this is bbc news. the headlines: the clock‘s ticking in the brexit talks, the eu says britain has two weeks to agree its "divorce bill" before trade talks can begin next month. meanwhile, theresa may says she wants to enshrine the time and date of brexit into law and warns she won't tolerate attempts to block the process. wales's first minister carwynjones has asked for an independent inquiry into how he handled allegations about ca rl sa rgea nt, who died earlier this week. a mother and father are fighting a high court battle to stop their eight—month—old son's life support machine being switched off. remembering the sacrifices of world war i on the centenary of the end of one of the bloodiest battles of all — passchendale. also this hour — broadband providers are to pay customers for poor service. all the big providers agree to automatically compensate customers for poor service from 2019.

and the nation's favourite marmalade—sandwich eating bear ends up behind bars in paddington 2. listen to mark kermode's thoughts on this and the other cinema releases in the film review. good evening and welcome to bbc news. the uk has two weeks to make it clear what it will pay for it to leave the eu or talks on a trade deal won't start next month. that is the ultimatum from the eu's chief negotiator michel barnier. he says it's vital that the uk makes concessions and increases its offer. the brexit secretary david davis says good progress has been made in talks so far though how to resolve the border

between ireland and northern ireland remains a sticking point. our europe editor katya adler has been following the latest round of talks in brussels. time is a precious commodity. and don't the uk and the eu know it. we're halfway now between the date of our eu referendum and actually leaving the club. expect many more face—offs along the way. by now, round six of brexit negotiations, all attempts at bilateral banter have gone. this is a serious business... said david davis. it is. the eu is the uk's biggest trading partner. security and research and development ties are tight. all this now hangs in the balance as we untangle ourselves from brussels, the government still hoping, though, to keep european relations close. we will discuss this issue bilaterally. relations right now are strained.

the uk wants to talk about trade and the future. the eu response? make more headway, real and sincere process, as michel barnier put it on key brexit divorce issues by the end of this month or forget talk of trade until at least february next year. so, where are we on the brexit divorce issues and what does real and sincere progress mean? citizens rights are not yet resolved but progress has been made. ireland's border remains a big problem. the eu thinks it can be resolved next year although the uk today rejected an eu proposal to keep northern ireland in the single market and customs union. the massive sticking point right now is money. the eu wants cast—iron, possibly written guarantees, the uk will honour financial agreements made while an eu member. a lot to ask for in two weeks.

the eu is really trying to pile on the pressure. it wants that money. otherwise brussels threatens to dash the prime minister's hopes in this room in december at a summit of eu leaders. what theresa may wants is the green light from her eu counterparts to go ahead with what's known as stage two of the brexit negotiations, that's talk of trade and transition deals. on both sides of the channel companies ache for news. uncertainty is very bad for business. but trade experts say eu uk fallouts over brexit divorce issues will seem child's play compared to complications when it comes to trade. the real obstacle is to come which is when britain tries to negotiate a new trade deal with the eu and it is looking for something as good as or better than what it has now which will be extremely difficult to achieve because why would 27 countries, each of which have a veto, agree unanimously to give britain

something that is better than what they have? can britain get a new trade deal with the eu by the time it leaves? by march 2019? not in my view. no one can stop time, of course, but when it comes to brexit, time can be stretched, negotiations extended. if everyone agrees. but in brussels and london, there is little or no appetite for that. our political correspondent iain watson is here. the prime minister wants to enshrine the time and date of brexit into law, but given everything the report just so, why does she want to do this? for a number of reasons, to some extent, facing down potential rebels within her own ranks by saying this is the brexit date and if you put forward a moments to this legislation which tries to water that down, you will be flying in the

face of the opinion of the british people, she has made it to the brexit date, in march 2019, is irreversible, she says it has got to happen for political reasons, but there might be a second reason, by making it so clear that this is the final destination and she is committed to that final destination, maybe by saying that, that gives a more leeway when it comes to the negotiations that the report was talking about, so the pressure to up her offer, the assumption was based on what she said in the speech in florence, around £20 billion could be on offer, brussels insiders say the figure might labour between —— might lie between 35 and £40 billion, and if she wants to get to those trade talks she has got to reassure eurosceptic mps in her party that she is committed to getting out of the european union on time. and she is also committed to

the final destination and this will bea the final destination and this will be a price worth paying. where the government is very wary about putting any kind of number on this, thatis putting any kind of number on this, that is because that is a trump card, we are a big net contributor, but there is a concern, if we say 35, £40 billion, they will say, £60 billion, so i'm not sure the impasse is going to be broken, and she is trying to inoculate herself on criticism by being so robust with a brexit date, that she might make some compromises elsewhere to get there. the government only has a couple of weeks. there is a series of almost permanent crises at westminster at the moment, i think to some extent the government can't quite come up with a formal figure, but they may come up with another formulation that would suggest certain amount of money is going to be paid to unlock those trade deals. what is interesting, they say

northern ireland is important and citizens rights, but in the end of this coming down to the one thing we thought it was always going to be about, the money and the demand is to show us the money and that is effectively calling the bluff of britain because that is the card the eu have got to play, and they will be an precise and that nothing is agreed —— they will be emphasising that nothing is agreed until everything is agreed. that offer will remain on the table until we get the trade deal we want. thanks for joining get the trade deal we want. thanks forjoining us. and we'll find out how this story — and many others — are covered in tomorrow's front pages at 10:40 this evening in the papers. wales's first minister carwynjones has asked for an independent inquiry into how he handled allegations about carl sargea nt. the labour welsh assembly member

was found dead on tuesday and is understood to have taken his own life. carwynjones has called for a seniorjudge to lead the independent inquiry. 0ur wales political editor, nick servini has the latest. tonight the worst government has decided that a full independent investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death of carl sa rg ea nt surrounding the death of carl sargeant will be carried out —— the welsh government. we heard from ca rwyn welsh government. we heard from carwyn jones the worst welsh government. we heard from carwynjones the worst first minister yesterday for the first time since carl sargeant died on tuesday —— the welsh first minister. he had been sacked from the welsh government cabinet and it emerged he was facing allegations from a number of different women on inappropriate touching and groping. that is the background to it. the family of carl sa rg ea nt background to it. the family of carl sargeant had complaints about the way it had been carried out by the welsh government and yesterday in a statement the first minister said there would be an inquest and if the family felt they still have questions that remain unanswered

after the inquest then he would welcome independent scrutiny but it wasn't good for a number of... wasn't good enough for some friends of the mp, who felt the specifics of the investigation needed to be nailed down, and that is what they got tonight, spokesman for carwyn jones said it would be led by a qc, who would be appointed, by the most senior civil servant in the welsh government, they will be consultation with the family on the terms of reference, so in that sense he has given them what they wanted. of course this is a conventional route in british politics to take the heat out of a situation and there has been very intense heat surrounding the death of carl sa rg ea nt surrounding the death of carl sargeant in welsh politics in the past few days. in an echo of the case of baby charlie gard, another battle is being fought in the courts over the life of a seriously ill baby. eight month old isaiah haastrup has brain damage and cannot breathe

for himself following a disastrous birth at king's college hospital for which the hospital has accepted some of the blame. his father wants doctors to keep treating his son. they say it's not in the baby's interests and has banned the father from visiting him, accusing him of aggression. marc ashdown has more. filmed by his mother, this is eight—month old isaiah thomas. due to complications during birth, he suffered a severe and irreversible brain injury. medical experts at kings college hospital, where he's being cared for, say it's now in isaiah's best interests to remove life—support and let him die. but his parents disagree and today went to the high court. they believe he could live a life if given the chance, and want independent experts to make a diagnosis. you know, i would feel much better knowing that someone else who is not part of them can now give us an honest opinion on what's going on.

at least i will have my chance to say to them this is what i see, this is what i've seen, they can explain to me, because right now with the trust and their doctors, we have no faith in them. if they did say that, actually, that is the best course of action..? then we mightjust go along with it but up until then, no. i think it is... it is inhumane. that characterises the position of the trust, that they do not care. the judge agreed with them that two completely independent medical experts should now be able to assess isaiah and, in effect, give a second opinion. now, the trust argued in court that should happen as soon as possible but mrjustice mcdonald said he was mindful of the human perspective and, given the emotion and upset for the family, it should not be rushed. kings college hospital foundation nhs trust said: the trust apologised unreservedly

for isaiah's catastrophic birth but tensions have remained high and, in the last few days, isaiah's father has been banned from seeing him after an argument in the ward led to the police being called. he's fighting to live and as long as he's fighting to live i'm going to keep fighting for him to live. both sides have now agreed to try and mediate when fresh expert reports are completed, but isaiah's life may well be decided by a court. marc ashdown, bbc news. three students have been injured after being run over by a car near toulouse in southern france. police have arrested the driver and said that he deliberately rammed the car into the students outside a technical college. all three students hurt are thought to be from china. the incident is not being treated as terror—related. major phone and internet providers including bt and sky have agreed to an automatic compensation scheme for customers when they fail to make

meet appointments or if there are delays installing services. following a review by the watchdog 0fcom, by 2019 customers will have their accounts automatically credited if they receive poor service. danny savage has the details. home broadband is something many of us take for granted so when it drops out or stops working, it's a big inconvenience. roxanne hargreaves has been there. my service went down, we didn't have any internet for about three days, and they took forever to come out. what do you think about this idea of getting compensation automatically? i think it's really good because you're paying so much for your internet a month, and if you aren't getting a good service, what's the point of paying for something you can't actually get? mick watson is having broadband problems, too. i shall be asking them, obviously, to do their usual technical checks, etc, but... it would be worthwhile asking for some money back on the bill. at the moment, if your broadband fails you are not automatically compensated for the days of service you've paid for but

haven't received. today's announcement means customers will be reimbursed by the provider without having to chase them. we know that providers won't want to pay out this money. we estimate that it'll be £140 million a year. so, we also think that it'll incentivise them to solve problems more quickly or even better to make sure problems don't occur in the first place. customers will receive £25 per missed appointment if an engineer fails to show up. if your new service isn't installed on a particular start date, you'll be credited £5 for each day it's delayed. and for those facing slow repairs, they'll receive £8 for each day that it's not fully fixed after two working days. but this is no early christmas present. it's not expected to come into force until 2019. danny savage, bbc news. the headlines on bbc news: the eu's chief brexit negotiator

michel barnier says the uk has two weeks to clarify how it will settle the so—called "divorce bill" — if trade talks are to begin next month. wales's first minister carwynjones has asked for an independent inquiry into how he handled allegations about carl sargea nt, who died earlier this week. a mother and father are fighting a high court battle to stop their eight—month—old son's life support machine being switched off. sport now and a full round up from the bbc sport centre. good evening. starting with the live international football tonight. england and wales both in friendly action. england are at wembley playing germany, they've been going around 15 minutes. it is goalless at the moment. an inexperienced side, gareth southgate has handed debuts to three players — goal keeperjordan pickford, ruben loftus—cheek and tammy abraham eric dier is captain.

it is quite cagey at the moment. meanwhile wales are playing france, their first game since missing—out on the world cup play—offs. these are live pictures from paris. you can watch it on bbc one in wales and on the bbc sport website. one other football line for you, patrice evra has been sacked by marseille and has been banned from all european club matches until the end of the season for kicking a spectator. he aimed a kick at the head of one of his club's supporters before a europa league game against vittoria in portugal last week. uefa have said the former france and manchester united captain can't play untiljuly 2018 — and they've also fined him 10,000 euros. marseille have terminated his contract. england's women's cricketers hopes of regaining the ashes are hanging in the balance. they're trailing the multi—format

series on points and must win the test match in sydney. but they had a strong second day, restricting australia to 177—5 — 103 runs behind england. it will be a difficult pitch, especially into the second innings, it has been slow from the first ball, and a slow outfield, as it sta rts ball, and a slow outfield, as it starts to turn more it will be difficult to score, the fact we have i’u ns difficult to score, the fact we have runs on the board and we will bat first in the second innings, puts us ina good first in the second innings, puts us in a good position. england's men have also been in action, as they warm up for their ashes series — and the bowlers really impressed against a cricket australia xi. they could've won it with a day to spare, restricting the invitational side to 70—7 trailing england by 197 runs. chris woakes was the star with four wickets but there was one forjames anderson who's been named as vice—captain for the 1st test which starts injust under two weeks' time. it was a nice thing forjota asked

me to do this, it doesn't change my role in the team —— forjoe to ask. asa role in the team —— forjoe to ask. as a senior player other were sold i have a responsibility to help other guys, myself, stuartand have a responsibility to help other guys, myself, stuart and alastair who have had success or before, we play an important role on this trip, andi play an important role on this trip, and i don't see that changing my role —— success here before. and i don't see that changing my role -- success here before. there has been a goal in paris, antoine griezmann scoring after 80 minutes for france. it is just a friendly but wales are keen to make up for the disappointment of losing their place in the world cup play—off stash 18 minutes. 0nto rugby union and there are three games in the anglo welsh cup tonight. about half an hour has gone between 0spreys and wasps. and bath against leicester.

sale sharks and saracens are about 15 minutes into their tie. history was made in ireland this evening as the women's barbarians played their first ever match. and it was a successful start for the side as they beat munster women 19—0. the barbarians team included players from seven different nations. he's already won this year's f1 world title but lewis hamilton isn't taking his foot off the gas. dominating practise ahead of this weekend's brazilian grand prix. the briton topped the time sheets in both sessions at interlagos. his mercedes team mate valtteri bottas is just four hundredths of a second behind. there was a disappointing start to the season for britain's two man bobsleigh team. competing at the opening world cup event in lake placid in the usa — brad paul and toby 0lubi had been 15th after the first run but crashed early in their second, flipping the bob upside down as brake man 0lubi fell out the back. both athletes are being checked over

by medical staff at the track. but they were both up on their feet. that's all the sport for now. i'll have more for you in sportsday at 1030. the actor and producer steven seagal is the latest hollywood figure to be accused of sexual harassment. the actor and producer steven seagal is the latest the actress portia de rossi, who is married to the american talk show host ellen de—generes, made the allegation in a tweet. she claims that during a film audition mr seagal told her "how important it was to have chemistry off—screen". mr seagal‘s manager told the bbc the actor had no comment. jon donnison‘s report contains some flash photography. steven seagal is used to playing the tough guy. now, he's the latest hollywood big name to be facing tough questions. portia de rossi, seen here on the right, with her wife ellen degeneres, accused the actor and director of sexual harassment.

the arrested development star tweeted that at a final audition for a part in a steven segalfilm, he talked about the importance of off—screen chemistry before unzipping his leather pants. ellen degeneres added her support for coming forward. mr segal has been accused of inappropriate behaviour by several other women. his manager has told the bbc he has no comment to make. and there are more allegations, this time about one of america's best—known comedians, louis ck. the new york times is reporting five women have accused him of serious sexual misconduct. it's just a very unsettling time. it's a good time in the fact that women now feel comfortable, or more comfortable, speaking out about what happened to them, and what was their experience. the list of stars accused is growing, and the more people

who come forward with allegations, the more likely it is others will have the confidence to do so. this hollywood story could have some way to run. jon donnison, bbc news. and in the past hour the comedian louis ck said that claims by several women of sexual misconduct are true, and that he is sorry for his actions. the online taxi—hailing firm uber has lost an appeal against giving its drivers employment rights. an earlier ruling had ordered uber to treat its drivers as workers rather than self employed independent contractors, after two drivers argued that they should be entitled to the minimum wage, sick pay and paid leave.

uber now says it will pursue a further appeal. james farrar, one of the drivers who brought the original case against the firm, called on uber to accept the ruling. huge relief, i hope it will stick this time and uber will respect the ruling, and obey the law in this country and do the right thing. what would you then to do? i would like them to now sit down and work with us, with our trade union, the independent workers union of great britain, sit down and work out how we can as quickly as possible make sure that every driver that is working for uber gets the worker rights that they are entitled to, which includes the minimum wage, holiday pay, and so on, and the right to not be discriminated against. what difference will this decision make to them? at the moment, drivers make about £5 an hour. they have to cover about £400 a week in fixed costs. it's about £5 an hour while uber

makes £4.50 for every hour we work, no matter what we make. uber will always make £4.50, we only make £5 an hour. now if we want to make national minimum wage, we would have to work 125 hours a weekjust to make that. it's important we are paid the correct amount, that we have a sustainable business model that works for workers, londoners, and for uber as well. the mother of a schoolboy who sent a naked photo of himself to a girl has won the right to a judicial review over a police force's refusal to delete his name from its records. the boy, aged 14 at the time, was not arrested or prosecuted by greater manchester police. his mother said she was concerned police could release the information to potential employers when he is older. we may live in a technological age but research has found more than half of schools in england are not offering

computer science at gcse. the uk's leading science academy — the royal society — is calling for a ten—fold increase in funding for computing education, which it says is patchy and fragile. our technology correspondent, rory cellan—jones, has visited a school to hear why pupils there think computer science is important. i've always wanted to go into computer science. i've always had a passion for the subject, from an early age. once i found out what it was about, i was very interested in doing it. ashwaria, joel and lara are in a minority. their school in st albans offers the gcse in computer science while many don't. shift to the left. one, one place, shift to the left... today's report says too few children are being given the chance to acquire the computing skills which will be vital to the uk's future. 54% of english schools do not offer computer science as a gcse. schools need 3,500 more computing teachers. only one in five computer science entrants are female.

the royal society wants a tenfold increase in spending on training and recruiting specialist teachers, people like linjin, who had been looking for a job in computing when she heard about teaching. there's a huge shortage in computer science teachers. they can't offer computer science because they don't have enough teachers. i have two kids, i want them to take computer science. so i thought, if nobody‘s going to do it, i will do it. now, mrsjin and mr allday teaching this class are pretty unusual in that they both have a background in computer science. the new gcse is pretty daunting, certainly compared to the old ict exam, and a lot of teachers feel unprepared to take it on. employers are also concerned. the online shopping firm ocado has invested heavily in robots but will still need plenty of skilled people to work with them. knowing what they can do,

what they can't do, knowing how to get the best of these technologies and, for some, to actually be involved in helping to build those technologies, is what's going to give the uk its competitive edge. these young people are getting the skills to play a part in that high—tech future. the trouble is, right now there are just too few of them. rory cellan—jones, bbc news, st albans. the battle of passchendaele was one of the longest and bloodiest campaigns of the first world war. it took three months to reach the village, which is on a ridge above the belgian city of ypres. the battle to take it and the rain soaked mud resulted in almost 700,000 deaths and injuries on both sides. today, the largest number of first world war field guns ever assembled fired a salute to the fallen, exactly a hundred years since passchendaele was captured as robert hall reports. fire!

in a muddy field near the franco—belgian border, the thunder of the guns. every one of these weapons had fired during the battles of the first world war. today, they sounded their tribute, a century on from the day canadian troops finally took the hilltop village of passchendaele. the fighting was part of a plan to catch a high ground and reverse the course of the war north of ypres, but wet weather slowed and thwarted the attacks. allied forces advanced just five miles. allied and german armies lost well over half a million men, killed or injured. hundreds disappeared in a sea of mud. 64 volunteers, some of them serving soldiers, manned the guns. they represented the seven nations which shared the horrors of that summer and autumn. my grandfather was killed in action at hill 60 in the battle of passchendaele.

i have always had a feeling he should be remembered. all of our young shoulders are all aware of the poignancy of what has gone before them. recent wars in iraq and afghanistan have hit home but it makes them more interested in the history that came before that. being here is important to them and it means a lot. in the drizzle, thoughts turn to the young men who walked into that smoke and fire so long ago. for us to be able to represent and portray the 36th ulster division that gave so much at that time, it is a unique pride and privileged moment for us. those young fellas from that long time ago, gave everything, didn't know whether they would be alive within the next hour. what they gave was unreal. this weekend, britain and europe will remember conflicts across the decades.

here, as the guns fell silent, the focus was on one terrible battle, on lives ruined, and those who never came home. robert hall, bbc news, northern france. we have rain to come this evening and overnight. not everywhere. it's beginning to arrive across northern ireland and england, with strong wind running across the south keeping the temperature is up. in scotland, clearer skies and wintry showers, maybe a touch of frost. more wintry showers in northern scotla nd more wintry showers in northern scotland on keane wins. this peters out a little, it might linger across southern england and south wales. that is where we will see the highest temperatures. north of that, cloudy but drier in the midlands. it

is going to be quite cold up to northern ireland. sunny skies compensating for the low temperatures further north. more rain to come in the evening and overnight. this time, further south across wales and southern england. that clears away and we get proper cold airfor the that clears away and we get proper cold air for the second part of the weekend. initially, lots of showers across the west. mainly inland it will be dry, sunny and cold. this is bbc news — our latest headlines: following brexit talks in brussels, the eu's chief negotiator has given the uk only two weeks to clarify its position. david davis said the time was right for both sides to work to find solutions. theresa may wants to push ahead with her resolve to make brexit happen — as she unveils plans to enshrine the time and date of transition into law. the welsh first minister has called for an independent inquiry into how he handled allegations about carl sargeant. the labour welsh assembly member was found dead on tuesday — it's believed he took his own life. the parents of an eight—month old baby boy are battling against a high court order to turn his life—support machine off.

and customers who receive poor service from their landline or broadband provider will be entitled to compensation from 2019. the head of the powerful hezbollah movement has accused saudi arabia of declaring war on lebanon. it comes days after the lebanese prime minister resigned while in riyadh, saying he feared for his life. hezbollah‘s leader, hassan nasrallah, claims saad al—hariri is being held under house arrest by saudi authorities. meanwhile the french president emmanuel macron has travelled to saudi arabia to discuss the escalating crisis between the kingdom and lebanon. richard galpin reports. last week, the lebanese prime minister, seen here wearing a dark suit, travelled to saudi arabia. in a shock announcement, he said he was resigning. he claimed his life was in danger

in lebanon, presumably a hint he felt threatened by the powerful shia military and political organisation hezbollah, which is backed by iran. today, the hezbollah leader responded. he accused saudi arabia of deliberately detaining the lebanese prime minister, and forcing him to resign. this, he said, amounted to a declaration of war on lebanon. it's the recent defeat of so—called islamic state in syria and iraq which is behind this crisis. iran and hezbollah played a key role in these battles. now they wield significant influence in all these areas, much to the frustration of saudi arabia. supporters of hezbollah in lebanon feel they are very much the target of saudi arabia's anger.

translation: the americans, saudis and israelis are all trying to present hezbollah for maximising its gains from wars in syria and iraq. hezbollah and its allies have achieved enormous success, but they now face huge pressure because of this. with tensions rising between saudi arabia, which is predominantly sunni muslim, and iran, which is shi'ite, the french president emmanuel macron akin to the region yesterday to try to mediate. he wants to prevent what is currently a diplomatic crisis is owning over into conflict. we have never been so close to the precipice, in many ways. the threat of regional war has never been this real, if you like, where it is a conflict that would involve a variety of different countries. there has also been an appeal for calm from the un. this is a matter of great concern to us.

and what we want is for peace to be preserved in lebanon. it is essential that no new conflict erupts in the region, it could have devastating consequences. but there is no sign of saudi arabia backing off. it has already told all citizens living here in lebanon on to leave. people from kuwait and bahrain have also been told to return home. women who have been given the human papilloma virus — or hpv — vaccine to protect them against cervical cancer may well need to be screened far less often according to new research. the vaccine has been offered to all girls between the ages of 11 and 13 for nearly a decade. it may mean they only need to be screened three times instead of the 12 they're offered during their lifetimes — saving the nhs time and money as sophie hutchinson reports. cervical cancer is a dangerous

disease, it's also one of the most preventable cancers. almost a decade ago, girls started to be vaccinated against the virus that causes it called hpv. the vaccine reduces the risk of cervical cancer by 70% according to today's study and it says women who have had it only need to undergo three smear tests at the age of 30, 40 and 55 instead of the normal 12 smears. women that have been vaccinated as young girls have a lifetime protection against the virus that causes 70% of cervical cancer. so, even with one or two screenings, they'd have better protection than women who haven't been vaccinated at all would get from lifetime screenings every three years. and with rescreenings, they're getting even better protection. and reducing the number of smear tests may help

prevent what has been a concerning decline, particularly in the number of women attending their appointments. mandy parker has had cervical cancer and says she has never missed a smear test and believes it has saved her life. if i hadn't gone for my screening, it wasn'tjust me being melodramatic, a consultant said it is an aggressive grade of cancer, and you were lucky to catch it early because otherwise would be talking palliative care not cure. she is relieved both of her daughters have had the hpv vaccine. but in the near future or women could require fewer smear tests, whether vaccinated or not, and that is because instead of testing for abnormal cells, machines like this will examine all women's smears for the hpv virus, leading to a much more accurate result. scientists are warning that even if the number of smear tests does reduce, it is stilljust as vital that women attend their appointments.

the former england footballer alan shearer has criticised the football authorities for not starting comprehensive research on the dangers of heading the ball. his comments come in a bbc documentary he's made. some former players have developed dementia — but there's been no investigation into whether there is a link between the condition and persistent heading. our health editor hugh pym reports. could regular heading lead to long—term brain damage? there's no evidence it does, but a former top player is worried and wants to know for sure. missed that one. alan shearer knows all about heading. now, for a bbc documentary, he's been tested by researchers at the university of stirling to see how heading the ball 20 times in a row might affect his brain function. it showed, as with others involved in the trial, a slight change in how the brain transmits signals. the blue line is the first time, before heading the ball.

right. then you can see the red graph underneath that, after heading the ball. that period is longer. it means there are higher levels of inhibition in the brain. right, which means? really, what we are seeing here after heading the ball there is a disruption of the normal brain chemistry. researchers said the brain gets back to normal quickly, but what they don't yet know is the cumulative impact of heading over months and years. alan shearer looks at what happened to jeff astle. the west brom and england footballer developed dementia and died in 2002 at the age of 59. a coroner said he had an industrial disease. in other words, heading had contributed to the cause of death. research was started at the time but dropped because of technical flaws. shearer says he's staggered nothing further has happened. it seems as though we are no further forward.

the same questions are still being asked. the issue of lower level but continuous problems with heading the ball and whether it will have a long—term effect is something we are looking to establish, either definitively or not at all. the football association says a major new study is about to be launched. for alan shearer and former players with dementia, that comes not a moment too soon. hugh pym, bbc news. you concede a full investigation on bbc one at ten and 30 on sunday. —— you can see the full investigation. it's taken nearly 40 years of painting, but diana keys has turned her council flat in hemel hempstead into her very own masterpiece. inspired by michelangelo's frescoes in the sistine chapel — she's decided to open her home and reveal what she's been working on. i'd never seen the sistine chapel.

but i wanted it to be a bit like that. i like to think that i've left behind a piece of life. when i eventually go to heaven, the council will paint over this, or magnolia. all of this 40 years of painting that i have actually done, it will be the end of it. i like to think some of it will live on, even when i'm not here. diana keyes and her amazing home.

it's that time of year already — the christmas ads are coming out, and this year paddington leads the charge for m&s, and kevin the carrot makes a comeback for aldi. today moz the monster made his debut forjohn lewis — but can he measure up to the tear—jerkers of years gone by? let's take a look. # i've been lost, i've been found #... they can share ours... my name isjim. my name is otto. pleased to meet you. # give a little bit... give a little bit of your love to me #. it was love at first sight. # to get back home, sleep,

pretty darling #... giddy—up. merry christmas! let's hope that got you in the mood. the headlines on bbc news: the eu's chief brexit negotiator michel barnier says the uk has two weeks to clarify how it will settle the so—called "divorce bill" — if trade talks are to begin next month. wales's first minister carwynjones has asked for an independent inquiry into how he handled allegations about carl sargea nt, who died earlier this week. a mother and father are fighting a high court battle to stop their eight—month—old son's life support machine being switched off. now on bbc news, ben brown speaks to mark kermode in the film review