the royal family in this is the royal family in this instance, a picture of the queen and prince phillip celebrating 70 years of marriage but the story is based ona of marriage but the story is based on a research that has been done about whether the monarchy gives us good value for money, really? well according to this they do indeed. they contributed £1.8 billion and they cost us £292 million, which is they cost us £292 million, which is the equivalent of £1i.50 per person or £1pa the equivalent of £1i.50 per person or £1p a day, which, you know what can you buy for 1p. £4.50 or £1p a day, which, you know what can you buy for1p. £4.50 per or £1p a day, which, you know what can you buy for 1p. £4.50 per person per year. yes, i think they are trying to tell us they are good value for money. who is the definition of monarchy? who is included? because there are a number of people that you and i probably think — actually do i want it pay for those individuals? are they included in the £2. 9 —— £292 million. what do you make of this? well not enough to pay our divorce

bi. i notice although they say the monarchy has contributed £i.8 billion they don't break that down per person, only the cost per person. 0ne per person, only the cost per person. one of the interesting things about the research is it measured the monarchy's value as if it were an branded business. i don't think that's how the british people see the monarchy, i don't think that's why it is so popular as we saw there was a tame when it was less popular, after princess diana died. it is more popular in how people see this country and their place in t maybe breaking it down with perhaps slightly spurious figures doesn't quite get to why people are still happy to have what might be quite an outdated way of running a country in 2017. are you prepared to pay ip a day, jacqui? running a country in 2017. are you prepared to pay 1p a day, jacqui?” am. i'm certainly prepared to pay for the queen. i think she does a really difficultjob, can you imagine all the people she has met and you have to keep on smiling and you know —— ijust dread to think what will happen if she has to meet

the donald. well, an interesting thought to leave everyone on for now. my thanks to jacqui and henry. we will be back for another go around at 11.30 but coming up next it is time for meet the author with chris bonington. chris bonington‘s name is synonymous with british climbing. the daring, the concentration, perhaps even the obsession. certainly, the adventure. now in his 80s, he's called his memoir ascent, the story of a fascination with high, wild places, and the mountains that have always called him upwards. four ascents of everest and a personal story, too, of a marriage that lasted more than 50 years. welcome. you're in your 80s now,

chris, but the urge to climb, to go to the wild places, seems as strong as ever. it's neverfaded has it? no, it's every bit as strong, but the body is not quite so willing. so, no, now... when i go climbing, i love climbing, but the best of climbing was when you were just drifting up climbs, at the height of your powers, if you like. and now, you know, i creak up climbs. you've lost that kind of sensual, athletic kind ofjoy and pleasure, and it becomes more the people with whom you're climbing and the place you're in, the surroundings. and visiting places that you've known all your life, peaks where you know almost every stone, every track, the lake district for example. in this country anyway.

but no, even, in the himalayas i still love to go trekking but in the last few years, actually, my kind of treks and climbs have been actually going off, trekking up valleys, hopefully where not many people had ever been before. you're not going to see any tourists. which have a nice little dead easy peak at the end of them, which is probably about 5000 metres high, but it's never been climbed. and i go climbing. the thing about going to places which haven't been conquered, or at least you think... conquered is a horrible word. it is a horrible word. i withdraw it. the gods allow you to reach the summit. you did climbs, as you described in the book, in the alps, that hadn't been done before as far as we know. and that urge to draw back the veil is a really powerful one, isn't it? well, yes, it's that exploratory sense, really. and i think the exploration has been a

stronger thing in me as the physical pleasure of climbing. all the expeditions i've been to in the himalayas, all the peaks i've climbed, have been first ascents. the other only one that wasn't a first ascent was when i finally got up everest, when ijoined a norwegian expedition in 1985. and i actually got to the top by the south cwm route. it was great. it was wonderful. but it's not quite the same as actually having made a first ascent. no, you describe many of those first ascents in the alps where you were really doing things that... as a boy you would just dream of. that was the thrill. i think it's a combination of that, but i think what i have done always is when i started climbing, i didn't have a burning ambition to climb mount everest. i was just absolutely

filled with the joy of discovering rock climbing, hitchhiking up to snowdonia, hitchhiking up to the highlands, and my mum gave me £2 a week. and you could live on £2 a week in those days. stayed in youth hostels and didn't drink anything. and finding people to climb with. the fantastic adventures you had in those days. the near misses as well. but that was all part of it. then you slowly developed, you went to the alps, you went to the himalayas, you discovered you could lead expeditions and were actually interested in the whole business of logistics and leadership. so it's kind of an evolution, a development, as you go through life. the story of your life, as far as climbing is concerned, the camaraderie comes out very strongly. but there is of course another side to that, which is that if you are climb of the kind you've been, you are bound to lose

friends rather regularly. people who don't make it. all too often. and i mean, if you think of it, all my big expeditions, annapurna south face we lost ian clough right at the end of the expedition. a fantastic friend. we'd done the north wall of the eiger together. then in 1975 nick burke, another great mate. 1978 on k2, nick escort, one of my dearest friends. then of course pete boardman and joe tasker. so yes, that loss of life is sad, but in a way it's something that i think you've got to accept if you're an extreme climber. and it still is... it's like going to war in a way. once again, you accept people are going to die around you. you regret them but you carry on. it's the same, where your love of climbing is so great, i never thought of giving up climbing.

you remember very clearly, don't you, your first sight of everest. it must be quite a moment. it was a strange thing, i mean, which just made the first ascent of nuptse, the third peak of everest, which had been a desperate climb. an amazing trip in a way. we all got on incredibly badly together. with one or two exceptions. and somehow we actually pulled it off. i'll never forget, as you climbed up this gully, on the south side of nuptse, which is the retaining wall of the western cwm of everest. so suddenly as you come up this gully, suddenly, you pop your head over the top and you pop your head over the top and you're looking straight across the western cwm. and there is the south—west face of everest, black, veined in ice. it looks totally unattainable. but i wasn't that interested in it. because in those days, we were going to go back overland to europe. and i'd arranged to meet up with dom willens to attempt the north wall

of the eiger. now at that time my horizons were not himalayan, even though i'd done two of the peaks. my horizons was climbing in the alps, and that what fuelled my ambition. and the north wall of the eiger, anybody who looks at it and is going off for a day of gentle skiing will think, how one earth could anybody go up that? you were telling me earlier, you've climbed the old man of hoy on the edge of the orkney islands. when you were 80. goodness me. climbing the old man of hoy when i was 80, we made the first attempt in 1966. with tom patey. very famous television... and rusty bailey. magnificent. the greatest television extravaganza of all time. the biggest outdoor broadcast ever as well. then it was leo holding, one of our brilliant young climbers, he was the youngest person ever to have climbed the old man of hallway and he's a good friend. —— old man of hoy.

it was his idea. he said, chris, let's go and do it together. i climbed it when i was 11, i'm quite sure you're going to be the oldest at 80. which i was. and so we got together and we did it. how did it feel at 80? it was tough, and i mean, tough for quite a few reasons. i mean, ijust lost wendy, my wife, to motor neurone disease. so i was very unfit because i'd spent a year caring for her. and i was heartbroken. and i think leo was pushing me as much as a kind of catharsis basically. and it was. so we got out and we did it. i'd pulled my back shortly before that anyway. and the moment we started climbing

i realised this was not a good idea, but there was no way i was going to give up, so i climbed through the pain and got to the top. and i was pleased, you know, i had a good tight rope all the way. but i properly climbed it. and it was a brilliant feeling, actually getting to the top with a good friend. the, gave a release that i needed. chris bonington, author of ascent, thank you very much. thank you. hello, it is safe to say a lot of weather coming our way this week. low pressure will be in charge. 0ne for the start of the week and more coming in from the atlantic. the atla ntic coming in from the atlantic. the atlantic part of this is important because it is milder coming in with the areas of low pressure, so temperatures heading up for move of the uk. the cold air will be there in the north of scotland and south again by the end of the week. this is how it is looking on monday. cold enough for snow over the highest levels of hills in northern scotland. as we begin the day,

higher level routes maybe slushy in places. bear that in mind. for many, rain here and rain or snow will fizzle out through the morning. 0utbreaks fizzle out through the morning. outbreaks of rain for northern ireland and northern england and parts of east anglia. further south, a lot of cloud around. not particularly wet but maybe damp and drizzly. what anyone will notice most as monday begins here anyway, just how mild it is compared with recent mornings. the temperatures well into double figures. there is that mild flow of air feeding in across the uk but with plenty of cloud. sunshine hard toll come by during monday. a few brighter breaks to the east of high ground. into the afternoon, areas of thicker cloud and patchy rain but at this stage not amounting to much. double figure temperatures into parts of scotland but for much of scotland into the chilly side still, especially northern areas. monday evening, monday night another spell of rain through northern ireland, parts of wales northern england and into

scotland. any snow here in the hills turning back to rain as we get the milderair turning back to rain as we get the milder air feeding turning back to rain as we get the milderairfeeding in. turning back to rain as we get the milder airfeeding in. tuesday looks like a wet day in northern scotland. another area of rain for northern ireland for a time on tuesday, sinking south—eastwards into england and wales, but, really, really mild, temperatures reaching into the mid—teens, in some spots and more of scotla nd mid—teens, in some spots and more of scotland reaching into double figures, as well. more low pressure coming mid—week, as we go into wednesday, could be wet by wednesday through parts of north—west england, north wales could see gales in parts of southern england and heavy showers on wednesday night. the potential for seeing some heavy rain. this week, milderfora potential for seeing some heavy rain. this week, milderfor a time, looks like turning colder by the end of the week. some rain at times, and snow in the scottish hills, often windy, too. this is bbc news. the headlines at 11:00. a defiant robert mugabe defies

expectations in address to the nation by not resigning. the operation i have alluded to did not amount toa operation i have alluded to did not amount to a threat to our well—cherished constitutional order. nor was it a challenge to my authority as head of state and government. from zimbabweans, disbelief and confusion about how the mugabe era will be brought to an end. we need him to change his mind. we need him to resign. he does not speak for our interests. he only speaks for his personal interests and his family. here, police investigating