Ukrainian cities plunged into darkness as Russian missile barrage targets energy grid

Russia pounded Ukraine with a massive barrage of missiles and drones in the early hours of Thursday, leading to air raid alerts across the country.

Volodymyr Zelensky said the pre-dawn attack was the latest targeting Ukraine’s energy grid ahead of the bitter winter months, and involved 37 missiles and more than 300 drones.

Many Ukrainian cities were already in darkness due to emergency power outages, with all but two regions affected. Moscow appears to be repeating last year’s strategy of targeting heating and electricity networks to sap morale.

Earlier, US defence secretary Pete Hegseth warned Vladimir Putin that the US and its allies will “impose costs on Russia for its continued aggression” if it does not come to the table to end the war in Ukraine.

Zelensky is due to meet US president Donald Trump on Friday, where possible supplies of American long-range Tomahawk missiles and Kyiv’s desire to “go on the offensive” are expected to be discussed.

The £100 weekly shop trend that shows how little food it really buys

A few years ago, £100 would fill a trolley. Now it barely fills a basket. Across social media, shoppers are posting photos of their groceries with captions somewhere between disbelief and despair. “£98! At Aldi, no booze included and only meat is sliced for a sandwich and a chicken to roast. Six months ago, this would have been £70!” read one viral post.

The so-called “£100 weekly shop” – once shorthand for a manageable middle-class routine – has become a symbol of how far our money no longer goes. What’s replaced it is far more chaotic: bulk-buys, frozen finds, endless top-ups and a growing sense that food shopping has turned from a domestic ritual into an act of survival.

For Kimberley Coke, a working mum of two in Hertfordshire, the notion of a single weekly shop now feels impossible. “Our routine has changed as we’re out so much with busy family commitments and kids’ football,” she says – she commutes to London while her husband works in the next town over. “The food shop is sporadic for four. We tend to do one massive, expensive shop a month, but then we’re constantly playing top-up.”

“I tend to shop at Sainsbury’s but do top-up shops at Aldi and Asda and get frozen stuff for the kids at the Food Warehouse,” she explains. “They do a good, healthy frozen protein range, which lasts for ages in the freezer.” Even Costco, once her way to stock up and save, can backfire: “It’s amazing for bulk shopping – high quality and super nice stuff. But, God, I end up spending a few hundred pounds in a flash!”

What Coke describes mirrors a wider national trend. According to the British Retail Consortium (BRC), families are returning to a hybrid routine of smaller weekly “big” shops followed by multiple top-ups.

According to the Office for National Statistics, the rate of food and non-alcoholic drink inflation rose to 5.1 per cent in August, up from 4.9 per cent in July – the fifth consecutive month of rising prices. Vegetables, milk, cheese, fish, beef and pork were among the biggest climbers, reflecting a mix of poor harvests and supply-chain disruption. Figures from Worldpanel by Numerator show supermarket prices remain 4.9 per cent higher than a year ago, despite months of so-called “price wars” between the major grocers.

“Many families are switching to supermarket own brands to save money where they can,” says Kris Hamer, the BRC’s director of insight. “And while customers moved back to large weekly shopping trips during the pandemic, many have returned to a smaller weekly ‘big’ shop followed by small ‘top-up’ trips through the week.”

That splintering of the “big shop” is echoed by Tom Zahir, a chef who lives in east London with his partner and their new baby. “We do one big shop every 10-14 days, which will be online from a supermarket – in that we have boring stuff like toilet roll, toothpaste, breakfast cereals, cheeses, milk and eggs,” he says. “We’ll buy basic meats from there too – chicken breasts, some mince, etc, for staple meals. That shop might run £70-90.”

The rest, he says, is made up of smaller, more spontaneous trips. “Local shop for items for specific meals – good value bunches of herbs, tomatoes, salads – or to a slightly larger independent shop nearby with a butcher counter.”

Every couple of months they bulk-buy meat for the freezer, but “in recent months (we just had a baby), we’ve found ourselves using delivery services like Gopuff and Zoom for last-minute purchases of protein in a pinch – this is usually down to poor planning without set meals in mind.”

He estimates their spend at around £75 a week, “but it is super-noticeable how much less it sometimes feels you get for that, especially when buying things like dishwasher tablets or laundry items in a shop.”

Zahir’s household – like many urban families – now buys across several ecosystems. “The variety of places we get our household essentials from has increased massively,” he says. “We buy more in bulk now for savings – especially with household cleaning stuff – it can be from Amazon, Costco or even subscription services for things like cat litter and baby formula.”

“Retailers are grappling with an additional £5bn in costs from April’s increased employer national insurance contributions and national living wage,” says Hamer. “The result is that food inflation has been trending upwards over recent months, expected to hit around 6 per cent by the end of this year.”

The Food Foundation also points to what it calls “climateflation” – the ripple effect of extreme weather events and disrupted harvests driving up prices for core ingredients. The organisation warns that as long as food systems remain vulnerable to climate shocks, affordability will stay precarious.

Meanwhile, the market has tilted quietly towards value. Own-label products now account for 51.2 per cent of all supermarket sales, up from 50.9 per cent a year ago, as shoppers reach for cheaper alternatives.

The Treasury, for its part, has denied that government policy is to blame for supermarket price rises, pointing instead to global commodity pressures. But for shoppers, that distinction is irrelevant when the till flashes over £100.

In other words, supermarkets aren’t inflating prices for sport; they’re juggling an expensive equation of wages, regulation, climate shocks and supply chains. But for households, those incremental rises – 30p here, 50p there – accumulate into real lifestyle changes.

Zahir says the fallout is tangible. “Meats and dairy are up massively and there is no chance we will buy any cleaning stuff in the supermarket now as it’s all so expensive. Household medicines are also so expensive now – a box of Lemsip is £7?!”

Even for those with comfortable incomes, small costs now dictate habits. “A lack of planning can seriously push the cost of your shop up,” he admits. “We’ve also trialled quite a few online supermarkets and will make sure we utilise things like £25-off vouchers much more than we used to.”

Rising prices have created a generation of hyper-strategic shoppers. For Coke, frozen food and Costco runs are now core tactics. For Zahir, it’s meal planning and what chefs call “cross-utilisation”: buying ingredients that can serve multiple dishes. “This week I bought a chicken and used the breast for a salad plate, the legs to chop up into a topping for tacos and then used the wings and carcass to make a stock which will turn into a soup,” he says. “I also tend to buy and freeze items more than ever before.”

Even ideas of indulgence have changed. “Buying a premium cut of meat at a supermarket – or going in at the fancy Waitrose cheese or deli counter – is definitely a huge rarity these days,” he says. “If we do this now, it will only be from an independent deli, cheesemonger or butcher where we know the quality is higher and it’s only marginally more than buying it from a supermarket.”

For many households, this kind of strategising isn’t optional. It’s survival. The Food Foundation’s Food Insecurity Tracker found that 7.3 million adults – nearly 14 per cent of UK households – experienced food insecurity in January 2025, rising to 17.9 per cent among families with children. The charity’s Basic Basket tracker shows that a nutritionally adequate weekly shop for one man and one woman now costs over £100.

The weekly shop once stood for something bigger than a receipt – a symbol of control, of being able to fill a fridge and plan a week. Its disappearance tells a story about the fragility of that stability. The ritual that once anchored everyday life has become a test of endurance, proof of how much responsibility for affordability has shifted from government and industry onto households themselves.

Ricky Hatton ‘appeared well’ days before he died, inquest hears

Former boxing world champion Ricky Hatton had appeared “well” when he was last seen by his family, days before his death, an inquest has heard.

The 46-year-old was found dead at his home in Hyde, with Greater Manchester Police stating they were not treating the death as suspicious.

At the opening of his inquest on Thursday, his provisional cause of death was given as hanging.

The court heard Hatton was last seen by his family on 12 September when he appeared “well”.

But the day after he did not attend at an event as expected and on the morning of 14 September his manager, Paul Speak, arrived at his home to take him to Manchester Airport to catch a flight to Dubai.

Hatton was found unresponsive.

The details were given during a 10-minute hearing as the inquest into the death of the popular former boxer was opened and adjourned until 20 March next year, by Alison Mutch, senior coroner for Manchester South.

In a statement, his family said: “Richard was so much more than a world champion. To us he was simply ‘Richard’, our son. A loving father, grandfather, and brother, and a true friend to many.

“He had a heart as big as his smile, and his kindness, humour and loyalty touched everyone who was lucky enough to know him.

“To the wider world, Richard will always be remembered as one of boxing’s greatest champions — a man who gave everything inside the ring and wore his heart on his sleeve outside of it.”

Thousands of mourners lined the streets in Manchester to pay tribute to him.

Celebrities including Oasis frontman Liam Gallagher, former England and Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney and his wife Coleen and boxers Tyson and Tommy Fury attended the private memorial service at Manchester Cathedral last Friday.

The service was played to the crowds outside the cathedral and Hatton’s son Campbell, who followed his father into the boxing ring, paid tribute, saying: “I can’t explain how much I’m going to miss you, dad, and that we won’t be making any new memories – but the ones we did I will cherish forever.”

Hatton’s daughters Fearne, 12, and Millie, 13, also gave emotional tributes to their father, speaking of their pride and love for him.

Hatton won world titles at light-welterweight and welterweight and his all-action style made him one of the most popular fighters in the first decade of the new century.

He rose through amateur and domestic levels to pit his wits against the best boxers of his generation including Kostya Tszyu, Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao.

Hatton’s down-to-earth demeanour also endeared him to fans across the world, and he was open about the mental health issues he endured upon his retirement from the ring.

Prior to his death, he had resumed training and had been due to participate in a fight in Dubai in December, with his family stating he had been “in a good place” and “excited for the future”.

His death sparked a debate over whether enough is done to help sporting stars after retirement.

Sports promoter Barry Hearn said that all sports bodies and the Government need to look at the issue for athletes who no longer live under the spotlight, calling on everyone to help “in our own small way where we can”.

If you are experiencing feelings of distress and isolation, or are struggling to cope, The Samaritans offers support; you can speak to someone for free over the phone, in confidence, on 116 123 (UK and ROI), email jo@samaritans.org, or visit the Samaritans website to find details of your nearest branch.

For services local to you, the national mental health database – Hub of Hope – allows you to enter your postcode to search for organisations and charities who offer mental health advice and support in your area.

Pep Guardiola’s ideology is dead. So where does football go next?

On Premier League training grounds right now, there’s a complaint that more and more players are expressing. That is that the game is no longer primarily about finesse, speed or even transitions, as was the case as recently as 2022-23.

It’s about “duels, duels and duels”, as one high-profile defender privately grumbled. That is one of a few reasons that long throws per game have doubled from 1.52 last season to 3.03 now, and from just 0.89 in 2020-21. The method forces more duels in the box, which might bring ricochets, corners or even goals.

One of the best illustrations is one of the most prominent individual rivalries. Erling Haaland and Gabriel love to go at it, in the type of striker-centre-back battle that Arsene Wenger lamented as disappearing in 2014. One Arsenal figure described Haaland as “almost the ideal long-ball player” because of his physical prowess.

So much for Pep Guardiola bending the Norwegian to his tactical will. Haaland has instead been one of many forces that have ensured Guardiola himself has compromised his own beliefs in a way that would have been unimaginable in 2009. For that last 1-1 draw against Arsenal, he essentially opted for Jose Mourinho’s Internazionale set-up.

And this is where we might well have gone past a tactical “end of history” moment, to create a new uncertainty about the game’s future as it’s played. In the same way that Francis Fukuyama notoriously declared the fall of the Berlin Wall as the final victory of liberal democracy, Guardiola’s rise with Barcelona supposedly signalled Total Football’s total conquest forever. The reinterpreted “positional game” changed everything.

That was only more complete a conquest when Guardiola changed English football, too. In another instructive statistic, the frequency of long goal-kicks had been declining every season since Guardiola’s arrival campaign of 2016-17… until now. They’re going up.

Due to both scientific advances and the sophistication of the ideology, that Catalan-Spanish approach ensured there has been an obvious optimum way of playing for around 16 years. That is a long time. If you didn’t seek to control the ball and territory through possession and high pressing, you were likelier to lose over the long term. This was clearly best practice, as most champions played this way.

By the 2022 World Cup, however, the game had evidently become too tactically homogenised. Even as recently as June, Thomas Tuchel was declaring himself bored by too many Premier League teams playing the same way, and building through the right-back.

Already, however, any deviation was starting to have disproportionate effect. Argentina’s World Cup win partly came from Lionel Scaloni’s willingness to trust individual creativity.

Now, such deviations have exploded. The pace of change was illustrated in September, as the same Tuchel couldn’t help but notice how “long throws, long kicks, crosses… all these patterns are back”.

As such, this isn’t another article about the end of Guardiola principles. It is instead about what next.

Because, if it’s no longer best practice to do what most of the best sides have been doing for 16 years, then we really are in a whole new world. There is no best practice, which means there are no longer the same guarantees.

That can be witnessed in the fact that Liverpool’s expenditure hasn’t directly translated into results yet, as they move from Arne Slot’s own positional game to a greater focus in individual talent. Andoni Iraola has been similar in freeing his players from tactical shackles.

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Many others have moved towards set-pieces and counters. League Manager Association seminars have noted how the majority of table leaders in the EFL have been much further down the possession rankings than at any point in the last few years.

Ideological dogmatism is ceding space to pragmatism.

It is perhaps quintessential Guardiola, though, that the man himself has driven this anti-Guardiola movement forward by shifting more drastically away from his own ideology than anyone else. None of his many acolytes have opted for that Mourinho approach, not even Mikel Arteta at his most set-piece focused.

It is also quintessentially Guardiola that he has done most to explain this. Part of the shift, of course, is that issue that football became so homogenised that it was crying out for deviation. Part of it – as the City manager argued – is that the expanded Champions League calendar means no elite side can train the positional game enough to excel in it and elevate themselves above the rest.

The Guardiola approach can’t be anywhere near as effective if it isn’t as finely tuned, after all. Structural gaps and pressing breakdowns appear.

“Today, modern football is not positional,” Guardiola recently said, in reference to the effect of the calendar. “Simply because we did not have the players… all the teams have a lot of injuries when you play every three days.”

It would be a classic parable for modern football if more matches led to lower-quality football – except, many observers want some kind of change; some reversion to more individual magic.

That’s instead where the next ideological battleground might be, between the unpredictability of unrehearsed creativity and the rehearsals of set-pieces. Or maybe even a meld of the two.

Those at Arsenal, after all, would insist the focus on set-pieces is an evolution of the positional game rather than a deviation.

Arteta’s side themselves currently represent a deviation from the LMA research, as their average possession is currently at 57.6 per cent. The Basque manager is still ultimately about “control” above anything else. He prioritises the positional game, because he believes control of space and the ball gives you the best probability of victory, and he talks about “probabilities” a lot.

You only have to look at Arteta’s response to last season, given that Guardiola specifically name-checked Arsenal’s injury troubles in that same interview. Arteta couldn’t play his ideal way due to absences, so he just ensured absences would matter less. He deepened the squad, adding to a core group that understand his ideology.

Even those who looking to deviate, after all, would say that core Guardiola requirements – pressing, technique – are now hardwired into the sport. They won’t go.

But if the overall ideology isn’t as much of a winning guarantee as it used to be, it logically follows that Arteta looked to what next. If Arsenal’s possession pressure comes up against newly massed defences, so they get more corners and throws, so it’s just common sense to focus on improving those corners and throws. It’s a new differential. Hence the greater focus on duels.

The more that starts to happen, though, the more you further the shift away from overall Guardiola ideology.

Put simply, you aren’t playing as much possession if you eschew a short corner for hitting the big man.

Infamously, the rise of authoritarianism and 2008 financial collapse caused Fukuyama to admit he was wrong, even if it seems trivialising to be discussing that in the context of sport. Now, in football, everyone is searching for “probabilities” in a world where there are suddenly no guarantees. It might take the game down a path no one has yet foreseen.

Diane Keaton’s family reveal actor’s cause of death

Diane Keaton’s family has revealed that the Hollywood star died of pneumonia.

After the actor’s death aged 79, Keaton’s relatives said her health had declined “suddenly”, and thanked her fans for their outpouring of “love and support”.

Her family also urged well-wishers hoping to honour Keaton’s memory to donate to an animal shelter or a charity which helps the homeless, two causes he was passionate about.

“The Keaton family are very grateful for the extraordinary messages of love and support they have received these past few days on behalf of their beloved Diane,” the statement said, according to People.

“She loved her animals and she was steadfast in her support of the unhoused community, so any donations in her memory to a local food bank or an animal shelter would be a wonderful and much-appreciated tribute to her.”

Keaton’s cause of death was previously unknown, with her family only saying on Saturday that there were “no further details” and asking for privacy.

Her passing sparked tributes from Hollywood figures, including Reese Witherspoon, Goldie Hawn, Michael Douglas, Steve Martin, Rose Byrne, Bette Midler and Woody Allen.

Born in Los Angeles in 1946, Keaton got her start on Broadway before rising to fame through her role in the Godfather films and her collaborations with Allen.

Yet throughout her life, she also had many extracurricular projects: independent films about school shootings, a memoir about mental illness, photography, flipping abandoned houses on the real estate market, and an avant-garde documentary about death called Heaven.

“I really am fascinated by these [abandoned] places, because they’re abandoned, but they were something very important,” the actor told The Guardian in 2023.

“Anyway, we shouldn’t talk about that, because people are gonna go: ‘What is she talking about? Get rid of her!’”

Keaton won an Academy Award for her performance as the title character in Allen’s 1977 film Annie Hall, and was later nominated for her roles in Reds (1981), Marvin’s Room (1996), and Something’s Gotta Give (2003).

Controversially, she also defended Allen from allegations that he sexually abused his adoptive daughter Dylan Farrow when she was seven years old, saying: “Woody Allen is my friend and I continue to believe him.”

Allen has always vehemently denied the allegation, which was investigated and dismissed by both social services and a New York family judge.

Hidden gem holidays: An insider guide to the Dominican Republic

The advent of autumn sees us thinking ahead to how to keep that sunshine feeling going through till winter; and there’s nothing better for keeping our spirits up than the idea of booking a holiday somewhere tropical. Enter the Dominican Republic, a warm and welcoming Caribbean nation perched to the south of the Turks and Caicos islands, and east of Jamaica. Known for its beautiful beaches, premium resorts and some legendary golf courses, there is, as the saying goes, genuinely something for everyone. If you want to make your holiday more than just a fly and flop, there’s plenty to explore, from Pico Duarte, the Caribbean’s tallest mountain, to historic sites in the country’s lively capital, Santo Domingo.

But first, where’s the best place to stay? Consider Costa Esmeralda, in the Miches area on the Island’s northeastern coast, a picturesque and pristine stretch of sand fringed with coconut palms that lean over the calm, turquoise waters of the Atlantic Ocean. Neighbouring Punta Cana and the wider Bávaro area combine to form what’s known as La Costa del Coco, or the Coconut Coast, an area of lavish, all-inclusive hotels which is also popular for windsurfing, kayaking and sailing.

Base yourself at Zemi Miches Punta Cana All-Inclusive Resort Curio by Hilton, an oceanfront resort boasting 800-metres of secluded beach on the shores of Playa Esmeralda. Located just 90 minutes’ drive from Punta Cana International Airport, the emphasis here is firmly on fun and relaxation. It features six restaurants, six bars and lounges, four pools and several water slides, and for those who like to keep fit while away, there’s a pickleball court, a paddle tennis court, and a full-service fitness centre which offers yoga and pilates classes. The Acana spa aims to reconnect soul and spirit with therapies inspired by ancient traditions, while you’ll also find a daily programme of art and cultural activities, plus live nightly entertainment. Bringing the kids? They’ll love spending time at the Coki Cove Kids Club or Palmchat Teens Club.

There’s a choice of rooms, suites or bungalows, all tastefully decorated with Caribbean flair, and offering stunning views. Select accommodations even feature private plunge pools, and Club Azure and bungalow guests have access to additional dining options and a rooftop pool. Talking of dining, you’ll experience a world of flavour, with menus inspired by the traditions of the Caribbean, Thailand, and the Amalfi Coast; think spicy, street-food inspired dishes, wood-fired pizzas, and local favourites. All this, and unlimited drinks and cocktails, too!

What’s more, booking with British Airways Holidays means you can secure your holiday now with a low deposit and spread the cost with flexible payments*. Once you’re ready to jet off, you can enjoy increased checked baggage allowance, a dedicated 24-hour helpline during your trip and the option of quality car hire with no hidden fees, 24-hour support and roadside assistance.

Upgrade to Club World and you’ll also get lounge access**, increased baggage allowance, priority check-in and boarding, and a spacious seat that converts to a fully flat bed. Members of The British Airways Club enjoy even more benefits in the form of collecting Avios (British Airways’ frequent flyer currency) and earning tier points, which unlock frequent flyer status and other benefits. Avios can also be used towards the cost of your holiday, presenting even greater value for money for members.

All this means you can totally relax during your stay at Hilton Zemi Miches Punta Cana All-Inclusive Resort, knowing you’re getting the quality and peace of mind you’d expect from a British Airways Holidays.

If you can tear yourself away from the resort – tough, we know – there’s lots to experience throughout the Dominican Republic. Take a day trip to Santo Domingo, one of the Caribbean’s oldest cities; its walled, cobblestoned, historic centre, the Zona Colonial, has impressive Spanish buildings dating back to the 16th century, including the Gothic Catedral Primada de America and the Alcázar de Colón palace, which sits on the laid-back, cafe-lined Plaza de España. The latter is now one of the city’s many museums, displaying striking medieval and Renaissance art. In the pretty Parque del Este is the Faro a Colón, a large mausoleum and museum dedicated to Christopher Columbus, who landed on the island known as Hispaniola (now divided into the Dominican Republic and Haiti) in 1492. For a taste of life in bygone times, visit Altos de Chavón, a fascinating replica of a 16th century Mediterranean village, featuring art galleries and studios, boutiques and a striking amphitheatre.

Looking for something a little more adventurous? Get back to nature at Los Haitises National Park, where you can explore mangrove forests, caves and unique rock formations, or the 27 waterfalls of Damajagua, a series of tumbling falls perfect for swimming, splashing and jumping into. And don’t miss the incredible Hoya Azul, a cenote, or sinkhole, with crystal-clear, aquamarine waters; it’s located in Scape Park, a natural adventure park featuring lush jungles and jaw-dropping cliffs, where you can go zip-lining or explore the caves. There is whale watching in Samana Bay – humpback whales can be found here during their breeding season, January to March. While Lago Enriquillo, a salt lake with surrounding wetlands, is home to crocodiles and various bird species, including flamingos. All in all, your holiday to the Dominican Republic is guaranteed to be unforgettable; so get booking now!

British Airways Holidays packages include a generous baggage allowance for each customer and come with full ATOL protection for complete peace of mind. Secure your holiday to Hilton Zemi Miches Punta with a low deposit and enjoy flexible payments until you fly*.

*Based on two sharing. Full balance due seven weeks before departure. Subject to availability. T&Cs apply.

**Subject to availability

Virginia Giuffre: Prince Andrew believed sex with me was his ‘birthright’

Prince Andrew acted as though having sex with Virginia Giuffre was his “birthright”, she claimed in her posthumous memoir.

Ms Giuffre, who was central figure in the downfall of disgraced paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein, died at the age of 41 in April, six months after completing the book, which lays out new details of allegations of sexual abuse against Prince Andrew.

Ms Giuffre, who settled a sexual assault lawsuit against the Duke of York, alleges the duke slept with her on three separate occasions. Prince Andrew has always denied any wrongdoing.

In an extract of the book, Nobody’s Girl: A Memoir Of Surviving Abuse And Fighting For Justice, Ms Giuffre described the prince as “friendly enough, but entitled” as she had sex with him on various occasions, including while staying at the house of Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s former girlfriend, near Hyde Park, London, in March 2001.

The extract, published in The Guardian, states: “Maxwell woke me up that morning by announcing in a sing-songy voice: ‘Get out of bed, sleepyhead!’ It was going to be a special day, she said. Just like Cinderella, I was going to meet a handsome prince!”

The memoir continues that Maxwell then took her shopping for the occasion.

“I put on the jeans and top, which left a strip of my stomach exposed. Maxwell wasn’t thrilled, but like most teenage girls then, I idolised Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera, and the third outfit was something I imagined the two of them might wear.”

In the memoir, Ms Giuffre states when she first met Maxwell, her British accent reminded her of Mary Poppins.

She wrote that, when she met Andrew, he correctly guessed her age of 17 years. The extract states: “’My daughters are just a little younger than you,’ he told me, explaining his accuracy.”

The book adds that Ms Giuffre went to get her camera in order for a photograph of the encounter to be taken, which Epstein took.

It says: “I suddenly thought of something: my mom would never forgive me if I met someone as famous as Prince Andrew and didn’t pose for a picture.”

It continues to describe Ms Giuffre going to the Tramp nightclub with Andrew and adds: “He was sort of a bumbling dancer, and I remember he sweated profusely.”

The extract continues to describe how they returned to the house, and she claimed she ran Andrew a bath before they had sex.

It states: “He was friendly enough, but still entitled – as if he believed having sex with me was his birthright.”

She said Epstein paid her 15,000 dollars for “servicing the man the tabloids called ‘Randy Andy’”.

The memoir also includes two other occasions the duke was alleged to have had sex with Ms Giuffre, including in New York a month later and on Epstein’s private island in the US Virgin Islands when she was around 18.

Epstein was found dead in his cell at a federal jail in Manhattan, New York, in August 2019 while he awaited trial on sex trafficking charges. His death was ruled as a suicide.

In subsequent lawsuits, it was said Ms Giuffre was a spa attendant as a teenager at Mar-a-Lago — US President Donald Trump’s Palm Beach club — when she was approached in 2000 by Epstein’s former girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell.

Maxwell was sentenced to 20 years in prison in New York in June 2022 after being found guilty of helping to recruit his underage victims.

Ms Giuffre was hired as a masseuse for Epstein and was flown around the world for meetings with men at his behest, while she was 17 and 18.

In a Newsnight interview with the BBC’s Emily Maitlis in November 2019, Andrew denied claims that he slept with Ms Giuffre, saying: “I can absolutely categorically tell you it never happened. I have no recollection of ever meeting this lady, none whatsoever.”

The duke also said he has no memory of a well-known photograph of him with his arm around Ms Giuffre’s waist at Maxwell’s house, and has questioned whether it was his own hand in the image.

Andrew claimed in his Newsnight interview that he had a medical condition in 2001, after suffering an overdose of adrenaline in the Falklands War when he was shot at, that meant he did not sweat.

He said the alleged encounter with Ms Giuffre in 2001 did not happen and he spent the day with his daughter, Princess Beatrice, taking her to Pizza Express in Woking for a party.

Buckingham Palace declined to comment.

The duke’s representatives have been contacted for comment.

Thousands sue Johnson & Johnson in UK over baby powder cancer claims

Thousands of people in the UK are pursuing legal action against pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson, alleging the company knowingly sold asbestos-contaminated talcum powder.

As many as 3,000 claimants assert that they or a family member developed ovarian cancer or mesothelioma from using Johnson’s Baby Powder, and are now seeking damages at the High Court in London.

Lawyers for the group, in court documents filed on Thursday, stated that Johnson & Johnson, along with its current and former subsidiaries Johnson & Johnson Management and Kenvue UK, should all be held liable.

They said J&J “concealed” the risk to the public for decades, having now replaced talc with corn starch in its baby powder in the UK since 2023.

A spokesperson for Kenvue, which was formerly part of J&J, said the talc used in baby powder complied with regulations, did not contain asbestos and does not cause cancer.

Talc is a naturally occurring mineral that is mined from the earth.

Michael Rawlinson KC, for the group of people bringing the claim, said in court documents that “there exist very few, if any, commercially exploited talc deposits in the world which do not contain asbestos and that all of the mines supplying the defendants contained asbestos”.

He also said that reports from such mines, as well as its own research alongside existing scientific literature, would have informed J&J about asbestos contamination.

Despite this, the company “suppressed information that might indicate that baby powder was contaminated with asbestos”, the barrister added.

He also said J&J “lobbied regulators” to enable the continued sale of its product and sponsored studies in an effort to “downplay the dangers” to human health.

J&J therefore “acted in bad faith, to protect the reputation and profit-making potential of baby powder and the goodwill attached to their name”, Mr Rawlinson said.

Janet Fuschillo, who is one of the people in the case, said she used J&J’s baby powder since the 1960s, and that she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer seven years ago.

The 75-year-old said: “I used talc on myself and all four of my children because we were told it was pure, and it was good for you.

“I used talc when I changed nappies, after baths, all the time, for close to 50 years.

“It’s a source of great concern and anger that I used talc on my children.

Patricia Angell said her husband Edward died in 2006 aged 64, a few weeks after being diagnosed with mesothelioma.

She described him as a “perfectly fit, healthy man” who worked as an electrician and knew about asbestos.

She said: “When he fell ill the doctors asked him if he ever came into contact with asbestos and he told them he never had.

“He would come home from work and shower every day and use J&J’s talc.

“But he always used it because we were told it was, you know, pure.

“Talc was mentioned on Edward’s autopsy report, along with asbestos strains found in contaminated talc.”

She added that her husband had been “robbed” of 19 years of life while her children had been robbed of a father.

Mesothelioma, a form of cancer, is almost always caused by asbestos exposure, according to the NHS, and it commonly forms in the lungs after people inhale the microscopic fibres.

Mr Rawlinson said the method of application of the baby powder – squeezing or shaking the bottle – meant that “clouds” of powder hung in the air “for a very long time after use” and was inhaled by the person using it.

A Kenvue spokesperson said: “We sympathise deeply with people living with cancer.

“We understand that they and their families want answers – that’s why the facts are so important.

“The safety of Johnson’s Baby Powder is backed by years of testing by independent and leading laboratories, universities and health authorities in the UK and around the world.

“The high-quality cosmetic grade talc that was used in Johnson’s Baby Powder was compliant with any required regulatory standards, did not contain asbestos, and does not cause cancer.”