03/03/2018 London News

Richard Westcott, BBC News.

Now on BBC One, it's time

for the news where you are.

Goodbye.

Good evening, I'm Asad Ahmad.

This week's snow has had

an unexpected impact on a major

London-based charity,

which says it's lost more

than half a million

pounds' worth of donations

because of the cold snap.

Some businesses are now ready

for trade to pick up.

Here's Sarah Harris.

Thick snow still blocking narrow

country roads in parts of

Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire.

Cars abandoned last night,

still to be collected.

It has been these conditions that

have stopped hundreds of volunteers

from shaking their buckets to raise

money to support patients

with terminal illnesses.

These weather conditions are making

it near-on impossible.

So we are really worried

about raising enough money

for the people living

with a terminal illness.

And this soft start thing, then...

How does that work?

But not everyone has been

a loser in the cold snap.

This off-road business

is doing a roaring trade,

with contractors working

round-the-clock in their

specialist vehicles.

This is all done now.

It has rained tonight.

I'm going home to wash

all my machines and that's

it for another year.

Hopefully.

Definitely.

And at Frithsden Vineyard,

the crops have survived and it's

hoped the snow will lead to a good

vintage earlier than expected.

It's actually quite difficult

to work in because it is so cold

but not bad for the vines

because this cold weather actually

delays what we call bud burst.

With temperatures rising again,

many are out and about again this

weekend enjoying the beauty

of the snow while it's still here.

And charity volunteers are once

again making their way out

onto the streets to raise money

for those most in need.

Thames Water has apologised

after more than 100

households in Crystal Palace

lost their water supply.

The firm says engineers

are repairing two leaks

after the company was criticised

for not providing bottled water

to residents who've had no

supply since yesterday.

If you're looking to

take up a new sport,

here's one with its roots

in the playground

from years gone by.

It's been given the name

Wallball - and it's now

taken quite seriously.

You might recognise it,

and Mike Bushell went

to try it in west London.

It's the sport that started in

the playground, when we were kids.

As now they're trying to take

it back there again,

now that it's officially

known as Wallball.

Because the beauty of

it is its simplicity.

All you need is a ball.

And a wall.

It's similar to squash

but even easier.

So all you have to do is hit

the wall and land in the court

and then the rally just carries

on until someone misses the ball.

It is derived from the game

of Fives, which was first played

in the chapels of public

schools centuries ago.

But for Fives you need four walls

whereas modern Wallball has no such

confines and can be played anywhere.

So making it popular

with the schoolchildren being given

taster sessions and people

of all abilities and ages.

I'm like this.

I go "wang"!

And does that feel good?

Yes, really good.

It's just got me running

around, you know?

And hopefully I will get

rid of this paunch.

The ball is bouncy if

you hit it really hard.

And you don't want to hit it

with too much power.

The British team will compete

in the World Cup in the USA

later this year, with the men's team

now in the top five.

But whether you are being blocked

or not, you can always be deceived

by the bounce of the ball.

Now time for the weather forecast.

Hello, there.

The big thaw has begun and the snow

will continue to melt away

as we head through the rest

of the weekend.

Now, of course, we have got

the milder air coming

in over the colder ground.

Lots of moisture from the snow melts

so a bit of a misty,

foggy start to the day and more mist

patches around tomorrow,

along with some showers.

And there are showers,

too, overnight tonight.

This is falling as rain for the most

part but possibly a bit wintry over

the higher ground then we will start

to see those mist patches form.

Temperatures will generally

hold above freezing,

1-3 degrees Celsius,

but there could possibly be some

places that drop a little bit below,

with the lying snow.

And there could be some icy

stretches into tomorrow morning,

so watch out for that.

The mist will slowly life.

Perhaps time for a bit of brightness

before we get some heavy showers

that will help to wash the rest

of the snow away for many places.

Top temperatures, all the way up

to 6-8 degrees Celsius,

so turning milder and milder

still as we head into next week.

In fact, we could be looking

at double figures by the time we get

to Monday and Tuesday.

to Monday and Tuesday.

Lots of dry weather

in the sunshine, I dare say it

will feel quite springlike.

That's it.

Our next news on BBC One

is at the same time tomorrow.

Bye for now.