Waterloo Road cast: Full list of actors and characters
Waterloo Road is back on our screens with its sixteenth season – and there are plenty of familiar faces back for the latest instalment. Jason Merrells is back as Jack Rimmer, now acting as the school counsellor, while other returning cast members include include Adam Thomas (Donte Charles), Hollie-Jay Bowes (Debs Rafferty) James Baxter (Joe Casey), Jo Coffey (Wendy Whitwell), Kym Marsh (Nicky Walters). Lindsey Coulson also returns as headteacher Dame Stella Drake and it looks as if she'll be forced to navigate new challenges this time around as her grandchildren arrive at the school (played by new additions Fintan Buckard and Savannah Kunyo). Other new cast members in season 16 include Jon Richardson as media studies teacher Darius Donovan and Christopher Jeffers (Riot Women) as Mitch Swift, the new SenCo lead (Special Educational Needs Co-Ordinator). Need a rundown of all the new and returning faces in season 16? Read on for everything you need to know about the cast of Waterloo Road in its revival and also in its original run. Waterloo Road 2025 cast: Meet the old and new characters in season 16 of the BBC drama The following cast members have been confirmed for the sixteenth run of Waterloo Road. Jon Richardson as Darius Donovan Christopher Jeffers as Mitch Swift Fintan Buckard as Ben Drake Savannah Kunyo as Hope Drake Christine Bottomley as Sam Drake Jason Merrells as Jack Rimmer Lindsey Coulson as Dame Stella Drake James Baxter as Joe Casey Ryan Clayton as Mike Rutherford Jo Coffey as Wendy Whitwell Neil Fitzmaurice as Neil Guthrie Rachel Leskovac as Coral Walker Kym Marsh as Nicky Walters Shauna Shim as Valerie Chambers Adam Thomas as Donte Charles Liam Scholes as Noel McManus Summer Violet Bird as Tonya Walters Thapelo Ray as Dwayne Jackson Zak Sutcliffe as Schumacher "Schuey" Weever Maisie Robinson as Portia Weever Tillie Amartey as Stacey "Stace" Neville Sonya Nisa as Aleena Qureshi Miya Ocego as Lisa Taylor-Brown Danny Murphy as Luca Smith Matthew Khan as Jared Jones Olly Rhodes as Billy Savage Saira Choudhry as Nisha Chaudra Now here is all you need to know about the major characters. Jon Richardson plays Darius Donovan <img src="https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/3/2025/03/Waterloo-Road-Darius-8b89702.jpg" width="2700" height="1800" alt="TX DATE:23-09-2025,TX WEEK:38,EMBARGOED UNTIL:16-09-2025 00:00:01,DESCRIPTION: ***EMBARGOED UNTIL TUESDAY 16TH SEPTEMBER 2025 2025***,COPYRIGHT:Wall to Wall/Warner Brothers TV Production Services Ltd,CREDIT LINE:BBC/Wall to Wall/Warner Brothers TV Production Services Ltd" title="532014,TITLE:Waterloo Road S16" /> Who is Darius Donovan? Darius is a new media teacher at the school who’s able to charm pupils and staff alike with his charming exterior. But underneath all that he’s a master manipulator. “He’s an absolute monster, but he believes himself to be a charming, charming man who acts only in self-defence and has everyone’s best interests at heart” Richardson told the BBC of his character. What else has Jon Richardson been in? Richardson started his career as a stand-up comedian and got his big break when he won his heat of the BBC New Talent Comedy search in 2003. He has since toured the UK with his gigs and appeared on numerous TV panel shows including 8 Out of 10 Cats, Never Mind the Buzzcocks, Have I Got News for You, and Would I Lie To You? In terms of acting, Richardson has starred in an episode of Drunk History UK and also played a version of himself in Meet the Richardsons. Christopher Jeffers plays Mitch Swift Who is Mitch Swift? Mitch is the new SenCo lead (Special Educational Needs Co-Ordinator) at the school who has years of experience under his belt. “He’s got a cool, confident exterior, but underneath it all there’s a lot of lived experience and a real vulnerability," Jeffers told the BBC of Mitch. He added: "He’s been through it himself – had a rough start in life, made some questionable decisions, and experienced a tragic loss – but he’s turned all of that into fuel for the way he teaches.” What else has Christopher Jeffers been in? Jeffers is an actor and dancer who has appeared in the likes of Bridgerton, Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga and Rocketman. He’s also set to star in Sally Wainwright’s upcoming drama Riot Women. Fintan Buckard plays Ben Drake Who is Ben Drake? Ben is a year 11 pupil and one of headteacher Stella Drake’s grandchildren. He has a nonchalant exterior but is actually quite a tortured teen. What else has Fintan Buckard been in? Buckard is best known for his role as Ethan in the BBC Three series Phoenix Rise. Savannah Kunyo plays Hope Drake Who is Hope Drake? A year 9 pupil and granddaughter of headteacher Stella Drake, Hope is a positive and spirited student who has hopes of becoming a famous singing star. What else has Savannah Kunyo been in? Kunyo previously portrayed Eliza Woodrow in Coronation Street. Christine Bottomley plays Sam Drake Who is Sam Drake? Sam is the daughter of the headteacher Dame Stella Drake, as well as Ben and Hope’s mum. What else has Christine Bottomley been in? Bottomley is known for her recent roles as Rachel Crossley in Sherwood and Scribonia in Domina. She has also appeared in Early Doors, Hope Springs, The End of the F***ing World and Back to Life. Lindsey Coulsen plays Dame Stella Drake Who is Dame Stella Drake? Stella takes on the role of the new headteacher in season 16. She was once at the top of Ofsted but her career was hampered when a video of her talking about parental incompetence went viral. What else has Lindsey Coulson been in? Coulson is best known for her iconic role as Carol Jackson in EastEnders but has also appeared in Manchild, Clocking Off and Paradise Heights. Jason Merrells plays Jack Rimmer Who is Jack Rimmer? Jack is the former headteacher of the original Waterloo Road school and the first in the show's history. He's now the school counsellor. What else has Jason Merrells been in? Outside of his original Waterloo Road run, Merrells is best known for his roles in Cutting It, Queer as Folk, and as Declan Macey in Emmerdale. James Baxter plays Joe Casey Who is Joe Case? Joe is one of the deputy heads at the school. Joe is married to police officer named Mike. What else has James Baxter been in? Baxter is best known for his role as Jake Doland in Emmerdale, along with turns in Alma's Not Normal, Still Open All Hours, and Holby City. Ryan Clayton plays Mike Rutherford Who is Mike? Mike is the husband of Joe Casey at the school and is also a police officer. What else has Ryan Clayton been in? Clayton is best known for his previous role as evil rapist Josh Tucker in Coronation Street. Jo Coffey plays Wendy Whitwell Who is Wendy Whitwell? The dutiful personal assistant to the headteacher. What else has Jo Coffey been in? Coffey has also appeared in Netflix’s The Lark, and the films Artemis Fowl and All Is True. Neil Fitzmaurice plays Neil Guthrie Who is Neil Guthrie? A grumbly history teacher at the school, Guthrie pretended to be a widower before it was revealed his wife left him to live in New Zealand. What else has Neil Fitzmaurice been in? Fitzmaurice is best known for his comedy and roles in series such as Peep Show, Peter Kay's Phoenix Nights, and Benidorm. Rachel Leskovac plays Coral Walker Who is Coral Walker? The former Head of English and now Deputy Head at the school, Coral suffers from Obsessive Compulsive Disorder and is prone to being rather pessimistic. Coral is now in a relationship with Neil Guthrie. What else has Rachel Leskovac been in? Leskovac is best known for her roles as Natasha Blakeman in Coronation Street, Kelly Yorke in Holby City, and Joanne Cardsley in Hollyoaks. She also appeared in Shameless and Happy Valley. Kym Marsh plays Nicky Walters Who is Nicky Walters? The school dinner lady and a former beautician who was put out of business during the COVID-19 pandemic, Nicky is also the mother to two pupils. Nicky previously dated Donte Charles. What else has Kym Marsh been in? Marsh is best known as a singer from the band Hear'Say, acting in Coronation Street as Michelle Connor, and presenting Good Morning Live. Shauna Shim plays Valerie Chambers Who is Valerie Chambers? A music teacher at the school who is always willing to speak up for what is right. What else has Shauna Shim been in? Shim is best known for her work as Miss Drill in The Worst Witch, Biff and Chip, and Dogville. Adam Thomas plays Donte Charles Who is Donte Charles? One of the original pupils in Waterloo Road, Donte was known for his star-crossed romance with Chlo Grainger which saw them elope and also become teenage parents to daughter Izzy. Donte and Chlo grew up and were also parents to a son named Tommy. In season 11, Chlo died suddenly, leaving Donte a single parent. After joining the school as a caretaker, Donte is now an early career teacher. What else has Adam Thomas appeared in? Thomas is best known outside of Waterloo Road for his role as Adam Barton in Emmerdale (2009-2018) but also appeared in I'm a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here! in 2016. Saira Choudhry plays Nisha Chaudra Who is Nisha Chaudra? The Head of Maths at Waterloo Road and a prickly genius, Nisha is not afraid to speak her mind and also do as little work as possible What else has Saira Choudhry been in? Choudhry has starred in Life, Coronation Street, Hollyoaks, and No Offence. Liam Scholes plays Noel McManus Who is Noel McManus? Noel is a pupil at the school and is a troublemaker. Summer Violet Bird plays Tonya Walters Who is Tonya Walters? The younger sister of Preston and the daughter of school dinner lady Nicky. Lucy Eleanor Begg plays Caz Williams Who is Caz Williams? Caz was an intelligent pupil at Waterloo Road with a razor-sharp tongue when needed, and went to university in season 15. Thapelo Ray plays Dwayne Jackson Who is Dwayne Jackson? A pupil at the school who is close to his little brother Zayne. Inathi Rozani plays Zayne Jackson Who is Zayne Jackson? The younger brother of Dwayne and another pupil at the school. Zak Sutcliffe plays Schumacher "Schuey" Weever Who is Schuey Weever? A pupil at the school and another troublemaker. Maisie Robinson plays Portia Weaver Who is Portia Weaver? The mouthy sister of Schumacher Weaver who always shares her opinion. Tillie Amartey plays Stacey "Stace" Neville Who is Stace Neville? A brash and rebellious personality who clashes with teachers and fellow pupils. Aabay Noor Ali plays Mollie "Mog" Richardson Who is Mollie "Mog" Richardson? Previously home-schooled, computer wiz and gamer Mollie is mentored by Preston. Olly Rhodes plays Billy Savage Who is Billy Savage? A former pupil at Waterloo Road and the son of former headteacher Steve Savage, Billy was imprisoned for killing Boz Osbourne. Teddy Thomas plays Tommy Charles Who is Tommy Charles? The son of Donte and Chlo Charles and the younger brother of Izzy. Who is Teddy Thomas? The real-life son of actor Adam Thomas who plays his son on-screen. Sonya Nisa plays Aleena Quereshi Who is Aleena Quereshi? A pupil at Waterloo Road who is friends with Stace but is faced by a secret from her previous school. Miya Ocego plays Lois Taylor-Brown Who is Lois Taylor-Brown? A friend of Stace's who is forced to say goodbye to a beloved family member. Danny Murphy plays Luca Smith Who is Luca Smith? A pupil at Waterloo Road who came from a specialist school and now must cope with changing provisions for being deaf. Matthew Khan plays Jared Jones Who is Jared Jones? Another pupil from a specialist school for deaf pupils, Jared is charismatic and connects with Libby – but their romance soon turns toxic, thanks to Jared. Cory McClane plays Ashton Stone Who is Ashton Stone? A troublemaking new pupil with a good heart who starts at the school but has a surprising connection to Donte – he's his biological son! Former characters on Waterloo Road The following characters were much-loved figures in the original and revival runs of Waterloo Road. Hattie Dynevor as Libby Guthrie Who is Libby Guthrie? The daughter of Mr Guthrie who comes to live with him and proves to be an antagonistic pupil at Waterloo Road. Who is Hattie Dynevor related to? Hattie is the sister of Bridgerton star Phoebe Dynevor and the daughter of Coronation Street icon Sally Dynevor. Chiamaka "ChiChi" Ulebor as Shola Aku Who is Shola Aku? A thoughtful pupil at the school, Shola is not afraid to speak out on important issues. Scarlett Thomas as Izzy Charles Who is Izzy Charles? Named after her maternal grandmother Izzie Redpath, Izzy Charles is a new pupil at Waterloo Road and is encouraged by both of her parents to make the most of her time there. After losing her mother and disliking her father moving on, Izzy chose to go and live with her aunt Mika. Now, in the latest run, Izzy is back, but for how long? What else has Scarlett Thomas been in? The niece of her on-screen father Adam Thomas as the daughter of his brother Ryan Thomas with former partner Tina O'Brien, both of whom are Coronation Street actors. O'Brien also appeared in earlier seasons of Waterloo Road as a pupil, Bex Fisher. Lauren Patel as Jas Sharma Who is Jas Sharma? A new early career teacher who has a spark with Donte but is also Nisha's daughter. What else has Lauren Patel been in? Patel has worked on Everyone's Talking About Jamie and Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl. Katherine Pearce as Amy Spratt Who is Amy Spratt? A passionate English teacher, Amy is now a settled face at the school but goes above and beyond to protect a pupil. What else has Katherine Pearce been in? Pearce has also appeared in the drama Three Girls and the films My Cousin Rachel and England Is Mine. Niamh Blackshaw as Agnes Eccleston Who is Agnes Eccleston? Agnes is a Christian pupil who is drawn to the troublemaker Schuey. What else has Niamh Blackshaw been in? Blackshaw has also appeared in Coronation Street and Hollyoaks. Lucy Chambers as Cat Guthrie Who is Cat Guthrie? The younger sister of Libby and the other daughter of Neil Guthrie. Cat also returns from New Zealand to live with her father and sister. Jason Mansford as Steve Savage Who is Steve Savage? An experienced new headteacher for Waterloo Road who goes way back with Nicky Walters and served as a mentor to Joe Casey. Steve is a maverick and isn't afraid to break the rules to achieve what he needs to do. What else has Jason Mansford been in? Mansford is well known for his work as a stand-up comedian and as a presenter, including on The One Show. Mansford has also had acting roles, including on the West End in Sweeney Todd, The Producers, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Guys and Dolls, Curtains and The Wizard of Oz. Angela Griffin as Kim Treneman, formerly Campbell Who is Kim Campbell? The former headteacher of the new Waterloo Road school, Kim Campbell used to work at the original Waterloo Road in Rochdale as an Art and PSHE teacher and was also the Head of Pastoral Care. A caring and compassionate teacher, Kim had a relationship with deputy head Andrew Treneman and left with him for Rwanda, before later returning home with a baby daughter named Grace, who she took from Rwanda illegally. Kim later lost custody of Grace. Following a merger with another school, Kim had an affair with the villainous executive head Max Tyler but later broke off their relationship when he showed his true colours. Despite this, Kim later found out that she was pregnant with Max's child and gave birth to her son Dexter before leaving the school. In the new season, Kim revived the Waterloo Road name but has since reunited with old love Andrew and left her post as headteacher. What else has Angela Griffin been in? Griffin is best known for her role as Fiona Middleton in Coronation Street, DS Lizzie Maddox in Lewis and Nurse Jasmine Hopkins in Holby City. Griffin also appeared in the series Mount Pleasant, Turn Up Charlie, and White Lines. Noah Valentine as Preston Walters Who is Preston Walters? One of the most popular boys in school, Preston is the ex-boyfriend of Samia and the current boyfriend of Kai. Preston is the son of school dinner lady Nicky. Alicia Forde as Kelly-Jo Rafferty Who is Kelly-Jo Rafferty? A confident and humorous pupil who is not afraid to speak out. Friends with Samia Choudry. Francesco Piacentini-Smith as Dean Weaver Who is Dean Weaver? A joker and troublemaking pupil who is not afraid to disrupt a class and is friends with Noel McManus. Dean is now the boyfriend of Kelly-Jo. Jamie Glover as Andrew Treneman Who is Andrew Treneman? Appearing in the show until season 2, the deputy head managed to rile up his colleagues by trying to introduce policies he’d used while working in expensive private schools. He eventually decided to take a teaching job in Rwanda, inviting Kim along too, and left in 2007. However, Andrew returned in the twelfth season and resumed his romance with Kim before they began to work together again. However, in the thirteenth season, he struggled with a cancer diagnosis before proposing to Kim and stepping back from his academy job. What else has Jamie Glover been in? Glover is perhaps best known for his role in Waterloo Road but after his departure, went on to play Harry Potter in the West End production of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. He has also had roles in The Crown, Endeavour, Father Brown and Holby City, and has voiced many roles in various video games such as Star Wars: Empire at War, Star Wars: The Old Republic and Troy: A Total War Saga, to name a few. Ava Flannery as Verity King Who is Verity King? The whip-smart daughter of Deputy Head Lindon King. Zenele Nyoni as Jess Clarke Who is Jess Clarke? A whip-smart young new pupil at Waterloo Road. Teddy Wallwork as Declan Harding Who is Declan Harding? A cheeky new pupil at Waterloo Road. Vincent Jerome as Lindon King Who is Lindon King? One of the deputy heads at the school, Mr King is a proud and ambitious teacher dealing with personal dramas. Lindon has left the school before the fourteenth run of the drama. What else has Vincent Jerome been in? Jerome has also had roles in The Peripheral and Sins of Solitude. Priyasasha Kumari as Samia Choudhry Who is Samia Choudhry? A very popular pupil at the school and was the girlfriend of Preston Walters until they split and she dated Danny Lewis until his death. After a difficult period, Samia left the school after the last season. Adam Ali as Kai Sharif Who is Kai Sharif? An unapologetically vibrant and theatrical pupil who was friends with Danny Lewis and is the boyfriend of Preston Walters. Kai took an stage school opportunity away from Waterloo Road at the end of the last season. Sonia Ibrahim as Jamilah Omar Who is Jamilah Omar? The calm and compassionate social worker who worked at the school. What else has Sonia Ibrahim been in? Ibrahim previously appeared as Mel Maguire in Coronation Street. Adam Abbou as Danny Lewis Who is Danny Lewis? A pupil who has faced his fair share of hardship, Danny was friends with Kai Sharif and was in love with Samia. Danny died in a fire at the end of the twelfth season. Osian Morgan as Myles Massey Who is Myles Massey? Massey is a brand new student, who has been let go by a football academy and is struggling to come to terms with a life back in mainstream education. He soon makes it clear that he’s not the kind of kid who wants to make friends and immediately sets about making a lasting impact on the school. The character is ultimately arrested after causing a fire in the season 12 finale which killed Danny Lewis. Lisa Faulkner as Hannah King Who is Hannah King? The wife of deputy head teacher Lindon King and the mother of their daughter Verity. What else has Lisa Faulkner been in? Faulkner previously appeared in the shows Holby City, Spooks, EastEnders, and Celebrity Masterchef. Chelsee Healey as Janeece Bryant Who is Janeece Bryant? Trouble-prone Janeece joined in season 1 back in 2006 and stuck around until season 4, like her friends Chlo and Donte. Her time at the school involved stealing a dinosaur tooth from a local museum, scamming money through a fake school raffle, and a brief dalliance with creationism. Despite that track record, she managed to get a job as the school secretary in season 6, which aired from 2010 to 2011. The character has a guest appearance in the new episodes. What else has Chelsee Healey been in? Outside of Waterloo Road, Healey went on to appear in Hollyoaks and was partnered with Pasha Kovalev in the ninth series of Strictly Come Dancing, eventually reaching the final. Katie Griffiths as Chlo Charles Chlo was one of the original pupils in Waterloo Road and the daughter of art teacher Izzie Redpath (Jill Halfpenny) who was killed in a stabbing. Chlo was also close to her late stepfather Tom Clarkson. A romance with Donte Charles saw them elope and later have daughter Izzy. Fans got to see Chlo all grown up with children of her own but unfortunately, she experienced a brain haemorrhage and died in the first episode of the 2023 revival series. Grantly Budgen - Philip Martin Brown The cantankerous and often sarcastic head of English was Waterloo Road’s longest-serving character, appearing in the first nine series of the show from 2006 to 2013. His grouchy exterior belied a softer side, which viewers saw after the death of his wife and during his subsequent romance with dinner lady Maggie, and his final storyline, in which he developed kidney failure and eventually died before a donor could be found, packed an emotional punch. Eddie Lawson - Neil Morrissey Maths teacher and deputy head Eddie joined the show at the start of season 3 in 2007, and stuck around until the end of season 4 in 2009. Why did he leave so soon? Romantic drama, naturally — after spending a whole season tiptoeing around his feelings for headteacher Rachel Mason, he started a relationship with her sister Melissa, who then became pregnant. After departing Waterloo Road, Morrissey has continued to have a string of memorable roles in shows like Line of Duty and The Night Manager. Izzie Redpath - Jill Halfpenny Drama teacher Izzie, the mother of Chlo Grainger and her sister Mika, appeared on the show from its first season until her dramatic death in the closing episode of season 2 in 2007, when she was stabbed by hardman Jed Seddon while protecting her boss, headteacher Jack. Before that, she’d embarked on a relationship with her colleague Tom Clarkson, who’d previously been married to her best friend. Halfpenny has continued to have a successful screen and stage career — you might have recently seen her as a spiky TV producer in the BBC adaptation of Everything I Know About Love. Rachel Mason - Eva Pope Waterloo Road’s third headteacher, Rachel joined part way through season 3 in 2007 and managed to stick out this poisoned chalice of a job until the end of season 5, with her final episode airing in 2010. Her reign encompassed a major fire and a disgruntled governor driving a digger through the school. Pope, meanwhile, has gone on to appear in shows like Silent Witness and CBBC’s Hetty Feather. Max Tyler - Tom Chambers Max joined the school in season 5 to serve as its executive headteacher following the merger with private school John Fosters, managing to bag a job after bad mouthing acting headteacher Rachel to the local authority. His hardline approach didn’t go down too well with staff or pupils, and he lasted for just 10 episodes, which aired in 2009. Since appearing on the show, Chambers has starred in Father Brown and Casualty, and is another Waterloo Road star to have taken part in Strictly, eventually winning the sixth series with Camilla Dallerup. Tom Clarkson - Jason Done One of Waterloo Road’s best-loved and longest-standing teachers, Tom started out in season 1 and continued on the show until season 8, with his final episode airing in 2013. As well as taking in the Grainger sisters after their mother’s death, he later learned he was the father of pupil Josh Stevenson, who joined Waterloo Road after the merger with John Fosters. His time on the show ended in dramatic fashion, when he fell from the school roof while trying to talk student Kyle Stack down. Steph Haydock - Denise Welch Steph, who was part of the show’s main cast from season 1 to season 5, wasn’t exactly a natural teacher, given she could barely control her classes and her exam results were always rubbish. Still, she was a popular member of staff, even if her love of gossip often got her in trouble. Her last hurrah came in season 6 when, over the course of two episodes which aired in 2010, she returned to help her old colleague Grantly while his wife was suffering from dementia. Welch went on to star in Benidorm and Hollyoaks, and remains a regular fixture on the Loose Women panel. Maggie Budgen - Melanie Hill Joining the school as a dinner lady for season 7 in 2011, Maggie eventually moved up the ranks as a food tech teacher and strikes up a romance with Grantly, who she married shortly after the school was relocated from Rochdale to Scotland (don’t ask…) She continued to appear in the show until it ended in 2015, keeping herself busy with her role as the leader of the school’s boarding house following her husband’s death in season 8. These days you can spot Hill on the cobbles as Coronation Street’s Cathy Matthews. Bolton Smilie - Tachia Newall Another Waterloo Road bad boy who was actually just a bit misunderstood, Bolton joined in season 3 in 2007 and left in season 5 after sticking around for sixth form. He quickly got a reputation as a class clown, but proved himself during the school fire, when he managed to save some pupils who were trapped in a corridor. Before bowing out of the show in 2010, he and love interest Sambuca Kelly were named prom king and queen. He later made a brief comeback in season 8, when he made an ill-advised visit to the school after absconding from the army. Finn Sharkey - Jack McMullen A troublemaker who joined Waterloo Road in the latter half of season 5 (with his first episode airing in 2010), Finn arrived with a bad reputation, having tried to set Chris Mead’s car on fire at his previous school. He struck up a friendship with Josh and later became embroiled in romantic dramas with a series of girls, including Sambuca, eventually finding love with fellow pupil Trudi Siddiqui. He left at the end of season 7 in 2012, travelling to Canada with Trudi. McMullen Josh Stevenson - William Rush Josh started at Waterloo Road in season 5 after it was merged with his previous school, and later learns that English teacher Tom Clarkson is his dad. He starts acting out after that revelation (under the influence of his friend Finn) but he and Tom eventually strike up a close bond, with his father supporting him when he comes out as gay in season 6. He continued to appear on the show until season 8, when he returned to the school to retake his exams. Ruby Fry - Elizabeth Berrington Food tech teacher Ruby joined the school in season 5 and, in one of the series’ most impressive career glow-ups, left at the end of the following season in 2011 to focus on her work as an author. Berrington’s career has gone from strength to strength too: she has recently appeared in HBO drama The Nevers and in BBC One’s police thriller The Responder, as well as appearing as Princess Anne alongside Kristen Stewart’s Princess Diana in the film Spencer. Lindsay James - Jenna Coleman Coleman’s stint on Waterloo Road was short and, inevitably, highly dramatic: her character, who appeared in the first half of season 5 in 2009, was eventually found guilty of murdering her father, after it was revealed that her mother had covered up for her and tried to take the blame. The actress is now best known for her roles as Doctor Who companion Clara and the young queen Victoria in the ITV period drama, and will soon appear in Netflix’s adaptation of The Sandman. Jonah Kirby - Lucien Laviscount Jonah only stuck around for the show’s sixth season, which aired from 2010 to 2011, but he definitely made an impression thanks to a dubious storyline which involved him falling in love with his Spanish teacher then deciding to elope with her to Gretna Green in Scotland. Laviscount went on to appear in shows like Trollied and Skins, before carving out an acting career on the other side of the Atlantic, with roles in Scream Queens and Riverdale spin-off Katy Keene. His biggest gig to date came in the most recent season of Netflix’s Emily in Paris. Jodie ‘Scout’ Allen - Katie McGlynn Coronation Street star McGlynn got her breakout role as Waterloo Road’s Scout, who comes from a troubled background and tries to provide for her younger brother by any means possible. She joined the show in season 7 in 2011, and Scout was one of the pupils to move up to Scotland with the school in season 8. Her final episode aired in 2013, when it was revealed that Scout was off to teacher training college. Sambuca Kelly - Holly Kenny Named after her mum’s favourite drink, Sambuca joined the show for season 4 in 2009. Although she often got dragged into conflict by her friends, she was a much-loved pupil, and the storyline surrounding her death from brain cancer in season 7 was an emotional one. After leaving the show in 2011, Kenny has appeared in shows including Shameless, Channel 4 period piece The Mill and in Kay Mellor drama In The Club. Chris Mead - William Ash Science teacher Chris was a former lawyer with a penchant for flash cars and clothes, until he packed it in for a career in education. He joined Waterloo Road for season 5 in 2009 and soon became a favourite among pupils and staff. Throughout his stint at the school, though, he ended up getting dragged into his pupils’ personal dramas and failing to maintain boundaries, so decided to resign halfway through season 7, with his last episode airing in 2011. Siobhan Mailey - Phoebe Dynevor Before Bridgerton catapulted her to superstardom, Dynevor got her breakout role in Waterloo Road’s fifth season, playing Siobhan, a student who joined after the merger with John Fosters. She stuck around for 20 episodes between 2009 and 2010. Michael Byrne - Alec Newman Michael was brought into the school at the start of season 7 (which aired in 2011) in an attempt to turn its reputation around. He was the architect of Waterloo Road’s dramatic move to Scotland, but didn’t stay around for long after that, leaving at the end of season 8 after a row about the school’s PRU. After quitting the show in 2013, Newman has appeared in dramas like Shetland, Showtrial and the most recent series of ITV’s Unforgotten. Guy Braxton - Regé-Jean Page Dynevor’s Bridgerton co-star also had an early gig on Waterloo Road, though their time on the show was five years apart. The future Duke of Hastings appeared in the 10th and final series as newly qualified teacher Guy, who ended up releasing that one of his new pupils was in fact his estranged sister. His episodes aired in 2015. Denzil Kelly - Reece Douglas The younger brother of Sambuca, Denzil had a troubled time of it at Waterloo Road, joining at the start of season 4 in 2009 and tragically dying in a car accident in the final episode of season 7, which aired in 2012 and saw the school make its move from Rochdale to Scotland. Since his time on the show, Douglas has appeared in ITV’s The Bay and is set to appear alongside Adrian Dunbar in the upcoming police thriller Ridley. Waterloo Road season 16 arrived on BBC iPlayer at 6am and on BBC One at 9am on Tuesday 23rd September. Previous seasons are available to stream on BBC iPlayer now. 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Move over, Marvel: welcome to the Madea cinematic universe...
Wise-cracking, larger-than-life grandma Madea first appeared on screen in 2005. Since then, we’ve seen Tyler Perry’s character sort out countless family rows, solve relationship woes, dish out idiosyncratic words of wisdom, get in trouble with the law, do battle with zombies, and even cross over with Mrs Brown's Boys. But how do you watch the Madea movies in order? Blending slapstick humour, heightened melodramatic storylines and often didactic messages, the Madea films have certainly proved divisive and prompted some scathing reviews. Despite that, though, Perry’s movies have - for the most part - been reliably successful at the box office, helping the actor and filmmaker to build up a billion-dollar entertainment empire. Whether you’re new to the Madea cinematic universe or want to return to the franchise after catching up with the newest projects on Netflix, here’s the complete Madea watch order. How to watch the Madea movies in order Whether you're wanting to watch the Madea movies in order by release date or by chronological order, the watch order is as follows: Diary of a Mad Black Woman (2005) Madea’s Family Reunion (2006) Meet the Browns (2008) Madea Goes to Jail (2009) I Can Do Bad All by Myself (2009) Madea’s Big Happy Family (2011) Madea’s Witness Protection (2012) A Madea Christmas (2013) Madea’s Tough Love (2015) Boo! A Madea Halloween (2016) Boo 2! Madea Halloween (2017) A Madea Family Funeral (2019) A Madea Homecoming (2022) Madea's Destination Wedding (2025) Diary of a Mad Black Woman (2005) View oEmbed on the source website It all began in 2005 with Diary of a Mad Black Woman, the screen version of Perry’s play. Helen (Kimberly Elise) is about to celebrate her 18th wedding anniversary with husband Charles (Steve Harris), until she returns home to find all of her belongings in a moving truck. Charles, it turns out, has been having an affair with a younger woman and is kicking Helen out of the house. Happy wedding anniversary, indeed. Helen heads to her grandma Madea’s house, where her older relative teaches her the true meaning of "what’s mine is yours" (clue: it involves a sofa and a chainsaw). Madea’s Family Reunion (2006) In this second instalment, a judge orders Madea to take in Nikki, a troubled foster child played by Keke Palmer, to avoid jail after violating the terms of her house arrest (Madea boasts a pretty extensive criminal record, we learn, starting with petty theft at nine years old). Though the pair clash at first, Madea’s guidance helps Nikki get back on track. Family tensions rise as her nieces deal with relationship issues (including a controlling fiancé), and things reach boiling point at a reunion held at Aunt Ruby's (Georgia Allen) home. Watch out for the cameo from Maya Angelou as Ruby's daughter May, who performs the poem In and Out of Time along with legendary actress Cicely Tyson (who plays Madea’s daughter-in-law, Myrtle). Meet the Browns (2008) If you're a stickler for rules, technically Meet the Browns is not a Madea movie: it focuses on single mother Brenda (Angela Bassett) who travels to Georgia for the funeral of the father she never knew, and ends up meeting her extended family for the first time. One of them, Cora, just so happens to be the daughter of Madea. Cue a scene where the family tune in to watch the news on TV as Madea is chased by the police at high speed and eventually arrested. Meanwhile, Brenda embarks on a tentative romance with her son’s basketball coach, played by Rick Fox. The film went on to inspire a sitcom of the same name, focusing on the antics of family patriarch Leroy Brown (David Mann). Madea Goes to Jail (2009) After the antics of Meet the Browns, Madea manages to avoid prison by opting to take anger management sessions instead (presided over by none other than former Oprah Winfrey Show star Dr Phil). However, it’s not long before she ends up behind bars for another offence. In jail, she befriends inmates like TT, a killer played by Sofia Vergara, and Candace, a sex worker who has struggled with addiction, played by Keshia Knight Pulliam. Candace’s story drives the film’s more serious plotline. Rising attorney Josh (Derek Luke) offers to help her, as they were close friends throughout childhood, but his fiancée Linda (Ion Overman), also a lawyer, gets jealous and starts doing her best to ensure that Candace remains in prison. Viola Davis also makes an appearance as minister and former addict Ellen. I Can Do Bad All by Myself (2009) View oEmbed on the source website Taraji P Henson joins the Madea cinematic universe for this fifth instalment, starring as alcoholic nightclub singer April. When Madea catches three children breaking into her home, she takes them under her wing. After learning that their mother is dead and their grandmother has gone AWOL, she reunites them with April, who happens to be their only other relative. April is less than impressed by their arrival, and isn’t exactly thrilled when the pastor suggests that she also takes in Sandino (Adam Rodriguez), a Colombian immigrant who is looking for work. The supporting cast for I Can Do Bad All by Myself features a handful of music legends, with Mary J Blige cropping up as Tanya, who works as a bartender at April’s club, and Gladys Knight as Wilma, a member of the church congregation. Madea’s Big Happy Family (2011) Once again, it’s up to Madea to bring her fractious family back together. This time, her niece Shirley (Loretta Devine) has been diagnosed with cancer. Her three children, Byron (by Shad Moss AKA rapper Bow Wow), Kimberly (Shannon Kane) and Tammy (Natalie Desselle-Reid) are so consumed by their own relationship dramas that their mother struggles to find a moment to tell them the sad news. Madea’s task is to reunite them all for a family dinner, but Byron’s endless rows with Sabrina, the mother of his child (played by Teyana Taylor), Tammy’s squabbles with her husband and a trauma from Kimberly’s past threaten to overshadow the event. In a side plot, Cora (who first appeared in Meet the Browns) begins to doubt that Leroy Brown is her father after learning that they do not share the same blood type: fast-forward to the end of the film and the pair, along with Madea, are on talk show Maury for a paternity test. Madea’s Witness Protection (2012) View oEmbed on the source website Schitt’s Creek’s Eugene Levy stars in the seventh Madea movie as George Needleman, a finance officer who is shocked to learn that his company is in fact a Ponzi scheme run by the mob. When he’s framed by his boss for money laundering, the FBI gives him a chance to testify against the gangsters - but first, he and his family must enter a witness protection programme orchestrated by Madea’s lawyer nephew Brian (also played by Perry). That’s how George, his wife Kate (Denise Richards), mother and two children end up, you guessed it, hiding out at Madea’s house in Georgia. Though at first the two families don’t exactly see eye to eye, it’s not long before George and Madea are cooking up a scheme to recover the charity money stolen in the Ponzi scheme. A Madea Christmas (2013) In this festive outing for Madea, ‘tis the season for more family drama. The action shifts to Alabama, where Madea is spending the holidays with great-niece Eileen (Anna Maria Horsford) and her daughter Lacey (Tika Sumpter). Eileen has invited herself to Lacey’s home for Christmas, bringing along her daughter’s ex-boyfriend in the hope that they might reconcile. What she doesn’t know is that Lacey is already married, and fears that her mother won’t approve of her husband, who is white. When Lacey’s in-laws turn up too, it becomes harder and harder to keep the secret. One Tree Hill star Chad Michael Murray also appears as a corn farmer who is feuding with Lacey’s husband Conner (Eric Lively). Madea’s Tough Love (2015) This time around, the Madea cinematic universe makes its first foray into animation. As Madea watches a cartoon while eating breakfast and finds herself wishing that she could discipline the rowdy kids on screen, she’s drawn into the animated world. Even in cartoon form, though, Madea manages to get in trouble with the law and is sentenced to do community service at a local youth centre. When she learns that the venue has been condemned under new plans to rebuild the neighbourhood, it’s up to Madea to rally the locals and save the centre. Boo! A Madea Halloween (2016) This spooky instalment in the series started life as a joke in a Chris Rock movie. In the film Top Five, Rock’s character is gutted when he learns that his latest film project has been defeated at the box office by a (fictional) Madea Halloween film, titled Boo! The parody then prompted Lionsgate, the studio behind the Madea films, to suggest that Perry actually made a movie along those lines. Boo! A Madea Halloween sees the title character tasked with keeping an eye on Tiffany (Diamond White), the teenage daughter of her nephew Brian. It’s fright night, and Tiffany is desperate to attend a Halloween house party - but if anyone can stop her, it’s the formidable Madea. Boo 2! Madea Halloween (2017) View oEmbed on the source website After the box office success of the first Madea Halloween movie, a second film arrived in cinemas the following year. This time, Tiffany is looking forward to her 18th birthday and plans to celebrate at another spooky-themed frat party, much to her dad’s disapproval. This time, the bash is being held at Lake Derrick, so Madea and her pals Bam (Cassi Davis) and Hattie (Patrice Lovely) embark on a trip to bring her back. Once they arrive, though, they find themselves terrorised by a ghostly figure. It was a case of diminishing returns at the box office, with the film taking $48.3 million worldwide, a significant drop from the first film’s $74.8 million total. A Madea Family Funeral (2019) After a spate of themed movies, it’s back to business as usual for A Madea Family Funeral. Madea and her extended family gather in Georgia to celebrate the 40th wedding anniversary of Vianne (Jen Harper) and Anthony (Derek Morgan). The devoted husband, though, has actually been having an affair with Vianne’s best friend. When Anthony dies of a heart attack in her company, the reunion pivots from anniversary celebration to mourning, with Madea and Anthony’s son AJ doing their best to hush up the real circumstances of his death. A Madea Homecoming (2022) View oEmbed on the source website Initially planning to retire Madea with after A Madea Family Funeral, Perry backtracked on those plans to create this movie for Netflix, which also features characters from Mrs Brown’s Boys (yes, really). This time around, Madea is gearing up for her great-grandson Tim’s college graduation, when more family drama inevitably kicks off. What’s the Mrs Brown connection, you ask? She is introduced as the great aunt of Davi, Tim’s best friend, and manages to cause almost as much carnage as Madea. Madea's Destination Wedding (2025) View oEmbed on the source website Coming 20 years after Madea's first on-screen appearance in Diary of a Mad Black Woman, Madea's Destination Wedding follows Madea, Joe and Brian as they head to the Bahamas for Madea's grandniece Tiffany's surprise wedding. Diamond White returns to the Madea cinematic universe as Tiffany, who this time becomes wrapped up in a conspiracy surrounding her fiancé, Zavier. Exploring family themes and uncovering interesting revelations about the supporting characters, Madea's Destination Wedding has a lot of heart - even if the franchise is starting to feel a little like it's past its use-by date at this point. How many Madea films are there? There are 13 films in the Madea cinematic universe, though Meet the Browns and Madea's Tough Love are sometimes discounted from that total, the former because Madea only makes a brief appearance during the car chase, and the latter because it’s an animated spin-off rather than a live-action movie. Check out more of our Film coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. For more TV recommendations and reviews, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
How to watch the DC Animated Universe movies in order
Want more Justice League? Head over to the DC Animated Universe...
Fans of DC Comics have plenty to get excited about over the coming months (and years), with big things happening in both animation and live-action for the publisher's iconic characters. While we're still a long way away from our first proper look at James Gunn's much-anticipated Superman reboot, some of the most iconic storylines in comic book history are currently being adapted for the Tomorrowverse. This shared animated universe has recently revisited the origins of Clark Kent and John Stewart, and offered a cinematic retelling of Batman: The Long Halloween – but the biggest is yet to come. Warner Bros Animation is currently embarking on a three-part adaptation of Crisis on Infinite Earths, which is set to feature the late Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill in their Batman and Joker roles from The Animated Series in a multiversal crossover. It's not yet known whether the event will also merge the Tomorrowverse and the DC Animated Movie Universe (DCAMU), which hasn't seen a new entry since 2022. If you're eager to get involved in the fun, read on for your complete guide to the Tomorrowverse and the DC Animated Movie Universe (DCAMU) – there's plenty to get stuck into! How to watch the DCAMU movies in chronological order Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox (2013) Barry Allen, AKA The Flash, is alerted to a break-in at the Flash Museum, where his enemies including Captain Cold, Heat Wave and Mirror Master have descended. Once he arrives on the scene, it becomes clear the robbery was orchestrated by his nemesis Professor Eobard Thrawne, or Zoom, as part of a wider plan to destroy Central City. Though Allen manages to foil the plot, when he awakes the next day, things are drastically different. His mother is alive, his wife is married to someone else, and his powers have completely gone. The Justice League as he knows it no longer exists, and Aquaman and Wonder Woman are at war in Europe. Allen makes a visit to Wayne Manor, but Batman doesn’t recognise him and responds with suspicion – because he’s not Bruce, but his father Thomas. It seems that the Flash has found himself in a totally different timeline. But how did he get there, and did Thrawne have something to do with it? The Flashpoint storyline also serves as a source of inspiration for the live action The Flash movie, meaning this animated version would serve as an excellent primer. Rent or buy The Flashpoint Paradox on Amazon We asked a panel of pop-culture enthusiasts the great geek question of our time: Marvel versus DC – who is the king of superhero cinema? Watch the full debate show to find out who came out on top. View Green Video on the source website Justice League: War (2014) The second film is based on the comic book Justice League: Origin, written by Geoff Johns and Jim Lee, which was the first story in DC’s 2011 revamp known as the New 52. Justice League: War opens as a spate of abductions grip Gotham City, and security footage puts Batman in the frame. The crimes, though, are in fact the work of a Parademon, and its presence in Gotham is just the precursor to a major invasion of Earth. The plot is the work of the evil Darkseid, the ruler of planet Apokolips, and the Justice League must team up to foil him.The voice cast features Rogue One’s Alan Tudyk as Superman, Jason O’Mara as Batman and Michelle Monaghan as Wonder Woman. Rent or buy Justice League: War on Amazon Son of Batman (2014) Batman learns that he is a father when Talia al Ghul (daughter of the villainous Ra’s al Ghul) arrives in Gotham City with a young boy named Damian in tow, telling Wayne that their child is under threat. After Ra’s al Ghul appointed him as his successor as the leader of the League of Assassins, Deathstroke murdered Ra’s then targeted his grandson. She hopes that Damian will be safer under his father’s wing, while she and the League plan to deal with Deathstroke – but the boy has other ideas. He’s determined to disobey his dad’s orders and avenge his grandfather’s death himself. O’Mara returned to voice Batman, joined by Morena Baccarin as Talia and Stuart Allan as Damian. Rent or buy Son of Batman on Amazon Justice League: Throne of Atlantis (2015) Throne of Atlantis sees Aquaman discovering his true heritage. When the crew of a nuclear submarine are killed while on patrol in the Atlantic, Wonder Woman discovers that the sub may have been attacked by Atlantean warriors. Over in Atlantis, the rulers of the underwater realm are arguing over whether to declare all-out war on humankind. The nefarious Orm is in favour of an attack, but Queen Atlanna is against it, and asks for her half-human son Arthur Curry to be brought back to Atlantis. There, he must join forces with the Justice League in order to thwart Orm’s schemes. Rent or buy Justice League: Throne of Atlantis on Amazon Batman vs Robin (2015) As a child, Bruce Wayne suspected that the shadowy organisation known as the Court of Owls might have had something to do with his parents’ death, but was never able to find any evidence. When a feather is found at the scene of a murder in the present day, Batman is drawn back into the Order’s mysterious world. His son, Damian, is still attempting some crime-fighting of his own, traversing Gotham’s streets under the guise of Robin despite Wayne’s attempts to ground him. When he manages to beat Wayne Manor’s security system, he meets a shady assassin named Talon who promises to train him up as a Court assassin. Rent or buy Batman vs Robin on Amazon Batman: Bad Blood (2016) Batwoman (AKA Kate Kane, voiced by The Handmaid’s Tale’s Yvonne Strahovski) apprehends a group of criminals in Gotham, led by a masked man known as the Heretic. When things start to get violent, the (other) caped crusader appears, only for the Heretic to detonate some explosives - and after helping Kate get to safety, Batman seems to perish in the blast. Batwoman, Wayne’s ally Nightwing and his son Damian (who has been recuperating in a Himalayan monastery after the events of the previous film) team up to investigate the Heretic - and to work out whether Batman really is dead. Rent or buy Batman: Bad Blood on Amazon Justice League vs Teen Titans (2016) The demonic Trigon (voiced by Jon Bernthal) sends a corrupter to the Earth which possesses Weather Wizard. It’s eventually defeated by Damian, but in doing so he ignored his father’s instructions again and, despite the outcome, the Justice League are less than impressed by his recklessness. As a punishment, he’s sent to join the Teen Titans, meeting their leader Starfire along with Garfield Logan, who can shape-shift into any animal, Jaime Reyes, who uses the alias Blue Beetle, and Raven, the daughter of Trigon, who has the power to travel through time and teleport. The Titans and the League don’t get on too well at first, but in the face of attack from Trigon’s demons, they must eventually overcome their differences. Rent or buy Justice League vs Teen Titans on Amazon Justice League Dark (2017) When previously law-abiding citizens around the world start turning into murderers, and are convinced that their victims are demons, the Justice League put the attacks down to magic – but Batman isn’t so sure. He receives a message telling him to track down exorcist John Constantine, who along with the likes of Zatanna, Deadman, Etrigan the Demon and Swamp Thing, makes up the Justice League Dark team, a supernatural counterpart to the usual gang of heroes. Rent or buy Justice League Dark on Amazon Teen Titans: The Judas Contract (2017) Nightwing joins the Teen Titans in order to hunt down a terrorist group led by the super-villain Brother Blood, who is planning to capture the gang and take their powers using a specially developed machine. If his plan works, Brother Blood will be left with godlike abilities, so to speed things up, he recruits Deathstroke, who is still nursing a grudge against Damian after he was announced as Ra’s al Ghu’s heir, to bring the Teen Titans to him. He’s helped along by Terra, a double agent who has been working against the Titans from the inside. Buy Teen Titans: The Judas Contract on Amazon Suicide Squad: Hell to Pay (2018) After being diagnosed with a terminal illness, agent Amanda Waller becomes fixated by the legend of the Get Out of Hell Free card, an artefact which gives its owner the power to bypass hell and go straight to Heaven, no matter how many sins they committed on Earth. The card, Waller learns, is currently in the possession of Steele Maxum, the former Doctor Fate. She recruits the likes of Harley Quinn, Copperhead, Bronze Tiger, Captain Boomerang and Killer Frost to retrieve it, but this gang of criminals aren’t the only ones who are after this mythical card: they’ll have to race against Vandal Savage and his daughter Scandal, as well as the speedy Reverse-Flash and his allies Silver Banshee and Blockbuster. Buy Suicide Squad: Hell to Pay on Amazon The Death of Superman (2018) Superman saves the day when organised crime group Intergang attempt to abduct the Mayor of Metropolis, and leaves the scene with a piece of their technology which he takes to STAR Labs for further analysis. When he learns that the device is a mix of Earth and Apokoliptian technology, he starts to fear that his old nemesis Lex Luthor could be working with Intergang, despite currently being in government custody. He has to face another major threat when the monstrous Doomsday, a creature possessing extreme strength and stamina, starts to terrorise the city, resulting in a huge showdown across Metropolis. Buy The Death of Superman on Amazon Constantine: City of Demons (2018) Initially released as five short episodes and later compiled into a feature-length film, Constantine: City of Demons picks up after the events of Justice League Dark. The story follows the titular occult detective as he seeks to bring an innocent young girl out of a supernatural coma, with her soul at risk of being taken by the demon Beroul. Buy Constantine: City of Demons on Amazon Reign of the Supermen (2019) Six months after Superman sacrificed himself to save his city from Doomsday, Metropolis’s crime rate has inevitably spiked. Four new Supermen – Superboy, Steel, the Eradicator and Cyborg Superman – are on the scene, but their presence proves controversial, and Lois Lane (Rebecca Romijn) starts to investigate their origins. Cyborg Superman attempts to convince her that he, rather than the others, is the true Superman, but she’s not convinced. Where did these four pretenders come from, and could the real Superman still be out there? Buy Reign of the Supermen on Amazon Batman: Hush (2019) This time around, Batman must form an uneasy alliance with Catwoman when he is targeted by a shadow super-villain known only as Hush. Not only does Hush seem to know all of Wayne’s secrets, he also recruits Batman’s old enemies – including the Joker, Scarecrow and Poison Ivy – to turn his life upside down. Could another old nemesis be lurking behind a new alter ego? Buy Batman: Hush on Amazon Wonder Woman: Bloodlines (2019) Diana of Themyscira (Rosario Dawson) rescues Captain Steve Trevor (Jeffrey Donovan) when he is attacked by a Parademon, treating his injuries with a healing ray before he is taken prisoner by her mother, Queen Hippolyta, as men are banned from the island. Defying Hippolyta, Diana helps Steve escape. Later, she has a premonition of a coming war and decides to accompany him to Washington DC, hoping she can protect mankind if her vision comes true. While in DC, she stays with a geologist and her daughter, but finds that the latter, a teenager named Vanessa, is jealous of her friendship with her mother. Soon, she is recruited by Diana’s enemies at Villainy Inc, who are planning an invasion of Themyscira. Buy Wonder Woman: Bloodlines on Amazon Justice League Dark: Apokolips War (2020) Darkseid is back, and after two failed attempts at conquering Earth, he has decided to set his sights on conquering other planets. In a bid to finally defeat him, the Justice League plan to infiltrate the planet Apokolips while the Teen Titans defend earth. The scheme fails, however, when Darkseid manages to use Cyborg to spy on them. A fleet of Paradooms, genetic hybrids of the Parademons, and the near-invincible Doomsday manages to wipe out most of the League and the Titans, and those that survive are imprisoned. It soon becomes clear that if Darkseid is to be defeated, the heroes will need to join forces with their supernatural counterparts in Justice League Dark. Buy Justice League Dark: Apokolips War on Amazon DC Showcase: Constantine – The House of Mystery (2022) The DC Animated Movie Universe has been rather quiet since the climactic events of Apokolips War, but fans have have had one little glimpse at what the shared world currently looks like. In 2022, DC Showcase: Constantine – House of Mystery was released, with the main event being an eerie story of the so-called Hellblazer waking up in the titular, otherworldly location, with no recollection of what brought him there. Visions of Zatanna and other allies appear to offer hints at his fate, but he struggles to escape a Groundhog Day-cycle of repeated, gruesome deaths. Can he find the answers he needs to return to his not-so-ordinary life? Living up to its name, this entry also showcases other characters from the DC catalogue, with companion shorts featuring Kamandi: The Last Boy on Earth, The Losers and Blue Beetle, who recently made his big screen live-action debut. Buy DC Showcase: Constantine – House of Mystery on Amazon How to watch DC's Tomorrowverse in order Since 2020, the focus of DC's animated efforts has shifted to a new shared continuity known as the Tomorrowverse, which derives its name from the first instalment – Superman: Man of Tomorrow. With a new style of animation and some exciting adaptations thus far, this is the place to be for DC fans looking to spend time with their favourite characters before James Gunn's cinematic reboot brings them back to live-action. The Tomorrowverse is coming to a dramatic end, with a three-part adaptation of legendary comic book event Crisis on Infinite Earths, which dropped its initial chapter in January 2024. The storyline will see the Tomorrowverse cross over with Batman: The Animated Series, although it's yet to be confirmed whether elements of the DC Animated Movie Universe (outlined above) will also be folded in. Superman: Man of Tomorrow (2020) The first entry in the Tomorrowverse is an adaptation of Superman's traditional origin story, seeing him sent away from his dying planet, Krypton, to grow up in rural Kansas under the care of Martha and Jonathan Kent. In his adult years, he must defend Metropolis from an attack by extraterrestrials Parasite and Lobo. Rent or buy Superman: Man of Tomorrow on Amazon Justice Society: World War II (2021) The second instalment in the Tomorrowverse sees The Flash inadvertently travel back in time to World War II, where he joins the likes of Black Canary, Hawkman and Wonder Woman in a fight against the Nazis. Buy Justice Society: World War II on Amazon Batman: The Long Halloween – Parts One and Two (2021) An adaptation of the comic book story of the same name, The Long Halloween Parts One and Two follow Batman as he attempts to identify a murderer who consistently strikes on holidays. He'll encounter several members of his iconic rogues' gallery as he inches closer to the truth. Buy Batman: The Long Halloween Parts One and Two on Amazon Green Lantern: Beware My Power (2022) The next entry in the Tomorrowverse sees former marine John Stewart come into possession of a Power Ring, putting him at the forefront of an intergalactic war involving the Green Lantern Corps. Buy Green Lantern: Beware My Power on Amazon Legion of Super-Heroes (2023) Supergirl gets acquainted with members of the Legion Academy, uncovering a dangerous conspiracy by a group known as the Dark Circle in the process. Buy Legion of Super-Heroes on Amazon Justice League: Warworld (2023) Wonder Woman, Superman and Batman are among the DC figures transported to a mysterious, Western-inspired planet known as Warworld, where danger lurks around every corner. Buy Justice League: Warworld on Amazon Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths – Part One (2024) The start of a three-part finale for the Tomorrowverse, Crisis on Infinite Earths adapts the famous comic book story in which the future of countless alternate realities hangs in the balance. Rent or buy Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths – Part One on Amazon Visit our Film hub for the latest news and features, or find something to watch tonight with our TV Guide and Streaming Guide. Try Radio Times magazine today and get 10 issues for only £10 – subscribe now. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
I'm a Celebrity 2023 line-up: Confirmed contestants
Meet the stars are heading down under this year.
With just hours to go until the start of this year's I'm a Celebrity, 10 celebs are set to enter the jungle all in the hopes of being named the next King or Queen of the Jungle. Taking on the Bush Tucker Trials this year are former MEP Nigel Farage, Jamie Lynn Spears, who is the sister of pop star Britney Spears, Hollyoaks star Nick Pickard, This Morning host Josie Gibson, YouTube star Nella Rose and more. Two more celebs are expected to join the cast at a later date, and will be revealed in due course, with boxer Tony Bellew and jockey Frankie Dettori currently rumoured to be taking part. As we wait for the 2023 season to kick off, read on for everything you need to know about the I'm a Celebrity 2023 line-up. And keep your eyes peeled on this page for more updates on the cast and the two possible late arrivals. I'm a Celebrity 2023 line-up: Confirmed celebrity contestants The following list of celebs will be entering the jungle this year: Jamie Lynn Spears Nigel Farage Nick Pickard Josie Gibson Fred Sirieix Nella Rose Danielle Harold Sam Thompson Marvin Humes Grace Dent Read more about the line-up below. Jamie Lynn Spears Age: 32 Job: Actress Instagram: @jamielynnspears Actress Jamie Lynn Spears is one of this year's contestants. She says: "There is literally every misconception you can have on a person about me so I don’t take any of it seriously. But I do think going on I’m A Celebrity will be a nice way for people to see the real me. This is an opportunity to be myself and do something really cool and have some awesome experiences in the meantime." According to The Mirror, producers were hoping for Jamie to open up about her relationship with her sister Britney. "Jamie Lynn has got decades of history... with Britney to rake over, and has laid out her feelings pretty clearly in her own book. It will be interesting to hear her spill the beans about her life and her family," an insider said. Jamie only recently appeared on Dancing with the Stars. She was partnered with Alan Bersten. Unfortunately, the couple were the second contestants to be eliminated from dancing the show. Nigel Farage Age: 59 Job: GB News presenter Instagram: @nigel_farage Nigel Farage is entering the I'm a Celebrity jungle. “I want to test myself," said Farage. "Business, politics, media, I’ve done so many different jobs and generally I have been reasonably successful. But I have never been tested in quite this way. It’s such a mental test and maybe I will discover who I really am." Nick Pickard Age: 48 Job: Actor Instagram: @nickpickardofficial Actor Nick Pickard is entering the jungle this year. Pickard is best known for appearing on Hollyoaks, which formerly appeared on Channel 4 and has now moved to E4. The 48-year-old has played Tony Hutchinson on the soap since 1995, but will be taking a break to take on the Bushtucker Trials. Asked why he decided to sign up for the show, Nick said: "This is a once in a lifetime opportunity and as soon as I was approached, I said "yes". I am not quitting Hollyoaks to take part. My bosses have been really supportive of me doing it. Now it is getting near to going into camp, I am so excited." He added: "I am obviously not looking forward to eating kangaroo balls, but at the same time, I am looking forward to the trials – that’s the fun part of doing this show. I love the ones where you climb up or jump for a star. And I like ones getting submerged in water. I can’t wait now! This is so out of my comfort zone and it’s the best show you can do.” Josie Gibson Age: 38 Job: TV presenter Instagram: @josiegibson85 TV presenter and former Big Brother winner Josie Gibson is swapping the This Morning sofa for the jungle. “Now I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here! is fast approaching, it’s sinking in and I am feeling anxious,” the bubbly TV presenter said ahead of her debut. “I keep thinking, ‘Sh*t, I am actually doing this’. I know I have taken on challenges for This Morning in the past but I don’t know if I’ve taken on too much here. It’s all becoming very real.” She added: "I am dreading the insects and it’s my biggest phobia. I also don’t like spiders and I freeze normally when I see one. My family thinks I am mad doing the programme too as they know what I’m like with creepy crawlies!” Josie has stepped up her role on This Morning recently, emerging as a regular host in the wake of Phillip Schofield’s departure from the show. She’s also proved a hit with viewers. Fred Sirieix Age: 51 Job: Maître d'hôtel and TV star Instagram: @fred_sirieix French maître d'hôtel Fred Sirieix is swapping the glamorous First Dates restaurant for the Australian jungle. Speaking of the moment he found out he was doing the show, Fred said: "I knew it was serious when I got the call. I got scared and I don’t like to be limited by fear. But then I thought, ‘Ok this is a challenge’ and I knew I wanted to do it. "It’s a challenge to be away from my friends, family, comfort, only drinking water, no coffee, no wine, no mustard on my steak and - in fact - no steak! I am seeing this as a wellness retreat. It’s an opportunity to get closer to myself inside my head and to see life through a different lens and in a place I feel uncomfortable.” Nella Rose Age: 26 Job: YouTuber Instagram: @nellarosee YouTube and social media influencer Nella Rose is entering the Australian jungle for 2023. Rose is known for her comedic videos and, as of November 2023, has 901,000 followers on Instagram, a million followers on TikTok and almost 800,000 subscribers on YouTube. The 26-year-old previously hosted Catfish on MTV alongside Oobah Butler, and taking over from Julie Adenuga. She also presents Nella Rose's Tapped Out on 4.0, where she turns prankster alongside Love Island's Chloe Burrows, reality TV star Mariam Musa, and YouTuber Adeola Patronne. Rose is originally from Belgium, but now lives in London. “My family have been laughing hysterically ever since I told them I was taking part,” Nella said ahead of the launch. “And they asked me why I agreed to do this but I’ve been watching I’m A Celebrity ever since I was a child and I still remember Ian Wright locked up in a room with an Ostrich. It’s so iconic and it’s why I said ‘yes’ immediately.” Danielle Harold Age: 31 Job: Actress Instagram: @danielle_harold EastEnders actress Danielle Harold has been confirmed for the 2023 show. “It’s been a crazy, crazy year and so why not top it off with the craziest thing ever by doing this?! It’s definitely a shock to the system and I am both excited and nervous. This is so much tougher than anything or any role I have ever done before as it is all so new," she said. Danielle Harold was previously rumoured to be taking part in 2023 show, after leaving the BBC One soap in May. Harold's character Lola Pearce passed away from a terminal brain tumour. The actress received praise for her performance and went onto win the gong for Serial Drama Performance at this year's National Television Awards. Prior to her joining the show, a TV source said: "Danielle is at the height of her career and in demand after her moving storyline on EastEnders, but she’s really caught the eye of ITV bosses to appear in the upcoming series of the jungle. "As well as being a talented actress with a huge fanbase, Danielle has a fun personality with a wicked sense of humour, which makes her the ideal campmate for the show." Sam Thompson Age: 31 Job: Reality TV star Instagram: @samthompsonuk Made in Chelsea's Sam Thompson will appear on I'm a Celebrity this year. "I am so excited about taking part in I’m A Celebrity, it still feels like a dream. I feel like a competition winner taking part. It was an absolute resounding ‘yes’ when I got approached. In fact, they didn’t even need to ask! I am a huge fan of the show. Ant and Dec are my idols too and it’s going to be really surreal meeting them," Sam said ahead of his debut. It comes as his girlfriend Zara McDermott recently competed on Strictly Come Dancing. Marvin Humes Age: 38 Job: Singer and TV presenter Instagram: @marvinhumes Former JLS star Marvin Humes is one of this year's contestants. Marvin is best known for appearing on The X Factor in 2008, where he and his JLS band members came second to Alexandra Burke. Since then, Marvin, along with his wife Rochelle, has appeared on This Morning, filling in for the regular hosts, and they also front their own BBC One game show, The Hit List. “When I first told Rochelle, she thought I was doing a prank on her,” the pop star revealed. “She thought I was nuts and she still can’t believe I’m doing it! "This is the most daring thing I have ever done and I have never challenged myself this way before. It’s one million per cent harder than performing on stage and I woke up with knots in my stomach this morning thinking about it. But this programme has been on my bucket list for years. It’s the first time I’ve been asked to do it so I jumped at the opportunity.” Grace Dent Age: 50 Job: English columnist and broadcaster Instagram: @gracedent Columnist and broadcaster Grace Dent, 50, has also signed up for IAC. Dent is a regular critic on MasterChef and has appeared as a judge on BBC Two's Great British Menu. Speaking ahead of the show, the food critic said: "Everything is filling me with a real sense of dread. But I am especially dreading being really hungry because I tend to eat four or five posh meals out a week because I am a restaurant critic. "I know they are going to give me an eating trial and I am dreading putting even worse things in my mouth than I have in the past in fancy restaurants! I think I will be writing very stiff columns about the jungle food when I come out!" Rumoured contestants Frankie Dettori Age: 52 Job: Jockey Instagram: @frankiedettori_ With jockey Frankie Dettori set to retire from racing later this year, rumours have started to swirl that he could be swapping the race track for the jungle. Earlier this summer, the odds on him taking part in the ITV show shrunk to just 2/1, according to William Hill. It wouldn’t be Dettori’s first time under the reality TV spotlight, as he took part in Celebrity Big Brother back in 2013. Tony Bellew Age: 40 Job: Boxer Instagram: @tonybellew Professional boxer Tony Bellew is also rumoured to take part in this year's IAC. Bellew hung up his gloves in 2018 after earning Crusierweight, Heavyweight and Light-Heavyweight titles. In recent years, he has worked as a sports pundit. He's also appeared on the big screen, starring in Creed, Creed II and Creed III alongside Michael B Jordan. I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! starts on Sunday 19th November at 9pm on ITV1 and ITVX. Check out more of our Entertainment coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. Try Radio Times magazine today and get 10 issues for only £10 – subscribe now and celebrate the 60th anniversary of Doctor Who with a special issue of Radio Times. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Taskmaster season 16: Release date, line-up and latest news
Channel 4 has renewed the weird and wonderful game show for six further seasons.
The 16th season of Taskmaster is returning to Channel 4 in style and viewers will officially be able to watch it from Thursday 21st September at 9pm. Alex Horne and Greg Davies are ready to set a series of bizarre challenges for a line-up of comedy stars and other famous faces to complete. The 15th season saw Mae Martin crowned the winner and it won't be long before viewers get to see a new batch of celebs attempt to complete a string of hilarious challenges in the hopes of winning. Here's everything you need to know about season 16 of Taskmaster. When will Taskmaster season 16 air? Channel 4 has confirmed that Alex Horne and Greg Davies will return for season 16 on Thursday 21st September at 9pm. In March 2023, the broadcaster confirmed that it had commissioned six more seasons of the game show, which are set to air over the next three years. It also confirmed a new spin-off for children, Junior Taskmaster, which will see kids aged nine to 11 "bring their fledgling wiles, athleticism and creativity to the game that recognises genius at any age". It was later confirmed that Taskmaster alumni Rose Matafeo and Mike Wozniak will be filling the roles of Taskmaster and Taskmaster's assistant on the junior spin-off. "Taskmaster is the funniest, most creative show on TV and we're so excited not only to have three more years of Greg and Alex on the brilliant original but also to expand Taskmaster," said Tom Beck, Channel 4's head of events. Who will be on the line-up for Taskmaster season 16? Shortly after the season 15 winner was crowned, Channel 4 unveiled the starry Taskmaster season 16 line-up, and as ever, it's packed with favourites from the world of British (and Aussie) comedy. Legendary comic and presenter Julian Clary, Meet the Richardsons' Lucy Beaumont, acclaimed stand-up Sam Campbell, former Great British Bake Off host Sue Perkins and Cheaters star Susan Wokoma will all be gearing up to compete for the golden trophy. Participants in the most recent season were Frankie Boyle, Ivo Graham, Jenny Eclair, Kiell Smith-Bynoe and Mae Martin. Taskmaster returns to Channel 4 on 21st September at 9pm. Previous seasons of Taskmaster are available to stream on All4. If you're looking for something else to watch, check out our TV Guide or Streaming Guide. Visit our hub for more Entertainment news. Try Radio Times magazine today and get 10 issues for only £10, PLUS a £10 John Lewis and Partners voucher delivered to your home – subscribe now. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Why isn't Strictly's Giovanni Pernice in the group dances?
Giovanni won't be taking part in the group dances with his fellow pros this year.
The new season of Strictly Come Dancing is now in full swing, with a new cohort of 15 celebrities ready to be schooled in the arts of Latin and ballroom dancing by their professional partners. Among the stars taking part this year are Channel 4 newsreader Krishnan Guru-Murthy, actor Adam Thomas and tennis player Annabel Croft, who will take to the dance floor alongside the likes of TV host Les Dennis and former Come Dancing host Angela Rippon, who is making Strictly history as the show’s oldest ever contestant. Eagle-eyed fans might have noticed, though, that professional dancer Giovanni Pernice, who won the competition back in 2021 with partner Rose Ayling-Ellis, doesn’t feature in the group dances this year. Here’s the backstory behind Giovanni’s absence from those show-stopping group numbers… Why isn’t Giovanni Pernice in the group dances? When Strictly aired in 2020 during the Covid pandemic, the show’s bosses made the decision to pre-film all of the group numbers in the summer, rather than record them live, before the competition kicked off in earnest. This was so that the professional dancers could form a ‘bubble’ beforehand in accordance with Covid protocols at the time. Since then, they’ve decided to stick to this plan, typically filming the group dances in August ahead of each new season premiering in September. While performing his Him & Me stage show with Strictly pro-turned judge Anton du Beke back in July, Giovanni injured his ankle and was advised to take a break from dancing in order to rest. "As you probably know I’m on tour at the moment with Anton and doing one of the dances I did twist my ankle on stage,” he told fans last month. "I have just been to the doctor, to the physio, and he advised [me] to rest for a few weeks.” He further explained: “[The injury] also means that I am going to miss a few of the Strictly professional group numbers, but I just need to give some rest to my ankle and come back stronger than ever for the upcoming series of Strictly Come Dancing - which I’m really looking forward to." Last year, Giovanni was paired up with presenter and radio host Richie Anderson, and ended up leaving the competition in its second week. He recently laughed off reports that he is planning to leave the BBC dance show, sharing a screenshot of a tabloid report on his Instagram story with the caption: "Lol I'm not going anywhere!!!" View Green Video on the source website Strictly Come Dancing starts at 6:35pm on 16th September on BBC One and BBC iPlayer. Check out more of our Entertainment coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. Try Radio Times magazine today and get 10 issues for only £10, PLUS a £10 John Lewis and Partners voucher delivered to your home – subscribe now. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
How to watch Jesse Stone movies in order: chronological and release date
The town of Paradise is not as it seems in Tom Selleck's gritty detective series.
A grizzled cop with a chequered past in a sleepy town is a tale as old as time but Tom Selleck makes it as compelling as ever and for fans of Robert B Parker’s novels, we have our guide on how to watch the Jesse Stone movies in either chronological or release date order. Stone uproots his LA life and moves hoping to find some peace in Paradise, Massachusetts after being fired from the LAPD for drinking on the job when he found out his wife was having an affair and got a divorce. Turning up to interview for top cop drunk, he is hired by the corrupt president of Paradise’s board of selectmen as they believe he will be easily manipulated into doing their bidding and turning a blind eye. Stone smells what’s going on in the deceptively quaint town that is rife with organised criminal syndicates and murder and the films depict his struggles with crime and his own personal demons. Starting with Stone Cold on CBS in 2005, Selleck reprised the role another eight times till 2015s Lost in Paradise. Fans are keen to see more of Stone and Selleck has confirmed they are working on a script for a tenth film but until then, read on to find out how to immerse yourself in the world of Jesse Stone. How to watch Jesse Stone movies in chronological order If you want to immerse yourself in the world of Paradise, the series chronology is relatively simple: you just have to remember that the first movie to be released, Stone Cold, should be watched as the second Jesse Stone story in Parker’s series. Meanwhile, the second movie Night Passage, which was released a year later in 2006, should be watched first, as it introduces us to Stone’s LA backstory. Got it? From then on, the movies follow a straightforward chronological order. Here's a quick look at the Jesse Stone films in chronological order. Jesse Stone: Night Passage (2006) Jesse Stone: Stone Cold (2005) Jesse Stone: Death in Paradise (2006) Jesse Stone: Sea Change (2007) Jesse Stone: Thin Ice (2009) Jesse Stone: No Remorse (2010) Jesse Stone: Innocents Lost (2011) Jesse Stone: Benefit of the Doubt (2012) Jesse Stone: Lost in Paradise (2015) Below we have more detailed entries for each movie in the series. Jesse Stone: Night Passage (2006) View oEmbed on the source website Based on the first novel in Parker’s series, Night Passage sees Stone make the journey from Los Angeles (after being forced to resign from his role as a homicide detective for drinking while on duty) to Paradise, a small town on the Massachusetts coast. He is soon hired as Paradise’s chief of police, as the sleazy council leader, noting Stone’s drinking problem, reckons he will be a soft touch and turn a blind eye to his money laundering schemes. He’s wrong, however. When the body of the previous police chief, who was forced out of the role after learning about the scheme, is found, Stone sets out to prove that his death was not an accident, and becomes embroiled in the murky world of the local gangsters who have some unsavoury links to the Boston mob. Viola Davis stars alongside Sellick as his police colleague Officer Molly Crane (she also appears in Stone Cold, Death in Paradise and Sea Change). Rent or buy Jesse Stone: Night Passage on Amazon Prime Video Jesse Stone: Stone Cold (2005) View oEmbed on the source website The sleepy town of Paradise is left reeling after a body is discovered on the shoreline, shot twice in the heart with a .22 calibre pistol. Not long after, two more victims are discovered, each killed by the same method. Stone, who is also investigating the rape of a teenage girl, starts to piece together a potential suspect profile by cross-referencing the gun register against the registration of a red truck that was spotted fleeing the crime scene. Soon, he has discovered not one but two potential killers acting as a pair - but without concrete evidence or a clear motive, he must wait to engineer a scenario that will prove their guilt. It’s a high stakes plan, and one that will eventually come at a high personal cost to Stone. Rent or buy Jesse Stone: Stone Cold on Amazon Prime Video Jesse Stone: Death in Paradise (2006) View oEmbed on the source website Stone’s next case sees him investigating the death of a teenage girl whose body is discovered floating in a lake. An autopsy reveals that she was pregnant, and that alcohol and muscle relaxer were in her bloodstream at the time of death. An initialed ring found on the body provides the first clue, eventually leading Stone and his colleague Luther Simpson (Kohl Sudduth) to discover that the victim is Billie Bishop, a high school student who was thrown out of her family home after her behaviour changed and her grades dropped. Further investigation reveals that Billie was in the orbit of wealthy local novelist Norman Shaw, a man with rumoured connections to the criminal underworld, who has been working on a book about Boston gangster Leo Finn. The case will once again take Stone into dangerous territory. Rent or buy Jesse Stone: Death in Paradise on Amazon Prime Video Jesse Stone: Sea Change (2007) View oEmbed on the source website After admitting to his psychologist that he drinks more heavily when he doesn’t have a case to work on, Stone tells his new colleague Rose Gammon (Kathy Baker) to find the list of local unsolved cases. (Gammon has replaced Davis’s Officer Crane, who has resigned from the force since the events of Death in Paradise.) He then decides to reopen the investigation into the 1992 death of a bank teller who was taken hostage during a robbery. When they visit the site where the body was found, they discover what appear to be the gunman’s clothes covered in marks consistent with a gunshot wound - a clue which proves this case is much more complex than the police had previously assumed. Rent or buy Stone: Sea Change on Amazon Prime Video Jesse Stone: Thin Ice (2009) View oEmbed on the source website As Thin Ice opens, Stone comes to the aid of his colleague, State Police Captain Healy (Stephen McHattie), who is attacked while keeping tabs on his nephew who he believes is in a relationship with his saxophone teacher. Stone starts to investigate the shooting, a move which doesn’t go down too well with the local council, who are wondering why he spends most of his time getting caught up in shoot-outs rather than sorting out lucrative parking tickets and speeding fines. While he ploughs on with the case in spite of their wishes, Stone is contacted by a woman who wants him to look into the disappearance of her baby seven years ago. Although a body with a name tag was found at the time, she was never convinced it was her child - and later received an anonymous note claiming "your child is loved". Though he is sympathetic to her plight, Stone decides not pursue it, thinking that opening another cold case will only rile up the council even more. Gammon, however, is determined to investigate. Rent or buy Jesse Stone: Thin Ice on Amazon Prime Video Jesse Stone: No Remorse (2010) View oEmbed on the source website Suspended from his position as Paradise’s chief of police, Stone has been banned from contacting his colleagues, and is drinking heavily, much to the concern of Gammon and Healy. After a spate of murders in a parking lot, Stone is hired as a private consultant to Boston police, who are investigating the killings. The first victim, he soon learns, had ties to Gino Fish, a figure in the Boston mob who has cropped up in previous investigations. When he’s not on the case up in Boston, Stone also looks into a series of attacks at a local convenience store. Rent or buy Jesse Stone: No Remorse on Amazon Prime Video Jesse Stone: Innocents Lost (2011) View oEmbed on the source website This time around, Stone has been pushed out of his job, replaced by the town council president’s son-in-law who is more concerned with Paradise’s public image than with fighting crime. Naturally, Stone is convinced that he will be reinstated one day, and is less than impressed when Butler, the new chief, tries to get him to give up his "concealed weapon" gun permit. Even without an official police role, Stone still manages to find himself caught up in a pair of murder investigations. One involves the death of friend, which the new police chief has ruled as a suicide rather than looking into the case further, while another sees him once again team up with old pal Healy as a consultant for the Massachusetts State Police on a murder and robbery, where Healy has doubts over the main suspect’s guilt. Rent or buy Jesse Stone: Innocents Lost on Amazon Prime Video Jesse Stone: Benefit of the Doubt (2012) View oEmbed on the source website Butler and one of his officers are killed in a suspicious police car explosion, and Stone is temporarily reinstated as the police chief by the town president, Carter Hansen. He soon notes that Hansen’s predecessor Hathaway, who has cropped up in a handful of previous stories, seemed to know about the death before Hansen was officially notified. A note in Butler’s calendar seems to imply that he was caught up in police corruption, and Stone’s investigation will once again draw him into the web of local gangsters and their organised crime rings. He’ll have to carry it out alone, though, as his old associates Gammon and Simpson have left the force after struggling to work with Stone’s replacement. Rent or buy Jesse Stone: Benefit of the Doubt on Amazon Prime Video Jesse Stone: Lost in Paradise (2015) View oEmbed on the source website By now, Stone is back in the job of police chief, yet he again agrees to help out the Massachusetts State Police as a consultant, feeling bored by the dearth of significant cases in Paradise lately. He’s given access to case files on several murders in the Boston area, including one involving a woman named Mavis Davies, the fourth victim of a serial killer known as the Boston Ripper. When Stone visits the murderer in jail, he proudly admits to the first three killings - but insists that he did not commit the fourth. Stone believes that he’s telling the truth, but has trouble convincing both Davies’s widower and Detective Leary, the officer who caught the Ripper, that the case might be much more complicated than they first thought. Advice from his psychologist Dr Dix (who just so happens to be an ex-cop) helps put him on the right track, though, and while he’s looking into the cold case, Stone also befriends a troubled 13-year-old who is being mistreated by her mother. Rent or buy Jesse Stone: Lost in Paradise on Amazon Prime Video How to watch Jesse Stone movies in release order As we said earlier, the only difference for watching it in release order is watching Stone Cold first followed by Night Passage with the rest of the order being the same. But, for completion's sake, we have listed it just below too. Jesse Stone: Stone Cold (2005) Jesse Stone: Night Passage (2006) Jesse Stone: Death in Paradise (2006) Jesse Stone: Sea Change (2007) Jesse Stone: Thin Ice (2009) Jesse Stone: No Remorse (2010) Jesse Stone: Innocents Lost (2011) Jesse Stone: Benefit of the Doubt (2012) Jesse Stone: Lost in Paradise (2015) Where to watch Jesse Stone movies The Jesse Stone films have aired on CBS and on the Hallmark Channel over in the US, but unfortunately, fans on this side of the Atlantic can only rent or buy all nine movies on Amazon Prime Video as there are no streaming options available at this time. If physical media is your preference, there is also the DVD boxset available from Amazon. Alternatively, for the home theatre connoisseurs, the Blu-Ray set can also be purchased from Amazon and while it is predictably quite a bit more expensive, it is by far the best way to enjoy the Jesse Stone in the highest fidelity. Check out more of our Film coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. Try Radio Times magazine today and get 10 issues for only £10, PLUS a £10 John Lewis and Partners voucher delivered to your home – subscribe now. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Will At Home With The Furys return for season 2?
Could the famous boxing clan be back on our screens for round two?
It came as a surprise to absolutely no one when reality show At Home with the Furies shot to the top of the Netflix charts when it first landed on the streamer. The nine-part fly-on-the-wall series revolves around world heavyweight champion boxer Tyson Fury and his family, including his wife Paris and, of course, his half-brother Tommy Fury and partner Molly-Mae, who met on ITV reality series Love Island. Naturally, those who tuned into the show are curious to know if there will be a second season, and Netflix would undoubtedly foot the bill given its popularity. But according to the man himself, it sounds unlikely at this moment in time. "I wanted out," he said (via The Sun) of the filming process. "It was a couple of weeks in, and I was on the phone to my lawyers: 'Is there any way I can get out of this? I don't know what I've signed up for again. I've made a mistake.'" Paris added: "We got halfway through filming and he wanted to cancel the whole show." But as we've seen in the past with his decision to step out of retirement, nothing is ever off the table. Here's everything we know so far about the show's future. Will At Home with the Furys return for season 2? Netflix is yet to confirm whether the Fury family will be back on our screens for a second season, but there are already reports swirling that it has been recommissioned. "They’re so confident it will be a hit with audiences that they want more and filming is due to start this autumn," a reported insider told The Sun earlier this month, describing the rumoured news as "great news for fans of Tyson, as well as those being introduced to the career and home life of the boxer for the first time". "Netflix are sure the show will have everyone hooked and were quick to snap up the leading man up before his diary became too full," the source added. We'll keep you updated as soon as we know more. At Home With the Furys season 2 release date speculation While we're yet to get that confirmation about a second season, if it does happen, another season could drop as early as 2024. Of course, the cameras would have to follow the family around for a few more months - but there's plenty going on in the world of the Furys right now, including an engagement, and a new family member about to join the fold! What will happen in At Home With The Furys season 2? If the reports suggesting that filming could begin this autumn are to be believed, it’s possible that we could get a glimpse into Tommy and Molly-Mae’s engagement celebrations and even wedding planning. This summer, Tommy proposed to his girlfriend of four years while on a romantic trip to Ibiza, and the couple, who also became parents for the first time back in January, will be in the thick of marriage prep. In a YouTube video shared shortly after the proposal, Molly-Mae revealed that the pair plan to tie the knot in a church in the UK "as Tommy is religious". Although they won’t be getting hitched until at least 2025, as Molly-Mae’s sister Zoe is getting married next year, there’s always a chance they fancy getting a head start on preparations. Tyson and Paris Fury are also set to welcome their seventh child later this year, after announcing the happy news in March, so it’s certainly set to be a busy time for the family. View Green Video on the source website At Home with the Furys season 1 is available to stream on Netflix. Sign up for Netflix from £4.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin Media Stream. Check out more of our Entertainment coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide. Try Radio Times magazine today and get 10 issues for only £10, PLUS a £10 John Lewis and Partners voucher delivered to your home – subscribe now. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Who is Amy Walsh? Celebrity MasterChef 2023 contestant and Emmerdale star
Meet the soap star hoping to impress the judges with her culinary skills.
The fourth and final heats of Celebrity MasterChef 2023 are now upon us, meaning it's time to meet the remaining stars vying for a spot in the semi-finals. As ever, five contestants will take part in a series of cooking challenges designed to show off their culinary talents (or, in some cases, expose their total lack thereof…), and at the end of each episode, judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace must decide which star will be sent home. Among them will be Emmerdale star Amy Walsh. Here's what you need to know about the soap star... Who is Amy Walsh? Age: 37 Job: Actor Instagram: @amyvwalsh Twitter: @amywalsh27 The younger sister of Girls Aloud star Kimberley Walsh, Amy has been acting from a young age, appearing in the short film Past Memoirs when she was eight. Her first TV role came in 2011, when she played Jennifique McQueen in Hollyoaks spin-off Hollyoaks Later. Then in 2014, she joined the cast of Emmerdale as Tracy Metcalfe. She’s been a regular fixture on the soap ever since, and has also appeared on quiz shows like Celebrity Chase and All Star Family Fortunes, appearing on the latter with her older sister. She welcomed a daughter with former EastEnders star Toby-Alexander Smith in 2021, and the couple announced their engagement the following summer. Earlier this year, she revealed that she has lobbied Emmerdale bosses to give daughter Bonnie a role in the show, especially now that her character Tracy has decided to open up a nursery. "I've actually asked if Bonnie can be an extra," she told The Mirror. "Then I could see her a bit more! I don't think that would be wise, though." Amy's former on-screen father Michael Praed, who played Tracy's dad Frank on Emmerdale between 2016 and 2019, will also be appearing on Celebrity MasterChef 2023. What time is Celebrity MasterChef 2023 on TV? View Green Video on the source website The fourth heat of the star-studded cooking contest kicks off on Wednesday 23rd August, with two further episodes then airing on consecutive nights. Amy will be up against the likes of Love Island's Luca Bish, Black Eyed Peas star apl.de.ap and Strictly Come Dancing professional Dianne Buswell. After that, it'll be time for the semi-finals to air the following week, with two celebrities from each heat taking part in some challenges designed to test their gastronomic talents to the limit. Celebrity MasterChef 2023 airs from Wednesday to Friday on BBC One and BBC iPlayer. To find out what else is on TV, check out our TV Guide or visit our hub for more Entertainment news. Try Radio Times magazine today and get 10 issues for only £10, PLUS a £10 John Lewis and Partners voucher delivered to your home – subscribe now. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Who is Luca Bish? Celebrity MasterChef 2023 contestant and Love Island star
From the Love Island villa to the MasterChef kitchen.
It’s very nearly time for the fourth and final heats of Celebrity MasterChef. Over the past few weeks, an array of celebrity contestants have been doing their very best to impress judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace with their culinary skills. Now, the latest cohort of five famous faces will be heading into the famous kitchen, hoping to win a spot in the semi-finals. Among them will be Love Island star Luca Bish, who appeared on ITV’s dating show last year. Will his past career as a fishmonger give him the edge on the show? We’ll have to wait and see - but in the meantime, here’s what you need to know about the reality star. Who is Luca Bish? Age: 23 Job: Reality TV star Instagram: @lucabish Love Island fans will already be very familiar with Luca, who headed into the famous Majorcan villa last summer, eventually coupling up with Gemma Owen, the daughter of football star Michael Owen. The pair made it all the way to the final, eventually coming in second place, with co-stars Ekin-Su Cülcüloğlu and Davide Sanclimenti taking home the £50,000 prize. Once the show had ended, Luca and Gemma's relationship lasted three months before they called time on their romance. "We have been on such a journey together and have made some amazing memories which I will treasure," Luca said in a statement posted on Instagram. "I can't thank everyone enough for all their support for us as a couple during and after Love Island." Luca previously worked for his family's fish wholesale company MCB Seafood, which could give him a head start in any potential seafood-based challenges. These days, though, he is a full-time influencer. When is Celebrity MasterChef on TV? View Green Video on the source website The latest heat of Celebrity MasterChef begins on Wednesday 23rd August, with further episodes then following on Thursday and Friday. Luca will be competing against the likes of Strictly Come Dancing professional Dianne Buswell and Black Eyed Peas star Apl.de.ap. Once the fourth heats have aired, it will be time for the semi-finals; two celebrities from each heat will progress to this stage of the competition. Celebrity MasterChef 2023 airs from Wednesday to Friday on BBC One and BBC iPlayer. To find out what else is on TV, check out our TV Guide or visit our hub for more Entertainment news. Try Radio Times magazine today and get 10 issues for only £10, PLUS a £10 John Lewis and Partners voucher delivered to your home – subscribe now. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Who is apl.de.ap? Celebrity MasterChef 2023 contestant and Black Eyed Peas musician
The musician behind hits like Where Is the Love? and I Gotta Feeling is making his MasterChef debut.
The latest season of Celebrity MasterChef is now in full swing, with the fourth heats set to air this week from Wednesday 23rd August. Among the famous faces heading into the MasterChef kitchen to take part in a series of tough cooking challenges is Black Eyed Peas musician apl.de.ap. He'll be up against the likes of Love Island star Luca Bish, Strictly Come Dancing professional Dianne Buswell and actress Amy Walsh. apl has got five UK number one hits under his belt, but does he have what it takes to impress judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace? Here's what you need to know about apl before his MasterChef debut... Who is apl.de.ap? Age: 48 Job: Black Eyed Peas star Instagram: @apldeap Twitter: @apldeap Born Allan Pineda Lindo, apl.de.ap is a founding member of Black Eyed Peas. He met his future bandmate will.i.am (aka William Adams) when they were both pupils at John Marshall High School in Los Angeles. The band released their first album Behind the Front in 1998, but it was the group's third record, Elephunk, that would mark a major commercial breakthrough for the Peas. The album featured hits like Where Is the Love?, which hit the number one spot in the UK, along with Shut Up, Hey Mama and Let's Get It Started. It went on to sell 8.5 million copies worldwide. Since then, the Black Eyed Peas have scored four further number one tracks: Boom Boom Pow, I Gotta Feeling, Meet Me Halfway and The Time (Dirty Bit). apl has also appeared as a coach on talent show The Voice of the Philippines, after being encouraged to take the gig by long-time The Voice UK coach will.i.am. When is Celebrity MasterChef 2023 on TV? View Green Video on the source website The fourth heat of Celebrity MasterChef 2023 will begin on Wednesday 23rd August. At the end of the episode, one unlucky contestant will be sent home by judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace. Two further episodes will then air on Thursday 24th August and Friday 25th August, and by the end of the week, there will be two celebrities left standing, who will then progress to the semi-finals of the competition. Celebrity MasterChef 2023 airs from Wednesday to Friday on BBC One and BBC iPlayer. To find out what else is on TV, check out our TV Guide or visit our hub for more Entertainment news. Try Radio Times magazine today and get 10 issues for only £10, PLUS a £10 John Lewis and Partners voucher delivered to your home – subscribe now. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
At Home with the Furys cast: Meet Tyson Fury and family
Your guide to who's who in the Fury clan.
World heavyweight boxing champion Tyson Fury and his wife Paris are giving fans a candid insight into their family in new Netflix reality show At Home With The Furys. The nine episodes will take viewers in the Furys' Morecambe Bay mansion as 34-year-old Tyson tries to embrace the joys of retirement, capturing all the ups, downs and inevitable chaos of life with six young children. Plus, Love Island devotees will be intrigued to learn that Tyson's half-brother Tommy and his fiancée Molly-Mae Hague will also be taking part in the series, marking their first major foray into reality TV since 2019. According to Netflix, the show "will have exclusive access to the heavyweight champion of the world as he exits the ring and tries to embrace retirement with his extraordinary family". Before the series airs, here's your guide to who's who in the Fury clan. Tyson Fury Tyson Fury requires no introduction. Born in Wythenshawe, Manchester, to Irish traveller parents John and Amber, Fury started boxing at the tender age of 10. At the start of his career, he represented England and Ireland as an amateur, eventually becoming ranked third in the world as a junior. In 2008, he won the ABA super-heavyweight title, but was not selected to represent Great Britain at the 2008 Olympics, which prompted him to become disillusioned with amateur fighting, influencing his decision to go professional soon after. He made his professional debut in December 2008 and quickly rose up the ranks with a series of high-profile wins. In 2015, he defeated Wladimir Klitschko, ending the Ukranian’s 11-year winning spree and becoming the heavyweight champion of the world. However, his mental health began to deteriorate afterwards, and in 2016 Tyson revealed that he had been dealing with depression. “I’m going through a lot of personal demons, trying to shake them off,” he told Rolling Stone at the time. A few years later, though, he made a comeback, losing the weight he had gained during his hiatus from boxing and going on to regain the World Boxing Council heavyweight title, after beating Deontay Wilder in 2020. He married wife Paris in 2008, and the couple are now parents to six children. Paris Fury Raised in an Irish traveller family in Doncaster, Paris met Tyson at a mutual friend’s wedding, when she was 15 and he was 17, and the couple started dating after her 16th birthday. “He was my first boyfriend as I was not allowed a boyfriend until the age of 16,” she previously explained. “He is the only boyfriend I have had.” In the early stages of their relationship, she added, “Tyson would train in boxing during the week and then come and see me at the weekend. I would always be so excited at the thought of seeing him”. The couple married in 2008 in a ceremony attended by around 400 people, and are now parents to six children, with another on the way. Paris can always be spotted ringside during Tyson’s fights, and has previously opened up about how she feels when watching her husband in the ring. “It’s very difficult,” she told This Morning. “I remember years ago, women used to say to me, ‘Smile, you’re on camera, you’re on camera.’ I was like, ‘No, the person I love is getting punched in the ring.’ I’m not smiling.” “You just have to accept it because it’s something he wanted to do,” she added. “But as you’re watching, I take every punch he takes.” Tommy Fury Following in his half-brother Tyson’s footsteps, Tommy kicked off his professional boxing debut in 2018, but took some time out from his sporting career the following year in order to appear on Love Island. During his time on the show, he met his now-fiancée Molly-Mae Hague, and the pair made it to the final, eventually coming in second place. Shortly after his Love Island appearance, he starred in reality show The Boxer and the Ballroom Dancer alongside fellow islander Curtis Pritchard, in which the two friends swapped professions. He returned to the ring later in 2019, and ended up scoring a first-round technical knockout victory against Przemyslaw Binienda. He made his US boxing debut in 2021 and this year took part in a high-profile fight against YouTuber Jake Paul. So far, Tommy is undefeated, having taken part in and won nine fights, four of which have been knockouts. Tommy is father to baby daughter Bambi Fury, and recently proposed to Molly-Mae during a trip to Ibiza. Molly-Mae Hague Love Island fans will already be very familiar with Molly-Mae Hague, who entered the villa as a bombshell at the start of season five and immediately hit it off with Tommy Fury. The pair eventually ended up coming in second place, with Amber Gill and Greg O'Shea winning the public vote, but they've been going strong ever since, and are now the only couple from the dating show's fifth season who are still together. Molly-Mae already had a popular YouTube channel before taking part in Love Island, and has been frank about the fact that appearing on the show was "a business move". After her 2019 stint in the villa, she landed a lucrative fashion deal with PrettyLittleThing, eventually serving as their creative director for almost two years. She has also launched her own fake tan brand, Filter by Molly-Mae, and released an autobiography, Becoming Molly-Mae, last year. She and Tommy welcomed their first child, a daughter named Bambi, at the start of 2023, and the couple announced their engagement this summer. John Fury Boxing is in the Fury family’s blood. Tyson and Tommy’s father John took part in 13 bouts over the course of his professional career, which started in 1987 and ended in 1995; he has also described himself as a “formidable” bareknuckle fighter. When Tyson was born in 1988, he was three months premature and weighed only 1lb. John decided to name him after then-heavyweight champion Mike Tyson. “I thought, ‘there’s only one name fitting for him, he’s fought hard to become a person living in this world,’” John later told the ITV documentary Tyson Fury: The Gypsy King. At the start of Tyson’s fighting career, John acted as his son’s trainer. But in 2011, John was found guilty of wounding with the intent to cause grievous bodily harm after gouging the eye of Oathie Sykes in a fight at a car auction, which was the culmination of a 12-year feud between the pair. He was sentenced to 11 years in prison and was released after four years in February 2015. Since then, John has been a regular fixture ringside during Tyson and Tommy’s fights, and has made frequent appearances as a media pundit too. The Fury children All six of Tyson and Paris's children are expected to appear in At Home With The Furys, meaning that viewers will meet 13-year-old Venezuela, 11-year-old Prince John James, seven-year-old Prince Tyson II Fury, five-year-old Valencia Amber Fury, four-year-old Prince Adonis Amaziah and two-year-old Athena. So why do all of the couple's sons have the same first name, Prince? According to the boxer, it's a nod to his fighting nickname, the Gypsy King. "I'm a king and they're princes until they earn their rightful name," he previously said. View Green Video on the source website At Home with the Furys comes to Netflix on 16th August 2023. Sign up for Netflix from £4.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin Media Stream. Check out more of our Entertainment coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide. 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Who is Wynne Evans? Celebrity MasterChef 2023 contestant and GoCompare opera star
The opera singer surely has one of the most recognisable voices in the country.
It's time to return to the Celebrity MasterChef kitchen, where a fresh line-up of stars will be chopping, dicing, and sautéing in a bid to cook up a storm for judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace. In heat three, opera star Wynne Evans, the man behind those love-them-or-hate-them GoCompare adverts (apologies in advance if just reading this has caused the jingle to pop into your head), will be hoping that his cooking skills prove as impressive as his vocals. But if one of his favourite snacks is anything to go by, it seems that Wynne might favour some pretty unusual flavour combinations. "My downfall is cheese and jam," he told the BBC ahead of his appearance on the show. "I love cheese and jam together. I don’t think John and Gregg have tried cheese and jam, but they should. They’re missing out." We're certainly intrigued. Here's what you need to know about Wynne before he makes his MasterChef debut. Who is Wynne Evans? Age: 51 Job: Welsh singer Instagram: @wynneevans Twitter: @wynneevans If you've watched British TV on a commercial channel in the past decade or so, you'll no doubt be very familiar with Wynne Evans's face - and his voice. Since 2009, the Welsh opera star has appeared in the notorious Go Compare adverts, first playing a flamboyant opera singer named Gio Compario (yes, really) and later playing himself. But before all that, Wynne trained at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and the National Opera studio, later performing at the Proms and as part of the Welsh National Opera. He made his debut at the Royal Opera House in 2009 and two years later was cast in a special anniversary production of Phantom of the Opera at the Royal Albert Hall, taking the role of Ubaldo Piangi. Alongside his music career, he has presented shows on BBC Radio Wales and made a foray into acting with an appearance in Ruth Jones's comedy Stella. In order to prepare for his MasterChef stint, Wynne recruited his kids to challenge him. "I've got my kids to turn up with surprise ingredients and I have to try and make something out of it," he admitted. Seems like if Celebrity MasterChef doesn't go his way, he'd probably be a dab hand at Ready, Steady, Cook. When is Celebrity MasterChef 2023 on TV? The third heats of Celebrity MasterChef will begin on Wednesday 16th August at 9pm, airing on BBC One and BBC iPlayer. Wynne will be appearing alongside former glamour model Sam Fox, Rudimental star DJ Locksmith, singer Jamelia and RuPaul's Drag Race UK star Cheryl Hole. At the end of the episode, Gregg Wallace and John Torode will reveal which famous face won't be progressing any further in the competition. The next instalment airs on Thursday, with another star leaving the kitchen as the episode concludes. Then on Friday's quarter-final, we will learn which aspiring chefs will go on to compete in the semi-finals. You can catch up on the previous two heats over on BBC iPlayer. View Green Video on the source website Celebrity MasterChef 2023 airs on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays on BBC One and BBC iPlayer. To find out what else is on TV, check out our TV Guide or visit our hub for moreEntertainment news. Try Radio Times magazine today and get 10 issues for only £10, PLUS a £10 John Lewis and Partners voucher delivered to your home – subscribe now. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Who is Cheryl Hole? Celebrity MasterChef 2023 contestant and Drag Race UK star
Cheryl is swapping the Drag Race Werk Room for the MasterChef kitchen.
Celebrity MasterChef 2023 is in full swing, with the competition now in its third week. Among the famous contestants taking part in the cooking contest's third heat is drag queen Cheryl Hole, who has made memorable appearances in two editions of RuPaul's Drag Race. "Going into the Werk Room on Drag Race and walking into MasterChef was a very similar experience," she said. "You’re transported to that thing that you watch on TV and suddenly I'm in there. It’s a very surreal experience but you have to snap back to reality and remind yourself you’ve got a task to do." Cheryl will be following in the footsteps of her drag sister and fellow Gals Aloud band member Kitty Scott-Claus, who ended up going all the way to the semi-final. Will she be able to beat Kitty's efforts? Who is Cheryl Hole? <img src="https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/3/2022/01/24148362-high_res-rupauls-drag-race-uk-vs-the-world-585685d.jpg" width="620" height="413" alt="WARNING: Embargoed for publication until 09:00:00 on 17/01/2022 - Programme Name: RuPaul's Drag Race UK vs The World - TX: n/a - Episode: RuPaul's Drag Race UK vs The World - generics (No. n/a) - Picture Shows: **STRICTLY EMBARGOED UNTIL 09:00 HRS ON MONDAY 17TH JANUARY 2022** Cheryl Hole - (C) World of Wonder - Photographer: Guy Levy" title="RuPaul's Drag Race UK vs The World - generics" /> Age: 29 Job: Drag Race UK star Instagram: @CherylHoleQueen Twitter: @CherylHoleQueen Drag star Cheryl , whose real name is Luke Underwood-Bleach, was one of the 10 queens to take part in the first ever season of RuPaul's Drag Race UK back in 2019. She made it to week seven of the competition, coming in fourth place (and graced us with a truly iconic Drag Race moment when she told viewers that she was "ready for another week of me doing mediocre"). Then, in 2022, she was announced as a contestant in RuPaul's Drag Race UK vs the World, a spin-off series which saw former competitors from the UK edition of the show go up against drag queens who'd previously featured on international editions of the show. She was the second queen to be eliminated, after being beaten in the lip-sync by Janey Jacké. She released her debut single Need the Power in the same year, and has since gone on to make her West End debut in the play Death Drop. When is Celebrity MasterChef 2023 on TV? The third Celebrity MasterChef heat is set to kick off on Wednesday 16th August at 9pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer, with further episodes following on Thursday and Friday that week. Cheryl will face competition from award-winning singer Jamelia, opera star Wynne Evans (who you might recognise as the face - and voice - of the notorious GoCompare advert), former glamour model and singer Sam Fox and Rudimental's DJ Locksmith. In both Wednesday's and Thursday's episodes, one celebrity will be sent home; on Friday, we'll learn which two stars will be moving forward in the competition to the semi-finals. View Green Video on the source website Celebrity MasterChef 2023 airs on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays on BBC One and BBC iPlayer. To find out what else is on TV, check out our TV Guide or visit our hub for more Entertainment news. Try Radio Times magazine today and get 10 issues for only £10, PLUS a £10 John Lewis and Partners voucher delivered to your home – subscribe now. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Who is DJ Locksmith? Celebrity MasterChef 2023 contestant and Rudimental star
As a member of Rudimental, DJ Locksmith is behind three chart-topping hits.
A new series of Celebrity MasterChef means a new cohort of famous contestants heading into the famous kitchen, hoping to win over judges Gregg Wallace and John Torode with their cooking skills. This year, 20 familiar faces will be taking part in a bid to win the Celebrity MasterChef 2023 trophy, following in the footsteps of last year's winner, TV and radio presenter Lisa Snowdon. Among them will be DJ Locksmith, one-quarter of the chart-topping band Rudimental, who are responsible for hits like Waiting All Night and Feel the Love. He's revealed that he initially turned the show down "repeatedly", but was eventually persuaded to take part by his family, who are "huge fans" of MasterChef. So how will he fare when his cooking talents are put to the test? Here's everything you need to know about Locksmith. Who is DJ Locksmith? Age: 34 Job: Musician Instagram: @theycallmelocksmith Twitter: @Locksmith Leon 'Locksmith' Rolle grew up on the same Hackney street as his Rudimental bandmates Piers Aggett and Kesi Dryden. In 2012, the band shot to fame with the release of Feel the Love featuring John Newman, entering the UK charts at number one; their debut album Home followed in 2013, and hit the top spot in the charts too. The same year, they were nominated for the Mercury Prize. Since then, the group has gone on to enjoy major chart successes, teaming up with artists like Ella Eyre on another number one track Waiting All Night, as well as Emeli Sandé and Becky Hill. But before the band hit the big time, Locksmith was a learning mentor at a secondary school, with plans to train as a PE teacher. Celebrity MasterChef is not his first foray into reality TV: he previously appeared on Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins and was rumoured to be a "stand-by" cast member for I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! in 2021. Speaking about his stint in the MasterChef kitchen, the musician admitted that "cooking isn’t my thing, so I’m jumping out of my comfort zone", and described his time on the show was "daunting" but "inspiring". Plus, he revealed that his family (including his fiancée and his two children) don’t think too much of his culinary talents. "My family know I can’t cook!" he said, admitting that his go-to dish is "tuna and pasta". When is Celebrity MasterChef 2023 on TV? The third heats of Celebrity MasterChef will kick off on Wednesday 16th August at 9pm, when Locksmith will be up against RuPaul's Drag Race UK star Cheryl Hole, musician Jamelia, singer and former glamour model Sam Fox and opera singer and GoCompare advert regular Wynne Evans. At the end of Wednesday's show, one celebrity will be eliminated from the competition; the same thing will happen on Thursday and Friday's episodes. At the end of the week, we'll find out which two famous faces will be progressing to the semi-finals. View Green Video on the source website Celebrity MasterChef 2023 airs on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays on BBC One and BBC iPlayer. To find out what else is on TV, check out our TV Guide or visit our hub for more Entertainment news. Try Radio Times magazine today and get 10 issues for only £10, PLUS a £10 John Lewis and Partners voucher delivered to your home – subscribe now. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Where is Victor Conte now? Untold: Hall of Shame subject today
A new instalment in Netflix's Untold series will delve into a doping scandal that rocked the sporting world.
Netflix’s Untold documentary series is all about shedding light on stories from the world of sports. Previous episodes have charted the careers of sporting figures including former Olympian Caitlyn Jenner and tennis player Mardy Fish, while the most recent instalments have delved into YouTuber Jake Paul’s pivot to boxing and the college football star Johnny Manziel, who would eventually become mired in scandal and controversy. Upcoming instalment Untold: Hall of Shame, however, does something a little different: Rather than focusing on a sportsperson, it tells the story of Victor Conte, the musician who would go on to found the Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative, the sports nutrition centre at the heart of one of the biggest doping scandals in sporting history. The centre, it was later discovered, had been supplying banned performance-enhancing substances, including human growth hormone and the steroid tetrahydrogestrinone, to athletes. These drugs could go undetected even amid rigorous, high-level testing. Hall of Shame includes insights from figures including the former head of BALCO’s lab and the anti-doping authorities who eventually brought the case against Conte. Who is Victor Conte? Born in 1950, Conte started out his career as a bass player in groups like Common Ground, Pure Food and Drug Act, and Tower of Power. His music career came to an end in the late '70s, and in 1984 he and his then-wife Aubry founded Millbrae Holistic, a vitamin shop. This later became sports nutrition company BALCO. Conte’s nutritional know-how was largely self-taught, and he would initially use an ICP spectrometer to test for potential mineral deficiencies in athletes, then treating any shortages with supplements. What happened in the doping scandal? In the mid-'90s, BALCO’s focus changed significantly. Conte is thought to have started working with the chemist Patrick Arnold to develop performance-enhancing drugs which were largely undetectable through testing. The substances included erythropoietin, a hormone which stimulates the production of red blood cells, allowing the body to better transport oxygen, human growth hormone, the stimulant modafinil (which has been marketed to treat narcolepsy and other sleep disorders), testosterone cream and tetrahydrogestrinone or THG, an anabolic steroid nicknamed 'the clear'. View oEmbed on the source website The drugs were sold on to high-level athletes, including Olympians and Major League Baseball stars. 2000 marked the foundation of the US Anti-Doping Agency, a body designed to take responsibility for drug testing in sports. Two years later, an official federal investigation into BALCO’s practices was opened, and the following summer, the USADA received a used syringe containing a mysterious substance later revealed to be THG. In 2004, the attorney general announced a 42-count indictment against Conte, BALCO’s James Valente, athletics coach Remi Korchemny and personal trainer Greg Anderson - but 40 of these were later dropped. In an interview with Martin Bashir, Conte admitted to running doping programmes for record-breaking Olympians; he would eventually plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute steroids and one count of money laundering, serving four months in prison. Where is Victor Conte now? After serving his sentence, Conte returned to work for Scientific Nutrition for Advanced Conditioning, the supplement company that he founded in 1987, a few years after launching BALCO. According to SNAC’s website, Conte, now in his 70s, was "forever changed" by his "notorious BALCO years", and he is now committed to anti-doping initiatives and an advocate for regular testing. Indeed, Conte told Sportico in 2021 that all of the boxers he works with are enrolled with the Voluntary Anti-Doping Agency, which offers stringent testing procedures. In the years since the scandal, none of the athletes that Conte has worked with have ever tested positive for an illegal substance. When is Hall of Shame on Netflix? The latest Untold documentary is set to debut on the streamer on Wednesday 16th August, and will be followed by the final instalment, which is all about the Florida Gators underdog story, on 23rd August. View Green Video on the source website Untold: Hall of Shame launches on Netflix on Tuesday 15th August. Sign up for Netflix from £4.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin Media Stream. Check out our lists of the best series on Netflix and the best movies on Netflix, or see what else is on with our TV Guide. Try Radio Times magazine today and get 10 issues for only £10, PLUS a £10 John Lewis and Partners voucher delivered to your home – <a title="https://www.radiotimes.com/magazine-subscription/?utm_term=evergreen-article" href="https://www.radiotimes.com/magazine-subscription/?utm_term=evergreen-article" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.radiotimes.com/magazine-subscription/?utm_term%3Devergreen-article&source=gmail&ust=1691668106392000&usg=AOvVaw3fK1hRcDU4VHLxLT0L5Sah" data-id="iframe-0-anchor-18">subscribe now. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Depp v Heard release date: When is the documentary on Netflix?
The documentary aims to explore the role that social media played in the notorious trial.
The Depp v Heard court case was one of the most talked-about trials in recent Hollywood history. In 2018, actress Amber Heard wrote an op-ed article for the Washington Post, in which she described herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse". She did not mention her former husband Johnny Depp by name in the piece, but the actor sued his ex for defamation. Heard then filed a countersuit. Last year, the former couple went to court, and the six-week trial was live streamed from Fairfax County Court in Virginia, drawing in a peak of 3.5 million viewers - the broadcast clocked up 83.9 million hours watched in total. The case was also referred to as a 'trial by TikTok' by many commentators, after social media users started sharing their own opinions on the trial in droves. Eventually, a seven-person jury reached a verdict in June, with Depp winning all three counts of defamation. He was awarded $10.35 million in damages, while Heard was awarded $2 million in compensatory damages after winning one of her counterclaims. Directed by past BAFTA nominee Emma Cooper, Depp v Heard is a three-part documentary which aims to explore "what happens when the court of public opinion starts to overshadow reality". Here’s what we know so far about the documentary series’ Netflix release. When is Depp v Heard on Netflix? Cooper’s documentary is set to land on Netflix outside the UK on Wednesday 16th August. A UK release date for the series is yet to be confirmed by the streamer. Depp v Heard actually debuted on Channel 4 earlier this year, though, so all three episodes are currently available to watch on the broadcaster’s own streaming platform. What is the documentary about? According to Netflix, Depp v Heard will show the testimonies of both parties "side by side for the first time", using 200 hours of live-streamed coverage along with footage from "citizen commentators". Its goal, the streamer says, is to present "a neutral overview of what happens when the court of public opinion starts to overshadow reality", and to interrogate "the role social media played in the trial". Is there a trailer for Depp v Heard? View oEmbed on the source website Netflix has already unveiled a trailer for the series, which you can watch above, featuring courtroom footage as well as contributions from social media users. Sign up for Netflix from £4.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin Media Stream. Check out more of our Entertainment coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide. Try Radio Times magazine today and get 10 issues for only £10, PLUS a £10 John Lewis and Partners voucher delivered to your home – subscribe now. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Down for Love: Release date for Netflix's latest dating show
The streamer's new dating show focuses on a group of people with Down's syndrome who are looking for love.
From Love Is Blind to The Ultimatum, Netflix certainly isn’t short of dating shows. But its latest launch Down for Love looks set to offer something different. Originally airing on TVNZ in New Zealand, the series follows a group of people with Down’s syndrome as they embark on a search for romance, dealing with all the ups and downs that inevitably entails. Following in the footsteps of previous series such as Netflix’s own Love on the Spectrum, Down for Love aims to provide an authentic portrayal of what it’s like to look for love as a disabled person, and was created with the support of the New Zealand Down Syndrome Association. It’s proved such a hit in New Zealand that it has already been commissioned for a second season, so when will we be able to stream it on Netflix? Here’s what you need to know. When is Down for Love streaming on Netflix? You don’t have long to wait: all five episodes of Down for Love season one are set to arrive on the streaming service on Friday 11th August. It’s a bumper month for the streamer, which has also recently launched the second season of Heartstopper and Korean reality series Zombieverse. What is Down for Love about? According to Netflix, the show is "a heartwarming quest for love that follows several people with Down’s syndrome as they navigate the trials and triumphs of dating". The "feel-good" show, the streamer adds, "aims to showcase the joys and challenges of finding love while breaking down stereotypes and promoting inclusivity". According to Down for Love producer Robyn Paterson, the team behind the show "were wanting to do something in the area of love and relationships, because there are significant barriers for people living with disabilities", she told The Spinoff. "And I really wanted to bring more of a documentary lens to it, so that it could go beyond just entertainment." According to the NZDSA’s national executive officer Zandra Vaccarino, the show provided a platform to challenge misunderstandings about the Down’s syndrome community, and to shine a spotlight on its diversity. "People make assumptions that people with Down’s syndrome may not want a relationship or cannot have a relationship," she told The Spinoff. "I knew that people with Down’s syndrome would be keen to have their stories told and to raise awareness that, just like everyone else, they also want to have meaningful relationships." Is there a Down for Love trailer? View oEmbed on the source website Netflix have already unveiled a teaser clip ahead of the show’s launch, which sees the Down for Love participants spelling out what they’re looking for from a relationship. It also features clips from a handful of romantic dates, including a beach picnic, a trip to a sunflower farm and a dance class. You can watch it for yourself above. Down for Love starts on Netflix on 11th August. Sign up for Netflix from £4.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin Media Stream. Check out our lists of the best series on Netflix and the best movies on Netflix, or see what else is on with our TV Guide. Try Radio Times magazine today and get 10 issues for only £10, PLUS a £10 John Lewis and Partners voucher delivered to your home – subscribe now. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Who is Shazia Mirza? Celebrity MasterChef 2023 contestant and comedian
Will comedy star Shazia bring the laughs to the MasterChef kitchen?
Back on our screens for its 18th season, the new season of Celebrity MasterChef promises impressive culinary feats and outright cooking catastrophes in equal measure. A new line-up of celebrity contestants will be putting their gastronomic skills to the test in a bid to pique the taste buds of judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace - and, as usual, some of them will have more experience in the kitchen than others. Among the stars taking part this year is comedian Shazia Mirza. "I'd always thought about doing it, but it looked so scary," she admitted ahead of her appearance on the show. "Now I say, just do it!" From her unexpected previous career to her stints on other reality shows, here's what you need to know about Shazia. Who is Shazia Mirza? Job: Comedian Instagram: @theshaziamirza Twitter: @shaziamirza1 Before making a move into the world of comedy, Shazia Mirza was a science teacher at Langdon Park School in east London, where she happened to teach a young Dizzee Rascal (or Dylan Mills, as he was better known then). She has toured successful comedy shows like The Kardashians Made Me Do It, With Love From St Tropez and her most recent production, Coconut, which was nominated for best stand-up tour at Channel 4’s National Comedy Awards. Shazia has also previously taken part in survival shows like Celebrity The Island with Bear Grylls and Channel 5’s Celebs in Solitary. You might think that surely Celebrity MasterChef would seem like a cakewalk in comparison, but Shazia admits that she still got "very nervous" when the time came to enter the famous kitchen. "I prepared for MasterChef by burning two kitchens down," she admitted. "I burnt down the home economics room at school once and my mum’s kitchen once. But I’ve learned my lesson, I know not to leave the oven on when there’s nothing in there!" Phew. When is Celebrity MasterChef 2023 on TV? The second week of Celebrity MasterChef is set to begin on BBC One and BBC iPlayer at 9pm on Wednesday 9th August, with further heats then airing on Thursday and Friday. Shazia will be going up against BBC Radio 1Xtra's Remi Burgz and former children's TV host Dave Benson Phillips (who'll be best known to viewers of a certain age as the presenter of Get Your Own Back), as well as The Wanted star Max George and comedian Terry Christian. Celebrity MasterChef 2023 airs on Wednesdays on BBC One and BBC iPlayer at 9pm. To find out what else is on TV, check out our TV Guide or visit our hub for more Entertainment news. Try Radio Times magazine today and get 10 issues for only £10, PLUS a £10 John Lewis and Partners voucher delivered to your home – subscribe now.
Who is Remi Burgz? Celebrity MasterChef 2023 contestant and radio presenter
She's swapping the Radio 1Xtra studio for the MasterChef kitchen.
The summer weather might be a little disappointing (to say the least), but we can always rely on the arrival of a new season of Celebrity MasterChef to brighten up our August. Now in its 18th season, the star-studded spin-off of the BBC's classic cooking show sees a group of famous faces entering the MasterChef kitchen, hoping to impress judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace with their cooking prowess (or, at least, crossing their fingers that they won't embarrass themselves too much on national television). Among the Celebrity MasterChef contestants taking part this year is radio host and DJ Remi Burgz. BBC 1Xtra listeners will be very familiar with her infectious humour and warm broadcasting style, but how will her culinary skills measure up? Here's everything you need to know about Remi. Who is Remi Burgz? Job: BBC Radio 1Xtra host Instagram: @remiburgz Twitter: @remiburgz After getting her start at south London community radio station Reprezent, Remi Burgz went on to become the official DJ for Shaybo, the MOBO-nominated rapper. She joined BBC Radio 1Xtra back in 2021 as the host of the channel’s weekend breakfast show, and her career has continued to go from strength to strength since then. She’s hosted festivals like Parklife and Stormzy’s Merky Festival and appeared as a presenter on BBC Three’s Tonight With Target, interviewing acts like Ghetts and Jorja Smith backstage. Earlier this year, Remi took over 1Xtra’s drivetime show from Reece Parkinson, and also co-hosted the MOBOs. Oh, and she made a cameo as herself in the BBC's music industry drama Champion, created by Queenie author Candice Carty-Williams. No wonder, then, that she admitted that she was too busy to have much time to prepare for her stint in the MasterChef kitchen. "I just had to try and brush up on a few things," she told the BBC ahead of her appearance on the show. And as for her signature dish? "Salmon with a side of salmon. If it comes with a cocktail to wash it all down, I’ll have a piña colada, please." She’s not too hopeful about her cooking skills, suggesting instead that she’s "the person you call to go and get the ingredients", but thought that MasterChef would be "a great place to learn". "I learn on the go and I’m a practical person, so I thought this is the best way for me to learn how to cook," she said. When is Celebrity MasterChef 2023 on TV? The first three episodes of the latest season aired last week, and the next trio of instalments will begin on Wednesday 9th August at 9pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer, before airing on consecutive nights until Friday. The second week of the competition will see Remi going up against Get Your Own Back legend Dave Benson Phillips, comedian Shazia Mirza, singer Max George and comedian Terry Christian. As ever, judges Gregg Wallace and John Torode will be on hand to taste test the celebrities' culinary creations, and to decide which of the contestants will progress to the next stage of the competition. Celebrity MasterChef 2023 airs on Wednesdays on BBC One and BBC iPlayer at 9pm. To find out what else is on TV, check out our TV Guide or visit our hub for more Entertainment news. Try Radio Times magazine today and get 10 issues for only £10 with delivery to your home – subscribe now.
Meet the celebrity contestants trying to outrun a 'zombie apocalypse' in this bizarre new Netflix reality show.
Reckon you'd have what it takes to survive a zombie apocalypse? In Netflix's new Korean unscripted series Zombieverse, a group of celebrities set out to answer that precise question. The unwitting contestants think they're about to take part in a reality dating show filmed in Seoul, but things soon take a turn for the disturbing when it appears that the city has been overrun by zombies. Over the course of three days, the 10 competitors will have to take part in challenges and quests in order to get out of the city and away from the walking dead - or risk becoming zombies themselves. Before this high-concept reality show lands on the streaming service on 8th August, here's everything you need to know about the cast. Zombieverse cast: Netflix show line-up Lee Si-young Age: 41 Job: Actress Instagram: @leesiyoung Actress Lee Si-young is an actress (and former amateur boxer, which might hold her in good stead on the show) who’s best known for her role in Netflix’s apocalyptic drama Sweet Home, playing a former firefighter with impressive martial arts skills. Ro Hong-chul Age: 44 Job: Presenter Instagram: @rohongchul This South Korean entertainer hosts variety show Talents for Sale, a hugely popular programme based on a shopping channel format, in which its stars team up with guests to raise money for charities by advertising products based on the guests’ talents. He’s also appeared in hit Korean shows like Infinite Challenge and I Live Alone - and had a cameo in the video for Psy’s Gangnam Style. Park Na-rae Age: 37 Job: Comedian Instagram: @narae.park1025 Comedy star Park Na-rae has previously released her on Netflix stand-up special, Glamour Warning, becoming the first ever Korean female comedian to do so. She’s also a DJ and loves bartending, always including a bar, Narae Bar, in her homes. Lim Cheol Age: 31 Job: Rapper Instagram: @dindinem Best known by his rap name DinDin, Lim Cheol found fame as a contestant on Show Me The Money 2 back in 2013 and has since found fame as a rapper, producer and TV star. Fukutomi Tsuki Age: 20 Job: Singer Singer Tsuki got her start as a member of girl ground MAGICOUR before joining K-pop band Billlie, who were put together by the Korean entertainment group Mystic Story. Yoo Hee-kwan Age: 37 Job: Baseball player Instagram: @yooheekwan A baseball player known for his unconventional slow but controlled pitching style, Yoo Hee-kwan has played for the Doosan Bears, part of the KBO League, since 2009 (with just a brief break while he completed military service). Yiombi Jonathan Age: 23 Job: YouTuber YouTube star andTV personality Yiombi Jonathan moved from the Democratic Republic of Congo to Korea along with his family back in 2008, and featured on the documentary Screening Humanity as a youngster in 2013. From then on, he’s appeared on countless TV shows (including King of Mask Singer, the format on which The Masked Singer is based). Yiombi Patricia Age: 21 Job: YouTuber The younger sister of Jonathan, Patricia is also a TV star in her own right. Zombieverse marks her latest foray into reality television. Hong Seong Woo / Kwachu Hyung Age: 49 Job: Urologist and YouTuber Hong Seong Woo has had a somewhat unlikely journey to fame. A trained urology specialist, he became a hit on YouTube, where he posts under the alias Dr Jomulju thanks to his blunt, funny approach to sex education. Kim Jin-young Age: 28 Job: YouTuber Former Korean Navy Seal Kim Jin-young, also known as DEX, has appeared in reality shows like Game of Blood and Toy Soldiers. He also took part in the second season of Single’s Inferno, a Netflix dating show which sees a group of singletons looking for love on a deserted island. Zombieverse starts on Netflix on 8th August. Sign up for Netflix from £4.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin Media Stream. Check out our lists of the best series on Netflix and the best movies on Netflix, or see what else is on with our TV Guide. Try Radio Times magazine today and get 12 issues for only £1 with delivery to your home – subscribe now. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Men in Kilts: A Road Trip with Sam and Graham season 2: Release date, location and news
Outlander stars Sam Heughan and Graham McTavish are heading to New Zealand for their next adventure.
The Men in Kilts are back on the road – and this time, they’re heading to New Zealand. After their epic journey across their home nation of Scotland in season one, Outlander stars Sam Heughan and Graham McTavish are venturing much further afield for round two. Over the course of four episodes, pals Heughan and McTavish will be exploring the country they’ve deemed “the adventure capital of the world”, in an adventure that will see them immerse themselves in the local culture and take on some adrenaline-fuelled challenges. Here’s everything you need to know about Men in Kilts season two. Men in Kilts season 2 release date The new season is set to land on Lionsgate+ on 11th August, meaning we don’t have long to wait – and in the meantime, you can always revisit the first instalment, which saw the Outlander duo embrace their Scottish heritage by delving into the country’s rich history, meeting local craftspeople and tasting traditional delicacies. How to watch Men in Kilts ‌You can watch Heughan and McTavish’s adventures on Lionsgate+, the streaming service formerly known as STARZPLAY, which is available through platforms like Apple TV, Rakuten TV and Roku. You can also access it as an add-on channel through Amazon Prime Video, costing £5.99 each month – although you can get a 7-day trial for free when you first sign up. As well as Men in Kilts, you'll find all seven seasons of Heughan and McTavish’s thrilling period drama Outlander, as well as unmissable shows like The Great and Gaslit. What is Men in Kilts about? Men in Kilts is a travel show which follows co-stars and firm friends Heughan and McTavish as they embark on a road trip across a new location, in order to learn more about the country’s history and heritage (while making time to enjoy the local delicacies and to indulge in some good-natured jokes at each others’ expense, of course). In New Zealand, where McTavish has been living since filming The Hobbit movies, they’ll learn more about Māori culture, zip wire down mountains and enjoy an immersive food and wine tour. Men in Kilts season 2 location: Where are Sam Heughan and Graham McTavish filming? After journeying across Scotland in the first season, Sam and Graham have travelled down under to New Zealand, where they’ll be exploring the country’s connections to their homeland. The pair have been spotted filming at Invercargill, the southernmost and westernmost city in New Zealand, and at Lake Wakatipu, an inland lake on the country’s South Island. Men in Kilts season 2 trailer View oEmbed on the source website ‌The teaser for Men in Kilts season 2 shows the two friends heading off in another camper-van for their journey, before getting over-competitive in some extreme sporting challenges (like a canoeing trip and taking on an anxiety-inducing zip-wire ride). You can watch it in full above. Men in Kilts: A Road Trip with Sam and Graham season 2 airs on Lionsgate+ on Friday 11th August. Sign up for a 7-day free trial to Lionsgate+ on Amazon Prime Video now For more on Amazon Prime Video channels, head over to our guides on how to get a Britbox free trial and What is Freevee. Don't forget to take a look at our shortlist of the best streaming services in the UK this year.
A guide to Barbie's plastic fantastic cinematic world.
This weekend, it’s the battle of the summer blockbusters. Greta Gerwig’s Barbie and Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer will release in union on 21st July and, while the two movies could not be more dissimilar in nature, they share one thing in common: anticipation for their release dates has reached fever pitch. The buzz around Barbie is so huge thanks, in part, to a supercharged marketing campaign, which has seen the film completely take over commerce, culture and fashion. There's also been plenty of hype around the movie's epic cast, which is led by Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, with early watchers of the film labelling Gosling as the standout star of the movie despite initial casting doubts, not to mention the excitement over the movie's soundtrack, which features the likes of HAIM, Ice Spice and Tame Impala. While this is the first live-action ode to the toy, Barbie has actually appeared in 40 computer-animated films over the years, beginning with Barbie in the Nutcracker in 2001. The earlier entries took inspiration from classic stories, from fairy tales to literary favourites, before moving on to original narratives, set in magical worlds, royal kingdoms or, a little closer to home, in high school classrooms and present-day New York. The most recent release is Barbie: Mermaid Power, which landed in 2022, and over the course of those 40 movies, the ever-versatile Barbie has taken on a multitude of roles, from royalty to rock star to spy. As we await Barbie's release date this summer, why not catch up on some of the previous movies starring the plastic doll. Here’s your guide to her plastic fantastic cinematic world… How to watch all Barbie movies in release date order Barbie in the Nutcracker (2001) Barbie’s younger sister Kelly is struggling to rehearse a ballet solo. To help her, Barbie tells her the story of the Nutcracker, in which a young girl named Clara receives a beautiful nutcracker as a Christmas gift. That night, the toy comes alive to protect Clara from the Mouse King and his soldiers. Barbie as Rapunzel (2002) In this spin on the classic fairy tale, Barbie plays Rapunzel, who has spent her whole life trapped in a tower by an evil witch. With the help of her pals Penelope, a dragon, and Hobie, a rabbit, she finds a way to escape to the outside world, where she crosses paths with dashing Prince Stefan. Barbie of Swan Lake (2003) It’s another ballet-inspired outing for Barbie, who this time recounts the story of Swan Lake to little sis Kelly. In the story, Odette is a talented dancer who stumbles into an enchanted forest, where she is transformed into a swan by an evil sorcerer who is trying to steal the throne from the Fairy Queen. Barbie as the Princess and the Pauper (2004) Inspired by Mark Twain’s The Prince and the Pauper, the fourth Barbie movie follows the intertwined stories of two young women born on the same night: Princess Anneliese and commoner Erika. A chance encounter brings the pair, who are identical apart from their hair colour, together, and their friendship helps them foil the plots of evil royal adviser Preminger. Barbie Fairytopia (2005) View oEmbed on the source website Elina is a flower fairy with no wings, who is often made fun of by her fellow sprites. When a fellow fairy is kidnapped and others start to lose their flying abilities after the evil Laverna releases a poisonous mist into the air, it’s up to Elina to save Fairytopia. Barbie and the Magic of Pegasus (2005) When the evil sorcerer Wenlock turns her entire village, including her parents the King and Queen, into statues, Princess Annika is rescued by a winged horse named Brietta, who takes her to the Cloud Kingdom. Here, she learns how she can finally defeat Wenlock - and break a curse that has blighted her family. The Barbie Diaries (2006) This time around, Barbie is a typical teenager, preoccupied with school, friends and dating. When she starts writing her hopes and dreams in her new diary, they quickly become true - but there’s a catch, as she soon finds herself neglecting her best friends. Barbie Fairytopia: Mermaidia (2006) Flower fairy Elina gets a second outing in this sequel. This time, Laverna’s back and her minions have kidnapped Elina’s friend, the merman prince Nalu, so our heroine must travel from Fairytopia to Mermaidia to rescue him. Barbie in the 12 Dancing Princesses (2006) Based on the German fairytale, The 12 Dancing Princesses tells the story of King Randolph and his daughters. Barbie plays Genevieve, the most spirited of the 12 siblings, whose lives become stultifying when the King’s cousin Rowena arrives to teach them royal etiquette. Soon they discover a portal to a magical world where they are free to dance all night. Barbie Fairytopia: Magic of the Rainbow (2007) In the third Fairytopia movie, Elina and her fellow fairies are tasked with creating the first rainbow of the season. Before they can pull this off, they must study in the Fairy School at the Crystal Palace, but the evil Laverna’s return throws their plans into disarray. Barbie as the Island Princess (2007) Rosella is shipwrecked on a tropical island as a baby, and grows up alongside animal friends like Tika the elephant, Azul the peacock and Sagi the red panda. When Prince Antonio arrives on shore, the pair fall in love, and he invites Rosella to travel to his kingdom, where she can start to piece together her past. Barbie Mariposa (2008) This Fairytopia spin-off introduces us to Mariposa, a butterfly from Flutterfield, a distant land which is protected by Queen Marabella’s magical lights. When the evil fairy Henna poisons the Queen, though, the lights start to fade away, leaving the kingdom under threat. It’s up to Mariposa and her friends to venture outside Flutterfield and find an antidote. Barbie and the Diamond Castle (2008) Best friends Alexa and Liana are given a magical mirror, only to discover that a girl named Melody is trapped inside it. Once they have freed her, Melody tells of how she used to live in the Diamond Castle, until the evil Lydia tried to take over the castle for herself. All three of them soon embark on a quest to lift the curse and end Lydia’s reign over the Diamond Castle. Barbie in a Christmas Carol (2008) You’ve seen the Muppets version a thousand times, but did you know Barbie has also starred in her own spin on Charles Dickens’ novel? This time, she plays glamorous but Scroogish singer Eden Starling, who plans to make her fellow performers rehearse on Christmas Day. Will the arrival of three Christmas Spirits make her have a change of heart? Barbie Thumbelina (2009) Thumbelina lives in a magical world hidden among the wildflowers, but when a young girl named Makena uproots her patch, she and her friends are moved to a city apartment. Here, she learns that her home is under threat from a construction company’s redevelopment plans. Barbie and the Three Musketeers (2009) In this Barbie-fied spin on Alexandre Dumas’ classic tale, Corinne is the daughter of the musketeer D’Artagnan, who dreams of following in her father’s footsteps. When she travels to Paris, however, she is mocked and told that girls cannot be musketeers. Undaunted, Corinne teams up with three palace maids who share her ambition. Barbie in a Mermaid Tale (2010) Surfing champion Merliah discovers that her mother was the mermaid queen of an underwater kingdom, Oceana, now ruled over by her tyrannical aunt. When Merliah’s magical pendant reveals that her mother, who has been missing for years, is still alive, she travels to Oceana to rescue her, with the help of a friendly dolphin and some new mermaid pals. Barbie: A Fashion Fairytale (2010) Devastated after being fired from a film and being dumped by Ken (over the phone - really Ken?) Barbie channels her inner rom-com heroine and heads to Paris to forget her troubles. Here, she visits her fashion designer aunt Millicent, only to learn that the business is about to shut down. Can Barbie and Millicent’s assistant Alice revitalise the brand? Barbie: A Fairy Secret (2011) When Ken is kidnapped on the orders of a fairy princess who has fallen in love with him, Barbie must team up with her rival Raquelle to travel to the fairy realm and win him back, helped along by her team of fashion stylists (who just so happen to have magical powers of their own). Barbie: Princess Charm School (2011) View oEmbed on the source website In Princess Charm School, Barbie plays Blair, a waitress who is selected to join a prestigious school where she will learn how to act like a royal lady. She thrives in her lessons and soon befriends her fellow classmates, but when a cold-hearted teacher notes that Blair looks a lot like the kingdom’s missing princess, she starts to do everything she can to stop her from learning of her true identity. Barbie: A Perfect Christmas (2011) It’s the Christmas holidays, and Barbie and sisters Stacie, Skipper and Chelsea are ready to make a festive trip to New York to visit their Aunt Millie. On the way, though, complications force them to make an unexpected stop off in the town of Tannenbaum. Barbie in a Mermaid Tale 2 (2012) Merliah heads to Australia for a surfing competition in this Mermaid Tale sequel, but while she is away from Oceana, the evil mermaid Eris emerges from her whirlpool and attempts to take over the throne. It’s up to Merliah and her underwater pals to foil this new plot. Barbie: The Princess and the Popstar (2012) Keira is a popstar who is starting to feel overwhelmed by her success; Tori is a Princess who finds herself under pressure from the weight of her royal responsibilities. They decide to swap places for the day: both of them believe that they will find the other girl’s life much easier than their own, but their experiences will surprise them. Barbie in The Pink Shoes (2013) When ballet dancer Kristyn tries on a new pair of sparkling pink dance shoes, she is drawn into a fantastical world, where she must dance to her favourite ballets like Giselle and Swan Lake in order to defeat the evil Snow Queen. The film is based on the fairy tale of The Red Shoes. Barbie: Mariposa and the Fairy Princess (2013) View oEmbed on the source website Mariposa ventures from Flutterfield to the kingdom of Shimmervale in her new role as royal ambassador. Her job is to broker peace with Flutterfield’s rivals the Crystal Fairies, but soon, with the help of her new friend Princess Catania, she discovers that a dark fairy is plotting to destroy the realm. Barbie and her Sisters in a Pony Tale (2013) Along with sisters Stacie, Chelsea and Skipper, Barbie heads off to Switzerland to spend the summer at a horse riding school. While looking for a horse that she can bring back home to Malibu, she finds a magical wild horse in the woods which seems to be part of a mythical breed. Barbie: The Pearl Princess (2014) Lumina is a mermaid who’s not just a skilled underwater hairdresser: she also has a magical ability to make pearls change colour and dance. When she’s invited to the royal ball, it’s up to her to stand up to the evil forces attempting to take over the kingdom. Barbie and the Secret Door (2014) Princess Alexa would rather be reading than fulfilling royal duties. When she finds a secret door hidden in the palace garden, she is drawn into a world full of magical creatures, and learns that she has special powers of her own, ones which she must use to stand up to the villainous Malucia, who is trying to drain the land of its magic. Barbie in Princess Power (2015) A magical butterfly bestows special powers on Princess Kara, transforming her into the heroic Super Sparkle. When her jealous cousin gets wind of Kara’s new alter ego, she finds the butterfly so she can become Dark Sparkle, her nemesis. Can the two put their rivalry aside when the kingdom is threatened? Barbie in Rock ‘N Royals (2015) It’s another royal identity swap! A mix-up causes Princess Courtney to trade places with rock star Erika, after the royal is sent to Camp Pop and the singer ends up at Camp Royalty. Making the most of the muddle, they learn more about each other’s very different worlds and make new friends along the way too. Barbie and Her Sisters in The Great Puppy Adventure (2015) View oEmbed on the source website Skipper, Stacie and Chelsea are back for another sibling tale. This time, the sisters and their new puppy pals return to their hometown and discover an old map in their Grandma’s attic, which might just lead to some long-buried treasure. Barbie: Spy Squad (2016) Is there nothing Barbie can’t do? In Spy Squad, she’s recruited by a hush-hush spy agency after the agents are impressed by her gymnastic skills and, along with friends Teresa and Renée, ends up tracking a cat-burglar who has so far managed to elude detection. Barbie: Star Light Adventure (2016) Star Light Adventure sees Barbie as a space princess, surfing through the cosmos on her hoverboard with her pet Pupcorn at her side. When the stars start to flicker in the sky, it’s up to Barbie to travel to a new planet to join the mission to save the galaxy. Barbie and Her Sisters in a Puppy Chase (2016) Barbie and her siblings travel to a tropical island to support Chelsea as she competes in a dance competition. Before the big contest, they visit the nearby Dancing Horse Festival, but end up getting separated from their puppies along the way. Can they find their pets before Chelsea is due on stage? Barbie Video Game Hero (2017) View oEmbed on the source website Transported into the world of her favourite video game, Barbie embarks on a roller-skating adventure, accompanied by a magical cloud named Cutie and a princess named Bella. As they move from level to level, they must attempt to defeat the evil emoji that is trying to wrest control of the game. Barbie Dolphin Magic (2017) Accompanied by her sisters, Barbie heads to the tropical island where Ken is completing a marine biology internship. There, she meets a mermaid, discovers a rare dolphin that only visits annually - and learns that Ken’s boss wants to exhibit it to make money. Can Barbie help the dolphin to reunite with his family? Barbie Princess Adventure (2020) Princess Amelia is worried about taking on the responsibility of becoming Queen, so she hatches a plan to swap places with her lookalike Barbie, who is in the princess’s home country of Floravia on an exchange trip. Barbie & Chelsea: The Lost Birthday (2021) Barbie and family head off on an adventure cruise to mark youngest sister Chelsea’s seventh birthday. When the boat crosses the International Date Line, though, Chelsea thinks that her birthday has been lost, and heads on a quest through an enchanted jungle in a bid to bring it back. Barbie: Big City, Big Dreams (2021) Malibu Barbie heads to New York to attend a summer acting programme, where she meets.. Brooklyn Barbie. The two quickly become best pals, but find themselves competing for a chance to perform a solo in Times Square. It’s the chance of a lifetime, but which Barbie will end up in the spotlight? Barbie: Mermaid Power (2022) View oEmbed on the source website The two Barbies, along with the usual squad of Skipper, Stacie and Chelsea, are transformed into mermaids in order to help their friend Isla, who first appeared in Dolphin Magic. They must take part in a series of challenges to see who will be crowned the power keeper of the underwater kingdom. Barbie arrives in cinemas on Friday 21st July 2023. Visit our Film hub for more news and features or find something to watch tonight with our TV Guide and Streaming Guide. Try Radio Times magazine today and get 12 issues for only £1 with delivery to your home – subscribe now. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Who is Catherine Agbaje? Meet Love Island 2023 contestant and real estate agent
Irish estate agent Catherine is looking for love.
Season 10 of Love Island is in full swing, with the contestants already having gone through the first recoupling of the series. While she was initially paired with Midlands-based business owner André Furtado, contestant Catherine Agbaje felt she had more of a spark with bombshell Zachariah Noble - and chose the South London personal trainer to be in a pairing with on last Friday’s show. But there has already been trouble at mill for the couple, after Zach kissed fellow singleton Molly Marsh during a challenge on Sunday 11th June - leading Catherine to tell her partner that she felt “disrespected” by him. So while we wait to see if the pair can resolve their differences, here’s everything you need to know about real estate agent Catherine Agbaje. Catherine Agbaje - key facts Age: 22 Job: Commercial real estate agent Instagram: @catherine_agbaje Coupled up with: Zachariah Noble Who is Catherine Agbaje? View oEmbed on the source website Hailing from Dublin, Ireland, Catherine is a commercial real estate agent who describes herself as "fun", "flirty" and "never boring", promising: "I can chat your ears off!" She reckons that those closest to her would describe her as "a loving character". "I’m always smiling, I’m always happy, I’m always laughing," she adds. "You’ll always see me with a smile on my face." Sounds like she will be able to lift the mood if things get a bit argumentative in the villa. Anything else we should know about her? "My teeth are real, people always think they are veneers!" she says. She also has two degrees, with an undergraduate degree in Psychology and Sociology and a master's in Real Estate. Why did Catherine Agbaje want to take part in Love Island? Like her fellow contestants, Catherine is looking for her perfect match, and while she's yet to reveal what her usual type on paper is, she has promised that she has "so much love to give". Here's hoping that she finds the right person. How old is Catherine Agbaje? Catherine is 22 years old, so it wasn't long ago that she was studying for the aforementioned degrees. Is Catherine Agbaje on Instagram? Yes, you can follow Catherine over on Instagram at @catherine_agbaje, where she has previously shared plenty of envy-inducing holiday photos from trips to destinations like Miami, Dubai and Mykonos. She'll take a pause on posting while in the Love Island villa, though, as the show's current duty of care protocols stipulate that contestants put their accounts on hold during their time on the dating show (rather than handing over control of their social media profiles to friends or family, as was commonplace before this rule was introduced at the start of 2023). Love Island airs on ITV2 at 9pm. You can watch all previous seasons of Love Island on BritBox – you can sign up for a 7-day free trial. Check out more of our Entertainment coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. Take part in the Screen Test, a project from Radio Times and the Universities of Sussex and Brighton, to explore the role of television and audio in our lives. Try Radio Times magazine today and get 12 issues for only £1 with delivery to your home – subscribe now. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Who is André Furtado? Meet Love Island 2023 contestant and business owner
Multi-lingual André says he's ready to give language lessons in the villa.
Love Island 2023 is back for its summer season and we’re already hooked on all the summer fun in the Mallorcan villa. While Islander George Fensom didn’t survive the first dumping of the series, the episode did see couples such as actor and content creator Molly Marsh and gas engineer Mitchel Taylor stay together; and model Ella Thomas and semi-professional footballer Tyrique Hyde choosing to work on their blossoming relationship. One new couple to get together was André Furtado and beautician Ruchee Guring. Having been previously partnered with Catherine Agbaje, Ruchee went with her heart and chose the Midlands-based business owner for herself - and fans were delighted when the couple shared their first kiss on Sunday, 11th June! But what else do we know about André, and how is he hoping to woo his perfect match? Read on to find out… André Furtado - key facts Age: 21 Job: Business owner Instagram: @dre.furtado Coupled up with: Ruchee Gurung Who is André Furtado? View oEmbed on the source website Business owner André hails from Dudley, near Birmingham. Don't be surprised if he falls head over heels for another Islander at speed: the contestant says that he falls in love "too quickly, to be honest". "When I look at beautiful ladies, before I’ve said hello to them I’ve already fallen in love," he adds. "I’m already planning the wedding." And as for his ideal first date? "I would love to go strawberry picking, I’d want to have a field spelt out in her name, then I’d have to ask her to be my girlfriend. So I’d like to plant a field full of strawberries." Over to you, producers... What will André Furtado bring to the Love Island villa? As well as being "charming", André promises that he will "bring good looks and some language lessons" to the new season of Love Island. "I’m going to teach the other Islanders Portuguese, Spanish and a little bit of Creole," he says. "I think I’ve got every slice of the pie". He'll surely face competition from French contestant Mehdi when is comes to dishing out language lessons, though. How old is André Furtado? André is 21 years old, making him one of the younger islanders in this season's cohort. He shared photos from his 21st birthday celebrations on social media earlier in May. Is André Furtado on Instagram? You can follow André on Instagram at @dre.furtado, although you won't see any new posts on his account while he is in the Love Island villa, as ITV's current duty of care policy for contestants stipulates that they must pause activity on their social media handles while taking part in the show. It's part of new measures introduced earlier this year in order to protect Islanders, along with their friends and family, from trolling. Love Island airs on ITV2 at 9pm. You can watch all previous seasons of Love Island on BritBox – you can sign up for a 7-day free trial. Check out more of our Entertainment coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. Take part in the Screen Test, a project from Radio Times and the Universities of Sussex and Brighton, to explore the role of television and audio in our lives. Try Radio Times magazine today and get 12 issues for only £1 with delivery to your home – subscribe now. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Who is Ruchee Gurung? Meet Love Island 2023 contestant and beautician
The 24 year old beautician was the first contestant to be announced for the new series.
We’re nearly a week into the summer 2023 series of Love Island, and the drama is already heating up between the singletons. Among this year’s cohort is 24-year-old Ruchee Gurung - who promised to bring “glam and big energy” before she stepped foot in the villa. The beautician has been in a pair with Mehdi Edno since the show began on Monday 5th June - but that could all change as the contestants prepare to undergo their first recoupling. So just who is Ruchee, and what is she looking for in a man? Read on to find out. Ruchee Gurung - key facts Age: 24 Job: Beautician Instagram: @rucheewawo Who is Ruchee Gurung? The very first contestant to be unveiled for Love Island's 2023 summer edition, Ruchee is a beautician hailing from Sutton in south-west London. Ruchee describes herself as "really caring", and has already given viewers a hint of what they can expect from her stint in the villa. "When I'm with someone I’m all about them," she said. "I’m also really loyal and love doing nice things for the people that are special to me. My love language is gift giving, so I’m a real giver when it comes to relationships." Why did Ruchee Gurung want to take part in Love Island? View oEmbed on the source website Opening up about why she decided to sign up for the dating show, Ruchee explained: "I’m single and looking for love, and it’s the perfect opportunity for me to find someone. I’m a relationship kind of girl, but so far it’s not worked out for me. So I’m looking forward to hopefully finding the right person in the villa." Though we don't yet know much about Ruchee's type on paper, she has revealed the traits that give her the ick, explaining that she is not a fan of "guys with no ambition". She's got high standards when it comes to dress sense, too. "I also get the ick if I see a guy wearing white jeans and red trainers," she said. "Another one is super skinny jeans when they look like leggings. Fashion is such an important thing for me. If I go on a date and the guy isn’t wearing something I like, I’m going home." Sounds like the pressure is on for the boys to sharpen up their style. How old is Ruchee Gurung? Ruchee is 24 years old. Is Ruchee Gurung on Instagram? Yes indeed. You can follow Ruchee over on Instagram at @rucheewawo, but bear in mind that you won't see any updates on her account until she leaves the villa. As part of ITV's duty of care guidelines for islanders, contestants now pause posts on their social media handles while they are on the show, rather than handing over their accounts to friends and family. Ruchee's Instagram bio currently states that she is "off to find love in the @loveisland villa". Love Island airs on ITV2 at 9pm. You can watch all previous seasons of Love Island on BritBox – you can sign up for a 7-day free trial. Check out more of our Entertainment coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. Take part in the Screen Test, a project from Radio Times and the Universities of Sussex and Brighton, to explore the role of television and audio in our lives. Try Radio Times magazine today and get 12 issues for only £1 with delivery to your home – subscribe now. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
How to watch the Transformers movies in order
Want to revisit the robots in disguise? Here's your guide to the larger-than-life world of the Transformers franchise.
It's pretty clear that the Transformers franchise is one of the most divisive film series of recent times: for everyone who loves the unique brand of mayhem that Michael Bay has brought to the films, there are several others who are far from convinced. Still, that hasn't stopped the franchise from making a lot of money at the box office and so it's no real surprise that we had a new film titled Transformers: Rise of the Beasts – the seventh entry in the series so far. Although most of the movies have begun with a prologue set in the past – whether that be the extinction of the dinosaurs or the space race in the ‘60s – for the most part the timelines of the films has been chronological from when they were released. But that all changed with the sixth outing Bumblebee – the first entry not to be directed by Bay – which unfolded entirely in 1987 and therefore was set twenty years before the events of the earlier movies. This newly complicated timeline continued with Rise of the Beasts, which is set between the end of Bumblebee and the beginning of the main series – so it's safe to say that there's now a little debate to be had about what order the films should be watched in. So if you are planning to re-watch the films now that the new one is arriving in UK cinemas, here’s how to navigate the series in both chronological and release order. How to watch the Transformers movies in chronological order Here's the best way to watch the Transformers movies in order, all the way from Bumblebee to The Last Knight: Bumblebee (2018) Transformers: Rise of the Beasts (2023) Transformers (2007) Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009) Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011) Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014) Transformers: The Last Knight (2017) 1. Bumblebee (2018) View oEmbed on the source website The sixth Transformers film to be released is in fact the first movie when you look at the series chronologically. There’s been some debate over whether Bumblebee, written by Birds of Prey’s Christina Hodson and directed by Travis Knight, counts as a prequel or a soft reboot of the franchise (as some of the plot points it sets up don’t seamlessly line up with storylines in the later films). Either way, we know it takes place in 1987, two decades before Bay’s first Transformers movie. When Optimus Prime sends fellow autobot B-127 (voiced by Dylan O’Brien) to Earth to set up a base, the transformer ends up disguising itself as a yellow Volkswagen Beetle. Grieving the death of her father, teenage Charlie (Hailee Steinfeld) receives the car as an 18th birthday present and starts trying to restore the vehicle. Her renovation attempts are thrown off course when the car transforms back to B-127, but the pair soon become unlikely pals, with Charlie nicknaming the robot Bumblebee. When his enemies the Decepticons learn where Bumblebee has been hiding, though, the action steps up a gear. 2. Transformers: Rise of the Beasts (2023) View oEmbed on the source website The most recent film in the franchise serves as both a sequel to the aforementioned Bumblebee and a prequel to the earlier films in the series, with the action unfolding in 1994 – where ex-military electronics expert Noah (Anthony Ramos) and museum intern Elena (Dominique Fishback) unwittingly find themselves caught up in a war between various species of Transformers. The film finds the Autobots allying themselves with a species of Transformers known as Maximals which take the form of large animals (including a gorilla known as Optimus Primal). Together, they attempt to put a stop to the evil Terrorcons, who pose a threat so massive that it could spell the end of life on Earth. The action takes Noah, Elena, and the various Transformers to Peru as they try to track down a vital 'Transwarp Key" – but it's far from a simple task and we soon see plenty of the epic action sequences that the franchise has become known for. 3. Transformers (2007) View oEmbed on the source website The movie that kicked off Michael Bay’s larger than life franchise sets the tone with a more is more attitude, wisecracking robots and explosions galore. Amid the civil war between the Autobots and their long-time foes the Decepticons, Autobot boss Optimus Prime wants to track down the AllSpark (the source of all life on the planet Cybertron, aka the film’s plot-driving McGuffin) to restore peace, while the Decepticons plan to use it for nefarious means. Decepticon leader Megatron is the one to find it hidden on earth, but crashes in the Arctic Circle and is frozen in the ice. Fast forward thousands of years, and the Decepticons, now disguised as Earth vehicles, are attempting to hack into the US military network to try and track down his location. Meanwhile, autobot Bumblebee is also lurking on Earth, disguised as a Chevrolet Camaro, as nerdy high school student Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBeouf) discovers when he’s trying to buy his first car to impress crush Mikaela (Megan Fox). Soon Sam, Mikaela, Bumblebee and a host of other autobots are embroiled in the quest to hunt down Megatron and the AllSpark, all while dodging agents from Sector 7, a top-secret government programme. Its talking robots and huge battle scenes ended up as the perfect recipe for an all-conquering summer blockbuster. Despite almost universally poor reviews upon its release in July 2007, Transformers eventually took more than $709.7 million at the box office worldwide. 4. Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009) View oEmbed on the source website Set two years after the events of the first film, this sequel kicks off as Sam, now a college student, is plagued by visions of Cybertron symbols, which he’s been seeing ever since he touched a small shard of the AllSpark. That’s bad news for him, because the Decepticons are convinced that these symbols could lead them to a new Energon source that would give them the power to wipe out the sun and destroy life on Earth. Behind this scheme is the first ever Decepticon known as the Fallen (whose backstory is set out in the prologue scenes set in 17,000 BC) who sends his minions to capture Sam and destroy Optimus Prime. It all culminates in a huge showdown against the backdrop of the Pyramids of Giza, with the arrival of Devastator, a gigantic composite of various Constructicons, providing one of the film’s most memorable battles. As well as LaBeouf and Fox, Josh Duhamel, Tyrese Gibson and John Turturro were among the Transformers cast who returned for the second movie, joined by Tony Todd as the voice of the Fallen. After the box office success of the first film, expectations were inevitably high, but Revenge of the Fallen managed to surpass its predecessor, taking in $836.3 million dollars internationally and beating the record for the strongest Wednesday opening previously held by Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. 5. Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011) View oEmbed on the source website The third Transformers movie begins with the now-traditional prologue, although this one isn’t set quite so far into the past. It takes place in 1961, with President John F Kennedy signing off on a mission to put a man on the moon as, you guessed it, a cover up to distract from what NASA are really doing: investigating the Ark, a Cybertronian spacecraft that has crashed up there. In the film’s present day, four years after the events of Revenge of the Fallen, Sam has finished college and is living with girlfriend Carly (Rosie Huntingdon-Whiteley, who joined the franchise after the departure of Fox), but is struggling to find a steady job, despite his impeccable world-saving credentials. It soon becomes clear that the Decepticons are killing off anyone with information about The Ark and are stockpiling Pillars, advanced pieces of tech which can create wormholes connecting two points in space. Their goal is to eventually restore their home planet and soon, the Decepticons are mounting a major attack on Chicago. It’s up to Sam and the Autobots to stop them, though our hero has his hands full when it turns out that Carly’s boss (Patrick Dempsey) is acting as an agent for the bad guys. As well as Dempsey, the likes of John Malkovich (as Sam’s boss) and Frances McDormand (as a government head of intelligence) also rather improbably crop up, adding some acting clout to the franchise. The third instalment crossed the $1 billion mark at the box office, becoming the second-highest-grossing movie of 2011, beaten only by Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II. 6. Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014) View oEmbed on the source website The franchise had a major switch up for Age of Extinction with LaBeouf out and Mark Wahlberg in as inventor Cade Yeager. After the obligatory prologue set 65 million years ago, which helpfully explains that the dinosaurs were actually wiped out when an alien race covered the Earth in a metal alloy called Transformium, we learn that the Autobots are being hunted by a mercenary Transformer called Lockdown. His sights are set on destroying Optimus Prime, who is hiding in Texas, where he is eventually discovered by Yeager. Though his daughter Tessa (Nicola Peltz) encourages him to hand the robot in, he decides to use his technical know-how to fix him instead, a decision which will end up drawing him and his family into the latest clash between the Autobots and the Decepticons. The all-new live action cast also features Stanley Tucci as a wealthy businessman who fancies building some Transformers of his own, Kelsey Grammer as the rogue CIA agent determined to wipe all Transformers off the face of the earth, and Jack Reynor as Shane, Tessa’s boyfriend. 7. Transformers: The Last Knight (2017) View oEmbed on the source website Bay’s final Transformers movie begins with a dose of Arthurian mythology, as Merlin discovers a group of Transformers known as the Knights of Iacon and asks for them to help him support King Arthur. They present him with a magical staff, which helps the King ward off the invading Saxons. Why is that relevant, you ask? Because as the film returns to the present day, Optimus Prime has been brainwashed, given a dark alter ego, Nemesis Prime and told to retrieve Merlin’s staff, which is powerful enough to restore the planet Cybertron. Meanwhile, Yeager is contacted by a secret organisation headed up by Sir Edmund Burton (Anthony Hopkins). Their job? To ensure that the Transformers' involvement in every major world event remains top secret, of course. With the help of an Oxford academic called Viviane Wembly (Laura Haddock), Yeager must attempt to track down the staff and break the spell on Optimus Prime. The Last Knight saw the return of characters from past instalments, including Duhamel’s William Lennox and Turturro’s agent Seymour Simmons, but failed to live up to the dizzy heights of its predecessors, earning a comparatively lukewarm $605.4 million at the box office worldwide. Transformers movies in release order If you’d rather tackle the films in the order that they arrived in cinemas instead, here’s how to do it: Transformers (2007) Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009) Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011) Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014) Transformers: The Last Knight (2017) Bumblebee (2018) Transformers: Rise of the Beasts (2023) Check out more of our Film coverage or visit our TV Guide to see what's on tonight. Take part in the Screen Test, a project from Radio Times and the Universities of Sussex and Brighton, to explore the role of television and audio in our lives. Try Radio Times magazine today and get 12 issues for only £1 with delivery to your home – subscribe now. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Who is George Fensom? Meet Love Island 2023 contestant and business development executive
George promises to "bring the vibe up" in the villa with his dad dancing.
Love Island 2023 is well under way with a new batch of contestants. The brand new cohort of 10 singletons consists of musical theatre performer Molly Marsh, model Emma Thomas and gas engineer Mitchel Taylor. Also amongst this year's starting lineup is business development executive George Fensom, who hit the news for the wrong reasons before he even stepped onto the hit dating show. George has promised to bring "charm, personality, good looks, quick wit" and, erm, "tanned ankles" to the villa. But can he deliver? Here’s everything you need to know about the Love Island 2023 contestant. George Fensom - key facts Age: 24 Job: Business development executive Instagram: @georgefensom Who is George Fensom? A business development executive hailing from Bedford, George is confident that he will bring a party spirit (and some questionable dance moves) to the villa. "I'm the first person to bring the vibe up, I’m always dancing," he says. "I’m always the one who wants to go out. My go-to dance move is what I call the Dad Dance, I’m gonna bring dad jokes and dad dancing to the villa." Sounds like this year's talent show could be a sight to behold. Love Island's George Fensom tweets As detailed above, George faced backlash before even appearing on Love Island after past homophobic tweets resurfaced. In response, the 24-year-old told RadioTimes.com and other press: “Actually, looking back on those tweets, I was really naive and really young to think that that was the right thing to say. "It's obviously not the right thing to say on my behalf, and it's one of them situations that it doesn't show the man that I am today at all, in any way, shape, or form.” George added: “As I say, you know, I can't even remember off the top of my head when it was, 14/15. Even so, we are talking near enough 10 years ago. So much learning gets done every day around these subject areas and we are still, as humans, continuing to learn now of what is right and what is wrong." What is George Fensom looking for in a partner? View oEmbed on the source website When it comes to potential dates, George is on the look out for a girl with "drive", who is "passionate about something, whether it’s a job or enjoying trips to the zoo on Saturdays". In terms of his type, he adds that he tends to "prefer a girl who is naturally good looking, and someone who has even more banter than me - although I don’t believe that’s physically possible. I think those three qualities make for a perfect mix in a partner". Will he find 'the one' in the villa? We'll have to wait and see. And if he had to choose three famous faces to join him in the villa, the first would be Megan Fox, while "the second would be Anne Hegerty from The Chase. I wouldn't crack on with her but I'd have a laugh with her". Finally, he'd like Nigella Lawson to be on board to "cook something sexy". How old is George Fensom? George is 24 years old. Is George Fensom on Instagram? You can find George's Instagram profile over on the handle @georgefensom, where he has previously shared gym selfies and photos from nights out with friends. However, posts on George's account will be paused while he is in the Love Island villa, as ITV's current duty of care guidelines stipulate that contestants' social media accounts should go dormant while they are on the show, so that islanders and their friends and family are shielded from potential trolling. Love Island starts on ITV2 on Monday 5th June 2023 at 9pm. You can watch all previous seasons of Love Island on BritBox – you can sign up for a 7-day free trial. Check out more of our Entertainment coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. Take part in the Screen Test, a project from Radio Times and the Universities of Sussex and Brighton, to explore the role of television and audio in our lives. Try Radio Times magazine today and get 12 issues for only £1 with delivery to your home – subscribe now. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Britain's Got Talent 2023 reveals season 16 winner
The public have crowned their 2023 champion!
After seven weeks of auditions and a packed week of live shows, Britain’s Got Talent has crowned its 2023 winner. Following a tense final, Viggo Venn was named as this year’s champion, following in the footsteps of past winners like Diversity, Lost Voice Guy and Axel Blake. He will receive a £250,000 cash prize and appear at the prestigious Royal Variety Performance later this year. Lillianna Clifton came in second place, with magician Cillian O'Connor in third. The 2023 season of the long-running ITV talent show marked former Strictly Come Dancing star Bruno Tonioli’s debut on the judging panel. Tonioli joined Britain’s Got Talent following David Walliams’ departure from the show earlier this year. “I had a ball, partly because I had never seen it before,” Tonioli previously told Radio Times, adding: “I had the best time. It’s a proper variety show and the range of talent is incredible. "Simon [Cowell] and I have known each other forever, but this is the first time we’ve been able to work together. It was such fun. We need some of that in our lives.” This year also saw more Golden Buzzers dished out to contestants than in previous seasons, in a shake-up to the usual rules. Normally each of the four members of the judging panel can pick one Golden Buzzer act, who is then fast-tracked to the live semi-finals, and presenters Ant & Dec are also given the chance to one act between them. This time, though, both Tonioli and Simon Cowell pressed the Golden Buzzer for two acts each. All four judges also teamed up to give amputee dancer Musa Motha an unprecedented ‘group’ Golden Buzzer during the audition stages. Britain’s Got Talent is set to return to our screens in 2024, with applications to audition for the contest already open. For the first time in the show’s history, members of the public will be able to nominate individual acts or groups that they think are worthy of a chance to perform for Cowell and co. “New to Britain's Got Talent, we are giving you the opportunity to secretly nominate a group or an individual that you believe deserves to be on the BGT stage showing their talent to the nation,” the ITV website explains. "You can fill in an application form on their behalf. We will gather details from you and as much information you have about the act and hopefully you will be the one that helps their dreams come true! "If you know someone special who deserves the chance at a life-changing opportunity of walking on the stage and impressing the celebrity judges, then you can do something about it! Apply for them now!" Looking for something else to watch? Check out our TV Guide to see what’s on tonight. Take part in the Screen Test, a project from Radio Times and the Universities of Sussex and Brighton, to explore the role of television and audio in our lives. Try Radio Times magazine today and get 12 issues for only £1 with delivery to your home – subscribe now. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Molly Marsh says actor mum is "excited and supportive" for Love Island
Molly's mum has previously appeared on another major ITV show.
New Love Island contestant Molly Marsh has revealed that her actor mum is “really supportive and excited” about her taking part in the ITV2 dating show. 24-year-old Molly is a social media creator and musical theatre performer, and her mum Janet Marsh has had several roles in Coronation Street over the years, appearing as a nurse, a receptionist and an ITU worker. Janet has also featured in series like Bodies, Where The Heart Is and Still Open All Hours. Asked whether her mum had given her any tips about dealing with the cameras before she headed into the villa, Molly told RadioTimes.com and other press that Janet was “very open to the opportunities” but hadn’t dished out any specific advice. “We already have been very big fans of the show,” she added, explaining that her family would usually “all sit together every time Love Island’s on,” and have conversations about who she would couple up with if she was in the villa. “They know how the show works and what it entails,” she said. “So they are really excited for me and they know how much I love being in a relationship. They know that I love being in love, so they do want that for me again, so I can probably leave them alone a bit!” View oEmbed on the source website Emphasising her closeness with her family, Molly said that any potential partner would have to also be “very family orientated, because the first day he comes to meet my family, he’s going to meet everybody at once. So he needs to be a confident guy ready for that". Molly toured the Love Island villa in South Africa, where the winter edition of the show is filmed, at the start of the year, and is thought to have been scouted by producers afterwards. She said that she felt “a little more prepared” after having visited one of the show’s locations, “because I felt so comfortable and safe, and it was an environment that I really liked the feel of, which gave me the nudge to apply. It’s definitely made me feel more relaxed and more at ease, and it’s going to be really strange stepping into the villa again for real this time”. Love Island starts on ITV2 on Monday 5th June 2023 at 9pm. You can watch all previous seasons of Love Island on BritBox – you can sign up for a 7-day free trial. Check out more of our Entertainment coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. Take part in the Screen Test, a project from Radio Times and the Universities of Sussex and Brighton, to explore the role of television and audio in our lives. Try Radio Times magazine today and get 12 issues for only £1 with delivery to your home – subscribe now. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.