Veteran actor John Standing, known for his role as Captain Imbert-Terry in Netflix’s The Crown and collaborations with stars like Laurence Olivier and Peter O’Toole, now focuses on supporting his wife, Sarah, through her third cancer diagnosis.
Sarah Standing Faces Aggressive Lymphoma Again
Sarah Standing, 66, daughter of actress Nanette Newman and late director Bryan Forbes, battles aggressive large B-cell lymphoma, a non-Hodgkin lymphoma variant she has faced before. Her husband, 91-year-old Sir John Leon, 4th baronet, provides unwavering care.
“John has been amazing,” Sarah shares. “It’s a lot for him – he’s 91. I should be the one taking care of him. But life has a funny way of spinning on a sixpence. He’s been making me laugh and doing endless jigsaws with me and going on short walks.”
Standing celebrated Sarah’s all-clear in 2023, but the cancer returned. “It’s just bloody unlucky that it’s come back for a third time,” Sarah reflects. She remains optimistic, noting the illness is treatable. During lockdown, she authored a memoir, Dancing With The Red Devil, about her initial fight.
Sarah draws inspiration from TV presenter Trisha Goddard, who faces stage 4 metastatic breast cancer. “She’s my great cancer buddy,” Sarah says. “When you’re on steroids, the nights are long. So we speak to each other at least twice a week.”
Her younger daughter, Tilly, offers strong support. “She’s come to every appointment with me,” Sarah adds. “I feel very fortunate.”
Bruno Tonioli Urges Strictly to Keep Female Hosts
Strictly Come Dancing undergoes changes after Claudia Winkleman and Tess Daly’s departure, with producers considering male co-hosts like Rylan Clark, Bradley Walsh, and Johannes Radebe.
Former judge Bruno Tonioli, 70, advocates for two female replacements. At a West End charity gala, he states: “I think it will be better for them to find two women to replace Tess and Claudia because what I liked is that you had these two women holding the show. It was empowering to watch and that’s what Strictly should be. Having Tess and Claudia together on the show made it quite special.”
Yasmin Le Bon Recalls Terrifying Fan Encounter
Model Yasmin Le Bon, 61, married to Duran Duran frontman Simon Le Bon for over 40 years, describes a frightening late-night incident in a New York 24-hour deli.
“There was one time in New York in a 24-hour deli late at night, there was a particular character, and I did think: ‘Oh no, this is it, this is going to be the end – in a Korean deli at midnight. I’m going to get macheted. She’s going to realise I’m the person that stands between her and her true love,'” she reveals.
Mike Amesbury’s Assault Conviction Ends Marriage
Former MP Mike Amesbury, 56, lost the Labour whip, resigned, and served time after a common assault conviction for punching a man in his Cheshire constituency.
The incident dissolved his 18-year marriage to social worker Amanda Perraton, with whom he shares a son. “I lost everything, my career, my good reputation, our family home. And just before Christmas, the end of an 18-year marriage,” he writes in his blog.
Amesbury, once MP for Runcorn and Helsby, seeks to rebuild. “I’m trying to slowly gain more work. Trying to make sense of a world that doesn’t easily forgive.”
Alice Naylor-Leyland’s Fiery 40th Birthday Bash
Socialite Alice Naylor-Leyland marked her 40th birthday at London’s Harry’s private members’ club with a triple-tiered cake topped by blazing candles.
“This is 40,” she captioned a social media photo. Guests included film director Emerald Fennell, model Poppy Delevingne, DJ Lady Mary Charteris, and husband Tom Naylor-Leyland, heir to the £176 million Fitzwilliam estate.
Lady Mary Charteris called it an honor to join the “birthday gang.”
Nicola Coughlan’s Dance Moves Irk Co-Star
Bridgerton star Nicola Coughlan’s improvisation on the set of The Magic Faraway Tree drew criticism from co-star and screenwriter Simon Farnaby, 53.
At a BFI Southbank screening, Coughlan recounts: “Simon said: ‘Feel free to improvise.'” But Farnaby responded: “You know that dancing you’re doing… it’s really annoying. Don’t do that.”
Charles Dance Avoids Giving Acting Advice
Despite a 50-year career, including Game of Thrones, Charles Dance, 79, refrains from mentoring young actors.
At Advertising Week Europe, he explains: “It’s a bit arrogant to think you know it all just because you’re ‘a senior’. But if they asked [for acting tips], then yes.”
