All posts tagged: London – England

Princess of Wales surprises tennis fans at front of Wimbledon queue

Princess of Wales surprises tennis fans at front of Wimbledon queue

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 Tennis fans who had queued for hours for Wimbledon tickets were met with a delightful surprise on Thursday morning. The Princess of Wales greeted hopeful attendees at the front of the queue and joined stewards to take payment and hand out tickets. Kate Middleton, who is patron of the All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC), wore a blue linen suit as she spoke to fans of the tournament who had queued from as early as 4am to gain access to the championships. The princess told two tennis fans to “have a great time” as she handed them a ticket. In the queue, she could be seen smiling and laughing as she greeted visitors and took pictures with them. The Princess of Wales greeted tennis fans at the front of the queue on Thursday morning (Getty) Onlookers stopped to take pictures as Kate entered the grounds …

The Independent returns as exclusive news partner of Henley Literary Festival

The Independent returns as exclusive news partner of Henley Literary Festival

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 The Independent will partner with Henley Literary Festival for a fourth consecutive year, it is announced today, with an exciting programme of on-stage events. Journalists from The Independent will be in conversation with a number of big names from the world of literature, culture and politics this October. It comes as the festival celebrates its 20th year and The Independent marks its 40th anniversary. Henley Literary Festival, one of the UK’s leading literary events, comprises more than 140 events held over 10 days between 2 to 11 October across three venues in Henley-on-Thames. This year’s event features a conversation with bestselling children’s author Michael Morpurgo and his wife, philanthropist Clare Morpurgo, about 50 years of life on their Devon farm, chaired by Jessie Thompson, Culture Editor at The Independent. Thompson will also sit down with Women’s Prize founder Kate Mosse for …

Sadie Sink reveals Marvel did not show her Spider-Man script until London shoot

Sadie Sink reveals Marvel did not show her Spider-Man script until London shoot

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 Sadie Sink revealed that Marvel Studios kept the details of her role in Spider-Man: Brand New Day so tightly guarded that she was not given a script until she arrived in London to begin filming. In a new interview with Nylon, the Stranger Things star shared that she was “offered her role without an audition”, since she had a working relationship with director Destin Daniel Cretton, who cast her in The Glass Castle (2017). On the secrecy surrounding the production, Sink said: “You just don’t share the secret, it’s not that hard.” Sink joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe was first reported in March 2025 by Deadline, which only said that she was joining the fourth Spider-Man film alongside Tom Holland as Peter Parker. Spider-Man: Brand New Day picks up after the events of Spider-Man: No Way Home, with Peter Parker navigating …

The Voice judges ‘quietly quit show’ amid concerns Emma Willis will leave over Strictly

The Voice judges ‘quietly quit show’ amid concerns Emma Willis will leave over Strictly

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 With their schedules for this year already filling up, McFly stars Danny Jones and Tom Fletcher have quit their joint coaching role on The Voice UK, according to reports. The bandmates have worked as a team to pick mentees on the two most recent series of ITV’s talent contest – the latest of which hasn’t even aired yet – but after just two stints in the show’s spinning chairs, the pair have reportedly called it a day. A source told The Sun that while bosses hoped to book the duo for the 15th series, the musicians’ busy schedules mean they’ll be unavailable. “Tom and Danny loved their time on the show, but a full series is a huge commitment,” they said. “Tom is back and forth from New York, working on taking Paddington: The Musical over there from London’s West End …

Richard Osman says ‘billionaires with thin skin’ control culture as Amazon axes AI founder film

Richard Osman says ‘billionaires with thin skin’ control culture as Amazon axes AI founder film

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 Richard Osman has said that American popular culture is under the control of “billionaires” who all have “quite thin skins” after Amazon chose to pull its Sam Altman film. Earlier this week, Amazon MGM made headlines by scrapping the almost-finished Luca Guadagnino film Artificial, which stars Andrew Garfield as OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. The studio and streamer announced that it was no longer partnering with Guadagnino on the movie, which is said to have dramatised the brief period when Altman was suddenly ousted as OpenAI’s CEO in 2023 before being rehired. Aside from Garfield, the stellar cast includes Top Gun: Maverick’s Monica Barbaro as OpenAI’s former chief technology officer Mira Murati, Anora’s Yura Borisov as chief scientist Ilya Sutskever and comedian Ike Barinholtz as co-founder Elon Musk. While Amazon said in a statement that it believes Artificial “will be better served …

Jon Snow says he’s ‘not afraid of death’ amid life-changing diagnosis

Jon Snow says he’s ‘not afraid of death’ amid life-changing diagnosis

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 Jon Snow has said he is “not afraid of death” amid his Alzheimer’s diagnosis. The 78-year-old news presenter revealed his diagnosis earlier this month, revealing that he has been living with the neurological disorder since 2023 and admitting he was initially hesitant to seek medical advice, convinced there was nothing amiss. Snow’s health is the focus of a new documentary, Channel 4’s Jon Snow: A Last Big Story, in which he discusses his retirement from newsreading as well as his diagnosis. Writing for The Independent, critic Nick Hilton wrote that it is heartwarming television that features “inspired creative decision-making”. The former Channel 4 news presenter Jon Snow (Getty Images) In a new interview, Snow has discussed his future and his experience of living with Alzheimer’s, and revealed that he feels little. “I’m not afraid of death because I think whatever happens, …

The Rest is Rivalry: Alastair Campbell takes playful swipe at podcast competitor Jon Sopel after award loss

The Rest is Rivalry: Alastair Campbell takes playful swipe at podcast competitor Jon Sopel after award loss

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 Alastair Campbell and Jon Sopel have reminded their fans that they’re no strangers to a bit of healthy competition, with the pair publicly sparring on social media after going up against one another for a podcasting award. The Rest is Politics presenter Campbell and The News Agents host Sopel regularly tease one another on social media over their respective podcasts, with both often vying for the top spot on lists of most-streamed news podcasts in the UK. So when The News Agents beat The Rest is Politics to the prize for Political Podcast of the Year at the Society of Editors’s News Podcast Awards, Sopel couldn’t help rubbing it in. “Delighted to have won politics podcast of the year from the Society of Editors,” Sopel wrote on X on Thursday (18 June). “And congrats to The Rest is Politics with @campbellclaret …

Shania Twain reveals why men are the reason she is not a feminist

Shania Twain reveals why men are the reason she is not a feminist

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 Music icon Shania Twain has declared she does not identify as a feminist, asserting that “vulnerable men need just as much protection as vulnerable women.” The 60-year-old Canadian singer, widely celebrated for her empowering anthems such as Man! I Feel Like A Woman and That Don’t Impress Me Much, often perceived as a feminist figure. Despite her lyrics championing women and self-empowerment, Twain revealed to The Times that she finds the label challenging. “I don’t see myself as a feminist,” she stated. “I see myself as a very independent thinker and not necessarily because I’m a woman.” Twain explained the reasoning behind her surprise revelation (Getty) She acknowledged, “I am referred to as a feminist. I think I have a lot of feminist points …

Shania Twain reveals why men are the reason she is not a feminist

Shania Twain explains reason why she is not a feminist

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 Music icon Shania Twain has declared she does not identify as a feminist, asserting that “vulnerable men need just as much protection as vulnerable women.” The 60-year-old Canadian singer, widely celebrated for her empowering anthems such as Man! I Feel Like A Woman and That Don’t Impress Me Much, often perceived as a feminist figure. Despite her lyrics championing women and self-empowerment, Twain revealed to The Times that she finds the label challenging. “I don’t see myself as a feminist,” she stated. “I see myself as a very independent thinker and not necessarily because I’m a woman.” Twain explained the reasoning behind her surprise revelation (Getty) She acknowledged, “I am referred to as a feminist. I think I have a lot of feminist points …

Perrie Edwards marries ex-England footballer Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain in Portugal

Perrie Edwards marries ex-England footballer Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain in Portugal

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 Pop star Perrie Edwards has married professional footballer Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain in a ceremony held in Portugal. The couple, who have been together since 2017, exchanged vows on Saturday afternoon in Faro, following their engagement in June 2022. The wedding comes months after the pair welcomed their daughter, Alanis Valentine, in January, joining their son, Axel, who was born in August 2021. According to reports from the Mail, Edwards wore a fitted long-sleeved white gown adorned with floral lace, carrying a bouquet of white calla lilies. The singer was photographed leaving a small church hand-in-hand with the Celtic FC midfielder, who was dressed in a black tuxedo with a matching lily boutonniere. Photographs also appeared to show bridesmaids in baby blue gowns, holding parasols, cheering …