Times Talk by Times of Malta

In an exclusive interview with Times of Malta, Melvin Theuma, the middleman who helped arrange Daphne Caruana Galizia’s murder, tells Mark Laurence Zammit why he stands by every word of his evidence against Yorgen Fenech, and why the acquittal has not changed what he knows.

At the end of an intense trial that lasted over two months, the nation held its breath on Wednesday evening as the jury announced a verdict that acquitted Yorgen Fenech of all charges over the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia, by eight votes to one. Reactions, comments and protests stretched late into the night. And the morning after the verdict Clara Farrugia sat down with Mark Laurence Zammit to...

Editorial note: A version of this episode with English subtitles will be available on the Times of Malta YouTube channel As the trial of Yorgen Fenech approaches its end, Clara Farrugia answers some of the many questions readers have sent us about this trial. Is any vote by jurors valid? If Fenech is acquitted, will Melvin Theuma be charged with perjury? Why don't courts use lie detectors during t...

A version of this show with English subtitles will be published on the Times of Malta YouTube channel. Yorgen Fenech is the man in the dock. This past week, he was the man on the witness stand, too. The Tumas Group heir and business magnate spent four days testifying in his own trial, as he seeks to defend himself from charges of complicity in the murder of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia. Fenec...

One of the biggest and most consequential criminal trials in history almost fell apart on Friday. After 45 days of intense hearings, the defence demanded the judge dissolves the trial of Yorgen Fenech after court was told that the jurors had access to news headlines about the trial. In the short time judge Edwina Grima allowed herself to come to a decision, court reporter Clara Farrugia left Hall...

When the live blogs from the trial of Yorgen Fenech went silent on Friday, social media was flooded with people asking why no journalist would tell them what was going on. In this special episode of Times Talk, court reporter Clara Farrugia and Mark Laurence Zammit unpack all that happened when Yorgen Fenech, the judge, witnesses and all jurors, lawyers and journalists visited the sites connected...

The taxi driver who says Yorgen Fenech paid him €150,000 to have Daphne Caruana Galizia spent five gruelling days on the witness stand this week, answering questions from prosecutors and defence lawyers. Melvin Theuma - the pardoned middleman who is the prosecution's star witness in the case - had a lot to say. Mark Laurence Zammit and Clara Farrugia unpack a week's worth of blistering testimony i...

From WhatsApp chats and an infamous video to a huge Electrogas investigation, a lot happened this week A week is a long time in politics, they say, and so it seems in the trial of Yorgen Fenech as well. A lot has happened in court this week, and Times Talk unpacks it all in the latest episode about the murder trial. Court reporter Clara Farrugia and journalist Mark Laurence Zammit go over the hear...

In June 2025, a retired Maltese bishop caused a stir when he said on TV that abuse victims should first be encouraged to forgive their abusers before going to the police. As backlash grew, George Frendo apologised, saying he had not meant that forgiveness should substitute reporting such crimes to authorities. But the bishop’s initial statement left its mark on one woman. They were the same words...

The latest episode of Times Talk unpacks the last two days of Keith Schembri's testimony during the trial of Yorgen Fenech earlier this week. In the 30-minute episode, court reporter Clara Farrugia and Mark Laurence Zammit take a deep dive into some of the toughest questions the former OPM chief of staff faced from Yorgen Fenech lawyer Giannella de Marco. How did police find Schembri and Fenech wh...

Times Talk on the trial of Yorgen Fenech usually comes out on the weekend and includes a run-down of all that happened that week. But as former OPM chief of staff Keith Schembri took the witness stand on Tuesday, things got heated and prompted this mid-week episode about what happened before and during his testimony. How is Yorgen Fenech reacting to all of this in the courtroom, and what is the at...

It was a week of claims, counterclaims and secret recordings as the fourth week of the Yorgen Fenech trial drew to a close. Times of Malta court reporter Clara Farrugia and editor-in-chief Herman Grech sat down for a new episode of Times Talk to unpack the latest courtroom drama gripping the country. At the centre of the week’s proceedings was Johann Cremona, a business associate of Fenech, who sp...

As the third week of Yorgen Fenech's trial comes to a close, Times of Malta court reporter Clara Farrugia and editor-in-chief Herman Grech sat down for a new Times Talk episode to unpack the details of the courtroom drama that is gripping the country. Among the most chilling moments in Hall 22 this week was the testimony of Alfred and George Degiorgio, two of the three convicted hitmen, who linked...

As the second week of Yorgen Fenech's trial comes to a close, Times of Malta court reporter Clara Farrugia and Mark Laurence Zammit sit down for a new Times Talk episode to unpack the details of the courtroom drama that is gripping the nation. Among the most chilling moments this week was the testimony of Frans Sant, the last man to see Daphne Caruana Galizia alive. Sant shared a heartbreaking acc...

The trial of Yorgen Fenech, who is charged in connection with the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia, is one of the most consequential criminal trials in Malta's history. Three days into the proceedings, Mark Laurence Zammit sits down with Times of Malta's court correspondent Clara Farrugia to unpack the prosecution's opening case, explain how the jury was selected and discuss what to expect in the...

Political analysts Pierre Portelli and Robert Musumeci help Mark Laurence Zammit dissect the current state of Maltese politics. They discuss the performance of the Labour and Nationalist parties in the 2026 general election, Robert Abela's cabinet appointments and the (in?)justice of parliament's gender corrective mechanism.

The country's going to the polls in less than 48 hours, and this latest episode of Times Talk is an essential guide for the perplexed. It breaks down the mechanics of Malta’s electoral system - one of the most democratic, yet complex, in the world. Our speakers trace where your vote will go from the moment you slide it in the ballot box on Saturday till all MPs are elected next week. But the episo...

With just over a week remaining before Maltese voters head to the polls to choose Malta's next prime minister, the latest episode of Times Talk delves into the science and controversy behind political polling, as current surveys continue to indicate a significant lead for the Labour Party. Times of Malta fact-checker Neville Borg and Esprimi CEO Morgan Parnis joined the podcast. Borg giv...

It is very worrying the the election campaign has, so far, almost entirely revolved around 'what's in it for me', according to political analysts Lou Bondi and Michelle Attard Tonna. The two were speaking on the latest episode of Times Talk Campaign Watch during which they dissected the third week of the election campaign. The lavish promises are creating a sense of entitlement in people while mak...

The second week of Malta’s 2026 general election campaign sparked its first controversies. As Labour leader Robert Abela and Nationalist Party leader Alex Borg make their political pitches, mainly through cash bonanzas, are the country’s (medium-to-long term) problems being ignored? In this episode of Times Talk, Times of Malta editor-in-chief Herman Grech sits down with former Labour deputy leade...

Prime Minister Robert Abela has called an early general election for May 30.The campaign’s opening days have already seen a wave of pledges and voter-focused measures, as the main parties begin to draw their battle lines. With the Labour government firmly in the driving seat and making full use of its incumbency advantage, the question remains: can the Nationalist Party, led by a relatively new le...

The youngest daughter of Ġiġa and Leli Camilleri has called for the reopening of the Twannie Aquilina murder case, claiming her parents were wrongfully convicted of a brutal crime committed by someone else. In a rare and emotional interview on Times Talk, Marthese Camilleri insisted that her brother was sexually assaulted before his throat was slit – a detail she claims was confirmed by an autopsy...

Broadcaster Peppi Azzopardi said he learned English as a young boy because the school he went to forced students to wear a sign around their neck that read: ‘I must speak in English’. And while he admitted the sign was demeaning, he insisted that it propelled him to learn English, as his parents did not know how to speak the language. Azzopardi was defending his controversial Popolin proposals dur...

There is a Russian oil tanker adrift about 100km to the South East of Malta right now. Its crew abandoned it two weeks ago after it was hit by a huge explosion. Russia hasn't come to pick it up and no country - including Malta - will touch it. Still though, all eyes are on it, as it is loaded with some 700 tonnes of fuel and it could blow up. In a 20-minute episode that will be out on Wednesday, T...

What are the chances that aliens are real? And if they are, what do they look like, where are they and how come they never visit? And if they were to visit, how would they even do it? Is time travel to the past and to the future possible? It turns out it is – at least one way. And what is the likelihood that there are other worlds like ours out there? The short answer is: very likely. The long ans...