this is bbc news, i'm shaun ley. the headlines at 8pm. the couple poisoned by the toxic nerve agent, novichok, had handled a contamined item. but the authorities say the risk to others is low. we've only seen two members of the public come forward with symptoms that require treatment. so our general assessment on the information we've got is that the risk to the general public remains low. the home secretary sajid javid confirms the nerve agent was the same as that used against the former russian spy sergei skripal and his daughter. it is completely unacceptable for our people to be either deliberate or accidental targets or for our streets, our parks, our towns to be dumping grounds for poison. in other news, with more rain forecast, it's a race against time to rescue 12 boys and their coach trapped in a cave. a deluge is expected to hit in a matter of days, it could force water levels up and flood the pocket where the group took refuge. on the 70th anniversary of the national health service, we reflect on events held across the uk, including a service at westminster abbey.

and kyle edmund wins through to a third round match against novak djokovic, he's the only briton left in the wimbledon singles. welcome the bbc news. the police say that the two people ta ken critically ill after being poisoned by the nerve agent novichok in amesbury, in wiltshire, had handled contaminated material. but they haven't yet identified the source. earlier, the home secretary, sajid javid, called on russia to explain the incident. the pair were taken ill on saturday just eight miles from salisbury where the former russian spy, sergei skripal and his daughter were poisoned in march. mrjavid told mps he would not tolerate british parks and streets becoming a dumping

ground for poison. moscow has denied being involved in either of the incidents. our home affairs correspondent june kelly reports from amesbury. this secluded new housing estate in rural wiltshire is now part of what has become an expanding police investigation. this was the scene this afternoon at the home of charlie rowley in amesbury. dawn sturgess and charlie rowley fell ill on saturday and both are critical in intensive care. last night came confirmation that they had been poisoned by the nerve agent novichok. in london, four months on from the attack on sergei and yulia skripal, the government's emergency committee was meeting once again. later, the home secretary briefed the house of commons. there is no evidence that either the man or woman in hospital visited any of the places that were visited by the skripals. our strong working assumption is that the couple came into contact

with the nerve agent in a different location to the sites which have been part of the original clean—up operation. in wiltshire, a number of locations linked to the couple are now cordoned off. in amesbury, there is charlie rowley‘s flat in muggleton road. also closed off is a baptist centre nearby and a local branch of boots the chemist. in salisbury, eight miles away, a hostel, john baker house in rollestone street, where dawn sturgess lived, has now been closed. so too have the queen elizabeth gardens in the city. the gardens are close to the maltings shopping centre and a bench where sergei and yulia skripal were found collapsed in march. the skripal home is also nearby. charlie rowley was at this church social event on saturday. he looked a bit out of sorts. you could just sense there was something not right. one would have assumed it was possibly alcohol, but we don't know for sure.

this footage shows him being taken into salisbury general hospital. dawn sturgess had already been admitted, as a friend who didn't want to appear on screen, described. on saturday morning i got a phone call. i was told that basically she had got rushed into hospital. she had basically passed out. it was the skill of the staff at salisbury general which saved sergei and yulia skripal. this evening, police said in the first search of charlie rowley‘s house, officers found items that suggested a batch of illegal drugs might have been involved. now they know that once again they are dealing with a deadly nerve agent. the authorities have been trying to reassure the public, stressing that the risk remains low, and no—one else has presented with the same symptoms. jon kay's been speaking to people from amesbury, this is his report. for chloe, it is all too close to home. she lives just yards from the property where the couple collapsed.

so she's taking no chances. following the official advice, she is washing her clothes, and wiping down her possessions. so we're just going to have to, i guess, keep waiting. she told me it was worrying that it took four days to identify the nerve agent. it was hard not knowing, because we just didn't know what to do. we just didn't want to assume something, but i guess we assumed the worst, and the worst was what we got. for friends and relatives of the critically—ill couple, the wait for answers is even tougher. one minute they were fine, the next minute they were in intensive care. it's a bit scary. salisbury, eight miles from the couple's home. this is the shopping centre where the skripals collapsed, after being poisoned in march. after a marketing push, things were just returning to normal here, when news broke of this latest novichok alert. oh my god, where's it come from? despite assurances that the risk to the public is low,

jenny, a grandmother, told me she's still anxious. you just don't know, do you? what frightens you, particularly? the fact this time that it is just two people, two random people, it could be any of us. where has it come from, how has it happened, why has it happened? and we don't seem to be told that much. we are told enough to frighten us, but not enough to put our minds at rest. the bench where the skripals fell ill in march has now gone, replaced with summer flowers. daniel stiles has a fruit stall right next to it. he says business was beginning to recover, when this latest major incident was declared. it can be a bit worrying, knowing that it is here and there, but you can worry until the cows come home, oryou canjust get on with your life. they are the choices you make. and that's what you're doing, just getting on with things? yeah, just get on with it. so, despite having some answers tonight, people here have many more questions.

the main one, could it happen again? jon kay, bbc news, wiltshire. joining us now to talk more about russian reaction to this is vitaliy shevchenko, from bbc monitoring. you've been looking at how this is being reported by russian media. how prominently is a story? it's all over tv screens, and this is quite a difference from the way things were in the soviet union, when the public behind the iron curtain were shielded from any accusations of any supposed wrongdoing by the soviet union. not now. right now, all these claims of russian meddling and poisonings. .. claims of russian meddling and poisonings... in a way, they promote putin's agenda and further his claims that russia is back on its feet again. russia's feared and

respected. also, a huge part of the kremlin ideology is what you can call a siege mentality. they're all out to get us? absolutely! nato is inserting us with military bases, that's why we have to spend money on oui’ that's why we have to spend money on our military, to be strong. this is precisely the reason this is all over tv screens in russia. are there any examples that have struck you since the story broke was yellow yes, the thrust of what is coming from russia is that we have nothing to do with it, any accusations of moscow's involvement are groundless, ludicrous. but even before british police said that the amesbury couple had been poisoned with novichok, all of russia's main tv channels had been drawing parallels with

salisbury. state channel one, they spoke of salisbury part one and groundhog day. another government—run tv channel suggested that the amesbury poisoning might have been carried out by the british government. why? out of spite over the fabulous world cup hosts of russia. most russians think they're getting their news the the tv, so that will affect their public opinion. the message is not the same in most countries, but for most is tv news and largely those channels that are either state channels? absolutely. there are some independent tv channels in russia, that their audiences are minuscule. there are websites and social media,

that's where russians can get alternative points of view, but that's what steve —— take the m icrostate that's what steve —— take the microstate tv is pushing. its not got anything to do with us, the british law enforcement services and british law enforcement services and british health care are not to be trusted. fascinating stuff, thank you very much. and we'll find out how this story and many others are covered in tomorrow's front pages at 10:45pm this evening in the papers. our guests joining me tonight are baroness ros altmann, the former pensions minister, and the writer and broadcaster, mihir bose. a 16—year—old boy has been charged in connection with the death of a 6—year—old schoolgirl on the isle of bute. alesha macphail had been staying at her grandmother's house on the island when she was reported missing in the early hours of monday morning. her body was found in woodland. the boy is due to appear in court tomorrow. authorities in thailand are still trying to decide how to rescue 12 boys and their football coach who've been trapped in a flooded cave for almost two weeks now. they're trying to pump as much water as they can out of the caves before further rainfall.

the children were found on a rocky ledge around 2.5 miles from the mouth of the cave on monday. more than 128 million litres of water has been pumped out of the cave, allowing rescue teams to walk further into the tunnel. but some parts are too narrow to walk through. the boys are being taught the basics of diving, some need to learn how to swim, but it's feared that option could be too risky. our south east asia correspondent jonathan head is there. how long will they stay down there? the boys are now getting care and food, but the thai authorities are still debating whether to risk bringing them out quickly or waiting, possibly for months. dozens of volunteers are helping the navy divers. this is an exhausting and sometimes dangerous operation. this television actor is one of them. "water is the main

obstacle," he says. "if we can get the water level down, the boys can be brought out." but while a massive pumping effort is reducing it in the first section of caves, it's having less effect deeper in, where the boys are trapped. so, the thai army has been taking equipment to the other end of the mountains to try and lower the water table here, close to their location. they have a number of ideas they want to try. but their first effort has been to divert the streams which feed the underground pools. we followed them up, alongside pipes that had been laid just in the past few days. this creek has completely dried up. a week ago it was filled with water. so you can see that this project, with all these pipes, is definitely having an impact.

higher up, we were shown in newly built dam. work like this is now going on all over these mountains. no one is sure yet how much they can bring down the water that is blocking the boys' escape, or whether they'll win the battle against the imminent monsoon rain. they just know that they have to try. jonathan head, bbc news, tham luang caves, northern thailand. the prime minister has said she hopes her cabinet will be able to discuss and decide on a substantive way forward on brexit tomorrow. meeting german chancellor angela merkel this afternoon, theresa may said she hoped this would lead to an increase in the "pace and intensity" of the uk's negotiations with the eu. now let's go live to wesminster, to talk to our political correspondent leila nathoo. this is a night for nervousness, i should imagine, among the conservative colleagues in their

ra nks conservative colleagues in their ranks as the prime minister prepares for this. people have talked about this as a make or break meeting. what do we expect for them to try to agree to tomorrow? this is decision time, the prime minister says she expects tomorrow to be the time when the cabinet finally agrees on the shape of what they want to see for britain's relationship with the eu after brexit. but it is clearly still all too playful. this morning we have been seen to brexit backing members of cabinet have got together, borisjohnson members of cabinet have got together, boris johnson and members of cabinet have got together, borisjohnson and liam fox, michael gove, david davis died together in the foreign office, we have seen liam fox go into number ten and then back to the foreign office. so clearly there are discussions going on between different camps within the cabinet and different camps within the conservative party more broadly. because this is all about deciding on which model to adopt on the future relationship with the eu

after brexit. the prime minister has offered her own third way that comes after two previous models that were under consideration, they were dismissed as unworkable by the rival camps, and those who backed brexit who have backed brexit and a clean breakfrom who have backed brexit and a clean break from the eu. who have backed brexit and a clean breakfrom the eu. but who have backed brexit and a clean break from the eu. but the who have backed brexit and a clean breakfrom the eu. but the prime minister's so—called compromise plan, this third way she has talked about this week was supposed to be the one that cabinet ministers could unite around and settle around tomorrow. but at the moment at this 11th hour the night before the meeting, it really doesn't look as if any agreement of the sort. we know that david davis is very uncomfortable with what has been proposed so far, he sees it as aligning to close to the eu after brexit. the mark cabinet members are still thinking that this is all too playful before tomorrow. it is an extremely precarious situation for any premise are to be and, when they

cannot get their cabinet to agree on a common policy. and if she fails to do that tomorrow, what is the expectation of how hard it will make the process of negotiation with brussels? theresa may has been struggling with this exact problem all the way through her premiership, having to balance these rival camps of people who have very different ideas of what they want brexit to look like. and so far, she has to coax them through by keeping things quite broad, keeping different parties within the cabinet on their side. but it now seems his is crunch time. there have been crunch times and brexit, but so far it has all been leading down further on the line. but time is running out, october was the time when the deal with brussels was supposed to get finalised. at the moment there is not even agreement within the government over what they want to

put forward to brussels. so if there is not agreement, the prime minister has calmed down quite firmly on a model that she wants to put forward, and that is if you want to talk and terminology that we have been at times referring to on the softer side of brexit, a lightning close to eu rules and regulations, and admission we understand that this may jeopardise the admission we understand that this mayjeopardise the alignment with future trade deals with the us, something brexiteers prize highly. this is something that if she does not get that cabinet agreement, she could be had written resignations from her senior ministers that would clearly be a mortal blow to her authority. but up until now we have not really seen, although there have been threats from tory backbenchers and brexiteers, there have been threats of unease, disagreements within cabinets, and it has not come to the resignation point. so we'll see tomorrow the brexiteers will put

their money where their mouth is, and takea their money where their mouth is, and take a swipe at her authority. but if the agreement does not reached, there'll be a pretty serious political crisis for her. intriguing to see where we are a 2k hours' time. thank so much. the headlines on bbc news. the couple poisoned by the toxic nerve agent, novichok, had handled a contamined item. but the authorities say the risk to others is low. with more rain forecast, it's a race against time to rescue 12 boys and their coach trapped in a cave. and events have been held across the uk to mark the 70th anniversary of the national health service. sport now, and for a full round up, from the bbc sport centre. good evening. lets start at wimbledon where the british number one johanna konta has been knocked out of the championships by slovakia's dominika cibulkova.

the player who was due to be seeded but was bumped out for serena williams. perhaps she maybe made her point by winning in straight sets on centre court. as ben croucher reports. spare a thought for her, it cannot be easy to lose your seating. it can't be easy facing an opponent this good this early. so playing like this to be ill afford. it's one. . . like this to be ill afford. it's one... at the slovakian looked more at home centre court subdued by sithole covell. it was with a mix of delight and relief that the british number one browse them in the second set. with every winter flying from her racket, silk ova fired back more from her own. isjust getting better and better, 14th winner. theyjust kept flowing, she got married on women's finals day two years ago. a new love affair could be blossoming.

is what it is, i'm focusing on my fitness, and this is how it looks when i'm playing good. i'm just focusing on myself to do well and do the right things, and that the. as brehm ball last hope in the women's draw are, spare a thought for anyone who has to plate her opponent. he beat the world number 168 bradley klahn of the united states in straight sets — adam wild was watching.... being the last brett standing is, for kyle admin, being a familiar feeling. but on wimbledon‘s centre court, he is amongst friends. still there was at least one trying not to make him feel too at home. but for bradley klein, the american qualifier, that would prove a struggle. edmund with early break, and with the first set, that is all

he would take. the second, he finds from somewhere a little extra skip in his step. it helped him take edmund towards the tie—break. for both, time to rethink, and for others a moment to refuel. whatever it was, the british number one moved up it was, the british number one moved upa it was, the british number one moved up a gear, now it was, the british number one moved up a gear, now forcing... without dropping a single point. from there, there would be only one winner. edmund dominating and rarely troubled. this is the first time he is due to the third round. straight sets, no problems. at the comes with winning and success. excitement from people, anticipation. that's all pa rt of people, anticipation. that's all part of it, the better you do, that's the way it will go. that's normal, ijust do the best i can do every match. he may be the last

brett left in the singles draw, he's getting used to that. he has now again plenty of other bricks behind him. elsewhere, world number one rafael nadal has booked his place in the third round too. beating kazakhstan‘s mikhail kukushkin in straight sets in front of a packed centre court. kukushkin made it hard work for the number two seed but his 3a unforced errors meant he never really had a chance against the i7—time grand slam champion. marin cilic is out, he has lost to guido pella in five sets. last year's finalist was two sets up when rain stopped play last night but he was unable to capitalise on that advantage. the world number one and top seed in the women's draw is also through. simona halep didn't have it all her own way in the first set against china's zheng saisai,

but the french open champion won 7—5, 6—0 to go into round three. lets head to russia now, and the world cup, because england have less than 48 hours to go until they face sweden in the quarterfinals. defenderjohn stones says they team under no illusions of the task ahead. if you say it easy in a quarterfinal... your stupid to say it. they play very structured from the back, quite different from what we have seen. we know what we're up against. sometimes they get there you these teams and say that they go

under the radar. but there's no question that they're a good team, they wouldn't be where they are if they wouldn't be where they are if they weren't, so we show them the respect that we do to every team. that's all the sport for now. it's now less than 43 hours until the end of the game. the national health service is celebrating its 70th birthday today. it was created on july the 5th 1948 and since then the nhs has grown to become the world's largest publicly funded health service, employing 1.5 million people. today staffjoined patients and charities at a service at westminster abbey. many others will attend a service this evening at york minster. and the prince of wales has met patients at a hospital in blaenau gwent. our health correspondent dominic hughes reports. 70 years old, and the nhs is still going strong. at the christie hospital in manchester, a patient who has relied on the nhs for all of her 70 years. as a baby, jeanjones was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer.

she's been treated here ever since. i always think of the people who were around before the nhs, how they used to think, we either have a meal on the table or we call the doctor. you know, that sort of thing. and i think about all the treatments and all the medication i've had over the years, and it will have cost a fortune. a more formal commemoration took place at westminster abbey, with a recognition of the central role the health service plays in all our lives. to those who fought to bring the nhs to life, to the staff and volunteers who have sustained it ever since, and ourfamilies who rely on it in their troubling times of need. all these people are represented here in this abbey today. in scotland, the first minister was marking the anniversary. and a royal visit in wales to hospital named after aneurin bevan, widely seen as the father

of the nhs. his legacy lives on, notjust in the nhs, but in his family. great grandniece jasmine stokes is studying to become a mental health nurse. being related to aneurin bevan has had a massive impact on the choices i've chose and the career i've chose, because he obviously did our nation proud. and i want to do the same thing. i want to make a difference to people's lives. as bevan‘s dream for universal health care system was realised in 1948, joyce thompson was training as a nurse. now, aged 90, she marvels at what the health service has become. well, we couldn't do without the nhs now. there were very few things at the beginning, but with the money coming forward, we did better as we went on. the health service has had its share of ups and downs, but today a celebration of a very british institution. dominic hughes, bbc news, manchester.

more than 200,000 people who use london's victoria station every day were told to avoid it completely today after a major signalling problem. the disruption caused chaos during this morning's rushhour and things don't look much better for this evening's rush hour. our transport correspondent, victoria fritz, sent this report. what we do know is about 125,000 people were expected to use gatwick airport today, it's the busiest time of the year for the airport. but with one rail route in operation, the chances are there will be people who have missed flights. our regular rail passengers have become very used to announcements of cancellations and delays. it's become the unwelcome soundtrack to their summer. these tracks here this morning, they should be absolutely crawling with the trains. but the power failures of the signals not too far from here

power failures of the signals not too farfrom here meant power failures of the signals not too far from here meant that about 40% of the services between london and the south of england were com pletely and the south of england were completely cancelled. network rail, the track operator, have said they have a temporary solution in place, and that power has been restored to the london to brighton line. however trains are coming back into service, you can see one stock there already. but it means that the delays we had early on in the day, there'll be trains and cruise in the wrong place. rail operators are urging passengers not to travel. the advice is to check what's running first thing in the morning. the nhs in england is promising to put an extra 22 million pounds into helping people with learning disabilities get out of institutions and receive support in the community instead. a recent review into the deaths of people with learning disabilities in england found they can die up to 29 years earlier than other people. nikki fox reports.? james has a learning disability and

usually lives at home with his mum. fran works tirelessly chant —— planning to his's care, and employs a number of support workers. but he recently a number of support workers. but he rece ntly ha d a number of support workers. but he recently had a crisis point and has been admitted to an institution. as a result, the funding that enables them to live at home has been stopped, and france says she may have to lay off his entire team. i'm terrified that i'm not going to have any terrified that i'm not going to have a ny staff terrified that i'm not going to have any staff when he comes home, and it would delay his discharge. the system doesn't work when he goes to hospital. fran's concerned has some -- is hospital. fran's concerned has some --isa hospital. fran's concerned has some —— is a her son will end up as another statistic. there are currently over 200,000 people with learning disabilities and institutions. today, nhs england is putting £222 —— 200 institutions. today, nhs england is putting £222 -- 200 £22 institutions. today, nhs england is putting £222 —— 200 £22 million... £53 million is being removed into...

the additional money we are investing will grow to be more. if nhs bodies help more people to live at home, if we're going to make this work, then we need to move the money we currently spend and inpatient settings and help people to spend it within their local communities. it's not just about getting within their local communities. it's notjust about getting people out of institutions. it's making sure they get proper medical care across the nhs. here, student nurses are being assessed on how best to look after patients. they're using people with learning disabilities as actors, but abby‘s had her own real—life experience. the nurses and doctors treated me like the younger students when other patients do comment with a learning disability, learn with them. try this instead. specialist

nurses like these are crucial to ensure that people with learning disabilities get proper hospital care. since 2010, the numbers have dropped by nearly 40%, and many see this as an example that not enough is being done. the national audit office estimates over 100 up to £195 million a year is needed to pay for health and social care within the community. but what families want his progress and the right for their loved ones to live independently with the right support. vicki fox, it -- with the right support. vicki fox, it —— nikki fox, with the right support. vicki fox, it -- nikki fox, bbc with the right support. vicki fox, it —— nikki fox, bbc news. now it's time for a look at the weather with darren bett. 30 degrees today, that he and some sea breezes lead to some thundery downpours in the southeast of england. some flooded streets here in number12. england. some flooded streets here in number 12. the shows we have seen early on will fade away over night as we lose that he source. low cloud coming in across northern and eastern scotland, as well. it will

bea eastern scotland, as well. it will be a really warm and muggy night across the south, cooler and fresh area across the south, cooler and fresh a re a cost across the south, cooler and fresh are a cost scotland and northern ireland. they saw a significant drop in the temperature today. the mist and low cloud will probably get pushed away into the north sea, sunny spells developing widely. cloudy for a while across north wales and north england. a touch cooler than it was today. the heat is on for england and wales, 30—31d quite likely, still on the cooler side for scotland and northern ireland, low 20s. it will get hotter through this weekend, higher temperatures remain closer to 30—31d in england and wales, and it looks like it will be dry on sunday. hello this is bbc news. the headlines... the couple poisoned by the toxic nerve agent, novichok, had handled a contamined item, but the authorities say the risk to others is low. with more rain forecast, it's a race against time to rescue 12 boys and their coach trapped in a cave. events have been held across the uk

to mark the 70th anniversary of the national health service. and kyle edmund wins through to a third round match against novak djokovic. he's the only briton left in the wimbledon singles. let's return now to the celebrations surrounding the 70th anniversary of the creation of the nhs. my colleague, martine croxall, has spent the day at st george's hospital in tooting in south london throughout the day. earlier she popped down to the paediatric clinic to talk to one young patient and the staff caring for her. welcome back to saint george's hospital, we have moved to the paediatric department where we will need a nine—year—old patient who is just about to go home and some of the staff who work here as well. we are joined the staff who work here as well. we arejoined by carol who is the staff who work here as well. we are joined by carol who is a senior here and mariella who is the patient

and has been waiting patiently for us and has been waiting patiently for us to come and talk to her, she is doing some colouring and and tracy as well and en who is herfather. sorry to interrupt your colouring but what have you been here for?” have been here for a biopsy and i have been here for a biopsy and i have been here for a biopsy and i have been very inspired by the nurses and i really want to be a nurses and i really want to be a nurse now. has it been fun? a lot of people find a hospital a scary place but that does not seem to be the case for you? no, it has been amazing here. i have had a good time. unsettling sometimes for pa rents, time. unsettling sometimes for parents, you are waiting anxiously so what has it been like for you and anabel, your wife? amazing to be honest, we have been in three different hospitals in the last week and particularly here it has been a muddy staff have been incredible, all the way from catering to doctors

and fun and inspiring and all the comments in the world, highly professional. a good experience to be honest. you are a specialist and it can be a long day in hospitals for children and a little bit unnerving because you are not entirely sure what is going on so tell us about your role in making sure they feel at home here? my role is to help her understand why they have come into hospital and what is going to happen when and how and where and i will take all the medical equipment that we have and doa medical equipment that we have and do a play decoration and run through the scenarios with them and muck them explore everything that is going to happen. that way it helps break down their anxiety and gets them more comfortable and helps them to applicator views across and if you are not happy with something, why and how we can use different approaches to get around that. also from there we can lead with the

distraction, and it is less terrifying and stressful for an anaesthetic. and for the parents we doa anaesthetic. and for the parents we do a lot of work there to help ease their anxieties as well. after, when they wake up, we have rules into place about what is going to happen in order for them to go home so they can understand how to make a speedy recovery and show the nurses and the doctors that they are able to go home. paediatric units are very special places, aren't they? you have been working here and it seems like once you arrive you do not leave saint george's? paediatrics is special and working with children is wonderful, children are so resilient so they can cope with things much better then we as adults do. obviously i think staff who work your stay here because the staff are a family and we get on with each other so well and everyone is all smiling. a lovely place to work. the

time you have been as a nurse, the way children have been treated, it must have changed was grey and it certainly has improved and obviously pa rents certainly has improved and obviously parents spend a lot more time here so parents learn to do things alongside the nursing staff, we get them involved so they are not sitting on the sidelines and that you like the power has been taken away from them. we give the power back to them so we work in a partnership which makes it much better for people like mariella to re cover better for people like mariella to recover quicker. and obviously at the 70th anniversary of the nhs, we think about the future of the service. what would you hope for, as someone has been here with your daughter, what service would you hope exists for parents in the next 70 years? profession wise or medically wise, there has been nothing bad to say about that but i

think it is keeping the community. we we re think it is keeping the community. we were in a private hospital re ce ntly we were in a private hospital recently for something else and for me there was no sense of community there. the community here has been fantastic. keep that going, it has been fun and engaging and we felt like one of the families. in terms ofa like one of the families. in terms of a place to work, we spoke to so many people at st george is and speak very highly of it, what is it like as a play specialist working here? i work mainly sometimes down ina and here? i work mainly sometimes down inaand e here? i work mainly sometimes down in a and e and we all pull together as one team and it's something as upsetting for any of us regarding one of her patients, we all recognise that and we all come together and we are there to pull each other up when we're feeling exhausted and get a cup of water or tea for each other. it is a lovely place. it does not segregate anybody and it helps everyone in the

community. it is lovely. there is a lot of tea drunk at this building, i know. what would you say to the children who are watching who have to go to hospital for a little while and may be worried about it, will you say to them? you should not be worried because it is an amazing place to have fun and enjoy yourselves. everyone is so kind and no one would do anything wrong and i think they should not be worried because it isjust amazing. a very good ambassador. lots of paints and glitter as well. might have a look at that later. thank you to all of you. a reporter there for us. also anira thomas's. she was the very first baby born under the, then, new health service. here's her story.

iam the i am the first national health baby born in great britain. i was born one minute after midnight onjuly 1948. my mother was relaying the story of my birth, saying she had a long hard labour, 18 hours and she was about to give birth to me as it was about to give birth to me as it was coming up to midnight. the doctor and the nurse said to her push, as she did with the other six children but the only word she could yell was stopped and hold on, hold on. she held on one minute and i was born exactly that minute, after midnight. the start of the revolutionary national health service. the doctor in the north said we must call this child anira after the founder. —— the doctor and the nurse said. i did not have grandparents, the guide between the

ages of 30 and 50 because of lack of means. and that is the way it was. there were lean times and scary times. i have six older siblings and they were born in the house. and the difference it made that my mum could not afford health care so the kindly neighbour next—door or two neighbours would pop in and help deliver the babies and that is how it was for many families. and on my birth, i remember her saying she would have had to pay one shilling and 6p for the hospital and the treatment and then it was probably quite a lot of money because my father was earning about £3 a week. somebody asked me the other day if i could think of one word to describe

how i feel about having a national health service for great britain and personal and the word i think of is safe. knowing it is there. didn't she grow up bonnie? this year marks the 100th anniversary of the royal air force, an opportunity to look back at a history which began at the end of the first world war. of the first world war. but it was the second world war that saw the raf's most iconic action — the battle of britain — described by winston churchill as the raf's finest hour. only a handful of pilots from that time are still with us. today robert hall speaks to wing commander paul farnes, who turns 100 later this month. he won the distinguished flying medal during his service and was one of the last raf pilots to serve in france before the when we are going to france, we suddenly got a message to say that the germans have broken through and

we re the germans have broken through and were 12 miles away and you could say that because the french were tearing off down the road passed us and poor civilians were being pushed off the road. it was altogether it was a terrible sight, it was. we flew to try to stop the germans getting to the beaches. so we were well inside france and in fact, i think we are recorded as being certainly either the last or second from last squadron to leave france. and then we went back to the uk. been how many missions were you flying at that point? the odd one or two. but you have places where six sorties in a day. set off at the crack of dawn

and then go until dusk. we felt we we re and then go until dusk. we felt we were as good as or better than the germans. as the battle progresses, the raf begins to lose a lot of pilots, a process of attrition, that must have been tough? on one occasion, a chap turned up, with his luggage in the back and said what are you doing here and he said i have just been told to join the squadron. he said get your kit out and get yourself organised because we are short of pilots and you'll be going out in a minute. so he got ready and they were called to take off, he was shot down, in his car was still sitting there with all of

his kit in it. ijoined the br, because i wanted to fly but here we are flying two, three, four, six times a day sometimes! what else do you want? a bit of excitement thrown in? it was good. i must say for that reason i enjoyed it. there was probably not a lot of time for emotions, was there at that time?|j look emotions, was there at that time?” look now at the list of the squadron andi look now at the list of the squadron and i do not suppose i could put a face to more than about a dozen of the names. yet there are about this link, there are about 30 or 40 pilots. but i cannot put a name to more than about ten or 12. let me bring you some breaking news out of