:00:00. > :00:00.worth up to ?2000. That is all from us,
:00:00. > :00:07.Hello and welcome to Midlands Today. The headlines tonight:
:00:08. > :00:10.An apology to Jeff Astle's widow from the Football Association for
:00:11. > :00:16.the way she's been treated since the footballer died from brain damage.
:00:17. > :00:20.We feel very let down. The tpset we've felt I think is reallx
:00:21. > :00:23.starting to turn to anger. Laraine Astle also tells us she
:00:24. > :00:27.still wants the FA to carry out research into brain injuries among
:00:28. > :00:29.players. An investigation's under wax into
:00:30. > :00:36.why 86 miscarried and abortdd foetuses were kept for up to four
:00:37. > :00:39.years at Walsall Manor Hosphtal Abandoned and neglected ` a surge in
:00:40. > :00:45.the number of horses rescued from appalling misery. It is beyond bad.
:00:46. > :00:51.Every year it's got worse btt this has been the worst year ever.
:00:52. > :00:54.Making a bit of twit of himself ` the tawny owl recovering from a
:00:55. > :00:58.325`mile journey clinging to the front of a train. Tawny owls are
:00:59. > :01:02.very funny owls, and they'rd very hardy owls, so, again, I thhnk it
:01:03. > :01:07.just got on there, clung on, and that was it!
:01:08. > :01:11.And it's all looking calm rhght now, deceptively so. In fact, if
:01:12. > :01:15.anything, tomorrow could be warm. But by the time we get to Thursday
:01:16. > :01:17.and the rest of the week, that's quite a different story, whhch I'll
:01:18. > :01:28.have for you later. Good evening. The Football
:01:29. > :01:31.Association today apologised to the widow of Jeff Astle for the way
:01:32. > :01:36.she's been treated since he died from brain damage caused by heading
:01:37. > :01:39.heavy leather footballs. Laraine Astle says there's been virtually no
:01:40. > :01:45.contact since a landmark inpuest 12 years ago into the death of the West
:01:46. > :01:48.Bromwich Albion legend. Although the dry weight of footballs has remained
:01:49. > :01:55.unchanged, the old leather balls became far heavier when wet, risking
:01:56. > :01:58.serious injury. Here's Ben Godfrey. To West Bromwich Albion supporters,
:01:59. > :02:03.Jeff Astle was known simply as the King. He was a prolific goal`scorer
:02:04. > :02:08.for the Baggies and won fivd caps for England. His death in 2002 at
:02:09. > :02:16.the age of 59 sent shock waves through football. We have h`d no
:02:17. > :02:19.closure with it. There's bedn no closure because the FA won't accept
:02:20. > :02:22.what killed him, you see. Tdsts showed that Jeff Astle died from a
:02:23. > :02:26.catastrophic brain injury c`used by years of heading leather balls. The
:02:27. > :02:29.Football Association told L`raine Astle they would conduct a decade of
:02:30. > :02:37.research into the effect on players but it hasn't been done. Ond of my
:02:38. > :02:41.daughters said, do they just not think my dad's life was worth
:02:42. > :02:46.anything? Two of my daughters have suffered, you know, in the last 12
:02:47. > :02:50.years. One of my daughters had a nervous breakdown. In a statement,
:02:51. > :02:54.the Football Association sahd: We deeply regret any upset caused to
:02:55. > :03:00.the Astle family due to our lack of contact during this period, and we
:03:01. > :03:04.apologise to them for this". We understand the FA did begin a
:03:05. > :03:08.research project but it has not been completed because the youngsters
:03:09. > :03:13.selected to take part droppdd out. This is after failing to make it as
:03:14. > :03:17.professionals. Then surely hf it is going to help and save lives and
:03:18. > :03:22.front all these problems in later life, that has got to be worthwhile.
:03:23. > :03:28.This neurologist says even though today's footballs don't get heavier
:03:29. > :03:38.in wet conditions, they could still cause injury. Even mild injtry is a
:03:39. > :03:41.risk factor these days. Jeff's family, including his 14`month`old
:03:42. > :03:44.grandson, Joseph, are going to West Bromwich Albion's match at Hull City
:03:45. > :03:46.on Saturday. They're asking supporters to honour the Baggies
:03:47. > :03:56.legend by applauding after nine minutes to recognise their campaign
:03:57. > :03:59.for justice for Jeff. Coming up later in the programme,
:04:00. > :04:02.the peril of potholes. A former world cycling champion says the
:04:03. > :04:09.roads he rides have become potential death traps.
:04:10. > :04:13.An investigation's under wax after miscarried and aborted foettses were
:04:14. > :04:17.kept in storage at Walsall Lanor Hospital. They were retained because
:04:18. > :04:21.paper work wasn't filled in properly. There are around 700
:04:22. > :04:25.miscarriages or abortions every year at the hospital and it's now emerged
:04:26. > :04:31.that 86 foetuses were kept for up to four years. Of those, 73 were under
:04:32. > :04:37.12 weeks old. Here's our he`lth correspondent, Michele Padu`no.
:04:38. > :04:41.At 12 weeks, the foetus is `round six centimetres long and wehghs just
:04:42. > :04:47.14 grams. The vast majority of embryos, 73, were smaller than this.
:04:48. > :04:51.This is a foetus at 20 weeks. Some remains were as late as 21 weeks'
:04:52. > :04:55.gestation. Walsall Manor Hospital has admitted that embryos wdre kept
:04:56. > :05:03.up to four years in two casds because forms weren't compldted or
:05:04. > :05:08.were incorrectly completed. We are sincerely sorry for any distress or
:05:09. > :05:12.concern we might have caused. We have had a problem with our internal
:05:13. > :05:20.process which has meant that in a small number of cases, the
:05:21. > :05:23.authorisation to dispose of what is remaining after miscarriages and
:05:24. > :05:26.terminations has not happendd as it should have done. Around 700 embryos
:05:27. > :05:30.from abortions and miscarri`ges in Walsall are cremated here at the
:05:31. > :05:33.Streetly Crematorium. The mhssing embryos only came to light following
:05:34. > :05:40.a Freedom of Information repuest asking how many foetuses were kept
:05:41. > :05:43.more than a month. Once the paperwork is completed, the
:05:44. > :05:48.remaining 86 foetuses will be brought here for cremation. Some
:05:49. > :05:50.with their parents present. The hospital says it has reviewdd all of
:05:51. > :05:54.its other procedures and thdre are no other problems with the lortuary.
:05:55. > :05:58.In a statement, the Human Thssue Authority said: "We are currently
:05:59. > :06:01.reviewing how this happened at Manor Hospital in Walsall, includhng
:06:02. > :06:03.inspecting next week. It is important that the issues are
:06:04. > :06:06.investigated thoroughly, action is taken, and lessons are learned by
:06:07. > :06:10.Walsall and others to avoid similar incidents happening again".
:06:11. > :06:12.No`one has been disciplined for the error but the hospital has
:06:13. > :06:19.commissioned an investigation into why this was not discovered sooner.
:06:20. > :06:22.And the hospital has set up a dedicated information line for
:06:23. > :06:24.people who think they may bd affected by what's happened ` the
:06:25. > :06:34.number to call is 0345 835 7626 It's the Budget tomorrow, and
:06:35. > :06:38.companies will be looking for further incentives to boost the
:06:39. > :06:40.region's economy. Although there are signs of recovery, particul`rly in
:06:41. > :06:45.manufacturing, unemployment remains stubbornly high. Our business
:06:46. > :06:49.correspondent Peter Plisner is in Aston in Birmingham tonight. Peter,
:06:50. > :06:58.what are the key things bushnesses will be looking out for frol the
:06:59. > :07:02.Chancellor? I think as you said they are looking for reasons or
:07:03. > :07:07.incentives to grow. This colpany no exception. Here they make plastic
:07:08. > :07:13.mouldings for a variety of things. This is a wheel arch for a
:07:14. > :07:18.Caterpillar and this is somdthing for a JCB. And this is for ` wheel
:07:19. > :07:22.arch of an Aston Martin! With me is the managing director. You have
:07:23. > :07:25.expanded quite rapidly and paid the price in increased business rates
:07:26. > :07:30.and presumably you don't want the Chancellor to be putting opdrates
:07:31. > :07:36.any more? Absolutely. The r`tes really have not gone down. For the
:07:37. > :07:39.last five years, really. It is quite a deprived area and obviously we
:07:40. > :07:44.want to employ more people `nd that has prevented us from doing that.
:07:45. > :07:48.Energy costs are quite high because basically you are warming lots of
:07:49. > :07:53.things up so you possibly w`nt the Government to do something on the
:07:54. > :08:00.increase in that? Very much so. We are spending about ?12,000 ` month
:08:01. > :08:04.on electricity alone and th`t prevents us from entering a global
:08:05. > :08:08.market, so any help on that would be very welcome. What else werd July to
:08:09. > :08:14.see the Chancellor give you? We would like to see him keep or raise
:08:15. > :08:18.the annual investment allow`nce We are looking at investing in
:08:19. > :08:23.machinery because our custolers are asking us to do that and we need
:08:24. > :08:29.help in being able to do th`t. `` what else would you like to see The
:08:30. > :08:33.Chancellor will deliver his speech at lunchtime tomorrow and tomorrow
:08:34. > :08:37.night we will be back to find out if Dave and the company he man`ges
:08:38. > :08:40.actually got what they were asking for. It will be interesting to see.
:08:41. > :08:44.Thank you. A Birmingham woman has been jailed
:08:45. > :08:47.for life in Pakistan after being convicted of trying to smuggle drugs
:08:48. > :08:50.out of the country. 26`year`old Khadijah Shah, seen here attending
:08:51. > :08:55.court with her two children, was arrested at Islamabad Airport in May
:08:56. > :09:00.2012. She was carrying 63 khlos of heroin worth nearly ?3 millhon.
:09:01. > :09:04.She's always denied the charges The children have since returned to the
:09:05. > :09:07.UK. Charities are warning that the
:09:08. > :09:11.number of abandoned horses hn the Midlands is reaching critic`l
:09:12. > :09:14.levels. Rescue centres say irresponsible breeders and rising
:09:15. > :09:18.costs are behind a surge in the number of animals being neglected.
:09:19. > :09:22.The RSPCA wants tighter controls to keep track of owners. BBC Hdreford
:09:23. > :09:27.and Worcester's Pam Caufield has been investigating.
:09:28. > :09:32.Hello, scruffy lot! Dumped on roadsides, car parks and fidlds
:09:33. > :09:38.These are some of more than 120 horses rescued by one small
:09:39. > :09:42.Worcestershire charity. It has reached crisis point. It is beyond
:09:43. > :09:47.bad. Every year has got worse but this has been the worst year ever
:09:48. > :09:52.that I've experienced in 30 years. I'm having to turn horses away. Sue
:09:53. > :09:57.picks up animals like these almost every day. Cheap to buy but
:09:58. > :10:03.expensive to care for, many suffer appalling neglect, are abandoned and
:10:04. > :10:07.left for dead. Don't buy it if you can't afford to keep it. Don't
:10:08. > :10:11.advertise it free thinking someone else will want it, because ht'll be
:10:12. > :10:16.like the Christmas puppy, end up on the heap six weeks later. The RSPCA
:10:17. > :10:19.blames the problem on years of overbreeding by irresponsible owners
:10:20. > :10:25.who graze them illegally on different plots of land. It wants
:10:26. > :10:29.tighter controls to keep tr`ck of who owns each animal. Every horse
:10:30. > :10:32.should have a passport, it should be traceable and it should be
:10:33. > :10:36.microchipped. Unfortunately this isn't enforced, so it's hard if we
:10:37. > :10:39.do have a neglected animal or a group of fly`grazed horses to
:10:40. > :10:43.actually trace the owner, and that's one of the big issues. In W`les
:10:44. > :10:47.there's a new law to target such breeders ` the Control of Horses
:10:48. > :10:50.Act. It allows local authorhties to seize horses which are eithdr
:10:51. > :10:55.abandoned or left grazing on land without permission. That's great for
:10:56. > :10:58.Wales but it's going to import the problem into England a lot lore
:10:59. > :11:02.because the same legislation isn't being brought into effect over here.
:11:03. > :11:06.Now, this young lady is called Whisper. It's taken us four months
:11:07. > :11:11.to get through to her that nobody's going to hurt her. Whisper nearly
:11:12. > :11:14.starved to death. Her owner was convicted of cruelty to anilals
:11:15. > :11:16.Charities want more punishmdnts and tougher laws, but until that
:11:17. > :11:18.happens, they'll carry on the struggle to find good homes for
:11:19. > :11:30.horses like Whisper. Helen Gough is an agricultural
:11:31. > :11:37.solicitor who is campaigning to get the law changed to protect horses.
:11:38. > :11:43.She joins us now. Good evenhng. What's the current law? How often
:11:44. > :11:46.are people prosecuted? Therd are three principal pieces of
:11:47. > :11:51.legislation that eel with horses being abandoned. Over the p`st two
:11:52. > :11:55.years there has been a signhficant increase in the number of
:11:56. > :11:59.prosecutions, nearly double. But the RSPCA have been berated for that aim
:12:00. > :12:07.to many when I don't think ht is nearly enough. If people ard being
:12:08. > :12:12.prosecuted, why do we need to change the law? We have the passport
:12:13. > :12:15.regulations which were introduced in 2009 but they are not being complied
:12:16. > :12:22.with and they are not being enforced, so non`compliance is
:12:23. > :12:26.becoming a real issue. But the real problem is in actually getthng the
:12:27. > :12:31.horses removed from land whdre they have been abandoned, so it hs the
:12:32. > :12:37.1971 animals act which is l`cking. What changes do you want? Do you
:12:38. > :12:41.want to keep the tubing and passports in place or make sure they
:12:42. > :12:45.are in force? That is cruci`l because we have to have a mdthod of
:12:46. > :12:50.identifying the owners. We `lso need to have a centralised unit so that
:12:51. > :12:54.each local authority has responsibility for somewherd so we
:12:55. > :12:58.can have the area monitored, how many horses we have there and where
:12:59. > :13:03.they are going, and the cost implications of this absolutely
:13:04. > :13:06.huge. It could be severely `nd significantly reduced if we just
:13:07. > :13:10.worked together on this but everybody takes the attitudd that it
:13:11. > :13:15.is not their problem, somebody else will deal with it. How big ` problem
:13:16. > :13:20.is it? We saw examples in that report but how widespread is it It
:13:21. > :13:23.is all across the country. @ll of the century is fit to burst and they
:13:24. > :13:30.really have no more capacitx to take in any more horses. `` all of the
:13:31. > :13:36.centuries. We know many havhng problems and that is another issue
:13:37. > :13:39.with the animals act of 1970. It does not enable us to deal with the
:13:40. > :13:43.welfare issues being caused here in being able to get the horses removed
:13:44. > :13:48.sooner rather than later. Thank you for your time.
:13:49. > :13:51.Our top story tonight ` an `pology to Jeff Astle's widow from the
:13:52. > :13:55.Football Association for thd way she's been treated since thd
:13:56. > :13:59.footballer died from brain damage. Your detailed weather forec`st to
:14:00. > :14:02.come shortly. Also in tonight's programme, the
:14:03. > :14:05.race to get Worcester's grotnd ready for the start of the cricket season
:14:06. > :14:13.after flooding that left it with more than a soggy outfield.
:14:14. > :14:17.And find out how this littld owl survived to journey of more than 300
:14:18. > :14:23.miles clinging to the front of a freight train!
:14:24. > :14:28.A widow who won a legal battle to preserve her late husband's sperm
:14:29. > :14:32.wants a change in the law so other women don't have to go throtgh what
:14:33. > :14:36.she did. Beth Warren's husb`nd died of a brain tumour two years ago
:14:37. > :14:40.They'd always planned to have children. But she had to go to the
:14:41. > :14:42.High Court to overturn Human Fertilisation and Embryologx
:14:43. > :14:49.Authority rules, which would have meant the sperm was destroydd. She's
:14:50. > :14:52.been talking to Joanne Writtle. Heading to the gym where shd
:14:53. > :15:00.teaches, Beth Warren is looking to the future. Think about your
:15:01. > :15:05.posture... Think about your breath. And people there are delighted she's
:15:06. > :15:10.won her case. I think it is absolutely fantastic. I'm so happy
:15:11. > :15:13.for her. Seeing her so happx afterwards is amazing. At the
:15:14. > :15:16.Birmingham apartment she sh`red with her husband, Beth still somdtimes
:15:17. > :15:19.feels down. But she hopes hdr fight to preserve his sperm withott time
:15:20. > :15:25.limits will save others frol the two`year legal fight she's had. To
:15:26. > :15:29.me it feels amazing that I've not only won this for myself and it s
:15:30. > :15:33.given me back my future and that choice Warren left me, but H'll also
:15:34. > :15:36.know it will force changes hn the law that will stop this happening in
:15:37. > :15:40.the future. Beth and Warren were soul mates. He wanted to give her a
:15:41. > :15:44.choice about whether to havd his children. He died two months after
:15:45. > :15:51.her brother was killed in a car accident. At a time when I had just
:15:52. > :15:54.lost my brother and my husb`nd, that is not a time when you have a broken
:15:55. > :16:00.heart, you are feeling very lonely and emotional and you start having a
:16:01. > :16:05.family, so it is about loving myself up and of course I know havhng a
:16:06. > :16:09.child without a father isn't ideal but in a perfect world, my husband
:16:10. > :16:12.and brother would not have died It is not a perfect world. For now
:16:13. > :16:14.Beth adores her nieces, and is concentrating on her new
:16:15. > :16:19.physiotherapy career after putting her studies on hold to care for
:16:20. > :16:23.Warren. If I am to become a single parent, need to make sure I can
:16:24. > :16:27.provide for that child as wdll, so that's definitely the main point,
:16:28. > :16:31.but besides that it is just living life and loving life and not
:16:32. > :16:35.fighting cancer like I was doing for two years, and then the next two
:16:36. > :16:38.years with a legal battle. Ht is just about being a normal young
:16:39. > :16:42.person and embracing what lhfe has to offer. Beth has countless happy
:16:43. > :16:46.memories of her husband, who was a ski instructor. And life now is
:16:47. > :16:49.about embracing the future whilst not forgetting the past. Thd main
:16:50. > :16:58.reason she chose Warren's fhrst name as her surname? For EE is, ht was
:16:59. > :17:01.Warren and Beth, Beth and W`rren, and I knew he was going to die
:17:02. > :17:05.within days, weeks or months, and a new I would not hear his nale as
:17:06. > :17:09.much, and that was really dhfficult so I spoke to him about it `nd asked
:17:10. > :17:15.what he thought and that is why I took it on. I cannot remembdr now
:17:16. > :17:18.being Beth Warren. It feels so natural. `` for eight years. And
:17:19. > :17:22.staying with names, Beth revealed they'd even discussed what to call
:17:23. > :17:24.their children. I would certainly never tell people the names because
:17:25. > :17:30.we would with wanted to be ` surprise but we did discuss names.
:17:31. > :17:33.A former world champion cyclist says potholes are making roads in the
:17:34. > :17:38.Midlands among the worst in the world. There are three millhon
:17:39. > :17:41.cyclists on Britain's roads. Last week, the Government said it was
:17:42. > :17:46.giving ?140 million to councils to fix potholes caused during the wet
:17:47. > :17:50.winter. But with 245,000 miles of road in Great Britain, the loney
:17:51. > :17:53.will be spread pretty thinlx. Nadine Towell has been looking at how
:17:54. > :18:02.dangerous our roads have become for those on two wheels.
:18:03. > :18:07.He has won seven world cyclhng titles and covers more than 250
:18:08. > :18:10.miles a week in training around his home in Warwickshire. But Mhck Ives
:18:11. > :18:15.says the road conditions here are now so bad, they are becoming
:18:16. > :18:23.lethal. This one down here was a massive one. And you can sed it now.
:18:24. > :18:26.I am just going to go around it At least three feet long. It is not
:18:27. > :18:31.just standard potholes that drivers are used to which cause problems for
:18:32. > :18:36.cyclists. Smaller holes and channels can be just as dangerous. You have
:18:37. > :18:41.to take evasive action. If xou don't, this is what happens. We ll
:18:42. > :18:47.end there, over the handleb`rs, formally finish up in the
:18:48. > :18:52.middle`of`the`road. `` wheel in there. We all know what can happen
:18:53. > :18:56.when we hit a pothole on tyres at speeds in your car. But imagine what
:18:57. > :19:00.can happen when your tyre is only this wide. At this cycle shop and
:19:01. > :19:05.repair centre, they deal with a constant stream of punctures,
:19:06. > :19:15.buckled wheels and worse. All bikes damage on the region's roads. ``
:19:16. > :19:19.damaged. Whether they are more sporting riders all leisure riders,
:19:20. > :19:23.they are hitting potholes and it can create quite a significant hmpact on
:19:24. > :19:29.the bike and rider. `` or ldisure riders. We have inspectors that go
:19:30. > :19:32.out and they do everything to inspect the roads every year but we
:19:33. > :19:38.do rely on people phoning up the council and telling us accurate
:19:39. > :19:43.information about where the potholes are located. With more than 120
:19:44. > :19:48.race victories to his name, Mick won't allow potholes to put him off
:19:49. > :19:51.the sport he loves, but he does know cyclists who have abandoned their
:19:52. > :19:56.hobby because they feel ridhng on the region's roads has becole too
:19:57. > :20:01.risky. I think I'll recognise some of those
:20:02. > :20:05.roads as a keen cyclist mysdlf! I can certainly relate to that. `` I
:20:06. > :20:07.recognise. Worcestershire County Crickdt Club
:20:08. > :20:11.say they're confident they'll have New Road ready for the start of the
:20:12. > :20:14.season, despite last month's floods. Pre`season games have been loved to
:20:15. > :20:17.Kidderminster but the ground staff are working hard to ensure they can
:20:18. > :20:21.host their first League gamd on 13th April, as Dan Pallett reports.
:20:22. > :20:25.Blue sky overhead. But don't be fooled. Life's been anything but a
:20:26. > :20:28.beach for Worcestershire. That's why, with 26 days until thehr first
:20:29. > :20:32.home game, the New Road pitch looks like this.
:20:33. > :20:38.It's a race against time to get everything ready but they'rd
:20:39. > :20:41.confident it's one they can win We had an inspection from the DCB
:20:42. > :20:45.yesterday just to see that they were OK with it and they're happx and
:20:46. > :20:49.comfortable. A bit of warm sunshine, ironically a little bit of rain
:20:50. > :20:52.might help as well, with sole warm weather to make the grass grow.
:20:53. > :20:57.That's the key bit. Cleaning up is not a problem for us. But the
:20:58. > :21:01.cricket ground was an island at the peak of last month's floods. Thanks
:21:02. > :21:04.to the hard work of the grotnd staff here at New Road, everything's on
:21:05. > :21:07.course to host league crickdt in just under four weeks' time.
:21:08. > :21:10.Incredible, then, because four weeks ago, the water was lapping tp here,
:21:11. > :21:14.above the guttering. Even the road outside was only passable bx bus
:21:15. > :21:17.when the main bridge was closed to traffic. The water's now subsided,
:21:18. > :21:20.but for the time`being, the squad have moved to Kidderminster for
:21:21. > :21:23.pre`season. But that means dven more work for heads groundsman Thm
:21:24. > :21:26.Packwood and his team. Todax's biggest problem was merely ` few
:21:27. > :21:30.showers. This'll be my 25th season at New Road, so, yeah, when a flood
:21:31. > :21:34.comes on, although people look at it and think, "oh, no, they must be
:21:35. > :21:40.pulling their hair out", it happens all the time. We're used to it and
:21:41. > :21:44.we mop up and go again. Thex tend to clean up as soon as a flood goes
:21:45. > :21:47.down, and another one comes up and that means another clear`up
:21:48. > :21:51.operation, and again they jtst get on with it, so the resilience of all
:21:52. > :21:55.the staff to bounce back and just keep sorting things out is `mazing.
:21:56. > :21:59.Worcestershire have done thdir bit to be ready in time. Now thdy just
:22:00. > :22:12.need nature to work with thdm for a change, not against them.
:22:13. > :22:14.That is a pretty impressive clean`up job!
:22:15. > :22:18.As train journeys go, this one was high on excitement and pretty low on
:22:19. > :22:21.comfort. But at least a tawny owl, who's now been named Lucky for
:22:22. > :22:25.obvious reasons, survived over 00 miles clinging to the front of a
:22:26. > :22:30.freight train. He's now recovering at the Nuneaton and Warwickshire
:22:31. > :22:39.Wildlife Sanctuary. Ben Sidwell is there. A pretty incredible journey,
:22:40. > :22:43.Ben! Yes, it is one heck of a journey, I have to tell you But to
:22:44. > :22:47.be honest, many of the anim`ls here at the Sanctuary have had a tough
:22:48. > :22:54.and long journey to get herd. Since they opened in 2001 they have looked
:22:55. > :22:58.after 24,000 animals. There are owls, a goose behind me and
:22:59. > :23:01.somewhere around there is a dear animal as well. But none of them
:23:02. > :23:08.have faced quite the journex that Lucky had! He decided to go for a
:23:09. > :23:12.rest on the front of a freight train in Glasgow. More than 300 mhles
:23:13. > :23:15.later, clinging on for his life he arrived at a depot in
:23:16. > :23:19.Northamptonshire where he w`s spotted. Thankfully, he is now
:23:20. > :23:28.recovering here in this hospital unit. So let's go and meet this most
:23:29. > :23:34.aptly named owl. First of all, what we want to know, how is he doing? He
:23:35. > :23:38.is going to be fine. He had a bitter race brained wing but in ten days
:23:39. > :23:45.time he will great. `` he h`d a sprained wing. He should have died
:23:46. > :23:50.after this but it is a miracle where he happened to leap survived. It is
:23:51. > :24:00.probably his plumage which kept warm. `` he happened to havd
:24:01. > :24:04.survived. What about that phone call? You get it from the train
:24:05. > :24:09.depot and it must be one of the weirdest you have had? Yes. I had to
:24:10. > :24:15.ask the gentleman to repeat it twice. When he said and owl from
:24:16. > :24:21.Scotland, I thought he was drunk! But he wasn't! What will happen to
:24:22. > :24:26.Lucky? We will keep him for about ten days and then released him. And
:24:27. > :24:29.the nice thing is, especially for Lucky here, he does not need to go
:24:30. > :24:34.on a long journey back on the train, certainly not on the front of
:24:35. > :24:38.it, anyhow! Because he will be released into the woods with other
:24:39. > :24:47.tawny owls in Warwickshire, and I'm sure we will keep a check on him if
:24:48. > :24:54.we can. We all wanted. `` wd all want to adopt him! The owl, not Ben!
:24:55. > :25:00.A much cooler feel in the ahr today. A sign of things to come, Shefali?
:25:01. > :25:08.Yes, we are in for a treat tomorrow, though, before thd windier
:25:09. > :25:11.and cooler conditions set in on Thursday. This warm front whll be
:25:12. > :25:17.followed by the cold front `nd that will bring in the rising
:25:18. > :25:23.temperatures. After that, wd start to see this cold front on Thursday.
:25:24. > :25:27.It turns into a cold front `nd slips southwards, bringing with it the
:25:28. > :25:30.rain and the increase in winds. But you will notice those are a bit of a
:25:31. > :25:35.feature throughout the next few days, with those tightening isobars.
:25:36. > :25:41.Today, we saw a few showers, fairly well scattered, but also sole
:25:42. > :25:45.sunshine developing through the latter part of the day, and that
:25:46. > :25:50.will leave us with clear skhes overnight, said temperatures could
:25:51. > :25:55.dip lower than they did last night, to around six or seven degrdes. That
:25:56. > :25:59.will keep any frost at bay. It is because of the breeze that the
:26:00. > :26:04.temperatures will stay well above freezing. However, because we have
:26:05. > :26:08.the clear skies tonight, it will be quite beneficial to us tomorrow in
:26:09. > :26:11.that we get to see quite a bit of sunshine first thing, but
:26:12. > :26:16.particularly the further east you travel, and in the West, we could
:26:17. > :26:20.hang onto more in the way of cloud. That will break through the day and
:26:21. > :26:24.send temperatures up very nhcely to around 15 degrees in the sotthern
:26:25. > :26:31.counties, maybe 14 elsewherd. I think we will reach 15 tomorrow
:26:32. > :26:38.which is higher than most d`ys last week, where we saw 12 to 13. Quite
:26:39. > :26:41.respectable for the time of year. But competing with that bredze so it
:26:42. > :26:46.could feel cooler than that. Tomorrow night we are going to see
:26:47. > :26:49.the cloud thickening up and this is a head of that frontal systdm
:26:50. > :26:53.slipping southwards on Thursday So that cloud and the combinathon of
:26:54. > :26:57.the winds tomorrow will, ag`in, hold the temperatures up to six or seven,
:26:58. > :27:01.so at this stage, not seeing those night temperatures dropping by much
:27:02. > :27:05.but they will do by the weekend That is when we could possibly see
:27:06. > :27:15.some showers turning a bit wintry with night frosts returning.
:27:16. > :27:17.Thursday, wet and windy, cooler with temperatures beginning to slip, and
:27:18. > :27:21.that will be followed by lively showers and heavy ones on Friday.
:27:22. > :27:25.Tonight's headlines from thd BBC: Russia formally takes over the
:27:26. > :27:27.Crimea, the first time it's expanded its territory since the Second World
:27:28. > :27:31.War. A new scheme to help working parents
:27:32. > :27:33.with a child care subsidy worth up to ?2,000.
:27:34. > :27:36.An apology to Jeff Astle's widow from the Football Association for
:27:37. > :27:39.the way she's been treated since the footballer died from brain damage.
:27:40. > :27:42.And an investigation's under way into why 86 miscarried and `borted
:27:43. > :27:47.foetuses were kept for up to four years at Walsall Manor Hosphtal
:27:48. > :27:48.That was the Midlands Today. I'll be back at 10pm, when we'll be