As Strictly Come Dancing bosses finalise this year’s line-up, they may want to consider approaching Emma Willis if they have not already.
The former Big Brother presenter has admitted she would take part in the BBC ballroom show “in a heartbeat”.
Emma – who hosts The Voice UK and fronted The Circle before it was cancelled in May – said she would jump at the chance if she can find room in her diary.
David M. Benett via Getty ImagesEmma Willis
David M. Benett via Getty ImagesMaya Jama is one of the stars rumoured for Strictly this year
Fans of the hit BBC cop drama will remember the character – portrayed by James Nesbitt – was killed off in the penultimate episode of the most recent series, despite viewers having ever only seen him in photographs on the show.
Thurwell was found dead as Spanish police carried out a raid on his home in the hunt for the so-called “fourth man”, who was later revealed to be DSU Ian Buckells.
However, many speculated at the time that Thurwell might actually be dead, despite a line of dialogue during a scene at AC-12 confirming his fate in the finale.
BBCJames Nestbitt only appeared in photographs as Marcus Thurwell
During an appearance on This Morning on Monday, Daniel told hosts Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield: “I don’t think James Nesbitt is dead, I don’t know this, but I have a sneaking suspicion he might be the main man.”
Holly agreed: “It makes sense, otherwise you’re like, what was that scene when he was dead on the bed?”
Daniel said: “We didn’t get a close up did we of his bush.”
“And why waste him? What was the point?” Phillip said.
BBCSergeant Danny Waldron (centre) was the subject of AC-12’s third investigation
Daniel said, however, that he wouldn’t be surprised if writer and creator Jed Mercurio was trying to trick fans, given Daniel’s own character met a grisly end very early on into series three.
He said: “James Nesbitt is a phenomenal talent but maybe it’s just Jed Mercurio dangling the carrot, who knows. I wouldn’t put it past him. He killed me off didn’t he, he could do anything.”
S Meddle/ITV/ShutterstockDaniel Mays spoke to Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby on This Morning
While “H”, aka “the fourth man”, was revealed in the final episode of series six, many fans are convinced there’s more to the storyline – including Adrian Dunbar, who plays Superintendent Ted Hastings.
Jed Mercurio previously revealed there’s potential to explore Osborne and possible links to organised crime should Line Of Duty return for a seventh series.
BBCOwen Teale as Chief Constable Philip Osborne (right)
Speaking to Den Of Geek, he said: ”[Osborne]’s someone who retains high office who is an outright liar and has been involved in corruption in the past in terms of the Karim Ali case and the Lawrence Christopher case.
“Clearly there would be potential there if we wanted to explore it, but it’s too early to say whether we ever would.”
Over 15 months into the pandemic, we are all officially sick of Zoom calls, so you can’t blame Helen Mirren for killing two birds with one stone as she dialled in to a US talk show from her bath.
The actor appeared on The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon on Thursday evening live and direct from her tub, telling the host it was her “favourite place in the world”.
A shocked Jimmy told her she had the honour of being his first guest ever to appear from their bath.
“That’s the brilliant thing about Zoom,” she said. “I was thinking, why not be in the place that you love to sit and chat to people? I love having a chat to my husband while I’m sitting in the bath, so why not do it to the whole of America?”
However, Helen encountered one big problem.
“I’m running out of bubbles!” she said. “You were chatting away and I was waiting and my bubbles were going down.”
The soapy location was not the only iconic thing from Helen’s interview, though.
She also shared a video of her shooing away a bear that was trying to make its way onto her porch.
Helen previously recounted her meeting with the bear during an interview with US comedian Marc Maron on his podcast WTF.
She also revealed she’d learned how to react when faced with a bear “looking aggressively at you” and “hunching its back like it is about to charge” from a pamphlet.
Dame Helen explained: “They said you make yourself look as big as possible, if you can grab a stick, make yourself look big and then it literally said and then shout, ‘Bad bear, bad bear!’”
During the show, presenters Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield led a discussion with three members of the stripping troupe the Dreamboys about how the government’s delay to easing coronavirus restrictions.
However, things took a bit of a turn when performer Zac Smith decided to seize the opportunity of being on telly to show off his *ahem* talents.
“Hold on a second,” he told Holly and Phil, as they tried to wrap up the interview. “I’ve been in a cage for a year, and I’m sure I won’t have any objections if I just let my hair down a little bit.”
“Feel free,” Holly then urged him, at which point he ripped open his shirt and declared: “With all due respect, this is what a Dreamboy is.”
Bringing his point home, he then leapt into a backflip, while his fellow dancers applauded via video-link on the screen behind him.
ITVBelieve it or not, things only got stranger from this point on.
Believe it or not, things then got even more surreal later in the episode, when Holly and Phil threw it back to 2015, when Olga Liashchuk broke the world record for crushing three watermelons between her thighs in under 15 seconds live on This Morning.
The duo then introduced Emmajane Smith, who said she wanted to break Olga’s record six years on.
“What I love about it is that it’s something everyone can relate to,” Emmajane explained. “It’s a great way to show everyone how strong women can be. And everyone knows what a watermelon is, so…”
Although Guinness officials weren’t able to be present for Emmajane’s attempt due to Covid restrictions, she appeared to smash Olga’s record with almost two seconds to spare.
The fact the whole thing was accompanied by the sound of what appeared to be construction work as Emmajane sat on the pavement outside Television Center crushing watermelons with her thighs only added to the strangeness.
ITVEmmajane appeared to set a new world record when she crushed three watermelons with her thighs live on ITV
We know This Morning is famous for its wacky segments, but we really think there might be something in the water at the moment, as the week started with Phil frightening Holly with some class of haunted doll.
In Monday’s show, Phil presented his co-host with an old doll, telling her: “This is allegedly absolutely rabid with spirits and ghosts.”
“And you thought you’d bring this… why?” Holly questioned, shifting even further away than the current two-metre requirement.
The identities of Knickerbocker and Frog have been revealed in The Masked Dancer’s latest elimination.
Strictly Come Dancing judge Craig Revel Horwood was revealed to be Knickerbocker, whilst model and presenter Kelly Brook was disguised as Frog in Friday’s semi-final.
Squirrel, Carwash, Scarecrow and Zip will compete in Saturday’s final.
Panellist Oti Mabuse successfully guessed the identity of her fellow Strictly star Craig and model and actress Brook.
After taking off his mask, Craig said: “I’m so pleased, I have got to say that I did this because I think it’s sort of good for me as a judge, and as a mean and harsh one, to actually come up and try it myself.”
He said he was “extremely nervous”, adding he wanted to “prove to myself that I had the guts to do something like this and it did feel like being back when I was 23 again”.
After having her identity revealed, Kelly said: “Well I have always loved dancing but I’ve not danced for years, so I have been patting myself on the back and going, ‘I did that’.
“It’s just been the best experience ever.”
The ITV show is a spin-off from hit series The Masked Singer and sees celebrities perform routines disguised in elaborate costumes as the panel of Jonathan Ross, Mabuse, Davina McCall and Mo Gilligan try to guess their identities.
Comedian John Bishop also appeared in Friday’s episode as a guest panellist.
Thursday’s episode saw Radio 2 breakfast host Zoe Ball and former ice skater Christopher Dean unmasked as Llama and Beagle respectively.
Former ski jumper Eddie ‘the Eagle’ Edwards, burlesque star Dita Von Teese, singer Louise Redknapp and Diversity dancer Jordan Banjo have previously had their identities revealed on the programme.
The Masked Dancer final will air on Saturday on ITV at 7.30pm.
A number of questions still remain about the Central Police boss, despite him not being unmasked as the so-called “fourth man” in last month’s divisive series finale.
While DSU Ian Buckells was unveiled as the “bent copper” acting as the OCG’s fixer, Owen is also convinced there is more to be explored with Osborne.
BBCOwen Teale as Chief Constable Philip Osborne
Speaking to Wales Online, he said: “They say the whole story is finished, I’m not sure if it is you know.
“There’s a hell of a lot of people in shops and in the street [saying], ‘No no [Ian Buckells is] not H. There’s no way he had that power over AC-12 over six series, it’s because he’s the fall guy. Your character is number one!’”
He continued: “I agree with them and I want to know if Jed Mercurio is going to do something about it. Sort out Osbourne!”
Osborne was introduced back in series one, when he was the leader of the Counter Terrorism Unit that DI Steve Arnott was working on at the time, and instructed his officers to lie about what happened in the killing of Karim Ali.
In series six, it was also revealed that Osborne was previously on the same team as corrupt officers Ian Buckells and Marcus Thurwell on the Lawrence Christopher murder case, suggesting he was also involved in the obstruction into the investigation.
At the end of the series, fans learned that “close colleagues” of the Chief Constable had been appointed to senior positions in anti-corruption, following his cuts to the departments.
BBCA number of questions about Osborne remain unanswered
Speaking to Den Of Geek, he said: ”[Osborne]’s someone who retains high office who is an outright liar and has been involved in corruption in the past in terms of the Karim Ali case and the Lawrence Christopher case.
“Clearly there would be potential there if we wanted to explore it, but it’s too early to say whether we ever would.”
The entire Line Of Duty boxset is available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
Laura Whitmore sounds the alarm for the return of Love Island in the first teaser for the new series of the ITV2 dating show.
The host swings a pink mallet to smash the heart-shaped glass on an alarm, which reads: “In case of Love Island, crack on.”
Dressed in a red jumpsuit and sunglasses, Laura, who recently gave birth to her first child with husband Iain Stirling, the show’s narrator, smiles at the camera before taking a swing.
The 10-second promo ends with the words: “This is not a drill!”
The dating show is returning to the screen for the first time since February 2020 after the summer series was cancelled last year because of the coronavirus pandemic.
The first ever winter series was won by Paige Turley and Finley Tapp.
Another teaser for the new series shows a camera zooming in on the licence plate of a 4×4 which typically carries the new arrivals to the villa.
The plate reads LOV3.
The new series has been filmed adhering to government guidelines surrounding Covid-19.
The teaser will be shown during the first episode of The Masked Dancer, which starts at 7pm on Saturday on ITV and the ITV Hub.
Love Island returns this summer on ITV2 and the ITV Hub.
Speaking to the New York Post, Lisa said of the Baby singer: “I was like, ‘Wait, that’s Justin Bieber, right? Would he be here? Is he here? He’s really here – that’s Justin Bieber!’
“That was kind of exciting. I’m throwing in a ‘kind of’ so that I seem a little cooler. It was exciting. I don’t get excited about meeting people – but Justin Bieber, he’s exciting.”
As well as celebrity guests, the reunion will see the main cast joined by some supporting actors from the series, including James Michael Tyler and Maggie Wheeler – better known as Gunther and Janice.
Joining them will be Elliott Gould and Christina Pickles (who played Monica and Ross’ parents, Jack and Judy Geller), Reese Witherspoon (who co-starred as Rachel’s sister in two episodes of the sitcom) and Tom Selleck (who played Monica’s love interest, Richard).
Kevin Mazur/AMA2020 via Getty ImagesLisa admitted she was starstruck by Justin Bieber
The reunion marks the first time since the show wrapped in 2004 that all six of the main cast have been in the same room together in front of the cameras.
Lisa said that she felt “every emotion” while filming the episode.
“It was a lot of laughing and then real blubbering — which, I don’t know if that will be in there, but the puffy eyes are in there, so that’s good. It was an emotionally exhausting and great few days,” she told the New York Post.
HBO MaxThe cast of Friends in a promo shot for the reunion
It’s been 17 years since we last saw our favourite Friends characters on screen together, and with the cast set to reunite on an upcoming TV retrospective, we’ve been dying to find out what the actors think their fictional counterparts would be up to now.
The actors spilled the beans in a new interview with People magazine, previewing the upcoming reunion, which is set to debut in the US on 27 May.
Here’s what they had to say…
NBC via Getty ImagesThe cast of Friends pictured in 1996
Rachel Green
Jennifer Aniston says she would to see Rachel still working in fashion, having now started her own clothing line.
“It’s sort of a small franchise, like a Nili Lotan. And I live in New York City on the Upper East Side,” Jen imagines.
NBC via Getty ImagesJennifer Aniston as Rachel Green
Monica Geller
Courteney Cox believes Monica’s competitiveness wouldn’t have mellowed in middle age and that she would be “doing something competitively with other mothers and trying to outdo them”.
“Whether it’s the bake sale at school or something,” she says. “I mean, she’d be so annoying. She’d be at the head of the PTA or something.”
NBC via Getty ImagesCourteney Cox as Monica Geller
Phoebe Buffay
Lisa Kudrow reckons Phoebe would still be married to Mike Hannigan (Paul Rudd) and they would have moved away from New York, to settle in Connecticut with their children.
“She’s in charge of the arts program for the school,” Lisa says. “And the advocate for her kids because they’re different like she was.”
NBC via Getty ImagesLisa Kudrow as Phoebe Buffay
Chandler Bing
Matthew Perry believes Chandler would be “a wonderful father”, having had twins with Monica at the end of the series.
He also believes the character would have had another change of career, and would now be “a wonderful comedy writer”.
NBC via Getty ImagesMatthew Perry as Chandler Bing
Joey Tribbiani
While we got a glimpse of post-Friends life for Joey in the ill-fated spin-off series Joey, which saw him try and make it as an actor in LA, Matt reckons his character has had a humbler life since.
He says Joey “would have opened a chain of sandwich shops”, to which Matthew Perry adds: “And eaten all the sandwiches.”
NBC via Getty ImagesMatt Le Blanc as Joey Tribbiani
Ross Geller
David Schwimmer is convinced Ross is still “playing with the bones” and working as a palaeontologist, but that he also would have invested in Joey’s sandwich shop and “lost a lot of his savings for his kids”.
NBC via Getty ImagesDavid Schwimmer as Ross Geller
People magazine have also obtained the first official images from the unscripted special, one of which shows the gang playing the epic trivia game from season four, which saw Joey and Chandler win Monica and Rachel’s apartment.
Another image shows them sat down to do a table read of part of The One with The Jellyfish episode.
Last week, it was announced that the cast will be joined by a host of special guests, including James Michael Tyler and Maggie Wheeler – better known as Gunther and Janice.
Joining them will be Elliott Gould and Christina Pickles (who played Monica and Ross’ parents, Jack and Judy Geller), Reese Witherspoon (who co-starred as Rachel’s sister in two episodes of the sitcom) and Tom Selleck (who played Monica’s love interest, Richard).
The Friends reunion will be available to stream on HBO Max in the US from 27 May, exactly a year after it was supposed to launch, before the pandemic scuppered plans to begin production.
It’s still not clear exactly when or how British fans will be able to watch, but HBO productions typically come to Sky Atlantic and NOW in the UK.
Read the full cover interview with the cast of Friends in the latest issue of People magazine, available in the US on Friday, or read an excerpt here.
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We get it, sometimes throwing out tatty old stuff that you’ve become attached to can be hard, but we think Gogglebox’s Pete Sandiford might be taking that a bit too far.
The Channel 4 star left his sister Sophie in stitches on the latest episode of the hit show when he revealed a pair of boxers that truly redefine the term shreddies.
On Friday’s show, Pete proudly showed off his holey pants, which he’s had for over 10 years.
Channel 4Pete and Sophie on Gogglebox
“I daren’t part with them – I’ve had them since I was 15!” he said.
“I mean my first question is, how have you got a fiancée?’, Sophie joked.
“She’s been asking me to bin them for the whole time I’ve known her,” Pete said.
“You need to bin them,” Sophie concluded.
“No, there’s another couple of years left in these,” Pete said.
Pete revealed he was engaged to girlfriend Paige Yeomans when Gogglebox returned for a new series in February.
In April, he announced he and Paige were expecting their first child together.
Pete’s pants isn’t the only NSFW moment the show has had in recent weeks.
Viewers got to see a little bit more of Stephen Webb than they probably wanted when he was seen modelling a pair of jodhpurs, and let’s just say they left very little to the imagination.
