Steve Bannon discussed plans to “take down” Pope Francis with Jeffrey Epstein, according to new files shared by the Department of Justice.

“Will take down [Pope] Francis,” Bannon appears to have written in a message to the pedophile financier in June 2019. “The Clintons, Xi, Francis, EU – come on brother.”

Bannon, a former presidential advisor to Donald Trump and who reportedly identifies as a Roman Catholic, was highly critical of Francis, viewing his progressive global agenda as contrary to his own “sovereigntist” stance. In a 2018 interview with The Spectator Bannon described the Pope as “beneath contempt,” and accused him of “siding with globalist elites.”

The exchange with Epstein appears to show Bannon trying to further his plans, asking whether the financier has read In the Closet of the Vatican, a 2019 book by French journalist Frédéric Martel that included the bombshell claim that 80 percent of the clergy working in the Vatican are gay.

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Bannon had previously appeared to have expressed interest in turning the book into a film, telling Epstein “you are now exec producer of ‘ITCOTV’.” It is unclear how serious that offer was.

The financier replies saying “Chomsky asking when film,” in apparent reference to intellectual Noam Chomsky with whom Epstein was known to be close with.

Elsewhere in the files, documents show that Epstein emailed himself on April 1 2019 a message reading “in the closet of the Vatican,” and also sent Bannon an article titled “Pope Francis or Steve Bannon? Catholics must choose.”

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“Easy choice,” Bannon replied.

The Independent has contacted representatives of Steve Bannon for comment.

Bannon is not the only MAGA acolyte to have run-ins with Pope Francis. Though he paid tribute to the pontiff following his death last year, describing him as “a good man, [who] worked hard and loved the world,” Donald Trump also had historic disputes with Francis.

Ahead of Trump’s first presidency in 2016, Francis criticized the incoming president over this vow to build a wall between Mexico and the U.S., saying “a person who thinks only about building walls, wherever they may be, and not building bridges, is not Christian.”

In January last year, one day before Trump’s second inauguration, Francis spoke out about the Republican president’s plans to carry out mass deportations.

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“If it is true, it will be a disgrace, because it makes the poor wretches who have nothing pay the bill for the imbalance. It won’t do. This is not the way to solve things,” the Pope wrote.

The Pope also clashed with Vice President JD Vance, who is a Roman Catholic. In an interview Vance had put forward an idea known as ordo amoris, saying: “There’s this old school – and I think it’s a very Christian concept, by the way – that you love your family and then you love your neighbour and then you love your community and then you love your fellow citizens and your own country, and then after that you can focus and prioritise the rest of the world.”

Francis contradicted the idea that there should be a hierarchy of love, writing: “Christian love is not a concentric expansion of interests that little by little extend to other persons and groups.”

Vance later met the pontiff during his trip to Rome, meeting with him on Easter Sunday last year and sharing a homily with him. Pope Francis died a day later on April 21 2025.

Farrell preferred to accentuate the positives, noting the blooding of Edwin Edogbo and the return of Baloucoune. “The experience that some of these lads are getting is absolutely huge,” he said. “The lads that have been there and done that, they’ve been through this type of pressure and come out the other side and they’ve grown because of it. These lads that managed to do that today, to stand up tall, and that will certainly stand them in good stead. I’m delighted with the win against a very good Italian side.”

There are plenty of questions piling up for Farrell. And with England away at Twickenham next weekend, they are only going to get louder.

Match details

Scoring sequence: 5-0 Osborne try, 5-3 Garbisi pen, 5-8 Nicotera try, 5-10 Garbisi con, 10-10 Conan try, 15-10 Balacoune try, 17-10 Crowley con, 20-10 Crowley pen, 20-13 Garbisi pen.

Ireland: J Osborne; R Baloucoune, G Ringrose, S McCloskey, J Lowe; S Prendergast (J Crowley 56), C Casey (J Gibson-Park 52); J Loughman (T O’Toole 67), D Sheehan (R Kelleher 52), T Clarkson (T Furlong 41), J McCarthy (T Beirne 52), J Ryan (E Edogbo 70), C Izuchukwu (N Timoney 59), C Doris, J Conan.
Sin-bin: Casey.

Italy: L Pani; L Lynagh, L Marin (P Odogwu 67), T Menoncello, M Ioane; P Garbisi, A Fusco (A Garbisi 63); D Fischetti (M Spagnolo 59), G Nicotera (T Di Bartolomeo 59), S Ferrari (M Hasa 59), N Cannone (R Favretto 67), A Zambonin (F Ruzza 61), M Lamaro, M Zuliani, L Cannone (D Odiase 67).
Sin-bin: Lynagh.

Referee: Hollie Davidson (SRU).

The major UK supermarkets have issued “do not eat” warnings for a range of reasons.

Several recalls are currently active, affecting products sold nationwide.

Customers who have purchased any of the affected items are advised to take note of the possible health risks and follow the official guidance.

Co-Op recall

Co-op has recalled its Irresistible Triple Cook Thick Cut Chunky Chips because they may contain an undeclared allergen.

Due to a packaging error, the packs have been incorrectly packed with Dauphinoise potatoes, and therefore contain undeclared milk.

The affected chips have a use by date of February 14.

A spokesman for the Food Standards Agency (FSA) said: “Co-op is recalling the above product from customers and has contacted the relevant allergy support organisations, which will tell their members about the recall.

“The company has also issued a point-of-sale notice to its customers. These notices explain to customers why the product is being recalled and tell them what to do if they have bought the product. 

“If you have bought the above product and have an allergy or intolerance to milk or milk constituents, do not eat it. Instead return it to your local store for a full refund or if purchased online, you can receive a refund by calling 0330 041 7737.

“For further information, contact Co-op customer service on 0800 0686 727 or email via https://www.coop.co.uk/contact-us/product-issues-or-returns.”

Farmfoods Recall

Farmfoods is recalling a Ritz Cheese Sandwich sold at its stores because it contains milk, soya and wheat not mentioned on the label.

This recall only affects products originating from Indonesia, and does not affect products originating from other countries.

A spokesman for the Food Standards Agency (FSA) said: “Farmfoods is recalling the above product. Point of sale notices will be displayed in all retail stores that are selling this product, and on their website.

“These notices explain to customers why the product is being recalled and tell them what to do if they have bought the product.

“If you have bought this product, and have an allergy or intolerance to any of the allergens listed, do not eat it. Instead, return it to the store from which you bought the product for a full refund.

“For further information contact the Farmfoods Customer Services on 0121 700 7160.”

Lidl recall

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Lidl has apologised to shoppers after it was forced to recall a snack product.

The supermarket is recalling Snaktastic Multigrain Bites Sour Cream & Black Pepper because it may contain pieces of foil.

The affected bags have a best before date of April 4 and a batch code of 207 345.

A spokesman for the Food Standards Agency (FSA) warned: “Lidl GB is recalling the above product. Point of sale notices will be displayed in all retail stores that are selling this product.

“These notices explain to customers why the product is being recalled and tell them what to do if they have bought the product.

“If you have bought any of the above product do not eat it. Instead, return it to a Lidl GB store for a full refund.

“For further information contact Lidl GB’s Customer Care team on 0203 966 5566 or at customer.care@lidl.co.uk .”

A Lidl spokesman added: “No other Snaktastic products in Lidl GB stores are affected by this recall.

“If you have bought the above product we advise you not to eat it.

“We apologise for any inconvenience caused and thank you for your cooperation.”

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Aptamil recall

Parents have been warned not to use a batch of baby formula because it may contain a toxin that could make their child ill.

Danone has recalled its Aptamil First Infant Formula because of the possible presence of cereulide toxin.

The toxin can cause nausea, vomiting and abdominal cramps, and is unsafe to consume.

It is produced by some strains of Bacillus cereus and is highly heat stable meaning it is unlikely to be destroyed by cooking, or when making the infant milk.

Friday 23 January: @Danone recalls Aptamil First Infant Formula because cereulide (toxin) has been found in this batch #FoodAlert https://t.co/1z8zL5bd4t pic.twitter.com/rqjkOYQFcW

— Food Standards Agency (@foodgov) January 23, 2026

The impacted batch of formula has a best before date of October 31, 2026.

A Danone spokesman said: “It was sold in May – July 2025. The expiry date, batch and time can be found on the lower back of the pack.

“No other batches are affected by this notice.

“Customers who still have products from this batch can return it to the shop where they bought it for a full refund with or without a receipt.”

A spokesman for the Food Standards Agency (FSA) added: “Danone is recalling the above product. Point of sale notices will be displayed in all retail stores that are selling this product.

“These notices explain to customers why the product is being recalled and tell them what to do if they have bought the product.

“If you have bought any of the above product do not feed it to babies. Instead, return it to the shop where they bought it for a full refund with or without a receipt.

“For further information, contact the Aptamil Careline team on 0800 996 1000 or at www.aptaclub.co.uk .

“Even if you have not identified ill-health in your baby as a result of consumption of this product, it is essential to stop using it.

“If the infant formula was prescribed by a health professional for your infant, consult a pharmacist or other medical professional before changing formula.

“If you have fed this product to a baby and have any concerns about potential health impact, you should seek advice from healthcare professionals, using the most appropriate route depending on where you live, (i.e., visit your GP, call NHS 111).”

TK Maxx recall

Drinks products sold at TK Maxx and Homesense have been recalled as they pose a “potential health risk” to some shoppers.

TJX Europe is recalling its Ten Acre Gifts/Coffee Syrup collection because of the safety concerns.

The items were sold in TK Maxx and Homesense between October 2025 and January 2026 and have a best before date of September 9, 2026.

The collection may contain nuts, peanuts, soya and wheat (gluten) which are not mentioned on the label.

A spokesman for the Food Standards Agency (FSA) said: “This product may contain nuts, peanuts, soya and wheat (gluten) making it a possible health risk for anyone with an allergy to nuts, peanuts, soya, and/or an allergy or intolerance to wheat or gluten, or with coeliac disease.

“TJX Europe is recalling the above product from customers and has been advised to contact the relevant allergy support organisations, which will tell their members about the recall.

“These notices explain to customers why the product is being recalled and tell them what to do if they have bought the product. 

“If you have bought the above product and have an allergy and/or intolerance to any of the allergens listed above, do not eat it.

“Instead, return it to the store from where it was bought for a full refund. Please contact customerservice@tjxeurope.com or 01923473561, for further information.”

What is a product recall?

If there is a problem with a food product that means it should not be sold, then it might be ‘withdrawn’ (taken off the shelves) or ‘recalled’ (when customers are asked to return the product).

The FSA issues Product Withdrawal Information Notices and Product Recall Information Notices to let consumers and local authorities know about problems associated with food.

In some cases, a ‘Food Alert for Action’ is issued.

This provides local authorities with details of specific actions to be taken on behalf of consumers.

It comes as the character, along with Moth and Toastie, performed in front of the studio audience and judges Jonathan Ross, Davina McCall, Mo Gilligan and Maya Jama, for one last time this evening.

Although Conkers made it to the final three, they just missed out on being crowned the 2026 champion in second place.

They almost followed in the footsteps of last year’s winner Samantha Barks as Pufferfish, who performed on the ITV show once again tonight.

Over the latest series of The Masked Singer, viewers have been sharing plenty of guesses when it comes to who Conkers could be, including This Morning’s Ben Shephard, Olympian Tom Daley and Take That singer Mark Owen.

During the final, Conkers sang Keep on Movin by 5ive which Mo said: “Conkers, I really enjoyed that, that was so good.”

Just some of the judges’ guesses tonight included Tom Daley, Joe Sugg, Will Best and Charlie Cooper.

They then performed a duet with Snail (Andrea Corr) to I’ve Had The Time of My Life.

Who was Conkers on The Masked Singer 2026?

But in the end, it was time of the character remove their mask and “take it off”.

It was revealed that Conkers was none other than Ben Shephard, who was actually on the panel of The Masked Singer earlier in the series.

He joked: “I’ve always dreamt about being a conker.”

Ben added: “It’s an extraordinary experience, having turned 50, I thought I’ve got to do a few more scary things.”

Conkers was unmasked just moments before Toastie, who was revealed as Mica Paris.

Recommended reading:

Who was Can of Worms on The Masked Singer UK 2026?

Can of Worms was also unmasked as JLS star Marvin Humes last week, after he made it all the way to the semi-final.

The 40-year-old said his son asked him to send his teacher the video of his unmasking on The Masked Singer, adding that he was “so overwhelmed” by the reveal.

Speaking to ITV’s Good Morning Britain earlier this week, the radio host has said his youngest child, five-year-old Blake, was “so emotional” after watching the reveal.

He explained: “I had to send his teacher, last night, the video of me being on The Masked Singer.

“He must have told all his friends today that daddy is Can Of Worms.”

GENEVA (AP) — Iran and the United States will hold a second round of talks over Tehran’s nuclear program next week, the Swiss Foreign Ministry said Saturday.

Oman, which welcomed the first round of indirect talks on Feb. 6, will host the talks in Geneva, the Swiss ministry said, without specifying which days.

After the first discussions, U.S. President Donald Trump warned Tehran that failure to reach an agreement with his administration would be “very traumatic.”

Similar talks last year broke down in June as Israel launched what became a 12-day war on Iran that included the U.S. bombing Iranian nuclear sites.

Trump has repeatedly threatened to use force to compel Iran to agree to constrain its nuclear program. Iran has said it would respond with an attack of its own. Trump also has threatened Iran over its deadly crackdown on recent nationwide protests there.

Gulf Arab nations have warned any attack could spiral into another regional conflict.

Trump said Friday the USS Gerald R. Ford, the world’s largest aircraft carrier, was being sent from the Caribbean to the Mideast to join other military assets the U.S. has built up in the region. He also said a change in power in Iran “would be the best thing that could happen.”

The indirect talks on Feb. 6 were between Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and U.S. Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff. The top military commander in the Middle East was also present for the first time.

The Trump administration has maintained that Iran can have no uranium enrichment under any deal. Tehran says it won’t agree to that.

Iran has insisted its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes. However, its officials increasingly threaten to pursue a nuclear weapon. Before the June war, Iran had been enriching uranium up to 60% purity, a short, technical step away from weapons-grade levels.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has said his nation is “ready for any kind of verification.” However, the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, has been unable for months to inspect and verify Iran’s nuclear stockpile.

Trump has suggested in recent weeks that his top priority is for Iran to scale back its nuclear program. Iran has said it wants talks to focus solely on the nuclear program.

But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who met with Trump in Washington this week, has pressed for any deal to include steps to neutralize Iran’s ballistic missile program and end its funding for proxy groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah.

A vehicle was stopped in the Cockerton area on Friday (February 13) night, where a man was found to be carrying a significant amount of suspected controlled drugs, police said.

Durham Police said a man has since been charged with possession with intent to supply, and he has been remanded in custody.

Officers from the Cockerton’s neighbourhood policing team said they have been proactively looking to reduce the concerns of drug related activity in the Cockerton area.

A spokesperson said: “If you suspect drug activity, tell us on 101 or anonymously via crimestoppers and we will act.”

Winter Olympics athletes are getting a Valentine’s Day gift from organisers – a promise of a renewed supply of free condoms.

This apparently followed “higher-than-anticipated demand”.

Providing condoms for athletes has been a gift from organisers – and a constant fascination to the world – for decades.

“We can confirm that condom supplies in the Olympic villages were temporarily depleted due to higher-than-anticipated demand,” the Italian organising committee said in a statement on Saturday.

“Additional supplies are being delivered and will be distributed across all villages between today and Monday.”

Some 300,000 condoms were provided for more than 10,500 athletes at the 2024 Paris Summer Games, but the stock was originally much lower for these games.

“I think 10,000 have been used, 2,800 athletes – you can go figure, as they say,” International Olympic Committee spokesman Mark Adams said Saturday.

“It clearly shows that Valentine’s Day is in full swing in the village.”

Read more from Sky News:
Olympic gold means ‘absolutely everything’

Condoms are traditionally popular for Olympic athletes to take home as “a kind of gift” to friends, Alpine skier Mialitiana Clerc said on Saturday.

“I’m not so shocked. I saw it in Beijing already,” said Ms Clerc, who also competed for Madagascar four years ago at the Winter Games in China.

“There were some boxes with a lot of condoms at the entrance of every building where we were staying at the village.”

“We are having more and more players who are now capable of playing at this intensity level every three days, and that is where we struggled a lot in the beginning of the season. It was sometimes hard for us to play at our best level once a week let alone every three days. But now we’re able to do so, we see more and more the quality we are adding. 

“That’s why I’ve said so many times already that the future looks very bright for the club and these players.”

While they have all but surrendered the Premier League title, the FA Cup, along with the Champions League, is a competition Liverpool can still win this season.

Brighton’s Cup run is over, however, and the pressure is increasing on manager Fabian Hürzeler. They are without a win in six games and have won just one of their last 13 Premier League fixtures. Hürzeler’s side are struggling to score goals – they have gone three games without finding the net and have just three in their last six – but they had enough chances to score several at Anfield. Diego Gómez and Jack Hinshelwood were both guilty of wasting good opportunities to equalise in the first half before Lewis Dunk missed a header in the second. 

“We had two big chances in the first half and we didn’t use them,” Hürzeler said. “Liverpool were more effective. We can’t feel sorry for ourselves, we can’t complain about these moments. 

“It is about us and me taking responsibility and working for it. You have to do the small step right and then we can take a big step.”

Both teams lacked fluidity in the final third in the early stages, but Liverpool started to pile on the pressure from the half-hour mark. Cody Gakpo had his header ruled out for offside before Brighton goalkeeper Jason Steele made a superb save to deny Szoboszlai. 

But there was nothing Steele could do to prevent Curtis Jones from scoring his first goal since Boxing Day 2024. Jones, who was filling in at right-back because of injuries, timed his run well to meet Milos Kerkez’s cross and tap in from close range.

Four astronauts have docked at the International Space Station (ISS) after blasting off from Earth on Friday.

The crew will spend eight months aboard the ISS after replacing a team that evacuated last month due to a medical emergency.

On board the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft travelling to the ISS were two Nasa astronauts from the US, Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway, European Space Agency astronaut Sophie Adenot, from France, and Russian Roscocosmos cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev.

The four are known as Crew-12, because they make up SpaceX’s 12th crewed rotational flight to the International Space Station.

The tearoom offers a selections of cakes among other things and one previous guest described it as the “best of English afternoon tea”

Cambridgeshire has some truly fantastic afternoon tea experiences. From an afternoon tea in a train carriage, to another one set on the sixth floor of The Varsity Hotel with panoramic views of Cambridge.

But one spot in the city of Ely, offers a marvellous afternoon tea dubbed as “the best of the best”. Sophie’s Afternoon Tea and Cakes opened in Ely in 2022, and is run by Sophie Elliot who has a passion for afternoon tea and cakes.

Sophie’s offers a range of cakes, homemade sausage rolls, paninis and other goods alongside her selection of afternoon teas. This includes a children’s afternoon tea for £11pp, so that even the little ones can give it a try.

The traditional afternoon tea offers a selection of finger sandwiches, a scone with clotted cream and jam, a selection of homemade cakes and a drink of choice. This is priced at £18pp.

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The place offers a traditional aesthetic with the afternoon tea set up on a beautiful patterned stand with pretty tea cups, and a warming atmosphere.

On Sophie’s website, she said: “I have loved baking ever since I learnt to make my very first Victoria Sponge and my mum and grandmother are my inspirations when it come to baking and cooking.”

The passion for her baking really shows and customers seem to think the same. The tearoom has built itself quite a reputation with glowing reviews.

One delighted guest captioned their review on Tripadvisor as “Best of the best!” They went on to say: “The best cakes, best sausage roll and super friendly staff! Little cosy café tucked away in the back streets of Ely.”

Another joyful guest dubbed the place as “Best of English afternoon tea”. They said: “Such a pretty place for a magnificent afternoon tea. My favourites were the fruit scones with jam and cream – or is that cream and jam!?”