News

Updated with Candace Owens statement: P.T. Barnum once said “no publicity is bad publicity,” but hard to tell if Candace Owens would agree or disagree today.

The conservative contrarian’s “outlandish, defamatory and far-fetched fictions” that French First Lady Brigitte Macron was born a man are totally false, a defamation lawsuit filed Wednesday by France President Emmanuel Macron and his spouse assert. The Élysée Palace occupants allege that the conspiracy-peddling Owens attacked the couple incessantly “to promote her independent platform, gain notoriety and make money.”

It’s an effort that the Macrons and their Tom Clare-led U.S. lawyers have to admit is working out for Maga-courting Owens with her podcast loyalists, YouTube watchers and millions of social media followers. Owens “has built a brand on provocation, not truth,” the suit says.

“The clicks kept coming, so Owens kept going, seizing every opportunity to promote her salacious claims,” exclaims...

BBC News journalist Gary O’Donoghue has admitted he accidentally put the phone down on Donald Trump ahead of the UK broadcaster’s first exclusive interview with a U.S. president in a decade.

O’Donoghue, the BBC’s chief North America Correspondent, said he was asleep when he received a call from the White House and fumbled his phone when answering.

The vastly experienced reporter, who is blind, was granted the interview to mark a year since the assassination attempt on Trump near Butler, Pennsylvania, last year.

O’Donoghue was covering the rally and won plaudits for this reporting, including from Trump, who said during the interview that the BBC covered it fairly and it was a “great honor” to speak to the journalist.

O’Donoghue said they had a “few false starts” in making the interview happen, and he was resigned to it not taking place. He returned home and,...

Singer/songwriter and actress Kate Nash took aim at a broad range of celebrities and their politics during her Glastonbury set Sunday night, according to British media reports, firing salvos at J.K. Rowling, Rod Stewart, and even 1975 singer Matty Healy’s mom.

Nash, who recently dropped the anti-transphobia single “Germ,” directed her harshest words at the Harry Potter creator: “The loudest feminist voice in the U.K. is currently transphobic,” she said, “and that is something that I take very fucking personally, as a feminist and a feminist with trans friends in my life,...

“We live in the stupidest possible version of human history,” said Nish Kumar to a roaring packed Largo at the Coronet in LA last week, perfectly summing up 2025 so far.

Cited as one of the 50 best comedians of the 21st century by the UK’s The Guardian and the subject of a recent New York Times profile that raised his American profile considerably, After Midnight alum Kumar’s relentless shiving and mocking of pompous and populist politicians was on full display on March 20 in those back-to-back shows at the iconic venue on La Cienega Blvd. From Donald Trump and Maga authoritarianism, UK right winger Nigel Farage (“if gout was a guy”) and race riots, and how horrible Kash Patel and Rishi Sunak are, Kumar raged against the moronic and self-declared messiahs. There was also material on his mother’s obsession with Princess Diana, woke scolding, the return of Nazis to public life,...

British Royal Family news reveals a judge will decide if Prince Harry’s US visa application should be public after questioning how he was allowed into the country after admitting to drug use. Prince Harry is at a critical hearing in his ongoing visa dispute, which could have a lasting impact on his future.

A US Judge Will Make A Decision

A judge in the United States will decide if a previous decision to keep the Duke of Sussex’s US visa application private will remain or be made public for examination.

This case follows a legal challenge from the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank in Washington DC. They argue that the US Government should release details about the Duke’s visa application to determine if he disclosed his drug use.

In his memoir Spare, Harry acknowledges using cocaine, marijuana, and psychedelic mushrooms. He stated that cocaine “didn’t do anything for me,...

Placebo lead singer Brian Molko has been charged with defamation in Italy for comments he made in July 2023 about right-wing Italian Prime Minster Giorgia Meloni.

According to the Italian newspaper La Stampa, the justice ministry has allowed prosecutors to move forward on charges of “contempt of the institutions” after Molko called the prime minister a “fascist, racist piece of shit” while playing a festival in Turin.

Defaming the Italian government, parliament, courts, or army carries a fine of up to €5,000 and a direct summons to trial. There is typically a possibility of three years in prison, but Justice Minister Carlo Nordio said it’s highly unlikely Molko will receive a sentence, according to The Guardian.

Meloni originally sued Molko in August 2023 after he made the inflammatory comments during Placebo’s set at the Sonic Park Stupinigi festival. She leads the nationalist political party Brothers of Italy while also serving as...

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Prince Harry took a subtle shot at Donald Trump over the weekend.

While making a speech to open the Invictus Games in Canada, the handsome Royal didn’t mention America’s 47th President of the United States by name.

However, Harry did cite the events competitors and said their “courage, values and humanity” deserved special respect at a time “when there is no shortage of crises, no absence of uncertainty, no lack of weak moral character in the world.”

Prince Harry delivers remarks at the Invictus Games Vancouver Whistler 2025 Nation Home Welcome Reception on February 7, 2025 in Vancouver, Canada. (Photo by Jeff Vinnick/Getty Images for Invictus Games Vancouver Whistler 2025)

Typically, members of the Harry’s infamous family avoid all mentions of global affairs … lest they risk being seen to interfere in politics, something his late grandmother went far out of her way to avoid at all times,...

An online video claiming The United States Agency for International Development (Usaid), the U.S. government’s main overseas aid agency, paid some Hollywood stars to visit Ukraine has been debunked by the BBC.

The BBC Verify division identified the fake video as part of a Russian disinformation campaign, but only after the false content went viral on social media platforms and was retweeted on X by Elon Musk.

Stars mentioned in the video to have received payments included Angelina Jolie, Sean Pean, Jean Claude Van Dam, Orlando Bloom and Ben Stiller.

The counterfeit video claims the source of the news is “eonline.com,” a claim that was dismissed out of hand by E! News-parent NBCUniversal. “The video is not authentic and did not originate from E! News,” an E! News spokesperson told The Hollywood Reporter on Friday.

BBC Verify said it has previously investigated the Russian disinformation campaign claimed...

Prince Harry may have escaped deportation – not to add the unnecessary drama that would have arisen if his Visa documents had been released to the public – during Biden’s Presidential tenure, but will this good luck persist in Trump’s? Especially since the big man is hell-bent on cracking hard on illegal immigration practices.

Should Prince Harry be worried? Do you think it’s the reason he’s putting out feelers in the press, saying he’s fighting to bring his children home to the UK so they can know and enjoy their heritage? Here’s what we know so far.

What To Expect From Prince Harry’s Upcoming Visa Records Case

Prince Harry is far from being the biggest fish that Donald Trump is frying right now. Thousands of Mexicans have been deported, prompting superstar Selena Gomez to share a video where she shed tears for her people.

On Feb.

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Bill Gates is feeling reflective. After turning his focus outward with books like How to Avoid a Climate Disaster and How to Prevent the Next Pandemic, he’s looking inward on Source Code, the first of three planned memoirs by the multibillionaire founder of Microsoft. Source Code is available Feb. 4 as a hardcover, paperback, or ebook. Wil Wheaton (Stand By Me, The Big Bang Theory) and Bill Gates narrate the Audible version.

Ahead of the release of his new autobiography, Bill Gates admonished fellow tech billionaire CEO Elon Musk over the Tesla chief-turned-Trump adviser’s meddling in foreign politics, calling on foreign nations to introduce safeguards against “super-rich foreigners” attempting to distort elections.

Gates’ comments in a profile in the U.K.’s Times come after Musk threw $277 million into Trump and other GOP candidates’ campaigns in 2024, a gamble that has landed him a newly-created position in the Trump administration and the president’s ear. Since Trump’s win in November, Musk has been calling for the leader of the British far-right party Reform UK, Nigel Farage, to be replaced as he dangles a possible donation to the now third-largest U.K. party. And over the weekend, Musk made a surprise appearance during Germany’s AfD election event in the eastern city of Halle; voters in Germany return to the polls for federal elections in February.

Jake Paul and Conor McGregor have had a rivalry brewing up for the past few years. However, the two seemed to be able to put up a truce of sorts, as they were recently seen attending Donald Trump’s presidential inauguration together. This wasn’t the only notable meet-up for Paul and McGregor at the event, either.

Conor McGregor Was Even Seen Sitting Next To Jake Paul’s Mother

Paul, who was previously known for his work as an influencer and actor, started his boxing career in 2018 with a white-collar boxing match. He made his professional debut in 2020. He recently made headlines with his 2024 bout with Mike Tyson.

McGregor is an Irish boxer who has been competing professionally since 2008. He is considered one of the biggest bay-per-view draws in Mma history.

Conor McGregor – YouTube

As noted by TMZ, Paul and McGregor are known for their rivalry over the years. However,...

Rage Against the Machine’s “Killing in the Name,” has hit 1 billion streams on Spotify.

Written in the wake of the 1992 Los Angeles riots about racist cops who “are boot licking lackeys and thugs of the racist capitalist ruling class” (according to Tom Morello), “Killing in the Name” was first released in November of that year, and has since become a beloved anthem to many around the world… including those who don’t quite align with the song’s values, like Trump supporters, Guy Fieri, Nigel Farage, and others.

Writing on Twitter on Saturday, Morello acknowledged the billion-stream milestone and thanked “all those who listened to it,” including “those who love it, those who hate it, and those that have enjoyed it without understanding it.”

“Righteous proof that rebel music and irony are alive and well,” he concluded.

In 2022, Consequence called “Killing in the Name” the best song by Rage Against the Machine,...

Jean-Marie Le Pen, founder of France’s far-right National Rally party, and father to French political leader Marine Le Pen, has died. He was 96.

Le Pen founded National Rally, then called National Front, in 1972 as a right-wing populist movement and led the party until 2011. He stood for president five times, most successfully in 2002 when he shocked France by defeating Socialist candidate Lionel Jospin in the first round of voting, Jacques Chirac in the second round, the first time a far-right candidate had gotten that far. Le Pen was soundly defeated, with Chirac winning more than 82 percent of the vote.

A controversial figure his entire political life, Le Pen was convicted and fined several times for contesting and downplaying the crimes of the Holocaust, in violation of French law. He once infamously described the Holocaust, as a “mere detail” in the history of World War II, and repeatedly praised France’s...

British prime minister Keir Starmer has hit back at Elon Musk, attacking him for “lies and misinformation” that he said the technology mogul has seemingly spread about a top U.K. minister.

Musk has in recent months aligned himself with the right-leaning politics of Donald Trump, Reform U.K.’s Nigel Farage (though he has since rescinded his support for the controversial party leader) and Germany’s far-right AfD party.

Recently, the multibillionaire has been spreading conspiracy theories on social media site X (formerly Twitter), which he owns, demanding Jess Phillips, one of Starmer’s safeguarding ministers, be imprisoned and calling her a “rape genocide apologist.” The SpaceX founder also took aim at Starmer for his failure to prosecute child grooming gangs while serving as director of public prosecutions from 2008 to 2013.

Starmer was asked about Musk’s behavior on Monday, though did not mention him by name. “Jess does not need...

Elon Musk’s tirade against the British government has been met with a robust response from UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

During a press conference in the past half hour, Starmer said the X chief and others’ recent obsession with last decade’s child grooming gangs saga is nothing but “whipping up of intimidation and threats of violence, hoping the media will amplify it.”

Musk has been spreading conspiracies across the weekend on his social media platform including labeling one of Starmer’s ministers, Jess Phillips, a “rape genocide apologist.” In a series of posts on X, he then called for Starmer to face jail time over how child grooming gangs were dealt with when Starmer was Director of Public Prosecutions last decade and posted a yes-no poll with the statement: “America should liberate the people of Britain from their tyrannical government.”

“I’m prepared to call this out for what it is,...

‘Tis the season for taking stock of the year, so join us as we list some of the big winners (and a few losers) in the film and television business outside of America.

The Deadline international team has pooled its thoughts using a pretty loose methodology to define success. We’ve seasoned the pot with breakout hit creators, award winners and the power players behind seismic business deals.

In most cases, it’s pretty clear who’s won in 2024, but some of our picks may have you arching an eyebrow. Please comment or @ us with your views and alternatives. Without further ado — and in no particular order — here are 2024’s big winners in international film and TV.

Jessica Gunning

Baby Reindeer was the series that got the world talking. Charting the darkly comic story of creator Richard Gadd’s experience with a stalker, the unexpected hit was streamed nearly 90M...

Elon Musk has backed Germany’s far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) in a post on X.

As the X owner delves deeper into the world of politics by the day, he tweeted last night saying “Only the AfD can save Germany.”

Musk was quote tweeting a post and video from a young German YouTuber with 300,000 followers who had criticized Friedrich Merz, the man who could be the next chancellor of Germany with its parliament dissolved this week following a no confidence vote. Her post said Merz is “horrified by the idea that Germany should follow Elon Musk’s and [Argentina President] Javier Milei’s example,” adding: “He staunchly rejects a pro-freedom approach and refuses any discussion with the AfD.”

The AfD is a far-right and populist German party that has steadily been making electoral gains over the past few years, causing alarm both within Germany and internationally. The party is bound together...

Jimmy Fallon took aim at President-elect Donald Trump’s recent meetings with tech bigwigs.

“Trump’s been very busy. By tomorrow he’ll have met with executives from Meta, Apple, Google and Amazon,” Fallon said on Tuesday night. “When Nicolas Cage saw that he was like, ‘Meta, Apple, Google and Amazon — the clues were there all along!'”

To emphasize his joke, “The Tonight Show” highlighted the first letters of each company to spell Maga. Fallon then continued his Cage impression, channeling his “National Treasure” role.

One of those companies that Trump visited was Netflix. The Republican politician met with the streamer’s co-ceo Ted Sarandos on Tuesday. “Things got off to a rough start when Trump bit his arm to see if it was cake,” Fallon joked.

So far, Trump has met with Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew, Tesla and X’s Elon Musk and...

After the Paramount logo (the stars replaced by gold rings flying towards the iconic mountain) and the Sega ident, Sonic The Hedgehog 3 rather ironically segues to a large credit for Neal Moritz’s production company, ‘Original Film’. It’s not very often a production banner throws unintentional shade on the film that follows, but there is very little that is novel in Sonic 3’s subsequent 109 minutes. Director Jeff Fowler’s inoffensive, all-too-familiar third adventure for the Blue Blur is probably the pick of the bunch, but this is still the kind of low-hanging fruit — endless quipping, bland moralising, dance routines — meted out by every bog-standard animated kids’ flick since the turn of the century.

The big new element here is the introduction of vengeful villain Shadow The Hedgehog, voiced by Keanu Reeves, unsurprisingly channelling John Wick rather than Ted Logan. Teased in a sting at the end of Sonic 2,...

Steve Bannon Condemns Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi (Photo Credit – Wikimedia/Instagram)

Former White House chief and Donald Trump ally Steve Bannon has severely chastised Ellen DeGeneres and her wife, Portia De Rossi, for leaving the United States in protest against the president-elect’s unprecedented election victory and his subsequent second term in office.

It has been reported that the popular talk show host has relocated to the Cotswolds, a region in south-west England about two hours from London. The couple plans to stay there permanently, not intending to return to the “Land of Liberty.”

Steve Bannon Said Ellen DeGeneres and Portia De Rossi are ‘Not Resilient’

The former Trump aide loathed DeGeneres and Rossi for whining like little children” and deciding to “get the h— out.” “F— them. They’re not resilient… They had every advantage of state power,” he said. “They had the high ground. And guess what,...

Gb News has signed up to Freely, the first free UK TV service to deliver live television over broadband, along with U.S. players AMC Networks and PBS.

Unveiling the news at a Content London event, the broadcaster-backed Freely said it now has more than 40 streamed live channels integrated with 74,000 hours of on-demand content from 11 different players.

Gb News is a high-profile new joiner and moves in alongside BBC News. The right-leaning channel has amassed a small but loyal following since 2021 launch, with hosts including Nigel Farage and Jacob Rees-Mogg. Freely said Gb News will “provide news and opinion via its live TV channel, over Wi-Fi.”

Gb News comes aboard along with AMC Networks International UK (Amcni UK) and PBS America. Amcni UK, which owns and operates a portfolio of entertainment channels under a Jv with Paramount Global, will bring live streams of free-to-air channels including the Legend network and the investigative True Crime.

Since stepping down as senior members of the Royal Family, Prince Harry has managed to trash just about everything in his way in his bid to be financially independent and perhaps even get a little bit of guilty pleasure by hurting the people he feels wronged him.

However, Royal commentator Lee Cohen thinks he’s nicely set up to regret his actions soon.

Prince Harry “Horribly Used” By Wife Meghan Markle

The internet is going crazy right now just because of some unsubstantiated rumors claiming that Harry and Meghan are splitting.

The whole confusion was brought about due to a report published by the New York Post, which claims that Harry and Meghan are currently undergoing a “professional separation.” Many read this as a marital separation and reacted accordingly.

They say that Harry has thrown his life and inheritance away for a woman and that he is literally living to regret this.

British MPs will summon Elon Musk to testify in U.K. parliament about the misinformation spread by X, formerly Twitter, following the Southport attack in July.

The summons will be part of a parliamentary inquiry into the mass riots that transpired after a man stabbed several people at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in the seaside town of Southport, killing three children. MPs are expected to also call senior executives from Meta and TikTok for questioning in the inquiry, according to The Guardian.

Initial hearings will take place in...

On July 29, 2024, a man stabbed several people at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in the seaside town of Southport in northern England, killing three young children. As their deaths shocked the nation, rumors about the attacker’s identity quickly spread online. Far-right provocateurs like Andrew Tate — who was indicted in 2023 on charges (that he denies) of rape and human trafficking in Romania, and is currently under house arrest over a second investigation — blamed an undocumented immigrant for the attacks. Actor Laurence Fox promoted speculation that the suspect was Muslim:...

Senna and Amy filmmaker Asif Kapadia turns to dystopian filmmaking with 2073, starring Samantha Morton. Here’s our review:

Best known for his award-winning documentaries Senna, Amy and Diego Maradona, director Asif Kapadia has made something quite different with 2073 – a feature that blends dystopian fiction with archive footage to deliver a stark warning about humanity’s present course.

Samantha Morton provides a haunted-looking focal point as Ghost, a denizen of the dystopian New San Francisco in the titular year 2073. Although remaining silent in the film itself, Morton provides a soulful voiceover as Kapadia cuts from footage of her scrambling around the remains of a department store – her refuge from the militarised state patrolling the rest of the city – and sequences that show what led to our planet’s collapse.

Kapadia has previously said he was inspired by Chris Marker’s 1962 short film La Jetee when he made 2073, though in practice its...

The lengthy saga between former The Smiths bandmates Morrissey and Johnny Marr has reached a new boiling point, with Morrissey now claiming Marr has unilaterally acquired trademark rights to the group’s name. He also implied the move could allow Marr to hire a replacement vocalist.

On Sunday night, a statement written on Morrissey’s behalf titled “The Plot Thickens” was posted to his website claiming Marr has “successfully applied for 100% trademark rights / Intellectual Property ownership of The Smiths name.”

“His application has been accepted on whatever oaths or proclamations he has put forward,” it continues. “This action was done without any consultation to Morrissey, and without allowing Morrissey the standard opportunity of ‘objection.’ Amongst many other things, this means that Marr can now tour as The Smiths using the vocalist of his choice, and it also prohibits Morrissey from using the name whilst also denying Morrissey considerable financial livelihood.

Exclusive: The BBC has admitted that it was wrong to report that Reform UK party leader Nigel Farage had excused Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.

In a BBC News channel report noting a backlash against Farage’s comments in an earlier Panorama interview, a presenter said: “There’s been criticism of Nigel Farage here in the UK for making remarks excusing President Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.”

A viewer complained that this misrepresented Farage’s position. They argued that Farage, an ardent supporter of Donald Trump, had simply used the Panorama interview to restate his view that Russia had used the eastward expansion of NATO as an excuse for military action in Ukraine.

The BBC’s Executive Complaints Unit (Ecu) agreed: “This was not the same as ‘excusing’ President Putin’s decision, and that the phrasing of the introduction gave the misleading impression that Mr Farage considered the invasion of Ukraine to be justifiable.

In “Amy,” Asif Kapadia’s Oscar-winning gut-punch about pop icon Amy Winehouse (and to a lesser extent in biographical docs “Senna” and “Diego Maradona” too), the British director employs an emotional rhythm by which his subject’s tragic end seems foredestined right from the start. Perhaps “2073,” his new hybrid docufiction is a natural expansion of that impulse — a blend of archival footage, CG enhancement and speculative fiction that applies similar retroactive dismay to a cautionary tale about a near-future dystopia, and the current rising tide of everything-is-terrible that may bring it about.

Unfortunately, what is highly effective as a biographical rise-and-fall tactic is far less so as a means to make a grand statement about imminent societal collapse. It’s not clear quite who is going to be galvanized into action to avert catastrophe when according to “2073,” almost everything that will lead to civilization’s demise — from AI to climate...

Morrissey has claimed his former The Smiths bandmate Johnny Marr “blocked” a planned greatest hits album.

“The proposed greatest hits album by The Smiths entitled Smiths Rule Ok! has been blocked by J Marr,” Morrissey wrote in a statement on his website accompanied by potential photos of the album and “Hand in Glove” single artwork.

Morrissey continued by saying the album and “Hand in Glove” were both planned for a 2024 worldwide release by Warner Records, along with a 40th anniversary deluxe box set of The Smiths’ self-titled debut album and a new 7-inch of “This Charming Man.”

“Warner approached Morrissey and Darren Evans to assemble artwork for all four releases, all of which were rejected and halted out of hand by J Marr,” he added.

A few weeks ago, Marr was quick to dismiss the idea of a Smiths reunion after a hopeful fan wondered if they could follow Oasis’ lead.

There’s a disturbing plausibility to director Asif Kapadia’s docudrama 2073, which just premiered out of competition at the Venice Film Festival. It’s set 49 years in the future, a time when surveillance drones swarm the skies and shock troops keep the order, truncheons in hand. We’re not in America anymore. Welcome to “New San Francisco – Capital of the Americas.”

Old geographic boundaries have dissolved, apparently, but not because we’ve all come together as one. No, the S.F. location hints at a future where Silicon Valley and its tech bro billionaires like Elon Musk and Peter Thiel have achieved hegemony, in alliance with authoritarian political leaders.

A digital billboard in a Blade Runner-like urban environment blares, “Chairwoman Trump celebrates 30th year in power” with a picture of a grinning Ivanka Trump. Farfetched? Maybe so, maybe not.

In 50 years, what state will the world be in? Based on current indications, it’s hard to avoid answering, “Pretty grim.”

That’s certainly the perspective of Oscar-winning filmmaker Asif Kapadia, who imagines a dystopian future in his new film 2073, a hybrid documentary-drama that premieres later today at the Venice Film Festival. Kapadia scans the planet and sees alarming signs — in climate change, the rise of authoritarianism, and the growth of technology as a means of manipulating the public and suppressing dissent. A trifecta from hell.

“It is literally like a dream project, but it’s also a nightmare project. It really is,” Kapadia tells Deadline. “It’s like a ‘cry for help’ film, which is hard to do when they take years to put together and to finance and to cut and to somehow make them work as a film, while also keeping the kind of emotion that you start with,...

After Oasis announced their reunion earlier this week, a fan asked Johnny Marr if it might compel him to take similar action with The Smiths. Marr was quick to dismiss the idea.

As it turns out — at least if you believe Marr’s estranged Smiths bandmate, Morrissey — there was an offer on the table to reunite The Smiths in 2025, which Morrissey accepted. However, according to Morrissey, Marr “ignored the offer.”

In a brief statement posted to his website, Morrissey claimed that Aeg Entertainment Group (the behemoth music promoter behind Coachella) “made a lucrative offer to both Morrissey and Marr to tour worldwide as ‘The Smiths’ throughout 2025.”

With Marr having declined the opportunity, Morrissey says he’ll instead be undertaking “a largely sold out tour of the USA in November.” Taking a pot shot at his former bandmate, Morrisssey added that “Marr continues to tour as a special guest to New Order.

While Oasis fans have plenty of cause to celebrate this week, the outlook doesn’t look so positive for longtime fans of The Smiths after Johnny Marr dismissed calls for a reunion.

In light of the Oasis reunion, one hopeful fan tweeted, “If Oasis can do it, The Smiths can too (I’m delusional).” Marr replied with a photo of right-wing UK Parliament member Nigel Farage, who Morrissey suggested as a good candidate for Prime Minister a decade ago. Farage is known for his role in bringing Brexit to fruition.

Get Johnny Marr Tickets Here

Following the UK’s exit from the European Union, Morrissey described Brexit as “magnificent,” a declaration that prompted Marr to further distance himself from his former bandmate. Sans caption, the implication of Marr’s post is that Morrissey’s political views pose too much of a conflict to ever make room for a reunion.

In...

The TV industry must accept some responsibility for its role in the recent UK riots, alternative MacTaggart lecturer Carol Vorderman has proclaimed.

The former Countdown icon delivered a broadside against the industry’s treatment of working class voices – a theme at this year’s Edinburgh TV Festival – along with the way in which the mainstream media and public broadcasters have failed the nation.

Vorderman, who has turned to political activism in recent years, did not hold back, and drew on the recent riots as an example.

She said: “After 14 years of austerity and lying by the privileged political class, this country is in an absolute mess and the TV industry must accept part of the responsibility for that too, including the riots. We used to be the message makers, the ones who tried to determine the conversation of the country and how responsible have we been with those messages? Not very,...

ITV is yet to find itself in a position where it is “turning stuff down because we can’t afford it,” according to programs boss Kevin Lygo, who nonetheless acknowledged “the middle ground has gone” from the the market due to massive hits like Netflix’s The Gentlemen.

Addressing the Edinburgh TV Festival, Lygo attempted to calm nerves among the producers watching his session over a lack of work, coming after a panel during which a number of execs said there are far too many production companies in the ecosystem.

Lygo said his commissioning team is constantly thinking about the balance between not wanting to “mortgage the whole future” and commissioning a producer “walking in with something that you suddenly want to do next week.”

In the face of market contraction and dozens of layoffs, he said he “understands how hard it is for small indies to get business away...

Good afternoon Insiders, Max Goldbart here as the week draws to a close. Read on for all the insight. Sign up here.

UK Riots Reckoning

Being kind: We’re supposed to be in the midst of the sleepy summer months, yet a combination of the Paris Olympics and wild unrest in London have made this week feel anything but in Europe. Here in London, riots have shown off the worst of humanity, and the best, and have given us an opportunity to reflect on how the latter can overcome the former while the ripple effects, as ever, touch the sides of the TV and film industry. The riots were triggered by the tragic Southport stabbings, which left three young girls dead, and the wave of misinformation that followed, which incorrectly pinned the blame on a Muslim person acting for Islamist purposes. In fact, the perpetrator was not Muslim and there was no connection.

Nigel Farage is returning to the Gb News presenting chair just a week after being elected to parliament for the first time, with Ofcom now likely to face scrutiny over how it regulates his show.

The Reform UK leader’s return was confirmed last night by a Gb News video on X showing Farage with Eminem’s ‘Guess Who’s Back’ playing in the background.

According to the Telegraph, Donald Trump’s pal will present his show on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays.

Farage’s show is frequently Gb News’ top-rated and the right-leaning news network had a quiet general election campaign without him.

Farage had initially said he would spend most of the second half of this year campaigning for Trump in the U.S. but U-turned at the start of the general election campaign and was one of five Reform UK MPs returned to parliament, with the party securing around four million votes.

Warner Bros. Discovery’s Discovery+ U.K. and Ireland has commissioned a new series focused on the professional and personal life of controversial British politician Jacob Rees-Mogg, titled Meet The Rees-Moggs.

The five-part series, produced by Optomen, promises to “lift the lid on the man behind the public image” by offering exclusive access and fly-on-the-wall insight into Rees-Mogg’s life at home in Somerset, where he lives with his wife and six children.

Rees-Mogg, pegged a “quintessential Englishman” who famously donned a top hat at Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral, divided political opinion during his time as a member of Parliament. The Conservative figure was ousted from his seat in the most recent U.K. election which saw a landslide victory for Keir Starmer’s Labour Party.

A staunch Brexiteer, Rees-Mogg has become representative of a hard-right position that the conservative Tories have leaned into in recent years. He has...

Channel 4 Greenlights ‘Go Back To Where You Came From’ Social Experiment Format

Channel 4 has greenlit Go Back To Where You Came From [working title], a social experiment format in which Brits experience the reality of crossing perilous refugee routes to the UK. Based on an Australian format, the series from Sas: Who Dares Wins producer Minnow Films will drop people whose views on immigration differ wildly into Mogadishu in Somalia and Raqqa in Syria, before they have to live in poverty and travel to countries on migrant routes through Africa, the Middle East and Europe into the UK, facing scenarios and experiences which continually challenge their views. The commission comes with UK immigration proving a hot-button topic for the new Labour government. Nigel Farage’s Reform UK ran on an anti-immigration ticket and illegal border crossings from Europe have been a major part of the public discourse in recent years. Channel...

Happy Friday, Insiders. Europe has a different look about it today, with a Labour government elected in the UK and France’s far-right surging in France. Jesse Whittock here with what it all means in MediaLand.

Euro Elections Decided

Labour’s Keir Starmer is the next Prime Minister of the UK

Labour wins: The results of the UK general election officially landed this morning in Europe, and the Labour Party has won with a huge majority, which will give it immense power to enact change in Britain after 14 years of Conservative rule. The win has been expected for a long while and there were a series of Conservative gaffes during the six-week campaigning period that meant the ruling party failed to make in-roads on Labour’s long-standing poll lead. At 10 p.m. local time yesterday, when voting ended, the broadcasters were allowed to release their joint exit poll, which is...

Keir Starmer made an immediate attempt to bridge political divides this afternoon and said there is “weariness in the heart of” the UK that requires fixing as he addressed the masses for the first time as Prime Minister.

Stood outside the steps of his new 10 Downing Street home after visiting King Charles III, the Labour Party leader was noticeably non-partisan, speaking directly to those who chose to put their cross in alternative parties’ boxes.

“If you voted Labour yesterday we will carry the responsibility of our trust as we rebuild our country, but whether you voted for us or not – in fact especially if not – I say to you directly my government will serve you,” he said.

In what appeared a barbed remark at his predecessor Jeremy Corbyn, Starmer, whose party won a landslide, said Labour will govern “unburdened by doctrine, guided by a determination to serve your interests, to...

After a historic victory for the Labour Party, attention in the film and TV industries now turns to the future.

Following an all-too brief post-Covid boom era, it’s been a particularly tough couple of years for the sector, with the global recession, dual U.S. strikes and market contraction taking effect in a big way.

Labour’s Keir Starmer is about to select a new culture secretary after shadow elect Thangam Debbonaire’s shock loss to the Green Party, and the incumbent’s in tray will be full to bursting.

Here’s what Deadline believes the industry will be asking for.

Protect and modernize public broadcasters

The UK’s delicate public broadcasters have never been more in need of assistance. In this modern, fragmented era, and with competitors everywhere ranging from the streamers to YouTube to gaming, these bastions of British culture are trying to chart a path forwards.

The UK’s political map has been significantly redrawn.

After 14 years in power, the Conservative Party has been routed by Keir Starmer’s Labour, suffering heavy losses not only to their traditional enemy but also to the Liberal Democrats and the upstart right-wing Reform UK. The result has the feeling of a punishment vote as much as a ringing endorsement of Starmer.

The Conservatives, the dominant power in British politics over the past 40 years, suffered the worst result in their history — losing a whopping 250 seats to leave them on only 121 (there are still a couple of results outstanding) MPs out of the 650 total.

By tacking to the centre, Labour has amassed 412 seats, a 211 improvement on 2019. This is a spectacular reversal of fortunes given where they came from. Labour’s 2019 result was the worst since 1935. Under former leader Jeremy Corbyn, the party was on the brink of armageddon.

The Conservatives have...

Donald Trump has been congratulating his old pal Nigel Farage this morning on a good night for Reform UK, while completely ignoring the man who has just led the Labour Party to a landslide.

Trump took to his Truth Social platform in the early hours of this morning to wish Farage the best.

“Congratulations to Nigel Farage on his big Win of a Parliament Seat Amid Reform UK Election Success,” wrote the former and possibly next Potus. “Nigel is a man who truly loves his Country! Djt.”

Trump and Farage are long-time allies and Farage was initially going to spend much of this year in the U.S. helping the Republican nominee’s campaign, before his sudden U-turn to lead Reform UK and run for parliament. In the early hours of this morning, and at the eighth attempt, he comfortably won the British seaside seat of Clacton, one of four...

Rishi Sunak has handed over the keys to 10 Downing Street, departing with a call for “decency and tolerance” in British politics along with well wishes to new Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

The Conservative Pm has in the past few minutes officially resigned from his post after a disastrous night for the Tories. He is also stepping down as Tory leader although he said he will oversee a transition period so that the party can “take up a crucial role in opposition professionally and effectively.”

He was speaking as the Tories were sent into electoral oblivion with just 121 seats, nearly 300 behind Labour’s tally.

Standing outside his home of the past 18 months, with wife Akshata Murty behind him, at least not sodden this time following the rain-soaked election announcement six weeks ago, Sunak called for a “vision of kindness, decency and tolerance” to hold in the UK.

“One remarkable thing about...

Nigel Farage has won a seat in the UK parliament at the eighth attempt on a strong night for his Reform UK party, as he branded the election TV coverage “almost comical.”

Donald Trump’s pal won in the seaside constituency of Clacton, which was previously a Conservative majority but had in the past elected a candidate from his former party, Ukip.

Farage won with 21,225 votes, comfortably beating the Conservative incumbent, who came second with 12,820.

His victory comes with Reform outperforming expectations, predicted 13 seats by the exit poll, of which it has so far won two, and taking thousands of votes away from Rishi Sunak’s Conservatives in many of its heartlands. Keir Starmer’s Labour Party was predicted a landslide majority by the exit poll and the results so far have shown that things are headed in that direction, but Reform is proving to be one of the big stories of the night.

The results are in, and Keir Starmer is on track to be Britain’s next Prime Minister.

The nationwide exit poll, which is not 100% accurate but rarely far off, has forecast an enormous majority for the Labour Party over the Conservatives of 279 seats, a majority that has been predicted by virtually every poll for months.

According to the exit poll, Labour will win 410 seats, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s Conservatives will take 131 and the Liberal Democrats are in third on 61. There are 650 up for grabs. If the exit poll comes true, the win for Labour will be almost as large as Tony Blair’s momentous 1997 victory. Nigel Farage’s Reform UK party is predicted to gain 13 seats, far exceeding expectations, making it the country’s fourth biggest party.

Starmer, Sunak and hundreds of candidates across the UK will now spend the next few hours anxiously observing just how accurate the...

Nigel Farage has ended a bad-tempered weekend on the campaign trail attacking a pair of national broadcasters and saying his party will “campaign vigorously to abolish” the license fee.

The Reform UK leader and friend of Donald Trump yesterday said he would boycott the BBC over audience bias on its Question Time leaders’ special, which took place Friday night. Meanwhile, he is continuing to insist that Channel 4 hired an actor to spout highly offensive language for a Channel 4 News investigation on Reform campaigners, and the party has said it has reported Channel 4 to the UK’s electoral commission.

Farage wrote on X yesterday that he had been invited but refused to appear on the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg Show because of a “dishonest Question Time audience.”

“Our state broadcaster has behaved like a political actor throughout this election,” he said. “Reform will be campaigning vigorously to abolish the licence fee.

The Biden vs Trump debate took place in the small hours of the morning in many parts of the world but one only needed to watch a few clips and glance at headlines within minutes of waking up to get a feel for what had happened.

Unsurprisingly, the majority of the global press focused on a very tough night for the Democratic candidate, who failed to land meaty blows and at times rambled to the point of being incomprehensible, once again raising concerns about his age. Perhaps more surprisingly, some of the press coverage that Deadline has analyzed was positive about Trump’s performance, although there was a laser focus on his falsehoods and CNN’s failure to correct them – a key tenet of Deadline’s review, which said Trump “tossed out one whopper after another with no fact-checking from CNN moderators.”

In France, where the country is currently focused...