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Mel Gibson says there is “nothing left” of his Hollywood home following the LA wildfires and “someone should answer” for the devastation.

The Braveheart star was with podcaster Joe Rogan when the flames engulfed his Malibu mansion and said he was a “little tense” while recording their discussion.

But he knew his family were “out of harm’s way” and a few “necessary things” such as passports were saved.

The loss of his home and others is “tragic”, however, and it “makes you really sad”, he added.

While describing lost items as “only things”, he said they included “works of art, photographs, [and] rare books”, some of them dating back to 1600.

Regarding the conduct of the authorities, he told Fox News: “Apparently, some people were asleep on the job, mainly our leaders.

“That’s something they have to live with. Kids are traumatised. Someone should answer for it.”

Asked if he had a message for California governor Gavin Newsom, or Karen Bass, the mayor of Los Angeles, he commented: “Spend less on hair gel.”

LA fires latest: Civilian drone ‘rips hole in emergency plane’

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Celebrities’ homes have burned down in the LA fires

At least 16 people have been killed in the blazes, with more than 100,000 asked to evacuate their homes.

The fires have affected multiple celebrities, ripping through exclusive suburbs in southern California, home to film stars and billionaires.

Legendary British actor Sir Anthony Hopkins has reportedly lost his home in the Pacific Palisades fire.

The star – perhaps best known for his performance as Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs – posted a message on Instagram, in which he said: “As we all struggle to heal from the devastation of these fires, it’s important we remember that the only thing we take with us is the love we give.”

The mother of British child star Rory Sykes, 32, has confirmed her son died in the Pacific Palisades fire.

Sykes appeared in TV programme Kiddy Kapers in the 1990s.

Shelley Sykes said her “beautiful son” was “born blind with cerebral palsy and had difficulty walking” but had overcome “so much with surgeries and therapies to regain his sight and to be able to learn to walk”.

Pic: Paris Hilton/Instagram/Reuters
Image:
Pic: Paris Hilton/Instagram/Reuters

Paris Hilton, meanwhile, says her “heart shattered into a million pieces” after visiting the charred remains of her Malibu beach house.

Describing herself as “in complete shock”, the hotel heiress said seeing her family memories “reduced to ashes” was “devastating”.

Mel Gibson. File pic: Reuters
Image:
Mel Gibson. File pic: Reuters

Hilton, 43, said she watched her home burn to the ground on TV – and shared a video on social media from inside the gutted structure.

She said she was grateful to be safe along with her husband Carter Reum and their two children, Phoenix and London, but was still devastated.

She wrote on Instagram: “I’m standing here in what used to be our home, and the heartbreak is truly indescribable.

“When I first saw the news, I was in complete shock – I couldn’t process it. But now, standing here and seeing it with my own eyes, it feels like my heart has shattered into a million pieces.”

She has lived in the multi-million-pound property for three years.

Water is dropped by helicopter on the burning Sunset Fire in the Hollywood Hills.
Pic: AP
Image:
Water dropped by helicopter on the burning Sunset Fire in the Hollywood Hills. Pic: AP

Hilton added: “This house wasn’t just a place to live – it was where we dreamed, laughed, and created the most beautiful memories as a family.

“It was where [son] Phoenix’s little hands made art that I’ll cherish forever, where love and life filled every corner. To see it reduced to ashes… it’s devastating beyond words.

“What breaks my heart even more is knowing that this isn’t just my story. So many people have lost everything. It’s not just walls and roofs – it’s the memories that made those houses homes. It’s the photos, the keepsakes, the irreplaceable pieces of our lives.”

She described herself as “incredibly lucky”, adding: “My loved ones – my babies – and my pets are safe. That’s the most important thing”.

She thanked the firefighters, first responders and volunteers who she said were “all risking their lives” to help, adding: “Even in the ashes, there is still beauty in this world.”

Fire crews battle the Kenneth Fire in the West Hills section of Los Angeles, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
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The West Hills section of Los Angeles. Pic: AP

Read more:
What caused the ferocious fires and when will they end?
Furious LA woman challenges governor over wildfires response

LA fires as of Friday morning
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LA fires as of Friday morning

Presenter Ricki Lake said she and her husband Ross had lost their “dream home” and their “heaven on earth”.

She said on Instagram: “We never took our heavenly spot on the bluff overlooking our beloved Malibu for granted, not even for one second.

“This loss is immeasurable. It’s the spot where we got married three years ago. I grieve along with all of those suffering during this apocalyptic event.”

The ancestral home of Big Lebowski actor Jeff Bridges is also understood to have been destroyed.

The four-bedroom home, which had been in the Bridges family for generations, was inherited by Bridges and his two siblings in 2018 according to the Los Angeles Times.

Tina Knowles, mother of singer Beyonce, has also lost a house she owned in Malibu to the fires.

Tina Knowles, from left, Jay-Z, Beyonce, and Blue Ivy Carter arrive at the premiere of "Mufasa: The Lion King" on Monday, Dec. 9, 2024, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP)
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Tina Knowles with Jay-Z, Beyonce and Blue Ivy Carter in December. Pic: AP

She shared a short video of dolphins playing in the sea on Instagram, writing: “This is what I was looking at on my birthday this past weekend from my tiny little bungalow on the water in Malibu! It was my favourite place, my sanctuary, my sacred Happy Place. Now it is gone!!”

She went on to thank the fire department and first responders and offered condolences to others affected by the fires.

Take That star Mark Owen and his family were evacuated from their home, his wife Emma Ferguson describing them waking to “helicopters, thick black smoke and winds howling”.

She said that while she was grateful her family was safe, it was “exhausting” to be “constantly looking online to see if your house is gone”.

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Steve Guttenberg: ‘I’ve seen such tragedy’

Actor Steve Guttenberg, best known for his role in the Police Academy film franchise, has called the fires “absolutely the worst” he has ever seen and has been doing what he can to help distressed residents.

Other stars to have lost their homes in the fires include Billy Crystal, Miles Teller, Diane Warren, Cary Elwes, Milo Ventimiglia, Anna Faris, Adam Brody and Leighton Meester, Spencer Pratt and Heidi Montag.

On Friday, the Recording Academy, which runs the Grammy Awards, and charity MusiCares pledged $1m (£813,000) to support music artists affected by the fires.

Actress Jamie Lee Curtis has pledged the same amount to fire relief efforts from her family foundation.

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US defence secretary Pete Hegseth’s jet makes unscheduled landing in UK after in-air issue

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US defence secretary Pete Hegseth's jet makes unscheduled landing in UK after in-air issue

An aircraft carrying US defence secretary Pete Hegseth has had to make an “unscheduled landing” in the UK.

The jet was about 30 minutes into its journey back to the US after a NATO defence ministers’ meeting in Brussels, when it suffered a “depressurisation issue”.

Sean Parnell, chief Pentagon spokesman, confirmed the aircraft had been diverted to the UK due to a crack in the aircraft windscreen.

He posted on X: “On the way back to the United States from NATO’s Defence Ministers meeting, Secretary of War Hegseth’s plane made an unscheduled landing in the United Kingdom due to a crack in the aircraft windshield.

“The plane landed based on standard procedures, and everyone onboard, including Secretary Hegseth, is safe.”

Mr Hegseth also posted: “All good. Thank God. Continue mission!”

Open source flight trackers spotted the aircraft lose altitude and begin broadcasting an emergency signal.

Read more from Sky News:
Who is Pete Hegseth?
Trump rebrands Pentagon the Department of War

The aviation news website Airlive reported the Boeing C-32A – a military version of the Boeing 757 – had a “depressurisation issue”.

It went on to land at RAF Mildenhall in Suffolk at about 7.10pm.

Mr Hegseth had been at a meeting of NATO defence ministers which was also attended by UK Defence Secretary John Healey.

In February, a US Air Force plane carrying secretary of state Marco Rubio and the Senate foreign relations committee chairman, Senator Jim Risch, was similarly forced to return to Washington DC after an issue with the cockpit windscreen.

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Charlie Kirk posthumously awarded Presidential Medal of Freedom by Donald Trump

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Charlie Kirk posthumously awarded Presidential Medal of Freedom by Donald Trump

Charlie Kirk has been posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Donald Trump.

The USA’s highest civilian honour was received by the conservative activist’s widow, Erika, at the White House.

Mr Kirk, 31, was fatally shot on 10 September while speaking at an event at Utah Valley University.

He founded Turning Point USA and toured American university campuses, debating students about current affairs.

Erika Kirk at the White House. Pic: Reuters
Image:
Erika Kirk at the White House. Pic: Reuters

Erika Kirk and Donald Trump. Pic: Reuters
Image:
Erika Kirk and Donald Trump. Pic: Reuters

Addressing those attending the ceremony in the White House rose garden, the US president said they were there to “honour and remember a fearless warrior for liberty” and a “beloved leader who galvanised the next generation”.

He said Mr Kirk’s name was being entered “forever into the eternal roster of true American heroes”.

Mr Trump described Charlie Kirk as an “American patriot of the deepest conviction, the finest quality and the highest calibre”.

He said his nation had been “robbed” of an “extraordinary champion”.

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Has Charlie Kirk become a MAGA ‘martyr’?

And Mr Trump said Mr Kirk was assassinated in the “prime of his life for boldly speaking the truth, for living his faith, and relentlessly fighting for a better and stronger America”.

The ceremony coincided with what would have been Mr Kirk’s 32nd birthday.

Mr Trump described Erika Kirk, now head of Turning Point USA, as someone who had “endured unspeakable hardship with unbelievable strength”.

Read more:
What do we know about Erika Kirk?
Charlie Kirk’s movement is growing in wake of his assassination

Charlie Kirk. File pic: AP
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Charlie Kirk. File pic: AP

A 22-year-old man, Tyler Robinson, from the city of Washington in Utah has been charged with Mr Kirk’s murder. Prosecutors said they would seek the death penalty.

At a memorial event held at a stadium in Arizona, Erika Kirk told an enormous crowd she forgave her husband’s killer.

“The answer to hate is not hate,” she said.

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Grammy-winning R&B and soul star D’Angelo dies after ‘prolonged battle with cancer’

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Grammy-winning R&B and soul star D'Angelo dies after 'prolonged battle with cancer'

Grammy-award winning R&B and soul singer D’Angelo has died following a battle with pancreatic cancer, his family has said.

He died on Tuesday, leaving behind a “legacy of extraordinarily moving music” following a “prolonged and courageous battle with cancer,” his family said in a statement.

The prominent musician, born Michael D’Angelo Archer, was 51 years old.

A family statement said: “We are saddened that he can only leave dear memories with his family, but we are eternally grateful for the legacy of extraordinarily moving music he leaves behind.

“We ask that you respect our privacy during this difficult time, but invite you all join us in mourning his passing while also celebrating the gift of song that he has left for the world.”

The singer rose to prominence in the 1990s with his first album, Brown Sugar.

The track “Lady” from that album reached No. 10 in March 1996 and remained on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart for 20 weeks.

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