hello, this is breakfast with christian frazer and babita sharma. the siege of a luxury hotel in kabul has come to an end — 12 hours after it was stormed by heavily armed militants. five people were killed but security forces were able to free more than 100 guests. good morning, it's sunday 21 january. also this morning: new plans to make sure faulty goods are removed more quickly from shops and homes. the ukip leader henry bolton fights to keep his job as the party holds an emergency meeting to discuss his future. blue badge permits forfree parking are to be made easier to get for people with dementia and autism. and in sport, britain's karl edmund loses the first set of his last 16 match against italy's andreas seppi at the australian open. tomasz has the weather. be prepared for a bit of snow this morning.

quite tricky on some of the roads. the snows will not be last everywhere. it may turn milder tomorrow. good morning, first our main story. the authorities in afghanistan say a siege of a luxury hotel in kabul has come to an end, more than twelve hours after it was attacked by gunmen. an interior ministry spokesman said five civilians including one foreigner were killed at the intercontinental hotel, along with all three attackers. more than 100 people have been rescued. andrew plant reports. the intercontinental hotel in kabul, at dawn on sunday morning, blackened and smoking after an 11—hour siege. the shooting started after nightfall, several gunmen armed with grenades and automatic weapons. translation: at first, i heard some gunfire and then, after 15 minutes, a worker from the hotel approached and said that suicide attackers entered the hotel.

security forces were fighting the gunmen floor by floor with reports of hostages being taken. we now know that around 100 guests have been allowed to leave. it's thought the security guards at the entrance to the 5—storey building are among those who came under fire. the intercontinental hotel in kabul is popular with foreign guests. situated on a hilltop a few miles outside the city, it has been the target of an attack before, in 2011, when 21 people died, including nine attackers. security forces said two of the gunmen had been shot and killed, two more were thought to be hiding in the building. it is not yet clear whether they are still on the loose. the attack comes days after the us embassy in kabul issued a warning about hotels in the city, saying extremist groups could be planning an attack, saying hotels as well as public gatherings could be potential targets. it has been a long night of the

special forces. you can see the intercontinental hotel. the smoke has been pouring from the roof. very lucky to get out alive. we understand they were at least a0 foreigners inside the hotel but were rescued. 0ne foreign national was killed in the attack. we have not yet heard the nationality of the foreign national. we understand the security forces are carrying out an investigation. no group has claimed responsibility yet. large—scale recalls of dangerous and faulty goods will be managed by a new body from today. the office for product safety and standards will ensure they're removed from homes and shelves more quickly. our business correspondent joe lynam reports. in recent years, there have been notable product recalls such as the samsung galaxy note and some whirlpool tumble dryers. now the government hopes

to accelerate the time between recognising the problem and removing the product from shops and homes. the new office for product safety and standards will primarily cover electrical or white goods like washing machines or fridges and will have a panel of experts to decide whether a minor or local issue requires a national recall and it will ensure that imported goods from the eu will be properly checked once the uk leaves next year. what this new body will do is it will ensure that the know—how and the technical expertise is available to prevent any delays and to keep the public as safe as possible. hundreds of electrical products are recalled in britain every year but this new agency hopes to prevent these kinds of incidents. joe lynam, bbc news. the future of the ukip leader, henry bolton will be up for discussion when the party's national executive holds an emergency meeting later today. there have been calls for him to step down after it was reported his girlfriend had sent offensive texts, including racist comments about prince harry's fiance meghan

markle. let's talk to our political correspondent, emma va rdy. it seems they are dammed if they do, dammed if they don't. there are some who are worried about another leadership contest. as you say, the fear of yet another rather embarrassing leadership contest under the circumstances might just save him but we will have to wait and see the outcome of that meeting today. he will certainly be fighting today. he will certainly be fighting to try to save his job. he is expected to face a vote of confidence from the nec committee, the party's ruling body at the nec don't have the power to sack henry bolton, that would have to go to a vote of wider members in the party. this is all coming to a head because the saga has been unfolding since christmas over the relationship with his girlfriend, jo marney, and those text messages which were released to the press. he says the relationship is now over yet many people, he has

lost the confidence of many people within ukip. if he does go later today, he will see what that meeting brings, leaving you keep looking for its fifth leader in just over one year. —— leaving ukip. its fifth leader in just over one year. -- leaving ukip. the party's brexit spokesman will be on were last later, gerard batten. turkey has warned that it could deploy ground forces today after launching air attacks against kurdish fighters in northern syria. more than a hundred targets were bombed in the afrin region with the syrian kurds backed by the us, but turkey calls them terrorists. the first strikes of the new front in syria's war. turkish f—16s pounding kurdish positions from the air. thick plumes riding —— rising above the enclave afrin held by the ypg. turkey sees them as terrorists linked to the kurdish militant group the pkk which has waged insurgency in turkey since the 1980s. the strikes were backed by turkish artillery from the border, tanks in

place, ready to roll in. the aim of turkey is to stop the kurds extending their territorial control in northern syria. standing side—by—side with turkey, syria and rebel fighters leading the ground offensive now. the incursion is called operation olive branch yet it is anything but peaceful. turkey is up is anything but peaceful. turkey is up against kurdish military might. they have been backed by the us in the war against islamic state which hasincensed the war against islamic state which has incensed the turkish government. an estimated half a million have been killed in syria's war. the theory is with this new offensive, that number could rise again. bbc news, on the turkey syria border. a fresh attempt will be made to break the deadlock that has led to the shutdown of parts of the us government. a fresh vote is due to take place in the senate tomorrow. hundreds of thousands of american government workers face the prospect of unpaid leave if the stand off continues. democrats say donald trump blocked a compromise deal — the claim has been denied by the white house. theresa may has said she will crack

down on company executives. writing in the observer, she described the practice and is an unacceptable abuse that will be ended. people with hidden disabilities in england could soon be entitled to blue badge permits for free parking. the department for transport said the change would make it easierfor those with conditions such as autism and dementia to access services they needed. helena lee has this report. the blue badge scheme was first introduced in england in the 19705. today, around 2.a million people with disabilities have one. it allows them to park free of charge on roads and normally without time limits. the government is now proposing to extend the scheme. it wants people with disabilities and conditions like autism and dementia to be able to qualify for a blue badge so they too can enjoy the freedom to get out where and when they want. the department for transport says only some councils recognise hidden

disabilities under the current scheme because they interpret the existing rules differently. the proposals would be the biggest change to the scheme since it was first introduced. the plans will now go through an 8—week public consultation. helena lee, bbc news. they say a man's home is his castle, and for one artist in brazil it really is. marcio matolias has lived in a sandcastle for 22 years in an upmarket neighbourhood of rio de janeiro. it isn't huge inside, but he has everything he needs. marcio says if there is heavy rain he just sculpts himself a new sandcastle. he compares his style to niemeyer and gaudi, and makes money from donations and runs a book exchange. i am glad he has built it far enough back from the tide. in the past few years,

several fires have been linked to faulty fridge freezers and tumble dryers. now, the recall of these defective products will be managed by a new body called ‘the office for product safety and standards'. it's hoped this new organisation will speed up the time between recognising a problem with a product and removing it. joining us now is retail and consumer analyst, kate hardcastle. a big change? it's a welcome change. lots of confusion and challenges, many reports on why things like these are needed so it's definitely welcome news. that is borne out by the fact that although there are many procedures in place, there is not clarity and the most important pa rt not clarity and the most important part is the consumer. it are nowhere to get the messages from product

safety. we have over for domestic appliances in the average household with all of them having the potential to cause harm. when they come with warranties and guarantees, thatis come with warranties and guarantees, that is the piece of paperwork you throw into a draw. that means you don't get information. explained was what happens when is a product recall? what sort of information is sent out? what are they obliged to do? there is the european union website, local trading standards will get involved, but because it is local trading standards, that is lot of different authorities. also, it's very much down to the consumer to react to something they might have heard. to then go and find out more information. what this is going to look at is one body making recommendations, much more research, encouraging the consumers to get more involved, which is brilliant.

and the product recall steps are standardised. very similar to the food standards agency. what happens if you miss that letter in the post about the recall? that happens a lot. what is the best way of ensuring that a consumer knows what is going on with what their appliances are doing? they can only look at best practice. countries like america which have good information. how can they have websites where you worry about one product and go to another website. but the challenges are that sometimes we don't even give the information to the retailer to let them know we have purchased a product. we are reliant on news outlets to try and work out that evenin outlets to try and work out that even in the case like whirlpool, there were four different brand names. you might not realise it is another home —— it is another one. it will ensure information is much

more clear to the consumer. whirlpool have sent us a statement on this saying their extensive campaign has achieved a resolution rate more than three times the industry average for a product recall. maybe they are one of the better ones, i don't know. tel is about the new group. what will the website entail? it will be around the research, procedures, the body they will put in place that will bring clarity and formality to processes . bring clarity and formality to processes. they are going to engage the consumer which i think is the most important part. and not be worried that there is some kind of marketing. keeping the family say. generally make sure they are following best practice. 0k, kate, thank you to coming in. it sounds interesting. very important,

although safety concerns. that is catch up with the weather. good morning. : after you? catch up with the weather. good morning. : afteryou? 0h, catch up with the weather. good morning. : afteryou? oh, wow. in the highlands, a bit sleepy. it's a bit extreme. got snow and ice. a bit ofa bit extreme. got snow and ice. a bit of a problem. this is where the cold air is sitting. the weather fronts moving through. starting to snow across parts of the uk. not everybody is going to get the snow today but the some of us across northern and eastern and central areas, there will be a bit smalling —— but falling through this afternoon. by around nine o'clock, mostly rain. it's just about starting to snow in western areas.

most of it around about here. certainly the midlands into some snow. the midlands, yorkshire, east anglia. certainly scotland, it goes without saying, cold right now. can see that track, trail of snow across eastern areas of the uk. how much? over the hills as is often the case. five, maybe ten centimetres. throughout the midlands and a bit further south. maybe a good covering. and there is freezing rain as well. the roads will be quite icy. but this is only temporary. it's what we call transient snow. by by the time we get it tomorrow, the snow is long gone. for most of us, tomorrow is a very different day. a

lot more mild, temperatures eight — 10 degrees higher across the east and the week ahead, milder air wafting in from the south. from these temperatures, you can gather this spell of cold weather we have right now is only going to last for a short while. a bit of a snow day for some of us. maybe enough to build a snowman in some areas but certainly not everywhere. is -13 is —13 to coldest we have had? yes. so farfor this winter. is —13 to coldest we have had? yes. so far for this winter. it could even dropped to —1a in the next hour 01’ so. even dropped to —1a in the next hour or so. i will let you know. even dropped to —1a in the next hour or so. iwill let you know. i even dropped to —1a in the next hour or so. i will let you know. i will keep you hanging. wrapup. last year women around the world held protests on the first day of donald trump's presidency. they marked the start of a year in which issues like gender equality and sexual harrassment were faced

head—on in every industry, from politics to hollywood. today women from 250 countries will mark the anniversary by marching again. one of the events will be a rally opposite downing street. let's speak now to shola mos—shog—bamimu, one of the organisers. talk through what is happening today. amazing things. we are gathering in solidarity to make sure we are calling for action to bring an end to a number of issues that continue to prevail in our society and are unacceptable. you mentioned the word time's up, that is the hash tag. we saw huge numbers in protest in america. you hoping to attract large numbers like that here in london? the reality is we can't

predict the numbers that evident from the masses of people that came last year, there is a strong number of people in the country that resonate with the issues we have raised stop those other supporters off—line and online as well. we are at and confident that we will be able to stand in solidarity on a number of these issues. hardier assess how successful it will be a close i know this time last year, you would say it was exactly what you would say it was exactly what you wanted to do. —— powell do you assess “— you wanted to do. —— powell do you assess —— how do you. you wanted to do. —— powell do you assess -- how do you. a number of things have changed. there has been a cultural paradigms shift in our thinking. women's voices have been amplified. more institutions and people have been held to account in

respect of a number of these issues from gender pay gap, sexual harassment. there is a paradigms shift and that is very evident and i think that is a product from the women's movement. did think that perhaps people get confused as to what exactly you are calling for and asking for with the hash tag time's up asking for with the hash tag time's up and the hash tag me too. jetta is empowering women to share their stories and experiences. —— it is empowering women. there shouldn't be any confusion. the women's march is grounds routes. things that transcend colour, race and creed. this is a call for action. we need to understand that complacency gets

us to understand that complacency gets us trump and brexit. if you do not show up, stand up, speak up, that if he did stand—up comedy went get what you want. -- if you don't do stand up, you won't get what you want. we wa nt to up, you won't get what you want. we want to achieve, through the march, we wa nt want to achieve, through the march, we want to put together a presentation in parliament. what we are training to achieve here is a cultural development. time's up on the cultural oppression of women. in 2016, only 9% of female funds were

able to get funding. we are calling time's up on so much from transfer the, islamaphobia, homophobia, anti—semitism. we are calling times on the harassment of violence against women. —— transphobia. on the harassment of violence against women. -- transphobia. we are grateful the time. we will be watching the protest shortly. the andrew marr programme is on bbc one this morning at nine. andrew, what have you got coming up? as you may have noticed, we have president emmanuel macron from france and you can hear his views of trump. it has been a bit week with their collapse of karelian mac. we have the shadow chancellor talking about it. —— carillion. not to talk

about. reviewing the press, and have the editor of the guardian, the first—ever female editor of the guardian. and a busy hour. we're here on the bbc news channel until nine this morning, and coming up in the next hour — we'll be taking a hike through 2,000 years of black british history, with the stars of a brilliant new play, and the real—life walking group who inspired it. we'll be hearing more about those plans for people with hidden disabilities to qualifty for blue badge free parking. they've braved temperatures of minus a0 degrees and battled winds of 60 miles per hour to become the largest all—female group to ski coast—to—coast across antarctica. we'll be talking to the "ice maidens" live from the union glacier at 8:10. all that to come on the bbc news channel. but this is where we say goodbye to viewers on bbc one. bye for now. you're watching

breakfast from bbc news. time now for a look at the newspapers. science and medical writer stuart farrimond is here to tell us what's caught his eye. we'll speak to him in a minute looking at the front pages first. the sunday times. the first one i grabbed. 50 labour mps. there is a deselection hit list drawn up by critics ofjeremy corbyn. ed sheeran

ona critics ofjeremy corbyn. ed sheeran on a lot of the front pages. he has announced his engagement to a sweetheart from his school. a great selection of news stories. what first caught my eye was in the sunday telegraph. an announcement by the intellectual property office that they are getting some resources to 7— that they are getting some resources to 7-11 that they are getting some resources to 7— 11 —year—olds about online copyright and attitudes to it. how cheap... —— how kids. i knowi copyright and attitudes to it. how cheap... —— how kids. i know i have been victim to it. if you have a blog, you go onto google images, you ta ke blog, you go onto google images, you take an image and put it on. years ago, it is the sort of thing people didn't think of. you just do it, you think it is free. it is not. elastic dealing, it is the same with music

and videos. —— it is stealing. because you are not taking something off the shelf in a supermarket, it doesn't feel like that. there are companies out there that the cat people who have inadvertently or otherwise used reproduced music or else and they will threaten new with fines. —— they seek out people. there is a whole scam market going on where they are trying to scare people into paying. on where they are trying to scare people into payinglj on where they are trying to scare people into paying. i despair that we need to teach this to people in schools. we have got to this point. this is somebody‘s property. an artist or musician, it's their livelihood. yeah, we always need to be educated and start from an early

age, it's good. ita karen bradley of apprentice fame is writing here. the ministerfor the minister for loneliness. karen raises fantastic points and explains that loneliness affects many people. ina that loneliness affects many people. in a million people in the uk experience loneliness. 0ver in a million people in the uk experience loneliness. over half of the 75 your live alone. it's not just about it being a shame and it might be good to visit more, it affects people ‘s health profoundly. she says it is equivalent to 15 cigarettes per day. she has referred to previous research. what happens is your stress hormones go up and as a consequence of that, increased

risk of heart disease, diabetes, arthritis and there are links to dementia and low mental health. what can the government do? yes. how do you get people to speak? spend more time with each other. jetta it's a cultural thing, isn't it? time with each other. jetta it's a culturalthing, isn't it? i have been on both sides. -- it is a cultural thing. ifound been on both sides. -- it is a cultural thing. i found it incredibly difficult, i was in my early 20s and i thought they shouldn't have those problems but it is very hard on people like to live in their castles. i've been on the other side, the house i live in now with low fences and you talk to neighbours and you have friendships with the people around you. some of it is to do with our environment and a lot is to do with culture. she encourages people to get involved, visit people who might be lonely,

get involved with charities. we can alter that. it is easy. it's very witty shipment to tell people how you are feeling. we kind of get on with it and we are fine. another story i wanted to talk to you about was the story about statins. my mum was the story about statins. my mum was on them after she suffered a heart attack. it's interesting to read there is perhaps scepticism about the use of them for medical purposes. there has long been scepticism. when i was practising in medicine ten years ago now, then there was controversy about whether statins were good to use or not. the stats show that he gives everybody at risk of heart disease statins, you reduce the number of deaths and heart attacks over the whole country. if you look at an

individual basis, you are reducing somebody‘s risk by only a small amount. 0na somebody‘s risk by only a small amount. on a case—by—case basis, it's important that you, as the person, if you are offered statins, and they are good drugs, they reduce the risk, but to assess and individual basis. what side—effects can you expect to have, et cetera. there is an important point made in this piece, drug of these have been guilty of withholding data. you can do an investigation into drug and if it is want, you canjust do an investigation into drug and if it is want, you can just throw it away midway through you can stop us if you don't want to publish it. we have this bias in the literature and the scientific writing to say that drugs maybe have a greater effect

than their collective. that said, on balance with the consensus is that they do have the beneficial effect. we are out of time. i know you are coming back after age. ——8. we are out of time. i know you are coming back afterage. ——8. one of the party's founding members tell us why the —— why he thinks it's time for henry bolton to go. with christian fraser and babita sharma. good morning. here's a summary of today's main stories from bbc news. afghan security forces say a siege of a luxury hotel in kabul has come to an end, more than twelve hours after it was attacked by heavily—armed militants. an interior ministry spokesman said five civilians were killed at the intercontinental hotel, along with all three attackers.

he said more than a hundred people including 16 foreigners had been rescued. the intercontinental hotel in kabul, blackened and smoking after an 11—hour siege. the shooting started after nightfall, several gunmen armed with grenades and automatic weapons. translation: at first, i heard some gunfire and then, after 15 minutes, a worker from the hotel approached and said that suicide attackers entered the hotel. security forces were fighting the gunmen floor by floor with reports of hostages being taken. we now know that around 100 guests have been allowed to leave. it's thought the security guards at the entrance to the 5—storey building are among those who came under fire. the intercontinental hotel in kabul is popular with foreign guests. situated on a hilltop a few miles outside the city, it has been the target of an attack before, in 2011, when 21 people died, including nine attackers. security forces said two of the gunmen had been shot and killed, two more were thought to be hiding in the building.

it is not yet clear whether they are still on the loose. the attack comes days after the us embassy in kabul issued a warning about hotels in the city, saying extremist groups could be planning an attack, saying hotels as well as public gatherings could be potential targets. andrew plant, bbc news. a new body to manage large—scale product recalls has been set up by the government. the office for product safety and standards was set up after several fires were linked to faulty electrical items. the independent panel of experts will also take over the monitoring of goods imported from the eu after brexit. the future of the ukip leader, henry bolton will be up for discussion when the party's national executive holds an emergency meeting later today. there have been calls for him to step down after it was reported his girlfriend had sent a series of offensive texts, including racist comments about prince harry's fiance meghan markle. turkey has warned that it could deploy ground forces today after launching air attacks against kurdish fighters in northern syria.

more than a hundred targets were bombed in the afrin region. the syrian kurds are backed by the us, but turkey calls them terrorists. a fresh attempt will be made to break the deadlock that has led to the shutdown of parts of the us government. a fresh vote is due to take place in the senate tomorrow. hundreds of thousands of american government workers face the prospect of unpaid leave if the stand off continues. democrats say donald trump blocked a compromise deal — the claim has been denied by the white house . theresa may has said she's to set out plans in coming weeks to crack down on company executives who enrich themselves while jeopardising their workers' pensions. writing in the observer newspaper, she describes the practice as an unacceptable abuse that will be ended. people with hidden disabilities in england could soon be entitled to blue badge permits for free parking. the department of transport said the change would make it easier for those with conditions such as autism and dementia to access services they needed.

the proposals would be the biggest change to the blue badge scheme since it was first introduced in 1970. all eyes on the cricket this morning. we have the cricket in australia and the tennis as well. the world of the day so farfor the tennis as well. the world of the day so far for kyle edmund is resurgent. yes, let's start with tennis because kyle edmund is attempting to reach a grand slam quarter finalfor the first time. britain's number two has already seen off the eleventh seed kevin anderson and dealt with some incredibly hot conditions in melbourne on his way to the last sixteen. it's much cooler today, just 26 degrees. but the battle is just as intense against andreas seppi. edmund is 26 places above the italian in the world rankings, although you wouldn't know that from watching so far as it's been incredibly tight. england's cricketers can

clinch their one day series with victory over australia in the third one day international in sydney. australia won the toss and put england into bat. they've not had an easy time at the crease. six wickets have fallen, captain 0wen morgan out for a1 and moeen ali didn't last much longer after replacing him. gone forjust six. jos buttler is there and keeping england ticking over. england 302/6. alexis sanchez is on the verge of joining manchester united from arsenal, after united midfielder henrikh mkhitaryan agreed to be part of a direct swap. the players will both have their medicals today.

mkhitaryan's paperwork for his transfer was completed yesterday. the length of the armenian's contract at arsenal, and his salary, is undisclosed. sanchez missed arsenal's a—1 win over crystal palace because he was travelling to manchester. the premier league paid tribute to cyrille regis, with fans across the country taking time to remember the former england striker, who died last week. 0n the field, there were few surprises with those fighting for a top four finich all winning, as drew savage reports. before the action, time for reflection. football took a minute to celebrate the life of west brom commentary and england striker cyrille regis who died this week at the age of 59. and then, business as usual. manchester city took another step towards the premier league title with scorer sergio aguero at it again. last week's game against liverpool a distant memory. beaten 3—1. it is so important because we need goals and we score in the past

and present and we will score the future. it is an important finish. city are still 12 points ahead of manchester united. family had two on target. romelo lukaku put on the hard yards. anthony martial put it away. that puts the side in second place, several points ahead of chelsea. they started with five draws and struggled for goals. in brighton, that was no longer a problem. there is a lovely flow about chelsea here, absolutely sensational, what a wonderful goal! a great afternoon for eden hazard, he scored to make himself and made this young man's day. arsenal reacted to last week's loss the bournemouth by destroying crystal palace. goals in the first few minutes although they are a long way from champions league places.

and stoke responded to their new manager paul lamber with their first win in months. it means they are out of the relegation zone. elsewhere, leicester are up to seventh after beating watford. everton versus west brom and west ham versus bournemouth both finished 1—all. southampton hosts spurs later today. celtic cruised into the scottish cup fifth round with a 5—nil thrashing of brechin city. the scottish premiership champions have had a 3—week winter break, and looked refreshed at celtic park. brendan rodgers fielded a strong team, despite his opponents currently sitting bottom of scottish football's second tier, without a league win all season. saracens are still in with a chance of retaining their champions cup trophy, after beating northampton saints 62—1a.

the defending champions had to win against saint to have a chance of making the quarterfinals. but they still need other results to go their way today if they are to make the last eight. scarlets have no such worries. they beat toulon to become the first welsh side to qualify for the quarter finals since 2012. bath and 0spreys are out though. england's ross fisher is tied for the lead heading into the final day of the abu dhabi international, with rory mcilroy also in contention. mcilroy, who's only just returned from injury, is third — one shot off the pace, after hitting eight birdies in his third round. fisher produced some of his best golf, hitting a round of seven under par to take the lead — and move to 17 under for the tournament. there will be a new name on the masters trophy this evening with mark allen taking on kyren wilson. neither player has reached this stage before. allen knocked out two—time winner john higgins in his semi—final, having already beaten

ronnie 0'sullivan. wilson defeated world number three judd trump to make his first masters final. how's this for impressive driving? a mistake in heat one saw british bobsleigh duo meesha mcneill and montell douglas nearly come out of their sled at the final world cup event before the winter olympics, but thanks to mcneill‘s quick reactions the pair narrowly escaped crashing. goodness me, that puts me on the edge of my seat. it makes me feel uncomfortable. we have lots of that kind of thing to look forward to. indeed. thank you very much. a walk in the countryside — a simple activity that has inspired artists, writers and even the prime minister! now a 200a trek taken by a group

of men has been turned into a play. black men walking covers a few miles in the peak district, but 2,000 years of black history. ali fortescue put on her walking boots to meet the cast and the real men they portray. we are home. 2m000 years of black british history told on a walk in the peak district. we walked england before the english. it's a play inspired by a real walking group and just days before the first curtain call, the cast have come back to where the story started for a final run through and to meet the men who inspired the play. the story takes place on a day when the walkers probably shouldn't be going out because of weather

warnings and along the way, they encounter over 500 years of black british history, characters from the past emerging. what the play is really looking at is how long do you have to be in a place to be part of it? how long do you have to be in yorkshire to become a yorkshireman? today is all about getting the actors into characters so here we are in the peak district and this is of course all about walking groups. so shall we do some walking? we are joining the original walkers on the route they have done many times. it's a long stretch along the yorkshire—derbyshire border, more than enough time for the actors to get to know the walkers and the story they will be bringing to the stage. you are one of the founding members of the original group? why was it started? something healthy, something that gave as an opportunity to share and talk and discuss with each other because it's something that men don't do, particularly men within perhaps the black community and we felt that we wanted to

continue to develop our friendship. and they have inspired a play. what do you think of that? it's amazing, to think that is the case. so we are looking forward to seeing what the play will do and say about the group but also what it has to say about living in britain today in the 21st century. there is a real kind of misunderstanding that the black community has just arrived recently on windrush, for example. we have been here for centuries. i wanted to reflect that, tell those stories, the hidden british histories, in my thesis. those are the stories we are telling. more than 10 years since they started walking, this is one they will never forget. as the sheffield walkers bid farewell to the actors who will be taking their story around the country. ali fortescue, bbc news. black men walking is on at the royal exchange theatre

in manchester until the 3rd of february before going on a nationwide tour. here's tomasz with a look at this morning's weather. he has put 11 up. it's miles colder than that. this is what it is like in penzance right now. to the north of the uk, a totally different story. much, much colder. it's frozen. minus 13. very good. actually, this is what the temperature was overnight. and since then, it has risen dramatically in then, it has risen dramatically in the highlands. it is about —3. that is because of weather front is

approaching the uk and when we have this battle of mild and extremely cold, it means a weather front is moving through and inevitably, this time of year, we get some snow as well. it's been snowing in northern ireland but most of the snow today or later on will fall in parts of wales and more southern areas of the uk. this is a snapshot in the next... what is it? injust about an hour, it is starting to snow across the parts of the hills in wales. a cold, grey day. the two bridges will struggle through most of the day. the snow is going to get more extensive so initially it is raine and then we have this reservoir, this pool of cold air. you see the snow from the highlands to yorkshire and parts of the midlands. maybe as far south as the chilterns, the ma

corridor. tropical cornwall, all the while. 0n corridor. tropical cornwall, all the while. on top of that, in some parts of the country, gale force. the strong winds will help push mild air in off the atlantic. this coming night, we are not talking about —1a any more, more mild. tomorrow, some rain. 0verall, any more, more mild. tomorrow, some rain. overall, the weather on monday. you can see the temperatures almost into double figures across the uk. the week ahead, a milder air. 0verall, the uk. the week ahead, a milder air. overall, the theme is more mild air. overall, the theme is more mild airto head air. overall, the theme is more mild air to head through debris. it will head up in london. this is above

what we have this time of year, normally. temporarily today, snow and then all of that or some of it, it will take a while, will wash away. in some areas of scotland, it is 30 centimetres. a lot lying around. what wardrobe to be get out? is it some are? winter? average of both? well, it's clearly not summer. ido both? well, it's clearly not summer. i do think i've ever seen a forecast where it is an 11 down south and —13 up where it is an 11 down south and —13 up north. take it from me, wrap up warm. it is called. —— cold. we'll be back with the headlines at 8:00. but first it's time for the travel show with henry golding. this week on the travel show: we find out what it takes to work as a croc wrangler in a stunning australian national park.

i explore australia's northern territory, hearing what the future holds for tourism at one of the country's most famous attractions. first this week, i've come to australia's northern territory and one of the most iconic sites in the world — uluru. the giant monolith attracts more than a quarter of a million visitors each year. for many of them, climbing to the top is something of a rite of passage. but for the indigenous people of central australia, the anangu, the rock means much more. as well as being an important place for tourists, uluru is a sacred site. now, at the moment, tourists are allowed to go up to the peak, but all of that is about to change.

at the end of 2017, the people who manage uluru in conjunction with its anangu owners made a landmark decision to ban tourists from climbing the rock. the 600 million—year—old rock is at the heart of anangu culture. they believe that touching the red sandstone is a way of communicating with the gods and it is the basis of their creation stories. it is almost like a law and it is really something that is so integral, so important to anangu, and those very stories are based in locations around uluru. and so why was the decision made in the first place to ban the climb? there's a couple of reasons.

primarily it's because anangu don't want to see people climbing, for cultural reasons, but there's also has been quite a significant number fatalities on the climb. they do get very sad whenever anybody gets injured or dies, and there have been more than 35 people that have died. the ban will not come into force until october 2019 and until then, tourists can continue to climb on days when the weather isn't too extreme. the base of the route has a number of signs asking tourists to respect anangu wishes not to climb, but many people ignore these. whilst the decision has been welcomed by many in the local area, not everyone in the northern territory is supportive of the ban. i get the local indigenous people, i get where they're coming from, but i think it is a shame because it is a fantastic place to visit. i think that it is a good thing because, like, you know, people go up and they get hurt and then, the government spends a lot of time and energy rescuing people.

yeah, that is a big issue. i mean it costs a lot of money to get to central australia, as you know, so if you are diminishing the experience, i think it's got to impact somewhere. so, will the closure of the climb have a negative impact on tourist numbers visiting uluru? left foot in the stirrup here. just throw your leg through nice and gently. well, to keep visitors coming, local tourism bosses are working hard to show that there are other ways to experience the rock. there we go. hey! holy moly. uluru camel tours takes people out into the desert here. they give people a great camel experience. it's all about people really connecting with nature and connecting with the outback, and what better way to do it than on the back of a camel? so when you're riding those camels, just relax from the waist down, let your body go with the flow. sure. don't try to tense your body up. well, they're environmentally friendly, they browse on 85%

of the vegetation out here, they've got big, flat feet so they actually don't chop the ground up, they're a low impact animal, and they go for months without water so they don't have to hang around a water source and eat all the vegetation. wow. unbelievable. you never get sick of that, do you? the views from the vantage point are pretty breathtaking. for chris, the decision to ban the climb is very welcome. look, i think closing the climb has been long overdue. and it's been something that's been talked about for many, many years. for myself, will it affect tourism out here? i don't think so. i think it will still bring more numbers — itjust actually gives people a bigger and better understanding about the anangu stories out here, and also the culture. as well as established activities like camel rides and cycling tours, new attractions are being introduced to encourage tourists to keep coming. and most popular of them all comes to life at sunset. bruce munro's field of light

installation is designed to embody the energy, heat and brightness of the desert landscape. what a way to finish my trip here in uluru! there's 50,000 light bulbs here, glowing, and it all looks like iridescence in sort of water. the work was originally installed in 2016 and was only supposed to stay in place for a year. but due to the huge popularity of the piece, it will now be here until the end of 2020 — a clear sign that uluru remains confident it can continue to attract tourists long after the ban comes into force in october 2019. finally this week, how would you like to be in charge

of a park encompassing over 2000 types of plant and an incredible 10,000 crocodiles? for many, it is a dream job. and when kakadu national park put out a job adverts for a new park manager, it caused the global stir. so what does it take to run a park of this size? we caught up with the current park manager on one of his last days on thejob. every day is different and that is what makes the job interesting. tourism is a big part of it so working to make sure that tourist sites are as good as they could be. we put a quirkyjob ad out there which was looking for a ceo

and part—time croc wrangler. it has had a huge amount of interest from around the world. it went viral and we had people from europe and america are interested. it is one of those jobs... you see a job ads sometimes and it says "unique opportunity", but that's an empty cliche. this one is certainly unique. there is nojob like it in the world. primarily this is aboriginal land so the traditional owners of the land have leased it back to us, the federal government, and jointly with them we manage the national park. the size of the park is enormous. 20,000 square kilometres. in context, that is about the size of wales or half the size of switzerland. a workforce of about 75 people and they are extremely busy maintaining the park. we have a large influx of visitors in the dry season,

in the middle of the year, may through october, and our rangers are doing biodiversity work, conservation work, operational stuff and making sure that our visitors are safe and having a great time. one third of all australian bird species live within kakadu. we have 60 different kinds of mammals. really diverse landscapes as well. stone country, 1.5 billion—year—old rocks, some of the oldest in the world. on a rock is 20,000—year—old rock art. we are living amongst a 65,000—year—old culture, the oldest in the world. immersing yourself in that is just amazing. for me, the big challenge going forward is tourism and growing tourist numbers because there is a uranium mine leased

within the park and that mine is closing down at the end of 2020. that provide a large amount of income and sustains the town of jabiru. finding a sustainable alternative source of revenue for the town to keep people employed and services open is important, so we are working closely with traditional owners and the northern territory government to look at how tourism can replace mining as a source of revenue and sustain the park. i would say the biggest challenge is ensuring that tourism grows in the future but continuing to work with traditional owners as well, making sure that there needs are met and aspirations are realised as well. applications are now closed for the next lucky ka kadu croc wrangler. as workplaces go, it is not more stunning than this. i am afraid that is all we have time for this week. coming up next week, jo heads to israel to find out how

these huge sinkholes have become the latest attraction for travellers to the dead sea. it is a lot to take in because it is devastation but also quite beautiful. don't forget you can follow us wherever we are in the world byjoining our social media feeds. details are on your screen now. from me and the rest of the travel show team here in australia, it is goodbye. hello this is breakfast, with christian frazer and babita sharma. the siege of a luxury hotel in kabul has come to an end — 12 hours after it was stormed by heavily armed militants. five people were killed but security forces were able to free more than 100 guests.