Author: bang5

The Duchess of Sussex went over to have photos with fans after a wheelchair basketball game at the Invictus Games in Vancouver when she came to the rescue of a woman falling over

Meghan Markle came to the rescue of a fan who fell backwards as they had a photo taken together.

The Duchess of Sussex was posing with fans in the basketball hall at the Invictus Games, which began in Vancouver on Saturday, when the woman lost her balance. It came after she and Harry had both been watching wheelchair basketball.

There was a large group of people looking to have a selfie with Meghan and one woman began to chat with her before having a photo together. But it was just after the photo had been taken that the fan began to topple backwards with Meghan, as well as other members of the crowd, holding onto her so she didn’t fall over.

Meghan looked shocked asking “are you okay?” before holding hands with the woman as they had another snap together. The royal couple stayed behind for more than 25 minutes posing for pictures with fans inside Vancouver Convention Centre after being given front row seats for a match between USA and Nigeria.

Meghan helps the woman as she falls backwards ( 
Image:
Daily Mirror)

After the match ended, Meghan also spoke to Cynthia Phelps, 39, her husband James, 44, and their baby Laramie, seven months, all from Alaska. At one point Meghan held baby Laramie in her arms. Cynthia said: “She said she was a very happy baby. She said her kids were at home and she missed them and she was excited to see a baby that was so happy.

Meghan checks that the woman is okay after she stumbled ( 
Image:
Daily Mirror)
“She said she misses them and remembers when they were young.” Cynthia added: “She is always personable and very down to earth and just really cares about us. Every time she talks to us it’s very visible and genuine.” James, who served alongside Harry at Camp Bastion in Afghanistan in 2012, where they first got to know each other, is competing in wheelchair basketball, wheelchair rugby, biathlon and skeleton.

Meghan and Harry watching a basketball game ( 
Image:
PA)The family of three had previously enjoyed breakfast with Harry and Meghan at their hotel in Vancouver on Saturday morning. Cnythia said: “It’s a blessing to be able to spend time with them. They genuinely care about the healing journey of every single one of the competitors. We greatly appreciate it.”

In a touching moment during the match, which USA won, eight-year-old Lucious Gayton ran over to Harry clutching a Funko Pop! figure of him, which the royal signed. The overwhelmed youngster admitted: “I don’t remember what he said.” Lucious was there with his mother Ivette to support his father Lucio, a US army veteran.

Ivette said: “I do like Harry, we like the whole family and follow them on the news. We have the whole royal Funko Pop! Collection. We do really appreciate this event, it gives my husband purpose and he gets very excited about it. He was left with a spinal injury after tours in Afghanistan and Iraq.”

Linda Robson has revealed her children are worried about her as she waits to receive test results after undergoing scans on her pancreas

Linda Robson fears she will have to have her pancreas removed in a heartbreaking health admission.

The Loose Women star opened up on her health scare to Ruth Langsford, Brenda Edwards and Janet Street-Porter on Tuesday. The Birds of a Feather star shared her health woes as the panel discussed how illness can affect your family following Kate Middleton’s brave video announcing she has completed cancer treatment.

Linda shares her son Louis and daughter Roberta with ex-husband Mark Dunford and has an older daughter, Lauren, from a previous relationship. She said: “I have had a bit of health scare – quite a few years ago I had gall stones and they damaged my pancreas and they’ve been keeping an eye on me for a while now.” Linda explained she had undergone scans in recent weeks and is expected to receive the results of her latest scan next week.

She continued: “I had a cyst on my pancreas and it went from one to two cm so the kids have been really worried about me,” before adding that she’s waiting to find out whether the cyst has grown in size. A shocked Ruth remarked: “This is happening right now to you?”

Plane passengers row after one claims her voice is ‘too famous’ to be recorded

Linda with her two daughters Lauren and Roberta ( 
Image:
REX/Shutterstock)

Linda with her son Louis ( 
Image:
INSTAGRAM)

“Yes,” Linda replied. “If it is [bigger] then they’ll have to remove my pancreas which means I’d then be a diabetic but fingers crossed that won’t happen and the cysts won’t have grown. I feel quite positive about it but the kids are obviously worried about it.”

Ruth asked: “How do you deal with that as a family? Are you talking?” To which Linda replied: “I make jokes about it all the time because I try to diffuse them worrying about me. When I did go to the hospital they came with me and taped everything the doctors said because I would have forgotten everything that they said.”

Earlier this year, Linda revealed her children became her carers during her battle with OCD, alcoholism and depression. She explained: “My children were my carers when I was mentally ill. There was a point when I got so low I couldn’t be left alone. I wasn’t allowed to see my grandchildren until I was better. It was four years ago now and they still say, ‘Mum I’m so glad you are better, we never thought we’d get you back.’”

Recalling the difficult time in her life during a Loose Women episode, Linda explained: “I went through a really tough time, I was depressed and I turned to alcohol and had cleaning OCD. I used to always have a glass of wine or spritzers in the evening, come 10 o’clock at night, but never in the daytime. And then I got put on medication that sent me a bit mad.

“I got put on a certain drug which was supposed to help the depression but it didn’t it just heightened it, so I had to go into three different establishments and it was the worst time in my life, I completely ruined my family’s lives.”

Loose Women panellist Stacey Solomon paid tribute to her teen son Zachary as she took him to the National Television Awards on a rare showbiz outing for the lad – as he watched his mum bag a big prize

Stacey Solomon has revealed the emotional reason she took her son Zachary to the NTAs as the Essex star bags the big prize.

The popular telly face, who scooped top prize for her life makeover show Sort Your Life Out in the National Television Awards’ Factual Entertainment category, was pictured on a rare outing with her 16-year-old lad, Zachary, at the glitzy ceremony, held last night at the 02 in London.

And The X Factor contestant turned Loose Women panellist revealed how lucky she felt to have her son by her side for the show, after previously revealing she feared missing too much of her older childrens’ lives.

Taking to Instagram, Stacey shared a series of photos of the pair modelling their NTAs outfits by a large tree at their famous home, Pickle Cottage.

She wrote: “On the way to the NTAs with Zachary who has been by my side in this crazy journey since the very beginning. I wouldn’t be who I am if it weren’t for you Zach. I’m so proud to be with you on such a special night, where I’ve been nominated for best present & best factual with my @sortyourlifeout family. I don’t believe I’d be on this path if it wasn’t for having you. My rock, since forever. to the moon & back forever…” [sic]

Stacey and Zash pose ( 
Image:
Instagram)

Stacey looked dazzling ( 
Image:
Instagram)
And as she accepted her award, Stacey took to the stage and gave Zachary a shoutout while paying tribute to everyone behind Sort Your Life Out.

Back in May this year, Stacey said she wanted to reduce her telly work to be there for her family more.

Stacey is proud of her son ( 
Image:
Instagram)

On the Red Carpet ( 
Image:She said: “I think I’m at a point in my life where I recognise that I’ve been really busy for his life, and his life is at a really important point, and my second son will get to that point before I know it.

“And then I’ve got these three babies. I don’t want to miss what I potentially feel like I missed with my older children. And I want to be there for my older children, who I think need me now more than ever. I’ve been battling with that in my head.”

Stacey finds out she has won ( 
Image:
ITV)
Stacey donned a red satin corset dress teamed with silk black, elbow-length gloves and black high heel stilettos, addingred lipstick to complete the look with her blonde hair in a bouncy, bouffant style.

The Loose Women panel were discussing the family feud between Prince Harry and Prince William when the conversation turned to Coleen Nolan’s own family fall-out

Loose Women turned emotional this week as Coleen Nolan shared the “worst thing” that could happen to her “as a mum”.

The ITV panel were chatting about Prince William and Prince Harry’s feud after William made a public social media post wishing his brother a happy 40th birthday. But it got Coleen thinking about her own family fallout with her sisters.

Jane Moore confessed that with no mother figure in their lives after the deaths of Princess Diana and Queen Elizabeth II, there is no female figure to push the pair back together again.

She said: “I wonder that they don’t have that woman in their lives going, ‘Come on, sort yourselves out’”. Coleen added: “I genuinely believe that if Diana was still here it would never have got to this. They both idolised her and she absolutely idolised them.

“I think it’s really important. The fall-out I had with my family, with my sisters, for like four years… I don’t think that would have continued as long as it did had my mum still been around.”

Coleen Nolan confessed to her own family feud
She added: “Because you go, ‘We don’t want to upset mum, it’s not worth upsetting mum’. It’s the worst thing that could happen to me as a mum, that my kids all fall out and not speak to each other. I couldn’t bear the thought of it.”

Ruth Langsford stepped in to say: “But if they did, I know you would step in and go, ‘Come on, we can sort this out, you need to talk to each other’.”

The panel discussed Prince William and Harry’s fall-out
Coleen agreed: “Yeah, definitely you would! Or I’d just move away and let them get on with it, I don’t know!”

Coleen fell out with her sisters and didn’t speak to them for four years, until her sister Bernie tragically died in 2013. She admitted: “Because we’re family there is also this very very deep love for each other. Losing my sister Bernie brought all of that up and whatever we disagree on it’s not worth not speaking to each other because ultimately we love each other.”

The Nolan sisters famously fell out ( 
Image:
TV Times via Getty Images)She admitted that though she and her sisters weren’t speaking, their kids continued to see each other – and the cousins remained “so close” throughout. She added: “The only thing we revisit is how silly it was. We lost four years of speaking to each other. It took Bernie’s death for us to start talking again.”

For sister Anne, her “stomach dropped” when she wasn’t invited on The Nolans’ tour in 2009 with Maureen, Linda, Coleen and Bernie – with her sister Denise also ditched.

The Masked Singer viewers were left fuming at the judges after they failed to guess Bush’s identity, with fans guessing correctly that it was EastEnders star Natalie Cassidy

ITV’s The Masked Singer fans were left gobsmacked as the judges failed to identify Bush, who was the latest contestant to be unmasked. The semi-final of the singing competition aired on Saturday (February 8) night and saw a double-elimination.

Five celebrities battled it out for a place in the final with judges Davina McCall, Jonathan Ross and Maya Jama, along with guest judge Richard E. Grant, trying to guess their identities.

Bear was the first celebrity of the night to be unmasked and was revealed as rapper Example, with judge Maya correctly guessing his identity. Bush was the next celebrity to be revealed ahead of next week’s final.

Fans had already been guessing that it was EastEnders star Natalie Cassidy – and they were proved right on Saturday night. She wowed fans and the judges with her performances of ABBA’s Thank You For The Music and Lisa Loeb’s Stay, but none of the judges managed to guess her identity.

Bush is unmasked on the Masked Singer and revealed as Natalie Cassidy ( 
Image:
ITV/screenshot)

Viewers took to X to share their disbelief, with one writing: “Called it from day one. OF COURSE it was Natalie Cassidy. We all knew… apart from the judges,” reported the Manchester Evening News.

Another fan added: “How the judges never got who Bush was is honestly shocking.” Meanwhile, another fan said: “how the judges didn’t get her, i will never know. the clues don’t even matter. you can tell just by the voice. she was the most obvious one this year.”

Fans took to Twitter in full force to voice their amazement that Natalie Cassidy was behind the mask, with one tweeting: “Shock of the evening… it was Natalie Cassidy! But even bigger shock – none of the panel guessed it was her!”

Meanwhile, another viewer argued that the judges were outshone by savvy Twitter users, saying: “The judges should be replaced with X users. They guessed Natalie Cassidy from day 1. Sack the judges! !”

Natalie Cassidy was revealed to be Bush on The Masked Singer

Cassidy’s performance also led some to celebrate her as an “icon” and “national treasure”, with one viewer tweeting: “Natalie! Icon! Knew it from day one… just brilliant.”

Additionally, another viewer praised her, “Natalie Cassidy has cemented her national treasure status! Bush has been such a cute character – put her heart and soul into it, so much fun. And reaching the semi-final amongst a group of professional singers – she more than held her own! What a star.”

Frankie Bridge, who recently attended the National Television Awards with her Loose Women co-stars, has unleashed a rant about “b******t” being “spouted” in acceptance speeches from certain stars

Loose Women presenter Frankie Bridge has issued a cryptic dig at “b******t” she has noticed in the industry, particularly at awards shows.

During Frankie’s appearance on Spencer Matthews’ Big Fish podcast, the former Made In Chelsea star hinted at some celebrities continuing to work with “horrible people”, which he struggles to understand.

He said: “Some people have reputations for being really horrible people and I’ve always found it incredibly odd that people would continue to work with horrible people.

“I don’t understand the thought process that goes behind supporting a horrible person.” Agreeing with his point, Frankie cited some of her previous experiences at star-studded events as an example.

Frankie Bridge attends the NTAs 2024 with her Loose Women co-stars ( 
Image:
Getty Images for the NTA’s)

She recalled some words of wisdom from artist manager Simon Fuller, after her time in S Club Juniors as a youngster came to an end, telling Spencer: “I think that’s been one of my biggest things over the years, is that I’ve met a lot of those people.

“I remember when I finished with S Club Juniors, Simon Fuller said to me, ‘Always continue to be good to work with, like you are, because everyone’s always going to then continue to want to work with you’, and it really stuck with me.”

The singer-turned-TV-presenter continued: “I’ve had moments throughout my career… you know, you always say the good guy comes out on top, and I think as I got older, I was like, ‘That’s not actually necessarily true,’ and it really p****d me off.”

Spencer Matthews addressed his negative experiences while interviewing Frankie Bridge ( 
Image:
BANG Showbiz.)Without naming names, Frankie revealed: “I’ve sat at awards ceremonies knowing that there’s people winning these awards that everyone in the room hates working with, and they get up and they spout this speech about loving everyone, and being kind, and all that b******t and I’m like, ‘you’re lying! Everyone in here hates you’.

“Yet they’re all standing up clapping and going, ‘yeah!’, and posting about it, and I think that’s what helps me as well, because I know the b******t. I don’t necessarily buy into it, but I also think if you’re aware of it, it helps to keep you on a level.”

Former Loose Women host, Andrea McLean, was rushed to hospital after collapsing at home, where she was found by her husband, Nick Feeney

Loose Women star, Andrea McLean, was rushed to hospital after collapsing at home in a terrifying start to the year.

The presenter, 55, revealed she was “in a lot of pain” after being diagnosed with severe pneumonia, acute kidney injury and sepsis. Opening up about the ordeal, Andrea, who hosted Loose Women until 2020, described how she “collapsed in the bathroom” and “lay there for an hour before my husband [Nick Feeney] found me.

She told her followers on Instagram: “We rang the GP who told us to call 999 immediately. The ambulance team were amazing. My blood pressure was so low I couldn’t stand, and I was in a lot of pain. To be honest, I was barely aware of what was happening, other than trying to be helpful.

Andrea McLean ( 
Image:
INSTAGRAM)

The presenter was found on the bathroom floor by her husband, Nick Feeney ( 
Image:
(Image: Getty))
“Our bedroom is in the loft, up a steep, narrow flight of stairs, which meant the stretcher couldn’t turn, so getting me out was challenging. We eventually got out the house, and I can now say with confidence that travelling in the back of an ambulance isn’t as much fun as you think it would be.”

Andrea added: “I can’t remember much about A&E other than it was thorough. Questions, scans, lots of needles, and possibly the most painful insertion of a catheter ever experienced. Then my X-ray and CT scans came back. I had severe pneumonia, Acute Kidney Injury and sepsis. Things happened quickly; drips, super-strong antibiotics via IV and orally, and I was transferred to the Emergency Assessment Ward.”

Revealing she spent two nights on the ward, the host described her “sensory overload” including the “smell of poo”, sharing: “[It was] a sensory overload with the screams, shouting and sound and smell of poo from people losing control of their bowels.”

After medics informed Andrea she had lost 80 per cent capacity in one of her lungs, she was put on morphine. Thankfully, her husband, Nick, visited her twice a day on the ward, along with the presenter’s daughter.

Although now discharged from hospital, Andrea said her life was still being impacted and is “still not well enough to handle normal stuff”. Admitting she “still hates January”, she said: “It’s now February, and I’m still not well enough to handle normal stuff like getting up and rushing out the door to do the jobs I’d been booked to do, because every part of that process would end with me falling down, or at the very least sitting on a tube station floor feeling very unwell and embarrassed at the stares.

“I’m still having ‘funny turns’ while out for a walk, or attempting the mildest of exercise.” She concluded: “It means I haven’t really started 2025 yet.”

Meghan Markle struggled to build relationships with her new family members after marrying Prince Harry in 2018, and her unusual approach to greeting the Royal Family left her feeling hurt

Meghan Markle was said to have had her feelings hurt after some members of the Royal Family “flinched” at her hugs. Insiders claim her “touchy-feeliness” caused some tension after she married Prince Harry in 2018.

Both Meghan and Harry have stated that Prince William and Kate found her love of hugging “jarring”, but now a royal expert has said it went even deeper in creating a “tense atmosphere”. Writing in his new book, Yes Ma’am: The Secret Life of Royal Servants – which has been excerpted in The Times – Tom Quinn said: “Tension developed between William and Harry as a result of Meghan’s warm, friendly, hug-everyone approach. Kate, William and Charles tended to flinch when she moved in for a hug.

“Meghan was understandably hurt, as everyone apparently hugs everyone in California. Meghan even tried to hug a singularly stiff Old Etonian equerry. He too flinched as if she’d tried to poke him in the eye, as another member of staff put it.”

William was said to have ‘flinched’ at Meghan’s hugs ( 
Image:
PA)

Tensions rose with Meghan and the rest of the Royal Family ( 
Image:
Getty Images)
The couple previously opened up about Meghan’s hugging in their Netflix docuseries, Harry & Meghan. Meghan said she did not know the Royal Family’s “formality” carries through behind closed doors and that she is a “hugger” – which she did not realise was “jarring for some Brits”.

She said: “Even when Will and Kate came over and I was meeting her for the first time I remember I was in ripped jeans, I was barefoot. Like I was a hugger, I have always been a hugger. I didn’t realise that is really jarring for a lot of Brits.

“I started to understand that the formality on the outside carried through on the inside, that there is a forward facing way of being and then you close the door and think, ‘OK we can relax now’. But that formality carries over on both sides and that was surprising to me.’”

Harry also recalled the somewhat awkward first meeting between his now wife and his brother and sister-in-law in his bombshell memoir Spare. He claimed William “recoiled” from Meghan’s hug and described the moment he introduced his sibling to his then girlfriend as a “classic collision of cultures”.

“[It] completely freaked him out,” Harry wrote. “He recoiled. Willy didn’t hug many strangers. Whereas Meg hugged most strangers. Will had hoped that she would greet him with standard reverence per the protocol,” he added, “[but] she didn’t know it and I hadn’t told her.”

Traditionally, hugging is considered inappropriate for royals during official events, with a bow or curtsey being the preferred greeting. Harry has openly discussed his experience of limited physical affection within the Royal Family, including a lack of hugs during his childhood.

But it appears King Charles is leading the way in breaking this old-fashioned protocol. In September, Charles broke with tradition when he met the New Zealand Women Rugby Team, who made an unusual request.

“Yeah, we all wanted a hug,” Ayesha Leti-I’iga told the monarch, adding, “but only if it’s okay with you.” To the team’s surprise and delight, the King accepted, replying: “A hug? Why not!”

After the group embrace, which he joked was like being “flattened by a scrum”, Charles thanked the team for their “warm hug”, which he described as “very healing”.

Yes Ma’am: The Secret Life of Royal Servants by Tom Quinn is out on February 18.

Prince Andrew reportedly struck a deal with a Dutch company to share contacts that he obtained through his Pitch@Palace scheme in a deal that could net him millions

Prince Andrew is set to make millions as part of a deal to become a networking middleman.

The disgraced royal will work with the Dutch company Startupbootcamp where he is expected to share valuable contacts that he made at his Pitch@Palace project, which aimed to connect entrepreneurs and investors.

The Dutch firm initially brought the idea to Buckingham Palace last year before signing up Prince Andrew. The Duke of York will earn money from each deal the company secures with the potential millions being vital to him holding onto his own Grade II listed Royal Lodge property in Windsor Great Park.

Prince Andrew’s reputation was tarnished greatly following his Newsnight interview ( 
Image:
PA)
A source told The Sun: “He will earn money from each deal SBC secures from his Pitch@Palace work and the windfall will help enable him to hold on to Royal Lodge. It is a way of exploiting the enviable business links he has secured over the years.”

In the weeks before the deal with the company was floated, the King ended his £1 million annual funding for his brother, who he in turn tried to evict from the Royal Lodge. The arrangement will be the first time Prince Andrew has done any work after he was stripped of his titles by the late Queen.

Andrew also stepped away from the Pitch@Palace scheme following his disastrous BBC Newsnight interview where he was probed over his ties to wealthy paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.

Kauan von Novack, the CEO of Startupbootcamp, said: “Our mission is to help entrepreneurs to create the change the world needs. We see immense value in the network built up by Pitch@Palace.”

Prince Andrew was removed from frontline royal duties amid the fallout from his Newsnight interview ( 
Image:
AFP via Getty Images)
A Palace source told The Sun: “Buckingham Palace officials have neither reviewed nor approved the details of any financial arrangements between the Duke or his advisers and any third party.”

Prince Andrew’s legacy continues to come under scrutiny after his ties with Epstein became more widely known to the public. A school named after the Duke of York is set for major rebranding as staff seek a less “controversial” name.

Leaders of Prince Andrew School, the only secondary school on the remote British territory St Helena, asked pupils to put forward ideas for a more “neutral” name. The decision, they have said, stems from “recent public” controversy” and “negative media coverage” involving the Duke of York.

Prince Harry was visibly emotional as he opened the Invictus Games in Canada – and there was a touching moment between him and his wife Meghan Markle before he took to the stage

Prince Harry was spotted getting emotional at the opening of the Invictus Games in Vancouver, BC Place Stadium, as per professional lip-reader Jeremy Freeman, who revealed a heartwarming exchange between the Duke and his wife, Meghan Markle. The Prince addressed the crowd of 40,000, saying: “We gather here in Vancouver in a spirit of unity.”

He continued to affirm: “Beyond any differences, here at the Invictus Games we are grounded in mutual respect, competing fiercely, but believing in one another.”

Emphasising the athletes’ resilience, Prince Harry declared: “Over the past decade I’ve lost count of the times we’ve heard you tell us that the Invictus Games saved you. Respectfully, I disagree. Invictus didn’t save you. You saved yourself.”

The Duchess looked on proudly as her husband gave his speech ( 
Image:
(Image: Getty))
Amidst his heartfelt declarations, Harry and Meghan had an intimate moment, reports the Express. Before Harry left for the podium, Freeman reported that he assured Meghan: “OK, I’ll be back later,” to which a loving Meghan responded: “You’re amazing.”

Affectionately close, the Duchess, 43, embraced her husband warmly and shared a passionate kiss despite being amidst the buzzing event. Adding to the string of events unfolding, Harry was also said to have discreetly criticised US President Donald Trump, who previously made cutting remarks about Meghan.

If you can’t see the poll, click here

Donald Trump has dismissed the idea of deporting Prince Harry from the US, despite the royal’s admission of past drug use in his memoir. Trump suggested that Harry already has “enough problems with his wife” Meghan Markle, whom the president branded as “terrible.”

Harry and Meghan looked emotional at the Opening Ceremony ( 
Image:
(Image: Getty))
This statement came shortly after the Duke of Sussex criticised what he perceives as “weak moral character in the world” during his speech at the Invictus Games.

Prince Harry addressed the audience, saying: “At this moment, when there is no shortage of crises, no absence of uncertainty, no lack of weak moral character in the world, the values you embody, the way you carry yourselves – not only at the Invictus Games, but each and every day – your courage, your resilience, your humanity, illuminate a path forward for us all.”

The opening night of the Invictus Games was a hit, featuring performances by Canadian singer-songwriter Nelly Furtado, who belted out some of her most popular songs to an ecstatic crowd. Chris Martin, the lead vocalist of Coldplay, followed with a rendition of the Invictus Games anthem, which he originally composed in 2014.

Coldplay’s Chris Martin performed at the opening ceremony ( 
Image:
(Image: Invictus Games Foundation via Getty))

Martin also paid homage to Prince Harry and was later seen sharing a laugh with him and Meghan. The evening included a poignant “shared moment of healing” led by Master Corporal James Gendron on his bagpipes.

Gendron, who has dealt with psychological injuries sustained in Afghanistan after participating in 63 funeral-style ceremonies for deceased soldiers, was joined by additional pipers and drummers.

Together, they produced an overwhelming sound that filled the arena.