02/03/2017 Look North (North East and Cumbria)

Hello and welcome to Thursday's Look North.

The Newcastle camera that has raised more find than any in England.

Thanks for saving me. The man that went under a transplant operation is

organising a funding trip. A major military exercise

in Northumberland. On mavoeures with the soldiers

who are about to join Preying on the seagulls. Is this the

solution to sorting out the birds that pester tourists? In sport,

another award at Buckingham Palace. If there was a prize for dedication,

it could go to the man who has been reporting on his local football team

for more than half a century. Newcastle Council's denied claims

it's running a campaign against drivers after a single bus

lane in the city brought in more Over 60,000 drivers

were caught by the camera on John Dobson Street raising five

thousand a day for the council. But the council says it's not

using motorists as a cash cow. Here's our News

Correspondent Mark Denten. As he drives around Newcastle,

something annoys him. Still no sign of any warning signs

at all at the moment. We are about to turn

onto John Dobson street. David was snapped by

a camera on the street He has since won his money back on

appeal but thousands of other drivers have shelled out because

this is the big daddy of bus lanes. It is a record breaker, taking more

fines in a single day than any other. It is just 70 yards long, but

62,975 fines were handed out to drivers illegally using this bus

lane between February and October last year, making a total of ?1.5

million or ?5,690 a day. It is part of a wider campaign

around the city that seems to be about making the city as

unattractive as possible to ordinary drivers. The fact of the matter is,

lots of people need to use their cars. The rest of the road is open

to the general public but a tiny little bit at the bottom there,

which isn't an accident hotspot or congestion hot spot, but apparently

they have decided to make this unavailable to the traffic 24/7. The

number of the people who were being caught was astronomical. The council

should have realised that there was something not right about this. The

did not react to the fact that many people, being used to John Dobson

Street, were taken by surprised by this bus lane and still find it very

difficult to understand why the council would think this is a

sensible way of organising the traffic in the centre of the city.

Of course, you can change your route to avoid the camera but that is

easier said than done. Somewhere on here I need to manage to carry out a

3-point turn, bearing in mind if there was not empty space year, it

would be difficult. I am not sure I'm going to be able to do it here.

A 5-point turn, may be. This is me in an ordinary size car. If I was in

a large fan, I would not be able to do this minister at all. -- large

van. It is like me in a supermarket car park. Mark joins me. We are

talking about a lot of money here. We certainly are. This building

behind me here, they were also talking about a lot of money, the

amount the council has to save in the next year, ?30 million. Could

the use that money that they have got from the fines, or are they

using to top that up? The answer they are saying is, no. They can

only spend those fines on transport related issues. I have been speaking

to a member of the council. It is not about finding people, it is

about improving the transport in the city. People who come into the city

centre comment by bus. Most of those come up John Dobson Street. You have

been accused of running a campaign to make this as unattractive or as

possible to motorists. Why should they if you find them? We do not get

fined if the baby rules of the road. Tell me one thing you're going to

use that for? -- OBE. We have not made our mind up yet but we will

spend it in the city centre. On motorists on bus passengers? It

might be an improving areas for the whole residence of the city. It

would be a delight for me if nobody drove through that. Even when in it

is bringing you in over a ?1 million? It is not about the money.

Is this a badge of honour? Do you go to parties and say, look at us, we

have got ?1 million for this? No, it is not like that at all. We had a

spike when we first introduced the gate, and that is quite normal. When

the BBC asked for the freedom of information request, we just happen

to be at the peak. For all I know another camera in another city which

is higher. I should say that the council says there has been a 56%

drop in the number of fines it has issued from that infamous Camara on

John Dobson Street in the last few months. Going forward, basic, people

are getting the message that the camera will snap them if they break

the rules. Are they doing that or are they staying away from the city?

The jury is very much out. Back to you. Thank you, Mark.

A coach travelling on the A1 caught fire this morning.

It happened around 9.30am near junction 63,

There were no passengers on board and the driver got off the vehicle

County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Service say no-one

The incident caused lengthy tailbacks on the A1.

Durham Police have been judged the top performing police

force in the country, for the third year running.

43 forces in England and Wales were assessed

by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary.

Durham Police was deemed 'outstanding' at preventing crime

All the region's other forces were given an overall 'good' rating.

An investigation is underway tonight after a man's body was found in a

wheelie bin in a back alley. Officers have not yet released the

name of the deceased but his family has been informed. A has been

arrested in connection with the death. -- a man has been arrested.

Police were called here to Northbourne Street in Gateshead

yesterday afternoon after receiving a report

expressing concern about a

Officers attended the scene and discovered a

They are treating the death as suspicious.

As you can see, the area has been cornered off.

A 64-year-old man has been arrested in relation to the discovery.

He remains in police custody tonight.

A postmortem examination is currently

underway on the victim's body to establish his identity

Police have stepped up their presence in the area to

I have been told that the cordon will remain

A man from North Yorkshire has become only the fourth person

in the world to survive a pioneering multiple organ transplant.

Adam Alderson, from Preston-under-Scar near Leyburn,

underwent a 17 hour operation to replace several organs,

He's now recovered and is planning a wedding and a fundraising trip

At his worst, Adam was told nothing more could be done and he was sent

for end of life care. He was determined not to die at the age of

36. He heard about pioneering surgery carried out on the Bob a

player. Steve died just weeks later. The same operation was the last

chance for Adam. I did not know how long I would have left to live. It

was a difficult question to ask but it was as little as two years.

Refusing to give up, being stubborn Yorkshireman I am, I turn to the

Internet and I followed a guide, Steve Prescott, former England rugby

player, Rugby League, who had the same disease as me and one of four

people in the world to have gone through this and done very well. The

17 hour operation meant 30 people working shifts and the removal of

Adam 's stomach, gall bladder, pancreas, appendix and spleen. He is

forever grateful to the donor. The reality is somebody has died for me

to survive. That is easy to forget and we must thank people that do

this selfless act of becoming a donor and I am now back to work full

time, eating and drinking as normal. Having a really good social life and

living life and enjoying life. That is all thanks to the medical team

that believed in me and the procedure. Obviously, my partner, my

fiancee, Laura. We are getting married in May this year, I could

not have done this without her. She is the most incredible woman. She

has been with me at every step of the way. Now Adam is ticking on a

gruelling cross rally to raise money for charity. It is a 15,000 mile

trek through Europe and into Asia. This Jimmy has seen better days but

we are going to get it through. That smack chimney. There are dangers if

I get into trouble medically. Adam will be embarking on his next big

challenge on July 15. -- this chimney has seen better days.

Incredible. 11 towns and cities,

including Sunderland, have now put their names forward

to become UK City Joining Sunderland on the list

are places including Perth, Hereford, Warrington,

Portsmouth, Swansea A short list will be announced

in July, and the winning The Heritage Lottery Fund has

pledged to give the winner Nearly 1,500 troops,

including some from France, Denmark and other European countries

have been taking part in a major military training exercise

at Otterburn in Northumberland. Soldiers from members

of Nato are learning how to work best together,

should conflict ever break out. Mark McAlindon spent the day

watching the Royal Artillery An exercise it might have been. This

was nor drama. Emergency and adrenaline in a live firing

environment. It is really important for us to be able to train with

technology these days we can simulate a lot of our training, but

it is really important to bring all of those assets together and train

as we would fight. Of course, it tests another level of convocations

and challenges us in ways we would not get if we were sat in the class

doing it. -- level of complications. The purpose is for countries

belonging to Nato to train their trips to work together better,

should be ever be needed. It included reservists from the

north-east, too. You have to have that balance between civilian life

and being a reserve as well. You have to have that fighting balance.

There are a lot of the boys who are really good at supporting the

reserves. You really have to keep on top of the training. With being a

reserve, you are not always there. Exercise like this is massively

important for us. The army trains here in Northumberland, as well as

Canada and Kenya. Modern technology means it is not all out on the

range. These guys might look like they are playing computer war games

but this is the cutting edge of British Army training. It is a

digital environment that allows them to get as close to real battlefield

situations as possible. What we can give the soldiers that we cannot do

in the live environment is lots and lots of different capabilities, lots

of aircraft, lots of helicopters, lots of guns and rockets, in a way

that we simply would not be able to in space and time and within safety

restrictions. Some of these trips have spent 26 nights sleeping out on

the range, all part of maintaining a well-trained military. -- groups.

They've become known for preying on unsuspecting tourists enjoying

But now, the herring gull population in Scarborough and Whitby

Birds of prey have been introduced to scare the gulls away.

Some nests will be dismantled and eggs destroyed.

Our business correspondent Ian Reeve reports from Whitby.

Whitby is home to about 4000 herring gulls.

Yet, they no longer add to the charm of the town.

They are scavengers often swooping on tourists for food.

Hawks and falcans are being used to scare them away

from the town centre here

We have had issues of seagulls mugging people.

It has been an ongoing thing since about 2002.

Things are getting quite bad for people who visit our

We have worked a programme with them and they're going to come

across and fly these birds in the harbour areas and the areas

The birds of prey are supposed to be a deterrent, and not

If something was to take a liberty and get a bit close, it may well be

As you can see now, we've got birds out and there are not a

Jim, the Harris's hawk disrupted the bird population today.

Something welcomed at Michael's fish and chip restaurant.

We see them coming over the tops of people when

they have their fish and chip boxes and taking them

Sometimes they land on the hedge and take it off

or if they are on the wall and they have a food at the side of

them, they come and knock it off the wall.

We have to warn of the customers just to be careful of gulls.

The herring gulls' nests will also be dismantled and ecstasy are

Necessary, says the council, if man and bird are to live

How many kids want to grow up to be scientists these days?

Only 15% of ten to 14-year-olds have aspirations to go into science,

In response, the BBC's developed a campaign called

Terrific Scientific which aims to ignite interest

Damian O'Neil's been to a primary school in Newcastle

Once I've put it in, you can start to do the temperature.

The children are trying to determine which freezes

I have read that it freezes quicker when it

It came as a surprise to me that the hot one would be faster

than the cold one because the cold is more likely

Actually, hot was more likely to create a reaction.

To test the theory, the children are carrying out

I measure up to 225 millilitres of water.

Then I am going to use a thermometer to see how cold it is.

Do you think the cold water will freeze quicker

I personally think the cold water will freeze quicker.

OK, we have a cold and our warm water

80 minutes later, the water is frozen and the

We predicted that the cold water would freeze quicker

We were expecting the cold water to be

slightly colder, but it turned out the water

seemed to be colder when

There was a lot more ice in the warm water than the cold

It is the second lesson and a series of investigations that

children will be making up until the summer.

It is the case of enthusing children about science and giving

them that practical experience and also realising

You can find out why hot water freezes faster than cold water,

plus loads of other cool stuff, at...

I think really is some teams with the Magic winning formula. We do you

find those? -- where do you find those?

Let's start with football - and life isn't getting any

Lying just outside the Premier League relegation zone,

on goal difference only, Boro will now face Manchester City

After Huddersfield took an early lead against City in their fifth

round replay last night, Boro might have hoped a giant

Normal service was resumed after half an hour though,

when Leroy Sane equalised, and the floodgates duly opened.

City completed the 5-1 rout in injury time,

but Boro boss Aitor Karanka wasn't exactly glued to the action.

Did you watch the FA Cup game last night?

When you have the quality on the pitch, sometimes you can surprise.

so it's important because, especially after the cup and the

international break, we have two important games away.

It is always important to play at home.

Now what do former Newcastle boss Joe Harvey and the late, great,

Bill Shankly have in common with Cumbrian sports

Well, they're all ex-managers of Workington AFC,

a Football League club until 1977, currently battling

for a play-off place in the Evostick Premier Division.

John was only in charge for three matches, but he's

still regarded as a club legend for his 50 years in

From his early days as a cub reporter with Cumbrian Newspapers

to more recent times as a radio commentator with BBC Radio Cumbria,

He doesn't drive a car, so he's had to be adept at catching lifts

and using public transport to cover the length and bredth

of the country following his beloved Workington Reds.

Some news just in, one of my steward pals just tells me that one

of the Skelmersdale players has asked where the nearest

train station is because he says he had taken time off work to come

to Workington and was put on the bench.

He wasn't happy and now he's gone home.

Walshie's words in print and over the airwaves have kept generations

of football fans in touch with his boyhood club.

This is a scrapbook that was put together by one of the directors

This is the Star office in Oxford Street, Workington.

That is the first match report, running

We lost the first game 2-0 to Bristol Rovers.

Really, a lot of the 50 years have been similar sort of results.

That's why I think the high points have got

be savoured because you enjoy them so much because there have been some

When I first started, you had to knock on the

changing room door and get the manager or his assistant to give

you the team changes, the Christian names.

There was one particular manager, Roy Bentley -

ex England and Chelsea, he proceeded to give all

the wrong Christian names to his team.

I remember the senior reporter in the box

was absolutely livid with

him and he described him as Dick Bentley,

who was a well-known comedian of the time.

Despite losing a chairman, manager, and two key players this season

the Reds took on bottom club Skelmersdale knowing victory

Chance for Skelmersdale into the area.

The ball broke through into the area.

And this is when you know it's not going to be your night.

That just sums up Workington's night.

Difficult job coming up after you've lambasted your team

after a performance like that - you've got to come and be civil

Measured views right after a game like that, it's

I know that they will respond in the right way.

We will put it behind us and put a positive

fans deserve it to see a more spirited performance that they know

And as for our evergreen 70-year-old, if not another 50 years

Someone else who's just picked up an award is Newcastle Eagles'

He was presented to Prince William at Buckingham Palace today,

where he was made an MBE for his services to basketball.

The 43-year-old American is the most successful coach in the history

of the domestic game, with the club having picked up 24

national titles in the 13 years he's been in charge.

What a lovely guy he is. A nice, big smile there. He was enjoying it. Now

it's time for the weather. Tonight, some fantastic pictures of the

Northern lights. Many of you spotted this last night. Thank you to our

Weather Watchers. Lovely green colours. This is stunning. Thank you

very much for that, too. This one was sent in by Ian this morning.

Some lovely pictures. Tonight, there is still a chance of seeing the

aurora but too much cloud around. There will be some rain at times and

quite breezy as well. The breezy day today but that will die down a bit

as we head into the night. Some outbreaks of rain in parts of

Cumbria and north Northumberland as well. On the whole, a dry night with

clear spells here and there. Temperatures dropping down to three

Celsius. Friday morning, that area of rain across northern parts but

elsewhere, dry and bright start the morning. If your amount of cloud

around but it is not going to last. Friday afternoon, this area of rain

pitching in from the south. Let's take a look at things at three

o'clock on Friday. Cumbria look stride but some sunny spells

breaking through the crowd. Temperatures of nine Celsius. More

in the way of cloud. Temperatures around seven or eight Celsius.

Fairly light and gentle breeze from the east. That rain does push in

into Friday night. Eventually it will spread to all parts. Light and

patchy at first but becoming more persistent and heavier. That breeze

picking up during the night. Temperatures dropping down to five

Celsius. Saturday is a day where we will see rain. Initially through

northern parts during the morning. There will be a brief respite where

we see some fairly dry weather with a lot of cloud around. The rain

moves in later on in the day. The rain is on and off in temperatures

up to nine Celsius. The breeze picking up through Saturday. Moving

into Sunday and it looks like the better day of the weekend. Quite a

lot of cloud around and the temperature is not higher than eight

Celsius. Outbreaks of rain and we keep that unsettled theme with our

weather as we head into next week. Thank you very much. That is your

gardening plans off this Saturday. I will leave it until Sunday instead.

That is it from us tonight. Good night.

WHISTLING: Blue Danube by Johann Strauss II

the gap between the richest and everyone else

And while the funding for our schools and hospitals is being cut,

many of the largest companies and wealthiest individuals