2 GOLDEN EAGLE
Love Island option amid Covid fears
GOLDEN eagles have survived against all odds and there are currently about 400 pairs living in the north-west of the mainland and the islands. There are a very few living in the south-west.
Harris, Mull, Rum and Skye are all good places to see golden eagles. Wildlife photographer Hamza Yassan has snapped them on the Ardnamurchan peninsula.
On the mainland, look for quiet glens with dead end roads. Experts recommend scanning the skyline between the hilltops and ridges and giving it at least half an hour.
OTTERS, which had pretty much disappeared from England by the 70s, survived in our cleaner waters. The population down south is improving and there are an estimated 8000 in Scotland today. The same species live in the sea and in fresh water inland. A pair of otters have been spotted playing in Glasgow’s River Kelvin recently. For a more reliable viewing spot, there’s a hide at Kylerhea, near Broadford on Skye, where they can be seen out along the shoreline.
ITV bosses have settled on Jersey as an alternative venue for this summer’s Love Island – in case the show cannot be staged in Majorca as planned.
Producers are desperate to get back to the Spanish sunshine isle so contestants can lounge around in their sexy swimwear.
But Covid travel restrictions could make it too complicated for it to be staged in its traditional Mediterranean home, so Jersey has been chosen as back-up.
Now producers are hoping contestants will not take to wearing a jersey if the weather proves unkind.
A show insider said: “The Channel Islands get plenty of sunshine, so it makes sense to hold Love Island there if we can’t get back to Spain. Either way, we’re going to put out a belting series.”
Pregnant show host Laura Whitmore revealed there is no shortage of wannabe contestants for this summer’s series. She said: “We’ve had more applications than
FAME Bergerac star John ever – there are a lot of people that want to do Love Island and there are a lot of people that want to watch it.” Jersey, 14 miles off the coast of Normandy, was the location for 80s BBC TV drama Bergerac, starring John Nettles. It averages 250 hours of sunshine in June and July, with highs sometimes hitting 33C, but normally settling closer to 20C. Majorca typically has up to 350 hours of sunshine in early summer, with average highs of about 26C. Last year, the summer and winter versions of Love Island were cancelled because of the pandemic. Scots narrator Iain Stirling, 33, who is married to Laura, 35, suggested a UK version could be a good alternative. He said: “When they can’t eat their dinner because seagulls are taking it off the plate it could mix it up.” A final decision over which venue to use is expected to be made within the next couple of days.
We are satisfied appropriate action has been taken CHANNEL 4
ANT Middleton was axed by Channel 4 after complaints were made by female crew over “inappropriate comments”.
Yesterday we told how TV bosses said they will never work with the star again because of his “personal conduct”.
And the decision came months after he was heavily criticised in June last year for branding Black Lives Matter protesters “absolute scum”.
But his BLM remarks were not the sole reason for the decision to ditch him from the SAS Who Dares Win series.
A number of staff raised concerns with makers Minnow Films and Channel 4 during an end of year review where they were allowed to speak anonymously. At the end of 2020, the allegations and complaints from a number of women regarding Ant’s comments towards them on set were then investigated. They felt the way he spoke to them was “inappropriate”.
Following the investigation, Channel 4 held meetings and decided to stop working with Ant, 40, and informed him of this decision on Monday.
The station told our sister paper the Mirror: “We can’t comment on anonymous allegations, however, we take issues of welfare very seriously.
“We clearly set out our expectations of behaviour in our Supplier Code of Conduct. We are satisfied appropriate action has
STORM been taken.” Minnow Films said: “The welfare of those working on our productions is of paramount importance. We have robust procedures in place to allow members of staff to come forward and confidentially raise any concerns.” At the end of the 2019 series consultants investigated the production process. Improvements were made but some staff were still left upset by the way Ant had treated them during filming last year. The decision to axe Middleton follows him losing several other jobs in the last year.
The ex-Special Forces soldier, who recently appeared with actress Rebel Wilson on his series Straight Talking, was removed from ITV’s Soccer Aid in August amid fears his involvement would offend ethnic minority players.
And in the same month he stood down from the role of Chief Cadet of the Volunteer Cadet Corps, a youth group affiliated to the Royal Navy, after being appointed in November 2019.
Last night, Middleton was asked about leaving the show.
He said: “I think that ultimately what has happened is that the people that make the show and I have very different opinions on where the show started and where it is going in the future.”