Category: 5. Entertainment

A contestant at the Air Guitar World Championships 2025 has described taking part as “a chance to be the world’s greatest rock star for one minute only”.

Piers Burnell who lives in Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, said he would be “the sole UK representative” at the 29th annual event in Oulu, Finland, between 20-22 August.

He will be performing edited versions of three James Bond songs – John Barry’s 007, a Spanish version of Sheryl Crow’s Tomorrow Never Dies and Guns N’ Roses’s Live and Let Die, originally written by Paul McCartney and Wings.

Mr Burnell, who is a secondary school learning support assistant, also plays air guitar with his students which he said “is great for their confidence”.

“Imagine a real guitar and take it away and play it with enthusiasm – you can’t break it, you can’t drop it,” he said.

“Everyone can play air guitar, it’s just letting yourself go, being in the moment with the music.”

Mr Burnell also performed at the championships last year, under the name Sober Man.

“I am an advocate for those living an alcohol-free life and can enjoy the weird and wonderful without the need for alcohol,” he said.

“I travelled to Finland alone, not knowing anyone or really anything about this community, fairly nervous but absolutely loved it.”

He said this he would be performing as James Bond Double Air Seven.

He is currently learning to play the blues harmonica and said he would love to one day learn to play real guitar.

“A lot of the airheads in real life actually do play instruments, so it’s their way of kind of letting loose, and it doesn’t matter if they play a bum note because no one can hear it.”

He added that he was getting his students “enthused” about air guitar.

“A lot of them understand the humour behind it and it’s great for their confidence,” he said.

“They can play any track they want and there’s no pressure… everyone’s on your side by just by having music playing in the background.

“They enjoy it and keep spreading the [official motto of the Air Guitar World Championships] moto: ‘Make air, not war.’”

A garden designed to support and celebrate people with neurodiversity will create a “pocket of peace” in the city, its designer has said.

The ADHD Foundation Garden, in the grounds of University of Liverpool, is described as “a calming, sensory-rich space to pause, reflect, and connect with nature”.

The garden is designed to explore “new perspectives on neurodiversity”.

“This is more than just a beautiful green space – it’s a symbol of inclusion,” University of Liverpool vice-chancellor Professor Tim Jones said.

The garden, near to the Yoko Ono Lennon Centre and Brett Building on Oxford Street, has been created in partnership with the ADHD Foundation charity.

It features a curved bench, steel-meshed umbrella sculptures, and a winding pathway with plants chosen for their calming effect.

Prof Jones said the garden “offers a quiet place for reflection and escape, and it celebrates both the incredible diversity of plant life and the unique strengths of neurodivergent minds”.

Originally exhibited at the 2025 RHS Chelsea Flower Show, where it earned a Silver-Gilt Medal, it is now a permanent fixture at the university campus.

Designer Katy Terry said the garden was inspired by her own ADHD diagnosis.

“It’s been enlightening to discover and explore how my mind, like many others, works differently,” she said.

“I hope this space provides neurodiverse individuals with a moment of calm and the freedom to be themselves.”

She said the university space was “the perfect legacy location” and would “serve students and visitors with a pocket of peace”.

Dr Lindsey Roberts, acting CEO of the ADHD Foundation, said: “We’re proud to share this garden with the University of Liverpool and the wider community, which reflects the diversity of both plants and people, encouraging the public to embrace difference as something vital and beautiful.”

Chris Pratt cannot believe that he is a dad of a teenager, as his son Jack marks his 13th birthday this year.

The 46-year-old actor took to Instagram on Sunday, August 17, and shared a collage of pictures of himself with Jack, whom he shares with ex-wife Anna Faris, and wrote a heartfelt message alongside.

“I have a teenager???” began the message addressed to Jack.

The Jurassic World star continued, “Jack, I can’t believe you are 13 today. I’ve watched you grow into such an incredible young man, and am truly proud of the person you are becoming. I love you! Jesus is King.”

The collection of pictures featured the father-son duo posing in matching “Pratt” jerseys, them visiting a farm, attending games, and working on projects together.

Although Anna and Chris are no longer together, having finalised their divorce in 2018, the couple shares a strong co-parenting relationship.

Jack was born on August 17, 2022, and the Marvel actor later became a dad daughters Lyla, 5, and Eloise, 3, and son Ford, 9 months, with his now- wife, Katherine Schwarzenegger.

The siblings too share a close bond, as Chris told Entertainment Tonight back in 2022, “There’s a big age separation… [and] he does a great job, he’s so sweet with them. And they love him so much and they miss him when he’s gone.”

LONDON – English actor Terence Stamp liked to recall how he was on the verge of becoming a tantric sex teacher at an ashram in India when, in 1977, he received a telegram from his London agent with news that he was being considered for the Superman film.

“I was on the night flight the next day,” Stamp said in an interview with his publisher Watkins Books in 2015.

After eight years largely out of work, getting the role of the arch-villain General Zod in Superman (1978) and Superman II (1980) turned the full glare of Hollywood’s limelight on the Londoner.

Buoyed by his new role, Stamp said he would respond to curious looks from passers-by with a command of, “Kneel before Zod, you b*****d*”, which usually went down a storm.

He died on Aug 17, aged 87, his family said in a statement. The cause was not immediately known.

“He leaves behind an extraordinary body of work, both as an actor and as a writer, that will continue to touch and inspire people for years to come,” the family statement said.

Terence Henry Stamp was born in London’s East End on July 22, 1938, the son of a tugboat coal stoker and a mother who Stamp said gave him his zest for life. As a child, he endured the bombing of the city during World War II and the deprivations that followed.

“The great blessing of my life is that I had the hard bit at the beginning because we were poor,” he said.

Stamp left school to work as a messenger boy for an advertising firm and quickly moved up the ranks before he won a scholarship to go to drama school. Until then, he had kept his acting ambitions secret from his family for fear of disapproval.

“I couldn’t tell anyone I wanted to be an actor because it was out of the question. I would have been laughed at,” he said.

Stamp shared a flat with another young London actor, Michael Caine, and landed the lead role in late British director Peter Ustinov’s 1962 adaptation of Billy Budd, a story of brutality in the British navy in the 18th century. That role earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor and filled him with pride.

“To be cast by somebody like Ustinov was something that gave me a great deal of self-confidence in my film career,” Stamp told the Thomson Reuters Foundation in 2019. “During the shooting, I just thought, ‘Wow. This is it.’”

Famous for his good looks and impeccable dress sense, he formed one of Britain’s most glamorous couples with actress Julie Christie, with whom he starred in Far From The Madding Crowd in 1967.

But he said the love of his life was English model Jean Shrimpton. “When I lost her, then that also coincided with my career taking a dip,” he said.

After failing to land the role of James Bond to succeed late Scottish actor Sean Connery, Stamp sought a change of scene. He appeared in Italian films and worked with late director Federico Fellini in the late 1960s.

“I view my life as before and after Fellini,” he said. “Being cast by him was the greatest compliment an actor like myself could get.”

It was while working in Rome – where he appeared in late director Pier Paolo Pasolini’s Theorem in 1968 and late film-maker Nelo Risi’s A Season In Hell in 1971 – that Stamp met Indian spiritual speaker and writer Jiddu Krishnamurti in 1968.

Krishnamurti taught the Englishman how to pause his thoughts and meditate, prompting Stamp to study yoga in India. Mumbai was his base, but he spent long periods at the ashram in Pune, dressed in orange robes and growing his hair long, while learning the teachings of his yogi, including tantric sex.

“There was a rumour around the ashram that he was preparing me to teach the tantric group,” Stamp said in the 2015 interview with Watkins Books. “There was a lot of action going on.”

After landing the role of General Zod, the megalomaniacal leader of the Kryptonians, in Superman and its sequel – both times opposite the late American actor Christopher Reeve – he went on to appear in a string of other films, including as a transgender woman in The Adventures Of Priscilla, Queen Of The Desert in 1994.

Other films included Valkyrie with Hollywood star Tom Cruise in 2008, The Adjustment Bureau with American actor Matt Damon in 2011 and movies directed by American film-maker Tim Burton.

Stamp counted Britain’s Princess Diana among his friends.

“It wasn’t a formal thing, we’d just meet for a cup of tea, or sometimes, we’d have a chat for an hour. Sometimes, it would be very quick,” he told the Daily Express newspaper in 2017. “The time I spent with her was a good time.”

In 2002, Stamp married for the first time at the age of 64 – to pharmacist Elizabeth O’Rourke, who was 35 years his junior. They divorced in 2008.

Asked by the Stage 32 website how he got film directors to believe in his talent, Stamp said: “I believed in myself.

“Originally, when I didn’t get cast, I told myself there was a lack of discernment in them. This could be considered conceit. I look at it differently. Cherishing that divine spark in myself.” REUTERS

Paris Hilton got emotional on her dad’s milestone birthday.

On Sunday, Paris celebrated her father Rick Hilton’s 70th birthday.

Taking to Instagram, the American media personality and businesswoman shared a heartfelt video compilation of adorable childhood moments with her dad.

In the caption, Paris penned an emotional note for Rick, writing, “Happy 70th Birthday @RickHilton7.”

She went on to write, “Dad, you’ve always called me your Star— and you’ve been the one who’s made me shine Your love, guidance, and unwavering belief in me have shaped every part of who I am.”

“Thank you for being the most amazing grandfather to my children, for the endless love and happiness you give them, and for showing me what a beautiful, lasting relationship looks like through your marriage to Mom @KathyHilton,” Paris added.

Concluding, Paris wrote, “I’m forever grateful for every hug, every laugh, every lesson, and every precious moment we’ve shared. Love you forever, Dad.”

Paris Hilton is the daughter of Rick Hilton and Kathy Hilton. Besides Paris, the beloved couple also shares Nicky, Barron and Conrad.

I do believe that every designer has a shelf life within a brand, especially if it’s something that takes a lot of creativity, a lot of thought, a lot of evolving a brand. There’s only so many times one designer can do that before fatigue sets in. I was at Coach for 15 years. I was at Tiffany for about six. I had my own brand for about six. One of the things that makes it exciting is that I’m involved in everything from being on the board, to the stores, to the marketing, to the product, to events. It never gets boring. There’s always something wrong somewhere.

Vogue: The idea that designers also have their hands in store design, marketing, events — that’s a relatively newer invention spun into the role of creative director. How has that changed the nature of the job?

To me, Tom Ford going to Gucci was the beginning; and now, there are almost none that don’t just have a hand in it, but oversee store design, marketing, e-commerce — all that stuff. And for me, it makes my work much more effective, because I know what I’m trying to solve for. Everything works better. And you can only do that when there’s one point of view. We all work together, no one owns the work. That’s a much, much more successful and convincing way to evolve a brand because otherwise none of the pieces connect — the product to the marketing to the store.

Because people understand what we’re trying to accomplish, that’s the only way you could really be super productive. We basically replatformed the site, created new packaging, new branding, a new store design, mostly almost all new assortments and a new brand identity. And it all happened in a year and a half. It happens much more quickly and cohesively, and a more convincing story comes out of it.

Vogue: That raises a question I had around the time that’s needed for a creative reset, thinking about all the different designer debuts coming up this year. How much time should a creative director get to really prove themselves?

That’s a forever conversation. But it goes back to a knowledge of and dedication to learning the business. At some point you have to pay the man, and the man is the person looking at the numbers. If you just go in and design beautiful collections, you probably won’t be there very long, even if the editors love it. I think a lot of designers don’t get the time or the guidance from the business side that says: ‘Look, I understand where you’re going, but we have shareholders. We’re a public company. You’re not going to be here and maybe the CEO’s not going to be here if you don’t solve some problems quickly.’ It gives designers a priority, and it might sound a bit mundane but it’s an assessment.

The fashion and culture podcast “Articles of Interest” will return for a seventh season that explores the relationship between the US military, the high-tech performance wear industry and America’s fascination with “gorpcore.” Host Avery Trufelman will tease the seven-part series in Monday’s episode of “Articles of Interest,” about the history behind zippers.

The season, titled “Gear,” is the culmination of a two-year investigation and will premiere on Oct. 22. Trufelman’s research took her to a military convention in Washington, DC, the corporate archives of REI in Seattle and the Outdoor Recreation Archive in Utah.

“[The military is] embedded in every single aspect of American life, like the military is just all around us. Everyone contracts with the military. It’s just part of the air we breathe. And so of course, it’s in our clothing,” Trufelman told The Business of Fashion.

Trufelman describes the story behind “Gear” as a uniquely American tale, dating back to the US military’s early adoption of functional, utility-based uniforms, which has since been implemented worldwide. The series will also investigate the military and outdoor gear industry’s relationship with climate change and homelessness. “These fates are really interwoven,” Trufelman said. “Especially in the United States, we don’t really have a social safety net. … The only sort of fallback that we have is actually, like, a tent and a good jacket.”

The upcoming season will be the show’s first multi-part series since “American Ivy,” which premiered in 2022 and unpacked the historical and cultural significance of the prep aesthetic.

“Gear” was produced in partnership with independent podcast network Radiotopia and will be available on all major audio streaming platforms.

Hrithik Roshan, Jr NTR, and Kiara Advani’s ‘War 2’ turned into an event film with its grand multilingual release on August 14. Despite facing tough competition from Rajinikanth’s ‘Coolie’, it found its audience in the Hindi and Telugu markets, while Tamil remained dominated by the latter. With a massive budget to recover and mixed opinions among audiences, ‘War 2’ smashed several records on its first day.

According to Sacnilk, ‘War 2’ took an opening of Rs 52 crore in India alone. From becoming Hrithik and Kiara’s biggest opener to landing the third spot on the Spyverse success list, the Ayan Mukerji directorial set new benchmarks.

Where audience eyeballs go, brands follow — and this year, brands across categories such as sports, food and even alcohol have widened their influencer marketing spend to include VTuber collaborations. 

Here’s everything marketers should know about the rise of VTubers in 2025.

What do VTubers do? 

VTuber stands for “virtual YouTuber.” They are much like any other creators on Twitch or YouTube, with many streaming themselves playing video games or making videos about their day-to-day lives. However, instead of revealing their real-life faces to the camera, VTubers use motion-capture or hand-tracking technology to map their movements and facial expressions to an animated avatar. That way, they can keep their identities private while still building distinct, marketable personas that fans connect with. 

Since the practice originated in Japan, many VTubers’ avatars are inspired by anime aesthetics. 

In addition to Ironmouse, who boasts over 2.3 million followers on Twitch, top Western VTubers include Gawr Gura — who has a following of over 4.7 million on YouTube — and Mori Calliope, whose YouTube subscriber count stands at 2.6 million.

One of the most prominent agencies that manages VTubers is Hololive Production, a subsidiary of the Japanese entertainment company Cover Corporation, with a roster of 88 VTubers that boasts a total following of over 80 million, according to figures shared by the company. In March, Cover Corporation launched its U.S. arm to capitalize on growing Western interest in VTubers. In February 2025, Hololive VTubers accounted for 51 percent of all VTuber video viewership on YouTube.

“We generally say our demographic is Gen Z,” said Cover Corporation CEO Motoaki Tanigo. “People that watch anime content are the same user base that also watch VTuber content — and as anime viewing in Gen Z has grown in the U.S., VTuber viewing has grown as well.”

The key numbers

• In Q1 2025, livestreamed VTuber content consumption reached an all-time high of nearly 523 million hours watched, according to a report by the livestreaming data platform Streams Charts. 
• In April, YouTube acknowledged the rise of VTubers by publishing an official report breaking down the growing category for members of the platform’s ecosystem. In 2024, a sample of 300 VTubers on YouTube earned over 15 billion views, per the report.
• The current size of the U.S. VTuber market is roughly 2.86 billion, according to a report by Mordor Intelligence, which predicted that the market would grow to 4.5 billion by 2030.
• As audience engagement in VTubers grows, so too has advertisers’ interest in the category. Tanigo told Digiday that Cover Corporation’s licensing and brand partnership revenue had grown by approximately 30 percent year-over-year in 2025. “In Japan, this has led to contracts with major clients, while in the U.S., we’ve secured partnerships with gaming companies,” he said.

How brands are buying in

There’s no shortage of brands that have dived into VTuber marketing in 2025. In recent months, Hololive has signed sponsorship deals with restaurants such as McDonald’s and Kura Sushi, as well as a licensing collaboration with the personal computer brand iBuyPower. In June, the Los Angeles Dodgers sponsored VTubers such as Usada Pekora to show up at an official VTuber game day event. 

“I often prioritize VTubers for a multitude of reasons: they have a very energetic and creative approach to their content that makes each campaign feel like a natural and organic fit,” said Tatiana Tacca, the founder of the anime and gaming brand consultancy Oni Vision. “Their audiences are also hyper passionate, resulting in great scale, engagement and click-throughs. And there is still a white space for brands, so there is a strong appreciation among the VTuber community for brands that recognize and elevate this community.”

VTuber activity differs across regional markets. In Japan, direct deals between brands and influencers are common, whereas brands in Taiwan are more likely to create their own VTuber to act as a spokesperson or appear in commercials, according to Donna Hsu, a deputy sales director for the Asian influencer marketing platform Kolr. This was the approach taken by the whiskey brand Ballantine’s, which unveiled its own VTuber spokesperson on August 9, transforming an image of its founder George Ballantine into a Fortnite-playing Twitch streamer. 

Although this type of in-house VTuber requires up-front technical costs that aren’t a factor for traditional creators, including the creation of the virtual avatar and motion-capture technology, it can help a brand run repeated campaigns without racking up too many influencer activation fees.

VTubers charge similar rates to other types of creators, with a range of fees depending on the size of the creator’s following and the objectives of the campaign. VTubers offer brands access to a potentially new and growing audience — but they are not inherently cheaper or more expensive than other creator categories.

“By design, VTubers are inherently digital. This virtual nature allows for flexibility in not only the characters, but the content as well,” said Sami Barnett, senior director of gaming for the agency TMA. “Brands can experiment with creative concepts without the high costs and logistics of influencer marketing.”

Why brands are buying in

While VTubers aren’t generally pulling in the same global numbers as top traditional influencers, they are drawing loyal, hard-to-reach audiences who are niche but deeply engaged. That opens up new collaboration opportunities for brands that traditional influencers can’t match, stressed Barnett. Video game publishers, for example, can easily integrate VTuber avatars directly into gameplay – as with Usada Pekora’s recently teased cameo in Death Stranding 2 earlier this month. 

VTubers aren’t a fit for every campaign, but they’ve carved out a sweet spot with younger, digital-native audiences who grew up in virtual worlds and treat animated avatars as authentic personalities, according to Barnett. 

“VTubers are a great avenue for digitally innovative campaigns — especially for brands targeting Gen Z, gaming, or anime communities,” she said. 

Naturally, while VTubers offer fresh ways to engage younger audiences, their niche appeal means they won’t be the right fit for every brand’s target demographic or campaign objective, added Barnett. 

“I think there is still a disconnect with virtual personalities for a ton of people, perceiving them as less relatable or ‘real’ than traditional influencers, which can definitely deter a brand from going down the VTuber path,” she said.