Tilda Swinton, Steve Coogan, Maxine Peake & Charles Dance Sign UK Arts & Culture World Petition Calling For End Of Israel’s Gaza Siege & Bombing

Naman Ramachandran Bangladeshi filmmaker Nuhash Humayun’s “Pett Kata Shaw” won best international feature at the 31st Raindance Film Festival‘s jury awards. British documentary filmmaker Kit Vincent won best U.K.

Raine Allen-Miller’s debut feature Rye Lane leads this year’s British Independent Film Award nominations with 16 nods, including Best Director and Best British Independent Film. 

Zack Sharf Digital News Director Selena Gomez informed her 430 million Instagram followers that she is currently taking a break from social media due to the “horror, hate, violence and terror that’s going on in the world.” The pop star and “Only Murders in the Building” actor did not directly reference the Israel-Hamas war by name, but it’s clear posts about the Hamas terrorist attack and the subsequent destruction in Gaza factored into her decision to break from social media platforms. “I’ve been taking a break from social media because my heart breaks to see all of the horror, hate, violence and terror that’s going on in the world,” Gomez wrote on her Instagram story. “People being tortured and killed or any act of hate towards any one group is horrific.

Cornerstone has closed sales on multiple territories including North America and the UK for writer and director Daniel Kokotajlo’s folk horror Starve Acre.

A new online petition is calling for Child Benefit rules to be changed to “take into account inflation since 2013, and make it apply to household income, not individual income”. The High Income Child Benefit Charge (HICBC) provides for Child Benefit to be clawed back through the self Assessment tax system from families where the highest earner has an income above £50,000.

Ashton-under-Lyne’s swimming pool is set to be demolished despite a passionate campaign by residents and a 7,000-strong petition calling for it to be saved. Three leisure centres in Tameside were closed permanently in September amid provider Active Tameside’s struggle with energy prices and the cost of products, insurance and staff.

Coronation Street ’s Alex Bain has come a long way since joining the cast back in 2008. Born in Lancashire, Alex initially appeared in a Rice Krispies advertisement before transitioning to television. One of his significant early career moments was starring alongside Steve Coogan in the BBC drama Sunshine, which aired for one season in 2008.

Dua Lipa, Michael Stipe and Cate Blanchett have signed an open letter, urging President Joe Biden to call for a ceasefire in Gaza.The letter calls for “an end to the bombing of Gaza and the safe release of hostages,” as well as a safe route to be established into Palestine to deliver humanitarian aid. So far, it has been signed by dozens of high-profile names from across the entertainment world.Many of those supporting the ceasefire are musicians, such as pop star Lipa, R.E.M’s Michael Stipe, Killer Mike and Caroline Polachek.

Longtime Writers Guild member Dan Gordon is resigning over the union’s lack of public support for Israel.

A massive collection of some of Hollywood’s biggest names have commended President Joe Biden for his “unshakable moral conviction” and helping to get home some of the hostages taken by Hamas in their terror attack against Israel.

Matt Donnelly Senior Film Writer A dizzying amount of A-list Hollywood actors, comedians and entertainment executives signed an open letter to President Joe Biden on Monday, calling for the release of all hostages taken by terrorist group Hamas. Amy Schumer, Sacha Baron Cohen, Chris Rock, Gwyneth Paltrow, Katy Perry, Bradley Cooper, Justin Timberlake and more were among the highly visible figures to sign the note, launching a formal campaign called #NoHostageLeftBehind.

Orlando (★★★★☆) are having fun onstage, and their good time is infectious. Of course, Sarah Ruhl’s frolicsome, gender-swapping adaptation of Virginia Woolf’s novel Orlando: A Biography supplies a sound blueprint for the farcical shenanigans this company puts over heartily.The play also captures the romance and scope of the novel, as well as the ripe sexuality in the tale of Orlando (Mary Myers), whose journey toward their true self spans continents and centuries.

Steve Coogan has defended his decision to sign an open letter calling for a ceasefire in Gaza amid the current Israel-Hamas conflict, while also condemning the “horrific” Hamas attacks.Coogan was among over 2,000 names from the arts world who signed the letter. Tilda Swinton, Massive Attack‘s Robert Del Naja and Miriam Margoyles are also among the signees.The letter condemns various governments for “not only tolerating war crimes but aiding and abetting them” amid the current conflict between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas, as well as “every act of violence against civilians and every infringement of international law whoever perpetrates them”.Citing Israeli Minister of Defence Yoav Gallant’s depiction of Palestinians as “human animals”, the letter goes on to argue that Palestinians “have become people to whom almost anything can be done”.However, some have criticised the letter for not openly condemning the actions of Hamas, who reignited tensions between Israel and Palestine when it launched its biggest ever attack on Israel on October 7, killing over 1,000 people.In response, Israel imposed a “total siege” on Gaza, threatening to cut off electricity, fuel and supplies of food and water.

Disgraced paedophile Jimmy Savile abused his position of power decades before his TV career, targeting young girls and boys at DJ nights held at clubs in the north of England.

Caroline Polachek has released a line of limited-edition merch to raise money for Palestinian refugees.The merchandise is available for a week and is inspired by her new single ‘Dang’, which was released earlier this week.Polachek performed the track for the first time on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert in the style of a surreal Ted Talk, using a bewildering PowerPoint performance to set the tone.

Kirk Douglas.Between them, a group of Jews whose families had lived in constant fear of persecution gave America, and the world, the golden age of cinema. Classics from “The Wizard of Oz” and “Singin’ in the Rain” to “Ben Hur” and “Gone with the Wind” exist because of them.So why, after the most heinous mass murders of Jews since the Holocaust, is Hollywood incapable of recognizing its own history — and why does it have such a Jew problem?In the days since the Hamas attacks in Israel, the powerful and the rich have truly exposed themselves.Maha Dakhil, co-head of motion pictures at CAA and agent to Tom Cruise, Madonna, Reese Witherspoon, Olivia Wilde, and American Israeli Natalie Portman, this week accused Israel of “genocide.”She re-posted, “You’re currently learning who supports genocide,” before adding her own caption: “That’s the line for me.” John Cusack, that one-time 80s heartthrob, wrote on X: “I was out at the Palestinian march in Chicago.

A group of 55 celebrities have signed a letter addressed to President Joe Biden asking him to call for a ceasefire in the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.

J. Kim Murphy A group of 55 prominent artists and advocates in the entertainment industry have signed an open letter to President Joe Biden, urging for a call for a ceasefire in Gaza and Israel. The signatories include names such as Joaquin Phoenix, Cate Blanchett, Jon Stewart, Kristen Stewart, Susan Sarandon, Mahershala Ali, Riz Ahmed, Ramy Youssef and Quinta Brunson.

Joe Biden called for a massive new aid package for Israel and Ukraine, linking the wars in both countries to American security, while denouncing a rise in anti-semitism and Islamophobia in the U.S.

Sam Heughan is speaking out to explain why he signed a letter from the group Artists for Palestine UK.