Placeholder Content Image

Baby Reindeer's "real life stalker" breaks silence

<p>The woman believed to be the inspiration for the stalker "Martha" in Richard Gadd's Netflix hit <em>Baby Reindeer</em> has denied the allegations that she stalked the show's creator. </p> <p>The show depicts an aspiring comedian - Donny Dunn, played by Gadd himself - who meets a woman at a bar and she quickly develops an unhealthy obsession with him. </p> <p>Fiona Harvey, 58, the person believed to be "real life Martha", spoke to Piers Morgan on his<em> Uncensored</em> YouTube show on Thursday and said that she was planning to take legal action against both Netflix and Gadd for the attention the semi-autobiographical show got her. </p> <p>“You’re 100 per cent it’s not you?” Morgan asked. </p> <p>"Yes,” she replied.</p> <p>Harvey reportedly received death threats after internet sleuths tracked her down within hours of the show's premiere. </p> <p>She also said that she only met a him a few times, and that the show's portrayal of events - including the one where they first met - were completely fictionalised. </p> <p>“He didn’t offer me a cup of tea. No one gets anything free from the Hawley Arms,” she told Morgan, referencing the real-life pub Gadd worked at. </p> <p>“He interrupted a conversation with another barman he said, ‘Oh, you’re Scottish,’ and basically commandeered the conversation.</p> <p>“You know, I was talking to somebody. It’s pretty rich. So he seemed to be obsessed with me from that moment onwards.”</p> <p>In the show, Gadd also claimed that he had received 41,071 emails, 744 tweets, 106 pages of letters and 350 hours of voicemail from the woman who Martha is based off, and Harvey denied this, although she did send him a few emails. </p> <p>“There may have been a couple of emails exchanged. Just some jokey banter,” she said. </p> <p>“I have no idea (where the other emails and communications came from). I think it’s probably made up himself.</p> <p>“I don’t see how anyone could do 41,000 emails.”</p> <p>When asked to put a number on the emails she had sent, she replied: “A handful, 10? Not 41,000”. </p> <p>“Even if the email thing was true, the rest is not,” she added and said that “I wouldn’t be suing if there were 41,000 emails out there." </p> <p>She also said that she never sexually assaulted him, contacted his parents or attacked his girlfriend and was never charged – let alone convicted – of any offence, another claim that the show made. </p> <p>When asked by Morgan if she thought Gadd was “mentally unwell,” she replied "yes". </p> <p>”I think he always was. Whether that rape was real or conceived in his mind. He's completely off his head,” she said. </p> <p> “He’s crazy and wants to make this up," she added. </p> <p>“My mind is made up – he is a lair”.</p> <p>Morgan then asked her if she had a message for Gadd, and she went straight to the point: “Leave me alone please. Get a life. Get a proper job. I am horrified at what you’ve done”.</p> <p><em>Image: Piers Morgan / Netflix</em></p>

TV

Placeholder Content Image

War veteran loses $18,000 to Netflix scam

<p>Shane Arnold, 71, was left with nothing after he fell for an elaborate Netflix scam, allegedly run by a teenager. </p> <p>The war veteran was robbed of $18,000 when he thought he was entitled to a refund after receiving a fake Netflix email.</p> <p>After he entered his personal banking details, the accused scammer allegedly used this information to call Arnold the following day claiming to be a security officer from Commonwealth Bank.</p> <p>"(It was) extremely convincing," Arnold told <em>9News</em>. </p> <p>"He spoke in a posh English accent."</p> <p>Arnold was allegedly told by a 19-year-old, whose voice had been disguised with AI, that his account had been compromised and ordered to put his bank cards in a bag, to be collected by a driver.</p> <p>Hours later, the accused teen who is from Braybrook, Melbourne allegedly withdrew thousands of dollars from ATMs in Braybrook and West Footscray, and purchased dozens of gift cards from Kmart.</p> <p>He also allegedly filled up on fuel, bought a new iPhone, and some strawberry milk and ice cream. </p> <p>The teen has since been charged over the incident, but Arnold is still fighting hard to get his money back. </p> <p>"I've worked for 50-odd years to get that money," he told the publication, adding that he felt "like my heart had been ripped out".</p> <p>The senior also claimed that the bank was partly to blame, and has lodged a report to the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) who are currently managing his case. </p> <p>Arnold added that Commonwealth Bank had only offered to reimburse him $1000, and said that everyone who'd been scammed deserved to have their money returned to them.</p> <p>"I hope all those people get their money back," he said.</p> <p>"None of them deserved to be scammed and none of them did anything wrong."</p> <p><em>Images: Nine News</em></p>

Legal

Placeholder Content Image

Major twist in store for final season of The Crown

<p>The release date for the sixth and final season of <em>The Crown</em> has finally been announced, with royal fans everywhere marking their calendars for the last instalment of the royal drama. </p> <p>The hit Netflix series will be returning to screens on November 16th, but the final season of the show is set to come in two phases. </p> <p>On November 16th, four episodes of the show will be available to stream, and will follow Princess Diana, played by Australian actress Elizabeth Debicki, in the last year of her life. </p> <p>Her final days will be explored, including her death in Paris in 1997.</p> <p>Then, the final part of the series will be available to stream from December 14th, and will pick up from the mid-2000s, as her children Prince William and Prince Harry deal with the aftermath of their mother's passing.</p> <p>"Prince William tries to integrate back into life at Eton in the wake of his mother's death as the monarchy has to ride the wave of public opinion," a synopsis for part two says.</p> <p>"As she reaches her Golden Jubilee, the Queen reflects on the future of the monarchy with the marriage of Charles and Camilla and the beginnings of a new royal fairy tale in William and Kate."</p> <p>Royal fans were delighted to wake up to a new teaser trailer for the sixth and final season of <em>The Crown</em> that was posted on social media overnight, with the post already racking up over 90,000 likes.</p> <blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/reel/CyLmKalP7dF/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"> </div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"> <div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"> </div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/CyLmKalP7dF/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by Netflix UK &amp; Ireland (@netflixuk)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>The 46-second teaser was released showing Imelda Staunton as Queen Elizabeth II walking through Buckingham Palace before appearing on the famous balcony.</p> <p>All three actresses to play the late Queen appear in the trailer, including Claire Foy and Olivia Colman.</p> <p>"The crown is a symbol of permeance. It's something you are, not what you do," the voice of Foy says.</p> <p>"Some portion of our natural selves is always lost. We have all made sacrifices. It is not a choice. It is a duty," Colman can be heard saying.</p> <p>Finally, it ends on Staunton who says, "But what about the life, I put aside? The woman I put aside?"</p> <p><em>Image credits: Netflix - Instagram</em></p>

TV

Placeholder Content Image

David and Victoria Beckham open up about alleged affair

<p>David and Victoria Beckham have chosen to open up about the "unhappiest" period of their lives, in their highly-anticipated Netflix documentary. </p> <p>The power couple candidly spoke about David's alleged affair in 2003, where he was accused of cheating with his former personal assistant Rebecca Loos after they were spotted leaving a night club in Spain. </p> <p>The rumours spread just after David was transferred from the Manchester United club to Real Madrid . </p> <p>David called the claims “ludicrous” at the time, and now his wife Victoria has also shared her heartache during that time, describing it as the "unhappiest in her life". </p> <p>Ahead of the release of the four-part documentary series, director Fisher Stevens revealed how "unpleasant" it was for him to ask the couple such personal questions. </p> <p>"It wasn't pleasant, but we got into it," he said. </p> <p>"For me, I approached it as, "How did your marriage stay together?" and you'll see how he responds," he added. </p> <p>Producer John Battsek also told <em>The Sunday Times </em>that the couple "signed up” to a nothing off-limits contract, and were happy to discuss tougher subjects. </p> <p>“There was no, “You will not ask that or do that,’" he said</p> <p>"Fisher and I thought that might be the case, but we were clear from the start that we would only do this if we could go in any direction we wanted. And we did," he added. </p> <p>Aside from the alleged affair, the couple also opened up about their first date and are clearly still smitten with each other. </p> <p>“The fact I went to the games really was to - some might say I stalked him, I would say see him," she joked about their first meeting at a charity football match in 1997. </p> <p>She also added that she was immediately attracted to the football star when she spotted him chatting with his parents before the game. </p> <p>“When I saw him in the footballers’ lounge, all the other footballers were at the bar, and he was standing and talking to his parents, and I’m very close to my family, and I loved that side to him.”</p> <p>David's recollection of their first meeting was a bit more simple: “I just fancied her”.</p> <p>The couple have been married since 1999 and have four kids together - sons Brooklyn, 24, Romeo, 21, Cruz, 18, and a daughter Harper, 12.</p> <p><em>Image: Kevin Winter/Getty Images</em></p>

Relationships

Placeholder Content Image

Aussie singer weds Netflix star in secret ceremony

<p dir="ltr">Aussie rapper G-Flip has said “I do” in a secret ceremony with reality Netflix star Chrishell Stause after one year of dating.</p> <p dir="ltr">The ‘announcement’ came at the end of a montage shared to social media, where <em>Selling Sunset</em>'s Stause had posted footage from various moments over the course of their relationship, with the final clip showcasing a moment from what appears to be their wedding.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Love doesn’t always go as planned,” Stause captioned the reel. “Sometimes it’s immeasurably better.”</p> <p dir="ltr">The video itself began with the text “how it started”, cycling through content as it transitioned to “how it’s going”, with G-Flip’s new track 'Be Your Man' playing throughout.</p> <p dir="ltr">The news came as quite the surprise to fans of the couple, especially when it was later confirmed by <em>PEOPLE</em>. </p> <p dir="ltr">“They found love together in an unexpected place but nothing has ever felt more real to them," a source told the publication. </p> <p dir="ltr">And despite their shock, friends and supporters were quick to flood Stause’s comments with their congratulations and delight - with a few even suggesting that they might have been in on the secret.</p> <blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/reel/CsFXTCmpVdE/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"> </div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"> <div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"> </div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/CsFXTCmpVdE/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by Chrishell (@chrishell.stause)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p dir="ltr">“I’M DYING!!!!!! I’ve been waiting for this post all day!!! Covered in goosebumps since the moment I watched!” one friend gushed. “Watching your love is like watching the best love story in the world! I love you both to the 🌙 &amp; back!!!!!! CONGRATULATIONS”.</p> <p dir="ltr">“You guys are too cute,” another said. </p> <p dir="ltr">“I am SO excited for this!! You and G are the most inspiring couple and the affection between you both is so pure. I love you two tons and am so lucky to have you both in my life,” came one heartfelt congratulations.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Waaaait?!?” one fan wrote. “So was I right?!? Did you guys get married?!?”</p> <p dir="ltr">Some did question whether or not the clip was actually from a music video for the song, but were quickly informed by fellow commenters that it had been a real wedding. </p> <p dir="ltr">And while others remained doubtful, the congratulations continued, with one supporter writing “did you guys get married?! I never heard. Congratulations if so! Wishing you all the happiness in the world.”</p> <p dir="ltr">“You two are the sweetest,” said another, before they went on to thank the happy couple for sharing their love with the world, and the wonders it was doing for representation around the world when they added “being this proud of your love and sharing it with the world is helping so many people on their own journeys.”</p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Images: Instagram</em></p>

Relationships

Placeholder Content Image

Backlash after new docudrama casts Cleopatra as a black woman

<p>When Netflix announced their docu-series on Queen Cleopatra VII, excitement was high among the cast and crew.</p> <p>As the series’ star, Adele James, put it “I don’t know if there are words powerful enough to express what I hope this will mean for young people all over the world who look like me (and who don’t!) who will now get to grow up seeing the greatest leader of all time (of the greatest ancient civilisation, no less!!) being portrayed by a black-mixed woman on one of the biggest streaming services in the world!!!!!”</p> <p>However, it wasn’t long before problems arose, with many voicing their opinion that Netflix was ‘blackwashing’ the show, and Egyptian experts weighing in to the mounting criticism. </p> <p>And now, those same people are taking steps towards making sure the show never gets the chance to hit screens in Egypt. The trailer alone, with over 2 million views on YouTube, does not allow comments in the wake of its backlash. </p> <p>The series, titled <em>African Queens: Queen Cleopatra</em>, marks 27-year-old biracial actress Adele James’ Netflix debut. It is also narrated and executive produced by Jade Pinkett Smith. </p> <p>And while Queen Cleopatra’s race has long been a subject of dispute, as Pinkett Smith confessed to Tudum, the decision to cast James was intended as “a nod to the centuries-long conversation about the ruler’s race. </p> <p>“During the time of her reign, Egypt’s population was multicultural and multiracial. Cleopatra’s race was unlikely to be documented, and the identities of her mother and paternal grandparents weren’t known. Some speculate she was a native Egyptian woman while others say she was Greek.”</p> <p>“I really wanted to represent Black women,” Pinkett Smith added. “We don’t often get to see or hear stories about Black queens, and that was really important for me.”</p> <p>The portrayal, however, has been dubbed “completely fake” by some experts. Egyptologist Zahi Hawass, who believes the late queen was Greek and definitively “not black”, has accused streaming giant Netflix of “trying to provoke confusion by spreading false and deceptive facts that the origin of the Egyptian civilization is black”.</p> <p>As he told the <em>Al-Masry al-Youm</em> newspaper, “Cleopatra was Greek, meaning that she was light-skinned, not black.”</p> <p>Mahmoud al-Semary, a lawyer who is of the same opinion, went so far as to file a complaint with Egypt’s public prosecutor, demanding that Netflix be blocked in Egypt for their attempts to “promote the Afrocentric thinking … which includes slogans and writings aimed at distorting and erasing the Egyptian identity.”</p> <p>And he wasn’t the only one to take action, with a petition circling online to “Cancel Netflix’s ‘Queen Cleopatra’”. And while a former petition calling for the same thing was removed by Change.org despite its 85,000 signatures, the second attempt has so far gathered over 4,000. </p> <p>Meanwhile, Egyptologist Sally-Ann Ashton - who acted as a consultant for Netflix during the series’ preparation phase - has noted that the belief Cleopatra should be depicted as entirely European is “strange”. </p> <p>“Cleopatra ruled in Egypt long before the Arab settlement in North Africa,” she explained. “If the maternal side of her family were indigenous women, they would’ve been African, and this should be reflected in contemporary representations of Cleopatra.”</p> <p>And as Adele James put it best - along with some all important advice - to the flood of criticism aimed at her, “if you don’t like the casting don’t watch the show. Or do &amp; engage in (expert) opinion different to yours. Either way, I’M GASSED and will continue to be!”</p> <p><em>Images: Instagram</em></p>

TV

Placeholder Content Image

4 great movies to stream on Amazon, HBO, Netflix and Disney+

<p dir="ltr">Nothing cures boredom like a great movie! Catch up on new releases and take a dive into the beloved classics. </p> <p dir="ltr">Bored? Let’s what a movie! Here are some of the goodies you can enjoy.</p> <p dir="ltr"><strong>Amazon: Smile (2023)</strong></p> <ul> <li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"> <p dir="ltr" role="presentation">Genre: Horror, Mystery, Thriller</p> </li> <li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"> <p dir="ltr" role="presentation">Stars: Sosie Bacon, Kyle Gallner, Caitlin Stasey</p> </li> </ul> <p dir="ltr">Premise: After witnessing a strange and traumatic incident with a patient, Dr Rose Cotter (Sosie Bacon) begins experiencing unexplainable, terrifying occurrences. As terror takes over her life, Rose is on a desperate attempt to escape her new reality.</p> <p dir="ltr"><strong>HBO: Gravity (2013)</strong></p> <ul> <li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"> <p dir="ltr" role="presentation">Genre: Science Fiction, Thriller, Drama</p> </li> <li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"> <p dir="ltr" role="presentation">Stars: Sandra Bullock, George Clooney, Ed Harris</p> </li> </ul> <p dir="ltr">Premise: This mind-blowing space thriller one seven Oscars! Dr. Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock) is on her first space shuttle mission. Veteran astronaut Matt Kowalsky (George Clooney) is commanding his last mission before retirement. Disaster strikes, and the shuttle is destroyed, with all communication with Earth eradicated. Watch them navigate their terrifying situation.</p> <p dir="ltr"><strong>Netflix: You People (2023)</strong></p> <ul> <li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"> <p dir="ltr" role="presentation">Genre: Comedy, Romance </p> </li> <li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"> <p dir="ltr" role="presentation">Stars: Jonah Hill, Eddie Murphy, Julia Louis-Dreyfus</p> </li> </ul> <p dir="ltr">Get ready for some laughs with this movie, with a stellar cast - how could it NOT be funny?</p> <p dir="ltr">When Ezra (Jonah Hill) and Amira (Lauren London) fall in love, they know they’re not so well-suited, but love is love. An issue arises as they find themselves navigating societal expectations of being an interracial couple. Watch to find out if their love endures the culture clash!</p> <p dir="ltr"><strong>Disney +: Disenchanted (2022)</strong></p> <ul> <li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"> <p dir="ltr" role="presentation">Genre: Comedy, Family, Fantasy</p> </li> <li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"> <p dir="ltr" role="presentation">Stars: Amy Adams, Patrick Dempsey, Maya Rudolph</p> </li> </ul> <p dir="ltr">15 years after moving to the “real world” and marrying Robert (Patrick Dempsey) in Enchanted, and Giselle (Amy Adams) has grown unattached to the city. As she searches for her fairy tale life, the pair move to the suburbs, however, they soon find there are a completely new set of rules in their new suburb. </p> <p dir="ltr">Malvina Monroe (Maya Rudolph) runs the show in this suburb, and she’s not a massive fan of whimsical Giselle. In hopes of finding her perfect community, Giselle turns to magic, but it doesn’t work out in her favour. </p> <p dir="ltr"> It’s then a race against time to figure out what her happy ever after really is!</p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Image credit: Shutterstock</em></p>

Movies

Placeholder Content Image

"He’s a very proud dad": Unearthed snap of Michael Schumacher stuns fans

<p>Max Verstappen has shared never been seen photos of Michael Schumacher with the world.</p> <p>The back-to-back Formula 1 world champion is currently preparing to secure a third straight crown for Red Bull in 2023.</p> <p>Before the season begins, F1 fans are being treated to a sneak peek behind the curtain as Netflix’s smash hit <em>Drive to Survive</em> releases its fifth season.</p> <p>Verstappen is heavily featured throughout episode four of the new season, which was released globally on February 24, focusing primarily on former Haas driver Mick Schumacher.</p> <p>The episode, titled <em>Like Father, Like Son?</em>, brings to light the struggles the famous young racer endured before he was let go by the Haas team.</p> <p>However, it's Verstappen who once again steals the show as he shares what it was like to grow up alongside the Schumacher family.</p> <p>Max’s father, Jos, was teammates with Michael at Benetton, with an old interview filmed in the 2000s showing the pair being asked if they would let their kids become F1 drivers.</p> <p>“I think this could be the first time we have an argument if our two would be racing,” says the German.</p> <p>It’s what came next that stole the hearts of many, leaving F1 fans stunned. As Max talks about the relationship between the two families, a clip of Max as a toddler interacting with Michael is played before a never been seen photo flashes on the screen.</p> <p>“We used to go on holidays when we were little together, the two families, and these kind of memories will stay with me,” explains Max, who is now a 35-time race winner in F1.</p> <p>“For both of us to be in F1 is amazing and also for Michael, he’s a very proud dad for sure.”</p> <p>The image shows Michael sitting on a hanging chair with baby Max on one knee and his daughter, Gina-Maria, on the other.</p> <p>Mick was replaced by F1 journeyman Nico Hulkenberg and will have to sit out 2023 as a reserve driver at Mercedes behind Sir Lewis Hamilton and his teammate George Russell.</p> <p><em>Drive to Survive</em> charts Mick’s difficult sophomore season in 2022, including his horror 170mph incident in Saudi Arabia.</p> <p>Mick’s rough year saw him outscored by his teammate, the returning Danish veteran Kevin Magnussen.</p> <p>The Netflix series focuses on Mick’s struggles and the pressure that came with racing under the Schumacher name.</p> <p>“Mick has the lineage of one of the greatest drivers the sport has ever seen,” said F1 journalist Will Buxton.</p> <p>“But it remains to be seen if he has the same character as his dad.”</p> <p>Haas boss Steiner said the Schumacher name was a “blessing and a curse” for Mick.</p> <p>But in characteristically non-nonsense fashion, the famously foul-mouthed team principal says at some point the young German will have “stand up” and be his “own man”.</p> <p>Mick outlines the struggles surrounding pressure on the show, including the admission “dreams don’t always come true”.</p> <p>His dad is one of the most renowned F1 drivers of all time, rising to power in the 90s and going on to dominate the sport by the early 2000s.</p> <p>He raced from 1991 to 2006 and again from 2010 to 2012, a second act of his racing career which became instrumental in setting up the dominant Mercedes team.</p> <p>The German won five world championships with Ferrari and two for Benetton.</p> <p>Schumacher retired in 2012, but a year later, he was involved in a life-changing skiing accident while on the slopes with Mick.</p> <p>He was left in a medically induced coma before being sent home, and no further information has been revealed since the incident.</p> <p>His family, led by his wife Corinna, protect Michael’s privacy and offer him a quiet life.</p> <p>There have only been hints and cryptic rumours about Schumacher’s health, with information being drip-fed by friends and anonymous sources.</p> <p><em>Image credit: Getty/Netflix</em></p>

Family & Pets

Placeholder Content Image

Nelson Mandela's granddaughter accuses Sussexes of "stealing" famous quotes

<p>Nelson Mandela's granddaughter has torn into Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, accusing them of “stealing" the statesman's words and using his name to “make millions”.</p> <p>Ndileka Mandela, 57, slammed the Sussexes over the Netflix documentary Live To Lead, where the couple use footage of Mandela leaving prison in 1990.</p> <p>Harry says in the trailer for their latest film, part of their $100million (£83million) deal with the streaming giant: “This was inspired by Nelson Mandela”.</p> <p>Ndileka said she was angry that the couple appear to compare their own battles in the Royal Family with her grandfather's long walk to freedom, calling it “upsetting and tedious”.</p> <p>She said: “That's chalk and cheese, there is no comparison. I know the Nelson Mandela Foundation has supported the initiative but people have stolen grandfather's quotes for years and have used his legacy because they know his name sells – Harry and Meghan are no different from them”.</p> <p>She added in an interview with The Australian: “I admire Harry for having the confidence to break away from an institution as iconic as the Royal Family. Grandad rebelled against an arranged marriage to find his own path in life.</p> <p>“But it comes at a price, you have to then fund your own life, I've made peace with people using granddad's name but it's still deeply upsetting and tedious every time it happens”.</p> <p>In the trailer for Live To Lead, co-produced by the Nelson Mandela Foundation, Harry quotes Mandela and says: “What counts in life is not the mere fact that we’ve lived”.</p> <p>Meghan then appears on screen and finishes the quote: “It is what difference we have made to the lives of others that will determine the significance of the life we lead”.</p> <p>The couple were both executive producers, according to the credits, and introduce each of the episodes, talking over the opening credits.</p> <p><em>Image: Getty</em></p>

News

Placeholder Content Image

Queen Elizabeth’s 21st birthday speech edited in Harry and Meghan doco

<p dir="ltr">Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s new documentary has edited the Queen’s 21st birthday speech to give it a completely new meaning.</p> <p dir="ltr">The first three episodes of the Sussexes new documentary <em>Harry and Meghan</em> have now aired on Netflix.</p> <p dir="ltr">And now voice coach Susie Ashfield has pointed out that in the first episode, the Queen's speech – in which she says “whole life whether it be long or short shall be devoted to your service and to the service of our great Imperial family to which we all belong” – is included.</p> <p dir="ltr">Then she takes viewers to episode three, in which the Queen’s speech has been edited, giving it a completely new meaning.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I declare before you all that my whole life whether it be long or short shall be devoted to the service of our great Imperial family to which we all belong.”</p> <p dir="ltr">She shared another video showing glaring edits of the late Monarch titled: “The Queen Vs Netflix. Spot the difference…”.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I wasn't going to say anything about the Harry and Meghan Netflix documentary because it's nothing to do with me,” she said.</p> <p>"I'm a communications coach. I help people make speeches."</p> <p dir="ltr" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline; color: #323338; font-family: Roboto, Rubik, 'Noto Kufi Arabic', 'Noto Sans JP', sans-serif; background-color: #ffffff; outline: none !important;"> </p> <div class="embed" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline; outline: none !important;"><iframe class="embedly-embed" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border-width: 0px; border-style: initial; vertical-align: baseline; width: 619px; max-width: 100%; outline: none !important;" title="tiktok embed" src="https://cdn.embedly.com/widgets/media.html?src=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tiktok.com%2Fembed%2Fv2%2F7176949431789505798&amp;display_name=tiktok&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tiktok.com%2F%40royal_family_2022%2Fvideo%2F7176949431789505798%3Fis_copy_url%3D1%26is_from_webapp%3Dv1%26q%3DSusie%2520Ashfield%2520%26t%3D1671075706777&amp;image=https%3A%2F%2Fp16-sign-va.tiktokcdn.com%2Fobj%2Ftos-maliva-p-0068%2F76ca61686cde4add87422c08f0ebf380_1671013766%3Fx-expires%3D1671094800%26x-signature%3Da9QorsOB83kO1sfr6MVMnQwclsE%253D&amp;key=5b465a7e134d4f09b4e6901220de11f0&amp;type=text%2Fhtml&amp;schema=tiktok" width="340" height="700" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></div> <p> </p> <p dir="ltr">“But I really like speeches, which is why when somebody told me about some potential editing that might have happened on the Queen's 21st birthday speech. I had to check it out.</p> <p dir="ltr">“So let's play a game together. Spot the difference,” she said, before showing part of the Queen's unedited speech.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I should like to make that dedication now, it is very simple,” Queen Elizabeth II is heard saying.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I declare before you all that my whole life, whether it be long or short, shall be devoted to your service, and to the service of our great Imperial family to which we all belong.”</p> <p dir="ltr">Susie then points out: “That was the original, unedited copy and the transcript reads the same. Now let's look at Harry and Meghan's version."</p> <p dir="ltr">The Queen’s voice is then heard saying: “I declare before you all that my whole life whether it be long or short shall be devoted to the service of our great Imperial family to which we all belong.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Did you hear the difference?" asks Susie. "And did you notice how just removing a few words changes the meaning of the statement entirely?"</p> <p dir="ltr">The words 'to your service and' were edited out of the Queen's speech.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I don't know what the lesson to learn is here, but I suppose if you are going to be speaking and it will be recorded there is a chance you will get misquoted, your words might get taken out of context or in this case some part might be removed to change the meaning of the statement itself.</p> <p dir="ltr">“So try not to let that happen to you. And if it does happen to you, remember there will be some people out there who might notice.”</p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Images: TikTok/Getty</em></p>

TV

Placeholder Content Image

Body language expert goes to TOWN on Harry and Meghan doc

<p dir="ltr">A body language expert has weighed in on Prince Harry and Meghan after part one of their Netflix documentary dropped.</p> <p dir="ltr">Louise Mahler, an Australian body language expert, told <em>The Morning Show</em> that it was obvious that Harry was “embarrassed” of Meghan during one of the interviews.</p> <p dir="ltr">She spoke of the scene where Meghan explained how she wasn’t aware that she would have to curtsy to Queen Elizabeth II when meeting her.</p> <p dir="ltr">“How do you explain that you bow to your grandmother and that you will need to curtsy - especially to an American, like that’s weird,” Harry said on the show.</p> <p dir="ltr">Meghan then began to rant to say how it was “mediaeval” to curtsy to someone, before mocking the Royal Family’s tradition.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Pleasure to meet you, Your Majesty,” she said as she pretended to curtsy while sitting next to her husband.</p> <p dir="ltr">“It was so intense,” she said with a throwaway remark.</p> <p dir="ltr">However, social media has been full of close-ups of Prince Harry’s reaction as his wife mocked his grandmother, with Ms Mahler confirming the “uncomfortable” position he was in.</p> <p dir="ltr">“He looked incredibly, I don’t know, uncomfortable. There was something - see how he’s sort of watching her and he looks off to the side. I don’t know, there was something really awkward about the way he looked at her in this story - and then he looks down,” she said.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I would adore him to do more of those looks.</p> <p dir="ltr">“He’s not a theatre person at all.... the whole story about the curtsy was disrespectful.</p> <p dir="ltr">“If you went to a different country with a different culture - say Japan - and they said you had to bow, you would not make fun of that bow. You would see it as a creative opportunity.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I think he was definitely embarrassed in that moment - and one of the few moments he was embarrassed and I think he should be embarrassed a lot more.”</p> <p dir="ltr">Twitter users exploded at Meghan’s mockery of the late Monarch and also pointed out Harry’s discomfort.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Whoa. Harry really didn’t like the curtsy mocking,” one person wrote.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Why is it ok for Meghan to mock our culture in this way? Or does racism only work one way?” British columnist Sarah Vine questioned.</p> <p dir="ltr">“This is the moment that Meghan describes meeting the late Queen Elizabeth for the first time and how she did not understand why she needed to curtsy to Harry‘s grandmother… He looks a little uncomfortable about the whole thing,” presenter Chris Ship wrote.</p> <p dir="ltr">“This is just nasty and unbecoming. Meghan looks like a school bully,” journalist and broadcaster Benjamin Butterworth wrote.</p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Image: Netflix</em></p>

TV

Placeholder Content Image

The three biggest revelations from Harry and Meghan's documentary

<p>The first instalment of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's docuseries has been released, with the couple dropping major bombshells about life in the royal family. </p> <p>The first half of the series has largely revolved around the beginning of the couple's relationship and Meghan joining the royal family, while also touching on the first few dramatic encounters with paparazzi. </p> <p>Here's the biggest revelations from the series so far. </p> <p><strong>Meghan meeting the royal family</strong></p> <p>Meghan spoke of the first time she met Prince William and Kate Middleton, sharing how she didn't realise the level of formality the royal family carried outside of official engagements. </p> <p>She said, “Even when Will and Kate came over and I met her for the first time, I was in ripped jeans and I was barefoot."</p> <p>“I’m a hugger I’ve always been a hugger. I didn’t know that could be jarring for a lot of Brits.”</p> <p>“I guess I started to understand very quickly that the formality out on the outside, carried through on on the inside.</p> <p>“That there is a forward facing way of being then you close the door and you go phew, great we can relax now."</p> <p>“But that formality continues on both sides and that was surprising to me.”</p> <p>Meghan and Harry also shared details of Meghan's first meeting with the late Queen Elizabeth, with Harry admitting the situation was "weird".</p> <p>He said, “(Meghan) had no idea what it all consisted of, so it was a bit of a shock to the system for her,” he said.</p> <p>“How do you explain (to people) to bow to your grandma? And that they’ll need to curtsy? Especially to an American – it’s weird.”</p> <p>Meghan described the “surreal” and unexpected moment she realised she’d be meeting the monarch, and that it had been sprung on her at the last minute by her then-boyfriend.</p> <p>“We were in the car and we were going to Royal Lodge for lunch and he goes, ‘Oh, my grandmother’s here – she’s going to be there after church’,” she recalled.</p> <p>“And I remember in the car driving up, he says, ‘you know how to curtsy right?’ And I thought it was a joke.”</p> <p>“I didn’t know what I was doing,” she admitted.</p> <p><strong>Harry's warning to Meghan about the paparazzi</strong></p> <p>During the early days of Harry and Meghan's relationship, Meghan was still living in Canada and working as an actress when she encountered a pack of “9 or 10” paparazzi as she left a florist.</p> <p>“They were all sort of blocking the cars, going, ‘Hey, how you doing, Meghan?’, and I said ‘Oh, thanks, stay warm guys,’” the Duchess of Sussex recalled.</p> <p>The next day, she’d gotten a very strict instruction from her new boyfriend to ignore paparazzi from then on. </p> <p>“I remember (Harry) saying the next day, ‘You can’t talk to them’,” Meghan said.</p> <p>“And I was like, ‘I’m just trying to be pleasant, I don’t know what to do, I’ve never dealt with this before’, and he said, ‘Yes, but the UK media is saying you love it. You’re smiling. You love it.”</p> <p>Harry then likened the treatment of Meghan by the paparazzi to how Princess Diana was also treated, making him very concerned for his wife. </p> <p>"The majority of my memories are of her [Diana] being swarmed by paparazzi," he says.</p> <p>Harry made several comparisons with his wife and Diana, saying "To see another woman in my life go through this feeding frenzy.. That's hard. It is really the hunter vs the prey".</p> <p><strong>The couple felt they had to lie in their engagement interview</strong></p> <p>When the couple got engaged in 2017, they had a sit-down interview on the BBC to discuss their milestone, which the Sussexes have now revealed was completely "rehearsed".</p> <p>Meghan called the interview an "orchestrated reality show", saying they "weren't allowed" to tell their true story when faced with questions about their relationship.</p> <p>Earlier on in the docuseries, they shared how they first began talking on Instagram before meeting for their first date, but were forced to change their story for the BBC chat. </p> <p>The second and final instalment of the docuseries will air on December 15th. </p> <p><em>Image credits: Netflix</em></p>

TV

Placeholder Content Image

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle caught out in another lie

<p dir="ltr">Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have once again had to bite their tongues after being caught out in another lie.</p> <p dir="ltr">At the beginning of their six-part Netflix series <em>Harry and Meghan</em>, a disclaimer hit the screen to say that all interviews were completed by August 2022 and that the royal family declined to comment.</p> <p dir="ltr">“All interviews were completed by August 2022. Members of the royal family declined to comment on the content within this series,” the statement read.</p> <p dir="ltr">However, sources have come out swinging to deny the claims, explaining that the royal family weren’t given an opportunity to comment.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Palace sources confirm Buckingham Palace nor Kensington Palace nor any Members of the Royal Family were approached for comment on the content of the series,” royal editor Robert Jobson tweeted.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Nor will be making any further comment on this or any other aspect of it.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Netflix claimed at the beginning of the series that they were.”</p> <p dir="ltr">Other family members who were targetted in the Netflix series include Prince William and Kate Middleton.</p> <p dir="ltr">The Duchess of Sussex was describing the first time she met the pair and how her outfit was “jarring” to them.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Even when Will and Kate came over and I met her for the first time. I was in ripped jeans and I was barefoot,” Meghan said.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I’m a hugger. I've always been a hugger. I didn’t know that could be jarring for a lot of Brits.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I guess I started to understand very quickly that the formality on the outside, carried through on the inside.</p> <p dir="ltr">“That there is a forward facing way of being then you close the door and you go phew, great we can relax now.</p> <p dir="ltr">“But that formality continues on both sides and that was surprising to me.”</p> <p dir="ltr">Prince Harry also took a dig at his sister-in-law, the Princess of Wales saying how it was ideal for the men of the family to marry someone they approved of.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I think for so many people in the family, especially men, there can be a temptation or an urge to marry someone who would fit the mould as opposed to somebody who you are perhaps are destined to be with,” he said.</p> <p dir="ltr">Harry also then attacked his father, King Charles, after claiming that he has a “second family” following the death of his mother Princess Diana.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I was brought up by friends in Africa,” he said.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I’ve got a second family out there. A group of friends that literally brought me up.”</p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Images: Netflix</em></p>

TV

Placeholder Content Image

Harry and Meghan defend "fake" photos

<p dir="ltr">Representatives for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have defended the use of stock imagery and footage, after <a href="https://www.oversixty.com.au/entertainment/tv/that-s-nonsense-harry-and-meghan-documentary-called-out-for-fake-photo">the couple came under fire</a> for the inclusion of deceitful photos and clips in trailers for their upcoming Netflix documentary.</p> <p dir="ltr">A source familiar with the making of <em>Harry &amp; Meghan</em> told <em>The Telegraph</em> UK that Harry and Meghan Markle do not have editorial control over what appears in the trailers.</p> <p dir="ltr">They also said that including stock photos and vision is “standard practice”.</p> <p dir="ltr">The couple and Netflix were called out for the inclusion of several scenes of paparazzi and press photographers out of context and at events the royal family didn’t attend.</p> <p dir="ltr">A photo of a horde of photographers taken at the premiere of <em>Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part Two</em> was one of the sources of controversy, particularly given that it was taken in 2011, years before Harry and Meghan met.</p> <p dir="ltr">Meanwhile, footage included the documentary’s second trailer was taken outside a court case involving model Katie Price, while other clips were from Donald Trump’s former lawyer Michael Cohen being photographed in America.</p> <p dir="ltr">Footage of Diana being hounded by paparazzi and then-Kate Middleton being pursued by press before her wedding were also included.</p> <p dir="ltr">The source said using such footage and imagery was “standard practice in documentary and trailer production”, countering claims of ‘misinformation’ from viewers.</p> <p dir="ltr">It comes ahead of the release of the first three episodes of the documentary on Thursday night.</p> <p dir="ltr">The series is expected to primarily focus on the Sussexes’ relationship with the press and the “challenges” the couple faced when they were “forced” to step back as senior working royals.</p> <p><span id="docs-internal-guid-5ae21bc3-7fff-9d1d-2d43-74be2eb7810e"></span></p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Image: Netflix</em></p>

TV

Placeholder Content Image

Piers Morgan lashes out at Meghan Markle and Prince Harry

<p dir="ltr">Piers Morgan has once again lashed out at Meghan Markle and Prince Harry but this time over their Netflix doco series trailer.</p> <p dir="ltr">The trailer for the $157 million show dropped just hours after Prince William and Kate Middleton arrived in the US.</p> <p dir="ltr">The official Netflix account shared the trailer for the show with the caption reading: “Harry &amp; Meghan. A Netflix Global Event. Coming soon, only on Netflix.”</p> <p dir="ltr">This has however infuriated renowned journalist Piers Morgan for being “so ghastly, so repugnant, so dripping in sanctimony and fake hammy ‘woe-is-us’ acting, that I felt my intestines physically recoil in abject disgust.”</p> <p dir="ltr">“Imagine bleating constantly about privacy, including repeatedly suing news organisations for intrusion, and then making a kiss-and-tell reality show about your private lives?</p> <p dir="ltr">“Or preaching endlessly about compassion, yet once again trashing your family on global television?”</p> <p dir="ltr">The six part series will tell Harry and Meghan’s story after they left the royal family.</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">Harry &amp; Meghan. A Netflix Global Event. Coming soon, only on Netflix. <a href="https://t.co/ysxaCcESP4">pic.twitter.com/ysxaCcESP4</a></p> <p>— Netflix (@netflix) <a href="https://twitter.com/netflix/status/1598287753774477312?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 1, 2022</a></p></blockquote> <p dir="ltr">“I had to do everything I could to protect my family,” Prince Harry says in the trailer.</p> <p dir="ltr">And Meghan is quoted saying: “When the stakes are this high doesn’t it make more sense to hear our story from us?”</p> <p dir="ltr">“No one sees what goes on behind closed doors” Harry continues as an image of the pair pops up with Meghan holding her head and crying while on the phone.</p> <p dir="ltr">Piers went on to point out everything the couple have done since leaving the royal family, including Meghan’s podcast calling out the monarch, or the new book Harry is writing.</p> <p dir="ltr">“The couple’s hypocrisy is truly mind-blowing, but so is the malevolent intent,” he continued.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I expect this kind of thing from Markle who disowned most of her own family in her ruthless stampede to fame and fortune and has now manipulated her dimwit husband to do the same to his.</p> <p dir="ltr">“But for Harry to do this to his own brother, William, is an unforgivable act of treachery,” Piers said about the trailer dropping in the middle of the new Prince and Princess of Wales’ first, and vitally important big trip to America since the death of Queen Elizabeth II.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Every time I think the Sussexes have plummeted as low as they can go, they go lower.</p> <p dir="ltr">“They’re an absolute disgrace and as I’ve said many times, King Charles should strip them of all remaining titles and cast them out from any more connection to the Royal Family – before they destroy it and bring down the Monarchy.”</p> <p><em>Images: Netflix</em></p>

TV

Placeholder Content Image

5 things the latest season of The Crown got right and 3 things that were inaccurate

<h2>Separating fact from fiction</h2> <p>Season 5 of <em>The Crown</em> finally aired on Netflix after two years of waiting. The first season of <em>The Crown </em>aired in 2016, telling the story of all the major players in the royal family trees starting just before Queen Elizabeth II’s ascension to the throne. Every season since has covered roughly a decade or so in the lives of the royals.</p> <p>The new season of <em>The Crown</em> takes place between 1991 and 1997 and sees Charles and Diana nearing the end of their tumultuous marriage, securing their position as global tabloid fodder. (And, as season five points out, coverage of their lives would often blur the line between journalism and salacious gossip.)</p> <p>Despite the fact that there was so much real-life royal drama during this time, there are elements of <em>The Crown </em>that are not based on real events – so much so that Netflix added a disclaimer when releasing the trailer for this season that stated, ‘Inspired by real events, this fictional dramatisation tells the story of Queen Elizabeth II and the political and personal events that shaped her reign.’</p> <p>It can be confusing to parse fact from fiction. Here’s a fact check of <em>The Crown</em> season five to help understand what’s real and what’s not.</p> <h2>Here’s what was actually true in The Crown – and what wasn’t</h2> <p>Most of the historical events that have appeared on <em>The Crown</em> are based on true events. Let’s start with a few things that definitely happened.</p> <div> </div> <h2>Truth: Martin Bashir did use false evidence to convince Princess Diana to appear on Panorama</h2> <p>On <em>The Crown</em> Season 5 Episode 7, BBC journalist Martin Bashir (played by Prasanna Puwanarajah) is shown fabricating fake bank statements to convince Charles Spencer and his sister, Princess Diana (Elizabeth Debicki), into believing that members of their trusted teams were being paid off by British intelligence services for information about them. In turn, Bashir played into their fears and earned Diana’s trust enough to convince her to appear on his TV show, Panorama, giving one of the most explosive interviews of the decade.</p> <p>In 2020, an independent inquiry did find Bashir guilty of wrongdoing, and the BBC apologised to Charles Spencer for Bashir’s deception.</p> <h2>Truth: Prince Philip was a world-class carriage driver</h2> <p>Season 5 Episode 2 is when we learn of Prince Philip’s obsession with carriage driving. In fact, Philip (played by actor Jonathan Pryce) was not just a hobbyist in the sport, but he competed internationally as a member of the British Diving Team. He also wrote several books and served as the president of the Fédération Équestre Internationale.</p> <h2>Truth: Windsor Castle sustained massive fire damage in 1992</h2> <p>In Season 5 Episode 4, Queen Elizabeth (Imelda Staunton) referred to 1992 as an “annus horribilis,” or, a horrible year. It was the year that marked the separation of Charles and Diana as well as Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson. Adding to the heartbreak, 1992 was also the year that Windsor Castle caught fire when a spotlight ignited a curtain, destroying dozens of rooms and several priceless works of art.</p> <h2>Truth: Mohamed Al-Fayed hired the Duke of Windsor’s former valet, Sydney Johnson, to work for him</h2> <p>In Season 5 Episode 3, we are introduced to Mohamed Al-Fayed (Salim Daw), the Egyptian businessman who would build up an empire that included the Ritz Hotel in Paris and Harrods Department Store in London. As the show depicts, Al-Fayed was a lifelong Anglophile and did meet and hire Sydney Johnson, a Bahamian man who previously spent three decades as Edward, Duke of Windsor’s valet after Edward abdicated the throne. Johnson began working for Al-Fayed in 1977, five years after Edward passed away. After Edward’s wife, Wallis Simpson died, Al-Fayed purchased their Paris estate and, along with Johnson, helped restore it.</p> <p>With regard to the end of this episode, when Mohamed Al-Fayed met Princess Diana, while we’re not sure if they really did bond instantly at a polo match, it’s true that the two became friends years before Diana began dating Mohamed’s son, Dodi Al-Fayed. Dodi would later die in the 1997 car crash that also took Diana’s life.</p> <h2>Truth: tampongate really did happen</h2> <p>In 1989, when Charles and Camilla’s affair was not yet public, the two engaged in a phone conversation where Charles compared himself to a tampon. The conversation was later released to the public in 1993 after Diana and Charles separated.</p> <h2>And now for a few things that appear on The Crown season 5 that didn’t actually happen… Fiction: The Sunday Times poll</h2> <p>Throughout the season, Prince Charles (Dominic West) is seen as a man who is ready for new responsibilities. Specifically, the responsibility of being king. In Episode 1, a poll revealing that half the British population thinks that his ageing mother Queen Elizabeth, should abdicate her role is published in the Sunday Times, and Charles takes that as a sign that he should start preparing himself to be king. He even goes so far as to meet with Prime Minister John Major (Jonny Lee Miller) to seek his support.</p> <p>But, none of that happened. There was no such poll published in 1991 by the Sunday Times, and no such conversation between Major and the Prince of Wales. In fact, Major is one of this season’s biggest detractors. He has called the series “a barrel-load of nonsense.”</p> <h2>Fiction: Prince Philip and Penny Knatchbull’s affair</h2> <p>It’s true that Prince Philip and his godson’s wife, Penny Knatchbull, were both invested in the sport of carriage driving, and it is also true that their friendship was fodder for speculation that there was something more to it. But alas, there is no concrete evidence that Prince Philip engaged in an affair with Penny.</p> <h2>Fiction: Diana warning the queen about her Panorama interview</h2> <p>Everyone involved in Princess Diana’s Panorama interview knew it was a giant risk to let the estranged princess speak so candidly on the most revered broadcasting network in the country. While it’s true that Marmaduke Hussey, then-chairman of the BBC, felt that it was a disgrace to air the interview, the queen herself was not actually given a heads-up by Diana before the inflammatory program aired in 1995. The conversation between Diana and the queen was pure fabrication, confirmed by Patrick Jephson, Diana’s press secretary at the time.</p> <p>While it can be confusing parsing out what <em>The Crown</em> gets wrong about the royal family and what the show gets right, season 5 remains as engrossing as ever thanks to its excelling writing and cast. What we do know for sure is that season six, which tackles the final months of Diana’s life and the years after, can’t come soon enough.</p> <p><strong>This article originally appeared on <a href="https://www.readersdigest.com.au/culture/5-things-the-latest-season-of-the-crown-got-right-and-3-things-that-were-inaccurate" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Reader's Digest</a>.</strong></p> <p> <em>Image: Netflix</em></p>

TV

Placeholder Content Image

Dame Judi Dench slams "crude" and "cruel" new season of The Crown

<p>Dame Judi Dench has defended the royal family against the latest season of <em>The Crown</em>, calling it "crude" and "cruel" in the wake of Queen Elizabeth's death.</p> <p>The actress penned an open letter to Netflix in <a href="https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/the-crown-is-crude-and-cruel-says-dame-judi-dench-l6wzqpns9" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Times UK</a>, complaining that the “closer the drama comes to our present times, the more freely it seems willing to blur the lines between historical accuracy and crude sensationalism”.</p> <p>Dench called on Netflix to issue a disclaimer at the beginning of each episode of the highly anticipated new season of the show, reminding audiences that <em>The Crown</em> is a fictionalised drama. </p> <p>Dench, who was made a dame by the late Queen Elizabeth II in 1988, said she was concerned that viewers would take <em>The Crown</em>’s account as historically accurate.</p> <p>She continued in her letter, “Given some of the wounding suggestions apparently contained in the new series – that King Charles plotted for his mother to abdicate, for example, or once suggested his mother’s parenting was so deficient that she might have deserved a jail sentence – this is both cruelly unjust to the individuals and damaging to the institution they represent."</p> <p>“No one is a greater believer in artistic freedom than I, but this cannot go unchallenged. Despite this week stating publicly that <em>The Crown</em> has always been a ‘fictionalised drama’ the program makers have resisted all calls for them to carry a disclaimer at the start of each episode."</p> <p>“The time has come for Netflix to reconsider – for the sake of a family and a nation so recently bereaved, as a mark of respect to a sovereign who served her people so dutifully for 70 years, and to preserve their own reputation in the eyes of their British subscribers.”</p> <p>Dench said she was not asked by any members of the royal family to pen the letter and did so of her own volition. </p> <p>The upcoming fifth season of <em>The Crown</em> has has stirred consternation in royal, aristocratic and political circles, as the season is expected to focus on the acrimonious breakdown of Charles and Diana’s marriage, which was played out publicly at the time under intense media scrutiny.</p> <p><em>Image credits: Getty Images</em></p>

TV

Placeholder Content Image

"They’re making money off tragedy": Netflix’s Dahmer series shows the dangers of fictionalising real horrors

<p>Netflix’s recent series Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story has stirred <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-63088009" target="_blank" rel="noopener">controversy</a> over its apparent glamorisation of a serial killer and perceived insensitivity towards the families of Dahmer’s victims.</p> <p>In contrast to more journalistic true crime entertainment (<a href="https://theconversation.com/true-crime-entertainment-like-the-teachers-pet-can-shine-a-light-on-cold-cases-but-does-it-help-or-hinder-justice-being-served-189787" target="_blank" rel="noopener">which has its own issues</a>), the dramatisation and fictionalisation of real-life crimes, such as Dahmer, has drawn a wave of criticism for re-traumatising victims and their loved ones, and glorifying criminals.</p> <h2>Artistic license or sensationalist schlock?</h2> <p>Whether presenting itself as an accurate retelling or merely “inspired by true events” – there is always going to be some artistic license when transforming a complex true crime story into a movie or TV series.</p> <p>While changes from real life to screen are often relatively minor, such as having multiple police officers represented by one fictionalised detective, others can significantly misrepresent events.</p> <p>Anne Schwartz, the journalist who broke the original Dahmer story, has called the recent Dahmer Netflix series “not a helpful representation”. In an interview with the <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/anne-e-schwartz-jeffrey-dahmer-autopsy-polaroids-b2194855.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Independent</a>, Schwartz criticised the caricatured depiction of law enforcement in the series. She also took aim at key plot elements, such as having key witness Glenda Cleveland (played by Niecy Nash) live next door to Dahmer, rather than in the building next door (as in real life).</p> <p>Other dramatisations of real-life crimes have gone much further, adding sensationalist – and even downright supernatural – elements to true events.</p> <p><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7976208/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Haunting of Sharon Tate</a>, written and directed by Daniel Farrands and released in 2019, was universally panned by critics and audiences alike for graphically depicting the real life murder of actress Sharon Tate by the Manson family.</p> <p>In the film, Tate (played by Hilary Duff) has apparent premonitions of her murder in her dreams, with the film ending with a meeting of Manson’s victims in the afterlife. Film critic Owen Gleiberman <a href="https://variety.com/2019/film/reviews/the-haunting-of-sharon-tate-review-hilary-duff-1203179977/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">called</a> the film “pure, unadulterated cheeseball exploitation” opining that it “goes out of its way to turn the Manson murders into schlock horror”.</p> <h2>Re-traumatising victims and their families</h2> <p>Victims of crime and their loved ones are frequently angered and re-traumatised when their real-life stories become fodder for public consumption.</p> <p>The families of homicide victims are particularly disadvantaged when encountering inaccurate or insulting depictions of their loved ones, given legal protections of reputation, such as claims in defamation, don’t apply if the person defamed is deceased.</p> <p>Some of the families of Dahmer’s victims have expressed outrage at the Netflix series, noting that they were never approached about the show’s release. Rital Isbell, whose brother was murdered by Dahmer, had her heart-breaking victim impact statement dramatised in the series without her knowledge or consent. She called the series “harsh and careless” in a <a href="https://www.insider.com/rita-isbell-sister-jeffrey-dahmer-victim-talks-about-netflix-show-2022-9" target="_blank" rel="noopener">piece</a> in Insider expressing that “It’s sad that they’re just making money off of this tragedy”.</p> <p>The question of who benefits from depictions of real-life crimes is an important one, with large studios and streaming platforms earning millions while victims and their families are often left to bear the consequences of increased public attention.</p> <p>Australian films haven’t been immune to this tension between artistic freedom and the wishes of victim’s families. The 1997 Australian film <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118735/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Blackrock</a>, directed by Steven Vidler and adapted from a play by Nick Enright was clearly <a href="http://www.textjournal.com.au/oct09/brien.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">inspired by</a> (although denied by Enright) the real-life rape and murder of 14-year-old schoolgirl <a href="https://7news.com.au/original-fyi/crime-story-investigator/leigh-leigh-remembering-murdered-14-year-old-stockton-girl-30-years-on-c-535209" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Leigh Leigh</a> in 1987. Leigh’s family were highly critical upon the film’s release finding the depiction exploitative and accusing the filmmakers of “feasting on an unfortunate situation”.</p> <h2>Making celebrities out of serial killers</h2> <p>The rise of online “fandoms” surrounding real-life killers is an increasingly documented phenomena likely tied to the increased pop culturalisation of true crime.</p> <p>Social media site Tumblr has a variety of dedicated fan accounts for history’s monsters, with everyone from serial killer Richard Ramirez to school shooters Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold getting special treatment.</p> <p>Researcher Andrew Rico sees such fandoms as partially motivated by an urge to <a href="https://journal.transformativeworks.org/index.php/twc/article/view/671" target="_blank" rel="noopener">shock and scandalise</a> the public, but notes they also indicate the tabloid depiction of criminals such as schools shooters has led to a form of dark celebrity. This is supported by the work of doctoral student Sasha Artamonova, who views dark fandoms as a kind of “<a href="https://www.academia.edu/32699599/Rebels_with_a_Cause_School_Shooters_Fandom_as_a_Form_of_Counterculture" target="_blank" rel="noopener">counter-culture</a>” movement rallying against moral norms.</p> <p>The Dahmer Netflix series has <a href="https://uk.style.yahoo.com/why-hollywood-obsessed-casting-teen-134800169.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">received criticism</a> for casting Evan Peters as Jeffery Dahmer, given his status as a teen heartthrob who rose to fame in creator Ryan Murphy’s far more lighthearted horror series American Horror Story. The Gen Z populated TikTok is full of fan videos of his depiction of Dahmer.</p> <p>Similar criticism was levelled at another Netflix series Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile which cast Highschool Musical star Zac Efron as serial rapist and murderer Ted Bundy.</p> <p>An unhealthy obsession with serial killers is, of course, nothing new – Jeffery Dahmer received <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Dear-Dahmer-Letters-Milwaukee-Cannibal/dp/B0B72T273N" target="_blank" rel="noopener">many positive letters</a> and even marriage proposals while incarcerated.</p> <p>However, some worry the recent trend of casting attractive celebrities as serial killers could have flow on effects. One writer in Odyssey <a href="https://www.theodysseyonline.com/hollywood-romanticizes-serial-killers" target="_blank" rel="noopener">noted</a> that “young and impressionable youth of today might find themselves empathising with and falling for people who are actually dangerous”.</p> <p>Whether such concerns are prescient or a textbook example of moral panic remains to be seen.</p> <p>Ultimately, there will always be an audience for stories of the murderous and macabre, with fascination in the darker side of life an incredibly common human impulse.</p> <p><strong>This article originally appeared on <a href="https://theconversation.com/theyre-making-money-off-tragedy-netflixs-dahmer-series-shows-the-dangers-of-fictionalising-real-horrors-192006" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Conversation</a>.</strong></p> <p><em>Image: Netflix</em></p>

TV

Placeholder Content Image

Man who claims to be King Charles’ son to share story with Netflix

<p dir="ltr">The Queensland man claiming to be King Charles’ son is looking to take his story to streaming website Netflix. </p> <p dir="ltr">Simon Dorante-Day is adamant that he is the son of the newly crowned King Charles III and Camilla and is even willing to contest the paternity claim in court. </p> <p dir="ltr">The 56-year-old says he has been approached by leading documentary makers from the US and UK to share his story. </p> <p dir="ltr">He is hoping that when he approaches Netflix and they accept to take on his story, it will force Buckingham Palace to acknowledge him as the son of King Charles III.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I’ve been inundated in recent weeks with many documentary filmmakers and filmmaking companies keen to share my story,” he told <a href="https://7news.com.au/lifestyle/aussie-man-who-claims-to-be-king-charles-secret-son-announces-surprise-netflix-move-c-8452963" target="_blank" rel="noopener">7News</a>.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I didn’t expect this to happen - but I’m glad it is. I’m considering their offers.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Ultimately I would like to see my story on Netflix, or a similar streaming platform, and will approach them about doing so. I am already speaking to one person, who I trust, and is happy to act on my behalf.”</p> <p dir="ltr">He said he is focusing on the legal requirements and hopes that this will see DNA tests done by him and King Charles and Camilla. </p> <p dir="ltr">“I want a DNA test from both of them, as ordered through proper legal means.</p> <p dir="ltr">“If sharing my story on Netflix or to a greater TV audience will help do that, then I say let’s do it.”</p> <p dir="ltr">Mr Dorante-Day is also heading back to the UK for the first time since he came out announcing that he is the son of King Charles. </p> <p dir="ltr">He will also be interviewed at multiple outlets in Glasgow, Manchester, Dublin, and Portsmouth. </p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Image: 7News</em></p>

TV

Our Partners