Latest news with #RickyWhittle
Daily Mail
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Hunky Hollyoaks star 'signs up to celebrity dating app Raya as he returns to the UK to find love'
Ricky Whittle has reportedly returned to London and is reportedly looking for love as he signed up to celebrity dating app Raya. The ex-Hollyoaks star, who finished runner up on Strictly Come Dancing in 2009, moved to Los Angeles to work in Hollywood in 2011. According to The Sun, one picture showed the actor cuddling a quokka and another of him running shirtless through a street. A source said: 'It's like he's saying I'm cuddly, hot and very available. 'His profile popped up a couple of weeks ago. It says he's an actor who lives in LA but was visiting London. 'Given how good he looks, I bet he had loads of people swiping on his profile.' Ricky is best known over here for playing Calvin Valentine on Hollyoaks. After his character was killed off in 2010, Ricky relocated moved and has starred in shows including The 100 and American Gods. Despite all of his success across the pond, during his interview with MailOnline in 2023 Ricky did not completely rule out a possible return to the British soap one day. He said: 'Would I ever do a soap again? Probably not, but for fun why not, I don't care as I'm in a fortunate position, where I don't need to work. 'I haven't been in Hollyoaks for 20 years but at the end of the day you can never shy away from where you came from.' He also opened up about the influence his time on Hollyoaks had on his acting skills, saying: 'If it wasn't for Hollyoaks I wouldn't be where I am now. 'Hollyoaks is an education, you're learning 12 to 15 scripts every day and halfway through a day, new pages are coming down and it's like "learn them now" and you just get it done and don't think about'. 'My character went from being the good guy, to the bad guy to the club owner, to the policeman, to your sister's on drugs, to you'd killed someone and then he's back to life - it's like you go through a whole gambit of emotions'. 'If that's not great education for an actor- I don't know what is.' He added: 'I would never look down on soap actors because they're the ones that are putting in five days a week and I've got nothing but love for those guys and what that show did for me.' He turned his back on Hollywood in 2023, telling MailOnline he was 'done' with America and its 'crazy politics' and was planning to move away from Los Angeles. But just a couple of years later it seems Ricky may be considering a return to the big time as the hunky actor made a surprise appearance at the Monte-Carlo Television Festival earlier this year. He arrived on the red carpet in southern France looking typically dapper in a black tux ahead of his role presenting the festival's Golden Nymph Awards Ceremony alongside Shy'm, 39. The duo posed for photos together, with Ricky playfully making sure the spotlight was on the French actress as she put on a leggy display in an eye-catching black and white dress. Later in the evening the pair suffered an unfortunate wardrobe malfunction while performing a dance routine on-stage as Shy'm spilled out her outfit momentarily. Whittle was last seen on television while playing Mickey Barnes in one episode of The Rookie, a show following a police officer in Los Angeles. Prior to that the 45-year-old had enjoyed a quiet couple of years work-wise after the end of American Gods in 2021.
Scottish Sun
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Scottish Sun
Handsome soap star signs up to celebrity dating app Raya and returns to UK to find love
Scroll down to see his Raya pictures which show off his athletic physique LOOKING FOR LOVE Handsome soap star signs up to celebrity dating app Raya and returns to UK to find love Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) RICKY WHITTLE has come back to London to look for love. The ex-Hollyoaks actor, who moved to Los Angeles to work in Hollywood, has signed up to celebrity dating app Raya. Sign up for the Entertainment newsletter Sign up 11 One of Ricky's pictures shows him running down the street topless Credit: Supplied 11 Another picture shows him cuddling a quokka Credit: Supplied One of my pals spotted his profile on the app, with one picture showing him cuddling a quokka and another of him running shirtless through a street. 'It's like he's saying I'm cuddly, hot and very available,' my mate said. 'His profile popped up a couple of weeks ago. It says he's an actor who lives in LA but was visiting London. 'Given how good he looks, I bet he had loads of people swiping on his profile.' READ MORE ON RICKY WHITTLE WHITTLE IT DOWN Ricky Whittle is worlds away from Hollyoaks as he films with Luke Hemsworth And judging by how well Raya is working for some in the capital, I'm not surprised Ricky is trying his luck back on home ground. Last month I revealed Lily Allen and James Norton had started hooking up, and they're both big fans of the app. Ricky is best known over here for playing Calvin Valentine on Hollyoaks. After his character was killed off in 2010, Ricky moved abroad and has starred in shows including The 100 and American Gods. He previously thanked Hollyoaks for giving him the best start in acting, saying: 'It's an education. "My character went from being the good guy, to the bad guy to the club owner, to the policeman, to your sister's on drugs, to you'd killed someone and then he's back to life.' I hope Ricky's experience on Raya is less of a rollercoaster than his on-screen Hollyoaks life. Ricky Whittle looks unrecognisable xx years after starring in Hollyoaks 11 Carmel (Gemma Merna) and Calvin (Ricky Whittle) get married on Hollyoaks Credit: Handout REUNION FOR JACKSON THREE 11 Jackie and Marlon briefly introduced sister Janet Jackson to the stage at their Heritage Live Festivals show Credit: Heritage Live Festivals 11 The Jacksons are one of the most famous musical families of all time Credit: Getty THERE was an impromptu reunion for one of the most famous musical families of all time when Janet Jackson joined The Jacksons on stage on Saturday. The group, now touring as brothers Jackie and Marlon, briefly introduced their chart-topping sister to the stage at their Heritage Live Festivals show at Englefield Estate near Reading. All For You singer Janet, who lives in London, hasn't been on stage in the UK since her critically acclaimed tour here last autumn. But with The Jacksons still going – they have another show in Audley End in Essex on July 31 – I'm hoping they can persuade her to entertain us again soon. DO NOT BELIEVE ALL YOU SIA 11 Sia was snapped hand in hand with fellow Aussie Harry Jowsey Credit: Getty SIA has seemingly wasted no time moving from her husband Daniel Bernad after filing for divorce in March. The singer was snapped hand in hand with fellow Aussie Harry Jowsey, a reality star two decades her junior, who found fame on Netflix dating show Too Hot To Handle. I use the word 'seemingly' because they are both notorious jokers, and this cosy snap of them heading out to dinner in LA looks like a hoax to me. It certainly isn't a 'romance' I saw coming. RACY J-LO SHOW IS A GIFT 11 Jennifer Lopez pulls off racy moves on stage Credit: EPA 11 She was thrown about by hunky dancers during a particularly steamy routine Credit: TNI Press 11 Jennifer, who is currently on tour, played Tenerife at the weekend Credit: TNI Press JENNIFER LOPEZ turns 56 on Thursday but you wouldn't know it by the racy moves she has been pulling on stage. Currently on a tour of some of the most random locations around Europe, she played Tenerife at the weekend, where it looked like she was recreating positions from The Joy Of Sex. The Jenny From The Block singer got on all fours and was thrown about by hunky dancers during a particularly steamy routine. I can only hope I'm still that flexible when I'm in my fifties – and I'm sure my fella does too. As well as the tour, J-Lo is giving fans a gift for her own big day by announcing a single called Birthday. Encouraging fans to pre-save it online, she wrote: 'It's my birthday and you're all invited. Party details on Thursday.' Something tells me she won't be gorging on mountains of cake like the rest of us. RICK: I'M GUNNA TEAM UP 11 Rick Astley reveals whether work has begun on his tenth album Credit: Getty 11 He wants to work with Blossoms on original music Credit: Alamy RICK ASTLEY wants to work with Blossoms on original music after playing a handful of shows where they covered songs by The Smiths. The gigs with the indie band went down a storm and now the Never Gonna Give You Up singer has admitted he doesn't want to, er, give them up. In an exclusive chat with Bizarre, he said: 'Obviously Blossoms are amazing players, great musicians, and great writers. And I kind of think, yeah, it would be great to do something. 'We have talked occasionally about doing something, but I don't know what that would be. 'I'm always a bit nervous of it, because one of the weird things is, I want to keep my friends as friends, and I don't want to go through a recording process and fall out with them.' But fans have a wait on their hands for a follow-up to 2023's Are We There Yet?. Asked if he'd begun work on his tenth album, Rick said: 'No, we're having a quiet one this year, but I was in my studio this morning. I like tinkering. Who knows, we'll see. 'I don't think I'll ever stop making music, I just don't know whether anyone's going to listen to it.' BILLIE EILISH has teased she is working on 'something very special' with Titanic director James Cameron. During the first of her four Hit Me Hard And Soft tour dates at Manchester's Co-op Live on Saturday, the singer said the performance would form the basis of their new project, which fans have assumed will be a state-of-the-art live film. She told the crowd: 'I can't say much about it but I'm working on something very, very special with James Cameron and it's going to be in 3D. 'These four shows here in Manchester, you and me are part of a thing that I am making with him. He's in this audience somewhere, just saying.' YOU couldn't blame Liam Gallagher for wanting to put his feet up in front of the telly during rare nights off from the Oasis tour. But the frontman, known for his wild nights out, has been enjoying high-brow evenings – at the theatre. One of my mates spotted him in the audience at Sadler's Wells in London this week watching a ballet of Quadrophenia. Somehow, I doubt Liam will be pulling on a tutu any time soon. LEIGH-ANNE has hinted she almost packed in her solo career amid her split from Warner Records. I told in May how the former Little Mix star had parted ways with the label and she's just released her new single Been A Minute as an independent artist. She said in her newsletter: 'So much has changed this past year – new chapter, new energy, new team . . . There were moments I wasn't sure this would even happen . . . I had to back myself again.'
The Sun
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Sun
Handsome soap star signs up to celebrity dating app Raya and returns to UK to find love
RICKY WHITTLE has come back to London to look for love. The ex-Hollyoaks actor, who moved to Los Angeles to work in Hollywood, has signed up to celebrity dating app Raya. 11 11 One of my pals spotted his profile on the app, with one picture showing him cuddling a quokka and another of him running shirtless through a street. 'It's like he's saying I'm cuddly, hot and very available,' my mate said. 'His profile popped up a couple of weeks ago. It says he's an actor who lives in LA but was visiting London. 'Given how good he looks, I bet he had loads of people swiping on his profile.' And judging by how well Raya is working for some in the capital, I'm not surprised Ricky is trying his luck back on home ground. Last month I revealed Lily Allen and James Norton had started hooking up, and they're both big fans of the app. Ricky is best known over here for playing Calvin Valentine on Hollyoaks. After his character was killed off in 2010, Ricky moved abroad and has starred in shows including The 100 and American Gods. He previously thanked Hollyoaks for giving him the best start in acting, saying: 'It's an education. "My character went from being the good guy, to the bad guy to the club owner, to the policeman, to your sister's on drugs, to you'd killed someone and then he's back to life.' I hope Ricky's experience on Raya is less of a rollercoaster than his on-screen Hollyoaks life. 11 REUNION FOR JACKSON THREE 11 THERE was an impromptu reunion for one of the most famous musical families of all time when Janet Jackson joined The Jacksons on stage on Saturday. The group, now touring as brothers Jackie and Marlon, briefly introduced their chart-topping sister to the stage at their Heritage Live Festivals show at Englefield Estate near Reading. All For You singer Janet, who lives in London, hasn't been on stage in the UK since her critically acclaimed tour here last autumn. But with The Jacksons still going – they have another show in Audley End in Essex on July 31 – I'm hoping they can persuade her to entertain us again soon. DO NOT BELIEVE ALL YOU SIA SIA has seemingly wasted no time moving from her husband Daniel Bernad after filing for divorce in March. The singer was snapped hand in hand with fellow Aussie Harry Jowsey, a reality star two decades her junior, who found fame on Netflix dating show Too Hot To Handle. I use the word 'seemingly' because they are both notorious jokers, and this cosy snap of them heading out to dinner in LA looks like a hoax to me. It certainly isn't a 'romance' I saw coming. RACY J-LO SHOW IS A GIFT 11 11 JENNIFER LOPEZ turns 56 on Thursday but you wouldn't know it by the racy moves she has been pulling on stage. Currently on a tour of some of the most random locations around Europe, she played Tenerife at the weekend, where it looked like she was recreating positions from The Joy Of Sex. The Jenny From The Block singer got on all fours and was thrown about by hunky dancers during a particularly steamy routine. I can only hope I'm still that flexible when I'm in my fifties – and I'm sure my fella does too. As well as the tour, J-Lo is giving fans a gift for her own big day by announcing a single called Birthday. Encouraging fans to pre-save it online, she wrote: 'It's my birthday and you're all invited. Party details on Thursday.' Something tells me she won't be gorging on mountains of cake like the rest of us. RICK: I'M GUNNA TEAM UP 11 11 RICK ASTLEY wants to work with Blossoms on original music after playing a handful of shows where they covered songs by The Smiths. The gigs with the indie band went down a storm and now the Never Gonna Give You Up singer has admitted he doesn't want to, er, give them up. In an exclusive chat with Bizarre, he said: 'Obviously Blossoms are amazing players, great musicians, and great writers. And I kind of think, yeah, it would be great to do something. 'We have talked occasionally about doing something, but I don't know what that would be. 'I'm always a bit nervous of it, because one of the weird things is, I want to keep my friends as friends, and I don't want to go through a recording process and fall out with them.' But fans have a wait on their hands for a follow-up to 2023's Are We There Yet?. Asked if he'd begun work on his tenth album, Rick said: 'No, we're having a quiet one this year, but I was in my studio this morning. I like tinkering. Who knows, we'll see. 'I don't think I'll ever stop making music, I just don't know whether anyone's going to listen to it.' BILLIE EILISH has teased she is working on 'something very special' with Titanic director James Cameron. During the first of her four Hit Me Hard And Soft tour dates at Manchester's Co-op Live on Saturday, the singer said the performance would form the basis of their new project, which fans have assumed will be a state-of-the-art live film. She told the crowd: 'I can't say much about it but I'm working on something very, very special with James Cameron and it's going to be in 3D. 'These four shows here in Manchester, you and me are part of a thing that I am making with him. He's in this audience somewhere, just saying.' YOU couldn't blame Liam Gallagher for wanting to put his feet up in front of the telly during rare nights off from the Oasis tour. But the frontman, known for his wild nights out, has been enjoying high-brow evenings – at the theatre. One of my mates spotted him in the audience at Sadler's Wells in London this week watching a ballet of Quadrophenia. Somehow, I doubt Liam will be pulling on a tutu any time soon. LEIGH-ANNE has hinted she almost packed in her solo career amid her split from Warner Records. I told in May how the former Little Mix star had parted ways with the label and she's just released her new single Been A Minute as an independent artist. She said in her newsletter: 'So much has changed this past year – new chapter, new energy, new team . . . There were moments I wasn't sure this would even happen . . . I had to back myself again.' THE WEEK IN BIZNESS TUESDAY: Christina Aguilera and Cher are tipped to attend the gala night performance of the new musical remake of their movie Burlesque, at London's Savoy Theatre, starring breakout performer Jess Folley. THURS: Latitude Festival gets underway in Suffolk with Sting, Snow Patrol, Fatboy Slim, Alison Moyet, MIKA and Clean Bandit among acts on the line-up. FRIDAY: Adam Sandler digs out his golf clubs to star in Happy Gilmore 2, which will hit Netflix 29 years after he originally played the frustrated sportsman. SATURDAY: Coronation Street's Jack P Shepherd, better known on the cobbles as David Platt, ties the knot to his partner Hanni Treweek in a ceremony in Manchester.
Daily Mail
18-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Former Hollyoaks star Ricky Whittle makes surprise appearance at Monte-Carlo Television Festival after claiming he was 'done' chasing Hollywood roles
Former Hollyoaks star Ricky Whittle made a surprise appearance at the 64th Monte-Carlo Television Festival on Tuesday. The Brit, 45, shot to fame in 2006 as Calvin Valentine on Hollyoaks, enjoying a four-year stint on the northern soap before his character was brutally murdered. Ricky moved on to bigger things after his time on Channel 4 came to an end, with the actor making the move across the pond as he bagged roles in hit American shows such as The 100 and American Gods. He turned his back on Hollywood in 2023, telling MailOnline he was 'done' with America and its 'crazy politics' and was planning to move away from Los Angeles. But just a couple of years later it seems Ricky may be considering a return to the big time as the hunky actor made a surprise appearance at the Monte-Carlo Television Festival on Tuesday. He arrived on the red carpet in southern France looking typically dapper in a black tux ahead of his role presenting the festival's Golden Nymph Awards Ceremony alongside Shy'm, 39. The duo posed for photos together, with Ricky playfully making sure the spotlight was on the French actress as she put on a leggy display in an eye-catching black and white dress. Later in the evening the pair suffered an unfortunate wardrobe malfunction while performing a dance routine on-stage as Shy'm spilled out her outfit momentarily. Ricky had too been in attendance a day earlier, with the star showing off his enviable physique in a see-through black vest top teamed with a pair of baggy trousers. He posed for photos alongside the glamorous Adriana Karembeu, 54, who stunned in a black blouse, a coordinated skirt and a pair of high heels. Whittle was last seen on television while playing Mickey Barnes in one episode of The Rookie, a show following a police officer in Los Angeles. Prior to that the 45-year-old had enjoyed a quiet couple of years work-wise after the end of American Gods in 2021. Despite all of his success across the pond, during his interview with MailOnline in 2023 Ricky did not completely rule out a possible return to the British soap one day. The duo posed for photos together, with Ricky playfully making sure the spotlight was on the French actress as she put on a leggy display in an eye-catching black and white dress He said: 'Would I ever do a soap again? Probably not, but for fun why not, I don't care as I'm in a fortunate position, where I don't need to work. 'I haven't been in Hollyoaks for 20 years but at the end of the day you can never shy away from where you came from.' He also opened up about the influence his time on Hollyoaks had on his acting skills, saying: 'If it wasn't for Hollyoaks I wouldn't be where I am now. 'Hollyoaks is an education, you're learning 12 to 15 scripts every day and halfway through a day, new pages are coming down and it's like "learn them now" and you just get it done and don't think about'. 'My character went from being the good guy, to the bad guy to the club owner, to the policeman, to your sister's on drugs, to you'd killed someone and then he's back to life - it's like you go through a whole gambit of emotions'. 'If that's not great education for an actor- I don't know what is.' He added: 'I would never look down on soap actors because they're the ones that are putting in five days a week and I've got nothing but love for those guys and what that show did for me.'
