| Unlock full access to our free-thinking journalism for less than 50p per week. | | Mick Brown and Robert Mendick | Who exactly was Jeffrey Epstein? We have spent weeks trawling through the Epstein files and talking to contacts to try to find the elusive truth behind this most obvious but, until now, unanswered question.
Epstein used sex and wealth as bait to trap rich friends who were all too ready to jump into his arms. He was a vulgarian with little or no taste, who may have been an agent on Russia’s books or, as we were told, an asset for American and Israeli intelligence agencies.
His emails, sent to himself and uncovered by The Telegraph, give an insight into a super-rich financier who was, frankly, disgusting. This has been a fascinating, but gruelling, experience and a story that we’ve been reporting on for more than 15 years. The corruption and depravity just got worse and worse. Additional reporting by Poppy Wood | | Allister Heath The greatest scandal of modern times is the hollowing out of our national defence For subscribers only ➤ Allison Pearson If Nadiya Hussain thinks she’s suffered from BBC discrimination, she should try being a white man Continue reading ➤ Jeremy Warner Not so easy, this Brexit business, is it? Continue reading ➤ | | To make sure you don’t miss our newsletters when they land in your inbox, click here. | | There has been a lot of speculation about Angela Rayner’s next political move | | Is Angela Rayner about to launch a leadership bid? That’s the question vexing Sir Keir Starmer’s allies after her outspoken comments about Labour running out of time, writes Gordon Rayner, our Associate Editor.
The former deputy leader is certainly up to something, but now is not the time for Rayner to try to oust the Prime Minister – there are too many obstacles in her way, not to mention the expected upcoming failure in May’s local elections.
Instead, Rayner has an opportunity to become Starmer’s puppet master, steering the party to the Left ready for a future change of leader. The latest example? The Prime Minister recently opened the door to concessions on his migrant reforms following the criticism from the former deputy leader.
The departure of Morgan McSweeney and other senior aides has cleared the path for a leftist takeover of No 10.
Continue reading ➤ | |  | | An Israeli air strike demolished a building in the Bashoura neighbourhood in Beirut early yesterday morning | | Hezbollah’s decision to enter the US-Iran war on behalf of its spiritual and financial backers in Tehran has exacerbated sectarian divides in Lebanon, threatening to tear the country apart, writes Paul Nuki, our Global Health Security Editor in Beirut.
The terror group, which is only supported by a minority of the Lebanese population, has been increasingly diminished both politically and militarily in recent years, particularly under the current disarmament plan.
Now Israeli strikes weaken it even further.
Hezbollah is no longer fighting from a position of strength, but from the realisation that its very existence is threatened.
However, analysts say the battle for Lebanese hearts and minds may hinge on the nature of the new Israeli offensive: will the IDF provide enough pressure to cause the Lebanese government to act and carry the country with it, or will it go too far and unite people around the militants?
For subscribers only ➤
Go deeper with our full coverage of the Iran war:
• Latest updates on the conflict: Trump threatens to ‘massively blow up’ Iranian gas field ➤
• ‘This is not America’s war’: Oman diplomat rebukes Trump over Iran ➤
• Tehran won’t fall without a ground offensive, says Kurdish leader ➤
• Navy will not send ships to Middle East because situation is ‘fluid’ ➤ | | | | | The Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s public image is increasingly shaped by controversy and competing narratives | | The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have rejected Tom Bower’s new book, Betrayal, as “deranged conspiracy and melodrama”, writes Anita Singh, Arts and Entertainment Editor. Readers can form their own opinion of Bower’s account of the couple’s bitter exit from the Royal family. However, his own perspective is clear: Meghan emerges from Betrayal as pompous and self-obsessed – even, in the words of one ex-collaborator, “toxic”. Continue reading ➤ | | | | | In the past four years, Belarus has pushed tens of thousands of migrants across Europe’s borders. The move has been an ever-evolving threat and forms a key part of Russia’s escalating hybrid war with the West. In an exclusive interview, the head of Latvia’s state security service reveals how Belarus has started training these migrants in combat and preparing them to clash with European border guards. Joe Barnes, our Brussels Correspondent, reports. Continue reading ➤ | | | Robin Gunningham was long suspected to be the artist Banksy | | For decades, Banksy has used subterfuge and a cloak of secrecy to hide his identity. Now his cover has been blown, the man known as David Jones, formerly Robin Gunningham, still leaves many questions. Liam Kelly follows his paper trail. Continue reading ➤ | | | Up to 90 per cent of UK adults have some form of gum disease and recent research associates it with around 50 health conditions. These include dementia, rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes, Parkinson’s disease and heart disease. Jane Alexander, who suffers from periodontitis, speaks to experts about what we can do to improve our gums and our overall health.
Continue reading ➤ | | There have been reports of hauntings at Lumley Castle for decades | | Every week, Sarah Knapton, our Science Editor, and Joe Pinkstone, our Science Correspondent, demystify your supernatural experiences. From ghoulish encounters to bizarre coincidences, there’s always a scientific explanation and nothing is as strange as it seems.
Today, our duo investigate a reader’s encounter with a ghostly figure...
A baffled reader writes...
“I stayed at Lumley Castle hotel and I’d left my room to fetch a bag from the car and passed under one of the stone arches. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a woman standing to my left.
“She wasn’t translucent or theatrical – just there, as real as anyone else.
“I asked her, ‘Why are you standing in the dark?’
“She put her finger to her lips and whispered, ‘Shhh. I don’t want them to find me.’
“There was no one else in the courtyard, no voices or footsteps. I looked right and left and walked a few steps, but when I looked back, she was gone. No footsteps, no rustle of fabric, no sign she’d ever been there at all.”
– Michael
Sarah and Joe answer...
Michael is certainly not the first to report odd encounters at Lumley Castle hotel.
In 2002, Indian cricket team captain Sourav Ganguly made history by waving his shirt from the balcony of Lords following a historic win against England in the Natwest Trophy.
However, it was neither the victory, nor his iconic celebration, that proved the most extraordinary thing to happen to Ganguly during the series, but rather his spine-chilling stay at Lumley Castle.
Read the full answer here ➤
Plus, send in your questions for Sarah and Joe here ➤ | Sideline or star? Every weekday, Orlando Bird, our loyal reader correspondent, shares an off-piste topic that has brought out the best of your opinions and stories. Orlando writes...
Were you a star of the school sports pitch, a PE prodigy? Or were you, like me, generally sent to stand Eeyorishly in goal, regardless of the game being played?
I’ve been enjoying a recent correspondence on this theme. Let’s just say that if any Telegraph readers were in fact eager young athletes, you’ve been keeping quiet about it. Keith Strickland’s letter set the tone: “At my grammar school in the late 1950s, the gym was in a Victorian building with no shower facilities. Boys changed on the floor of the gym itself. The smell was one of the factors that put me off these places – along with participation sports – for life. Another was the PE teacher, who sought to motivate unenthusiastic students by belittling us in front of our peers.”
This stirred memories for Rowan Hillson: “I too hated the school gym: a vast, chilly room with terrifying equipment and over-enthusiastic teachers. One day the teacher told us to jump over the colt (a small but tall version of the wooden horse). I feared I’d fall but he said: ‘Just go for it – I’ll catch you.’ I ran, jumped and fell – and he didn’t catch me. I also hated outdoor sport. I’ll never forget playing hockey in a hailstorm. Running down the pitch with the hailstones bouncing off my bare knees, I thought: ‘This is really, truly awful, and when I leave school I’ll never do it again.’ So I never did.”
Hockey lessons appear to have been particularly traumatic. Jennifer Rhodes recalled “the hardy games mistress at my Northern grammar school ordering us to scrape snow from the sidelines of the pitch with our sticks so that our game could begin”.
For Val Harbidge, desperate times merited desperate measures: “I once managed to end a particularly cold and rainy game by hiding the ball up my jumper.”
Alas, Colin Henderson had no such luck: “Heavy snow should have stopped a match in which I played in the 1960s. Sadly, the presence of a national newspaper reporter demanded that it continued. The article was not flattering. Few names were mentioned but I was noted for being ‘frequently offside’.” Send your tales of sporting glory, or otherwise, here, and the best of the bunch will feature in a future edition of From the Editor PM, for which you can sign up here.
Please confirm in your reply that you are happy to be featured and that we have your permission to use your name. | | Find as many words as you can in today’s Panagram, including the nine-letter solution. Visit Telegraph Puzzles to play a range of head-scratching games, including PlusWord, Sorted, and Quick, Mini or Cryptic Crosswords.
Yesterday’s Panagram was BOUNTIFUL. Come back tomorrow for the solution to today’s puzzle. | |
Thank you for reading. Have a fulfilling day and I hope to see you tomorrow. Chris Evans, Editor
P.S. I’d love to hear what you think of this newsletter. You can email me your feedback here. | |
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