The investigation into possible collusion between Donald Trump's presidential campaign and Russia was reportedly sparked by a conversation that took place over a drink in a London bar.

George Papadopoulos, who was a foreign policy adviser to the Trump campaign, was said to have disclosed to a senior Australian diplomat in the bar that Russia had "dirt" on Hillary Clinton.

The meeting between Mr Papadopoulos and Alexander Downer, Australia's High Commissioner to the UK, was said to have taken place at the Kensington Wine Rooms, near Kensington Palace, in May 2016, the New York Times reported.

After emails hacked from the Democratic National Committee began being made public a few months later the Australians passed the information about the meeting to their US counterparts.