First Lady Melania Trump has denied connections to Jeffrey Epstein, telling reporters at the White House that any claims linking the two “need to end today”.

In a surprise announcement on Thursday, the first lady called for congressional hearings for survivors of Epstein’s sex trafficking.

Read more here.

It comes after temperatures plummeted following a recent hot spell

Wales is set for some very unsettled and potentially stormy weather after a recent hot spell came to an abrupt end. Mona on Anglesey was officially the hottest place in the UK on Tuesday, reaching a maximum of 24.8C. This is the highest temperature recorded in Wales so far this year.

The glorious sunshine continued on Wednesday, with Bute Park in Cardiff also seeing temperatures above 24C. However, the Met Office warned the hot spell would only be short-lived, with temperatures in some places dropping by as much as 10C on Thursday.

The weather is only set to get worse as we head into the weekend, with plenty of gusty conditions in the forecast. The Met Office said there is a possibility heavy showers will be accompanied by thunder and coastal gales as wind speeds ramp up.

Here are the Met Office weather maps showing the parts of Wales which will be hit by bad weather this weekend:

Friday, April 10

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Friday will start off dry, but cloudy. Make sure you never miss Wales’ biggest updates by getting our daily newsletter

A band of rain will slowly move across from the west.

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The rain will move across the country in the afternoon. Winds will also strengthen as the day goes on.

Another heavy band of rain will start to move across late on Friday.

Saturday, April 11

This is the forecast for midnight. Up to 16mm could fall in an hour in some places.

The rain will be particularly heavy overnight, and will also be accompanies by gusty winds.

Most people will wake up to wet weather on Saturday morning.

The heavy showers will gradually move eastwards.

By Saturday afternoon, the rain showers will become more scattered with some areas enjoying dry spells.

As we head into Saturday evening, more rain showers will move in from the west.

This is the forecast for 8pm.

Sunday, April 12

There will more heavy rain overnight on Sunday.

There will be showers in the south as people wake up on Sunday.

This is the forecast for 4pm.

The full Met Office forecast for this weekend reads: “Unsettled through the weekend and Monday with sunny spells and showers or longer spells of rain. The showers locally heavy with thunder. Windy with coastal gales possible, temperatures near average.”

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During an extraordinary press conference, First Lady Melania Trump emphatically denied any connection to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. After her comments, President Donald Trump reportedly told MS NOW reporter Jacqueline Alemany that he did not know the first lady would be speaking about Epstein.

“I’ve never been friends with Epstein,” she said during a brief televised address from the White House Thursday afternoon. “I have never had any knowledge of Epstein’s abuse of his victims.”

She condemned “unfounded and baseless lies” and demanded apologies from publishers, naming The Daily Beast and Harper Collins UK.

The first lady went on to say that she met Epstein as a result of “overlapping in social circles” in 2000 and that she only kept a “casual correspondence” with his former girlfriend, Ghislaine Maxwell. The disgraced British socialite is serving 20 years in federal prison for sex trafficking.

“I call on Congress to provide the women who have been victimized by Epstein with a public hearing specifically centered around the survivors,” Mrs. Trump said.

Republicans and Democrats on the House Oversight Committee, which is investigating Epstein, echoed her calls for a public hearing.

The first lady’s remarks appeared to come out of the blue and surprised many, partly because public attention on the Epstein files scandal had subsided amid the ongoing war in Iran.

Humberside Police says that two suspects have been arrested after a vehicle – which had a stop marker placed on it by North Yorkshire Police – was stopped in their area.

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A spokesperson for the force said: “The same vehicle had previously been captured on CCTV in the York Market area, where two individuals were seen stealing used cooking oil from nearby businesses.

“It is suspected that the vehicle may have been visiting a number of villages and towns across the county.

“High‑quality CCTV footage clearly showed the suspects and the vehicle registration. When the vehicle was stopped by Humberside Police, officers seized the van along with a quantity of suspected stolen oil found in the rear compartment.”

Both people inside were arrested and have since been released on police bail while the investigation continues, with police adding they are unable to release further details about the vehicle or suspects while the investigation is ongoing.

All businesses are strongly encouraged to report any thefts and if you need to report an incident, please call 999 in an emergency or 101 for non‑urgent matters, or you can also submit a report online via the police website.

Former congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, once a MAGA ally who has rejected President Donald Trump, suggested the Republican Party needed to start over entirely because too many lawmakers were loyal to Israel.

Speaking with conspiracy theorist Alex Jones on his podcast InfoWars Wednesday, Greene said the current state of the Republican Party could not survive with Trump as its “cult” leader, nor the lawmakers who are “controlled by [the American Israel Public Affairs Committee].”

“Here’s what we have to do: we have to be realistic about the Republican Party,” Greene said. “The Republican Party needs to burn to the ground. It’s completely controlled.”

Greene, an “America First” advocate, has accused the president of abandoning the U.S.’s interests to pursue war with Israel in the Middle East. She’s also criticized those who continue to support Trump’s agenda, despite his campaign promise not to engage in wars.

“We want to cheer and root for America, but you don’t have to be in a cult where you can’t call it out,” Greene said. “That is what this has turned into. It’s turned into a cult.”

The former Georgia congresswoman claimed Trump’s history of being attacked by lawmakers, faced with legal battles and impeached had created a base that felt undying loyalty to the president. She accused Fox News of “spewing propaganda” to keep people, specifically baby boomers, loyal to Trump by misrepresenting information.

“That’s absolutely wrong,” she said of Trump supporters who do not criticize the president’s actions.

Greene was once one of Trump’s loudest supporters, but her position has changed since the two had a falling out earlier this year that led to her resigning from the House of Representatives. Trump said he would no longer support Greene as a Republican representative after she pushed for the release of the Epstein files.

Since then, she’s accused the president of being mentally unstable – particularly after Trump threatened to wipe out the Iranian civilization unless the Iranian regime reopened the Strait of Hormuz.

“The truth is, look, you may have supported President Trump for 10 years like I did and like you have. But this is not the same man,” Greene insisted. “This is not the same man that we supported.”

Other former Trump allies, such as Jones, former Fox News host Tucker Carlson and political commentator Candace Owens, have also taken a step away from the president and criticized his decision to go to war against Iran.

Greene and Jones said Wednesday they would continue criticizing Trump in the hopes of drawing supporters away.

Greene said a new Republican Party could emerge, but that those candidates should not take money from AIPAC or “AIPAC-adjacent donors.”

The former congresswoman insisted her comments were not antisemitic because they were not about Jewish people but rather “the secular government of Israel.” However, Greene also has a long history of making antisemitic remarks –from promoting a conspiracy theory about Jewish people controlling a space laser to start wildfires to comparing the Holocaust to wearing masks during Covid.

Greene pushed forward the idea of a new Republican Party on X Thursday when she told Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna, “We need a strong populist coalition of the right and left that can come together on the most important issues for the future generations of Americans.”

”For the sake of my children’s generation, I’m willing to come together, go to the whiteboard, and begin to try to sketch something new,” Greene said.

“Give these victims their opportunity to testify under oath in front of Congress with the power of sworn testimony, each and every woman should have her day to tell her story in public, if she wishes, and then her testimony should be permanently entered into the Congressional Record, then and only then we will have the truth.”

Police are appealing for information after a child is believed to have died as a result of a dog bite

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A child is believed to have died as a result of a dog bite. Cleveland Police were called to Hardale Drive in Dormanstown, Redcar shortly after 1.30pm on Thursday following reports over concerns for a child.

But upon arrival at the property, officers found the child had sadly died. The child is believed to have died as a result of a dog bite.

Armed officers attended and one dog was destroyed on the street while another dog at the property has been recovered by police, Teesside Live reports.

District Commander, for Redcar and Cleveland, Emily Harrison said: “Understandably this is a distressing and tragic incident, and our thoughts are with the child’s family.

“There is a scene in place at the address while an investigation into the child’s death begins. I would encourage anyone who has concerns or information to please speak to an officer.”

Paramedics also attended the scene. A North East Ambulance Service spokesperson said: “We were called to an incident at a private address in Redcar on Thursday, April 9 shortly before 1.30pm.

“We dispatched three ambulance crews, one clinical team leader and one duty officer to the incident. One patient was transported to hospital for further treatment.”

If you have information, please contact Cleveland Police on 101 or by visiting the website quoting reference number 066204. Information can be provided anonymously by calling Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

A smiling Fury made his entrance in typical fashion – dancing onto the stage and playing to the crowd before crossing immediately to shake Makhmudov’s hand.

There has been little animosity between the pair during fight week. Fury even blew a kiss at his opponent during a promotional appearance earlier in the week.

The news conference itself felt at times like a rerun of the previous launch news conference when the fight was first revealed. Makhmudov rarely engaged in any back-and-forth despite the host’s attempts to spark a war of words.

Makhmudov spent most of the time glancing at his phone, drawing criticism from heavyweight great Lennox Lewis who was part of the TV broadcast.

The 36-year-old did address one unusual training method – wrestling a bear. “But I don’t want to try this anymore because it was so scary,” he added.

Eventually, Fury – whose record stands at 34 wins from 37 fights, with 24 knockouts, alongside two defeats and one draw – seized the spotlight.

He described himself as “speedy, skilful, handsome and destructive”.

“I’ve never lost my speed of reactions. I’ve still got it – 100%,” he added. “I’m looking for as good a performance as it can be after [nearly] 16 months out. I must have done 500 rounds of sparring to prepare.”

The ‘Gypsy King’ later wandered over to join the broadcast team, where he could be heard shouting: “I’m on top of the world, baby.”

Crime scene investigators have been spotted on Hardale Drive, in Dormanstown, this evening (Thursday, April 9)after the incident at 1.30pm which saw a dog put down.

It comes after police received a report of concern for the safety of a child at a property. Tragically, Cleveland Police has now confirmed a child has died.

A spokesperson said: “This is believed to have been as a result of a dog bite. Armed officers were also in attendance and one dog was destroyed on the street while another dog at the property has been recovered by police.

“Understandably, this is a distressing and tragic incident, and our thoughts are with the child’s family.”

Paramedics also attended the scene. A North East Ambulance Service spokesperson said: “We were called to an incident at a private address in Redcar on Thursday, April 9 shortly before 1.30pm.

Read more:

“We dispatched three ambulance crews, one clinical team leader and one duty officer to the incident. One patient was transported to hospital for further treatment.”

A crime scene investigation van and a police car remain at the scene this evening.

Anyone who has concerns or information is encouraged to speak to an officer. If you have information, please call 101 or visit our website quoting reference number 066204.

The popular BBC show first aired back in 2024 and became a huge hit with fans

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There’s good news for fans of the popular detective series Ludwig, as it’s set for a third series.

The BBC crime drama first aired back in 2024 and saw David Mitchell take on the role of twin brothers John Taylor and DCI James Taylor.

When John went to visit his sister-in-law, Lucy Betts-Taylor (Anna Maxwell Martin), things took a drastic turn as he learned his brother had gone missing from their Cambridge home.

As she explained that James had been acting strangely while working on a case, Lucy told John that her husband had given instructions to flee with their son after he didn’t come home one night.

However, she went against his wishes and recruited his twin brother to take on John’s persona and pretend to be part of the police force in order to get to the truth.

Despite his initial hesitations, he eventually agreed as his puzzle-solving skills allowed him to see that the letter that his brother left was filled with secret messages.

After a series full of twists and turns, John finally came clean that he wasn’t his twin brother. However, they received a surprise voicemail from the real James.

Admitting he vanished, James tells his twin to continue investigating the corruption in Cambridge.

While the second series is set to air later this year, it looks as though there could be more episodes on the way as TVZone reports that a third instalment has been commissioned.

However, the BBC declined to comment when approached by Cambridgeshire Live.

Speaking about the second series, David Mitchell said: “I’m delighted that John ‘Ludwig’ Taylor has failed to escape the clutches of the Cambridge police and will have to continue to face up to the city’s alarming conundrum-based crime wave.”

Along with David and Anna returning for Ludwig, people can also see Dipo Ola (DCI Russell Carter), Dylan Hughes (Henry Betts-Taylor), Dorothy Atkinson (DCS Carol Shaw), Ralph Ineson (Chief Constable Ziegler) and Karl Pilkington (DI Matt Neville) return.

The series has been highly praised by fans since it aired, as one person said: “#Ludwig on BBC is amazing!” Another wrote: “Oh my goodness @BBCiPlayer – #Ludwig was absolutely incredible! When is series 2 out??!!”

Someone else commented: “Clever, witty and perfectly casted! Back to classic entertainment! Just what we need these days, and we need more of it.”

While someone else shared: “A WONDERFUL ENTERTAINING MURDER MYSTERY, EVOCATIVE OF MISS MARPLE HERSELF. Ludwig from the BBC, is a beautiful written mini series.”

The first series of Ludwig is available to watch in full on BBC iPlayer.