on 7th january. president zelensky changed the law back injuly, to, as he said, "abandon russian heritage". danish shipping giant maersk says it's preparing to resume operations in the red sea and gulf of aden. the announcement comes as a us—led international military operation was deployed to prevent the targeting of commercial ships from areas of yemen controlled by houthi rebels. now on bbc news. talking movies: gurinder chadha special.

i come here mainly to walk the dog in the morning and in the afternoon, and then also, it's a great place to just clear your thoughts. i've come to london to meet gurinder chadha, a pioneering figure in the film industry — the first british asian woman to direct mainstream features in the uk. films that have won major awards and become international hits. in her movies, some eight feature films in all, from her best—known bend it like beckham... no—one can cross a ball or bend it like beckham. ..to her more recent musical drama blinded by the light... stay away from the girls! ..she has brought the screen to life with authentic stories using appealing actors, music... # she's a lady! ..and humour to portray british asian life. the asian experience in the uk has long been herfocus.

born in nairobi, gurinder chadha came to the uk as a young child and grew up in southall in west london, home to a big asian community. i'm always in southall, still got the best kebabs anywhere in london, and i've got relatives there — and of course the sikh temples are there, and i do, you know, it's where i grew up, really, it's where all of my films are shot. she began her career as a broadcastjournalist. in 1989 she made the first of several documentaries called i'm british but... — it showed the new generation of young asians in the uk. i see myself as british — maybe, well, welsh, isuppose. i've always wanted to meet gurinder chadha. her movies have made me laugh and cry. as a person, she is just like herfilms — warm, open, funny, optimistic and generous. she invited me into her london home and we spent the better part of a day delving into herfilms and discussing what makes her tick as a film—maker. # move on up...

hello and welcome to talking movies, i'm tom brook. today, i'm in london, in soho — still to some extent the heart of the uk film and tv industry — to bring you an interview with british asian film—maker gurinder chadha. too often in the past, her accomplishments have been unsung but she's been a major force in modern british cinema. in fact, she's the most prolific female film—maker in the uk today. this year marks the 20th anniversary of bend it like beckham, her most successful film. it became a real international hit and it has the distinction of being the only western—made film ever to be shown on north korean television. i'm joining a girls' team. huh? bend it like beckham is the story ofjess, an 18—year—old played by parminder nagra, from a traditional punjabi family... aloo gobi. ..who wants to play football, much to the dismay of her parents. that's it!

no more football. i want you to learn full punjabi dinner — meat and vegetarian. but dad! jules, portrayed by keira knightley... hi! ..plays for a local women's amateur football team and takes note ofjess's talent and befriends her. should come along and have a trial. a trial? you think i'm good enough? as this upbeat comedy progresses, it deals with a host of issues... indian girls aren't supposed to play football. ..some connected to race, prejudice, class, gender and sexuality. being a lesbian is not that big a deal. oh, no! in many ways, it was a film ahead of its time. this has taken me away from everything i know. bend it like beckham is also the highest grossing football film in history. cut! gurinder, welcome to talking movies. i don't have to tell you it is the 20th anniversary of bend it like beckham, and people do view that movie that you made is really being a landmark picture. why do you think that is?

what do people say to you about it? people are very effusive, full of affection for it, because it meant a lot of things to a lot of people for a lot of different reasons. my mum's never wanted me to play. you just can't take no for an answer. it's a sort of female empowerment movie, it has a gay element... i haven't told anyone. but you're indian! it is about race... this isjess. ..it is about being part of a diaspora... jess? is that indian? it's reallyjesminder_ but only my mum calls me that. on lots of levels, i think it appealed to people and particularly to diasporas around the world. you know how hard it is for our children over here? in addition to that, it came outjust after 9/11 and i think the world was sort of in freefall. you know, people were sort of worried about how were people going to live together and be together, and then this innocent film comes along, inviting you into the home of a sort of british sikh

family, you know? and you realise after a few laughs that actually, they're very similar to your own family. do you really want to be the one that everyone stares at, at every family do, because you married the english bloke? it is not a sort of hitting you on the head movie. it's a very subversive movie about racism and tolerance... i've never complained. ..and the effects of racism on one generation... on the contrary, i vowed that i will never play again. ..and how one generation has to accept that, acknowledge that, but then find their own way. and if i can't tell- you what i want now, then i will never be i happy whatever i do. and there's not a lot of films that do that! or were definitely not doing that at the time! i think it was a breath of fresh air.

if all of the relatives can look like they're acting and playing natural and not smiling at the camera... and what for you was the spark that really got bend it like beckham going as a narrative in your mind? what happened was in britain, football or soccer, you know, was very much a male domain. it was very aggressive, it was associated with the right wing in terms of the national front and the use of the unionjack, you know, the british flag was sort of synonymous with the right. it was all "football hooliganism" as we called it, always fights on the terraces. and then, ian wright, one of our black players, after an england match ran onto the pitch with the unionjack, and that was such an arresting image for me. i mean, in that one moment, things changed for me. and i saw a different britain on the tv. and i wanted to run with that. i wanted to run with a different britain — with my britain.

it was time for my britain to come, to be seen. although it is about football and soccer, it's really more about the sort of social changes at the time. not only that, there was this real idea of girl power at the time, with the spice girls and female empowerment was coming up. and i also wanted to be part of that. # my independence day... you know, you have been able to move forward in your career by being very determined and being very feisty. where does that come from? when i was about 16, at school, i had wanted to go to university and i actually wanted to study what we called development economics and geography at the time, because geography was my favourite subject. and i went to the careers office and said, "this "is what i want to do, i want to go to university," and she looked at me and said "mmm, don't you think "you should apply to secretarial college?" and i was like, "why would

i want to be a secretary?" and she said, "the world needs good secretaries". and ijust... ..in that moment, with that careers teacher, ijust thought, "you don't know me and you don't get me, "and how dare you!" i could not say any of that and i did not know how to articulate any of that but that was the fire in me that said, "you have no expectation of me "and my ambition, and what i want, "and i'm going to show you". and i think that was it. from that moment, i am never taking no for an answer. and i keep pushing and i still push, you know? i could have a much easier life if i just went to america and directed the scripts that i get sent, you know? but i keep pushing the envelope to represent, you know, represent people that look like me and represent ideas and values from, you know, a perspective that is different.

you want a clean—shaven boy like your sister? proper sikh with a full beard and a turban? after that comment, right, you basically gave a filthy look to the camera and walk back. what does it say about the film industry when you look at bend it like beckham, that keira knightley went on to become a breakout star but the other lead in the film, parminder nagra, didn't? i think it says everything you need to know about our industry. you know, keira was bankable. so, jerry bruckheimer cast her in the pirates of the caribbean series. pirate or not, this man saved my life. parminder did get some offers. john wells contacted me and asked me about her as a possible doctor in er, you know — so, she immediately got the la break and joined the cast of er.

so, she had success too, but it's a shame that hollywood did not acknowledge that she could be a leading lady in the same way, and that is because asian leads are not seen as bankable — still to this day, i think that's true. what do you say, dad? don't play with your future. did you feel that with bend it like beckham, your father and your relationship with your father was somehow manifested in the film? that is probably the core of the film, and if you're going to cry watching that film, you will cry because of that. make me proud. i had just lost my fatherjust before making the film and now, when i look back at the film, it's so emotional and it's made by somebody who is grieving. it is a film made in grief, you know? and i know that from my own, the way i've made films since. he just looks and then he... what i was exploring was exactly the pain that my father's generation had been through in orderfor me

to be standing there at that moment, shooting a movie. she will only end up disappointed like me. when my dad first came to britain — he had worked for barclays bank in kenya, and when he came to england in the �*60s with a turban and a beard, he had said, you know, "i'm going to go to barclays," and he went to the barclays bank in southall and they absolutely laughed their heads off when he went in and said, "do you honestly think we're ":ever going to have someone who looks like you, "ever going to have someone who looks like you, "with a beard and a turban, work in our bank?" and they literally threw him out of the bank, and then, he ended up cutting his hair and became a postman. when i was a teenager in nairobi, i was the best fast bowler in our school. and i took that story and made it about the east african cricket club in the movie. when i came to this country, nothing. i was not allowed to play in any of the teams and these

clubhouses made fun of my turban and sent me off packing. but that is the true story of what happened with my dad. and therefore, at the very end, when finally she says, "i have got this opportunity. "i want to go," and the dad makes his big speech. who suffered? me. you know, "i cannot hold you back. "that was my time. "i suffered because i lived in fear." i don't want her to make the same mistakes that her father made of accepting life and accepting situations. "it is wrong for me to put that fear on you and you have to go "out and make your own life and follow your own opportunities." and that is hugely emotional because that is about healing racism and that is about healing prejudice. because i have seen her playing. she is brilliant. you cannot stop your life if you live in an unfair world. you have to keep pushing forward. i don't think anyone has the right to stop her.

you push forward not only for yourself but for everyone else. and that is why bend it like beckham is such an important film because it takes me and my community and my world and my britishness and my asianess and everything into a massive sphere that has changed and influenced and been important to so many people around the world. over her 30—year career, she has been a real powerhouse, making shorts, documentaries, tv programmes and tv series and, of course, memorable vibrant feature films. from bride and prejudice, a bollywood—style version ofjane austen's pride and prejudice... only you could say you love me and insult me at the same time. ..to herfirst feature, bhaji on the beach in 1993. so what if she is pregnant? so what if the father is black? black!?

which, with all its great characters i really loved. have a female fun time. it followed three generations of asian women on a day trip to blackpool. was that a bit intimidating at first? you did not have much experience as a feature film director, did you? everybody, i don't care who they are, will tell you their first film is a complete baptism by fire. it is a nightmare. my films are always, from bhaji on, i always think about the community and moving the community forward while, at the same time, you know, i still have to protect my community. and so, i am always trying to include things for them and us, them and us, them and us, you know? and this all comes about from being one of the few asian women making films in britain today, that i am able to show these nuances and these cultural moments that go over a lot of people's heads. but they are of tremendous

value to me and they're not necessarily considered by a lot of other people because they don't know. maybe in years to come, who knows? but at the moment, you know, while i'm working, ifind that people don't always value what i do and ultimately, i guess, i'm aiming towards changing our world into one of being more tolerant and more understanding and more inclusive and more appreciative of the massive contribution of people who look and talk and feel different to you. it is interesting that you mention that because your films do deal with racism and prejudice and during the time which you've been making films, those problems haven't gone away and people would say, in some respects, they've got worse. so, is there a limit, do you think, to what cinema

can achieve in terms of changing people's minds? well, i also talk about gender and homosexuality and female empowerment, you know? i mean, it's everything. and i think that things have changed. i think they are changing. during the shot, i am panning down on one camera... i mean, the success of my film, the fact that everyone is talking about 20 years later is a massive indication of how things are changing. there's still an awfully long way to go, but i am now seeing lots of credits of women and women of colour on screen. and while there's always room for improvement, i think it's important to acknowledge that, you know, we can make a change and we have made a change. how wedded are you to being part of british cinema? i mean, early in your career, did you feel the pull of america to take you to a new land where there would perhaps be bigger opportunities? when i had success in america

with bhaji on the beach, i did get offered quite a lot of american movies but at that time, i did not quite know how to relate to them, and i met paul by then... your husband. i met paul my husband by then, yes. and then i decided, "well, if they want to make a film "in america, why don't i make my own film? and with paul, we wrote our movie which was a very british film about los angeles. no—one knows it's me who made it. it's on every year on tv. it's about four families in los angeles who celebrate thanksgiving over the weekend. she is the mommy, she's the daddy and i'm the alcoholic cult—worshipping satanic stepmother. we're playing thanksgiving. but the idea was that i wanted to make a film about the los angeles that i was seeing around me, not the one that was on the big screen. the rest will cook itself. for me, going to la, i was just blown away by the different communities there... why do you want to make

the turkey taste like everything else we eat? ..and not really seeing them on—screen and hence, i took my values from britain to la and made what's cooking? moving to a more sobering reality. i mean, how did the pandemic affect you as a film—maker and a storyteller? do you think it has changed you? for me the pandemic was a game—changer because it made me sit back and really think about what is my purpose and why do i want to make films? and you better believe that whatever film you choose to make, it should have some impact. mum, stop filming me! you always film me! before i was quite sort of — i used to push myself a lot. i think, post—lockdown, i calmed down and i stopped being quite so driven, if you you like. ijust said, "look" — i just accepted actually, a lot more of what's going to happen will happen. and i think that was the lesson

of lockdown, really, because we were not really in control, so the lesson was to let go — let go of the stress of trying to compete or get your projects made to the point where you get really stressed and just accept that things will happen the way they're going to happen. when you think about your work nowadays, are you just as enthusiastic about making a film as you were when you did bend it like beckham 20 years ago? i haven't changed. i am still incredibly motivated to push that envelope. you know, that's how i see it. i'm very keen to get back in the director's chair because i miss it. it's a buzz to keep trying to shift people's perceptions and to, you know, make people

understand the vagaries of culture and understand the damage that racism and prejudice do. so, for me — and also female empowerment, you know? we're still not out the woods on that, you know? so, i am still very keen to make sure that my films have great female roles and that i show the world from my perspective because its still, sadly, a very under—represented world. when you think back on your life and career, what are you most proud of? i think what i'm most proud of the fact that i've made a difference to people's lives. whether it's a very small thing with someone just appreciating it personally, or on a bigger level. will you ever retire, do you think? i mean, i hope that i get carried off set.

you know, i've keeled over going "cut! "do it again," or something. you know, i don't plan to retire — i don't think you can when you're creative. you never retire. the fact that people still talk about my work as being relevant, even though it was made a generation ago, is gratifying because it means that i did move the dial a little bit, i moved that needle, i did make a change and i can't stop. i must keep going because that needle might have gone like that only to get over here. thank you very much indeed for talking to talking movies. thank you very much, tom. end lines of nessun dorma play.

cheering. hello. thanks forjoining me. it is the final week of 2023. let's see what the weather has in store. of course it has been an incredibly mild christmas — temperatures in some spots exceeded 15 degrees celsius, all as a result of the mild south—westerly air stream, and that conveyor belt of cloud that brought the rain on christmas day. but the early hours of boxing day

look clear across the uk. those weather fronts will have shifted towards the east, and the morning temperatures, despite the clear skies actually, not particularly low — four degrees in newcastle, seven in plymouth, perhaps colder there in the highlands of scotland. there could be some morning showers in the north of england on boxing day, but after that, it is a case of sunny skies pretty much for all of us, at least, for the bulk of the day. so here is scotland then. yes, there'll be some showers around in the northern isles, and quite chilly northerly winds, but by the time you get to the central highlands, the central lowlands, the southern uplands, northern ireland and areas to the south, it is a case of clear blue skies, but clouds will increase. in fact, the skies will turn hazy across wales, the midlands, the south and south—west, and by lunchtime we are expecting rain in cornwall. certainly looks as though it is going to be wet in plymouth eventually, then that rain will push northwards and also eastwards through the course of the day, but i think it will stay dry across northern england, just about in northern ireland and certainly in scotland for the bulk of the day. that takes us into midweek wednesday, and a big area of low pressure sweeping the uk,

weather fronts as well, a lot of isobars there, so strong winds, really a very rough day. if you are travelling on wednesday, keep track of the latest forecast, because it could be really tricky on the roads, and there could be some delays in places. so here it is — temporarily we will have some snow, maybe across the pennines. certainly across the highlands, above around 200 metres the possibility of ten or 15 centimetres of snow. gale force winds around western coasts, southern coasts, the north sea coasts as well, a really rough day for many of us, and those temperatures only five degrees in glasgow, so pretty chilly, but in the south we are talking about double figures. so again, it is wednesday, and then into thursday, that this bad weather will be in place across the uk, that heavy rain, particularly heavy in western areas, that snow across the northern hills and mountains, and gale force winds around many coasts, but blustery inland too. now the low pressure bringing that unsettled weather is still with us on thursday, in fact a rash of showers, with some sunny spells, and again very gusty winds with a risk of gales round coasts.

now those temperatures will begin around 12 degrees in the south of the country, further north a bit colder there, with some wintry showers again possible across the highlands. and then that takes us into friday, a large area of low pressure you can see is still dominating the weather across the northern half of europe, pretty much. more weather fronts sweeping the uk. if you look at that the isobars are still with us, quite closely packed, which means the winds will remain strong and those shower also be pushed along that swift to gale force wind. but a little bit colder on friday and possibly into saturday as well, so those temperatures will drop to single figures, i think, for most of us. now here is the outlook then from the weekend and into 202a. you can see a lot of rain icons there, and staying on the mild side, so an unsettled picture, maybe just a brief lull to come during the course of saturday. bye— bye.

live from london. this is bbc news. gaza's hamas run health minitry says over 250 people killed in the last 2a hours including 70 in a blast targeting the maghazi refugee camp. israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu visits gaza and says the fighting will deepen in the coming days. protestors in serbia vow to block streets in the capital, belgrade, unless the government

agrees to re—run recent elections — following claims of ballot rigging. for the first time in 100 years, many orthodox christians in ukraine celebrate christmas today, in a further shift from russia. king charles is making his annual christmas speech to the uk, where he is expected to call on every person to protect each other at a time of what he calls "increasingly tragic conflict" around the world. the israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu says his troops are going to quote "deepen the fighting" in gaza in the coming days as he visits troops in gaza. this comes after the deadliest nights in the 11—week—old battle between israel and hamas. at least 70 people are thought to have been killed in an air strike