After being acquitted of defaming his ex-wife Amber Heard, actor Johnny Depp has spoken out about the alleged domestic violence he suffered as a child. Depp claimed his mother was "quite violent and quite cruel", adding that she would hit him with objects like an ashtray, often hitting him in the head and using a "high heeled shoe or a telephone or whatever was handy". Describing his relationship with his father, Depp claimed he was "shy" and "stoic" and used to beat him with a belt. This comes ahead of a documentary series on Channel 4 called "Depp vs Heard" which airs on Sunday 21 May.
Johnny Depp has said that he will not let his high-profile legal battles with ex-wife Amber Heard define him, as he returned to the limelight at Cannes as Louis XV in the French-language film Jeanne du Barty. After a US jury found that Heard had defamed Depp in an article in which she called herself a victim of abuse, a UK court earlier ruled that a newspaper article which described Depp as a wife beater was accurate. Depp urged people to look into their own families before passing judgment on others, and added: “I'm certainly not gonna let this allow this thing to define anything.”
Mexico’s Supreme Court rules tourist train, other projects are not issues of national security
The Toronto Star
23-05-18 21:06
Mexico’s Supreme Court has ruled that the country’s government cannot use the pretext of national security to keep the public from accessing information related to tourist trains and other public work projects. President Andrés Manuel López Obrador had exempted the Maya Train tourism project from public reporting and normal permitting requirements, arguing that its security importance demanded urgency. However, with legal challenges to the measures brought by environmentalists, cave divers, and archaeologists, it is unclear whether the ruling will affect rights beyond transparency, or if it will affect fast-tracking permits or rejecting project proposals on security grounds.
The presence of older actors at Cannes Film Festival 2023 is evidence that familiarity counts for more than age when it comes to film star popularity and and box office sales, according to a National Research Group survey. It found the average age of the top 20 actors who viewers would pay to see in theatres was 58, with only one actor being under 40. The oldest stars often have a bigger appeal for audiences compared to younger actors, regardless of declining physical appearance and age. Potential star talent for Cannes in 2023 include Tye Sheridan, Talia Ryder, Lily Gladstone, Charles Melton and Lily-Rose Depp.
Canada's second-biggest airline, WestJet, has cancelled flights as it grapples with an impasse in talks with unions. About 1,800 pilots at the carrier and its Swoop subsidiary could strike after the Air Line Pilots Association issued a strike notice earlier this week. Monday is Canada's Victoria Day federal holiday. The Calgary-based airline, which flies to more than 110 destinations, carries 28% of the country's domestic market, while Air Canada carries 47%, according to aviation data firm Cirium. Passengers unable to book flights have been advised to visit WestJet’s webpage for updates.
UK journalist and author Alex Renton has revealed that his Scottish ancestors made much of their wealth from enslaving Africans some 250 years ago. Renton is a member of Heirs of Slavery, a newly created group of descendants of transatlantic slavery profiteers. The group intends to apologise for its ancestors' involvement and support reparative justice initiatives. Some members are also reportedly pressing newly crowned King Charles to issue a formal apology for the monarchy’s role in the slave trade. The British Empire successfully abolished slavery in 1834 but the government spent £20m compensating owners for their "loss of property", and this was only finally settled by taxpayers in 2015.
Matt Parkinson, the Lancashire spinner, will be the most interesting figure in the Vitality Blast T20 cricket tournament this year. Despite having a respectable first-class record, Parkinson has not played for England since his unusual debut as its first concussion substitute for Jack Leach in the test cricket arena. Reports suggest that Parkinson may leave Lancashire at the end of the season as he is out of contract, and there appears to be discord between the club and the player. Parkinson will need to impress in the Blast to have a chance of being selected for The Hundred.
Sir Richard Branson's wealth has decreased by over 40% due to big losses suffered by his company, Virgin Orbit, during the pandemic. In the Sunday Times Rich List, the British entrepreneur slipped down after the company went bankrupt, causing a drop in his wealth of £1.79bn since last year. Sir Richard featured 77th on the list this year with a net worth of £2.41 billion, down from last year's £4.2 billion. Virgin Group, which counts airline Virgin Atlantic, gym group Virgin Active, and bank Virgin Money among its assets, took a hit when the pandemic hit in early 2020.
The online warning for the opening show of the summer season at Regent’s Park, Once on this Island, may be off-putting to families, according to a review of the Caribbean-themed production of "The Little Mermaid". Advisories about distressing themes in productions, such as Once on this Island which includes “scenes which some may find upsetting involving racism and racial trauma and sexual abuse”, may discourage spectators according to the review. Lincolnshire's Red Lion Quarter apologised to customers in March after taking the decision to cancel Peter Rabbit's Easter Adventure, which was aimed at families with young children, due to “content and sensitivity issues”.
Space tourism and satellite ventures from Virgin Group founder Sir Richard Branson have caused his wealth to drop by over 40% due to substantial losses. After Virgin Orbit went bankrupt at the end of last month, spending over $1bn trying to establish a commercial space launch business, it caused a significant dent in Branson's finances. Virgin Atlantic, Virgin Money and Virgin Active, to name a few, have also suffered losses during the Covid-19 pandemic. According to the Sunday Times, Branson's wealth has gone from £4.2bn last year to £2.4bn, leaving him 77th on the rich list, compared to 44th previously.
Actor Brie Larson was asked at the Cannes Film Festival about her thoughts on Johnny Depp's film opening the festival. Juror Larson, who is a firm supporter of the charity Time's Up, was questioned by a journalist who wanted to know if she felt comfortable about Depp being involved in the film and if she planned to watch it. Larson responded by asking why she was being asked the question, but then acknowledged the journalist was attempting to link her advocacy with the Depp controversy. Depp is subject to an ongoing defamation battle against his former wife Amber Heard.
The online warning for the opening show of the summer season at Regent’s Park, Once on this Island, may be off-putting to families, according to a review of the Caribbean-themed production of "The Little Mermaid". Advisories about distressing themes in productions, such as Once on this Island which includes “scenes which some may find upsetting involving racism and racial trauma and sexual abuse”, may discourage spectators according to the review. Lincolnshire's Red Lion Quarter apologised to customers in March after taking the decision to cancel Peter Rabbit's Easter Adventure, which was aimed at families with young children, due to “content and sensitivity issues”.
ExxonMobil has filed an appeal against a ruling made by a Guyanese court which said the company must set aside hundreds of millions of dollars in the event of an oil spill off the country’s coast. It was ordered to obtain independent liability insurance from its subsidiary, Esso Exploration and Production, and seek an unlimited guarantee from parent company Exxon Mobil Corporation. The oil giant claimed the court “failed to consider” Exxon’s ability to fulfil its obligations alongside consortium partners Hess Corporation and China National Overseas Offshore Corporation. In December, the consortium began production on its Stabroek Block venture, with daily output expected to soar to 1.2 million barrels by 2027.
The Royal Navy has awarded two contracts to support and maintain six offshore patrol vessels for £320m ($443m). UK Docks Marine Services was awarded a £250m eight-year contract to maintain the HMS Forth, HMS Medway, HMS Trent, HMS Tamar and HMS Spey, while BAE Systems won a £70m five-year contract to service HMS Mersey, HMS Severn and HMS Tyne. UK Docks' deal will create over 100 new roles based across the UK and overseas, while BAE Systems' deal is set to sustain over a dozen jobs.
Mexican government sends marines to take over private rail line
Al Jazeera
23-05-20 00:30
Mexico’s government has used marines to occupy a section of railroad managed by a private conglomerate. The seizure has been deemed “temporary” and in the “public interest,” as the government works to update a rail-to-sea network on the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, a narrow area of land separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Pacific Ocean. The Inter-Oceanic Corridor intends to enable Mexico to bolster its economy and compete with the Panama Canal, which is seen as a major channel for regional trade. Transportation firm Grupo Mexico Transportes is to be compensated by the government for the seizure which took place on 8 October.
Actor Johnny Depp, who won his defamation case against Amber Heard earlier this year, is said to be set for a Hollywood comeback with rumours he may appear in the next Pirates of the Caribbean film, despite having been dropped by Disney. There is no word on how much Depp would be paid for his participation, but rumours suggest it could be around $300m. In contrast, Heard has largely disappeared from view, having relocated to Spain to raise her child away from the media. However, author Nick Wallis believes that despite her financial situation, Heard may be poised for a comeback of sorts with the upcoming December release of the Aquaman sequel, in which she is the female lead and will receive substantial exposure.
Women in Honduras are accessing pills prescribed by the World Health Organization to terminate pregnancies, in spite of the country’s strict abortion ban and social and religious opposition. Assistance is being provided by anonymous networks with participants using aliases, code words, encrypted messages and burners to maintain concealment. The pills – mifepristone and misoprostol – are usually obtained from Mexico via the networks. While some other Latin American countries are relaxing abortion restrictions, Honduras tightened its ban this year by enshrining it in the Constitution. It also increased the number of lawmakers required to alter the ban.
A letter to The Telegraph has expressed concern that Sir Keir Starmer's call to broaden the electorate might lead to Labour removing the vote from British citizens aged over 75, in an effort to reverse Brexit. The suggestions follow Sir Keir's support for granting the vote to both 16 and 17-year-olds and EU nationals resident in the UK. Terry Smith from north-west London argues that it would be absurd to remove the vote from elderly citizens on the grounds that they would not live to experience decisions about Brexit. Similarly, other letters were written arguing either for or against the increasing of the UK's population, the effect of LED lights on drivers and support for reparations to those impacted by slavery.
A documentary about the acrimonious legal battles between film star Johnny Depp and his ex-wife, actress Amber Heard, will air on UK television network Channel 4 on Sunday. The three-part series, called Depp Vs Heard, was directed by Bafta-nominated filmmaker Emma Cooper, and covers Depp’s unsuccessful 2020 libel case against the publisher of The Sun and a separate defamation trial he initiated against Heard earlier this year. It is billed as the first “in-depth” examination of the case. The related legal battle, which included allegations of domestic violence, was dubbed the world’s first “Tik Tok trial” as it was streamed live and generated widespread public interest. Depp won the later defamation case on 2 June, receiving $15m in damages. Heard also won $2m in damages in a counter-claim.
Soul-pop sensation Olivia Dean, whose debut album 'Messy' releases later this month, does not let the music industry's oftentimes illusory expectations of her drive her to write music limited by restrictive genre tags. She writes what pleases her, personally, from an indie-folk centred focus on lyrics to pop, to her favourite sub-genre, funk. Dean navigates feelings of anxiety and vulnerability through songwriting, with her vulnerability contributing to her appeal, encouraging fans to accept their personal uncertainties and addressing an often-taboo masculine insecurity. Highly appreciated by fans are her candid lyrics that balance relatable reflection with conversational honesty and emotion. The musician, now busy on a nationwide tour, has been impressing music fans almost since she first started posting on social media in 2018, and been a brand ambassador for Chanel.
