Sir Idris

Luther star Idris Elba becomes Sir Idris in recognition of his charity work with young people. He has launched an anti-knife crime campaign and founded the Elba Hope Foundation alongside his wife Sabrina, providing grants to organisations across the UK, the US and Africa.

Idris Elba has been recognised for his charity work with young people and Sarina Wiegman for leading the Lionesses to victory in the Euros last summer

Idris Elba knighted as Sarina Wiegman and Lionesses lead New Year Honours

Actor Idris Elba is knighted, and England women's football coach Sarina Wiegman is made an honorary dame in the New Year Honours.

Figure skating duo Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean are given a damehood and knighthood, respectively, while there is also recognition of the Red Roses winning the women's rugby union World Cup.

There are 1,157 recipients in this year's list, with Wiegman and several of her Lionesses honoured after their victory in the European Championships last summer.

England captain and two-time European champion Leah Williamson is made a CBE, while Ella Toone, Keira Walsh, Alex Greenwood, and Georgia Stanway are all given MBEs to recognise their contributions to the triumph.

In the world of entertainment, there is a damehood for comedy actor and writer Meera Syal, as well as OBEs for actor Warwick Davis and sports broadcaster Gabby Logan. A CBE has been conferred on mezzo-soprano Alice Coote.

Author and TV host Richard Osman is recognised for his work, as are comedian Matt Lucas and Wicked star Cynthia Erivo.

Betty Brown, who has campaigned against wrongful prosecutions by the Post Office, is appointed an OBE.

Television and film

Warwick Davis, Meera Syal and Bill Bailey all receive honours for their respective contributions to drama and entertainment

Luther star Idris Elba becomes Sir Idris in recognition of his charity work with young people. He has launched an anti-knife crime campaign and founded the Elba Hope Foundation alongside his wife Sabrina, providing grants to organisations across the UK, the US, and Africa.

He was a beneficiary of the Prince's Trust as a teenager, when he was given a £1,500 grant to attend the National Youth Music Theatre programme.

Since then, he has risen to prominence in the TV show The Wire and established a film career, with starring roles in Beasts of No Nation and Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom, among others.

"I receive this honour on behalf of the many young people whose talent, ambition, and resilience have driven the work of the Elba Hope Foundation," Sir Idris said.

Meera Syal, now Dame Meera, was part of the team that created sketch show Goodness Gracious Me, which explored British Asian culture, and played the grandmother in The Kumars at No. 42.

She is recognised for her contribution to drama, literature, and charity, having also written several novels and plays.

Last of the Summer Wine and Open All Hours writer Roy Clarke is knighted, while actor and presenter Warwick Davis said of his OBE: "This is the best thing that's ever happened to me - and I've been in Star Wars."

Little Britain comedian Matt Lucas and quiz-show-host-turned-author Richard Osman are also given OBEs, while comedian Bill Bailey, actor Sally Lindsay, and children's TV star Paul Chuckle are made MBEs.

Match of the Day presenter Gabby Logan and football commentator Clive Tyldesley are appointed OBEs.

TV chef Marcus Wareing and Location, Location, Location presenter Phil Spencer receive MBEs.

Musicians and the arts

Cynthia Erivo and Ellie Goulding receive MBEs with opera singer Alice Coote appointed a CBE

Actor and singer Cynthia Erivo is appointed an MBE, as is singer Ellie Goulding who is recognised for her work as an environmental ambassador. Scottish singer Eve Graham, who was a member of the New Seekers, is also made an MBE.

Erivo, who starred in Wicked and its 2025 sequel Wicked: For Good, said it was "an honour I could never have thought would happen".

There is a strong classical contingent to this year's list, with conductor Richard Farnes, a former music director of Opera North, being made a CBE along with opera singer Alice Coote and composer Max Richter.

As well as his own albums, Richter is known for composing soundtracks for film and television including Waltz with Bashir and Chloe Zhao's Hamnet, which is tipped for an Oscar.

Poet Prof Andrew McMillan has been made an MBE for services to literature.

Sports personalities

Leah Williamson is appointed a CBE while Paula Radcliffe and Marlie Packer are made OBEs

Wiegman receives an honorary title after guiding the Lionesses to their second successive Euros title, becoming the first England football team to win a major trophy on foreign soil.

Foreign citizens can be conferred knighthoods or damehoods, but are not dubbed and cannot use the title Sir or Dame.

"When I first arrived in England, I could never have imagined the respect and warmth I've experienced," said Wiegman, who is from the Netherlands. "I deeply thank the fans for their support

The Lionesses are not the only English team to be recognised for success on the global stage.

Following the Red Roses' victory at the Women's Rugby World Cup, lock Zoe Aldcroft, flanker Marlie Packer, and head coach John Mitchell are all made OBEs. Megan Jones, Sadia Kabeya, and Ellie Kildunne are appointed MBEs.

Ice skaters Torvill and Dean - now Dame Jayne and Sir Christopher - won gold at the 1984 Winter Olympics in one of the most-watched television events ever in the UK. They are recognised for their services to ice skating and voluntary service.

The pair performed together for the final time during this year's finale of Dancing on Ice. Dame Jayne said: "It was a big thing for us to mark our career before retirement, and then receiving this award at the end of the year, it's just finished everything. It's perfect."

Sir Christopher added: "We're really humbled by it."

Olympic runner Paula Radcliffe becomes an OBE, while former Tottenham Hotspur chairman Daniel Levy is appointed a CBE for his services to charity and the community.

Former Welsh rugby player Jonathan Davies has also been made a CBE for his work as president of the Velindre Cancer Care Trust.

Politicians

Tristram Hunt, Annelise Dodds and Jonathan Ashworth are among the political figures to receive honours

As always, there are several political figures on the list, with former Labour minister Anneliese Dodds made a dame. There are also gongs for former Labour MPs Jonathan Ashworth and Tristram Hunt.

Sir Tristram, a historian, is director of the Victoria and Albert Museum and is recognised for his services to that industry.

Mr. Ashworth is recognised with a CBE for his charity work on behalf of the children of alcoholics.

"It was never something I expected," he said. "Speaking up for the thousands of children who suffer in silence is something that matters deeply to me."

Another ex-Labour MP to be knighted is Adam Ingram, who was a minister under Sir Tony Blair, while former Welsh Labour MP Christopher Ruane is appointed an OBE. Sir Tony's former diary secretary, Kate Garvey, is made an OBE.

Campaigners

Mervyn Kersh, Betty Brown and Bobby Seagull are recognised for their respective campaigning efforts regarding the Holocaust, Post Office scandal and public libraries

As well as celebrating the success of people in the public eye, the honours list also highlights the unsung achievements of people who make major contributions to their local communities, charities, and to fields such as education and healthcare.

Betty Brown, the oldest surviving victim of the Post Office Horizon IT scandal, is given an OBE for services to justice for her part in the campaign against wrongful prosecutions. She said she would wear the award in honour of the other subpostmasters.

Also recognised is Jeff Edwards, who, aged eight, survived the Aberfan disaster in which a coal waste tip came crashing down a hillside and engulfed his school and surrounding homes - killing 116 children and 28 adults.

Mervyn Kersh, a British Army veteran of the Normandy landings and the liberation of the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp, is awarded the British Empire Medal (BEM) for his services to Holocaust remembrance and education.

Mr Kersh has routinely spoken to schoolchildren about his experiences but warned of increasing antisemitism in the UK: "What's disappointing is the antisemitism that I see everywhere, hear everywhere, or read."

Holocaust survivor Lydia Tischler is awarded an MBE for services to Holocaust remembrance and child psychology. Sarah Anderson, the founder of mental health charity the Listening Place, receives a damehood for services to suicide prevention.

Maths teacher Bobby Seagull is appointed an MBE for his work campaigning for public libraries to be better supported.

The oldest person on the list is 102-year-old John Hearn, who receives a BEM for services to judo and to the community in north-east England.

The youngest recipient is Olympic gold medal-winning sports climber Toby Roberts, 20, who receives an MBE.

Doug Faulkner and George Sandeman

Social Critique of The Entertainment Industry And Its Fantastical Delusion

“UPDATE: OCTOBER 31, 2025: In the photo, first obtained by TMZ, Combs is seen wearing a dark blue jacket and a beanie on his head.”

— Source: TMZ

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs photographed with a full white beard as he looked out into the distance.

On Friday, October 31, the music mogul, 55, was photographed in the yard of the Federal Correctional Institution in Fort Dix, New Jersey. He was transferred to the prison the day before to serve the remainder of his 50-month sentence for federal sex crimes.

The new setting is different for Combs, who previously occupied his days with family visits and even orchestrated a six-week “Free Game with Diddy” business and entrepreneurship class while he was at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn (MDC), a spokesperson for the Federal Bureau of Prisons told PEOPLE.

END UPDATE

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“He told the court his actions were ‘disgusting, shameful and sick’ as he apologised to the victims and his children.”

— Source: UPDATE: October 3, 2025: Sean 'Diddy' Combs Speaks Ahead of Sentencing—

In this courtroom sketch, Sean "Diddy" Combs listens during a hearing over his bid to overturn his conviction on charges of transportation to engage in prostitution on Sept. 25. (Jane Rosenberg/Reuters)

Judge Arun Subramanian has sentenced Sean Combs to 50 months, four years, and two months. Saying the sentence is fair to account for the severity of Combs’ crimes and the mitigating factors.

He told the court, 'My actions were disgusting, shameful, and sick.' He turns to his mother, Janice, and says sorry to her as well. —Diddy apologises ahead of sentencing.

Now, he says he is taking responsibility for his actions.

‘I got lost in excess, I got lost in my ego,’ he tells the judge.

He was convicted of flying people across the US for sexual encounters he called 'freak-offs', including his girlfriends and male sex workers.

Passersby are stopping and asking what’s going on. Some have joined in to watch.

Reporters and onlookers are beginning to spill out into the street as traffic picks up and cars honk.

This sentence is meant to send a signal to the public, Judge Subramanian said.

It is ‘a message to abusers and victims alike.’

When victims come forward about crimes of abuse, they should trust that sharing their stories can lead to concrete actions, he said.

And for abusers, it should serve as a ‘deterrent.’

He also orders Combs to pay a $500,000 fine.

Combs has already served 12 months in prison, for which he will receive credit.

It was a different message from two months ago when a joyful Combs told his family after the verdict that he was ‘coming home.’

END UPDATE

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“UPDATE: JULY 2, 2025: The jury reaches a verdict in the trial of Sean “Puffy” Combs.”

— Source

Diddy was found guilty of transportation for prostitution but was cleared of the more serious charges of racketeering and sex trafficking involving his former partner, Casandra Ventura, and another woman referred to as 'Jane.'

The jury deliberated the case for over 12 hours over the course of three days.

Cassandra Ventura's lawyer expressed satisfaction with the verdict, noting that Diddy, who has been incarcerated since his arrest in September of last year, still faces a significant prison sentence.

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs reacts after being found guilty of two of the five counts in his trial. (Jane Rosenberg/Reuters)

The music mogul has not yet been sentenced. The two charges he was convicted of carry a maximum prison term of 10 years.

Courtesy: ABC News: FULL SPECIAL REPORT: Sean Combs guilty on 2 of 5 counts, acquitted of racketeering conspiracy

Judge Arun Subramanian is considering whether Combs should remain in detention until sentencing or be released on bail.

Tagged: Inmate Number: 37452-054 | Culled from various reporters and news organizations in the courtroom, including ABC News, the Associated Press, CNN, NBC News, the New York Times, and USA Today.

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Breaking News Developing Story

Judge Arun Subramanian has denied bail to Sean Combs, stating that the defense has not provided sufficient evidence to justify lifting his detention.

Rebecca Sapp/WireImage ; Elizabeth Williams via AP

Sean "Diddy" Combs attends Reel To Reel: Cant Stop Won't Stop: A Bad Boy Story on October 4, 2017 in Los Angeles, California; Courtroom sketch of Sean "Diddy" Combs during a hearing in federal court on October 10, 2024, in New York.

Citing previous court cases, he disagrees with Combs’ attorneys that the crimes he has been convicted of, specifically transportation for prostitution, do not warrant mandatory detention. He also referenced Combs’ history of violence.

The music mogul will remain in custody after being found not guilty of racketeering and sex trafficking while awaiting sentencing for two lesser convictions.

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Diddy, Weinstein, and the like: A Fantastical Delusion

Theo Edwards for YAME Digital

The entertainment industry is being criticized for promoting a fantastical delusion. Diddy and The American Dream are seen as symbols of the patriarchal American Dream, which is believed to be based on lies. According to Shahid Bolsen, the creator of the Middle Nation Channel, everything that is said to be necessary to achieve the American dream is a lie, and this in itself is considered corruption.

Depraved figures like Diddy, Weinstein, and Jeffery Epstein, along with lesser-known individuals in communities everywhere, shamelessly exploit creativity, offering a disturbing glimpse into their lives. Shahid holds up the mirror to America. “Whenever you hear someone defending these actions, it's likely because they either desire that life or have lived it themselves —predator.”

This has got to be one of the most truthful social critiques of the entertainment industry as 'The Fantastical Delusion' of the American dream. For most of these people, the real goal when they want to attain wealth "...is to be degenerate.”

#Metropolitan Detention Center | #Brooklyn | #Inmate Number: 37452-054