08/01/2017 Midlands Today

Good evening. late news at 10.30pm.

Emergency services took over the RSC Theatre in Stratford today in order

to test their response to an armed siege.

200 Police, Ambulance and Fire service personnel were involved

in the exercise which involved gunmen opening fire

It was a drama like none seen before at the RSC Theatre in Stratford -

fire crews rescuing fleeing hostages from the roof as part

The scenario, gunmen opening fire inside.

While this is not a counterterrorist exercise, a number of the resources

and the skill sets being used would be transferable in the highly

unlikely event that an incident like that should occur.

90 people were killed at the Bataclan in Paris 14 months ago.

Mercifully, there have been no such attacks on theatres since,

but Friday's shootings at Fort Lauderdale airport serve

as a reminder that public places are vulnerable.

This exercise has not only benefited the police fire

and ambulance services, it has allowed the RSC

Of course, you know everything is entirely made up and everything

It gets increasingly tense and you find yourself really getting

involved with it as though it is for real.

Extra security measures at this year's German Christmas market

in Birmingham show how seriously public safety is taken

It is hoped today's exercise, three months in the planning,

will leave the emergency services even better prepared

The MP for Cheltenham says he's delighted that his campaign

for tougher punishments for stalkers has led to an increase

in the maximum sentence from five to ten years.

Alex Chalk introduced a bill in Parliament after one

of his constituents, Dr Ellie Ashton, suffered

for seven years at the hands of a former patient.

It's a huge relief for me and it's going to make a big difference

to me and my family, because although at the end

of the day, five years, ten years, it's just a number and an end

will always come to that period of time,

but it gives us that longer respite, a chance to have a breather,

get back to normal life, be able to function normally,

not look over our shoulders all the time, which is what we do

West Midlands Police have discovered a cannabis farm in the

Tribute acts of the King of Rock and Roll have spent the last three

days battling it out for the coveted title.

Sian Grzeszczyk has been to watch them.

# Caught in a trap, I can't walk out...

They're all shook up for the European Elvis Championships,

which are held in Birmingham every year, and today is a special one -

it would have been the King's 82nd birthday.

So what would he have made of all of this?

I think he'd have found it quite amusing.

I think he'd just have enjoyed the fact that we're

This house today, Elvis is in the whole room.

My first cassette tape was Elvis, so his music captured me.

Nearly 100 people have performed at the contest and at 11:30 tonight,

A little less conversation, because it's time for

Norweigan Elvis to take to the stage.

# Yet when I face that chilling hand of death

The audience clearly can't help falling in love.

Football, and there was no FA Cup joy for Aston Villa fans at a rain

The Championship side fought to keep the tie 0-0 at half time,

but goals from Ben Davies and Son Heung-min put

Tottenham Hotspur through to the fourth round draw.

Rugby, and Wasps beat Leicester by 22 points to 16,

but their victory was overshadowed by an injury to England

Let's have a look at the weather forecast now.

Another relatively mild but grey day today and as we move through this

evening and overnight, we are continuing in a similar vein

plenty of cloud around, one or two patches of mist and fog

developing, getting thick enough to produce rain or drizzle.

Temperatures between five and seven Celsius.

Tomorrow, we're stuck with plenty of cloud before this arrival

It could be heavy, and the breeze will pick up, but behind it,

clearer skies and feeling noticeably cooler, temperatures

Quite a cool night into Tuesday, then we are looking at an unsettled

week, but I do think it will turn cooler and windier as we move

Coming up next on BBC One, Countryfile is in Shropshire,

with features on the Snailbeach lead mine and plans for a new nature

I'm back with the late bulletin, just after 22:50.

After a dull weekend for many of us, the weather gets shaken to life this

week. The real driver for the first wake-up call is low pressure pushing