“Now it’s time to cross over to our F1 Juniors,” said Sky’s lead presenter Simon Lazenby, in a feel which became familiar throughout the Hungarian Grand Prix weekend. Often the broadcaster striving for new avenues, never afraid of the status quo, Sky Sports took their television trials to a different avenue this weekend with the first-ever Formula 1 broadcast for children. An admirable experiment, it gave three teenagers a few days to savour as they started their summer holidays in Budapest alongside broadcasters Radzi Chinyanganya and Harry Benjamin. For Braydon, Scarlett and Zak – the latter a go-karter at junior level, the former duo presenters on Sky’s BAFTA-winning kids show FYI – it presented opportunities of a lifetime with interviews, quizzes and predictions with the best drivers and pundits in the paddock. And it provided some indisputably heartwarming moments. Like the segment where Zak met Lewis Hamilton and spoke to his hero about how inspiring the Mercedes star has been to black kids around the world, before then sitting in his Mercedes car. Or Scarlett and Braydon quizzing the “terrible trio” of George Russell, Lando Norris and Alex Albon about what ice cream they’d describe themselves as. “Vanilla”, Norris quipped, pointing at Russell. There’s something about the involvement of adolescents in a press environment which can bring some much-needed lightheartedness to what can sometimes be a sterile process for all involved. For example, who can forget the young boy, in awe of his sporting icon, who asked Roger Federer at the US Open in 2017: “Switzerland is really cool, right? There isn’t too much livestock. So why do they call you the GOAT [greatest of all time]?” Yet, away from one-on-ones with drivers, the core aspect to the alternative broadcast was the informal race coverage, live on free-to-air Sky Showcase, which presented an F1 race in an entirely different format. There were bright, 3D-augmented graphics throughout, with a colour-coordinated leaderboard which, frankly, seemed clearer than the usual feed at times. Explainers popped up at various points, defining key F1-focused terms for younger viewers. The use of avatars for each driver was a cute touch, though obviously best kept for this experiment. Overall, it provided something completely unique and distinctive for a 70-lap race which provided a common routine in the obligatory Max Verstappen victory. Sure, nobody was asking for an F1-kids broadcast. And inevitably, naysayers online will have been quick to roll their eyes at the initiative. It was notable that both Sky F1 and Benjamin turned off replies to their tweets involving F1 Juniors over the weekend. Less an indication of the general reaction to the initiative and more a sign of the times – and the highly-charged, often-abusive nature of social media. But that is not the point. F1 has for a while been a step ahead of other sports in the intuitiveness and creativity of its product, to the stage now where it is in the midst of a period of unprecedented worldwide popularity. The most obvious is the fly-on-the-wall nature of Drive to Survive on Netflix, a format only now being followed by the professional tennis and golf tours in search of extra eyeballs. It is a fine balancing act, though. During practice and the qualifying show, there were regular interspersions on the main feed to the Juniors, a process which may well have irritated petrolheads and fans of a sterner generation. While Sky like to push boundaries, their executives will be all too aware of trying to avoid alienating their core viewership. The one-off nature of F1 Juniors, at least this season, means this is unlikely to materialise. And there were moments of awkwardness. Like cutting to Christian Horner on the pit wall, seemingly in a baffled daze, who bluntly said: “Can we come back and do this in another 10 laps or so?” Like a selfie in the commentary booth with Danica Patrick, who had earlier stated the nature of sport “is masculine and aggressive” as she spoke about the lack of female racing drivers. There were obviously a few mistakes here and there – and it wasn’t completely crisp and clear-cut. But then it wasn’t meant to be. And, frankly, nor is David Croft and Martin Brundle’s expert commentary always error-free. In a sport as technical and fast-paced as F1, perfection is near-on impossible. Of course, unless you’re Verstappen at the moment. But the underlying takeaway is this: as a child, all you want to be is treated as a grown-up. The best way of learning about the intricacies of a sport like Formula 1 is to immerse yourself in the usual feed on a regular basis, creating a curiosity gap to discover more. As a one-off, F1 Juniors was worthwhile and undoubtedly a commendable initiative. For intrigued parents, showing their children an F1 race for the first time, who knows how many may have flicked on the coverage? Who knows how many might now flick on an F1 race in the future on a Sunday afternoon? Something different is not to be something dismissed. Article originally published on 24 July 2023 Read More Lewis Hamilton makes damning statement about his level after Hungarian GP Daniel Ricciardo is back - and this time he wants to go out on top Mick Schumacher returns to racing with Alpine in 2024 Lando Norris posts update from hospital after Las Vegas crash Las Vegas Grand Prix dazzles on debut with usual dose of Max Verstappen reality

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Jennifer Lopez has shared some thoughts about motherhood and explained why her 15-year-old twins, Max and Emme, “don’t want to talk” to her anymore. The 53-year-old singer talked about how her children, who she shares with ex-husband Marc Anthony, are in the midst of their teenage years during a recent appearance on The View. She noted that when raising her children with husband Ben Affleck, she’s been more of the “bad cop” instead of the good one. “I remember my mom saying to me, ‘I’m always the bad guy, I got to discipline you,’” she said about her mother, Guadalupe Rodríguez. “And there is some truth to that. You get a little bit of the brunt of it.” After tying the knot in 2022, Lopez blended her family with Affleck’s, who shares three children with his ex-wife, Jennfier Garner: Violet, 17, Seraphina, 14, and Samuel, 11. During her appearance on The View, the Shotgun Wedding star noted how her mother’s wisdom about parenting stayed with her, as her twins have started to spend less time with her. “I’m experiencing this now, you know we all experience it for the first time with our own kids,” Lopez explained. “And you’re just like, ‘Oh, this is what she was talking about.’ This is the time where your kids don’t want to talk to you. And they’re kind of individuating from you.” She continued: “And it’s all necessary. And intellectually, I understand it, but my heart, my heart hurts.” When TV host Sunny Hostin poked fun at how teenagers sometimes stay “locked up in their rooms,” Lopez agreed. She explained how she encourages her twins to come out of their rooms, as she exclaimed: “Let’s hang out. I miss you!” This isn’t the first time that Lopez has opened up about her relationship with her twins. During an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show in February 2022, the Marry Me star discussed how her children feel about having a famous mother. “They love it and they don’t. I think they’re very proud. They love me, I love them,” she said. “The three of us are like super, super close. But I think it’s a thing that people know who their mom is. They’re navigating that. They’re teenagers now. Their friends know things.” Earlier this year, Lopez took to Instagram to share a video tribute to Max and Emme in honour of their 15th birthday. Affleck also makes an appearance in the video, as he was seen hugging Max in one short clip, while another photo showed him posing at a table with his wife and her two children. “Happy birthday to my beautiful, brilliant coconuts,” the “On the Floor” singer wrote in the caption. “I am so proud of you both in every single way. You bring so much joy and happiness to my heart and soul. I love you beyond forever.” Read More Jennifer Lopez’s mom says she ‘prayed for 20 years’ that her daughter and Ben Affleck would reunite Jennifer Lopez praises Ben Affleck for being the ‘best dad’ to her children Jennifer Garner says she ‘works really hard’ to avoid seeing stories about ex-husband Ben Affleck in the press Met Gala video shows Jennifer Lopez revealing her secret to perfect red carpet photos Jennifer Lopez praises Ben Affleck for being the ‘best dad’ to her children Jennifer Lopez’s mom ‘prayed’ that her daughter and Ben Affleck would reunite

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Amy Dowden has revealed that she was recently diagnosed with “life-threatening” sepsis as she underwent cancer treatment earlier this month. The Strictly Come Dancing star, 33, told her nearly 490k followers on Instagram that she suffered a “setback” in her treatment and had to spend “several days in hospital” being treated by an ICU team. In June, Dowden underwent a mastectomy after being diagnosed with stage three breast cancer the month prior. She began chemotherapy earlier this month after doctors found another type of cancer. Speaking to Hello! magazine in a new interview, the professional dancer said she started feeling ill two days after her first round of chemotherapy and started getting a fever. “I started having a temperature of 37.7 degrees Celsius,” she recalled. “At the time, I didn’t realise that having a temperature of 37.5 or above could be fatal for a chemo patient. I just thought it was my reaction to chemo, but as it turned out, I had already got an infection.” She added: “I felt freezing cold but I was all clammy and shaking. My mum and dad rang my red card [which provides the chemotherapy team’s contact details and current treatment information] and they said to hang up and ring the ambulance.” Dowden continued: “I didn’t want to go into hospital; at the time I didn’t realise how ill I was. “I knew it was a Saturday night, so A&E would probably be crowded, and it was dangerous being around people as it’s more likely you’ll pick up an infection. “On chemo, you don’t have your white blood cells to fight infection. We now know I had the infection just before I started chemo, but we were never able to pinpoint what actually caused it.” Dowden said she was so ill that she couldn’t really understand the danger she was in. “The doctors and nurses were telling me I had sepsis and that it was life-threatening, but I wasn’t taking it in,” she said. “I didn’t become properly aware until later. I told my dad, ‘I’ve got sepsis’ and he said, ‘I know!’” On her birthday on 10 August, Dowden spent the day in hospital after her temperature went up again. She is currently recovering at home and has been able to continue her chemotherapy treatment. The treatment has caused the TV star to start losing her hair and she now wears a wig, but she is hopeful she will be able to appear on the forthcoming series of Strictly in some way. She revealed that the Strictly production team is “getting me some fabulous wigs ready”. “The team are being guided by me – they’ve been utterly amazing,” Dowden said. “We’ve got some dates in the diary, but it will depend on how I feel. We’re taking it a step at a time.” Dowden’s professional dancer colleagues on the show have been sending her videos, flowers and presents to encourage her as she undergoes treatment, she added. “I speak to Dianne [Buswell] every single day. This is impacting on them as well because we’re a team,” she said. “I’m grateful they are including me because Strictly will help me get through the next few months, mentally. It’s just the tonic that I need.” Last week, Dowden opened up about her hair loss and admitted she was finding it “so hard”. She shared a photo of a clump of her hair that had fallen out with a series of broken heart emojis and wrote: “So much everyday! So hard! One day at a time!” After her mastectomy, Dowden was told she needed chemotherapy as doctors found further tumours after the surgery. In an Instagram Live chat, she said: “They found another type of cancer and then they told me I needed chemo – for me that was a massive blow. It wasn’t in the plan, originally – and I know the plan you can’t get fixated on.” Dowden is married to her long-term partner Benjamin Jones, who is also a professional dancer. The couple wed in 2022, after having to reschedule their wedding due to the Covid pandemic. Read More ‘My depression ate me up and stopped me doing the thing in life I loved the most – cooking’ Maya Jama and Stormzy ‘confirm relationship’ as they’re seen holding hands in Greece Pilot makes sweet announcement to his flight attendant mother on first flight together Strictly’s Amy Dowden finding it ‘so hard’ as she shares hair loss update amid cancer BBC Breakfast’s Emma Vardy announces birth of first child Ultra-processed food may cause ‘tidal wave of harm’, including heart attack, stroke