Taika Waititi to take on new Judge Dredd movie
According to the Hollywood Reporter, the writer-director will take the reins of the latest attempt to bring the comic book character to the screen with Drew Pearce set to take on the script.
Pearce's credits include Iron Man 3, Hobbs & Shaw and The Fall Guy. He has also written the script for a new take on The Thomas Crown Affair led by Michael B Jordan.
Sources tell the Hollywood Reporter that both Waititi and Pearce were childhood fans of the character. In a 2022 interview, Waititi name-checked Judge Dredd as an influence on his Marvel films.
Judge Dredd is a law enforcement officer working in a dystopian society who first appeared in the British publication 2000 AD in the late 70s. In 1995, Sylvester Stallone played him in a film that underperformed at the box office and received negative reviews. The character was brought back in 2012 and played by Karl Urban in the Alex Garland-scripted Dredd which received stronger notices, but was also a commercial disappointment.
The new version is reportedly more faithful to the original comics and will lean into dark humour. The aim is to kick off a new universe that could expand to both the big and small screen.
New Zealand-born Waititi won the Oscar for best original screenplay for his second world war comedy Jojo Rabbit and has also directed two Thor sequels.
His last film, the fact-based football comedy Next Goal Wins, was a critical and financial failure. His next is an adaptation of Kazuo Ishiguro's Klara and the Sun starring Amy Adams and Jenna Ortega. Last year saw reports that he was looking to team up with Steven Spielberg for an adaptation of Percival Everett's Pulitzer prize-winning novel James.
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The Guardian
10 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Judy Loe obituary
The actor Judy Loe, who has died aged 78 after suffering from cancer, graduated from children's television to popular dramas such as The Chief and Casualty – but she never escaped the tag of being the widow of Richard Beckinsale, the British comedy actor remembered for his roles in Rising Damp and Porridge. 'I get annoyed at being continually presented as the brave little widow having a tough time,' she said in 1987, eight years after his death at 31 from a heart attack. Their daughter, Kate Beckinsale, went on to become a Hollywood star, while Loe enjoyed a satisfying career on British television. She was settling down to a new life with the director Roy Battersby and looking to the future when she landed one of her best roles, in the seven-part romantic drama Yesterday's Dreams (1987). As a divorcee in a new relationship with a mechanic, she is still being wooed by her former husband, a high-powered business executive. Her character, Diane, eventually decides to leave the past behind. Loe was also firmly fixed on the future, although she did not forget happy times with Beckinsale and their daughter. 'We have striven towards the right balance, a way of keeping Richard still in our hearts while carrying on with our lives,' she told the TV Times magazine. Just five years after Beckinsale's death, memories were stirred when Loe starred in the writer Roger Marshall's drama serial Missing from Home (1984) as a mother-of-two who has to cope after her husband suddenly disappears. Her television breakthrough had come in 1970 in ITV's children's fantasy drama Ace of Wands, starring Michael MacKenzie as Tarot, a magician who uses his supernatural powers to defeat evil-doers from art thieves to Nazis. She appeared in the first two series as his stage assistant, Lulli (Lillian) Palmer, a telepathic orphan who communicates with him over long distances. Trevor Preston, who later created Out and Fox – hard-hitting dramas featuring those on the wrong side of the law – devised Ace of Wands as a crime series for children, although Loe later said that she regarded her role as largely 'decorative … always having to be rescued by the man'. In the sitcom Goodnight and God Bless (1983), she was Celia Kemp, the neglected wife who hates the TV game shows hosted by her husband, Ronnie (Donald Churchill), who is not so genial off screen. It ran for only one series. A more rewarding comedy role came in Singles (1988-91), in which she played the recently separated Pam, perennially chased by men. Eric Chappell and Jean Warr's sitcom of intrigue, lies and deception also starred Roger Rees (later replaced by Simon Cadell), Susie Blake and Eamon Boland as the other singletons embarking on relationships. For the first three series of the drama The Chief (1990-92), Loe played Elizabeth Stafford, the GP wife of the fictional Eastland force chief constable (Tim Pigott-Smith) battling the Home Office and local bureaucracy. As Commander Kathryn McTiernan, in charge of a multinational crew, she headed the cast in the Sky sci-fi series Space Island One (1998). Then, in 2001-02, she was a semi-regular in the long-running hospital drama Casualty. She played Jan Goddard, who falls for the nurse Charlie Fairhead (Derek Thompson) – 'a strong, intelligent woman' attracted to him 'because of his sincerity and vulnerability', she explained – then becomes his boss as chief executive officer of Holby city hospital. Loe took her character to the Casualty spin-off Holby City (2002-03), with the action focused on surgical wards rather than A&E. Born in Manchester, she was the daughter of Nancy (nee Jones), a department store assistant, and Norman Loe, a travelling sales rep, and attended Urmston grammar school. After gaining a degree in English and drama from Birmingham University, she acted in repertory theatre in Crewe (1968-69) – where she met Beckinsale – then Chester (1969). She made her West End debut with a nine-month run (1969-70) in the counterculture hippy musical Hair. It was able to open at the Shaftesbury theatre in 1968, with the cast completely nude in one scene, after the abolition of theatre censorship in Britain. Pointing out that the daring scene lasted only 10 seconds, Loe told the Liverpool Echo that the production was 'neither titillating nor outrageous', adding: 'In the context of this show, it seems the natural thing to do.' From there, she made her television debut in Ace of Wands, and moved straight to peak-time drama with Man of Straw, starring Derek Jacobi in a 1972 adaptation of Heinrich Mann's early 20th-century novel prophesying German military ambitions. Loe then played Alice Lee in the BBC's 1973 Sunday teatime serialisation of the Walter Scott novel Woodstock, and Princess Mary of Teck (later George V's queen consort) in ITV's 1975 13-part period drama Edward the Seventh. As she became an established character actor, she switched effortlessly from comedy (Robin's Nest, Ripping Yarns and The Upchat Line, all in 1977) to drama (When the Boat Comes In in 1981, The Gentle Touch from 1980 to 1981, and Boon in 1990). Her later television roles included Jessica Rattigan, the manipulative wife of the Anglican bishop in the late-night ITV soap Revelations (1994-95), co-created by Russell T Davies, and Adele Cecil, a singing teacher who comes closer than most women to sweeping John Thaw's Oxford detective off his feet in Inspector Morse (1997-98). Loe's last television appearance came in Fool Me Once (2024). She married Beckinsale in 1977, two years before his death. In 1997, she married Battersby after they had been together for 15 years; he died in 2024. She is survived by Kate and by six stepchildren: the actor Samantha Beckinsale from her first marriage, and Ben, Frank, Anna, Tom and Will with Battersby. Judy (Judith Margaret) Loe, actor, born 6 March 1947; died 15 July 2025
Daily Mail
10 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Martin Frizell shares lovely video of his wife Fiona Phillips, 64, smiling and enjoying the sunshine amid Alzheimer's diagnosis
Fiona Phillips was seen smiling and soaked up the sunshine in a lovely new video her husband Martin Frizell shared on Instagram on Friday. The former GMTV host, 64, was diagnosed with the progressive brain disorder in 2022, aged just 61. In the clip, Fiona thanked fans for their support on her new memoir, Remember When: My Life With Alzheimer's, as she enjoyed an ice cream while on a walk in London. She said: 'Hello, thank you for reading my new book! Really good of you, hope you like it. Okay, bye.' Martin captioned the post: 'Out for a walk and an Almond Magnum on a hot London afternoon and some words of gratitude for all the kind folk thinking of delving into her book.' In her candid new memoir, which published on Thursday, Martin, 66, shared how the couple struggled in the years leading up to her diagnosis. Speaking about the difficult period that began around 2015, Martin recalled: 'Nothing I could say seemed to help. He continued: 'And I guess like in any relationship, the whole thing spirals. Because I felt she was being moody and critical of everything I said and did, I shut down too. 'We were barely talking and while we were still in the same house we were living quite separate lives. 'If we were both at home in the evenings, there would be long silences. After years of being able to chat about anything and everything, we'd run out of things to talk about. 'The long silences can't have been enjoyable for her either, but that was where we had got to.' Martin admitted he never suspected the early signs of Alzheimer's, saying: 'I didn't think for one moment that it was the menopause or, perish the thought, Alzheimer's. 'I just thought we had hit the wall that so many marriages do as the kids get older – ours were now well into their teens – and maybe as a couple we had just run our course.' Earlier this month, the Mail published exclusive extracts from Fiona's memoir. In her candid new memoir, which published on Thursday, Martin, 66, shared how the couple struggled in the years leading up to her diagnosis (Martin pictured this month) In the memoir, the pair - who wed in 1997 and share two children - revealed their marriage was 'falling apart' as a result of Fiona's then undiagnosed battle with the disease (Martin and Fiona pictured in 2010) In the memoir, the pair - who wed in 1997 and share two children - revealed their marriage was 'falling apart' as a result of Fiona's then undiagnosed battle with the disease. Fiona explained: 'My marriage was coming under increasing strain. I'm sure the disease was at least partly responsible, but at the time neither of us could see it. I just became more and more disconnected from Martin and the boys. '"You've totally zoned out of our family and our marriage," he would say to me. "Don't be so bloody ridiculous!" I'd yell back. 'But, if I'm honest, I think he was right. I just didn't seem to have the energy for any of it any more. 'I didn't realise quite how seriously Martin felt about it all until one evening he announced he was moving out. '"Stop being so ridiculous!'" I yelled. "I'm just worn out. I'm tired – of everything." '"That's what you've been saying for years,'" he replied. "Maybe this – our marriage – is what's making you so tired."' Fiona first met Martin when she was working on GMTV as a presenter and he was its chief correspondent. He later popped the question after they had been dating for just four weeks, before they went to Las Vegas to tie the knot in 1997. Last year, he revealed he was stepping down as editor of ITV's This Morning after 10 years in charge, in order to be 'around much more' for his wife during her Alzheimer's battle. Having turned his back on his prolific job, in his own candid words, Martin revealed Fiona now needs 'a lot of help', with his care extending to showering Fiona, brushing her teeth, dressing her and ultimately 'making her feel as safe as possible'. He explained: 'It is January 2025 as I write this, and Fiona needs a lot of help. She needs help showering and brushing her teeth. She can do these things physically, but is unable now to think about how she should do them... 'I wash Fiona's hair because she wouldn't know what shampoo or conditioner to use or how wet her hair needs to be or that she must rinse the soap suds out afterwards... 'And most nights I'll say, "Right, we need to brush our teeth before we go to bed," and I'll put the toothpaste on the brush and hand it to her... 'She is still very stubborn and doesn't like brushing her teeth or feeling that she is being told what to do, so she rails against it.' He detailed how he knows he cannot fight her protestations for fear of illness, saying: 'But this has to be the way, because the worst thing that could happen would be for her to get some kind of tooth infection when she is vulnerable.' While Fiona can put her clothes on, she does not do so correctly, meaning Martin must also assist with this task, among others. He writes: 'She can put clothes on, but may not put them on the right way around, so she does need help dressing.... 'I try to lay out clothes for her to put on in the morning, but she tends to get attached to particular items of clothing and will wear them over and over again.' Martin confessed in the memoir that he 'wishes' Fiona had been diagnosed with cancer rather than Alzheimer's. Detailing his thoughts on Fiona's diagnosis, he admitted: 'Being brutally honest, I wish Fiona had contracted cancer instead. 'It's a shocking thing to say, but at least then she might have had a chance of a cure, and certainly would have had a treatment pathway and an array of support and care packages. But that's not there for Alzheimer's. 'Just like there are no funny or inspiring TikTok videos or fashion shoots with smiling, healthy, in-remission survivors. 'After someone is diagnosed with Alzheimer's, they are pretty much left to their own devices. There is nothing more that can be done and you are left to cope alone. 'Bit by bit, it takes everything. Through time, even the most glamorous, glittering star – such as Fiona was – will be wiped away. 'As time has passed, I have come to understand that if I were to fall ill or worse, the whole house of cards would collapse. I have had to stay well for Fiona.' Remember When: My Life With Alzheimer's, by Fiona Phillips, is out now.
Telegraph
10 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Revealed: The true cost of watching the BBC
The cost of watching the BBC has shot up by three-quarters in the last decade, Telegraph analysis has found. Licence fee income in England rose to just over £3.2bn over the 2024/25 financial year, thanks to an increase in the standard rate to £169.50 per household. It has since been raised further to £174.50. While this also funds the BBC's radio output and online journalism, the majority of total spending nationwide was on television production, to the tune of just under £1.4bn – up 12.4 per cent on 2023/24. Dividing this total by the 30-million-odd consistent weekly viewers aged over 16 in the country, and again by the time these people spend in front of the television or iPlayer, the cost works out to 14p per hour. Wind the clock back to the year of the Brexit vote – when the corporation's reach was up at 82 per cent – and the comparable figure was just 8p. That equates to a 73 per cent increase in nine years. Even when adjusting television spending for inflation, the change remains a significant 29 per cent. A record low of 63 per cent of adults in England regularly tuned in to BBC television channels over the past year, translating to an estimated loss of some 6.5 million viewers over the past nine years. The average time spent watching its programming in a given week also plummeted from just over eight and a half hours to below six and a half. The dismal audience figures come from the same annual report that this week revealed the bumper pay rises handed out to the public broadcaster's leading talent, with Laura Kuenssberg and Nick Robinson pocketing an extra £70,000 and £65,000 in 2024/25, respectively. The dwindling reach comes amid a storm of controversy for the corporation. On Monday, the internal review into Gaza: How to Survive a Warzone – which featured a young narrator who was the son of a Hamas official – concluded that it had breached the BBC's editorial guidelines. Tim Davie, the BBC director-general, said the report had identified a ' significant failing in relation to accuracy '. MasterChef, the broadcaster's flagship cooking competition programme, has also lost both of its lead presenters over the past fortnight. Gregg Wallace has been banned from the BBC after claims of inappropriate behaviour, while John Torode's time with the show has ended following an allegation that he used an ' extremely offensive racist term '. The spotlight has also been trained on the salaries of the BBC's stars. The broadcaster's disclosure of the pay bands for the 67 presenters and journalists earning over £178,000 during the year was once again topped by Gary Lineker. His £1,350,000 to £1,354,999 earnings alone are equivalent to one per cent of television spending in England. You can use our calculator below to see how much value-for-money you are getting from the taxpayer-funded media giant based on your viewing and listening habits – and how the licence fee might change if just these areas were accounted for. Meanwhile, more people than ever are turning elsewhere for their news and entertainment. Barb, the industry's ratings and audience measurement organisation, found that 67.5 per cent of UK homes had access to at least one subscription service in the first three months of 2025. A BBC spokesman said: 'These figures are misleading. Our audited figures show that the average cost of each hour of BBC content consumed by audiences across the UK has risen in line with inflation since the start of the current charter. 'Our audiences are at the heart of everything we do, so we are prioritising high-impact content to deliver maximum value for licence fee payers. 'Digital consumption of BBC content has significantly increased this year, with nearly 10 per cent more requests on BBC iPlayer and total time viewing the platform rising to 4.5 billion hours.'
