Category Entertainment News

MAGA influencer Charlie Kirk was shot dead at a Utah Valley University show on Wednesday, just weeks after he launched a vile and misogynistic rant at Taylor Swift

MAGA influencer Charlie Kirk took aim at pop icon Taylor Swift in a shocking misogynistic rant just weeks before his death on Wednesday.

The right-wing podcaster, 31, offered unsolicited advice to the singer’s fiancé Travis Kelce and told the Shake It Off hitmaker she could “go from a cat lady to a JD Vance supporter” following her engagement to the NFL star.

Kirk, a conservative activist and close ally of US President Donald Trump, was shot dead at a Utah Valley University show on Wednesday.

Videos posted to social media from Utah Valley University showed Kirk speaking into a handheld microphone while sitting under a white tent emblazoned with the slogans ‘The American Comeback’ and ‘Prove Me Wrong’, before a single shot was fired.

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Stunned spectators were heard gasping and screaming before people started to run away. His death was confirmed by President Trump, who called the killing “a dark moment” for the country.

Trump said he was “filled with grief and anger at the heinous assassination of Charlie Kirk” in a video address to the nation. “This is a dark moment for America,” Mr Trump said.

“Charlie Kirk travelled the nation, joyfully engaging with everyone interested in good faith debate. His mission was to bring young people into the political process, which he did better than anybody ever.”

Last month, as Taylor and Travis announced their engagement to the world, Kirk opted to offer bizarre sexist advice rather than his congratulations to the happy couple.

“This is something that I hope will make Taylor Swift more conservative,” Kirk told his audience on Real America’s Voice when discussing the couple’s happy news. “Engage in reality more… Reject feminism. Submit to your husband, Taylor. You’re not in charge.”

He went on to claim that Taylor possibly going from “a cat lady to a JD Vance supporter” once she ties the knot with the Kansas City Chiefs player should be something to celebrate. “She should have more children than she has houses,” he quipped.

Taylor angered MAGA supporters when she endorsed Trump’s rival in the last US election. In September 2024, Taylor endorsed US presidential candidate Kamala Harris, saying the vice president at the time was a “steady-handed, gifted leader”, signing off the post with “Childless Cat Lady”.

Prior to Taylor’s post, Trump’s right-hand man JD Vance, now vice president, called Democratic politicians a “bunch of childless cat ladies with miserable lives”. The comment sparked backlash and star’s like Jennifer Aniston condemned the politician’s cruel outburst.

Vance went on to apologise for his comments. “Obviously it was a sarcastic comment,” Vance told the conservative media personality Megyn Kelly.

“People are focusing so much on the sarcasm and not on the substance of what I actually said. The substance of what I said, Megyn – I’m sorry, it’s true.”

Ant and Dec have since issued a statement about their 23-year winning streak ending at The National Television Awards, having missed the ceremony due to filming commitments

Amanda Holden has shared how she thinks her Britain’s Got Talent co-stars Ant and Dec will be feeling about their defeat at The National Television Awards. On Wednesday night, Gary Lineker became the first presenter to end the duo’s 23-year winning streak in the Best TV Presenter category.

Taking to the stage to collect his award, the 64-year-old joked about him being the one to finally win “the Ant and Dec award”.

He went on to say the gong “demonstrates that it is OK to use your platform to speak up on behalf of those who have no voice,” adding: “It’s not lost on me why I might have won this award.”

Gary’s victory followed his first nomination in the category, which also included Stacey Solomon, Claudia Winkleman, and Alison Hammond.

Discussing the result on the Heart Radio Breakfast Show this morning, Amanda said she doesn’t think Ant and Dec will be bothered by their defeat.

She said: “Gary Lineker won it, so congrats to you Gary!”

In response, her co-star Jamie Theakston said: “Unlucky lads,” before remarking: “I’m not sure they’re particularly bothered, are they?”

Amanda replied: “No, I shouldn’t think so, but they’ll be delighted for Gary, they’re such lovely boys.”

Ant and Dec, who missed the ceremony in London due to filming in South Africa, have since shared a message addressing the result.

In the video, Dec began: “Hello from sunny South Africa, it’s us. We just want to jump on here and say a huge thank you to everyone who voted for I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! at the NTAs last night.”

“Yes, thank you very much,” Ant added. “Everyone here is very happy and thank you to everyone that voted for us for the Best Presenter category, even though we couldn’t get it across the line this year. We were beaten by an up and coming new guy, 64-year-old whippersnapper Gary Lineker.”

Dec went on to say: “Congratulations to Gary – great speech too.” Echoing his co-star’s words, Ant added: “Great speech, thoroughly deserved.”

Ahead of the show being aired, the pair shared another clip thanking fans for voting for them.

From their outdoor location, Dec began: “Just us coming to you from South Africa. Just wanted to say thank you to everyone who voted for us.”

Ant added: “Yes, thank you so much, we really appreciate it and sorry we can’t be there but we’re in South Africa. It’s an honour to even be nominated.”

Dec then quipped: “I don’t think they have it on South African telly. You’ll have to text us!”

It wasn’t all bad news for the duo, as their show I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! picked up the award for Best Reality Competition.

Collecting the gong, campmate Coleen Rooney said: “It’s amazing. It was a tough category. We’ve had a fantastic year.”

Other winners on the night included; Strictly Come Dancing for Best Talent Show, EastEnders for Serial Drama and Molly-Mae for the Authored Documentary award.

The hit Netflix series Adolescence also scooped two awards; one for New Drama and another for the show’s young star Owen Cooper in Drama Performance.

Tommy Fury shared a heartfelt message to his partner Molly-Mae after she accepted an award for her documentary Molly-Mae: Behind It All at Wednesday’s National Television Awards

Tommy Fury shared a sweet message on his Instagram stories in response to his partner Molly-Mae Hague bringing home an award for the Authored Documentary category at Wednesday evening’s National Television Awards.

Tommy reposed the winning announcement from the NTA’s Instagram page and wrote alongside: “Words can’t describe!!! So unbelievably proud of you. Well done”, followed by three red heart emojis.

Molly took home the award for her six-episode series, which was released on Prime Video in January this year and details the launch of the Love Islander’s fashion brand following her split from professional boxer Tommy. She was up against other series such as There’s Only One Rob Burrow, Flintoff and Strictly Amy: Cancer and Me.

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While Tommy didn’t attend the NTAs as he was at home with their two-year-old daughter Bambi, Molly was sure to give them a shout-out in her acceptance speech.

Molly said: “Thank you to my friends and family who didn’t choose this life but came on this show for me because they knew how much it meant to me. Thank you guys, you are the best support system that I could ask for”.

“And finally to Tommy and Bambi at home, I love you so much, I couldn’t do it without you guys”.

After Molly won her award, many fans were left furious as they criticised Behind It All’s subject matter in comparison to its competition. One viewer took to X, formerly Twitter, and said: “Molly Mae winning an NTA over Rob Burrow or Amy Dowden is everything that is wrong with the world #NTAS.”

“All those wonderfully powerful documentaries and Molly Mae won!?” another exclaimed.

A third said: “Molly Mae winning that award over the inspirational people like Amy Dowden and Rob Burrow is a massive slap in the face, that’s disgusting. #NTAs”.

However, other viewers have come to the influencer’s defence as it was not her decision which documentaries she was competing alongside.

One viewer pointed out: “Let’s just remember that it wasn’t Molly Mae’s fault she won this and her speech and reference to Rob Burrow’s wife and daughters was lovely.”

Before attending the awards, Molly shared a photo of her stunning outfit to her Instagram page as she wrote: “National television awards… feeling so proud that ‘Molly-Mae: Behind it all’ is nominated tonight.”

The Best TV Presenter deadlock has been broken by Gary Lineker, who ended Ant and Dec’s 24-year-long winning streak, but viewers believe another host should have won the trophy

Viewers of this year’s National Television Awards believe one TV star has been “robbed” of a win. Members of the public were furious to see the longstanding television presenter had gone another year without an awards win, with some asking “what more do they have to do?” A win for former Match of the Day presenter Gary Lineker ended a 24-year winning streak from Ant and Dec.

But other nominees in the same category were tipped to win the award, and according to some NTA viewers, were much more deserving than the former Leicester footballer. Fans flooded to social media site X and shared their dismay at The Traitors’ host losing out again.

Some viewers suggested Claudia Winkleman should have won the award for Best TV Presenter. It’s been a sensational run for Ant and Dec, who won the award every year from 2000 to 2024.

Ex-footballer Lineker picked up the award this year, breaking the deadlock the Geordie duo had made in the category. But some viewers were still upset to see Winkleman passed over once more.

One fan wrote: “I honestly don’t know what I’m more surprised about – that it’s finally been won by someone else or the fact that person wasn’t Claudia Winkleman. What more does she have to do?!”

Another added: “I thought the only presenter to knock Ant and Dec off their run would have been Claudia Winkleman – slightly disappointed it wasn’t Claudia! Love her!”

A third fumed: “Claudia Winkleman robbed but what can you do.” Some were simply relieved to see a new presenter pick up the award after 24 back-to-back wins from Ant and Dec.

One person shared: “Finally someone other than Ant & Dec won for best presenter. I was hoping for Claudia Winkleman. However I’m happy for Gary Linker winning it after all the years of commitment he has given to Match Of The Day.”

Another agreed, replying: “Snap! Not unhappy that Gary won after 25 years of service…”

The Match of the Day presenter confirmed the 2024/25 football season would be his last presenting the show. He has since left the programme, which is now covering the 2025/26 season.

A third shared: “Wait, Gary Lineker won over Claudia Winkleman? But I’ll take it.” Some were in such disbelief at the awards win that they demanded a recount to hopefully tip the awards ceremony in Winkleman’s favour.

One person wrote: “Also are these votes ALL public votes? Absolutely not a chance in HELL that Gary Lineker has won this over Claudia Winkleman. We need a recount.” Another agreed, adding: “It’s time to give Claudia Winkleman her flowers.”

Anthony McPartlin and Declan Donnelly have broken their silence after finally losing at the National Television Awards on Wednesday night and delivered their verdict on the man who beat them.

The presenting pair, who host shows like I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! and Saturday Night Takeaway together, saw their 23-year winning streak come to an end inside The O2 Arena as Gary Lineker collected the prize for Best Presenter.

Former Match of the Day anchor Gary, 64, was shortlisted for the fan-voted award just months after his early exit from BBC show in May, following a row after he shared a post about Zionism on social media.

While Ant and Dec may have missed out on the main award, they didn’t leave empty handed thanks to I’m A Celebrity beating the likes of The Traitors and Love Island to be named Best Reality Competition.

The Geordie duo, who many think were tipped off about Gary’s win, filmed a video on their Instagram Stories on Thursday morning to share their reaction to missing out on the Best Presenterand celebrate their show’s win.

“Hello from sunny South Africa, it’s us,” Dec begins in the video. “We just want to jump on here and say a huge thank you to everyone who voted for I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! at the NTAs last night.”

“Yes, thank you very much,” Ant added as the pair whooped. “Everyone here is very happy and thank you to everyone that voted for us for the Best Presenter category, even though we couldn’t get it across the line this year. We were beaten by an up and coming new guy, 64-year-old whippersnapper Gary Lineker.”

Dec went on to praise Gary’s emotional speech as he added: “Congratulations to Gary – great speech too.” Ant seconded his pal’s words, saying: “Great speech, thoroughly deserved.”

Collecting his award on Wednesday night, Gary – who has been a vocal supporter for Palestine – said: “I think it demonstrates that perhaps it’s OK sometimes for us to use our platform to speak up on behalf of those who have no voice.”

Gary also said that Ant and Dec are “brilliant”, and added that “it’s an honour to follow in their footsteps” when he was questioned at the winner’s press conference.

He said: “I’m doing great. I’m enjoying having weekends off for the first time in my adult life, which has been great fun. I’m still watching loads of football, still doing the same sort of things, and I’ve got a new show coming up for ITV, which I start filming next week – The Box, which goes out, I think, probably next year.”

Asked if the award proves he has not been cancelled, he said: “I don’t think anyone seriously thought that I was cancelled at any point. It was obviously just a mistake and oversight. And I think everyone saw it for that. So I was never in the slightest bit concerned for that.”

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Former Match of the Day host Gary Lineker broke Ant and Dec’s 23 year long reign at the National Television Awards but the Geordie duo may have known it was coming

Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly broke their 23-year winning streak at the National Television Awards last night, but one move may have proved they knew it was coming. The Geordie duo had picked up a gong at the annual TV celebrations every year for over two decades.

For years, those pitted against Ant and Dec would resign in the fact they knew they would lose out to the Saturday Night Takeaway hosts. However, last night’s ceremony marked the end of their impressive reign as Gary Lineker swooped in instead.

Others stars nominated included Stacey Solomon, Alison Hammond and Claudia Winkleman. Gary’s win came just months after his early exit from BBC’s Match Of The Day in May.

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He even joked he had won the “Ant and Dec trophy” in his winner’s speech. However, it seems Ant and Dec could have known they were going to miss out on the award as they skipped the ceremony.

The presenting duo were instead in South Africa, where they even discussed the possibility of losing the award. In a post on their joint Instagram, Dec said: “Hey team, just us coming to you from South Africa.

“Just wanted to say that now the votes are closed and it’s in and it’s all done. Thank you.” Ant added: “There’s nothing more we can do about it.”

“So we want to say thank you to everybody who voted for us for the National Television Awards,” Dec continued. Ant said: “We really appreciate it. Sorry we can’t be there tonight but we are in South Africa!”

Addressing the outcome, Dec shared: “Whether we win or we lose, thank you for taking the time to nominate us. We will be out here fingers crossed to see what happens later.”

The duo then admitted they wouldn’t be able to watch the show as it wasn’t available in the country. Ant quipped: “Text us,” as Dec added: “Let us know if we win or not. Fingers crossed.”

Gary’s win comes after his early exit from Match of the Day following a series of controversies around his social media posts. Speaking after his win about his future, he said: “I really don’t know. At the moment, I’m really looking forward to working with ITV and I’ve got a podcast business that I have to run so I’m not so sure. I’ve got so many great memories from such a long period at the BBC.”

He added: “I don’t think anyone thought I was cancelled. It was obviously just a mistake, an oversight. I was never in the slightest bit concerned for that but this is lovely and there’s no doubt that there’s perhaps a message here that it’s ok to share your views and speak up for those who don’t perhaps have a voice.”

Prior to his win on Wednesday night, Gary had received the backing of his The Rest is Football podcast pal Alan Shearer. Whilst many might have expected former Magpie Shearer to support his Geordie pals, the ex- Premier League legend is thought to have bucked the trend and voted for his sports mate.

After laughing off the suggestion that he was only going to attend the ceremony if he won, Gary told the podcast it was the “Ant and Dec award anyway”. He hinted he thought he had little hope of winning. However, Shearer acted shocked before adding: “I have voted for you, though.”

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