First Dates star Merlin Griffiths on filming, Fred and battling bowel cancer
He’s known as the sparkling mixologist, knocking up cocktails at moment’s notice and putting nervous singletons at their ease as they embark on a first date in front of the TV cameras.
But few viewers of Channel 4’s First Dates would have been aware when watching Merlin Griffiths in the latest series of the show, that he was undergoing chemotherapy while filming.
Diagnosed with stage 3 bowel cancer last year, Griffiths, who had an operation to remove a tumour in April, told Sky News: “The last time we were we were working in the First Dates restaurant, I was undergoing chemotherapy and the team were fantastically accommodating.
“Tiredness was one of the really big side effects, I was getting a lot of fatigue. So, there was an allowance made so I could step away from the bar at regular points and have a small bite and get some rest in between seeing our beautiful daters.
“Likewise, as soon as we finished, I was straight off into the intravenous part of chemo … And that would really hammer me around. But that was ok because we had a break in running the restaurant at that point and then a few days later it was back in, and you’re ready to go again.”
First Dates is so famous it even had its own celebrity skit on the BBC’s Children In Need
Despite the demanding nature of TV schedules, Griffiths insists he’s nothing special in working through his illness, saying: “People manage full family lives, you know, several children, childcare and work and still go for chemo and everything else. You find ways of making it work because what else are you going to do? You’re trying to live.”
The fourth most common cancer in the UK, one in 15 men and one in 18 women will be diagnosed with bowel cancer during their lifetime.
But, while bowel cancer is the nation’s second biggest cancer killer, it’s very treatable when it is caught early.
Stars like Griffiths and the late Dame Deborah James have played a large part in bringing bowel cancer into the public consciousness.
But keeping the illness under wraps is an instinct Griffiths understands: “Initially I wanted to just keep it completely to myself and my immediate family… just to get my head around it… But then it was a case of, huge bits of my life are going to change and somebody might notice. Friends are going to go, ‘Why aren’t you coming out?’
“So, I just thought, you know what? After a conversation with my family, I might as well do something constructive with all this… I think it’s important to use this for good.”
Now in its nineteenth series, Griffiths has been part of the First Dates since it first aired in 2013.
Using his TV familiarity as a platform, he’s been frank about both his illness its treatments, the reality of which he’s described in social media posts as “long, and often painful and ugly”.
Unstoppably upbeat, he can’t resist joking about some of the less dignified treatments, saying: “My first thoughts on colonoscopy was that if I’d been kidnapped by aliens, at least they’d have the good manners to wipe my memory! But no, in reality it wasn’t actually that bad. And that’s why we shouldn’t be afraid to talk about it.”
He knows it’s not an easy subject to broach: “The tendency is to shy away from a lot of these things, especially because they’re sort of like embarrassing and stuff we don’t genuinely talk about”.
He even admits he initially put off seeking treatment himself: “It’s very easy for us to push stuff to the side, isn’t it? You can rationalise it and you justify it. I rationalised it myself.
“I was late to get checked in all fairness, and I should have made investigations sooner. I’m under 50, so I don’t come into the routine screening. So, the onus is on me as the patient to look after myself.”
His symptoms started with pain in his abdomen and radical changes to his bowel movements.
Other symptoms can include bleeding from your bottom and/or blood in your poo, unexplained weight loss and extreme tiredness for no obvious reason.
The NHS offers bowel cancer screenings to all adults aged 50 and over in Scotland, and that will soon be rolled out across England and Wales too (currently in parts of England and Wales people are not offered screenings until they are 60). Those in Northern Ireland are offered screenings from 60. Screenings are then offered every two years until the age of 75.
But Griffiths says searching symptoms randomly online can be unhelpful, labelling “medical Google” as “an absolute hellhole”. He says websites including the main charity pages including Bowel Cancer UK and the NHS have been invaluable to him on his cancer journey.
And he says he couldn’t have got through it all without the help of his family – his wife and daughter – and of course his First Dates family too.
“They’ve been absolutely awesome. I speak to Fred regularly and I chat with Cici [Coleman] regularly. They’ve both been really good and it’s been lovely to have their support. I chat with people that work behind the scenes on the show on a regular basis as well.”
Plus, he says the French maître d’hôtel Fred Sirieix who leads the team is as nice as he seems on camera.
“Fred’s Hilarious. He’s a live one… What you see is what you get with Fred. And it’s a wonderfully refreshing thing to find in someone. He’s cheery, he’s happy, he’s honest and he’s overwhelmingly positive about just about everything.”
Away from his gruelling treatments, Griffiths has at least had a little luxury travel to enjoy, albeit on a work trip for yet more filming.
Testament to the success of First Dates, its spinoff series – First Dates Hotel – is filmed in the four-star Aquapetra Resort and Spa in Campania southern Italy. The show is currently in its seventh series.
As Channel 4’s longest running dating show, First Dates has been matching singletons for nearly 10 years and has at least five weddings and three babies to its name. So, what’s the secret of its success?
Griffiths says it’s all down human nature – and a bit of forward planning: “Love is eternal, isn’t it? It’s not going anywhere. And people have infinite variety… When you put those two things together – a timeless emotion and a timeless base need – with the wonderful variety of people, it’s a recipe for success, especially when you actively look to make it happen.
“A lot of work goes into to matchmaking our daters as well, and that for me is one of the key things behind it. There’s a genuine desire from everyone who works at the restaurant to make it work, and that’s important.”
First Dates Hotel airs on Tuesday evenings on Channel 4.
Stay on Track is a campaign with Merlin Griffiths and Matt Dawson, in partnership with Norgine and Bowel Cancer UK, which aims to raise awareness of bowel cancer and the importance of screening, testing and early diagnosis. For more information: www.bowelcanceruk.org.uk
Wes Anderson is a rarity in Hollywood, with an unswayed distinct aesthetic which has every big name in Hollywood pleading to be in his next project.
Fronted by Benicio del Toro, his new film The Phoenician Scheme sees the return of numerous previous collaborators including Tom Hanks, Jeffrey Wright and Scarlett Johansson, but also adds new faces to the Anderson universe.
It is set in the 1950s and follows a ruthless yet charismatic European business tycoon called Zsa-Zsa Korda who, in Anderson’s own words, “has very little obligation to honour the truth.”
Looking to solidify his own legacy, without much thought for his 10 children, the slaves he wants to use or the land he wants to exploit, Sza-Sza chases multiple deals so he can build his career-defining project, Korda Land and Sea Phoenician Infrastructure Scheme.
Director Wes Anderson on set. Pic: Roger Do Minh/TPS Productions/Focus Features
‘A motivation pill
The Phoenician Scheme was partly inspired by the life of Anderson’s father-in-law, whom he dedicated the film to, Lebanese businessman Fouad Malouf.
Del Toro tells Sky News it was a gift to play a truly unique character.
“It’s like taking a motivation pill,” he says.
“You’re motivated because it’s Wes Anderson, you’re motivated because of the script and the story and the character. It’s unpredictable, original. [There’s] one hell of an arc, and it’s full of contradictions.”
Director Wes Anderson on set. Pic: Roger Do Minh/TPS Productions/Focus Features
Always an actor in mind – well, mostly…
Michael Cera, who plays Bjorn, says he had a “sense of dread” joining the cast. His role was written with him in mind, something he still can’t believe is true.
“[Anderson] has got every actor at his disposal, you’d imagine,” he says.
With production pushed back due to an actors’ strike, Cera feared the project might “fall apart”.
“I was not really at ease until we were there,” he admits.
Every detail is meticulously planned in the Anderson film universe – from the art on the walls (original works from Renoir and Magritte in this case), to the intricate backstory of a character collecting fleas in a plastic bag as a child.
While most roles are written by the Fantastic Mr Fox filmmaker with certain actors in mind – the exception this time is Liesl, the daughter of the business tycoon.
Michael Cera as Bjorn and Benicio del Toro as Zsa-Zsa Korda. Pic: Focus Features
The dream phone call
After months of an audition process, Mia Threapleton got the call to play the straight-talking nun who is beckoned by her father to inherit the family business after his sixth near-death experience.
The 24-year-old daughter of Kate Winslet got the news via a call from her agent while she was on the train – and was in such disbelief she told her to call them back.
“I didn’t believe them – and she laughed at me [and said] ‘of course I’m not lying to you, this is true’. And then I sat on the floor and I cried.”
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Del Toro believes it was Threapleton’s screen test where she stood out as an “inventive” actor who thought on her feet that got her the part, having fashioned part of a makeshift nun costume with a napkin from a lunch tray.
“I said, ‘is there anyone who got any hairpins?’ And I pinned it to my head.”
Ticking a Wes Anderson film off the bucket list is a goal for many actors. Threapelton says she still hasn’t come to terms with achieving it so early in her career.
The Phoenician Scheme is in cinemas now.
Eight people have been found guilty of crimes connected to the gunpoint robbery of Kim Kardashian at a Paris hotel.
The theft targeting the TV personality, socialite and businesswoman in 2016 was carried out by a group the media dubbed the “grandpa robbers” as most were close to or of retirement age.
A six-member jury, led by three judges, reached a verdict on Friday following a four-week trial at Paris’s Palais de Justice.
The court found the ringleader and seven others guilty over the raid at the Hotel de Pourtales. Their sentences ranged from prison terms to a fine, but with time already served in pretrial detention, none of those convicted will go to jail.
The group were accused of pulling off one of the most audacious heists against a celebrity in modern French history, in the early hours of 3 October 2016 during Paris Fashion Week.
Wearing ski masks and disguised as police, the thieves stormed Kardashian‘s luxury hotel apartment, bound the star with zip ties, and stole jewellery worth an estimated $6m (£4.4m), including a ring given to her by then husband Kanye West.
‘You caused harm’
Chief judge David De Pas said the defendants’ ages – with the oldest being 79 and some others in their 60s and 70s – weighed on the court’s decision not to impose harsher sentences, and the nine years between the robbery and the trial was also taken into account.
He also told them the reality TV star had been traumatised by the raid, adding: “You caused harm. You caused fear.”
Some arrived in court in orthopaedic shoes and one leaned on a cane. But prosecutors warned observers not to be fooled.
Read more: Everything you need to know about the Paris trial
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Kim Kardashian’s testimony: What happened?
Ringleader Aomar Ait Khedache, 69, who arrived at court walking with a stick, was sentenced to eight years imprisonment, with five of those suspended.
His DNA, which was found on the bands used to bind Kardashian, was a key breakthrough that helped crack open the case. Wiretaps captured him giving orders, recruiting accomplices and arranging to sell the diamonds in Belgium.
Three others who were accused of the most serious charges got seven years imprisonment, five of them suspended.
‘Most terrifying experience of my life’
After the ruling, 44-year-old Kardashian, who was not present for the verdict, issued a statement, saying: “I am deeply grateful to the French authorities for pursuing justice in this case.
“The crime was the most terrifying experience of my life, leaving a lasting impact on me and my family.
“While I’ll never forget what happened, I believe in the power of growth and accountability and pray for healing for all. I remain committed to advocating for justice, and promoting a fair legal system.”
The court in the French capital found a ninth person guilty of illegal weapons charges, while a tenth person was cleared.
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Kardashian departing Paris court on 13 May
Kardashian ‘thought she would be raped and killed’
Five of the defendants, who were all aged between 60 and 72 at the time of the incident, faced armed robbery and kidnapping charges.
The remaining five defendants were charged with complicity in the heist or the unauthorised possession of a weapon.
During the robbery, Kardashian, who previously told the court she thought she would be raped and killed, was bound with zip-ties and left in the bathtub.
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She described the robbery as “terrifying” and said while she felt forgiveness, that in no way altered “the emotion and the feelings and the trauma,” adding “my life is forever changed”.
Two members of the group – Khedache, known as “Old Omar”, and Yunice Abbas – who wrote a book called I Kidnapped Kim Kardashian, admitted some part in the robbery, while the remaining eight denied the charges.
Prosecutors had requested sentences of up to 10 years.
Kardashian earlier this week completed her six-year legal apprenticeship in California.
Most of the jewellery, which is understood to have been sold in Belgium, was never found.
A diamond-encrusted cross, dropped during the escape, was the only piece ever recovered.
Kneecap have released a new single ahead of their headline performance at London’s Wide Awake festival, just days after one of their members was charged with a terror offence.
The rap trio from Belfast shared a link to the song – The Recap – which opens with Sky News presenter Wilfred Frost reporting about the counter terrorism police investigation – on Instagram, linking to their WhatsApp channel.
Kneecap performing in Belfast last year. Pic: PA
Bandmembers Liam O hAnnaidh, Naoise O Caireallain and JJ O Dochartaigh, also thanked the 25,000 fans who had bought tickets for Friday night’s festival.
They also reference Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch, with whom they’ve had previous run-ins, writing: “Kemi Badenoch you might wanna sit down for this one, if you’ve any seats left.”
Last year, Kneecap won a discrimination case against the UK government in Belfast High Court after former business secretary Ms Badenoch tried to refuse them a £14,250 funding award when she was a minister.
Ms Badenoch has called for Kneecap to be banned and suggested they should be dropped from the Glastonbury Festival line-up. Some other politicians have made the same demand.
The track mocks Badenoch’s attempts to block their arts funding and the Conservative Party’s election loss. It features DJ Mozey.
It comes after O hAnnaidh, who performs under the stage name Mo Chara, was charged over the alleged display of a Hezbollah flag at a gig at the O2 Forum in Kentish Town, north London, in November last year, the Metropolitan Police said on Wednesday.
On Thursday, the band held a surprise gig at the 100 Club on Oxford Street, where O hAnnaidh could be seen in videos on social media arriving on stage with tape covering his mouth.
He then joked about being careful about what he said, adding that he wanted to thank his lawyer, saying: “I need to thank my lawyer, he’s here tonight as well.”
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Stars talk about risks of speaking out
In video footage posted to YouTube, the band led the audience in a chant of “free Mo Chara” and joked about the police presence at the venue.
Police said they attended to manage visitors to the sold-out event.
The band said on X that the central London event sold out in 90 seconds, with 2,000 people on the waiting list.
O hAnnaidh, 27, is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on 18 June.
Formed in 2017, the group are known for their provocative lyrics in both Irish and English and proved a critical hit in the 2024 semi-fictionalised band origin story movie Kneecap, starring actor Michael Fassbender.
Their best-known tracks include Get Your Brits Out, Better Way To Live, featuring Grian Chatten from Fontaines DC, and 3Cag.
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