08/01/2014 The One Show

Hello and welcome to the programme. The night, there is all sorts

happening. We are going to be going up in a plane with Liz Bonnin on a

search for the northern lights. And we will be coming down with One Show

action man Andy Torbett, as he drops in for a chat. And we will be

hearing from three soldiers about to make the emotional trip home from

Afghanistan. And that is not all. Thank you very much. It would have

been Elvis's birthday today, isn't that right?! The lads are in. It is

-- it would have been Elvis's 79th birthday, and we are joined to

celebrate that day by 14 Elvii. And one of our guests has been known to

have a bit of a singsong himself. # Las Vegas! A spot that deserves

applause, but who is it?! And so that he is not lonesome tonight, he

is joined by someone who has always had the upper hand. It is Honor

Blackman, and alongside Honor is Vernon Kay! I enjoyed that. That was

for a show which I did with several of the guys that are here. It is the

world's best Elvis tribute artists. We went to Las Vegas and I married a

couple from leads, I think they were, dressed as Elvis. You have

grown to appreciate Elvis more and more, haven't you? Yes. Of course.

There is a bit of acting, a bit of singing. And they are going to sing

for us. Tell us, Vernon, the story about Elvis's first recording

contract. I think he bought him shove a horseshoe pinky ring. Wrong.

What do they know?! Basically he wore it for most of his life, and

for one of our anniversaries, we had a replica pinky ring. So, where is

it today? It is at home. Well, our 14 Elvii will be performing at the

end of the show. And Vernon is also going to be talking about Splash!.

But that is not the only show with amazing dives. Have a look at this.

This is seven-year-old Christopher, back in Florida, in 1987. That was

quality! And we have got lots of dives from our viewers are still to

come. One of the Government's big plans for 2014 is the pledge to pull

combat forces out of Afghanistan by the end of the year. On Monday, we

showed you some of the logistical challenges involved in the move, but

tonight, three soldiers give us a personal insight into life in

Helmand Province, and what it means for them to come back home. The

British combat mission in Afghanistan is Troy in to a close.

By the end of 2014, the final fighting personnel will be home in

the UK, but not until they have helped the Afghan national forces

take the lead in securing their own country. We have been given

exclusive access to three soldiers preparing for their return home.

Corporal Les Wareham, staff Sergeant Gavin Waugh, and Sergeant Shaun

Woodward. They are members of the 2nd Royal Tank Regiment, based at

Camp Bastion. They are wrapping up operations after the 12 year fight

against the Taliban. We have been in a few scrapes. We have had a couple

of Impex strikes as well. 29-year-old Les is the commander of

an armoured fighting vehicle. We started getting shot at, but without

even to having sale word, my boys around me were getting their kit on,

manning the guns, responding to the threat. Les and the two Sergeants

worked closely to keep the squadron of over 100 soldiers running

smoothly. The quartermaster of the squadron is Gav, who makes she sure

the guys want for nothing. You have got your major vehicle components

which need to be sent out, and then you have got guys who have had their

boots disintegrated. Water, sun cream, you name it. Sajid Woodward

leads the fight out on the ground. -- Sergeant Woodward. We are still

getting heavily contacted at times, and that can last half a day, a

full-day, two days. And then the next day could be in the same area,

absolutely nothing. Back home, the wives of Gav and Woody have their

own ways of coping. There have been some hairy times, when you think, I

want him home, but you cannot think of it like that. You could worry all

day, every day about it, but I have got to children who do not want to

worry about it. They do not know he is in a dangerous place. They just

think he is working, driving a tank. He would be annoyed if I said

that. In the last six months, the British presence in Helmand Province

has been reduced from 11th bases to five. A veteran of three tours in

Afghanistan, Les is well placed to judge how things have developed

groggy when we came to Afghanistan, on Operation Herrick, it was very

much about going out to take the fight to them. Going back to some of

the same areas, you Seem to be doing much better now. Woody and Les will

be out for 16 days on their latest expedition out of the base. You are

covered head to toe in dust. You have got to keep the security up at

night. And then you do the whole thing again. It does where people

down. I try and keep morale up when they are out for a long time. If I

am sending a parcel out, I try to drop things in it for them. I see if

the chef can give me some nice bits and pieces to send out. It is

difficult, I would rather be out with the guys, but it is a

supporting role which has got to be done. The guys need some fresh kit,

and underneath it, there is a packet of doughnuts! It is a nice surprise.

These small comforts were never more needed than as they returned back to

base, they heard the news that one of their soldiers, who was still out

fighting, had been shot in the head. It does not even need to be

one of your mates, he is still one of ours. Everyone across the

squadron will feel it. You cannot get too roped up in it. You have got

to put your emotions to one side, and then you have got to think about

the mission and make sure that everything else can still function

out there. I came here with one plan, and that was simply to get all

my boys back safe. When you have heard that somebody has been shot,

it is a head wound, the helicopter is on its way, I think to myself, I

have failed, because my original intent was to get these guys safely

back. Miraculously, the soldier survived his head wound, but with

only 56 days to go, one of our group would also suffer at the hands of

the enemy. Yes, as Dan just said, one of the three lads does get

injured, but thankfully, not seriously. Dan Snow is here now.

Happy New Year. Nice to see you. We checked our wardrobes. Yes, apart

from Matt. Now, Christmas just gone was the last Christmas for some of

the British combat troops, but some are staying out there in different

roles, is that right? Yes, this time last year, there were about 9000

combat troops. Now, it is about 5000. By this time next year, there

should not be any combat guys left, it is going to be mainly a training

role. What about other foreign troops? The Canadians and

Australians have left, the Germans are leaving this year, like the

Brits, hopefully, and the Americans are going to stay, because for the

moment, they have not negotiated their exit strategy. David Cameron

said that we have achieved what we set out to do, but what exactly have

we accomplished in the last 12 years? We went in initially to make

sure that Al-Qaeda did not take over Afghanistan. So, they were kicked

out. Then we wanted to try to make life better for the Afghans, and

that has been a mixed picture. There has been better security in some

parts, but not in others. One thing which is interesting is that where

we went in, there were only about 1 million kids in school. It is now

more than 8 million. About 40% of those are girls. The figure of girls

in school has gone up by seven times, which is extraordinary. We

saw that in that film, but as Sean said, they are still being shot at,

and elections are coming up. Yes, the elections, in April, will be

very difficult. The Chief of Defence Staff, who has just left, is very

worried about security. He says the elections could see a real upsurge

in fighting, and that it is not a done deal. It could still kicked

off. Absolutely. Now, there may not be many advantages to these long,

dark nights, but this week, astronomers are out in force hoping

to change your lives by shedding new light on the night sky, in

Stargazing Live. Tonight, they are planning a world first, and it is

all happening in Norway. We have come to Tromso, on the hunt for the

northern lights, the aurora borealis, which takes place high up

in our atmosphere. The best place to see it is close to the magnetic

north pole. We are 200 miles inside the Arctic Circle here. And the sun

is in a very active part of its 11 year cycle, so we have got a good

chance of seeing them. Normally the footage you see of the aurora

borealis on television is obtained from time-lapse photography. But

tonight, on Stargazing Live, we are attempting a world first, we are

going to try and filmed them live from this specially kitted out

aircraft. We are going to try to give you a little sneak peek of the

lights later on. Wish us luck! That should be in about half an hour, if

it happens! It would be great if we can see them. Recently, there was a

meteor storm, I think it was in November, and we stood on the patio,

me and Tess, and we saw the International Space Station, and

several shooting stars. I do actually own a pair of night-vision

goggles, it is amazing. How often do you wear them? Not very often, I

will be I would love to see you in your night-vision goggles. Let me

clear something up... Reason why I bought them was because my golf

balls in the back garden were being stolen, so I put them on and

discovered that they were being stolen by a fox in the night. That

sounds like a Mike Dilger film. So, do you play golf in your garden? A

little bit, yes. Have you ever seen the aurora borealis? No, I haven't.

So, you are going back on tour with your one-woman shoe -- with your

one-woman show, Honor Blackman As Herself. Apart from the obvious,

what can people expect when they come to see you? My childhood, which

is quite interesting, my first marriage, which is more interesting.

And the build-up to how I ever got into the profession, because I am

not one of those kids that thought, I want to be an actress, from the

age of six. So, what did you want to be? I don't know. Well, I do,

vaguely. I wanted to be a hairdresser. And I got elocution

lessons because my father thought, quite rightly, that you make better

progress in life, back then particularly, if you can speak well.

And then I had a wonderful teacher who introduced me to play 's,

poetry, and it was just fantastic. I didn't get much education, because I

was evacuated. You know, the emphasis then was not on your

education, it was more on keeping you happy away from home. Well, you

have had a very colourful life. How do you go about condensing...

Colourful is an interesting word! How do you go about condensing that

into a 90 minute play? Well, of course there is a lot that isn't

there. And I hope, I believe, that the most interesting stuff is there.

There are some bits, obviously, that aren't. Go on, Honor! No, no, no.

There is a reason they are not in there, she's not going to mention it

on live television. Which stories do you most enjoy telling during the

show? I like playing Marlena at the end. We understand you do a mean

impression of Marlene Dietrich. I'm not trying that hard to do an

impression of her, but she had a mean sense of humour. There was a

piece she wrote about how she entertained the troops. Can you do a

bit of the voice? Yes. Let's think. My role is entertainer of the

troops. It was the best I ever had. I loved the Army. Brilliant.

We have peaked too early. You definitely have to come and test the

night-vision goggles! The best line is, when AGI looked at me, it wasn't

hard to read his mind. Vernon is a mess next to you. It's quite an

interesting concept, you sit down with a director and he kind of talks

you through, it is a conversation as you go. You reveal that there is a

practical reason why you ended up wearing that catsuit in The

Avengers? Everybody thinks it was a catsuit, it was two separate pieces.

Because you cannot do judo in something, you would be split up the

middle, if you know what I mean, with some of the things that I did.

There is a lot of tittering going on. Ignore them over there! I think

it was about the third episode, I split my trousers with my backside

to the camera. They said, this can't happen again! There was a great

discussion about tougher material. We finished up with letter, solely

for that reason, not because it was a sexy or anything. And it became

such an iconic leather catsuit? I didn't know. It became iconic, you

wearing it? Yes, but it was not a catsuit, it was two pieces. Thanks

for clearing that one up. All week we have been asking for your family

photos to make up our One Show picture mosaic. We are going to

decorate our new home with it. Congratulations to the Craig family,

you have become a freckle on Alex's cheek. That went on to your

forehead, I think. The Kavanagh family, you are now... Let's find

out before you mention it... A freckle on your cheek! That went

well, didn't it and veg? No, I'm not very good at

it. I don't eat a lot of puddings. I don't eat a lot of chocolate. I'm

sensible. But I do Pilates. Because I have the most wonderful teacher at

the moment. Well, for ever, I hope. I have a scoliosis, a curvature of

the spine. Richard III and I have something in common. He is trying to

straighten me out. It's fascinating that I am winning to a certain

extent. He is determined I will be upright, always. The Alexander

technique is another good one. We could go on about this for hours.

Pilates is brilliant, but you need your fruit and veg as well.

Buy British. Well, in an ideal world, we would. But the choice of

what we buy can be restricted by what we see on the supermarket

shelves. The Environment Secretary Owen Paterson and the National

farmers union are calling on others to buy more seasonal, British fresh

fruit and veg and shown on imported produce. How much on the shelves is

actually British? Let's take a look. This is UK, the baby parsnips are

Kenya. Guatemala. We have Gambia, Thailand, India. The roof. -- Peru.

And a little bit of the UK, Lincolnshire, in between. The

produce here is predominantly imported. Why is it that in the UK

we import so much food? We actually buy British wherever we can. In

fact, customers absolutely love British. There are times when we are

at the mercy of the weather, there might be a good harvest one year and

not another. When customers come in, they want to buy what they want,

when they want. If people want to buy British, what should they look

out for? They should look for the signs in the store and the flag on

the packaging. When the produce is loose, we have the label here. Is it

that it is a lot cheaper to buy fruit and veg from poorer countries

than invest in the UK? It is about provenance, knowing where your food

comes from and giving customers what they want. We buy British whenever

we can. Is it in your interests to buy British? Not necessarily, I go

for whatever I am going for, usually based on price. Would you be

influenced by the union Jack? I would be, I am going to get some

apples and they definitely have to be British. They are grown here,

they are seasonal and much better for you. These are from the UK as

well? British Brown onions. What a patriotic shopper you are. Two bits

broccoli, one from Spain, from the UK, it doesn't matter which, it goes

on price? They both look good, I would go on price. How would you

decide? Size, value for money. Do we have a duty to support British

produce, or is it just value for money? You are making me feel bad

now! Peter Kendall is President of the National Farmers Union. So, what

is the Environment Secretary saying? He is saying what crops are grown in

the UK, and where we are falling short. When we have vegetables like

cauliflowers, peas or beans, we are only growing about 76% of what we

can grow here that is being consumed. We think it is a great

opportunity for British farmers to produce more because, when we survey

consumers, they say they want to buy more British. Supermarkets might say

they just get what is cheap, if people really want stuff from UK

farms, they will go to farmers markets? Surely that fills the gap?

That is great, but we know that most consumers live dizzy lives. Farmers

markets are tremendous, a great connection with the community, but

it is a small percentage of sales. Joe came straight from the shops to

The One Show Sauber. Is the problem that our tastes have become so

exotic? Tastes are always changing, they always have been. If you go

back to 1600s, French cuisine introduced us to capers and anchovy

is, the first banana sale was 1633, that is one for the pub quiz. Going

forwards, our exotic fruit tastes, we used to like mangoes, pineapples

and Kiwis. They have declined by 76%. Something else has been

selling, it has doubled sales. Anyone know? Persimmon or Sharon

fruit. It is funny how tastes change. I don't think I've ever

tasted it. You were watching with great interest, because you are a

key in grocery shop? You look at what you are eating and the

nutritional value. I think all of the cooking shows on television do

not mention nutritional value of food, they say it tastes great, the

most successful cooking show on television is Great British Bake

Off, all sugar and cream. Most shows don't say there is so much protein,

some in this meal. It is seasonal, that is the key. The agricultural

Minister's announcement, it is good news for British fruit growers, but

they need support. Let's have a look at how much of what we consume is

produced here. Unfortunately, the amount of it that is British has

been going down. Some notable ones, the cucumber, whacking 2000, 50 5%

of the cucumbers we ate were British. Now it is only 30%. We used

to eat 62% of spring onions that were British, now it is only 22%. We

eat millions of tomatoes and 29% used to be British. It is only 17%

now. We get them from all over the world. Tomatoes, Spain. Cucumbers,

it is places like Israel. The key is, it is awareness. People might go

to the shops after watching this with a different frame of mind. And

the labels are clear? If you look for it, it is labelled. But if you

go online, it is not as clear. That is something supermarkets can do.

The success of Vernon's show Splash is not the first time the British

public have been gripped by the jeopardy of high diving.

Long before the days of colour television, the sport of diving was

amazing crowds of people. In the 1950s, if he wanted to watch brave

people tackling the high boards, you have to head to the seaside. Back in

1946, a police officer called George Baines helped to pioneer a new type

of entertainment. My father was very ambitious. When he started, the late

40s, there was very little entertainment. Britain was in the

doldrums, wasn't it? The holiday-makers came along in their

droves on trains, the to the seaside resorts.

What makes diving amazing to watch is the element of danger. George

hoped that danger, mixed with comedy, would be a crowd Apollo. He

liked to try new things. This was the idea. We are going to tour

around the country and do a diving show. He put it to my mother, you

can be the compere. They were in love, I suppose. But George's wife

did not realise how much she would end up trusting him. It was a

back-to-back dive. A ten metre high platform. My mother was terrified.

She was not a diver. She was a beauty. My dad would pick her up and

hold her feet here. He would dive headfirst and she would cling around

his waist. They would stay together when they entered the water. They

should really have split, because it is safer, just to split slightly.

But she never dared let go of him. As the show 's got to get, George

Baines was always on the lookout for talent and spotted former Olympian

and Rory Walsh, who represented great written in the 1956 Olympics

in Melbourne. He didn't have any old dive, used to get the best that

there was at the time. He used to go up on scooters and stuff like that.

You were queueing up at Bournemouth outside, because it was a really

good show. It only cost a couple of bob to go in. The one that he will

never forget what his first of the ten metre board. When you were at

school, 4015, people used to say, somebody went off the ten metre

board last night. You know? I went up and the attendant blows a

whistle. Come on! I looked down and I thought, God. And you can see the

bottom of the pool. It makes it look higher, you know? I lifted up like

that and just rolled over. I went... And I could hear the wind. I

hit the water, my arms were down here. I came up and went, yes! I

couldn't wait to go to school, I've been off the ten metre board! Aqua

shows enjoyed success until the early 80s. As package holidays took

off, the shows began to die out. That was until the TV show Splash

came along. I wish my father was here, he would absolutely love this.

That is what he would have said. Yes, bring it back! Diving from

masts, that is the next one. We are hearing that we think Liz Bonnin may

have found the northern lights. So we could eat in with a chance of

before we get stuck into our Splash! Chat, let's have a look at a dive

which has been sent in from a viewer. The last time you were on,

Vernon, you said you were going to have a crack at the ten metre board.

What happened to that? Well, the ten metre board is still there. I will

be honest with you, just asked me, have you tried it? I have been

taking lessons in a dry it, which is basically a pool full of foam, about

seven metres high. It is really difficult, it is very scary. Will

you do it before the end of this series? There is talk. Only taught

at the moment. A yes or they might have to change the terms of the

contract, but you never know! This one is basically just a backward

somersault, but it is quite something. Here we go. That was the

best one he had done all day. So, he has already been touted as a

potential winner, but who have you got coming up? Well, we have got

Keith Duffy from Boyzone. He is doing lots of triathlons, so he is

fit as a fiddle. Austin Healey, he is doing a double at the moment, but

he is not landing it. So there is some doubt as to whether he will

complete that. But also, we have got a former gymnast she is quite good

as well. As well as the height, it is that mental thing of what it is

going to do to you if you get it wrong, and you'll end on your back.

Stings unbelievably. We saw the bruises on Gemma Collins. Brace

yourself for this. Look at that. Has there been quite a few injuries

in training? We have had lots. Mainly tendons in the ankles, and

the calf muscle, from the impact. If you do not enter the water right.

Shoulders as well. The surface tension is really high. Doublet,

that is one of the main thing is, overcoming the fear of diving.

Because you are so high, if you get it wrong, it is going to hurt. It is

such an alien concept, to launch yourself off a platform. It really

is, but it is such we have celebrities in very little clothing.

To get over wearing a swimsuit on telly is something in itself, isn't

it? Exactly. That is why I was so happy for Gemma when she did it. And

she was brilliant, she presented so well on top but you ditched the

shots. I I get grief for wearing them, and grief for not wearing

them. Shorts or trousers for Vernon, for Splash!? The shortest possible!

It is a trade, night-vision goggles for shorts. We have got a sneaky

peek. This is from this week. Toyota really impressed me. She is one of

the oldest contestants in the group, and one of the better ones. I am so

excited about having Tom as my mentor. I am old enough to be his

grandmother, and I am thinking, phwor! But was an exclusive for me,

she went backwards of a springboard, which is quite difficult, because it

throws you up into the. Tom is great, though, isn't he? He is, he

nurtures all of the contestants, he brings them into his world. He has

been doing it since he was a little boy. It is difficult for outsiders

to step into that world, but Tom makes it so easy. Lets see another

video this is a four-year-old who performed her first dive while on

holiday in South Africa this Christmas. Here she goes. I enjoyed

dad doing the Tom Daley in the background. You can see more Splash!

This Saturday evening on ITV. Every night this week we have had 14 of

everything. Last night, composer Richard Mainwaring was conducting 40

pianists, and tonight, he is doing a song with 14 Elvii. Vernon, we were

hoping you would be Elvis number 14. What do you reckon? I will give it a

go. I do not know if you want this, but this is some kind of plaster of

Paris head. We know you are into this. Every Elvis fan should have an

Alvis bust. We know you are into it because we have seen you rehearsing.

Have a look. # I am making up the words! I'm in

love, I am all Shook up... There we are! Are you going to do it? I will

do it! Andy Vernon, we have got Richard over there at the end, who

will look after you. There he is. And it has been a busy week for

Richard, because he has also given The One Show theme a bit of a lift.

The soothing sound of musak. You will have heard it in shopping

centres, shopping centres, maybe even your headdresses. It was played

in the lifts of early skyscrapers to suit the nerves of those inside.

When you think of musak, you may think of a guitar, or a jazz flute,

but it is not a genre, it is a brand, and it has been around for

the best part of a century. Invented in New York in 1922, a concept of

transporting, or piping music, down electrical wires, was at the time

revolutionaries. The primary aim of musak is to create a mood but not to

become a distraction. So, the company modified popular songs to

create unobtrusive and inoffensive instrumental. By the 1960s, piped

music had moved into shopping centres, restaurants and offices. It

is even rumoured to be played in the White House, and even on the Apollo

11 should. Following the golden years of the 1950s and 1960s, musak

began to move out of favour. By the 1980s, it was deemed unfashionable,

but William orbit, famous producer, takes a different view. The

consensus now is, it is whereas, I do not know about you, but I feel

there is a lot of skill in it. They would have been the best musicians,

they would have been recorded and arranged to perfection. I think

there is great skill in turning a popular yes, if you think about it,

the tune of a pop song is carried by the charismatic artist. It has to be

good for them to turn it into a load of strings playing it. How has it

influenced your music? Definitely, arrangements, with the vibraphone

and flutes and things like that. Not being able to hide things. Actually,

you have got all of these buried melodies and structure. You want it

to work on people without them knowing it. I think that is

something about musak. There is a wonderful sound to it, and it cannot

be replicated, I do not think. These days, it is hard to find music in

lifts, but our restaurants and shops have not fallen silent. Today,

companies provide playlists of original artists, tailored for each

individual business. Why is music important, why not have silence?

Music unifies everything which is going on within the store.

Everything from the lighting to the displays, to the clothing

collections. If music were taken away from that environment, it would

be soulless. I want to bring back elevator music, and where better to

do it than the Grosvenor Hotel, the first-ever building in London to

have a lift, back in 1861? I have adopted some modern-day classics,

with quintessential bossa nova arrangements. I have decided on

Poker-faced by Lady Gaga, a song by Jay Z and Alicia Keys, and, to

finish, a musak take on The One Show theme. They might not know it, but

it will hopefully be just what the Hotel guests are looking for. Oh, I

goodness! Good morning, how are you? Are you a fan of lift music? Do

you like recorded versions or live versions? I like the live versions

best. You like a bit of music in the lift? I love it. Good morning. That

is good, that's nice. Sixth floor, please. Good morning, come on in.

You will never forget this lift ride, will you? Nice to so, have a

listen to the next time you are in a shop, the music you are hearing

might not have been chosen at random, it might have been chosen

especially for you. I quite like that music. We should

have that as our theme June! If we have got a very stressful show, just

play that. Anyway, we have got One Show lift enthusiasts Justin with us

now. Not just one left, several in the City of London, here in

Britain, the largest single multicar lift in the world. This is how it

works. You have got four shafts, with a total of eight lifts. The

idea is that what you do, it is like having an express lift. It will take

you from the first floor, up to the 49th floor. This is a way of making

the same lift, bringing more capacity. You could have a race as

well. That is me being childish. Let's move on. The tallest holding

in the world. That was about increasing the capacity. This is the

biggest building in the world, this has the largest lift shaft in the

world, at 504 metres. And also, a very fast lift, 32mph. This is it,

it is a double story left, up to 14 people in there. Going up, that is

pretty quick. How long have you loved lifts, just in? When you start

thinking about it, the mind boggles. The length of these cables, there

must be a limit. You would think so, but technology has addressed that

problem. Saudi Arabia is now looking to build the Kingdom Tower, which

will be more than one kilometre high. The challenge was, how to get

a lift in there. It was the heavy steel cables which made it difficult

so instead they have put in carbon fibre cables, which are lighter. And

that allows them to lift it all the way up to the top. So much

knowledge. How interesting is this? This is in Taiwan are the fastest

lift in the world, in the Taipaei 101 Tower. 37mph. It is so fast,

they have actually got pressurised air. How long to get from the bottom

to the top? How long do you think? Fast. 37 seconds. I am a lift

enthusiast as well, Justin! Let me bring you onto another British

first. This is Britain's first incline lift. It is next to an

escalator, but it is actually a lift. And there you are, the first

of its kind, giving step three access to a station. Britain's first

incline lift. Are you going to be there on the opening day? I will be

there. I will be the first in line. The bad news is, we are on the

ground floor here, so no lifts! In our new building, the lifts can

take a while. Andy has taken a shorter way down and is going to be

joining us for a chat. How is he going to get down? Early on we met

three soldiers on their final tour of Afghanistan. Inevitably for the

families of Les, Gav and Sean, having a loved one on the front line

comes with a fear they might get injured. In one case, that became a

reality. With only a few weeks of their tour

at go, thoughts of Badger Squadron are turning to home. Staff Sergeant

Gav, on his second tour in Helmand province, has a wife and two

daughters waiting for him. We saw some rabbits! With a baby rabbits?

This is the first two I have done with children. Before, I just have

my wife. It was straightforward. Missing the kids growing up, it is a

different kettle of fish. One of them is two and a half. I managed to

talk to them quite regularly on the internet. My youngest one has

developed the most, she has started talking. When you come out to

something like this, your family is always at the front of your mind.

When you have been given a task to do, you are thinking about the guys

that you are stood next to. They are the people you need to work with to

be able to get home to your family. For Emma, running a cafe for Army

families is part of a busy life that makes Gav's absence easier to

manage. I don't have time to be upset and crying. It's not fair on

the children. I try to keep it normal for them, it feels normal to

me, I have a job, I've got to look after the children, you've got to

get on with life and know that he will come home. Woody has been away

from his wife and family before, but never to Afghanistan. My boy has

turned sex and he is a real warrior. Whenever I -- he has just turned six

and he is a real worrier. He asks if I've seen any bad guys, and I tell

him no. We've just got to make it a better place for the children to

live in. But I don't think of it that way, because I think it would

drive you mad. The two wives are good friends, providing support for

each other at home. The same can be said of the soldiers at Camp

Bastion. You learn to read each other. It's really helpful. It's a

really good relationship. We all give each other the space as well.

It can be pretty cramped at times. But we do the best, we might have a

movie night, when we get together and watch a film, whatever it might

be. Whatever distractions the soldiers make for themselves, there

is no replacement for home. For the younger members of the squadron and

those without children, this is just as true. My fiance is waiting for

me. My two dogs. I've got two Jack Russells, Bobby and Dolly. They are

brother and sister. I don't know what it is with them. I can be in

the foulest mood, upset as anything, and then Bobby will come in and

within two seconds I've got a smile on my face. I do miss them. But

Les's return home would come sooner than the others. On another

mission, while exposed in the gun turret of his vehicle, disaster

struck. I was the third vehicle in the convoy. The others had been over

it first. Unfortunately, I was the one that hit it. As I went up, I

cracked my legs off the top of the territory. As I came down, the shock

wave was coming up and it met on my knee. He suffered seriously dumb and

damage and his tour was over. He rang me, which was quite good,

because you know he is all right then. It is when other people renew

that you are really worried. When the bank goes off, it happens so

quickly, but for me it slowed down. You do that silent nod at each

other. You are grateful that everybody is all right.

Unfortunately, the doctors need to do rehab and physio, so they send

you back to the UK. It's mixed emotions. On the plane you start to

think, I'm out of there. Nothing can happen to me now, I'm going back

home. Wasn't it awful, seeing the

explosion going off? Wonderful films. On Friday we will be joined

by some of the soldiers and their families in the studio.

Earlier on, Stargazing Live's Liz Bonnin unveiled a challenge to

correct the aurora borealis from the air. Can it be done? We can join her

from Tromso in Norway. You are hoping for the seat belt lights to

go out and the Northern lights to come out? How is it going? Pretty

well so far. We are cruising at 28,000 feet, getting ready for a

night of live Northern Lights hunting. We are well above the light

pollution that can obscure our view on the ground. If you look at the

plane, it is full of equipment. We are double-checking our specialist

lowlights cameras, and our transmission technology, all of that

which will allow us to transmit pictures live, in real-time. If you

look outside of the little windows, take a look at this. It's quite

special, the unmistakable green hue of the aurora borealis. They are

extremely unpredictable, they appear and disappear within seconds. Who

knows what is going to happen in the next few hours. Join us at eight

o'clock on Stargazing Live. We are going to do our utmost to bring you

the best possible view of the Northern Lights and bring them live

into your living rooms. Thanks ever so much. You can see

Stargazing Live on BBC Two straight after us at eight o'clock. Before

that, we have got our very own dazzling display, 14 Elvii

performing a medley of Elvis hits. Hurry up! Look at this, at the back.

Keep going. They have left the building.

Joining us outside is The One Show daredevil reporter Andy Torbett. We

did ask him to drop in for a chat. There he is, waving now. We will put

your film on and then have a chat. Cool!

Limestone is among the most romantic of all rock types in Britain. It is

often carved into sculptural, spectacular shapes by the wind and

weather. But, most of all, by water. The steep sided wooded valley in

Dovedale, Staffordshire, contains some of the best examples. Stacks

and pinnacles coming up from the Valley floor with island rock, the

most famous, Ilam Rock. It is right out over the river, dramatic and

dangerous, exactly the sort of challenge that climbers love. I'm

going to the top. These pinnacles are among the most unusual rock

formations in the country. The client will test me. I am a decent

climber, but the porous and unstable limestone can catch you out. It is a

soft rock, soluble in water. The stacks are all that is left after

millions of years of erosion has taken its toll on what was once a

massive slab. How is that still standing? Basically, it is luck. The

river has cut down the side, giving a snapshot in time. Eventually, it

will wear away further and it might just topple entirely. Professional

climber Katie Whitaker is planning the route. She will summit first and

lower the safety rope that will protect me if I fall. She knows Ilam

Rock and its reputation well. That could be a tricky bit, where the

tree is, it doesn't look like there are many features to hold onto.

Straight up the corner, through the overhang at the top. It might be a

little bit loose. It looks loose at the top. It is good that it gets

steep, just when you are tired at the end? Yes, when you're arms are

tired. Lactic acid creates the burning sensation, a familiar

feeling to athletes. It robs your strength. Quite loose. Bits falling

off? Yes. Good news, what you want to hear(!) As Katie reaches the

hardest part, it becomes obvious that this is going to be a tough

climb. This is scary. You get to the last bit, when your arms are tired,

it goes from vertical to this overhang and it becomes so much

harder to hang on. It is pretty small appear. I think it has been

more of a struggle than I expected. I can see the rock here is so

loose, the vegetation is breaking it up and it is quite wet. You know how

soft and loose this stuff is when you get trees growing out of it.

Halfway up, I make a bad decision. Katie went left, I go right. Whoa.

That is pretty loose. Well, that big flake of rock just there is

basically entirely loose. I pulled on it and the whole thing shifted,

like I could jump off it, I was going to pull it down on my face. It

doesn't matter how good a climate you are, if the holes you are

hanging off crumble underneath you, you are only going to go one way.

Heart in my mouth moment, there. Wright, a little moment to recover

and we will carry on and finish that off. That was scary! Now for the

last critical section, which is going to be made more difficult as

my hands are cold. The rock is freezing. Freezing fingers, here.

Lots of lactic acid in my hands. I'm trying to hang on. Really tired

muscles. How is it going? Not so well. Man, this is hard.

That was hard work. I was just in agony, all of the way up. That was

incredibly hard, much more so than I thought it would be. But it was

worth it to get here and stand here. I saw a photograph of Katie stood

here and I wanted one of my own. This is it, top of the world.

Super scary stuff. Even as scary is burning in his Elvis costume.

Actually, you look good. Thank you very much. Where is your wake? I

feel naked without it. We have a helper on top of the building. Come

on, Andy. Good lad. He is like James Bond. I hope the rope is long

enough. Here he is, come on, everybody. Let's get him there. Good

lad, and the! And he and clips himself. Look what he has got on

board. Thank you, Andy. Put that on and join the boys. Perfect. A bit

wonky. Good luck. That was a way to make an entrance? Good fun. Enjoyed

that climbing film, what else can we look forward to? Caving, more diving

stuff, more wrecks we have found in the channel, ice diving when winter

arrives, finally. Hopefully I will convince the powers that be that we

can do some skydiving. We will put a word in for you. Get your kit sorted

out and come over here. A big thank you to our guests tonight, Honor

Blackman and Vernon Kay. You can see Vernon on Splash at 7pm on ITV.

Honor's to -- tour finishes on the 12th of May in Newcastle underline.

All week we are celebrating 2014. On Monday, we had 14 Japanese drums.

So good, as well. Tomorrow we are joined by the cast of Strictly Come

Dancing. 14 of them will be doing a group dance. Tonight we have 14

Elvii. Kicking them off is the European Elvis champion, Johnny Lee

Memphis. Look out for Vernon. Are you ready? Take it away!

# Once threw a party in the county jail

# The prisoners began to wail # That's all right, if that's OK

with Euler Ed ain't nothing but a hound dog, crying all the time.

# I can't help falling in Love with you

# Viva Las Vegas! # Viva Las Vegas!

# Since my baby left me, I found a new place to do well, at heartbreak

hotel # Return to Sender, address unknown

# Always on my mind # You are always on my mind

# Go, Capco # Are you Lonesome tonight? Do you

miss me tonight? # It's now or never, come hold me

tight # Kiss me

# We're caught in a trap. # I love you too much baby

# Never let me go! # I'm all shook up

# Uh-huh, uh-huh I'm all shook up! # Uh-huh, uh-huh I'm all shook up! #