helena wilkinson, bbc news.: the story of flight sergeant peter brown has already garnered attention and today the british prime minister called him an example of the selfless contribution of all commonwealth personnel. before we go tonight, the story of musical genius, medical suffering, and mysteries solved through the ages. a team of international scientists have sequenced the genome of ludovic von beethoven, using five blocks of his hair they have been able to learn more about his fatal liver disease, including clues about his alcohol consumption, genetic disposition, and viral action. no clues, alas, about his deafness. thank you for narrator: funding for presentation of this program is provided by.. the freeman foundation. by judy and peter blum-kovler foundation. pursuing solutions for america's neglected needs. and by contributions to this pbs station from viewers like you, thank you. ♪ ♪ narrator: you're watching pbs. ♪♪ announcer: usa today calls it, "arguably the best bargain in streaming." that's bec

helena wilkinson has the story.he royal air force in 1916. age 17, it's thought the young jamaican had travelled thousands of miles so he could volunteer to fly and fight in world war ii. after training, he flew as a crewmember in the avro lancaster, britain's famous strategic bomber that was used as the raf�*s main weapon against targets in germany. in december, the air force veteran died alone in his flat in west london. fiercely independent, stubborn as hell, but a wonderful guy, always smiling. he was never miserable. we chatted about his health. he was always complaining about one thing or another, but he kept going. "to the shops, got to keep it going." peter brown had no known relatives. now officials are searching forfamily members to attend his funeral. after peter brown came to britain, he trained as a wireless operator and air gunner, and he flew in a lancaster bomber like this one when he served in 625 squadron. he was one of a50 young black men from the caribbean, africa and parts of the uk to fly with

helena wilkinson, bbc news.ths in the islamic calendar. hundreds of worshippers in indonesia have offered evening prayers at one of the largest mosques in southeast asia, the istiqlal grand mosque injakarta. for some, it's their first time marking the start of the holy month at the huge venue. shoppers have also been visiting dubai's souqs for traditional sweets and spices, with the historic markets adorned with ramadan lights and decorations. and in london, the west end has been lit up with 30,000 lights to mark ramadan for the very first time. the lights were switched on by the mayor of london, one of the 1.3 million muslims in the city who'll be celebrating. and that is it for us here on newsday. i'm monica miller. thanks for watching. hello there. the weather is remaining pretty unsettled for the rest of this week. low pressure will always be nearby, out to the west of the uk, in the atlantic — steering weather fronts our way, bringing outbreaks of rain, followed by sunshine and showers. and it will be blust

helena wilkinson has the story., it's thought the young jamaican had travelled thousands of miles so he could volunteer to fly and fight in world war ii. after training, he flew as a crewmember in the avro lancaster, britain's famous strategic bomber that was used as the raf�*s main weapon against targets in germany. in december, the air force veteran died alone in his flat in west london. fiercely independent, stubborn as hell, but a wonderful guy, always smiling. he was never miserable. he chatted about his health. he was always complaining about one thing or another, but he kept going. he said, "my knee hurts, but i've got to walk to "the shops, got to keep it going." peter brown had no known relatives. now officials are searching forfamily members to attend his funeral. after peter brown came to britain, he trained as a wireless operator and air gunner, and he flew in a lancaster bomber like this one when he served in 65 squadron. he was one of a50 young black men from the caribbean, africa and parts of the uk t

helena wilkinson, bbc news. the islamic calendar. hundreds of worshippers in indonesia have offered evening prayers at one of the largest mosques in southeast asia, the istiqlal grand mosque injakarta. for some, it's their first time marking the start of the holy month at the huge venue. shoppers have also been visiting dubai's souqs for traditional sweets and spices, with the historic markets adorned with ramadan lights and decorations. that's all for now, thanks for your company. you can reach me on twitter — i'm @lmmisztak. hello there. the weather is remaining pretty unsettled for the rest of this week. low pressure will always be nearby, out to the west of the uk, in the atlantic — steering weather fronts our way, bringing outbreaks of rain, followed by sunshine and showers. and it will be blustery, even windy at times, particularly across england and wales. but on the plus side, it'll be fairly mild, with our air source coming in from the south—west. but it's quite a messy picture, i think, as you can see

helena wilkinson, bbc news.nt anna holligan, who is at the hague, who gave us more details. there are so many people talking about this being a symbolic move, but actually what stands out as being very significant is that in order to issue these arrest warrants, the icc needs to have sufficient grounds, sufficient evidence to be able to actually point the finger at president putin, so that is why this is so important. and a lot of people are wondering, why focus on this specific crime? those who have been watching the atrocities, the alleged atrocities being committed in ukraine since the start of the russian invasion will be familiar with attacks on hospitals, power grids, and yet this is very specific, focusing on the alleged forcible transfer of children, ukrainian children, across the border into russia. and one of the reasons — i spoke to karim khan, the prosecutor, last night — one of the reasons is because they believe they have enough evidence to bring this case to court. but of course that is just the f

here's helena wilkinson.rce in 1945. aged 17, it's thought the young jamaican had travelled thousands of miles so he could volunteer to fly and fight in world war ii. after training, he flew as a crewmember in the avro lancaster, britain's famous strategic bomber that was used as the raf�*s main weapon against targets in germany. in december the air force veteran died alone in his flat in west london. fiercely independent, stubborn as hell, but a wonderful guy, always smiling. he was never miserable. he chatted about his health. he was always complaining about one thing or another, but he kept going. he said, "my knee hurts, but i've got to walk to the shops, got to keep it going." peter brown had no known relatives. now officials are searching forfamily members to attend his funeral. after peter brown came to britain, he trained as a wireless operator and air gunner, and he flew in a lancaster bomber like this one when he served in 65 squadron. he was one of 450 young black men from the caribbean, africa and

helena wilkinson, bbc news.rgest mosques in south—east asia, the istiqlal grand mosque in jakarta. for some, it's their first time marking the start of the holy month at the huge venue. translation: although they do the ramadan mass prayers - similar everywhere, i wanted to know how it is in the istiqlal grand mosque. translation: during | the covid-19 pandemic, we were not allowed to pray here, but now the regulation has been lifted and it's vibrant with a lot of people. translation: i can't describe the happiness i'm feeling - right now being here. i'm so moved. it feels like i'm - in the second mecca. shoppers have also been visiting dubai's souqs for traditional sweets and spices, with the historic markets adorned with ramadan lights and decorations. that's all for now, stay with bbc world news. hello there. the weather is remaining pretty unsettled for the rest of this week. low pressure will always be nearby, out to the west of the uk, in the atlantic — steering weather fronts our way, bringing outbreaks o

helena wilkinson, bbc news. 0ur arts and media correspondent david sillito is here.job is to provide programmes watched by millions of people, and when they drop off air, something's gone seriously wrong. clearly, the head of the bbc was caught by surprise by all of this. that bit has been resolved. grimsby town versus brighton and hove albion, gary lineker will be there next weekend. however, does it answer all of the questions? there were 36 mps, conservative mps, very unhappy at what gary lineker tweeted last week, so there is no punishment here of gary lineker, no apology for his tweets, comparing the language used to that used by germany in the 19305. used to that used by germany in the 1930s. and then there are wider questions of impartiality. 0ne 1930s. and then there are wider questions of impartiality. one group thatis questions of impartiality. one group that is welcome today's announcement is the bbc�*s board. who is the head of the bbc board? richard sharp, facing questions, a conservative donor in the past, and also an ongoing inquiry into his role in a

helena wilkinson has the details.he message will also appear on the screen to explain the nature of the threat and what to do about it. the new government system will be tested across the uk on sunday 23 april. the system is designed to warn people if there is a life—threatening emergency near them. they will be used at times of extreme weather like severe flooding, though they could eventually be expanded to cover terror incidents. alerts will be sent to devices based on their location. the cabinet office says it will only be needed when there is an immediate risk to life, so after next month it may be years before people receive another alert. though, there will be the possibility of opting out of future warnings. helena wilkinson, bbc news. now on bbc news the weather with tomasz shaffernaker. we will need our raincoats and brollies this week looks very unsettled indeed. especially wet in western parts of the uk. monday is no different, i do not think it will be raining all the time that some rain on the way and ju

helena wilkinson, bbc news. let's get some analysis on this.chief executive of itn news. we were talking about this yesterday while it was an ongoing situation but it appears to be in result and gary lineker will be back on air with his meditating, presenting duties on much of the day at the weekend at the bbc will launch an independent review into its social media guidelines. what you make of this outcome? it is interesting that in his statement tim davie accepts the root cause of this problem is what he calls the grey areas of the guidelines which he himself introduced back in 2020. so the auestion introduced back in 2020. so the question would _ introduced back in 2020. so the question would be, _ introduced back in 2020. so the question would be, was - introduced back in 2020. so the question would be, was it - introduced back in 2020. so the - question would be, was it necessary to suspend gary lineker with all the subsequent disruption to the channels in order to set up an inquiry? the answer is he could have perfectly easily set up this

helena wilkinson reports.ould volunteer to fly and fight in world war ii. after training, he flew as a crewmember in the avro lancaster, britain's famous strategic bomber that was used as the raf�*s main weapon against targets in germany. in december the air force veteran died alone in his flat in west london. fiercely independent, stubborn as hell, but a wonderful guy, always smiling. he was never miserable. he chatted about his health. he was always complaining about one thing or another, but he kept going. he said, my knee hurts, but have got to work walk to the shops, got to keep it going. peter brown had no known relatives. now officials are searching forfamily members to attend his funeral. after peter brown came to britain, he trained as a wireless operator and are gonna, and he flew in a lancaster bomber like this one when he served in 65 squadron. he was one of 450 young black men from the caribbean, africa and parts of the uk to fly with the raf during the second world war. they were specialists that

helena wilkinson, bbc news.ter the failure of the california—based silicon valley bank. in a televised address from the white house, mr biden said his administration had acted to ensure that svb customers would be able to get all their money. he said he would do whatever was needed to maintain stability. earlier, the british multinational, hsbc, agreed to buy the uk arm of silicon valley bank forjust over a dollar. our business correspondent, theo leggett reports. an unexpected crisis, a hurried solution and the owners of businesses like this one are breathing a heavy sigh of relief. universal quantum's trying to develop a revolutionary new generation of supercomputers. like many small tech firms, it's a customer of the uk arm of american lender silicon valley bank, which collapsed last week. boss sebastian weidt says he feared his money would be lost for good. we have a lot of our capita with svb, and obviously when the news broke that — well, we heard on the grapevine that svb may be in trouble, we obviously t

helena wilkinson has the details.will be used at times of extreme weather like severe flooding, though they could eventually be expanded to cover terror incidents. alerts will be sent to devices based on their location. the cabinet office says it will only be needed when there is an immediate risk to life, so after next month it may be years before people receive another alert. though, there will be the possibility of opting out of future warnings. helena wilkinson, bbc news. it has just it hasjust gone it has just gone 7:15am. simon it hasjust gone 7:15am. simon is here will look at the morning's weather. and do you know what? tomorrow is the spring equinox. what and do you know what? tomorrow is the spring equinox.— the spring equinox. what does that mean? it means _ the spring equinox. what does that mean? it means the _ the spring equinox. what does that mean? it means the sun _ the spring equinox. what does that mean? it means the sun passes i the spring equinox. what does that| mean? it means the sun passes the

helena wilkinson, bbc news. the time is now 9.44.hanks to our correspondent sean dilley, who has been without a guide dog since his previous companion sammy retired six months ago — he's now facing a two year wait — but it's hoped that more volunteers looking after training dogs can reduce that wait, as sean reports. i couldn't imagine my life without rio. she's so important. she's my best friend, my constant companion, my means of independence, of getting about wherever i want to go, whenever i want to go, and living the life i want to lead. this is the freedom guide dogs give their blind and visually impaired partners. rio is ella caulfield's first guide. if they didn't have each other, ella says she wouldn't be able to study maths at oxford. she gives me that independence that i do need, and i crave, that i need to live the life i want to lead. she's good for a cuddle at the end of an evening if i've had a bad day. and she's an excellent guide, she's very rarely led me astray. ella started to lose her sight at four years old. when

helena wilkinson, bbc news. be no further strikes whilst they enter pay talks with the government. the british medical association has said new strike dates will be announced if the government makes a "substandard" offer. more than 175,000 patient appointments and procedures had to be cancelled in england when junior doctors went on strike earlier this week. rail services will be disrupted again today as members of the rmt union at ia train operators take part in strikes. it's the second walk out this week in the long—running dispute about pay, job security and working conditions. passengers are being advised to check before they travel. protesters have clashed with police once again in central paris over the french government's pension reforms. thousands of demonstrators lit fires and some threw firecrackers at police, who used tear gas to disperse them. it's the second night of unrest since president macron decided to push through the controversial reforms to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64 without a vo

helena wilkinson, bbc news.avie accepts the root cause of this problem is what he calls the grey areas of the guidelines which he himself introduced back in 2020. so the question would be, was it necessary to suspend gary lineker with all the subsequent disruption to the channels in order to set up an inquiry? the answer is he could have perfectly easily set up this review which some of us were calling for, as you said, over the weekend, without the suspension, and it's the suspension which ignited the story rather than the initial tweet. let's talk about the review for a moment. what does it specifically need to be looking at now to draw a line and make it crystal clear for all presenters whether they are in news or present otherwise on the bbc? the easier a bit, this may sound surprising, is actually what is due impartiality, a requirement on the bbc. there is custom and practice, it sort of case law of interpreting that. i think the interesting issue, and probably the most interesting issue is actually defini

our correspondent, helena wilkinson, is at the old bailey. what has been happening today?at has been happening today? wayne couzens was not in court _ what has been happening today? wayne couzens was not in court today - what has been happening today? —ie couzens was not in court today in the dock was empty, he appeared via video link from franklin is prison, a high security prison, and because he had pleaded guilty to three indecent exposure charges at the old bailey last month, he did not get the full facts of what he did —— we did not. they were outlined by the prosecutor today at the hearing as wayne couzens just looked down at the table for most of the hearing as the table for most of the hearing as the details were laid bare in court. we heard that the first incident happened in woodland in deal in kent and it was a woman who was cycling through a rural road out of nowhere, wayne couzens, fully naked, appeared in front of her and indecently exposed himself. —— and out of nowhere. we heard from a victim impact statement from the woman, she said she was horrified by th

our correspondent, helena wilkinson is at the old bailey.g the link, suggesting that that they had acted more swiftly following the allegations of indecent exposure, then perhaps things might have turned out differently later on. yes, and another apology from the metropolitan police. we have seen and heard in court today about the escalating offending by wayne cousins in the months before he kidnapped, raped and murdered sarah everard, the third incident, the incident of indecent exposure at the mcdonald's drive—through restaurant, two at that restaurant, the second one, the registration number plate of the car that he was driving was handed over to the police, but nothing was done about that to link back to car with couzens, who was a serving metropolitan police officer. in terms of the victim personal statements, today has been about the victims in court. three of them provided those statements to the court, and let mejust touch provided those statements to the court, and let me just touch on one of them. a member of staff at the mcdonald'

helena wilkinson, bbc news.n to give loan relief to millions of students. six republican—controlled states say mr biden exceeded his powers when he promised to cancel $430 billion worth of loans. our north america correspondent peter bowes reports. got to go on a mission to make sure the highest court in the land gets the message. many of these students say they're thousands of dollars in debt. canceling their loans would make a huge difference to their lives. you cannot live in america and have bad credit and have access. and so what we're seeing now is this issue. it impacts more than just your economics. it impacts your opportunity to actually live. when we have this debt, it's hard to think through all the bills that are in front of us. and so we need to make that indebtedness go away. it is a form of economic enslavement. but is president biden�*s plan fair or even legal? he believes it is based on a law passed 20 years ago that says the government has the power to waive or modify loan provisions to protect

helena wilkinson explains. it was a truly shocking case.er during the course of their marriage and that a prenuptial agreement signed had caused him continuing resentment. he said he had killed his wife over an argument over schools. the couple were in the middle of divorce proceedings. brown was cleared of murder, but had admitted manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility. last year, in an exclusive interview with bbc breakfast and radio 1! woman's hour, the then duchess of cornwall, now queen consort, was reunited withjoanna simpson's mother, diana parkes. they'd met previously in 2016. camilla creditsjoanna's story with inspiring her to become a domestic abuse campaigner. i don't think i would be as involved in it now if i hadn't met you. i mean, you were the one that started out my passion. and i remember saying to you at the time, you know, i don't know what it is, but i really, really want to do something to help. that's how it all started. joanna's mother now wants thejustice secretary, dominic raab, to intervene over