Category Archives: Television & radio

Harry & Meghan live: reaction as highly anticipated Netflix documentary launches

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First chapter of what has been described as an ‘unprecedented’ look behind the scenes at conflict in British royal family arrives at 8am UK time

“I just really want to get to the other side of all of this” Meghan says during the opening montage of the documentary, which includes a voiceover by Harry, and starts at the point where the couple have performed their last royal engagements having announced they were stepping back from royal duties. “I think anyone else in my situation would have done exactly the same thing” Harry says. There is clearly a lucrative role in playing sad piano music for Netflix documentaries out there.

I’ve no idea how many people will be tuning in as soon as the documentary arrives – 8am does seem an odd time to launch a prestige series – but I, and presumably a load of other journalists, have just pressed play.

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Matt Lucas to leave The Great British Bake Off

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Comedian who has co-hosted Channel 4 show for three series to focus on other projects including Fantasy Football League

Matt Lucas has announced he is stepping down from his presenting role on The Great British Bake Off.

The 48-year-old comedian, who has hosted the popular Channel 4 show alongside Noel Fielding for three series, explained he was leaving as he could no longer commit to the programme’s schedule alongside his other projects, including his new hosting role on the revived comedy show Fantasy Football League.

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Russian TV station in Latvia loses licence over Ukraine war coverage

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TV Rain had relocated from Russia soon after invasion but on-air remarks by presenter were deemed to take Moscow’s side

Latvia has revoked a broadcast licence for TV Rain, the independent Russian TV station broadcasting from exile, following a scandal over its coverage of the war in Ukraine.

The liberal television station relocated to Riga, the Latvian capital, as well as Tbilisi and Amsterdam shortly after Vladimir Putin launched the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

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Kirstie Alley, Cheers and Look Who’s Talking actor, dies aged 71

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Alley’s children say the actor died ‘after a battle with cancer, only recently discovered’

Kirstie Alley, the TV and film star known for her roles in Cheers, Veronica’s Closet and Look Who’s Talking, has died at the age of 71.

Alley’s death was confirmed on Monday night in a statement from her children, William “True” Stevenson and Lillie Price Stevenson, which was posted to her social media account. Her manager also separately confirmed her death.

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ABC News pulls hosts TJ Holmes and Amy Robach off air after romance revealed

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US network says the anchors, who are married to other people, will be temporarily pulled from GMA3 as their romance is ‘an internal and an external distraction’

Two TV anchors working for ABC News in the US have been pulled from air after their workplace romance came to light, amid a storm of public gossip and tabloid coverage.

TJ Holmes and Amy Robach, who have worked as hosts on Good Morning America spinoff talkshow GMA3 since 2020, were revealed to be in a relationship last week after paparazzi photos of the pair were published online. Both Holmes and Robach are married, but after the photos were published a representative for the pair said they had both separated from their spouses and the relationship only began recently.

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Russian army ‘came knocking’ to recruit son of slain spy Alexander Litvinenko

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The poisoned agent’s son Anatoly tells of the visit to his Moscow flat, as ITV prepares to screen a drama about the killing of his father, played by David Tennant

Anatoly Litvinenko: How the Kremlin tried to conscript me

The Moscow home of the son of Alexander Litvinenko, the defector killed with polonium-210 in London in 2006, has been visited by recruiting officers from the Russian army hoping to sign him up.

Anatoly Litvinenko, 28, has revealed that he was called up for military service in Ukraine a few weeks ago by soldiers who seemed unaware of his tragic history with Vladimir Putin’s regime.

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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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