police in malaysia say they've identified the substance used in the murder of the north korean leader's half brother as vx, an odourless but highly toxic nerve agent. the substance was found on the face of kim jong nam, who died after being attacked last week at kuala lumpur airport. iraqi troops have recaptured mosul‘s airport, as they continue their attack on the so—called islamic state. iraqi officials say their troops have gained ground rapidly in outlying areas to the south of the city. elite counter—terrorism forces have nowjoined the advance. the mexican foreign minister, luis videgaray, has expressed concern and irritation about us policy towards his country. he told the visiting us secretary of state rex tillerson and the head of homeland security, john kelly, that current us proposals on migration were harmful. storm dorris has brought chaos across the uk. winds up to 95 miles

an hourand a across the uk. winds up to 95 miles an hour and a woman was killed in wolverhampton. trees and powerlines have been brought down. rail operators have been reporting delays, leaving many passengers stranded. many bridges and roads have also been closed. many houses have also been closed. many houses have been left without power. it was late morning when emergency services were called to wolverhampton city centre. a woman had been hit by flying debris. her head injuries were so serious, she died at the scene. hours later, a heavy panel was ta ken away as an investigation started. storm doris swept into scotland this morning, leaving drivers struggling in snowy conditions, like here, on the a71. the high winds did not stay anywhere for long but they did enough damage on the way, like on this moorland road in staffordshire. further south, this railway line

near st albans was closed by a single voluntary. such scenes were repeated across the rail network. the result was a long, frustrating day for many travellers. this was huston, where west coast main line services ground to a halt. my train has been cancelled so i'm unsure how to get home. i might have to stay an extra night. we didn't know till we got here that all virgin trains were cancelled, so we are stranded here and we can't get back to manchester, back home. 145 miles north in retford tonight, they were very laid back but they knew it could have been worse. are you thankful to have got back tonight? absolutely. ‘cause there are still a lot of people in london? yes, it was awful at king's cross, hundreds of people. i spoke to a lady and she got on the 1:10pm train, sat there for an hour and had to get off the train, and she was still in king's cross at 5pm when i was there. and look at the lucky escape a driving instructor in spalding

had this morning. spare a thought for the bumpy landings endured by air passengers. this was a service coming into manchester. storm doris will be remembered for its southerly track. it's now gone, but certainly not forgotten. time now for the travel show. this week we are in sudan to explore the vast, ancient ruins that

tourists rarely visit. there are about 220 pyramids here which is a lot more than the entire country of egypt. you canjust see them for kind of miles. we go behind the scenes at one of havana's hidden restaurants. and i'm in peru getting to grips with this acrobatic and very noisy dance. first up this week, we are taking a road trip through sudan. it is a country that's been marked by conflict in recent years and some regions are still off—limits to tourists, but it is possible with careful planning to go and explore some of the country's amazing archaeological sites, pyramids and temples that date

back thousands of years. we sent benjamin zan in search of the remains of an ancient kingdom 200 kilometres north of the capital khartoum. hey, guys, high—fives. how's it going? nice to see you. i'm going to give you a hug. how's it going? thank you for coming. no problem, sure. so, where are we going? we are going to see the pyramids? how long does it take? about four or five hours. we probably should go. do you have any sudanese card games we could play? you can put on your headphones and listen to your own music. that's not a game, that's just being anti—social. and so we were off on a very long and very hot road trip. soon it was time for our first stop, coffee. the sudanese love their coffee and for good reason.

does it annoy you that not many people know about these pyramids? it actually does because sudan has a very rich history. as a country so diverse it's huge, it was one of the biggest countries in africa, so that brings a lot of diversity because we were influenced by arabs, african countries and everything. but people don't know about all of that. people only know about what the media usually shows, the wars, the starvation, blah, blah, blah. exactly, it doesn't show anything that's rich and anything that would impress people into coming here. they believe pyramids, egypt, nile, in egypt. sudan has a very rich culture, it's very diverse, but still people don't actually know about it. sometimes that kind of makes you sad because this country has like a lot of history. exactly.

as we set off again we soon came across the ancient city of naqa. i can only imagine the civilisation that was here, that did this. it is like walking in history. it's the middle of nowhere. it's like this wire, that bit, i can go through easily. it is protected by a 12—year—old kid! it's beautiful. look at the engravings. this is a ruined, ancient city, one of the largest ruined sites in the country. back in the day it was an important part of the kushiti kingdom of meroe due to its proximity to the nile and it served as a bridge between the mediterranean world and africa. but now it lies pretty much unprotected. the only real protection here comes from a group of villagers who periodically visit the well to get water. this is the closest thing to security of these temples.

these are the local villagers who have come here to get water. that is pretty much it, there is no one else around. as we explored further we found some bones on the other side of the ruins. there are bones in here. i know. that is actually crazy, though. it is. it is like thigh bones. it looks so untouched, no one has been inside. as it was getting late we journeyed on. the roads here are a long and the sun sets fast and soon we realised the pyramids would have to wait until the following day. we stopped at a roadside restaurant to eat. we have a sort of a barbecue but not your own idea

of what barbecue is. there is food which is the local, traditional food of sudan. after the meal, as we had nowhere to stay, we asked around and found a man willing to accommodate us. the only catch was that we were going to be sleeping outside. we are actually sleeping outside which, to my surprise, is not that uncommon here in sudan. so do people actually sleep outside in sudan? basically in towns most people sleep outside because the sun works as an natural alarm. they mostly need to wake up early, like the first break of light, to go out like farmers and stuff. me and my new friends drifted off. the next morning it was finally time to see what we came here for. we got up early. and made a quick stop at a coffee

shop miles away from the pyramids. despite being so close, the owner told me neither he nor any of his friends or family had been taught the history of the pyramids. growing up did you tell each other stories about what the pyramids were? did people used to be scared of the pyramids? then we journeyed on to see them for ourselves. on arrival it was more impressive than i had imagined. we had the entire place to ourselves. 0h! how do you feel? we made it. my legs, i can't feel my legs. all right, so we are actually in the middle of the desert, kind of. we have got history for ourselves. look at it, it's just crazy.

and theyjust sit here completely unguarded. look at it, this isjust like the actual desert. these nubian pyramids are over 4000 years old and are a unesco world heritage site. despite that, though, they are completely deserted. visitor numbers are tiny, about 15,000 a year compared to the millions who go to the pyramids in egypt. and due to being completely unprotected, the pyramids and the history here have been damaged and vandalised. clearly not many have respected it. still, it was like

nothing i had ever seen. the door is even unlocked to one of the pyramids. mazin gave me a bit of a history lesson on what i was seeing. there are more pyramids in this section alone than in egypt. there are about 220 pyramids. you can notice that most of the heads of the pyramids are chopped off. that is an italian explorer. he came here in the 1830s and he chopped off like 1a pyramids searching for gold and we still don't know what he found. do you know what they were used for? yes, they were actually tombs for the black pharaohs and qeens back in the days. they buried them here

with their belongings, and clothing and everything. it's a sort of respect for the kings of course. what is the difference between these pyramids and those in egypt? it is what is inside. the pyramids in egypt are a lot bigger. these would go up to a0 metres, but then again the numbers of the pyramids themselves makes the difference. there are about 220 pyramids here which is a lot more than the entire country of egypt, like the pyramids there. just on this desert? just on this desert alone. you can just see them for kind of miles, can't you? exactly. it was coming to the end of an unexpected and surprising trip. i had seen a side of sudan that i never thought i would. the history and stories sudan holds are things you don't hear about too often. but when you see them for yourself it is something you will remember for ever. next up on the travel show we are in cuba's capital havana, meeting the chef who has set up a restaurant in his flat at the top of a tower block. still to come on this

week's travel show: ijoin a dance—off with a difference in peru's capital, lima. so don't go away. the travel show, your essential guide wherever you're heading. hello, i'm michelle jana—chan, your global guide with top tips on the world's best events in the coming months. starting in england, hull is the uk city of culture this year. a 365—day event which kicks off with fireworks and light projections downtown.

there'll be art installations across the city, as well as poetry readings, rock gigs and photography exhibitions. the city will be hosting the turner prize, the renowned annual arts award at the ferens gallery, as well as concerts and performances throughout the year. the social festival, usually a very british affair, is taking its house and techno to mexico and colombia this year, playing on march 17th and 18th in both nations‘ capitals. it might be even noisier in gadmen, switzerland, over the weekend of february 25th and 26th at the international dog sledding race. there'll be more than 100 teams of mushers and dogs and at a slower pace there will be dog sled rides for kids while spectators wait for the winning team to arrive. staying in the snow in the austrian tyrol, the lifts close to ordinary skiers to make way for the cult ski race white thrill which takes place in saint anton am arlberg.

on april the 22nd over 500 skiers, and snowboarders and telemark skiers gather on the beluga ridge for a mass start, perhaps the most intimidating challenge of the well named payne mountain. the record is eight minutes and 1a seconds. the cypriot port of paphos becomes the european city of culture this year. there will be street theatre and outdoor art installations, a mix of arab and eastern music, and later in the year the berlin philharmonic is performing. venues are all outdoors, open air concerts, cinema screenings are on beaches and there are outdoor exhibitions. in the czech republic, the shockproof film festival plays on february 28th through march the 5th. from the capital prague to brno, this alternative festival touts itself as lowbrow and in bad taste, from the ludicrous and bizarre to camp and controversial.

back in colombia the vallenato festival place from april 6th to the 30th. coming together will be the best composers of this genre of music. judges are on the hunt for the best drummers, lyricists and singers, but it is really the accordion players who steal the show. the winner is crowned rey vallenato, and every ten years, and this year is one of those, a decade of winners compete to be anointed the king of kings. the disposable film festival plays in san francisco on april seventh—10 here's a selection of some of the most innovative films shot with the help of a 3—d printer or entirely on a smartphone. there'll be workshops, panel discussions a competition showing quirky, online shorts and of course, after parties. finally, it's time to dig out that feathered headdress. carnival is fast approaching.

some of my favourite places include the cities of salvador and 0linda in brazil, which are arguably more authentic destinations than rio. the party kicks off on february 23rd and in cooler climes, cologne in germany begins its feasting and dancing at precisely 11:11am on february 23rd. that's my global guide this month. let me know what's happening in the place where you live or where you love. we're on e—mail and across social media and until next time, happy travelling. and finally this week here in lima, i'm off to the outskirts of the city to find out about a 500—year—old tradition that was once driven underground and is now enjoying something of a revival. some people even say it could be the inspiration for break dancing. it's called scissor dancing and i'm going to see if i can make the cut. the origin of the peruvian scissor

dance is shrouded in mystery. but many believe the tradition began in the highlands of the andes as an act of worship to the mountain gods. in the 1500s, the dance was performed to show resistance to spanish rule. the movements display the performers‘ dexterity. and the scissors represented their resistance to spain. —— to pain. but the conquistadors thought it was inspired by the devil and it was banned. despite the ban, the tradition survived and the twisting, turning dance moves were passed down from generation to generation. now its importance in peru's history has been recognised by unesco. and its backbreaking moves

would put many break dancers to shame. although the scissors are not sharp, learning to control them while dancing and leaping can take years. today teams from two different towns are having a scissor dance duel.

these battles can last for up to ten hours as the performers move and spin to the music. it seems like anything goes, but the one rule is that you absolutely cannot drop the scissors. and i'm going to get a lesson to see how it's done. don't shake hands with those. so the top ones stay still and the bottom one... 0h, 0k. it's all in the thumb, the thumb and the wrist. first i've got to get to grips with the scissors. the aim is to hit the handles together in time to the music. the blunt blades are not connected, so holding them in position is really tricky.

there is no way i'm going to be able to do this and coordinate my feet. and it's not just mastering the scissors. this is the one that makes your knees bleed. learning the dance moves takes some serious commitment. does it hurt to do the jumps and land on your back? does it hurt your head, your knees? do you have injuries? is that blood on your trousers? wow, that's dedication. oh, and i'm getting a hat.

gosh, as if it's not hard enough! after a few minutes i'm exhausted. i can't even imagine how hard it would be to do these moves up in the andes where the thin air makes everything so much harder. these guys are true athletes. oh, that's hard work! that was so much harder than i expected. i've got new—found respect for these guys. but sadly that's all we have got time for in this week's show. coming up next week: somebody at the pub told me tonight is supposed to be the coldest night of the year. so i'm glad i'm going into an unheated church to sleep. krista's braving the english weather to find out why more and more people are camping out in old churches.

dojoin us for that if you can and don't forget, if you want to follow the rest of the travel show team on theirjourneys in real—time, you can sign up to our social media feeds. all the details are on your screen 110w. in the meantime from me, carmen roberts, and the rest of the travel show team here in lima, it's goodbye. but let me leave you with some more scissor dancing. as forecast, storm tourist board

damage and destruction to the uk as came in off the atlantic bringing heavy rain and snow and a squeeze isobars across england, wales and northern ireland. the storm pushed eastwards off towards the near continent. a ridge of high pressure building behind. cold air digging in behind storm doris. 0n building behind. cold air digging in behind storm doris. on friday, because of a ridge of high pressure, much calmer and quieter with a good deal of sunshine around. we start off on deal of sunshine around. we start offona deal of sunshine around. we start off on a chilly node for many after some ice around to watch out for. are you sunshine through the day. the next weather system pushes in towards the north and the west. in northern ireland and western scotland, the rain will become heavier and persistent. not that way to the east of scotland. here you will hold dry light weather until the end of the day. rain will move in towards the evening. the thickening cloud and a strengthening winds gets in towards western parts of britain through the afternoon with the midlands eastwards you hold

onto lovely weather. chilly despite the light winds. that rain continues to advance to eastwards during friday evening. heavy snow in the scottish mountains as it hits the cold out that will be transient as milderair cold out that will be transient as milder air starts to move up from the south. a breezy end to the night across all areas. cloudy with outbreaks of rain. temperatures on the rise. the week and it looks mild once again. back to the double—figure values. there will be sunshine around, limited and it will be around the south. windy for eve ryo ne be around the south. windy for everyone and some rain across scotla nd everyone and some rain across scotland and northern ireland. you can see this area of low pressure bringing tightly packed isobars to the uk. wet and windy but most of it across the north and west. areas closer in the south—east, close to the high pressure, hold onto the dry weather. i windy day in the north and east. heavy rain on the western up and east. heavy rain on the western up slopes. double figures across the

board. some sunshine in the south—east, it should be quite pleasant. sunday is dry and bright across central, southern and eastern areas but again the north and the west face the brunt of the winds. quite a week, a mixed weekend ahead. a very warm welcome to bbc news, broadcasting to our viewers in north america and around the globe. i'm mike embley. our top stories: malaysian police say kim jong—nam was killed by the highly toxic chemical nerve agent, vx. iraqi troops make a key breakthrough in the battle for mosul — recapturing the city's airport from the so—called islamic state. historic defeat, britain's main opposition labour party loses a seat they have held for more than eighty years to the governing conservatives in a parliamentary by—election. failed by those who were supposed to protect them — a special report into the widespread sexual abuse of children by un

peacekeepers. and a drug bust like no other, how this former nuclear bomb shelter became a den for pot growers.