‘Luoyang VR Project’ Showcased in Shanghai by Chinese Streamer iQiyi

Germany’s ProSiebenSat.1 is cutting around 400 roles, as it continues to reshape its business as a digital-first operation.

Timothy Spall was diagnosed with Leukaemia 27 years ago and at the time doctors told him he only had three days to live.

The Hollywood Reporter.The 61-year-old reportedly rallied against the takeover of artificial intelligence in a statement now echoed by thousands of actors and entertainers in Hollywood, who are striking with the Writers Guild of America (WGA) for the first time in over six decades.Cruise hopped on the call in a desperate bid to get the AMPTP to re-evaluate its stance on AI in the TV and film streaming era.The actor’s latest “Mission: Impossible” movie has ground to a halt as a result of the strike action, as have dozens of other high-profile projects, including the “Avatar” sequel, “Gladiator 2” and “Deadpool 3.”During the Zoom call, Cruise also addressed the guild’s stance on stunt actors, according to the outlet.The actor asked the AMPTP to allow performers to continue on with their press tours following the strike, due to the “fragile state of movie theaters” following the pandemic.He said promoting films is just as “important” to the actors as it is to the studio, the outlet adds.The union protecting Hollywood’s biggest A-listers on Thursday joined forces with screenwriters on the picket line after voting to shut down production across the entertainment industry, which may result in a drought of shows and movies in the near future.The SAG-AFTRA unanimously voted to stop working after their contract expired and talks broke off with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), which represents streaming giants like Disney, Netflix, Amazon and others.The strike marks the first time the 160,000-member-strong SAG-AFTRA has walked off film and TV jobs since 1980.The actor-screenwriter strike is the first joint walkout in more than six decades.Both SAG-AFTRA and the WGA are demanding a rise in pay and

A taxi driver was arrested for drug driving during an enforcement operation in Oldham which also saw a dozen cabs taken off the roads.

A man has been charged with causing death by dangerous driving following the death of a woman in a crash in Hulme.

Passengers passing through the Port of Dover this week are being warned that they could face delays of up to two and a half hours. It comes as many schools break up for the summer holidays this Friday.

Former centre-back Jaap Stam praised Manchester United ace Lisandro Martinez ahead of his second season at Old Trafford.

Ex-Manchester United star Ryan Giggs has been found not guilty of headbutting his ex-girlfriend and subjecting her to controlling and coercive behaviour. Giggs, 48, was cleared of all charges after Kate Greville withdrew her co-operation from the case ahead of a scheduled re-trial in two weeks' time.

Paul Mullin is preparing for a return to the EFL following two goal-laden years playing in the National League for Wrexham.

Ukrainian filmmaker Oleg Sentsov has sustained shrapnel injuries while fighting in the Zaporizhzhia region in southeastern Ukraine.

Blur’s Dave Rowntree has shared his opinion of Labour leader Keir Starmer in a new interview with NME.The Britpop veteran was taking part in the latest installation of NME’s Does Rock N’ Roll Kill Braincells?! series when he was asked to recall key moments from throughout his career, including his work in politics.Alongside his role as the drummer for Blur, Rowntree has also had a successful career in politics throughout much of the 21st Century – even going as far as to be elected as a Labour Councillor in Norfolk in 2017.Now, following his time in the role, which came to an end in 2021, the musician revealed his thoughts on current Labour leader, Keir Starmer.“Well, the test is at General Elections,” he began, discussing how well he thinks the figurehead is faring with the public. “If he wins the General Election, he’ll be widely touted as the most visionary Labour leader of modern times and will join the incredibly small number of Labour leaders who’ve gone on to become prime minister.”“If he loses, he’ll be regarded as an idiot who wrecked the Labour Party and achieved nothing,” he continued.

This Morning viewers found themselves distracted when tuning into the latest episode of the show before one particular segment left them feeling 'sick'. The ITV daytime show returned for another week on Monday with Alison Hammond and Dermot O'Leary at the helm.

Sir Rod Stewart is known for being a big family man and fans were loving a new clip posted by his daughter-in-law Nicole of the rocker dancing with his two children Liam and Ruby and their new babies.

South Park characters would look like in real life.The results, which you can see below, show what the core foursome of Stan, Kyle, Eric and Kenny would look like. Other characters include Butters, Mr Garrison and Chef.Fans appear to be impressed by the imagined live action depictions of characters from the animated comedy series.“Holy fuck these are perfect,” wrote one person, while another said: “I would pay good money for this to be reality.”A post shared by @manmeetsmachineOthers pointed to the rendering of Kanye West, who featured in a 2009 episode called Fishsticks – although that image is understandably easier to craft.

Sabbatical Entertainment Sets Distribution Partnership With V Channels Media

EXCLUSIVE: A24 has quietly added another experienced exec to its steadily growing London office.

Hollyoaks star Lucy-Jo Hudson has opened up to fans about the challenges of having a child with an allergy as she recalled the moment her son passed out and 'stopped breathing' when he was just 18 months old.

Heineken UK is to invest £25m in its landmark brewery in Manchester in a major project to reduce its carbon emissions.

If you’re jetting off on holiday it’s important to keep updated on the status of your flight. Cancellations or delays can occur at the last minute, impacting scheduled departures.

Stacey Solomon jokingly told her fans that she and her husband Joe Swash may not make it to their first wedding anniversary later this month as they were seen bickering at home following their reunion after days apart.

A supermarket has splashed the price of 500 key 'weekly shop' products in a bid to help families through the cost of living crisis.

Former Gogglebox star Scarlett Moffatt recently gave birth to her first child - and she's been keeping people updated about their progress. Scarlett, a past winner of I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here, welcomed the new arrival five weeks early, she announced last month.

Naman Ramachandran Music tourism spending in the U.K. in 2022 was £6.6 billion ($8.6 billion), a report from industry body U.K. Music has revealed. In 2022 – the first full year of post-pandemic festivals, gigs and concerts in the U.K. – music tourists were lured by the return of major events such as Glastonbury, where headliners included Paul McCartney, and U.K. tours by top British artists, including Dua Lipa, Stormzy, Harry Styles, Ed Sheeran and Elton John, the report said. The key findings of U.K. Music’s 2022 “Here, There and Everywhere” report include: total number of music tourists attending live music events across the U.K. in 2022 was 14.4 million; total number of international music tourists in 2022 was 1.1 million; total number of domestic music tourists in 2022 was 13.3 million; and total employment sustained by music tourism in 2022 was 56,000.

Naman Ramachandran India’s media and entertainment industry is expected to reach $73.6 billion by 2027 with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.48%, says consultancy firm PwC’s “Global Entertainment & Media Outlook 2023-2027” report. In terms of growth percentage, streaming leads the way with revenue surging 25% in 2022 to reach $1.8 billion. The market will continue to grow at 14% CAGR to produce revenue of $3.5 billion in 2027. This will be driven by the competitive SVOD sector, which accounted for 78% of sector revenue in 2022, the report says, adding that while subscription service revenues will expand at 13% CAGR to reach $2.6 billion, ad-supported services (AVOD) will grow at a higher rate, albeit from a lower base.

Manchester United have embarked on a packed pre-season schedule - with a relentless tour itinerary having previously been cited as a reason behind poor starts to the Premier League campaign.

A new drug has been hailed as a "turning point in the fight against Alzheimer’s" after it was found to slow the progression of the disease.

Oprah Winfrey has a very tight-knit inner circle and she previously said that she only has a few close friends.

Jim Caviezel stars in the new movie Sound of Freedom, which has been a surprise mega-hit at the box office this summer.

Britney Spears appears to be making a musical comeback, and we want to know who you think she should work with next.

Jamie Lee Curtis‘ family is increasing with the birth of her “movie daughter” Lindsay Lohan‘s son Luai.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Movie stars Zhou Xun and Jelly Lin head the cast of “Imperfect Victim,” a new mainland Chinese drama series that focuses on workplace sexual harassment and leads to a rape trial. Zhou (“Cloud Atlas,” “The Silent War,” “Painted Skin”) plays a lawyer who steps in to represent the character played by Lin (“The Mermaid”), who alleges assault by her boss at work. He is portrayed by TV veteran Liu Yijun (“Nirvana in Fire,” “The Pretender”). The case becomes complicated and Zhou’s character is forced to question her own ethics. The show is highly topical, given the slowly building #MeToo movement in China. This is being fuelled by numerous instances of sexual discrimination, sexual assault and outright violence towards women, many instances of which have gone viral on Chinese social media before being deleted by censors.

Black Sabbath bassist Geezer Butler has recalled the time that his bandmate Tony Iommi was nearly “sacrificed” onstage by a “lunatic”.Speaking to Reader’s Digest, Butler reflected on growing up in a strict Catholic home, the band’s “satanic” imagery and how that resulted in several weird experiences for the metal pioneers.“My dad wasn’t very pleased when he saw the inverted cross on the sleeve of our first album. But, generally, nobody in the UK or Europe cared that much about our Satanic imagery,” Butler shared.He went on to explain: “In the US, though, people would threaten us and turn up at our gigs with crosses and bibles. In Nashville, someone jumped on stage and went for Tony with a knife.

Matt Damon has revealed that he was planning to take a break from acting when he got a call from Christopher Nolan for Oppenheimer.Speaking to Entertainment Weekly as part of EW‘s Around The Table interview with the rest of the Oppenheimer cast, Damon revealed that he had negotiated with his wife to take a break from acting unless Nolan called him up for a role.“This is going to sound made up, but it’s actually true,” Damon said to his cast mates. “I had — not to get too personal — negotiated extensively with my wife that I was taking time off.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief The 28th edition of the Shanghai TV Festival wrapped up on Friday with its Magnolia Awards presented to a range of TV drama series, documentaries and animation programs. The drama awards were dominated by two shows “A Lifelong Journey” and “Bright Future.” “A Lifelong Journey,” adapted from a novel of the same name by Liang Xiaosheng, tells the story of three generations of one family in China’s Northeast as time moves from the late Cultural Revolution period through to the country’s reform and opening up. With a starry cast and broadcasters including CCTV-1 and Jiangsu Satellite TV, the show is reported to have attracted 310 million viewers at the beginning of 2022. In mainland China, it ran for 58 episodes, while in Hong Kong it played in 35 parts.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief The technical aspects of China’s embrace of smart broadcasting were given a thorough workout this week as part of the ongoing Shanghai Television Festival. Topics covered by keynote speakers included: future broadcasting planning; AI content generation’ big data construction; and the development of ultra-high definition broadcasting. Sun Suchuan, deputy Director-General of the Science and Technology Department of the National Radio & Television Authority explained that the national government has iterated a strategic development plan for the TV sector running until 2035 as well as medium- and long-term technological strategies.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief The members of the international juries that will decide the Magnolia prizes at the ongoing Shanghai Television Festival were Thursday made to do double duty as speakers in public masterclasses that were open to a generation of aspiring documentary and animation makers. David Stephan, jury president in the animation category, along with fellow judges Spencer Ooi and Jia Fou, spoke at length about getting their starts in the business and finding inspiration. “When I studied animation, I didn’t have a textbook available. I saw extremely limited things, so I did further research to make myself understand what I was doing in such a career,” said Jia.