Elgin Marbles: High level ‘private meetings’ ahead of Greek PM visit, source says
The return of the Elgin Marbles has been discussed in what was described to Sky News as “private meetings”.
A senior source said these “private meetings” have been held between senior levels of the Greek government and the British Museum about returning the Parthenon Sculptures – also known as the Elgin Marbles – this year.
The news comes as Mr Mitsotakis is due to meet with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer on Tuesday – where it is expected they will discuss the sculptures.
Former prime minister Rishi Sunak cancelled a meeting with Mr Mitsotakis in 2023 and believed the collection should remain in the British Museum.
Sir Keir is thought to be more favourable to a return of the sculptures than his predecessor.
A source close to the prime minister was quoted in the Financial Times saying: “We are open to whatever is agreed. It’s right to say there is no strong view on what should happen.”
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From 2023: Elgin Marbles row explained
The Parthenon Sculptures are part of a frieze that decorated the ancient Parthenon temple at the Acropolis in Athens.
British diplomat Lord Elgin removed the sculptures in the early 19th century while he was the ambassador to the Ottoman Empire, which then ruled Greece.
Lord Elgin claimed he had been given permission by the Ottoman Empire for the transfer of the sculptures and sold them to the UK government in 1816 before the marbles were passed into the trusteeship of the British Museum.
Turkey believes that permission was never given, and representative Dr Zeynep Boz supported Greece publicly in June at the United Nations Return & Restitution Intergovernmental Committee (ICPRCP).
Read more:
What are the Elgin Marbles and how did they end up in Britain?
Dr Boz, who is head of the department for combatting illicit trafficking for Turkey’s culture ministry, told Sky News they have access to the entire Ottoman archive and there is no proof of the permission form, known as a firman.
“There is no firman, only an Italian text referred to as a translation of the firman, but without the original document, we cannot authenticate it,” she said.
“Despite extensive archival research, no such firman has been found. It is even difficult to call this document a translation when the original is not available.”
The Parthenon Sculptures are part of a frieze that decorated the ancient Acropolis in Athens. Pic: Reuters
Dr Mario Trabucco della Torretta, classical archaeologist and longtime campaigner for keeping the Elgin Marbles in London, disagrees.
He told Sky News: “Overall, there is way more evidence for the permission than there will ever be for the fiction of the ‘theft’ of the marbles.
“The fact that we don’t have the original anymore is of no consequence. The original, seen by John Galt in Athens, was destroyed by the Greeks when they set fire to the archives of the Voivode in 1821.”
The British Museum Act 1963 prevents treasures from being legally given away by the British Museum. Meanwhile, the Department of Media Culture and Sport says it has “no plans to change existing government policy on restitution” and that it is up to the trustees of the museum to decide.
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The British Museum declined to comment about the informal meetings but said it continues to talk about a Parthenon Partnership with the Greek government.
This could mean that a loan agreement between the British Museum and the Greek government could be in the pipeline – paving the way for one of the most significant cultural monuments in the world to be returned to Greece more than 200 years after they were shipped out of the country.
However, for that to happen, Greece would have to agree to be loaned an artefact it believes it rightfully owns, so challenges remain.
Eddie Murphy has told Sky News he doesn’t ever expect to win awards – but will happily accept an honorary Oscar when he’s 90.
Murphy is one of the biggest stars in comedy after starting out on Saturday Night Live (SNL) in 1980 and starring in a number of big franchises from Beverly Hills Cop to Shrek.
His latest project is heist comedy The Pickup, centred on two security van drivers. Keke Palmer and Pete Davidson star alongside him.
Pete Davidson, Eddie Murphy and Keke Palmer in The Pickup. Pic: Amazon MGM Studios
Murphy says award recognition was never something that shaped the projects he chose.
“The movies are timeless, and they’re special, so for years and years those movies play and the movies have commercial success.
“So you make a lot of money and people love it, so you don’t even think about ‘I didn’t win a trophy!’ The response from the people and that the movie has legs, that’s the trophy.
“You know what I’ve earned over these years? One day, they’ll give me one of those honorary Oscars. When I’m really old. And I’ll say thank you so much for this wonderful honour. I’ll be old like that and I’ll have no teeth. I’m cool with getting my honorary Oscar when I’m 90.”
Murphy, 64, has only been nominated once – for Dreamgirls in 2007, when Alan Arkin won the best supporting actor Oscar for Little Miss Sunshine.
Murphy’s co-star Palmer says she considers Murphy an icon in the industry, and The Nutty Professor was a true display of his artistry.
Eddie Murphy as Sherman Klump in The Nutty Professor. Pic: Reuters
“I feel like recognition and [being] underrated and all this stuff, it annoys me a little bit because I think impact is really the greatest thing, like how people were moved by your work, which can’t really be measured by an award or really anything,” Palmer says.
“It’s very hard to make people laugh, and so when I think about it like The Nutty Professor, Eddie was doing everything, and I swear that the family members were real people.
“He didn’t camp it to the point where they weren’t realistic. His roles had integrity, even when he was in full costume. And I do think that’s something that should change in our industry. Comedy, it should be looked at just as prestigious as when you see somebody cry, because it’s that hard to make somebody laugh.”
Eddie Murphy and Pete Davidson in The Pickup. Pic: Amazon MGM Studios
Recalling his time on the 90s comedy, Murphy says he’s still in disbelief of what they achieved in making the film with him playing seven characters – Professor Sherman Klump, Buddy Love, Lance Perkins, Young Papa Klump, Granny Klump, Ernie Klump and Mama Klump.
“You can only shoot one character a day. And the rest of the time you’re shooting, I’m talking to tennis balls where the people were sitting.
“So to this day when I watch it, I’m like, wow, that’s a trip. But we were able to mix all that stuff up and different voices and make it feel so that you don’t even feel like when you’re watching it, someone have to tell you, hey, you know, those are all one person.”
The film won best makeup at the 1997 Academy Awards.
Security guards buddy comedy
Palmer says their new project, The Pickup, is responsible for one of the most memorable moments of her life when she mistook Murphy’s acting for real praise.
“First of all, Eddie gives me this big speech before I do the monologue, where he’s like, ‘this is not playing around. This is a pivotal point in the movie’.
“I’m crying in the scene, and then it comes to the end, and Eddie’s [clapping] like, and I’m literally like, ‘oh my gosh, thank you so much’. And he’s like, ‘I’m acting’. When I tell you, it was so crazy, yeah. That’s like one of my most memorable moments in life.”
Keke Palmer and Pete Davidson star in The Pickup
Davidson is excited to see how the UK puts its own stamp on SNL, the show where both he and Murphy got their start on-screen.
“It’s a smart idea to have SNL over there because it’s not that it’s a different brand of comedy, but it is a little bit. A lot of the biggest stuff that’s in the States is stuff that we stole from you guys, like The Office or literally anything Ricky Gervais does.
“This is the first time I’ve ever heard anything American going to the UK, so I think it’s great. I think it’s great to have two opposite sorts of takes on things, but both be funny. That just shows you how broad comedy can be, you know?
The Pickup is out on Prime Video now.
Dean Cain has been branded the “worst superman ever” as he announced he will join the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) “ASAP”.
The 59-year-old, who was cast as Superman in the TV series Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, announced he had joined the team amid the federal agency’s unprecedented immigration raids.
He told Fox News on Wednesday his recruitment video on Instagram had gone viral and since then, “I have spoken with some of the officials over at ICE and I will be sworn in as an ICE agent ASAP”.
“You can defend your homeland and get great benefits,” he said in the Instagram post where he appealed for his followers to join ICE.
Speaking with the Superman theme song in the background, he said “hundreds of thousands of criminals” had been arrested since US President Donald Trump took office.
He then told his followers they would get a series of benefits if they joined ICE, including a $50,000 (£37,407) signing bonus and student loan repayment.
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Who is being targeted in Trump’s immigration raids?
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“If you want to help save America ICE is arresting the worst of the worst and removing them from America’s streets,” he said, before adding: “I voted for that.”
ICE agents are under pressure from the White House to boost their deportation numbers in line with Mr Trump’s campaign promise to crack down on illegal immigration.
Cain’s post on Instagram received some backlash, with one user commenting: “Worst superman ever”.
Another said: “Shame on you Dean – that’s the most un-Superman thing you could possibly advocate.”
One fan turned against him and said: “Until I saw this I was such a fan. What a sad human being you must be.”
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