Thermal bath complex is latest discovery among ruins of Italian city destroyed by Vesuvius eruption in AD79
A large and sophisticated thermal bath complex that was believed to have been used by its owner to woo well-heeled guests has been discovered among the ruins of ancient Pompeii.
The baths were found during excavations of a home on Via di Nola in Regio IX, a wealthy district of the city before it was destroyed by the AD79 eruption of Mount Vesuvius.
Continue reading...Actor helped shape British postwar theatre through her performances at the Royal Court, National Theatre and in the West End
• Michael Billington: Plowright was a dynamic force
• Joan Plowright: a life in pictures
The actor Joan Plowright, who was celebrated for her long career in theatre and film, has died at the age of 95, her family have announced.
Plowright won acclaim for performances during the early years of the English Stage Company at the Royal Court and the National Theatre when it was based at the Old Vic and led by her second husband, Laurence Olivier.
Continue reading...Duties remain unclear for the three actors, who are Trump supporters and are no strangers to controversy
Donald Trump has tapped three of his longstanding celebrity supporters – Mel Gibson, Jon Voight and Sylvester Stallone – to purportedly make Hollywood “stronger than ever before” as “special ambassadors” to the movie capital.
The president-elect announced the new appointments, whose duties remain unclear, on Truth Social on Thursday, four days before his inauguration. “It is my honor to announce Jon Voight, Mel Gibson, and Sylvester Stallone, to be Special Ambassadors to a great but very troubled place, Hollywood, California,” he wrote.
Continue reading...Anne, 53, was scammed out of hundreds of thousands after believing she was in a long-term relationship with the actor
A spokesperson for Brad Pitt has addressed the viral story about a French woman who believed she was in a long-term relationship with the actor and was scammed out of €830,000 ($855,000, £700,000) by someone posing as him.
“It’s awful that scammers take advantage of the strong bond between fans and celebrities,” the spokesperson said in a statement obtained by E! News. “But this is an important reminder not to respond to unsolicited online outreach, especially from actors who have no social media presence.”
Continue reading...Parents of murdered schoolboy say prison rehabilitation does not seem to have made any difference to Jake Fahri
The parents of murdered schoolboy Jimmy Mizen have said prison does not “seem to have made a blind bit of difference” to their son’s killer, who is reportedly now a rapper whose songs have been promoted by the BBC.
Jake Fahri, then 19, was given a life sentence in 2009 with a minimum term of 14 years for killing Mizen by throwing an oven dish at him. The glass dish shattered and severed blood vessels in the 16-year-old’s neck in a south London bakery.
Continue reading...Film-maker who specialised in surreal, noir style mysteries made a string of influential, critically acclaimed works including Wild at Heart and Eraserhead
David Lynch, the maverick American director who sustained a successful mainstream career while also probing the bizarre, the radical and the experimental, has died aged 78.
“It is with deep regret that we, his family, announce the passing of the man and the artist, David Lynch,” read a Facebook post. “We would appreciate some privacy at this time. There’s a big hole in the world now that he’s no longer with us. But, as he would say, “Keep your eye on the donut and not on the hole.” It’s a beautiful day with golden sunshine and blue skies all the way.”
Continue reading...The director of the award-winning musical about a trans cartel boss has said the film isn’t intended to be realistic, but he is sorry if things in it ‘seem shocking’
Emilia Pérez director Jacques Audiard has apologised after the film was engulfed in a wave of criticism over its depiction of Mexico.
A Spanish-language musical about a cartel boss who transitions to a woman, starring transgender actor Karla Sofía Gascón opposite Zoe Saldaña, Emilia Pérez premiered in Mexico City on Wednesday before its Mexican release on 23 January.
Continue reading...Exclusive: First show of figurative painter’s work to be displayed in city he fled in 1939 to escape Nazi regime
Frank Auerbach is to be the subject of what has been billed as a homecoming show in Berlin, at which some of his final paintings will be displayed in the city he fled as a child.
Auerbach, who died in November last year, never had a show in the city of his birth, which he left due to persecution by the Nazis. Both of his parents were later killed in Auschwitz.
Continue reading...Drake had alleged Universal Music Group and Spotify each manipulated the popularity of Lamar’s track Not Like Us
Drake has withdrawn a legal challenge he made against his own label, Universal Music Group (UMG), and Spotify, alleging they artificially inflated the popularity of a Kendrick Lamar diss track about him.
UMG and Spotify were accused of trying to “manipulate and saturate the streaming services and airwaves”. Lawyers for the rapper had claimed that UMG paid influencers and radio stations to play the track, Not Like Us, which topped the US charts and proved to be the hammer blow in the Drake-Lamar feud between March and May last year.
Continue reading...Influential musician confirms loss of extensive record collection amassed over 30 years
The celebrated hip-hop producer Madlib has confirmed the loss of his extensive record collection and much of his recording equipment along with his home in the wildfires that have swept across California and killed at least 25 people.
The influential musician, who has worked with some of the most prominent names in rap including Kanye West, Kendrick Lamar, Snoop Dogg and MF DOOM, is known for his sample-heavy production style. His record collection, amassed over 30 years, acted as the backbone of that work.
Continue reading...MI5 told Bogarde in 1971 that he had been identified as ‘practising homosexual’ of interest by Russian spies
The film star Dirk Bogarde was “clearly disturbed” and “troubled” after MI5 warned him that his name had been given to the KGB as a “practising homosexual” and he risked being compromised in a sting operation, newly declassified intelligence files show.
Bogarde, who died in 1999 and never came out publicly but lived with his life partner and manager, Anthony Forwood, was told by security services that his name was on a list of “six practising British homosexuals” given to the Russians by an unnamed source who had himself been sexually compromised during a visit to Moscow in the late 1950s.
Continue reading...Tributes paid to Italian known for images that drew attention to social themes including HIV/Aids and racism
Tributes have been paid to Oliviero Toscani, the Italian fashion photographer renowned for the provocative images used in Benetton’s advertising campaigns, who has died aged 82.
Toscani, who for two decades was the art director of the global clothing chain, died on Monday after being hospitalised close to his home in the Tuscan town of Cecina.
Continue reading...The 1990 protest track ‘has nothing to do with families losing everything they have’ says the rapper, hitting out at TikTok and Instagram videos
Public Enemy’s Chuck D has asked people to stop using the rap group’s song Burn Hollywood Burn as a soundtrack on videos of the California wildfires, saying it has “nothing to do with families losing everything they have”.
The rapper issued the statement on the weekend in response to several videos uploaded to TikTok and Instagram that use the 1990 Public Enemy song over footage of the wildfires, which have killed at least 24 people, destroyed more than 12,300 buildings and displaced more than 200,000 people so far.
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Continue reading...Three-year project returns out-of-print classics – including six Miles Franklin winners – to circulation and into ebook format for the first time
More than 160 books by noted Australian authors have been rescued from oblivion, including six winners of the Miles Franklin literary award.
The three-year project, which culminated at the end of last year, has put out-of-print titles by Thea Astley, Mem Fox, Charmian Clift and Anita Heiss back in circulation and into ebook format for the first time.
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Continue reading...Grammy-winning musician alleged the imprisoned rapper is harassing her through surrogates after he shot her in 2020
Megan Thee Stallion has been granted a restraining order from the imprisoned rapper Tory Lanez until early 2030.
The Los Angeles superior court judge Richard Bloom has granted Megan’s request for a protective order after the hip-hop star alleged that Lanez was harassing her from prison through surrogates as he serves a 10-year sentence for shooting her in the feet.
Continue reading...Resale prices could be capped at 30% over face value, while resale websites face greater legal obligations
The price at which tickets for live events can be resold is to be capped under “gamechanging” proposals put forward by the government to crack down on touting in the sector.
In a move hailed by music industry figures, the culture minister, Lisa Nandy, has launched a consultation that she said would end the “misery” of fans being exploited by touts, some of whom have made huge profits by selling hundreds of tickets a year.
Continue reading...Partnership ‘a long time coming’ and is latest expansion of Australian-made animated series
The global hit children’s TV show Bluey is to make its Lego debut with the first sets due to hit shelves later this year.
The world of Bluey, which has proved such a small-screen hit a film is to be made for global release in 2027, is to be brought to life in plastic brick form with six sets to be revealed this spring before going on sale later this year.
Continue reading...Cross-party Senedd report finds Wales is third from bottom in spending on culture and sports, with Iceland biggest spender
It is known as the land of song and as one of the world’s most passionate sporting nations.
But a report has concluded that despite its proud heritage, Wales is languishing behind almost all other European countries in terms of spending on recreational, sporting and cultural services.
Continue reading...Crystal ‘heartbroken’ after losing family home of 46 years in historic fires that have killed five and destroyed more than 1,100 buildings
Billy Crystal, Paris Hilton and Eugene Levy are among celebrities who have lost their homes in the wildfires tearing through several neighbourhoods of Los Angeles, which have killed at least five people and destroyed more than 1,100 buildings so far.
Six wildfires were raging across Los Angeles county. The affluent Pacific Palisades, where many famous Hollywood names live, has been devastated since the fires began on Tuesday. On Wednesday night, another fire broke out in Runyon Canyon in the Hollywood Hills, with the Los Angeles fire department ordering an immediate evacuation of parts of the neighbourhood.
Continue reading...Modest family home in Albuquerque has a price tag fit for a meth kingpin – but owner Joanne Quintana warns buyers to prepare for hundreds of visitors a day
The modest suburban home used as Walter White’s family abode in Breaking Bad is officially on the market for US$4m – almost 10 times the median sale price in its neighbourhood.
The ranch-style house in Albuquerque, New Mexico has four bedrooms, two bathrooms and a back yard pool, which featured in crucial scenes in the show. The median price of a house in the same postcode is $421,000, according to real estate company Zillow.
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