A few days ago, Piers Morgan claimed in an interview with Billy Bush that “I’ve had some messages communicated to me on behalf of several members of the Royal Family. I’m not going to go into who it was… but gratitude that somebody was standing up.” I have no doubt that there are members of the Windsor klan who are happy that Piers Morgan is yammering incessantly about the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. But for those royals to actually authorize some staff member to send their thanks to Piers? Next level bullsh-t. While Piers refuses to name those royals, he did stop by Kensington Palace yesterday. He hashtagged this photo #TeamPalace with a fist emoji. So… I guess we know who sent their thanks to Piers. Baldingham and Lynchpin Guevera have sent their regards. It’s also weird that Piers won’t specifically name the royals who “thanked” him, yet he keeps demanding that Meghan and Harry name the “racist royal.” Piers, the racist royals are the ones who thanked you. This is not hard.

Piers Morgan has called for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle to name the royal who made comments about Archie’s skin color, saying a racist should not receive taxpayers’ money. The former Good Morning Britain host told Extra that taxpayers were funding the unnamed royal and added: “I don’t want to be paying for a racist.”

Prince Harry and Meghan told Oprah Winfrey off camera that Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip were not the ones who made the comments but left a cloud of suspicion hanging over the rest of the family.

The former tabloid editor said: “[Meghan] hasn’t named who that person is, so everybody is in the frame, apart from the Queen and Prince Philip, who they magnanimously removed from the frame. Was there a problem about the skin color of this child in the eyes of the royal?

“If it were, if this is how it was done, then I want to know who that Royal is because I’m paying for them as a British taxpayer. I don’t want to be paying for a racist.”

[From Newsweek]

Is there something wrong with Piers’ brain? Is he just in it for the attention? Is he just that thirsty and deranged or is there something physically/mentally wrong with him? I’m starting to wonder. He declared that Meghan was lying about everything… so why would he even believe her if she and Harry did name names? Wouldn’t he just say that they were lying about that too? And clearly, he knows full well who the racist royals are because, again, they’re the ones thanking him for waging a deranged, nonsensical hate campaign against a pregnant woman.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Piers’ social media.

Scott Rudin has been a famous movie producer for many decades, and he’s executive-produced and developed multiple Oscar-winning productions over the years. I remember when I realized that Rudin was a nasty, backstabbing, abusive, melodramatic bitch though: the 2014 Sony Hack, where reams of internal Sony emails were hacked by North Korea in retaliation for Seth Rogen’s dumb movie The Interview. Remember when Rudin called Angelina Jolie a “minimally talented spoiled brat” and a “camp event” with a “rampaging spoiled ego”? Rudin talks about nearly everyone that way except David Fincher. He loooves David Fincher. Anyway, the Sony Hack was a terrible look for Rudin but he survived it and now here we are: the Hollywood Reporter has a huge story about how, shock of shocks, Scott Rudin has been a physically and emotionally abusive bully to staff and coworkers for years. You can read the THR story here.

Halloween 2012: At about 4:15 p.m. — more than 10 hours into a typical Rudin day that began at 6 and never wrapped before 8 — the Oscar-winning producer was enraged that one of his assistants failed to get him a seat on a sold-out flight. In a fit of fury, he allegedly smashed an Apple computer monitor on the assistant’s hand. The screen shattered, leaving the young man bleeding and in need of immediate medical attention. One person in the office at the time described the incident as sounding like a car crash: a cacophonous collision of metal, glass and limb. The wounded assistant headed to the emergency room, and Rudin called his lawyer, according to another staffer there that Halloween afternoon. Everyone else huddled in the conference room, shaken.

Caroline Rugo describes her experiences working with Rudin: “He threw a laptop at the window in the conference room and then went into the kitchen and we could hear him beating on the napkin dispenser. Then another time he threw a glass bowl at [a colleague]. It’s hard to say if he threw it in the general direction or specifically at [the colleague], but the glass bowl hit the wall and smashed everywhere. The HR person left in an ambulance due to a panic attack. That was the environment.”

Rugo left & now works for Netflix: “I got fired for having Type 1 diabetes, which is a federally protected disability,” says Rugo, who now works in development at Netflix. “I one hundred percent could have sued him. But I didn’t because of the fear of being blacklisted. But I’ve worked at Netflix for a year and a half now. And it was such a shock to the system because it’s one of the most respectful and progressive workplaces in terms of employee relations. Now that I have established myself here and I am a part of a team where my opinions are respected and welcomed, I have no issue speaking out about Scott. Everyone just knows he’s an absolute monster.”

Ryan Nelson, Rudin’s assistance in 2018-19: He says he experienced and witnessed so much mistreatment, including the producer throwing a stapler at a theater assistant and calling him a “r-tard,” that he left the industry altogether. “Every day was exhausting and horrific,” he says. “Not even the way he abused me, but watching the way he abused the people around me who started to become my very close friends. You’re spending 14 hours a day with the same people, enduring the same abuse. It became this collective bond with these people.”

Rudin settles quickly, or there will be repercussions: Per a knowledgeable legal source, bullying claims against Rudin never see the light of day and are settled quietly. Fear of reprisals has kept many from speaking out. Employees typically sign a non-disparagement agreement. And several sources for this piece consulted with an attorney before proceeding, even off the record. Rudin also has been known to change credits, both as incentive and punishment. Several sources say that the victim of the computer monitor incident received three associate producing credits in addition to a monetary settlement.

[From THR]

The next Rudin production coming out is The Woman in the Window, an Amy Adams film which had a fraught production mainly because of Rudin’s hissy fits. It comes out on Netflix, in case you want to avoid it. It’s difficult to avoid Rudin’s productions because he has produced some great films. But yeah, he’s an absolute monster. What’s sort of surprising to me is that after he was exposed as a massive a–hole in the Sony Hack, his behavior didn’t improve. If anything, it seemed to get much, much worse. Maybe he thought he was getting away with it so why not double-down. Disgusting. Destroy his career. I hope everyone he’s physically assaulted sues him and files charges.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.

From CB: I bought the desktop shelf we featured last week. It was so easy to put together and looks super cute on my desk! I also got the Water Buffalo hydration backpack that Hecate recommended. My son uses it while he’s out on his bike and he says it works great. Here are some more things Hecate and I are looking at.

A device you attach to your sheets so nothing gets trapped in them when they dry

From CB: My washing machine often goes off balance because the sheets get mixed up with the towels. Wad Free is a device you attach to all four corners of both your fitted and flat sheets. It keeps your washing machine from going off balance and it keeps other laundry from getting trapped inside your sheets. The sheets dry faster too because they don’t get all wadded up. This has 4.2 stars, over 500 ratings and a B on Fakespot. You get two devices, which is enough for two sheets. People say it works exactly as it’s supposed to. “I tried it out and my sheets not only did NOT wad up, they came out of the dryer feeling fresher, feeling more dry, and unwrinkled!” “These work great! Now I don’t have to wash my sheets separately. No checking the dryer half way through to pull out t-shirts or whatever else got caught up in the sheet knot.” Please note that this doesn’t work for bamboo, eucalyptus, or rayon sheets.

Affordable high-waisted workout leggings with a cool design

From CB: These seamless, squat proof workout tights come in six colors and in small, medium and large. They have 4.2 stars, over 5,200 ratings and an A on Fakespot. Women say they’re comfortable, sweat proof and flattering. “By far one of the best pair of tights that I have for the gym, hands down. The material is great, squat proof, high waisted, and freaking sweat proof!” “I love these leggings! So sexy and comfortable at the same time. The material is awesome.” “I was surprised at the great quality for the price! They performed perfect at the gym through running and weight training.” They’re said to run small so you’ll want to order a size up.

Saute sauces for delicious easy weeknight dinners

From CB: I try to cook during the week but it takes too much time and we end up eating convenience food. Meal delivery services are expensive but we’ve tried those too. This is a set of three simmer sauces by Kevin’s Natural Foods for just $15. The price of $5 per pack is comparable to the cost of simmer sauces at the store. They’re gluten free, non-GMO and preservative free. They come in so many different flavors like cilantro lime, lemongrass basil, Thai coconut and Korean BBQ. They have 777 ratings, 4.5 stars and an A on Fakespot. Reviewers say they taste great and make dinner prep easy. “These sauces are magic. A high end trick added to our meal prep.” “ All you do is cook your chicken breast & then dump the sauce on, let things heat through & boom! it’s done! Serve it over rice & you would think you’d ordered from a favorite restaurant.”

An eyelash and eyebrow growth serum that really works

From CB: We’ve featured Pronexa Lavish Lash serum before and I was using it for a while, but I stopped because my eyelashes were getting too long. I only use it once in a while because my eyelashes are almost bumping the top of my lids. This has 43,000 ratings, 4.1 stars and the same score on ReviewMeta. People say it works as well as more expensive brands. “I have been using Rodan & Fields lash boost for about a year now. I just can’t afford it. But with Lavish Lash, I am getting the same results for a fraction of the cost.” “It really works! Within two weeks I noticed a difference and it just gets better.”

A belted t-shirt dress that’s perfect for summer

From Hecate: I like this stylish take on the simple t-shirt dress. Not only is it belted, but the sleeve detail on the short sleeved versions is more tailored than a simple seam. There are 14 colors to choose from, four in a long sleeve version. And bonus – pockets! The dress is $35 but there’s a coupon this week that gives you $2 off. Over 2,700 people gave the dress 4.3 stars that ReviewMeta confirmed. There are also several customer photos in the comments, too. One reviewer said that the design flatters most figures, “I usually steer away from form fitting dresses because of my love handles but this one somehow hides them and gives me more of that desirable hourglass shape.” That was the comment that sold me because t-shirt dresses usually point to all my rolls. Others said the sizing was consistent, “Size consistency upon ordering is very good. Ordered many colors and all fit the same.” Almost every comment said the fabric was the perfect weight and quality. And really soft.

A stylish wood bedside clock that tells temperature and humidity

From Hecate: I’ve been using a cheap little clock in my bedroom for years. I liked it because you could change the colors of numbers. The other day it shorted out or something and started flashing every color it had at about 3AM. I thought aliens were landing. Needless to say, I’m in the market for a new one. I love the look of this little clock and it’ll match my decor really well. I also like that it tells the temperature, because I swear our bedroom is 7 degrees hotter than anywhere else in the house. This will save so many air conditioner fights. It comes in three different wood veneers – black, brown and white – priced $22-$25. There are over 31,000 reviews, giving it 4.6 stars and ReviewMeta only adjusted it to 4.4. Reviewers said it’s a good little clock and like that the brightness is adjustable. “Its numbers are large enough to see from the bed; it’s small enough to be tucked into the bookcase at a perfect height, and the light of the numbers is adjustable at three levels.” This one said the humidity readout did them a solid, “This digital clock is exactly what we were looking for! Didn’t even realize how bad the humidity was in our bedroom until we got this. Now we run a humidifier at night and feel so much better!” Many of the commenters did mention that you need to read the instructions to set the clock up, you can’t just wing it.

A brownie pan that’s all corners

From Hecate: I was attracted to this brownie pan because the finished product looks like a Nailed It product. But the bonus is that six raised centered squares give several extra crispy sides for the brownie lover in your family. The pan is normally $25 but it’s on sale for $22.50 this week. Out of 578 reviews, it earned 4.6 stars and Fakespot gave it an A. One commenter said this thing was just perfect, “They are mostly edges and the perfect thickness. Perfect size Perfect texture and hardly any cleanup.” Another said the brownies looked just as good as regular pans, “I wasn’t sure how the shape would look once cut, but it actually looks pretty uniform. Would highly recommend this as an alternative to the other more well-known brownie pan.” One commenter said to use the 9×13 directions for proper measurements and almost all of them said with just a little grease in the pan the brownies pop right out.

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ITV journalist Tom Bradby had once been a close media ally to Prince William and Prince Harry. Bradby got exclusives from both brothers and he was seen as more of a neutral ally, rather than someone deeply embedded in a royal court. That began to change in the last half of 2019, when Bradby accompanied the Duke and Duchess of Sussex on their African tour. He organized the documentary about the tour and conducted personal interviews with both H&M, interviews which reflected the rawness of Harry and Meghan’s feelings having survived the previous year’s onslaught of negative, toxic abuse from the Windsors and the British media.

When the Sussexit was first announced in January 2020, it was clear that Bradby was being briefed by Harry, and much of what Bradby said at the time has turned out to be the case: there was a lot of toxic drama in the royal family, Harry began falling out with his family around the wedding, Harry & Meghan believed they were being driven out. Bradby spoke again in January of this year, and it was clear that he’s still in communication with Harry, and he described H&M’s happiness in California and Harry’s “heartbreak” at dealing with all of the toxicity from his family. Well, I don’t know if Bradby has explicitly chosen “Team Sussex,” but clearly Prince William feels Bradby has done just that. So Baldemort has cut him off! From Dan Wootton at the Daily Mail:

They were once the most unlikely of close pals – a future king of England and the dogged ITV newsman. But the two-decades long friendship between Prince William and Tom Bradby is now over, according to senior royal sources. The Duke of Cambridge has been left annoyed that the high-profile presenter – host of ITV’s News at Ten – has sided with his brother Prince Harry and sister-in-law Meghan in the increasingly bitter transatlantic war of the Windsors.

While phone calls and communication between the Duke of Sussex in California and Bradby in London have become commonplace, William, in contrast, is said to no longer trust the high profile journalist who was once a close confidante. A royal insider revealed: ‘The friendship between William and Tom is very much over. The Duke feels let down by Bradby and the way he’s acted over the past few months. William is a sensitive soul and believes it’s in times of crisis when you find out who your true friends are. It would be fair to say Bradby hasn’t been one of them.’

Among senior royal aides, there is growing anger at the way Bradby and ITV News seem to have become a mouthpiece for Harry and Meghan’s gripes about the Royal Family. More recently, Bradby is believed to have been central to ITV being granted the rights to broadcast Oprah Winfrey’s incendiary interview with the pair, where they lobbed a number of grenade-like allegations at the monarchy, including claims a senior royal had made racist comments about their future child’s skin colour.

The royal source said: ‘Some staff at the Palaces are even angrier about Bradby and the tone of his reporting at ITV News, which they consider to be pro-Harry and Meghan. It’s well-known Bradby personally communicates with Harry on a regular basis and that is pretty obvious to royal aides who know how things work. But it’s been very difficult to accept given the long history between Bradby and William.’

William was once so close with Bradby that he was chosen to conduct the November 2010 engagement exclusive interview with him and Kate. Bradby went on to attend the nuptials at Westminster Abbey as a guest. A spokesman for William at the time said: ‘The couple asked to record this interview specifically with Mr Bradby, whom they have both known for some time.’

But Bradby was equally close with Harry, attending his Windsor wedding to Meghan, alongside other media figures including Oprah and James Corden.

The Mail on Sunday revealed earlier this month that Bradby has ‘significant sway’ over how Meghan is portrayed more widely on ITV. They reported he may have been involved in pointing the Duchess ‘in the right direction’ over how to complain about Piers Morgan’s criticism of her on Good Morning Britain, which resulted in him quitting the show. A source told the newspaper: ‘Tom Bradby has a certain caché at ITV as their news man. He is also the man with the golden goose in the bosses’ eyes as he has a hotline to Prince Harry.’

But don’t expect to see Bradby securing another interview with William again. Our royal source added: ‘The Duke will, of course, remain cordial and professional in his relations with senior media figures, but that special relationship he once had with Bradby is no more. William no longer sees him as a friend.’

[From The Daily Mail]

The absolute audacity of William GRIPING to other royal reporters about how Harry is still in communication with a journalist he (Harry) considers a friend and ally. This is about how insecure and thin-skinned William is, and how much of a bully he is. The Other Brother cannot stand that Harry has media allies (in America and the UK) with whom he can communicate his side. Baldingham wanted to cut Harry off from the media, leave Harry voiceless and then Baldingham could dictate the narrative. Plus, William is just so f–king petty and small, he honestly can’t stand it when someone pays attention to anyone but him. I guess Dan Wootton will get all of Baldemort’s exclusives now. Cough.

Embed from Getty Images

Photos courtesy of Getty, WENN, Avalon Red.

At the beginning of this year, JoJo Siwa confirmed to her followers that she was a part of the LGBTQ community. For the most part, she was flooded with support and love for her announcement. Shortly after, she told the world she did, in fact, have a girlfriend. At the time, JoJo did not name her girlfriend but could not stop gushing about how much she meant to JoJo. Since then, we have learned her name is Kylie Prew and has been featured on JoJo’s social media. They are absolutely darling together. JoJo is on the cover of People this week. In her interview, she discussed her decision to come out and the support she received both before and after her announcement. She also addressed her labeling, or rather her lack of labeling. JoJo has not identified specifically as lesbian or bisexual or anything else because she simply doesn’t know yet. She knows she’s in love with Kylie and therefore believes she’s probably more in line with being pansexual because “my human is my human.”

Born just before the advent of Facebook, JoJo doesn’t know a world without emojis. She sees her phone as more solution than problem: “My phone keeps me connected to the world!”

It’s also became a gateway to community and support. In January, Siwa came out as LGBTQ, over a series of posts on TikTok and Instagram. When she lipsynched Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way” following a day with TikTok collective Pride House LA, fans wondered if she was revealing something about her sexuality. And with a very direct t-shirt — BEST GAY COUSIN EVER — she confirmed it.

Siwa also declared her love for girlfriend Kylie Prew, 18. “She never cares what the internet said about us,” she says. “It’s nice to have somebody in my life like that.”

Siwa says the announcement was the last thing she hadn’t shared wtih the world. And was inspired by her love for Prew, which began as friendship and turned romantic in late 2020. At first, Jojo didn’t want to put a “label” on her sexuality.

“I still don’t know what I am. It’s like, I want to figure it out. And I have this joke. Her name is Kylie. And so I say that I’m Ky-sexual,” she says. “But like, I don’t know, bisexual, pansexual, queer, lesbian, gay, straight. I always just say gay because it just kind of covers it or queer because I think the keyword is cool.”

“I like queer,” she adds. “Technically I would say that I am pansexual because that’s how I have always been my whole life is just like, my human is my human.”

“I never wanted [my coming out] to be a big deal,” she adds. But it was: Never before has someone with such a young fan base identified publicly as LGBTQ.

“I’ve known since I was little,” Siwa says. (“I did too,” her mom Jessalynn adds. “A mother knows.”) They both also knew it was a risk to tell the world. “I have a lot that could have gone away because of my love life,” Siwa says.

Ever connected to her fans, she Googled herself. Then she read the thousands of comments. “I never should have done that. I was thinking that all the comments were going to be nice and supportive, and they weren’t,” she says. “A lot of them were, ‘I’m never buying your merch again. My daughter’s never watching you again.’ I couldn’t sleep for three days.”

[From People]

I’ve mentioned before that I think labeling has become too much of a priority with people. A person should be allowed all the time they need to determine how they see themselves. I know a few LGBTQ folks who, like JoJo, prefer the gay or queer term to any specific definition for themselves. I didn’t make the connection before about the age of JoJo fanbase and how significant it would be to have their idol identify as gay. She’s such a wonderful role model anyway and now she represents something to almost everyone. It broke my heart to read that she got hate after her announcement. I knew she would, but I wanted to believe it wouldn’t reach her. I’m glad she pushed through. She deserves to feel the power of this moment. She did a good thing for both herself and so many of her fans.

But it took courage and I know that courage came from her family, friends and fans. And, of course Kylie, who sounds like she deserves every word of JoJo signature ebullience. I think most people can understand having their human, even if it’s a platonic relationship.

I’m not sure all parents “know,” though. I mean, that’s great if they do, but I didn’t. I only knew my kids’ preferences after they told me. Their sexuality wasn’t a big concern for either me or my husband so when my son started talking about girls he liked, we figured out he was heterosexual. When my daughter started talking about the girls she liked, we figured out she was LGBTQ. She hasn’t labeled herself so technically, I still don’t actually “know.”

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Photo credit: People and Instagram

Several years ago, I became an Irina Shayk stan. Back then, she was doing a series of interviews to promote her various beauty and fashion contracts, and I just got into her Russian rhythm and I’ve loved her ever since. She’s really funny and she has that “Russian stoicism” thing going on too, but it often comes across as just very blunt and matter-of-fact. I enjoy her and her energy. Irina lives full-time in New York now, and she co-parents with her ex, Bradley Cooper. She posed for the latest issue of Elle and chatted about her life and how she’s spent the pandemic year and a lot more. Some highlights:

She’s been working at a food bank in NYC: “I remember having no food at home… Sometimes there was no salary, or my mom and dad’s salary was delayed.” Shayk hasn’t forgotten that feeling, and early in the pandemic, as food insecurity mounted in this country, she began working regular shifts at a Manhattan food bank. When she first saw the line wrapping around the block, she was shocked, she says, estimating that it was 1,000 people strong. She’s since brought fellow model Joan Smalls along. Appropriately enough, “they put us in the fashion section to give clothing away. We made a great day out of it.”

Growing up in Russia, being raised by a grandmother: She “learned how to survive, without a man,” she says. Her tough upbringing also prepared her for the rejection buffet that is modeling, complete with agents who told her, “‘You have to lose weight.’ I always said no, because I know who I am.”

They said she was too sexy to be a high-fashion model: “They put a label on you: ‘She’s Sports Illustrated, she’s too sexy.’ I heard so many times in my life, ‘She’s never going to work with Steven Meisel. She’s not a Burberry girl,’” recalls Shayk, who went on to shoot with Meisel and appear in campaigns for Burberry. “I won’t lie—it was hard to climb the hill and show people that you can be both.” Now, at 35, she is “doing some jobs that I never did when I was 20. Maybe it’s because of who I’ve become. I feel more comfortable in my own skin: I love my body. I love to eat. I appreciate food; I appreciate life. I really think that’s what fashion is looking for now.”

She’s normal when she’s not working: “I’m not a fashion person. I’m a regular girl who is home watching Netflix.”

She obsessively organized during quarantine: “I think because we cannot control things that are going on in the world, I’m trying to control what’s going on in my house!”

Her got-to beauty tip: Apply ice cubes to your skin. “Russian girls love cold,” she says.

Coparenting: She is mom to Lea, with her ex Bradley Cooper, whom she calls “the most amazing dad….I never understood the term co-parenting. When I’m with my daughter, I’m 100 percent a mother, and when she’s with her dad, he’s 100 percent her dad. Co-parenting is parenting.”

She’s not going to talk much about her exes though: “My past relationship, it’s something that belongs to me, and it’s private. It’s just a piece of my inner self that I don’t want to give away.” In the meantime, she’s tuning out of her own news cycle. “I don’t read what is out there. Honestly, I’m too busy raising a child. If they want to write articles [about me], they’re doing their job. I’m concentrating on my life and my friends. The rest is just noise.”

[From Elle]

“If they want to write articles [about me], they’re doing their job.” What a healthy attitude, honestly. I mean, it doesn’t hurt that people are not obsessively gossiping about her right now, but she’s been in some weird gossip cycles in the past, and she deals with it the same way – a shrug and silence. I’ve never tried ice cubes on my face but… I guess? I mean, maybe you have to be Russian. As for the other stuff… maybe it’s just because I know her so well (lol) but I honestly believe that she sits at home, watching Netflix and eating steak.

Covers courtesy of Elle.

Here’s an example of when a word doesn’t match up to an action. When you think of the verb “snatch”, it’s a quick motion right? Swift. Efficient. Surprising. This Sri Lankan beauty pageant scandal is being described as a “crown snatching” but… there’s nothing snatchy about it. This is a prolonged re…

In my piece on Addison Rae last week, I wrote about how disappointing it was to see her perform TikTok dances without any recognition of the original dance creators, many of those creators being Black. This perpetuates the problematic patterns of BIPOC creatives not getting the credit they deserve. …

When I hear Giorgio Baldi, I think of Rihanna. Do you think other celebrities go there hoping to spot her? This would be a solid plan.  Yesterday Lainey wrote about Jennifer Lopez for InStyle and her friendship with Charlize Theron. Someone else stuck out for me: Judy Greer, who is best friends with…

A second trailer for Cruella has arrived, now that we know this movie is coming out, for sure, on May 28 (in theaters and on Disney+ for a surcharge). I am rooting for this movie, I hope it’s good, because the aesthetic is ENTIRELY my sh-t and I’m going to be so bummed if this delicious eye candy is…