EU regulators clear Amazon's $8.45 billion purchase of MGM

EastEnders actress Clair Norris has announced that she has been working on a new BBC documentary with Panorama, which will explore the topic of obesity. Soap actress Clair, 24, is best for her role as Bernadette Taylor on the BBC show.

EastEnders actress Clair Norris, best known as Albert Square’s Bernie Taylor, has opened up about the upsides of looking totally different to her popular soap character. In an exclusive interview with OK! Clair, who recently returned to the BBC soap as heavily pregnant surrogate Bernie, told us that while she’s thrilled to be front and centre of the show, she doesn’t mind if people don’t recognise her.

Clair Norris has been absent from our screens for over five months, but new spoilers have revealed that her upcoming EastEnders return is set to be dramatic. The actress, 24, will make her highly anticipated return to Albert Square as heavily pregnant Bernie Taylor on Tuesday 29 March, and she's set for a showdown with Stuart (Ricky Champ) and Rainie Highway (Tanya Franks). Bernie's drama-filled life in Walford couldn't be further from Clair's real life, with the actress living in London with her long-term boyfriend James Wood.

A weight lifted. Dave Coulier opened about how it felt to publicly discuss his struggles with alcohol — and he said he’s doing better than ever.

Dave Coulier is hoping his story will inspire many others. The 62-year-old star got candid on Instagram on Thursday, sharing that he is now more than two years sober by posting a photo of his bloody face. «I was a drunk.

Dave Coulier opened up about his struggles with alcoholism for the first time.

The Full House actor admitted that while the hours he spent drinking were blissful he definitely paid for it during the following two days. This is what lead to his decision to stop drinking. “I loved booze, but it didn’t love me back,” he continued. “I decided to make a decision for my own well-being, my family and for those around me who I love so dearly.” He thanked his wife Melissa Coulier for her support and revealed that he is living a much happier, and still funny, life without drinking. “The psychological and physical transformation has been amazing. The sky is more blue, my heart is no longer closed, and I enjoy making people laugh until they fall down more than ever before.” The actor, best known for playing Joey on Full House, and his post were met with nothing but support. Fans and friends flooded his comments

Help from his friends. After Dave Coulier opened up about his struggles with alcohol, his friends and former costars took to social media to congratulate him on his sobriety.

Dave Coulier is sharing his triumph with substance abuse. The "Full House" star, 62, took to Instagram on Tuesday to celebrate two years of sobriety with a throwback photo of himself bruised and bloodied – the result of a drunken night when he hit his face on stone steps one rowdy night.

Full House star Dave Coulier is revealing that he’s an alcoholic and has been sober for over two years.

Dave Coulier opened up about his struggles with alcohol for the first time — revealing the accident that led him to cut drinking out of his life.

Dave Coulier is opening up about his struggles with alcoholism.

Ocean Colour Scene frontman Simon Fowler has opened up about being outed as gay by the tabloids in the 1990s.Speaking in a new interview for NME’s Does Rock ‘N’ Roll Kill Braincells?! when asked about The Sun revealing his sexuality in 1998, Fowler said: “I don’t think it was a big deal. It was noticeable that our third album [1997’s] ‘Marchin’ Already’ went to Number One and knocked Oasis’ ‘Be Here Now’ off the top spot – which is when Noel Gallagher sent us a plaque: ‘Congratulations to the second greatest band in the world’.“But the album didn’t end up selling anywhere near as much as its predecessor, ‘Moseley Shoals’, overall.

Manchester United have officially announced the signing of Toby Collyer from Brighton.

Amazon bought MGM for its history — but not necessarily its standalone future.The e-commerce giant surprised Hollywood on Thursday by announcing the completion of its $8.5 billion acquisition of MGM, an iconic Hollywood brand whose presence in the modern entertainment industry has diminished over time and numerous changes in ownership since the mid-1980s.The Federal Trade Commission had suggested it might object to Amazon’s purchase of MGM, raising the prospect of a long fight. On the heels of Thursday’s closing announcement, the FTC still raised the threat of a future challenge to the combination.Analysts expect the tech company to try and exploit MGM’s best-known pieces of intellectual property for future gain — but don’t believe the studio has a long path ahead as a separate, influential entity.

EXCLUSIVE: We hear that Amazon Studios and Prime Video SVP Mike Hopkins sent a warm, welcoming email to MGM staffers this morning about the streamer’s acquisition of the near-century old studio, telling them that “we look forward to working with you as we create the next phase of MGM’s rich history together.”

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterAmazon has closed its $8.5 billion acquisition of MGM first announced last May, the companies said Thursday.Per Amazon, “The storied, nearly century-old studio—with more than 4,000 film titles, 17,000 TV episodes, 180 Academy Awards, and 100 Emmy Awards—will complement Prime Video and Amazon Studios’ work in delivering a diverse offering of entertainment choices to customers.”The completion of the transaction comes two days after the Amazon-MGM deal received clearance from the European Union’s antitrust regulator, which “unconditionally” approved Amazon’s proposed acquisition of MGM, in part because “MGM’s content cannot be considered as must-have.” The European Commission, in its antitrust review, found that the overlaps between the Amazon and MGM businesses are “limited.” At that time, the deal was still pending approval by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, which had been given a mid-March deadline by Amazon to issue a decision on approval of the transaction, the Wall Street Journal reported.