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Dead Pool 23rd August 2026

A truly shocking week, the Flying Monkeys outdid themselves. Unsurprisingly, nobody scored last week. 

Look Who You Could Have Had:

In Other News

Norway’s King Harald V has been admitted to hospital and is on sick leave for two weeks, the country’s royal household announced on Monday. The 89-year-old, who is one of Europe’s longest-serving monarchs, has been treated in recent weeks with cortisone for rare blood condition haemolytic anaemia. It causes the number of red blood cells in the body to be reduced and leads to fatigue and shortness of breath. The palace said the monarch was admitted due to “fluid retention in the body that requires treatment in hospital”. It added that Crown Prince Haakon, aged 53, will serve as regent while his father is on sick leave. Norway’s royal household said in April 2024 King Harald would make a “permanent reduction” to his public engagement “out of consideration for his age”. The king ascended the Scandinavian country’s throne in January 1991 and has openly ruled out abdicating. He was taken to hospital in February on the Spanish island of Tenerife while suffering from an infection and dehydration. In 2024, the king was fitted with a pacemaker having fallen ill on holiday in Malaysia. Queen Sonja was also admitted to hospital in May this year for examinations and observation due to heart problems, the palace said. The king and queen’s health problems come after a turbulent time for the Norwegian royals. In March, Crown Princess Mette-Marit – wife of Crown Prince Haakon – told national TV that she wishes she had never met late US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The crown princess had exchanged hundreds of emails with the disgraced Epstein between 2011 and 2014, and stayed in his Florida house when he was not there. “It is incredibly important for me to take responsibility for not checking his background more carefully,” she said. Three months later in June, her son from a previous relationship, Marius Borg Høiby, was found guilty of two counts of rape and sentenced to four years in prison.    

Def Leppard guitarist Vivian Campbell has revealed that his cancer has returned after a donor stem cell transplant failed, forcing him to resume treatment more than a decade after his initial diagnosis. The Belfast-born musician, 62, disclosed in 2013 that he had been diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma while undergoing a six-month course of chemotherapy. After years of treatment, including stem cell therapy, immunotherapy and a donor transplant, Campbell announced he was in remission last year. However, the veteran rocker has now said he is undergoing further chemotherapy after the disease returned, marking another chapter in his 12-year battle with the blood cancer. “There’s only been one time that I felt it was gonna kill me. In the winter of 2023, I got really scared about what was happening and the pace at which it was happening, and I realised at that point that I had to do a donor transplant. It was my only hope to survive.” He also revealed the stem cell transplant ‘failed to stick’ after it was carried out in January of last year. “So the cancer has returned, and I’m continuing treatments to manage it”, he explained. The seasoned guitarist, who began his lengthy career with rock band Sweet Savage in the 1970’s before joining heavy metal pioneers Dio in the early ’80’s, says music has helped him stay positive through the darkest moments. “I do think that that’s what helped me, even when I was at a really low ebb with cancer treatment,” he said. “The fact that I could still continue to work, that gives me something to live for. Something that you enjoy, that you’re passionate about, that you can wake up in the morning and look forward to. I think that deflects, that takes away from focusing too much on cancer.” Campbell has previously told fans he is not afraid of death, deciding to “just live his life” after being diagnosed more than a decade ago. 

Dolly Parton revealed that she is still working while battling new health challenges just days after canceling her Dollywood event. “I am dealing with some health issues that I just didn’t pay attention to when I was watching over Carl,” Parton told the Flying Monkeys, referring to her husband, Carl Thomas Dean, who passed away in March 2025. He was 82. The Jolene singer said that she has made it through health issues in the past, noting that she was “down for several months with female issues” in the early ’80’s. “It’s not like I haven’t been through hard times with my health,” Parton said. However, she believes social media exacerbates fans’ concerns for her well-being. “I think because we live in a 24/7 world with social media, everything gets magnified in ways it wasn’t years ago,” she said, adding, “I used to joke that I was the Queen of the Tabloids, but now I guess I can say I’m the Queen of Social Media AI!” But Parton, 80, emphasised that she is “still working” despite still being in the process of healing. Since she no longer has the energy for a traditional tour, Parton said she is in the “early stages of development” with companies that create “avatar performances.” The Grammy winning artist was forced to step back from the limelight in September 2025 after suffering kidney stones. “Turns out there was an infection, and the doctor said, ‘You don’t need to be traveling around this minute, so you need a few days to get better,’” Parton said in a video when she couldn’t appear in person for another Dollywood event at the time. 

On This Day

  • 1973 – A bank robbery gone wrong in Stockholm, Sweden, turns into a hostage crisis; over the next five days the hostages begin to sympathise with their captors, leading to the term “Stockholm syndrome”. 
  • 1991 – The World Wide Web is opened to the public.
  • 2023 – A business jet carrying key leadership members of the Russian private military company Wagner Group crashes, killing all ten people on board.

Deaths

Last Meals

Francis Clifford Smith was given his last meal eight times.

But after being spared execution each time, he went on to be regarded as the longest serving prisoner in the US before dying in June at 101 years old.

Convicted of murder in 1950 when he was 25, he always maintained his innocence, those who knew him told the Flying Monkeys.

Andrius Banevicius, the public information officer for Connecticut’s Department of Correction, recounted how Smith used to feed the birds while in Osborn prison, earning him the nickname The Birdman of Osborn.

“He would stuff as much bread as he could … in his clothing,” Banevicius said, adding: “Everyone kind of turned a blind eye to it because they knew he was just feeding the birds.” 

Smith was a young petty criminal when he was accused in 1949 of the murder of Grover Hart, a night watchman at a Connecticut yacht club. He was one of two men who were arrested over the killing but the other took a plea deal and gave evidence against Smith, who was later found guilty of first-degree murder.

Smith’s guilt and the evidence on which he was convicted have been questioned over the years – namely after witnesses recanted their statements and another inmate later confessed to the murder.

One of the officers who had interrogated Smith after his arrest later testified that he believed Smith was innocent.

“I’m not even sure he was present at the murder,” Major Leo Carroll announced to the Board of Pardons.

These doubts earned him a reprieve from his many scheduled executions.

In 1954, his death sentence was commuted to life in prison.

Smith served more than 70 years behind bars – other than three short stints of freedom.

He escaped from prison in 1967 but was recaptured 12 days later. In 1974, we went home for Christmas Eve and returned the next day, Banevicius said.

Then, in 1975, he was granted parole and was out for about 10 months – but he was soon arrested for petty larceny and possession of a weapon, which was a violation of his parole.

Richard Sparaco, former executive director of what is now called the Board of Pardons and Paroles, said that Smith rejected several attempts afterwards to go back on parole until 2020, when he was granted supervised parole and moved to a care home for elderly people within the justice system.

Dr Stephanie Prost, a researcher in older adults and prison settings at the University of Louisville in Kentucky, said that most prisons have an inmate like Smith.

“We’re not the only jurisdiction that’s facing that ageing-related crisis, because similar issues are percolating in Australia and England,” she said. 

“It’s an international issue in terms of the population. Although, of course, we have a larger number of individuals in the US.”

According to a 2025 study, the number of people aged 55 and older in prison increased by nearly 400% between 1991 and 2021.

The US Census Bureau forecasts that by 2030, at least one-third of the incarcerated population will be over 50 years old.

Researchers like Prost are pushing for better solutions and what they call “smart de-carceration”, similar to Smith’s case. That could include policies such as compassionate release and elderly or medical parole.

Such programmes take age and care into consideration as elderly inmates deal with higher rates of costly medical concerns that make it difficult to function in a highly regimented prison setting, including fall risks, incontinence and hearing impairments.

But there are few facilities like the one Smith was sent to that are willing to take on convicted prisoners, experts said. 

Smith was one of the first to be cared for under the MissionCare Health scheme, which focuses specifically on providing care to incarcerated individuals. It currently has three facilities in the north-eastern US.

David Skoczulek, spokesman for 60 West – the facility where Smith lived in his final years – said that Smith passed away in his sleep there in June and was later cremated.

“Essentially, he died of old age,” he said. “He had very limited family involvement around his passing but we assured it was appropriate, met his wishes and was dignified.”

Skoczulek said that the facility’s role was to provide Smith with the skilled nursing and long-term care services he required.

Research shows that imprisonment can lead to “accelerated ageing”, and that conditions such as dementia may arrive “significantly earlier” than they would for people not in prison.

“We frequently say that a person coming from a long period of incarceration can be 60 but have the health status of a 90-year-old,” Skoczulek said.

Smith reportedly had dementia at the end of his life. Banevicius would not confirm this to us but said Smith was dealing with issues associated with old age.

“He was 101 and a half,” Banevicius said. “He did pretty well as far as longevity is concerned.” 

Last Week’s Birthdays

Ray Park (52), Charley Boorman (60), Kristen Wiig (53), Richard Armitage (55), Ty Burrell (59), Mark Williams (67), Dua Lipa (31), James Corden (48), Hayden Panettiere (37), Kim Cattrall (70), Cariad Lloyd (44), Amy Adams (52), Andrew Garfield (43), Ke Huy Quan (56), John Noble (78), Ben Barnes (45), Misha Collins (52), Joan Allen (70), Ray Wise (79), James Marsters (64), Demi Lovato (34), Sylvester McCoy (83), David Walliams (55), Jonathan Frakes (74), Jim Carter (78), Diana Muldaur (88), Ian McElhinney (78), Simon Bird (42), Madeleine Stowe (68), Edward Norton (57), Christian Slater (57), Roman Polanski (93), Robert De Niro (83), Austin Butler (35), and Sean Penn (66).

Posted by  |  23rd August 2026 | Categories: 2026 | Leave A Comment »

Dead Pool 16th August 2026

A few tragic deaths this week, alas no points. I think it may be time to send out the Flying Monkeys to reap a big name for next week! 

Look Who You Could Have Had:

In Other News

Highlander actor Christopher Lambert suffered a medical emergency while attending the Steel City Comic-Con in Pittsburgh. At the annual convention on Saturday, the French actor, 69, was signing autographs for fans when he “suddenly collapsed,” a witness the Flying Monkeys. Lambert was then placed in an ambulance and transported to a local hospital. The Steel City Con also released a statement about the incident, saying Lambert “had to leave the event due to a personal issue.” The comic book and pop culture convention also announced that Lambert’s photo op was canceled. A rep for star told us that he is “perfectly ok” and resting in his hotel room. The spokesperson claimed that Lambert did not get enough sleep the night before the convention and hadn’t eaten much during the day, which prompted his blood sugar to drop. It’s unclear whether Lambert will attend the convention on Sunday; however, the outlet was told that he will be well enough to make his scheduled appearance at FAN EXPO in Chicago next week. Last year, Lambert suffered a health scare when he injured his back after falling down a flight of stairs at his hotel. Due to the severity of the injury, the Highlander star had to drop out of an appearance at the Swedish festival SciFiWorld last March. “As an actor, filming and promoting his films are an absolute priority and has always been, and while he has the highest respect for people organising events and fans who attend,” his reps said at the time. “Unfortunately this time he will not be able to attend the comic con,” they added.  

The Office star Lucy Davis has revealed she has been diagnosed with “incurable” stage four breast cancer. The 53-year-old actor, who is the daughter of comedian Jasper Carrott, played the role of receptionist Dawn Tinsley in the BBC’s mockumentary The Office. Her character’s will-they-won’t-they romance with Martin Freeman’s office slacker Tim Canterbury contributed to the show’s global success, becoming the blueprint for similar relationships in international versions. In an Instagram post on Tuesday, Davis said she had been diagnosed with Stage 4 breast cancer a year and a half ago but it has since “metastasised to my bones, specifically to my spine, right hip, and my ribs. The cancer is incurable, and too late for chemo,” she continued. “The initial lump that I felt, wasn’t a ‘lump’ as such; rather a kind of hard spot. Really tiny. I almost didn’t bother getting it checked. So I guess I’m saying don’t ignore anything – get everything checked out. As of now, I’m trying to live out whatever might be left of my life in as fun a way as I possibly can. I always like to find the teachable moments in anything negative that happens. And cancer has not disappointed in that regard; there’s a lot I have learned from it, and I’m grateful for that..” Davis also said that she sometimes needs to use a wheelchair as “standing and walking for too long a time can be hard” due to the pain. “If you see me toddling around in one, feel free to give me a push!” she continued. “The thing that has been most vital to me is humour. I asked my friends and family to make fun of me as much as possible (which they’re really good at, and most importantly of all to not treat me like a sick person. There’s nothing that will make you feel more unwell than being treated as if you’re unwell… I’m not scared of whatever comes next. I’m at peace with it.” Davis added that she’ll see her late dog Gracie “sooner than expected” and that leaving her “physical body just means going home”. “Any and all grieving is for my family; it’s far harder for them than for me,” she continued. “I’m still going to keep up all my work for animal rights. It’s so important to me. And I still would like to keep working. I’m perfectly able to do so, and acting is one of the biggest joys in my life… For those of you on a similar journey to mine, I do wish you well. Cancer asks a lot from us, physically and mentally. And we all get to do it however we choose… Much love to you all.” Davis, who also appeared in 2017’s Wonder Woman, shared her diagnosis alongside a video of her ringing a hospital cancer treatment bell and reciting a rhyme common in many cancer treatment centres to celebrate the end of treatment. 

Jeanne Gibson, one of the women who came to represent the enduring legacy of the Rosie the Riveter campaign during the Second World War, has died at the  age of 100. Gibson was recognised for her work as a shipyard welder during the war, helping construct United States Navy destroyers at a time when millions of women stepped into industrial jobs to support the Allied war effort. Her death marks the passing of another member of a remarkable generation whose contributions reshaped both the workforce and the role of women in American society. In 2024, Gibson and thousands of fellow women who served as Rosie the Riveter workers were collectively awarded the Congressional Gold Medal, one of the United States’ highest civilian honours, in recognition of their extraordinary service during the war. During the Second World War, labour shortages created by military enlistment opened opportunities for women to work in factories, shipyards and other industries traditionally dominated by men. More than six million American women answered that call, manufacturing aircraft, ships, weapons and military equipment that proved essential to the Allied victory. Gibson became one of those workers, serving as a welder in a shipyard where she helped build destroyers for the United States Navy. Welding required precision, physical endurance and technical skill, making the work both demanding and critical to wartime production. Her efforts formed part of the enormous industrial mobilisation that allowed the United States and its allies to sustain military operations across multiple fronts. 

Former gangster and Krays rival Eddie Richardson has died at the age of 90. Richardson, part of the notorious Richardson mob in Sixties London, was one of the last surviving villains of his generation. Eddie’s sister Elaine Richardson said her brother died in the Princess Royal University Hospital, Bromely, south London, having been admitted with pneumonia a few days ago. She said: “We are all very sad. He had his 90th birthday in January. Eddie was a family man and he had a lot of friends, he was very loyal to his friends. “We know he was 90 but we are all going to miss him.” Asked if Richardson had remained involved in criminality in his old age, a source said: “He was such a staunch old fella that he could have been up to something but you would never have known.” With his older brother Charlie, Eddie led the south London “Torture Gang” which feuded with the east London Kray twins more than 60 years ago. In 2015 Richardson, then 79, described the twins as “like lost sheep” in jail and added: “We never even considered them to be rivals.” He said: “They were small-timers who played up to the gangster image. They were not hard enough to take us on until we were all banged up. The Krays had watched too many US gangster films. They wanted to be like Al Capone but didn’t have the brains to do anything major league. It amazes me how much interest there is in them. They just wanted to play at being gangsters. It was all acting. There was nothing glamorous about it and by no stretch of the imagination were they ever legends.” But Eddie, who hired “Mad” Frankie Fraser as his enforcer, added: “There was no war between us, that’s a myth. The truth is they didn’t fancy us at all. The Krays didn’t dare take us on until we were all under lock and key — then they started taking liberties.” Eddie served a total of more than 23 years in jail, in two stretches, before his final release in 2002. Born in Camberwell, south London, on January 21, 1936, he used a scrap metal business and fruit machine company as fronts for a criminal empire involving drug dealing, protection and extortion rackets. But his criminal empire came crashing down on July 30, 1966, the day England won the World Cup, when the Richardson gang were rounded up during mass police raids. The following “Torture Trial” made headlines as rival criminals told how they were beaten and electrocuted. Anyone who crossed the Richardsons were said to be subjected to a kangaroo court, with Charlie presiding and then handed over to Mad Frankie for punishment. He pulled out teeth with pliers and nailed people to the floor using six-inch spikes. His specialism was torture by electrocution of the genitals.

On This Day

  • 1819 – Peterloo Massacre: Seventeen people die and over 600 are injured in cavalry charges at a public meeting at St. Peter’s Field, Manchester, England.
  • 1906 – The 8.2 Mw Valparaíso earthquake hits central Chile, killing 3,882 people.
  • 1960 – Joseph Kittinger parachutes from a balloon over New Mexico, United States, at 102,800 feet setting three records that held until 2012: High-altitude jump, free fall, and highest speed by a human without an aircraft.

Deaths

  • 1948 – Babe Ruth, American baseball player and coach (born 1895). 
  • 1956 – Bela Lugosi, Hungarian-American actor (born 1882).
  • 1977 – Elvis Presley, American singer and actor  (born 1935). 
  • 2003 – Idi Amin, Ugandan field marshal and politician, President of Uganda (born 1928).
  • 2018 – Aretha Franklin, American singer-songwriter (born 1942). 
  • 2019 – Peter Fonda, American actor, director, and screenwriter. (born 1940). 
  • 2021 – Sean Lock, English comedian and actor (born 1963).

Last Meals

On December 13th 2021, a young girl residing in Columbus, Georgia, was found murdered in Phenix City, Alabama. On the night before her death, the 5-year-old girl, Kamarie Holland, was brought out of her home in Georgia, and taken to the abandoned house of its 37-year-old former owner, Jeremy Williams. Before this, Holland’s mother Kristy Marie Siple, who had a sexual relationship with Williams, agreed to Williams’ request to rape Holland. Siple allegedly asked Williams to pay her $2,500 in exchange for raping her daughter, but they reduced the payment to $1,300 after some negotiations, although Williams never paid Siple the reduced payment of $1,300.

After Holland was taken into Williams’s vacant house, Williams raped the girl and also engaged in sodomy and oral sex, and he personally filmed the sexual acts, and also forced the girl to consume methamphetamine. After doing so, Williams used a ligature to strangle Holland and therefore killed her by asphyxiation. Even after Holland died, Williams went on to commit further sexual assaults on her corpse and similarly filmed the necrophilic acts.

Meanwhile, on the morning after the murder, Holland was reported missing by her mother, who lied to the police that she last saw Holland before she went to sleep about midnight and awoke to find her daughter gone and the front door open. An extensive search was conducted, and on that night itself, Holland’s body was found inside the same house where Williams raped, sodomised and murdered her. The police were able to identify Williams as the prime suspect and arrested him for the murder shortly after. 

In March 2022, a Russell County grand jury formally indicted both Williams and Siple for their respective charges of murder and other offences pertaining to the rape and murder of Holland. Williams was indicted on eight charges, including four counts of capital murder for kidnapping, rape, sodomy and for killing someone under the age of 14, as well as sex trafficking (two counts), producing child pornography and abuse of a corpse. Siple was indicted on three counts of felony murder and two counts of sex trafficking.  

On June 16th 2026, the Alabama Supreme Court authorised the death warrant of Williams, and the case was forwarded to the Alabama governor Kay Ivey, who was tasked with scheduling an execution date for Williams. Two days later, Governor Ivey scheduled Williams’ execution to take place by lethal injection on August 13th 2026, with a 30-hour window during which his death warrant will remain active. 

On Thursday, 42-year-old Jeremy Williams was put to death by lethal injection at 6:16 pm in Holman Correctional Facility. When asked if he had a final statement, Williams stated, “I want to thank God for forgiving me for my sins so I can meet him in peace. Goodnight.” For his final meal, Williams requested a cheese pizza. Williams is the first condemned person put to death in Alabama in 2026, as well as the first person in the United States to be executed for a murder occurring in the 2020’s.  

Last Week’s Birthdays

Steve Carell (64), James Cameron (72), Taika Waititi (51), Madonna (68), Julie Newmar (93), Evanna Lynch (35), Jennifer Lawrence (36), Ben Affleck (54), David Zayas (64), Natasha Henstridge (52), Tony Robinson (80), Jim Dale (91), Mila Kunis (43), Steve Martin (81), Halle Berry (60), James Buckley (39), Joseph Marcell (78), Sebastian Stan (44), Cara Delevingne (34), Bruce Greenwood (70), Jim Beaver (76), Chris Hemsworth (43), Anna Gunn (58), Ian McDiarmid (82), Joe Rogan (59), Antonio Banderas (66), and Rosanna Arquette (67).

Posted by  |  16th August 2026 | Categories: 2026 | Leave A Comment »

Dead Pool 9th August 2026

Apologies that there wasn’t an issue last week, I was myself fighting the Grim Reaper, well, maybe not that dramatic, but I was indisposed health-wise. So this means a double-bubble this week, aren’t you lucky! 

Look Who You Could Have Had:

In Other News

Singer Carly Simon has revealed she has been diagnosed with  Parkinson’s disease and cancer. The 83-year-old You’re So Vain singer said in a statement that her most recent absence from the spotlight has been due to her ongoing health issues. Ms Simon said: “So many people have written to me, kindly wondering about my relative silence, asking how I am and what I have been doing. The truth is, I’ve been learning how to live with Parkinson’s disease. It has taken me some time to understand the diagnosis, to adjust to it, and to decide how much I wanted to say about it publicly.” She added: “Parkinson’s is different for everyone, and it can be unpredictable. Some days I’m so tired I can’t get the day moving at all. On others, it gives me a little more room to move, think, work, and feel like myself.” Ms Simon, who lives on a 25-acre Martha’s Vineyard estate in Massachusetts, said her health problems started with arthritis in both knees and one hip. She said she eventually had all three joints replaced with “delicate bouquets of metal and plastic”. The Grammy-award-winning musician said after three replacement surgeries, she assumed her struggle walking was “simply an unfortunate and rather ironic part of the recovery process”. She said, however, that her mobility continued to worsen. Ms Simon said: “I had trouble standing up from low chairs and deep couches without someone offering me an arm. Overstuffed furniture became my enemy. Once seated, I could feel as though I had been swallowed by the chair and might remain there permanently, like a guest who had badly overstayed her welcome. Eventually, there were periods when I could not walk without considerable help. My family and I knew that something more was going on. After an extensive evaluation at the Mayo Clinic, I was diagnosed with Parkinson’s.” The star said she started treatment, including taking medication to help with stiffness and other symptoms. Describing how it affects her day-to-day life, Ms Simons said that the “apathy is particularly strange”. She said: “You can find yourself lying there like a starfish drying in the sun, arms pointing in all directions, while nothing inside is telling you to get up, read, watch, write, sing, call someone, or do much of anything at all.” The artist said she had also received treatment for basal cell carcinoma, a common type of cancer that starts in the top layer of skin, on her face. She said it was removed but the surgery affected her appearance and made her more self-conscious about being seen in public. She said: “I have always been more critical of my appearance than anyone else could possibly imagine (check out the irony of having written You’re So Vain, and this gave my inner critic quite a lot of new material.” Ms Simon, who is also a children’s author, said that “between my mobility issues, the Parkinson’s diagnosis, the surgery, and the emotional effects of it all, withdrawing from public view was the most palatable reaction”. Despite health issues relating to the condition, she said she has not stopped working and began recording a new album, Comes in Waves, in the middle of it all.  

A hospital intruder dressed up as the ‘Grim Reaper’ and glared at patients, a court heard. Leon Gillespie, 26, donned an all-black hooded outfit and stood overlooking the entrance to Ysbyty Glan Clwyd hospital in Denbighshire, North Wales.  Luckily for me, I was at a different hospital or I might have had a fright! Four police cars and a fire crew were sent to apprehend Gillespie after he stayed on the roof for nearly an hour on Saturday. Hospital visitors were shocked at the sight of him standing motionless and brandishing what appeared to be a long blade. No explanation was given for the stunt when Gillespie appeared in front of magistrates in Llandudno. His outfit was also described in court as being a ‘crow’. Gillespie was fined £200 after pleading guilty to causing a nuisance at a hospital. A spokesman for Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board said: ‘The health board has previously stated it has a zero-tolerance approach to abuse, aggression or nuisance within its hospital sites.’ Gillespie also admitted separate offences of stealing £30 of cat food and cat litter from Pets at Home on March 26th, and food and drink from Sainsbury’s on May 28th. Both were committed in Llandudno. He was ordered to pay £50 in compensation, £100 in fines, and £100 in costs to the Crown Prosecution Service.  

Celebrity blogger Perez Hilton has been rushed to hospital after his TikTok followers reported a concerning livestream. Worried viewers reportedly saw Hilton, 48, self-harm in a video streamed on the social media app on Tuesday (2nd August), following which emergency services swiftly arrived at his house in Miami. He was “safely recovered” and transported by Miami-Dade Fire Rescue to a local hospital, where he is receiving medical attention. Hilton’s team shared a statement Wednesday on the blogger’s website, saying: “Many of you have reached out with concern for Perez, and we are incredibly grateful for the overwhelming outpouring of love, support, and prayers. “We can confirm that Perez is receiving medical care, and our family’s focus right now is on his well-being,” the statement continued. “We kindly ask that you respect Perez’s privacy, as well as the privacy of his family, during this difficult time. If and when we are able to share any updates, we will do so with everyone as soon as we can. Thank you for your compassion, understanding, and continued support,” the statement concluded, signed by “The Perez Hilton Team and Family.”  

Joe Amabile revealed he underwent successful brain surgery. On Thursday, August 6th, the Bachelor alum, who is widely known to fans as “Grocery Store Joe”, posted photos from his hospital bed on Instagram after having a brain tumour removed, just weeks after revealing he was diagnosed with an early-stage glioma. “They got it all!” he captioned the post. Amabile, 40, had his wife, Serena Pitt, by his side after the procedure and called her his “rock.” She later shared a health update on her Instagram Stories.  “The best update: they were able to remove the entire tumour and Joe is recovering very well,” Pitt, 28, wrote alongside a photo of her holding her husband’s hand. “We’re feeling so grateful🤍.” Ahead of the brain surgery, Amabile said that he was feeling “pretty good” and keeping a positive mindset throughout the ordeal. He also thanked his followers for their love and support. The former reality star first revealed on July 13th that doctors discovered an early-stage glioma, a slow-growing brain tumour, after getting a full-body MRI scan with Prenuvo. The Bachelor in Paradise couple said they were remaining optimistic and hoping that sharing their journey publicly can help others.

On This Day: 2nd August

  • 1934 – Adolf Hitler becomes Führer of Germany, doesn’t end well… 
  • 1973 – A flash fire kills 50 people at the Summerland amusement centre at Douglas, Isle of Man.
  • 1990 – Iraqi invasion of Kuwait: Iraq invades Kuwait and temporarily establishes the Republic of Kuwait puppet state on the orders of Saddam Hussein, eventually leading to the Gulf War.

On This Day: 9th August

  • 1173 – Construction of the campanile of the Cathedral of Pisa (now known as the Leaning Tower of Pisa) begins; it will take two centuries to complete. 
  • 1945 – World War II: Nagasaki is devastated when an atomic bomb, Fat Man, is dropped by the United States B-29 Bockscar. Thirty-five thousand people are killed outright. 
  • 1969 – Followers of Charles Manson murder pregnant actress Sharon Tate. 
  • 1974 – As a direct result of the Watergate scandal, Richard Nixon becomes the first president of the United States to resign from office. 

Deaths: 2nd August

  • 1876 – “Wild Bill” Hickok, American sheriff (born 1837). 
  • 1922 – Alexander Graham Bell, Scottish engineer, invented the telephone (born 1847). 
  • 1976 – Fritz Lang, Austrian-American director, producer, and screenwriter (born 1890).

Deaths: 9th August

  • 1948 – Hugo Boss, German fashion designer, founded Hugo Boss (born 1885). 
  • 1996 – Frank Whittle, English soldier and engineer, invented the jet engine (born 1907). 
  • 2008 – Bernie Mac, American comedian, actor, screenwriter, and producer (born 1957). 
  • 2016 – Gerald Grosvenor, 6th Duke of Westminster (born 1951).

Last Meals

James Aren Duckett was an American convicted child murderer, sex offender and suspected serial killer sentenced to death in Florida. Duckett, a former police officer under the Mascotte Police Department, was charged with the kidnapping, rape, and murder of 11-year-old Teresa Mae McAbee on May 11th 1987. Duckett was said to have abducted the girl, who was raped and later strangled, and her body was found abandoned near a lake. Apart from McAbee’s murder, Duckett was also a suspect in the 1987 unsolved murder of 14-year-old Jeanifer Shyan Weldon and 22-year-old Ronette Lynn Peterson in 1986. Duckett was convicted of McAbee’s murder and sentenced to death. 

On the night of May 11th 1987, 29-year-old James Aren Duckett first encountered 11-year-old Teresa Mae McAbee. He spotted McAbee walking out of a convenience store with a 16-year-old boy. Duckett apparently asked the convenience store clerk about the girl’s age before he approached both McAbee and the boy, questioning them before he instructed McAbee to go home. 

The boy later returned to the convenience store where he was met by an uncle, and the pair witnessed Duckett and McAbee standing near Duckett’s patrol car. According to the boy and his uncle, Duckett and McAbee entered the police car and departed the scene. It was the last time McAbee was seen alive.

A fisherman discovered McAbee’s body the following day near the shore of Knight Lake. Duckett was named as a suspect because he was the last person seen with McAbee and he was also the only police officer on duty the day of the murder. As a result, Duckett was suspended from the police force and he was fired three days later, ending his seven-month employment as a police officer.

Investigators found three key pieces of circumstantial evidence that led to Duckett’s arrest and conviction. The first was a pubic hair left at the scene of the crime that matched Duckett. DNA tests on the police car showed that the palm prints of Duckett and McAbee were on the hood of his police vehicle, and investigators matched tire tracks near the crime scene to that vehicle.

Based on this circumstantial evidence, investigators deduced that Duckett had not sent McAbee home, but instead had kidnapped the child, raped her, and strangled her. 

Five months after Teresa McAbee’s death, a Lake County grand jury formally indicted Duckett for her murder. Duckett stood trial before a Lake County jury for first-degree murder, and the prosecution confirmed they would seek the death penalty.  

On June 30th 1988, Lake County Circuit Judge Jerry Lockett sentenced Duckett to death by the electric chair. 

At 1:19 pm on July 28th 2026, 68-year-old James Aren Duckett was put to death by lethal injection in Florida State Prison. Duckett declined to make a final statement, saying “No sir” when prompted. 

Duckett received a final prison visit from four family members on the night before his scheduled execution, and on the day of his scheduled execution, Duckett woke up at 4:45am in his prison cell, and was served his last meal of eggs, grits, bacon, biscuits and chocolate milk and conversed with a spiritual adviser. 

After the execution of Duckett, the family members of Teresa McAbee, whom Duckett killed back in 1987, stated that they had suffered for decades while waiting for justice to be served, and McAbee’s mother broke down as she told the press that she waited for nearly 40 years to finally see Duckett executed, while one of McAbee’s cousins expressed she was glad to see Duckett executed, and stated that Duckett “took advantage of his badge” when he murdered her cousin. McAbee’s cousin additionally stated that Duckett got off too easy and should be executed with more pain like what McAbee suffered before her death, and it should not have taken about four decades for her aunt to witness justice

Previous Week’s Birthdays

Sam Worthington (50), Kevin Smith (56), Edward Furlong (49), Charli XCX (34), Michael Biehn (70), Wesley Snipes (64), Dean Cain (60), J.K. Rowling (61), Christopher Nolan (56), Arnold Schwarzenegger (79), Terry Crews (58), Hilary Swank (52), Laurence Fishburne (65), Lisa Kudrow (63), Jean Reno (78), Frances de la Tour (82), Carel Struycken (78), Wil Wheaton (54), Hannah Waddingham (56), Anya Chalotra (31), Elizabeth Berkley (54), Harry Kane (33), Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (56), Donnie Yen (63), and Taylor Schilling (42).

Last Week’s Birthdays

Bill Skarsgård (36), Sam Elliott (82), Rhona Mitra (50), Eric Bana (58), Anna Kendrick (41), Gillian Anderson (58), Melanie Griffith (69), Audrey Tautou (50), Dustin Hoffman (90), Charlize Theron (51), Sasha Calle (31), Harold Perrineau (63), Michael Shannon (52), David Duchovny (66), Tobin Bell (84), M. Night Shyamalan (56), Michelle Yeoh (64), Geri Halliwell-Horner (54), Mark Strong (63), Billy Bob Thornton (71), Meghan Markle (45), Barack Obama (65), Lee Mack (58), Stephen Graham (53), Evangeline Lilly (47), Martin Sheen (86), John C. McGinley (67), and Mamie Gummer (43).

Posted by  |  9th August 2026 | Categories: 2026 | Leave A Comment »

Dead Pool 26th July 2026

Not much to talk about this week, the news has been a little thin on the ground.  

Look Who You Could Have Had:

In Other News

William Shatner has revealed that he was dealing with cancer at the same time as his daughter, Melanie Shatner Gretsch. The 95-year-old Canadian actor told the Flying Monkeys  that Gretsch, 61, was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer in 2022 after finding a lump in her breast. Shatner revealed that about a year later, in June 2023, he was diagnosed with stage 4 melanoma, a serious form of skin cancer, that had spread to his lungs and brain. “I remember vividly thinking, ‘I don’t have the strength to take care of myself and lose my father at the same time,’” Gretsch, the youngest daughter of Shatner and first wife Gloria Rand. The father-daughter duo were both declared cancer-free by late 2024. Shatner said: “We got the perfect doctors for her cancer and my cancer.” In the year and a half after her diagnosis, Gretsch said she underwent multiple rounds of chemotherapy, a double mastectomy and 30 radiation therapy treatments. Gretsch said her father offered to help her financially during her treatment, saying: “I do not want you to worry. Just send me the bills.” “Then you made me laugh so hard when I was still going to the doctor a year later,” she said to the Star Trek actor. “You said, ‘You’ve got to get well. We’re going to be in the poorhouse!’” However, when she was nearly done with her treatments, her father found a lump in his cheek that turned out to be a tumour. He had surgery to remove it and underwent two years of immunotherapy to fight the cancer. Shatner opened up about the fear he felt when he was diagnosed. He recalled: “I said, ‘Stage 4?’ And someone in the room said, ‘Sorry.’ I said, ‘What are you sorry about?’ It was like, ‘Better pack your things.’ That person who said ‘sorry,’ that was very sad, like you are going to die. And I was. They said if this treatment they used did not work, I had about 5 months.”  

Singer Nivea offered an important update on her health after being diagnosed with blood cancer. “I was diagnosed with leukaemia earlier this year, ” the “Don’t Mess With My Man” singer, 44, revealed “I am so grateful to God. I am going through treatment.” Nivea confirmed that she started treatment for the blood cancer several months ago. Despite her diagnosis, Nivea assured the Flying Monkeys that she was maintaining a positive outlook due to her deep spirituality. “Everything is going great so far and I expect it to continue,” she said. “Amen. Amen. Amen! I’m very grateful for life. It’s so cliche to say, ‘You don’t know the time nor the hour,’ but it’s true. It just helped me put a lot of things into perspective.” The musician added, “I live in gratitude religiously. I’m just grateful for everything.” Nivea told us that she was keeping busy and even pursuing a music technology degree despite her illness. “I’m doing things I want to do,” she declared. “I’m definitely back into my music. I’m going to school for audio engineering.” The singer went on, “I’ve always wanted to learn how to engineer, how to mix and engineer, in particular. In general, I’m just doing all the things, honey! I’m loving all my children and just being grateful. I’m taking every opportunity that comes my way!” Nivea is perhaps best known for her 2003 breakthrough single “Don’t Mess with My Man,” which featured brothers Brian and Brandon Casey from R&B group Jagged Edge. The track received a Best R&B Performance Award nomination at the 2003 Grammys and ultimately reached number eight on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart. 

On This Day

  • 1945 – The Labour Party wins the United Kingdom general election of July 5 by a landslide, removing Winston Churchill from power.
  • 1971 – Apollo program: Launch of Apollo 15 on the first Apollo “J-Mission, and first use of a Lunar Roving Vehicle.
  • 2005 – Mumbai, India receives 99.5cm of rain within 24 hours, resulting in floods killing over 5,000 people.

Deaths

  • 1952 – Eva Perón,  Argentinian politician, 25th First Lady of Argentina (born 1919). 
  • 1984 – Ed Gein, American serial killer (born 1906). 
  • 2020 – Olivia de Havilland, American actress (born 1916). 
  • 2023 – Sinéad O’Connor, Irish singer and musician (born 1966). 
  • 2025 – Tom Lehrer, American singer, comedian and mathematician (born 1928). 

Last Week’s Birthdays

Jason Statham (59), Sandra Bullock (62), Kate Beckinsale (53), Kevin Spacey (67), Helen Mirren (81), Eve Myles (48), Nana Visitor (69), Mick Jagger (83), Matt LeBlanc (59), Jennifer Lopez (57), Elisabeth Moss (44), Anna Paquin (44), Summer Glau (45), Danny Dyer (49), Lynda Carter (75), Woody Harrelson (65), Daniel Radcliffe (37), Ronny Cox (88), Jo Brand (69), Rhys Ifans (59), Willem Dafoe (71), Selena Gomez (34), Danny Glover (80), Juno Temple (37), Josh Hartnett (48), John Francis Daley (41), and Sandra Oh (55). 

Posted by  |  4th August 2026 | Categories: 2026 | Leave A Comment »

Dead Pool 19th July 2026

Another week passes by, and as death stops for no-one, here we are again with another newsletter. Truly sad to see Sam Neil on this weeks list, he’s starred in many of my favourite films. 

Look Who You Could Have Had:

In Other News

BBC Radio and Desert Island Discs star Lauren Laverne has revealed she as been diagnosed with a disorder that can develop into blood cancer, just years on from her cancer diagnosis. The broadcaster, 48, took to social media on Friday afternoon to reveal the ‘personal news’ to her followers that while she was feeling OK and didn’t need treatment, it was something she wanted to share as it can help other people facing the same thing. “I’m quite a private person by nature but am sharing this as one of the many things I’ve learned after going through health challenges in recent years is that talking about this stuff helps people. I’ve been diagnosed with something called smouldering myeloma (yes that is a weird name and no I’ve never heard of it either). It’s an asymptomatic blood and bone marrow disorder that in some people can develop into blood cancer. She was quite to assure fans as she wrote: “Thankfully for me the risk of this happening in my case is pretty low. At the moment I feel OK and don’t need treatment. Most people my age who have it have no idea – it tends to be cancer survivors like me who are diagnosed early as we’re so carefully monitored. It has nothing to do with my previous illness or my recent surgery, it’s just one of those things.” She added that it was an incurable ‘chronic condition’ and means that her immune system is now compromised so she will need MRI’s and bone biopsies going forward. She said it was ‘a lot’ coming just two years after her last diagnosis but wanted to be ‘upfront’ and share her story. She added that despite having ‘difficult experiences’ in the last eight years, she had learned a lot, and then thanked her doctors and 6 Music team who helped her. She added that she was now taking a couple of weeks off on holiday but would be back soon. She also joked in the caption of the post: “I call it Smouldering Mye. Sounds more like a drag queen.”  

Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger III, the American hero who piloted the “Miracle on the Hudson” flight, has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. “I recently found out I have been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease,” the pilot, 75, said. “It is early stage. For now, this means a name may not come easily to me, I forget a story I have recently told, or I don’t sleep as well, but I am in the beginning of this long journey.” Sullenberger received his diagnosis in August 2025, and has since been learning about the condition – a type of dementia that affects a person’s memory, thinking and behaviour. Symptoms can eventually be severe enough to interfere with a person’s daily life and tasks. “My doctor, Dr. Gil Rabinovici with UCSF Medical Center, has opened my eyes to the prevalence of Alzheimer’s,” he shared. “This disease, he has told me, spares no age group and impacts millions of people around the world. It is the unwanted visitor at the door.” Sullenberger previously served in the United States Air Force before becoming a commercial airline pilot. He became a household name in January 2009, after he heroically landed US Airways Flight 1549 on the Hudson River after birds hit the plane, disabling its engines.. All 155 people aboard the aircraft survived. Tom Hanks eventually portrayed Sullenberger in the 2016 biopic Sully, which detailed the incredible water landing.  

Sha Wylie, believed to be England’s oldest stand-up comedian, has sadly died at the age of 81. The Edinburgh Fringe Festival regular, who made the finals of the Leicester Comedy Festival Silver Stand-up contest for acts over 55 twice, was “surrounded by family” when she passed away on July 5 after a “brief illness”. In her incredible career, Sha was also endorsed by comedy great Ronnie Corbett. Stand-Up Marketing spokesperson Kerry Herbert said: “Sha Wylie, passed away peacefully and surrounded by her family in Brighton, following a brief illness that required her to go to the GP in her crocs and the hospital in her WTF earrings. She was 81, a regular at the Brighton Fringe and still gigging to the end, getting to venues using her bus pass and a bright yellow Alinker walking-bike.” The obituary added: “Sha once said that if she were to have a headstone, it would say: ‘Sha was fat and that was that.’ “We’d like it to say, ‘Sha was loved, by her three children, her grandchildren, her many foster children, her nieces and nephews, her friends, her penpals, and her whole comedy family.’” She added: “But that’s too many words, so we’ll just hold her in our hearts and remember her unctuous voice calling us ‘darling’, her bright pink hair, and her spectacular earrings – recent ones being Lego seagulls ready for a chip. She will be terribly missed. Rest in peace, Sha.” Tributes have flooded in for Sha, with one fan writing: “I’m so saddened to hear of the passing of Sha Wylie, the true matriarch of the Brighton comedy scene. “Sha wasn’t just a wonderful comedian; she was someone who genuinely cared about the people around her. She was always invested in her fellow comedians, encouraging, supporting and celebrating others as much as herself. That kindness made her just as special off stage as she was on it. “Thank you, Sha, for your warmth, your laughter and the legacy you’ve left behind. You’ll be deeply missed. Rest peacefully.”

On This Day

  • 1545 – The Tudor warship Mary Rose sinks off Portsmouth. 
  • 1977 – The world’s first Global Positioning System (GPS) signal was transmitted.
  • 2024 – A faulty software update by CrowdStrike, an American cybersecurity company, causes global computer outages.

Deaths

  • 2013 – Mel Smith, English actor, director, and screenwriter (born 1952).
  • 2014 – James Garner, American actor (born 1928). 
  • 2019 – Rutger Hauer, Dutch actor, director, and producer (born 1944). 
  • 2024 – Ray Reardon, Welsh snooker player and police officer (born 1932).

Last Week’s Birthdays

Jared Padalecki (44), Benedict Cumberbatch (50), Kelly Reilly (49), Vin Diesel (59), Kristen Bell (46), Brett Goldstein (46), Eric Winter (50), David Hasselhoff (74), Alex Winter (61), Will Ferrell (59), Corey Feldman (55), Phoebe Cates (63), Diane Kruger (50), Travis Fimmel (47), Forest Whitaker (65), Celia Imrie (74), Brigitte Nielsen (63), Phoebe Waller-Bridge (41), Jackie Earle Haley (65), David Mitchell (52), Conor McGregor (38), Harrison Ford (84),  and Patrick Stewart (86).

Posted by  |  4th August 2026 | Categories: 2026 | Leave A Comment »