All posts tagged: London – England

Russell T Davies reveals he asked BBC to stop publicising show on X: ‘It’s a hate platform’

Russell T Davies reveals he asked BBC to stop publicising show on X: ‘It’s a hate platform’

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture email Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Russell T Davies has revealed that made one key demand when he returned to Doctor Who – that it shouldn’t be publicised on social media platform X. The screenwriter, 63, came back to Doctor Who as its showrunner in 2021, ushering in a new era with Ncuti Gatwa as the Fifteenth Doctor. In a new interview, Davies spoke about his disdain for X – formerly known as Twitter – under owner Elon Musk’s reign, saying that he asked the BBC to stop posting about Doctor Who on the platform when he returned. “It’s a public service broadcaster posting on a hate platform,” he told The i. “It’s not the town square it pretends to be. Russell T Davies returned to ‘Doctor Who’ in 2021 (Getty) “It’s a privately owned hate platform, owned by a megalomaniac [Elon Musk] who is pushing ill …

Spice Girls ‘talking about’ 30th anniversary reunion

Spice Girls ‘talking about’ 30th anniversary reunion

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the inside track from Roisin O’Connor with our free weekly music newsletter Now Hear This Get our free music newsletter Now Hear This Get our free music newsletter Now Hear This Mel B has said the Spice Girls “should be doing something” to mark the 30th anniversary of their iconic debut single, “Wannabe”. The track, which propelled the group to stardom, was released in 1996. The 51-year-old singer, known to millions as Scary Spice, achieved fame alongside Lady Victoria Beckham, Melanie Chisholm, Emma Bunton, and Geri Halliwell-Horner. The quintet dominated music charts with hits like “Who Do You Think You Are?” and “Viva Forever” before embarking on an indefinite break in December 2000. Mel B, whose real name is Melanie Brown, has now addressed speculation that the group will reunite around 26 June to celebrate the milestone. She said: “It’s our 30th anniversary, I do think we should be doing something. Whether that actually happens or not is another story, but we’re all talking about it because if not anything, just for our fans. …

Strictly and Gladiators stars join Celebrity Gogglebox cast

Strictly and Gladiators stars join Celebrity Gogglebox cast

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture email Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Reality television personality Olivia Attwood and YouTuber George Clarke are among the new famous faces set to offer their candid critiques of the week’s TV, as Celebrity Gogglebox prepares to return to screens. The popular Channel 4 series will welcome a host of stars to its sofas, including Gladiators duo Harry Aikines-Aryeetey (Nitro) and Matt Morsia (Legend), comedian Julian Clary, and actor Nigel Havers. Attwood, 35, known for her time on Love Island, will appear alongside her mother, Jennifer. Reflecting on the experience, she shared: “Doing Celebrity Gogglebox with my mum was chaotic but in the best possible way. It’s not often that we agree on things, which I think the viewers may find entertaining. My family are huge fans of the show so it’s a real honour to be a part of such an iconic British programme.” Attwood will be …

Rosamund Pike calls out audience member for texting during show

Rosamund Pike calls out audience member for texting during show

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Rosamund Pike told off an audience member for texting during her emotional performance in Inter Alia, saying she hoped it was “very important”. The actor, who plays a court judge in the show, returned to the stage at the end of the production at Wyndham’s Theatre in London on Saturday to give a lecture on theatre etiquette. Her speech came as a surprise but elicited cheers from the audience as she told them how the incident was upsetting. “I just wanted to say for anyone going to the theatre, it’s a huge thing that we’re trying to give you. I am trying to tell you a story, and I’m feeling you, and I hope you’re feeling me too,” she told the crowd. Ms Pike won the Olivier Award for Best Actress this year (Getty) The audience member had been texting during one of the more …

Toy Story 5 star Greta Lee hails ‘important’ film focusing on children’s screen time debate

Toy Story 5 star Greta Lee hails ‘important’ film focusing on children’s screen time debate

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture email Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter American actress Greta Lee has championed the upcoming Toy Story 5, describing it as an “important movie” due to its exploration of technology’s pervasive influence. Lee, 43, lends her voice to Lilypad, a smart tablet character in the latest instalment of the beloved animated comedy. Her character, while not a traditional antagonist, forces the iconic toys to unite in a bid to rescue their owner from the encroaching threat of electronic devices. Speaking to the Press Association at a launch event, Lee reflected on her role, stating: “Lilypad is not quite a villain. She often has really good intentions. “The issue is complicated because tech isn’t going anywhere, and it is beneficial in a myriad of ways, but there is a real concern about the cost of all of this screen time that we get to see in the movie.” The …

Joanna Scanlan on the death of her childhood friend: ‘At boarding school, emotions were packed into a small, tidy box’

Joanna Scanlan on the death of her childhood friend: ‘At boarding school, emotions were packed into a small, tidy box’

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture email Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Joanna Scanlan was just 14 when she experienced major grief for the first time. Her childhood friend Sarah, to whom she’d been joined at the hip since they were small, was 15 and just on the cusp of womanhood when she was hit by a car and killed. “I had to accept that Sarah wasn’t actually just around the corner or gone to Australia on holiday,” she said. “The shock of that lasted a long time.” Scanlan, Bafta-winning star of The Thick of It and After Love, is speaking about Sarah’s death publicly for the first time, 50 years on. She is one of 11 actors and poets, also including Alison Steadman, Ophelia Lovibond and Lemn Sissay, who are reading poems in memory of their loved ones to commemorate Celebration Day, an annual moment dedicated to remembering those who have died. …

Jeremy Clarkson is finally offering ‘banned’ product at pub after huge demand

Jeremy Clarkson is finally offering ‘banned’ product at pub after huge demand

Published by Daniella Wilson

Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Jeremy Clarkson is finally selling wine at his Cotswolds pub after relaxing a rule he’s enforced since it opened. When the 65-year-old opened his Oxfordshire watering hole The Farmer’s Dog in August 2024, he revealed it would “serve exclusively British” items, including several own-brand food and drink products. One item missing from the menu was wine, but that’s until now – the pub has finally introduced its own British wine range. “There was a time when English wine was like a child’s recorder playing; you wanted to like it, but it wasn’t very good. Fortunately, that time has gone,” the pub said in a new statement. “Thanks to warmer summers and expert farming, Britain grows excellent grapes and makes brilliant wine with them,” it …

As Rents Soar, Londoners Turn to Vacant Pubs, Offices and Police Stations

As Rents Soar, Londoners Turn to Vacant Pubs, Offices and Police Stations

Published by Sam Flores

For Erika Allen, living in a defunct London police station has its trade-offs. Pros include cheap rent, a large bedroom and the old holding cells, which make excellent bike storage. Among the cons are the lack of a dedicated living room, monthly room inspections and the possibility of being removed at a moment’s notice. “But if you’ve got a chilled-out mind-set and you’re always ready to move,” she said, “you can save a lot of money.” That is the primary sales pitch for property guardianship, as Ms. Allen’s living arrangement is known. The concept, in which people pay licensing fees to live in otherwise vacant buildings for significantly less than market rent rates, has become more popular in London in recent years as housing costs in the city have soared. Proponents say guardianships could be a solution for the housing crisis in London, as well as in other housing-starved cities. “There are millions of square feet of commercial properties which are sitting empty and vacant,” said Graham Sievers, the chair of the Property Guardian Providers …

Derek Jacobi reveals ‘hateful’ director that left him terrified

Derek Jacobi reveals ‘hateful’ director that left him terrified

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture email Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Sir Derek Jacobi has spent almost 70 years in showbusiness – but there’s just one director he’s worked with who’s “terrified” him. The veteran actor, 87, opened up about his life and career in a new interview, revealing that working with theatre director John Dexter was a difficult experience. Jacobi and Dexter worked together multiple times at the National Theatre, with Dexter directing him in Othello in 1964 and Armstrong’s Last Goodnight the following year among other plays. Dexter, who also worked with Sir Laurence Olivier and Dame Maggie Smith, died during heart surgery aged 64 in March 1990. Theatre director John Dexter (Getty Images) When asked whether he had always got on with people he worked with, Jacobi told The Guardian: “Mercifully, I have forgotten the bad times. Genuinely. I must have had them, but too infrequently for them to …

British comedians owed thousands by big UK comedy festival: ‘I’ve got bills to pay’

British comedians owed thousands by big UK comedy festival: ‘I’ve got bills to pay’

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture email Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Leicester Comedy Festival is yet to pay some of its performers followings its February event, with comedians complaining that they’re owed thousands. The annual comedy festival runs for almost three weeks every February, welcoming around 100,000 customers to see the likes of Sara Pascoe, Maisie Adam, Chris McCausland and Sir Stephen Fry. However, hundreds of acts are yet to receive payment after performing at the festival. They were expecting to have been paid on 19 April but instead received an email informing them that their pay would be delayed. It is unknown which stars are among those who are yet to be paid. Comedian Benjamin Alborough told BBC News that he’s owed “just short of £2,000” by the festival. “It’s very frustrating. I’ve got bills to pay like everyone else.” Sara Pascoe performed at this year’s festival (Getty) He added that …