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In November 2018, Steve Bannon, formerly a top aide to Donald Trump, was in the UK preparing for a speech at the Oxford Union.

The speech was interrupted by hundreds of demonstrators, and Bannon, scheduled to travel that evening, told Jeffrey Epstein in an message: "Activists delayed speech I doubt I can make the flight we r enroute to the airport".

Epstein responded: "There. Is a Gulf Air departing at 950 with a layover in Bahrain". Bannon replied: "U r an amazing helper".

These messages were released on this week alongside over 20,000 documents from the estate of Epstein, the deceased financier convicted of sex crimes.

The release by the Congressional committee contains an iMessage chat where Bannon's name is withheld. The BBC managed to establish his involvement by matching the timeline, occurrences, and locations referenced.

For instance, Epstein talks about chartering a plane from Scotland for the unnamed individual in the chat, and commends their "address at Oxford". Bannon took part in the Edinburgh conference on 14 November, and delivered the talk at the Oxford two days later.

Bannon, who faces no allegations of any misconduct, declined to comment on the inquiry.

'I'll make sure you're well looked after'

Bannon served as the president's key advisers in the lead-up to the 2016 election and in the early days of his first administration, but stepped down from the administration in 2017.

He has admitted he was producing a film about Epstein before his death and reportedly has approximately 15 hours of footage. In a live taping of his show recently, he said: "We plan to publish the film, the multi-part documentary, in the coming year - at the start of next year."

But the newly released documents indicate Bannon's relationship with Epstein went further than being his biographer, with the convicted paedophile occasionally appearing to serve like a aide.

A short time before the exchange in which Epstein appeared to have booked a charter jet for Bannon, Epstein said: "what's it like to have the highest-paid booking agent in history ".

Bannon thanked him: "U r pretty good assistant", to which Epstein replied "Therapies. Excluded".

Discussing a trip to "Abu Dhabi" in a separate text, Epstein assured Bannon: "I will ensure you are taken care of."

UK Politics Discussed in Exchanges

The released messages also reveal Bannon and Epstein talking about UK politics in that year.

Earlier on the day of his address at the Oxford Union, Bannon texted Epstein: "I've gotten pulled into the EU exit thing this morning with Farage, Boris and Mogg."

Then, in what seems like a reference to the UK prime minister, the embattled UK prime minister at the period, he added: "The guys are trying to move on. may soon…"

Epstein advised Bannon: "In my view remaining as much as you can in the UK. Best-- so others get the dedication of your follow through."

Soon after, Epstein inquired: "Will Theresa May survive". Bannon replied: "It seems unlikely however the guys here have no balls" and noted "Johnson ; Gove; Jacob Rees-Mogg; Davis - somebody has to take charge".

May was finally removed in May 2019 after withstanding two votes of no confidence in December 2018.

A spokesman for Reform UK told media: "Farage has never been in a meeting with Steve Bannon, Rees-Mogg and Boris Johnson." And there is no evidence such a meeting took place.

The US House of Representatives will vote next week on whether the Department of Justice should release all its records concerning its probe into Epstein, who passed away in jail in that year.

Interest in Epstein's associations with influential individuals was reignited this week after the release of more than 20,000 pages from his archives.

Some of those referenced the former president, who has consistently denied any impropriety. The president was a acquaintance of Epstein's for years, but says they fell out in the 2000s, a couple of years before Epstein was initially charged.