Caroline Aherne starred in her award-winning chat show in the form of her alter ego Mrs Merton
Caroline Aherne dropped her most brutal interview question ever almost 30 years ago.
The late actor and comedian, best known for portraying Denise Royle in The Royle Family, passed away in 2016 from lung cancer.
She spent 26 years in the spotlight, starring in her own chat show The Mrs Merton Show from 1995 to 1998.
Caroline Aherne’s Debbie McGee interview
Credit: BBC
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One of her most memorable episodes sees her alter ego Mrs Merton, dressed up as a pensioner, drop a savage question to her guest Debbie McGee.
During the episode, McGee was asked about her partner and magician Paul Daniels, and the host did not hold back.
After Mrs M welcomed her guests to the sofa, she wasted no time in asking: “So, what first attracted you to the millionaire, Paul Daniels?”
The audience erupted and the clip has since been shared on social media thousands of times.
Caroline Aherne dropped her most brutal interview question ever (BBC)
“I sometimes think in discussions about who the funniest female comedian of all time is, Caroline gets forgotten about or placed lower down than she should be, which is terrible because she never missed….. not even once,” one fan commented.
Another added: “The importance of fellow guest Kris Akabusi’s reaction is also criminally overlooked imo.”
However, fans also pointed out that Daniels and McGee, once the magician’s assistant, lived a long and happy life together.
McGee, 66, was married to the magician for 30 years before he died from a brain tumour aged 77 in 2016.
Debbie McGee also saw the funny side (BBC)
Though the impact Aherne has made in British comedy will always be remembered, as tributes poured in following her death.
“Absolutely devastating news about Caroline Aherne. A true comedy genius, her work was equally funny & touching,” David Walliams said at the time.
While McGee added: “Just heard the very sad news about Caroline Ahearne she was wonderful especially as Mrs Merton. My interview will be a treasured memory RIP.”
“My comedy hero has died. What a valiant battle she fought. Loved you Caroline Aherne,” penned Denise Welch.
As Star Wars actor Mark Hamill wrote: “I’m devastated at the loss of brilliant writer/actor Caroline Aherne #TheRoyleFamily was a masterpiece! #GoneTooSoon.”
At the time, her publicist Neil Reading said: “Caroline Aherne has sadly passed away, after a brave battle with cancer.
“The BAFTA award-winning writer and comedy actor died earlier today at her home in Timperley, Greater Manchester. She was 52.”Featured Image Credit: BBC
Anish Vij
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Published 14:36 22 Feb 2023 GMT
Where all the Misfits cast are now nearly 15 years later
If you want to feel old the first episode of Misfits released in 2009
If you want to feel old then remember that the first episode of Channel 4 show Misfits came out all the way back in 2009.
Whether it was a simpler time or not back then the show managed to come out before the big superhero boom which came to dominate modern entertainment.
These days there’s multiple MCU movies landing in cinemas each year and plenty of superhero themed TV shows to go along with them.
To go along with that there’s been shows like The Boys which have a less family friendly take on the whole superhero thing, but before all of that there was Misfits.
The Channel 4 show took a bunch of people stuck doing community support work and gave them superpowers based off their personalities, then pretty much let them get into all sorts of weird situations.
As for the cast, you might be wondering what they’re all up to well over a decade before Misfits made a debut on our screens, well wonder no further.
Robert Sheehan – Nathan
Of all the original cast of Misfits it took Nathan the longest to work out his power, and he learned it in the worst possible way.
Killed off at the end of the first series, it turned out that someone who lives his life like he’s pretty much invincible pretty much is, discovering that he was immortal while trapped in the coffin he was buried in.
He ultimately sold off the power of immortality for actual magical powers and departed the show at the end of the second season.
Since leaving the show Robert Sheehan has been very much in demand, starring in the likes of The Umbrella Academy, Fortitude and a host of other shows and movies including The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones.
NETFLIX / Album
Iwan Rheon – Simon
The quiet kid who tried to burn someone’s house down and was often the subject of taunting from Nathan (who usually referred to him as ‘Barry’), Simon’s power was being able to turn invisible.
He put it to good use throughout the show, often being the one sensible enough to bail the gang out of their problems and cover up their murder (more like self-defence) of their first probation worker.
Simon was later revealed to be ‘Superhoodie’, the mysterious masked figure who showed up to save the team in their most dire times before sacrificing himself.
You must surely be familiar with his post-Misfits work as Rheon appeared in Game of Thrones as the sadistic Ramsay Bolton.
He’s also been in Vicious, Marvel’s Inhumans TV series and Riviera.
HBO/Album
Lauren Socha – Kelly
In the storm that gave the misfits (and plenty of other people) powers the self-conscious Kelly gained the ability to read people’s minds, which usually resulted in her knowing people were insulting her.
Kelly stayed in the show for the first three series before deciding to leave with power dealer Seth (Matthew McNulty) to disarm landmines in Uganda once she traded in telepathy for being a genius rocket scientist.
Winning a BAFTA for her performance as the telepathic Kelly, Lauren Socha has most recently had a starring role in TV series The Other One.
Gavin Rodgers / Alamy Stock Photo
Nathan Stewart-Jarrett – Curtis
The one to most regret being stuck on community service, Curtis gained the power to turn back time if he felt badly enough about something.
He once tried this to get out of the whole fiasco in the first place, but realised that his absence would have resulted in the entire group (besides the immortal Nathan) being murdered by their first probation worker.
Curtis later traded that in for the ability to swap his biological sex, and then swapped that out for an ability to resurrect the dead, which went horribly wrong as it turned people into zombies, requiring Curtis to shoot himself to put an end to it.
Stewart-Jarrett has been busy since leaving Misfits, appearing in the likes of Doctor Who, Dracula, Generation and The Trial of Christine Keeler.
Collection Christophel / Alamy Stock Photo
Antonia Thomas – Alisha
Alisha had the power to make anyone she touched want to have sex with her, which quickly turned out to be more of a curse than anything else.
While she first had a relationship with Curtis she ultimately ended up with Simon, though saw him take a bullet for her and was later killed off herself at the end of the third series, leading him to go back in time for her and set up a time loop.
These days she’s working on the Apple TV series Still Up and is also set to star alongside Sam Claflin in The Bagman, and has also starred in The Good Doctor.
Cinematic Collection / Alamy Stock Photo
Joseph Gilgun – Rudy
Alright, Rudy wasn’t one of the original five but he ended up having plenty of screen time as the man with the superpowered split personality.
He ended up filling Nathan’s shoes as the loudmouthed leader of the group after Robert Sheehan’s departure and manages to survive until the end of the show.
You’ll have seen Gilgun in all sorts since Misfits ended, including Brassic, Preacher and This Is England ’90.
AMERICAN MOVIE CLASSICS (AMC) / AlbumFeatured Image Credit: Channel 4/HBO
Topics: TV and Film, Celebrity, Channel 4
Joe Harker
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Published 12:38 8 Sep 2024 GMT+1
Shocking theories behind man who ‘never left bar on CCTV’ and is still missing 18 years later
Many people think there’s reason to believe Brian Shaffer is still alive
Over 18 years ago, a man ‘never left a bar’ according to CCTV footage, yet is still missing.
In a heartbreaking story ripe for a Netflix true crime series, Brian Shaffer hasn’t been seen since the early hours of 1 April 2006.
It’s a case that’s baffled detectives for years.
The night before, the second-year medical student headed out to a bar called the Ugly Tuna Saloona in Columbus’ University District with his mate William ‘Clint’ Florence.
Last footage of Brian Shaffer
Credit: NBC
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The pair were out celebrating after completing their exams and bar hopped around when they met up with Clint’s friend, Meredith Reed.
She drove them back to the Ugly Tuna and CCTV footage showed them re-entering at 1.15am.
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Brian Shaffer. (Facebook)
Earlier in the night, at 10pm, Shaffer had called his girlfriend, Alexis Waggoner to confirm their upcoming Miami trip and told her he loved her as she was going away to visit her parents beforehand.
It was thought by both her and by the medical student’s parents that he was going to propose to her on the trip. But that holiday never happened.
At 2am, Shaffer could be seen chatting with two women outside the bar. CCTV footage seemed to show he walked back in and yet, he was never seen again.
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Florence and Reed tried to call him but had no answer and they went home when the bar closed, assuming their friend had left.
His dad also tried to call him over the weekend with no success and Shaffer was officially missing after he didn’t show for his flight to Miami.
CCTV wouldn’t have shown if he used another exit from the bar onto a construction site, and this led to many coming up with the theory he vanished on purpose.
It was believed he would be proposing to his girlfriend in the next few days. (Facebook)
There was a huge search for Shaffer and some believe he intended to disappear, with theories he even changed his clothes before exiting the bar.
However, his family insist there was no motive for the young man to do so.
New theories and rumours seem to regularly pop up and five years ago, a bloke was photographed in Tijuana, Mexico. People believed he shared some resemblance to Shaffer.
But the FBI concluded this wasn’t the missing American.
To this day, the case is still ‘periodically’ reviewed by Columbus police.Featured Image Credit: Facebook / NBC
Topics: True Crime, US News
Jess Battison
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Updated 11:10 16 May 2024 GMT+1Published 10:59 16 May 2024 GMT+1
Video footage captures moment man who vanished nearly 30 years ago was found alive in neighbour’s cellar
Omar Bin Omran vanished almost 30 years ago at the age of 17
Video footage shows the moment a man from Algeria who had been missing for almost three decades was found in his neighbour’s cellar.
When Omar Bin Omran was just 17 years old, he vanished from his hometown of Djelfa, only to be found alive 27 years later in a hole in the ground of his neighbour’s home.
Man found after 27 years
X
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While his family thought he was killed during The Algerian Civil War (1992-2002), where fatalities are estimated to be between 100,000 and 200,000, the truth was a lot closer to home.
Reports in Algeria suggest that Omran was allegedly kidnapped and found in his neighbour’s house less than 200 metres away from his family’s home.
Now aged 45, Omran was rescued from the home of a 61-year-old, who is now in police custody, on 12 May.
Omar Bin Omran has been missing for 27 years. (X)
According to footage that’s been shared on social media and Algerian television networks, the 45-year-old was found in a hole in the ground in a ‘sheep pen’ surrounded by hay, located in the cellar of the man’s home.
Reports from El Khabar suggest that his dog used to wait on the doorstep of the house – before the dog later vanished, too.
Amid an unsuccessful search for Omran in 1998 after he went missing while on his way to a vocational school, the alleged kidnapping took place due to an inheritance dispute, according to comments made by his brother on social media.
Videos on social media show the moment he was found 200 metres away from the family home. (X)
Public prosecutors in Djelfa said in a statement: “The Djelfa Attorney General’s Office informs the public that on May 12 at 8pm local time it found victim Omar B, aged 45, in the case of his neighbour, B.A., aged 61.”
A court official in Djelfa said: “Two days ago, on 12 May 2024, the Public Prosecutor’s Office received, through the regional department of the National Gendarmerie in El Jadid, a complaint against an anonymous person claiming that the complainant’s brother, Omar bin Omran, who has been missing for about 30 years, is in the house of one of his neighbours, inside a sheepfold.
Officials say that the ‘perpetrator of this heinous crime’ worked as a civil servant. (X)
“Following this report the General Prosecutor of the Court of Idrisiya in the province of Djelfa ordered the National Gendarmerie to open an in-depth investigation and officers went to the house in question.
“The missing person was found and the suspect, the 61-year-old owner of the house was arrested.”
Omran’s mother died in 2013 without knowing the truth of what happened to her son.
Local media report that he was told of his mother’s death whilst in captivity.
Officials say that the ‘perpetrator of this heinous crime‘, who worked as a civil servant, will be tried with ‘severity.’Featured Image Credit: X / @EnnaharTv
Topics: World News, Crime
Anish Vij
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Published 12:53 31 Oct 2024 GMT
Reason why banned BBC show still making people ‘wet themselves’ 32 years later was never shown again
The BBC show was aired on the evening of Halloween in 1992
There are a number of reasons why the BBC was forced to ban a show that aired on the scariest night of the year.
On the eve of 31 October, 1992, viewers got a true sense of Halloween when the terrifying show made its way into the living rooms of 11 million people.
The fake – but very realistic – mockumentary followed a group of TV presenters who were watching a ‘live feed’ of the ‘most haunted house’ in Britain.
‘Footage’ of inside the Northolt home showed mum, Pam Early, and her two daughters being terrorised by a ghostly presence named ‘Pipes’.
Banned BBC Halloween special
Credit: BBC
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The name is derived from the fact it kept banging on the water pipes.
Meanwhile, Michael Parkinson was in the studio and reporter Sarah Greene was there to do a ‘real’ investigation.
Just a day after the special – titled Ghostwatch – was released, it attracted over 30,000 viewer complaints.
It seems blurring the line of fiction and reality proved to be too much for some.
The plan was to initially air six episodes, but the series was cut down to a 90-minute programme instead.
The BBC show was aired on the evening of Halloween in 1992 (BBC)
Though it was still enough to scare the s**t out of viewers, with people still ‘wetting the bed’ over 30 years later.
“I remember watching this and thought it was real. I was frightened to death xx,” one viewer said.
“I saw it when it was aired live back then. Absolutely gave me nightmares,” a second added.
“That s**t the life out of me when I watched it as a kid. I’m 40 now and I’m still mad,” commented a third.
This comes after Ghostwatch horror writer Stephen Volk told Examiner Live: “If you are going to tell this horror gag then don’t do it half-heartedly. If you say it’s not true then you pull the teeth out of unsettling drama.
Pam Early and her daughters were being terrorised by a ghostly presence named ‘Pipes’ (BBC)
“We were of the opinion that when it’s finished then we can have a discussion about it.
“The BBC didn’t do that. When it cut to black at the end the announcer said, ‘And now, Match of the Day‘.”
Ghostwatch was also accused of giving viewers PTSD after parents of an 18-year-old claimed it caused his death.
Martin Denham died by suicide five days after it aired, having ‘become entranced with talk of ghosts’.
“He seemed a bit upset because things were happening at that time in the house that had been happening [on Ghostwatch]. The pipes were banging,” his stepfather told the BBC.
Martin Denham on his 18th birthday (BBC)
This comes after a note addressed to his mother read: “If there is ghosts I will now be one and I will always be with you as one”.
“I went crackers,” Mr Denham added. “I started swearing. When I heard about the [contents of] the note, I knew it was that programme.”
The Broadcasting Standards Commission later said the BBC had ‘a duty to do more than simply hint at the deception it was practising on the audience’.
It was concluded that there was a ‘deliberate attempt to cultivate a sense of menace’, and the BBC issued an apology.