Category: News

Actress Alexandra Daddario, who is starring on season 2 of the hit AMC show Mayfair Witches, is no nepo baby.

“My parents were both lawyers,” the 38-year-old tells PEOPLE of somewhat falling into an acting career. “I was raised in New York under the assumption that you went to college, then became a lawyer or a doctor or worked at a hedge fund. I don’t know how this happened, exactly.”

It happened pretty much by accident.

“I grew up in New York City and was quite a creative kid, into the arts,” she says. “But I was also a cute little kid. And someone saw me, a manager, in the audience of a children’s theater show.” She says she was lucky her mom was into the idea of trying her out in the business.

“For a lawyer, she’s also quite an unserious person in that she’s very imaginative and adventurous, and she thought, ‘Oh yeah, this is cool!’” Daddario says of her mom Christina. (Her father Richard, a prosecutor, was also at one time the head of the NYPD counterterrorism unit.)

“She knew nothing about acting,” she continues of her mom. “It’s not like in Hollywood where they’re worried and very guarded about their kids going into that sort of thing. I think, in her naivete, she she was just like, ‘Oh this will be such a fun extracurricular activity.’ So I started going on auditions and booking jobs, and then I landed a soap.”

At 16, Daddario starred as teen Laurie Lewis on All My Children. When she was in her mid-20s, she garnered attention for her role in the Imagine Dragons video for “Radioactive,” and then again for her first major film, Baywatch in 2017.

But she says it was her role in the first season of The White Lotus in 2021 that truly altered her career trajectory.

“That definitely changed things,” she says of playing the newlywed Rachel, who married rich and was grappling with her identity.

Since 2023, she’s been starring as Rowan Fielding in the thriller drama series Mayfair Witches, which just wrapped its second season on AMC.

“I didn’t know much about Anne Rice when I got the part, and as I dove into the books, I became more fascinated with her than the books themselves,” she says. “When you look at why she wrote these types of novels, and where this material comes from and her life experiences and what she was working through, you understand the subject matter better.”

She loves being a part of the show. “The love for these books and the love for the stories…it’s an army of very serious fans so I’m just lucky to be a part of it.”

The series follows her character, a neurosurgeon, who is also part of a family of powerful witches haunted by an evil entity named Lasher. Daddario filmed the second season in the heat and humidity of New Orleans as she was pregnant with her first child, a boy born in Oct. of 2024.

“You worry about everything,” she admits of her pregnancy. “There were some horror scenes where I was like, ‘I don’t know if I should let myself get worked up emotionally because the baby will feel it in my belly!’” she says.

As she embraces her new mom life, she says she does it in relative privacy.

“Oh I’m so anonymous,” says Daddario, who splits her time between the west and east coast with her husband, producer Andrew Form. She adds that it’s strange when she’s recognized in public or has her picture taken by a pap.

“Sometimes something will take me by surprise that feels like an invasion of privacy,” she says with a laugh. “But only because I’m not prepared for it!”

Mayfair Witches season 2 airs on AMC.

Andy Fernandez told the story of his daughter Lucy to members and attendees of the Senate Criminal Justice Committee on Tuesday. It was the first stop for “Lucy’s Law,” otherwise known as SB 628, sponsored by Sen. Jonathan Martin, a Fort Myers Republican.

Lucy was tragically killed on Labor Day weekend in 2022 when the boat she was in collided with a cement channel marker, launching passengers into the water and capsizing. Lucy was trapped underneath. Emergency responders airlifted her to the hospital, and a day later, she passed away surrounded by her family.

Lucy’s death was one that could have been prevented with education and training. Now, Andy and his wife Melissa are on a mission to make Florida waters safer and prevent other families from suffering the same unimaginable loss.

“Boating today is not what it was 30 years ago. There are more boats than ever before, and with that more distractions. More boats, more passengers and more crowded waterways. It is a recipe for disaster,” Fernandez said. “Florida leads the nation in reportable accidents that result in death. This is not a political issue — this is about saving lives.”

According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), there were 659 reported boating accidents in 2023, which led to 408 injuries and 59 deaths. Ten percent of those were tied to alcohol consumption.

SB 628, in its original form, would require safety training for all boaters, not just those born after 1988, ensuring that anyone operating a vessel in Florida has a basic understanding of safe boating practices. The bill would also increase the severity of penalties for reckless and careless vessel operation to include factors such as accidents involving serious injury or death. Those who boat under the influence would face driver license suspension.

SB 628 on Tuesday was stripped of the education and training requirements that were part of the original filed legislation. Sen. Jason Pizzo, a Broward Democrat, questioned the changes that diluted the legislation.

“You want to wait until there is a violation, a tragedy, before we retroactively post-incident requirements?” he said.

While the language requiring training and education was removed from the Senate bill, it remains in the House companion (HB 289) sponsored by Reps. Vicki Lopez and Vanessa Oliver. HB 289 is scheduled to be heard in the House Criminal Justice Subcommittee Thursday.

“I come to you today not only as grieving parents who lost a 17-year-old daughter, but also as avid and lifelong boaters. Our best memories are on the water,” said Fernandez during his testimony. “The last thing we want to do is hurt this industry. We want to keep boaters on the water safe.”

SB 628, as amended, passed the Senate Criminal Justice Committee. The next stop for Martin’s bill is the Senate Committee on Transportation.

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Last month, the Care Inspectorate upheld four complaints from the family about Janette’s care. It said her personal care needs were not always met, and her medication was not always administered properly.

Nicola said: “I think it’s important to stress that these complaints are only to make sure that the home operates at a better level, not only for my mum – but for everyone.”

Inspectors have given the home a deadline to improve.

In a statement, a spokesperson for Barrogil House said: “Following concerns raised by Mrs Ritchie’s family in June of last year, we took immediate action which resulted in the dismissal of five members of staff.

“A subsequent unannounced inspection noted our good staffing levels and commitment to kindness and respect, and we continue to work closely with all relevant authorities to make improvements – including a revised care plan for Mrs Ritchie.

“The health and wellbeing of our residents is our utmost priority, and we aim to offer the highest possible standards of care and compassion.”

Nicola said: “It’s difficult for the families, watching your loved one deteriorate in front of you. And it’s made incredibly more difficult because I don’t get to spend quality time with my mum, because I’m too busy nursing my mum, effectively.

“I don’t mind nursing my mum, but I should be spending quality time with her as a daughter, not as a nurse.

“I just want a safe passage for my mum in these last few years of her life.”

A couple swapped their $511,970 USD Manchester, England home to live mortgage free in a village in France – and have “on-site babysitters” after their parents moved out with them.

Liz Murphy, 47, and her husband David, 56, bought the rural hamlet of Lac De Maison, in Poitou-Charentes, south-west France four years ago.

They joined forces with Liz’s mom Helen Diaper, and stepdad Terry, both 75, to buy six 400-year-old houses, two barns and three-acres of land.

Now they have turned three into holiday homes – sleeping 19 people in total – and have renovated their own home and parents house.

They are now installing solar panels to become more self-sufficient. 

The couple, who used to work in radio, don’t make as money as they did in the UK but say their quality of life is better.

Liz, a mom-of-two, originally from Altrincham, Manchester, said: “Our quality of life is so much better, and we haven’t got the pressures we had in the UK.

“In France, we’re mortgage free. So although we’re making less money than we did in the UK, it’s massively outweighed by our quality of life.

“My mom and stepdad decided to sell their house and come with us.

“COVID made us reassess, and David and I said if they’d like to come with us, we’d really love that. They both said ‘why not one last adventure? Let’s do it.’

“It’s been lovely – having them so close by for the kids has been really great. It’s great to have on-site babysitters.”

Previously the couple felt trapped in the “rat race” working “busy” nine-to-five jobs.

But after being put on furlough in 2020, the couple realised their dreams of leaving their lives in Manchester, England, and owning their own place in France.

They chose France after visiting for holidays and wanting to be “somewhere close enough for people to visit and it not cost a fortune”.  

When the couple came across the huge plot of land, they decided to sell their three-bed home and move with their two children – Tom, 14, and Charlotte, 10 – in December 2020.

They also convinced Helen and Terry to move with them from Nottingham.

Now the renovations are firmly underway and they have three holiday homes up and running.

They are now installing 60 solar panels so they can be more self sufficient.

“We’re trying to get ourselves off grid,” Liz said.

“We were thinking of renovating the ruin next to our house that a WW1 hero used to live in, but we’ve had really bad wet weather in the past year, and some of the walls collapsed in a landslide.”

Despite setbacks, the couple stand by their decision, and do not see the ongoing projects as an issue.  

“We spent more than we thought we were going to,” Liz said.

“But everything we are putting into it is to future proof it for others when they want to come and live here.

“Everything was a bit tired.

“It was blood sweat and tears but worth it in the end.

“A change for being in the rat race.

“With properties of this size and age, I don’t think renovations ever finish.”

The couple’s children have settled into their new life in France – and attend French schools.

“They’ve been here for four years now – they’re both fluent in French, and I think my daughter especially feels more French than English,” Liz said.

The family also love having Liz’s parents just a minute away.

“It’s lovely – they are so integral to our lives,” Liz said.

“It’s lovely to just cross over the driveway to see them.

“They are so much more involved in kids lives.

“We see each other everyday.

“It really nice for the special bond with the grandchildren.

“We go over for a drink or we have meal at ours or over at there’s.

“It’s nice to know they are there.”

The changing pace of life in France has brought the family closer together, as Liz felt their hectic lives in Manchester did not leave enough time to spend together.

“It’s a lovely, chilled, relaxing vibe, and it’s brought us all closer together,” She said.

The family have introduced some new members too – having taken on three goats, four chickens and two Shetland ponies.

“We don’t have the ponies anymore, but they live a life of luxury down the road, and instead we’ve inherited three cats, and we’re possibly getting a dog soon,” Liz said.

Family and friends often visit France during the busy Airbnb summer months, and Liz and her family return to the UK at least once a year.  

But the family remains happy in their move and adamant it was the right decision for their future.  

“I miss my friends and family, we all do. But other than that, I miss Walkers prawn cocktail crisps and Twining’s earl grey tea bags.

“We loved the UK, but we don’t regret moving here and don’t have plans to move back,” Liz concluded.

Former Love Island UK stars Alex and Olivia Bowen have shared that they lost one of their babies due to what’s known as vanishing twin syndrome.

Alex and Olivia, who met on season two of the reality show, spoke about the devastating loss during Tuesday’s episode of Loose Women.

Although the couple first revealed on Instagram last month that they were having a second child, it turns out they were actually expecting twins, which they learned during Olivia’s sixth week of pregnancy.

“I am quite an anxious person anyway, so I was like, right, I’m going to the scan early. You were all for it,” Olivia said, gesturing to Alex, during the show.

The couple was with Alex’s best friend, who waited in the car, and they were going to go grab a beer after the scan.

“I went into the room, and as soon as I sat down, I could see two babies. Not one — which we just were floored by that, weren’t we?” she said to her husband.

Olivia — who already shares a 2-year-old son, Abel, with Alex — also noted that she had twins in her family. When she found out she was having them, she was “quite nervous.”

“We’ve not had a great history of twins in our family. But you were so positive, weren’t you?” she said, again turning to Alex, who noted that he had “all these emotions run through [his] mind” at the time.

He explained that he was both excited and nervous to be a father of twins, but that, sadly, was not to be.

“Like, I can’t wait until we’re on holiday and checking the back of the car, all three kids are playing. And then yeah, unfortunately, that just got kind of taken away,” Alex said.

The pair shared that when they went to another doctor’s appointment, during Olivia’s eighth week of pregnancy, one of her twins “was a little smaller.” She learned that during those two weeks in between her two doctor’s appointments, she had lost her baby.

“Something happened called ‘vanishing twin syndrome,’” she said, as her voice began to break. “One of the babies just basically didn’t have a heartbeat. But I’d had no symptoms, I’d had no pain. No bleeding. Absolutely nothing to tell me that that was what we were walking into, and I guess from that moment we were just completely floored.”

She added: “We were expecting to have these two little babies, but vanishing twin syndrome, that is what happens. They can, as it says, literally just vanish.”

According to the Cleveland Clinic, vanishing twin syndrome is “a miscarriage that causes a pregnancy involving twins to become a pregnancy involving just one embryo.” This can occur “when one of the embryos detected during an ultrasound stops developing.”

During Loose Women, Olivia said that despite the difficult miscarriage, she has found “one beautiful part of it” that she’s trying to hang onto.

“They do absorb into your body, so they just gradually go back into your body,” she said. “Those cells become a part of you, and that’s what we’ve sort of been holding onto.”

While she acknowledged that she and Alex still have a “healthy little baby” who they’re excited to meet, her pregnancy has been an unexpected, “bittersweet roller coaster” of emotions.

“And I know miscarriages are common — one in four — but for twin pregnancies, triplet pregnancies, it’s up to 35 percent,” she said. “It’s a big number.”

She also acknowledged that talking about her experience, especially with other women, has made things “a little easier” for her.

“Especially Alex being a dad, I haven’t seen many men talk about it,” she added, referring to her miscarriage. “We just want to change that perception of not being able to talk about miscarriage openly.”

During an interview with The US Sun earlier this week, Olivia first broke the news of her miscarriage. When posting about the story on Instagram, she acknowledged how difficult it was for her to put her feelings into the right words.

“I couldn’t wrap my head around the happiness & joy I felt for having one safe healthy baby — I know how fortunate we are for that — but at the exact same time feeling the excruciating pain & trauma of losing their twin. It’s like the two couldn’t co-exist,” she wrote in the caption.

She added: “The other reason we are sharing this is because we never want our sunset baby to be forgotten. You existed, you were loved & you were part of our family for a short while. And you are forever now a part of our story & we will never forget you. This is all in your honor baby.”

Olivia and Alex first met in July 2016 while starring in the second season of Love Island when they fell in love on the show. Two years later, they officially tied the knot before welcoming their baby boy Abel in 2022.

On Tuesday, Olivia also shared a video on Instagram of herself with Abel, and Alex opening a box, which had a teddy bear in it. The bear was also wearing a pink bow, revealing that the former reality stars’ second baby is a girl.

ONE of Britain’s most notorious paedophiles, Colin Batley, who led a vile sex cult in the quiet Welsh town of Kidwelly, could be released from prison this week. Batley, now 73, is due for a Parole Board hearing on Friday (March 7), where a panel will assess his case and could decide to set him free.

Batley was jailed in 2011 after being found guilty of 35 offences, including multiple rapes and serious sexual assaults. He received an indeterminate sentence of 22 years, with a minimum term of 11 years, and was warned he might never be released.

The former Tesco security guard from London led a quasi-religious cult where children were subjected to systematic abuse for over a decade. He brainwashed and terrorised his victims, threatening them with murder by cult assassins and eternal damnation if they did not comply with his perverse demands.

Third attempt at freedom

This is Batley’s third parole hearing. Experts fear he may be released despite the severity of his crimes and the dangers he poses to the public. His release would mark a disturbing chapter in the justice system, as all three women who were jailed for their roles in his cult have already been freed.

Batley’s estranged wife, Elaine Batley, along with Jacqueline Marling and Shelly Millar, were sentenced to a combined 25 years in prison for their part in the cult. The women, who referred to Batley as ‘Lord,’ participated in the abuse and aided in his exploitation of children.

A ‘sick little kingdom’

Swansea Crown Court heard how Batley created a “sick little kingdom” in the otherwise unsuspecting community of Kidwelly. His home was transformed into a temple filled with satanic idolatry and tanks of snakes, where he would conduct sinister rituals followed by orchestrated group sex.

Judge Paul Thomas QC, who sentenced Batley, said: “You set yourself up as ruler in your own sick little kingdom… You became their master and formed a community within a community involving child abuse, rape, and prostitution. You are, and for the foreseeable future, a danger to children.”

The abuse continued unchecked for years, despite concerns raised with Carmarthenshire Social Services in 2002. It was not until a brave victim came forward in 2010 that Batley’s web of manipulation and abuse was finally exposed.

Calls for continued detention

Survivors and campaigners have expressed horror at the possibility of Batley’s release. A spokesperson for a child protection charity said: “This man is a danger to society. His actions destroyed lives. The idea that he could be released is a terrifying prospect.”

The victims, who have already endured a harrowing ordeal, now face renewed trauma as the parole hearing approaches. Many have rebuilt their lives after years of suffering, but the potential release of their abuser threatens to bring back painful memories.

Community on edge

The quiet community of Kidwelly remains scarred by the horrors of Batley’s crimes.

Residents are deeply concerned about the prospect of his return. Local councillors have called for assurances that Batley would not be allowed back into the area if released.

The Parole Board’s decision on Friday will be closely watched by both the victims and the wider community. Many hope that justice will prevail and that Batley will remain behind bars, where they believe he belongs.

By JAMES CIRRONE FOR DAILYMAIL.COM

Published: 21:40 GMT, 4 March 2025 | Updated: 21:43 GMT, 4 March 2025

A 49-year-old single father in Nebraska is having a really hard time trying to get an identification card for his two-year-old daughter after he found out that she does not have a Social Security number. On top of that, even though he calls her Caroline, her legal name is “Unakite Thirteen Hotel.”

In case you were wondering, no, Unakite Thirteen Hotel does not have any familial significance or any other type of significance to the 49-year-old Nebraskan, Jason Kilburn. It is a string of utter nonsense that was auto-generated by a computer system. How that happened is a little complicated. Undoing it is proving to be even more complicated.

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Nebraska Dad Is Having A Hard Time Changing His Daughter’s Name from “Unakite Thirteen Hotel” to Caroline

A couple of years ago, Kilburn was dating a woman that he later found out gave birth to a little girl that might have been his. The woman had been struggling with drug issues and homelessness. Knowing she was in no condition to take care of the child, she handed the little girl over to the hospital. She moved into foster care until custody was officially granted to Kilburn.

Caroline, or Unakite Thirteen Hotel, was born in Iowa. She needed all the requisite paperwork and identification every human American needs. When Kilburn tried to get it so they could access crucial services like healthcare and childcare, he found out that the hospital issued an unofficial certificate of live birth that had on it the bizarre placeholder name Unakite Thirteen Hotel.

No Social Security number was generated and no official birth certificate was issued. For some reason, the hospital computer system spits out a random string of words to use as a placeholder name.

Now Kilburn has teamed up with a lawyer tasked with taking on the Nebraska and Iowa Department of Health to help secure the legal documents, and perhaps a name change, he and his daughter need to move on with their lives—simple things they have so far not been granted as both state governments have been giving them the runaround, tossing one obstacle in their path after another.

Soon after this story went national, Kilburn finally got a Social Security number for Caroline. Now he’s just waiting for a birth certificate with her real name, Caroline Kilburn, on it.

A mum and daughter have both transitioned to become “father and son” as free public healthcare has funded their “transgender journey”.

The duo shared their experience to their 24,000 followers on Instagram, posting photos and videos of the journey.

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The 10-year-old is an actor who has acted as both cisgender and transgender characters in films.

After beginning the transition, Raphael told local media: “Now I’m Raphael, Gustavo’s father.”

Gustavo said: “It wasn’t difficult to call my mother dad.”

The pair are receiving free public healthcare services for their transitions in Sao Paolo, Brazil.

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Raphael is receiving treatment at Campo Limpo Municipal Hospital.

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Raphael is receiving treatment at Campo Limpo Municipal Hospital.

Gustavo is being treated at the Transdisciplinary Outpatient Clinic for Gender Identity and Sexual Orientation at the Institute of Psychiatry and the Pediatric Endocrinology Unit at the Children’s Institute of the Hospital das Clinicas.

They both deny their decision was influenced by one another, with Raphael claiming: “It didn’t have any influence, but he [Gustavo] gave me strength and courage to face [the transition].”

Last December, puberty blockers were banned for under-18s in Britain due to safety concerns.

Health Secretary Wes Streeting said “It is a scandal that medicine was given to vulnerable young children without proof that it is safe or effective”

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Health Secretary Wes Streeting told MPs that the Independent Commission on Human Medicines had ruled the drugs posed an “unacceptable safety risk” to young people.

He said: “It is a scandal that medicine was given to vulnerable young children without proof that it is safe or effective.

“We are working with NHS England to open new gender identity services so people can access the support they need.”