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Joe Lycett has been counting down the hours until he shreds £10,000 of his own money at midday today unless David Beckham ends his controversial multi-million-pound deal with Qatar to promote the World Cup.

The Brummy comedian posted an ultimatum on social media last week, warning the former England star that along with the cash, Beckham‘s “status as a gay icon will be shredded”.

Lycett unveiled the deadline in a message directed to Beckham personally, saying he would donate the money to LGBTQ+ charities if the sports star ended the sponsorship deal ahead of the tournament.

In the minute-and-a-half video, which shows Lycett sat at a desk with wads of cash, he praises Beckham as a gay icon, joking that marrying a Spice Girl is “the gayest thing a human being can do”.

Going on to explain that Qatar has been “voted as one of the worst places in the world to be gay”, he appeals to Beckham to rethink his deal with the Middle East country.

It has been reported that Beckham signed a multi-million-pound deal with the FIFA World Cup hosts, which Lycett says is worth £10m – but other reports have put as high as £150m.

Qatar has faced an onslaught of criticism since being chosen as the host nation, with the country’s human rights record and ban on same-sex relationships proving particularly problematic.

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In Qatar, participating in same-sex sexual activity can be punished with up to seven years in prison, or even the death penalty.

The safety of migrant workers and the logistics of holding a football tournament in desert heat have also attracted negative attention.

Beckham is yet to publicly acknowledge or respond to the ultimatum, prompting Lycett to share a message to Beckham’s PR team asking: “Could you let me know if there’s any chance he might budge on his position, or am I to expect radio silence on this?”

He added: “There’s still time for David and his team to do the right thing.”

He also shared a picture of the £10k and the red woodchipper he will use to shred it.

Read more: Being gay is ‘damage in the mind’ – Qatar World Cup ambassador

Lycett has set up a dedicated website to livestream the shredding, which he says will take place at midday, shortly before the World Cup opening ceremony.

There has been a mixed response to the comedian’s pledge to destroy the money, with some praising him for raising awareness of Qatar’s poor human rights record and criminalisation of LGBTQ+ people, while some have urged him to donate the money to a food bank rather than shredding it at a time when the cost of living is soaring.

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Comedian Harry Hill commented on Lycett’s pledge on social media, wishing him luck and saying he would be “voting with my feet” and not watching any of the World Cup, or buying any products endorsed by Beckham. For good measure, he added: “I will not be plucking my eyebrows.”

Sky News has contacted Beckham’s and Lycett’s representatives for comment.

The World Cup kicks off today, with the opening ceremony at 2.30pm UK time, and the first match at 4pm UK time, with Qatar playing Ecuador.

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Dances With Wolves and The Green Mile actor Graham Greene dies aged 73

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Dances With Wolves and The Green Mile actor Graham Greene dies aged 73

Graham Greene, the Canadian First Nations actor best known for his performance in Dancing With Wolves, has died aged 73.

The star died peacefully after a long illness.

His agent Michael Greene (not a relation) said he loved everything the actor “did for his people and for all the world” in a statement sent to Sky News.

“He was a great man of morals, ethics and character and will be eternally missed…God bless his beautiful soul.”

Greene was a “trailblazer” who opened doors for indigenous actors in Hollywood, US entertainment outlet Deadline reported.

He made his screen debut in an episode of the Canadian drama series The Great Detective in 1979, and his first film, Running Brave, followed in 1983.

But his breakthrough came when he was cast as Kicking Bird (Zintka Nagwaka) in Kevin Costner‘s Dances With Wolves, released in 1990.

Greene was nominated for best supporting actor, one of 12 nods for the film, which took home seven, including best picture.

He went on to appear in Maverick alongside Mel Gibson and Jodie Foster in 1994, Die Hard With A Vengeance with Bruce Willis and Samuel L Jackson in 1995, The Green Mile with Tom Hanks and Michael Clarke Duncan in 1999, The Twilight Saga: New Moon with Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson in 2009, and Wind River alongside Jeremy Renner and Elizabeth Olsen in 2017.

His TV credits included Wolf Lake, Defiance and Marvel’s Echo, as well as Tulsa King and The Last Of Us more recently.

Greene also had several projects in the works, according to movie database IMDB.

He is survived by his wife, Hilary Blackmore, his daughter Lilly Lazard-Greene and her son, Talo.

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Father Ted co-creator Graham Linehan ‘arrested at Heathrow over posts on X’

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Father Ted co-creator Graham Linehan 'arrested at Heathrow over posts on X'

Father Ted co-creator Graham Linehan has said he was arrested at Heathrow Airport, over social media posts sharing his views on trans rights.

Writing on Substack, the 57-year-old said that after flying into the UK from Arizona, he was detained by five armed officers and put in a cell before being questioned over posts published on X in April.

During questioning, he said a nurse checked on him and found his blood pressure had reached “stroke territory”, so he was taken to A&E.

A Met Police spokeswoman confirmed an arrest was made at Heathrow on Monday but did not identify Linehan.

In a statement, the force said: “On Monday 1 September at 1pm officers arrested a man at Heathrow Airport after he arrived on an inbound American Airlines flight.

“The man in his 50s was arrested on suspicion of inciting violence. This is in relation to posts on X.

“After being taken to police custody, officers became concerned for his health and he was taken to hospital. His condition is neither life-threatening nor life-changing.

“He has now been bailed pending further investigation.”

The arrest was made by officers from the force’s Aviation Unit, the Met spokeswoman said, adding that it is routine for officers policing airports to carry firearms.

“These were not drawn or used at any point during the arrest,” she said.

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The BTO Kid: ‘I spent months in a coma – AI has given me a musical voice’

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The BTO Kid: 'I spent months in a coma - AI has given me a musical voice'

“AI has changed my life, absolutely,” Lucas Horne tells Sky News. “When I play my music, I’m happy because the words I know mean a lot to me can now be heard by everyone else.”

Lucas was 17 when, in December 2016, with no warning, he suffered a large, traumatic bleed across his brain.

He didn’t wake up until almost four months later.

Unknowingly, he had been living with a defect in the blood vessels known as an AVM (arteriovenous malformation), a ticking time bomb which had ruptured, and the next three years of his life were spent in recovery in a care home.

Lucas spent almost four months in a coma after suffering a brain bleed in 2016. Pic: Fanvue World AI Creator Awards
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Lucas spent almost four months in a coma after suffering a brain bleed in 2016. Pic: Fanvue World AI Creator Awards

He couldn’t walk and struggled to talk. Writing down his thoughts, almost like a diary, was something he says he wanted to do from very early on.

“During my care home days when I couldn’t really express myself very well – I still can’t – but I could write about it, it was an outlet for me,” he says. “Since I woke up, I’ve been writing… but for a long time I couldn’t record anything.”

Lucas, now 26, has spent years working on his physical recovery and speech. But when he was eventually physically able to record the songs he had been writing himself, he became frustrated by the way his voice had changed.

“It never sounded how I had [it in] my head,” he says. “I’m very monotone in how I speak, I struggle to really display emotion.”

And so he turned to AI (artificial intelligence). Now, Lucas is also known as The BTO Kid, and is one of 15 creators from around the world, shortlisted from more than 500 entries, for the inaugural Future Sound Awards – celebrating artificial intelligence in music.

DJ David Guetta is among the big-name artists who have embraced AI. Pic: Christoph Reichwein/picture-alliance/dpa/AP July 2025
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DJ David Guetta is among the big-name artists who have embraced AI. Pic: Christoph Reichwein/picture-alliance/dpa/AP July 2025

While some artists such as will.i.am, David Guetta, Grimes, Timbaland and even Sir Paul McCartney have embraced certain aspects of AI, it can be a controversial subject in the creative industries – with concerns raised by many in the about issues including copyright, human replacement, fakes, and regulation.

It was one of the issues behind the Hollywood actors’ and writers’ strikes in 2023 – and the more recent video game actor strike, which ended in June after nearly a year of industrial action.

Despite the criticism, AI isn’t going away. Last year was a “breakout” year for the technology in music, according to the International Music Summit’s latest annual business report, with 60m users using AI software.

Lucas says he is a perfect example of how the technology can be used for good.

“I’ve been able to use AI to express how I’m feeling,” he says. “It’s been big for me to create [music] that I’m proud of. I can see the arguments [against it], but from my view I know AI helped me create something I couldn’t before. I’m not Adele, but I have been able to make something that I’m proud of and that expresses my view point of what’s happened to me.”

Read more on AI in the music industry:
Will.i.am on embracing AI

AI used to help create ‘the last Beatles record

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Will.i.am starts Sky News interview with AI app

‘AI is lowering the barriers’

BTO stands for Beat The Odds and his shortlisted track is titled AI Gave Me A Voice. “I pinch myself every day because this just can’t be true,” is the opening line – which he says reflects how far he has come from the moment he woke up and discovered what had happened.

“That comes from reality. I do have moments where I think so much has happened that it must not be true… every line means something to me.”

Lucas, who lives in Nottingham, used the AI-powered music production platform TwoShot to create the track, using prompts on what he wanted for the sound alongside his lyrics, inspired by melodic rap.

“I think we’re gonna get quite a lot more people like me that can’t record music and have been given a voice through AI,” he says. “AI is lowering the barriers to entry for a lot of things.” Which can be a negative as well as a positive, he acknowledges. “We’ll have to see where it goes.”

Gallis is among 15 music creators shortlisted for the Future Sound Awards. Pic: Fanvue World AI Creator Awards
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Gallis is among 15 music creators shortlisted for the Future Sound Awards. Pic: Fanvue World AI Creator Awards

Launched by the Fanvue World AI Creator Awards, The Future Sound Awards aim to highlight the ethical use of AI in music, organisers say. Fanvue is a subscription creator platform with more than 180,000 users.

Some 15 artists from the US, Europe, Australia and Asia, as well as the UK, have been shortlisted for prizes, and the winners will be announced later in September.

Lucas is one of two British creators on the list, alongside Gallis, from Essex. The 31-year-old first dipped his toe into the waters of the music industry about 10 years ago, after joining the urban-pop boy band Mr Meanor, but says the industry was hard and “it all got a bit too much”.

He is now a tattoo artist and fine painter, but continued his songwriting and started to try out AI music production tools about 18 months ago.

Read more on AI in the music industry:
‘Regulate it before we’re all finished’
‘It’s like saying you can burgle my house unless I ask you not to’
Silent album released in AI protest

UK Music organised a protest against AI copyright plans at Westminster earlier in the summer
Image:
UK Music organised a protest against AI copyright plans at Westminster earlier in the summer

AI has ‘made me more creative’

As an artist, he says he had his own concerns about AI before he started using it himself, particularly after image generators started becoming prominent online.

“It was stealing the work that I was doing,” is how he describes his initial feelings. “But I ended up jumping on board with it and for me personally, it’s inspired me so much. It’s made me quicker at what I’m doing, it’s made me more creative. And I think it’s the same with music. I think it’s gonna, if anything, grow the industry.”

However, he says he agrees with criticism about the ethics of how some AI models are trained – following controversy about work by human music artists and authors being used without consent. “And trying to impersonate exactly someone else and using someone else’s voice, I don’t agree with that at all,” he adds.

Gallis’s shortlisted song, Chiropractor emerged from “friendly competition” with a community of creators he came across when he moved into AI, trading feedback and ratings. The genre is Trinibad, which he says there isn’t enough of “in the AI world”, and the track is designed to get people dancing.

“I mainly stick to urban music, but I like writing in a lot of different styles,” he says. “I’ve done house songs, I’ve done UK drill songs, Afrobeats, amapiano. I’m a bit of a vibes man so if it makes me dance and move and smile that’s when I really enjoy it.”

Narcis Marincat, head of AI at Fanvue, says the stories behind the selected songs show a “richness and human emotion” that appealed to him and other judges.

“The impact of AI in music continues to divide opinion,” he says. “But for the first time, via the Future Sound Awards, we’re able to show a different perspective on the positive impact of AI in music – uncovering the real people behind the technology and sharing their stories and music.”

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