Archive June 8, 2025

It’s been over three decades since Four Weddings and a Funeral was released on the big screen, and the Richard Curtis rom-com still holds a special place in the hearts of audiences everywhere

For over thirty years, Four Weddings and a Funeral has shown that a film with a lot of heart can go a long way. Despite being one of the most beloved romantic comedies out there, and helping catapult some of its stars to new levels of fame, it was actually a really low-budget project.

It cost only £3 million to make – which might sound like a lot, but in Hollywood terms is as cheap as chips – and was shot over just six weeks.

But despite being a small movie, Four Weddings is still one of the British public’s favourite rom-coms after all these years, and it cemented Hugh Grant as a household name in the UK, along with his girlfriend Liz Hurley.

Her stunning and risque Versace dress – the barely-there piece was held together with safety pins – captured serious attention at the Four Weddings premiere, and has become an iconic moment in fashion history.

The movie’s producer, Duncan Kenworthy, remembered discussing what Liz might wear when going for lunch with her and Hugh the week before the premiere, “Liz said, ‘I have absolutely no idea at this point’,” he said, adding that “With every piece about Liz came a mention of the film, so it was great publicity. The premiere was an extraordinary event.”

After the film’s release on March 11, 1994, even the movie’s theme song – Love is All Around by Wet, Wet, Wet – found major success, and spent 15 weeks at the top of the charts.

Pretty much every character in the film has become totally beloved by audiences, from the floppy-haired Charles as lead, to his quirky flatmate Scarlet, and the laugh-a-minute, over-the-top Gareth.

Duncan, 73, has said that they were totally consumed by their “little film” during the two years production took and that due to issues finding finance for the film, “We were making it for a long time in our heads before we actually made it in reality”.

However, even though they were working on a budget, everyone around them really believed that Four Weddings would go the distance.

“I remember sitting and watching the Oscars on telly with friends the year before we made Four Weddings and they all said, ‘You’ll be there next year’ and laughed,” Duncan explained.

“Literally a year later, there I was, at the Oscars, with a Best Picture nomination. It was unthinkable, really. In those days there were only five nominees for best picture at the Oscars. It shows what a big impact the film made – not just with the public but within the film world, too.”

Despite its popularity, Four Weddings and a Funeral didn’t take home Best Picture, but to be fair, they faced some pretty stiff competition that year, with other nominees in 1995 including Pulp Fiction, The Shawshank Redemption, and Forrest Gump – with the latter taking home the statue.

Four Weddings did manage to score a host of BAFTAs, however, for its depiction of Hugh Grant as the slightly-hopeless Charles attending a series of landmark occasions in his loved one’s lives – and falling in love with American socialite, Carrie – played by Andie MacDowell.

Casting the film presented the production team with a few challenges, particularly when it came to the lead role of Charles. Whilst it might seem impossible to imagine anyone else playing him now, Richard Curtis is said to have had more than few doubts about his ability to carry the role.

Over 70 people were auditioned for the role, but in the end it came down to Hugh Grant and one other choice.

“It sounds odd now but the other actor in the frame was Alan Rickman, who’d really cut through in the Robin Hood movie. Mike, Richard and I simply couldn’t agree which of them to cast, so we voted in secret,” Duncan explained.

“We were an odd number, and it came out 2 to 1 in favour of Hugh Grant. It’s a cause of enormous delight to me that it was Richard who nearly ended Hugh’s romcom career before it even started.”

Hugh Grant has also revealed that Richard Curtis definitely was not a fan of him during the auditioning process, saying “[My audition] was in front of Mike Newell, the director, who seemed to quite like me, and Richard Curtis, who seemed to want me dead. He really hated me. Apparently there was a bit of a fight between them…. and Richard didn’t want me at all.”

The actor also revealed that before the movie’s release, he thought it would be a total flop, and he said as much to his friend Sam Neil over dinner one night. Later, Hugh said about his initial impression of the rom-com “I was clearly wrong and the film changed my life. It was the beginning of a happy friendship with Richard Curtis, and I’ve always had the greatest respect for Mike Newell who taught me things I use to this day.”

Despite the rocky start to Richard’s impression of Hugh, the pair went on to make two other iconic rom-coms together, Notting Hill and Love Actually, so the actor obviously convinced him eventually that he had it in him.

Finding someone to play Carrie also presented some challenges, Duncan explained, and after an extensive auditioning process in the US, they offered the role to two actresses – both of whom turned it down.

Back in the UK, they heard on the grapevine that established actress Andie MacDowell was in town, and quickly arranged a meeting, “We found out Andie MacDowell was staying at The Dorchester, so Mike and I arranged to meet her in the bar. As soon as we met her, Mike knew she was the one,” the producer said.

And it was Andie who would end up delivering probably the film’s most famous – and cheesy – line after Hugh Grant’s character declared his undying love for her as the pair stood in the pouring rain. “Is it still raining? I hadn’t noticed,” Carrie deadpans, a delivery that Duncan thinks in hindsight might have missed the mark.

“Of course Carrie knows it’s raining! She’s drenched, he’s drenched. She means it ironically,” he explained. “If Andie had said it with a smile, no one would have mentioned it!”

Four Weddings and a Funeral is packed with laughs – and at the funeral of Gareth more than a few tears – and it’s popularity is such that it has even born a TV show. Created by Mindy Kaling, the show over ten episodes followed the framework of the film – but it didn’t resonate with the public in the same way the film had.

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ legal team have requested a mistrial of his case as he currently remains on trial for charges including racketeering and sex trafficking by force

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ legal team have requested a mistrial after the end of week three’s proceedings.

The music mogul, 55, is currently on trial in New York after pleading not guilty to charges including racketeering and sex trafficking by force. Now, his lawyers have made a second attempt to have proceedings declared invalid, claiming “prosecutorial misconduct”.

In a letter sent to Judge Arun Subramanian on Saturday, June 7, the defence allege “the government has presented testimony that it knew or should have known was materially false related to its allegation that Mr. Combs dangled Bryana Bongolan from the balcony of Cassie Ventura’s apartment in September 2016.”

The note, which was seen by PEOPLE, went on: “Accordingly, to avoid an unfair conviction in this case the Court should grant a mistrial.”

The Bad Boy Records founder’s team also argued his ex-girlfriend Cassie’s testimony, in which she claimed to have witnessed the musician dangle Bryana from a balcony, was “demonstrably false”. They said this was due to text messages allegedly showing she only learned of the supposed incident afterwards.

The letter continued to argue: “The incident, as alleged, is disturbing and powerful evidence, and the government has used it to depict Mr. Combs in an extremely negative light, as an angry and dangerous man who terrified Ms. Ventura and her friends.”

The lawyers also argued the prosecution presented photos of Bryana’s alleged injuries from the incident, which were said to have been taken on 26 September 2016 in Los Angeles, even though “the government has long known” Combs was in New York City between 24-29 September that year.

The defence also claimed the prosecution “repeatedly attempted to disrupt” their line of questioning when they tried to “expose the perjury upon cross-examination.”

“All of this was highly improper and exacerbated the harm caused by […] the perjured testimony,” the letter continued. “The balcony incident is just one example of prosecutorial misconduct during this trial.”

At the end of May Combs’ lawyers requested a mistrial after prosecutors asked Lance Jiminez, an arson investigator from the Los Angeles Fire Department, if fingerprint evidence related to the bombing of Kid Cudi’s car had been destroyed and who could have authorised the decision.

At the time, the rapper’s lawyers argued the line of questioning could potentially hint that their client was able to buy his way out of trouble. However, the judge denied this appeal and said the questions were not prejudicial to the case.

The case is set to continue on Monday. Combs’ ex, who took to the stand under a pseudonym, is continuing with her testimony.

The case is expected to last six weeks.

After Justin Bieber shared an Instagram post with a cryptic caption about ‘transactional relationships’, some of his fans urged him to seek help as they expressed concern for him

Justin Bieber’s fans have expressed their concern for the singer after he admitted that he is “tired of transactional relationships” in a new post on social media. The Baby singer shared a series of statements on Instagram today, including a cryptic caption alongside two black-and-white selfies.

He wrote: “Tired of transactional relationships. If I have to do something to be loved, that’s not love.” Amid his posting spree on Instagram, the Peaches hitmaker also shared a video of controversial singer Chris Brown.

In the footage shared on Justin’s Instagram Stories, Chris can be seen dancing and randomly yelling. Brown, who was released from a UK prison on bail last month, is set to perform in Amsterdam this evening. Justin captioned the video of Brown with the word “mood”.

The father-of-one, who shares little Jack Blues with his wife Hailey Bieber, also seemed to reflect on his emotional exhaustion in an additional post – and many of his followers took to the comment section to express concern. “Someone needs to do a wellness check. He is NOT OK,” one wrote.

Someone else described Justin as “the Britney Spears of our generation” while a fan assured him: “You are loved by us, the real beliebers.” One more urged Justin to “get help” saying: “Bro stop posting and get help I’m serious.”

One reflected: “Love is transactional, that’s the point, that’s real love. Love is not supposed to be unconditional, unless it’s your child. You can’t love someone who doesn’t give you anything to love them for. This post sounds like it’s coming from a 20-year-old, not from someone who is in their 30s with a wife and kid.”

A fan added: “Your son loves you unconditionally. He doesn’t know you’re THE Justin Bieber! He just knows you as Dad, and for him that’s enough!” Someone else defended Justin by saying: “To the people in the comments being negative: Justin has been venting and sharing his feelings on his social media for years now.

“It’s really honorable to see a person of his caliber be so open with his thoughts. It takes a strong person to admit to the world that some days are harder than others. Stop shaming him for sharing. He’s a raw and vulnerable human who goes through the motions like the rest of us. Let him share and be real. It makes him admirable.”

Sharing more reflections on his Instagram Stories, Justin also addressed the pressure he has felt during his careers when he was urged to work harder. He said: “I don’t think any of us can handle hearing, ‘You just gotta try a little harder and you will be like me.’ It’s not true. I listened to those fools who told me to work harder. And there’s no end to trying to earn ur spot in this life because I tried.” He added: “U have everything u need right now.”

In another recent post, he wrote: “U could point at my flaws. Or u could recognize ur own lil b****,” before adding a red droplet emoji. But this admission also caused concern among fans as one said: “So hard and sad to watch. Why are the people around him not helping him when he’s clearly struggling. He’s not clear at all and hurting.”

Some of his followers have also urged Justin to take a break from social media due to his lengthy rants. In an Instagram post this week, over a pink background, he shared with his followers: “Telling other humans they deserve something is like raising someone else’s kids. Who are you to tell someone what someone should or shouldn’t have.

“The audacity. That’s not your place. God decides what we deserve.” One fan commented: “God told me you need a social media break,” – and over 21,000 people liked the comment.