, he co-founded Pilot Media Initiatives, which launched civics-minded media programs in democratically-challenged countries, including North Macedonia, Nigeria, Moldova, Kenya, Jordan and Estonia.
Bleyer also served as a writer and producer for NBC News’ “Today” show, as a supervising producer for MSNBC’s “Ronan Farrow Daily” and as a writer and producer for a CNN talk show pilot starring Kal Penn.
The humorist was also a gifted speechwriter for various NASA astronauts, political diplomats — once serving as deputy chief speechwriter for New York Mayor Bill de Blasio — and Colombian pop star Shakira.
Bleyer also contributed to the funnier speeches made by President Obama, including all of his White House Correspondents’ Assn. dinner addresses. In a 2017 TED Talk, Bleyer pointed out Obama’s famous 2011 monologue, which aimed multiple shots at Donald Trump and his ability to lead the country; various political analysts believe the humiliating moment set the groundwork for Trump’s 2016 presidential run.
“Before I go any further, I feel like I should offer an apology. The rumors are true, Donald Trump is president of the United States of America, and there’s a good chance it’s my fault,” joked Bleyer in his 2017 TED Talk. “I’m told he ran for president, in part because he couldn’t take a joke, a few jokes actually.”
In her Instagram tribute, Vera described him as a “private person,” although some of his own political commentary aired as a guest on National Public Radio, “CBS Sunday Morning,” CNN and MSNBC.
Bleyer was born in Maryland but grew up in Washington state. He later attended Stanford University, where he switched his engineering major for communications.
He began his career as a dramaturge and assistant to actor-playwright Anna Deavere Smith at the New York Public Theater and Broadway’s Cort Theater. He later moved to London, where he worked for journalist David Brancaccio at the London bureau of the public radio business affairs program “Marketplace.”
There will be a private gathering in a few months to honor Bleyer’s life, Vera said. Individuals are welcome to donate funds to the Alzheimer’s Assn. New York City Chapter, where he volunteered, or the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
Bleyer is survived by Vera, his father, brother, sister-in-law, niece and nephew.
DIY SOS – hosted by Nick Knowles – will not return in its current format again following the end of this series, as we take a look back at some of the incredible families the team have helped over the years
DIY SOS had been on air since 1999(Image: CREDIT LINE:BBC/South Shore)
DIY SOS will not return in its current format – as fans launch a petition to reinstate the show hosted by Nick Knowles.
The presenter was devastated by the news from the BBC that the show won’t return as it is now. For nearly three decades, Nick and the DIY SOS team have been joined by volunteers, tradespeople and supporters to transform the lives – and homes – of families who really need their living spaces adapted, changed or added to to help make their lives just that little bit easier.
Last night, fans were in tears as the final episode aired. The BBC have said the show will return next year but not in the format it is now. Ahead of the episode last night, Nick told his followers how emotional he was feeling about the show’s future.
“We have been told the programme has been shelved and not ended but I have asked the question, ‘Will it ever come back in the form it is where it builds whole houses for people or builds these hospices and charity places?’ and I’ve been told no, if it comes back in the future it will be smaller and more cost effective,” he said.
Discussing how he feels about the show ending in its current format, he added: “I thought I would be OK with it but actually it’s a little bit emotional. I’d like to thank everyone we’ve worked with over the last 26 years.”
A BBC spokesperson previously said: “In light of the BBC’s savings challenges we have taken the decision to rest DIY SOS in 2027 and commission a new spin-off show instead from producers South Shore. DIY SOS Rebuilt My Life will revisit successes from the show’s past and expand the brand on the BBC in a more cost-effective way next year.”
Here, The Mirror look back at just a few of the incredible people Nick and the team have helped over the years.
The Hudson Family
One of the most poignant stories from the history of DIY SOS was that of Darren Hudson, who hailed from Hull. Darren was diagnosed with a degenerative spine condition in 2017 and feared how he could provide for his family following his diagnosis.
In a wheelchair himself, Darren also lived with adopted son Oliver, who had severe disabilities. The DIY SOS team transferred the entire home, which was also being live in by Darren’s two other children.
Following the build, the family of four spoke of how they could take the “next step forward” finally with their new property. He told the volunteers and tradespeople: “Words don’t even seem enough. I have been in there and I didn’t even recognise my house. In fact it’s not a house, you have brought the home back for us.”
In 2020 when the show aired, the BBC announced the sad news that Ollie had since died, with host Nick sending his condolences to the family following their devastating loss.
The McAuley Family
DIY SOS fans will remember the tragic story of the McAuley family, made up of mum Lindsey and her four children. Sadly, Shaun McAuley died the previous year to them being on the show, leaving the house unfinished.
Shaun was diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer but works on their home extension in Kettering had to stop when Shaun got ill. He had a kidney and bowel operation but fell ill with cancer and died in November, just two months or so after falling ill.
As a show of support, members of the Royal Engineers, Shaun’s old regiment, also helped to finish the project
“Shaun would have been amazed at what they achieved and thankful for what everyone’s done for his family. He would have loved living here,” Lindsey told The Mirror at the time, “To know so many people have come together to create this beautiful house out of the goodness of their own hearts, it’s just amazing. Without the show, we wouldn’t have been home for quite some time.”
A community makeover
As well as individual homes, DIY SOS also worked on big community projects too. One of those was at childhood cancer support centre The Joshua Tree, a charity based in Northwich, Cheshire.
It was one of the largest the show ever did and was for Children In Need. The upgrades featured two family accommodation studios, a gym for rehabilitation, two therapy suites, two counselling rooms, a teenage breakout room and an outdoor therapy garden.
There were around 250 volunteers each day, with founders Dai and Lynda Hill sharing: “It’s incredible, people came from far and wide to help us. The energy, compassion, and teamwork were just inspiring. We can’t thank them or BBC Children in Need enough.”
Nick Knowles had said ahead of the build: “We have another huge build ahead of us in Cheshire, which will benefit children who are going through cancer treatment and help support their families too. If you have a trade, a skill, can spare some time to graft or can help us with materials then get in touch. It’ll be great fun and something you’ll never forget being part of.”
Young Dan stuck in hospital
Most recently, host Nick Knowles was reduced to tears after he and the team headed to Preston to help 16-year-old Dan, who has spent the last three years in hospital after life-saving surgery to remove a brain tumour left him with complex disabilities.
He had been ready to leave the hospital for 18 months, but has been stuck on a ward as their home wasn’t suitable for his needs. Mum Julie spent her time by Dan’s side in hospital and dad Nigel was at home looking after their daughters, Charlotte and Emily, and the family had been living apart for years.
Towards the end of the build, he teared up as he said: “We still have hours of hard graft ahead of us, but against all the odds, the end is in sight. I genuinely don’t know how to put into words how tough this has been, how amazing everyone has been, how much doubt I had along the way, how much guilt I felt, and how amazing it is that these amazing people have called it of physically and emotionally draining,” before stepping away from the cameras.
The Chapman Family
One of DIY SOS’ builds followed the story of dad Peter, who was building am extension for his family at their home in Charlton Kings, near Cheltenham. He spent 24/7 caring for his wife Sarah and daughter Suzanne, who are at different stages of a long-term genetic disorder called myotonic dystrophy.
The symptoms of the condition are worsening muscle loss and weakness and it can also include cataracts, intellectual disability and heart conduction problems. Sadly, just before the team arrived, daughter Margaret – who had the same condition – died aged 31.
Peter’s mother also had died a few years before, so he and Sarah took 64-year-old autistic brother Steve in to live with them too. Peter himself was later diagnosed with fibromyalgia.
FOR eight years, Sara Cox was forever the bridesmaid, never the bride.
At long last, then, on a bright, sunny Monday morning in July, the broadcaster got her big day, becoming the long-overdue host of Radio 2’s Breakfast Show.
Sara Cox now hosts Radio 2’s Breakfast ShowCredit: BBCSara tells her Drivetime listenters of her move to the channel’s Breakfast ShowCredit: BBC radio 2
Which tells you all you need to know about this brilliantly witty DJ: She says it as she sees it, and has fun along the way.
“Was it deliberate?”, she says, smiling. “Of course — I was being cheeky.
“On the day itself though, I actually felt fine, not that nervous. It was a job I’ve wanted for so long that it just felt like . . . finally.
“And when I thought about About Damn Time, it did make me smile.
“I thought, ‘Start as you mean to go on’. I just wanted to be me, which essentially is a little bit cheeky.
“Luckily, the reaction’s been great. We have the best listeners in the world and I have the best job in the world. I’ve got an incredible team, a brilliant bunch of people like me who are massive radio geeks, and I love it.”
While some may have crumpled under the pressure of hosting the biggest gig on the airwaves, the unflappable former model has taken it all in her leggy stride.
An instant hit with listeners — she was also a long-time favourite with devotees of her former gig, the Drivetime show — Sara has introduced new games and interactive formats to keep things fresh.
Lucky listeners can win a pair of branded “Sara Sox” socks (clean) should they triumph in games such as Let’s Hear It For The Noise, a fiendishly difficult memory challenge.
(Behind the scenes, she is incredibly hands-on, WhatsApping her team with ideas around the clock, I’m told.)
Having been relentlessly badgering Sara’s team for an interview, today, then, is my Big Day. Finally.
Invited to spend a morning in the life of the Bolton-born 51-year-old, things kick off, rather unpleasantly, with a 4.50am alarm call.
Entering the BBC’s flagship London building in the dark, I am tired and grumpy. Sara is not.
In the studio, she dances to tracks, chats to her listeners before and after they call (apparently, many DJs don’t bother with such niceties), and cheerfully munches on an avocado wrap she brought in from home.
The super-fit mum of three — who last year smashed a gruelling 135- mile run across five consecutive days, raising £11.7million for Children In Need — also stands up for the entirety of her three-hour show.
I am exhausted just watching her.
I used to sit down doing the radio but not any more,” she says.
“I like to move around. But it’s also for the leg region. the late (TV health expert) Michael Mosley did a podcast on inflammation — if you sit down for too long, your cells start making the inflammation. So, sadly, it’s not for a rock ’n’ roll reason.”
Sara leaves the studio in July clutching flowers after her first Breakfast ShowCredit: Simon JonesSara with husband Ben at an album launch in London in 2015Credit: Getty
On the subject of rock ’n’ roll, to a legion of geriatric millennials like me, and Gen Xers, Sara came to the fore as a “ladette”.
With a motto of “work hard, play hard”, Sara and her pals were endlessly papped hanging out at celebrity hotspots such as London’s Met Bar.
Yet those days are long gone — so much so, the charismatic star is now teetotal. Plus, constant cameras — filmed clips of the show are put out on the station’s official Instagram page — mean it would be nigh-on impossible to hide a hangover.
She says with a laugh: “I mean, you saw the Radio 1 pap shots of me leaving the building — I literally look like I’d slept in a skip. It was great.
“But yeah, it’s all visualised now, and I get it, we are evolving. I can get away with putting my make-up on during a record. A bit of mazzie (mascara) and I’m good to go.
“Today, though, I don’t drink. I’ve not drank since February after my last pina colada in half-term.
“I do feel better for it. To be fair, I was drinking so little, maybe one unit a week, that when I did drink, it was making me feel dizzy and weird.
Sara during her gruelling five-day Children In Need fundraising run last NovemberCredit: UnknownSara with Meg Mathews in the ’90sCredit: PA:Press Association
“Plus, my husband Ben hasn’t drunk for four or five years so that makes it easier/wears you down.
“I mean, you feel a complete lush having half a glass of malbec of an evening otherwise.”
She has been married to marketing executive Ben Cyzer, who she met at Glastonbury Festival, since 2013. They are blissfully happy. Presumably, though, Ben was less thrilled with his wife’s career reawakening and the unsociable hours?
Sharing her new routine, she says: “I am in bed by 9pm. When I started the job, I was setting my alarm at five, but then I was really rushing about and I thought, ‘No, Sara, make it a tiny bit earlier’. So, at 4.50am off goes the first one.
“Then Alexa is on stand-by at 4.55, and if things have gone really wrong, 5.05am and 5.06am are also set on my phone.
“And my husband, bless him, checks the doorbell sometimes to make sure I’ve actually gone.
“I am a light sleeper, so a lot of the time I take myself off to the spare room, because I’m getting up so early and need to sleep well.
“And also because he doesn’t want to go to bed at 9.15pm, because he’s an adult male. He’s a normal person.
Sara said: ‘I used to sit down doing the radio but not any more. If you sit down for too long, your cells start making the legs inflamed. So, sadly, it’s not for a rock ’n’ roll reason’Credit: Guy Levy/BBCFormer Breakfast Show host Scott Mills was axed by BBC bosses in MarchCredit: PA
“Then Friday and Saturday, it feels like quite a treat and it’s quite nice to be back together.”
After feeding the couple’s three cats, Watson, Peggy and Miso, she takes a home-made breakfast to eat in the studio and glugs a coffee in the car on the way in. (“I eat very quickly, like a seabird”).
So who would her dream guests be? “Daniel Craig — we’ve just had M, Dame Judi Dench, so we should have Bond too. Tom Cruise would be wild — we’ve had The Hanks, and I’d love to work towards completing the Hollywood set.”
“Also on the list is Beyonce — “I interviewed her when I was pregnant with my son and he’s 18 now, so we’re well overdue a catch-up.” And Madonna — “I interviewed her at Radio 1 and offered her my spare room ’cos she was house-hunting in the UK . . . The offer’s still on.”
Sara got the Breakfast Show gig at a challenging time for the BBC.
Previous host Scott Mills was fired over a historical allegation of a sexual offence.
It has since emerged the axed DJ has enlisted lawyers and is planning to sue the corporation.
Not surprisingly, questions about him are off the table. And 72 hours after my visit, a story comes out in the Press, with insiders claiming to have felt “uncomfortable” due to her habit of calling mistakes out on air.
Well, having chatted to four of her team, including her producer, and seen Sara mucking about with colleagues, I can testify it appears to be a very happy ship indeed.
A perfectionist she may be, but a tyrant she ain’t.
And listener figures for the show in the last few years have stayed solid at around 6.37million weekly.
Elsewhere, though, it is a challenging time generally for legacy media, as audiences consume their content largely online, on streaming services and platforms like YouTube and TikTok.
So does Sara, who has written four Sunday Times best- selling novels, think radio will still be around in a decade? Yes.
“I think it’ll always be there because people will always want that connection and that friendship that they have with their DJ,” she says.
“There’s a lot of people who listen who won’t speak to anybody else for the rest of the day, so it’s important.
“But at the same time, we’ve just got to keep being innovative. And for younger audiences as well, we film everything. We’ve got a brilliant young socials team who are constantly coming up with great ideas for TikTok and Instagram.
“I really enjoy it, I love being silly and having fun. You can’t take yourself too seriously, can you?
“I do feel lucky. I really do have ‘pinch me’ moments in this job. I love it, and I really hope it shows.”
Imprisoned “That ’70s Show” actor Danny Masterson on Tuesday suffered a legal blow that ensures he will remain behind bars for at least another decade.
Three California appeals court judges rejected Masterson’s efforts to overturn his 2023 rape convictions and allegations that he did not receive a fair trial, deciding in an opinion filed in the state’s 2nd District Court of Appeals that “judgment is affirmed.”
The decision “ignores the extraordinary new evidence that has been before them for more than a year,” Masterson attorney Cliff Gardner said, referencing statements from “both complaining witnesses that their sexual experiences” with the actor were “both consensual and positive.”
“Danny is serving a life sentence for crimes he did not commit,” Gardner added in his statement. “No one in California — not defendants and not victims who have actually been the victim of a sex crime — is safer by virtue of today’s unfortunate decision.”
Masterson’s legal team is seeking further review in California Supreme Court and exploring additional legal action regarding evidence presented to the jury.
Attorneys for Masterson first filed their notice to appeal the actor’s conviction in November 2023, then filed a 242-page opening brief in December 2024. Key witness testimonies changed over time, the court excluded significant exculpatory evidence and judicial rulings skewed the jury’s view of the evidence against Masterson, his lawyers alleged at the time. The attorneys also argued that “jurors had significant reservations.”
A mix of errors by another defense attorney and a law enforcement investigation heavily biased against Masterson’s faith led to a wrongful conviction, the actor’s attorney Eric Multhaup alleged in another motion filed November 2025. Multhaup said Tuesday in a statement that the appeals court judges’ recent decision “are fundamentally wrong.”
“The Court of Appeal did not address any of the exculpatory evidence that was contained in the habeas corpus petition, and instead justified the denial with a one-paragraph summary of the one-sided evidence presented by the prosecution,” Multhaup alleged. “This cursory treatment reflects poorly on the administration of justice in the Court of Appeal, and will be rectified by a petition to the California Supreme Court.”
Los Angeles prosecutors charged Masterson in 2020 for three counts of rape involving three different women in the early 2000s. He denied all wrongdoing and maintained all sexual encounters were consensual. He also framed the accusations as an attack of the Church of Scientology. The women said they took years to report the rapes to police out of fear of retaliation from the church.
Masterson first went to trial in 2022, but jurors failed to reach a verdict on any of the three counts, leading the case to end in a mistrial. He was tried a second time in 2023 and found guilty of raping two women, both former members of the Church of Scientology. The jury was deadlocked on a third woman’s accusations. His attorneys argued in December 2024 that there was “no physical evidence supporting the state’s theory [of rape]” and the case was a “a pure credibility contest.”
The actor is currently carrying out his sentence at the California Men’s Colony prison in San Luis Obispo. According to a state database, he will be eligible for parole in June 2042, but is scheduled for a consultation in May 2038.
Times staff writers Clara Harter and James Queally contributed to this report.
