
Andy Murray reveals next career move and reveals he will snub ‘harmful' new role
ANDY MURRAY is loath to step into TV punditry work just yet – as he does not want to annoy Jack Draper with his words.
Muzza, 38, hated it when he was playing and former British tennis stars, some who had nowhere near his same level of ability or talent, gave him advice.
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Now retired and at a loose end following the dissolution of his coaching gig with 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic, the Scotsman could earn decent money working for the BBC.
The two-time Wimbledon singles champion is conscious of appearing in front of millions and saying something that current British No.1 Draper, 23, disagrees with.
Asked by GQ magazine if he feels the need to stay in the public eye, Murray replied: "I'm not thinking daily that I need to tweet something or somehow remain relevant.
"That's why I'm much more interested in the idea of coaching because I feel like I'd actually really be helping someone.
'Whereas with punditry, it can be harmful. If I go and work at, let's say Wimbledon, you start getting asked questions about British players like Jack Draper.
'I know when the British ex–tennis players would talk about my tennis and what I should be doing.
'Because you respect them, you listen to what they're saying – but it's not always the same as what your coach is telling you.
'What the pundits are saying could be wrong.
"They're not right all the time, and when you're young, it's quite conflicting.
'So I'd be more inclined to do coaching, because I think punditry is quite an easy gig.
'You can just throw stuff out there.
People love it if it's a bit controversial, but you don't actually have any skin in the game.'
BBC's Wimbledon TV comms team will be revealed on Monday.
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The Sun
25 minutes ago
- The Sun
Inside Aaron Taylor-Johnson's controversial marriage… and how it survived ‘grooming claims' and vile stepdaughter slurs
SHE'S been labelled a 'cradle-snatcher', 'sexual deviant' and even a 'groomer' - while he has been accused of having 'complex mother issues'. Yet stepping out on the red carpet in London earlier this week for the world premiere of his new film 28 Years Later, Sam and Aaron Taylor-Johnson looked unfazed by the furore that's forever stalked their relationship. 16 16 From where they're standing, they've proved the critics wrong. Tomorrow marks their 13th wedding anniversary, after all - an impressive feat by Hollywood standards. But it's even more startling considering the never-ending noise surrounding their age-gap romance, and its very unconventional beginning. They first met in 2008, when Aaron, then just 18, was cast in the role of a teenage John Lennon in Sam's directorial debut Nowhere Boy. Filmmaker and double cancer survivor Sam was 41, more than double his age, and had two daughters with her ex-husband, the art dealer Jay Jopling - to whom she was married for 11 years before they 'amicably' split in 2008. While seemingly worlds apart, the pair connected and reportedly got together upon completing their film. As Sam told Harper's Bazaar in 2019, 'We were very professional through the entire film… But everyone on set knew. 'And as soon as we finished, he told me he was going to marry me. We had never been on a date, or even kissed.' She was quick to stress the fact that he pursued her, seemingly trying - and failing - to squash the 'granny groomer' accusations swiftly lobbed in her direction. Filming concluded in March and, by June - when Aaron turned 19 - they were stepping out together on date nights. Neither confirmed a romance, but the PDAs did the talking. By their film's premiere in October 2009 they were officially a couple. Walking the red carpet arm-in-arm - Sam in a glitzy gold dress and Aaron in a tux - they started as they meant to go on: loud and unapologetic. Needless to say, the reaction was deafening. Comments from the time included: 'She looks like his mum!' and 'How can she do this to him? He's only a child who barely knows his own mind yet.' Double standards Some were also quick to point out that any positive reactions would have been very different were things the other way around. Sam wasn't just more than two decades older than Aaron. She was also wealthier, more established and - with friends like artist Damien Hirst and Elton John - enviably better connected. What's more, as the director of his breakout movie, she was effectively his boss. But despite the cascade of 'casting couch' accusations, the couple remained defiant - and a year after they met, Aaron got down on one knee. Critics loudly declared it wouldn't last, with one commenter suggesting: 'Let's see how long he sticks around if he makes it big.' 16 16 16 Another scoffed: 'I give it three months.' By 2010 they'd welcomed their first child together - daughter Wylda Rae, now 14 - and second daughter Romy followed in January 2012. They married five months later at Babington House in Somerset - a lavish do attended by Beyonce and Elton John - and combined their surnames. They now live down the road in a £1.85m farmhouse in Bruton. Aaron claimed he wasn't nervous about fatherhood as he'd already settled into the role of stepdad to Sam's two daughters - Angelica, now 28, and Jessie Phoenix, now 18 - despite the fact that Angelica was only six years his junior. He's made a point of stating he considers them both his own daughters, affectionately calling Jessie his 'babygirl' in an Instagram caption last year to mark her 18th birthday. Obviously any suggestion he's anything more than a loving stepfather is unfounded - which is why the latest slew of rumours surrounding Aaron and his stepdaughter must have stung. Last December Aaron and Sam were joined by Angelica and Jessie Phoenix on the red carpet for the premiere of his movie Kraven The Hunter. 16 Posing for the cameras, Aaron put his arm around Jessie Phoenix and gave her a reassuring stroke on the back. The candid moment - a fatherly gesture no doubt intended to reassure the camera-shy teenager - was catnip to twisted internet trolls who branded the it 'disgusting', while TikTok lit up with clips of the moment. Wild conspiracy theories of an illicit affair flooded the comments, with one commenter questioning: 'Are they flirting?' and another writing: 'What if being with the grandma is all a show and he's with her daughter?' A third added: 'If I didn't know their story, I would think that was his girlfriend.' Unsurprisingly the couple, nor their children, dignified the ludicrous furore with a response. Their reaction was the same when, two years ago, vicious rumours swirled that Aaron had an affair with his much younger Bullet Train co-star Joey King, 25. In his early 20s, father-of-four Aaron claimed he was just as happy playing a stay-at-home dad as he was leading blockbuster films. His early roles in their relationship included Kick Ass, Savages, Anna Karenina and Godzilla. When Sam won the highly-contested directing gig for Fifty Shades of Grey in 2015, he took time off to man the fort at home. As he later told The Post, 'I much prefer being a parent to working. Doesn't everybody? The best time I have is with my kids, experiencing their growth and their life with them. I think it's important to have time to enjoy that.' As for Sam, she paid tribute to him while promoting the film, saying, "Being in an amazing relationship, having come out of a difficult one, it felt so good [that he stayed at home while she worked]. 'And I feel like that stability has enabled me to get on with doing this momentous project." She then returned the favour, enabling him to star in 2016's Nocturnal Animals to rave reviews and a Golden Globe Award. Paying tribute to his beloved in his speech, he said: "I want to thank my wife for being there with me, supporting me through this. 'Thank you for putting up with me. Jesus, that was not very pleasant in this role, so you're my soulmate and I love you very much… I'm blessed. I have four beautiful daughters: Anjelica, Phoenix, Wylda, and Romy, I love you all very much." Sam has described Aaron as an old soul in a younger man's body, and claims their strong union has come from their ability to ignore the uproar. 16 16 In 2017, she said: 'If I gave a second thought to other people, I would be the unhappiest person, probably still in a miserable marriage. 'People like to talk about [the age gap]. I'm like, 'Yeah, but it works better than my last marriage'. It's lasted longer than a lot of my friends' marriages.' Ironically, months before she and Aaron went public, her ex Jay Jopling was embroiled in his own age-gap romance when he was pictured kissing a then 23-year-old Lily Allen in the Caribbean. The fling fizzled out quickly, but he was never tarnished with the same 'groomer' label as Sam. Power play Speaking in 2023, Amelia Kelley, a trauma-informed therapist, told Business Insider that criticism surrounding the Taylor-Johnsons was blatant misogyny. "When we see an older woman with a younger man, it underscores that the woman isn't as young as we think they should be,' she said. 'That could be uncomfortable for someone to see.' Yet Elizabeth Jeglic, a professor of psychology at John Jay College in New York, argued against the gendered critique, suggesting it was Sam who could have abused her position of power. "The person who is older tends to be a person who has more power or more experience,' she said. 'They often will select individuals who are younger and more inexperienced because they're more vulnerable. And that creates an unequal power dynamic." Aaron's still surprised by the furore and frenzy his age-gap romance stirs up. 16 16 Speaking last year to Rolling Stone, he said, 'What you gotta realise is that what most people were doing in their twenties, I was doing when I was 13. 'You're doing something too quickly for someone else? I don't understand that. What speed are you supposed to enjoy life at? It's bizarre to me." General consensus is that Aaron wasn't seeking a mummy figure because of any maternal hole in his life. He's in fact remained incredibly close to his own mother, Sarah, who accompanied him to film sets throughout his young career, taught him 'how to be a man' and has played an active role in raising her grandchildren. As for his early dating life there's no sign of any prior 'older woman fetish', with previous flings including actresses Georgia Groome, 33, and Alice Connor, 34. Likewise, it doesn't seem like Sam was simply looking for someone to baby or boss around. She may be a bigwig director, but she's just as happy sharing the spotlight with her incredibly successful, increasingly handsome younger husband. Aaron's role in Danny Boyle's latest epic promises to strengthen his position as one of the UK's most successful actors on both sides of the pond - while whispers that he's favourite to play the next James Bond continue. As the couple hit the red carpet this week, now aged 35 and 58 respectively, one cynic wrote, 'son and great-grandma', while another commented, 'She really got her claws in deep, that one.' But refreshingly, many comments now celebrate the pair, with one writing: 'Good on them for proving haters wrong.' Another added: 'Age is just a number when you love each other as this couple obviously do.' It's safe to say they'll never stop courting controversy - as every time they step out together, the public are reminded of how it all began. But over a decade later, the Taylor-Johnsons continue to put two fingers up to their doubters.


The Sun
25 minutes ago
- The Sun
BBC Breakfast likened to ‘the Hunger Games' amid toxicity claims and Naga Munchetty bullying row
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Daily Mail
26 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Jack Draper reaches semi-finals at Queen's in straight-sets win over Brandon Nakashima - and ensures VERY helpful seeding for Wimbledon
In his on-court interview after reaching a first semi-final on home soil, Jack Draper was asked whether we should rename Henman Hill in his honour and who he might face in the last four of Wimbledon. Safe to say we are all getting a bit carried away. But it is so far so good for the 23-year-old in his first British summer as a bona fide top player. For the second round in a row a deciding set was required but he got through doughty American Brandon Nakashima 6-4, 5-7, 6-4 and will play Czech Jiri Lehecka on Saturday for a place in the HSBC Championships final. He remains on a collision course with two-time Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz, who beat French lucky loser Arthur Rinderknech 7-5, 6-4. Draper has also guaranteed himself the No4 seeding at Wimbledon and, as was pointed out to him on court, cannot therefore not face Alcaraz or Jannik Sinner before the semi-finals. 'Last year going in ranked around 30, to be inside the top four come Wimbledon one year around, that's massive progress,' said Draper. 'A testament to my team, to the dedication I have had for tennis, the work I have put in on a daily basis. 'I live and breathe the sport. I'm obsessed with progressing, obsessed with becoming the player I want to become and achieving the things I want to.' As nice as it is to look ahead to potential Wimbledon semi-finals, Draper knows he will need to play an awful lot better to realise those dreams. He has been scratching around for his best form all week, searching for genuine conviction on his groundstrokes. Against Nakashima it was almost like, on the arena which bears the man's name, Draper was trying to play Andy Murray-style grass-court tennis: massaging the ball around, dinking drop shots and working the angles. As much as Draper's all-court game has developed over the last 12 months he is still a first-strike player, especially on this surface. He spent two months learning to grind it out on the clay and a part of his cortex still seems rooted in the dustbowls of mainland Europe. 'There are definitely glimpses of stuff,' said Draper of his form. 'My movement, the first week on grass is pretty difficult. I'm getting a little bit better each time. I don't know when it will come together but still doing well to be in the semis. Day by day, we'll see. 'It's such a hard adjustment from the clay but definitely I want to be more aggressive out there.' The good news is when facing adversity on his serve - as he frequently did - Draper went into beast mode, saving 10 out of 11 break points. He came from 0-40 down to serve out the first set and 15-40 down to serve out the match He hit 14 aces and landed 67 per cent of his first serves at an average speed of 123mph - with numbers like that Draper will take some beating on grass. The parochial hope was that Draper would have set up an all-British semi-final but his childhood friend and rival Jacob Fearnley lost 7-5, 6-2 to Lehecka in the first match of the day. The 23-year-old Scot looked understandably weary after a three-set win over Corentin Moutet on Thursday, the hottest day of the year, followed by a doubles win with Cam Norrie. It was only really in the second set when the wilt set in, though, and he would probably have taken the first were it not for eight double faults. From 3-1 up he served three in a game to be broken back, then three again at 5-5. 'He was serving great; I was serving terrible,' was Fearnley's succinct description of the match.