All of the controversy surrounding Antoine Fuqua’s Michael Jackson biopic has clearly not stood in the way of the film succeeding at the box office.

Earlier this year, Michael hit cinemas, leaving critics divided, not least because of the fact the film ends in 1988, meaning the allegations of child sexual abuse levelled against the Billie Jean singer in his lifetime were not included in the film.

Since its release in April, Michael has proved to be a smash at the global box office, eventually overtaking Oppenheimer to become the highest-grossing biopic of all time.

Over the weekend, it was revealed officially that the movie had made $1 billion (around £746 million), becoming the first biopic in history to do so.

“Reaching this extraordinary $1 billion milestone with Michael is a deeply humbling moment that celebrates the tireless dedication of our incredible producers, cast, crew and partners,” the film’s director said in a statement.

“This achievement belongs to everyone who came together with a shared vision to honour one of the greatest artists the world has ever known.”

Antoine continued: “I am profoundly grateful to the audiences around the globe who embraced this film, showed up in theatres, and connected with this story across generations and cultures.

“This historic milestone is a testament to the enduring power of cinema to bring us together, and it is a chapter in movie history I will never forget.”

Jafaar Jackson, the late performer’s nephew, takes the lead as Michael Jackson in the film, which also features performances from Nia Long, Miles Teller and Oscar nominee Colman Domingo.

It’s no secret that Michael was originally supposed to include details of the allegations made against the Grammy winner, with some scenes even being filmed.

However, these were scrapped when production learned of a clause in the settlement between Jackson and one of his accusers which meant that his likeness and name could not ever be used in a film.

As a result, costly reshoots took place, with the decision being made to re-shift the film’s plot to be more about Jackson’s relationship with his father, ending the story in the late 80s.

It had previously been suggested that a sequel to Michael could focus on the chart-topping performer’s later years, and the controversies he faced around that time, which looks increasingly likely given part one’s box office success.

Matt Damon has admitted that the more physical aspects of his role in the new Christopher Nolan epic The Odyssey were no small feat.

Over the years, the Oscar winner has appeared in a number of physically-demanding projects, including the action-packed Bourne films and the war epic Saving Private Ryan.

However, during a recent interview with Amy Poehler on her podcast Good Hang, Matt spoke candidly about how “getting jacked in your 50s” for The Odyssey was “way different” to what had been required of him earlier on in his career.

“It’s really hard,” he revealed. “It’s just a complete, complete lifestyle change.”

His approach, he went on to share, was to “put your feet on the gas and that’s it”, overhauling his diet, including giving up gluten, something he’s stuck to since filming ended.

“I didn’t realise the level to which [gluten] was affecting me and affecting my life,” he shared. “It’s completely changed my life these last couple of years of not eating it.”

Matt then conceded: “It’s a bummer. I’m a big fan of bread and beer and… you know… pasta and pizza, and all that stuff. But how I feel is just so much better.”

The Oscar winner plays Odysseus in Nolan’s new take on the Ancient Greek tome, leading a star-studded cast that includes everyone from Anne Hathaway, Charlize Theron and Lupita Nyong’o to Zendaya, Robert Pattinson and Tom Holland, who portrays Matt’s on-screen son.

Last month, Matt claimed the film is the “biggest movie I’ve ever done in my career, in terms of its scale” and “ambition”.

He’s also shared just how gruelling the on-location shooting could be, telling GQ: “The joke on the crew was we didn’t have a single easy location. Every time we’d go somewhere, we’d be like, ‘Well, Iceland will be easier’. And then it’s raining sideways and it’s fucking freezing. Iceland was like, ‘Yeah, easy? Hey, hold my beer.’”

The shoot ended up wrapping on a lot in Los Angeles, with Matt recalling that even this came with its problems.

“Sure enough, we showed up [to the set in LA] and Chris has two jet engines blowing so much water at us,” he said. “So it was kind of a fitting end. Even the controlled environment was cold, wet, and a little bit miserable.”

Co-star Robert Pattinson agreed that he’s “never seen people look so exhausted” as he did on the set of The Odyssey.

The Odyssey hits cinemas on Friday 17 July.

Richard Tice has accused journalists on The Times newspaper of wanting another Reform UK politician “dead”.

The party’s deputy leader made his extraordinary comments as police continue their murder investigation following the death of Ann Widdecombe.

The former Tory minister, who was a Reform spokeswoman, was found dead at her home in Devon on Thursday. A 28-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of murder.

Police have urged the public not to speculate about the possible motive for her killing.

That came after Reform leader Nigel Farage said on Saturday that he believed “this was premeditated murder”.

Speaking after he laid a wreath near Widdecombe’s home, he said: “Whether it was politically-motivated, whether it was someone with a grudge, I don’t think it pays at this time to speculate.”

Detectives have insisted that there is no evidence at the moment to suggest it was politically-motivated.

Former Tory MP Harvey Proctor told The Times: “Ann Widdecombe was far too dear to her family, friends and former colleagues for her murder to be exploited as political propaganda.

“The police have expressly asked the public not to speculate about the motive. It is therefore deeply disappointing that Nigel Farage has chosen to do precisely that.”

Reacting to the Times story on X, Tice said: “The Times Group: You are sick. Your contempt bordering on hatred of Nigel, myself & Reform means you stoop to any low to smear & discredit us.

“You lie, libel and make things up. How many more Reform politicians do you want dead? Shame on you.”

Meanwhile, Commons officials have hit back after Reform home affairs spokesman Zia Yusuf accused the government, the police and parliament of not caring about the safety of the party’s MPs.

Reform is now paying for round-the-clock security for its senior politicians.

But a House of Commons spokesperson hit back at Yusuf by insisting “all MPs are offered appropriate security measures”.

He said: “The ability of members and their staff to perform their parliamentary duties safely, both on and off the estate, is fundamental to our democracy.

“Any assessment of an individual MPs’ security arrangements or advice is subject to a rigorous risk-based assessment, conducted by security professionals and with input from the police and a range of professional authorities. These are naturally kept under continuous review.

“All MPs are offered appropriate security measures but we do not comment on specific cases or details of those measures so as not to compromise the safety of MPs, parliamentary staff or members of the public.”

Listen to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.

Content note: this article contains discussion of domestic abuse.

If you grew up in the UK, you might have heard women referred to as “birds” once in a while (stats suggest many of us would like to ditch the term, however).

That usage refers to women in general, or a female partner, but on social media, calling a woman a “bird” has come to mean something entirely different.

People on apps like TikTok have taken to referring to women as “birds” for enduring bad treatment from the men they’re romantically involved with, or for being overly male-centred (prioritising male perspectives and approval).

“A bird is essentially a woman who will give up her self-dignity for the purpose of supporting a man or being with a man,” one TikTok creator said, though the poster stressed that didn’t extend to physical abuse.

An example may be “if he cheats on you 35 times and you get with him a 36th time”, they added, and “you are willing to lie for a man … [and] are willing to put a woman down for a man”.

Per Urban Dictionary, it can also mean someone, especially a girl or young woman, who’s naive, easily fooled, and/or lacking in common sense.

It may also refer to internalised misogyny – so-called “bird brain behaviour” can involve laughing at a man’s joke deriding another woman’s looks, for instance.

Some have called the new use of the phrase “misogynistic”.

“Anyone notice how calling a woman a bird has quickly shifted from holding women accountable for enabling men, to blaming women for being mistreated by men?” asked one TikTok creator.

“Calling women birds for something a man did is rooted in misogyny,” another claimed.

Not every use of the term “bird” has to do with men (one creator suggested hanging out and trusting a girl “who talks negative about everyone in their life” is “bird brain behaviour”), and some male-related videos about “birds” say the term shouldn’t extend to abuse and only applies to general bad dating behaviour.

But other posts on social media suggest the demarcation isn’t always clear.

“A piece of shit man can also be an abuser… just because it’s not straight-up domestic abuse… there’s different ways to be abused,” one TikToker said.

They added that factors like financial inequality, a patriarchal society, and negative childhood experiences can make staying through poor treatment and abuse more likely, which the charity Women’s Aid and research papers agree with.

“I’ve been thinking that calling women ‘birds’ is… basically telling her to shut up and that whatever situation she’s in is her fault,” a commenter assented, while another wrote: “I totally agree as a [sexual assault] survivor”.

A spokesperson for the European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) told HuffPost UK that if the term is used to describe abuse, it’s important to remember that “violence against women is fundamentally both a cause and a consequence of gender inequality”.

“It is rooted in unequal power dynamics and is often used to maintain power and control over women, whether in intimate relationships, workplaces, online spaces or public life,” they said.

“In this context, we also need to look at the responsibility online platforms have in moderating conversations about violence against women – especially when the language and tone risk reinforcing victim-blaming attitudes.”

But they added that safeguards should be instituted from the top down on social media, rather than focusing on a specific trend or post.

If you, or someone you know, is in immediate danger, call 999 and ask for the police. If you are not in immediate danger, you can contact:

• The Freephone 24 hour National Domestic Abuse Helpline, run by Refuge: 0808 2000 247
• In Scotland, contact Scotland’s 24 hour Domestic Abuse and Forced Marriage Helpline: 0800 027 1234
• In Northern Ireland, contact the 24 hour Domestic & Sexual Violence Helpline: 0808 802 1414
• In Wales, contact the 24 hour Life Fear Free Helpline on 0808 80 10 800.
• National LGBT+ Domestic Abuse Helpline: 0800 999 5428
• Men’s Advice Line: 0808 801 0327
• Respect helpline (for anyone worried about their own behaviour): 0808 802 4040

Artificial intelligence (AI) isn’t new, but it’s quietly shaping our kids’ lives.

It might feel like it’s ‘just a bit of fun’, but in conversations with over 1,000 boys in schools, I heard first-hand how AI chatbots are starting to replace other forms of communication.

One boy told me: “It’s just there in my pocket, it remembers everything I tell it, there is nothing that I can’t ask it, and it doesn’t judge me. That’s why I use it.”

This was a common theme: being able to have judgement-free conversations removes the awkwardness from needing to ask a parent or even a friend.

But not all AI is good AI; the reality is that some creators gamify and target youngsters to get them hooked on their bots because it’s good for business. As one teen told me: “At first, it was fun and felt like a game, but it started to suggest I do things that didn’t feel right, so I stopped using it.” Scary, right?

Here’s how parents can get smart quickly in the age of AI with some key rules and conversation starters.

The most important conversation that we can have with young people is to explain that whilst AI can sound clever and caring, it is not a person – and it is certainly not a friend.

It can help to set new non-negotiables at home. For example, AI companions shouldn’t be used for emotional support or secret conversations. These tools can give unsafe advice, encourage secrecy, send inappropriate messages, and replace real conversations with people.

Have conversations about this openly, ask whether they have ever used AI for advice about something personal, and use this as a way in to explain that these bots are not their friends and should not be a replacement for real conversations.

Nudification is on the rise, with content being manipulated and shared at school. AI can now create very realistic fake pictures, videos and voice clips, including nude photos and videos. These can be used for bullying, harassment, blackmail and scams.

This is a good opportunity to chat to your children about permission and how important it is not to cross this line. Even though it can seem like harmless fun, the content and the consequences can live on.

Teach them that it’s not OK to edit someone’s picture without their permission, to pause before they believe what they see, and not to repost or engage with it.

Also, make it clear that if someone manipulates a picture of them, they can come to you and they won’t be in trouble for telling you.

Having access to AI with homework feels like having a calculator in a maths exam, and many children are already using it for homework revision and writing support.

The problem with using AI for homework is that it can end up doing the thinking for young people. It can also give answers that sound right, but are wrong.

The key is to teach children to use AI with learning, not instead of learning. Use it for brainstorming, explaining things they don’t understand and for feedback, but not to do the initial thinking. You can’t take it with you into an exam hall, and that’s important to remember.

It’s important for children to understand that AI is working hard in the games that they are playing to keep them engaged so they stick around for longer.

AI tends to reward based on shock and outrage, and it shows more extreme content over time. There can also be a push to spend money.

Where possible, they should keep device use visible and shared rather than in private or isolation. Explain to them that their feed is designed around their behaviour – it’s showing what it thinks they will engage with.

You can also turn off autoplay to reduce endless scrolling, lock in-app purchases, and review chat settings together.

Screens can be tricky to navigate – on the one hand, they are a natural part of the world today and will influence our children into adulthood and their future careers.

But there are also some warning signs to look out for that could flag something might be off: late-night scrolling, increased secrecy around phone use, hiding the screen when others are near, a change in their mood or behaviour after they have been online and an increased interest in their appearance or showing extreme views.

If they are starting to withdraw from real-life friendships and turning to AI in a crisis, then it’s really important to open up the line of communication. Ask questions about AI, their views on it and what sort of things they are seeing. Listen before lecturing, and keep the chats short and regular.

Make it a normal conversation to have so that if they are in trouble, they feel able to tell you. Help them to understand how the increased time they are spending online impacts them – and how their apps are typically encouraging this.

Parenting in the time of AI isn’t easy, so much is changing and evolving all of the time. The key is to stay interested, keep chatting to your kids about AI, help them to understand how the tech is working, and, most importantly, that it is not their friend.

Lee Chambers is the founder of Male Allies UK.

James Norton has definitely been inducted into House Of The Dragon, following his first nude scene in the hit fantasy series.

Monday’s instalment of the Game Of Thrones prequel sees James’ character Ormund Hightower stepping out of a bath while slating Queen Rhaenyra, played by Emma D’Arcy, to those around him.

During a recent Q&A session with GQ, this scene was brought up in the conversation, with the interviewer pointing out that it showed off a “very camp” side to James’ character’s personality.

The former Happy Valley star then explained that this was a deliberate choice on his part, as he wanted to give the directing team a wide range of line deliveries to choose from.

“If you don’t trust the director, you give them a very small parameter of options, because you think, in the edit, you could take the really extreme ones and manipulate your performance into something you didn’t intend,” he claimed.

“With this, I was like, ‘do you know what? Fuck it, I’m just going to give them a big range’. I have this line where I’m like, ‘is she a queen or is she a bitch with a dragon?’, and I kind of cock my hip. I thought, ‘I’ll just go for it a couple of times’. And the amazing thing is that they used the really camp one!”

“Your whole arse fills the screen,” GQ’s moderator then claimed, to which James quipped: “I can’t work out if that is a compliment or not.”

James also shared this anecdote during a new interview with New York magazine, recalling: “I cocked my hip in that take and thought, ‘They’re never gonna use this’. And then I was in [post-production] and they used it and I thought, ‘Fuck, good for you’.”

The outlet pointed out that his character’s nudity is an act of “sexual intimidation”, particularly as he’s parading himself naked in front of a noblewoman from the town that he’s taken over.

Elsewhere in the interview, he observed: “They could have easily made Ormund a competent, proud, honorable man. Instead, we’ve got this fucked-up, sort of S&M, masochistic guy.”

A regular face on British screens for more than a decade, James has been especially busy in the last two years thanks to his work in Netflix’s House Of Guinness, ITV’s Fair Play and the BBC’s King & Conqueror.

Interestingly, in the latter, James also had a nude scene set in a bath, which he opened up about during an interview with HuffPost UK last year.

House Of The Dragon continues on Mondays on HBO Max, Now and Sky in the UK.

The former top civil servant Olly Robbins has launched a legal challenge over his sacking by Keir Starmer.

The former permanent secretary at the Foreign Office was fired during the scandal surrounding Peter Mandelson’s appointment as the UK’s ambassador to the US.

It emerged in April this year that Robbins had not told ministers of vetting officials’ concerns about giving Mandelson the top job back in early 2025.

As the top civil servant in the Foreign Office at the time, Robbins still gave the then-Labour peer top security clearance, paving the way for him to become the Washington attache.

Amid heightened scrutiny around the vetting process, Starmer was quick to lay the blame at Robbins’ feet.

The prime minister told the Commons it “beggars belief” he was not told that Mandelson had not been cleared by UK Security Vetting before being appointed the UK’s ambassador to Washington.

He claimed there was nothing which would have stopped Robbins from telling ministers about security worries around Mandelson.

The PM said Robbins had therefore lost his confidence and was to be sacked.

The former civil servant has since claimed he was legally prevented from offering further details about the vetting.

According to the FDA union, which represents senior civil servants, Robbins is now requesting a judicial review of Starmer’s decision, claiming it was “unlawful” and “unreasonable”.

The FDA said Robbins’ sacking was “based on a grievous misunderstanding of how the National Security Vetting system worked and a rash response to a media story”.

He also argued that Starmer “has no statutory authority to dismiss the Head of the Diplomatic Service” and there was “no fair procedure involved in his dismissal”.

Robbins claims he was under an “obligation” not to reveal the results of the vetting process with ministers.

He wrote in a statement: “I bring this action reluctantly. It would have been unnecessary if the prime minister had simply apologised for his mistake and made amends for the distress and cost it has caused me and my family.

“Instead, I now have to ask the courts to determine that the prime minister’s decisions were unlawful, unreasonable and to quash them.”

Listen to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.