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Andrew Scott says men are going through a “crisis” right now, struggling to find “what it means to be a man” in today’s society.

The Irish actor – who became a household name thanks to his role as ‘hot’ priest in Fleabag – tells Sky News: “There’s a sort of crisis in masculinity I think at the moment and what it means to be a man.

Paul Mescal in All Of Us Strangers. Pic: Chris Harris/Searchlight Pictures
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Paul Mescal in All Of Us Strangers. Pic: Chris Harris/Searchlight Pictures

“We have all these things within us, there’s no one way of being, there just isn’t, and sometimes the people who are the most outwardly macho in some ways, are the people who aren’t going to be there for you emotionally.

His co-star, fellow Irishman Paul Mescal, whose breakout role in hit drama Normal People has made him one of the most in demand actors right now, adds, “and they’ll be the first to break”.

Scott nods: “When you are able to accept all those parts of you, I think that leads to better mental health and just a sense of stability.”

The 47-year-old plays screenwriter Adam in All Of Us Strangers – a fantasy romance merging the themes of grief, loss, identity and isolation.

Despite being overlooked in the Oscars nominations, the film has earned six BAFTA nods including outstanding British film and best director, and best supporting actor for Mescal.

More on Paul Mescal

The 27-year-old, who plays troubled neighbour Harry in the movie, says that while figures like Andrew Tate act as figureheads for toxic masculinity, this film showcases a very different kind of male energy.

“Adam and Harry, they’re going through difficult junctions and moments in their life.

“They’re also using their masculinity as a kind of haven for each other. They’re not using their masculinity as a barrier or something that is that is impenetrable, it’s the opposite, and I’m proud of that.”

Andrew Scott and Paul Mescal in ALL OF US STRANGERS.  Photo Courtesy of Searchlight Pictures. .. 2023 Searchlight Pictures All Rights Reserved.
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Pic: Searchlight Pictures

Their connection breaks their solitude, lived out in a deserted tower block in the heart of the capital.

The film’s writer and director, Andrew Haigh tells Sky News male fragility was something he was keen to explore.

“I always think that so many men are just like lost little boys trapped in adults’ bodies. So, I wanted the film to speak to that a little bit, and I wanted it to sort of radiate vulnerability.”

A queer love story

Inspired by the 1987 novel Strangers by Japanese author Taichi Yamada who died in November, the movie’s set in London rather than Tokyo, and pulls away from the stock ghost story elements of its source material.

But the key difference is that the novel has a heterosexual love story at its centre rather than a queer one.

Haigh has said it was important for his lead character, Adam, to be played by an actor who shared his sexuality.

He explains that while it’s not a hard and fast casting rule, on this occasion he felt it was the right choice.

“There is so much nuance in Adam and the understanding of how the past has affected him, growing up in the 80s as a gay kid, what that has done to him as an adult, the trauma of growing up at that time, which was a really rough, difficult time.

“I wanted an actor who understood that on a very visceral level. And I think it’s a very hard thing to explain to people that didn’t experience that, or actually understand how it felt or how we carry the baggage of that into our adulthood.”

Andrew Scott and Paul Mescal in All Of Us Strangers. Pic: Parisa Taghizadeh/Searchlight Pictures
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Pic: Parisa Taghizadeh/Searchlight Pictures

Scott, who first spoke about being gay in interviews 10 years ago when promoting the movie Pride, says it’s about so much more than whether a character is straight or gay.

‘You don’t play sexuality’

“I think the most important thing in any character is to look at what the attributes of the character are, not just the sexuality of the character.”

He says representation behind the camera is as important as that in front, with people in positions of power elsewhere on the production able to speak up if they feel a representation is false or inaccurate.

“You don’t play sexuality, otherwise all gay characters would just have the same attributes – one gay character is distinct from another gay character, depending on what their attributes are, in the same way, we’d apply that theory to straight characters.”

Admitting he sometimes gets frustrated when questions about sexuality are asked even when they have no relevance to a project, Scott explains: “What we’re talking about is storytelling because representation is incredibly important. I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t believe that.

“But so is transformation because it speaks to our empathy. And I think actors like to transform because you like to empathise, like to imagine what it’s like to be in someone else’s shoes…

“We’re all more similar to each other than we might imagine.”

The chemistry is for real

Mescal, who is straight, defends his casting in the role of a gay man.

He explains: “Historically, when there’s been performances that have been deemed offensive, it’s when actors or storytellers are attempting to play a sexuality. It’s impossible. And I often times think that one of the least interesting parts of these characters is their sexuality.

“They contain so much more than just that, and that’s what I like to find in this story, not just as a queer love story, but as a love story in general.”

Paul Mescal in ALL OF US STRANGERS. Photo by Chris Harris. Courtesy of Searchlight Pictures. .. 2023 Searchlight Pictures All Rights Reserved.
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Pic: Chris Harris/Searchlight Pictures

Haigh says he cast Mescal as he felt he’d be “incredible and wonderful in that role”, adding, “of course you can cast someone, I think, in certain roles who don’t necessarily match the sexuality of the characters.

“It’s often about who is also writing the material and who is making the material and who is behind the material, and there are a lot of us on this project who are gay and are queer and understand what this experience is.”

When asked whether Scott and Mescal had a ‘chemistry test,’ (a read through set up with the film’s potential stars to ascertain how well they’d work together) Haigh laughs.

“Everyone asks about chemistry, but when you’re making a film, you’re not saying, ‘Do we all have chemistry? Is there chemistry here?’ You don’t just do the best you can with the material that you have.

“It was clear to me that [Scott and Mescal] liked each other a lot as actors, as people. The characters are falling in love, so the actors know how to generate chemistry…

“They clearly have amazing chemistry, and they’re really good friends now, and they care and love for each other. So, something magical happened. I’m very grateful for that.”

All Of Us Strangers is in UK cinemas today.

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Previously unreleased Beatles tracks to feature on new Anthology collection

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Previously unreleased Beatles tracks to feature on new Anthology collection

Thirteen unreleased Beatles tracks are set to feature on a new Anthology compilation – almost 30 years since the last.

The announcement comes following a big hint from Sir Paul McCartney and the other official Beatles social media channels, which all shared a carousel of images containing the numbers one to four on Instagram the day before the announcement.

Anthology 4 will feature 13 demos, session recordings and other rare tracks that have never been released before, similar to the first three Anthology compilations, which were released between 1995 and 1996.

Details of a full track listing are yet to be revealed. There is no indication the release will feature any completely previously unheard songs.

A book and documentary series, The Beatles Anthology, is also being remastered and streamed on Disney+, billed as “The Beatles’ story, in their own words”.

The series will include a new ninth episode featuring previously unseen behind-the-scenes footage of Sir Paul, George Harrison and Ringo Starr, filmed as they made the collections.

Beatles producer George Martin’s son Giles has remastered versions of Anthology 1, 2 and 3, and all four will be released in a new box set in November.

The 191-track set will also feature new mixes of Free As A Bird and Real Love – the singles from Anthology 1 and 2 – using the late John Lennon‘s vocals. These have been mixed by the songs’ original producer, Electric Light Orchestra frontman Jeff Lynne.

Pic: Bruce McBroom/Apple Corps Ltd/PA
Image:
Pic: Bruce McBroom/Apple Corps Ltd/PA

It comes after The Beatles topped the charts with their “last song” Now And Then, on which AI was used to extract Lennon’s vocals from an old demo, in 2023.

The box set will also include the original liner notes for the first three anthologies as well as a new set of notes on Anthology 4 by Beatles author Kevin Howlett, and an introduction compiled from 1996 interviews recorded with The Beatles’ close friend and adviser Derek Taylor.

The Beatles are the best-selling musical act of all time, having achieved 18 number one singles and 15 number one albums in the UK alone since they formed in 1960.

Four biopics are currently in the works – with each star getting his own film to share their side of the story of the band that changed the world.

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Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs judge urged by prosecutors to reject request for acquittal or retrial

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Sean 'Diddy' Combs judge urged by prosecutors to reject request for acquittal or retrial

Prosecutors in the Sean “Diddy” Combs case have urged the judge to reject a request by the hip-hop mogul for acquittal or retrial on prostitution-related charges.

Lawyers for Combs filed the request after he was found guilty of two counts of transportation for engagement in prostitution – for flying girlfriends and male sex workers around the US and abroad for sexual encounters referred to as “freak offs” – at the end of his high-profile trial in New York.

He was cleared of more serious charges of racketeering conspiracy and sex-trafficking. The trial would have been “totally different” if these charges had not been included, his defence team argued, saying they lacked credibility.

File pic: Matt Sayles/Invision/AP
Image:
File pic: Matt Sayles/Invision/AP

Now, prosecutors have responded to the request for the conviction to be thrown out, or for a retrial, saying in a court document that there was “ample evidence” presented during the trial that supported the jury’s convictions.

“[Combs] masterminded every aspect of freak offs,” the document says. “He transported escorts across state lines to engage in freak offs for pay. He directed the sexual activity of escorts… for his own sexual gratification. And he personally engaged in sexual activity during freak offs.”

The two transportation for prostitution charges Combs was convicted of fall under America’s Mann Act, which prohibits interstate commerce related to prostitution.

The rapper’s lawyers have argued that, to their knowledge, he is “the only person” ever convicted of these charges for the conduct he was accused of in court.

Combs's reaction after hearing the verdicts following his trial. Pic: Reuters/Jane Rosenberg
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Combs’s reaction after hearing the verdicts following his trial. Pic: Reuters/Jane Rosenberg

“The men chose to travel and engage in the activity voluntarily,” the defence team said in their submission to the judge for acquittal. “The verdict confirms the women were not vulnerable or exploited or trafficked or sexually assaulted during the freak offs or hotel nights.”

In their response, prosecutors said “evidence of the defendant’s guilt on the Mann Act counts was overwhelming”.

Combs, one of the most influential hip-hop producers of all time, is due to be sentenced in October. Each charge carries a potential jail sentence of 10 years.

He would have been facing a mandatory 15 years – and up to life – in prison had he been convicted of the charges of racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking, of which he was exonerated.

Read more:
How the trial unfolded
The rise and fall of Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs

Combs fell to his knees when the verdicts were read out, and his team later hailed it a “victory”.

The rapper has already served nearly a year at a federal jail in Brooklyn, where he has been since his arrest in September 2024.

He has been in contact with Donald Trump about a pardon, a source close to the rapper’s legal team told Sky News’ US partner network NBC News earlier this month, but the president has cast doubt on this actually happening.

Combs has been denied bail despite arguments by his lawyers that he should face little to no additional jail time for his convictions.

Judge Arun Subramanian, who heard the trial, said Combs has not met the burden of showing by clear and convincing evidence a “lack of danger to any person or the community”.

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Police watchdog closes investigations over decision to charge Caroline Flack

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Police watchdog closes investigations over decision to charge Caroline Flack

The police watchdog has closed its investigations into the circumstances leading up to the decision to charge TV presenter Caroline Flack with assaulting her boyfriend.

Flack died in February 2020, with a coroner ruling that she took her own life after discovering she was definitely going to face a trial.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) initially recommended a caution after the alleged assault in December 2019 – but London’s Metropolitan Police appealed and the Love Island host was charged with assault by beating.

Various reviews into the way the case was handled have been carried out by the CPS, the Met, and the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) since Flack’s death. In April 2024, the star’s mother told Sky News she believes her daughter’s celebrity status likely contributed towards the decision to charge her.

It has now emerged that the IOPC closed its latest investigation, relating to the actions of officers in appealing to the CPS, in January 2025 – finding the outcome was “reasonable and proportionate”.

An IOPC spokesperson said it received a complaint referral from the Met, which contained “a number of allegations about the force’s investigation” into the alleged assault, in March 2024.

Flack presented The Xtra Factor and one series of The X Factor with Olly Murs. Pic: AP
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Flack presented The Xtra Factor and one series of The X Factor with Olly Murs. Pic: AP


The majority of the allegations had already been investigated by the force and reviewed by the IOPC, the watchdog said, so it found no further action was required. However, the Met was directed to investigate one aspect of the complaint “on the basis there may be new witness evidence available”.

This related to the actions of officers in appealing the initial CPS decision, and five allegations were returned to the force’s Directorate of Professional Standards (DPS) to “resolve in a proportionate manner”, the IOPC spokesperson told Sky News.

In June 2024, the Met found there was “no new evidence that would alter any previous outcomes”, the spokesperson added, and the complainant asked the IOPC to review once again.

“Following that review, in January 2025 we found that outcome to be reasonable and proportionate.”

A Met Police spokesperson said DPS officers made further enquiries and examined the evidence last year. “It did not change the original outcome that the service provided by officers was acceptable,” the spokesperson said.

“The family were advised of the outcome in June [2024] and then appealed that outcome to the IOPC. The IOPC carried out a review and, in January 2025, found no new evidence that would alter any of the previous outcomes.”

Both the Met and the IOPC have closed their investigations. The IOPC said another review could be considered in light of any new evidence.

At the end of Flack’s inquest, coroner Mary Hassell said the alleged assault had “played out in the national press” following her arrest and had a serious impact on her mental health.

In April 2024, her mother Christine Flack told Sky News: “This wasn’t domestic violence. This was an accident. But she was portrayed in the court and in the newspapers as a domestic abuser, and that’s what hurts. That’s what I want got rid of – because she wasn’t.”

She said she believed her daughter was treated differently due to her celebrity status. “And that’s not on. She shouldn’t be treated better, but she shouldn’t be treated worse.”

Caroline Flack at the launch of Strictly Come Dancing, which she went on to win, in 2014. Pic: Dominic Lipinski/PA
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Caroline Flack at the launch of Strictly Come Dancing, which she went on to win, in 2014. Pic: Dominic Lipinski/PA

This was not the first investigation into the handling of Flack’s case, with the Met initially referring itself to the watchdog just a few days after her death.

The DPS found there was no misconduct, prompting another complaint from Flack’s family to the IOPC.

In 2023, the IOPC ordered the force to apologise for not recording its reason for appealing against the caution, but said it had not identified any misconduct.

In the days after the TV presenter’s death, the CPS also reviewed its handling of the case.

Flack’s boyfriend, Lewis Burton, had said he did not support the prosecution, and following her death her management released a statement criticising the decision.

Read more from Sky News:
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Paul Weller suing accountants over his Gaza comments

At the time, a CPS spokesperson said it was normal practice for prosecutors to hold a debriefing after complex or sensitive cases have ended.

“This has taken place and found that the case was handled appropriately and in line with our published legal guidance,” they said.

Flack, 40, presented shows including spin-offs I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! NOW! and The Xtra Factor, as well as one season of the main X Factor show with former contestant Olly Murs, before becoming best known as the host of Love Island. She also won Strictly Come Dancing in 2014.

Sky News has contacted Flack’s family for comment.

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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