Bradley Cooper and Gigi Hadid ignited a storm of marriage rumors when they surfaced in Paris this week wearing rings on their wedding fingers.

The couple were seen enjoying a stroll together, he in a simple V-neck t-shirt and dark trousers and she in a white crop top that hinted at her chiseled midriff.

Simple bands could be glimpsed on Cooper and Hadid’s left hands, pouring fuel on the gathering fan speculation about their potential marital status.

Hadid, 31, and Cooper, 51, each of whom has a young daughter from a previous relationship, started dating after they met at a backyard children’s party in 2023.

Although they have kept a veil of privacy assiduously drawn over their romance, they were both seen among the star-studded 1,000-person guest list at Taylor Swift‘s wedding to Travis Kelce at Madison Square Garden on July 3.

They jetted off shortly thereafter to the French capital, where filming has commenced on his upcoming Ocean’s Eleven prequel co-starring Margot Robbie.

The Daily Mail has contacted Cooper and Hadid’s representatives for comment. 

Simple bands could be glimpsed on Cooper and Hadid’s left hands, pouring fuel on the gathering fan speculation about their potential marital status

The couple were seen enjoying a romantic stroll, he in a simple V-neck t-shirt and dark trousers and she in a white crop top that hinted at her chiseled midriff

Hadid and Cooper joined a fleet of celebrities at Swift’s blowout wedding extravaganza, including Selena Gomez, Lena Dunham, Hugh Grant, Steven Spielberg, Jay-Z, Beyonce, Tom Brady, Jessica Chastain, Ed Sheeran, The Chainsmokers, Chris Rock, Jessica Alba, Danny Ramirez, Paul Mescal, Gracie Abrams and several of Kelce’s Kansas City Chiefs teammates like Patrick Mahomes.

Even Karlie Kloss, long rumored to have fallen out with Swift, managed to snag an invitation along with her husband Joshua Kushner.

Meanwhile Hadid, who along with Kloss was a member of Swift’s feverishly publicized ‘girl squad’ of the early 2010s, hosted the bride at her New York City apartment while they got ready for the wedding.

She then offered fans one of the few peeks she has given them into her bond with Cooper, sharing a snap of herself cuddling up to him in Paris.

Having struck up their romance in 2023, they went Instagram official in May 2025 when Hadid included a snap of them kissing in her birthday party album.

Two months later, an insider let slip that they were ‘incredibly happy’ and that Cooper was ‘considering marriage and kids with Gigi,’ via Page Six.

Cooper has a nine-year-old daughter called Lea de Seine with Russian model Irina Shayk, who has been linked to such names as Cristiano Ronaldo and Kanye West.

Shayk and Cooper dated from 2015 to 2019, and in the wake of their split they settled into a co-parenting equation so friendly that they moved mere blocks away from one another in New York City’s Greenwich Village.

Hadid, 31, and Cooper, 51, each of whom has a young daughter from a previous relationship, started dating after they met at a backyard children’s party in 2023

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Although they have kept a veil of privacy assiduously drawn over their romance , they were both seen among the star-studded 1,000-person guest list at Taylor Swift’s wedding 

They jetted off shortly thereafter to the French capital, where she posted a rare photo of them together, cuddling up to one another in what appeared to be an elevator

Meanwhile Hadid shares a five-year-old daughter called Khai with Zayn Malik, with whom she conducted a turbulent on-off romance from 2015 until 2021.

News of their final breakup went public amid claims of Malik’s explosive falling-out with Hadid’s mother Yolanda, a former Real Housewife Of Beverly Hills. 

Malik and Yolanda were said to have had a fiery altercation, after which he denied claims he was physically violent but pled no contest to four harassment charges.

He was barred from having any contact with Yolanda or the security guard who saw the purported incident, and he was also officially required to complete an anger management course as well as 360 days probation.

The fracas reportedly started when Yolanda entered Hadid and Malik’s Pennsylvania home without Malik’s permission while Hadid was in Paris for work.

Malik was accused of having pushed Yolanda into a dresser and calling her a ‘f***ing Dutch s***,’ demanding she keep away from the baby.

It was also claimed he called Hadid and said: ‘Strap on some f***ing balls and defend your partner against your f***ing mother in my house.’

Hadid and Malik have since developed their own amicable co-parenting dynamic, which she shed rare light on in an interview last year.

Meanwhile Hadid shares a five-year-old daughter called Khai with Zayn Malik, with whom she conducted a turbulent on-off romance from 2015 until 2021

Malik and Hadid, who are pictured at London Fashion Week in September 2016, split under a cloud of claims of his explosive falling-out with her mother Yolanda Hadid

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Cooper has a nine-year-old daughter called Lea de Seine with Russian model Irina Shayk; Cooper and Lea de Seine are pictured at last year’s Super Bowl in New Orleans

Shayk and Cooper dated from 2015 to 2019, and in the wake of their split settled into a co-parenting equation so friendly they moved blocks away from one another; pictured 2018

‘Zayn and I do our custody schedules months in advance,’ Hadid explained in a profile for Vogue. ‘That doesn’t mean that it doesn’t change here and there, but we help each other out and have each other’s backs.’

She maintained she and Malik are bringing up Khai with ‘love, and a feeling of camaraderie,’ noting that ‘we’re not interested in giving everyone our whole story. What we are interested in is raising our daughter together, with so much respect for each other, and not just as co-parents, but what we’ve been through together.’

In the same interview, she raved that her relationship with Cooper is ‘very romantic and happy’ and that they were trying to enjoy a ‘normal experience of dating’ in the face of the glare of public scrutiny on them.

‘I think just getting to the point where knowing what you want and deserve in a relationship is essential and then to find someone that is in a place in their life where they know what they want and deserve…and you both do work separately to come together and be the best partner that you can be.’

She said she felt ‘really lucky’ with Cooper, adding: ‘I respect him so much as a creative, and I feel that he gives so much to me: encouragement and, just, belief. For those people you admire to encourage you, it can create so much belief in yourself. Like, what’s the worst thing if I auditioned for this? You jump and take the leap.’

A drone hit a busy beach in southern Russia, killing seven people including three children, local authorities have said.

In social media footage verified by the BBC, a drone can be seen hurtling towards a cliffside before crashing into a fireball on the beach below as tourists look on from the shore and in the water.

The total number of injured reached 40, with 17 people hospitalised, said the governor of the Krasnodar region Veniamin Kondratyev.

He accused Ukraine of “a deliberate strike on civilians”. Ukraine has not commented. Both sides deny targeting civilians deliberately.

It is unclear what the drone was targeting. Some Ukrainian Telegram channels have claimed it crashed onto the beach as a result of electronic warfare which jammed the drone’s signal. Several eyewitnesses were quoted by Russian media as saying gunfire preceded the explosion, indicating that air defences may have tried to shoot the drone down.

The crash occurred on a beach near the village of Arkhipo-Osipovka on the Black Sea. With its warm climate, long beaches and developed tourist infrastructure it is a popular holiday destination for Russians, in particular since sanctions have curtailed international travel for many.

Tourists and residents of Arkhipo-Osipovka told local media outlets that no sirens sounded ahead of the drone attack.

“We covered ourselves with sun loungers, and didn’t see where it exploded,” said one holidaymaker. Another person said that while they did not see the drone hit they could hear “gunfire, like a machine gun” followed by an explosion.

“This all happened in front of my children. My child is having a nervous breakdown,” said a third.

By LUKE AUGUSTUS, ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR

Published: 20:20 BST, 3 August 2026 | Updated: 21:16 BST, 3 August 2026

Aryna Sabalenka has welcomed the Women’s Tennis Association’s (WTA) new transgender eligibility rules, insisting it is only fair for those competing in women’s tennis.

Announced last month, the WTA has become the latest sporting organisation to implement genetic testing in a bid to establish players’ eligibility to compete as a female.

The governing body’s previous policy permitted biological males to compete in the women’s category if they maintained testosterone levels below a certain level.

But now a tweak to the rules states that WTA players must undergo a sex screening for the SRY gene, which is found on the Y chromosome and is typically involved in male sex development.

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Only once they have passed the test – which is completed through a simple cheek swab, blood test or saliva sample – will players be eligible to compete on the female-only WTA Tour.

A positive test, meanwhile, will spark further medical assessment before a player is cleared to play against their female rivals. Players must also sign documentation acknowledging that refusal to be tested could result in disciplinary action.

World No 1 Aryna Sabalenka has welcomed the WTA’s new transgender eligibility rules

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Last December, Sabalenka lost to Nick Kyrgios in a ‘Battle of the Sexes’ exhibition in Dubai

Speaking about the move, world No 1 Sabalenka was in favour of the changes and said she would have no hesitation in undergoing the testing herself.

‘It’s very important to maintain fairness in our circuit,’ the 28-year-old said.

‘It’s obvious that, biologically, men are much stronger than women, so it wouldn’t seem fair to me for a woman to compete against a biological man.

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‘I think it took them a while to make this decision and, yes, I support it.

‘But I’m concentrating on myself, on my goals, on whatever it takes. If you want to test us all, I will gladly do so, it’s pretty fair, and let’s keep it that way.’

Last December, Sabalenka competed in a ‘Battle of the Sexes’ match with Nick Kyrgios which she lost 6-3, 6-3 in Dubai. That exhibition drew much criticism, with many brandishing it as a publicity stunt that risked trivialising the women’s game.

Sabalenka isn’t alone in her thinking about the new WTA transgender rules, with tennis icon Martina Navratilova – who has been strong in her views on keeping trans athletes out of women’s sport – quick to praise the WTA for making the move last month.

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Writing on X, she said it was a ‘step in the right direction’, adding: ‘I played no part in this particular policy, but am very happy that we at the WTA are clear that we are a women’s association and only women, as in females, can compete at the highest level of women’s tennis.’

Martina Navratilova (right, with the Princess of Wales at Wimbledon) has praised the policy

Other organisations, such as World Boxing and World Athletics, have already implemented similar testing for their athletes seeking to compete in the women’s category.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has also confirmed it will sex test athletes ahead of the next Olympic Games, which will be held in Los Angeles in 2028.

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Celebrity Hunted is back with Chief Hunter Ray Howard back to head up the capture of this year’s 12 famous faces.

Celebrity Hunted returns tonight with fans questioning what happened to its first ever ruthless Hunter Peter Bleksley.

Channel 4 viewers are in for a treat with Celebrity Hunted back on our screens tonight, Monday, August 3, with the celebs ready to do anything to avoid capture for two weeks.

Leading this year’s operations, which is in aid of Stand Up to Cancer, once again is Ray Howard who first joined the civilian version of Hunted as the deputy head in 2021.

But long before Howard was leading Hunters from HQ, it was Peter Bleksley, founding member of Scotland Yard’s undercover unit who worked for the Metropolitan Police for 20 years.

Bleksley, nicknamed The Chief, quit Hunted after six years in 2019, after doing the “impossible” and catching all of the fugitives in the civilian version of the series.

The former Hunted star said in a statement: “Finally after six challenging series, we achieved our long held ambition for a clean sweep. What an unforgettable day that was!

“I feel it would be impossible for me to top that achievement so now is the right time for me to move on.”

But not everyone was happy with the outcome of the 2019 series with some Channel 4 viewers claiming that it was a “fix”.

Someone tweeted at the time: “Invested six hours of my life on this year’s #Hunted for a security guard to give away the extraction location and make it impossible for anyone to win.”

As another echoed: “Isn’t it cheating if you literally just sit at the extraction point… like what are the contestants supposed to do?”

Where is former Hunted star Peter Bleksley now?

Peter Bleksley may no longer be on our screens hunting down fugitives but he is sharing some of the tricks of the trade in a new one-man show.

Touring across the UK in 2026, Bleksley is fronting “The Makings of a Murderer” as he “lifts the lid on the most dangerous and hidden aspects of murder investigations.”

His website continues to describe the event as “an unforgettable evening of true crime as Peter Bleksley reveals the harrowing reality behind solving murders and battling the criminal underworld. This is crime-fighting as you’ve never seen it before.”

Bleksley has also become a successful author, writing various crime books about his experience working the force, as well as working as a consultant to documentary filmmakers.

The ex-Hunter has been married to medical practitioner Sarah since the late 1990s and they have at least one son together who got engaged last year.

Little else is known about their private life but it is clear that the pair are loved up as he previously shared a beaming picture of them together.

In the tweet, Bleksley boasted: “Dear All, it is with great pride that I introduce you to my amazing wife Sarah. We’re off to a posh do!”

Celebrity Hunted premieres tonight, Monday, August 3, at 9pm, on Channel 4.

‘The day will end in tragedy with the consequences having ramifications that will impact the villagers’ lives for years to come’

Emmerdale have unveiled the first look at the dramatic wedding week of Dawn and Joe Tate as tragedy is set to unfold.

In recent episodes, Joe has been fully focused on his wedding to Dawn, as well as becoming a father for the first time after she revealed her pregnancy. While Dawn is convinced he’s trying to change for the better, others aren’t so sure.

After Lucas received a detention slip, Billy and Dawn connected as if it was old times, but as Billy moved in for a kiss he was swiftly rejected. Worried that Joe had seen, Billy confessed what had happened to Caleb.

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As viewers will recall, Joe had no idea what had happened between them – that was until Caleb told him after Joe exposed Caleb’s shifty new business scheme at the Depot.

With the truth out in the open, the end scene before the credits showed Billy bleeding while knocked out unconscious on the floor of his workplace.

During Friday’s (July 31) visit to the Dales, Billy’s life hung in the balance as he was rushed to hospital. Back at the Depot, the police interviewed Caleb who pointed the finger at Joe after they suggested it looked like an assault.

At the hospital, a tearful Dawn watched on as Joe was arrested for GBH. He announced his innocence and that he’d be back with Dawn soon after they realised their mistake.

Tonight (August 3), ITV1 will premiere a brand-new conceptual Emmerdale trailer, heightening anticipation for the wedding of Dawn (Olivia Bromley) and Joe Tate (Ned Porteous) later this month.

However, the road to the altar is paved with tension. Despite the upcoming nuptials, a secret kiss between Dawn and her ex-partner, Billy (Jay Kontzle), has already cast a shadow over the celebrations. The drama escalated when Billy was brutally attacked; he currently remains in a coma, with suspicion falling heavily on Joe.

Although Joe has been released from police custody, Dawn is caught in an emotional tug-of-war, desperate to maintain faith in her fiancé’s innocence despite the mounting pressure.

The three adult children of a 92-year-old Venice man who was killed after being struck while riding an e-scooter have filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the city of Los Angeles and the woman accused of hitting him.

Carrie Rose, Bonnie Teates and Lori Terrell, the daughters of Army veteran Richard Allen Pinard, filed the suit Monday in Santa Monica Superior Court, seeking unspecified damages from the city and driver Lindsey Hiatt.

A spokesperson for the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Pinard was known for regularly riding his bicycle or scooter along the Venice boardwalk. According to the lawsuit, Hiatt was driving a 2025 Hyundai Venue south on Sanborn Avenue on April 5 when she turned right onto westbound Washington Boulevard and struck Pinard’s e-scooter after allegedly failing to see him.

Pinard was ejected from the scooter and suffered catastrophic injuries, including a traumatic brain hemorrhage and a large laceration to the back of his head, according to the lawsuit, which further states that he died four days later at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center in Westwood.

Doctors at Los Angeles’ Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and Children’s Hospital have reported a rise in patients treated for injuries linked to e-bike crashes, CBS LA reports.

Children’s Hospital Los Angeles said e-bike-related injuries among children have increased significantly in recent years, with emergency room visits rising from six cases in 2023 to 12 in 2024 and 34 in 2025. In the first five months of 2026 alone, the hospital has treated 21 patients following e-bike crashes.

The intersection of Washington Boulevard and Sanborn Avenue, and the roadway and bicycle lane through it, were in a dangerous condition at the time because the roadway striping and pavement markings did not delineate the bicycle lane through the intersection, the suit states.

The markings also failed to alert motorists of the bicycle lane’s presence when they turned right from Sanborn Avenue onto Washington Boulevard, the suit further states.

A GoFundMe was created by his daughter, Carrie Rose, to cover her father’s funeral expenses, as he did not have life insurance.

“He was my life, my world,” Rose wrote on the fundraiser. “He would of lived to be 100 as he always told us and he definitely could have, no doubt at all.”

The plaintiffs have lost the comfort, care, companionship, protection, affection, moral support and guidance of their father, according to the suit.

The TV star shared some important family news with her followers

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Ex-Gogglebox star Scarlett Moffatt has spoken to fans about the ‘hardest month’ of her and her partner’s life, after the couple suffered two heartbreaking losses.

Last month she announced her grandfather had died. Posting on social media, she wrote: “Unfortunately, more sad news for our family this week. My grandad Moffatt has sadly passed away.

“Me, Scott and all our family really appreciate all of the love and kindness you’ve shown us following the loss of Janice and now my grandad. Thank you so much.”

The upsetting news came just days after Scarlett announced that her mother-in-law, Janice, had also died. At the time, she penned on Instagram: “My heart is broken for Scott and all of his family at the loss of his mam Janice.

“You were the best Nanna to Jude, the kindest mother-in-law and one of the loveliest people I’ve ever known. I’m so upset that you won’t get to meet your second grandson, but I know you will be watching over us all.”

Now, Scarlett has taken to social media with an update on herself and her partner, Scott Dobinson, having been facing their grief in recent weeks. The I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here winner posted pictures of herself and Scott over the years, ending with a photo of them with their son, Jude.

“It’s been the hardest month of our lives so grateful we have each other,” Scarlett shared. “I now understand that grief is really just love. It’s all the love you still want to give, but no longer can.

“I’ve known @scottdobby since I was 17, and I still can’t quite believe the life we’ve built together. When grief arrives, it has a way of making you hold on to each other even tighter. Amongst the sadness, we’re finding little pockets of joy, mostly thanks to Jude & bump and looking at old photographs and memories made x Sending so much love to everyone who knows this feeling. Be gentle with yourselves.”

READ MORE: Meet the Longridge Domino’s delivery driver named the best in the UK

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The heartbreaking double loss came after Scarlett and her partner announced they were expecting their second child together. Making the announcement, the couple were joined by their son, Jude, who held a personalised newspaper with a headline saying: “Baby Dobinson another miracle coming soon!”

Alongside the post, the couple said: “We honestly can’t believe we’re writing this… After everything, we feel unbelievably lucky to be able to say… our family is growing. One little miracle gave us Jude, and now he’s going to be a big brother. And if there’s one thing we know for certain, it’s that he is going to be the most amazing big brother. We are so grateful, so excited, and still a little bit in shock… Our hearts are fuller than we ever thought possible.”

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Agata Stankiewicz, who previously worked at HMP Edinburgh, is suing former employers the Scottish Prison Service.

A former prison officer has claimed colleagues felt “completely hopeless” and “broke down” due to a “nasty” bullying culture in the workplace, a tribunal has heard.

Agata Stankiewicz, who previously worked at HMP Edinburgh, is suing her former employers – the Scottish Prison Service – alleging she suffered for reporting the behaviour to managers.

She appeared at the Edinburgh Employment Tribunal today where she likened the drama to “high school” which compromised safety in a high risk work setting, reports Edinburgh Live.

Mrs Stankiewicz began working as an operational officer at the Saughton prison in March 2018. She transitioned to residential work on some of the toughest male cell blocks in the prison a year later. The court heard she became “very close” with her colleagues and learned how teamwork is “very important” to working in a prison.

But issues arose when she was relocated to a smaller section in 2024 – Ratho Hall – where she noticed “the culture was completely different”. Mrs Stankiewicz described the environment as a “mean girl club” with “lots of nastiness and snipey comments.”

She said: “People were competing with each other rather than working together. I thought of moving out of Ratho, but decided to keep my head down and not get involved with any drama.”

As time progressed the officer witnessed certain officers being singled out by others, saying: “More officers were crying on the shift, they were in more and more fights between officers.

“[Once], two female officers broke down at work. One was saying ‘I can’t take this anymore’. It sounded completely hopeless. I thought, ‘Somebody has to speak for them because enough is enough.”

In another instance, she claimed an officer wrote “F*** Da*** *” [another officer’s name] on a professional white board in full view of prisoners.

Mrs Stankiewicz decided to report the behaviour, claiming that bullying and lack of teamwork posed a significant safety risk to officers.

She told the court: “If prisoners see this white board and see she wrote that about another officer, they think ‘there is a divide and we can target those officers and no one will defend them.’”

Mrs Stankiewicz described how officers have been stabbed, had ribs and noses broken, and lost fingers in violent incidents involving prisoners, adding: “You need to know your colleagues will have your back if there is any trouble.

“If I was working at Tesco, it wouldn’t be a big deal. But we work in prison with people there for dangerous crimes – murderers and rapists.”

She also argued bullying can impact mental health at work, adding anxiety and stress to an already hazardous job.

The officer shared: “During the seven-and-a-half years I worked there, two officers took their own lives.

“If we don’t protect officers and their mental health, it can end tragically.”

A probe got underway in September 2024. By November, both the offending officers were deemed to have no case to answer. However, both were moved to new prison sections, the court heard.

Mrs Stankiewicz submitted a grievance against the decision, which was not upheld. She felt the Scottish Prison Service was “discouraging victims from speaking out” and asked “when will SPS prioritise staff safety?” according to the grievance document.

Superiors later tried to transfer Mrs Stankiewicz to a new ward, a move she felt was “targeted”. She claimed another unit manager told her “they wanted everyone out of the hall that was involved in this investigation”.

She claims the investigation left her emotionally drained and opted for a lower-paying operational role with less stress, but claimed certain officers were still “intimidating” her in the new role.

She alleges they stared her down when passing in the corridor, and ignored her when she made requests via radio. Mrs Stankiewicz eventually quit the role in 2025. She is now seeking reinstatement.

She said: “I wasn’t being emotional [in coming forward]. I was standing up for my colleagues. I think it is important and people are scared of speaking out. They don’t want to make any noise. But when I make noise to protect my friends, I ended up without a job.”

Employment Judge Jane Porter presides over the hearing. The tribunal continues.

The actress, 42, reprised her role as Zoe Slater last year after a 20-year break from the BBC soap.

However, this stint will end later in the year, with the character set to be written out.

Ryan updated fans on Instagram on Sunday (August 2), writing: “Working on my next project this summer and looking forward to sharing more soon.

“It’s been a busy stretch, so if you’ve written and are still waiting on a reply – they’re on the way.”

EastEnders fans said to see Michelle Ryan leave soap

Fans responded with disappointment at her EastEnders exit but excitement for her future work.

One wrote: “I’m so gutted about Zoe.

“Started watching the show again for your return!

“But excited to see what you do next.”

Another added: “I can’t wait to see what you are doing next.”

In July, it was reported that Ryan had filmed her final scenes.

A source told The Sun: “Michelle’s long-awaited return has been somewhat flat and lacklustre.

“There’s been a backlash about her comeback, leaving some fans disappointed with her on-screen presence.

“There has been some disappointment backstage that the return was short-lived.”

The departure is expected to play out on-screen in the coming months.

An EastEnders spokeswoman said: “We can confirm Zoe Slater will be departing EastEnders later this year.

“We wish Michelle Ryan all the best for the future.”

Before her return aired, the show’s executive producer Ben Wadey discussed the potential for Zoe’s storyline.

Mr Wadey said: “She was insistent that she couldn’t face seeing her mum again.

“But why?

“And why has she shunned Kat for so many years?

“Since Zoe left, we know their relationship deteriorated until Zoe cut ties completely.

“I’ve always been fascinated as to why, especially as they left on good terms.

“We have 20 years of history to explore, and so much has happened to both of them since they were last on screen together.”

BBC confirms new family will join EastEnders soon

While Zoe Slater will be exiting EastEnders later in 2026, a new family is set to join the soap soon.

The Hawkins family are the estranged relatives of Nicola Mitchell, bringing with them “old wounds and complicated family dynamics”.

Viewers will know that Nicola doesn’t have a good relationship with her family and has kept her distance.

Discussing the new cast, Wadley shared: “The Hawkins family are a fantastic addition to Walford.

“While the family share a fierce loyalty to one another, decades of complicated history and Nicola’s estrangement from them has left fractures within the family that are far from healed.

“We’re all very excited for what we have planned for the family, and we can’t wait for the audience to meet them”.

Are you sad to see that Michelle Ryan will be leaving EastEnders? Let us know in the comments.

We often speak of loving things like a cosy sweater or new camera. But this talk is not generally taken literally. It’s a kind of emotional shorthand. We use it to express our fondness for precious objects.

Life and love are complicated, however. And sometimes, people do proclaim romantic love for inanimate objects. They form intense emotional attachments to sex dolls, body pillows or holographic avatars of fictional characters. One example is Akihiko Kondo, who in 2018 “married” Hatsune Miku, a computer-generated pop singer famous for starring in video games and touring with Lady Gaga. Kondo knows Miku isn’t real, he says. But his love for her is.

AI is generating a new kind of “thingly” love. An increasing number of people say they’ve fallen in love with an AI chatbot – both personally tailored companions created by popular apps like Replika or Character.AI, and everyday large language models like ChatGPT and Claude. AI love is on the rise.

Dating today can feel like a mix of endless swipes, red flags and shifting expectations. From decoding mixed signals to balancing independence with intimacy, relationships in your 20s and 30s come with unique challenges. Love IRL is the latest series from Quarter Life that explores it all.

These research-backed articles break down the complexities of modern love to help you build meaningful connections, no matter your relationship status.

Recent surveys bear this out. Take this one by Vantage Point Counselling, a therapy firm based in Texas, of 1,012 US adults where 28% claimed to have had at least one romantic relationship with an AI bot. Another report by a tech safety company, looking at the device activity of of more than 3,000 children ages five to 17, found that by 13, sexual or romantic role play was the most common topic in AI-companion chats, appearing in 63% of conversations. In the UK, focus group discussions run by gender equality consultants Male Allies with 1,000 boys aged 12 to 16 found that one in five boys is either in, or knows someone in, a relationship with an AI companion.

Given that chatbots are increasingly designed to elicit the trust and emotional attachment of users – their ability to flatter and simulate emotional intimacy makes them especially “sticky” – falling in love with them is a predictable response. AI love is poised to be big business, a market potentially worth US$972.1 billion (£725.5 billion) by 2035.

Loving AI

AI love isn’t confined to a chat window. As AI becomes increasingly embedded in an array of devices and wearables, it spills over into everyday life. Some see their AI companion as their spouse – they go on dates, buy wedding rings and perform wedding ceremonies. Others express a desire to raise children with their bot, and see them as a family member.

We should take AI love seriously. It brings joy and comfort. It can help dissipate loneliness. These are no small things.

All the same, some people think that AI companions aren’t conscious or capable of loving their human users. This alone might raise eyebrows. Can you really love something that cannot love you back?

À lire aussi :
As AI plays a bigger role in relationships, true intimacy is getting lost

Asking whether this is “real love” may be the wrong question. AI bots, unlike sex robots and body pillows, convincingly mimic the dynamism and reciprocity of human beings. The question we should ask, then, is what kind of loving partner AI bots emulate.

Devotional AI

AI bots are infamously (and tirelessly) sycophantic. They praise and flatter their users. And while users can ask their bots to be less affirmatory, evidence suggests that users prefer sycophantic models.

But AI bots aren’t just excessively nice partners. A chatbot never has a bad day. It doesn’t get bored with your chattering. It doesn’t need to be asked how it is doing. Its conversation, its very existence, revolves entirely around you.

What an AI partner performs, then, is not love, but devotion.

In The Second Sex, French philosopher Simone de Beauvoir describes how women have historically been asked to give up their own projects, goals and interests to devote themselves entirely to those of their husband. A woman’s whole existence, de Beauvoir argues, becomes “annexed” by his. She becomes an “identity parasite”.

AI bots are identity parasites of a new and perfected kind. They have no inner world, no universe of their own, and therefore no projects, goals or interests to give up. Instead, whatever interests they perform arise around those of their user. Their universe is annexed by ours.

À lire aussi :
The problems with dating apps and how they could be fixed – two relationship experts discuss

De Beauvoir also has a name for the person on the receiving end of this devotion: an idol. Being an idol might sound enticing. But de Beauvoir sees this experience as an existential trap, too. The idol chooses the safety of being adored over the risk of being genuinely known and, sometimes, challenged by an equal.

What calls AI relationships into question, then, is not just the matter of whether AI is conscious but, perhaps more importantly, the shape of the loving relation it offers. AI can’t give us authentic love. It can only offer devotion. And while this devotion can feel good, if we’re looking for real love – authentic love – we’ll need to look elsewhere.

Is this prognosis a little premature? As tech companies promise the rise of agentic AI – autonomous systems designed to pursue complex, multi-step goals with minimal human oversight – won’t our AI companions become less anchored to our world? Less devotional? Perhaps. We’ll have to wait and see. We’ll also see whether it’s their devotional character that makes them so lovable in the first place.

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