:00:08. > :00:13.Tonight at ten, America attacks Islamist millants in Iraq, launching
:00:14. > :00:16.air strikes in the north of the country.
:00:17. > :00:20.This is thought to be the moment American warplanes began their
:00:21. > :00:25.assaults. President Obama said it was time to act. When we have the
:00:26. > :00:31.unique capabilities to help avert a massacre, then I believe the United
:00:32. > :00:34.States cannot turn a blind eye. We can act, carefully and
:00:35. > :00:39.responsibility to prevent a potential act of genocide. These are
:00:40. > :00:42.the first pictures, as aid is finally delivered to a community
:00:43. > :00:46.trapped by the fighting. Britain says it will assist in air drops. We
:00:47. > :00:53.will be looking at what the US action means for Iraq. Also tonight,
:00:54. > :00:56.fighting resumes in Gaza after a three-day ceasefire ends. Five
:00:57. > :01:01.people are killed, including a ten-year-old boy.
:01:02. > :01:07.The World Health Organisation declares the Ebola outbreak in West
:01:08. > :01:14.Africa an international emergency. How much is too much for breast
:01:15. > :01:18.cancer treatment? The NHS says no to a ?90,000 drug. And sun, sea and
:01:19. > :01:22.sanctions - why more parents than ever are being fined for taking
:01:23. > :01:25.their children out of school to go on holiday.
:01:26. > :01:31.On London - Bromley's waste mountain. How hundreds of thousands
:01:32. > :01:34.of pounds have been spent fighting fires there. And how the turmoil in
:01:35. > :01:55.the Middle East is being reflected on the streets of London.
:01:56. > :02:04.A very good evening. Within hours of President Obama authorising air
:02:05. > :02:08.strikes in Iraq, US aircraft have launched several targeted attacks in
:02:09. > :02:15.the north of the country. It comes almost three years after America
:02:16. > :02:20.withdraw troops. The irstrikes were aimed at fighters from Isis, who
:02:21. > :02:24.control large areas. Earlier this week, the Islamists took Qaraqosh,
:02:25. > :02:29.Iraq's biggest Christian town. Meanwhile, tens of thousands of
:02:30. > :02:36.people from the minority Yazidi sect remain surrounded and of trapped on
:02:37. > :02:44.mount sin Sinjar, without food or water. Forces will assist.
:02:45. > :02:48.In a moment, we will get the latest from Washington. First, here is our
:02:49. > :02:53.diplomatic correspondent James Robbins.
:02:54. > :02:59.For months, the extremists of Isis now calling themselves simply
:03:00. > :03:03.Islamic State have been pumping out video as they take more and more of
:03:04. > :03:08.Iraq, threatening to breakup of the country. Now, for the first time,
:03:09. > :03:13.the Islamists have come under direct American attack. The first attack
:03:14. > :03:19.was launched from an aircraft carrier in the Persian Gulf. Two
:03:20. > :03:23.F/A-18s drop laser-guided bombs. These are thought to be pictures of
:03:24. > :03:27.that American strike carried out because the city of Irbil is under
:03:28. > :03:33.threat. Washington says more fighter jets and drones were used on attacks
:03:34. > :03:39.on mortar positions and an Islamist convoy. To stop the events on Irbil,
:03:40. > :03:42.I have directed our military to take targeted strikes against target
:03:43. > :03:47.convoys should they move towards the city.
:03:48. > :03:51.But Washington is also committed to helping religious minorities facing
:03:52. > :03:56.massacre by the Islamists. These pictures of the Yazidi people,
:03:57. > :03:59.fleeing for their lives on to a barren mountain without food or
:04:00. > :04:02.water shocked the world. And today, speaking from the mountain, one of
:04:03. > :04:08.their leaders stressed their vulnerability.
:04:09. > :04:12.TRANSLATION: The clash is now very close to where I stand. Now there
:04:13. > :04:15.are clashes among the final line of resistance. They will kill all of us
:04:16. > :04:21.and we don't think we have enough time. Now, the first supplies have
:04:22. > :04:26.reached some of the Yazidi. Iraqi authorities say these pictures,
:04:27. > :04:31.although impossible to verify, show a helicopter delivering aid. The
:04:32. > :04:35.Yazidi religion is older than Christianity or Islam but is enough
:04:36. > :04:40.to make them targets of the extremists who overran their town.
:04:41. > :04:44.When we face a situation like we do on that mountain, with innocent
:04:45. > :04:48.people facing the prospect of violence on a horrific scale and we
:04:49. > :04:53.have a mandate to help, in this case a request from the Iraqi Government
:04:54. > :04:56.and when we have the of capabilities to help avert a massacre then I
:04:57. > :05:00.believe the United States cannot turn a blind eye. Facing this
:05:01. > :05:03.crisis, let's look at the plight of the Yazidi people, forced to flee
:05:04. > :05:08.their homes and seek refuge here, high up on the barren slopes of the
:05:09. > :05:14.mountains above Sinjar. As this map shows, they took what is really the
:05:15. > :05:17.only road up the mountain. We have reports some essential supplies,
:05:18. > :05:22.including food and water, have been delivered from the air, in an effort
:05:23. > :05:25.to keep them alive. What if the extremists try to pursue them up the
:05:26. > :05:29.mountain? The hope must be that they could be spotted
:05:30. > :05:32.mountain? The hope must be that they American strike aircraft. Further
:05:33. > :05:38.east, the other religious minority under threat is the Christian
:05:39. > :05:45.community. Their major centre, the town of Qaraqosh, has fallen. Among
:05:46. > :05:50.those those who did escape, some have reached Irbil. Some have found
:05:51. > :05:57.refuge in this church, but worry about relatives they have lost
:05:58. > :06:01.contact with. In Brussels some of the extended family of the Yazidi
:06:02. > :06:06.appealed for action to end what they call a genocide. In London, an
:06:07. > :06:09.emergency meeting of ministers authorised British military
:06:10. > :06:15.involvement in missions to drop aid, but not in any sort of combat
:06:16. > :06:18.mission. Our focus is an assisting that humanitarian mission and using
:06:19. > :06:22.our military in support of the Americans, in terms of refuelling
:06:23. > :06:28.and surveillance, to underpin their mission and to add to it, with food
:06:29. > :06:33.drops of our own. From behind the soundproof glass at the Oval, a
:06:34. > :06:37.glimpse of President Obama briefing allies. Amid reports that hundreds
:06:38. > :06:42.of Yazidi women may have been captured by the Islamists, who pose
:06:43. > :06:52.an increasing threat not just to Iraq but to the entire region. Let's
:06:53. > :06:57.speak to our correspondent, David Willis, who is at the White House.
:06:58. > :07:02.How far will America go to stop the advance of the Islamic State? A
:07:03. > :07:07.prolonged campaign of military intervention is not on the casheds
:07:08. > :07:11.here. That said, the President has said it will be determined by events
:07:12. > :07:17.on the ground. And those events are not very easy to predict. Privately
:07:18. > :07:21.officials here say they are concerned about how well trained and
:07:22. > :07:24.how well armed these Islamist fighters are. There are those on the
:07:25. > :07:29.right who would like to see more. They would like to see troops on the
:07:30. > :07:33.ground at the very least. The President has said he's not in
:07:34. > :07:36.favour of that. Given the current situation, there is every chance of
:07:37. > :07:45.mission-creep, if these air strikes do not pay off. Thank you very much.
:07:46. > :07:49.Israel has resumed air strikes in Gaza after Palestinian militants
:07:50. > :07:53.fired rockets shortly before the end of a 72-hour ceasefire. Palestinian
:07:54. > :07:57.officials said five people were killed, including a ten-year-old
:07:58. > :08:01.boy. Earlier, Israeli Government officials pulled out of talks in
:08:02. > :08:06.Cairo, stressing they would not negotiate under fire. But there are
:08:07. > :08:10.signs that discussions between Egyptian officials and Palestinian
:08:11. > :08:13.representatives are continuing. Our Middle East correspondent, Orla
:08:14. > :08:19.Guerin, has spent the day in Gaza City. This report contains images
:08:20. > :08:26.you may find distressing. The Gaza skyline looks like this
:08:27. > :08:32.again. Israeli air strikes deep in civilian areas. Warfare filling the
:08:33. > :08:40.horizon, after a three-day truce. This was filmed by Finnish TV.
:08:41. > :08:46.They weren't the only ones fleeing an Israeli strike. It was
:08:47. > :08:51.Palestinian militants who fired first. Here some of their rockets
:08:52. > :08:57.were intercepted. Dozens more got through, causing no loss of life in
:08:58. > :09:03.Israel. But in Gaza, this man was coming to
:09:04. > :09:07.say goodbye to his son. Ten-year-old Ibrahim was being
:09:08. > :09:15.prepared for burial. His father last saw him at breakfast, before the boy
:09:16. > :09:24.left early for Friday prayers. But by prayer time Ibrahim was dead
:09:25. > :09:37.and people gathered to pray for him. His father wants one last kiss.
:09:38. > :09:42."My beloved son. Talk to me," he says.
:09:43. > :09:48.A huge crowd has gathered here now to bury Ibrahim. There is tremendous
:09:49. > :09:52.grief and anger at the killing of another child. This boy lost his
:09:53. > :09:57.life just hours after the ceasefire came to an end. Locals tell us he
:09:58. > :10:01.was out in the street playing when Israel attacked.
:10:02. > :10:04.Ibrahim was the first to die today. In front of his local mosque.
:10:05. > :10:06.In front of his His death was followed by others.
:10:07. > :10:11.One of them a fighter. His death was followed by others.
:10:12. > :10:15.One of Israel says it will keep targeting terror sites across Gaza.
:10:16. > :10:21.One more father is now pledging support for the militants.
:10:22. > :10:30.On this day, when my son was killed, I ask God to strengthen the
:10:31. > :10:35.resistance. We are proud of them. Why should we stop firing rockets
:10:36. > :10:39.when thousands of our people have been killed?
:10:40. > :10:48.As another child went to his grave in Gaza, attempts to reach a lasting
:10:49. > :10:52.truce stalled in Cairo. Hamas is demanding that Israel lift its
:10:53. > :11:02.punishing siege, but many here believe that will only be achieved
:11:03. > :11:05.by fighting and dying. Well our chief international
:11:06. > :11:09.correspondent, Lyse Doucet, joins us from Jerusalem. We saw the violence
:11:10. > :11:13.on the ground. What hope is there for a new ceasefire? Yes, I have
:11:14. > :11:17.lens on the ground increasing this evening -- violence on the ground
:11:18. > :11:22.increasing this evening. There are a few more positive notes. In the last
:11:23. > :11:27.few hours, US officials have said they hope this temporary truce can
:11:28. > :11:33.be resumed. Egyptian mediators are calling both sides back to the
:11:34. > :11:38.table. They are looking at issues such as how much can they ease the
:11:39. > :11:44.punishing blockade of Gaza, while ensuring security needs. How many
:11:45. > :11:48.prisoners can be reached? To give Hamas the credit it feels it needs
:11:49. > :11:53.in the eyes of Gazans who have suffered in this last war. Both
:11:54. > :11:57.sides need to emerge with a sense that this was a war worth fighting,
:11:58. > :11:59.whatever the cost. For the moment, it is only the cost that continues
:12:00. > :12:11.to rise. A drug that can extend the lives
:12:12. > :12:14.of some women with an advanced form of breast cancer has been rejected
:12:15. > :12:16.for use on the NHS in England, because it's too expensive.
:12:17. > :12:19.The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence says a course
:12:20. > :12:21.of Kadcyla costs ?90,000, making it "impossible"
:12:22. > :12:25.to recommend it for widespread use. Here's Hugh Pym.
:12:26. > :12:28.For Hayley, this breast cancer drug has given
:12:29. > :12:31.time she never thought she had. Under previous gruelling treatment,
:12:32. > :12:35.her hair fell out and she was told she had only months to live,
:12:36. > :12:40.but with this drug she feels more confident about the future.
:12:41. > :12:43.I could get an extra six months or a year with my children.
:12:44. > :12:49.That is priceless. You can't put a figure on to
:12:50. > :12:52.a young mum of 33 to four children. You can't put a figure
:12:53. > :12:55.on somebody's life. It's criminal.
:12:56. > :12:58.Hayley could get Kadcyla through the Cancer Drugs Fund created
:12:59. > :13:02.by the Government to provide new drugs to some patients,
:13:03. > :13:04.but which will close in 2016. The regulator NICE has decided
:13:05. > :13:08.the drug should not be universally available on the NHS budget
:13:09. > :13:13.in England. NICE usually approves drugs costing
:13:14. > :13:16.up to ?30,000, in a calculation reflecting the patient's length
:13:17. > :13:19.and quality-of-life. For cancer drugs it has a maximum
:13:20. > :13:23.of ?50,000. Kadcyla costs ?90,000 per patient
:13:24. > :13:28.and NICE has said that is too much. Cancer treatments can command
:13:29. > :13:31.a premium price in the NHS over treatments for other diseases
:13:32. > :13:36.and conditions, but even with that flexibility, the price that the
:13:37. > :13:41.manufacturer Roche wants to charge the NHS puts it well beyond anything
:13:42. > :13:44.that we could have supported. But Roche argues that
:13:45. > :13:48.the drug is prescribed in many other European health services.
:13:49. > :13:51.It says it did offer to cut something off the price.
:13:52. > :13:55.Some people will feel ?90,000 sounds a lot of money for a drug.
:13:56. > :13:59.Why can't you cut the price further? We believe the price reflects
:14:00. > :14:02.the value it brings to patients, particularly with this very
:14:03. > :14:05.important disease. I would also add that 15 years of
:14:06. > :14:09.clinical trials went into developing Kadcyla and 30 years of research
:14:10. > :14:13.went into developing the technology that makes Kadcyla so unique.
:14:14. > :14:17.More potentially exciting but probably costly new cancer drugs
:14:18. > :14:22.are coming on stream every year, including some developed here
:14:23. > :14:27.at Imperial College London. So the debate on what is affordable
:14:28. > :14:31.for the NHS will not go away. There are not many ways
:14:32. > :14:34.of avoiding the current problem. I think the pharma companies
:14:35. > :14:38.need to look at the cost of what it takes to produce a new drug.
:14:39. > :14:41.I think they need to be ready to be flexible, and be ready to link
:14:42. > :14:45.the price of their drugs to the value it creates.
:14:46. > :14:49.It is a complex picture. Universities like this, funded
:14:50. > :14:52.by the Government, can help develop lower cost drugs, but it is the big
:14:53. > :14:56.companies which have the financial clout to bring them to the market.
:14:57. > :14:59.And for that, they say, they need to set prices to cover
:15:00. > :15:06.costs and turn in a profit. Hugh Pym, BBC News.
:15:07. > :15:08.The World Health Organisation has declared the Ebola outbreak in west
:15:09. > :15:16.Africa an international emergency. More than 960 people have died from
:15:17. > :15:28.the disease this year and there have The outbreak started in Guinea, and
:15:29. > :15:32.has spread to Liberia, Sierra Leone serious and unusual, and it appealed
:15:33. > :15:39.for international help for the countries affected. We'll be hearing
:15:40. > :15:41.more in a moment from West Africa We'll be hearing more
:15:42. > :15:45.in a moment from West Africa and America, but first this report
:15:46. > :15:47.from our Fergus Walsh. How do you defend the world
:15:48. > :15:50.against Ebola? It starts with more help for
:15:51. > :15:54.West Africa. The worst affected communities lack
:15:55. > :15:59.the basics - adequate protective clothing, trained medical staff
:16:00. > :16:03.and laboratory facilities. The World Health Organization says
:16:04. > :16:07.only international support will bring the outbreak under control.
:16:08. > :16:11.This is an infectious disease which can be contained.
:16:12. > :16:13.It is not mysterious. This is something
:16:14. > :16:17.which can be stopped. This depends
:16:18. > :16:21.on identifying everybody who has an Ebola infection and making sure
:16:22. > :16:26.that they receive the right treatment, and making sure that we
:16:27. > :16:28.stop the chain of transmission. Ebola is a viral infection
:16:29. > :16:34.which originates in animals such as bats and chimpanzees.
:16:35. > :16:38.It spreads between humans through direct contact with blood
:16:39. > :16:41.and other bodily fluids. The virus has an incubation period
:16:42. > :16:45.of up to 21 days, and the death rate is alarming.
:16:46. > :16:48.More than half of those infected have died.
:16:49. > :16:51.Fortunately, Ebola is not very contagious.
:16:52. > :16:56.Pneumonia, an airborne infection, kills 3000 children each day,
:16:57. > :17:01.more than Ebola has in 40 years, as do other diseases.
:17:02. > :17:05.The numbers of people who have died so far in this epidemic or perhaps
:17:06. > :17:10.ever, from Ebola, are dwarfed by the numbers who die from tuberculosis
:17:11. > :17:13.every day, for example. So the numbers are small
:17:14. > :17:17.but the potential for an outbreak like this to go out of control and
:17:18. > :17:22.to spread, and the numbers really to ramp up, is truly frightening.
:17:23. > :17:25.The threat to countries like Britain remains low.
:17:26. > :17:28.Even if Ebola did come here via a sick air passenger,
:17:29. > :17:34.health officials are confident they could contain it using isolation
:17:35. > :17:37.facilities like these. But it's a different story
:17:38. > :17:41.in west Africa, from where Will Ross reports.
:17:42. > :17:45.In Liberia, soldiers have joined the fight
:17:46. > :17:49.against the deadly Ebola virus. There is a state of emergency and
:17:50. > :17:53.they are stopping people travelling. Desperate measures to try to
:17:54. > :17:55.prevent the spread of Ebola. The medical charity
:17:56. > :17:59.Doctors Without Borders describes the situation as catastrophic
:18:00. > :18:03.and says there is a dire need for more international support.
:18:04. > :18:07.Some hospitals have closed, with staff to scared to work.
:18:08. > :18:13.In neighbouring Sierra Leone, the spiralling number
:18:14. > :18:16.of patients is also alarming. At Lagos airport in Nigeria,
:18:17. > :18:19.they are screening passengers for symptoms.
:18:20. > :18:23.If they had been doing this last month, the infected man from Liberia
:18:24. > :18:25.might have been intercepted. He died,
:18:26. > :18:28.and health workers who treated him are now fighting for their lives.
:18:29. > :18:32.The nightmare scenario is the rapid spread of the Ebola virus
:18:33. > :18:38.in this chaotic city of 20 million people, especially as Lagos is such
:18:39. > :18:42.a busy international hub. There is not yet a cure for Ebola,
:18:43. > :18:45.but Nigeria has appealed for an experimental drug to be made
:18:46. > :18:48.available. It is being developed in San Diego,
:18:49. > :18:51.from where Alistair Leithead reports.
:18:52. > :18:56.We are looking at an image of the three-dimensional structure
:18:57. > :18:59.of the Ebola virus glyco-protein. This is how that
:19:00. > :19:03.experimental drug does it. The antibodies, shown in red,
:19:04. > :19:05.stop the virus spreading. Scientists here
:19:06. > :19:09.in San Diego have been working on a cure for years, but turning
:19:10. > :19:14.science into a serum you can give to people is a much bigger challenge.
:19:15. > :19:18.The drug was developed in the most unlikely of places, this
:19:19. > :19:22.industrial estate in San Diego. Map Biopharmaceutical,
:19:23. > :19:25.only nine employees and a camera-shy chief executive who
:19:26. > :19:30.would only tell me it could be months before they can produce
:19:31. > :19:33.the drug in large quantities. That's because they are growing
:19:34. > :19:37.the antibodies, in genetically engineered tobacco plants, and
:19:38. > :19:39.waiting to harvest the next batch. The drug works in the lab,
:19:40. > :19:44.cured monkeys, but untested in humans, is it safe?
:19:45. > :19:47.I would take it myself and I have been studying this for ten years.
:19:48. > :19:50.So I know exactly how it works, what the risks and benefits are.
:19:51. > :19:54.We have to bear in mind the alternative is Ebola virus.
:19:55. > :19:57.One of the two American medics infected and treated in Liberia
:19:58. > :20:00.walked to his isolation ward after his condition improved.
:20:01. > :20:03.But disease control scientists aren't convinced.
:20:04. > :20:07.We don't know whether that treatment is helpful, harmful,
:20:08. > :20:11.or doesn't have any impact. And we're unlikely to know from
:20:12. > :20:15.the experience of two or a handful of patients, whether it works.
:20:16. > :20:18.There is a new urgency to their work and unanswered ethical
:20:19. > :20:22.questions over who should be given limited stocks of an untested drug.
:20:23. > :20:26.Alistair Leithead, BBC News, San Diego.
:20:27. > :20:29.Some of the day's other other news stories.
:20:30. > :20:32.Downing Street has announced the appointment of 22 new peers, taking
:20:33. > :20:39.the total number to 796, despite all three main party leaders calling
:20:40. > :20:43.for a smaller House of Lords. The list includes the former Marks
:20:44. > :20:47.Spencer boss Sir Stuart Rose, and the businesswoman Karren Brady,
:20:48. > :21:00.who'll both sit on the Tory benches, plus the former Eastenders actor
:21:01. > :21:01.Michael Cashman, a Labour supporter. Afghanistan's rival presidential
:21:02. > :21:04.candidates have signed a deal to form a government
:21:05. > :21:06.of national unity, four months after the disputed election.
:21:07. > :21:09.Abdullah Abdullah and Ashraf Ghani had both claimed victory and accused
:21:10. > :21:12.each other of electoral fraud. The deal was announced
:21:13. > :21:23.during a visit by US Secretary of State John Kerry.
:21:24. > :21:25.Engineers at Harvard University in the United States have created
:21:26. > :21:28.a robot that folds itself into shape from a flat sheet,
:21:29. > :21:31.and is able to crawl. The design is inspired
:21:32. > :21:34.by the Japanese art of origami. The team say it could be developed
:21:35. > :21:34.to create devices that self-assemble in confined spaces,
:21:35. > :21:53.such as war zones or in space. There has been a rise in the number
:21:54. > :21:59.of fines issued to parents for a children's absence from school.
:22:00. > :22:02.Figures obtained by the BBC from three quarters of councils show that
:22:03. > :22:07.almost 64,000 fines were issued to parents in the last school year, a
:22:08. > :22:11.rise of 70% on the previous year. Some of the finds are for persistent
:22:12. > :22:14.poor attendance, but most were about unauthorised holidays.
:22:15. > :22:17.such as war zones or in space. School is out for the summer,
:22:18. > :22:19.so families have flocked to the seaside.
:22:20. > :22:21.But some parents have already been on holiday, taking
:22:22. > :22:24.their children during term time. This couple, who run a busy tearoom
:22:25. > :22:27.in Devon, say closing during peak season would damage their business,
:22:28. > :22:31.so they took their teenage daughter out of school on a trip to Thailand.
:22:32. > :22:36.They were fined ?120 for the unauthorised absence.
:22:37. > :22:43.She got 97% attendance for that year and they still say you
:22:44. > :22:49.can't take her out for five days. Is one week going to make that much
:22:50. > :22:52.difference to a child's education? Family travel
:22:53. > :22:55.in term time used to be allowed in special circumstances but
:22:56. > :22:59.since September teachers can only grant leave in exceptional cases.
:23:00. > :23:03.It's led to a sharp rise in the number of parents who have
:23:04. > :23:06.been fined for jetting off without permission, and more
:23:07. > :23:11.than 200,000 have signed a petition in protest, not least at increased
:23:12. > :23:16.holiday prices in peak times. But teachers say any departure
:23:17. > :23:20.from the curriculum can cost here. The only effect it is going to
:23:21. > :23:23.have for those parents who continue to take those children out is that
:23:24. > :23:26.those children will miss learning. If that happens for a couple of
:23:27. > :23:30.weeks every year for that child's life, I do believe that is damaging.
:23:31. > :23:32.Fewer children are missing lessons, the Government says,
:23:33. > :23:37.as a result of its reforms, and ministers say that schools can set
:23:38. > :23:41.term dates to ease holiday demand at peak times, even though some parents
:23:42. > :23:49.still think fines are unfair. Alex Forsyth, BBC News.
:23:50. > :23:53.When Sir Neville Marriner takes to the stage at the Royal Albert Hall
:23:54. > :23:55.in London this weekend he will become the oldest conductor ever to
:23:56. > :23:58.lead a Prom. 90-year-old Sir Neville began
:23:59. > :24:01.his musical career as a violinist before founding his own orchestra
:24:02. > :24:04.and then picking up a baton. Will Gompertz went along to
:24:05. > :24:13.rehearsal to meet one of the most recorded conductors of all time.
:24:14. > :24:17.A casually dressed Sir Neville Marriner in the rehearsal room,
:24:18. > :24:26.practising with his orchestra for Sunday's Prom performance
:24:27. > :24:29.of Sir William Walton's Henry V. The 90-year-old conductor could have
:24:30. > :24:38.retired years ago but explains why he has no intention of doing so.
:24:39. > :24:42.It's reasonably addictive. First of all, that you are able to
:24:43. > :24:46.express yourself, musically, so freely, and you don't have to
:24:47. > :24:49.practice an instrument. So it all goes in in your head
:24:50. > :24:53.and your heart. I'm sure most people at the end
:24:54. > :24:56.of their working life would wish to have something like that.
:24:57. > :25:02.I would certainly feel pretty strange without
:25:03. > :25:05.that opportunity now. Neville Marriner made
:25:06. > :25:09.his Proms debut at London's Royal Albert Hall in 1963, playing violin
:25:10. > :25:12.with the London Symphony Orchestra. He returned a couple of years later,
:25:13. > :25:15.again playing the violin but this time also directing his own
:25:16. > :25:19.chamber orchestra of the Academy of Saint Martin in the Fields.
:25:20. > :25:25.And then in 1970 he took to the Proms podium for the first time
:25:26. > :25:30.as a fully fledged conductor. Since when,
:25:31. > :25:39.he has never looked back. Here he is conducting in 1974,
:25:40. > :25:43.younger, certainly, but... I see some of my early things and I
:25:44. > :25:47.think how incredibly tolerant the players were to put up with
:25:48. > :25:54.that little ridiculous sort of clumsy gestures and inarticulate.
:25:55. > :25:58.Why do you think there are so few female conductors
:25:59. > :26:02.in charge of the major orchestras? I have a feeling there's
:26:03. > :26:07.a certain audience resistance. There's something strange
:26:08. > :26:12.about the female figure conducting. But musically speaking,
:26:13. > :26:16.they're so gifted. The actor John hurt will join
:26:17. > :26:21.the orchestra on Sunday to speak Shakespeare's words.
:26:22. > :26:25.Sir Neville will conduct before moving on to his next
:26:26. > :26:29.concert, in an ongoing career that sees his work diary already planned
:26:30. > :26:35.ahead for the next two years. Will Gompertz, BBC News.
:26:36. > :26:38.That's all from us. Now it's time for the news where