today at five — the giant of hollywood, sir sidney poitier, has died aged 94. he was the first black man to win the oscar for best actor. 100%. he is so influential. the first black actor twin and oscar and pave the way for so many in the industry to make their own mark, denzil washington paid tribute to him when he won an oscar the first time. staff absences in the nhs in england rise by 40% in a week becasue of covid. nursing unions say covid pressures are making hospital care unsafe. nurses can't stop helping their patients, so what's happening instead is that they find themselves being spread thinner and thinner. but they can't keep

doing that indefinitely. given the pressures that hospitals are facing — given the pressures that hospitals are facing around the country, especially workforce pressures with their work— especially workforce pressures with their work for us like other workforces, if the have to suffice lead, _ workforces, if the have to suffice lead. this — workforces, if the have to suffice lead, this is understandable but it is all_ lead, this is understandable but it is all part— lead, this is understandable but it is all part of trying to work together, providing the nhs every support— together, providing the nhs every support that it needs. two former prime ministers back calls for a so—called hillsborough law — to ensure fairer treatment for bereaved families. novak djokovic has thanked fans for their support — and remains in this hotel. the australian government rejects claims the grand slam champion is being held captive — after failing to meet vaccine entry requirements. and coming up, we return to 1970s california in paul thomas anderson's liquorice pizza, and we'll be finding out what anna smith thinks of that, and other major releases this week in the film review at 5.45.

our top story this hour, sidney poitier, the first black man to win the oscar for best actor, has died aged 94. born in the bahamas, he won the academy award in 1964 for his role in lillies of the field. he was given an honory knighthood by the by the queen in 1974, and in 2016 he was awarded the bafta fellowship for his outstanding contribution to film. lizo mzimba looks back at his life. # in the heat of the night...# sidney poitier�*s virgil tibbs,

a man of authority... i'm a police officer. ..intelligence and a steely determination, never to back down. the kind of qualities that defined sidney poitier on screen and off. he made his cinema debut playing a doctor, a man of status, something almost unheard of for black performers then. with roles like an escaped convict in the defiant ones, and a struggling husband in a raisin in the sun, he tackled prejudice head on. maybe i will get down on my black knees. all right, mr great white father, give us that money and we will come out there and dirty up your white folks neighbourhood. the era meant he had a burden his white counterparts rarely had to carry, the weight of being a symbol, but he bore it with dignity. in lillies of the field playing a travelling handyman helping build a group of nuns a new chapel.

the winner is sidney poitier. he won the academy award, the first black performer ever to receive the oscar for a leading role. in the years that followed, he became hollywood's biggest star, redefining how audiences saw black characters, with films like to sir with love. you will call me sir. the young ladies will be addressed as miss. the boys by their surnames. more controversial was his role as a highly gifted, hugely successful doctor engaged to a white women in guess who's coming to dinner. i love your daughter. there is nothing i wouldn't do to try to keep her as happy as she was the day i met her. some criticised it, saying ythe impression it gave some criticised it, saying the impression it gave was of interracial relationship that was only acceptable because the character was so perfect and accomplished. it was still a huge box office hit. he was also a trailblazer behind the camera.

1980's stir crazy, which he directed, the first film from an african—american film—maker ever to pass the blockbuster $100 million mark in the united states. ladies and gentlemen, sidney poitier. when he was well into his 80s, an honorary oscar. hollywood recognition for a star who blazed a trail for so many... they call me mr tibbs. ..and entertained millions more. sidney poitier, one of the greats. let's speak to our entertainment correspondent, colin paterson. let's reflect on a remarkable life

in the world of cinema as an actor, the beautiful voice, perhaps the first thing that comes to mind. such a gorgeous voice, such a success and in someone who could direct as well. it is hard to underestimate how important he is to the history of cinema in particular to the history of black acting. it has been said many times over the years that he was to acting with jackie robinson was to acting with jackie robinson was to acting with jackie robinson was to baseball. someone who came along, behave with dignity, achieved at the absolute top of the game and paved the way for others to follow him. the fact that he could go from a 1963 oscar to becoming the first black man to win the best actor oscar for years later, black man to win the best actor oscarfor years later, he black man to win the best actor oscar for years later, he was the biggest box office star in hollywood with those three huge films in the year, this was someone that america

right in the middle of the 1960s with all that was going on, wanted to pay their money and go and see at the cinema. and at the vanity fair in the night of the oscars, he still loved following what was going on with cinema and he was once asked in an interview what his name had been in life. i think this is a great quote. he said i always wanted to be someone better the next day than i was the day before.— i'm joined now by playwright and author bonnie greer. good of you to join us. good of you tojoin us. your thoughts, first of all. to good of you to join us. your thoughts, first of all. to make a tiny correction. _ thoughts, first of all. to make a tiny correction. sidney - thoughts, first of all. to make a tiny correction. sidney poitier. thoughts, first of all. to make a i tiny correction. sidney poitier was born in miami which is how he was a us citizen. and his parents were farmers from the island and they came to sell their wares in sydney

came to sell their wares in sydney came before the expected, which was lucky for him because he is able to stay in the united states and work. and it's very difficult, maybe even impossible to talk about sidney poitier now in the sense that we do not know any world that did not have him. he was my generation's icon. there was no one really good him that had the kind of stature and i was a little kid before he started working in the movies. but he was of a generation, he is the last of a great power house generation kirk douglas died last year. he was in that generation. in tony curtis. in this generation the came out of the theatre in the 1950s, the late

19405, theatre in the 1950s, the late 1940s, we forget that i have this incredible black man in their midst was really ground—breaking because he was able to move along the same kind of trajectory that they were allowed to move upon that. the generation before was a lot the trajectory, so sydney was able to be in the trajectory that they were in. that tony curtis was in. so, when he did when his oscar, it kind of made sense to us in a way because he was a part of that arc and of course, when so many of us were in the streets as kids, marching against the war, marching against racism, she came along in the heat of the night and when he made that immortal line, call me mr tibbs, that was the

kind of that was the signal that our generation was on stream and he aligned with us even though he was from our parents generation. he has a great place in my heart and he always was true in a really interesting way with the way people were doing at the time and he was able to work with great comedy icons which were so important to us. it means a lot to me on a personal level and i don't think you're going to see someone like him again. i to see someone like him again. i love to talk to you about his skills as an actor, director. but we talk so much about role models and i cannot think of a finer one. it so much about role models and i cannot think of a finer one. it was problematic _ cannot think of a finer one. it was problematic in _ cannot think of a finer one. it was problematic in the _ cannot think of a finer one. it was problematic in the sense - cannot think of a finer one. it was problematic in the sense because| problematic in the sense because whenever he was on the screen, he

was expected to be noble and he was a bigger actor than that. in which he could not, he was able to do that behind the camera. and we expected so much of him and he always delivered and he was just a great man and a great actor. and a great civil actor as well —— civil activists. civil actor as well -- civil activists— civil actor as well -- civil activists. ., . ., ., , activists. the fact that there was so much more — activists. the fact that there was so much more expected - activists. the fact that there was so much more expected of- activists. the fact that there was so much more expected of him l activists. the fact that there was - so much more expected of him then brutally his contemporaries who many of whom you listed and they were notably all—white? we of whom you listed and they were notably all-white?— of whom you listed and they were notably all-white? we gave him a hard time. _ notably all-white? we gave him a hard time, the _ notably all-white? we gave him a hard time, the younger _ notably all-white? we gave him a | hard time, the younger generation because he was always so good. he was always so noble and guess who's coming to dinner, they wondered if they even had a sex life. that was not even implied that they did which was really kind of weird. but, he transcended all of that and it's the

only way i can explain it. he had a beautiful voice and i didn't actually realise that most americans would have known this, but i didn't realise that he had his caribbean accident all of his life until i moved to britain and i realise that's what i was hearing because he always had this incredible voice with the way he enunciated and so come of course, it was a caribbean accent and we didn't know this. so, he set the bar so high that no 1's actually ever gone over it yet. and denzel washington acknowledges this with by beautiful fluke in 2002, sidney poitier was given a lifetime achievement award and denzel washington also won the oscar for training day and he acknowledged what a lot of us felt that we are all of us in culture, the arts and beyond, we are in his footsteps and he left a mighty big legacy for

people to fill.— he left a mighty big legacy for --eole to fill. �* , ., people to fill. and president obama ave him people to fill. and president obama gave him the _ people to fill. and president obama gave him the presidential— people to fill. and president obama gave him the presidential medal- people to fill. and president obama gave him the presidential medal ofl gave him the presidential medal of honour and he said, gave him the presidential medal of honourand he said, and gave him the presidential medal of honour and he said, and watching that footage is so moving, and he said, he doesn't make movies, he makes milestones and you summarise that beautifully. but that is the essence of the man, isn't it? totally. and in many ways, and the way he was forced to make them come black community demanded that he make them and he always came up to the mark. he was wonderful. i met his daughters briefly and you can see in her spirit, you can see in her spirit the way her father was and he was just, her spirit the way her father was and he wasjust, it's her spirit the way her father was and he was just, it's very difficult now to find that he his

he was a wonderful, great man. reflecting on the legacy of sidney poitier. begin with other news and we look at covid—19 in the latest figures and implications,. a further 178,250 new coronavirus infections and 229 further deaths have been recorded in the uk, according to the government's daily figures. meanhwile, the main nursing union, the rcn says staff absences in hospitals caused by covid are making care unsafe. the armed forces have been called in to help —

200 personnel have been deployed in london , with another 1800 in london, with another 1800 around the rest of the uk. our health correspondent katharine da costa reports. like many hospitals, kingston in south west london has been tackling a rise in covid admissions over christmas, and a busy a&e. that has been compounded by growing staff absences. 4% of staff here are off work due to covid, and that is having a big impact on morale. checking in is really important. we learned that in the first wave — in the first five minutes, you check that everyone is ok and it goes a long way. the emotional support is key to allow people to be their best selves when they come to work. more than one in ten beds in england are occupied by patients who are fit enough to be discharged but need support from social care. 95—year—old jean brownlee had a fall on christmas day. she is still waiting

for a care package to go home. it's terribly frustrating. i mean, i could be at home now. i admit i can't see to do what i used to do, but i would be in my own environment. life would be much more pleasant. hospitals are reaching capacity whilst seeing a sharp rise in staff shortages. 16 trusts are still in critical incident mode. the latest nhs data shows more than 35,000 staff at acute trusts were off each day on average, due to covid, up to the 2nd of january. that is 4% of the workforce and up 41% on the previous week. but there are regional differences. the north east and yorkshire was hardest hit. there were more than 7,000 covid absences, which is 5% of staff and up by 79% on the previous week. in london, there were over 5,000 covid absences, or 3% of staff. that is down by 4% on the week before.

these figures are really stark. outside of health care, staffing shortages are closing shops and cancelling trains. but nurses can't stop helping their patients, so what's happening instead is that they're finding themselves being spread thinner and thinner, but they can't keep doing that indefinitely. the situation is not safe. from assisting paramedics to bolstering teams at testing sites and vaccination centres, more than 1,800 service personnel have already been deployed across the uk. around 90 are preparing to assist three health boards in scotland, while in england, 200 army medics and soldiers are being deployed across hospitals in london. this winter, there is an extraordinary pressure on our nhs. it is our duty to be a sticking plasterfor the nhs to help get through a time of extraordinary crisis. these are unprecedented times. while there are early signs that cases may be slowing in london,

it's too soon to know the full impact of the new omicron variant on hospitals. 7,000 army forces personnel are on standby if more reinforcements are needed. katharine da costa, bbc news. the uk health secretary sajid javid has been speaking to reporters well, we can speak now to dave west, who's the deputy editor of the health service journal. he joins us live from south east london. saying that they're concerned about some hospital care might not be safe because of staff shortages. safetif because of staff shortages. safety and health services _ because of staff shortages. safety and health services cannot - because of staff shortages. safety and health services cannot run - because of staff shortages. safetyl and health services cannot run with in sufficient numbers of staff and staff like registered nurses and other clinical professions and figures that hsg has published this morning since there is now 120,000 absences reported just over the last couple of days across the nhs and

all types of health care providers and getting on for very close to one in ten staff of the total staff that work in the nhs and so, they're absolutely right that there is no way that it is a critical service like that they can operate with that huge level of absence. the like that they can operate with that huge level of absence.— huge level of absence. the last little while, _ huge level of absence. the last little while, we _ huge level of absence. the last little while, we have _ huge level of absence. the last little while, we have seen - huge level of absence. the last | little while, we have seen major incidents declared in northampton sure and again, staff shortages saying that they expect the situation to deteriorate before it gets better. and that allows things like firefighters to help the firefighters driving ambulances and that specific example is presumably the way various hospitals can deal with this. ., , ,, with this. there are things the nhs can do to try _ with this. there are things the nhs can do to try to _ with this. there are things the nhs can do to try to draw _ with this. there are things the nhs can do to try to draw from - with this. there are things the nhs i can do to try to draw from temporary staff and bring back retirees and all kinds of services, health

services that goes along with bringing in relatively small numbers of staff in london as an option. and fire services. but ultimately, looking at 20,000 people, that's up 70% from novemberjust before the omicron wave hit. it is really impossible to replace those kinds of numbers talking about requiring a trained clinical staff to take a long time to train and get the job and so, looking at those measures, you are looking at short—term plastering things up and dealing with things otherwise by prioritising some services so you can see the staff for example, some less essential, less urgent community services or outpatient

appointments and to urgent care where things are more immediately pressing but if you do that, you just storing up problems for the future. �* ,., , just storing up problems for the future. �* , ., . , future. and some is watching this now, and they're _ future. and some is watching this now, and they're waiting - future. and some is watching this now, and they're waiting a - future. and some is watching this now, and they're waiting a long i future. and some is watching this i now, and they're waiting a long time for a hip replacement or a knee replacement, the things we describe his routine surgery now, should they be concerned, people expecting operations?— be concerned, people expecting operations? they're trying to do everything _ operations? they're trying to do everything they _ operations? they're trying to do everything they can _ operations? they're trying to do everything they can to _ operations? they're trying to do everything they can to maintain| everything they can to maintain those operations because they know particularly because of the pandemic being going on for 20 months in this country, they know that a lot of these operations that are seen routine being urgent as people are waiting a long time and the longer you wait, the more pressing pressing these things become. the nhs is doing a lot to maintain those levels of surgery and there are some appointments and quite frankly it's those things that are seen as routine and perhaps, not actually

reaching the very long levels of waiting which the nhs is trying to address but somewhere in the middle, the middle grounds and fortunately, this people are going to face very long waits in a lot of circumstances. . , ., ~ long waits in a lot of circumstances. . , ., ,, circumstances. dave west, thank you very much- — the labour mp and former leading trade unionist jack dromey has died. he was 73. mr dromey had been the member of parliament for birmingham erdington since 2010. prior to that, he was the deputy general secretary of the transport and general workers union and the treasurer of the labour party. he was married to the long—serving labour mp harriet harman. let's speak to our political correspondentjonathan blake: it is very sudden death. it was

announced that he died in his constituency, and his flat in edmonton, and very unexpected in westminster because he was taking part only yesterday in the debate on afghan refugees. he tweeted less than 24 hours ago about the covid—19 pandemic and he had been very active over the past few weeks and so the system is quite the shock to his colleagues. as you say, he was currently a shadow minister but also had a prominent career in trade unions before becoming a labour mp into thousand ten. the secretary of the general workers union became the united union, a majorfunder of the labour party and treasurer of the labour party and treasurer of the labour party as well and he went to politics with a whole range of different portfolios, including employment portfolios, leasing,

housing, very much valued because it started with trade unions occupying an empty top were blocked in london to protest thousand crisis and is politics on the picket line with the very bitter dispute that happened over two years in the 1970s but, more recently he challenged jeremy corbyn and was happy to serve under jeremy corbyn and many said that it was impossible to suggest that he came from any particular faction within the labour party. ijust want to run through a few tributes because these have been coming in across the political spectrum. keir starmer said that the proud son of irish parents who dedicated his life to working with working people and recognise for his determination to stand up for his constituents in the current deputy leader of the labour party described him as her great mentor as well as a friend and they

said it was tragic news. also interestingly, some tributes from the conservatives, shadowed her as shadow general. always willing to help them was a kind friend and the prayers are with them. he was best known westminster for being a deputy leader and it's been quite a lot of time on the front bench himself and elsewhere in politics current shadow culture secretary also pay tribute to him today. the former prime minister theresa may has joined renewed calls for a hillsborough law to "break the cycle" of injustice for bereaved families. relatives of those who died at hillsborough have been taking part in an online event to call for changes to the justice

system to prevent others going through what they experienced. 97 men, women and children died in the disaster in the fa cup semifinal between liverpool and nottingham forest in sheffield in 1989. margaret aspinall, whose son james was among the victims, said new legislation won't help the families, but it will help others get the justice they deserve. these families deserve justice. the hillsborough law will not do any good for the hillsborough families but we are here today for us all united to change things because those 97 victims who died at hillsborough deserve the respect of a hillsborough law in honour of their name and if that does any good for the likes of other people

going forward that is all that matters. they have not died in vain. joining me now is steve rotherham, who is the labour mayor of the liverpool city region and was one of the key organisers of today's campaigning event. explain, if you can, which you hope this law could achieve. she explain, if you can, which you hope this law could achieve.— this law could achieve. she was riaht in this law could achieve. she was right in saying _ this law could achieve. she was right in saying that _ this law could achieve. she was right in saying that it _ this law could achieve. she was right in saying that it is - this law could achieve. she was right in saying that it is no - this law could achieve. she was| right in saying that it is no good for those people who went for 30 odd years straight and find justice and where we are today, it is about trying to stop different types of people going through the same sort

of circumstances that they found themselves in, which was a legal system, judicial protest that was stacked in favour of large institutions that couldn't defend themselves and huge sums sums of money behind the fence through the process. money behind the fence through the rocess. ., , ., ., ,., process. people might of heard some of theresa may's _ process. people might of heard some of theresa may's comments - process. people might of heard some of theresa may's comments and - process. people might of heard some of theresa may's comments and she l of theresa may's comments and she was very strong and talked a lot about how she had seen for herself as a former prime minister, institutions trying to protect themselves rather than protect the individuals who were hurting. the fact that there is cross party support for this, does this give you hope that there is real traction behind this? we hope that there is real traction behind this?— hope that there is real traction behind this? ~ ., ., ., ., , behind this? we are having real hope for once because _ behind this? we are having real hope for once because a _ behind this? we are having real hope for once because a former— behind this? we are having real hope for once because a former prime - for once because a former prime minister, two former prime ministers who were on the call, to have the weight of parliamentarian saying

that this is not party political, this is the right thing to do, this is to try to correct an imbalance in the legal system and to correct those gross injustices that many people have gone through over many decades and i think that is the right thing to approach it with and hopefully, we will get some government time to debate this in parliament and to get a bill that will be accepted on all sides of the house. fin will be accepted on all sides of the house. ., , .,. .., will be accepted on all sides of the house. ., , .. .., ., will be accepted on all sides of the house. ., , ., , house. on a practical level, that is our next house. on a practical level, that is your next step _ house. on a practical level, that is your next step was _ house. on a practical level, that is your next step was mac _ house. on a practical level, that is your next step was mac that - house. on a practical level, that is your next step was mac that is - house. on a practical level, that is. your next step was mac that is what your next step was mac that is what you have to push forward to try to get this through? i you have to push forward to try to get this through?— get this through? i think that's what everybody _ get this through? i think that's what everybody wants. - get this through? i think that's what everybody wants. it - get this through? i think that's what everybody wants. it has l get this through? i think that's - what everybody wants. it has been absolutely enormous interest in what this was about because of what happened over the past few days with the drama serial on the telly and people seeing for the first time ever, the fight that she had to go

through to try to get the truth of the circumstances based on debts in public opinion is shifted and we need to ensure that whilst politicians will always pontificate and parliamentary democracy turns very slowly it takes a long time, we need to capitalise now, we can do ensure that other people don't go through the same sort of prolonged hurt that the family did for all those years stop by thank you for talking to us before we let you go, your thoughts about the death of jack, his death only announced in the last hour and a man steeped in this trade union movement and i wonder whether or not you can give us your reflections on his life and his achievements. i’m

us your reflections on his life and his achievements.— his achievements. i'm actually s-ieakin his achievements. i'm actually speaking to — his achievements. i'm actually speaking to you _ his achievements. i'm actually speaking to you from - his achievements. i'm actually speaking to you from the - his achievements. i'm actually - speaking to you from the museum, something that is steeped in the labour party and those fights for truth and justice for the working class people and that is what jack was about. a great loss for the people and i campaigned on many occasions with jack, who was very warm, friendly, always somebody that you could ask and seek advice from and who would give you free advice and guidance. someone who will be missed far beyond his constituency had a great loss to british politics. steve rudder and they are the labour mayor of liverpool region. let's pause and get hit with the weather prospects which come now from thomas. the weather will turn milder over the next few days but until

thenit over the next few days but until then it is still a spell of wintry weather over the next few hours and i think of the course of the evening into night, some icy patches around but by morning, certainly by around sunrise, we expect the temperatures to rise quite rapidly so around about now and over the next few hours there will be an air frost developing. icy patches possible with a bit of sleet here and there is well but through the course of the night this front will arrive. so rain and wind for many of us by the end of the night and i think across the east of the country, temperatures at 4am still could be below freezing but you can see out towards the west, they are generally well above and in fact 7 degrees in plymouth. through tomorrow morning and into the afternoon there will be and into the afternoon there will be a spell a very blustery and wet weather before things turn a little bit brighter in the afternoon and you could see that milder air. temperatures in double figures in the south and around about six or seven in the north and maybe a little wintry across the hills but generally i think i milder saturday on the way. bye—bye.

this is bbc news. the headlines — the giant of hollywood, sir sidney poitier, has died aged 94. he was the first black man to win the oscar for best actor. and was a respected humanitarian. we and was a respected humanitarian. - don't know any more the world did not have sydney poitier. he was my generation's sort of icon. there was no one really before him who had the kind of stature. staff absences in the nhs in england rise by 40% in a week becasue of covid. nursing unions say covid pressures are making hospital care unsafe. two former prime ministers back calls for a so—called hillsborough law to ensure fairer treatment for bereaved families.

much more to come in this half—hour but right now time for all the latest sports news. good evening. we start with cricket. 3—0 down in the ashes series and england have had little to smile about in austria so far but date three of the test has changed the mood even if it won't changed the mood even if it won't change the overall result. jonny bairstow�*s rescued england with a gutsy century is a reach to 58—7 at the close of play but still trail austria by 158 runs. at a drizzly sydney, the weather soaked up more time in the test. for england, not nearly enough. australians have spent weeks mopping up, after all. haseeb hameed, beaten by michell starc for six. sydney was in pink to support the jane mcgrath cancer foundation.

late wife of the great glenn who used to regularly do this to englishmen. the tormentor of zak crawley was scott boland, playing in his second test, having waited his whole career for these moments. joe root, england's captain, his ninth test wicket already. england's sad procession trudged on, surrounded, surrendering. three wickets for no runs, 36—4 by lunch. afterwards, it got surreal. ben stokes was given out leg before wicket. it turned out there was no leg and plenty of wicket. bails still on, stokes still in. but he was facing the pace with pain. a side injury kept him from bowling but not batting, battling. jonny bairstow went with him, both swatted 50s. here was the fight england had spoken about. and here was the counterpunch. stokes, trapped by nathan lyon. jos buttler followed. but bairstow wasn't done. together with mark wood, he made sure england wouldn't be made to bat again. and then in the final over of the day, he passed 100. it's too late to save the series. it might still be too little to save the match. but at long last, england have

something to celebrate. patrick gearey, bbc news. a second tennis player has had their visa cancelled by australian authorities. renata vorachuva joins novak djokovic in being denied entry into the country because of their vaccination status, with the visas of other players being investigated, too. djokovic fans have been protesting outside the hotel they're confined to in melbourne, where they'd been hoping to play in the australian open later this month. djokovic's appeal against the decision won't be heard until monday. and this afternoon djokovic has posted a message on social media. he said... the manchester city defender benjamin mendy has been released on bail ahead of his trial for rape and sexual assault. the french international has been held in prison since august last year. he'll have to live at his home

address, surrender his passport and not have contact with any of the people he is accused of attacking. benjamin mendy�*s been charged with seven counts of rape and one of sexual assault relating to five women. phillippe coutinho is back in the premier legaue. the brazilian midfielder�*s joined aston villa from barcelona on loan until the end of the season, and there's an option to buy, too. coutinhojoined barca in a £142 million move from liverpool in 2018. but he struggled to make the same impact in spain. however, he's reuniting with villa boss steven gerrard, who was his captain at liverpool. and somebody else back in the premier league is keiran trippier, who's now been confirmed as newcastle's first signing since their new owners took over. the england full—back has joined from atletico madrid. he's played for boss eddie howe before at burnley and joins for £12 million. but newcastle fans will be hoping he's the first of many to come

and can help the club battle against relegation from the premier league. that's all the sport for now. you can find more on all those stories on the bbc sport website. more reaction there from the fourth test in the ashes series in sydney and sarah has more in sports day. we will talk more about novak djokovic. we are due some sort of court decision on monday. shaimaa khalil reports from melbourne. this is the immigration detention hotel where novak djokovic is being kept. adnan has been here forfive months now after being moved from another facility. i live in level two, and djokovic lives in level one. that is the food we've been served

every day by the canteen. we found a maggot and mould on the bread, and we've been reporting it, but unfortunately there has been no action taken. outside the hotel, there was dancing and music, but also anger and frustration among novak djokovic's supporters. it's unclear if the tennis star will remain here until monday, when his legal team will challenge the cancellation of his visa. novak djokovic is waiting for a court decision on whether he'll be able to stay and compete in the australian open or be deported. whatever happens, this has gone way beyond tennis. the world number one is now at the centre of a political and diplomatic storm. djokovic arrived on wednesday with an exemption granted by tennis australia and the state of victoria. but the border force has revoked his visa, saying he did not meet the rules of entry. his mother, dijana, said on thursday that he was being kept like a prisoner.

australia's home affairs minister, karen andrews, hit back, saying there was nothing stopping him from leaving. mr djokovic is not being held captive in australia. he is free to leave at any time that he chooses to do so, and border force will actually facilitate that. another player has now had her visa cancelled. renata voracova from the czech republic is understood to be detained in the same hotel as djokovic. the australian open is one of the biggest sporting events here, but it's turning into a big international embarrassment for the government. the deputy leader of the labour party has written to lord geidt about boris johnson's party has written to lord geidt about borisjohnson's renovations to the flat at downing street. messages

appear to show the premised are offering support for a great exhibition, plans for a cultural festival that were backed by lord brownlow, who paid for the renovations. lord geidt�*s failure to revise conclusions in the light of those messages raises concerns and questions. dave penman is the general secretary of the first division association, which is the union representing senior civil servants. well, i think it's interesting because clearly there's a lot of speculation around whether, once these messages were disclosed, whether lord geidt would have resigned. i think quite interestingly what he's chosen to do is to use this episode to potentially strengthen his powers. it's clear from the exchange of letters how angry he is about what happened, but also that he appears to have extracted from the prime minister concessions around the powers of the independent adviser in the future and he expects them to brought forward within the next couple of months.

and anyone in that position, i think, faces a choice, as his predecessor did. if you didn't like what the prime minister was doing, you can resign or potentially you can exploit the situation to try and strengthen your independence. so, i think we'll see, really, dependent upon what the outcome of that is, whether lord geidt has made a wise choice in actually for the longer term creating a stronger independent authority overseeing the ministerial code. now, many of us remember the tv drama grange hill for its gritty storylines and very catchy theme tune. it first aired in 1978, running for 30 years, and now it's going to be turned into a film, with some of the original characters expected to return as grandparents. jayne mccubbin has been chatting to some of the original cast members. grange hill theme music. there was the theme tune... bom bom bom bom, ba—na ba—na nah nah, bam ba—na ba—na—na, bow bow bow... there was the gritty realism... move your arm, fat man.

it wasjust like a real. british show, wasn't it, showing kids in their natural habitats, so to speak. - yeah, cheeky and naughty. what's he talking about? it's not true. controversial storylines. did you just say no in school? idid. good girl. just say no! now, like an unheard of decent school dinner, there's going to be a second helping. my name is neil mattocks, i am. a higher level teaching assistant, i run a podcast about grange hill called sausage on a fork. - the very first episodel i remember watching, i was about six years . old, and there was lads fighting on the telly, _ and ijust thought, this is amazing. this is like nothing i've ever seen. i'm alison valentine and i played fay in grange hill, fay lucas. the biggest thing which caused the biggest stir was my thing, i'm not sure what it was,

with my teacher, mr king. my name is lee macdonald, and i played zammo in grange hill. so, the transformation from this happy—go—lucky zammo character to stealing off of roland, licking the drugs off the floor in one of the scenes at the end, you know, was horrific. zammo! drown, you scum. the bbc expelled grange hill after a 30—year run in 2008, but open auditions for the nextgen grange hill silver screen stars start soon. my name is celynjones, i'm the co—writer of grange hill the movie, and in a previous life i also played mr green in grange hill, the english teacher. sir phil redmond suggested that it was time to bring back grange hill. i think bringing back grange hill was sort of like the bat signal, that he couldn't ignore

from wayne manor any longer! by taking the best of the old and mixing with the new, they hope it pulls in the parents for nostalgia and their teens for a new edgy outing. jayne mccubbin, bbc news. we will all be humming that theme tune all night. now the headlines... the hollywood great search sydney poitier has died at the age of 94. he was the first black man to be awarded the best actor oscar, winning that back in 1964. staff absences caused by coronavirus at nhs hospitals across england rise by 40% in a week. nursing unions say covid—19 pressures are making hospital care unsafe. and two former prime ministers have bat calls for a

so—called pillsbury law to ensure