:00:00. > :00:07.The US air strike against the Islamic State militant
:00:08. > :00:10.known as Jihadi John - US sources say there's a high degree
:00:11. > :00:16.The militant achieved worldwide notoriety after appearing
:00:17. > :00:25.in a series of videos showing the beheading of Western hostages.
:00:26. > :00:31.If this strike was successful, and we still await confirmation of that,
:00:32. > :00:32.it would be a strike at the heart of Isil.
:00:33. > :00:34.We'll be looking at the significance of this strike against
:00:35. > :00:39.Russia waits to discover what sanctions it might face
:00:40. > :00:44.The sentencing begins of the couple convicted
:00:45. > :00:50.of the murder and manslaughter of the Bristol teenager Becky Watts.
:00:51. > :00:52.Is a little of what's bad for you, good for you?
:00:53. > :00:58.Power lines brought down and schools close - Storm Abigail
:00:59. > :01:02.hits the north of Scotland, with gusts of over 80 miles an hour.
:01:03. > :01:06.A report by MPs says it's staggering that
:01:07. > :01:10.million pounds of public money was handed to the charity Kids Company.
:01:11. > :01:12.And infested with false black widow spiders -
:01:13. > :01:34.two east London primary schools close.
:01:35. > :01:37.Good afternoon and welcome to the BBC News at One.
:01:38. > :01:40.He became the face of a gruesome propaganda campaign
:01:41. > :01:43.by the Islamic State group - today US sources say there is a high
:01:44. > :01:46.degree of certainty that Mohammed Emwazi, known as Jihadi John,
:01:47. > :01:54.The Kuwaiti-born British militant had appeared in several videos of
:01:55. > :01:59.Speaking in Downing Street, David Cameron this morning said the UK's
:02:00. > :02:01.intelligence agencies and armed forces had been working hand in
:02:02. > :02:10.He said that although it was still uncertain whether the attack had
:02:11. > :02:12.been successful, targeting Mohammed Emwazi was the right thing to do.
:02:13. > :02:19.Here's our security correspondent Frank Gardner.
:02:20. > :02:26.Masked and menacing, Mohammed Emwazi was was dubbed by the media Jihadi
:02:27. > :02:29.John. He became the stuff of nightmares, beheading hostages on
:02:30. > :02:36.camera, issuing threats from Islamic State's base in Syria. I'm back,
:02:37. > :02:39.Obama... This morning, David Cameron announced a US and British
:02:40. > :02:43.intelligence operation had resulted in a drone strike, believed to have
:02:44. > :02:49.killed him. This was a combined effort and the contribution of both
:02:50. > :02:53.of our countries was essential. Emwazi is a barbaric murder. He was
:02:54. > :02:59.shown in those sickening videos of the beheading of British aid
:03:00. > :03:02.workers. He posed an ongoing and serious threat to innocent
:03:03. > :03:09.civilians, not only in Syria, but around the world. The hostages he
:03:10. > :03:11.murdered included Britain's Alan Henning from Salford and David
:03:12. > :03:23.Haynes from Scotland, and Americans, James Foley, Peter Kassig and Steven
:03:24. > :03:28.Sotloff. The militant was born in Kuwait in 1998. He and his family
:03:29. > :03:34.moved to London in 1994, when he was aged six. He went to school in Saint
:03:35. > :03:40.John 's Wood in London and he attended Westminster University from
:03:41. > :03:44.2006 until 2009. By 2013, Mohammed Emwazi had moved to Syria to join
:03:45. > :03:48.the group calling itself Islamic State. He put himself in charge of
:03:49. > :03:54.guarding Western hostages, taunting them before he killed them on
:03:55. > :03:58.camera. His violence, his sadism was surely personal. I don't think he
:03:59. > :04:06.received any instructions to mystery tours. I don't -- to mistreat us. I
:04:07. > :04:15.think it was even his initiative, the initiative of his group to miss
:04:16. > :04:21.handlers. GCHQ, Britain's secret listening station, was ordered last
:04:22. > :04:24.year to make finding Emwazi a top priority. Analysts had been working
:04:25. > :04:29.closely with Americans to break into Islamic State's encrypted
:04:30. > :04:32.communications. Now, his likely demise is being assessed. I think
:04:33. > :04:36.his death plays both ways. On the one hand, it shows Britain and
:04:37. > :04:40.America will get you, if you are on our list and known to be a murderous
:04:41. > :04:43.jihadists, we are coming at you and there is no place to hide. On the
:04:44. > :04:47.other hand, you will now be a martyr, he will be lauded and it
:04:48. > :04:53.will give him the notoriety he surely wanted. If Emwazi's debt is
:04:54. > :04:57.confirmed, it will be some relief to the families of those he
:04:58. > :05:01.slaughtered. Their only regret, that he was never brought to trial.
:05:02. > :05:03.And Frank is here- if Mohammed Emwazi is dead, how big
:05:04. > :05:11.It's not a big blow to them at all, really. He played no role in their
:05:12. > :05:15.military conquest, sweeping across Syria and Iraq. He was a propaganda
:05:16. > :05:20.tool to them, a very useful one at the time, last year. He has not been
:05:21. > :05:24.seen since he was unmasked in February. At least he has had no
:05:25. > :05:29.real profile. He has kept a really low profile because he knew he was
:05:30. > :05:34.being targeted. He had a small group of friends, he was extremely careful
:05:35. > :05:38.digitally, not to leave any kind of digital trail. I don't know exactly
:05:39. > :05:41.how they got him, whether it was satellite intelligence, signals, or
:05:42. > :05:45.whether somebody on the ground betrayed him. David Cameron made it
:05:46. > :05:50.really clear to the intelligence agencies in this country, MI5, MI6
:05:51. > :05:54.and GCHQ, find this guy. Ideally, he would have been brought to trial and
:05:55. > :05:58.stood trial, probably in the States, and ended up spending the rest of
:05:59. > :06:01.his life in a high security prison somewhere. That hasn't happened,
:06:02. > :06:04.they have done this and I think the families will be quite relieved, if
:06:05. > :06:13.it is confirmed he is dead. Many thanks. Gary O'Donoghue is in
:06:14. > :06:16.Washington. Gary, despite what Frank was saying there, the Americans will
:06:17. > :06:22.nonetheless be claiming this as a massive propaganda victory? Well, as
:06:23. > :06:26.Frank said, this was a very important target for London, but
:06:27. > :06:30.equally important to Washington to get Emwazi. Basically because he
:06:31. > :06:34.murdered a number of Americans, brutally murdered a number of
:06:35. > :06:40.Americans, on video, and paraded that around the world. That has
:06:41. > :06:46.caused terror here and, of course, in other countries. It also made him
:06:47. > :06:53.a recruiting Sergeant to Islamist around the world, brought in to
:06:54. > :06:56.Syria. He was a high-value individual, as the Americans
:06:57. > :07:00.describe them. They wanted to get him very much. We know they sent two
:07:01. > :07:04.drones on Thursday night to get him. They tell us they were tracking him
:07:05. > :07:07.for some time. They had this vehicle and they believe they killed him,
:07:08. > :07:12.along with another individual in the vehicle. They will go through a
:07:13. > :07:17.process now trying to verify this. They do that, on occasions, using
:07:18. > :07:21.signals intelligence on the ground, checking e-mails, text, phone calls,
:07:22. > :07:24.whatever people are saying to each other and using human intelligence
:07:25. > :07:34.on the ground. They can take some time to be Def -- definite. If they
:07:35. > :07:35.are wrong, he could pop up and say, here I am.
:07:36. > :07:38.And we'll have more on the situation in Syria later in the programme.
:07:39. > :07:41.Athletics' world governing body the IAAF will decide today what
:07:42. > :07:44.sanctions to impose on Russia over claims its competitors were involved
:07:45. > :07:48.The IAAF head Lord Coe has come under fire from one leading British
:07:49. > :07:52.athlete, who's questioned whether he can clean up the organisation's act.
:07:53. > :07:59.Our sports correspondent Richard Conway reports.
:08:00. > :08:09.This report contains flashing images. Lord Coe is fighting to save
:08:10. > :08:13.the integrity of athletics and his own credibility. Later today, the
:08:14. > :08:16.IAAF will decide whether to suspend the Russian athletics Federation.
:08:17. > :08:19.But cheating implicated the governing body as well and took
:08:20. > :08:27.place while Lord Coe was Vice President. Now, Britain's captain at
:08:28. > :08:31.this summer 's world athletics Championships is questioning whether
:08:32. > :08:34.he is the right person to rebuild the sport's reputation. I think it
:08:35. > :08:37.is pretty disrespectful to everybody else who is involved in athletics to
:08:38. > :08:42.believe that the Vice President didn't know what was going on within
:08:43. > :08:47.the IAAF. That is his job. If he hasn't been doing it, then, well, if
:08:48. > :08:54.he believes he didn't know what was going on, he's not been doing his
:08:55. > :08:58.job properly. Russia's President says that clean athletes should not
:08:59. > :09:02.be collectively punished over actions of those that cheated. He
:09:03. > :09:06.has promised that sports federations within the country will cooperate
:09:07. > :09:12.fully with international doping agencies. But a suspension is
:09:13. > :09:15.likely. With the Rio Olympic Games looming next August, his comments
:09:16. > :09:19.are being viewed as an attempt to mitigate the severity of any
:09:20. > :09:26.exclusion. Investigators say doping was state-supported, involving
:09:27. > :09:30.doctors, coaches and lab staff. Government departments have been
:09:31. > :09:36.accused of intimidation and the IAAF stands accused of corruption and
:09:37. > :09:39.bribery within its ranks. If the reputation of athletics is to ever
:09:40. > :09:46.recover, then Lord Coe and his colleagues know they must now send a
:09:47. > :09:50.strong message. However, track and field's current problems have been
:09:51. > :09:54.outlined is just the tip of the iceberg. Today's decision will help
:09:55. > :09:55.set the tone, then, for the future of athletics and maybe for sport as
:09:56. > :09:57.a whole. The couple who killed the Bristol
:09:58. > :10:00.teenager Becky Watts will be Nathan Matthews, who's 28,
:10:01. > :10:04.has been found guilty of murdering Matthews' 21-year-old girlfriend,
:10:05. > :10:08.Shauna Hoare, Becky was suffocated
:10:09. > :10:27.and her body dismembered. Yes, the judge is going to pass his
:10:28. > :10:30.sentence at 2pm. This morning it has been a chance for Becky's family to
:10:31. > :10:34.tell him, to tell the court about the impact this terrible crime has
:10:35. > :10:39.had on all of them. There were very emotional scenes in court, as
:10:40. > :10:43.Becky's Mohan said in a statement that she is haunted by the memory of
:10:44. > :10:48.going to the mortuary to see her daughter's body after what had been
:10:49. > :10:51.done to her. She said that the crime committed by Matthews and Sean Paul
:10:52. > :10:58.had been like the worst of all horror movies, but, she said, this
:10:59. > :11:02.was real and this was my child. Two days after they were convicted, they
:11:03. > :11:06.returned to court. Nathan Matthews and his girlfriend, Shauna Hoare,
:11:07. > :11:13.here to be sentenced for killing Becky Watts. In a victim impact
:11:14. > :11:17.statement read in court, Becky's father, Darren, pushing his wife
:11:18. > :11:21.here, said they will be for ever haunted by what he called this
:11:22. > :11:24.despicable act of evil. He said when his 16-year-old daughter was
:11:25. > :11:28.murdered and her body dismembered, everything beautiful had been ripped
:11:29. > :11:32.from the family. He said he would never forgive his stepson, Nathan
:11:33. > :11:37.Matthews, for murdering Becky, saying that the crime had been born
:11:38. > :11:41.out of hatred, jealousy and greed. As the judge listened to the family
:11:42. > :11:44.statements, many relatives and members of the public aware that in
:11:45. > :11:48.the packed courtroom. In the dock, Nathan Matthews and Shauna Hoare
:11:49. > :11:53.showed little emotion. They were sitting apart and did not appear to
:11:54. > :11:57.look at one another. The jury decided on Wednesday that they had
:11:58. > :12:02.lied to police and have actually conspired to kidnap Becky earlier
:12:03. > :12:06.this year. They found him guilty of murder, and her guilty of
:12:07. > :12:11.manslaughter. Becky's remains were found hidden in a neighbour's garden
:12:12. > :12:14.shed in a number of boxes and bags. The family asked the judge to
:12:15. > :12:16.consider what they called the dreadful brutality of the crime when
:12:17. > :12:25.he gives his sentencing. After the raw emotion, the personal
:12:26. > :12:29.power of those family statements, we also had some technical legal
:12:30. > :12:34.argument in court from the barristers of different sides. The
:12:35. > :12:38.prosecution say to the judge, should he consider giving Nathan Matthews a
:12:39. > :12:41.whole life imprisonment, which would mean he would have no chance of
:12:42. > :12:45.parole? The judge will be considering that at the moment,
:12:46. > :12:50.before he gives the sentence at two o'clock. Shauna Hoare's barrister,
:12:51. > :12:55.on the other hand, said she was not what he described as a evil child
:12:56. > :12:59.killer. In some ways, he said she might be considered a victim of
:13:00. > :13:02.Nathan Matthews in her own right. Both sides have put the arguments
:13:03. > :13:06.forwards. The family and lawyers have spoken. The judge will speak
:13:07. > :13:08.from two o'clock. Full coverage on the BBC News Channel.
:13:09. > :13:10.?13 billion of financial assets from Northern Rock -
:13:11. > :13:13.mainly mortgages - have been sold to a private equity firm.
:13:14. > :13:16.The Government has now sold more than 85% of the bank's assets.
:13:17. > :13:19.Northern Rock collapsed in 2007, marking the start
:13:20. > :13:24.The Chancellor, George Osborne, says the proceeds will reduce
:13:25. > :13:27.Our business editor Kamal Ahmed is here.
:13:28. > :13:30.Does this mean we, the taxpayers, are gradually getting
:13:31. > :13:41.Well, it does, but before we try to answer that question, it is always
:13:42. > :13:46.worth remembering that this is actually about real people. About
:13:47. > :13:51.120,000 mortgage holders who were with Northern Rockwell wake this
:13:52. > :13:57.morning and realise that their mortgages are being run by a private
:13:58. > :14:00.equity firm in America. TSB, the UK bank, has also bought some of these
:14:01. > :14:03.mortgages. The terms and conditions of the mortgage should not change,
:14:04. > :14:07.there should be no concern for mortgage holders. On the issue of
:14:08. > :14:14.getting money back, two quick answers to that. We spent about ?20
:14:15. > :14:19.million, sorry, ?30 million, saving Northern Rock in 2007, when it
:14:20. > :14:24.collapsed. We have got back, since the sales of the assets, about 22
:14:25. > :14:28.billion. There is about 8 billion outstanding. Of course, the banking
:14:29. > :14:32.crisis was followed by the economic crisis. The costs were far bigger
:14:33. > :14:38.than just the direct injection of money into Northern Rock. The costs
:14:39. > :14:42.of the wider support for the financial system, as well as
:14:43. > :14:47.Northern Rock, has been put at ?60 billion for that bank. Of that
:14:48. > :14:52.money, about ?25 billion is still outstanding. So, the Treasury still
:14:53. > :14:55.has some way to go to say we have all of the money back. But they will
:14:56. > :14:58.argue we have made a very strong start. Many thanks.
:14:59. > :15:01.The BBC has learned that ministers are considering adding homeopathy to
:15:02. > :15:03.a blacklist of treatments that doctors in England are banned
:15:04. > :15:07.Homeopathy is based on the idea that diluting substances which cause
:15:08. > :15:13.Our health correspondent Dominic Hughes reports.
:15:14. > :15:16.The NHS in England spends about ?4 million a year
:15:17. > :15:19.on homoeopathy, despite its own website admitting there is no good
:15:20. > :15:24.That amount is a tiny fraction of the ?15.5 billion spent
:15:25. > :15:30.But a charity that describes itself as providing evidence-based science
:15:31. > :15:33.has threatened to take the NHS to court if it continues to
:15:34. > :15:38.Doctors really should be prescribing medicines that are known to work.
:15:39. > :15:40.Now, homoeopathy is a great example of
:15:41. > :15:47.a medicine that is not known to work.
:15:48. > :15:55.And yet the National Health Service spends billions of pounds on it.
:15:56. > :15:59.Ailments commonly treated with homoeopathic remedies include
:16:00. > :16:00.asthma, ear infections, hay fever, depression and arthritis,
:16:01. > :16:04.We know from the science that, actually,
:16:05. > :16:07.when GPs incorporate homoeopathic medicine, they get better results.
:16:08. > :16:10.Either they get the same results with less drugs, or the patients
:16:11. > :16:17.Drugs can be blacklisted by the NHS for a new range of reasons.
:16:18. > :16:20.For example, if there are cheaper alternatives or because they are
:16:21. > :16:25.It would not affect people buying them over the counter or privately.
:16:26. > :16:38.The Minister for Life Sciences, George Freeman, told the BBC:
:16:39. > :16:41.That consultation is likely to start next year.
:16:42. > :16:57.The US air strike against the Islamic State militant
:16:58. > :17:00.known as Jihadi John - US sources say there's a high degree
:17:01. > :17:04.Coming up - Pudsey is back again but for the first time ever Children
:17:05. > :17:06.in Need will go ahead without Sir Terry Wogan.
:17:07. > :17:10.Thousand of jobs and apprenticeships on offer for young Londoners
:17:11. > :17:13.as the country's biggest careers fair takes place in East London.
:17:14. > :17:15.More world class tennis at the O2 Arena
:17:16. > :17:28.as the venue is confirmed for the ATP world tour finals until 2018.
:17:29. > :17:30.It's six weeks since Russian aircraft began an intensive bombing
:17:31. > :17:36.Russia says its air campaign in Syria has destroyed more than 2,000
:17:37. > :17:41.Our correspondent Steven Rosenberg is in Syria and has been
:17:42. > :17:44.following how people there are reacting to the Russian military
:17:45. > :17:52.In the Syrian town of Tartus, they've taken to the streets to
:17:53. > :18:03.Vladimir Putin is being hailed as a hero for supporting President Assad.
:18:04. > :18:08.At times, it doesn't look the most spontaneous outpouring of emotion.
:18:09. > :18:11.But the Russian Defence Ministry that brought us here as part
:18:12. > :18:15.of a tour assures us this rally wasn't organised for our cameras,
:18:16. > :18:19.and that these Syrians really do respect President Putin.
:18:20. > :18:22.We are here to say thank you, Russia, thank you, Syria,
:18:23. > :18:31.Everybody here thanks Putin, and the feeling is that Putin is
:18:32. > :18:40.The message this Putin street party is supposed to convey is clear,
:18:41. > :18:47.that the Syrian people are grateful for Russian military support.
:18:48. > :18:53.For six weeks now, Russian bombers have been taking off round-the-clock
:18:54. > :19:01.Their mission, air strikes on what Moscow calls terrorist targets.
:19:02. > :19:04.From the air, Russia has been providing vital support for
:19:05. > :19:12.But not everyone in Syria welcomes the intervention.
:19:13. > :19:14.Russia has been accused of calling civilian casualties with
:19:15. > :19:25.Some jihadist groups have declared a holy war on Russia.
:19:26. > :19:28.This used to be the Latakia Sports Stadium.
:19:29. > :19:30.It is now a refugee camp for thousands
:19:31. > :19:39.Many of the people we spoke to here said Russia has given them hope.
:19:40. > :19:41.Mohammed told me that Russia's military operation is helping
:19:42. > :19:51.After three years here, he hopes to return home soon to Aleppo.
:19:52. > :19:55.So many have been killed in Syria, so many made homeless.
:19:56. > :19:58.After more than four years of war, people here just want
:19:59. > :20:06.Steve Rosenberg, BBC News, Latakia, Syria.
:20:07. > :20:09.The Kurdish president says his forces have recaptured
:20:10. > :20:13.the northern Iraqi town of Sinjar from Islamic State militants.
:20:14. > :20:17.Fighting has been going on around the town for four months.
:20:18. > :20:19.Islamic State fighters captured it in August last year,
:20:20. > :20:25.forcing thousands from the minority Yazidi community to flee.
:20:26. > :20:27.Myanmar's opposition, led by former political prisoner Aung
:20:28. > :20:31.San Suu Kyi, has won a resounding victory in the first contested vote
:20:32. > :20:36.It's won enough seats in parliament to form a government
:20:37. > :20:40.Jonah Fisher is in the capital Yangon.
:20:41. > :20:56.It is quite an extraordinary day in Burnley 's history. It is a history
:20:57. > :21:04.which has been dominated by military rule and, at times, brutal
:21:05. > :21:09.repression -- in Burmese history. Former political prisoner Aung San
:21:10. > :21:12.Suu Kyi, it has been confirmed, got two thirds of the vote on Sunday,
:21:13. > :21:16.which is enough to give her a majority in parliament, give her the
:21:17. > :21:20.right to choose the next president and former next government. She
:21:21. > :21:25.cannot become president, she is barred from that by the Constitution
:21:26. > :21:29.because she has two British sons, that she will be the government and
:21:30. > :21:38.choose someone else, effectively, to be a puppet who she will then
:21:39. > :21:43.control and give orders to. Today, year in Yangon, the real
:21:44. > :21:49.celebrations taking place. Aung San Suu Kyi's party might get as many as
:21:50. > :21:53.80% of the seats contested, but she has urged supporters not to gloat
:21:54. > :21:57.and celebrate but to be humble and respectful to those who have lost
:21:58. > :21:59.and to begin preparing for government. Thank you very much,
:22:00. > :22:01.Jonah Fisher. The Indian Prime Minister Narendra
:22:02. > :22:03.Modi is continuing his visit to the UK
:22:04. > :22:05.and is having lunch with the Queen. This afternoon he's expected to
:22:06. > :22:07.address 60,000 supporters Yesterday,
:22:08. > :22:10.Britain and India announced trade deals worth around ?10 billion - but
:22:11. > :22:13.the visit has attracted protests over what critics say is Mr Modi's
:22:14. > :22:28.authoritarian style of government. In the language of diplomacy,
:22:29. > :22:36.certain coded markers will tell a guest where they rank in the UK 's
:22:37. > :22:51.priorities. A guard of honour... The red arrows... A speech to
:22:52. > :23:01.Parliament... Dinner at Chequers. It was traka dal for the vegetarian Mr
:23:02. > :23:05.Modi. -- tarka dal. For all written's advances, trade between
:23:06. > :23:09.the two countries has fallen by ?1 billion in the past financial year.
:23:10. > :23:12.Easter Modi was invited to meet the British Indian business leaders who
:23:13. > :23:21.will advise him on the relationship can be included. -- improved.
:23:22. > :23:26.Diplomacy has been smart on the part of Britain, they have laid out the
:23:27. > :23:31.red carpet for Narendra Modi, but although chemistry between leaders
:23:32. > :23:34.is important, if the fundamentals of a relationship are sound, it doesn't
:23:35. > :23:41.really matter who the individuals are. Tonight, 60,000 British Indians
:23:42. > :23:45.will descend on Wembley Stadium for an event British politicians could
:23:46. > :23:51.only dream of. Mr Cameron, the warm up act for an Indian Prime Minister
:23:52. > :23:54.at times treated by his most ardent supporters as a superstar. Of
:23:55. > :24:03.course, plenty don't see about away. To finish, an immense firework
:24:04. > :24:06.display to celebrate the Indian festival of Diwali. Perhaps also a
:24:07. > :24:10.celebration of the Intel links these two countries share. -- the
:24:11. > :24:12.indelible links. The producer punched by Jeremy
:24:13. > :24:14.Clarkson is understood to be suing the former Top Gear host and the BBC
:24:15. > :24:20.for alleged racial discrimination. Court records show that Clarkson
:24:21. > :24:23.and the BBC attended a closed-door hearing with Oisin Tymon at a London
:24:24. > :24:25.employment tribunal on Friday. The case centres
:24:26. > :24:27.on verbal abuse that accompanied a physical attack, during which
:24:28. > :24:30.Clarkson struck Tymon in March. Clarkson was dropped by the BBC
:24:31. > :24:40.following an internal inquiry. Sir Terry Wogan's been forced to
:24:41. > :24:42.pull out of presenting this year's Children
:24:43. > :24:45.in Need because of back problems. He's hosted every live show
:24:46. > :24:47.since the event started in 1980, and said in a statement
:24:48. > :24:50."I'm going to miss our wonderful, inspiring evening together, but I'll
:24:51. > :24:53.be with you, watching, cheering and Dermot O'Leary will step
:24:54. > :24:56.in to present the programme. Our entertainment correspondent
:24:57. > :25:06.Lizo Mzumba reports. From the from the very beginning in
:25:07. > :25:11.the 1980s he has been the face of Children in Need. Peace, my
:25:12. > :25:19.children. Presenting appeal after appeal, year after year, for three
:25:20. > :25:24.and a half decades. Now, less than 24 hours before tonight's show, the
:25:25. > :25:29.BBC has announced that he will not be able to host the telethon this
:25:30. > :25:33.evening. In a statement he said, I'm going to miss our wonderful,
:25:34. > :25:38.inspiring evening together, but I will be with you watching, cheering
:25:39. > :25:42.and donating to a magnificent cause. Standing in for him will be
:25:43. > :25:46.presented Dermot O'Leary, who earlier this year raised more than
:25:47. > :25:54.half ?1 million for the charity comic relief with a 24-hour dance
:25:55. > :25:58.marathon. Tonight's show will feature
:25:59. > :26:02.performances from West End musicals including Bend It Like Beckham,
:26:03. > :26:08.including the customary array of stars. Across the country, people of
:26:09. > :26:16.all ages have been hard at work raising cash. And more money will
:26:17. > :26:26.come from the sales of the official Children in Need single, Take Me
:26:27. > :26:31.Home by Jess Glynne. All to help Children in Need raise another
:26:32. > :26:35.amazing total, despite the conspicuous absence tonight.
:26:36. > :26:38.The effects of Storm Abigail are being felt in
:26:39. > :26:40.the north of Scotland and across the Western Isles, Orkney and Shetland.
:26:41. > :26:43.70 schools have been closed and there have been power cuts.
:26:44. > :26:46.A gust of 84 miles an hour was recorded in the Outer Hebrides.
:26:47. > :26:52.Our Scotland correspondent Lorna Gordon is in Ullapool.
:26:53. > :27:02.Yes, it is pretty cold up here and also pretty blustery. Nothing like
:27:03. > :27:07.the wind speeds now that we saw overnights, especially out on the
:27:08. > :27:12.islands. The winds gusting to over 80 mph, leading to warnings for
:27:13. > :27:17.people not to travel unless absolutely necessary. The fear being
:27:18. > :27:25.over topping waves on low-lying roads and causeways. About 13,500
:27:26. > :27:30.homes overnight had that power disrupted. It is a movable feast,
:27:31. > :27:35.but I think most homes, barring perhaps a few hundred, have had
:27:36. > :27:40.their supplies reconnected. Although the waters look reasonably calm, it
:27:41. > :27:45.is a different matter entirely if you head into open water, which has
:27:46. > :27:50.led to disruptions with the ferry services. All the schools in the
:27:51. > :27:55.Western Isles are closed, as are those in Shetland. One extraordinary
:27:56. > :27:57.story emerging is of a man that had to be rescued from Ben Nevis
:27:58. > :28:05.overnight by Lochaber mountain rescue. They said he faced certain
:28:06. > :28:09.death. I think it is fair to say that most people heeded the warnings
:28:10. > :28:14.about Storm Abigail. It has been very heavily trailed, this first
:28:15. > :28:21.storm officially named by the Met Office. I think that is ultimately
:28:22. > :28:24.why, thankfully, the impact has been less the first feared.
:28:25. > :28:35.Here is Nick Miller. Abigail may be moving away, but problems still
:28:36. > :28:40.being felt in northern Scotland. Problem is further south as well. As
:28:41. > :28:45.ever, the weather watchers have been sending us pictures, telling us a
:28:46. > :28:51.story. This from North Wales of a tree down. Yes, the highest gust
:28:52. > :28:54.have been a northern Scotland, but Aberdaron in Plymouth have been from
:28:55. > :29:02.this morning. England and Wales have seen very squally gusts of wind.
:29:03. > :29:06.This came from Perth Kinross, some snow. Even in the showers in
:29:07. > :29:11.northern Scotland, it has been relatively low levels. Northbound,
:29:12. > :29:15.snow on the hills. Hail and thunder around. It is already feeling
:29:16. > :29:20.colder, but the temperatures come down further when the showers move
:29:21. > :29:26.on through, accompanied by squally, gusty winds. A bit of sunshine in
:29:27. > :29:32.some places, but it is not doing much for the feel, colder across the
:29:33. > :29:34.UK. Be careful heading out for Children in Need activities.
:29:35. > :29:39.Overnight the winds will ease a touch, showers come to be confined
:29:40. > :29:44.to northern and western Scotland. There could be a touch of frost.
:29:45. > :29:48.Then the next weather system, turn to the Atlantic, this long weather
:29:49. > :30:00.fronts, including some tropical moisture from the former Hurricane
:30:01. > :30:03.Joaquin 's. -- Hurricane Kate. This is how it plays out on Saturday,
:30:04. > :30:08.turning very wet in Northern Ireland for the weekend. We will all see
:30:09. > :30:12.some rain, apart from northern Scotland, on Saturday. The winds
:30:13. > :30:18.will pick up as well, milder and gradually filtering into Sunday.
:30:19. > :30:20.Again, it is about the rainfall in western hills, particularly through
:30:21. > :30:26.North Wales and north-west England full top 50 to 100 millimetres, in
:30:27. > :30:30.some of the highest exposed hills, ridiculously in Cumbria, we could
:30:31. > :30:35.see up to 200 millimetres on bringing flooding.
:30:36. > :30:39.Still some uncertainty about these totals. And the areas worst
:30:40. > :30:43.affected. But the Met Office has upgraded the warning to Amber,
:30:44. > :30:47.meaning be prepared, keep integer with weather forecasts, weather
:30:48. > :30:50.warnings and flood warnings right the way through the weekend in these
:30:51. > :30:54.areas, with this sort of rain expected.
:30:55. > :31:00.Still raining in some of these areas on Sunday. Heavy, persistent rain,
:31:01. > :31:04.plenty of cloud and turning milder. You can send in your pictures by
:31:05. > :31:08.signing up online to the growing band of weather watchers.
:31:09. > :31:17.Our top story: US Anne Wood strike against the Islamic State militant
:31:18. > :31:21.known as Jihadi John. -- air strike. US sources say there is a
:31:22. > :31:22.high degree of certainty he has been killed.