:00:07. > :00:09.Gaza endures one of its heaviest nights of bombardment as Israel
:00:10. > :00:19.Health officials say at least 60 Palestinians were killed overnight -
:00:20. > :00:34.We are striking and we are determined to strike this
:00:35. > :00:38.organisation and relieve ourselves from this threat.
:00:39. > :00:40.We'll get the latest from our correspondents on the ground.
:00:41. > :00:44.The EU is set to agree new sanctions against Russia- as international
:00:45. > :00:48.investigators again fail to reach the crash site of flight MH17.
:00:49. > :00:50.Tougher restrictions on benefits for EU migrants -
:00:51. > :00:53.the amount of time they can claim out of work benefits will be cut
:00:54. > :01:08.I am here and the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. 40,000 fans here and
:01:09. > :01:12.they have watched one of Scotland's's biggest hopes get off
:01:13. > :01:16.to a winning start in the 400 meter hurdles.
:01:17. > :01:19.And from Russia with love - the first British dancer to join
:01:20. > :01:23.the renowned Mariinsky Ballet is back to perform in Covent Garden.
:01:24. > :01:27.London's diesel drivers could face a ?10 fee to drive
:01:28. > :01:30.into the city centre - as part of efforts to tackle air pollution.
:01:31. > :01:33.And Tower Hamlet's Mayor fails to stop a legal challenge which could
:01:34. > :01:57.Good afternoon and welcome to the BBC News at One.
:01:58. > :02:01.Gaza has seen one of its heaviest nights of bombardment in the current
:02:02. > :02:05.conflict, as Israel carried out 60 air strikes, targeting sites
:02:06. > :02:09.associated with Hamas, and also damaging Gaza's only power plant.
:02:10. > :02:13.Local health officials said at least 60 Palestinians were killed.
:02:14. > :02:15.Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said
:02:16. > :02:19.his country would continue to act to destroy tunnels dug by militants
:02:20. > :02:21.under the Gaza-Israel border, which he said had the "sole purpose"
:02:22. > :02:27.of destroying Israeli citizens and killing Israeli children.
:02:28. > :02:36.Our correspondent Chris Morris sent this report.
:02:37. > :02:48.Overnight, Israel took its gloves off... Again. Massive explosions all
:02:49. > :02:54.across Gaza as flares lit up the night sky. On the ground, people
:02:55. > :03:02.moved to try and find safety. Daybreak. Among the targets, the TV
:03:03. > :03:07.station of Hamas. The house of Ismael Haniyeh as well. Both
:03:08. > :03:12.buildings were empty. This is a gradual increase in the pressure on
:03:13. > :03:17.this organisation. They have taken a new step every day and indeed, we
:03:18. > :03:21.are striking and are determined to strike this organisation and
:03:22. > :03:25.relieves ourselves from this thread. The port had also been hit. A small
:03:26. > :03:33.ring warehouse used by local fishermen. TRANSLATION: Each room
:03:34. > :03:40.had 20,000 dollars of fishing equipment in it. It is a
:03:41. > :03:48.catastrophe. Does Hamas use this place? That is a lie. Israel said it
:03:49. > :03:52.carried out 60 air strikes all over Gaza last night and there have been
:03:53. > :03:56.more this morning. You can see the damage that has been done just here.
:03:57. > :04:01.Benjamin Netanyahu said this could be a prolonged military campaign and
:04:02. > :04:18.the damage would be felt most deeply by the people of Gaza. This is
:04:19. > :04:25.barbaric, one man said. What do you think of the argument that if Hamas
:04:26. > :04:29.stopped firing rockets into Israel... No, no, this is no
:04:30. > :04:40.argument. Do not talk to me about rocket. Look at this. Look at this.
:04:41. > :04:46.This is nonsense. I am now south of Gaza City. This is the main fuel
:04:47. > :04:54.storage facility for Gaza's only power plant. It was hit by a strike
:04:55. > :05:00.last night. There is not much to say about it, just look at it. Israel
:05:01. > :05:05.said it also targeted command and control units last night. In
:05:06. > :05:11.southern Gaza they were looking through the rubble once again for
:05:12. > :05:15.the bodies of Palestinians. We can speak to our correspondent in
:05:16. > :05:19.Jerusalem, Bethany Bells. Israel says it is not going to give up
:05:20. > :05:28.until it has destroyed the network of tunnels. How easy will that be?
:05:29. > :05:33.It seems to be complicated. The Israeli army says it is identified
:05:34. > :05:36.30 of these tunnels but the army were caught off guard last night
:05:37. > :05:41.when five Israeli soldiers were killed I Palestinian militants
:05:42. > :05:48.coming up through the tunnels from Gaza into Israel. We have been told
:05:49. > :05:54.that these are not single shaft tunnels but they are a labyrinth of
:05:55. > :05:59.multiple underground passageways with many openings to the ground,
:06:00. > :06:03.and destroying them and finding them is difficult. Some Israelis are
:06:04. > :06:10.beginning to ask whether the government and army underestimated
:06:11. > :06:13.this threat, but in general there is widespread support for what the Army
:06:14. > :06:20.is doing in Gaza. Recent polls suggest that the Israelis are about
:06:21. > :06:32.90% in favour of what is going on in Gaza.
:06:33. > :06:35.David Cameron says the government intends to halve the amount of time
:06:36. > :06:38.From November, EU nationals will be able to claim
:06:39. > :06:41.for only three months, unless they have "very clear" job prospects.
:06:42. > :06:44.The Prime Minister says he wants the system to put Britain first,
:06:45. > :06:47.but Labour says the government has produced little in the way
:06:48. > :06:50.Our political correspondent Robin Brant reports.
:06:51. > :06:57.Immigration, we have warrants, open the door, please. Early this morning
:06:58. > :07:02.in west London, a team was out looking for people who may be in the
:07:03. > :07:08.UK working illegally. The Prime Minister, with his Home Secretary in
:07:09. > :07:13.tow, got to see for himself and then explain why it is those who may be
:07:14. > :07:16.here working illegally we will see changes. Some people are coming to
:07:17. > :07:20.work, some people are coming to claim, some people are pretending to
:07:21. > :07:25.be students. I have a clear approach to this. If you do not have a right
:07:26. > :07:30.to be here, you will be sent home, you should not be here. From the
:07:31. > :07:34.autumn, EU migrants will be able to claim jobseeker's allowance for
:07:35. > :07:39.three months, down from six. It is not so much a crackdown but a series
:07:40. > :07:43.of measures to make the UK less attractive to foreigners who do not
:07:44. > :07:49.want to work. It is not clear what the numbers are or how many will be
:07:50. > :07:54.affected. It is claimed 600 thousand migrants are in this country who are
:07:55. > :08:01.out of work. The EU said it is far lower at 60,000. We are from the EU
:08:02. > :08:06.and we deserved to have this benefit. I think the government are
:08:07. > :08:12.trying to do everything they can to support the people. You just have to
:08:13. > :08:19.get into employment or some form of training or a course. Or whatever.
:08:20. > :08:23.This should save taxpayers money. Parliament predicts tens of millions
:08:24. > :08:27.of pounds but it is more about domestic X. The Coalition Government
:08:28. > :08:31.and the Tories in particular are showing that they are trying to
:08:32. > :08:36.address that most vacations of issues that has made UKIP a force in
:08:37. > :08:41.politics. The scars are still healing after UKIP's big win in the
:08:42. > :08:44.May elections. David Cameron is trying to send out the message that
:08:45. > :08:49.he is tackling immigration. Labour say he is failing on his promise.
:08:50. > :08:56.This obsession with a net migrates targets. They said they would cut it
:08:57. > :09:00.to 100,000 but it is up to 200,000. They are taking their eye off the
:09:01. > :09:04.ball on things that could make a difference, like tackling illegal
:09:05. > :09:10.immigration. The reality is they guarantee freedom of movement means
:09:11. > :09:14.the Prime Minister is limited in what he can do to restrict numbers
:09:15. > :09:18.coming here. Let's speak to our chief political correspondent,
:09:19. > :09:24.Norman Smith. How much has this announcement got to do with pressure
:09:25. > :09:29.on the Conservatives from UKIP? This is all about sending out a series of
:09:30. > :09:34.political messages, more than migrant numbers. Yes, it is about
:09:35. > :09:38.appealing to those Tory voters who deserted Mr Cameron for Nigel
:09:39. > :09:43.Farage. It is also about sending out a message to EU migrants who then
:09:44. > :09:47.they can come to Britain and live on the benefit system. It is a message
:09:48. > :09:52.to the electorate generally to say David Cameron takes immigration
:09:53. > :09:58.seriously. It matters because he seems doomed to miss his target of
:09:59. > :10:01.getting net migration down to the tens of thousands by the next
:10:02. > :10:10.election. The figures suggest that it is going up to more than 200,000
:10:11. > :10:14.in the last year. When you ask ministers how big a problem we have
:10:15. > :10:18.here, how many EU migrants are coming here to claim benefits, there
:10:19. > :10:24.is silence, there is no answer. The EU insists there is no trouble with
:10:25. > :10:29.benefits tourism which reinforces the view that this is more about
:10:30. > :10:37.sending out a message that it is about migrant numbers. Norman, thank
:10:38. > :10:40.you. As fighting intensifies between government and rebel forces in
:10:41. > :10:45.eastern Ukraine, international investigators have been forced to
:10:46. > :10:49.cancel plans to travel to the crash site of the Malaysian airline plane.
:10:50. > :10:54.It is the third day running that the delegation has been turned back. 298
:10:55. > :11:04.people were killed and some bodies are still unaccounted for. This
:11:05. > :11:09.field of destruction could also be a war crime scene. For a third day,
:11:10. > :11:14.international inspectors have been blocked from getting here to carry
:11:15. > :11:18.on the vital task of finding the clues of what happened and how. It
:11:19. > :11:26.is feared there may be the remains of victims here as well. It is the
:11:27. > :11:30.new flare-up in fighting in Ukraine that has troubled inspectors. These
:11:31. > :11:39.images are from the pro-Russian rebels. Having retaken a town, the
:11:40. > :11:43.focus of year seems to be on Donetsk. It is perilously close to
:11:44. > :11:50.the crash site which has been in rebel hands. So, the grieving
:11:51. > :11:54.families are preparing to meet David Cameron, full of anguish and with
:11:55. > :11:59.many questions unanswered. There are urgent questions for the aviation
:12:00. > :12:09.industry about continuing to fly over conflict zones like Ukraine and
:12:10. > :12:15.Barack. -- Iraq. Our concern is that some airlines are making decisions
:12:16. > :12:19.based on financial security rather than saving six minutes. On the
:12:20. > :12:23.ground in Ukraine families have continued to flee the fighting, all
:12:24. > :12:30.part of the backdrop to a new level of economic sanctions on Russia
:12:31. > :12:34.for, they say, destabilising Ukraine, something that Moscow
:12:35. > :12:39.denies. It is the fallout from flight MH17 and the loss of life
:12:40. > :12:46.that may have tipped the balance in finally agreeing to turn the
:12:47. > :12:51.economic screw on Moscow. As the fighting continues, new sanctions
:12:52. > :12:56.are being drawn up by EU ambassadors in Brussels. Russia is accused of
:12:57. > :13:00.destabilising Ukraine with its support for rebels. We can speak to
:13:01. > :13:04.our correspondent in Brussels. The move seems to have changed, why is
:13:05. > :13:11.that and what can we expect in terms of sanctions? The 28th ambassadors
:13:12. > :13:17.of the EU are meeting now and we expect by the end of the day an
:13:18. > :13:22.announcement on sanctions, tougher than we have seen before. The EU has
:13:23. > :13:27.struggled to come up with any agreement about extending sanctions,
:13:28. > :13:31.beyond the limited asset freezes and travel bans for a certain number of
:13:32. > :13:37.individuals. There has been a feeling that the economic interests
:13:38. > :13:40.are too great for any agreement on wide-ranging economic sanctions to
:13:41. > :13:47.hurt specific sectors of the Russian economy. What changed was the
:13:48. > :13:51.downing of MH17. That has firmed the resolve of European leaders to get
:13:52. > :13:57.serious and sent Moscow a message. It does not believe Russia is doing
:13:58. > :14:01.enough to secure the crash site or doing enough to stop the flow of
:14:02. > :14:08.arms between Russia and eastern Ukraine. They want Vladimir Putin to
:14:09. > :14:12.the escalate this crisis. We expect sanctions on an EU wide basis
:14:13. > :14:16.against sections of the Russian economy, making it difficult for
:14:17. > :14:21.Russian banks to tap European capital, banning the flow of exports
:14:22. > :14:26.in energy and arms, all capital, banning the flow of exports
:14:27. > :14:33.that this economic pressure will convince President Putin to change
:14:34. > :14:42.course in the Ukraine. Thank you. The top story this lunch time:
:14:43. > :14:48.Israel steps up its bombardment of Gaza. Officials say 60 Palestinians
:14:49. > :14:54.were killed. Israel says it was targeting Hamas. Still to come. It
:14:55. > :14:59.is not cricket. A cricketer comes under fire over the wristbands he is
:15:00. > :15:02.wearing. On BBC London: Could thousands of derelict sites across
:15:03. > :15:06.the capital be the answer to easing the housing shortage? The fight to
:15:07. > :15:16.prevent these Victorian allotments from being concreted over.
:15:17. > :15:21.After a successful night on the track and in the pool for
:15:22. > :15:24.the home nations, today there are 31 more gold medals up for grabs,
:15:25. > :15:28.from track and field, to gymnastics, to mountain bikers taking to
:15:29. > :15:31.the trails around Glasgow. Well, with all the morning's news
:15:32. > :15:32.so far, our sports correspondent, Andy Swiss, is at
:15:33. > :15:42.the athletics venue, Hampden Park. It has been another busy morning
:15:43. > :15:50.around Glasgow, not least here inside Hampden Park. 40,000 fans
:15:51. > :15:55.inside the stadium. Tremendous atmosphere. They have seen plenty of
:15:56. > :16:00.the big names in action. He was the man who lapped into Olympic history
:16:01. > :16:07.will stop Greg Rutherford, gold in London, now going for gold in
:16:08. > :16:12.Glasgow. Wow. So far, so good. He qualified for the final with his
:16:13. > :16:17.very first leap. But for his team-mate Andy Turner there was only
:16:18. > :16:22.agony. The defending hurdles champion crashing out in the first
:16:23. > :16:28.round. His title defence over before it had begun. Make a mistake like
:16:29. > :16:33.that at the first hurdle, to come back is very difficult. Schoolboy
:16:34. > :16:41.error. Idiot. It was the return of the well-off, David Weir in the
:16:42. > :16:46.heats of the 1500m. He proved in a class of his own once again. The
:16:47. > :16:56.morning's biggest cheer was reserved for Scotland's biggest star. She
:16:57. > :17:01.carries the nation's hopes into the hurdles heat. What nerves? She
:17:02. > :17:07.charged to a comfortable win and safely through to the final. I have
:17:08. > :17:11.been dying to get out and get the first round out of the way and get a
:17:12. > :17:16.feel for the atmosphere. It was nerve wracking watching it all
:17:17. > :17:22.happening. Mountain biking came back, dropped for the last Games, it
:17:23. > :17:27.returned in style. The picturesque Trail south of Glasgow. The
:17:28. > :17:31.hillsides filled with fans as Canada and Australia battled it out. There
:17:32. > :17:38.has also been a new doping controversy. The 16-year-old from
:17:39. > :17:41.Nigeria won weightlifting gold last week. She has been provisionally
:17:42. > :17:49.suspended after failing a drugs test. Plenty for the fans to enjoy
:17:50. > :17:54.here inside Hampden Park. Let us talk to the Commonwealth 400m
:17:55. > :18:03.medallist. First of all, what they performance from a Lee Childs. She
:18:04. > :18:07.is one of the medal hopes on the track. She coped very well with the
:18:08. > :18:13.pressure. She controlled the race from the start and she had a great
:18:14. > :18:20.run. Fantastic. Give us an idea of some of the pressure. She is the
:18:21. > :18:25.poster girl. She is. Huge amount of pressure. She has coped really
:18:26. > :18:31.well. She said she is aware she is the poster girl, high expectations,
:18:32. > :18:35.but she is coping with it and enjoying it and that is how she is
:18:36. > :18:40.managing to deliver great performances. Tonight we have the
:18:41. > :18:50.final of the 400m. Tell us how you see it shaping up. It is between the
:18:51. > :18:57.three Jamaicans and the raining Commonwealth champion from Botswana.
:18:58. > :19:00.They are the four main contenders. The English girl in there, we will
:19:01. > :19:09.see what she can do. She did well to get to the final. Also the women's
:19:10. > :19:14.1500m final. That is the one I am excited about seeing. We have a
:19:15. > :19:21.Scottish girl, third in the Commonwealth at the moment. Two
:19:22. > :19:31.strong girls ahead of her. Two Kenyans. She will have it tough. A
:19:32. > :19:33.couple of English girls as well. Hannah England was silver medallist
:19:34. > :19:40.from the World Championships but not running quite so well this year. A
:19:41. > :19:44.busy morning for the athletes. Also busy for the Royals who have been
:19:45. > :19:50.touring the facilities in Glasgow as Lorna Gordon now reports. A royal
:19:51. > :19:54.visit to a grassroots sporting project in Glasgow. Prince Harry and
:19:55. > :19:57.Prince William are in the city for the Commonwealth Games. This morning
:19:58. > :20:06.they took the chance to show off their sporting price. We are
:20:07. > :20:12.delighted to welcome... -- sporting prowess. They have been enjoying the
:20:13. > :20:19.action at a number of different sports. Boxing, watching the
:20:20. > :20:23.swimming pool. At the gym asters, the royals were for a time almost
:20:24. > :20:30.unnoticed by the crowd for a short time at least. And informal tribute
:20:31. > :20:39.to her Majesty at the hockey. Perhaps because of this, the selfie
:20:40. > :20:46.who hit the internet. Inadvertently photo bombed by the Queen last week.
:20:47. > :20:56.We did ask, can we have a selfie with you? He said, I hate selfie 's.
:20:57. > :21:02.I will have a photo with you. We had a photo with him with a few of the
:21:03. > :21:09.other girls. While Prince Harry professes to hate what are known as
:21:10. > :21:15.selfies, he did pose happily in the back of someone else's. The royals
:21:16. > :21:22.showed their support for athletes from all over the Commonwealth
:21:23. > :21:26.competing for glory. We have some big finals here
:21:27. > :21:34.tonight. Including the men's 110m hurdles. 24 of the fans to look
:21:35. > :21:38.forward to. Back to you. -- plenty for all of the fans.
:21:39. > :21:40.the athletics venue, Hampden Park. Some of the South Korean teenagers
:21:41. > :21:44.who survived the ferry disaster last April in
:21:45. > :21:46.which over 300 people died have been telling a court about their ordeal.
:21:47. > :21:48.The captain and 14 crew members are on trial.
:21:49. > :21:50.Our Seoul correspondent, Lucy Williamson,
:21:51. > :21:53.was at court this morning and we spoke to her a short while ago.
:21:54. > :21:56.There have been some harrowing details that have emerged
:21:57. > :21:58.from the second day of the student testimony here in South Korea.
:21:59. > :22:03.One student described how the teenagers tried to stay in
:22:04. > :22:08.their places inside the ship when suddenly all the lights went out
:22:09. > :22:10.and the water started rushing in. We were swept along, he said.
:22:11. > :22:15.He described at least one student having to swim
:22:16. > :22:19.his way out to safety under water. Another schoolmate said how he was
:22:20. > :22:22.feeling guilty for having survived. A third, how he found it difficult
:22:23. > :22:27.even to take showers in the aftermath of the sinking.
:22:28. > :22:31.This trial, in which the captain and three other
:22:32. > :22:33.crew members are facing homicide charges, has also been examining
:22:34. > :22:37.the behaviour of the coastguards sent to rescue those on board.
:22:38. > :22:43.One student said the passengers inside the ship could be clearly
:22:44. > :22:46.seen by the rescuers outside. Another student described how he
:22:47. > :22:50.only received help from the coastguard as he was about
:22:51. > :22:54.to board the rescue helicopter. There is a strong sense here
:22:55. > :22:58.in South Korea that people need to know who to blame for this shocking
:22:59. > :23:01.and unexpected disaster. But the list of allegations is long
:23:02. > :23:14.and the targets include individuals, commercial interests
:23:15. > :23:16.and state organisations. The Shadow Health Secretary,
:23:17. > :23:20.Andy Burnham, has called for all contracts
:23:21. > :23:27.between the NHS and private providers in England to be halted
:23:28. > :23:29.until after the general election. He claims the health service
:23:30. > :23:31.is being forcibly privatised. Further privatisation
:23:32. > :23:36.of services should not proceed until the public have had a proper say.
:23:37. > :23:39.Today I have written to the chief executive of NHS England to ask that
:23:40. > :23:42.no further contracts for NHS clinical services are signed until
:23:43. > :23:45.after the next election when we have had a chance to have that debate.
:23:46. > :23:49.Well, our health editor, Hugh Pym, is with me.
:23:50. > :23:58.Why is Andy Burnham raising this? I think he is trying to tap into a
:23:59. > :24:03.groundswell of opinion against what he calls for Sprite is. This view
:24:04. > :24:06.holds the Government's reforms to the NHS in England a couple of years
:24:07. > :24:14.ago opened the back door to private companies to come in. The people who
:24:15. > :24:18.commission health care argue they are obliged to put things out to
:24:19. > :24:23.tender. Staffordshire, a contract for cancer care, contracts are out
:24:24. > :24:32.there and up for grabs. The argument is the very fabric of the NHS is
:24:33. > :24:36.being threatened. But the Government says Labour started allowing the NHS
:24:37. > :24:40.to commission hip replacements from private hospitals. If you look at
:24:41. > :24:45.the percentage spent on clinical provision from the private sector,
:24:46. > :24:52.it is only about 6.6% of the overall NHS budget in England. The
:24:53. > :24:57.Government says they have given the power of decision-making to local
:24:58. > :25:03.clinical commissioning groups, GPs in effect. I think this argument
:25:04. > :25:08.will run and run until the election. Thank you very much.
:25:09. > :25:10.is with me. England's cricketers have
:25:11. > :25:12.re-inforced their strong position on day three of the third Test
:25:13. > :25:15.against India. The tourists are 108-3 at lunch,
:25:16. > :25:17.but as our sports correspondent, Joe Wilson, reports,
:25:18. > :25:19.at the start of the day, it was England batsman Moren Ali who
:25:20. > :25:25.was attracting all the attention. Moeen Ali is a serious cricketer,
:25:26. > :25:32.thoughtful man, a Muslim. What opinion is he allowed to express
:25:33. > :25:34.during play? On Monday, he wore wristbands supporting Gaza and
:25:35. > :25:39.Palestine. Would he do it today question he not say. The cricket's
:25:40. > :25:42.governing body warned him not to. England said he could. Look for the
:25:43. > :25:48.long sleeves in the centre of the shot. His wrists appeared bare.
:25:49. > :25:56.England's job was to take wickets. Close here, not out. The umpire
:25:57. > :26:00.statement was clear. Highly visible on England's collars, a charitable
:26:01. > :26:09.cause theme permissible. It was Broad who got the breakthrough. A
:26:10. > :26:14.significant obstacle removed. India 56-2, still over 500 behind.
:26:15. > :26:24.Sometimes when you are bowling, the stumps can seem 15 feet macro tool.
:26:25. > :26:28.-- 15ft tall. Anderson found the edge of his bat. The ball bounced in
:26:29. > :26:34.front of Ian Bell who was in pain and took a precautionary trip to
:26:35. > :26:40.hospital. Vijay had made over 300 runs in the first two Tests. To get
:26:41. > :26:43.him out before lunch as well as a cause for serious celebration. Moeen
:26:44. > :26:49.Ali was using his wrist to bowl before the end of the session. Did
:26:50. > :26:55.it brushed the glove? Probably. Not out. Everyone obeys the umpire.
:26:56. > :26:57.was attracting all the attention. Four years ago,
:26:58. > :27:00.Xander Parish left Hull to become the first British dancer, male or
:27:01. > :27:02.female, to join the illustrious Mariinsky Ballet in Russia.
:27:03. > :27:08.Well, after being promoted to soloist earlier this year, he's
:27:09. > :27:11.back in the UK starring in three ballets in London's Covent Garden.
:27:12. > :27:14.Our arts correspondent, Rebecca Jones, has been to see him.
:27:15. > :27:18.On stage and in the spotlight, Xander Parish is Romeo
:27:19. > :27:22.in Romeo and Juliet. For a boy born in the North
:27:23. > :27:26.of England, it is no surprise he was inspired by Billy Elliot.
:27:27. > :27:29.It was just great to see ballet and boys dancing brought to
:27:30. > :27:33.a wider audience. I think Billy had it a lot
:27:34. > :27:36.harder than I did, to be honest. I didn't go down any coal mines.
:27:37. > :27:38.Away from the gilded grandeur of Covent Garden is the Skelton Hooper
:27:39. > :27:49.School of Dance and Theatre in Hull. Vanessa Hooper taught him ballet.
:27:50. > :27:55.She can still picture a small boy arriving
:27:56. > :27:57.for his first lesson 20 years ago. I remember this enthusiastic little
:27:58. > :28:03.boy running into class, with his sister, in his black shorts
:28:04. > :28:07.and a T-shirt, looking very out of control, rather like Bambi on ice.
:28:08. > :28:16.Then eventually he started to understand the technique and I
:28:17. > :28:19.realised he had these beautiful legs and feet.
:28:20. > :28:21.Now he is in a very different class. From Hull,
:28:22. > :28:25.he joined the Royal Ballet, but no one took much notice of him and he
:28:26. > :28:28.became increasingly frustrated. You are already in the cream
:28:29. > :28:33.of the crop. Each year they kick people out.
:28:34. > :28:35.The cream joins the company. Out of that cream,
:28:36. > :28:38.everyone is trying to get the same parts and the same roles.
:28:39. > :28:41.It is very difficult to break out. It took a visit from the
:28:42. > :28:44.Mariinsky Ballet to spot his potential and invite him
:28:45. > :28:47.to join the ballet in Russia. I feel very privileged to
:28:48. > :28:51.have gone for the Mariinsky. It is a huge honour.
:28:52. > :28:56.For a Brit, it is unheard of. It is a huge experience for me and
:28:57. > :29:00.one I would not change for anything. Now he is returning home a star.
:29:01. > :29:11.Quite a journey for the Yorkshire lad turned Russian romantic lead.
:29:12. > :29:17.Time for a look at the weather. Here's Stav Daneos.
:29:18. > :29:23.This is the satellite picture of what has been going on for the last
:29:24. > :29:27.few hours. A bit of cloud across the south-east which cleared away.
:29:28. > :29:32.Plenty of unbroken sunshine. The different story further north and
:29:33. > :29:37.west. Thicker cloud and a breeze and spots of rain. More of a breeze in
:29:38. > :29:43.Glasgow for the Games. It could be quite gusty at times. The odd
:29:44. > :29:48.shower. As we had through the course of this afternoon, the cloud
:29:49. > :29:53.spilling further south. Not spoiling the sunshine in the south-east.
:29:54. > :29:59.Across Scotland and the Northern Isles, frequent showers. The best of
:30:00. > :30:05.the sunshine for eastern Scotland. For Northern Ireland, thicker cloud,
:30:06. > :30:09.the odd spot of light rain, maybe the odd shower pushing into the
:30:10. > :30:17.north-west of England. Maybe for the Pennines. In the south, holding onto
:30:18. > :30:21.the sunshine. Very warm. Unbroken sunshine for the cricket at
:30:22. > :30:24.Southampton. Looks like there will not be any interruptions there.
:30:25. > :30:30.Perfect conditions. This evening and overnight, the band of cloud will
:30:31. > :30:38.continue to advance south-east. Clearing away. Not really any rain.
:30:39. > :30:46.Slightly cooler air. Cloudy and breezy in the north-east. Wednesday,
:30:47. > :30:49.the northern half of the UK will remain unsettled. Closer to the area
:30:50. > :30:54.of low pressure. Quite a breeze blowing in from the west. Midlands,
:30:55. > :31:00.much of Wales, southern England, a fine day to come. Variable amounts
:31:01. > :31:07.of cloud. Mainly dry. Not quite as hot. Looking at upper teens to
:31:08. > :31:11.around 1 degrees. Thursday looks like the unsettled conditions
:31:12. > :31:14.continue to move further south. Outbreaks of rain for Northern
:31:15. > :31:22.Ireland, northern England and Scotland. Breezy too. The south-east
:31:23. > :31:27.just holding onto the dry weather. Friday on the weekend, an area of
:31:28. > :31:30.low pressure turns things more unsettled. As we look towards the
:31:31. > :31:33.end of the week, things turn more unsettled but good news for the
:31:34. > :31:36.gardens that need some rain.