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"This guy hates my guts and I hate his": Manu Feildel spills on his feud with Colin Fassnidge

<p>Manu Feildel and Colin Fassnidge have opened up about their long-running feud that began when the pair started working together on <em>My Kitchen Rules</em>.</p> <p>On Wednesday night's episode of the popular cooking show, Manu revealed to the contestants how the judges "hated" each other's "guts" when they started filming the show together in 2014. </p> <p>Their feud began when Colin accused Manu of "selling out" by joining the TV show. </p> <p>Manu opened up about their previous dislike for one another, after contestants Amber and Mel explained that the name of their restaurant, Salty Secrets, was meant to encourage their fellow <em>MKR</em> contestants to share little-known facts about themselves.</p> <p>“Do you want to hear about salty secrets from us?” Manu asked the table.</p> <blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/reel/CxaP02IBB8q/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"> </div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"> <div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"> </div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/CxaP02IBB8q/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by MKR (@mykitchenrules)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>“The salty secret is Colin and I started on the wrong foot. Because when I started TV, most chefs in the industry thought I’d sold my soul.”</p> <p>Colin added, “I said he’s sold out.”</p> <p>Explaining the criticism, Manu said, “They said I was no longer a chef, I was a TV celebrity.”</p> <p>They went on to say that their feud made working together very difficult in the early years when Colin joined the <em>MKR</em> team, </p> <p>“I got told, ‘Oh we’re going to bring in a new chef - Colin Fassnidge.’ And I went, ‘What?! The guy hates my guts and I hate his guts’,” Manu said.</p> <p>Colin added. “So day one of <em>MKR</em>, I turn up and they’re like ‘Have you met Manu?’ And I was like, ‘S***’."</p> <p>“We did the season. It was a tough learning curve for me.”</p> <p>Manu explained that it wasn't until the end of the first episode that they resolved their differences and became friends. </p> <p>“So we finished the show, I went into my room, he went into his,” he said.</p> <p>“And suddenly I heard [knocks on table], open my room and he went ‘I would like to apologise for being an a***hole.’</p> <p>“And we’ve been good friends ever since!”</p> <p><em>Image credits: My Kitchen Rules</em></p>

TV

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Royal biographer hints at Queen's cause of death

<p dir="ltr">A royal expert claims Queen Elizabeth II was suffering from a “relatively painless” but “invariably fatal” condition before announcing her death 90 minutes before Buckingham Palace.</p> <p dir="ltr">In a video uploaded to YouTube at 5pm local time (2am AEST), controversial royal biographer Lady Colin Campbell claimed the Queen had passed away at 2.37pm (11.37pm AEST).</p> <p dir="ltr">Buckingham Palace announced the monarch’s passing 90 minutes later, at around 6.30pm UK time.</p> <p dir="ltr">Her announcement came at the end of a lengthy clip where the royal expert spoke about a condition the Queen was allegedly suffering from.</p> <p dir="ltr">Lady Campbell, who is most well-known for her books about Princess Diana and the Queen Mother, claimed that Her Majesty was suffering from a serious bone condition, though she wouldn’t reveal “the word that accurately conveys her diagnosis” out of respect for her “dignity and privacy”.</p> <p dir="ltr">“If she wants to reveal that word, or her advisors wish to reveal it, that is up to them. I don’t think one needs to use the word to get across the point that I think most people will be able to pick up, that this is a really serious situation,” Lady Campbell said in the video, prior to announcing the monarch’s passing.</p> <p dir="ltr">“The condition has been induced, in part, according to people who know her well, has been created by the tremendous stress to which she has been subjected over the last three years.”</p> <p dir="ltr">The Palace has not confirmed the Queen’s cause of death.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Can you imagine an older woman, as her life is winding down, and she is hoping to enjoy the last few years of her life in good health being bombarded by the tremendous abuse to which she and the monarchy have been subjected,” Lady Campbell said.</p> <p dir="ltr">She went on to say she had tried to warn people that the Queen was “far more ill than they thought she was” over the past few months.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I have on several occasions in the last few weeks, if not months, made the point that she had been affected to her bones. I used that repeatedly to get across the point that what she was suffering from was a malady of the bones,” she continued.</p> <p dir="ltr">“There are two maladies of the bones, one is more painful than the other. Fortunately the Queen’s malady, although it falls in the same category and condition of the more painful one, has been the less painful one.</p> <p dir="ltr">“It has been restrictive, and I will not go into the medical treatments she has been receiving. I have previously indicated that her bruising was due to cannulas and I have left it at that.”</p> <p dir="ltr">After the video cuts away, Lady Campell continued filming, claiming she had found out about the Queen’s passing.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Having just made this video it is with great sadness that I have to inform you that events have yet again overtaken one’s plans, and I am reliably informed that the Queen died at 14.37pm this afternoon,” she said.</p> <p dir="ltr">“And that the reason why the announcement has not been made so far is that they are waiting for Harry and Meghan to arrive at Balmoral, after which the announcement will be made.”</p> <p dir="ltr">Buckingham Palace went on to announce the news of Her Majesty’s passing before Harry arrived at Balmoral, while Meghan remained in London.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I think we should be very grateful for having had such a wonderful monarch,” Lady Campbell continued.</p> <p dir="ltr">“And I think we can be also grateful for the fact that her death was relatively painless. Bone cancer is not fun.</p> <p dir="ltr">“But she was fortunate enough to have the lesser of the forms of bone cancer, and she kept her spirits and her vitality to practically the end.</p> <p dir="ltr">“And now, I would say, my sympathies to all her loved ones, all her family, and really, all her subjects many of whom love her.”</p> <p dir="ltr">However, the <em><a href="https://www.couriermail.com.au/news/world/queen-elizabeths-cause-of-death-may-never-be-released/news-story/47ceca6491d9ef44b1d9112061674cdb" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Courier Mail</a></em> reported that medical experts said frailty and “geriatric syndrome” - a term describing a group of common health conditions older people experience that don’t fit in distinct disease categories - could have been contributors to her passing.</p> <p dir="ltr">Her symptoms reportedly met five of seven criteria used by Britain’s NHS to classify people as frail, including being over 85, having ongoing health conditions, requiring regular help, being forced to cancel activities and using a walking stick.</p> <p><span id="docs-internal-guid-1630db36-7fff-3f8c-cae6-c2b858607b4b"></span></p> <p dir="ltr">In the hours before her death, a statement from Buckingham Palace said doctors were “concerned” for the Queen’s health and that she was “comfortable” at Balmoral.</p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Images: Getty Images / Lady Colin Campbell (YouTube)</em></p>

Caring

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Man who helped his father die finds out his fate

<p><strong><em>Warning: This article contains mentions of suicide which may be distressing to some readers</em></strong>.</p> <p>After a lengthy battle against aggressive bowel cancer, in May 2021, Colin Stratton decided he'd had enough.</p> <p>Just a few days shy of his 81st birthday, the loving man asked his family to do something for him.</p> <p>Colin, along with his late wife, had been long term supporters of the voluntary euthanasia bill and members of Dying with Dignity.</p> <p>On May 24th, Colin visited his GP and asked for a suicide pill in order to die on his own terms.</p> <p>When the doctor hold him the paperwork would take up to two weeks, he informed his GP he would simply take matters into his own hands.</p> <p>Impaired from extensive chemotherapy, Colin was unable to complete the task of ending his life by himself.</p> <p>Instead, he asked his 54-year-old son Glenn to help him. Glenn initially refused.</p> <p>“Don’t make me make a bloody mess of it, I can’t do it by myself,” Colin told the middle of his three children.</p> <p>Glenn and his father exchanged "I love yous", and Glenn completed one last task for his father.</p> <p>“The psychological pressure on you must have been enormous,” Victorian Supreme Court Justice Elizabeth Hollingworth said in a renewed hearing on Wednesday.</p> <p>“You finally pulled the trigger spontaneously out of love and respect for his wishes,” she said.</p> <p>Glenn explained to the court that his father had always done everything he could for his family, and in return they would've done anything for him.</p> <p>His family are all supportive of his actions, as they saw the impact Colin's illness had on the last years of his life.</p> <p>“They also understand how important it was for him to be able to end his life on his own terms when the pain and burden of illness became too great for him,” Justice Hollingworth said.</p> <p>“They describe your actions in helping your father achieve his wish as loving, courageous and selfless.”</p> <p>Glenn Stratton was initially charged with murder after confessing his actions to police, and he spent 46 days behind bars, causing him to miss his father's funeral.</p> <p>Glenn pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting his father's suicide, and Justice Hollingworth declared there would be no benefit to keeping him in jail.</p> <p>He was instead ordered to undergo mandatory counselling.</p> <p>Mr Stratton's family have said they hope voluntary euthanasia will become more widely available so other families don't have to go through the same thing.</p> <p><strong><em>If you or a member of your family need help in a crisis, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14.</em></strong></p> <p><em>Image credit: 7News</em></p>

Legal

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Colin Firth takes on Hitler in new spy movie

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">After appearing as the fictional spy Galahd in the </span><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Kingsman</span></em><span style="font-weight: 400;"> trilogy, Colin Firth </span><a rel="noopener" href="https://www.empireonline.com/movies/news/colin-firth-plots-to-trick-hitler-operation-mincemeat-trailer/" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight: 400;">is portraying</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> a real-life spy in the new trailer for </span><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Operation Mincemeat</span></em><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Despite the grisly name, the movie is named after the real operation run by British intelligence officers during World War 2, where they attempted to thwart the Nazis by planting a dead body in enemy waters with a briefcase full of fake documents.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">See the trailer here:</span></p> <p><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/YQ7ZXOXHZ20" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Firth is set to play Ewen Montagu, the British naval intelligence officer who came up with the idea for Operation Mincemeat along with Matthew Macfadyen’s Charles Cholmondeley.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;"><img style="width: 0px; height: 0px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7844679/mincemeat1.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/2c9d93e8b1b5492c9927d09c869a96d5" /></span></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">British musician Johnny Flynn portrays author and intelligence officer Ian Fleming.</span></em></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Alongside the scheming duo, the cast includes Penelope Wilton as Hester Leggest, Johnny Flynn as <em>James </em></span><span style="font-weight: 400;"><em>Bond</em> </span><span style="font-weight: 400;">author and intelligence officer Ian Fleming, and Kelly Macdonald’s Jean Leslie.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;"><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7844680/mincemeat2.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/54cdfbaa95fb4ef7a57d71c0714e4eea" /></span></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Kelly Macdonald as Jean Leslie, the MI5 clerk whose image was used in the operation.</span></em></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Jason Isaac is set to play skeptical John Godfrey, while Winston Churchill will be portrayed by Simon Russell Beale.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">John Madden - the director behind </span><span style="font-weight: 400;">Shakespeare in Love</span><span style="font-weight: 400;"> and </span><span style="font-weight: 400;">The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel</span><span style="font-weight: 400;"> - is directing the all-star cast.</span></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Operation Mincemeat </span></em><span style="font-weight: 400;">is </span><a rel="noopener" href="https://www.flicks.co.nz/movie/operation-mincemeat/" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight: 400;">due to be released</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> in cinemas in early April of next year.</span></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Images: @netflixfilm / Instagram</span></em></p>

Movies

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Colin Fassnidge addresses his feud with Manu Feildel

<p>Colin Fassnidge has spilled on his past feuds with fellow celebrity chefs Manu Feildel and Miguel Maestre.</p> <p>On I'm A Celebrity … Get Me Out Of Here!, Fassnidge said he used to "fight everybody" as he tried to make a name for himself as a chef.</p> <p>“Me and Miguel didn’t get on, me and Manu didn’t get on,” he told camp mate Grant Denyer.</p> <p>“I don’t know. We just never stopped fighting.”</p> <p>Fassnidge revealed his feud with Feildel came to a head when he joined My Kitchen Rules in 2015.</p> <p>“When I did<span> </span><em>MKR</em>, they knew me and Manu didn’t get on because we’d had Twitter wars and all this sh*t,” he explained. “First day on set I was like, ‘oh f**k,’ it’s his baby, he’s the Daddy of the show.’ I walk on and they’re like, ‘This is the new guy,’ and he’s like, ‘f**k this.’”</p> <p>Fassnidge claimed Feildel immediately pulled an "alpha" move and said to him: “Well buddy, welcome to my home. If there’s anything you need, I’ll tell you how to do it.”</p> <p>But as the end of the season approached, Fassnidge decided to end the feud once and for all.</p> <p>“I just went into his dressing room and said, ‘Mate, I apologise for whatever.’ And he’s like, that’s it, buried it,” Fassnidge said. “Same with Miguel.”</p> <p>The three chefs have since become good friends.</p> <p>“All the wives hang out, the kids hang out … we’re like, ‘Why did we waste so long getting to know each other?’” Fassnidge said.</p>

News

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Why Colin Firth and wife Livia Giuggi have separated now

<p>Colin Firth and his estranged wife Livia Giuggioli have made the decision to separate after attempts to rebuild their marriage failed, according to a report from<span> </span><em><a rel="noopener" href="https://people.com/movies/why-colin-firth-and-wife-split-2-years-after-her-affair-nothing-could-erase-her-betrayal/" target="_blank">People</a>.</em></p> <p>On December 13th, the pair revealed that they are separating after 22 years.</p> <p> “They maintain a close friendship and remain united in their love for their children,” a rep said in a statement.</p> <p>Those who were close to the couple weren’t surprised by this development when it came out that Livia, 50, had an extramarital relationship with Italian journalist Marco Brancaccia when Firth and her were separated between 2015 and 2016.</p> <p>“Things never really came around for them [after that],” a film industry source tells PEOPLE in this week’s issue. “No matter what was decided when they stayed together after her affair, nothing could erase that betrayal. It was time to move on, even though they had a solid family relationship and really wanted to save it.”</p> <p>The pair met on the 1996 BBC drama Nostromo, were married in 1997 and have two sons, Luca, 18 and Matteo, 16.</p> <p>“They love their sons and respect and care for each other, but it was just time,” says the source. “They want to protect their privacy and just move on.”</p> <p>Scroll through the gallery to see the couple in happier times.</p>

Relationships

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A life in pictures: Colin Firth turns 59!

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">British actor Colin Firth is celebrating 59 laps around the sun today. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Firth is widely known for starring in blockbuster hits including </span><span style="font-weight: 400;">Love Actually, The King’s Speech</span><span style="font-weight: 400;">, and </span><span style="font-weight: 400;">Mamma Mia. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The charming Hollywood veteran reached a new high in his career in 2010 when he was nominated for Best Actor at the Oscars. He didn’t take out the win then, but it wasn’t long before he deservedly claimed the trophy as his own in 2011 for </span><span style="font-weight: 400;">The King’s Speech. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The film also went on to earn a BAFTA and a Golden Globe. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">"I have a feeling my career just peaked," he joked, as he accepted his incredible award back in 2011 and dedicated it to his mother, Shirley. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">He thanked "all the people who have been rooting for me back home" and his wife Livia for "putting up with my fleeting delusions of royalty". </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">"I think I'm feeling not joy – but relief that it's over. That seems to be the default position. You could say I'm grateful – and relieved," he said. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Colin Firth has been married to Livia Giuggioli since 1997 and he has three songs, Will, 28, Luca, 18, and Matteo, 16. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Scroll through the gallery above to see Colin Firth's life in pictures. </span></p>

Art

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“She winds me up!” The unlikely feud between Delta Goodrem and this My Kitchen Rules judge

<p>When the words “celeb feud” come to mind, the names Colin Fassnidge and Delta Goodrem usually don’t.</p> <p>But in the most unlikely of scenarios, the<span> </span><em>My Kitchen Rules</em><span> </span>star has taken a dig at the singer.</p> <p>The Irish chef says while he’s a fan of<span> </span><em>The Voice</em>, Delta Goodrem “winds” him up.</p> <p>Sitting down with Jana Hocking on her podcast<span> </span><em>Sex Love Magic</em>, Colin recounted an incident that occurred at the Logies in 2018, when he had to pose with Delta.</p> <p>“They put me sitting in front of her at the Logies the last time and she’s behind me, and the photo of me with Delta … I was making a face,” he revealed.</p> <p>“My Missus said to me, ‘You realise you’re representing your company [sic]?’</p> <p>“I have no interest in Delta Goodrem!” he said, while adding: “I like<span> </span><em>The Voice,</em><span> </span>I think it’s a good show.”</p> <p>Delta has always attracted unwanted attention, especially after criticism surfaced over how she chooses to support her team on the show.</p> <p>The<span> </span><em>Born to Try</em><span> </span>singer told<span> </span><em><a rel="noopener" href="https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/" target="_blank">The Daily Telegraph</a></em><span> </span>in 2017 about the backlash, saying it’s “all just water off a duck’s back, because the reality of what I get to live with is very different.”</p> <p>“I have only the intention of making people’s day better, and if someone has an intention that’s the opposite of that, then that’s their problem,” he said.</p>

News

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Why MKR judge Colin Fassnidge is outraged

<p><em>MKR</em> judge Colin Fassnidge is outraged with the closure of a Sydney pub that was once famed for the award-winning kitchen he operated, labelling the incident a “disgrace”.</p> <p>Fassnidge spend 10 years behind the grill plate at the Four In Hand at Paddington, but left the venue after it was purchased by Public House Management Group in 2015.</p> <p><a href="https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/" target="_blank"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><em><strong>The Daily Telegraph reports</strong></em></span></a> the venue is back on the market for $6 million, and early indication suggest it will be redeveloped into residential property.</p> <p>The famously opinionated <em>My Kitchen Rules</em> judge said it took taken 10 years of his own “blood, sweat and tears” to turn the Four In Hand into the success.</p> <p>“I had a full restaurant and a full bar,” he said.</p> <p>“It took 10 years to build and they destroyed it in a year.”</p> <p>Fassnidge, who has opened other restaurants in the Harbour City including Surry Hill’s acclaimed 4 Fourteen, blamed poor management decisions for the closure.</p> <p>“I’m very passionate about it. I think a lot of people think it is a disgrace,” he said. “It was a Sydney icon before I got there and we had a duty to look after it. It was one of the last remaining real pubs for locals.</p> <p>“It wasn’t my choice to leave, I didn’t own the building.”</p> <p><a href="https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/" target="_blank"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><em><strong>The Daily Telegraph reports</strong></em></span></a> Fassnidge believes Public House Management Group turned the Four In Hand into a “generic pub with no soul and no love”.</p> <p>“Most of the publicans in Sydney are having a quiet little laugh, they’ve taken a Ferrari and turned it into a Morris Minor,” he said.</p> <p>What are your thoughts? Do you think more must be done to preserve historic venues? Or are we better off turning them into residential properties?</p>

News

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Colin Firth’s wife admits to affair with her alleged stalker

<p>Colin Firth’s wife Livia Giuggioli has admitted she had an affair with the man she is now accusing of stalking her.</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong><a href="https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/colin-firth-s-wife-livia-giuggioli-admits-affair-with-stalker-journalist-marco-brancaccia-0zh5cc566" target="_blank">Livia Giuggioli has accused an Italian journalist of harassing her</a></strong></span> with a campaign of “frightening” messages, The Times reports.</p> <p>The 48-year-old film producer, who married Firth, 57, in 1997, claims journalist Marco Brancaccia, 55, was stalking her.</p> <p>He denied the accusation telling the publication that she was lying to cover up their relationship which occurred between 2015 and 2016.</p> <p>In a statement, the couple confirmed Giuggioli’s past relationship with Brancaccia, explaining, “A few years ago Colin and Livia privately made the decision to separate. During that time Livia briefly became involved with former friend Mr. Brancaccia. The Firths have since reunited.”</p> <p>The statement continued, “Subsequently, Mr. Brancaccia carried out a frightening campaign of harassment over several months, much of which is documented. For obvious reasons, the Firths have never had any desire to make this matter public.”</p> <p>“The reporting this week on this case is understood to be the consequence of a leaked court document. This is greatly to be regretted,” the statement concluded.</p> <p>Brancaccia has denied the harassment claims, saying they were “romantically involved.”</p> <p>“She wanted to leave Colin for me,” he said, adding that the marriage had “been over for years.”</p> <p>“My ‘stalking’ consisted of two messages via WhatsApp after she ended our relationship in June 2016, and an email. I wrote an email to Colin about my relationship with Livia, which I now regret sending, and she filed a complaint against me for stalking out of fear that I could go public with what she had revealed to me about her marriage and work,” he said.</p> <p>Brancaccia said, “In a year she sent me hundreds of messages of love, photos and videos, even a diary.”</p>

Movies

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“Mamma Mia!” sequel confirmed

<p> A <em>Mamma Mia!</em> sequel has been announced and it will hit cinemas next year in July.</p> <p>The 2008 original film followed the story of a struggling hotelier in the Greek islands who was planning her daughter Sophie’s wedding.</p> <p>Without her mother knowing, Sophie was preparing for wedding but inviting three men from her mother’s past in the hope of discovering who her father was so he could walk her down the aisle.</p> <p>The musical combined humour, emotion and ABBA for a film that was enjoyed by mothers and daughters around the world.</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr">IT'S OFFICIAL MAMMA MIA: HERE WE GO AGAIN in cinemas JULY 2018<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/HereWeGoAgain?src=hash">#HereWeGoAgain</a></p> — MAMMA MIA! (@MammaMiaMusical) <a href="https://twitter.com/MammaMiaMusical/status/865840812432777217">May 20, 2017</a></blockquote> <p><em>Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again</em> will have Meryl Streep, Julie Walter, Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth, Amanda Seyfried and Dominic Copper all returning to star in the film.</p> <p>The film will be set in the same location as the original, the Greek island of Kalokairi.</p> <p>The sequel will feature ABBA songs that didn’t feature in the original musical.</p> <p>English film director, Oliver Parker, is writing and directing this anticipated sequel. Parker was in charge of the screenplay for the 2011 film <em>The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel</em> and its 2015 sequel.</p> <p><em>Mamma Mia!</em> was released in cinemas in July 2008 and it made more than $600 million (USD) at the box office.</p> <p>Until this year’s <em>Beauty and The Beast</em> was released, it held the record for the biggest musical ever made.</p>

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