now on bbc news. hull is nearly half way through being the uk's 2017 city of culture. anne—marie tasker and kofi smiles have the latest instalment of what's happening in the year—long celebration. hello, and welcome to hull, the uk city of culture. the uk city of culture. showcasing the brightest and the best of contemporary culture has brought us here to hull's cemetery for a circus performance with a difference. and continuing our celebration of difference, we meet matt fraser who will be putting his disability centre stage to play shakespeare's richard iii. i'm a deformed actor playing a deformed character for the first time in britain, which is extraordinary that it should be the first but it's exciting that i get to do it. we will meet the army of 2017 volunteers giving up their free time for culture. # there's a star man,

waiting in the sky... and go on a trip down memory lane with a spiderfrom mars. hello, i'm anne—marie tasker, and i'm the arts and culture correspondence for the bbc here in hull and this is kofi smiles. i'm the face of hull, chosen by the bbc with a mission, to bring you culture whenever and wherever it happens. today, we are taking it quite literally because we are not in a concert hall or in a theatre, we are here in a graveyard. it's a setting for a performance which is quite difficult to sum up in just a few words. it's part—circus acrobats, part music, part dance and it all takes place under the cover of darkness. areialists, acrobats, video artists, singers.

coming together to tell the story of an ancient greek legend in a new way. "depart" explores the tragic love story of orpheus when he descends into the underworld and tries and fails to bring his dead wife, eurydice, back to life. the audience happens upon the action as they wander through hull's general cemetery. we are trying to find the right trees, and battling the british weather has been challenging. performing outdoors definitely has its challenges like that. namely the weather. quite often you will find yourself quite drippy, and wet. it's also kind of really exciting in the outdoors because it's not often in the outdoors that you get the chance to perform in a tree, or under the stars. what's magical about it is that the audience is in the outside in the wilderness with you, so that you get to share an experience a lot more than in a theatre where you are on stage and it seems very separate. the show is by the world—renowned australian company circa who only

arrived to rehearse a few days before the first performance, and although this graveyard closed in the 1970s, the choice of venue has caused some controversy. if you approach something with respect and with care, and if your intent is to help bring a community to this place, to improve this place and a great deal of nurture has been given to this site, then i think you are only doing good. the show premiered last summer, but for these performances, circa are working with one of hull's community choirs. more than 100 members of the freedom chorus have spent months rehearsing and add an ethereal soundtrack to the performance. it's absolutely brilliant to be part of the city of culture, but to be able to perform alongside circa as well is really incredible. it's not a venue that anybody knows is a venue, of course. of course, great respect will be

paid because of where we are. well, it's getting dark now and everyone is here waiting for the event to start. i'm really excited. are you really excited? no, i'm a bit spooked, actually. shall we go and have a look anyway? let's go. don't look back. you are entering our play. walk in silence. it's friday night, walking around a graveyard, so i thought it was brilliant the way they brought out a different location for such a great event. a unique experience. i've only got one difficulty, how do you describe it to somebody that wasn't there? you couldn't describe it in words. the setup, where it was, where it is held, the performers, they were fantastic. absolutely fantastic. brilliant, fantastic. captivating. enthralling, absolutely brilliant. applause

and after hull, the play moves from brighton to blackpool. "depart" is just one of hundreds of events taking part in hull during 2017. in fact, an event has been promised every day of the year. and when you make a promise like that, you are going to need a lot of people to help with the staging and that's where the hull 2017 volunteers come in. everyday people. they've given up their free time to lend a hand. there are more than 2,000 of them, ranging in age from 16 up to sa. caroline has been to meet some of them. they are the blue—coated army, an army of volunteers from all backgrounds, ages, from all over the uk. from greeting people at events

to performing as extras in plays, the 2017 volunteers are the engine that is helping to drive this year of culture in hull. in much the same way as the games makers did at the london olympics, hull's volunteers of the welcoming face of this city in its culture year. my name is sue. there's no way i was going to miss this year volunteering. this year's volunteering. sue caught the bug at london 2012 and she was one of the original games makers. tonight, the blue jacket is being left at home. the green tabard is the uniform for this event in one of the city's public parks. sue, and other volunteers, have been collecting information on their audiences. all three of you from spain? we are finding in most of the activities we do there are people from all over the world coming. it's just incredible. has it surprised you?

yes, it has. good evening. are you here to join the search for the seven... well, you can't see the job of a volunteer isn't varied. well, you can't say the job of a volunteer isn't varied. at this one event alone, they have been directing all these people to where they need to be, collecting their data and some are even part of the performance itself. i'm grace, and i'm louise. we wanted to be city of culture volunteers because we couldn't resist being involved in such a fantastic opportunity. the toilets are downstairs on the ground floor. mum of two louise also works full—time as a teacher. she is squeezing in her volunteering shifts on evenings and weekends. when you put that jacket and it gives you license

to strike up a conversation with absolutely anybody. even out of the uniform, i'm finding that i'm more likely to start a conversation with people who i don't know that i was before. 18—year—old grace has autism. volunteering for her is stepping completely out of our comfort zone, but today, she is helping out at a stress test for an up—and—coming theatre production. well, this is a rehearsal of a performance due to take place in a couple of weeks‘ time and it will involve live ands and require the audience to move around the performance space, so the volunteers are being used to put it to the test and make sure it works when it goes lives. it's been interesting to see how a theatre company works on its first show and it's been quite enjoyable. i wasn't as confident as before. talking to people, strangers, but i feel now i'm a lot more confident. i've seen already in the first few months that she has just flown in terms of her confidence.

she is one of the welcoming faces of hull and for me, that's a gift that the city of culture has given to me, as a mum. i'm enid. i'mjason. at first, i didn't think we would be able to be involved. enid and jason have also thrown themselves out of their comfort zone to become volunteers. both are partially sighted. which is your favourite? some people see us as visually impaired and we should be in a corner, but we have been put out the front because it's nice. you feel more engaged with what is going on with this process in general, but it gives you a little insight in things that you thought you couldn't do which you can, with that support network going on in the background. i think we should give something back to our communities. and this has given people such a massive opportunity to do that. i think it's that it's absolutely

wonderful that i have been given the opportunity. hopefully, at the end of the year, we will have a huge army of people then in a position to volunteer for all sorts of organisations and really lift the community life of the city. still to come. the city of culture goes global with celebrations in hull's twin city, freetown. we remember david bowie and the spiders from mars with the drummer, woody woodmansey. but first, here's my guide to some 2017 highlights and a little look ahead at what to come. ahead at what is to come. north atlantic flux took us on a four—dayjourney of musical discovery bringing in icelandic and scandinavian musicians to hull. 0n the orchard park estate, local residents collaborated

with artists to put on a vibrant parade around the neighbourhood. the ferens art gallery has an amazing new exhibition called skin, which features work by ron mueck, lucian freud and the sea of hull photographs taken by spencer tunick of over 3000 naked, blue volunteers. i'm about there. you've only one life. just live it. and i don't care if anybody sees me or not. we are looking forward to assemblefest which takes over an ordinary shopping street, turning unlikely places into pop—up performance spaces. # she's a perfect ten. nearly 30 years ago, the beautiful south performed in hull, and injune, paul heaton and jackie abbott appeared for a one—off gig. east park will be transformed to the fictional malarkey park for hull's first childrenchildren‘s children's literature festival. and injuly, the bbc proms will come to hull for a day of outdoor concerts, the first time recently that this

british institution has travelled outside of london. well, from a circus performance in a graveyard to something more traditional. we are talking shakespeare, richard iii to be precise. but hull being hull, it's with a difference. we are sitting in with a difference. we are sitting in with the lead actor, mat fraser. he is returning to his theatrical roots, after role in american horror story. can you imagine a mark on this normal body? i could have ruled the world. mat fraser has been in rehearsals for three weeks now. and

for him, it's one of the toughest roles he's ever had with 685 lines to learn. director, barry rutter started northern broadsides 25 years ago with the aim of making shakespeare access the ball to all. his success shakespeare access the ball to all. his success means shakespeare access the ball to all. his success means others are sure to follow. you have done lots of theatre, but never any shakespeare. why now? i did puck, in a chaotic version of a midsummer night ‘s dream. the reason why now is because i was intrigued to be asked to

audition and i'm what we might call audition and i'm what we might call a mid—term career artist, and each time you do something it is less shocking dangerous the next time you do it. it had been a long time since i had been scared of something and just the notion of doing that wonderful, eponymous character. it's not the easiest of shakespeare's plays, is it? it's one of the most famous plays, it's done more than hamlet, even. and it is the only one where the character talks directly to the audience and they are in on his secrets of evil, he's one of the most famous villains and famous disabled people. ithink most famous villains and famous disabled people. i think i'm one of the first people to say i'm a deformed akhtar laying deformed character. it's extraordinary that

it should be the first but exciting that i get to do it. it must be a big dealfor you, isn't it? it wasn't from me, i didn't push to get it. i was offered it. although we could say it's about time, barry offered it to me and not anybody else, so i'm going to run with it and see what we do. i'm fascinated to see what audience members make of it. he horrible to everyone. he was stabbed you in the back by any means necessary. as a disabled person, i camera late to having to think round the corners, —— i am used to having to think round the corners. i can't really relate to the murder and decay that he causes though. for me,

the challenges to step up to playing one of the biggest characters. i've never played the lead before. you have two on that. i'm very much a tea m have two on that. i'm very much a team player. i have any go, obviously. i wouldn't be an actor otherwise, but i don't have a monstrous ego that wishes to be the star. so owning the lead, that's my challenge. in terms of challenges for the audience, it is whether my deformity pauls out of the play. but lenny henry doing their low... there's been a lot of boot polish going on over the years, so now, let's go!

—— lenny henry playing 0thello. hull is twinned with freetown in africa. it started with william wilberforce trying to abolish the slave trade. hull and freetown were twinned many yea rs hull and freetown were twinned many years ago and it's a relationship being celebrated in 2017 with a concert later this summer. surely henry has been finding out more about freetown and how it's being involved with the city of culture. a message from freetown to hull. this is the capital of sierra leone and as its partner enjoys its year as the city of culture, expectations are growing as to what this will mean for freetown. i expect people

will want to see a treat coming from freetown. all the stuff we've got going on, i'm sure it's true. they don't have a choice but to be treated. that the many people, sierra leone is not known for its culture, but that this, ebola. it's impact still resonates. 50,000 people also died in a civil war in the 1990s. sierra leone's refugee all—stars was formed during the crisis. people were killed in front of my eyes. i saw people burned in

front of me. i lost my brother, my sister, my friends. it was too bad. the all—stars translated their suffering into lyrics that inspire and uplift. as part of the city of culture celebrations, they have travelled to hull to spread hope, i°y travelled to hull to spread hope, joy and faith. culture means a lot. good connections between freetown and hull city, so i'm excited. this year is not just and hull city, so i'm excited. this year is notjust about and hull city, so i'm excited. this year is not just about showcasing talent like this, but building educational links and letting people know that freetown is open for business. to cement their future relationships, the twin cities are

110w relationships, the twin cities are now building connections through education. pupils at schools can share cultural links via skype. your pen pal wants to know what your favourite food is. this is notjust for the children, but it is for them to access more information to develop more creative thinking. to access more information to develop more creative thinkinglj like school, because when i go there, ican like school, because when i go there, i can express myself and i like many books. when i finish, i wa nt to like many books. when i finish, i want to become a lawyer. this is freetown's version of the promotionalfilm that freetown's version of the promotional film that propelled hull's place as the city of culture for this year. freetown now wants the world to know it is open for business.

it's one of rock music's most celebrated partnerships, during the 19705, celebrated partnerships, during the 1970s, david bowie and the spiders from mars changed the face of music. the spiders from mars had a very different musical apprenticeship. they honed their skills on the club pub circuit from hull, playing as the rats. sadly, only one of them is left, woody woodmansey. we went on a trip down memory lane with him. # there's a star man, waiting in the sky. # he'd like to come and meet us... david bowie introduced britain's music fans to cities that are dust

—— the spiders from mars. woody woodmansey is the only surviving member of the group and he has come back home to visit some of the places where he hung out before he was famous. the spiders were originally called the rats. was famous. the spiders were originally called the ratslj recorded with the rats with mick ronson. he'd been in with the rats with another drummer and they done the rise and fall of bernie gripplestone. i don't think that would have worked for david bowie. as the rats played their first gig is in a hull and east

yorkshire, from pubs clubs. we were in the duke of cumberland in 1969. how much has it changed since then? directed noise anything. different net curtains! —— i don't recognise anything. we would come back to hull and we would come here. we would have a night out, watch bands. and we would come here. we would have a night out, watch bandsm doesn't look like you would fit on there with your drum kit. m it would fit on there but the band would not. __ my fit on there but the band would not. —— my drum kit. fit on there but the band would not. -- my drum kit. the rise and fall of ziggy stardust and the spiders of mars was the album may play. but there was one place they never performed it, hull. finally, coming

to play here. it was the biggest gig in hull, so it was with my dream to play here. how does it feel to be in hull, so it was with my dream to play here. how does it feelto be up here. getting ready to play. it's great. it's somewhere that david wa nted great. it's somewhere that david wanted to play himself because he knew we were from hull, so it was a lwa ys knew we were from hull, so it was always on our wish list but itjust never happened. to come back now, hull, the city of culture, it's amazing. to be able to celebrate david's legacy and do it for mick and trevor. it would've been nice for them to be here in their city to be playing. more than four decades since that

talk, with the tony bus and he performance the full album the first time ever, live as part of the celebrations. —— tony visconti. woody buzz dream of playing the album in hull has finally come true. that is it from hull's general cemetery and our latest look at the highlights from the uk city of culture. we will be backin the uk city of culture. we will be back in the summer, but you can get your cultural fix back in the summer, but you can get your culturalfix on our back in the summer, but you can get your cultural fix on our website. goodbye. goodbye. all the energy being stored up in

the atmosphere is going out with a bang in parts of england. severe thunderstorms about. flashflood in being reported, and a cloud is going up being reported, and a cloud is going up across being reported, and a cloud is going up across link should share —— lincolnshire. torrential downpours across cheshire, across northern staffordshire. the cluster of bunder storms will continue to expand. severe warnings through the course of the afternoon as flashflood thing becomes more widespread and we will also see hale continuing too. the rain pushing into southern scotland. quite cloudy. we will see some clouds at hampden park. temperatures around 23 degrees. not as hot as it will be across the north of

scotland. we could see 29 — 30 celsius across the moray firth. thunderstorms severe. continually moving northwards. cooler, cloudy conditions in england and wales. temperatures lower than they have been. for the midlands, towards the south—east, some lovely spells of sunshine, and it will feel warm once again. for the fa cup final, is looking pretty good. some sunny spells at times. as we head through the evening period those thunderstorms will continue to battle their way into southern scotland. they will continue to peter out and it will stay cloudy and wet across the west of scotland. for sunday, the northern half of the country, cloudy. rain across the

north and the west of scotland. sunshine developing, turning warm and vincent showers and bunder storms returning to the south. temperatures in the mid—celsius. it will feel humid but a cooler day for the north and the west. the bank holiday monday, messy thundery outbreaks of rain. the south will see drier interludes, some brighter weather. 25 celsius in the centre of london. it looks like it will continue to call down —— cooldown. you can check up on you whether on oui’ you can check up on you whether on our website. —— all your weather. this is bbc news.

the headlines at two: british airways cancels all flights at heathrow and gatwick until at least 6 o'clock this evening. it apologises for global computer system failure. it's thought that thousands of passengers are affected at heathrow. a queue is now stretching outside terminal 5 due to the computer problems. the terror threat level in the uk — that was increased to the highest status of critical following the manchester bombing — has been reduced to severe. there will be more arrests and more searches but there a greater clarity and has left the independent body to assess an attack is no longer imminent. police and army bomb disposal experts have begun an evacuation in moss side as part of an ongoing search linked to the manchester arena bombing.