the headlines: the uk has recorded 917 new coronavirus deaths. it's the second day in a row that the number of victims was above 900. following criticism from doctors, the home secretary, priti patel, has said she is sorry if anyone felt there had been failings over the supply of personal protective equipment for medical staff. the british prime minister, borisjohnson, has thanked staff at st thomas‘ hospital in london, where he is being treated for coronavirus, for saving his life. he is recovering from the virus, but is expected to spend the coming weeks convalescing. the united states has overtaken italy for the highest number of deaths from pandemic in the world. nearly 20,000 americans have been killed so far. the governor of the worst affected state, new york, has said the death rate there is stabilising, but at a horrific level. now on bbc news, our world follows

two north koreans as they gain fame in front of the camera capitalising on their defector status, yet struggle to move on from their past. there are 30,000 north korean defectors currently living in south korea. most have fled the brutal regime of kimjong—un in the hope of a better life. but many feel isolated in south korea.

now, some north koreans have found success in turning their defector status into a career. but will south korea everfeel like home? yu hyun—joo has been living in south korea since 2004 when she fled the north. she is on her way to the set of one of the country's

most popular tv shows. now on my way to meet you is a weekly show all about north korea. hyun—joo has been a guest on the show since it first launched in 2011.

each week, guests tell stories about life in north korea... singing ..and sing traditional north korean songs. singing

hyun—joo had a relatively good life in north korea. her mum was a canteen manager in a local factory. at the age of 29, she decided to leave north korea.

hyun—joo paid a broker to take her from north korea to beijing, and then to hanoi. from there, she got a flight to south korea. kang nara is one of the biggest north korean youtube stars. she was still at school when she decided to flee the regime.

nara lives in a tiny apartment in seoul with her mother and stepfather.

herfather and brother don't want to defect. according to the unification ministry, defectors on average earn a third less than south koreans. there's a big appetite for north korean stories here. hyun—joo has used the skills she learned in the north

to earn herself a big stage in south korea. singing

over the years, hyun—joo saved enough to pay a broker to bring her mum to south korea.

unlike south korean teenagers, when nara arrived here five years ago, she didn't even know what social media was. she's now got 50,000 followers on instagram and 90,000 subscribers on youtube.

nara also hosts youtube shows for broadcasters, responding to endless questions about the lives of north koreans.

it's yu hyun—joo‘s weekly recording of now on my way to meet you. but there's been days of preparation before recording the show. the programme makers say their aim is to reduce prejudice towards defectors.

but the show often reveals to hyun—joo, how privileged her life was in north korea and how little she knows about her own country.

the show is popular among middle—aged and elderly south koreans. one group of loyal fans live in the closest village to the north korean border.

but the show has also been controversial. kang myong—do runs a north korean restaurant in seoul. he was a regular on the show for more than two years. he has now left.

but the programme makers say they go through various layers of fact—checking before putting out an episode.

nara has been in south korea for five years now. the social media persona she has created is based on her north korean heritage, but it's something she hopes she can eventually escape.

life as a north korean celebrity means travelling to wherever the bookings are. this evening, hyun—joo is at a local town hall three hours from the capital, seoul.

hello there. the weather is set to change through the second half of this easter weekend. after a couple of very warm days, things are going to be turning cooler. initially in northern areas through easter sunday and then all of us much cooler by easter monday. there'll be a few showers along the way as well. this is the weather set up. it's quite complex. high pressure to the west, low pressure up to the north—east. another area of low pressure developing just about here. but all you really need to know

is that this whether set up is going to bring us a northerly wind over the next couple of days and that will bring this cold air southwards across all parts of the uk, particularly by easter monday. but as far as the day ahead goes, we're going to start off with cloud and some patchy rain through southern scotland and northern ireland, that sinking very slowly south—eastwards. for the northern half of scotland, some brightness for a time, but more cloud and patchy rain remaining here. and with a brisk northerly wind it's going to start to feel really chilly. further south across england and wales, some spells of sunshine, but into the afternoon a scattering of really heavy and possibly thundery downpours, partly due to another day of warmth. 25 degrees there in london, but further north, 11 for aberdeen, that colder air making its presence felt. now, during sunday night we will continue to see some hefty and possibly thundery downpours across england and wales. but more and more of of us start to feel the effect of that northerly wind. so while monday morning will be a mild affair across south england and south wales,

further north a chilly start of the day. and that sets us up for what is going to be quite a cold feeling day across the british isles. a lot of cloud feeding into northern and eastern part of scotland and down the eastern side of england. the best of the sunshine to be found further west, so through parts of wales, south—west and north—west of england, south—west scotland, and northern ireland. a noticeable wind, particularly for eastern and southern coasts. the channel islands could see gusts of 50mph. and look at these temperatures — way, way down where they have been. seven degrees there in newcastle, cardiff, plymouth 1a degrees at best. ans as high pressure builds strongly across the british isles through tuesday morning, you can see this blue shade on the chart — a widespread frost. that's one to bear in mind if you've spent the weekend gardening. a fairly cool feeling day on tuesday, but a lot of dry weather through the coming week and it turns warmer once again.

this is bbc news. welcome if you're watching here in the uk, on pbs in america or around the globe. i'm simon pusey. our top stories: uk deaths from coronavirus exceed 900 for the second day running as doctors warn of a dangerous lack of protective clothing. the british prime minister, borisjohnson, says he owes his life to the doctors and nurses who treated him for covid—19. in the us, more than 500,000 confirmed infections, the number of dead above 20,000. spain's fatalities begin to decline, but with 16,500 people dead, authorities warn that the lockdown will remain. and the queen says in her first ever easter message — "coronavirus will not overcome us."