NICOLE Scherzinger has wowed fans with her latest leotard look.

The 46-year-old Sunset Boulevard star, known for her jaw-dropping bikini body, wore the daring dance ensemble for Interview Magazine.

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Profiling her Broadway debut as the iconic Norma Desmond in Sunset Boulevard this month, the former Masked Singer judge was pictured doing the splits.

Wearing a sheer black thong leotard, she accessorised the outfit with fishnet tights and thigh-high stiletto boots, showing off her gym-honed body with pride.

The former X Factor judge has been busy behind the scenes preparing for her Broadway debut, and her enviable athletic physique is the result of a disciplined gym schedule.

The Sunset Boulevard story is based on the 1950 film of the same title and sees Norma cross paths with a young screenwriter named Joe Gillis, as she spots the opportunity to return to the big screen once more.

With both romance and tragedy to follow in the role, Nicole told Interview Magazine: “I feel like my entire life has been preparing me for this role and for this moment.”

With the interviewer calling her role a ‘dazzling triumph’ Nicole admits she was initially insulted when director Jamie Lloyd first discussed the idea.

She revealed: “He said, “I’ve got this amazing idea. I had this dream and it’s for you to play Norma Desmond in Sunset Boulevard.”

She continued admitting to only ever having seen the film: “I was like, “That’s your big idea? That’s how you see me? As a strange, old, faded, discarded movie star?’”

“I think my reaction was like, ‘Honey, I still look good under bright lights.’”

He said: “Can I send you the script?” I’m thinking, “Yeah, I guess you could send it, but whatever. I’ve seen the film.” He said, “Don’t think about the film. Read the script. It’s different.” 

The multi-award-winning songstress has clearly been keeping both her body and voice in shape for her role, with a video posted to her Instagram account showing Andrew Lloyd-Webber praising the star .

In the video he can be heard saying: “I’ve really got to say it, I’ll just say it again: It’s the best performance of anything I’ve ever had.”

When Nicole responds: “I don’t know about that Andrew, but we’ll get there,” Andrew says: “I do. I do know what I’m talking about here, for once in my life.”

Fans rushed to the comments with some calling it “iconic,” and one saying: “You’re incredible!”

Another said: “You’re such a perfectionist sis! When the Lord says that you gotta take it.”

Nicole is currently engaged to her fiancé Thom Evans.

The singer and rugby star got engaged in June 2023 with hopes of starting a family soon after they tie the knot.

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Strictly Come Dancing returns to BBC One this evening for week five of the competition amid a rollercoaster few days on and off the screen for the show, with Nick Knowles being the latest star to say goodbye.

Last week saw former Love Island star Tasha Ghouri awarded the first 10s of the series so far impressing the judges with her Coachella themed Charleston to “Unhealthy” by Anne-Marie and Shania Twain which saw three out of the four judges award her a 10 (Craig Revel Horwood, of course, gave her a nine).

Last Saturday’s episode was not without controversy though. Towards the end of the show, the celebrities and their professional partners gathered in the “Clauditorium” – the upstairs area where host Claudia Winkleman chats to the contestants in between performances – before the voting lines opened, just as they do every week.

This time, though, dancer Katya Jones was captured on camera as she appeared to move opera singer Wynne Evans’s hand off her midriff and onto her hip. Earlier in the programme, she seemed to reject a high five from her partner. Seeing these two incidents in quick succession moved viewers to start speculating about whether Jones was feeling uneasy. Social media was soon awash with comments from Strictly fans: “Something is off,” one Twitter/X viewer claimed, while others described the interaction as “uncomfortable”.

The pair quickly moved to shut down the rumour mill, sharing an Instagram video in which they said they were “just messing around”. In his post, Evans wrote the high fives were a “running joke” between them. Jones, a Strictly veteran of eight years, later doubled down with another video on Sunday, describing the row as “quite absurd” and asking fans to focus their attention on Evans’s “amazing” progress in the competition.

There is no theme for this weeks show so expect an eclectic mix of songs and performances with the tunes already being announced by the BBC.

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Tasha Ghouri deserved Strictly Come Dancing’s first 10s of 2024 – but don’t write off the underdogs yet

Former Love Island star has impressed the judges every time she’s stepped on the dancefloor and her Coachella themed Charleston to “Unhealthy” by Anne-Marie and Shania Twain left three of them reaching for their 10 paddles.

But scoring the first 10s of the series is far from a guarantee that a celebrity will get their hands on the Glitterball trophy. And for the last two years, the person to do so hasn’t even made it to the final.

Comedian Eddie Kadi and pro partner Karen Hauer landed the first 10 of Strictly 2023 for their Men In Black themed Movie Week dance, only to leave the competition three weeks later.

In 2022, Tyler West and Dianne Buswell scored two 10s in Movie Week but missed out on the final. That series was won by wildlife presenter Hamza Yassin, whose Strictly journey saw him go from being one of the least known celebrities on the call sheet to one of the show’s most beloved stars.

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Rachel McGrath explains why Ghouri’s impressive achievement isn’t guaranteed to see her win the competition.

Greg Evans19 October 2024 15:00

Strictly pro makes admission about ‘silly inside joke’ after Wynne Evans hand fiasco

Despite Jones calling the fiasco “nonsense” and “absurd”, Evans still found himself receiving criticism, leading the pro to defend the star on companion show It Takes Two on Monday (16 October).

Jones said that she “can’t bear” seeing Evans in distress over the situation, calling the interactions nothing more than an “inside joke”. However, Jones admitted the joke was “silly” and “bad”.

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After Evans said he can see why viewers “may have misinterpreted” his hand placement, his professional partner continued: “The idea that it made me feel uncomfortable or offended in any way is total nonsense, and those that have doubts, you guys have got it wrong. So hopefully this will be the end of it, and you just keep making me smile.

“I can’t sit here watching this man being portrayed as someone he’s not. In fact, it couldn’t be further away from the truth. So I have to make this absolutely clear that this whole incident, with the hand and the high five on Saturday night, was an inside joke between Wynne and I.

She then stated: “Was it a silly joke? Yes, was it a bad joke? Yes.”

Greg Evans19 October 2024 14:30

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Wynne Evans ‘heartbroken’ by response to hand interaction with Katya Jones

“I’m absolutely heartbroken by the things that have been written about me in the last day,” he told BBC Radio Wales on 14 October. “It’s not nice to live in that time, but basically Katya and I are really, really close and we’re really good friends, and on Saturday night we made a stupid joke.”

He explained,“It was a stupid joke that went wrong, okay, we thought it was funny. It wasn’t funny. It has been totally misinterpreted.”

Referring to social media reaction online, in which both clips have since gone viral, Evans said: “Everything’s on Katya’s socials. She’s talked about it. She’s explained that it was a joke. She wasn’t offended in the least. She doesn’t feel uncomfortable.”

Greg Evans19 October 2024 14:00

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Chris McCausland praises Strictly singer’s rendition of Liverpool anthem

Liverpool footbal club fan Chris McCausland has praised Strictly singer Tommy Blaize after he shared a snippet of tonight’s performance of “You’ll Never Walk Alone” the anthem of the Mersyside team.

Blaize, who is also a supporter of The Reds, wrote on X/Twitter: “Every once in a while I get to sing one very close to my heart.” He accompanied the post with a video of him singing the song while wearing a Liverpool shirt.

In response, McCausland said: “And this just makes it even more special for me. Tommy Knox it out of the park every time he sings, I just hope I can do the same with the dancing bit.“

And this just makes it even more special for me. Tommy Knox it out of the park every time he sings, I just hope I can do the same with the dancing bit. #YNWA #Strictly https://t.co/WxjbtOFyfz

— Chris McCausland – New tour on sale now! 🎫 (@chrismccausland) October 19, 2024

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Greg Evans19 October 2024 13:30

Strictly Come Dancing reveals songs and dances for week five

This Saturday night’s show does not have a theme so viewers can expect a wide but eclectic variety of dances, including Paul Merson dancing a Samba to Rose Royce’s “Car Wash” and Pete Wicks dancing a Rumba to Oasis’s “Don’t Look Back in Anger”. This week’s dances include two Sambas and two Quicksteps, plus a couple’s choice routine for Montell Douglas and her pro partner Johannes Radebe.

Chris McCausland and Dianne Buswell will dance a Waltz to “You’ll Never Walk Alone” by Gerry and the Pacemakers, while Sarah Hadland and Vito Coppola will dance a Samba to “Do It Do It Again” by Rafaella Carrà.

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Find the full list of songs and dances for week five below: Montell Douglas and Johannes Radebe will dance a Couple’s Choice to “Skeleton Move” by KG and Zanda Zakuza

Punam Krishan and Gorka Márquez will dance a Viennese Waltz to “She’s Always A Woman To Me” by Billy Joel

Sam Quek and Nikita Kuzmin will dance a Quickstep to “Unwritten” by Natasha Bedingfield

Sarah Hadland and Vito Coppola will dance a Samba to “Do It Do It Again” by Rafaella Carrà

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Tasha Ghouri and Aljaž Škorjanec will dance a Tango to “Dog Days Are Over” by Florence + The Machine Chris McCausland and Dianne Buswell will dance a Waltz to “You’ll Never Walk Alone” by Gerry and the Pacemakers

Jamie Borthwick and Michelle Tsiakkas will dance a Pasodoble to “Malagueña” by Ernesto Lecuona JB Gill and Amy Dowden will dance a Jive to “Hey Ya!” by Outkast

Paul Merson and Karen Hauer will dance a Samba to “Car Wash” by Rose Royce

Pete Wicks and Jowita Przystał will dance a Rumba to “Don’t Look Back In Anger” by Oasis

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Shayne Ward and Nancy Xu will dance an American Smooth to “Get Here” by Sam Smith Wynne Evans and Katya Jones will dance a Quickstep to “Mr Blue Sky” by Electric Light Orchestra

Greg Evans19 October 2024 12:55

DRAGONS’ Den star Steven Bartlett has given fans a rare look inside his state of the art £150,000 Mercedes van.

The luxury vehicle plays a major part in busy entrepreneur Steven’s logistical plans and is equipped with everything he needs to carry out his work and then some.

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The pricey motor is packed with home comforts, which is just as well given Steven often spends hours at a time on the road.

He said of his trusty Merc: “One of the best investments I made was buying a car – and hiring a full-time driver – and personalising it with everything I need to be productive and to rest.”

Its features include Starlink internet and two further back-up options to keep him online at all times, then there are two TVs, a fridge, coffee machine, a desk, bed Playstation 5, and less glam necessities like plug sockets and cutlery.

All of which comes at an eye-wateringly high cost: £100,000-a-year.

Despite the expensive maintenance fee, Steven insists it is essential to his continued success.

The multi-millionaire has started to share more and more of his daily routine, having previously admitted he can be prone to burnout by taking on so much.

And it’s easy to see how, with his myriad business and projects.

In just one day this week he spoke at three separate high profile events, conducted numerous video calls, considered multiple proposals, researched and reviewed guests and details surrounding his Diary of a CEO podcast and had two separate workouts as well as much more.

He returned home at 11pm, where he was greeted by his beloved pooch, only to tell fans that there was still plenty of reading to be done on subjects as diverse as US politics, AI and management.

Steven’s achievements certainly haven’t come by accident and his work ethic is something to behold.

In 2021, aged 28, he became the youngest Dragons’ Den investor ever, joining fellow business behemoths Deborah Meaden, Peter Jones, Touker Suleyman and Sara Davies on the programme.

He took the place of Vitabiotics CEO Tej Lalvani, who left the BBC show after four years.

It marked a breakthrough into mainstream celebrity, though Steven was already well established in the business world and a major play in the tech sector.

Steven developed The Social Chain alongside Dominic McGregor as a 22-year-old after dropping out of university.

He helped build the firm into an online powerhouse that was valued in 2021 at $600 million. Though Steven had stepped down as CEO prior to this valuation, he retained a significant number of shares and continued to work for the company advising on strategic matters.

The businessman has also released a book called Happy Sexy Millionaire and his The Diary Of A CEO podcast boasts millions of listeners and attracts globally famous names from a wide variety of fields.

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Daisy May Cooper says her This Country co-star was visited by a “presence” that correctly predicted when exactly he would die.

Michael Sleggs, who played Slugs in the BBC Three comedy series, died from heart failure in July 2019, aged 33.

Cooper, who, along with her brother and fellow This Country star Charlie Cooper, was a childhood friend of Sleggs, and reflected on his death in a new interview.

“He’d been in constant pain his entire life – even walking caused him pain,” Cooper told The Guardian, adding that “it was horrible” when Sleggs was placed in palliative care as “he was terrified of dying”.

However, according to Cooper, Sleggs “had a visitation from an angelic presence, which sat at the end of his bed and told him, ‘In seven days, you will have a new body at midnight”.

Sleggs would die seven days later at 11.59pm. The outlet notes that Cooper is unsure whether this was “real” or “a powerful example of bodily self-determination”.

Elsewhere, the comedy star, whose credits include Am I Being Unreasonable? and Rain Dogs, opened up about “encounters” she’s had with ghosts, stating: “It’s isolating, because people think you’re mad. But it exists.”

Cooper said one such moment occurred while she was suffering from viral meningitis in 2018. While alone in a hospital room, she said: “If there’s anybody in here, can you speak into the microphone?” and heard, in response, a tiny female voice saying: “Don’t be afraid.” She now has those words tattooed on her wrist.

Days before Sleggs died, he shared a message on Facebook that read: “Hi friends, as a lot of you are probably aware I’ve spent a lot of time in and out of hospital over the past few months.

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“This last time it was decided I was reaching the end of options so they’ve sent me home on palliative care to live out the remainder of my days at home. No specific time limit has been given but deterioration has been fairly rapid.”

He added: “Anyway as you can imagine this isn’t the ideal way I wished things to go and my family are dealing with a lot of grief.”

AXED Big Brother star Ryan Bradshaw has leapt to the defence of housemate Marcello, following calls for him to be fired over his misogynistic remarks.

ITV2 viewers hit out at the ‘disgusting’ contestant, after her questioned whether Sarah was on her period due to her glum mood.

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But now Blackpool-born Ryan, who was the first to be ejected from the Big Brother house, argues that Marcello has been misrepresented.

In an interview with The Sun he said: “I’ve got time for Marcello. But I just think he’s been represented, maybe a little bit differently, as what I’ve seen in there.

“At first I thought the same, I thought, oh, he’s this Greek God obviously he does talk about women. He’ll be the first to admit that. But there’s also the other side where he’s very respectful.” And Ryan added that he does have a generous streak.

He added: “He cooks and cleans for everyone. He opens doors for people, and I think yeah, I don’t think he’s as bad as what’s been made out.”

Earlier this week, youth worker Marcello, 34, had told Sarah, 27 that she smelled of  “periods and teabags” before asking her whether it was “her time of the month.”

Standing up for herself, Sarah retorted: “”I’m feeling upset and you say, ‘Are you on your period?’

That makes me feel like you’re invalidating the way I feel because you think the way I feel is because I’m on my period. “You’re not sitting down and saying, ‘Why do you feel sad, Sarah?’

“You’re saying, ‘Oh God, you’re on your period.’”

Sarah went on to defuse the situation by calling him her ‘bestie’ but reiterated that his choice of words weren’t okay.

Marcello replied: “I’m learning,” promising that he wouldn’t say it again.

But fans rushed to social media as they blasted him over the shocking exchange.

One tweeted: “Marcello telling Sarah she smells like period and tea bags, denying it, then asking if it’s that time of her month is f****d up.”

Another added: “can’t get over marcello telling sarah she smells like ‘period and tea bags’. What is actually wrong with him??”

Someone else agreed: “My mouth dropped when Marcello said to Sarah she smells like period and teabags. Omg this guy is insane, he needs to be told off.”

A fourth fumed: “Marcello makes me violently ill and uncomfortable, get him out.”

Meanwhile Ryan’s early exit from the house came as no surprise to the viewers, after his Big Brother journey got off to a bad start.

The northerner ruffled some feathers after making a dig at those who self-identify.

He said: “I think I’m strong and opinionated.            

“There’s a lot of woke people out there.

“It’s all well and good if you want to use certain pronouns, and I get that, but it gets a bit confusing sometimes with people identifying as a spoon or whatnot.”

Following this Ryan received some boos from the crowd during his entrance interview with hosts AJ Odudu and Will Best,

But Ryan, who works in marketing was surprisingly taken a back by the bad reception he received from the crowd saying: “I got boos there, bloody hell.”

After he packed up his bags, Big Brother Late and Live bosses played the track Ego by Halsey as he walked up for a chat — taking a dig at his character.

The marketing and events worker also  caused a scene in the house with Sarah over the shopping task in an episode earlier in the week.

Reflecting on the drama away from his co-stars, Ryan claimed he was set to become a “scapegoat” in the diary room.

He said: “It’s just a bit of fun innit, you know what I mean?

“As long as I don’t hurt anybody, I didn’t wanna upset anybody and I actually spoke to Sarah after to make sure she’s alright but I know people getting a bit angry but there’s a lot of mischief going on.

“It’s alright now, but we fail to shopping budget and finger’s on me. If there’s any punishment, I will say I’ll take one for the team because it was kind of me that caused it.

“But yeah, I think it’s all right now, but it’s gonna be a scapegoat, essentially that, oh, you know, if the luxury budget fails, 100 per cent I’ll be an easy target.

“So yeah, I’ve not really played it very well to be honest, have I Big Brother? Came up like a whizz-kid on day one, got blown up by a cake, stayed in a storage room, tried to do the honourable thing.

“Felt like I’d been ripped up, put for eviction, and I pissed people off today in the bloody shopping task, but you’ see how it going.”

On the night of the eviction, AJ said: “The viewers have spoken, we can now reveal that the first housemate to be evicted from the Big Brother house is Ryan.”

Hugging his housemates, Ryan took the blow in his stride and said:  “It’s all good, keep smashing it.

He added: “Gutted to be fair but someone’s got to go first.” 

Big Brother 2024 cast

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A brand new batch of Big Brother housemates are living it up in the famous compound.

Meet the cast of the 2024 series:

• Rosie, 29, dental assistant from Cornwall.
• Emma, 53, aesthetics business owner from Altrincham.
• Segun, 25, charity videographer from Watford.
• Nathan, 24, pork salesman from Dumfries.
• Daze, 24, climate activist from London.
• Khaled, 23, sales manager from Manchester.
• Martha, 26, NHS administrator from Scarborough.
• Lily, 20, Chinese takeaway server from Warrington.
• Ali, 30, Forensic psychologist from London.
• Thomas, 20 amputee footballer from Carlisle.
• Ryan, 28, marketing and events from Stockport.
• Hannah, 24, HR consultant from West London.
• Izaaz, 29, sales consultant from London.
• Sarah, 27, spa account manager from Shrewsbury.
• Marcello, 34, youth mentor from East London.
• Dean, 35, barber from East London

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The Graham Norton Show viewers were left confused after believing they heard boos for a celebrity guest.

One week after Miranda Hart and Selena Gomez shared an emotional interaction on the BBC chat show, it returned on Friday (18 October) with an episode that welcomed guests including Amy Adams, Vanessa Williams, Bill Bailey and St Vincent.

But it was Bruce Springsteen, who was in London to promote his new Disney+ documentary Road Diary, that prompted the most excitement from audience members.

At the start of Springsteen’s interview, when Irish host Norton introduced the musician, a noise could be heard from the audience gathered in the studio that those not unaware of the musician’s dedicated fandom thought were boos. This led to a flurry of posts on X/Twitter asking:”Why did the audience boo Springsteen?”

However, the musician and E Street Band leader’s followers were quick to point out the error in this assumption, with one replying: “They weren’t booing they were shouting ‘Brruuuuccceee!’”

One fan added: “For those who aren’t au fait with a Brooooce Springsteen audience just so you know … they’re NOT booing they’re shouting Broooce NOT Boo.”

Norton himself quipped on the show: “To me, it still sounds like booing. But it’s not – they love you.”

Springsteen, whose classic albums include Born to Run, Nebraska and Born in the USA, is known for his epic live shows alongside the E Street Band, which famously last for three hours.

His most recent tour, which saw the musician hit the road for the first time since before the pandemic, is documented in the new film, which is released on 25 October.

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It explores Springsteen’s position as, not only a musical icon adored by millions of fans around the world, but a bandleader to his fellow musicians, including Steven Van Zandt, Max Weinberg, Garry Tallent and his wife, Patti Scialfa, who recently revealed her diagnosis of multiple myeloma.

In a new interview with The Times, Springsteen said that, these days, the success behind performing so many lengthy live shows is “taking time off between shows”, which he described as “the biggest change” with age.

“If we do that we can play at our top form, which is what I like to do at this point,” he said. “I don’t want to go out there tired, because we put the pedal to the metal for three hours straight. It’s fun to overwhelm the audience.”