i wanted to bring us down this slimyjetty here cos i wanted to show off portsmouth harbour station. as you come in, you feel like you're on land, but actually, it's an old pier. and this used to function as a freight boat pier in the mid—1800s. i'm starting my rail adventure on england's southern coastline, passing through london, the midlands, into the yorkshire dales, then crossing scotland up

through the highlands, and hopefully making it to thurso, the most northerly railway station in the uk. sometimes find hermit crabs. there isn't a hermit crab in this one, though. tannoy: please buy a ticket before getting on to a train. | as luck would have it, i happened to be wearing the specific badge to the train we're travelling on. 166210. i actually used to get this train to see my parents when i used to live in portsmouth. so, yeah, i'm really excited. and all the better doing it on br rolling stock, too. essentially, that means trains made in the uk in the era of british rail up to the mid—90s before the network was privatised. tickets, please. hiya~ _ hello. ta. thank you. this country invented the railway, and once, we used to design and build locomotives that were sent across the world, slashing journey times

between great cities. but as the uk's manufacturing industries declined, railway companies here found it cheaper to import trains from overseas. yeah, 70007 and 66528. 007, and then there's 08 shunter, 08785. it was really the freight trains that, um, kind of kick—started my social media. um, during covid, i went out and filmed the freight trains... ..uh, passing my parents�* town in somerset when i was there during covid. ah! he laughs. oh, it gave me a shock. i have 5.4 million followers in total between tiktok and instagram...

..and that's happened in the space of about three years, so it's been a pretty wackyjourney. hellfire! 0h. unfortunately, we hit a snag. our next train from salisbury to london has been cancelled due to an incident on the line. back on. i was literallyjust there on the other side of the platform, and they said this train is now actually going all the way to waterloo. the line has reopened. until it wasn't. right, well, we need to run over to the reading train then. that service has just been cancelled. so, back and forth, back and forth, but we're heading now to reading, which was the original plan. wasn't the original original plan. welcome aboard our chariot to reading. tannoy: the next|

station is bramley. well. . .i caught two freight trains in the space of about 15 minutes at reading. and also, we've managed to maintain our br rolling stock era only criteria, even though we've had a massive spanner thrown in the works, so, yeah, happy days. well, ifinally made it to london, where i'll be stopping for the night. nice to meet you. yes, see you. and there really is only one obvious choice for a railway enthusiast. st pancras hotel opened in the mid—19th century when rail travel was booming. oh. oh, my word.

ha—ha. 0h! 3745. and to think they were going to knock this station down in the �*60s. tannoy: this train is l formed of nine coaches. will passengers intending to travel on this service please join the train now as it is ready to leave. very cool. thank you. no worries. thank you. nice to meet you. there you go. got the right badge. so we're jumping on a very special class 91, 91110... ..which is the speed record holder for electric locomotives in the uk. and it's just on the other end down here.

so, this is the beast up at the front. if we were to hear this depart, there's like a succession of noises. it's almost like it just waking up. so, it starts off with a... imitates low steady hum. ..and then immediately after it goes, it goes... imitates loud air hiss. and then that is a continual noise of... loud air hiss. ..and then there's a... imitates whooshing. ..noise. and then it, uh... train whooshes. like that. so, the plan today is to get to leeds via a little diversion. you'll see why. train horn blows. so, i've been invited to

derby litchurch lane. some of the trains i'm travelling on were built here. in fact, it's the only factory left that still makes british trains from scratch. most are imported to the uk in kit form. kathryn lancaster has graciously offered to show me around. we're the only place that do everything. so, yes, we've got the history, and we date back to 1876, and you can see that from the victorian buildings, but we are the only site in the uk that can do everything, right from design through to test and delivery. wow. inside these buildings, it's like a railway kind of womb, isn't it? yes. and you have these train babies being put together. you love this, don't you? yeah. how long have you worked here? i've been here since 1988, so i've done 35 years plus. wow. um, loved every day. never had two days the same. you're getting excited cos this is going past, aren't you?

that's one of these. perfect! you've one...? yes. yeah, yeah. yeah. that's so cool, just... that was not set up. no, no. now, this is something i've not seen before. part of the train assembly line in action. oh, my word. told you. moves quicker than i thought it would. but now, is it a matter of the operator just getting precise inputs? yeah, completely. he's over there, he's got the remote, and he's listening to all four banksmen, who are now lining it up. they'll be on their knees now, getting low, low, low. are you ready for this? i suppose what ijust witnessed like seeing cow without any

legs. and then putting it on its legs. it's like, yeah, that's definitely a now. love -auttin that's definitely a now. love putting things _ that's definitely a now. love putting things together - that's definitely a now. love putting things together quite anything on the mainline? not personally. anything on the mainline? not personally-— personally. are you ready for this is a low _ that is the traverser. oh, my word. that's a serious bit of kit. and you can go in the cab. can i? yeah. 0h! rich, can i bring francis up? yeah. 0k, i'mjust going to get my gopro. 0k. gopro. thanks, kathryn. hello. good afternoon. whistle blows. so, the guys have just gave me the one whistle to go. i then start giving it a bit more speed.

oh, my word. a bit more speed, a bit more speed, de—clutch, and then all i'm going to do is keep putting my foot steadily on the brake... yeah _ ..and when it gets to the end, just bring it to a nice and steady stop. wow. that was very dramatic. when you've been doing it for 30—odd years, it comes pretty natural. he blows whistle twice. that's my two whistles to go... ..so i now start going forward. you like your diesels, then? i love my diesels. i've been trainspotting ever since i was a little kid. 0h, fantastic. well, they say, once you're bitten by the railway bug, it never goes away. no, it never goes away. it never goes away. well, i could have stayed here all week, but i have a train to catch.

this is a class 158, and it was actually made in the factory where we were yesterday. so, its day three of our railway adventure across the uk, and we'll be taking this train today to ribblehead on the settle and carlisle line, which, in my opinion, is one of the most beautiful trainjourneys in the uk. francis... hiya. i know that face. nice to meet you. i've seen your video many times. larryjones is an untrained tour guide covering the settle to carlisle heritage line in north yorkshire. he is part of a volunteer group that offer free walks, trails and tours, mainly around the ribblehead area, which is our next stop.

thank you. careful, francis, don't get excited! you're not going to run after it, are you? and this is why a lot of people stop here. a 15—minute walk from the station, and you'll be under this impressive victorian structure. the ribblehead viaduct. it's just staggering, isn't it? oh, it'sjust amazing. you can only really make out how big it is by comparing it to the vans next to it. exactly. 104 foot, 2a arches... ..quarter of a mile long. during the 1980s, british rail threatened to close the settle to carlisle line, mainly because the viaduct

was crumbling and the cost to repair it was high for a line with dwindling passenger numbers. a six—year—long campaign to save the railway eventually caused parliament to intervene and banned it from closure. nice one. thanks. nice to meet you. nice to meet you, too. see you _ take care. and now, it's the local community that volunteer to maintain the stations along the line as well as to encourage tourists to come. how does it feel to be able to help to preserve this part of british rail history? for me, it's amazing that this line is just still running today, and there's ten stations that all look the same. they're all what they call midland or derby gothic red. so, they're all kept the same. we put the planters out with flowers in, uh, keep them all looking, you know, nostalgic, like they did in the victorian era. and as an enthusiast, seeing how all of this has been preserved... yeah. ..you know, it makes me feel a bit emotional, really. and you can actually

stay here, can't you? yeah, you can at many of the stations. these were all station master's houses at each of the stations, and now they're all staycation properties that people can ring up and stay at, so... 0h, brilliant. tannoy: the next train i to arrive at platform two... well, it's time to finally travel over that beautiful viaduct. tannoy: this train is i formed of eight coaches. it's day four of our railway adventure, and we're up in scotland, specifically glasgow queen street. and behind me, there's a sound that i'm very familiar with. it's a class 43 hst. can i get a picture with you? yeah, yeah. i love meeting people who have watched my videos cos it gives me an opportunity to say thanks. yeah, the initial kind of, like, sort of slight anxiety around it isn't really so much any more. thanks, man. nice to meet you. nice to meet you, man.

i love making people happy, so to see someone happy in person is nice. i looked over, and i was like... sadly, these intercity high—speed trains are being pulled off the tracks within the next few years, so i plan to make the most out of today. and on board, there's a chance to catch up with a fellow train enthusiast. hi, jude, arthur. hello, francis. 0h, hello, francis. how's it going? all right. enjoying the hsts. yeah. i first met arthur last year whilst trainspotting near brighton. i think we're going to get off at kingussie. 0k. um. some good shots there. jude often runs her business from the train, which, to be honest, sounds pretty perfect to me. did your ears pop? yeah. we just passed the sign for the summit of the drumochter pass, and it's the highest point

of the uk network at 1,484ft. tannoy: please mind the gap when leaving the train. - down to the door. yeah. it's all right. here, my daughter's going to love this. i honestly, she follows you. well, nice to meet you. get my photo, greg. she'll no' believe this. is that it? brilliant. i nice to meet you.

i mean, it might actually look quite nice to photograph it from up... see in that in that field there? that's what i was thinking. arthur eats, sleeps, breathes, trains. it's how he has made friends. it's how he's got, you know, a social element. arthur was diagnosed with autism when he was quite small — four, and kids at school didn't really get get that, so it felt like his world was quite lonely. i mean, he didn't care cos he wasjust interested in the trains, much like my train driver husband. he has found a passion. trying to get a good photo. usually angle, light. yeah. the light�*s not terrible. yeah, well... it could be worse. all right, here we go. school holidays, this is where i am. i'm not in an office. i'm not sitting on my sofa. i'm standing while my son is on a bridge or at the end of the platform, and i'm just working from where i have to.

and my clients are not averse, luckily, to me setting up a zoom call in a waiting room or talking to me, and i'm like, "hold on a minute, we're just going through a tunnel." i get asked a lot about why i do this, but for me it's his passion, and... ..i don't know, what mum wouldn't want to, like, allow and encourage their kid to be passionate about something? oh! train horn. that might have scared me. well, let me guess, was that when they, um, did the horn? maybe. then there's that. that one's a bit better. yeah, that's quite good. i think yours is better framed than my one. my great uncle actually campaigned to keep this

line open when it was planned for closure. the particular section between inverness and kyle of lochalsh. tannoy: we are now| approaching dingwall. please mind the gap when alighting from this train.

so, during this final journey, i'vejust learned that the factory we visited in derby a few days ago is stopping production, and thousands ofjobs are now at risk. it's a real shame cos we met people there who are so passionate and loved working there. what has been a thriving site for over 100 years is potentially coming to an end. train horn blows. there are some sounds on the railway that actually bring out a lot of emotion in me, especially thinking about derby now about derby now and what's happening. don't know why i'm getting emotional.

after stopping at 87 stations from the south coast to the north, ifinally made it to my final destination, spending just £169 on tickets over the past five days. well, i would say after travelling 900 miles and arriving here in thurso, i'm very, very, very proud to be a railway enthusiast... ..and i love our british railway network. oh! and what a destination to finish on. and with that, i'm going to take off.

hello. we've arrived at a bank holiday weekend, and i'm sure it comes as little surprise that the weather forecast is not entirely straightforward. yes, there will be some spells of warm sunshine, but there will also be some really heavy and slow—moving downpours.

however, it is not likely to be as wet as it was earlier on this week with heavy and persistent rain in many parts of the uk. that rain over the last day or so has been petering out, tending to ease away during friday. but there is another weather system running in from the east that will bring rain for some eastern parts on saturday. and then this weather system pushing in from the west, which will bring some outbreaks of rain in western areas. in between, some early mist and fog patches, clearing to give some good spells of sunshine, but this weather system here bringing cloud and some showery rain across east anglia, perhaps other eastern counties of england. and this weather front approaching from the atlantic will bring rain into the far south west of england by the end of the day. but in the sunniest spots, we're looking at temperatures up to 20 or 21 degrees.

during saturday nights, this first weather system here moves across northern england into southern scotland. could be some quite heavy rain with that. our second weather front will bring some rain into parts of wales, central and eastern parts of england, some of that rain getting into northern ireland. but as we get into sunday, really, these two different weather systems just break down into a mix of sunny spells and showers. now those showers getting going quite early in the day, actually. some of them will turn heavy and thundery, particularly through the afternoon. the heaviest showers likely to be across england and wales. but in the sunshine, it will feel relatively warm up to 19, possibly close to 20 degrees. and then by bank holiday monday, it looks like the focus of the heaviest showers will shift a little bit further north. parts of northern and eastern england. up across scotland, again, some pretty intense downpours with some flashes of lightning, some rumbles of thunder. temperatures may be coming down just a little bit, 16—17, possibly 18 degrees on monday afternoon. now, briefly, we'll see a ridge of high pressure trying to settle things down, but that won't last long.

it looks like this area of low pressure will bring another frontal system from the atlantic. this one moving eastwards quite quickly, we suspect, on tuesday. so cloud outbreaks of showery rain, some of that rain could be on the heavy side. temperatures 16, 17 or 18 degrees once again. now, as we move through tuesday night and into wednesday, that frontal system looks like it's going to progress eastwards. we mayjust see this front popping up here across southern parts for a time through wednesday, so that could bring a pulse of heavier rain across southern counties of england. obviously, at this range, that kind of detail remains open further north, a mixture of sunny spells and hefty showers. highs of17, 18 or 19 degrees, though still not feeling too bad given any sunshine. now through the end of the week and into next weekend, a lot of uncertainty about the forecast. it looks like high pressure is going to try to build its way in from the west. this high looks like establishing itself quite strongly in the atlantic, but the question mark is about just how strongly it will extend its influence across our shores and for how long.

i suspect there will still be some showers at times through the end of the week and into next weekend. but it could be that we see just a bit less in the way of rain and a bit more in the way of dry weather before now. —— bye for now.

this is bbc news. israel criticises an order from the un's top court — that it halt its offensive in the southern gazan city of rafah. and kenya's president sits down with the bbc, wrapping up his state visit to washington. hello. you are very welcome. the international court of justice doubles on disputes

between the international court of justice doubles on disputes between countries the international court of justice doubles on disputes between countries that the international court of justice doubles on disputes between countries that the catastrophic situation in gaza had deteriorated and described humanitarian conditions in rafah as disastrous. the icj has no enforcement powers and it is up to stairs to comply. —— states. the us — a key ally of israel — has yet to comment on the decision by the court — which also reiterated its call for the immediate release of all remaining hostages in gaza. our correspondent, anna holligan, sent this update from the hague. this is a hugely striking order. it goes further than any other provisional measures issued in this case by these judges, and it seeks to significantly alter the course of the conflict in gaza. so let's just have a look at what the judges have ordered israel to do. one, halt the military offensive in rafah immediately. allow unimpeded access for fact—finding missions,

any un mandated investigators so that allegations of genocide can be investigated.