Category Archives: Television & radio

Former Desert Island Discs host Kirsty Young to return as Christmas guest

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Long-time presenter will share her thoughts on the Queen’s funeral in BBC festive schedule highlight

The turntables will be turned on Kirsty Young this Christmas Day, the BBC has revealed, when the former Desert Island Discs presenter is to be asked to choose eight of her favourite pieces of music as a castaway on the famous show.

Young, who has marooned almost 500 other guests on the fictional island in her time, revealed this weekend that she found it strange to be at the other end of the famous Radio 4 format: “It was a slightly discombobulating and thoroughly enjoyable experience,” she said, adding: “Although making anyone narrow down their favourite discs to just eight is frankly unreasonable. It’ll never catch on.”

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Matt Hancock broke government rules over I’m a Celebrity stint, says watchdog chair

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Eric Pickles says former health secretary did not consult Acoba before appearing on reality TV show

Matt Hancock breached the government’s business appointment rules by not consulting the watchdog before appearing on I’m A Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here!, the chair of the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments (Acoba) has said.

In a letter to the chancellor of the duchy of Lancaster, Oliver Dowden, Eric Pickles wrote: “I am writing to you in my capacity as chair of the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments to bring to your attention a breach of the government’s business appointment rules.

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Charlene White first to be eliminated from I’m a Celebrity

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Loose Women presenter got the fewest votes on Friday night and follows Olivia Attwood, who left for medical reasons, out of the show

Charlene White has become the first contestant to be eliminated from I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! after a public vote.

The Loose Women presenter accrued the fewest votes on Friday night after 14 days in camp.

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Former Top Gear presenter and motoring journalist Sue Baker dies aged 67

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One of the original line-up of the BBC’s car show, Baker had been suffering from motor neurone disease

Sue Baker, one of the original presenters of BBC’s Top Gear and the Observer’s former motoring editor, has died aged 67. Baker, who joined the original format of the TV series in 1980, died on Monday morning after suffering with motor neurone disease (MND).

She appeared on more than 100 episodes of the car programme until 1991. She then left to continue her work as a motoring journalist.

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‘I’m not getting better’: Jackie O steps away from radio show to recover from long Covid

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Kyle & Jackie O Show radio host reveals on air she is ‘struggling with this fatigue’ and has received medical advice to stop working

Radio host Jackie O is stepping away from her long-running breakfast show with co-host Kyle Sandilands in order to recover from health issues months after contracting Covid-19.

While presenting the Kyle & Jackie O Show on KIIS FM on Monday, Jackie O, real name Jackie Henderson, said she had been struggling to recover after she contracted Covid-19 earlier this year, and that she had received medical advice to stop working in order to address an enduring cough and fatigue.

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TV property presenter Jonnie Irwin reveals he has terminal cancer

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A Place in the Sun and Escape to the Country host hopes he can inspire others to ‘make the most of every day’

The TV presenter Jonnie Irwin has revealed he has terminal cancer, saying he hopes sharing his diagnosis will inspire others to “make the most of every day”.

The 48-year-old, who presents Channel 4’s A Place in the Sun and the BBC’s Escape to the Country, said he had lung cancer that had spread to his brain, and that he did not know how much time he had left to live.

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I’m a Celebrity: MPs and peers voting for Hancock to do ‘grim’ tasks, says minister

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Chris Heaton-Harris, the Northern Ireland secretary, claims ‘quite a lot’ of politicians downloading TV show app

A large number of politicians in parliament are voting for Matt Hancock to perform “grim” tasks on I’m A Celebrity, a senior minister has suggested.

After the former Conservative health secretary was pelted with sludge and insects on his first night in the Australian jungle, a former cabinet colleague said even technophobic peers back home in Britain were downloading an app used to vote contestants into performing gruesome “bushtucker trials”.

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Matt Hancock squeals as he is showered with sludge on I’m a Celebrity debut

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Former health secretary crawls through dark tunnels in Beastly Burrows first trial

In the run-up to Matt Hancock’s appearance on I’m a Celebrity, it was widely speculated that he would be subjected to all the most gruesome challenges. In that respect, his first episode did not fail to deliver.

The hosts Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly – and probably much of the nation – could barely contain their delight as the former health secretary was forced to crawl through tiny, dark tunnels where he was showered with bugs and sludge.

I’m a Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here! continues on Thursday at 9pm on ITV and ITV Hub.

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Serious concerns raised in NZ about environmental impact of major productions including Amazon’s Rings of Power

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In response to workers’ claims of high emissions and waste, Amazon says it complied with all laws and ‘either met or exceeded industry standards’

Picture three scenes: in a sheltered clearing, a stand of trees stretches skyward, trunks pale against the dark soil, leaves dappling the ground like golden dollar coins. In another, a maelstrom of white flakes is carried in eddies by the wind. In a third, sheer cliffs are slick with snow, icicles hanging like shards of glass.

Scenes like these have formed the visual signature for onscreen adaptations of the Lord of the Rings, including Amazon’s latest, monster-budget offering, The Rings of Power. That association has helped form the bedrock of a decade of New Zealand tourism campaigns, showcasing the country’s pristine environments to the world.

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Netflix with ads draws some big brands – but others are unimpressed

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L’Oréal and Budweiser owner advertise on Basic with Ads but high prices for slots put off some agencies

Netflix has launched its first subscription package featuring ads in a drive to reignite growth by attracting cost-conscious users, but the hurried launch, high prices for slots and accompanying demands have left some advertisers unconvinced.

Basic with Ads, which went live in 12 countries this week, costs £4.99 a month in the UK – £2 less than its cheapest ad-free package – and hopes to lure households whose budgets are shrinking in the cost of living crisis.

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Matt Hancock loses Tory whip after agreeing to appear on I’m a Celebrity

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Action taken by party against former minister after it emerges he is to appear on reality TV show

The former cabinet minister Matt Hancock has had the Tory whip suspended after it emerged he was entering the jungle for I’m a Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here!

The politician will be the 12th contestant to enter the show, which features famous faces performing gruelling tasks such as being smothered in insects or eating kangaroo penis.

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BBC local radio stations face big cuts to content made for their area

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Exclusive: cost-cutting plans would leave local stations in England with hardly any programmes made for their own listeners

BBC local radio stations could be left with just a handful of programmes specific to their area under proposals set to be announced this week.

A fresh round of BBC cuts is due to be announced on Monday, with sources telling the Guardian it will herald the end of most local radio stations as truly distinctive standalone outlets.

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Actor Leslie Jordan dies at 67 in car accident

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Reports suggest that the character actor appears to have suffered a medical emergency before crashing his car in Hollywood

Actor Leslie Jordan has died after a car accident in Los Angeles on Monday at the age of 67.

Law enforcement sources told TMZ and then the Los Angeles Times that they suspected the beloved actor suffered a medical emergency before crashing his BMW into the side of a building in Hollywood.

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House of the Dragon: HBO ‘disappointed’ as season finale leaks

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The final episode of the first season of the hit Game of Thrones prequel has landed online days early

The season finale of House of the Dragon has leaked online just two days before it was set to premiere on HBO.

According to an HBO spokesperson, the much-anticipated episode of the hit Game of Thrones prequel appears to have come from a distribution partner in Europe, the Middle East or Africa.

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Netflix reverses subscriber decline with help from Stranger Things and Dahmer

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Streaming service adds 2.4m subscribers in past three months to comfortably beat forecasts after ‘challenging’ first half of year

Netflix added 2.4m new subscribers in the last three months, more than twice what had been expected and reversing back-to-back quarters of decline, the company announced on Tuesday.

The streaming company had been expected to add 1m new subscribers over the latest quarter, which included the release of hit shows including the latest series of Stranger Things, Sandman and Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story.

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John Major dismisses The Crown as a ‘barrel load of nonsense’

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Former PM angered by fictitious storyline in which Charles seeks his help in getting the Queen to abdicate

As Netflix prepares to release its fifth season of big budget royal drama The Crown it has rejected criticism of the latest season after former prime minster Sir John Major described it as a “barrel load of nonsense”.

Major’s comments were made after concerns arose that a storyline in the hit programme could damage King Charles’s reputation.

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Channel 4 buys painting by Hitler – and may let Jimmy Carr destroy it

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Ian Katz says new show, Art Trouble, celebrates the channel’s tradition of ‘iconoclasm and irreverence’

Channel 4 has bought a painting by Adolf Hitler and will allow a studio audience to decide whether Jimmy Carr should burn it with a flamethrower.

As part of its latest season of programmes, the TV channel has bought artworks by a range of “problematic” artists, including Pablo Picasso, as well as convicted paedophile Rolf Harris and sexual abuser Eric Gill.

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Comedians Eric André and Clayton English sue police, alleging racial profiling

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Duo say police, in separate incidents at Atlanta airport, singled them out for drug search and questioning because of their race

The comedians Eric André and Clayton English have sued police, alleging racial profiling at Atlanta’s main airport in a program supposedly aimed at finding illegal drugs but in which officers regularly confiscate passengers’ cash.

André, creator and host of The Eric Andre Show, and English, a standup comedian and actor, say that in separate incidents, Clayton county police officers at Hartsfield-Jackson international airport racially profiled and illegally stopped them to question if they had illegal drugs.

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Maya Jama to succeed Laura Whitmore as Love Island host

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DJ and presenter will take over when the reality TV show returns for ninth series early next year

Maya Jama is to succeed Laura Whitmore as the host of Love Island, it has been announced. ITV said Jama would take over when the reality TV show returns for its ninth series early next year.

“I’ve always been such a massive Love Island fan and I’m so excited to be hosting one of the nation’s favourite shows,” Jama said. “I can’t wait to get into the villa to meet all of the islanders.”

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More sports could be free to watch on Australian TV as anti-siphoning review kicks off

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Streaming services on standby as review expected to recommend changes to the number of games broadcast on free-to-air television

More elite sports could end up on free-to-air television in Australia and streaming services such as Stan or Kayo could face increased regulation when bidding for broadcast deals, as the federal government looks to modernise rules governing which events can be shown on Foxtel pay TV.

“Every Australian deserves the chance to enjoy live and free coverage of events of national significance, regardless of where they live or what they earn,” the communications minister, Michelle Rowland, said.

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