0:00:04 > 0:00:06Tonight at six...
0:00:06 > 0:00:09A desperate search for survivors after mudslides in California leave
0:00:09 > 0:00:13at least 15 people dead.
0:00:13 > 0:00:17Rivers of mud and huge boulders crashing into homes -
0:00:17 > 0:00:18leaving dozens trapped.
0:00:18 > 0:00:20We dug down and found a little baby.
0:00:20 > 0:00:25I don't know where it came from.
0:00:25 > 0:00:28We got it out, got the mud out of its mouth.
0:00:28 > 0:00:30I hope it's OK.
0:00:30 > 0:00:36They took it right to the hospital.
0:00:36 > 0:00:38Another survivor pulled to safety but officials fear
0:00:38 > 0:00:39the number of dead could rise.
0:00:39 > 0:00:42The firefighters won't let us go up there any further.
0:00:42 > 0:00:48They say the situation can change in the blink of an eye.
0:00:48 > 0:00:51As you can see, this is how dangerous it is.
0:00:51 > 0:00:53Some of those affected now are the very ones who faced
0:00:53 > 0:00:54wildfires last month.
0:00:54 > 0:00:56Also tonight...
0:00:56 > 0:00:58British factories are booming - the longest run in manufacturing
0:00:58 > 0:01:01growth for 20 years.
0:01:01 > 0:01:04The former football coach accused of dozens of child sex offences.
0:01:04 > 0:01:07The court hears from an alleged victim.
0:01:07 > 0:01:11And lost and stranded on a Cornish beach.
0:01:11 > 0:01:13Rescuers struggle to cope with the number of seal
0:01:13 > 0:01:15pups they're finding.
0:01:15 > 0:01:19Coming up in Sportsday on BBC News...
0:01:19 > 0:01:20Arsene Wenger must watch from the stands again as Arsenal
0:01:20 > 0:01:22play Chelsea in the EFL Cup semifinal first leg at
0:01:22 > 0:01:32Stamford Bridge.
0:01:45 > 0:01:48Good evening and welcome to the BBC News at Six.
0:01:48 > 0:01:51At least 15 people have been killed by mudslides and flash floods
0:01:51 > 0:01:54in Southern California.
0:01:54 > 0:01:57Rescue workers are now mounting a desperate search for survivors,
0:01:57 > 0:02:04fearing that hundreds of people might still be trapped.
0:02:04 > 0:02:07Many of those affected now are the very same people who last
0:02:07 > 0:02:08month fled from wild fires.
0:02:08 > 0:02:10The extreme weather has hit Carpinteria,
0:02:10 > 0:02:12Santa Barbara and Montecito, from where our correspondent,
0:02:12 > 0:02:17James Cook, reports.
0:02:17 > 0:02:24On California's Pacific coast, ordeal by the elements continues.
0:02:24 > 0:02:29First, they enjoyed the largest buyer in the state's history. Next
0:02:29 > 0:02:34came torrential rain, more intense than anyone here could remember.
0:02:34 > 0:02:38Then, within minutes, destruction, caused by an unstoppable wall of mud
0:02:38 > 0:02:45and debris. This 14-year-old survived. Even she does not know
0:02:45 > 0:02:50how. Firefighters using rescue dogs heard her screams and worked for
0:02:50 > 0:02:57hours to pull her from the wreckage of her home. Her family's fate is
0:02:57 > 0:03:04unknown. Everyone here, it seems, has their own incredible story of a
0:03:04 > 0:03:08struggle to survive.Once the boulders and trees came through our
0:03:08 > 0:03:13house we climbed up onto the roof and waited till the creek went down
0:03:13 > 0:03:18a bit and then we climbed off the roof and got to our neighbour's. We
0:03:18 > 0:03:23just got pulled out of there by the firefighters. Police are now
0:03:23 > 0:03:32rescuing neighbours.We heard a little baby crying. We dug down and
0:03:32 > 0:03:42found a little baby.
0:03:45 > 0:03:48We got it out, got the mud out of its mouth.
0:03:48 > 0:03:50I'm hoping it's OK.
0:03:50 > 0:03:52They took it right to the hospital.
0:03:52 > 0:03:56But it was just a baby, four feet down in the mud, under the rocks.
0:03:56 > 0:03:59I'm glad we got him.
0:03:59 > 0:04:02A mother and her newborn baby are winched to safety. The little girl
0:04:02 > 0:04:07makes it onto the roof of her seven-year-old brother is saved as
0:04:07 > 0:04:15well. Terrifying moments but they are the lucky ones.How do you
0:04:15 > 0:04:22describe it? It is devastating.The fire created a situation where the
0:04:22 > 0:04:27dirt was able to wash down. Had we still had all the vegetation on the
0:04:27 > 0:04:38hills it would not have been as much of an issue.Montecito.Why did it
0:04:38 > 0:04:46happen? The area soaked had been affected with wildfires. The earth
0:04:46 > 0:04:51was baked, leaving it slick and hard. The water had nowhere to go
0:04:51 > 0:04:58but down, fast, into the town of Montecito with devastating effect.
0:04:58 > 0:05:02This is one of the most exclusive communities in the United States,
0:05:02 > 0:05:14home to stars including actor Rob Lowe and TV presenter Alan
0:05:14 > 0:05:20DeGeneres. Oprah Winfrey posted a video from her garden. See how deep
0:05:20 > 0:05:26the mud is. The destruction was not confined to the coast. Further
0:05:26 > 0:05:31inland, in Burbank, a suburb of Los Angeles, the cameras captured
0:05:31 > 0:05:38another mudslide in action. The mud roared down here with terrifying
0:05:38 > 0:05:43speed, sweeping everything in its path. Firefighters will not let us
0:05:43 > 0:05:47go up that any further. They say the situation could change in the blink
0:05:47 > 0:05:54of an eye. As you can see, this is how dangerous it is. The Pacific
0:05:54 > 0:06:00coast was hardest hit. The financial cost will be immense. The human
0:06:00 > 0:06:06toll, even higher. James Cook, BBC News, Montecito.
0:06:06 > 0:06:11We can go live to James now. What is the latest you have on the rescue
0:06:11 > 0:06:22operation?Well, the scene around me here is one, as you can see, of
0:06:22 > 0:06:26complete devastation. The power of the mud as it charged down from the
0:06:26 > 0:06:30mountains was quite immense. It has left parts of houses smashed to
0:06:30 > 0:06:36pieces and strewn across the road. The rescue operation does continue.
0:06:36 > 0:06:40We have seen helicopters overhead in the last three minutes ferrying
0:06:40 > 0:06:43people backwards and forwards, presumably trying to get people out.
0:06:43 > 0:06:48We have had no more formal details on how that is going. The last we
0:06:48 > 0:06:57heard there were some 300 people trapped in one area alone. This is a
0:06:57 > 0:06:58very difficult, very intense situation still. There are also
0:06:58 > 0:07:03questions about why people were not evacuated. Some evacuation warnings
0:07:03 > 0:07:08were given but were they given for the right areas and where they
0:07:08 > 0:07:11strong enough? Perhaps, should people have listened to them more
0:07:11 > 0:07:15intently?Thank you very much.
0:07:15 > 0:07:17There's a boom in goods made in Britain.
0:07:17 > 0:07:20Manufacturing output in the UK has reached its highest
0:07:20 > 0:07:21level in nearly a decade, after showing growth
0:07:21 > 0:07:24for seven months in a row - that's according to the Office
0:07:24 > 0:07:25for National Statistics.
0:07:25 > 0:07:28The sector has been boosted by a strong global economy
0:07:28 > 0:07:30and the devaluation of the pound since the Brexit vote,
0:07:30 > 0:07:32which makes exports relatively cheaper.
0:07:32 > 0:07:38Our economics editor, Kamal Ahmed, reports.
0:07:38 > 0:07:42The sound of better economic news, and the manufacturers making
0:07:42 > 0:07:46the goods a faster growing world is demanding.
0:07:46 > 0:07:50The weakness in the value of the pound makes everything
0:07:50 > 0:07:52Britain sells abroad more competitive, and firms that export
0:07:52 > 0:07:54are taking advantage.
0:07:54 > 0:08:00So this machine actually is a high-end machine...
0:08:00 > 0:08:03Like Brandauer in Birmingham.
0:08:03 > 0:08:05Among other high-tech materials, it makes the switches for 90%
0:08:05 > 0:08:08of all the kettles in the world, billions of them.
0:08:08 > 0:08:11Its order books for household goods, the car sector
0:08:11 > 0:08:13and aerospace are bulging.
0:08:13 > 0:08:16We've always exported a huge percentage of what we make.
0:08:16 > 0:08:20Currently, that's around 70-75%.
0:08:20 > 0:08:23Global growth of our customers and the manufacturing supply chain
0:08:23 > 0:08:26means growth for us.
0:08:26 > 0:08:29Our customers are doing well, and technology demands
0:08:29 > 0:08:33are ever-increasing, which means Brandauer as a net
0:08:33 > 0:08:38result will do well.
0:08:38 > 0:08:41It's been a ten year roller-coaster for Britain's makers.
0:08:41 > 0:08:43Manufacturing suffered badly in the financial crisis and has only
0:08:43 > 0:08:45slowly recovered since.
0:08:45 > 0:08:49But, in the last year, things have taken a turn
0:08:49 > 0:08:55for the better and output is now at its highest since April 2008.
0:08:55 > 0:09:01Behind these better figures is a big economic trend, global growth.
0:09:01 > 0:09:04For the first time since the financial crisis ten years ago,
0:09:04 > 0:09:09all the economic centres, the USA, China, Japan
0:09:09 > 0:09:13and the rest of Europe, are seeing stronger growth,
0:09:13 > 0:09:15and that rising tide is lifting Britain and
0:09:15 > 0:09:19confidence is flowing back.
0:09:19 > 0:09:21It's not all good news.
0:09:21 > 0:09:23Construction figures are poor and there are still
0:09:23 > 0:09:29the problems of falling wages and the increase in prices.
0:09:29 > 0:09:32Many economists warn that Britain is not out of the economic woods,
0:09:32 > 0:09:34including a former adviser to the Chancellor.
0:09:34 > 0:09:37What we've seen in the UK relative to elsewhere
0:09:37 > 0:09:39is growth relatively stable.
0:09:39 > 0:09:45That is still better than most predicted at the start of 2017,
0:09:45 > 0:09:47because the Brexit negotiation was expected to have a more
0:09:47 > 0:09:50dampening impact on growth, but the global environment has
0:09:50 > 0:09:53actually ended up being much stronger, and I think that has
0:09:53 > 0:09:58supported UK activity.
0:09:58 > 0:10:00The UK is still the laggard, though.
0:10:00 > 0:10:03Businesses have been more hesitant about expanding,
0:10:03 > 0:10:06whereas elsewhere in the world confidence is much stronger and we
0:10:06 > 0:10:09have seen more business spending.
0:10:09 > 0:10:12Manufacturing is a bright point, but at just 10% of the UK economy
0:10:12 > 0:10:15it's not everything.
0:10:15 > 0:10:18The strength of Britain overall will only become clear when the full
0:10:18 > 0:10:21set of figures are published at the end of the month.
0:10:21 > 0:10:23Many economists believe they will now be more
0:10:23 > 0:10:28positive than expected.
0:10:28 > 0:10:32The Chancellor Philip Hammond has said the European Union should stop
0:10:32 > 0:10:34talking about "punishing" the UK over Brexit.
0:10:34 > 0:10:37He'll make the warning in a speech in Berlin tonight
0:10:37 > 0:10:42and Kamal joins me now.
0:10:42 > 0:10:48Do you detect a more robust tone from the Chancellor?I certainly do.
0:10:48 > 0:10:542018 will be very tight timetable for those European Union
0:10:54 > 0:10:57negotiations. Philip Hammond, in this speech is certainly a change of
0:10:57 > 0:11:03tone. He supported remaining in the European Union. He talks about it
0:11:03 > 0:11:09taking two to tango. The use should stop talking about punishing the UK
0:11:09 > 0:11:14over Brexit. He is really saying, you need to help us find some
0:11:14 > 0:11:19solutions. Other countries, Canada, America and Australia are offering
0:11:19 > 0:11:29free trade deals Europe, what you going to put on the table? In
0:11:29 > 0:11:31Brussels it may raise a few eyebrows. They say, Britain decided
0:11:31 > 0:11:34to leave the European Union. You broke it, you fix it. They are
0:11:34 > 0:11:39saying it is for Britain to come to the table with solutions. As we have
0:11:39 > 0:11:43heard time and again, it does not want Britain to be better off
0:11:43 > 0:11:48outside the user and it was inside the EU. We cannot have, Brussels
0:11:48 > 0:11:51says, our cake and eat it.
0:11:51 > 0:11:54Police in Stockport have found human remains in a suburban back garden.
0:11:54 > 0:11:57Their search comes after a woman went to the police at the weekend
0:11:57 > 0:11:59and told detectives she had killed a man.
0:11:59 > 0:12:01Our North of England correspondent, Judith Moritz,
0:12:01 > 0:12:05is in Stockport for us.
0:12:05 > 0:12:12Judith, what more can you tell us? Well, George, the police say on
0:12:12 > 0:12:17Sunday afternoon a 63-year-old woman walked into a police station not far
0:12:17 > 0:12:21from here and confessed to having killed a man several years ago and
0:12:21 > 0:12:26buried him in the garden. That's part a forensic search and last
0:12:26 > 0:12:31night detectives confirmed that they have found human remains at the
0:12:31 > 0:12:37property. The BBC understands that the body that has been found is that
0:12:37 > 0:12:43of a man called Kenneth Combs and the woman, who is now talking to
0:12:43 > 0:12:46detectives on suspicion of murder is his daughter. Neighbours have been
0:12:46 > 0:12:51asked if they remember the family. The police say a postmortem
0:12:51 > 0:12:54examination should give more information into course about how
0:12:54 > 0:12:58and when he died.
0:12:58 > 0:13:01The trial of the former football coach Barry Bennell on charges
0:13:01 > 0:13:06of child sexual offences has - for the first time -
0:13:06 > 0:13:08heard from an alleged victim.
0:13:08 > 0:13:11A man who claims he was sexually abused as a child has told the court
0:13:11 > 0:13:14that Bennell had what he called a "power hold" over young
0:13:14 > 0:13:16boys who dreamt of being professional players.
0:13:16 > 0:13:18Barry Bennell, who's now known as Richard Jones, denies 48 charges
0:13:18 > 0:13:19of child sexual abuse.
0:13:19 > 0:13:26Our Sports Editor, Dan Roan, reports.
0:13:26 > 0:13:28Back in the 1980s, Barry Bennell worked with some of the most
0:13:28 > 0:13:32promising young footballers in the north-west of England. Youth team
0:13:32 > 0:13:36coach at Crewe Alexandra. He also had links with Manchester City.
0:13:36 > 0:13:41Liverpool Crown Court has told the 64-year-old, who now causes of
0:13:41 > 0:13:44Richard Jones, exploited young boys dreams of becoming footballers in
0:13:44 > 0:13:48order to sexually abuse them. With Bennell watching on via video link,
0:13:48 > 0:13:54the jury was shown footage of the complainants interview. He first met
0:13:54 > 0:14:00him when he came as a scout for Manchester City. The alleged victim
0:14:00 > 0:14:05said he was abused up to 100 times along with other boys by Bennell at
0:14:05 > 0:14:11his home and in a shop he owned in Derbyshire village. He had up to
0:14:11 > 0:14:19three boys share a bed with him. The said none dare speak out for fear of
0:14:19 > 0:14:22jeopardising their football prospects. It was almost like an
0:14:22 > 0:14:31untold rule, he said. He had a big power hold over us. The court was
0:14:31 > 0:14:36shown a recording of this BBC programme from November 2016
0:14:36 > 0:14:40featuring other alleged victims which the complainant said left him
0:14:40 > 0:14:44in complete meltdown, prompting him to contact police for the first
0:14:44 > 0:14:50time. Appearing behind a screen in court he was cross examined by the
0:14:50 > 0:14:55defence, and asked if his complaint was financially motivated. I am not
0:14:55 > 0:15:00in it for the money, he said. The court was read transcripts from
0:15:00 > 0:15:05Bennell's interview with the police. He said he has had no sexual contact
0:15:05 > 0:15:09with him and remembered thinking he was the one that got away with it he
0:15:09 > 0:15:15was not one of my victims. It is impossible. The trial continues.
0:15:15 > 0:15:17Our top story this evening:
0:15:17 > 0:15:19A desperate search for survivors after mudslides in California
0:15:19 > 0:15:22leave 15 people dead, and officials warn
0:15:22 > 0:15:26the death toll could rise.
0:15:26 > 0:15:27And still to come:
0:15:27 > 0:15:30The man behind Wallace and Grommit on how he's
0:15:30 > 0:15:33created his latest characters.
0:15:34 > 0:15:36Coming up on Sportsday on BBC News:
0:15:36 > 0:15:39Double amputee Billy Monger is back behind the wheel and training
0:15:39 > 0:15:42to be a stunt driver.
0:15:42 > 0:15:45The teenager lost both his lower legs in an accident last year.
0:15:53 > 0:15:56In the last few years, dozens of British citizens have travelled
0:15:56 > 0:15:59to Syria to volunteer in the fight against so-called Islamic State.
0:15:59 > 0:16:02Today the bodies of two men killed in battle have been
0:16:02 > 0:16:03brought back to the UK.
0:16:03 > 0:16:07Jac Holmes and Oliver Hall fought with Kurdish forces.
0:16:07 > 0:16:10The parents of Jac Holmes say they are proud of him,
0:16:10 > 0:16:12and were unable to prevent him from going.
0:16:12 > 0:16:15They've been speaking to Emma Vardy.
0:16:16 > 0:16:19The road outside the cargo area of Heathrow became
0:16:19 > 0:16:22the scene of tributes, as the bodies of two men,
0:16:22 > 0:16:26carried from Syria by Iraq and Jordan, arrived home.
0:16:26 > 0:16:31Both 24 and both with no previous military training,
0:16:31 > 0:16:34Jac Holmes and Oliver Hall had a desire to join
0:16:34 > 0:16:37the battle against IS.
0:16:37 > 0:16:40Well, for me, it was a personal choice.
0:16:40 > 0:16:43I wanted to fight against Isis and I wanted to help the situation
0:16:43 > 0:16:46over here in Iraq and Syria.
0:16:46 > 0:16:48Jac Holmes, a former IT worker from Bournemouth,
0:16:48 > 0:16:51was just 21 when he first travelled to Syria and his parents
0:16:51 > 0:16:53discovered his plans.
0:16:53 > 0:16:56As we went to move a bit of furniture, opened a drawer
0:16:56 > 0:16:59to make sure it was empty and found his flight confirmation.
0:16:59 > 0:17:01I had to leave the house pretty quickly because I
0:17:01 > 0:17:02was so angry with him.
0:17:02 > 0:17:05I had all these messages and missed calls and stuff.
0:17:05 > 0:17:08When I picked up the messages, it was Jac and he said,
0:17:08 > 0:17:09"Mum, I'm up a mountain.
0:17:09 > 0:17:14"I've crossed the border and I'm in Syria."
0:17:14 > 0:17:16He spent two years fighting with the Kurdish armed group
0:17:16 > 0:17:19the YPG, which has allowed many western volunteers
0:17:19 > 0:17:22to join its ranks.
0:17:22 > 0:17:25But fighting abroad with any militia, say British authorities,
0:17:25 > 0:17:28is against the law.
0:17:28 > 0:17:30Morally, what was your stance on what Jac was doing?
0:17:30 > 0:17:38I think Jac had always has had a sense of helping
0:17:38 > 0:17:42the underdog, helping people.
0:17:42 > 0:17:46Morally, I don't have an issue if he has killed any Daesh
0:17:46 > 0:17:48fighters, not at all.
0:17:48 > 0:17:51I think, if you speak to most people on the street,
0:17:51 > 0:17:53they would say the same.
0:17:53 > 0:17:56Just days after the battle for the de facto IS capital Raqqa
0:17:56 > 0:18:01was over, Jac was killed by a suicide belt left behind.
0:18:01 > 0:18:05My name is Oliver Hall and I came here of my own free will,
0:18:05 > 0:18:09knowing all of the risks and consequences that can follow.
0:18:09 > 0:18:14Oliver Hall from Gosport had travelled to Syria in August.
0:18:14 > 0:18:18His mother was told he was checking to make sure an area was safe
0:18:18 > 0:18:22for civilians when he was killed by an IED.
0:18:25 > 0:18:28A ceremony for Jac Holmes and Oliver Hall was held in Syria
0:18:28 > 0:18:31as they began the journey home.
0:18:33 > 0:18:36People from the Kurdish community in the UK have gathered
0:18:36 > 0:18:40here at Heathrow today to pay tribute to two men who took
0:18:40 > 0:18:44up their cause to fight against so-called Islamic State.
0:18:44 > 0:18:48What Jac Holmes and Oliver Hall did is something the British authorities
0:18:48 > 0:18:51have tried to deter people from but, for those here today,
0:18:51 > 0:18:55they will be remembered as heroes.
0:18:55 > 0:18:57I'm immensely proud of my son, really.
0:18:57 > 0:19:02You know, your average 22-year-old is more concerned
0:19:02 > 0:19:05about who is winning X Factor.
0:19:05 > 0:19:05I'll never forget him.
0:19:05 > 0:19:08Of course I won't.
0:19:08 > 0:19:12Seven British men in total have died with the YPG in Syria in the war
0:19:12 > 0:19:15which has seen so many British men and women drawn to it,
0:19:15 > 0:19:18with many lives lost.
0:19:18 > 0:19:20Emma Vardy, BBC News.
0:19:22 > 0:19:25Cancer patients at a specialist NHS hospital could face delays
0:19:25 > 0:19:28to their treatment due to a major shortage of staff.
0:19:28 > 0:19:31That's the warning from a senior doctor in a leaked memo to staff
0:19:31 > 0:19:33at Churchill Hospital in Oxford.
0:19:33 > 0:19:36He says the number of specialist nurses
0:19:36 > 0:19:39at the hospital is down by 40% - nearly a half.
0:19:39 > 0:19:47Our Health Editor Hugh Pym is outside the hospital in Oxford.
0:19:47 > 0:19:51I wonder just how worried patients in the Oxford area, cancer patients,
0:19:51 > 0:19:58should be about this?The trust which runs this hospital says
0:19:58 > 0:20:02patients should be completely reassured there has been no change
0:20:02 > 0:20:06in policy whatsoever and they should continue to expect high standards of
0:20:06 > 0:20:10care but in a timely fashion, but this leaked e-mail shows that
0:20:10 > 0:20:12doctors there are seriously concerned about workforce shortages,
0:20:12 > 0:20:16difficulties recruiting trained cancer nurses, and they think
0:20:16 > 0:20:21chemotherapy will be affected. They are considering reducing the doses
0:20:21 > 0:20:26for patients who are terminally ill. It has been said that, for some
0:20:26 > 0:20:33patients who don't need chemotherapy urgently, there are delays of one to
0:20:33 > 0:20:37two weeks, but the trust says that is still within the target. The
0:20:37 > 0:20:42trust has acknowledged there are serious problems with workforce in
0:20:42 > 0:20:44the area and difficulties recruiting, and Cancer Research UK
0:20:44 > 0:20:46says this issue must be urgently addressed.
0:20:46 > 0:20:48Conservation charities say they've been "overwhelmed" by the number
0:20:48 > 0:20:50of stranded seals found along the Cornish coast over
0:20:50 > 0:20:51the last few weeks.
0:20:51 > 0:20:54Record numbers of sick and abandoned pups have been discovered -
0:20:54 > 0:20:56after a series of winter storms and high tides.
0:20:56 > 0:20:58Rescue centres say they are struggling to cope,
0:20:58 > 0:20:59as Jon Kay reports.
0:20:59 > 0:21:01On a suburban estate...
0:21:01 > 0:21:03OK, shall we get them out?
0:21:03 > 0:21:06A pop-up seal sanctuary.
0:21:06 > 0:21:09With the local rescue centres full, these orphaned pups are having to be
0:21:09 > 0:21:13housed in a garage near St Ives.
0:21:15 > 0:21:18Father and son David and Dan are fully trained
0:21:18 > 0:21:22and caring for the seals 24/7.
0:21:23 > 0:21:25Are you struggling to cope?
0:21:25 > 0:21:27We're at the point where we really are.
0:21:27 > 0:21:31This sort of speaks for itself, having all of these guys here.
0:21:31 > 0:21:33The rehab centres just don't have the space to handle this many
0:21:33 > 0:21:39pups in such a short amount of time.
0:21:39 > 0:21:42Every day, volunteers from the group are racing to the Cornish coast
0:21:42 > 0:21:46to rescue unprecedented numbers of sick and starving pups, orphaned
0:21:46 > 0:21:54and injured in winter storms.
0:21:54 > 0:21:56Here's the tube in the corner of its mouth...
0:21:56 > 0:21:58Providing emergency food is the easy bit.
0:21:58 > 0:22:00Finding them somewhere to recuperate is much more difficult.
0:22:00 > 0:22:03They've had nearly 300 call-outs already this winter.
0:22:03 > 0:22:06We've been out 55 times this year so far.
0:22:06 > 0:22:10What, since the 1st of January?
0:22:10 > 0:22:13Since the 1st of January, we've had 55 calls and we've rescued 25.
0:22:13 > 0:22:15The situation we find ourselves in is completely
0:22:15 > 0:22:16shocking beyond belief.
0:22:16 > 0:22:19So why are things so bad this winter?
0:22:19 > 0:22:22Because we've had a succession of storms over really high tides,
0:22:22 > 0:22:26flooded all the beaches, washed all those seal pups
0:22:26 > 0:22:30out without enough food inside them to survive.
0:22:32 > 0:22:35At Cornwall's seal sanctuary, there is no room left.
0:22:35 > 0:22:38Some pups have had to be taken to rescue centres
0:22:38 > 0:22:40hundreds of miles away.
0:22:41 > 0:22:45In the hospital wing, this one has an eye infection.
0:22:45 > 0:22:48He has to be covered while he's treated to stop him biting.
0:22:48 > 0:22:52Staff don't expect it to get quiet any time soon.
0:22:52 > 0:22:56We are only just in the middle part of the pup season at the moment,
0:22:56 > 0:22:58and that season doesn't generally finish until about March,
0:22:58 > 0:22:59April time.
0:22:59 > 0:23:02So, as you can imagine, we're going to have quite
0:23:02 > 0:23:04a considerable number coming in at that point.
0:23:05 > 0:23:06It's not just south-west England.
0:23:06 > 0:23:09Rescue teams all around the UK are reporting record numbers
0:23:09 > 0:23:11of seals needing help.
0:23:11 > 0:23:16Once these pups have recovered, they'll be sent back into the sea,
0:23:16 > 0:23:18but conservationists say, if we're going to avoid
0:23:18 > 0:23:22an accommodation crisis next winter, we need to start planning now.
0:23:22 > 0:23:26Jon Kay, BBC News, Cornwall.
0:23:29 > 0:23:32It's the Bristol-based animation company that gave us Wallace
0:23:32 > 0:23:33and Grommit and Shaun the Sheep.
0:23:33 > 0:23:35Now, Aardman and its Oscar-winning director, Nick Park
0:23:35 > 0:23:38are about to unveil a new film, a prehistoric comedy
0:23:38 > 0:23:40called Early Man.
0:23:40 > 0:23:43It's been five years in the making and Nick Park has been showing our
0:23:43 > 0:23:46Arts Editor, Will Gompertz, exactly how he's made his creations come
0:23:46 > 0:23:49to life on the big screen.
0:23:55 > 0:24:00The initial idea was, you know, what if cavemen invented football?
0:24:00 > 0:24:05And I hadn't seen a prehistoric underdog sports movie before.
0:24:05 > 0:24:08Come on, everyone.
0:24:08 > 0:24:12Let's show them what we've got.
0:24:12 > 0:24:14This is one of my first sketches.
0:24:14 > 0:24:15I loved sketching all the time.
0:24:15 > 0:24:17That's where the characters tend to come from.
0:24:17 > 0:24:21And are you thinking as you sketch in terms of plasticine?
0:24:21 > 0:24:22Yes, I do.
0:24:22 > 0:24:25I think 3-D all the time, and I'm always drawing
0:24:25 > 0:24:31as if they have dimensions.
0:24:31 > 0:24:33I'm thinking about how they will interpret,
0:24:33 > 0:24:35how they will translate into models.
0:24:35 > 0:24:41What strange magic is this?
0:24:41 > 0:24:44We try and prepare for every shot before the animator starts.
0:24:44 > 0:24:49We do quite often live-action videos, so Nick will act out almost
0:24:49 > 0:24:53the entire film in front of camera, and we go through that with him,
0:24:53 > 0:24:56and that's our starting point.
0:25:00 > 0:25:02We wanted, following Nick's initial brief, to keep it
0:25:02 > 0:25:05all looking very handmade, so all of these sections
0:25:05 > 0:25:07are made of plasticine, but the mechanics inside are made
0:25:07 > 0:25:10of lots of different materials.
0:25:10 > 0:25:13Underneath, we have armatures, which we make all in-house.
0:25:13 > 0:25:15They look something a little bit like this.
0:25:15 > 0:25:18So we have sort of ball and socket joint in here,
0:25:18 > 0:25:20and hinged joints and rotates, and fundamentally that's what sort
0:25:20 > 0:25:24of sits inside our main characters.
0:25:24 > 0:25:28Just a little bit more!
0:25:28 > 0:25:30There are aspects of it, are there not, which hark back
0:25:30 > 0:25:33to your earliest days, back to Wallace and Gromit.
0:25:33 > 0:25:37Yeah, I know.
0:25:37 > 0:25:39At the heart of it, it is these two characters.
0:25:39 > 0:25:43Dug is a cavemen and his pet hog Hognob.
0:25:43 > 0:25:48I set out to try and be a bit different to Wallace
0:25:48 > 0:25:50and Gromit, but I guess there is a sort of default.
0:25:50 > 0:25:52I can't help it.
0:25:52 > 0:25:55The eyes are close together and there is a sort of man and dog
0:25:55 > 0:25:59sort of relationship, I guess.
0:25:59 > 0:26:02I mean, as man and hog in this case.
0:26:03 > 0:26:07It's one thing trying to make it a film you want to make and to stay
0:26:07 > 0:26:09true to your vision.
0:26:09 > 0:26:14But you are hoping that it also does work for people out in the audience.
0:26:21 > 0:26:22Time for a look at the weather.
0:26:22 > 0:26:24Here's Helen Willetts.
0:26:28 > 0:26:33Rather quiet across the UK at the moment, which is good compared to
0:26:33 > 0:26:37around the world. Some sunshine today, but this band of cloud and
0:26:37 > 0:26:41rain is still making for gloomy conditions across the eastern side
0:26:41 > 0:26:45of the country. Further west, we had problems with fog, with a spate of
0:26:45 > 0:26:50accidents with poor visibility. It is taken up again not just for
0:26:50 > 0:26:54Northern Ireland but across many parts of England and Wales, where we
0:26:54 > 0:26:58have had that sunshine today, in south-western Scotland as well. That
0:26:58 > 0:27:01will be coupled with temperatures close to frigging, especially in the
0:27:01 > 0:27:10countryside, so it could be icy and could be freezing frog. --
0:27:10 > 0:27:13temperatures close to freezing. Parts of south Scotland, across
0:27:13 > 0:27:20north-west England, the Midlands, eastern parts of Wales, perhaps
0:27:20 > 0:27:23Devon and the West Country, central southern England, more widespread
0:27:23 > 0:27:26than this morning, and there is also the complication of the weather
0:27:26 > 0:27:29front further east, with some low-level fog over the hills, but
0:27:29 > 0:27:35possibly at lower levels with holes in the cloud. It would take a while
0:27:35 > 0:27:38for the fog to play tomorrow morning, and then there will be some
0:27:38 > 0:27:44sunshine, but not as widespread as today. -- for the fog to clear. Some
0:27:44 > 0:27:48of the cloud coming back into Kent. Not as persistently wet as today,
0:27:48 > 0:27:53but still drizzly and cold. Why Friday, a bit more of a breeze to
0:27:53 > 0:27:57lift the fog from the west, but there could be a lot of morning fog
0:27:57 > 0:28:04and frost, a lot of cloud, and not much change over the weekend. In
0:28:04 > 0:28:07Northern Ireland, the weather front gets stuck, and just to reiterate
0:28:07 > 0:28:12its going to get quite foggy out there from now until tomorrow
0:28:12 > 0:28:15morning, and it might not clear in some parts tomorrow morning.
0:28:15 > 0:28:17That's all from the BBC News at six.
0:28:17 > 0:28:20It's goodbye from me and, on BBC One, we now join the BBC's