25/12/2015 BBC News at Six

The Queen highlights the Christian message that light will triumph over

darkness in her Christmas Day address.

It is true that the world has had to confront moments of darkness this

year, but the Gospel of John contains a verse in great hope,

often read at Christmas carol services, "The light shines

"in the darkness, and the darkness has not

The Army is called in to bolster flood defences in Cumbria ahead

The Archbishop of Canterbury compares so-called Islamic State

to King Herod and warns that Christianity is facing "elimination"

In his Christmas message, Pope Francis offers his full support

for UN efforts to end the conflicts in Syria and Libya.

nurses and porters who beat Justin Bieber to the Christmas Number 1.

And Mac will help to the top spot by Justin Bieber asking his fans to buy

the charity single -- Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Choir. Mark Kermode

looks back on this year's film releases in the Year In Film.

The Queen, in her Christmas Day broadcast, has spoken of the world

having to confront moments of darkness over the past year.

But she also talked about the Christian message of light

overcoming darkness, and described Christmas as a time

for people to remember "all they have to be thankful for."

Here's our Royal Correspondent, Nicholas Witchell.

Morning service at Sandringham. Only damp day, the Queen departed

promptly after the service, leaving younger members of the family to

spend a few moments meeting members of the public.

In her Christmas broadcast, the Queen looked back at 2015. There was

much to be thankful for, she said, but although she did not identify

any particular incidents, there had also been tragedy. It is true the

world has had to confront moments of darkness this year, but the Gospel

of John contains a verse of great hope, often read at Christmas carol

"The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not

70 years after the end of the Second World War,

tribute to those who had served. The strong Christian theme continued

Despite being displaced and persecuted

message was not one of revenge or violence, but simply that we should

to the birth of another great grandchild, Princess Charlotte.

One of the joys of a long life is

grandchildren then great grandchildren decorate the Christmas

tree, and this year my family has a new member to join in the fun.

And she looked ahead to next year and a

I am looking forward to a busy 2016, although I am warned I may have

happy birthday sung to me more than once or twice.

the fact that the Queen will celebrate her 90th birthday. Despite

the passing of the years, 2016 will as she said be another busy year.

The Army's been brought in to help protect flood-hit

With up to six inches of rain forecast for the area today,

the Government's emergency committee, Cobra, has been

From the village of Braithwaite, Clare Fallon reports.

Christmas Day in Cumbria, and along with the rain came

drafted into help with the prospect of more flooding.

These houses are very low-lying, therefore if we don't prepare

in advance a lot of houses may get hit by the floods

again, and that is what we want to avoid at all costs.

This was our kitchen, now it's all gone.

When the water poured into this home of three

weeks ago, it happened so quickly the only way out

It was just maybe a foot or something.

It was up to about here when we got my mum to come over

here for safety and then I heard somebody

Here in Braithwaite, as in many parts of Cumbria,

it does not seem to have stopped raing throughout

December, in some places it they've flooded for the three times

With more rain forecast and a weather warning in place,

all they can do is wait, watch and hope it

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has used his

Christmas Day sermon to warn that an "apocalypse"

unleashed by so-called Islamic State

means Christianity is facing elimination

Meanwhile, Pope Francis has appealed for reconciliation

Our Religious Affairs Correspondent, Caroline Wyatt, reports.

Goodwill, and a cheery greeting from the Archbishop of Canterbury

as he arrives at Canterbury Cathedral.

But as Christians gather to celebrate the birth of Christ

at services across the world, his message today was a sombre one.

The Archbishop focused on the devastation unleashed

by the Islamic State group in Syria and Iraq.

Saying it used force and indescribable cruelty.

He compared it to a modern-day Herod, the biblical king

who massacred babies while trying to kill Jesus.

They hate difference, whether Muslims who think

Because of them the Christians face elimination in the very region

That was a message echoed in Rome today.

Pope Francis was greeted with enthusiasm on St Peter's

TRANSLATION: My thoughts also turn to those affected by terrorism,

particularly the recent massacre in Egyptian airspace,

The Pope asked for prayers and strength for all Christians

persecuted for their faith, calling them the martyrs of today.

Closer to home, in north Yorkshire, there was a Christmas service

for those who couldn't go to one at this prison.

He offered words of hope to those in prison, lonely and feeling lost

or abandoned, saying the message of Christmas was one

An explosion at a gas depot in Nigeria, is thought to have

It happened at a butane gas plant in the south of the country,

and triggered a blaze that lasted more than five hours.

Officials say the victims were waiting to fill up gas bottles,

The prime minister of India, Narendra Modi, has made a surprise

It was the first trip there by an Indian

Mr Modi stopped off in Lahore on his way back from Afghanistan.

Our correspondent Shaima Khalil reports from Kabul.

Prime Minsiter Modi's visit to Pakistan was always going to be

a historic event, but it is the spontaneous and personal nature

of the visit that took many by surprise.

saying he was going to drop by, making it sound like a casual visit.

The two men have a lot to discuss, including

the decades long conflict on the Kashmir border.

The two countries have fought three wars, two of them

Many see this visit as a solid step into the warming of relations

But there is a long way to go before that is

To add to the confusion of Mr Modi's stopover

it came after his visit to the

He visited the new complex in the capital funded by Pakistan.

He also said terrorism should stop flowing across the border,

There was always talk of gestures when it

comes to the warming of relations between the two nuclear rivals,

the handshakes, photo opportunities, sideline conversations

As far as gestures are concerned, Mr Modi's

surprise visit to Pakistan is the biggest one yet.

Reports from Syria suggest the commander of one

of the country's most powerful rebel groups has been killed

It's believed Zahran Aloush, the head of the Jaysh al-Islam

organisation, died at his headquarters in a rebel-held

district in the eastern parts of Damascus.

Reports said a number of other key figures in the group were also

killed in the airstrike, which Syrian activists claim

Also in Damascus, buses have arrived in a district ahead of a negotiated

evacuation of rebel fighters and their families.

The evacuation from the Yarmouk refugee camp is expected to take

place at the weekend as part of a UN brokered-deal.

Rebels, including many from the so called Islamic State

group and the Nusra Front, will be given safe passage to other

In return, the UN will be able to deliver aid to mostly Palestinian

In neighbouring Iraq, security forces are conducting

a third day of operations against so-called Islamic State

fighters as they try to liberate the city of Ramadi.

The strategically important city is just 100 km west of Baghdad

and has been under the control of the Islamists since May.

Government forces are reported to have surrounded the last

Many civilians are trapped in the midst of the fighting.

Our correspondent Thomas Fessy is in Baghdad.

He told us more about the challenges facing Iraqi government forces.

now they are facing a relate off fights to retake the heart of here.

In the city centre late faces huge amount of the booby traps, explosive

devices, that they have two clear before they can advance further

towards the administration buildings, were a few hundreds of

so-called Islamic state militants are still hold out. They are also

facing a suicide bomb attacks and counter offensive is from IS

militants there. It may take more than a few days to bring it to an

end by the Iraqi forces, yet the military officials here are

confident they can finish it off before the end of the year.

The Queen speaks about the Christian message of light overcoming that

this is Christian address. The Army is called in to bolster

flood defences in Cumbria ahead The Archbishop of Canterbury

compares so-called Islamic State to King Herod and warns that

Christianity is facing "elimination" A hospital choir from south

London has reached the top of the charts,taking the coveted

Christmas Number One spot. The Lewisham and Greenwich NHS

Choir, fought off stiff competition from the Canadian

singer, Justin Bieber. I can officially announced

that the UK's official The moment the choir

had been waiting for. The single was released to raise

money for health charities and pay tribute to the national

Health Service. That was what it was all about,

for all of the other people in the NHS, so I hope it

gives them that lift. I hoped, but I really didn't

think it would happen. Justin Bieber is such

a superstar worldwide. Bieber, last week's number one,

had asked his million-plus twitter Charity singles offering top

the Christmas chart. It also celebrates the work of

the NHS across the entire country. With the new number 1 announced

on Christmas Day itself, it seems appropriate that this year

in particular should see people at all levels of music together

with members of the public using the chance to send

their own seasonal message. out the news.

was with the choir when they found We watched a few minutes ago as the

dashing key men and it was very loud indeed. And you're now trending on

Twitter as well. Big news. Why did you feel you wanted to get involved?

I joined the choir is years ago when it started because I like singing

and I thought it would be good to get to know people at work but I

never dreams of this. And Justin tweeted you should all go out and

buy the single, how did that feel? Added didn't believe it, actually.

Then things started getting crazy. It was a good feeling. Whiteley

song, it's a matchup of Bridge Troubled Water and Coldplay. We

chose Bridge Over Troubled Water because the NHS helps people in

troubled times and the NHS is also going through troubled times and we

want to help people and bring solutions. How did you feel it when

you head it their? Amazing. We're hoping we would win. You were

actually behind this whole thing and a couple of months ago you decided

to relaunch the song that had been written a few years ago? Yes I

started this campaign in October as I thought it would be a great way of

boosting NHS morale and I thought what better way than to get this

song to number one and get the NHS to the top of the agenda and I'm so

happy we have done that today. It has been a difficult year for the

NHS, talks of strike action. How do you think it will be received by the

British public? If anything to go by so far, the amount of support

through social media has been great and we have been touched by the

amount of messages and stories people telling others how much the

NHS means to them. It is a power pop message of how much the NHS is love

and how much we want it to survive. -- a powerful message. How did you

find the time? That's a good question, getting by on a very

little sleep. But I can't think of a better cause to do this for and

there are so many people who love worked on this, I can't name them

all. It's been such a team effort. Thank you so much. Bridge over

troubled water water. When you're really.

More now on the work in Cumbria to shore up flood defences.

Corresponded spent the day in Braithwaite when he spoke to someone

from the Environment Agency. It's been a full December already with

some 6500 properties flooded across the North of England. Our thoughts

are with the people who have been already flooded as the issue more

flood warnings for what may be coming over the next day or so. What

we have been able to do due to the advance warning of the heavy rain is

to bring in equipment from all across the country to stand in the

defences we already have. We've got some 20 or so pumps for across

England, two kilometres of temporary defences that we are deploying in

vulnerable areas across Cumbria. And here, for example, what exactly will

you be able to do to stop it flooding again? We've got defences,

we showed the wall a moment ago. The busy weakness there from the earlier

flooding so we're able to put a secondary fence behind that to

contain the water and also been working with the army here to

provide that might be address to ensure they

have all the protection possible. We have seen quite of few of you guys

out today and dozens of soldiers as well. How important as having that

manpower out on the streets? In the end, when we have people able to

clear the water courses from debris, prepare for the worst, that's what

we do, part of our jobs. We're here to do all we can to make it as easy

as possible for to survive in a time that normally people would be eating

their Christmas dinners. Thank you very much for your time today. Here,

at the moment, people frankly just hoping, that's all they can do, that

whatever rain does, it won't be enough to trigger more flooding.

Fighting is continuing in the strategically important area in

Helmand province. Afghan forces are also receiving advice from British

and American officers. Most residents have fled to the original

capital were fighting escalated earlier this week.

It's a simple idea - to connect people who like to cook

and who are up for sharing an extra plate of hot,

home cooked food with someone who could really benefit from one.

The Casserole Club aims to do just that, as well as combat loneliness

Tim Muffett has been to Staffordshire to meet

She died 2008. I still love her now.

It's a new life you've got to get used to.

He's a widower and his wife did all the cooking before and it's very

difficult in your 80s to pick up those sort of skills from scratch.

Derrick and Jez both live in Tamworth.

Casserole Club has brought them together.

Basically, people cook an extra portion and pair up with people

and the local community who are looking for a meal

Jez supplied me with two lovely meals, not just

I eat one when he brings it and I save another for later

It's been very fulfilling for both of us, I think.

The first rule of Casserole Club, it doesn't have to be a casserole.

I've got a chicken portion in the oven, some stuffing,

The idea began in Surrey four years ago.

Since then, Casserole Club has spread.

More than 7,000 people have signed up, but Christmas is the time

According to Age UK, more than 1 million people aged over

65 are malnourished, not eating enough decent food

to stay healthy, but this isn't just about nutrition,

We have a good chat every week and keep in touch and it's been very

He's helped me to get out of a bit of a doldrum.

It's filled a gap that bereavement has left.

Charities and councils have been providing meals on wheels

since the Second World War, but many schemes have been scaled

back, and for Derrick at least, Casserole Club has other advantages.

Meals on wheels used to be mass produced meals,

whereas this is more home-cooked food.

For Derrick, Jez and his partner Elaine, Casserole Club has provided

A record 28 foreign boats will compete in this year's Sydney

challenging ocean events. one of the world's most

It began in 1945, and pits amateur sailors against professional crews.

More than 100 vessels will start the race on Boxing Day.

Phil Mercer reports from Wild Rose, last year's overall winner.

The said native Hobart is one of the toughest yacht race is in the world

and it starts here in beautiful Sydney Harbour. From here the fleet

head into open water and head south into an 1100 kilometre journey down

eastern Australia, heading for the island state of Tasmania. The

beautiful thing about the said native Hobart is you can mix the

super professionals with the massive boats right through to the amateur

boats. We can compete with them, we don't see much of them but we do the

same event and that is what is magic about ocean racing in general.

Taking control of the helm and stealing on Sydney Harbour is one

thing, but dealing with the wild conditions en route to Tasmania is

something completely different. In 1998, six sailors died when a wild

storm lashed the fleet. The recent record is one day and 18 hours and

every boat is at the mercy of conditions that are notoriously

unpredictable. We go from this beautiful weather of New South Wales

town and to Tasmania which is gorgeous, but it can be cold and

wet, and so the race holds a mystery, a myriad of Mr Lee's.

20-year-old Sam Scott competed for the first time last year and it was

certainly a trip to remember. There was an early bouts of nausea and

then the ball lost its stealing and fail on its side but still went on

to become the overall winner of the race. Very hard work, very beautiful

but very tough. The first night I was horribly seasick and the loss of

stealing stealing what everybody worked so hard to get the boat

upright. It may be dominated by the multi-million dollar boats, but it

is the amateurs and the smaller boats that is the soul of this

famous old race. It is as popular as ever and attract yachts from

Britain, the United States, Japan and Britain.

The British astronaut, Tim Peake, may be achieving great things

in space, but he's not been as successful in making

He attempted to phone home and on reaching the number said:

But the woman at the other end got a bit of a shock --

But the woman at the other end got a bit of a shock -

In a tweet later, Major Tim apologised, insisting it wasn't

Coming up shortly mark Kermode takes a look back at this year's big

releases, but you can find all of our Review 2015 films online as well

as a range of the most powerful and important interviews from the last

12 months. Just visit our website. Now plan to check on the weather. I

just wish I had somewhat shady whether to tell you about. More rain

across the areas that don't need any more. They stay worked overnight

after most of Boxing Day. If fair bit of snow over the hills and

Scotland. Temperatures at 13 Celsius and the South winners is the North

it will be cold. He called and wet day to come tomorrow with the

potential for flooding. The Met offers-amber warning in place for

potential flooding in the lot of England. Stay up to date with the

forecast if you're travelling tomorrow. It will feel cold with

that band of rain in the north, but it could be as high as