to become carers for loved ones unless more money is invested in the system. john is 64 and has severe dementia. he's cared for by his wife, as is bob, who's also in his 60s. they both need round the clock care. it's not the dementia that is killing me, it's exhaustion. once you've been diagnosed, you know there's going to be no happy ending whatsoever, and it's just awful. we'll be asking what needs to be done to help millions of families whose lives are being torn apart. also tonight... enough is enough, say thousands of nurses in northern ireland as they walk out in an unprecedented strike over pay. relatives of four british soldiers killed in the hyde park

bombing win a civil case against convicted ira member, john downey, after his criminal trial collapsed in 2014. tony blair launches a scathing attack on his party's performance at the election — laying the blame onjeremy corbyn. and the woman making history in the world of darts. fallon sherrock becomes the first woman to win a match at the pdc darts world championship. and coming up on bbc news, everton are in action tonight in the league cup at goodison amid reports that former chelsea manager carlo ancelotti is being lined up to be their next man in charge. good evening and welcome to the bbc news at six. the uk is facing a crisis because of the rapid rise in the number of people

living with dementia. that's according to the charity, the alzheimer's society, the alzheimer's society, which says the care system is failing those with the disease and the families who often end up looking after them. the condition devastates the lives of those who get it. but it can also be devastating for their loved ones, many of whom are forced to walk away from their own careers to provide round the clock support. around 850,000 people in the uk already have dementia, but that number is set to double over the next 20 years. unless far more money is invested in the social care system, the charity is warning that, by 2035, almost three million people will find themselves, in some way, having to care for a family member who has dementia. jeremy cooke has spent time with two women, who've become full—time carers to their husbands — both in their 60s. what he found is a story of emotional and physical exhaustion, and the threat of financial ruin. 0k? anne is the face of dementia care.

put it on your face. on your face, like that. so, every morning, at home in newcastle, she helps her husband john, who is 64, to relearn the most basic tasks. turn around, that is it, like that. there you go, like that. can you put your arms through? yes, he can get up out of bed if i tell him to get up but, then, from that moment on, virtually everything has to be done for him. one, two, three. at home in essex, julia is a full—time carer for her husband bob, who is 69. he is living with dementia but also parkinson's and diabetes. julia's life is now totally dedicated to his physical, mental and emotional needs. i remember the way he was, how good—looking he was and then i look at him now... and he's so changed.

john was a factory worker. he is a family man, a dad, granddad, hoping for a long and happy retirement. unfortunately, that didn't really materialise, because obviouslyjohn was diagnosed when he was 57. john? yeah? what do you think of anne? what do you think about anne? john chuckles. 1.8 million people in england care for someone with dementia. are you drinking your tea? forjulia and anne, it's meant giving up their own careers for what can feel like a 24—7 drip feed of mundane tasks. all set against the backdrop of losing someone you love. julia? yeah, i'm gonna come and help you. julia? yeah, i'm coming. i peed my trousers.

did you? it's going to claim you, it's going to make you ill, make you depressed. lift your foot up for me. it is not the dementia that is killing me, it's exhaustion. even that is killing me, it's exhaustion. at night, forjulii be even at night, forjulia, there can be little piece. i'll record this because then maybe somebody can give us the answer. in desperation, she is taken to filming what happens. i can't step back because i'm... it's all a long way from when bob had a senior role at bt. julia has fought in vain to get better professional support but, at 3am, she is still coping alone. remember then that, when we called him lou? he connected with that, see? john

has rare moments of clarity. bob can go from total immobility to this, busy doing nothing, going nowhere. although both are suffering chronic progressive disease, they, like thousands of others, fall under the social care system rather than the nhs. in the end, a care home may be the only option, but that can mean the only option, but that can mean the family home, the savings of a lifetime, can be lost. when i've been phoning round various homes, some of them were quoting £1800 a week. i'm quite convinced that somebody's getting very rich out of frail, vulnerable, very, very sick people and that is wrong. i've worried about that probably from day one. because of the money? yeah. if it was this moment in time, i'd be left with nothing. like bob, john and anne get some support from their wider family and he has access to a day centre twice

a week. the alzheimer's society organises events to raise awareness, warning that, in the next 15 years, the number of us giving care to someone the number of us giving care to someone in dementia full—time or pa rt—time, someone in dementia full—time or part—time, will have risen by almost a million. the loneliness is just terrible. it's a cruel disease, isn't it? it's awful. no matter what you do, there's going to be no happy ending whatsoever. you are very tough on yourself. and you are very lovely to him. doesn't always seem that way. julia, can you do me a favour? shouldn't i be in bed with you? in an ideal world, absolutely, yes. if you had a moment of clarity with him, if he had a moment, what would you say to him? come back. i miss you so much.

0ur social affairs correspondent alison holt is here. it is heartbreaking to watch what those women are having to go through, why is there not more help for people like them? it absolutely is heartbreaking and part of the tragedy of what we saw with anne and john and julia and bob is there will be families up and down the country who completely recognised that sense of isolation and desperation. the fundamental problem is the council run ca re fundamental problem is the council run care system is in crisis and it has beenjuggling increasing demand from an ageing population and the support needed by a growing number of working age adults against cuts to council budgets over a period of time and a worrying level of staff shortages. fewer people are getting ca re shortages. fewer people are getting care from their local authority now than were ten years ago and, as jeremy mentioned, many people believe the nhs will help when it

comes to something like dementia. the reality is that, in many cases, they will find themselves paying towards or paying for their care. and the government, itjust goes to show what a huge task ahead there is to turn the social care system around. yes, when boris johnson first became prime minister, he promised to fix social care once and for all. his guiding promised to fix social care once and forall. his guiding principle promised to fix social care once and for all. his guiding principle is that no one should have to sell their home to pay for their care. we haven't had much more detail than that. the basic principles have been reaffirmed and the government have said that within the first 100 days, they want to start cross—party talks there are grounds for optimism and also scepticism, because the other major parties are torn up with a huge task ahead there is to turn the social care system around. yes, when borisjohnson first social care system around. yes, when boris johnson first became social care system around. yes, when borisjohnson first became prime minister, he promised to fix social ca re once minister, he promised to fix social care once and for all. his guiding principle is that no one should have to sell their home to pay for their care. we haven't had much more detail than that. the basic principles have been reaffirmed and the government have said that within the government have said that within the first 100 days, they want to start cross—party talks there are

grounds for optimism and also scepticism, because the other major parties are torn up with leadership elections and there are a lot of things to sort out, but this is a really big question about what sort ofa really big question about what sort of a society we want to be. 15,000 nurses in northern ireland have walked out in an unprecedented strike over pay and conditions. a 6.5% pay rise last year for all nhs staff, has not been implemented in northern ireland because of budgetary reasons, and political paralysis. unions argue the real value of nurses' pay has fallen by 15% over the past eight years. northern ireland's health service — which is devolved — is already under strain, with record waiting lists and staffing problems. emma vardy reports. horn honking. cheering. from eight this morning, an unprecedented step. thousands of nurses out of the wards and on picket lines. nobody wants to be here today but we are at the point where nurses have been talking for a long, long time and action has been required. no one is standing out in the rain out of choice but we feel it is essential for our patients' safety. nearly 5,000 outpatient appointments were cancelled today, and a number of minor injury units closed, but there was significant support for health workers who are striking. from those like sean, who came to stand in solidarity with the nurse who cared

for his dying daughter. where she died came right out of the 19805, a horrible grey room, it's a horrible environment, the facilities are poor. our hospitals need major investment, our staff need major support from our politicians. there are problems with filling posts and retaining health workers in part because pay here has fallen behind the rest of the uk. hospitals in northern ireland have become badly short—staffed. it would be very common to find a nurse crying in the corner because they feel that they aren't able to provide the care that they want to provide to their patient. it would not be unusual for me to work a 12—hour shift and maybe have a 20—minute break in that period. just 20 minutes? 20 minutes. in12 hours? when you are working with a patient, they become your responsibility. almost like your family. and you cannot walk away. waiting lists are the longest in the uk. it took three years for nick to get

surgery on his foot and he now faces another long wait for a hernia operation. it was debilitating and very, very annoying. it's the not knowing. i'm sick and tired of northern ireland being treated like the kind of second—class pariah of the united kingdom. we've already got one of the major strikes in the whole of northern irish history, it's been going on for three years, it's called the assembly and they're getting paid. and they haven't done a stroke of work for three years. mounting criticism is being directed at the politicians who are meant to be sitting here. since power—sharing between sinn fein and the democratic unionists collapsed, there's been no ministers to tackle the health crisis. now there are calls from all sides for westminster to intervene. but downing street says for the parties to start governing together again is the best way for this dispute to be resolved. emma vardy, bbc news, belfast. relatives of four british soldiers who were killed in the 1982 hyde park bombing in london

have won a civil case against a former member of the ira. the judge ruled that the suspect — john downey — was an "active participant" and wasjointly responsible, with others, for the attack on servicemen who were riding through the park. the judgement will mean that the families can now seek damages. 0ur correspondent angus crawford was at the high court. they've waited years, the bereaved. fighting to get to the truth. the judge gave that decision, but no matter what decision he's given, nothing can bring those four boys back but we've worked tirelessly as a family to get that decision. a wicked, premeditated attack, the court heard. on a warm summer's day in 1982, an ira car bomb in hyde park cut down a troop of the household cavalry. killing squadron quartermaster corporal roy bright, lieutenant dennis daly,

lance corporal jeffrey young and trooper simon tipper. fellow soldier simon utley was just 18. i had a problem with my side, i had shrapnel in it, but at the time, i didn't know and ijust remember staring in this direction, walking over but then stopping because i was frightened. and just... ijust did not know what to do. this man, a convicted member of the ira, john downey, did face criminal charges five years ago, but the case collapsed because of the so—called comfort letter sent to him by the government. the letters followed the good friday agreement, ruling out criminal prosecution for some ira suspects on the run. more than 180 were sent. but they don't apply in civil cases. thisjudgment turned on parking tickets, bought for the car which carried the bomb. the judge said she was satisfied

the prints did belong tojohn downey and he couldn't explain how they came to be there. today, after 37 years, some measure ofjustice for both the living and the dead. angus crawford, bbc news. a drug dealer's beenjailed for murdering a 14—year—old boy in a targeted "violent and frenzied" attack. jaden moodie was knocked off a moped and repeatedly stabbed by a rival gang member in east london in january. ayoub majdouline was found guilty of murder last week after his dna was found on the murder weapon. today the 19—year—old was sentenced to life with a minimum term of 21 years. tony blair says labour's performance at the election has brought shame on the party, and let the country down. mr blair, the only labour leader to have won a general election in the last 45 years, attacked the current leadership for going into the campaign "with a strategy for defeat".

his damning words came as emily thornberry became the first mp, to publicly declare herself as a leadership candidate. here's our political editor laura kuenssberg. this is what losing looks like. labour fell away in leigh, the seat they have held for nearly a century. seats like it fell like dominoes, more than four years afterjeremy corbyn took over labour. the only man born within a century to win an election for the labour party. it's clear what went wrong, in his view. the takeover of the labour party by the far left turned it into a glorified protest movement with cult trimmings, utterly incapable of being in credible government. the result has brought shame on us. we let our country down. but the contenders for taking over aren't screaming for a huge change in direction away from mr corbyn,

at least not yet. keir starmer, who wanted to campaign to stay in the eu, wants the job. jeremy corbyn was right in 2015 when he said we should be an anti—austerity party, we should be against cuts to public spending, and that was a fundamentally important shift in our party, and what i am concerned about in the aftermath of this election is that we oversteer and lurch to a different position. as does his fellow europhile and london mp emily thornberry, who has been shadow foreign secretary. the closest candidate tojeremy corbyn's machine is rebecca long bailey. like the other contenders, it's the half a million or so members they have to convince when the contest starts proper injanuary. my own preference is for becca long—bailey, but i think it's welcome that the members are going to have a real choice. it could be a choice between many, not few. other mps, like jess phillips, lisa nandy and yvette cooper may run as well.

the scale of labour's loss here is onlyjust really sinking in, and at labour hq there is a long list of questions that beg hard answers. first, can the party avoid slipping into a bitter blame game over what went wrong, before a healthy discussion over who and what might be next? it might be five years before labour has another chance on the doorstep for the next general election, but time may not automatically be a healer. without doubt for labour, there are many wounds to put right. laura kuenssberg, bbc news, westminster. the time is coming up to 20 past six. top story this evening. britain's dementia crisis — millions of people may be forced to become carers for loved ones unless more money is invested in the system. and i am live in london's leicester square for the european premiere of

star wars thus the rise of skywalker, the film that aims to conclude a saga that began with the original star wars in 1977. coming up original star wars in 1977. coming up on sportsday on bbc news, the first woman to win a darts match at the world championship says female players need more opportunities. fallon sherrock has made history as the first female winner in the competition. in the united states, members of congress are getting ready to vote on whether to impeach donald trump, in the two—stage procedure, which can lead to the removal of a sitting president. in the first stage today, a majority in the house of representatives would need to support the move. if that passes, a trial would be held in the us senate — dominated by republicans — next month. two—thirds would have to vote in favour. that's unlikely to happen. but if it did, donald trump would be forced from the white house the president has called the process a "witch hunt". 0ur north america editorjon sopel is at the white house

for us this evening. jon. and sophie, so far no sign of donald trump today, but he is facing two charges, two alleged eye creams and misdemeanours. —— high crimes and misdemeanours. —— high crimes and misdemeanours. —— high crimes and misdemeanours. the first that he sought the support of the ukrainian president to dish dirt on thejoe biden for the presidential campaign next year. the second that he obstructed congress by refusing to cooperate with their investigation into what happened. merciful god, we pause in your presence and ask guidance... december18, pause in your presence and ask guidance... december 18, 2019, pause in your presence and ask guidance... december18, 2019, a day that will go down in american history, a day that started at least with celebrity. give them wisdom and discernment. but very quickly moved from the sacred to the profane is the bitter partisan dogfight took

over. if a president undermining our national security and using the federal government for his own selfish gain is not repeatable conduct, then madam speaker i don't know what is. today we have a president who seems to believe he is a king, orabove the president who seems to believe he is a king, or above the law. and then the counterblast from the republicans. it is a sham impeachment. it has been carried out at the expense of hard—working americans whojust at the expense of hard—working americans who just want us to move forward. there is no proof, none, that the president has committed an impeachable offence. and from the democratic speaker, a tone of sorrow rather than anger. i solemnly and sadly opened the debate on the impeachment of the president of the united states. if we do not act now, we would be derelict in our duty. it is tragic that the president does make reckless actions make impeachment necessary. he gave us no choice. the last president to be

impeached was bill clinton in 1998 over lying about his relationship with the white house intern, monica lewinsky. and before that, you have to go back another 130 years to president andrewjohnson. by the end of today, donald trump well in all likelihood have joined the club that no one wants to be a member of. the president has spent the morning and the residence where his twitter fans have been busy. but for this first part of the impeachment process, it won't be about prayer, it will be about votes, and donald trump doesn't have them. john sobel, bbc news, washington. the home appliances company whirlpool has apologised for technical problems affecting

a website set up to help customers identify whether their washing machine is faulty. yesterday, the company recalled half a million hotpoint and indesit models, because they present a fire risk. an eight—year—old boy who reviews toys has been named as the highest earning youtuber, for the second year in a row. according to an annual top—10 ranking by forbes, ryan — of ryan's world — earned £20 million this year, up from £17 million in 2018. for the first time in the history of darts, a woman has beaten a man at a world championship match. fallon sherrock, who's 25, came from behind to win in the first round of the pdc competition at alexandra palace in london. she now faces the world number 11 on sunday. our sports correspondent natalie pirks has been speaking to her about making history. everyone was on their feet, like... a moment to savour. after two hours' sleep, fallon sherrock woke up to a whirlwind of interviews, thousands of new twitter followers, and a place in sporting history. commentator: fallon sherrock smashes the glass ceiling!

at what point did you become aware afterwards that you had just written your name into the history books? when i went to shake ted's hand, and i saw the reaction of everyone, i was emotional. iwas, like, wow, oh, my god, like, i'm still speechless, like, i can't describe how happy i was and how i was feeling. i'm just overwhelmed. remarkably, she only began playing darts eight years ago with her twin sister, but is now the second best female player in the world. it's been far from an easy ride, though. she became a single mother to her autistic son, rory, and has battled kidney disease that caused herface to swell, making her a target for online trolls. she will now donate her winning board from last night to raise funds for an autism charity. i was just so proud of what i've done. we have always wanted to prove to the men that we can compete with them. i've just beaten a man. i'm a woman. like, people don't expect that, so i feel like i've done us proud. commentator: he likes the odd pint and the odd fag... darts has come a long way. diets have changed,

as have attitudes to women. the walk—on girls that many deemed sexist have gone, and now two women qualify every year for the world champs, but more could still be done. there's other women who can play to my ability, if not better, and wejust need more recognition, more opportunities to prove ourselves. the £15,000 prize money is the most any woman has ever won in the sport. she'd get £10,000 more if she wins on saturday, but whilst the money may be pleasant, this moment is priceless. natalie pirks, bbc news. it's the european premiere of the latest star wars film, the rise of skywalker, in london tonight, the fifth instalment in the franchise in as many years. its british stars are gathering on the red carpet — lizo mzimba's in leicester square. yes, thank you, i am joined yes, thank you, iamjoined by yes, thank you, i am joined by daisy ridley who of course plays the central character, rey. how

important and how powerful message wasn't having a female character at the centre of this new trilogy?|j would the centre of this new trilogy?” would argue there wasn't anyone at that centre, i think every character in starwars has that centre, i think every character in star wars has or has been so important, which again i think was another mammoth task for them in this film, because everyone give so much. but i think having a female within the central group is very important, yeah. and what has it meant to you, being part of this series that mean so much to so people —— so many people? series that mean so much to so people -- so many people? it has been amazing, in the star wars world it is amazing but also people have been fighting long and hard for characters like this, for women and anyone sort of knot in the traditional film sense to play, sol am also thankful to all of the people that have been fighting for years and years and years for roles like this to be available. and very briefly, what do you think it is that star wars has made and had this enduring quality was only people?”

don't know, firstly i think it is a lot of sun, sun? fun. and i think it is silly, and i thinkjj does silly really well, ultimately you can choose who you love and it is a story about family and relationships and a group of friends defeating all the odds to succeed and try. daisy ridley, rey in the series, thank you for talking to us from the european premiere of the rise of skywalker, the film that aims to wrap up the storytelling that began 42 years ago way back in 1977 with the original star wars. now met with the weather and it is definitely reining in london. certainly is but it will bring a change, some may welcome the change, a rise in tabjust in fact was that this afternoon, county durham barely got above freezing with the mist and fog. this very same spot by the time we get to the end of the night they will be 9 degrees warmer. temperatures for many of you warmer than they have been during the day because of what is happening in the west. rain is on the way to these weather fronts, and

in amongst that, some heavy bursts of rain around at the moment particularly across wales in south—east england. that will fall on already saturated ground, keep an eye on river levels and flood warnings over the next few days, more rain to come, certainly through this evening and overnight, strong winds, 50, 60, this evening and overnight, strong winds,50, 60,70 mph gusts, particularly in the west, rain spreading across all parts, all of us spreading across all parts, all of us will see the rain at some point tonight. snow for a time in the scottish hills, dries up in the north later, though the wins will strengthen in the hebrides but note these are the temperatures to start tomorrow morning. higher than they have been during the afternoon over the last few days. for some there will be sunshine, north wales especially, and lots of cloud, central and eastern and southern parts of england, but the rain turns heavier from the south as we finish tomorrow afternoon. scotland and northern ireland, just one or two showers through the day and temperatures widely into double figures, one or two spots up to 14 degrees. heavy rain tomorrow evening's rush hour quickly pushing northwards across all parts, could

bea northwards across all parts, could be a rumble of thunder with that, blustery winds, and pulse returning to ta ke blustery winds, and pulse returning to take us to friday. a mild start to take us to friday. a mild start to friday but once again for some it will be a wet one. this area of low pressure particularly through central and eastern parts of england could bring yet more in the way of heavy rain. may just could bring yet more in the way of heavy rain. mayjust fringe into eastern scotland later, some western and southern areas will be dry and bright in the afternoon but it will be turning cooler to take it into the weekend.

this is bbc news. britain's dementia crisis, millions may be forced to

become carers for loved ones.