AN Emmerdale hunk has sparked rumours that he has secretly split from his girlfriend.
Rumours are rife that Ned Porteous, who played Joe Tate in Emmerdale, has split from his girlfriend Sophia Lo.
Ned and Sophia have been dating since 2022, with speculation that they’ve parted ways now ramping up.
The former Joe Tate star has deleted all photographs of his girlfriend from his Instagram account, with only solo snaps and photos without Sophia present.
Sophia has also got rid of all snaps of Ned.
All photos of each other seem to have been wiped from their accounts, with one photo still there because it was part of a photo dump.
It’s also apparent that the pair no longer comment on each other’s photos, which is something they used to do all of the time.
But despite all of this, they DO still follow each other.
In some of the now-deleted snaps, the couple could be seen enjoying holidays in Napa Valley and Yosemite National Park in California.
Other snaps from their travels saw them at the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, as well as posing for photos while visiting Asia and Vietnam.
The Sun has reached out to Ned’s representative for comment. They did not immediately respond.
Ned was a soap favourite from 2017 to 2019 when he starred in ITV hit soap opera Emmerdale.
The actor – who was also Grant Mitchell and Michelle Fowler’s son Mark in EastEnders – appeared on the Yorkshire-set soap for 183 episodes in total.
Ned joined the cast of Emmerdale in 2017 as young businessman Tom Waterhouse, which turned out not to be his real name.
The character, who was quickly revealed to be Joe Tate, was originally played by Oliver Young.
Joe was seemingly killed off in October 2018 but was revealed to be alive and living abroad the following year.
Everything you need to know about Emmerdale
Since leaving the soap Ned has appeared in Netflix’s big-budget drama Bridgerton as Lord Wetherby.
Ned played Lord Wetherby in the first season of the period drama.
His character of Lord Wehterby was the lover of Sir Henry Granville.
The TV star appeared in three episodes of the period drama, but his character was not brought back for the second season.
POPPY Hollins and Jay Porter have built a huge following on TikTok by giving fans a peek into their family life.
The family went viral in September 2024 when the nickname that they gave to their son had a very awkward double meaning.
Poppy and Jay regularly share TikToks on Poppy’s eponymous account, where she has accumulated over 2 million followers.
The couple have replicated that success on YouTube, where they have 113,000 followers.
They regularly share videos of their day-to-day lives which includes everything from Christmas shopping to mukbangs.
Mukbangs are a South Korean trend, in which vloggers record themselves eating gargantuan quantities of food.
Poppy and Jay regularly include their children in their videos, including their daughters Rosa and Frankie, as well as their newborn son.
The couple often post hilarious skits and pranks on their social media accounts.
In one video, Poppy pranked her husband by pretending that she couldn’t pay their rent.
Shocked, Jay said in reply: “You earn all the money.”
Poppy fired back: “I give you an allowance.”
Unaware that he was being pranked, Jay checked his own bank account to see if he could help pay the couple’s bills.
Fans found the post hilarious and commented “the ultimate couple, I love it” and “his nervous laugh at the end”.
Poppy and Jay went viral in September 2024, after they were forced to change their son’s name.
In one video, they announced that they had named their son Vinnie Jay.
In the background, the boy’s dad could be heard to shout “little VJ”.
Poppy joined in on the fun and said “I feel like he’ll be a rapper or something when he’s older.
“VJ!”
Fans were quick to point out that the name had an awkward second meaning, with one even commenting “Vay jay jay”.
The couple quickly decided to change their son’s name but insist that they made their choice before fans pointed out that they had named their son quite an uncomfortable euphemism.
Reportedly, their son has dropped the V and replaced it with a J, making him JJ Porter.
His full name is reportedly Jude Jay Porter.
COMEDIAN Ben Elton has defended divisive BBC sitcom Mrs Brown’s Boys.
He insisted harsh reviews from critics were hugely unfair.
Ben’s backing comes as show creator Brendan O’Carroll recovers from a racism row over the show, which is one of the Beeb’s most popular programmes.
The star, 69, was forced to apologise for a racist joke on the sitcom’s set.
Production of the show’s Christmas special was suspended while bosses investigated the rehearsal slur.
Speaking exclusively to The Sun, The Young Ones and Blackadder writer Ben, 65, said: “It’s insane this show is so abused. It’s so inoffensive.
“You can say it’s unfunny or old-fashioned but you cannot say it’s stupid and lacks skill. These are brilliant comedians with perfect timing.
“They’re doing a type of comedy you may not find appealing because maybe you’re embarrassed about the fact you have no understanding of why it’s funny, so you can’t give yourself over to it.”
Ben believes the comedy, about Irish matriarch Mrs Brown — played by Brendan — and her dysfunctional family should be celebrated, not derided.
The comic, whose Authentic Stupidity show runs at London’s Duke of York’s Theatre from January 13 to 18 before a UK tour until February 27, explained: “I’ve watched a few episodes, sometimes I think it’s hilarious, sometimes I think it’s treading water but you can’t dismiss comedy that you don’t like by saying it’s stupid.
“A good silly joke is actually a difficult thing to write.
“A bad one isn’t but that’s not what they do. It’s not my favourite show but I enjoy it and I see the incredible skill and also it’s all about goodwill.”
A MAJOR bar chain with 4,500 sites will shutter one of its city centre pubs in just weeks.
Stonegate has confirmed it will close The Bedford in Southampton city centre come January.
The pub was a popular location for local students in the area and showed sport matches such as football and rugby.
The Grade II listed building has been operating as a pub since the 1800s.
Locals have flocked to social media to share their devastation about the closure.
One said: “What?! That’s surprising, and a damn shame. This is my regular haunt for 6 nations and other rugby games.
“So It’ll be a block of flats and I’ll need to find a new rugby pub, It’s like the Avondale all over again. I’m glad the staff are going to be ok though.”
While another said it was “the end of an era”.
A third commented: “I hope the building stays. The planners and architects seem to like destroying Southampton’s history!!”
A fourth posted: “Such a shame. I didn’t go there that often, but fond memories of it nonetheless.”
And a fifth wrote: “Memories of a few good nights here as a lad, but everything in life evolves.”
Stonegate does not own the building and is returning it to the landlord in January.
It could potentially be re-let to another pub operator or sold.
The building is listed on the Savills property website for in excess of £500,000.
But Stonegate, which owns a number of bar chains from Popworld to Slug and Lettuce, said it will relocate staff to nearby Stonegate sites.
It will be another blow for local residents of the area who have seen a number of hospitality and retail businesses exit in recent months.
Earlier this year Jack Willis exited the West Quay shopping centre located in the city.
As for Stonegate, the giant raised fears about its survival earlier this year as it looked to plug its debts.
However, it secured a refinancing package over the summer to help it tackle the pile.
Stonegate is owned by TDR Capital, which also partly owns Asda, and is registered offshore in the Cayman Islands.
Last year the company refinanced 1,000 of its pubs with the debt firm Apollo to inject some fresh cash into the business.
Many food and drink chains have been struggling recently as the cost of living has led to fewer people spending on eating out.
Businesses had been struggling to bounce back after the pandemic, only to be hit with soaring energy bills and inflation.
Multiple chains have been affected, resulting in big-name brands like Wetherspoons and Frankie & Benny’s closing branches.
Some chains have not survived, Byron Burger fell into administration last year, with owners saying it would result in the loss of over 200 jobs.
Pizza giant, Papa Johns announced it would be shutting down 43 of its stores this year.
Tasty, the owner of Wildwood, also shut sites as part of major restructuring plans.
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. 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.
Boss Stuart Machin recently said that when it relocated a tired store in Chesterfield to a new big store in a retail park half a mile away, its sales in the area rose by 103 per cent.
In some cases, stores have been shut when a retailer goes bust, as in the case of Wilko, Debenhams Topshop, Dorothy Perkins and Paperchase 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.
TYSON FURY and Oleksandr Usyk are ready to put on another dazzling display to close out a fantastic year of heavyweight boxing.
The long-anticipated rematch is finally here as the two heavyweights are set for what will surely be another fight-of-the-year contender.
Last time out, Usyk was victorious with a split decision win and nearly finished the Gypsy King in the ninth round.
They were fighting for six belts in total – WBC, IBF, IBO, WBO, WBA (Super) and The Ring title – plus a new “undisputed” belt Turki Alalshikh had created.
TYSON FURY VS OLEKSANDR USYK 2 TIPS AND ODDS
The Ukrainian became the first undisputed heavyweight champion this century, with the last being Lennox Lewis in 1999.
Here, SunSport brings you everything you need to know about what belts are on the line for the exciting rematch in Riyadh.
Usyk’s reign as undisputed champion didn’t last long as he was quickly stripped of the IBF belt after being unable to make a mandatory defence.
The belt went to interim holder Daniel Dubois without needing to fight for it – but he then defended it in sensational fashion with a TKO win over Anthony Joshua on September 24.
This time around, the rematch sees the two men fight for five heavyweight titles.
The belts on the line are the IBO, WBC, and WBO titles, plus the lesser WBA (Super) title and The Ring belt – which isn’t a boxing governing body but does hold weight.
Not only did the Fury lose his WBC belt to Usyk, but he also received his first-ever loss on his record, so he’ll be looking to avenge that too.
READ MORE on all the build-up to the blockbuster fight in Riyadh..
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A PAIR of fashionistas have found the perfect outfit for wearing on Christmas Day, that looks flattering on all sizes.
Best friends Sophie, who wears a size 6, and Christie, who wears a size 20, often showcase inclusive fashion inspiration on their social media accounts.
And in a recent TikTok video, the pair showed off a stunning knitwear set from ASOS.
The metallic tinsel v neck co-ord comes in a gorgeous navy blue colour, that’s bound to make you stand out from the crowd.
It is covered in sparkles, to give it an unmistakably festive look and has a loose fit, meaning you can stay comfortable, no matter how many mince pies you eat.
The co-ord is priced at £45, and comes in a wide range of sizes, from size 6 to size 18.
The stylish duo said of the dress: “We’ve found the perfect set, which is the perfect in-between of casual and dressy.
“And it’s not only comfy but super cute too!
“A knitwear set but make it dressy …
“We’ve paired the navy tinsel set with silver accessories for that little glimpse of party.”
The girls both chose to complete their looks with silver heels and matching silver clutches which helped to elevate their look.
The girl’s video, posted under the username @sophieandchristie has left many impressed, with fans rushing to the comments section to praise the look.
One person said: “Oh wow, no we are talking.”
A second person said: “You both look gorgeous.”
A third said: “Love this outfit.”
A fourth added: “I love this! Looks gorge on you both.”
CLEMMIE Fieldsend, Fashion Editor at Fabulous, has shared her top tips for looking fabulous this Christmas.
AVOID: Christmas jumpers
No longer a novelty gag, they’re now gone back to being naff and have no place at a festive party.
By all means, go all in for Christmas Jumper Day for Save The Children, but never wear it before or after that day.
WEAR: Burgundy
You can’t escape burgundy at this time of year and it’s a luxury, deep and rich colour that is a welcome break from Santa-red at Christmas.
Opt for silky textures or velvet for extra style points.
AVOID: PJs
The trend of feather trimmed co-ords has had its day and is so dated.
Don’t pull out your hair plucked pair this year, and don’t get a new set, instead still go for the satin two-piece but just steer clear of the plumes.
WEAR: Sequin Dress
Try to switch up sequins slightly by wearing them with a different texture or colour, eg a sequin skirt with a sleek knit.
But when you’re really stuck on what to wear reach for the sequins, it is Christmas after all.
AVOID: Sequin blazer
Nothing worse than showing up to a festive do looking like the hired entertainment.
Leave the sequin blazer to magicians and Strictly judges, instead always reach for a classic tux style or velvet.
WEAR: Bling trousers
Last party season embellished jeans with diamante bling had a moment, and this year they’re going to be as much of a hit.
If you don’t want gemstones pinging off wherever you go then try metallic, PU trousers.
