OHMYGOSSIP — ITVX is to launch a worldwide streaming-first British Sign Language channel.
Omnibus episodes of soaps ‘Emmerdale’ and ‘Coronation Street’, and episodes of ‘Cilla’, ‘Alan Carr’s Epic Gameshow’, ‘Vera’, ‘Lewis’, and ‘The Saint’, will feature on the channel, which will solely feature signed programming.
ITV’s Director of Accessibility, David Padmore, said: “We’re committed to placing great accessibility at the heart of ITVX and our offering at launch represents significant progress on ITV Hub.
“Our ITV Signed Channel gives us a fantastic platform for showcasing our rich archive of signed programmes.”
Viewers will have access to the channel when ITVX officially launches on December 8th.
Teri Devine, Associate Director for Inclusion at RNID, said: “Following the recognition of the British Sign Language (BSL) Act earlier this year, it is fantastic to see more and more industries and organisations become accessible to BSL users.
“We’re thrilled that ITV have considered the accessibility of BSL users for the launch of their new channel feature, making it easier for them to find new signed content.
“Building in accessibility from the start is important and should be the norm, and we look forward to seeing ITV expanding its access services across the remaining platforms. For support or information, visit RNID.org.uk.”
ITVX is to launch with a selection of 20 themed channels, which are designed to offer a lean-back experience of watching a scheduled channel.
Subtitles will also be available on all 20 themed channels on all platforms except Freeview, YouView, Freesat and Chromecast, at launch.
The remaining subtitling gaps will be resolved in the first half of 2023.

Source: VacationHunter.Online

OHMYGOSSIP — Judy Parfitt has teased ‘Call the Midwife’ fans that “anything can happen” to her character in the 12th series.
The 87-year-old actress has previously admitted she is surprised her character Sister Monica Joan hasn’t been killed off, and now the star has admitted her alter-ego starts to “lose the plot” at times in the upcoming season.
She said: “Oh anything can happen to Sister Monica.
“She goes through various things, it is really difficult to explain because she has come and gone health-wise.
“I think I have said before when she is tired, or stressed, or upset or ill that she begins to lose the plot, but I do have quite a few varied things to do in this series.”
Judy also teased one “lovely” episode in which Sister Monica Joan befriends a dog, and the actress found it “extraordinary” just how well the pooch could act.
She added to Express.co.uk: “It is lovely and very fulfilling and I have a lovely episode with a dog, lovely dog. I know I am on to a winner there.
“He was adorable, I love dogs but it is just extraordinary how that dog was taught.
“You didn’t worry that this dog was being naughty, she would say, ‘Go back to your mark paddy’ and he would go and stay there.”
In December last year, Judy said she was “surprised” that Sister Monica – who she has portrayed in the BBC show since 2012 – was yet to meet her maker.
She said: “I think about hanging up my wimple because it’s uncomfortable to wear, but not retiring.
“I’m surprised they haven’t killed Sister Monica Joan off. But as long as I can walk a straight line and remember my words, I’ll be there.”
When asked why her character is so popular with the show’s followers, she said: “I think it’s her innate innocence, her kindness and her struggles – and because she’s eccentric and obviously educated, she uses words nobody else uses any more. And, of course, she has a love of cakes and biscuits.
“It got to the point where every time I went to the supermarket, staff would say: ‘The cakes are over there.’ ”

Source: VacationHunter.Online

OHMYGOSSIP — Helen Skelton has “stepped up a gear” on ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ and has all but secured a place in the final.
That’s according to body language expert Darren Stanton, who believes the ‘Countryfile’ presenter has been “hanging back a little” throughout the BBC Latin and ballroom series “almost like a race car”, but he now thinks she has a great chance of winning the Glitterball trophy following her 39 out of 40 score last week.
Darren said: “Helen was most definitely at the top of her game this week. She started off slow and has had a rocky journey to this level in the competition, however whatever issues were besieging her in the past, she seems to very much have resolved them. She delivered a fantastic performance and received great feedback from the judges. Based on this performance alone, I think Helen has definitely secured herself a place in the final. It’s almost like she is a race car, who has been hanging back a little, but now the finish line is in sight, I think she has certainly stepped up a gear.
“Helen seems to have had a reverse journey on the show. She started off extremely shaky and did not have a great rapport with her partner Gorka from the outset, it’s taken her a great deal of time to secure that connection – she is definitely a potential winner.”
Hamza Yassin has been the odds-on favourite for the ‘Strictly’ crown for a number of weeks, but Darren believes he “wasn’t at his usual level of sparkle” on the show last week, when he scored 36 points for his Samba.
He added: “Hamza wasn’t at his usual level of sparkle this week and there were times when I observed him flash micro-expressions of fear. Micro-expressions only last for one fifth of a second and are almost imperceptible to the untrained eye. Gestures that display this include when the eye and mouth widen, and the eyebrows go up. This can potentially happen when a contestant may not have got a particular move or step correct, which causes an internal shift in emotion that leaks out to be observed. I think the pressure may be getting to Hamza – my gut instinct is that Hamza might be in the danger zone next week.”
Kym Marsh became the latest celebrity contestant to get the boot from show last weekend, and Darren admits she appeared “absolutely devastated” to be out of the competition just a week before the semi-finals.
Speaking on behalf of Betfair Casino – https://casino.betfair.com/ – Darren added: “When it was announced that Kym was the latest contestant to leave the show, she appeared absolutely devastated and showed expressions of feeling gutted and also very sad. As she paid tribute to her dance partner Graziano, the two were extremely tactile and exchanged a lot of pleasantries about being each other’s family. It was clear that Kym was almost on the verge of tears and was trying to hold back her emotions of sadness. It was also apparent that Kym was showcasing disappointment as her shoulders were down, and her whole posture had dropped in line with the way she was feeling.”

Source: VacationHunter.Online

OHMYGOSSIP — Boy George says his spiritual practices saved him from being attacked by a snake on ‘I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!’.
The ‘Karma Chameleon’ hitmaker has told how a serpent came at him during his time in the jungle, but he resorted to his spiritual exercises to keep calm and believes the snake “understood”.
He said: “What I did learn in there was my spiritual practices 1,000 per cent worked. They kept the animals away from me. They kept me safe.
“There was a snake and it came at me and it moved back and I think just doing the ‘ahmm’ removed the tension I was feeling.
“I thought, ‘What am I gonna do here? The animal is going to know I’m scared’, and that is when they say they might bite you. I reckon that snake understood.
“They say to say a little prayer to the creatures, ask them if you can share their space, and that’s what I was doing.
“It might have looked like I was crazy but I was so far out of my comfort zone that I had to do something to keep myself sane and not just talk about biscuits.”
One thing his spiritual practices didn’t keep George away from is his fellow campmate Matt Hancock.
The former Health Secretary’s arrival in the jungle caused some controversy, after he previously broke his own COVID lockdown guidance when he was caught kissing his former aide and now-girlfriend Gina Coladangelo.
But George says Matt “isn’t a dislikeable human being”, and insists he didn’t bully him in the jungle.
He said: “The thing with the Matt thing was it was more that I wasn’t prepared for it. I don’t like surprises.
“He isn’t a dislikeable human being. What he did was wrong and my only problem was the way that he apologised.
“If you do something wrong, you say ‘I did it wrong and I’m sorry’. Don’t use a technicality because it’s not going to work. So that’s the only thing that I thought was the problem.
“I was quite surprised when I came out and read that I had bullied Matt. I knew for a fact that he would never say I bullied him because that was the opposite of what I did. Bullying him would have been being dishonest, going behind his back and saying it to everyone else.
“And there was some of that, there was a lot of that in the background – people saying things about Matt and then being friendly to his face. I said what I had to say and just wanted to enjoy my time in the jungle.”
George also admitted he encouraged camp mutinies in the jungle, but nobody else was on board.
Speaking on ‘Lorraine’, he added: “There were a few times when you did a trial and got covered in unspeakable things, and Ant and Dec got into their posh car and you were told to walk up the hill.
“This one particular day I was like, ‘No, no.’ I saw the camera wasn’t on and I was like, ‘If you’re not filming then why do you need me to walk up the hill?’
“I’m a red light queen. Camera’s on you’ll get me being professional. When it’s off – don’t wind me up.
“Sue got a buggy, and rightfully so, because she had a bad leg.
“I was trying to encourage these mutinies all the time. But they all just ignored me.”

Source: VacationHunter.Online

OHMYGOSSIP — Dame Prue Leith is to front an assisted dying documentary alongside her son.
The ‘Great British Bake Off’ presenter – who is a member of the campaign group Dignity In Dying – will team up with her son, Conservative MP Danny Kruger, for the new Channel 4 programme.
A TV insider said: “Viewers will see a very different side to Prue in the programme as she strongly supports assisted dying.”
Prue, 82, and Danny, 48, will head to the US and Canada to find out more about assisted dying.
The insider added to The Sun newspaper’s TV Biz column: “In contrast, her son Danny is opposed to the idea, claiming it’s risky because it opens the doors to abuse and exploitation.
“So the resulting conversations they’re likely to have on their journeys will make for interesting viewing.”
While Prue doesn’t agree with her son’s stance on assisted dying, she is said to respect his views.
The pair’s Channel 4 film is expected to air next year.
It comes after Prue admitted in her recent memoir, ‘I’ll Try Anything Once’, that she drowned a bag of kittens as a child.
She said: “My mother and I, then 11, had just drowned some kittens … and for weeks I imagined those poor dead creatures.
“Too many kittens was a frequent occurrence and there had come a day when my mother, unable to find homes for yet another litter, decided to drown the latest batch.
“My protests were met with a firm, ‘Darling, it has to be done. They are only a few hours old. They will hardly know it’s happening’.”
Prue’s mum explained to her that she didn’t need to hold the bag for too long to send them to “sleep”.
However, the TV star can still remember the kittens fighting “like the devil” for life.
She added: “I held the bag under water until the last kitten had stopped mewing.”

Source: VacationHunter.Online

OHMYGOSSIP — Frankie Essex is expecting she might get some “stick” for having her six-month-old baby’s ears pierced.
The former ‘The Only Way is Essex’ star insisted her daughter Luella was “absolutely fine” after she had her ears pierced, and the little one now has real diamonds in.
She said: “Luella cried, but then I put a dummy in her mouth and she was laughing. She was absolutely fine, and then she forgot about it.
“She looks so lovely and Luke [her dad] thinks she looks really different. She has real diamonds in and she’s only six months old! She’s definitely my child.
“I don’t know if I’m going to get stick for getting them done because a lot of people have opinions about that.”
Frankie – who is the sister of former ‘TOWIE’ co-star Joey Essex – insists if Luella doesn’t like her ear piercings when she is older she can remove them.
Writing in her OK! magazine column, she added: “But if she didn’t get them done now, she would probably have to wait until she was a teenager, just getting it done now means it’s done, plus if she doesn’t like them when she’s older, she can take them out.”
Frankie confirmed in June that she had given birth to twins, who she and her partner Luke Luv named Luella and Logan.
She said at the time: “Double the love. Our baby bears have arrived”
In February, the reality star – who has been in a relationship with Luke for three years – revealed she was pregnant with twins, and admitted it was a huge “shock”.
She said at the time: “I was just so shocked. How we found out was really lovely.
“The lady scanning me was focusing on one baby and was then like, ‘What else do we have here then?’ and I was so shocked and asked, ‘Are we having twins?’ I burst out crying, tears of happiness. It was just so beautiful. It was lovely.
“We had an early scan as we were so excited. There are no twins in the family and we conceived naturally. They’re not identical.
“It was such a shock, but it’s a blessing and we are so over the moon. It’s amazing. As soon as we told the family, I asked if twins run on either side and as far as we all know, they don’t.”

Source: VacationHunter.Online

OHMYGOSSIP — Stacey Solomon has called for more research into women’s health after she received “scary” smear test results.
The 33-year-old TV presenter thinks more needs to be done following the death of Jade Goody, who died from cervical cancer aged 27 in 2009, because she believes women haven’t been educated enough about what it means to have an “abnormal smear”.
She said: “It’s not easy being a woman. Years ago I had an abnormal smear test and it really scared me.
“I think because of what happened with Jade [Goody] we’re not really educated about what it actually means to have an ‘abnormal’ smear, which is a problem in itself.”
Stacey – who’s mum to Zachary, 14, Leighton, 10, Rex, three, and 14-month-old Rose – has also told how a doctor even admitted to her once that there “isn’t enough research into women’s health”.
She added to the Daily Mirror newspaper: “But I remember, later, when I was pregnant with Rex in 2019, asking my doctor if when my cervix stretched while giving birth it would affect any mutated cells.
“And his reply was, ‘I’ll be honest with you, we don’t know. There just isn’t enough research into women’s health – nobody’s tested that out’.
“It seemed mad to me that he couldn’t give me an answer. Since the beginning of time we’ve been giving birth and had cervixes. What is happening that we just aren’t doing the research into women’s bodies?
“If the people at the top aren’t concerned, it won’t filter down so research can help the people at the bottom.
“It’s sad and scary. But I do think this is changing and I do think women are becoming a much bigger voice across all areas, be that politics, healthcare, or anything else.”

Source: VacationHunter.Online

OHMYGOSSIP — Alex Jones nearly gave up her TV career to become a nurse.
The ‘One Show’ host was emotionally moved after spending six months in King’s Fertility Clinic in London, where she trained as a fertility assistant for her new show ‘Alex Jones: Making Babies’.
The experience left Alex “in awe”, and she considered giving up her presenter role for a nursing job instead.
Alex, 45, said: “Honestly, after six months, I would swap my job to work with that team.
“I always thought it might be nice to be a nurse when I was growing up. But, oh my God, just the job satisfaction.
“God it’s much harder than what we do.
“The level of satisfaction is off the charts, I was just in awe really every time I went through the door.”
The mum-of-three – who shares son’s Teddy, five, Kit, three, and daughter Annie, 15 months – was open about her own fertility struggles after suffering a miscarriage in 2017, and said that helping couples create a happy family was emotional work for her.
Speaking to HELLO!, she added: “Trying to conceive can truly be a rollercoaster, and I have no doubt that it’ll be a very emotional and unpredictable journey.
“This series is really close to my heart, it’s truly a passion project, and I feel privileged to be able to join the team at King’s Fertility and help them with the very special job of making babies.”
Alex praised the courageous couples on the show for going through IVF.
She said: “Christ, me and Charlie would be at each other’s throats, if we went through that. And you know we are pretty rock solid. But it does stuff to you, doesn’t it?
“It’s super stressful but one couple particularly are just madly in love – which is lovely to see – but you need that support.”
‘Alex Jones: Making Babies’ is set to air on UKTV in January next year.

Source: VacationHunter.Online

OHMYGOSSIP — Matt Lucas has quit as a presenter of ‘The Great British Bake Off’.
The 48-year-old star has confirmed that he’s stepping down from his role on the hit TV show after three series.
Matt – who also hosts ‘Fantasy Football League’ on Sky Max – said in a statement: “Farewell Bake Off! It’s been a delicious experience and I can’t imagine a more fun way of spending my summers. But it’s become clear to me that I can’t present both ‘Fantasy Football League’ and ‘Bake Off’ alongside all my other projects.
“So, after three series and 51 episodes, I am cheerfully passing the baguette on to someone else.
“I would like to give my warmest thanks and gratitude to everyone at Love Productions and Channel 4 and to Noelipops, Paul Hollywood, Dame Prue Leith, the crew and, of course, the wonderful bakers for welcoming me into the tent.
“I wish whoever takes over the very best and I can’t wait to tune into the next series without already knowing who won!”
Love Productions, which makes the show, has paid a glowing tribute to Matt, who previously replaced comedian Sandi Toksvig.
The production company said: “We’ve loved having Matt Lucas brighten up our tent for the last three years, especially when laughter and smiles were so much in need.
“We appreciate everything he’s done for ‘Bake Off’, from working in COVID bubbles to supporting the bakers. It’s been a pleasure – thanks Matt.”
Matt joined ‘Bake Off’ in 2020 and, at the time, he said that he was looking forward to the challenge.
The comedian – who hosted the show alongside Noel Fielding – said: “I’m chuffed to bits to be joining the most delicious show on television.”

Source: VacationHunter.Online

OHMYGOSSIP — Stephen Mulhern is set to host ‘Britain’s Got Talent: The Ultimate Magician’.
The one-off special will feature performances from ten magical acts, and Stephen is thrilled to be part of the show.
He explained: “Honestly, when you see the magic, it’s such a great idea. Especially over Christmas, do you know what I mean? A magic show over Christmas for the family to watch – it’s great.”
Stephen, 45, noted that magicians have already proven to be hugely popular with the ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ audience.
He said: “I think a lot of people sometimes forget is that when the audience at home had the chance to vote for who they want in the final – which I think was two years ago this happened – they voted six magicians into the final. So the want for magic, it’s always there.
“Magic always does well and I’ve said many times that my dream job would be to host a magic show. I’m hoping this is one step closer to actually getting that to come to fruition, really.”
Amanda Holden, Alesha Dixon and David Walliams will all return to the judging panel, and they’ll be joined on the show by Las Vegas legend Penn Jillette.
Stephen is also thrilled that Penn has agreed to join the show.
He said: “It was a tough competition because none of them would take any prisoners. There was that camaraderie to a point.
“But in the same breath there was, ‘I want to win this’. I think having Penn on the panel added a lot more pressure to them. I think they would’ve had an easier run if he wasn’t there.”
The winner of the show will be chosen by the theatre audience and they will ultimately walk away with a £50,000 prize.
‘Britain’s Got Talent: The Ultimate Magician’ will air on December 18.

Source: VacationHunter.Online

OHMYGOSSIP — Former ‘EastEnders’ star Samantha Womack is “cancer-free”.
The 50-year-old actress revealed in August she was battling breast cancer, and after a rough few months of chemotherapy and successful surgery, Samantha has been given the all-clear and admits she is “really thankful” for life.
Speaking to OK! Magazine, she said: “I just feel really thankful and really grateful that I caught it when I did.
“I feel very thankful for my life. I know that sounds crazy, but it’s almost like I can see the beauty in everything now – like everything feels special. I keep bursting into tears, because I’m happy.”
She continued: “I think it [going through cancer] shifts your perspective and suddenly everything feels really important and really vital and you suddenly just appreciate everything.”
Sam found it really hard to open up about her diagnosis, but was encouraged by her partner Oliver.
She said: “He knew that I’m not very good at being vulnerable and I find it quite uncomfortable.
“He just kept saying, ‘It’s OK to not be OK.’ I was like, ‘I’m fine, I’m fine.’ And just kept pushing him away and ignoring it.”
However, that changed after the death of her rescue dog, Lola.
She explained: “That became the catalyst for me just suddenly breaking down.
“I needed that to happen for me to understand the reality of the situation.”
Oliver added: “Sam is so, so strong – she’s the strongest person I know. But what comes with that is potentially not thinking about herself or putting herself first. She’s always thinking about other people and she sometimes forgets herself. It’s OK if you need to just be quiet for a while. You can just stop. If you want to be quiet, be quiet, if you want to cry, cry. It’s part of a bigger process.”
Sam – who played Ronnie Mitchell on the BBC One soap between 2007 and 2017 – struggled with her changing appearance during chemotherapy and worried her partner would no longer find her attractive.
She said: “The thing with breast cancer, as a woman, it’s such a brutal attack on your femininity.
“Your breasts and your hair and all of those things they represent, the things that you hold on to as feeling attractive, but also make you feel feminine as a woman … It feels very brutal.
“I kept saying, ‘I don’t want you to find me ugly. I don’t want to be an embarrassment to you.’ Just silly things that you say, but they are feelings. And also, for me saying, ‘I don’t want to put you through this, why on God’s earth would you want to be with someone that’s going to be in and out of hospitals?!’ I didn’t know at the beginning how bad it was going to be.
“He kept saying to me, ‘You idiot, this is what I want, I want to be here with you. This is a privilege for me to be near you and you’re beautiful and I don’t give a s*** about your hair.’ I think it really took my breath away. I found that very emotional. I didn’t expect to feel such gratitude for someone for loving me just for me, rather than all the bits you think are important.”

Source: VacationHunter.Online