we will see some mist and to come. we will see some mist and fog in some areas and don't be surprised if you wake up to scenes like this on sunday morning. some of it could be stubborn to clear but it should do and after some sunny spells, the cloud will be bubbling up, with some showers forming. some of them could be quite heavy and thundery, particularly across the south—west. scotland and northern ireland should have a fine day. milder here as well. slightly cooler for england and wales. hello, this is bbc news, the headlines: the home secretary says almost 250 witnesses have been identified as part of the investigation into the nerve agent attack in salisbury, former russian spy attack in salisbury, former russian spy sergei skripal and his daughter remain ina spy sergei skripal and his daughter remain in a critical condition in hospital. this investigation is

about keeping people safe, that is what the cobra meeting is about, and making sure we collect all the evidence, so that when it comes to attribute and, we will be absolutely clear where it should leave. —— when it comes to attribution. no more changes to exams and a reduction in teachers' workload — the promise of the education secretary as he attem pts the education secretary as he atte m pts to the education secretary as he attempts to resolve the school recruitment crisis. talks between the eu,japan and recruitment crisis. talks between the eu, japan and us on president trump's tariffs on steel and aluminium have broken up with no exemption agreed. the eu trade commissioner had called for the eu to be excluded from the tariffs. in sport, ireland win the six nations championship, beating scotland by 28-8, with championship, beating scotland by 28—8, with a bonus point, meanwhile, england have lost to france in paris, 22 to— —— 22—16. now on bbc news, an oscar special

for you, now on bbc news, an oscar special foryou, in now on bbc news, an oscar special for you, in talking movies. hello from california, i'm tom brook, and welcome to this special edition of talking movies where we look back at the 90th annual academy awards. a recap of what happened on the big night. we hear from those who took home top oscar prizes. i'm going back home with these babies. director guillermo del toro's film, the shape of water, won four academy awards, more than any other picture. we bring you his thoughts on his oscar—winning movie. the idea was to make a movie about love and cinema.

it was a night of inclusion at the oscars. we hear how the chilean picture a fantastic woman made history when it won the best foreign—language film trophy. and we ask why does the academy keep giving its top best picture prize to little—seen films. why doesn't it embrace blockbusters? all that and more in this special review of the oscars edition of talking movies. the academy awards really engage the film—making community here in hollywood and this year there were a lot of unanswered questions going into the ceremony. everyone wanted to know which film would win best picture and what impact would the time's up movement have on the proceedings. let's take a look back at the evening. it was not an oscars in which any one picture made a major sweep. the shape of water came away

with the most trophies, four in all, for best picture, original score, production design and for best director. this story of a mute cleaning lady who becomes involved with an aquatic creature had a boldness of vision, a vision that came from its director, guillermo del toro, a man clearly delighted by his victories. my next stop is going to see my mum and my dad this week. i'm going back home with these two babies. at oscar viewing parties in hollywood there was the expectation that the shape of water would win. loved the movie, not surprised at all, wonderfulfilm. one of my favourites in a long time. i knew it was going to be shape of water, i would have preferred for it to be three billboards but i loved the shape of water, it was great. so this is one of those silly academy things where they spend a fortune... veteran awards expert and movie lover anne thompson had been backing the shape of water all along as the best picture winner. this is a case where you have a beloved director

in guillermo del toro but it's also a movie that happens to tie in with the political narrative of the day and so you have a mexican director, he made a movie that was a fairytale, it was sincere, it was romantic and it was inclusive in the sense that it was about outsiders who would ordinarily be marginalised. it fit everything and it was gorgeously made and all the crafts loved it and so that's why it got so many nominations and four wins. the best actor prize went, as expected, to britain's gary oldman for his skilful portrayal of the british wartime leader winston churchill in the film the darkest hour. winning an oscar for playing arguably one of the greatest britons who ever lived, to win it for playing winston makes it doubly special. it has been an unforgettable experience and a highlight of my career.

and best actress went to frances mcdormand who gave a powerhouse performance as a mother seeking justice for her daughter's murder in director martin mcdonagh's dark comedy three billboards outside ebbing, missouri. look around, everybody, look around, ladies and gentlemen. because we all have stories to tell and projects we need financed. mcdormand gave a memorable acceptance speech, in a show of solidarity, asking all female nominees to stand. the plight of women in the film industry, their experiences with sexual harassment, the rise of the #metoo and time's up movements, were referenced at different occasions during the ceremony. it was very much an oscars of inclusion. we had time's up represented on the stage as part of the show and the fact that the academy integrated that into the show, the monologue, addressed a lot of what has been going on in hollywood, i think it was really important that the academy and the oscars acknowledged this this year. but there are those who think that

politics at the oscars telecast may have turned off some tv viewers. i almost wonder if the political cast of it was a good idea. they leaned in. i understand why, i understand that in hollywood everyone wants this kind of women's agenda, time's up, #metoo, inclusion, they really do, but you know what are the oscars are supposed to be? they're supposed to be an advertisement for the movies. and back to the movies. jordan peele, get out. one highlight of the evening was get out winning best original screenplay. this film, a cleverfusing of a racial satire with a horror movie, has been a critically—lauded huge hit. the oscar went to the man who wrote and directed it, jordan peele. these are exciting teams for black film—makers. i'm so proud to be part of a time, the beginning of a movement, where i feel like the best films in every genre are being brought to me by my fellow black directors. call me by your name.

also winning for screenplay was the gay romance call me by your name. eighty—nine—year—old james ivory was awarded the best adapted screenplay trophy for his work on the film. he is now the oldest oscar winner ever. gay romance this film might be but ivory sees it as a story of first love. it's a universal situation, first love and how we feel about it. whether it has made us unhappy or joyous or whatever, that is universal and that is subject matter that everyone everywhere can identify with. the british war epic dunkirk did well, winning three trophies in sound and film editing categories. the oscars was not without omissions or snubs. lady bird, a strongly liked coming—of—age story starring saoirse ronan, had five nominations. the film, which marked

the directorial debut of greta gerwig, was seen as a big success story but it left the oscars empty—handed. overall it was an academy awards ceremony with few surprises with the big prizes generally going the way oscar experts had been predicting. for guillermo del toro the oscars provided a great night. not only did his film win the best picture trophy but he also won for best director. so let's speak with the man himself and take a look at his oscar—winning picture in greater depth. if i told you about her, the princess without voice, what would i say? the shape of water is set in baltimore in 1962. much of the action taking place in a top—secret government laboratory where a mute cleaning lady played by sally hawkins falls in love with an aquatic creature from south america being held in captivity at the facility.

part of the reason for the film's oscar successes is its ambition. it draws from many different genres. fantasy, horror, cold war, noir thriller, science—fiction. guillermo del toro welcomed the challenge of bringing it all together. i thought the movie could be very risky because it combined, comedy, melodrama, musical theatre, creature feature, you know. it is all these things at the same time and i thought, that's difficult but that's why you should make it. is she deaf? mute, sir, she can hear you. the film's silent star attraction is sally hawkins who, except for one singing scene, doesn't utter a word in this two—hour film. del toro wanted his leading lady in this romance to be a complex and real character. she's not a pure princess waiting for the prince

to kiss her for the first time. she has a life. sally is a woman that is beautiful and luminous but at the same time you can find her on the street. inspiration for the shape of water came from the 1954 film creature from the black lagoon. part of del toro's childhood memories. that movie had an amphibious humanoid monster. the director wanted his monster to be a more developed, multidimensional being. if you do a monster monster, all you need is for it to be scary or creepy in one or two scenes. but here you have a guy who is going to be sad, vulnerable, innocent, brutal, fierce, an animal, a god, all these things he needs to be. you need to give the tools to your actor to create this creature. the shape of water provides a critique of militaristic cold war era america and its patriarchal culture, which is seen

to marginalise women, african americans and gay people. by contrast, del toro has put together a very inclusive work. the idea was to make a movie about love, and cinema. so i wanted about loving the other because right now everybody says the other is guilty of your unhappiness. the immigrant, whatever you want to call it, they point fingers and i find it very difficult. compared to his previous films such as pan's labyrinth or crimson tide (sic), guillermo del toro strikes a more optimistic tone in the shape of water with a powerful love story, one that clearly satisfied oscar voters. the movies i've done, nine movies before this, are movies about nostalgia and loss. they are tinged with a sadness. this movie is the first movie that is almost life affirming, you know, it like full of beauty. you come out of the movie energised to face the real world as opposed to sort of heartbroken and destroyed because the real world destroyed something precious. i think it's the first time i dared to be hopeful.

eliza, honey. he's coming for you. what's it like to be a nominee from a distant land and come to los angeles to participate in hollywood's biggest night of the year? well, to find out, we asked two german film—makers and their kenyan production team to document their trip to the oscars. they have been nominated for the live short action film watu wote, all of us. my name is katja benrath, i'm from hamburg, germany and i'm here in la because we got nominated for an oscar for our short film, watu wote, for the short film oscar. the story is about about

a terrorist attack. a bus was travelling to the border region of kenya to somalia and the al—shabab attacked the bus with the aim to kill the christian passengers on the bus. and on the bus there were christians and muslims. during the attack the muslims just gave hijabs to the christian women and clothes to the christian men so that they could not be divided any more. and they said to the terrorists, kill all of us or none of us. until the terrorists fled at the end. you know, when we found out we were nominated for an oscar we were showing the short film for the first time in kenya, a lot of the cast members were there and we watched the announcement together and what was the reaction? i think it was screaming, jumping, flipping! it was crazy and it was amazing because there were so many people in the room who were part of this and it was a challenging process. congratulations, congratulations.

for me it means to be nominated for an oscar that it's especially an honour to the whole team and crew who worked on the project. the time we spent here in la is like we... it's the craziest time i've ever experienced. we had a lot of interviews, you have to promote your film, you have to do campaigning. i also have a few appointments because some companies want to speak with me because they liked the short film. the film already opened doors for us where we never ever thought about knocking on them before. now they are open and going to the oscars now, mainly for us it is kind of really a great honour, especially to the team. it was just amazing being there on the red carpet. really experiencing everything. it was great.

also the preparations before were amazing because we had a lot of fun with hair and make—up and so many people running around, very chaotic but great. despite not having won the oscar it's great being nominated, it's just winning as well. the one thing i realised during the last days, it's totally possible, it totally possible to just make good films and tell good stories to receive that honour because people are interested in films like that and stories like that so just think about the next story, the next film. i was a little bit surprised how little at all i was disappointed. it's just, i'm the same katja as before and it's great we were nominated and i will be a nominated director

for my whole life. the chilean film a fantastic woman made history at the academy awards by becoming the first oscar—winning picture to be led by a transgender actress. it also marked the first time that chile won in the best foreign—language film category. tristan daily reports. set in santiago in chile, marina is at the centre of this picture. her older boyfriend has died suddenly. as a transgender woman, she faces hostility from doctors and the police. her partner's family rejects her, they don't want her at the funeral. she retains her dignity, she holds her ground and she doesn't give in. marina is portrayed by the transgender chilean actress daniela vega.

she plays a woman who inhabits a world very different from her own. of course i'm transgender but my life it's completely different. i have the opportunity to study. my family supports me, my friends support me. and i have a lot of love around me. and i think it's completely different. not only has a fantastic woman won an oscar and received accolades from critics, but it's brought inspiration to the transgender community as well. to see a trans identified woman portraying a trans identified character in a movie that took the storyline seriously is ground—breaking. honestly, i related from it i think right from the beginning and that's just one of many experiences of trans women out there. to be able to sit in a movie theatre and watch a movie with a trans woman about a trans woman and be able to connect with it right away, yes. daniela vega sees the movie as asking more questions than it does supply answers. who is normal and what is normal?

what kind of bodies you can inhabit? and what kind of love you can live and what kind of love you cannot and who says that or not? while a fantastic woman may pose questions, it also presents audiences with a piece of cinema that is hard to categorise. there are moments of fantasy amid reality. admirers see it as a very satisfying film. i like to think as a trans—genre film about a transgender character. so the film flirts with... it's like a romantic film that becomes a thriller that becomes a ghost story, it has moments of fantasy and it sounds like a musical.

and then it's a character study, a film about a woman, a film about humiliation and revenge but at the heart of everything it is a document of someone real. in recent years the box office takings of films that win best picture at the oscars have been relatively small. the academy seems to shun blockbusters. what is driving this trend and does it matter? we have been finding out. the shape of water. in handing out the best picture oscar to the shape of water, the academy has perpetuated a trend of often giving the top academy award not to a big, commercial hit, but to a less well seen, independent or arthouse film. the shape of water's takings have been modest compared to a blockbuster. less than $60 million in the us. moonlight, which won best picture last year, took in just $28 million domestically.

the year before it was spotlight which grossed m5 million at the us box office. none of these films are blockbusters, they are movies with modest box office ambitions made on small budgets. i think that movies that do really well at the oscars are original movies and original movies are risky and risky movies tend to get low budgets. so small budgeted films tend to do well at the oscars. the last time the academy gave the best picture prize to a true hollywood blockbuster was with the lord of the rings: the return of the king back in 200a. many academy voters work on hollywood blockbusters but perhaps one reason they tend to vote for smaller films is because these movies conform to their image of what an oscar—winning film should be. it's always best to look at the awards as a reflection of hollywood, as how it wants to think of itself. it wants to see itself as socially and politically engaged. it wants to see itself as doing serious acting, sometimes in all quotes! it wants to see itself as making films that will last through time. some believe oscar voters

even harbour a prejudice towards commercial blockbusters. they cite wonder woman, critically acclaimed, it made millions, but failed to get a single nomination. the film's detractors would argue that itjust did not merit oscar recognition. but not everyone agrees. wonder woman was the big commercial movie that should have been nominated for best picture this year but it got skunked because it didn't have snob appeal. in recent years movies like interstellar, the hunger games, should have been nominated for best picture but they missed out because voters are still going for the little snob movies even though the race has been expanded to eight, nine, ten films. the academy is often accused

of being elitist with its best picture picks but there are other reasons why it may not give its top award to big commercial hits. i think that it's not necessarily that there is a prejudice against commercial fair so much as when you look at a lot of the commercial films of the last few years, the last decade even, they have been a lot of franchise films and sequels and reboots and they have been mostly action. and i think that, for a lot of people, that is a separate category than the best film of the year in terms of an award is. the academy's favouring of less widely seen pictures creates a problem in generating ratings for the oscars telecast, vital to its livelihood. more viewers will tune in if blockbusters have been nominated. i think the academy would love to have more popular films be nominated. the academy, the people who run it, have no control over that because it's up to the voters. in their democratic institution, the people, the films that get the most votes are the ones that are selected and they have

no control over that. is the academy going to continue to bestow best picture honours on relatively low profile movies? industry economics dictate that to maximise profits and reach a broad global audience, blockbusters need to be artistically cautious. in other words, films unlikely to win oscars. so as long as that is the case, more original, smaller movies will probably continue to take home oscars biggest award. well, that brings our programme to a close. we hope you have enjoyed the show. please remember you can always reach us online at bbc.com/talkingmovies and you can find us on facebook too. so, from me, tom brook, and the rest of the talking movies production team here in los angeles, it is goodbye as we leave you with this year's oscar—winning best original song.

# if you close your eyes and let the music play # # keep our love alive, i'll neverfade away # if you close your eyes and let the music play # keep our love alive, i'll neverfade away # remember me miserable start for many of us to

the weekend, conditions much milder across—the—board, late the weekend, conditions much milder across—the—boa rd, late sunshine across wales and the southern half of england as the weather systems threads north, associated with this area of low pressure, dragging warm out from spain and portugal. as we head on into the night, northern side of scotland, further snow on the higher ground, pushing towards the northern isles, further south, clear spells, lighter winds, pushing into southern counties of england, dry, chilly night to come than previous night, touch of frost, temperatures down to low single figures. sunday morning, don't be surprised to wake up to things like this, mist and fog, stubborn to clear in one or two places. that said, looks like it should be a dry

day on the whole. rain slowly clearing from the far north, confined to the northern isles. scotland, northern ireland, northern england, fine day, parts of wales, scattered showers, some thundery. little bit of sunshine in between and a slightly cooler day, ten to 12 degrees, milder day for scotland, ten or ii celsius. heading into monday, low pressure always close by, particularly to england and wales. fairly unsubtle, fairly strong wind. scotland, northern ireland, dry story to stop the working week. little bit of rain, for england and wales, cloudy story, showers, longer spells of rain, some heavy, towards the south—east, quite breezy as well. cooler day, temperatures ranging from nine to 10 celsius. into tuesday, rich of high—pressure building. fine that

day, fairly., high—pressure building. fine that day, fairly. , sunny high—pressure building. fine that day, fairly., sunny spells around, like wind, but still on the cooler side than what we have seen this weekend, temperatures of seven to 10 celsius. window of fine weather, heading into wednesday, outbreaks of rain and showers. cooler towards the end of the week. this is bbc world news today. i'm celia hatton. our top stories. syrian government forces make gains in ghouta, splitting the territory held by rebels. the trump administration takes the first step towards banning bomb stocks, the deadly device which turns arrival into a machine gun. former white house strategist steve bannon tells frances's national front to prepare for victory, promising a new wave of european populism. you are part of a

worldwide movement which is bigger than france, bigger than italy, bigger than hungary, bigger than all of it. police in the uk say they have identified more than 200 witnesses