PAKaleb Cooper has announced he is expecting another child, pictured with Jeremy Clarkson on Clarkson’s Farm[/caption]
But judging by his bank account – which shows he has over £1.5m stashed away – the TV show hasn’t harmed either.
His main company, Kaleb Cooper Contracting, now has almost £1.16m in assets and his other firm, Kaleb Cooper Productions has £242,000.
On top of that he has K Cooper Retail and a new firm Cooper Livestock Ltd – not at all bad to say he’s still only 26 years old.
The timing of the new accounts couldn’t be better as the Cooper brood is rapidly expanding.
Kaleb, who’s already a dad to three-year-old Oscar and 19-month-old daughter Willa, announced, via Instagram, that his girlfriend is pregnant with their third child.
Alongside a picture of an ultrasound scan and a baby grow he last week posted the words: “Very excited to announce that’s baby number 3 cooking…going to be a very very busy August.”
His partner Taya, who he’s been with for eight years, also added: “So excited, can’t wait. Our family is growing.”
He explained that he felt ‘useless’ during fianceé Taya‘s labour as he didn’t know what he should be doing at the time.
He explained: “It was f***ing terrible, because when I’m helping that cow, I know exactly what I’m doing. I can bring the calf around to the mum and so on.
“Now, when Taya was giving birth, I felt useless. I’m seeing her in pain having one of my kids.”
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4 weeks agoNew York StateComments Off on Iconic major retailer with 1,100 UK stores to shut town centre shop in latest blow to high street
AN ICONIC retailer with 1,100 stores across the UK has closed one of its major branches for good – leaving fans in tears.
The closure comes as the retailer struggles to adapt to shifting shopping behaviours and mounting economic pressures.
WHSmith has closed one of its popular branches
WHSmith’s branch inBolton’s Crompton Place has shut its doors for good on Saturday, 15 February.
The well-loved store is said to have closed due to redevelopment plans, according to company officials.
A spokesperson for the retailer said: “We are disappointed to be losing our presence in Bolton and we would like to thank all our customers for their support and for shopping with us.”
Due to the closure, the stock of the store has been reduced to 75 per cent discount.
A member of staff Aaron Highet said: “It has been such a good experience and I’ve enjoyed my time here.
“The customers come in with a smile and want to chat. The staff have been lovely and are brilliant to get on with.”
Another shopper Wendy told the Bolton News: “I’m very sad about the closure. I have been coming here for decades to browse the magazines, books and pens.”
Store manager Sara Goldthorpe said: “We have had a lot of customers say they are disappointed about the closure.
“Lots of them come in to use their National Book Tokens and with World Book Day coming up, they will have to go to another branch.”
WHSmith is working with advisers at Greenhill Investment Boutique.
It is hoped that a deal can be reached within three months, according to sources.
Potential buyers circling the retailer, which opened its first London shop over 200 years ago, include retail turnaround specialists Hilco and Alteri, along with Doug Putman, owner of HMV, and Modella Capital, owner of Hobbycraft.
Investors have not wanted WHSmith to spend any more money on its high street arm, which has no real growth prospects.
Russ Mould at AJ Bell said; “Exiting makes strategic sense and there have been plenty of clues it would happen one day soon.
“The travel arm is where most of the profits are made. It makes sense to sharpen the focus on what a company does best by offloading less important interests such as the high street operations.”
Why are retailers closing shops?
EMPTY shops have become an eyesore on many British high streets and are often symbolic of a town centre’s decline.
The Sun’s business editor Ashley Armstrong explains why so many retailers are shutting their doors.
In many cases, retailers are shutting stores because they are no longer the money-makers they once were because of the rise of online shopping.
Falling store sales and rising staff costs have made it even more expensive for shops to stay open.
The British Retail Consortium has predicted that the Treasury’s hike to employer NICs from April 2025, will cost the retail sector £2.3billion.
At the same time, the minimum wage will rise to £12.21 an hour from April, and the minimum wage for people aged 18-20 will rise to £10 an hour, an increase of £1.40.
In some cases, retailers are shutting a store and reopening a new shop at the other end of a high street to reflect how a town has changed.
The problem is that when a big shop closes, footfall falls across the local high street, which puts more shops at risk of closing.
Retail parks are increasingly popular with shoppers, who want to be able to get easy, free parking at a time when local councils have hiked parking charges in towns.
Many retailers including Next and Marks & Spencer have been shutting stores on the high street and taking bigger stores in better-performing retail parks instead.
In some cases, stores have been shut when a retailer goes bust, as in the case of Carpetright, Debenhams, Dorothy Perkins, Paperchase, Ted Baker, The Body Shop, Topshop and Wilko to name a few.
What’s increasingly common is when a chain goes bust a rival retailer or private equity firm snaps up the intellectual property rights so they can own the brand and sell it online.
They may go on to open a handful of stores if there is customer demand, but there are rarely ever as many stores or in the same places.
The Centre for Retail Research (CRR) has warned that around 17,350 retail sites are expected to shut down this year.
4 weeks agoNew York StateComments Off on Masked Singer’s Joel Dommett reveals plan to host hit show he says is ‘best on telly’ after Gino D’Acampo was axed
HE’S one of the nicest men on telly, but Joel Dommett has shown surprising opportunism in the wake of allegations surrounding fellow TV star Gino D’Acampo.
ITVITV have confirmed that it won’t be showing Gino D’Acampo’s most recently-filmed series of Family Fortunes[/caption]
Joel Dommett says he wants to take the reins on the quiz
And now that The Masked Singer has ended, Joel says he wants to take the reins on the popular quiz because he’s always fancied Gino’s job.
He told the Always Be Comedy podcast: “Now Gino D’Acampo is gone, maybe I’ve got the chance to slide in. I’ve been waiting for that.
“Honestly, Family Fortunes for me is the best show on telly and I know people will say, ‘What are you talking about?’. The perfect format is where the right answer or wrong answer, are both satisfying, but that’s so hard to achieve.”
Joel wrapped up the latest series of The Masked Singer on Saturday night, as musical theatre’s Samantha Barks, aka Pufferfish, emerged as the winner.
Now, he’d love to put a twist on the traditional format of Family Fortunes, which has been hosted by Gino since 2020.
He said: “I really think Family Feud, the American version, is THE best telly show in the world.
“So I would love to do the UK gig, but I would turn it into a different show.
“The American one leads you down a fun garden path with every answer, so when they say ‘name a race’, they want you to say ‘the 100 metres’ or ‘a heptathlon’, but someone says ‘Chinese people’ and everyone laughs. That’s what you need in it!”
The third series of Family Fortunes under Gino was scrapped by ITV after multiple allegations of bad behaviour came to light, though the channel has yet to confirm what plans they have for it moving forward.
Meanwhile, Joel’s other ITV gameshow, In With A Shout, has been shelved after two series — and it’s not clear when or if a third will be made.
And his big BBC gig, Survivor, has had a huge question mark over it as it went out in 2023, but the Beeb have yet to confirm a second outing.
Sounds like Joel has plenty of good reasons to eye up Gino’s old role.
Chuffed Puffer’s new gig
FRESH from her Masked Singer victory, when she was unveiled as Pufferfish, Samantha Barks has announced a one-night- only solo concert.
The actress and singer – who played Elsa in the West End production of Frozen and also starred in Les Miserables – will take to London’s Palladium on April 5.
Pufferfish AKA Samantha Barks has announced a one-night-only solo concert
Supported by a live band, the star will reel off her best-known hits – though she will have to get used to the crowds seeing her face again after getting comfy in her costume on the ITV singing contest.
Samantha said: “It’s been so fun to perform inside the mask, it’s so liberating.”
The actress, who appeared on the cobbles from 2017 to 2019, filled out the application for First Dates on behalf of her mum to give her a boost.
GettyVictoria Ekanoye filled out the application for First Dates on behalf of her mum to give her a boost[/caption]
Candy will appear on the Channel 4 show at 10pm tonight, on her first date in seven years after a battle with breast cancer knocked her confidence.
Victoria went on to battle the same cancer in 2021, before confirming she too had beaten the disease last year after undergoing a double mastectomy.
Unfazed by the idea her mum might out-do her on telly, and find herself a new career path, Victoria said: “She’ll outshine me, I’m going to retire – because she’s just TV gold.
“She’s funny without trying to be, and I just know people are going to love her!”
Kate behind the camera
KATE WINSLET will make her directorial debut in Netflix film Goodbye June.
She will also star in the drama, alongside Toni Collette, Timothy Spall and Helen Mirren.
Set in England, it sees a group of siblings united in “sudden and trying circumstances”.
It will go into production soon.
Goodish Gregg gag axe
DAVE GORMAN has had to axe an episode of his Modern Life Is Goodish series after material about TV presenter Gregg Wallace was cut.
The U&Dave show will return on February 24, but the run has been shortened to three episodes.
Dave Gorman has had to axe an episode of his Modern Life Is Goodish series(C) Avalon
It had been written and performed before the MasterChef host was accused of sexual harassment and making inappropriate comments – claims Gregg denies.
Dave’s fascination with Gregg and his rise to fame and role as presenter of Inside The Factory was at the centre of much of his live tour last year.
During the comedy set, Dave referred to the grocer-turned-TV-host as a “six-year-old in a man’s clothing”, as he poked fun at his unusual career path.
