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Spice Girls Mark 25 Years Since 'Wannabe' Release

The Spice Girls perform during the closing ceremony of the London 2012 Olympic Games at the Olympic Stadium, August 12, 2012. REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth
The Spice Girls perform during the closing ceremony of the London 2012 Olympic Games at the Olympic Stadium, August 12, 2012. REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth
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Spice Girls Mark 25 Years Since 'Wannabe' Release

The Spice Girls perform during the closing ceremony of the London 2012 Olympic Games at the Olympic Stadium, August 12, 2012. REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth
The Spice Girls perform during the closing ceremony of the London 2012 Olympic Games at the Olympic Stadium, August 12, 2012. REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth

The Spice Girls celebrated 25 years since the release of their debut single "Wannabe" on Thursday with heartfelt messages thanking their fans for their continued support in making them one of the most successful girl bands in the world.

An upbeat and empowering track, "Wannabe" was released on July 8, 1996 and soared to the top of music charts around the world.

The group, made up of Mel B, known as Scary Spice, Emma Bunton - Baby Spice, Mel C - Sporty Spice, Victoria Beckham - Posh Spice and Geri Halliwell (now Horner) - Ginger Spice, went on to sell some 90 million records worldwide.

"Feeling very emotional, what an amazing 25 years it has been," Bunton wrote on Instagram.

"Thanks to our wonderful fans for making 5 girls dreams come true, loving the songs that we wrote, copying our dance routines and embracing our individuality!"

Horner posted old photos of the group and described "Wannabe" as "the song that changed the lives of five girls from Britain".

To mark the occasion, the band has previously announced they would release a limited edition "Wannabe25" EP on Friday, including the original track, the original demo recording, a remix and a demo of previously unreleased ballad "Feed Your Love". They also launched the #IAmASpiceGirl campaign asking fans to share memories.

"We wouldn’t be anywhere without you and can’t thank you enough for all the love we’ve had from all of you for two and a half decades," Mel B wrote on her Instagram page.

"We’ve all grown up together and we’ve shared so much,” Reuters quoted her as saying.

The Spice Girls formed in 1994. Horner left in 1998, while the remaining members went their separate ways in 2000. They got back together for a tour in 2007-2008 and performed at the 2012 London Olympics closing ceremony.

The Spice Girls returned as a foursome for a 2019 reunion tour, without Beckham, now a fashion designer.

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Entertainment

Isiah Whitlock Jr., Actor from ‘The Wire,’ ‘Veep’ and Spike Lee Films, Dies at 71

US actor Isiah Whitlock Jr. attends the Out-of-This-World Premiere of Disney and Pixar's "Lightyear" at the El Capitan Theater on June 8, 2022 in Hollywood, California. (AFP)
US actor Isiah Whitlock Jr. attends the Out-of-This-World Premiere of Disney and Pixar's "Lightyear" at the El Capitan Theater on June 8, 2022 in Hollywood, California. (AFP)
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Isiah Whitlock Jr., Actor from ‘The Wire,’ ‘Veep’ and Spike Lee Films, Dies at 71

US actor Isiah Whitlock Jr. attends the Out-of-This-World Premiere of Disney and Pixar's "Lightyear" at the El Capitan Theater on June 8, 2022 in Hollywood, California. (AFP)
US actor Isiah Whitlock Jr. attends the Out-of-This-World Premiere of Disney and Pixar's "Lightyear" at the El Capitan Theater on June 8, 2022 in Hollywood, California. (AFP)

Isiah Whitlock Jr., an actor who made frequent memorable appearances on the HBO series “The Wire” and “Veep” and in five films with director Spike Lee, died Tuesday. He was 71.

Whitlock's manager Brian Liebman told The Associated Press in an email that the actor died in New York after a short illness.

Whitlock played openly corrupt state Sen. Clay Davis on 25 episodes across the five seasons of “The Wire.”

Davis, a fan-favorite character, was known for his profane catchphrase delivered by Whitlock in moments of triumph and blunt honesty. The actor first used the phrase in his first film with Lee, 2002's “The 25th Hour," when his detective character discovers a cache of drugs hidden in a couch.

“It’s a big, big, big loss,” Lee said in a phone call with the AP on Tuesday night. “I’m going to miss him for the rest of my life.”

Whitlock went on to appear in four other Lee films, including 2004's “She Hate Me,” 2012's “Red Hook Summer,” 2015's “Chi-Raq,” 2018's “BlacKkKlansman” and 2020's “Da 5 Bloods.”

“We vibed over all those years,” Lee said. “We clicked from the jump.”

Lee said he has especially sweet memories of the extended time he spent with Whitlock shooting “Da 5 Bloods” on location in Thailand, and he fondly remembered the last time he saw Whitlock — Lee and his daughter, Satchel, sat with him at a screening of “Kiss of the Spider Woman” earlier this year.

“He was just a beautiful, beautiful soul,” Lee said. “If you were around him, he made everybody feel good in his presence. He would radiate. I would put that over his acting.”

Lee pointed to Whitlock's comic talents both on screen and off.

"He was hilarious," Lee said. “That was just his nature, he made people laugh. Everybody was in on the joke."

Whitlock is the second significant star of “The Wire” to die in recent weeks after the death of actor James Ransone.

A native of South Bend, Indiana, Whitlock went to Southwest Minnesota State University, where he played football and studied theater. Injuries pushed him to study acting, and he moved to San Francisco to work in theater.

He began appearing in small television guest roles on shows including “Cagney and Lacy” in the late 1980s, and he had very small roles in the 1990 films “Goodfellas” and “Gremlins 2: The New Batch.”

After “The Wire,” Whitlock moved on to another HBO show, the political satire “Veep,” where he played Secretary of Defense George Maddox for three seasons. The character ran against Julia Louis-Dreyfus' Selina Meyer in presidential primaries.

“The Wire” creator David Simon also paid tribute to Whitlock in a post on Bluesky.

“As fine an actor as he was," Simon said, “Isiah was an even better spirit and the greatest gentleman.”

Entertainment

George Clooney, His Wife Amal and Their Children Obtain French Citizenship

Actor George Clooney and Amal Clooney host their annual fundraiser "The Albie Awards" in London, Britain, October 3, 2025. (Reuters)
Actor George Clooney and Amal Clooney host their annual fundraiser "The Albie Awards" in London, Britain, October 3, 2025. (Reuters)
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George Clooney, His Wife Amal and Their Children Obtain French Citizenship

Actor George Clooney and Amal Clooney host their annual fundraiser "The Albie Awards" in London, Britain, October 3, 2025. (Reuters)
Actor George Clooney and Amal Clooney host their annual fundraiser "The Albie Awards" in London, Britain, October 3, 2025. (Reuters)

Hollywood star George Clooney and his wife, human rights lawyer Amal Clooney, have obtained French citizenship, along with ​their two children, official French government documents show.

Clooney told broadcaster RTL earlier this month that it was essential for him and his wife that their eight-year-old twins Alexander and Ella could live in a place where they had ‌a chance to ‌live a normal ‌life.

“Here, ⁠they ​don’t ‌take photos of kids. There aren’t any paparazzi hidden at the school gates. That’s number one for us,” he told RTL on December 2.

The couple purchased a house on a vineyard, with an estimated value ⁠of around 9 million euros ($10.59 million), in the southern ‌French town of Brignoles ‍in 2021.

The property ‍also includes a swimming pool and ‍a tennis court, according to French media.
"We also have a house in the United States, but our happiest place is on this farm ​where the kids can have fun," he said.

US film director Jim Jarmusch ⁠on Friday told France Inter radio that he would also make an application to obtain French citizenship.

"I would like to have another place to escape from America if necessary," he told France Inter.

"And France, and Paris, and French culture are very deep in me. So I think I would be very honored if I ‌could have a French passport," he said.

Entertainment

France Split over Bardot Tribute

Portraits of late French actress Brigitte Bardot and flowers are displayed on barriers at the entrance of "La Madrague" house, property of late Brigitte Bardot in Saint-Tropez, southeastern France on December 28, 2025. (AFP)
Portraits of late French actress Brigitte Bardot and flowers are displayed on barriers at the entrance of "La Madrague" house, property of late Brigitte Bardot in Saint-Tropez, southeastern France on December 28, 2025. (AFP)
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France Split over Bardot Tribute

Portraits of late French actress Brigitte Bardot and flowers are displayed on barriers at the entrance of "La Madrague" house, property of late Brigitte Bardot in Saint-Tropez, southeastern France on December 28, 2025. (AFP)
Portraits of late French actress Brigitte Bardot and flowers are displayed on barriers at the entrance of "La Madrague" house, property of late Brigitte Bardot in Saint-Tropez, southeastern France on December 28, 2025. (AFP)

French politicians were divided on Monday over how to pay tribute to the late Brigitte Bardot, who despite her screen legend courted controversy and convictions in later life with her far-right views.

The film star died on Sunday aged 91 at home in the south of France. Media around the globe splashed iconic images of her and tributes following the announcement.

Bardot shot to fame in 1956 and went on to appear in about 50 films, but turned her back on cinema in 1973 to throw herself into fighting for animal rights.

Her links to the far-right stirred controversy however.

Bardot was convicted five times for hate speech, mostly about Muslims, but also the inhabitants of the French island of Reunion whom she described as "savages".

She slipped away before dawn on Sunday morning with her fourth husband Bernard d'Ormale, a former adviser to the far right, by her side.

"She whispered a word of love to him ... and she was gone," Bruno Jacquelin, a representative of her foundation for animals, told BFM television.

- 'Cynicism' -

President Emmanuel Macron hailed the actor as a "legend" of the 20th century cinema who "embodied a life of freedom".

Far-right figures were among the first to mourn her.

Marine le Pen, whose National Rally party is riding high in polls called her "incredibly French: free, untamable, whole".

Bardot backed Le Pen for president in 2012 and 2017, and described her as a modern "Joan of Arc" she hoped could "save" France.

Conservative politician Eric Ciotti suggested a national farewell like one organized for French rock legend Johnny Hallyday who died in 2017.

He launched a petition online that had garnered just over 7,000 signatures on Monday.
But few left-wing politicians have spoken about Bardot's passing.

"Brigitte Bardot was a towering figure, a symbol of freedom, rebellion, and passion," Philippe Brun, a senior Socialist party deputy, told Europe 1 radio.

"We are sad she is gone," he said, adding he did not oppose a national homage.

But he did hint at her controversial political views.

"As for her political commitments, there will be time enough -- in the coming days and weeks -- to talk about them," he said.

Communist party leader Fabien Roussel called Bardot a divisive figure.

But "we all agree French cinema created BB and that she made it shine throughout the world," he wrote on X.

Greens lawmaker Sandrine Rousseau was more critical.

"To be moved by the fate of dolphins but remain indifferent to the deaths of migrants in the Mediterranean -- what level of cynicism is that?" she quipped on BlueSky.

- Garden burial? -

Bardot said she wanted to be buried in her garden with a simple wooden cross above her grave -- just like for her animals -- and wanted to avoid "a crowd of idiots" at her funeral.

Such a burial is possible in France if local authorities grant permission.

Born on September 28, 1934 in Paris, Bardot was raised in a well-off traditional Catholic household.

Married four times, she had one child, Nicolas-Jacques Charrier, with her second husband, actor Jacques Charrier.

After quitting the cinema, Bardot withdrew to her home in the Saint-Tropez to devote herself to animal rights.

Her calling apparently came when she encountered a goat on the set of her final film, "The Edifying and Joyous Story of Colinot". To save it from being killed, she bought the animal and kept it in her hotel room.

"I'm very proud of the first chapter of my life," she told AFP in a 2024 interview ahead of her 90th birthday.

"It gave me fame, and that fame allows me to protect animals -- the only cause that truly matters to me."