isa repeated his claims that it is a political witchhunt. i'm outside the courthouse here in washington, dc, where the former president will appear this thursday. also on the programme this lunchtime... britain's summer wash—out — last month was officially one of the wettestjulys on record, and august may not be much better. the singer lizzo — famous for her body positive messages — is sued by three former dancers for alleged sexual harrassment and fat shaming. and the view from the top of the iconic round tower at windsor castle, reopening to visitors for the first time since the pandemic. and coming up on bbc news... a first ever women's world cup win and with it a place in the last 16 for south africa, who score a dramatic injury time goal to go through.

good afternoon. donald trump has been accused of plotting to overturn the result of the presidential election in 2020. he's been charged with conspiracy to defraud the united states, by spreading lies, dishonesty, fraud and deceit. he's described the indictment as ridiculous. it is the third criminal case against mr trump — who's already been accused of mishandling classified government documents and of covering up a hush money payment to a porn star. despite all that, he's still favourite to be the republican candidate in next year's race for the white house. our north america correspondent sean dilley reports. we love trump! he's the first president to be charged with a federal crime. but if previous cases are anything to go by, donald trump's third indictment is only likely to boost his popularity with republican voters. the charges he faces, though, are serious.

the 45 page indictment accuses the former president of knowingly spreading false claims about election fraud to trick and persuade states into helping him overturn the election results. the police are now running back into the capitol building... he's not been charged with inciting the violent scenes of january 6th, but prosecutors have drawn a link. the attack on our nation's capitol onjanuary 6th, 2021, was an unprecedented assault on the seat of american democracy. as described in the indictment, it was fuelled by lies. lies by the defendant targeted at obstructing a bedrock function of the us government, the nation's process of collecting, counting and certifying the results of the presidential election. donald trump responded by posting a campaign statement on his social media network truth social, likening his prosecution to lawless

persecution in nazi germany. shortly after charges were announced, he sent a campaign email vowing to continue his campaign for the white house. this gathering... his son, donald trumer, has questioned the motives and timing. have we noticed the pattern of what's happening? have we seen what they're doing on a daily basis? i mean, my father's right. why did they wait two and a half years? you know why? because he's leading in the polls, because they're afraid of him becoming president and dismantling the unity party, dismantling the deep state. thursday's hearing here in washington, dc, is all about the crimes mr trump is accused of committing in the two months following the 2020 election. he's already been charged in two other unrelated cases. he's due to face trial in new york next march over crimes he's alleged to have committed in relation to payments to a former adult film star. in may, he's set to stand trial

in florida over claims he unlawfully held onto military and other classified documents. for now, it's all a question of time. in other cases, mr trump has tried to delay until after next year's elections, but prosecutors in this case say they want the trial to go ahead as soon as possible. sean dilley, bbc news, in washington. 0ur north america correspondent nomia iqbal is outside the courthouse in washington dc. this is the third criminal indictment, as we have heard, that he is facing. but assess the significance of this one? it’s he is facing. but assess the significance of this one? it's easy to become _ significance of this one? it's easy to become gnome _ significance of this one? it's easy to become gnome to _ significance of this one? it's easy to become gnome to the - significance of this one? it's easy to become gnome to the legal i significance of this one? it's easy i to become gnome to the legal cases that are piling up against donald trump. —— numb. it's important not to lose sight here, this is probably the single most important indictment ever handed down in the 247 year

history of the united states of america. this indictment alleges that a former president tried to overturn democracy, tried to subvert the 2020 election victory ofjoe biden. in this 45 page indictment, the department ofjustice said donald trump had a right to question the election results, we know that presidents have done that before. he had the right to ask for a recount. they accuse him of using unlawful methods to try to stay in power when they allege he knew that he had lost. legally, donald trump is innocent until proven guilty. he is expected to appear in the courthouse behind me this thursday, to answer those charges. but politically, as sean laid out in the report, this does strengthen him with the republican party, with its voters. he is still the clear frontrunner for the republican party presidential nomination. and donald trump has said if he is convicted,

or if he is jailed, it will not stop him from running for the presidency. and he is correct, constitutionally, nothing can stop him.— and he is correct, constitutionally, nothing can stop him. thank you very much indeed- — met office figures show last month was one of the wettestjulys on record — and it's looking increasingly likely — as you may have noticed — that we're in for a very wet august as well. today the summer washout continues, with yellow weather warnings in parts of england for storms, heavy rain and winds, meaning the possiblity of travel disruption and even flooding in some areas. joe inwood has the story. welcome to the british summer, 2023. on the south coast, seaside holidays 0n the south coast, seaside holidays are on hold. apart from a few very optimistic kite flyers. winds of over 60 mph are expected to hit,

with warnings to stay out of the water. all in all, some are so far has been a wash—out. water. all in all, some are so far has been a wash-out.— water. all in all, some are so far has been a wash-out. well, the whole week that we — has been a wash-out. well, the whole week that we were _ has been a wash-out. well, the whole week that we were here, _ has been a wash-out. well, the whole week that we were here, we _ has been a wash-out. well, the whole week that we were here, we have - has been a wash-out. well, the whole| week that we were here, we have been stuck in an apartment, because we couldn't get out at all. so today is the first day we can get out and now we are going home. i don't think we will be going back here again, going to spain. will be going back here again, going to sain. , .,, ., , will be going back here again, going to sain. , ., , ., to spain. some people are sitting on the beach, walking _ to spain. some people are sitting on the beach, walking on _ to spain. some people are sitting on the beach, walking on the _ to spain. some people are sitting on the beach, walking on the beach. - the beach, walking on the beach. enjoying — the beach, walking on the beach. enjoying the waves. they are very hi-h enjoying the waves. they are very high here — enjoying the waves. they are very high here. it enjoying the waves. they are very hiuh here. ., , �* enjoying the waves. they are very hih here. ., , �* ., high here. it doesn't bother me one bit. ithink high here. it doesn't bother me one bit- i think it— high here. it doesn't bother me one bit. i think it is— high here. it doesn't bother me one bit. i think it is lovely _ high here. it doesn't bother me one bit. i think it is lovely here. - high here. it doesn't bother me one bit. i think it is lovely here. it- bit. i think it is lovely here. it really— bit. i think it is lovely here. it really is — bit. i think it is lovely here. it really is fantastic. _ bit. i think it is lovely here. it really is fantastic. you've - bit. i think it is lovely here. it really is fantastic. you've got| bit. i think it is lovely here. it. really is fantastic. you've got all the charity— really is fantastic. you've got all the charity shops, _ really is fantastic. you've got all the charity shops, everything. . really is fantastic. you've got all the charity shops, everything. ifj the charity shops, everything. tourism is your livelihood, it's the charity shops, everything.“ tourism is your livelihood, it's bad news. at leonard's cove holiday village in devon, they've been forced to slash prices. yellow marker we have launched today a 35% offer for customers until the beginning of september. from our point of view, we want people here,

and we are trying to do our best to bring them here. it followed one of the wettestjuly is on record, hitting notjust the tourism sector but also england's hope of winning the ashes. so, why is it all happening?— the ashes. so, why is it all happening? the ashes. so, why is it all haueninu? . . , , ., happening? usually this time of ear, the happening? usually this time of year. the jet — happening? usually this time of year, the jet stream _ happening? usually this time of year, the jet stream brings - happening? usually this time of. year, the jet stream brings spells of rain, interspersed with dry and bright intervals. what we have seen over the past month, thejet bright intervals. what we have seen over the past month, the jet stream has become really blocked in this pattern. we have been stuck in a meander in thejet pattern. we have been stuck in a meander in the jet stream. it's the same pattern that brought the heat across southern europe, but for us it has meant a conveyor belt of successive areas of low pressure, meaning some parts of the uk have had the wettestjuly on record under this kind of blocking pattern is something we are likely to see more frequently as our climate warms. just another example of the unpredictable effects of a changing climate. some are so far, well, it has been grim down south. and the unsettled weather is also causing big problems for britain's farmers — with all the rain making it

difficult to harvest quickly and efficiently. 0ur climate and environment correspondentjonah fisher has the story. all right, guys, just watch your footing. it's a little bit slippy down here now. rain is forecast all day, and by 10am much of the ground had turned from green to brown. but people kept coming to the north devon agricultural show. did you look at the forecast today and think, maybe i won't bother? no, i paid in advance for my ticket and i thought, well, rain or shine, we'll have some fun. what are you looking forward to seeing? sunshine! animals. animals? which animals? the sheep and the cows. it's wet today, as it has been for more than a month. in berkshire, that means seizing

every dry moment to try to harvest. because the sun is finally shining, we are off to combine some oilseed rape. we are off to combine some oilseed ra e. . ., we are off to combine some oilseed ra e, ., ., ., we are off to combine some oilseed rae. . ., . we are off to combine some oilseed rae. ., ., ., , , rape. eleanor and her younger sister lu have rape. eleanor and her younger sister lucy have grown _ rape. eleanor and her younger sister lucy have grown up _ rape. eleanor and her younger sister lucy have grown up in _ rape. eleanor and her younger sister lucy have grown up in a _ rape. eleanor and her younger sister lucy have grown up in a farming - lucy have grown up in a farming family. such is the pressure to bring in the crop that they have been working into the night. even then, they found the crop to moist, and warm air has to be pumped through the floor of the store to dry it out to be sold. br; through the floor of the store to dry it out to be sold.— dry it out to be sold. by biting, ou can dry it out to be sold. by biting, you can tell— dry it out to be sold. by biting, you can tell there _ dry it out to be sold. by biting, you can tell there is _ dry it out to be sold. by biting, you can tell there is too - dry it out to be sold. by biting, you can tell there is too much l you can tell there is too much moisture. it has so far been a summer of contrasts. a very hot and dryjune, followed by a very wet and miserable july. and it's those extremes, and the unpredictability, which has made it such a challenging situation forfarmers. and what if it doesn't stop raining, if it carries on being like this for a few more weeks? well, i'm trying not

to think about that. but basically, you know, it could be a write—off, really. and a massive loss to the farming community. that bad? yes. you know, i've known it before when crops have had to be ploughed in because they are unharvestable. the forecast doesn't look great at the moment. and i see that the crops around us are deteriorating very fast. global warming is already making our weather hotter and wetter. what farmers can reliably grow is changing, too. jonah fisher, bbc news, in north devon. well china has recently suffered its heaviest rainfall since records began 140 years ago and the country has been hit by devastating floods. president xijinping has said china must improve its early warning systems. at least 11 people have died, and 13 are still missing — with tens of thousands forced to flee their homes. 0ur china correspondent

stephen mcdonell reports from hebei province. the stranded residents of zhuozhou are finally getting out. they've had no electricity and no drinking water is the flood rose around them. emergency teams have been entering their submerged town by treating roads as rivers. this is the staging post for the rescue of people who have been stuck been stuck in zhuozhou. these boats have been crucial because all those flats that have been surrounded by water, it's the only way to reach them. officials have said they have not had enough boats, but the reinforcements are here and we can tell you there are a lot of these boats coming in. people arriving at disaster shelters, carrying only a few belongings. they may have had possessions destroyed at home, but they are grateful to be safe. translation: we brought nothing with us. _ we needed to get out

to keep this baby safe. all the buildings around us were flooded. some up to the second floor. we didn't expect there to be so much water. so we waited and it went up and up, and we were really scared. nearby we see an enormous dump of rubbish which has been carried down a raging river. there are fridges, tyres and basketballs, spongy flooring perhaps from a preschool, enough timber to build quite a few houses, and life preservers. what strikes you is the sheer volume of the material. and it does make you think, this flood must have been so powerful to have delivered this much material right here in one go. the worst of the flooding may now be over but the places hit hard have a lot of cleaning up to do. some are still struck with a shocking forceful

speed of this event. others are just getting on with it. and wading into the immediate future. stephen mcdonell, bbc news, hebei province. there will be no strike action at gatwick airport over the weekend the unite union said, after workers for ggs who handle baggage for british airways voted to accept an improved pay offer. the strike was due to have been between august the 4th and 8th. the prime minister has said migrants will be moved to a barge off dorset as soon as possible. the plan to house more than 500 men on the bibby stockholm has been beset by delays. our chief political correspondent nick eardley is at westminster. this plan has been very controversial, but the prime minister says he is determined to go ahead with it? its minister says he is determined to go ahead with it?— ahead with it? its controversial, but it's also _ ahead with it? its controversial, but it's also another— ahead with it? its controversial, but it's also another sign - ahead with it? its controversial, but it's also another sign that i ahead with it? its controversial, l but it's also another sign that the government is finding some of its plans to stop the boats, as rishi

sunak puts it, pretty hard to get off the ground. because the first asylum seekers were supposed to be sent to the bibby stockholm barge yesterday. then today. well, now it is not going to be until next week at the very earliest. there had been final checks done in recent days. the most recent delay, we are told by the home office, is because there are final checks to be done on the working practices of the people who working practices of the people who work in the port in dorset where the barge is moored. it's a reminder that saying that these policies are going to work is fairly straightforward, actually putting them into place is considerably more tricky. at the prime minister has said this morning that he is absolutely determined to go ahead with this. he has said he is prepared to fight for this policy. he thinks it is the right one and will bring down costs for keeping people in hotels. and he used the phrase that he is determined to make sure that he does deliver on

stopping the small boats. but it's a reminder, ben, that whatever the promises are, getting them over the line is a far different thing. government ministers hope if this example are successful, it will lead to more barges being used, it could even lead to more ports signing up to hosting them. but, the same time, if it goes badly, that becomes a lot less likely and makes the policy a lot harder to deliver. our top story this afternoon. the former us president donald trump faces more criminal charges — this time he's accused of trying to overturn the result of the 2020 election. coming up — the swimming pools which are facing closure due to spiralling costs. coming up on bbc news... leigh halfpenny will win a 100th cap for wales in their world cup warm—up match against england on saturday, as jac morgan captains his country in cardiff.

many of us will read online reviews before we buy a product or book a holiday — but can you actually trust those reviews? well, a bbc investigation has found it's all too easy to get fake reviews posted online — even for things such as medical procedures. the government says there'll be new legislation to tackle the issue. emma vardy reports. having a five—star rating from reviewers on google can help a business stand out in search results, and push it up the rankings. but fake reviews can be bought online, and there's evidence of them being used not only on google, but on platforms like amazon, trustpilot and the apple store. do you ever look at the reviews people have posted online? yeah. does it influence you? yeah. why is that? because if it's bad reviews, you're not going to want to go somewhere.

and if there's loads of good reviews? then you want to go. you want to go. do you trust them? ido, yeah. even though you have no idea who's written them? yeah. do you ever think they might be not real orfake? sometimes you question it, if it's certain online companies, because then you'd think, "oh, well, it's interesting how every single review's all positive." we found examples of fake reviews being used by all sorts of companies, but even by some medical businesses. what if you're looking for, say, a chiropractor in ipswich? the second business to appear in google search results is the ipswich spine clinic, run by dr amit patel, and it's got an almost perfect a.9—star rating from customers on google reviews. whether your condition's due to some trauma or prolonged activities, we may be able to help you... how was that impressive rating really achieved? look at this five star reviewer. santosh kumar says, "dr amit was brilliant. he assessed my injury and came up

with a treatment plan. i felt i was in safe hands and highly recommend this place." but this reviewer has also reviewed a taxi service in canada, a dentist in the us, conveyancing services in australia, and a bar in austria, which looks a bit suspicious. and to prove these reviews cannot be real, we cross—referenced in detail a number of customers who've not only reviewed the ipswich spine clinic, but have also reviewed exactly the same businesses all over the world. way too much of a coincidence. we also looked into this dental business in manchester called smiles better, which advertises its five—star rating on its website, with a link to its google reviews. customer rose bellamy says, "i'm so happy with my new smile, superfast services and everyone was so helpful." and the business writes back, "we're so happy that you're delighted with the treatment provided. keep on smiling."

and when we did our detailed cross referencing, our investigation shows this review and a number of others for this business are fake. i mean, it's bad enough if you buy a pair of dodgy bluetooth headphones off a fake review. if you try and get a medical treatment done, and it turns out that the review that you chose the establishment on was fake, that could have really serious repercussions. the government really needs to legislate against fake reviews. selling them, buying them, and hosting them on your platforms should be illegal. they should be facing a fine. there needs to be some deterrent from just buying a load of fake reviews because, for now, it's easy to do. we also found negative online reviews from fake customers posted for one of the ipswich spine clinic's local competitors. when we asked the clinic about this, dr amit patel told us that he had outsourced their marketing to a company in india and hadn't himself seen any of the reviews being posted online. since we contacted him,

he says he's now asked for the reviews to be removed. i'm calling from the bbc... we also put our findings to smile's better in manchester. we're asking for your response, because this doesn't look very trustworthy for customers, does it? we've asked this dentistry business several times about the fake five—star reviews online, but they've declined to give us any response or explanation. google says its policies clearly state that reviews must be based on real experiences and that it does monitor them for fraudulent content. but, as our investigation shows, many go unnoticed. the pop star lizzo is being sued by three of her former dancers over claims that include sexual harassment, and creating a hostile work environment. the singer is known around the world for celebrating her body and for her message of self love. our entertainment correspondent colin paterson is with me. tell us more about who lizzo is?

she has become so famous. she is someone at the top of the music industry and earlier this year she won record of the year and she played glastonbury on the main stage pulling one of the biggest crowds that we can and this week she entered the singles chart with her song from the successful barbie movie. she is also known for celebrating inclusivity and body positivity. but now she's had this lawsuit filed against her, her dance captain and production company by three of her dancers. two of them got theirjobs through her tv reality show and they were recently sacked in the third resigned over the alleged treatment of the other two. the allegations are long, they were filed in a document yesterday in la, 44 pages long and i've been reading it today. includes fat shaming, sexual harassment, having created a hostile working environment, and a couple of specifics. one of the dancers

alleges that after show in amsterdam this year lizzo made the dancers go to a strip club and one of them, arianna, was made to touch one of the naked dancers due to lizzo chanting her name until she agreed to do so. she also said that behind the scenes she was fat shamed by lizzo having made thinly veiled concerns about her having put on weight. now beyonce is on tour at the moment and every night she does a roll call of inspiring black artists and lizzo is on local but last night in boston beyonce missed out her name. we've asked lizzo and the others accused to comment but they have not yet publicly responded to the allegations which it is important to emphasise remained to be tested in court.— be tested in court. colin paterson, thank you- — with the wet weather showing no sign of stopping — a trip to the local indoor swimming pool may seem like an attractive option for many families during the summer holidays.

but finding one could soon become more difficult, with some facing closure in england due to spiralling costs. alison freeman reports. their happy faces say it all. i just love doing swimming. it helps me focus on my breathing. also, it's good for your muscles. some of these youngsters have been part of ashton—under—lyne's long established swimming club since they were just four years old. but the pool they train in is one of many across the country under threat of closure. i'm very devastated. because all the progress that we did, i feel like all of it isjust, like, gone now because it's shutting down. i felt really heartbroken _ because my only sport was swimming. i was really upset because this full club is a family. and among those who felt the support of that family are catherine and her mum, anne, who were both injured

in the manchester arena bombing. when i got out of hospital, and even when in the hospital, they came and visited me, and gave me support and said that they'd be here for me whenever i needed and whenever i'd come back. and when i came back, they said that i could take as much time as i needed. and, yeah, it was just really helpful, mentally and physically. what did that support mean to you from the club? it built my confidence. just going back at that slower pace, just really helped. and i think it helped my family as well because it meant i could get back doing something i love. because myself and catherine's dad were also injured, so we were struggling as well. and any extra help we had with supporting catherine was, you know, we were just so grateful for. ashton's pool is one of three leisure centres on tameside which is set to close. increasing fuel bills and rising costs among the issues being blamed. you can't basically double the cost of heating your pools and expect l

people to pay double to come through the door. _ i we realised that there wouldn't be i enough money to continue everything we have as an organisation. swim england says almost 400 swimming pools have been lost since 2010 and a greater number of those are in deprived areas compared to the more affluent. the government says local authorities are responsible for local pools, and it's provided £60 million to support operating costs and help them improve energy efficiency. the swimming club has been offered session times at another pool, but that's a 20 minute drive away. what would you say to the people who've decided that they might want to shut this pool? it's not fair, because some people might not be able to do it at the new place. i'd ask them not to close it - because there's loads of children that love coming here and you can't just take that away from them. - alison freeman, bbc news. from tomorrow, visitors

to windsor castle will get the chance of a rare birds—eye view of the famous royal residence. the castle's iconic round tower is opening to the public for the first time since the covid lockdown — and our royal correspondent daniela relph has climbed the 200 steps up to the very top of it. within the grounds of windsor castle, the round tower looms large. dating back to 1170, it's had some upgrades over the years, but had to close during the covid lockdown. now the doors are open again for those of us who can face the 200 steps to the very top. much of what you see inside hasn't been touched in centuries. the wooden roof has been here since the 1400s, and you'll get up close to the sebastopol bell, installed during the reign of queen victoria, it's only ever rung following the death of the monarch.

as you emerge onto the lower parapet, you're around half way up. it's at this point on the climb up that visitors are told to put their phones and their cameras away. photos are banned because beyond the castle walls here are the royal family's private apartments. we head to the highest point, the top of the tower, 65 metres up. on a clear day, the views are spectacular. the expanse of the long walk through windsor great park is more impressive from up here. and as you do the circuit around the rooftop, you can also peer down into the grounds of the castle itself. here, the lower ward around st george's chapel. it does help if you have a head for heights. however, i don't have a great head for heights, but people, when they get up here, are so wowed by what you can see, you actually forget about it. this is a tour which gives you a bird's eye view of british history.

daniela relph, bbc news, the round tower, windsor. stargazers were treated to a supermoon last night. seen across the world, the event occurs when the moon is closest to the earth, meaning it can look significantly bigger and brighter than it usually does. a second supermoon will rise later this month — on august 30th. so if you missed it last night — you can try again then, weather permitting of course. time for a look at the weather, here's darren bett. as we have been reflecting it has been a very wetjuly and august does not look much better. quite a difference from june which was flaming but since then the weather has changed completely and not the sort of weather we expect to find at this time of year. a few

hardy souls have braved the wet and windy conditions but it is not particularly advisable along the south coast of england. in these conditions are due to another area of low pressure which has been named as storm patricia by the french weather service because the biggest impact will be along the north coast of france. that is where with a combination of the super moon and the strength of the wind we have some very rough seas and very big waves. still strong to gale force winds through the english channel and along the south coast which will ease later in the afternoon. and following the rain overnight we have these clusters of downpours coming in across england and wales, the threat of some torrential thundery rain as well and further north across the north—east of england we still have that rain which is keeping it particularly chilly. not a lot warmer in scotland and northern ireland where it is somewhat drier. england and wales

will become drier and quieter as we