this is bbc news. the headlines at a... fomer bbc director—general lord hall resigns as national gallery chairman, saying continuing in the role would be a "distraction" following the inquiry into panorama's interview with princess diana. wider surge testing has been rolled out in five west london boroughs due to a rise in coronavirus cases linked to the indian variant. the first convoys of humanitarian aid have arrived in gaza, hours after a ceasefire between israel and palestinian militants came into effect. animal rights protesters have been blockading four mcdonald's distribution centres in the uk. and get your best sequins out.

the final rehearsals are done and the pyrotechnics are ready. the eurovision finalists compete tonight, after a pandemic—enforced break. and coming up... social media, anti—social media, breaking news, faking news. the programme about a revolution in media, the media show, is coming up with mobeen azhar. good afternoon and welcome to bbc news. the former bbc director—general lord hall has resigned as chairman of the national gallery, after facing criticism over panorama's interview with princess diana in 1995. tony hall was the corporation's head of news at the time when martin bashir used lies and fake documents to secure the interview. in a statement, lord hall said

continuing in his role at the gallery would be a distraction to the institution. meanwhile, princess diana's brother earl spencer has confirmed to the bbc that he has written to the met police commissioner again, asking her to investigate the corporation over the interview. our correspondent jon donnisonjoins us. lord jon donnisonjoins us. hall feeling the pressure? �*i�* he lord hall feeling the pressure? yes, he has been — lord hall feeling the pressure? yes, he has been in _ lord hall feeling the pressure? yes, he has been in that _ lord hall feeling the pressure? yes, he has been in that job _ lord hall feeling the pressure? 1913 he has been in thatjob less than a year, that statement came through about lunchtime today, saying he had always had a strong sense of public service and to continue in that role, at the national gallery, in his words would have been a distraction to an institution he cared about. he also said he was very sorry and the events of 25 years ago, he said leadership meant taking responsibility. this resignation camejust a taking responsibility. this resignation came just a few hours after the conservative chair of the commons digital cultural and media

sport select committee, julia —— julia night. he said there remained serious questions for the bbc to answer. in particular about its treatment of whistle—blowers but also about why martin bashir was reappointed by the bbc in 2016 when of course lord hall was the director—general of the bbc. and why martin bashir went on to be promoted to the role of religion editor. princess diana brother saying he wants to look again in case there was any criminality? earl spencer has confirmed _ was any criminality? earl spencer has confirmed to _ was any criminality? earl spencer has confirmed to the _ was any criminality? earl spencer has confirmed to the bbc- was any criminality? earl spencer has confirmed to the bbc today l was any criminality? earl spencer. has confirmed to the bbc today that he has written to the commissioner of the metropolitan police, cressida dick, following up on an earlier contact with the met injanuary and contact with the met in january and saying that he would like them to open an investigation into the

actions of the corporation and of course he believes that his sister was the victim of fraud. and also of bracknell. we did speak to the met today, they would not really comment on this. they would not say whether they have received this or not and they have received this or not and they did not say whether they were looking into specific complaints which was issued earlier in the week. we have incidentally had a statement from the bbc today addressing specifically that issue of the treatment of whistle—blowers. the statement said there has been radical change over the past 25 years, we have now had a thorough and industry—leading whistle—blowing scheme which provides clear and independent routes to raise concerns if necessary. that statement also stressing that the bbc had also issued an unreserved apology to earl spencer and his family.— spencer and his family. thank you very much- _ prince william has spoken

of the importance of scotland to him in the days following the death of his mother. he's made the comments in a speech to the general assembly of the church of scotland in edinburgh. william said he had been at balmoral when he was told the news and says that, still in shock, he found sanctuary in the service at crathie kirk that morning. he says in the days that followed he found comfort in the scottish outdoors. surge testing for coronavirus is being introduced in more parts of england after cases of the indian variant were detected. people living and working in parts of west london are being asked to take a test even if they have no symptoms. most cases of the indian variant are concentrated in the north west of england. 0ur health correspondent, jim reed reports. targeting a rise in covid infections in greater manchester. rochdale is one of more than a dozen areas of england and scotland that health officials are now focusing on, trying to suppress the virus with extra testing and vaccination. i'm pleased they've done it

for all ages, so we can at least... cos i think it's the idea of, they had it a long time, the older ages might be more affected, but it doesn't stop young people from being affected as well. quite excited cos i know it's been quite a long wait, so i'm quite eager to get it done, because once the first one is out the way it's out the way and it's easier to get it done when it's offered than for an waiting for appointment to be scheduled. part of the rise could be due to a relaxation of restrictions last week, part to a variant of the virus first found in india. scientists think it can spread more easily, but how much more is not yet clear. in rochdale, extra vaccines are now being offered to anyone over the age of 18. as director of public health what i can see is that once i the virus gets into our communities, it will take hold very quickly. - so myself and our senior team have been working really closely- with regional colleagues to put | in place this surge vaccination| programme this weekend and we have full details of that _ on our rochdale council website. new variants of coronavirus

are being detected in some unlikely places, health authorities are now monitoring more sewerage samples like this to give an early warning sign that infections are rising in certain areas. we have seen a new variant first spotted in yorkshire, a very small number of cases, we don't have any additional information that suggests that it's more dangerous or more transmissible. but of course this is part of our vigilance, part of the surveillance operation that we have across the whole country now, so that we can spot these things really early. in west london, another four boroughs have been added to the list for extra surge testing to suppress the indian variant. that includes brent, where wembley stadium will host european championship matches next month. scientists do appear to have increasing confidence that our current vaccines are effective against it. so the message is to get the jab

when called and not to pass up the chance of that second dose. breaking news is the latest coronavirus statistics from the government. we are told that there are another six deaths that have reported within 20 days of a positive covid—19 test. that compares with nine reported yesterday. in terms of the number of new cases, there have been another 2,694 cases confirmed compared with 2,829 yesterday. data shows that just over 37 million have had a first dose and just over 22 million have had a second dose.

dr helen wimalarathna is a molecular epidemiologist at the university of buckingham. she says it's very important for younger adults to get vaccinated to stop the spread of new variants of covid. it is important that those of us who are perhaps in a younger age group who think that our own personal risk of serious illness and the consequences are not that great, we understand there is really good evidence now, today there is evidence out from the public health england that actually, having your two doses of the vaccination prevents infection and it really reduces transmission by over 80%. which is so important. it's fully important that we all play our part. in doing something for the population, notjust for our own protection. what is the argument for... is there an argument for concentrating on areas of higher risk? maybe places like greater manchester, to make sure that those young adults are a priority?

so, i think there should be certain outreach programmes, there should be perhaps a drive in areas where there has been poor take—up, but we have to remember vaccination is not a quick fix. where we have high concentrations of the so—called indian variant, vaccinating today won't solve the problem tomorrow. it takes the body a long time to build up these antibodies and we need a second dose of to have the best protection that we can. it's important but it's only part of the strategy. perhaps we will unfortunately need to consider things like more rigorous social—distancing, and perhaps losing some of the freedoms we are beginning to enjoy. most people travelling from the uk will not be allowed to enter germany from tomorrow because of the rise in cases of the indian variant here. german citizens and residents, as well as others with an exceptional reason, can still enter, but have to quarantine for two weeks.

the scottish government says it's working to rectify a security flaw which could allow people to edit covid vaccination status certificates. people in scotland travelling to a foreign country can download the vaccination status forms from the nhs scotland portal. they show the dates of vaccinations and which jabs were given to an individual. but a security glitch means personal details can be altered. a spokeswoman for the scottish government says they're looking into rectifying the issue. un officials have given a grim assessment of the humanitarian situation in gaza, saying it will take years to recover from the 11—day conflict with israel. it comes as aid has been arriving in gaza after the ceasefire between israeli and palestinians came into effect. around £13 million has been pledged for humanitarian supplies and the reconstruction. at least 248 palestinians were killed and tens of thousands have been displaced. there was also some damage in israel, and 12 people there have been killed. here's stephane dujarric,

spokesperson for the un secretary—general on the situation in gaza. strong financial support is, of course, crucial to meet the needs, especially in gaza and also in the west bank. it's also critical that the occupied palestinian territory humanitarian fund is replenished. this is a flexible tool to quickly respond to urgent needs. today, 13 humanitarian trucks with food, covid—19 vaccines, medical disposables and drugs, including emergency medicines, first aid kits for multiple un agencies and ngo partners, crossed into gaza, following partial reopening of the kerem shalom crossing. gaza residents have been describing how they felt during the conflict. translation: i was really surprised to see familiar faces alive. _ how did we survive? we started hugging each other, thanking and praying to god for our safety. we survived with minor injuries,

as if angels were protecting us. translation: around midnight or one | in the morning, we heard explosions. and we were very frightened. buildings started to fall and we didn't know what was happening except that that we were going to the hospital. 0ur feet and bodies were injured by the glass. god protected us from above. a photograph posted this week on two public instagram accounts purports to show princess latifa, the daughter of the ruler of dubai, who has not been seen or heard from in months. the bbc is unable to verify the photo, and no further information has been provided, but a friend of latifa's says that it is the princess in the picture. in february, bbc panorama broadcast secret video testimony from her in which she said she was being held as a hostage and feared for her life. the headlines on bbc news... ex—bbc chief lord hall resigns

as national gallery chairman, saying continuing would be a "distraction" following the inquiry in to panorama's interview with princess diana more than 25 years ago, when he was director of bbc news. wider surge testing has been rolled out in five west london boroughs due to a rise in coronavirus cases linked to the indian variant. the first convoys of humanitarian aid have arrived in gaza, hours after a ceasefire between israel and palestinian militants came into effect. sport and for a full round—up from the bbc sport centre. we start with football because stjohnstone have been there's only one place to start. because within the last half hour, stjohnstone have been crowned scottish cup champions. they beat hibernian 1—0 at hampden park and it's the icing on the cake of a brilliant season for stjohnstone, having already won the league cup earlier this season. shaun rooney scored the only goal

in that final and he found the net again today after half an hour to put his side ahead. and that proved to be decisive. so after a 130 year wait for major silverware, stjohnstone have 2 trophies in less than three months. it's just the third time in history a club, outside the scottish big two, has won both cups in a season. unfortunately, though there were no fans in hampden park because of covid restrictions in glasgow. the boys just defended for their lives at the end there. it's unbelievable. to see where we were at the start of the season to where we are now, i can't... in one season! it'sjust unbelievable, etc to all the staff, the backroom staff, it'sjust been magnificent. staying with football, what a game we've already had in the championship play—offs. brentford came from a goal down to beat bournemouth and book their place at wembley for the final.

but as michael redford reports, it was anything but straightforward in west london. these brentford fans have been here before. nine play—off campaigns, not a single cat promotion. is this the year it all changes? before they could dream of wembley, they had to fight back against bournemouth, trailing 1—0, brentford had to score, so much so they forgot how to defend. nobody catching him. from brentford's corner, bournemouth have struck! handball, penalty, 12 yards out, he doesn't miss. calm and composed, the same cannot be said for asmir begovic. 0r composed, the same cannot be said for asmir begovic. or the bournemouth defender, he saw read moments later. brentford levelled the tie. i moment to remember. if that roarfrom the the tie. i moment to remember. if that roar from the crowd felt loud, it was nothing compared to this.

brentford sent to wembley for a successive season, they will hope the ending is different this time. barnsley face swansea in the other championship semifinal later. while there's one play—off semifinal in league one under way. it's the second leg between sunderland and lincoln and after starting 2—0 down, sunderland have brought the tie all square. so it's 2—2 on aggregate, just before half—time. now, after the joy of claiming the 100th pole position of his career last time out, lewis hamilton could only manage 7th on the grid for the monaco grand prix. the world champion struggled on the tight and twisty streets of the principality. on his final charge he clipped the barriers, just before the tunnel section and eased off to prepare to have another go. but before he could start another lap charles leclerc crashed, bringing qualifying to a premature end , but the ferrari driver had already set the best time ahead

of red bull's max verstappen. champions leeds rhinos are playing st helens in the second of today's women's challenge cup semi—finals. with less than half an hour left, st helens lead by 14 points to 2 meanwhile, earlier york city knights thrashed castleford tigers 32—4 in the first of the semis. savannah andrade scored a hat—trick of. you can watch the leeds—st helens game now on the bbc sport website, the iplayer, or via the red button. and there are three matches in super league today. wigan warriors have already beaten salford red devils. warrington wolves currently lead castleford tigers16—10. catalans dragons face st helens later, that one starts at 5pm. that's all the sport for now. there's plenty more though on the bbc sport website, including the latest from the third round of golf�*s us pga championship in south carolina. but that's all your sport for now. animal rights protesters have been blockading four mcdonald's

distribution centres in the uk to stop deliveries to the fast—food chain's 1,300 uk outlets. animal rebellion said about 50 activists were using trucks and bamboo structures to stop lorries leaving depots in hemel hempstead, basingstoke, coventry and heywood in greater manchester. with more on animal rebellion and why they're carrying out this action, here's our correspondent sima kotecha they believe in protecting the environment. that's what they campaign for and today, they have been protesting, as you rightly say, outside four mcdonald's depots across england, calling on mcdonald's to adopt a plant—based menu. what is their underlying aim? they say that they are a non—violent civil disobedience group. that's right, yes. like i said, they want mcdonald's to change its menu, basically. they are calling on other fast—food chains and

restaurants to do the same. they say the environment is in danger at the moment, there is a shortage of animals, and a quote here from the spokesperson, he says, he feels "the meat and dairy industry is destroying the planet." "that the only sustainable and realistic way to feed 10 billion people is with plant—based diet." they have erected structures made out of bamboo sticks, some of the protesters are hanging onto the top of the structures, in protest. we have got people lying down at the bottom of the structure and lorries barricading the entrance into these depots. what has mcdonald's said? mcdonald's has said it's causing disruption, that's what the aim was for animal rebellion, they said earlier this morning they wanted to cause significant disruption to the macdonald supply chain. mcdonald's says, "well, there you have it, it is." it has issued an apology to customers.

i have been speaking to people who enjoy a mcdonald's who say this does not deter them enjoying their burger or big mac. it's a controversial issue and if people do not get their mcdonald's there is some anger there, but animal rebellion feel they have a cause worth campaigning for. the queen has visited the royal navy's new aircraft carrier the hms queen elizabeth, as it prepares for its first major deployment. her majesty was in portsmouth this morning to see the the warship which has cost £3 billion. it'll leave the naval base this evening to begin a 7.5—month deployment in the far east. the tour will involve port stops in places including oman and singapore. ministers hope the mission will strengthen ties with allies and boost trade in the region. a man has died after getting into difficulty while canoeing in north yorkshire. another man required

hospital treatment following the incident on the river ure near ripon yesterday morning. the environment agency had issued a flood alert for the river, because persistent rain had caused water levels to rise. inspirational young people from across the country will today be honoured at a special ceremony to recognise their achievements. the rotary young citizen awards have been held since 2007 and pay tribute to under 25s from around the uk and ireland that have been champions in their school or local community or have shown particular courage in some way. we can speak now to lanai collis—phillips, who has won the rotary young citizen peacemaker award for her work protecting young people in her community. first of all, congratulations. tell us a little bit about the work that you do. us a little bit about the work that ou do. . ~ us a little bit about the work that ou do. ., ~ i. us a little bit about the work that oudo. ., ~ . �* you do. thank you so much. i'm part of a grow) — you do. thank you so much. i'm part of a grow) which _ you do. thank you so much. i'm part of a group which stands _ you do. thank you so much. i'm part of a group which stands for - you do. thank you so much. i'm part of a group which stands for women l of a group which stands for women against sexually exposed to and violence speak up, based at the

charity volunteering matters and i have been therefore about five years and we are campaigning and advocating against things such as abuse. i'm really honoured to have won this award and although it says my name on it, this is really for all the young women and staff that make it possible. i'm so grateful. you have been in work supported by the suffolk police and crime commissioner, the mayor of ipswich, trying to reach vulnerable youngsters as well. what made you get involved with that? it's quite serious stuff.— get involved with that? it's quite serious stuff. yes, i really believe that all of us _ serious stuff. yes, i really believe that all of us in _ serious stuff. yes, i really believe that all of us in this _ serious stuff. yes, i really believe that all of us in this world - serious stuff. yes, i really believe that all of us in this world have i that all of us in this world have different journeys and that all of us in this world have differentjourneys and different experiences in life and different points where we need support from people. things like abuse and expectation are happening across the uk and always have, but often they are invisible and the charity and myself don't want anyone to have to suffer in silence which is white's important we do we are doing so that no young person has to go through

that alone. i no young person has to go through that alone. . , no young person has to go through that alone. ., , ., ., that alone. i was reading that durin: that alone. i was reading that during the — that alone. i was reading that during the pandemic - that alone. i was reading that during the pandemic he - that alone. i was reading that| during the pandemic he spent that alone. i was reading that - during the pandemic he spent four months as a full—time carer for your grandma who is 92 and you were still volunteering, how did you juggle those commitments? my volunteering, how did you “uggle those commitments?h volunteering, how did you “uggle those commitments? my granny who is one of my biggest _ those commitments? my granny who is one of my biggest inspirations, - those commitments? my granny who is one of my biggest inspirations, she - one of my biggest inspirations, she came when she was just 18 from ghana, to become a nurse and midwife for the nhs in 1948. she contributed decades of tireless work for the nhs and sonyjust volunteering and looking after her, it's nothing to the hard work that she did. so yeah,... the hard work that she did. so eah,... ., ., , ., ., yeah,... how does it feel to have received this _ yeah,... how does it feel to have received this award? _ yeah,... how does it feel to have received this award? how- yeah,... how does it feel to have i received this award? how important is it to get an award? i'm sure you would do it anyway? i’m is it to get an award? i'm sure you would do it anyway?— is it to get an award? i'm sure you would do it anyway? i'm so grateful, eseciall would do it anyway? i'm so grateful, especially to — would do it anyway? i'm so grateful, especially to the _ would do it anyway? i'm so grateful, especially to the rotary _ would do it anyway? i'm so grateful, especially to the rotary club - would do it anyway? i'm so grateful, especially to the rotary club who - especially to the rotary club who made this all happen and i think recognising and celebrating young people is really important. the

campaign i'm in a batterfor really make that an important thing. angela davies has the quote you have to act as if it's possible to radically transform the world and you have to do that all of the time. that's why i think it's important we recognise all young people that are doing incredible work everyday. bier? incredible work everyday. very briefl , incredible work everyday. very briefly. what — incredible work everyday. very briefly, what would _ incredible work everyday. very briefly, what would you - incredible work everyday. very briefly, what would you like to do next? what's the biggest goal for you? i next? what's the biggest goal for ou? ., ., , . �* , you? i am doing my children's nursin: you? i am doing my children's nursing right _ you? i am doing my children's nursing right now. _ you? i am doing my children's nursing right now. it's - you? i am doing my children's nursing right now. it'sjust - you? i am doing my children's nursing right now. it'sjust to| nursing right now. it's just to continue trying to give back to my community in any way possible and make my family and those that have supported me proud which is really important. supported me proud which is really imortant. . ~ supported me proud which is really imortant. ., ~ i. , supported me proud which is really imortant. . ~' ,, , . supported me proud which is really imortant. ., ~ , . ., important. thank you very much for talkin: to important. thank you very much for talking to us _ important. thank you very much for talking to us and _ important. thank you very much for talking to us and congratulations. i tonight's the night of the eurovision song contest, back after it's absence last year due to the pandemic. the netherlands is

hosting the 65th edition and there'll be an audience of some 3,500 fans, all tested beforehand for coronavirus. from rotterdam, anna holligan sent this report. the final sequins are in place. last—minute alterations made. humming and vocal warm-ups. now warming up for the biggest stage of their lives. they've travelled from across the continent, from north to south. so much love. i really appreciate all the days here, and i think from today till the end of the competition, it is going to be the best days of our lives. from rock... ..to pop. there's all kinds of everything here. i'm going to take you right into the heart of the action now, because this is backstage, where the artists come between performances to relax and rehearse. and the usual eurovision fever is heightened this year, because, of course, it was cancelled last year because of covid.

so the usual nerves, anticipation, excitement, they are feeling it here more than ever. lithuania, they are my favourite group, i love them. the netherlands! yay! who do you want to win? um, malta. how does that go? malta isje me casse. # di di di dididi didididi di di #. but who are the bookies' favourites? it's all about france versus italy. france has a stunning singer named barbara and she's showing her skin in a bustier. the song's about stepping out of the shadows and into the light. the rush of freedom and emancipation, it is a glorious moment, a warm embrace. now, from the warm embrace, we go to italy spitting in your face! while most people may not be into this kind of hard—edged rock, they do crave being among people and that's what italy gives you. and then there's malta.

this is a pure pop song from an 18—year—old named destiny. it's all about the power of saying no. it's about a woman in a bar and a man is trying to make advances and she's, like, "no, i'm not your honey". in the end, it's up to them and you. you'll have a chance to vote for your number one during tonight's grand final. anna holligan, bbc news, inside rotterdam's ahoy arena. now it's time for a look at the weather with helen willetts. hello there. some sunshine in perth and kinross earlier this morning. there will be more sunshine on offer this afternoon between the showers but the shower clouds are brewing once again. the rain just about clearing the south coast. an afternoon of sunny spells, scattered quite heavy showers, for some, but equally some will miss them. going to be much drierfor many and brighter than yesterday. the winds easing as well, but you may have noticed they are coming from the north, so it'll not feel particularly warm, still only 12—15.

but strong may sunshine out there which continues into this evening, overnight. coming into the west, but where we keep the clear skies, temperatures dip close to freezing. there will be some ground frost around central and northern parts. further west, wet morning for northern ireland, rain pushing into wales, western england, west of scotland, sunshine and showers follow for northern ireland, perhaps hanging on to drier weather further east. hello this is bbc news. the headlines... fomer bbc director general lord hall resigns as national gallery chairman, saying continuing in the role would be a "distraction" following the inquiry into panorama's interview with princess diana wider surge testing has been rolled out in five west london boroughs due to a rise in coronavirus cases linked to the indian variant. the first convoys of humanitarian aid have arrived in gaza, hours after a ceasefire

between israel and palestinian militants came into effect. animal rights protesters have been blockading four mcdonald's distribution centres in the uk. and, get your best sequins out, the final rehearsals are done and the pyrotechnics are ready — the eurovision finalists compete tonight after a pandemic—enforced break. now on bbc news, it's the media show, with mobeen azhar. welcome. israel and the palestinians, it is a story that we have been stuck on for a long time. but the battleground is shifting. i am talking tiktok media tutorials, infographics on instagram, and a

twitter spat between a