:00:00. > :00:00.That's it for now. We're back with the late news at 10. 15pm. Now it's
:00:00. > :00:10.Good evening. A memorial service has time
:00:11. > :00:13.Good evening. A memorial service has taken place in Herefordshire for a
:00:14. > :00:17.serviceman who died in a helicopter crash in Afghanistan last month.
:00:18. > :00:21.Lance Corporal Oliver Thomas, who was 26, grew up and went to school
:00:22. > :00:31.in Kington. This afternoon, hundreds of mourners turned out to remember
:00:32. > :00:34.him. Yvonne Brissett reports. Honoured in the town where he spent
:00:35. > :00:37.his childhood. Those who couldn't get into the packed St Mary's church
:00:38. > :00:41.in Kington this afternoon listened to the service outside as they
:00:42. > :00:50.gathered to give thanks for the life of Lance Corporal Oliver Thomas.
:00:51. > :00:56.Oliver lived his life to the full. There was never a dull moment when
:00:57. > :01:00.Oliver was around. He was a lovely, kind gentleman. It was clear that
:01:01. > :01:02.when you spoke to those who came into contact with him how much they
:01:03. > :01:05.warmed to his presence. Inside the church, moving tributes to the
:01:06. > :01:08.26`year`old army reservist who'd told his family he was fulfilling
:01:09. > :01:11.his dreams by serving his country. Lance Corporal Thomas was one of
:01:12. > :01:13.five servicemen killed in the helicopter crash in Kandahar last
:01:14. > :01:18.month. Flight Lieutenant Rakesh Chauhan from Birmingham also died.
:01:19. > :01:22.The Ministry of Defence has said it believes the crash was a tragic
:01:23. > :01:25.accident. His family held a private cremation service yesterday, but
:01:26. > :01:34.wanted to give the wider community a chance to come together and
:01:35. > :01:38.celebrate Oliver's life. He was a very caring and genuinely caring
:01:39. > :01:41.person for everybody. A fitting recognition for a young man
:01:42. > :01:44.described as "courageous, brave and selfless". Yvonne Brissett, BBC
:01:45. > :01:54.Midlands Today, Kington in Herefordshire. In football, Burton
:01:55. > :01:57.Albion are heading for Wembley. The Brewers drew 2`all against Southend
:01:58. > :02:00.in the second leg of their League Two play`off semifinal this
:02:01. > :02:03.afternoon. The result gave them a 3`2 aggregate victory. They'll face
:02:04. > :02:13.Fleetwood in the final on the 26th of this month. Binmen in Birmingham
:02:14. > :02:17.have been working overtime to collect tonnes of green waste which
:02:18. > :02:19.has been dumped across the city. Since the council started charging
:02:20. > :02:23.for garden waste collections, many objectors have left their bags at
:02:24. > :02:28.the roadside in protest. Earlier, some of the worst eyesores were
:02:29. > :02:32.cleared. 16 fire engines were called to a fire at a wood recycling plant
:02:33. > :02:35.in Meriden last night. The blaze involved a huge pile of wood
:02:36. > :02:41.chippings. Around 70 firefighters helped bring it under control. There
:02:42. > :02:44.were no reported injuries. A statue of a gorilla made entirely from
:02:45. > :02:47.spoons has been unveiled in Shropshire. The 12`foot`high beast
:02:48. > :02:50.took five months to complete and will go to the home of the
:02:51. > :02:54.entertainer Uri Geller, who says he commissioned the work to help
:02:55. > :03:03.inspire sick children. Ben Godfrey reports. In the shops shut
:03:04. > :03:08.sunshine, a pilgrimage of sorts to meet a primate made solely of
:03:09. > :03:11.spoons. A short Rolls`Royce drive away, a caged gorilla was waiting.
:03:12. > :03:19.The entertainer Uri Geller along with Prince Michael of Kent, could
:03:20. > :03:25.wait no longer. I'm stunned. Amazed. I cannot believe what I am seeing. I
:03:26. > :03:30.have not seen it completed. This is one of a kind. The British ironwork
:03:31. > :03:38.centre created this in just five months. At first, it will reside in
:03:39. > :03:41.your regular's garden in Berkshire. It will be used to take to certain
:03:42. > :03:47.children's hospitals to raise money for charity. It is all for a very
:03:48. > :03:58.serious purpose. 40,000 spoons were needed. Samantha Maxwell collected
:03:59. > :04:08.over 700. It was a bit of a job to be honest. we have had it under lock
:04:09. > :04:13.and key for months. No press, no media. So how will they get this
:04:14. > :04:17.gorilla into your regular's garden? He says he will hire a helicopter
:04:18. > :04:28.and winch it into a nets just like in King Kong. It's been a glorious
:04:29. > :04:32.day. Here's Kaye Forster with the weather.
:04:33. > :04:34.in King Kong. It's been a glorious day. Here's Kaye Forster with Born
:04:35. > :04:38.Sunshine to come tomorrow as today. Temperatures will be soaring once
:04:39. > :04:44.again. A bit of cloud floating in this evening but it is mostly dry
:04:45. > :04:47.tonight. Temperatures not much lower than ten or 11 Celsius. Tomorrow
:04:48. > :04:51.morning, a beautiful start once again with lots of lovely sunshine.
:04:52. > :04:59.There will be a bit more cloud into the afternoon but it is dry, sunny
:05:00. > :05:02.and very warm with is eyes of 22. That's it from us. Midlands Today is
:05:03. > :05:04.back tomorrow evening at 6.50pm. Until then, enjoy your weekend in
:05:05. > :05:16.the sunshine. Bye bye. Good evening. Who needs an expensive
:05:17. > :05:22.holiday? Today at 24 degrees, Suffolk was warmer than Ibiza and
:05:23. > :05:25.Crete. There was lots of warm sunshine to be found across England
:05:26. > :05:26.and Wales. Of course, that hasn't