Queen 'had secret crush' on popular BBC weatherman and always watched him in final days

Anna Marie de la Fuente In its continued bid to expand its footprint worldwide, Paramount+ is launching its service in France on Dec. 1 and Germany, Austria and Switzerland on Dec. 8. Already available across the Americas, Paramount+ launched in South Korea, the U.K. and Ireland in June and Italy in September. The SVOD platform is expected to be available in 45 markets by year’s end. Paramount+ is rapidly expanding its presence globally, bringing audience a unique content offering with the biggest stars and most compelling global and local stories. With these launches, Paramount+ will continue to see major growth across Europe, becoming one of the top players worldwide,” said Marco Nobili, executive VP and international general manager of Paramount+.

Liza Foreman CANNES  — TV series “Agatha Christie’s Hjerson” has been picked up by streamer Topic for North America and by the Australian channel SBS, ZDF Studios announced Tuesday at Cannes Mipcom trade fair.  “Agatha Christie’s Hjerson” is being sold as both a 45-minute series and four feature-length stories.  Topic has taken exclusive rights for the U.S. and Canada. SBS, a multicultural Australian broadcaster, has also closed an exclusive deal for the drama series. Additionally, ZDF Studios has licensed the program to VOD platforms  Google Play, iTunes, Amazon, Deutsche Telekom and Huawei for German speaking territories, as well as Germany’s public broadcaster, ZDF. 

Cynthia Littleton Business Editor CANNES – The newly constituted senior entertainment team at Fox Corp. came to Mipcom this year with checkbooks in hand. The trio of executives who offered the keynote address Monday evening at the international content conference were blunt in telling the crowd that they came to make some new friends around the world and strike some deals. The company is bucking the trend in media toward direct-to-consumer subscription platforms. Fox is putting its resources into content and IP that can travel around the world and be adaptable in many forms. “While others are trying to hide their content behind paywalls, we are doing the opposite,” said Rob Wade, who was promoted this month to CEO of Fox Entertainment (“I’m 10 days in to the job,” he noted with a smile on stage). “We see the potential of working with (outside) networks, producers and distributors to be able to get our content out there further.”

Peter Caranicas Deputy Editor EnergaCamerimage, the international cinematography-focused film festival, will honor Oscar winner Sam Mendes with the Special Krzysztof Kieslowski Award for Director during its 30th anniversary edition, which will run in Toruń Poland Nov. 12-19. The helmer’s “Empire of Light,” starring Academy Award winner Olivia Colman (‘The Favourite,” “The Lost Daughter”) and BAFTA-winner Michael Ward (“Blue Story,” “Top Boy”), will open the Camerimage fest in addition to being one of the Main Competition nominees. Aside from “Empire of Light,” Mendes’ notable films include “American Beauty” (for which he won his best director Oscar), “Road to Perdition,” “Revolutionary Road,” “Skyfall,” “Spectre” and “1917.”

Mipcom, “Rapa” weighs in as a classic rural murder mystery which then tears up that sub-genre’s rule book. “Offworld,” another Movistar+ original, is a collective series written by some of Spain’s most talented screenwriters, with each episode, set in a world after a massive power outage, helmed by a different director.  Given its pedigree, you’d expect something different from “The Route,” however.

John Hopewell Chief International Correspondent CANNES — Ester Expósito, one of the most preeminent of breakout actors from “Elite,” is set to star in “La Isla Bonita,” a new series created by Ginesta Guindal (“Vida Perfecta,” “Elite”), produced by The Immigrant and Sabado Películas with production-distribution superindie Fremantle handling global distribution. Billed as an irreverent dramedy, “La Isla Bonita” focuses on a group of friends – party, party animal Alfonso, idealist Peter, environmentalist Sol – who share a quaint house on Ibiza, until the owner decides to triple the rent for the summer months, forcing them to find an ingenious solution to keep their lives and home together. 

Megan Thee Stallion had a busy night this past Saturday (October 15) when she hosted and performed on NBC’s Saturday Night Live. Her double-duty appearance was promoted last week with two skits: a sketch featuring a nude Sarah Squirm and a more traditional, outtakes-style promo reel with Heidi Gardner.

Bella Hadid had the support of her mom Yolanda Hadid and her boyfriend Marc Kalman while being honored at a charity event.

EXCLUSIVE: Paramount+ has set launch dates for France, Germany, Austria and Switzerland.

Coronation Street spoilers have confirmed the return of one of the cobbles' most formidable serial killers next week – John Stape. The ex-husband of Fiz Stape is set to make his return just in time for Halloween, as his daughter Hope once again touches base with her online 'friend' Mad Dog, whose identity has not yet been revealed.

Emmerdale fans were left stunned when they discovered Chloe Harris was Mackenzie Boyd's mystery lover all this time.However things could soon crash and burn for Mack if his long-term partner Charity Dingle finds out about his secret affair as Chloe's pregnancy comes to light.Feeling alone and secretly pregnant, Chloe is in a state of confusion.READ MORE: Emmerdale stars who appeared in the first episode and where they are now 50 years onMeanwhile, Mack is also feeling on edge and terrified that his secret fling is going to come tumbling out when he sees Chloe and Charity having a riveting conversation in The Woolpack.As the ladies converse, Mack watches from a distance while he is perplexed by what they could be possibly discussing.But knowing the info of her secret affair, Kerry Wyatt is left frustrated by Chloe’s insistence on holding Mack responsible for his actions and is annoyed that he dumped her after a one night stand.As Kerry speaks openly about how she feels on the situation, she is completely unaware that Chloe is pregnant.

bird strike that blew out the engine of a jumbo jet at 30,000-feet after take-off.The flight, which set off from Heathrow, was forced into making a dramatic turnaround after one of the engines on the plane shut down following a bird strike.Police officers and firefighters were on hand upon the emergency landing, which saw the United Airlines jet make a touchdown back at Heathrow some time after it had jetted off.READ MORE: Bob the Builder's UK No.1 singles lasted longer than Liz Truss' mini budget disasterThe plane, which had been hoping to make it all the way to New York, United States, ended up back on the runway an hour after take off.One source said: "It was horrible for everyone. No-one knew what happened, then panic broke out."Flight UA883 had made the surprise U-turn after a bird strike occurred just after take off at 8:10am, with the U-turn and return to Heathrow marked at 9:20am.Heathrow staff are on hand to deal with birds that pose a threat or hazard to aircraft, and according to the Federal Aviation Authority, there were 16,000 wildlife strikes in 2018.That marks a total of 40 incidents a day for those hoping to take to the skies.Speaking to The Sun, United Airlines said: "Our team at London Heathrow is providing assistance to customers of United flight 883 (London Heathrow-New York/Newark) today, which returned to Heathrow following a bird strike."The aircraft landed safely and passengers disembarked normally.

Naga Munchetty has told how she was called “b***** useless” early in her journalism career. The BBC Breakfast star said when she started out as a print journalist there were many days she went home from work crying, reported the Mirror.

Coronation Street villain Stephen Reid (Todd Boyce) next week.

BBC weather forecasters provide viewers with the best and worst news, revealing whether those summer barbecues will be going ahead or if they'll be rained off.And while the presenters aren't on screen for too long, faces like Carol Kirkwood and Owain Wyn Evans have become stars in their own rights – and some of their stories are far more interesting than the weather.Carol and Owain are just a few weather presenters who have garnered huge fanbases.Another is BBC presenter Tomasz Schafanaker, who reportedly counted the late Queen Elizabeth II as a fan.READ NEXT: BBC National Lottery stars now - sudden death, Phillip Schofield feud and flashing fansBut who were the weather presenters who came before Carol, Owain and Tomasz, to name a few?Here, Daily Star takes a look at where some of the BBC Weather stars are now.Long before Tomasz Schafanaker, Owain Wyn Evans or Carol Kirkwood, another meteorologist made history when they became the first person to broadcast the weather live on TV.After working as a weather forecaster for the Royal Air Force (RAF), George Cowling joined the BBC and presented the first televised weather broadcast on January 11, 1954.The broadcasts were much different from what we know today, with the BBC describing the presenter as using "charcoal sticks to draw weather features on two charts, one for today and one for tomorrow's forecast."Presenting alongside Tom Clifton, they became the first weather personality celebrities, with the press at the time naming them "Mr Shower and Mr Shine" and "Mr West and Mr Dry".It is reported that George was also a keen golfer, alongside fellow BBC weather presenters Jack Scott and Bert Foord, so it is handy that he knew what the weather would be like before setting out

The Queen took a liking to BBC weatherman Tomasz Schafernaker in her last days at Balmoral. Her Majesty passed away earlier this month at the age of 96 in Scotland, and while the Queen was pictured shaking new prime minster Liz Truss's hand a couple of days before her death, it's been said that her final days also included watching the BBC weatherman.

The Queen’s last days at Balmoral were spent watching her “crush” on TV as BBC weatherman Tomasz Schafernaker says he is “humbled” by the honour.Her Majesty is reported to have taken a liking to Tomasz, 43, and began making a point of watching the BBC just to see the weathermanA source told the Daily Mail: "It was like a bit of a crush. She always wanted to watch the forecasts he was on.READ MORE: Royal fans hail Sarah Ferguson at Queen's funeral as showing 'new age' for Royal Family"She was amused hearing the cadences when his name was read out but she loved watching him too."In the Queen’s final days she followed her own tradition of watching the star on TV, and now the weatherman has said he is “humbled” to have been part of her last days.“Feel so humbled to be mentioned like this…truly heartwarming.” Said Tomasz on Twitter.The Polish-British meteorologist has a huge following on social media.

Queen Elizabeth II, had a bit of a soft spot for BBC weather presenter Tomasz Schafernaker.He's best known for that awkward clip of him flipping the finger at his BBC co-stars not realising he was live on-air, but he's also got a hidden talent he rarely shows off on television.Tomas was voted Britain's favourite weatherperson a few years ago, and it's clear to see why – but he was reportedly also a favourite in the royal household.READ NEXT: Queen 'had secret crush' on popular BBC weatherman and always watched him in final daysA source recently claimed that the late monarch would always watch the weather when Tomasz presented it and she had taken a bit of a fancy to him.But what else has Tomas done in life?As well as becoming one of the BBC's weather presenters, Tomasz has delighted viewers with a guest appearances on Would I Lie To You and Celebrity Masterchef.That's not all, as he has also had a number of famous on-air moments and wowed fans with his hidden talent.Weather presenter Tomasz, 43, was born in Gdansk, Poland and embarked on a degree in meteorology at the University of Reading.After joining the BBC, he became a familiar face during its main news programme and was voted Britain's favourite weatherperson in 2017.He has also regularly shared photographs with his fellow co-stars including Reeta Chakrabarti and former news presenter Simon McCoy from the set on social media too.Tomasz and former BBC news presenter Simon McCoy often delighted viewers with their on-screen chatter.However, a moment between the two went viral in 2010, after Tomasz jokingly raised his middle finger to the presenter before a weather segment.Simon had joked with viewers that the weather bulletin would be "100% accurate", before Tomasz

Queen Elizabeth was “on good form” and “perky” in her final days. The 96-year-old monarch passed away peacefully at Balmoral Castle in Scotland on September 8 and just days before her death, she hosted her Bowes-Lyons cousins for a shooting party. The Queen also enjoyed watching BBC weatherman Tomasz Schafernaker's weather forecasts, with a source telling the Daily Mail newspaper: "It was like a bit of a crush; she always wanted to watch the forecasts when he was on.