Hallow Road: Rosamund Pike faces every parent's worst nightmare in this absurd thriller
Two Middle England parents, not given names but embodied with pained intensity by Rosamund Pike and Matthew Rhys, have just had a furious row with their pregnant daughter, who has stormed out and driven off into the night. Somewhere in the woods, about a 45-minute drive away, she has knocked down a pedestrian, while possibly high on drugs, and calls them up hysterically to sort things out.
Pike happens to be a paramedic, who tries to talk her through CPR, while Rhys drives them both as quickly as possible to the scene. They assume emergency services will beat them there, but it could well be that their daughter – a snivelling problem child we never see, but hear panicking plenty – is telling porkies on that front.
There's some thematic ambition to the piece: writer-director Babak Anvari (Under the Shadow; Wounds; I Came By) is evidently thinking about parental responsibility, and the point where protective instincts might snap under duress. Pike and Rhys take it as seriously as they can, but the camera is given to interludes of just wafting over their anxious faces, and there's nothing they can do about a big daft crunch in the sound mix when CPR goes wrong and the victim's ribs cave in.
Much is left to the imagination here – Anvari may be aiming for the slippery logic of a Grimm's fable. At the same time, his overeager screenplay spells out too much. What should be the sore aftermath to a familial bust-up has the telltale ring of a recap.
The writing is several drafts away from being jagged or suggestive the way Anvari's terrific Under the Shadow was – it's stuck being blunt and obvious. As for the twist, it's too risible to be disturbing. The mystery vocal performances flaunted in the end credits give it a campy Twilight Zone quality that sends you out bemused.
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Daily Mail
17 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Truth about JD Vance's new BFF Thomas Skinner's 'modern-day Del Boy' roots: Apprentice and Strictly star's childhood in £2.5m home and £29k-a-year school
Thomas Skinner has always traded on his working class roots, whether it be his love of fry-ups at his favourite café or his famous 'Bosh' catchphrase. But the Daily Mail can reveal that the ex-Apprentice star's upbringing was far from poverty-stricken as he grew up in a house worth more than £2.5million and went to an exclusive private school. Skinner, 34, who had a surprise meeting with American vice president JD Vance this week before being named as a contestant on Strictly Come Dancing, referred to his father in his autobiography as being 'a livewire and a geezer' and a 'ducker and a grafter like me'. But rather than struggling to make ends meet, his father Lee – who his son nicknames 'The Governor' – was a mega rich marketing boss and businessman who was once able to have a garage of Lamborghinis before being made bankrupt over his role in a suspected investment fraud which cost investors £3.6million. Cockney-speaking Skinner who appeared on The Apprentice in 2019 bizarrely got his invitation to enjoy 'a barbecue and beers' with Vance at his Cotswolds holiday retreat after the politician became a fan of his often motivational and feelgood posts on social media. His book called 'Graft, How to Smash Life' which was published in 2023, glossed over large parts of his childhood, describing how he and his parents initially lived in a modest terraced townhouse home in Romford, Essex. But while detailing how his mother worked hard to earn a living, the book failed to mention that he and his family lived from 2002 until 2014 in a much bigger detached house with a large driveway and leafy front garden in Gidea Park, Romford. The imposing property where Skinner grew up last sold for £2.5million in 2017 and is now used for people living in supported accommodation. Skinner's parents are thought to have split up around 2012 when his father disappeared off the electoral register records for the house which has an immaculate and spacious lawned rear garden. He later spent time living separately with his mother and father at their respective new homes while he carved out his career as a market trader, before he eventually set up a company selling mattresses and pillows. Skinner described the semi-detached home in Hornchurch, Essex, which his mother Annette moved to as being so small that he was forced to sleep on a pull out bed on her downstairs floor at a time when he 'did not have a pot to piss in financially'. He made no mention in his book about having been a pupil at Brentwood School which currently has days fees of £29,112-a-year or boarding fees of £56,358. His book described how he had been expelled from a school at the age of 14 when he was caught selling pornographic DVD films to classmates after they were supplied to him by his father to encourage him to make money for himself. While not referring to his time at prestigious Brentwood School, the book, priced at £5.99 on Amazon, made much of his love of buying and selling anything, and eating hearty breakfasts at his beloved Dino's Cafe in Spitalfields Market. Describing his mantra of self-reliance, he stated in his book how he started working on a paper round at the age of 12 before getting weekend work on Romford market and a job sweeping up in a barber's shop Referring to himself as 'a modern-day Del Boy', he wrote: 'Success, money, work, it's never come to me, it's never been handed to me. Everything I 've ever had, I've had to go out and work for and that's generally the rule in life'. Skinner who now lives in Brentwood with wife Sinéad (pictured) and their three children described in his book how his father 'worked the markets and always had a business opportunity on the go' In a reference to his love of spending money as well as well as making it, he added that he 'had been up and down so many times that I've lost count'. The book also told how his wheeler-dealing had spilled over into criminality which culminated in him being given a two year suspended prison sentence, a fine and 300 hours community service in 2012 for handling 4,992 stolen tubes of Body Shop cleansing gels worth nearly £40,000 and 2,000 Valium tablets. Skinner was only revealed to be an old boy of prestigious Brentwood School in a local Essex newspaper report in 2019 which told how he had been chosen to appear on The Apprentice. He was forced to defend his working class credentials after a commentator called him out about his time at the expensive private school in a post on X in July last year. The post said: 'This guy went to a school that costs £23,000 a year to attend as a day student and £46,000 a year to attend as a boarder. Yet, he's got every Deano in the land eating out of his hand as some fake working-class hero. Embarrassing.' Skinner who has admitted being dyslexic replied in a lengthy post which did not name Brentwood School, but stated: 'I got a sports scholarship to a fantastic sports academy school, that I later got expelled (for selling porno DVDs my dad got from me off his mate in the pub so I could have a few more quid in my pocket) and I was an idiot when I was younger.' He added: 'I'm dyslexic and struggled with school, I was an extremely lucky child who got given the opportunity to go there, what's wrong with that? But I worked extremely hard to get myself there and I proud of that. 'I've been working on markets since the age of 12. I work every day and Employ 18 people. I have previous criminal records because I had to do things when I was younger that I'm not proud of and I was naive. Pictured: Jack Skinner and his father at 80s pop star Paul Young's wedding to wife Lorna at the Old Marylebone Town Hall Skinner's parents are thought to have split up around 2012 when his father disappeared off the electoral register records for the house (Pictured) He later spent time living separately with his mother and father at their respective home (Pictured his childhood home, which has an immaculate and spacious lawned rear garden) 'But learnt from it and made me the man I am today. I'm proud of where I've come from and what I've achieved in life. All I try to do is spread positivity and let the world know anything in life is achievable with hard work.' Skinner was ejected from The Apprentice by Lord Sugar in Week Nine of the show in 2019, and went on to capitalise on his TV work with appearance on 8 Out of Ten Cats and Celebrity Masterchef. But his social media fame only really took off in Covid when he started posting videos of himself while speaking of the joys of being British, having a happy family life and motivating fans with messages such as: 'It doesn't matter how big those steps are you're taking as long as they're in the right direction.' Many of his clips were filmed behind the wheel of his trusty Transit van while he was making deliveries across the country. Since Covid, his social media posts often show him tucking into breakfasts at Dino's. It emerged this week that he was invited to meet JD Vance at his Grade Two listed manor house holiday home in the Cotswolds, thanks to them both being mutually acquainted with Dr James Orr, associate professor of philosophy of religion at the University of Cambridge. Orr told the Telegraph this week: 'He's a very busy man. He's up at 3.30am grafting, going for those revolting breakfasts, gets in his van, drives around the South East delivering mattresses, has a cheeky pint at his local.' He said he viewed Skinner as being a patriotic, straight talking family man and effectively 'England incarnate'. Orr said: 'There's something timelessly English about him… It's the energy, the sunny optimism, the authenticity. And maybe… a glimpse into what's been lost.' Earlier this year, Orr persuaded Skinner to speak at a London conference called Now and England which he was organising for the Roger Scruton Legacy Foundation after seeing some of his videos. Referring to himself as 'a modern-day Del Boy', he wrote: 'Success, money, work, it's never come to me, it's never been handed to me. Everything I 've ever had, I've had to go out and work for and that's generally the rule in life'. He added: 'We had too many wonks, eggheads, politicians, and nobody who could speak of England… I thought, 'This guy is Romford on legs and I want him at this conference'. 'He came to the conference and gave a barnstorming speech, and what was so powerful about it was it wasn't political, wasn't point-scoring, wasn't having jabs at the Government or Opposition… He talked in a straightforward and emotionally powerful way about his love of England.' Orr suspected JD Vance would get on well with Skinner and sent his politician friend a picture of him, saying: 'We have to go for pints with this guy'. JD Vance later voiced support for Skinner on X after the former Apprentice star said he had received 'death threats' and 'vile comments about my children' following posts in which he claimed 'something's gone wrong' in the UK. In response, the Vice President posted a picture of a cartoon character and wrote: 'Hang in there, my friend. Remember that 90 percent of people attacking your family look like this.' Following their surprise meeting, Skinner posted a picture of himself on Tuesday, dressed in a smart white shirt and tie with his unlikely political friend dressed in a polo shirt 'after a few beers'. He added that it had been 'a cracking night in the beautiful English countryside with JD, his friends and family' and a 'once in a lifetime' moment, before his trademark, signing off with the word: 'Bosh'. Skinner who has a combined 1.1 million followers on Instagram and X had his profile raised still further this week when he became the tenth contestant to be announced by the BBC for this year's Strictly starting next month. He also spoke of how his life spilled into criminality after being handed a two-year suspended prison sentence for handling 4,992 stolen tubes of Body Shop cleansing gels and 2,000 Valium tablets He welcomed the news, saying: 'I'm beyond excited to be joining Strictly Come Dancing. I've tackled the boardroom and some big breakfasts in my time but stepping onto the dance floor under that glitterball is next level stuff! 'I've never danced in my life (other than at weddings) but I'm ready to graft and of course have a laugh. Bring on the sequins, sambas and most importantly, the BOSH to the ballroom!' Skinner who now lives in Brentwood with wife Sinéad and their three children described in his book how his father 'worked the markets and always had a business opportunity on the go' during his 'idyllic normal upbringing'. But the Daily Mail can reveal that his father was at the centre of a long running investigation by the Financial Conduct Authority into his attempts to revive the former Our Price records brand as an online operation selling discounted goods which led to investors losing nearly £4million. He and a business associate were found to have breached financial regulations by selling shares in their company Our Price Records Ltd to 260 investors, with amounts invested ranging from £1,200 to £252,000 Lee Skinner was said to have duped investors with bogus promotional material without telling them that at least £1.58m in commission on the share sales was being paid to third party shell companies. It was revealed in 2020 that he had been leant more than £760,000 by one of the companies which had received commission in return for him supposedly providing administrative and marketings services for Our Price Records. The High Court heard that most buyers were introduced by a company which falsely stated that Lee Skinner was 'a personal friend of Richard Branson' and that the band Madness had agreed to appear for free to promote the scheme. As a result of the case, he had a bankruptcy petition filed against him by the FCA in May 2020 and was banned from being a company director for ten years, according to financial records. wife Sinéad Meanwhile further details of Thomas Skinner's now spent conviction for handling stolen goods have now emerged. He was aged just 20 in 2012 when he was charged with a much older co-defendant Albert Jackson, then 61, Jackson from Aveley, Essex, who died in 2015 was accused of handling 9,552 tubes of the same gel to the value of £76,000 as well as 171 pairs of Sketches footwear worth £8,000. A woman who was once in a relationship with him said: 'I don't know what Albert's connection to Tom Skinner was beyond them being on the same charge in court - but I can tell you Albert was a wrong un. 'He was a proper thief, very into drugs and violent - he once attacked a fella n a pub with a crowbar. A nasty piece of work.' Skinner spoke of his brush with the law in 2019 when he told the Mail: 'Many years ago before I had my business, when I used to work on the markets, I was young and naïve and brought stock from a source that I didn't know. I wasn't aware that the stock was stolen and paid the consequences for the mistake I made.' As a result of his ordeal, he stated that he now only buys from 'trusted sources'. He added: 'That is now well in my past and I have had a string of successful companies since then… I was put in situations I didn't fully understand when I was younger but they have made me the man I am now. I am a changed man.' But Companies House records suggest that Skinner may be having business problems, or at the very least not keeping up with paperwork, due to lateness in filing returns to Companies House. His firm called The Fluffy Pillow Company which was launched in January 2019 last filed accounts for the year ending in January 2022, with accounts for the following year now being nearly 22 months overdue. Even the last set of accounts raised questions about the company as its net assets were listed as £51,301 with £50,000 falling due eventually to creditors. Unusually, the figures for the previous year were exactly the same.
Telegraph
17 minutes ago
- Telegraph
JK Rowling savages Sturgeon's book for ‘shameless denial of reality'
JK Rowling has reviewed Nicola Sturgeon 's memoir, Frankly, and said it 'reads like a PR statement that's been through sixteen drafts.' The Harry Potter author said the former first minister remained 'stubbornly wedded' to the idea that transgender women should be allowed into women-only spaces. Rowling said Sturgeon looked 'like a complete f***wit' when she was asked whether transgender rapist Isla Bryson was a man or a woman during a television interview. The author was a staunch critic of SNP plans, which were later ditched, to make it easier for transgender women to change their legal gender. Earlier this week the author mocked Sturgeon for using the memoir to warn about making public spaces safer for women. She tweeted a picture of the relevant pages of the newly-released book, across which she had scrawled in capital letters: 'Are you f-----g kidding me?' Rowling said she used to feel some 'non-partisan admiration' for Ms Sturgeon and empathised with her descriptions of being subjected to sexism. But in the review, she says Sturgeon 'denies there are any risks to a policy of gender self-identification.' Rowling added: 'She can't imagine any male predator capitalising on such policies, in spite of the fact that it has, demonstrably, happened many times. She is flat out Trumpian in her shameless denial of reality and hard facts.' Rowling began the review by comparing Ms Sturgeon to Bella Swan, the heroine of the teen fantasy Twilight novels, saying they both start out as 'a shy, awkward, bookish girl' and end up as a 'monomaniac'. She wrote: 'Both are consumed by a single, overriding ambition. In Nicola's case, it's independence for Scotland. 'In Bella's, it's having loads of hot sex with Edward Cullen without getting accidentally killed. Spoiler alert: only one of these ambitions is realised,' Rowling wrote. The Harry Potter author also mocked Ms Sturgeon's claim the 2014 independence referendum was not 'unpleasant and divisive', saying: 'No s***, Nicola. 'You, surrounded only by adoring nationalists, flying between public meetings in a helicopter bearing a large image of your own face, enjoying police protection and all the excitement of potentially bringing about your life's ambition, enjoyed the referendum? I'm amazed.' She added: 'Oddly, this message didn't resonate too well with No voters who were being threatened with violence, told to f*** off out of Scotland, quizzed on the amount of Scottish blood that ran in their veins, accused of treachery and treason and informed that they were on the wrong side of, as one 'cybernat' memorably put it, 'a straightforward battle between good and evil.'
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
PATRICK MARMION reviews Lily Allen's Hedda in Bath: Singer just can't inject much empathy into this malignant narcissist
A GREAT actor can make us care about almost anybody. But Lily Allen, in her latest stage venture at Bath's tiny Ustinov Studio, has to cope with one of the dodgiest characters in all of drama. We are talking about Hedda Gabler, the alpha-narcissist creation of 19th-century Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. Hedda is an entitled madam who, in Matthew Dunster's modernised version, has the airs and graces of a spoilt supermodel. Fitted out with a modern backstory – Hedda is now the daughter of a late musician allegedly swindled by Spotify, and she moans that she 'misses her daddy and having it all' – she's also being dumped into 'middle class suburban poverty' by marrying a sweet but dull professor of something very obscure. Set in the West Country (or 'f***ing Somerset' as one character curses), we are in the realms of deep self-absorption. Hedda's ex, Jasper (Tom Austen, of Grantchester), returns, weeping that he doesn't want to be his partner's version of himself, but lacks the guts to be his own version of himself. And if you can unravel that, this show may well be for you. Hedda's thickly-bearded husband George (Ciaran Owens) is unsettlingly reminiscent of Allen's recently ditched real-life ex-husband David Harbour (Stranger Things). The difference is that George has had a personality bypass and she is without motivation for marrying this impecunious deadbeat who's pathetically jealous of her ex. Nor is it clear why George is marrying Hedda — a woman who's very touchy, but not at all feely (around him at any rate). And yet, even though she belittles and assaults an old friend, and urges her ex to shoot himself, we never really fear what Allen's Hedda is capable of. Other actors get more traction out of Dunster's hyper-realistic dialogue, rooted in tortured inertia. Austen oozes rizz as the chronically intense Jasper, who is an expert on the future (albeit not his own). Julia Chan as his new love (and Hedda's old friend), Taya, is an alarmingly vulnerable addict on the brink of a nervous breakdown. Imogen Stubbs is emotionally urgent as a gushy aunt, while Brendan Coyle (Downton's Mr Bates) is a soporifically insouciant MP and sugar daddy to Hedda. Hedda is not without quality, but it is almost entirely without empathy. No actor can survive that. Thankfully, Najla Andrade puts the neurotic swamp in perspective as the bashful Brazilian housekeeper, fearful of everyone's volatile mental state. Anna Fleischle's set design, meanwhile, embodies the play's soullessness, with a minimalist interior that looks like an upmarket funeral parlour with floor to ceiling net curtains. Dunster's production is fully crewed with understudies and clearly hoping for a West End transfer. And Allen's name will surely sell tickets. But where she may get away with playing a motivelessly malignant character in this theatrical boutique, Shaftesbury Avenue will be a steeper test of fan loyalty. Hedda is not without quality, but it is almost entirely without empathy. No actor can survive that.
