The broadcaster left Radio 4’s Saturday Live in March after 12 years
The Rev Richard Coles has said he “felt rather hurtled towards the exit” after leaving the BBC this year.
The broadcaster, 61, stepped down from his Radio 4 programme Saturday Live in March after 12 years.
Continue reading...In conversation with Sally Rooney at Charleston festival author says award has hindered her ability to focus on writing
Annie Ernaux, the French winner of the 2022 Nobel prize in literature, has said she never wanted the award and that it fell into her life “like a bomb”, hindering her ability to focus on writing.
In conversation with the novelist Sally Rooney on the final day of Charleston festival, Ernaux was talking via an interpreter as she explained her tricky relationship with the prize.
Continue reading...Former Newsnight presenter, 73, will end stint as longest serving current quizmaster on British television
Jeremy Paxman’s stint as the longest serving current quizmaster on British television will come to an end on Monday night when he presents his final edition of University Challenge.
The 73-year-old former Newsnight presenter is bowing out from the show after revealing he has been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.
Continue reading...Australian musician told Hay festival we should not ‘eradicate the best of these people in order to punish the worst of them’
Nick Cave has said that boycotting songs because of the actions of the artist “is not a very good way to go about things”.
The Australian singer-songwriter told the Hay festival: “Making art – especially making music – it prevents you from becoming the worst aspects of your character, and that’s why I very much think we need to be very, very careful about the music we don’t think people should listen to any more because of what the artist who has made that music may have been like,” the Australian singer-songwriter said.
Continue reading...The live-action remake brought in nearly $100m over the Memorial Day weekend, knocking Fast X out of the top spot
The Little Mermaid live-action remake of Disney’s 1989 animated classic made a splash at the box office on Memorial Day weekend, bringing in almost $100m in North America, according to studio estimates released on Sunday.
The film starring Halle Bailey, winning praise from critics as the titular mermaid Ariel, and Melissa McCarthy as her sea witch nemesis, Ursula, ranks as the fifth biggest Memorial Day weekend opening on record.
Continue reading...Pink Floyd co-founder rejects accusations before his Sunday night concert in former Nazi site
Several Jewish groups, politicians and an alliance of civil society groups gathered for a memorial ceremony and a protest rally against a concert by Roger Waters in Frankfurt on Sunday evening.
They accuse the Pink Floyd co-founder of antisemitism – an allegation he denies.
Continue reading...This Morning co-presenter wrote that subsequent admission of relationship he denied was ‘very hurtful’
Holly Willoughby has claimed that former co-host Phillip Schofield had previously denied to her that he had a relationship with a younger ITV colleague and described his subsequent admission of the affair as “very hurtful”.
In a statement on Instagram, the This Morning presenter, 42, said: “It’s taken time to process yesterday’s news. When reports of this relationship first surfaced, I asked Phil directly if this was true and was told it was not. It’s been very hurtful to now find out that this was a lie.”
Continue reading...Presenter parts from agents and says he lied about affair with younger employee while he was married
Phillip Schofield has sensationally quit ITV and admitted to an affair with a younger male colleague at This Morning while he was still married.
The 61-year-old – who stepped down from presenting the daytime TV programme last Saturday – said the “consensual on-off relationship” was “unwise, but not illegal”.
Continue reading...Evidence that both women experienced stress and anxiety, with Elizabeth traumatised by mother’s death and issue of marriage
Elizabeth I was heavily influenced by her mother Anne Boleyn, despite the fact that the latter died when the Tudor queen was less than three years old, according to the historian and author Tracy Borman.
As well as being influenced by feminist ideas that were ahead of their time, Borman said there was evidence they both experienced stress and anxiety.
Continue reading...Pink Floyd singer wore costume during performance in which he imagines himself as fictional fascist dictator
Police in Germany have launched a criminal investigation into the Pink Floyd co-founder Roger Waters over a Nazi-style uniform he wore at a recent concert in Berlin.
“An investigation has been opened over the costume displayed at the concerts on 17 and 18 May,” Berlin police spokesperson Martin Halweg told the Guardian.
Continue reading...Ennosuke Ichikawa taken to hospital but mother and father died after taking overdose
The world of Japanese kabuki, a classical form of Japanese theatre that combines highly stylised movement and unusual vocalisation, has been rocked after the popular actor Ennosuke Ichikawa was taken to hospital and his parents found dead.
Ennosuke was found by his manager collapsed at his home in Tokyo along with an apparent suicide note and taken to hospital.
Continue reading...Strand Magazine will publish Blackmail, a tale of a blind Korean war veteran, found by New York editor Andrew Gulli
A New York editor and literary detective is celebrating the discovery and release of an unpublished short story by James M Cain, one of the greats of American noir, a “poet of the tabloid murder” whose works made famous on film include The Postman Always Rings Twice, Double Indemnity and Mildred Pierce.
“For all the work that you do,” said Andrew Gulli, editor-in-chief of the Strand Magazine, “like 2% of the time you hit the jackpot. I just feel so good. It’s worth it.”
Continue reading...Former Coronation Street actor calls for more support, as survey finds lack of safety net for self-employed creatives
More financial support should be available to artists in the periods where they are not working, the former Coronation Street actor Julie Hesmondhalgh has said, as research revealed universal credit is pushing the creative workforce into destitution.
The study by the performing arts union Equity and the University of Warwick found that of those subject to the universal credit rule known as the “minimum income floor” (MIF) – which reduces the amount of support that self-employed creatives are eligible for – 41% had gone without essential items such as food or utilities.
Continue reading...Described by Paul Kelly as ‘one of our greatest songwriters’, McKean – who wrote some of Dusty’s biggest hits – died on Thursday night surrounded by family
Australian singer-songwriter Joy McKean, who wrote some of her husband Slim Dusty’s most popular songs, has died at 93 from cancer.
EMI said McKean had passed away peacefully on Thursday night, surrounded by family. “She will be remembered as a pioneer in Australian music,” the statement read.
Continue reading...Musician’s family says items for sale are ‘clearly stolen’, but Boston auction house claims it bought them after Petty’s former home was foreclosed in 2015
The family of the late musician Tom Petty has accused a Boston auction house of stealing his clothing in order to sell it at auction, urging fans and collectors to not buy the items while it pursues legal action.
RR Auction house currently has more than 40 items of Petty’s clothing listed for auction, including jackets, bags, boots, hats and T-shirts. On its website, the auction house claims it acquired the clothes after Petty’s first wife, Jane Benyo Petty, lost their family home in Encino to foreclosure in 2015.
Continue reading...Stars such as Mick Jagger, Angela Bassett and Magic Johnson pay tribute to the singer who has died at 83
An outpouring of tributes has emerged online following the death of legendary vocalist and performer Tina Turner.
Turner died at 83 years old at her home in Switzerland following her battle with a long illness after she was diagnosed with intestinal cancer in 2016 and underwent a kidney transplant a year later.
Continue reading...He had personal audiences with Queen Elizabeth II and held national treasure status – until the world discovered the awful truth
When Rolf Harris died at 93, he ended his life as a convicted paedophile. Since his release from prison in 2017, after serving almost three years, he had lived as a virtual recluse with his wife of 64 years, Alwen Hughes. He had neck cancer, and the only visitors to their house in Bray, Berkshire were carers and nurses.
It was a long way from his days as a national treasure. Once, the artist, musician and entertainer had spent much of his time visiting Buckingham Palace to collect a series of honours. He made two appearances on the UK version of This Is Your Life and performed his music at high-profile gigs across the country. His paintings, which once fetched six-figure sums, can now be picked up for a fraction of their former value.
Continue reading...Australian-born artist and musician was jailed for sexual assaults on children after a 50-year career as one of Britain’s best-known TV performers
The entertainer Rolf Harris, whose career as one of the best-loved performers on British TV ended in the disgrace of convictions for indecent assault on teenage girls, has died aged 93.
In October 2022, it was reported that Harris had neck cancer and was barely able to speak. His death was confirmed by a registrar at Maidenhead town hall, close to his family home in the Berkshire village of Bray.
Continue reading...Prince Alemayehu, who was taken to England after his father’s citadel was looted, was buried at Windsor Castle in 19th century
Buckingham Palace has reportedly declined a request to return the remains of an Ethiopian prince who came to be buried at Windsor Castle in the 19th century.
Prince Alemayehu, a claimed descendant of the biblical King Solomon, was taken to England – some say “stolen” – after British soldiers looted his father’s imperial citadel after the Battle of Maqdala in 1868.
Continue reading...Freese, who previously played at tribute concerts for Hawkins, was announced as the new drummer in a starry, tongue-in-cheek livestream
Foo Fighters have unveiled their new drummer after the death of their former percussionist Taylor Hawkins: the veteran session musician Josh Freese.
Freese has accrued a long and star-studded list of credits over his three-decade career. The 50-year-old drummer has been a member of Devo since 1996 and the Vandals since 1989. He has also toured with the Offspring, Guns N’ Roses, Danny Elfman, Weezer, Sting, Paramore, Nine Inch Nails and 100 Gecs.
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