Happy to report that one can actually half-sleep and sing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star 643 times in a row to soothe a newborn. They’re finally nodding off. Just in time for it to be…7AM. #journomum

Rule Britannia at the Proms is now about as uncomplicatedly uplifting a tune to wheel out as a finale as the theme from Jim’ll Fix It.

My baby stops crying the minute a Stephen Sondheim song comes on. Chip off the old block. #journomum

I’ll take an earnings call over a cluster feed any day of the week. #journomum

After building the business for decades, Gen Xers in Hollywood are being pushed aside by cable’s decline, peak TV’s end, and mergers wiping out management. @elainelow.bsky.social spoke to the 40- and 50-somethings who now have to pull a Ross Geller and pivot theankler.com/p/gen-x-forc...

This week for @theankler.com, I untangled the streamer-broadcaster cross-carriage deals (such as Netflix's mega TF1 pact) shaking up Europe and asked whether such experimental alliances can *really* form equal partnerships. theankler.com/p/netflix-an...

Reviewing a transcript of a dense interview with an analyst where the recording has evidently begun with "Yes, yes, we have actually gotten quite a good pram." My life for the foreseeable. #journomum

New on @theankler.com: CBS execs told Colbert's longtime manager in late June that The Late Show would be going away. This and more behind the scenes details on what happened: theankler.com/p/on-vacatio...

Oh, Ozzy! www.thetimes.com/life-style/c...

Diasporic literature doesn't get much better than "Unaccustomed Earth" (/the entire Jhumpa Lahiri canon), and I can't wait for this adaptation. Freida Pinto is perfect for this role. variety.com/2025/tv/news...

Report: David Rhodes, Sky News executive chairman and former CBS News president, is in talks to lead CBS News if the Skydance/Paramount merger goes through (Reuters) Main Link | Mediagazer Permalink

A few thoughts about the NYT critics shakeup: Theater is one of the hardest of all disciplines to cover as a critic (or reporter). You need to know its language and history. And there's a ton you can and should do to educate yourself. But you can never "catch up." You can't see what you didn't see.>

The only Emmys debrief one needs... Cogent, thoughtful analysis from @kateyrich.bsky.social in @theankler.com theankler.com/p/emmy-nomin...

Bectu union boss Philippa Childs slams results of Gregg Wallace inquiry as a "real failure by [production company] Banijay to take these issues seriously and act accordingly." This point is spot on. Increasingly feels like Groundhog Day when it comes to inadequate action by prodcos/channels 👇

The success of sports docs "Drive to Survive" and "Quarterback" opened the floodgates. Now leagues are taking storytelling in-house, pushing out indies and increasing costs. @manori-r.bsky.social talks to producers navigating new gatekeepers and finding the next icon theankler.com/p/its-brutal...

More good worker's rights news - companies will be banned from using NDAs to cover up misconduct at work. @commonswec.parliament.uk heard evidence during our misogyny in music inquiry that NDAs are being abused to silence victims of harassment. This change will make a real difference for workers.

Parents in Britain to be granted bereavement leave after miscarriage

Inside the digital publishing industry, which I try to monitor closely, this is the big news. By Julia Alexander at Puck.

First on @theankler.com: Neil Druckmann, the creative force behind #TheLastOfUs, is leaving the HBO hit theankler.com/p/scoop-the-...

Carney's capitulation to Trump over Canada's Digital Services Tax (mere hours before 1st payments were due) isn't just disappointing, it's a dangerous precedent for his leadership. // What was Mark Carney thinking when he walked back the digital services tax? www.theglobeandmail.com/business/com...

Very much looking forward to the #MediaStrong conference tomorrow, focused on improving mental health in the newsroom. www.publicmediaalliance.org/announcing-m...

Gaza medics film dropped by BBC to be aired on Channel 4 in UK and, globally on Wed 2 July on ex-MSNBC host Mehdi Hasan’s platform Zeteo. C4 commissioner Louisa Compton said it decided to air Basement Films’ programme, “because we believe it is our duty to tell important journalistic stories…

God this Alanis Morissette set at Glastonbury is something else. She is absolutely sublime.

Channel 4's Virgin Island puts 12 young Brits through a therapeutic “intimacy boot camp”. It's raw, awkward, and a smash hit with Gen Z. @manori-r.bsky.social talks to commissioner Jonah Weston and producer Rob Davis about why it’s working: theankler.com/p/virgin-isl...

So many friends living it up at Glasto. Good. Happy for them. Me? Just sat here, eight months pregnant in a heat wave, battling through deadlines and watching in horror as the occasional foot-shaped bulge pokes out from my stomach. Standard.

Really enjoyed this Observer profile of Keir Starmer from his biographer Tom Baldwin. This graf, in particular, is excellent. observer.co.uk/news/politic...

“That particular phrase – no – it wasn’t right. I’ll give you the honest truth: I deeply regret using it.” Keir Starmer on his “island of strangers” speech in this fascinating interview about the PM’s first year by @TomBaldwin66 observer.co.uk/news/politic...

For @theankler.com, I looked at the phenomenon of Channel 4's Virgin Island and its resonance with Gen Z audiences. Mini-scoop: Hulu, which announced its own Virgin Island last year, has been forced to rename theirs Are You My First? Set to air later this year. theankler.com/p/virgin-isl...

Scathing analysis from The Times of Villeneuve taking the directing reins for Bond, and more of the same on social media. What am I missing? What about Incendies? Polytechnique? Prisoners? Sicario? And the Dune movies were terrific. He's increasingly commercial, but always refined, always human.

Zohran Mamdani leads New York City mayoral primary as Cuomo concedes: ‘He won’

Caroline Dinenage, chair of CMS committee, said at an RTS panel tonight that the government’s response to the group’s proposal on solutions for film and high-end TV (streaming levy and enhanced tax credit among other things) is expected sometime this week.

ICE raids in L.A. are sending shockwaves through Hollywood’s immigrant workforce. Even workers with legal status are afraid to show up to set. @elainelow.bsky.social reports on disrupted shoots, union silence, and a city on edge: theankler.com/p/afraid-ice...

Enormously proud of my partner for his tireless work on this landmark series. From writing the scripts to collaborating with Stephen Fry to bring this show to life, it's the culmination of years of work. So lovely to see this news out in the world. #ChinasWildSecrets variety.com/2025/tv/glob...

Passed my driving theory test and booked my first lesson. After nine years of being terrified to drive in this country, proud of myself for taking this step. Is it solely so I can drive myself to the garden centre in peace and without complaint? Potentially. But still taking the win.

Very sad to hear that UKTV/BBC Studios' global head of acquisitions Melanie Rumani has passed away from cancer. We spoke for this article just a few weeks ago when she was in California for LA Screenings, having chosen to continue work during her illness. What a force. theankler.com/p/global-tv-...

John McVay, the formidable CEO of the UK's film and TV producers' trade org Pact, is stepping down later this year after 25 years. Been covering this beat long enough to know people move on to other jobs and retire etc. all the time, but I truly have a hard time imagining Pact without John.

Sayeeda Warsi and Alistair Campbell throw weight behind CFMM findings, including that disproportionate TV reporting of Israeli deaths over Palestinian fatalities

SCOOP: BBC bosses interested in asking US users to pay for its journalism. US seen as a prime target for new BBC revenue, as consumers look for impartial coverage in the age of polarisation. As the licence fee cash dwindles, money needed from elsewhere. Ads already run in the US:

Amazon Prime Video has dropped the ball on scripted shows out of the U.K. for years, and producers have finally had enough. "Do they want to be successful here? Because this is an interesting way to go about it.” My story for @theankler.com this week: theankler.com/p/why-amazon...

Why can't Prime Video seem to crack the U.K. scripted market? Local producers say Amazon’s L.A.-centric strategy is muddled, risk-averse, and out of sync with its rivals. @manori-r.bsky.social investigates the streamer's struggles to define itself abroad: theankler.com/p/why-amazon...

Yes, Nadiya Hussain's had many shows with the BBC in the last 10 years, but when you consider the decades-long relationships some broadcasters have cultivated with chefs (ie. Jamie Oliver & Channel 4, Gordon Ramsay & Fox), something doesn't sit right here. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

zohran mamdani's mom is MIRA NAIR??? MISSISSIPPI MASALA MIRA NAIR?!

Happy #Pride? Not for #LGBTQ TV during the industry's contraction: "a queer show is going to be one of the first things impacted," one exec says. My deep dive into what's happening to programming made for and by the #queer community for @theankler.com: theankler.com/p/crisis-for...

Press tours have become, um, a little crazy and this fab @TheAnkler.com piece from Nicole La Porte explains why, as well as the pros and cons of all the new pit stops (from Call Her Daddy to Recess Therapy) on the promo circuit.

Goodness, what a shakeup. Ollie is brilliant and beloved in film, so this move makes sense. What total, continued disruption for C4 drama, though. If they're smart, they'll hire a dedicated executive for TV drama. Film and TV commissioning are still completely different worlds.

L.A.’s sound stages are emptier than they’ve been in years. With episodic TV in decline, studios are pivoting, from live boxing to bat mitzvahs. @elainelow.bsky.social investigates what’s next for Hollywood’s once-busiest lots theankler.com/p/la-sound-s...

Carnival Films made Downton Abbey a global brand. Now they’re reshaping their stories to chase tax incentives, stars, and streamers. CEO Gareth Neame and managing director Nigel Marchant tell @manori-r.bsky.social how Carnival Films is reengineering prestige drama theankler.com/p/the-3m-epi...

Agents were bracing for a slow Cannes. Then Mubi dropped $24M on Die, My Love. @ashleycullins.bsky.social finds that this move wasn’t just a flex, but a signal that the market is (finally!) heating up again theankler.com/p/mubis-24m-...

So wish I could say I was surprised but the classical music world in Britain seems to work overtime to keep minorities out. Rather than embrace the Kanneh-Mason family for the geniuses they are, they’re maligned and made to feel like they don’t belong. Infuriating.

I wrote for the Guardian’s Saturday magazine about my son Max, who changed how I see the world. Took ages. More jokes after the first bit. Thanks Merope Mills for being the most patient and generous editor. www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle...