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Britney Spears had no sense of privacy or control of her life through a majority of her time in a conservatorship -- to the point her father was recording her chats from within her own bedroom ... those are the claims an explosive new documentary.

The bombshell allegations surfaced Friday in Hulu's "Controlling Britney Spears" ... which details accounts from people who say they were involved in the inner workings of Britney's conservatorship, as well as what allegedly went into monitoring her.

According to a guy named Alex Vlasov, he worked for a security company called Black Box ... which he says Jamie and a woman named Robin Greenhill -- who worked for Tri Star, Britney's business management company -- hired to keep tabs on Britney for years.

He claims Black Box had him set up an encryption system on Britney's mobile devices ... so texts and emails she'd send and receive would loop back to Jamie and Robin via a separate iPad they had. He likened it to parents keeping a watchful eye over their minor children's activity.

Then, Vlasov went on to claim that Jamie was controlling and overbearing over people who could interact with Britney ... especially men.

Vlasov alleges Jamie set up some sort of listening device in her bedroom ... alleged audio of which Vlasov says he was once asked to destroy.

He felt super uneasy about the demand and made a copy ... but he doesn't reveal any of the contents of what's on those recordings, which he says amounted to about 180 hours worth, ranging from convos she had with Sam, her kids and others.

The timing of the doc couldn't have come at a better time for Britney -- because she's going to try and get her father off the conservatorship once and for all next week ... and possibly attempt to end the whole thing altogether.

A new force has entered the fold in the ongoing search for Gabby Petito's fiance, Brian Laundrie -- and that's Dog the Bounty Hunter ... who's already knocking at his front door.

The famed TV personality and real-life human tracker has thrown his hat into the ring to help try and locate Laundrie -- who's vanished and been missing for almost a couple weeks now ... and is currently the subject of a massive manhunt, as he's suspect #1 in this whole case.

Reporter Brian Entin got footage of Dog dropping into the Laundrie family home in North Port, FL ... but it doesn't look like they were willing to chat with DTBH.

He seems to poke his head around the side of the house -- where there are a few parked cars in the driveway -- and finally makes his way to the main entrance, where he knocks and lingers a bit. Nobody answers ... and eventually Dog heads back to his truck with his wife, Francie, right behind him. Entin asks what he's doing there -- and Dog tells him, "you know."

As for why Dog's doing this (and how), we have some answers. His rep tells TMZ ... Dog wants to help bring justice to the Petito family, and feels compelled to get out there and do what he does best -- capturing people and bringing them to the authorities.

We're told Dog is simply volunteering his services at this point, and has not yet made contact with the investigative powers overseeing this case -- namely, the FBI. But, we're told Dog will touch base with them eventually ... and turn over anything he finds along the way.

A woman got an unexpected (and apparently unwanted) visitor during a boat trip -- it was a sea lion fearing for its life ... who tried hitching a ride as orcas started to close in.

Watch this wild encounter that was captured by a woman who goes by @nutabull on TikTok and lives on Vancouver Island ... where there's plenty of this type of action in the open waters.

Her videos start with the animal already aboard -- which startles her, 'cause she doesn't know where the heck it came from, or how it made its way up. This pinniped's got hops!

Another thing she immediately recognizes in the distance ... that she and/or her vessel are becoming the epicenter of a pod of killer whales that were starting to circle ... seemingly in pursuit of this little guy, who might normally become fish food in the wild.

The orcas get right up against the boat and start to pop out to take a peek at their would-be meal ... who's in no rush to get back into the water, despite this woman demanding he scram.

It's honestly hilarious, but also kinda sad -- because we all know damn well that as soon as it jumps back in, it's almost certainly going to be eaten. There's at least like 3 whales there!

We don't wanna spoil the ending. But, let's just say ... rest easy, sea lion. You lived a long and prosperous life, were sure. Ah damn it -- guess that sums it up. BTW, this woman's rationale for giving it the boot is pretty funny too ... replying to someone in her comments.

Jeffrey Jordan, Michael Jordan's 32-year-old son, is accused of assaulting staff at a hospital in Arizona Friday night, where he was being treated for an injury he sustained in a bar, TMZ Sports has learned.

Here's the deal ... Jeffrey was at Casa Amigos bar in Scottsdale when he "fell and hit his head," according to police. They say Jordan then became combative with security who were attempting to escort him out of the bar to receive medical attention.

Scottsdale PD, who were in the area for an unrelated call, were summoned to assist. Cops interviewed bar staff, and eventually deemed the incident "medical in nature," not criminal. An ambulance was called to transport JJ to a hospital.

After arriving at a local hospital, that's when things allegedly took a turn.

Jeffrey is accused of assaulting hospital staff while being treated for the injury he sustained at the bar. A report for aggravated assault, a felony, was taken at the hospital.

As for Jeffrey's side, our sources tell us he was confused and disoriented following the fall.

Jordan was NOT arrested or charged with a crime. As of this morning, he still remains in the hospital.

Police tell us the relevant reports will be sent to the Maricopa County Prosecutors Office ... where they will review the case and determine if charges are warranted.

6'1" Jeffrey, MJ's oldest son, played college basketball at the University of Illinois, before transferring to the University of Central Florida in 2010. He played 107 college basketball games over his career, averaging about 2 points a game.

Gospel singer Kelly Price is NOT missing and is safe, at least according to her attorney.

Monica Ewing, Kelly's rep, tells TMZ ... the singer is continuing to recover from COVID at an undisclosed location.

We're told Kelly's legal rep reached out to Cobb County police to notify law enforcement Kelly is accounted for ... even though she's now listed as missing with the National Crime Information Center.

TMZ broke the story ... Georgia officials say Kelly has been listed as a missing person, following last weekend's welfare check conducted at her home.

Before going missing, Kelly revealed in July she had COVID and was battling symptoms, and her family says she was eventually admitted to a hospital and ended up in the ICU.

Kelly's family told us her kids recently got a call that she was discharged, which surprised them because she was apparently not fully out of the woods.

The family says Kelly has gone radio silent and they told police her boyfriend is allegedly keeping her children from visiting her home ... and it led the fam to have cops conduct a welfare check.

We asked Ewing to clarify why Price had seemingly been ignoring her family and what her current status was with her fiancé, Ewing reiterated Kelly is safe and recovering from COVID and is trying to get well and will further address the story later.

Huge day in court next Wednesday, when Britney asks a judge to boot Jamie from the conservatorship -- and the conservatorship itself may be on the chopping block -- and sorry Debra Messing, Kim's gonna get big ratings hosting 'SNL.' So, we gotta ask ...

A group of rowdy anti-vaxxers in New York have their own weird twist to Patrick Henry's liberty demand -- they're demanding freedom, alright ... food court freedom.

Check out this surreal scene that unfolded at the Staten Island Mall, where a swarm of people came barging into the Food District area with American flags ... a place they're not technically supposed to enter without proof of vaccination.

A bunch of them were chanting "USA, USA" ... and some even appeared to be wearing QAnon shirts. Eventually, one guy took the lead and told everyone what they oughta do next now that they'd broken through -- apparently past security -- and had their run of the place.

He essentially said ... go order something and sit down to eat. And, sure enough, it seems everyone started to do just that. At one point, the group of about 60 protesters or so started a new chant ... "F*** Joe Biden" -- this as bewildered spectators looked on.

Who they should be directing their anger at, however, is Mayor Bill de Blasio ... who enacted a city-wide vaccine mandate, making it impossible for folks who aren't vaxxed to dine indoors, hit gyms, and a ton of other inside activities. He's put his foot down on getting the jab.

Nessie may very well have been inadvertently captured on camera with modern-day technology that (allegedly) shows him clear as day ... if you believe what this guy's selling.

Richard Mavor -- an outdoorsman from the U.K. -- claims to have possibly filmed the legendary beast on a drone camera while putting together a vlog of himself canoeing in Scotland's great lake ... and, if he's to be believed, Nessie's not nearly as big as they say.

Check out the clip -- the moment he says the would-be dinosaur shows up happens around the 3:50 mark ... when Rick's drone is hovering above him and his buddies along the south shore of Loch Ness. Right below the waterline, you see something start to surface.

The drone zooms in, and whatever the heck that is becomes way more clear -- and yeah, it DOES look a little sea creature-y. You can even make out what seems to be a long neck-like shape. Based on descriptions of Nessie from over the years -- it appears to fit the bill.

That's exactly what Richard and co. thought when they played this back. Doesn't sound like the so-called monster ever popped its head out or anything -- but the crew believes they got something legit here.

Like we said ... it really doesn't look as intimidating or long as some have claimed it to be over time. Word is, the Loch Ness monster is about 20 feet in length -- but this thing doesn't seem to be more than 15 feet, at best. Maybe it's Baby Nessie!

There have been reported sightings dating back centuries -- but the most recent buzz stems from that (in)famous photo above of what somebody said was Nessie back in 1933. That turned out to be a complete hoax upon further investigation.

Kate Quigley is singling out one of her friends who died in a 4-person overdose incident earlier this month -- and that'd be Fuquan Johnson ... whom she says left an impression.

The comedian posted a photo of her and FJ together, with a lengthy caption that touched on why she hadn't highlighted him before ... and why she's doing it now. Essentially, it boils down to time and processing what happened -- but now she's ready to speak.

She writes, in part ... "I took a lot of heat for not saying something about Fu right away. It's bc idk ... I was really trying to stay alive for days, and I'm still processing fully what happened." Kate also says she didn't want to shout him out specifically -- seeing how 3 people died ... but notes, he was, in fact, special to her.

KQ also has this to say on the question of the drugs being used that night ... "I can't comment on who supplied what. The truth is it doesn't really matter. If you do any illegal drugs, you're basically signing a contract that says, 'I accept that I might die sooner than I would like.' We all know that. I'm not posting to talk about details of what occurred."

Kate finishes by recapping what she'll remember about Fuquan -- namely, that he was as honest and unflinchingly himself ... just like her.

She writes, "I think about him every day, and I'm heartbroken he's gone. But I know without a shadow of a doubt that he has been watching over me every time I get down. I feel him." Kate adds, "And I know he would support me however I had to deal with this, just as I would if only he had survived."

Hillary Clinton is happily taking a consolation prize after missing the big one 5 years ago -- settling for the title of Madam ... but in a collegiate setting, well across the pond.

The former Democratic presidential candidate and Secretary of State was honored Friday at Queen's University Belfast in Northern Ireland ... where the head honchos tapped her to be the school's 11th chancellor -- the first female one in the institution's history -- and where she was officially inaugurated as so, dressed in a graduate's gown ... no cap.

HC posted photos Saturday in the aftermath of her ceremony, writing ... "Just call me Madam Chancellor. @qubelfast #LoveQUB" The shots show her heading into the building where she ended up delivering some nice remarks and praised NI as a beacon of democracy.

Looks and sounds pretty nice in these still pics -- but it was far from that in real life ... as there were anti-war protesters just outside shouting at her as she went in -- calling things like "war criminal" and saying "shame on Queen's." Yeah ... it was pretty intense.

Hillary didn't seem to pay them much mind though -- in fact, she even gave them a slight wave before she went up the steps and into the venue ... and, luckily, things didn't escalate beyond that.

As the search continues for Brian Laundrie, an emotional vigil was held Friday night in Long Island -- Gabby Petito's hometown.

The memorial was called "Light the Night for Gabby Petito," where scores of residents held lanterns that they purchased for $20 ... to help the Petito family cover funeral and other costs.

Gabby graduated from Bayport-Blue Point High School, so her connection to the community runs deep. Her body was returned to Long Island for burial.

A service open to the public is set for Sunday from noon to 5 PM at Moloney's Funeral Home.

As we reported, the feds are intensely searching for Brian Laundrie, who has not been named as a suspect in Gabby's death but, according to our law enforcement sources, that's exactly how they are treating him -- as the prime suspect. As you know, there's an arrest warrant issued for Laundrie, who allegedly committed criminal fraud by using an unauthorized debit card ... a card that was presumably Gabby's.

The feds are searching the area where Laundrie allegedly went for a hike, although some believe he's escaped and possibly even left the country. Others believe he's already killed himself.

Bill Maher laid it all out Friday night ... saying the United States is becoming a segregated nation again, and the latest evidence is the push for 2 National Anthems.

The 'Real Time' host blasted the NFL for playing "Lift Every Voice and Sing" -- often called the Black National Anthem -- in addition to the OG N.A. at football games.

Maher's not against a new National Anthem -- one that better reflects current times -- but he's flatly against more than one.

His argument goes like this ... Martin Luther King Jr. and many others fought hard -- even some losing their lives -- to end segregation. The battle was won 67 years ago when the U.S. Supreme Court put an end to separate but equal, which at the time was considered a victory for human rights.

Not so anymore, Maher says, pointing to colleges which now offer segregated residences, segregated graduation ceremonies, and on and on.

He invokes the words of Barack Obama, who said, "There is not a Black America, and a white America, and Latino America, an Asian American, there's a United States of America."

His overarching point ... diversity is a virtue that was celebrated until recently, and to cast that aside threatens the very fabric of America.

Sam Asghari ain't a fan of the Britney docs, that's for sure, because he shaded them all on the heels of the latest.

Sam got a jump on "Controlling Britney Spears," which aired on FX Friday night, saying, "Past docs left a bad after taste. I'm hoping this one will be respectful."

Sam wasn't done, saying, "I question producers who made them 'just to shed light' without input or approval from subject [Britney]."

Sam's loyalties are clearly stated when he says, "Any credit for light being shed should go to #freebritney."

Britney said back in March she cried for 2 days after watching "Framing Britney Spears."

This all comes days before an enormously important court hearing, when Jamie will almost certainly say goodbye to the conservatorship. Britney's lawyer, Mathew Rosengart, has filed legal docs declaring his intention to make a case for ending the conservatorship altogether this fall.

The big question -- and the one that could be make-or-break -- is whether the judge orders a mental evaluation as a prelude for deciding whether to 86 the 13-year-old conservatorship. Britney, Rosengart and Jamie Spears have all said they wanted the conservatorship terminated without such an evaluation.

There have been 2 dozen medical professionals who have weighed in over the years in closed court, presenting their diagnoses. If the judge orders an evaluation, this could turn into a war of the doctors, and the judge will have to decide who's more credible.

The judge has already said Britney was capable of hiring her own lawyer, and that's a clear sign she's competent to run her own life. What's more, now that she's engaged to Sam and Britney's personal conservator, Jodi Montgomery, has agreed to stay on and work for Britney post-conservatorship, the judge may feel she now has a good safety neet.

Jennifer Lopez took a trip to Central Park in NYC Friday night, to rehearse for the big concert Saturday.

J Lo hit the stage with Ja Rule and LL Cool J at around 8 PM and went through the paces, rehearsing 5 songs. They were on stage for a half hour, prepping for Saturday's Global Citizens Festival.

Two of the songs were collabs with Ja Rule and LL ... 3 were J Lo's, including "Dinero." She and Ja Rule sang "Ain't it Funny."

The woman who just said she feels like a Hollywood outsider will be at the center of the action tonight. And, it's a good bet Ben will be watching ... and cheering, and maybe even busting a move or 2!

Prince Harry got a taste of New York he's never experienced before ... in the form of chicken and waffles ... and a lot more.

Harry and Meghan Markle took a trip Friday to chow down at Melba's ... the famed soul food restaurant in Harlem.

Melba rolled out the red carpet, serving them Southern fried chicken, eggnog waffles, spring rolls, catfish, collard greens and yams.

They chatted with Melba about City Harvest, a charitable org that delivers food that would otherwise go in the trash to various groups that help feed folks in need. H&M pledged $25k ... unclear if it's to support Melba's, which was hit hard by the pandemic, or City Harvest.