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Emmerdale star Nick Miles, who played Jimmy King on the ITV soap for more than two decades, has addressed final scenes which saw the beloved character killed off in a crash

Nick Miles has addressed his exit from Emmerdale – just hours after his character was killed off in explosive scenes. The actor, 63, has played Jimmy King on the long-running soap since 2004, but departed the Yorkshire-based serial in scenes that aired on Thursday evening.

Viewers will know that, in recent times, Jimmy and wife Nicola had been looking to the future, and had even planned to renew their wedding vows. Jimmy had not disclosed to Nicola about his financial troubles though, but tragedy struck when he crashed crashed into the wedding marquee where Joe Tate and Dawn Taylor were having a heart-to-heart.

No explanation has been offered yet as to what caused the fatal crash but actor Nick, who previously starred in The Bill, has spoken out about the sudden departure.

Asked by co-star Nicola Wheeler, who plays his on-screen wife, in a video that appeared on Emmerdale’s official Instagram why his character had to go, he simply reasoned: “Everybody I know who read that script, the first thing they said was that it made me cry.”

Nicola was with him in his final moments, telling Jimmy she loved him and holding his hand, as he imagined their vow renewal. With Jimmy gone, Nicola wept before fleeing the marquee just as it exploded.

Just moments before, everything played out as Nicola raced into the marquee to find her husband, was in a bad way and suggested he might not be making it out.

In heart-wrenching scenes, Jimmy shared his love for his wife, but sadly he succumbed to his injuries and died in the car. Moments later the marquee looked as though it was about to be engulfed in flames.

Fans were certainly not impressed with the shock death, with one writing: “He deserved better.” Another said: “I’m still in bits what an episode. Bravo to the cast,” as a third added: “I can’t get over the episode. I was in tears.”

Another fan commented: “I hate that they are getting rid of [name].” A further post read: “He deserved something more epic,” as a final fan said: “You’ve done [name] dirty!”

Other fans confessed they couldn’t believe the show was getting rid of the character. Another fan said they were “fuming” given the character had been a apart of the show for so long.”

Emmerdale airs weeknights at 8pm on ITV1 and ITVX. *

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KATIE Price has spoken out on her 26-year feud with Victoria Beckham as a throwback clip goes viral on social media.

The media personality, 48, has famously been long-rumoured to be at loggerheads with Posh Spice since the early 2000s when Victoria admitted they’ll never be “best friends”.

But Katie has now re-shared Victoria’s interview clip to her Instagram story as it continues to go viral.

Putting an end to any speculation, Katie shared her love for Victoria with a simple message.

Katie wrote online: “I have no problem with @victoriabeckham either [red love heart emoji].

“She is [an] amazing business woman.”

TOUGH TIMES

Katie Price posts cryptic ‘I survived’ comment amid Lee Andrews marriage drama

PRICE’S FIGHTS

Inside Katie Price’s biggest feuds from rival model to Kerry Katona bust up 

In the clip from T4 in 2000, Victoria was asked about Katie, then known as Jordan, amid reports the pair were feuding.

Victoria clarified that they “used to” know each other as Katie’s boyfriend at the time, Another Level singer Dane Bowers, worked closely with Victoria to create her debut solo album after leaving the Spice Girls.

When Victoria was asked if she would ever form a friendship with Katie, she appeared to politely decline and explained her reasons as to why.

She said on the old Channel 4 morning show: “I actually used to know her.

“She was going out with Dane and I was working with Dane and she was very sweet.”

Victoria then added: “Now, I don’t really know her anymore.”

That comment was used as fuel in the fire as to their apparent rowing.

Posh Spice went on to add: “I very much doubt we would ever become best friends.”

As online speculation swirls around Brian Hickerson — an on-again, off-again boyfriend of Hayden Panettiere who was present when she was found in cardiac arrest — his brother is speaking out to tell their side of the story.

Zach Hickerson spoke with TMZ on Friday, almost a week after Panettiere died of an apparent overdose, and following days of increasing scrutiny over Brian’s involvement in her life.

“The truth will come out as the authorities complete and release additional details from the investigation,” Zach Hickerson said in a statement to the outlet. “And that is important because the people who loved and adored Hayden deserve the truth.”

Internet would-be sleuths have popped up in Zach’s comments on social media this week, probing Brian’s behavior and previous conduct.

On Wednesday, Panettiere’s former West Hollywood neighbor Mia Terrazas told “Inside Edition” that she was “terrified” of Brian, and that the apartment complex at one point had signs posted warning passersby to call the police if anyone spotted him. On Thursday, Panettiere’s mother, Lesley Vogel, pointed blame for the actor’s death toward Brian.

But on Friday, Zach said that it was Brian who gave Panettiere a dose of Narcan — a medication that can quickly reverse or reduce the effects of an opioid overdose — after the brothers discovered she was unconscious at the Greenville, S.C., Airbnb where they were staying.

“I want to clarify my involvement in an effort to keep the focus on the fact that we lost one of the most precious individuals on this earth and to allow those that cared about her to mourn without additional noise, chaos, and misinformation being created and propagated by the media as well as the public,” he told TMZ.

Zach told the outlet that he made plans to get lunch and play indoor golf with his brother and the actor after church on Sunday morning. When he attempted unsuccessfully to reach them, he drove to the rental home and “knocked loudly, which apparently woke Brian up from a nap they were both taking on the pull-out couch bed in the living room.”

When they realized Panettiere was unconscious, “I immediately called 911 and Brian gave her Narcan. We then jointly performed CPR while 911 was on speaker until Fire and EMS arrived. At that point we watched as they tried every measure possible to save her life.”

According to a report from Greenville, S.C., police, Zach was “very emotional” as paramedics attempted to revive Panettiere, and Brian “did not become emotional” until paramedics declared that she was dead.

Over the course of Brian’s volatile relationship with the actor, he was arrested multiple times on suspicion of domestic violence against Panettiere. Those include in May 2019 in Los Angeles (charges were later dismissed when prosecutors couldn’t secure a material witness) and again on Valentine’s Day 2020 in Wyoming (misdemeanor battery charges were eventually dropped). Following an eight-count criminal indictment in July 2020 that covered multiple violent incidents between May 2019 and January 2020, Brian pleaded no contest in April 2021 to two felony counts of injuring a spouse or girlfriend.

He was sentenced to 45 days in jail (but served 13 days due to credit for time served) along with four years of formal probation, mandatory domestic violence classes, and a five-year protective order.

Three days before Panettiere’s death, Brian attempted to expunge and reduce his past felony charges but was denied by a Los Angeles judge. He made the same request in July 2025, which was also denied.

“Hayden was one of my dearest and closest friends that I loved and cared about for the last 8 years,” Zach said in his statement to TMZ. “Out of respect for her loved ones, the speculation and sensationalism of her death needs to end until the facts can be released from the investigation.”

Ireland’s Kate O’Connor speaks after winning gold in the women’s heptathlon at the European Athletics Championships, just weeks after winning the same event at the Commonwealth Games.

READ MORE: O’Connor secures European gold in heptathlon

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Bob Mortimer has spoken about the appeal of his BBC show as Paul Whitehouse opened up about his late mother during an episode of Mortimer and Whitehouse: Gone Fishing

Bob Mortimer has previously opened up about the unlikely appeal of Mortimer and Whitehouse: Gone Fishing.

The comedian, who stars alongside Paul Whitehouse in the much-loved programme, said he hopes the show encourages people to spend more time with their friends, whatever their age.

Speaking during an appearance on Saturday Kitchen, Mortimer explained that much of what viewers see comes from the pair simply talking while spending long hours together by the water.

“We’re on the riverbank for eight hours, Matt. So, you know, we just talk most of the time when we’re not fishing,” he said. According to Mortimer, the production team then searches through those lengthy conversations for moments that work on screen.

“They try and find 30 seconds here or a minute there that’s worth putting on the telly,” he explained, adding that he could not imagine the programme working in quite the same way if it were scripted.

Mortimer also suggested that part of the show’s success comes from its relatability, with viewers perhaps recognising their own friendships in the relationship between the two presenters.

“I think a lot of people watch it. Certainly a lot of fellas watch it and think, ‘Oh, that’s me and my mate. That’s what we’re like,'” he said.

The relaxed conversations between Mortimer and Whitehouse have become one of the defining features of Gone Fishing, with the pair regularly discussing subjects far beyond fishing. Over the years, they have spoken openly about their health, personal experiences and events that have had a lasting impact on their lives.

One particularly emotional conversation saw Whitehouse discuss the devastating effect Alzheimer’s had on his mother, Anita May Whitehouse.

In a repeat episode of Mortimer and Whitehouse: Gone Fishing airing tonight (Monday, August 10), Whitehouse, 68, reflected on his mother’s illness while speaking candidly with his friend and co-host.

Whitehouse’s mother died in January 2022, and he later described the heartbreaking reality of seeing her suffer with the condition. Introducing the subject, Mortimer asked: “Alzheimer’s is the big for you though, isn’t it?”

Whitehouse replied: “Well, it is, you know. My poor mum, there was no existence. It’s become one of the biggest killers now.”

The pair have never shied away from difficult conversations on Gone Fishing, with their friendship providing a backdrop for discussions about everything from serious health problems to major moments in their personal and professional lives.

Mortimer and Whitehouse: Gone Fishing airs tonight at 10pm on BBC Two

An aide involved in an affair with Gavin Newsom more than 20 years ago, when he was mayor of San Francisco, detailed their relationship and her journey to sobriety in an essay published by Vanity Fair on Tuesday.

Although Ruby Rippey, 54, has spoken previously about her relationship with the now-governor, her first-person essay offers the most intimate description yet of the affair. It comes at a time when Newsom is wrapping up his final year as California governor and considering a presidential run in 2028.

Rippey, who had worked as Newsom’s appointments secretary, was married to Alex Tourk, the then-mayor’s close friend, campaign manager and prior deputy chief of staff, when the affair became public in 2007. Tourk resigned after Rippey told him that she had been sleeping with their boss, she writes.

At the time, Newsom was newly divorced from Kimberly Guilfoyle and he apologized in front of a gaggle of reporters who packed his office for a news conference, admitting “everything you’ve heard and read is true.” Later, he said he was seeking treatment for alcohol abuse.

In the essay, Rippey details that the affair with Newsom happened when she was a new mother and when her drinking, which had been a problem before the relationship, spiraled out of control.

Rippey writes that their relationship began in July 2005 after a wedding at a Napa Valley estate and spanned months, with intermittent sexual encounters until she entered rehab in May 2006.

They met at his penthouse in San Francisco’s Russian Hill neighborhood, at a private back room in a bar in North Beach and at the W Hotel in Los Angeles, she writes.

“We meet and we drink. There is sex, but it isn’t the point. The point is proximity — to power, to being chosen, to feeling newly visible — no longer muted by pregnancy, by new motherhood, by the strain of white-knuckling long stretches of sobriety,” she writes. “It isn’t love. It isn’t romance. It’s intoxication.”

Izzy Gardon, a spokesperson for the governor’s office, said on Tuesday that Newsom acknowledged his role and publicly apologized for the affair nearly two decades ago.

“In the time since, he met his wife, started a family and has focused on serving Californians. He addressed this chapter of his life, including in his memoir, and out of respect for everyone involved, does not have anything further to add,” Gardon said.

The affair occurred while Gavin Newsom was mayor of San Francisco.

(San Francisco Chronicle / Hearst Newspapers)

Newsom faced renewed criticism for the affair during the 2018 governor’s race amid a larger reckoning over sexual misconduct in politics, corporate America and Hollywood. But Rippey has said she doesn’t see herself as a victim of a powerful man.

“Yes, I was a subordinate, but I was also a free-thinking, 33-yr old adult married woman & mother. (I also happened to have an unfortunate inclination towards drinking-to-excess & self-destruction.),” she wrote on Facebook at the time.

She still doesn’t place blame on the governor for what happened, but noted in her essay that in the post-#MeToo era she came to realize that her then-boss had a responsibility to “hold the line.”

“That didn’t happen. But I didn’t stumble into the space left open — I saw a possibility and went for it,” she writes. “Both things are true: I am responsible for what I did. Power does not distribute consequences evenly.”

For Newsom, she writes, the affair is merely a “footnote in a longer arc of ascent. For me, it is the fracture that split my life into before and after.”

In his memoir, “Young Man in a Hurry: A Memoir of Discovery,” published this year, Newsom acknowledges the liaison with Rippey, describing it as “the briefest of affairs.”

He also writes that he admitted the betrayal to Tourk, a detail that Rippey takes issue with in her essay. She says she was the one who first broke the devastating news to her husband via email while she was at her parent’s house in Napa and he was home in San Francisco with their young son.

“But resentment is a luxury I can’t afford,” she writes. “Instead, I return to gratitude, not for the affair, not for the pain I caused Alex, but for the totality of what followed. I required something catastrophic to change direction. Something that made the cost of going back — of drinking again — unthinkable.”

After the affair, Rippey and Tourk divorced but continued to co-parent their son, who is now an adult. She’s been sober for 20 years, she writes, remarried and now has a son with her second husband.

“The damage was mine,” she writes at the conclusion of her essay. “But so is the life rebuilt in its wake.”

Times staff writer Taryn Luna contributed to this report.

Indian opposition leader Rahul Gandhi has spoken out publicly for the first time since he was arrested during protests in New Delhi, voicing support for student demonstrators who are demanding the resignation of the education minister.

The first proper “Avengers: Doomsday” trailer is finally here — though it remains a bit light on the movie’s plot.

After releasing multiple short teasers to promote its upcoming superhero crossover, Marvel Studios on Monday unveiled its official trailer for “Doomsday.” The new clip shows Thor (Chris Hemsworth) taking on the mysterious Doctor Doom (Robert Downey Jr.), reuniting with Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) and trying to persuade various superhero teams — including the Avengers, the New Avengers (a.k.a. the Thunderbolts) and the Fantastic Four — to join forces.

“Something’s coming,” says a mysterious voiceover. “Something we may not be able to deter. Before this day is done, we shall be faced with an unthinkable decision.”

The speaker is presumably Doom, who makes an appearance as the voiceover ends. In the comics, Victor von Doom hails from the fictional southeastern European country of Latveria. The name of the country was briefly shown in last year’s “The Fantastic Four: First Steps,” which featured the character’s Marvel Cinematic Universe debut in its post-credits scene.

The trailer then shifts its focus to Thor, who speaks of an unnamed powerful foe as he asks the members of various teams to “put aside [their] petty squabbles” in order to try to thwart this frightening threat together. The new clip concludes by showing Thor’s reunion with Rogers.

“We’re going to need a miracle,” the Asgardian says before he is shown coming face to face with his old friend. Thor then makes the former Captain America take hold of his hammer, Mjölnir, to prove his identity. The hammer can only be lifted by someone it deems worthy, which Rogers did during the events of “Avengers: Endgame” (2019).

The trailer also includes glimpses of Gambit (Channing Tatum) battling Shang-Chi (Simu Liu), Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh) facing off against Mystique (Rebecca Romijn), Loki (Tom Hiddleston) handling his Time Variance Authority ID card, M’Baku (Winston Duke) and Shuri (Letitia Wright) greeting Ben Grimm (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) and Sue Storm (Vanessa Kirby), Charles Xavier (Patrick Stewart) sharing a moment with Magneto (Ian McKellan) and Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) embracing Cassie Lang (Kathryn Newton).

“With much love … here is the trailer you’ve been waiting for,” directors Anthony and Joe Russo wrote Monday in an Instagram post sharing the new footage.

According to Marvel’s logline, “Doomsday” will involve “beloved heroes from three distinct universes … set on a deadly collision course and fac[ing] an existential threat unlike anything they’ve ever encountered.”

The cast also includes Pedro Pascal (Reed Richards), Anthony Mackie (Sam Wilson), Wyatt Russell (John Walker), James Marsden (Scott Summers), Joseph Quinn (Johnny Storm), Sebastian Stan (Bucky Barnes), David Harbour (Alexei Shostakov/Red Guardian), Lewis Pullman (Bob Reynolds), Kelsey Grammer (Hank McCoy/Beast), Danny Ramirez (Joaquin Torres), Alan Cumming (Kurt Wagner/Nightcrawler), Hannah John-Kamen (Ava Starr), Mabel Cadena (Namora) and Tenoch Huerta Mejia (Namor).

The “Avengers: Doomsday” trailer arrives in advance of this weekend’s San Diego Comic-Con. After sitting out last year’s event, Marvel Studios will return to Hall H on Saturday to showcase its upcoming slate. (It was during its Hall H presentation in 2024 that Marvel revealed its next big villain will be Doctor Doom, played by Downey).

“Avengers: Doomsday” will hit theaters Dec. 18.

US Congressman Ro Khanna says Israeli settlers armed with US-made rifles detained his delegation while touring Palestinian communities in the occupied West Bank.

The Israeli military says troops intervened after receiving reports of blocked vehicles, allowing the convoy to proceed.

WASHINGTON — The Senate’s top two Republicans have spoken individually to Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell, according to aides, as the former GOP leader remains in the hospital more than three weeks after being admitted for undisclosed health issues.

Aides to McConnell have declined to release any information about his condition, fueling speculation about his prognosis and whether he will be healthy enough to be at the Capitol when the Senate returns to Washington next week after a two-week recess. McConnell, 84, is retiring at the end of his term next January.

A spokesperson for Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) said he had spoken with McConnell by phone on Monday and that the two had a “lengthy and substantive conversation that covered a variety of topics, including national security.” As leader, Thune is generally kept up to date on illnesses and absences in his conference as he has to navigate vote counts and his narrow 53-47 majority.

Wyoming Sen. John Barrasso, the No. 2 Senate Republican, had a 20-minute conversation with McConnell on Tuesday, according to a spokeswoman. The two discussed Senate races ahead of the midterm elections, the Supreme Court and other topics, the statement said.

“Senator McConnell was fully engaged and is eager to get back to the Senate,” said Barrasso spokeswoman Kate Noyes.

Another McConnell ally, Republican strategist Scott Jennings, posted on X that he had also talked to McConnell for 20 minutes on Tuesday, and that “he’s still recovering in the hospital.” Jennings said they spoke about politics, foreign policy “and even a little bit of Senate history.”

Few details released as McConnell remains in the hospital

McConnell was admitted to the hospital June 14, according to a statement from his office that only said he was “receiving excellent care.”

A statement a week later said he would not be voting that week. And a new statement Thursday said he ”appreciates the outpouring of support he’s receiving while he continues his recovery in the hospital.”

“The Senator continues to improve, and is working closely with his staff on Kentucky and Senate matters while the Senate is out of session,” the statement said.

A spokesman for McConnell released the same statement again Tuesday with no new updates.

McConnell has a history of health troubles

The senator’s unspecified health issues come after several hospitalizations in recent years.

While he was still Republican leader, McConnell was hospitalized with a concussion in March 2023 and missed several weeks of work after falling in a Washington hotel. He froze up twice during news conferences after he returned, staring vacantly ahead before colleagues and staff — including Barrasso, who is a doctor — came to his assistance.

A year later, he fell and sprained his wrist while walking out of a GOP luncheon.

McConnell had polio in his early childhood and he has long acknowledged some difficulty as an adult in walking and climbing stairs. He also tripped and fell in 2019 at his home in Kentucky and underwent surgery for a fractured shoulder.

The Kentucky senator was first elected to the Senate in 1984 and was the Republican leader from 2007 until last year, serving as both majority and minority leader during that period. He has remained active as a rank-and-file senator, showing up for work when the chamber is in session, often using a wheelchair to get around.

Jalonick writes for the Associated Press.

Lil Nas X says he feels “less fear in my heart” as he opens up about receiving treatment for bipolar disorder and moving forward from the mental health episode that landed him in hot water with law officials last year.

The Grammy winner (real name Montero Lamar Hill) addressed last year’s events in a video Wednesday morning on Instagram. Lil Nas X, 27, informed fans that he has been in a rehab program “for a few months,” spending time with family in Atlanta and with friends in Los Angeles. Since last year’s incident, the singer said he has been focused on “trying to ground myself down to Earth and get out of my head.”

Lil Nas X was hospitalized and arrested in August after he was seen strolling in only his underwear and white boots through Studio City, eventually shedding those items as the night progressed. The singer received treatment at a nearby hospital for a possible overdose but was accused of assaulting police officers.

He was charged with four felony counts: three counts of battery with injury on a police officer and one count of resisting an executive officer. Police accused the singer of assaulting the officers who were trying to take him into custody. Lil Nas X pleaded not guilty to all those counts.

In Wednesday’s video, Lil Nas X explained that he has also started seeing a therapist and psychiatrist to help address his mental condition — one he initially refused to accept. The singer, smiling and standing against a blue sky in his video, told fans that he was hesitant to take medication that would help address his bipolar disorder and joked that living with mental illness would add more to his plate: “I mean I’m already Black and gay…I’m like already living life on extreme hard mode.”

According to the Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance, bipolar disorder is a treatable mental health condition marked by extreme changes in mood, thought, energy and behavior. Manic episodes, marked by elevated changes in mood or behavior, are a symptom of the condition. People with a bipolar disorder diagnosis more commonly experience depressive episodes.

Lil Nas X spoke candidly about his diagnosis months after a Los Angeles judge in April granted the “Industry Baby” and “Old Town Road” singer’s motion for diversion, ordering the musician to enter a two-year mental health program. TMZ reported at the time that the musician would be cleared of his four felony counts if he complies with treatment and commits no other crimes.

The singer assured fans on Wednesday: “I’m doing better, I’m feeling better, I’m creating freely and there’s less fear in my heart and I’m just like smelling the roses.”

He also reflected on his career thus far — he quickly ascended to fame in 2019 with his viral hit “Old Town Road” — and teased that new music is on the way. Lil Nas X concluded his video by thanking fans for their support and for “holding it down.”

“I love you, and all I wanna do is continue to try to make you proud and make myself proud,” he said. “Let’s go dreamboy, let’s go.”

Love Island’s George Knight has spoken about his exit from the show after the bombshell’s sudden departure just days into filming was finally aired on the ITV2 show

Love Island star George Knight has spoken about his sudden exit from the ITV2 show for the first time since his departure was aired. The bombshell decided to quit the villa just days after entering.

He said in an Instagram video: “Hello, everyone. Just wanted to take a moment and come on and say a massive, massive thank you to every single person who has reached out over the past two days, wishing me their love, their support, and all their well wishes.

“It has been completely overwhelming, and I am trying to get back to every message, which is pretty, pretty much impossible. But thank you so much.”

He continued: “And I think moments like this give you a massive kind of perspective on the bigger picture, and as fun and as great my six days in the villa were, it’s obviously important for me to be here with my family, so thank you so much.

“It’s, it’s been, as I said, completely overwhelming, and a massive thank you to all of ITV’s welfare team and the execs who have been amazing. Hopefully it’s not the last you see of me, and looking forward to the year ahead, and yeah, thanks again, guys.”

George was a day one bombshell, entering the villa alongside Yasmin Hadlow. But before the week was over, he had chosen to walk away from the show.

His exit was not shown on Love Island. Instead, the show decided to just portray its aftermath. OG Islander Lorenzo Alessi told his fellow contestants that George had decided to leave for “private reasons”. He said: “George has left the Villa for private reasons and won’t be coming back.”

The Islanders seemed shocked, particularly Robyn Langton, who had been getting to know George. The 21-year-old nsaid: “Aww, George, we love you!” The other Islanders clapped and in a VT, Robyn added: “I can’t believe it, I actually can’t believe it. He was the only person I was actually kind of interested in.”

After leaving the villa, George said on social media: “Family comes first, always. Leaving the @loveisland Villa was a decision made in order to be with my family. Out of respect for them, I’d prefer not to go into any further detail. Thank you to everyone who has reached out with kind messages and support! It genuinely means a lot.”

As well as his official Love Island headshot, he shared a picture of himself and his sister in his post. In the pic, he sat on a garden bench with Emma and their dog. In the comments, Emma wrote: “Love you George.”

Despite only being on the show for a small amount of time, George really shook things up in the villa. The 28-year-old footballer was tasked with choosing a boy to send home and opted for Samraj Toor, coupling up with Mica Harris as a result. However, Samraj and Ellie Chadwick, who was chosen to be dumped by Yasmin, were not sent home and instead re-emerged as bombshells, with the chance to confront George and Yasmin.

Despite being coupled with Mica, George and Robyn kissed. The day before he walked away from the villa, George and Robyn fought, as she felt he was mischaracterising the situation to the rest of the villa. Mica was also hurt and told George she was stepping back from getting to know him because she thought he was better suited to Robyn.

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YouTuber Jesse Ridgway and his wife, Ashley, shared that they terminated their pregnancy following a Down syndrome diagnosis. What happened online afterward has shocked the couple, but Jesse said he is hopeful that sharing their experience may help other couples feel less alone.

The YouTuber, who’s been a content creator for 20 years and has more than 4.3 million subscribers on his main channel, shared a video on his personal YouTube channel last week that featured he and his wife receiving the results of an amniocentesis — a test for certain genetic abnormalities, chromosomal conditions, and fetal infections — and the results were consistent with Trisomy 21, or Down syndrome.

After the couple read the results, Jesse said that they’d discussed beforehand whether they’d consider terminating the pregnancy. “I know this is traumatic for the whole community. Now that we have a definitive result, we’ll talk with the counselors, and we’re gonna have some hard conversations,” he said. Both Jesse and Ashley were emotionally distraught and crying throughout the video.

Jesse told The Times over a phone call on Thursday evening, with Ashley beside him as she recovered from her procedure, that sharing the diagnosis online happened accidentally. The couple was in the middle of a gender reveal video when they spotted the preliminary markers for Trisomy 21 on the same report.

“We were filming and ready to celebrate with our audience and we were blindsided,” he said. “What do we tell people? How do we navigate this? I reverted to being honest, and yes, that led us to the last 48 hours.”

On Wednesday, Jesse posted a lengthy statement that disclosed the couple’s decision to terminate the pregnancy. Ashley reposted the statement to her own Instagram.

“This week, my wife and I made the very difficult decision to terminate the pregnancy due to Trisomy 21,” the since-expired Instagram story read.

Jesse continued that the decision was “not made lightly” and said he appreciated the messages of support he and Ashley received. “I know some of you may be very disappointed to hear this news. We are devastated. This has been extremely traumatic for both of us, especially Ashley. She underwent the procedure earlier this week and is on the mend. Thankfully, everything went smoothly, but emotionally we are drained.”

The YouTuber continued the series of posts explaining: “When I first confronted this news, I was shocked but optimistic. … I signed on to be a parent, come what may … but I just didn’t fully understand what Down Syndrome entailed. Once we made it public, it became clear that MOST people don’t know what Down Syndrome entails (and no, it’s not the same as Autism).

“50% of babies with DS have heart defects. 75% will have hearing challenges. Over 50% will have vision problems. Impaired immune function, developmental disabilities, learning disabilities, delayed physical development, poor muscle tone, structural issues with face, decreased lifespan, etc. … Sadly, the list is long, feel free to look it up … Down Syndome isn’t a “blessing”, it is objectively sh— from a health perspective. I didn’t realize just how rough it is for the child, let alone the family.”

According to the National Institutes of Health, about 6,000 babies are born in the U.S. each year with the condition, affecting about 1 out of every 700 babies. “[W]ith appropriate support and treatment, many people with Down syndrome lead happy, productive lives,” the agency notes, but there are often significant lifelong health challenges and risks.”

Ashley had the abortion on Monday. Jesse said he spent the beginning of the week tending to her, and on Wednesday he crafted the post to explain what the couple had decided and why.

“I put it out there for my audience, and then it took on another life. Because it’s a contentious topic, I figured there would be some level of like flak or differing opinions, but to see what it’s become has been pretty shocking,” he said. “There are a million abortions every year, and I’m just shocked that one couple deciding to abort for Trisomy 21 is mainstream news. This is happening every day, and it’s just not talked about.”

Jesse said that his and Ashley’s DMs had been flooded not only with messages of support but also dozens of confessions from strangers who had been through the same experience. And while the supportive messages felt “validating,” Jesse said the couple had received a “tremendous amount of death threats. People saying we’re murderers.”

According to Healthline, nearly 100% of women in Iceland who receive a positive test for Down syndrome terminate their pregnancy. In Denmark, 98% are terminated, in France 77%, and in the United States it’s 67%.

When the Ridgways had finished filming the results of the amniocentesis, they debated whether they should share the video. They said they didn’t even want to watch the tape.

“But I kept coming back to, there are so many people out there like us dealing with these things, and nobody’s talking about it,” he said. “I think if we share this, it will have a net positive for other people, and they can feel more comfortable and less shame confronting these things. … I hope other people can see that, that there is some value in this, but I can’t push it any more than I have. People are going to cast their judgments.”