Oliver Stone, Lou Ye, Michel Hazanavicius Films & ‘The Count Of Monte Cristo’ Among New Titles Added To Cannes 2024 Official Selection

It's May already, and with a new month brings new shows to binge.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Iranian authorities are exerting heavy pressure on director Mohammad Rasoulof to pull his latest work “The Seed of the Sacred Fig” from the Cannes Film Festival by harassing the film’s producers and actors who have been summoned for questioning and banned from leaving the country. Human rights lawyer Babak Paknia, who is Rasoulof’s lawyer, said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, that several unspecified actors and producers on “Sacred Fig” were summoned and questioned last week by authorities.

There’s no better way to spruce up your home for spring than with a Wickes makeover - and now you can cut the cost of your DIY project with our fantastic competition to win a £200 voucher.To celebrate the launch of a new paint shade in collaboration with presenter, singer, and DIY enthusiast Kimberley Walsh, Wickes is giving 10 readers a whopping £200 worth of vouchers to spend in store.The new paint - titled Subtle Sage - is exclusively available from May 2, and follows the success of the first collaborative paint launched last year, named Blue Haze, which sold more than 7,000 litres in 2023. Specifically chosen by the Girls Aloud star, Subtle Sage is a light shade drawing inspiration from the soothing tones of nature’s greenery, with a soft green undertone at its core to help create a restful environment to enjoy and relax.

Graham Coxon and Rose Elinor Dougall have dropped a new single as part of THE WAEVE, titled ‘City Lights’. Check it out below.Shared this morning (May 2), the new track follows on from the release of their hit breakthrough album ‘THE WAEVE’ last year.Capturing the same charm as in the critically-acclaimed debut, the new single sees Coxon and Dougall hone in on their already-signature sound, and capture a bold, sultry chorus.“Now your soul belongs to me/ It’ll be alright/ Out in the darkness, free to fly/ We’ll get some sleep tomorrow,” they sing at the beginning amid a high-energy riff and distorted guitars.The track is written by the duo and produced by James Ford (Arctic Monkeys, Florence + The Machine, Foals).

Daisy Kent has a new man in her life!

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Austin Butler, Maya Rudolph, Kristen Wiig, Carol Burnett, Brie Larson, Ricky Martin, Michaela Jaé Rodriguez, Callum Turner, Kaia Gerber and Cristo Fernández are among the stars set to appear at Apple TV+‘s upcoming Emmy FYC activation in Los Angeles. Events will take place between Friday, May 3, and Saturday, May 11.

All Points East has confirmed more opening acts for Loyle Carner‘s show at the 2024 festival – find all the details below.Carner is due to top the bill at London’s Victoria Park on Saturday August 17. A host of special guests had already been announced, including Nas, Ezra Collective, Sainté and Joe James.Today (April 26) organisers have added another wave of artists, with soloist and former OutKast member André 3000 leading the list.

Paul Hollywood has ditched the Great British Bake Off tent for the great outdoors in his latest role.The celebrity chef was spotted filming in London, looking worlds away from his role on the Channel 4 show. Paul, 58, who is a judge on Bake Off with Prue Leith, transformed into a Marvel-inspired superhero on a set in the capital, as he filmed a commercial for Compare The Market. He was seen wearing a full red and blue costume, complete with plastic body armour and a cape.

Courteeners, English Teacher and Louis Tomlinson were among the acts to be honoured at the first-ever Northern Music Awards.The inaugural ceremony – hosted by the UK’s largest music therapy charity, Nordoff And Robbins – took place at the Albert Hall in Manchester last night (April 23) to celebrate northern artists, festivals, venues and industry figures.Presented by BBC Radio 6 Music DJ Chris Hawkins, the event featured live performances from Courteeners frontman Liam Fray, as well as English Teacher, Lisa Stansfield, The K’s and more.Guest presenters from the region included former Manchester United footballer Gary Neville, New Order‘s Gillian Gilbert and Stephen Norris, and Grimsby-born actor Thomas Turgoose (This Is England). ‌ Neville awarded Courteeners with the Band Of The Year prize. Responding to the nod, Fray said: “It’s really nice to be in a room with this much talent… but this isn’t about us, it’s about Nordoff And Robbins and the work that they do, it’s about music, and the way they’re changing lives with music and sometimes even saving lives with music.”The singer also delivered an acoustic rendition of Courteeners’ classic single ‘Not Nineteen Forever’ and a cover of Oasis‘ ‘The Masterplan’.Rising Leeds band English Teacher picked up the Best Newcomer award, and performed ‘Albatross’ and ‘Albert Road’ from their acclaimed debut album ‘This Could Be Texas’ (watch the video below)..@Englishteac_her commanding the stage with the first song off their album.

The King has bestowed a prestigious honour upon future Queen Kate Middleton in recognition of her remarkable public service and steadfast support for the arts, Buckingham Palace announced. As a working member of the royal family for over a decade, Kate has been appointed as the Royal Companion of The Order of the Companions of Honour, marking a significant milestone as the first royal family member to receive this distinction in the order’s 107-year history.

Kate Middleton has been bestowed with a significant new royal title from King Charles as she continues her cancer treatment.

A very busy Broadway held its own last week, with 36 productions pulling in a combined $34,650,614, a good 10% increase over last year at this time.

Jem Aswad Executive Editor, Music City Parks Foundation has announced the 2024 season of Capital One City Parks Foundation SummerStage, New York City’s iconic outdoor performing arts festival, bringing 85 free and benefit shows to Central Park and 13 neighborhood parks across the five boroughs. Andra Day, Ethel Cain, Ghostface Killa and Kim Gordon are just four of the artists slated to perform.

Let’s catch up on all things Cannes Film Festival. For one, if you haven’t seen it, Cannes recently revealed its 2024 poster, featuring a scene from “Rhapsody in August,” directed by the great Japanese master Akira Kurosawa, 81 at the time (see it below in full).

Emma Stone has been credited for contributing “oddities” to Taylor Swift’s new album ‘The Tortured Poets Department’.Swift dropped the album yesterday (April 19), before later revealing that it is in fact a double album, sharing 15 additional tracks. She has also released the official video for the single ’Fortnight’, which features Post Malone.The track ’Florida!!!’ on the album includes a feature from Florence Welch, but the official credits also list Stone as having added “oddities” to the track.No further information has been provided about exactly what the double Oscar winner added to the final song.

Denise Nurse is a familiar face to many as the presenter of BBC One's beloved show, Escape to the Country. Since 2007, she's been guiding viewers through picturesque landscapes and charming properties. After taking a nine-year break to focus on family, Denise made a triumphant return to the screen in 2022 and is set to grace our screens once again on Friday, 19 April, helping a new crop of buyers search for their dream home in Norfolk.

The Smile and Sons of Kemet – has announced a limited edition live album, recorded at one of his shows in London last year.It comes after the musician released the solo album ‘Voices of Bishara’ in 2022, which also featured performances from Robert Stillman and Chelsea Carmichael on woodwinds, Kareem Dayes on cello and Tom Herbert on bass.He then went on to perform numerous tracks from the LP at an intimate live venue in London called ‘Mu’ in January 2023 – which is located on Kingsland Road in North London and founded by the curators behind the neighbouring Brilliant Corners.Now, Skinner has announced that he will be sharing a live album following that show, which is set to arrive on May 10 via International Anthem, and features the renditions of the album’s tracks and more.The album Skinner shared in 2022 also saw the musician take inspiration from Abdul Wadud’s 1977 self-released solo cello album, ‘By Myself’, and on the night Skinner used the ‘Mu’ performance to put his own spin on Wadud’s ‘70s composition ‘Oasis’. You can check it out here, and look below for the album artwork as well as the full tracklist.‘Biashara’‘Red 2’‘The Journey’‘The Day After Tomorrow’‘Oasis’‘Camille’‘Happiness’‘Voices of Bishara Live at ‘Mu’’ is available in a deluxe package designed by Paul Camo of Studio Camo.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter A “Golden Axe” animated series has been greenlit at Comedy Central, Variety has learned. Based on the beloved Sega games of the same name, the show hails from co-creators Mike McMahan and Joe Chandler. Matthew Rhys (“The Americans,” “Perry Mason”), Danny Pudi (“Community,” “Mythic Quest”), Lisa Gilroy (“Jury Duty,” “Interior Chinatown”), Liam McIntyre (“Spartacus,” “The Flash”), and Carl Tart (“Grand Crew,” “Star Trek: Lower Decks”) will lead the voice cast.

Taylor Swift is set to release her 11th studio album ‘The Tortured Poets Department’ this week – and there has been much speculation amongst fans over its title.The pop star will release the follow-up to 2022’s Grammy-winning ‘Midnights’ on Friday (April 19). It’ll feature collaborations with Florence + The Machine (on ‘Florida!!!’) and Post Malone (on ‘Fortnight’).Other song titles on the imminent record include ‘My Boy Only Breaks His Favourite Toys’, ‘Down Bad’, ‘But Daddy I Love Him’, ‘I Can Do It With A Broken Heart’ and ‘The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived’.

Glastonbury 2024 line-up, including Caity Baser, Lulu, Frank Turner and Skindred.Last month, the iconic Worthy Farm festival shared its official 2024 line-up for Glastonbury – with Dua Lipa, Coldplay and SZA being confirmed as headlining the iconic Pyramid Stage this summer, while Shania Twain will perform in the legends slot on the Sunday instalment.Now, following the main announcement, the organisers have begun counting down the weeks to this year’s edition by gradually announcing the artists playing at other stages around the site.This kicked off last week with news of new artists set to headline the Acoustic Stage later this summer, and now Glastonbury has shared details of its Field Of Avalon line-up.Announced this morning on the festival’s official X/Twitter page, the full bill for the stage has been shared, with performances from Baby Queen, Skindred, Frank Turner and Lulu all being locked in.For Lulu, the announcement comes following speculation of an upcoming Glasto slot that emerged last week. According to an anonymous source at the time, the 75-year-old singer would be playing at the festival to close off her ongoing ‘Champagne For Lulu’ farewell tour.