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The SONDORS Metacycle electric motorcycle’s reservation window had previously closed for new pre-orders. But today the company re-opened reservations while maintaining the original promotional price of $5,000.

This comes after SONDORS had previously indicated that the price would be rising to around $6,000 or more when the reservation period closed last month.

The current reservation offer indicates that deliveries would occur in 2022. The first Metacycle pre-order customers were originally told that deliveries would occur in Q4 of 2021 (i.e. now).

Early in the development process, SONDORS informed reservation holders that Metacycle production was actually running ahead of schedule and the company moved up the estimated ship date to Q3 2021.

It appears the company spoke too soon, though, as when Q3 arrived the company had to issue a new statement pushing deliveries back to Q4 of this year.

While we got to see a hand-built production validation prototype several days ago at the LA Auto Show, it is looking increasingly likely that the first bikes won’t make their way into customers’ garages by the end of this year.

That means 2022 should be the year of the Metacycle, and SONDORS seems confident enough in that estimate to offer new reservation holders a delivery estimate of 2022, though without a specific quarter to look forward to.

The $5,000 price is not expected to hold steady for long though. As SONDORS explained in a recent statement:

“Additional Metacycle order opportunities have come available. Do not hesitate – quantities are extremely limited and will be shipped on a first come, first served basis. This is your final chance to secure your Metacycle and lock in the $5,000 preclusive pricing. Act now and secure your Metacycle for estimated 2022 shipping. After this, you can expect a price increase of 20% or more.”

Metacycle could face challengers, such as the NIU RQi (on left)

When the Metacycle first debuted early this year, it caused a shockwave in the industry due to its low price and relatively high performance specs.

While it won’t rival a Zero or Energica electric motorcycle, the 80 mph (130 km/h) bike should at least enable commuters to take the highway instead of sticking to urban-only roads.

And with a 4 kWh battery offering a range of 80 miles (130 km) at city speeds, it should have enough capacity for most commuters as well.

Perhaps most importantly, the Metacycle’s $5,000 price has kept it far below the sky high figures normally seen among flagship electric motorcycles.

Now the big question is “When will we see it?” Nearly a year ago the Metacycle’s specs and pricing stood alone in the industry. But now there are new competitors creeping up that could manage to beat the Metacycle to market.

Just today NIU showed off its RQi Sport electric motorcycle. While slightly slower than the Metacycle at around 110 km/h (68 mph), the RQi comes from an experienced electric scooter builder with over two million vehicles on the road. And the company’s new MQi GT EVO could use its similar speed to also carve away at the Metacycle’s market. The RQi is expected to be in stores in July of 2022, while the MQi GT EVO will be here even sooner in March of 2022.

Then there’s the Kollter ES1, which also offers speeds nearly as fast as the Metacycle at around 70 mph (112 km/h).

The Kollter ES1 is already available in the US and is priced at $5,999, making it only slightly more expensive than the Metacycle. I recently test rode the Kollter ES1 and found it to be a great commuter-level electric motorcycle. See my test ride video below.

SONDORS will still likely win on its futuristic design, but the marketplace has since become more crowded.

The clock is ticking on the Metacycle, and there are plenty of newcomers to the market that will be happy for a chance to snap up a piece of the pie.

What do you think of the SONDORS Metacycle electric motorcycle? Let’s hear your thoughts in the comment section below!


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Reservoir Dogs actor Michael Madsen died from heart failure, says cardiologist

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Reservoir Dogs actor Michael Madsen died from heart failure, says cardiologist

Actor Michael Madsen, who starred in Reservoir Dogs and Thelma & Louise, died from heart failure, his cardiologist has said.

The 67-year-old was found unresponsive in his home in Malibu, California, last Thursday and pronounced dead.

His doctor said heart disease and alcoholism will be listed as factors which contributed to the star’s death, reported NBC Los Angeles.

With no suspicious circumstances and the death listed as being from natural causes, the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department considers the case closed.

In a career spanning more than 40 years, Madsen’s film credits include Free Willy, Donnie Brasco and Sin City.

He was also known for his collaborations with director Quentin Tarantino, including in Kill Bill: Vol. 2, The Hateful Eight and Once Upon A Time In Hollywood.

The Chicago-born actor also linked up with Tarantino when he played Mr Blonde in 1992’s Reservoir Dogs.

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Michael Madsen played Mr Blonde in Reservoir Dogs. Pic: THA/Shutterstock
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Madsen played numerous roles, including Mr Blonde in Reservoir Dogs. Pic: THA/Shutterstock

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His sister, Oscar-nominated actress Virginia Madsen, paid tribute to her brother in a statement to Variety.

She wrote: “My brother Michael has left the stage.

“He was thunder and velvet. Mischief wrapped in tenderness. A poet disguised as an outlaw. A father, a son, a brother – etched in contradiction, tempered by love that left its mark.”

Madsen was preparing to release a new book called Tears For My Father: Outlaw Thoughts And Poems.

A statement by managers Susan Ferris and Smith, and publicist Liz Rodriguez, said the book by “one of Hollywood’s most iconic actors” was currently being edited.

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Fantasy v reality: Lena Dunham’s Too Much is a new spin on the London romcom

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Fantasy v reality: Lena Dunham's Too Much is a new spin on the London romcom

Horse-drawn carriages, picturesque gardens and endless cups of tea are just some of the stereotypical tropes that have shaped America’s romanticised image of England before even stepping foot on the island.

Thanks to classical literature and a steady stream of period dramas, Lena Dunham was no exception.

“I had so many fantasies,” she tells Sky News about growing up slightly obsessed with British culture.

“I loved Jane Austen, I loved Charlotte Bronte, I love British film, I was one of those little Anglophile kids.”

The writer and director believed it would be that area of classically depicted England that would fill her time when she first moved to “jolly old London” as a teenager with her mother for a brief time.

Instead, her attention was taken by another, and possibly equally influential group of artists.

“There was a pop show about S Club 7 and all I did was just sit in the hotel and obsessively watch things relating to [the group],” she said.

“So, I didn’t go home with all this cultural British knowledge. I went home with a deep abiding love of S Club 7 and came back to school when everyone was obsessed with the Backstreet Boys and NSYNC.

“For me, I was literally like, ‘Guys, you got to hear this hot track right off the presses, it’s called Reach For The Stars’.”

Lena Dunham in a clip from Netflix series Too Much. Pic: Netflix
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Pic: Netflix

It wasn’t until her 30s, when the actress moved again to the city, that reality took hold and she quickly learned the difference between the imagined London and the real city.

Some stereotypes hold true, like the universal love for Paddington. Still, TV tropes like renting a flat on a single income in the city does not necessarily mean you’ll be treated to lavish rooms and a picturesque garden.

She says it was social cues she found most challenging to adjust to, as well as the different dictionaries used when speaking, technically, the same language.

“You come to a new country and even though you speak the same language, you’re totally absent from those tools,” she says.

“And I found that really striking as an adult in my 30s, trying to make friends, trying to date. I found it confusing enough to be a person in my own city of origin, so this was extra confounding.”

Too Much, her new Netflix series, is loosely inspired by her own London chapter and follows a workaholic New Yorker in her 30s who is sent across the Atlantic to work on a new project.

The 10-episode show is produced by Working Title – the company behind Bridget Jones, Notting Hill, About A Boy and Love Actually – and stars Hacks breakout actress Megan Stalter and The White Lotus actor Will Sharpe.

Megan Stalter stars as Jessica in Lena Dunham's new Netflix comedy Too Much. Pic: Netflix
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Pic: Netflix

Dunham says she always wanted to write about her time in the UK, but it was a conversation with Irish actor Andrew Scott that got the ball rolling.

“Actually, he’s the reason that I came to know Meg as an actor because he loved her on Hacks and he loved her videos, and he said: ‘Have you watched this woman’s work? I feel like there’s a real connection between you two’, and I started watching because of him and built a show around her.”

In a full circle moment, Scott appears in the series briefly as an arrogantly odd man who crosses paths with Megan Stalter’s character Jessica.

Andrew Scott in Lena Dunham 's new Netflix comedy series Too Much. Pic: Netflix
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Pic: Netflix

The Ridley actor isn’t the only famous face joining the cast in a cameo role. Dunham put a call out to most of Hollywood, and luckily lots were on board.

To name just a few, guest stars include Jessica Alba, Stephen Fry, Adwoa Aboah, Kit Harington, Rita Wilson, Rita Ora, Richard E Grant, Emily Ratajkowski, Andrew Scott, Prasanna Puwanarajah and Jennifer Saunders.

“It was one of those situations where you just reach for the stars, literally, and then you can’t believe when they appear,” says Dunham.

“It was just a non-stop parade of people that I was fascinated by, wanted to be around, completely enamoured of.”

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Lena Dunham speaks to Sky's entertainment reporter Debbie Ridgard
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A whole host of high-profile cameos feature in Lena Dunham’s Too Much

She adds: “I remember asking Naomi Watson, thinking, there’s absolutely no way that you’re going to want to come play this slightly demented woman. And she’s so playful and she’s so joyful and she just wanted to come and engage.

“Also, Jennifer Saunders has meant so much to me for so long, I had the AbFab box set as a kid, and I just think Patsy and Edina are the ultimate kind of messy women.

“She really showed me what comedy could be and… the space that women could occupy in comedy, and so having her come and join the show was really incredible.

“That was an episode that someone else was directing, Alicia McDonald, an amazing director, so I just got to sit and watch at the monitor like I was watching a movie, and it was very surreal for me.”

Too Much is out on Netflix now.

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‘I will not go quietly,’ Gregg Wallace says amid reports he’s been sacked by the BBC

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'I will not go quietly,' Gregg Wallace says amid reports he's been sacked by the BBC

Former MasterChef host Gregg Wallace has vowed he will “not go quietly”, amid reports that he has been sacked by the BBC.

It comes after the TV host faced an investigation, commissioned by MasterChef’s production company Banijay UK, into alleged inappropriate behaviour while working for the BBC.

In November, the 60-year-old stepped back from presenting the cooking show after accusations that he made sexual comments towards staff and celebrity guests on a range of programmes over 17 years.

Gregg Wallace receives his MBE for services to food and charity. Pic: PA
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Gregg Wallace received an MBE for services to food and charity in 2023. Pic: PA

Broadcaster Kirsty Wark, author and actor Emma Kennedy, and presenter Kirstie Allsopp, were among the high-profile figures who made claims of inappropriate behaviour against Wallace.

In a statement, released ahead of the publication of the summary of a report into the claims, the 60-year-old said he had been “cleared of the most serious and sensational accusations” made against him.

However, he said the report, carried out by independent law firm Lewis Silkin, had found him “primarily guilty of inappropriate language between 2005 and 2018”.

Wallace’s statement, published on Instagram, came hours before the BBC News reported that 50 more people had made claims to the corporation against the presenter, including allegations he groped one MasterChef worker and pulled his trousers down in front of another.

In his statement, Wallace labelled BBC News’s claims as “uncorroborated tittle-tattle”.

Wallace wrote: “I have taken the decision to speak out ahead of the publication of the Silkin’s report – a decision I do not take lightly.

“But after 21 years of loyal service to the BBC, I cannot sit in silence while my reputation is further damaged to protect others.

“I have now been cleared by the Silkin’s report of the most serious and sensational accusations made against me.

“The most damaging claims (including from public figures which have not been upheld) were found to be baseless after a full and forensic six-month investigation.

“To be clear, the Silkin’s report exonerates me of all the serious allegations which made headlines last year and finds me primarily guilty of inappropriate language between 2005 and 2018.”

Gregg Wallace on MasterChef. Pic: BBC/ Shine TV 2024
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Gregg Wallace on MasterChef. Pic: BBC/ Shine TV 2024

‘I was hired as the cheeky greengrocer – now that’s a problem’

Wallace said he recognised that “some of my humour and language” was at times “inappropriate” and, for that, he apologised “without reservation”.

“But I was never the caricature now being sold for clicks,” Wallace, who also referred to his recent diagnosis of autism, added.

“I was hired by the BBC and MasterChef as the cheeky greengrocer. A real person with warmth, character, rough edges, and all.

“For over two decades, that authenticity was part of the brand. Now, in a sanitised world, that same personality is seen as a problem.”

Wallace and Anne-Marie Sterpini in 2014
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Wallace and his partner Anna Wallace, pictured in 2014

Wallace: Complaints from ‘middle-class women of a certain age’

Shortly after the allegations first emerged, Wallace recorded a video where he dismissed his accusers as “middle-class women of a certain age”.

His remarks were met with huge criticism – including from Downing Street, where a spokesperson for the prime minister described them as “completely inappropriate and misogynistic”.

Wallace responded by posting a follow-up clip where he apologised and said he “wasn’t in a good space” when he posted the comments.

Wallace was replaced in the 20th season of MasterChef, which aired this spring, by restaurant critic and former I‘m A Celebrity contestant Grace Dent. Several Christmas episodes of the show were also pulled from the BBC’s 2024 festive schedule.

In April, Wallace spoke to the Daily Mail, denying all accusations against him and saying he had contemplated suicide following the allegations.

Wallace’s lawyers have previously called allegations that he engages in behaviour of a sexually harassing nature “entirely false”.

A spokesperson for the BBC said: “Banijay UK instructed the law firm Lewis Silkin to run an investigation into allegations against Gregg Wallace. We are not going to comment until the investigation is complete and the findings are published.”

A Banijay spokesperson told Sky News: “We won’t be commenting until our report is published.” They have signalled the report will be published later this week or next.

Banijay previously said Wallace is “committed to fully co-operating” with the external review.

Alongside MasterChef, Wallace presented Inside The Factory for BBC Two from 2015 to 2023.

He also featured on various BBC shows over the years, including Saturday Kitchen, Eat Well For Less, Supermarket Secrets, Celebrity MasterChef and MasterChef: The Professionals, as well as being a Strictly Come Dancing contestant in 2014.

More recently, Wallace has been promoting his health and lifestyle website, offering one-to-one coaching from both himself and a team of experts, which includes nutritionists and doctors, and his wife Anna in the role of recipe curator.

Anyone feeling emotionally distressed or suicidal can call Samaritans for help on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org in the UK. In the US, call the Samaritans branch in your area or 1 (800) 273-TALK.

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