10,000 to attend rock festival in latest pilot – but it comes too late for many other live events
A live rock festival seems at odds with the government’s decision to delay lifting restrictions, but that’s exactly what’s happening from today as Download Pilot takes place in Donington Park.
It is the latest test aimed at gathering data on how live events impact the spread of coronavirus.
But for some it will be too late – figures from the Association of Independent Festivals show a third of the UK’s festivals have already been cancelled this year.
Melvin Benn, managing director of Festival Republic
More are considering their position after the proposed date for the lifting of restrictions was pushed back to 19 July.
Melvin Benn, managing director of Festival Republic – which also runs other events including Reading and Leeds and Latitude – said this weekend’s event is an important step in keeping the season alive.
He added: “I think it’ll reinforce and build on the data that we’ve already got from the Liverpool events in particular.
“I know the data from that was really terrific, really strong.
“We wouldn’t have been going ahead this weekend if the data hadn’t have been strong. They would have stopped us, instead they gave us permission.
“The data that we get from here [Download Pilot] I think will just build and build so that everything from 19 July can genuinely be open without restriction.”
Around 10,000 people are expected at the Donington Park event
Some 10,000 people will be at Donington Park to see bands including Frank Carter and the Rattlesnakes, and Bullet For My Valentine.
Ticketholders are being asked to provide evidence that they have tested negative for the virus before they are allowed on site.
For most of the bands on the line-up, it is the first time they will have played in front of a live audience in more than a year.
“Not being able to do the touring side of things has felt like half of our life has just disappeared,” said Chris Batten, the bassist of Saturday night’s headliners Enter Shikari.
“This big thing that we did on a daily basis had just been taken from us.
“So I think just being out there, being up on stage and feeling that adrenaline again is going to be really good.”
Singer Rou Reynolds added: “It’s the human connection aspects as well.
“Just like, you know, sort of singing as one and feeling that kind of cyclical flow of energy, there’s nothing like it.”
Enter Shikari are Saturday night’s headliners
With the clock ticking on this summer’s festival season, there are calls for the government to give more support to the live music and theatre industries by backing an insurance scheme.
“There’s every chance that we’re going to see a lot of festivals go under and not come back,” Naomi Pohl, deputy general secretary at the Musicians Union said.
“They’re all crying out for extended government support.”
“So another four-week delay, another cancellation, potentially looking at carrying tickets over to next year is completely disastrous for the sector, and we’re really worried that a lot of festivals just won’t recover.”
Entertainment
NFL star Travis Kelce: Taylor Swift’s boyfriend lands presenting role on celebrity spin-off of Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader?
Travis Kelce has landed his first TV presenting role – hosting the game show Are You Smarter Than A Celebrity?
The American Football star – who has become more famous since he began dating Taylor Swift last year – plays for the Kansas City Chiefs and helped them win the Super Bowl for a second year running in February.
Kelce and Swift at Coachella. Pic: Jennifer Johnson/Shutterstock for Neon Carnival
Their high-profile relationship has been credited with bringing NFL a legion of new fans, and causing a buzz every time they’re seen out together, including their recent date night at the Coachella music festival.
The Prime Video production is a spin-off of the popular US game show Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader?, which first aired on Fox in 2007 and was hosted by US comedian Jeff Foxworthy.
It was later revived by Nickelodeon in 2019, fronted by action star John Cena, and also spawned a board game and a book.
In the UK, the show was remade as Are You Smarter Than A 10 Year Old?, and was fronted by Noel Edmonds, and later by Dick and Dom.
In Kelce’s new spin-off of the show, an adult contestant will be given 11 elementary-level questions which they can ask a classroom of various celebrities for help answering.
The final question is from the sixth grade curriculum and is worth $100,000 (£80,000). Only one celebrity is allowed to talk through the answer to the last question with the contestant. Sixth grade students in the US are usually 11-12 years old.
Filming for the 20-episode series has already finished.
Swift at this year’s Super Bowl with Kelce. Pic: Reuters
‘The ultimate class clown’
Kelce said in a statement that he grew up watching game shows and is “excited to be following in the footsteps of so many TV icons”.
He went on: “The original show is a great success, so to be bringing a new format with everyone’s favourite celebrities to the screen, will definitely be entertaining.
“I’m just happy to be on the hosting side of the equation here and excited to see how these famous faces keep up.”
The original series co-creator Barry Poznick called Kelce “the ultimate class clown,” adding, “replacing the kids with celebrities gives us more laughs and surprises, like a roast, as contestants cheat off their famous classmates”.
Earlier this month, Kelce picked up his degree from the University of Cincinnati, 12 years after he finished his course.
He completed his remaining credit hours in 2022 to earn his degree in interdisciplinary studies, according to The Cincinnati Inquirer.
Producer, podcaster and festival founder
Are You Smarter Than A Celebrity? isn’t Kelce’s first TV role. He starred in his own 2016 dating competition show for E! called Catching Kelce and hosted an episode of Saturday Night Live last year.
He’s also a producer on the upcoming documentary King Pleasure, about American artist Jean-Michel Basquiat.
Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
Away from TV, he co-hosts a podcast New Heights with his brother, fellow NFL star Jason Kelce, chatting about popular culture as well as football.
He has also launched his own music festival, Kelce Jam, which will take place for the second year later this month, with starts including Lil Wayne and Diplo headlining.
US music stars Ashanti and Nelly have revealed they are engaged and are expecting their first child together.
The award-winning performers – who first dated over 20 years ago – rekindled their romance last year.
They first met at the Grammy Awards in 2003, and dated for a decade before going their separate ways.
The stars pictured in 2011, during their first relationship. Pic: AP
Ashanti shared a video on Instagram, saying she’ll need “about nine months” to prepare for her next big gig.
Nelly also shared the post, which was captioned, “Baby baby baby baby”, on his official Instagram feed.
In the video, Ashanti’s mother, Tina Douglas, asks her how much time Ashanti will need to get ready for the show.
We see the Foolish singer, who is wearing a glittery outfit trimmed with fur, grabbing a pregnancy test and disappearing backstage, before replying: “I’m going to need about nine months.”
The 43-year-old later confirmed she is engaged to the Hot In Herre and Ride Wit Me rapper Nelly, 49, whose real name is Cornell Haynes Jr.
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‘Sharing this with my family, fiance’
“This new year of my life is such a blessing full of love, hope, and anticipation,” Ashanti told Essence magazine.
“Motherhood is something that I have looked forward to, and sharing this with my family, fiance, and loyal fans, who have been so supportive of my career, is an amazing experience.”
Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
The baby will be Ashanti’s first child and Nelly’s fifth.
Nelly has a daughter and a son with his former partner, Channetta Valentine, and he adopted the two children of his late sister, Jackie Donahue, after she died of leukaemia in 2005.
The rapper’s family starred in the reality TV show Nellyville in 2014 alongside his then girlfriend Shantel Jackson.
Samantha Davis, the wife of Star Wars and Harry Potter actor Warwick Davis, has died aged 53.
Samantha co-founded the dwarfism charity Little People UK and featured in the final Harry Potter film, alongside Warwick.
Warwick announced the news in a statement shared to the BBC, revealing she had died on 24 March.
“Her passing has left a huge hole in our lives as a family. I miss her hugs.
“She was a unique character, always seeing the sunny side of life she had a wicked sense of humour and always laughed at my bad jokes.”
He added that she was his “most trusted confidant and an ardent supporter of everything I did in my career”.
Their two children together, Annabelle and Harrison, also paid tribute to their mother, saying: “Her love and happiness carried us through our whole lives.
“Mum is our best friend and we’re honoured to have received a love like hers.”
The couple met on the set of George Lucas’s film Willow and married three years later in 1991.
(L-R) Harrison Davis, Warwick Davis, Samantha Davis and Annabelle Davis at the screening of Disney+ series Willow in 2022. Pic: PA
Samantha also played a goblin in Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows: Part 2 while her husband played both Professor Flitwick and the goblin Griphook in all eight films in the franchise.
Annabelle, 27, has followed in her parents’ acting footsteps, starring in CBBC’s The Dumping Ground and Channel 4 soap Hollyoaks.
Warwick starred as the titular hero Willow Ufgood in the 1988 original film Willow and reprised the role for the 2022 sequel.
Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
He also played several characters in the Star Wars film series.
Samantha and Warwick co-founded Little People UK in 2012 to help individuals with dwarfism and their families.
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