11/11/2013 BBC Points West

Good evening and welcome to BBC Points West on Armistice Day.

Silent in respect: The region marks Armistice Day to honour its fallen.

Retracing a forgotten war hero: Former cricketer Jack Russell's

journey in memory of his great`great`uncle.

I too think he's pleased we are here. We haven't forgotten him. `` I

like to think. Other stories making the headlines

tonight... A father tells an inquest how he

repeatedly pleaded with staff to take his son's condition more

seriously. I'm Sean Conway, the first person to swim the length of

written. And after 135 days in the water our

swimmer makes history. Good evening. The West went silent

for two minutes today as thousands of people across the region stood

shoulder to shoulder to mark Armistice Day and remember the

fallen. Formal commemorations were held at military bases and war

memorials. Less formal acts of remembrance took place in schools,

workplaces and shopping centres all as a mark of respect to those who've

lost their lives over the years fighting for their country. Laura

Jones reports. The 11th hour of the 11th day of the

11th month. It's a very poignant occasion every

year. People take the time to remember those who didn't come

back. Here in Coleford, young and older

joined together to remember. Six of my schoolmates are on this. They

were killed during the war. That is why I come. I come to think about

those that we lost. I was, as they said, one of the lucky ones. The

Memorial Stadium is Bristol is dedicated to the memory of the

city's rugby players who were killed during World War I. On the other

side of the city, commuters and staff at the train station paid

tribute. In Bath, even the running machines at the gym stopped.

Next year will mark the 100th anniversary of the start of the

First World War. But with thousands of British troops still on active

service, Armistice Day and what it symbolises remain as relevant now as

it ever was. One person who decided to make a

very personal journey to learn more about World War I is the former

Gloucestershire and England cricketer Jack Russell, who's now an

established painter. He travelled to Ypres in Belgium to retrace and

capture on canvas the final days of his great`great`uncle who died in

battle in 1914. I followed Jack on this emotional journey.

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old.

Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.

At the going down of the sun and in the morning, we will remember them.

Many saw the chance to fight for their country on foreign shores as

an adventure. Little did they know of the sheer brutality that awaited

them. Men like Edward Hogg, who arrived in France in 1914 with the

Gloucestershire regiment. This is a village in itself of Mons, which is

over there. They have gone from marching up and

down for a few weeks, and now to the battle is getting closer. They know

the Germans are coming. It would have been a nerve wracking moment

for Edward. I legs are shaky at the moment. You got to try to imagine

what it was like. Jack is helped on this journey by historian Nick Fear.

He's taken him to a nearby cemetery, where some of Edward's fellow

Glosters were laid to rest. The graves here of the same rank as

Edward. Some of them may have been his mates. His loss was certainly a

loss to the regiment but it could have been personal to Edward. He

must have thought, it could have been me here. I could have died If

he has lost a good mate tea, why then? `` a good mate here, wife

Emma? But in just a few weeks the darkness

would also fall on Edwards Hogg s life.

In 1914, the Gloster regiment suffered massive casulaties at

Ypres, in Belgium. And during a battle in these fields on seventh

November, Edward Hogg also fell This is the spot I have been waiting

to get to for a long time. It has been a long time coming. I'm glad I

am here. I can see ghosts out there. There would have been fired coming

this way. It would have been hell out there. I hope he's looking down

on us. Getting here was a tough journey. Not as tough as he is, to

come to where he is probably resting, out there, I think he is

pleased we are here, really, and we haven't forgotten him. We are all

proud of him. Edward Hogg's body was never

recovered, and his name, along with thousands of others, is commemorated

here at the Menin gate in Ypres A memorial to the missing.

Every night at eight, a ceremony to remember the fallen. Tonight it s

the final steps in Jack's journey, laying a simple wreath with leaves

from Edward's back garden in Stroud. A sentimental reminder left for a

solider, a husband and a father whose Great War ended so far from

home. It truly was an emotional journey

for Jack. You can see more about his journey and the paintings he did on

our Facebook page. The head of the Bristol Free School

paid tribute today to one of their teachers who died in an accident

last weekend. 30`year`old Charlotte Furness`Smith had been climbing

swimming and diving along a stretch of the Dorset coastline with her

brother when she became trapped by a rising tide and strong winds. Today

she was described as an excellent maths teacher whose passion was

infectious. It's been revealed that a Bristol

man who attacked his elderly mother with a hammer warned a mental health

worker he was going to kill her Despite this claim, a decision was

taken not to detain him. Today a judge at Bristol Crown Court warned

Andrew Deans that he now faces up to 12 years in prison. Our home affairs

correspondent, Steve Brodie, was in court.

Mrs Deans survived the ordeal of being repeatedly hit with a claw

hammer by her son. After leaving court today, she was too upset to

talk about the attack which left her with serious head injuries.

It was in February this year the 79`year`old came to look after her

son when he became unwell after losing his job.

Deans disappeared after a night s drinking. Eventually he was taken

here by the police to the Callington Road Mental Health Hospital, where

he was assessed by doctors. During the assessment he said he would harm

someone if he was allowed out. After a discussion between the

hospital authorities, it was agreed that Deans did not have a mental

disorder which warrented dentention and he was allowed to go home, where

he repeatedly attacked his mother before she managed to escape. She

was treated in hospital for multiple head injuries.

Today Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership told the BBC ..

As the court case is not complete...

Andrew Deans, who pleaded guilty to causing grevious bodily harm, will

be sentenced tomorrow morning. He was told he could face up to 12

years in Prison. It's the start of another week and

you're watching BBC Points West your regional news programme. Stay

with us, as there's much more still to bring you, including...

The romance of the FA Cup: Can the builders from a tiny village in

Gloucestershire hammer the footballing giants of Port Vale

We're live at their ground very shortly.

A father has told an inquest into his son's death that he repeatedly

pleaded with staff at the Bristol Childrens hospital to take his

condition more seriously. Seven`year`old Luke Jenkins died

after being discharged early from intensive care onto a cardiac ward.

A hospital review at the time said there were not enough nurses on ward

32 to cope. Here's our health correspondent, Mathew Hill.

This is ward 32. It's now got a five`bedded high dependency unit,

one nurse to two patients. But when Luke Jenkins was admitted here a

year ago after major open heart surgery, there were no such

dedicated beds. Luke Jenkins died after he was

discharged early from intensive care here to ward 32. This was just three

weeks after the death of another child, Sean Turner form Wiltshire,

who also went to ward 32. Luke's father was today too ill to

give evidence, but in a statement he says the family were told Luke would

be able to stay in intensive care for at least three days after

surgery for a very serious heart condition. So he was concerned when

his son was discharged after one day. He says staff did not respond

to warning signs, like low oxgen levels, and the loss of nearly two

litres of blood. There seem to be not enough staff there. We raise

concerns. They were trained to getting out of bed. He couldn't get

out of bed. We ask to go back to intensive care, and every time we

were ignored. A hospital report into Luke Jenkins'

death was highly critical. It said low and unsafe staffing for high

dependency patients played a significant part in his death. But

the family's solicitor is concerned the hospital has commissioned

another report which goes back on those findings. They have been

waiting a long time. They thought the trust had conducted a

transparent and open investigation. It has been changed. Clearly, they

just want to know what has happened to their son.

Today the chief executive of the hospital told me he wouldn't be

making any further comments until the end of the inquest. Then,

Luca's family hope they will have more answers about why he died after

an apparently successful operation. A well`known footballer from Devon

has pleaded guilty to causing a crash which killed one man and

seriously injured another. Tom Pilling was at the wheel of a car

which careered off the M5 motorway in Somerset in March. In court today

he admitted he may have fallen asleep at the wheel. Clinton Rogers

reports. The mangled wreckage tells its own

story, a car barely recognisable. One man died in this crash. Two

others were badly hurt. Police markings would suggest the Citroen

Saxo, travelling south on the M close to the Somerset Devon border,

just veered off the road. At the wheel was Tom Pilling, on the left

here. Today at Taunton Crown Court, he pleaded guilty to causing death

by careless driving and driving without insurance.

In a statement read to the court, he said he accepted he was guilty

because he simply had no recollection of how the accident

happened. He added, in the absence of any other explanation, I may have

fallen asleep at the wheel, and that caused the car to leave the

carriageway. Tom Pilling is a well known local

footballer, having played for a number of clubs including Tiverton

Town. The person who died in the crash was a close friend, Daniel

Gunn, who was just 24. The case was adjourned and Mr Pilling will be

sentenced on December sixth. 800 jobs are likely to go at Bristol

City Council over the next three years. The authority's having to

make more savings to reduce the size of its budget by ?90 million.

Bristol's mayor, George Ferguson, says compulsory redundancies will be

a last resort but may be necessary. The Yeovil MP David Laws has

confirmed he'll stand again in the next general election. He was voted

as the Liberal Democrat 2015 candidate by party members over the

weekend. He's held the post of Yeovil MP for 12 years.

Now, a piece of history was made today. Our swimmer has done it!

After 900 miles in 135 days, the Cheltenham adventurer Sean Conway

has become the first man to swim the entire length of Britain. The

32`year`old from Charlton Kings arrived at John O'Groats at noon

after his mammoth swim from West Cornwall. Fiona Lamdin reports.

After 900 miles at sea, these were his final strokes. After four months

of sea salt in his eyes, today's champagne was a very welcome change.

I took a screen grab of the harbour and I have been looking at it for

two months, to envisage coming in here. That has kept me going.

Sean Conway set off from Land's End on June 30th, 135 days ago. Today he

became the first man to swim the entire length of Great Britain. And

we've been following him right from the start. Here he is on his second

day, just a few miles off the Cornish coast. The salt is playing

havoc on my tongue. My tongue is swelling.

We then followed him up into the Irish Sea, when his huge beard first

appeared, to protect his face from jellyfish. It has been tough,

physically. I lost a lot of weight in the early days by not eating

enough. I have are to blame my meals for the last two months, having a

liquid diet, and getting in the cold water every day has been tough. And

this has been home for the crew ` a 36`foot boat.

When he's not at sea, Sean lives with his mother in Cheltenham. I

have got a warm top. I have got his trousers, his boot, and also black

bags for the dirty clothes. Have you ever been scared about him doing

this? Not at all. I was scared about him doing the cheese roller. That

was ridiculous. By this, no. He was always my quiet child. `` but this.

He was rubbish at sport at school. He always came last. So he was a

swimmer. When he cycled around the world, he was a cyclist, either

This afternoon, after a good drink and an emotional reunion with his

mother, Sean was full of praise for points west. You are behind me all

the way. Without you, nobody would know the story. I have been dreaming

of this for 4.5 months. In case you were wondering, he's

already got another plan, this time to run across Africa. Fantastic How

could he failed with his mother behind him? Apparently the beard was

to protecting from the jellyfish because he kept coming against them.

A gymnast from Gloucester has won a gold medal at the Trampoline and

Tumbling World Championships in Bulgaria. Kristof Willerton is the

first British man ever to win a world title in tumbling. Afterwards

he said it was an incredible feeling.

By day they're plumbers, scaffolders, and IT professionals.

But tonight, members of short wood United football team are hoping to

become giant killers. They're playing Port Vale in the first round

of the world's oldest footballing competition, the FA Cup. Ali Durden

is at their Meadowbank ground now. Ali, can they do it?

It is the magic of the FA Cup. That is what they say. Anything can

happen. They have already beaten some size from higher divisions

This is something else tonight. This will be a big step. Port Vale play

in the same division as Bristol City. Short wood are five levels

further down. Tonight is the biggest game in their history, ever. It is

why 500 people will be packed into this tiny ground is that of the

usual 100. You're right, it is a tiny little hamlet here in the

Cotswolds. It doesn't have a church, it doesn't have a pub. It's

never even had a shop. Tonight it could go down in footballing

folklore. It may be a far cry from the daily grind of a professional

footballer, but painter and decorator Tom has had a taste of the

high life. Since beating Aldershot town to get through to the fast ``

first round, the goalkeeper admits he hasn't touched the floor. After

the Aldershot game, we got back at about 1.30, and then I had to go to

work the next day. The phone was rising. It was quite strange. `` the

phone was buzzing. I did get a lot of phone done `` work done!

Luckily, there's plenty of support for the team. I would like to see

them absolutely smash it and bring them home. We have said that if they

do that on Monday, he can have `` he can have Tuesday. I'm sure there

will be a few headaches around the area, Tom's included. He also has

his hands full at home, although his son is helping him practice. His

wife has been enjoying the experience, too. I am saying, I am

almost a wagon. It has been good. The hamlet has held onto its club

despite losing other facilities Eating ready for the television

spotlight has taken all week. With tickets selling out in under an

hour, the excitement is mounting. I shall be shaking hands with the

chairman of Port Vale were wishing him the best. Hopefully everybody

will enjoy the game and afterwards we will will shake hands and we will

be in the next round. We are just outside the home dressing room. I

want to show you this. They always say that non`league clubs have small

dressing rooms. It is pretty compact in there. Alex Sykes, one of the

joint managers, is with me. They look pretty relaxed. They are OK.

They have got to think about the nature of the game. They have been

at work all day. They are not here to do a job. A worldwide TV audience

tonight. How do you feel about that? No pressure on the lads. It is

their cup final. They have got to enjoy themselves. For me it is about

making them enjoy it. Any new haircuts for the occasion? There

were a few last week. Can you do it? I think so. If we said we

couldn't, William `` we may as well go home now. All the best. BBC radio

Gloucestershire will have more from the boys and commentary tonight We

will have the result in our 10pm bulletin. We certainly will. Thank

you. This Friday it's Children in Need,

and this year the location for our event is the Roman Baths in Bath.

David will be joining me and a children's choir around the famous

water. One of the charities that benefits from your donations is the

Bath Area Play Project, which helps teenagers with disabilities. The

money you raise funds a life skills project which makes a real

difference, as I found out. A rocket! I love it. It has got

eyes. Did you enjoy it tonight? Why do you enjoy that? It is good

exercise. The project I am working on is a life skills project, which

is funded by children in need. The idea is that young people come

along, disabled young people, and they learn but they don't realise

that they are learning. Do you help each other? Yeah, we do. Your hands

are cold. Are you warm enough? I am working for the BBC. It is about

treating them as an individual and a young adult. Our job is to help

these young people take responsibility for their decisions.

Also, to show them that we value them as young people and as

individuals. We also talk about sex and relationships, how important it

is when you are in a relationship. You have also done plays? We have.

We did a Midsummer night stream I was playing two parts. I was a

girl! How did you find that? Funny? Yeah. UC a starting point and an end

point. They have such amazing potential and we can help them to

realise that. It was a pleasure to meet them and people tell you more

about where the money goes throughout this week. Let's get the

weather now. How is it looking? And improving story for tomorrow. It

is going to be a question of a continuation of a theme for the rest

of tonight. Lots of rain about. Some of its heavy into the first part of

the night. Tomorrow, we reverse all about. We will lose the cloud in the

morning. The rainfall radar has been epitomising how poor the system is

at picking up drizzle. The doctors are so small and find that the radar

can't resolve and reflect the echoes back off them. Coming out of the

Irish Sea, it bit more of a signal of moderate rainfall. It is all

courtesy of this front here which trails back down towards the south

west. It will ease south eastwards. The cloud cover tomorrow we go with

it. This is the signal for things to brighten up as temperatures come

back in. That will be a recipe for tomorrow night to be colder compared

to the night we are about to have. Through this evening, the hill fog

will be prevalent, even at moderately high levels of the West

Country, as will drizzle. As we have through to daybreak tomorrow, much

of it will be squeezed to the south`east. Temperatures tonight are

comparatively mild. Nine, ten, 1 Celsius. Money to be saved on the

central heating tonight. Tomorrow will be a murky start. Then we will

see that it gradually gets whittled away from the West and start to

brighten up as the day wears on Particularly into the evening, we

start `` in the day with clear skies. Temperatures at around 1 or

12 Celsius. That was about it from us for now.

I am looking forward to the result later. Pretty sure they will do

well. They are my local team said they are bound to. That is it from

us. Goodbye.