Latest news with #AnnabelJones
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Netflix's Black Mirror Faces Uncertain Future Without Original Duo
Black Mirror may be headed into uncharted territory. The creators of the dystopian sci-fi anthology, Charlie Brooker and Annabel Jones, have officially parted ways with their Netflix-owned production company Broke & Bones, raising real questions about whether the show can continue as we know it. The move marks the end of a five-year exclusive deal with Netflix, which began in 2020 when the streamer invested $100 million into the duo's new company. Brooker, the show's creator and lead writer, and Jones, its longtime executive producer, had been the driving force behind Black Mirror since it first launched in the U.K. in 2011. Netflix acquired the series in 2015, turning it into a global hit with a signature mix of tech-driven paranoia, social commentary, and psychological horror. According to Deadline, Brooker and Jones are now free to pursue new projects with other studios. Their departure from Broke & Bones doesn't necessarily mean the end of Black Mirror, but it certainly throws its future into doubt. Season 7 dropped earlier this year with solid reviews, but without its original creators at the helm, fans are already bracing for a potential drop in quality if Netflix continues the series without them. It's unclear why the two chose to leave, but after 14 years of Black Mirror, the decision could be as simple as wanting to explore new creative ground. Brooker has hinted at other ambitions in the past, including a potential interest in writing for Doctor Who, which he once turned down due to scheduling conflicts. While Black Mirror might survive as a brand, its soul may prove harder to replicate. The series has always been uniquely tied to Brooker's voice—satirical, bleak, and uncomfortably prophetic. Losing that could fundamentally alter what the show is. The good news? The duo's exit frees them up to build new worlds, possibly outside the Netflix ecosystem. Whether those worlds will rival Black Mirror in cultural impact remains to be seen, but whatever they create next, it's worth keeping an eye Black Mirror Faces Uncertain Future Without Original Duo first appeared on Men's Journal on Jul 13, 2025
Telegraph
12-07-2025
- Lifestyle
- Telegraph
How to make midlife feet look good in sandals
In this regular series, Ageless Beauty, The Telegraph's beauty experts Annabel Jones and Lisa Armstrong tackle the conundrums they've been searching for answers to, and share their favourite tips and tricks. This week, they discuss how to get ready for scandal season. ... A thoroughly good pedicure underpins my entire summer beauty regime. By good I mean one whereby my feet and toenails glisten like perspex. After all, it's the extremities (skin, feet, hair, nails) that give the most bang for your buck. Get these glowing and you can skip all else and remain impeccably groomed. Which brings me to my first point: before you even conceive of the colour, heels and cuticles must be tended to with assassin-like attention. I call on Milly Mason, a nail artist who specialises in prestige pedicures (including Lily Allen's who incidentally has a 4.9 out of five star-rating on WikiFeet). Interestingly, Mason doesn't recommend removing hard heel skin with any sort of implement (it grows back quicker and thicker) but to nurture feet daily with a foot mask that includes Urea, a byproduct of protein known for its intense hydration. At high percentages (over 10 per cent) Urea acts as a keratolytic, helping to exfoliate the top layer of skin without need for mechanical tools. I've been singing the praises of Eucerin's Urea Repair Intensive Moisturising Lotion for years – it deals with rough patches (elbows, knees, heels) like nothing else I've tried. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Harriet Westmoreland (@harrietwestmoreland) For feet specifically however, Mason suggests something altogether more powerful: the 40 per cent Urea Chapped Skin Cream from German nail brand LCN, which sorted the cracks running up the backs of my heels within a week. At night I've been doubling up with their Chapped Skin Balm to seal it all in, though I'll hazard a guess that Vaseline is as proficient at preventing moisture from escaping should you not have the latter. Mason took a gentle electric buffing tool to my heels (Bare Feet by Margaret Dabbs does a good one) and rough outer toe skin before applying the cream, but a rudimentary foot file is all you need at home to keep hard skin from building into a monstrous layer. Mason says to stay clear of blades and rasps which are precarious at best. When it comes to toe length, she assures me that short is best. If you can feel your toenails pressing up against the front of your shoes then you could be causing long-term damage to the nail bed. As for soaking the feet, this should be done last, after filing, shaping and polishing, as painting onto damp toenails can result in a fungal or bacterial infection. If you're doing your own pedicure – which, provided you have the right tools, is tremendously satisfying – then file toenails with an emery board, says Mason. Disposable ones are generally recommended though it's only really relevant if you're sharing nail files. Before polishing, push back cuticle skin with a cuticle softener and cuticle pusher, then lightly even the surface of the nail bed with a nail buffer (it has a much finer grit than a traditional file). You want as smooth a surface as possible for the polish to look its best – and for it to last. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Milly Mason (@millymason_) Toeanails are generally a zone to experiment with one of the trendier shades (spearmint green and neons are doing the rounds this summer), though if you generally err on the side of restraint as I do, then Precious by The Gelbottle, is a mature ballerina pink worth a look. Alternatively, Mason suggests black. 'It looks crisp and fresh on toenails so long as it has a glossy finish,' she claims. I was unsure at first. Too gothic, too cool. But in reality there's nothing more classic. Even in summer. Just don't forget to drench the toes in cuticle oil and apply foot lotion. Annabel's picks Yikes, the sights you see in the foot region when the weather's hot. Can I just say – hello, has everyone folk forgotten about the joys of a good old fashioned nail brush? People spend a small fortune on nail art, but when it comes to £4 for a wooden (rather than plastic) nail brush... Feet have become a passion I never thought I'd have – possibly because mine keep reminding me they deserve my full attention. Hard skin, corns, a shortened metatarsal that means my feet pronate, a bunion on my left foot (I had the right one removed which was one of the best things I ever did) I've seen and got them all. That's why these days, I see a podiatrist every few months. I'm about to get orthotics fitted. While they won't alter the alignment of my feet long term, I'm assured they'll help them rest in the correct position while I'm wearing them, so shoes don't rub and callouses and hard skin form less quickly. Using Margaret Dabbs' excellent foot file several times a week and a really good foot cream daily keeps things under control between visits. (Kure Bazaar's is pricy but lasts ages). Orthotics aren't cheap either but sometimes you can get them on private insurance. Either way they have to be worth it. Foot health is vital to overall health and wellbeing. There's a section of rigorous foot exercises on the Pilatesology app which help strengthen feet and lift arches. Pilatesology is a paid-for app that, despite being a Pilates disciple for 30 years, I've only recently discovered. It has a huge library of classes for all levels, from mat to machines. It's brilliant. If that all sounds a bit much, rolling a simple spiky ball or foot roller under your arches can feel amazingly good. Meanwhile, I'm wearing my sheepskin-lined Fitflops (good in hot wear, no rubbing) from last year that look and feel like a bed. Surprisingly, I've had a lot of compliments on them and my feet have never been happier. Birkenstock do something similar. They're not the most elegant footwear, but a good manicure makes a world of difference. Like Annabel, I love natural, buffed, clean looking toenails, but my sensible, low-glam footwear tipped me over into a glossy orange red pedi the other day, and I must say, it's very cheering. I don't bother with gel on my toes – too much of a faff getting it removed. The exception is if I'm going on holiday and planning on scrambling over rocks, an admittedly niche activity which chips varnish in a nano second. A few drops of cuticle/almond oil whenever you remember, keeps things looking glossy and healthy. Lisa's picks
Express Tribune
10-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Express Tribune
'Black Mirror' Season 6 recap: Everything to know ahead of Season 7 Premiere on Netflix
Black Mirror Season 6, released on June 15, 2023, featured five stand-alone episodes, each delving into techno-paranoia through unique and unsettling storylines led by creator Charlie Brooker with executive production by Annabel Jones. The premiere episode, Joan Is Awful, stars Annie Murphy as a woman whose life becomes the subject of a streaming series produced by a platform resembling Netflix. The story reveals that both Joan and her portrayer, played by Salma Hayek, are AI-generated constructs within a layered simulation. In Loch Henry, a documentary filmmaking trip to a small Scottish town uncovers chilling secrets when a couple learns that the protagonist's parents were involved in a series of tourist murders. The episode concludes with a true crime documentary being released about the case. Beyond the Sea presents an alternate 1969 where astronauts transfer consciousness into Earth-based replicas. Emotional trauma and personal boundaries unravel, culminating in betrayal and tragedy when one astronaut murders the other's family while using his replica. Mazey Day follows a paparazzo tracking a troubled actress who turns out to be a werewolf. The pursuit ends in a violent confrontation as the supernatural element blends with critiques of media intrusion and celebrity culture. The season ends with Demon 79, set in late 1970s England. A shop worker is told by a demon that she must kill three people to avert the apocalypse. Despite two completed murders, her failure to kill a far-right politician results in nuclear war. Black Mirror returns to Netflix with a seventh season on April 10, 2025 at 3 a.m. ET / midnight PT.
Telegraph
03-04-2025
- Health
- Telegraph
I swapped my fancy skincare for an entire routine under £50
In this regular series, Ageless Beauty, The Telegraph's beauty experts Annabel Jones and Lisa Armstrong tackle the conundrums they've been searching for answers to, and share their favourite tips and tricks. This week, they discuss budget-friendly skincare. The great thing about a tight budget is how it makes us reconsider the essentials. That's a useful exercise this time of year when less might be more. We all instinctively adapt what we're wearing to the changing seasons, yet we're often in the dark when it comes to adjusting our skincare. Annee de Mamiel, an exceptional integrative facialist (she uses her hands, breath work, acupuncture and aromatherapy) factors in the seasons' effects on our emotions as well as the physiological ones. 'For most people swapping their skin care with the seasons is about changing the textures they use – a lighter serum for warm weather, a richer cream when it turns cold. But for great skin there's more to it,' she says. Ultimately, soothing, feeding and cherishing that precious microbiome (which can get biffed around a bit by poor diet and harsh products) is key – but with featherweight formulations. Some of the first products de Mamiel launched (and that are still best sellers) are her seasonal oils, which are designed to work on different levels, both physically and emotionally to help skin adapt to season changes, using unique combinations of active botanicals and nourishing oils. As de Mamiel says, spring is a stretchy season.'It's quite different between the colder start and the balmy end. The focus is on bringing some balance and brightness to both our skin.' Skin brushing is cheap and highly beneficial – you can get a wooden brush for under £5. No need for fancy face scrubs. Next you want a good cleanser, which you absolutely don't need to use in the morning if you've cleansed thoroughly before bed. If you've never tried an oil cleanser, de Mamiel's travel-sized cleansing oil is a good introduction to her approach, with macca root and vitamin C for brightening, botanical oils for protection and frankincense for an aromatherapeutic experience. If you love face spritzers in warm weather, choose one that does more than refresh. Alexandra Soveral's Floral Rain contains rose Damascus and orange blossom water to soothe and feed skin. It can also be used over make-up to set it, as well as throughout the day to top up hydration and revive. Sun protection, obviously, is paramount. SPFs improve every season. Q+A Peptide SPF50 Anti-Ageing Daily Sunscreen is a physical barrier (with a zinc oxide that doesn't leave a white residue) containing niacinamide, squalane, plant and seed oils that mean you don't need an additional moisturiser. Spring is my preferred season. There's enough sunlight to justify a refresh but not enough to elicit body panic. Best of all. for the past few weeks I've barely turned on the central heating, that necessary evil that ekes every drop of hydration from the cells. This brings me to my skincare routine. I've given it a make-under – in cost and size. Throughout winter I bathed in Augustinus Bader's The Soothing Cream, an exorbitantly priced moisturising cream that, to its credit, has gotten my complexion through winter without a glitch. Now the heavy lifting is done I've gone for something affordable. And there's boundless options if you shop smart. Derms always say you shouldn't spend money on a cleanser, but in spring and summer I'm of the opinion that you need one with extra welly to excavate SPF particles and pollutants from the pores – especially if you live in a city and take public transport. I do. Naturium's Vitamin C Complex Cleanser is worth every penny of its reasonable £20 price tag. It includes two types of potent vitamin C alongside phytic acid and fruit enzymes that gently exfoliate dull surface cells. I've been using it morning and evening for a month and my skin is, says the colleague opposite me, a couple of notches brighter. Plus there's no need for a separate makeup remover; it does it all. Serums will eat up your budget if you're not careful. Hello Sunday's The One That's a Serum (real name) is an SPF50 with broad spectrum UV filters plus vitamin C and hyaluronic acid for £22. I'm not usually fond of a dropper but I've made an exception for the multiple benefits. You get a moisture hit from the HA and yet more antioxidant protection from the vitamin C. This is usually enough to satisfy my moisturising needs. But for days when I need more dew I apply The Ordinary Natural Moisturising Factors +. It's ridiculously cheap considering it's packed with everything your skin barrier needs: fatty acids, ceramides, glycerine, urea and hyaluronic acid. I slather this on most nights to keep my skin supple. Three products, thoughtfully selected, and my skin is doing just fine. In fact I'd say it's thriving. Ask Annabel and Lisa
Telegraph
24-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
I finally learnt how to apply blusher at 63
In this regular series, Ageless Beauty, The Telegraph's beauty experts Annabel Jones and Lisa Armstrong tackle the conundrums they've been searching for answers to, and share their favourite tips and tricks. This week, they discuss the best tips and techniques for achieving natural-looking rosy cheeks. For such a simple invention blusher is mightily confusing. I recently met Laney Crowell, the American founder of cosmetic brand Saie. When I asked Crowell, who has a vast community on social media, which question she gets asked the most, her eyes lit up. 'Oh that's easy – how do I apply blusher properly?' Crowell then handed me a make-up case full of blushers, half liquid, half powder. When we'd parted ways I dotted a blob of Saie's Dew Blush Blendable Liquid Cheek Flush in Chilly, a polite mauve, on my apples and smeared it in with a finger. I added another and repeated the action. Then another. It's illogical but it's practically impossible to overdo it – a formulation feat that merits high praise from me. And if you trade up your fingers for a buffing brush, it fuses nicely with your skin like a stocking. The powders are new and claim to be high-performing – still I was doubtful. Many powder blushers blank out every last flicker of light your skin has going for it – you get a hit of colour but lose something far more valuable. But credit where credit's due; many newer formulas have improved upon the powder category considerably. Hermès's Silky Blush powder in shade Rose Dore, £66, is as sheer as gauze. As is Jones Road's The Best Blush and Dior's Rosy Glow Colour-Awakening Blush, £35. According to the website, Saie's SuperSuede is a lightweight powder that's 'hand-whipped and baked in a terracotta using traditional Italian techniques'. What all that means I'm unsure but it goes on like satin. After playing around with the full ensemble (there are six shades) I found it extremely buildable – go slow and you'll get to your desired degree of flush in multiple layers. Or you can apply it as a final flourish atop of Dew Blush to intensify the colour and seal it all in. Another plus: despite how popping the colours appear at first glance, you can achieve a delicate finish with every one – including Bella, a fluorescent Barbie-pink which is shockingly flattering on a mature complexion. An interesting fact: red is one of the most flattering hues on cheeks. So long as you blend to oblivion, any take on red from merlot to pillar-box brings the complexion alive far better than any nude can do. With a cream or liquid blusher, I smile widely, pop one dot at the crest of the apples of my cheeks then blend outwards and upwards in (light-handed) circular motions. Smiling isn't necessary; I suspect it's a personal quirk, but it does raise the cheekbones to their highest pitch which keeps things elevated. Young'uns needn't bother as their cheekbones need no anchoring. With a powder blush the only useful nugget I can offer is to shake the excess off of your brush before you strike – and try not to pick up a lot of pigment in one go. Make-up artists are masters at this; they build a face in dozens of fine layers. Some pros argue you should skip the round squishy apples and go for a 1980s-style racing stripe as Gen-Zers tend to do, but I like to mimic a pinched-cheek look. It might be old fashioned but the thing about getting older is you care far less what others think. Somehow, in my 60s, I've gone from someone who never used blush – over not under blushing was my problem – to being, if I say so myself, quite the pro. Part of the transformation is down to Charlotte Tilbury 's make-up artistry which taught me to pop it high on my face – top-of-the-cheekbones-high – tapering out to the temples. I'm not talking about iridescent wings à la 1980s, but soft and sheer and ultra blended. I'll try some of that at home I thought, 90 per cent expecting it not to work, as is generally the case when you try to replicate a make-up artist. Blow me down, it's magic. So flattering, fresh and, in every sense, uplifting. I've had quite an uptick in people telling me I look younger. OK, some of this may well be the usual well-meaning BS, but I'm taking the wins where I can. Blush is firmly in my canon. Bronzer too, which I also never used. I blend it along my jawline. (Remember when we all laughed at Boy George for painting a dark band on his neck to minimise a double chin? This is the 2025 version.) I also swoosh it under my cheekbones, across my forehead and down the sides of my nose. Blend, blend blend. All those years I steered well away from contouring, and now that no one talks about it anymore, I'm all in. Blush and bronze go hand in hand for me now, which is another departure, because for 40 years I didn't go near either. Oh, and I've switched from pinks – heaven knows why I thought they worked on my face, just because pink clothes worked on me – to peach. Modern formulations are so clever, user-friendly and natural-looking, that even when you're older, and rosy cheeks seem a lost wonder of the world, it's perfectly possible to achieve them in a believable way. RMS Beauty's ReDimension is a wet powder, sugar-derived technology that doesn't look at all powdery on, but makes you look radiant. I also adore Merit's Flush Balm. It comes in a dozen shades, some of which look crazily strong in the pot, but gorgeously natural on. Another one to check out, especially if you like powders, is Et al's versatile compact palettes of four colours that can be used on eyes and cheeks. I've also recently discovered Ere Perez's Carrot Colour Pot, another little hit of sheer colour, which also serves as a skin balm. You can buy it online, or pop into Alexandra Soveral's salon on London's St John's Wood High Street where she offers world-class facial massages and a curated selection of pure beauty products. All the above probably class themselves as clean: a vague term that doesn't do them justice. All provide state-of-the-art colour and functionality, contain nourishing ingredients and come in recyclable or refillable packaging. Blushers have improved beyond imagination since my teens. So has the intention behind them.
