Prince Andrew gives up royal titles

Summary

Global News Podcast – Prince Andrew Gives Up Royal Titles

BBC World Service | October 18, 2025 | Host: Ankur Desai

---

Episode Overview

This episode covers a day of dramatic headline news, with a focus on Prince Andrew relinquishing his royal titles after new damaging revelations about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. The podcast also reports on major developments in global affairs, including failed negotiations over a global shipping emissions deal, a tense Trump–Zelensky meeting on Ukraine, a pioneering court case related to Sudan atrocities, escalating Pakistan-Afghanistan border violence, the mystery of a Roman tombstone in New Orleans, and Taylor Swift’s unexpected influence on art tourism in Germany. Expert insights and on-the-ground reporting give listeners a comprehensive, nuanced view of these fast-moving stories.

---

1. Prince Andrew Relinquishes Royal Titles

[02:01–06:55]

Key Discussion Points

• Prince Andrew’s Step Down:
  Prince Andrew, King Charles’s brother, is giving up his remaining royal titles except for “Prince” following renewed scrutiny of his ties to Jeffrey Epstein, convicted sex offender.
• Background:
  The controversy started in 2019 after Andrew’s ill-judged BBC interview, followed by Queen Elizabeth stripping him of military and charitable honors in 2022.
• New Allegations:
  Recently surfaced emails contradict Andrew’s past claims about when he broke ties with Epstein, and Virginia Giuffre’s imminent posthumous memoir increases pressure. Giuffre had accused Andrew of sexual abuse (which he denies).
• Family Dynamics:
  The decision was not entirely voluntary. According to BBC UK correspondent Rob Watson, the monarchy prioritized its reputation over “brotherly love.”
• Impact:
  This move seals Andrew’s descent into disgrace, essentially ending any hopes of a public royal comeback.

Notable Quotes

• On the consequences of Andrew’s choices:

  “That’s the bit that, as it were, I kick myself for on a daily basis.”
  — Prince Andrew (2019 BBC interview, replayed) [02:31]

• Giuffre’s family reaction:

  “She was a truth teller…she should be sitting here, she should be talking to you, but she’s not. So we’re here to advocate for her and her survivor sisters.”
  — Sky Roberts, Virginia Giuffre’s brother [03:36]

• Monarchy’s logic:

  “…the King and Prince William decided that in the end, the reputation and survival of the monarchy trumps all else. Family loyalty, you know, brotherly love, such, if that exists.”
  — Rob Watson [04:30]

Segment Breakdown

• [02:01] Prince Andrew's announcement; fallout from Epstein connection
• [03:36] Giuffre's brother responds to the news
• [04:20] Rob Watson on whether the abdication was voluntary or forced
• [05:04] The tipping points: recent book and China espionage reports
• [06:14] The practical effects for Andrew: “humiliation and banishment from public life”

---

2. Trump–Zelensky Meeting Yields No Tomahawk Missiles

[07:07–11:57]

Key Discussion Points

• Ceasefire & Security Talks:
  President Volodymyr Zelensky met Donald Trump in Washington for discussions about the war in Ukraine, but secured no commitment for US Tomahawk missiles.
• US Reluctance:
  Trump’s stance is cautious, citing worries over escalation and America’s own military requirements.
• Strategic Implications:
  Tomahawk missiles could give Ukraine deep-strike capability inside Russia but might diminish US readiness elsewhere.
• Meeting Tone:
  The meeting atmosphere was starkly more positive than a previous tense encounter, but yielded little substance.

Notable Quotes

• Trump's equivocation:

  “We’d much rather have them not need Tomahawks… would much rather have the war be over.”
  — Donald Trump [07:43]

• Zelensky’s pragmatism:

  “We decided that we don’t speak about it because United States doesn’t want escalation.”
  — Volodymyr Zelensky [08:14]

Segment Breakdown

• [07:07] Contrast with previous tense Trump–Zelensky meeting
• [08:14] Zelensky on air defense and why the parties remain publicly silent
• [08:45] Ben Debusman Jr. (Washington correspondent): analysis of the meeting’s outcomes
• [10:00] Why Tomahawk missiles would matter for Ukraine; US usage concerns
• [11:08] What’s next ahead of possible Trump–Putin talks; ‘carrot and stick’ strategy

---

3. Climate: Landmark Shipping Emissions Deal Collapses

[11:57–15:09]

Key Discussion Points

• The Failure in London:
  The International Maritime Organization’s plan for green fuels in shipping was derailed by last-minute US and Saudi pressure, especially over economic impacts for US consumers.
• Industry Uncertainty:
  Business leaders warn lack of a deal stalls investments and market signals for green fuels.
• Global Implications:
  President Trump continues his campaign against global climate action, with threats and rhetoric against the "green new scam tax on shipping.”
• COP30 Dilemma:
  Uncertainty now clouds the forthcoming UN climate summit in Brazil.

Notable Quotes

• On why business needs regulation:

  “Industry needs clarity so it can invest… we need a global regulator.”
  — Stuart Neal, International Chamber of Shipping [13:13]

• Trump’s position on social media:

  “The US will not stand for this global green new scam tax on shipping and will not adhere in any shape or form.”
  — Donald Trump (quoted by Justin Rowlatt, Climate Editor) [14:08]

Segment Breakdown

• [12:21] The missed agreement and its details
• [13:13] Industry reaction: lack of guidance for investment
• [13:41] US Secretary of State Marco Rubio calls it a win
• [13:51] Justin Rowlatt: What Trump’s approach signals globally

---

4. Sports Psychology: The Poker Face Effect

[15:09–18:13]

Key Discussion Points

• New Research:
  Philipp Furley discusses his work examining the correlation between facial expressions and performance in sports, such as darts and football.
• Reading Emotions:
  A “poker face” — minimal facial movements — often signals stronger performance; increased fidgeting may signal self-doubt.
• Beyond Darts:
  Early findings also seen in football penalty-takers; ongoing study extends to Olympic athletes and cross-cultural expressions.

Notable Quotes

• Principal Finding:

  “When they perform extraordinarily well, you see that in the face... a slightly more relaxed face, more of a poker face, less facial muscle movements.”
  — Philipp Furley [15:39]

• On his own sporting poker face:

  “I think my face is actually quite revealing. I wouldn’t say I’ve got a poker face. Maybe that’s why I got so interested in it.”
  — Philipp Furley [18:00]

Segment Breakdown

• [15:09] Research on darts players’ faces and elite sport
• [16:13] Extension to football, tennis, and golf
• [16:48] Caveats — not foolproof; examples (e.g., Zinedine Zidane)
• [17:12] Cross-cultural and Olympic research
• [17:42] Furley’s personal reflection on the topic

---

5. US Court Ruling: French Bank Liable for Sudan Atrocities

[19:46–23:05]

Key Discussion Points

• Historic Verdict:
  BNP Paribas held partly liable for helping finance Sudan’s genocidal regime; survivors awarded $21 million.
• Victim Testimonies:
  Plaintiffs described brutal human rights abuses, claiming the bank enabled atrocities by facilitating Sudan’s access to global financial markets.
• Precedent:
  The case opens the door for more lawsuits by Sudanese survivors who are now US citizens.
• BNP’s Defense:
  The bank argued atrocities would have happened regardless, but the jury disagreed.

Notable Quotes

• Summing up, reporter Mickey Bristow:

  “…They claimed essentially in court that BNP Paribas was partially responsible for what went on in Darfur because it had helped fund or facilitate the Sudanese government’s trading with the rest of the world.”
  — Mickey Bristow [20:23]

Segment Breakdown

• [19:46] The court case and context
• [21:45] Wider implications: class actions
• [22:24] BNP Paribas's previous US legal troubles

---

6. Pakistan-Afghanistan Border Violence Resurges

[23:05–26:13]

Key Discussion Points

• Ceasefire Broken:
  A fragile truce is shattered by alleged Pakistani airstrikes in Afghanistan’s Paktika province, killing at least eight, including athletes.
• Escalation Factors:
  Islamabad blames Afghan Taliban for harboring militants; over 3,700 killed in Pakistan since 2021.
• Talks in Doubt:
  Although dialogue in Qatar is planned, the new violence makes progress unlikely.

Notable Quotes

• On Islamabad’s posture:

  “When you see more and more action against our security forces, we will go after wherever the threat comes from… We are going for straightaway into action. That means what some people call it as a new normal.”
  — Ambarasan Ethirajan, global affairs reporter [24:23]

Segment Breakdown

• [23:05] Latest on the border violence and its victims
• [24:23] Context for worsening relations
• [25:35] The prospects and complications of upcoming talks

---

7. A Roman Tombstone in New Orleans

[26:13–29:07]

Key Discussion Points

• Curious Discovery:
  An ancient Roman funerary stone is found in a New Orleans backyard; Professor Suzanne Lusnia traces its journey from Italy (possibly taken amid WWII upheaval) through a USO entertainer’s family.
• Restitution:
  The stone is destined to return to its rightful Italian museum collection.

Notable Quotes

• On the inscription:

  “It says, 'to the spirits of the dead, on behalf of Sextus Congenius Verus, soldier of the Praetorian fleet Misenensis…’ ”
  — Professor Suzanne Lusnia [27:03]

• On its journey:

  “…It was in his house here in New Orleans. His granddaughter… recognized it… she had been the one who put it into the backyard… By mid-May, we had handed it over to the FBI.”
  — Professor Suzanne Lusnia [28:03]

---

8. Taylor Swift and the German Ophelia Painting

[29:07–31:25]

Key Discussion Points

• Swift’s Art Inspiration:
  Taylor Swift’s new album cover and music video reference a little-known painting of Ophelia, sparking a tourism surge to the Wiesbaden museum in Germany.
• Fan Reaction:
  Visitors describe the artwork as “ethereal” and “breathtaking;” the museum director is pleased by the new respectful crowds.

Notable Quotes

• On the visitor’s emotional reaction:

  “It’s beautiful. It’s breathtaking.”
  — US Swift fan [30:41]

• Museum director’s response:

  “…They naturally form a line so that each person can have a moment with the artwork.”
  — Andreas Henning [31:03]

---

Memorable Moments

• The raw, somber statement from Virginia Giuffre’s brother highlighting loss and validation for victims. [03:36]
• Prince Andrew’s own regret, replayed from his infamous BBC interview. [02:31]
• Donald Trump refusing to be drawn on arming Ukraine, focusing on ending the war instead of escalation. [07:43]
• Philipp Furley’s admission that his personal interest in “poker faces” may stem from being facially transparent himself. [18:00]
• The surprise impact of Taylor Swift’s fandom on fine art attendance in Germany. [31:03]

---

For further information or to comment, reach out to [e-mail] or @BBCWorldService with #globalnewspod.

Transcript

[Narrator/Announcer]

This BBC podcast is supported by ads outside the uk.

[Promotional Voice/Advertiser]

Vanity Fair calls Britbox a delicious streamer.

[Reporter/Interviewer]

Collider says everyone should be watching. Catch Britain's next best series with Britbox.

[Promotional Voice/Advertiser]

Streamer claim new originals like Code of Silence, you read lips right? And Lynley, based on the best selling.

[Reporter/Interviewer]

Mystery series CI Linley. Take it from here and don't miss.

[Promotional Voice/Advertiser]

The new season of Karen Pirie coming this October.

[Interviewee/Expert/Commentator]

You don't look like.

[Philipp Furley (Sports Psychologist)]

Please see.

[Interviewee/Expert/Commentator]

I'll take that as a compliment.

[Promotional Voice/Advertiser]

See it differently when you stream the.

[Reporter/Interviewer]

Best of British TV with BritBox.

[Promotional Voice/Advertiser]

Watch with a free trial today.

[Main Presenter/Host]

This is the story of the 1.

[Correspondent/Reporter]

As a maintenance supervisor at a manufacturing.

[Main Presenter/Host]

Facility, he knows keeping the line up and running is a top priority. That's why he chooses Grainger. Because when a drive belt gets damaged, Grainger makes it easy to find the.

[Correspondent/Reporter]

Exact specs for the replacement product he needs.

[Main Presenter/Host]

And next day delivery helps ensure he'll have everything in place and running like clockwork. Call 1-800-GRAINGER Click Grainger or just stop by Granger for the ones who get it done. This is the global news podcast from the BBC World Service. I'm on critic sign at 5 hours GMT on Saturday 18th October. These are our main stories. King Charles's brother Andrew relinquishes his royal titles after new allegations emerge over his links to Jeffrey Epstein. Volodymyr Zelensky fails to secure Tomahawk missiles after a meeting with Donald Trump and a landmark deal to cut global shipping. Carbon emissions collapses under US and Saudi pressure. Also in this podcast, how good is your favorite athlete's poker face when they perform?

[Philipp Furley (Sports Psychologist)]

Extraordinary. Well, what you see there is a sort of slightly more relaxed face. If they're performing not so well, you see a little more facial behavior, a little more muscle movements.

[Main Presenter/Host]

We begin here in Britain. King Charles brother Andrew has announced he's relinquishing his royal titles except for Prince. His fall from grace was triggered by his friendship with the late American businessman Jeffrey Epstein, who was jailed for sex crimes against underage girls. Andrew stepped back from public life in the wake of this disastrous BBC interview back in 2019.

[Interviewee/Expert/Commentator]

Do I regret the fact that he has quite obviously conducted himself in a manner unbecoming?

[Main Presenter/Host]

Yes, unbecoming. He was a sex offender.

[Interviewee/Expert/Commentator]

Yeah, I'm sorry, I'm being polite in the sense that he was a sex offender. The problem was that once he had been convicted, you stayed with him. I stayed with him. That's the bit that, as it were, I kick myself for on a daily basis.

[Rob Watson (UK Correspondent)]

Because it was not something that was.

[Interviewee/Expert/Commentator]

Becoming of a member of the Royal family. And we try and uphold the higher standards and practices and I let the side down, simple as that.

[Main Presenter/Host]

Just over two years later, with the Epstein story not going away, the late Queen Elizabeth stripped her second son of his honorary military affiliations and royal charitable patronages. This month, emails were revealed which contradicted claims made by him in his BBC interview about when exactly Andrew ended his relationship with Epstein. And next week we'll see the posthumous publication of a book by Virginia Giuffre, who took her life earlier this year. She claimed she was trafficked by Epstein and was forced to have sex with Andrew at the age of 17. We should point out that Prince Andrew denies all allegations against him. Virginia Giuffre's brother, Sky Roberts, gave the BBC his reaction to the news that Andrew is losing his titles.

[Interviewee/Expert/Commentator]

In a lot of ways, this vindicates Virginia. She was a truth teller from the beginning and she was telling the truth. And I think this is a moment where we feel very proud for her, but we're also sad because she, she should be sitting here, she should be talking to you, but she's not. And so we're here to advocate for her and her survivor sisters. I think her kids would be incredibly proud to know that their mom is an American hero, that she's an international hero, that all the years of work that she put in is now coming to, to some sort of justice and these monsters can't escape from it. The truth will find its way out.

[Main Presenter/Host]

So has the Prince taken this step willingly? My colleague Valerie Sanderson asked our UK correspondent Rob Watson in his statement.

[Rob Watson (UK Correspondent)]

He says he did it in discussion with King Charles and the wider family. But I don't think there's any doubt and I think the palace has pretty much hinted at this, that had Prince Andrew not fallen on his sword, that King Charles and his heir, Prince William, would probably have pushed him onto it. Because I think, and this wouldn't be the first time in the thousand year history of the monarchy. Valeria, I think that the King and Prince William decided that in the end the reputation and survival of the monarchy trumps all else. Family loyalty, you know, brotherly love, such, if that exists. And that's why this move was taken.

[Reporter/Interviewer]

He's been surrounded, Prince Andrew by scandal for years. What do you think the tipping point was?

[Rob Watson (UK Correspondent)]

I think there have been two tipping points in the last few days. The first one, of course, goes back to Jeffrey Epstein and his relationship and friendship with the disgraced financier and the publication, the posthumous publication of a book by Virginia Giuffre, who was trafficked by Jeffrey Epstein. Now, in her book, she says that she thought that Andrew was, and I'm pretty much quoting here, entitled, and I'm quoting now, believed having sex with me was his birthright. That is obviously hugely damaging. But secondly, his name had also been linked with a senior Chinese Communist Party official whose name has been mixed up in a rather prominent case in the last few weeks about espionage against targets in the uk. So I, I think it was the combination of those two things I think probably led to the King and those around the King saying to Prince Andrew, look, the game is up, you've got to go for the sake of the monarchy.

[Reporter/Interviewer]

Now he's giving up the Duke of.

[Interviewee/Expert/Commentator]

York title and other honors, but he remains a prince, doesn't he, because he's.

[Reporter/Interviewer]

The son of a monarch, the late.

[Esme Stallard (Reporter)]

Queen Elizabeth, and he'd already stepped back from royal duties. So what does this mean practically for.

[Reporter/Interviewer]

Him going forward, do you think?

[Rob Watson (UK Correspondent)]

I think practically, not very much. I mean, as you say, the disgrace, the demotion, the humiliation began with his mother, reluctantly, the late Queen Elizabeth II stripping him of his military titles, of him being able to call himself His Royal Highness in 2022 and essentially stepping back from all royal duties. So practically not much. But I guess the way you would put it is that this completes, if you like, his humiliation, his demotion and banishment from public life. I mean, any idea that Prince Andrew is ever going to return in some way to the, the front row of the royal family, that that is now finished and he will be more isolated than ever.

[Main Presenter/Host]

Rob Watson reporting. Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy have come a long way from that explosive White House meeting earlier this year when the US President called his counterpart disrespectful.

[Interviewee/Expert/Commentator]

You don't have the cards right now with us. You start having cards right now. You don't have your playing cards.

[Narrator/Announcer]

You're gambling with the lives of millions.

[Interviewee/Expert/Commentator]

Of people, think you're gambling with World War Three. Your country is in big trouble.

[Main Presenter/Host]

Well, on Friday, the leaders were on friendlier terms as they met again in Washington to discuss Russia's war in Ukraine. They spoke about the potential for a ceasefire, security guarantees and lost territory. But the question of providing long range US Tomahawk missiles was the one on everyone's mind, including President Trump's. Speaking ahead of the meeting, he remained non committal.

[Interviewee/Expert/Commentator]

So we're going to be talking about Tomahawks and we'd much rather have them not need Tomahawks. Would much rather have the war be over. To be honest, the war in the Middle east was far more complicated. We got that one done and I think we have a good chance. I think President Zelensky wants it done and I think President Putin want it done. Now all they have to do is get along a little bit.

[Main Presenter/Host]

President Zelensky spoke to journalists after he appeared to come away from the meeting empty handed.

[Interviewee/Expert/Commentator]

We had productive meeting, long meeting, spoke about air defence. It's important for us, you know, even now when we speak with you. Yes, a lot of drones in Ukraine. We spoke about long range, of course, and I want not to make statements about it. We decided that we don't speak about it because United States doesn't want escalation.

[Main Presenter/Host]

Our reporter, Ben Debusman Jr. Was at the White House and gave us this assessment of the meeting.

[Correspondent/Reporter]

Well, it was a very optimistic mood inside the room during the meeting between Zelenskyy and Trump in the Cabinet Room of the White House. But it ended without any sort of firm commitment from either side or any sort of agreement or indication of the way forward. For the last several days, President Trump had kind of teased that he was mulling over providing Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine, which could alter the war, and that it would allow Ukraine to strike targets very, very deep into Russia. But today he sounded far less committed to that idea. He said that the US has many Tomahawks, but that it needs them. At one point, I also asked President Trump whether he thinks that the prospect of Tomahawks being introduced to the conflict is what brought President Putin to the table. And he said he frankly doesn't know. So it was a cordial meeting, certainly compared to the very infamous Oval Office meeting several months ago. But it did seems to have ended without any sort of firm indication of the way forward.

[Main Presenter/Host]

For one, a lot of talk about the Tomahawk missiles. Would they be a huge game changer and what sort of a strategic advantage would it give Ukraine, which you touched upon just there?

[Correspondent/Reporter]

They could certainly be very much a strategic advantage for Ukraine. Tomahawk missiles have ranges of over 1,000 miles, which would allow Ukraine to strike strategic targets very deep inside Russia, certainly in all of the European portion of Russia, including, for example, drone factories or airfields used to launch aircraft that launch munitions at Ukraine. So it's certainly something that Ukraine would very much. But as President Trump noted in the meeting, they're also something that the US Uses very frequently in recent months alone. Tomahawk Missiles were used as kind of the follow on strike after the airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities. They were previously used against Houthi targets in Yemen earlier on in this administration. So President Trump's concern is that giving these weapons to Ukraine would mean that the US Is less prepared to use them themselves in the future.

[Main Presenter/Host]

If we look ahead to this potential meeting between President Trump and President Putin, what would the mood be like going into that one now, especially after President Putin would have seen today's events?

[Correspondent/Reporter]

Well, it's very difficult to say during the meeting today at the White House. President Trump certainly seemed optimistic that Putin does, in fact, want to come back to the negotiating table. But what is unclear to many in Washington is why that is. You know, he likes to keep his cards close, taking kind of a carrot and stick approach, you know, in that he and Secretary of Defense Pete Hecsett this week kind of said that there would be cost for Russia not coming to the table. What those costs exactly are is still unclear, but there's certainly momentum behind, for example, secondary sanctions. That's something that was discussed among Republican lawmakers here in Washington this week. But President Trump's not really giving anything away about what makes him so optimistic that these talks in Budapest will accomplish what previous talks in Alaska and over the phone haven't.

[Main Presenter/Host]

Bert Debussman Jr. In Washington. It's been 10 years in the making and was supposed to be a world first. But a landmark deal to cut global shipping emissions has collapsed under pressure from the US and Saudi Arabia. More than 100 member states of the UN's shipping body had gathered in London to approve a treaty, but it fell at the final hurdle. As Esme Stallard reports, this week's meeting.

[Esme Stallard (Reporter)]

Of the International Maritime Organization in London was meant to be a victory lap for the global deal to cut shipping emissions. Countries were set to approve the agreement, which from 2028 would have required ship owners to use a certain amount of green fuels in their vessels or face fines. But the US Ratcheted up the pressure over the course of the week, particularly on island states, to reject approval because of concerns the deal would increase the cost of goods to for U.S. consumers. On the final day, when countries should have been voting to approve it, Saudi Arabia tabled a motion to delay the talks for a year. It was won by a handful of votes. With discussions on hold, the deal is highly unlikely to meet its 2028 deadline, and delegates have said it could push back action for years. Speaking after the meeting, Stuart Neal, director of strategy at the industry body the International Chamber of Shipping said companies needed clarity.

[Interviewee/Expert/Commentator]

So we are disappointed that governments haven't been able to come to an agreement here because industry needs clarity so it can invest. The issue really is it doesn't send a market signal to those fuel producers to start producing the new fuels that we're going to need. That's outside of the shipping industry's responsibility. We are a global industry, we travel the world and we need a global regulator.

[Esme Stallard (Reporter)]

But US Secretary of State Marco Rubio took to social media to declare this a huge win for President Trump.

[Main Presenter/Host]

Well, the U.S. delegation's approach at this conference has highlighted President Trump's continued opposition to the carbon cutting agenda. Here's our climate editor, Justin Rolatt.

[Narrator/Announcer]

Donald Trump has just brokered peace in the Middle east and is trying to do the same for Ukraine. Yet the US President still found time to post about an obscure UN Shipping body. Why it shows his determination to take his war on climate action global. After dismantling the U.S. s domestic climate policies, he is targeting international ones. On Truth Social, he declared the US Will not stand for this global green new scam tax on shipping and will not adhere in any shape or form. This isn't gentle diplomacy. He is wielding hard power. His administration threatened tariffs, visa bans and blocking access to U.S. ports, ports for ships from tiny island states in the Pacific and Caribbean, as well as any others who supported the deal. Mr. Trump says he's educating countries on the dangers of relying on renewables, especially wind turbines or windmills, as he likes to call them. Meanwhile, his team is urging nations to weaken climate pledges and burn more, ideally American oil and gas. Diplomats are asking what it says about how the US will approach COP30, the latest UN climate summit, which is being held in Brazil next month.

[Main Presenter/Host]

Next tennis players about to serve, footballers taking penalties, golfers ready to tee off with a drive. Can we predict how athletes will perform just by studying their faces before an important moment in the game? New research suggests there is a link between performance and poker face. Philipp Furley is a senior lecturer at the German Sports University and an expert on sports behavior. He's just published a study on the facial tics and movements of top darts players just before they throw a dart.

[Philipp Furley (Sports Psychologist)]

We do find a correlation within players that when they perform extraordinarily well, you see that in the face and what you see there is a sort of slightly more relaxed face, more of a poker face, less facial muscle movements before they perform extraordinary well. If they're performing not so well, you see a little more facial behavior, a little more Muscle movements in particularly around the eyes and around the mouth regions. This sort of coincides with suboptimal performances. Yes.

[Interviewee/Expert/Commentator]

It gives away what's going on in their head, in other words.

[Philipp Furley (Sports Psychologist)]

That's. That's what I would say, yeah.

[Interviewee/Expert/Commentator]

Does it extend beyond darts, do you believe?

[Philipp Furley (Sports Psychologist)]

So we've also looked at that in the context of penalty kicks. In football, for example, there does seem to be something there that the body sort of tells that do give away some levels of performance sentencies.

[Interviewee/Expert/Commentator]

I mean, it's interesting you mentioned football. Zinedine Zidane, famous French footballer, was famously sick on the pitch, wasn't he, before he took a penalty against England? But he still scored. So, I mean, it's. It's obviously not foolproof. And you wouldn't claim that it is.

[Philipp Furley (Sports Psychologist)]

No, no, certainly not exactly. In an extraordinary place like Sedan, I mean, they can show they aren't in the optimal state to perform well. But, I mean, he still got it together, scored that penalty kick.

[Interviewee/Expert/Commentator]

And where does your work, your own research work, go from here? We've talked darts, we've talked football. I'm wondering about sports, like tennis, golf, for example. Do you look elsewhere now to try and sort of underline everything that you've examined so far?

[Philipp Furley (Sports Psychologist)]

At the moment, we are looking very much into sort of a big question in psychology, but the people all around the world sort of have similar emotional expressions in sporting contexts. In particular, we're looking at how they react when they win big Olympic matches or lose big Olympic matches. This is something that we are researching intensively at the moment.

[Interviewee/Expert/Commentator]

How has all this work informed what you do when you play sport?

[Philipp Furley (Sports Psychologist)]

Yeah, well, I'm. I'm getting older, so it's not that.

[Interviewee/Expert/Commentator]

I think we all are.

[Philipp Furley (Sports Psychologist)]

Yes. So I don't play professionally anymore, but I never did really professionally, but I was a decent handball player.

[Interviewee/Expert/Commentator]

And when you played handball, did you have a poker face?

[Philipp Furley (Sports Psychologist)]

I think my face is actually quite revealing. I wouldn't say I've got a. I've got a poker face. Maybe that's the reason why I got so interested in it. Maybe there's room for improvement there.

[Main Presenter/Host]

Philip Valley, speaking to Julian Waraker. Still to come.

[Reporter/Interviewer]

It's very ethereal, and you can almost see the water slowing the movement of the. But the movement of the fabric, the contrast of the light and the dark. It's beautiful. It's breathtaking.

[Main Presenter/Host]

Fans of Taylor Swift flocked to a German museum to see the pop star's latest muse.

[Interviewee/Expert/Commentator]

What's that sound?

[Correspondent/Reporter]

That's the sound of Downy Unstoppable scent beads going into your washing machine and giving your clothes freshness that lasts all day long.

[Philipp Furley (Sports Psychologist)]

There it is again.

[Correspondent/Reporter]

It's like music to your ears or more like music to your nose. That freshness is irresistible. Let's get a Downy Unstoppables bottle shake. And now a sniff solo.

[Interviewee/Expert/Commentator]

Nice.

[Correspondent/Reporter]

With Downy Unstoppables, you just toss wash. Wow. For all day freshness.

[Paul Henley (Interviewer)]

Every now and then I rinse it.

[Rob Watson (UK Correspondent)]

Out.

[Interviewee/Expert/Commentator]

Is tonight and I need it more. My kid went and the smell never leaves. I don't know what to do. I'm always in the dark.

[Promotional Voice/Advertiser]

The sweat and dead shark smells like.

[Interviewee/Expert/Commentator]

A DY Downy Rinse Fight stubborn odors in just one wash.

[Correspondent/Reporter]

When impossible odors get stuck in.

[Main Presenter/Host]

A US court has found France's biggest bank, BNP Paribah, liable for widespread atrocities committed in Sudan under the former regime of Omar Al Bashir. The trial, which began last month, heard harrowing testimony from three Sudanese plaintiffs on a litany of human rights abuses carried out by Sudanese soldiers and the Janjaweed militia in western Darfur. On Friday, the jury in New York awarded nearly $21 million to the three victims who testified in court. The French bank did business in Sudan from the late 1990s until 2009. Our reporter Mickey Bristow has been following the story.

[Reporter/Interviewer]

This court case relates to a period of time at the beginning of the century, first decade really, when there was atrocities carried out in Sudan by the Sudanese government under Omar Al Bashir. Essentially, he sent in Sudanese soldiers and and a militia known as the Janjaweed into Darfur. It's thought they attacked civilians and perhaps 300,000 civilians were killed. Two and a half million were displaced. And it's one of the this century's most atrocious acts by a government. In fact, the International Criminal Court has laid several charges against Omar Al Bashir for crimes against humanity and genocide. Now, this case in New York was brought by three people who were involved in those atrocities. They retold terrible things which happened to them, being subjected to knife attacks, burned with cigarettes. One of the plaintiffs, a woman, was sexually assaulted. And they claimed essentially in court that BNP Parabas, this French bank, was partially responsible for what went on in Darfur because it had helped fund or facilitate the Sudanese government's trading with the rest of the world. And so essentially brought it money which was then he was then able to use to fund these atrocities.

[Main Presenter/Host]

And just tell us why this is so key as well in terms of opening up to a wider Class action case.

[Paul Henley (Interviewer)]

Yeah.

[Reporter/Interviewer]

There are apparently at the moment around 20,000 US citizens now, US citizens, but originally people from Sudan. So they're waiting in the wings really to see how this case has transpired. Now, the bank all along said that they acknowledged that they'd done business with the Sudanese government under Omar Al Bashir. But what they said was essentially that these atrocities would have happened anyway without them. Sudanese government would have traded its commodities, oil and cotton, without their help. And so they weren't really responsible. That was their argument. But the jury rejected that and awarded compensation.

[Main Presenter/Host]

And it's not the first time the bank has been in a US Court.

[Reporter/Interviewer]

It isn't. Ten years ago it settled a case with the Department of Justice in the United States who accused the bank essentially of ignoring US Sanctions when it came to using the US Financial system to facilitate deals with Sudan and Cuba and Iran as well. And it was fined nearly $9 billion. So there is a legal case already, as you mentioned there, relating to this French bank about them contravening rules and probably other people, as we've just mentioned there, the people in America, ex Sudanese people, they're probably waiting and launching their own cases now.

[Main Presenter/Host]

Mickey Bristow, A temporary ceasefire that had brought relative calm on the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan appears to have been broken in an alleged Pakistani airstrike on the southeastern Paktika province. The Taliban government in Afghanistan says at least eight people were killed in the attacks. An Afghan cricket board official also said three of those killed on Friday evening were local cricket players. The truce which began on Wednesday, had halted a week of intense border clashes between the two countries. Many civilians and soldiers from both sides had been killed in the fighting. Our global affairs reporter Ambarasan Ettarajan has been following the latest developments.

[Interviewee/Expert/Commentator]

For us, this all happened after Taliban accused Pakistan of violating the ceasefire by targeting a couple of areas in Paktika province by using drones and other assets to target. But many civilians were killed, according to the Taliban authorities. But we haven't heard anything from Pakistan side. This all coming, you know, hours after a 48 hour ceasefire was declared between Pakistan and Afghanistan after a week of intense fighting along the border in which dozens were killed.

[Main Presenter/Host]

And this comes off the back of an escalation in attacks between the two countries, especially since 2021 and when the Taliban retook Afghanistan.

[Interviewee/Expert/Commentator]

According to Pakistani officials, since Taliban took over, more than 3,700 people have been killed inside Pakistan due to attacks by Islamist insurgents. And Islamabad accuses Kabul of providing safe havens to these Islamist militant groups. And that is the main issue. Bone of contention between the two countries that Kabul is providing some sort of sanctuary for these militants, a charge denied by the Taliban authorities. And that is now escalating into a major crisis for between the two countries. On the other hand, you have to see how Pakistan's position has changed. The Defense Minister of Pakistan, he was posting on social media a short while ago saying that when you see more and more action against our security forces, we will go after wherever the threat comes from. So what it looks like the message seems to be as and when the attacks happen inside Pakistan, then Pakistan would respond. And now they're saying we are not going to issue any diplomatic notes or appeal. We are going for straightaway into action. That means what some people call it as a new normal.

[Main Presenter/Host]

There were planned talks this weekend in Qatar between the two sides. How will this affect those conversations?

[Interviewee/Expert/Commentator]

The Taliban officials have been saying that they are planning to send a delegation to Qatar for talks with the Pakistani officials on how to defuse tensions between the two countries. So far, Pakistan have not commented really about the talks, but they're confirmed about the talks as well. Even though media has been reporting about these talks, now it becomes more complicated, given the latest round of attacks, how far both sides will be sitting together to discuss these matters. But countries like Saudi Arabia and Qatar have been putting pressure on both countries to engage in a dialogue to reduce tensions between the two countries.

[Main Presenter/Host]

Ambrasan Ethirajan at its peak, the Roman Empire stretched from Britain to the Nile river to the Persian Gulf. But one place the Romans did not conquer was the city of New Orleans in the southern U.S. so how did a memorial stone for an ancient Roman soldier end up in the back garden, there to be discovered by a woman clearing weeds? Professor Suzanne Lusnia of the Department of Classical Studies at Tulane University spoke to Paul Henley.

[Paul Henley (Interviewer)]

I was sent an email by the homeowner who found it in her backyard. And I looked at the photo and I just had a shiver up my spine because it looked like a genuine Roman inscription. But to see that it was here in New Orleans in the garden in their backyar card, seemed very odd and unexpected, certainly, to say the least.

[Narrator/Announcer]

What did it say? In Latin?

[Main Presenter/Host]

Yes.

[Paul Henley (Interviewer)]

So in Latin, it's a funerary inscription. It says, dis manibus sexto congenio vero militi classis praetoriae misenensis natione besso vixit annos quadriginta duo militavit annus viginti duo tutela triere asclepio Fecarunt Attilius Carus et Vetius Longinus Heredes Bene Morenti. To the spirits of the dead for or on behalf of Sextus Congenius Verus, soldier of the Praetorian fleet Misenensis, from the tribe of the Bessi, who lived 42 years and served 22 years in the military on the trireme Asclepius Atilius Carus and Vetius Longinus. His heirs made this for him. Well deserving.

[Main Presenter/Host]

But the obvious question now how this.

[Narrator/Announcer]

Greystone found its way across the Atlantic.

[Interviewee/Expert/Commentator]

We know that it's missing from a museum collection in Italy.

[Narrator/Announcer]

Do we?

[Main Presenter/Host]

Correct.

[Paul Henley (Interviewer)]

We knew that it came from the museum at Civitavecchia. It had come from the old museum, the Museo Civico. That museum was basically destroyed in bombings that happened in May of 1943. Later on, there was a person from New Orleans who was serving in the uso. Their job was to provide. Provide services for the military, in particular, entertainment. So he was a vocalist, A singer who was based in Italy, and he was the one who had it. It was in his house here in New Orleans. His granddaughter saw the news story that our local news here in New Orleans ran about this on television, recognized it as something that had been in her grandfather's house and that she had acquired it, had been handed down through the family, and that she had been the one who put it into the backyard of this house. By mid May, we had handed it over to the FBI. So they will handle it eventually, at some point, there will be a transfer made and it will go back to that museum in Civitavecchia.

[Main Presenter/Host]

Professor Suzanne Lusnia. She's already been credited with driving a new wave of fans to American football because of her relationship with the NFL star Travis Kelce. Now it appears Taylor Swift's influence has spread to the world of fine art, too. A museum in central Germany is welcoming hundreds of extra visitors who have come to see a painting of Ophelia from Shakespeare's Hamlet, which inspired the imagery for Swift's new song, the Fate of Ophelia. Chantal Hartle has this report which starts with a word from Swift herself.

[Reporter/Interviewer]

The album cover is a reference to the famous Ophelia painting, which then ends up being referenced in the music video which ends.

[Promotional Voice/Advertiser]

Ophelia's plight is captured in a painting by the German artist Friedrich Heisenberg, thought to date back to the year 1900. It shows her laying in a stream surrounded by water lilies, white dress flowing, a dramatic downcast gaze. The very pose Swift recreates in the opening scene of her video. Initially, Swift's fans thought she had found her muse in the better known older portrait of Ophelia by John Everett Millais, which hangs in the Tate Gallery in London. But the colour of the dress and the angle of the pose then pointed them to Heiser. Now, hundreds of Swifties, as they're known, have been flocking to the museum in the city of Wiesbaden to see the art thought to have inspired their idol. One family traveled to the museum from Hamburg, a five hour drive away. This fan from the US was impressed by the painting.

[Reporter/Interviewer]

It's very ethereal and you can almost see the water flowing, the movement of it, the movement of the fabric, the contrast of the light and the dark. It's beautiful. It's breathtaking.

[Promotional Voice/Advertiser]

Despite long queues forming at times, museum director Andreas Henning said he was delighted to welcome all the new visitors.

[Interviewee/Expert/Commentator]

Just last weekend, several hundred Swifties were here. I find it absolutely wonderful that they approach the art with great respect and maintain a good distance, distance. And when there are several of them, they naturally form a line so that each person can have a moment with the artwork.

[Promotional Voice/Advertiser]

Museum staff are still holding out for one extra special visitor, though Swift herself, Chantal Hartle reporting.

[Main Presenter/Host]

And that's all from us for now. But there will be a new edition of the Global News podcast later. If you want to comment on this episode or the topics covered in it, you can send us an email. The address is globalpodcastbc.co.uk you can also find us on XBCWorldService and you can use the hashtag globalnewspod. This edition was mixed by Martin Williams and produced by Peter Goffin and Anna Aslam. And the editor is Karen Martin. I'm Ankur Desai. Until next time. Goodbye.