Category Archives: Television

‘Appalling abuse of animals’: Chris Packham tells Ant and Dec I’m a Celebrity is like dog fighting

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The conservationist compares ITV reality show to pursuits that are ‘the sad preserve of psychopathic criminals’

Chris Packham has written a letter to Ant and Dec, accusing I’m a Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here! of exploiting animals.

In the missive, released on X (formerly Twitter), he states that this is not the first time he has tried to engage with the show’s presenters about animal welfare standards on the reality show, but that his previous “polite, reasonable and constructive” attempts were ignored so “this time I’ll be a little more frank and forthright”.

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Nigel Farage to be dumped in middle of Australian outback for I’m a Celebrity

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Divisive Brexiter will be tasked with helping fellow contestants 2,000 miles away on Gold Coast

Nigel Farage will be stranded in the middle of the Australian outback when I’m A Celebrity ... Get Me Out Of Here! gets under way.

He will be one of three unsuspecting stars who will be dropped in the red desert in the scorching heat and tasked with helping his campmates thousands of miles away.

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‘This one has cut deep’: Jennifer Aniston, David Schwimmer and Lisa Kudrow pay tribute to Matthew Perry

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Actors joined Courteney Cox and Matt LeBlanc in posting tributes to their late Friends co-star, who died unexpectedly last month

Jennifer Aniston, David Schwimmer and Lisa Kudrow have published tributes to their late Friends co-star Matthew Perry, a day after Courteney Cox and Matt LeBlanc did the same.

“Oh boy this one has cut deep,” began Aniston’s Instagram caption, posted on Wednesday alongside a photo of the two young actors, a text between them and a clip of the series finale farewell between their two beloved characters, Chandler Bing and Rachel Green. “Having to say goodbye to our Matty has been an insane wave of emotions that I’ve never experienced before. We all experience loss at some point in our lives. Loss of life or loss of love. Being able to really SIT in this grief allows you to feel the moments of joy and gratitude for having loved someone that deep.

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Slovakian prime minister sparks alarm with threat to restrict media

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Robert Fico describes leading broadcasters and newspapers as hostile and says they are ‘unwelcome guests at government office’

Slovakian journalists and international watchdogs have expressed alarm after the new prime minister, Robert Fico, described leading media outlets as hostile and threatened to restrict their access.

Fico, who took over as Slovakia’s leader in October as part of a coalition government led by his populist Smer party, said this week that some of the country’s biggest outlets were not welcome in his office.

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The Crown actor says events leading to Diana’s death must have been ‘unbearable’

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Elizabeth Debicki has spoken about filming car chase through Paris that led to Diana’s death for final season of royal drama

The actor who played Diana in The Crown said the moments leading up to her death must have been “completely unbearable” after the cast reenacted the car chase through Paris that led to her death for the final season of the divisive royal drama.

The sixth season of The Crown deals with the weeks preceding Diana’s death, as well as the fallout, after a car crash in Paris in August 1997. The first instalment of the season is released on 16 November.

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Tributes paid to ‘wonderful’ drama teacher Anna Scher, who has died at 78

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Kathy Burke and Daniel Kaluuya among alumni of her London school, credited with making stars of often working-class students

Tributes have been paid to Anna Scher, an influential drama teacher who taught actors including Kathy Burke, Daniel Kaluuya and Adam Deacon, after the announcement of her death on Sunday, aged 78.

Scher, who had taught children in north London to act for more than 50 years, has been credited with creating numerous stars, and was known for championing people from a working-class background. The Anna Scher Theatre (AST), which started as a drama club in January 1968, has a long list of well-known alumni, including Pauline Quirke, Linda Robson, Martin Kemp, Natalie Cassidy, Patsy Palmer, Sid Owen, Jake Wood, Reggie Yates and Brooke Kinsella.

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Nigel Farage spotted in Brisbane just before start of I’m a Celebrity

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Former Ukip leader has reportedly been offered large sum to appear on ITV show, which begins this month

Nigel Farage has been seen at Brisbane airport in Australia, adding to speculation that he will be joining the lineup in this year’s I’m a Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here!.

The former leader of Ukip and the Brexit party did not confirm when asked whether he was entering the jungle as part of the ITV show, but did tell a reporter that he “might be going in”.

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Lost Doctor Who episodes found – but owner is reluctant to hand them to BBC

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As sci-fi show’s 60th anniversary nears, a collector pleads for BBC to offer amnesty to those with recordings discarded by corporation

For Doctor Who-lovers they are the missing crown jewels: lost episodes of the first series of the TV sci-fi drama, shown in the 1960s. But now film recordings of not just one, but two of the early BBC adventures, both featuring the first doctor, William Hartnell, has been found in Britain by amateur sleuths.

The episodes, one featuring the Daleks, would offer viewers a chance to travel back in time without the use of a Tardis. But the Observer has learned that the owners of the rare, rediscovered footage are not prepared to hand it over to the BBC, even as the clock ticks down to the 60th anniversary of the show’s launch this month.

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Home and Away actor Johnny Ruffo dies aged 35

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Actor and singer was first diagnosed with brain cancer in 2017 and revealed it was terminal last August

Johnny Ruffo, the former Home and Away actor and X Factor contestant, has died aged 35.

Ruffo was diagnosed with brain cancer in 2017, and underwent surgery to remove a tumour, but the cancer returned three years later. Last August, Ruffo revealed that his diagnosis was terminal.

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Hollywood actors’ union reaches tentative deal with studios to end strike

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Sag-Aftra union hails agreement of ‘extraordinary scope’ with Hollywood producers, bringing to a close historic work stoppage

Hollywood actors are set to end their nearly four-month strike, the Sag-Aftra union announced on Wednesday, bringing to a close a historic work stoppage that had brought the film and television industry to a standstill for months.

Sag-Aftra and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) reached a tentative agreement on Wednesday, ending film and television actors’ longest strike roughly a month after writers signed their new contract. The deal came after parties had resumed talks last week following stalled negotiations in early October.

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Cary Grant biopic boosts interest in star’s harsh early life in Bristol

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New series, Archie, screened in English hometown of Hollywood legend many think of as being wholly American

He is better known as a debonaire habitué of sun-splashed Californian beauty spots and glamorous New York nightclubs, but a flurry of screenings and special events this month will focus attention on a sometimes overlooked aspect of Cary Grant’s life – his very modest roots in Bristol, England.

A preview of a biopic of Grant called Archie – with Jason Isaacs taking on the tough task of playing one of the most famous of all film stars – is being screened in Bristol ahead of its showing on ITVX, and a new guided walk through Grant’s former haunts in the West Country city is being launched.

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Friends stars release statement after death of Matthew Perry: ‘We were more than just castmates’

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Jennifer Aniston, Lisa Kudrow, Courteney Cox, Matt LeBlanc and David Schwimmer have issued a joint statement

Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc and David Schwimmer have issued a joint statement paying tribute to their Friends co-star Matthew Perry, who died on Saturday aged 54.

“We are all so utterly devastated by the loss of Matthew,” the five actors said. “We were more than just castmates. We are a family. There is so much to say, but right now we’re going to take a moment to grieve and process this unfathomable loss. In time we will say more, as and when we are able. For now, our thoughts and our love are with Matty’s family, his friends, and everyone who loved him around the world.”

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Nigel Farage ‘giving very serious consideration’ to I’m a Celebrity … offer

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Former Ukip leader said he was offered ‘substantial sums of money’ and would decide ‘within next 48 hours’

Nigel Farage is giving “very serious consideration” to an offer to join the lineup of I’m a Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here!

The former leader of Ukip and the Brexit party has been courted by the ITV show several times in the past, but previously ruled out an appearance, saying the reality show was “humiliating”.

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Tributes pour in for ‘comedic genius’ Matthew Perry, dead at 54

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Justin Trudeau and Adele among public figures to speak fondly of actor best known as Chandler Bing in Friends

World leaders and Hollywood stars have hailed the “comedic genius” of Friends star Matthew Perry after the actor’s death at 54.

The American-Canadian star, best known for playing Chandler Bing in the sitcom Friends, was found dead in an apparent drowning at his Los Angeles home on Saturday.

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‘I’m not a psycho’: Hasan Minhaj responds to New Yorker claims he told false stories

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In a 20-minute video, the comedian disputes the magazine’s suggestion that he went too far in exaggerating his experiences

A month after the comedian Hasan Minhaj was accused of misleading audiences with his personal stories, the Daily Show alum has responded with an in-depth video. His argument: there’s a difference between his political TV comedy and the personal stories he tells in his standup.

A New Yorker article suggested that Minhaj, who is Muslim, had gone too far in exaggerating his own experiences with racism, Islamophobia and political backlash, including claims about an FBI informant at his childhood mosque and the hospitalization of his daughter in an anthrax scare. The story may have undermined his chance to be the next Daily Show host.

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Emily Blunt apologises for describing restaurant worker as ‘enormous’

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Oppenheimer star says she is ‘appalled’ by her remarks in 2012 interview with Jonathan Ross

Emily Blunt has apologised for referring to a restaurant worker as “enormous” on a chatshow that aired 11 years ago.

In a resurfaced clip from an episode of the Jonathan Ross Show first broadcast on ITV in September 2012, the star of the summer blockbuster Oppenheimer said a waitress who served her at a Chili’s restaurant in Louisiana was “enormous”.

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Black British films as valuable as other UK and European genres, says academic

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Clive Nwonka says genre should stand with traditions such as the French new wave and British social realism

The black British urban genre should be as valuable to British film culture and academia as the French new wave and British social realism, a leading academic has said.

Clive Nwonka, an associate professor of film, culture and society at UCL, began his academic research in 2010, during a critically important era of black representation in British film and TV.

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BBC denies report decision has been made to axe Top Gear

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Corporation says decision will be made ‘in due course’ after show’s staff reportedly told to look for other work after Andrew Flintoff crash

The BBC has denied Top Gear has reached the end of the road amid reports the show had been axed.

The Sun reported on Friday that the broadcaster had told production staff on the long-running show to look for other work after the presenter and former cricketer Andrew Flintoff was injured during filming last December.

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Hollywood writers agree to end five-month strike after new studio deal

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Writers Guild of America said its members could return to work while a ratification vote takes place for fresh three-year contract

Hollywood writers will officially end their five-month strike on Wednesday, as union leaders approved an agreement made with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, and sent the full details of the new contract to union members for ratification.

The Writers Guild of America (WGA) said in a statement on Tuesday evening that its members could return to work at midnight tonight, while a ratification vote takes place on a new three-year contract with Hollywood studios.

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David Walliams files case against Britain’s Got Talent production company

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Case follows Walliams’ exit as BGT judge after transcript surfaced of him making offensive off-air comments about contestants

David Walliams has filed a case against the production company that makes the ITV show Britain’s Got Talent.

The action being taken by the show’s former judge against FremantleMedia is listed as dealing with data protection, according to the BBC. No other details have been given.

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