The BBC has taken aim at US President Donald Trump over his calls to release the Epstein files.

10:52, Wed, Nov 19, 2025 Updated: 10:53, Wed, Nov 19, 2025

The BBC has taken a swipe at Trump on social media

The BBC has taken a swipe at Trump on social media (Image: Getty)

The Have I Got News For You team has mocked Donald Trump on social media after the President called for the US Justice Department to release its files on late paedophile Jeffrey Epstein. Yesterday, lawmakers approved a bill to release files from investigations into convicted sex offender Epstein, who died in prison in 2019 after taking his own life.

Last week, Trump and his links to the disgraced financier were back in the headlines after thousands of pages of documents were released. Some mentioned the President, but the White House has vehemently denied any wrongdoing. Trump has stated in the past that he cut ties with Epstein many years ago and has denied any links to his sex abuse.

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The move comes days after Trump said his government has "nothing to hide" in a Truth Social post encouraging Republicans to vote for the measure.

In the wake of the update, the BBC show Have I Got News for You couldn't resist mocking Trump on Twitter. Sharing a fake document with all its words obscured, the account's post read: "EXCLUSIVE PREVIEW: The Epstein files after Trump’s sudden call to release them."

The post sparked a mixed reaction, with many people flocking to the comments section. One wrote: "You guys used to be funny." A second added: "Is this the BBC bias they talk about? Does anyone remember HIGNFY before it became predictable?"

A third shared: "I agree the files will be well diluted by the time they are made public." Meanwhile, another said: "Funny isn't it. Damned if he does, Damned if he doesn't. No wonder he wasn't bothered about releasing them."

A fifth added: "‘The government’s had another s**t week lads, what are we going to do?’ ‘Easy. Let’s have a go at Trump!’"

The mixed reaction follows Trump's threat to sue the BBC for between $1 billion and $5 billion over a Panorama episode that spliced parts of his January 6, 2021, speech together.

The BBC issued an apology and said the edit had given "the mistaken impression that President Trump had made a direct call for violent action".

The controversy over the edit led to the resignations of the BBC's Head of News, Deborah Turness, and the Director General, Tim Davie.