Greater Manchester's newest train station is another step closer

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Jack Sussman is exiting CBS after more than 25 years. The exec, who first joined CBS in 1998 as head of CBS Specials, has served as executive vice president of specials, music and live events at CBS Entertainment since March 2006, adding responsibility for all alternative programming in 2020. He won’t be straying too far from the Eye network, however: Moving forward, Sussman will segue into a role as EP for The Tony Awards and The Kennedy Center Honors starting in 2024.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor If anyone should be able to engineer a reunion of “Saturday Night Live” alumni, it should be Dan Aykroyd. A member of the show’s first cast of “Not Ready for Prime-Time Players,” Aykroyd was also among the first to jump from “SNL” to Hollywood and continues to tour with a band based on The Blues Brothers group he and John Belushi originated on the NBC mainstay.

Peter Debruge Chief Film Critic “The Beekeeper” is the best kind of bad movie — which is to say, it’s the sort that puts entertainment ahead of pretentiousness, embracing the laughter sure to accompany such an unapologetically stupid, ultra-violent premise. Starring Jason Statham in what feels like a parody of Jason Statham movies, this conspiracy-fueled action showcase tortures its central metaphor until it can only be seen as a joke, featuring the “Transporter” star as ruthless, retired government assassin-turned-benevolent beekeeper Adam Clay, who’s pushed back into berserker mode after a phishing attack targets the kindly old woman from whom he rents a barn.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter Can “Mean Girls” make fetch happen at the box office? Paramount’s new take on the teen classic is aiming to generate $30 million from 3,800 North American theaters over Martin Luther King Jr. weekend. The studio projecting a debut in the high $20 million range.

Diego Ramos Bechara editor The first stars slated to appear at the 75th Primetime Emmy Awards have been announced. Among the list of tapped presenters are Emmy-nominated stars Pedro Pascal (“The Last of Us”), Quinta Brunson (“Abbot Elementary” and “Saturday Night Live”), Jenna Ortega (“Wednesday”), Stephen Colbert (“The Late Show with Stephen Colbert”), Juno Temple (“Ted Lasso”) and Brett Goldstein (“Ted Lasso”). “The diverse lineup of talent represents critically acclaimed television series and Emmy-nominated programs across many viewing platforms and genres,” the TV Academy said in a statement.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter Seth Rogen‘s production company Point Grey Pictures is teaming up with the studio that backed its raunchy, R-rated hits like “Neighbors,” “Good Boys” and “Blockers.” Universal Pictures has forged a first-look film partnership with Point Grey Pictures, the company that Rogen co-founded with Evan Goldberg in 2011. James Weaver, a longtime producing partner, is the president of Point Grey, which is named after the Vancouver secondary school where Rogen and Goldberg first met.

Karen Mizoguchi Don Simpson reigned over Hollywood after joining forces with his producing partner Jerry Bruckheimer in the 1980s. Around town, the studio executive-turned-producer’s addiction to sex workers and drugs was no secret — and for decades, he wielded his power in the industry to continue his nefarious and erratic ways.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter Adam Fogelson is replacing Joe Drake as chair of Lionsgate‘s motion picture group. Drake reportedly initiated the transition and will be working with Fogelson over the coming months on succession plans.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer Sundance turns 40 this year and AMC Networks is celebrating the film festival’s big 4-0 with the release of a curated lineup of dozens of movies that previously debuted at the event, including “Birth/Rebirth,” “Sleeping with Other People,” “Savage Grace” and “Heathers,” for streamer AMC+. A long-time sponsor of the Sundance Film Festival with roots in indie films through IFC Films and now horror-focused streamer Shudder, whcih is debuting Chris Nash’s “In A Violent Nature” at the fest this year, AMC Networks will be offering the compilation of Sundance movies all through January, in connection with the 2024 edition of the film festival running Jan.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter AMC has released the first trailer for “The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live.” The series, which premieres on AMC and AMC+ on Feb. 25, will mark the official returns of Andrew Lincoln and Danai Gurira to the franchise. In the trailer, Michonne searches high and low for Rick, who appears to be held against his will by the Alliance of the Three.

Production on “The Last of Us” Season 2 is ramping up, and because of that, we’re starting to see HBO and co-creators Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann start to make casting announcements. Yesterday, we saw the most important new role, Abby, go to Kaitlyn Dever.

An estimated 12,000 Scots properties have been affected by a burst water main near a primary school.

Everyone in Scotland convicted as part of the Horizon Post Office scandal will be cleared, Humza Yousaf has said.

Demi Jones made it to the final of Winter Love Island back in 2020 and now she's returning to the popular dating show for the highly anticipated spin-off, Love Island: All-Stars.

Kanye West is facing legal trouble after allegedly punching a fan asking for an autograph two years ago!

Weather experts say the UK is facing its worst snowstorm and coldest deep freeze in 14 years.

Things just took a positive turn for Todd and Julie Chrisley.

Celtic fans are still eagerly awaiting some big incoming transfer news as Brendan Rodgers bids to add real 'quality' to his ranks.

Society Of The Snow, has been named as Netflix’s most-watched film globally this week, with just less than 23 million views.J.A. Bayona’s movie is based on a true story about a flight, carrying a rugby team, which crashes on a glacier in the Andes.

Sam Fender has shared his soulful new song ‘Iris’, taken from the soundtrack to the new film Jackdaw.The track was debuted on Edith Bowman’s BBC Radio 2 Culture Club show yesterday (Tuesday January 9), and can be heard here from around the 38 minute mark, or below. The first new material from Fender following on his 2021 second album ‘Seventeen Going Under‘ – named as NME‘s Album Of The Year – was described by Bowman as “absolute perfection” in how it accompanies a touching scene in Jackdaw, which is set in Fender’s native North East of the UK.“He’s been away doing what he does and writing new things, and what’s absolutely wonderful is that he’s been incredibly supportive of fellow creatives – in the form of Jamie Childs the filmmaker, who’s about to release his first feature film,” said Bowman introducing the film.”She continued: “Jamie has worked across some brilliant programmes, directing things like Dr Who, The Sandman, His Dark Materials, and now he’s about to release his first feature film Jackdaw – which is set in the North East of England, which is where Sam is from.“They got in touch with Sam and said, ‘Do you fancy seeing if you’ve got anything around?’ and, lo and behold, Sam gifts them this track exclusively for the film – and it could not be more fitting.”The song leans on Fender’s soulful side, set to a stripped-back guitar backing as the North Shields artist tenderly sings of a woman navigating her way through hard times in the North East.Jackdaw is released in cinemas January 26 following a Stockton-On-Tees premiere on January 24.

Mike Shinoda has recalled being starstruck when Linkin Park played their first-ever show with System Of A Down.Shinoda sat down with NME to speak about his “Firsts”. He revealed that the first gig he attended was Anthrax, Public Enemy and Primus, adding that a group called Young Black Teenagers served as opening support.“People Kind of make fun of me because it’s like ‘Obviously that’s the first gig you went to.