:00:24. > :00:31.I take full responsibility for my desire to resign. I want to remove
:00:32. > :00:36.and an helpful and difficult distraction.
:00:37. > :00:39.During Prime Minister's Questions Labour said it was David Cameron's
:00:40. > :00:44.handling of the situation that is the real issue. He said six days ago
:00:45. > :00:48.she had done right thing and we should leave it at that. Does he now
:00:49. > :00:54.recognise this was a terrible error of judgement? It was right to allow
:00:55. > :01:00.her the chance to get on with her job. There is one weakness in his
:01:01. > :01:04.argument, if he thinks this was the case, why didn't he: Her to resign?
:01:05. > :01:07.We'll be speaking to our political editor Nick Robinson. Also this
:01:08. > :01:09.lunchtime: Oscar Pistorius breaks down again as he faces fierce
:01:10. > :01:20.prosecution questioning about the night he shot his girlfriend.
:01:21. > :01:24.I have taken responsibility but I will not look at a picture where I
:01:25. > :01:28.am tormented by what I felt. My fingers touched her head. I
:01:29. > :01:31.remember, I don't have to look at a picture, I was there.
:01:32. > :01:34.New hope of finding the missing Malaysian plane as search teams
:01:35. > :01:37.re-acquire a signal which could come from its black box.
:01:38. > :01:39.And a Royal crawl-about - as Prince George meets other eight-month olds
:01:40. > :01:44.during his parent's tour of New Zealand.
:01:45. > :01:46.Later on BBC London. The Government reveals its
:01:47. > :01:49.compensation package for the thousands living on the route of
:01:50. > :01:55.HS2. And the Met is criticised for how it
:01:56. > :01:56.records crime. The Home Office is told it should take more
:01:57. > :02:18.responsibility. Good afternoon, and welcome to the
:02:19. > :02:23.BBC News at One. The Prime Minister has said he is
:02:24. > :02:26.saddened by the resignation of Maria Miller as Culture Secretary, but
:02:27. > :02:31.defended his handling of the row over her expenses. After days of
:02:32. > :02:36.damaging headlines she announced she was stepping down, but insisted she
:02:37. > :02:40.was cleared of the main allegation against her. She felt she had to
:02:41. > :02:44.resign, because the argument about her had become a distraction for the
:02:45. > :02:50.government. Labour says Mr Cameron's judgement has become the
:02:51. > :02:56.issue. A week of bad headlines has finally
:02:57. > :03:01.led to the story many of the papers wanted, Maria Miller's resignation.
:03:02. > :03:06.I hoped that I could stay, but it has become clear to me over the last
:03:07. > :03:10.few days this has become an enormous distraction and it is not right that
:03:11. > :03:15.I am distracting from the incredible achievements of this government. But
:03:16. > :03:19.it is a political harassment for David Cameron who had offered her
:03:20. > :03:24.strong support into the report into her expenses was published last
:03:25. > :03:28.week. She shall make a full apology and people will leave it at that.
:03:29. > :03:31.She apologised unreservedly for. We should leave it there. She should
:03:32. > :03:37.get on with the job of being Culture Secretary. It was hardly surprising
:03:38. > :03:42.that the Prime Minister's judgement was called into question by Ed
:03:43. > :03:45.Miliband. He said six days ago she had done the right thing and we
:03:46. > :03:50.should leave it at that. Does he now recognise this was a terrible error
:03:51. > :03:55.of judgement? The Prime Minister then called into question Ed
:03:56. > :03:59.Miliband's judgement. He seems to be the first leader of the opposition,
:04:00. > :04:02.probably in history, to come to this house, and make the first suggestion
:04:03. > :04:08.that somebody should resign, after they have already resigned. He needs
:04:09. > :04:11.to learn profound lessons about how he runs his government. The Culture
:04:12. > :04:16.Secretary went, not because of her bad conduct, but because of her bad
:04:17. > :04:21.press. David Cameron said it was time for party leaders to get
:04:22. > :04:24.together to discuss further reforms in the expenses system. Let us do
:04:25. > :04:27.more to reassure the public about the scandal of expenses and how we
:04:28. > :04:33.are dealing with it. Many conservative colleagues were
:04:34. > :04:38.concerned about putting the toxic issue of expenses back on the agenda
:04:39. > :04:41.ahead of elections. At a meeting to be held tonight some backbenchers
:04:42. > :04:47.were prepared to grill David Cameron for why he had decided to hold onto
:04:48. > :04:51.and the damage she was doing to the Conservative party. What did she do
:04:52. > :04:54.wrong? Is 16 month parliamentary investigation looked into
:04:55. > :05:00.allegations she funded this home in limbo -- Wimbledon where her parents
:05:01. > :05:05.lived at the taxpayers expense. She was cleared of wrongdoing. The
:05:06. > :05:09.commissioner said she should pay back ?45,800 but the standards
:05:10. > :05:19.committee consisting mainly of MPs asked her to pave just over ?5,000.
:05:20. > :05:24.The committee has recommended... That apology last week was condemned
:05:25. > :05:27.as graceless by some of her colleagues and the man who lodged
:05:28. > :05:32.the initial complaint against said she should have resigned soon. He
:05:33. > :05:37.should have happened 60 days ago, it is astonishing that the Prime
:05:38. > :05:41.Minister didn't get what the rest of the country got, her behaviour was
:05:42. > :05:45.unacceptable. The Prime Minister acknowledged she had powerful
:05:46. > :05:50.enemies in her party under press, handling two of the most
:05:51. > :06:02.controversial issues in government, it gay marriage and press
:06:03. > :06:13.regulation. Maria Miller is clearly leaving office reluctantly. I can
:06:14. > :06:19.move on. In a moment we will get the thoughts
:06:20. > :06:22.of our correspondent in her constituency base in Basingstoke.
:06:23. > :06:26.Let's hear from Nick Robinson in Westminster. The Prime Minister
:06:27. > :06:29.spent the week backing her, where does this leave him?
:06:30. > :06:35.Clearly it leaves him under attack from Ed Miliband, others, from
:06:36. > :06:39.newspapers tomorrow, who will say he took the wrong decision. I thought
:06:40. > :06:42.what was striking about prime ministers questions is he was
:06:43. > :06:47.totally unapologetic for that, he said it was not leadership to push
:06:48. > :06:51.somebody out of a job at the first whiff of gunfire, that he thought it
:06:52. > :06:56.was right, given his minister had been cleared on the original charge,
:06:57. > :06:59.a charge she had funded a home for her parents at the taxpayers
:07:00. > :07:04.expense, that it was right to let her apologise, to do that and let
:07:05. > :07:09.her try to get on with her job. He will face criticism but I thought it
:07:10. > :07:13.was striking that he is not only not attacking her, but he went further
:07:14. > :07:17.and actually described Parliament as a good and honest parliament. He
:07:18. > :07:21.didn't not once but twice. It is a phrase that may stick in the call
:07:22. > :07:25.for many voters who are still angry about the expenses system, it will
:07:26. > :07:28.mean that phrase is tested against the evidence, but that is what he
:07:29. > :07:32.has chosen to do. This issue has shown how toxic the
:07:33. > :07:38.issue of expenses is. Where do we go with that for now?
:07:39. > :07:43.David Cameron did not feel the need to promise any great further reform.
:07:44. > :07:48.His argument essentially was this is a case about the past and it was
:07:49. > :07:51.about expenses that would not be allowed under the current rules and
:07:52. > :07:55.a system of enquiry that wouldn't happen under current rules. What he
:07:56. > :08:02.is 20 Zeta voters is that was them, now is different, the system is
:08:03. > :08:09.better -- that is what he is trying to say to voters. He is hoping to
:08:10. > :08:15.surf the wave of public anger, as will other politicians, Nigel Farage
:08:16. > :08:19.heading to that sees of Basingstoke -- seat of Basingstoke tonight. The
:08:20. > :08:23.hope is now people will focus on other matters they care about more,
:08:24. > :08:30.however angry they might be for a day or two.
:08:31. > :08:33.Let's code to our correspondent in Basingstoke.
:08:34. > :08:38.What has the reaction there been? It is very interesting. I am
:08:39. > :08:42.standing outside her house, no sign of her here today. It is interesting
:08:43. > :08:45.what Nick was saying, something changed in Westminster yesterday
:08:46. > :08:48.that brings focus here, something that the MPs had not been said
:08:49. > :08:54.before, they were starting to talk about the reaction of the Elektra,
:08:55. > :08:59.telling Number ten this is killing us on the doorstep. On her road
:09:00. > :09:03.doorstep spoke to a Tory councillor who said not only should she have
:09:04. > :09:08.not have resigned, it is a misunderstanding, she is a truly
:09:09. > :09:12.popular and has local party support. You talk to the electorate, voters,
:09:13. > :09:17.what is interesting is they will acknowledge she is a good local MP,
:09:18. > :09:20.she had a healthy majority up the last election, but not only do they
:09:21. > :09:24.think she should have resigned, but she should have resigned sooner and
:09:25. > :09:27.this would have saved a whole lot of embarrassment for her and the
:09:28. > :09:31.constituency, and that is quite powerful. The fact is as Nick
:09:32. > :09:36.mentioned, Nigel Farage is coming down here tonight to speak, and all
:09:37. > :09:40.the parties that are going to challenge it will want to make use
:09:41. > :09:45.of that idea of a disconnect between Westminster and the wider world, and
:09:46. > :09:49.that huge sum of money, ?45,000, coming down to ?5,000, people don't
:09:50. > :09:54.understand it and they think if you can save the embarrassment by going
:09:55. > :10:00.sooner, if she wants to rehabilitate herself that will have to stop right
:10:01. > :10:03.here now. Oscar Pistorius has faced tough
:10:04. > :10:08.questioning from the prosecution about his version of events on the
:10:09. > :10:12.night he shot and killed his girlfriend. Asked repeatedly whether
:10:13. > :10:17.he took was Bob 's ability for his actions he first said he had made a
:10:18. > :10:26.mistake but later said he had killed her. He faces life in prison if
:10:27. > :10:33.convicted of the murder. That dramatic change of tone here to
:10:34. > :10:34.day in court. Oscar Pistorius being confronted and voracious
:10:35. > :10:39.cross-examination with graphic details of what he had done to Reeva
:10:40. > :10:44.Steenkamp. The prosecution team to show the court she is the victim
:10:45. > :10:51.here, not him. You may find some details in this report upsetting.
:10:52. > :10:55.Yesterday we heard a lot about Oscar Pistorius's fragile emotional state.
:10:56. > :11:01.Today the prosecution sought an abrupt change of tone.
:11:02. > :11:05.Cross-examining the athlete, they went straight on the attack, no
:11:06. > :11:14.images of him giving evidence can be shown. What was your mistake? My
:11:15. > :11:20.mistake was that I took her life. You killed her, you shot and killed
:11:21. > :11:27.her. Will you not take responsibility for that? Say yes. I
:11:28. > :11:36.shot and killed Reeva Steenkamp. I did, my lady. That was just the
:11:37. > :11:41.start. Next up amateur video footage of Oscar Pistorius with friends at a
:11:42. > :11:49.firing range. What we can see their is the effect the ammunition had on
:11:50. > :11:54.a watermelon. It exploded. The prosecutor compared that with the
:11:55. > :11:59.headwinds sustained by Reeva Steenkamp, a photo of her injury was
:12:00. > :12:05.shown to the court. The athlete's relatives reacted. Reeva
:12:06. > :12:10.Steenkamp's mother Jean bowed her head. Pistorius himself was
:12:11. > :12:15.challenged when he refused to look at the image. I will not look at a
:12:16. > :12:19.page where I am commended by what I saw and felt that night. I remember,
:12:20. > :12:26.I don't have to look at the picture, I was there. As his lawyer objected.
:12:27. > :12:33.It is uncalled for. The athlete broke down sobbing and the court was
:12:34. > :12:35.briefly adjourned. A highly controversial and confrontational
:12:36. > :12:38.start to this cross-examination, but there have been some other
:12:39. > :12:45.interesting developments here this morning, with the defence saying
:12:46. > :12:49.some of his closest neighbours will contradict state witnesses who
:12:50. > :12:57.claimed they heard a woman screaming that might be for gunshots.
:12:58. > :13:00.-- that night before gunshots. There will be highlights throughout the
:13:01. > :13:06.day plus a special programme each evening with the key moments of the
:13:07. > :13:11.day at 7:30pm. Teams searching for the missing
:13:12. > :13:14.flight MH370 said a ship has detected two more signals which
:13:15. > :13:19.could have come from the plane's flight recorders. The size of the
:13:20. > :13:25.search area is being reduced and a submersible is on stand-by ready to
:13:26. > :13:31.be deployed to check the sea bed. Deep beneath the Indian Ocean and
:13:32. > :13:35.Australian Navy ship has again made what could be a critical
:13:36. > :13:39.breakthrough. The Ocean Shield has heard two more acoustic noises, in
:13:40. > :13:44.the same board area where other stronger transmissions were recorded
:13:45. > :13:48.over the weekend. Engineers say the early signals were consistent with
:13:49. > :13:52.those from an aircraft black box flight recorder. They 33 of the hunt
:13:53. > :13:57.for the lost Malaysian jet and Australia believes it is getting
:13:58. > :14:05.closer to finding its resting place -- day 33.
:14:06. > :14:09.I am optimistic we will find the aircraft, or what is left of the
:14:10. > :14:14.aircraft, in the not too distant future. Earlier this week recovery
:14:15. > :14:18.teams was carrying a stretch of ocean almost twice the size of Great
:14:19. > :14:23.Britain. The new target zone is about two thirds smaller. The
:14:24. > :14:28.challenge for investigators is to re-establish contact with those
:14:29. > :14:32.signals, far of Australia's West Coast. If and when the location of
:14:33. > :14:36.those unknown pulses is sufficiently narrowed it down will deep sea drone
:14:37. > :14:40.be deployed. Only then will the underwater search for wreckage
:14:41. > :14:48.began. Australian authorities to warn, however, more days of slow and
:14:49. > :14:52.painstaking work are still to come. 239 passengers and crew were on
:14:53. > :14:56.board the flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. Most were from China.
:14:57. > :15:02.Some of their families believe there has been a cover-up by Malaysian
:15:03. > :15:06.authorities. Our search for the truth is not just for ourselves,
:15:07. > :15:09.said a representative of the Chinese families. But also so that this kind
:15:10. > :15:14.of disaster can be avoided in the future. The mood within the
:15:15. > :15:20.Australian led recovery mission has never been more positive, but the
:15:21. > :15:24.batteries from flight MH370 rack boxes are almost certainly starting
:15:25. > :15:28.to fail, if they haven't already. Far out to seek the search continues
:15:29. > :15:35.for any trace of the brain that simply vanished stop Bacharach.
:15:36. > :15:39.Toyota is recalling more than 35,000 cars in Britain after faults were
:15:40. > :15:41.discovered. The problems could deactivate airbags, cause seats to
:15:42. > :15:45.move while driving and break steering columns. Six 6.5 million
:15:46. > :15:50.vehicles are being recalled around the world.
:15:51. > :15:53.Kent Police say a postmortem examination on Peaches Geldof has
:15:54. > :15:57.proved inconclusive pending the results of toxicology tests. The
:15:58. > :16:01.25-year-old daughter of Bob Geldof and Paula Yates was found dead at
:16:02. > :16:07.her home in Wrotham in Kent on Monday. Let's speak to our
:16:08. > :16:15.correspondent Duncan Kennedy. What happens now? Well, the toxicology
:16:16. > :16:20.tests take place. We are told by Kent police it could take several
:16:21. > :16:25.weeks. We are none the wiser as a result of the statement this
:16:26. > :16:30.morning. It follows a postmortem which has taken place here at the
:16:31. > :16:35.hospital in Dartford. A few moments ago, the hospital issued this
:16:36. > :16:40.statement saying simply, a postmortem examination following the
:16:41. > :16:44.death of Peaches Geldof has proved inconclusive pending the results of
:16:45. > :16:53.toxicology analysis tests. They said yesterday this was a non-suspicion
:16:54. > :16:58.-- a non-suspicious unexplained death. They said the police
:16:59. > :17:04.enquiries are continuing in order to compile a report for the coroner. It
:17:05. > :17:11.was about 24 hours ago at her home in a place called Wrotham but
:17:12. > :17:15.Peaches Geldof's body was found yesterday by police. She was
:17:16. > :17:18.declared dead at the scene. Her body was removed and a postmortem has
:17:19. > :17:24.been carried out at the hospital this morning. No further details.
:17:25. > :17:28.One suspects that are not any more details they can give without the
:17:29. > :17:33.toxicology reports. No more statement from the police. This will
:17:34. > :17:40.prolong the questions and discomfort for the Geldof family. Statements
:17:41. > :17:46.from Bob Geldof yesterday and Peaches Geldof's husband telling us
:17:47. > :17:51.about how distraught they were. Today's statement from the hospital
:17:52. > :17:54.will not enlighten them any further. Everyone interested in this story
:17:55. > :18:01.will have to wait until the toxicology reports come through.
:18:02. > :18:04.That could take a few more weeks. Thank you very much.
:18:05. > :18:07.Our top story this lunchtime: The Culture Secretary Maria Miller has
:18:08. > :18:10.resigned after days of damaging headlines over her expense claims.
:18:11. > :18:15.She denies being forced to stand down and says she resigned to
:18:16. > :18:18.prevent further damage to her party. And still to come: Bowled over -
:18:19. > :18:22.England's Charlotte Edwards is named as a Cricketer of the Year.
:18:23. > :18:27.Later on BBC London: Why London's lost and hidden waterways should be
:18:28. > :18:29.brought back to prevent homes flooding.
:18:30. > :18:31.And on board a tall ship on the Thames - the first river regatta of
:18:32. > :18:48.its kind in a quarter of a century. Prince George's only official
:18:49. > :18:53.engagement in New Zealand took place this morning, a royal crawl about
:18:54. > :18:56.with other babies. The eight-month-old met the babies at
:18:57. > :18:59.Government House in Wellington. The visit was part of the Duke and
:19:00. > :19:07.Duchess of Cambridge's tour of the country. Our royal correspondent
:19:08. > :19:12.Nicholas Witchell sent this report. He was not afraid to assert himself
:19:13. > :19:16.but that is perfectly normal for an eight-month-old boy. He is crawling
:19:17. > :19:20.and people watching said there were moments when he seemed to be not far
:19:21. > :19:23.short of walking. For George, it was something new, a brief but
:19:24. > :19:29.boisterous start to what will potentially be the a lifetime of
:19:30. > :19:31.being the centre of attention. He had been brought by his mother to a
:19:32. > :19:37.specially arranged playgroup at government house. Ten babies of
:19:38. > :19:45.roughly the same age as him. At first he seemed a little bashful,
:19:46. > :19:57.more interested in his mother's hair. George tried again with
:19:58. > :20:02.another child. He spotted a toy he wanted so he reached out and grabbed
:20:03. > :20:06.it. Once again, mum had to come to the rescue. For an occasion which
:20:07. > :20:09.was fraught with all kinds of possible pitfalls, it had gone
:20:10. > :20:15.smoothly. Nobody had any major tantrums and the special guest had
:20:16. > :20:18.not really misbehave. Witty good for a royal meet and greet. Other
:20:19. > :20:26.parents were impressed. -- pretty good. He was his own little man. He
:20:27. > :20:35.went into the middle of the circle of toys. He propped himself up and
:20:36. > :20:38.owned the place, basically. George at eight months, starting to learn
:20:39. > :20:44.about the world around him, though still oblivious to what his own
:20:45. > :20:49.future holds. For now, he seemed happiest playing with his rattle.
:20:50. > :20:55.Now he has completed his sort of semi-1st public engagement, he can
:20:56. > :20:58.relax. He will not be seen again in public until he leaves New Zealand
:20:59. > :21:13.with his mother and father in about a week's time.
:21:14. > :21:16.The Government's announced plans for more rigorous GCSEs and A-Levels in
:21:17. > :21:19.England. From 2018, science GCSE students will be expected to learn
:21:20. > :21:21.about the human genome and nanoparticles. Arts subjects,
:21:22. > :21:23.including music, drama, art and dance, are to be made more rigorous
:21:24. > :21:30.and demanding. Our education correspondent Luke Walton reports.
:21:31. > :21:32.Exam time is always stressful but the government believes key
:21:33. > :21:36.qualifications are failing to stretch bright students. Today it
:21:37. > :21:41.unveils its blueprint for what it says will be a more rigorous
:21:42. > :21:47.system. Among the changes that GCSE, science will include more
:21:48. > :21:50.cutting-edge topics such as the human genome. In modern languages,
:21:51. > :21:55.there will be more questions asked in a foreign tongue. History will
:21:56. > :21:58.require students to study longer periods of time and put more
:21:59. > :22:02.emphasis on British history. A-level changes include a shift towards more
:22:03. > :22:09.mathematical content in sciences. More focus on pre-1900 works in
:22:10. > :22:13.English literature. The Education Secretary says the aim is to instil
:22:14. > :22:18.greater confidence in the integrity and reliability of our qualification
:22:19. > :22:22.system. The Government says its reforms will bring schools like this
:22:23. > :22:25.one into line with others in high performing countries such as China
:22:26. > :22:31.and South Korea. But critics fear the changes will leave less able
:22:32. > :22:36.pupils binder may say they are being brought in too fast. The major
:22:37. > :22:41.concern we have is over the pace of the change and what teachers need is
:22:42. > :22:48.information early in order to help them prepare. Not only the content
:22:49. > :22:53.of exams is changing in England, but also the structure with a shift from
:22:54. > :22:55.modules to end of course exams. But students in Wales and Northern
:22:56. > :23:06.Ireland will not be affected. Their administrations have chosen not to
:23:07. > :23:10.adopt the coalition's reforms. At least 18 people have been killed
:23:11. > :23:12.in an explosion on the outskirts of Pakistan's capital, Islamabad. It
:23:13. > :23:15.happened at a busy fruit and vegetable market early this morning.
:23:16. > :23:19.Dozens of people were injured. Our correspondent Mike Wooldridge
:23:20. > :23:21.reports. Whoever carried out the attacks
:23:22. > :23:26.struck at one of the busiest times in the congested fruit and vegetable
:23:27. > :23:29.market. From early morning, trucks arrive with produce from areas
:23:30. > :23:35.surrounding the capital and trading was under way. The blast thought to
:23:36. > :23:40.be from around five kilograms of explosives left a crater. It was
:23:41. > :23:49.heard over a wide area. TRANSLATION: Be blast took lace at 8:15am. Five
:23:50. > :23:57.kilograms of explosive was used. It was hidden in a carton. -- the blast
:23:58. > :24:01.took place. The deadliest attack in Islamabad since the bombing of the
:24:02. > :24:06.Marriott hotel in 2008. Security personnel began investigations. The
:24:07. > :24:13.Pakistani Taliban issued a statement condemning the attack. Attacks in
:24:14. > :24:17.which innocent people are the sole target is contrary to Islamic laws,
:24:18. > :24:23.the statement said. Efforts are under way to negotiate an end to the
:24:24. > :24:27.insurgency. The Prime Minister's office has not yet pointed the
:24:28. > :24:31.finger of blame at any group. They described it as an effort by
:24:32. > :24:36.Pakistan's enemies to destabilise the country and the government would
:24:37. > :24:40.willing resolute in its efforts for peace. -- would remain resolute.
:24:41. > :24:45.There was an attack in this Court complex last month in which 11
:24:46. > :24:50.people died. A splinter group of the Taliban admitted responsibility for
:24:51. > :24:56.it. The deep crater in the market here, the only evidence now of the
:24:57. > :25:00.bombing. It could hardly have time a more sensitive time -- it could
:25:01. > :25:06.hardly have come at a more sensitive time. The question is whether that
:25:07. > :25:18.could now be put in jeopardy and if so who wanted it to happen?
:25:19. > :25:21.David Cameron's coming under pressure to change the laws around
:25:22. > :25:24.pensions for the wives and husbands of dead servicemen and women. Under
:25:25. > :25:28.the law as it stands, if a soldier dies off duty then his or her spouse
:25:29. > :25:31.loses the pension if they re-marry or move in with a new partner. Now a
:25:32. > :25:34.group called Justice for Widows, which is backed by Joanna Lumley,
:25:35. > :25:43.Kate Adie and Martin Bell, has written an open letter to the Times,
:25:44. > :25:46.trying to get that overturned. Now, in recent months, the only
:25:47. > :25:49.England cricket team capable of consistently winning matches has
:25:50. > :25:52.been the women. They reached the final of the World Twenty20 where
:25:53. > :25:54.they were beaten by Australia, but England still hold the women's
:25:55. > :25:56.version of the Ashes. And today there's further recognition for
:25:57. > :26:00.their captain, Charlotte Edwards. She's been named as one of Wisden's
:26:01. > :26:06.Cricketers of the Year. Our sports correspondent Joe Wilson reports.
:26:07. > :26:10.Cricket's long history has generally been told through the achievements
:26:11. > :26:16.of great men, recorded and pored over in the pages of Wisden. It has
:26:17. > :26:21.chosen its players of the year since the 19th century. Time waits for no
:26:22. > :26:26.man and this is a female era with professional women cricketers.
:26:27. > :26:30.Charlotte Edwards led her happy England to victory in Australia over
:26:31. > :26:35.the winter. Her award comes after nearly a decade as England's
:26:36. > :26:40.captain. really shocked. I was not expecting it. Really honoured to
:26:41. > :26:43.think I am in an illustrious list of players. I never thought I would be
:26:44. > :26:52.stood here as a professional woman's cricketer. I am proud of how
:26:53. > :26:55.the game has come along. The irrepressible Enid Bakewell, still
:26:56. > :27:01.playing at 73, one of England's greatest cricketers from a very
:27:02. > :27:06.different era. In 1973, came a novelty which attracted royalty, a
:27:07. > :27:13.cricket World Cup for women. In the final, England won thanks to 100
:27:14. > :27:20.from Bakewell. I don't run as quickly now! This field was worth
:27:21. > :27:24.she learnt cricket, cutting the grass with her own scissors. She
:27:25. > :27:32.raised three children and raise money just to play for England. We
:27:33. > :27:40.really had quite a fight. It was not until 1976 that Lord's let us have a
:27:41. > :27:45.televised match there. When we first went there, we did not know whether
:27:46. > :27:49.we could use the changing rooms and we certainly did not know whether we
:27:50. > :27:52.could go through the long room. The Australians did not know about the
:27:53. > :27:58.tradition so they marched through so we followed. The ornately decorated
:27:59. > :28:05.dimensions of the Long room worth a men only on match days. Now
:28:06. > :28:09.Charlotte Edwards sits on the mend's benches unencumbered by
:28:10. > :28:15.history. Some of the history might well reflect that towards a woman
:28:16. > :28:17.who helped cut the path others have followed.
:28:18. > :28:33.Time for a look at the weather. No adverse comments from Paul who
:28:34. > :28:36.obviously was enjoying some of the fine weather many of us have
:28:37. > :28:44.experienced. This afternoon, sunny spells, mainly dry. There is or is a
:28:45. > :28:49.but. It is completely different across the western side of Scotland
:28:50. > :28:55.-- there is always a but. A fair amount of rain. Doors 20
:28:56. > :28:59.millimetres. -- towards 20 millimetres. There could be more in
:29:00. > :29:05.that neck of the woods. The other side of Scotland, quite nice. Gusty
:29:06. > :29:10.winds. 15 degrees on the thermometers. Further south,
:29:11. > :29:16.high-pressure doing it stuff. Just one or two showers. You will be
:29:17. > :29:20.really unfortunate to see them. Both in the south-west and across Wales.
:29:21. > :29:27.Further east, already 16 degrees. We will possibly make 17. More cloud
:29:28. > :29:29.further north. We have all ready highlighted the problems there
:29:30. > :29:34.thanks to the weather front across north-western parts of Scotland.
:29:35. > :29:38.Through the course of the night, it will be fairly quiet. The weather
:29:39. > :29:43.front eases a little bit further south with time. Not a particularly
:29:44. > :29:51.cold night. As was the case last night, rural spots might get down to
:29:52. > :29:56.frost levels. Thursday, the front such as it is easing its way further
:29:57. > :30:05.south. Bit of rain on the western slopes of the Pennines. Clear skies
:30:06. > :30:07.behind. The chance of one or two quite hefty showers. Isolated
:30:08. > :30:15.showers further south. Temperatures on a par with where we are at the
:30:16. > :30:19.moment. High-pressure the dominant feature across a good part of the
:30:20. > :30:24.British Isles. Saturday, squeezing the isobars across northern parts of
:30:25. > :30:29.Scotland. Another weather front affecting the north-western parts.
:30:30. > :30:36.Gradually easing into Northern Ireland with time. Saturday for
:30:37. > :30:42.many, a dry and fine day. It will feel very springlike indeed. Then on
:30:43. > :30:46.into Sunday. Not a great deal of change. Still quite windy across
:30:47. > :30:51.northern parts. Bits of pieces of rain. The London Marathon of course,
:30:52. > :30:55.coolish start. I would have thought those conditions would suit many for
:30:56. > :31:01.a pretty fast time. Now a reminder of our top story this
:31:02. > :31:04.lunchtime. The Culture Secretary Maria Miller has resigned after days
:31:05. > :31:10.of damaging headlines over her expense claims. She denies being
:31:11. > :31:13.forced to stand down and says she resigned to prevent further damage
:31:14. > :31:15.to her party. And there will be full coverage of the Prime Minister's
:31:16. > :31:18.reshuffle and more reaction to the resignation of Maria Miller
:31:19. > :31:22.throughout the afternoon on the BBC News Channel. Now on BBC One it's
:31:23. > :31:23.time for the news where you