08/03/2012

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:00:02. > :00:07.Hello, welcome to Look North. In the programme tonight.

:00:07. > :00:16.Remembering PC David Rathband. We hear from his twin brother.

:00:16. > :00:19.coped as long as he could and he's just... He's just give in.

:00:19. > :00:23.As tributes continue to the six soldiers killed in Afghanistan,

:00:23. > :00:26.we're live from Catterick Garrison, where one of them was based.

:00:26. > :00:31.What do we do now? The disabled workers facing an uncertain future

:00:31. > :00:34.after the closure of their Remploy factories.

:00:34. > :00:37.And toilet breaks and other matters. South Pole record-breaker Bryony

:00:38. > :00:40.Balen's here to talk about her Antarctic adventure.

:00:40. > :00:46.And in sport, the cost of football - how promotion transformed

:00:46. > :00:56.Newcastle's financial fortunes. And making a splash - we hear from

:00:56. > :01:03.

:01:03. > :01:06.another of our swimmers to qualify The twin brother of PC David

:01:06. > :01:11.Rathband says he hopes as many people as possible will attend a

:01:11. > :01:14.memorial service held in his honour. PC Rathband was shot and blinded by

:01:14. > :01:17.the gunman Raoul Moat, and was found hanged at his home at Blyth

:01:17. > :01:20.in Northumberland a week ago. Darren Rathband, a police officer

:01:20. > :01:27.who lives in Australia - told our Chief Reporter Chris Stewart his

:01:27. > :01:33.brother simply couldn't cope with how his life had changed.

:01:33. > :01:37.David Rathband, on holiday with his twin in Australia. Days before his

:01:37. > :01:42.return to the North East. Days before he would be found hanged.

:01:42. > :01:47.And his twin has revealed that after David was shot, the pair had

:01:47. > :01:53.discussed his funeral arrangements in case he didn't pull through.

:01:53. > :01:58.would never, never want my brother not to say something. I would like

:01:58. > :02:03.to think that he was comfortable enough to tell me anything. He

:02:03. > :02:09.obviously didn't tell me something. But I appreciate that he actually

:02:09. > :02:13.told me what his wishes were, because nobody would want to be in

:02:13. > :02:20.this situation, nobody. I would rather he may be here telling me to

:02:20. > :02:27.stop grabbing hold of his arm, stop telling that putting him in the car,

:02:27. > :02:37.that is what my which would be. will you remember him? Every day I

:02:37. > :02:41.

:02:41. > :02:46.look in the mirror. Everyone who met the family came away very

:02:46. > :02:54.impressed at how strong or four of them were. How do people cope with

:02:54. > :02:58.that? It is human nature, if you don't cope, you give in, and I

:02:58. > :03:04.think that has certainly been evident with David's life. He coped

:03:04. > :03:09.as long as he cut and he has just... He has just give in -- as long as

:03:09. > :03:17.he could. How do you think the people of the North East will

:03:17. > :03:21.remember him? I'm hoping fondly. I know he has met a lot of people up

:03:21. > :03:26.in the North East, not only in the North East but across the country,

:03:26. > :03:30.but as a family we have been certainly taken aback by all of the

:03:30. > :03:35.messages from every single medium, the press, members of the emergency

:03:35. > :03:42.services, Twitter, we are absolutely overwhelmed by the

:03:42. > :03:50.messages of support. If that can be put into a memory, and then David's

:03:50. > :03:55.death, although heartbreaking, it will have a legacy, it will remain.

:03:55. > :03:59.People will do something good out of it. This Saturday sees a

:03:59. > :04:04.memorial service held at St Nicholas Cathedral in Newcastle. It

:04:04. > :04:09.starts at noon. Darren says it is a chance for people to say goodbye to

:04:09. > :04:14.his twin. But the role will take place in PC Rathband's home town of

:04:14. > :04:17.Stafford a week later -- the funeral. After that, Northumberland

:04:17. > :04:21.police will hold their own service. Darren Rathband, talking about his

:04:21. > :04:24.brother David. And PC Rathband's widow, Kath, says she will carry on

:04:24. > :04:29.his charity work by becoming a patron of the Blue Lamp Foundation,

:04:29. > :04:32.raising money for emergency service workers injured on duty.

:04:32. > :04:38.As the families of the six soldiers killed in Afghanistan on Tuesday

:04:38. > :04:40.mourn, tributes continue to pour in. Five of the soldiers were from the

:04:40. > :04:45.Wiltshire-based 3rd Battalion The Yorkshire Regiment. Their ages

:04:45. > :04:47.ranged from 19 to 21. The sixth - 33-year-old Sergeant Nigel Coupe -

:04:47. > :04:53.served with the 1st Battalion The Duke of Lancaster's Regiment, based

:04:53. > :04:56.at Somme Barracks at Catterick Garrison. Catterick is of course

:04:56. > :05:06.Europe's biggest army base, home to hundreds of army families, and our

:05:06. > :05:06.

:05:06. > :05:11.reporter Stuart Whincup is there now.

:05:11. > :05:14.In this crowded supermarket, at Catterick's very own military wives

:05:14. > :05:21.and girlfriends choir have been paying their own tribute to the six

:05:21. > :05:31.serviceman who lost their lives in Afghanistan.

:05:31. > :05:40.

:05:40. > :05:46.Many of the 30 or so choir here have loved ones currently serving

:05:46. > :05:50.in Afghanistan. One of those is Sarah Gillespie, whose husband is

:05:50. > :05:54.serving in Helmand. Sarah, what is it like when a tragedy happens like

:05:54. > :06:00.this and you have loved ones serving? Whenever you hear news

:06:00. > :06:03.like this, it hits all of us very hard. Even as army wives, we can

:06:03. > :06:08.only imagine that the horror of being the wife for the mother or

:06:08. > :06:11.father of someone who is told there has been a death, so our hearts go

:06:11. > :06:16.out to those people. And tonight, we are singing for those people who

:06:16. > :06:21.have died recently and in particular, the sergeant who came

:06:21. > :06:26.from this garrison. You said this is a tribute, but also part of

:06:26. > :06:30.military life. How do you live with it? We have things like the choir,

:06:30. > :06:35.which give us a strength and sense of community and that shows the

:06:35. > :06:41.important part -- the importance of it, the bond we have with each

:06:41. > :06:47.other, the uplifting effect that singing has. Tell me about the

:06:47. > :06:54.choir, 30 or so women. How important is it joining together?

:06:54. > :07:02.You only have to look at the faces behind me, to come along and saying,

:07:02. > :07:05.it is really uplifting -- seeing. We really need this, especially

:07:05. > :07:09.when you are on your own, to come out and do something together and

:07:09. > :07:15.we are sharing this experience in a supportive way without having to

:07:15. > :07:18.talk about how difficult you are finding things. Thank you very much.

:07:18. > :07:22.The choir are preparing for a big concert at the end of the month in

:07:22. > :07:26.Richmond and they have an album that has just been released, and

:07:26. > :07:33.money from that album will go towards setting up other military

:07:33. > :07:36.choirs in other military bases. Thank you for that report.

:07:36. > :07:39.The mother of a Sunderland soldier killed in Afghanistan has called on

:07:39. > :07:42.the Government to bring British forces home from Afghanistan now.

:07:42. > :07:46.Carla Cuthbertson's eldest son, Nathan, who was 19, was killed in

:07:46. > :07:49.2008. Now her youngest son, Connan, is preparing to go out to Helmand.

:07:49. > :07:59.She says she wants an end to the bloodshed, and that she doesn't

:07:59. > :08:00.

:08:00. > :08:04.want any more families to suffer The north-east has lost out on

:08:04. > :08:06.plans for the UK's first Green Investment Bank. Sunderland was one

:08:06. > :08:09.of the places competing to become the headquarters for the

:08:09. > :08:13.Government-backed �3 billion bank, along with Teesside, County Durham

:08:13. > :08:17.and Newcastle. But the Government announced today the HQ will be in

:08:17. > :08:19.Edinburgh. Approval has been given for a new

:08:20. > :08:24.hospital at Cockermouth and a new health care centre at Cleator Moor,

:08:24. > :08:27.in West Cumbria. Work should start on both in the early summer. The

:08:27. > :08:31.�11 million hospital at Cockermouth will combine GP and community

:08:31. > :08:34.hospital services, and replaces the flood-damaged building on Isel Road.

:08:34. > :08:40.The �4 million health centre in Cleator Moor should be completed by

:08:40. > :08:43.the end of spring next year. "What is there for us now?" The

:08:43. > :08:46.question disabled workers are asking after the Government said it

:08:46. > :08:49.was closing five Remploy factories in our region. Together, they

:08:49. > :08:53.employ around 150 people - and it's the security they've represented

:08:53. > :08:56.for decades that the staff fear losing most.

:08:56. > :09:00.The Government says there are better ways to get people with

:09:00. > :09:02.disabilities back into work. Gerry Jackson reports.

:09:02. > :09:08.They were state-owned factories created after the war to give

:09:08. > :09:12.wounded ex-servicemen employment. Today, the state says they really

:09:12. > :09:16.belong to another age. This one in Newcastle employs 58 people. Like

:09:16. > :09:22.most of those around the country, it will close by the end of the

:09:22. > :09:27.year. I would say the quality of the work

:09:27. > :09:31.has been better than some places where they are fit. They are

:09:31. > :09:33.disabled people but they are very conscientious, they like the job to

:09:33. > :09:39.be perfectly right. There are a couple of people who have never

:09:39. > :09:45.been sick and have been here for 20 years. This was my first job, this

:09:46. > :09:49.gave me my self-esteem back. Ministers say every Remploy job is

:09:49. > :09:52.subsidised to the tune of �25,000. They want the money diverted to

:09:52. > :09:57.their Access to Work scheme, getting mainstream employers to

:09:57. > :10:01.take on more disabled people. And some campaigners agree. The money

:10:01. > :10:06.that is currently spent on the factory's affected could be better

:10:06. > :10:10.used to support more disabled people and it is better to have

:10:10. > :10:14.disabled people working in the same jobs as other citizens, rather than

:10:14. > :10:17.segregated into one particular system of an old fashioned model of

:10:18. > :10:22.support. So the Government says factories like this just don't and

:10:22. > :10:26.they keep and that there are better ways of helping the disabled back

:10:26. > :10:30.into work -- and their keeper. Some of the people here don't seem

:10:30. > :10:35.reassured. After 34 years here, Andrew doesn't know who else would

:10:35. > :10:45.want the use of his partially disabled hands. I feel sick and

:10:45. > :10:45.

:10:45. > :10:50.horrible. In an the Government has absolutely use does. I have as

:10:50. > :10:54.Berger syndrome, it is a learning disability. Well they'd employ me?

:10:54. > :10:57.Bass Asperger's syndrome. Not many people in do?

:10:57. > :11:01.One of the region's oldest furniture companies is closing

:11:01. > :11:06.after being in business for 165 years. Chapmans - with stores in

:11:06. > :11:09.Newcastle and Carlisle - employs nearly 50 people. It's decided to

:11:09. > :11:12.shut because of the higher cost of new leases due on the stores.

:11:12. > :11:15.A County Durham schoolgirl is hoping to meet the Queen when she

:11:15. > :11:18.attends a ceremony to mark the Diamond Jubilee. Holly Cottrell and

:11:18. > :11:21.her friends at Seaham School of Technology won a competition to

:11:21. > :11:26.design a time capsule. They're going to Westminster Abbey to take

:11:26. > :11:30.part in this month's Commonwealth been selected from thousands to

:11:30. > :11:35.present a bouquet to a senior Royal. Coming up next: Bryony Balen tells

:11:35. > :11:42.us about her record-breaking trek And the battle lines are drawn in

:11:42. > :11:45.the row over culling geese in a Lake District beauty spot.

:11:45. > :11:49.High pressure is set to bring us fairly quiet weather for the

:11:49. > :11:53.weekend, mild with the best of the brightness in the east. I will have

:11:53. > :11:56.the full forecast later. Newcastle University student Bryony

:11:56. > :12:00.Balen has returned to Tyneside after her record-breaking trip to

:12:00. > :12:07.the South Pole. Bryony, who celebrated her 21st birthday on the

:12:07. > :12:11.ski across Antarctica to the Pole - a distance of 705 miles. The

:12:11. > :12:16.journey, in temperatures down to minus 45 Celsius, took Bryony 56

:12:16. > :12:19.days. I'll be chatting to Bryony in a moment. But first, let's have a

:12:19. > :12:26.look at the film she shot of her journey, using a miniature camera

:12:26. > :12:31.we gave her. It is a long way from Tyneside.

:12:31. > :12:35.10,000 miles, in fact. Now I am back in a warm studio in Newcastle

:12:35. > :12:42.looking at some of the highlight of what has been a fantastic adventure.

:12:42. > :12:49.We had just landed in Antarctica. It is gusting up to 35 knots, that

:12:49. > :12:55.is the limit of what the aircraft could do. Lots and lots of bags.

:12:55. > :13:02.Clothing, equipment, food supplies, first aid kit. This is the gateway

:13:02. > :13:07.to this concerned. -- Continent. Each of us will policy led weighing

:13:07. > :13:11.60 kilograms, almost as heavy as may that Paul ace lead. After

:13:11. > :13:18.checking kit and getting to know each other, we are off again, this

:13:18. > :13:23.time in a twin-engine aircraft to wear the adventure really begins. -

:13:23. > :13:28.- to wear. More than 700 miles to go, it is going to be tough and

:13:28. > :13:33.gold and it is Baron out here, but at least we have a our refuge --

:13:33. > :13:39.cold. It has been windy, it has calmed down now, we have the tent

:13:39. > :13:43.up, we have had the first camp dinner, dehydrated food, which was

:13:43. > :13:51.filling up, let's leave it at that. At the first communal cup of tea

:13:51. > :13:55.and a good chat and heading to bed now. -- had. Antarctica is the

:13:55. > :14:00.Earth's coldest Continent, temperatures down to minus 45

:14:00. > :14:04.Celsius. This is the campsite, it Celsius. This is the campsite, it

:14:04. > :14:14.is 30th November, we are 4,000 ft and it is pretty Baron. You can

:14:14. > :14:24.just see there is nothing on the And this little green tent is very

:14:24. > :14:28.

:14:28. > :14:38.Let's have a look at it -- that This is the height of Antartic

:14:38. > :14:39.

:14:39. > :14:48.luxury. They shipped out all of the waste from the site. You have to

:14:48. > :14:52.keep it separate. They fly all of this at back to Chile, where it

:14:53. > :15:02.gets treated as normal waste. Bit more of a fat than going out with a

:15:03. > :15:13.

:15:13. > :15:18.shovel in your hand, but good to It is a long, slow business, pole

:15:18. > :15:24.or exploring. We have all got aches and pains, our feet are sore, but

:15:24. > :15:29.we are on the final stretch, nearly there. It is about 3 o'clock in the

:15:29. > :15:36.morning, it has been a long day and we are going to head in, pop the

:15:36. > :15:46.10th up, get some dead and a hot drink and then we will go up that

:15:46. > :15:50.

:15:50. > :15:53.pop the 10th up and get some dinner. Fantastic, makes me feel chilly

:15:53. > :15:57.just watching it. And Bryony is with us in the warmth

:15:57. > :16:01.of the studio now. How much of an adventure was it? The adventure of

:16:01. > :16:05.a lifetime, it is safe to say. Where there are times when you

:16:05. > :16:09.thought it was never end? It's every morning when I got up and had

:16:09. > :16:14.to ski for 10 hours. I almost didn't wanted to end by the end of

:16:14. > :16:18.it, it was so relaxing. -- want it to end. You had your timetable for

:16:18. > :16:23.the day, didn't have to worry about anything. It did put a lot of

:16:23. > :16:26.effort into it. You trained on Tyneside pulling heavy tyres round

:16:26. > :16:30.the streets - did that help you pull the sled? I couldn't have done

:16:30. > :16:33.it without the preparation. I have been thinking about that trip for

:16:33. > :16:38.over three years. I had been training for two years, that gave

:16:38. > :16:44.me the strength to be able to keep up with my team-mates, all of whom

:16:44. > :16:46.were considerably older and more experienced. You don't look like a

:16:46. > :16:51.bodybuilder but you obviously have got incredible strength. This is

:16:51. > :16:55.the result of two months in Antarctica, losing quite a bit of

:16:55. > :16:58.weight. I was rowing for the university, dragging tyres, I had a

:16:58. > :17:03.personal trainer in the Midlands and it all came together in

:17:03. > :17:07.Antarctica. Each day, you are getting stronger because you are

:17:07. > :17:10.adapting to conditions and getting used to your kit. Adapting to

:17:10. > :17:15.coming back must have been a problem. You had problems with your

:17:15. > :17:19.eyes and your hands? Yes, having spent eight week in Antarctica, not

:17:19. > :17:23.a lot of scenery to look that, very little colour, and you come home

:17:23. > :17:28.and you are sat in Heathrow airport and there are people everywhere,

:17:28. > :17:33.noise, colour, smells, it was a real adjustment process. I was

:17:33. > :17:38.getting twitchy eyes and very tired eyes. What next? Who knows?

:17:38. > :17:44.Everything! Everything and anything! Keep us informed. Thank

:17:44. > :17:48.you for coming in. The proposed cull of Canada Geese

:17:48. > :17:52.on Windermere is to go ahead. The authorities in the Lake District

:17:52. > :17:55.have ruled there are too many of the birds and some will have to go.

:17:55. > :17:57.But anti-cull campaigners haven't given up. This report from Mark

:17:57. > :17:59.Edwardson. For almost one in five of these

:17:59. > :18:02.birds, their goose is already cooked. The Lake District National

:18:02. > :18:05.Park Authority and its partners are going to cull between 15 and 20% of

:18:05. > :18:13.Windermere's Canada Geese because it's felt they're an unpleasant

:18:13. > :18:18.nuisance and big polluters. Canada goose go to the toilet 26 times a

:18:18. > :18:24.day, they can deposit as much as two tons of droppings. If you

:18:24. > :18:30.multiply that by a large amount of birds, it has an impact on the

:18:30. > :18:32.ground under be people's ability to enjoy it. -- and people.

:18:32. > :18:35.Windermere's 1,200 Canada Geese, 200 will be shot this year. And

:18:36. > :18:40.that might be followed by another cull. A lot of visitors will be put

:18:40. > :18:44.off. It might be short term but it is not good for the Lake District.

:18:44. > :18:49.This is a beautiful area, one that I am passionate about and it is

:18:49. > :18:53.wildlife, and I can see no reason for the way they have gone about

:18:53. > :18:57.the matter. Visitors, often blamed for encouraging larger numbers of

:18:57. > :19:01.Canada Geese because they feed them, had mixed views. I can't say that

:19:01. > :19:05.there is a great impact on what they are doing to the environment.

:19:05. > :19:10.I think it is a good idea. They are very messy. Our don't agree, leave

:19:10. > :19:15.nature to itself. As far as the National Park Authority is

:19:15. > :19:19.concerned, the call of Canada Geese is going to start as soon as spring

:19:19. > :19:26.arrives -- a curling. Campaigners said they will keep up their

:19:26. > :19:29.protest, starting here on Saturday. Time for sport now, and whatever

:19:29. > :19:32.you think of Mike Ashley, he is obviously getting something right.

:19:32. > :19:34.I think he probably is. Newcastle United's strong

:19:34. > :19:38.performance on the pitch this season has been matched by vastly

:19:38. > :19:42.improved figures off it. The club's annual accounts were filed today.

:19:42. > :19:46.They show the Magpies are now close to breaking even with a loss of

:19:46. > :19:49.�3.9 million. The year before, the Magpies lost more than �30 million.

:19:49. > :19:55.Turnover rose 69% to �88 million, helped mainly by extra TV revenue

:19:55. > :20:04.after promotion to the Premier League. The gap between what the

:20:04. > :20:06.club earns and then pays out in wages was cut. Salaries are 60% of

:20:06. > :20:10.turnover. In 2010, they ate up nine-tenths of its income. They

:20:10. > :20:13.made a profit of �5 million on transfers - helped by the sale of

:20:13. > :20:21.Andy Carroll. But the figures do show Newcastle owe �140 million to

:20:21. > :20:25.owner Mike Ashley in interest-free loans. You have to say that we have

:20:25. > :20:33.as a club have done well and really tried to focus on the deck and

:20:33. > :20:36.making sure that we are viable. The Fair Play League comes in shortly

:20:36. > :20:39.and we are obviously in a favourable position for that, but

:20:39. > :20:43.you still have to have success on the pitch and that is the most

:20:43. > :20:48.important thing, that we have enough funds and that the board and

:20:48. > :20:51.Mike in particular are releasing enough funds to make us competitive.

:20:51. > :20:52.Meanwhile Newcastle midfielder Ryan Taylor has signed a new two-year

:20:52. > :20:55.contract. Hartlepool swimmer Jemma Lowe can

:20:55. > :20:58.look forward to swimming for Team GB in London this summer, along

:20:58. > :21:01.with Middlesbrough's Aimee Willmott and Richmond's Jo Jackson.

:21:01. > :21:04.Jemma came second in the 200m butterfly final at the British

:21:04. > :21:08.Championships at the new Aquatics Centre last night to book her place

:21:08. > :21:12.in the Olympic squad. Stockton's Jess Dickons narrowly missed out

:21:12. > :21:15.after coming third. 15-year-old paralympic swimmer Josef Craig from

:21:15. > :21:20.Jarrow picked up his second bronze medal of the week in the men's 100m

:21:20. > :21:28.freestyle. But it was a big night for Jemma, who admitted it was a

:21:28. > :21:32.nerve-wracking experience. I am so relieved, before the race I was so

:21:32. > :21:36.nervous it has been such an emotional week. I really wanted to

:21:36. > :21:41.get that place and before the race, I was so nervous, I had to go and

:21:41. > :21:45.get away and just calm myself down, I was getting too excited and I

:21:45. > :21:47.knew I had to stay relaxed to be able to do the time to make it.

:21:47. > :21:52.Professional boxing makes an overdue return to Tyneside this

:21:52. > :21:54.weekend. Among the fighters on the show at the Lancastrian Suite in

:21:54. > :21:55.Dunston on Saturday night is Newcastle's Mark Clauzel. The

:21:56. > :22:00.light-middleweight turned professional after reaching the

:22:00. > :22:03.national amateur finals. A hand injury kept him out of the ring for

:22:03. > :22:11.two years, but his career's now back on track - and he's hoping

:22:11. > :22:14.this weekend's bill might inspire others to follow his example.

:22:14. > :22:18.think that with it being the Olympic here as well, what is

:22:18. > :22:21.coming on, all of the young ones are going to see something and they

:22:22. > :22:27.might want to get off their backsides, get into the gym and

:22:27. > :22:32.some of the kids I have seen in the gym look fantastic. If I do well as

:22:32. > :22:38.an amateur, I can improve, they might think.

:22:38. > :22:41.Thank you very much. Time for the weather now - and also time to find

:22:41. > :22:43.out the winner of our calendar competition for February. Paul?

:22:43. > :22:46.The weather's been pretty changeable recently, so it's very

:22:46. > :22:49.apt that our weather picture judge this month is an artist who knows

:22:49. > :22:53.all about extreme weather. Susan Dobson's home is Hexham, but her

:22:53. > :23:00.heart - as Trai Anfield found out - belongs to the Himalayas.

:23:00. > :23:05.What I am really addicted to is going to the really high mountains.

:23:05. > :23:09.The really get a sense of perspective on life and the world -

:23:09. > :23:13.- you really. The weather has everything to do with your

:23:13. > :23:17.experience. It can be life and death. The really can't divorce the

:23:17. > :23:21.landscape from the weather. The weather is the landscape, the

:23:21. > :23:26.weather made the landscape of. Susan works in sketches,

:23:26. > :23:31.watercolours and oils, but her favourite medium is Monotype

:23:31. > :23:41.printing. To bring out the textured heart magnificent of her subjects.

:23:41. > :23:46.-- harsh. It is a painstaking way of making things. I roll it on to

:23:46. > :23:54.polycarbonate plates and I then draw into the pictures, a sort of

:23:54. > :23:58.white line, and then I wipe away with the various brushes or rags

:23:58. > :24:03.and that creates the image. It is not always easy to meet your

:24:03. > :24:09.Mountain ewes. I wasn't even allowed to go to Tibet. We should

:24:09. > :24:14.have been at the Everest north face Base Camp today, drawing, but the

:24:14. > :24:18.Borders are closed at the moment. Luckily, we have also got a few

:24:18. > :24:22.decent mountains in the region to keep Susan busy. And of course,

:24:22. > :24:28.your February pictures to judge. This one, I really liked, because

:24:28. > :24:35.it has very much of a quality of an etching. It is a very graphic

:24:35. > :24:40.nature. It is almost like it has been etched into steel.

:24:40. > :24:50.This encapsulates the way the knitted breast rises and falls and

:24:50. > :24:56.

:24:56. > :24:59.And we have a high high-altitude winner. This evokes to me what

:24:59. > :25:07.Robert McFarlane says about mountains, but mountains returned

:25:07. > :25:12.to us the priceless capacity for wonder. And this is what this image

:25:12. > :25:16.does for me. And hopefully for everyone who looks at it on the

:25:16. > :25:19.calendar. Great stuff. Thanks to Susan and

:25:19. > :25:24.congratulations to Robert. As the weekend approaches, lots of people

:25:24. > :25:31.have been asking if they can cut the grass for the first time? Maybe

:25:31. > :25:36.you should use the flaxseed raise a system, that is the Northumberland

:25:36. > :25:39.Wildlife way, putting cattle out to raise the land. This is the latest

:25:40. > :25:45.arrival to the herd. I can't help but think that his mother, having

:25:45. > :25:49.given birth, must be mightily relieved he didn't come ready-made

:25:49. > :25:53.with a pair of those horns. The weekend, most of us will have a dry

:25:53. > :25:55.spell of weather, fairly mild and spell of weather, fairly mild and

:25:55. > :25:59.there will be some brightness, the best of it in eastern areas. High

:25:59. > :26:05.pressure building, squeezing out this weather front and then it

:26:05. > :26:11.starts to dominate as we head to the weekend. Western areas hanging

:26:11. > :26:17.on to more cloud. Eastern areas hanging on to the brightness. Will

:26:17. > :26:21.you be able to see the Northern Lights tonight? Probably not, I'm

:26:21. > :26:25.afraid. By the end of the night, the rain and drizzle will become

:26:25. > :26:29.more widespread. Much milder than last night, a noticeable south-

:26:29. > :26:34.westerly breeze and temperatures for most places, no lower than six

:26:34. > :26:37.or seven Celsius, the mid-forties Fahrenheit. Cloudy and breezy start

:26:38. > :26:41.for most of us tomorrow and western areas will hang on to a lot of

:26:41. > :26:44.cloud tomorrow with the risk of some drizzly rain. The best of any

:26:44. > :26:51.brakes will be to the east, but even there, the brakes and the

:26:51. > :26:56.brighter spells will be fed the fleeting. -- fairly. Even with a

:26:56. > :26:59.lot of cloud, we should see 11 or 12 Celsius. Further east, a few

:26:59. > :27:05.breaks in the cloud, maybe 14 Celsius is possible for Friday

:27:05. > :27:09.afternoon. Saturday, most places dry, likely to keep a fair amount

:27:09. > :27:13.of cloud in the West, most likely to break in the east and when it

:27:13. > :27:19.does, we could see temperatures on Sunday of up to 14 or 15 Celsius.

:27:19. > :27:22.That is a high fifties Fahrenheit, not bad for the first half of March.

:27:22. > :27:26.The search is now on for the March weather picture. If you think you

:27:26. > :27:29.might have it, get in touch in the usual way.