OHMYGOSSIP — Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield say they “respected the rules” while visiting Westminster Hall as Queen Elizabeth was lying in state.
The ‘This Morning’ presenters have come under heavy criticism for appearing to “jump the queue” as they filmed footage for the ITV daytime show, and the channel has already denied claims they had “VIP access”.
In a video package on Tuesday’s episode (20.09.20), Holly said: “Like hundreds of accredited broadcasters and journalists, we were given official permission to access the hall. It was strictly for the purpose of reporting on the event for millions of people in the UK who haven’t been able to visit Westminster in person.
“The rules were that we would be quickly escorted around the edges to a platform at the back. In contrast, those paying respect walked along a carpeted area beside the coffin and were given time to pause.
“None of the broadcasters and journalists there took anyone’s place in the queue, and no one filed past the Queen. We of course respected those rules.
“However, we realise that it may have looked like something else, and therefore totally understand the reaction. Please know that we would never jump the queue.”
ITV had previously explained that the two stars were at Westminster “in a professional capacity”.
The broadcaster commented: “Hello everyone, we would like to clarify something. We asked Phillip and Holly to be part of a film for this Tuesday’s programme.
“They did not jump the queue, have VIP access or file past the Queen lying in state – but instead were there in a professional capacity as part of the world’s media to report on the event.”
While there has been widespread criticism with thousands signing a petition calling on them to be sacked, ‘Good Morning Britain’ presenter Susanna Reid – who spent seven hours in the queue with her mother – defended the pair.
After Spice Girls star Mel B referenced “queue jumping”, Susanna quickly replied: “Well, some people had to work as well.”

Source: VacationHunter.Online

OHMYGOSSIP — Dame Prue Leith has plans to “crack America” at 82.
The ‘Great British Bake Off’ judge has two “one women shows” scheduled across the pond – in Los Angeles and New York – after she and her co-star Paul Hollywood, 56, made a US edition of the Channel 4 baking competition, which has been won by Nadiya Hussain, Nancy Birtwhistle and most recently by Giuseppe Dell’Anno.
She told the Daily Mirror newspaper:”I’m going to try out one-woman shows in Los Angeles and New York and then I’m going to do the same in England in Bath and Leamington Spa.
“And if they work, then next year I’ll do two tours, one in the spring and one in the autumn round England and around America.”
Along with the tour, Prue also has other projects lined up, such as selling her new cookbook ‘Bliss on Toast’, which she hopes will be a great stocking stuffer.
She added: “I’ll be flogging my two books, which are coming out at Christmas. One is a recipe book called Bliss on Toast. And the other is an updated biography.”
While she has these plans raring to go, Paul reflected on the special edge his surname gets him in America, which poses a lot of questions.
He said: “That’s the first question they ask. Is it your real name? I say: ‘Yes, it is. It’s an Irish name and it’s been around a bit longer than Hollywood has in California.’ And they say, ‘Oh my God, it’s such a great name.’ It is.”
Paul – who is known best of all for his bread recipes – finds getting tagged on social media by some of the biggest names in the entertainment industry “weird”.
He said: “When you see things like the actress Blake Lively, Ryan Reynolds’ wife, baking on Instagram and cc-ing me and saying: ‘I wish I could get a handshake from Paul…’ You’re thinking: ‘My God, this is weird.’”

Source: VacationHunter.Online

OHMYGOSSIP — Chris Kamara is waiting to find out if his speech apraxia can be “cured”.
The 64-year-old star – who quit Sky Sports’ ‘Soccer Saturday’ after 24 years back in April after his diagnosis – explained how his new doctor in the United States thinks there may be a way to “cure” the condition, which causes issues with speaking.
Speaking on ‘The Diary of a CEO’ podcast, he said: “I’ve just been introduced to the best neurologist in America and he said because I have good days, there’s no reason why I can’t be cured.
“I’ve sent off a load of blood tests and everything to America and I’m just waiting on the results.”
The ‘Ninja Warrior’ presenter has tried a range of treatments in the UK, including an oxygen tent, microcurrents through his brain, hypnotherapy, vitamins and seeing a speech and anxiety therapist.
Meanwhile, Kamara has admitted he “feels like a fraud” presenting live TV after his diagnosis.
He said: “I feel a fraud now in terms of broadcasting – I don’t bring to the table what I used to.
“I feel I’m doing these programmes and they’re not getting the best of me – they’re tolerating me, that’s how it feels. You take your old self for granted.”
The former footballer went on to explain that it is “really strange” to hear his new way of speaking and has found it “really hard” to accept the diagnosis.
He added: “It feels like someone has taken over my voice box. The voice that used to come out would come out at 300 miles an hour on ‘Soccer Saturday’, motormouth, talking and not even waiting for a breath, just keep going and going.
“Now when I hear myself or see myself on TV it’s someone else. It’s really strange. Some days the message from the brain to the mouth is really slow and makes it difficult, or some days the words come out different than what you’re trying to say – and that’s even weirder.”

Source: VacationHunter.Online

OHMYGOSSIP — Bear Grylls has apologised for “looking cheery” at Queen Elizabeth’s state funeral.
The ‘Man vs Wild’ presenter – who was representing the Scouts as the Chief Scout, a title he had held since 2009 – explained why he offered a little wave as he entered Westminster Abbey on Monday (19.09.2022), noting he actually spotted one of his ‘Running Wild’ colleagues filming the momentous event for the world press.
The 48-year-old star wrote on Instagram later in the day: “Special to see our cameraman on Running Wild @Mungothecameraman selected to film the entrance to the service. It was him that I was acknowledging when I waved. I’m so sorry if it looked cheery when it is such a solemn day. I didn’t mean that.”
Bear posted an array of photos from the day he “will never forget” as the nation said goodbye to Her Majesty – who died on September 8 aged 96 – after she sat on the throne for more than 70 years.
He wrote: “It’s a day we will never forget… a truly beautiful testament to our Nation’s Sovereign, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth. Rest in Peace. Your duty done. Long Live King Charles…”
Bear – who attended Eton College, the same school as Princes William and Harry – was one of the first to grace the steps before the funeral which hosted many famous faces.
Among these celebs included ‘Killing Eve’ star Sandra Oh, who was representing the Order of Canada and ‘Coronation Street’ star Antony Cotton, who has a history with the British military. ‘Peep Show’ star Sophie Winkleman was also in attendance as she is connected to the Royal Family through her husband Lord Frederick Windsor, the son of Prince Michael of Kent.
While the Queen’s coffin was lying-in-state in Westminster Hall in the lead up to the funeral, many celebs waited hours to pay their respects in the queue along the River Thames such as actress Tilda Swinton, ‘Good Morning Britain’ anchor Susanna Reid and ex England captain David Beckham.

Source: VacationHunter.Online

OHMYGOSSIP — Kym Marsh’s father’s cancer diagnosis inspired her to sign up for ‘Strictly Come Dancing’.
The ‘BBC Morning Live’ host was left devastated when 77-year-old Dave was told he had incurable cancer last year, but the sad news changed her perspective on life and she’s following his advice to embrace the opportunities that come her way.
She told The Sun on Sunday newspaper: “Since he was diagnosed last March I’ve just decided to grab everything while I can.
“Without being melancholy, we don’t know how long we’ve got him for, so you’ve got to make the best of these situations.
“My dad’s diagnosis does change things. He’s been telling me for years, ‘You never know what’s around the corner, so grab things with both hands’.
“But you don’t think about that until an event happens. It makes you look at things differently.”
The 46-year-old star – who shot to fame when she won a place in Hear’Say on ‘Popstars’ in 2001 – admitted she’s been approached for various reality shows over the years but was always keen to sign up for ‘Strictly’.
She said: “Did I think when I did ‘Popstars’ 22 years ago that I’d still be here, performing on a show like this one? Absolutely not.
“And really, I’m setting a foot back into the reality world.
“I’ve been asked to do ‘I’m A Celebrity…’ and other shows over the years but this is the one show that I always said I wanted to do.
“It would be great if I could inspire people by going on the show. It’s great to do things that are out of your comfort zone to test yourself, because we’re not used to this.”
Despite her pop background, Kym insisted the “prancing around” they did on stage doesn’t give her an advantage on the Latin and ballroom show.
She said: “People said I’ve danced before with Hear’Say but that’s a completely different kettle of fish.
“That was prancing around on stage. Ballroom is something so different.”

Source: VacationHunter.Online

OHMYGOSSIP — Alan Titchmarsh was delighted when the late Queen Elizabeth praised his onions.
The 73-year-old gardening expert met the monarch – who died on 8 September aged 96 – numerous times over the years, with their first encounter coming at the Chelsea Flower show in 1985, and Alan was thrilled when what he thought was criticism from the queen turned out to be a compliment.
He recalled: “I had designed a country kitchen garden for Woman’s Own magazine. Laid out in a simple chequer-board pattern, it comprised a miniature orchard carpeted with wild flowers, beds of roses intermingled with hardy perennials and a vegetable patch divided by a narrow, gently gurgling rill fed by a village pump.
“Queen Elizabeth was ushered towards me and for the first time I felt the radiant warmth of that famous smile. Out came the hand. I shook it and indicated my modest plot; explaining that it was the sort of cottage garden that could be fitted in the tiniest space. She nodded, then turned to me and remarked, ‘Your onions are very small.’
“Before I had a chance to articulate some kind of excuse for my apparent lack of growing skills she continued, ‘I like them small. When they’re big they taste of nothing at all.’
“I remember little else from that sunny May day – meetings with the late Queen were frequently accompanied by a degree of amnesia, compounded by excitement and disbelief – but the following morning, when the card showing a Gold Medal appeared on the garden, my joy knew no bounds.
“I had a Royal Horticultural Society Gold Medal and Queen Elizabeth had visited a garden I had designed and planted.”
In 2003, Alan wrote ‘Royal Gardeners: The History of Britain’s Royal Gardens’, and after sending the queen a copy, received a letter from her husband, the late Prince Philip.
While the Duke of Edinburgh was a fan of the tome, he also admonished the author for snubbing his own work in the grounds of the Windsor Estate.
Alan told the Sunday Telegraph newspaper: “I sent a copy to the late queen. I felt it would have been rude not to.
“A week or so later I received a closely typed letter taking up two sides of a sheet of A4 headed writing paper. It was from Prince Philip. He thanked me for sending the book to Her Majesty, which he said he ‘very much enjoyed’, and went on – at some length – to tell me what I had left out: mainly his own contributions to the planting of avenues of trees at Windsor, along with the redesigning of the east terrace and its fountain and the provision of a ‘sitting-out’ garden. ”

Source: VacationHunter.Online

OHMYGOSSIP — Charlotte Crosby has called for ‘Love Island’ to feature “more normal people”.
The ‘Geordie Shore’ star has slammed standards of beauty on television and believes the dating programme needs to feature more body diversity.
She told the Daily Star Sunday newspaper: “’Love Island’ would be better if they had different kinds of people, 100%.
“The beauty standards on TV now are f****.
“I want to see people who are like Fiz and Tyrone on ‘Corrie’.
“I want normal people off the street who genuinely fall in love with each other. That would be so cute to watch.”
Charlotte, who found fame on ‘Geordie Shore’ 11 years ago, doesn’t think there’s a “chance in hell” anyone from her show would have been featured on ‘Love Island’.
She continued: “If us lot from Geordie Shore had auditioned for Love Island instead, there wouldn’t be a chance in hell we would get on it.
“When we first started we were just a bunch of normal girls, and that’s why everyone loved us.
“They were thinking, ‘I do that… that’s what I do on a night out’. We were real people.”
Charlotte has returned to ‘Geordie Shore’ for a reunion series – which includes her ex-boyfriend Gaz Beadle – and she has promised fans any loose ends will be tied up.
She said: “Everything people loved about ‘Geordie Shore’ was obviously more than just seeing us drunk in clubs.
“People loved the personalities within the show and actually in the reunion I feel like everything that happened within the show that fans love got finalised and tied together. It made it even better.
“You don’t need to be mortal drunk to sort out some differences with people and have a resolution.”

Source: VacationHunter.Online

OHMYGOSSIP — Kaye Adams thinks she’s got no chance of winning ‘Strictly Come Dancing’.
The ‘Loose Women’ presenter has signed up to take part in the new series of the BBC Latin and ballroom competition but the 59-year-old star admitted she’s already resigned to the likelihood of not making it to the final.
She said: “I have never danced before. This is a huge leap in the dark.
“I will go out of the competition at whatever stage and that is fine.”
She jokingly added to the Daily Star Sunday newspaper: “There is no room on my mantelpiece for the Glitterball.”
A few days ago, judge Craig Revel Horwood admitted he was “concerned” about how Kaye would fare on the show, particularly when it comes to the Latin dances.
He said: “Kaye Adams I’m slightly concerned about!
“I think she’ll do quite well at the ballroom stuff, but I’m worried about the Latin.
“The sex appeal and the hip action and rhythm, things like the cha-cha-cha might prove … a challenge, darling.
“It’s the selling yourself bare – the costumes are all quite skimpy with the Latin.”
When Kaye first revealed she’d signed up for the show, she confessed she was “terrified” about taking to the ballroom.
She said: ” It’s me! I’m absolutely terrified because I can’t dance. I could think of a million reasons not to do this. When these gorgeous dancers came on, I nearly exited from both ends of my body but I thought I might be sitting I’m 59 – I’ve always lied about my age but I’ve decided to embrace it and so I’m 60 at the end of this year and I thought ‘Why not?’ I can’t make much of a fool of myself!”

Source: VacationHunter.Online

OHMYGOSSIP — Ellie Taylor is feeling exhausted ahead of her ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ debut.
The 38-year-old comedian quipped that she’s a “broken woman” as she prepares to take to the BBC One Latin and ballroom show’s dancefloor for the first time on September 23.
In a series of Instagram Story selfies of her covering her eyes and showing a close-up of her eye bags, she wrote: “I’m a broken woman BUT mum’s dropped round a homemade Shepherds pie and crumble so it’s all going to be OK. (sic)”
In another photo, she clarified: “(By broken woman I mean I’m a bit tired and I had vodka last night when I should have had camomile tea).
“Not the biggest tale of woe is it, but I like drama (and crumble).”
The former Heart FM presenter recently revealed she had pulled a muscle in her neck prior to starting her training.
A week ago, she posted: “First day at Strictly school!
Tied my own shoelaces and have been practicing telling a grown up (Shirley) if I need the toilet.
(Already pulled a muscle in my neck while brushing my teeth so off to a great start) @bbcstrictly.”
Ellie recently joked she has the dancing ability of a “newly born giraffe”.
She said: “Well, cover me in fake tan and roll me in sequins! I’m absolutely over the moon to be a part of ‘Strictly’ 2022!
“I’ve watched the show for years so to be able to take to the dance floor is a dream come true, for both me and mum who is a ‘Strictly’ super fan!
“At the moment I’m focusing on the excitement and glitter and choosing to ignore the fact that I have the dancing ability of a newly born giraffe. Bring it on!”
The ‘Ted Lasso’ star – who portrays Flo ‘Sassy’ Collins in the Apple TV+ show – has also appeared in the likes of ‘Plebs’, as well as panel shows ‘8 Out of 10 Cats’, ‘Fake Reaction’, and ‘Mock the Week’, and she co-hosts ‘Cheat’ alongside Danny Dyer.
Ellie is competing against the likes of Matt Goss, Will Mellor, Kym Marsh, Richie Anderson, Kay Adams, Jayde Adams, Ellie Simmonds and Tyler West.

Source: VacationHunter.Online