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London's most opulent fringe venue opens with a brilliant no-holds-barred show

London's most opulent fringe venue opens with a brilliant no-holds-barred show

Telegraph03-05-2025
Friday night saw London's newest and most opulent comedy venue open its doors with an extravagant bang thanks to US comedian Natalie Palamides. Quite a few 'bangs' in fact, if one's being smutty, which Palamides sure is − and certainly, as an opening, determinedly fringey mission statement and outrageously entertaining evening out, it is hard to see how this show could be bettered.
An offshoot of the much-loved Dean Street institution of similar name, Soho Theatre Walthamstow turns out to be quite a place. Built in 1930 as an astonishing 2,700-seater cinema, the building has been lovingly restored and transformed into a theatre with a still-ambitious 960 seats. ('Soho' don't seem to be publicising how much it cost, but we can safely go with: a packet.)
The auditorium is marvellous, a grand, old-school space with luxurious, Alhambra-inspired trimmings, good leg-room and excellent raking and sight-lines. There's a capacious foyer with a disco ball the size of Jupiter, two large and well-staffed bars, and you can get a naan wrap for a tenner. Plus, it's barely five minutes' walk from the local Tube station. What's not to like?
First aired in Edinburgh last summer, the show with which Walthamstow is setting out its stall echoes the venue in terms of being at once reassuringly old-fashioned and utterly modern. A no-holds-barred comic paean to the big-screen romances of the 1990s, and flipping between 1999 and 1996, Weer sees Palamides simultaneously play both of the central lovers, Mark and Christina. (A bizarre quadruple coincidence for this particular writer, but that's quite another story.)
So, her right-hand side is Mark, all macho plaid shirt, cargo pants, short-ish 'male' hair, and preposterous painted-on stubble; but when she turns about 180 degrees, she's Christina: long hair, regular make-up, a pink top, groovy jeans. It's a clownish trope as old as the hills, but make no mistake: as anyone who caught Palamides's previous, full-bore creations Laid (2017) or Nate (2018) would expect, the material is bracingly and brilliantly 21st-century.
Going into the show, I'll admit I feared slightly that this performer who − be warned − loves to get the audience involved and thrives on the sense of a charged, intimate huddle, might be lost in the enormous space. But not a bit of it. A completely fearless atom-bomb of energy, she instantly fills the stage and auditorium alike with muscular misrule, and simply does not let up.
Roughly 80 minutes straight through, the show often uses surprise as a (very effective) weapon, so let's not go into too many particulars. But Palamides's mickey-taking of specific 1990s films and general filmic tropes is as marvellous as her casual, almost aggressive disregard for her props, and my, what an inspired and inventive physical comedian she is. She frequently turns on a sixpence to give us both characters' actions as good as simultaneously, a trick that works as perfectly in the moments off near-death melodrama as it does in the shamelessly funny, insouciantly semi-naked bedroom scenes.
You can't help feeling that this 'Zone 3', comedy-focused theatre has got its work cut out for it in terms of consistently putting bums on seats, especially given the fact that very few of the names on its extensive programme qualify as 'household'. But after an opening gambit as strong as this, how not to wish it well? At the curtain call, the still bare-breasted Palamides said how marvellous it was that 'small comedians' like her could experience being in a room like this. Amen to that, even if something tells me the astonishing Ms P, 5ft 1in though she is, won't be a 'small comedian' for very much longer.
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How toxic feud ripped Hulk Hogan's family apart & left him ‘suicidal'…from bitter ex's abuse claim to son's tragic crash
How toxic feud ripped Hulk Hogan's family apart & left him ‘suicidal'…from bitter ex's abuse claim to son's tragic crash

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  • Scottish Sun

How toxic feud ripped Hulk Hogan's family apart & left him ‘suicidal'…from bitter ex's abuse claim to son's tragic crash

FAMED for ripping his shirts in two and his muscle-mountain physique, the late six-time WWE champion Hulk Hogan was a legendary figure in the ring. But the staged melodrama that unfolded in front of millions of wrestling fans was nothing compared to the turbulent life he led away from the TV cameras. 18 Hulk Hogan, who died on Thursday, was married to Linda for 11 years Credit: Shutterstock Editorial 18 The family landed their own MTV reality show before the split Credit: AP 18 Their glam daughter Brooke, 37, said 'I love you' during a final call with Hulk Credit: mizzhogan/Instagram Real name Terry Gene Bollea, the brawler's family life was fraught with feuds, with even his daughter Brooke, 37, admitting they were all 'very skilled at war'. For the 16 years since his multimillion-pound divorce from his first wife Linda, 65, there was a relentless onslaught of barbed blows and furious rows that have played out in the press. Thankfully, Hulk was said to have healed the rifts in his dying days before he passed away aged 71 after suffering a cardiac arrest on Thursday morning. A source told Daily Mail the thrice-wed wrestler 'had a lot of scores to settle [and] didn't want to leave anything unsaid' as his strength and health drastically declined. Hulk 'apologised' to his daughter during a final phone call, in which she told him 'I love you' according to TMZ. It's said she is 'at peace' and felt 'lucky and grateful'. And just five days ago, ex-wife Linda, who in March dubbed him a 'sex addict' and 'liar' and claimed the left the family in the 'worst mess', seemed to have made amends too. Finally their 18-year war of words seemed to be over, as she shared a throwback Instagram photo of them together, which she captioned: 'The good old days!' Few could have predicted peacekeeper would be the final role played by Hulk before his death - and now we reveal the family feud that was crazier than a WWE storyline. Chaos erupted back in 2007 when Linda announced she was divorcing Hulk over an affair with a music producer pal of his then-teenage daughter Brooke. The break-up, which followed multiple rumours of flings, put an abrupt end to their two-year Osbournes-inspired reality show, Hogans Knows Best. Meet WWE legend Hulk Hogan's stunning wife Sky Daily, who is 25 years his junior and a yoga teacher 18 Hulk with Linda, who he was married to for 11 years Credit: Shutterstock Editorial 18 Hulk with third-and-final wife Sky earlier this year Credit: Getty Linda was furious over the fling with Christiane Plante, 33, and after initially denying it, Hulk claimed it happened when the marriage was 'irrevocably broken and over'. At the time, Brooke lashed out on social media platform MySpace claimed she would 'NEVER forget the hurt they caused" before retracting it and going in to bat for her dad. 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Knowing their son was responsible would be heartbreaking enough but the damage was further highlighted by the mother of Graziano - then dependent on round the clock care - who said: 'I grieve the virtual loss of my son on a daily basis.' You and [inaudible] are not f***ing coming to me for help… get your ass right out of this house…Don't f***ing come back Linda Hogan TMZ reported the family would later settle out of court with the Hogans. Hulk, at the time, said his son was 'moving through life and maybe not really appreciative of things'. Perhaps insensitively, he added: 'It totally spun him in a the best thing that ever happened to him. I'm not saying it's a good thing. But it happened for a reason.' Nick, who was released after six months for good behaviour, would later admit it was 'hard to move on every day and be positive' after doing something 'so horribly devastating'. 18 Nick's Toyota Supra was a mangled mess after the crash Credit: Splash News 18 John Graziano was left with brain damage in the 2007 crash Credit: Supplied 18 Nick was jailed for after admitting reckless driving Credit: Getty 'Suicide' attempt It was a torturous time, as Hulk attested in his 2009 memoir My Life Outside The Ring, claiming he 'practically begged' a reporter not to publish the story of Nick's 2007 crash. The wrestler was suffering mentally. That year he pleaded with his wife 'please, don't file for divorce' fearing the crash plus their split would 'make us look like the Britney Spears family', according to the Daily News. Hulk also revealed that, while presenting the American remake of Gladiators, he downed a cocktail of Xanax and rum in a bid to end his life in early 2008. He claimed to have reached for a gun and put his finger on the trigger when he received a call from his concerned co-host Laila Ali, daughter of legendary boxer Muhammad. She noticed Hulk 'looking distracted at work' amid the divorce and his son's crash. In the wrestler's book, he credited her with saving his life. 18 Linda Hogan moved on with toyboy Charley Hill one month after the divorce was announced Credit: Getty 18 Hulk was a six-time WWE champion Credit: Splash Amid that turmoil in 2008, Brooke moved to Miami to escape the drama and attempt to launch her singing career as was documented in her spin-off TV show Brooke Knows Best. It was claimed Hulk spent 'probably over $3m' trying to make her a star, which may have aided in her vehement support of her famously over-protective dad. Toyboy row That was never more apparent than in the release of her scathing July 2009 song Dear Mom… just a week before the Hogan divorce was finalised. 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My family is very skilled at war Brooke Hogan Brooke's 2009 track also featured a recorded argument where Linda said: 'You and [inaudible] are not f***ing coming to me for help… get your ass right out of this house…Don't f***ing come back.' The divorce settlement stung Hulk hard, with him losing 70 per cent of their liquid assets, their £2.23m Florida home and 40 per cent of his ongoing business takings. It would lead to further barbs between the two of them in memoirs. In 2009, Hulk accused Linda of being an abusive alcoholic, who threatened to beat their son with a wine bottle. She denied it and two years later alleged he 'tore my shirt… threw lamps… slammed doors, pounded walls' and pinned her down with 'his hands around my throat' in her 2011 book. 'I was always afraid he would kill me in one of his rages,' she wrote in Wrestling The Hulk. The claims led to him file a lawsuit, which was dismissed in 2012. 'It's just so crazy to hear…' he fired back. 'If you're going to say I'm something that I'm not to try to ruin my career and my livelihood… I have to answer her back.' Sex tape scandal Tensions further escalated when Hulk's sex tape with Heather Cole, secretly filmed by her US radio host husband Bubba the Love Sponge Clem, was published by Gawker Media. The 2012 video later resulted in a £23m payout that bankrupted the company. Three years later, a mystery source released a damning recording from it. 18 Hulk with son Nick in 2009 after his six-month prison stint Credit: Splash 18 Hulk with second with Jennifer McDaniel, who he divorced in 2021 Credit: Getty 18 Linda, now 65, launched into a bitter attack on him online in March Credit: mizzhogan/Instagram It heard Hulk engage in an expletive and racism filled rant, including multiple uses of the N-word, about his daughter's then-boyfriend. It led to his WWE contract being terminated. Shockingly Brooke defended her dad claiming he was 'an easy target' and telling People magazine: 'What he said was not right, but I know that's not who he is.' Hulk thanked her for having 'always been there for me with unconditional love' but his daughter was pulling away to 'set boundaries' and focus on 'healing and happiness'. This included not attending Hulk's marriage to Jennifer McDaniel, which lasted 11 years until 2021, nor his 2023 nuptials with Sky Daily, 46, who was 25 years his junior. 'Narcissist like dad' Despite keeping her distance, Brooke was dragged back into the drama when mum Linda, 65, posted a furious video on social media in March this year. It was littered with false claims about their relationship and saw her label Brooke 'a narcissist just like her dad' and appear to threaten to tell embarrassing stories about her past drinking. Linda's claims included not having seen her daughter in eight years and having not met her husband, which Brooke debunked by sharing a picture of them all together in 2023. The mum, whose recollections have been questioned, claimed: 'She had a huge fight with Terry (Hulk). I don't know how that reflected onto me, but she cut me out too." Hulk responded coldly and never made an effort to meet Brooke's kids TMZ Brooke hit back that her lack of contact with both parents was due to being "EXTREMELY verbally and mentally abused since childhood", claiming rows "frequently turned physical". Linda denied the claim, Hulk did not respond. 'My family is very skilled at war,' she added. 'I so badly wanted to see good in them, protect, help, and start anew - just to be disrespected again and again. "I've repeatedly held my hand out to help them, only to have them pull me into the darkness with them. I've set boundaries that were not respected… I can truly do no more. "Each individual, on their own, has given me more than enough reasons over the years to make this extremely hard and painful decision to end contact.' 18 Linda's vitriolic rant upset Brooke Credit: Supplied 18 Brooke hit back with an attack on her parents Credit: Supplied Near-death plea Prior to this public spat, the last time Brooke spoke to her dad was in 2023 when she urged him 'to slow down and enjoy life, but Hulk didn't want to hear it' according to TMZ. It was said she 'expressed deep love and concern' on the call but he didn't take kindly to her encouraging him to stop 'working so hard given his declining health'. Brooke's husband Steven Oleksy, an NHL player who she wed in 2022, reportedly 'made multiple efforts to mend the relationship' over the years to no avail. They included him reaching out after his wife nearly died while giving birth to their twins, Molly and Oliver, in January this year. 18 The family used to be the focus of reality show Hogan Knows Best 18 Brooke shared a screenshot proving the date she and her husband saw Linda in 2023 Credit: mizzhogan/Instagram 'Hulk responded coldly and never made an effort to meet Brooke's kids,' TMZ wrote. 'Our sources say he ultimately only wanted a relationship with her under his terms.' But more recently, it's claimed the frost thawed. In April, sources told the Daily Mail that Hulk was 'heartbroken' over the feud with Brooke and 'would love someday to rectify that'. They claimed he was 'looking to make up for past bad decisions', that he was ready to listen and finally wanted to 'make amends and help rather than hurt'. The change of heart came amid rumours of the 71-year-old's declining health. In May, he had an operation on his neck and earlier this month, a pal claimed: 'I don't know if we'll ever see Hogan again.' It's believed Hulk finally buried the hatchet before his death, with insiders telling TMZ that Brooke felt 'lucky and grateful' she could 'say 'I love you' during their last conversation.' They claimed he 'apologised' but 'wasn't specific for what' and added: 'She feels at peace knowing she did everything she could to protect and support him.' As for Nick, they remained 'very close' and lived near each other. And it seems even Linda made amends too, with her recent nostalgic snap. It would seem Hulk was able to repair old wounds before the final bell rang on his life - meaning his family can let the memory of this sporting giant rest in peace.

Cruise expert says 'mega ships' will soon rival cities and carry 35,000 passengers
Cruise expert says 'mega ships' will soon rival cities and carry 35,000 passengers

Daily Mirror

time12 hours ago

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Cruise expert says 'mega ships' will soon rival cities and carry 35,000 passengers

Cruise ships are getting bigger and bigger every year, but one cruise expert reckons at this rate we could expect to see mega ships that are the size of small cities A cruise expert has predicted that cruise ships could soon be the size of small cities, carrying thousands of passengers and having enough onboard that most people probably wouldn't get off the ship. Long gone are the days when cruise holidays included a bit of live entertainment and a pool. Nowadays, ships have everything from onboard rollercoasters, epic water parks, slides, and thrill-attractions, not to mention the plethora of restaurants and shops on board. Of course that means that vessels are getting bigger every year. Currently, the world's largest cruise ship is Royal Caribbean's Icon of the Seas, which can hold up to 7,600 passengers - and even that is getting a rival in the form of a sister ship Star of the Seas which will be the same size. I stayed on a new £1bn cruise ship with 17 restaurants and waterslide rollercoaster Inside new record-breaking mega cruise ship with ice rink and huge waterpark Mark Barton, cruise expert at Avanti Travel Insurance, looked at the current growth rates for cruise ships, and has predicted that theoretically, by 2075 we could be seeing mega ships that can carry up to 34,860 passengers, with a gross tonnage of 902,000 - nearly five times the size of Icon of the Seas. Mark has attributed the demand for these larger ships to passenger demands for entertainment. Research from Avanti showed that the growth is driven by younger passengers, who make up over a third of cruise passengers worldwide, and prefer onboard entertainment to traditional sightseeing. He points to the ever-increasing number of festival cruises where passengers tend to stay on the ship because of a jam-packed programme of entertainment, such as the 70000 Tons of Metal cruise, which has been dubbed 'the world's biggest heavy metal cruise', carries 3,000 metal fans and features 60+ bands performing 120+ shows across four stages. Meanwhile the EDSea - the Electronic Dance Carnival cruise - transforms ships into floating nightclubs with multiple stages and 24/7 music programming. However, these mega ships could have one big drawback for those who prefer the traditional port-hopping experiences; destinations simply aren't equipped to deal with the size of giant vessels. "While the mathematical projections suggest ships could one day carry 35,000 passengers, this is future-gazing based on past growth patterns. The reality is different, as there are significant real-world constraints," Mark explained. "Port infrastructure, safety protocols, and fuel demands make vessels of that scale highly unlikely. "Only a handful of global superports, such as Miami, Barcelona, Shanghai or Dubai, could potentially accommodate vessels of this size, and critically, the environmental impact of building and operating ships at this scale cannot be ignored." In recent years a number of holiday hotspots have been introducing rules to try and combat the effects of overtourism, including the crowds of cruise passengers that descend on a city for a few days. In 2021, Venice became one of the first port cities to ban cruise ships weighing over 25,000 tons and redirecting them to a port further away. The city has also brought in a tourism tax of approximately €5 for day-trippers who are not spending the night in the Italian city, over a course of peak season travel dates.

Wear flowers in your hair … and take the bus: San Francisco fetes Grateful Dead concerts with tie-dye
Wear flowers in your hair … and take the bus: San Francisco fetes Grateful Dead concerts with tie-dye

The Guardian

time13 hours ago

  • The Guardian

Wear flowers in your hair … and take the bus: San Francisco fetes Grateful Dead concerts with tie-dye

The summer of love is pulling back in to San Francisco – aboard three tie-dye and paisley-wrapped trains and buses. Designed to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Grateful Dead's formation, the city's Muni transit vehicles will double as transport for concertgoers attending a three-day Dead & Company series at Golden Gate Park. 'There's no better place to celebrate 60 years of the Grateful Dead than right here in San Francisco, and now that legacy is rolling through our neighborhoods literally,' Mayor Daniel Lurie said at a press conference on Tuesday. San Francisco public transit wrap campaigns are usually funded by advertisers – but the city financed these three Grateful Dead-inspired vehicles from Muni's marketing budget, in part because the city expects the concerts to bring huge numbers of tourists and spending to the Bay Area. Founded in the San Francisco Bay Area in 1965, just two years before the summer of love, the Grateful Dead quickly attracted a dedicated fanbase, who called themselves Deadheads. Though the original lineup disbanded in 1995 with the death of singer and lead guitarist Jerry Garcia, the band's members continued performing together with projects like Dead & Company. When Dead & Company performed in San Francisco in 2023, the single show generated $31m for the city's economy. This year, the city is banking on the band's 1-3 August appearances bringing hundreds of thousands of fans to the home of Haight-Ashbury and 1960s counterculture. General-admission tickets for the three-day festival start at $635, but VIP passes are already being resold on StubHub for upwards of $7,000. Even Muni is selling limited-edition tie-dye T-shirts to celebrate. 'Our bars and restaurants will be packed, our hotels will be booked, our neighborhoods will come alive, and there will be more revenue to fund the services that benefit all San Franciscans. When we make space for creativity and celebration, the whole city benefits,' Lurie said in a statement on Tuesday. The 'Psychedeli-bus' and 'Trippy Train' will serve as festival transit – but are also scheduled to run along the 5 Fulton, 7 Haight/Noriega and N Judah routes. The city is hoping the themed vehicles will boost enthusiasm for public transit, at a moment when Muni's financial future looks uncertain. Muni ridership is at its highest levels since 2019, but the transit agency is facing a $322m budget deficit. 'We have proudly served passengers for decades, getting them to and from where they want to be,' Julie Kirschbaum, director of transportation at the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, said in a statement announcing the buses. 'Helping connect people to major moments that make San Francisco so special is at the core of what makes Muni so special.'

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