The Week 1579

The “Tudor Heart”, a gold pendant linked to Henry VIII’s marriage to Catherine of Aragon, has been secured for the nation thanks to a fundraising campaign led by the British Museum. It raised the £3.5m required to acquire the 24-carat piece, which was found by a detectorist in a field in Warwickshire in 2019. The pendant features the Tudor rose and Catherine’s pomegranate symbol, as well as a banner that reads “tousiors”– old French for “always”. A toddler has won two Guinness World Records by becoming the youngest person to perform a pair of snooker trick shots. Despite being barely tall enough to reach the table, Jude Owens, from Manchester, pulled off a snooker double pot at two years and 261 days old; a fortnight later, he executed a pool…

Keir Starmer: a Prime Minister in peril For a moment this week, No. 10 thought it was all over, said Patrick Maguire in The Times. The wave of outrage over the latest revelations about Peter Mandelson’s links to the sex offender Jeffrey Epstein seemed poised to sweep Keir Starmer from office. The PM’s chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney, had resigned on Sunday, saying he took full responsibility for advising Starmer to appoint Mandelson as ambassador to the US. The next morning, the PM’s communications director, Tim Allan, had stood down as well. Hours later, Anas Sarwar, Labour’s leader in Scotland, had become the party’s first senior figure publicly to call for Starmer to step aside. It looked like the prelude to a putsch. “Yet to widespread relief, confusion and morbid…

The Palace issued the statement in response to the emergence of more “jaw-dropping” evidence about the ex-prince’s relationship with Epstein, said The Guardian. It seems that, while working as a UK trade envoy, he may have passed confidential documents to Epstein. The Epstein files seem also to confirm that – contrary to what Andrew has always insisted – the infamous photo of him with the late Virginia Giuffre is genuine. Insiders say the Palace was appalled by these revelations, said Kate Mansey in The Times. Courtiers were also enraged by photos of Andrew “grinning and waving” while out and about near Royal Lodge last week – which accelerated his move from Windsor to the Sandringham Estate. But questions remain for the King and Prince William, both of whom have been…

Controversy of the week Grinding graduates down A political storm is brewing over student loans, said the FT – and you can see why. Today’s graduates not only face higher housing, commuting and childcare costs than previous generations, they’re having to cover these while having 9% of their salary above a certain threshold deducted to repay their student loans. There are five different loan schemes currently in operation; and the five million or so graduates who entered university in England and Wales between 2012 and 2023, and are on the Plan 2 version of the loan, have reason to be particularly unhappy. Whereas the interest rate on other loans is set at the RPI measure of inflation, Plan 2 people are charged RPI plus up to 3%, depending on earnings.…

HMP Norwich is looking for a pagan chaplain to support the growing number of its inmates who subscribe to the ancient tradition. Applicants to the part-time position, which offers a salary of nearly £38k pro rata, must be verified members of the pagan community, with theological competence across more than one pagan tradition. A pizzeria in north London has caused consternation among foodies by launching a sticky toffee pudding pizza. Circus Pizza’s creation features a sourdough base topped with caramel sauce, soft honey cake and a dash of cream (plus extra caramel on top). Sticky Toffee Pudding Guy, an Instagram user who reviews sticky toffee puddings, called the pizza “an abomination” and said it ”should be illegal”.…

Ducks, which have been enjoying lovely weather – for them. According to the Met Office, it has either rained or poured every day of the year so far in some parts of the country. This week, around 100 flood warnings were in place across the UK. Noel Gallagher, who was announced as the winner of the BRIT songwriter of the year award – despite not having recorded any new songs this year. Critics said the award should not be used to recognise lifetime achievement. In response, the Oasis musician pointed to his sales this year, and said he’d be at the ceremony, and “if anybody’s got a problem with it, meet me there”.…