Government minister hints Brits may need vaccine passports for restaurants and cinemas

Carole Horst While the Korean film business faces challenges, 2022 does offer a bumper crop of Korean movies from big-name filmmakers. Here are some of the best:The Apartment With Two Women(Finecut)Kim-se In’s debut drama unspools in the Berlin Film Festival’s Panorama section.Broker (CJ Entertainment)“Shoplifters” director Kore-eda Hirokazu examines the trade in children in his Korean-language film debut.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefAlmost two years since “Parasite” won a handful of Oscars, the impact of COVID has meant that the Korean theatrical sector has been largely unable to capitalize on the trickle-down effect of those wins. Its current malaise stands in contrast to the pandemic windfalls enjoyed by other parts of the Korean entertainment biz — think BTS, Blackpink, “Squid Game” and the latest streaming phenomenon “All of Us Are Dead.”The current year potentially holds great things for Korean film, with nearly all of the country’s top-name directors having completed works, but the prospect remains tantalizingly out of reach.And the longer the hard times continue, the less likely a return to the old normal becomes.

Alissa Simon Film CriticVeteran Swedish documentary maker Magnus Gertten’s “Nelly & Nadine,” a love story that begins in the hell of the Ravensbrück concentration camp, world-premieres in Berlin. Rise and Shine World Sales reps this Panorama title“Nelly & Nadine” is the third film you have made inspired by archival footage showing survivors from German concentration camps arriving in Malmö, Sweden. What motivated you to start this project?  It all started out of curiosity.

webtoon 7Fates: CHAKHO.‘Stay Alive’, performed by vocalist Jungkook and produced by rapper Suga, dropped alongside a dramatic promotional video, which mixes animation from the webtoon and live-action scenes featuring the boyband.Despite being performed solely by Jungkook, the video for ‘Stay Alive’ features in-person appearances from all seven members of BTS. The video also notably uses a truncated, two-and-a-half minute version of the song.

Lucy Dacus suffered two herniated discs. Rather than cancel the show, however, she performed the entire set while lying down on a couch.She clued fans in on the situation just hours before the show begun, sharing a photo of herself lying down with the caption, “Sup, I have two herniated discs and the only way I’m not in pain is laying down SO tonight’s show I will be singing from a couch, I am both sorry and also pleased to offer this most humiliating and hilarious moment to you good people of Detroit.”“I am telling myself I am punk for this,” she joked in a Tweet, to many responses agreeing earnestly.I am telling myself I am punk for this please do not say otherwise I'm fragile pic.twitter.com/qpdu6rOUCq— Lucy Dacus (@lucydacus) February 10, 2022Despite being forced to deviate from her usual performance style, Dacus gave the sold-out crowd a riveting performance, with her vocal skills as sharp as ever.

Kate Garraway found herself having to defend her latest fashion choice during the latest edition of Good Morning Britain.The 54-year-old presenter was back on our screens on Friday morning alongside co-host Ben Shephard.As the pair finished going through the latest headlines, Ben let out a cheeky giggle.Kate asked her co-star what he was laughing at and he quickly admitted that her outfit had caught his eye.

Bob Saget, the "Full House" alum who died after being found unresponsive in an Orlando hotel room last month, suffered multiple fractures prior to his death, according to a report. The New York Post’s Page Six, citing the Orange County Medical Examiner’s office, reported that his skull had several fractures and concluded that it is likely that he fell backward and hit the "posterior aspect of his head." He had bleeding and contusions to his brain, the paper said.  Bob Saget attends the Women's Guild Cedars-Sinai Annual Gala at The Maybourne Beverly Hills on November 03, 2021 in Beverly Hills, California.

Council chiefs in South Ayrshire insist they won't levy extra parking charges on workplaces.

Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentUndeterred by the pandemic, the wheels of Switzerland’s film production machine kept on spinning in 2021, churning out the meticulously made multicultural co-productions the country is known for that scored slots at top festivals.Works by young directors such as Elie Grappe, whose coming-of-age drama “Olga” launched at Cannes; Niccolò Castelli’s terrorism-themed “Atlas,” which bowed at Locarno; and also the VR project “Caves” by Carlos Isabel Garcìa, which premiered at Venice; provided a preamble to the exceptionally strong Swiss presence at this year’s Berlinale.Berlin sees a record-breaking two competition slots filled by new works from established Swiss directors, Ursula Meier’s “The Line” and Michael Koch’s “A Piece of Sky,” plus several more Swiss titles in other sections. “In the worst year ever we shot three productions back-to-back during the pandemic; somehow we got used to it,” says Oscar-nominated Max Karli (“My Life as a Zucchini”), who is among the producers of “The Line” via his Geneva-based Bandita Productions, in tandem with Pauline Gygax.In Switzerland, the film and TV industry held firm last year as one of the few sectors where camera crews and actors continued to work, unlike advertising, which shuttered completely for many months.“It was quite hard because we were shooting without insurance pertaining to anything linked to the pandemic,” Karli says, though some government subsidies were made available for physical productions struck by COVID infections.But, as Karli and other Swiss producers point out, Switzerland is a confederation.

John Hopewell Chief International CorrespondentLola Arabia, the United Arab Emirates label of Oscar-winning Spanish producer Andrés Vicente Gómez (“Belle Epoque”), has struck a 12-movie co-production deal with Dubai-based Charisma Group.The alliance will take in a range of titles, from $2 million-budgeted contemporary comedies to banner productions budgeted at $40 million, revolving around contemporary and historic stories of West Asia.The partners aim to produce an average of four films a year, said Charisma Group co-president Ayham Al Ziyoud.Development has begun on the whole slate. “Although in principle we plan projects with modest budgets, these will be increased in the following year once we find the rights partners outside the Gulf States,” Gómez said.

direct to your inbox Matt Hancock led a press briefing this evening to provide an update on the latest coronavirus developments.

Crowds have flocked to beaches and parks in the sunshine today - despite a top scientist warning the fight against coronavirus is not over.

A glorious spring-like weekend lies ahead for Brits set to bask in 15C sunshine.

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Covid rules to meet up and have sex.Mr Hancock was joined by Deputy Chief Medical Officer Jonathan Van Tam and Dr Susan Hopkins, Senior Medical Advisor at Public Health England at Friday's Downing Street press conference.At the press conference, Hannah, from Belfast, asked the Health Secretary: "Why has the Government removed guidance from last summer, allowing couples in established relationships not to socially distance from each other?"And will support bubbles be extended to allow couples to see each other again without limits on social contact?"Mr Hancock replied: "We made the change that we did because as we went into the lockdown over the Autumn, in November, and then again at the start of January, we wanted to make sure that we did

Brits were tonight sent a stark warning not to "wreck" lockdown after "worrying signs" that cases are rising in 20% of areas in England.

Daily Mirror that the Government is likely to follow their advice.

Education Secretary Gavin Williamson is set to give a Downing Street coronavirus press conference at 5pm today.

direct to your inboxGood Morning Britain made an unusual change to the end of the show today in a dig at the government. Piers Morgan and Susanna Reid were back to host the ITV show on Wednesday with interviews from Jonathon Van-Tam and Gavin Williamson.

direct to your inboxProfessor Jonathan Van-Tam wants to 'go back to being a normal human being', he said on Good Morning Britain.England's deputy chief medical officer joined Piers Morgan and Susanna Reid to answer questions from viewers mainly on vaccines. But the hosts of the ITV show quickly heaped praise on 'JVT' and asked how he felt his new 'celebrity status'.

direct to your inboxSecondary schoolchildren will be able to get help catching up on lost learning due to the pandemic with summer schools.Schools will be given extra funding after the Prime Minister has pledged another £400 million as part of the government's education recovery plan.However Education Secretary Gavin Williamson has not ruled out that a proposal of lengthening the school day is under consideration to make up for months of closures.A variety of options were looked at by the government - including extended school days and shorter summer holidays – but neither proposal was included in the full details set out on Wednesday.Speaking to Sky News on Wednesday morning, Mr Williamson said: "We’ll be looking at how we can boost and