Joanna “JoJo” Levesque opened up about her body image struggles while filming the 2006 movie Aquamarine alongside Emma Roberts and Sara Paxton. During a September 19 appearance on The Viall Files podcast, she revealed, “I was not as skinny as the other girls,” expressing feelings of insecurity in comparison to her co-stars. JoJo, 33, believes that this tendency to compare oneself to others is ingrained in women from a young age. “From a young age, I think we’re all kind of aware, or we’re measuring ourselves up next to other girls,” she shared. Despite her insecurities, she fondly recalled her…
Author: John Kakusu
For Zayn Malik, his daughter Khai holds a special place in his life story. The former One Direction singer, who shares the 4-year-old with ex-partner Gigi Hadid, refers to Khai as “the most important person” in his life. In a touching Instagram post on September 19, Zayn, 31, expressed his deep love for his daughter on her birthday. “I love you more than words allow me to express, beyond proud to call you my daughter,” he wrote. “Grateful for every second I get to spend next to you, as you become the incredible person I know you already are.” The…
A recent report detailing poor working conditions and rampant sexual harassment faced by women in Malayalam-language cinema is causing upheavals in India’s entertainment industry. Yet, while many women have spoken out, the silence of powerful male actors, including some of India’s biggest stars, has been striking. Based on testimonies from 51 individuals within Kerala’s film industry, the Hema Committee report exposes decades of exploitation, revealing that women were often pressured to offer sexual favors in exchange for work. It states that women were told to make “compromises and adjustments” if they wanted to stay in the industry. The report comes…
The first trailer for Blitz, a World War II film directed by Sir Steve McQueen, offers a glimpse of how locations in Hull were transformed to represent 1940s London. The film tells the story of George, a defiant nine-year-old boy played by Elliott Heffernan, and his mother Rita, portrayed by Saoirse Ronan, as she tries to send him to safety during the Blitz. Filming took place in February 2023, when Hull’s streets were lined with vintage red buses, 1940s posters, and period street furniture to recreate wartime London. Locations such as Hull’s Old Town and Paragon railway station can be…
For the past two decades, Neil Harbisson, a self-described “cyborg artist,” has sparked debate with a radical technological enhancement: an antenna surgically implanted into his skull. Harbisson, who grew up in Barcelona, was born with achromatopsia, a rare condition that affects one in 33,000 people, leaving him unable to see any color, only shades of grey. In 2004, Harbisson underwent surgery to attach the antenna, which fundamentally changed his life. The device, embedded at the back of his head, transforms light waves into sound frequencies, allowing him to “hear” colors. Harbisson’s decision to modify his body wasn’t about restoring a…
British pianist Julian Trevelyan, from St Albans, has earned a place in the grand final of the prestigious Leeds International Piano Competition, after receiving a last-minute entry. Trevelyan, who had initially failed to secure a spot in the selection rounds earlier this year, was contacted just two weeks ago while on his honeymoon in France. A contestant had dropped out due to visa issues, and Trevelyan was invited to take their place. “I hadn’t touched the piano for a few weeks,” the 25-year-old told BBC News. “So I’ve only had two weeks to prepare four hours of music. But I…
Thousands of people walk over a massive hidden space in Bristol’s city centre every day without realizing it exists. However, a creative organisation is now transforming the delivery warehouse beneath The Galleries shopping centre into a new hotspot for dance music enthusiasts. Tom Hodgson, Director of The Underground, believes the venue is “the largest subterranean venue in the UK” and hopes it will contribute to the revitalization of struggling high streets across the country. Hodgson first approached The Galleries with the idea to convert the loading bay in Broadmead into an underground music space seven years ago. After two years…
Townsend Street in Belfast, once a vibrant area, has undergone significant changes, particularly after the construction of the Westlink. Now, the Ulster Orchestra is working to rejuvenate the street, which connects the predominantly Catholic lower Falls and largely Protestant lower Shankill areas. The orchestra recently moved into the newly renovated Townsend Presbyterian Church, which closed in 2022 after 200 years of continuous service. In an effort to reconnect the community with the street’s rich history, the orchestra collaborated with local women from the area, transforming their childhood memories into music. Together with the Townsend Street Enterprise Park and Zeppo Arts,…
A group of former schoolboys who sang on the world-famous 1963 recording of Benjamin Britten’s War Requiem have been reunited, thanks to an advert placed in a local newspaper. The recording, which sold 200,000 copies in just five months—an impressive feat for a classical work—earned Britten two Grammy Awards. However, the young choristers from London’s prestigious Highgate School were never credited. Last year, Decca Records launched a search for the surviving members through an announcement in the Ham & High newspaper. On Thursday, 15 of them gathered in Soho to listen to a remastered version of the War Requiem and…
Pop icon Kylie Minogue has unveiled plans for her largest world tour in over a decade, along with the release of Tension II, a sequel to her successful comeback album, Tension. The new album, featuring 13 tracks, is set to drop on October 18, followed by a global tour that will kick off in Australia in February. The tour will then extend through Asia and the UK. Minogue expressed her excitement, stating she’s “beyond excited” to celebrate the Tension era with fans. “There will be a whole lot of Padaming,” she added, referencing her viral, Grammy-winning 2023 hit single, Padam…