More photos from last night’s British Fashion Awards – Chloe Bailey wore Atsuko Kudo, Halle Bailey wore this white gown. [JustJared]
The box office is having a robust holiday season. [LaineyGossip]
Mariah Carey baked Christmas cookies with Vogue. [OMG Blog]
Cheryl Hines should be canceled, idc. [Jezebel]
Review of Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu. [Pajiba]
A MAGAt thinks Ariana Grande is hispanic. [Buzzfeed]
One of the Village People claims that “YMCA” isn’t a “gay anthem.” [Socialite Life]
Happy birthday to Julianne Moore! [Hollywood Life]
Niecy Nash looks great! [Seriously OMG]
Lily Collins’ bob is no longer bobbing. [RCFA]

Two Fridays ago, Kendrick Lamar suddenly dropped GNX, a truly great album. The album is really good, which makes it even funnier that Kendrick didn’t include any of his Drake diss-songs from the spring on the album. No “Euphoria” or “Meet the Grahams” or “Not Like Us.” Instead, it’s all new material, and it’s already topping almost every chart. GNX is #1 on Billboard’s chart, GNX sold 319,000 album units in a week, and GNX is his fifth #1 album. It’s 2024’s biggest rap album. His first single, “Squabble Up,” is already topping the charts too. He’ll probably get at least three #1 singles from this album – my guess is “TV Off” and “Wacced Out Murals” will also hit #1 at some point.

Speaking of “TV Off,” Kendrick starts the song with: “All I ever wanted was a black Grand National/F–k being rational, give ’em what they ask for.” A larger message about Kendrick feeling reincarnated this year, leaning into his more commercial side post-Mr. Morale. Well, now Kendrick has just announced a new tour – the Grand National Tour, co-headlined by SZA. I love that. Kendrick really does treat SZA like she’s his little sister. You can see the tour dates here – he’s hilariously only doing one show in Canada. In Toronto, to be exact. Drake’s hometown.

Kendrick’s last tour, The Big Steppers Tour, was a huge success – it was a nearly two-year international tour which became the highest-grossing rap tour of all time at that point (although Travis Scott outsold him this year). The Grand National Tour sounds like something Kendrick wanted to do for his American fans.

Grand National Tour @szahttps://t.co/7CY9OyXU2D

— Kendrick Lamar (@kendricklamar) December 3, 2024

Photos courtesy of Backgrid, Instar, Kendrick Lamar’s social media.

Serena Williams retired from tennis in 2022, and she gave birth to her second daughter in 2023. She’s spent much of this year losing the baby weight, traveling, launching her new skincare/beauty line and just generally being herself. Serena has always been extra and open on social media, and she’s always posting a lot of stuff and giving her fans a view of her personal life. Because she posts so much, people have been talking about her evolving look in the past few years. Personally, I don’t like the blonde hair that much on Serena, but she loves it. But there have been several people loudly discussing whether or not Serena “bleaches her skin,” because in some of her social media photos, she does seem to look a bit lighter. Instead of just rationalizing it – maybe it was the lighting, maybe it was her makeup – those people have been loudly pouring scorn on Serena. Well, she clapped back this week.

Serena Williams denied rumors that she bleached her skin while calling out the “haters” who claimed she did. During an Instagram Live on Monday, Dec. 2, the 23-time Grand Slam champion, 43, addressed claims that she purposely altered her complexion after she recently shared a video of herself at a school event with her husband Alexis Ohanian and their two daughters Olympia, 7, and Adira, 15 months. While doing a makeup tutorial for her Wyn Beauty (pronounced “win”) brand, the former athlete saw the perfect opportunity to weigh in on the topic.

“And then I put just that neutral color, that is actually my skin color, and no, for you haters out there, I do not bleach my skin,” Williams said as she applied her glam.

“There is a thing called sunlight, and in that sunlight, you get different colors,” she continued.

The tennis star explained that she was volunteering at her daughter’s play in the now-viral video from late November, and was wearing “stage makeup” when she recorded the clip. “Yes, I’m calling you out on this because it is ridiculous,” Williams said, before stating that she is proud of who she is. “Everyone’s like, ‘Oh, she bleached her skin.’ I’m a dark, Black woman, and I love who I am, and I love how I look,” the pro athlete continued, adding that that type of alteration is “just not my thing.”

Williams has no issues with others who may lighten their skin, but she reiterated that it’s not a procedure she’s interested in doing. “And if people do it, that’s their thing, and they have every opportunity and they should. I don’t judge, but you guys do,” she said. “But that’s what this world is about, and I stay in my lane — the non-judgy one, and I keep it. But no, I actually don’t bleach my skin, so can we just kinda clear that up?” she concluded.

[From People]

I don’t think she’s bleaching her skin at all. I love Serena fiercely, but I think the larger problem is her terrible makeup in general, plus some lighting issues and airbrushing issues. Many of us groaned when she launched Wyn Beauty, because Serena doesn’t know what the hell she’s doing in the beauty field. Plus, I think that as Serena has aged (and she’s not playing tennis full-time in the sun anymore), she’s taking better care of her skin, which means sunscreen, etc. That’s playing a part too.

Photos courtesy of Serena’s IG.

In the past week, the British media has ramped up their criticism – all of it unhinged – of the Polo series streaming on Netflix on December 10th. The critics have only seen the trailer, but they’re convinced that the series is a tacky, gauche, elitist, pathetic exercise in Prince Harry selling out his family yet again, unless Harry never appears in the series, in which case Polo is doomed for other reasons. The one complaint no one can lodge against Harry is that “no one in the royal family would ever deign to make a documentary or docuseries!” Pretty much as soon as Harry and Meghan got $100 million from Netflix, Prince William began filming his own documentaries to copy his younger brother. All of William’s documentary efforts are failures, because he chooses to center himself in complicated issues. He wastes everyone’s time by yammering about how much HE cares about the environment or homelessness or whatever Harry cares about. Well, alongside all of the insults and criticism for Polo, wouldn’t you know that William made an announcement for his latest documentary:

The Prince of Wales is to feature in a new BBC documentary about the Earthshot Prize amid a PR push on his work projects in both the UK and the US. Prince William will introduce the Earthshot Report – which will be presented by the actress Hannah Waddingham and highlight the “impact and exciting growth” of finalists – to the BBC audience, a royal source said.

In a brief trailer released on social media, the Prince says: “Our planet needs our help and every year counts, so what have we achieved in 2024?” He was filmed sheltering under an umbrella as he walked through woodland in Buckinghamshire.

The documentary will be broadcast on the BBC on Dec 15 and on Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) in the US on Dec 18. The announcement comes just weeks after a two-part ITV documentary explored the Prince’s efforts to tackle homelessness, which was available to international audiences on Disney+.

Prince William: We Can End Homelessness was broadcast in October and featured extensive interviews with the Prince as he described how he had tried to work out how best to use his platform, having taken inspiration and guidance from the work of his late mother, Diana, Princess of Wales.

The Earthshot documentary is the latest example of efforts to ensure the Prince’s key work projects are disseminated to as wide an audience as possible. It comes as he gradually increases his profile on the international stage, positioning himself as a global statesman while preparing to one day become King.

A Palace source said: “We are always looking for innovative new ways to tell these stories.”

This latest documentary comes four years after ITV released Prince William: A Planet for Us All, which involved camera crews following him for two years to learn about his “personal mission to find ways to protect the natural world”.

[From The Telegraph]

One might even say that William’s navel-gazing elitism will be showcased in another make-or-break moment for the heir to the throne. If he makes yet another boring, unwatchable, self-centered documentary, people will tune him out completely. It’s worth pointing out that many people would watch documentaries about homelessness or the environment if the issues were framed the right way and the films were centered on the human stories, the relatable stories. The reason why William’s homeless documentary bombed wasn’t because people think the subject is a bummer, it’s because William is a charisma vacuum, the anti-rizzler, and yet he demands to be centered because all of this is about his one-sided competition with his brother.

#TheEarthshotReport takes a deep dive into previous Earthshot Finalist stories, looking at the global picture and showing how we are progressing towards a sustainable future.

Introduced by Prince William and hosted by @hanwaddingham from 15 Dec on #BBCiPlayer. pic.twitter.com/RpJvm1vVL9

— The Earthshot Prize (@EarthshotPrize) December 2, 2024

Photos courtesy of Cover Images, Kensington Palace, ITV.

Andie MacDowell, 66, is goals to me on so many levels. She was on the cusp of being one of my generation’s “it” actresses, and she could have been a bigger deal if she hustled more, but she moved to Montana to raise her kids. I’ve enjoyed seeing how she’s since carved out a niche for herself without chasing fame or youth. Andie walked the runway for L’oreal’s Walk Your Worth in Paris a few weeks ago along with other luminaries like Viola Davis and Jane Fonda. She was working a silver strapless gown, but it wasn’t her first option. Andie told People Magazine that she had a fitting for another gown that didn’t fit properly and that she beat herself up for not fitting into it at first. The next morning she realized that she should just pick a more comfortable dress and that she had other priorities.

On Nov. 21, while attending L’Oréal Paris’ Women of Worth Celebration, [Andie MacDowell], 66, opened up to PEOPLE about coming to the realization that she shouldn’t give in to expectations and the pressure she feels in Hollywood.

“I did a fitting and the dress was really tight around my waist. It looks so good, but I woke up and I just knew it was not the right thing for me to do,” she recalls. “I wanted to wear something that was comfortable. And, of course, immediately I shamed myself for not being able to fit into this dress.”

“But that’s Hollywood,” she says. “It’s this expectation, like you see in The Substance, to be something that you can no longer be and that was easier at a certain time in your life, but I can’t. I’m too old to starve myself for 5 lbs. nonstop. I just can’t do it anymore.”

MacDowell says she doesn’t have to “stuff” herself into clothes that don’t fit her and then beat herself up for not being able to wear it properly. She adds that every time she gets a break from Hollywood she actually feels better about her appearance.

“I used to live in Montana. When I’m at home, I feel skinny,” she admits. “It’s only when I come out here that I feel like the bar is raised so high and the expectations are beyond anything that anybody can accomplish unless you’re completely devoted to being skinny.”

“If that were the only thing that I thought about, I could do it, but there are other things I want to do in my life,” she continues. “I want to learn about birds and I want to walk on the beach and I want to be smart and I want to read books. I want to work out, but I don’t want that to be the only thing. I’d rather have the 5 lbs. on me and wear something that fits.”

[From People]

Andie went on to talk about her grandneice who struggled with anorexia at just 12 years old. She said she’s doing well now and that social media really affected her. Andie’s story about those five pounds was so relatable to me. I’m constantly trying to lose five pounds. At first it was five pounds from the pandemic and then it was five more pounds from the ensuing years. Menopause is a bitch and you really get hungry. When I give myself a break and just buy clothes that fit I feel so much more confident and better about myself. Also I loved her explanation that being thin is no longer the focus of her life because she has a ton of other things she’s interested in. Exercise is just one thing that brings her joy. Now I also want to learn about birds!

Embed from Getty Images

Sidenote: Cara Delevingne looks different, right?

Photos credit: Xavier Collin/Image Press Agency/Avalon, Oliver Sanchez/Julie Edwards/Olivier Huitel/Avalon

There’s a German “journalist” named Ulrike Grunewald who seems to think that she’s the Ronan Farrow of the royal beat. Instead of using her time and resources to investigate the slumlord Windsors and their hidden fortune, Grunewald has apparently spent years “investigating” the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. Just doing two minutes of research on Grunewald online, it seems like a lot of very sad and hateful people pinned a lot of their hopes on her, and they wanted her to “expose” Harry and Meghan for [insert deranged conspiracy here]. Instead, after all of this time, money and effort, Grunewald has made a 45-minute documentary called Harry: The Lost Prince. The documentary reveals that Grunewald gets all of her talking points from the Daily Mail, and wouldn’t you know, the Mail did an exclusive interview with her to promote her documentary. This is a closed loop – the Mail says something vile about the Sussexes, Grunewald repeats it in a faux-investigative documentary, and the Mail squeezes another story about their own vile lie. From the Mail:

A major documentary titled Harry: The Lost Prince is to air on television in Germany on Tuesday. The 45-minute film has been more than a year in the making and is an examination of, among other things, whether Harry and Meghan have succeeded in ‘finding freedom’ and launching themselves as a financially independent, globally influential entity. The answer to this last question, according to documentary-maker Ulrike Grunewald, one of Germany’s most experienced royal reporters, is a firm ‘No.’

As Ms Grunewald, presenter of the long-running German news and current affairs show, Heute-Journal (Today-Journal), and a royal correspondent since 1987 when she accompanied the then Prince Charles and Princess Diana on their visit to Germany, told the Mail exclusively: ‘Harry and Meghan have set the bar very high. They want to be global benefactors who bring about tangible change. So far, they have not lived up to this image at all.’

Ms Grunewald travelled to Montecito to try to interview the couple and their friends and discovered that despite their wealth and royal pedigree, the Sussexes do not appear to have been fully integrated into the community’s most elite circles. She said: ‘On average, the millionaires and billionaires who move here pay eight to nine million euros for a house. The cultural life is very lively, but everything often takes place in closed circles and Harry and Meghan rarely take part in these activities. They seem to have isolated themselves a lot.’

The Sussexes’ neighbour, Richard Mineards, tells Ms Grunewald that the couple don’t seem to have put down particularly deep roots in the area, being seldom seen in town – just occasional trips to the local market or walks, always with security in tow: ‘Sometimes you will see her at the farmers’ market or with a dog but generally you don’t see her and you just don’t see much of him. It’s a shame. This is a lovely place.’

Ms Grunewald was further intrigued by their Archewell Foundation, which was launched to great fanfare in 2020 as their major philanthropic venture. ‘What surprised me most was how ineffectively Harry and Meghan’s Archewell Foundation is organised,’ she told the Mail. ‘The amount of donations has fallen drastically in one year: from 13million dollars in 2021 to two million dollars declared in 2022/23. According to their own documents, Harry and Meghan only work one hour a week for the Archewell Foundation – why so little?’

Ms Grunewald said: ‘During the year that we worked on this film, a change of strategy was recognisable in Harry and Meghan. They started out as a power duo in their new life in California. Now they mainly appear separately, as they were unable to create a functioning image together. They have come down to earth. I was interested in whether Harry and Meghan’s strategies for an independent life are working. After four years, the results are very mixed.’

[From The Daily Mail]

Just to be clear, a German tabloid-TV journalist barged into the quiet and ritzy enclave of Montecito and demanded to speak to the Sussexes and anyone who knows Meghan and Harry. Montecito residents would have treated her the same way they treat the British tabloid journalists who try to stalk the Sussexes in California as well. Few people spoke to her and of course no one is going to open up their private foundation or accounts to her, so all she has to go on are the increasingly hysterical and intrusive British tabloid reports, which she uses in place of actual investigation. Something else is clear from this Mail exclusive – they’re all going to start ramping up the criticism of Invictus, and try to target Harry through the Invictus Games in Canada and in Birmingham (in 2027).

Photos courtesy of Cover Images.

Here are more photos from the Qatari state visit to the UK. Prince William and the Princess of Wales first traveled to greet Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and Her Highness Sheikha Jawaher bint Hamad bin Suhaim Al Thani at the hotel or whatever. Then William and Kate traveled with the Qatari royals to Whitehall, where they joined King Charles for the Horse Guards parade. Camilla skipped – she didn’t want to be out in the cold while she was still feeling the effects of a lingering cold. Camilla did join Charles, William and Kate at the lunch for the Qatari royals though. From People:

Charles was driven from Buckingham Palace down the mall which was decorated, as is tradition, with the U.K. and Qatar flags. When his royal limousine pulled up at Horse Guards Parade, and was heralded with the National Anthem, God Save The King, and then William and Kate arrived with the guests from Qatar at around 12.10pm, U.K. time.

Kate wore a coat by Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen and hat by Sahar Millinery — both in the burgundy color that matched the color of the Qatar flag, and jewelry from the late Queen Elizabeth. Soon after she and William stepped onto the platform, she curtsied to her father-in-law Charles, 76, before she and William were taken along the greeting line.

Charles then took the Amir to the center of the pavilion for the playing of the national anthems, and the Prince and Princess of Wales took their place alongside the party. Following that greeting at Horse Guards Parade, Kate and William headed back to Buckingham Palace in a carriage procession with Charles and the Qatari guests. The visit continued with a lunch and a viewing of treasures from the Royal Collection that are relevant to Qatar.

[From People]

“The burgundy color that matched the color of the Qatar flag”– it’s true. I looked up the flag of Qatar, and it’s absolutely burgundy and white. Kate has been MIA for most of the year, but for her first state visit of 2024, ol’ girl still went for flag-dressing! LOL. I was genuinely thinking, it’s weird that she didn’t try to wear something from Qatar or designed by a Qatari designer. But she just went with flag-dressing.

Embed from Getty Images

Photos courtesy of Getty, Avalon Red, Cover Images.

I have no idea why the Daily Mail keeps publishing old stories about Prince Harry and the Duchess of Sussex, but it’s really funny. The Mail keeps cherrypicking previously published Sussex stories specifically from Harry and Meghan’s courtship too. It’s like the Mail is still trying to get to the root of where it all went wrong for them. Recently, the Mail regurgitated the “remember when the Middletons tried to ban Meghan Markle from Pippa’s wedding” story, which I thought was funny and curious. Well, here’s another walk down memory lane – in 2022, that rancid old coot Tom Bower claimed that Meghan told off all of Harry’s bigoted friends at a shooting party. Once again, good for her.

Following Harry’s decision to step down from royal duties in 2020 and move to California with Meghan, he has lost touch with many of his old associates. The prince is now said to be lonely on the other side of the Atlantic, with his best friend now reportedly being his long-time security guard. Prior to Megxit, Harry’s oldest and closest pals were from his days at Eton College. But the friendship circle first got distant after they met Meghan and she ‘reprimanded’ them over jokes they made about transgender people and feminism, according to a book.

Following the episode, the alarmed pals whispered Harry was ‘f***ing nuts’ to be dating the actress who they said acted ‘princessy’, ‘woke’ and had no sense of humour. Shortly after Harry’s relationship with Meghan was revealed in November 2016, the duke invited 16 of his friends to a shooting party at Sandringham. Shooting has been a long-time hobby for the prince and he was looking forward to joking around, bantering and drinking with his closest friends.

With the Queen’s permission, the party descended on the 20,000-acre Norfolk estate, which has some of the finest shooting locations in England, along with their wives and girlfriends. Most of the crowd were old Etonians and were all ‘bonded by common assumptions, principles and loyalties’, according to Tom Bower in his 2022 book Revenge: Meghan, Harry And The War Between The Windsors. The plan was to meet for dinner on Friday night, go out shooting on Saturday, and leave after lunch on Sunday.

Bower writes in the bestselling book: ‘He had not anticipated Meghan’s reaction. Their jokes, involving sexism, feminism and transgender people, ricocheted around the living rooms and dining rooms. Without hesitation, Meghan challenged every guest whose conversation contravened her values.’

Mr Bower, who claims to have heard about the episode from Harry’s friends, wrote: ‘Again and again she reprimanded them about the slightest inappropriate nuance. Nobody was exempt.’ The gang concluded Meghan was a dampener on the party and beyond Harry’s hearing, they questioned her ‘wokery’.

The seasoned biographer, who has previously published works on Richard Branson, Jeremy Corbyn and Boris Johnson, continued: ‘Driving home after Sunday lunch, the texts pinged between the cars: “OMG what about HER?” said one; “Harry must be f—ing nuts.” ‘”She’s a total nightmare” said others. Besotted, Harry was unaware of his friends’ reaction.’

[From The Daily Mail]

I don’t know if Harry genuinely intended for the shooting party to be yet another “girlfriend test” or if he genuinely wanted Meghan to meet his friends, but I would assume that Harry never intended to put Meghan in a situation where she was seemingly barraged with bigoted, racist, misogynistic and transphobic “jokes.” If any of this really happened – and I believe some version of it did – I’m proud of Meghan. She stood up for herself and what is right. This is part of a larger narrative which is still ongoing in the British media, which is that “woke Harry” is wrong to “change” and “cut off his old friends for Meghan.” When really, he grew up and developed different priorities, and perhaps it wasn’t until he started dating Meghan that he realized that so many of his friends f–king sucked. The larger question, for me, is: why does the Mail keep reminding everyone of all these old stories?

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.

Here are photos from last night’s 2024 Fashion Awards in London. There were several big names in attendance, and a great deal of wacky fashion. One of my favorite looks of the night? Jodie Turner-Smith in Burberry. She attended the event with Burberry’s Chief Creative Officer Daniel Lee. Jodie has been saying yes to everything these days – TV shows, movies, any role she’s offered, any paycheck. I would love it if she got a contract with Burberry. The dress is gorgeous. The coat is too, although I thought it was a real fur coat. Turns out, it’s a really high-quality fake fur. Damn.

Rihanna picked up the Cultural Innovator Award, which is well-deserved because she is a cultural innovator. Unfortunately, Rihanna looked goofy as hell in this Christian Lacroix ensemble. Jamiroquai-looking ass. Even A$AP Rocky seemed a little bit over it, but he kept trying to dodge that stupid hat.

I like Ashley Graham’s dress a lot!

Ellie Goulding wore one of my favorite trends in couture: the quilted puffer jacket as evening wear. Hey, it’s December, I can’t blame women for wanting to be warm.

I love Simone Ashley. I hate the baby bangs and the Prada mullet dress.

Nicola Coughlan in Gaurav Gupta. I love this. I love how much Nicola loves fashion too.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.

The Princess of Wales has made her first public appearance since Remembrance Sunday. While Queen Camilla skipped out at the last minute, Kate joined Prince William today at the official greeting for Qatar’s Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and one of his three wives, Sheikha Jawaher. We also got a confirmation that Kate will linger at Buckingham Palace after the official welcome ceremony, and she’ll join her husband at the lunch. But she isn’t going to the state dinner at the palace this evening (Camilla is going though). Per the Mail, Kate is “carrying out even more royal duties than previously planned at today’s state visit in London amid what is being seen as a ‘positive sign’ in royal circles.”

For her first appearance in weeks, Kate wore a Sarah Burton-for-McQueen coat dress in burgundy. She paired it with a matching hat from Sahar Millinery. They also let Kate wear some Royal Collection jewels – she’s wearing QEII’s Bahrain pearl drop earrings and the Japanese Pearl choker (the infamous vadge necklace). She also managed to wrangle her sapphire engagement ring back, after the ring went missing for much of the year.

Obviously, Kate looks fine, although I also think she looks like she possibly took an early-morning valium to get through the day. It also feels like there was pressure exerted somewhere to get Kate to come out for this. Some say that Kate has the power and she negotiated much fewer public outings. Some say Kate has been benched, and that she’s being told that she can’t do this or that. It’s probably a little of column A, a little of column B.

Photos courtesy of Cover Images.