Latest news with #SpiceWorld
Daily Record
25-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Record
Beckhams dealt new blow in 'feud' with Brooklyn as celeb pal picks side with telling comment
The Beckham feud has taken a new turn as the family's closest and very famous pal appears to have publicly sided with Brooklyn Beckham and Nicola Peltz in a huge blow to David and Victoria. Sir Elton John appears to have chosen a clear side in the fiery feud between Brooklyn Beckham and wife Nicola Peltz and the rest of the Beckham clan. The 78-year-old, who is the godfather of David and Victoria's eldest son, paid tribute to the Peltz Beckhams as they recently celebrated the five year anniversary of their engagement in their latest social media post. Aspiring chef Brooklyn, 26, took to Instagram to gush over his wife, 30, as he shared an old mirror selfie of them together where he can be seen affectionately kissing a posing Nicola on the cheek. His caption read: "It's been 5 years since I asked this beautiful woman to marry me xx best decision ever x I love you so much." Brooklyn's loved up post racked in hundreds of thousands of well wishes from fans but it was one prominent comment from Sir Elton that caught everyone's eye. The Rocketman star tagged both Brooklyn and Nicola as he left a sweet comment: "Happy Anniversary to the sweetest, most loving couple," alongside a few red heart emojis. His telling comment has now raised eyebrows about the state of his current relationship with Brooklyn's parents, David and Victoria, who he is known to be very close with, considering he is both Brooklyn and Romeo's godfather. Elton and Victoria's relationship in particular spans back over three decades after he famously made a cameo in the 1997 Spice World film. The fashion designer even once revealed she had been inspired to leave Spice Girls by Elton in a moving letter as she wrote to her future self, admitting that watching him sing and dance made her realise it wasn't for her. Victoria wrote: "Remember years ago, watching your dear friend Elton John on stage in Las Vegas? He performed 'Tiny Dancer', as if it were the first time, and you realised this was like oxygen for him. "It was a life-changing moment — while singing and dancing was fun for you, it wasn't your passion. That day, you started your quest to uncover your own dreams. It was time to step away from being a Spice Girl." Elton and the Beckhams are so close they have even holidayed together many times with David and Victoria's four children, Brooklyn, Romeo, Cruz and Harper, even referring to the iconic singer as Uncle Elton. However, the once very tight knit family are now falling apart as Brooklyn and Nicola are now at the centre of an ongoing feud with the rest of the Beckham clan. Their feud was first noted when the aspiring chef snubbed all of his father's 50th birthday celebrations last month but things have since escalated even further when Brooklyn decided to make a permanent move to LA after recently purchasing a home there with Nicola. The 26-year-old also failed to publicly acknowledge his father's knighthood, an honour he has been yearning for for many years, as well as snubbing him online on Father's Day. However, he did manage to wish Nicola Peltz's father, Nelson, a Happy Birthday on his Instagram Stories yesterday in a huge blow to David. Brooklyn also appears to have fallen out with his siblings after it was speculated that the reason he had fallen out with his family was due to his brother Romeo's relationship with his now ex, Kim Turnbull. Kim had a brief romantic history with Brooklyn and the Peltz Beckhams were said to not be happy the DJ was being invited to family events such as David's 50th, which fuelled speculation that her presence had been the reason for the couple's absence. Join the Daily Record's WhatsApp community here an d get the latest news sent straight to your messages Romeo, 22, and Kim recently called it quits but Brooklyn's other brother Cruz, 20, has also seemingly taken a swipe at his older sibling. The aspiring singer appeared to make a dig at Brooklyn's multiple career attempts after one of his TikTok followers left a comment under a video of him playing guitar. In what appears to be a brutal dig towards Brooklyn, Cruz replied: "Wrong, brother, mate."
Daily Mirror
25-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Sir Elton John picks a side in Beckham feud with message to godson Brooklyn
Sir Elton John paid tribute to 'sweetest couple' Nicola Peltz and Brooklyn Beckham after they celebrated a huge milestone in their relationship Sir Elton John risked being part of the Beckham family feud as he paid tribute to his godson, Brooklyn Beckham, and his wife, Nicola Peltz. The former aspiring photographer, 26, and his socialite wife, 30, recently celebrated five years since they got engaged with gushing social media posts. Along with a photo of the two looking lovey-dovey, Brooklyn wrote: "It's been 5 years since I asked this beautiful woman to marry me xx best decision ever x I love you so much." Many celebrated the pair's huge milestone in the comment section, including Sir Elton - who is godfather to Brooklyn and Romeo. The iconic singer tagged the couple and wrote: "Happy Anniversary to the sweetest, most loving couple," along with a few red heart emojis. Elton has been close friends with Posh Spice for three decades and famously made a quick cameo in the 1997 Spice World movie. Victoria once revealed she was inspired to leave the Spice Girls by Elton in an emotional letter she wrote to her future self, stating watching him made her realise singing and dancing wasn't for her. Posh Spice wrote: "Remember years ago, watching your dear friend Elton John on stage in Las Vegas? He performed 'Tiny Dancer', as if it were the first time, and you realised this was like oxygen for him. "It was a life-changing moment — while singing and dancing was fun for you, it wasn't your passion. That day, you started your quest to uncover your own dreams. It was time to step away from being a Spice Girl." In fact, the pals are so close and Elton has enjoyed many holidays with the Beckham family. The Beckham children even refer to the Rocket Man singer as Uncle Elton - with David once jokingly warning 'Watch out uncle' while sharing a video of son Cruz's impressive piano-playing skills. However, the once close-knit family are currently embroiled in a feud centred around Brooklyn and Nicola, who recently purchased a huge home in the Hollywood area of Los Angeles. In recent months, their marriage has been plagued by an ongoing feud with his famous relatives, with mum Victoria Beckham and dad David said to be at their wits' end over the tension. On Monday, Brooklyn's younger brother, Cruz, took a swipe at his sibling after being grilled over Brooklyn's multiple career attempts. One follower asked Cruz under his TikTok video of him playing the guitar: "Are you going to stick with this job or going to become a race car driver next or something?" they asked in the comment section. Cruz was quick to retort with: "Wrong, brother, mate." Cruz is known to post cryptic posts on social media. It comes after a source close to the couple told the Mirror that actress Nicola is feeling "attacked" by "false claims" that are being made against her.
The Guardian
23-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
How historic Ealing Studios is hoping to regain ground with £20m revamp
The first time film-maker Barnaby Thompson visited Ealing Studios it was to shoot Victoria Beckham, who at the time was better known globally as Posh Spice, being unceremoniously plunged underwater. 'It was 1997, we were making Spice World and there was a sequence where Posh Spice got thrown into the Thames,' says Thompson, whose film credits include Wayne's World, the remake of St Trinian's and an adaptation of Oscar Wilde's An Ideal Husband. 'We have a tank at Ealing so we shot Posh being thrown into the tank. It was the first time I had been on that hallowed ground.' Nearly three decades on, the film director and producer is a co-owner of the studios and is about to raise the curtain on its biggest revamp in 80 years. Thompson has something of an obsession with the west London site, which was founded in 1902, and is the world's oldest continuously working studio facility for film production. Three years after Beckham's dip, he jumped at the chance to form part of a consortium to buy the storied complex for a reported £10m. Between the late 1930s and mid-50s, the studio produced famous Ealing comedies such as the Lavender Hill Mob, and postwar hits including The Ladykillers and Kind Hearts and Coronets. Under subsequent BBC ownership, classics including Porridge, Monty Python and Doctor Who were shot there. But by 2000, when Thompson took over in concert with the Manhattan Loft Corporation, the property group behind the Chiltern Firehouse and St Pancras Renaissance hotel, the ageing studios were struggling to compete against modern rivals. 'I grew up with the Ealing movies, it was a fabulous fantasy to own the studio,' he says. 'Then one thing after another happened and suddenly we owned it. The place was charming but somewhat dilapidated. It needed to be modernised and brought into the 21st century. No one had spent any money on it since the war.' Since then, Thompson has managed several phases of development, and productions including Downton Abbey, Darkest Hour and the Amy Winehouse biopic Back to Black have shot there. But to complete his dream revamp he needed more investment. In 2022, the US private equity firm Starwood Capital took a majority stake in the studios for £48.5m – and a £20m expansion plan was subsequently announced. Later this month, Thompson will receive the official handover from the construction team, a moment that will mark the realisation of a quarter-of-a-century labour of love. 'When we brought it [Ealing], what we dreamed of doing was to make a studio that had all this history, the old stages built in the 1930s and the heritage since 1902, but also have the most modern facilities,' he says. 'It needed to be absolutely fit for the 21st century. And I think that is what we are completing this month.' With the overhaul, the studio has added a new 1,300 sq metre (14,000 sq ft) stage, increasing the overall amount of sound stage space by 60% to 3,437 sq metres, as well as new production offices. Nestled in the back streets of the west London suburb, it lacks the scale of its out-of-town rivals including Pinewood and Shepperton, but has the benefits of fast links to Heathrow airport and central London. 'The Elizabeth line has made an enormous difference,' says Thompson. 'It takes 10 minutes to get to Bond Street and east London is just 25 minutes. We are so accessible, and if productions are looking at sustainability taking the tube rather than driving is such a do-able thing.' However, the official reopening comes against a vastly different TV and film production landscape than when Ealing closed its doors to outside productions. The 18-month construction project – officially Ealing was still running as it is also the home of MetFilm school, which kept its doors open – covered a period of immense change and upheaval. Sign up to Business Today Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning after newsletter promotion The closure encompassed the Hollywood actors' and writers' strikes; the end of so-called 'peak TV', the big-budget production bonanza fuelled by US streamers such as Netflix; and UK domestic broadcasters including the BBC, Channel 4 and ITV significantly cutting back on commissioning. The number of films produced in the UK plunged from a post-pandemic-fuelled high of 420 in 2022 to 191 last year, according to figures from the British Film Institute. The number of premium TV shows costing at least £1m an hour to make fell from 248 to 191 in the same period. Overall, the UK market for film and high-end TV production shrank by £2bn between 2022 and 2024, although most of this was in the television sector. 'In terms of timing we were fortunate to have chosen to be closed during the strikes,' says Thompson. 'I think the strikes brought on a day of reckoning. The streamers had come in and a lot of shows were being made for too much money. The strikes and subsequent slowdown have caused problems for the whole industry.' The figures from the BFI showed that last year was better than 2023, but Thompson believes the market will not return to the peaks of recent years. As for Ealing, he says the studio is booked up until at least the middle of next year. 'It is levelling out, production is picking up but I don't think it will go back to the same levels as before,' he says. 'There is enough demand but there isn't that streamer hysteria we had before, I don't think [as many] budgets will be at the same level as before.' Last year, the government announced an enhanced tax credit for independent film productions costing up to £15m, to support a sector that has produced lower-budget movies such as The King's Speech, The Full Monty and Slumdog Millionaire. Thompson welcomed the move, saying: 'I have spent most of my life making very British films and it is getting harder and harder to finance them. The tax break will help fill that gap.' Ealing Studios reported a £2m pre-tax loss in its most recent public accounts for 2023, with rental income of £3m. This followed a £3.3m loss in 2022, when rental income was £5.6m. In the pre-Covid years of 2019 and 2018, the studio complex generated about £5m in rental income and made under £1m in annual profits. Thompson, who is shooting a four-part thriller for Amazon in the south of France, says he feels lucky to have been able to continue the Ealing Studios story for the next generation. 'I'm very proud of it and all we have done there,' the 65-year-old says. 'It has obviously been my life for 25 years. But I'm a film-maker first and guardian of the studio second. It is an amazing place, so much a part of the British heritage and character that it would be foolish to think it ever really belonged to me.'
Perth Now
13-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Perth Now
Alan Cumming admits he had to do a lot of 'therapy' to get out of an 'unhealthy' place
Alan Cumming had to do a lot of therapy to get out of an "unhealthy" place. The 60-year-old actor - who is known for his roles in films such as Josie and the Pussycats and Romy and Michele's High School Reunion amongst a host of others - admitted that he has worked on some "awful" projects during his career, but he can never really predict how they will be received, although he his "happy" to be heading up the US version of the succesful Traitors franchise in the US. He told The Hollywood Reporter: "Now that I'm in my evolved, after-much-therapy life, I know the danger of staying in a place that is not healthy for you. That's probably why I look like I'm having such fun all the time. I am. But I have done things that have been awful. But if you're on a film you thought was going to be great, but you're having a terrible experience, what can you do? You've got to finish it. "When I look back, I've had a few films that I had the most miserable experience on and they turned out to be really good films — and, likewise, terrible films that I had a blast making. And I'd much rather have a blast than have a good film. Success is nice. The Traitors is huge, and I'm happy to be in it. But the best thing about it is that it's fun." Despite hosting one of the biggest reality franhcises on television currently, the Spice World star admitted that he is often "confused" by the genre, even though he enjoys the "arrogance" of the contestants. He added: "I am always a bit confused by them, but I really enjoy the arrogance of the people who come from those types of shows. "They think they're going to be better at The Traitors than anybody else. There are certainly qualities to their strategies, but another strategy is that maybe you lay low, shut up and not beat your chest so much. That's what I find so interesting about the people who are sent home first."
Perth Now
26-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Perth Now
Richard E. Grant still has his Spice World outfits
Richard E. Grant keeps his 'Spice World' outfits in his attic. The 68-year-old actor starred alongside the Spice Girls - Mel B, Melanie C, Emma Bunton, Geri Horner, and Victoria Beckham - in the 1997 comedy movie, and Richard has actually kept hold of his outfits from the film. He told People: "On 'Spice World' they said, 'We will give you all your costumes.' So I've got all of them in my attic." Richard also loved introducing his daughter Olivia, who is now 36, to the chart-topping pop stars. What's more, Olivia relished spending time on set with the Spice Girls. The actor shared: "My eight-year-old daughter was off-the-charts excited because she worshiped the Spice Girls and they were at the height of their fame. "So being able to take her to the set and get to know all of them was an incredible thrill." Richard previously opened up about his first-ever meeting with the Spice Girls, remembering that they were "so uninhibited". Speaking to Vulture in 2021, Richard shared: "I had just turned 40, and they were about half my age. And Scary Spice, Mel B, pinched my bum on the first day and said, 'You're not bad for an old guy.' "I thought, If that's a seal of approval from the rowdiest of the Spice Girls, then I was A for away. They just seemed able to talk about anything. They were so uninhibited, and so thrilled with the success that they had, that it was hard not to be taken up by all that energy." Richard also recalled the band being unaffected by their own fame. He said: "The producers were absolutely thrilled because, on the first day, each of us had huge Winnebagos with a living room and just about every modern thing that a Tom Cruise Winnebago could have. And they said, 'We feel lonely in here; we want to be with each other.' "I certainly didn't give mine up - it's the biggest one I'd ever had in my career - but they all insisted on joining up. So, to the producers' delight, they got rid of four Winnebagos that they no longer needed to pay exorbitant rentals on because they all wanted to be together all the time."
