Jade Goody’s bridesmaids have spoken out about their best friend ahead of the 10-year-anniversary of her death.
The five girls opened up on the time they found out Jade had cancer, and how they were left devastated watching her tie the knot, knowing the 27-year-old only had weeks left to live.
Appearing on Loose Women, Kate, Kelly, Charlene, Jen and Caroline discussed the late star and shared some of their memories from her final days.
Talking about her big day, Charlene, said: ‘It was bitter sweet because it was the start to the end and looking at Jack it was devastating.
‘You always go to a wedding and see they have the life ahead of them, but to know for him it was weeks from when she was going to pass away.’
However, despite being ill, it sounds like Jade gave her bridesmaids all she had, as they joked about her being a Bridezilla.
It has been 10 years since she passed away (Picture: PA)
‘She said to me, “you need to have the week off work,” she was like, “just speak to him, pass me the phone.”‘
Through blurry eyes, Caroline added: ‘It’s like she’d saved all of her energy for that day and after that she got really weak.
‘But on the day you wouldn’t know, she had to keep going off to have the nurses top up her meds, but other than that she was great.’
Kate sat listening to her friends and choked up: ‘I’ll never forget her speech. She just said to us all, “I’m hoping for a miracle.”‘
Saira Khan asked about how Jade told her two sons, Freddie and Bobby, that her cancer was terminal.
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Her pals joked about the star being Bridezilla (Picture: ITV)
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During her speech jade said: ‘I’m hoping for a miracle’ (Picture: Getty Images)
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The spoke about how proud she would be of her boys (Picture: ITV)
Kate added: ‘I saw her tell a lot of people and she comforted everyone to her granddad, mum and friends.
‘The only time I saw her lose it was then, you could hear her screaming, the boys were four and five.’
She added: ‘She tried to tell them in her own way, I think she tried a few times.’
Kelly spoke about the boys and how proud their mum would be of them today.
‘She would be so proud of them, they’re gorgeous, we love having them in our life,’ she said before adding: ‘We talk about their mum to them, tell them stories.
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Her friends revealed it was devastating for Jack (Picture: ITV)
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The pair tied the knot just weeks before she died (Picture: PA)
‘We didn’t know if it was right so we spoke to Jack about it, but they want to know funny stories about their mum.’
Jen added: ‘When you start talking about her you do have their full attention.’
Jade Goody sadly passed away in 2009 at the age of 27 after being diagnosed with cervical cancer.
She left behind two sons, Bobby, 15, and Freddie, 14, as well as her husband Jack Tweed.
Talking about his late wife, the widower recently told OK! Magazine: ‘She was 100 million per cent the love of my life. Nobody has ever come close to Jade and I don’t see how they ever will.
‘That pain of losing the person you love never goes away.’
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Mums Make Porn’s Jane Chelliah and Sarah-Louise Pritchard clapped back at criticism their Channel 4 documentary will onset addiction.
The show, which debuts tonight, follows a group of mums coming together to write, cast and direct an ‘ethical’ adult film for their children and has already come under fire from the Loose Women.
Joining This Morning’s Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield, Jane and Sarah-Louise explained argued that their movie won’t trigger unhealthy behaviours, but will instead open up a conversation between parents and their kids.
‘We questioned ourselves,’ began Sarah-Louise.
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Mums Make Porn’s Sarah-Louise Pritchard and Jane Chelliah joined This Morning (Picture: Rex)
‘What we wanted to do was actually make a documentary where parents came back to their kids, sat down and had conversation. These kids are actually using that [the video] as sex education.’
Phillip asked: ‘Isn’t it better to start the conversation with these kids in the first place?’
Jane, who quit the project halfway through, replied: ‘I think with me leaving that also encourages conversations. I’ve come across so many mums who say they can’t even talk to their children about it and this is the problem I had with my daughter.
‘It wasn’t until I started being filmed for this that I started having conversation with my daughter.’
Mums Make Porn follows five women so shocked by online porn that they wanted to make their own film.
‘I just thought all of a sudden that I was going to throw up. We need to show kids that there’s something else than this horrible shit we see on the internet,’ she told the Mirror.
‘If my son treated a woman like that I would kick his arse to kingdom come.’
This Morning airs weekdays at 10.30am on ITV.
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Ready to sample the culinary delights (Picture: BBC/Optomen TV/Barrie Foster)
Great British Menu is back tonight for the fourteenth series, ready to crown a select few chefs crowned regional winners, with a potential chance to cook for a banquet celebrating 50 years of British pop music.
The first episode will have three chefs from London and the South East battling it out for the top spot with their fish courses, and there will also be an episode on Thursday showcasing their mains and desserts.
This will then be followed by a Friday final featuring the main three judges and a guest deciding who goes through from each round.
The guest judge this Friday is Gary ‘Mani’ Mounfield, from the Stone Roses and Primal Scream, alongside the three GBM stalwarts we know and love. Let’s take a look at them.
Angela Hartnett
Angela technically doesn’t count as a judge, as she doesn’t have final say in which dishes win in the end.
What she does do is rate the dishes offered up at the kitchen stage, giving pointers to the chefs as to how they could adapt and improve their meals.
Angela started her career as a protegee of Gordon Ramsay alongside Marcus Wareing. She gained her first Michelin star in 2004, and an MBE in 2007, and has been at the helm of a number of restaurants throughout her career.
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You’l find Angela in her chef’s whites on the show (Picture: Joseph Okpako/Redferns)
Andi Oliver
Restaurateur Andi actually started her career in a punk band alongside Neneh Cherry called Rip Rig + Panic. She then went on to present Badass TV alongside Ice T, and eventually moved into the food industry.
Andi and her former bandmade went on to present, Neneh & Andi Dish It Up, and Andi then appeared as a judge on ITV’s Food Glorious Food. She is also a regular contributor to a number of radio shows.
She has her own restaurant in Stoke Newington called Andi’s, serving up home-cooke Caribbean food, and another called The Jackdaw and Star in Homerton.
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(Picture: Mike Marsland/WireImage)
Oliver Peyton
Irish judge Oliver has had many jobs over the years, but got into the restaurant business after opening nightclubs in Brighton and London.
From there, he opened a number of restaurants in London and Manchester, with his company, Peyton and Byrne, being at the helm of venues throughout the UK ever since.
Peyton has been one of the judges on Great British Menu since its inception in 2006.
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Oliver has been on the show since the start(Picture: David M. Benett/Dave Benett/Getty Images)
Matthew Fort
Matthew is the show’s resident food critic, and has been writing for the Guardian about food since 1989.
He was food and drink editor for the paper for some time, and has also written for a number of other publications and published books.
Matthew is also one of the original presenters of the show, having been there since 2006.
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(Picture: David M. Benett/Dave Benett/Getty Images for Fortnum & Mason)
Catch Great British Menu tonight at 8pm on BBC Two.
There’s a lot to love about Derry Girls – Sister Michael. The banging soundtrack. Everything that comes out of Granda Joe’s mouth.
But a sweet detail has everyone falling even more head over heels with the Channel 4 comedy.
Viewers have noticed that ever since Clare came out as a lesbian in the series one finale, her friends have been wearing rainbow pins.
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The gang didn’t wear the pins in series one (Picture Channel 4)
And now our hearts have swollen to three times their size.
Erin, Orla, Michelle, James and Clare wore the colourful badges in promo pictures for series two, but viewers only starting noticing the heartwarming gesture in the last two episodes on Channel 4.
Clare even wore her two badges while wearing a balaclava on the bus to Belfast – so you know she’s truly committed to the cause.
And people are loving the unmentioned gesture to Clare from her group of friends:
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Clare, played by Nicola Coughlan, came out after her essay, The Secret Life Of A Lesbian, was published in the school magazine.
At first, Erin (Saoirse-Monica Jackson) reacted badly, telling her friend to ‘go back in’ and saying she wasn’t interested in her, but soon they made up, and Derry Girls has been praised for Clare’s relatable coming out story.
Speaking to Digital Spy, Nicola said: ‘I found out when I very first auditioned, so I’d known for about six months before the others. So it had always been in my mind. It was always a very important part of the character. But I also knew that they wanted Clare to be her own person.
‘It wasn’t like, “She’s gay, so she’s the gay character”. She’s a whole human being. And I think that that’s where a lot of shows go wrong. “That one’s the gay one, and that one’s”… It’s like: “No, Clare’s a human being. This is one part of her character”.’
So far in series two, we’ve seen the girls and James attempt to build bridges with their Protestant peers, bonding with a new English teacher, and hitch-hiking to Belfast to see Take That and avoid an escaped polar bear.
Derry Girls continues at 9.15pm on Tuesdays on Channel 4.
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Tim Roth is returning for a third and final season of Tin Star (Picture: Sky)
Tim Roth will return as Jack Worth for a third and final series of Tin Star.
Season three, created by British writer Rowan Joffe, sees the Worth family travel back to the UK for new episodes set in and around Liverpool.
In series two Jack and Angela (Genevieve O’Reilly) were forced to break some devastating news to their daughter Anna (Abigail Lawrie).
Back on their home turf, this time it will be personal as the couple’s dark past catches up with them and ‘the ultimate threat’ soon lands on their doorstep.
Looking forward to Jack’s last hurrah, Joffe said: ‘A show creator and writer’s work is only as good as his team: and I am very grateful to have another chance to write for Tim Roth, Genevieve O’Reilly and Abigail Lawrie – and executive producer Alison Jackson.
‘An awe-inspiring roster of talent and a chance to deliver our best season yet.’
Cameron Roach, Director of Drama at Sky, added: ‘We are thrilled to announce a final season of Tin Star.
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Tim plays a former undercover cop from the UK who winds up in a small town in the Canadian Rockies (Picture: Sky)
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Abigail Lawrie returns as Anna Worth (Picture: Sky)
‘The combination of Rowan’s imagination and the central performances led by Tim Roth mark Tin Star as a standout example of British creativity.
‘Returning alongside our original series such as Britannia and Riviera, as well as forthcoming titles Catherine the Great, Little Birds and Gangs of London, we’re demonstrating our commitment to bring ambitious, local, stories with global appeal to Sky customers.’
The Sky Atlantic drama follows a former undercover policeman turned police chief in a small town in the Canadian Rockies, who must defend his family from those in power.
Tin Star season three kicks off production later this year.
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Are you ready for the Golden Company? (Picture: HBO)
Everyone might be focused on Jon Snow, Daenerys Targaryen, and Cersei Lannister to take the Iron Throne, but there’s a new group on the playing field who could pose a significant threat.
But why should you be concerned about Cersei’s new lackeys? Here’s what you need to know about The Golden Company.
Have we heard about this Golden Company before?
In season seven, Cersei appeared to make a temporary truce with Jon Snow and Daenerys to unite against the White Walkers. This, however, as she revealed to Jaime, was a tactical ploy she plans to take advantage of in the battles ahead.
The end of the season saw her send Euron Greyjoy to retrieve The Golden Company army who reside in Essos. Cersei’s acquisition of this army took place after speaking with the Iron Bank’s Tycho Nestoris (Mark Gatiss) earlier in the season, stating how she needed an army, and noted Qyburn (Anton Lesser) had made ‘overtures’ to The Golden Company.
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Cersei was granted the Golden Company through Iron Bank’s Tycho Nestoris (Picture: HBO)
Before this, The Golden Company were mentioned way back in season four, when Davos suggested to Stannis to hire the group, highlighting their reputation as one of the most skilled armies around.
Interestingly, Jorah Mormont also once fought for The Golden Company before pledging his sword to Daenerys’ brother Viserys.
So who actually are The Golden Company?
Originating from Essos, The Golden Company are the largest sellsword company (private army) in the Free Cities. The army consists of 10,000 men, including archers, cavalry and massive war elephants.
In the Game Of Thrones books, The Golden Company was founded one hundred years before the War Of The Five Kings by Aegor Rivers, otherwise known as Bittersteel.
Aegor, one of the bastard sons of King Aegon IV Targaryen, fled Westeros after the first Blackfyre Rebellion and established his own sellsword company to revive House Blackfyre’s fighting force.
Who leads The Golden Company?
In season eight, the army is led by Harry Strickland (Marc Rissman) who is briefly glimpsed from behind in the recent trailer.
Harry’s great-grandfather was part of the original Blackfyre group who founded The Golden Company. His connection to the army’s lineage perhaps explains his high ranking, considering he’s not exactly held with high regard among his men due to his less than stellar fighting skills and timid personality.
So why should I care, quite honestly?
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Cersei looks a bit chuffed with herself in the trailer (Picture: HBO)
Have you not been paying attention? With the White Walkers barrelling into Westeros with their seemingly unstoppable army, The Golden Company potentially hold the only chance of turning the odds – hence why Cersei might be feeling pretty smug with herself.
The bigger question is, as essentially hired goons, whether they’ll remain firm in their allegiance with House Lannister. As the future of all races in Westeros is threatened, we can see a shift in sides if Cersei becomes obsessed with taking down Daenerys and Jon Snow over their White Walker invaders.
The balance of power? It could all pivot on The Golden Company.
Game Of Thrones season eight kicks off 14 April 2019.
Will we see Big Brother return? (Picture: Channel 5)
Rylan Clark-Neal is on an unstoppable campaign trail to get Big Brother back on TV screens, saying he ‘won’t rest’ until it does.
The reality show came to an end last year on Channel 5, but considering it migrated from Channel 4 when it ended there in 2010, there’s hope another broadcaster could revive the show once again.
One of the people flying the flag for a revival is Big Brother’s Bit On The Side host Rylan Clark-Neal, who is a big advocate of the show as a social experiment.
Speaking to BANG Showbiz, Rylan said: ‘I’m adamant Big Brother will return, when and where I don’t know but I won’t rest until it does.
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Ryan Thomas won last year’s final CBB (Picture: REX)
‘I think Celebrity Big Brother is one of the most important shows on TV because we get to see people for who they really, really are and you’ve only got to look at.
‘You’ve only got too look at the events over the last seven years, and how it has changed the perception of people who are genuinely really nice and people who actually aren’t.’
Big Brother UK continues to exist in the Twitter universe, however, coupled with a new eye logo – potentially suggesting something is in the works.
A post on the account reads: ‘This is the new home of Big Brother UK on Twitter. Make sure you give us a follow to keep in touch. #BBUK.’
Or maybe it’s a cry for help? We all need a place of remembrance.
The last edition of Celebrity Big Brother saw Ryan Thomas claim victory, in a highly contentious series after his controversial clashes with Roxanne Pallett.
Jane, Sarah, Emma, Sarah-Louise and Anita are the Mums making Porn (Picture: Channel 4 Television / Emma)
It’s certainly not the title of a standard evening TV show, but Mums Make Porn is set to be an interesting addition to Channel 4’s schedule.
You’ll still have to your usual places to get regular x-rated programming, as this show is supposed to be educational, and teach us all something about porn consumption here in the UK and the access young people have to it.
The three-parter has been described by Channel 4 as ‘bold’ and a mixture of educational and fun. But just what is this show that’s already courting controversy.
What is Mums Make Porn?
The show follows five mums of teenagers, working together to make a porn movie that shows sex in a different light.
It aims to shed light on the things young people are seeing in porn, and how that shapes their views of sex from an early age
Each of the mums will be tackling different issues they feel aren’t represented in porn (ethnic diversity, body image, or consent for example) and they’ll be working with respected porn director Erika Lust to bring their vision to life.
‘I just thought all of a sudden that I was going to throw up. We need to show kids that there’s something else than this horrible shit we see on the internet.
‘If my son treated a woman like that I would kick his arse to kingdom come.’
No, they won’t be acting in the movie themselves, but will have creative control when it comes to writing and casting, and directing and editing their final product.
Channel 4 say ‘the mums will fully immerse themselves in every aspect of the porn industry, will face every emotion, and challenge their own morals in the process.’
Two of the mums – Jane Chelliah and Sarah-Louise Pritchard – appeared on This Morning today, saying that they hoped the show would help start a conversation between parents and their kids.
How to watch
Mums Make Porn starts tonight on Channel 4, at 10pm.
There are three instalments of the show, with one next Wednesday and one the following.
If you can’t catch it live, you can watch the show on All 4 for up to a month after it airs.
The Grand Tour trio are undertaking a huge road-trip in the latest episode, venturing 1000 kilometres from Georgia to Azerbaijan.
Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, and James May are putting three new vehicles to the test, as they attempt to find the best car for someone who lives in Georgia but really craves freshwater fish. You can relate, right?
The vehicles are an Aston Martin DBS, the Bentley Continental GT, and the BMW M850i, as they venture from the salt water Black Sea in Georgia to the freshwater Caspian Sea in Azerbaijan.
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The Grand Tour has an epic roadtrip in the pipeline (Picture: Amazon)
As shown in the trailer, a casual stop for more petrol turns into a literal gas – as they encounter a station titled ‘Turd Petrol’ which leaves the gang cackling.
‘I know this is childish but…’ Hammond remarks before they crack up.
As they enter the capital city of Azerbaijan, Baku, it seems a drag race is in order too, despite Hammond’s slight reservations.
The Grand Tour season 3 drops on Amazon Prime Video every Friday.
Ben Bailey-Smith has commented on the troubling lack of diversity in fantasy television series (Picture: Getty)
Ben Bailey-Smith has called out fantasy television series such as Game of Thrones for their lack of diversity.
The 41-year-old rapper and actor, who also goes by Doc Brown, is currently starring in the Disney’s brand new animated series 101 Dalmatian Street and is calling for better representation on the small-screen.
Speaking exclusively to Metro.co.uk about diversity within the world of television, Ben said: ‘I think it’s important when you’re reflecting a diverse story. If you’re making The Crown, it is what it is.
‘You have a white upper class family that you’re telling a story about. That’s fact.’
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Ben Bailey-Smith is lending his voice to Sid Squirrel in 101 Dalmatian Street (Picture: Disney)
‘Fantasy kingdom has no “other” people in it and it’s quite annoying because this is a fantasy world, it could be anybody, you know?’ he told us. ‘There’s no rules, so that can be really annoying.
‘If you’re making a modern show about contemporary London then diversity is absolutely key because all you need to do is open your door and walk around London to see how diverse it is.’
Ben is lending his voice to Sid Squirrel in 101 Dalmatian Street, alongside Paloma Faith, Stephen Mangan and Michaela Dietz, and is proud of the range of its cast members and the story it tells.
‘What I really love about this project is it looks like London and it makes London colourful and friendly, which despite what the news tells you, it is.
‘What I really love about 101 is that it really celebrates that.’
‘The exciting new series will introduce a new generation of children to the wonderful, spotty world of Dalmatians, with 101 Dalmatian Street inspired by Dodie Smith’s timeless 1956 novel and Walt Disney’s classic 1961 film, 101 Dalmatians,’ teases the synopsis.
101 Dalmatian Street airs Mondays to Thursdays at 5pm on the Disney Channel.
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Sarah-Louise wasn’t quite ready for a porn film set (Picture: Channel 4)
Mums Make Porn mother Sarah-Louise was left literally sickened by watching two porn stars have sex on her first visit to an adult film set.
The controversial Channel 4 documentary sees a group of mums unite to write, cast, and direct an ‘ethical’ adult film for their children – in response to the porn videos already out there.
In the first episode, Sarah-Louise, Jane, and Anita all head to their first ever adult film set, where they meet working porn star Roxie who prepared them for what’s in store.
‘You’re going to see some oral, some sex, and a cum shot at the end,’ Roxie said.
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They weren’t too impressed (Picture: Channel 4)
‘A lot of mine have a bit of a niche of having a bitchy girlfriend who cheats on her boyfriend. Who wants to just watch “Oh they’re in bed having sex”? It’s boring.
‘So you need a bit sexy kissing, touching, and feeling, getting intimate. Then you need a bit of the hardcore to entice other people. So you need to have the whole package.’
As the three mums watch Roxie having sex from the side lines, Roxie’s co-star encounters a problem when it comes to the swansong.
‘It’s gone soft,’ he remarks. ‘I’m going to have to wait five minutes.’
After a quick toilet break, they’re back at it – with the final shot leaving Sarah-Louise feeling slightly ill and leaving the room.
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Sarah-Louise rushed outside (Picture: Channel 4)
Shortly after watching the climax, a queasy Sarah-Louise made a swift exit heading for the nearest bush.
‘It wasn’t that it offended me, I thought she’s beautiful,’ Sarah-Louise said. ‘I just felt the whole time I was going to throw up.
‘I think it might be the cum bit that’s knocked me.’
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Mums Make Porn kicks off tonight (Picture: Channel 4)
Speaking about witnessing the scene, Jane said: ‘I feel absolutely ghastly. What I was hoping for was something a lot more real and intimate.’
The fascinating history of the meme explored by professor Richard Clay (Picture: Meme Generator)
Have you ever tried explaining what a meme is to someone? It’s just a picture… with words… and you just know what it means… or if you don’t, you Google it… right?
One way of putting it is: ‘We have a daily craving for things that are so dumb.’ That’s one of the first things we hear in a new BBC4 documentary, How To Go Viral: The Art of the Meme with Richard Clay. The programme attempts not only to define memes, but its host, a Professor of Digital Cultures at Newcastle, tries to make his own, which are then critiqued by Richard Dawkins (who invented the word meme in the 1970s), Tumblr’s ‘meme librarian’ and a ‘liberal troll’.
It’s not often that you get to hear famous atheist Dawkins describe Jesus as a ‘fertile meme-fountain,’ but that’s one of the insights you’ll find in this documentary.
Taking an academic approach to studying memes – although this is anything but a dry programme, and borrows liberally from YouTubers for its visual style – reminds us of the fact that human nature doesn’t really change over time. Our psychology is endlessly adaptable. Clay’s background is in art history, and, as he told Metro.co.uk: ‘It was a really good training ground for dealing with the internet, because images beat text in the competition for attention spans.’
‘We were visual before becoming verbal,’ Clay notes in the documentary. Take LOLCats. Remember them? They became popular in the early days of internet self-publication, back in 2006. The term entered the Oxford English Dictionary in 2014; it’s now considered a ‘dead meme’, according to its Wikipedia page.
The rise of LOLCats in the early 2000s reflected the craze for cat pictures in the early days of photography. Human beings have always anthropomorphised our pets, wanting to believe that they return our love. With dogs, this is easy to tell, but not so much with cats. Putting a party hat on cat, or a kitten on a tiny Penny Farthing, now that was comedy gold, and definitely a precursor to LOLCats.
It’s inevitable that, out of all the silliness, a dark side to memes would emerge. Remember Pepe the Frog in 2016? ‘Trolling with fake news is the new currency in politics in the mimetic age,’ says Clay in the documentary, just as a clip of Donald Trump plays. Clay meets Finnish journalist Jessikka Aro, who’s investigating Russian troll farms, and how trolling can spill over into real life. She’s had trolls get into her email and send messages to friends and family in her voice, publish her medical records and location online and make obscene memes of her.
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How to Go Viral: the Art of the Meme with Richard Clay airs tonight at 9pm on BBC Four (Picture: BBC)
Aro’s case is a rare example of the law winning over the internet. A Finnish court sentenced the founder of a pro-Russian website MV-Lehti to 22 months in prison on charges of defamation and negligence for their campaign against Aro, and three journalists were ordered to pay 136,000 euros (£119,300) in compensation. ‘Parliaments around the world are attempting to wrestle with trolls in reality,’ Clay explained. ‘But our legislative process moves very slowly, whereas the technology moves incredibly quickly.’
In fact, the problems of legislating the wild west of the internet remind Clay of the copyright laws that came into effect decades after photography was invented, and the ability to take them became more widespread. ‘The copyright laws actually constrained the distribution of photographs,’ he said. ‘And this is constantly what’s in the news at the moment, with Facebook and others being critiqued by legislators saying, you need to behave more like publishers.’
The often poisonous meme situation on social platforms has led to ‘liberal trolls’, like Christopher Blair, aka Busta Troll, to turn vigilante on hate speech. In the documentary, he explains how he publishes satirical news stories to bait conservatives. ‘We pull them into the comments,’ he says, ‘these are some of the worst xenophobes and racists on Facebook.’ The inevitable bile is spewed, and ‘the trolls patrolling the page report them, they get a little time out.’ That is: they get kicked off Facebook.
The idea of fake trolls patrolling fake news for real hate is an oddly comforting one. Memes might spring up at a rate that totally outfoxes offline establishments, but those who seek to do harm are balanced out by those who won’t let them get away with it. Someone needs to make a Batman meme of Busta Troll, stat.
How To Go Viral: The Art of the Meme with Richard Clay airs tonight at 9pm, BBC Four.
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The show – in which people who have never met before are matched up and tie the knot – hasn’t exactly had a great track record when it comes to its subjects finding true love, as none of the couples who were wed in previous series are still together.
That hasn’t stopped more from wanting to give it a go though, with around 7,000 people applying to take part in this series.
And here are a couple of the couples you’ll be watching in the coming series.
Jonathan and Steph
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Jonathan and Steph will be hoping to find true love (Picture: Channel 4)
Jonathan is a 39-year-old property manager from Bristol while Steph, 28, is a nurse from Somerset.
He admits he is looking for a new spark in life and having seen other friends have successful arranged marriages, is prepared to take the plunge himself to see if it works for him. He’s looking for a tall partner (as he is 6 ft2) and someone who is active and outdoorsy.
Steph, meanwhile, admits she has done the ‘boring’ stuff – with her own home, a good job and two cats – and has said she now wants to meet someone to have adventures with.
She added that she doesn’t need grand romantic gestures – but she does want to find someone who is prepared to make a commitment, and that it’s important for the two of them to be honest with each other about what they want.
Could Jonathan be just what she’s looking for?
Jack and Verity
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Verity and Jack are prepared to give marriage a go (Picture: Channel 4)
Jack is a 25-year-old IT consultant and Verity, 28, is an office manager. He is originally from Brighton and she is from Norfolk although they both now live in London.
He is looking for a petite girl who is active, caring and wants to try new things, and who shares his family values. Jack has been single for just over a year following two long term relationships (one four years and one five) – both of which ended due to distance.
‘I’m looking for someone who I can spend my Sunday’s with, who I can sit down on the sofa with but then travel with,’ Jack explained.
‘I’ve always wanted someone who I can travel with, who can enjoy going away with me and that something I’m very passionate about so having someone by my side who loves to do it will make it even more of an experience. And when I am hungover maybe on a Sunday, sitting down and having a pizza together!
Verity, meanwhile, has been single for two years following two long-term relationships (one which lasted two years and one five). She’s looking for a witty, humble partner who is emotionally honest and open, who loves music and is also keen to settle and build a home. She’d also love to have children in the next five years.
‘It’s a really big undertaking,’ she pointed out.
‘Obviously the marrying a stranger, the whole marriage, but also the lead-up to it takes up your whole life. If you’re not serious about it, there’s no point in your doing it. I know you can drop out at the last minute, but I’ve not had a feeling of “I shouldn’t be doing this” yet. So I’m pretty serious.’
When is Married At First Sight on?
The series begins on Channel 4 on Wednesday night at 9pm.
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Will true love blossom for Married At First Sight’s Jonathan and Steph? (Picture: Channel 4)
Married At First Sight is back on Channel 4, with more complete strangers hoping to take the plunge and find true love with one another.
This time around we’ll meet hopefuls Jonathan and Steph and Jack and Verity – who are preparing to head up the aisle in their bid to secure a life partner.
The series has matched plenty of other hopefuls in the past – but have any of them stayed together?
Let’s take a look back at the show’s success rate…
How many of the couples who met on Married At First Sight are still together?
Despite having sent its fair share of people up the aisle in the past, the Channel 4 show has yet to secure a lasting match, with all of its unions ending in separation. Here’s how it breaks down:
Emma and James
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(Picture: Channel 4)
One of the very first couples to be matched up on the show, Emma and James were married in the first series in 2015, tying the knot on 21 February that year. However – and despite lasting longer together than the other two couples in that series, they revealed by Christmas Day that year that they had split up.
Jason and Kate
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(Picture: Channel 4)
Season one pairing Jason and Kate seemed doomed from the off after Jason was caught looking on Tinder just two weeks after their marriage. He later admitted he had visited the dating site after realising the marriage would never work out – with the pair having the union nullified eight months later.
Caroline and Adam
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(Picture: Channel 4)
They might have seemed like the only successful couple from the 2016 series – but things didn’t go as planned for Caroline and Adam either, with the couple revealing on Instagram in 2017 that they had gone their separate ways – and Caroline putting her Vera Wang wedding dress on eBay.
Sara and Adam
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(Picture: Channel 4)
Remember Adam, who had a little bit much to drink on honeymoon and faced a huge ticking-off from Sara, the wife he had only just met? They didn’t stay the course either – although they did give it their best shot with her moving in with him for a year. ‘I think that science matches the compatibility between us; what the science can’t match or can’t create is the chemistry,’ she said later.
Melissa and Clark
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(Picture: Channel 4)
We were rooting for Melissa and Clark in 2016 since they appeared so smitten with each other straight away – with Clark giving us all the feels when he admitted onscreen he had a ‘huge crush’ on his wife.
But they also revealed a few months on that they were taking some time out from each other – with Clark admitting: ‘We both underestimated how difficult it was going to be.’
They are still close friends though and reportedly meet up regularly – so it’s not all bad news.
Richard and Harriet
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(Picture: Channel 4)
Everybody was optimistic about Richard and Harriet’s chances of making it work – but despite their best efforts, they revealed they were divorcing at the end of the series. Sad faces all round.
Ben and Stephanie
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(Picture: Channel 4)
We had high hopes for Ben Jardine and his Married At First Sight match Stephanie also – until he revealed in March last year that they had split up. Just five months later, in August, he announced he was expecting a baby with somebody else – right before he went into the Celebrity Big Brother house as one of the housemates in the final series of the show. Oh, and Stephanie found out about the divorce after she heard Ben talking about it on Fubar Radio. Awkward.
Married At First Sight series four begins on Channel 4 on Wednesday night at 9pm.
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Starring Morven Christie as D.S. Lisa Armstrong, a family liaison officer, the show follows Armstrong as she investigates a missing person case.
Matters are thoroughly complicated when she realises that she has a personal link to the case.
The series will run for six episodes, and is due to start tonight, Wednesday 20 March.
Where is ITV’s The Bay set?
The Bay was filmed and takes place in the coastal Lancashire town of Morecambe, and, as you might have guessed, Morecambe Bay features prominently.
It’s the largest stretch of sand and intertidal mudflats in the UK, and as such, will no doubt make for a pretty atmospheric setting for the crime drama.
The Bay, which cast members insist is nothing like Broadchurch despite constant comparisons, is a British procedural drama about the disappearance of children from the point of view of both the police investigation and from the family of the missing, set in a provincial seaside town.
‘There’s more to it than a witty twosome, there’s a family of officers so it can’t be that,’ said Taheen Modak, who plays D.C Ahmed Kharim, at an exclusive preview.
‘Naturally you might draw comparisons because of the seaside town thing. At most and at best that, because we’re following family liaison officers specifically, and we don’t usually see that on TV.
‘You don’t see the people volunteering and talking to the families while the police in uniform are out there doing a different job.’
His co-star Daniel Ryan, who plays D.I Tony Manning added: ‘It’s a whole different thing. It’s not hurried. It’s not all action and running about.
‘We’ve tried to keep it as real as we can, which isn’t always dramatic. The drama is in the family, it’s their loss.’
The first episode of The Bay airs tonight, 20 March, from 9pm until 10pm, on ITV.
It’s almost the end of an era for Mayim and Jim (Picture: Getty Images)
Mayim Bialik posted the sweetest early birthday message to Jim Parsons on set of The Big Bang Theory.
It was a bittersweet day on set of the CBS sitcom as the cast celebrated Jim’s 46th birthday a few days early on Wednesday – he actually turns 46 on 24 March.
However, Mayim realised it was the last birthday she’ll spend with her co-star on-set of the hit series.
Read it and weep.
In a heartfelt Instagram post, the actress wrote: ‘Happy birthday for the last time working with the man I was told to imitate for an audition 10 years ago which changed my life.
‘Jim you are so much fun to work with and be friends with. Your success inspires me so much as does your heart the size of Texas.’
Alongside the message, Mayim shared a photo of Jim and his co-stars gathered around his birthday cake and another snap of the actor leaping into the air.
Like the rest of us, Mayim has been struggling to come to terms with the end of The Big Bang Theory and recently revealed the five stages of grief she’s going through.
In a video, the actress – who plays Anne Farrah-Fowler – said: ‘People keep asking me how does it feel? Well, I’m going to tell you.
‘I think emotionally I’ve kind of pushed it aside, I am so lucky to be in this situation, I love my job and I guess my job loves me.
‘It’s amazing, so maybe we could’ve kept it going. Maybe there’ll be a spin-off, maybe this maybe that, maybe the fans will revolt and we won’t have to end.’
Oh, you try stopping us.
The TV star added: ‘It’s time, you know? We had a long run, we had an amazing run.
‘All things must end, even the good things must end. It’s a shift. We’re all shifting.’
The Big Bang Theory airs Thursdays on CBS in the US and at a later date on E4 in the UK.
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Vikings co-stars Alexander Ludwig and Kristy Dinsmore have hit us right in the feels, as they shared adorable snaps and revealed they are missing the other.
‘You make me the best version of myself…which isn’t saying much but It’s a work in progress,’ shared Alexander, ‘miss you @_kristydawndinsmore.’
Kristy, a day earlier, had shared a picture from the same day with fans, adding: ‘On set with bae #BB3.’
The 26-year-old actor and Kristy first went public with their romance in Fberuary 2017, but made their on-screen debut together in January when Kristy joined the cast of Vikings.
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The pair started dating in 2017 (Picture: Getty)
Her beau decided to congratulate his gal on her role by taking to Instagram, where Alexander praised the actress, who has been dubbed by her pals as the ‘tiniest viking’ – she is only 5ft3 after all.
Sharing a string of grabs from the History Channel hit, the Bjorn star swooned over his ‘baby’.
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Alexander praised the actress, who has been dubbed the ‘tiniest viking (Picture: History)
He wrote: ‘Introducing #Amma #vikings she may be the smallest but no doubt she’s also the fiercest #viking.
‘It was one of the greatest gifts of my life to get to work with my woman @_kristydawndinsmore over the past two years on #vikings I love this character and everything you bring to it.’
Alexander added: ‘CONGRATULATIONS Baby!’
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(Picture: FilmMagic)
The 26-year-old has joined Will Smith and Martin Lawrence in Bad Boys 4 Life after finding success on Amazon Prime show Vikings, after appearing in The Hunger Games series with Jennifer Lawrence.
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Are you ready for the return of The OA? (Picture: Netflix)
Netflix’s spiritual sci-fi series is back for a new season, but considering it’s been over two years since the first, you might need a refresher.
Created by Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij, The OA follows Prairie Johnson (Brit Marling) who returns to her hometown after being missing for seven years. If her sudden reappearance isn’t odd enough, she also comes back with her sight intact after being blind for the majority of her life.
What unfolds is a unique journey of discovery and faith, as a group from her hometown forms to hear Prairie’s story. Jumping between the past and the present, The OA recounts Prairie’s story of being kidnapped by scientist Dr. Hunter Aloysius ‘Hap’ Percy (Jason Isaacs) and falling in love with fellow captive Homer (Emory Cohen) – leaving the question with her followers over whether she’s actually telling the truth.
A shooter descended upon the school (Picture: Netflix)
The season one finale saw the high school under threat from a mysterious shooter, with Steve (Patrick Gibson), Elizabeth (Phyllis Smith), Buck (Ian Alexander), Jesse (Brendan Meyer), and French (Brandon Perea), all uniting to perform the ‘movements’ taught by Prairie to protect everyone from harm.
While the school kids remained unscathed, the shooter fired a bullet which hit Prairie, who was stood outside the cafeteria window, directly in the chest. She was taken away with her severe injury by the ambulance crew, with the season ending as Steve chased after the vehicle.
Before this climactic end, French discovered some books referring to Homer the Greek poet, angels, and Russian oligarchs, inside Prairie’s house – leading those who heard her story to believe she had fabricated the entire thing and was simply mentally unstable.
What does The OA stand for?
In the first season, we hear Prairie refer to herself as the ‘original angel’ which is believed to be what the title stands for. Although it’s never been officially confirmed.
Prairie’s origins
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Prairie was adopted as a young child (Picture: Netflix)
If you’ll recall Prairie isn’t actually ‘Prairie’. This name was given to her by her adoptive parents, and she was previously known as Nina and lived in Russia with her father. Nina’s mother died in childbirth.
As a young child, Nina would have nightmares where she was trapped in an aquarium and couldn’t breathe, waking up with a nosebleed. This dream is believed to be a premonition, after one day she had a nosebleed before climbing on the bus to go to school, only for the bus to get into an accident and fall off a bridge, leaving Nina and everyone else to drown.
After dying, a woman called Khatun asked Nina in a bizarre dream world if she wanted to go back. She said yes, but Nina lost her eyesight in exchange. After returning to life, Nina’s father sent her to a boarding school for the blind, only for him to die mysteriously in another accident. As a result, Nina was left with her aunt, who sold babies for adoption.
An older couple named Nancy and Abel went to her aunt’s house to adopt a baby. After Nancy spotted Nina, she decided that was the child she wanted to adopt, and renamed her Prairie.
Later in life, Prairie’s dreams and premonitions became a reoccurring problem. She was diagnosed as mentally ill by doctors, only for Prairie to leave home under the belief she’d meet her father on her 21st birthday. This, however, led to her meeting Dr Hap, who trapped her inside his basement.
What happened between Prairie and Homer?
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Homer and Prairie fell in love over the first season (Picture: Netflix)
Prairie met Homer as a fellow captive inside Dr Hap’s basement. They were both tested on by Hap as he undergoes scientific research into their ability to defy death.
Prairie and Homer fell in love with each other despite being caged up separately. Homer, however, is taken by Hap to Cuba in order to seduce a woman who he wants to kidnap. The audio recording of them having sex is broadcasted into the basement by Hap, in a bid to anger Prairie.
They form a bond however once he returns and Prairie explains how she believes they’re all angels. While Prairie was ditched on the side of the road by Hap, the whereabouts of Homer and the other captives is unknown – with Prairie believing, after acquiring the fifth movement, they travelled to another dimension.
The bizarre unanswered questions
Did Prairie make up her story?
As mentioned previously, this is a huge question hanging over Prairie’s posse and the entirety of the first season, especially following the discovery of the books by French.
Who was the mysterious shooter at school?
It’s unknown who exactly was the shooter who descended upon the school, with the camera and editing in the finale making a clear point not to reveal the man’s identity.
Could this shooter have a bigger part in Prairie’s story? Was this someone who has successfully jumped across dimensions? Or is it not significant at all?
Who is Khatun?
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Khatun encounters Prairie in her near death experiences (Picture: Netflix)
Prairie meets Khatun in the bizarre Upside Down-esque world when she dies, who acts as a mythical spirit guide.
She initially brings Prairie back to her life following the bus accident, and later in season one, teaches Prairie the movements required to travel dimensions when she’s killed during Hap’s experiments.
But is Khatun real? And why is Prairie only meeting her?
Why was Elias in Prairie’s house?
Prairie’s FBI therapist Elias Rahim (Riz Ahmed) encountered French after he discovered the books within her house, with no explanation as to why he was knocking about there in the first place.
Elias is generally a mysterious presence on the show, with very little known about his origins and why he’s become attached to Prairie.
So where do we start with season two?
As shown by the trailers, Prairie has successfully jumped into another dimension in San Francisco 2016, where Barack Obama never became president.
The kids, however, are dealing with the aftermath of Prairie’s disappearance and questioning whether what they heard, or saw, was real at all.
A new documentary is on the way soon (Picture: Jeff Spicer/Getty Images)
Louis Theroux has announced his new BBC documentary will spotlight postnatal mental health, which will be released in May.
Titled Mothers On The Edge, Theroux’s new documentary will see him spend time in two specialist psychiatric units which treat mothers suffering from serious mental illness, while enabling them to be with their babies.
The women in question are treated for a number of conditions triggered by motherhood or childbirth, including depression, psychosis, and anxiety.
Speaking about the documentary, Theroux said: ‘Postpartum mental illness, like many aspects of mental health, is all too common and not acknowledged enough.
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Louis Theroux’s previous documentary was The Night In Question (Picture: BBC)
‘We as a society do so much to celebrate new motherhood and to romanticise the relationship between new mothers and their babies, for understandable reasons.
‘But the sad fact is, for many mums, their experience of having a baby is traumatic and they don’t experience Hallmark Card feelings of love.’
Speaking about the women who spoke to him for the film, Theroux added: ‘They bared a great deal of their souls and risked the judgment of less understanding elements of society.
‘Their bravery and candour is awe inspiring, and it was a privilege to be invited into their families during a most vulnerable period in their lives.’
Mothers On The Edge follows his previous documentary The Night In Question, which explored issues of sexual assault in US colleges.
Louis Theroux’s Mothers On The Edge airs on BBC Two in May.
Steph and Jonathan met for the first time at the end of the aisle (Picture: Channel 4)
Married At First Sight bosses may have a few new applications coming in after Wednesday’s episode as viewers joke that it may be their final option.
‘Married at First Sight would be my worst nightmare but is literally the only option left to me right now,’ tweeted one viewer as Jonathan, a 39-year-old property manager from Bristol wed Steph, 28, a nurse from Somerset whom he met for the first time at the end of the aisle.
‘Think i’ll apply for married at first sight. Seems like the only plausable option really (sic),’ added another viewer while one fan suggested the show ‘seems like a legit answer to my life’.
‘Like another person just HAS to marry me? sign me up,’ they joked.
We think.
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Married At First Sight brings together, as the title suggests, four couples who have never met before but are matched up via science and date and who tie the knot.
The show hasn’t exactly had a great track record when it comes to its subjects finding true love, as none of the couples who were wed in previous series are still together.
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The show will also follow Jack and Verity as they wed (Picture: Channel 4)
But that hasn’t stopped more from wanting to give it a go though, with around 7,000 people applying to take part in this series.
Sounds like there may be 8,000 people next year…
Married At First Sight airs on Channel 4 on Wednesday night at 9pm.
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