:00:04. > :00:06.three women before turning the gun on himself. We hear claims that
:00:06. > :00:16.police objections to Michael Atherton owning his guns were
:00:16. > :00:17.
:00:17. > :00:21.overruled. We have reliable information that
:00:21. > :00:25.his initial application was actually recommended for a refusal
:00:25. > :00:35.by firearms licensing officers. extraordinary search for a song
:00:35. > :00:37.
:00:37. > :00:47.that so nearly made his Dad famous. It would be amazing if I ever found
:00:47. > :00:48.
:00:48. > :00:51.it. And can Durham's brain power harness the sun's power to drive
:00:51. > :00:55.across Australia? You're racing in a car that's powered by less than
:00:55. > :01:05.you'd use in a kettle or hairdryer. Stories from the heart of the North
:01:05. > :01:09.
:01:09. > :01:16.Two weeks ago, gunman Michael Atherton killed three women before
:01:16. > :01:18.taking his own life at his home in Horden. Tonight, a new twist. We've
:01:18. > :01:24.been told that police officers in Durham recommended that Atherton
:01:24. > :01:30.should be refused a gun license. But in what became a critical
:01:30. > :01:33.decision, they were overruled by more senior staff.
:01:33. > :01:43.The remains of a shattered family, four dead, and another reminder of
:01:43. > :01:52.
:01:52. > :01:55.the lethal power of guns in the There is still no definitive
:01:55. > :01:58.account of what happened in this house. We know that Michael
:01:58. > :02:03.Atherton had been drinking at a club in the village, while his
:02:03. > :02:07.partner, her sister and his niece had been to Horden Rugby Club. As
:02:07. > :02:10.they arrived home a row broke out. Atherton left by the back door,
:02:10. > :02:20.returned with a semi-automatic shot gun from the car and started
:02:20. > :02:30.
:02:30. > :02:33.A resident at the address was the lawful holder of firearms licences.
:02:33. > :02:36.The police say it was over in moments rather than minutes. Four
:02:36. > :02:38.people managed to escape the carnage, two of them leaping
:02:38. > :02:44.through an upstairs window. What made Michael Atherton snap, turning
:02:44. > :02:48.him from a polite taxi driver to a triple murderer, may never be known.
:02:48. > :02:51.But what has become clear since the killings is that there were at
:02:51. > :02:59.least three opportunities over six years for the police to intervene -
:02:59. > :03:02.each of which could have prevented Atherton was granted his shotgun
:03:02. > :03:07.licence back in 2006. He went through the application process to
:03:07. > :03:11.assess whether he was fit to own a gun. In County Durham there are
:03:11. > :03:18.just over 6,000 licensed shotgun holders. Across England there are
:03:18. > :03:21.more than half a million. You have to be of good character and the
:03:21. > :03:23.police will look into that. They will go quite deeply. You might
:03:23. > :03:26.have domestic problems, you might have mental problems, you might
:03:26. > :03:29.have disagreements with your neighbours. All of this is looked
:03:29. > :03:32.at this when the police look at a shot gun certificate. If a check
:03:32. > :03:36.throws up any worrying history, shouldn't that be grounds to think
:03:36. > :03:38.twice? We've spoken to people in the shooting fraternity who say
:03:38. > :03:44.that Michael Atherton's history of domestic dispute with partner Susan
:03:44. > :03:47.should have ruled him out of gun ownership. Between 2002 and 2004
:03:47. > :03:56.the police were called to Atherton's home a total of four
:03:56. > :03:59.times - the incidents were logged with the domestic violence unit. On
:03:59. > :04:02.one occasion Atherton was arrested to prevent a breach of the peace
:04:02. > :04:12.after a row with his partner. On another he received a police
:04:12. > :04:13.
:04:13. > :04:15.caution after a drunken assault on her. I am very surprised that he
:04:15. > :04:18.got a license. I would personally, in the circumstances related there,
:04:18. > :04:22.I think I would have refused it. And according to the BASC, that's
:04:23. > :04:25.exactly what happened. We have reliable information that Michael
:04:25. > :04:27.Atherton's initial application for a shotgun certificate was actually
:04:27. > :04:30.recommended for refusal by a firearms licensing officer. This
:04:30. > :04:33.could have been the first opportunity to stop this, and what
:04:33. > :04:38.went on from there is that refusal decision was overturned by somebody
:04:38. > :04:42.higher up the chain of command. Durham Police have refused to
:04:42. > :04:45.comment on this, as the case is now in the hands of the Independent
:04:46. > :04:53.Police Complaints Commission. The IPCC told us their investigation is
:04:53. > :04:55.at an early stage and speculation does not assist. However, we have
:04:55. > :04:58.been told by a number of sources that the original officer's
:04:58. > :05:04.decision to reject Atherton's application was endorsed by a
:05:04. > :05:14.colleague. But that decision was apparently overruled. When the
:05:14. > :05:15.
:05:16. > :05:23.final report is published, for some there is now one key question.
:05:23. > :05:25.to why that decision was overturned, we remain in the dark.
:05:25. > :05:28.consequence for the police of taking action against someone
:05:28. > :05:30.against whom there are allegations of instability, is that person
:05:30. > :05:33.might appeal. That person is then supported by shooting organisations,
:05:33. > :05:37.there are costs associated in the police having to take this to court,
:05:37. > :05:46.and they have not tended to be to my mind very pro-active in
:05:46. > :05:49.scrutinising the licensees to weed out the unsuitable. The next
:05:49. > :05:51.opportunity to review Atherton's gun ownership came in 2008, when he
:05:51. > :06:01.wanted to buy more tightly restricted firearms, like rifles or
:06:01. > :06:11.some semi-automatic shotguns. And to get one of these - you need to
:06:11. > :06:19.
:06:19. > :06:25.fill out one of these. Atherton had three section one weapons. Applying
:06:25. > :06:33.his a much harder burden of proof. This was another opportunity for
:06:33. > :06:36.the police had to take a close and detailed look at Michael Atherton.
:06:36. > :06:38.But within months of his application to hold a section one
:06:38. > :06:41.license, Michael Atherton again came to the attention of Durham
:06:41. > :06:44.Police. According to them, they seized his guns after he threatened
:06:44. > :06:47.to harm himself. But on the instructions of a senior officer,
:06:47. > :06:50.Atherton's guns were returned a number of weeks later. So what are
:06:50. > :06:53.the rules about who can and who can't have a license? After the
:06:53. > :06:56.Cumbrian shootings and the Raoul Moat killings, a Government
:06:56. > :07:02.committee admitted, in the words of its chairman, "current gun laws are
:07:02. > :07:05.a mess". Durham Police lists the reasons not to grant a license on
:07:05. > :07:12.its own website, including evidence of violence, alcohol abuse, and
:07:12. > :07:14.domestic disputes. Those guidelines are taken from the Home Office.
:07:14. > :07:20.Although they refer to firearms, according to the Association of
:07:20. > :07:23.Chief Police officers they should apply to shotguns. The police have
:07:23. > :07:28.a duty to put public safety and keeping the peace ahead of an
:07:28. > :07:34.individual's right to own a gun. But even those in the shooting
:07:34. > :07:36.world say the rules are confusing. Although there are national
:07:36. > :07:39.guidelines about how the law should be interpreted, there are 34
:07:39. > :07:42.different pieces of legislation which cover firearms, and there are
:07:42. > :07:50.more than 50 constabularies in the UK, and each constabulary can apply
:07:50. > :07:53.their own interpretation of those laws. Even when you compare our
:07:53. > :07:55.systems to country's like America, which people think is lax on gun
:07:55. > :07:57.laws, you find that people with history to do with domestic
:07:57. > :08:00.violence, any allegation of domestic violence arrests for
:08:00. > :08:06.domestic violence, not even not even necessarily a conviction, in
:08:06. > :08:10.some states precludes them from having a fire arm license.
:08:10. > :08:15.So once again events in the North East and Cumbria are at the heart
:08:15. > :08:18.of a debate about who should and shouldn't hold a firearms license.
:08:18. > :08:22.And once again difficult questions are being asked of Durham
:08:22. > :08:25.Constabulary. Back in 2010, two firearms licensing officers were
:08:25. > :08:27.convicted of selling guns handed in for destruction, and the licensing
:08:27. > :08:37.unit's procedures were described as by the presiding judge as
:08:37. > :08:46.
:08:46. > :08:49."extremely lax if not chaotic". This was the response at the time.
:08:50. > :08:56.We are saying to the public, we have let you down what we have
:08:56. > :08:58.fixed it. -- but we have fixed it. The two corrupt officers were
:08:58. > :09:01.dismissed, though the rest of the Durham's firearms licensing staff
:09:01. > :09:06.remained in post. Meanwhile, back in Horden, the local MP hopes some
:09:06. > :09:09.good can come from the recent traumatic events. It's a terrible
:09:09. > :09:16.tragedy and four people have lost their lives, and I'm very keen that
:09:16. > :09:19.we can try and learn some lessons from this. Now is an appropriate
:09:19. > :09:29.time to consult on how we can consult and improve things to
:09:29. > :09:37.
:09:38. > :09:44.prevent this sort of tragedy ever Our next two stories have a sunny
:09:44. > :09:47.disposition. When you've got that one chance in life of a big break,
:09:47. > :09:50.you've got to take it. But what happens when destiny gets in the
:09:50. > :09:53.way? BBC Tees presenter John Foster came across the amazing story of
:09:53. > :09:57.one Teesside band who could so easily have become world-famous.
:09:57. > :10:07.Fate intervened and it wasn't to be. But now they're about to help
:10:07. > :10:16.
:10:16. > :10:19.This man has travelled from America on a quest. His Dad recorded one of
:10:19. > :10:23.the world's most famous songs, years before it topped the charts.
:10:23. > :10:30.It was fated that he'd never know his father. And it was fated that
:10:30. > :10:34.the recording would be lost forever. The song I've been searching for
:10:34. > :10:44.was the recording of 'Seasons in the Sun'. It would be absolutely
:10:44. > :10:55.
:10:55. > :11:00.Canadian Terry Jacks released Seasons in the Sun in 1973. It went
:11:00. > :11:05.into the stratosphere. The record ultimately sold over 10 million
:11:05. > :11:14.singles. It's one of the 30 biggest hits of all time, it was number one
:11:14. > :11:18.in Britain, America and around the But what hardly anyone knows is
:11:18. > :11:21.that song might have become synonymous with Teesside. Way
:11:21. > :11:30.before Terry Jacks made 'Seasons in the Sun' famous, it could have
:11:30. > :11:33.catapulted a Middlesbrough band to It was the sixties, Teesside was
:11:33. > :11:43.buzzing, and some of the best musicians in the area were forming
:11:43. > :11:47.
:11:47. > :11:52.a super group. We were to have solved very successful bands in the
:11:52. > :11:55.Curia. And leading the band was, the man dubbed the John Lennon of
:11:55. > :12:01.Teesside, singer Alan Ludley. was a really, really good frontman.
:12:01. > :12:07.He was outgoing, flamboyant in a lot of ways. Good stage presence,
:12:07. > :12:10.came over as a lovely bloke. So the band had all the ingredients for
:12:10. > :12:20.success, and Rivers Invitation were about to be given their big break,
:12:20. > :12:24.
:12:24. > :12:27.This was the very first version of the song that became known as
:12:28. > :12:33.'Seasons in the Sun'. Written by Belgian Jacques Brel, it was called
:12:33. > :12:37.'Le Moribond', or 'The Dying Man'. This dying man is rather cynical
:12:37. > :12:41.about his dying wife, who has had many affairs. He knows that his
:12:41. > :12:48.wife will continue to have lovers after his death. He says, "Be
:12:48. > :12:52.careful - I'll be watching." It was reworked in English by Rod McKuen.
:12:52. > :12:57.Then in 1968, fate brought the song to a Middlesbrough band. Rivers
:12:57. > :13:01.Invitation had been signed to giant label Polydor Records. 'Seasons in
:13:01. > :13:11.the Sun' would be their first hit. I remember going to Polydor studios
:13:11. > :13:14.and setting equipment up. We did the take in about two hours. They
:13:14. > :13:17.were talking about putting strings on it, augmenting it, and we're
:13:17. > :13:20.thinking, "That's it, here we go, this is looking good." The band was
:13:20. > :13:29.just so happy, absolutely enjoying it, enjoying the music, enjoying
:13:29. > :13:33.the travel, and then smack. It was late afternoon. We were coming back
:13:34. > :13:43.to Middlesbrough. The band's lead singer Alan Ludley was in that
:13:43. > :13:48.crash. Allen did not make it. His wife was seriously injured. I sad
:13:48. > :13:51.day. It was fate. The band never made it big. 'Seasons in the Sun'
:13:51. > :13:55.never saw the light of day. And there was more. Alan had a son,
:13:55. > :13:58.Adrian, and unfortunately he was never going to know his father.
:13:58. > :14:08.More than 40 years later, Adrian has come back, from America where
:14:08. > :14:10.
:14:10. > :14:15.And I have a lot of memories of this house. I would be dropped off
:14:15. > :14:20.here by my grandparents. What have you been told about the music?
:14:20. > :14:26.had no ever experienced any of the music. Since the accident, since I
:14:26. > :14:31.was a child, I would search. Nothing came of it. I could only
:14:31. > :14:37.imagine what his boys must have sounded like, almost 40 years later,
:14:37. > :14:41.I finally heard his voice. That was true the radio station. That
:14:41. > :14:47.because, four years ago, Adrian contacted me and, with help from
:14:47. > :14:56.listeners, we found a handful of his father's songs. Was it like
:14:56. > :14:59.hearing his voice for the first time? Had I could not believe it.
:15:00. > :15:09.lot of people had told me he had a wonderful voice and I realise
:15:10. > :15:11.
:15:11. > :15:19.The band did a for a full sued here. You stood almost on the same spot
:15:19. > :15:24.your father did. You had never been here before? It was the first time.
:15:24. > :15:31.The first time I was told about Seasons In The Sun, I do not
:15:31. > :15:38.believe it. Because of the magnitude of that song and how
:15:38. > :15:44.everyone knew it. It was the first record I ever bought and I listen
:15:44. > :15:47.to it in my bedroom. I imagined how he would sing it. It would be
:15:47. > :15:56.amazing to get that song, because that is what triggered it all and
:15:56. > :16:00.that is what has motivated me. We contacted the record company, the
:16:01. > :16:04.archive, the promotions people, and there was nothing. I knew it was in
:16:04. > :16:12.the house. I had a very strong feeling it was there, very strange.
:16:12. > :16:18.I thought, I will check the box. I have not seen or been into this for
:16:18. > :16:26.five or six years. What is this? I knew it was that as soon as I saw
:16:26. > :16:32.it. It is a couple of tracks that the band recorded it. Seasons In
:16:32. > :16:42.The Sun as well. After 43 years, it is time to break the news. Worst of
:16:42. > :16:46.
:16:46. > :16:56.all, to the lead singer's brother, Tom. You've got it! Poll, you have
:16:56. > :16:58.
:16:58. > :17:08.had it all the time! You have got me there! If Adrian hears this...
:17:08. > :17:09.
:17:09. > :17:15.He will be over the moon! It is time to come clean.
:17:15. > :17:21.It has taken six months of cajoling Adrian to get in across to the UK.
:17:21. > :17:25.He does not know that we have found a song and he will hear it for the
:17:25. > :17:35.first time after 40 years of searching. Am going to play you
:17:35. > :17:39.
:17:39. > :17:43.something. I want you to listen to When you listen to the lyrics now,
:17:43. > :17:53.things like, a good buy my trusted friend, the whole story is very
:17:53. > :17:53.
:17:53. > :18:43.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 49 seconds
:18:43. > :18:51.alive -- riot -- relevant to Alan # We had joy, we had fun... #
:18:51. > :18:57.We have had it pressed on to vinyl for you. Whoa! How did you keep
:18:57. > :19:07.that from me all day? That is not all, we have got the band back
:19:07. > :19:12.
:19:12. > :19:22.Thank you all so much. Nothing can top this in my life. This is just
:19:22. > :19:22.
:19:22. > :19:29.amazing. It is the best experience ever. Definitely, I have found a
:19:29. > :19:39.connection now. It is incredible. It is the perfect end to my search.
:19:39. > :19:42.
:19:42. > :19:46.With fuel prices I walk to in Lehar I, you're probably wondering if
:19:46. > :19:51.there is not a cheaper way of driving a long distance. Some
:19:51. > :19:59.students at Durham University have been putting their solar power card
:19:59. > :20:06.to the test. They are racing across Australia. Can they compete with
:20:07. > :20:11.the world's top universities and survive the rigours of the outback?
:20:11. > :20:15.Hidden away in Durham University, University students have been
:20:15. > :20:20.perfecting a way to use only the Sun's rays to power car across an
:20:20. > :20:25.entire continent. We are racing a car or using less power than you
:20:26. > :20:32.would you for your kettle or hairdryer. It is tough to fuel it,
:20:32. > :20:37.let alone complete the race. many people can say they have
:20:37. > :20:42.camped in the Australian desert? It is going to be amazing. They are up
:20:42. > :20:47.against another top British university, Cambridge. They have
:20:47. > :20:52.competed in a previous Australian Solar Challenge. Durham were
:20:52. > :20:57.novices. The two teams met in a trial run. Under cloudy British
:20:57. > :21:01.skies, it was never going to be a land speed record but could be have
:21:01. > :21:07.begun the sole equivalent of the University Boat race? Who would end
:21:07. > :21:13.up squeezing more energy out of the scare son? They have beaten
:21:14. > :21:23.Cambridge, but what about the other competitors. Could solar panels
:21:23. > :21:27.give them the edge? We use glass fibre and cure them in an oven. We
:21:27. > :21:34.do not know what they might have obviously. Offaly they do not know
:21:34. > :21:42.what we have a power sleeve. -- hopefully they do not know our
:21:42. > :21:46.secrets. We have to build a car in the North of England which will
:21:46. > :21:51.perform in Australia, in some of the hottest conditions in the world.
:21:51. > :21:53.Ahead lies a 3,000 kilometre road race in which the teams need to be
:21:54. > :22:03.self-sufficient to survive everything the outback can throw at
:22:04. > :22:05.
:22:05. > :22:08.them. We gave the Durham team some cameras to make a video diary.
:22:08. > :22:14.Although the car road arrived in Darwin in one piece, the
:22:14. > :22:17.immediately took chunks out of it to shed weight. All the teams
:22:17. > :22:23.seemed to be making last minute changes to make every ray of
:22:23. > :22:31.sunshine count. The Durham car still works and stands up in a test
:22:31. > :22:38.run. But they have not perfected the dismount yet. All the teams are
:22:38. > :22:48.pushing their cars, their brains and their own bodies to the limits.
:22:48. > :22:53.
:22:53. > :22:58.We had to get up at 7 o'clock in If drivers weigh less than 80
:22:58. > :23:08.kilograms, the car has to carry extra weight. The Japanese have a
:23:08. > :23:09.
:23:09. > :23:19.tactic. In an emergency, they must be able to get out within 15
:23:19. > :23:20.
:23:20. > :23:24.seconds. Remember their previous I have been weighed and I am now an
:23:24. > :23:34.official driver. The car is being examined. We're going to practise
:23:34. > :23:35.
:23:35. > :23:38.getting out on the track. Darwin, we have a problem! Have you got any
:23:38. > :23:42.we have a problem! Have you got any more speed and this? Are you going
:23:43. > :23:52.full-out. Something is horribly wrong. Could it be their secret
:23:53. > :23:56.
:23:56. > :24:06.weapon? Is their race over before it has even begun? And over
:24:06. > :24:17.
:24:17. > :24:27.excitable safety device is forced Next up, we have a car from the
:24:27. > :24:35.
:24:35. > :24:43.The saw cars are pretty vulnerable to other traffic on what is only
:24:43. > :24:47.the major highway from north to south. -- the solar-powered cars.
:24:47. > :24:50.south. -- the solar-powered cars. Keep an eye a on this short and
:24:50. > :24:57.watch to the slipstream of the lorry and what it does to one of
:24:57. > :25:04.the competitors. You need nerves of steel. As long as the sun is up,
:25:04. > :25:12.keep your eyes fixed on the road. We're only allowed to drive between
:25:12. > :25:22.80 in the morning and 5:00pm. -- 8 o'clock in the morning. Allied is
:25:22. > :25:38.
:25:38. > :25:48.painted to show where we got to at attacked by huge grass Hopper last
:25:48. > :26:00.
:26:01. > :26:06.There are tell-tale signs that bush fires have been flaring up. Or so
:26:06. > :26:10.they think. With the road closed, everyone is being held back. The
:26:10. > :26:15.competition is hotting up and so was one of the cars. By a battery
:26:15. > :26:22.from a car of the future catches fire, a shovel seems to be the only
:26:22. > :26:29.answer. While the bush fires continue to burn, the competitor's
:26:29. > :26:33.book the solar-powered panels into the sun to charge up their entry.
:26:33. > :26:43.The competitors can only wonder at what the Australian desert has in
:26:43. > :26:58.
:26:58. > :27:08.We drove about 70 kilometres and we have put the car on the trailer and
:27:08. > :27:31.
:27:31. > :27:39.we are - and to make a stop. -- and from Japan. More than a day behind,
:27:39. > :27:47.Durham University are determined to make a last race to the finish.
:27:47. > :27:52.Durham have had to find �25,000 in sponsorship and quite a bit of
:27:52. > :27:57.Sellotape. Compared to the leading teams, their budget is small. We
:27:57. > :28:03.might all reap the rewards of events like this. As we worry more
:28:03. > :28:06.about the cars we buy and if you'll be used, we find that the
:28:06. > :28:11.technology used at this event is more significant than it has ever
:28:12. > :28:20.been. Durham University reach Adelaide. Their 33rd out of 42
:28:20. > :28:26.entries. Cambridge University made it to 25th place. A was awesome! It
:28:26. > :28:31.was a long way. We have finally made it! That was really good fun.
:28:31. > :28:36.I think we will come back in two years' time and do it again. After
:28:36. > :28:42.everything they have faced, just finishing as a success. Not bad for
:28:42. > :28:46.a first attempt. That is it for this week. Next week, Middlesbrough,