tonight at ten, voters send a clear message to westminster, as the conservatives and labour suffer in the local elections. the tories lose more than 1300 seats, with activists blaming the deadlock over brexit. these were always going to be difficult results, uh, difficult elections for us, with us nine years into a government. labour also suffered losses at a time when they should have been making bigger gains. some of them were local factors, and some of them were people probably disagreeing with both parties on attitudes towards the european union. so where do the results leave the main parties, and will their stance on brexit have to change?

also tonight, india is battered by cyclone fani, the worst to hit the country in two decades and packing winds of 120 mph. caster semenya says she won't quit athletics after winning her first race since being told to reduce testosterone levels in her body. i still have another ten years more in athletics, so it doesn't matter how i'm going to do it, what matters is i will still be here. and tributes to a gentle giant. peter mayhew, the actor who played chewbacca in the star wars films, has died. he was 7a. and coming up on sportsday on bbc news, england's cricket avoid embarrassment after a scare against ireland — the world cup hosts eventually won by four wickets.

good evening. the two main political parties at westminster have suffered losses in the local elections in england and northern ireland, in a sign that voters are fed up with the deadlock over brexit. the conservatives have lost more than 1300 seats, and labour has failed to make much progress, at a time when opposition parties usually do well. meanwhile, the liberal democrats, who want another eu referendum, the greens and independents all did well. nearly 9,000 seats were up for grabs. counting is still under way, and the results are changing, but so far the conservatives are down more than 1300 and labour nearly a hundred. the main winners are the lib dems, who've gained 703 councillors. now, if these results were replicated across the country as a whole, the bbc projects

the conservatives and labour would both get around 28% of the vote, with the lib dems on 19 and other parties on 25. 0ur deputy political editor, john pienaar, has all the full details. after a tough night, theresa may needed a bit of love. thank you. she didn't need this. why don't you resign?! "why don't you resign?" was the shout. we don't want you! "we don't want you" — it only takes one to spoil the mood. "0ut, out" — they meant him, not her. but bad results needed explaining. these were always going to be difficult elections for us, and there were some challenging results for us last night, but it was a bad night for labour too, and i think people were sending a very clear message, a simple message, to both main parties, to us and the labour party, just get on and deliver brexit. jeremy corbyn was trying to ignore the grey clouds today.

labour did worse than many expected. maybe trying to appeal to brexiteers and remainers failed to please enough on either side. his verdict too — britain needs a brexit deal. didn't mention a referendum, though. i think it means there's a huge impetus on every mp, and they've all got that message, whether they themselves are leave or remain, or the people across the country, that an arrangement has to be made, a deal has to be done, and parliament has to resolve this issue. i think that is very, very clear. how does it feel to be part of a liberal democrat majority?! it felt good for the lib dems, winning the cotswolds and mole valley and bath and north east somerset, all bound to poll better than four years ago, but reason enough to celebrate, echo their big message on brexit. i think we are winning the argument, including with many brexit voters who are just absolutely fed up with the way the country is stagnating, and whether they are pro—brexit or against it, i think they buy our argument that we now have to

go back to the people. it was the big parties competing to see who'd fare worse than expected. look at these tory faces in chelmsford, where they lost control. your reaction to the results here tonight? well, of course i am in... hard to take on an exhausting, emotional night. no surprise, then, that tory misery provoked more demands for theresa may to go. many of my constituents have said this to me, you know, we need change, we need a change of leadership, perhaps the time has now come for that. not all bad for labour — they took tory trafford, won in places including high peak, but labour's lost control and lost seats that they were expected to win. why? because brexit‘s delayed or because voters want another referendum ? labour's split. the feeling is they have been badly let down by national politicians

and labour politicians, and this is the first chance to make this protest, and unfortunately there's a lot of good labour councillors going to lose their seats because of it. whatever deal it is that the conservatives, in the end, are able to get through parliament, if they are able to, it should go to a confirmatory ballot so that we can find out from the people, is this really what you want? as for the smaller parties, ukip‘s taken a battering, but the greens are upbeat. there is an element, undeniably, about disenchantment with the two big parties. people are fed up with the way they've handled brexit, there is a cry for clarity, which i think the greens are offering. so plenty more evidence of the disintegration of traditional loyalties to the two big parties. these were local elections, and many people may simply have shown they are fed up after years of cuts and austerity. but across the country, we have also seen people are as deadlocked as the parties here at westminster on the big issue of brexit. the results may pile pressure on the parties here

to somehow break the brexit deadlock, but they've given no clear indication of how the country want that done. this was an angry election, ballot papers used to let off steam, often that it's taken so long to make so little progress with brexit. and as the ballot boxes are stacked and stowed away, there are only weeks before voters get another chance to make their views known, in the european parliament elections — maybe even louder. john pienaar, bbc news. so the brexit deadlock seems to have been a significant factor in the elections. in the labour heartland of sunderland, the party suffered heavy losses but still managed to hang on to control of the council. in bath, the conservatives lost control to the liberal democrats, who gained 23 seats. 0ur political correspondent alex forsyth reports on the two cities which both sent messages to the main parties. bath and north east somerset has seen a shift

in its political landscape. the conservatives did run the council, but last night the surge in lib dem support saw them claim victory here. in this historic city, most people voted to stay in the eu, and while local issues played a part in these elections, there's not a lot of love for how brexit‘s been handled. i think everyone‘s just fed up with westminster at the moment, for obvious reasons. i think so much has gone on in central government that i think it was, you know, bound to happen, really. this gym—design business relies on trade with mainland europe. its owner comes from a tory tradition but used his two votes in these elections to back the lib dems and the green party. as a businessperson, we're beginning to feel more let down by the tories whose, you know, party infighting and partisan issues have resulted in us careering towards this hard eu exit. so i guess i'm fairly disillusioned with the traditional parties that i've come from, and what we're really looking for now is a new party in the centre

or someone to claim that centre ground. while these were local elections, the liberal democrats' anti—brexit message has clearly had an impact in remain—supporting areas like here in bath. but across the country, voters have turned away from the two main parties. in the north east, sunderland saw labour keep control of the council but with a significant drop in support. i always voted labour since i left school, when i was 18 and you could vote, and there ijust voted conservative as a protest vote against labour, cos labour not doing what people want them to do. mps want a second referendum, and we don't. from me being a boy, this has been a stronghold for labour, and they're gradually losing seats. and i think the next time it happens, the next election, you'll see a big shift towards ukip, i would think. this coastal city opted to leave, but it wasn'tjust pro—brexit parties picking up labour votes — the lib dems and greens did too. it's not surprising that people are disillusioned

with the two main political parties, because they haven't delivered on brexit. i think they realise that perhaps we need to give some of these smaller parties a chance. back in bath, at the society cafe, local musician nick said the austerity and the economy mattered to him but he thought this election was influenced by one thing. i think there are people who might have chosen differently at the ballot box who chose what they chose purely because of brexit. some activists who suffered local losses have blamed the national picture. many from both main parties hope the message from these elections will be heard loud and clear in westminster. alex forsyth, bbc news, bath. well, reeta chakra barti has been looking at the results from some of the key councils in england, which show how political allegiances have shifted. this has been a really turbulent election, with a lot of council seats changing hands,

and the big story has, of course, been the resurgent liberal democrats, some really big gains for them. look at these councils. bath and north east somerset, chelmsford, both gained from the conservatives. i want to show you what happened in chelmsford. the conservatives had a majority of 47 councillors here. look, the lib dems took it with a majority of five. and if i show you the seat change compared to last time, the conservatives lost 31 seats, the lib dems picking up 26, so a cracking result for the lib dems in chelmsford. for the conservatives, they also lost ground in heartlands like folkestone and hythe — that was conservative, it's now in no overall control, the smaller parties making advances there. better news for the conservatives in north east lincolnshire, they took that council that was previously hung. ashfield, here in pink, that means the independents have won this council. it was in no overall control before, but labour in fact

were very strong in ashfield — the independents have taken that. let's look now at labour's performance, they had some real disappointments during this election. darlington has always been labour until now. labour's lost darlington, a real heartland council. similar case with the wirral, and let me take you into the wirral to just show you the pattern of what happened. let's have a look at the share change, this is the change in the share of the vote compared to last time these seats were up for election. look, labour's vote going down by 13%, that will really have hurt. but let's look at the last council on this screen, trafford, a big metropolitan council that labour has gained from no overall control, they'll be really pleased with that. so overall a quite chastening night, certainly for the conservatives, but also for labour, a really good performance for the liberal democrats, with independents, greens and other

smaller parties coming up too. reeta chakra barti reeta chakrabarti reporting there. let's talk to our deputy political editor, jon pienaar, who's at westminster for us tonight. what should the main parties take away from these results, do you think? are they going to shift their positions on brexit at all? these results have shown the iron rigidity of brexit gridlock. at every point on this spectrum of opinion on brexit the various rifle and opposing factions are claiming these results as a vindication of their position, whether they are remainers and keen on a fresh referendum, or on the other side, brexiteers, perhaps happy with the idea of leaving the european union with no deal. and meanwhile the government and the opposition, team a and team corbynite still in contact, still looking for that elusive compromise, although any deal would and could

split both parties with rebellion and likely resignations on the government side under the same on the labour side if there was any kind of deal without the guarantee ofa kind of deal without the guarantee of a fresh referendum. calling on westminster to just get on with it, just deliver brexit, as so many members of the public seem to be saying, it's easy to say, so very ha rd to saying, it's easy to say, so very hard to deliver in practice and if you thought these results were evidence of frustration among voters with the two party system and with the time it's taken to deliver on brexit, well, just wait for the european elections in about three weeks' time, when change uk, the new party on one side and the brexit party on the other will be joining in and the public will have another opportunity to demonstrate just what a discontented and divided country britain has become. 0k, john, thank you, john pienaar at westminster for us you, john pienaar at westminster for us tonight. and there's much more on the local elections online, including all the results where you are, on our website,

bbc.co.uk/politics. a devastating cyclone has hit the east coast of india, leaving more than a million people sheltering in relief centres. winds of 120 miles an hour have uprooted trees and brought down power and phone lines. cyclone fani is the most powerful to hit india for several years. india's national disaster management authority described conditions along the east coast as "phenomenal", with bangladesh the next country in the storm's path. 0ur correspondent rahul tandon has the latest. such was the fury of one of india's most powerful storms in recent times. glass smashes. shouting. cyclone fani hit the eastern state of adisha with torrential rain and devastating winds of more than 125 mph. it made landfall at eight in the morning in the tourist town of puri.

anticipating its impact, the authorities had evacuated hundreds of thousands of people. in the state capital, bhubaneswar, this crane was brought crashing down. one of india's poorest states now has a huge clean—up operation on its hands. and that's not going to be easy where many parts of it are cut off from each other. this is why a million people were moved into temporary shelters. most of them are now safe, but the question they're asking is what has happened to their homes and what impact will this have on their lives? many villages are now submerged, and flooding is a major concern. and it's not over yet. cyclone fani is now moving towards one of india's most densely populated cities — kolkata.

rahultandon, bbc news, bhubaneswar. the south african world and olympic champion caster semenya says "no human can stop me running", after winning what some expect after winning herfirst race after winning her first race since she was told to reduce her testosterone levels. semenya told the bbc she has no plans to retire. following a landmark ruling saying she must take medication to limit levels of testosterone in her body. ade adedoyin reports from doha. caster semenya has had a lot on her mind this week, not that she showed it. storming to victory here in doha. commentator: my word, is there any end to her talent? she's just running away. dominant, determined and defiant. that's the easiest race i've ever run in my life. for me, negativity is nothing, so as long as it doesn't kill me it makes me stronger, like i said. so i'm here to perform, i'm here to show people, the world, that anything is possible

if you believe. caster semenya continues to demonstrate the qualities that made her a champion — a real show of strength and courage to come here to doha and perform like this, after everything that's happened this week, and with the eyes of the world watching. when semenya is at her best there's only one winner, but defeat in her legal battle against the iaaf this week means that if she's to defend her world title in doha in september she'll have to start taking medication to lower her testosterone levels next week, which may affect her performances. people have been asking me, is caster going to retire, is caster going to keep going? how the hell am i going to retire when i'm 28? i'm still a young soul, man. i'm still young, i still feel young, i still feel energy. i still have ten years more in athletics so it doesn't matter how i'm going to do it, what matters is i'll still be here. i'll see you here in doha? of course. i'll see you in the 800? of course. former european champion

lynsey sharp has in the past questioned whether semenya has an unfair advantage and she says she's paid a heavy price for that. no one benefits from this situation. of course she doesn't benefit, but it's not me versus her, it's not us versus them, it's like i've had death threats, i've had threats against my family, and that's not a position i want to be in. so a week that started in defeat ends in victory — semenya showing strength when others would crumble. a moment to savour, but she still has a very big decision to make. ade adedoyin, bbc news, doha. let's take a look at some of the day's other top stories... new research has found that people receiving effective treatment for hiv cannot pass on the virus to their sexual partners. a european study published in the medicaljournal the lancet looked at nearly 1,000 gay male couples, and discovered no cases of hiv transmission over eight years. a man who was given contaminated blood products says he hopes the infected blood inquiry

will bring justice to those affected. in an emotional testimony, matthewjohnson told the inquiry he was left exposed to the potentially fatal disease cjd. police say they've now identified one of the two bodies found in the freezer of a flat in east london. mihrican mustafa, who was 38 years old and had three children, was reported missing last may. a coroner has called for universities to destigmatise devon and cornwall police has been fined after a man collapsed in custody and later died. thomas 0rchard had a belt put round his face in exeter after being arrested. thejudge said it face in exeter after being arrested. the judge said it was only a matter of time before the practice would kill somebody. a coroner has called for universities to destigmatise mental health issues, after concluding that a first year student at the university of bristol took his own life. ben murray, who was 19, is one of 12 students at the university to die in the last three years.

his father has been campaigning for a change in the way universities approach student mental health. frankie mccamley has more details. james murray met his son ben last may for lunch — that was the last time they ever spoke. later that day, ben, a first—year student at bristol university, took his own life. he was sensitive. he used to look at the things that other people might overlook, like suffering in friends and people around him. whenjames was told about ben's death, he started looking into his son's time at university. what became very clear is that little pieces of the picture were held in different places, different departments, different systems, but when you pulled it together in one place, the picture of ben's crisis seemed to be so clear that you'd think that he stood out. ben was missing lectures, he hadn't paid his fees, and was on the verge of being kicked out.

as a parent, the first thing is, well, i can see the crisis, why wasn't i told? since ben's death, his father has worked alongside bristol university to bring in changes. the vice—chancellor introduced a system allowing staff to contact someone if they have serious concerns about a student's mental health — notjust in the event of a death or serious physical injury. we've probably considered it so far this year in maybe about 15 students. we've actively used it in about five. we think it's an appropriate innovation, given the scale of the mental—health challenges affecting our students, notjust here, but across the sector. grace kendrick now leads a weekly running club. she suffered from anxiety, but another scheme at bristol helped her by prescribing mentored exercise. by taking some time away from my studies and putting less pressure on myself to study all the time, it had a really good impact on me. i felt like i actually focused, when i was studying in the library. although schemes like that can help, around half of students

who take their own lives are not known to university mental—health services, which was the case with ben murray. now education institutions are trying to come up with innovative ways to spot students struggling much sooner. charles prince is leading a team looking at how student data can be used to spot those who don't ask for help. they're analysing the digital footprint left when students attend lectures, take out books at the library, or log onto campus computers. the future plan is to build that one student profile, so i can see, based on the analytics, how mental health is playing a role into the student's experience. and that focus on mental health is something universities are finally getting to grips with after being criticised for being too slow to react. the hope now is they can try to intervene before it's too late. frankie mccamley, bbc news. if you've been affected by the issues raised in this story

there's more information online. go to bbc.co.uk/actionline. or you can call for free, 0800 066 066. the funeral of the footballer billy mcneill, who led celtic to become the first british club to win the european cup, has been held in glasgow. thousands of people lined the streets to pay tribute. billy mcneill died last week, at the age of 79. there have been numerous tributes to the actor who played chewbacca in the star wars films, peter mayhew, who's died at the age of 7a. at seven feet two inches tall, he appeared in five of the films. his screen partner han solo, played by harrison ford, today said they'd been "friends for life". here's our entertainment correspondent, lizo mzimba. frustration. despair.

0ccasionally even a hint of menace. peter mayhew‘s never—speaking chewbacca could effortlessly portray the entire range of emotions. it wasn't just millions of fans who found themselves endeared to the 200—year—old wookie. you must be so brave. he just radiated happiness and warmth. he was always up for a laugh. we hit it off immediately and stayed friends for over 40 years. it was back in 1976 when, thanks to his seven foot height, the former hospital porter was cast in the first movie. he was word perfect on the script so that he could simultaneously physically portray the character's thoughts. whatever the circumstances. will somebody please get this big walking carpet out of my way?! laugh it up, fuzzball!

he returned for 2015's the force awakens. back to the old days, the old ways of doing things. it's great. although being in his 70s and limited mobility meant he couldn't manage many of the action sequences. still, for many fans, he simply was chewbacca, one of the great heroes of perhaps cinema's greatest science—fiction movie. peter mayhew, who's died at the age of 7a. that's it. now on bbc one, time for the news where you are. have a very good night.

hello and welcome to sportsday i'm jane dougall. i will continue to run. caster semenya is adament after a ruling to limit testosterone levels in females is upheld. england cricketers avoid embarassment after a close call against ireland. and could europe be beckoning for everton after they win at home against burnley.

in a case that has divided opinion throughout the sporting world, caster semenya has said she will continue to race professionally no matter what. the south african was speaking after she won gold in the 800 metres in doha this evening. her medal comesjust days after the court of arbitration for sport decided to uphold the ruling to keep strict limitations on testosterone levels in women. it means semenya will have to take hormone supressing medication if she wants to race as a woman. it's the easiest rates have ran in my life and being able . produce a race, in race, i in race, i think in race, i think it's in race, i think it's fantastic. n press race, i think it's fantastic. for me, negativity is nothing, so as

long as it does not kill me, it makes me stronger and like i said, i'm here to perform and show people the in the world that anything is possible if you believe and i think it's fantastic and knowing that when you go around the weld that people who you know are cheering for you and those who love you and appreciate you and accept you for who you are. so if you are a great example, you aspire to you, everything that you do is in the best interest of you. you're never out of line, no matter how hard, i think that's my task. i'll keep doing it. and i'll never stop at the end of the day, i have a goal a goal i want to fulfil, one that i want to achieve and so in that moment, what i would say is i'm going to keep doing what i do best which is writing. -- running. so what next for semenya? the ruling only applies to middle

distances, she says she will return to doha for the athletics world championships in september, but in what discipline? 0ur reporter ade adedoyin spoke to her. will the beta 800 metres or a long—distance quiz night at 800 she has to take medication to lower her naturally high levels of testosterone this week or she can go for 5000 metres and eventually won the south african championships over the south african championships over the weekend, difficulty is that she has to face athletes who have been doing it for the past two years have had to be competitive at that distance at the elite level. hunch is that she may compete in that and the lives and —— last answer she gave me like you will see me and asked her which white and with a glint in her eye she said yes. team gb athlete lynsey sharp who finished ninth in that same 800 metres race in doha this evening told the bbc she had been subjected to death threats as a result of describing semenya's inclusion as unfair. it's not me versus her, it's