04/08/2014 BBC Wales Today

Good evening and welcome to Llandaff Cathedral.

Tonight's National Service of Commemoration, marking the beginning

of the First World War 100 years ago, tonight is underway here.

The declaration of war came at 11 o'clock in the evening and

for an hour tonight, lights will be put out in public buildings

By the end of the war in 1918 around 40,000

The theme of this service tonight is not celebration but commemoration

and here it may be that the thoughts are turning to all of the young

Welsh marching off to war 100 years ago. A time to reflect on the past

and pray for peace now. Towards the end of the service the cathedral

would be lit by one candle. At 11 o'clock it was declared and the Dell

would told out across the city. Reminders of the great War and its

horizontal round us in cities and towns across Wales. Memorial stand

in testimony to the terrible loss. Tens of thousands from Wales never

returned home. The sacrifice is not lost on succeeding generations. We

need to remember what happened in the past. It has helped us to be

where we are in the future. In the war, people were wounded, gassed,

and it means a lot to me to come here. So many Welsh families connect

to the events of one century ago. Susan has travelled from a home in

Spain to travel to see this commemoration. Her great uncle was

one of 24 officers killed in World War I in this regiment. They told us

that he had died and was buried in Belgium. 1918, he died. Towards the

end of the war. At the age of 23. And there were brothers we did not

know about and we found out allsorts of things about the family. In

August, 1914, people were frying the streets waiting for the formal

declaration of war which came at 11 o'clock at night. -- thronging the

streets. Changing from one to another, the faces of some of those

that went to war is being projected onto a wall in Banga tonight. It is

one of dozens of events being held in cities, towns and villages across

Wales. Tonight we are being asked to switch off our lights to mark the

moment that war was declared. Here, a torchlit procession is climbing to

the top of the highest point in this range. There is a vigil for peace.

Here, a roll of honour is being dedicated and candles are lighting a

procession through the streets of Newtown. Across the UK there are

hundreds and hundreds of events and I think people have bought into it.

It is a time of reflection about the washing -- losses 100 years ago

which continues today. Here in places like the song, Gallipoli and

elsewhere, what they injured is almost unimaginable. -- the Somme.

The service of commemoration began at 10 o'clock

Lets give you just a small flavour now of what's been going on

CHORAL MUSIC we have come to worship and reflect on the severity is of

war. And to pray for peace. SPEAKS IN WELSH... Bless it are

those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

More from the National Service of Commemoration in Llandaff

Let's get the rest of the days news now from Nicola Smith.

Tests are being carried out on a body found on Crete, to

establish if it's that of missing Denbigh pensioner, Arthur Jones.

The 73 year-old was last seen six weeks ago, after telling relatives

Former soldier Arthur Jones regularly took off on energetic solo

He told his family in a postcard that he was off to

explore the hills around Chania on Crete shortly after arriving.

But after leaving the hotel on 19th June hadn't been seen again.

A man's body has been discovered under a tree near the resort.

Tests are being carried out to establish if it's that

It is the body of a man that was found sitting under a tree. The

theory that we had is that he had gone out for a walk and had some

kind of medical episode and might have been seeking shelter. It seems

most likely. We were informed the body had been found believed to be

that of my father, Arthur Jones. It is deeply upsetting and a shock to

find out this news. But it is comforting to know that he was doing

something he enjoyed. Arthur Jones' disappearance prompted

a major social media campaign. People from across the world posted

pictures to highlight the search and the Prime Minister was asked to

do more to help. A mountain rescue expert

and two police missing persons specialists from North Wales went to

Crete to offer their expertise. The global effort to find Arthur may

have reached a tragic conclusion, but his family want to pay tribute

to all those Two people have been taken to

hospital following a house fire Emergency services spent more than

three hours tackling the blaze There were reports of an explosion

at the property late this afternoon. An investigation into the cause

of the fire is underway. The Welsh Government has bought

the house where Mark Bridger was living when he killed five year old

April Jones. The cottage, in Ceinws in Powys,

will now be knocked down. April Jones was murdered by Bridger

in 2012. Her parents say the house had been

a constant reminder, and its demolition will be

a huge weight off their minds. The father of five boxers has been

banned for life from all sport. Philip Tinklin, who's from Risca,

near Newport, admitted supplying steroids,

and is the first person to be given His 20 year old daughter,

Sophie Tinklin, who's a Welsh Amateur champion boxer,

has been given a four year ban. Philip Tinklin has been involved in

boxing in south-east Wales four-year is. Today he is beginning a lifetime

ban from all sport for supplying steroids. His daughter, 20-year-old

Sophie, a Welsh woman's champion last year, has been banned four

years. Today, UK anti-doping described the enterprise as a family

business. The national panel does not hand out lifetime sanctions for

nothing. They chose to see this as a significant network, which is how we

pitched it to them. As a result it is a lifetime ban. It was not a

kitchen table operation. It was significant. When his house was

raided, almost 3000 tablets similar to this were found. Earlier this

year he pleaded guilty at Cardiff Crown Court to one count of

supplying anabolic steroids. He drove and accompanied all five of

his children to boxing competitions and at training, including here. He

was not a registered coach but he was considered so involved in there

fighting that... It is something we cannot condone. We have got our own

policies and procedures. And again, if that is the case, it is

well-deserved. His case follows a ban handed out to a former rugby

club player whose eight-year ban was the longest in the UK for a first

offence. BBC Wales has tried to speak to man -- Philip Tinklin but

has been unsuccessful. The controversial twice-a-day

closure of a slip road on the M4, For the next eight months,

Junction 41 of the westbound motorway will close for two hours

on weekday mornings and evenings, But local businesses are concerned

it could harm the town's economy, Traffic running smoothly around Port

Talbot this afternoon but it can be busy. A scheme has started to

control the flow of traffic onto the motorway but not everybody is

reading the signs. This is the scene of a driver trying to join the Mfor

Wes into the hours of seven o'clock in the morning and four o'clock to

six o'clock in the evening. The plan was to close it completely in both

directions but the government went back into the face of opposition.

Shop owners like Steve are concerned about the impact on local business.

We have just gone through the toughest recession I have ever

known. We could do without any kind of system like this at the moment.

As we are told, the green shoots are there. But if you are going to stop

able wanting to come to Port Talbot, this will cause concern. Is not

alone because more than 33,000 people have signed a petition

calling for a rethink. Politicians are also concerned. I understand the

condition issues. -- congestion issues. I would like to look at

speed cameras to see if that would deal with it better before this type

of closure. Others think the junction should be completely

closed. This particular junction cannot take the capacity. It is

slow. It should not maybe have been built like this at all. The

government said it will decide the future at the end of the trial

period. This period might take some time for the drivers to get used to.

Europe's largest cultural festival, the National Eisteddfod,

The main prize on offer today was the crown, awarded for the best poem

written in free verse on the subject Tyfu, the welsh word for 'growing.'

The winner was 24 year-old Guto Dafydd,

32 poets entered the competition, but the judges said, in the end,

their decision wasn't a difficult one.

We will be back with Jamie in a moment. First, the weather forecast.

Very changeable in the next few days. Sunshine and showers similar

to tomorrow but if anything, more in the way of showers. Easing up and

largely dry across Wales. Clear spells and we could get missed and

fog patches forming. Cooler than recent nights. Nine Celsius Imro

parts. A bit more mild along the coast. Tomorrow morning, dry and

bright in North and East Wales but it will not last. Cloudy from the

south and west. Heavy showers developing. The same across the UK.

North and east getting the best of any bright conditions. Some heavy

showers hit and miss. But if you catch one it could be happy with a

risk of thunder. Especially across Northern Ireland and western

Scotland. 18 Celsius in the Western Isles. 24 in south-east England.

Ending the day across Wales a mix of sunny spells, scattered showers and

variable cloud. Quite breezy as well. 19-21. Tomorrow this will push

up from the South West. It could bring 40 millimetres of rain

overnight into Wednesday. We will keep an high on that. We might have

warnings. A wet start on Wednesday. It will clear north-east.

warnings. A wet start on Wednesday. It will More dry and bright Robbie

Savage and West. Top averages 19-21. -- and writer in the West. Dry and

bright and things becoming more and settled by the end of the week. And

that is all from me. We will return to Jamie at Llandaff Cathedral.

Thank you. The National service of commemoration continues in Llandaff

Cathedral with music and readings marking the 100th anniversary of the

outbreak of the First World War. The declaration of war was made at 11

o'clock and as we approach that time, the lights in this cathedral

will be dimmed leaving a solitary candle. A symbol of hope in

darkness. Tonight the faces of soldiers and civilians are being

projected onto the wall of this centre in Bangalore. It was intended

to show the men behind the uniforms.