The Jeffrey Epstein files reveal the convicted child sex offender was fascinated by magicians, and detail a years-long relationship between Epstein and David Blaine as well as an FBI investigation into alleged sexual misconduct by David Copperfield.

Since the files were released by the US department of justice two weeks ago, Irish Times journalist Naomi O’Leary has been combing through the documents.

It is not, she says, an easy cache to navigate, with a clunky search function and opaque filing system.

However she has been able to find multiple emails which reveal a relationship between Epstein and several famous magicians including Blaine and Copperfield – after the disgraced financier had been convicted and served prison time for soliciting sex with children.

O’Leary came into studio to detail her experience of searching the consistently disturbing files – so big that only a fraction of them have been excavated by journalists worldwide. She explains how sex trafficker Epstein, collector of powerful people and expert at developing transactional relationships with them, had a weird fascination with magicians.

Being mentioned in the Epstein files is not an indication of wrongdoing.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan and Andrew McNair.

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For Alexander Abnos, senior sports editor at the Guardian US “removing the US as World Cup host would be eminently sad – and entirely justified”.

The 2026 Fifa World Cup will be hosted this summer by Mexico, Canada and the US.

But the killings by Ice agents of US citizens and their intimidatory presence on city streets has been well reported globally which may make travelling fans nervous. And that’s if they get in at all: the US president Donald Trump has imposed travel bans on several countries – including Senegal and Ivory Coast which have qualified to play.

And then there is the stratospherically high price of stadium tickets which make going to the game prohibitively expensive.

In January, former Fifa president Sepp Blatter supported calls by Swiss anti-corruption lawyer Mark Pieth for fans to boycott matches taking place in the US. But calls for boycotts of big sporting events are not unusual. They were loud before the last World Cup in Qatar but didn’t make much of an impression.

Abnos explains why a US boycott won’t happen.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey.

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On Monday, British prime minister Keir Starmer survived a day that could have ended his political career. The momentum against him had grown from Westminster whispers to the leader of Scottish Labour Anas Sarwar coming straight out and calling for him to step down. 

The release of the Epstein Files - which showed deeply damaging evidence against Starmer’s ambassadorial appointment to Washington, Peter Mandelson - was the excuse for the move against the prime minister, not the cause. His party has deep divisions. 

But Starmer rallied his party who publicly pledged support.

So he has survived – for now. 

But as Irish Times London correspondent Mark Paul explains there are several pitfalls ahead that may prove fatal for his leadership. 

Coming up as key days in Starmer’s diary are the release of the so-called “Mandelson Files”; the byelection on February 26th in Manchester and most dangerous for him according to Paul, the Scottish and Welsh parliamentary elections on May 7th when Labour is expected to get an electoral drubbing. 

So if by the summer Starmer is forced out, what will it mean for Ireland and its relationship with the UK? And who might succeed him?

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan and Declan Conlon. 

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Teacher Enoch Burke has been in and out of court – and of prison – over his refusal to stay away from the school he once worked for.

His legal challenges have clogged up the courts, but he is also involved in another process – an appeal against his dismissal before a disciplinary appeal panel.

Last month that panel fell apart when two of its three members stood down. But the courts need the disciplinary panel to finish its work before Burke’s case can be resolved.

So how is this new delay being viewed by the lawyers attempting to bring this long running saga to an end?

And how does the panel work? What is the holdup and why has their been two panels so far with a third one now likely?

Irish Times legal affairs correspondent Mary Carolan explains this new twist in the Enoch Burke affair.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon and Suzanne Brennan.

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On the night of his second birthday in May 1991, Seamus Daniel Howell’s mother Lesley was murdered by his father, Colin Howell, and his father’s lover, Hazel Stewart.

The pair also killed Stewart’s husband Trevor Buchanan.

They left the two bodies in a garage in Castlerock, Co Derry, staging the scene to make it look as if they had taken their own lives.

The pair had committed the perfect murder so they could be together. And they had got away with it.

That is until 2009 when Colin Howell, a respected dentist and devout evangelical Christian, walked into a police station out of the blue and confessed to the killings. He and Stewart were convicted of the murders and jailed for a minimum of 21 years and 18 years respectively.

Seamus grew up being told that his mother had killed herself, until the truth came out. By then he was a medical student in England. Now a doctor in New York he tells In the News what it was like growing up in the Howell house and how his discovered that his father was a murderer. He explains how it impacted on his life, and how it has made him acutely aware of injustice which now for him includes advocating for Palestine.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Aideen Finnegan and Suzanne Brennan.

The Irish Times wants to hear listener feedback on our two news podcasts: In The News and Early Edition.

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There’s a rough rule of thumb when it comes to paying to dine at a Michelin-starred restaurant: stars cost around €100 each.

That’s according to Irish Times restaurant reviewer Corinna Hardgrave, who explains what it takes for a restaurant to win a Michelin star and what it means for them when they do.

Ireland has 18 one-star and five two-star restaurants – but no three stars.

For the first time the Michelin Guide is holding its awards ceremony in Dublin, on Monday, and Hardgrave gives her predictions on who might get a new star and who might be awarded an extra one. However she says nothing is predictable with the highly secretive Michelin.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey.

The Irish Times wants to hear listener feedback on our two news podcasts: In The News and Early Edition.

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The US justice department has made public more than three million pages of records related to the late financier Jeffrey Epstein - and the fallout has dominated global headlines.

Much of the content was redacted, sparking accusations of a cover-up designed to protect US president Donald Trump, although authorities claim they were protecting victims.

Just what is contained in them – and who is named or seen in the emails and videos – is slowly emerging as reporters sift through the vast data dump.

What is clear is that Epstein was a trafficker and abuser of children and young women and that he maintained a transactional friendship with wealthy and influential men. The emails reveal a pattern of disgusting misogyny and depravity.

Academic and political commentator Scott Lucas explains the timing of the data release and what’s next.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan.

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‘Melania’, the documentary about US first lady Melania Trump, took in an estimated $7m when it hit US cinema screens at the weekend making it the highest debut by a non-music documentary or concert film in more than a decade. 

These are the sort of figures other documentaries can only dream of, so it’s a hit? 

Far from it says Irish Times journalist Hugh Linehan who points out that it cost Amazon $45 million to make plus a reported $35 million in marketing costs so financially it makes no sense. 

And critically? Well “boring” is probably the nicest thing reviewers have said. 

Over nearly two hours it reveals very little about the former Slovenian model other than she wears nice clothes and even nicer shoes. 

For Linehan, it’s a classic Trump family grift, this time with Melania making the money. She is expected to be paid $28 million for the documentary which charts the 20 days in the lead-up to her husband’s 2025 inauguration. 

Presented by Bernice Harrison.

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“I don’t love you and I can’t be with someone out of pity,” Bruna Fonseca (28), a Brazilian woman living in Cork, texted her ex-boyfriend Miller Pacheco (32) on December 18th, 2022.

Two weeks later, on New Year’s Day, 2023, gardaí would discover her body in Pacheco’s apartment. She had been strangled.

At Pacheco’s trial for her murder at the Central Criminal Court in Cork, this and many other texts, voice messages and recorded conversations were read out in court.

As Irish Times Southern correspondent Barry Roche who attended the trial explains, they paint a picture of an angry man, full of self-pity, who could not accept that his former girlfriend who he had followed to Ireland from their native Brazil no longer wanted to be in a relationship with him.

He put forward a plea of self-defence but the evidence proved otherwise and he was found guilty of her murder. On January 23rd last he was sentenced to life in prison.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan. 

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On Thursday, a judge in a Belfast court lifted an injunction that would have prevented Michael Flatley’s involvement in the Lord of the Dance show, due to begin in Dublin next week before a multi-date international tour.

The Chicago-born dancer was lead performer and choreographer of Riverdance, the 1994 Eurovision interval show that introduced a new, high octane, modern form of Irish dancing to the world.

It brought him fame and fortune and in 1996 he developed a global touring show called Lord of the Dance. Critically acclaimed it was for many years wildly successful.

With the 30-year anniversary of Lord of the Dance coming up, Flately who is based in Monaco, signed a contract with Newry firm Switzer Consulting to run the shows. And it’s the details of that contract that were in contention.

During the civil case taken by Switzer, the court heard claims about Flatley’s lifestyle that will come as a surprise to his many fans.

His former financial adviser Des Walshe claimed that his ex-client was “all about image”, and living a millionaire’s lifestyle funded by borrowing. “He was faking it on a multimillion euro scale,” Walshe submitted to the court.

So how did Flatley react to this damning characterisation? And what was his reaction when the judge lifted the injunction.

Belfast-based reporter Paul Colgan explains the complex case and why it has come to this for the world’s most famous Irish dancer.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey. 

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