Latest news with #Hollywood-backed
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Decision on major film studios pushed back
A decision on whether one of the UK's biggest film and TV studios is granted planning permission should be made next month. Investment company Greystoke Land submitted plans to build sound stages, offices and workshops near the village of Holyport, near Maidenhead, Berkshire. The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead refused the application last year, citing its impact on the green belt. Officials on behalf of Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner said a decision on the plan was delayed until on or before 26 June. It had been expected by Thursday. The project, first announced in 2022, could create 1,500 jobs. It would extend over 43 hectares (106 acres) of land on Gays Lane in three areas. The sound stages, workshops and offices would allow multiple film and TV productions to be shot on the same day and at the same time. A "media village" would include a virtual reality studio offering CGI creation, augmented and virtual reality and gaming, while there would also be an area for open-air filming. Greystoke Land appealed to the government's planning inspectorate after the council dismissed its application. The council previously said that the case for the studios was "overstated" as a number of others have already been built in the south east of England. It cited statistics from the British Film Institute that film and TV production volumes fell by 25% between 2022 and 2024. You can follow BBC Berkshire on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram. Government intervenes over film studio proposals Film studios proposal to go to planning inquiry Hollywood-backed film studio is refused permission Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead
Otago Daily Times
08-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Otago Daily Times
Wrexham lock in date for Phoenix
Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, co-owners of Wrexham, with the trophy after winning League One In England. Hollywood-backed Welsh football club Wrexham will play the Wellington Phoenix in Wellington on July 19. RNZ reported last month the Red Dragons would play the Phoenix in July, but the match date at Wellington's Sky Stadium has now been confirmed. The Welsh side, owned by Hollywood duo Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds, recently sealed their third promotion in as many years and will next season compete in the EFL Championship, one rung below the Premier League. Wrexham is also likely to play Melbourne Victory and Sydney FC as part of their pre-season build up. The date confirmation is some positive news for the Phoenix club, which endured a tough season in both the men's and women's A-League competition, neither side making the play-offs. The men finished 11th and the women ninth. Wrexham have developed a global profile on the back of being bought by Reynolds and McElhenney and their popular Disney+ series Welcome to Wrexham. The Phoenix have previously hosted games against international clubs West Ham, Newcastle United, Boca Juniors and David Beckham's LA Galaxy.
Daily Mail
03-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Ryan Reynolds's director at newly-promoted Wrexham could face parliamentary grilling as EFL refuses to say if any football bosses caught in Premier League disqualification scandal will face action
The director of Hollywood star Ryan Reynolds 's newly-promoted Wrexham football club could face a grilling from MPs after a Premier League disqualification scandal was exposed, MailOnline can reveal. Wrexham director Shaun Harvey, who featured in the popular Netflix documentary Welcome to Wrexham, may well be enjoying a deserved rest after helping the club to its third successive promotion in as many years. However, a ghost from his past has come to haunt him. Eight years ago, when The Red Dragons were still playing non-league football, Harvey was the CEO of the English Football League (EFL), which governs the second, third and fourth tiers of English football. That year, Reading played Huddersfield at Wembley in the Championship play-off final for promotion to the Premier League. Incredibly, Chinese billionaire Dai Yongge was confirmed as the Berkshire side's new owner on the exact same day. Harvey and the rest of the EFL's board of directors had approved Dai's purchase of the club. However, unbeknownst to the world outside of the governing body, the Premier League had warned the EFL not to let Dai buy Reading because of the bad faith he showed when trying to purchase Hull City. It had even said that if Reading won promotion, Dai would be disqualified and forced to sell. But Harvey and the board still approved the sale because Dai had the money and, the EFL said, there was an 'absence of any disqualifying condition'. Ultimately, that decision has led to Britain's fifth oldest club being deducted 18 points, relegated to League One and teeter on the brink of extinction. It has also turbo-charged the creation of an Independent Football Regulator (IFR), the parliamentary bill for which will have its third reading in the next few months. But now the Hollywood-backed Wrexham director faces a tricky future. Although the EFL refused to say if any football bosses caught in the scandal will face action, Harvey could still be brought in front of Parliament. Billionaire Dai Yongge (pictured) is better known in the UK as the owner of the fifth oldest club in the Football League - Reading FC When Shaun Harvey (pictured at Wembley) was CEO of the EFL, the governing body approved Dai Yonnge's purchase of Reading in 2017 That is because one of the strongest supporters for the IFR, Labour MP Yuan Yang, is also pushing for an inquiry into Reading's history since Dai took over. Responding to a question about whether former EFL bosses like Shaun Harvey might face parliamentary scrutiny, the MP for Earley and Woodley, in Berkshire, said she was 'sure' action could be considered. Yang told MailOnline: 'I have called for an inquiry in Parliament into the whole history under Dai Yongge. 'I'm speaking to a DCMS committee about what we can do. I'm sure they will be able to consider actions. I would like there to be a proper inquiry into what's gone on.' She added: 'We need a much stronger independent football regulator that comes in above both the EFL and Premier League. 'Fans have a lot of frustrations and they make that heard at games. I understand that, but the EFL doesn't have the right tools to get Dai Yongge out of the club. 'I'm confident there will be a regulator set up. It needs to have proper teeth. The potential is there.' Yet while that may be good news for football fans across the country who want their clubs to be better protected, Reading supporters are incandescent. That's because for the last eight years, the EFL has defended its decision to allow Dai Yongge to buy Reading in the first place. Sources close to the EFL previously told MailOnline that football ownership has a gamble culture in which some owners spend large sums of money to try to win promotion. Speaking about the crisis at Reading, they said the situation wasn't good for anyone. They added that while it might not be a perfect world, the EFL had to take some kind of action - in Reading's case, 18 points of deductions. In the eight years since Dai Yongge bought Reading, the EFL has never admitted the Premier League advised it not to approve him as an owner or that he would be disqualified if the club were promoted to the top flight. Instead, EFL deductions relegated the club from the Championship and transfer embargoes ensured the club hasn't spent a penny on new signings in years. Speaking to MailOnline this week, the EFL repeated its position that in 2017, there was an 'absence of any disqualifying condition' and Dai 'was not subject to a sports governing body disqualification, including the Premier League'. Of course, the EFL did know he would be disqualified by the Premier League, a fact revealed by The Times this week. Although that is not something the EFL has ever admitted, it did not dispute this fact when MailOnline approached it this week. Reading fans have accused the EFL of concealing the truth in a campaign of secrecy that has last almost a decade. Greg Double, from the Supporters' Trust At Reading (STAR), told MailOnline: 'It just hit a nerve. The shrouded, hidden truth. 'What about all the punishments? 18 points of deductions?' But while the current leadership of the EFL remains deeply unpopular, with chants of 'f*** the EFL' heard regularly in stadiums across the country, Double's anger largely lies with current Wrexham director and former EFL chief Shaun Harvey. Double said: 'I'm fed up of the romantic tale of Wrexham's ownership when they have someone who is complicit with Reading's downfall. 'He enabled one of the worst ownerships ever. 'Perhaps Shaun Harvey has learned his lesson from Reading. Ryan Reynolds has connected the club of Wrexham with the town. They have done everything right. The opposite of that is Dai Yongge. 'But Shaun Harvey is the person I would most like an apology from. I would love to know why he ignored the Premier League's advice. Did you think it was a good idea? 'I would like him to be asked some questions at the least, either in Parliament or in a corporate setting. 'I want that era of the EFL to answer those questions. What riles me is them never saying sorry. 'Can we have the truth of what happened to Reading so it doesn't happen again? 'Dai Yongge could have bought the club in the morning and then two hours later been forced to sell the club. That is bonkers. It boggles my mind.' It's not just fans worried about the future of their club who have reservations about the EFL. German businessman Daniel Loitz tried to buy Reading from Dai Yongge in 2024. He told MailOnline he believes the EFL's regulations have a 'significant weakness' and its 'oversight processes require urgent scrutiny, including the roles of individuals in current positions'. He added: 'However, it must be acknowledged that these individuals operate within a framework of rules that do not adequately address gaps in company law. 'We firmly believe that football clubs, as community assets with over a century of history and deep emotional significance, deserve better protection. 'While I have been a guest in this country for over a decade, I recognise the pride and value that football holds as a cornerstone of English society — a social glue that must not be lost. 'Investment in football should be welcomed, but it must be accompanied by robust regulations with real teeth to prevent situations like the one involving Dai Yongge. 'The EFL and the wider football governance system must evolve to safeguard these invaluable community assets for future generations.' Back in Reading, Double said the revelations that the EFL were warned about Dai Yongge before he bought the club 'undermines their previous stances'. He added: 'You told us, ''What more could we do?'' 'It's a spirit of the game [scenario]. On a technicality, there was nothing stopping Dai Yongge taking over. It's just ludicrous. 'The EFL has been helping us out in the last couple of years but they are a lot more to blame than they think they are. 'The argument, "We did everything we could at the time" is starting to look a bit flat now. 'The EFL's get out of jail free card was that he had money. If the Premier League knew he was going to do something like this, it's a much bigger issue. 'They need to say, "We messed up, we are sorry and this is how we are fixing it." 'Stop being so defensive and start being acceptive. I wouldn't mind an apology or some acceptance they didn't have their finest hour. 'If you're talking about disqualifying [Reading] then that's a horrible look. I think they know that and that's why we have been granted two extensions. 'The more complicit the EFL are, the more relaxed they need to be with Reading. They were part of the problem so they need to be part of the solution.' Caz Parker, from anti-Dai Yongge campaign group Sell Before We Dai, added: 'Shaun Harvey has serious questions to answer and all Reading fans would like to hear him speak. 'He is living the good life and we are wondering if we are going to exist next week. He should come out and say why he allowed this. 'The EFL have a lot of answer for. They have culpability and a post mortem needs to happen and hopefully lessons can be learned. 'It's very clear Dai Yongge should never have been able to take control of the club. 'What were they thinking, knowing what was around the corner had we won the penalty shootout [in the 2017 Championship play-off final]? 'We have been put through hell for eight years. We have had multiple deductions. We have paid our dues. '[The EFL] have got to make up for the previous [EFL] management. They need to make sure they make up for this error with no more sanctions. 'They need to give us all the support they can. If we need extensions, then they need to give them. 'The current EFL are trying to help. They are picking up the pieces of a shocking decision. 'The EFL don't have the power to force the owner of a limited company to sell their shares. 'We hope the Football Regulator will change that. We need to have a change in UK company law so the EFL has the power to remove bad owners. 'It comes down to having special exemptions for sports clubs and community assets. 'If they do that, then the IFR can be light touch. People can moan about ticket prices and wealth distribution but fundamentally, people don't want their clubs to die.' An EFL spokesman said: 'Mr Dai was not subject to a sports governing body disqualification, including the Premier League, at the time of the acquisition in 2017. 'The reason the purchase at Hull City did not proceed was related to the involvement of a separate individual. 'This individual was not involved in the subsequent purchase of Reading, and in the absence of any disqualifying condition, alongside ample evidence of source and sufficiency of funding, the EFL was obligated to confirm that Mr Dai met the requirements of the Regulations. 'This was a collective decision taken by the Board of Directors, on the basis of extensive external legal advice.' The Premier League declined to comment. Neither Shaun Harvey nor Wrexham AFC responded to requests for comment. In Reading, fans will today find out if despite the off-field saga blighting their club, the remarkable form of their team will land them in the top six come the end of the season. Seventh-place Reading play 12th-place Barnsley in the final match of the season today at their home of the Select Car Leasing Stadium. All they need to do is better sixth-placed Leyton Orient's result, who will play 10th-place Huddersfield away. For fans like Greg Double, this is the excitement he would prefer to talk about, rather than the finances of the football pyramid. He said: 'I'm annoyed how articulate I am about football finances now. I wouldn't wish this on Swindon or Oxford fans [Reading's arch-rivals]. 'We need to know what went wrong in the past so it doesn't happen again.' What does all this mean for clubs governed by the EFL? CHRIS MATTHEWS reveals the potential fallout of Premier League disqualification scandal BY CHRIS MATTHEWS There are few positives to this news but at least in the short term, Reading are unlikely to be affected. Former Wycombe Wanderers owner Rob Couhig is said to be close to buying the club and that could save Reading for the moment. The real issue this news creates is that fans can now see the EFL is either untrustworthy or inept. These are the guys who have the fate of the 92 Football League clubs in their hands. For full transparency, I'm a Reading season ticket holder and my desire for an independent football regulator (IFR) to protect clubs from dying is well known. Clubs are dying and this could help. It's about protecting valuable community assets from the clutches of undesirable billionaires. Tragically, Reading is the latest in a long line of clubs who the EFL has approved the owners for and then hit with points deductions until they are on the brink of death. A lot of people don't think that's very fair and it probably won't surprise yo that most Reading fans do not particularly like the EFL. Go to any match home or away and you're more than likely to hear thousands of fans chanting 'f*** the EFL'. Picture: The EFL's current chairman Rick Parry (pictured) has been in charge since 2019, two years after the Yongge purchase was approved In fact, so hated are the EFL across the country that I've been to matches where opposing fans have joined in with that chant in a show of unity against the organisation's bumbling bosses. However, let's not kid ourselves. The EFL is not going away and so we need it to be strong enough to take on club-killing owners and be run by intelligent people with common sense. That's something the EFL currently seems to be lacking. When it comes to the approval of Dai Yongge as Reading's owner in 2017, the EFL has always said they couldn't have stopped him because he had the money and there were no sporting bodies who had disqualified him as an owner. For the last eight years, many fans begrudgingly accepted this. Yes the EFL should have looked deeper at Dai but if he had the money and no disqualifications hanging over him, was it really the EFL's fault? Of course, it was their job to know. They approved him, have never apologised and instead deducted a total of 18 points from Reading, which relegated the club to League One. However, an article from The Times this week revealed a key fact. In 2017 the EFL, run at the time by Shaun Harvey (now of high-flying Wrexham), were warned not to approve Dai Yongge. The Premier League told them Dai acted in bad faith when trying to buy Hull City and that if Reading were promoted to the top flight, the Chinese billionaire would be disqualified. The EFL did not dispute any part of the Times article when I approached them this week. Isn't it strange that despite the Premier League's advice, on the eve of the Championship play-off final that could have seen Reading promoted to the top flight, the EFL approved him as the owner. Then in the next eight years they failed to mention they were warned about him and continued to say they were obligated to let him buy the club because of 'the absence of any disqualifying condition' and because he had proof of funds. Sure, there wasn't a disqualification against him at the time, but if Reading had been promoted a few hours after Dai bought the club, the EFL knew he would be disqualified by the Premier League. And so despite their efforts, I highly doubt a technicality of language will save the EFL. Fans I spoke to this week told me they just wanted the EFL to accept it was to blame. They said the EFL needed to stop denying it, apologise and move on. Sadly, I can't see that happening. Whether it's because the EFL doesn't respect the fans enough or thinks they could face lawsuits for admitting that kept the truth hidden is something only chairman Rick Parry and the rest of the EFL crew will know. Personally, I think their silence - both now and for the past eight years - is an absolute outrage. But questions still need answering. Has Rick Parry been aware of this advice for all of his time in charge? If not, why? And if he did, whose idea was it to hide the truth? Former Reading striker Sam Smith joined Wrexham in January 2025 (pictured celebrating promotion in April with Ryan Reynolds's wife Blake Lively) The EFL this week refused to tell me whether Parry would resign or any action would be taken against ex-CEO Shaun Harvey and other former football chiefs. It seems that in the middle of this scandal about the EFL staying silent for eight years, the EFL is once again choosing silence. Perhaps they, as some fans have suggested, think the timing of The Times's piece is not a coincidence. The IFR bill is set for its third reading in Parliament and this news certainly paints the Premier League in a good light - that if they were in charge they would have disqualified Dai Yongge. It's a shame they also kept this hidden for eight years though. It's not exactly great behaviour from them either. Ultimately, fans want their clubs and their owners to be transparent and to communicate with them. That's also what fans want the EFL to do, a point football chiefs just can't seem to understand. It's a shame because there are good, hard-working people at the EFL but they're being let down by their bosses. Many football fans doubt Shaun Harvey, Wrexham's star director, will ever be held accountable for his part in almost killing Reading - although a parliamentary inquiry could well change that. What's infuriating is that the EFL could put this to bed right now. They could publicly admit what we all now know, apologise and commit to transparency in the future.
Wales Online
29-04-2025
- Business
- Wales Online
Ryan Reynolds wakes up from Wrexham promotion party with £2.3m bill to pay
Ryan Reynolds wakes up from Wrexham promotion party with £2.3m bill to pay The Hollywood star watched his side seal promotion to the Championship alongside co-owner Rob McElhenney on Saturday Reynolds will now have to stump up a seven figure sum after Wrexham's latest success (Image: Nik Mesney/Huw Evans Agency ) Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney have been hit with a seven-figure sum to pay after Wrexham sealed their place in the Championship next season and enjoyed a weekend of celebration parties. The Red Dragons pulled off an unprecedented third successive promotion by beating Charlton 3-0 at the weekend, which meant they have risen from non-league to the second tier of English football since the two Hollywood actors took over the club in 2021. Both Reynolds and McElhenney joined in with the celebrations at the Racecourse Ground on Saturday, but will now have to stump up a sizeable amount of cash after their club's latest success. Wrexham's accounts for the year ending June 30, 2024, which were published on Companies House at the end of last month, reveal that their promotion to the Championship will now cost the club a total of £2.3 million in transfer clauses and bonuses. The figures show that the Hollywood-backed side incur a liability of around £1.5 million for promotion-related bonus payments to both players and staff. In addition, £875,000 is now due to be paid to other clubs as part of promotion transfer clauses, with Reynolds and McElhenney - who between them have an estimated net worth of around $450 million (£340 million) - set to foot the bill. However, while there are considerable outgoings to be made, they look less significant when taking into account the club's enormous increase in revenue. Article continues below Last season, in which they won promotion from League Two, Wrexham's revenue was £26.7 million, putting it above the average Championship club revenue of £22 million, as calculated in Deloitte's most recent annual review of football finance. To put that into context, before Reynolds and McElhenney took over in 2021, the club's revenue in the National League was just over £1 million. The two actors bought the club for around £2 million, but its value could now soar to £150 million in the Championship, according to football finance expert Kieran Maguire. Additionally, while they now have to pay additional costs, promotion to the Championship is set to earn Wrexham an extra £13 million per year in revenue, as well as an estimated £8 million in TV income. Solidarity payments from the Premier League will also see the club receive an extra £5 million per year, which is an increase from the £780,000 they currently get from the top flight. After watching his side earn back-to-back-to-back promotions on Saturday, Reynolds penned an emotional note to the city and the club's fans as he admitted he "feels at home" in north Wales. "We've been with Wrexham for what seems like the blink of an eye, but so much has happened," he wrote. "I remember the first press conference, we were asked what our goals were… and I think Rob jumped in with, 'The Premiere League'. "People laughed. They had every right to. It seemed insane… But we weren't kidding. I feel at home here. It's a place that values community, decency and history. From the respect it pays to the Gresford Disaster, to the feeling of hope and miracles created by Mickey Thomas. These are big reasons Wrexham is growing into what it always was. "It isn't just a place with a history of ups and downs, it's also a FEELING. And a feeling is sometimes as good or better than a memory. We made history. We've been promoted for a record third time in a row. Article continues below The Deadpool star added: "The Stadium feels like a church. I know so many of you now. Since February, 2021, I've watched babies become regulars. And some regulars depart us for good. We've had the honour to scatter ashes of loved ones across that field. I've even watched every available hand shovel snow off the pitch to keep a match from cancellation "Somebody said the Welsh have the 'heart of a poet and the fist of a fighter'. That's what I love about this place. I wish the whole world could visit Wrexham. Diolch."
The Age
29-04-2025
- Entertainment
- The Age
Welcome to Sydney: Ryan Reynolds' Welsh soccer team set for Australian tour
Sydney FC is set to host Hollywood-backed Wrexham AFC in a pre-season friendly later this year - and the city could be the backdrop to a new season of the documentary that has propelled the Welsh club to international fame. Sources familiar with the ongoing negotiations to bring the 'Red Dragons' to Australia, who were not authorised to speak publicly, have told this masthead that they will play a match in Sydney against the Sky Blues in July. No venue has been locked in, but the friendly will form part of Wrexham's preparations for their upcoming campaign in the English Championship, having confirmed their place in the second-tier competition with a 3-0 home victory against Charlton Athletic on the weekend. That result clinched automatic promotion from England's League One - making them the first club in history to clinch three consecutive promotions in the English Football League - and will put the club owned by actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney just one step from the Premier League. Previously beset by financial issues, Reynolds and McElhenney bought Wrexham in 2020 and helped it attract a global following through their Disney+ series Welcome to Wrexham, which documents the club's rise from the English fifth division and the actors' crash-course education in how much the game and the club matter to its locale. While it's unclear if Reynolds and McElhenney will accompany the team on its forthcoming tour, it's expected that camera crews for Welcome to Wrexham will travel to capture footage for the show. Wrexham is also set to play a match against Melbourne Victory at Marvel Stadium and another in New Zealand - likely against Auckland FC. Welcome to Wrexham has significant viewership in Australia, ranking as the third-largest audience in the world for the series, behind only the United States and the United Kingdom. This will be just the second time Wrexham will have embarked on a major pre-season tour abroad; they played sold-out friendlies in the USA against Chelsea and Manchester United ahead of the 2023-24 campaign.
