European Broadcasting Union, which oversees song contest, says appearance by Ukrainian president could politicise the event
The owners of the Eurovision song contest have turned down a request from Volodymyr Zelenskiy to make a video appearance during the final on Saturday in Liverpool.
The Ukrainian president had hoped to appeal to the global audience of about 160 million people to continue their support for his country in the war with Russia.
Continue reading...DCI Banks lead actor was accused of punching drunk man making noise outside his house
The actor Stephen Tompkinson has been found not guilty of inflicting grievous bodily harm by punching a drunk man who was making noise outside his house.
The DCI Banks lead actor had been accused of inflicting grievous bodily harm on Karl Poole on 30 May 2021.
Continue reading...Cybersecurity experts drafted in to help thwart any sabotage attempt as UK stands in as host for Ukraine
The risk of a cyber-attack by pro-Russian hackers is the “main worry” for broadcasters staging the Eurovision song contest on behalf of war-torn Ukraine, a BBC executive has said.
Experts from the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre have been drafted in to help thwart any attempts to sabotage the competition’s public vote on Saturday.
Continue reading...After being accused of being ‘obsequious’ over Queen Elizabeth’s funeral, ABC included discussion of colonialism and monarchy’s relevance
The ABC’s broadcast of King Charles’ coronation was labelled “despicable” by monarchists, but viewers loved it and gave the national broadcaster an easy ratings win over the commercial networks.
The king’s procession averaged 1,182,000 viewers on the ABC, putting it ahead of Seven’s 1,096,000 and Nine’s 738,000, according to OzTAM which now measures viewing through broadcast TV and streaming devices.
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Continue reading...Gordon Ramsay, Jamie Oliver, Nigella and Marco Pierre White among those giving emotional tributes to late chef ahead of 15th series
Celebrity chefs including Jamie Oliver, Gordon Ramsay, Nigella Lawson and former boss Marco Pierre White have remembered Jock Zonfrillo in a televised tribute dedicated to the late MasterChef Australia judge a week after his sudden death.
Network 10 aired the first episode of the new season of MasterChef Australia on Sunday night, having delayed the premiere until Zonfrillo’s family gave their blessing for it to air. Filming of the series was completed last month.
Continue reading...Re-edited version omits opening scene after claims of fatphobia and replaces original on ABC and BBC platforms
The ABC has removed part of a Bluey episode that sparked accusations of fat-shaming and fatphobia.
It has now republished a version of the popular cartoon without a bathroom scene that showed Bluey’s parents complaining about their weight.
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Continue reading...The Writers Guild of America have announced a strike will begin tomorrow, after talks broke down with major studios and streamers
Hollywood’s writers are going out on strike for the first time in more than 15 years.
The Writers Guild of America announced on Monday night that its 11,500 members will stop working on Tuesday afternoon, after negotiations between the union and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), a group representing most major studios and streaming services, broke down.
Continue reading...Casting of Black actor in upcoming docudrama produced by Jada Pinkett Smith has angered groups in Egypt who say it is ‘a falsification of Egyptian history’
Egypt’s antiquities ministry insisted on Thursday that Cleopatra had “white skin and Hellenistic characteristics” in an ongoing row over a Netflix drama-documentary depicting the famed beauty of antiquity as black.
Queen Cleopatra, produced by Jada Pinkett Smith and starring Adele James, is due for release on the streaming platform on 10 May.
Continue reading...World mourns ‘unique wit’ of Australian star and inventor of vivid stage personas, who has died aged 89
Like bouquets of appropriately lurid gladioli, colourful tributes to the memory of Barry Humphries piled up this weekend as his many fans adjusted to a dimmer world without Dame Edna Everage.
Mourning Humphries, who was taken ill in Sydney last week with complications after hip surgery, means saying goodbye to his charismatic, hyper-real fictional personas: not only “the Australian housewife and superstar” Dame Edna, with her radiant, rinsed hairdo, trademark sparkling spectacles and bright gladioli, but also to the revolting Australian cultural attaché, Sir Les Patterson, and the irrepressibly dull Sandy Stone. Over decades, each of these stage characters has mischievously shaped the world’s view of Australians, satirising the stereotypical lack of taste that British “pommies” enjoy looking down on.
Continue reading...Ricky Gervais, Rob Brydon and Matt Lucas among those paying homage to the Dame Edna Everage star who has died aged 89
Comedy stars from around the world have paid tribute to the late Barry Humphries, hailing him a “true great”.
Humphries, best known for his character Dame Edna Everage, died in hospital in Sydney on Saturday aged 89.
Continue reading...Chris McCausland says Channel 4 show gave him the experience of ‘being the most able’ competitor
It has recently been called one of television’s most ridiculous reality shows. But the new Channel 4 series Scared of the Dark will help audiences understand sight loss, a contestant has said.
The blind comedian Chris McCausland is one of eight famous faces who stepped out of the spotlight and into a pitch-black bunker for eight days for the experiment, hosted by Danny Dyer. It will show how they cope with the pressures of light deprivation and humanity’s primal fear of the dark.
It’s a Knockout, BBC One, 1966 Giant obstacle-based physical series that spawned a Europe-wide and royal version.
Touch the Truck, Channel 5, 2001 Dale Winton-fronted endurance show featured contestants holding on to a truck for the longest to win it.
Naked Jungle, Channel 5, 2000 A nudist Crystal Maze meets It’s a Knockout, fronted by Keith Chegwin.
Shafted, ITV, 2001 Robert Kilroy-Silk’s ill-fated show created TV’s most infamous catchphrase, “to share or to shaft”.
Celebrity Shark Bait, ITV, 2005 Richard E Grant and Ruby Wax were among the stars locked in a metal cage in shark-infested waters.
Hole in the Wall, BBC One, 2008 Teams of celebrities tried to jump through shapes in a moving wall.
Heads or Tails, Channel 5, 2009 Justin Lee Collins oversaw contestants flipping a coin to try to win £1m.
Don’t Scare the Hare, BBC One, 2011 Contestants carried out a mad series of challenges against a giant robotic hare.
That Puppet Game Show, BBC One, 2013 The Muppets’ short-lived move into gameshows.
The Jump, C4, 2014 Insurance nightmare celebrity ski jump show created 34 casualties.
Flockstars, ITV, 2015 Celebrities attempt sheepdog trials.
Wild Things, Sky One, 2015 Couples dressed as animals competed on a woodland obstacle course.
Apocalypse Wow, ITV2, 2021 Gladiators meets BDSM.
Naked, Alone and Racing to Get Home, Channel 4, 2023 Race Across the World in the buff.
Continue reading...Comedian broke down in tears live on air as he told listeners his friend was involved in serious road accident
Frank Skinner told listeners to his Saturday radio show that his friend and former co-host Gareth Richards is fighting for his life after a car crash.
The 66-year-old comedian and broadcaster broke down in tears as he revealed that Richards was in a “very big road accident” on Monday.
Continue reading...Theatres such as now-closed Oldham Coliseum vital for northern working-class people, says actor
Christopher Eccleston has said it would be impossible for him to become an actor in today’s world, in an impassioned interview after the closure of Oldham’s Coliseum theatre.
The British actor spoke about how the closure of the historic theatre would affect the acting community and people from working-class backgrounds.
Continue reading...Sydney radio star who dominated commercial airwaves in the 80s famously had his TV show Naughtiest Home Videos pulled off air after just 34 minutes
Veteran Australian entertainer and radio identity, Doug Mulray, has died aged 71.
While the Sydney radio star made his name by dominating the commercial airwaves in the 1980s with his creativity and stunts, his TV show Australia’s Naughtiest Home Videos was famously pulled off air by Channel Nine owner Kerry Packer after just 34 minutes.
Continue reading...Partner announces ‘unexpected but peaceful’ death of personality who fronted Blind Date, Blankety Blank and was known for his drag persona Lily Savage
The TV presenter and comedian Paul O’Grady has died at the age of 67, his partner Andre Portasio has said.
O’Grady, also known for his drag queen persona Lily Savage, died “unexpectedly but peacefully” on Tuesday evening, a statement shared with the PA news agency via a representative said.
Continue reading...Maryland court orders conviction reinstated and new hearing held but ruling suggests Syed, 41, will not remain convicted for long
A court in Maryland has reinstated the murder conviction of Adnan Syed, the Baltimore man whose alleged involvement in the 1999 murder of 17-year-old Hae Min Lee was the subject of the hit podcast Serial.
Syed, 41, was convicted of murdering Lee in 2000 and sentenced to life in prison, though he always maintained his innocence. In September last year, state prosecutors revealed they had uncovered new evidence they said undermined Syed’s conviction and pointed to two alternative suspects.
Continue reading...Corporation rejects freedom of information request from campaigner who claims show is ‘rigged’
The BBC has been accused of “hiding” the extent of its Oxbridge bias on University Challenge in a deepening row about alleged elitism on the show.
The Guardian revealed that Frank Coffield, a Durham-based emeritus professor of education at University College London, is campaigning for fairer entry rules for the show for what he says is a rigged contest.
Continue reading...Comic, real name Xavier López, fronted children’s TV show that ran from 1967 to 2015
The Mexican children’s entertainer Xavier López, better known by his stage name Chabelo, has died at 88, Mexico’s president has said.
Andrés Manuel López Obrador tweeted that his eldest son “woke up early to see him [on television] more than 40 years ago”.
Continue reading...British viewers are showing an interest in travelling to Canada after launch of reality show’s third series
Canada’s tourism industry this week expressed hopes for a rise in UK visitors after the third series of BBC’s Race Across the World launched in the UK to rave reviews.
The reality show, in which five couples travel 10,000 miles (16,000km) from one side of Canada to another on a shoestring and without flying, could be a boon to the country’s recovering tourism sector. Arrivals were down 40% in 2022 from their high in 2019, but there are hopes for an increase with UK viewers inspired by the epic scenery and charmed by helpful Canadians.
Continue reading...Roiland says he ‘never had any doubt that this day would come’ after authorities say there was ‘insufficient evidence’
Felony domestic violence charges against Rick and Morty creator Justin Roiland have been dismissed, two months after he was dropped from the show.
Kimberly Edds, a spokesperson for the Orange County district attorney’s office, confirmed the development in a statement on Wednesday, saying: “We dismissed the charges today as a result of having insufficient evidence to prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt.”
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