Irish Animation Is Thriving Thanks to Diverse Storytelling and New Tech

Lewis Capaldi‘s set at Glastonbury 2023 has been described as “amazingly powerful” by the mother of a teenager with Tourette’s.While onstage on the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury on Saturday (June 24), Capaldi was noticeably experiencing vocal difficulties, and exhibiting tics from his widely-publicised Tourette’s.Speaking to the PA, Laura Hummersone, whose 19-year-old son Harry has Tourette’s, said that the performance and visibility of the condition was “amazingly powerful” as the pair watched at home on TV.“Watching Lewis yesterday, in that moment, I think he did more for Tourette’s than any charity or education on the topic in all the times I’ve known about Tourette’s,” she said. “I was in tears.”She added: “[Capaldi] was openly ticing and my son tries to suppress his most of the time when he’s out, which means that when he comes home, he has these huge tic attacks where he can barely do anything.“Some of the tics that Lewis was doing were tics that my son does on a regular daily basis, jerking the head.”Hummersone went on to hail the “acceptance, tolerance, understanding, empathy and compassion which the crowd showed yesterday,” calling it “phenomenal”.“I wanted Harry to see the love from that crowd,” she added.

Elton John has announced a collectible, limited edition release of ‘Diamonds (Pyramid Edition)’ – order it here.The release arrives as a celebration of the music icon’s historic Glastonbury performance on the Pyramid Stage Sunday night (June 26) – which NME lauded as “one of the festival’s best-ever headline sets” in a five-star review.‘Diamonds (Pyramid Edition)’ (available digitally here), features tracklisting personally selected by John which “reflects last night’s historic setlist”, according to a press release.It will feature highlights from ‘Diamonds’, his 2017 greatest hits collection. Pressed on coloured vinyl, the new release also includes a commemorative 10×10 print.John’s Rocket Club fan club members were tipped off this morning (June 26) about 100 signed copies of the release, sold from 10am today on a first-come-first-served basis from the Elton John Eyewear pop-up store at 59 Greek Street in Soho, London.Check out the artwork and track list below.‘Diamonds (Pyramid Edition)’:A: ‘Pinball Wizard’‘Bennie And The Jets’‘Goodbye Yellow Brick Road’‘Are You Ready For Love’‘Your Song’B: ‘Tiny Dancer’‘Don’t Go Breaking My Heart’‘I’m Still Standing’‘Cold Heart’‘Rocket Man’John performed a sensational, career-spanning set at Glastonbury Festival yesterday, featuring a whole host of special guests and a moving tribute to his late friend George Michael.“Sir Elton celebrates the past, present and future of music at last ever UK show,” NME wrote in a glowing five-star review.“Sir Elton left everything on the field.

Giovanna Fletcher took to social media to share a relatable family moment as she debuted a new look.

Love Island stars Tasha Ghouri and Andrew Le Page have been praised by fans as they welcomed an 'adorable' new family member.

Warner Music Korea, the South Korean subsidiary of Warner Music, has issued a statement against claims by their agency Attrakt that it had attempted to illegally poach members of girl group FIFTY FIFTY.On June 26, K-pop girl group FIFTY FIFTY’s label Attrakt released a statement claiming that Warner Music Korea had been colluding with an unnamed third party to illegally poach members of the group.“We have evidence of [an outside party] clearly attempting to poach FIFTY FIFTY members illegally, and we request Warner Music Korea to provide an adequate explanation and answers,” said Attrakt earlier today, per Korea JoongAng Daily.This also comes several days after Attrakt stated last Friday (June 23) that it would take legal action against other agencies that had been spreading negative rumours about it “in an attempt to lure the members of FIFTY FIFTY” into breaking their exclusive contracts.Warner Music Korea has since denied the claims made by Attrakt in a new statement, per XSportsNews. “First, as FIFTY FIFTY’s overseas distributor, Warner Music Korea has has been working [with FIFTY FIFTY] since April 1, 2023,” it said, as translated by Soompi.“We have done our best to make the dazzling achievements of FIFTY FIFTY and their agency shine even brighter by mobilising Warner Music Group’s abilities and network, so we are very sorry that such unfortunate suspicions were raised,” added Warner Music Korea.The agency went on to say: “Attrakt’s claims are groundless, and we are regretful that they have sent [us] a certification of contents.

Emiliano De Pablos The 7th edition of Spain’s Conecta Fiction & Entertainment, the Europe-Latin America TV and networking forum, will dedicate this year its countries focus to Poland and Mexico.  For the first time ever, the event will also host a Spanish Content Showcase, integrating a series of activities to highlight the freshest and most attractive contents and formats from top Spanish distributors. Conecta Fiction unspools June 26-29 for the second year running at the El Greco Palace of Congress in Toledo, the capital of Spain’s Castilla-La Mancha, just south of Madrid. 

Strictly Come Dancing star Amy Dowden has shared her plans to 'keep busy' as she was seen reuniting with a former co-star after undergoing surgery for breast cancer. Amy shared last month how she'd found a lump which was later confirmed as stage 3 breast cancer.

This Morning viewers were left asking 'where's Holly' after Holly Willoughby went 'missing' from the programme. The ITV daytime show returned to screens on Monday morning (June 26) but fans were in for a surprise as it wasn't the show's usual main host at the helm.

Christopher Vourlias The release of “Kizazi Moto: Generation Fire,” a pan-African Disney Plus Original animated series that will drop globally on the streaming platform on July 5, could be a game-changer for an African animation industry that continues to scale new heights. Executive produced by Oscar winner Peter Ramsey (“Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse”), Anthony Silverston of South African animation house Triggerfish, and Tandayi Nyeke, the 10-part anthology series offers a dizzying blend of mythology, science fiction and Afrofuturism, presenting 10 bold, wholly original visions of the future from a distinctly African perspective. The series, which is produced by Triggerfish, features animators from six African countries drawing on their own ancient histories, folklores and contemporary urban landscapes to reimagine a world populated with cyborg cattle, flying minibus-taxis, radioactive octopi and robotic birds. Collectively, they present a portrait of the continent that’s never been seen before.

Naman Ramachandran The beloved “Famous Five” stories of Enid Blyton are being reimagined for the BBC and ZDF by Nicolas Winding Refn. The 3 x 90′ series is based on the 21 “Famous Five” novels and short stories Blyton wrote between 1942 and 1963. The series follows five daring young explorers as they encounter treacherous, action-packed adventures, remarkable mysteries, unparalleled danger and astounding secrets. It is created for television and executive produced by Winding Refn (byNWR) and Matthew Read (Moonage Pictures), in co-production with ZDF in Germany. The French territory is already presold to TF1. Filming is currently underway across the southwest of the U.K.

John Hopewell Chief International Correspondent High-flying Madrid-based Caballo Films, behind Rodrigo Sorogoyen’s “The Beasts” and “Riot Police” and Borja Soler’s “The Route,” has put into development a fiction series adaptation of Mabel Lozano’s prized same-titled non-fiction work. Shaping up as a deep drill-down into the growth of prostitution in Spain into large-scale organized crime, “El Proxeneta” packs a powerful talent package of creator-writers Isabel Peña, co-writer of Rodrigo Sorogoyen’s “As Bestas” and “Riot Police,” and Eduardo Villanueva, a co-scribe on “Riot Police” and producer on “Stockholm.”  Pilar Palomero, a Spanish Academy Goya best picture winner for “Schoolgirls,” will direct the series, her first TV work beyond one episode of “Venga Juan.”

Toyah Willcox and husband Robert Fripp have returned with the latest instalment of their Sunday Lunch cover series, this week perfoming ‘Sunshine Of Your Love’ by Cream while literally covering themselves in cream.The new cover sees Willcox pour cream all over her head and leather top, while Fripp performs guitar in a black shirt and white tie.“Take your guitar off, baby,” Willcox says, before she pushes his head into her cream-covered chest. “Oh, that’s not fair,” Fripp says, to which Willcox replies: “But it’s fun.”The pair then laugh together at the spectacle before the video ends.

Apple have sent out an urgent warning to millions of iPhone users to get them to check their settings for security updates now.

The Duchess of Edinburgh's caring gesture towards the King during the Royal Ascot suggested “hints of concern”, according to a body language expert.

A couple have vowed to never visit a popular holiday destination again after being served a "tiny" piece of fish in their chippy tea. The "shameful" portion measured just four inches, Mike Turner and wife Jane said, but still cost them £15.

An 11-year-old boy feel 15ft from a set of rocks at a Scots harbour sparking a huge rescue mission.

Losing weight is a huge endeavour and it's understandable for anyone hoping to slim down to go back to the basics.

Elton John raised the roof at Glastonbury last night in what could be the Rocketman singer’s last ever performance, and he was watched by more than 7M viewers on the BBC.

Drive auteur Nicholas Winding Refn is is forging a TV adaptation of The Famous Five for the BBC and ZDF.

Marta Balaga It’s time to finally “humanize” the workplace, argued Oscar-nominated director Nora Twomey at Annecy. And women are leading the way. “There was a point when I wanted to prove myself and would spend long hours immersed in animation. It took me until I had kids to start working smarter,” she said.   “Then I got sick in the middle of making ‘The Breadwinner’ and that also made me think about working in a way that could empower people around me. Now, I really don’t give a fuck anymore,” she added to thunderous applause. During her “fireside chat” with Ramsey Naito at the Women in Animation (WIA) World Summit, Twomey – co-founder and creative director at Ireland’s Cartoon Saloon – also underlined the importance of representation. 

Marta Balaga Variety will host a panel at the Annecy Animation Festival, Breaking the Borders of Animation, focusing on one of the key – and most exciting –  talking points in the medium: How animation is currently being revolutionized and reimagined by new waves of creativity and technology. The panel has been organised with Nickelodeon as its official partner.  On Tuesday June13, Variety’s chief film critic Peter Debruge will encourage his guests to wonder about the future of the art form, starting with Latifa Ouaou, EVP of Paramount and Nickelodeon Animation, who also executive produced “The Grinch” and “Minions: The Rise of Gru.”