Category Archives: Culture

Fresh crisis at ‘toxic’ Strictly as ex-staff claim they faced sexualised comments and cruelty

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Production workers at Strictly Come Dancing allege BBC refused to take their complaints seriously

Production staff who formerly worked on Strictly Come Dancing have complained of a toxic work culture and accused the BBC of failing to take their complaints seriously, in a fresh blow to the corporation’s primetime show, the Observer can reveal.

One former staff member alleged they had been subjected to sexist and sexualised comments, including intrusive questions about their sex life, while another claimed they witnessed “talented co-workers treated with cruelty”.

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‘It was like us – a chaotic mess’: France enjoys Paris Games opening ceremony

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Most French newspapers praise the Olympics spectacle but far-right commentators reject ‘woke propaganda’

They had waited 100 years for it and the French, mostly, were determined to love their kitsch, crazy, subversive, waterborne and very rain-drenched Olympics opening ceremony. Less happy were far-right figures, who spied “wokeist” propaganda.

A thoroughly unscientific poll on the rue de Rochechouart in Paris – where the far right have never had so much as a look-in – found plenty of enthusiasm.

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Russell Tovey and Gugu Mbatha-Raw to star in Doctor Who spin-off

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Writer Russell T Davies says drama The War Between the Land and the Sea ‘will shake the Whoniverse to its foundations’

Russell Tovey and Gugu Mbatha-Raw are to star in a Doctor Who spin-off called The War Between the Land and the Sea, it has been announced.

They will lead the cast alongside Jemma Redgrave and Alexander Devrient in the series, which was created by Doctor Who showrunner Russell T Davies. He has co-written the series with Pete McTighe, who has also worked on Doctor Who.

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Sinéad O’Connor waxwork pulled from Dublin museum after backlash

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Irish singer’s brother speaks of shock at ‘hideous’ figure which ‘looked nothing like her’

Dublin’s wax museum is withdrawing a figure of Sinéad O’Connor amid criticism from her family and members of the public that it looked “nothing like her”.

Many reacted with shock when the waxwork figure was unveiled on Thursday.

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‘Amazonification’ of Australian live music industry hurting artists and crew, inquiry told

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Union tells inquiry consumer watchdog should investigate and accuses Live Nation and competitor TEG of anti-competitive behaviour

Australia’s union for performing artists has accused the world’s largest live entertainment company of anti-competitive behaviour and called for the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission to investigate the industry.

US-based multinational Live Nation became the focus of a parliamentary inquiry into the struggling live music sector on Friday, after previous public hearings identified sluggish recovery from Covid-19, rising insurance costs and changing audience habits as the causes behind the cancellation of dozens of music festivals over the past two years.

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Irish museum solves mystery of bronze age axe heads delivered in porridge box

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Artefacts sent by farmer, who made the ‘absolutely mad’ discovery while cutting silage

When the national museum of Ireland received two 4,000-year-old axe heads, “thoughtfully” wrapped in foam inside a porridge box, from an anonymous source last month, it put out an appeal. The objects were “significant” and “exciting”, it said, but experts needed to know more about where exactly they had been found.

Now they have their answer: a farmer from County Westmeath has come forward as the mysterious sender, saying he made the “absolutely mad” discovery while using a metal detector on his land.

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Deafening concerts have turned Madrid stadium into ‘torture-drome’, say residents

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People living next to Santiago Bernabéu venue say gigs – including those by Taylor Swift – are ruining their lives and are taking action

When Delphine de Pontevès opens the window of her first-floor flat in Madrid a little before 10pm on a Tuesday night, more spills into the living room than the unforgivingly hot night air.

The voices and shouts of the crowds below give way to cheers, then to bass-heavy beats and music that will last until midnight and further stretch the patience of those who, like De Pontevès, live next door to the Santiago Bernabéu stadium.

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First trailer for Bob Dylan biopic shows Timothée Chalamet as the star

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A Complete Unknown, from Walk the Line director James Mangold, will show the musician’s rise to worldwide fame in early 60s New York City

The first trailer for A Complete Unknown shows Oscar nominee Timothée Chalamet as Bob Dylan in the much-anticipated biopic.

The Dune and Call Me by Your Name star has transformed into the legendary musician for an awards-aiming drama to be released in the US in December and in the UK in January. It comes from the film-maker James Mangold, who previously directed the Johnny Cash biopic Walk the Line.

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Reality TV contestant apologises for killing and eating protected New Zealand bird

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An American contestant on Race to Survive has apologised for eating a weka, a large, brown flightless bird known for its curiosity

Things got a little too real on the reality TV show Race to Survive when one of the contestants killed and ate a protected New Zealand bird species, prompting a warning from authorities.

The contestants had been warned that certain food groups – including protected ones – were off limits. Spencer Jones, who killed and ate the weka, has since apologised, saying, “I made a mistake. It was shortsighted, it was foolish,” according to the website RealityTea.com.

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Brett Whiteley and Sidney Nolan works among former Melbourne lord mayor’s acollection to be sold at auction

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Twenty artworks from Ron Walker’s deceased estate to go under the hammer, along with seven Arthur Boyd paintings

The former Lord mayor of Melbourne Ron Walker was known for his billion dollar property deals, casino developments and a knack for snaring major sporting events such as the Grand Prix and Commonwealth Games. But tonight a very private passion of the businessman, who amassed an estimated personal fortune of A$978m before his death in 2018, will be on show.

Twenty artworks from Walker’s deceased estate, along with seven Arthur Boyd paintings and one sculpture from the personal collection of the retired Sydney veteran art dealer Denis Savill, will be auctioned off by Smith & Singer (formerly Sotheby’s Australia) in Melbourne. Works by Brett Whiteley, Sidney Nolan, Charles Blackman and Albert Tucker are also among the trove.

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Rock star Stevie Van Zandt in plea for more arts and music in English schools

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Exclusive: E Street Band and Sopranos star visits south London to see his TeachRock programme in action

Legendary guitarist and Sopranos star Stevie Van Zandt has made an impassioned plea for more arts and music in England’s schools as a way of engaging disaffected young people during a visit to south London.

It was a last day of term like no other for pupils at Beckmead College – a school for students aged 14-19 with social, emotional and mental health needs – when the E Street Band member turned up, dressed like a rock star in purple velvet, winkle picker boots and trademark bandana.

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Photographer Magnus Hastings celebrates the artistry and pride of drag

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Queen, his biggest show to date, opens in Liverpool and features new commissions of the city’s drag performers

As a child, Magnus Hastings loved stealing his sister’s clothes and wearing his mother’s heels and feather boas, before he got “shamed out of being a drag child”.

Now, decades later, the award-winning photographer is celebrating the artistry of drag and the collective spirit of pride in his biggest exhibition to date at Liverpool’s Walker Art Gallery.

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Chinese artefacts in repatriation row were ‘given willingly’ to British Museum

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Amid calls to return antiquities, historian finds documents that reveal many were not result of imperial plunder

The British Museum boasts one of the biggest collections of Chinese antiquities in the west, but it has faced repeated calls to return them to China. Now historical documents reveal that many of the antiquities were acquired with the full cooperation of Chinese officials in the last century.

US historian Justin M Jacobs has unearthed evidence that shows the Chinese government “willingly and enthusiastically helped them remove these treasures from their lands” because they wanted closer ties with the west and appreciated new scholarship.

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Bob Newhart, famed comedian and sitcom actor, dies at 94

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Star of game-changing sitcoms The Bob Newhart Show and Newhart, and Christmas comedy Elf, had period of illness

Bob Newhart, the revered US comedian and star of two classic sitcoms known for his deadpan delivery, died on Thursday at the age of 94.

The Chicago native and titular star of game-changing sitcoms The Bob Newhart Show and Newhart in the 1970s and 80s, died at his home in Los Angeles after a period of short illnesses, his publicist Jerry Digney confirmed in a statement.

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Strictly dancer admits kicking his celebrity partner during rehearsals

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Spokesperson for Graziano Di Prima says he accepts he ‘crossed the line’ in the incident with Zara McDermott

Graziano Di Prima was removed from Strictly Come Dancing after he kicked his celebrity partner Zara McDermott during rehearsals, his spokesperson has said.

Di Prima, who joined the Strictly lineup in 2018, announced last weekend he was leaving the programme.

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Canary Wharf Group to carve chunks out of HSBC tower after bank’s exit

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Revamp of 42-storey block when bank moves out in 2027 will include new terraces and leisure facilities

Canary Wharf Group has unveiled plans to remove large chunks from the HSBC tower as part of a revamp of the 42-storey office block when the bank moves out in 2027.

The property company said it would carve out sections of the tower’s facade to create terraces as part of plans to transform the office block – a skyscraper in the east London financial district – into a mixed-use building that would include leisure facilities and a public viewing gallery.

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Adele announces ‘big break’ from music

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Speaking to German media ahead of Munich concert residency, singer says she ‘wants to do other creative things’ and has no plans for new material

Adele has announced she intends to go on hiatus from music after a forthcoming concert residency in Munich.

The British singer told German broadcaster ZDF: “My tank is quite empty from being on stage every weekend in Las Vegas. I don’t have any plans for new music, at all.

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Angela Merkel chooses privacy over publicity as she celebrates turning 70

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Once seen as the world’s most powerful woman, the former German chancellor is now immersed in the arts – and not only as an admirer

At the peak of her career, she was hailed as the world’s most powerful woman and the de-facto leader of the EU.

But as Angela Merkel turns 70 today, there will be no gathering of dignitaries to pay tribute to her legacy. Instead, she will celebrate entering her eighth decade “in private”, a spokesperson for her office told the German news agency dpa.

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Drake’s Toronto mansion seriously flooded amid record-breaking storms

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Rapper films muddy water pouring through 50,000 sq ft home, quipping ‘this better be espresso martini’

The Toronto mansion of rap superstar Drake has been seriously flooded following record-breaking storms in the city.

He shared footage on Instagram of ankle-deep muddy water rushing into an area of his home, with the caption “this better be espresso martini”.

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Billie Eilish latest star to read CBeebies bedtime story

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Oscar-winning singer chooses book by Oliver Jeffers that highlights importance of protecting nature

Billie Eilish has become the latest star to read a CBeebies bedtime story, having chosen a book that teaches children about interacting with nature.

The Oscar-winning singer of What Was I Made For? and Birds of a Feather read This Moose Belongs to Me by the author and illustrator Oliver Jeffers.

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