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Michael Jackson's staggering debt revealed

<p>Michael Jackson was reportedly drowning in massive debt at the time of his death in 2009. </p> <p>According to newly released court documents, the late King of Pop owed more than $500 million ($747.05 million AUD) to more than 65 creditors just before he passed.</p> <p>Jackson had “more than half a dozen lawsuits pending worldwide” and more than “65 creditors’ claims were filed in the estate spawning additional lawsuits, of which several resulted in litigation,” the documents state. </p> <p>According to the documents, that were filed in a Los Angeles court on June 21st, the executors of Jackson's will were able to “renegotiate and restructure financing arrangements,” including a lucrative deal with Sony over rights he had to music publishing for several artists, at “substantially reduced interest rates” to avoid further losses and rectify the debts.</p> <p>The $750 million ($1.120 billion AUD) agreement allowed Sony to acquire Sony/ATV, which held the rights to almost 3 million famous songs from artists including John Lennon and Paul McCartney, David Bowie and Taylor Swift.</p> <p>Despite settling the major agreement with the record label, the Jackson estate still reportedly owes a significant amount of money as “there remain challenging business, tax and legal issues that the executers and their counsel continue to deal with.”</p> <p>The filing reportedly also notes a pending final decision on a victory in a 2021 court battle with the IRS.</p> <p>Jackson’s three children, Prince, 27, Paris, 26, and Bigi Jackson, 22 — who are the beneficiaries of his estate — have been blocked from receiving money from their trust until the IRS dispute has been settled.</p> <p>A spokesperson for the estate clarified, “The estate has a very cooperative relationship with Michael’s children and whenever they need anything, the estate works with them to ensure that they are very well taken care of, just as Michael would have wanted.”</p> <p>The <em>Los Angeles Times</em> previously reported that Michael accrued so much debt largely in part because of his excessive spending habits, which were aired during his 2003 interview with Martin Bashir that laid bare his extravagant spending. </p> <p><em>Image credits: Mousse/ABACA/Shutterstock Editorial </em></p>

Money & Banking

Teen athlete's tragic death just weeks before Paris Games

<p>A young Olympic hopeful has tragically died just weeks out from making his debut at the Paris Games. </p> <p>Jackson James Rice, 18, was found dead after a diving accident in Faleloa, Tonga on Saturday from a “suspected shallow water blackout”.</p> <p>The teenager had been set to become the first caucasian to represent Tonga at an Olympic Games, having qualified for the new kite-foiling event.</p> <p>He had been free diving from a boat when the tragedy unfolded. </p> <p>His body was found beneath the boat and despite several resuscitation attempts, he could not be revived. </p> <p>Rice's heartbroken father confirmed the news of the teenager's death to the Matangi Tonga newspaper, as tributes flowed for the young athlete.</p> <p>Rice’s sister Lily paid an emotional tribute to her brother on social media on Sunday, as she wrote on Facebook, “I was blessed with the most amazing brother in the whole world and it pains me to say that he’s passed away."</p> <p>“He was an amazing kitefoiler and he would have made it to the Olympics and come out with a big shiny medal … he made so many amazing friends all over the world.”</p> <p>Other friends paid tribute to the teenager on social media, with one writing, “I can’t begin to put into words what I’m feeling right now. I still cannot believe it, when I woke up to this news I thought you were playing around. You’re the most amazing friend anyone could ask for and anyone who has spent time with you would agree.”</p> <p>Rice was originally born in the US but moved to Tonga at a young age with his British-born parents. </p> <p>He grew up in Haʻapai, where his parents run a tourist lodge, and always viewed himself as Tongan.</p> <p>The talented athlete qualified for what had been due to be his first Olympic Games last December, after placing eighth at a Sail Sydney event.</p> <p><em>Image credits: Instagram </em></p>

Caring

Peter Andre announces baby daughter's name

<p>One month after the birth of his daughter, Peter Andre has finally shared his new baby's name. </p> <p>The announcement comes four weeks after Andre and his Emily MacDonagh shared the news of their daughter's arrival, while admitting to their fans they were <a href="https://www.oversixty.com.au/lifestyle/family-pets/help-name-our-baby-peter-andre-s-extraordinary-plea" target="_blank" rel="noopener">struggling</a> to find a name. </p> <p>Emily picked out the name of their daughter, as Peter took to Instagram to share the news. </p> <p>"I think you've chosen a beautiful name, [Emily]. Arabella Rose Andréa," the proud dad announced was the baby's name, alongside a professional newborn photo.</p> <p>"I LOVE it and I love her... and you of course," he told his wife of eight years, who is a GP, author and media personality, before adding in what Arabella is written in the Greek alphabet.</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/p/C6dPoDOIOL-/?utm_source=ig_embed&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/p/C6dPoDOIOL-/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by Peter Andre (@peterandre)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>Arabella arrived on April 2nd, with the proud new parents sharing photos taken when she was "just minutes old" with fans.</p> <p>"We feel so overwhelmed right now," Andre said.</p> <p>"So happy to welcome our beautiful girl to the family. Mum and daughter are doing amazing."</p> <p>However, he shared an unusual plea with his followers as he shared that the couple were having difficulty coming up with a name for their bub. </p> <p>"As parents, we couldn't be happier. Only thing is…. she has no name yet. Help!"</p> <p>The comment section of the post was flooded with potential names for the little girl, with some suggesting the chosen name of Arabella.</p> <p>Andre and MacDonagh are also parents to Amelia, 10, and Theo, seven.</p> <p>The singer also shares two children - Junior, 18, and Princess, 16, - with his first wife, Katie Price.</p> <p><em>Image credits: Instagram </em></p>

Family & Pets

Michael Jackson’s rarely-seen son spotted in new photo

<p>Michael Jackson’s youngest son has made a rare appearance on social media, after years of keeping a low-profile. </p> <p>Bigi Jackson, 21, was spotted among a series of Instagram photos captioned “Lately”. </p> <p>The 21-year-old was seen posing with rapper Omer Bhatti, 38, along with his cousins Randy Jackson Jr., 32, Donté Jackson, Royal Jackson and Jermajesty Jackson, 23.</p> <p>The King of Pop's youngest son appeared to have cut off his usually long hair for something a little shorter, and this is one of the first times he has been spotted since his extremely rare interview with <em>Good Morning Britain </em>in 2021. </p> <p>The interview was for the annual Thriller Night charity event, which he and his siblings hosted at their late father’s former home. </p> <p>“There’s a lot of history in this house and the studio here. That’s what he was all about,” he told Good Morning Britain at the time.</p> <p>“That’s what each of us want to do — make things that people enjoy but also benefit their lives.”</p> <p>Bigi – who was born Prince Michael Jackson II and was previously called Blanket – is the younger sibling of Prince, 26, and Paris, 25, and has kept his life largely out of the public eye. </p> <p><em>Image: Instagram/ Getty</em></p>

Family & Pets

Oscar-winning politician Glenda Jackson passes away at 87

<p dir="ltr">Two-time Academy Award-winning performer-turned-politician Glenda Jackson has passed away at 87 years old. </p> <p dir="ltr">The news was confirmed by Jackson’s agent, Lionel Larner, who announced that she had died at home in London after a short illness. Larner also noted that Jackson had “recently completed filming <em>The Great Escaper </em>in which she co-starred with Michael Caine.”</p> <p dir="ltr">And 90-year-old Caine had only kind words to say of his co-star, sharing that she was “one of our greatest movie actresses. I shall miss her.” </p> <p dir="ltr">Jackson was born into a working-class family in northwest England, and laid the groundwork for her career in the arts when she won a spot at London’s Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.</p> <p dir="ltr">Her work as an actress was successful, with Jackson taking home her first Academy Award for Best Actress in 1971 and her second in 1974 - for<em> Women in Love</em> and<em> A Touch of Class</em> respectively.</p> <p dir="ltr">Jackson also held two Emmy Award wins, both for her portrayal of Queen Elizabeth I in the series <em>Elizabeth R</em>. She wasn’t to be stopped there, either, with the star also taking home a Tony Award in 2018 for her performance in <em>Three Tall Women</em>. </p> <p dir="ltr">But after more than three decades in the arts, Jackson chose a different path for herself, branching into the world of politics, fuelled by her frustration for the working classes at the hands of then-British Conservative prime minister Margaret Thatcher between 1979 and 1990.</p> <p dir="ltr">And at 55 years old, in 1992, Jackson secured a seat in parliament. As she said at the time, “we must work for the poor, the homeless, the unemployed, the frail, the sick.”</p> <p dir="ltr">Jackson spent 23 years with the Labour Party, and even served as a minister for transport in Tony Blair’s first government in 1997. However, the two seemed to find themselves on opposing sides when it came to the 2003 invasion of Iraq, with Jackson admitting that the decisions made left her feeling “deeply, deeply ashamed.</p> <p dir="ltr">"The victims will be as they always are, women, children, the elderly.”</p> <p dir="ltr">After leaving politics in 2015, Jackson chose to return to performing, where she went on to enjoy some of the most acclaimed roles of her entire career.</p> <p dir="ltr">And for all of her passion and success, Jackson is remembered fondly by her loved ones - those who knew her beyond her work, and those who supported her for it - who flocked to social media to pay tribute. </p> <p dir="ltr">“Glenda Jackson was both the best actress of our generation and an incredibly principled passionate and eloquent advocate of social justice as an MP and as a government minister. I will remember her as a friend whom I admired greatly and what she achieved will never be forgotten,” former-prime minister for the United Kingdom, Gordon Brown, wrote. </p> <p dir="ltr">“Very sad to hear of the passing of Glenda Jackson. An acclaimed actress, a formidable politician and an inspirational woman to so many of us in the Labour Party,” British politician Angela Rayner said. “My thoughts are with her family, friends and many others who loved her.”</p> <p dir="ltr">“Devastated to hear that my predecessor Glenda Jackson has died. A formidable politician, an amazing actress and a very supportive mentor to me. Hampstead and Kilburn will miss you Glenda,” friend and fellow politician Tulip Siddiq said. </p> <p dir="ltr">And, as her friends and fans the Muppets wrote, “here’s to Glenda Jackson, legendary actress and scourge of the Seven Seas! In her unforgettable episode of The Muppet Show, she and her merry band of plundering pirates turned our theatre into a ship and set out to sea. </p> <p dir="ltr">“We’ll always treasure the time we spent with you, Glenda.”</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">Here’s to Glenda Jackson, legendary actress and scourge of the Seven Seas! In her unforgettable episode of The Muppet Show, she and her merry band of plundering pirates turned our theater into a ship and set out to sea. We’ll always treasure the time we spent with you, Glenda. <a href="https://t.co/zQ8cPVc8Jk">pic.twitter.com/zQ8cPVc8Jk</a></p> <p>— The Muppets (@TheMuppets) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheMuppets/status/1669398500243587092?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 15, 2023</a></p></blockquote> <p dir="ltr"><em>Images: Getty</em></p>

News

Video of Queen Elizabeth playing with first grandchild resurfaces

<p>Royal fans have gone wild over a resurfaced clip of the late Queen Elizabeth playing with her first grandchild when he was just a child. </p> <p>In honour of Peter Phillips' 45th birthday, a royal fan account on Instagram shared the historic video of Her Majesty playing with Phillips in 1978. </p> <p>The video showed an intimate moment in the royal nursery at Buckingham Palace, as Princess Anne presented her son Peter to her mother, the Queen.</p> <p>As the mother and daughter sat on a floral patterned sofa, they were joined by one of the Queen's many dogs - which seemed to delight the one-year-old Peter as he gurgled and smiled.</p> <p>Meanwhile his grandmother, the Queen, could be seen smiling down at him.</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/Ck-rLguIkp6/?utm_source=ig_embed&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/Ck-rLguIkp6/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by Windsor Royal Family (@windsor.royal.family)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>The clip was shared to Instagram with the caption, "Happy 45th birthday to Peter Phillips."</p> <p>"Queen Elizabeth II with her daughter, The Princess Royal and grandson, 13 months old Peter at Buckingham Palace in December 1978."</p> <p>The video has racked up over 10,000 likes, with a flood of comments praising the late Queen for always being a doting grandmother. </p> <p>One person wrote, "The Queen was such a sweet grandmother."</p> <p>Another royal fan said, "Wonderful. Her first grandchild. She looks so happy. Missing our Queen so much."</p> <p>"I love how much the Queen loved her dogs, let them on her furniture, loved her grandbabies and taught them about loving pets too," said a third.</p> <p>"You can tell so much about people who are kind to animals. God bless beautiful Queen Elizabeth. Happy Birthday Peter Phillips."</p> <p><em>Image credits: Instagram</em></p>

Family & Pets

"Health is wealth": How Warnie's son has dealt with the loss of his father

<p dir="ltr">Jackson Warne has candidly opened up about his struggles with grief following the death of his cricketer father. </p> <p dir="ltr">Shane Warne, 52, died of natural causes on March 4 in a luxury villa on the Thailand holiday island of Koh Samui.</p> <p dir="ltr">Almost seven months later, Jackson said that he “could’ve easily gone down hill” after losing his dad, but decided on taking the high road. </p> <p dir="ltr">“I could’ve drank a lot of alcohol, gambled too much, quit the gym, ate shit food and not socialise. Be miserable,” he wrote in his Instagram post.</p> <p dir="ltr">“But I didn’t.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I didn’t because I used this trauma as energy for life. I surrounded myself with good people, went to the gym EVERY DAY, drank water, swam, laughed a lot and was consistent. 1 day at a time.”</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-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/Cjw_211LfaM/?utm_source=ig_embed&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/p/Cjw_211LfaM/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by Jackson Warne (@jacksonwarne18)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p dir="ltr">Jackson confessed that he is now the happiest and healthiest he’s ever been because of the support he’s been receiving. </p> <p dir="ltr">“I can now say because of this I am the happiest and healthiest I’ve been. Health is wealth.</p> <p dir="ltr">“It cost’s $0 to exercise, laugh, drink water and go outside. If you do this I promise you’ll be the happiest and healthiest you can be.</p> <p dir="ltr">“To everyone who is still messaging me and supports me every single day, It doesn’t go unnoticed and I appreciate it. Thank you.” </p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Images: Instagram</em></p>

Caring

Shane Warne's son shares last pic together for Father's Day

<p dir="ltr">Jackson Warne has shared the last ever photo taken with his dad Shane Warne in an emotional Father’s Day tribute.</p> <p dir="ltr">The 23-year-old posted the photo, taken a week before the cricketing legend’s sudden death, with a simple message for his dad.</p> <p dir="ltr">“This was the last photo we ever took together. 24.2.2022,” Jackson wrote.</p> <p><span id="docs-internal-guid-e798fd06-7fff-ff30-726b-8aec185a4b33"></span></p> <p dir="ltr">“Doing something we both loved. Playing poker. Miss ya mate. Happy Father’s Day. ♥️.”</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-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CiE9MSbLHWV/?utm_source=ig_embed&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/p/CiE9MSbLHWV/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by Jackson Warne (@jacksonwarne18)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p dir="ltr">Jackson’s sister, Brooke Warne, shared her support for her brother, commenting, “🤍 love you so much 🤍”, while their step-brother, Damien Hurley, wrote, “We love you so much Jacko 🤍”.</p> <p dir="ltr"><span id="docs-internal-guid-233929c7-7fff-3414-5f2e-39588bfb1287"></span></p> <p dir="ltr">Father’s Day also marked six months since Warne’s passing, and Brooke took to Instagram to share a message of her own in tribute to her dad and for others who find the celebration of dads hard.</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-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CiFG8BGoLM5/?utm_source=ig_embed&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/p/CiFG8BGoLM5/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by B R O O K E 🍿 W A R N E (@brookewarne)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p dir="ltr">“6 Months today since we lost our Dad 💔,” she captioned a throwback photo of her and her dad.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Happy Father’s Day to the Best Dad on Earth and in Heaven 🤍💔.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Today is for you Dad 🌟 You are our shining Star and forever will be 🤍.</p> <p dir="ltr">“All my friends and other people who find Father’s Day just as hard, you are in my thoughts 🤍.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I miss you everyday (sic) Dad, I will Love you Forever 🤍 SW 23 🤍💔.”</p> <p dir="ltr"><span id="docs-internal-guid-d9fef65a-7fff-58d8-fcc3-b5ccdf85a750"></span></p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Image: @jacksonwarne18 (Instagram)</em></p>

Family & Pets

Michael Jackson songs pulled from Youtube over authenticity claims

<p dir="ltr">Three songs from Michael Jackson’s posthumous 2010 album <em>Michael</em> have been pulled from online streaming services amid allegations the king of pop didn’t actually sing them. </p> <p dir="ltr">The songs in question - <em>Monster</em>, <em>Breaking News</em>, and <em>Keep Your Head Up</em> - are no longer available to buy or stream on global music services. </p> <p dir="ltr">The tracks have been the subject of an ongoing lawsuit against Sony Music and Jackson’s estate, alleging that Jackson did not sing them.</p> <p dir="ltr">In 2014, a fan of the late musician filed a lawsuit against Sony and the estate over the three songs for violation of consumer laws, unfair competition and fraud.</p> <p dir="ltr">Sony and the estate were cleared from the case in 2018 and its appeal in 2020, and the suit is currently in the California Supreme Court.</p> <p dir="ltr">Prior to the album’s release, doubts were raised by Jackson’s family members whether songs were performed by the Grammy-winner. </p> <p dir="ltr">According to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/music/2010/nov/08/new-michael-jackson-songs">The Guardian</a>, his mother Katherine claimed in 2010 that “some of the tracks on the album are fake”. </p> <p dir="ltr">The musician’s sister, LaToya, told <a href="https://www.tmz.com/2010/11/07/la-toya-jackson-michael-jackson-song-breaking-news-sony/">TMZ</a>, “It doesn’t sound like him”.</p> <p dir="ltr">Michael’s nephew Taryll tweeted at the time, “I KNOW my Uncle’s voice, and something’s seriously wrong when you have immediate FAMILY saying it’s not him.”</p> <p dir="ltr">Despite the allegations, a spokesperson from Jackson’s website recently said the tracks being pulled “had nothing to do with their authenticity”.</p> <p dir="ltr">“The Estate and Sony Music believe the continuing conversation about the tracks is distracting the fan community and casual Michael Jackson listeners from focusing their attention where it should be — on Michael’s legendary and deep music catalog [sic],” the Jackson website spokesperson said.</p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Image credits: Getty Images</em></p>

Music

Peter Brock's childhood home sells at auction

<p>The childhood home of the late racing legend Peter Brock has sold at auction for $893,000.</p> <p>The three-bedroom weatherboard home in the Victorian suburb of Hurstbridge, 28km north-east of Melbourne, exceeded its price guide of $750,000 to $820,000.</p> <p>As three bidders battled for the property, a local couple won the bid, as Ciaran Brannigan, director of Morrison Kleeman Estate Agents, told <a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/news/racing-champ-peter-brocks-childhood-home-comedian-shane-bournes-house-sells/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener">realestate.com.au</a>.</p> <p>The home was last on the market in 2006 when it was sold for just $337,000, decades after it belonged to the Brock family.</p> <p>Mr Brannigan said, "Definitely almost everybody mentioned it [the connection to Brock] but I don't think anyone was bidding because of that."</p> <p>The red-roofed cottage has bee renovated over the years, with both the kitchen and bathrooms being updated to a modern aesthetic. </p> <p>Features of the unique home include a large paved alfresco area ideal for outdoor entertaining, a free-standing studio and a sunny lounge area with a log-burning fireplace.</p> <p>Despite the up to date renovations, old-style charm has been maintained throughout the home with its decorative cornice work and tessellated tiles.</p> <p>Peter Brock first rose to fame in the 1970s when he won the six-hour endurance race for production cars at Mount Panorama Bathurst nine times between 1972 and 1987.</p> <p>He was soon dubbed King of the Mountain and maintained a high profile both as a competitor and commentator on Australian and New Zealand television.</p> <p>The Bathurst 1000 trophy was renamed the Peter Brock trophy one month after his death in 2006. </p> <p><em>Image credits: Getty Images / realestate.com.au</em></p>

Real Estate

Peter van Onselen reveals past abuse in debate with Grace Tame

<p dir="ltr"><em>Content warning: This article mentions paedophilia, child sexual abuse and rape.</em></p> <p dir="ltr">Grace Tame has called out Peter van Onselen, after the pair engaged in a heated conversation on Twitter that saw him disclose that he was also a victim of child sexual abuse.</p> <p dir="ltr">Van Onselen previously wrote in <em>The Australian </em>that he was “lucky” to not be abused by a notorious paedophile he had gained the attention of, and has now said that wasn’t the case.</p> <p><span id="docs-internal-guid-efd29e63-7fff-4e4d-1ca1-6027eb4c3f72"></span></p> <p dir="ltr">The conversation was sparked by van Onselen commenting on a separate tweet by Dr Gemma Carey, suggesting that her family being banned from the GP clinic they had been seeing for a long time was “a sign that you’re a complete pain in the arse”.</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">That’s how I felt when as a survivor myself of child sexual abuse (he was convicted) she accused me of being a threat to my wife. Unfortunately you then helped her raise money when I had the temerity to ask her to apologise. Thanks for all your support.</p> <p>— Peter van Onselen 🎣 (@vanOnselenP) <a href="https://twitter.com/vanOnselenP/status/1509487096087838722?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 31, 2022</a></p></blockquote> <p dir="ltr">Grace Tame retweeted a screenshot of his comment with the caption, “When you victimise a vulnerable person, that’s a pretty good sign too.”</p> <p dir="ltr">This prompted van Onselen to say he was a victim of child sexual abuse from a person who was convicted at the time that he shared his story to police.</p> <p dir="ltr">Tame replied noting that the person who he said abused him hadn’t been convicted of crimes against him, writing that “co-opting other survivors’ experiences is a whole new low, mate”.</p> <p dir="ltr">Van Onselen also said Tame forced him to make the disclosure after she accused him of co-opting the stories of other victims of the same person.</p> <p dir="ltr">“You have made me say this which is incredibly distressing but there you go,” he wrote. “The police knew of three other boys he raped who didn’t want to testify. I was one of them.”</p> <p dir="ltr"><span id="docs-internal-guid-c9360548-7fff-98c4-be3f-6ea3a0913765"></span></p> <p dir="ltr">“I was going off your own words, Peter. You are responsible for when and what you publicly disclose, not me. I ask again that you leave me alone now,” Tame replied, attaching a screenshot from his article in <em>The Australian</em>.</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">That’s how I felt when as a survivor myself of child sexual abuse (he was convicted) she accused me of being a threat to my wife. Unfortunately you then helped her raise money when I had the temerity to ask her to apologise. Thanks for all your support.</p> <p>— Peter van Onselen 🎣 (@vanOnselenP) <a href="https://twitter.com/vanOnselenP/status/1509487096087838722?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 31, 2022</a></p></blockquote> <p dir="ltr">“Like lots of survivors I have sought to not go public about what happened to me. I spoke to the police about exactly that as my abuser was being sentenced. Please stop shaming me for not having your courage to choose to go public.”</p> <p dir="ltr">“I have not shamed you, not once,” Tame replied. “You’re manipulating this entire situation. I have pointed out exactly what I have known to be true.”</p> <p dir="ltr">Tame returned to Twitter on Friday morning to explain the situation.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I stood up for a friend whom Peter demeaned unsolicitedly,” she wrote.</p> <p dir="ltr">“He then used ‘convicted’ paedophilia survivorship as a defence, in a tweet he copied and pasted several times - to me a paedophilia survivor. </p> <p dir="ltr">“Prior, he publicly aserted me he was “not sexually abused”, so I called him out.”</p> <p dir="ltr"><span id="docs-internal-guid-6b4eeb3f-7fff-b3a1-9376-35d9f05c57ec"></span></p> <p dir="ltr">Earlier the same day, she asserted that every survivor “deserves to be heard and respected”, but that trauma shouldn’t “excuse bad behaviour”.</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">Every survivor of rape and abuse deserves to be heard and receive compassion. Every single one.</p> <p>Trauma, however, doesn’t excuse bad behaviour. It is not a weapon of provocation or oneupmanship to deploy in the face of others at your convenience, especially not fellow survivors.</p> <p>— Grace Tame (@TamePunk) <a href="https://twitter.com/TamePunk/status/1509669097759723523?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 31, 2022</a></p></blockquote> <p dir="ltr">“It is not a weapon of provocation or one-up-manship to deploy in the face of others at your convenience, especially not fellow survivors.”</p> <p dir="ltr">Van Onselen originally wrote that he had been groomed by a paedophile but had not been abused in his <em>The Australian</em> piece.</p> <p dir="ltr">“To be very clear from the outset, I was not sexually abused, I am one of the lucky ones” he wrote at the time. </p> <p dir="ltr">“But only just. A teacher … tried to sexually assault me on a school trip. He was convicted for doing so to three other boys on that same trip.”</p> <p dir="ltr">But, he also wrote that he may have “dissociated” during the abuse and may “have blocked more that happened”.</p> <p dir="ltr">In his latest online spat, the Project co-host also referred to a previous altercation with Dr Carey, when he had threatened to sue her over a tweet suggesting he was a danger to his wife in an old photo with Christian Porter.</p> <p dir="ltr"><span id="docs-internal-guid-bb3532b8-7fff-cbec-0089-5e80c870db32"></span></p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Image: Roy Vandervegt (Adelaide Festival) / Getty Images</em></p>

News

Man moves into office cubicle in protest

<p dir="ltr">A man who moved into his cubicle at work to protest his employer not paying him enough … has been fired. </p> <p dir="ltr">Simon Jackson shared a video to <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@calm.simon/video/7072608177031859502?is_copy_url=1&is_from_webapp=v1&lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">TikTok</a> showing himself “moving into” his work cubicle. </p> <p dir="ltr">“Check out my new appt [apartment]”, he captioned the video which has since amassed 14 million views.</p> <p dir="ltr">The video shows Mr Jackson unpacking his belongings from multiple suitcases in the design and engineering consultancy firm Arcadis office.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I’m moving from my apartment into my cubicle at work,” Mr Jackson could be heard saying. </p> <p dir="ltr">“They do not pay me enough to do both, so as a matter of protest, I am just going to live at my job, and we’ll see how long I can get away with this.”</p> <p dir="ltr">Mr Jackson confessed that he had to move out of his apartment because his lease was ending and the rent was going up.</p> <p dir="ltr">While waiting for approval for apartments to apply for, Mr Jackson made the decision to move into the downtown office.</p> <p dir="ltr">“When I found my company had an empty office downtown, this was the perfect solution as it was close to all of the venues I frequent and it would be free,” he said.</p> <p dir="ltr">He also explained that the reason he “walks around shirtless” is because most of the employees are working from home due to Covid.</p> <p dir="ltr">Four days later, he was “evicted” in what Mr Jackson says “happened way sooner than I thought”.</p> <p dir="ltr">He recorded himself packing his bags and then with the help of security was escorted out of the building.</p> <p dir="ltr">“This won’t be the last you’ll see of me,” he said.</p> <p dir="ltr">Mr Jackson was fired from his job with HR requesting he remove all TikTok videos documenting his adventure.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I wish they approached the TikToks differently and maybe had a conversation with me about whether there was something more serious going on in terms of money,” he said.</p> <p dir="ltr">“But do I understand their response? 100 per cent.”</p> <p dir="ltr">The videos remain on his channel, with Mr Jackson hoping to work on his romper brand before deciding whether or not he should go back to corporate.</p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Images: TikTok</em></p>

Money & Banking

"Memories of Dad": Jackson Warne shares unseen images

<p>Jackson Warne has shared an emotional tribute to his late father with a series of unseen photos from moments they shared together. </p> <p>The 23-year-old posted the clip on TikTok on Thursday night, almost a week after the 52-year-old's sudden death in Thailand.</p> <p>The video included a number of images of the pair bonding over the last two decades, set to Coldplay's emotional hit song Yellow. </p> <p>Jackson captioned the clip, "Memories of dad. Thank you everyone for the overwhelming amount of support, messages and love."</p> <div class="embed" style="font-size: 16px; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; outline: none !important;"><iframe class="embedly-embed" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 610px; max-width: 100%; outline: none !important;" title="tiktok embed" src="https://cdn.embedly.com/widgets/media.html?src=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tiktok.com%2Fembed%2Fv2%2F7073371308121132289&display_name=tiktok&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tiktok.com%2F%40jacksonwarne18%2Fvideo%2F7073371308121132289%3Fis_copy_url%3D1%26is_from_webapp%3Dv1%26lang%3Den&key=59e3ae3acaa649a5a98672932445e203&type=text%2Fhtml&schema=tiktok" width="340" height="700" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></div> <div class="embed" style="font-size: 16px; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; outline: none !important;"> </div> <div class="embed" style="font-size: 16px; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; outline: none !important;"> <p>The video comes just days after Jackson posted another moving tribute, just days after the legendary cricketer's death was announced.</p> <p>He wrote on Instagram, "To my brother, my best friend, to my Dad, I love you so much. I don't think anything is ever going to fill the void you have left in my heart."</p> <p>"Sitting at the poker table, walking around the golf course, watching the Saints and eating pizza is never going to be the same."</p> <p>"Every day you told me how proud you were of me and I promise to try and keep making you proud. I am going to miss you so much Dad, I wish I could look you in the eyes 1 more time and give you one more hug."</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/p/Ca1VwWblo-L/?utm_source=ig_embed&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/p/Ca1VwWblo-L/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by Jackson Warne (@jacksonwarne18)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>On Thursday night, Jackson was seen at Essendon airport where a private plane touched down carrying the body of his father. </p> <p>Jackson gathered with his family in the airport hangar as Warnie's body was returned home, with preparations underway for his state funeral at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on March 30th. </p> <p><em>Image credits: Instagram @jacksonwarne18</em></p> <p> </p> </div>

Family & Pets

Critics slam new “sanitised” Michael Jackson musical

<p dir="ltr">Theatre critics have slammed the new Michael Jackson musical that hit Broadway this year for its blatant “sanitisation” of child abuse allegations against the late popstar. </p><p dir="ltr">The musical, called <em>MJ</em>, documents Michael as he prepared for his four-continent Dangerous Tour of 1992, while also dealing with an MTV documentary crew who filmed his incessant rehearsals. </p><p dir="ltr">Throughout the musical, fans get glimpses into the artist's life, with flashbacks to his time in the Jackson Five and his difficult upbringing. </p><p dir="ltr"><em>MJ</em> was written by Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage and choreographed by Christopher Wheeldon, and was produced by Jackson's estate with an apparent promise not to mention the young boys who accused the star of sexually harassing them, despite taking place just one year before the first allegation came out. </p><p dir="ltr">The musical debuted on Broadway recently, with Michael’s three children Paris, 23, Prince, 24, and Prince Michael “Bigi” Jackson, 19, in the audience. </p><p dir="ltr">Critics at the show’s opening night rallied against the musical, noting that the show attempts to separate the art from the artist, while conveniently ignoring the child sex abuse allegations that overshadowed Jackson's career. </p><p dir="ltr">Many of the reviews, including one for the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/01/theater/mj-musical-review.html">New York Times</a>, mentioned the fact that Jackson's estate were involved in producing what was essentially an 'authorised autobiography', which is why the story featured such watered-down references.</p><p dir="ltr">The review, written by Jesse Green, says, “In this, <em>MJ</em> is trying to have it both ways. It wants to blame everything sad and weird about Jackson on others… but credit him alone for his every good deed and success.”</p><p dir="ltr"><em>Image credits: Getty Images</em></p>

Music

Janet Jackson debunks decades-old rumour

<p dir="ltr">Janet Jackson has debunked rumours that she had a secret child with James DeBarge in the 1980s in a preview clip for her upcoming documentary,<span> </span><em>Janet.</em></p> <p dir="ltr">The rumour that the 55-year-old singer, who has a 4-year-old son Eissa with ex-husband Wissam Al Amana, had a secret child in the 1980s has followed her for years, and the performer and member of the legendary Jackson family has finally put it to bed.</p> <p dir="ltr">Allegedly, Jackson had a child with then-husband James DeBarge, but gave it to her brother Jackie to raise. In addition, there were rumours that her nieces Brandy and Stevanna were actually her daughters because they look like her.</p> <p dir="ltr">In a clip from the documentary, Janet said, "Back in the day they were saying that I had a child and I kept it secret. I could never keep a child away from James. How could I keep a child from their father? I could never do that, that's not right."</p> <p dir="ltr">Jackson believes the rumours stemmed from her weight gain as a result of taking birth control pills while filming the TV show<span> </span><em>Fame,<span> </span></em>saying, "A lot of the kids thought I was pregnant, 'cause I had gained weight, and I had started taking birth control pills. And back then, you could pick up weight taking them, and that's what happened to me. So that rumour started going around."</p> <p dir="ltr">Jackson was just 18 when she married DeBarge in 1984, and though he was a “sweet guy”, she blamed his drug use for their marriage being annulled after just one year. SHe said of their wedding night, “When we got married and came back to the hotel he said, 'OK, I'll be right back. And I'm sitting in the hotel room in Grand Rapids, Michigan by myself, just 18, and for three hours, he never came back.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I don't know, maybe it's this person in me that wants to help people subconsciously. When it comes to relationships, somehow I'm attracted to people that use drugs."</p> <p dir="ltr">Jackson described spending many nights searching the streets for DeBarge and trying to help by flushing his pills, but ultimately, she couldn’t give him the help he needed. In the documentary, she opens up, saying, "We would be rolling on the floor fighting for them. And that's not a life for anyone. I sit and I say, 'Were you stupid, were you dumb?' But it wasn't that. I cared so much for him, and I saw the good in him as well and I just wanted that to take precedence as opposed to this ugliness. 'Cause I knew that he needed help. But I wasn't the help that he needed.</p> <p dir="ltr">"I was just incredibly innocent. That's the thing, is the innocence. And it's just hurtful for someone to see that and just try to take advantage of it ... It's still painful."</p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Image: Gabriel Olsen/FilmMagic</em></p>

Family & Pets

Peter Andre's ex-wife sentenced after horror smash

<p><em>Image: Getty </em></p> <p>UK reality TV star Katie Price – the former wife of Peter Andre – has been handed a 16-week suspended prison sentence for drink-driving with a disqualified license and without car insurance.</p> <p>The 43-year-old will need to meet certain conditions as part of her sentence, which has been suspended for 12 months. These conditions include 100 hours of community service and a driving ban.</p> <p>The sentence was handed down on Wednesday (Thursday AEDT) at Crawley Magistrates’ Court.</p> <p>Price, who has had previous driving convictions, crashed her car near her Sussex home in the early hours back in September and was pulled out of the vehicle by a witness.</p> <p>No one else was injured in the crash, but Katie was arrested and taken to hospital.</p> <p>In September, she pleaded guilty to charges of drink-driving, driving while disqualified and operating a motor vehicle without insurance.</p> <p>She's become a staple in British unscripted television, taking part in a season of<span> </span><em>I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!</em><span> </span>in 2004, where she first met Peter Andre.</p> <p>The couple went on to have their own reality shows together. Price and Andre were married from 2005-2009 and share two children together.</p>

Legal

‘The Beatles: Get Back’ glosses over the band’s acrimonious end

<p>In the new film “<a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt9735318/">The Beatles: Get Back</a>,” “Lord of the Rings” director <a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001392/">Peter Jackson</a> tries to dispel the myth of the the Beatles’ breakup.</p> <p>In 1970, Michael Lindsay-Hogg released “<a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/original-let-it-be-movie-michael-lindsay-hogg-peter-jackson-get-back-1250561/">Let It Be</a>,” a film documenting the band’s recording sessions for their eponymous album. The movie depicted George Harrison arguing with Paul McCartney – and it hit theaters shortly after news of the band’s breakup emerged. Many filmgoers at the time assumed this depicted the days and weeks during which everything fell apart.</p> <p>By the time it hit theaters, nearly 16 months after filming, this rehearsal footage got mistaken for a completely different time frame.</p> <p>In 2016, Jackson gained access to Lindsay-Hogg’s original footage. Over the course of four years, he edited it into an eight-hour, three-part series, thanks to a streaming deal with Disney+.</p> <p>In their press rounds, both Jackson and McCartney have been eager to recast the legacy of this period.</p> <p>“I kept waiting for all the nasty stuff to start happening, waiting for the arguments and the rows and the fights, but I never saw that,” <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2021/nov/20/i-just-cant-believe-it-exists-peter-jackson-takes-us-into-the-beatles-vault-locked-up-for-52-years">Jackson told The Guardian</a> and others. “It was the opposite. It was really funny.”</p> <p>“I’ll tell you what is really fabulous about it, it shows the four of us having a ball,” <a href="https://www.nme.com/news/music/paul-mccartney-says-the-beatles-get-back-documentary-changed-his-perception-of-their-split-3095528">McCartney told The Sunday Times</a> after seeing the film. “It was so reaffirming for me.”</p> <p>It seems to be working: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/11/11/arts/music/beatles-get-back-peter-jackson.html">A recent New York Times headline proclaimed</a>, “Know How the Beatles Ended? Peter Jackson May Change Your Mind.”</p> <p>A lot of these sessions contain the irrepressible gags that made the Beatles famous. (Lennon and McCartney singing “Two of Us” in grandiose Scottish brogue almost steals Part Three.) But in their interviews, Jackson and McCartney accentuate the positive as if to paper over the acrimonious <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/pop-culture/pop-culture-news/paul-mccartney-says-he-sued-beatles-save-band-s-music-n1235898">history of lawsuits</a>, <a href="https://www.billboard.com/music/rock/beatles-catalog-paul-mccartney-brief-history-ownership-7662519/">the loss of the Lennon-McCartney publishing catalog</a> and the lurching solo careers that followed.</p> <h2>A muddled chronology</h2> <p>The timing of the theater release of the “Let It Be” sessions seeded confusion over how the group unraveled.</p> <p>“Let it Be” was shot in January 1969, just weeks after the “<a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/review-the-beatles-white-album-186863/">White Album</a>” hit stores.</p> <p>The band then put these tapes aside to work on the larger project they intuited from this material, “<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-beatles-revolutionary-use-of-recording-technology-in-abbey-road-124070">Abbey Road</a>,” which they completed seven months later.</p> <p>The split actually came at a September 1969 meeting, when <a href="https://theconversation.com/inside-the-beatles-messy-breakup-50-years-ago-130980">Lennon told the others</a> he wanted a “divorce.” They persuaded him to keep his departure quiet until the band completed some contract negotiations. Then, in March 1970, <a href="https://theconversation.com/inside-the-beatles-messy-breakup-50-years-ago-130980">McCartney publicly proclaimed</a> he was “leaving the Beatles” to release his first solo album.</p> <p>An epic descent into suits, <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/the-courtroom-hit-parade-the-beatles-top-ten-lawsuits-414216.html">countersuits</a> and press squabbles ensued. Harrison even wrote a song called “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xzdw2WcSmb0">Sue Me Sue You Blues</a>.”</p> <p>Only in May 1970 did the “Let It Be” album and film come out, with the band’s messy divorce as the backdrop.</p> <p>After the initial theater run, “Let it Be” fell from view. For decades, the only way you could get a glance of it was through a black market copy. The Andy Warhol-esque, <a href="https://www.artforum.com/print/196704/the-value-of-didactic-art-36733">so-real-it’s-boring verité style</a> – the non-narrative approach then in vogue – flummoxed even 1970 audiences.</p> <p>But because the “Let It Be” album and film came out after “Abbey Road” – which was released in September 1969 – it quickly got mistaken for telegraphing their breakup, <a href="https://www.nme.com/news/music/paul-mccartney-says-the-beatles-get-back-documentary-changed-his-perception-of-their-split-3095528">a belief that the Beatles themselves seemed to internalize</a>.</p> <p>The Beatles’ own traumatic memories of this period kept the raw footage from this project in the vaults for over 50 years. In the meantime, bootleggers published nearly all of its audio.</p> <h2>Conflict brewing</h2> <p>Now at significant remove, the remaining Beatles – McCartney and Ringo Starr – <a href="https://variety.com/video/peter-jackson-get-back-beatles-secrets/">seem to have hired Jackson</a> for a rescue operation, disingenuously dubbing the film a “documentary” when they, in fact, served as executive producers alongside their Apple Records directors, Jeff Jones and Ken Kamins.</p> <p>In response to Jackson’s three-part series, which coincided with the release of <a href="https://variety.com/2021/music/reviews/get-back-book-review-beatles-let-it-be-transcripts-1235087090/">a book of transcripts from the “Let it Be” sessions</a> and McCartney’s songwriting memoir, “<a href="https://theconversation.com/what-paul-mccartneys-the-lyrics-can-teach-us-about-harnessing-our-creativity-170987">Lyrics</a>,” <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/11/11/arts/music/beatles-get-back-peter-jackson.html">media outlets</a> <a href="https://www.onlymelbourne.com.au/the-beatles-get-back">around the world</a> appear to have embraced this new version of history: that these sessions actually scanned as lighthearted, that – poof! – the scars had vanished.</p> <p>But the strange and beguiling thing about Jackson’s edit rises from how it displays an unstable mixture of groove and conflict.</p> <p><iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Auta2lagtw4?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe> <span class="caption">The trailer for ‘The Beatles: Get Back.’</span></p> <p>Despite the walkout from Harrison and continuous disagreements about what the project was – first a TV show, then a feature film and album, which needed a rooftop concert for a “payoff” – the band ultimately rallied to write the now-classic tracks “Something,” “Oh! Darling,” “Octopus’s Garden,” “She Came in Through the Bathroom Window,” and “Maxwell’s Silver Hammer,” along with Lennon’s “Polythene Pam” and “I Want You.”</p> <p>So Jackson’s “Get Back” clarifies the Beatles’ resolve to resume work and put their extra-musical squabbles aside. The music pulls them inexorably forward, and they trust these early song fragments enough to carry them. They have had bust-ups and walkouts and uncertainties and failures, and always found their way through. For Lindsay-Hogg and 1970 audiences, this all seemed bewildering and tense – the band kept a tight lid on internal rows. To the Beatles themselves, and to anyone who’s ever worked to keep a band together, it felt about par.</p> <p>Telling the average person to watch eight hours of freighted doubt and raw, undeveloped material is a big ask. <a href="https://www.theonion.com/new-beatles-doc-gives-man-greater-appreciation-for-how-1848132216">As The Onion joked</a>, “New Beatles Doc Gives Man Greater Appreciation For How Long 8 Hours Feels.”</p> <p>But there is a moment in Part Two of Jackson’s series – the first day on the set when Harrison doesn’t show up – when the rest of the band sits around talking about the situation. McCartney suddenly goes quiet. The camera lingers on him, and you can see him drift into a thousand-yard stare as he contemplates the looming uncertainties. He doesn’t quite tear up, but he does look as unguarded as he ever does, and markedly tentative.</p> <p>The moment catches hold because it’s so out of character – McCartney rarely displays himself unveiled, without pretense. The shot lingers and takes the measure of the man and the project, how much they have to overcome and how precarious everything suddenly feels.</p> <p>[<em>Over 140,000 readers rely on The Conversation’s newsletters to understand the world.</em> <a href="https://memberservices.theconversation.com/newsletters/?source=inline-140ksignup">Sign up today</a>.]</p> <p>In retrospect, the miracle is not that they finished “Let It Be,” but how these sessions served as the warmup for their final lap, “Abbey Road.” After upending expectations with the contrasting breakthroughs of “Sgt. Pepper” and the “White Album,” figuring out what to do next would have confounded lesser souls.</p> <p>That five-decade gap where fans waited for a refurbished “Let It Be” tells you a lot about how fraught January 1969 seemed to its four principals – and how deep those scars went.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/169914/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /></p> <p><span><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/tim-riley-440673">Tim Riley</a>, Associate Professor and Graduate Program Director for Journalism, <em><a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/emerson-college-3140">Emerson College</a></em></span></p> <p>This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-beatles-get-back-glosses-over-the-bands-acrimonious-end-169914">original article</a>.</p> <p><em>Image: Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images</em></p>

Movies

The Beatles: Get Back review – Peter Jackson’s TV series is a thrilling, funny (and long) treat for fans

<p>The Beatles’ Get Back project, undertaken in January 1969, has finally been completed. Again.</p> <p>For most of the last 50 years it has been known as <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Let_It_Be_(1970_film)">Let it Be</a>, a film and LP record released in 1970. The project, conceived by Paul McCartney, was originally intended to be a television special documenting the band’s preparation for a live concert (their first in two and a half years). Because of the performance element, the Beatles decided to get back to their roots and only develop material that could be played without adding overdubs.</p> <p>As it happened, the concert didn’t go ahead, the Beatles famously deciding instead to play a short unannounced gig on the roof of their headquarters. The TV special became a feature film, and the audio was handed over to the “wall of sound” producer, Phil Spector (leading to controversial results).</p> <p>Meanwhile, in the early 1980s, the Beatles withdrew the film version (a fly-on-the-wall documentary directed by Michael Lindsay-Hogg) from circulation.</p> <p>Lindsay-Hogg’s Let it Be is remembered as a portrait of a band in the process of breaking up. And indeed, George Harrison did briefly quit the band early into the four-week project, though Lindsay-Hogg’s documentary does not cover this episode.</p> <p><a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/433853/original/file-20211125-17-14zc63j.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/433853/original/file-20211125-17-14zc63j.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="" /></a> <span class="caption">George Harrison in Get Back.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Walt Disney Pictures, Apple Corps, WingNut Films</span></span></p> <p>Let it Be was seen as a downer in part because the Beatles, especially Lennon, were keen to trash it in the light of the band’s breakup (which occurred just weeks before the release of Let it Be, both film and album). As Lennon said in December 1970, the shoot was “hell”, and Spector was “given the shittiest load of badly recorded shit”.</p> <h2>A different tenor</h2> <p>While the newly released The Beatles: Get Back, directed by Peter Jackson, covers Harrison’s departure and return, Jackson’s film is tonally different from Lindsay-Hogg’s. According to Jackson, the dour account of Let it Be is inaccurate, since there is much “joy” and friendship evident in the 60 hours of film and 150 hours of audio tape that has been sitting in a vault for half a century.</p> <p>Much of this audio has long been available as bootlegs, informing written accounts of this period of the Beatles’ history. The audio without the video, however, doesn’t always tell the whole story.</p> <p><iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/hmDy9x3AUc0?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></p> <p>While Jackson and his team haven’t shied away from the moments of friction, ennui, and aimlessness experienced by the band, the tenor of Get Back is more upbeat than Lindsay-Hogg’s version (though there is perhaps more levity in that film than Jackson or its reputation allows).</p> <p>But Get Back is not just a recut of Let it Be; it is a documentary in its own right, a film about the making of a film. Lindsay-Hogg is now a character in the drama of trying to work out what the project is about, and how it will end.</p> <p>Unlike the cinema verité style of Let it Be, Get Back gives much-needed context in the form of titles naming the protagonists and songs, as well as explaining what is happening. The use of a day-by-day countdown to the live performance gives the otherwise shapeless events a sense of narrative and even tension.</p> <p><iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/nSrCk1icisI?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></p> <p>Get Back was to be a feature film with a theatrical release, but COVID-19 led to a rescheduling and reconceptualising of the work, so that it became a documentary for Disney+. Recent reports were that the series would be a three-part series with a six-hour running time.</p> <h2>The climactic rooftop concert</h2> <p>As it turns out, that running time is closer to eight hours. (Let it Be is a mere 80 minutes long.) Almost all of these eight hours show the Beatles at work on a sound stage (at Twickenham Film Studios) or in an ad hoc recording studio (put together in the Beatles’ Apple headquarters, when – after Harrison’s walkout – it was decided that Twickenham wasn’t conducive to creativity).</p> <p>The Apple studio is clearly more pleasant, and the tone is further lightened when the Beatles are joined by an outsider, their old friend Billy Preston, on keyboards (a crucial moment for the project).</p> <p><iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/385eTo76OzA?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></p> <p>There is nevertheless something of a hermetic feel to most of Get Back, so that when the Beatles and Preston head up to the rooftop to play in public – the cinematic “payoff” that the band and Lindsay-Hogg had been looking for throughout the project – there is a palpable sense of release.</p> <p>And the famous rooftop concert, presented with creative use of split screen, is stunningly good (and is also, for the first time, presented in its 42-minute entirety).</p> <p>After the countless run throughs and takes of the same songs over the preceding weeks (as well as numerous covers and early Beatles tunes), the sense of energy and the quality of playing gives the film the climactic moment that it needs, complete with police officers demanding, albeit politely, that the Beatles stop breaching the peace of London’s West End.</p> <p><iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/I392lK8QUhQ?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></p> <h2>Cigarettes, cups of tea, and white bread</h2> <p>Get Back is very different from Let it Be in part due to Jackson’s editing, especially his use of montage, which produces a dynamic, sometimes frenetic, energy. Beyond these stylistic elements, Get Back is notable as a technical feat.</p> <p>It looks and sounds astonishingly good, not something that was ever said about Let it Be. Jackson and his technical team have employed the kind of film restoration techniques used in his war documentary <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7905466/">They Shall Not Grow Old</a> (2018).</p> <p>The vision in Get Back is beautifully saturated, sharp, and less grainy than Lindsay-Hogg’s film. Harrison and Starr, in their sartorial splendour, often resemble their cartoon equivalents from <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0063823/">Yellow Submarine</a> (1968).</p> <p>If there is anything unvarnished about Jackson’s film it is the sight of people apparently living off cigarettes, cups of tea, and white bread. Also notably “historical” is the homosocial nature of the project; almost all of the active participants are men. Even Yoko Ono, who sits beside Lennon throughout, is almost entirely silent (save for her vocal participation in a couple of impromptu jams).</p> <p>While the film has been painstakingly restored, the soundtrack has been almost remade. Much of the audio was recorded on mono quarter-inch tape. Jackson’s technical team used machine learning to effectively “remix” these mono tapes, allowing Jackson to hone in on individual voices masked by other sound sources (voices or musical instruments).</p> <p><a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/433854/original/file-20211125-19-e4obm5.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/433854/original/file-20211125-19-e4obm5.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="" /></a> <span class="caption">John Lennon in Get Back.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Walt Disney Pictures, Apple Corps, WingNut Films</span></span></p> <p>This is an extraordinary technological breakthrough, allowing key conversations to be heard properly for the first time, and for the remixing of the play throughs and rehearsals of songs, which weren’t being recorded as “takes” on the eight-track system.</p> <p>Get Back is a treat for any Beatles fan. It’s a reminder, too, if one is needed, that some classic songs were recorded for the project. (Given that McCartney supplied at least three of these classics – Let it Be, The Long and Winding Road, and Get Back – it’s unsurprising that he has long been unsatisfied with the way they were originally showcased.)</p> <p>But Jackson’s film isn’t all sweetness and light. Lennon, for instance, is dismissive of Harrison’s I, Me, Mine, and he makes a throwaway joke about Bob Wooler, a Liverpool disc jockey whom Lennon assaulted in 1963. Also notable is the relative absence of George Martin, who largely hands production duties to his sound engineer, Glyn Johns, surely a sign that Martin found something amiss with the project.</p> <p>And indeed numerous sequences show a band lacking focus and discipline. Get Back, then, is unquestionably a mixed bag: thrilling, compelling, and funny, but also sometimes just a little boring.</p> <p>In this, Jackson has been true to the original project. His extraordinary TV series is essential viewing for anyone interested in popular music.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/172404/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /></p> <p><span><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/david-mccooey-308502">David McCooey</a>, Professor of Writing and Literature, <em><a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/deakin-university-757">Deakin University</a></em></span></p> <p>This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-beatles-get-back-review-peter-jacksons-tv-series-is-a-thrilling-funny-and-long-treat-for-fans-172404">original article</a>.</p> <p><em>Image: Apple Corps Ltd</em></p>

The science behind Jackson Pollock’s art

<div> <div class="copy"> <p><span style="font-family: inherit;">Whatever you think of Jackson Pollock’s abstract art, it seems there’s a bit of science to it. In fact, a Google Scholar search unearths nearly 19,000 papers on the subject.</span></p> <p>The latest research by Roberto Zenit, from the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico, and colleagues adds a detailed technical analysis from a fluid dynamics perspective.</p> <p>Their key discovery, <a rel="noopener" href="https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0223706" target="_blank">published</a> in the journal PLOS ONE, reveals that Pollock’s technique is carefully executed to avoid what is known as coiling instability.</p> <p><span style="font-family: inherit;">“When a jet, or filament, oozes down into itself, it may coil,” Zenit explains. “The best example is honey dripping onto toast – the filament forms coils when it lands.</span></p> <p>“Coiling happens when the fluid is too viscous,” he adds. “Gravity pushes down, but the liquid doesn’t want to flow… so it coils to find a balance.”</p> <p><a rel="noopener" href="https://www.jackson-pollock.org" target="_blank">Pollock</a>, who died in 1956, is considered one of America’s most influential artists of the Twentieth Century, with his radical works captivating art buffs, historians and scientists alike.</p> <p><span style="font-family: inherit;">Films of him in action lend themselves to scientific analysis of his technique, which involved rhythmically pouring a continuous stream of paint onto a horizontal canvas, using a device such as a stick, knife or brush to regulate the flow.</span></p> <p>It eventually came to be known as <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/B9780444509444500128" target="_blank">fractal expressionism</a> – a representation of nature’s patterns, inspiring scientists to make comparisons with nature’s systems and to explore how he managed to achieve this.</p> <p><span style="font-family: inherit;">Zenit, who was intrigued by the technicalities of the fluid method, saw the historical videos as an opportunity to gain insights into how Pollock painted.</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: inherit;">He and his team carefully observed the speed and height of the artist’s unique painting action, then recreated it so they could zone in on what he was doing. </span></p> <p><span style="font-family: inherit;">“We can vary one thing at a time so we can decipher the key elements of the technique,” he says. “For example, we could vary the height from which the paint is poured and keep the speed constant to see how that changes things.”</span></p> <p>Thus, the researchers made a connection between his technique and classical hydrodynamic instability (coiling instability), contradicting previous suggestions that the curved lines resulted from this instability.</p> <p>“What we found is that he moved his hand at a sufficiently high speed and a sufficiently short height such that this coiling would not occur,” says Zenit.</p> <p>They also showed that the paint filaments did not fragment into droplets – suggesting that descriptions of his painting style as a “dripping” technique are not accurate: dripping implies that a fluid breaks up into discrete droplets whereas Pollock’s fluid filaments tended to be continuous rather than fragmented.</p> <p>That analysis showed that another hydrodynamic instability was avoided, Zenit explains.</p> <p>It gets more technical. Like many painters, Pollock used solvents to alter the fluid properties of his paints, creating varying thicknesses. The researchers found that with more viscous paint he would reduce the height and increase the speed of his movements, and vice versa with thinner paint – in all instances carefully avoiding coiling instability.</p> <p>The results of this research could help authenticate the artist’s coveted paintings.</p> <p>“If you see a painting with filaments with too many coils or droplets, it is unlikely that Pollock painted it,” says Zenit.</p> <p>The study is also part of a new line of research aiming to understand painting from a fluid mechanics perspective, which the authors suggest could have practical applications for instances where coiling is undesirable, like inkjet printing or fabricating optic fibres.</p> <p>“Painters are experts in manipulating fluids, so are fluid mechanicians,” says Zenit. “This gives us an opportunity to learn from each other.”</p> <p>How – and how not – to do it</p> <p>In the first video below, paint is deposited on a moving canvas from distance low enough and at a speed high enough to avoid coiling.</p> <p><span style="font-family: inherit;">In the second, something is out, and the result is clear to see.</span></p> <div style="position: relative; display: block; max-width: 100%;"> <div style="padding-top: 56.25%;"><iframe style="position: absolute; top: 0px; right: 0px; bottom: 0px; left: 0px; width: 100%; height: 100%;" src="https://players.brightcove.net/5483960636001/HJH3i8Guf_default/index.html?videoId=6098936274001" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></div> </div> <div style="position: relative; display: block; max-width: 100%;"> <div style="padding-top: 56.25%;"><iframe style="position: absolute; top: 0px; right: 0px; bottom: 0px; left: 0px; width: 100%; height: 100%;" src="https://players.brightcove.net/5483960636001/HJH3i8Guf_default/index.html?videoId=6098938078001" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></div> </div> <p><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 9.6px; text-transform: uppercase;">CREDIT: rOBERT zENIT</span></p> <em>Image credits: Shutterstock  <img id="cosmos-post-tracker" style="opacity: 0; height: 1px!important; width: 1px!important; border: 0!important; position: absolute!important; z-index: -1!important;" src="https://syndication.cosmosmagazine.com/?id=27088&title=The+science+behind+Jackson+Pollock%E2%80%99s+art" alt="" width="1" height="1" />  </em></div> <div id="contributors"> <p><em>This article was originally published on <a rel="noopener" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/physics/the-science-behind-jackson-pollocks-art/" target="_blank">cosmosmagazine.com</a> and was written by Natalie Parletta. </em></p> </div> </div>

Art

Unseen Beatles footage to feature in new docu-series

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">A new documentary will contain previously unseen footage of The Beatles towards the end of their time as a band which will present a different take on the creation of their final studio album </span><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Let It Be</span></em><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Originally intended as a film, </span><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">The Beatles: Get Back</span></em> <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.empireonline.com/movies/news/peter-jacksons-documentary-the-beatles-get-back-unveils-brand-new-footage-in-extended-trailer/" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight: 400;">has become</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> a three-part documentary that follows the group as they worked, recorded, and prepared for their final rooftop performance.</span></p> <blockquote 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);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CU-G43YFxhD/?utm_source=ig_embed&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> <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;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CU-G43YFxhD/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">A post shared by Disney+ (@disneyplus)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In the latest extended trailer, the British stars can be seen workshopping songs and messing around in the studio, as well as discussing the group’s imminent break-up.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The trailer also reveals footage surrounding the departure of George Harrison and the planning they undertook for their final Savile Row concert.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">See it here:</span></p> <p><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Tb83rbm0IVI" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Get Back</span></em><span style="font-weight: 400;">, directed by Peter Jackson, sees the archived footage undergo the same restoration treatment used in his WWI project </span><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">They Shall Not Grow Old</span></em><span style="font-weight: 400;">, giving it a vibrant hue.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The documentary is due to premiere on Disney Plus across three consecutive nights, starting on November 25.</span></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Image: The Beatles / YouTube</span></em></p>

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