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Sex worker drama ‘Anora’ sweeps Oscars with five awards including best picture

The Academy Awards have taken place in Los Angeles, with Anora scooping the most honours, while Conclave, The Brutalist, Wicked and Emilia Pérez also took prizes.

Here is the full list of winners.

Best picture

WINNER: Anora

The Brutalist

A Complete Unknown

Conclave

Dune: Part Two

Emilia Pérez

I’m Still Here

Nickel Boys

The Substance

Wicked

Best actress

WINNER: Mikey Madison – Anora

Cynthia Erivo – Wicked

Karla Sofía Gascón – Emilia Pérez

Demi Moore – The Substance

Fernanda Torres – I’m Still Here

Best actor

WINNER: Adrien Brody – The Brutalist

Timothée Chalamet – A Complete Unknown

Colman Domingo – Sing Sing

Ralph Fiennes – Conclave

Sebastian Stan – The Apprentice

Best supporting actress

WINNER: Zoe Saldaña – Emilia Pérez

Monica Barbaro – A Complete Unknown

Ariana Grande – Wicked

Felicity Jones – The Brutalist

Isabella Rossellini – Conclave

Best supporting actor

WINNER: Kieran Culkin – A Real Pain

Yura Borisov – Anora

Edward Norton – A Complete Unknown

Guy Pearce – The Brutalist

Jeremy Strong – The Apprentice

Best director

WINNER: Sean Baker – Anora

Jacques Audiard – Emilia Pérez

Brady Corbet – The Brutalist

Coralie Fargeat – The Substance

James Mangold – A Complete Unknown

Best international feature

WINNER: I’m Still Here – Brazil

The Girl with the Needle – Denmark

Emilia Pérez – France

The Seed of the Sacred Fig – Germany

Flow – Latvia

Best animated feature

WINNER: Flow

Inside Out 2

Memoir of a Snail

Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl

The Wild Robot

Best original screenplay

WINNER: Anora – Sean Baker

The Brutalist – Brady Corbet and Mona Fastvold

A Real Pain – Jesse Eisenberg

September 5 – Moritz Binder, Tim Fehlbaum, Alex David

The Substance – Coralie Fargeat

Best adapted screenplay

WINNER: Conclave – Peter Straughan

A Complete Unknown – Jay Cocks and James Mangold

Emilia Pérez – Jacques Audiard

Nickel Boys – RaMell Ross and Joslyn Barnes

Sing Sing – Clint Bentley and Greg Kwedar

Best original song

WINNER: El Mal – Emilia Pérez

Never Too Late – Elton John: Never Too Late

Mi Camino – Emilia Pérez

Like A Bird – Sing Sing

The Journey – The Six Triple Eight

Best original score

WINNER: The Brutalist

Conclave

Emilia Pérez

Wicked

The Wild Robot

Best documentary feature

WINNER: No Other Land

Black Box Diaries

Porcelain War

Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat

Sugarcane

Best costume design

WINNER: Wicked

Nosferatu

A Complete Unknown

Conclave

Gladiator II

Best make-up and hairstyling

WINNER: The Substance

A Different Man

Emilia Pérez

Nosferatu

Wicked

Best production design

WINNER: Wicked

The Brutalist

Dune: Part Two

Nosferatu

Conclave

Best sound

WINNER: Dune: Part Two

A Complete Unknown

Emilia Pérez

Wicked

The Wild Robot

Best film editing

WINNER: Anora

The Brutalist

Conclave

Emilia Pérez

Wicked

Best cinematography

WINNER: The Brutalist

Dune: Part Two

Emilia Pérez

Maria

Nosferatu

Best visual effects

WINNER: Dune: Part Two

Alien: Romulus

Better Man

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes

Wicked

Best live action short

WINNER: I’m Not a Robot

Anuja

The Last Ranger

A Lien

The Man Who Could Not Remain Silent

Best animated short

WINNER: In the Shadow of the Cypress

Beautiful Men

Magic Candies

Wander to Wonder

Yuck!

Best documentary short

WINNER: The Only Girl in the Orchestra

Death by Numbers

I Am Ready, Warden

Incident

Instruments of a Beating Heart 

(BBC)

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Okpebholo threatens to terminate projects of non-performing contractors

The governor of Edo State, Sen. Monday Okpebholo on Wednesday threatened to revoke the projects of non-performing contractors, urging them to step up and work according to specifications and meet agreed deadlines of projects or risk termination of their contracts. 

Okpebholo stated this while on an inspection tour of some roads and drainage projects in the State where he expressed his dissatisfaction on the rate of work in some areas particularly frowning at the slow pace of work at Orior-Ozolua Community, where residents also complained that the contractor was seldom on site.

The governor who personally inspected the thickness of the drainage in the community said he was not pleased at the specifications of the drain instructing the contractor to do the right thing or his contract would be revoked.

“Why did you reduce the width of the drain? You reduced it on both sides. Look at my face, if you are not doing the right thing and not working according to specifications, I can revoke the contract any moment without fear or favour. I need you to do a quality job, it is the people’s resources and must be utilized effectively and efficiently”.

A resident in the community, Slyvester Igbinovia who was among the jubilant crowd that welcomed the governor, complained about the slow pace of work by the contractor handling the road and drainage projects.

“Mr. Gov this contractor is just too slow on this job, they close before 2 pm when they are on site but most times they are not on site. They are here today your excellency, I am sure they know that you are coming that’s why they are here today”.

The governor and his entourage also inspected ongoing roads and drainage projects at, Orior Uteh palace road, New Uteh road Ekiuwa Quarters, Upper Ekheuan open drain by Nigerian Army Cantonment amongst others areas.

A jubilant crowd who received the governor and his entourage in all the areas visited thanked him for remembering them as they said previous administrations have forgotten that these areas existed and they prayed for the success of the governor and his administration in the State. (Vanguard)

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PlayStation’s Visual Arts and Malaysia studios have reportedly suffered ‘many’ layoffs

Sony has laid off a number of developers at PlayStation’s Visual Arts studio and its Malaysian support studio, with a new report suggesting many staff are affected.

On Monday, former PlayStation Visual Arts project manager Abby LeMaster posted a message on LinkedIn stating that “many” people from the Visual Arts group had lost their job that day.

“It was tough waking up to messages that many friends and former coworkers from PSVA were laid off this morning,” said LeMaster, who now works at Riot Games. “The layoffs today hit hard. PSVA let go of developers with decades of subject matter expertise, talent that will be extraordinarily difficult to recoup. This industry can be unpredictable, but the skill, experience, and passion of the people I worked with at PSVA are undeniable.”

While LeMaster’s comments didn’t state how many people have been affected, a source familiar with the situation reportedly told Kotaku that the cuts are “widespread”, and that while some were related to recently cancelled projects – such as Bend Studio’s canned live service game – the layoffs reportedly went beyond that.

Located in San Diego, the Visual Arts studio supports Sony‘s other first-party studios with art, animation and technical assistance, and also collaborates with third-parties on games, movies and TV shows.

It was also reported by Nmia Gaming that layoffs have also taken place at the Kuala Lumpur-based PlayStation Studios Malaysia, which was founded in 2020 as a support studio to work alongside the Visual Arts team.

In a post on LinkedIn, PlayStation Studios Malaysia senior project manager Johann Mahfoor said he had been affected by the layoffs, stating: “It was a tough start of the week for us at PlayStation Studios Visual Arts. There was a wave of mass workforce reduction which affected Malaysia and our global counterparts, and unfortunately I’m no longer part of the brand.”

This is the latest in a series of layoffs being carried out by PlayStation in recent years, something that has been affecting the games industry as a whole. A year ago it was confirmed that Sony’s PlayStation department was laying off around 900 employees worldwide – around 8% of its entire workforce.

In January it was reported that Sony had cancelled a live service game being worked on by Bend, as well as another in development at Bluepoint Games. (VGC)

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Lagos Lawmakers weep as Meranda steps down for Obasa

Lawmakers and staff of the Lagos State House of Assembly wept in the full glare of those present on Monday when the former Speaker, Rt. Hon. Mojisola Meranda, tendered her resignation letter to allow the previously impeached speaker, Rt. Hon. Mudashiru Obasa, to return to his position.

LEADERSHIP reports that the House had been engulfed in crisis since January 13 when Hon Mudashiru Obasa was removed as Speaker.

Most of the lawmakers and Assembly staff who spoke without inhibition applauded Meranda over how she led the House within the 49 days she was the speaker of the House, saying reversing the situation was a return to a reign of tyranny in the Assembly.

Before her resignation, Meranda who was the first female speaker of the state, and Obasa had earlier held a meeting with lawmakers, with Lawal Pedro, the Lagos State attorney general, and Pastor Cornelius Ojelabi, the chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos, in their midst.

Meranda was reappointed as the Deputy Speaker, while Mudashiru Obasa took the oath of Office as the Speaker. Also, Hon Sanni Okanlawon resigned as the Deputy Chief Whip, while Hon Setonji David resigned as the Chief Whip.

In the meantime, Hon. David was reelected as the Deputy Chief after being nominated by Hon. Kehinde Joseph. Hon. Richard Kasunmu returned as the Deputy Majority Leader, while Hon. Adewale Temitope retained the position.

Similarly, Deputy Speaker Mojeed Fatai resigned and was elected as the Chief Whip. Meranda returned as the new deputy speaker.

With this development, Meranda served as the Speaker for 49 days before bowing to the All Progressives Congress (APC) party supremacy principle.

LEADERSHIP gathered that the development was decided at the strategic meeting of the Governance Advisory Council (GAC) with members of the House on Sunday. (Leadership)

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Andrea Christensen injury: Barcelona star suffers another setback

Barcelona coach Hansi Flick has revealed defender Andreas Christensen has picked up another injury just three days after being cleared to return to action against Real Sociedad this weekend.

Christensen, 28, came off the bench against Valencia in Barça’s first game of the season in August but was then sidelined until January with Achilles problem.

Upon his return to training at the start of the year, the Denmark international injured his calf, ruling him out until the end of February.

Earlier this week, Barça confirmed Christensen had been given the green light to play competitively again, but he received another calf setback on Saturday that will rule him out for four weeks.

“What I can say now is that Andreas got injured in this morning’s training session,” Flick told a news conference.

“He was an option for Real Sociedad on Sunday, but again he is injured. We are looking now how heavy is the injury. Hopefully it’s not so much.”

Christensen joined Barça on a free transfer from Chelsea in 2022 and made 32 appearances to help the club win LaLiga in his first season.

He followed his debut campaign up with another 42 appearances last term, being used as a defensive midfielder at times by previous coach Xavi Hernández, but he has been limited to just one outing this season.

In his absence, Pau Cubarsí and Iñigo Martínez have emerged as Barça’s first choice centre-back pairing, with Ronald Araújo and Eric García providing backup.

“We want at least four players for this position,” Flick added. “Normally we have five really good centre-backs, but without Andreas, it’s four.

“Ronald also had a huge injury but he’s doing really good now. He’s a leader. He has everything to reach a very high level. I am really happy with all of them.”

Squad depth may be needed in the coming weeks as the games come thick and fast for the LaLiga leaders.

After Tuesday’s 4-4 draw against Atlético Madrid in the first leg of the Copa del Rey semifinal, Barça welcome Real Sociedad in LaLiga this weekend before travelling to Benfica in the Champions League on Wednesday.

Flick aid the fact his side are still in the running to win all three competitions, after already winning the Spanish Supercopa in January, is proof they are exceeding expectations this season.

“We have to accept [the busy schedule] and manage it with the players, maybe by using some fresh legs,” he said.

“It’s good to have [the games]. We have three competitions and can fight for three titles. When we start this season, at this time now, March 1, no one expected that. The team is going great.” (ESPN)

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Billing saves Napoli in draw with Serie A title rivals Inter

Philip Billing kept Napoli right on Inter Milan’s tail at the top of Serie A after scoring a late equaliser in Saturday’s exciting 1-1 draw in Naples.

Denmark midfielder Billing tapped home his first Napoli goal three minutes from the end at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona to keep second-placed Napoli one point behind Inter.

The 32-year-old, on loan from Bournemouth, scored after a driving run from Stanislav Lobotka, pouncing on the rebound when his first effort was saved by Inter goalkeeper Josep Martinez.

Up to that point, it had looked like Federico Dimarco’s stunning free-kick in the 22nd minute would be enough for Inter to strike a huge blow in their bid to retain the Scudetto.

Simone Inzaghi’s Inter were on the back foot for much of the match and needed some desperate defending as they tried to escape Naples with all three points.

But Inzaghi will again be frustrated by his team failing to win a big match, something that his players have struggled to do this season after dominating the division from start to finish last term.

They could not have met Napoli at a better time, as Antonio Conte’s team had conceded the initiative with three points from their four matches in February after previously looking like storming to a second title in three seasons.

Inter’s dogged rearguard action, which had featured a series of last-ditch lunging tackles and hefty clearances, was finally broken by Billing, who saved his new team in his second appearance since signing in January.

Billing’s late leveller also gave a reprieve to Atalanta who failed to win at home for the fifth straight time in Italy’s top flight and stay third, three points behind Inter.

Gian Piero Gasperini’s side are still in the fight but have not won in front of their own fans in domestic competition since the turn of the year. Atalanta’s form on home turf is threatening their unprecedented Scudetto bid.

“When we play at home against these kinds of teams when always have to deal with packed defences,” said Gasperini.

“We were hoping to be first and the boys gave everything but this is a difficult period for everyone, you can see that with how the other teams (at the top) are doing.”

Davide Zappacosta went closest to breaking the deadlock five minutes before half-time when he clipped the outside of the post after great work from Ademola Lookman.

Lookman had wasted a great chance one-on-one with Venezia goalkeeper Ionut Radu moments before. The Nigeria forward also smashed over from inches out in the 82nd minute.

Mateo Retegui was also guilty of missing presentable opportunities as Atalanta’s usually flamboyant attack struggled to break down stubborn Venezia.

The surprise point gave Venezia a small boost in their bid to stay up, but Eusebio Di Francesco’s team are five points from Parma, who sit just outside the relegation zone and are at Udinese in Saturday’s late fixture. (Punch)

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Microsoft is shutting down Skype after over 10 years

Microsoft on Friday announced it was retiring Skype, the online voice and video call pioneer that the tech titan acquired in 2011.

“Starting in May 2025, Skype will no longer be available,” said a post from Skype support on X, directing users to sign into Microsoft’s Teams platform for further use of its services.

Skype was founded in 2003 by Scandinavians Niklas Zennstrom and Janus Friis in Estonia, revolutionizing internet communication by offering free voice calls between computers and affordable rates for calls to landlines and mobile phones.

Over the years, and as internet speeds improved, Skype evolved to include video calls, instant messaging, file sharing and group communication features.

By 2005, Skype had already reached 50 million registered users, demonstrating its rapid global adoption.

Online auction site eBay acquired Skype in 2005 for approximately $2.6 billion, but the expected synergies never panned out, and in 2009, eBay sold a majority stake to a group of investors, who then sold it to Microsoft.

In recent years, especially after the rise of the smartphone, Skype failed to hold onto its place against new rivals such as Meta-owned WhatsApp and Zoom, as well as Microsoft’s own Teams.

“We’ve learned a lot from Skype… as we’ve evolved Teams over the last seven to eight years,” Jeff Teper, president of Microsoft 365 collaborative apps and platforms, told CNBC.

“But we felt like now is the time because we can be simpler for the market, for our customer base, and we can deliver more innovation faster just by being focused on Teams.”

Microsoft said that Skype group chats would remain intact in the transition to Teams and that during a 60-day window, messages on Microsoft and Teams will be interoperable so you can message contacts from Teams and those messages will be delivered to friends still using Skype.

In one big change, Microsoft is removing Skype’s telephony features, meaning you’ll no longer be able to call regular phone numbers, cell phones, or make international calls through the service.

Microsoft told The Verge that these features are no longer as relevant in today’s communication landscape where mobile data plans are less expensive.

The name “Skype” derived from “Sky peer-to-peer,” the technology that was fundamental to Skype’s original architecture.

The peer-to-peer aspect was crucial as it distributed the network demands across users’ computers rather than relying solely on centralized servers, which was a key innovation that allowed Skype to scale rapidly during its early years. (Channels)

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Going For Gold presenter Henry Kelly dies at 78

Journalist and TV presenter Henry Kelly has died aged 78, his family has announced.

Kelly was a journalist who later pivoted to light entertainment, hosting TV gameshow Game For A Laugh and Going For Gold in the 1980s and 90s.

He also presented programmes on BBC Radio 4, LBC and Classic FM.

In a statement, Kelly’s family said he “died peacefully” on Tuesday “after a period of ill health”.

“Henry will be sorely missed by his friends and family,” it continued, “including his partner Karolyn Shindler, their son Alexander, Henry’s daughter Siobhan and her mother Marjorie”.

Born in Dublin on 17 April 1946, Kelly started his journalistic career in newspapers.

He worked for The Irish Times in the 1970s during civil unrest and the Troubles in Northern Ireland.

He left the newspaper and moved to London to join the BBC in 1976, working as a reporter and presenter for Radio 4’s The World Tonight.

But in 1980, aged 34, he left journalism to become a light entertainment presenter.

He went on to front ITV’s Game For A Laugh, and the first iteration of Good Morning Britain on TV-am, alongside Toni Arthur.

Game For A Laugh largely involved practical jokes and elaborate set-ups, often on members of the studio audience or filmed on location on unsuspecting members of the public.

Kelly also fronted lunchtime quiz show Going For Gold for 10 seasons from the late 1980s to the mid-1990s.

The theme tune for Going For Gold was composed by Hans Zimmer, who went on to become a hugely successful film and TV composer.

The show saw contestants from different European countries compete against each other to answer questions to win prizes.

Going For Gold was briefly revived in the late 2000s by Channel 5, presented by John Suchet.

Kelly later became one of the launch presenters of Classic FM and also hosted shows on speech station LBC, BBC Radio London.

He hosted a show on BBC Radio Berkshire for 10 years from 2005.

Speaking to Challenge TV about his memories of Going for Gold, Kelly – who almost missed the hosting audition as he was planning to play golf – noted how “the whole point” of the show “was that it was Pan-European”.

“We were the only people in this country at the time, and probably since, who were really European, and so we had contestants from all over Europe,” he said. (BBC)

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LISABI (THE UPRISING)

Release Date: 2024
Distributor: Netflix
Producer: Anthill Studios
Director: Niyi Akinmolayan
Starring: Lateef Adedimeji, Ibrahim Chatta, Adebowale Adebayo, Odunlade Adekola, Gabriel
Afolayan, Femi Adebayo, Peju Ogunmola, Eniola Ajao.
Runtime: 1h47m

Based on the Egba legend about a rebellion led by Lisabi, a traditional Yoruba hero with a
hunger for freedom, the story begins with the invasion of multiple towns under the Egba
Kingdom where residents are forced to pay a tribute or tax to the King (Adekola). Whoever
refuses will be punished or killed by the king’s guards led by Sangodeji (Chatta). Tragedy
unfolds and it is up to Lisabi (Adedimeji) to free his townsmen from the evil mercenaries.

If you ever think of Robin Hood stealing from the poor and giving to the rich, LISABI follows
that direction. It is filled with action, drama, and fantasy. The film is a historical tale of
violence, corruption, friendship and tragedy. The good part is the story which is well
grounded: the camera angles are good as well as the subtitles. The acting from the cast
members is terrific. For someone renowned for dramatic and funny roles, Adedimeji is
impressive as Lisabi. Chatta, in the role of Sangodeji, is reminiscent of Agbako, the master
criminal perfected by the late Charles Olumo. Adekola may have been LISABI’s villainous
king, but Chatta takes the crown (similar to most James Bond villains).

The violent fight scenes could have been better coordinated or choreographed, and the
special effects were less than perfect: an overuse of CGI rather than practical effects added
an unnecessary incredulity to the action. The cinematography is noteworthy however and
brings to mind movies from Hollywood’s Golden Age of Technicolor or Metrocolor.

It is rare to see a movie that is passionate about storytelling without offering a lesson. LISABI
reminds one of Nigerian films and television shows from the 70s and 90s that are filled with
morals and lessons for society today and for future generations.

A sequel to LISABI has also been released. Yet to watch the first instalment? Go stream it.

Opeyemi Ajao

December 31 st , 2024

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Mother and child die from injuries after Munich car attack

A mother, 37, and her two-year-old daughter have died from injuries they sustained in Thursday’s car attack in the German city of Munich, police say.

At least 37 people were injured when a car was driven into a crowd of people at a trade union rally.

The driver was a 24-year-old Afghan asylum seeker, police said, identified in local media as Farhad N.

He was arrested at the scene and prosecutors say he has admitted to carrying out the attack. He appeared to have a religious motivation, officials said.

The mother and child were among those taken to hospital with serious injuries following the attack.

Authorities have said the suspect arrived in Germany in 2016 and, although his application for asylum was turned down, he was allowed to stay in Germany as he faced risks being deported back to Afghanistan. He had a valid residence and work permit.

He had no previous criminal record, and police said there was no evidence of a link to a jihadist group. He also appears to have acted alone, German authorities say.

On Friday, police said the suspect told officers during questioning that he had driven his Mini Cooper car intentionally into the crowd.

Munich public prosecutor Gabriele Tilmann told reporters that the suspect had said “Allahu Akbar” – God is greatest in Arabic – when he was detained. She suggested he “may have had an Islamist motivation”.

Campaigning around Germany’s election on 23 February has for weeks been embroiled in a fevered debate about migration. It was called due to the collapse of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s coalition government last year.

A number of violent incidents linked to migrants over the past year have led to increased support for the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.

In December, six people were killed and at least 299 injured after a man drove a car into a German Christmas market.

The suspect was a 50-year-old Saudi asylum seeker who had been an outspoken critic of Islam.

And in January an attack that shocked the country saw a two-year-old child and a passer-by who attempted to intervene killed after a group of children were stabbed in a park in the Bavarian town of Aschaffenburg.

The suspect in that attack is a 28-year-old Afghan asylum seeker. (BBC)