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The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) has released thousands more documents relating to the prosecution of the late sex offender and financier Jeffrey Epstein, including photographs of prominent figures he spent time with. But campaigners behind the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which compelled the Justice Department on Friday to release all files still sealed, say far too much information in them has been redacted.

Furthermore, according to US media, at least 16 of the files – which they said were disclosed late – have since “disappeared” from the website where they were released. The deleted files included a photograph showing President Donald Trump.

The Epstein Files Transparency Act, which Trump signed into law after it passed through Congress in November, required the government to release all remaining unclassified material in its possession relating to Epstein’s and his girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell’s sex trafficking cases. Maxwell is currently serving 20 years in prison for her part in the scandal.

Despite heavy redaction of many of the documents, which has angered Democrats and some Republicans alike, there is some new information about the powerful people who associated with the disgraced late financier.

The Justice Department said it will release more documents in the coming weeks.

Here’s what we know about what’s been released so far:

What’s new in this tranche of Epstein files?

This is just the latest release of documents relating to the prosecution of Epstein, who died by suicide in a New York jail in 2019. The first tranche of about 950 pages of court documents was made public in early 2024.

One document released this time around confirms that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) was tipped off about the convicted sex offender’s crimes nearly a decade before he was first arrested.

In September 1996, Epstein survivor Maria Farmer complained to the FBI that the late financier was involved in child sex abuse. Farmer said officials failed to take steps to investigate.

While the name of the complainant is redacted in the document relating to this complaint to the FBI, Farmer has confirmed it was made by her.

Now in her 50s, Farmer said in a statement via her lawyers after the release on Friday that she feels “redeemed” and this was “one of the best days of my life”.

“I want everyone to know that I am shedding tears of joy for myself but also tears of sorrow for all the other victims that the FBI failed,” she said.

Newly released transcripts of grand jury proceedings also include testimony from FBI agents who described interviews that they conducted with girls and young women describing their experiences of being paid to perform sex acts for Epstein. The youngest interviewee was 14, according to local media.

One woman, then aged 21, told a grand jury that Epstein had hired her when she was 16 to perform a sexual massage and that she had gone on to recruit other girls to do the same.

“For every girl that I brought to the table, he would give me $200,” she said.

They were mostly people she knew from high school, she said, adding that she told them that if they were under age, “just lie about it and tell him that you are 18.”

Much of the material published had already been circulating in the public domain after years of court action and investigations.

However, many of the new photos – some of them heavily blacked out – feature well-known public figures.

Who features in the newly released photos?

Among the documents released on Friday are photographs in a folder labelled “DOJ Disclosures”. Most of the photographs were seized by the FBI during various searches of Epstein’s homes in New York City and the US Virgin Islands.

New photos show the musicians Mick Jagger, Michael Jackson and Diana Ross in photographs with Epstein and at times with other people whose faces have been blacked out.

In one image, Jagger can be seen sitting between Epstein and former US President Bill Clinton. Popstar Jackson is also pictured standing next to Clinton and posing for a photo with Epstein in front of a painting in another.

Other famous men featured in the newly released photos include the actor Kevin Spacey, comedian Chris Tucker, billionaire Richard Branson, former UK ambassador to the US Peter Mandelson and Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor – formerly known as Britain’s Prince Andrew – and his former wife, Sarah Ferguson.

In one black and white image, Andrew can be seen lying across the laps of five people whose faces have all been blacked out while Maxwell stands behind them.

The Justice Department did not include any details about the contents or context of the photos.

Virginia Giuffre, who was one of Epstein’s most prominent accusers and who died by suicide in April aged 41, accused Mountbatten-Windsor of sexual abuse when she was 17. He settled a lawsuit with her in 2022 but continued to deny the allegation.

Another prominent figure among the photos is Clinton. One photo shows him in a swimming pool with Maxwell and another person whose face has been blacked out. Another photo shows the former US president in a hot tub with a woman whose face is also redacted.

While Clinton has never been accused of any wrongdoing in connection with Epstein’s crimes, his spokesperson said the White House was using him as a scapegoat.

“This is about shielding themselves from what comes next, or from what they’ll try and hide forever. So they can release as many grainy 20-plus-year-old photos as they want, but this isn’t about Bill Clinton. Never has, never will be,” the spokesperson said in a statement.

Clinton in the past has said he cut ties with Epstein before the late financier pleaded guilty to solicitation of a minor in Florida.

Does Trump appear in the Epstein files?

Trump hardly appears in the files at all. The few photos that do feature him are ones that have been circulating in the public domain for decades.

According to one court document released on Friday, Epstein was alleged to have taken a 14-year-old girl to Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida and to have introduced her to the president.

While introducing her, Epstein elbowed Trump, asking him – referring to the teenager: “This is a good one, right?” Trump smiled and nodded in agreement, said the document from a case against Epstein’s estate and Maxwell in 2020.

In the court filing, the unnamed plaintiff herself makes no specific accusation against Trump.

In response to media requests for comment about this court document, White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said the Trump administration was “the most transparent in history” and by “recently calling for further investigations into Epstein’s Democrat friends, the Trump Administration has done more for the victims than Democrats ever have,” she added.

Have some of the files disappeared since they were published on Friday?

Apparently, yes. One image, originally labelled File 468, which showed the inside of a desk drawer, included a photograph of Trump alongside Epstein, US first lady Melania Trump and Maxwell.

Other missing photos were images of paintings depicting nude women and one showing a series of photographs on a cupboard and in drawers.

On Saturday, The Associated Press news agency reported that at least 16 files published on Friday had disappeared from the Justice Department’s webpage.

The department has not provided any explanation or statement to the public about this but said in a post on X that “photos and other materials will continue being reviewed and redacted consistent with the law in an abundance of caution as we receive additional information.”

Democrats on the Oversight Committee in the US House of Representatives also released 68 photos, drawn from the 95,000 photos and files the Oversight Committee has so far received from the Epstein estate.

Democrats in the committee said the images, which they released on Thursday, “were selected to provide the public with transparency into a representative sample of the photos” and “to provide insights into Epstein’s network and his extremely disturbing activities”.

Following the Justice Department’s release on Friday, the committee’s Democratic members questioned in a post on X why the image featuring a photo of Trump, a Republican, was missing, stating: “What else is being covered up? We need transparency for the American public.”

Why has so much been redacted?

Among the thousands of documents published on Friday, at least 550 pages were reportedly fully redacted.

One 119-page document labelled “Grand Jury-NY” is completely redacted as is a set of three consecutive documents totalling 255 pages. Each page is fully blacked out.

Campaigners behind the Epstein Files Transparency Act said they had hoped to obtain more information about how the sex offender had been able to avoid serious federal charges for so many years.

However, many crucial FBI interviews with Epstein’s accusers and internal Justice Department memos on charging decisions are unreadable.

Todd Blanche, the deputy attorney general, sent a six-page letter to members of Congress laying out the redaction process, noting that the law mandates that the department omit or redact any references to victims and files that could jeopardise pending investigations or litigation.

Blanche explained that he had, therefore, instructed attorneys to redact or withhold material that contained personally identifiable information about victims; depicted or contained child sexual abuse materials; would jeopardise an active investigation or prosecution; or contained classified national defence or foreign policy information.

Without specifying which, Blanche added that in some instances, the department had withheld or redacted information covered by deliberative-process privilege, work-product privilege and attorney-client privilege.

When will the remaining files be released?

The Justice Department has said the publication of thousands more documents concerning investigations into Epstein will be released in the coming days as the year-end holidays approach.

The department missed its original Friday deadline to release all the information it had on Epstein in violation of the law signed by Trump in November ordering a complete release within 30 days.

After the drop on Friday, the department published two much smaller tranches on Saturday, which went beyond the initial redactions and featured identities of prosecutors, FBI case agents and other law enforcement personnel who appeared before two federal grand juries in New York state.

Several US lawmakers expressed anger about the White House’s failure to produce all the documents required under the law within the time limit.

Representatives Ro Khanna, a Democrat, and Thomas Massie, a Republican – the duo who introduced the petition that eventually led to the passing of the Epstein Files Transparency Act – strongly criticised the partial release on social media.

Massie wrote that it “grossly fails to comply with both the spirit and the letter of the law”.

Khanna called the release so far “disappointing” and added: “We’re going to push for the actual documents.”

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer accused the Trump administration of being “hell-bent on hiding the truth” and reiterated that the failure to release all the Epstein documents by Friday’s deadline amounts to “breaking the law”.

Meanwhile, officials from the Trump administration have been publicising the photographs featuring former Democratic President Clinton and hailing the current government as “the most transparent in history”.

Can campaigners take further steps to obtain more of the documents?

In a statement, Schumer said Senate Democrats are working “closely with attorneys for the victims of Jeffrey Epstein and with outside legal experts to assess what documents are being withheld and what is being covered up by [US Attorney General] Pam Bondi”.

Representatives Robert Garcia and Jamie Raskin, the ranking Democrats on the House Oversight and Judiciary committees, said they are examining “all legal options” after “the Department of Justice is now making clear it intends to defy Congress itself.”

“Donald Trump and the Department of Justice are now violating federal law as they continue covering up the facts and the evidence about Jeffrey Epstein’s decades-long, billion-dollar, international sex trafficking ring,” Garcia and Raskin said in a statement.

Senator Ron Wyden, another top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee who investigated Epstein’s financial ties, said on social media that the failure to release all the files was “a continuation of this administration’s coverup on behalf of a bunch of pedophiles and sex traffickers”.

The Associated Press reported that if Democratic lawmakers so choose, they could go to court to force the Justice Department to comply with the law. However, that would likely be a lengthy process.

Separately, the House Oversight Committee has issued a subpoena for the Epstein files, which could give Congress another avenue to force the release of more information to the committee. But that would require Republicans to join them in contempt-of-Congress proceedings against a Republican administration.

Long Beach City College’s performing arts center is officially being named after Long Beach legend and LBCC alumna Jenni Rivera.

Last week LBCC’s Board of Trustees unanimously voted to name the new facility the Jenni Rivera Performing Arts Center.

“This naming recognizes not just an extraordinary performer, but a daughter of Long Beach whose voice and spirit transcended borders,” said Uduak-Joe Ntuk, president of LBCC’s board of trustees in a press statement. “Jenni Rivera inspired millions through her music, resilience, and advocacy. We are proud that future generations of artists will learn and create in a space that bears her name.”

Jenni Rivera Enterprises will donate $2 million over the next 10 years to the LBCC Foundation, with the bulk of the funds going toward scholarships and education programs, the Long Beach Post reported.

“Our family is deeply honored that Long Beach City College has chosen to memorialize Jenni in this extraordinary way,” said Jacqie Rivera, Rivera’s daughter and CEO of Jenni Rivera Enterprises, in a press release. “Long Beach shaped who Jenni was — as an artist, a mother, and a woman — committed to her community. Knowing that young performers will grow, train, and find their creative voice in a center that carries her name is profoundly meaningful to us.”

The performing arts center, which is scheduled to open in spring 2026, is the second honor the “Inolvidable” singer has received from LBCC. Earlier this year, Rivera was inducted into the LBCC Hall of Fame alongside actor/activist Jennifer Kumiyama and attorney Norm Rasmussen.

Rivera was born and raised in Long Beach, attending Long Beach Poly High School in the 1980s, where she got pregnant as a sophomore. She later graduated from Reid Continuation High School as class valedictorian. She went on to attend LBCC before transferring to Cal State Long Beach to get a bachelor’s degree in business administration.

She immediately put that degree to use as a real estate agent, while simultaneously working at her father’s recording studio and record label.

Her father, Pedro Rivera, was a noted singer of corridos. In the 1980s he launched the record label Cintas Acuario. It began as a swap-meet booth and grew into an influential and taste-making independent outfit, fueling the careers of artists such as Chálino Sanchez. Jenni Rivera’s four brothers were associated with the music industry; her brother Lupillo, in particular, is a huge star in his own right.

She released her first album, “Somos Rivera,” in 1992, launching a prolific career that was tragically cut short when Rivera and six others were killed in a plane crash in Mexico on Dec. 9, 2012.

The self-proclaimed “Diva de la Banda” was a self-made star with a veritable rags-to-riches story. She was a true trailblazer, a U.S.-born woman who took up plenty of space in the male-dominated world of música mexicana.

In 2015, Long Beach city officials honored the singer’s legacy by bestowing her name on a park in Long Beach. On display along a brick wall at the Jenni Rivera Memorial Park is a 125-foot-long mural honoring Rivera’s life and heritage.

The Hollywood Walk of Fame also honored Rivera with a star in 2024, which her five children accepted on her behalf.

“One of my mom’s favorite exes used to work in this vicinity. We would come and check in on him and she always dreamt — I remember sitting in the car, in her Mercedes, and she always dreamt, ‘I’m gonna have my star here one day,’” Rivera’s daughter Jenicka Lopez said at the star unveiling ceremony.

“I thought it was impossible after she passed away, but God has a beautiful way of proving people wrong.”

The UK has named career diplomat Christian Turner as its new ambassador to the US, Downing Street has confirmed.

Turner has spent nearly 30 years working across Whitehall and the Foreign Office.

He will now become the man tasked by Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer with building links to the Trump administration.

The previous ambassador Peter Mandelson was sacked by Starmer after evidence, including emails and photos emerged, showing his continued association with the paedophile Jeffery Epstein.

Lord Mandelson has repeatedly said he regrets his relationship with Epstein, who died in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking offences.

The Foreign Office said in a statement that King Charles had formally appointed Turner, and the UK would now seek official approval for his appointment from the US.

Turner said he was “honoured” to be nominated for the role.

“At a pivotal time for the transatlantic relationship, I look forward to working with President Trump’s administration, and leaders in Congress, business and society to strengthen that bond in the years ahead,” he added.

In a statement released by the Foreign Office, Starmer said: “The United Kingdom and United States have a very special relationship, and Christian’s extensive experience as an outstanding diplomat will support this uniquely close bond and ensure it continues to flourish.”

Turner’s previous roles include political director at the Foreign Office, British High Commissioner to Pakistan, and Foreign Office Director for the Middle East and North Africa. He also previously worked in 10 Downing Street as Private Secretary to the Prime Minister.

Before entering government, he worked in television documentaries.

Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said Turner would bring “exceptional diplomatic experience and deep understanding” to the role.

Hardy Nickerson, a Verbum Dei grad who played linebacker at Cal, made the Pro Bowl five times, coached in college and the NFL and did two stints as head coach at Bishop O’Dowd in San Jose, has been named head football coach at JSerra.

Nickerson, 60, becomes the first Black head football coach in the Trinity League since it was formed in 2008.

JSerra is hoping to strike gold like Santa Margarita did in hiring Heisman Trophy winner and 15-year NFL quarterback Carson Palmer, who delivered a Southern Section Division 1 championship and CIF state championship Open Division bowl win this year in his rookie season as head coach. Palmer used his NFL connections to put together a top-notch group of assistant coaches.

Nickerson also has lots of NFL connections and far more coaching experience than Palmer. He once was defensive coordinator at Illinois, served as an NFL assistant with the 49ers, Bears and Buccaneers and and has been head coach at Bishop O’Dowd from 2010-13 and from 2022 through this season, when his team won a state Division 5-AA championship.

He takes over a program that went 3-7 last season and cut ties with former Azusa Pacific head coach Victor Santa Cruz. Nickerson will soon learn that coaching in the Trinity League is similar to college and the NFL, where teams expect to win or there is little assurance of keeping a job for long.

Joel Dommett has admitted to a major blunder during filming of The Masked Singer Christmas special.

Joel Dommett has disclosed how he plunged The Masked Singer festive special into complete pandemonium during recording following an inadvertent gaffe.

The presenter is making his comeback to the cherished ITV contest, working alongside panellists Jonathan Ross, Maya Jama, Davina McCall and Mo Gilligan.

They’ll be attempting to uncover the true identities of the famous participants alongside audiences at home, using a series of cryptic hints.

Four well-known personalities will perform on stage whilst concealing their identities, disguised as Santa’s Sack, Mistletoe, a Goose A-Laying and Figgy Pudding.

The yuletide episode broadcasts on Boxing Day, with a complete series following several weeks afterwards, reports Wales Online.

It’s now emerged that recording for the seasonal show spiralled into mayhem when Joel inadvertently revealed one of the concealed celebrities.

He confessed to recognising the distinctive giggle from behind Mistletoe’s mask, blurting out their actual identity before realising his error and collapsing to the ground.

The I’m A Celebrity Unpacked presenter told The Sun: “I can’t believe I did it. This person was chuckling in the costume and it’s a chuckle I know well and I said their name. It just came out. Their actual name!”

He continued: “Thankfully, [the judges] had pretty much guessed who it was.

“But producers did reiterate to me that I wasn’t to do that again. I was on the naughty step.”

The Masked Singer UK Christmas special will also showcase a collection of pantomime legends, including Fairy Godmother (Su Pollard), the dame (Christopher Biggins), Wicked Stepmother (Lesley Joseph) and Prince Charming (Basil Brush), who will be offering hints to the judging panel.

This follows Joel’s recent mishap several weeks back whilst recording I’m A Celebrity’s companion show Unpacked.

The presenter was compelled to say sorry after inadvertently cursing, when his regular broadcast was dramatically disrupted after being “assaulted” by a flying insect.

He frantically jumped up from his chair whilst frantically batting at a fly, exclaiming: “Ohhh f***ing hell, that’s massive.”

He swiftly bounced back from the blunder, remembering he was on live television.

“I’m sorry I swore,” he said apologetically, before adding: “That was absolutely petrifying.”

The Masked Singer Christmas Special airs Boxing Day at 7.30pm on ITV1 and ITVX.

FOR these streets across the UK, it’s Christmas all-year round.

From mentions of Santa’s reindeer to the festive day itself, Sun Travel has found some of the most Christmassy road names from all over the UK.

Christmas Pie Avenue, Guildford

This one takes the biscuit (or pie), really. You can’t get more festive than Christmas Pie Avenue.

Found in the village of Normandy in Surrey, the residential street, Christmas Pie Avenue, sits in the south of the village close to Wanborough Station.

The little village has a shop, café and there’s plenty of countryside too, with the closest towns being Farnborough and Guildford.

Talking to SurreyLive, Jack Kinder, vice chairman of the Normandy Historians, said: “The name comes from the family of Christmas who were prominent landowners in the 17th and 18th century.

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“The Pie part comes from the Saxon word pightle – meaning a field. There was, up until the houses were built around in the 1950s, a field called Pie Field – a triangle field near the crossroads.”

Rudolph Street, Bolton

Seven minutes from the town of Bolton is Rudolph Street.

It’s residential with around 15 addresses, so apart from houses, there’s not much going on here.

Of course, just minutes away is a whole other story with plenty to do in Bolton, from exploring the Jumbles Country Park to Smithills Open Farm.

There are also plenty of museums, like the Bolton Steam Museum, the art gallery and huge market on Ashburner Street.

There are lots of pubs too, like Pine Tree Farm, Red Lion and Elephant and Castle, which are some of the highest-rated on Tripadvisor.

Dasher Gardens, Ardrossan

Another reindeer-inspired street name is found in Ardrossan, a town on the North Ayrshire coast of Scotland.

Santa of course has nine reindeer, but this one is named after Dasher.

The little cul-de-sac sits just off Dalry Road and is minutes from the coast, where you’ll find the historical landmark of Ardrossan Castle – or rather, what’s left of it.

Across the bay is the Isle of Arran, which one Sun writer described as being ‘Scotland in Miniature’.

The little island has mountains, rolling hills and sandy beaches.

There’s a new sauna on the island too, called Stonethrow, which is right on the sand and is great for having a steam before plunging into the chilly water.

Tinsel Lane, Nuneaton

Just outside of the market town of Nuneaton, Warwickshire is a street called Tinsel Lane.

Despite its festive name, there won’t be many lights on this one, as it’s a country lane surrounded by rolling green fields.

Nonetheless, if you’re ticking off spots with Christmassy names in the UK, you really can’t leave this one off the list.

As for what to do in the town, popular attractions, Nuneaton Museum & Art Gallery, historic Arbury Hall, and Hartshill Hayes Country Park.

Mistletoe Street, Durham

Heating up the romance at Christmas is the mistletoe, and this road is named after it.

Found in Durham, Mistletoe Street is minutes away from the city centre and is filled with red-brick houses.

To make it even more festive, the street right behind it is named Holly Street, so it makes for two Christmassy corners.

Durham itself is known for its top university, huge cathedral, historic cobbled streets and the River Wear.

There’s also an open-air museum called Beamish, which was a hit with Countryfile presenter Matt Baker.

Talking to Sun Travel earlier this year, he said: “It’s the best open-air museum in the world, without question.

“Basically what they do is take down buildings in the North East and put them back up at Beamish, and go around on all old trams, there’s old villages, farms – you can even stay there now and have a historic stay over at Beamish.

“It’s like Disney World for history buffs – that’s the only way I can describe it. You get transported back in time, it’s a proper immersive experience.”

Cold Christmas Lane, Hertfordshire

In Hertfordshire is Cold Christmas Lane, which leads to a hamlet called Cold Christmas in Thundridge.

While the name is very festive, there isn’t much Christmas cheer about it.

In fact quiet bleakly, the name  ‘Cold Christmas’ refers to a period of high child mortality during harsh winters.

However, just around the corner is the Hertfordshire town of Ware, which is all dressed up for Christmas, and there you’ll find plenty of pubs, like the Waterside Inn by the river.

There are also independent coffee spots, shops, and florists.

Angel Lane, Chipping Campden

The Cotswolds are known for their beauty, so it’s not too much of a surprise that you’ll find one of the prettiest street names there – Angel Lane.

Houses on Angel Lane are just as you’d imagine, made from the classic Cotswold stone and have plenty of countryside character.

If you fancy a plot on Angel Lane then you’ll have to pay a premium as the average property price is over £600,000.

Of course, the village itself is worth a gander too, with a preserved High Street from the 14th to 17th century.

Here there are gift shops like Dandelion as well as The Bantam Tea Rooms & Guest House and the Bromley’s of Cotswolds coffee shop.

For more on Christmas, this popular UK attraction with the tallest Christmas tree in the WORLD – and they need a crane to decorate it.

Plus, the UK holiday lodge where you are ‘guaranteed snow’ at Christmas with private hot tub and tree decorating.