Latest news with #AJourney
Pink Villa
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Pink Villa
Matt Damon's The Odyssey: IMAX 70mm Tickets Go on Sale 1 Year Before Release for Christopher Nolan's Next, All You Need to Know
Imax tickets for Christopher Nolan's highly anticipated film The Odyssey will go on sale on July 17, 2025, an entire year before the movie is set to open in theaters. Universal Pictures confirmed that early tickets will only be available for Imax 70mm screenings, which is Nolan's preferred format for his movies. The advance ticket sales will cover select showtimes at theaters equipped with Imax 70mm screens, as per Variety. Tickets for other formats are expected to go on sale much closer to the film's official release date, which is July 17, 2026. A rare move by Universal and Imax It's unusual for a studio to release tickets this far ahead of a movie's release. However, the move shows the high expectations for Nolan's next epic. His last film, Oppenheimer, made nearly USD 975 million at the global box office and won the Oscar for Best Picture. Universal is backing Nolan again after the huge success of Oppenheimer. "A Journey Begins" is the tagline for The Odyssey, which is based on Homer's ancient Greek poem. The film stars Matt Damon as Odysseus, the king of Ithaca, who struggles to return home after the Trojan War. A star-studded cast and Imax format The cast includes Tom Holland as Telemachus, Odysseus' son. Other stars are Anne Hathaway, Zendaya, Lupita Nyong'o, Robert Pattinson, Charlize Theron and Jon Bernthal. The Odyssey will be the first movie shot entirely using Imax cameras. Nolan has worked with Imax before, starting with The Dark Knight in 2008. He also used Imax cameras for Inception, Interstellar and Tenet. His last film, Oppenheimer, earned about 20% of its total box office from Imax screenings alone. Some moviegoers even traveled across state lines to watch Oppenheimer in Imax 70mm, selling out shows for weeks. The same is expected for The Odyssey, as Nolan's fans love the large-screen experience. Universal has already shown a short teaser for The Odyssey in cinemas before Jurassic World Rebirth and Superman. The teaser has not been released online yet, keeping with Nolan's tradition of prioritizing theaters.
New Statesman
13-06-2025
- Politics
- New Statesman
Israel vs Iran is a new headache for Keir Starmer
Photo by Jordan Pettitt -. For decades the Middle East has haunted British politics: the Iraq war, the Syrian civil war and the war in Gaza. In his 2010 memoir A Journey, Tony Blair writes of his refusal to call for a ceasefire during the 2006 Israel-Lebanon war: '[It] probably did me more damage than anything since Iraq. It showed how far I had swung from the mainstream of conventional Western media wisdom and from my own people.' As the election of four independent pro-Palestinian MPs last year proved, the boundary between the foreign and the domestic has become increasingly blurred. Israel's long-anticipated strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities on Friday mark a dramatic new phase in the region (more than 200 jets were involved in raids on at least 100 targets). No 10 has said that the UK did not provide military support for the action or help down the Iranian drones that targeted Israel in a counterattack this morning. This stance prompted condemnation from Conservative MPs with Suella Braverman declaring that 'the UK government has shamefully decided to try and appease the despotic mullahs in Iran rather than support our close ally and only liberal democracy in the Middle East'. But in a statement following a call between Keir Starmer, Emmanuel Macron and Friedrich Merz, No 10 emphasised the leaders' 'long-held grave concerns about Iran's nuclear programme' and 'called on all sides to refrain from further escalation that could further destabilise the region'. It added: 'The leaders reaffirmed Israel's right to self-defence, and agreed that a diplomatic resolution, rather than military action, was the way forward.' The UK's position contrasts with that taken last October – when British fighter jets defended Israel from Iranian ballistic missiles – but it mirrors a wider shift in government policy. Earlier this week the UK, along with countries including Australia and Canada, placed sanctions on two Israeli ministers, Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, for 'repeated incitements of violence against Palestinian communities' (a move that resulted in a rare split between the US and the UK). Britain has also suspended trade talks with Israel, an act that the Business and Trade Secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, defended at a Parliamentary Press Gallery lunch yesterday. 'We took the decision to suspend the aspiration to have a new and wider and deeper trade agreement with Israel, because, frankly, to be in a position where we've had to impose arms export [controls] on Israel and then sanction members of the Israeli cabinet… it's just not realistic or practical to do that,' he said. But pressure for the UK to go further will endure with demands from MPs to impose a full arms embargo – as Margaret Thatcher did following Israel's 1982 invasion of Lebanon – or to label Israel's actions in Gaza a genocide (a subject Starmer refuses to be drawn on in his interview with Tom McTague in this week's New Statesman). Subscribe to The New Statesman today from only £8.99 per month Subscribe For the UK, a new period of tumult in the Middle East also threatens further global economic instability. The oil price has today increased at its fastest rate since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022 with Brent crude rising by 13 per cent to more than $78 a barrel. Higher inflation would intensify Labour's already daunting economic challenges. Once again, Rachel Reeves, whose first Budget was followed by Donald Trump's election and whose Spring Statement was followed by the tariffs of 'Liberation Day', has proved to be an unlucky Chancellor. [See more: Netanyahu realises his lifelong dream] Related
New Statesman
04-06-2025
- Business
- New Statesman
Inside No 10's new dysfunction
Keir Starmer's Downing Street was dysfunctional from its earliest days. Labour, senior figures often say, had a plan to win but not a plan to govern. Blame for this was attributed to Sue Gray, who resigned as Starmer's chief of staff after just four months in office and whose tenure still 'casts a long shadow' in the words of one government source. No 10 has strived ever since to recover from this false start. As well as the appointment of Morgan McSweeney as Gray's replacement, two Blair-era figures joined last November: Jonathan Powell as national security adviser and Liz Lloyd as director of policy delivery and innovation. In his memoir A Journey, Tony Blair writes of the latter that she brought 'order and discipline' and 'had an excellent temperament too: lovely to work with, honest and, underneath all the English feminine charm, quite steely. Above all, capable.' Powell, who was No 10 chief of staff from 1997-2007 (making him the longest-serving Blair aide), is regarded as one of the government's most successful hires. He is credited with helping to broker the US-Ukraine détente and overseeing a wider foreign policy reset (with Britain striking trade deals with the US, Europe and India). But Lloyd, who served as Blair's deputy chief of staff from 2005-07, is proving a more divisive figure. Insiders speak of tensions between herself and Stuart Ingham, the head of the No 10 Policy Unit and Starmer's longest-serving aide, who joined as a senior parliamentary researcher in December 2016. Ingham, who has consciously eschewed a media profile, is described by those who know him well as a cerebral social democrat (his PhD dissected the debate between the liberal philosopher John Rawls and the Marxist intellectual GA Cohen). 'If there's one person in the country who can define what Starmerism is, it's him,' an ally told me. Cabinet ministers liken his relationship with Starmer to that between a father and a son (Ingham survived an attempt by Gray to remove him). Yet during Labour's fraught early months in government, grandees such as historian Anthony Seldon and former cabinet secretary Gus O'Donnell complained that loyalty had come at the expense of experience. 'I do think there is a need for No 10 to have a lot more heavyweights in there – a lot more policy heavyweights,' said O'Donnell after Gray's resignation, recalling past Policy Unit heads such as David Miliband, Andrew Adonis and Geoff Mulgan. Such critiques helped prompt the appointment of Lloyd who is close to Pat McFadden, Starmer's chief Whitehall fixer ('what does Pat think?' the Prime Minister will often ask). But government sources speak of a difficult marriage between Lloyd – who is unashamedly Blairite in her outlook – and a broadly soft left Policy Unit (No 10 denied claims that Ingham, who now reports to Lloyd, threatened to resign over her arrival). Subscribe to The New Statesman today from only £8.99 per month Subscribe Before her return to government, Lloyd held roles including group company secretary of Standard Chartered Bank and chief investment officer of British International Investment. Though some praise her aptitude and experience, others speak of a clash of worldviews. In one meeting on growth at the start of this year, Lloyd is said to have raised concerns over the government's abolition of non-dom tax status. 'People who operate with assumptions from 20 years ago are different to the people who were in the guts of this election campaign and who understand how we built our coalition,' a senior Labour source told me. Lloyd is also said to have expressed concerns over Bridget Phillipson's school reforms, which impose new requirements on Blair-era academies such as employing qualified teachers and following the national curriculum (a Phillipson source insisted that talk of divisions was 'nonsense'). The recent appointment of Oli de Botton, who co-founded a free school former Blair aide Peter Hyman, as Starmer's education adviser was viewed as a shift in emphasis. But intermittent speculation that the Education Secretary will be moved at the next cabinet reshuffle is downplayed. 'Keir really, really likes Bridget,' remarked one insider. A recurrent critique of Starmer's government, intensified by the recent U-turn over winter fuel payment cuts, is that it has lacked a clear philosophical direction. Both Blairites and the soft left, for different reasons, have been disappointed by Labour's first year in office. Some believe this is exacerbated by the marginalisation of the Policy Unit, which one observer described as 'demoralised, lacking purpose and cut out of the loop left, right and centre'. Two advisers, Tom Webb (health) and Nick Williams (planning and infrastructure), left last month and a third, Ravinder Athwal, who oversaw Labour's manifesto and led on the economy, will depart in July. Some on the party's soft left – which has openly challenged Reeves' fiscal approach in recent weeks – hope that a new economic adviser could serve as a counterweight to the Treasury but others contend that 'there isn't an economist in the world who could come in and persuade Keir to go against Rachel'. As Starmer's government strives for direction, insiders believe that relations between Lloyd and Ingham will be a key litmus test. 'He's a great survivor,' said one Labour source, predicting that the original Starmerite would ultimately outlast his new Blairite boss. [See also: Andy Burnham has made his leadership bid] Related
Business Wire
28-05-2025
- Business
- Business Wire
Covisian Showcases Smile.CX Human+AI Platform at CCW 2025, Hosts Unique Happiness Workshop and Panel Sessions
NEW YORK & LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Covisian Group, a technology company specializing in providing services and technologies to improve customer experiences (CX) globally, will have an expanded presence at Customer Contact Week 2025, June 9 to 12, 2025, at Caesars Forum, Las Vegas. As a Premier Sponsor, the company will participate in and lead engaging sessions and showcase its technology in Pavilion #5. Join us and go to to schedule a demo of CCWomen Summit: Stronger Together: How Women Lead, Overcome, and Lift Each Other in Customer Contact In a world where professional challenges are inevitable, how women support, mentor, and empower one another can make all the difference. Join an inspiring conversation with female leaders who are reshaping the narrative around mentorship, resilience, and collaboration. From embracing vulnerability to standing firm in the face of adversity, panelists will explore how leaning on collective wisdom, amplifying each other's successes, and navigating difficult situations without ego strengthens individual careers and the entire business ecosystem. Tuesday, June 10, 3:30 PM PDT Workshop: Smile Therapy: A Journey to Happy Customers Dashboards, KPIs, SLAs, technological integrations, reports, data flows… these are our everyday realities. Amid the whirlwind of transformation driven by generative AI, we have forgotten our fundamental purpose – to put genuine customer happiness at the heart of every interaction. Join us for an unforgettable interactive workshop where "Smile Therapy" comes to life. Experience a unique gamified session where you will learn, compete, collaborate, and create. Participate in imaginative storytelling and build the worst customer service nightmare ever conceived. Compete to craft the most engaging and hilarious stories of CX gone wrong—and then transform them into moments of pure delight. Come, play, laugh, and learn how to make happiness your ultimate KPI. Because, in the end, every contact is a chance to create a smile. Thursday, June 12, 8:00 AM PDT Main Stage Session: Smile More, Stress Less: Putting Customer Joy at the Center of the Journey sponsored by With AI, automation, and performance metrics central to the advancement of the contact center, it's easy to forget the most powerful outcome of each customer interaction: a genuine smile. This conversation invites contact center and CX leaders to reflect on the evolving definition of success and how we can realign strategies and cultures to prioritize joy, not just efficiency. About Covisian USA New York-based Covisian USA, a division of Covisian Group, helps contact centers deliver exceptional customer experiences through technology that brings together the best of human intelligence, GenAI and automation. Learn more at
Daily Tribune
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Tribune
Rhythmic Remedies blends Music and Science in Bahrain's first wellness workshop of its kind
The Indian Fine Arts Society (IFAS), Bahrain, is set to host a landmark wellness initiative, 'Rhythmic Remedies – A Journey of Healing Through Music and Rhythm,' this Saturday, May 17, 2025, at Ramee Grand Hotel, Seef. Designed by Ms. Vinaya Karthik, Co-founder of World of Wellness, this unique experiential workshop blends ancient Indian rhythmic traditions with modern neuroscience to improve mental focus, emotional balance , and overall well-being. The event offers separate morning and evening sessions tailored for students, professionals, educators, and wellness enthusiasts. ' This is the first time Bahrain will experience music not just as art, but as therapy, as science, and as a tool for productivity and mindfulness,' said Nirmala Varadharajan, President of IFAS Bahrain. 'We are excited to introduce the community to the transformative power of rhythm.' Event Details Venue: Ramee Grand Hotel, Seef Date: Saturday, May 17, 2025 Timings: Morning Session: 9:30 AM – 12:30 PM (followed by lunch) Evening Session: 3:30 PM – 6:00 PM
