Malala Yousafzai has turned her hand to filmmaking as activism.
In a Sky News broadcast exclusive, the Nobel Peace Prize winner said that her “next phase” of human rights work needed to include “storytelling”.
Malala said: “Activism needs to go beyond working for an NGO.
“We need to find other ways in which we challenge the social norms that deny women their basic rights, their dignity.
“The screen helps us to connect with people and helps us be more tolerant towards others.”
Malala is the executive producer of Joyland. This Oscar-longlisted queer love story, directed by Saim Sadiq, explores transgender sexual desire in Pakistan, a strict Islamic republic.
Creating safe spaces for all women is fundamental to Malala’s human rights mission.
In 2012, when she was 15, she was shot in the head by the Taliban while she was campaigning for girls’ schooling in Pakistan.
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Malala was treated in Birmingham for her injuries.
Image: Malala was shot by the Taliban at the age of 15
She then attended Edgbaston High School, before going on to study politics, philosophy and economics at Oxford.
In 2014 she became the youngest individual to ever be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
Even after her ordeal, Malala refused to be silenced – and instead fought harder. She set up an NGO called Malala’s Fund, using her influence to champion the rights of all women around the globe.
Image: Pic: Studio Soho Distribution / Khoosat Films
‘Everyone’s story is important’
Now 25, Malala told Sky News: “I’m so grateful that Saim made sure the trans role was played by a trans woman. This was critical.
“This in itself is a huge accomplishment for Pakistan to make sure everyone gets the chance to make it to the screen.
“Everyone’s story is important. Everyone’s story deserves to be told by them. And a trans person should be given the rights that everybody else is given.
“What is really unfortunate is how we don’t want people to talk about issues, how we don’t want these stories to make it to the screen. I hope that we challenge that.”
Image: Malala delivers speech to the UN assembly
Joyland attempts to do just that. It is the first major Pakistani motion picture to feature a trans actor in a lead role.
Despite being Pakistan’s Oscars contender, the country’s government banned the film in August, after increasing pressure from hardline Islamic groups that called it “repugnant” and “highly objectionable”.
Image: Scene from Joyland. Pic: Studio Soho Distribution / Khoosat Films
Mushtaq Ahmad Khan, a senator in the Islamist party Jamaat-e-Islami, said: “Glamourising transgenders in Pakistan, as well as their love affairs, is a direct attack on our beliefs.”
Amnesty International said the ban was “censorship” and represented a “crackdown of freedom of expression”.
The decision was overturned mid-November, and now the film is available – with some edits – across the country, bar Punjab, where the film is set.
Image: Director Saim Sadiq
Director Saim Sadiq, 31, told Sky News the film “turned out to be a big act of resistance”.
“I realised when the film was being released, that there are a lot of people who are very uncomfortable with just the existence of this film,” he said.
“Banning the film is perhaps the fastest way to make the activism work and to get everybody to talk about the issues we want them to talk about.”
The 1975 and Olivia Rodrigo will be among the stars headlining Glastonbury Festival this year, it has been announced.
Glastonbury organisers have revealed the line-up for this summer’s event, taking place between 25 June and 29 June, after months of speculation.
The 1975 will take to the iconic Pyramid Stage on the Friday to headline, then Canadian singer-songwriter Neil Young will perform on Saturday and Olivia Rodrigo on the Sunday.
Other big names performing include British pop sensation Charli XCX, rapper Loyle Carner electronic group The Prodigy.
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Young’s announcement in January came amid some confusion, as he had days before told fans he was pulling out of the festival because the BBC’s involvement was a “corporate turn-off”.
The Canadian singer-songwriter later said this decision was down to “an error in the information I received”.
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The 1975 will be headlining for the first time, having made their Glastonbury debut in 2014.
The Cheshire band, known for hits such as Somebody Else and Chocolate, have regularly made headlines due to the antics of frontman Matty Healy.
Glastonbury, which takes place at Worthy Farm in Somerset in the summer, has worked closely with the BBC – its exclusive broadcast partner – since 1997.
Image: Neil Young performing at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival last May. Pic: Amy Harris/Invision/AP
Appetite for the esteemed festival saw standard tickets sell out in 35 minutes in November.
They cost £373.50 plus a £5 booking fee, up £18.50 from the price from the 2024 festival, and were sold exclusively through the See Tickets website.
The date for the resale – where tickets not fully paid for are put back up for purchase – is set for some time in spring.
The headliners last summer on the iconic Pyramid Stage were Dua Lipa, SZA and Coldplay, who made history as the first act to headline the festival five times.
2026 is likely to be a year off for Glastonbury, with the festival traditionally taking place four out of every five years, and the fifth year reserved for rehabilitation of the land.
Ofcom received 825 complaints over the Brit Awards, with the majority relating to Sabrina Carpenter’s raunchy performance and Charli XCX’s outfit, the media watchdog says.
US pop star Carpenter, 25, sported a red sparkly military-style blazer dress for her performance at the awards show on Saturday night, paired with stockings and suspenders for a rendition of Espresso.
The song was mixed with a Rule Britannia mash-up, as dancers in military parade dress followed her.
She then switched to a red sparkly bra and shorts for her next song, Bad Chem, which she performed alongside dancers in bras and shorts while sitting suggestively on a large bed.
Image: Sabrina Carpenter performing her second song. Pic: Reuters
Carpenter later received the global success award at the ceremony, and was also nominated in the international artist and international song of the year categories.
But much of the buzz on social media surrounded her performance, which took place before the 9pm watershed.
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The singer addressed the concerns during her acceptance speech for artist of the year, saying: “I heard that ITV were complaining about my nipples. I feel like we’re in the era of ‘free the nipple’ though, right?”
Carpenter paid tribute to the UK in her acceptance speech, saying: “The Brits have given me this award, and this feels like such an insane honour in a very primarily tea-drinking country… you really understood my dry sense of humour because your sense of humour is so, so dry. So I love y’all more than you even understand.”
Actor Noel Clarke begins his High Court libel case against The Guardian’s publisher today.
Clarke, 49, is suing Guardian News and Media (GNM) over a series of articles it published about him in April 2021.
They were based on the claims of 20 women Clarke knew “in a professional capacity” who allege his behaviour towards them amounted to sexual misconduct.
Clarke, known for his roles in the Kidulthood trilogy and Dr Who, “vehemently” denies “any sexual misconduct or wrongdoing”.
What will the trial cover?
Clarke is suing GNM for libel, sometimes also referred to as defamation.
It’s a civil tort – not a criminal offence – defined as false written statements that have damaged the person’s reputation. This means Clarke can seek redress or damages but no one will face charges or prison.
Clarke claims the articles The Guardian published in 2021 altered public opinion of him, damaged his reputation, and lost him work.
He said after the allegations emerged: “In a 20-year career, I have put inclusivity and diversity at the forefront of my work and never had a complaint made against me.
“If anyone who has worked with me has ever felt uncomfortable or disrespected, I sincerely apologise. I vehemently deny any sexual misconduct or wrongdoing and intend to defend myself against these false allegations.”
The Guardian is defending the claim on the basis of truth and public interest.
It said in its statement: “Our reporting on Noel Clarke in 2021 was based on the accounts of 20 brave women. After we published our first article, more women came forward.
“At trial, 32 witnesses are set to testify against Mr Clarke under oath. We look forward to a judge hearing the evidence.”
The trial will only focus on liability – not the amount of damages to be paid if Clarke is successful.
The actor tried and failed to get the case struck out in January, with his legal team saying it had “overwhelming evidence” of “perversion of the course of justice”.
His lawyers told the High Court three of the journalists involved in the articles had “deliberately and permanently” deleted messages, which meant he could not get a fair trial.
Lawyers for GNM told the court there was “no adequate evidential basis” for Clarke’s application for a strike out and said it sought “to smear Guardian journalists and editors without any proper justification”.
The trial, which will be presided over by judge Mrs Justice Steyn, is expected to last between four and six weeks.
Image: In July 2015. Pic: PA
What has happened since the articles were published?
A month before the articles about him were published in April 2021, Clarke received BAFTA’s outstanding contribution to British cinema award.
However, once the allegations against him emerged, he was suspended by the organisation and the prize rescinded.
His management and production company 42M&P told Sky News they were no longer representing him and Sky cancelled its TV show Bulletproof, starring Clarke and Top Boy actor Ashley Walters as the lead roles.
ITV also decided to pull the finale of another of his dramas, Viewpoint, following the Guardian articles.
The Met Police looked into the allegations against Clarke for any potential criminal wrongdoing, but in March 2022 announced they “did not meet the threshold for criminal investigation”.
Clarke filed the libel claim the following month and has attended several of the preliminary hearings in person.
He says he has faced a “trial by media” – and that the ordeal has left him suicidal and in need of professional help.
Image: At the UK premiere of Kidulthood in London’s Leicester Square in 2006. Pic: PA
‘Rising star’
Clarke made his TV debut in a revived version of Auf Wiedersehen Pet in 2002.
Soon after he played Mickey Smith in Dr Who and Kwame in the six-part Channel 4 series Metrosexuality.
He wrote and starred in the film trilogy Kidulthood, Adulthood, and Brotherhood, which were based in west London, where he grew up, and explored the lives of a group of teenagers given time off school after a bullied classmate takes their own life.
It was a box office success and eventually saw Clarke given BAFTA’s rising star prize in 2009.
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.