Variety Announces 10 Directors to Watch for 2022

Paul Hollywood's ex-wife posted a powerful Valentine's Day message about being single – taking a swipe at the Great British Bake Off judge in the process. Cookbook writer Alex Hollywood reflected on her current relationship status and her 20-year marriage to the TV star.

Jamie Lang Belgium’s Panenka, producers of recent VRT breakout hit “Two Summers” – which premiered last week to a jaw-dropping 51% market share in its prime-time slot and which will soon be released worldwide by Netflix – will virtually pitch one of their upcoming projects, “This is Not a Murder Mystery,” at Berlin Co-Pro Series.One of 10 such projects set for this event, Co-Pro Series marks the first public pitch for “TINAMM,” with the creative team looking to the right co-production and distribution partner to help realize their murder mystery series. Panenka producer Kristoffel Mertens hosts the virtual Co-Pro pitch with co-creators Paul Baeten and Christophe Dirickx.Baeten is a novelist, essayist and TV screenwriter, whose credits include two seasons of the acclaimed drama series “Over Water” and the aforementioned “Two Summers.” Dirickx has written and produced several feature films, including Cannes players “The Misfortunates” from director Felix van Groeningen and Frank Van Passel’s “Manneken Pis.” International Emmy-nominee Hans Herbots (“The Spiral”) and Matthias Lebeer, a winner of two Golden Lions at Cannes for his work on GT Academy Europe, will direct.

This Morning viewers were left feeling joy after it was revealed that the wonderful Alison Hammond and Dermot O'Leary would be stepping in to cover Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield's absence. The normal duo are currently on their half term break from the show, so our Friday hosts have taken over for the week.

Amy Hart revealed earlier this month she had her eggs frozen again. And when OK! caught up with the Love Island star at the launch of Anna Williamson's new book, Where Is The Love?, Amy revealed she's put plans to go through solo IVF on hold, since meeting boyfriend Sam Rason.

Olly Murs has shared a poignant tribute to Caroline Flack on the second anniversary of her death.

One lucky UK ticket-holder has won the £109.9 million EuroMillions jackpot which has been validated and paid out, according to Camelot.

Since Ralf Rangnick took charge at Old Trafford, Manchester United have been tipped to sign a number of top Bundesliga players including Denis Zakaria and Amadou Haidara to name but two.

A law graduate who used to budget on her food shop has now made her fortune selling second-hand clothes online.

Elsa Keslassy International CorrespondentLoco Films, the Paris-based world sales and production company, has unveiled the trailer for Yulia Trofimova’s feature debut “The Land of Sasha” which is premiering today at the Berlinale, in the Generation 14plus strand.“The Land of Sahsa” tells the story of an indecisive 18-year-old struggling to pursue his desire to become a painter as his mother urges him to choose a safer career path. The sudden appearance of the boy’s estranged father complicates things further. But when Sasha has an unexpected encounter with an unusual girl called Zhenia, he realizes he has no choice but to finally grow up.“The Land of Sasha” was produced by Katerina Mikhaylova and Konstantin Fam for Moscow-based Vega Film.

Rod Stewart serenaded fans with a special love song for Valentine's Day, but the rock star divided fans in the comments.

Anna Marie de la Fuente ZDF Enterprises, to be rebranded ZDF Studios in April, has snagged worldwide distribution rights to the topical post-WWII dramatic series “Between Two Worlds” (“Ein Hauch Von Amerika”).Skein is set in a fictional German town in the ’50s where a robust U.S. military presence is impacting the lives of its people, in particular the two young friends Marie and Erika, whose relationships with their family, community and each other are put to the test by the presence of a U.S.

Jamie Lang Norwegian broadcaster NRK has boarded Hummelfilm’s coming-of-age crime drama series “Nowheresville,” one of 10 projects participating in this year’s Berlin Co-Pro Series where producer Marte Hansen and series creator-director Rebecca W. Kjellmann are virtually pitching the series to potential partners, financers and broadcasters.Development on the project is already well underway, with four finished scripts and outlines for the show’s other four episodes already banked.“We are currently continuing the writing process, while working on the financing and production set-up for the series,” the partners explained to Variety before pitching in Berlin.

Snoop Dogg and Kelly Clarkson have been announced as the hosts for the US' answer to Eurovision, the American Song Contest. 

John Hopewell Chief International CorrespondentZDF Enterprises and the U.K.-based Parsonage Productions are developing a new drama, “The Bronte Girls,” a fictional account of the last summer which the three Bronte sisters spent together.The drama is based on the stage play of the same name by New York-based playwright Caroline Franklin (“Last Night at the Carmine”). Franklin will adapt the drama for the small screen with the British writer-director Darcia Martin (“Riches,” “Shakespeare & Hathaway,”Call the Midwife”).The initial series, structured as a six-part drama, will be executive produced by Harvey Myman, Patty Lenahan Ishimoto and Patrick Irwin, who first worked together on A+E Networks’ U..K.

Naman Ramachandran Amazon Prime Video and Germany’s Leonine Studios are expanding their existing partnership with a multi-year license agreement.Under the deal, Prime Video gets exclusive second window SVOD-rights for a six-month period to upcoming theatrical feature films and home entertainment titles from Leonine’s slate and also includes non-exclusive SVOD rights to titles from Leonine’s content library.Titles include Keanu Reeves’ “John Wick 4” and its spin-off “Ballerina,” starring Ana de Armas; Channing Tatum’s directorial debut “Dog”; Roland Emmerich’s “Moonfall,” starring Halle Berry; Nicolas Cage action-comedy “The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent”; Guillaume Canet’s “Asterix & Obelix: The Middle Kingdom,” with Gilles Lellouche, Marion Cotillard, Vincent Cassel and soccer star Zlatan Imbrahimović; Jennifer Lopez starrer “Shotgun Wedding”; and Leonine Studios co-production “The School of Magical Animals 2,” the sequel to Germany’s most successful theatrical release of 2021. Leonine Studios CEO Fred Kogel said: “It’s fantastic that we can expand our long-standing partnership with Prime Video by this agreement and achieve another important milestone for our licensing business with premium content.

Elsa Keslassy International CorrespondentNetflix has dropped the trailer for “Standing-Up,” the new show by Fanny Herrero, the creator of French hit series “Call My Agent!”“Standing-Up” follows Aïssatou, Nezir, Bling and Apolline, four artists from different backgrounds who are trying to break into the world of stand-up comedy. They meet every day at the Drôle, a Parisian comedy club, where they come to practice their art: making people laugh.

Marta Balaga Danish helmer Lone Scherfig is already developing the second season of “The Shift”, she revealed on Monday during an online Berlinale Series Market talk “From Film to Series.”Set in a maternity ward and starring Sofie Gråbøl and Pål Sverre Hagen, it’s the first series as a showrunner for Scherfig, who in 2019 opened Berlinale with “The Kindness of Strangers” and won a Silver Bear for “Italian for Beginners.”“It’s a tribute to the people who work in the healthcare system under extreme pressure, to the care and the love they show, even despite tough working conditions,” she said. “The Shift” is produced by Creative Alliance, with Beta Film handling the sales.

Emilio Mayorga Carla Simón’s first feature “Summer 1993” was a knockout; a Generation Kplus and Best First Feature award winner at the 2017 Berlinale and Spain’s 2018 Oscars submission, winning three Spanish Academy Goya Awards. The director has since become a reference within a new wave of Catalan women filmmakers that have broken out to considerable box office and festival success.Now, Simón competes in Berlin’s main competition with her sophomore effort “Alcarràs,” exploring her own roots through her adoptive mother’s family.Set in the so-called Catalan Far West, in a small village near Lleida, the film is shot entirely using non-professional actors.

K.J. Yossman BBC drama “Peaky Blinders” has set a premiere date for its sixth and final season.The show, led by Cillian Murphy, will return on Feb. 27.Murphy plays Tommy Shelby in the hit series.BBC revealed the news with an enormous mural painted on the side of a wall in Birmingham of Murphy’s face, which was tweeted with the caption: “The Shelbys are back in business.”The mural was created by by street artist Akse.

Christine McGuinness ate barely 300 calories a week at the height of her anorexia battle while living and working as a dancer in Paris, France, as a teenager.The 33 year old mum-of-three, who recently shared all about her husband's dramatic hospital dash, has opened up on some of the darker times in her life in her new memoir A Beautiful Nightmare. She detailed how, despite spending an incredible time in the city and getting the opportunity to kickstart her career as a podium dancer, her eating disorder got "out of control".

Stephen Webb has revealed he's had no choice but to pull out of Friday's episode of Gogglebox as he's tested positive for Covid-19.The 50 year old, who recently shared a first glimpse into his new Brighton home with Daniel Lustig, took to his Instagram feed to share the news with the "Gogglebox crew" and his 187,000 followers. Sitting in a grey T-shirt with a black cap on his head alongside his round glasses while Daniel stood behind him through a window, he explained: "This is for the Gogglebox crew, good luck filming this week, can't wait to see you Friday.