P Diddy: Stars react to video showing rapper attacking Cassie Ventura in hotel hallway
Stars have hit out at rapper P Diddy following the release of CCTV footage showing him attacking singer Cassie Ventura in a hotel hallway in 2016.
Warning: This story includes images readers may find distressing
The video, which was obtained by CNN, was shot on 5 March eight years ago and shows the 54-year-old – whose real name is Sean Combs – shirtless and wearing just a white towel and brightly coloured socks, punching and kicking Ventura.
Sean Combs and Cassie in 2017. Pic: PA
The R&B singer, whose legal name is Cassandra Ventura, was his protege and girlfriend at the time.
The footage also shows Combs shoving and dragging her across the floor, as well as throwing a glass vase in her direction.
It closely resembles the description of an incident at the now-closed InterContinental Hotel in Los Angeles described in a lawsuit filed by Cassie last year.
Commenting on the video on X, formerly known as Twitter, actress Emily Ratajkowski, wrote: “Monster”.
Fellow rapper 50 Cent, whose real name is Curtis Jackson, shared the video, writing sarcastically: “Now I’m sure Puffy didn’t do it, he is innocent this proves nothing! This is what his lawyers are gonna say, God help us all.”
Jackson also re-posted a screenshot of a statement shared by Combs in December last year, denying allegations against him and accusing those making them of “looking for a quick payday”.
50 Cent wrote: “The lie detector test has determined this was a lie…”
Pic: CNN via AP
Pic: CNN via AP
He also shared a statement from LA police which called the footage “extremely disturbing and difficult to watch,” but explained that it happened too long ago to be prosecuted.
California law has a one-year statute of limitations for assault.
Read more: What is Sean Combs accused of?
The husband of Ventura, Alex Fine, shared a lengthy statement on Instagram titled “Letter to women and children,” calling out men who perpetrate violence against women.
‘Men who hurt women hate women’
He wrote: “Men who hit women aren’t men. Men who enable it and protect those people aren’t men…
“Hold the women in your life with the utmost regard. Men who hurt women hate women.”
The personal trainer also shared the number of a domestic abuse helpline, urging those who need help to call.
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Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs issues an apology
Meanwhile, lawyers representing Ventura branded Combs’s apology “pathetic,” after he shared a short video on social media on Sunday, saying he was “truly sorry,” and was “disgusted” by his own behaviour.
‘Disingenuous words’
Meredith Firetog, who is a partner at Wigdor LLP, said in a statement: “Combs’ most recent statement is more about himself than the many people he has hurt.
“When Cassie and multiple other women came forward, he denied everything and suggested that his victims were looking for a payday.
“That he was only compelled to ‘apologize’ once his repeated denials were proven false shows his pathetic desperation, and no one will be swayed by his disingenuous words.”
‘Leave god and mercy out of this’
US singer and reality star Aubrey O’Day, who previously worked with Combs, also hit out at Combs’s apology video, writing on X: “Diddy did not apologize to Cassie. He apologized to the world for seeing what he did… Leave god and mercy out of this, they aren’t present here, and you know it.”
It is the first time Combs has responded directly to allegations of physical and sexual violence levelled at him in recent months.
Sean Combs’ home raided by federal law enforcement. Pic: AP
Multiple claims
In March, his homes in Los Angeles and Miami were raided by Homeland Security as part of an ongoing sex trafficking investigation by federal authorities in New York.
In April, Combs was named in a lawsuit that alleges his son sexually assaulted a woman working on a yacht chartered by his father.
Ventura, who began dating Combs a few years after meeting him in 2005, and split with him in 2019, sued him in November, alleging she was trafficked, raped, plied with drugs and beaten by Combs over a 10-year period.
The lawsuit claimed he forced her to have sex with male prostitutes while he filmed them. The case was settled the day after it was filed.
Combs has previously denied the allegations in the lawsuits and his lawyers have said he denies any wrongdoing.
Entertainment
BBC apologises over controversial Gaza documentary, with chairman calling it ‘a dagger to the heart’
The BBC has called the ongoing controversy over a documentary on Gaza a “really, really bad moment”, admitting the film’s failings are “a dagger to the heart” of the corporation’s impartiality.
Gaza: How To Survive A Warzone was pulled from iPlayer and will not be broadcast on channels again after it emerged that the child narrator is the son of Ayman Alyazouri, who has worked as Hamas’s deputy minister of agriculture.
Last week, Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy called an “urgent meeting” with the corporation over the film.
BBC director-general Tim Davie and BBC chairman Samir Shah were questioned by MPs during a Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee meeting on Tuesday.
Mr Shah told committee members: “This is a really, really bad moment. It’s is a dagger to the heart of the BBC claim to be impartial and to be trustworthy.”
He said questions over “what went wrong” were asked “on day one” following the programme’s transmission.
He went on: “To my shock, I think that we found that there were serious failings on both sides, on the independent production side as well, as well as on the BBC side.”
Mr Shah said an interim report commissioned by the BBC found “it wasn’t so much the processes were at fault as people weren’t doing their job”.
Mr Shah said he believed the problem was confined to this programme, adding: “On this story we’re examining the how and why, the compliance that determines did not take place.”
However, he also said he thought an independent review into how the BBC covers stories in the Middle East should also be carried out independently.
BBC director general Tim Davie and chairman Samir Shah. Pic: PA
Tim Davie said there was “a lot of frustration and disappointment” over the film, adding: “We’re very sorry to the audience.”
Read more:
Starmer faces calls for UK’s role in Gaza war to be scrutinised
Hamas rejects Israeli request to extend first phase of Gaza ceasefire deal
‘We were not told’
How To Survive A Warzone was made on commission by independent production company Hoyo Films, and features 13-year-old Abdullah al Yazouri, who speaks about life in Gaza during the war between Israel and Hamas.
Mr Davie said there were specific questions asked around Abdullah’s father, and the BBC “found out that we were not told”.
He went on: “At that point, quite quickly, I lost trust in that film. Therefore, I took the decision quite quickly to take it off iPlayer while we do this deep dive.”
Mr Davie said removing the film from iPlayer had been “a very tough decision”.
Discussing whether or not the family involved in the film had been paid for their work, he said: “As I understand it today, the BBC has only made one payment. This was for a licence fee, to the programme maker.”
He said an initial assessment of the economics had showed “that there was a small payment to the sister… It’s totally normal payment because the boy recorded the narration. He went to a studio to do it.”
Describing the fallout as “damaging”, Mr Davie said he believes “overall trust in BBC news remains very high”.
He went on: “We’re not losing all context here. This was a serious failing. But we have trust numbers that we’re very proud of, we’re the most trusted brand in the world. And part of what we do to earn that trust… is actually be highly transparent and go through enormous processes when we fail like this to show how we’re going to fix it.”
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What’s next as the ceasefire deal ends?
Mr Davie says he has “fast-tracked” the review “out of the news department”, where it will be overseen by Peter Johnson, BBC Director, Editorial Complaints and Reviews.
Media watchdog Ofcom sent a letter to the BBC flagging their “ongoing concerns” about the “nature and gravity” of the documentary on Monday, which Mr Shah said he “welcomed”.
The Metropolitan Police said: “Officers from the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command are currently assessing whether any police action is required” in relation to the documentary.
Complaints from both sides
Hoyo Films said in a statement: “We are co-operating fully with the BBC and Peter Johnston (director of editorial complaints and reviews) to help understand where mistakes have been made.
“We feel this remains an important story to tell, and that our contributors – who have no say in the war – should have their voices heard.”
Last week, protesters gathered outside Broadcasting House in London claiming the BBC had aired Hamas propaganda.
The BBC also faced criticism in pulling the documentary, with Gary Lineker, Anita Rani, Riz Ahmed and Miriam Margoyles among more than 500 media figures who had condemned the action.
In an open letter addressed to Mr Davie, Dr Shah and outgoing chief content officer Charlotte Moore, hundreds of TV and film professionals and journalists called the decision to remove the documentary “politically motivated censorship”.
Following the committee session, Artists for Palestine UK, the group that published the letter, accused Mr Davie and Mr Shah of “throwing Palestinian children under the bus”, questioning how the corporation would safeguard the young people who appeared in the documentary.
In a statement, the charity Campaign Against Antisemitism accused the BBC of “marking its own homework”, adding: “No other broadcaster would be permitted this latitude, and no other regulated industry would allow this.”
They also called for the licence fee to be suspended pending an independent investigation into the documentary.
Nominations for the Olivier Awards, British theatre’s most prestigious honours, have been announced.
Following his second Oscar win at the weekend, Adrien Brody is nominated for best actor, for his performance in The Fear Of 13 – a play based on the real-life story of a man who spent 22 years on death row for a rape and murder that he did not commit.
Fellow US stars Billy Crudup and John Lithgow are up against him in the category, along with UK stars Paapa Essiedu and Mark Strong.
Brody, Crudup, Essiedu and Lithgow are all first-time nominees.
In the best actress category, The Crown star Lesley Manville is up against Meera Syal, Indira Varma, Heather Agyepong and Rosie Sheehy.
Manville and Varma both nominated for playing the same role in different productions of the Greek mythology classic Oedipus
Fiddler On The Roof is this year’s most nominated production, with 13 nods.
It’s up for best musical revival, with old favourites including Oliver!, Hello Dolly and Starlight Express.
Starlight Express. Pic: SOLT
In the musical theatre performing categories, John Dagleish is up for best actor for his role in The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button, a decade after his last win.
He’s up against Myles Frost, Simon Lipkin, Jamie Muscato and Adam Dannheisser.
Four-time Olivier winner Imelda Staunton is up for best actress in a musical for her role in Hello Dolly!, her 14th Olivier nomination and her eighth in the category.
She’s competing against Lara Pulver, Chumisa Dornford-May, Lauren Drew and Clare Foster.
Why Am I So Single? Pic: SOLT
Best new play includes Brody’s The Fear Of 13, along with Kyoto, Shifters, Giant and The Years.
Giant and The Years are tied for most nominated play this year with five apiece.
Gina McKee is nominated for best actress in a supporting role, alongside Romola Garai who is double nominated in the same category for her roles in Giant and The Years.
Actress Sharon D Clarke makes up the category.
And in best supporting actor, Ben Whishaw will be battling it out against Jorge Bosch, Tom Edden, and Elliot Levey.
Sunset Boulevard was the big winner at last year’s Olivier Awards, taking home seven gongs and equalling the record for the most prizes for a musical at the ceremony.
The 2025 Olivier Awards will take place on Sunday 6 April at the Royal Albert Hall, hosted by Beverley Knight and Billy Porter.
MJ The Musical. Pic: SOLT
Full list of nominations:
Mastercard Best New Musical
The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button, music & lyrics by Darren Clark, book & lyrics by Jethro Compton at Ambassadors Theatre
MJ The Musical, book by Lynn Nottage at Prince Edward Theatre
Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet Of 1812, music, lyrics & book by Dave Malloy at Donmar Warehouse
Why Am I So Single?, music, lyrics & book by Toby Marlow & Lucy Moss at Garrick Theatre
Blue-i Theatre Technology Award for Best Set Design
Jon Bausor for Set Design, Toby Olié & Daisy Beattie for Puppetry Design and Satoshi Kuriyama for Projection Design for Spirited Away at London Coliseum
Frankie Bradshaw for Set Design for Ballet Shoes at National Theatre – Olivier
Es Devlin for Set Design for Coriolanus at National Theatre – Olivier
Tom Scutt for Set Design for Fiddler On The Roof at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre
White Light Award for Best Lighting Design
Paule Constable & Ben Jacobs for Oliver! at Gielgud Theatre
Howard Hudson for Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet Of 1812 at Donmar Warehouse
Howard Hudson for Starlight Express at Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre
Aideen Malone for Fiddler On The Roof at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre
TAIT Award for Best New Opera Production
Duke Bluebeard’s Castle by English National Opera at London Coliseum
Festen by The Royal Opera at Royal Opera House
L’Olimpiade by Irish National Opera & The Royal Opera at Royal Opera House
The Tales Of Hoffmann by The Royal Opera at Royal Opera House
Outstanding Achievement in Opera
Aigul Akhmetshina for her performance in Carmen at Royal Opera House
Allan Clayton for his performance in Festen at Royal Opera House
Jung Young-doo for his direction of Lear at Barbican Theatre
Best Family Show
Brainiac Live at Marylebone Theatre
Maddie Moate’s Very Curious Christmas at Apollo Theatre
The Nutcracker at Polka Theatre
Rough Magic at Shakespeare’s Globe – Sam Wanamaker Playhouse
Best New Production in Affiliate Theatre
Animal Farm at Theatre Royal Stratford East by George Orwell, adapted by Tatty Hennessy
Boys On The Verge Of Tears by Sam Grabiner at Soho Theatre
English by Sanaz Toossi at Kiln Theatre
Now, I See by Lanre Malaolu at Theatre Royal Stratford East
What We Talk About When We Talk About Anne Frank by Nathan Englander at Marylebone Theatre
Best New Dance Production
Assembly Hall by Kidd Pivot, Crystal Pite & Jonathon Young at Sadler’s Wells
Frontiers: Choreographers Of Canada – Pite/Kudelka/Portner by The National Ballet Of Canada at Sadler’s Wells
Theatre Of Dreams by Hofesh Shechter Company at Sadler’s Wells
An Untitled Love by A.I.M by Kyle Abraham at Sadler’s Wells
Outstanding Achievement in Dance
Sarah Chun for her performance in Three Short Ballets at Royal Opera House – Linbury Theatre
Tom Visser for his lighting design of Angels’ Atlas as part of Frontiers: Choreographers Of Canada – Pite/Kudelka/Portner at Sadler’s Wells
Eva Yerbabuena for her performance in Yerbagüena at Sadler’s Wells
Best Actor in a Supporting Role
Jorge Bosch for Kyoto at @sohoplace
Tom Edden for Waiting For Godot at Theatre Royal Haymarket
Elliot Levey for Giant at Jerwood Theatre Downstairs at Royal Court Theatre
Ben Whishaw for Bluets at Jerwood Theatre Downstairs at Royal Court Theatre
Best Actress in a Supporting Role
Sharon D Clarke for The Importance Of Being Earnest at National Theatre – Lyttelton
Romola Garai for Giant at Jerwood Theatre Downstairs at Royal Court Theatre
Romola Garai for The Years at Almeida Theatre & Harold Pinter Theatre
Gina McKee for The Years at Almeida Theatre & Harold Pinter Theatre
Gillian Lynne Award for Best Theatre Choreographer
Matthew Bourne for Oliver! at Gielgud Theatre
Julia Cheng for Fiddler On The Roof at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre
Hofesh Shechter for Oedipus at The Old Vic
Christopher Wheeldon for MJ The Musical at Prince Edward Theatre
Best Costume Design
Hugh Durrant for Robin Hood at The London Palladium
Sachiko Nakahara for Spirited Away at London Coliseum
Tom Scutt for Fiddler On The Roof at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre
Gabriella Slade for Starlight Express at Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre
d&b audiotechnik Award for Best Sound Design
Nick Lidster for Fiddler On The Roof at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre
Christopher Shutt for Oedipus at The Old Vic
Thijs van Vuure for The Years at Almeida Theatre & Harold Pinter Theatre
Koichi Yamamoto for Spirited Away at London Coliseum
Outstanding Musical Contribution
Mark Aspinall for Musical Supervision & Additional Orchestrations for Fiddler On The Roof at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre
Darren Clark for Music Supervision, Orchestrations & Arrangements and Mark Aspinall for Musical Direction, Music Supervision, Orchestrations & Arrangements for The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button at Ambassadors Theatre
Dave Malloy for Orchestrations and Nicholas Skilbeck for Musical Supervision for Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet Of 1812 at Donmar Warehouse
Asaf Zohar for Compositions and Gavin Sutherland for Dance Arrangements & Orchestration for Ballet Shoes at National Theatre – Olivier
Best Actress in a Supporting Role in a Musical
Liv Andrusier for Fiddler On The Roof at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre
Amy Di Bartolomeo for The Devil Wears Prada at Dominion Theatre
Beverley Klein for Fiddler On The Roof at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre
Maimuna Memon for Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet Of 1812 at Donmar Warehouse
Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical
Andy Nyman for Hello, Dolly! at The London Palladium
Raphael Papo for Fiddler On The Roof at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre
Layton Williams for Titanique at Criterion Theatre
Tom Xander for Mean Girls at Savoy Theatre
Noël Coward Award for Best New Entertainment or Comedy Play
Ballet Shoes adapted by Kendall Feaver at National Theatre – Olivier
Inside No 9 Stage/Fright by Steve Pemberton & Reece Shearsmith at Wyndham’s Theatre
Spirited Away adapted by John Caird & co-adapted by Maoko Imai at London Coliseum
Titanique by Tye Blue, Marla Mindelle & Constantine Rousouli at Criterion Theatre
Sir Peter Hall Award for Best Director
Eline Arbo for The Years at Almeida Theatre & Harold Pinter Theatre
Jordan Fein for Fiddler On The Roof at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre
Nicholas Hytner for Giant at Jerwood Theatre Downstairs at Royal Court Theatre
Robert Icke for Oedipus at Wyndham’s Theatre
Best Actress
Heather Agyepong for Shifters at Duke of York’s Theatre
Lesley Manville for Oedipus at Wyndham’s Theatre
Rosie Sheehy for Machinal at The Old Vic
Meera Syal for A Tupperware Of Ashes at National Theatre – Dorfman
Indira Varma for Oedipus at The Old Vic
Best Actor
Adrien Brody for The Fear Of 13 at Donmar Warehouse
Billy Crudup for Harry Clarke at Ambassadors Theatre
Paapa Essiedu for Death Of England: Delroy at @sohoplace
John Lithgow for Giant at Jerwood Theatre Downstairs at Royal Court Theatre
Mark Strong for Oedipus at Wyndham’s Theatre
Cunard Best Revival
The Importance Of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde at National Theatre – Lyttelton
Machinal by Sophie Treadwell at The Old Vic
Oedipus by Robert Icke at Wyndham’s Theatre
Waiting For Godot by Samuel Beckett at Theatre Royal Haymarket
Piper-Heidsieck Award for Best Musical Revival
Fiddler On The Roof, music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, book by Joseph Stein at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre
Hello, Dolly!, music & lyrics by Jerry Herman, book by Michael Stewart at The London Palladium
Oliver!, book, music & lyrics by Lionel Bart, new material & revisions by Cameron Mackintosh at Gielgud Theatre
Starlight Express, music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, lyrics by Richard Stilgoe at Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre
Best Actor in a Musical
John Dagleish for The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button at Ambassadors Theatre
Adam Dannheisser for Fiddler On The Roof at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre
Myles Frost for MJ The Musical at Prince Edward Theatre
Simon Lipkin for Oliver! at Gielgud Theatre
Jamie Muscato for Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet Of 1812 at Donmar Warehouse
Best Actress in a Musical
Chumisa Dornford-May for Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet Of 1812 at Donmar Warehouse
Lauren Drew for Titanique at Criterion Theatre
Clare Foster for The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button at Ambassadors Theatre
Lara Pulver for Fiddler On The Roof at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre
Imelda Staunton for Hello, Dolly! at The London Palladium
The Londoner Award for Best New Play
The Fear Of 13 by Lindsey Ferrentino at Donmar Warehouse
Giant by Mark Rosenblatt at Jerwood Theatre Downstairs at Royal Court Theatre
Kyoto by Joe Murphy & Joe Robertson at @sohoplace
Shifters by Benedict Lombe at Duke of York’s Theatre
The Years adapted by Eline Arbo, in an English version by Stephanie Bain at Almeida Theatre & Harold Pinter Theatre
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