Category Entertainment News

Heartbroken Patrick Kielty bid his mother a final farewell in Northern Ireland on Monday – carrying her coffin to her funeral.

The 54-year-old presenter was downcast as he prepared to say goodbye to his mother, Mary Kielty, who passed away at her home in Co Down on Saturday. Hundreds turned out to line the streets as those close to Mary and her family came together for a ceremony at the Church of the Sacred Heart in Dundrum.

Patrick wore a grey suit and joined other pallbearers as he carried his mother’s coffin into the church. Mary was reportedly in her 80s at the time of her death – and a notice about her passing described her as a “loving mother” and “devoted grandmother”.

The notice added that she “will be sadly missed and lovingly remembered by her entire family circle, neighbours and friends”. Mary was the proud mother of Patrick along with his brothers John and Cahal.

Patrick has been married to This Morning host Cat Deeley since 2012 and they have two children together, sons Milo, nine, and James, six. Cat remained at home to care for their young sons as the family processed their grief. A spokesperson told The Mirror: “Cat remained at home to be there for her two young children before and after school on this very sad day”.

The Sun reports that the funeral took place at 1pm on Monday and that mourners were also reminded of the tragic passing of Mary’s husband, Jack, who died aged 44 during the Troubles. The publication quotes the parish priest Robert Fleck referring to Mary as enduring a “difficult life”.

He is quoted stating: “It left its impact not only on the close family and friends, but also on the wider community. On the occasion of her funeral, we recommit ourselves to working for peace and reconciliation in the divided community that is the north of Ireland”.

He added: “Mary had a good sense of humour, her family have thrived on this gift. Recently, Pope Francis met a number of world comedians, including Mary’s stand-up comic son Patrick. He spoke, the Pope did, of the gift that was theirs, and of how it also pointed to the joy of resurrection”.

Cat has been hosting This Morning since the latter half of last year following the departures of both Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby. In an interview last year, Cat said she would not hesitate to quit working on the long-running daytime TV show if it began to have an impact on her health.

Speaking to Grazia magazine last October, she said: “I don’t feel particularly vulnerable]taking over from Holly and Phil]. And I’d always think about my own mental health. If something was affecting me, or I hated going into work, I’d walk away. It’s more important that I enjoy what I do”.

The presenter was also quizzed on ‘ toxic workplace ‘ allegations that had been attached to the This Morning set, with former stars Dr Ranj and Eammon Holmes previously hitting out at the ITV show. She said: “Well, obviously Ben]Shephard] and I had heard all of those stories. I can only speak as I find it, and I have no idea what happened before we were there, but I haven’t seen one scrap of it”.

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Danny Jones ‘ father has reportedly quit his radio job after his colleagues labelled the singer a ‘ pig ‘ after his shock kiss with Maura Higgins.

McFly singer Danny, 38, and Love Island star Maura, 34, became pals after meeting during their stint on the I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! jungle at the end of last year. Months later, married Danny and Maura hit headlines after they were filmed sharing a drunken kiss at a BRIT Awards afterparty.

Danny is married to Georgia Horsley, with the two sharing a seven-year-old son called Cooper. Meanwhile, Maura is newly single after splitting from Pete Wicks, who she was briefly dating while she was in the I’m A Celebrity jungle. Amid the fallout from the kiss, it has been reported that Danny’s estranged dad, Alan, is “deeply upset” by the comments his colleagues made about the singer.

Alan presents five days a week on Fresh Radio Spain in Benidorm, but is now said to have quit his role. A source recently claimed: “Danny’s dad is refusing to go back on air on his radio show, and furiously ranted at station staff after two of his co-presenters were mocking his son live on air.

” He’s been telling people that Danny is going through a marriage crisis, and so it’s upsetting to then have his colleagues talking about it behind his back. “The insider claimed to The Sun it was ‘ hugely upsetting ‘ to find out his co-presenters reportedly called his son a ‘ pig ‘ for kissing Maura.

Alan and Danny have been estranged for 18 years, with the singer previously opening up on his lack of a relationship with his dad on I’m A Celeb. Alan wasn’t invited to his wedding to Georgia in 2014. The Mirror have reached out to Danny and Fresh Radio for comment.

During his stint on I’m A Celeb, the Bolton-born musician shared that he had” found a dad “in fellow contestant Barry McGuigan. His words hinted at the long-standing estrangement from his own father, Alan—a relationship that, despite efforts to reconcile, remains broken. After his parents ‘ divorce, Danny struggled to rebuild any connection with his dad.

The final blow came last year when, after two decades of distance, they arranged to meet – only for Alan to pull out at the last moment. Danny previously admitted he has long wrestled with guilt over the happiness he has built, knowing his mother, Kathy, hadn’t had the same since the family fell apart.

In an episode of The High Performance Podcast, Danny spoke candidly about his decision to cut ties completely. When asked if simply picking up the phone could mend things, his response was firm:” No. I don’t know him anymore, and he doesn’t know me. If I heard his voice, I wouldn’t even recognise it. He made the choice to have me, but I could never walk away from my own son the way he did. If my child wanted to talk to me, I’d be fighting to make it happen. My dad hasn’t done that – so why should I? “

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EastEnders star Lorraine Stanley has hit out at Sabrina Carpenter after her daughter went to see the American singer in concert.

Lorraine, who is best known for her role as Karen Taylor in the long-running soap, received a short clip of the Espresso singer’s performance on stage at Wembley Arena in London. In the video, Lorraine watched as Sabrina rocked a red babydoll, stocking and suspenders as she straddled a giant red bed.

The actress ‘ eight-year-old daughter was in the sold-out audience with her dad Mark while Lorraine stayed home. Lorraine also called herself a ‘ bad mum ‘ for allowing her husband to take the child to the singer’s concert – even though Sabrina’s lyrics and songs are famously known to be extremely suggestive.

Lorraine said on social media: “Just got sent this video…. Nancy is watching that!!! I didn’t realise she was that S***ty. No wonder Mark was keen to take her. Oh God! #toomuch #badmum”.

It comes after Sabrina’s racy performance at the BRIT Awards was hit with Ofcom complaints. The pop star kicked off the annual music award ceremony earlier this month with a rendition of her hits Espresso and Bed Chem. She took to the stage with a performance in a red lacy outfit as her and her dancers performed to the innuendo laden song.

The show was broadcast live on ITV and ITVX from 8: 15pm, well before the 9pm watershed – and some viewers weren’t happy. She finished her routine by kneeling in front of a male dancer who then gave a knowing wink to the camera. Viewers rushed to social media to share their reaction as one wrote: “RIP to the 9pm watershed”, whilst a second added: “Well this is just an awkward watch sat with the parents”.

A third shared: “I love sabrina so much cos I can see the British public reporting this to ofcom immediately”, with a fourth adding: “Bit inappropriate for an awards show…”. As many speculated Ofcom would be flooded with unhappy viewers, it has been confirmed the awards show has received 825 complaints from viewers.

Ofcom confirmed the majority of the complaints related to Sabrina Carpenter’s opening dance routine, and Charlie XCX’s outfit. Meanwhile, Sabrina’s concerts are known to start with a tongue-in-cheek routine where she unwraps herself from a towel to reveal gorgeous lingerie underneath.

After the towel trick, her performance becomes raunchier with suggestive sex positions and dance routines that her fans seem to love but aren’t to everyone’s taste.

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Coronation Street and Emmerdale have teased some huge news ahead of a schedule change next year for the broadcaster.

It has been announced tonight that former soap star Kelvin Fletcher and his wife Liz Fletcher, both 41 – who appear together on reality TV show Fletchers ‘ Family Farm – will host a new podcast focused on both soaps. Off Script is set to launch on Friday and they will be joined by “big star soap fans” each week to talk about Corrie and Emmerdale.

The news was shared by Kelvin – known for playing Andy Sugden on Emmerdale – and Liz in a video on Instagram. It was shared in a joint post by them, ITV and accounts for both soaps. The caption teased: “Big Soap News! A brand new Vodcast, ‘ Off Script ‘ is coming this Friday! Get ready to dive into all things Corrie and Emmerdale as]Kelvin and Liz] are joined by big star soap fans each week”!

In the video message, Liz said: “Hey guys, we’ve got some exciting news. We are the new hosts of the brand new Vodcast – which is a video podcast, in case you didn’t know, of Off Script: Coronation Street and Emmerdale. Where we’re gonna be talking all about soaps and to all of the actors”. Kelvin then revealed that Claire Sweeney, whose latest soap role has been Cassie Plummer on Corrie, will be the “first special guest”.

The announcement comes just weeks on from the news of cuts to staff on the two long-running soaps ahead of a reduction in the length of some episodes. It has since been suggested that the apparent downsizing of the teams could involve 12 percent of staff being made redundant.

A source told the Mirror last month that 75 roles are expected to be made redundant out of the 600 people working across both Corrie and Emmerdale. They told us: “From 2026, and if the proposals are agreed, through consultation we would expect around 75 roles to be made redundant. ITV always looks to minimise the impact of a reduction in roles by not filling vacancies and through voluntary redundancy”.

A spokesperson for ITV said at the time: “We can’t say for sure at this stage as we will be entering into a consultation process with staff. Our aim is to achieve as many as we can through voluntary redundancy and filling vacancies”.

It had been announced prior that, from January next year, the air time of both Corrie and Emmerdale will be reduced. Fans will get a combined total of five hours a week rather than the currently scheduled six hours. The upcoming “soaps power hour” will see Emmerdale broadcast from 8pm to 8.30pm each day between Monday to Friday, with Corrie airing from 8.30pm to 9pm. Episodes will continue to be released at 7am on ITVX, before transmission that evening.

ITV’s Managing Director of Media and Entertainment Kevin Lygo discussed the decision in a statement, saying: “The new commissioning pattern is viewer-led. We already give more choice than ever to viewers on how they watch us through ITVX and we want to present their favourite soap to them, in the most digestible way.

” In a world where there is so much competition for viewers ‘ time and attention, and viewing habits continue to change, we believe this is the right amount of episodes that fans can fit into their viewing schedule, to keep up to date with the shows. Research insights also show us that soap viewers are increasingly looking to the soaps for their pacey storytelling. Streaming-friendly, 30 minute episodes better provide the opportunity to meet viewer expectations for storyline pace, pay-off and resolution.

“Whilst viewing is growing on ITVX, we know a significant proportion of our soaps ‘ audience still watch us via the schedule. This new pattern is in the DNA of the soap genre – nobody else does 30 minute drama this successfully. It creates a soap power hour that’s consistent, and easy to find in the linear schedule, for the UK’s biggest soaps”.

Kevin concluded: “This new commissioning pattern will mean five hours of soaps a week, rather than the current six. We are conscious this will have an impact for the people who work on the soaps team. We will support our colleagues in ITV Studios as they work through these changes, and will do what we can to mitigate the impact on our people.

” These changes are motivated by doing what we believe is best for the continuing success of these important programmes in the long term. They also create headroom in the overall programme budget for investment in programming that can help ITV grow reach in a very very competitive market. “

Off Script launches Friday. It will be available on YouTube, ITVX, STV Player, Global Player and other podcast platforms.

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Harry Potter star Jessie Cave has revealed a surprising new career path after rising to fame in the beloved film series.

Jessie, 37, played Ron Weasley’s girlfriend Lavender Brown in the movies, beating out thousands of other girls for the role and securing a huge fanbase to this day. Alongside acting, Jessie has also dabbled in writing and art – but now has a different method to fund her lifestyle. Jessie has now started a “kinky” OnlyFans for a very specific type of customer – those with a “thing” for her very long hair.

On her profile, she advertises: “Former Harry Potter actress, writer, doodler and now Only Fans Long Hair Specialist. I do NICHE HAIR CONTENT which you may well quite like. How magical! Owl drop near daily. Wizard warning: Will not do explicit sexual content. Might be in my underwear. Will respond to Dm’s. Let’s get to know each other”!

After setting her boundaries, the mother of four enthused: “If you have a hair thing, this is the place for you. If you want something specific, you can message me and I will be happy to see what we can do. LOVE JESSIE XXX”.

Jessie first broached the topic of her OnlyFans with her on-off boyfriend Alfie Brown, with whom she shares her children. The duo chatted on their podcast Before We Break Up Again and the actress explained: “It’s never kind of dirty comments, but I do get lots of interest in the hair thing, and I just thought, f**k it, I’m gonna do something that is very niche. I know it’s niche, but it’s been really cool to do. It’s been quite liberating”.

She continued: “I really am choosing to think of this as an empowering moment for me, because I have been this very kind of straight, prim actress for a lot of my career. And this is very much a way of me saying, ‘ Okay, I’m doing something that is not normal. This is weird and me and a bit kinky, and why not? ‘”

Alfie explained that he was acting as “devil’s advocate” during their chat, and asked his partner if she was “prepared” for how shocked some people might be by her turn to adult content.

Jessie made it clear that she was more than ready for any criticism, and was excited for the funding. “I don’t mind it”, she said, adding: “I’ve reached the point now where I’ve done the same things for a few years with writing and acting and comedy, I’ve had largely negative experiences in all three fields, with glimmers of lovely people and good work.

” But I am at a crossroads, and I want something to change and I want something to change with my career and I want to do things that I enjoy and that are fun and are not serious. “

While Jessie is game for her new challenge, her children might not be – having cringed even at her romantic scenes in Harry Potter. Jessie and Alfie share Donnie, Margot, Tennessee, and Becker, and they couldn’t get over watching their mum kiss Rupert Grint when she played his girlfriend.

” During lockdown, we got through all of them. I asked them, ‘ What’s your favourite bit about Harry Potter? ‘ hoping they would say, ‘ You, mummy ‘ – but they find me quite embarrassing in it! They can’t get over the fact that I kiss Ron, “she told Closer magazine back in 2021.

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Legendary Welsh actor Michael Sheen has written off £1m of people’s debts in South Wales in order to draw attention to the inequalities in the debt market.

The star pulled off the huge stunt to help 900 residents in the life changing gesture of solidarity, as he used £100, 000 of his own money to to buy £1m of debt owed by people in South Wales and then wrote the debts off overnight.

The 56-year-old has a successful TV and film career both in Britain and abroad, leading him to be one of the most respected actors of his generation.

It comes as the actors documentary airs on Channel 4 tonight – Michael Sheen’s Secret One Million Pound Giveaway – in an audacious campaign to demand better borrowing – and he put his money where his heart is.

Taking on payday lenders, loan sharks and the ‘ rigged ‘ banking industry, Michael is campaigning to change the high costs of credit, all while using his own money to pay off debts for people in his local community.

According to Celebrity Net Worth, Michael’s net worth is estimated to be around $16 million. This is largely due to his acting career on stage, TV and film with his biggest roles being in the Twilight films, The Queen, Staged, Good Omens and Masters of Sex.

In December 2021, Michael shared he was a ‘ not-for-profit ‘ actor after putting his homes up for sale to help the homeless.

The show begins with the actor entering a Post Office and said: “I’d like to make a withdrawal please. One hundred thousand pounds. And a book of stamps”.

While he knows this is just a drop in the ocean when it comes to the debts in the UK, he told the Big Issue: “It was a big hit, when it came to it. And 900 people having some debts written off is a big deal for them – and certainly was a big deal for me. But it is a drop in the ocean. We want to put the focus on change that could help millions. I was working towards positive change for as many as possible”.

But this isn’t the first time the actor has dug into his pockets to help others. In 2019, the generous star sold two of his mansions in LA and the UK to make sure the Homeless World Cup in Cardiff went ahead after a funding issue. He’s also used cash from shows he’s starred in, including A Very Royal Scandal (in which he played Prince Andrew) and Good Omens – in this way.

“I’ve put my own money into all sorts of things. I’m currently funding the Welsh National Theatre as well. I have found that it carries a lot more weight, you get more done, and a lot more cooperation and collaboration if it is clear you have real skin in the game”.

However he said putting money into the Homeless World Cup “wiped” him out, leaving him with nothing and getting himself into debt. But he said his career is “doing well” and he knows he won’t be able to have this “window” of generosity forever, but while he does, he will carry on with helping others.

By October 2024, more than 2.2 million low-income families had high-cost loans. In 2018 Michael launched the End High Cost Credit Alliance – initially taking on Wonga and BrightHouse – but he knows that vanquishing “the bad guys” is great for getting headlines, yet only opens up another underground, unregulated market for loan sharks to fill.

The documentary shows the actor’s surprise when he discovers that the use of loan sharks is on the rise again, calling it “extraordinary” that people are “heading back into that stuff”. For now, he is continuing to use his earnings from acting to fight it – and said putting as much money as he can into the things that matter most to him.

“It just so happens that going on holiday doesn’t matter to me as much as paying off 900 people’s debts. That can change. I reserve the right to also use my money to buy stuff for my kids. Or for me, if I need a new coat”, he explained.

Michael Sheen’s Secret One Million Pound Giveaway is on Channel 4 on 10 March at 9pm.

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