List of All Articles with Tag 'ties'

Tom Holland has opened up about his journey to sobriety in a candid chat on Jay Shetty's podcast 'How To Find Purpose' where he admitted he was "obsessed" with alcohol before he quit drinking. The 27-year-old Spider-Man actor has been sober for over a year and four months and initially decided to put give up alcohol for Dry January after a "very, very boozy December." "I didn't one day wake up and say 'I'm giving up drinking'. I just, like many Brits, had had a very, very boozy December, Christmas time, I was on vacation, I was drinking a lot," Holland explained. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter After giving up the booze, he noticed over the course of the next month that he was thinking a lot about having a drink. "It was all I could think about. I was waking up thinking about it, I was checking the clock, 'When's it 12?' And it just really scared me." As Holland came to the realisation that he may have "a little bit of an alcohol thing," he decided to stay off the drink for February too in order to prove he doesn't have a "problem" and shared how this impacted his daily life. "I couldn't be social, I felt like I couldn't go to the pub and have a lime soda, I couldn't go out for dinner, I was really, really struggling and I started to really worry that I had an alcohol problem," the actor added. After getting to the sixth-month mark on his 26th birthday (June 1), Holland described how he saw notable and positive changes in his life. "I felt healthier, I felt fitter and I just sort of said to myself, 'Why am I enslaved to this drink? Why am I so obsessed by the idea of having this drink?'" Watch Holland's appearance on Jay Shetty's podcast 'How To Find Purpose' in full on YouTube. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

As the release date for the Barbie movie gets closer, we're learning all about the behind-the-scenes moments that enabled the cast to immerse themselves into the vibrant world of the iconic Mattel doll. Memories during filming include Margot Robbie hosting themed sleepovers for her fellow Barbie actresses, Simu Liu told PEOPLE for the new Barbie special issue. "Margot was so great. She had a sleepover with the Barbies before photography started, and the Kens were allowed to either visit briefly or to phone in and say hi," he said. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter "So we made sure to show our support but not be overbearing with our presence. And all the Barbies and Kens got in a group chat." While Ryan Gosling revealed that Robbie enforced a mandatory pink dress code once a week, with those who didn't do this would donate to charity. “Margot had this pink day once a week, where everyone had to wear something pink. And if you didn’t, you were fined. She would go around collecting the fines, and she would donate it to a charity," the actor noted. However, this latter part has sparked a debate on Twitter with many expressing their anger at this rule which presumably applied to all of the crew. Though there were others who defended Robbie and her request for all clothes to be pink on set on certain days. While these details have only made some more fascinated with the movie and the behind-the-scenes shenanigans. Elsewhere, here are 26 of the biggest Barbie brand collaborations ahead of the movie release, Margot Robbie says it took one question to get John Cena in Barbie and Ryan Gosling fans are obsessed with him saying 'kenough'. The Barbie movie is out in cinemas on July 21. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

Nicki Minaj has hilariously called for the "whole internet" to be deleted after sharing a clip from ITV's Deep Fake Neighbour Wars. On Sunday (9 July), the 'Barbie Girl' rapper took to Twitter with a snippet from the show. The clip shows an AI version of Minaj and her 'husband,' Tom Holland. Upon arriving home from their honeymoon, they found an intruder in their living room, Mark Zuckerberg. It plays on an internet rumour that joked Minaj and Holland were dating and expecting a baby in 2019. At the time, the actor joked to Esquire: "This actually really stressed me out... and then I realised I've never met Nicki Minaj. So that was a big relief for me because I'm not ready to have kids." Fast-forward, and the ITV show is seemingly poking fun at the fake relationship using artificial intelligence – and Minaj is not happy. She wrote: "HELP!!! What in the AI shapeshifting cloning conspiracy theory is this?!?!! I hope the whole internet get deleted!!!" Meanwhile, fans were left in hysterics, with one writing: "I just know you was cracking up laughing." Some shared their concerns regarding deep fakes: "It’s crazy. All this computer s*** is going too far. Kinda scary honestly." Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter "LMAOOOOOOOO I’m surprised you're just seeing this," a third added about the show that was released earlier this year. Deep Fake Neighbour Wars certainly polarised social media. Some loved it. Others hated it. And more delved into the creepiness of artificial intelligence. "I thought this would be no good, but it's brilliant, and I heartily recommend it," one Twitter user wrote, adding: "Really, I'm a tough crowd as far as new comedy is concerned, and I found myself shouting with laughter quite often." Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

Boxer and rapper KSI and YouTuber-turned-WWE-star Logan Paul sure have hit the jackpot with their drinks company Prime, to the extent it’s sold for ridiculous prices, made one shop in Wakefield go viral, and even been reviewed by foul-mouthed chef Gordon Ramsay. The collaboration between Paul and KSI (real name Olajide “JJ” Olatunji) was announced back in January last year, with the pair just recently touring Munich, Barcelona, Copenhagen and Oslo to promote the drink. Prime has even become the drinks partner for both Arsenal and Barcelona football clubs. However, such success has also caught the attention of legislators, with one US senator, Democrat Chuck Schumer, calling for the company to be investigated by the Food and Drugs Administration (FDA). In a letter to the regulator, Mr Schumer wrote: “A simple search on social media for Prime will generate an eye-popping amount of sponsored content, which is advertising. “This content and all the claims made should be investigated, along with the ingredients and the caffeine content in the Prime energy drink.” Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter While Prime Hydration is caffeine-free, the Prime Energy brand contains 200mg of caffeine per 12 ounces, which is about the same as six cans of Coca-Cola or almost two Red Bulls. On Twitter, Mr Schumer went further and claimed the drink contains so much of the stimulant that it “could endanger kids’ health”, but is being “marketed to kids” anyway. “Parents and paediatricians are worried. The FDA must investigate Prime for its absurd caffeine content and its marketing targeting kids on social media,” he wrote. Representatives for Prime, meanwhile, argue the product is clearly labelled as “not recommended for children under 18”. Although the FDA is yet to announce an investigation into the drinks brand, and therefore it’s not yet at risk of being banned in the US, how much money would KSI and Logan Paul stand to lose if such a decision was ever taken? Some insight into just how popular the brand is was given by Paul during an interview on the Australian radio show The Kyle and Jackie O Show in February, in which he said they had garnered “$250m in retail sales [and] $110m gross internally”. “In January of this year, we did $45m,” he added. But of course, Olatunji and Paul won’t see all of that money, with Prime being part of the Congo Brands company and the YouTuber duo reportedly having a combined share of 20 per cent in the brand. Although we don't have the exact estimations, but we imagine the answer to the big question is that the pair would certainly lose a lot of money if they were blocked from selling in a market as big as America. That’s yet to happen, though, and so instead, Prime looks to be getting more and more popular… Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

UK presale tickets for Taylor Swift's The Eras Tour when live today as Swifties who registered for the presale code were determined to book their place to see their favourite artist in concert. Presale codes for the London Wembley Stadium and Edinburgh BT Murrayfield Stadium shows were sent to those who preordered Swift's album Midnights as thousands queued online via the Ticketmaster and AXS website at 11 am today (July 10). This presale was also the chance for fans to see the presale prices for each type of ticket available, with seated ticket prices at Wembley ranging anywhere from £58.65 to £194.75. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter General Admission was priced at £110.40 meanwhile Left and Right Front Standing will cost you £172.25. For those wanting to fork out extra for VIP packages, the 'Its Been A Long Time Coming' package will set you back a whopping £662.40 each. The 'Karma Is My Boyfriend' package costs £387.40 and the 'I Remember It All Too Well' package is £332.40. The 'Ready for It' package is priced a £277.40, 'It's A Love Story' package is £222.40 and 'We Never Go Out Of Style' is £196.60. (As of now, Edinburgh ticket prices have not been revealed). Given how many American Swifties were left disappointed after the Ticketmaster sale in the US and how popular Swift is with the high demand for tickets, UK fans were understandably feeling nervous ahead of the presale. Here are some of the best reactions: There were some happy Swifties who managed to secure tickets for their chosen tour date. Though also there were many left disappointed, noting that the Ticketmaster or AXS website crashed for them. Presales for different tour dates continue on to tomorrow (July 11) and Wednesday (July 12) here is a breakdown: Tuesday 11 July 2023 11:00 BST - London, 22 June & Liverpool, 13 June 13:00 BST - London, 16 August & Liverpool, 14 June 15:00 BST - Liverpool, 15 June Wednesday 12 July 2023 11:00 BST - London, 23 June 13:00 BST - London, 17 August 15:00 BST - Cardiff, 18 June Spare a thought for those who are attempting to get tickets in the general sale... General sale tickets are available to those who registered that interest last month, fans will find out by July 14 if they have been emailed an access code for a chance to get tickets or whether they've been put on a waitlist. Here are the general sale tour dates and timings: Monday 17 July 2023 11:00 - London, 21 June & Edinburgh, 7 June 13:00 - London, 15 August & Edinburgh, 8 June 15:00 - Edinburgh, 9 June Tuesday 18 July 2023 11:00 - London, 22 June & Liverpool, 13 June 13:00 - London, 16 August & Liverpool, 14 June 15:00 - Liverpool, 15 June Wednesday 19 July 2023 11:00 - London, 23 June 13:00 - London, 17 August 15:00 - Cardiff, 18 June Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

Kim Kardashian’s Instagram snaps often make headlines for more than just her outfit choices thanks to her at-times unusual photoshoot locations or embarrassing photoshop “fails”. However, in her latest eyebrow-raising post, the 42-year-old entrepreneur has intentionally grabbed the attention of would-be internet sleuths. In a caption to the selfie, which shows a seemingly make-up-free Kim pouting nonchalantly at her phone, she wrote: “I took this pic last week when I was alone and now going through my phone I am freaking out noticing a woman in the window.” In the background of the picture, framed in the reflection of a sunlit window, a shadowy figure can be seen. Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Commentators were quick to offer their theories on the mysterious apparition, with the post racking up more than 2.4 million likes in just 17 hours. Some were similarly unsettled by the unknown “woman”, with one writing: “This is a case for the FBI”. However, others were dismissive of the star’s concerns. “It’s probably her personal assistant,” one said. “She just wanted to post this pic without appearing as if she wants to really post this pic because she thinks she looks good in minimal makeup.” “Calm down it's one of the nanny's [sic] or maids,” added another critic. “Who photoshopped this to give you some more headlines,” wrote a third sceptic. Elsewhere, another of Kim’s 362 million followers, joked that it was “Todd Kraines”, to the delight of numerous fans. To the uninitiated, Todd Kraines is a family friend of the Kardashians who was thrust into the limelight thanks to an elaborate prank. Over a number of months and even years, Kourtney Kardashian’s ex-husband Scott Disick called the family’s matriarch Kris Jenner repeatedly, pretending to be Kraines, who is a real estate agent over in Beverly Hills. The Kraines bit is often named among fans' favourite long-running jokes from the KUWT series. KUWTK | Auntie Kris, It's Me, Todd Kraines--Again! | E! www.youtube.com Anyway, back to Kim’s photo, other critics insisted there was an even simpler explanation for the shadow-person, with one commenting: “That’s literally your reflection.” Another agreed, suggesting: “It's your reflection in theTV? Side profile and your bag, you can clearly see your arm holding up your phone. Or I'm [losing] it lol.” We prefer the Todd Kraines interpretation, to be honest. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

Fans throwing things at artists as they perform has become a real issue in recent weeks, and Harry Styles has once again fallen victim to a flying object. The 'Watermelon Sugar' singer was performing in Vienna, Austria, over the weekend, when an unknown member of the crowd struck him with something small. It appeared to hit him near his left eye, which he tried to dodge, before wincing. He continued to hold his face, but it's not known if he was injured. Just last month, he was hit in the face by a bunch of flowers at a concert in Cardiff. Click here to sign up for our newsletters

Elon Musk has escalated his rivalry with Mark Zuckerberg in his latest tweets, calling the Meta co-founder a "cuck." Since Zuckerberg's Meta launched Threads, a text-based social media app to rival Musk's Twitter, the two billionaire businessmen have been exchanging jibes online. Some of these include Zuckerberg taking to Twitter for the first time in 11 years to post a Spider-Man meme, Musk challenging Zuckerberg to a cage fight and Twitter threatening Threads with a lawsuit. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Now, Musk has responded to a screenshot from Threads that shows a post from the official account of the fast-food chain Wendy’s that reads: "hey @zuck, you should go to space just to make him really mad lol." To which Zuckerberg replied with a crying laughing emoji. Though clearly, this didn't amuse Musk as he declared on Twitter in response: "Zuck is a cuck." And he didn't stop there, in a follow-up tweet suggested another contest - not a cage-fighting one this time but something more explicit: "I propose a literal d*** measuring contest," Musk tweeted, along with a ruler emoji. The Elon Musk parody account cracked a joke in response to the real Musk's latest tweets: "At this point, I can't keep track of which account I'm tweeting from." This is the same parody account that called Zuckerberg a "lizard boy," and caught the attention of the actual Elon Musk who responded: "So many people think this account is me," with the eyes emoji. Zuckerberg has yet to respond in this war of words, though clearly this feud is far from over... Elsewhere, what is Threads, Instagram's 'text-based' alternative to Twitter, Threads users issued warning over new social media app, and Elon Musk responds to parody account calling Mark Zuckerberg 'lizard boy'. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

Elon Musk has responded to a parody account pretending to be him on Twitter, calling Mark Zuckerberg a "lizard boy." The fake account with the username @ElonMuskAOC has over 358,000 followers and uses the same image of Musk that the billionaire businessman uses for his Twitter account. Also, their name is "Elon Musk (Parody)" and their profile bio reads: "I’m on a quest to bang AOC on Mars. (Parody Account)." Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter On July 7, the parody account tweeted pretending to be Musk where he called Meta co-founder Mark Zuckerberg "Lizard boy." "I spent $44 billion for this app and now Lizard boy just decided to hit copy and paste," to Meta's new social media platform Threads, which is said to rival Twitter. "It's personal now. See you in the cage, Zuck," the account added, referring to Zuckerberg previously agreeing to a cage fight with Musk after Musk tweeted that he was “up for a cage fight” with him. With 35.5m views, 645,000 likes and 22,000 retweets, the parody account's tweet when viral - so much so that the real Elon Musk replied to the tweet. "So many people think this account is me," he wrote, with the eyes emoji. YouTuber MrBeast weighed asking "It's not?" to which Musk confirmed that was not him behind the tweet or account. Another person @stclairashley pointed out something else: "I love that you didn't dispute Zuck being a lizard boy." "Maybe it's just a case of using too much moisturizer," Musk quipped. Well, we all know Zuckerberg likes to slather on the sunscreen at least... Meanwhile the fake parody account decided to riff off of real Musk's tweet and replied in agreement: "Most likely the case, seems like that type." Elsewhere, Mark Zuckerberg ends 11-year Twitter break with ‘savage’ tweet about Threads. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

With the new release of Speak Now (Taylor's Version), Taylor Swift surprised fans by bringing out her ex Taylor Lautner, Joey King and Presley Cash onstage during her latest Eras tour show in Kansas City. This wasn't a random guest appearance on Friday night (7 July) as all three also feature in Swift's new music video for her 'From The Vault' track 'I Can See You' which premiered at the concert. In the video, both Lautner and King are burglars, and with help from Cash, they break into a museum filled with dresses and props from Swift's career over the years, where they also show off their fighting skills as security tries to stop them. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter The pair eventually make it to the vault, where they break free Swift (dressed in her Speak Now era look), who had been trapped inside, and she takes with her the framed picture of the cover art for her new version of her third studio album. The three of them bolt out of the museum as explosions set off but make it to the van as Cash drives them away from the scene. As Swift loves giving fans Easter eggs, fans have noted how the three actors have previous connections to Swift's Speak Now era. The two Taylors famously dated back in 2009 for a few months after they starred together in the romantic comedy Valentine's Day, where they played a couple. It is widely speculated that the breakup song 'Back to December' from the album is about Lautner, with the theme of the song about apologising and asking for forgiveness from an ex for breaking their heart. Meanwhile, King and Cash both appeared in Swift's music video for the track 'Mean'. Swift explained in an Instagram post that the music video she wrote and directed was about wanting to "play out symbolically how it’s felt for me to have the fans helping me reclaim my music." Speak Now (Taylor's Version) marks the third re-recorded album from Swift's discography after previously releasing Fearless (Taylor's Version) in April 2021 and Red (Taylor's Version) later on in November of the same year. On stage at Kansas City, Swift and Lautner shared a hug as the audience roared in excitement at the surprise. The Anti-Hero singer then praised the Twilight actor for the impact he had on her life at the time she originally made the album as well as his fighting skills in the music video. @elysemyers This is a fever dream “He was a very positive force in my life when I was making the Speak Now album, and I want to say he did every single stunt that you saw in that music video. "He and his wife have become some of my closest friends, and it’s very convenient because we all share the same first name," Swift joked. In return, Lautner was also complimentary of Swift as the two are clearly friendly exes. “I respect you so much. Not just for the singer you are, the songwriter, the performer — but truly for the human you are. You are gracious, humble, kind and I’m honoured to know you," Lautner said. Speak Now (Taylor's Version) was released on July 7. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

With Elon Musk’s Twitter suffering yet another catastrophic outage (which has seen the Tesla and SpaceX founder implement temporary limits on how many tweets we can view in a day), users are once again looking for a rival platform to evacuate to. Previously it was the likes of Post and Mastodon - the latter of which Musk hated so much he restricted users from linking to their new accounts on Twitter - but now it’s the turn of Bluesky to get all the hype. Backed by Twitter founder Jack Dorsey, the platform claims to offer “an open and decentralised standard for social media” – “decentralised” meaning users don’t have an account under one ‘centralised’ company owned by one particular company, but can instead sign up to individual servers and communities owned and managed by other people. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter It's already proven popular, with surreal social media poster Dril and New York congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez already signed up. In fact, after Twitter’s latest blunder, invite codes to Bluesky became so lucrative and sign-ups became so intense that they had to temporarily pause new registrations (they’ve reopened them now, though, if you fancy a try). And while others are considering whether to jump ship to the rival site, or desperately hunting for the code which will let them in, some Twitter users were reminded of a legendary rock band thanks to the platform’s choice of name: Yep, for a handful of individuals, the hit track from Jeff Lynne and his Electric Light Orchestra (or ELO) came to mind – and it’s perhaps made all the more amusing considering one of “Mr Blue Sky’s” lyrics is the rhetorical question, “where did we go wrong”. If Musk were to ask that question, we’d probably say firing almost half of Twitter’s workforce and therefore making it almost impossible to deal with the demand is part of the problem. And if you were wondering, a few searches on Bluesky appear to suggest that neither Lynne or ELO are on the platform. Indy100 has approached Lynne’s representatives for a statement, but they said the musician was unavailable for comment. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

Taylor Swift’s third album Speak Now was re-released today as Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) as the multi-award winning artist continues to re-record her catalogue. The new version featured all 14 songs on the original record, as well as six songs ‘from the vault’, which means that Swift wrote them for the album but they didn’t make the cut initially. The album also features artists Fall Out Boy and Hayley Williams from Paramore. When listening to the album fans noticed that Swift had changed a lyric in one of her hit songs. 'Better Than Revenge' is about Swift desiring to get revenge on a romantic rival. The lyric from the original album released in 2010 goes “she’s better known for the things that she does on the mattress.” Which some claimed to be misogynistic and “slutshaming”. So for 'Better Than Revenge (Taylor’s Version)', Swift changed the line to: “he was a moth to flame, she was holding the matches.” Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Many praised the change, saying it highlighted Swift’s growth, who was 21 when Speak Now was originally released, whilst some fans mourned the original lyric saying it’s exactly what an 18-year-old would write and the authenticity of it has been damaged. However, the lyric change has led many to re discuss who the song was about in the first place. Whilst it has never been confirmed, it is believed that the song is about Joe Jonas, Swift’s ex, and Camilla Belle, the woman Jonas dated after he broke up with Taylor back in 2008. Belle is an actress and model. In fact, Belle’s niece made a TikTok about the song, explaining that Belle is her dad’s half-sister and that “I love that song, even though it’s about my aunt.” Many viewers left comments asking what Belle thought about the now-changed lyric, but there’s currently been no response. @annirouth Replying to @Carolina theres literally not a lot to say about this haha In 2014, Swift spoke to The Guardian about the lyric saying the she was only 18 when she wrote the song: “That’s the age you are when you think someone can actually take your boyfriend. Then you grow up and realise no one takes someone form you if they don’t want to leave.” Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.