Walsh

Following is independent counsel Lawrence Walsh’ statement on the presidential pardon of former Defense Secretary Caspar W. Weinberger and others charged in the Iran-Contra scandal:

President Bush’s pardon of Caspar Weinberger and other Iran-Contra defendants undermines the principle that no man is above the law. It demonstrates that powerful people with powerful allies can commit serious crimes in high office–deliberately abusing the public trust–without consequence.

Weinberger, who faced four felony charges, deserved to be tried by a jury of citizens. Although it is the President’s prerogative to grant pardons, it is every American’s right that the criminal justice system be administered fairly, regardless of a person’s rank and connections.

The Iran-Contra cover-up, which has continued for more than six years, has now been completed with the pardon of Caspar Weinberger. We will make a full report on our findings to Congress and the public describing the details and extent of this cover-up.

Weinberger’s early and deliberate decision to conceal and withhold extensive contemporaneous notes of the Iran-Contra matter radically altered the official investigations and possibly forestalled timely impeachment proceedings against President Reagan and other officials. Weinberger’s notes contain evidence of a conspiracy among the highest-ranking Reagan Administration officials to lie to Congress and the American public. Because the notes were withheld from investigators for years, many of the leads were impossible to follow, key witnesses had purportedly forgotten what was said and done, and statutes of limitation had expired.

Weinberger’s concealment of notes is part of a disturbing pattern of deception and obstruction that permeated the highest levels of the Reagan and Bush administrations. This office was informed only within the past two weeks, on December 11, 1992, that President Bush had failed to produce to investigators his own highly relevant contemporaneous notes, despite repeated requests for such documents. The production of these notes is still ongoing and will lead to appropriate action.

In light of President Bush’s own misconduct, we are gravely concerned about his decision to pardon others who lied to Congress and obstructed official investigations.

The Chase Around The World sees Bradley Walsh and the Chasers take on the challenge all over Europe, as six teams of two work to win £100,000.

Bradley Walsh has offered a tantalising glimpse into just how “heated” ITV’s brand new The Chase spin-off becomes.

Hot on the heels of the smash-hit gameshow‘s success, the broadcaster has unveiled an exciting new format that’s sure to delight fans of Race Across The World.

The Chase Around The World sees Bradley and The Chasers tackle the challenge across Europe, as six pairs of contestants battle it out for a whopping £100,000 prize.

With the opening episode set in Rome, competitors must tackle quiz questions, puzzles and cryptic clues to navigate their way around the city and track down Bradley at the finish line, passing through some of the Italian capital’s most iconic landmarks, including the Colosseum and the Trevi Fountain.

The last-placed team in each city will face a head-to-head showdown against two Chasers, needing to outsmart them to secure their spot in the competition, reports Bristol Live.

Ahead of the new series airing, host Bradley shared: “I would describe it as The Chase… but around the world! It’s out and about. It was very different doing it on location, in these incredible places, instead of being in a studio. I’ve been locked in Elstree Studios for 17 years!

“The locations were unbelievable. I loved it, I really did, but then again, I wasn’t chasing around, literally chasing around, the cities we were in.”

Speaking about how close the competition becomes, he revealed: “The competition really heated up, you could see the contestants thinking, ‘Right, this is what we’ve got to do. This is how to play this game.’

“There were times when some were over-taking others, some were slipping back. And, a couple of times, which is really quite interesting and what I liked, they literally saw each other on the street, or in a place where they were getting a clue.”

Teasing one emotional moment, he went on: “In one city the couple that came in last were devastated, and I mean devastated. One of them couldn’t even bring themselves to look at me. They were so upset.

“But then they get the chance to play against The Chasers and they went and beat them! So they stayed in the contest and were able to play in the next round at the next city – it was brilliant to see! I mean, it was really great.

“All of a sudden you’re saying, ‘All right, well forget that now. You’re now moving onto the next city. You’re still in the race.’

“It was great to watch because their despair turned into such joy. It’s a great dynamic, and it’s a very simple but effective end to this type of show.”

The series will transport viewers from Rome to Barcelona, Lisbon to Paris, Zurich in the Alps and finally in Athens, with an ITV spokesperson previously teasing: “It was an amazing odyssey of quiz and a really exciting series, something very different, giving you all the quiz you love from the main show but also some real live action at the same time, but also some real jeopardy and excitement as they race across each city.”

The contestants taking part include a mother and daughter who brand themselves the “Not so Dumb Blondes”, sisters, a newly-engaged couple, a father and son, a father and daughter who have previously appeared on The Family Chase and were hoping for a redemptive arc, and two friends working in Parliament who had only known each other for six months before taking on the adventure.

The Chase Around The World starts Thursday, July 16, at 9pm on ITV1, ITVX, STV and STV Player, and continues weekly on ITV1 and ITVX

Bradley Walsh is put in his place in the upcoming episode of Bradley & Barney Walsh: Breaking Dad

Bradley Walsh is hilariously told ‘do you know what you’re doing’ by an ITV show guest this Friday.

Bradley, 65, and Barney, 28, are back on the road once in their hit series Breaking Dad as they head down under for a spectacular Australian adventure in the seventh season of their beloved ITV programme.

In this week’s episode, the boys’ Australian adventure continues and they are in the outback, where they meet a group of local farmers and help them muster their cattle.

The pair then make a pit stop at a local bar, where they end up taking part in a pub quiz. The next day it’s competition time as father and son go head to head in a race on lawnmowers.

Bradley and Barney’s trip then takes them back towards the coast and the beautiful Whitsundays, where a trip on a superyacht awaits them. However, in true show style, the boys won’t be doing any relaxing as they’re expected to work onboard.

In an exclusive first look clip of this Friday’s episode, it shows the moment the boys are thrown into a Below Deck style cocktail making challenge, where they have to make beverages for the superyacht’s passengers.

Bradley is tasked with making a margarita while Barney is asked to make a piña colada. However, Bradley’s cocktail making attempts don’t exactly go to plan as he pours Cointreau directly into the glass as opposed to the cocktail shaker. Noticing his blunder, he quips: “I should have done it in this but don’t worry!”

However, the superyacht’s guests are left apprehensive as one of the passengers squeals: “Does he know what he’s doing?” before another guest offers instructions, saying: “Do you need to put the Cointreau in there to shake it?”

To which Bradley insists: “I don’t really because it’s best if you have the Cointreau sitting at the bottom of the glass. That’s the way the pros do it!”

After mixing his drink, Bradley does a taste test as he exclaims: “Wow! I tell you what, you can run this boat on that!”

Meanwhile, Barney serves up the perfect piña colada to which a superyacht guest praises: “Oh my goodness Barney, you are amazing!”

Wanting feedback, Bradley asks: “Out of ten, would you say the piña colada?” to which the guest exclaims: “I give it 12 out of 10!”

A deflated Bradley then asks: “And the margarita?” with the other passengers admitting: “Three!” to which Barney jokes: “Unlucky!”

However, despite losing the cocktail making competition, Bradley soon gets stuck in as he grabs a piña colada to try himself and says: “Cheers to you all!”

The passengers who had the margaritas then put the drink back down on the bar with Barney joking: “Yeah, you best stay clear of that if I was you!”

Breaking Dad airs on Fridays at 7:30PM on ITV1, ITVX, STV and STV Player

TV star Bradley Walsh faces one of his fears in the latest episode of ITV’s Breaking Dad

Bradley Walsh pleads “I don’t want to” as he confronts his well-known fear of heights in the latest instalment of Breaking Dad.

The ITV programme follows The Chase presenter and his son Barney as they journey to various destinations, taking on a series of daunting challenges. Now in its seventh series, the pair have ventured Down Under to discover Australia, and in the forthcoming episode Bradley tackles a zipline high above the Blue Mountains while Barney urges him on.

In a preview clip, Bradley appears visibly terrified, gripping his rope tightly and breathing heavily, reports the Express.

“I really, really tell you, guys, I really don’t want to do this,” muttered the star, who has a well documented fear of heights.

“Dad, you can do it!” exclaims Barney, but the TV star insisted: “No, I can’t. I don’t want to do it Barns. Please don’t. Please don’t do none of that for me.”

“Well, you can do it, you can,” urged Barney, who is known for hosting TV hit Gladiators alongside his famous dad.

But Bradley said: “What did I just tell him? Didn’t I just tell him?”

“I really don’t want to, though,” he went on. “I really don’t want to do it.”

Nevertheless, he pressed ahead, beginning to edge his hands along the ropes while murmuring: “Please, God.”

With Barney shouting encouragement, yelling “you got it”, Bradley gradually made his way along the rope before reaching solid ground on the opposite side.

Yet when questioned about how he felt after completing the challenge, he appeared to let slip a swear word, confessing: “Awful.”

“You smashed it, you smashed it,” Barney insisted as an exhausted-looking Bradley caught his breath.

Breaking Dad first launched in 2019 and it is now in its seventh series.

The show’s latest run kicked off earlier in May, with the opening episode following the father and son duo as they touched down in Sydney. The pair took in iconic landmarks including Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Opera House, before braving a thrilling aerobatic flight and a nerve-shredding ride on an extreme, high-altitude cable car.

Bradley and Barney Walsh: Breaking Dad airs on Friday May 8 at 7.30pm on ITV1, ITVX, STV and STV Player.