Taylor Swift has said she will vote for Kamala Harris in the US election, giving her endorsement just minutes after the debate with Donald Trump ended.

The Instagram post showed her holding her cat Benjamin Button – a reference to Mr Trump’s running mate JD Vance‘s childless cat lady” comments.

Follow the latest on the Trump v Harris debate reaction here

Swift urged her 283 million followers to “do your research,” but said AI-generated images of her supporting Mr Trump made her realise “I need to be very transparent about my actual plans”.

“I will be casting my vote for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in the 2024 Presidential Election,” she said. “I’m voting for Kamala Harris because she fights for the rights and causes I believe need a warrior to champion them.

“I think she is a steady-handed, gifted leader and I believe we can accomplish so much more in this country if we are led by calm and not chaos.

“I was so heartened and impressed by her selection of running mate Tim Walz, who has been standing up for LGBTQ+ rights, IVF, and a woman’s right to her own body for decades.”

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‘Massive star’ endorsement could be ‘huge’

Sky News US correspondent James Matthews said after her post that Swift’s endorsement is “huge” for the Harris-Walz campaign.

“She is a massive star, huge,” he said. “She speaks to people in a way that politicians do not, and the message from Taylor Swift will resonate with a huge audience far beyond the kind of people watching what has gone on here.

“The timing will not have been an accident. Tonight, the headline is Taylor Swift. Tomorrow, all the talk is going to be about Kamala Harris and Taylor Swift and the momentum that will be behind her.”

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It marks the first time Swift has spoken on the 2024 election. While the Style hitmaker did endorse Joe Biden in 2020, she did so only a month before election day.

However, despite her worldwide fame and popularity even Taylor Swift cannot escape the vicissitudes of American politics. The number of people following her on social media fell following her post.

Foo Fighters singer Dave Grohl, well known for his reputation as “the nicest guy in rock”, has admitted becoming the father to a baby born “outside of my marriage”.

The former Nirvana drummer, 55, said he plans to be a “loving and supportive parent” to his new daughter in an Instagram post on Tuesday.

Grohl, who shares three daughters with his wife of more than 20 years Jordyn Blum, said he loves his family and is doing “everything I can to regain their trust and earn their forgiveness”.

“I’ve recently become the father of a new baby daughter, born outside of my marriage”, he wrote in the post.

“I plan to be a loving and supportive parent to her.

“I love my wife and my children, and I am doing everything I can to regain their trust and earn their forgiveness.”

He added: “We’re grateful for your consideration toward all the children involved, as we move forward together. Dave.”

Grohl’s publicist told Sky News the singer would be offering no further comment beyond the statement.

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The rocker has been married to director Blum since 2003.

He played drums in the pioneering grunge band Nirvana from 1990 until 1994 when lead singer Kurt Cobain took his own life aged 27.

Grohl went on to form Foo Fighters and has scored a number of chart-topping albums including their most recent effort, 2023’s But Here We Are.

US voice actor Peter Renaday, best known for his role as Master Splinter in the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series, has died aged 89.

His former Ninja Turtles castmate Townsend Coleman, who voiced Michelangelo in the show, confirmed the news in a post on the X social media platform on Tuesday.

Renaday voiced Master Splinter, a wise and stoic mutant rat who was the turtles’ adoptive half-father and martial arts teacher, between 1987 and 1996.

Police carried out a welfare check at the voice actor’s home in Burbank, California, on Sunday and found him dead inside, according to TMZ.

His niece Mindy Zachary told the celebrity news site that his air conditioning had been out and his home had been hot due to a recent heatwave in California.

She added that his cause of death has not been confirmed but the family feels it does not need further investigation.

Coleman, 70, said he was “devastated” by the the death of our “dear sensei” – a term the ninja turtles would sometimes use to refer to Master Splinter.

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He continued: “Pete was one of the most genuine, salt of the earth people I have ever known and I will miss him dearly. I had the privilege of visiting with him a month ago and he was as vibrant as ever, at 89 just as endearingly silly, smart and talented as I’ve always known him to be.

“Ugh, this is hard… a Disney legend and our dear Master Splinter – rest well, my sweet friend.”

Renaday also voiced Abraham Lincoln in The Hall Of Presidents – a major attraction at Walt Disney World in Florida.

He also had minor roles in a 1992 animated series of Batman and the Sylvester and Tweety Mysteries between 1995 and 1999.