2 weeks agoBlogsComments Off on ITV poised to sign Maya Jama & another huge star to front channel’s Saturday night shows after they were hit with fans
ITV bosses are poised to sign superstars Maya Jama and KSI to their biggest Saturday night shows.
Popular Love Island host Maya, 30, is to return to the guessing panel of The Masked Singer for the seventh series.
GettyMaya Jama is set to return to The Masked Singer for its seventh series[/caption]
KSI was a big hit on the Britain’s Got Talent launch episode, watched by 5.5 millionPA
Britain’s Got Talent bosses, meanwhile, are set to offer KSI, 31, big money to rejoin as a judge for the 2026 series.
The YouTuber and musician proved a hit on Saturday’s launch episode of this year’s series, watched by 5.5million.
A TV insider said: “ITV realise they’ve got a pair of superstars shining on their shows — and they want to ensure they stay there.
“Maya went down a storm with viewers on the last series of The Masked Singer, even though she had big shoes to fill taking over from Rita Ora.
“KSI was also a breath of fresh air on BGT on Saturday.
“He’ll help attract a much younger audience.”
KSI has 55million followers across his social media platforms, including Spotify, Instagram and Tiktok.
Younger people increasingly use the sites to view TV clips.
Maya, seen on Sunday with TV host AJ Odudu at a London Fashion Week event — Lila Moss was at another — joined The Masked Singer when Rita stepped down.
2 weeks agoBlogsComments Off on Giant wind farm powered by Chinese turbines set to get green light despite security fears
A GIANT wind farm powered by Chinese turbines is set for the green light — despite security fears.
Cash-strapped ministers are eyeing £670million of investment from the plan.
GettyA giant wind farm powered by Chinese turbines is set for the green light — despite security fears[/caption]
Government sources say Chinese firm Mingyang have pledged a £200million factory to make blades in the UK, and a £470million facility to produce turbines if the North Sea project gets the go ahead with their kit.
Ministers are pushing for the investment to go to Wales to replace jobs lost through Net Zero hit to Tata Steel.
A crunch meeting is scheduled for tomorrow to discuss the investment plan, despite national security concerns being raised by the Ministry of Defence.
The deal would fly in the face of fears Beijing will use the wind farms to spy and could be used for underwater espionage.
MI5 are reportedly helping to establish the extent to which the tech could be exploited to eavesdrop on the UK.
Energy Minister James Murray said: “While we cannot comment on individual cases, the Government takes the security and resilience of UK energy infrastructure extremely seriously.”
AlamyThere are fears Beijing will use the wind farms to spy[/caption]
Unlock even more award-winning articles as The Sun launches brand new membership programme –Sun Club.
GettyThe Government wants to hand exemptions to AI firms allowing their supercomputers to use any material it wants[/caption]
Music, films, television, writing and art from these tiny islands have been enjoyed by billions.
Our robust Free Press remains the envy of the world and the UK acts as a global powerhouse of ingenuity.
But now this extraordinary originality faces a potentially fatal threat from the unlicensed use of content by AI developers.
Musicians, authors, artists and film, TV and media companies are having their work stolen without permission or payment by big tech firms, as 300-year-old copyright laws are brazenly ignored.
Yet — far from stopping this wholesale exploitation — a consultation by ministers, which closes this week, risks making matters even worse.
Strong British copyright laws should send an automatic “hands-off” message to internet-age magpies – backed up by enforceable punishments.
But instead the Government wants to hand exemptions to AI firms allowing their supercomputers to use any material it wants – unless the original creator “opts out” for every piece of content made.
Such weak and impractical protection is the equivalent of leaving a handwritten note for the Hatton Garden heist gang asking if they wouldn’t mind leaving the gold alone.
How could the next Ricky Gervais or JK Rowling possibly hope to get started in a world where an AI bot can steal a joke or an image in seconds and not pay for the privilege?
How can a trusted Free Press afford to pay trained journalists to operate in a world of fake news when their entire output — and revenue — is nicked for nothing?
Record company Universal hits the nail on the head with the release today of an entirely silent album by its artists entitled: “Is This What We Want?”
Of course not.
Yes, AI brings potentially huge benefits for society, especially in areas such as healthcare.
But, as one of our great global success stories, it’s the creative sector which is already a huge generator of tax revenue for the NHS and public services.
Ministers — so keen to curry favour with big tech — forget this at their peril.
2 weeks agoBlogsComments Off on Perfect trade Falcons must complete in 2025 NFL offseason
Among the list of priorities on the Atlanta Falcons’ offseason, is figuring out what to do with veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins. With Michael Penix Jr. expected to take over in his second campaign, the Falcons now decide on a way to rid themselves of Cousins’ large contract. The Falcons would certainly rather get some type […]
2 weeks agoBlogsComments Off on Michigan football to officially introduce new associate head coach
The Michigan football team recently added former Charlotte head coach Biff Poggi to the 2025 coaching staff, and the Wolverines are expected to formally introduce him as the new associate head coach. Poggi was on the Michigan staff under Jim Harbaugh, and he was an associate head coach for the Wolverines then as well. Poggi […]
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2 weeks agoBlogsComments Off on Barry Ferguson’s spat with ex-manager changed things overnight at Rangers – he could have same effect now says Kris Boyd
BARRY FERGUSON set high standards as a Rangers player — but one manager didn’t quite understand.
Now that my old team-mate is caretaker boss at Ibrox, the current squad would be foolish to make the same mistake.
PABarry Ferguson has returned to Rangers as head coach for the rest of the season[/caption]
Kenny Ramsay - The Sun GlasgowKris Boyd knows what Ferguson is all about having been team mates at Ibrox[/caption]
Kenny Ramsay - The Sun GlasgowFerguson didn’t see eye-to-eye with Paul le Guen during the Frenchman’s Gers reign[/caption]
Paul le Guen was cut from the same cloth as Philippe Clement in that both men failed to learn and understand what was expected at the club.
Certainly not before it was too late.
In December 2006 the Frenchman took umbrage to what Barry had to say in the dressing room after we had just drawn 1-1 with Inverness Caley Thistle.
Le Guen had been praising the players for getting a point on the road. But our captain was having none of it — and he made his feelings known.
Within days of his outburst, Barry was being stripped of the captaincy and told he would never play for the club again.
Le Guen felt undermined and wanted to make an example of our best player.
A lot was going on at the club at the time. In many ways, it’s similar to what’s happening now in that results were nowhere near good enough — and the manager didn’t seem to get it.
Fans will remember, after I scored against Motherwell a few days later, I celebrated by holding up six fingers to the crowd.
It was my way of showing solidarity with my team-mate and captain. Within days Le Guen was gone, Walter Smith was brought back, and everything changed overnight.
A manager was appointed who understood what was expected each and every time a Rangers team ran on to the park.
And that’s what they’ve now got again.
Barry may not have the top level experience that a lot of managers out there have — and there may be people surprised the club has decided to appoint him, even as an interim.
But they’re getting someone who gets it. Someone who knows what the club is all about.
And right now that’s a whole lot better than the guy who has just left the premises.
It’s not about lacing up the brown brogues and rocking up at Ibrox.
It’s about having a real appreciation of what’s demanded at a club of Rangers’ size.
Barry is a born winner who isn’t prepared to accept second best, regardless of who he’s up against.
I was there, in that dressing room, when he stood up for what he believed in 19 years ago. And I’d bet that if he was in that situation all over again he’d do exactly the same thing.
It wasn’t about him that day, it wasn’t about any individuals.
It was about the football club. It was about giving everything to represent the supporters who would have given their right arm to be wearing the jersey.
I’ve never been one to go along with the theory that Rangers simply need ‘Rangers men’ involved somewhere.
But at a time like this, Barry may just be precisely what’s required to give the place a lift.
Having guys like Neil McCann, Billy Dodds and Allan McGregor alongside him is an extension of that. They’ve all won trophies at the club.
They’ve all experienced good times, and bad, at Rangers so they will be going in with their eyes wide open.
I remember Greegsy around that same time, when le Guen was playing Lionel Letizi ahead of him, and it looked like he’d have to move on.
But he knuckled down and proved him wrong and went on to become one of the club’s greatest-ever goalkeepers.
Neil and Doddsy have been managers at clubs too, so they’ll be more than capable of coaching the squad out on the grass along with Barry who also has coaching experience, let’s not forget.
This an appointment that can only make things better — it certainly can’t get much worse.
I’ve been saying it for months that Clement should have be shown the door.
And while I genuinely take no satisfaction from anyone losing their job, he really only had himself to blame.
But when supporters are walking out of Ibrox after watching the team go 1-0 down to St Mirren early in the second-half, the writing is most definitely on the wall.
The club has now bought itself some valuable time to look around, assess what is out there and make a more long-term managerial appointment.
The likelihood is that search will be done in conjunction with the takeover.
But I’ll tell you one thing — Barry may only have been asked to take the team until the end of the season, but there’s no way in the world he’ll be thinking this is just a short-term thing.
Trust me on this, I can guarantee he’ll be thinking this is the opportunity he’s been waiting for.
He’s maybe not been involved in management for a number of years but he’ll still have that desire burning inside.
And the prospect of being Rangers manager will excite him.
He’ll take things one step at a time, sure. But he’ll know that he’s the man in the box seat and if things go well he could land the job on a permanent basis.
That’s how he thinks.
He didn’t step aside for anyone as a player and he’ll want to make it’s as difficult as possible for Rangers to appoint someone else.
2 weeks agoBlogsComments Off on I want to present with brave pal Sir Chris Hoy at Glasgow Games, he’s a joy to work beside
JJ CHALMERS and his cycling legend pal Sir Chris Hoy hope to land TV roles together at the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow – after captivating fans with their coverage of last summer’s Olympics.
Ex-Royal Marine JJ was part of the BBC’s presenting team in Paris, while determined Sir Chris critiqued performances just months after revealing he has prostate cancer.
JJ made it to the quarter finals of Strictly Come Dancing with professional dance partner Amy Dowden.JJ Chalmers joined the main presenting team for the Beeb’s coverage of the Paris Olympics.JJ on Strictly and serving in the Marines.JJ has also become an in-demand motivational speaker.
Six-times Olympic gold medal winner Sir Chris, 48, later revealed his illness was terminal after spreading to his bones, and said he had two to four years left to live.
But that has not stopped him embracing sporting opportunities.
JJ, 38, says: “Chris and I are very good friends and I had a sense of the circumstances he’d been living through for quite a while.
“But Chris was so determined that he would make it to Paris. He kept saying that he wanted to be there. I’m so glad he made it as he did such an amazing job.”
Asked if they hope to work together again covering track cycling at the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome when the Commonwealth Games returns to Glasgownext year, JJ adds: “Oh, God, yeah.
“We did the World Cycling Championships in Glasgow in 2023, but I’m delighted The Commonwealth Games are coming back. They are an amazing event.
“I adored the Birmingham Games. Chris worked at the (2014) Glasgow Games, but I wasn’t even in broadcasting the last time they were here, so that’ll be special.”
Edinburgh-born JJ — real name John-James — was seriously injured in a 2011 bomb blast in Helmand Province which killed two of his comrades.
He suffered a broken neck, crushed eye socket, shattered eardrum, a “mangled” elbow and lost two fingers.
But he rebuilt his life after more than 30 major operations and went on to win cycling medals at pal Prince Harry’s inaugural Invictus Games in 2014.
Incredibly, it was his devastating injuries that saw him fulfil a childhood ambition to become a TV presenter.
The married dad-of-two says: “I’d always wanted to get into TV but had no idea how.
“But when I did the Invictus Games, it involved being interviewed on telly.
“So my entry into the industry was providing an insight to competitions like the Paralympic Games.
“Now I’m seen as a presenter first and foremost, then a presenter with a disability after that.”
JJ became a true household name in 2020 when he made it to the quarter finals of Strictly Come Dancing with professional partner Amy Dowden.
And he believes the long-running BBCshow still has a future, despite the bullying storm involving pro Giovanni Pernice and actress Amanda Abbington.
JJ says: “I’ve got no personal insight into those circumstances. “But obviously, I’ve been through the Strictly process myself.
“It is a difficult process, it isn’t just a bit of fun. It’s a tough gig to do. I certainly felt it both physically and mentally, too, because of the social media battering you take.
“There’s a lot of noise when you’re on that show as everyone’s got an opinion. So you have to have a very thick skin to survive it.
“But when it actually starts running, it’s just a pure joy on a Saturday night. And you only had to watch this year’s 20th series to realise how much people still enjoyed it.”
JJ has pushed his body to its limits throughout his career and would love a shot at CelebrityGladiators — though he reckons his surgeon would rule it out. He explains: “I’m in pain all the time, it’s just to what degree.
“My body is restricted by the level of pain I can endure.
“So, yeah, it stops me doing some stuff in life but, equally, I try not to let it stop me.
“It’s a choice. If I want to go out and exercise, whatever that might be, I’m going to pay for it later.
“Equally, exercise is good for my mental health, so you’ve got to strike that balance.”
He adds: “Gladiators is one of the few shows that you can sit down and watch with the whole family.
“In a world where everyone’s now watching their own thing, it has that ability to bring people together to sit down and watch together.
“I’d be so up for doing it, but my body would never be able to stand it. My surgeon would also immediately say no.”
Despite his own condition, JJ insists he has nothing but admiration for how Sir Chris handled his terminal cancer diagnosis, while his lawyer wife Sarra, 40, discovered she has incurable multiple sclerosis at the same time.
DANNI 'RIVAL' IN SCHOOL
A PLACE In The Sun star Danni Menzies was JJ Chalmers’ “rival” when they were kids, he jokingly revealed.
The pair, inset, were at Strathallan School, Perth, together. Danni, 36, later became godmother to JJ’s son James, five.
JJ, who lives in Edinburgh with wife Kornelia and also has a daughter Hayley, eight, says: “I went to school with Danni.
“We used to have a pretty fierce rivalry in our design and technology class.
“But she’s now godmother to my son, so we’re as tight as they come.” JJ says he would love to one day land a high-octane hosting gig with Danni.
He adds: “We have presented the Edinburgh Tattoo together, but we would love to do a wonderful adventure-type programme or something like that.
“Live telly especially is my happy place, which is a bit of a random thing because, let’s be honest, it’s about the most terrifying thing you can do in broadcasting – but I adore it.”
While JJ and Kornelia have been married since 2015, his mate Danni still does not appear to have found Mr Right.
He says: “Do you know what? She deserves the perfect man – and one day she’ll find him.”
JJ says: “Both Chris and his wonderful wife Sarra have been unbelievably stoic and unbelievably hopeful throughout all of it. “And it’s because they’re doing everything they possibly can to take on this battle. Chris knows what it’s like to dig in, get on with something and live with hard circumstances as he’s done it all his life.”
Now JJ is excited by the prospect of reuniting with the most successful Olympic cyclist of all time on future projects.
He says: “When it comes to sport, I’m just an enthusiast. I’m not going to sit next to Chris Hoy and try to tell him anything about bikes or riding them. But I can get the information out of him for the viewer at home.
“Not that Chris needs much encouragement as just talking about cycling brings him sheer joy.
“In fact, it makes him happier than just about anything, so of course I’m looking forward to working with him again.”
2 weeks agoBlogsComments Off on First 750 schools in England to trial free breakfast clubs revealed – check the full list
THE first 750 schools in England to trial the government’s free breakfast clubs have been revealed.
Thousands of primary school children will get a free meal, whilst parents will receive at least 30 minutes of free childcare.
GettyThousands of primary school children will be impacted by the scheme[/caption]
The full list of schools to take part in the pilot was released on Sunday.
Rachel Reeves announced the scheme in her Labour conference speech last year, giving the Education Secretary £7million to get it kick started.
Addressing the Liverpool conference last year, the Chancellor said: “I will judge my time in office a success if I know that at the end of it there are working-class kids from ordinary backgrounds who lead richer lives, their horizons expanded and have the chance to thrive.
“That starts by taking the first step to deliver on our manifesto commitment to introduce free breakfast clubs in every primary school across England.
“With funding set aside to begin running free breakfast clubs in up to 750 primary schools with primary aged pupils next year ahead of a national rollout that will follow.
“This is about investing in education so we can invest in our economy too.
“Investing in the next generation so we can proudly say that they have had a chance to do better than those which came before it.
“The work of change has begun. The British people put their trust in Labour – and we will repay that trust.”
Some 750 primary schools will receive the clubs funding from April ahead of a wider national rollout.
The scheme is expected to save parents up to £450 a year, with the pilot impacting around 180,000 children.
Phillipson told The Mirror at the weekend she hopes it will keep kids “fuelled up and ready to learn”.
Meanwhile, the pilot will allow the government to “test what works in different schools” across the country.
She said: “I promised free breakfast clubs to working families and I’m delivering.
“I know just how many families are struggling at the moment and this will make a really big difference to supporting children’s life chances.
“But I also grew up in a tough area, we didn’t have it easy. I know just how scarring the impact of poverty can be on children and this will make a big difference in tackling the unfair disadvantage that holds back too many of our children in too many of our communities.”
The Education Secretary is yet to announce an official date for the scheme’s national rollout.
She said this will depend on the passage of the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill currently going through Parliament.
Here is a full list of schools that will trial the breakfast scheme.
East Midlands
Church Gresley Infant and Nursery School, Derbyshire
North Wingfield Primary and Nursery Academy, Derbyshire
Chaucer Infant School, Derbyshire
Sale and Davys Church of England Primary School, Derbyshire
William Rhodes Primary and Nursery School, Derbyshire
2 weeks agoBlogsComments Off on The Vamps star marries American fiancée ahead of the birth of their first child as his bandmates perform at wedding
THE Vamps’ Tristan Evans has married his fiancée Nikki Banner just three weeks after announcing their engagement.
The loved-up couple, who are expecting their first child, tied the knot at the weekend in a ceremony attended by his bandmates.
Instagram / @jamesmcveyThe Vamps’ Tristan Evans has got married[/caption]
Instagram / @jamesmcveyHis band performed at the after party[/caption]
Instagram / @jamesmcveyThe elaborate cake looked delicious[/caption]
I’m A Celebrity star and guitarist James McVey shared pictures from the big day on Instagram and wrote: “A beautiful day full of love.”
The newlyweds looked over the moon at their nuptials with American Nikki wowing in a white off-the-shoulder bridal gown.
Drummer Tristan, 30, swapped his usual low-key indie style for a smart black suit with rock star detailing including a red rose on the lapel.
Roses also adorned their triple tiered wedding cake which oozed golden icing and was topped by giant rings.
The band rocked out at the after party with Tristan joining them behind the kit as the wedding party went wild on the dance floor.
It was only shortly after the couple announced their baby news in December that the couple shared their engagement with fans.
The American actress wrote: “Forever looks good on us.”
She then followed it with a single red heart emoji followed by a sparkling ring emoji.
Their pregnancy reveal saw actress Nikki share snaps of her scans to delighted fans.
Nikki wrote: “Growing our love story, one tiny heartbeat at a time.
“Baby Evans coming April 2025.”
The pair first went public with their relationship in May last year.
Their relationship only lasted four months before they split and went their separate ways.
Before that Tristan was in a long term relationship with hair and makeup artist Anastasia Ings, before they split in 2018.
InstagramIt comes weeks after they announced they’re expecting their first baby together[/caption]
Instagram/nikkiThe loved-up couple were flooded with well wishes[/caption]