Category Archives: Uncategorized

Andy Burnham Has Been Tipped To Bring Another New Labour Big Beast Into Government

Posted on by
Reply

Andy Burnham has been tipped to bring back another senior figure from the New Labour era in his new-look government.

The former mayor of Manchester – who served as a minister under both Tony Blair and Gordon Brown – will officially take over as prime minister from Keir Starmer on July 20.

It has already emerged that his close friend James Purnell, who also served in cabinet during Labour’s last time in power, will be the new No.10 chief of staff.

David Miliband, another New Labour figure, could also be given a seat in the House of Lords in order to become foreign secretary.

Meanwhile, the i newspaper reported that Ed Balls could also be handed a peerage and given a role in Burnham’s government.

HuffPost UK has learned that another New Labour big beast who could make a dramatic comeback is Alan Milburn.

The former health secretary has held talks with Burnham about his review into record levels of unemployment among 18 to 24-year-olds.

In a speech last week, the PM-in-waiting said he wanted to introduce major education reforms which would place greater emphasis on technical qualifications rather than forcing pupils to study at university.

One minister said: “I can see Alan being brought into Andy’s government. He seems to like what Milburn has been saying about getting young people into work.”

Another source said: “Andy keeps referencing Milburn in his speeches, and Alan is clearly up for it.

“It would make sense to allow Alan to drive through his own reforms on youth unemployment as a minister.”

Asked whether Milburn could be handed a role once Burnham becomes prime minister, a source close to the new Makerfield MP insisted he had offered “no jobs and no deals”.

Milburn, who was the MP for Darlington from 1992 until 2010, was seen as an arch-Blairite during his time in government.

As well as being health secretary, he also serves as chief secretary to the Treasury and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster under the former prime minister.

After leaving Westminster, he was chair of the Social Mobility Commission between 2012 and 2017.

Like David MIliband, he would need to be made a peer in order to re-enter government.

Listen to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.

Share Button

Starmer’s Former Top Aide Admits Labour Did Not Do Enough Preparation For Government

Posted on by
Reply

Keir Starmer’s former chief of staff has admitted Labour did not do enough preparation before they were elected into government.

Morgan McSweeney, who was forced to quit over his links to disgraced peer and ex-ambassador to the US Peter Mandelson earlier this year, told the BBC his party was not ready to deliver quickly for voters after their landslide win in 2024.

His remarks come after Starmer announced he was stepping down as Labour leader and prime minister last Monday.

McSweeney told the Political Thinking podcast: “We didn’t prepare enough for what kind of world we were going to. We are now in a very different era than when Labour was last in government.

“I think we didn’t have enough conversations at the top of the party about what that meant, how to prepare for it, what that meant for the state.

“You have to deliver quite quickly for people, for them to see the change quickly. And I think we didn’t come in with enough of a theory about how we would do that.”

McSweeney said Labour should have been “way more optimistic” about the state of the country when it got into office in 2024.

The former aide ran Labour’s general election campaign. He was seen as a key element of Starmer’s rise to the top of the party and into No.10.

He added: “I take my own responsibilities for [not being prepared], rather than blaming one person.”

McSweeney sat as Starmer’s head of political strategy but after three months became his chief of staff once Sue Gray was kicked out of the role.

He added that he was still “processing” Starmer’s fall from grace and said Labour’s 14 years in opposition “went quickly”.

McSweeney also claimed that there was an expectation within the party that Labour would need at least two elections to return to power after its defeat in 2019 – which is why they were unprepared in 2024.

Labour MP for Makerfield Andy Burnham is expected to be crowned the next prime minister by July 20.

He is currently the only Labour MP who has announced his intention to run in the contest to replace Starmer.

But there has been some contestation from his team that Starmer’s departure timetable did not give Burnham long enough to come up with a sound plan for government.

They were allegedly hoping he would stay in post as a caretaker PM until September.

Starmer pushed Labour’s executive body to block Burnham from running to be the party’s candidate in the Gorton and Denton by-election back in February.

After Labour was thrashed in the May elections, Josh Simons stood aside as Makerfield MP so Burnham – then Greater Manchester mayor – could run as a candidate.

Only MPs can contest a Labour leader.

But, Starmer clearly saw the writing on the wall after after Burnham’s comfortable victory in Makerfield and announced he was stepping down days later.

Despite Burnham’s rivalry with Starmer, McSweeney said he feels “optimistic” about the new era for the party.

Listen to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.

Share Button

So THAT’s What The Three Lions On England’s Football Crest Mean

Posted on by
Reply

The three lions on the shirts of England’s football gear have become so strongly associated with the men’s national team that they’re nicknamed The Three Lions.

The women’s team, meanwhile, goes by The Lionesses.

The animals have been England’s official crest since 1863, when the Football Association was formed.

The lion is England’s national animal, and most of us know it’s also associated with royalty.

But why three – and why doesn’t the England team’s emblem match England’s non-football coat of arms exactly?

Why does the England football team’s shirt have three lions?

As we’ve said before, the crest was adopted by the Football Association when it was first founded.

But that’s because of a long, royal history of lions in England’s heraldry.

King Henry I had a lion on a red background on his coat of arms way back in the 12th century.

And when he married Adeliza of Louvain, whose father, Godfrey I, Count of Louvain, had a lion on his coat of arms, too, he added a second. That happened in 1121.

That meant King Henry I’s grandson, Henry II, was born with two lions on his coat of arms. But then he, too, married into a big-cat-coat-of-arms family: Eleanor of Aquitaine’s heraldic badge also contained a lion.

But, per the i Paper, it took Eleanor and Henry’s son, Richard the Lionheart, to combine the three lions into a single emblem.

That flag – three lions on a red background, or Gules, three lions passant guardant in pale or – was used by every Plantagenet king until the ascension of Edward III in 1327.

How is England’s football emblem different from the royal one?

The Football Association would have had to ask for permission to use the Three Lions emblem due to its royal associations. But it doesn’t exactly match the royal version.

Firstly, the colours are different – England’s football badge is blue and white, while the historic version was red and gold.

And the England football badge has 10 Tudor roses on it. “The reason for the specific amount of roses is unknown,” the BBC said.

England’s football badge also used to have a crown on top. But in 1949, that was removed so as to distinguish it from the England cricket team’s emblem.

The star above the lions is a relatively new addition, representing England’s 1966 World Cup win.

Share Button

Why Is The Rochdale Grooming Gang Leader Not Being Deported?

Posted on by
Reply

The Rochdale grooming gang leader has been released from prison – and, despite previous promises, is currently set to avoid deportation.

Shabir Ahmed’s victims were told in 2012 that he would be deported after serving his sentence for 30 child rape and sexual offences charges.

However, it now appears that he will not be sent to Pakistan, where he was born, despite being stripped of British citizenship.

There’s been a furious response to the revelation, with multiple critics calling for an urgent change to the law.

Here’s what we know so far.

What Has Happened?

Ahmed was one of nine men in the Rochdale grooming gang convicted of serious offences against five girls – some of whom were as young as 12.

They were given alcohol and drugs before being gang-raped.

He was jailed for 19 years but has now been released on licence, according to the BBC.

He will be forced to live at accommodation with 24-hour staffing and he will be subject to an “exclusion zone” around Rochdale.

Ahmed had dual British-Pakistan citizenship up until his conviction, when his British conviction removed.

However, documents sent to one of his victims this week showed he cannot be deported due to provisions of the Immigration Act 1971.

Having arrived in the UK before 1973, and having lived in the UK for at least five years before his deportation was considered, he is able to stay in the UK.

“There are two problems here,” skills minister Jacqui Smith told LBC. “Number one, there are a very small number of people who came to this country over 50 years ago from Commonwealth countries where the law doesn’t allow them to be deported.

“And, secondly, of course, in order to deport somebody, the country to which you are going to deport them needs to be willing to take them.

“We’ve removed this man’s British citizenship. He’s a Pakistani citizen.

“But there is also work that needs to happen in order to persuade Pakistan to take him back.”

Has There Been Extensive Backlash?

Labour MP for Rochdale Paul Waugh told the Daily Telegraph that ministers should look at changing the law.

He said: “The people of Rochdale want him booted out of the country.”

Labour MP Jim McMahon for Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton said Ahmed is a “very dangerous individual” who poses a “real, present danger”.

“It’s now been confirmed that he will not be allowed to return to either Oldham or Rochdale, but nevertheless that period has really been quite traumatic for many people,” he said.

Shadow home secretary Chris Philp told the Today programme: “He’s a vile rapist who didn’t just organise the rape of young girls as young as 12 years old.

“He actually ran a gang, doing it on a huge scale. He should be kicked out of the country, deported back to Pakistan, and the law needs to be changed.”

The Conservative MP said he will be proposing an amending in the coming months to change the Immigration Act 1971.

What Does The Government Say?

Home secretary Shabana Mahmood is understood to be looking into the case and all options are being looked at.

The spokesperson said: “The government will always consider all options in these vile cases.”

A spokeswoman from No.10 said: “Ahmed’s horrific crimes were at the heart of the grooming gangs scandal that represents one of the darkest moments in our country’s history.

“He will rightly be on the sex offenders register for life, ordered to stay away from his victims and banned from contacting any child or young person.

“His every movement will be tracked, forced to wear an electronic tag and, on this specific case, we cannot deport someone who is protected by the 1971 Immigration Act.

“These were the same provisions which have protected many individuals caught up in the Windrush crisis.”

Labour MP Andy Burnham, who is expected to succeed Keir Starmer as prime minister in a matter of weeks, has said his government would explore “all possible options” to close the loopholes.

He wrote on X: “Like everyone, I want this vile criminal out of the country. Victims must come first. I will ask the Home and Foreign Secretaries to review all possible options – and they should consider nothing is off the table.”

In 2022, when he was Greater Manchester mayor, Burnham called on the Tory government to do “everything within [its] power to deport grooming gang members”.

Listen to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.

Share Button

The Internet Won’t Let Jimmy Fallon Forget His Conor McGregor Interview

Posted on by
Reply

Content note: the following contains sexually violent details.

The host of The Tonight Show brought McGregor on as a guest to discuss his return to UFC.

This comes two years after the fighter was found liable by 12 jurors in a civil case after Nikita Hand accused him of raping her in a Dublin hotel back in 2018.

He was ordered to pay £206,000 in damages, though McGregor denies that he raped Hand, saying they had “fully consensual sex”.

Before the civil case, Ireland’s Director of Public Prosecutions made the decision not to bring criminal charges to McGregor due to insufficient evidence. Two later appeals were dismissed.

Now, fans have noticed that no clips of the McGregor interview have appeared on Fallon’s Instagram page, even though it took place days ago.

A comment under the talk show host’s Instagram clip, which showed his interview with Beatles star Sir Paul McCartney, reads: “Don’t want to post McGregor @jimmyfallon? Why not?”

It has racked up over 13,000 likes as of the time of writing.

In fact, the entire comment section under the McCartney video is filled with references to the McGregor appearance.

“Rehabilitating McGregor. I hope you’re proud of yourself,” a comment reads.

“Jimmy Fallon supports [grape emoji]ists [calling someone a “grapist” is a way of alluding to rapists online] and then hides behind other guests when called out,” another said.

Still more simply wrote Nikita Hand’s name over and over.

Similar responses have been shared under his more recent Trump, “password” game, and Milly Alcock videos on social media.

“I’m struggling to find the clips of the predator on @jimmyfallon Was it deleted? It should be acknowledged and there should be an apology!” an Instagram user opined under his most recent Instagram upload.

Others say they used to be fans but have changed their mind since the McGregor interview.

“We loved you. We thought you were one of the good ones,” a former fan said.

Comments also included the mention of tampons – “Tampon. Surgically. Removed,” one reads.

During the 2024 trial, gynaecologist and forensic examiner, Dr Daniel Kane, said he had had to remove Hand’s “wedged” tampon with forceps.

HuffPost UK has reached out to The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon for comment.

Help and support:

Share Button

Hans Zimmer Almost Never Scored The Lion King — Until He Spoke To His Daughter

Posted on by
Reply

I’m going to be honest – I didn’t even realise the legendary composer Hans Zimmer was behind The Lion King’s famous soundtrack until I heard him talk about it on Classic FM.

Not only did he work on the 1994 classic, but he actually won an Academy Award for Best Original Score (alongside two Grammies and a Golden Globe) for his contribution.

Still, he shared on Classic FM that he had been reluctant to take the role at first.

“I didn’t want to do Lion King, you know, cartoons – why am I doing cartoons?” he recalled.

Hans Zimmer
Hans Zimmer

via Associated Press

Until 1994, the composer’s work had appeared in live-action classics like Thelma & Louise, Rain Man, A World Apart and Driving Miss Daisy.

“And, oh my God, they might turn [the songs] into musicals. I don’t really like musicals,” the film legend said he thought at the time.

However, Zimmer changed his mind because his daughter, who was six at the time, had never been able to go with him to the premiere of any of the movies he’d worked on, because “all the movies with Ridley Scott are not necessarily child-friendly”.

So he agreed to make the film – but when he sat down to write, more family matters came up for Zimmer.

“My dad died when I was six years old, and here I am sitting in front of this cartoon, and it’s about the death of a father – with fart jokes, admittedly,” he revealed.

“And I realise… it’s a complete lie that children get over this stuff. They don’t get over it, they just find out really clever ways of hiding this stuff.”

The composer shared he couldn’t “hide” his feelings anymore, and “I basically wrote a requiem for my dad, and it became a really serious piece.”

That made it “deeper than your normal cartoon,” both for him and The Lion King’s viewers.

Zimmer has since been credited in mutliple other Disney titles (including Pirates Of The Caribbean, and, perhaps even more surprisingly still, Muppet Treasure Island).

Share Button

Experts Explain Why You Sneeze When You Walk Outside

Posted on by
Reply

I don’t have hay fever, but based on how I react to walking outside on a hot day, I’d forgive you for believing I do.

For some reason, getting off the train into the sun, opening my door onto a ray-soaked street, and even leaving a tree’s shadow into a bright spot triggers a huge, eye-watering sneeze – and until now, I had no idea why.

But it turns out it might be my genes, per the Cleveland Clinic.

It sounds like I’m experiencing a “photic sneeze reflex,” also known as “autosomal dominant compelling helio-ophthalmic outburst syndrome” (ACHOO syndrome – teehee).

What is a “photic sneeze reflex” or ACHOO syndrome?

An extract from Medical Genetics Summaries says that “Affected individuals report a ‘prickling sensation’ or sneezing in response to a bright light.”

It’s elicited by going from a darker area to an area of brighter light (like stepping into sunlight from indoors), or simply having a bright light shown to you.

This can be “uncontrollable.”

How common is it to sneeze at bright lights?

“About one in four individuals who already have a prickling sensation in their nose will sneeze in response to sunlight, but ‘pure’ photic sneezing is far less common,” Medical Genetics Summaries shared.

If one parent has the condition, their child has a 50% chance of developing it.

But the Cleveland Clinic says we don’t know exactly how many people have the condition.

On average, they add, it seems to be about 15-30% of us: white people, especially white women, may be more likely to have the trait.

What causes sneezing on exposure to bright lights?

It’s a genetic issue, but we don’t know yet which genes are responsible.

It happens because of a misfiring in a facial nerve that goes from your eyes to your nose. The constriction of your pupils as your eyes adjust to the light triggers the sneeze.

Is sneezing at bright lights dangerous?

It can be if you’re operating heavy machinery or driving: “for example, exiting a road tunnel on a bright day.”

Pilots might need to be more cautious, too.

How can I stop sneezing at bright lights?

There’s no cure for ACHOO syndrome, but you can make the journey from darker spots into lighter areas easier on the eyes.

Shielding your eyes with a hat or sunglasses might help.

And the Cleveland Clinic recommends we “Use the ‘transverse philtral pressure technique,’ which involves applying pressure to the area between your nose and your lips.

“If you’re doing it right, it should look like you’re giving yourself a moustache with your finger,” they said. This may interrupt the sneezing signal.

I’m learning so much more about myself than I expected today…

Share Button

The Huawei Fit 5 Pro Is The Best Fitness Tracker I’ve Tried For Holistic Health And Training

Posted on by
Reply

We hope you love the products we recommend! All of them were independently selected by our editors. Just so you know, HuffPost UK may collect a share of sales or other compensation from the links on this page if you decide to shop from them. Oh, and FYI — prices are accurate and items in stock as of time of publication.

If there’s one thing I’m awful at doing (apart from laundry) it’s remembering to track my workouts. I got to the gym two to three times per week, but every time it simply slips my mind to write down what I’ve done.

It’s a trait I find myself endlessly ruminating over every time I remember, but obviously not enough to do anything about it.

That’s why, when I discovered Huawei had released a new fitness watch, I knew this could be my opportunity to change.

Now, I’ve tested fitness devices before, but none of them have ever quite worked for me.

I often find they prioritise active fitness over anything else, or gamify relaxing or sleeping so much that they end up having the opposite of the intended effect and stressing me out.

Fitness trackers also give me awful throwbacks to being scorned by the sternest of school sports teachers, which makes me avoidant and want to exercise even less.

And, I’m sorry, but I don’t need to know that I’ve not been sleeping enough for the whole week because I already know! I’m tired, godammit.

Considering the Huawei website promises that the Watch Fit 5 Pro blends style with ‘smart’, I had high hopes.

My review of the Huawei Watch Fit 5 Pro

Getting set up

Although the watch comes in three colours: black, white, and orange, I went for the white because, well, it’s summer.

You can choose from a range of different coloured straps, including nylon and rubber options, but I went for a simple matchy matchy moment.

After all the boring stuff was out of the way, it was time to sync it with the Huawei Health app. You get three months of Huawei Health+ for free when you buy a watch, which gives you access to a range of workout masterclasses, personalised workout plans and nutritional analysis – or you can choose to stay on the free plan for fewer options.

Downloading the app also lets you customise your watch face – a feature I personally love because it means you can match your watchface to your outfit! I currently have mine on one with a spiky metallic silver heart on a black background to match my silver jewellery, but there are plenty of free and paid options available.

From the get go, it’ll ask for permissions to access your health data, including your heart rate, skin temperature, sleep data, and step count.

Once you’re all set up, you can completely personalise the kind of data you want your watch to give you – as well as other basic features you’d expect from a smart ring, like contactless payments, contact syncing so you can call or text, calendar syncing, timers, voice recording, and features.

Fitness monitoring

Just like other fitness devices, the Fit 5 Pro tracks your essential health data and allows you to set goals for movement and nutrition.

Personally, I’m not bothered about setting nutrition goals because I kind of CBA, crucially, and also I find it makes me obsessive about my eating habits.

However, I do need help tracking my workouts. As someone who goes to the gym two to three times a week, I often forget just where I’m up to with my strength training.

Also – and this might just being a woman at the gym – I find myself doubting whether I’m doing something right.

One thing about the Fit 5 Pro I love is that you can start a fitness training programme to help you keep on track, whether that’s running, golfing, strength training, yoga or pilates.

You’ll also have access to classes with personal trainers so you can check your form. or the watch can be connected with third-party apps like Fiit, Komoot, and URUNN, depending on the kind of exercise you enjoy.

The only downside of this is you’ll need to remember to turn the volume on your watch down, so it doesn’t blast your business to everyone in a five-mile vicinity (read: it’s loud).

If you’re already a pro or prefer to wing it, the watch lets you track any kind of workout you could possibly think of so you can keep an eye on your training times. There is truly an option for everything, down to the nichest of sports – think: belly dancing, hula hoop, bobsleigh, bungee jumping.

But for some of the more popular options like cycling (which I can’t say I do on the reg) it it loaded with state-of-the-art tracking that stops recording when you stop at a traffic light, or draws a custom run route in the shape of a lion (or trophy cup) to keep things interesting.

Fitness-life balance

But it’s not just exercise the watch keeps track of – it also prioritises living a holistically healthy life, which is what would make me more loyal to it in the long run.

As someone who exercises out of necessity, not for the love of the game, I’m not particularly interested in a watch or ring that bullies me into exercising five times a week – I more need something to keep me on track and to offer positive reinforcement throughout the day.

I’m yet to find a fitness tracker that does this better than Huawei. Rather than send me 50 alerts when I’ve not reached my step count, it sends a few notifications to encourage me to keep moving throughout my day.

Plus, there’s even an option for a ‘mini workout’ where an adorable little panda leads you through a series of quick stretches and standing exercises to remind you to step away from your screen every now and again.

I get quite severe eye strain, and also work probably way too much, so this is a welcome feature to keep me grounded.

It doesn’t stop there, though: you can also listen to focus white noise music through the Huawei app, or ask it to run a quick meditation or breathing exercise with you.

One of my favourite features is that the watch tracks your mood throughout the day; while I have absolutely no idea what it bases this information off, it always makes me laugh when I look at the watch face and it tells me I’m in a ‘pleasant’ (or even ‘unpleasant’) mood. Because… thanks?

Of course, it’ll also track your sleep, including your breathing stability, how much deep sleep you get compared to light sleep, and you can listen to sleep music through the app.

Honestly, though, I’ve been sleeping better than ever now that the watch prompts me to walk that little bit extra.

It’ll even prompt you to be social: you can create groups with other Huawei watch users to hold yourself accountable, or share your statistics on social media.

Final verdict

  • Looks at your health more holistically than any other fitness tracker I’ve tried
  • Can sync to third party apps to deepen your training, and the Huawei app gives you a free trial to most of them
  • As customisable as you could like
  • The charge lasts for 10 days
  • It’s easy to set up
  • I love that it doesn’t pester you
  • The mini workout feature is really impressive
  • Easy to use interface
  • It’s social
  • The volume is quite loud
  • I wish the watch face was *slightly* less chunky
  • There are sooo many features it can be overwhelming

Rating: 4.7/5

Overall, this is the best fitness device I’ve tried. I don’t feel as though I’m being pestered by a perniciously petulant personal trainer who wants me to be the skinniest mini in the room.

Instead, the Huawei Fit 5 Pro encourages you to keep an eye on your holistic health, and encourages you rather than berates you when you’re behind on your goals.

There are no red marks or angry notifications telling you off, and there is plenty built into the app to teach you how to have a healthier lifestyle, whether that’s by exercising, winding down before bed, or taking a break from your desk in the middle of the day.

The fact the interface is easy to use and customisable means it would be suitable for anyone, from a 50+ year old, to a teenager. The price point is reasonable for what it is and, best of all, the charge lasts for up to 10 days, so you really never have to take it off (apart from when you’re having a bath or shower).

I’d recommend this to anyone, from those who are simply trying to level up their lifestyle and be more health-conscious, to hardcore cyclists and athletes.

Share Button

Is It Rude To Stay In Your Hotel Room While It’s Being Cleaned?

Posted on by
Reply

Speaking to HuffPost UK previously, etiquette expert and author William Hanson, who paired with Hotels.com to create a Grand Etiquette Hotel guide, shared the worst way to treat hotel staff.

“The height of rudeness is treating staff as though they are invisible, or worse, beneath you,” he shared with us.

“Snapping fingers, avoiding eye contact, or issuing demands without a ‘please’ or ‘thank you’ is quite beyond the pale”.

Hanson explained that includes leaving your room in a “reasonable” state for cleaning staff when you finish your stay. But what’s the etiquette when you’re still in there?

Here, we asked him whether we should vacate the area when it’s due a clean.

Should you leave your hotel room when cleaners come in?

The etiquette expert’s answer was pretty definitive: “You should vacate the room while it is being serviced. It is simply more considerate”.

He added, “Most housekeepers will wait until you are out and will always knock and announce themselves first.

“If you are inside and would like the room cleaned, answer promptly, greet
them politely, and make your exit. Linger not.”

And, Hanson stressed, it’s important to leave your room in decent nick throughout your stay, rather than just rushing through it at the end.

“As I note in Rule Five of my Grand Etiquette Hotel Guide… ‘Housekeeping Is Not an Archaeological Activity.’ They are there to clean, not excavate,” he stated.

Anything else?

Yes – Hanson has a “golden rule” when it comes to hotel staff.

“If you wouldn’t speak that way to a colleague, don’t do so in a hotel simply because you are paying to be there. Good manners, one finds, are often quietly rewarded,” he said.

A hotel etiquette study commissioned by Hotels.com found that 90% of Brits think our hotel manners are pretty perfect.

But the same research also found that over a third of us have tried to sneak in an extra guest after booking, and about the same amount say they’ve snuck out breakfast buffet food to eat later.

Share Button

Gracie Abrams Has Her Say On ‘Nepo Baby’ Debate

Posted on by
Reply

Singer-songwriter Gracie Abrams has weighed in on the ongoing discourse around Hollywood’s so-called “nepo babies”.

Debates about nepotism in the entertainment industry are nothing new, but the conversation has become much more prominent in the 2020s, thanks in part to a piece in New York magazine about the new generation of A-listers whose parents are already established figures in the entertainment industry.

The “nepo baby” label is one that has repeatedly been levelled against Gracie since her emergence on the pop scene, as her dad is Star Wars filmmaker JJ Abrams.

During a recent appearance on the New York Times’ Popcast, Gracie shared her take on the subject, admitting she thinks it’s “appropriate” that people are aware of the privilege she grew up around.

Gracie Abrams pictured with her parents, PR exec Katie McGrath and director JJ Abrams, in March 2026
Gracie Abrams pictured with her parents, PR exec Katie McGrath and director JJ Abrams, in March 2026

Randy Shropshire via Getty Images for Creative Artist

“The nepo stuff is obviously in the discourse appropriately,” she claimed. “I think about the privilege there and… it’s like, I had a safety net, and that allowed me the ability to experiment and to concentrate.”

She continued: “I had the gift of time to dedicate to doing this thing I loved. I wasn’t growing up afraid financially, and that’s the biggest deal.”

<div class="js-react-hydrator" data-component-name="YouTube" data-component-id="8685" data-component-props="{"itemType":"video","isLiveblogEmbed":false,"index":10,"contentIndexByType":1,"contentListType":"embed","code":"

","type":"video","meta":{"author":"Popcast","author_url":"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuvi5FAcFurbj0U_7rP95MA","cache_age":86400,"description":"Gracie Abrams sat down with Joe and Jon for an in-depth conversation ahead of her third album, \"Daughter From Hell,\" out July 17. She discusses the inspiration behind the album, her new single \"Look At My Life,\" collaborating with boyfriend Paul Mescal and longtime friend Audrey Hobert, opening for Taylor Swift and Olivia Rodrigo, navigating the internet as a young star and more.\n\n0:00 Intro\n2:41 Being a “Daughter From Hell” + her relationship with her mom\n10:57 Writing her new single, “Look At My Life”\n15:10 Coming up alongside Blake Slatkin, Addison Rae, Tate McRae, & The Kid LAROI\n19:58 Her time at Barnard + living in NY with Audrey Hobert \n23:51 How has Audrey’s solo success affected their creative partnership?\n26:27 Her “scathing” songwriting on this album vs. her previous projects \n35:11 Writing a song with her boyfriend, Paul Mescal\n42:42 Being closely associated with Taylor Swift, Lorde, Olivia Rodrigo, and Phoebe Bridgers\n48:48 Gracie’s feelings on “nepo” hate & other online cruelty\n58:05 Her role in an upcoming A24 film + why she’s pursuing acting now \n01:00:48 Popcast’s Lightning Round\n01:07:25 Snack time!\n\nFollow Jon: https://twitter.com/joncaramanica \nhttps://www.instagram.com/joncaramanica\n\nFollow Joe: https://twitter.com/joecoscarelli \nhttps://www.instagram.com/joecoscarelli/\n\nListen to every Popcast ever https://www.nytimes.com/popcast\nEvery episode of Popcast (Deluxe) on YouTube https://tinyurl.com/PopcastDeluxe\nPopcast Discord! https://tinyurl.com/PopcastDiscord\nPopcast Facebook! https://tinyurl.com/PopcastFacebook\nPopcast t-shirts & stickers http://itsthepopcast.myshopify.com\nSubscribe: http://bit.ly/U8Ys7n\nMore from The New York Times Video: http://nytimes.com/video","options":{"_cc_load_policy":{"label":"Closed captions","value":false},"_end":{"label":"End on","placeholder":"ex.: 11, 1m10s","value":""},"_start":{"label":"Start from","placeholder":"ex.: 11, 1m10s","value":""}},"provider_name":"YouTube","thumbnail_height":720,"thumbnail_url":"https://i.ytimg.com/vi/0n6SNeAQzeI/maxresdefault.jpg","thumbnail_width":1280,"title":"Gracie Abrams on Internet Cruelty, Writing With Paul Mescal, Audrey Hobert & ‘Daughter From Hell’","type":"video","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0n6SNeAQzeI","version":"1.0"},"flags":[],"enhancements":{},"fullBleed":false,"options":{"theme":"news","device":"desktop","editionInfo":{"id":"uk","name":"U.K.","link":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk","locale":"en_GB"},"originalEdition":"uk","isMapi":false,"isAmp":false,"isMobile":false,"isAdsFree":false,"isVideoEntry":false,"isEntry":true,"isMt":false,"entryId":"6a43b199e4b0f259890f9e55","entryPermalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/gracie-abrams-nepo-baby-debate_uk_6a43b199e4b0f259890f9e55","entryTagsList":"uk-celebrity,nepotism,jj-abrams,gracie-abrams","sectionSlug":"entertainment","deptSlug":null,"sectionRedirectUrl":null,"subcategories":"","isWide":false,"isShopping":false,"headerOverride":null,"noVideoAds":false,"disableFloat":false,"isNative":false,"commercialVideo":{"provider":"custom","site_and_category":"uk.entertainment","package":null},"isHighline":false,"vidibleConfigValues":{"cid":"60afc140cf94592c45d7390c","disabledWithMapiEntries":false,"overrides":{"all":"60b8e525cdd90620331baaf4"},"whitelisted":["56c5f12ee4b03a39c93c9439","56c6056ee4b01f2b7e1b5f35","59bfee7f9e451049f87f550b","5acccbaac269d609ef44c529","570278d2e4b070ff77b98217","57027b4be4b070ff77b98d5c","56fe95c4e4b0041c4242016b","570279cfe4b06d08e3629954","5ba9e8821c2e65639162ccf1","5bcd9904821576674bc55ced","5d076ca127f25f504327c72e","5b35266b158f855373e28256","5ebac2e8abddfb04f877dff2","60b8e525cdd90620331baaf4","60b64354b171b7444beaff4d","60d0d8e09340d7032ad0fb1a","60d0d90f9340d7032ad0fbeb","60d0d9949340d7032ad0fed3","60d0d9f99340d7032ad10113","60d0daa69340d7032ad104cf","60d0de02b627221e9d819408"],"playlists":{"default":"57bc306888d2ff1a7f6b5579","news":"56c6dbcee4b04edee8beb49c","politics":"56c6dbcee4b04edee8beb49c","entertainment":"56c6e7f2e4b0983aa64c60fc","tech":"56c6f70ae4b043c5bdcaebf9","parents":"56cc65c2e4b0239099455b42","lifestyle":"56cc66a9e4b01f81ef94e98c"},"playerUpdates":{"56c6056ee4b01f2b7e1b5f35":"60b8e525cdd90620331baaf4","56c5f12ee4b03a39c93c9439":"60d0d8e09340d7032ad0fb1a","59bfee7f9e451049f87f550b":"60d0d90f9340d7032ad0fbeb","5acccbaac269d609ef44c529":"60d0d9949340d7032ad0fed3","5bcd9904821576674bc55ced":"60d0d9f99340d7032ad10113","5d076ca127f25f504327c72e":"60d0daa69340d7032ad104cf","5ebac2e8abddfb04f877dff2":"60d0de02b627221e9d819408"}},"connatixConfigValues":{"defaultPlayer":"16b0ecc6-802c-4120-845f-e90629812c4d","clickToPlayPlayer":"823ac03a-0f7e-4bcb-8521-a5b091ae948d","videoPagePlayer":"05041ada-93f7-4e86-9208-e03a5b19311b","defaultPlaylist":"2e062669-71b4-41df-b17a-df6b1616bc8f"},"topConnatixThumnbailSrc":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAEAAAABCAQAAAC1HAwCAAAAC0lEQVR42mNkYAAAAAYAAjCB0C8AAAAASUVORK5CYII=","customAmpComponents":[],"ampAssetsUrl":"https://amp.assets.huffpost.com","videoTraits":null,"positionInUnitCounts":{"buzz_head":{"count":0},"buzz_body":{"count":0},"buzz_bottom":{"count":0}},"positionInSubUnitCounts":{"article_body":{"count":10},"blog_summary":{"count":0},"before_you_go_content":{"count":0}},"connatixCountsHelper":{"count":0},"buzzfeedTracking":{"context_page_id":"6a43b199e4b0f259890f9e55","context_page_type":"buzz","destination":"huffpost","mode":"desktop","page_edition":"en-uk"},"tags":[{"name":" uk celebrity","slug":"uk-celebrity","links":{"relativeLink":"news/uk-celebrity","permalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/uk-celebrity","mobileWebLink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/uk-celebrity"},"url":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/uk-celebrity/"},{"name":"nepotism","slug":"nepotism","links":{"relativeLink":"news/nepotism","permalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/nepotism","mobileWebLink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/nepotism"},"url":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/nepotism/"},{"name":"jj abrams","slug":"jj-abrams","links":{"relativeLink":"news/jj-abrams","permalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/jj-abrams","mobileWebLink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/jj-abrams"},"relegenceId":5679080,"url":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/jj-abrams/"},{"name":"gracie abrams","slug":"gracie-abrams","links":{"relativeLink":"news/gracie-abrams","permalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/gracie-abrams","mobileWebLink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/gracie-abrams"},"url":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/gracie-abrams/"}],"isLiveblogLive":null,"isLiveblog":false,"signInUrl":"https://login.huffpost.com/login?dest=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.huffpost.com%2Fentry%2Fgracie-abrams-nepo-baby-debate_uk_6a43b199e4b0f259890f9e55%3Fhp_auth_done%3D1","cetUnit":"buzz_body","enableIncontentPlayer":true,"bodyAds":["

\r\n\r\n HPGam.cmd.push(function(){\r\n\t\treturn HPGam.render(\"inline-1\", \"entry_paragraph_1\", false, false);\r\n });\r\n\r\n","

\r\n\r\n HPGam.cmd.push(function(){\r\n\t\treturn HPGam.render(\"inline\", \"entry_paragraph_2\", false, false);\r\n });\r\n\r\n","

\r\n\r\n HPGam.cmd.push(function(){\r\n\t\treturn HPGam.render(\"inline-2\", \"entry_paragraph_3\", false, false);\r\n });\r\n\r\n","

\r\n\r\n HPGam.cmd.push(function(){\r\n\t\treturn HPGam.render(\"inline-infinite\", \"repeating_dynamic_display\", false, false);\r\n });\r\n\r\n"],"adCount":0,"midArticleAdPartner":null},"isCollectionEmbed":false}”>

Gracie’s major breakthrough came in 2024 when her album The Secret Of Us spawned international hits like Close To You and That’s So True.

She also served as the opening act on Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour, collaborating with the Grammy winner on the album cut Us.

Outside of her music career, Gracie has also made headlines thanks to her relationship with the Oscar-nominated actor Paul Mescal, with the pair hard-launching their romance at the Baftas earlier this year.

Discussing her relationship during her latest interview, Gracie claimed that being with Paul was “a part of my life that brings me so much peace and joy”.

“I’m not going to pretend like that’s not true, but I also think it’s not like an open-door policy,” she said of the media attention the two have received since they began dating.

Share Button