The actress who played Katie Fitch in the critically acclaimed drama Skins revealed the “minimum wage” realities of the defining drama and why she is finally taking ownership of her 34-year-old self.
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Megan Prescott starred in E4’s Skins as a teenager(Image: megartron/Instagram)
To the millions of teenagers who tuned into Channel 4 in the late 2000s, Skins was the ultimate badge of cool – a gritty, hedonistic, and unapologetic look at British youth. But for the actors at the heart of the storm, the reality was far less glamorous.
Megan Prescott, who shot to fame at just 16 as the abrasive but vulnerable Katie Fitch, has become the latest star to call out the show’s legacy. In a new interview with Cosmopolitan, the 34-year-old has slammed the “hypocrisy” of an industry that sexualised her as a child for profit, only to judge her for taking ownership of that same sexuality as an adult.
“I’m treated better on OnlyFans than I was on Skins,” she revealed to the magazine. While Skins launched the careers of Hollywood heavyweights like Nicholas Hoult, Dev Patel, and Daniel Kaluuya, Megan revealed that for the regular cast, the financial rewards didn’t match the level of fame.
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Megan claimed that the cast were essentially working for pennies despite appearing on one of the most popular shows ever to air in British television. She said, “We worked it out by the hour once, and it was minimum wage.”
While £400 a week felt like a fortune to a 16-year-old in the mid-2000s, the long-term reality was bleak. Due to the nature of their contracts, the stars see no residuals from the show’s massive success on streaming platforms like Netflix.
The safeguarding on set, or lack thereof, is the most important aspect of Megan’s criticism. She discusses how she approached filming explicit scenes as a teenager with older actors, a stance that other former students, like Kaya Scodelario, have taken to criticism in recent years.
Megan demonstrates a flagrant double standard in how society views women. She contends that the sexualized child star industry is happy to “skinny-dip” in its profits, but that it turns its back on those same women who choose to do it themselves.
She continued, “We constantly see it with child stars.” They are highly sexualized, but when they reach the point where they are like, “You’re right, this does make money, but I’m going to be the main benefactor of it,” “people are like, “Stop, I don’t like the idea of you selling sexuality.”
She continues, “I have always felt the hypocrisy.” Why can’t I, as a mature woman, take control of my body and sexuality and make three times as much money if we are all ok with me having sex scenes on television as a child?
Megan had a brutal “reality check” thanks to Leaving Skins. She moved into smaller roles in Holby City and Silent Witness before the show’s defining status, which made it difficult for her to find consistent acting work.
She initially denied being a victim of “internalized misogyny,” citing fear that the acting industry would have blacklisted her for working in strip clubs as a young woman.
Her life changed before the pandemic. Megan followed a friend’s advice and created an OnlyFans account after being furloughed by a manager. She claims that the decision has had a transformative impact on both financially and emotionally.
The former child star claimed she has finally found a place where she serves as the “main benefactor” of her own brand by removing the “middleman” of the streaming and production companies.
After six years, the teen drama, which aired on E4, came to an end.
Continue reading the article.
Channel 4 has been contacted for comment.
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Scott Meenagh needed a reason to leave his bed early thanks to Sport. The 36-year-old is currently aiming for a medal at his third and final Winter Paralympics.
When he was injured while serving with the Parachute Regiment in Afghanistan in 2011, his life was forever changed. In Helmand Province, he accidentally stepped on an improvised explosive device, killing one of his closest friends. He lost both legs.
Before the accident, Meenagh played rugby and later switched to biathlon, a brutal cross-country skiing and shooting match.
The Milan-Cortina games from March 6 through March 5 will commemorate the 50th anniversary of the first Winter Paralympics.
Meenagh said, “I needed a goal.” I needed something to get me back on track and in the swing of life once more. And what sport gives you the chance to improve yourself every day.
I believe I’m in a real position at the moment because of that. I’m not just given the gift of improving myself. I strive to be better every day because I know I’m expected to be better.
“Some very difficult times have happened in my life,” I said. In Afghanistan, I lost a very close friend and suffered a lot of trauma. Your sense of a strong appetite for life is confirmed by your perspective. And you make the best of every day when you’ve probably been at the bottom.
The first high-performance sport’s first-ever experience was rowing at the 2014 Invictus Games. In front of my friends and family, I was able to pull on that tracksuit from Great Britain and compete on a global stage.
two days ago
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“People assumed I was there,” I said.
However, some people were reluctant to support Meenagh when she first started thinking about becoming a biathlete and aspiring to compete in the Winter Paralympics.
“Eddie the Eagle responded” to my questioning when I began on that journey.”
He refers to Eddie “the Eagle” Edwards, the first British ski jumper to compete at a Winter Olympics.
At the 1988 Winter Olympics, Edwards came in third place by a long shot, but some viewers turned their backs on him. He won over millions of viewers worldwide, and his adventures were the subject of a movie in 2016.
However, Meenagh dared to dream, and the dream that was born in coffee shops turned into a reality.
He said, “I believe people assumed I was there.” There were many “we’re not handing out a free tracksuit” discussions right away.
I quickly found myself surrounded by people who were enthusiastic about the concept. We could see the viability of a cross-country program.
Meenagh had been a member of the GB rowing team up until 2016, but a few years prior, he was inspired to switch.
He said, “They sent me to Russia in 2014 as part of an inspiration program,” “and I got to experience the Paralympic Games.” And I was able to watch the biathlon there.
I have the right to anticipate success.
Images courtesy of Getty
The entire Paralympic community helped Meenagh achieve his dream.
He said, “We reached out to countries like Canada and the United States for support, training, and guidance on how to get up and running.” We started out as a small group of people in a coffee shop, and it has since grown.
As the first British athlete to compete in a sit-ski at the 2018 Olympics in South Korea, I attended the games with the support and funding from UK sport. There were many other athletes, many other staff members, and it wasn’t just me.
The Covid-19 pandemic led to Meenagh’s sixth-place finish at the 2022 Games in Beijing, where Meenagh advanced to the next stage.
He describes himself as unapologetically ambitious and wants to win a medal at his farewell games.
Meenagh continued, “I’m starting to feel a little pressure entering these games.
In terms of the sport’s trajectory, the accomplishments I’ve made, and the results I’ve had at World Championships.
It’s no wonder Holly Ramsay and her Olympian fiance Adam Peaty took some much-needed time off and traveled to Lapland for a romantic getaway with their upcoming wedding in just a few days.
Just before their engagement, Holly Ramsay and Adam Peaty took a romantic vacation in Lapland just before the ceremony. Gordon Ramsay’s daughter, who is also a professional swimmer, and Olympic swimmer Adam also had high spirits as they traversed mountains of snow in Finland.
And they made the decision to share their break on social media by posting a number of photos of their absence to fans in an effort to spread the holiday spirit. Following a family feud that reportedly left her out in the cold, Adam’s mother desperately tried to reach out to her son.
Caroline Peaty’s absence from Holly’s hen party left her with a significant question mark about whether or not she would be invited to the lavish wedding ceremony. She so heartbreakingly stated in a recent interview, “I want Adam to know that no matter what happens in the future, you can talk to me whenever you want.”
She continued to state to the Daily Mail, “I would not forgive anything you’ve done.” I’m so in love with you. I sincerely hope your marriage turns out well, and I sincerely hope that Holly and you have a successful union. I want everything to end, so I’m speaking out.
She claimed that she was at home looking after Adam’s young son, who he shares with his former partner at the time of Holly’s hen party, which included her mother Tana, Victoria Beckham, close family friends, and her siblings. She revealed that she was left crying and that she “didn’t want to live” because that was how she felt at the time.
Caroline claims that her and Holly’s relationship deteriorated as a result of her extended family’s disapproval of the engagement party. She claimed to have sent Holly a text in an effort to acquaint her with her feelings, which irritated Adam. She continued to assert that she thought her son was “in Gordon’s clutches,” which has further exacerbated the ongoing rift.
In a stunning eight-wicket victory over the Perth Scorchers, Matt Renshaw and Jack Wildermuth led Brisbane Heat to their highest-ever Big Bash League victory.
Colin Munro was sent off the first ball after winning the match 258 to the Gabba, but Wildermuth and Renshaw combined to set a Big Bash record of 211.
Renshaw attempted a tight second run to earn his first T20 century with a score of 48 balls before getting too tired and receiving a run-out of 102.
Wildermuth led the charge with 46 balls, which allowed Heat to score nine off the final over, which was bowled by Aaron Hardie, before Wildermuth was able to sustain his first T20 century.
After Wildermuth blocked a yorker and ran, Hardie had an easy chance to run out Bryant before retiring hurt on 28 when he slipped during a third run and suffered a shoulder injury.
Wildermuth slammed the penultimate delivery to backward point after two balls, and a misfield made it possible for him to scamper back for a second, ending unbeaten on 110 from 54.
The second-most successful chase in a T20 is the third-highest success chase for any T20, and it is the first time two players have eclipsed 100 in the second-innings.
In their astonishing knocks, Renshaw and Wildermuth each hit five fours and nine sixes.
Renshaw said, “The message was to trust ourselves,” during the break.
“Funnily enough, I hit the ball horribly in the indoor nets during the break.
We had some luck on our part, but knowing how well they batted gave us the assurance that the target was attainable and the wicket was excellent. “
Because captain Nathan McSweeney, who was supposed to start at number three, rolled his ankle while attempting a catch in the Scorchers’ innings and was unable to bat, Heat’s chase was even more remarkable.
Big Bash records the 36 sixes both teams struck, as well as the 515 runs that were scored throughout the contest.
The Scorchers won the game 257-6 thanks to Australia’s Cooper Connolly’s 77 and New Zealand’s Finn Allen’s 79 off 38.
The Heat won the Big Bash championship game in front of 25, 000 fans in Brisbane, making it the second highest score ever recorded.
In the 2021-22 matchup between Hobart Hurricanes and Melbourne Stars, the team has the record for the most Big Bash victories.
After the death of prominent youth leader Sharif Osman Hadi on Thursday at Singapore’s General Hospital, violent protests have erupted in numerous Bangladeshi cities.
Hadi passed away last week from gunshot wounds sustained in a murder attempt in Dhaka, Bangladesh’s capital.
What we currently know is as follows.
Sharif Osman Hadi, who was he?
Hadi, 32, was a well-known figure in Bangladesh’s student-led uprising in 2024.
In the upcoming elections, which are scheduled for February 2026, he planned to run for president of the city’s Bijoynagar district as a candidate for the “Platform for Revolution” or “Inquilab Mancha” or “Platform for Revolution.”
Hadi also publicly criticised India, where the ousted Bangladeshi prime minister Sheikh Hasina fled following the uprising last year, and how it impacted domestic politics there.
In Dhaka, Bangladesh on December 19, 2025, protesters gathered in Shahbag Square and demanded justice for the killing of student leader Sharif Osman Hadi, who had been receiving treatment there after being shot in the head.
When, where, and in what manner did Hadi pass away?
Authorities in Singapore and Inqilab Mancha made the announcement on Thursday.
After being hurt in an assassination attempt on December 12, he died in a hospital in Singapore where he was receiving care. On a motorcycle that was mounted next to the battery-powered auto-rickshaw he was riding in, two assailants struck him in the head. He was taken to the hospital in Dhaka Medical College.
Hadi was discovered to have brain stem damage, and he was treated there on December 15 after being transported from Dhaka to Singapore General Hospital’s neurosurgical Intensive Care Unit (ICU).
Hadi succumbed to his injuries despite the best efforts of the doctors, according to a statement from Singapore’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday.
In a late on Thursday Facebook post, Inqilab Mancha stated that Allah had granted Osman Hadi the honor of martyr in the struggle against Indian hegemony.
According to Al Jazeera’s Moudud Ahmmed Sujan, on Friday, groups of mourners gathered in the Shahbag neighborhood in central Dhaka to await Hadi’s body, which was scheduled to arrive in the capital on Friday evening.
What was the response of the Bangladeshi authorities?
Bangladeshi police launched a search for Hadi’s killers on December 12.
The Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), the nation’s counterterrorism unit, is also involved in this manhunt.
Two important suspects were depicted in stills of the incident on CCTV in a news release on December 13 in a release. For information leading to their arrest, police offered a reward of five million taka (roughly $42,000).
The CCTV stills feature two men both sporting black glasses and clothes. One wears a black hoodie, the other a black dress shirt, and one wristwatch.
According to The Daily Star, Bangladeshi police and border guards have so far detained at least 20 people in connection with the incident, but the investigation is still ongoing.
How did Bangladeshi leaders react to the passing of Hadi?
Muhammad Yunus, the interim head of the nation’s interim government, expressed his condolences and described Hadi’s death as “an irreparable loss for the country.”
In a televised speech on Thursday, he said, “The country’s march toward democracy cannot be halted by fear, terror, or bloodshed.”
Following Friday prayers and a Saturday-long day of mourning, the government also made special prayers available at mosques.
The acting leader of the Bangladesh National Party (BNP), Tareq Rahman, wrote on Facebook, “We are deeply saddened by Sharif Osman Hadi’s passing. We are deeply saddened by the passing of Sharif Osman Hadi, the spokesperson for Inqilab Manch and independent candidate for Dhaka-8 constituency.”
The National Citizen Party (NCP) expressed condolences to Hadi’s family in a news release to local media outlets.
How did protesters react to his death?
Violence started to erupt on Thursday in Dhaka and other parts of the nation after the news of Hadi’s death, which was then expected to continue on Friday.
The ministry of home affairs and the ministry of law’s heads must resign, accusing the government of failing to protect Hadi’s safety. They also demand that the gunmen, who many believe have fled India, be returned.
Tanvir Chowdhury, a reporter for Al Jazeera from Dhaka, reported that “it’s mostly students, but there’s also people from all walks of life, with some political party elements.”
Their main thrust is “We want justice” for Osman Hadi’s murderer.
They claim that the shooter must be charged as soon as reasonably or they will continue to protest.
In Dhaka’s Karwan Bazar, a group of protesters gathered outside the head office of the nation’s top Bengali-language newspaper Prothom Alo, which they claimed is quoting as pro-India. According to the websites of various prominent media outlets, they then jumped into the building.
Another group of protesters pushed into the offices of the Daily Star, which were also viewed as being pro-Indian, and set the building on fire a few hundred meters (yards) away.
On Friday, protesters chanted slogans in front of the Prothom Alo daily newspaper’s [Mahmud Hossain Opu/AP] headquarters.
28 journalists and employees were reportedly stranded for four hours in the burning building, according to the outlet.
Soldiers and paramilitary border guards were stationed outside the two buildings to keep an eye on the situation, but they did not immediately intervene to disperse the protesters.
On Thursday, protesters reportedly threw stones at the Assistant High Commissioner of India in Chittagong, according to local media.
Following the passing of prominent student leader Sharif Osman Hadi on December 19, 2025, the Prothom Alo newspaper office in Dhaka is attacked. [Abdul Goni/Reuters]
What was the cause of Bangladesh’s student protests in 2024?
Students in Bangladesh took to the streets in July 2024 to protest the traditional job quota system, which in 1971 was largely viewed as the political elite today.
As the protests grew, Hasina set up a brutal crackdown. Nearly 1,400 people were killed and more than 20, 000 were injured before she was eventually ousted and fled to India, according to the nation’s International Crimes Tribunal (ICT). She is still there today.
The former Bangladesh leader had ordered police to use “lethal weapons” against the protesters, according to records obtained by Al Jazeera’s Investigative Unit in July of this year.
Hasina was found guilty of crimes against humanity last month in absentia, and the Dhaka tribunal sentenced her to death. She will now be sent back to Bangladesh where India has not yet agreed to do so.
Why has India become enraged by this?
According to Al Jazeera’s Chowdhury, there is a strong anti-India sentiment in the crowd in Dhaka on Friday. They claim that India regularly interferes with Bangladesh’s affairs, particularly right before the elections, and that former Indian prime minister Sheikh Hasina has been making provocative statements there.
Many Bangladeshis are now posting rumors that the assailants have fled to India following Hadi’s death online. These assertions have been made by some youth party politicians.
The Indian High Commission will remain closed until the Indian High Commission returns assassins from Hadi Bhai, according to Sarjis Alam, a leader of the youth-led National Citizen Party (NCP). Never, Ever. We’re engaged in combat”!
Nadim Hawlader, 32, a volunteer activist for the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, claimed Hadi had been “brutally murdered” to silence opposition. He is from Dhaka’s airport area.
We are here to protest his murder and what we perceive as Indian aggression, Hawlader said.
He claimed that India had abused its position in Bangladesh since 1971 and that New Delhi had supported Sheikh Hasina’s rule for the previous 17 years, leading to political repression and killings.
