good morning, welcome to breakfast with me, ben boulos. the headlines today. police hunting a gunman who shot dead a woman at a busy merseyside pub on christmas eve say she wasn't the intended target of the shooting. more than 30 people have died in the severe winter storm sweeping across the united states and canada. how will the national train strike and the cost of living squeeze impact the traditional boxing day sales? i am impact the traditional boxing day sales? iam in impact the traditional boxing day sales? i am in a liverpool to speak to shops and shoppers in the middle of a crucial period for retail. after six weeks off for the world

cup, the premier league returns. on a busy boxing day with the leaders arsenal looking to go eight points clear of manchester city if they beat west ham. it's going to turn much colder for many as this boxing day, showers around as well, which could turn wintry towards north—western areas. all of the details throughout the programme. it's monday the 26th december. our main story. police are appealing for information after a gunman shot dead a 26—year—old woman in merseyside on christmas eve. four other people were injured in the shooting in the lighthouse pub in wallasey. merseyside police said it did not believe the victim was targeted. judith moritz reports. late on christmas eve, the lighthouse pub was full of people counting down the minutes towards midnight. it was a lively scene, butjust before 12:00am the pub�*s neighbours heard a particularly loud noise.

i was in bed and i was on phone and i heard a bang, bang, bang, bang —fourtimes. i waited, because i thought it was going to be a firework and i thought i would hear the ssh. but then i didn't hear the shush. a gunman opened fire directly towards the front door of the pub, his shots hitting a 26—year—old woman in the head. despite efforts to save her, she died of her injuries. herfamily are said to be inconsolable. he also shot another four people, one of whom is in a critical condition. the fact that this has happened on christmas eve makes the tragedy even more unpalatable and shows those responsible have no regard for members of the public who just want to be able to live their lives without fear. at the time the offender fired the gun there were a large number of people enjoying a night out at the lighthouse inn, and the actions of the gunman were totally and utterly reckless. there's been a lot of focus recently on gun crime on merseyside,

especially following the shooting of a nine—year—old girl in liverpool in august. the police tell me that it's too soon to know whether this shooting is connected to any others, but also say that despite what's been happening, the rate of guns being fired in their force area is lower than it's been in the past. this church is almost next door to the pub, and within hours of the shooting its minister found himself giving the christmas sermon in the shadow of a crime scene. god in christ is with us, he's the prince of peace, so it made it rather poignant this morning, preaching that message in the backdrop of what had happened a few hours earlier, when someone had lost their life, and the tragedy and the violence that ensued there. the pub�*s owners have given cctv material to the police, who say they are looking for a dark mercedes a—class car. they are appealing for anyone with information or camera footage to come forward. judith moritz, bbc news,

wallasey, on merseyside. 38 people are now known to have died as a result of a severe winter storm sweeping across the united states and canada. there have been days of disruption caused by the snow, icy conditions and freezing temperatures as nomia iqbal reports. a very white christmas has turned more into a deep freeze. the city of buffalo in new york state is used to tough weather conditions, but this storm had left it paralysed. many don't even have any power to cook the christmas lunch. i'm really glad that i have a fireplace because otherwise i'd be freezing right now. driving is banned, as the blizzard conditions leave roads impassable. power stations frozen, and at least seven people dead. we are in a war, this is a war with mother nature.

and she has been hitting us with everything she has since the early hours of thursday and friday, saturday, and this will go down in history as the most devastating storm in buffalo's long and storied history of having many battles, many, many major storms. in the midwest, four people were killed earlier in the week in a pile—up in ohio. four others died in crashes in missouri and kansas. the nation's capital has avoided much of the worst weather, but the bomb cyclone has left its mark. hundreds of water pipes are frozen, temperatures continue to drop, and many of the city's homeless people have been given emergency shelter. the storm is continuing to barrel up the east coast here and across much of the us, and the advice remains to avoid travelling unless it is essential. and it's notjust the snow and ice causing mayhem. high winds have brought high tides and flooding on the eastern seaboard.

forecasters say the storm will ease the next few days, but freezing temperatures are likely to linger for some time. nomia iqbal, bbc news, washington. rescue teams are searching for survivors of an avalanche in austria. two people remain missing after a number of skiers were buried by snow near a resort in the west of the country. helicopters and rescue dogs are involved in the effort. here in the uk, the met office has issued two yellow weather warnings for today. snow and ice is expected across parts of scotland and northern ireland, while the environment agency has issued 42 active alerts for possible flooding in england. travel disruption will continue today as striking railway workers bring boxing day train services to a halt. network rail has said railways across the uk will remain closed for a second day due to a walk—out by the rmt union. there are warnings of congestion on the roads as people are forced to find other ways to travel.

the international rescue committee has become the latest foreign aid organisation to suspend its work in afghanistan. it comes after the taliban said women could no longer work at humanitarian agencies. the committee said it couldn't operate without its afghan female staff. the nhs is to pilot schemes in 14 areas in england to identify more people with the early stages of dementia. specialist nurses and professionals will proactively assess hundreds of people who might be at risk in care homes. the new scheme comes as the nhs leading dementia expert said that family and friends can play a key role in spotting signs of the condition. the traditional boxing day sales get under way today but it's expected sales will be down from last year as the cost of living crisis continues. peter ruddick is at a shopping

centre in liverpool. i know it's early, any queues forming there yet?— i know it's early, any queues forming there yet? i know it's early, any queues forminu there et? ., ., forming there yet? good morning, no, no cueues forming there yet? good morning, no, no queuesiust — forming there yet? good morning, no, no queuesiust yet- — forming there yet? good morning, no, no queuesjust yet. i _ forming there yet? good morning, no, no queuesjust yet. i think— forming there yet? good morning, no, no queuesjust yet. i think we - forming there yet? good morning, no, no queuesjust yet. i think we are - no queues just yet. i think we are expecting people to start arriving from around 7am or 8am in order to get first in line for those big bargains. good morning from liverpool. the first boxing day for three years without some kind of lockdown or pandemic restrictions. however, of course, it comes on the same day as a national train strike, in the middle of the cost of living squeeze and off the back of a christmas in which lots of us may well have spent a bit more in order to make up for being able to not see friends and family for the last few years. footfalland friends and family for the last few years. footfall and sales are the key figures that people are going to be watching. that fall has been down in terms of high and retail parks in the few weeks leading up to christmas so the big question is,

will people turn out for the sails today? we are expecting 13 million of us to head to a high street like this one at some point. are some early signs that there may be some big discounts available for some of the big high street and online names, a few reasons, partly because there are relatively few of his this year around black friday and cyber monday. that combined with a lower footfall means that retailers have a lot of stock left over they could need to get rid of it. they could be some bargains to be had if you are heading out to the sales instead of enjoying a boxing day buffet. let's talk to the retail director here, ian, thank you forjoining us. boxing day, footfall, sales, how important is to pay for these sectors? �* , important is to pay for these sectors? �*, ., ,., , sectors? it's important, stores can sell come of— sectors? it's important, stores can sell come of the _ sectors? it's important, stores can sell come of the stock _ sectors? it's important, stores can

sell come of the stock they - sectors? it's important, stores can sell come of the stock they did - sectors? it's important, stores can sell come of the stock they did not sell come of the stock they did not sell through christmas. it's important for customers, we'll have the auntie _ important for customers, we'll have the auntie and uncle who gave us the cash or— the auntie and uncle who gave us the cash or gift _ the auntie and uncle who gave us the cash or gift card, and you are going to go— cash or gift card, and you are going to go and _ cash or gift card, and you are going to go and get that stock at much lower_ to go and get that stock at much lower prices than before christmas. you heard _ lower prices than before christmas. you heard me mentioning footfall and sales, you will be monitoring things, what figures are you going to be looking at to work out whether it has been a good day? we to be looking at to work out whether it has been a good day?— it has been a good day? we always look at how — it has been a good day? we always look at how many _ it has been a good day? we always look at how many people _ it has been a good day? we always look at how many people come - it has been a good day? we alwaysl look at how many people come here but post—pandemic it's always been about_ but post—pandemic it's always been about how— but post—pandemic it's always been about how much people spend. since the pandemic, we have seen footfall numbers— the pandemic, we have seen footfall numbers 10% down where they are at 2019. _ numbers10% down where they are at 2019. ttut— numbers 10% down where they are at 2019, but sales have been up 27 —— 17% versus — 2019, but sales have been up 27 —— 17% versus 2019 which is phenomenal. they're _ 17% versus 2019 which is phenomenal. they're not— 17% versus 2019 which is phenomenal. they're not seeing as much people is not as_ they're not seeing as much people is not as bad _ they're not seeing as much people is not as bad as it sounds, it is all about— not as bad as it sounds, it is all about spend and it has been great in the last— about spend and it has been great in the tast12 _ about spend and it has been great in the last 12 months. we about spend and it has been great in the last 12 months.— about spend and it has been great in the last 12 months. we know there is a national train _ the last 12 months. we know there is a national train strike _ the last 12 months. we know there is a national train strike today, - the last 12 months. we know there is a national train strike today, the - a national train strike today, the cold weather at the beginning of the month, did that impact footfall? yes, that'sjust month, did that impact footfall? yes, that's just a month, did that impact footfall? yes, that'sjust a couple month, did that impact footfall? yes, that's just a couple of factors

yes, that'sjust a couple of factors we have _ yes, that'sjust a couple of factors we have had to contend with over the last few _ we have had to contend with over the last few months. train strikes have hit as, _ last few months. train strikes have hit as, by— last few months. train strikes have hit as, by about 20%.— hit as, by about 20%. merseyrail were sunposed _ hit as, by about 20%. merseyrail were supposed to _ hit as, by about 20%. merseyrail were supposed to be _ hit as, by about 20%. merseyrail were supposed to be running - hit as, by about 20%. merseyrail were supposed to be running an| hit as, by about 20%. merseyrail - were supposed to be running an extra service today?— service today? yes, they have run it on boxin: service today? yes, they have run it on boxing day _ service today? yes, they have run it on boxing day the _ service today? yes, they have run it on boxing day the last _ service today? yes, they have run it on boxing day the last four - service today? yes, they have run it on boxing day the last four years . on boxing day the last four years but not _ on boxing day the last four years but not today. we have got 3000 car parking _ but not today. we have got 3000 car parking spaces on site which is great — parking spaces on site which is great for— parking spaces on site which is great for us. it's not the only factors— great for us. it's not the only factors we _ great for us. it's not the only factors we have had, some really difficult _ factors we have had, some really difficult weather, the winter world cup didh't— difficult weather, the winter world cup didn't help, a lot of people would — cup didn't help, a lot of people would go — cup didn't help, a lot of people would go to the pub in the summer to watch _ would go to the pub in the summer to watch the _ would go to the pub in the summer to watch the world cup, lots of places to eat _ watch the world cup, lots of places to eat and — watch the world cup, lots of places to eat and drink here and it didn't really— to eat and drink here and it didn't really happen before christmas but over the _ really happen before christmas but over the course of the years the restaurant — over the course of the years the restaurant sales have been fantastic so we _ restaurant sales have been fantastic so we are _ restaurant sales have been fantastic so we are hopeful today. the restaurant sales have been fantastic so we are hopeful today.— so we are hopeful today. the one benefit of you _ so we are hopeful today. the one benefit of you getting _ so we are hopeful today. the one benefit of you getting here - so we are hopeful today. the one benefit of you getting here so - so we are hopeful today. the one i benefit of you getting here so early as you are there to live in a queue, what are you going to be buying? abs. what are you going to be buying? a warmer coat! -- _ what are you going to be buying? a warmer coat! -- you _ what are you going to be buying? a warmer coat! -- you are _ what are you going to be buying? a warmer coat! -- you are going - what are you going to be buying? a warmer coat! -- you are going to i what are you going to be buying? a| warmer coat! -- you are going to be first in the — warmer coat! -- you are going to be first in the queues. _ warmer coat! -- you are going to be first in the queues. i _ warmer coat! -- you are going to be first in the queues. ithink— warmer coat! -- you are going to be first in the queues. i think people i first in the queues. i think people will be going out to buy things like airfor and heated blankets today. in the words of martin lewis, you are only going to get a bargain if

you were going to buy it anyway. anything you have got your eye on today, peter? anything you have got your eye on today. peter?— today, peter? actually i was 'ust sa inc, i today, peter? actually i was 'ust saying. ”mi today, peter? actually i was 'ust saying. mink l i today, peter? actually i was 'ust saying, i thinki need * today, peter? actually i was 'ust saying, i think i need a i today, peter? actually i was 'ust saying, i think i need a fewh saying, i think i need a few indigestion medicines so i ready for my boxing day cheese later! thank ou ve my boxing day cheese later! thank you very much- _ it's been five years since anoosheh ashoori spent christmas at home with family. in march, he was released from prison in iran after serving five years. he was charged with spying and was granted his freedom at the same time as nazanin zaghari—ratcliffe. he's been making up for lost time since then, as he tells tim muffett. good girl. you are always hopeful when you are in prison, but these hopes are shattered repeatedly. five christmases, haven't been at home. and this is the first one. it's just out of this world to be with my family. his release was an absolute miracle.

it was five years of hell according to anoosheh ashoori. the retired engineer was detained in iran whilst visiting his mother in 2017. convicted of spying charges, which he's consistently denied, he was given a ten yearjail term in the notorious evin prison in tehran. in march, he was released alongside nazanin zaghari—ratcliffe, who'd also been held captive in iran, after the uk settled a longstanding debt with the iranian government. there must be a huge readjustment process for all of you as a family. what's that been like? there's so many little things that you take for granted. i remember when he first came back, he used to keep asking permission to take stuff. and actually he's still doing it. and i tell him, you don't need to ask me. you can take whatever you like, you can take a mug, you can take a plate. when i was there, i used to dream at night that i am with sherry and with my kids only to wake up

to my cell. strangely enough, since my return at nights, i dream. and i dream that i am there back in prison. and i gather you've been speaking to other people who've been held captive, terry waite, for example. what have they been saying? although so many years have passed, terry waite was telling me that he's still having flashbacks, he's still having difficulties. so this is not something that i should expect to go away soon. there has, though, been a chance to travel. a trip to new zealand included a go on one of the world's largest swings. and in october, anoosheh fulfilled a challenge he'd set himself in prison. you ran the london marathon this year. what was that like, and why were you so determined to do that? there were a group of inmates

who used to do daily exercises, and i asked them if i could join them and a friend waved this book. it was the book what i talk about when i talk about running. so that initiated this thought in my mind that any time i am released, even if i'm 75 years old, 80 years old, i am going to participate in the london marathon. that was a dream come true. i never thought i could have run 42, nearly 43 kilometres. i gather when you were being held captive, the christmas tree had a special significance for you, didn't it? tell us about that. yes, i used to have telephone conversations with sherry. i discovered that they are not putting up a tree. and i was quite cross. and i asked her to please go and put up the tree and decorate it and explain to me where the tree is in the house, what presents you have put there so that i can

start imagining what is going on. what was it like when you decorated the tree this year? i expected it to be a veryjoyful event. but in view of the factor of what is going on in iran, all the people, for example, that i have left behind, they are still struggling. and the situation has got worse than than what it was when i was there. this christmas, this family is together again. even if thoughts are with others far away who are not so fortunate. tim muffett, bbc news. now the weather with simon. question, was it a white christmas anywhere? most of us woke up on christmas morning with no snow but technically

it was a white christmas because we had some snow across scotland yesterday, technically that makes it a white christmas. that snow has been falling throughout the night, thatis been falling throughout the night, that is in south lanarkshire and you can see quite a good covering of snow. for many of us this boxing day it will turn colder, hence we had the skull —— snow in the north—west and we have some wintry showers. it is a chilly start, colder air moving south gradually today so that milder air we have been having over the last few days has pumped away to the near continent. all of the under the influence of this cold arctic air once again. so temperatures across scotland and northern ireland this morning dipping below freezing, watch out for some ice this morning if you are travelling. further south, relatively mild. temperatures in london about 7 degrees. plenty of sunshine for england and wales today, a few showers coming into southwest areas through wales and the north of england. these wintry showers coming into scotland and

northern ireland, most of that is over higher ground but some down to lower levels. colder air in place and temperatures of six or seven celsius this afternoon in the south. through this evening, snow across scotland, some of that will be coming down to lower levels by this stage. relatively quiet elsewhere but then we look to the atlantic where we have got another whether system which will slowly push its way in to tomorrow. as that pops into the colder air, we could see some snow and it will be a chilly start to the day. temperatures certainly below freezing across northern and eastern areas, the risk of some ice around first thing tomorrow morning. the area of rain moving north and east, an area of snow for scotland. a lot of it over higher ground. milderair snow for scotland. a lot of it over higher ground. milder air is pushing in and there will be some wet weather for wales and south—west england. maximum temperatures higher than today at nine to for the rest of the week, it stays pretty unsettled, whether system is coming in from the atlantic which is milder

so it will not be as cold. further areas of low pressure pushing in, this is wednesday, look at the isobars, quite close together so it will be quite windy on wednesday and a band of rain moving north and east. quite heavy at times, the risk of some localised flooding in a few spots. a bit of snow on the higher ground of scotland. temperatures again in double figures across many parts, 11 to 12. seven or eight further north in scotland. still areas of low pressure as you go into thursday, and began the isobars, a pretty windy day on thursday and on friday, another area of low pressure moving in from the atlantic. so the outlook as we go into the end of 2022 remains quite unsettled. spells of rain, a bit of sunshine at times, maximum temperatures six to 13. as relatively mild. a white christmas but a drizzly boxing day, thank you.

let's have a look at today's papers and many of the front pages focus on king charles' televised address to the nation on christmas day. "king of hearts" is the headline in the sun. the paper notes the monarch's choice to praise the late queen and public sector workers. the express dedicates its entire front page to an image of the royal family at sandringham and prints the king's references to the great anxiety and hardship experienced by those struggling to pay their bills. moving away from the royal family, the guardian leads with what it calls a monumental cultural shift, that's led to a large increase in the number of stay—at—home fathers. it also pictures christmas day swimmers taking the plunge in birmingham. and the i leads with a story about a government review of how nhs care in england is administered, reporting that the health service is being weighed down by tick box targets.

about three billion litres of water are lost every day through leaks in england and wales, according to the latest figures from the industry regulator. now to help tackle the problem, scientists have developed miniature robots that crawl through pipes to patrol our water supply network. 0ur science correspondent, victoria gill reports. the water company here in essex has detected a leak. but to find its location and fix it, they'll need to dig through a complex maze of pipes. basically, we have a nine inch cast iron water main that runs down the whole street, and we've got a leak on the back of the t. but the sewer is sitting on top of our mine and we've also got a gas pipe in the top of the hole. we've obviously got bands of electric over the back of the hole, which makes it very difficult for us. this team's been digging on this site, investigating for four days now, and they still haven't pinpointed exactly where this leak is.

across england and wales, about 20% of the water supply is lost through leaks. that is steadily decreasing. but water companies say finding the smallest leaks is one of their biggest challenges. the water industry's economic regulator, 0fwat, says leakage in england and wales is now at its lowest level ever, but three billion litres per day is still lost to leaky pipes. that's enough to fill more than a thousand 0lympic sized swimming pools. companies have agreed to cut that wasted water in half by 2050 and 0fwat says more needs to be done. we've covered off all of the kind of big leaks that people will see. it's the smaller leaks. so this one wasn't visible and it's more and more of those leaks that we need to find to really, really drive down that leakage performance. no—one wants to see water wasted, but it's new innovations that are going to really drive that leakage down. innovations like these. these are pipe bots, water main patrolling robots being developed in a lab at sheffield university. this is a camera in the lights and there is a little microphone. the sensor—laden robots are small enough to travel through a pipe

and check for damage. it's a very long network. it's about a million kilometers. so in order to understand what's going on in the pipe, we need to have a presence of robots in the pipes so we can continuously collect data about onset of faults. the first teams of artificially intelligent pipe bots could be put to work underground within five years. the tiny machines are designed to be deposited into manholes, then search for faults and cracks before pipes burst or leak. if you think about the state of our infrastructure, it is so urgent to do something. ir' underground, it's inaccessible. it's underground, it's inaccessible. these are some of the most inhospitable environments on earth. without robotics, we're just not going to be able to do it. essex and suffolk water is also testing sealants that can be injected into pipes to plug leaks without having to dig. but with the smallest leaks still so difficult to locate, for now, they'll have to keep excavating. victoria gill, bbc news.

it was ten years ago that the uk's first hand transplant took place at leeds general infirmary, improving the life of the recipient mark cahill immeasurably. a decade on, he's still doing well and has been back to the hospital to meet the surgeon who carried out the pioneering procedure. good to see you again. good to see you. a handshake that tells an incredible story. the patient and the surgeon who changed his life. even more amazingly, mark cahill�*s hand used to be someone else's. he received it in the uk's first hand transplant operation, ten years ago today. the hand arrived by ambulance here at leeds general infirmary. we'll prep, thanks. i got the call. it was a strange one, you know. sort of all sorts go through your mind, you see. will it be successful, will it not be successful? will i like it, will i not like it? because you don't know these things

until actually after the operation. mark had lost all use of his right hand because of gout and felt the new procedure was a risk worth taking. the operation went smoothly, but no—one knew how well mark would recover. we'd never done this, it was an emerging technology. we'd rehearsed, we'd planned, we'd tried to consider everything that could happen and go wrong and go right. but still, our hearts were in our mouths for a good week. any tiny rash or anything was a cause for enormous concern. but i do remember waking up in the high dependency unit afterwards and prof came in and says, "let's have a look." and i could just move my fingers just a slight bit and prof says, "0h, don't do thatjust yet." so i thought, well, it's working already. it was incredible that it moved so quickly. he sailed through it. he healed very well. he went on to rehabilitate very well indeed. and as you've seen today, he uses his hand completely

naturally and normally. now, just in case you thought this story couldn't get any more extraordinary, have a listen to this. mark's hand changed his life and saved someone else's. my wife had a cardiac arrest and she died for 19 minutes. for ten, at least ten of them. i kept her alive doing heart compressions with my right hand. and i don't remember anything probably 12 days after. he wouldn't have been able to do that if he hadn't have had the donation in the first place. eight patients have had hand transplants in the uk so far. but mark and simon say it should be made easier to donate one. it would be helpful if hands were recognised as an organ that you can nominate when you join the organ donor register and say, not only do i wish to give my heart, my lungs, my kidneys, my liver, but also my limbs. that would make it a lot easier for the bereaved family who are under enormous stress

at the time of your death to make a decision about that very generous donation that helps another person. for mark, boxing day will always be particularly special. to the team here, thank you very much because they all actually volunteered, didn't get paid for this. they came in on their own backs and they had to start early boxing day and get everything ready. all the lot have been absolutely fantastic. and how's life now? 0h, life's fine now, it's great. yeah, amazing. dave edwards, bbc news, leeds. absolutely remarkable. let's get the latest sport now. chetan is here in the studio. no shortage of football over the last few weeks but fans of the premier league header breakfrom it and the wait is over. it is, we have never had this before, the winter break with the world cup in the middle. six weeks ago, we last saw the premier league and some real questions about what

the players were going to come back like. antonio conte, the boss of spurs, saying they might not play any of their world cup players today. but then pep guardiola saying his players have come back better than the players that were left behind. , ,, behind. intriguing times. seven matches this _ behind. intriguing times. seven matches this boxing _ behind. intriguing times. seven matches this boxing day - behind. intriguing times. seven matches this boxing day in - behind. intriguing times. seven matches this boxing day in the | matches this boxing day in the premier league. the premier league's back after an extended break for the world cup, with arsenal hoping they can do what every other team side that won 12 of their first 1a games did and that's win the title. joe lynskey reports now starting with a reminder of where we left things in mid—november. 0n the 13th of november, manchester united beat fulham and the premier league hit pause. football went from the banks of the thames to the sands of the desert, as 133 players left england's top flight for qatar. through the highs and the hurt of the fifa world cup, now the six—week break is done. a new nation are world champions. i'ts argentina, kings of football! and this sport's cycle goes on.

in that last weekend, a gap was forged. manchester city lost to brentford so arsenal topped the league by five points. now they look to stay there from boxing day through to may. first up for them, it's west ham at home. we know the importance of starting strong again, we're playing at home, it's a very special day in premier league history. it's a very special family day to play football, it's an incredible atmosphere that day and we want to make the most of it. the team behind them at the top could soon be newcastle united. they pick up from five straight wins with a trip to leicester city. but this is a fresh start and for each team, the unfamiliar. some players might have burn—out, while some have barely played. the world cup was squeezed into the winter, but the break at home had to be managed. the breakfor me has been a good one. i have personally enjoyed it, we went to australia,

we had a good trip, we won a couple of games, we saw our fan base out there and we have been working hard on things that we probably, well, we know we can improve on. really looking forward to what's coming up. we know it is intense and there are never guarantees out there, and we know that all the others, i can imagine arsenal and everybody is buzzing to go again. first up is the lunchtime london derby when brentford welcome spurs. a game just eight days on from the world cup final. in this unique season, one thing has stayed the same. forfans at top—flight games on boxing day, it's good to be back. joe lynskey, bbc news. i mentioned tottenham boss antonio conte, who says he could rest all his world cup stars for spurs' early kick—off at brentford. one man who will be desperate to get back out on the pitch is harry kane who missed that crucial penalty in england's world cup quarterfinal against france. but looking ahead to the rest

of the season, conte believes that this setback won't impact the striker�*s performances. we are strong, we are strong, we are strong people. who play at this level, has to be strong. in every situation, negative or positive situation, and try to address positive or negative events in the right way. because you have to be strong, and that is a strong person. because you have to be strong, and harry is a strong person. 3pm kick—offs, villa against liverpool and others. those who have been missing the premier league have a dizzy day ahead of them if they want to watch those games. absolutely, football in abundance. it is 6:31am. you are watching breakfast with me. let's have a quick summary of today's main stories. police are appealing for information after a gunman shot and killed a 26—year—old woman at a pub in wallasey

village on merseyside. 0fficers believe the woman, who was out with her sister and friends, was not the intended target. four men were wounded, one is in a critical condition. 38 people are now known to have died as a result of a severe winter storm sweeping across the united states and canada. there have been days of disruption caused by the snow, icy conditions and freezing temperatures. forecasters say the storm will ease off in the next few days, but people are still being advised not to travel unless it's essential. rescue teams are searching for survivors of an avalanche in austria. two people remain missing after a number of skiers were buried by snow near a resort in the west of the country. helicopters and rescue dogs are involved in the effort. here in the uk, the met office has issued two yellow weather warnings for today. snow and ice is expected across parts of scotland

and northern ireland, while the environment agency has issued 42 active alerts for possible flooding in england. travel disruption will continue today as striking railway workers bring boxing day train services to a halt. network rail has said railways across the uk will remain closed for a second day due to a walk—out by the rmt union. there are warnings of congestion on the roads as people are forced to find other ways to travel. the international rescue committee has become the latest foreign aid organisation to suspend its work in afghanistan. it comes after the taliban said women could no longer work at humanitarian agencies. the committee said it couldn't operate without its afghan female staff. the nhs will pilot schemes in 1a areas in england to identify more people with the early stages of dementia. specialist nurses and professionals will proactively assess hundreds of people who might be at risk

in care homes. the new scheme comes as the nhs leading dementia expert said that family and friends can play a key role in spotting signs of the condition. now for a look back at some of the big stories of the year, and bbc news reflects on the last 12 months, which saw the economy being squeezed and rising costs dominating headlines. when big ben brought in the new year, few of us would have expected the year that was to follow. remember, in 2022 we started off very much in the grip of a global pandemic. who would have thought that another worldwide story would dominate the news agenda? tonight at 10, we are live in ukraine, a country at war, after a huge russian military

offensive by land, sea and air. prices quickly rose to their fastest rate in over a0 years, and inflation touched everything, from our household bills to our wages and our hopes for the future. the global economy was already suffering from a long covid, with hold—ups in supply chains causing headaches and higher bills for business. countries from france to finland faced a double blow of rising inflation, and at best, slowing growth, but a war in europe and the sanctions that followed changed everything. and at home, westminster struggled to provide the answer. 0ra team or a team sheet. this is it, folks. with no fewer than three prime ministers in less than two months, this year, britain's seen its fastest turnover at number ten for nearly a century, and it was hardly quieter at number11. and you will be chancellor and liz truss will be prime minister

this time next month? absolutely, 100%. i'm not going anywhere. less that 2a hours after kwasi kwarteng insisted he was 100% safe in hisjob as chancellor, he has gone. three weeks of turmoil on the financial markets has culminated in this, another dizzying day in politics. jeremy hunt is now tasked with bringing the financial turmoil under control. what can he do? it's third year unlucky for many firms. when our business editor went to visit south shields beach in march, just a few weeks after russia invaded ukraine, he found one fish and chip shop already feeling the hit. the war in ukraine seems a long way away from this beach in south shields, but the soaring price of potato, fish, oil, the energy to cook them, is in part due to that conflict. it is causing a cost of living and cost of doing business emergency, which has very much arrived on these shores and the firms we work for, its products and services we buy are desperate for some kind

of financial lifeline. simon, the energy to cook that meal is up 400%, and that is at the heart of the story, isn't it? yes, the story of 2022 has been energy and inflation. we were already seeing inflation this time last year, as the world economy emerged from a covid—induced coma. you had economies coming back from a deep freeze, some supply chain issues, prices beginning to rise, but then the big event, which was russia's invasion of ukraine. that sent the energy markets into a tail spin, because russia is an enormous exporter of oil and gas. you saw those supplies shut off or shunned by the rest of world, who didn't want to finance the russian war effort. energy prices ballooned, particularly gas, went up fivefold and then tenfold, and that gets into everything, like electricity, because you use gas to produce electricity. and it wasn'tjust the energy prices. things like food. ukraine and russia big exporters of wheat. and fertiliser. a lot of people didn't see that coming. the fertiliser which other countries

use to produce their food, so you saw inflation in those areas too. and there can't be a single individual, government, business, that wasn't affected by inflation, and continues to be so. for businesses, they get a double whammy, because while their costs are going up, as you saw in that film there, their customers' pockets are being emptied by that same inflation, that double whammy, which is why richard 0rd, in that film there, feared his business and thousands of others might not survive. seen hundreds of shops already that haven't been able to cope with the price increases, and unfortunately things are getting worse. the sooner we can get something sorted with the price increases, the better, or we will see a lot of your local fish and chips gone. since you made that film, the government has responded in the form of the energy support package, what kind of difference has that made? i think it's made a massive difference.

i think the government realised that, without that, people were looking at energy bills of £5,000—£6,000 a year, and that would derail the economy completely, so they had to step in. so they have been subsidising bills since then, and it has cost them tens of billions of pounds, but i don't think they felt they had any choice. and if you look around the world, other governments have done similar things. the question is — how long can they afford to keep doing that? and that depends on how long we see energy prices this high. i think that is the big imponderable of next year is — where does this end? even before the war started, inflation was beginning to seep into many aspects of british life, and the bank of england was already beginning to raise rates. and the governor? well, he was telling our economics editor that we should be restraining ourselves when it comes to pay. what we can do is try to prevent it becoming, it spreading, inflation spreading, inflation becoming more engrained. are you trying to get into peoples' heads and ask them for them not

to ask for too high pay rises? broadly, yes. really? in the sense of saying we do need to see moderation of wage rises. now, that is painful. an unusually blunt acknowledgement of yet another battle raging in the british economy. after a decade of stagnation, many workers, including those in the public sector, are unlikely and unwilling to allow another fall in their living standards. a fresh wave of strike action on the railways, causing huge disruption. we understand the anger caused by the disruption of the stoppages, of course, but we are getting a lot of support from the public. there isn't a bottomless pit- of money to pay increased salaries. i think there's a fair offer on the table. i 40,000 members of the rmt are walking out for four days this week. this year, britain has faced its biggest set of rail strikes in 30 years, affecting england, scotland and wales.

i do hope the reasons why the strike is on is being looked into already, and hopefully we should get back, because it is really exhausting. if we are going to strike about something, you can negotiate first and negotiate, negotiate until conclusion. if it doesn't come to anything, then strike at a time that causes the least disruption to people. so there has been public support for industrial action, but not everyone is sympathetic, and it often comes at a cost, doesn't it, katie? yes, there is a cost to the economy and also to the workers themselves, because they lose pay when they are on strike. and this dispute has been going on for months, no obvious end in sight. the unions say rail workers just haven't had a pay rise in far too long, and the cost of living is increasing. the government and the rail industry say they want to give a pay rise but changes to working practices have to happen, because they say covid has presented such a big financial challenge to the railway. these days, of course,

more people can work from home than in the past, so the impact on commuters is perhaps a bit less than it would have been in years gone by, but the passengers ultimately who do need to travel, and a lot of businesses, are the ones caught in the middle, and back injune i went and spoke to the manager of a pub in portsmouth about the difficult choices he has had to make. i think we will lose 30% of normal trade. a lot of that is because a big part of our trade is commuters. unfortunately, i will have to cut back on my staffing levels, that is another hit for my staff. we have been hearing about the impact of transport chaos on city centres here in the uk and the toll it is taking on pubs and restaurants. what we have seen is footfall in city centres down by 30—40%, but in central london and in the city it has been down as low as 50—60%, and on top of the cancelled christmas parties and bookings,

you have seen walk—in trade also decimated. it is hitting retailers too, but there is a warning for anyone tempted to skip the late christmas shopping trip and buy online. according to the british independent retailers association, if you want gifts in time for christmas, you will have to go shop in person, because of the ongoing strike disruption to postal services. more sectors have joined the picket lines — teachers and unity lecturers. teachers and university lecturers. and for the first time in 106 years, the royal college of nursing decided to strike this year. we are operationalising plans, we have a great team, cobra team, doing this every day, so whether it is our military personnel we have trained up, or a surge capacity, that we can actually make sure things like borders are safe and protected, and of course people's lives are not disrupted.

a lot of us are more conscious of prices these days, and people have started trading down, and that has caused a revolution in the bottom line for discounters. what we are seeing is an unprecedented shift in customer behaviour, and we are seeing customers reprioritising value like never before, and switching their shopping to aldi. and we are winning shoppers from all of the traditional full price supermarkets. this year, we thought differently and acted accordingly. in the summer, bbc news commissioned some research looking into how inflation is affecting our behaviour. and this is what it found. eight out of ten people in that survey told us they were worried about cost of living pressures, that is up from six in ten injanuary. more than half said it was having a negative impact on their mental health. people are having to cut back, they are saying, more than half said to us they are spending less when they do their weekly shop. they are cutting back on that. they are not only spending less on food and groceries, they are also eating less. this is the really worrying thing — more than half said they have skipped at least one meal to try

and save money, and four out of ten say it is affecting their physical health. this was the situation our economics editorfound in a church in usworth, near sunderland. workers crowded round radiators to keep warm, and pensioners fearing they can't afford the most basic of foods. butter is a luxury now, for most people, i would think. it really is. we come to somewhere like this, which is a godsend, where we can have a hot meal, sit beside a nice warm radiator. literally by the radiator. that's right, yes, it's a nice warm radiator. you are here because it will save you having to... it saves a lot from home, a lot of cooking at home, which costs us money. food bill alone has come down because we come here. so, colletta, you are our bbc cost of living correspondent, you have been up and down the country, in and out of people's homes and businesses. what is it you have found?

there's two really different groups of people i have encountered. particularly in the last few months, that are quite distinctive. one is the group of people who have probably been in fuel poverty for quite some time, are potentially more used to living on a budget, perhaps they live on benefits, perhaps they have just had a limited income, and a lot of those individuals are very good at budgeting but have made all the cuts they can. so, when energy prices went up in september 2021, that was their first big shock, that many of us across the country didn't really feel that much or were able to take it in our stride. but for a lot of those individuals, they were hit with it more than a year ago. so this year has been sort of, you know, slice after slice of their income being removed, and it has been incredibly difficult for them. it has got really bad ever since the gas went up. i'm just constantly paying gas. i'm paying triple my gas this month

to the month before. like, i have put £100 a week on, and that isjust far too much, i am buying cheaper mince, cheaper chicken. how does it feel about the prospect of having to spend less on your daughter? how do you feel about that as a parent? heartbreaking, it is absolutely heartbreaking because you want to give your child the world. i suppose there is a second group of people who have become evident in the last few months, and that is people who are, i suppose very overstretched financially, but are in work. so the sort of typical example of that is two parents in work, but reasonable—sized house, they have a big mortgage, perhaps they have got two cars but they are on car finance for that, and that means that really as soon as those energy bills really went up in september, october of this year, they didn't have anywhere to go in terms of finances. loads of people suddenly become conscious of, you know, their smart meter or the bills are coming in every month or so, and thinking what can

they do to limit that use of energy in particular. for a lot of households, that has been a good wake—up call. "let's not leave the telly on, let's not turn the lights on when we don't need them, turn radiators off." there is information about ways you be more energy—efficient, there is information about ways to be more energy—efficient, but there are lots of organisations trying to help, there are charities. what are the sort of schemes that you have come across that you think have really stood out for you and are making a difference for people? we went to visit a plumber north of manchester that does a lot of work for free, we went to visit a project in liverpool teaching people how to cook on a single stove, because that is what a lot of people have in their bedsits, just one stove, or how to use a microwave effectively. and this is a chef doing this in his free time to help out people who really need it at the moment. a lot of individuals that can't cope

with being, you know, a lot of individuals that can't cope with being, you know... a food bankjust recently, who are really struggling with the amount of donations they are getting, because they are not being given as much, and they have double the amount of people they are trying to help and service. but so many more volunteers. it is incredible to see people just giving up their own free time to make these kind of places work. as pressure on the uk economy grew, the political landscape was changing. hasta la vista, baby. borisjohnson stood down, and after a summer of campaigning, a new leader emerged, as the threat of recession began to loom. liz truss becomes prime minister. kwasi kwarteng becomes chancellor. and they go hell—for—leather for what they said was a growth strategy, and what was interesting was what was happening internally in the treasury. i found out that a forecast, the numbers had been prepared by the office for budget responsibility in draft form, to provide

the underpinning fro any policies. they were dire numbers, and in any ordinary circumstances, an incoming chancellor may have tweaked — i say tweak, provided some pretty massive surgery to their plans. that didn't happen, those forecasts were ignored, parked, forgotten about, and they went even further in terms of tax cuts and further borrowing, and just said, "we are not going to publish a set of forecasts." that was really damaging, that decision not to publish the 0br forecast, because that is the thing that international investors, everyone else is looking at to say is this legit, does this make sense? yes. itjust shows a certain discipline of having gone through the numbers, and accepted a certain economic orthodoxy, the rules of the game. now, they were explicit that they didn't like the existing rules of the economic game, they wanted to chuck them. the result was bedlam.

i have been following budgets for 20 years, and you watch the screens for the impact on the currency markets, on the value of the pound, on the cost of government borrowing, and ordinarily it never happens, it's a bit of a non—event, even thought you're waiting. this time, right from the off, it was an extraordinary movement in financial markets. you could see it flowing tangibly into the real economy. that had started to spook the guys and girls in there, and they had to step in. with emergency intervention. doing the exact opposite of what they said they were going to do a week before, clear sign of a crisis, clear sign of emergency action, and at that point, you started to see the tanker turning round, very slowly. and then when the chancellor was in the us at the imf meetings, his budget was being effectively unpicked by his prime minister, an extraordinary situation. very rare to get the bank

of england governor coming out and talking to you on camera, but he did do it for my team in washington. he wanted to get the message across clearly that the support they put in place had to end. we are doing everything to preserve financial stability. you know, you have my assurance on that. i think there is an important task now for the funds to ensure they are done. sterling has fallen in response to what you have said, they have three days. does this complicate matters? no, i'm afraid this has to be done for the sake of financial stability. over the course of a weekend, we get a new chancellor who decides to do things differently. plans that had been laid out a few dozen days before, and all of them that hadn't already been legislated for were wiped off the slate. it lists all the measures and their costings, and it is basically,

"that's kept, gone, gone, gone, that's kept, gone, gone, gone, gone, gone, gone ,gone] right? extraordinary stuff. we have never seen anything like that. when you see how economic changes are like a giant wrecking ball changing everything, and it must be said primarily, individuals, households facing this unprecedented squeeze, that has come directly from geopolitical instability, leading to just frankly, just unfathomable rises in energy bills. but then also food bills and mortgage costs, all hitting at the same time, and the instant impact that's had on politics, essentially. then some bad calls, or some badly communicated calls, meaning a governmentjust lasting over a0 days, all because of essentially, economics.

there is nothing like it, and we are not, kind of, through it, either. the uk is far from the only country experiencing high interest rates or borrowing costs. the economic climate is changing for everyone. britain is an island nation. it benefits from foreign direct investments and trade. here is the head of the international chamber of commerce talking to me in november, at the time of the autumn statement, and pointing to the office of budget responsibility�*s own forecasts. i would have liked to have seen a bit more honesty, to be truthful. there was no mention of the big b word, brexit, you know. we are 4% poorer as a country as a result of brexit, so that is one of the main reasons why we have a hole in our public finances, so it is notjust about international issues, it is about the decisions we made in the past. if we are asking millions of people and businesses to pay more taxes, i think they deserve the right to be

told and acknowledged that was part of the issue as to why that is happening. the big takeaway for me was there is no mention of trade. trade is 60% of the uk economy. it drives and safeguards and generates thousands ofjobs across every region in the economy, and there was no mention of it at all. the confederation of british industry is one of a growing number calling on the government to re—examine britain's post—brexit trading arrangements and the visa system supporting foreign labour. there is going to be quite a shallow recession, but the question really now facing policy makers, facing all of us, is how do we make sure it gets no worse, how do we make sure we come out of it at the end of the year? and that comes down to this serial british problem of business investment. what of energy prices and inflation? we return to our business editor, simonjack. we could be here in a few months' time and inflation might be zero, and the reason it might be zero is because you are comparing

these high prices to the high prices of a year ago. but that doesn't mean that extra money, that money people are spending on energy, hasn't been a permanent hit to their living standards. we have seen the biggest squeeze on living standards in 70 years, and even if inflation is zero in a few months' time, it won't feel like that, and a lot will depend on what happens in the russia situation. i can't myself see vladimir putin saying, "it was a fair fight, we came off second best, we are off home and have crimea back," which is what ukraine wants, so that stand—off is going to be all—importa nt. so that is going to be the biggest issue. the other one will be what happens to global interest rates. we have seen after years of them being almost close to zero, they have gone up very quickly to try and get inflation in check. now, when you increase interest rates from near zero to 4—5% in the space of nine months, after a decade of them being low, unexpected and bad things start to happen, and i think you will be basically seeing major economies, perhaps even including the us,

slide into recession. the uk is predicted to be in recession for most of 2023, so it won't be...i can't give you a massive message of good will for next year. it is going to be tough, but hopefully inflation will begin to come down and that will make people feel a bit more stable. because it has been one of the greatest shocks to the system that western europe has seen since the second world war. after two years of covid, another huge, seismic shock to the world economy was something that everyone, including the uk, wanted to avoid, but of all g7 industrialised countries, britain is the only one with an economy that is smaller than before the pandemic started. yes, 0k, transport and fuel bills might start coming down, but food bills, those are still rising, and that means inflation is still comfortably outstripping average wage increases for the public and private sector, and that is a deeply uncomfortable place for businesses and homes

to close out the year. 2022 was a year of difficult questions without many answers, watched on by a nation gripped by a deep cost of living crisis, and shouldering the highest taxes since world war ii. debate, though, is beginning to shift from the scale of the economic problems we face to the nature of the solutions we must find.

good morning, welcome to breakfast with me ben boulos. the headlines today. police hunting a gunman who shot dead a woman at a busy merseyside

pub on christmas eve say she wasn't the intended target of the shooting. more than 30 people have died in the severe winter storm sweeping across the united states and canada. how could the cost of living crisis and a train strike impact the sales traditionally on boxing day? i am traditionally on boxing day? i am here to talk _ traditionally on boxing day? i am here to talk to _ traditionally on boxing day? i am here to talk to customers - traditionally on boxing day? i am here to talk to customers and retail bosses. after six weeks off for the world cup, the premier league returns, but tottenham boss antonio conte says he could rest all his world cup stars for their boxing day match at brentford. it's going to turn much colder for many as this boxing day, showers around as well, which could turn wintry towards north—western areas. all of the details throughout the programme. it's monday the 26th december.

our main story. police are appealing for information after a gunman shot dead a 26—year—old woman in merseyside on christmas eve. four other people were injured in the shooting in the lighthouse pub in wallasey. merseyside police said it did not believe the victim was targeted. judith moritz reports. late on christmas eve, the lighthouse pub was full of people counting down the minutes towards midnight. it was a lively scene, butjust before 12:00am the pub's neighbours heard a particularly loud noise. i was in bed and i was on phone and i heard a bang, bang, bang, bang —fourtimes. i waited, because i thought it was going to be a firework and i thought i would hear the ssh. but then i didn't hear the shush. a gunman opened fire directly towards the front door of the pub, his shots hitting a 26—year—old woman in the head. despite efforts to save her,

she died of her injuries. herfamily are said to be inconsolable. he also shot another four people, one of whom is in a critical condition. the fact that this has happened on christmas eve makes the tragedy even more unpalatable and shows those responsible have no regard for members of the public who just want to be able to live their lives without fear. at the time the offender fired the gun there were a large number of people enjoying a night out at the lighthouse inn, and the actions of the gunman were totally and utterly reckless. there's been a lot of focus recently on gun crime on merseyside, especially following the shooting of a nine—year—old girl in liverpool in august. the police tell me that it's too soon to know whether this shooting is connected to any others, but also say that despite what's been happening, the rate of guns being fired in their force area is lower than it's been in the past. this church is almost next door to the pub, and within hours of the shooting its minister found

himself giving the christmas sermon in the shadow of a crime scene. god in christ is with us, he's the prince of peace, so it made it rather poignant this morning, preaching that message in the backdrop of what had happened a few hours earlier, when someone had lost their life, and the tragedy and the violence that ensued there. the pub's owners have given cctv material to the police, who say they are looking for a dark mercedes a—class car. they are appealing for anyone with information or camera footage to come forward. judith moritz, bbc news, wallasey, on merseyside. 38 people are now known to have died as a result of a severe winter storm sweeping across the united states and canada. there have been days of disruption caused by the snow,

icy conditions and freezing temperatures as nomia iqbal reports. a very white christmas has turned more into a deep freeze. the city of buffalo in new york state is used to tough weather conditions, but this storm has left it paralysed. many don't even have any power to cook the christmas lunch. i'm really glad that i have a fireplace because otherwise i'd be freezing right now. driving is banned, as the blizzard conditions leave roads impassable. power substations frozen, and at least seven people dead. we are in a war, this is a war with mother nature. and she has been hitting us with everything she has since the late hours of thursday and friday, saturday, and this will go down in history as the most devastating storm in buffalo's long and storied history of having battled many battles, many major storms. in the midwest, four people

were killed earlier in the week in a pile—up in ohio. four others died in crashes in missouri and kansas. the nation's capital has avoided much of the worst weather, but the bomb cyclone has left its mark. hundreds of water pipes are frozen, temperatures continue to drop, and many of the city's homeless people have been given emergency shelter. the storm is continuing to barrel up along the east coast here and across much of the us, and the advice remains to avoid travelling unless it is essential. and it's notjust the snow and ice causing mayhem. high winds have brought high tides and flooding on the eastern seaboard. forecasters say the storm will ease off in the next few days, but freezing temperatures are likely to linger for some time. nomia iqbal, bbc news, washington. rescue teams are searching for survivors of an avalanche in austria. two people remain missing after a number of skiers were buried by snow near a resort in the west of the country.

helicopters and rescue dogs are involved in the effort. here in the uk, the met office has issued two yellow weather warnings for today. snow and ice is expected across parts of scotland and northern ireland while the environment agency has issued 42 active alerts for possible flooding in england. travel disruption will continue today as striking railway workers bring boxing day train services to a halt. network rail has said railways across the uk will remain closed for a second day due to a walk—out by the rmt union. there are warnings of congestion on the roads as people are forced to find other ways to travel. the international rescue committee has become the latest foreign aid organisation to suspend its work in afghanistan. it comes after the taliban said women could no longer work at humanitarian agencies. the committee said it couldn't operate without its afghan female staff.

the nhs is to pilot schemes in 1a areas in england to identify more people with the early stages of dementia. specialist nurses and professionals will proactively assess hundreds of people who might be at risk in care homes. the new scheme comes as the nhs leading dementia expert said that family and friends can play a key role in spotting signs of the condition. the traditional boxing day sales get under way today but its expected sales will be down from last year as the cost of living crisis continues. peter ruddick is at shopping centre in liverpool. peter, any queues? it is still a little early for boxing day sale queues to be forming? it’s little early for boxing day sale queues to be forming?- little early for boxing day sale queues to be forming? it's a little bit earl , queues to be forming? it's a little bit early, relatively _

queues to be forming? it's a little bit early, relatively quiet - queues to be forming? it's a little bit early, relatively quiet outside, j bit early, relatively quiet outside, but boxing day is still a very traditional diver rating list so when you come inside the store, things are busier. lauren is here getting some of the stock ready for this morning. not everywhere is open today, places like next, john lewis, home bargains, m&s, all keeping the shutters shut until tomorrow. places like primus, zara and boots will be open. we are expecting 13 million people to hit high streets like this one in liverpool to pick up a bargain. will the cost of living crisis and the train strikes that thing? let's bring in mike who is general manager here. it is 7am on boxing day, which means at some point over christmas day, thoughts turn to work, what point? it point over christmas day, thoughts turn to work, what point?— turn to work, what point? it was christmas _ turn to work, what point? it was christmas eve, _ turn to work, what point? it was christmas eve, to _ turn to work, what point? it was christmas eve, to be _ turn to work, what point? it was christmas eve, to be honest! i turn to work, what point? it was i christmas eve, to be honest! how turn to work, what point? it was - christmas eve, to be honest! how big is boxin: christmas eve, to be honest! how big is boxing day — christmas eve, to be honest! how big is boxing day for— christmas eve, to be honest! how big is boxing day for you? _ christmas eve, to be honest! how big is boxing day for you? it _ christmas eve, to be honest! how big is boxing day for you? it is _ christmas eve, to be honest! how big is boxing day for you? it is one - christmas eve, to be honest! how big is boxing day for you? it is one of- is boxing day for you? it is one of the biggest _ is boxing day for you? it is one of the biggest days _ is boxing day for you? it is one of the biggest days of— is boxing day for you? it is one of the biggest days of the _ is boxing day for you? it is one of the biggest days of the year - is boxing day for you? it is one of the biggest days of the year for i is boxing day for you? it is one of. the biggest days of the year for us. not everywhere is open, so does that

impact how many people head out to the shops? places likejohn lewis are a big draw for people in deliverable.— are a big draw for people in deliverable. , ., , , deliverable. does that being shut stop numbers? — deliverable. does that being shut stop numbers? i _ deliverable. does that being shut stop numbers? i wouldn't - deliverable. does that being shut stop numbers? i wouldn't say - deliverable. does that being shut| stop numbers? i wouldn't say so, people _ stop numbers? iwouldn't say so, people still— stop numbers? i wouldn't say so, people still want to come and find some _ people still want to come and find some bargains, for the guys that are open, _ some bargains, for the guys that are open, we _ some bargains, for the guys that are open, we are — some bargains, for the guys that are open, we are going to see a huge trading _ open, we are going to see a huge trading day. open, we are going to see a huge trading day-— trading day. when i got this morning. — trading day. when i got this morning. i— trading day. when i got this morning, i was _ trading day. when i got this morning, i was wondering l trading day. when i got this morning, i was wondering if trading day. when i got this - morning, i was wondering if people would be around, and that we have seen people knocking on the doors to be letting? are you expecting to be bought? it’s be letting? are you expecting to be bou:ht? �*, , .,, be letting? are you expecting to be bou:ht? �*, , ., ., be letting? are you expecting to be bouuht? �*, , .,, ., ., ., bought? it's people who have got cash and gift _ bought? it's people who have got cash and gift cards _ bought? it's people who have got cash and gift cards for— bought? it's people who have got cash and gift cards for christmas, j bought? it's people who have got i cash and gift cards for christmas, a lot of— cash and gift cards for christmas, a lot ofjumpers, footwear and lot of jumpers, footwear and accessories, lot ofjumpers, footwear and accessories, are generally big date to be _ accessories, are generally big date to be honest. in accessories, are generally big date to be honest-— accessories, are generally big date to be honest. in terms of the stock ou have to be honest. in terms of the stock you have got. _ to be honest. in terms of the stock you have got. how _ to be honest. in terms of the stock you have got, how much _ to be honest. in terms of the stock you have got, how much is - to be honest. in terms of the stock you have got, how much is on - you have got, how much is on discount and what is the size of the deals? some of the big names have gone for quite discounts. bare deals? some of the big names have gone for quite discounts.— gone for quite discounts. are we doinu u- gone for quite discounts. are we doing up to _ gone for quite discounts. are we

doing up to 5096 _ gone for quite discounts. are we doing up to 50% off— gone for quite discounts. are we doing up to 50% off all— gone for quite discounts. are we doing up to 5096 off all brands, i doing up to 50% off all brands, discounts— doing up to 50% off all brands, discounts pretty much on 90% of the brands _ discounts pretty much on 90% of the brands across the store anyway. we have gone _ brands across the store anyway. we have gone pretty big on the sale this year — have gone pretty big on the sale this year. we have gone pretty big on the sale this ear. ~ ., , ., ~ this year. we have been talking about football _ this year. we have been talking about football which _ this year. we have been talking about football which is - this year. we have been talking about football which is crucial i this year. we have been talking | about football which is crucial for shops as well as sales, impacted by the train strikes, the cold weather, how difficult was the beginning of december? the how difficult was the beginning of december? , ., , . , december? the beginning of december was a bit slow. — december? the beginning of december was a bit slow, christmas _ december? the beginning of december was a bit slow, christmas didn't - was a bit slow, christmas didn't kick in— was a bit slow, christmas didn't kick in until _ was a bit slow, christmas didn't kick in until the middle of december. i would say it really kicked — december. i would say it really kicked in — december. i would say it really kicked in and around the 15th, when peopie _ kicked in and around the 15th, when people really started to heavily shop _ people really started to heavily shop for — people really started to heavily shop for christmas.— people really started to heavily shop for christmas. people really started to heavily sho for christmas. ., . ., ., , shop for christmas. come january, we alwa s sa shop for christmas. come january, we always say it. — shop for christmas. come january, we always say it. but _ shop for christmas. come january, we always say it, but this _ shop for christmas. come january, we always say it, but this december - always say it, but this december period is so important for retailers and hospitality businesses because january tends to be quite quiet time. what happens injanuary in the store? we time. what happens in january in the store? ~ , , ., ., time. what happens in january in the store? , , ., ., ., store? we still see quite a lot of footfall, a _ store? we still see quite a lot of footfall, a lot _ store? we still see quite a lot of footfall, a lot of _ store? we still see quite a lot of footfall, a lot of people - store? we still see quite a lot of footfall, a lot of people are - store? we still see quite a lot of footfall, a lot of people are into | footfall, a lot of people are into fitness — footfall, a lot of people are into fitness in — footfall, a lot of people are into fitness in january so a lot of peopie _ fitness in january so a lot of people then move from smarter where to performance where. we do still see a _ to performance where. we do still see a lot _ to performance where. we do still see a lot of—

to performance where. we do still see a lot of people are around, but they go— see a lot of people are around, but they go from smart clothing to performance clothing. we have sto - ed performance clothing. we have stopped you — performance clothing. we have stopped you for _ performance clothing. we have stopped you for so _ performance clothing. we have stopped you for so long, - performance clothing. we have stopped you for so long, thank| performance clothing. we have - stopped you for so long, thank you for your time. two or three people already knocking and saying, are you open? so we are expecting quite a few people to head into stores like this and others in liverpool. the big question is, what is going to given —— happen to footfall given the strikes and what is going to happen to sales given the cost of living crisis? a crucialfew happen to sales given the cost of living crisis? a crucial few weeks for retailers.— living crisis? a crucial few weeks for retailers. ., , ., , , ., , for retailers. have you seen people with bass for retailers. have you seen people with bags of _ for retailers. have you seen people with bags of gifts, _ for retailers. have you seen people with bags of gifts, they _ for retailers. have you seen people with bags of gifts, they have - for retailers. have you seen people with bags of gifts, they have to - for retailers. have you seen people with bags of gifts, they have to do | with bags of gifts, they have to do the whole, that is just what i have wanted, but they are taking the first opportunity to swap it? yes. first opportunity to swap it? yes, as well as — first opportunity to swap it? yes, as well as a _ first opportunity to swap it? yes, as well as a big _ first opportunity to swap it? yes, as well as a big data _ first opportunity to swap it? yes, as well as a big data sales, - first opportunity to swap it? yes, as well as a big data sales, a - first opportunity to swap it? 1a: as well as a big data sales, a big day for refunds, isn't it? make sure you have got the gift receipt, that is the crucial thing! bzierr; you have got the gift receipt, that is the crucial thing!— is the crucial thing! very good advice. is the crucial thing! very good advice- we — is the crucial thing! very good advice. we will _ is the crucial thing! very good advice. we will speak - is the crucial thing! very good advice. we will speak to - is the crucial thing! very good advice. we will speak to a - is the crucial thing! very good advice. we will speak to a bit| advice. we will speak to a bit later, thank you. war has transformed life

for millions of young ukrainians, many of whom are still living as refugees ten months after russia invaded their country. among them is teenager nika, who now lives in the uk and is coming to terms with the fact that she won't be able to return home anytime soon. sarah rainsford has been following herjourney. nobody here understands what i experienced. i hope they never will understand what experienced. when russia invaded her country, nika played piano to drown out the sound of the explosions. i was hearing bangs, bombs. iwas... it was quite loud, yeah. unfortunately, kharkiv is one of the most attacked cities in ukraine. we first met as her family were fleeing kharkiv.

nica was leaving her city and friends behind to become a refugee. oh, it may be misha. she's now at school in england, and we went to see how she's doing. i needed time to understand that now i'm in safe place. i don't have an air alarms every hour, and i don't need to think about, what if next second, bomb is going to be near me? the bombing of kharkiv was intense for months. hundreds of missiles fired by russian forces who only retreated in september. we found nica's old school there eerily empty. her teacher still comes in, but she's the only one because all lessons are online. most of nica's classmates fled too when war broke out here. maria is trying to stay positive

it'll end soon, but that's hard. kharkiv life is still a long way from normal. i went to meet nica's grandmother, who has no light or lift for hours a day because russian missiles are now targeting ukraine's power supply. it was nica's 16th birthday, so tamara called her at school to tell her she loves and misses her, and urge her to study well. it's the first time they've not celebrated together. "what have they done to us and what for?" she wants to know. and she means russia. no, this is already bad, but maybe it's going to be good. nica's meeting new friends in england, impressing new teachers, making the most of a life she never chose. but kharkiv is never farfrom her thoughts.

i want my home back. iwant my... my previous life back. but of course i know that it's not really possible. i would like peace and calmness in ukraine and i would like people to stop dying. sarah rainsford, bbc news. here's simon with a look at this morning's weather. where i was, it was a great and drizzly christmas, was it a white christmas for anyone? the definition is a snowflake falling somewhere in the uk and believe it or not we had a white christmas, the met office confirmed it, this is the radar image from yesterday, you can see the white here, those snow showers moved their way in so technically yes it was an official white christmas. but for most of us, it was not anything near a white christmas. today we have got some sunny spells, but it will turn

colderfor many of some sunny spells, but it will turn colder for many of us. some showers around as well. the colder air yesterday, moving in, all of us will be under the arctic feel today so you will notice the temperature. colder for scotland and northern ireland this morning, the risk of some ice, be aware if you are travelling early. further south, still relatively mild at the moment. plenty of sunshine across england and wales, some showers towards western areas. those will continue into the afternoon. still some snow across scotland, much of it in the higher ground. the lower level not too much. the chilly air across scotland and northern ireland, three to 5 degrees here, seven towards the south—east. we will continue with showers around western parts this evening but relatively quiet in the first part of the night but into tomorrow morning, we have a weather system which will gradually move in

from the atlantic. mild air will slowly push its way into getting rid of the arctic air, so still quite chilly with ice and frost first thing across scotland and eastern areas of england. the rain moving its way in quite quickly. as the rain bumps into the colder air, the risk of some snow across scotland tuesday. elsewhere a cloudy day, heavy rain especially to the south—west of england, across wales, temperatures coming back up double figures. especially across england and wales. as we go into the rest of the week, areas of low pressure moving into the atlantic which means it will be quite unsettled. the white lines getting closer into wednesday, so we have got another band of rain moving in and accompanied by some pretty strong winds throughout wednesday. that rainey is moving north and east, the risk of some snow across the higher ground of scotland. for many of us

are wet morning, dry in the afternoon. 11 to 12 in the south, in the north and east, seven or eight. these areas of low pressure continue to move in from at the lancet, some strong winds, to end 2022. —— from the atlantic. it will be unsettled, temperatures seven to 13. king charles used his first christmas speech to reflect on his personal loss and to thank the public for an outpouring of love and sympathy after his mother's death earlier this year. he also highlighted the "great anxiety and hardship" experienced by people struggling with the cost of living. at this time of great anxiety and hardship, be it for those around the world facing conflict, famine or natural disaster, or for those at home finding ways to pay their bills and keep their families fed and warm,

we see it in the humanity of people throughout our nations and the commonwealth who so readily respond to the plight of others. i particularly want to pay tribute to all those wonderfully kind people who so generously give food or donations or, that most precious commodity of all, their time, to support those around them in greatest need. together with the many charitable organisations which do such extraordinary work in the most difficult circumstances. 0ur churches, synagogues, mosques, temples and gurdwaras have once again united in feeding the hungry, providing love and support throughout the year. we can speak now to royal historian, kate williams, about the significance of the king's first speech.

what was your impression of it? i think as you said, this is a very significant speech because he talked so much about the cost of living will stop he talked so much about key workers, nurses, hospital workers, care workers and the armed forces, and in particularly about what they have been doing for the country. usually the moniker�*s speech is a year in review, what they have been doing. and the king has only been on the throne for a very short amount of time, so it was very short amount of time, so it was very much more focused on the loss of his mother, and really a tribute to the nation during a cost of living crisis. there wasn't anything about the platinum jubilee, there wasn't anything about other royal events, it was very much focused on the passing of his mother, the sympathy he has received, and the country during the cost of living. it was a very unique speech in terms of the monica's speech but i think one which will go down well because people obviously say, how come eight

monarch express simply on the cost of live each —— sympathy on the cost of live each —— sympathy on the cost of living when they live in a palace and it is a difficult thread. the li . ht and it is a difficult thread. the light overcoming _ and it is a difficult thread. the light overcoming the darkness, that was the king highlighting those people who are helping people who are suffering with the cost of living crisis, and it was very focused on community. living crisis, and it was very focused on communi . , ., , focused on community. yes, there was a subtle message, _ focused on community. yes, there was a subtle message, we _ focused on community. yes, there was a subtle message, we are _ focused on community. yes, there was a subtle message, we are seeing - focused on community. yes, there wasj a subtle message, we are seeing many key workers on strike at the moment and the king paid particular tribute to them, nurses, hospitalworkers and the king paid particular tribute to them, nurses, hospital workers in particular, and although there was a christian message, the queen's speeches were very focused on a christian message and the christian meaning of the holidays, charles did that and he talked about bethlehem but he also talked about faiths in general, about how christmas is not just a christian celebration, it's

also a celebration of light over dark. that's key to so many religions. we know that he wants to be defender of the faiths, he has talked about this, as opposed to defender of the faith. he talked particularly about how churches, gurdwaras, synagogues, and mosques all came together when it came to feeding the country. the all came together when it came to feeding the country.— all came together when it came to feeding the country. the look of the seech feeding the country. the look of the speech was — feeding the country. the look of the speech was very _ feeding the country. the look of the speech was very different _ feeding the country. the look of the speech was very different than - feeding the country. the look of the speech was very different than whatj speech was very different than what we have seen, it was done standing up we have seen, it was done standing up and it was in the royal chapel of windsor and not in the drawing room or living room in the palace. standing up, we believe it was recorded a few weeks ago, this was the last the queen because my father, —— mail monarch, that was the queen's father who passed away a few months later. he was standing in st george's chapel where his mother and father are buried, we saw the second part of the queen's funeral there, and we

saw it in the duke of edinburgh looked —— lockdown funeral where the queen was alone. charles was standing very close to the graves of henry viii and charles the first, in the middle of that area. choosing that chapel evokes the moment, evokes the passing of the queen and how significant this was for the country and the royal family. but it also means that there cannot be that scrutiny that there would be otherwise of someone in their room, people will be saying, which photo is where, who is there are not there, and some people would say, how can you say that people cannot heat their homes when you are surrounded by these expensive antiques? it's something very different you can do in a church. i think it was quite an acute choice of being in the church, i don't think we will see it again next year. it might be that we are beginning to see a new type of monarch's speech when they are no

longer in their own property, they are out and about. the queen wanted to be in her living room talking to people in their living room, that's what she wanted, but i think that intimacy has been established so perhaps we will see charles going to different locations see his speeches in the future, maybe we will see that change. it in the future, maybe we will see that change-— in the future, maybe we will see that change. it was interesting to see the family — that change. it was interesting to see the family gathering - that change. it was interesting to see the family gathering at - see the family gathering at sandringham, the traditional place, the first time charles leading the family to and from church. that must have been very tinged with poignancy, the first and they are there without his mother. i poignancy, the first and they are there without his mother. i think it is. the there without his mother. i think it is- the queen _ there without his mother. i think it is. the queen very _ there without his mother. i think it is. the queen very much _ there without his mother. i think it is. the queen very much loved - is. the queen very much loved sandringham's christmases, big family gatherings, she thought it was very important to the royal family so he is keeping up that tradition and going to sandringham himself. but it's not the same without her. it's been an adjustment period very much for the royal family, life without the queen and life with charles as monarch. he has been waiting for the job for a long

time. that doesn't make it any necessarily easier to have that transition moment. the crowds are out there to see everyone there, and you have got harry and meghan who are not there at christmas. we hope they will be invited to the coronation and they will come to that, they do add a lot of pizzazz to the royal family, that, they do add a lot of pizzazz to the royalfamily, we that, they do add a lot of pizzazz to the royal family, we saw that in the platinum jubilee. to the royal family, we saw that in the platinumjubilee. it to the royal family, we saw that in the platinum jubilee. it does to the royal family, we saw that in the platinumjubilee. it does not seem like the choice was made for them to come to the family christmas this year. them to come to the family christmas this ear. ., ~ them to come to the family christmas this ear. ., ,, , ., , . them to come to the family christmas this ear. ., ,, ,, , . ., this year. thank you very much for that, kate — this year. thank you very much for that, kate williams, _ this year. thank you very much for that, kate williams, royal- that, kate williams, royal historian. plenty of sport on boxing day, plenty of football, chetan is here to talk us through it. the wait is over for here to talk us through it. the wait is overfor premier here to talk us through it. the wait is over for premier league fans, they have not been short of football but maybe not the type of football they have been missing. the familiarity — they have been missing. the familiarity of _ they have been missing. the familiarity of a _ they have been missing. the familiarity of a full— they have been missing. tie: familiarity of a full boxing day fixtures, top flight has been back in scotland and we had the afl cup in scotland and we had the afl cup in england. but the premier league returns in this afternoon. we have got seven matches to look forward

to. antonio conte saying he could rest all of his world cup stars, pep guardiola eah saying that he thinks the players who were at the world cup are fitter and stronger than those who was left behind. the middle of november was when we hit pause on the premier league. 0n the 13th of november, manchester united beat fulham and the premier league hit pause. football went from the banks of the thames to the sands of the desert, as 133 players left england's top flight for qatar. through the highs and the hurt of the fifa world cup, now the six—week break is done. a new nation are world champions. i'ts argentina, kings of football! and this sport's cycle goes on. in that last weekend, a gap was forged. manchester city lost to brentford so arsenal topped the league by five points.

now they look to stay there from boxing day through to may. first up for them, it's west ham at home. we know the importance of starting strong again, we're playing at home, it's a very special day in premier league history. it's a very special family day to play football, it's an incredible atmosphere that day and we want to make the most of it. the team behind them at the top could soon be newcastle united. they pick up from five straight wins with a trip to leicester city. but this is a fresh start and for each team, the unfamiliar. some players might have burn—out, while some have barely played. the world cup was squeezed into the winter, but the break at home had to be managed. the breakfor me has been a good one. i have personally enjoyed it, we went to australia, we had a good trip, we won a couple of games, we saw our fan base out there and we have been working hard on things that we probably, well, we know we can improve on. really looking forward to what's coming up. we know it is intense and there

are never guarantees out there, and we know that all the others, i can imagine arsenal and everybody is buzzing to go again. first up is the lunchtime london derby when brentford welcome spurs. a game just eight days on from the world cup final. in this unique season, one thing has stayed the same. forfans at top—flight games on boxing day, it's good to be back. joe lynskey, bbc news. i mentioned tottenham boss antonio conte, who says arsenal could move eight points clear of manchester city if they win, they are the late kick off at 8pm. i mentioned tottenham boss antonio conte, who says he could rest all his world cup stars for spurs's early kick off at brentford. one man who will be desperate to get back out on the pitch is harry kane who missed that crucial penalty in england's world

cup quarter—final against france, but looking ahead to the rest of the season, conte believes that setback won't impact the striker�*s performances. we are strong, we are strong, we are strong people. who play at this level, has to be strong. in every situation, negative or positive situation, and try to address positive or negative events in the right way. because you have to be strong, and harry is a strong person. apologies, one thing england fans do not need reminding of is that harry kane missed a penalty, we have now shown it twice! anthony conte thinks he could bounce back and it will be fascinating to see the impact of the world cup. we will not see france or argentina players today, but for those who had disappointment in their campaigns like england, netherlands, wales, it will be interested to see how they respond once the premier league resumes this afternoon. thank you, we will see you later, chetan.

good morning, here's a summary of today's main stories. police are appealing for information after a gunman shot and killed a 26—year—old woman at a pub in wallasey village on merseyside. 0fficers believe the woman, who was out with her sister and friends, was not the intended target. four men were wounded, one is in a critical condition. 38 people are now known to have died as a result of a severe winter storm sweeping across the united states and canada. there have been days of disruption caused by the snow, icy conditions and freezing temperatures. forecasters say the storm will ease off in the next few days but people are still being advised not to travel unless it's essential. rescue teams are searching for survivors of an avalanche in austria. two people remain missing after a number of skiers were buried by snow near a resort in the west of the country. helicopters and rescue dogs are involved in the effort. here in the uk, the met office

has issued two yellow weather warnings for today. snow and ice is expected across parts of scotland and northern ireland, while the environment agency has issued 42 active alerts for possible flooding in england. travel disruption will continue today as striking railway workers bring boxing day train services to a halt. network rail has said railways across the uk will remain closed for a second day due to a walk—out by the rmt union. there are warnings of congestion on the roads as people are forced to find other ways to travel. the international rescue committee has become the latest foreign aid organisation to suspend its work in afghanistan. it comes after the taliban said women could no longer work at humanitarian agencies. the committee said it couldn't operate without its afghan female staff. the nhs will pilot schemes in 16 areas in england to identify more people with the early stages of dementia. specialist nurses and professionals will proactively assess hundreds

of people who might be at risk in care homes. the new scheme comes as the nhs leading dementia expert said that family and friends can play a key role in spotting signs of the condition. it's time now for us to take a look back at the big health stories of 2022. was 2022 of the year we finally learned to live with covid? at the start of the year, driven by the highly infectious 0micron variant, the virus still had us in its clutches. even as the new year's eve fireworks faded into the night, an

estimated one in every 15 people in the uk would have tested positive for covid. it the uk would have tested positive for covid. , , , ., for covid. it is because of the threat from _ for covid. it is because of the threat from omicron - for covid. it is because of the threat from omicron that - for covid. it is because of the threat from omicron that i i for covid. it is because of the - threat from omicron that i announced threat from 0micron that i announced on wednesday that we would move to plan b in england. you must wear a face covering in indoor public spaces, and from tomorrow, work from home if you can. spaces, and from tomorrow, work from home if you can-— home if you can. faced with a huge number of — home if you can. faced with a huge number of infections, _ home if you can. faced with a huge number of infections, in _ home if you can. faced with a huge number of infections, in early i number of infections, in early december of 2021, the government had already been forced to introduce what it called its plan b measures, facemasks, compulsory covid passes and working from home. injust facemasks, compulsory covid passes and working from home. in just a few daysin and working from home. in just a few days in the new year, a grim milestone. the uk reached 150,000 covid— related deaths. to milestone. the uk reached 150,000 covid- related deaths.— covid- related deaths. to picture 150,000 covid- related deaths. to picture 150.000 people. _ covid- related deaths. to picture 150,000 people, it _ covid- related deaths. to picture 150,000 people, it helps - covid- related deaths. to picture 150,000 people, it helps to i covid- related deaths. to picture| 150,000 people, it helps to start small. so this is one student, but in a classroom, there might be around 30 of them. there are between

502,500 people at smaller gigs or in a nightclub. but see how 21,000 fans can feel manchester arena. and the biggest events hold more than this. more than 73,000 at the principality stadium in cardiff, 90,000 at wembley, and see how around 100,000 people turned out for this climate change strike during cop26. and this crowd are not even all of the 135,000 people who buy tickets for glastonbury every year. but 150,000 people, that is everyone who lives in a city such as 0xford. 0ther covid waves came and went. in march, july and october. but that was the last time restrictions on

socialising were put in place. and crucially, while the number of people admitted to hospital with covid did rise with each successive wave, there were no where near the peaks seen injanuary wave, there were no where near the peaks seen in january 2021. wave, there were no where near the peaks seen injanuary 2021. in the same is true of deaths due to covid, each wave saw an increase in deaths, although nowhere near what was seen in 2021, and lower with each successive wave. and it did start to feel towards the end of january, even though they were still thousands of new infections every day, that life might be getting back to normal. masks on and off, the rules have changed at various times over the last two years, but in england, the government has said they will no longer be compulsory in shops and on public transport. the prime minister said masks would still be advisable in some settings, but it was now down to personal choice. ~ . choice. we will trust the 'udgment ofthe choice. we will trust the 'udgment of the british i

choice. we will trust the 'udgment of the british people. i choice. we will trust the judgment of the british people. and - choice. we will trust the judgment i of the british people. and no longer criminalise anyone who chooses not to wear one. 50 criminalise anyone who chooses not to wear one-— to wear one. so what is the trend now for covid _ to wear one. so what is the trend now for covid cases? _ to wear one. so what is the trend now for covid cases? one - to wear one. so what is the trend now for covid cases? one of i to wear one. so what is the trend now for covid cases? one of the l to wear one. so what is the trend i now for covid cases? one of the most authoritative sources is the community infections survey by the office for national statistics which picks up those without symptoms. in the head of the 0ns thinks this is a significant moment. brute the head of the ons thinks this is a significant moment.— the head of the ons thinks this is a significant moment. we are certainly seeina a significant moment. we are certainly seeing a major _ significant moment. we are certainly seeing a major turning _ significant moment. we are certainly seeing a major turning point, - significant moment. we are certainly seeing a major turning point, and i significant moment. we are certainly seeing a major turning point, and we are certainly seeing a real reduction. the question i ask is we are not sure yet whether that will continue to go down.— are not sure yet whether that will continue to go down. ministers want to end self-isolation _ continue to go down. ministers want to end self-isolation rules _ continue to go down. ministers want to end self-isolation rules in - continue to go down. ministers want to end self-isolation rules in marchl to end self—isolation rules in march or even before if possible and say they will be reviewed. it is reasonable _ they will be reviewed. it is reasonable to _ they will be reviewed. it is reasonable to think, i they will be reviewed. it is reasonable to think, just as we are living _ reasonable to think, just as we are living with — reasonable to think, just as we are living with flu, for example, we don't _ living with flu, for example, we don't require people to legally self—isolate but to remain cautious, sensible _ self—isolate but to remain cautious, sensible if— self—isolate but to remain cautious, sensible if they are infected, we will eventually have to find a way to live _ will eventually have to find a way to live with covid in a similar fashion _

to live with covid in a similar fashion ht_ to live with covid in a similar fashion. �* . to live with covid in a similar fashion. . , , ., fashion. at this hospital in walsall. — fashion. at this hospital in walsall, the _ fashion. at this hospital in walsall, the number i fashion. at this hospital in walsall, the number of i fashion. at this hospital in i walsall, the number of patiently backin walsall, the number of patiently back in intensive care has come down a bit since last week. but doctors are urging the public to remain cautious as restrictions are eased. in scotland, mandatory mask wearing will continue in indoor public spaces, but most other restrictions will be lifted from monday. in wales, night clubs and open from the end of next week, though they will remain closed for now in ireland. the devolved nations are moving at differing speeds, charting their own courses through this stage of the pandemic. there were some cautious voices too, always the fear a new variant could emerge or covid could come racing back. the variant could emerge or covid could come racing back.— variant could emerge or covid could come racing back. the one thing this virus has taught _ come racing back. the one thing this virus has taught you _ come racing back. the one thing this virus has taught you is _ come racing back. the one thing this virus has taught you is not _ come racing back. the one thing this virus has taught you is not to - come racing back. the one thing this virus has taught you is not to be i virus has taught you is not to be complacent, so i think we need to go very carefully, monitor carefully and be prepared to react. for most of us, restrictions _ and be prepared to react. for most of us, restrictions were _ and be prepared to react. for most of us, restrictions were starting i and be prepared to react. for most of us, restrictions were starting to | of us, restrictions were starting to ease off, but the consequences of

this pandemic were still playing out. health service staff had performed heroically in the long months that covid was running rampant, but now an exhausted workforce, not to mention patients, were facing a huge backlog in cases. injanuary, 6 million people were waiting for routine treatment. and that numberjust kept growing throughout the year. things were made tougher by the ongoing impact of the pandemic, with each successive wave of covid, staff also felt sick or have to isolate. this was coventry hospital in april. abs. was coventry hospital in april. gentleman in his 80s who was in f to 59 yesterday. by. gentleman in his 80s who was in f to 59 yesterday-— 59 yesterday. a combination of pre-existing — 59 yesterday. a combination of pre-existing staff _ 59 yesterday. a combination of pre-existing staff shortages, i 59 yesterday. a combination of i pre-existing staff shortages, covid pre—existing staff shortages, covid and lots of people who were delayed seeking help during the pandemic, and the nhs across the uk was facing unprecedented demand. this manifested itself notjust in a growing waiting list for plant operations, but in weights in a&e,

gp appointments and ambulance call—outs. jerry has been trying to piece together what happened on the night his father died. he piece together what happened on the night his father died.— night his father died. he was lookin: night his father died. he was looking for— night his father died. he was looking for the _ night his father died. he was looking for the ambulance i night his father died. he was i looking for the ambulance that night his father died. he was - looking for the ambulance that never came. ., . looking for the ambulance that never came. ., , ., ., looking for the ambulance that never came. .,, , ., , ., came. kenneth was in good shape for 894-year-old- _ came. kenneth was in good shape for 894-year-old- a _ came. kenneth was in good shape for 894-year-old. a retired _ came. kenneth was in good shape for 894-year-old. a retired carpenter, . 894—year—old. a retired carpenter, he lives alone in the cotswolds. 0n he lives alone in the cotswolds. on that night the, the health service was under pressure. —— a 94—year—old. the bbc applies to see documents from the inquest into his death. they show that at 2:53am, ken got out of bed and fell. he collapsed and called 909 twice from his mobile. he was recorded as an urgent category two case, meaning and ambience should have arrived in 18 minutes, on average. ken waited for a one hour on the floor before calling a third time. the details are distressing.

it took another four hours for an ambience to arrive. by then, ken was unconscious. he was taken to gloucestershire royal hospital where he died that afternoon from a bleed to the brain. he he died that afternoon from a bleed to the brain-— he died that afternoon from a bleed to the brain. ., , ., , ., ., to the brain. he was on his own, and he knew he — to the brain. he was on his own, and he knew he was _ to the brain. he was on his own, and he knew he was on _ to the brain. he was on his own, and he knew he was on his _ to the brain. he was on his own, and he knew he was on his own. - to the brain. he was on his own, and he knew he was on his own. and i to the brain. he was on his own, and he knew he was on his own. and he. he knew he was on his own. and he must have felt abandoned. and he must have felt abandoned, you know, alone on his bedroom floor. that's the most troubling part of it for me. increasingly, ambulance crews were getting stuck outside hospitals because they couldn't hand over patients. and busy hospitals struggled to admit people because of delays with discharging them into social care. even at the height of summer, normally a relatively quiet time for the nhs, there was no relief. there were fears, too, about the impact that record summer

temperatures could have on services with older people and those with particular health conditions especially vulnerable. a&e at a surrey hospital this morning. hello. how are you? the challenge, as usual, is finding space for new patients and transferring those who need it to the wards. we are often coming in in the morning with 25 to 35 patients waiting for a bed. they say there are no longer seasonal differences. there would be a winter and a summer in hospitals. and that's something that we haven't seen for many years, and covid and the heat wave just makes it even worse. i've been at this hospital for 16 years, and i've never seen it as busy as it is now. ambulance services across england are on the highest state of alert and under extreme pressure. with covid staff absences a factor. we are not performing anywhere

near where we should be, and i know from my own experience that lives are being put at risk and have been all the way through this period of time. by august, a record 6.6 million people in england alone were waiting for planned surgery. patients like james, now fit and healthy, faced an agonising wait for an operation. an infection damaged his heart and left him needing a new heart valve. but five times, the operation was cancelled. so, what was it like every time you had your operation cancelled? what went through your head? you get yourself prepped, you're starving yourself. you wake up the next morning, they shave your chest, get you gowned up, get you on the bed. and then the nurse turns up and says, "sorry, it's not happening today." then your emotions just go. i could feel myself getting more and more poorly as the weeks were going on. at what point are they going to say,

"we need to get you in, otherwise you're going to die?" is that going to happen? am i going to die? you just don't know. you were very good at keeping still. there were some encouraging signs. the number of people facing the longest waits for planned surgery had started to fall, but problems remained with discharging patients, with only four in ten able to leave hospital when they were well enough to do so. the data all painted a picture of a system struggling to cope, and behind the statistics were personal stories like those of james. into the autumn, the waiting list for routine treatments, things like knee or hip replacements, continued to grow, breaching seven million in england alone in september and october. i haven't always been able to walk as far as i'd like to walk. specifically due to the hernia, especially early on when it was very painful.

marcus has been waiting for a hernia operation for close to four years. during that time, he's received just one letter from the hospital. now it's more about how it looks, how it appears, even. it's obvious. when i'm standing up and walking, i can't get away from it. i can't conceal it any more. so i try and tend to stay home. surgeons say operating theatres are being left unused because of staff shortages, a lack of beds and complications relating to covid. very often, it's not clear until the morning of the operation as to whether it's possible. particularly if critical care is needed in intensive care beds, for instance. and that's terrible for patients, because they come into hospital expecting to have their operation, and if there aren't the necessary resources there to support that, then unfortunately they have to be cancelled on the day. and it's notjust treatments where there are long waits. today's figures show only 71% of patients

in english a&es were seen within four hours in september — the worst on record. senior nhs england officials say there's no doubt that they're under huge pressure. the nhs was once seen as the most efficient health service in the world. but experts say it can't work miracles. the nhs is trying to be as efficient as it can and maximise its resources. but i think you have to fundamentally look at the resources compared to other countries. we still have fewer doctors per head, fewer nurses per head, far fewer hospital beds per head. so even the most efficient system in the world can only get through so much work if it hasn't got the fundamental resources it needs. the government says it's creating surgical hubs and diagnostic centres in communities to help tackle the backlog. but others have described the record of seven million people on the waiting list as a grim milestone and warned it will be worse when winter begins to bite.

the shortage of staff is a problem that predates the pandemic. but many health experts say this is the key issue facing the nhs. without the staff, the backlog of cases will be with us for years. not unrelated to covid, a cost of living crisis was developing. it was only made worse by the war in ukraine, which pushed up energy prices and caused real concerns for those whose health depends on equipment that uses a lot of electricity. i'm just sick of having to make choices, and they have to be the right choices. if not, it's my health that's going to be affected, at the end of the line. and i don't want to be any more poorly. laura has been battling kidney disease since she was seven and has already had two kidney transplants. now she needs another.

it's running the cost of the dialysis machine. it's constantly filtering the water, and that water just gets wasted. she depends on dialysis, where a machine carries out the filtering processes that would normally be done by the kidneys. without dialysis, i think they say they live like... if you live past seven days, then it's.... that's how serious it is. laura was having dialysis at home, but the machine uses so much electricity and water, the mounting bills have forced her to switch to a local hospital. i would say that it's the straw that broke the camel's back, really, was the cost of running the dialysis machine, the water it uses, the electric. i just... it was adding to my anxiety, like, "how am i going to pay to do this treatment every month?" it's a very worrying time. that's a lot to cope with. yeah, my little dog helps a lot with that. it's hard, but i've been ill a long time now, so ijust try and

live life as best i can. and now gps and front line health care workers are warning rising costs are starting to have a much broader impact. those cost of living impacts are onlyjust filtering through. the people who are on the lowest incomes will be feeling them now. at grey road surgery in north liverpool, gp dr janet bliss and her team have for years seen how poverty can badly affect health. living in that kind of chronic stress does really bad things to your blood pressure and to your metabolism and can lead to illnesses like diabetes. now the rising costs are making a bad situation worse. we're seeing people limiting the amount of meals they will eat in a week, you know, consciously planning to miss meals. we are seeing people deciding to not to collect medications, not to pay for prescription items. we're seeing the impact on transport

costs and also things like, kind of, data for your phone. so in order to access, you know, vital services that will support their health. the rising costs of basic foods, fruit and veg, bread, cereals and pasta is an obvious cause for concern. so, in darlington, in the north—east of england, an innovative mobile food club is helping people continue to eat healthily. forjust £7.50, you can get £35 worth of fresh fruit, veg and meat essential for someone like marge, for whom this project offers a real lifeline. so, free for you today, you'lljust hand up there. at the moment, i have to count every penny to make sure i got formula, nappies, igot cream, i got wipes. and now, for example, he's five months. so soon i'll be weaning him off the food. so this saving will allow me buy him some better veg, better fruit, so he can actually have a good start in life. without it, i don't know what i would do. in one

of the wealthiest countries in the 21st century, i have to worry about feeding my babies, which is, i would say, really, really sad. and steve, who lost his job during the pandemic, now trying to give his three growing teenage sons a decent diet, whilst struggling to pay the bills. we're no different to any other family in the uk, so things like this, and certainly from a health point of view, they are packed with fruit and veg, stuff we wouldn't normally try. and it gives us that impetus as well to try things different, new, that we wouldn't normally buy as well. so, yeah, it's difficult, and it's going to get worse and it's going to get harder, and we're at the bottom end of the chain. and unfortunately, it's going to get to the point, i'm sure it's some time in october, we're going to have to make decisions of meals and things that we wouldn't have had to have made before. schemes like this offer people the chance to stay healthy even as budgets are squeezed.

but no—one believes the pressures on family finances will ease any time soon. and that has implications for our health, too. everything has gone up. nothing's coming down. my bills have gone double now. and do we choose to eat or heat? some people have to cut down on essentials. and it's notjust homes and businesses that face the impact of rising prices. the nhs too increasing bills for food, energy and wages. budgets for services like public health, which cover everything from stop smoking services to advice on contraception, are under extreme pressure. this is what public health in action looks like.

hi, i'm caroline from the quit smoking team. anthony is a smoker, but with a fractured foot and shoulders. he's now stuck in gateshead's queen elizabeth hospital. so, how many cigarettes you normally smoke a day? ten at the most. so, carol, one of the hospital's stop smoking advisers, sees a chance to help anthony quit. we can offer you some patches for your arm, and we can give you, like, an inhalator. you know, it's something to do with your hands. that's full of nicotine as well. carol herself gave up smoking five years ago. she understands how hard it can be. if i can do it, anybody can. and i did it, so you can as well. and she fears what might happen if this kind of service didn't exist. i just think people will die sooner, because they're not getting the support that they need. and i think now if we're educating the grannies, the mothers, they're going to educate their children not to smoke as well

because it's them that's the future, isn't it? in england, public health measures like stop smoking services are funded by local authorities, with a grant from the department for health and social care worth £36 billion this year. but budgets have been squeezed hard over the last decade, and now rising inflation means the money is getting spread ever more thinly. and in communities like gateshead, with areas of severe deprivation, talk of further budget cuts is a bleak prospect. it really concerns me. i'm here to improve and protect the health and wellbeing of the population in gateshead, and actually having some of the limitations around budgets is really concerning. so, if you take tobacco, for example, tobacco harm in gateshead costs about £62 million a year, about £9 million to the nhs. so, if we were reducing some of those services that help us to tackle that issue, it doesn't make any sense. the department of health and social care says public health grants for next year will be

announced in due course. but the worry is that double—digit inflation will mean vital services will be lost and the health of the poorest communities will suffer. there were some other significant milestones this year. thousands of people were left infected with hepatitis and hiv through contaminated blood in the 19705 and '80s. at the long—running public inquiry into the scandal, messages have been left in bottles, remembering loved ones who've lost their lives. injuly, the inquiry heard an announcement that had been a long time coming for those affected. i've decided to recommend that interim payments of no less than £100,000 are made to all the infected people and all the bereaved partners who are currently registered with the schemes. another public inquiry got under way, this one into the response to the covid pandemic. the inquiry chair said one word

summed up the pandemic loss. the inquiry chair said one word summed up the pandemic — loss. those who were bereaved lost the most. they lost loved ones and the ability to mourn properly. it is therefore right that we begin this first hearing with a minute's silence for those who died. witnesses, including ministers who made the key decisions at the time, will start giving evidence in the spring. in the summer, dozens of countries saw an outbreak of a rare, little—known disease called monkeypox. normally confined to western and central africa. in the uk, the vast majority of cases were in men who have sex with men, with infections peaking injuly. but a vaccination programme helped bring case numbers down. what do we want? and as the year drew to a close across the uk, the health service faced industrial action over pay.

ambulance crews, porters, cleaners and the biggest ever strike by nursing staff. i'm striking for the future of nursing and most importantly, our patients. and the turmoil that gripped uk politics in 2022 had a predictable impact on the department of health for england. 0ut went sajid javid when he resigned in protest at boris johnson's leadership. in came steve barclay as his replacement, but he was out when liz truss became prime minister, and in came therese coffey just a few weeks later. just a few weeks later, out went therese coffey and welcome back steve barclay. four health secretaries in as many months, one of whom was the same person. there is also one bit of data that suggests the impact of covid will remain with all of us for a long time to come. for most of the year, the number of excess deaths recorded in the uk has been well above the five—year average. that means hundreds of extra deaths

a week, but less than half are directly linked to the virus. some of those deaths may be because of the very hot weather we had in the summer. and we do have an aging population. but it's also possible that a previous covid infection has left some people more frail. and we also know that the pandemic has left others less healthy. for example, alcohol consumption is up, while physical activity has fallen. early on in the pandemic, many people stayed away from the nhs, and that's led to concerns over undiagnosed conditions like heart disease. and health experts have warned the current pressures on the emergency care system, for example, long waits for ambulances, make it more likely that some patients could die. either way, it suggests the pressures on the health service, extreme as they have been this year, show no sign of letting up.

across the uk, the nhs heads into 2023 facing one of the biggest challenges in its history.

good morning, welcome to breakfast with me, ben boulos. the headlines today. police hunting a gunman who shot dead a woman at a busy merseyside pub on christmas eve say she wasn't the intended target of the shooting. more than 30 people have died in the severe winter storm sweeping across the united states and canada. how could a national train strike and the cost of living squeeze impact the traditional boxing day sales? i am impact the traditional boxing day sales? iam in impact the traditional boxing day sales? i am in liverpool to speak to shops and shoppers in the middle of a crucial period for retail. after six weeks off for the world cup, the premier league returns,

but tottenham boss antonio conte says he could rest all his world cup stars for their boxing day match at brentford. it's going to turn much colder for many of us this boxing day, showers around as well, which could turn wintry towards north—western areas. all of the details throughout the programme. it's monday the 26th december. our main story. police are appealing for information after a gunman shot dead a 26—year—old woman in merseyside on christmas eve. four other people were injured in the shooting in the lighthouse pub in wallasey. merseyside police said it did not believe the victim was targeted. judith moritz reports. late on christmas eve, the lighthouse pub was full of people counting down the minutes towards midnight. it was a lively scene, butjust before 12:00am the pub's neighbours heard a particularly loud noise. i was in bed and i was on phone and i heard

a bang, bang, bang, bang —fourtimes. i waited, because i thought it was going to be a firework and i thought i would hear the ssh. but then i didn't hear the shush. a gunman opened fire directly towards the front door of the pub, his shots hitting a 26—year—old woman in the head. despite efforts to save her, she died of her injuries. herfamily are said to be inconsolable. he also shot another four people, one of whom is in a critical condition. the fact that this has happened on christmas eve makes the tragedy even more unpalatable and shows those responsible have no regard for members of the public who just want to be able to live their lives without fear. at the time the offender fired

the gun there were a large number of people enjoying a night out at the lighthouse inn, and the actions of the gunman were totally and utterly reckless. there's been a lot of focus recently on gun crime on merseyside, especially following the shooting of a nine—year—old girl in liverpool in august. the police tell me that it's too soon to know whether this shooting is connected to any others, but also say that despite what's been happening, the rate of guns being fired in their force area is lower than it's been in the past. this church is almost next door to the pub, and within hours of the shooting its minister found himself giving the christmas sermon in the shadow of a crime scene. god in christ is with us, he's the prince of peace, so it made it rather poignant this morning, preaching that message in the backdrop of what had happened a few hours earlier, when someone had lost their life, and the tragedy and the violence that ensued there. the pub's owners have given cctv material to the police, who say they are looking for a dark mercedes a—class car.

they are appealing for anyone with information or camera footage to come forward. judith moritz, bbc news, wallasey, on merseyside. 38 people are now known to have died as a result of a severe winter storm sweeping across the united states and canada. there have been days of disruption caused by the snow, icy conditions and freezing temperatures as nomia iqbal reports. a very white christmas has turned more into a deep freeze. the city of buffalo in new york state is used to tough weather conditions, but this storm has left it paralysed. many don't even have any power to cook the christmas lunch. i'm really glad that i have a fireplace because otherwise i'd be freezing right now. driving is banned, as the blizzard conditions leave roads impassable. power substations frozen, and at least seven people dead. we are in a war, this is a war with mother nature. and she has been hitting us

with everything she has since the late hours of thursday and friday, saturday, and this will go down in history as the most devastating storm in buffalo's long and storied history of having battled many battles, many major storms. in the midwest, four people were killed earlier in the week in a pile—up in ohio. four others died in crashes in missouri and kansas. the nation's capital has avoided much of the worst weather, but the bomb cyclone has left its mark. hundreds of water pipes are frozen, temperatures continue to drop, and many of the city's homeless people have been given emergency shelter. the storm is continuing to barrel up along the east coast here and across much of the us, and the advice remains to avoid travelling unless it is essential. and it's notjust the snow and ice causing mayhem. high winds have brought

high tides and flooding on the eastern seaboard. forecasters say the storm will ease off in the next few days, but freezing temperatures are likely to linger for some time. nomia iqbal, bbc news, washington. rescue teams are searching for survivors of an avalanche in austria. two people remain missing after a number of skiers were buried by snow near a resort in the west of the country. helicopters and rescue dogs are involved in the effort. here in the uk, the met office has issued two yellow weather warnings for today. snow and ice is expected across parts of scotland and northern ireland, while the environment agency has issued 42 active alerts for possible flooding in england. travel disruption will continue today as striking railway workers bring boxing day train services to a halt. network rail has said railways across the uk will remain closed for a second day due to a walk—out by the rmt union.

there are warnings of congestion on the roads as people are forced to find other ways to travel. the international rescue committee has become the latest foreign aid organisation to suspend its work in afghanistan. it comes after the taliban said women could no longer work at humanitarian agencies. the committee said it couldn't operate without its afghan female staff. the nhs is to pilot schemes in 16 areas in england to identify more people with the early stages of dementia. specialist nurses and professionals will proactively assess hundreds of people who might be at risk in care homes. the new scheme comes as the nhs leading dementia expert said that family and friends can play a key role in spotting signs of the condition. the traditional boxing day sales get under way today but its expected sales will be down from last year as the cost of living crisis continues.

peter ruddick is at shopping centre in liverpool. i have been asking you this all morning, any queues there yet? there are queues! however, i did _ morning, any queues there yet? tuc- are queues! however, i did have a chat to the lovely ladies in the queue for zara and they didn't want to be on the tv. i think it was just too early in the morning, no make up, may be a busy day yesterday, lots of food and drink. clearly not early enough for them to stay at home, they have come out hoping for some winter gear, winter knitwear in zara. the doors are not open, they are still queueing. it is a bit of a mixed bag in liverpool. john lewis, which is the anchor store, that draws a lot of people into the shopping centre, that is closed today. not the only place that is closed in liverpool, and across the

country, place like m&s, waitrose, home bargains, they have chosen to close on boxing day because it is quieter than it used to be years ago and partly to give their staff a much needed day of given how busy retail workers have been. but some places are open, new look, 60% of fear. this is being repeated in lots of places —— 60% discount here. this is being repeated in lots of stores across the high street. we are seeing this across the high street and online. there are a few reasons for that. and online. there are a few reasons forthat. partly and online. there are a few reasons for that. partly because black friday and cyber monday, those two additional discounting times have been a bit quieter for retailers this year, quite a few retailers not opting to do discounts. if you combine that with the fact that there is quite low footfall at the beginning of the month, because of

the cold weather we had and the train strikes, all of that combined means that retailers like the ones around me have quite a bit of stock left over. that stock they need to get rid of before the seasons change in the new year. that's why we are expecting all of those things to combine to lead to some quite heavy discounts on some of the stores around me. the key question is, are they going to be getting shoppers to pick up those deals? we have a few people arriving around me this morning. howeverthe people arriving around me this morning. however the train strikes are probably going to be the big thing that impacts footfall today, there is a national network rail strike. that means there is no trained anywhere across the country. merseyrail have run a special boxing day service in recent years to try to tempt people into the shops, that is of course not running today. so, as i say, a bit of a mixed bag, we will wait to see what happens in the next hour. a few shops open behind me with some early bargain hunters

but it is going to be a very important few weeks for retailers because the beginning of january and february tends to be incredibly quiet. february tends to be incredibly auiet. ., . ~ february tends to be incredibly auiet. .. n' ,, quiet. ok, peter. i did ask you before, quiet. ok, peter. i did ask you before. any — quiet. ok, peter. i did ask you before, any plans _ quiet. ok, peter. i did ask you before, any plans to _ quiet. ok, peter. i did ask you before, any plans to snap i quiet. ok, peter. i did ask you before, any plans to snap up i quiet. ok, peter. i did ask you i before, any plans to snap up any bargains, what do you have your eye on? ~ bargains, what do you have your eye on? . ., . ., , bargains, what do you have your eye on? . ., , ., , on? well, actually, i have 'ust s-otted on? well, actually, i have 'ust spotted the i on? well, actually, i have 'ust spotted the lego i on? well, actually, i have 'ust spotted the lego store i on? well, actually, i havejust spotted the lego store just i on? well, actually, i havejust i spotted the lego store just down here stop i don't know if they are open today. almost always, you do not get discounts on lego. and other toys and other brick toys are available, i should say that. i might have to pop in if they are open. might have to pop in if they are 0 ten. . .. might have to pop in if they are 0 en, ., ., , might have to pop in if they are o-en. ,, ., , might have to pop in if they are oren. ., ., , ,., , open. start building those plans! thank ou open. start building those plans! thank you very — open. start building those plans! thank you very much, _ open. start building those plans! thank you very much, peter. i open. start building those plans! | thank you very much, peter. you open. start building those plans! i thank you very much, peter. you are watching breakfast, it is 11 minutes past eight. it's been five years since anoosheh ashoori spent christmas at home with family. in march, he was released from prison in iran after serving five years. he was charged with spying and was granted his freedom at the same time as nazanin zaghari—ratcliffe. he's been making up for lost time

since then, as he tells tim muffett. good girl. you are always hopeful when you are in prison, but these hopes are shattered repeatedly. and this is the first one. five christmases, haven't been at home. it's just out of this world to be with my family. his release was an absolute miracle. it was five years of hell according to anoosheh ashoori. the retired engineer was detained in iran whilst visiting his mother in 2017. convicted of spying charges, which he's consistently denied, he was given a ten yearjail term in the notorious evin prison in tehran. in march, he was released alongside nazanin zaghari—ratcliffe, who'd also been held captive in iran, after the uk settled a longstanding debt with the iranian government. there must be a huge readjustment process for all of you as a family.

what's that been like? there's so many little things that you take for granted. i remember when he first came back, he used to keep asking permission to take stuff. and actually he's still doing it. and i tell him, you don't need to ask me. you can take whatever you like, you can take a mug, you can take a plate. when i was there, i used to dream at night that i am with sherry and with my kids only to wake up to my cell. strangely enough, since my return, at nights, i dream. and i dream that i am there back in prison. and i gather you've been speaking to other people who've been held captive, terry waite, for example. what have they been saying? although so many years have passed, terry waite was telling me that he's still having flashbacks, he's still having difficulties. so this is not something that i should expect to go away soon. there has, though, been a chance to travel.

a trip to new zealand included a go on one of the world's largest swings. and in october, anoosheh fulfilled a challenge he'd set himself in prison. you ran the london marathon this year. what was that like, and why were you so determined to do that? there were a group of inmates who used to do daily exercises, and i asked them if i could join them and a friend waved this book. it was the book what i talk about when i talk about running. so that initiated this thought in my mind that any time i am released, even if i'm 75 years old, 80 years old, i am going to participate in the london marathon. that was a dream come true. i never thought i could have run 42, nearly 43 kilometres. i gather when you were being held captive, the christmas tree had

a special significance for you, didn't it? tell us about that. yes, i used to have telephone conversations with sherry. i discovered that they are not putting up a tree. and i was quite cross. and i asked her to please go and put up the tree and decorate it and explain to me where the tree is in the house, what presents you have put there so that i can start imagining what is going on. what was it like when you decorated the tree this year? i expected it to be a veryjoyful event. but in view of the factor of what is going on in iran, all the people, for example, that i have left behind, they are still struggling. and the situation has got worse than than what it was when i was there. this christmas, this family is together again. even if thoughts are with others far

away who are not so fortunate. tim muffett, bbc news. 'tis the season to sit back, relax and turn on the telly. so what are the big shows to keep an eye out for over the festive period? tv critic, scott bryan is here with his recommendations. hgppy happy boxing day to you, scott, thank you forjoining us this morning. what were your christmas day highlights? i morning. what were your christmas day highlights?— day highlights? i have to say, it was tuite day highlights? i have to say, it was quite good _ day highlights? i have to say, it was quite good for _ day highlights? i have to say, it was quite good for comedy. i day highlights? i have to say, it was quite good for comedy. forj was quite good for comedy. for example, detectorists will be talking about that shortly, motherland was very good on bbc one. it was good for nice warm hearted shows such as pottery throw—down which had its first christmas special. and you have to have some

traditional specials, like the strictly come dancing special. i will not reveal who won, but a highlight has to be george webster and amy dowden, or as they referred to themselves, team wowden, they merge together their names! it was such a lovely warm hearted routine, to the charleston. and also bruno tonioli things in the episode, that might be a delightful sombre warning for others. another highlight for me was the ghost christmas special. the sitcom has been a fan favourite, done by the horrible histories lot, and it was a look at the character back story. i love it for two reasons, there is going to be a new

series next year, that will be a big draw in the cold spring evenings, but also, this was horrible pramac history is a first christmas day appearance. they have had christmas eve but this was real prime—time in the schedules, we have got a little clip from the episode. i the schedules, we have got a little clip from the episode.— the schedules, we have got a little clip from the episode. i love panto, ialwa s clip from the episode. i love panto, i always used _ clip from the episode. i love panto, i always used to _ clip from the episode. i love panto, i always used to go _ clip from the episode. i love panto, i always used to go with _ clip from the episode. i love panto, i always used to go with my - clip from the episode. i love panto, i always used to go with my mum. l clip from the episode. i love panto, i i always used to go with my mum. we could _ i always used to go with my mum. we could take _ i always used to go with my mum. we could take nancy. you i always used to go with my mum. we could take nancy.— could take nancy. you can go, but i mean this in _ could take nancy. you can go, but i mean this in the _ could take nancy. you can go, but i mean this in the nicest _ could take nancy. you can go, but i mean this in the nicest possible i mean this in the nicest possible way. _ mean this in the nicest possible way. i— mean this in the nicest possible way. i would _ mean this in the nicest possible way, iwould rather— mean this in the nicest possible way, i would rather watch - mean this in the nicest possible way, i would rather watch my. mean this in the nicest possible i way, i would rather watch my own funeral~ _ way, i would rather watch my own funeral~ l— way, i would rather watch my own funeral. ., . , ., .. funeral. i watched my own funeral, it was quite — funeral. i watched my own funeral, it was quite nice, _ funeral. i watched my own funeral, it was quite nice, people _ funeral. i watched my own funeral, it was quite nice, people have i funeral. i watched my own funeral, it was quite nice, people have to i funeral. i watched my own funeral, | it was quite nice, people have to be kind about you. something which was not actually on air at all, it was a trailer for the new doctor who series, there was not going to be a festive special this year but there will be one next year. even though the fans have to wait for 11 months for the next episode, we had a one—minute trailer, so we saw tate, we saw

david tennant, and the introduction of ruth madeley in key character along with yasmin finney who is joining as rows. that wasjust along with yasmin finney who is joining as rows. that was just after the strictly special. i joining as rows. that was 'ust after the strictly special.i the strictly special. i don't know who i am the strictly special. i don't know who i am any — the strictly special. i don't know who i am any more. _ the strictly special. i don't know who i am any more. this - the strictly special. i don't know who i am any more. this show. the strictly special. i don't know| who i am any more. this show is the strictly special. i don't know- who i am any more. this show isjust who i am any more. this show is 'ust bettinnin. who i am any more. this show is 'ust beginning. the fi who i am any more. this show is 'ust beginning. the premier! i who i am any more. this show is 'ust beginning. the premier! who i who i am any more. this show isjust beginning. the premier! who are i beginning. the premier! who are the ? i beginning. the premier! who are they? i don't— beginning. the premier! who are they? i don't believe _ beginning. the premier! who are they? i don't believe in _ beginning. the premier! who are they? i don't believe in destiny . beginning. the premier! who are i they? i don't believe in destiny but if destiny exists, _ they? i don't believe in destiny but if destiny exists, then _ they? i don't believe in destiny but if destiny exists, then it _ they? i don't believe in destiny but if destiny exists, then it is - if destiny exists, then it is heading _ if destiny exists, then it is heading here. _ if destiny exists, then it is heading here. if— if destiny exists, then it is heading here. if she - if destiny exists, then it is heading here. if she everl if destiny exists, then it is _ heading here. if she ever remembers, she will_ heading here. if she ever remembers, she will die _ heading here. if she ever remembers, she will die. you— heading here. if she ever remembers, she will die-— she will die. you can't see him, he's not there! _ she will die. you can't see him, he's not there! someone - she will die. you can't see him, he's not there! someone tell. she will die. you can't see him, l he's not there! someone tell me she will die. you can't see him, - he's not there! someone tell me what the hell is going _ he's not there! someone tell me what the hell is going on _ he's not there! someone tell me what the hell is going on here. _ i have to say, there is exciting but

then the realisation that you have to wait 11 months to watch it! to find out what happens next. haifa to wait 11 months to watch it! to find out what happens next. how many slee -s is find out what happens next. how many sleeps is that. — find out what happens next. how many sleeps is that. l _ find out what happens next. how many sleeps is that, i will _ find out what happens next. how many sleeps is that, i will not _ find out what happens next. how many sleeps is that, i will not ask _ find out what happens next. how many sleeps is that, i will not ask you! - sleeps is that, i will not ask you! i'm glad you mentioned motherland, absolutely brilliant, i saw the first couple of seasons and when i saw there was a christmas special i was delighted. it saw there was a christmas special i was delighted-— was delighted. it was definitely worth watching. _ was delighted. it was definitely worth watching. today, - was delighted. it was definitely worth watching. today, a - was delighted. it was definitely worth watching. today, a lot i was delighted. it was definitely worth watching. today, a lot of} worth watching. today, a lot of people will be recovering from the christmas day, if they have been busy hosting family and friends, if they are planning to channel surf and it'll what can you recommend today? i and it'll what can you recommend toda ? ., and it'll what can you recommend toda? ., , ,, today? i would say detectorists, this is a bbc _ today? i would say detectorists, this is a bbc sitcom _ today? i would say detectorists, this is a bbc sitcom originally, l this is a bbc sitcom originally, starring tobyjones and mackenzie crook. it hasn't been on for about five years, but many, many people have been catching up or streaming it in the years since. it's about two people who work for a metal detecting club, it's about friendship, there is a lot of nature in this, it's quite slow—paced but

it's very much the draw. i think it's very much the draw. i think it's a lot about companionship, it's a lot about the joy of taking life a little bit slower. and it's coming back for a feature length special tonight on bbc two, 90 minutes. i think there is a lot of love for this because people had assumed that it had ended after three series. there is a little teaser of the special tonight.— there is a little teaser of the special tonight. there is a little teaser of the secial toniaht. a, , ., special tonight. maybe we need to call in the professionals. - call in the professionals. professionals? �* . ., ., ., , ., professionals? archaeologists? yeah, shouldn't we? — professionals? archaeologists? yeah, shouldn't we? this _ professionals? archaeologists? yeah, shouldn't we? this is _ professionals? archaeologists? yeah, shouldn't we? this is massive, - professionals? archaeologists? yeah, shouldn't we? this is massive, you i shouldn't we? this is massive, you said so— shouldn't we? this is massive, you said so yourself, we need to tell someone, — said so yourself, we need to tell someone, get a team down here. we are the someone, get a team down here. are the team, someone, get a team down here. we are the team, we can do this ourselves _ are the team, we can do this ourselves we _ are the team, we can do this ourselves. we know- are the team, we can do this ourselves. we know what - are the team, we can do this . ourselves. we know what we're are the team, we can do this - ourselves. we know what we're doing, where _ ourselves. we know what we're doing, where careful. — ourselves. we know what we're doing, where careful, diligent. _ where careful, diligent. archaeologists- where careful, diligent. archaeologists can't- where careful, diligent. - archaeologists can't excavate a whole — archaeologists can't excavate a whole field, _ archaeologists can't excavate a whole field, what _ archaeologists can't excavate a whole field, what are _ archaeologists can't excavate a whole field, what are they - archaeologists can't excavate a | whole field, what are they going archaeologists can't excavate a - whole field, what are they going to do, whole field, what are they going to do. put _ whole field, what are they going to do. put down — whole field, what are they going to do. put down a _ whole field, what are they going to do, put down a trench _ whole field, what are they going to do, put down a trench in— whole field, what are they going to do, put down a trench in a - do, put down a trench in a battlefield? _ do, put down a trench in a battlefield? this- do, put down a trench in a battlefield? this site - do, put down a trench in ai battlefield? this site needs do, put down a trench in a - battlefield? this site needs to be detected — battlefield? this site needs to be detected by— battlefield? this site needs to be detected by detectorists. - battlefield? this site needs to be detected by detectorists.- battlefield? this site needs to be detected by detectorists. there is such a love _ detected by detectorists. there is such a love for _ detected by detectorists. there is such a love for this _ detected by detectorists. there is such a love for this sitcom. - detected by detectorists. there is

such a love for this sitcom. there | such a love for this sitcom. there are also specials of travel man, a new drama called mayflies which is based on the angelo hagen drama, tomorrow night and the night after. this is the time of year to catch up on shows you have been meaning to four quite a long time. sherwood, bad sisters, the traitors, slow horses, this is an opportunity to catch up on all of the box sets you have been meaning to. and looking ahead to new year's day will stop happy valley, the new series, sarah lancashire is the main star, written by sally wainwright. i recommend, you have got the window now, if you can, watch all 12 episodes between now and years day and the third series. ,., ., , , ., ., , ., series. goodness, i have a list of alon: series. goodness, i have a list of along with _ series. goodness, i have a list of along with my — series. goodness, i have a list of along with my arm _ series. goodness, i have a list of along with my arm on _ series. goodness, i have a list of along with my arm on box - series. goodness, i have a list of along with my arm on box sets i series. goodness, i have a list of| along with my arm on box sets to catch up on you just added to! i’m catch up on you 'ust added to! i'm ever so catch up on you 'ust added to! i'm so sorry! — catch up on you just added to! i'm ever so sorry! don't _ catch up on you just added to! i'm ever so sorry! don't apologise, i catch up on you just added to! i'm i ever so sorry! don't apologise, good recommendations _ ever so sorry! don't apologise, good recommendations there. _

ever so sorry! don't apologise, good recommendations there. thank- ever so sorry! don't apologise, good recommendations there. thank you | recommendations there. thank you very much, scott brown. —— brian. let's think about white christmas, did we have one? yes, technically you havejust yes, technically you have just got to have some snow falling somewhere in the uk so somewhere we had some snow falling yesterday afternoon, so it was a technically white christmas, that was in midlothian. we have had some snow continuing through the night in scotland into this morning. for today if you are thinking about going out for a boxing day walk, it is going to turn colder. some showers around as well, the cold air moving south, across many parts of the uk. temperatures will drop away, you will notice that feel compared to yesterday. this morning it is quite chilly, some ice across scotland and northern ireland, there is showers continuing. not quite as cold further south, that air hasn't quite reached the south—east yet. it is a

lovely start, this is the north book review, clear skies for many of us. england and wales will keep those skies. not bad if you want to walk off your christmas dinner. one or two showers in western areas of england and wales, some showers across western scotland, some to lower levels. chilly air, three to fourin lower levels. chilly air, three to four in the fourth, six to eight further south and east. the snow will continue for a time across scotland but there will be clear skies across many areas. but as we go into tomorrow, we have got a weather system here which will push in giving us some wet weather as we go into tuesday. here is the rain moving its way in. but for the morning, it will still be quite cold across eastern areas. temperatures will be at orjust below freezing, the risk of some ice first thing tomorrow morning. as the rain moves into colder air, the risk of some snow across the higher ground of scotland. wet weather for many of

us, particularly across north—west england, wales and the south—west of england. heavy rain throughout the day, temperatures back into double figures in southern areas, nine or ten, milderaircoming figures in southern areas, nine or ten, milderair coming infrom figures in southern areas, nine or ten, milder air coming in from the atlantic bumps into the cold air. into wednesday, south—westerly wind, more areas of low pressure moving in so wednesday could rather be a wet day and with that some strong winds as well. that very heavy rain moves its way north, but a little bit of snow, the higher ground of scotland for wednesday, showers following on behind that area of rain. and temperatures ten to 12 degrees. seven or eight celsius across the north—east of scotland. for the rest of the week, how do we enter 2022? further areas of low pressure moving their way in from the south—west, there will be some strong winds as well. very useful if you are planning a boxing day walk, thank you. time to

get some sport, chetan is here once again. all of those footballers who got used to the heat of qatar and the world cup, backed a bit of reality, especially in the premier league. reality, especially in the premier leaaue. , ., ., , . league. yes, time to read'ust. we have not had i league. yes, time to read'ust. we have not had this i league. yes, time to read'ust. we have not had this winter i league. yes, time to readjust. we have not had this winter break i have not had this winter break before, we had this first medal eastern world cup in the winter, so many fascinating stories that we hit pause on for the premier league, arsenal top of the table, can they continue? antonio conte is the tottenham boss, and he has been questioning whether his players will be able to pick up where they left off. spurs were wobbling a little bit when we hit november 13 when the final premier league match was played. they are in action in the early game at 12:30pm at brentford. antonio conte saying he could rest all of his world cup stars. let's get a reminder of where we left things off six weeks ago withjoe lynskey. on the 13th of november,

manchester united beat fulham and the premier league hit pause. football went from the banks of the thames to the sands of the desert, as 133 players left england's top flight for qatar. through the highs and the hurt of the fifa world cup, now the six—week break is done. a new nation are world champions. i'ts argentina, kings of football! and this sport's cycle goes on. in that last weekend, a gap was forged. manchester city lost to brentford so arsenal topped the league by five points. now they look to stay there from boxing day through to may. first up for them, it's west ham at home. we know the importance of starting strong again, we're playing at home, it's a very special day in premier league history. it's a very special family day to play football, it's an incredible atmosphere that day and we want to make the most of it. the team behind them at the top could soon be newcastle united.

they pick up from five straight wins with a trip to leicester city. but this is a fresh start and for each team, the unfamiliar. some players might have burn—out, while some have barely played. the world cup was squeezed into the winter, but the break at home had to be managed. the breakfor me has been a good one. i have personally enjoyed it, we went to australia, we had a good trip, we won a couple of games, we saw our fan base out there and we have been working hard on things that we probably, well, we know we can improve on. really looking forward to what's coming up. we know it is intense and there are never guarantees out there, and we know that all the others, i can imagine arsenal and everybody is buzzing to go again. first up is the lunchtime london derby when brentford welcome spurs. a game just eight days on from the world cup final. in this unique season, one thing has stayed the same. forfans at top—flight games on boxing day, it's good to be back. joe lynskey, bbc news.

newcastle had five premier run all eyes on newcastle too, to see if they can continue where they left off before the world cup break. they've won their last five premier league games in a row. eddie howe's side travel to leicester city this afternoon. a win for newcastle would move them up to second in the table. as for the impact of the world cup on his players, the newcastle boss says he's happy with the fitness of those returning but may need to give them a rest later in the season. when they came back, had a good chat with all of them and all of them wanted to come straight back into play here. i think that was a great thing for me, as i said before. certainly during the season, especially as the games come thick and fast, there might be a time when we need to individually give them a break at some point. obviously i would not do that en masse, everyone at the same time, but i might look to try and give those individuals a break at some point. so much of this

december has felt unfamiliar with this world cup slap bang december has felt unfamiliar with this world cup slap hang in the middle of it but a proper boxing day, seven matches to look forward to. �* ., , , , day, seven matches to look forward to. ., , , , day, seven matches to look forward to. ., , , to. brentford spares first up at 12:30pm. _ to. brentford spares first up at 12:30pm. and _ to. brentford spares first up at 12:30pm, and arsenal- to. brentford spares first up at 12:30pm, and arsenal can i to. brentford spares first up at 12:30pm, and arsenal can be i to. brentford spares first up at| 12:30pm, and arsenal can be 12 12:30pm, and arsenal can be12 points clear if they win today. that is what i am doing all day. i will be not here tomorrow morning, i will be not here tomorrow morning, i will be on to another sofa, not quite as red! . . be on to another sofa, not quite as red! ., ., ., red! relax and en'oy it, chetan thank you. b if you've been watching breakfast recently, you'll know all about kevin sinfield and rob burrow. his friend and former rugby league team—mate who's living with motor neurone disease. notjust one, but several. well, last month, kevin set off on his most daunting task yet. let's take a look.

probably the strongest player we had in the squad and the strongest guy who played in super league. just feel so honoured to have played alongside him.— alongside him. there is is a friendship _ alongside him. there is is a friendship forged _ alongside him. there is is a friendship forged in - alongside him. there is is a friendship forged in the i alongside him. there is is a i friendship forged in the cauldron alongside him. there is is a - friendship forged in the cauldron of professional sport. | friendship forged in the cauldron of professional sport.— professional sport. i might 'ust get him in. and since rob burrow�*s diagnosis of motor neurone disease three years ago, his former leeds rhinos team—mate kevin sinfield has taken on increasingly arduous challenges. used to be a 32 waist.

the latest and by far the hardest, seven ultramarathons in seven days, a total of 300 miles. it started at murrayfield in edinburgh, the home of scottish rugby. former international doddie weir was there to see them offjust two weeks before he died. can't wait to get going. i think the support, as you can see this morning, has been incredible. you know, we didn't expect this at all to have doddie here. and kathy, it's been a big build—up, but we're here now. i'm going to send kevin on his way with a massive cheer in three, two, one. off you go. there he goes, ladies and gentlemen, wearing the number seven in honour of his great friend, rob burrow. ahead of the team, a 40—mile run through the scottish borders.

the expertise of the support crew was vital from the early stages. people have come out and been brilliant, really supportive. as you can see, the weather is, for november in scotland. when you're running, especially at the pace they're running now, the muscle groups will mainly do all the work. so it'sjust trying to keep them as good as we can really and hope for the best. but he's got the strongest muscle up here, which is makes my job a bit easier. the first night was spent at doddie's hometown rugby club, melrose. crowd's amazing again, isn't it? it's nice to be at the rugby club.

doddie played here. thanks for coming down. it was really important we came here tonight, because you guys are... i know what you've been doing this week, and i can't thank you enough. this place in particular has a connection with and through doddie and all this, it was doddie's club. this is why we're here. not sure about that yet, but everybody that's been out on the road was absolutely amazing to come out and support us. it's been incredible. everybody's been very generous as we're going along the route, | donating food and so on. very appreciative of what kevin and the team are doing. - across the border and into england, the crowds were growing both in size and volume as the news of his exploits spread.

280 miles in a week. what would that be like? you get very exhausted quickly. supporters from the roadside and on the road. the former olympic runner, steve cram, was among those who joined the runners. i'm a bit embarrassed. i've only run a very short distance with him, but i know i've only run a very short distance with him, but... yeah, i know, i know. but, you know, as i said, i think this is one of those things which, thankfully, it's the spotlight which it draws on it. and as the week goes on, i'm sure he's going to get incredible support all along the way. thank you again. thank you. well done.

by day three, the weather, which had been kind so far, changed with an amber warning for rain. but if kevin wasn't bothered, then nor were the crowds. he ran out, and we gave you some cake. oh, just doing a greatjob. it's fantastic what he's doing. and it's also raising awareness as well for this disease. - it's nice to be here to applaud him. the support he's getting from the mnd association has been fantastic. within two or three weeks of being diagnosed,

things was in motion for stairlifts and whatever, you know? well, then it seems to come down by the morning. as kev counted down the miles, his support team were counting the calories. he was burning almost four times the normal daily amount. having a nutritionist on your case all the time, there's a few times where, you know, he didn't want to have what we were trying to get down his neck. this time, he seems to have really got what we're trying to do and he understands it. and he's been, like, signalling back to the car and he's been, like, signalling back to the car like to say, "i'm top of the class." so he's doing fantastic with it. he's doing it without prompting. now, almost at each stop, the team invited someone whose life is affected by mnd to hang the drum. that was the point. raising awareness as well as money. it's for people who know nothing about this illness, which i didn't.

the only thing i'd ever heard about it was the ice bucket challenge, which i did, but i didn't know what motor neurone disease was. so now i do. so i know they need the money. they need the money. it's horrible. it's a horrible disease. sorry. many people said during the week that kevin sinfield is a machine, but a machine doesn't have a heart. it's great to meet kev. what he is doing is amazing for all of us living with mnd. cath was diagnosed eight and a half years ago and at that point, unless you were actually affected by it and you've probably never heard of it, that's the big step forward. the awareness for everybody is really what it's all about. awareness is probably as important as the money, at the end of the day. yeah, which is really interesting, isn't it? by now, more than halfway to the destination of old trafford, umbrellas were forming a guard of honour at every stop. but as team morale began to dip, a huge boost came in the form of a surprise visit

from the three runners' wives. i mean, as if there's not enough moisture in the air. i think you've got everybody... got everybody now crying again. how we doing? all right. very special, huh? tough? yeah, yeah. it's a fair bit to do, but a lot of emotion around today because everyone's tired as well, but we're not far off. with every step, every note collected, every cheer, the message spread. ijust want i just want to thank everybody.

arriving in york left kevin's former team—mate, jamie peacock, lost for words. how was your day? yeah, yeah. it's been epic, you know, just really humbling. rthrnk. — to be a part of this. you know, so... and this reception? yes, just a bit... day six, the penultimate day saw the team arrive at headingley. the leeds rhinos ground and a welcome home from rob himself. i know you're all stood side to side with us, just like we tried to for rob. lindsey and the family. our team can't thank you enough to support the awareness

we've created, the money we've raised. i'm sure there's been a fewjokes and things along the way and a few tales told, but, yeah, we've been watching in awe and just incredibly proud of them all. and for them to do this, not only for their bodies physically, but mentally as well through this challenge, isjust it's, as i say, it's mind—blowing. we've been in touch with kevin all the time. he we've been in touch with kevin all the time. . , we've been in touch with kevin all the time. , , the time. he has been sending him lovely messages, _ the time. he has been sending him lovely messages, "keep _ the time. he has been sending him lovely messages, "keep on - the time. he has been sending him lovely messages, "keep on going, | lovely messages, "keep on going, mate" _ you know, and it's unbelievable. the friendship between them is, you know, fantastic. everybody needs a friend like kevin. they do. it'd be a better world. and then what was it kev said at one point?

i would have done it the other way round. then onto bradford city football club to meet stephen darby, another elite sportsman living with mnd. the emotional struggle was plain to see. i've seen them do the ultra marathon. seven in seven is phenomenal. he's obviously trying to get the awareness for everyone. and so it's, yeah, it's not nice, but for me to be here, it's, obviously as soon as i heard it was happening, then i was doing that straightaway. as the last of the seven days dawned, kev and his fellow runners, chris and dave, were held together by tape. the finish line was still so far

away, but the support was staggering, even if they weren't. what's your body saying to you? it's broken. taping on calves and hamstrings, and great work by them. and thenjust going a kilometer at a time. yeah, it's really tough. is that it? just one more? one more. it has to be. on saddleworth moor in kev�*s back yard. on saddleworth moor in kev�*s back yard, he was met by the former premier league striker marcus stewart, who was diagnosed recently. mark, set us on our good man. kevin's a beacon of hope. that's what he is to a lot of us. you know, he's doing his best with his mate rob as well, along with his mates who are running with him.

so the awareness is happening at the moment. it's great. the timing of it. you know, he doesn't do it very often, but when he does it, i you know, he doesn't do it very often, but when he does it, does it big. yeah. so that can only be the right way forward. the final leg and on their last legs, but they'd done it. murrayfield to manchester, 300 miles. and onto the old trafford pitch during the rugby league world cup final to a rousing reception. kevin, you have done seven ultramarathons in seven days. you said you were just going for a run for a mate. what kept you going? that exact thought. it's all about friendship and the love for rob. cheering

we've met some incredible people along the journey from edinburgh. but there's one thing for sure — that our country cares. it cares about people who need help, and that mnd community need us. i know that everybody feels the same way that i do about rob burrow. he's an absolute champion, the way the burrow family have been so courageous and brave. we just wanted to be a great friend, and if we can all try and be a bit of a better friend from time to time, i think we have a better place to live in. please show your appreciation. for kevin sinfield and his amazing support team. the team raised more than two and a quarter million pounds. butjust as important was the increased awareness of mnd and giving a voice to those whose

lives are blighted by this terrible, incurable and cruel disease. an amazing achievement from kevin there. and as if that wasn't enough, he joined fellow runner gary mckee last week. he's aiming to run 365 marathons in 365 days. we'll catch up with gary on new year's eve when he completes his final run. you may be planning to get out and about this boxing day, stretch your legs, what will the weather be like? we can ask simon. if you are working off some of that christmas lunch... i definitely need to go for a run at later. �* , . i definitely need to go for a run at later. . , ., ., , ., later. and fresh air as well. you mi . ht later. and fresh air as well. you miaht be later. and fresh air as well. you might be thinking _ later. and fresh air as well. you might be thinking about - later. and fresh air as well. you might be thinking about getting| later. and fresh air as well. you i might be thinking about getting out and about this afternoon. this might be thinking about getting out and about this afternoon.— and about this afternoon. this sets u . and about this afternoon. this sets u- nicel , and about this afternoon. this sets up nicely. we had _ and about this afternoon. this sets up nicely, we had a _ and about this afternoon. this sets up nicely, we had a lovely - and about this afternoon. this sets up nicely, we had a lovely start i and about this afternoon. this sets up nicely, we had a lovely start to | up nicely, we had a lovely start to the day. this is a structure, some lovely clouds there with the sunrise. this was a bit earlier on

as well. that was in norfolk. plenty of clear skies out there at the moment. for many of us, you will notice that it will be chillier than it was yesterday. there will be showers around as well, those will be wintry towards northern and western areas, that is where we had cold air weaving its way in already. that cold air will move south and eastwards for all of us today. that is why you will notice the drop in temperature. the air comes from the arctic. it will be wintry showers, those most likely across scotland and northern ireland. on the higher ground, we will seek snow on lower levels, some risk of ice as well this morning. sunshine for most of us today. one or two showers coming into the west, temperature is about three or [i into the west, temperature is about three or 1! degrees in the north, pleasant enough in the south with 6-8 c. pleasant enough in the south with 6—8 c. for this evening, very quiet evening to come, one or two showers around, still a bit of snow over the higher ground of scotland, but things are changing as we go into tomorrow. we can see this weather front here, this weather system and pushing its way in from the

atlantic. that will bring milder air in as well. ahead of that for tomorrow morning, it will be a rather chilly start. the risk of a bit of ice first thing tomorrow morning. temperature is around freezing if not a bit below. but the rain will move its way in, and as it hits the colder air, we could see snow once again over the higher ground of scotland. the rain particularly heavy in wales, south—west england, quite a blustery wind around as well. temperatures back up into double figures across england and wales. into wednesday, a similar sort of set up a really, because we have low pressure moving its way in from the atlantic. another band of rain moves in, again at the quite close together. so indicative of another fairly blustery day throughout wednesday. the rain spreading to the north and east. again a day could be a bit of snow on the higher ground, but it is much milder air moving in. later on, the rain should clear to the north—east, a few showers behind it.

once again, temperatures getting to double figures, 12. how to be finish 2022? with more areas of low pressure moving in from the atlantic. it is a mild direction, but a wet direction. with more areas of low pressure, it means some fairly strong winds as well. it stays pretty unsettled as we go into new year's eve and new year's day. temperatures in northern areas around 6—7, further south, the temperatures are staying in a double figures. as i said, really quite wet and windy. if you want to make the most of that whether to walk off your christmas dinner, do it today. 0k, your christmas dinner, do it today. ok, noted! about three billion litres of water are lost every day through leaks in england and wales, according to the latest figures from the industry regulator. now to help tackle the problem, scientists have developed miniature robots that crawl through pipes to patrol our water supply network. our science correspondent, victoria gill, reports.

the water company here in essex has detected a leak. but to find its location and fix it, they'll need to dig through a complex maze of pipes. basically, we have a nine—inch cast iron water main that runs down the whole street, and we've got a leak on the back of the t. but the sewer is sitting on top of our main, and we've also got a gas pipe in the top of the hole. we've obviously got bands of electric over the back we've also got bands of electric over the back of the hole, which makes it very difficult for us. this team's been digging on this site, investigating for four days now, and they still haven't pinpointed exactly where this leak is. across england and wales, about 20% of the water supply is lost through leaks. that is steadily decreasing. but water companies say finding the smallest leaks is one of their biggest challenges. the water industry's economic regulator, 0fwat, says leakage in england and wales is now at its lowest level ever, but three billion litres per day is still lost to leaky pipes. that's enough to fill more than a thousand olympic olympic—sized swimming pools.

companies have agreed to cut that wasted water in half by 2050 and 0fwat says more needs to be done. we've covered off all of the kind of big leaks that people will see. it's the smaller leaks. so this one wasn't visible, and it's more and more of those leaks that we need to find to really, really drive down that leakage performance. no—one wants to see water wasted, but it's new innovations that are going to really drive that leakage down. innovations like these. these are pipe bots, water main patrolling robots being developed in a lab at sheffield university. this is a camera in the lights, and there is a little microphone. the sensor—laden robots are small enough to travel through a pipe and check for damage. it's a very long network. it's about a million kilometers. so in order to understand what's going on in the pipe, we need to have a presence of robots in the pipes so we can continuously collect data about onset of faults. the first teams of artificially intelligent pipe bots could be put to work underground within five years. the tiny machines are designed to be

deposited into manholes, then search for faults and cracks before pipes burst or leak. if you think about the state of our infrastructure, it is so urgent to do something. it's underground, it's inaccessible. these are some of the most inhospitable environments on earth. without robotics, we're just not going to be able to do it. essex and suffolk water is also testing sealants that can be injected into pipes to plug leaks without having to dig. but with the smallest leaks still so difficult to locate, for now, they'll have to keep excavating. victoria gill, bbc news. it's time now for us to bring you some christmas magic of our own, or at least some clever trickery. the artist magical bones has been wowing audiences with his grand illusions for the last ten years, most recently in britain's got talent: the ultimate magician. let's take a look. sometimes the world can

seem like a scary place, but if you free your mind, the rest will follow. three, two, one! cheering

magical bonesjoins me now. i was hoping you might be able to get you popping out of the desk, but we will perhaps save that for another time. welcome to the programme. how does it feel watching all of that back, that experience? it is amazing, it is still a bit surreal, because doing that show and coming second amongst all of those great magicians was an absolute honour, even to perform on that stage with all of those great magicians. and to be back on a stage in front of audiences was something really special. in front of audiences was something really special-— really special. that they give you an kind really special. that they give you any kind of— really special. that they give you any kind of guidance _ really special. that they give you any kind of guidance as - really special. that they give you any kind of guidance as to i really special. that they give you any kind of guidance as to what l really special. that they give you i any kind of guidance as to what sort of trick that they want? big illusions? could you do close up magic if you wanted? how much choice do you get with that show? there magic if you wanted? how much choice do you get with that show?— do you get with that show? there was literall no do you get with that show? there was literally no restriction _ do you get with that show? there was literally no restriction in _ do you get with that show? there was literally no restriction in terms - do you get with that show? there was literally no restriction in terms of- literally no restriction in terms of what you can perform. i like to mix the two, so a bit of close—up magic, because that is where i started, is a close—up magician, then onstage, i like to be the big, grand stage illusions as well. you like to be the big, grand stage illusions as well.— like to be the big, grand stage illusions as well. you do them very well, illusions as well. you do them very well. clearly- _ illusions as well. you do them very well, clearly. what _ illusions as well. you do them very well, clearly. what got _ illusions as well. you do them very

well, clearly. what got you - illusions as well. you do them very well, clearly. what got you into i well, clearly. what got you into magic? well, clearly. what got you into manic? ~ , ., ., magic? my mum got me eight paul daniels magic _ magic? my mum got me eight paul daniels magic set _ magic? my mum got me eight paul daniels magic set when _ magic? my mum got me eight paul daniels magic set when i _ magic? my mum got me eight paul daniels magic set when i was i magic? my mum got me eight paul daniels magic set when i was a i magic? my mum got me eight paul| daniels magic set when i was a kid, so like everyone, they get the little magic set, and that is howl started really. i little magic set, and that is how i started really.— started really. i know exactly the one ou started really. i know exactly the one you mean. _ started really. i know exactly the one you mean, because - started really. i know exactly the one you mean, because i- started really. i know exactly the one you mean, because i had i started really. i know exactly the | one you mean, because i had the started really. i know exactly the i one you mean, because i had the same one you mean, because i had the same one as a child! the difference is you are an award—winning magician, and i am not! so we have you here this morning, we couldn't have you here in the studio on the sofa with us without showing us some magic. so do you have a trick you can show us? i want to show you some street magic. this is what i'm known for doing. i will start with something a bit traditional, and because i'm inspired by music, i will try to do something based around music. first, let me show you a card trick. i will show it to the camera so everyone can see at home. all of these cards are different. what i will get you to do is i will run through the deck like this, and would you like, you will say stop. i will get you to run through the debt, you say stop. take

that card look at it, remember it, don't show it to me. show the audience at home what the card is. i am closing my eyes and so i can't see. you will put it here, and i will do this. you remember what your card is? you do? i will do this. you remember what your card is? you do?— will do this. you remember what your card is? you do? i do! iwill do card is? you do? i do! i will do this slightly — card is? you do? i do! i will do this slightly differently, - card is? you do? i do! iwill do this slightly differently, because i think i will do this in mid air. what i will do is i use this card, i hope everybody can see this at home. it is not that one! his. hope everybody can see this at home. it is not that one!— it is not that one! no, not this one. i it is not that one! no, not this one- i will _ it is not that one! no, not this one. i will create _ it is not that one! no, not this one. i will create a _ it is not that one! no, not this one. i will create a bit - it is not that one! no, not this one. i will create a bit of i one. i will create a bit of static, and you notice how it is sticking to my hand. for a second, itjust floats in mid air. and changes to your card. floats in mid air. and changes to your card-— floats in mid air. and changes to i your card-_ that your card. isn't that amazing? that is the two of _ your card. isn't that amazing? that is the two of diamonds. _

your card. isn't that amazing? that is the two of diamonds. that i your card. isn't that amazing? that is the two of diamonds. that is i your card. isn't that amazing? that is the two of diamonds. that is a l is the two of diamonds. that is a traditional way magicians do stuff. they get you to find a card. i want to do something slightly differently now. is to do something slightly differently now. , ., . ., to do something slightly differently now. , ., .., .~' to do something slightly differently now. , ., a ., , to do something slightly differently now. , ., | now. is it a card trick as well? i miaht now. is it a card trick as well? i might use _ now. is it a card trick as well? i might use the _ now. is it a card trick as well? i might use the card _ now. is it a card trick as well? i might use the card you - now. is it a card trick as well? i might use the card you used. i now. is it a card trick as well? i i might use the card you used. what i wanted to do is think of a musician. someone at random, but someone at the audience would know it.— the audience would know it. current oran the audience would know it. current or any era? — the audience would know it. current or any era? lt _ the audience would know it. current or any era? it can _ the audience would know it. current or any era? it can be _ the audience would know it. current or any era? it can be any _ the audience would know it. current or any era? it can be any musician. | or any era? it can be any musician. i will use your _ or any era? it can be any musician. i will use your card. _ or any era? it can be any musician. i will use your card. hold _ or any era? it can be any musician. ! will use your card. hold your- or any era? it can be any musician. | i will use your card. hold your hand out for me, i will use this. we will lay this on your hand, and i want you tojust imagine lay this on your hand, and i want you to just imagine that you can see that musician in a cloud of smoke, just imagine. imagine there is this heat coming underneath your hand. it heat coming underneath your hand. it feels warm. you _ heat coming underneath your hand. it feels warm. you can _ heat coming underneath your hand. it feels warm. you can feel _ heat coming underneath your hand. it feels warm. you can feel that? i heat coming underneath your hand. it feels warm. you can feel that? yes, | feels warm. you can feel that? yes, that is really — feels warm. you can feel that? yes, that is really good. _ feels warm. you can feel that? yes, that is really good. are _ feels warm. you can feel that? yes, that is really good. are you - that is really good. are you thinking of bob marley? i that is really good. are you thinking of bob marley? i was! oh, wow! that is _

thinking of bob marley? i was! oh, wow! that is incredible. _ thinking of bob marley? i was! oh, wow! that is incredible. that i thinking of bob marley? i was! oh, wow! that is incredible. that is... l wow! that is incredible. that is... i cannot even begin to imagine how you did that. that is incredible. that is a little souvenir. that you did that. that is incredible. that is a little souvenir.- that is a little souvenir. that is su erb. that is a little souvenir. that is superb- wow. _ that is a little souvenir. that is superb. wow, i'm _ that is a little souvenir. that is superb. wow, i'm absolutely . that is a little souvenir. that is i superb. wow, i'm absolutely blown away. you have clearly spent much more time with the paul daniels magic set than i did. thank you very much for that. i magic set than i did. thank you very much for that.— much for that. i would 'ust quickly sa , i much for that. i would 'ust quickly say. i have — much for that. i would 'ust quickly say. i have my h much for that. i would 'ust quickly say, i have my tour, i much for that. i would just quickly say, i have my tour, which - much for that. i would just quickly say, i have my tour, which is i much for that. i would just quickly i say, i have my tour, which is coming up say, i have my tour, which is coming up in the new year. it is going across the country, the show is called soulful magic,, illusions, song, dance, like a concert of magic. we will be performing in theatres across the country. so please come and see it, you can get tickets on my website. www. magical bones .com. tickets on my website. www. magical bones -com-— bones .com. thank you for coming alon: and bones .com. thank you for coming along and entertaining _ bones .com. thank you for coming along and entertaining us. - bones .com. thank you for coming along and entertaining us. i i bones .com. thank you for coming along and entertaining us. i still. along and entertaining us. i still can't figure it out.— along and entertaining us. i still can't figure it out. thank you very much for having _ can't figure it out. thank you very much for having me. _ that's all from us for today. we're back tomorrow at 6am.

whatever you are up to today, have a wonderful boxing day.

this is bbc news broadcasting in the uk on pbs in america and around the globe. our top stories... russia's defence ministry says at least three service personnel have been killed as a result of a ukrainian drone attack on an air force base in the south of the country. north america's severe winter weather claims 38 lives — across the united states and canada. china carries out one of it's biggest incursions to date in the seas and skies around taiwan. in the uk — boxing day is traditionally a busy one for the high street — but will shoppers be cutting back as the cost of living crisis bites?