Chiefs Showbiz and Celebrity Breaking News

Town hall chiefs are bidding for £40 million of government cash to ‘level up’ parts of Oldham which could see a business centre created to support green tech start-ups.

Naman Ramachandran Sony Pictures Classics co-founders Michael Barker and Tom Bernard will receive the Game Changer Award at the Zurich Film Festival (ZFF), in recognition of their services to film culture.Along with Marcie Bloom, Barker and Bernard, who serve as co-presidents, founded Sony Pictures Classics as an autonomous division of Sony Pictures Entertainment. To date, films produced by the studio have received 183 Academy Award nominations — 70 of which were films by women — and won 41 Oscars.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorThe CNN image for the past few years has been embodied by passionate on-air personalities like Don Lemon or Brianna Keilar. These days, it might best be symbolized by beat reporters like Jamie Gangel or Kaitlan Collins.Gone in recent weeks (for the most part) are what had become the network’s signature red-versus-blue showdowns between hot-talking contributors or segments that hinge on an anchor scolding an interviewee.

Freezing council tax in Rochdale next year would open up a £2m per year hole in the local authority’s finances, councillors have been warned. Finance bosses have drawn up preliminary budget proposals for the 2023/24 municipal year based on certain ‘assumptions’- including a 1.99pc rise in the general council rate and a further 1pc increase in the ringfenced adult social care precept.

France has overhauled the composition of its Oscar selection committee for the second time in three years.

Covid-19 is once more piling pressure on an already strained NHS, according to Greater Manchester health chiefs. Staff absences as a result of coronavirus are seeing shortages in hospitals, GP surgeries, and community care.

Health chiefs in Greater Manchester are carrying out emergency planning and response meetings - which featured heavily during the Covid-19 response - as they anticipate heatwave pressure breaking over the NHS, the Manchester Evening News understands.

More than 1,200 cases of monkeypox have been reported across the UK as the outbreak continues to grow. While the majority of suspected cases so far have been identified in London, there is a contingent of cases being reported by GPs and patients in the North West - and a handful of suspected cases in Greater Manchester.

Construction work has started on a new ward at Forth Valley Royal Hospital that will reduce waiting times for patients who need hip or knee surgery.

Health chiefs have announced a change to Covid restrictions across their sites.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorJo Ann Ross has long recognized when to go for the hard- sell and when to soften things up.The Paramount Global U.S. ad sales chief is, like other executives in her position, is seizing this week to pitch big advertisers as part of the media industry’s annual “upfront,” when U.S.

Naman Ramachandran The heads of the U.K. public service broadcasters (PSBs) are in agreement that the market is undergoing seismic changes and evolution is the way forward.“There’ll be huge changes going on in this market and we underestimate it at our peril,” said Tim Davie, director general of the BBC. “We’ve got to innovate, innovate, keep innovating.

Health experts are investigating a potential link between dog ownership and a surge in hepatitis infection in the UK.

Michael de Luca, the motion picture group chairman, and Pamela Abdy, the motion picture group president, have both been let go at the company. Remaining MGM leadership says the pair resigned.De Luca had recently made overtures to David Zaslav about coming to Warner Bros.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterIrony Point is a production company that might not yet be known widely by name, but its projects, Netflix’s critically acclaimed “I Think You Should Leave With Tim Robinson”; Paramount Plus’ revival of “Inside Amy Schumer” and Schumer’s recently renewed Hulu dramedy “Life & Beth”; Michael Che’s Lorne Michaels-produced HBO Max show “That Damn Michael Che,” and Marvel’s new scripted “Squirrel Girl” podcast, certainly are.The banner, which is currently one year into a three-year deal at Netflix, is headed up by co-presidents Alex Bach and Daniel Powell. And their rapidly ramping up company is one that studios and talent are going to regret not having gotten into business with earlier five years from now.

Jason Manford is to host a free ‘street party’ event at the AO arena featuring a host of celebrity guests and music stars. Taking place on May 12, the party will feature performances from Kaiser Chiefs, Becky Hill, Steps, Tom Grennan, House Gospel Choir, Calum Scott, Nathan Dawe and Ella Henderson.

Health officials investigating a hepatitis outbreak among young children have confirmed that the number of cases in Scotland has risen to 13.

proxy statement, Hastings received a pay package of $40.8 million and Sarandos earned $38.2 million, primarily from stock awards. Hastings received a $650,000 annual salary and $39.7 million in stock awards and Sarandos took home a $20 million salary and $17.1 million in stock awards. Sarandos also had nearly $900,000 in security costs covered by Netflix.Netflix had a record-setting year in 2020 and its top executives were rewarded handsomely for it, with co-CEOs Reed Hastings and Ted Sarandos bringing home a combined $82.5 million last year.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterDigital-native media platform FaZe Clan is breaking into traditional TV formats with a three-year plan for both unscripted and scripted content, including a “Saturday Night Live”-style series for the Gen Z audience that will launch on livestream service Twitch in June, Variety has learned exclusively.Titled “unFaZed,” FaZe Clan describes the weekly show as “the first-ever variety franchise born out of internet culture,” that will feature a recurring ensemble cast of internet celebrities and be hosted by rotating special guests from that same world, while also regularly bringing in celebrities from the TV, film, music and sports industries.“unFaZed” is one of two inaugural formatted series set at the esports and online entertainment giant, a media platform that is rooted in gaming and youth culture and boasts a combined social following of over 500 million. The second show is the previously announced “Big Brother”-esque “FaZe1: The Warehouse,” a competition series that will livestream 24 hours a day for 15 days straight, which will debut on FaZe Clan’s Twitch channel May 5.

EXCLUSIVE: In a rare double interview, Sidonie Dumas, CEO of France’s oldest film company Gaumont, and Vice CEO Christophe Riandee, tell us about transforming the storied theatrical business into a major TV player in Europe and beyond.

9-1-1” with Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk as a Fox midseason drama in January 2018, Tim Minear was a prolific producer with many impressive TV credits under his belt. Minear, who has the longest-running overall deal at “9-1-1” studio 20th Television, is best known for his work on “Angel,” “Firefly,” “Dollhouse,” “American Horror Story,” “Terriers,” “Feud,” “Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman” and “Wonderfalls.” But of those shows, the ones he personally created are best known for being very short-lived.

A historic clock tower at a former Diggle pallet works is to be repaired, town hall chiefs have agreed.

Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentFremantle has acquired a 70% stake in Italy’s Lux Vide, the prominent TV production company that has been steadily raising its standing in the international arena, most recently with the high-end TV series “Medici,” “Devils” and “Leonardo.”The long-gestating Lux Vide deal, which closed on Thursday, marks the latest acquisition by the expanding RTL-owned production and distribution giant. Fremantle, which has been on a buying spree, now owns or controls a panoply of independently operated production shingles across Europe, as well as in Israel, Australia and the U.S.Their stated goal is to invest and grow in the global scripted arena where, by their count, Fremantle delivered 81 scripted shows in 2021, including BBC One hit “The Responder,” HBO Max series “Lust,” from Sweden’s Miso Film, and Italian dystopian drama “Anna.” Previous Fremantle investments include acquiring the 12 former Nent Studios production labels in Norway, Sweden, Finland and Denmark (now rebranded This is Nice Group); Australian-American television production company Eureka Productions; U.K.-based Naked Entertainment; French label Kwai; and Israel’s Abot Hameiri, among others.The Lux purchase also marks Fremantle’s third acquisition of a production company in Italy, where the company already owns Wildside and The Apartment, the outfit behind Paolo Sorrentino’s Oscar-nominated “The Hand of God.” Fremantle also recently inked a pact with Italy’s Cinecittà involving the long-term rental of six sound stages at the iconic Rome studios.Founded in 1992 by Ettore Bernabei, who was a long-time former chief of Italian pubcaster RAI, Lux Vide has since been headed by his progeny, Matilde and Luca Bernabei.

Planning chiefs have backed a proposal to build flats on an ‘attractive focal point’ despite public objections over the loss of trees and green space.

Chris Linn, former President of truTV, and Marissa Ronca, who was Head of Original Programming & Development at the WarnerMedia cable network, have struck a development deal with Fox-owned Bento Box Entertainment.

Kaiser Chiefs and Jake Bugg are set to headline At Ease, a brand new festival that will be held in Suffolk this summer.The event takes place between August 26-28 and will be staged in Thetford’s Euston Park. It will raise money for two charities: Sporting Force and My Black Dog.Kaiser Chiefs and Jake Bugg will top the bill over the weekend, and will be joined by Happy Mondays, Natalie Imbruglia, The Bootleg Beatles, Noasis, Abba Gold and many more.The festival will also feature two days of guest conversations with live discussions on mental health and wellbeing, kids entertainment from Horrible Histories and Fireman Sam, family workshops, fairground rides, vintage stores, wellness treatments, daily yoga, street food and other attractions.A post shared by At Ease Festival (@ateasefestival)Tickets for the festival go on sale at 9am this Friday (February 25) and will be available to purchase here.

Clapping back! After Brittany Matthews was criticized for her game day behavior while watching fiancé Patrick Mahomes on the football field, rumors swirled that she was told that she couldn’t attend future NFL games. Now, she’s weighing in on the claims.

The NFL season may be over, but the talk around Brittany Matthews and Jackson Mahomes continues. Patrick Mahomes is laughing off reports that he asked his fiancée and his brother not to attend Kansas City Chiefs games for the 2022-2023 season.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorAs Spotify awkwardly attempts to defend its stance on Joe Rogan — first over the Covid-19 misinformation on his show, and then over his frequent use of the N-word on that same show — the controversies have revived musicians’ longest-standing problem with the platform: The royalty rates it and other streaming platforms pay, which most musicians and many rights-holders feel are far too low.This is particularly true in publishing: In January of 2018 the Copyright Royalty Board ruled to increase songwriter rates for interactive streaming by nearly 50% over the following five years, to 15.1%. However, in March of 2019, Spotify, Google, Amazon and Pandora then appealed to keep the previous rate of 10.5% — and are gearing up to argue for that rate for the next five-year period (2023-2027) as well.