Beautiful Virgin Islands

Thursday, Oct 30, 2025

Silvio Berlusconi, 85, parades girlfriend, 32, on social media

Silvio Berlusconi, 85, parades girlfriend, 32, on social media

Berlusconi, 85, seemingly undeterred by health woes, sex scandals and advanced age, posted a photo on Facebook in which he is gazing into the eyes of his 32-year-old lover Marta Fascina.

Former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi has flaunted his relationship with his girlfriend - 53 years his junior - on social media in one final charm offensive for the Italian presidency.

Berlusconi, 85, seemingly undeterred by health woes, sex scandals and advanced age, posted a photo on Facebook in which he is gazing into the eyes of his 32-year-old lover Marta Fascina, an MP in his Forza Italia party.

Fascina is Berlusconi's latest romantic conquest after he broke off his previous relationship with Francesca Pascale in 2020, who at the ripe age of 34 was simply too old for him.

The former prime minister's overt affection on social media is said to be part of a presidential campaign in which Berlusconi has already set about harassing parliamentarians to get them on side like 'a squirrel collecting nuts'.

Italy will choose a new head of state early next year, and with no official candidates yet to be announced, Berlusconi has launched the so-called 'Operation Squirrel' in an attempt to overcome a string of scandals and become president.

In this image posted on Facebook, 85-year-old former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi (R) gazes into the eyes of 32-year-old Marta Fascina, an MP in his Forza Italia party, wishing her a happy birthday

But the former prime minister's overt affection on social media is said to be part of a presidential campaign in which Berlusconi has already set about harassing parliamentarians to get them on side like 'a squirrel collecting nuts'

Fascina is Berlusconi's latest romantic conquest after he broke off his previous relationship with Francesca Pascale (left) in 2020, who at the ripe age of 34 was simply too old for him

Berlusconi's second wife, Veronica Lario (L), divorced the scandal-ridden media mogul in 2010 after he was caught on multiple occasions sniffing around younger women


There are substantial obstacles lying in Berlusconi's path to the presidency, yet he is promoting himself with the gusto that helped him win three parliamentary elections and become Italy's longest-serving post-war premier.

'I've met him twice in the last two weeks and he was totally fired up,' said a lawmaker from Berlusconi's Forza Italia party, who asked not to be named.

'He is very persuasive; there are many MPs who have switched party repeatedly who might listen to him and there are reports of paintings being given as gifts,' the political commentator Antonio Polito said.

But the billionaire media mogul is a highly controversial figure.

Though Berlusconi's penchant for younger girlfriends is evident, the 85-year-old has been the subject of several sex scandals with prostitutes, and is still on trial for bribing witnesses in an underage prostitution case.

The former PM was previously convicted of paying £6 million to underage Moroccan prostitute Karima El Mahroug, also known as 'Ruby the heart-stealer', for sexual services between February and May 2010, but was later found not guilty on appeal.

El Mahroug was reportedly an attendee of one of Berlusconi's many 'bunga bunga' sex parties held at his private villa.

Though Berlusconi's penchant for younger girlfriends is evident, the 85-year-old has been the subject of several sex scandals with prostitutes, and is still on trial for bribing witnesses in an underage prostitution case (left: Italian escort Patrizia D'Addario. Right: Moroccan prostitute Karima El Mahroug)


Besides his reputation for 'bunga bunga' parties, Berlusconi was temporarily barred from public office after a conviction for tax fraud in 2013, and has been accused of several cases of embezzlement.

Analysts believe such a divisive personality will find it hard to muster the broad support needed to elect a president, but Berlusconi has proved nothing if not persistent - both in his romantic conquests and in his drive to overcome adversity.

Aside from his miraculous return to public office after numerous scandals, the media mogul has also battled a string of health issues in the past two decades.

In late 2006 he was admitted to hospital with a minor heart problem after fainting, and underwent heart surgery in a US hospital in January 2007.

He later had major heart surgery in 2016 and has also survived prostate cancer, which he revealed in 2000 after having endured the disease for three years.

At the time he described his cancer ordeal as 'a nightmare lasting months', but said his battle with coronavirus last September had been the 'most dangerous challenge' of his life.

A man holds a poster depicting former Italian premier and billionaire media tycoon Silvio Berlusconi and reading 'The Quirinal is not a Bunga Bunga'. The Quirinal Palace is a grand building set on one of Rome's hillsides and is the official residence of Italy's president

Though he has not yet officially announced his presidential candidacy, there is already outrage in Italy at the prospect of the disgraced, scandal-ridden former PM becoming head of state (pictured: a protest against Berlusconi's candidacy to the presidency of the Italian republic in Rome on January 4, 2022)


Yet despite all of the above, Berlusconi is ploughing ahead with his unofficial campaigning, presenting himself as an experienced elder statesman of European politics.

Candidates for president do not usually declare themselves in advance of the election in parliament. However, Berlusconi's name has been put forward repeatedly in the media, and he has not tried to dampen speculation that he wants the job.

Asked about his presidential prospects at a conference in October, he said, referring to himself in the third person: 'I think Silvio Berlusconi can be useful to the country... I won't back down and I'll do what my country needs.'

He will encounter stiff resistance - some Italians have already taken to the streets of Rome to protest his potential candidacy, holding placards which read 'The Quirinal (Italy's presidential palace) is not a bunga bunga'.

If he were to become president, he would be the first to lead office while on trial.

Former Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi speaks to media following a meeting with center-right leaders in Rome, Thursday, Dec. 23, 2021


Gianfranco Rotondi, a veteran Forza Italia MP and a former minister under Berlusconi's last government said his former boss has a '50-50 chance to make it' in voting which starts around January 20.

Lorenzo Castellani, a political historian at Rome's Luiss university, said he predicted Berlusconi's attempt to fade, but expected him to be 'one of the kingmakers' in the presidential race.

The frontrunner in January's elections is currently Mario Draghi, the current prime minister, while sitting president Sergio Mattarella has also been mentioned as a credible option, despite saying he wants to retire.

Italian presidents are elected by approximately 1,000 national and regional lawmakers in a secret ballot.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
UK and Vietnam Sign Landmark Migration Deal to Fast-Track Returns of Irregular Arrivals
UK Drug-Pricing Overhaul Essential for Life-Sciences Ambition, Says GSK Chief
Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie Temporarily Leave the UK Amid Their Parents’ Royal Fallout
UK Weighs Early End to Oil and Gas Windfall Tax as Reeves Seeks Investment Commitments
UK Retail Inflation Slows as Shop Prices Fall for First Time Since Spring
Next Raises Full-Year Profit Guidance After Strong Third-Quarter Performance
Reform UK’s Lee Anderson Admits to 'Gaming' Benefits System While Advocating Crackdown
United States and South Korea Conclude Major Trade Accord Worth $350 Billion
Hurricane Melissa Strikes Cuba After Devastating Jamaica With Record Winds
Vice President Vance to Headline Turning Point USA Campus Event at Ole Miss
U.S. Targets Maritime Narco-Routes While Border Pressure to Mexico Remains Limited
Bill Gates at 70: “I Have a Real Fear of Artificial Intelligence – and Also Regret”
Elon Musk Unveils Grokipedia: An AI-Driven Alternative to Wikipedia
Saudi Arabia Unveils Vision for First-Ever "Sky Stadium" Suspended Over Desert Floor
Amazon Announces 14 000 Corporate Job Cuts as AI Investment Accelerates
UK Shop Prices Fall for First Time Since March, Food Leads the Decline
London Stock Exchange Group ADR (LNSTY) Earns Zacks Rank #1 Upgrade on Rising Earnings Outlook
Soap legend Tony Adams, long-time star of Crossroads, dies at 84
Rachel Reeves Signals Tax Increases Ahead of November Budget Amid £20-50 Billion Fiscal Gap
NatWest Past Gains of 314% Spotlight Opportunity — But Some Key Risks Remain
UK Launches ‘Golden Age’ of Nuclear with £38 Billion Sizewell C Approval
UK Announces £1.08 Billion Budget for Offshore Wind Auction to Boost 2030 Capacity
UK Seeks Steel Alliance with EU and US to Counter China’s Over-Capacity
UK Struggles to Balance China as Both Strategic Threat and Valued Trading Partner
Argentina’s Markets Surge as Milei’s Party Secures Major Win
British Journalist Sami Hamdi Detained by U.S. Authorities After Visa Revocation Amid Israel-Gaza Commentary
King Charles Unveils UK’s First LGBT+ Armed Forces Memorial at National Memorial Arboretum
At ninety-two and re-elected: Paul Biya secures eighth term in Cameroon amid unrest
Racist Incidents Against UK Nurses Surge by 55%
UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves Cites Shared Concerns With Trump Administration as Foundation for Early US-UK Trade Deal
Essentra plc: A Closer Look at a UK ‘Penny Stock’ Opportunity Amid Market Weakness
U.S. and China Near Deal to Avert Rare-Earth Export Controls Ahead of Trump-Xi Summit
Justin time: Justin Herbert Shields Madison Beer with Impressive Reflex at Lakers Game
Russia’s President Putin Declares Burevestnik Nuclear Cruise Missile Ready for Deployment
Giuffre’s Memoir Alleges Maxwell Claimed Sexual Act with Clooney
House Republicans Move to Strip NYC Mayoral Front-Runner Zohran Mamdani of U.S. Citizenship
Record-High Spoiled Ballots Signal Voter Discontent in Ireland’s 2025 Presidential Election
Philippines’ Taal Volcano Erupts Overnight with 2.4 km Ash Plume
Albania’s Virtual AI 'Minister' Diella Set to 'Birth' Eighty-Three Digital Assistants for MPs
Tesla Unveils Vision for Optimus V3 as ‘Biggest Product of All Time’, Including Surgical Capabilities
Francis Ford Coppola Auctions Luxury Watches After Self-Financed Film Flop
Convicted Sex Offender Mistakenly Freed by UK Prison Service Arrested in London
United States and China Begin Constructive Trade Negotiations Ahead of Trump–Xi Summit
U.S. Treasury Sanctions Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro over Drug-Trafficking Allegations
Miss USA Crowns Nebraska’s Audrey Eckert Amid Leadership Overhaul
‘I Am Not Done’: Kamala Harris Signals Possible 2028 White House Run
NBA Faces Integrity Crisis After Mass Arrests in Gambling Scandal
Swift Heist at the Louvre Sees Eight French Crown Jewels Stolen in Under Seven Minutes
U.S. Halts Trade Talks with Canada After Ontario Ad Using Reagan Voice Triggers Diplomatic Fallout
Microsoft AI CEO: ‘We’re making an AI that you can trust your kids to use’ — but can Microsoft rebuild its own trust before fixing the industry’s?
×