Peppa Pig Heading to Amazon’s Audible Under New Podcasting Deal With Hasbro

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent For his third edition at the helm, Locarno Film Festival artistic director Giona A. Nazzaro has assembled a wide spectrum of films that “do not resemble each other in terms of tone or form” while reflecting “the world in all its expressions and manifestations,” he tells Variety. This boundless range is best exemplified by the fact that starkly surrealist Filipino arthouse star Lav Díaz’s latest work, “Essential Truths of the Lake,” will be vying for the fest’s Golden Leopard alongside fare that, at least on paper, appears much lighter. This includes U.S. director Bob Byington’s indie comedy “Lousy Carter” and Estonian helmer Rainer Sarnet’s “The Invisible Flight,” which Nazzaro says  “mixes Kung Fu, hard rock and the Orthodox Church.”

Jessica Kiang There are certain moviegoers who can face onscreen murders, maimings and the grisliest of mutilations and scarcely bat an eyelid, but who feel every cell in their body die a little whenever a character is rude in a restaurant. If you happen to suffer from this condition, consider yourself warned about Swedish director Ernst De Geer’s feature debut “The Hypnosis” — a witty, incisive satire on the modern obsession with self-actualization, which is also, to those of us with heightened sensitivity to social awkwardness, 98 masochistic minutes of second-hand squirm. Many’s the film offered up as evidence for Roger Ebert’s often quoted assertion that cinema is “a machine for creating empathy”; fewer are the titles, like this one, that make one question if that’s necessarily a good thing. 

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Should you ditch Twitter in favor of Instagram’s Threads — which looks quite a lot like a clone of Twitter? Meta launched Threads, a “conversational” text-centric app tied to Instagram, on Wednesday, a day earlier than expected. The internet giant sees an opportunity to take on Twitter, controlled by tech mogul Elon Musk, which has been beset by various technical and business issues since he acquired the company. “I think there should be a public conversations app with 1 billion+ people on it,” Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg wrote in a Threads post. “Twitter has had the opportunity to do this but hasn’t nailed it. Hopefully we will.”

Anna Tingley If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, Variety may receive an affiliate commission. One of the best Prime Day deals this year is a crazy offer on Prime Video, which is currently offering subscriptions to networks such as Paramount+, AMC+ and Starz for only 99 cents per month.  Although Prime Day doesn’t kick off until July 11, this deal went live on July 5 and runs through the end of Prime Day at 11:59 pm ET on July 12.   Prime members usually have to pay between $7.99 and $10.99 for any individual channel they add onto their Prime Video accounts (the same price they would cost on their respective websites).

—Swift's —are adamant that the two are definitely not back together. In fact, they're not even in contact with each other. Actually, they were never even that serious to begin with.

Victoria Beckham has left fans making two observations as she shared a string of snaps from her anniversary celebration. The former Spice Girl headed out in London with her husband David as they marked being married for 24 years.

Craig Doyle has confirmed a 'last' during his latest stint on This Morning. The Irish broadcaster finished up his latest week-long stint on the ITV daytime show alongside Holly Willoughby on Thursday (July 6).

Toby Keith made his big return to the stage after he revealed he was battling stomach cancer last summer.  The country music star performed over the Fourth of July weekend in his hometown of Norman, Oklahoma. Hundreds showed up to watch the "As Good As I Once Was" singer at his pop-up concerts Friday and Saturday.  Norman resident Joanna Hall, who attended Friday’s show, told The Associated Press that Keith, 61, put on a great performance and was "very thankful for everybody who showed up." "He seemed a little taken aback that that many people were there," Hall said. "He was like, ‘This was supposed to be a secret...This was a bigger secret than what I intended.'" Keith’s publicist confirmed to the media outlet that Keith and his Easy Money Band played for about two and a half hours on both nights.

Police are dealing with a major incident at a popular holiday park in East Lothian.

Well done to Broxburn athletic under 14s Red team who won the South East League Plate final at Ainslie Park in Edinburgh.

Education and health workers have joined forces in local schools in a bid to help young people quit vaping.

Youngsters will be able to meet one of their favourite Paw Patrol characters at a Lanarkshire toy shop this weekend.

Returning Brendan Rodgers told the Celtic dressing room he was proud of what they achieved last year - before wiping the slate clean and demanding they go again.

One of the longest serving managers at The Centre, Livingston, has received a special award for her charity work and volunteering.

Lowry, party of 6? Kailyn Lowry subtly revealed she welcomed a fifth child in 2022.

Ricky Martin and his husband, Jwan Yosef, are going their separate ways after six years of marriage.

McKinley Franklin editor Don’t worry about a thing: Paramount has released the first trailer for “Bob Marley: One Love,” the biopic starring Kingsley Ben-Adir set to highlight the life and legacy of the late reggae icon.  Audiences catch a first glimpse at the varying stages of Marley’s life throughout the trailer, leading back to his beginnings in Jamaica all the way to his rise to global fame. Glimpses of Marley performing on stage to the singer relaxing with his family paint a picture of his life. The trailer, too, sets the scene for Marley’s assassination attempt, which he survived. By the end, viewers are left with a parting phrase: “One love, one heart, one destiny.” 

Whitney Port and her husband, Tim Rosenman, are in the midst of exploring surrogacy as a way to expand their family.

Jem Aswad Executive Editor, Music At a time when more than 120,000 songs are being uploaded to streaming services every day and artists are continually seeking ways to stand out, Alex Cooper’s “Call Her Daddy” podcast, exclusively available on Spotify, has brought a big boost in streams — at least on Spotify, which happens to be the world’s biggest paid streaming service. According to data provided by Spotify, in the 48 hours following their guest appearances on the show, Anitta’s streams rose 155%, Madison Beer’s climbed 130% — and even long-established artists like John Legend and John Mayer saw boosts of 200% and 350%, respectively. The show was the most popular podcast globally on Spotify Wrapped for 2022 — behind the ever-popular Joe Rogan, of course.

Peter Caranicas Deputy Editor Law firm Granderson Des Rochers (GDR) has announced that Jackson Abbeduto, formerly an exec at Google’s YouTube and Universal Music Publishing, has joined the firm’s New Media Practice as senior counsel. Abbeduto joins a collective of former in-house attorneys, led by Elizabeth Moody, working in the arena of digital music and tapping into opportunities to create new revenue streams for artists and songwriters. In addition to licensing deals on behalf of tech companies including Roblox, Hydrow, Styngr and Wave XR, GDR has been at the forefront of the legal implications of the current AI-generated music trend – helping creators and tech companies navigate the emerging landscape and ensuring that the artists and creators are appropriately compensated.

Beyoncé song has surfaced online.Last month Ballinger was accused in an Huffington Post UK investigation of sending sexually explicit messages to young fans, which she denied last week through song in a video posted to her Colleen Vlogs YouTube account.Now, the musician, actress and comedian has made headlines again for what could well be regarded as her wearing blackface. In the clip she’s seen performing ‘Single Ladies’ with dark paint on her face, backed by two dancers who aren’t wearing any face paint.The video shared to her Miranda Sings YouTube channel in February 2018 is unlisted but is still viewable.

The Eagles have announced a farewell live tour across North America with Steely Dan – find all the details below.The legendary band will begin the run of shows – titled ‘The Long Goodbye’ – at Madison Square Garden in New York on September 7 ahead of further performances in Boston (September 11), Newark (16) and Elmont, New York (20).Resuming in early October, the group’s final tour is then set to visit Denver, Indianapolis, Detroit, Cleveland and Atlanta before additional stop-offs in other cities throughout November.‘The Long Goodbye’ will see The Eagles – comprising Don Henley, Joe Walsh, Timothy B. Schmit, Vince Gill and Deacon Frey – “perform as many shows in each market as their audience demands”, per a press release.The tour is expected to continue into 2025, but further dates – potentially including the UK and Europe – are yet to be announced.The Eagles, who’ll be commemorating their 50+ career with the concerts, will be supported by Steely Dan on all confirmed dates.Tickets go on general sale at 10am local time next Friday (July 14) – you’ll be able to buy yours here.

Keke Palmer’s partner, Darius Daulton Jackson, was not a fan of the outfit Palmer wore to Usher's Las Vegas residency show.Palmer, who attended the July 4th performance, wore a sheer black dress over a matching thong bodysuit for the occasion. Jackson seemingly shamed Palmer for wearing the sexy fit, in a tweet that featured a viral video of Palmer and the singer embracing while the R&B singer serenaded the  actress with his hit, «There Goes My Baby.»«It’s the outfit tho… you a mom,» Jackson wrote.It’s the outfit tho… you a mom. https://t.co/qaQH6zWpkAIn one part of the clip, the alum has her arms wrapped around the eight-time GRAMMY winner’s neck as he placed his hand on her lower back and sang.After receiving backlash for his comment, Jackson doubled down in a separate tweet, in which he said Palmer's outfit went against the «standards and morals» he believes in.«We live in a generation where a man of the family doesn't want the wife & mother to his kids to showcase booty cheeks to please others & he gets told how much of a hater he is,» the former personal trainer tweeted.

Former Celtic WAG Lisa Hague has certainly went to town to mark her hen do in Glasgow as she partied into the early hours over the weekend, taking to social media to share a glimpse into the celebrations.

Prime Day 2023 dates for this year's mega savings event. The epic Amazon sale, happening on July 11 and 12, will give shoppers two full days to score deals on clothing, best-selling electronics, coveted kitchen appliances, home decor and so much more. Basically the Black Friday of summer, Amazon Prime Day is a great time to score significant savings on big-ticket items like top-of-the-line tech.

Amazon's Prime Day is fast approaching with major price cuts that you only see once or twice a year from the online shopping giant. However, Amazon has already dropped a ton of early Prime Day deals ahead of the shopping event, so there’s no need to wait to score savings.

Kim and Kourtney Kardashian are sharing a sisterly moment, rocking matchy-matchy swimsuits even while miles apart. Pregnant Kourtney showed off her growing belly in a hot pink bikini, posing with pal Addison Rae for a series of poolside pics on Instagram. Kourtney hits all her angles in the shots, putting her curves on full display and captioning the post with a handful of pink emojis. The next day, Kim shared a series of sun-drenched snaps wearing a nearly identical bikini in a bright teal color.

Ahead of Prime Day, Amazon currently has unbeatable sales on this season's best sneakers. Whether you're trying to build a healthier routine or already have an active lifestyle, good sneakers are a must in any shoe closet. From new running shoes to help level up your workouts to casual sneakers for everyday wear, Amazon has all sorts of early discounts to take advantage of.Right now, you can find deals on the perfect pair of shoes and athletic sneakers from top brands including Nike, Adidas, New Balance, Hoka, and even Kate Middleton's go-to, Superga.

Jem Aswad Executive Editor, Music After months of speculation, TikTok is finally launching its own “social music streaming service,” initially in Indonesia and Brazil, the company announced Thursday, with licensing from all three major music companies. The service, hich is premium-only, will allow users to synch with their existing accounts and also share and download the tracks they discover on TikTok. The service is now available in both countries with a one-month free trial, according to The new service will replace the company’s existing streaming service, Resso, on Sept. 5. The transition began in May, which TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, announced that Resso would become a premium-only service.

K.J. Yossman Posters for the West End run of “Tony n’ Tina’s Wedding” have been pulled from U.K. subway stations after breaching Transport for London (TfL) advertising rules. Advertisements for the immersive theatrical show, which is set to open in central London later this month starring Ronnie Burden as Tony and Alabama Boatman as Tina, originally featured a wedding cake. But this breached TfL rules on promoting “HFSS” foods (foods that are high in fat, salt or sugar). TfL are the government body responsible for the U.K. capital’s transport network. According to their advertising policy, even posters featuring “incidental” HFSS food are banned – meaning the calorific-looking wedding cake was a definite no-no. “Advertising copy may be rejected by TfL or its agents on the basis that the advertisement promotes the consumption of HFSS foods,” reads the policy.

Ricky Martin and Jwan Yosef are ending their marriage.

News broke last month that Taylor Swift and Matty Healy are no longer seeing each other.

Renfrew residents are being encouraged to join Renfrewshire’s Provost as she carries out the traditional act of casting the nets to maintain Renfrew’s fishing rights on the River Clyde.

The Sussexes have separated from Spotify, Deadline has confirmed.

podcast with computer scientist Lex Fridman, Zuckerberg, 39, declared that beginners have to be willing “to get beaten up a lot” if they want to master the grappling art — in which participants try to best each other using various joint locks and submission holds.“Part of learning is failing,” the social network mogul elaborated. “People who train jiu-jitsu — you need to not have pride.” He claims that part of the problem is that people are less willing to be embarrassed as they grow older.

Spotify laid off some 6% of its 6,600-strong workforce.As the streaming platform gears up to scale down its internal operations, redundancies are now officially reaching 2% of its entire workforce — a staggering number considering how recent the investment took place.In a blog post on the streaming platform, Spotify’s head of podcast business Sahar Elhabashi wrote, “We are expanding our partnership efforts with leading podcasters from across the globe with a tailored approach optimized for each show and creator.”“This fundamental pivot from a more uniform proposition will allow us to support the creator community better,” Elhabashi continued.“However, doing so requires adapting … As a result, we have made the difficult but necessary decision to make a strategic realignment of our group and reduce our global podcast vertical and other functions by approximately 200 people, or 2% of Spotify’s workforce.”The cuts prove that the company is failing to see the results it had hoped for in the podcast arena — despite pumping billions of dollars into having Markle and Joe Rogan’s podcasts on its platform.However, Markle’s “Archetypes” podcast has struggled to remain at the top since its debut in August 2022 as by November, the podcast slid down to number 22 in the charts.For his part, Rogan’s podcast suffered a series of controversies ranging from Covid-19 vaccine misinformation to being accused of using racial slurs and making antisemitic comments.In 2021, it was reported that Meghan and Harry received a cool $25 million from Spotify for singing on the dotted line for a lucrative audio deal.More recently, Markle was honored at the 48th annual Gracie Awards where she picked up a gong for her podcast — though she was not