21/04/2016 BBC News at Ten

A day of public and private celebrations in Windsor

as the Queen turns 90 - the first British monarch

Thousands of well-wishers filled the streets here to greet the Queen

on her birthday walkabout - among them some fellow 90 year olds.

The Queen spoke to me, asked me my age and I said I was 90

last year, so she went, "Oh, very good."

I never imagined I'd be 90, let's face it!

Tonight the Queen lit the first of a string of celebratory beacons

around the country - as Prince Charles

Your Majesty - Mummy - I find it very hard to believe that

Tonight the beacon's ablaze outside the castle walls.

Inside a party's under way - the entire Royal family's

here to celebrate the Queen's landmark birthday.

Also on tonight's programme, the singer-songwriter Prince,

one of the most successful artists of all time, has died

# This is what it sounds like when doves cry #.

In a statement his publicist said he died at his Paisley Park studios

He'd recently cancelled two concerts, due to ill health.

Throughout the day fans have been gathering outside his home,

as tributes have poured in from all over the world.

The Government is willing to take a 25% stake,

And it's the biggest-ever seizure of illegal weapons in Britain.

The gang were filmed smuggling the guns in, by boat.

And coming up in Sportsday on BBC News: Could Arsenal win a first game

at home since mid-February and keep up their bid for a top four spot

Good evening and welcome to the BBC News at Ten from Windsor Castle,

where celebrations are continuing tonight for the Queen's

A private family dinner is being hosted by Prince Charles,

who paid tribute to his mother, and spoke of the love and affection

That was very much in evidence here earlier today, when thousands

of people lined the streets below the castle walls to catch a glimpse

of Britain's oldest and longest serving monarch.

Our royal correspondent Nicholas Witchell reports on the day

She has done a few of these over the years -

the lighting of a beacon to mark a notable occasion.

Your Majesty - Mummy - I find it very hard to believe that

The beacon will also represent, as it lights other beacons

across the nation, the love and affection in which you are held

throughout this country and the Commonwealth.

The beacon at Windsor was the first in a chain,

burning at vantage points and in communities from one end

of the United Kingdom to the other, a tribute to the longest-lived

On the morning of her birthday, the Queen had driven out

from Windsor Castle to be greeted by crowds in the town centre.

There were flowers and cards by the armful and, above all perhaps,

a great sense of gratitude for so many decades of service.

Close by, as ever, the Duke of Edinburgh -

his role in support today to help gather the bouquets.

At Windsor Guildhall, there was that pre-requisite

It had been baked specially for the Queen by Nadiya Hussain,

the winner of the BBC Great British Bake Off.

One thing I never set my sights on was ever meeting the Queen

I got to bake her her 90th birthday cake.

I didn't ever imagine that I would do something like that.

And there were other 90-year-olds to meet.

Men and women whose lives had moved along in parallel with that

Never really imagined that I would meet her.

Never imagined I would be 90, let's face it!

So we have had a long, long life together.

Buckingham Palace issued this photograph of the Queen with two

of her grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.

The youngest of whom, Princess Charlotte, is sitting

on her lap next to her brother, Prince George.

The wider world has also been paying its birthday tributes,

led in the House of Commons by the Prime Minister,

who recalled the 64 years the Queen has been on the throne.

Throughout it all, as the sands of culture shift and the tides

of politics flow, Her Majesty has been steadfast.

A rock of strength for our nation, for the Commonwealth

and on many occasions, the whole world.

The Leader of the Opposition is a republican.

Today, we are talking about a highly respected individual who is 90.

And, Mr Speaker, whatever differing views people across this country

have about the institution, the vast majority share an opinion

that Her Majesty has served this country and has overwhelming

support, with a clear sense of public service and public duty.

Back in Windsor on this first day of her 10th decade, Elizabeth II

was doing what she has done for so much of her long life

A greatly respected monarch at close quarters with her people, receiving

During her long reign, the Queen has been served

by 12 Prime Ministers - and one, Tony Blair,

has told the BBC that she will be a very hard act to follow.

Our deputy political editor James Landale assesses the Queen's

impact on public life both at home and abroad and the standard she has

Her name is on all our laws and her ministers act on her behalf.

Yet for all the pomp, the Queen has little power.

She's always acted on the advice of her prime

NEWSREEL: Sir Winston took an important part

From Churchill onwards, she has held weekly audiences

Always confidential, their portrayal always

You're talking to someone who is shrewd, intelligent,

has a great deal of insight and has been seeing state papers for 64

years, so there's a level, a depth of experience there,

She has an historical memory that is unrivalled.

It's here the Queen carries out her constitutional

duty to be consulted, to encourage and to warn.

She can ask a minister or prime minister any question she wants.

She doesn't tell them what to do, but she can raise

I think Harold Wilson said, it's the only meeting I have

in the week that never leaks, and she's the only person I talk

In public, the Queen remains impartial, but her warning

here at Crathie church that voters in Scotland should think carefully

before the independence referendum was seen by some

The Queen's real influence lies in what's called soft power,

what her advisers and politicians say is her unique ability

to focus attention on issues by where she goes, who she meets

So she chose to promote reconciliation by visiting

And Northern Ireland in more recent years.

But it is perhaps to the Commonwealth that she has

And yes, that might have meant one or two uncomfortable handshakes.

But it also meant she was able to forge early links with those

who'd fought apartheid when her government was less keen.

In some Commonwealth countries, like here in Jamaica,

The people of Jamaica love the Queen.

But the deep burning desire for real, true

Prime ministers before, and including myself now,

have all dealt with the issue of the ending of the Queen's reign

as Jamaica's head of state, and it will happen in the future.

The question of course on the Queen's 90th birthday

is whether her successors will have the same influence

The thing that really drives her is her duty

That comes first, that is the first and foremost characteristic

And that I think is something that can be maintained if those who come

after her have the same sense of duty.

She will be a very hard act to follow, there is no

Our royal correspondent Nicholas Witchell joins me now.

Huge crowds here today, a lot of warmth and admiration for the sense

of duty. It was back in the irreverent 60s the Duke of Edinburgh

said when we are rolled, there will be some reverence once again. We

have reached that point now. As the Prince of Wales said at the Beacon

lighting, there is love and affection for the Queen. The people

here in winter this morning were enthusiastic monarchists. They had

come to show their support. We know that not everybody is in that

category. Strangely, it was the country's best-known Republican who

put it in some kind of perspective today, Jeremy Corbyn in the House of

Commons. He said whatever is your view of the institution, the vast

majority of people in this country have the greatest respect for what

the Queen has done for this nation. She enjoyed herself this morning

during the walkabout. You could see that. It also showed that she is in

remarkably robust health for someone of 90. There are some issues, of

course there for the body of age. There -- she is finding stairs

difficult again. Her officials are adapting her programme to take

account of that. Nothing dramatic, nothing that will prevent her

enjoying to the full her 90th birthday dinner in the castle with

her family and friends tonight. Nick Witchel, thank you. The festivities

are continuing inside the castle, where Prince Charles is hosting a

dinner for his mother, attended by the whole royal family, a private

affair away from the public eye. We will be back later in the programme

but for now, back to you, Clive. In the day's other news,

one of the most successful singer-songwriters of all time,

the American pop star, Prince, Police say he was found unresponsive

in a lift at his home, Prince was a prolific

writer and performer, with hits in the early 1980s

including Purple Rain, Little Red Corvette

and When Doves Cry. Today Madonna called him a "true

visionary", while President Obama said the world has lost

a creative icon. Our arts editor Will Gompertz now

reports on Prince's unexpected death, and his contribution

to popular music. # Only want to see you in the purple

rain. Prince in his pomp... Playing guitar like Jimi Hendrix... And

posturing like a Rolling Stone. The man from Minnesota was the king of

funky rock and roll! The prolific, innovative, influential pop star

died at his home in Paisley Park today, following a bout of flu.

His death shocked the fans the world over.

I couldn't believe it! He was just here Saturday. He was just here

Saturday, he was fine. Fellow artists expressed their

thoughts. When you look at where he was and

what he did at the times he did it, you know, you look at popular music

today, it would be a much, much, much more boring place if it was not

for Prince. Born Prince Roger Nelson to musical

parents, he showed prodigious talents. Playing 27 instruments in

his first record. But had to wait for the album 1999 featuring... Red

Corvette. He followed that up with the multimillion selling Purple

Rain, considered by many to be one of the greatest albums ever made. It

earned him an Oscar, Grammy award and placed him at the top table of

international superstars. # This is what it sounds like when

doves cry... He used to turn up at shows and hang out back stage. We

were blown away. But very, very low key. He never made a deal of it. He

would stand at the side of the stage and shake our hands as we went on

stage. He sold over 100 million records,

released 39 studio albums and was not afraid to write songs about

unpoppy subjects like AIDS and addiction and politics. Nor was he

likened to be pushed around. Changing his name to a signal when

he had an issue with his record label.

How did the artist formerly known as Prince come about? That came with

the artist having a problem with the label record having a were on

ounceation with the symbol. This was footage taken by a fan of

Prince performing. Many considered him to be the greatest showman on

earth. Now, sadly, he has left that stage. The singer Prince, who died

The singer Prince, who died at the age of 57.

Our correspondent Peter Bowes is in Los Angeles for us tonight.

Peter, this has come as a shock for many people.

What more do we know about the circumstances

Well it is now a little over six hours since the police were called

to Prince's home. At that stage it was just a report that a man was

lying at the bottom of the lift on the floor of the lift in an

unpreresponsive state. The paramedics arrived. It became clear

it was Prince. They tried to revive him, they were unsuccessful, he was

declared dead a short time later. The authorities are continuing to

investigate this. This is a police investigation. There will be a

coroner's investigation to determine the precise cause of death. But as

you say, this has come like a bolt out of the blue for so many people

unaware he was having medical problems. He did have a flu

recently. In hospital briefly. But people thought he was recovering

from that. It has led to people celebrating the life of Prince and

these fanses for example dancing in the streets of Harlem, New York.

So, a tremendous outflowing of grief and that is turning to thoughts of

remembering the life of Prince, the concerts he gave in huge venues and

in some of the smaller venues he used to play at as well.

The Government says it's willing to use taxpayers' money, to help

It's announced it's prepared to take a 25% stake,

with sources saying ministers are willing to offer up

to ?1 billion in debt financing, to help attract potential buyers.

Here's our business editor, Simon Jack.

The fires of industry at Port Talbot took a new turn today.

exactly how big a carrot it was prepared to dangle in front of a

potential buyer for Tata's remaining steel business.

The Government is offering to take an ownership stake

of up to 25% of the business, contribute potentially hundreds of

millions of pounds in loans, and to help ease the burden of its

Today is a significant step, talking numbers to

potential investors and the priority in which the Government is placing

You have to go back to the 1970s rescue of British Leyland to find

significant Government intervention in UK manufacturing.

It is safe to say that this was not plan A.

Nationalisation is rarely announced in these situations.

I don't believe that nationalisation is the right

answer, what we want to do is secure is a long-term

Now this is not a U-turn, Government has been

careful not to rule out any

The idea of the Government taking a stake in a manufacturing industry

runs counter to every Conservative instinct.

It shows how politically sensitive, the scramble to save the

rest of the UK steel industry has become.

At a steelworkers' meeting in Port Talbot, the news brought

hope it may entice a buyer and save thousands of jobs.

Vince has worked here for over 30 years.

This will give encouragement to some of the big players in the industry,

with a bit of luck this will give the confidence to the major firms to

invest in Port Talbot and there will be a long-term future.

Others think that the Government is heading down the wrong road by

putting public money into a struggling industry.

Tata Steel has been looking for a buyer since 2014.

If they can't find a buyer on the open market, it means

that the only way is that the Government helps

If we do that, we are propping up an essentially

unproductive industry, these people could be

However sweetened the deal, there is no

future without a buyer, and the

competitive pressures facing the industry

We have to ensure this is about securing a long-term future for

That means that the Government has to start supporting

the European Commission's proposals for getting

tough on the dumping of

That threat won't be lost on potential buyers who now have just

weeks to respond to the Government's enticements.

Two men have been found guilty of smuggling into the UK the biggest

haul of weapons ever seized on mainland Britain.

Harry Shilling and Michael Defraine were arrested after sailing

from France to a marina near Rochester in Kent.

Some of the guns were bought from a shop in Slovakia,

that also supplied weapons used in the Charlie Hebdo attacks

Daniel Sandford reports from the Old Bailey.

In an extraordinary security operation, heavily armed police

officers have been stationed around the Old Bailey

A trial concerning the biggest-ever seizure of guns in mainland Britain.

22 fully automatic assault rifles, nine Skorpion sub-machine guns

These were weapons that could cause mass casualties,

both types of weapon can fire 800 rounds a minute,

and you could imagine the devastation that would cause

Harry Shilling was the leader of the gun-smuggling gang, helped

They'd persuaded boat enthusiasts Dave Payne and Christopher

The guns were shipped across the Channel from France

The next day on the River Medway in Kent, surveillance officers

filmed the gang unloading heavy bags containing the weapons,

heaving them into an anonymous white van.

Moments later, armed police moved in and arrested the men on the boat

and seized the enormous arsenal of fully automatic guns 30 metres

Some of the guns had come from this shop,

It sold weapons that fire blanks, but could be converted back

One such gun from the same shop had made it into the hands of the man

who killed four hostages at a Jewish supermarket in Paris,

He can be seen with the gun in this video, released after he died.

The National Crime Agency has established that at least some

of the guns came from this shop in Slovakia, but at that

point they were perfectly legal deactivated weapons.

What happened next is that somebody - and we don't know who -

reactivated them, making them capable of firing live rounds.

When the National Crime Agency arrested gang leader Harry Shilling

in the car park of Homebase, he had a panic attack.

Richard Rye, by the window, was caught in the local McDonald's.

The huge haul of weapons that in the wrong hands could have

wreaked havoc in Britain, all safely in the hands

Daniel Sandford, BBC News, at the Old Bailey.

The former Sheffield United and Wales footballer Ched Evans has

had his conviction for rape quashed by the Court of Appeal.

Evans was convicted in 2012 of raping a woman in a hotel room.

He was released from jail after serving half of

In the last few minutes, President Obama has arrived

Airforce One touched down at Stansted Airport this evening,

with the President expected to give his support to the Remain

campaign in the EU referendum, at a news conference

He'll also have lunch with the Queen.

Our Deputy Political Editor John Pienaar is in Downing Street today -

where the occupants must be delighted by the

Yes, delighted and excited at seeing this global political superstar

arrive, as he has, with a forthright unapologetic plea for Britain to

remain a member of the European Union. He has written a piece for

the Daily Telegraph, in which he says that he would like Britain to

remain a member. On the basis that tens of thousands of Americans died

on the battlefields of Europe, which gives America, he argues, a stake on

Europe's best future. Will it make a difference? The leaders hope not.

Boris Johnson has written a counterparter strike for the Sun

newspaper, saying it is hypocritical for Barack Obama to call on Britain

to give up sovereignty in a way that the US would not. And here in

Downing Street, they are delighted to have Barack Obama join the chorus

of leaders and institutions calling on Britain to remain a member and

seem to believe it will help to depict a vote for the European Union

to leave, a dangerous leap in the dark.

Thank you very much. The few surviviors of a boat

carrying hundreds of migrants and refugees that capsized

in the Mediterranean, have been It's feared as many as 500

people may have died, when their vessel sank on it's way

from Libya to Europe. Just 41 people were rescued

and taken to Greece, and they've been describing how

traffickers tried to force them from their boat onto a larger

overcrowded vessel, The migrants and refugees had come

from several countries in Africa, and had set off

from Tobruk in Libya. Some of the survivors

have been speaking to our

correspondent Will Ross. A safe port for people who witnessed

a tragedy at sea. The Greek coastguard brought the 41 survivors

to Kalamata. There were priors or dry land. Amongst the group, a

Somalian and Egyptian and a three-year-old boy, whose face

showed know sign of the ordeal that they had been through. The original

destination, Italy, instead they are recovering in Athens. This man said

he saw hundreds of people drown in the Mediterranean, including many

friends from Somalia. Tonight I'm not sleeping.

All of my friends have died. He said that the journey began on the Libyan

coast, 200 packed on a boat like this. Then in the middle of the

night far out to sea, the smugglers told them to move to a larger boat,

already unstable with over 300 on board. It capsized. They saw

children drown. The children went down first. The

children were inside the water, they don't have the power to get out to

the boat again. They don't know how to swim. They are going inside,

outside, they are breathing, breathing... They started to die.

The 41 survivors carried on their journey, later rescued by a cargo

ship. Officials fear with summer approaching there will be more of

these disasters. The weather is getting better in the

Mediterranean, more people will attempt to cross. We have seen the

numbers increasing, we fear that further loss of life will be

inevitable. I am shown lots of photos posted on

social media, they are from relatives desperate for news of

loved ones. This man survived. But he is grieving, pointing to his

19-year-old sister and his cousin who both drowned.

Despite the promises to make the Mediterranean safer, nothing has

been don to stop the crossings from North Africa. The patrols cannot

rescue every boat that gets into trouble. Over 1,000 have died trying

to cross the Mediterranean this year but it does not stop people trying

as they dream of a better life in Europe.

That's it from me - let's return now to the Queen's 90th

birthday celebrations and go back to Sophie at Windsor Castle, Sophie.

Windsor castle is where the Queen wanted to celebrate her birthday -

it's one of the places where she feels most at home.

Another is the Sandringham estate in Norfolk, her

Just a few miles from it is the town of Kings Lynn

which is said by some - to contain the highest number

Reeta Chakrabarti went along to speak to a few of them.

A stone's throw from Sandringham, King's Lynn has always been one

Its schools, hospitals, fire stations and of course,

the Town Hall, have regularly played host to the Queen.

ARCHIVE: In King's Lynn from a building that stood

when the first Elizabeth was Queen, the word is proclaimed,

From the beginning of her reign, as the town's name suggests,

King's Lynn has retained strong links with royalty.

So these are the visitors' books from when the Queen

For the former Mayor, and the present council leader,

meeting the Queen has been one of the huge perks of the job.

I've met her three times, twice in the last five years.

I think to dedicate one's whole life to that form of duty is remarkable.

I think as a nation, we are very, very fortunate.

Earlier in her reign, the young Queen visited King Edward VII

A tradition has been established, every year the six former

A tradition has been established, every year the sixth former

with the best results has a private audience with the monarch.

It was a surreal experience, obviously the house is magnificent,

you are meeting the Queen, which is like a figure...

But you never think you are going to meet her in person.

And Freddie also met the Queen when he was still in junior school.

She will listen to you and everything and she has a great sense

She was saying she might see me in a couple of years

for the Gold Medal but then she said she might be dead by then!

It's such a royal town that everyone seems to have met the Queen,

so I'm going in search of someone who hasn't.

Rumour has it that King's Lynn has the largest number of people

Not just in Sandringham but in the streets.

The Queen is popular here as she is seen to giving much

attention to ordinary life as ceremony.

The bond and the monarch of the town looks set to endure.

Rita Chakrabarti, BBC News, King's Lynn.

Well plenty of people certainly got to meet the Queen here today.

Tomorrow - more birthday greetings - this time from America

when President Obama and the First Lady

Plenty of coverage of that of course tomorrow.

From Windsor Castle - goodnight.