this is bbc news. i'mjoanna i'm joanna gosling. the i'mjoanna gosling. the headlines at nine: tributes to george michael, who has died at his home aged 53. the star's death has shocked fans around the world. former wham! band mate andrew ridgley said he was "heartbroken at the loss of my beloved friend". russia begins a day of mourning for those who died when a military plane taking them to syria crashed into the black sea. the former governor of the bank of england, lord king, says britain should be more "self—confident" about leaving the eu. also in the next hour: almost £3 billion is expected to be spent at the tills as the boxing day sales get under way. millions of bargain—hunters are expected to hit the high street, although analysts say early big discount events will affect post—christmas sales. and in half an hour, and in halfan hour, i and in half an hour, i will be looking back at a momentous year in

science, one that saw tim peake return to earth after a six—month stay in space. that is review 2016, the year in science, with me, rebecca morrell. good morning and welcome to bbc news. one of the biggest pop stars of the ‘80s and ‘90s, george michael, has died. he was 53, and is believed to have suffered from heart failure. he rose to fame as one half of the group wham! and went on to have a successful solo career. he sold 100 million albums worldwide and had 11 uk number ones. nick quraishi looks back at his life. # you put the boom boom into my heart #... suntans, bleached hair and upbeat songs propelled wham to number one around the world. they even conquered china.

# last christmas i gave you my heart # but the very next day you gave it away #... their most famous song heard every year will now have added poignancy. born georgios kyriacos panayiotou in north london, george michael was 12 years old when he met andrew ridgeley. they left school at 16 and set up wham! in1981. # time can never mend a careless whisper #... his biggest hit, careless whisper, came in 1984 but was written and produced when he wasjust 17. three years later, his solo album, faith, marked a shift from teen idol to serious singer—songwriter. # cos i gotta have faith #... with the success came brushes with the law. an arrest for lewd behaviour in a public toilet in los angeles. a driving ban in the uk. and a spell in prison

after crashing his car into a shop. george michael announced he was gay, later revealing he had been in the closet for years to prevent his mother from worrying about aids. in 2011 he nearly died in vienna after a bout of pneumonia. but more work was in the pipeline. a collaboration with producer naughty boy and a documentary called freedom which was due for release next march. when it came to pop music, george michael had it all — looks, voice and the ability to write a string of hits that will continue to be played for years to come. 0n the line is bruce dessau, who wrote the biography george michael: the making of a superstar. thank you forjoining us. i know that you didn't know george michael very well, but you were intrigued and fascinated by him, by the fact that you wrote a book about him. tell us what it was about him for

you. he was the biggest pop star of that era. we were about the same age, and to see the rise of wham! and what he did after that was to make that very difficult transition from being in the 80s equivalent of a p0p from being in the 80s equivalent of a pop boy band... we are seeing him now in his heyday with wham! . as you say, there was a period after that when his personal life came to the fore. tell us more about your perspective on all of that. when i was around and he was around, the mid—80s, he wasjust very successful, very creative. he wasn't recording as much in the last 15 years, and in the 1980s, he had

hit after hit. and ijust remember seeing him around london, dancing in night clubs, going out and enjoying himself, i will always have an image of him with designer stubble and a cowboy hat and denim jacket, that is the george michael i remember. cowboy hat and denim jacket, that is the george michael i rememberlj read the george michael i remember.” read that he said about his personal life and how at various points it threatened to overwhelm the success that he had achieved in his career, but he says it always righted itself like a duck in a bath. hejust had this great talent. it was a combination of a natural gift and ha rd combination of a natural gift and hard work. he grew up loving pop music, he absorbed it is a young teenager, and i think that inspired him to make great pop music himself, but he also worked very hard at it, and that is one of the reason that

he didn't produce a lot of new music, that he was a perfectionist, and that is why he reminds me of someone and that is why he reminds me of someone like prince or david bowie. and he was 19 when he wrote club tropicana with andrew ridgeley. he said he wrote it on a bus, it came to him almost like magic, a song that will last forever and he wrote it in that will last forever and he wrote itina that will last forever and he wrote it in a few minutes on the top deck ofa it in a few minutes on the top deck of a london bus. very much the sort of a london bus. very much the sort of voice that many of us will associate with growing up in the 80s, and the christmas songs that people will have been listening to so people will have been listening to so muchjust people will have been listening to so much just recently with last christmas. that is what is so shocking about this, we have been listening to his records in particular over the last week in the build—up to christmas, so to hear this news is devastating. how do you think he felt about his fame and the fa ct think he felt about his fame and the fact that he was in the public eye

and it did mean that when he had tribulations in his private life, it was all over the papers?” tribulations in his private life, it was all over the papers? i think that was difficult. it is part of the package, it is part of what goes with modern fame these days, that it is very hard to stay out of the public eye, and obviously that causes problems for him, and i think maybe that was partly why in recent yea rs maybe that was partly why in recent years he was drawn 0ettl, he wasn't seen out and about as much as he would've been, there was a time when he was living in north london that he was living in north london that he would have been out in local and bars, and he just he would have been out in local and bars, and hejust became a little bit more private in recent years. your overriding memory of him? bit more private in recent years. your overriding memory of him7m bit more private in recent years. your overriding memory of him? it is the 1980s, the music, the stubble, but it is having a good time, and those wham! songs in the early george michael years were all about having a good time. bruce, thank you

very much, he wrote george michael's biography. many have expressed their grief on social media, including a lot of the singer's celebrity friends. singer elton john posted a picture of the two on instagram, with the caption, "i am in deep shock. i have lost a beloved friend — the kindest, most generous soul and a brilliant artist. my heart goes out to his family and all of his fans." former supermodel linda evangelista, who starred in michael's music video for the song freedom, also posted on instagram. "i am beyond heartbroken and devastated by another tragic loss. rip dearest georgy." and singer bryan adams took to twitter to say, "rip george michael. i can't believe it. such an incredible singer and a lovely human being, far too young to leave us." while madonna wrote, "farewell my friend! another great artist leaves us." his 1980s contemporaries duran duran said, "2016 — loss of another talented soul. all our love and sympathy to @georgemichael‘s family." while simply red said, "it's hard to take in. one of our most talented singer

songwriters has left us. rip george michael. such sad, tragic news. 2016, please end." with me is our entertainment correspondent lizo mzimba. i think bruce summed it up when he said it was the memory of george michael that will always be the music, the stubble and the good times. absolutely, shocking news coming infor times. absolutely, shocking news coming in for many people are waking up coming in for many people are waking up to it this morning all who heard it laced last night —— late last night. he did that most difficult of things come he went from being a pop singer, pop writer, to writing complex, emotional music is a solo artist, and it is sometimes easy to overlook what a good songwriter he was because he had that amazing voice, that amazing presence, people forget that he put the hours in, he had the genius to come out with some incredible songwriting over those three orfour decades incredible songwriting over those

three or four decades that he was in the music business, and when i say fans, i don't just the music business, and when i say fans, i don'tjust mean members of the public. we have been hearing some from so the public. we have been hearing some from so many the public. we have been hearing some from so many celebrities and those who really admired how good a singer and songwriter he actually was, so he had his issues and problems, of course, but it is something we should always remember, even though people can be blessed with talent, they are also just people and they have problems and issues that everybody has. sometimes the fame that their talent brings them can exacerbate it, sometimes it can help. he was often very open about the issues and problems he faced, but overall he was an incredible talent who will be sorely missed, as we have heard so much. and it was chance for him and andrew ridgeley together at school, and they formed that band writing perfect pop from a young age. in the 19805, perfect pop from a young age. in the

1980s, when you think of pop music, you think of those wham! hits, freedom, the edge of heaven, wake me up freedom, the edge of heaven, wake me up before you go—go, they wanted to bring their music to the wider public, and they did, and george went his own way with some incredible solo writing, and he was admired in the music industry the way he stood up for his rights as an artist, the way he fell out with his record label, sony, overthe marketing. he is somebody who is looked up to and admired in the music industry. he didn't have the perfect life that he always wanted and that his fame and talent may have brought him, but his tunes will endure, his writing will endure, and at the end of the year when we have lost so many artistic talents, he is

one that will hit people particularly hard. and as you say, a very talented artist of the 80s, but the fact that last christmas is one of the tunes most played at christmas means he is known to all generations. yes, he has been in the charts year after year after year, and the many, it is a song sums up christmas, and of course, it is the song that was kept off the number one spot by another song he performed in, band—aid, do they know it's christmas? in 1984. people will know him not least cos of songs like last christmas, every generation can admire his singing and songwriting talent. thank you, lizo. russia is holding a day of national mourning for the 92 people who were killed when a military

plane crashed in the black sea. authorities in russia say they've located the site where the plane came down yesterday, soon after it took off from sochi, heading to syria. 0ur moscow correspondent steve rosenberg reports. this is one of the final images of the tupolev 154 jet. it was taken by a journalist before he boarded the plane. the flight would end in tragedy. the aircraft crashed into the black sea. the russians scrambled helicopters and ships, but the search became a recovery operation. there were no survivors. the plane had taken off from a military airfield near moscow. it flew south, stopping in sochi to refuel. the final destination was syria, and russia's airbase, near latakia. but minutes after leaving sochi, it crashed. president putin offered his condolences to the families of the victims, and promised them his full support. on board were more than 60 members of the russian army's famous song and dance ensemble, once known as the red army choir. they had been due to give a concert at the russian airbase in syria.

translation: well loved, this ensemble. we valued them. they are our brothers, friends, colleagues. may they rest in peace. also killed in the crash, the prominent humanitarian activist and medic, elizaveta glinka, known to millions of russians as dr liza. throughout the day, muscovites brought flowers to the headquarters of the russian army choir. this disaster has left russia stunned and silent. millions of shoppers will hit the high street today as the boxing day sales get under way. the numbers are expected to be down from last year, with analysts saying that earlier discount events like black friday and cyber monday will affect post—christmas sales. an estimated £3 billion is to be spent at the tills today, with a further £900 million spent online. let's speak to amy cole,

who is in birmingham for us. is it busy there? it is pretty busy. there are some people queueing in the bullring since 2:30am, hoping to buy themselves a deal and a bargain. i'm in selfridge's at the moment and you can forget the traditional boxing day walk. people are walking the aisles, looking to get their hands on something really good. i'm joined by sam watts, the manager. is boxing day still a big day for you? it is out day still a big day for you? it is our biggest trading day of the year and boxing day sales are a tradition so and boxing day sales are a tradition so the customer comes out. it is an annual event for them. some of your competitors went into the sale a few days before christmas. we had black friday. has that impacted on what money they've got to spend today? absolutely not. we've got some really salary sale shoppers so

people are coming to us. great bargains. but we've got customers that konta was knowing that an boxing day they are going to get some of the first must seek new season items so it's notjust about the sale shopper any more on boxing day. we've seen those scenes of the mass crowds in oxford street but here in birmingham, what kind of customers do you have? is very large international amount of that come? absolutely. we've had a growth in out absolutely. we've had a growth in our international customer over the la st our international customer over the last few years and the way we've reacted to that is that we have far more mandarin speaking sales associates to really look after our international customer that is coming through. we've seen earlier this year in leeds, for example, the new shopping centre that opened there, and we've got manchester trafford centre and other big shopping malls. how do you compete on that type of scale? how can you offer something different here in birmingham? birmingham is the middle of the country so it is really easy for everybody to get to. just over

an hour from london. for everybody to get to. just over an hourfrom london. our for everybody to get to. just over an hourfrom london. 0urfirst customer of the day that purchased the first item was actually from essex so people come to us because we are so easy essex so people come to us because we are so easy to get to but here at selfridge's, we are about surprising and amazing our customers so we offer something that other stores don't offer. thanks very much for joining us. i have seen people with armfuls of handbags and a couple of the staff here, just nudging them slightly, saying, perhaps you ought to make a decision soon. thank you very much. the headlines on bbc news: tributes are paid to the music star george michael, who has died aged 53. his manager says he died of heart failure at his home in oxford yesterday. the former bank of england governor lord king says britain should be more self—confident about leaving the eu. and as we were just hearing, millions of bargain hunters are expected to hit the high street for the boxing day sales. retail

a nalysts say the boxing day sales. retail analysts say early big discount events will affect post—christmas profits. let's catch up with all the sport. sam alla rdyce let's catch up with all the sport. sam allardyce will let's catch up with all the sport. sam alla rdyce will take let's catch up with all the sport. sam allardyce will take charge of his first premier league match as crystal palace manager at watford this afternoon. he took over at selhurst park last friday, just a day after alan pardew was sacked. he has his eye on the january transfer window and wants to keep his best players as well as adding to the squad. rumours that may float around that people might be interested in oui’ that people might be interested in our players is also of great concern when you are a manager because that is very disruptive and can put a player of his game, and we don't wa nt player of his game, and we don't want any of that. we are trying to recruit and make the squad a little bit bigger and a bit more strength and depth would obviously be a key area for me but i think the players here are good enough but also, if we

can add to that, let's try and do it. chelsea kubo -- chelsea, who can add to that, let's try and do it. chelsea kubo —— chelsea, who had a 6—point lead at that the premier league, are at home to bournemouth. they will set a new club record if they make it well straight league wins against bournemouth, but they will have to do without kante and diego costa, who are suspended. we have been working well this this week to try to find a solution and continued to win, to take the points. we all know that against bournemouth it would be easy because it isa bournemouth it would be easy because it is a very good team. it's been nearly five years since arsenal lost three games in a row in the premier league and they're faced with that prospect today. after defeats to everton and manchester city, they have seen them slipped nine points behind chelsea at the top and manager arsen wenger is determined to stop the rot at home

to west brom today. we are ready for the fight and we want to respond. i think in 20 games, we lost the last two but our quality has been consistent since the start of the season and we want to respond in a strong way and in a determined way. i think everybody is focused to do that. david moyes will make his first return to old trafford as a manager this afternoon, when his struggling sunderland side take on manchester united. moyes replaced sir alex ferguson in 2013. he was proclaimed the chosen one, but lasted only ten months as united struggled under his stewardship. in today's late game manchester city are away at hull city who are currently bottom of the table on goal difference. pep guardiola's side are still without the suspended sergio aguero, but travel to east yorkshire, having won their last two games, including a 2—1win over arsenal. i'm not expecting now, like we play against hull city, it will be easy.

they are teams at the top of the league. it is quite similar. elsewhere burnley take on middlesbrough, champions leicester are at home to everton, relegation—threatened swansea are at home to west ham. you can keep right up to date with the action on final score on the red button, as well as on five live and the bbc sport website. rain cut short the opening day of the second test between australia and pakistan in melbourne. before the weather intervened, a milestone for azhar ali. a half century saw him past the 1000 run mark for the year. his unbeaten 66 helped pakistan to reach 142—4. to make up for time lost to the rain, day two will get under way earlier than planned at 11 o'clock tonight our time. australia won the first test. and it's one of the highlights of the racing calendar — steeplechasing's mid—season championship, the king george vi chase at kempton. last year's winner, cue card, one of the sport's long—term stars, faces his up—and—coming stablemate thistlecrack for the first time.

that's all the sport for now. thanks very much. see you later. 50,000 people in england at risk of type 2 diabetes could be helped by an nhs programme that's being extended from today. the advice on better nutrition and exercise had already helped 20,000 people. it forms part of a package of new measures to curb type 2 diabetes, including funding for more specialist nurses. a former bank of england governor says the uk should leave the european single market when it exceeds the eu. —— exit the eu. mervyn king told radio 4's today programme that trading under the same conditions as countries on the continent could stop britain from taking full advantage of the opportunities of brexit. i don't think it makes sense for us to pretend that we should remain in the single market and i think there are real questions about whether it makes sense to stay in the customs union. clearly if we do that we can not

make our own trade deals with other countries. later today japan's prime minister shinzo abe will visit pearl harbor, and on tuesday, he'll meet barack 0bama there. 75 years ago, japanese warplanes bombed american battleships based in hawaii — an attack which pulled a stunned united states into world war ii. laura bicker reports from washington. december the 7th 1941. a date which will live in infamy. the japanese attacks came in waves during a deadly two hours. bombs ripped through us battleships, crippling the pacific fleet and killing over 2000 americans. survivors recalled that the once bustling port burned for hours. i had a fire hose in one hand trying to put out the fires, and with the other i went around memorising these nametags so i could write to their parents and tell them what happened to their sons. after 75 years, there is now

a solemn promise between the two countries never to repeat the horrors of that war. and the us and japan have developed a close relationship. barack 0bama was the first sitting president to visit hiroshima, a powerful symbol of reconciliation. we force ourselves to feel the dread of children confused by what they see. we listen to a solemn cry. shinzo abe spoke of an alliance of hope as the first japanese prime minister to address the us congress. i offer my eternal condolences. cheers, kanpai. questions remain about the strength of any future relationship with the next president. newsreel: those who lost their lives at pearl harbor will never be forgotten. but these few days will be about remembrance and laying to rest the final ghost of a world war which brought out the worst in humanity. laura bicker, bbc news, washington.

in many parts of the world, it's the festive season and a chance to take a break from work and spend time with friends and family. but not for everyone. some people can't take time off. tim allman takes a look at those who've enjoyed a different kind of christmas this year. a long way from home, but celebrating christmas as best they can. us soldiers at an iraqi army base near mosul. plenty of turkey and tinsel, but thoughts are obviously elsewhere. it is kind of rough, because it is my first big holiday away from home, so i feel like a lot of people are getting really homesick. and i miss my family, i'm sure everybody else does, too. everybody‘s family is getting together for the holidays, and we are stuck out here. some people who are stuck even further out, the crew of the international space station. 0rbiting the earth at a height of 400 kilometres certainly gives you a different perspective

on this festive occasion. there is another very important aspect of being an iss, and that is seeing the planet as a whole. and it actually reinforces, i think, the fact that we should live as one people and strive for peace. from the expedition 50 crew, we want to wish you a merry christmas and a happy holidays. back on earth, christmas was celebrated in different ways. in macedonia, a fun run took place for 300 people dressed as santa claus. 0rganisers saying it had brought a nice red ambience to the streets. and in southern italy, these father christmases took to the water, kite surfing a great way to cut loose after a long night delivering presents. lovely sunny day the further south

you are. it is not the same everywhere. this was the scene a short while ago in aberdeen, 15 yesterday, 200 degrees and some heavy snow showers. snow showers aren't the only problem in scotland. with widespread bills and the met 0ffice amber warning for parts of the north, particularly 0rkney and shetland. 90 mph plus still possible. the showers keep going over the day, snow mounts up, a few showers for northern ireland and northern england. no showers further south, it should be a lovely sunny day, but for all much cooler than yesterday. showers fading and winds are starting to ease. it is going to bea are starting to ease. it is going to be a cold amount then we've been used to. widespread frosts developing and temperatures across many parts of england and wales below freezing, down to around minus

six or seven around southern parts of england and even in scotland and northern ireland a touch of frost to ta ke northern ireland a touch of frost to take us into a lovely bright tuesday. hello. this is bbc news with joanna gosling. the headlines at 9:29. george michael, one of the biggest stars of pop music in the 1980s and ‘90s, has died. he was 53. his manager gave the cause of death as heart failure. russia is beginning a day of mourning for the 92 passengers and crew who died when a military plane taking them to syria crashed into the black sea. a huge search operation continued throughout the night. the former governor of the bank of england, lord king, has said britain should be more "self—confident" about leaving the eu. he's suggested britain would be better placed to make trade deals with countries outside the eu if it left the single market completely. millions of shoppers are expected to hit the high street today as the traditional boxing day sales get under way. almost £3 billion is expected to be spent at the tills, with a further £900 million spent online. now on bbc news,

rebecca morelle looks back on the year in science — from british astronaut tim peake's adventures in space to a discovery that will transform our understanding of the universe. that's review 2016: the year in science. from the mission of a lifetime, this was the year british astronaut tim peake spent six months in space. to a colossal feat of engineering. in 2016, the world's largest radio telescope was unveiled.