Weekend Content

A GROUP of office workers were left shocked when they learned their colleague is a former child star, and had a role in an iconic festive film.

The actor now keeps a low profile working as a Logistics Manager for the upcoming 2026 Commonwealth Games, which will take place in Glasgow. But do you recognise him?

Joe Lane appeared in 2009 hit Nativity!, which featured Martin Freeman, Jason Watkins and Ashley Jensen.

He portrayed schoolboy Edward in the film, which is centred around a heartbroken primary school teacher’s journey to make his class’s nativity play reach Hollywood, and win his ex-girlfriend back in the process.

In a TikTok shared by Joe’s colleagues, the former actor was left red-faced when they figured out his famous past.

The clip showed Joe, dressed in a Christmas jumper and a festive headband, as he is shaken by his colleagues.

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It then cuts to clips of him in the movie, before his colleagues recreate a hilarious moment by his character Edward.

Joe’s starring moment in the film saw him take to the microphone during the final Nativity performance and impersonate fart sounds with his armpit.

The former child star had his head in his hands when his co-workers cornered him at his desk and re-enacted the funny moment in the TikTok video.

“When you find out your colleague was in the nativity films,” read the video, with the caption adding: “The most exciting office development this week”.

The film was cast by producers holding open calls for local kids in Coventry, with the aim to use non-professional actors for an authentic feel.

After appearing in the first movie, Joe appears to have steered away from continuing an acting career.

He went on to become a semi-professional rugby player, before moving into logistics for sporting events.

Coventry-born Joe is now living in Glasgow after spending time in Australia and London.

It appears he has been keen to keep his famous past under wraps in the workplace.

One TikTok user commented on the video to reveal that they had previously worked with Joe, and had no clue of the connection.

“I worked with Joe at Coventry Rfc and unless I was out of the loop he kept this very well hidden!” they said.

Another commenter joked “So he didn’t become shrek??”, referencing the scene in Nativity! where character Mr. Poppy told Edward, “You could be Shrek”.

A number of the children who appeared in Nativity! returned to their normal lives following the movie, and despite its massive success, have gone into regular jobs.

Cadi Mullane, who played Crystal – one of the main children in the film – previously detailed what filming was like in a TikTok video.

She said: “I was part of an agency called Stagecoach, they were looking for kids who were really chatty, who could dance a little bit and sing a little bit. Apparently that was me.

“There was about seven auditions. But I’m from Wales so I had to keep travelling up to London which was a bit annoying, but it was OK because I really wanted to be in a film.

“They looked at how well we could sing and how well we got on with the other kids, cause that was important, obviously.”

Cadi went on to recall how the movie filmed throughout the summer, with no scripts for the children.

She said: “It was filmed in Coventry but obviously I’m not from Coventry so we all stayed in a hotel together. It was like The Suite Life Of Zach and Cody, honestly.

“There was no scripts. Everything was improvised, except from some bits. We basically just spoke loads of rubbish, and then we were asked to say it again on camera.”

AN iconic film has just returned to Netflix, and fans are realising that its ‘hot blonde’ bombshell hasn’t aged a day.

It’s been over two decades since the legendary comedy first graced screens across the globe, with this ‘hot blonde’ character only being in her 20s at the time of filming.

American film and TV actress Darcy Donavan, is best known for her feature in Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004), where she shared the screen with Hollywood heavyweights Will Ferrell, Steve Carrell and Paul Rudd.

Anchorman became considered as a “cultural phenomenon” in the world of comedy, loved for its absurd humour, witty characters and highly-quotable lines – and it’s returned to streaming service Netflix this week.

Following a hotshot television anchorman (Ron Burgundy), viewers are taken along on a journey of life in the newsroom, from breaking stories to feuds, new hires, and jealousy.

Anchorman, which also starred a stunning Christina Applegate, was nominated for countless awards in the year following its debut.

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Though Darcy didn’t have a huge role in the movie, being officially listed under the role of ‘hot blonde’ in such a big show made her character all the more iconic.

20 years on, it’s hard not to notice from recent snaps of the hot blonde – who is now in her forties – that she’s barely aged over the decades.

Darcy has maintained her svelte figure over the years, stunning in a bodycon sparkly dress on her Instagram recently.

The same signature blonde hair that also landed her the part of ‘hot blonde’ remains as beautiful as ever, now falling down past her chest.

Fans also got a glimpse of her age-defying beauty in a recent appearance on the Rollin’ Olan podcast with host Jeff Olan.

During their chat, the film and TV star recollected her filming experience on the set of Anchorman.

She told Jeff that the whole movie “was pretty much improv” and praised her famous scene partners for their wit and acting talents.

“Will Ferrell is definitely, you know, a comic genius.

“And Paul Rudd, I mean, he’s such a sweetheart. I really became good friends, too, with the director [Adam McKay].

“He is so talented, but he’s just really down to earth, you know, and, uh, he’s a phenomenal director.

“He understands, you know, how to get the best out of an actor and not feel pressure. And that’s the one thing I just think is phenomenal about him.”

Following the success of the first film, the lead stars returned for Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues in 2013, though Darcy did not reprise her role.

The ‘hot blonde’ has however starred in lots of other films and TV shows since, including popular series Modern Family, dystopian sci-fi Westworld, and even CSI.

But she still performs the occasional more anonymous role, such as ‘hot housewife’ in My Name Is Earl.

Darcy’s most recent work is on 2025 movie Hollywood Grit.

Starring alongside others including Max Martini and Tyrese Gibson, the production follows the story of a detective who’s looking for somebody’s daughter who vanished from a Hollywood jazz club.

IT’S every music lover’s dream to share the stage with their favourite artist – and that came true for one lucky superfan.

The legendary frontman of an iconic noughties band recently surprised a musician by taking to the mic and belting out one of his band’s biggest songs that became a megahit in the early 00s.

US rock band Train rose to fame in 1993 and lead singer Pat Monahan has been it’s sole constant member over the years.

In a new video, the singer, 56, was recently spotted taking over the mic of a fellow musician and superfan. 

In a moment straight out of every fans wildest fantasy, Pat shocked gig goers as he walked up to where vocalist Sedona Rose was performing after being called up mid-performance.

The fan was playing with her band when the Train frontman, who looked inconspicuous dressed in all black, suddenly stepped in as lead singer.

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Without missing a beat he grabbed the mic and continued to sing Train’s smash hit Drops of Jupiter.

The 2 minute video sees Pat and the band perform the full track together in a sweet moment, as the audience applauded and watched on mesmerised.

Released in 2001, Drops of Jupiter reached No. 6. on the Billboard 200 list and went on to win two Grammy Awards in 2002.

The song remains one of Train’s biggest hits and this year the band celebrated as it hit 1 billion streams on the music app Spotify.

Taking to TikTok, artist Sedona shared the pinch me moment adding the caption: “It’s not everyday you get to sing your fave song of all time with the dude who wrote it …” 

Fans took to the comments gushing over the clip, as one user said: “Love Train. His voice hasn’t changed a bit.”

“5 minutes of his time to make a life long memory,” remarked one fan with another writing: “This is incredible.”

Some in the comments section voiced that Pat had stolen the fans ‘thunder’, saying: “Why not just let u sing the song? Sorry but it bothers me that he took over- stealing your thunder.”

However, the musician was quick to hit back revealing she had called the frontman up to the stage. 

She said: “I knew he was there and before I started the song I said ‘this next one is my fave song of all time and the person who wrote this is actually here tonight, sooo you can come up if you’d like’.

”It was an honor for him to come up and sing fr! I had the rest of the 3 hours of the gig for my “thunder”.”

Train hail from San Francisco and are a popular pop rock band who has had many smash hits over the years.

In addition to Drops of Jupiter, Train’s top songs include Careless Whisperer, Hey, Soul Sister and Drive By.

As of 2025 the band consists of Pat, Matt Musty, Jerry Becker, Butch Walker and Hector Maldonado.

Last year, it was sadly revealed that one of the group’s founding members Charlie Colin had passed away at the age of 58.

The musician’s mother revealed Charlie died after he slipped and fell in the shower.

Charlie formed the band alongside Pat, Scott Underwood, Rob Hotchkiss, and Jimmy Stafford.

But in 2003, he was given an ultimatum for his substance abuse and was ultimately forced to leave the band.

“I had a really great run, but it was difficult,” Charlie previously told the Los Angeles Times about his time with the band.