special

TAYLOR SWIFT and fiancé Travis Kelce were snapped on a whirlwind trip to London last week – and I can reveal why they were in town.

The couple are planning a wedding party at celeb haunt The Chiltern Firehouse in August, a month after their upcoming New York nuptials.

The American lovebirds met the venue’s owner, US hotelier Andre Balazs, to discuss their VIP soiree for 120 guests.

The Chiltern restaurant and hotel remains shut to the public after a pizza-oven fire wrecked it early last year, but it is in the market for one-off events.

Noel Gallagher threw a bash there to mark the end of the US leg of the Oasis reunion tour.

The visit by Taylor and Kansas City Chiefs American football star Travis follows reports they will tie the knot in July in New York after getting engaged last year.

Party pals

Taylor Swift parties with Eugenie & Beatrice at Poppy Delevingne’s 40th birthday

PAY TAY!

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An insider said: “London holds a huge place in Taylor’s heart and she has so many British friends who she wants to celebrate with.

“Travis and Taylor partied at the Chiltern two years ago following her Eras tour dates at Wembley, and it is a special place for her.

“They are working on a personalised menu with bespoke cocktails and carefully selected wines.

“They’re looking at entertainment options but Taylor obviously has lots of talented friends in the music industry so it’s likely some could end up performing.”

I’m told she was hoping to use the venue’s five-star hotel rooms, too, but they have not yet reopened.

Guests will include UK stars Cara Delevingne, Kate Moss, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Ed Sheeran and Stella McCartney.

Before Travis, Taylor dated a string of Brits — The 1975 frontman Matty Healy, actors Joe Alwyn and Tom Hiddleston, DJ Calvin Harris and Harry Styles.

She has also written songs London Boy and So Long, London.

Now that she has finally found her forever man, I am so pleased she plans to celebrate in our capital.

Zara’s on a high

ZARA LARSSON rides the wave as she kicks off US TV channel Today’s Citi Summer Concert Series in New York City.

But the Swedish pop star, who looked stunning in a yellow skirt and matching top, almost had to pull out of the performance.

She told her fans on Instagram: “I was sooo nervous this morning because my voice was literally gone!

“But we pushed through. I had so much fun! Thank you to everyone for pulling up on me so early.”

Nic ‘n’ Tom have dare necessity

IT is known as the toughest show on TV – but ahead of the new series of Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins, I can reveal at least two of the contestants, Olympic boxing champ Nicola Adams and Apprentice star Thomas Skinner, reckon they have the steel to prevail.

A source said: “Tom has been training hard with a weighted vest in preparation for the show, and Nicola is no stranger to an intense training regime.”

The pair will join Towie legend Amy Childs and Married At First Sight star Ella Morgan in competing on the Channel 4 military-style challenge.

Meanwhile, singer Jojo Siwa and former Strictly pro dancer Giovanni Pernice are also lined up to take part.

Filming is taking place this summer in Malaysia, for the ninth series, which is expected to air next year.

Olivia in full bloom

OLIVIA RODRIGO looks super cute in dainty florals during a performance in Spain.

The Drop Dead singer wore a pink mini dress and black leather boots to play a Spotify Billions Club Live show in Barcelona.

The concert on Friday night kicked off El Clasico weekend ahead of the match between Barcelona and Real Madrid today.

The American hitmaker, who embarks on her Unraveled Tour in September, also posed with her nine Spotify plaques to commemorate her songs which have surpassed a billion streams.

Stones play Amy tribute

THE ROLLING STONES cover a song by the late Amy Winehouse on their new album, Foreign Tongues.

Out on July 10, it will see Sir Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood, pay tribute to Amy’s 2007 track You Know I’m No Good.

Sir Mick performed a duet with Amy during the Stones’ set at the Isle of Wight Festival in 2007, four years before she died aged 27.

The album’s track list which was leaked by fans, also features lead single In The Stars and song Back In Your Life.

The latter has a guitar solo by Ronnie inspired by The Beach Boys star Brian Wilson – and it was recorded on the day Brian died, aged 82, in June last year.

Hit Me In The Head includes old recordings in Los Angeles with the late Stones drummer Charlie Watts, who died in 2021, aged 80.

Last month the band released another album track, Rough And Twisted, on vinyl under pseudonym The Cockroaches.

Dec 10 in secret filming

DECEMBER 10 have secretly filmed a music video for their hot new single Infinity (123).

I can reveal that the boys – Cruz, Danny, Hendrik, Sean, John, Josh and Nicolas – jetted to Palma, Mallorca to shoot the promo which will be released on Friday.

It comes as the band gear up for their first appearance at Capital’s Summertime Ball next month and the Summer Sonic festival in Japan in August.

Biz on Sunday’s Emily was lucky enough to catch up with the boys at their gig at the O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire last month.

And they will be returning to the London venue in July, for two sold-out nights.

Looks like they have a jam-packed summer.

Tom: Paul and I may be family

TOM GRENNAN has revealed he could be related to Irish actor Paul Mescal.

The Little Bit Of Love hitmaker bumped into the Normal People star at the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship final in Dublin last year.

And he told Cork’s 96FM radio station: “Paul was there and he was like, ‘Is your dad here?’.

“He said, ‘Mate, my dad has been going on about your dad and he wants to speak to him’.

“Apparently, there’s some sort of relation!”

Tom, who welcomed daughter Dotty with wife Danniella Carraturo last summer, is set to release an album this year inspired by becoming a dad.

Talking about fatherhood, he said: “It has definitely had an impact on my songwriting.

“It’s opened up another chamber in my heart.”

Ramsay’s kitchen rebels

GORDON RAMSAY’s TV production company is making a fiery documentary series with the BBC about some of the biggest renegades in the restaurant world.

Rise Of The Rockstar Chefs will focus on Heston Blumenthal, Marco Pierre White, and, of course, Gordon himself.

A source said: “This bunch are set to lift the lid on their early days in the competitive restaurant world and share some of their juicy stories.”

Studio Ramsay’s glossy production will feature guest appearances from foodies Stanley Tucci, Prue Leith, and Pink Floyd‘s Nick Mason.

I’m told it’s set to air in the autumn.

‘Sore’ Stacey snubs BAFTAS

STACEY SOLOMON is snubbing this year’s BAFTA TV Awards after facing a backlash over her emotional reaction to losing at last year’s ceremony.

Instead of putting on a gown and trundling down the red carpet, the presenter is living her best life in Miami on a PAID Space NK brand trip with her kids. Good for her.

The Sort Your Life Out star was criticised online – with some trolls branding her a “sore loser” and a “spoiled brat” – after she admitted on Instagram that she was “devastated” her BBC show failed to win.

Although Sort Your Life Out was nominated in two categories, it missed out on a BAFTA, prompting Stacey to defend her hardworking team in the emotional video.

She said: “I know I’m supposed to take it gracefully like a champ, but I’ll be honest, I’m devastated.

“The crew also deserve the BAFTA after the effort they put into making the show.”

Other telly presenters giving this evening’s ceremony a miss are Rochelle Humes and Olivia Attwood, who are both joining Stacey in the sun.

With new threats emerging at home and abroad, the U.S. Coast Guard has created a new Special Missions Command (SMC) to oversee its “deployable specialized forces.” The move, officially unveiled today, comes as the Trump administration is increasing the use of these units for ship and drug interdictions around the globe. The Coast Guard is a uniformed military service, but has specific law enforcement authorities. Under Title 14 of the U.S. Code, its personnel can board vessels, carry out seizures, and make arrests.

The Coast Guard’s uniquely trained and equipped units are often at the tip of the spear for both the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), under which the service currently falls, and the Department of War (DoW). Some of its ‘deployable’ teams, for instance, recently helped interdict and seize Iranian-linked oil tankers in the Indian Ocean. Earlier this year, Coast Guard specialized forces chased a sanctioned Russian oil tanker from the Caribbean and across the Atlantic Ocean to take it over. They also play a large role in reeling in large amounts of illicit drugs, enforcing immigration laws at sea, protecting ports in the United States, and taking part in counter-terrorism operations.

Operation Pacific Viper 200k

The SMC will “fully integrate the service’s Deployable Special Forces under a single operational commander to provide oversight and advocacy, improve readiness, mission effectiveness, and interoperability,” according to the Coast Guard.

“The creation of the Special Missions Command is a vital evolution for our service,” Adm. Kevin Lunday, Commandant of the Coast Guard, said in a statement. “We are forging our most elite operators into a single, razor-sharp instrument of national power. The Special Missions Command is not an administrative change; it is an investment ensuring these elite teams are the best trained, equipped, and organized force possible, ready to protect the Homeland and support the Joint Force.”

The proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2027 includes funding to support an increase of 130 personnel “to manage the complexity of modern specialized missions,” a Coast Guard spokesman told us. It would also give the service $20.8 million “to establish a command to unify the service’s specialized tactical communities, streamline training, doctrine, and equipment procurement to enhance readiness and global responsiveness,” the spokesman added.

The new SMC “shifts specialized force management from a geographic model to a functional one,” the spokesman explained. “For example, in a complex scenario such as a high-consequence maritime threat at one of our nation’s major ports requiring the employment and integration of counter-terrorism teams (MSRT), deployable boat units (MSSTs), and hazardous material experts (NSF), the SMC streamlines the force-generation by reducing the need to coordinate between two geographical commands and headquarters and allowing us to mobilize with speed.”

“Under the legacy system, Area Commanders may consider coordinating across regional boundaries to align priorities; however, the SMC will have the full operational picture before any major incident occurs,” the spokesman noted. “A single operational commander for the SMC separates force generation from mission execution, standardizes tactical readiness, and creates a unified hub for Joint Force integration.”

By establishing the SMC, “the service is creating a singular standard for training, readiness, and integration,” according to the spokesman. “This uniformity ensures our teams are prepared to deploy at peak readiness and interoperability for any emergent crisis.”

The SMC will be commissioned on Oct. 1 and headquartered at the Coast Guard’s C5I Service Center facility in Kearneysville, West Virginia. It will include the following Coast Guard units, according to the service, which provided a description for each.

• “Maritime Security Response Teams serve as the Coast Guard’s first responders to maritime terrorism and other high-risk threats. They are equipped to conduct the nation’s most critical maritime security and defense operations at home or abroad, with both partner law enforcement agencies and joint services.”

Maritime Security Response Team (MSRT) 360

• “Tactical Law Enforcement Teams provide law enforcement expertise across the full spectrum of maritime response situations with specific focus on counter-trafficking and criminal networks attempting to exploit maritime transit zones.”

• “Maritime Safety and Security Teams are rapidly deployable boat teams that provide port, waterway, and coastal security capability to safeguard the public, protect the marine transportation system, and respond to maritime crime, sabotage, and terrorist activity.”

• “Port Security Units provide shoreside and waterborne security including point defense of strategic shipping, designated critical infrastructure, and high value assets in joint and combined expeditionary warfare environments.”

• “Regional Dive Lockers provide dedicated undersea capabilities for a variety of missions. These missions include ensuring the security of ports and waterways, maintaining aids to navigation, and conducting ship maintenance and repair, often in extreme environments like the remote polar regions.”

• The “National Strike Force provides highly trained technical experts and specialized equipment to Coast Guard and other federal agencies to prepare for and respond to the most complex crises and natural disasters, including oil, hazardous substances, and chemical, biological, radiation and nuclear incidents.”

National Strike Force Training at Camp Fuji, Japan

“The geopolitical landscape is evolving and the demand for Coast Guard Deployable Specialized Forces is at an all-time high,” said Capt. Robert Berry, Special Missions Command pre-commissioning team lead. “These forces are instrumental to the Coast Guard’s readiness and its role as a global leader in maritime contingency response. The service has always turned to its specialized forces to respond to national threats and disasters, and establishing this command is the natural next step to enabling our forces to lead the way at the tip of the spear.” 

Contact the author: howard@twz.com

BELOVED actor Beau Starr, best known for his roles in the Halloween franchise and Goodfellas, has died at the age of 81.

The star reportedly died on Friday, April 24, of natural causes.

His brother, Mike Starr, confirmed the news to TMZ, saying the actor passed away peacefully in Vancouver, Canada.

Mike revealed his heartbreak as he paid tribute to his late brother, saying Beau was “loved by many” – and calling him “very unique and special.”

He shared how Beau played a huge role in shaping his life, explaining that he and their other brothers helped raise him alongside their parents.

Tributes quickly poured in for the veteran actor, with co-star Christopher Serrone leading the announcements.

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“It is with a heavy heart Im here to inform everyone of the very sad passing of Beau Starr. [Mike Starr] asked me to make the announcement,” wrote Christopher Serrone, who starred alongside Starr in the 1990 mob film. 

“Beau enjoyed a rich a meaningful life. He was a son, brother, father, grandfather, actor and NFL/CFL player. Please take a moment to help me remember a great guy. RIP.”

Fans were also left devastated, flooding social media with memories of his most iconic roles.

“He was a great actor, your scene with him in Goodfellas is still a scene I will never forget, he was also good in Halloween 4-5, May he rest in peace,” one fan wrote.

“He was a great actor & good man in person. Very sad to read this news. I am sorry for his family loss,” another wrote.

Before finding fame on screen, Beau Starr lived a very different life – starting out as a professional football player.

After several years on the New York Jets practice squad in the late 1960s and two seasons in the Canadian Football League, Beau got his break in entertainment on Bizarre – a half-hour sketch comedy show starring Bob Einstein and featuring comedians like Howie Mandel.

He landed his first film role in 1982’s Hanky Panky, starring Gene Wilder and Gilda Radner, before going on to play Sheriff Ben Meeker in Halloween IV and Halloween V.

Fans of director Martin Scorsese will remember Starr for his role as Henry Hill’s father in Goodfellas, with co-star Christopher Serrone.

Starr also became a familiar face on TV, starring in 66 episodes of Due South between 1994 and 1999.

His long list of credits includes films such as Born on the Fourth of July, Speed, Angels in the Infield, The Cactus Kid and Cinderella Man, as well as TV shows including Wings, T.J. Hooker and Doc.

His former manager, Timothy Beal, said Starr always appreciated his fans, especially those of the Halloween franchise.

Beal said he only ever had positive experiences with the late star and wished they had worked together more.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Ron DeSantis was once the future of the Republican Party, a battle-tested conservative twice elected as governor of Florida. Then Donald Trump steamrolled him on his way back to the White House.

Now, more than two years after DeSantis ended his presidential campaign and endorsed Trump, the governor has called a special legislative session on redistricting and other issues that will put him back in the national spotlight and maybe remind Republicans that he could lead the party one day.

But there are also plenty of risks involved for the 47-year-old governor, and they became immediately apparent after lawmakers convened Tuesday.

DeSantis is pushing state lawmakers to redraw Florida’s congressional map as part of a coast-to-coast redistricting battle ahead of November’s midterm elections. His proposal, released the day before the session began, would make it easier for Republicans to win up to four more seats, equivalent to Democrats’ potential gains from last week’s referendum in Virginia.

The governor also wanted lawmakers to adopt new regulations for artificial intelligence and loosen vaccine requirements. However, his proposals quickly hit a roadblock when House Speaker Daniel Perez, a Republican but not a DeSantis acolyte, told members that he would not advance any legislation on those issues.

Perez said the governor’s maps are on a fast track, with a House vote expected Wednesday, but some Republicans are worried that a gerrymandered map will backfire and make it easier for Democrats to pick up seats, something that would be a black eye for DeSantis.

He already faces tough prospects on the national stage, even with Trump constitutionally barred from running for a third term in 2028. DeSantis has had a relatively low profile during Trump’s second presidency and would likely have Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, another Floridian, to contend with in a Republican primary.

“The window for Ron looks reasonably narrow at this point,” said Whit Ayres, who served as DeSantis’ pollster in his first campaign for governor in 2018.

DeSantis’ office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tuesday. But the governor has at least embraced the national redistricting fight. When House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) last week dared Florida Republicans to go ahead with their special session, the governor punched back with the kind of aggressiveness he showed in the early days of his failed White House bid.

“I will pay for you to come down to Florida and campaign,” DeSantis said of Jeffries. “I’ll put you up in the Florida governor’s mansion. We’ll take you fishing.”

DeSantis wants four more Republican seats

DeSantis unveiled his proposed congressional map to Fox News on Monday even before it had been widely circulated among lawmakers. He argued that the 2020 census shortchanged the state’s population, making it necessary to redraw the lines.

The governor’s map, if approved, would reshape districts in Democratic areas around Orlando, Tampa Bay, Miami and Fort Lauderdale. The changes could cost Democratic Reps. Jared Moskowitz and Debbie Wasserman Schultz, among others, their seats.

The current maps yielded a 20 to 8 Republican tilt in 2024. DeSantis’ version would aim for an advantage of 24 to 4.

DeSantis first announced the special session in January, months after Trump started pushing Republican-run states to redraw their congressional boundaries. What followed has been a tit-for-tat battle, with each party looking for an edge in the midterms.

The Virginia referendum celebrated by Democrats is facing a court challenge. Another legal battle is playing out in Wisconsin, where Democrats also hope to pick up another seat or two.

There’s no guarantee that new maps will play out the way parties hope. For example, Texas based its revised lines largely on Trump’s performance in 2024, theoretically redistributing the president’s voters across more districts to pull them into the Republican column. But Trump’s popularity has waned since his reelection, including among Latino voters who figure prominently in the state.

Florida could face a similar conundrum. Creating more majority-Republican districts but with thinner margins could dilute GOP advantages and give Democrats more opportunities to win seats, especially if there’s an anti-Trump backlash at the polls this year.

Karl Rove, a former top political advisor to President George W. Bush, warned that if Florida Republicans get too aggressive, “they may lose a seat or two.”

Brian Ballard, an influential Florida lobbyist who has been DeSantis’ top fundraiser, said it’s worth remembering that DeSantis was the muscle behind the current map that expanded Republicans’ advantage in the state.

“He’s incredibly smart and capable,” Ballard said. “And he doesn’t get enough credit for that map. He’s done this before.”

Florida legislative leaders are not rubber stamps for DeSantis

As it did Tuesday, the Florida House has grown more willing to buck the governor in recent sessions. Perez and Senate President Ben Albritton made clear for weeks that they were not drawing their own proposals and would react only to what DeSantis put forward.

Albritton sent multiple memos to senators reminding them of Florida’s state constitutional limits on redistricting and the requirement that it not be done as a blatantly partisan act.

Perez sidestepped questions Tuesday about whether the maps violate those requirements, which Florida voters approved by a nearly 2-to-1 margin in 2010. Democrats and political advocates have promised legal challenges.

Beyond redistricting, DeSantis was effectively asking House members to approve AI and vaccine proposals that they refused even to advance out of committee earlier this year.

On AI, DeSantis wanted to require tech companies to ensure children cannot interact with chatbots without parental permission. He also wanted to prevent AI from generating harmful material for minors. That proposal put DeSantis at odds with Trump, who wants the federal government to be the regulator of AI technology. Perez said he sides with the president, calling AI a “national security issue” that is “bigger than just one state.”

On vaccines, DeSantis wanted to add a conscience-based exemption to public school vaccine requirements, similar to the existing religious exemption. That aligns him with the anti-vaccine portion of the Trump base that was instrumental in making Robert F. Kennedy Jr. the U.S. Health secretary.

Perez countered that vaccine requirements in the U.S. “have been working for decades” and said he remains uncomfortable with “children being in school without measles and mumps and polio and chickenpox vaccines.”

Political observers are watching — even at the White House

Ballard downplayed any political concerns for DeSantis. What may seem to some as strained relations with certain Republican legislative leaders, he said, is simply measuring DeSantis against the opening years of his tenure.

“I mean, he went from batting a thousand to maybe batting .600,” Ballard said, using a baseball analogy for the governor who played the sport while attending Yale. “That isn’t failure.”

During the last Republican presidential primary, DeSantis initially gave conservative establishment figures and key donors an option other than Trump, who grew frustrated by the challenge and mocked the governor as “Ron DeSanctimonious.”

But Trump seemingly forgave DeSantis when he dropped out of the race and endorsed Trump following his victory in the Iowa caucuses. He even promised to call DeSantis by his actual name.

There’s more bad blood within the White House, though. Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, a Floridian, managed DeSantis’ razor-thin 2018 victory, only for the governor to have a falling-out with her.

Wiles did not respond to a request for comment. But Ayres said he’s certain she’s paying attention.

“Donald Trump has a long memory, and Susie Wiles has a longer one,” he said. “And that doesn’t bode well for Gov. DeSantis to be Donald Trump’s Republican successor.”

Barrow writes for the Associated Press. Scott Bauer contributed to this report from Madison, Wis.