ROME

STAR OF CONCLAVE, English actor Ralph Fiennes has taken pole position in the popular imagination, to replace Pope Francis, who has died.

And although Fiennes is not a priest, and has lapsed in his Catholicism, it would appear that the public believes he could play the role of pontiff if asked to do so.

“The Catholic Church, anxious to win back lost faithful, might just go for it,” insists Vatican expert Peter Paul, whose recent bestseller, The Balls of the Fisherman, explores gender stereotypes in the Church.