this is bbc news, and these are the top stories developing at 11. the duke of edinburgh, prince philip, will stand down from royal duties in the autumn, buckingham palace says. the palace says the prince, who turns 96 next month, "will no longer play an active role by attending engagements" and will only attend previously scheduled engagements between now and august. the decision to retire from royal duties was made by prince philip himself and is supported by the queen, a palace spokesman said. i'm sarah campbell, live at buckingham palace with the latest developments. the crowds and the world's media are digesting the news that a man who for so long has been at the forefront of public life is stepping into retirement. is stepping into retirement. voters are heading to the polls today for local and mayoral elections, with the first results expected in the early hours of tomorrow morning. the two candidates in france's presidential election, emanuel macron and marine le pen, clash in a debate ahead of sunday's vote.

a team at harper adams university in shropshire attempt a world first — by using solely robots and drones to grow and harvest a field of barley. good morning. it's thursday 4th of may. i'm annita mcveigh. welcome to bbc newsroom live. the past hour buckingham palace has announced that the duke of edinburgh has decided to stop carrying out public engagements from the autumn. prince philip who is 95, is said to have the full support of the queen in taking his decision, she will continue with all her duties. the duke is the longest serving consort in british history.

our royal correspondent sarah campbell is at buckingham palace. sarah, he is 95,96 sarah, he is 95, 96 next month. nonetheless it seems strange that the duke of edinburgh would be pulling back from these sort of duty, we are so used to seeing him out and about. that is right. and i have to say that the world's media, i have australian television next to me, there is new zealand, american networks, the crowds outside buckingham palace all coming to terms with this new, it almost sounds odd we are talking with surprise ability a man who is 95, nearly 96 going into retirement. as you say, people are so used to seeing the duke of edinburgh, he said on his 90th birthday, nearly six years ago he felt he has done his bit and it was time to step back, that never really happened. he was still —— carrying out hundreds

of engagements. the statement talks about the fact he is still involve as patron, president or member of many organisations so his work schedule on that front is still pretty packed. let me take you through this statement was released about an hour agoful what it says in detail is that his royal highness the duke of edinburgh has decided he will no longer carry out engagement from the autumn of this year. he will attend previously scheduled engagements between now and august, both individually, and with the queen, and thereafter he won't be accepting any new invitations. he says, the statement goes on her majority will carry out a full programme official engagements with the full support of the royal family. so there we have an indication of how things really are going to change from august, from autumn of this year, that the sight we are so autumn of this year, that the sight we are so used to seeing on the public engagements that the queen

carries out with the duke of edinburgh, normally a couple of steps behind her, he won't be there, we understand from the end, from august, from autumn of this year, and we expect the younger members of the royal family, and of course prince charles, to fill in the gap, because there will be gaps, because the prince carries out, the duke of edinburgh carries out hundreds of engagements every year, you will see some on the television, yesterday he was opening a new stand at the lords cricket ground, and in very good spirits. joking he is the world's most famous plaque unveiler, so the gaps will need need to be filled. what sort of planning will have gone into making this announcement this morning, because presumably all of the royals diaries are booked up some time in advance? there is some time schedule in that it does say that all of the engagements up until

august will be fulfilled, by the duke of edinburgh, so there is a time window there, but of course, this will have been years in the making, the buckingham palace has a press tea m, making, the buckingham palace has a press team, clarence house, the prince of wales has a press team, kensington palace has a press team, they will have been co—ordinating on this to make sure that the duties that the royal family carry out that they are expected to carry out won't be in any way stopped, or reduced by the fact that the duke of edinburgh isn't carrying are out his duty, so sow a isn't carrying are out his duty, so sow a though the announcement was a surprise today, i mean there was media speculation that the crews started arriving at 6.00 when news this meeting was happening, because it was decided, so members of staff, heads of house holes were brought down to buckingham palace, —— holds, to hear this announcement first, so cue lots of speculation, lots of arrivals of news crews here. so

although it was a shock announcement from that perspective, from the media's perspective, there is no doubt this will have been planned for many months, probably years. 0k, sarah, forthe for many months, probably years. 0k, sarah, for the moment, thank you. sarah campbell at buckingham palace. sarah campbell at buckingham palace. with me is nick hat witchell. the duke indicated when he was 90 that he would be scaling back duties. he didn't seem to scale back that much in the last five years. so beyond his age, why now? well, to pick up the point you were discussing with sarah, asi the point you were discussing with sarah, as i understand it, he has been thinking actively about this since the turn of year, last year, was the year of the queen's 90th birthday, she was becoming the longest reigning monarch before that, these were significant moments, a he wanted to be there publicly at her side throughout, certainly the 90th birthday celebrations, but he has decided,

since the turn of the year, that it is now appropriate for him finally to do what he signalled he was intending to do on the occasion of his 90th birthday and wind down and step back from public life, it is important to emphasise that there are no health considerations in this, other than the inevitable, health elements for somebody who is 95 or who will be 96 in just a couple of weeks' time. it is supported not just by couple of weeks' time. it is supported notjust by the queen, it is also fully supported by the prince of wales and the duke of cambridge, those two member also have to shoulder more of the responsibility in terms of either substituting for their father or grandfather at various events or accompanying the queen at state occasionsings and other occasion. the reason it is announced now is that the many organises of which he

is patron or president are starting to draw up their autumn schedules, so to draw up their autumn schedules, so it was felt to be important not withstanding that we are in the middle of a general election campaign, with the royal family try to keep as low as profile as possible, it was felt to be important to make public this decision so that those organisations nowhere they —— know where they stand. tell us about what this will mean, you mentioned it briefly for prince charles, and also for the understanding yesser royal, william, kate, harry, what will it mean for the queen, she has been to so used to having prince philip by her side, they are about to celebrate their 70th, 70th wedding anniversary. they are about to celebrate their 70th, 70th wedding anniversarym will mean she continues as before, she has been used to doing a number of engagements on her own, rather more regularly recently than had been the case before, she, of course, has enjoyed and very much benefitted from the support of her husband, over these many decade, he

will still be there, clearly in private to support her, but no longer in public in that role to which we have been used to. i don't think that will bother her undooly ifa think that will bother her undooly if a all. she will continue on her own or with other members of the royal family. the prince of wales will become the most senior visible male member of the royal family, perhaps connies the queen more particularly —— accompanying the queen, that has a resonance in terms of the transition which will come one day to see the queen and the next monarch side by side more regularly, perhaps at commonwealth occasion and it will certainly also mean that greater role for the younger members of the royal family, now we have seen that, all together of course, at events such as the trooping of the colour, but, i think, that there will be even greater visibility alongside the queen of the prince of wales, the

duke of cambridge and other members of the royal family. there is no question of the queen herself retiring? none whatsoever. i mean, it is as she has said herself, and as she has been well aware it's a job for life and she will continue in that role, and you know, the constitutional position is that even if she were to be incapacitated in some way she would remain monarch and the prince of wales would become prince regent. there is no question of that being necessary, she will continue in her role as monarch and head of state in the same way as we have seen in recent time, with some adaptation, some adjustment of her programme, by her officials, just to lighten the load a little bit. but no, the queen continues, her husband retires, though, it should be noted that the statement does say that he may still choose to attend certain public events from time to time. so,

we are likely to see hill on occasion. on occasion, certainlyl believe it's the pat numb wedding you referred to, the... is that what it iss you referred to, the... is that what itissi you referred to, the... is that what it is s i couldn't think what 70th was. it is platinum. will he see him for example at remembrance sunday? i think possibly, the implication of this is that is now unlikely, because you have to stand for a long time, but that would be one of those occasions when i think it will be an ad hoc arrangement, whether he decide he wants to attend something and will do so, but that regular pattern, of seeing him on a weekly basis, with the queen, they are visiting pangbourne next week, that i will be setting is off shortly from buckingham palace to go to st james's palace to host a lunch for the members of the order of the merit. that sort of occasion when we have been used to seeing them together, that will cease, but there is still the option of him

accompanying her on major events from time to time. the prime minister has been thanking, the duke of edinburgh for his service, and as we saw, outside buckingham palace, the world's media there, demonstrating the enduring fascination with the british royal family. yes, it is remarkable. whether it is the world's media, it is the commonwealth media, the european media, which is fascinated and the american media, which equally does seem to have a great fascination with this story. yes, you know, the crowds are building up at buckingham palace any way because it is the start of the tourist season, so yes, they are always interested in news of the british royal family. ok, thank you very much for that. grant harrold used to be a royal butler and joins me via webcam from the cotswolds. grant, thank you for your time today. when did you last see the

duke of edinburgh?” today. when did you last see the duke of edinburgh? i saw him at christmas time, at buckingham palace. i thought he was in very good form. yes, i mean for his age, he is an absolutely remarkable individual, in terms of schedule that he has kept, the public engagements and so on, but i guess, it is inevitable or was, that we we re it is inevitable or was, that we were going to be hearing this sort of announcement, sooner rather than later. yes, i am not hugely surprised. 0f later. yes, i am not hugely surprised. of course, we all want to see him carry on as long as he can, he is 95. it's a long time to have been doing duties with the queen since 1947. we are talking 65 year, most people can retie when they get into their 60s so the fact he is still going at 95 and wanting to do these duties has been fantastic. i think as nicholas mentioned, i think we will see him, i don't think he is going to disappear, we will see him carry out things but what he wants to do, things like trooping the

colour. give us a sense, grant of how the royal diary is put together. nicholas was saying it is not surprising that this announcement has happened now, because engagements for the autumn would be being looked at, and therefore, they don't want to perhaps promise that the duke will go to a certain engagement and then pull out, so just give us a sense of how that doorry works? with any royals the p"°p doorry works? with any royals the prop is diaries have to be planned many, prop is diaries have to be planned any prop is diaries have to be planned many, many months in advancings because many people want them to attend their various thing, so the diary can be anything from six months to possible up to a year, so the planning of it now is perfect, but i am sure you will find they had started to decline invitation, because you know, it is not that long until the autumn, so they are thinking ahead and that is why we have had this announcement today. from what you know of the man, he is going to find it strange, isn't he, not having these same number of

public duties to attend. yes, i mean, iwas public duties to attend. yes, i mean, i was very lucky enough to have obviously got to know him, and on occasion looked after him, and he isa on occasion looked after him, and he is a wonderful can i say gentleman, great humour, i love his wit and people will miss seeing that on a day—to—day basis, i don't think it is him disappearing, i think it is just him being sensible. he is 95. he is slowing down and i am sure we will still see and hear of him from time to time. h what do you think this will mean for the prince of wales and the younger royals? i think the younger royals will take on more duty, the queen handed over more of her charities to the younger royals so again, the duke of edinburgh, he has got over 800 different organisations and charities is involved in. they will be passed on to the younger royals who will take it on, and carry on his values and the way he did thing so beautifully for the last almost 65 years. thank you very much for your time

today. grant harold, former royal butler. with me is the royal historian christopher lee. from what you know of the duke, why do you think this has come now? well it has been coming for some time. he has been doing less, but he is 95. there is nothing wrong with him other than being 95. he has said he scaled back when he was 90 but he didn't really scale back a huge amount. a lot of people will think, he is going to keep going. i think some of him will. forget the word retirement. i like the idea he is dropping out of a lot of the royal duties but i remember sort of almost remember, that when he first became part of the household, he thought he had got nothing to do. he didn't really scale back a huge amount. a lot of people will think, he is going to keep going. i think some of him will. forget the word retirement. i like the idea he is dropping out of a lot of the royal duties but i

remember sort of almost remember, that when he first became part of the household, he thought he had got nothing to do. he said "i am just an amoeba, who do i do? " he started with the duke of edinburgh award scheme but playing fields association, he started picking on things that hadn't been done and say why don't we do this? when you meet him,i why don't we do this? when you meet him, isee why don't we do this? when you meet him, i see him occasionally at trinity house. the first thing he saysis trinity house. the first thing he says is what is keeping you busy now, he means what is keeping you busy, he knows, because you know, you are checked out beforehand, even though we are both brothers at trinity house we get a grilling still. that hasn't stop. anybody who says well, you know he is getting on etc, nothing wrong with his brain whatsoever. but if you have got 200, let's say round about 200 things you have you to go to, you start to drift back a bit, and you start handing over to the rest of the royal family, and there are certain things you don't need to go to, i would be fascinated who sits beside the queen as the next opening of parliament for example. i suspect he

will, but prince charles has been taken into that role by sitting on the other side of the throne any way, those grand occasions like that where he has been part of it, really pa rt where he has been part of it, really part of it since 1953. so that is one to watch, and he obviously from what you say, is an individual who carved out a role for himself, in the royal household, a man who wants to be busy but it's the natural order of thins that younger members of the royal family would started to ta ke of the royal family would started to take on more responsibilities? yes. they would take on more responsibilities, but he wouldn't hand over anything unless he thought they could do it. but you sigh, there is another side of it. a practical side. for example at sandringham. before anybody started talking about solar panels he had installed solar panels, add sandringham. this is 25 years o or something. i sort of thought i was doing 0k thing by talking to him,

saying it must be good for heating. 0ut came a stream, a stream of data, he knew all the number, the figure, he knew all the number, the figure, he knew all the number, the figure, he knew what the things were going to be, what you could do, what you could do next, the thing he was on to was offshore windmills, whether they are a danger to navigation. he thinks and to some extent, some would say that prince charles does the same thing, he thinks what other people are not necessarily paying enough attention to. he has already done that. since 53, and then you put him in another bracket and his has this one pace behind image, he is the queen's most loyal subject, thatis is the queen's most loyal subject, that is the best way of describing him. so you say you don't like to use the word retirement, stepping back from some duties, what will keep him busy? what will keep that brain busy? i tell you, keep him busy? what will keep that brain busy? itell you, he keep him busy? what will keep that brain busy? i tell you, he ain't

going to be watching daytime television. there is stacks of sufficient. —— stuff. seeing how things are doing, following things he has been connected with. doesn't lose sight, he won't have to do that any more, he will go to the things he feels comfortable with and so you have such as the opening of parliament, such as trinity house on occasions he was 42 years as master of trinity house which has been going since the 1500. princess anne has taken over as master, he will still turn up and he knows what the position is, he knows how much money is the the bank, what the charity has put out. he is not something who isa has put out. he is not something who is a toy admiral. keeping in touch and finding out how those hundreds of organisations of which he is patron or involved with, keeping in touch with how they are doing. without interfering, that is the test, isn't it of anybody who, who

supposedly retires, it doesn't matter if it is your own family or the royal prince, is making sure you are not interfering. it is letting go. at 95 you have learned how to let go, and that is the important thing, but i tell you one thing, he and a former member of mrs thatcher's government are more or less the same age, and every time you meet them, and they are together, i suspect one believes he is going to go to the other‘s funeral. every time you meet them you never dare say how are you, this is all about him doing it another way. that is the unspoken question. nothing more. ok. what do you think this is going to mean for the queen, obviously, she does carry out engagements on her own, how will this feel for her that the man who has been by her side for so many decades will be attending fewer of those engagements with her?|j decades will be attending fewer of those engagements with her? i think he will be by her side, he will still know what she is doing, be pa rt still know what she is doing, be part of it, but also it is the role

that the heir to the throne has in his own way, and it is also the duke of cambridge's role to a peer far more, but i think what it does raise isa more, but i think what it does raise is a question of people saying what about the queen? the queen not because there is anything that one should be suspicious about, but the queen signs some of the most important documents that anybody can imagine. there comes a time when she has to put some other of her role, jobs over to the rest of the royal family, prince charles already gets an increased size red box that he goes through things, there comes a point when privvy counsel sill members of the previous script council ask this question, if there was any suspicious the queen didn't know what she was doing or had

doubts about it, what would happen, there is no question that the queen abdicating there is no question of a regency, but it reminds us that remarkably, this second second old est remarkably, this second second oldest monarchy in the whole world, with the second, with the longest serving monarchy as well or monarch as well, this is a step change, it isa sign as well, this is a step change, it is a sign of something which in the past, we wouldn't have had to bother ant, but now, everybody knows what the schedule is, everybody gets to inquire and if the prince weren't there he would be missed and so gently he is saying, you won't see so much of me but i will probably see a lot of you. and it is indicated by the sheer numbers of mediaout side buckingham palace today, how much there is a huge interest in the royal family, the personalities who make up the royal family and what they are doing. yes,

every so often, i get asked, well what about the royal family, can it go on forever? it is not like the empire which had to close down after a time, no sign, if you ask in this country 9% republican, in the last survey. people are feel pretty safe, and most important thing with the royal family, certainly the monarchy, is that they represent, they are part of the identity of the nation. and to be an identity of a nation. and to be an identity of a nation it gives you notjust a special place, but it is the remarkable, remarkable set up, because we know very little, in spite of everything, in spite of the crews outside buckingham palace, we know very very little about the queen for example. we don't know what she thinks. we don't know so much indeed, but one thing we do know about the prince philip, we know about the prince philip, we know exactly what he is thinking about an awful lot. talking about the identity of the nation and what makes that identity, i mean of

course there are many people who aren't royalist, many who are royalists, there are lots who are somewhere in the middle, i guess, but who will take note of this moment, and think, well, there is a change here, and this is a man who has been in the public eye n the public imagination, for so very long. yes, and also who has moved, i think, from a position where he was sort of open game, it was open season on every time he went somewhere they expected him to say something that was going to get headline, the wrong ones as far as headline, the wrong ones as far as he was concerned. i think it was about 20 years ago, or so, that the mood changed. and he was seen, i call him, the queen's most loyal subject, but he was seen as something else. he was seen as very likeable, people started to like him more. i was doing some research on the percentages of who likes the

queen, who likes prince charles and there is a peak which keeps on riding about prince philip. he came from nowhere, being liked by 38% of people to 70 odd in two or three year, there is an image of him. do you remember the diamond jubilee and the thames procession. yes. the regular gas ta. yes. you had the younger royals shifting round and getting comfort, because it was pouring with rain, and there was prince philip at 150 years as he said afterwards, standing there, ram rod, and when they started to play the jolly jack rod, and when they started to play thejollyjack music he rod, and when they started to play the jollyjack music he was sort of just gently sort of on his toes up on his heel, he stood there, he stood right the way through it. he didn't try to seek cover, he was in hospital the next morning, with a

urinary infection, that is the image of him always at her side, most loyal subject. still is, still will be. christopher lee, historian, thank you very much for your thoughts on the news that prince philip is stepping back from public engagements as of this autumn. thank you. we will have more on this story, the time is approaching 11.30. we will have more on that and the rest of the day's news in a few minutes time. first the weather forecast with phil. thank you. very good morning to you. i have got an interesting satellite picture to show you which shows just how diverse the conditions are, in what is essentially a settled period of weather. high pressure up to the north of the british isles, feeding in dry airacross north of the british isles, feeding in dry air across northern parts and thatis in dry air across northern parts and that is high you have little in the way of cloud here, all the cloud is further south. that is how mores you it can be. sunderland, but a wind. further south, well, only down to

doncaster way, at least dry enough to get a cut of sigh alan there, further south, more in way of cloud and it has had enough about it. come this afternoon there are isolated showers to be had in the southern counties. 0ut towards the west, you might see 818,19, counties. 0ut towards the west, you might see 818, 19, something of that order. 0vernight not a great deal change, looking further north under clearly skies it will be as ferocity as it was this morning then we are off and running. i have changed the day. the weather hasn't. similar sort of fare there, dry in the south, cloudy, cool on the coast in the east. this is bbc newsroom live. the headlines at 11:30. the duke of edinburgh, prince philip, will stand down from royal duties in the autumn, buckingham palace says. the decision was made by prince philip himself and is supported by the queen. the palace says the prince, who turns 96 next month,

"will no longer play an active role by attending engagements" and will only attend previously scheduled engagements between now and august. voters are heading to the polls today for local and mayoral elections, with the first results expected in the early hours of tomorrow morning. the two candidates in france's presidential election, emanuel macron and marine le pen, clash in a debate ahead of sunday's vote. researchers develop a blood test which could prevent thousands of men with advanced prostate cancer from undergoing unnecessary treatment. let's stay with the breaking news. buckingham palace has announced that the duke of edinburgh has decided to stop carrying out public engagements from the autumn. prince philip, who is 95 years—old, is said to have the full support of the queen in taking his decision. she will continue with all her duties.

i think we can show you the statement from buckingham palace. earlier, the longest serving consort in british history in a statement confirming that he will no longer carry out public engagements from the autumn. the decision taken with the autumn. the decision taken with the full support of the queen. prince philip will attend previously scheduled engagements between now and august, both as an individual and august, both as an individual and accompanying the queen. after that, he won't accept new invitations for visits. we are told in the statement, he may choose to attend certain public events from time to time. he is a patron president or a member of more than 780 organisations with which the statement says he will continue to be associated. 0ur royal correspondent sarah campbell is at buckingham palace. more than 780 organisations that

he's involved with, so obviously, when the decision was taken that he was going to step back from public engagements, clearly, there had to bea run engagements, clearly, there had to be a run in so that he could fulfil some of those planned engagements. sarah, as we go to you, we see a small motorcade on a couple of cars and outriders, leaving the palace. we understand this is the queen and duke of edinburgh going to saint james ‘s church for a regular service they attend. there you go, business as usual, as far as they are concerned this morning. certainly, from the statement, it seems to be that engagements that the duke is committed to up until autumn, up until august, the duke is committed to up until autumn, up untilaugust, you the duke is committed to up until autumn, up until august, you said he will fulfil those commitments. as autumn, as we have been saying, he

will take a step back. not completely, because the statement says he may still choose to attend certain public events from time to time. speculation now that things like state 0pening time. speculation now that things like state opening of parliament when it is a key photographic moment for the world family, in tones of him sitting next to the queen, he may still attend those occasions. by and large, the man that we have been so used to seeing at public engagements in the uk, and indeed, around the world, will take a step back. he is 96 injune of next year. the queen and duke of edinburgh are separating their 70th wedding anniversary later on this year. a sense that the march of time has to be taken into account these days. looking at the most recent figures from 2015—16. the duke of edinburgh carried out 174 public engagements altogether in the uk, also carrying out engagements on trips to germany and malta. a clear sign that he has still had a busy schedule. if you

yea rs still had a busy schedule. if you years ago, the palace decided he was not to undertake long haul engagements, but you can see germany and malta were on the agenda. i want to let you know about the media interest this has caused. just to give you an idea, if we can show you, this is canada gate, opposite buckingham palace. you can see banks and banks of lord carter ‘s —— banks of broadcasters from all over the world, they started to arrive in the early hours of this morning when news broke that this meeting was happening at the palace. a meeting involving all the members of the heads of royal household is from across the uk. they were brought to london, to buckingham palace, for the meeting. they were told first that the duke of edinburgh had decided to take a step back into retirement, and the palace issued a statement at 10am this morning, making the news public, ending the

vast speculation that had been going on here this morning with the news that the duke of edinburgh is going to retire. what is this going to mean for the queen and four other members of the royal family, particularly the prince of wales and william, kate and harry? clearly, the duke of edinburgh has been with the duke of edinburgh has been with the queen on public engagements for much of the last 65 years, but it does say in a statement that her majesty will continue to carry out a full programme of official engagements, so no official sense there that she will slow down. we have known that over the past few yea rs, have known that over the past few years, the number of engagements has been curtailed slightly. certainly, no indication that the duke of edinburgh's decision will impact on her timetable. it also says, with the support of members of the royal family. a clear indication that the younger members of the royal family will be taking on more engagements. we have seen that over the last few

months, anyway. at the end of last year, the duke of edinburgh gave up around 15—20 patronage is, handing them to different members of the family. this organic process had already started to happen. we will probably see that more now. and of course, the prince of wales will be expected to take up some of the gaps in the timetable that will have been left by the duke of edinburgh's retirement. although the announcement in a few months advance, it will be strange for a man that has been in the public eye for so many decades, it will be strange for everyone not to see him at events as we have done in the past. indeed. yesterday, he was doing what he had been doing recently. he called himself the most experienced plaque vela, which has been much of what he has been doing,

shaking hands with how many thousands, tens of thousands of people that he has shaken hands with over the years both in the uk and across the world in a role helping the queen in her role as head of the commonwealth. it will be news that will be seen with interest by a lot of people. seen with sadness by some that he has been involved in so many charities. but in general, there will be an acceptance at the age of 95, nearly 96, there will be an understanding amongst most people that it understanding amongst most people thatitis understanding amongst most people that it is about time. thank you for that, sarah campbell. reaction to this from nicola sturgeon who has paid tribute to the duke of edinburgh. she has said, the support of the queen and his public servers had been hugely admirable. she praised his role as chairman of the duke of edinburgh awards. she said

he had served with a healthy sense of humourand he had served with a healthy sense of humour and enjoyed time spent in his company. that was from nicola sturgeon. the prime minister theresa may has also been paying tribute to the duke of edinburgh. she has been thanking him for his public service. among the political tributes, jeremy corbyn, the labour leader, saying that the duke had given the monarch steph asked support —— stead fast support. inspiring people for more than 60 years. we will have more on that story for you throughout the day, but onto other news now. republicans are confident they have enough support to begin to repeal 0bamacare and enough support to begin to repeal 0bamaca re and have enough support to begin to repeal 0bamacare and have scheduled a vote in congress later today. reforms

would then go to the senate where more tricky passage is likely. with me is dr brian klass from the london school of economics. just to remind slightly, the problems the president trump as far as he was concerned with repealing 0bamacare as he was concerned with repealing 0bamaca re lay with as he was concerned with repealing 0bamacare lay with many moderate republicans thinking that poorer people didn't have enough protection should they require health care. that's right. this bill fundamentally is no different from the other one, which failed previously. there are some around the edges changes, but what we do know is that the bill will basically cut just know is that the bill will basically cutjust under $1 trillion to the medicate programme, health care for poor and disabled people in the united states. at the same time, it will repeal a bar maquette taxes —— a bar maquette taxes. it is a clear shift of resources. but you save

fundamentally there aren't many changes to this particular bill, so what is in it that makes it more appealing to moderate republicans? they did and opted amendment, $8 billion more to try to subsidise state —based high risk. they added $8 billion to this fund, but it seems like a lot. everybody agrees this massively underfunded is in need. you have a bill that basically has no constituency in the united states outside congress. it is remarkable. doctor groups, health insurance groups, hospitals, patient groups, they oppose this, but it is likely to pass this afternoon. the thing is, donald trump has staked his pride on this. he has said clearly in the run—up to becoming president, he wanted to repeal 0bamacare, he president, he wanted to repeal 0bamaca re, he wanted president, he wanted to repeal 0bamacare, he wanted to get rid of his predecessor's flagship policy.

you are right about this. trump needs and wants what he considers a political wind. this is a lot of what is going on here. trump said on the campaign trail repeatedly, i will not touch medicate. it would cut funding. will not touch medicate. it would cutfunding. he will not touch medicate. it would cut funding. he may say he is doing something about 0bamacare. but he is backtracking on a promise that is co re backtracking on a promise that is core to his group of voters. his baseis core to his group of voters. his base is fundamentally poor white people, and those people would benefit from 0bama care. people, and those people would benefit from obama care. is this going to backfire on him? benefit from obama care. is this going to backfire on him7m benefit from obama care. is this going to backfire on him? it is ab careful what you wish for for the republican party. in 2018, a lot of the cuts don't happen until 2019. the mid—term election happens in 2018. some people that are drastically affected by this, they may not see the result until after the next election. if this gets through congress, what about the senate, will it get through the

senate, will it get through the senate as well? it will be difficult, but it is possible. they can lose three were public votes, and up to three after that will fail. it could happen. thank you. four days before france elects its new president, the two remaining contenders have traded insults in a heated televised debate. the centrist candidate, emmanuel macron, said his far—right rival, marine le pen, risked civil war with her policies, while she accused him of being complacent about islamist extremism. 0ur correspondent in paris, james reynolds, watched the exchanges. for the first time, emmanuel macron and marine le pen sat directly across from one another. right from the start of this debate, they began their attacks. translation: mr macron is the candidate of savage globalisation, uberisation, economic uncertainty, social brutality, of "every man for himself." translation: you have shown

you're not the candidate for a balanced democratic debate. the question is, do the people want your defeatist attitude ? you say globalisation is too hard for us, so is europe. "let's shut our borders, leave the euro because others succeed, not us." the atmosphere got heated. at times the moderators barely managed to get a word in. "i treat the french like adults," mr macron told his opponent. "you lie all the time." marine le pen spent much of her time attacking her opponent. she avoided detailed discussion of her own proposals. emmanuel macron and marine le pen presented two very different visions of france, and theirs was a debate marked by attacks and accusations. they now head out to the rest of the country for the final days of the campaign. james reynolds, bbc news, paris. researchers have developed a blood

test which could prevent thousands of men with advanced prostate cancer from undergoing unnecessary treatment. the technique, which costs less than £50 a time, will help doctors tell whether patients will respond to the standard drugs used to fight the disease. with me now is cancer research uk's senior science information officer, aine mccarthy. thank you forjoining us today. so the aim of this is obviously to prevent people going through unnecessary treatment, tell us more about the test and the drugs. what the researchers in this study have done is develop a drug test that looks for bits of dna that have been shared by the tumour. when they look at the blood samples, they find that their is a high expression of certain genes in them. this predicts that certain ones will not respond to two of the most commonly used drugs, used to treat advanced

prostate cancer. when these drugs were, they do extend life, don't they? they do. they give them more precious time with their family and friends. equally, we know they don't work for everyone. this blood test has the potential to distinguish those men and say, let's give these drugs to certain men, but not everyone. for those men for whom those drugs won't work, are there alternatives? there are other treatments that are potentially still in develop mental stages. but what this test has the potential to do is make sure that they get those alternative treatments faster and the other options faster. that time isn't wasted getting drugs that will never work. are there particular side—effects to the drugs? never work. are there particular side-effects to the drugs? there are as there are with any drug for cancer. this test can make sure that men who won't receive the benefit from them don't suffer a

side—effects are necessary. from them don't suffer a side-effects are necessary. also what is interesting, the test is inexpensive at £50, so i it is about using resources and developing techniques and tools to allow the nhs to use resources more wisely and targeting health care more precisely as well. the test is in the early stages and it still needs to be confirmed that it works in clinical settings. 0nce confirmed that it works in clinical settings. once we have the results, the next step is to evaluate how effective it is and how much it will cost. how much will it take to get to that point? there will do a clinical trial with a larger number of men, instead of looking back at samples to see what happened, they will look forward to use this in a clinical trial setting. you always try to talk about prevention or at least finding out, men finding out if they have prostate cancer at a treatable stage, so what else is going on in terms of public

information? we are doing a lot to find new ways to diagnose cancer early, including prostate cancer. what we say to everyone is, know your body. if there is you notice thatis your body. if there is you notice that is unusual or different, and speak to your gp. thank you very much. voters are heading to the polls today for local and mayoral elections. seats on 88 councils will be decided, including all those in wales and scotland. voters in england will select new members of 32 councils and in six english regions metro mayors will be elected for the first time. tom symonds reports. it's back to polling booths in england, scotland and wales. again. these being local elections, not all council seats are up for grabs. in england, the focus will be on 34 mainly county councils. eight mayoral elections will take place, six for new posts in cambridgeshire and peterborough, greater manchester, liverpool city, tees valley, the west midlands

and the west of england. all of scotland's 32 councils and 22 in wales are holding elections. the bbc won't report the general election campaign until polls close at 10. the first results are expected after 2am. british voters will be back in the polling booths, in five weeks' time, to select their mps. this report from tim 0ffutt. there's been a sharp rise in the number of men being treated

for eating disorders like for anorexia and bulimia. figures obtained by bbc breakfast through a freedom of information request showed the number of males receiving out—patent treatment in england is rising at double the rate of female patients — although women still account for the majority of people treated. tim muffett reports. food just frightens me now. i go for days without eating at all. simon bakes everyday, but gives everything he makes to friends, family and homeless charities. i get some kind of strange satisfaction out of seeing people enjoy the things that i don't feel able to enjoy myself. simon has been anorexic for nearly two years. logically, i know that i need to eat to live, otherwise at the end of the day, this will kill me and it doesn't make a blind bit of difference because every time i try and eat, i can't. i've always had an unhealthy relationship with food. i was really quite big, about 23 or 24 stone. i had a heart attack. i guess it had a deep psychological effect. i will do everything i can to reverse the effect of whatever i've eaten.

i tend to walk as far as my body will allow me to walk. the number of male patients being treated for eating disorders across england has risen by more than a quarter over the past three years. that's more than double the rise of female patients. the number of boys being treated has gone up by a third in the last year alone. despite the increase, the total number of male patients treated last year, about 1,200, still represents only 8% of the total and these figures don't necessarily mean that more men have eating disorders, it could be that the stigma is lifting and that more are seeking help. boys and men are realising that this is an illness and not a choice. this doctor is based at thejulian hospital in norwich and treats under—18s with eating disorders. she's seeing more boys than ever walk through her door. with boys i see a lot

of obsession around shape. it's bulking yourself and muscle mass and what does it mean to be a man? as a society we are being fed a daily diet of controversy around what constitutes good food and bad food, what a perfect body means. nhs england says more support like the type offered here is being made available. treatments include psychotherapy, counselling, sometimes dedication. it's not something you just snap out of, it's not something that goes away, it's an illness. simon is urging others to speak up and seek help. he feels he waited for too long. british scientists have for the first time been able to assess the entire global population of an endangered seabird, using high—resolution satellite images. numbers of the northern royal albatross have been hard

to estimate, as it only nests on a small group of remote islands east of new zealand. rebecca morelle reports. they're the world's largest flying birds but despite being so easy to spot counting albatrosses is tricky. most of these birds nest on islands which are extremely remote and difficult to access but now there's a new way to get a tally of the birds — from space. scientists are using a powerful us satellite to zoom in on places like the chatham islands in the south pacific. ultra high—res images can map areas down to 30 centimetres, which mean each albatross appears as a white dot and researchers simply tot them up. it means we finally have a number for this species, northern royal albatrosses. scientists were unsure how many birds there were but the satellite tally comes in at about 4,000 nests. it's less than conservationists

hoped but many albatross species are doing badly. they're facing serious threats, from the plastics polluting our ocean to invasive species. researchers say these counts from space are essential. knowing how many albatrosses there are now will help us to track how they fare in the future. rebecca morelle, bbc news. the number of new cars were dusted in the uk fell nearly 20% in april compared to last year. the society of motor earring manufacturers and traders say many people rush to buy in march ahead of changes to road tax. registrations of electric and hybrid cars fell for the first time in nearly four years. adele has become the richest musician under 30 according to this

year's sunday times rich list. the singer's fortune has reached 125 million pounds, up 50 % in the last year alone. she's the only female solo artist to make the list, which is topped by sir paul mccartney and his wife. the top story today is the announcement from buckingham palace that as of the autumn of this year, the duke of edinburgh, prince philip, will be stepping down from royal duties, public engagements just a few weeks of his 96th birthday. he is currently 95 and his 96th birthday is next month. lots of tributes coming in on this news, including from a number of political leaders. amongst those, the prime minister, theresa may. on the half of the whole country, i wanted to offer our deepest gratitude and good wishes to his royal highness the duke of edinburgh. following today's

announcement that he will stand down from public duties in the autumn. from his stead fast support for her majesty the queen to his inspirational duke of edinburgh awards, and his patronage of hundreds of charities and good courses, his contribution to our united kingdom, the commonwealth and the wider world will be of huge benefit to us all for years to come. the prime minister is the first political leader to speak on camera about that news, and we will bring you other political comments and tributes as they come in, of course. the headlines coming up on the bbc news channel in a moment. in a moment we say goodbye to viewers on bbc. first, we leave you with for a look at the weather. a quick look through the doors in central london, not an awful lot of

sunshine around, that the shore. if i take you on a journey across the country, others are far more blessed, sunderland is glorious, as is scotland, northern ireland, too. further south again, an awful lot of cloud around. not just further south again, an awful lot of cloud around. notjust on the river thames but widely across, the odd spot of rain. the variety of conditions come because of high pressure dominating the scene across the british isles. a weatherfront in the south has encouraged cloud to produce the odd spot of rain. later this afternoon, the rain will dissolve into a a patchwork of showers. even in the south, disappointingly cloudy and cooler on the north sea facing coast. the cloud breaking up across wales, and many of you will see sunshine. from the north midlands and north wales

northward, hazy at times. presence of sunshine, ten, 11, 12, somewhere in the western highlands again, like yesterday, 20. today, 18 or 19. iam sure you will get over the loss of a degree or two. 0vernight, sure you will get over the loss of a degree ortwo. 0vernight, not sure you will get over the loss of a degree or two. 0vernight, not many changes. the odd spot of rain on the breeze. gardeners, if you hope for rain, that won't do it. under clear skies, single figures. but in the countryside of northern britain, a touch of frost. i have changed the day, i say that, because the weather doesn't give the game away. the cloud in the south, not as big as it has been today. less of a chance of seeing meaningful rain. further north, the best of the sunshine, the high pressure is there. at the weekend, it changes. forthe

southern parts, low—pressure sliding underneath high—pressure, moving from scandinavia towards iceland. gardeners, again, if you were hoping for rain, your garden has two b in the south—west to have the best chance. i wouldn't rule it out in the southern counties as the system slides off into the continent. 0n sunday, dry weather. a change in wind direction, that may have an effect on the eastern facing coast where it went me straight in off the north sea for you. no doubt about it, the best weather will be in western areas. i suspect you are looking at a high, where we have been for the rest of the week, up to 18 degrees. gardeners amongst you, if you were hoping for weather to sort out gardening issues, that forecast won't do for you. this is bbc news and these are the top stories developing at midday. the duke of edinburgh, prince philip, will stand down from royal duties in the autumn, buckingham palace says.

the prince, who turns 96 next month, "will no longer play an active role" and will only attend previously scheduled engagements between now and august. the decision to retire from royal duties was made by prince philip himself and is supported by the queen. i'm sarah ccampbell, live at buckingham palace with the latest developments. crowds and the world's media are digesting the news that man who has been part of public life for so long, is finally heading into retirement. the other main stories this hour: voters are heading to the polls today for local and mayoral elections, with the first results expected in the early hours of tomorrow morning. the two candidates in france's presidential election, emmanuel macron and marine le pen, clash in a debate ahead of sunday's vote. good afternoon, it's

thursday, 4th may. welcome to bbc newsroom live. buckingham palace has announced that the duke of edinburgh has decided to stop carrying out public engagements from the autumn. prince philip, who is 96 next month, is said to have the full support of the queen. the palace says the queen "will continue to carry out a full programme of official engagements". the duke is the longest—serving consort in british history. the prime minister has offered the country's deepest gratitude and good wishes to the duke. and here is the official buckingham palace statement on the duke of edinburgh. 0ur royal correspondent sarah campbell is at buckingham palace.

just give us a flavour of what reaction there has been to this news? well, quite a reaction here, at buckingham palace. the statement was released about 10.00 this morning but before then when news of this meeting had leaked out, there we re news crews this meeting had leaked out, there were news crews from round the world. let us take you along the scene world. let us take you along the scene here, there are news crews from australia, new zealand, from america, from europe, and of course the main broadcasters from here in the main broadcasters from here in the united kingdom, so let us get a flavour of some of the reaction how thatis flavour of some of the reaction how that is going down. i am joined by robertjobson the royal editor from the evening standard. was that shock? i was doing work for australia, so it wasn't a shock for me. the reality is that the duke of edinburgh's 95 now, 96 the time he steps down, there had to come a time when he did step down. at 90 he said he felt he had done his bit and was

going to do less, until last year he was doing more engagements than willemia, kate and harry put together. is it a shock? it reflects a moment of transition that is going on in the royalfamily a moment of transition that is going on in the royal family at the moment. it will be interesting to watch what happens, what unfolds once he is no longer at official engagements with the queen, will she carry on at the same pace? what does this mean for the queen and the way she carries out her timetable? the statement says she will carry on a full diary, of engagements but it will be a different diary from her perspective. i think we might see tea m perspective. i think we might see team windsor step up to the plate in terms of prince charles who will probably do more, with william and harry supporting the queen, we may see prince andrew, prince edward step into that role, of the duke of edinburgh's role, to support the queen at events, my feeling is, though, she is 91, he is 95, they both put in so far round, well, together, 70 years of public

service. there comes a time probably when you should be looking to do less, think that the prince of wales on the world stage, we have something like a bit of a dual monarchy with the prince of wales carrying out the state visits the queen would do on behalf of the queen. that is important, but i think we are seeing probably more of prince of wales, with the queen, when she attends commonwealth head of government meeting and we may be moving towards in a few years' time, there won't be an abdication but a possibility, we should accept the possibility, we should accept the possibility, that the prince may step in as prince regent orjust ta ke step in as prince regent orjust take that role, as prince of wales, as heir to the throne. what do you think the duke of edinburgh is going to do, will he be the longest serving concert, what do you do in retirement? i think, he serving concert, what do you do in retirement? ithink, he carries serving concert, what do you do in retirement? i think, he carries out so many engagement, publicly, but just as many privately, so he is not

saying he is not going to do those. the hardest thing is going to get him to stop, as to slow down, you know, i think he will carry on doing many engagements and he will find it difficult not to get involved in things that he gets so passionate about, but his has passed on a number of very important patronages recently. in terms of his legacy, the duke of edinburgh award scheme, which is known round the world for getting young people out there, and trying to sort of get them away from those phones and everything they do these days, he, that is a great legacy and something that he has achieved with modernising the royal family, from what it was, you know, in 50s and 60s. he has played a very important role in that. people tend to caricature him, talk about the gavs and things like that. —— gaffes, he has been the kane's strength and stay as she said, and probably won't realise how important he is until he is no longer doing these engagements. of course he

will, the statement does say that he will, the statement does say that he will take part in some engagements from time the time, so bras things like the state 0pening from time the time, so bras things like the state opening of parliament, he might be there, you know, it is not like we are never going to see him again now. that is the point. if you have got to actually set your engagements up six months in advance and you have to be, you know, in newcastle at 10.00 in the morning at some particular time, and you are not particularly feeling up to it, then i really think he has given himself a bit of leeway and the royal family to too, so he doesn't have to do these thing, and that is important. because they have said that the indication this is nothing to do with health related matters but the fa ct with health related matters but the fact is they will take a toll there isa fact is they will take a toll there is a lot of standing round, sometimes in cold weather, perhaps when you are 96 that is not a great idea. well, absolutely. ithink that both the queen and the duke of edinburgh are remarkable people, they have shown the stamina they have shown, so far. you know, really the queen, the longest serving, the

old est the queen, the longest serving, the oldest monarch if history, the duke is five years his senior yet he is still sprightly, but if you, i think the problem is, is, is someone having to tell him he has to slow down, it is very hard, if you have a responsibility, he will try to fill that responsibility, at least this way he can pick and choose what he is doing, going forward. i i do this his it shows there is a monarchy in transition here, the queen's own private secretary got his second knighthood for that, who for the transition of the monarchy and maybe just, probably with prince charles 70 in 2018, it may time more and more is important, official responsibility in the form of him being prince regent should be considered. briefly, the end of an era, there aren't many people who can say they have given more than six decades of their life to public service. he will play that down and say i am just doing, doing myjob,

when, when, you know, at his wedding the king george, george vi said i wonder if prince philip knew what he was taking on, when elizabeth becomes queen, it is a toughjob, probably harder than even being sovereign, that is what the ding said, i would sovereign, that is what the ding said, iwould bow sovereign, that is what the ding said, i would bow to that. —— sovereign, that is what the ding said, iwould bow to that. —— king. media from round the world. this is a man who is a uk figure, media from round the world. this is a man who is a ukfigure, he is media from round the world. this is a man who is a uk figure, he is very much a globalfigure isn't he. a man who is a uk figure, he is very much a global figure isn't he. he is, the most travelled, one of the most travelled people, part of a couple, in the world, you know he has been to places you wouldn't, most of us wouldn't even know existed and he has had the most remarkable public life and his public service shouldn't just remarkable public life and his public service shouldn'tjust be limited to being a, you know, a supporting role to the queen, because actually although he has no real constitutional involvement with her majesty, there is no doubt that she, along her time, would have consulted him, would have referred to things that were important to her

and he would be the keeper of the most cherished keep over secrets there probably is. robert jobson. jobson. thank you very much indeed. asi jobson. thank you very much indeed. as i say the news filtering among the crowd and fillering among the world's media that with that announcement at 10.00 that the duke of edinburgh is from the autumn going to step back from public life, a more than six decades. thank you spa sarah. in the last few minutes the prime minister has been giving her reaction to the news that prince philip is stepping back from royal duties. on behalf of the whole country, i want to offer other deepest gratitude and good wishes to his royal highness the duke of edinburgh, following today's announcement he will stand down from public duties in the autumn. from his stead fast support for her majesty the queen to his inspirational duke of edinburgh awards, and his patronage of hundreds of charities and good causes,

his contribution to our united kingdom, the commonwealth and the wider world will be of huge benefit to us all for years to come. more reaction now, jeremy corbyn has is stepping back from royal duties. 0n is stepping back from royal duties. on behalf of the whole country, i wa nt to on behalf of the whole country, i want to offer other deepest gratitude and good wishes to his royal highness the duke of edinburgh, following today's announcement he will stand down from public duties in paul nuttall has been giving his reaction. he says: he says:

i can now speak to royal photographer ian lloyd whojoins me from oxford. hello ian. how much of a surprise was this, in so #34u67 as a almost 96—year—old saying he is going to step back a bit a surprise? 96—year—old man retiring shouldn't bea 96—year—old man retiring shouldn't be a surprise, should it. yes, it was, i mean, guessed the meeting was about security, that was my feeling, but, it was a total surprise, we are not used to royalty retiring. diana princess of wales announced she was leaving her charities after she had separated from prams but normally, you know, you go on for the rest of your life in that role. i think it shows the pragmatic approach of prince philip. when the queen mother died she left, she was working right to the end, and she still had loads of charities and they had to be sorted out. he is tidying it up and

sorting out that side of his life, and he is also giving younger members of the royal family. people like prince charleses who is almost 70, giving them the opportunity to ta ke 70, giving them the opportunity to take a more central role, which is vital, because first and foremost, his prince philip's role has been to the monarchy, and to the queen, so, they are preparing the monarchy for they are preparing the monarchy for the next few reigns i suppose and getting, giving them the experience they need. from your particular perspective, what has been like as a subject over the years? well the funny thing you forget about him, the queen is going to liverpool for example, you are following the queen round and i have often been in the odd situation of putting a camera down, and or away and then suddenly thinking here is the duke. because he trails along behind her at his own pace and the queen does everything solemnly, very dutifully, and without much surprise, the duke

of course lightens the mood. there laughter where ever he is, and there's, but he doesn't want to shine, he's there to support the queen, and he doesn't enjoy the central role. the other thing you notice is the queen says the where have you come from comments, the duke will ask something very searching pertinent and occasionally quite hilarious. what is your favourite photographs been of him, is there one in particular that teches out for you. carriage driving at windsor i like those. he is relaxed there and he taking on a country gentleman role, i suppose, but they have been revealing. i can't think of anything else rely. the odd thing is he he is always there. you are used to seeing the queen and the duke, so that will be a surprise, i wouldn't be surprised if he doesn't accompany the queen to some of the major duties that she attends, because i think it would, we are probably talking about his role, duties he is cancelling rather

than hers obviously. i was talking earlier with a royal historian about his role in creating if you like a sense of national identity, and of course, the queen does carry out some engagements on her own, currently, but will it be strange, do you think, to go to some of these engagements and not see him there on public duty? yes, because ever since world war ii, whether it is state 0pening world war ii, whether it is state opening of parliament or opening a factory in rotherham it is in the presence of queen and the duke of edinburgh, her rain has been a joint one, for all intents and purposes. it has been both of them. every state tour she has taken abroad has been with the duke, i mean he has done things on his own, but her role has been with him. the ones we mentioned state openings. trooping. laying the wreath at remembrance weekend, he is always there. it is a courageous decision but one in the, for the necessity of the monarchy to

bring the others up, because their press hasn't been as good as the queen and the do—it—yourselves it is giving the understanding yesser members of the roy a chance to shine i suppose. as we chat, we can show viewers latest pictures of the queen and the duke of edinburgh, arriving at st james's church for a regular service, that they attend, so business as usual this morning, this afternoon. in that sense there is the duke looking well, we are told there are no particular health concerns with regardses to this announcement, simply that the duke is announcing, the palace is announcing this ahead of the autumn, when he will be stepping back from those royal duty, a quick chat, a word on way in for the duke of edinburgh. and, ian, have you ever had a chance to chat to him at all? no, not that often, because he doesn't particularly like the media and the press and photographers in

particular. i did see him, i did the tour of russia, 1994, there was a big press reception and the duke saw this chap, that is me, standing on my own with a drink, made a beeline for me and was about to chat and noticed my badge here said photographer, and he just noticed my badge here said photographer, and hejust went noticed my badge here said photographer, and he just went urgh and walked away. he wasn't one to hide how he felt then. no, exactly. no. exactly. that is what we will miss. he is the donald trump of the royal family, says what he thinks and we, i think most people adore him for it. you mentioned how pragmatic he is, in terms of sorting out this, at this stage. you know, what else have you gleaned about his personality over the years of observing him? well, he's, one of the interesting things is, when he is with the queen he is a lot more genial, shall we say, i think that is again supporting her, you notice with princess anne, she

is the same. they can be a bit tetchy sometimes on their own carrying out engagements. he doesn't like the the flummery, the people that say, you know, daft thing, he would call them daft thing, he doesn't like the walk about thing, taking flowers and, he find all of that side of it quite difficult, whereas somebody like the queen mother adored it. he is very much down to business, shall we say, he gets out the car, rubs that say, you know, daft thing, he would call them daft thing, he doesn't like the walk about thing, taking flowers and, he find all of that side of it quite difficult, whereas somebody like the queen mother adored it. he is very much down to business, shall we say, he gets out the car, rubs his hands and says "what next? next? " always questioning, always interested. his role seems to have been to lighten the mood. the queen, there is a lot of nerves when the queen is present. people want to get it right and she isa people want to get it right and she is a formalfigure, people want to get it right and she is a formal figure, he has people want to get it right and she is a formalfigure, he has been people want to get it right and she is a formal figure, he has been to lighten the mood and to give a different sort of role to the monarchy i think. ok. ian, thank you for your time.

some more political reaction to this news, we have received this from the snp leader. he dedicated his life to public service and to supporting the queen, i think he has more than earned his retirement. prince philip as well as the support he has given the queen and his own public service of course, has done an amazing amount of charity work as well, particularly through the duke of edinburgh awards which in scotland has helped millions of young people, i think he is always gone about his public service with a healthy at times even mischievous sense of muir, people will be appreciative of everything he has done and will want to wish him the best for a peaceful and happy retirement. you will have beenin and happy retirement. you will have been in the position of getting to know him at various public events over the years, he is known for his straightforward side, how have you

found him he is an interesting man, i have enjoyed any time i have spent in his company. he is very well read. i have had conversations about books he has been reading, so he is an interesting and engaging person to spend time with. perhaps that thatis to spend time with. perhaps that that is an aspect people don't a lwa ys that is an aspect people don't always see, but he has been a co nsta nt always see, but he has been a constant presence by the queen's side throughout her reign, and you know, i think for her and for many people, that is how prince philip will always be remembered, but he has done a lot of good work in his own right as well. the duke of edinburgh awards for many young people, not just in edinburgh awards for many young people, notjust in scotland but across the uk, have been enormously important, so i think people will feel a sense of appreciation for the work that prince philip has done, but given the age he is now, although he still looks fit and hell fi for the age he is s i am sure everybody will understand why he wa nts to ta ke everybody will understand why he wants to take a step back from public life, and we all hope he

enjoys a long retirement and manages to get rest and peace. even last year it is thought he carried out more than 100 days of public duties, thatis more than 100 days of public duties, that is not bad for somebody of 95. absolutely. anybody watching, the queen and political party and the number of public engage that do and the resilience would marvel they are the resilience would marvel they are the age they are. i remember one occasion, when we opened the borders railway and being with the queen and prince philip during that long journey, and the activities at both ends of that journey, journey, and the activities at both ends of thatjourney, you would never have thought they were the age they with, so they have remarkable energy, everyone with that prince philip is in his mid 90s. i don't think anybody could grudge him a few yea rs of think anybody could grudge him a few years of a slower pace of life and quiet time to himself. i wish him all the best as he takes this decision. nicola sturgeon. i spoke to nicholas

witchell earlier and i asked why he has decided to end his public engagements now. as i understand it he has been thinking actively about this since the turn of year, last year was the year of the queen's 90th birthday, she was becoming the queen, the longest reigning monarch shortly before that, so these were significant moments, and he wanted to be there publicly at her side throughout certainly the 90th birthday celebrations, but he has decided, since the turn of the year, that it decided, since the turn of the year, thatitis decided, since the turn of the year, that it is now appropriate for him finally, to do what he signalled he was intending to do on the occasion of his 90th birthday and really wind down and step back from public life. it is important to emphasise that there are no health considerations, in this, other than the inevitable health elements for somebody who is 95, or who will be 96 injust a

couple of weeks' time. it is supported not just by couple of weeks' time. it is supported notjust by the queen, it is also fully supported by the prince of wales and the duke of cambridge. those two members of the royal family cambridge. those two members of the royalfamily will cambridge. those two members of the royal family will certainly have to shoulder more of the responsibility in terms of either substituting for their father or grandfather at various events or accompanying the queen, together with other members of the royal family at state occasions and other occasions, the reason is it is announced now the many organisations of which he is patron or president are starting to draw up theirautumn patron or president are starting to draw up their autumn schedules so it was felt to be important not withstanding we are in the middle of a general election campaign, when the royal family try to keep as low as profile as possible, it was felt to be important to make public this decision so that those organisations know where they stand. with me is the royal historian christopher lee, who knows prince philip personally. thank you forjoining us again. when

prince philipjoined the royal family, as it were, he had to really carve out a role for himself, didn't he, just talk us through that in you see, 1953, so the second world war is not a decade gone. society is quite different and so is the monarchy, she is a very young queen, he wanted to be and so did lord mountbatten his sponsor, his uncle, wa nted mountbatten his sponsor, his uncle, wanted to be prince consort, just the way that queen victoria had albert and being prince concert it meant he would go through the red boxes and say be careful on that one. an adviser to the queen and the government and the queen agreed, no. no. you arejust government and the queen agreed, no. no. you are just the government and the queen agreed, no. no. you arejust the husband. him indoors, almost. and he turned round and saidi indoors, almost. and he turned round and said i am just an amoeba. i have nothing i can do. so i think that what started to happen, he started

to carve out things for himself to do, but only things that interested him. so you have for example the national plai ying fields, which was a brilliant patronage he gave them. people, again, 195, people having few facilities he got people doing thing, what was the duke of edinburgh award scheme? getting people doing things. so interestingly, what may have seemed like a huge disadvantage to him, at the start, actually allowed him a certain level of freedom, if you like to focus on those areas in which he was most interested. yes, and also, well i think it would have been interested in what was going on at the time, and that was the cold warand at the time, and that was the cold war and things like this, having had a very successful war for himself in fighting in crete, in commanding his own ship. there is another side of this, and that is he didn't give up these things, they weren'tjust i will do that, that is a nice bauble, something nice, it looked good on

the cv, something like that. it has to be things that first and foremost wouldn't embarrass the queen, it wouldn't embarrass the queen, it wouldn't be doing what other people we re wouldn't be doing what other people were doing. if you said we are going to have a duke of edinburgh award scheme and lots of kid, that is the way he put it, running round round the country, gets dirty and we will give them a medal and it will be good for them. the government says i don't know about this, because people will say why isn't government doing this? why aren't schools doing this? why aren't parents doing this? why does it need this and of course this being the prince, gradually started to do things that people weren't doing, asking the first question, why not? why aren't you doing it? it became him. it became identified with him. it was so important it has his if, you like his badge on it. that is one of the reasons that i were a success. if hay had other badges on they may not have been so successful. so the duke of edinburgh award scheme, and

hundreds of other schemes, and charities, and organisations later, and many years later, we have now the duke of edinburgh stepping back from perhaps such an active role, in all of these charities etc, but certainly keeping an interest in them as he steps back from some of those public duties. as a prince he has never short changed anybody. i mean, in the earlier days people we re mean, in the earlier days people were expecting him to say things which were going to make the headlines, but he has got to a point now, when he says, 0k, somebody else has to take over, i must be able to go along to something, an annual general meeting or to meet people on a ship or whatever, and they have to say who is this old geezer who is doddering round, it is never going to that, he is still, look at him at lord's this week, with his mcc tie, coming down the pavilion steps as if

he was going out to bat at number nine! he has that sort of dignity about him, and he understands dignity more than most members of the royal family. in dignity more than most members of the royalfamily. in so far dignity more than most members of the royal family. in so far one might expect an almost 96 to be stepping back a bit, from duties, why, now, why specifically now?m has, maybe it has taken 20 year, a lot of other organisations are saying we have to start looking for the next royal patron, that will be particularly important. it is time to just step back slightly, but, particularly important. it is time tojust step back slightly, but, you know, let us think, the next opening of parliament, is he going to be sitting alongside the queen in his admiral of the fleet‘s uniform, with more medals than you thought there we re more medals than you thought there were war, sitting there, nodding, as if to say, yes that one's all right, thatis if to say, yes that one's all right, that is all right as she says my government will. i suspects he will. he will pick and choose from now on

wards which is good when you are 95. 0k, thank you very much for your thoughts again. the time is almost 12.30. let us look at the weather. . good afternoon, we are stuck in repeat mode with the weather which is good news for some but not all yet again, another glorious day the further north and west you are. this has been the week to visit western scotland, plenty of sunshine continuing for the next few days, but for the south, more cloud and a breeze coming in off the north sea making it feel disappointing. and there have been a few isolated showers are coming up. they continue, so ten or 11 at the very best. we could see highs of 18 degrees for the sunshine and more shelter north and west. through the night, tonight we can keep the clear sky, further south we keep a lot of cloud and isolated showers, so temperatures holding up here, maybe in sheltered or rural parts of scotla nd in sheltered or rural parts of scotland we could see temperatures

low enough for a touch of light frost. yet again you get the lion's share of the sunshine tomorrow. another glorious day through scotland, northern ireland and northern england. further south, cloudy with the odd spot or two of showery rain. this is bbc newsroom live. the headlines at 12:30: the duke of edinburgh, prince philip, will stand down from royal duties in the autumn, buckingham palace says. the decision was made by prince philip himself and is supported by the queen. the palace says the prince, who turns 96 next month, "will no longer play an active role by attending engagements" and will only attend previously scheduled engagements between now and august. voters are heading to the polls for local and mayoral elections, with the first results expected in the early hours of tomorrow morning. the two candidates in france's presidential election, emanuel macron and marine le pen, clash in the last debate ahead of sunday's vote. researchers develop a blood test which could prevent thousands of men with advanced prostate

cancer from undergoing unnecessary treatment. buckingham palace has announced that the duke of edinburgh has decided to stop carrying out public engagements from the autumn. prince philip, who is 95 years—old, is said to have the full support of the queen in taking his decision. she will continue with all her duties. the duke is the longest—serving consort in british history. here is the official buckingham palace statement on the duke of edinburgh: let's return to buckingham palace and my colleague sophie long. although, clearly, we will see the prints out and about for the next

couple of months, and we may see him at occasional public events, it really is the end of an era, isn't it? it is, indeed. i am here live at buckingham palace with a large proportion of the world's media, which signifiesjust proportion of the world's media, which signifies just what you are saying. it is the end of an era. he is the longest serving consort, 60 yea rs, seven is the longest serving consort, 60 years, seven decades by the queen's side. there is a huge amount of interest, of course, it is business as usual, they are currently at st james's palace attending a service and will hold lunch later. i am joined by charles anson, the former press secretary to the queen. give us press secretary to the queen. give us your reaction to today's's announcement. it is significant that prince philip has chosen to step back a little bit. i don't think he is stepping down, he is taking his

foot off the accelerator from a very full, active public life to one where he can choose a little bit more what he does. with the queen, as and when he wishes to do so. it isa as and when he wishes to do so. it is a question of choice and good management, it is prince philip's style to manage his life in a well—organised way. i think he will still continue to take a great interest in the causes, the duke of edinburgh award, the environment, design, 780 charities of which he is either patron or president. his way is to be involved. his contribution is to be involved. his contribution is on is to be involved. his contribution isona is to be involved. his contribution is on a par with prince albert, queen victoria's husband, and has a massive interest in all sorts of areas, in national and international life. today's meeting of the royal

household both in london, from from sandringham, from other parts of the organisation that work for the queen and the royal family, it was to explain this and make sure that people understood it. and also to guide the different royal household is working for members of the royal family, how they can support the queen in her public duties as prince philip has done when he is around, and as and when the queen needs that support. this is good management in a modern age on behalf of a consort of 95 years, who has done 70 years of 95 years, who has done 70 years of brilliant public service. and i'm sure he will continue to do so in his own way and by his own choice, and continue to make a contribution to national and international life. he has been such a support to the queen, 110 days of engagements last

year, making him the fifth busiest person in the royalfamily, as you rightly point out, at the age of 95. what do you think today's announcement will mean for the queen? i think the queen and prince philip will have discussed and planned this in this way. the fact the meeting was called yesterday, and the households were told what was behind it all, it has helped a lot. i don't think it is a crisis. i don't think it is a new medical difficulty or whatever it might be, this isjust good planning on behalf ofa this isjust good planning on behalf of a monarchy and organisation that is so much in the public eye. and on behalf of a monarchy and her husband, who have contributed eight spectacular length of public service. the queen remains fully engaged in public life, and i think prince philip will want to support heras prince philip will want to support her as much as possible, and it has

been very clear over the last 2—3 years that the prince of wales, the duchess of cornwall, prince william, prince harry, the duchess of cambridge, other members of the royal family, they are more than happy to step in where the queen wants support, and prince philip perhaps doesn't particularly wish to be. i perhaps doesn't particularly wish to be. lam perhaps doesn't particularly wish to be. i am sure perhaps doesn't particularly wish to be. lam sure he perhaps doesn't particularly wish to be. i am sure he will be out quite a lot and we will see lots of him. be. i am sure he will be out quite a lot and we will see lots of himm said in the statement this morning that he may well choose to attend public events every now and again. you think we will still see quite a lot of him? i think we will. at the age of 95, you have a right to choose a bit more what you do in public life when you have contributed as much as he has. more than six decades of public service, not many people can say that. how will it be for the public now? there has been a surge in popularity of the royalfamily, has been a surge in popularity of the royal family, the has been a surge in popularity of the royalfamily, the wonderful wedding of william and kate, and harry as well, we see is a much of him. will we see more of them? how

much of a family discussion went on before this announcement?” much of a family discussion went on before this announcement? i think family discussion will have gone on regularly both in a formal sense and ina family regularly both in a formal sense and in a family gathering at christmas, sandringham, balmoral in the summer, other times of the year when they get together at easter and so on. but i think this is very much a planned thing on the british royal family and monarchy are so much in the public eye. it is hard to think ofan the public eye. it is hard to think of an institution other than perhaps the presidency of the united states that attracts so much attention. it clearly makes sense to plan the working life. the point about our monarchy is that it is actually a team. the queen leads as head of state, but it is a team effort, and other members of the family and other members of the family and other generations are part of it. 3-4 other generations are part of it. 3—4 generations take part in public life for the royal family. that's always been the case. when the queen

mother was in her 90s, she was still undertaking public engagements. the idea of a multi—generational activity, and the range of interests, when you look at the charities, 780, the queen has a similar number, the prince of wales and other members of the royal family, issued interest and involvement in public life, you must plan it. it makes sense to plan it rather than find there is a sudden crisis where organisations have two compete and they have two plates make plans again. organisations need for— five months to plan how they to do things, perhaps ask another member of the royal family to step in. i think this is good management in a modern

monarchy, and a monarchy that has adapted to 21st century life in a numberof very adapted to 21st century life in a number of very interesting ways. when you look at the difference in the way the royal engagements are undertaken from the time when the queen became sovereign in 1952, and now, the greater informality that prince william and prince harry, and others, demonstrate, and the easy way in which the queen and prince philip go about their walkabouts and so philip go about their walkabouts and so on, so there is a good mixture of formal and informal. really good to talk to you. thanks for being with us. talk to you. thanks for being with us. that is the news from buckingham palace that prince philip will wind down his royal duties from the autumn. but as charles was pointing out, he remains associated with 780 different organisations and that will continue. he might still pop out every now and again. more from us out every now and again. more from us here at the palace. back to you.

katie nicholl is with me now. the duke of edinburgh has always been there, always a couple of steps behind the queen or right alongside her, at big national events. even though he is almost 96, this will ta ke though he is almost 96, this will take getting used to, wanted?m absolutely will. not just for the public but for the queen as well. as you point out, as her consort, the person the queen has referred to as her strength and stay, philip is never more than a few paces behind the queen. she relies on him hugely. he isa the queen. she relies on him hugely. he is a very instrumental cog in the wheel when it comes to the firm, as we call the royal family. wheel when it comes to the firm, as we call the royalfamily. he is the head of the family, the big decisions are made by the duke of edinburgh. he doesn't have a constitutional role as such, but his role in public and private life for the warfamily role in public and private life for the war family is hugely important. it was only a couple of weeks ago

when they were at whipsnade, the pictures wouldn't have the same impact if philip had not been at the queen's side. it reminded me of 2012 when the queen celebrated her diamond jubilee and had to celebrate partly without the duke of edinburgh, and she looked very lost. it will take us all a bit of getting used to. we didn't know what the announcement was going to be this morning. it could have been bad news about the duke's health. there was speculation on twitter and media agencies around the world. in many ways, it is a positive statement. it isa ways, it is a positive statement. it is a positive move for the royal family, they are modernising, changing and adapting, but not eve ryo ne changing and adapting, but not everyone likes change. he will be a figure that will be missed. talk to us more, you touched on it about the duke's role. the royalfamily, the private and public running side—by—side very much in the royal

family. what has his role been in decision—making? family. what has his role been in decision-making? he doesn't have a constitutional role. it is the queen who is head of state. but in terms of decision—making, particularly when it comes to the family, philip is always incredibly important. he might not be queen, but he is head of the royal family behind the scenes. there have been subtle changes taking place. i was told a little while ago that he was handed over management of the sandringham estate. it was handed over to charles. that was six years ago. the duchess of cambridge took on one of his patron ages. this isn't entirely unexpected but it is a shift in his role. frankly, you can blame him? he turns 96 next month. he wants a little bit of downtime.

the duke and the queen will spend more time at our moral and sandringham, perhaps extending those annual traditional getaways at christmas, easter and summer. they can takea christmas, easter and summer. they can take a little bit more time. this is very much the duke's decision and he hasn't been pushed into it. he of course has the support of the queen. they will have discussed this as a family. this has implications for the extended family. the young royals i am sure will step up to the plate and take on some of those organisations. an affiliation will continue, but someone affiliation will continue, but someone needs to be there to open envelopes unveiled plaques and do what the duke has done so well for so many decades. chatting to a previous guest, we were talking about the duke's role in carving out the royal family's place about the duke's role in carving out the royalfamily‘s place in the national identity. obviously, he has been a big part of that, do you

think the public are really going to miss an? even if they aren't particularly royalists, they may or may not be, but he has been there for so long. we are creatures of habit, we tend not to like change. we don't see the queen much without the duke of edinburgh, they are 18 and partnership. isuspect the duke of edinburgh, they are 18 and partnership. i suspect there will be a degree of missing the duke —— they are a team and partnership. for example, trooping the colour, to not have the duke on the balcony would be unimaginable. i remember that happening in 2012 when the duke was unwell and in hospital. he will be there on those occasions, those big family announcements should there be a royal wedding at some point, the duke will be there. i don't think he will disappear from royal life. we have not been told there are any health issues that would prevent him, but it is a case of scaling back and cherry picking

what he does. and handing more over to the younger generation, those are the queen refers to as substitutes. for me, it is an interesting transition. we will watch it closely. it is no cut residents that the cambridge ‘s will leave their home in norfolk and move here full—time to london based out of tenzing to palace. there can't be any doubt that they will take on more engagements —— kensington palace. thank you very much. with me is angela lewis from fields in trust, an organisation the duke was president of until 2013. tell us more about the duke's role and what difference he made to your charity will stop he had a hands—on role, taking over from charity will stop he had a hands—on role, taking overfrom earl mountbatten as our president in 1948. he used to come into the office. he was obviously passionate

about our cars to protect green space about our cars to protect green space across about our cars to protect green space across the country in perpetuity. he offered us advice and put on events was. he persuaded frank sinatra, amazingly, to sing the first charity single back in the early 50s. that's quite an anecdote! it is, isn't it! he captained cricket matches to raise our profile. there is one that he captained act in 1949 that featured denis compton among others. he did an unbelievable amount to raise the profile of the charity and help us to raise income to carry on our work. with the charity be what it is today without him? absolutely not. everybody at fields in trust owes the duke a huge debt of gratitude. asi the duke a huge debt of gratitude. as i say, he believes passionately about the cause. he probably has a

unique knowledge of our organisation, and we have benefited very greatly from his expertise. as we have told our view was, the duke is involved with either as patron president or in some other way with around 780 or more organisations. perhaps you can give those organisations and the people involved with them an insight into what happens when he steps back from that active involvement, as he did with your charity in 2013. we were lucky, he handed over the reins to his grandson prince william. he is without doubt carrying on the fantastic work for us that his grandfather did the 64 years. certainly, the duke has retained an interest in our charity, and he hosted an event to mark the millionth pound raised for us by the lord's taverners, another charity that he has a huge involvement with. angela, thank you for talking to us.

more political reaction to the news from buckingham palace. in the last few minutes, the leader of the lib dems tim farron has been talking about the news. perhaps 30 years later than most people retire, the duke of edinburgh is announcing that thatis duke of edinburgh is announcing that that is what he is going to do. it isa that is what he is going to do. it is a moment for us to celebrate and ta ke is a moment for us to celebrate and take stock of the enormous achievements that he has made in his life so far. the enormous service he has given to his country, the service to the countless charities that he has supported. and of course, by being such a rock for her majesty the queen. it is a moment for us to be genuinely reflective of a great life well lived and great achievements. tim farron. time to look at some of the day's other news. four days before france elects its new president, the two remaining contenders have

traded insults in a heated televised debate. the centrist candidate, emmanuel macron, said his far—right rival, marine le pen, risked civil war with her policies, while she accused him of being complacent about islamist extremism. they also clashed on the economy, unemployment and marine le pen's plan to leave the euro. our correspondent in paris, james reynolds, watched the exchanges: for the first time, emmanuel macron and marine le pen sat directly across from one another. right from the start of this debate, they began their attacks. translation: mr macron is the candidate of savage globalisation, uberisation, economic uncertainty, social brutality, of "every man for himself." translation: you have shown you are not the candidate for a balanced democratic debate. the question is, do the people want your defeatist attitude ? you say that globalisation is too hard for us, so is europe. "let's shut our borders and leave the euro because others succeed, not us." the atmosphere got heated.

at times the moderators barely managed to get a word in. "i treat the french like adults," mr macron told his opponent. "you lie all the time." marine le pen spent much of her time attacking her opponent. she avoided detailed discussion of her own proposals. emmanuel macron and marine le pen presented two very different visions of france, and theirs was a debate marked by attacks and accusations. they head out now to the rest of the country for the final days of the campaign. james reynolds, bbc news, paris. researchers have developed a blood test which could prevent thousands of men with advanced prostate cancer from undergoing unnecessary treatment. the technique, which costs less than £50 a time,will help doctors tell whether patients will respond to the standard drugs used to fight the disease.

many of us have a soft spot for all creatures great and small, but one family has taken their love of animals to the next level. the tweedys upped sticks from kent to run a zoo in wales with more than 300 animals, including snakes and lions. tallulah berry went to visit them. sophie tweedy has just got home from school. and she is feeding her new pets. so are her sisters. it doesn't stop with monkeys and meerkats. meet the tweedy family. they have just bought a zoo in wales. they now have over 300 exotic animals to look after, including lions, lemurs and crocodiles. at easter, the family pack up their lives in kent and moved hundreds of miles to their new home. on the

coast near aberystwyth. although they have no experience of running this kind of venture, dean, a successful mural artist and his wife tracey, a psychotherapist, are not fazed by the challenge ahead.” tracey, a psychotherapist, are not fazed by the challenge ahead. i have a lwa ys fazed by the challenge ahead. i have always wanted to live in wales. it just seemed perfect. it was the perfect place. we came up to view it, and obviously, it is quite run down and needs work, and i know we can makea down and needs work, and i know we can make a difference. how did your family react when you told them the news? they reacted pretty much the same as everyone when you say you are buying a zoo. "a zoo?!" mainly disbelief, but on the whole, people who know us know this is what we have always been like anyway. we have always been like anyway. we have got a lot of pets. people a lwa ys have got a lot of pets. people always say we have our own little zoo, and now we have! the animals here were in desperate need of new homes, some of them were pets that people couldn't look after any more, and others came from zoos that

didn't have room for them. the tweedy family say they will do their best, investing money and time in the site. and these guys. the tweedy plan is to build bigger enclosures, and dean will use his artistic skills to brighten up the zoo. one of the marmosets pitney! the family have learned the ropes from the staff. lots of changes will be made with reptiles being moved into a new topical house. hopefully, in the future, we can do more with the birds and change a few things around with them. there are a lot of plans foran with them. there are a lot of plans for an extension which we are excited about. it is going to take time for the tweedy family to get used to the new world, but even though it is early days, it looks like they will settle in just fine. in name and we will have the news at

1pm with jane hill. but here is the weather. the weather will continue like the last few days, north and west, a beautiful story, dismal though in the far south—east, a lot of cloud and scattered showers. with the breeze coming in off a chilly north sea, it feels quite disappointing. most of the cloud further south, as you see blue sky and sunshine on the satellite picture in the north, but the cloud from the north sea with showers make it feel quite raw. temperatures rubbing at ten or 11 at the best. c temperature is the lowest as they can be at this time of year. with the breeze coming in, it is exacerbating the chilly feeling. a different feeling with the sunshine, west is best. temperatures in the high teens across western scotland and northern ireland again. a beautiful afternoon in prospect. we keep the slice of

sunshine across the north and west, a bit more cloud in central and southern areas of england, adding the chilly north east breeze, feeling disappointing. what along the east coast, ten or 11 as a maximum, 16 to 18 in sheltered areas in the west, not out of the question again. as we go through the evening and overnight, we keep the cloud, preventing temperatures from falling too low. but things could turn out too low. but things could turn out to the chilly side in city centres, five or nine, but sheltered areas of scotla nd five or nine, but sheltered areas of scotland temperatures close to freezing, a touch of light frost not out of the question. again, a repeat performance on friday, dry and sunny weather. it has been a glorious week for sheltered north east areas with temperatures of 18, still chilly along the east coast with 11 or 12 the high. as we move out of friday to saturday, an area of low pressure threatens the new content, bringing

heavy rain across cornwall and devon. uncertainty how far north that will come, maybe brushing somerset, keeping more cloud. again, a window of fine weather reserved for western scotland. the area of low pressure clears away, sunday looking the better of the weekend days, but a nagging north—easterly breeze will take the edge of the feel of things here. further west is best. enjoy! buckingham palace says the decision was made by prince philip himself and has the full support of the queen. the prince, who turns 96 next month, will attend previously scheduled engagements until august but won't be accepting new invitations. we'll have the latest from buckingham palace. also this lunchtime: the two candidates in the french presidential election trade insults in a heated television debate, the last before sunday's election. a bbc investigation finds a sharp rise in the number of men

being treated for eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia. the surfer rescued after 32 hours stranded in the irish sea speaks exclusively to the bbc. matthew bryce says he thought he was going to die.