BAFTA bosses defend decision to omit Matthew Perry from tributes section at film awards
The organisers of the BAFTAs have defended the decision to omit Friends actor Matthew Perry from this year’s ‘in memoriam’ section and said he will be honoured at their TV awards instead.
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts’ annual film awards took place in London on Sunday evening.
Ted Lasso actress Hannah Waddingham performed a pared-back version of Cyndi Lauper’s Time After Time as tributes to stars who have died in the past 12 months appeared on screen.
The segment featured the likes of Mary Poppins star Glynis Johns, actress Jane Birkin, music legend Tina Turner and Dumbledore actor Michael Gambon.
However, Friends star Perry – who died aged 54 last October – was not mentioned.
As it happened: The biggest night in British film
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BAFTAs 2024 highlights
Fans shared their disappointment on X, and BAFTA has now issued a statement on the matter.
In reply to a social media user questioning the actor’s absence, the BAFTA account said: “Matthew Perry will be remembered in this year’s TV Awards ceremony.”
It also shared a link to a tribute page dedicated to Perry on the organisation’s website.
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Hannah Waddingham performed during the ‘in memoriam’ section. Pic: AP
The TV BAFTAs, which take place in May, will also honour TV director Roy Battersby after his famous stepdaughter Kate Beckinsale urged him to be included.
Sunday’s BAFTAs saw Oppenheimer dominate the winners’ list, taking home seven awards.
Its accolades included the biggest prize of the night – best film – while Cillian Murphy, who played the lead role of J Robert Oppenheimer, and Christopher Nolan, won best actor and best director respectively.
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Robert Downey Jr’s winner’s speech
Robert Downey Jr, who won best supporting actor for his role as Lewis Strauss in Oppenheimer, paid tribute to Nolan and delivered a whistle-stop tour of his career in 30 seconds during his speech.
The ceremony was hosted by Doctor Who and Good Omens actor David Tennant and saw Sophie Ellis-Bextor deliver a performance of her 2001 hit Murder On The Dancefloor, which is back in the charts thanks to an infamous Saltburn scene.
Taylor Swift has revealed the release date for her new album, The Life Of A Showgirl.
The pop megastar announced her 12th studio album earlier this week but didn’t give many details.
Now, in social media posts and an appearance on boyfriend Travis Kelce’s sports podcast, Swift revealed just what fans can expect from the new album.
Taylor Swift and boyfriend Travis Kelce on the New Heights podcast. Pic: New Heights
The Life of Showgirl, written during the European leg of her record-breaking Eras tour, will be released on 3 October.
It consists of 12 songs, including the title track that features pop star Sabrina Carpenter.
The full track list is:
1. The Fate Of Ophelia
2. Elizabeth Taylor
3. Opalite
4. Father Figure
5. Eldest Daughter
6. Ruin The Friendship
7. Actually Romantic
8. Wi$h Li$t
9. Wood
10. Cancelled!
11. Honey
12. The Life Of A Showgirl (featuring Sabrina Carpenter)
Long-time collaborators Max Martin and Shellback, two Swedish producers who worked with Swift on some of her biggest hits, joined the pop star for this album.
Within four hours of posting the full podcast episode on YouTube, it had already gathered 4.7m views.
The cover of Taylor Swift’s newly announced album. Pic: Republic Records
The back cover of Taylor Swift’s 12th studio album The Life Of A Showgirl. Pic: Republic Records
‘The hardest-working star in pop’
The album follows last year’s The Tortured Poets Department, which was released during the Eras tour.
That tour, with shows on five continents and in 51 cities, raked in more than $2.2bn (£1.62bn) and was the highest-grossing tour of all time.
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“This album is about what was going on behind the scenes in my inner life during this tour, which was so exuberant and electric and vibrant,” Swift said during her podcast appearance.
Sky News culture and entertainment reporter Gemma Peplow said after her globe-trotting tour and a swathe of re-releases over recent years, the new album cemented Swift’s reputation “as the hardest-working star in pop”.
Disgraced US film producer Harvey Weinstein is to be tried for a third time in a sexual assault case.
A jury in New York could not reach a verdict in June against the 73-year-old who was accused of raping actress Jessica Mann, and a mistrial was declared.
Judge Curtis Farber has said he wants the new trial to happen before the end of this year.
The same jury found Weinstein guilty in June of sexually assaulting former Project Runway production assistant Miriam Haley in 2006 and not guilty of assaulting Polish former runway model Kaja Sokola the same year.
Weinstein will be sentenced for the guilty verdict in Ms Haley’s case on 30 September.
He denied all of the charges. Throughout the retrial, his lawyers insisted the sexual encounters with his three accusers were “transactional” and “consensual,” and labelled the women as opportunists.
Weinstein was originally convicted of rape and criminal sexual act by the same court in 2020 and sentenced to 23 years in prison for the crimes.
Last year, however, New York’s highest court overturned the conviction, prompting Weinstein’s retrial this summer.
Weinstein was once one of the most powerful people in Hollywood – the co-founder of film and television production companies Miramax and The Weinstein Company, who produced films such as the Oscar-winning Shakespeare In Love, Pulp Fiction, and The Crying Game.
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In 2017, a series of sexual misconduct allegations against him propelled the #MeToo movement.
Some of those accusations later led to criminal charges and his convictions in New York and California.
Before the retrial, Weinstein was also serving a 16-year prison sentence after being found guilty of rape in California in December 2022. He has also denied this charge.
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