Category Entertainment News

According to sources, Meghan Markle has hints that she plans to expand her As Ever brand and follow in Victoria Beckham’s footsteps and create a beauty empire.

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Her Netflix lifestyle show, With Love, Meghan, may have failed to impress, but it appears this setback has done little to derail the Duchess of Sussex’s plans to expand her brand. With her latest venture – believed to be her own make-up and beauty range – Meghan is taking inspiration from pop star-turned-fashion and beauty mogul Victoria Beckham.

Meghan, 44, has been trying to make a name for herself in the lifestyle industry ever since stepping down as a working royal and resuming her position in 2020. Dermot McNamara, a PR expert, tells OK! that Meghan has always been strategic about brand building. It would seem natural to launch a beauty line after the US has embraced her as a lifestyle tastemaker. In many ways, she emulates the strategies of famous people like Victoria Beckham and the Kardashians, who have created global empires out of their personal lives.

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Last week, rumours began circulating that Meghan is on the cusp of launching what’s been dubbed a “mega-brand” after she was pictured with the business powerhouse behind Kim Kardashian ’s multi-million dollar SKIMS range.

Emma Grede, a British-born businesswoman who has appeared on TV’s Dragons ‘ Den, shared photos of the Duchess at a famous, all-female dinner summit in Los Angeles, where guests slammed Meghan’s own As Ever Sauvignon Blanc.

In recent weeks, Meghan has been dropping hints that she’s preparing to dip her toe into the world of beauty, posting clips of herself applying lipstick – but with the brand name concealed. Dermot says it’s a savvy move to drip-feed beauty content to the public.

She’s repositioning herself as relatable, hands-on, and creative, he says, reaffirming her in 2025 by doing her own make-up and posting it online. Meghan is taking control of both personality and product, according to the fandom.

She clearly positions herself as a self-made entrepreneur rather than a royal adjunct, from the blurred product shots in her reels to the references to her “signature glow.” It’s sophisticated, contemporary, and in tune with American consumers.

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The Duchess’s TV shows have heavily tapped into her royal connections, most notably Harry’s 41-year-old husband, but sources claim the mother-of-two is eager to launch her own business.

She’d love for Harry to be involved in whatever she’s doing, but that’s not how it’s played out, according to a source who spoke to OK! She will do anything to ensure that As Ever is a success and is willing to go it alone.

More than a year ago, Meghan spearheaded her most recent business venture by registering a trademark application to market “ceuticals, cosmetics, and fragrances” in the market.

Meghan, whose other role model is actress-turned-lifestyle guru Gwyneth Paltrow, is said to have taken note of former Spice Girl Victoria’s success and wants to take some of the beauty pie.

According to PR guru Lynn Carratt, “She’s witnessed what Victoria has done, how she’s built her brand, and how it’s been a huge success.” Because I’ve worn Victoria’s clothing before and am a fan, Meghan wants to see if the general public wants a make-up line. People will buy her beauty products regardless of whether you like or dislike her because she has a large following in the USA.

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Meghan has been busy, and she wants to be taken more seriously in her own right. Before attending the Project Healthy Minds gala in New York, where she and Harry won the Humanitarian of the Year Award, she made her Paris Fashion Week debut alongside Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour earlier this month.

She spoke about the importance of “financial independence” at the Fortune Most Powerful Women Summit two weeks ago in Washington, DC.

She “mixes in fashion and beauty circles and is establishing contacts with the industry,” Lynn claims. She’ll be featured more frequently at Fashion Weeks, in my opinion.

Lynn also cites Kylie Jenner as a likely inspiration, which could explain Meghan’s recent appearance with SKIMS co-founder Emma Grede. “We’ve seen how well Kylie Jenner’s done with her make-up range – becoming a billionaire,” says Lynn. “So I think Meghan is looking at these people and thinking, ‘I can do that.’”

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While Lynn acknowledges that Meghan’s previous projects have been “a little inconsistent,” she believes beauty could be the best course of action.

She claims that “from a PR standpoint, she has something she could make a lot of money off of.” She has everything if she can adapt As Ever to beauty, fashion, and make-up.

She has the assurance that she can succeed with her brand, and that she is determined to do so, according to our source. She is aware of how popular she is in the US. She is determined to succeed, doesn’t need a royal seal of approval, and she is.

Siva Kaneswaren, the Wanted star, has opened up about how Tom Parker’s passing has affected him and how it has inspired him to face his own fears and make the most of his life.

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Siva Kaneswaren, the bandmate of the late Tom Parker from The Wanted, has spoken out about how Tom’s tragic passing at the age of 33 has affected him.

Siva is currently supporting Memory Bank, a new art installation that honours the experiences of brain cancer patients and their loved ones, and it’s prompted him to reflect on his own journey.

He described how confronting his own fears prompted him to discuss Tom’s premature passing in an exclusive conversation with the Express.

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When Tom was diagnosed, life was squeezed out every second, and I was reminded of how death teaches you how to live. I immediately signed up to do all the things I’m afraid of because it wasn’t as terrifying as what he had gone through as soon as that. Celebrity SAS made me laugh despite my fear. On Dancing on Ice, I skated on knives until the semi-final. He recalled how much he devoted his life to him on that program.

“I did so many things that I was afraid of.” I recently saw a theatre show where you sing in Spanish because I wanted to learn Spanish. Right after his passing, I did everything, literally speaking. He continued, revealing that he had previously made a surprise trip back to his native Ireland from his LA residence for his mother’s birthday. “I connected with my family once more,” he said.

Reflecting on his final days with Tom, Siva Kaneswaran admitted there were a lot of tears. “We got so close towards the end. We cleared the air. We said things we never thought we’d say to each other. We cried a lot together. Everything just seemed so small now, and all the problems we had – we always butted heads, we always had tempers – the memories we made together I’ll cherish,” he shared, reports the Express.

Siva and the rest of The Wanted had to share their grief with one of the few people who could fully comprehend what it felt like after Tom’s passing.

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When I bumped into Danny from The Script in Malibu after hiking, we both had just spoken about how strange it is to grieve in public. He and his bandmate, guitarist Mark Sheehan, passed away in April of that year at the age of 43.

He said, “But sometimes the therapy itself is talking about it in public, just getting it out, and just letting people know. It’s challenging. Every time I sing Gold Forever, Tom’s piece, I have to talk about him because I’m on a US tour with The Wanted 2.0. He confessed, “I have to get it out, because I just get so upset when I don’t get it out.”

He acknowledged that he was inspired by these feelings to back the Memory Bank initiative.

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Losing one’s memory is one of the biggest worries of those with glioblastoma. It occurs very quickly. Positive memories are brought to life through this installation.

Because Tom Parker and his family figuratively called themselves the positive Parkers, it became a connection with me. Negative or stressful behavior was avoided. Literally, we laughed it out loud, and it was much appreciated.

Tom was given a life expectancy of six months to a year when he was diagnosed. He endured 18 months of treatment. In 18 months, he accomplished so much. I witnessed a spiritual warrior.

The Memory Bank installation will be on display at the Oxford Westgate Shopping Centre before moving on to the GenesisCare Center in Oxford later in the fall. The GenesisCare website also has it available. Visit the website for more details.

Krishnan Guru-Murthy, a presenter for ITV Channel 4 News, has spent decades in the news industry, and he wants to speak with one person.

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Vladimir Putin is attempting to interview Krishnan Guru-Murthy.

The presenter of Channel 4 News wants to discuss a number of contentious issues with the Russian president. He stated, “Putin has been at the top of my list for a very long time.” We’ve requested an interview with him. He has never existed before. The journalist continued, “He would be the big one.” It would be amazing to get him.

Krishnan has no desire to punch Putin if he is ever able to interrogate him. You just go for it, he said. You pose the difficult questions to him. You must not have fear.

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He added: “He’s one of the most important people in the world. He’s powerful and responsible for one of the great scars in geopolitics at the moment with the war in Ukraine; there is a lot to hold him to account for.”, reports the Daily Star.

Krishnan claims he wouldn’t be alarmed if the former intelligence chief were to be a target. He continued, “I’ve spent my entire life interviewing powerful and potentially dangerous people.” You are stress-free. Interviewing Putin wouldn’t be intimidating to me. You can’t be afraid of anyone while working my way.

Krishnan has been a mainstay of Channel 4 News for decades, having initially kicked off his career on BBC children’s programme Newsround back in 1991.

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He then worked as a correspondent for programs like Newsnight for three years before beginning his career. He moved to Channel 4 in 1998, where he has since become the show’s second-longest presenter, accumulating a number of significant moments throughout his career, including coverage of the 7/7 bombings and the September 11 attacks.

He was infamously yanked off the air after swearing at Steve Baker, the minister for Northern Ireland, in 2022, before being allowed to return to the airwaves shortly after.

A 2013 conversation with Quentin Tarantino, who declined to comment on whether film violence has any connection to real-life violence, was one of his other memorable interviews. Additionally, Robert Downey Jr.’s notorious 2015 interview abruptly ended when the Hollywood star left in the middle of a conversation.

Krishnan has also dabbled in other areas of television fame, having participated in Strictly Come Dancing in 2023. Paired with professional dancer Lauren Oakley, Krishnan’s stint lasted seven weeks before they were voted off the popular BBC show.

Suki Panesar, played by EastEnders actor Balvinder Sopal, has praised Strictly Come Dancing presenters Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman.

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Strictly matriarchs Claudia Winkleman and Tess Daly will be sorely missed, says EastEnders star Balvinder Sopal. This week the presenting duo shocked everyone when they announced they would be departing the show at the end of the current series. Balvinder, 46, paid tribute to the “caring” and “supportive” pair.

The actress, who plays Suki Panesar, said, “People are sad that they lost their iconic presence on Strictly.” They are truly brilliant. They are powerful, funny, and seductive. They are sassy, look amazing, and have a certain age before they can get past. They are captivating, draw audiences in, and occasionally make a tune in for them. What a wonderful job they did for both the show and for us.

“They’re the best of friends and they come across like that. How lucky are we to be able to absorb that energy and be taken care of? They’re the matriarchs of the show, they really have taken care of Strictly Come Dancing in the best possible way. And what an inspiration for us as well, to be looking up to such women like that.”

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Soap star Balvinder – who danced the quickstep to Texas Hold ‘Em by Beyoncé last night with partner Julian Caillon – described is an “end of an era” and said it’s a privilege to dance in their final season.

They represent Bruce Forsyth and Len Goodman’s era in Strictly. They leave behind all that. We will now have two new people who will direct the show in a different way when they leave. We simply need to reinvent ourselves and move on as things come to an end. See what transpires. They need to be filled with big boots.

Tess and Claudia announced their departure from the show on Thursday (23 October) in a joint video, where they said: “After 21 wonderfully joyful years on Strictly, we have decided that the time is right to step aside.”

They added that they are bound by a collective bargain. Tess referred to Strictly as her “third child” and “second family” in a separate statement, promising to continue watching but felt the need to “hand over the reins.”

“We were always going to leave together, and this is the right time,” he said. We just want to say a huge thank you to the BBC and to everyone who volunteers for the show so that we can watch it for the longest while it lasts. We’ll miss them every day because they are the most brilliant team. When we say the final “keep dancing,” we will cry, but we’ll keep saying it to one another. Just possibly while eating some pizza while wearing tracksuit bottoms at home.

Sources close to the pair, who always had a pact to leave together at the same time, suggested they had told the top show execs of their plan some weeks ago, but their video on social media caught many of the Strictly cast and crew off guard. Insiders said privately Tess and Claudia have been discussing the idea of leaving for around a year.

Tess and Claudia wanted to rise to the top, a source said, “while the show is still huge, and shortly after they received MBEs. Midway through the series, it becomes a bit of a swansong and doesn’t distract the viewer from the winner.

With The Traitors and other TV shows abounding, Claudia is at her peak of her career. Teess enjoys spending more time with her family and friends after being the show’s host for more than 20 years.

They considered it was the right time to stop because the recent scandals surrounding the show have also had a slight impact on the ratings and there may be more.

According to a source close to the duo, “they always said they would go together when they felt right, and it just feels right this year.”

Following an interview with Bob Vylan’s frontman Pascal Robinson-Foster, who conducted the contentious chant at Glastonbury, British Airways suspended its sponsorship of the Louis Theroux podcast.

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Following the airing of an interview with Bob Vylan’s frontman, British Airways suspended its sponsorship of the Louis Theroux podcast.

The punk duo sparked controversy this summer when they led chants of “death, death to the IDF” (Israel Defence Forces) during their BBC livestreamed set at Glastonbury Festival.

In an episode that was broadcast earlier this week, frontman Bobby Vylan, also known as Pascal Robinson-Foster, said he was “not regretful” of the chant and would “do it again tomorrow.”

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British Airways has now suspended its advertising on the podcast, stating the content “breaches” its sponsorship policy, the Jewish News first reported.

Our involvement with the series has now been ended, according to a BA spokesperson who spoke to the PA news agency. We’re appreciative that this was brought up, as the content clearly violates our sponsorship guidelines for politically sensitive or contentious subjects.

We are looking into how this happened, and we and our third-party media agency have procedures in place to prevent these incidents.

Avon and Somerset police opened an investigation into the group after their June performance, which included a performance at a German music venue, a concert at a German venue, and their US tour. Following demands from Jewish leaders and MPs to axe the show, the group recently had to cancel two UK shows due to “political pressure,” including a Manchester date.

The band has benefited from the band’s support, despite criticism, and their album Humble As The Sun rose again in the charts over the summer months thanks to the band’s loyal and resurrected supporters.

Its debut album, We Won’t Go Quietly 2025, debuted at number one both in the UK hip hop and R&amp, B album charts.

When Theroux questioned whether Vylan would continue to play the chant, he replied, “Oh yeah. What if I went to Glastonbury once more tomorrow, I would definitely do it.

“I don’t regret it,” I said. Tomorrow, twice on Sunday, I would do it. I don’t regret it at all, like the criticism I’ve received as a result. It is a minimum. In comparison to what Palestinians are going through, it is not significant.

If that is what I can do, and if I can get Palestinian friends and people who have fled their homes and have lost family members in double digits, they can chant, “Yo, my chant, I love it,” Or it blew my mind, or whatever.

PA has reached out to Louis Theroux for comment.

Ben Elton, Stephen Fry’s friend, revealed the moment he had to confess his drug use to the TV presenter in a fit for fear for his life.

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The star’s close friend’s revelations about Stephen Fry’s reaction to him sharing his cocaine use during a near-death experience have been made public. The 68-year-old TV presenter allegedly had a booze and coke binge, and the TV host was “minutes from death.”

His pal, TV writer and comedian Ben Elton told how he rushed the actor to hospital in a taxi during a night out together because he was in “extreme danger” following the incident. Ben revealed doctors told him that Stephen, famed for his intellect, had been “minutes away from suffering permanent brain damage – and not many more minutes away from death”.

Ben, 66, described the terrifying encounter as “the night when you know it’s time to pull the pin but you don’t, and you instead open a few bottles.” Stephen had some strange organic Belgian stuff he thought we should try while we were drinking beer, which he surprisingly rarely did.

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We were also whacking cocaine up his nose, and we were smoking fags pretty frequently as we did in those days.

Ben continued, “I can say this because he’s been completely sincere about it in his own memoir and, having admitted to doing it at Buck House, it’s not a scandal. Personally, I’ve never been a fan of hard drugs.

And he revealed that he was in panic after telling doctors that Stephen had used cocaine because of his stardom and how it might have ruined his pal’s career.

I assumed Stephen’s notes had the big “coke” word on them, and I thought he needed to know, he said. In 1992, Stephen taking cocaine would have been incredibly significant, entirely unexpected, and likely to have destroyed his career. Additionally, it might have led to his arrest and possibly even imprisonment.

However, he claimed that his friend was “pretty woozy and nodding off””. He claimed he was aware enough to hear my claim.

” ‘ Bing, mate, ‘ I whispered. ‘ I apologize, but I let them know that you had been drinking coke. Because they were taking your medication, I thought I had to.

He squirted my hand and whispered that everything was alright. He continued, “Don’t worry,” between his gratingly longer breaths. In 20 years, I’ll be publishing a book about it.

Ben had admitted that it might have been catastrophic if he had stayed for another drink without realizing that his friend was in need of medical attention. What Have I Done, Ben’s newest book, contains the shocking statements?

Stephen and Ben Curtis have been friends for many years, and they co-wrote Blackadder. In the second series, he reprised his role as General Melchett in the fourth series.

* What’s the matter? The publication Macmillan is now BY Ben Elton.

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