that his government didn't understand the nature of the coronavirus pandemic in its "first few weeks and months." speaking to the bbc, mrjohnson also said there were open questions about whether lockdown had been imposed too late. huge crowds attend friday prayers at hagia sophia the president of turkey, recep tayyip erdogan, has he said 350,000 people took part inside and in the surrounding streets. the 1500 —year—old world heritage site became a museum in 1934. authorities have created a city interactive very the record number of people have died in the technician of coronavirus. doctors have warned that a return to normal life would be premature. —— due to the number of people have

died. the flu vaccine is to be offered to more than half a finger in‘s population this winter to prevent the health service being overwhelmed by another surge and coronavirus cases. 30 million free jabs will be provided including to people age 50 and over and children under 11. age 50 and over and children under11. 0ur age 50 and over and children under 11. our health correspondent catherine burns has the story. it is not the virus we have all been focusing on but like covid—19 flu can be serious, it can put a strain on the nhs and it can kill thousands. this year it could come on top of a possible search and coronavirus cases. which is why this winter the government wants more than half the people in england to get this, the flu jab or this, the nasal spray for children. the prime minister visiting hep surgery prime minister visiting hep surgery in london listened out for his slightly muffled view on people who don't believe in vaccination. there are always

a nti —fa ctors vaccination. there are always anti—factors now, isn't it? nuts! not see says he couldn't be clear on why the vaccination programme is being extended. the reason for doing this is to protect the nhs in the winter months because obviously we still have got covid, we have still have got covid, we have still got the threat of a second spike of covid. and it is vital therefore to keep that pressure off the nhs by everybody getting a flu jab. normally it is free to those who are pregnant, anyone who is 65 or older or people with certain medical conditions as well as pre—and primary school age children. this winter though it will be extended to the over 50s, year seven pupils, people who have been shielding and ending when they live with. plans for scotland, wales, and northern ireland have not yet been announced. last year 25 million people in england were eligible for the free vaccine but around 10

million decided not to have it. gps say it's a good idea to tackle flu head on but the are real questions about exactly how it will happen. normally during a flu clinic this waiting room would be absolutely packed. right now because of social distancing, that only about five patients in the entire building. we might have to deliver vaccinations and parks near cinemas near shopping centres or in car parks where it is not ina or in car parks where it is not in a confined building and also the capacity will be better in terms of social distancing. there is some optimism that handwashing, social distancing and wearing masks, we have brought to fought coronavirus could also help stop the flu from spreading. catherine burns, bbc news. now on bbc news it's time for talking movies.

hello from new york, i'm tom brook sitting on a bench in central park not farfrom my home. welcome to our talking movies sport special. had they not been postponed because of the pandemic then right now we would be in the midst of 0lympics games madness. over the years, many celebrated film—makers have documented the games. this time around, the distinction has fallen to an acclaimed japanese film—maker. from tokyo, carmen roberts sent us this report. today, tokyo station is very quiet. it should be heaving with commuters and tourists eagerly awaiting the upcoming olympic games. in the midst of a global pandemic, the events are on hold until next year. but not for everyone. i'm on my way to meet japan's most awarded

and celebrated female director, naomi kawase. who has been chosen as the official documentary maker for the tokyo 2020 olympic games. now, this interview took weeks of negotiations and planning and i'm quite excited but also a little nervous. kawase lives in nara around 500km away from the capital. the walls of kawase's office shows she's a highly acclaimed film—maker. she was the youngest director to receive the cannes d'0r award at the cannes film festival for her debut feature, suzaku. she is known for emotionally intelligent films with often bleak and sorrowful themes. so how could a director famed for low—key intimacy turn her hand to chronicle a $25 billion sporting event? translation: the olympics 56 years ago wasn't as televised as it is now.

and for the key moments, people will already be watching it on their tv. so for this documentary, i wanted to focus on the behind—the—scenes bits and how these athletes pursue their goals. it's notjust about how they go after their gold medal but how the athletes respect each other and there is a lot of beauty in that as well. a beauty she is still trying to capture. despite the global pandemic, kawase has continued to film albeit through different means and with new themes. after the official postponement on march 24th, i conducted an interview with the ioc president remotely. i also conducted an interview remotely with the kenyan athlete who is leading the refugee team. we are documenting things as they happen and you have to be flexible towards it. and because of this new connectivity and technology, the theme is connectivity of the world. she is one of only five women to direct

an official 0lympic film. in general, there are a lot more male directors than female directors. and i think the olympic committee liked my idea to show the inner emotions of the athletes and getting close to these athletes which is one of my strong suits and i hope that my directing of such a high—profile film will lead to more female directors in the future. but it's not always the female directors that have influenced kawase over the years. growing up, i wasn't a hard—core cinema fan. i was focused more on basketball during my younger days. but when i went to film school, the movies i encountered didn't use many words but used deep emotions to depict emotional scenes. my favourite film—makers are the russian andre tarkovsky and victor risse from spain. so, it's these small art—house directors i was most influenced by.

no female directors? in english: female? laughter translation: as forfemale directors, i really respectjane campion and i like directors who tried to dig deep into their identity wherever they come from. i also want to make films that are aspirational for the younger generation of film—makers. drawing on her own identity and childhood experiences of being adopted, kawase's latest feature film, true mothers, tackles the sensitive subject of adoption in japan. the release date has been delayed until later in the year but kawase says it's important to keep delivering art to the people. during the pandemic, i was approached by netflix to direct a five—minute short film and it was a collaboration with 25 directors from different countries. but because of the pandemic, some couldn't get their actors

together or camera crew together so somewhere shot on their smartphones. but even in those short films, the characteristics of the directors were shown. we won't be able to make films under perfect like in pre—corona, but we still will need to push on to shoot films. apart from wars, this'll be the first in history that the olympics was postponed and this time it's due to a worldwide pandemic. so shooting this as a documentary will be a momentous feat. it will go down in history, so i still think that this should be made. before i met kawase—sun, i did wonder if herfilm would ever see the light of day especially if the olympic games were to be cancelled next year. but now more than ever i think this is an original and an emotional story that needs to be told regardless of the outcome. tokyo 2020 would have been the first of olympic games since 2004 not to have featured

the revered jamaican sprinter usain bolt. for those of you who want to revisit his glory years, there is an acclaimed 2016 document called i am bolt. documentary called i am bolt. in london, matt floyd tracked down the film's two directors to find out what you really need to do to make a compelling sports documentary. your an 0lympics three—time running champion, it's a good feeling. two more to go, baby. yeah! i am bolt is the story of how the greatest sprinter of all time prepared for rio 2016, his final on the olympic games. but was aiming to become the first person to win the 100 and 200 metre gold at three consecutive 0lympics but as he approached his 30th birthday, time and injuries were against him. being undefeated in a championship is everything for me. the film was the brainchild of london—based production company falwell 73 and two

film—maker brothers gabe and ben turner. currently keeping busy during the pandemic filming a talk show for the bbc. they spent almost two years following the sporting icon, taking them from beijing, to jamaica, to rio. you try to find storylines in there and follow your nose as to where the story is progressing when you don't really know until with usain bolt and you have run that race, you didn't know. the difference between him and winning his ninth gold medal or him losing is quite a different film. i would say that if you're making a documentary, all you are trying to get is the stuff that they are not telling people because all of those sports stars have been media trained and they know how to talk to a camera and they know what to say and they will slip into the same mould no matter who you are unless you try and break that and say to them i am not that person, i want to know something else, it doesn't matter what else it is but i want something else.

and then i think it'sjust about being there and being in the moment with them. it worries me at this point in my career now at a big stage that i still have issues motivating myself. during the film, bolt talks about his self—doubt and struggles with motivation. for the directors, it was important to show this superhuman athlete had very human issues to deal with. as a film—maker, we have to say "you might think you not look great there but actually by keeping that in when we get to the end point of the film, people are going to be on your side more." trying to explain that the talent is quite hard. some people understand that, bolt understood that quite better. the turner brothers like all film—makers are now having to adapt their way of working because of the pandemic. so, how will the process of making a sports documentary change in the post—covid world? in a way shooting games could be easier because there's no one else there because you

can't move the camera presumably in the stadium in empty stands where you want. so i don't think it will stop it. i think it will be challenging but it will be keeping with that. it might mine the archives a bit more. so you have more than single interviews and watts of archived footage where you're following a team or sports franchise for 18 months. interesting times ahead for the genre and who knows? in the future, other film—makers may want to revisit the career of one of the most recognisable athletes in history. until then, thankfully, we have i am bolt. i'm just happy this chapter is closed. at the olympic games, one of the most anticipated events is gymnastics. at the 2012 and 2016 games, the us women's team won gold medals further strengthening america's reputation as a top competitor but now there's a documentary exploring disturbing aspects of the sport involving sexual abuse. tristian daily reports. with spectacles of death—defying stunts

and apparently heroic tumbling routines through career ending injuries, american gymnasts are forever etched into the memories of spectators of around the world. as a former competitive gymnast, the world depicted in this film is very familiar to me. travelling to competitions and training camps and spending hour after hour in the gym perfecting techniques to reach the next level. at athlete a shows another side of this life, and alleges that a culture of abuse at usa women's gymnastics puts gold medals and winning above all else. even the protection of young girls. the documentary takes a look at a sinister problem in usa women's gymnastics, the organisation that trains and chooses which gymnast represent the united states in the summer olympic games. it became widely reported in 2017 that larry nassar, the doctor in charge of caring for these gymnasts, committed decades of abuse against a significant

number of them. we wanted to establish that it went far beyond larry nassar. the film follows three main threads, survivors and speaking out about their sexual abuse, a small newspaper called the indy star working hard to break the story, and investigators and lawyers building a case against larry nassar and leadership at usa women's gymnastics — that allegedly tried to suppress knowledge of his crimes. what we tried to do is essentially kind of spend time with every person who was a key link in the chain that ultimately led to, you know, the unraveling of the system and the exposure of nassar and the system that allowed him to get away with it. maggie nichols was an olympic hopeful in 2016, her coach overheard her talking about this behaviour of nassar's and urged her to allow the coach to report that to us ge and finally maggie agreed and they did so privately to usa gymnastics. as soon as that reporting happens, she was treated differently at events, the parents were treated differently.

of course, simultaneous with that, maggie does not make the 2016 olympic team. now, we can't prove anything about why that happened, and we don't try and do so in the film, but the treatment of that family in the wake of her reporting nassar does make you raise an eyebrow about how this institution was treating their athletes. you are the president of usa gymnastics. if you receive a complaint of sexual misconduct, do you turn it over to local authorities? no. usa gymnastics has now acknowledged that a subculture did exist within its ranks that enabled the horrific abuse of athletes. but under new leadership, there was a shift in focus to prioritise athlete well—being, they have also implemented what they call a safe sport policy to clearly define and prevent abuse, as well as make reporting misconduct mandatory.

jennifer, a former elite american gymnast and producer on athlete a, believes policy is important but real change in the sports will come from a grassroots level. i think this film is prompting a conversation that i've been hoping would happen for many years. i think parents are thinking about what can i do differently to make sure my child has a good experience in the sport? how do i make sure that sport does all the things it should do, build healthy minds and bodies, and that we don't lose sight of that? that's the whole reason our kids and your support. and i hope that kids and young athletes watch it and say, you know what, i have a voice. i can speak up when something doesn't look right. not just for myself but on behalf of somebody else. we have the power now. in india, one sport has a very close relationship to the movies is cricket in more ways than one. major bollywood figures

like megastar shara khan owns cricket teams and indian film—makers have an affinity for making movies in which cricket is a theme. bollywood and cricket bring indians together. bollywood is very, very popular. we love our films and we love cricket more than anything else. those are two things that sort of unites indians, no matter what religion they belong to, no matter what political affiliations they might have. cricket is the most popular sport in india and bollywood has played a role in glamorising it recent years. the indian premier league founded in 2008 has teams owned by bollywood figures who regularly attend matches. going back years, stars have had a key involvement lending their support to promotional videos for teams like the mumbai indians. music bollywood stars tend to be

a big draw, and so if they are doing something to promote cricket, or cricket in any case, that advertising really picks up. it generates a lot more interest if you have a bollywood star promoting it. cricket, of course, has long been a theme in indian movies. the country has only had three films nominated in what was the oscars foreign language film category, and one of those released in 2001 had a cricket themed story. if they lose, which they will, they will have to pay the queen three times the tax. it centres during the british colonial period in the region where the british—controlled. they are imposting taxes on these farmers, they are not able to pay the additional tax and so when they go appeal to the british administrator, he makes a deal with them that he says, i will play a crickets game with you.

if you guys win, then i will forgive you. the team of 11 villagers coming from different caste backgrounds, different religion backgrounds and how they get together. no surprise, they do win against the british in the end. some of india's cricket—themed films petal inspirational stories, tales of underdog triumph in which plain cricket enables a life to be transformed. there is a film that is a very inspiring film about a young muslim boy in a village who wants to become a cricket player. but he's deaf and dumb, so it's something that probably would never happen in real life, i don't know, it would be very very hard, and how he joins the cricket academy and there are all these politics and then he sort of trains privately and manages to eventually join and become part of the indian national team. now, it's, again, as i said, the chances of something

like this happening, the plausibility is very slim. but it's done in such an honest convincing way that that film, people loved. the audience liked it and critics liked it also. gully boy, india's submission to the oscars last year. now he's appearing in a forthcoming cricket movie called 83, the story of india's cricket world cup victory in 1983. it was due for release in april but it's been postponed until later this year. another film that if it's a hit, will prove that india's love affair with the movies and with cricket continues. online streaming platforms have now started to invest heavily in sports programming. with very little live sports on offer during the pandemic, the prevalence of sport docuseries online have helped fans get their regular fix. matt floyd has been looking at their recent rise. go out and win at any cost.

while the sports docuseries is not exactly a new phenomenon, the soaring popularity of online streaming platforms has led to an explosion of fresh content. suddenly most big sports teams and star athletes have been sought after by film—makers eager to tell their story. oh my goodness! i am cursed with this mentality of competitiveness. the last dance tells the story of michaeljordan and his chicago bulls team as they dominated the nba in the ‘90s. it was a huge hit for espn and netflix who co—produced the eight—part series. while beautifully made, it wasn't without some controversy with jordan's own production company also heavily involved, questions arose over whether the viewers were just getting one side of the story. kids in particular are aware that all the stuff they see is branded content, which essentially this is. but at the same time, there is a fascinating thing, it's still a work of art

and you still see the unpleasant side ofjordan because he is one of the hardest competitors imaginable. not a good day for michaeljordan. he is now demanding... the issue of impartiality or lack of it is now one that crops up regularly with more teams and athletes trying to drive the narrative themselves by producing their own series. the big question is, does that mean you enjoy watching it any less? think of who you represent. amazon's the test is a similar case, it chronicles the australian cricket team's road to redemption after three of its players were banned for cheating in 2018. like the last dance, it was co—produced by the main subject of the series, in this case, australian cricket's governing body. strictly speaking, it's can't

be described as independent as a consequence of the way it was brought together, saying that it's felt like owing to the fact that they had intersected access for so many hours and so many games and tours that it would've been difficult to whitewashed what was going on with the picture of australian cricket through that two—year period. football teams have also been at the forefront of the rise of docuseries. perennial italian champions juventas and premier league side manchester city are just two of the teams who have let the cameras into their changing rooms. you must learn to play football with courage. my first—born son, i decided to call niall after niall quinn. perhaps an even better watch is sunderland till i die. it follows the ups and mainly downs of a formerly great football team, and unlike some other series, it feels as though very little is left out in the edits. like any story though, they need to tell you some kind of truth about the people

involved and about the character that you can relate to your own life. so if you end up making a show as well as for a club, it's going to like that truth. it's not great to tap into something deeper that's going to make people really engage with what you're making. this football club is going to kill me. while sunderland till i die manages to maintain its journalistic integrity, and entertain at the same time, there are numerous docuseries that don't. however, these very same series are amongst the most popular out there right now. the moral of the story is if you have a gripping narrative and great access, sports fans will watch. well, that brings our talking movies sports special to a close. we hope you enjoy the show. remember, you can always reach us online. you can find us on facebook and twitter. so for me tom brooke and the rest of the talking movies production team,

it's goodbye as we leave you with a clip from the 2016 film, race, and which the american sprinter jesse owens has a moment of triumph at the 1936 berlin olympic games. they will love you or they will hate you, it does not matter. either way, when you are out there, you are on your own. kid, you did it, you did it. 9.3 seconds. that's a record, kid. hello again. i've been looking ahead to our weekend weather prospects, and for a saturday, i don't particularly like what i see. it's going to be a cloudy day for many of us with outbreaks of rain at times.

now, looking at the satellite picture, just to our west, you can see just how extensive the cloud is, and it's a complex area of low pressure that's going to be bringing different zones of rain across the country. a couple of weather fronts mixed in with this lot, they will be pushing eastwards. now, the first of those weather fronts is bringing rain the moment to scotland across wales, across wales, across england too. as that clears, we will be left with a lot of cloud, some drizzle for northern ireland and a few heavier bursts of rain, so a real mixture of weather here, those rather murky conditions will extend to scotland. now, it's going to be a humid night, temperatures around 17—18 degrees for a low for some. now, tomorrow's forecast is a cloudy start with some drizzle around, i've mixed in the jet stream winds here, and hopefully you can see a dipjust here. that's responsible for this line of very heavy showers that will be extending in across the republic and northern ireland. so, some heavy downpours around. as that dip in the jet stream, or trough, hits this weather front that's over the english channel, it will cause a wave to develop and, yes, there will be a zone of heavy

rain across east anglia and southeast england, but this wave could push into central southern england, the midlands, lincolnshire and yorkshire. there is some uncertainty about exactly the zone of the wettest weather through the afternoon, but some areas will get pretty wet, certainly in the east. as far as the cricket goes, i think we will see some interruptions to play for the third test. monday looks like a complete wash—out, that's one to watch as well. now, through saturday night, we will continue to see outbreaks of rain clearing away from east anglia in southeast england. the skies will clear for a time and it will begin to start to turn a little bit less humid, but temperatures still around 12—13 degrees or so. for sunday, it's the better half of the weekend for many of us. broadly speaking, it's a day of sunshine and showers. although, there will be some lengthier outbreaks of rain working its way into northwest scotland, and it will be a breezier kind of day, but feeling significantly fresher. more pleasant, you might argue, particularly with a bit more in the way of sunshine coming through. temperatures for most rest between 17—22 which isn't going to feel too bad at all. into next week, well, for monday, we've got a lot

going to feel too bad at all. into next week, well, for monday, we've got a lot of cloud, so it's not exactly aaa rated weather, we are going to see cloud and rain on monday, heavy rain as well, then it turns drier and warmer as the week goes on.

this is bbc news. i'm aaron safir. our top stories: britain's prime minister borisjohnson tells the bbc his government didn't understand coronavirus at the start and could have handled things differently. when you look back at this crisis, everybody can see that this was something that was new, that we didn't understand in the way that we would've liked in the first few weeks and months. huge crowds attend friday prayers at hagia sophia iraq creates a city in the desert to bury its coronavirus dead. we report on the scale of the outbreak there. black lives matter in brazil. we have a special report from the country where police killed nearly six times as many people as in the us last year. and formula