Prime Video’s adaptation of Elle Kennedy’s best-selling Off Campus book series is officially in production, with the first season set to premiere in 2026.
The announcement came from Amazon MGM Studios’ head of television, Vernon Sanders, who confirmed that while no exact date is set, the series will debut next year.
Based on Kennedy’s 2015 novel The Deal, season one will follow the romance between Hannah Wells, a music major with a difficult past, and Garrett Graham, Briar University’s star hockey player struggling to keep his grades up. Ella Bright (The Crown) and Belmont Cameli (Saved by the Bell) will lead the cast as Hannah and Garrett.
Supporting roles include Antonio Cipriano as Logan, Jalen Thomas Brooks as Tucker, Stephen Kalyn as Dean, Mika Abdalla as Allie, Josh Heuston as Justin, and Khobe Clarke as Beau Maxwell. Steve Howey (Shameless) will portray Garrett’s father, Phil Graham. Louisa Levy will serve as showrunner, with Temple Hill producing.
Filming locations include Riverview Hospital in British Columbia, Canada. In August 2025, Prime Video released a behind-the-scenes look at Bright and Cameli during hair and makeup tests, followed by a teaser featuring the core four hockey players in Briar U gear.
The series will explore themes of love, heartbreak, and self-discovery while depicting the lives of the university’s elite hockey team and the women connected to them. If successful, future seasons may adapt the remaining Off Campus books—The Mistake, The Score, The Goal, and The Legacy—and potentially expand into Kennedy’s Briar U and Campus Diaries spin-offs.
Off Campus season one will stream on Prime Video in 2026.
The jubilant, swirly Pucci print has been reveling in a summer 2025 renaissance. Once the print du jour for stars like Marilyn Monroe and Sophia Loren, now Bieber, Dakota Johnson, Lindsay Lohan et al. are taking up the mantle. It speaks to a particular summer vibe of Mediterranean maximalism, primed for Euro Summer Pinterest boards and starter packs alongside plates of pasta, Hugo Spritzes, and the vespa scene from the Lizzie McGuire movie. Tie a Pucci print scarf over your pants or nab an overpriced “fair” condition Pucci bikini on The RealReal to live the dream. Juicy!
Dakota Johnson’s Ibiza it-girl pieces
Photo: Backgrid
Setting herself up for a short break across the Fourth of July weekend with pals including Kate Hudson, Tom Brady, and Sofia Vergara in Ibiza’s southern bay, Dakota Johnson delighted in the summer high season with just about every piece on the Net-A-Porter “new in” vertical.
There was the sheer cream, floral lace embroidered dress under which she wore a chocolate brown bikini—a look perfect for wandering through the markets and lounging on the rocks. Other hits included a Dôen floral skirt, Vogue editor-approved Alaïa ballet flats, a novelty cap, and a very casual rare Gucci green shopper bag from the house’s fall 2025 runway. (Ibiza seems to be the place for ultra lux beach bags—who would have thought?). And we just know those super hyped Dune flip-flops from The Row were lurking in Johnson’s finca wardrobe.
From their earliest days to Jerry Garcia’s final years, here are our picks for the Dead’s most magical, must-hear concerts
During Jerry Garcia’s lifetime, the Grateful Dead played about 2,300 concerts, so what better way to celebrate the band’s 60th anniversary than focusing on their greatest live shows? Whittling that list down to the 30 best was no simple highway. Between ever-evolving set lists, lineups, and energy levels, no two Dead shows or tours were ever quite the same. But taking into account classic Dead-related venues, epic performances of their gems, and noteworthy additions to their membership, we decided to do it anyway. From out-of-the-way halls to stadiums, here are the 30 near-perfect shows that prove, as the bumpers sticker once read, “There is nothing like a Grateful Dead concert.”
Berkeley Community Theater, Berkeley, CA, 10/31/84
Image Credit: Clayton Call/Redferns/Getty Images
The Grateful Dead had long allowed people to record their shows and trade them for free (as opposed to profiting from those shows via bootleg LPs or CDs). But it wasn’t until their week-long 1984 Berkeley Community Theater run that the Dead debuted an official taper’s section. The Halloween show can be gimmicky (Weir tries out Willie Dixon’s “I Ain’t Superstitious” in a nod to the holiday) and creaky (Jerry’s voice is rough). But they boogie hard on “Don’t Ease Me In” and “Big Railroad Blues,” the second-set opener, “Touch of Grey,” elicits a roar of recognition from the faithful—they’d been playing it for two years at that point, and the song was already a Dead standard, well before they recorded it and the single hit the Top 10 — and the “Space” is particularly haunting, befitting the occasion.—Michealangelo Matos
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Winterland Ballroom, San Francisco, CA, 12/31/78
Image Credit: Ed Perlstein/Redferns/Getty Images
Some heads profess themselves unmoved by this legendary fare-thee-well, and there are reasons why —a lot of these songs are played waaaay slower than usual, which is not to everybody’s dosage. But there’s also cunning and tension galore on this four-hour monster, played over the early hours of New Year 1979 (New Riders of the Purple Sage and the Blues Brothers — yes, Aykroyd and Belushi — opened), and the show’s sheer heft and historicity add to the overall effect. Not to mention that sometimes slowing things down really ratchets up the intensity, as on a half-speed “Not Fade Away” that the Dead along with guest guitarist John Cipollina, late of Quicksilver Messenger Service, build into a huge boogying vista, like a high tide crashing to shore whenever the vocals appear, widescreen clarity flecked with itchy details that put one in the mind of (of all things) vintage krautrock. They dust off “Dark Star” and “The Other One” and open with “Sugar Magnolia” for Winterland owner and longtime benefactor Bill Graham, whose closing remarks are the capstone on a monument, and they have fun with them too. And Jerry Garcia is in impassioned vocal form on “Fire on the Mountain,” “Ramble on Rose,” and — improbably and marvelously — the finale, “And We Bid You Goodnight.”—M.M.
The Dead’s East Coast run in the spring of 1982 is a shining example of how playful, provocative, and freewheeling the boys could get on their early Eighties tours. Something about the gothic surroundings of Baltimore clearly reminded them of the city’s most famous son, Edgar Allen Poe. Because during “Drums,” they wheeled out two massive tanks of nitrous oxide, as Phil Lesh began performing his own madcap version of “The Raven.” They slide into “Space” with demented laughter and bird calls. “Quoth the Raven, ‘Nevermore’!” Phil roars. “Or was it ‘Evermore’? ’Twas a dark and stormy night, wasn’t it?” He goes into a long Poe trip, telling the crowd, “More nitrous? Oh, no — not the dentist! There’s been enough drilling for one night! Quoth the Raven, ‘Nevermore!’” Everyone was in class-clown mode that spring — it was the week after Jerry and Bob went on Letterman and made Dave howl. The night before Baltimore, in Hartford, Phil did a crazed “Space” monologue about the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. But the Deadheads never heard anything else quite like “Raven Space” again — never more.–Rob Sheffield
Hampton Coliseum, Hampton, VA, 3/20/86
Image Credit: Clayton Call/Redferns/Getty Images
The Dead had a tradition of kicking off their spring tours in Hampton — and a tradition of making mischief there. But something felt weirdly off about this show — why was the band such a mess tonight? And then it happened. Bob Weir announced, “Now we’re gonna prove that practice makes perfect.” They started playing something familiar — a country riff that didn’t seem possible, or even thinkable, until the moment Phil stepped up to sing, “Look out of any window.” Crazy but true: The man was busting out “Box of Rain,” for the first time in nearly 13 years. Phil had basically quit singing a decade earlier, because of throat damage, so fans despaired of ever hearing him again, inspiring the “let Phil sing” chant. But he sure made a dramatic comeback, giving a comic shrug when he flubbed the “find direction” verse. It was one of the longest layoffs ever for a Dead original — 777 shows without a “Box.” That’s nowhere near the record — they revived “New Speedway Boogie” after 1371, and waited 1588 gigs between “Louie Louie”’s. But in terms of impact, this was the shocker bust-out of all bust-outs, from the ultimate bust-out band. “Box” never left the repertoire again — it was the last song they played together before Jerry’s death. Such a long, long time to be gone, and a short time to be there.–R.S.
Dane County Coliseum, Madison, WI, 12/3/81
Image Credit: Michael Putland/Getty Images
A snowstorm swept through Madison, Wisconsin on this early December evening, but the Dead didn’t even bat an eye. It’s a criminally underrated show that contains quite possibly the greatest “Black Peter” ever — the kind of peaceful sendoff Hunter’s dying titular character would have hoped for. Clocking in at 10 minutes, it’s a dirge that simmers until it climaxes, with Mydland’s swirling organ and Garcia’s ruminating, funereal solo. But it’s not all gloomy: they pick it up for a rowdy “Bertha” and a charging “Truckin,’” proving that the band could weather any storm — literally or figuratively.–Angie Martoccio
Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Morrison, CO, 7/8/78
Image Credit: Ed Perlstein/Redferns/Getty Images
This is the Dead at their friskiest, right from the loosely grooving opener, “Bertha.” The band swings hard on “Deal” — the vocals swooping right along with the music — while “Samson and Delilah” works itself into a percussive lather, the whole band, singers included, hitting each beat with a hard chop, and “Eyes of the World” absolutely pops. The second set is where things really take off: Weir rips into “Estimated Prophet” with a snarling vocal, then the band winds thrillingly into “The Other One,” on through a frolicsome “Rhythm Devils”—and even after “Space,” they spring back into action. By the time they close with a cover of Warren Zevon’s then-recent hit “Werewolves of London,” it’s only appropriate—they’ve been on the verge of howling at the moon all night, and now they actually get to.—M.M.
Ron “Pigpen” McKernan died in March, and with him went the old Grateful Dead. New keyboardist Keith Godchaux and his wife, singer Donna Godchaux, had settled in. Wake of the Flood had just dropped on the band’s own label — a transformative, if doomed enterprise — as their pioneering hi-fi concert sound system evolved in fits and starts. Capping this tough year was a 3-day-weekend group-hug run at their home base (see Winterland ’73: The Complete Recordings). Every night had dazzlers. The perfect 10+ minute “Here Comes Sunshine” on 11/9. The sublime “Stella Blue” and double-helixing “Playing in the Band”>”Uncle John’s Band”>”Morning Dew”>”Uncle John’s”>”Playing” on 11/10. But Sunday 11/11 was the one. Three sets, 190 minutes +/-, blueprinting what would become the classic Grateful Dead set flow in platonic, super-sized ideal. Cosmic cowboy vibes galloped hard (“El Paso,” “Big River,” “Me and My Uncle”). A shining “Weather Report” and “Mississippi Half-Step” brought the new. But there’s also a prismatic “China Cat”>”Rider” (with a delicious “Uncle John’s Band” feint) and the run’s only “Dark Star” — which after 35 minutes of existentialism, finds revelation in a fully-ripened “Eyes of the World” and “China Doll.” It wasn’t the longest Dead show ever (see R.F.K. Stadium 3/10/73), but it may have been the most satisfyingly bountiful. And when they closed with the now-vestigal “And We Bid You Goodnight,” it felt like a benediction for Dead 1.0 as much as for their grateful hometown crowd.–Will Hermes
Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, Oakland, CA, 2/23/93
Image Credit: Tim Mosenfelder/Getty Images
Among the most memorable latter day shows, this hometown gig was the final show that Garcia playing his fabled custom “Wolf” guitar. But most striking was the participation of jazz giant Ornette Coleman. Garcia was invited to play on Virgin Beauty, Ornette’s landmark 1988 album with his electric band Prime Time, after Ornette caught a Dead show and was impressed. Garcia returned the favor, inviting Prime Time to open this hometown show. Afterwards, Ornette sat in for much of the second set, and his drumming son Denardo joined in on “Iko Iko” and “The Other One.” Recordings suggest the live mix may have been off at points. But the high points of “Stella Blue” are very high indeed, and to hear Ornette swaggering out of that gorgeous ballad into “Turn On Your Lovelight” — conjuring his early days as an r&b honker in Fort Worth, Texas, alongside a sorely outmatched Bob Weir — is pure joy. Other sax players have sat in with the band (Branford Marsalis, David Murray, even Clarence Clemons), but none pushed things further out than this free jazz godfather.–W.H.
The O’Keefe Centre, Toronto, Canada, 8/5/67
Image Credit: Barney Peterson/San Francisco Chronicle/Getty Images
The unofficial release show for the Dead’s debut LP (3/18/67 Winterland) was a gem. But this late summer-of-love gig shows the band blooming into a psychedelic dance band. 1967 is one of the most poorly-documented Dead years, as soundman/chief taper Owsley Stanley was tied up with his day job as the West Coast’s premiere LSD chemist (it *was* 1967). This matinee set/ evening set combo surfaced just last year on an 8-track tape. Besides the ferocious “Dancing In The Streets” and a soulful, similarly expansive “Morning Dew,” it contains the first known live performance of “That’s It For The Other One,” plus some funny stage banter. Honorable mention also goes to 9/3/67, a dancehall gig in Rio Nido, up in Sonoma wine country, which may be the show that inspired Robert Hunter to pen the lyrics to “Dark Star” when he heard the nascent melody flicker through that night’s “Dancing” jam.–W.H.
Raceway Park, Englishtown, New Jersey, 9/3/77
Image Credit: Harry Hamburg/NY Daily News/Getty Images
The Grateful Dead’s September 3, 1977 show at Raceway Park in Englishtown, New Jersey was their first in three months, following a car accident that had sidelined drummer Mickey Hart. More than 102,000 tickets were sold—the biggest crowd the band had drawn up to that point — turning the small town into a sea of Deadheads. With parking at the venue scarce, locals rented out their driveways, and some fans abandoned their cars miles away and walked in. The band delivered an intense set, including the first “Truckin’” in over two years and the first “Terrapin Station” since the album’s release. Recorded meticulously by Betty Cantor-Jackson and later released as Dick’s Picks Volume 15, the show stands as one of the highlights of what many see as the Dead’s peak year.–Alison Weinflash
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Watkins Glen Grand Prix Race Course, Watkins Glen, New York, 7/27/1973
Image Credit: Richard Corkery/NY Daily News/Getty Images
After the negative experiences of Woodstock and Altamont, the Grateful Dead approached the 1973 Summer Jam at Watkins Glen with both caution and ambition. Sharing the bill with The Band and the Allman Brothers, they performed before an estimated 600,000 people—one of the largest audiences in rock history. The event marked the first iteration of the Dead’s legendary Wall of Sound, and their two-hour sound check the day before turned into an impromptu concert that drew tens of thousands of early arrivals. On the main day, the Dead opened the festival with “Bertha” and delivered two sets lasting more than four hours. For the encore, members of all three bands came together for a three-song marathon: the Crickets’ “Not Fade Away,” the Allmans’ “Mountain Jam,” and Chuck Berry’s “Johnny B. Goode.” That 90-minute jam brought the day to a close at three in the morning.–A.W.
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The Dream Bowl, Vallejo, CA, 2/21/69
Image Credit: Robert Altman/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
Shortly before the Dead settled in for two nights at this music hall just north of San Francisco, the Dream Bowl had been converted from a country bar to a rock & roll haven; a local newspaper praised, somewhat, the “window-shattering volume” of its newly ramped-up sound system. With any luck, those speakers held up as the Dead unleashed their early primal power there. In the midst of recording Auxomoxoa, the band didn’t merely roll out new material the public hadn’t yet heard, like the soon-to-be-standard “St. Stephen” and the Pigpen showcase “Doin’ That Rag,” but played some of those songs with a startling ferocity. With Garcia pushing his guitar into new territory — the tripped-out twang in “Cryptal Envelopment” and the downright ornery tone on “Death Don’t Have No Mercy” — the Dead of this era were leaving their jug-band and garage-band days behind and heading into their own inspired outer limits. Bonus points for pioneering the art of the unplugged set with acoustic versions of “Dupree’s Diamond Blues” and an especially gorgeous “Mountains of the Moon.”–David Browne
This Los Angeles show — a summer night’s idyll — is one of the earliest Dead shows recorded on multitrack; it reached CD early in the band’s archival release flood, as Two from the Vault in 1992. (It reached Number 119 on the Billboard album chart — impressive for a title that sold most of its copies through mail order.) The Shrine is a seated venue, best known as the longstanding home of the Oscar and Grammy ceremonies, and you can hear the early dance-band Dead working to get everyone up and moving. They’re pure rhythmic liquid, zigzagging hard and surging forward, as on the first half of “The Eleven,” or on a particularly romping “Lovelight,” with Pigpen mellow and controlled. The Shrine show offers the core late-sixties Dead repertoire (including six of Live/Dead’s seven selections) in notably charged versions: the Dead seldom sounded this effortlessly unified — the “Dark Star” here says its piece in a breezy 11 minutes. There and everywhere else, this is Jerry’s night — he peels off long solos and chopping comping chords with equal facility and equal delight — all the way up to a ripping “Morning Dew” that gets cut off when the cops show up and unplug the band. M.M.
Before they became their own opening act, the Dead shared stages with plenty of legends. There were fabled acrimonious shows with the Velvet Underground at Chicago’s Electric Ballroom in April ‘69 that, alas, didn’t feature any impromptu collaborations. Chummier and jammier were shows with the Allman Brothers (famously the epic 6/10/73 RFK Stadium) and various sit-ins and side-projects, like the December 1970 “David & The Dorks” shows at the Matrix featuring David Crosby, Garcia, Lesh and Mickey Hart. The most delightfully unlikely, however, was this summit of California’s best-loved Sixties rock & rollers. The collaboration was brief. Pigpen led a take on The Coasters’ “Searchin’” with Beach Boys (sans Brian Wilson) adding harmonies. A suitably hectic cover of The Robins’ “Riot In Cell Block #9” added a theremin siren. Best is the giddy reading of “Okie From Muskogee,” the counter-counterculture touchstone by fellow Californian Merle Haggard (“We don’t smoke marijuana in Muskogee/We don’t take our trips on LSD”) and a rousing all-in “Johnny B. Goode.”–W.H.
Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA, 8/13/75
Image Credit: Mark Sullivan/Getty Images
Once they hit the arena and stadium circuit, the Dead rarely played small halls, and they seldom performed sets largely comprised of new, untested material. But such was the case with one of the most unusual shows in the Dead’s history. Eager to promote the upcoming Blues for Allah, the band, with Hart back in tow, played an intimate show at this 400-seat hall for radio executives. The Dead had barely played together over the previous year, but debuting the Allah songs, they sound refreshed and ready to leave their Sixties repertoire behind, at least for a night. The serrated opening riffs of “Help on the Way/Slipknot!”, and the way that song segues seamlessly into “Franklin’s Tower,” sets the tone for performances that show how the Allah songs could jolt to life onstage. Donna Godchaux’s harmonies on “The Music Never Stopped” attest to what she brought to the band when she could actually hear herself onstage, and they even pull off the album-concluding spaced-out suite, arguably the weirdest pieces of music the Dead ever committed to tape. The recording, which sat in the vaults for over a decade before it was released, attests to the way the Dead were eager to push forward as they were about to enter their second decade. –D.B.
Starting the year before, the Dead pulled off many a noteworthy show at this still-thriving venue north of New York City. What makes the first night of this six-night run particularly historic was the set list. In a dazzling sign that the Dead’s collaborations with Robert Hunter were still in first gear, they debuted five brand-new songs that night: “Bertha,” “Loser,” “Playing in the Band,” “Greatest Story Ever Told,” and “Wharf Rat,” the latter sandwiched in between “Dark Star” jams for one of the band’s most beatific and glorious period jams. Some of those songs would greatly improve over the years, but hearing these hot-off-the-pages versions is a treat. With Hart on the way out for a while (this would be his last show with them for three years), we also get a taste of the leaner, meaner rock & roll machine the Dead would transform into throughout 1971. Coming just a few months after the death of band buddy Janis Joplin, their reading of “Me and Bobby McGee” adds a note of unexpected poignancy to the evening. –D.B.
Iowa State Fairgrounds, Des Moines, IA, 7/16/74
Image Credit: Ed Perlstein/Redferns/Getty Images
The Wall of Sound — the Dead’s mammoth sound system that the band went on tour with in 1974 — is legendary for its 50-foot height, its huge volume, the cleanliness of its sound, as well as its bank-breaking expense and the backbreaking amount of labor it took to cart the damn thing around. It was used in ’74 and never again. On this spry summer-night show at one of the biggest state fairs in the country, you can hear the band at its most light-fingered — they don’t have to push too hard because the system is doing it for them, and the mood is jaunty, befitting the venue. So is the repertoire, heavy on the Dead’s country leanings (“El Paso,” “Big River,” “The Race Is On”). Actually, the set is heavy on everything; it’s a hefty four hours. (A 73-minute selection is available on Road Trips Volume 2 Number 3.) But the band is clearly having a blast; they sound like they’re feeding on the family energy of the place, and hit gorgeous peaks on “Eyes of the World” and “China Cat Sunflower,” with the latter featuring a late-song turnaround, sparked by Garcia’s liquid high notes, that is simply breathtaking. Corn dogs and cotton candy not included.—M.M.
1966 live recordings are scarce — none have made the Dick’s or Dave’s Picks series, though summer Fillmore shows appeared on Birth of the Dead and some Vancouver, Canada shows turned up on the 50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition of the debut LP. The era was wild and unique: young hotshots trying and discarding originals, exploding traditional folk songs and other covers, the sound of a nascent supernova on an embryonic journey. A case could be made here for Fillmore 11/19 (or 11/18, glimpsed on a recently-unearthed 8-track tape). But 12/1/66 was a special one — convened at Jefferson Airplane pal Marty Balin’s new club, not far away, site of some of the Dead’s greatest gigs (the Velvet Underground’s, too). The earliest show on this list, it’s also a long one. Three sets, with many songs that would soon disappear from setlists: “Betty and Dupree,” “One Kind Favor,” “Alice D. Millionaire,” “You Don’t Love Me,” “On The Road Again,” “Yonder’s Wall,” “My Own Fault,” “Down So Long,” “Something On Your Mind,” “Big Boy Pete,” and “Lindy.” There are also future staples: “I Know You Rider,” “Dancin’ In The Streets,” and a clearly work-in-progress “Me and My Uncle,” which the boys take three high-speed stabs at. The concept of a “jam band” evolves in real time on “Viola Lee Blues” and “Cream Puff War” — both of which would gel in RCA’s Studio A in Los Angeles in January and February on the sessions that produced Grateful Dead.–W.H.
Hampton Coliseum, Hampton, VA, 10/9/89
Image Credit: Tim Mosenfelder/Getty Images
With the addition of Brent Mydland in 1979 came a gradual sonic upgrade in the Dead. Mydland’s synths, harmonies, and gruffly personal songs bolstered the band’s repertoire and lathered a fresh coat of paint to their oldies. His impact was felt on innumerable shows during this era, but the second night of this two-show run is one of those keepers – and not just because the Dead were billed as “Formerly the Warlocks” as both a nod to their original band name and a way to ward off some of the oppressive crowds starting to arrive at Dead shows by then. “Uncle John’s Band” has a new skip in its step and flows into a luscious “Playing in the Band.” But the high-water marks point to Mydland’s impact: Garcia leading the band through a jaunty “Built to Last,” Myland at peak Brent urgency on his “We Can Run,” and a carousing version of Weir’s “Throwing Stones.” The Garcia-Mydland guitar-organ interplay during “Death Don’t Have No Mercy” was surely one reason all those desperate fans without tickets would flock to shows like these. — D.B.
Harpur College, Binghamton, NY, 5/2/70
Image Credit: Robert Altman/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
Weeks away from releasing Workingman’s Dead (followed by American Beauty), the Dead gave the world a little preview of their stunning transformation from acid rockers to Americana aces. Seizing the stage at New York’s Harpur College (now SUNY-Binghamton) on May 2, 1970, they performed a structured acoustic set packed with now-classics like “Candyman” and “Cumberland Blues.” The highlight is Robert Hunter’s barnyard beauty “Dire Wolf,” where Weir stops to smell the firecrackers in the air: “I smell gunpowder!” The show is rounded out with an electric set, featuring a thrashing “St. Stephen” and joyous “Casey Jones.” Released in 1997 as Dick’s Picks Volume 8, it’s the quintessential representation of early Dead. From that spring day upstate, the future was bright.–A.M.
Radio City Music Hall, New York, NY, 10/31/80
Image Credit: Clayton Call/Redferns/Getty Images
The Dead have never been able to escape drama, and their eight-night residency at the historic Radio City Music Hall was no exception. There were sledgehammered stairwells, smelly, blown electrical panels, Deadheads roaming around the famed art-deco lobby, and many disagreements with the Rockefeller Corporation. But it was all worth it, especially the magical final night, on Halloween. They even broadcasted it live, featuring a sketch by SNL’s Al Franken and Tom Davis. The highlight is the eight-song acoustic set the band kicked off with — ideal for the spooky season — featuring a very rare “Sage & Spirit,” Garcia’s devastatingly beautiful “It Must Have Been the Roses,” and, of course, the beloved “Ripple.” They plugged in for the latter half, and no matter how you feel about “Little Red Rooster,” Weir delivers a scorching one here, while they all join in for a celebratory “Franklin’s Tower.” Come for the legendary venue, stay for Davis’ cracks about acid-dosed urine.–A.M.
Old Renaissance Faire Grounds, Veneta, Oregon, 8/27/72
Image Credit: Michael Putland/Getty Images
Even by the lofty standards of 1972, the Dead hit new heights when they traveled to Veneta, Oregon, a miserably hot summer day that somehow turned into one of the most glorious musical peaks of their lives. Their old buddy Ken Kesey asked them to play a benefit for the local Springfield Creamery, home of Nancy’s Yogurt, in the Old Renaissance Faire Grounds. Nobody planned on this being any kind of historic occasion. But in the 104-degree heat, in a field full of sun-dazed dancing hippies, dogs, and kids, the Dead caught fire, jamming all-time classic versions of “Playin’ in the Band,” “Sugaree,” “China > Rider,” and a “Bird Song” full of guitar to break your heart. Bob Weir told the crowd, “We’re changing our name to the Sun-Stroked Serenaders.” As you can see in the concert film Sunshine Daydream, much of the crowd lost their clothes — including the legendary Naked Pole Guy dancing behind the stage. But the band and fans seem to be flying on the same solar delirium. And as the sun finally begins to set, the Dead top everything else with the deepest, wildest, scariest “Dark Star” they ever played. No wonder this show went down in history.–R.S.
RFK Stadium, Washington D.C., 6/10/73
Image Credit: Jerry Telfer/San Francisco Chronicle/Getty Images
The Dead were infamous for blowing it on the big occasions: Woodstock, Monterey, the Pyramids. But they rose to the moment in their legendary double-date with the Allman Brothers Band, on a scorching summer day in 1973, at Philly’s RFK Stadium. They challenged the massive crowd with their most epic jams: opening with “Morning Dew,” then “Playin’ in the Band,” a bass-heavy “Dark Star,” a 22-minute “Eyes of the World.” But the highlight was the final hour, long after midnight, when they jammed with the ABB’s Gregg Allman and Dickey Betts, plus old pal Merl Saunders. The Allman Dead blasted off with manic 1950s raves by Chuck Berry, Elvis Presley, and Buddy Holly, before exploding into “Goin’ Down the Road Feeling Bad” — 11 minutes of rowdy jubilation—and “Johnny B. Goode.” Since both bands had just lost founding brothers — Duane and Berry Oakley for the Allmans, Pigpen for the Dead—it’s incredibly emotional to hear Jerry lavish his “Not Fade Away” solos with licks from “Blue Sky” and “Mountain Jam,” two of Duane’s shining moments. A psychedelic rockabilly party that feels a bit like an Irish wake — and a stadium show that brought out the best in both bands.–R.S.
In later years, shows were measured by the appearance of a “Morning Dew,” a “Dark Star” or a “That’s It For The Other One” sequence. An “Eleven” or a rare “Spanish Jam” (inspired by the Miles Davis/Gil Evans LP Sketches of Spain) would be a lottery-ticket bonus. This Valentine’s Day show unleashed them all, most at dizzying speed; “Dark Star” percolates along for 6+ minutes at the tempo it would take on the 2:45 single (!) the band would release in April. Here, pretty much all the components that’d define future 20-30 minute unspoolings are in place.
The gig’s backstory is notable — the first show since the death of Neal Cassady, the mythic bus driving tour guide of Ken Kesey’s Merry Pranksters. Garcia dedicates the second set to him. Weir leans into the “Cowboy Neil/at the wheel” couplet (written by him, in fact, the day Cassady died) on a fierce “The Other One,” Garcia’s tone snarling, in a full preview of Anthem of the Sun, whose recorded versions were in fact a collage of these live versions with studio segments. This was also the Dead’s first live radio broadcast, and one of their first at the Carousel, a venue the Dead — dissatisfied with Bill Graham payment schemes at the Fillmore venues — had begun renting out themselves. Sound is rough, but it’s fire; Lesh once called it his all-time favorite show. One of the first of the Road Trip CD series (Vol. 2.2), it’s got plenty of Pigpen r&b muscle, and is second only to the 8/24/68 Shrine Auditorium gig (see above) among the ‘68 transitional shows that took the Dead from from dancehall ragers into psychedelic deep-sea divers. (WH)
Nassau Coliseum, Uniondale, NY, 3/29/90
Image Credit: Tim Mosenfelder/Getty Images
Dedicated to improvisation as a first principle, the Dead were a lot like jazz without ever really being it. But when saxophonist Branford Marsalis floated in a few songs into a late stint at Nassau Coliseum, they rose to the occasion, and not by playing jazz, either. Instead, everybody adjusts to one another in subtle, surprising, often gorgeous ways. Marsalis always sounds like himself, the Dead always sound like themselves, but together they sound different. The guest is enmeshed inside the music, an instant initiate. This is immediately audible, when Marsalis is announced at the top of “Bird Song.” Sometimes Branford snakes in alongside the guitar lines, sometimes he plays greasy fifties R&B (a rollicking “Lovelight”), and deep into a rare late “Dark Star,” he engages in a thrilling duel between, among other things, MIDI-abetted sound FX played through the band’s instruments. (On the other side of the coin: the brilliantly rearranged jazz version of “Dark Star” by saxophonist David Murray, from 1996.) When pianist Brent Mydland throws in a New Orleans R&B-style flourish near the top of “Estimated Prophet,” the saxophonist catches the ball and throws it back overhand, and later he echoes the melody in energetic counterpoint. The band picks up the charge; Mydland has the time of his life. And the “Eyes of the World” here is justly celebrated—while it’s playing, it’s the best version imaginable.—M.M.
Lyceum Theatre, London, England, 5/26/72
Image Credit: Michael Putland/Getty Images
The Dead’s legendary 1972 European run began and ended in London. In between, they’d gone everywhere from Denmark to France, refining new material like the dazzling, bluesy “He’s Gone,” and perfecting the art of tossing hash pipes out the bus windows while crossing borders. So by the time they returned to London for a four-night stand at the old Lyceum, they were one groovy, well-oiled machine, reaching an all-time high for the finale on May 26. Only one problem: one of the mics needed adjusting. Dennis “Wiz” Leonard left the truck (you know, the band’s makeshift mobile recording studio) to fix it, just in time to witness a 10-minute “Morning Dew” that stopped him dead in his tracks — and even brought Garcia to tears. That masterpiece, and several other tracks from that performance, make up the bulk of the jaw-droppingly great Europe ‘72. Decades later, in 2011, the 5/26 show was finally released on its own, so you can hear that spectacularly clean “Sugaree,” and shake it, shake it, till the end of time.–A.M.
Madison Square Garden, New York, NY, 9/18/87
Image Credit: Ed Perlstein/Redferns/Getty Images
This show, midway through a multi-night run, wasn’t the first or last time the Dead played the Garden. But from the moment the set starts with a careening “Hell in a Bucket,” the band sound especially keyed up and celebratory. Maybe it was due to Garcia having survived a coma the year before and that In the Dark was heading into the Top 10, a first for the Dead. Whatever the reasons, the band blew off some of the creaky or uninspired shows of the mid-Eighties in favor of a show that, while perhaps not their most experimental, demonstrated how tight, in control and focused they could be. Garcia’s voice is newly supple on “Candyman”; Mydland’s piano sparkles on that tune and on a “Bird Song” that expands, contracts and blossoms; and a 12-minute “Shakedown Street” grooves harder than the comparatively tame studio version. Dylan covers were hardly a surprise in Dead sets, but the set-closing “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door” acknowledged, if playfully, the way Garcia stared down his own mortality the year before. –D.B.
Fillmore East, New York, NY, 2/13/70
Image Credit: Chris Walter/WireImage
The quintessence of the band’s early years took place over four sets in two nights — Valentine’s Day ’70 is nearly as beloved, and selections from each performance would make up Dick’s Picks Vol. 4, released in 1996. But on its own, the late show on February 13 personifies the Dead’s rough-edged magic. Newly trimmed down — second keyboardist Tom Constanten had left only two weeks before — the Dead was navigating earthier terrain than usual, but they still stretched the music like taffy; Garcia’s guitar breakouts are constant, always welcome, and often come from unexpected places. And that’s before the insane 90-minute climax: “Dark Star” > “The Other One” > “Lovelight,” half an hour apiece, each one stuffed with twists and why-not? gamesmanship, cf. the “Feelin’ Groovy” jam in “Dark Star,” where Garcia riffs at length on the melody of Paul Simon’s “57th Street Bridge Song.” That stretch earns the band’s legend all by its lengthy self. As for the Fillmore East, it shut down in 1971; the building eventually turned into the legendary gay disco The Saint.—M.M.
Fillmore West, San Francisco, CA, 2/27/69
Image Credit: Archive Photos/Getty Images
But of course. This is the show that put the concert Dead on the map of the general listenership, the source of the first two tracks on the epochal Live/Dead, released in November 1969 — the record whose robust sales and production costs of zero finally began to endear the band to their label, Warner Bros. But this show is more than just “Dark Star” and “St. Stephen,” even in their definitive versions. The band starts in fine fettle, with “Good Morning Little Schoolgirl” and “Doin’ That Rag.” But the gaps between them yawn, and finally Jerry has enough, chiding the situation on-mic. The tension crackles, and then, after a count-off, Garcia channels that irritation into action, leading the band into a throttling “Other One,” the focus absolute, Phil Lesh his trusty (and sneaky) lieutenant. It may be the definitive version of that song — and “The Eleven” and “Lovelight” compare favorably to any others, as well.—M.M.
Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 5/8/77
Image Credit: Larry Hulst/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
“We’re gonna play everybody’s favorite fun game: ‘Move back.’” Every Deadhead is familiar with these words, commanded by Weir on May 8, 1977 at Cornell University — the ultimate holy grail of Dead shows. Inside Barton Hall that snowy evening, they played a wicked-tight set, locked in for many magical moments that are talked about in the Dead world almost as often as Weir’s shorts phase. What’s the highlight here? Take your pick: “Scarlet Begonias” into “Fire on the Mountain,” a sparkling, seamless transition they only started executing three months prior? The fierce “Brown-Eyed Women,” where Jerry’s euphoria gives your skin goosebumps? Don’t even get us started on the 14-minute “Morning Dew,” or we’ll be here all night. “The ‘Morning Dew’ is, without any doubt, the most rousing and thrilling one ever,” Dead tape archivist Dick Latvala wrote in 1983. His opinion varied over the years, and some fans aren’t so sure Cornell is really their finest moment (for Weir, it was just another gem in their magnificent 1977 run). But Cornell is the one-size-fits-all show for every listener, whether you’re a seasoned Deadhead or a newb just looking for a vibe. That — paired with its high-quality recording — is what makes it shine. The show was first captured by taper Jerry Moore, then officially released in the Eighties via engineer Betty Cantor-Jackson and her iconic Betty Boards. It’s been enthusiastically circulated and passionately studied ever since. Disagree with us? Take it up with the Library of Congress, where it’s now in the National Recording Registry.–A.M.
Here’s your first look at comedian Jeff Ross making his Broadway debut in Take a Banana for the Ride! Ross is best known as the “Roastmaster General” for his fiery celebrity roasts, but in his latest solo stand-up show, he gets personal, peeling back layers of memory and emotion while still remaining raucously funny.
Jeff Ross: Take a Banana for the Ride is inspired by how periods of grief in Ross’s life shaped his approach to comedy — and it includes some moments of his trademark roasting along the way. Check out photos of Ross performing at the Nederlander Theatre below, and get tickets to see him before Banana‘s limited run ends on September 28.
Read our interview with Jeff Ross about Take a Banana for the Ride.
Get Jeff Ross: Take a Banana for the Ride tickets now.
Get Jeff Ross: Take a Banana for the Ride tickets now.
Photo credit: Jeff Ross in Take a Banana for the Ride on Broadway. (Photos by Emilio Madrid)
‘Tis the season of Sydney Sweeney. It just now comes with an asterisk.
The two-time Emmy nominated actress, producer, Ford aficionado and booked-and-busy brand partner is revving up for the busiest run of a still rising career. On the heels of a meaty role opposite Oscar winner Julianne Moore in the Apple TV+ movie Echo Valley, Sweeney has two films in theaters on back-to-back weekends in August: Tony Tost’s Americana followed a week later by Ron Howard’s period thriller Eden opposite Jude Law, Ana de Armas, Vanessa Kirby and Daniel Brühl.
September delivers an anticipated Toronto International Film Festival world premiere for a big swing as a queer boxer in David Michod’s biopic Christy, which she also produced, followed by Paul Feig’s psychological thriller The Housemaid opposite Amanda Seyfried. Early footage of the latter film electrified CinemaCon audiences when it debuted in Las Vegas in April. Oh, and the final season of Euphoria, the show that made Sweeney a star, is on the horizon for early 2026.
Who could have guessed that a seemingly harmless denim campaign would force a footnote on what could have been a glorious few months because of how it stirred up a surprise culture war that stretched from TikTok to the White House, with everyone from Lizzo to Donald Trump weighing in with an opinion. But that’s what happened after American Eagle dropped its “Sydney Has Great Jeans” campaign July 23. It was designed as an ambitious partnership that included print ads, 3D billboards (including one on the Sphere in Las Vegas), Snapchat lens technology that allowed users to interact with a digital Sweeney, and a limited run of the “Sydney Jean” with 100 percent of the net proceeds donated to a nonprofit of the star’s choice.
Within days, a handful of TikTok users took offense to a campaign clip that features Sweeney saying (with unique inflection), “Genes are passed down from parents to offspring, often determining traits like hair color, personality and even eye color. My jeans are blue.” The users claimed it promoted eugenics or was a form of Nazi propaganda because Sweeney is white, blond-haired and blue-eyed. While countless users dismissed the theories as nonsense, the dog pile had begun causing the hot takes to go viral. Mainstream media outlets picked up on the swirl and the coverage helped spread the controversy far and wide, from from late night to the White House. President Donald Trump clocked in after The Guardian reported that Sweeney registered as a Republican in Florida prior to the 2024 election.
“Sydney Sweeney, a registered Republican, has the ‘HOTTEST’ ad out there. It’s for American Eagle, and the jeans are ‘flying off the shelves.’ Go get ‘em Sydney!” Trump posted on Truth Social. “The tide has seriously turned — Being WOKE is for losers, being Republican is what you want to be.” His post came hot on the heels of American Eagle defending its campaign while pushing back on the narrative that there was any other message to the pun. “Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans is and always was about the jeans,” the brand shared on Instagram on Aug. 1.
Sweeney stayed silent. She still hasn’t said a word about the campaign or its backlash but she did return to Instagram on Wednesday to promote Americana with a carousel of artistic behind-the-scenes images for her 25.3 million followers. “A few years ago I filmed this little movie with some friends and now you get to meet Penny Jo,” posted Sweeney, seen in many of the images that also feature Paul Walter Hauser and pop star turned actress Halsey. It’s the only recent promotion for the film that Sweeney has done aside from hitting the red carpet for a premiere at L.A. venue Desert 5 Spot on Aug. 3. But that night, she only posed for photos before quickly ducking inside without speaking to reporters.
It begs a question: What should Sweeney do now?
Not much says Nathan Miller, CEO and founder of full-service strategic and crisis communications firm Miller Ink, which represents Fortune 500 companies and celebrities. “American Eagle played it reasonably well,” he explained, adding that the brand’s response reflects the current culture. “The same brand five years ago would’ve apologized profusely and tried to move past it quickly. Instead, they stuck to their guns and stood by the campaign. It was irreverent enough without being offensive. What was great about it for Sweeney is that while it may have had everyone talking, she wasn’t. Everyone was speaking about her, and she doesn’t have to do anything.”
But with a busy fall up ahead, she surely will have to speak at some point about her new films even if the first time she does field questions from the press is during a TIFF press conference. Asked how she should respond to the reveal about her voting record as a Republican, Miller said, again, she doesn’t need to engage. “If it is authentic to her and she wants to be public about it, great, but she should not feel compelled to do so just because someone dug up her party registration. It’s totally appropriate for her to say, ‘I don’t discuss my politics, that’s personal. I’m only here to talk about my movie.’ And she doesn’t lose. That’s the safest strategy,” he noted, adding that on the flip side it is possible today to build a brand as a political celebrity as there have been plenty of examples on the left. Reaching across the aisle today only helps to widen one’s appeal, Miller said.
Lucy Robertson, head of brand marketing at Buttermilk, an agency that specializes in creator marketing, said the American Eagle campaign felt like a “misstep” for Sweeney because rather than leveraging her as a creative partner who helped shape the narrative. “It uses her as a convenient ‘hook’ to hang the campaign on, in this case, with a tone-deaf ‘good genes’ message that quietly reinforces Eurocentric beauty ideals like white skin, blonde hair, blue eyes.”
Robertson said that “real influence” in today’s market comes from being “embedded in the creative ecosystem for the long-term” rather than just doing one-off endorsement deals. Sweeney has a long history of brand deals after having partnered with Laneige, Miu Miu, Armani Beauty, Kérastase, Heydude, Dr. Squatch and Baskin-Robbins.
“Zendaya’s partnership with On, for example, sets the benchmark. In that 14-month collaboration — set to be the first chapter of a multi-year partnership — she hasn’t just starred in ads — she’s co-designed the Cloudzone Moon sneaker, helped craft the visual story in the evocative ‘Be Every You’ campaign, and shaped how her identity and movement translate into both product and storytelling,” Robertson explained of Sweeney’s Euphoria co-star. “That level of integration deepens cultural currency where we’ve seen Sydney front multiple brand campaigns in a short space of time, the result can feel more transactional than transformative.”
A well-placed legal source familiar with negotiating A-list brand deals says it may be too soon to tell whether the social media swirl will affect Sweeney’s future partnerships and acting gigs. Companies might prefer not to work with her if they believe consumers have Sweeney fatigue or if her exposure could tarnish their image. (Amid the American Eagle backlash, Baskin-Robbins disabled comments on its TikTok videos featuring Sweeney.) The expert notes their advice to clients varies based on star wattage and that there’s a science to measuring celebrity. At a certain level of fame, too many product endorsements could dull one’s A-list image, the source added, while others turn to international markets to keep cash flow coming in while avoiding being “everywhere” on their home turf. Meanwhile, brand deals are becoming a necessity for middle-of-the-road actors who are feeling the squeeze of studio consolidation with fewer available gigs.
Matt Herbert, co-founder and co-CEO of brand tracking platform Tracksuit, tells The Hollywood Reporter that the reaction to AE’s campaign “doesn’t need to necessarily define AE, but it is about how they react from here on.” He cites Pepsi’s controversial 2017 ad with Kendall Jenner that some called tone-deaf for using strikingly similar themes to Black Lives Matter protests. (The company later pulled the commercial online.)
Tracksuit also found that brand awareness for another one of Sweeney’s brand partnerships for Dr. Squatch saw that company boosted by three percentage points from August 2024 to July 2025. (Recall that the men’s soap brand sold bars made with her actual bathwater due to popular demand.) The company also notes that “trendy” is a common theme associated with Laneige, Dr. Squatch and Miu Miu among survey respondents already familiar with all three brands. As for AE’s bottom line, the company’s next earnings report is Sept. 4, which could offer insight to how much of an impact, positive or negative, the controversy had on sales.
Herbert notes that AE was “facing pretty big challenges over the past 18 months,” with brand awareness down by 6 percentage points from January 2024 to June 2025; and consideration, preference and usage declined by 5 percentage points. … any celebrity [endorsement or] brand activation is an attempt to drive relevance, which we know from looking at all of our tracking data.”
In the case of AE, “the news is so fresh, the conversation is so fresh, and we’ll be keeping an eye [on the outcome of the campaign in] the coming months,” says Herbert. That could mean even more eyes on Sweeney and her upcoming projects, which in Hollywood is always a good thing.
Adam Levine is a loud and proud girl dad. As the father of two daughters (as well as a two-year-old son), the Maroon 5 singer is not afraid to say that his girls’ musical taste sometimes shapes his own.
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So when he sat down with the Sirius XM Hits 1 this week to promote his band’s just-released Love Is Like album as part of the radio streamer’s new Artist Residency program, Levine opened up about bonding with Dusty Rose, 8, and Gio Grace, 6, over their mutual obsession with Olivia Rodrigo. “I gotta do Olivia ’cause of my kids. They’ll be so excited. I mean, I’m also a fan of Olivia. I’m not shying away from the fact that I’m a big fan of Olivia Rodrigo,” he said.
“I took my girls to go see Olivia Rodrigo play at the Forum last summer and she was phenomenal,” Levine added. “I was blown away. She keeps it real. She puts on a rock show. All you kids out there, she does it for real. Not too much glitz and glamor and smoke and mirrors. Just the real deal. I think she’s amazing, so I’m gonna play a song by Olivia Rodrigo.”
Levine also told SiriusXM Hits 1 about the circuitous route the album’s soulful title track took to its final destination. The song, on which Levine sings in an almost rap-like cadence over a sample of the 1972 Ashford & Simpson song “Silly Wasn’t I,” was originally titled “Drugs,” but the band nixed that name because it felt too harsh.
He said he was at home writing and messing around with samples when he wrote the line, “love is like drugs,” which he wasn’t sure fit his vibe. “I was like, ‘Am I really gonna do this? This is weird. This is not my normal style,’” Levine recalled thinking of the track that started out as “a joke,” but then took on a real life when he sent it to a few friends thinking they’d agree it was a dumb idea.
“I was like, ‘Oh, this is dumb. I can’t do this. This is silly, right?,’” he asked them. “And every response I kept getting back was like, ‘No, this is actually really good,’ and so there’s that scary feeling of something when you’re doing something that you don’t usually do.” More confident he was on to something, Levine kept working on the track before having a lightbulb moment that what it really needed was a verse from Lil Wayne.
“So we got it to his team and it’s funny because when they got it, they were like, ‘Oh, this is so sick. When is Adam gonna cut it?,’ and they were like, ‘No, that’s Adam singing in the song.’ And they’re like, ‘What?’” But for Levine, 46, who is more than three decades into his career, putting the final touches on the song was “scary” because it was definitely new territory for him. “But they loved it. Wayne loved it. His verse is crazy,” he said. “It worked out, you know?”
Maroon 5’s eighth studio album also features the previously released team-up with BLACKPINK’s LISA on “Priceless,” as well as the singles “All Night” and “California” and “I Like It” featuring Sexyy Red.
Maroon 5 will hit the road in the fall to support the new album, kicking off with a Sept. 19 stop at the iHeartRadio Music Festival in Las Vegas, followed by the proper tour kick-off on Oct. 6 at PHX Arena in Phoenix.
Listen to Levine’s interview and watch the “Love Is Like” video below.
The landlord of a south London pub is appealing for help to raise £500,000 by the end of September to prevent its closure after reaching a deal to buy the venue.
Clement Ogbonnaya, who has run the Queen of the South pub in Tulse Hill since it opened in May 2023, previously said brewery Young’s had given “us a deadline to buy it back or risk losing it forever”.
Announcing the deal on Instagram, Mr Ogbonnaya said they were “now in pole position”, but “we still have a way to go”.
The brewery, which owns the freehold, said it was “pleased to have reached a positive solution”.
At present Young’s owns 50% of the lease and 100% of the freehold.
Mr Ogbonnaya said he had agreed a fee with Young’s to buy the freehold and their 50% of shares in the company that owns the lease, as well clearing all loans owed to them.
He said on Instagram: “We wish to raise £500,000, to complete the purchase of the freehold.
“And in return give an agreed percentage of said freehold as well as a percentage of operating profits of the business.”
The money must be raised by 30 September for the deal to go ahead.
Mr Ogbonnaya previously told BBC London the venue was named in homage to his mother, wife and two daughters and had replaced the White Hart pub, which needed a new roof, was infested with rats and had rotting floors.
He said: “We’ve got rid of that ugly tooth on the high street and created a communal space as a hub, a meeting place, a place to celebrate, a place to mourn, a place to share ideas.”
He added: “It would be a massive shame for this pub to become a Lidl or something else.
“We’re finally finding our feet. The Queen of the South needs to exist.”
A spokesperson for Young’s said: “We are pleased to have reached a positive solution with Clement which will allow him to independently run the Queen of the South pub.
“As we have said previously, it has always been our intention that this pub remain independent to best serve its community, and we sincerely hope the pub will continue to thrive.”
Border 2: Sunny Deol Spills Beans On Varun Dhawan, Diljit Dosanjh Starrer, Says ‘Darr Lag Raha Hai’ | Exclusive
Marking India’s 79th Independence Day, the makers of Border 2unveiled the film’s first poster along with its release date. The much-awaited sequel is all set to hit theatres on January 22, 2026, perfectly timed for an extended Republic Day weekend, which will guarantee a patriotic cinematic experience like never before. Fans are super excited for the film and in an exclusive chat with Zoom, Sunny spilled some beans on the shooting and said, “Darr lag raha hai…”
Sunny Deol Spills Beans On Border 2
In a recent conversation, Deol said in Hindi, “I have just done a little work with Varun till now. Now I am going to be shooting with Diljit and Varun again together, so it’s going well, I hope that we live up to it because it’s very scary.”
Further, he added, “Just like when we were doing Gadar, it was very scary, similarly when we are doing Border, I am very scared. But because of that fear, I am not going to let it stop me from doing things. Let’s follow the script and flow with it, and hopefully, we will satisfy the audience’s expectations.”
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The actor also shared how a small inconvenience can cause a delay on the sets. He shared, “We are hoping early next year it releases, like we are hoping for January. And for these films, we fix dates, and till now, everything has been going fine but you never know, you know, because they are creative things, right? Sometimes there are special effects, sometimes something else, sometimes someone gets sick, and the project gets delayed a bit. Sometimes these things happen, and there are many such things. But we keep moving forward with our goals in mind.”
Directed by Anurag Singh, Border 2 boasts a stellar ensemble cast including Sunny Deol, Varun Dhawan, Diljit Dosanjh, Ahan Shetty, Medha Rana, Mona Singh, and Sonam Bajwa. Produced by Bhushan Kumar and J.P. Dutta, the film draws inspiration from true stories and aims to connect its patriotic essence with the spirit of the nation.
“I’ve been promising Hulk fans the biggest, boldest status quo change in Hulk’s history, and that time is finally here,” Johnson said. “The next few issues of INCREDIBLE HULK give fans all the answers they’ve been waiting for about Eldest and the Mother of Horrors, and INFERNAL HULK is the beginning of a terrifying new normal, not just for the Hulk series but for the entire Marvel Universe.”
“Working on Hulk whether it be Incredible and now Infernal with Phillip has been a dream,” Klein said. “Phillip is not only an amazing world-builder and craftsman who pours so much heart into this book, but he has also become a great friend and fantastic collaborator throughout this. INFERNAL HULK is where the journey was always going to go all along, and I’m excited to see reader’s reactions to it. I know I’m putting a lot of blood, sweat, ad tears into it, as always.”
On what to expect in this new era, Johnson explains, “There are monsters way worse and more powerful than anything we’ve seen so far, bigger and stronger than Hulk with origins that go back to the foundations of the Earth. It’s time to take this story to the next level, and no corner of the Marvel Universe will be left untouched before the end.”
Check out the main cover and preorder INFERNAL HULK #1 at your local comic shop today!
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Halsey has announced the cancellation of her highly anticipated Istanbul concert, a show that had been in the works for months and was set to be her only performance in continental Europe. The Grammy-nominated singer shared the news in an emotional Instagram statement, saying she was heartbroken to call it off.
According to Halsey, unforeseen logistical limitations had made it impossible to move forward in a way that would deliver the event and ensure a safe, enjoyable experience for fans. She explained that she and her team had explored every possible solution with the local promoter before making the final decision.
The concert, which had already been rescheduled once, was eagerly awaited by fans, many of whom had booked travel and accommodation. The announcement sparked frustration online, with some expressing disappointment over the timing and the financial loss incurred from their preparations. Others accused the singer of being unprofessional, suggesting she could have gone ahead with a scaled-down performance.
However, many supporters defended her choice, highlighting that safety and quality should take precedence. Some fans urged others to be understanding, pointing out that cancellations can happen and that Halsey’s regret was clear in her message.
In her post, the artist assured fans she remains committed to returning to Türkiye in the future, emphasising her love for performing there. She confirmed that refunds would be available at the point of purchase.
The cancellation comes a year after Halsey revealed she had been diagnosed with lupus and leukaemia, conditions she described as life-altering. At the time, she said she was determined to focus on her health and envisioned a future free from illness as she turned 30.
For now, fans will have to wait for a new date, but the singer’s promise to come back suggests the Istanbul crowd may yet get their long-awaited show.