vendredi 27 février 2026

Starmer in crisis after Greens win by-election

Plus: They started as toys. Now they’re killing hundreds of Russians a day | ‘My night with the Cruz Beckham superfans’
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Friday, 27 February 2026

Issue No. 369

Good morning.

The Green Party has swept to victory in the Gorton and Denton by-election and plunged Sir Keir Starmer’s leadership into further crisis. Labour lost its commanding majority in what has traditionally been one of its safest seats, and finished third behind both the Greens and Reform UK. This is a disastrous result for the party, writes Tony Diver, our Associate Political Editor. He assesses the Prime Minister’s chance of survival below.

Chris Evans, Editor

P.S. Try one year of The Telegraph for £1.99 per month, including all the articles in this newsletter. If you are already a subscriber, make sure you’re logged in to read today’s stories.


 

In today’s edition

They started as toys. Now they’re killing hundreds of Russians a day

The green power revolution causing earthquakes across Cornwall

Plus, Guy Kelly’s night with Cruz Beckham superfans

Email-exclusive offer

Get a year’s access for £1.99 per month. That’s just £23.88 for your first year.

 

Greens win by-election in major blow to Starmer

Plumber Hannah Spencer embraced party leader Zack Polanski after becoming the Green Party’s fifth MP

Tony Diver

Tony Diver

Associate Political Editor

 

Labour’s third-place finish in Gorton and Denton this morning is a disaster for Sir Keir Starmer.

Not just because his party finished behind the Greens and Reform UK, who took 70 per cent of the vote between them, but because it will fuel the leadership crisis already under way in Westminster.

Hannah Spencer, the Green Party’s local plumber candidate, declared in her victory speech that “something brilliant is starting” for her party. She is correct, and that fact is dire news for No 10.

Graph showing the vote share

The usual caveats about by-elections apply, of course. Mid-term contests are difficult for governing parties, and the media and political frenzy over an election in one seat tends to distort the vote.

However, there are also good reasons to think that this result heralds what is to come for the Prime Minister, rather than being a freak result.

The threat to Labour from the Left has never been more acute, and he is poorly equipped to fight it, having spent the past 18 months trying to see off the challenge from Reform.

For that reason, the real winner of this race is Angela Rayner. Labour’s Left-wing leader-in-waiting now looks set to hoover up support from anxious colleagues ahead of the next test for Sir Keir in the May elections.

As the sun breaks on the Green Party’s newly minted fifth constituency this morning, a leadership challenge feels somewhat closer.
Continue reading

Tom Harris: Starmer’s personal humiliation is a disaster for the Labour Party

Plus, read the full details of this bitter contest here

 

Opinion

Ambrose Evans-Pritchard Headshot

Ambrose Evans-Pritchard

France has become the giant problem child of the eurozone

The country’s woes resemble the shambles in Britain – but with one big difference

Continue reading

 
<span style="color:#DE0000;">Hamish de Bretton-Gordon</span> Headshot

Hamish de Bretton-Gordon

Does Putin really expect anyone to believe his ridiculous nuclear claims?

Continue reading

 
<span style="color:#DE0000;">Rowan Pelling</span> Headshot

Rowan Pelling

Harry and Meghan’s Jordan trip shows what an asset they could have been

Continue reading

 
Matt Cartoon
 

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In other news

Ruthie Henshall

Ruthie Henshall, seen backstage at Crazy For You in London in March 1993, said the book would document her romance with the Prince

Your essential reads

They started as toys. Now they’re killing hundreds of Russians a day

Ukrainian FPV drones have been adapted for different tactical scenarios

Drones have revolutionised how wars are fought. They now inflict around 80 per cent of the casualties suffered by Russia on the battlefield every day, according to Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian president. The Telegraph explains how Ukraine took drones off the shelf and developed them for fighting in a way that has rewritten the rulebook.

We’re always working to ensure a Telegraph subscription is a worthwhile investment, and this piece is part of that effort. If you haven’t joined us yet, click through and subscribe.
Continue reading

For weekly analysis from the frontline, you can also sign up to our Ukraine: The Latest newsletter here.

 

Of all the Cathar castles, the one at Peyrepertuse is especially stunning

Why a mysterious 800-year-old sect is still riling the French

Those who have visited the sun-drenched portion of southern France that stretches from Montpellier to Toulouse will, in all likelihood, have visited the region’s magnificent hilltop châteaux cathares, named after the 13th-century gnostic heretics. However, as the castles bearing their name enter the running for Unesco World Heritage status, many are asking who the Cathars were, and whether they existed at all.

Continue reading

 

Katie Inglis and her family still find it difficult to talk openly about her father and what happened

‘I regret not talking to dad about his end-of-life plans. Don’t make the same mistake as me’

I was 21 when my dad died of a brain tumour, writes Katie Inglis. Despite his diagnosis three years earlier, we never spoke about his funeral. Planning it without him left us overwhelmed and guessing. I now know that talking about death is the ultimate act of love.

Continue reading

 

The green power revolution causing earthquakes across Cornwall

A new energy revolution is rattling windows across Cornwall, writes Matt Oliver, our Industry Editor. Near Redruth, the United Downs deep geothermal power plant is pumping 190C water from 5km underground to generate 24/7 electricity and extract highly sought-after lithium. Despite the drilling triggering unnerving mini-earthquakes, experts believe the project will help tap into Britain’s vast thermal resources.

For subscribers only

 

Cruz played a rotating set of five or six high-end, expensive guitars, writes Guy Kelly

‘My night with the Cruz Beckham superfans’

Given that his parents are worth £500m and he only turned 21 this week, you could forgive Cruz Beckham for putting off starting a career for a while – or indeed forever, writes Guy Kelly, Features Writer. Instead, he’s launching himself as the frontman of guitar band Cruz Beckham and the Breakers. Is he any good, though? On the first night of his debut tour, I joined Gary Neville, Jill Scott and 300 surprisingly middle-aged fans to find out.

Continue reading

 

Seize the day

Tea vs coffee: The best drink for your gut, heart and brain

We’re known as a nation of tea lovers, but, according to recent figures, more of us are turning to coffee in recognition of its health benefits. Which is actually better? Two nutritionists compare our favourite hot beverages – and only one can be crowned the winner.

Continue reading

Here is another helpful article for you this morning:

  • The IHT403 is the most valuable inheritance tax form you’ll ever fill in. Telegraph Money explains why, and how to do it properly.
 

Reviews of the week

‘I was wrong about Tracey Emin’s My Bed – but the rest of Tate’s show is a snooze’

Tracey Emin

Tracey Emin with her celebrated artwork My Bed, which is part of a new retrospective of her work at London’s Tate Modern

Exhibition

Tracey Emin: A Second Life

★★☆☆☆

Spotlit like a set for a kitchen-sink drama, Britain’s most notorious art installation appears two-thirds of the way through Tracey Emin’s patchy new retrospective. With its stained mattress and bedraggled sheets, My Bed (1998) looks as squalid as ever. If only more exhibits had the intensity of My Bed – which is, by far, the rawest, most powerful thing Emin has assembled. It reminds us that much of the actual art she’s produced is slight.
Read Alastair Sooke’s review

Television

Dirty Business

★★★★★

The most obvious comparison for Channel 4’s Dirty Business, a new real-life drama about Britain’s water companies, is ITV’s all-conquering Mr Bates vs The Post Office. Both tell stories of scandalous corporate malfeasance and how it destroyed the lives of innocent people. Both show the tenacity required for those ordinary people to do anything about it. Both are examples of what public service television can and should do in the age of mega-streamers, and both are excellent.
Read Benji Wilson’s review

Film

EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert

★★★★☆

This new Elvis Presley concert movie is an intimate, sweaty and explosively joyous experience that revives the King’s reputation as one of the greatest performers of all time. While researching his Oscar-nominated 2022 Elvis biopic, Baz Luhrmann uncovered 69 boxes of previously unseen footage and has edited the best of it together. Presley comes across as goofy, hyperactive and musical to his core, never happier than when he’s singing, moving and leading his band.
Read Neil McCormick’s review

 

Your say

First things last

Every weekday, Orlando Bird, our loyal reader correspondent, shares an off-piste topic that has brought out the best of your opinions and stories.

Orlando writes...
Heston Blumenthal, the chef who dares diners to think the unthinkable and eat the inedible, has had a new idea: serving meals back-to-front. The Telegraph’s Ed Cumming recently sampled his six-course “topsy turvy” lunch at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in Knightsbridge, from the nitrogen ice cream all the way through to the Earl Grey tea-cured salmon.

I’ve tended to read about Blumenthal’s gaudy innovations with scepticism (I admit, I haven’t actually tried them) but I was actively offended by this one. Some things you just dont do, and eating pudding first is among them.

Yet according to Telegraph readers – and this would surely mortify Blumenthal – it has very much been done before.


 

Claire Shackleton, for instance, recalled: “Every day my Grandad would come home for his lunch; he would eat his pudding, then my Grandma would have his main course ready. I never understood how, at the end, he could use the same spoon that he’d eaten his pudding with to scoop up his gravy. Ugh.”


 

Mark Brand added: “When I was a kid, I’d have my pudding first. My mother’s best friend asked why. I replied that I didn’t want to risk not being able to fit it in later.”


 

Paul Browne, meanwhile, pointed out: “This is a recreation of the Hysteron Proteron dining club at Oxford, where meals were eaten backwards. Members included Graham Greene and Neville Shute. Evelyn Waugh also referred to it in A Little Learning. It was revived at Trinity College, Oxford, where I once participated, starting the day in black tie with port and cigars.”


 

It was Roz Adams, however, who made me realise that my position may be a tad hypocritical: “I have often ordered a starter for dessert because I like to finish with a savoury taste,” she admitted. Given the choice, I will nearly always opt for cheese over something sweet at the end of a meal. What’s that about?

Are you drawn to “topsy turvy” dining? Send your responses here, and the best of the bunch will feature in a future edition of From the Editor PM, for which you can sign up here.

Please confirm in your reply that you are happy to be featured and that we have your permission to use your name.

 

Puzzles

Panagram

Find as many words as you can in today’s Panagram, including the nine-letter solution. Visit Telegraph Puzzles to play a range of head-scratching games, including PlusWord, Sorted, and Quick, Mini or Cryptic Crosswords.


 

Yesterday’s Panagram was BLOODLINE. Come back tomorrow for the solution to today’s puzzle.

 

Please let me know what you think of this newsletter. You can email me your feedback here.

Thank you for reading. Have a fulfilling day and I hope to see you tomorrow.

Chris Evans, Editor

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jeudi 26 février 2026

What Andrew and Epstein did in New York

Plus: Starmer’s Chagos deal descends into chaos | ‘The moment I realised my husband was having an affair’
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Thursday, 26 February 2026

Issue No. 368

Good morning.

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor maintains that he visited Jeffrey Epstein in New York in 2010 only to end their friendship. Yet The Telegraph can reveal that the pair actually planned a raucous trip together, involving lavish dinners and, it appears, a final party lasting until 4am.

Meanwhile, Sir Keir Starmer’s Chagos bill has descended into farce. Yesterday, the Government appeared to confirm that it was pausing its deal with Mauritius following Donald Trump’s opposition, only to backtrack hours later. Tony Diver, our Associate Political Editor, reveals chaos behind the scenes in Downing Street.

Chris Evans, Editor

P.S. Try one year of The Telegraph for £1.99 per month, including all the articles in this newsletter. If you are already a subscriber, make sure you’re logged in to read today’s stories.


 

In today’s edition

How Spain dismantled the British expat dream

‘The moment I realised my husband was having an affair’

Plus, a more intellectual lifestyle can ward off dementia. How does yours measure up?

We speak your mind.

Enjoy free-thinking comment that champions your values.

One year for £1.99 per month.

 

Inside Epstein and Andrew’s week together in New York

Poppy Wood

Poppy Wood

 

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s story about his friendship with Jeffrey Epstein is coming undone.

The former Duke of York has insisted since his famous Newsnight interview that he cut ties with the paedophile during a trip to New York in December 2010, on a visit organised solely for that purpose.

A timeline of the trip assembled by The Telegraph shows quite the opposite was true. The pair plotted the visit months before – while Epstein was still under house arrest after serving time for a child sex offence – and it was designed to be raucous from the outset.

Epstein set about organising “young, fun people” to be around for the former prince’s week-long stay at his Manhattan mansion, and arranged breakfast and lunch dates with business associates.

They even discussed whether to bring swimwear in case a trip “down south” – likely to Epstein’s private island or Florida mansion – took their fancy. Mr Mountbatten-Windsor emailed the paedophile to say he was “really looking forward” to seeing him, after Epstein’s year spent cloistered away under house arrest.

The trip appeared to deliver. Epstein laid on a private dinner party with guests including Woody Allen; secured him a ticket to a penthouse party, and apparently welcomed young women to his mansion during the visit.

Perhaps the most egregious illustration that Mr Mountbatten-Windsor’s tale might not stack up came after they were photographed walking together in Central Park a week into the trip.

Jeffrey Epstein and Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor

The infamous image of the then prince and Epstein out for a stroll together in Central Park

The fomer prince has always claimed this picture was the moment he cut off all relations with Epstein and that he never spoke to him again.

In reality, he stayed at the paedophile’s mansion for two more evenings and is thought to have been up partying with Epstein until 4am on his final night.

The British public will be left wondering if anything Mr Mountbatten-Windsor has said on the matter is true.
Read the full story

 

Starmer’s Chagos deal descends into chaos

Sir Keir Starmer with navy personnel during a carrier strike group homecoming reception at Downing Street

Tony Diver

Tony Diver

Associate Political Editor

 

An accidental admission by a Labour minister yesterday that the legislation behind the Chagos deal had been “paused” speaks volumes about what is really going on in Whitehall.

For weeks there has been confusion and worry among officials about Donald Trump’s opposition to the handover, which was laid bare last week with a social media post that made clear the president did not want Sir Keir to “give away” the islands.

Downing Street claims there has been no “delay”. However, everyone involved in this issue knows the deal should have been signed last year, and the ongoing issues with the US are holding up everything.

Meanwhile, the situation at home is getting embarrassing. The flip-flopping between the deal going ahead and being paused gives the impression that the Government has lost control of this process.

Either way, as The Telegraph revealed on Monday, this deal will cost the taxpayer billions.

It is becoming increasingly clear there is no good option for Sir Keir. Should the deal go ahead, angering Trump and Tory MPs? Or should it be abandoned, leaving the UK open to legal action by Mauritius?

In the meantime, a “pause” is good news for no one. No 10’s spin cannot disguise that the process is in chaos, and the special relationship itself is at stake.
Read the full story

 

Opinion

Allister Heath Headshot

Allister Heath

This abominable by-election is a final warning for Britain’s democracy

Too much immigration allied with growing Left-wing extremism has become a toxic mix

For subscribers only

 
<span style="color:#DE0000;">Con Coughlin</span> Headshot

Con Coughlin

The decapitation of Iran is nigh

Continue reading

 
<span style="color:#DE0000;">Shauna Brown</span> Headshot

Shauna Brown

The problem with modern parents? They fail to prioritise their children over having a ‘nice time’

Continue reading

 
Matt Cartoon
 

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In other news

The Queen greets Paddington alongside West End star Marisha Wallace

Your essential reads

How Spain dismantled the British expat dream

The British love affair with Spanish property is ending on bad terms. Lawmakers in the Balearic Islands want to ban non-residents from buying homes in holiday hotspots including Mallorca and Ibiza. The backlash against outsiders is the latest in a string of policies threatening the expat dream in Spain.

We’re always working to ensure a Telegraph subscription is a worthwhile investment, and this piece is part of that effort. If you haven’t joined us yet, click through and subscribe.

Continue reading

 

He may be on the radar for the 2028 US presidential election, but Newsom is self-obsessed and dull, according to Zoe Strimpel

Gavin Newsom’s arrogant memoir betrays the rot in the Democrats’ soul

★★☆☆☆
He’s the governor of California and the Democrats’ best hope of winning the US presidency in 2028. So who is the real Gavin Newsom – and where did this slick operator come from? Zoe Strimpel opens an advance copy of Newsom’s memoir, Young Man in a Hurry, and from his Left-wing obsessions to his billionaire backers, the man she finds gives plenty to trouble her.

Continue reading

 

Marny says she was ‘utterly blindsided’ by her husband’s affair more than 20 years into their relationship

‘The moment I realised my husband was having an affair’

“The drift began so quietly I barely noticed it,” admits teacher and mother-of-two Marny. “Marriage has phases, everyone knows that.” However, discovering messages exchanged between her husband and a mystery woman ultimately led to the end of Marny’s life as she knew it, and a mental breakdown. She explains what happened and how she got her life back on track.

Continue reading

 

Jacob Freedland inside a Typhoon jet, the so-called ‘workhorse’ of the RAF

Why a Scottish RAF base could become integral in fight against Russia

The year is 2030. Ambassadors have been recalled, consulates shut and Russian submarines spotted circling the UK’s shores, threatening to launch missiles at any moment. There are fears the UK could be under attack for the first time since the end of the Second World War, writes Jacob Freedland. However, for the forces defending Britain from invasion, the front line is not the white cliffs of Dover but Scotland, where an RAF base in the Highlands has become integral to protecting both Nato, and Britain itself.

Continue reading

 
Status Quo

In 1985, Status Quo became national treasures after opening Live Aid

Francis Rossi on suing the BBC: ‘We played into their hands’

Status Quo were on top of the world in 1996, the rockers had played Live Aid, scored a number one single and toured with Queen. However, a toxic lawsuit with the BBC threatened to ruin it all, simply because the broadcaster’s bosses, and the Tory government of the time, thought Quo were no longer “cool” enough for primetime radio. James Hall speaks to Francis Rossi, the band’s lead singer and guitarist, about how it all played out.

Continue reading

 

How to make your pension last to 100 (and beyond)

Traditional pension planning works on the assumption your pot will need to last for 20 to 30 years. What happens, though, if you live to 100? Looking at scenarios for three people at very different stages of life, we reveal what it takes to fund a pension pot that will last to your centenary.

Continue reading

 

Seize the day

A more intellectual lifestyle can ward off dementia. How does yours measure up?

If you’re a dab hand at puzzles and your weekends are full of visits to museums and galleries, you are on the road to better brain health. Here, David Cox, a neuroscientist and health writer, has sifted through the specific activities that may help reduce your risk of dementia. He has also compiled a quiz you can take to assess your own levels of intellectual engagement.
Continue reading

This is the final instalment in our brain health series, in which we showed you the brain games that will keep you sharp and the seven signs of dementia in midlife.


Here are two more helpful articles for you this morning:

 

The big picture

Men daubed in colours throw coloured powder at each other during "Lathmar Holi" celebrations

Men throw coloured powder at each other during “Lathmar Holi” celebrations at Barsana, Uttar Pradesh, India.

 

Your say

Waves of controversy

Every weekday, Orlando Bird, our loyal reader correspondent, shares an off-piste topic that has brought out the best of your opinions and stories.

Orlando writes...
There has been much discussion among Telegraph readers – not all of it wildly favourable – about the direction of BBC Radio 3. Now, though, the focus is on the station’s new offshoot, Radio 3 Unwind. It began with an article by Simon Heffer, who, to put it mildly, is not a fan, accusing it of broadcasting “lift music”.

I fundamentally admire Radio 3, and will probably always listen to it, but agree that it should not try to mimic Classic FM, and can be heard harrumphing as much when the Jurassic Park theme tune comes lumbering out on the breakfast show. I also find the word “unwind” incredibly annoying.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Sam Jackson, the controller of Radio 3, took a different view. “How disappointing that Lord Heffer pours scorn on Radio 3 Unwind, apparently for the sole reason that it is aimed at licence-fee payers with differing tastes to his own,” he wrote in a letter. “Anything that introduces classical music to people, and challenges those who think they should decide how others should listen to it, is to be celebrated.”


 

Tricia Barnes felt there was something in this: “I am a piano teacher, and agree that introducing people to classical music must be done at the right time. I find that Ludovico Einaudi’s wonderful music is a bridge that leads my students to the classics. After teaching six of his pieces, I wait for the student to say: ‘I love Einaudi, but I feel I need more’, then off we go.

“This will be true for many listeners to Radio 3 Unwind. In time, they will yearn for something more – and it is there waiting for them. Radio 3 Unwind is a safe harbour of peace and calm, whereas Radio 3 can take you to dark and disturbing places, as well as provide sublime joy.”


 

Graham Chainey wasn’t convinced: “Having been a regular listener to BBC Radio 3 since the days of the Third Programme, I think Sam Jackson fails to appreciate the station’s special style and tone. It has become ‘the home of’ a lot of irritating and inappropriate burbles, jingles and trailers, which undermine its unique ethos. Mr Jackson seems determined to make it sound like any other station. He may be right to woo new listeners, but this is not the way to do it.”

Has Radio 3 been winding you up? Send your responses here, and the best of the bunch will feature in a future edition of From the Editor PM, for which you can sign up here.

Please confirm in your reply that you are happy to be featured and that we have your permission to use your name.

 

Puzzles

Panagram

Find as many words as you can in today’s Panagram, including the nine-letter solution. Visit Telegraph Puzzles to play a range of head-scratching games, including PlusWord, Sorted, and Quick, Mini or Cryptic Crosswords.


 

Yesterday’s Panagram was KIDNAPPED. Come back tomorrow for the solution to today’s puzzle.

 


Thank you for reading. Have a fulfilling day and I hope to see you tomorrow.

Chris Evans, Editor

P.S. I’d love to hear what you think of this newsletter. You can email me your feedback here.

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