this is bbc news, i'm lukwesa burak. the headlines: in iceland, three british tourists, including a child, have died when their vehicle crashed while crossing a bridge. four others are critically injured. an increase in hospital parking charges — new data suggests 4 in 10 nhs hospitals in england put up their fees in the last year. think the system is very complicated. and, people are ill! you do not come here through choice. britain's most senior police officer says a ‘no—deal‘ brexit would potentially put the public at risk. a growing number of local councils have been buying shopping centres to try to revitalise their towns. our business correspondent emma simpson will have more on that later in the programme. in 30 minutes, you look back at a momentous yearfor the in 30 minutes, you look back at a momentous year for the royal family, including a memorable royal wedding.

three british tourists, including a child, have died after their vehicle crashed while crossing a bridge in iceland. four other people in the a—wheel drive have been taken to hospital with critical injuries. according to local media, the crash happened on a bridge in a popular tourist area in the south east of the island, as our correspondent ben ando reports. the tourists were in a toyota land cruiser that crashed through railings and then fell around 20 feet onto a dry riverbed below the bridge. first on the scene were the police and a local tour guide, who told the bbc he did

all he could to help. i tried to talk a bit to the driver to calm him down. he was, as i say, trapped inside the car. i was trying to tell him to save his energy and try to be patient, we would try to get him out of there. it was a very difficult situation. two adults and a child died at the scene. four others, including two children aged between seven and nine, were airlifted to hospital in a critical condition. translation: it was immediately clear that this was a very serious accident. the car had careered off the bridge, so immediately all available responders and resources were mobilised. the bridge is a single—track with a steel deck and is part of iceland's national ring—road, known as route 1. it crosses a river in the south—east of the island in an area known for its spectacular waterfalls, volcanoes and glaciers, and popular with visitors. the crashed vehicle has now been taken to a nearby town while investigations into the cause continue.

police have already said conditions meant the bridge surface may have been icy. well, bjorn malmquist is a foreign correspondent at the icelandic national broadcaster ruv. he explained how difficult the crash site would have been to reach. it is a very remote location in the south—eastern part of iceland, fluvial plane, south of iceland, and it is europe's largest glacier. the bridge runs over the westernmost riverfrom the glacier, the riverbed where the car landed was dry, however, like my ex colleague, adolf, said, it is seven to eight metres fall down. —— fluvial plain. it is a really difficult location, we don't yet know, and police really do not know what caused the accident. there is some speculation that the steel flooring on that bridge may have been slippery

because of rain or some ice there, even though it was not really cold. two, three celsius. it might have caused this really devastating accident. the first responders have been quoted today as describing the scene as absolutely horrifying. devastating. it is a terrible tragedy. is this a known black spot in terms of accidents? not really, i cannot say this particular spot is known for accidents, however, it is a fairly popular route for tourists who want to go to the east, to the south—eastern part of iceland, to see a iglesia lagoon, very famous, that lies a couple of kilometres east of this location. it is frequented by tourists. —— to see a glacial lagoon. our correspondent ben ando is at the foreign office

in central london. we are learning more details. as you would expect, foreign office officials providing assistance to the authorities in iceland, both in terms of dealing with the two families involved in this tragic accident and also in terms of ascertaining exactly what may have happened. first of all, in terms of those involved, we know there was two families, three children and four adults in the toyota land cruiser which went over the side of the bridge. we know that three people died at the scene, two adults and one child. the four taken to hospital, airlifted to hospital, two men and two children, the children

known to be aged seven and nine, in a serious condition in hospital. these families both said to be british nationals of indian origin, and we know that the indian ambassador to iceland visited the hospital today, we don't think he was able to talk to the families themselves, probably because they are too seriously hurt, but he was able to speak to doctors and nurses treating them. thank you, we will leave it there. and we'll find out how this story — and many others — are covered in tomorrow's front pages at10:40 and 11:30 this evening in the papers. our guests joining martine croxall tonight are benedicte paviot, the uk correspondent for france 2a, and president of the foreign press association, and anna isaac, who's economics correspondent at the telegraph.

i hope that you can join martin and her guests later today. —— martine. the cost of parking is rising at many of england's hospitals. more than a third of nhs hospitals have increased their prices with some patients and staff now paying double. some trusts have defended the higher charges, insisting that some of the extra money is spent on patient care. parking charges have been abolished in welsh hospitals, and in most of scotland, but they still remain in england and northern ireland, as our correspondent duncan kennedy reports. hospital car parks — where the debate over the nhs goes from inside to outside. just try bringing up the subject of parking fees to visitors... what do you think of the parking charges here? they're expensive but like

everywhere else, you have to pay it. i think the system is complicated and people are ill, you don't come here through choice. you know this is the most expensive hospital that there is in terms of parking? yes, typical surrey, isn't it, really? that is the question posed by today's figures showing many hospitals have raised their prices over the last year. this one in guildford tops the list in england, one of dozens of hospitals who made a total of over £226 million from parking fees. forty three per cent of hospitals admitted prices have gone up over the past year for visitors or staff or both. the royal surrey county hospital is already charging £4 for a stay of one hour, making it the most expensive in england. the airedale nhs foundation trust in west yorkshire saw the cost of a 24—hour stay more than doubled to £8, something locals

have strong views about. i think it's atrocious. i have been in to... my friend's mum is dying, i've been into drop some stuff off, and it's cost me three quid. it works out expensive, it could be £10 a day. our car parking charges fair? no. it should be free, because those turning up cannot necessarily afford it. nhs providers have insisted charges we re nhs providers have insisted charges were being kept to a minimum, they have to pay to maintain car parks. many say if wales and parts of scotla nd many say if wales and parts of scotland can abandon their fees, so

can england and northern ireland. hospital should be places to generate better health, not wealth. britain's most senior police officer has said a no—deal brexit would be costly for her force and could potentially put the security of the public at risk. the metropolitan police commissioner cressida dick said the no—deal scenario would be very difficult in the short term as changes were made to databases and the extradition process. our home editor mark easton has the story. brexit means britain loses its seat in the boardroom at europol, and with it, unfettered access to shared intelligence databases, the european arrest warrant and eu extradition agreements. the national crime agency has expressed its concern at the security implications, and now, the country's most senior police officer has warned that were the uk to leave without a deal, public safety could be comprised. we will have to replace some of the things we currently use in terms of access to databases and the way in which we can quickly arrest and extradite people, these kinds of things,

we will have to replace as effectively as we can. that will be more costly, undoubtedly, slower, undoubtedly, and potentially, yes, put the public at risk. the government has long argued that mutual interest is likely to mean collaboration on security after brexit is as good or better than now. the prime minister has said she wouldn't countenance a deal that compromised the safety of british citizens. we will not let that happen. we will together protect and project our values in the world and we will keep our people safe, now and in the years to come. but the met commissioner says police are concerned that even with a deal, security arrangements may not work as seamlessly as now. an eu coordination unit has been set up here at scotland yard to help establish arrangements with each eu nation on issues such as access to intelligence data bases, arrest warrants and extradition arrangements. there's concern that even with a deal, it will be incredibly hard to match existing levels of co—operation in the short term. the uk is currently one of the biggest contributors to europol intelligence and has

shaped the priorities of the organisation. police are working to ensure the security advantages that has brought will survive after brexit. mark easton, bbc news. police are working to ensure the security advantages that has brought will survive after brexit. mark easton, bbc news. around 500 staff have been made redundant at a waste disposal company based in north lanarkshire caught up in a row over the stockpiling of nhs waste. healthcare environmental services, which stopped trading today, always denied allowing human body parts to build up at its sites. the firm lost nhs contracts after a criminal inquiry was launched. it blamed "unfair government pressure" for the redundancies. police are investigating the cause of a gas explosion at andover in hampshire

in which a 48—year—old man was killed. it happened in the early hours of this morning. one house was completely destroyed, and another badly damaged. steve humphrey has the details. the power of the explosion com pletely the power of the explosion completely destroyed the house at the end of this terrace in andover, and it severely damage the property next door, debris was scattered over a large area, some of it left dangling ina a large area, some of it left dangling in a tree. william cooper was among those who had a lucky escape. luckily because the kitchen was right on the corner, glass went the road, if it was the other way around, and numbertwo the road, if it was the other way around, and number two went, different story, i might not be standing here talking to you. william and five members of his family were in the house next to the scene of the devastation. doesn't really feel like it should happen here but it has happened and we are trying to come to terms with it,

sinking in. because it happened so early in the morning, just dark, you come back now, broad daylight, com pletely come back now, broad daylight, completely different scene. pretty shocking, to be fair. hampshire fire and rescue say a man's body was found in the wreckage of a house destroyed in the blast. following the search, all the other occupants have been accounted for. the search, all the other occupants have been accounted forlj the search, all the other occupants have been accounted for. i feel very sorry for the people, very sorry. must have been 2:30am, 38, i was in bed, heard a big bang, ithought it was my mother letting out the dog. —— must have been to 38 m, 3am. among those on site, gas engineers, a joint police and fire investigation into the cause is under -- must have been to 30 am really. —— 2.30am, 3am. the headlines on bbc news:

in iceland, three british tourists, including a child, have died after their vehicle crashed while crossing a bridge. four others are critically injured. new data suggests 4 in 10 nhs hospitals in england have increased parking charges in the last year. britain's most senior police officer says — a ‘no—deal‘ brexit — would potentially put the public at risk. sport and for a full round up, from the bbc sport centre, here we go. arsenal manager unai emery has been charged by the fa for kicking a bottle that hit a fan during their 1—1 draw at brighton on boxing day. the fa say the incident amounts to improper conduct. the bottle struck a brighton supporter towards the end of the match and the spaniard went to apologise immediately and then again at full time. earlier today, before he was charged, emery explained what happened.

i kicked the bottle in a frustrated action but not for me, not for the for me. i apologise to the supporter, at full time, for me. i apologise to the supporter, at fulltime, i for me. i apologise to the supporter, at full time, i apologise to the supporter again. i kicked the bottle because it was near me but not with the intention of hurting any supporter. two teams that have enjoyed an improvement in form over the last few weeks meet at st mary's tonight as the christmas round of fixtures in the premier league ends. it's southampton looking for a third consecutive win as they continue thgeir resurgence up against west ham who could move as high as 8th with a heavy victory and our football correspondent john murray will be commentating on the match for radio 5 live. the first thing to look out for tonight will be to see what the atmosphere is like within st mary's stadium, after two consecutive wins under ralph hasenhuttl, and nathan redmond describing the feeling around southampton as a new ethos. and, for west ham united, whether they can return to form that has seen they can return to form that has seen them win four matches this month, which has transformed their

season. we will find out with full commentary on five live tonight. kick off is at 7:45 and you can follow it via the bbc sport website as well. inter milan have been ordered to play two matches behind closed doors after napoli defender kalidou koulibaly was racially abused yesterday during a match the san siro. the club is considering whether to appeal and the mayor of milan, giuseppe sala, has since apologised, calling the abuse "a disgrace." napoli head coach carlo ancelotti revealed they tried to have the game suspended. the former chelsea manager says they asked three times for the match to be stopped due to the chanting aimed at the senegalese international, who was sent off with nine minutes to go. he said the player was put on edge by the crowd's behaviour during their 1—0 defeat. translation: the state of mind of one player was affected by racism and that is very bad. we are doing a campaign on this and everyone is involved, the federation, the

referees, we want to know how many times we will have to complain before a match is halted, and next time, if they do not answer us, we will stop the match ourselves. the favourite elegant escape has won the welsh grand national at chepstow handing trainer colin tizzard a second success in three years. the 3—1 shot, ridden byjockey tom o'brien fought off a late charge from rameses de tay to win by over a length. india hold the upper hand heading into day 3 of the third test against australia in melbourne after a 170—run stand between cheteshwar pujara and captain virat kohli. the tourists resumed day 2 on 215 for 2. pujara hit 106, while kohli added 82 to maintain their control of the match. however the australians fought back to take 5 wickets after lunch before india declared on 443—7. australia faced six overs before the close and made 8 runs without loss although aaron finch was unlucky this didn't carry to the slip cordon.

the four match series is currently tied at one—all. —— ramses de teillee. michael "bully boy" smith is through to the fourth round of the pdc world darts championship. the no 10 seed came back from a set down to beat scotland's john henderson 11—2 at alexandra palace and he'll meet ryan searle in the next round. elsewhere there were victories for luke humphries and devon peterson. that's all the sport for now. you can find more on all those stories on the bbc sport website. i know that you will be keeping an eye on the darts. 0f of course i will! laughter kent police are investigating the deaths of two young children who were found at a house in margate. a 37—year—old woman

has been arrested on suspicion of murder. officers said the woman was involved in an accident about an hour before the children were discovered early this morning. with the christmas decorations are still in the window, this is the house where police found two children early this morning.|j house where police found two children early this morning. i work not too far away, people were telling me that behind my house, potentially, two children murdered, andi potentially, two children murdered, and i don't know how to process it, really. it is so deeply shocking. terrible. just something that should not happen, really, with children. it is terrible. officers were called to the property in castle drive in margate at around 3:30am, 45 minutes after a woman had been involved in a crash on the a2 99 thanet way, the 37—year—old was taken to hospital with minor injuries and taken into custody. the two young children were

pronounced dead in hospital. —— the a299 thanet way. it's been a challenging year for the high street, prompting renewed concern about the future for many town centres already struggling with decline. a growing number of local councils have been buying shopping centres, to try to revitalise their towns. since 2016, 26 shopping centres have been bought by local authorities, at a total cost of more than £800 million, as our business correspondent emma simpson reports. wigan's gallery shopping centre, once worth £83 million in 2006, it went for 8 million earlier this year, salt of the local council. three shopping centres in shrewsbury town worth 119 million before the recession, they went for less than half that price, sold to shropshire council. here, in bolton's compton

place, once valued at nearly 80 million, went for £14 million in the summer. million, went for £14 million in the summer. sold to the local authority. sounds like a knock—down price but no one else would have bought this right now given the state retail is in. it is huge, and slap bang in the middle of town, but this shopping centre has seen better days. there is gradual decline taking place, and clearly, as a council, we have taken the decision to do something about it. not half! the council has bought it. not half! the council has bought it as part of a big plan to regenerate bolton. do you think this is the best use of £14 million? this money is a temporary investment, we are confident we will get the money back. this will be a game change, transformational. you might be wondering where has this money come from? to wondering where has this money come from ? to buy wondering where has this money come from? to buy this, well, it is not from? to buy this, well, it is not from council tax or existing budgets which have been slashed, councils

can which have been slashed, councils ca n a ccess which have been slashed, councils can access cheap loans, and over the last few years they have been pouring money into commercial property, to generate an income to help fund services. there are better ways to make money than buying shops, here in camberley, the council not only bought this shopping mall but also the house of fraser building, right next to it, not long before the retailer collapsed. they could have bought it for a lot less now. that there is risk attached to local authorities intervening and if they are doing it to make a quick profit, that is the role motivation, if it is being done to regenerate the town, that is absolutely the right thing. the private sector cannot take the long—term view, it is not viable. private sector cannot take the long—term view, it is not viablem used to be so easy attracting people into our town centres, it is a real problem today. bolton council's bold

purchase is kick—starting crucial private investment to help make this place fit for the future. the alert level for indonesia's anak kra katau volcano has been raised to the second—highest level after a series of eruptions. all flights around the volcano have been rerouted and a 3—mile exclusion zone has also been imposed. last saturday, the volcano triggered a tsunami which claimed the lives of more than 400 people. there are 1.8 million, single parent households in the uk, and for a long time it was believed that if a child was in one, it had a negative impact on their life. new research suggests otherwise. frankie mccamley has been to meet a group of single parents to hear how perceptions about them have changed. a cup of tea and a friendly ear for these single mums in kent who get together regularly to share their concerns when it comes to bringing up

children on their own. the women are just a handful of the 1.8 million single parent—headed households in the uk, but for some, the prospect of being a single parent was daunting. when i first became single, i thought, "that's it, life is over. how am i going to cope? i can't cope with this. how am i going to pay the bills? how am i going to look after my kids?" it's clear this group are determined to overcome any negativity. my son started doing his a—level and he was doing sociology. he came one day and he said, "mum, can you believe this? ijust read in a study that said if you are from a single parent and you are a little black boy, you're not going to do well. how dare they?" he was so angry, you know. i said, "so, what are you going to do about it?" he said, "i'm going to show them that i'm going to do my best." and the positives, they say, are priceless. they help me at work, they help me at home. we just literally... i know that if there are any problems they can come and tell me and they really are my best friends, so that's been the best part of being a single parent. and their experiences may be more common than previously thought.

typically, surveys suggest that one in four families with children are headed by a single parent at any one time. this latest data suggests that it is more likely to be one in three families. and despite the concerns these mums have, researchers didn't find evidence of a negative impact on children who live in a single—parent household. in fact, the researchers believe children who are living or have lived in single—parent families score as highly or higher than those in two—parent families when it comes to things like life satisfaction, relationships and family life, which some historians say is a complete u—turn to what people thought in the past. i think a lot of people feel uncomfortable when people behave unconventionally, as they see it, that they want everyone to have rather similar lives, and there's a notion that it's normal to live in a long—lasting marriage and bring up secure children. but for these ladies and many other men and women across the country, their single—parent family is the norm

and it will not stop them from living full and happy lives. now, a us explorer has become the first man to cross antarctica, alone and unassisted. thirty—three—year—old colin o'brady finished the race across the ice in 53 days, beating british army captain, louis rudd. kim gittleson has more. newsreel: antarctica is the new land of opportunity. go south, young man, go south. for over 100 years antarctica's inhospitable landscape has both repelled and attracted, luring adventurers who want to conquer the seemingly unconquerable. colin o'brady‘s antarcticjourney began on 3rd november, when he was dropped off by helicopter at the edge of the ronne ice shelf. it was the start of a nearly 900

mile or 1600 kilometre trek across the waste of the continent. his was a race against another adventurer, the british explorer louis rudd, who was embarking on the trek in honour of his friend, henry worsley, who died in his solo attempt in 2016. rudd and o'brady progressed through extreme conditions, unaided by kites or by drops of food and fuel. to stay in touch, mr o'brady documented his journey on his instagram account, where he showed off the black tape he wore on his face to stave off frostbite, and the heavy sled filled with provisions that he dragged for 12 hours each day. in an incredible feat, mr o'brady completed the last 80 miles, or 130 kilometres, of his trek by travelling for 32 hours straight, arriving at the ross ice shelf and accomplishing what he said was an impossible first. kim gittleson, bbc news. let's find out how the weather is

looking. then, quite mild, actually! sure is, none of those icy scenes here, nothing close to it, with the mild weather we have quite a lot of cloud around, some of us saw sunshine today, for others, quite cloudy and foggy. really pegging back the temperatures. dense fog expected, some fog patches across yorkshire, elsewhere, large expanses of cloud, touch of frost, the vast majority will not see that, pushing east, rain is patchy, dense fog patches, causing travel

headaches. murky through the day. further north, sunshine developing, scotland, northern ireland, northern england, seeing better temperatures. yes, it is mild, foremost dry and cloudy, a little bit of rain across the north. —— four most —— for most dry and cloudy, a little bit of rain across the north. hello, this is bbc news. the headlines:

three british tourists, including a child, have died after their vehicle crashed while crossing a bridge in iceland. four others are critically injured. four in ten nhs hospitals in england have put up their parking fees in the last year — the new data shows that, in some places, charges have doubled. britain's most senior police officer says a ‘no—deal‘ brexit would potentially put the public at risk. a growing number of local councils have been buying shopping centres to try to revitalise their towns. now on bbc news, from harry and meghan's wedding to prince charles' 70th birthday, daniela relph looks back at the royal year in review 2018. cheering.

a picturesque windsor wedding. for prince harry and meghan markle. as they became the duke and duchess of sussex. cheered on by thousands during their carriage procession through the town. band plays. the queen had a president to tea as she kept up bit busy schedule at the age of 92. can i ask you tojoin me in wishing the prince of wales a very happy birthday.

for the prince of wales, a milestone birthday. a 70th for an heir to the throne who has waited longer than any other. and there was a new grandchild for charles in his new birthday year. prince louis of cambridge, fifth in line to the throne. back in february she was stilljust meghan markle but was settling into life with her new royal family. this was her first official engagement alongside her husband—to—be and future brother—and—sister—in—law. and the newcomer did not hold back, describing the issues that matter to her. you often hear people say you're helping women find their voices and i fundamentally disagree with that because women don't need to find their voice, they have a voice, they need to feel empowered to use it and people need

to be encouraged to listen and i think right now in the climate we are seeing, as so many campaigns, metoo, time's up, there's no better time than to really continue to shine a light on women feeling empowered and people really helping to support them. it is a family enterprise and they all recognise that at times that can be tricky. working as family, does, of course have its challengers, of course it does. everyone is laughing, which means everyone knows exactly what this is like! but you know, we are stuck together for the rest of our lives. this is true, togetherness. togetherness. meghan markle said she wanted to hit the ground running, to get to know the uk ahead of her wedding. and that's exactly what she did. in scotland, meghan nervously met a shetland pony at edinburgh castle.

in wales, they even met another harry and meghan. these two were six and nine years old and gave a gift of welsh love spoons. in northern ireland there was a visit to one of belfast‘s most well—known pubs for lunch and a guinness. the climate wasn't exactly californian, it did, though, give meghan a flavour of the country that was now home. but it was windsor that would play the most significant role, the american bride was about to get her perfect british wedding and it was here, at st george's chapel, that meghan markle would officially make the move from actress to aristocracy. yay! # going to the chapel and we're going to get married.# the night before the big day, the groom and his best man came out to meet the crowds in windsor.

many had camped out for several days. and there was also the odd familiar face in the crowd. harry! it was a quieter evening for the bride and her mother. reporter: good evening, miss markle, how are you feeling tonight? in the peace of the berkshire countryside they spent the night before the wedding at a hotel a few miles from windsor. st george's chapel was transformed. ready for an event that would make it the centre of global attention. the british weather was at its best. it would be hard to find a more picturesque setting. by royal standards this was a glitzy group of wedding guests. clooneys and beckhams amongst the most well—known faces. the cast of suits was also invited.

the tv show that the bride had worked on for several years. inside the chapel, oprah winfrey and idris elba were there with charity workers, friends of harry and meghan and the royal family. royal trumpeters play. but it was the bride that everyone wanted to see. cheering. with all the guests in place meghan markle was driven through the grounds of the castle to the chapel. bells ring. at midday she emerged into the windsor sunshine,

her dress a secret until now. by british designer claire wade kellerfor the french fashion house givenchy. sewn into the veil, flowers from each country of the commonwealth. the minute the bride walked into the chapel was enough to make a pageboy gasp. choirboy sings. at first, she walked alone, accompanied by her pageboys and bridesmaids including prince george and princess charlotte. and then, at the halfway point, she was joined by prince charles.

taking on the role after her father was unable to attend. for meghan's mother, it must have been an overwhelming experience. doria ragland was the only member of the bride's family at the wedding. as she reached the altar, harry told his bride, "you look amazing." and as the wedding ceremony began, he lifted her veil. this was a royal wedding that veered from the traditional. there was a gospel choir. # darling, stand by me. # stand by me.# and, perhaps one

of the most memorable moments, the preaching of american bishop michael currie. love is not selfish and self—ce ntred, love can be sacrificial. and in so doing, becomes redemptive. a royal wedding had never seen or heard anything quite like it. prince charles took the mother of the bride's arm as they left to sign the register, a gesture that said, welcome to the family. cellist19—year—old sheku kanneh—mason gave the biggest performance of his career. they had arrived as meghan markle and prince harry.

they left as the duke and duchess of sussex. a title given to them on their wedding day by the queen. cheering. as the new duke and duchess emerged from st george's chapel, there was the kiss. cheering. # amen.# they said they wanted to share their wedding with the public. the carriage procession through windsor was part of that plan.

thousands lined the long walk. it looked as if they had got the wedding day wished for. i feel as though i'm in a dream. it's been unforgettable. it's been absolutely exhilarating. i'm a guy, i couldn't comment on the dress but she looked stunning as she went past. it was amazing to see the people arriving and leaving. it was like a really special memory. the final chapter of the wedding day, the evening reception. the couple left in an e—type jag for a private party that was rumoured to include a speech by the bride and a dance off amongst members of the royal family. just weeks after the wedding was another american visitor

here causing a stir. president trump came to have tea with the queen. he brought with him all the trappings of the us presidency, the queen of course, had seen it all before. he was the 12th american president she had met during her reign. it wasn't a full state visit but there was plenty of pomp to please the president and first lady. american national anthem. as well as a show from the military band, the president inspected a guard of honour. he described the tea as going ‘fantastically well‘, and he said that he and the queen had ‘good chemistry‘. and there were signs of good chemistry elsewhere. in february the queen took up

a prized front row seat at london fashion week. alongside vogue editor in chief anna wintour whose glasses did not come off, even for the queen. the pair watched a show of richard quinn who was the winner of the first—ever queen elizabeth ii prize for british design. but although she still has a busy schedule, here, leading the centenary celebrations of the royal air force injuly, she travelled far less around the uk... ..and no longer does trips overseas. but in april, the world came to her. as she welcomed commonwealth leaders to the uk for the heads of government meeting.

addressing the leaders she looked ahead to a time beyond her reign and made it clear that she wanted her son to succeed her as head of the commonwealth. it is my sincere wish that the commonwealth will continue to offer stability and continuity for future generations and will decide that one day, the prince of wales should carry on the important work started by my father in 1949. it was a decision supported by commonwealth leaders, in a year when there were further subtle signs of the queen handing duties over to other members of the family. big ben chimes. once again, on remembrance sunday, 100 years since the end of the first world war,

the queen watched events from a balcony nearby. the last post sounds. the prince of wales laid a wreath of poppies on her behalf at the cenotaph. the focus of remembrance. in the evening at westminster abbey the queen stood alongside the president of germany. as their wreaths were laid on the tomb of the unknown soldier.

to include germany in this way during remembrance was an historic act of reconciliation. there was also a rare nod this year to the hereditary destiny of the prince of wales. he will, one day, be king and as he celebrated his 70th birthday in november he gave a sense of how he would reign. just days after watching his youngest son get married, the prince of wales hosted a garden party at buckingham palace to mark his 70th birthday. 6,000 people attended, representing his charities and military affiliations. but on a personal level there was also a chance for a son to pay tribute to his father. please can i ask you tojoin me in wishing the prince of wales a very happy birthday,

six months ahead of his 70th, how very royal! his birthday saw the release of some new family photographs. one, a relaxed but traditional portrait of the prince with his wife, sons and their families. and then, a more informal picture, again in the gardens of clarence house, that leaves you wondering what they were all laughing at. just before his birthday, the prince and duchess of cornwall toured west africa. visiting nigeria, ghana and the gambia. as ever, with royal overseas tours, it was about strengthening ties with the uk. in his 70th year, prince charles has continued to speak out on the issues he cares most deeply about. but in an interview with the bbc to mark his birthday, he clarified that as king, he wouldn‘t campaign

in the same way. i‘m not that stupid. i do realise that it is a separate exercise being sovereign. as charles takes on more high—profile duties, his father continued his step back from public life. here, just a fleeting view of the duke of edinburgh leaving hospital in april after a hip replacement at the age of 96. the duke recovered well enough to see two of his grandchildren married this year, after harry and meghan came eugenie and jack. in october princess eugenie married her long—term partnerjack brooksbank. the daughter of prince andrew and sarah duchess of york also chose st george‘s chapel in windsor for her wedding ceremony. the couple then had a short carriage procession through the town before heading back to the castle to party with their 800 wedding guests. the duke of cambridge has found himself taking on more significant

royal duties this year. his trip to israel and the palestinian territories was the first official royal visit to the region. for william, it was his most diplomatically delicate tour to date. he used the visit to share his hope that conflict in the area will end. never has hope and reconciliation been more needed. i know i share a desire with all of you and with your neighbours for a just and lasting peace. back home, the duke and duchess of cambridge had a new addition to the family to celebrate. prince louis was born in april, their third child. his first public appearance came

just hours after his birth. as with princess charlotte, the duchess had her baby and left hospital all on the same day. earlier, louis had his first visitors. his big brother and sister came to the hospital with dad. george, looking a little shy in front of the cameras. charlotte, though, showed no such reticence, with a wave as she went in to meet her baby brother. the family will base themselves here at kensington palace. but in the new year they will say goodbye to their neighbours the duke and duchess of sussex. harry and meghan will leave london to set up home at frogmore cottage in windsor, with their own baby due in the spring. it is an important moment for william and harry, who have lived close to one another here and shared a household and royal duties for so long.

although they, along with catherine and meghan, will continue to work on certain projects together, it is a departure and a sign that both couples have their own interests to proceed. i‘ve done marshmallow on that one, is that a good idea? events with military charities are likely to be supported by both families, and kensington palace was turned into a winter wonderland to do that. the duke and duchess of cambridge hosted a party for families of military personnel serving in cyprus over the festive period. but the duchess, the experience of many here was one she could share. as someone whose husband has served i know how hard it feels when a loved one leaves home to do the job they have trained for. when williams served in the falklands or for search and rescue, i remember how it felt. but i can‘t imagine how it feels when your loved ones are away on active service over christmas. or at those special family moments.

the absence of people you love must be especially hard at this time of year. for the duke of cambridge there was a surprise visit to a west london school with rapper professor green. it was part of the royal foundation dinner was my ongoing work around mental health and in particular cyber bullying. it was a chance to listen and talk to teenagers and hear their online concerns. if you‘re outside here, whatever you‘re doing, one of your mates gets picked on, you‘re going to be there to support them, but if it‘s happening on a screen and you can‘t see what‘s going on, that‘s one person very isolated on their own. the coming months will give us a sense of what kind of working royal meghan wants to be. here she took her mother and husband to the launch of the cookbook, the proceeds of which will go towards helping those affected by the grenfell tower tragedy. the duchess was the driving behind the publication, alongside the local community. working on this project the past

nine months has been a tremendous labour of love. i had recently moved to london and i felt so immediately embraced by the women in the kitchen, your warmth and kindness and also to be in this city and see in this one small room, how multicultural it was, on a personal level i feel so proud to live in a city that can have somewhat diversity, 12 countries represented in this one group of women is pretty outstanding. in the autumn harry and meghan began their first overseas tour to australia, new zealand, tonga and fiji. for harry, it was a chance to support the invictus games held in sydney, the event for injured servicemen and women he built. and for meghan, her engagement strongly hinted at where she would focus her royal work, the education and empowerment of young women appears high on her agenda. here, she spoke at a university in fiji. when girls are given

the right tools to succeed, they can create incredible futures, not only for themselves, but for all of those around them. and while progress has been made in many areas across the commonwealth, there is always scope to offer more opportunities to the next generation of young adults and specifically, to young women. harry and meghan, their wedding, the family dynamic and the news of their own baby due in the spring as dominated 2018. it‘s likely to be a similar story next year. good evening. the weather is remarkably benign at the moment. not

a lot going on in terms of rainfall, nothing dramatically changing. while some of us had sunshine today, others got some cloud and fog. in southern england where it they got stuck with a fork it didn‘t get above 5 degrees. tonight will stay dry and cloudy with some fog patches again. some of this is cloud, bits of fog that have been joined up here down towards the south. through this evening and overnight, southern part of england could see fit fog patches preforming. elsewhere, large slabs of cloud moving across the sky. a frontal system will bring is my brea ks frontal system will bring is my breaks a brain in northern ireland and scotland before the end of the night. if the skies cape clear when you are, you may get the touch of frost. for tomorrow morning, you are, you may get the touch of frost. fortomorrow morning, in you are, you may get the touch of frost. for tomorrow morning, in the south there will be those dense patches of fog. some rain starting across scotland, but by 11 o‘clock

it is gone and hear things will start to brighten up. you will see sunshine into northern ireland, northern england, so an improving story here, whereas in the side that will stay cloudy. mile for all, 9-11d. will stay cloudy. mile for all, 9—11d. into the site will stay settled. there will be some rain in the north, particularly scotland, and this weather set up will bring a south—westerly winds across the uk, bringing mild air in our direction. so, fora bringing mild air in our direction. so, for a saturday, rain early on in scotland, but it will scoot off very quickly. generally, a lot of dry weather, a lot of cloud and mild, up to maybe 13 degrees. for sunday, the forest north of scotland could see me infora forest north of scotland could see me in for a time, then a lot of cloud. for eastern scotland and north east england, they are the best places to see the sun. again,

it will be mild, maybe 13 degrees. for new year‘s eve, high pressure still with us, a lot of cloud trapped under the high. there will be murky, great conditions toss—up into the night, still a lot of cloud, still largely dry. for midnight, it will be largely dry conditions with some cloud and fog, but it is not looking too bad. things will stay pretty benign for the next few days. replace the headlines at xxxx in iceland, 3 british tourists, including a child, have died when their vehicle crashed while crossing a bridge. 4 others are critically injured. an increase in hospital parking charges, new data suggests 4 in 10 nhs hospitals in england put up their fees in the last year. i think the system is very complicated, and people are ill. they don‘t come here for choice. britain‘s most senior police officer says a ‘no—deal‘ brexit would potentially put the public at risk. a growing number of local councils have been buying shopping centres to try to revitalise their towns.

it and an half an hour, i will be looking back at a tremendous year for science or science is says there will be a probe to touch the sun.