:00:00. > :00:09.Hello, and welcome to Midlands Today. The headlines tonight: "We
:00:10. > :00:12.just want to bring her home," the words of Nicola Payne's parents,
:00:13. > :00:19.after two men arrested in connection with her murder are released on
:00:20. > :00:24.bail. We have searched everywhere. Tried
:00:25. > :00:26.every avenue. We desperately need this closure.
:00:27. > :00:30.We'll have an exclusive interview with John and Marilyn Payne.
:00:31. > :00:34.Also tonight: A report into the death of a child who swallowed
:00:35. > :08:09.heroin says there were unacceptable failings in his care.
:08:10. > :08:12.Someone should be held responsible. A 22`month`old boy lost his life
:08:13. > :08:14.because he was not monitored correctly.
:08:15. > :08:16.Better communication between different agencies has been
:08:17. > :08:18.promised. All involved have offered an apology for what they said was
:08:19. > :08:30.the loss of a much`loved child. Every Christmas, advice on safe
:08:31. > :08:33.drinking on a night out is repeated. But our next story really brings the
:08:34. > :08:37.message home. 25`year`old Simon Collins held down a job, but would
:08:38. > :08:42.binge drink. Three years ago, over the festive period, he collapsed,
:08:43. > :08:45.and died in hospital months later. His brother Dan spoke to our
:08:46. > :08:53.reporter Ben Godfrey, in the hope that Simon's story will help save
:08:54. > :08:58.someone else's life. Simon, you can sort your life out,
:08:59. > :09:02.you will be all right. He said, I will be dead before I am 25.
:09:03. > :09:07.Three days before Christmas Day in 2010, Simon Collins collapsed after
:09:08. > :09:13.a night out binge drinking. To look at him, I thought something
:09:14. > :09:16.did not feel right. He was cold. Lifeless. Simon's family watched him
:09:17. > :09:23.slowly deteriorate, and it was too late to do anything.
:09:24. > :09:29.Five months later, after visiting him every day, we even celebrated
:09:30. > :09:34.his 25th birthday at hospital. We got him a villa cake. He is a
:09:35. > :09:38.massive villa fan. We lost him. Simon was a chef in a restaurant. A
:09:39. > :09:48.bar was always close by. His parents separated before his 18th birthday.
:09:49. > :09:50.And, in the following years, his life turned towards alcohol and
:09:51. > :09:55.gambling. His doctor said his liver was
:09:56. > :09:58.absolutely fine and he took that as an excuse to carry on drinking.
:09:59. > :10:01.Dan Collins now feels it's his duty to warn people about the dangers of
:10:02. > :10:04.binge drinking. So, we introduced him to a charity supporting people
:10:05. > :10:09.with drink and drug addictions, at their annual conference, and he
:10:10. > :10:14.ended up being a keynote speaker. Because it was `10 outside, his bad
:10:15. > :10:17.`` his body carry on living even though his heart stopped.
:10:18. > :10:21.Dan made a radio documentary, and won an international award in New
:10:22. > :10:30.York. It was a simple idea. He sat in a room and talked to his father.
:10:31. > :10:35.April 19 2011, we lost him. There's probably not a day goes by when we
:10:36. > :10:43.don't think about him. Having feedback from charities, this is so
:10:44. > :10:48.powerful. People listening to it have been in tears. I am hoping that
:10:49. > :10:52.it will help at least one person, then it is worth making.
:10:53. > :10:56.Dan Collins, on dealing with the death of his brother, Simon. Tonight
:10:57. > :11:00.will be one of the busiest nights of the year for the emergency services.
:11:01. > :11:03.They've set up a temporary minor injury unit to treat revellers in
:11:04. > :11:13.Birmingham city centre. Ben Godfrey is there now. How many people are
:11:14. > :11:18.they expecting to treat tonight? This is broad Street on Birmingham.
:11:19. > :11:24.This is essentially a field hospital. Individual trauma bays,
:11:25. > :11:28.six of them, those worse for the work can actually come here to be
:11:29. > :11:33.treated. They call it that Friday because of the level of people
:11:34. > :11:39.coming in, perhaps 80 alone this evening. Nathan, what specific
:11:40. > :11:48.injuries to people have? Mainly alcohol related, false, head
:11:49. > :11:52.injuries from assaults. A range of issues coming through the door this
:11:53. > :11:59.evening. When we hear about the Collins family, are people taking
:12:00. > :12:04.warnings about alcohol abuse? Unfortunately not. We see increased
:12:05. > :12:12.calls related to alcohol over the festive period. We do encourage
:12:13. > :12:19.people to drink moderately. A is besieged. You are taking people away
:12:20. > :12:27.from A That is correct. This will free up some of the capacity, to
:12:28. > :12:34.treat patients here. But you only have six beds. Overall, not
:12:35. > :12:41.everybody needs a bed. People can be fixed up quite quickly and sent on
:12:42. > :12:47.their way. It's all here if it is needed. This
:12:48. > :12:53.is open tonight from 8pm until 4am, the same tomorrow, and new years
:12:54. > :12:57.eve. Hopefully they won't see many people here, although sadly they are
:12:58. > :13:00.expected to come in their dozens. A teacher at a Birmingham school,
:13:01. > :13:03.who recorded himself sexually assaulting children, has been jailed
:13:04. > :13:06.for three years and eight months. Phillip Evans, a music teacher at
:13:07. > :13:08.King Edward School in Edgbaston, fitted secret cameras in the
:13:09. > :13:14.changing rooms. Police described Evans as a cold, calculating
:13:15. > :13:17.paedophile. Four people have been charged, after
:13:18. > :13:20.a man from Gloucestershire died on a night out in Manchester. 30`year`old
:13:21. > :13:24.Nick Bonnie collapsed in September, after taking what's thought to be a
:13:25. > :13:30.contaminated ecstasy tablet at a nightclub. The four men, all from
:13:31. > :13:33.Gloucestershire, are charged with perverting the course of justice and
:13:34. > :13:37.possession and supply of class A drugs.
:13:38. > :13:43.This is our top story tonight: "We just want to bring her home," the
:13:44. > :13:46.words of Nicola Payne's parents, after two men arrested in connection
:13:47. > :13:50.with her murder are released on bail.
:13:51. > :13:54.Your detailed weather forecast to come shortly.
:13:55. > :13:56.Also in tonight's programme: The season of goodwill at Hereford
:13:57. > :14:04.United. Fans are asked to help out with
:14:05. > :14:08.players' wages. And, really getting into the part.
:14:09. > :14:19.Our reporter Satnam goes behind the scenes in panto land.
:14:20. > :14:25.Let's catch up on the sport. Coventry City fans have a new
:14:26. > :14:34.stadium, on paper at least. Ian Winter is at the Ricoh Arena. How
:14:35. > :14:39.much detail is there, Ian? As with most plans, the devil is in
:14:40. > :14:42.the detail. And the one detail that's not been revealed is exactly
:14:43. > :14:48.where the new Coventry City stadium would be built. We're told it could
:14:49. > :14:56.seat up to 23,000 fans. And it could cost up to ?20 million. But today,
:14:57. > :15:00.club officials told me it's the best way forward to end the long`running
:15:01. > :15:04.rift with the Ricoh Arena. Busy`busy in the city centre today.
:15:05. > :15:07.And, for last`minute shoppers, their first glimpse of a new gift. The
:15:08. > :15:11.architect's plans for Coventry City's new stadium. It looks modern
:15:12. > :15:14.and fit for purpose. But there's a problem. No one knows when, or
:15:15. > :15:21.indeed where, they're going to build it.
:15:22. > :15:25.I suspect it's going to be near the airport, there's a lot of
:15:26. > :15:34.development there. They should put it in the park. Which part? The car
:15:35. > :15:39.park! Coventry. That would be best. That would be novel. On the
:15:40. > :15:46.outskirts, we would still go. How far would you still go? Within the
:15:47. > :15:52.Coventry boundary. Where is it going to be? We don't know, David! Beryl,
:15:53. > :15:55.do you know? Beryl doesn't know. But this man
:15:56. > :15:59.does. Mark Labovitch has been a nonexecutive director of Coventry
:16:00. > :16:02.City for the past two years. He's excited by the new plans and he's
:16:03. > :16:10.keen to hear supporters' opinions. But the burning question remains.
:16:11. > :16:15.Well above the stadium be built? You know we can't answer that right at
:16:16. > :16:20.the minute. We have two sites we are negotiating on. It would be suicidal
:16:21. > :16:28.to drop one of them and have all our eggs in one basket. We want to get
:16:29. > :16:32.moving quickly. We want to get back to the outskirts of Coventry as soon
:16:33. > :16:35.as possible. I want the club to own its own stadium that by Coventry,
:16:36. > :16:40.and play here and have a great future. Eventually, it could seat up
:16:41. > :16:44.to 23,000 fans. And it could cost up to ?20 million pounds. But it's
:16:45. > :16:47.anyone's guess as to when it'll get started, let alone finished. Until
:16:48. > :16:50.then, the new stadium remains an artist's impression. And the most
:16:51. > :16:57.concrete plan is for Coventry to play at Swindon tomorrow.
:16:58. > :17:00.Ian, that new stadium is still some way off, what about more immediate
:17:01. > :17:04.matters? West Brom's search for a new head coach. What's the latest?
:17:05. > :17:10.Interesting developments during the day. And it's looking very much like
:17:11. > :17:12.a two`horse race between a Scot and a Scandinavian. The bookies'
:17:13. > :17:17.favourite tonight is Malky Mackay. And the second favourite is Ole
:17:18. > :17:20.Gunnar Solskjaer. All the other runners and riders appear to have
:17:21. > :17:23.been left standing. This evening, Mackay is still the manager of
:17:24. > :17:28.Cardiff City. But not for much longer. He's had a long`running, and
:17:29. > :17:31.very public dispute with the club's owner. And Albion are ready to
:17:32. > :17:35.pounce, as soon as he quits Cardiff. But, as we revealed on Monday, Ole
:17:36. > :17:41.Gunnar Solskjaer is very much in the picture. He's keen to manage in the
:17:42. > :17:45.Premier League, he's had great success with his Norwegian club
:17:46. > :17:50.Molde, and he's told them that he's keen to listen to what Albion have
:17:51. > :17:53.to say. In the meantime, Albion play Hull
:17:54. > :17:57.City tomorrow, with Keith Downing in temporary charge. One of his former
:17:58. > :18:02.clubs, Hereford United, are struggling to pay their players'
:18:03. > :18:05.wages this Christmas. The Conference side are asking fans to raise
:18:06. > :18:12.?35,000 to help them through until the New Year. Nick Clitheroe
:18:13. > :18:15.reports. There were plenty of smiling faces
:18:16. > :18:18.at Hereford United's training session this morning, but the
:18:19. > :18:22.players can be forgiven if inside they're just a little bit worried.
:18:23. > :18:27.The players are thinking they won't get paid in December which puts a
:18:28. > :18:30.dampener on morale. I totally understand and respect the decision
:18:31. > :18:35.by the board. If you are a business losing money, you need to do
:18:36. > :18:38.something about it. For the chairman David Keyte, it's a major
:18:39. > :18:43.frustration. They had hoped to sign a new 30`year lease on their ground
:18:44. > :18:47.with the council before Christmas. That would have allowed them to
:18:48. > :18:50.finalise a deal with a mobile phone company to put receivers on their
:18:51. > :18:52.floodlights, and raise more than ?100,000.
:18:53. > :18:56.We have made severe cuts in the last two years. And the gates have gone
:18:57. > :19:01.down still further which has taken us back a step. So we have made
:19:02. > :19:06.further cuts. At what level do we get the clear message that Hereford
:19:07. > :19:12.does not need a professional football club? The problem is that
:19:13. > :19:15.relegation from the Football League saw their income drop instantly from
:19:16. > :19:18.?750,000 a year to just ?47,000. It's worried fans like Keith Dodd
:19:19. > :19:22.who's been watching the club for almost 60 years.
:19:23. > :19:27.I know the board had put a considerable much of money to keep
:19:28. > :19:31.us where we are. Ex`football league clubs which have been relegated
:19:32. > :19:35.struggling like us. We are one of many.
:19:36. > :19:40.We need to get the club through this period, into the summer. Then there
:19:41. > :19:48.needs to be serious talks about a sensible budget for next season.
:19:49. > :19:51.There is some positive news. More than ?3,000 has been pledged in the
:19:52. > :19:54.first 24 hours, and further ahead, major redevelopment plans promise a
:19:55. > :19:59.more secure future. Tonight, it's all quiet at the
:20:00. > :20:02.Ricoh. But clearly it's going to be a very busy Christmas for everyone
:20:03. > :20:05.connected with Hereford United, Coventry City and West Bromwich
:20:06. > :20:08.Albion. For many, Christmas just wouldn't be
:20:09. > :20:13.the same without a trip to the pantomime. But while we settle into
:20:14. > :20:17.our seats ready to be entertained, have you ever thought about what it
:20:18. > :20:20.takes to put on the show night after night? Our arts reporter Satnam Rana
:20:21. > :20:23.has been meeting people on and off stage, to bring us a flavour of
:20:24. > :20:25.pantomime season across the Midlands. Just a warning, her report
:20:26. > :20:37.does contain some ugly sisters. I set upon a quest.
:20:38. > :20:42.To dig beneath the jest. To get beyond the curtain.
:20:43. > :20:46.Find great shows for certain. And meet people full of panto pun.
:20:47. > :20:51.Bringing all of us lots of festive fun.
:20:52. > :20:56.In Lichfield, doth Snow White reside, turn the page to step
:20:57. > :21:00.inside. At The Garrick, and a familiar face
:21:01. > :21:03.for Midlands Today's viewers. Joanne Malin is transformed into
:21:04. > :21:09.Queen Evilene, in Snow White and the Magic Mirror. You know, I never
:21:10. > :21:16.forget a face but in your case, I'll make an exception. You can call me
:21:17. > :21:20.your Majesty. And this is the busy sewing bee
:21:21. > :21:24.who's helped make it happen. It's been brilliant. I've started out at
:21:25. > :21:34.the studio in Cheadle with Jon. And then that's where all the designs
:21:35. > :21:37.were. Then I will be doing the whole run and see it through to the end
:21:38. > :21:40.when I will be sad to see the costumes go.
:21:41. > :21:44.13 shows on the panto meter for Geoff at The Regent Theatre.
:21:45. > :21:49.In Stoke on Trent, Geoff is at work in the box office. You'd think it
:21:50. > :21:54.would be hard work doing two shows a day. It is fun, you can hear the
:21:55. > :22:00.atmosphere, thousands of kids, parents, families, all coming into
:22:01. > :22:04.the theatre to enjoy themselves to scream and shout. When do have a
:22:05. > :22:09.chance normally to do that throughout the year?
:22:10. > :22:14.Inside the auditorium, Snow White and Seven Dwarfs is the call of the
:22:15. > :22:20.day for these young children. At The Courtyard, two dames we meet
:22:21. > :22:23.serving up some yule time treats. And big hair, big make`up is the
:22:24. > :22:29.order of the day for this panto dame.
:22:30. > :22:36.I'm behind you! My goodness, you are so ugly. Oh no
:22:37. > :22:42.we are not. Why is it such an important part of production? The
:22:43. > :22:47.panto dame brings a bit of fun, it gets the audience going, kids
:22:48. > :22:53.shouting. We get to play tricks on everyone. Brilliant fun at
:22:54. > :22:56.Christmas. Isn't it? No, it's not. I'm prettier than you are. Oh, note
:22:57. > :23:18.you are not! You guessed it.
:23:19. > :23:21.The story here is Cinderella. She is putting in a 12`hour day for the
:23:22. > :23:24.Christmas show in Stratford upon Avon. Her job, warming up the
:23:25. > :23:28.actors' voice and body. There are lots of coughs and colds
:23:29. > :23:32.at Christmas so it is sustaining their vocal health throughout the
:23:33. > :23:37.festive season. It is a challenge. But we manage it.
:23:38. > :23:41.As Wendy and Peter Pan take to Neverland, it's time for us to fly
:23:42. > :23:49.to the second city, OT. Birmingham. And a panto grand, one of the
:23:50. > :23:53.biggest in the land. At The Hippodrome, fashion guru Gok
:23:54. > :24:00.Wan takes to the stage for the first time in Snow White and the Seven
:24:01. > :24:04.Dwarfs. Panto means three things, family and
:24:05. > :24:08.friends getting together and celebrating. The second thing is
:24:09. > :24:16.fun. The third thing is, camp, camp, camp.
:24:17. > :24:18.Beanstalk, Giant. A lad named Jack. To Shrewsbury, quick no turning
:24:19. > :24:22.back. At Theatre Severn, Jo is in charge
:24:23. > :24:27.of 600 litres of water for a gag`filled bathroom scene. It's the
:24:28. > :24:31.best and worst part of the year for us. At the same time, everyone else
:24:32. > :24:37.having fun and not havng to work. Whereas we're having fun at work.
:24:38. > :24:39.And there you have it, my panto story.
:24:40. > :24:41.So go forth and revel in Christmas glory.
:24:42. > :24:47.Satnam Rana, BBC Midlands Today, somewhere in panto land.
:24:48. > :24:54.Let's find out how the weather is shaping up over the weekend, Rebecca
:24:55. > :24:59.has the forecast. We have a bit of everything to come.
:25:00. > :25:03.A rather chilly start to today. Not dissimilar to the scene captured
:25:04. > :25:14.here by Jack Downes in his garden. A frosty start. Plenty of rain to
:25:15. > :25:18.come. Sunshine and showers to content with as well. There's
:25:19. > :25:24.sunshine and showers will also see quite a bit of wind through the next
:25:25. > :25:29.couple of days. We have an area of low pressure moving into day, taking
:25:30. > :25:35.some time to get to us. We will see quite a bit of rain this evening.
:25:36. > :25:42.And strong winds, up to 40 miles an hour this evening. 20 millimetres of
:25:43. > :25:46.rainfall by tomorrow morning. Once that band of rain has cleared away,
:25:47. > :25:51.it will be a quite end to the night. Not feeling too cold either.
:25:52. > :25:57.Saturday is not too bad at all. Some sunny spells in the morning. Showers
:25:58. > :26:02.to content with, some quite nicely. Still rather breezy, the possibility
:26:03. > :26:06.of a wintry mix. Good spells of sunshine to come through the day
:26:07. > :26:11.before this next band of rain makes its way in. Temperatures up to 11
:26:12. > :26:20.Celsius, not feeling too bad. This second span `` second band moves in
:26:21. > :26:27.afterwards. There could be localised flooding on Sunday. It is getting
:26:28. > :26:36.much colder. Sunday is rather chilly. Showers we see are more
:26:37. > :26:40.likely to contain some snow. Temperatures around seven Celsius.
:26:41. > :26:46.The winds are picking up. Monday, a big area of low pressure bringing
:26:47. > :26:52.strong winds, heavy rain, and a Met Office yellow warning for wind and
:26:53. > :26:58.rain. By Christmas Day, things are starting to get colder. A mixed
:26:59. > :27:01.picture heading to Christmas. It could cause travel disruption. Stay
:27:02. > :27:09.tuned to the forecast. Tonight's headlines from the BBC@
:27:10. > :27:12.Nigella Lawson's two assistants are cleared of fraud. They had claimed
:27:13. > :27:17.they were allowed to spend huge sums if they kept quiet about her drug
:27:18. > :27:20.use. 17 different agencies failed to
:27:21. > :27:24.prevent men sexually abusing young girls in Rochdale. If "We just want
:27:25. > :27:27.to bring her home," the words of Nicola Payne's parents, after two
:27:28. > :27:30.men arrested in connection with her murder are released on bail.
:27:31. > :27:33.And a report into the death of a child who swallowed heroin says
:27:34. > :27:38.there were unacceptable failings in his care.
:27:39. > :27:40.That was the Midlands Today. I'll be back at ten o'clock. Have a great
:27:41. > :27:44.evening. Goodbye.