What happened
Democrats on the US House oversight committee have published a batch of previously unseen photographs and videos from Jeffrey Epstein’s private retreat in the US Virgin Islands, offering an unusually detailed look inside the compound where authorities say he preyed on minors. The material, captured by local law enforcement officials in 2020, shows bedrooms, bathrooms, a wood-panelled study with a chalkboard of cryptic terms and a room fitted with a dental chair and masks on the walls.

Who said what
“These new images are a disturbing look into the world of Jeffrey Epstein and his island,” said Robert Garcia, the top Democrat on the committee, adding that the release aims to “ensure public transparency … and help piece together the full picture of Epstein’s horrific crimes.”

The pictures are “chilling”, said Harvey Geh in The Sun. From the “bizarre dental room” to a chalkboard with “strange text written on it” – including the words “power” and “deception” – they provide a “harrowing glimpse inside Little St James, Epstein’s private lair”, said Katelyn Caralle in the Daily Mail.

What next?
The disclosures intensify pressure on the US Justice Department to comply with a law – signed by President Donald Trump – requiring the government to release its Epstein documents in a searchable, publicly accessible format by 19 December.

What happened
Frank-Walter Steinmeier has arrived in the UK for the first state visit accorded to a German head of state in 27 years. President Steinmeier and his wife Elke Büdenbender were feted at Windsor Castle last night with a state banquet hosted by the King and Queen.

Who said what
Steinmeier’s visit comes after the UK and Germany signed the Kensington Treaty in July, which aims to “reset relations with the European Union” after Brexit, said Gerhard Mey of Reuters.

While the first couple will carry out an itinerary of public events, “behind the scenes, talks are expected to focus on the partnership between two allies who were once enemies”, said Kate Mansey in The Times.

What next?
Today, Steinmeier (pictured above with the King) will lay flowers at the tomb of the late Queen Elizabeth II. He is also expected to address Parliament and meet with Keir Starmer at Downing Street, while Büdenbender will visit the Judith Kerr Primary School in south-east London, named after the German-born British author of “The Tiger Who Came to Tea”, said The Telegraph.

China’s marriage rate is at record lows and its divorce rate is on the rise – but at least some of the country’s singles are teaming up.

As the cost of living intensifies, single mothers are “searching for a new kind of partner: each other”, said The Guardian. Women are posting online in search of “like-minded parents” to share both a home and childcare responsibilities.

There are about 30 million single mothers in China, according to its Ministry of Civil Affairs. When parents divorce, “only one in six fathers chooses to raise their children”, said China Daily. That leaves more than 80% of those families being led solo by a woman.

“The strain is acute,” said Chinese online magazine Sixth Tone. Long working hours “clash with rigid school schedules” – and many mothers are left “sprinting between office desks and classroom gates”. Despite legal obligations, some ex-husbands refuse to pay child support and state welfare is minimal. Government data shows that a significant proportion of single mother families in developed cities live below the poverty line.

But in recent years social media platforms “have become lifelines where women trade advice, pool expenses and, in some cases, find one another”. Some “roommate mums” simply split the rent, but “others share school pick-ups and grocery runs, piecing together a version of family that is less solitary, less precarious and a little more possible”. But many say their children are the “biggest beneficiaries” of the arrangement, according to The Guardian.