this is bbc news. we will have the headlines and all the main news stories for you at the top of the hour straight after this programme. oh, wow! look at the size of this place! this is tokyo stadium, and it was home to the football, the rugby and the pentathlon during the olympics, and i'm glad to finally be here. japan's delayed summer of sport finally got under way in 2021. my name's steve brown,

and i was supposed to come over for the paralympic coverage. not being able to make it out was a huge blow. the whole thing about sport, it's not just about watching it, it's about feeling it, that immersive experience. before i was a presenter, i was captain of the london 2012 wheelchair rugby team. when i was in hospital, sport was what got me out. it was definitely the building blocks to the person that i have become. tokyo holds a special place in paralympic history. it was all the way back at the 1964 games that the term paralympic was first used. but being disabled injapan hasn't always been easy. it's often seen as a country that values conformity and fitting in. so, at the end of this paralympic year, i'm finally getting the chance to explore japan and find out what life's like for those who stand out from the crowd.

along the way, i'll meet some old opponents, discover a hidden tropical culture, and ride the waves with some adaptive surfing. my journey across japan begins in the capital, tokyo, the world's busiest city, where i'm on my way to meet some former rivals. it's excellent to be sitting here watching the japanese paralympic team doing their training. so wheelchair rugby has got this nickname, murderball. and you can see why. it's the only full contact wheelchair sport there is.

your opponent is going to be working very hard to knock you out of your chair. so you've got to work hard to knock them out of theirs. the team won bronze at the 2021 home games. and i rememberfacing them all the way back at london 2012. so, very nice to see you again. of course, it was a very different games because of coronavirus. how did that affect you, not having the crowds here? how do you feel people's acceptance and understanding of disability is? do you feel like it's something that's maybe been hidden away a little bit?

this gym was specially designed for para—athletes and opened in 2018. in the build up to the paralympics, the government committed to introducing more barrier—free access across the country.

we'll see how i get on as i explore more ofjapan. here in tokyo, the subway system is said to be almost entirely accessible — even if some of the adaptations are a bit bizarre. so this is going to turn into a wheelchair lift, but they've had to shut everything off to make it happen. so i come on? yeah. you won't find many of these adapted escalators around the subway. normal lifts are far more common... brakes are on. 0k. yeah, no problem. ..and that's probably a good thing. 0k. and it's done. thank you, gentlemen. well, that was terrifying.

but, on the surface, there are old pockets of tokyo that can still be a challenge to get around. we're in golden gai and that translates as golden city, which is quite a strange name for a place no bigger than a football pitch. the place is just starting to open now. if i'd left it another hour or so, this would be starting to get much busier, and on these narrow streets, i think i'd have trouble getting around. see, look, this is a perfect example. there's no room for me in there. there's a step to get in, and the door�*s too narrow. a few blocks over, there's an area where another group of people are finding their voice. it's called ni—chime, and it's said to have the highest concentration of gay and lesbian bars in the world. i've arranged to meet nunu, who works here. and what's the attitude like to the lgbt community in

japan? nunu works at the 0nnanoko club, which calls itself a cross—dressing bar. the club welcomes people of all identities.

nunu identifies as trans and was originally a customer here. chatting and laughter. this pocket of tokyo flourished because it gave people a space outside of the mainstream where they could express themselves without facing disapproval. but tradition still has a powerful hold overjapan, as i'll find out in the next stage of myjourney. now it's time for me to leave the capital on board one of their famous bullet trains. announcer: the train | at track number 23 is...

what is happening? we are trying to get you wheelchair space. some lines saw the number of wheelchair spaces on board treble in the lead—up to the paralympics, but it takes a while to find me a space. it's turning out to be quite a faff, i think. they recommend that you book it all up in advance to save all of this, you know? that doesn't work if you don't know you're travelling until an hour before you need to travel. all sorted. well, here we go then! i'm on my way to 0shima island, 1,000 kilometres west of tokyo and more than five hours by train, to an area that remains enthralled to centuries—old traditions and customs.

that's a big flight of steps. whey! no. 0k. he groans. 0h! here we are. 0h! wow. getting up here might have been a bit of an effort, but it was certainly worth it. you don't see many places like this, do you? this is the 0kitsu—miya shrine. it was built in the 18th century to pay homage to a holy island some 50km off the coast. 0kinoshima has been worshipped for well over 1,000 years, lying between japan

and the korean peninsula. this museum tells the story of 0kinoshima all the way back to its earliest religious ceremonies in the fourth century. the island is a sacred place with a very strict door policy.

have you seen the island? more than 80,000 artefacts have been found there, which led to unesco naming it a world heritage site in 2017. but the old taboos mean only men can set foot on the island, and miki can'tjoin her male colleagues on archaeological expeditions.

watching these videos, it certainly has got this kind of eerie, mystical power to it. i might not be able to go myself, but one way that tourists can experience 0kinoshima is by trying a misogi ceremony, a special cleansing ritual performed by all the island's visitors. whoa! yeah, it's cold. face you, yeah? towards you? 0oh... 0oh! ok, i'm down.

it feels, now i'm in, somewhat... ..exhilarating, in a way, relaxing... ..but i still want to get back out now! is that enough praying? i'm heading now to japan's southernmost spot, 0kinawa, which is made up of more than 100 subtropical islands. it's a popular holiday destination because of its year—round warm temperatures. and back in 2007, it was the first place injapan to make a barrier—free declaration, a commitment towards making travel more accessible to all. i've heard 0kinawan culture has some distinct differences from the mainland, so i've come here to find out more.

applause. back in the 15th century, the ryukyu kingdom united the islands that now form 0kinawa. they were a trading people, and today an international influence can still be felt in their art and design, their architecture and in their food.

0k, well, this all looks very nice. i think i'm going to start with this. what is it? it smells strong. has it got strong flavour? yes, 0k. wow, that is a strong flavour! he chuckles i need to wash it down. so what is this? that's nice, and it's quite smooth, fragrant. maybe i'm just washing down the...

..the fermented tofu. but ryukyuan culture hasn't always been embraced by the mainland. in the 19th century, after it became part ofjapan, there was a crackdown on local customs. next on my tour, chiyako takes me 30km down the road to shuri castle. it's on the top of a steep hill, so i've brought along an extra set of wheels. so here we are, then. that was a big entrance

into an open space. what happened here? i've come through and it's just a construction site. that is the only way i can explain it. that was what i was expecting to see. and it's such a shame. when it was standing, shuri castle drew around two million people a year. then, in october 2019, a fire blamed on a faulty electrical system tore through the wooden palace, destroying all the main buildings. the debris has been cleared

away and the site is once again open to tourists, where they can find out about an ambitious new reconstruction that's currently under way. so this is smoke damage? yes. you can feel the weight of them. they were a real, solid piece. how many are you going to need to make?

it's not the first time the castle has been destroyed and rebuilt. it had previously been bombed during the second world war, its reconstruction turning it into a symbol of 0kinawa's resilience. it's tragic to see all this devastation, but with the reconstruction set to open in a few years�* time, maybe it's a chance for the ryukyu culture to get a bit more attention. here in okinawa, my trip across japan is coming to an end. but there's one more thing for me to try. so... ..this foot. 0k, we are one... oh, my goodness! surfing is a year—round activity on these subtropical islands, and taishi is an organiser for access surf, a local charity that helps people with accessibility needs like mine ride the waves.

well, i have never been surfing before. please reassure me — how many people have you taken out already? i've got the wet suit on — let's make the most of it, shall we? all right, let's go! i'm in. well, i've been in for a ritual, now i'm going in for recreational. yeah, i'm ready. let's go! yeah? yeah. this way round. with me safely on the board, the team run through a few basics. yeah, good. yeah. ok, so how do i fall down? i go over? yep. and i push the board away from me? it's better. 0k. so i push away the only thing that i want to grab? they laugh well, i think

i've got the paddling. shall we try some surfing? yeah. in my journey across japan, i've seen that it's a country that's still bound by tradition. but i've also met people who are pushing those boundaries. and here in okinawa, i've seen that there's more thanjust one traditional culture. for me, coming here in my wheelchair, there have been a few problems here and there. but opening up is a process, whether it's opening up to foreign travel after a pandemic or opening up to new ideas and experiences. and this has been one experience that i'm definitely going to remember. yeah!

hello there. as we move towards the end of the week, grey skies as you can see. also shari outbreaks of rain but significant thunderstorms ease. — — shari outbreaks. further showers towards the weekend and through the later stages of the week

and the potential for longer spells of rain.— spells of rain. however, we start off — spells of rain. however, we start off on _ spells of rain. however, we start off on friday - spells of rain. however, we start off on friday morning | start off on friday morning with the remnants of that weather from with the remnants of that weatherfrom producing with the remnants of that weather from producing some cloud and shari outbreaks of rain across is that anglia and southeast anglia. a lighter south—westerly when driving in slow—moving showers across scotland and northern hours. —— northern ireland. temperature speaking at 25 celsius. as we move out of running, clearer skies stay with us through the night, preventing temperatures from staying up. quite warm and humid of late so a fresher start to saturday morning across the south—east. the first sign of that rain pushing into the far north—west oh here not quite as warm. 10— 11 celsius first thing on saturday. rain to scotland and northern ireland on saturday. should not impact much of england and wales. if few isolated showers through the

coast of wales but as things south it will weaken. temperatures once again into the mid— 20s across the south—east of england. hi tweens low 20s across southern scotland if we are lucky. 0n scotland if we are lucky. on sunday, keep a close eye on this area of low pressure. the timing keeps slowing downjust a little so the potential that it might stay dry for longer for sunday but it will start to bring about and outbreaks of rain from the west and certainly claudia skies further ease. here we are likely to see temperature speaking at 2a celsius if we get sunshine coming through and it will be predominantly drive. as the front moved further east was, a speu front moved further east was, a spell of more significant rain across the whole of the country through sunday night and into monday. welcome news for gardeners and growers out there, as the rain eases its way eastwards and leaves a trail of sunny spells and scattered showers. not a bad

day once the rain eases. temperatures up to 2a celsius. in tuesday, relatively quiet story. more into the way of cloud around but dominantly dry. light winds and temperatures present enough. the statute pleasant enough. as we move into wednesday, less likely we need to keep a close eye on a few areas of low pressure. 0ne moving off into scandinavia. another upbringing rain to the north. hopefully high—pressure bills. we are heading towards a bank holiday weekend other than in scotland and so some of that warmth is set to return. you can see a good deal of dry weather on offer so it is the last bank holiday before the kids had

back to school and it looks dry, and sunny.

welcome to bbc news. i'm david willis. our top stories: a fire at a russian ammunition depot is blamed for the evacuation of two border villages, as explosions are reported at an airfield in russian—occupied crimea. in ukraine, the un chief says any damage to a nuclear plant would be �*suicide'. on a visit to lviv, he calls for an end to fighting near the facility, but hopes for peace remain. there has been some progress. ukraine and russia still are not talking to each other but they could reach future agreements with the united nations and turkey as brokers in the middle. a usjudge unseals documents that authorised the fbi to search donald

trump's florida home. we'll get the latest from our correspondent