Malta Showbiz Latest News and Updates

EXCLUSIVE: Action-thriller Classified, starring Aaron Eckhart, Abigail Breslin and Tim Roth, has completed principal photography on location in Malta.

It's really happening!

It's finally Eurovision week, and it's a huge deal for the north west as Liverpool hosts proceedings on behalf of Ukraine.

The Malta Film Commission is launching a Mediterranean-focused film festival building on its growing position as a key international shooting location.

Naman Ramachandran The Malta Film Commission is launching the first-ever Mediterrane Film Festival, a new annual event dedicated to celebrating film and creativity. Running from June 25-30, the festival will take place at Valletta, Malta’s capital, and other locations across the country The festival aims to serve as a platform for Malta to continue building its film brand image worldwide and attract more film business to the islands. Prominent films shot in recent years in Malta include Ridley Scott’s “Napoleon,” Terrence Malick’s “The Way of the Wind” and Colin Trevorrow’s “Jurassic World Dominion.” The program, which will be revealed during the Cannes Film Festival, will showcase films from each of the MED9 (an alliance of nine Mediterranean and Southern European Union member states: Croatia, Cyprus, France, Greece, Italy, Malta, Portugal, Slovenia and Spain) nations. Screenings will be accessible to the public, and the featured films will be in the running for various awards.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor Variety has been given exclusive access to the trailer for Marco Bellocchio’s “Kidnapped” (Rapito), which has its world premiere in Competition at the Cannes Film Festival. The film starts in 1858 in the Jewish quarter of Bologna, when the Pope’s soldiers burst into the home of the Mortara family. By order of the cardinal, they have come to take Edgardo, their seven-year-old son. The child had been secretly baptized by his nurse as a baby and the papal law is unquestionable: he must receive a Catholic education. Edgardo’s parents, distraught, will do anything to get their son back. Supported by public opinion and the international Jewish community, the Mortaras’ struggle quickly takes a political dimension. But the Church and the Pope will not agree to return the child, to consolidate an increasingly wavering power.

The Annecy International Animation Film Festival unveiled the line-up for its 2023 edition, running from June 11 to 17.

The Royal Family is to be shown in previously unseen personal moments as part of a new BBC documentary. A clip of the King flying solo is also among the footage to be aired in Charles R: The Making of a Monarch, which will tell his story as heir to the throne in his own words.

the Caribbean year-round out of Fort Lauderdale, is flagged out of Malta and can carry almost 3,000 passengers and 1,200 crew members. According to the lawsuit, which was filed Wednesday in Fort Lauderdale, after Robert Jones died, his widow was given two choices by crew members. They allegedly told Marilyn Jones, then 78 and from the Florida Panhandle, that his body could be taken off at the next stop, Puerto Rico, or stored in the morgue until the ship got back to Fort Lauderdale in six days.

Paul O'Grady's funeral had a huge turnout on Thursday, as the television icon was mourned by the masses at his hometown in Birkenhead and home in Adlington, Kent. The popular entertainer sadly passed away last month.

With Summer on the horizon, people are booking their Summer holidays in locations like Spain, Greece, Africa and the Caribbean thick and fast. There are currently plenty of holiday offers from travel operators like TUI, EasyJet and First Choice.

The late star Paul O'Grady is set to have his loyal friends emotional again when he returns to TV in his new series.

Pat Saperstein Deputy Editor It was 1941. Though World War II was already under way, film production was in full swing at Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank. Humphrey Bogart was getting ready to shoot “The Maltese Falcon,” while the next year, “Casablanca” would film on Warners soundstages and at the nearby Van Nuys airport, subbing for Morocco. Bette Davis was making “Now Voyager” on the lot after location visits to Lake Arrowhead and Laguna Beach. At the Warner Bros. Café, the studio’s commissary on the Burbank lot, James Cagney and Rita Hayworth lunched with director Raoul Walsh, while actor and future president Ronald Reagan dined with Olivia de Havilland — just a few of the major stars and filmmakers who could be seen taking a break from the hard work of filming.

EXCLUSIVE: Anna-Maria Sieklucka (365 Days) has been tapped to star opposite Charlotte Kirk (The Lair) in the psychological thriller Compulsion. The film which is set to start shooting next week in Malta hails from Neil Marshall (The Descent), who will direct from his own script.

Matt Maltese has shared ‘Florence’, the latest single from his upcoming album ‘Driving Just To Drive’. Check it out below.‘Florence’ is the final single to be released ahead of the singer-songwriter’s fourth album.

An Antiques Roadshow guest was left declaring 'you're joking' as he was given a jaw-dropping valuation for his valued treasures. Fiona Bruce and the team were at Powis Castle in Wales for the new episode of the BBC One programme which aired on Sunday night (April 2).

died 'unexpectedly but peacefully' at the age of 67 last night, his partner said. Following the sad news of his passing, an interview from March 21 reveals how he insisted he was 'back in business' after a health concern. In the poignant comments, he said he was 'absolutely fine' just one week before his sudden death, but admitted that he had feared he wouldn't work again following a Covid scare.

Legendary comedian and TV star Paul O'Grady has died "unexpectedly but peacefully" aged 67, following years of health battles. Tributes have poured in for the star, who hosted The Paul O’Grady Show, Blind Date and Blankety Blank, as well as ITV’s multi-award-winning For The Love Of Dogs. He was known for his love of animals, and raised a lot of money and awareness about those in need, whilst also adopting a number of animals himself.

If you attend the Etihad Stadium regularly, you've probably walked past it hundreds of times without realising. It's on every page on the Manchester City website, and features often on the club's promotional content.

Former Coronation Street star Matthew Marsden has revealed he and wife Nadine had become parents for a seventh time. The actor, 50, took to his Instagram on Thursday to share the first snap of the tot who was wrapped up in a hospital blanket.  British born Matthew and his Maltese wife who he wed in 2005 have now set up home with their growing brood in Texas.

Eurovision 2023 Semi-Final running orders have been revealed – check it out below.The 2023 Eurovision Song Contest will take place at the M&S Bank Arena in Liverpool from May 9-13, with Mae Muller set to represent the UK with ‘I Wrote A Song’.The UK city was announced to stage the contest on behalf of Ukraine, after organisers deemed the country unable to host the event due to the ongoing war with Russia.You can find all the songs that are entered for this year’s competition here.This week, Eurovision shared the running order for the Semi-Final shows, which take place on Tuesday, May 9 and Thursday, May 11.Norway will kick off proceedings for the first Semi-Final, closed out 15 acts later with a performance by Finland. The second event is set to be opened by Denmark, with Australia hitting the stage last.We got #Eurovision2023 Semi-Final running orders ✨➡️ https://t.co/V1tz85qvRD pic.twitter.com/hSjYqudp6j— Eurovision Song Contest (@Eurovision) March 22, 2023The Big Five participants – France, Germany, Italy, Spain and United Kingdom, which make the biggest financial contributions to the contest – along with Ukraine, automatically qualify for the Grand Final.Check out the full schedule below.First Semi-Final Eurovision 20231. Norway2. Malta3. Serbia4. Latvia5. Portugal6. Ireland7. Croatia8. Switzerland9. Israel10. Moldova11. Sweden12. Azerbaijan13. Czechia14. Netherlands15. FinlandSecond Semi-Final Eurovision 20231. Denmark2. Armenia3. Romania4. Estonia5. Belgium6. Cyprus7. Iceland8. Greece9. Poland10. Slovenia11. Georgia12. San Marino13. Austria14. Albania15. Lithuania16. AustraliaMeanwhile, Eurovision final 2023 tickets sold out in just 36 minutes.Tickets for all nine shows including the live Grand Final went on sale

Marcus Rashford will not feature for England in their upcoming Euro 2024 qualifiers against Italy and Ukraine after withdrawing from the squad due to injury.

When the Real Housewives of Cheshire premiered in 2015 it became an immediate smash hit with audiences and has since cemented its place as one of the channel’s most watched series ever.The show is now heading into its sixteenth series which premieres on 20 March 2023 and all of last series’ housewives, bar Sheena Lynch, will be returning to give fans an update on their very glam lives. Ahead of the show’s return, we take a look at their luxurious (and extremely expensive) lifestyles. Lauren Simon is the only original member of the cast still starring as a series regular.

Those who want to blow their mum away for Mother's Day this year could pick up a 'mystery holiday' at a discounted rate.

Manchester Film Festival Unveils Industry Programme

Catherine Zeta-Jones has shared a sweet glimpse into her home life with her husband Michael Douglas on her Instagram.The Welsh actress, who recently celebrated St David's Day with her adorable young niece Ava, took to the social media site on Sunday to share a peaceful snapshot of her and the Fatal Attraction star's married life.See The Mask of Zorro actress' more energetic insight into her weekend workout in the video below.WATCH: Catherine Zeta-Jones dances around in her home gymIn the 53-year-old's Sunday Instagram story, Michael can be seen relaxing at one of their luxurious multi-million dollar homes while reading a newspaper. Meanwhile the couple's pet pooch, a Maltese and Poodle cross named Taylor Douglas, sat snuggled up to the Ant-Man actor on his lap.Catherine shared the photograph of her husband of over 20 years and their canine 'bestie' along with the caption "Easy like Sunday morning", a reference to the Lionel Richie song she put to play in the background of her post.

Tim Gray Senior Vice President This year, all the Oscar-contending directors are nominated for original screenplay: the Daniels (Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert), Todd Field, Martin McDonagh, Ruben Östlund and Steven Spielberg (writing with Tony Kushner). This is the first time it’s happened in AMPAS history.  The only year that came close was 2017, when all five helmers had written or co-written their scripts, though they didn’t all get writing noms. So here’s Film History 101. In Hollywood lore, Preston Sturges is often credited as the first scribe to become a hyphenate, as writer-director of the 1940 “The Great McGinty.” But as with all Hollywood “facts,” there is only an element of truth here.

Lacey Chabert is reuniting with Will Kemp!