people don't pay to see reg dwight, they pay to see eltonjohn! world tour will be his last, but those who have studied his life aren't entirely convinced. he could never not perform, because i think it is too much in his blood and he loves it too much. and he wouldn't want to be away too much from the fans, i don't think. sir elton is now on his way to the south of france, continuing his epic career, one which gets a big thumbs up. freya cole, bbc news. for more on this, let's speak to kenny metcalf. he's considered one of the world's top elton john impersonators and an expert on the artist's life. hejoins us from his studio in los angeles. thank you so much for your time. we can see you in your eltonjohn impersonating get up, which looks fantastic. thank you. first of all, why have you decided to devote so much of your life to this particular artist? well, elton john was the inspiration that made me want to be a piano player. i was a drummerfor ten years, and in freshman year in high school, benny and thejets came out and that was it, for me. i

i asked why he decided to devote his career to eltonjohn. piano player. i was a drummer for ten years, and in freshman year in high school, benny and thejets came out and that was it, for me. i went home and taught myself to play the piano and i have loved elton‘s music and everything that is elton ever since. one of the reasons eltonjohn has been given this particular award, which is quite something, from france, is for his musical genius, essentially. and i have heard so much about it, apparently he comes up with these songs, these hits, in minutes. how much can you tell us about eltonjohn as the musician? he is amazing. his music is in—depth, in such a way, i mean, when he wrote this stuff, for him and his band, to write such classics in15 minutes' time, and then in 15 minutes' time the band learns it and records it, and they are standing to this day as amazing songs, they are epic. playing elton‘s music has made me a better piano player than i ever was. i loved his music, i love the way he phrases chord structures, melody lines. he'sjust

sir eltonjohn sir elton john has sir eltonjohn has been awarded france's highest civilian honour, thee 72—year—old used the occasion to present his charity work with the elton john foundation. hand—in—hand from french president emmanuel macron and the legendary sir eltonjohn. emmanuel macron and the legendary sir elton john. sir emmanuel macron and the legendary sir eltonjohn. sir elton has been in paris for his farewell yellow brick road world tour, but before he departs the country, he picked up france's highest civilian award, the legion of honour. i have a huge love affair with france. i have a house here, i have always loved coming here. i love the french culture of life and the french people. and as a musician, to receive this award on the day of the festival musqie d'music makes it even more special. fit for a queen, the ceremony was held at the elysee palace, the president describing him as a melodic genius, but also paying homage to his lifelong work championing gay rights and raising billions of dollars to ending the plight of hiv/aids. translation: we have to continue to fi

bursting through every door in a big outfit playing eltonjohn.hat really isn't a biopic. it is sort of about eltonjohn and his friendship with bernie taupin. it is fabulous. it is a neorealist musical. it uses the songs we know so well. and they reappropriate those lyrics, breathing new life into songs you thought you knew so well. elton grows up with his mum and his dad. it also goes very dark and very deep into elton‘s past drug use and drug addiction and homosexuality. a very bold film in the way bohemian rhapsody wasn't bold, it was bright and good and fun, but this one is stronger and bolder. not a family musical but it is brilliant. eltonjohn said he didn't want a sanitized version of his life. i don't think he has lived a sanitized life. he is proud of the fact that he is still standing, as the song goes. i can't get it out of my head. he is still standing and he lives to tell the tale, a brilliant tale. if you remember the songs the first time around orjust heard them and wondered what they were about, this really adds another layer to th

bursting through every door in a big outfit playing eltonjohn.ort of about eltonjohn and his friendship with bernie taupin. it is fabulous. it is a neorealist musical. it uses the songs we know so well. and they reappropriate those lyrics, breathing new life into songs you thought you knew so well. we see elton grow up with his mum and his dad. it also goes very dark and very deep into elton‘s past drug use and drug addiction and homosexuality. a very bold film in the way bohemian rhapsody wasn't bold, it was bright and good and fun, but this one is stronger and bolder. not a family musical, but it is brilliant. eltonjohn said he didn't want a sanitized version of his life. i don't think he has lived a sanitized life. he is proud of the fact that he is still standing, as the song goes. i can't get it out of my head. he is still standing and he lived to tell the tale, a brilliant tale. if you remember the songs the first time around orjust heard them and wondered what they were about, this really adds another layer to rocketman and to eltonjohn hi

and whether you are an eltonjohn fan or not, i mean i am, i grew eltonjohn fan or not, i mean i am, igrew mean i am, i grew up with him. but i couldn't believe how much i enjoyed this. i sat there beaming through the whole thing. i think you'd love it. i think you'd love it because it's such a vibrant, fantastic cinema experience. and it's not sanitised? no, it's not. bohemian rhapsody is a bit sanitised, this isn't, it's for long. the full sex and drugs life, and then some. sold to me just on that. and on dvd, a private ball? yes, this is a narrative drama about marie colvin, the war reporter. the film itself has some flaws. he says it is not a biopic, it's a portrait. but it's got a brilliant central performance by rosamund pike who gives it 110%. it's one of those films in which that central performance will see you through, perhaps, the simplifications of the film itself. it's an important subject, and she really carries it. she really, really does. the thing with marie colvin though, a lot of people will know the story, the truth of it. not least because we've seen truth of it. not l

eltonjohn receives france's highest civilian honour, the legion d'honneurfrom president macron. hello and welcome to world news today. president trump called off military strikes against iran with just minutes to spare last night. he said the planes were in the air cocked and loaded and had three targets in their sights. but the president said he decided to halt the air strikes because too many people would have been killed. the attack was to be in retaliation for the shooting down of an american unmanned surveillance drone on thursday. in the volatile region which supplies a third of the world's oil. tehran says the drone entered iranian airspace. the us maintains it was shot down in international airspace over the strait of hormuz. the last time the us launched a significant military effort here's our north america editorjon sopel. in iran, they are celebrating taking out of the sky a $130 million us drone, the latest escalation in tensions between washington and tehran. today on iranian tv, the results of their handiwork were being shown off. america has no shortage of milita

people don't pay to see reg dwight, they pay to see eltonjohn!his last, but those who have studied his life are not entirely convinced. he could never not perform, because i think it is too much in his blood and he loves it too much. and he wouldn't want to be away too much from the fans, i don't think. sir elton is now on his way to the sout of france, continuing his epic career, one which gets a big thumbs up. i was tempted to in the bulletin by singing you a medley, yes, a medley of eltonjohn‘s greatest hits but i've been told that sadly for you, 01’ i've been told that sadly for you, ora i've been told that sadly for you, or a relief, we are out of time. you can reach me and most of the team on twitter you can find me at @benmbland. thanks for watching. hello there. things are warming up this weekend right across the board. it will certainly be noticeable across southern areas, weather humidity will also gradually increase, and into next week, certainly late on sunday, the threat of thundery showers increases as well. for the weekend, fine fo

people don't pay to see reg dwight, they pay to see eltonjohn!will be his last, but those who have studied his life aren't entirely convinced. he could never not perform, because i think it is too much in his blood and he loves it too much. and he wouldn't want to be away too much from the fans, i don't think. sir elton is now on his way to the south of france, continuing his epic career, one which gets a big thumbs up. freya cole, bbc news. hello there. things are warming up this weekend right across the board. it'll certainly be noticeable across southern areas, where the humidity will also gradually increase, and into next week, certainly late on sunday, the threat of thundery showers increases as well. for the weekend, fine for most of us. lots of dry weather around. we start this morning on a cool note outside town. the single digits in one or two places. the pressure chart reveals high pressure. this will be the driving force for the fine weather, certainly for the first half of the weekend, but this low pressure system will come into play

sir eltonjohn has been given frans‘s sir eltonjohn has been given fra ns‘s highest civilian sir eltonjohneen given frans‘s highest civilian award by president macron, the legion d'honneur. andy murray will return to court later today to complete his doubles quarterfinal at queens after the second comeback match was halted. good morning. welcome to bbc news. police were called to the home of the conservative leadership candidate boris johnson and his partner in the early hours of friday morning in london — after a neighbour reportedly heard a noisy row. the guardian newspaper says a neighbour recorded some of the alleged argument in which mrjohnson‘s partner carrie symonds can be heard saying "get off me". the metropolitan police say no offences have been committed. a spokesman for mrjohnson has said "no comment". our political correspondent helen wilkinson is here. good morning to you. tell us what is said to have happened. the flat we are talking about is shared with mrjohnson and his pan in south—east london. it was in the early hours of friday morning that officers went to that flight.

eltonjohn is elton john is here eltonjohn is here with the french president emanuel wright got —— then d'honneurfor his french president, receiving the legion d'honneur for his work in the fight against age —— the fight against aids and his music. do we have to pronounce it very french, the legion d'honneur? as long as we know. there is one story dominating the front pages. reports police have been called to the london home of borisjohnson. a neighbour heard a loud argument. the police said "there was no cause for police action". a spokesman for mrjohnson has said: "no comment". let's see what's on some of the inside pages. i tell you, one of the stories, this is worth spending a bit of time on. the story on the times. this story. you know every once in awhile, people say their dream jobs, fly out to an island, there no—one there. this is a teaching job. we are in the remote north—west highlands and there is a teaching post it's fallen vacant. three times in the past five yea rs, vacant. three times in the past five years, a tiny school, there are five primary and five nursery pupils.

cheering eltonjohn in elton john in paris. longest day, and the summer solstice, in an unusual way, very early this morning. they marked the occasion by taking a dawn dip at the lido in peterborough and then witnessing the sunrise. and adam jinkerson was up early too to capture this spot of eccentricity. 4:43am, and sunrise on the longest day of the year. while most of us would have been tucked up in bed, a select few people in peterborough were making it their mission to witness dawn breaking by going for a dip in the city‘s lido. this is a bit of a special occasion, to get here at 4:30am at 4:45am, it is brilliant. the rest of the world is sleeping and you are in here enjoying the sun coming up and enjoying the warm water. just fantastic. it seems to have a whole different meaning to swimming inside a pool that's inside. getting out in the fresh air and the sun is up and the birds are singing, yeah, it is reviving, refreshing. to see the sunrise on the longest day of the year is amazing and this place holds so many great mem

bursting through every door in a big outfit playing eltonjohn. about eltonjohn and his friendship with bernie taupin. it is fabulous. it is a neorealist musical. it uses the songs we know so well. and they reappropriate those lyrics, breathing new life into songs you thought you knew so well. elton grows up with his mum and his dad. it also goes very dark and very deep into elton's past drug use and drug addiction and homosexuality. a very bold film in the way bohemian rhapsody wasn't bold, it was bright and good and fun, but this one is stronger and bolder. not a family musical but it is brilliant. eltonjohn said he didn't want a sanitized version of his life. i don't think he has lived a sanitized life. he is proud of the fact that he is still standing, as the song goes. i can't get it out of my head. he is still standing and he lives to tell the tale, a brilliant tale. if you remember the songs the first time around orjust heard them and wondered what they were about, this really adds another layer to the rocketman and to eltonjohn himself and

a little bit of french at the end, the legion d'honneurfor eltonjohn. national windrush day today, celebrating the contribution of the carribbean immigrants who helped to britain in the decades after the second world war. the tv presenter floella benjamin was one of them and windrush day was her idea. we'll speak to floella in a moment. first, the bbc‘s adina campbell went to meet some of those taking part. one last practice for these schoolchildren. for weeks they have been preparing performances for a special audience. some of the residents in this care home belong to the wind rushed a and have been sharing their stories with their younger guests. hi, my name is taylor. where do you come from? lam fromjamaica. do rememberthe lam fromjamaica. do remember the day you came? 1959. what was your first day like in the uk? it was all right. i settled down. the empire windrush brings 500 jamaicans. the empire windrush docked in essex backin the empire windrush docked in essex back in 19118. hundreds of passengers from the caribbean who were invited over after

sir eltonjohn an oscar and of course a knighthood.ked up france's biggest award. it was presented by the french president. praising his efforts to charity rights, he described their elton is a melodic genius. sir elton said he was thrilled to be honoured bya said he was thrilled to be honoured by a country he loved and one which continues to support his fight against hiv and aids. this fight reminds me every day of the extraordinary power of the human spirit. and the things that bind us all stronger than those that divide us. it is this magical human spirit i will carry with me as a proud member of this award. with your music ringing in my is, thank you. __ my music ringing in my is, thank you. —— my ears. the accolade follows the biotic of his life, depicting his battles with drinks and drugs over a 50 year career. he is currently on his farewell world tour, but the people of france were clearly welcome him back for an encore whenever he wants. a great honour. what is it like outside? here is the view outside our studio this morning.

sir eltonjohn so we can make the right choices.ed quite a few awards over the years and he has now been honoured by france. he was awarded the legion d'honneur by the french president emmanual macron, being praised for his music and his charity work in the fight against aids. what have you got, mike? in the cricket, favourites, the hosts, to sri lanka. they only need to get 233 runs. ifan if an expected them to do it but sri la nka if an expected them to do it but sri lanka bowled brilliantly. england have this situation was it a bit sticky. they have three more matches in the group stage. england have still got to play new zealand, australia and india adaptor when two of those realistically to go through and haven't been those sides in the world cup since 1992. those that haven't followed that closely, england relative to sri lanka in the rankings. 0nly england relative to sri lanka in the rankings. only the top four. if you're thinking new zealand, australia, india, sri lanka, only four of those can go through. there isa four of

whether or not you are an eltonjohn, and i am, a grew up with his music. —— how much i enjoyed this. is that there beaming through the whole thing. i'm desperate to see it again. i think you would love it. you would love it because it is such a vibrant cinema experience. and it is not sanitised, is it? that is the comparison people made with bohemian rhapsody. this isn't. this is full on. the full sex and drugs life and then some. you have sold it to me. this dvd. a private war. it is a narrative drama. it is about a war reporter. the film itself has some flaws. he says it's not a biopic, it's a psychological portrait. but it has a brilliant central performance by rosamund pike who gives it iio%. it is one of those films where the centre performers will see you through perhaps the shortcomings, the symbol of occasions of the film itself. —— the simplifications. again, it is an important subject. she carries it. she really does. the thing with marie colvin, it is a story a lot of people will know the truth of it. not least because we have seen it done in do

and eltonjohn receives france's highest civilian honour, the legion d'honneur, from president macron.

eltonjohn receives france's highest civilian honour, the legion d'honneurfrom president macron.elcome to world news today.

and whether you‘re an eltonjohn fan or not, and i am, i mean i grew up with madman across the water andieve how much i enjoyed this. i just sat there beaming through the whole thing and i‘m desperate to go and see it again. and i think you‘d love it. you would love it because it is such a vibrant, fantastic cinema experience. and it‘s not sanitised, is it? no, it‘s not, that‘s the comparison that people made with bohemian rhapsody, it is a bit sanitised. this isn‘t, this is full on. the full sex and drugs life and then some. you‘ve sold it to me just on that. best dvd. a private war. it is a narrative drama by matthew heineman who‘d made documentaries before about marie colvin, the war reporter. the film itself has some flaws. he says it‘s not a biopic, it‘s a psychological portrait. but it has a brilliant central performance by rosamund pike who absolutely gives it iio%. and it‘s one of those films where that centre performance will see you through perhaps the shortcomings, the simplifications of the film itself. again, it‘s an important subject and she really carries it and she really

and whether you're an eltonjohn fan or not, and i am, i mean i grew up with madman across the water androad, but i couldn't believe how much i enjoyed this. i just sat there beaming through the whole thing and i'm desperate to go and see it again. and i think you'd love it. you would love it because it is such a vibrant, fantastic cinema experience. and it's not sanitised, is it? no, it's not, that's the comparison that people made with bohemian rhapsody, it is a bit sanitised. this isn't, this is full on. the full sex and drugs life and then some. you've sold it to me just on that. best dvd. a private war. it is a narrative drama by matthew heineman who'd made documentaries before about marie colvin, the war reporter. the film itself has some flaws. he says it's not a biopic, it's a psychological portrait. but it has a brilliant central performance by rosamund pike who absolutely gives it iio%. and it's one of those films where that centre performance will see you through perhaps the shortcomings, the simplifications of the film itself. again, it's an important subject and she really c

sir eltonjohn sir elton john has sir eltonjohn has been given france's's most prestigious honour.y. they praised him asa during a ceremony. they praised him as a melodic genius who was one of the first gay artists to give a voice to the lgbt community. his charity has also generated nearly $400 million for hiv prevention, education and support. it is so humbling to stand here and to be given such an honour from france which i am profoundly grateful. i have a huge love affair with france, i have a house here, i have always loved coming here, i love french culture, the way of life and the french people and as a musician, to receive this award on the day of the festival makes it even more special. i also want to take this opportunity to thank you and the people of france for this great generosity and leadership. later this year, france for this great generosity and leadership. laterthis year, france hosts the replenish of the global fund for aids, hosts the replenish of the global fund foraids, and hosts the replenish of the global fund for aids, and malaria, hosts the replenish of t

eltonjohn and kiki dee. the side. we would be a good duet. elton john and kiki dee.onversation about a second referendum and both are saying that they are campaigning for a second eu referendum and i know you have a question about a second independence referendum, don't you? yes. what i wanted to ask was, if a second brexit referendum was going ahead, sorry, i'm trying to get my thoughts together. no worries. would they allow a second scottish independence referendum? yes. i don't think we should have that. are you a hypocrite then? how do you square it? there is a big difference. in 2014, in scotland, we had a debate which was based on a very detailed white paper that to the snp‘s credit they put forward... let's not go over history. if britain leaves the eu, circumstances will have to change. there was not a mandate in scotla nd change. there was not a mandate in scotland to have a second independence referendum and the snp have been putting forward their case and they have been losing seats, so they lost 21 mps and this was a key election issue, and what people in

eltonjohn. # count the headlights on the highway #. # we have to make amends #. she is the first major artist to confirm her master recordings were destroyed as well as the back—ups known as safeties. well, that's where all my masters were stored and itjust... it absolutely grieves me. i can't understand, first and foremost, how you can store anything in a vault that didn't have sprinklers. and secondly, i can't understand how you can make safeties and have them in the same vault. i mean, what's the point? # all i want to do is have some fun #. for a song like all i want to do the master tape is the original studio recording. it is the one you go back to if you want to make new cds or vinyl copies. sheryl crow says all of those are gone. and she is not the only one affected. buddy holly, billie holliday and duke ellington, all this important music has been erased and it is notjust the music, it is the dialogue between the music. it's the takes that didn't make it. it's the versions of songs that we will never hear now. it's not even just the versions of the songs

and whether you‘re an eltonjohn fan or not, and i am, i mean i grew up with madman across the water andst sat there beaming through the whole thing and i‘m desperate to go and see it again. and i think you‘d love it. you would love it because it is such a vibrant, fantastic cinema experience. and it‘s not sanitised, is it? no, it‘s not, that‘s the comparison that people made with bohemian rhapsody, it is a bit sanitised. this isn‘t, this is full on. the full sex and drugs life and then some. you‘ve sold it to me just on that. best dvd. a private war. it is a narrative drama by matthew heineman who‘d made documentaries before about marie colvin, the war reporter. the film itself has some flaws. he says it‘s not a biopic, it‘s a psychological portrait. but it has a brilliant central performance by rosamund pike who absolutely gives it 110%. and it‘s one of those films where that centre performance will see you through perhaps the shortcomings, the simplifications of the film itself. again, it‘s an important subject and she really carries it and she really does. the thing with marie colvin

eltonjohn... # count the headlights on the highway...#. # we have to make amends...#. janet jackson andng in a vault that didn't have sprinklers. and secondly, i can't understand how you could make safeties and have them in the same vault. i mean, what's the point? # all i want to do is have some fun...#. for a song like all i want to do the master tape is the original studio recording. it's the one you go back to if you want to make new cds or vinyl copies. sheryl crow says all of those are gone. and she's not the only one affected. buddy holly, billie holiday, duke ellington, all this important music has been erased and it is not just the music, it is the dialogue between the music. it's the takes that didn't make it. it's the versions of songs that we'll never hear now. it's not even just the versions of the songs, it's songs we'll never hear. archivists agree that the world has lost a valuable part of its musical heritage. from the artist's point of view, in many cases, it will be like a bereavement, losing the original master tapes. i mean, it's their baby, it's their recording and

it is fats domino, billie holiday, ella fitzgerald, original recordings by aretha franklin, eltonjohnne forever. what happens next, then? a couple of musicians have already taken universal action against universal in the states. they filed a suit last week. this was the estate of tom petty and tupac suker and was the estate of tom petty and tu pac suker and courtney was the estate of tom petty and tupac suker and courtney love and others. it is a class—action suit so they are hoping that other people willjoin in and they are seeking up to £80 million in damages. they are saying universal is in breach of its contract saying universal is in breach of its co ntra ct by saying universal is in breach of its contract by not taking proper care of their tapes and they want a share of their tapes and they want a share of their tapes and they want a share of the settlement that it got when it sued for insurance on the warehouse. thank you very much. thank you for your many comments on the migrant crisis in the state of one particular centre on the texas border. we were talking to a children's h

re times estimates that 500,000 songs were lost, by artists such as chuck berry, aretha franklin, eltonjohne first major artist to confirm her master recordings were destroyed, along with the backups, known as safeties. well, that's where all my masters were stored, and itjust... it absolutely grieves me. i can't understand, first and foremost, how you could store anything in a vault that didn't have sprinklers, and secondly, i can't understand how you could make safeties and have them in the same vault. i mean, what's the point? # all i want to do is have some fun... for a song like all i wa nt to some fun... for a song like all i want to do, the master tape is the original studio recording. it is the one you go back to if you want to make new cds or vinyl copies. sheryl crow says all of those are gone, and she is not the only one affected. universal music says the damage caused by the fire has been overstated, but admitted that any loss is painful. shall we talk about a curious cat? a very curious cat has been saved after getting himself stuck inside a world war ii bunker. the cat, named

eltonjohn... # count the headlights on the highway...#. # we have to make amends. #.re all my masters were stored and itjust... it absolutely grieves me. i can't understand, first and foremost, how you could store anything in a vault that didn't have sprinklers. and secondly, i can't understand how you could make safeties and have them in the same vault. i mean, what's the point? # all i want to do is have some fun...#. for a song like all i want to do the master tape is the original studio recording. it's the one you go back to if you want to make new cds or vinyl copies. sheryl crow says all of those are gone. and she's not the only one affected. buddy holly, billie holiday, duke ellington, all this important music has been erased and it is notjust the music, it is the dialogue between the music. it's the takes that didn't make it. it's the versions of songs that we'll never hear now. it's not even just the versions of the songs, it's songs we'll never hear. archivists agree that the world has lost a valuable part of its musical heritage. from the artist's point of

recordings by sir eltonjohn, aretha franklin, nirvana, eminem and thousands more were destroyed in aat the time. in confidential documents issued in 2009, universal music group estimated the loss amounted to 500,000 songs but the universal media group have disputed the new york times' reporting of the extent of the damage caused. derek walmsley, the editor of independent music magazine the wire, joins me to talk about this further. lets just describe what we've lost here. these are the master tapes, the original recordings. master tapes, multitrack recordings. the original quarter inch or, you know, magnetic tapes which were stored away in this way has for many yea rs stored away in this way has for many years so, you know, when the magic was happening in the studio at the time, if you will, these are the recordings of it and these are what has gone in their hundreds of thousands. who is going to necessarily care about this? presumably if they were going to reissue, this is a problem because these are what they would have used. who else might be upset by this? for a start you have yo