:00:09. > :00:11.Hello and welcome to Midlands Today on our 50th birthday.
:00:12. > :00:14.Half a dozen businesses closed and a school's shut
:00:15. > :00:19.after an industrial estate's hit by a third fire in a week.
:00:20. > :00:31.I haven't been able to sleep for two nights, since the early hours of
:00:32. > :00:33.Saturday morning. Police are blaming arsonists
:00:34. > :00:35.and firefighters are still `t After a ?26 million revamp,
:00:36. > :00:40.a new name for the National Indoor We'll be looking back through
:00:41. > :00:45.the archives at how programles used to be made, and meeting somd
:00:46. > :00:48.of today's viewers who have joined And for the very latest
:00:49. > :00:56.on the weather, a decent wedk ahead Details on when you can expdct
:00:57. > :01:10.some rain later in the programme. There's growing concern
:01:11. > :01:13.about a series of suspected arson attacks which have caused d`mage
:01:14. > :01:16.estimated at hundreds of thousands of pounds and today
:01:17. > :01:23.forced a Birmingham school to shut. Two fires during the space
:01:24. > :01:26.of 48 hours and a third Tonight
:01:27. > :01:29.the police are mounting special patrols and appealing for c`lm
:01:30. > :01:32.as people living nearby say they're Our Special Correspondent Pdter
:01:33. > :01:35.Wilson has spent the day The whole of Reddings Lane
:01:36. > :01:44.and nearby roads in Tyseley. The latest fire spread quickly
:01:45. > :01:49.in the early hours of this lorning, The first blaze destroyed offices
:01:50. > :02:04.on Saturday. I haven't been able to sleep for two
:02:05. > :02:13.nights, since the early hours of Saturday morning. It has bedn
:02:14. > :02:23.scary, actually. We've had no sleep. My mother`in`law camd up She
:02:24. > :02:29.was the one to spot it at four o'clock in the morning. It has been
:02:30. > :02:39.a long, dangerous Dave. Ambtlances stand by as firefighters continued
:02:40. > :02:41.to deal with hotspots burning in the rubble. Conditions are arduous. The
:02:42. > :02:44.roof of the building has bedn severely affected. We are not sure
:02:45. > :02:45.what effect that has had on the structure. The conditions are going
:02:46. > :02:51.to be hot. 70 fire firefighters battled
:02:52. > :02:53.the latest fire. The police are treating all
:02:54. > :03:00.the cases as suspected arson. I understand some of the residents
:03:01. > :03:06.in the local area might be puite concerned in relation to wh`t has
:03:07. > :03:11.happened and it has caused significant disruption. What I would
:03:12. > :03:13.ask is that if anybody has `ny information that can insist us with
:03:14. > :03:16.our investigation, please m`ke contact. Fire crews will be working
:03:17. > :03:20.into the night. The police investigation teams are due to work
:03:21. > :03:25.for many days longer. The local school here will not reopen tomorrow
:03:26. > :03:26.morning. That is due to the fact the nearby buildings are going to be
:03:27. > :03:29.demolished. A deal to buy
:03:30. > :03:32.the NEC Group is expected to be One of the main attractions of the
:03:33. > :03:37.sale is the newly revamped National Today, as part
:03:38. > :03:41.of a major sponsorship deal, it was announced that the NIA's nale will
:03:42. > :03:45.change to the Barclaycard Arena It attracts one million people a
:03:46. > :03:52.year and generates ?150 million in No wonder the National Indoor Arena
:03:53. > :03:59.is such an attractive proposition to Opened in 1991,
:04:00. > :04:06.for the past 18 months the venue's been undergoing a ? 6
:04:07. > :04:09.million revamp, which will see it become the biggest in the Mhdlands's
:04:10. > :04:21.with a capacity of almost 16,00 . Regardless of whoever the ndw
:04:22. > :04:26.shareholder is, we have poshtion this arena as a world`class arena.
:04:27. > :04:28.It can attract major events into the city and appeal to audiences in this
:04:29. > :04:30.region and beyond. From December these signs whll go,
:04:31. > :04:32.as the venue changes its name to the Barclaycard Arena,
:04:33. > :04:41.part of a major sponsorship deal. Some changes in brand have not been
:04:42. > :04:46.successful but others, over time, consumers get used to. It is
:04:47. > :04:50.possible that people will still referred to it as the NIA. Others
:04:51. > :04:55.will take on board that it has branded in a different way. But it's
:04:56. > :04:58.not just the new name for the venue that has been revealed todax.
:04:59. > :05:03.They've also announced the `ctor will be performing on the stage on
:05:04. > :05:16.December the 2nd, for the official opening of the arena. When Lichael
:05:17. > :05:18.Buble takes to the stage on opening night, it will not only havd a new
:05:19. > :05:21.name but a new owner to. Just down the canal towpath
:05:22. > :05:23.from the arena, at the International Convention Centre the
:05:24. > :05:25.first full day of the Conservative party conference has been dominated
:05:26. > :05:28.by the Chancellor, George Osborne. His keynote speech aimed to seize
:05:29. > :05:30.back the initiative, after a weekend of damaging headlhnes and
:05:31. > :05:33.protests in Birmingham against the Our political editor, Patrick Burns
:05:34. > :05:54.joins us from the conferencd. He accused Ed Miliband of bding
:05:55. > :05:56.unfit for office, for forgetting to mention the deficit in his
:05:57. > :06:01.conference speech last week. His clear protest bash his clear message
:06:02. > :06:06.to protesters on the street yesterday is that the government has
:06:07. > :06:10.no alternative. This is indded a government which has a plan and it
:06:11. > :06:13.is working. We can either pretend to the British people that this can be
:06:14. > :06:18.done with hardly any cuts. That is what we saw last week. All we can
:06:19. > :06:21.level with people now and tdll them the kind of difficult decishons that
:06:22. > :06:27.are still required to fix the economy. Of course, the othdr big
:06:28. > :06:30.question hanging over conference is UKIP and how the Conservatives
:06:31. > :06:37.should respond to that. Was any thing said about that?
:06:38. > :06:43.It has been the buzz around the building. Ever since Michael fabric
:06:44. > :06:46.and first raised the idea of pacts, the high command had been
:06:47. > :06:57.pooh`poohing the idea. I am joined by Laurence Robertson. Can xou
:06:58. > :07:00.envisage a situation in which UKIP and Eurosceptic Conservativds might
:07:01. > :07:06.not fight each other at the election? I think if UKIP are
:07:07. > :07:09.serious about the issues, r`ther than it being some ego trip, they
:07:10. > :07:12.ought to come back to the Conservative Party. I think they
:07:13. > :07:15.want to support us. We win the election, get the referendul and
:07:16. > :07:20.people will have the opposition `` opportunity to come out of the
:07:21. > :07:23.union. Do you think you shotld be talking to one another in the
:07:24. > :07:28.context of the election? In terms of grown`up politics, we have to talk.
:07:29. > :07:33.People are very worried abott the EU and immigration. They want something
:07:34. > :07:37.done about it. The problem hs, a vote for UKIP will lead to ` Labour
:07:38. > :07:40.government. They will not bd any referendum then. There will be more
:07:41. > :07:46.immigration and EU. That is not what people want. You are at the
:07:47. > :07:51.Eurosceptic end of the Consdrvative Party yourself. Is there anx
:07:52. > :08:00.suggestion that you yourself might jump ship to UKIP? Absolutely not.
:08:01. > :08:01.I'm a conservative. I will be fighting cheap spree as a
:08:02. > :08:04.conservative. It's really r`ther foolish for people to leave the
:08:05. > :08:07.Conservative Party at the vdry point that we are winning the argtment.
:08:08. > :08:12.There is going to be a manifesto pledge for any EU referendul. It's
:08:13. > :08:16.very silly to leave now. Th`nk you. I will have more from the convention
:08:17. > :08:19.centre about why the Conservatives are planning to hold three lore
:08:20. > :08:24.conferences here. That will be in our late bulletin.
:08:25. > :08:39.If you didn't catch the Now if you didn't catch
:08:40. > :08:42.the film Marvellous on BBC Two, It told the moving story of
:08:43. > :08:46.Neil Baldwin, known as Nello, And Nello's on BBC One tonight
:08:47. > :08:49.on Inside Out. The former Stoke City kit`m`n even
:08:50. > :08:52.took the time to give presenter Andy Akinwolere some tips
:08:53. > :08:54.on his football skills. For more,
:08:55. > :08:56.watch Inside Out West Midlands, 50 years ago this week,
:08:57. > :09:10.in September 1964, Midlands Today began broadcasting from a btilding
:09:11. > :09:15.not very far from here, that's half a century of bringing the ndws to
:09:16. > :09:19.you from around the region. All this week we're celebrating
:09:20. > :09:23.our anniversary and looking back on five decades of headline news,
:09:24. > :09:25.heartwarming stories, the strange So, to start our journey back
:09:26. > :09:43.in time, let's join Mary who's deep I didn't even know that this part of
:09:44. > :09:48.the building existed. It is where we keep the film archive and no wonder
:09:49. > :09:52.we need so much space, with film canisters this size. It's r`ther
:09:53. > :09:56.different from the tiny little cards that we record on today. And in the
:09:57. > :10:00.basement is also where we kdep back copies of the radio Times. We've got
:10:01. > :10:06.thousands of editions, bound up in huge volumes. Including this one
:10:07. > :10:13.which just happens to be September the 28th 1964. There it is, the very
:10:14. > :10:17.first edition of Midlands today Each day on Midlands today this
:10:18. > :10:26.week, we will feature a French decade. What better place to at the
:10:27. > :10:30.beginning? Good evening and welcome to the first edition of Midlands
:10:31. > :10:34.today. Internet's programme, we take a look at orienteering, hear about a
:10:35. > :10:35.new course on local governmdnt and discuss the body beautiful.
:10:36. > :10:39.1964 and the birth of Midlands Today and the weight of expectation had
:10:40. > :10:48.This is a very exciting momdnt for us on television but tonight I'm not
:10:49. > :10:51.speaking to you from Alexandra Palace but from a small rool at
:10:52. > :10:55.Sutton Coldfield. From a newsroom,
:10:56. > :10:56.in Birmingham's Broad Street, the sound of typewriters trhggered
:10:57. > :11:11.a local news revolution. And one man was there from the
:11:12. > :11:15.start. I have been voted ITV personality of the year. I had a
:11:16. > :11:17.light`hearted image. I had on ITV. When I came to the BBC, I thought I
:11:18. > :11:18.will become a hard man. He might be 84 but he still enjoys
:11:19. > :11:31.sharing his experiences One of the things I remember was
:11:32. > :11:39.interviewing the King of Tonga. Must have been 30 stone. As he s`t down,
:11:40. > :11:43.we realised the King's backside wouldn't fit the chair. He couldn't
:11:44. > :11:46.get in. We ran out and got `nother chair. He stayed like that tntil the
:11:47. > :11:50.check`in. In an era that saw Birmingh`m band
:11:51. > :11:53.The Move scoring a strring of hits, In 1974, the move was on to Pebble
:11:54. > :12:10.Mill studios, in glorious colour. Good evening and welcome to another
:12:11. > :12:19.edition of Midlands today, which comes to you for the very fhrst time
:12:20. > :12:26.from pebble Mill, Birminghal. I am not speaking to you from our own
:12:27. > :12:32.studios. It was a studio th`t was so small, every time you hit `` stood
:12:33. > :12:38.up, you hit your head. The thing I was looking forward to was the new
:12:39. > :12:40.studio. And going into colotr. This is new studio B, where I work every
:12:41. > :12:55.weekday. Now, of course, in colour. Tom Coyne brought us
:12:56. > :12:57.the biggest news stories into our living rooms and those that
:12:58. > :13:00.captured a generation. In the '60s,
:13:01. > :13:01.the famous Mini rolled off They were still making
:13:02. > :13:11.around 300,000 a year by 1974. From Mini to mini skirts
:13:12. > :13:18.and they they were the must have fashion item, unless
:13:19. > :13:21.it was this particular design, I don't think it will catch on in
:13:22. > :13:30.Wolverhampton. Also in 1972,
:13:31. > :13:32.the Gravelley Hill Interchange opened and Spaghettie juncthon has
:13:33. > :13:48.been loved and loathed ever since. We are opening what can onlx be
:13:49. > :13:51.described as the motorway htb of Britain.
:13:52. > :13:53.You'd think that Tom Coyne had fulfilled his earlier promise
:13:54. > :14:01.for hard`hitting journalism, think again.
:14:02. > :14:06.We decided to inject a little bit of fun and the programme. I cannot
:14:07. > :14:15.remember what the story was but we decided to do laurel and Hardy. Have
:14:16. > :14:30.you seen that? Tom is on thd left, by the way.
:14:31. > :14:37.Tom also provided guest voices on the archers, something he w`sn't
:14:38. > :14:40.really supposed to do. I thought if I'm playing a young lover in the
:14:41. > :14:41.archer and I'm interviewing the Prime Minister tonight, it doesn't
:14:42. > :14:50.quite work that way. Watch Tom's face
:14:51. > :14:54.as a band play him a farewell song on his last programme,
:14:55. > :15:10.a song ruined by audio problems I don't think I heard this song
:15:11. > :15:17.properly yet. I thought it was marvellously kind, especially as I
:15:18. > :15:20.was leaving to go to the opposition. You met some incredible people,
:15:21. > :15:26.didn't you? The first time H met Muhammad Ali, I said, would he hit
:15:27. > :15:30.me on the jaw? He said, you want to be famous, don't you? And the big
:15:31. > :15:33.names were pulling in And the big names were pullhng
:15:34. > :15:36.in viewers to Midlands Todax, while the team of journalists aimdd to
:15:37. > :15:39.deliver news that packed a punch. It dates back to 1957, and despite
:15:40. > :16:42.are a bit obscene, I It dates back to 1957, and despite
:16:43. > :16:45.its size, it is pretty heavx. The public spaces open seven daxs a
:16:46. > :16:49.week. Do come along and havd a look. You can even have a go at bding a
:16:50. > :17:02.presenter. Trust me, there hs absolutely nothing to it. Wd have
:17:03. > :17:05.been digitising some you saw it earlier in the b`sement.
:17:06. > :20:30.We have masses offered. Man of the match Sean Geddis scored
:20:31. > :20:35.twice in their 3`1 win, to earn a trip to Leamington
:20:36. > :20:43.in the next round, next month. Back now to our big milestone,
:20:44. > :20:47.Midlands Today's 50th birthday. We couldn't let it pass without
:20:48. > :20:50.a party and first on the gudst list A couple of hours ago,
:20:51. > :21:01.a dozen guests came to our studios here at the Mailbox to
:21:02. > :21:04.see what goes into each programme. It's the digital age.
:21:05. > :21:24.TV's more competitive than dver so Iconic. The presenters are so
:21:25. > :21:28.down`to`earth. You can tell the presenters are local. It's nice to
:21:29. > :21:36.watch something that is for the people of the area. A decent week
:21:37. > :21:40.ahead but not entirely dry... Most loyal of all, Enid, who has been
:21:41. > :21:45.inviting us into her front room for all of those 50 years and considers
:21:46. > :21:49.us friends. Very friendly. Xou have to put good news and bad news out
:21:50. > :21:54.but it's very friendly. Othdr programmes are available. Why do you
:21:55. > :21:58.watch this one? It's the stories which you don't pick up in the
:21:59. > :22:05.newspapers. The interesting little stories on farms in the countryside.
:22:06. > :22:10.Always so reliable. You feel as if you know the presenters personally.
:22:11. > :22:15.I just said her late make coming through and I thought, I only know
:22:16. > :22:19.him through the television. This select group are among 500,000
:22:20. > :22:23.viewers who tune in every wdekday evening. Sadly, we couldn't invite
:22:24. > :22:26.you all but please accept otr thanks. Without you, the past 5
:22:27. > :22:28.years would have been prettx pointless.
:22:29. > :22:38.Happy birthday! And thank you for all the
:22:39. > :22:40.messages you've sent about our Kathleen English wrote on
:22:41. > :22:45.our Facebook page, congratulations. The best local TV News coverage
:22:46. > :22:47.by far. And Mita Barnes e`mailed to say
:22:48. > :22:53.I still have the special mugs my late husband I were given
:22:54. > :22:56.when we had a day at Pebble Mill. Congratulations
:22:57. > :22:57.on your 50th birthday. You know it really is all
:22:58. > :23:01.about you the viewers, the incredible stories you bring us the
:23:02. > :23:03.quite extraordinary things xou do. This morning our reporter
:23:04. > :23:05.Joanne Writtle caught up with Amy Hughes in Shropshire who was
:23:06. > :23:08.putting her feet up at last after completing a world record 53
:23:09. > :23:17.marathons in 53 days for ch`rity. Amy Hughes races her way
:23:18. > :23:20.into the record books. Her 53rd consecutive marathon
:23:21. > :23:24.in Manchester. Messages have flooded in
:23:25. > :23:34.from sports stars. I have been quite good throtghout
:23:35. > :23:46.the whole thing. I got to the end and I exploded. I saw my falily and
:23:47. > :23:51.my mother. It was good. I w`nt to say a massive well done bec`use
:23:52. > :23:56.people underestimate what you have just gone and put your body through.
:23:57. > :23:58.To run one marathon is hard but to do 53 marathons and 50 date is truly
:23:59. > :23:59.amazing. Friend and mentor Dave Keighley was
:24:00. > :24:09.by her side for many marathons, The only time she was down ` little
:24:10. > :24:14.bit was a day in Taunton whdn she was very sick all night. But as she
:24:15. > :24:18.does all the time, she gritted her teeth and got up and did it. 99 of
:24:19. > :24:18.people wouldn't be able to get up that day.
:24:19. > :24:23.With souvenirs from all 53 destinations, Amy is now resting.
:24:24. > :24:29.And so far she's raised ?37,000 to help children with brain cancer
:24:30. > :24:35.What is the future hold? I don't know. I'm not sure yet. I'll try to
:24:36. > :24:42.think of my next challenge. I'm bored already!
:24:43. > :24:53.Amy, you are amazing. Extraordinary. One was bad enough for me.
:24:54. > :24:58.It has been a second weekend and a lovely settled weekend ahead of us.
:24:59. > :25:08.The temperatures have been `bove average. It is looking quitd settled
:25:09. > :25:11.and we could just see some rain on Wednesday and Friday. Apart from
:25:12. > :25:14.that, largely dry conditions and temperatures will be above `verage
:25:15. > :25:18.for the time of year. Turning cooler by the weekend. The reason for this
:25:19. > :25:24.is it all comes off the back of a series of France that pushing from
:25:25. > :25:29.the north`west. The final one that arrives on Friday that is going to
:25:30. > :25:33.sweep through. The air behind it is cooler. The isobars start to tighten
:25:34. > :25:39.and that will result in the wind is picking up as we had to Sattrday and
:25:40. > :25:44.Sunday. It is now looking dry out there and just towards the dnd of
:25:45. > :25:47.the evening, we will start to see these showers develop across
:25:48. > :25:51.north`western corner of the region. Some of those could be on the heavy
:25:52. > :25:59.side. We are looking at dridr conditions into the early hours
:26:00. > :26:03.Temperatures into double figures. Quite a balmy night. When wd get
:26:04. > :26:07.these clear spells, we could see pockets of mist and fog devdloping
:26:08. > :26:11.towards dawn. Those will lift readily through the morning. We will
:26:12. > :26:14.get a bit of brightness and sunshine first thing but some cloud lilling
:26:15. > :26:16.around as well. It will be dry tomorrow and temperatures should
:26:17. > :26:20.rise to 19 or 20 Celsius. And you've been a huge part
:26:21. > :26:27.of the programme for more than 0 years. Let's just take a little look
:26:28. > :26:39.back on the Shefali years. It is the weekend, it is hot...
:26:40. > :26:50.Whether it is hot or cold, she was there. She made naval history when
:26:51. > :26:54.she was invited to sale on ` nuclear submarine, the only woman on board.
:26:55. > :26:56.Shef has met the Chefs, taken us on a gastronomical journey
:26:57. > :26:58.across the region, she's delved into the paranormal
:26:59. > :27:01.and revealed the secrets of Birmingham Museum and Art G`llery.
:27:02. > :27:07.There was Alexandra Road, a series about an ordinary street
:27:08. > :27:13.And it was all aboard in February in Telford
:27:14. > :27:25.when we dedicated a programle to things Made in the Midlands.
:27:26. > :27:30.I didn't expect that but it was a lovely trip down memory land.
:27:31. > :27:31.We've enjoyed your company over the last 50 years.
:27:32. > :27:34.More Midlands Today memories tomorrow, this time featuring
:27:35. > :27:38.the evergreen Kay Alexander and I'll be back at ten this evening with