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Visionary film director David Lynch – behind hits such as Twin Peaks and Mulholland Drive – has died at the age of 78, his family has said.

A post shared on the filmmaker’s Facebook page reads: “It is with deep regret that we, his family, announce the passing of the man and the artist, David Lynch. We would appreciate some privacy at this time.”

Referencing Lynch’s advice for budding creatives, the statement continues: “There’s a big hole in the world now that he’s no longer with us.

“But, as he would say, ‘Keep your eye on the doughnut and not on the hole’.”

“It’s a beautiful day with golden sunshine and blue skies all the way,” it concludes, in a nod to weather reports the director posted on YouTube.

Lynch’s death comes just days before his 79th birthday. The cause has not been shared, but Lynch had spoken publicly about his battle with emphysema.

Isabella Rossellini in Blue Velvet

1986
Pic: De Laurentiis/Kobal/Shutterstock
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Isabella Rossellini in Blue Velvet. Pic: De Laurentiis/Kobal/Shutterstock

Hollywood pays tribute to its ‘brilliant maverick’

A number of famous faces have paid tribute to Lynch, including Twins Peaks star Kyle MacLachlan.

Alongside an Instagram carousel showing pictures of himself and Lynch through the years, the actor wrote: “I always found him to be the most authentically alive person I’d ever met.

“David was in tune with the universe and his own imagination on a level that seemed to be the best version of human.

“While the world has lost a remarkable artist, I’ve lost a dear friend who imagined a future for me and allowed me to travel in worlds I could never have conceived on my own.”

David Lynch with Twin Peaks actor Kyle MacLachlan. Pic: AP
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David Lynch with Twin Peaks star Kyle MacLachlan, who played special agent Dale Cooper. Pic: AP

Nicolas Cage, who starred in Lynch’s 1990 road trip movie Wild At Heart, said in a statement: “David was a singular genius in cinema, one of the greatest artists of this or any time.

“He was brave, brilliant, and a maverick with a joyful sense of humour. I never had more fun on a film set than working with David Lynch. He will always be solid gold.”

In a statement issued to Variety, Steven Spielberg recalled casting Lynch in his semi-autobiographical 2022 film, The Fabelmans.

“I got to know David when he played John Ford in The Fabelmans,” he said.

“Here was one of my heroes – David Lynch – playing one of my heroes. It was surreal and seemed like a scene out of one of David’s own movies.

“The world is going to miss such an original and unique voice. His films have already stood the test of time and they always will.”

Lynch began making short films in the late 1960s and his first feature-length movie – the surreal Eraserhead – was released in 1977.

His most notable projects include The Elephant Man, and neo-noirs Mulholland Drive and Blue Velvet – all of which earned him Oscar nominations. In 2019, he received an honorary Academy Award for his lifetime achievements.

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2019 Governors Awards - Show - Los Angeles, California, U.S., October 27, 2019 - David Lynch accepts his Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Honorary Award. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni
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David Lynch accepting an honorary Oscar in 2019. Pic: Reuters

Lynch’s success extended to the small screen and Twin Peaks, co-created with writer Mark Frost, is considered a cult classic.

Set in the titular fictional town, the Emmy-winning series follows the investigation into the death of local teenager Laura Palmer.

TWIN PEAKS - Sherilyn Fenn, Kyle MacLachlan. 1990 Pic: Everett/Shutterstock
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Sherilyn Fenn and Kyle MacLachlan in Twin Peaks. Pic: Everett/Shutterstock

The drama debuted in 1990 and ran for two seasons. A much-hyped revival, set 25 years after the original, aired in 2017.

In his later years, Lynch devoted himself to making short films, documentaries, albums and music videos, as well as painting and posting on his YouTube channel.

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Mexican navy training vessel hits New York’s Brooklyn Bridge – as reports say three injured

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Mexican navy training vessel hits New York's Brooklyn Bridge - as reports say three injured

A Mexican navy ship has hit the Brooklyn Bridge during a promotional tour in New York City.

The New York Fire Department said authorities were responding to injuries but had no details about how many people might have been hurt or whether they were on the vessel or on the bridge.

Sky’s US partner network NBC News reports that at least three people were seriously injured in the incident.

The Mexican navy said in a post on X that the Cuauhtemoc, an academy training vessel, was damaged in the accident, which has prevented it from continuing its voyage.

Eyewitness video of the collision posted online showed the mast of the ship, which was flying a large Mexican flag, scraping the underneath of the bridge.

Pic: AP
Image:
Pic: AP

The vessel then drifted toward the edge of the river as onlookers scrambled away from shore.

The Mexican navy said the status of personnel and material was under review by naval and local authorities, which were providing assistance.

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The Cuauhtemoc is about 297ft long and 40ft wide, according to the Mexican navy. It sailed for the first time in 1982.

A New York Police Department harbour unit prepares to board the Cuauhtemoc. Pic: AP
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Pic: AP

Each year, it sets out at the end of classes at the naval military school to finish cadets’ training.

It left the Mexican port of Acapulco, on the Pacific coast, on 6 April with 277 people onboard, the navy said at the time.

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One person dead after explosion outside fertility clinic in California

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One person dead after explosion outside fertility clinic in California

One person has died in a bomb explosion near a reproductive health clinic in California, authorities have said.

The incident took place in Palm Springs, a city two hours east of Los Angeles, and is being investigated as a possible car explosion.

The city’s mayor Ron DeHarte said one person died in the blast, adding that the bomb was “either in or near” a vehicle. The deceased’s identity is not known, Palm Springs police said.

Dr Maher Abdallah, who runs the American Reproductive Centers clinic, told the Associated Press his facility was damaged but all staff were safe and accounted for.

The explosion damaged the office space where the practice conducts patient consultations, but the IVF lab and stored embryos were unharmed, he added.

“I really have no clue what happened,” he said. “Thank God today happened to be a day that we have no patients.”

Debris covers the ground after an explosion on Saturday, May 17, 2025 in Palm Springs, Calif.  (ABC7 Los Angeles via AP)
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Debris covers the ground after the explosion. Pic: ABC7 Los Angeles/AP

In a statement posted on Facebook the clinic said it was “heartbroken” to learn someone died in the explosion and added: “Our deepest condolences go out to the individuals and families affected.”

It continued: “Our mission has always been to help build families, and in times like these, we are reminded of just how fragile and precious life is.

“In the face of this tragedy, we remain committed to creating hope – because we believe that healing begins with community, compassion, and care.

The clinic will be fully operational on Monday, it added.

“This moment has shaken us – but it has not stopped us. We will continue to serve with strength, love, and the hope that brings new life into the world,” the statement concluded.

Debris covers the ground after an explosion on Saturday, May 17, 2025 in Palm Springs, Calif.  (ABC7 Los Angeles via AP)
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Pic: ABC7 Los Angeles/AP

The Palm Springs city government said in a post on Facebook that the explosion happened on North Indian Canyon Drive, near East Tachevah Drive, before 11am local time (6pm GMT).

A burned-out car can be seen in a parking lot behind the building in aerial footage.

The blast caved in the clinic’s roof and blew debris across four lanes of the road.

Another person said he was inside a cannabis dispensary nearby when he felt a massive explosion.

Nima Tabrizi said: “The building just shook, and we go outside and there’s massive cloud smoke.”

Investigators from the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are travelling to the scene to help assess what happened.

California governor Gavin Newsom has been briefed on the explosion, his press office said.

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James Comey: Trump says ex-FBI director’s seashells post ‘meant assassination’

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James Comey: Trump says ex-FBI director's seashells post 'meant assassination'

A former FBI director has been interviewed by the US Secret Service over a social media post that Republicans say was a call for violence against President Donald Trump.

James Comey, who led the FBI from 2013 until he was fired in 2017 by Mr Trump during his first term in office, shared a photo of seashells appearing to form the numbers “86 47”.

James Comey, then the FBI Director, in July  2016. File pic: AP/J. Scott Applewhite
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James Comey later removed the Instagram post. File pic: AP

He captioned the Instagram post: “Cool shell formation on my beach walk.”

Some have interpreted the post as a threat, alleging that 86 47 means to violently remove Mr Trump from office, including by assassination.

What does ’86 47′ mean?

The number 86 can be used as a verb in the US. It commonly means “to throw somebody out of a bar for being drunk or disorderly”.

One recent meaning of the term is “to kill”, according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, which said it had not adopted this meaning of 86 “due to its relative recency and sparseness of use”.

The number has previously been used in a political context by Matt Gaetz, who was President Donald Trump’s pick for attorney general but withdrew from consideration following a series of sexual misconduct allegations.

Mr Gaetz wrote: “We’ve now 86’d…” and listed political opponents he had sparred with who ended up stepping down.

Meanwhile, 47 is supposedly representing Mr Trump, who is the 47th US president.

Mr Comey later removed the post, saying he thought the numbers “were a political message” and that he was not aware that the numeric arrangement could be associated with violence.

“I didn’t realise some folks associate those numbers with violence. It never occurred to me, but I oppose violence of any kind, so I took the post down,” Mr Comey said.

Mr Trump rejected the former FBI director’s explanation, telling Fox News: “He knew exactly what that meant. A child knows what that meant… that meant assassination.”

Donald Trump Jr accused Mr Comey of “casually calling for my dad to be murdered”.

US Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem confirmed in a post on X that Mr Comey had been interviewed as part of “an ongoing investigation” but gave no indication of whether he might face further action.

The Secret Service is part of the Department of Homeland Security.

White House deputy chief of staff Taylor Budowich said Mr Comey had put out “what can clearly be interpreted as a hit on the sitting president of the United States”.

“This is deeply concerning to all of us and is being taken seriously,” Mr Budowich wrote on X.

Another White House official James Blair said the post was a “Clarion Call (…) to terrorists & hostile regimes to kill the President of the United States as he travels in the Middle East”.

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Mr Trump fired Mr Comey in May 2017 for botching an investigation into 2016 democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, the White House said at the time.

While Mr Comey was the director of the FBI, the agency opened an investigation into possible collusion between the Trump 2016 presidential campaign and Russia to help get Mr Trump elected.

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