stargazers around the globe were treated to a stunning celestial scene on friday celestial scene on friday as venus appeared shining as venus appeared shining brightly above a crescent moon. brightly above a crescent moon. the planet was visible the planet was visible to the naked eye from the uk to the naked eye from the uk to the us, turkey and china. to the us, turkey and china. this is bbc news. this is bbc news. hello, i'm martine croxall. hello, i'm martine croxall. let's return now to the weather let's return now to the weather situation here in the uk now. situation here in the uk now. amber and yellow weather amber and yellow weather warnings for snow and ice warnings for snow and ice are in place for england are in place for england and wales this weekend, and wales this weekend, with heavy snow and with heavy snow and icy rain forecast. icy rain forecast. for more on this now, for more on this now, i'm joined by our weather i'm joined by our weather presenter louise lear. presenter louise lear. it is serious stuff when there it is serious stuff when there is an amberwarning. is an amberwarning. it is serious stuff when there is an amber warning. it is, the it is serious stuff when there is an amber warning. it is, the middle tier, so we could go middle tier, so we could go red, it is unlikely at the red, it is unlikely at the moment, but amber moment, but amber red, it is unlikely at the red, it is unlikely at the moment, butamberwarnings moment, but amber warnings really moment, butamberwarnings really need to be taken serious moment, butamberwarnings moment, but amber warnings really moment, butamberwarnings really need to be taken serious consideration and they start from six o'clock this evening,

so six o'clock this

there is quite a bit of and there is quite a bit of snow? g and there is quite a bit of snow? �* ., ., ., , snow? a lot to higher grounds, transpennine _ snow? a lot to higher grounds, transpennine routes, - snow? a lot to higher grounds, transpennine routes, people i snow? a lot to higher grounds, i transpennine routes, people who live in that area, i was born in that area, they know, snake pass for instance is notorious so they will know to avoid those routes, but we are looking at potentially a0 centimetres of snow through the night which is a lot, that could cut off in some rural areas for a time, but even at some snow at lower levels looking around centimetres and then i see structures as well because temperatures in some areas will stay below freezing. -- 10-15 areas will stay below freezing. —— 10—15 centimetres. areas like the south—east of england, could potentially see some snow in the evening but incredibly mild air tucking in the evening but incredibly mild airtucking in in the evening but incredibly mild air tucking in behind here so it will turn back to reign. it is quite a noticeable split between the north and south of the country will stop the cold

air will stay in scotland, not only through this weekend but into next week as well, so it is noticeably milder air behind but on that — is noticeably milder air behind but on that leading _ is noticeably milder air behind but on that leading edge - is noticeably milder air behind but on that leading edge is . is noticeably milder air behind | but on that leading edge is the real concern and you have probably seen on some of the weather warnings, snow and freezing rain, thinking what is the difference? this note clears it through and you still have those temperatures just sitting on or below freezing, as that rain hits the frozen services it freezes on contact and that, in some respects, it can be more dangerous than snow because drivers can't see it and it is very treacherous. yes, you see it forming in liquid form, don't you? when it hits the ground that is when it becomes... hits the ground that is when it becomes- - -— hits the ground that is when it becomes... potentially lethal, es. becomes... potentially lethal, yes- louise. — becomes... potentially lethal, yes. louise, thank— becomes... potentially lethal, yes. louise, thank you - becomes... potentially lethal, yes. louise, thank you very i yes. louise, thank you very much, yes. louise, thank you very much. i'm _ yes. louise, thank you very much, i'm sure _ yes. louise, thank you very much, i'm sure we - yes. louise, thank you very much, i'm sure we will - yes. louise, thank you very much, i'm sure we will be l much, i'm sure we will be hearing more from you. caroline abrahams is the director of the age uk charity — she says that cold weather can exacerbate feelings of loneliness in older people, by preventing them

from going out. when the weather's bad, it coops people up inside, quite rightly people are worried about going outside and slipping and falling on the ice, so, you know, people can feel very lonely and the walls close in a bit, so, yes, anything that people can do to be friendly to the older people in their lives, give them a ring on the phone, pop next door, check they're ok, that would be a fantastic contribution. we'll talk about what we can all do in a moment, but if you're staying indoors, you will probably want to put your heating on and that in turn causes extra concerns if money is a bit tight? yes, we heard from absolutely thousands of older people in the run—up to this winter worrying about what to do if and when the weather got really cold, and we were lucky, weren't we? it was quite mild for a long time but now it really isn't and winter has arrived with a vengeance, and i think there are lots of older people today who are wanting to put the heating on but worrying whether they can really afford it, and so, you know, our message to them really is please put your health first, put yourself first and worry about the bill afterwards. do stay adequately warm, because it is really bad for older people to become chronically cold, it can cause

all sorts of health problems and that's the last thing that they or anyone else needs. how sympathetic will the energy companies be, then, if you run up a bill that you're going to have difficulty paying quickly? well, the energy companies are under an obligation to help people who are struggling with their bills regardless of age, and so i think if people are worried, if an older person is worried about that, the best thing to do is to proactively get in touch, get in touch with your energy company, let them know that you are worried and you would like some help and they should be able to offer you that. as may your local council, so that's another source. and, of course, thirdly, please always feel free to ring age uk's advice line where we can help you check that you are claiming all the benefits you are entitled to because an awful lot is being missed out and it can make a real difference to an older person's quality of life. increasingly, a lot of organisations who can offer help in situations like this direct people to their websites, but surely the most vulnerable people are going to struggle

to do that, they may not have internet access, they may not have a smartphone. absolutely, digital exclusion is really rife amongst the older population. literally millions and millions of over 65s are not online and no reason why they should be, because when they grew up that wasn't what people used, it was much more analogue methods, but that's why things like telephone helplines are still really, really important because they're available for everybody and you don't have to be online to be able to access them. so, yes, please do feel free to ring the age uk helpline. there are others as well, there are face—to—face opportunities too, not so much at the weekend but monday to friday go to your local age uk and they would be helpful to you as well. and it makes that person—to—person contact all the more important? yeah, for some people that really matters, particularly perhaps if you've got a hearing problem or a sight issue then, you know, even using the phone

can be quite difficult, so, yeah, there's always another way, or you can even write a letter. you've got to wait for it to arrive of course, that might take a little time, but none the less, yeah, there are ways of getting in touch if you're not online, don't worry about that. and you mention the importance of people claiming benefits that they are entitled to, which might make up for the fact that the winter fuel payment was cut, what sort of agencies are best placed to do that? yeah, well, you can get in touch with the government, the dwp directly, and they run all sorts of helplines and if you are online they do have lots of information on their website as well. 0ragain you can come to age uk. an awful lot of what we do nationally is to support people in firstly understanding what they might be entitled to do, to have, and then secondly to claim it. the one that everyone's been talking about recently is pension credit, because that's the only now real qualified benefit to keep your winter fuel payment, but it's not the only one.

for example, there's another one called attendance allowance, which has a funny kind of name, doesn't it? so people often wonder what it is, but it is really there to support people who are older who have disabilities or mobility issues, things like that, and so an awful lot of older people actually are entitled to some help from it butjust don't know. and it can make a big difference and it's not means tested, so it is always worth having a look, and we can help you even claim it, work through the form if that's what you need us to do. caroline abra hams from caroline abrahams from the charity age uk. the us surgeon general has proposed that alcoholic drinks should carry warnings about the risks of cancer. vivek murthy said that alcohol is the third most common preventable cause of cancer after tobacco and obesity, and is responsible for 20,000 deaths each year in the united states. at the moment, alcoholic drinks only carry warnings against drinking during pregnancy, or while operating machinery or driving.

share prices of us—listed alcoholic beverage companies fell up to a% at this news. some people interviewed in new york were sceptical that warning labels would be effective. king charles is deeply saddened by the death of a british man who was killed in the vehicle attack in new orleans on new year's day, according to sources at buckingham palace. edward pettifer, who's 31, is believed to be the stepson of alexandra pettifer, known as tiggy, who looked after prince william and prince harry when they were children. palace sources have told the bbc the king has been in touch with mr pettifer�*s family to share his personal condolences. in a tribute, edward pettifer�*s family described him as a "wonderful son, brother, grandson, nephew and friend to so many". teenage sensation luke littler has become the youngest ever world darts champion, after cruising to victory over michael van gerwen in the final at alexandra palace in london. the 17—year—old threw i2 180s

in the match, to claim the half a million pound prize. littler shot to fame last year when he finished runner—up in the event aged just 16, but the teenagerfrom warrington, north west england pulled through as the favourite to go one better this year. 0ur sports correspondent natalie pirks was there. cheering and applause first came the cheers, then came the tears for a destiny realised at just 17. it felt like i was at home. just settled so well throughout the tournament and i just didn't feel any nerves up until the last leg, when i started shaking a bit. i said, "you've not shook all game, don't do it now". it was the fairy tale final all fans wanted — the experienced icon versus the new idol. and it was the nuke who settled quickest. misses from van gerwen were proving costly and littler was making hay.

he is finding double turn tonight, _ he is finding double turn tonight, luke _ he is finding double turn tonight, luke littler. - mvg was left in shock as with his trusty double ten, littler raced into a four—set lead. commentator: one of - the greatest players to ever throw a dart is getting a hiding from the 17—year—old at the moment! van gerwen wasn't going to take this lying down, though. was a comeback on the cards? the dutchman had pulled it back to 6—3 but the crowd rose to their feet, sensing something special. littlerjust needed to hold his nerve. just one dart for sporting immortality. from magnetic darts in a nappy to the midas touch at the palace, and it only took him 17 years. as soon as the winning double went in, ijust...i couldn't believe it. i was fine and then, when ijust looked up and looked into the crowd and everyone was on their feet,

that's when the tears came and i looked over to my family, they were in tears as well and ijust... iknew "it�* , s mine" as the palace packs up for another year, littler says his most pressing ambition is to sleep. after that, though, there's no limit to what he can achieve after a night where a prince became the king. natalie pirks, bbc news, alexandra palace. speaking to our colleagues at bbc breakfast earlier, the new world champion talked about how he felt during the final. i just felt very confident going into last night. i didn't put any pressure on myself, ijust said to myself whatever happens happens. did you enjoy it? you looked like you were enjoying it. yeah, it's another big occasion. obviously, it's back—to—back finals for myself and like you said, i enjoyed myself, i didn't put any pressure on myself. luke, we can see the trophy behind you there, it's quite a big one. now, i went to your house, what, about a month ago now? so before all this started, and you have already got

an absolutely packed trophy cabinet. where are you going to put it? are you going to have to extend? i think so, i think we might have to get a special cabinet for it. if not, it willjust go on the floor in the living room. let's speak to bobby george, former professional darts player who's in colchester. good morning. you watched the match, what did you make of it? good morning, ithought match, what did you make of it? good morning, i thought it was, i really enjoyed it. the boy played extremely well. michael didn't play badly, but he missed too many in the first set, he missed a number. he scored not bad but he didn't get to take a double quick enough. luke outscored him, so if you can outscore your opponent so you have time to go out on a shot, you are going to

beat him and that is what luke done, he had the 180s, and with that double ten. but he has a gift, a marvellous gift to play darts and for a young guy to do it is good for the game at really because there are loads of youngsters out there who want to be luke littlers. michael got the final again, but he got a—0 down, he was shocked, he didn't know where he was, he didn't even win a set and like that reporters said, when luke was double 16, he thought he'd go for it and he thought he'd go for it and he got it with his third darts.

he got through the two darts into the double—a team, it was great, i loved it. == into the double-a team, it was great, i loved it.— great, i loved it. -- the double _ great, i loved it. -- the double 18. _ great, i loved it. -- the double 18. what - great, i loved it. -- the double 18. what to - great, i loved it. -- the double 18. what to do | great, i loved it. -- the i double 18. what to do the great, i loved it. -- the - double 18. what to do the other players then, it makes people look at their game surely? you aet a nu look at their game surely? you get a guy who _ look at their game surely? you get a guy who can _ look at their game surely? 7m. get a guy who can play like that, you have to practice more and get to his level otherwise he will wipe the floor with everyone. michael van gerwen, when he was young, he won the wild masters and a lot of tournaments that boy, and we thought yes, but we never thought yes, but we never thought there would be another michael van gerwen come along as quick as he did. we knew he played dartss, different opens he won, but as soon as he got on the alley pali stage last year, everything he went for, he got to the final and people said he was a bit lucky but you can't say he is lucky when he

gets to the final and this year, it was amazing, really enjoyed it. it was a match to remember. but then in sports, there are a lot of young guys who play football who are very young, tennis players who are very young, so why not darts players who are that young? haw players who are that young? how does he cape _ players who are that young? how does he cope with _ players who are that young? how does he cope with the pressure? at the moment he is very humble, seems to take everything in his stride, but surely that will change, isn't it, as he starts to feel the enormity of what he has done? well, obviously he has good management. he doesn't talk to bad and when he first started he couldn't put words together but now he has got used to talking to people over the last year and he has to keep his feet on the ground, don't get cocky, just play your game as you have done all the way through and he will make a lot

of money and he is the darts player of the future, without a doubt. ., player of the future, without a doubt. . ., . . player of the future, without a l doubt-_ yes. doubt. can he do it again? yes, he could do _ doubt. can he do it again? yes, he could do it _ doubt. can he do it again? yes, he could do it again. _ doubt. can he do it again? yes, he could do it again. if- doubt. can he do it again? yes, he could do it again. if you - he could do it again. if you can maintain that pressure on the players he is playing and the players he is playing and the scoring power he has got, he could do it. you check the 1805 he could do it. you check the 180s in that tournament, luke littler, he got 76 1080 is that tournament which is unbelievable and the scoring power of him.— power of him. they are very different — power of him. they are very different characters, - power of him. they are very | different characters, michael van gerwen really likes the limelight, luke littler seems to be the result of quiet, measured character. yes, they are two different _ measured character. yes, they are two different characters. i are two different characters. michael is a nice boy, i have known him since he was 13, he is a nice boy that he gets involved and he really tried his heart out yesterday. i know him and he must�*ve thought i

can't beat this i can't beat him. but luke littler is quite laid—back really, hejumps laid—back really, he jumps about laid—back really, hejumps about when he won the double 16 but you don't see much reaction to him when he's playing, he just throws his darts and he is an amazing darts player. all the youngsters who watch him in the youngsters who watch him in the world all want to be like him, so they are playing darts in their nappies, like you said. they will probably sell a luke littler nappy and a set of his darts! i luke littler nappy and a set of his darts! ~ , ., luke littler nappy and a set of his darts! ~ ., his darts! i think you are riaht, his darts! i think you are right. and _ his darts! i think you are right, and sales - his darts! i think you are right, and sales of - his darts! i think you are right, and sales of darts| right, and sales of darts boards will go through the roof or stop thank you very much for joining us today. the cold weather may have you dreaming of a getaway to warmer climates, but experts are urging people to be vigilant against scammers who may be offering deals and prices that are too good to be true.

it's a big problem — in 2023, action fraud received more than 6,500 reports of holiday related scams — that includes ticket and rentalfraud. victims lost a total of nearly £12.3 million across the year. that's an average of more than £1,800 per victim. georgia poncia has spoken of those who have fallen victim to scammers. are you on the lookout for a cheap holiday? tasha was. i suddenly died inside because it was a week to go and we had nowhere booked. she found an advert for a holiday home on social media and she spoke to the person who posted the advert, asking to see his id and proof that he owned the property. she paid a deposit of £280 upfront, with the rest to be paid on arrival. but closer to the holiday, he went quiet. i suddenly thought, "oh, no, what's happened?" tasha got in touch with the local pub and asked them about the property. it turned out that the person she had paid did not own the house and the current owners regularly have people turning up thinking they'd booked a holiday let. my heart sunk and i just felt

so disappointed with myself. i cried. i didn't know what to do. and it's notjust fake holiday homes that fraudsters are selling, it's flights as well. ali tried to book flights over the phone through a travel agent that he'd found online. but after giving over his card details, he realised that they'd taken hundreds more than he was quoted on the phone. that's when i realised that this was a scam. i felt very stupid not checking their website or their numbers beforehand. i saw that the money had gone to a company called booking.com, which obviously is a very well— known travel agency website, so they had taken the name of booking.com as well. booking.com says that no legitimate transaction will ever require a customer to share sensitive information like credit card details via e—mail, text or phone. some people only realise they have been scammed at the very last minute.

kent trading standards told us about one man who got here, to heathrow, before finding out that his tickets were fake. hi, good afternoon. how can i help you? copycat scams are impacting travel agents, too. almost every other day we are facing scams. i zulfiqar has even started a facebook group warning people of the risks and how scammers operate. when someone is scammed, we have lost a client, - that client has lost trust. on travel industry, so we're really worried about that. if you're looking to book a holiday, book it through a reputable site. if possible pay for a credit card, and if you do feel that you've been conned, then contact your bank straight away. fraudsters are using increasingly sophisticated methods to try and scam consumers. so, the message is clear — if it looks too good to be true, it probably is. georgia poncia, bbc news.

over the past century, tens of thousands of ponds have been lost in the drive for more efficient farming, meaning the loss of valuable habitats for rare species. but in essex, a00 of them have been restored by conservationists and farmers over the past year, and our reporter richard daniel has been to find out how. in a field near wethersfield in north essex, andrew hull is hard at work digging a new pond. and this isn't his first. we must be pushing 50, 60, maybe 70 ponds. some small like this, some large lakes. a huge amount. i'm very lucky to create such a large network of ponds in an area which i live in. in the post—war period, as farming intensified, thousands of ponds were filled in or became overgrown. this one has just been saved by the landowner. here in essex, we've created and restored coming up to 400 ponds now, working with landowners, and just within a five—kilometre radius of this pond,

we've actually restored and created 80 ponds. so you can see there'll be a stepping stone effect of these habitats being brought back. clean, fresh water is really important for birds, all species of birds and other farm wildlife too. but particularly for turtle doves, as they're what's known as an obligate granivore, they only eat seeds, so they need access to clean, fresh water. well, these ponds, they give a huge amount of benefit - to all sorts of species that need water. - so your farmland, birds, _ amphibians, mammals come down to drink at these ponds. so they are vital areas - of water across a landscape that's otherwise quite dry overthe summer. - emma gray runs a group of 70 farmers taking part in the project. we know that farmers have got the equipment they need to restore ponds. they've got diggers, they've got excavators. so really we brought them together and gave them the do's and don'ts of pond restoration. so get the light in, get some vegetation away from the bank. and the results speak for themselves.

a00 down, some 3,500 to go. richard daniel, bbc news. stargazers around the globe were treated to a stunning celestial scene on friday, as venus appeared shining brightly above a crescent moon. the planet was visible to the naked eye from the uk to the us, turkey and china. venus is often called the evening star or morning star because, when it is prominent, it appears like the brightest "star" in the sky. here you can see the crescent moon and the planet venus straddle a cross on top of quebec baptist church in ellaville, georgia. in turkey's capital, ankara, the moon and venus are seen together alongside the kocatepe mosque. in the uk's whitley bay, a shining waxing crescent moon glows with venus to the right. and in other parts of the world, more astronomical

delights as the quadrantid meteor shower continues, captured here in the night sky over the great wall of china. you are watching bbc news. stay with us in the hours ahead. now it's time for a look at the weather with sarah keith—lucas. hello. the wintry weather through this weekend could well cause some significant disruption. the met office have issued amber warnings across parts of england and wales for snow and for ice too. we could see problems on the roads, the rail network, perhaps the airports, potential for power cuts as well. so do be prepared for some disruptive weather, particularly tonight into tomorrow. we've got a couple of amber warnings, the first one for wales into the midlands for snow and ice, valid from 6pm. 9pm then a second amber warning comes into force across northern england for heavy snowfall. for the here and now, though, we're in a cold air mass. relatively quiet conditions at first, but milder air is working in from the south—west, along with these weather fronts.

they're initially going to be falling as rain, quickly turning to snow as that system pushes its way northwards and eastwards. so there's the rain just lurking in the wings, pushing into the south—west of england through the middle part of the afternoon, turning to snow, certainly over the higher ground. to the north and east of that, a drier picture for much of t