:00:00. > :00:00.from the BBC News at Six. So it s goodbye from me. On BBC One we now
:00:00. > :00:13.join the BBC's news teams Welcome to BBC Points West. Our main
:00:14. > :00:17.story tonight: Villages still out of their homes because of flood water.
:00:18. > :00:21.That could have been prevented? The Environment Agency denies it cause
:00:22. > :00:26.the problems in one community by lowering the defences. But locals do
:00:27. > :00:30.not believe it. I am appalled. Absolutely appalled. That is putting
:00:31. > :00:41.it politely. My wife and family are devastated.
:00:42. > :00:45.The other stories making the news tonight. Facing a ban, the machines
:00:46. > :00:50.where you can bet ?100 every 20 seconds. It is beginning to look not
:00:51. > :00:55.like Christmas. What happens to your old trees now
:00:56. > :00:57.they sparkle has gone? And reach for the stars.
:00:58. > :01:06.Find out what is in the heavens for us all to see.
:01:07. > :01:10.Hello. Flooding continues to cause misery for dozens of people on the
:01:11. > :01:14.Somerset Levels. Tonight, the Environment Agency stands accused of
:01:15. > :01:18.making the problems worse in one hand lettered by lowering river
:01:19. > :01:23.banks and causing flooding. The agency says they work was not
:01:24. > :01:25.responsible, and it has been caused by exceptional rainfall over a short
:01:26. > :01:28.space of time. More bad weather is forecast
:01:29. > :01:33.tonight. Our correspondent has been to Aller
:01:34. > :01:37.on the Somerset Levels to find an angry community rallying around to
:01:38. > :01:42.help one another. Rupert Little is on his way to check
:01:43. > :01:46.on his elderly neighbours. They are in their 70s, and they have been
:01:47. > :01:53.living upstairs in a flooded home without heating for the past week.
:01:54. > :01:57.It is rooted. I you all right? He establishes they are OK, but they do
:01:58. > :02:12.not want to appear on television. He's OK. Shy of heat and I don't
:02:13. > :02:19.know how much longer they can stay. Here in Aller, several houses are
:02:20. > :02:23.now under water. It was with a heavy heart that Ron Smith showed us
:02:24. > :02:27.around his cottage. He and his family are still living here in
:02:28. > :02:32.spite of all this. The insurance could not put the damage right, but
:02:33. > :02:36.the emotional side is everlasting. He showed me why he thinks the
:02:37. > :02:40.Environment Agency is to blame. On the other side of that rich, they
:02:41. > :02:45.lowered a river bank to redirect floodwater onto empty moorland. But
:02:46. > :02:48.the water came back into the houses. They failed to take heed of the
:02:49. > :02:53.warnings from local draining boards, farm owners. They were told this
:02:54. > :03:01.would happen. Yet they proceeded with this, and this serious weather
:03:02. > :03:05.event, we have had flooding on an unprecedented scale in this area.
:03:06. > :03:12.This afternoon, the agency said that exceptional rain caused this, not
:03:13. > :03:17.the limited work on the river bank. Judging is in the headlines again
:03:18. > :03:21.today. This time it is Euro MP Graham Watson saying that clearing
:03:22. > :03:25.the rivers of silt would prevent flooding like this. But the RSPB,
:03:26. > :03:28.who have nature reserves on the levels, say judging on its own is
:03:29. > :03:39.not the answer. But perhaps in the future, more of the levels should be
:03:40. > :03:44.allowed to flood. So flood more In these extreme situations, will get
:03:45. > :03:48.more of this, so we may need to flood more more land to protect our
:03:49. > :03:52.committees whatever the argument with dredging, people who live here
:03:53. > :04:02.say they have never seen river levels this high. Here, the nearby
:04:03. > :04:05.school was put on stand`by as a emergency evacuation centre admits
:04:06. > :04:11.fears that dozens of times here were at risk of flooding. With more rain
:04:12. > :04:19.on the way, many amenities on the levels will be holding their breath
:04:20. > :04:22.again tonight. The Met Office has issued a yellow
:04:23. > :04:27.warning for rain expected to fall across parts of Somerset and
:04:28. > :04:31.Gloucestershire tonight. Between ten and 15 millimetres of rain is
:04:32. > :04:35.expected to fall, which could cause further disruption in areas already
:04:36. > :04:41.affected by flooding. And Gloucestershire, some people have
:04:42. > :04:46.learnt the lessons of the past. As flood prevention measures go it
:04:47. > :04:50.is pretty extreme. Sam and Dawn Ray's home was flooded so badly in
:04:51. > :04:57.2007, they decided to rebuild it on stilts. It would not have been
:04:58. > :05:05.easier to just move? Know, who would want to buy it? We could not sell it
:05:06. > :05:09.to buy another place. Obviously we should improve it. The house is 12
:05:10. > :05:14.feet above ground with support is going underground. On the left was
:05:15. > :05:19.the dining room. On the right was a lounge. Now they are both filled
:05:20. > :05:28.with concrete. There is a flow of water going into them, which was the
:05:29. > :05:36.flying `` front door. The extension now houses our kitchen and lounge.
:05:37. > :05:42.12 feet up, safe. This was the 007 flight at the home of Val and Derek
:05:43. > :05:46.Lown. It left a ?100,000 insurance bill and a determination to invent
:05:47. > :05:52.something to keep the water rat This is the Flood Manager, based on
:05:53. > :05:55.the material used to line ponds and left in place with sandbags. They
:05:56. > :06:00.have used it twice now, and the house has stayed dry. Once you come
:06:01. > :06:05.through it, you get your house back together, and then a few months
:06:06. > :06:11.later, it rains and you get that horrible sick feeling in the pit of
:06:12. > :06:14.your stomach, is this going to happen again? I don't get that any
:06:15. > :06:21.more. At least now, when the rain comes, all I think is we have to get
:06:22. > :06:23.the rain defence out. They have tried to market their invention but
:06:24. > :06:31.although there has been interest, they have not sold any. There is a
:06:32. > :06:40.restaurant locally that wanted it, but they have been indecisive about
:06:41. > :06:43.when. As the rain starts to fall, some at least as secure in the
:06:44. > :06:51.knowledge that the floodwaters will stay out.
:06:52. > :06:54.While many communities are being flooded for the first time, those
:06:55. > :06:57.who have suffered in the past say that the legacy is difficult to
:06:58. > :07:03.shake off. To experience was badly hit in
:07:04. > :07:06.2007, and aerial pictures in the press on the weekend gave the
:07:07. > :07:09.impression that town was cut off again.
:07:10. > :07:14.As our Gloucestershire reporter has been finding out, Tewkesbury is open
:07:15. > :07:18.for business, and used to being surrounded by water.
:07:19. > :07:23.Tewkesbury in 2007, the floods were, without doubt, devastating.
:07:24. > :07:27.From the air, the town surrounded by floodwater. But these shots were
:07:28. > :07:31.taken on Friday, and they are certainly dramatic. From the ground,
:07:32. > :07:37.it looks dramatic as well, but that is a flood plain doing its job. I'm
:07:38. > :07:41.a TV reporter. I am not even wearing waterproof clothing, because in
:07:42. > :07:45.Tewkesbury, the river might be swollen, but the town is not cut
:07:46. > :07:48.off. It is open for business. But some traders are you would not think
:07:49. > :07:52.so. In this teashop, the only way the issue is a sticky door. Since
:07:53. > :07:57.the aerial pictures were printed, customers seem to have dried up You
:07:58. > :08:04.lack a lot of people think Tewkesbury is cut off. They think
:08:05. > :08:10.they can't come in. They say are you stranded? Are you OK? We are Kate.
:08:11. > :08:15.We are surrounded by water, but it is flood plains. People here say
:08:16. > :08:18.they want the legacy to go away Flood plains make great pictures,
:08:19. > :08:22.but they are often misunderstood, so the town is doing its best. I think
:08:23. > :08:28.it is difficult because by the time you have got the message across it
:08:29. > :08:31.is too late. It has gone away. I think local people are using
:08:32. > :08:38.Facebook and social media to try to get it out there that we are open
:08:39. > :08:41.for business. Some areas are affected, like this car park at the
:08:42. > :08:46.new ?10 million hospital. But traders here say they are very much
:08:47. > :08:53.open, and please, this is just floodwater. No one is flooded.
:08:54. > :08:59.We hope you are keeping dry on this Shari Wednesday night. Stay with us,
:09:00. > :09:01.as they join the programme: Heavens above.
:09:02. > :09:05.But the night sky reveals about our universe.
:09:06. > :09:08.And he is the world's greatest living explorer who has made his way
:09:09. > :09:17.to our studios. We will meeting shortly.
:09:18. > :09:21.A 27`year`old man has been arrested on suspicion of murder after what
:09:22. > :09:25.police have called a sudden death at a property in Bristol. Police say
:09:26. > :09:30.they found a body on the property this morning after being told a
:09:31. > :09:35.woman had died there. At this stage, the police say they are treating the
:09:36. > :09:39.death as unexplained. Avon and Somerset police are hunting
:09:40. > :09:43.for a man they believe poses a serious risk to children. Saber
:09:44. > :09:47.Haldari is wanted in connection with sex offences committed against a
:09:48. > :09:52.young boy in Bristol between January and August last year. Mr Haldari,
:09:53. > :09:55.who is believed to be in the UK illegally, has links to both the
:09:56. > :10:00.Afghani and Iranian communities Police say he may have travelled to
:10:01. > :10:06.Birmingham, London Leeds. He is believed to be 30 years old.
:10:07. > :10:12.MPs are debating whether to take action against high`stakes gambling
:10:13. > :10:15.machines. Up to ?300 a minute can be spent on what are called fixed`odds
:10:16. > :10:19.betting terminals. Among those campaigning for change is a
:10:20. > :10:26.Wiltshire man who has gone public with his struggle to beat his
:10:27. > :10:31.gambling addiction. He has acted decisively against
:10:32. > :10:34.gambling. Now he wants them to. Watching MPs today, James Petherick
:10:35. > :10:40.from Amesbury. He is desperate for change. I figure has been 12 years
:10:41. > :10:44.now these terminals have been out. Isn't it time something was done?
:10:45. > :10:50.How many years longer do we have to wait before people with gambling
:10:51. > :10:54.addictions are protected? These are the machines that he blames through
:10:55. > :10:59.winning his life. Up to ?300 a minute can be gambled on fixed`odds
:11:00. > :11:03.betting terminals. They have proved hugely profitable for bookmakers.
:11:04. > :11:09.They cost James Petherick turns maybe hundreds of thousands of
:11:10. > :11:13.pounds. My name is James. This is the first of my video diaries
:11:14. > :11:18.regarding my compulsory `` compulsive gambling addiction. For
:11:19. > :11:23.years, he has been baring his soul online and calling for change. It
:11:24. > :11:26.has had an impact. Politicians of all parties believe there needs to
:11:27. > :11:31.be a clamp`down on bookies, but there is a bit of politicking going
:11:32. > :11:34.on. The government say they need to await the outcome of a report due in
:11:35. > :11:38.the autumn. Today was like debate has been called by Labour Hartley to
:11:39. > :11:43.embarrass them. In Parliament this afternoon, Labour led the charge,
:11:44. > :11:46.calling for immediate action. They have admitted they are partly to
:11:47. > :11:50.blame for introducing the high stakes betting machines when in
:11:51. > :11:54.government. Yellow mac I think that has been proven now. I don't think
:11:55. > :11:59.we realised how addictive they would be. What we are asking for in the
:12:00. > :12:03.Bay `` debate today is that local authorities should have the ability
:12:04. > :12:07.to decide that there are too many betting shops in a particular area,
:12:08. > :12:09.and just refuse them. But the government will not be rushed,
:12:10. > :12:16.insisting changes must be the right ones. James Petherick hopes his
:12:17. > :12:22.problems are behind him. I am not fixed yet, and I think it will take
:12:23. > :12:25.me a lifetime to get out of my debts and what my addiction has done to my
:12:26. > :12:31.life in general. But I am making slow progress and it can be done. He
:12:32. > :12:37.has not gambled for a year, he just hopes that MPs will allow others and
:12:38. > :12:42.easier escape from their addiction. Bristol Rovers will have their third
:12:43. > :12:45.attempt at completing the FA Cup second round replay with Crawley
:12:46. > :12:51.tonight. They drew nil`nil at the man Memorial Stadium. Their first
:12:52. > :12:56.replay was abandoned with 15 minutes to go due to a waterlogged pitch.
:12:57. > :13:04.The replay was postponed for the same reason. The winners face a trip
:13:05. > :13:11.to check inside. We thought it was good conditions, and we played well.
:13:12. > :13:15.It was nil`nil half`time, and second whist stepped up. The second game, I
:13:16. > :13:20.don't think you could actually compare. That was just, who wants to
:13:21. > :13:24.run around in this weather the most? It will be a good game if the pitch
:13:25. > :13:29.is good. Will try to give them a good game. Off the pitch, the club
:13:30. > :13:34.'s latest financial figures do not make happy reading. Losses have
:13:35. > :13:39.doubled to almost ?800,000 with the revenue through the turnstiles down
:13:40. > :13:42.by 20%. However, the chairman says Rovers had budgeted for this loss,
:13:43. > :13:50.and the board will continue to support the club financially.
:13:51. > :13:54.The return of Stargazing Live on BBC Two this week has prompted many of
:13:55. > :13:58.us to look up at the night skies. Sadly, the weather hasn't been the
:13:59. > :14:01.best but that hasn't stopped many of you from joining local astronomy
:14:02. > :14:04.events across our area. Matthew Pick visited a group in Wells last night
:14:05. > :14:07.to find out why the subject continues to attract people of all
:14:08. > :14:11.ages. Cloudy skies outside Wells Cathedral
:14:12. > :14:18.limited most viewing to the moon but that didn't stop people from having
:14:19. > :14:21.a look. Planets, stars and comets. It attracts the young and the old,
:14:22. > :14:31.men and women, and inside, there was plenty to enthuse everyone. We are
:14:32. > :14:37.making star consolations and looking at this diary and drawing them and
:14:38. > :14:45.putting chocolate stars on them to take home and need. The pictures in
:14:46. > :14:48.the gallery are amazing. We have seen the moon, just a bit blurry.
:14:49. > :14:51.The space industry is big business but what people can achieve on a
:14:52. > :15:02.more limited budget continues to surprise.
:15:03. > :15:09.Using a radio transmitter in France, we are able to pick up meteors over
:15:10. > :15:12.the atmosphere. There was also a display of astro photogrpahy.
:15:13. > :15:47.Amazing images! And we asked you for some of yours, too.
:15:48. > :16:01.Incredible images, and you can see more on our Facebook page.
:16:02. > :16:05.Perhaps you are feeling inspired to go outside and look up to the night
:16:06. > :16:13.sky. What can you expect to see at this time of year? This is torus
:16:14. > :16:18.around us now. This is a really detailed image. However, in an ideal
:16:19. > :16:23.world, you would have an astronomer and science writer with you. This is
:16:24. > :16:29.an ideal universe because it is ours. This is more detailed than we
:16:30. > :16:35.can expect to see, but what are the highlights you can pull out for us
:16:36. > :16:40.this month? We have a lot of bright constellation is on show. You can
:16:41. > :16:46.identify torus because you have the star cluster which is reshaped. What
:16:47. > :16:51.I want to look at is the Pleiades, a beautiful cluster you could see with
:16:52. > :16:56.just the naked eye. You will see it is made of hundreds of stars. There
:16:57. > :17:08.are so many in there. It's beautiful to look at. This is somewhere like
:17:09. > :17:15.the place our son was born. That's right. Our son was probably born in
:17:16. > :17:17.a cluster of stars. This is probably a little bit more like the kind of
:17:18. > :17:17.image a cluster of stars. This is probably
:17:18. > :17:28.a little bit more like the kind of I would expect to see. This is the
:17:29. > :17:36.whole consolation. The interesting thing about identifying it is the
:17:37. > :17:42.belt. Underneath, there is actually a little grouping of stars, and in
:17:43. > :17:47.the centre of that, a target for binoculars because if you look at it
:17:48. > :17:50.on a clear, dark night, you will see its beautiful misty form. This is
:17:51. > :18:00.the place where stars are being born. Young stars are causing the
:18:01. > :18:04.gas to blow. That's the magic. For somebody who was not used to going
:18:05. > :18:14.out stargazing, it's an easy one to find. Get your binoculars! But if
:18:15. > :18:21.you do have a telescope, one of our planets is showing. Jupiter is on
:18:22. > :18:27.show. If you have a small telescope, it's a wonderful target. It appears
:18:28. > :18:32.as a really bright star but with a small telescope, you zoom in on it
:18:33. > :18:39.and see there are wonderful cloud systems swirling around the place.
:18:40. > :18:45.Even with a domestic telescope, you can probably see this? Absolutely.
:18:46. > :18:50.You will also see a few points of light around it. Those are the four
:18:51. > :18:56.largest moons of Jupiter. If you watch those, you will see the move
:18:57. > :19:02.positions. You have given lots of ideas for all of us to be inspired,
:19:03. > :19:06.so ago I `` so go out and look you will night sky.
:19:07. > :19:10.Apart from a few chocolates and the odd dry mince pie, for many of us,
:19:11. > :19:13.the only thing that's left hanging around from the festive period is
:19:14. > :19:16.the discarded Christmas tree, waiting to be taken away. For most
:19:17. > :19:20.of the little pines, after being decorated and loved, it's a trip to
:19:21. > :19:22.the pulping yard. Will Glennon has been following them on their final
:19:23. > :19:25.journey. Just a few days ago, this tree was
:19:26. > :19:28.sparkling, decorated, sitting in someone's living room, but now
:19:29. > :19:35.Christmas is over, it's become waste, so what do we do with it
:19:36. > :19:38.Over the next few weeks, councils across the West will deal with over
:19:39. > :19:43.1,000 tonnes of used Christmas trees. Here in Bristol, collections
:19:44. > :19:55.continued today, and if you put your tree out, you'll know they're pretty
:19:56. > :20:00.prickly. They are, but they supplies with protective clothing and gloves.
:20:01. > :20:03.It may look like a bin lorry but it's all about recycling, and this
:20:04. > :20:12.is a special collection with extra manpower. We are asking residents to
:20:13. > :20:17.put their Christmas tree next to their refuse bin and we will put
:20:18. > :20:20.them on the back of these vehicles and taking them off to a facility.
:20:21. > :20:24.Each truck takes about four tonnes of trees before it has to drop off.
:20:25. > :20:27.From here, the trees are taken to South Gloucestershire to be chipped
:20:28. > :20:31.up and slowly turned into compost that'll be used in gardens, parks
:20:32. > :20:35.and open spaces. But this year, some trees have been given a life
:20:36. > :20:37.extension. An art project on Bristol's harbour`side, called
:20:38. > :20:49.Second Chance, will show them off for another two weeks. Lots of them
:20:50. > :20:53.still look alive. They still have got their leaves and smell and look
:20:54. > :20:58.good. We thought it would be a really nice project to do and it has
:20:59. > :21:04.an environmental edges well. We will recycle the trees afterwards. It's a
:21:05. > :21:07.nice way of people prolonging that Christmas feeling. If you've still
:21:08. > :21:10.got your tree, it's too late to become art, and if you want it
:21:11. > :21:14.recycled, councils are reminding people to check their collection
:21:15. > :21:26.days. If you miss yours, you'll have to drive it to the tip yourself
:21:27. > :21:31.The Guinness Book of Records describes him as "the Greatest
:21:32. > :21:34.Living Explorer". He's led 22 major expeditions to remote parts of the
:21:35. > :21:40.world, including both Poles, and raised millions for charity. And
:21:41. > :21:43.that's only a small fraction of his achievements. He's Sir Ranulph
:21:44. > :21:47.Fiennes, of course, and tonight he's in Bristol to give a talk all
:21:48. > :22:01.about his life, entitled Beyond the Limits. He joins us now. You
:22:02. > :22:11.frightened of anything? Yes. My wife's driving! And other things.
:22:12. > :22:16.You have had so many scrapes and near death experiences and yet, you
:22:17. > :22:24.always bounce back. Touch wood. That has been the case so far. But polar
:22:25. > :22:31.exploring and that sort of thing isn't deftly. You plan everything to
:22:32. > :22:38.avoid risks. The previous people had not broken world records because
:22:39. > :22:44.they ran into risks. Sometimes, we do go wrong because the ice behaves
:22:45. > :22:50.badly, but mostly, we been lucky. Health and safety is important to
:22:51. > :22:59.you, too. We don't like health and safety at all! Having said that you
:23:00. > :23:03.had a massive heart attack ten years ago. You were in a coma for three
:23:04. > :23:10.days after that, a double bypass, and soon after that, you were
:23:11. > :23:14.running seven marathons over seven days on seven continents. Didn't
:23:15. > :23:20.your cardiac specialist say monitor your heart beats but you forgot to
:23:21. > :23:26.take your monitor with you? That is correct. That heart attack probably
:23:27. > :23:32.came from my colleague, a top nutritionist, who stacked fat into
:23:33. > :23:43.our rations because you need maximum calories for minimum weight. So 60%
:23:44. > :23:49.fat for three months probably brought that on! What would life be
:23:50. > :23:57.like without adventure for you? You are ex`SAS and all that. You do live
:23:58. > :24:00.life on the edge. As far as the SAS is concerned, yes, because they
:24:01. > :24:10.threw me out for blowing up a building. In Chippenham, in fact.
:24:11. > :24:15.That was living a bit on the edge. But I have behaved better since
:24:16. > :24:20.Every man was to be like you because you are so capable, you can handle
:24:21. > :24:29.any situation that comes your way. Again, my wife would definitely
:24:30. > :24:41.disagree with that. What's next I am about to do a 600th anniversary
:24:42. > :24:49.book about Asian core. `` as you in court. They have asked me to write
:24:50. > :24:55.the official book. We look forward to that. Your exploits with the
:24:56. > :25:09.French. Have a good talk when you give that tonight.
:25:10. > :25:19.Pretty cloudy, it has to be said, but so it has been a good part of
:25:20. > :25:27.the day. Colin Fisher took this lovely picture showing the extent of
:25:28. > :25:35.the flooding over the levels. At ground level yesterday, Troy took
:25:36. > :25:41.this picture. It masks anything but a picturesque story. Tomorrow at
:25:42. > :25:48.least will bring relief. Dry weather about. Breezy day. Milder through
:25:49. > :25:56.the morning. The rainfall radar showing the extent of rainfall so
:25:57. > :26:05.far. This showery cluster is looking heavier. We will continue with a
:26:06. > :26:09.yellow warning. Just to cater for the possibility this will not help
:26:10. > :26:16.flooding problems. But tonight, it all clears away. Barring showers
:26:17. > :26:23.periodically, it will be, all in all, a much better day. For the rest
:26:24. > :26:28.of this evening, we have lacklustre moving its way northwards which
:26:29. > :26:34.could bring heavier showery rain, some of that lingering. It could be
:26:35. > :26:40.a damp start for some of you. But elsewhere, a broadly dry picture.
:26:41. > :26:47.Temperatures tonight would be particularly chilly. Tomorrow, then,
:26:48. > :26:51.we pick up on the theme of showers Pru radically, but as the day wears
:26:52. > :27:00.on, it will brighten up. Many of you will avoid the showers. The showers
:27:01. > :27:07.becoming less of a feature as arrows ticked by and it will be decent
:27:08. > :27:12.enough. But these temperatures are likely to be nines and tens. That
:27:13. > :27:23.Chile is real of sorts developing in the afternoon. Looking beyond that,
:27:24. > :27:27.we have further, weak rain on the way on Friday. Saturday decent.
:27:28. > :27:31.Wetter on Sunday. It will turn colder next week.
:27:32. > :27:41.If it's not one thing, it's another! I'm off to swap adventure stories
:27:42. > :27:49.about