:00:06. > :00:08.Good evening and welcome to a special edition of North West
:00:08. > :00:11.Tonight, live from Liverpool, with Roger Johnson and Annabel Tiffin.
:00:11. > :00:13.Tonight, we're quite literally following in the footsteps of
:00:13. > :00:22.giants as the city celebrates its links to Titanic in dramatic
:00:22. > :00:26.fashion. It's the start of a spectacular three-day event which
:00:26. > :00:30.could be watched by more than a quarter of a million people. Coming
:00:30. > :00:40.up tonight: Street theatre on the grandest
:00:40. > :00:41.
:00:41. > :00:47.scale imaginable - the Sea Odyssey giants come alive in Liverpool.
:00:47. > :00:50.Brilliant. Absolutely mega. It is amazing.
:00:50. > :00:54.And the 10-year-old Liverpool girl, a tragic letter and the father who
:00:54. > :01:00.never received it as he went down with Titanic - the real-life story
:01:00. > :01:03.which inspired the event. Also in tonight's programme:
:01:03. > :01:05.Security lapse at Aintree - the failed test in which plastic
:01:05. > :01:08.explosives weren't spotted by a sniffer dog
:01:08. > :01:15.Premiership pressure - the tense fight at the bottom of the table to
:01:15. > :01:25.survive. And bringing Isabella into the
:01:25. > :01:35.
:01:35. > :01:42.world - the new IVF technique it's We're here for a special evening in
:01:42. > :01:45.Liverpool - an evening alive with giants. It's the spectacular Sea
:01:45. > :01:53.Odyssey, and Roger's already making friends with one of the stars of
:01:53. > :02:03.the show from the country's largest-ever street theatre event.
:02:03. > :02:09.
:02:09. > :02:18.They reckoned 250,000 people will see this event. People are lining
:02:18. > :02:22.either side, ready to see this amazing marionette turf. It is a
:02:22. > :02:30.spectacular side. She has been out on the streets already along with
:02:30. > :02:34.her dog. And her uncle as well, who is a diver. The whole thing it is
:02:34. > :02:42.one of the more unusual things that we have ever reported on, a bit
:02:42. > :02:46.like a spider you may remember her four years ago. But it is
:02:46. > :02:53.spectacular. Following events today, with the uncle, who is now asleep
:02:53. > :02:59.in Stanley Park, my colleague. That is right. Here is the diver, a
:02:59. > :03:05.fast asleep. Not doing much. Nevertheless, hundreds of people
:03:05. > :03:11.here to see Hempel stop the diver, the story is based on a true story,
:03:11. > :03:16.a ten-year-old a goal from Liverpool. She send a letter to her
:03:16. > :03:21.father on the Titanic. The diver is on a mission to send his reply to
:03:21. > :03:29.the little girl. So here is how the day ends in Liverpool, but here is
:03:29. > :03:35.how the gigantic adventure began this morning.
:03:35. > :03:42.Asleep, snoring, mumbling. A chance little girl. Before 9am, people
:03:43. > :03:50.wait for her to wake. It is good. It is amazing. It is a delight to
:03:50. > :03:54.be head. The story is she is the daughter of a Titanic's stowaway,
:03:54. > :04:04.looking for her uncle who has a letter for her. School children
:04:04. > :04:10.
:04:10. > :04:20.addressed in Titanic costume. Then, the music blares, the puppeteers
:04:20. > :04:32.
:04:32. > :04:42.are right, and it begins. -- arrived. It is strangely moving.
:04:42. > :04:44.
:04:44. > :04:54.The little girl's dog is an immediate favourite. And the girl
:04:54. > :05:03.
:05:03. > :05:10.who wanted the giant to wash get her wish. Then, she is off.
:05:10. > :05:15.Brilliant. Absolutely mega. I think it is marvellous. Outside Anfield,
:05:15. > :05:23.she puts on a red and blue football scarf, and the dog gives rights to
:05:23. > :05:26.the kids. Now, here is her uncle, who has spent 100 years walking
:05:26. > :05:36.across the seabed from the wreck of the Titanic to deliver a letter
:05:36. > :05:46.
:05:46. > :05:53.If he was actually not a puppet, I would have been so scared that he
:05:53. > :05:57.would squash my. Diver and gold start a quest to find each other,
:05:57. > :06:02.an emotional reunion sometime, somewhere, this weekend.
:06:02. > :06:06.Now, her uncle may be having a little snooze, but the girl is
:06:07. > :06:12.making steady strides through the city, a little bit slower than we
:06:12. > :06:18.had anticipated. But everyone is waiting eagerly for her rival. She
:06:18. > :06:23.should be arriving very soon where Roger is. In total, we reckon these
:06:23. > :06:27.giants will cover 23 miles of this city over the next three days, and
:06:27. > :06:32.if you want to come down here, be warned there will be some road
:06:32. > :06:38.closures, and therefore traffic disruption. It may be wise to check
:06:38. > :06:42.out the website first. If you cannot get down here, listen to
:06:42. > :06:46.Radio Merseyside. They will be coming live from here tomorrow
:06:46. > :06:56.evening, and then again on Sunday morning. You'll be able to listen
:06:56. > :07:02.
:07:02. > :07:04.to it all then. We will be back in a few minutes. But now it
:07:04. > :07:07.Good evening. It's emerged that undercover police officers managed
:07:07. > :07:09.to smuggle plastic explosives on to Aintree racecourse during last
:07:09. > :07:12.week's Grand National Festival, despite the tight security. A
:07:12. > :07:15.sniffer dog failed to spot the Semtex which was driven on to the
:07:15. > :07:17.site as part of a covert test Care workers have staged a
:07:17. > :07:21.demonstration in Burnley in protest at proposed wage cuts.
:07:21. > :07:30.On duty to protect racegoers, was a security firm. They are also in
:07:30. > :07:34.charge of this summer's Olympics. Sniffer dogs like this one were on
:07:34. > :07:38.duty at Aintree, but over the festival weekend, a policeman
:07:38. > :07:43.managed to smuggle plaster of explosives into the ground, and the
:07:43. > :07:48.dog failed to spot anything was wrong. In a statement, the company
:07:48. > :07:52.confirmed the dog had a failed the test, but said three others have
:07:52. > :07:56.identified the explosives. They said the dog had previously had a
:07:56. > :08:01.very good track record, and had passed a number of assessments.
:08:01. > :08:09.However, dogs can make mistakes, which is why they are only one of
:08:09. > :08:13.the measures we used. It is less than 100 days until the Olympics.
:08:13. > :08:19.Very soon, the time for testing will be over, and with the eyes of
:08:19. > :08:24.the world on the games, there will be no room for mistakes.
:08:24. > :08:28.Care workers have staged a demonstration in Burnley at protest
:08:28. > :08:30.of wage cuts. The former NHS workers, who are now employed by a
:08:30. > :08:33.charity Alternative Futures Group, say many will have to leave the
:08:33. > :08:37.profession for better paid work. The charity, which supports people
:08:37. > :08:44.with learning disabilities, says it has to save �5 million. Carers say
:08:44. > :08:51.losing experienced staff will affect services. Without continuity
:08:51. > :08:57.of care, you will get poor service, temporary staff. And staff who are
:08:57. > :09:00.only there for the shore or. We are committed carers. We are in it for
:09:00. > :09:03.the long haul. Sir Richard Branson has urged the
:09:03. > :09:06.FA to look again at the timing of next month's FA Cup Final so
:09:06. > :09:09.Liverpool football fans won't be left stranded in London. The owner
:09:09. > :09:12.of Virgin Rail says the firm has cancelled all but three of their
:09:12. > :09:16.services between Liverpool and the capital on the day of the game
:09:16. > :09:20.because of long-planned track improvements. Sir Richard says the
:09:20. > :09:23.FA were told of these plans and of the impacts of a late kick off, but
:09:23. > :09:26.chose to ignore the advice of Virgin Trains.
:09:26. > :09:31.A play opens in Bury tonight hours after the author appealed against
:09:31. > :09:36.her deportation from the UK. Playwright Lydia Besong and her
:09:36. > :09:40.husband Bernard are asylum seekers from Cameroon. Today, supporters
:09:40. > :09:47.staged a demonstration outside a tribunal. They'll be told if their
:09:47. > :09:54.appeal's been successful in a few weeks' time. They are part of a
:09:54. > :10:00.group who are banned, and they were imprisoned and tortured. Lydia was
:10:00. > :10:04.raped by a guard. So, they came to greet -- Britain seeking asylum.
:10:04. > :10:07.For the past 20 years, there has been very little improvement in IVF
:10:07. > :10:09.treatments. But clinicians using a new technique here in Manchester
:10:09. > :10:18.say their success rates have increased by more than 40%. The
:10:18. > :10:27.treatment could offer new hope for those struggling to conceive.
:10:27. > :10:32.From this to this. Having him is wonderful. It is everything me
:10:32. > :10:37.under dad ever wanted. German and Simon were left distraught when
:10:37. > :10:44.they were told they could not conceive naturally. It wasn't earth
:10:44. > :10:50.shattering day for us both. Everything we ever wanted to was a
:10:50. > :10:54.family, and to be told we could not do that want our own was difficult.
:10:54. > :11:02.But thanks to new techniques carried out here in Manchester,
:11:02. > :11:07.they are now proud parents to daughter Isabella. Everything has
:11:07. > :11:14.changed. Life will never be the same again! Old priorities thrown
:11:14. > :11:21.out of the window. Normally, during IVF treatment, embryos are desert -
:11:21. > :11:28.- observed once a day. But cameras can take multiple photos. If you
:11:28. > :11:35.compare standard incubation, or we might have five observations. With
:11:35. > :11:39.the Empress cope, we have 1,500 images. And we can make an informed
:11:39. > :11:43.decision on which embryo is the most viable. The clinics say this
:11:43. > :11:46.could offer new hope to couples across third country.
:11:46. > :11:49.Sport now, and a group of Manchester City fans are raising a
:11:49. > :11:54.petition to keep Roberto Mancini as manager next season even if the
:11:54. > :11:56.club fails to win the Premier League title. They've launched an
:11:56. > :12:02.internet campaign called Respect Roberto Mancini following
:12:02. > :12:06.speculation he could be replaced by Jose Mourinho. City travel to
:12:06. > :12:09.Wolves on Sunday while United face Everton at Old Trafford. United are
:12:09. > :12:18.five points ahead, but former United striker Andy Ritchie says
:12:18. > :12:23.the title race isn't over. When you look at the Games Manchester United
:12:23. > :12:26.have got left, they have got Swansea, Everton, and Sunderland
:12:26. > :12:31.away on the last day of the season, they will be saying, we have to
:12:31. > :12:37.make sure we get full points from them, because there is a little
:12:37. > :12:42.Derby in the middle! Detention is perhaps even greater -
:12:42. > :12:48.Blackburn, Bolton and Wigan are locked in a battle to stay up.
:12:48. > :12:52.After a terrific run of form, Wigan are five points above the drop zone.
:12:52. > :13:02.Bolton are third from bottom and have two games in hand. Blackburn
:13:02. > :13:09.
:13:09. > :13:17.At the moment we have a huge belief and huge confidence. We have
:13:17. > :13:25.decided our own fate, Irish-owned estimate. It is not only this one
:13:25. > :13:30.that we must win, there are games now that we have to win. Recently,
:13:31. > :13:40.there was a more relaxed feeling here. Recent results have turned
:13:41. > :13:46.
:13:46. > :13:56.that on its turf. -- on its head. So what and two could make the
:13:56. > :14:03.
:14:03. > :14:06.difference? For Rovers, Yakubu is crucial. They are very important.
:14:06. > :14:11.Bolton have shared the goals around, their manager says their task is
:14:11. > :14:17.simple. When we bring it all together as we have done many times
:14:17. > :14:27.before, we can be a real fortress. For Wigan, Victor Moses has been
:14:27. > :14:27.
:14:27. > :14:31.grabbing the headlines. He is important, when you have got 12 or
:14:31. > :14:40.13 nationalities in the dressing room you need strong figures to get
:14:40. > :14:44.the group together. He does a great Very tense. Blackpool could secure
:14:44. > :14:48.their place in the play-offs tomorrow as they tried to bounce
:14:48. > :14:53.back into the Premier League. On Tuesday, they beat Leeds. Tomorrow
:14:53. > :14:57.they face a Lancashire derby against Burnley. Even if Blackpool
:14:57. > :15:01.lose, they will still be in the play-offs if Middlesbrough fail to
:15:01. > :15:04.beat Southampton. Rochdale will be relegated in Division One unless
:15:05. > :15:08.they win at Chesterfield. In Division Two, Macclesfield a close
:15:08. > :15:12.to losing their Football League status. They cannot be relegated
:15:12. > :15:15.tomorrow, but they really need to beat Bradford City.
:15:15. > :15:20.A group of Northwich Victoria fans are planning a protest tomorrow
:15:20. > :15:25.following the news that the group - - Club is to be kicked out of their
:15:25. > :15:33.league. The League says it has failed to pay money to its
:15:33. > :15:37.creditors. Supporters are planning a peaceful protest.
:15:37. > :15:47.There are hundreds of people lining the streets in Liverpool to see the
:15:47. > :15:48.
:15:48. > :15:53.Thousands are here. This is the first of the giants coming along.
:15:53. > :16:02.The anticipation is almost killing does. The little girl we have been
:16:02. > :16:12.telling you about is just a short distance behind. We are going to
:16:12. > :16:13.
:16:13. > :16:18.talk to Annabel for a minute and The production is all been brought
:16:18. > :16:23.alive by the renowned French street theatre company, Royal de Luxe.
:16:23. > :16:26.Their inspiration is the story of a Liverpool girl called May McMurray.
:16:26. > :16:36.It is a tragic and fascinating story and it has links to the
:16:36. > :16:39.
:16:39. > :16:45.sinking of the Titanic exactly 100 This is the real little girl who
:16:45. > :16:49.inspired a giant. May McMurray. In 1912 she lived in Kensington in
:16:49. > :16:53.Liverpool. Her father was a first- class steward on the Titanic. She
:16:53. > :17:00.wrote a letter to him at which was to become history. It is very
:17:00. > :17:04.beautifully written and just from her words you can tell she is
:17:04. > :17:11.missing her father. She is counting down the days until he returns.
:17:11. > :17:15.Sadly, he never read it. By the time her letter reached the
:17:15. > :17:20.headquarters, of the Titanic was already sinking and the letter was
:17:20. > :17:28.returned to sender. It may would never see her father again. May's
:17:28. > :17:33.nephew says that his grandfather died air hero. My grandfather was
:17:33. > :17:42.manning a lifeboat with an officer. The officer decided to say to my
:17:42. > :17:52.grandfather that they needed extra effort, he did that and he never
:17:52. > :17:53.
:17:53. > :17:58.came back. This tragic tale, at least in Liverpool this weekend,
:17:58. > :18:02.has a happier ending. May's son-in- law says that she would have
:18:02. > :18:08.approved. She would have been delighted. But she never have
:18:08. > :18:18.talked about it. She would be tickled pink. If only she could
:18:18. > :18:20.
:18:20. > :18:25.have seen it. You can see the 30 ft-high little
:18:25. > :18:33.girl just behind. It is absolutely amazing. Look at all the people
:18:33. > :18:42.from the company in France who have made it happen. They are moving
:18:42. > :18:50.these giant marionettes as they come forward. A little boy has come
:18:50. > :18:54.out to stroke the dog. What do you make of it? It is lovely! Of I saw
:18:54. > :18:59.the spider a couple of years ago which was amazing. How does it
:18:59. > :19:04.compare with the spider? I saw the UN call this morning and that was
:19:04. > :19:11.breathtaking, just the scale of it. -- the uncle. It is great to see so
:19:11. > :19:15.many people out on the streets. Are you star-struck? Absolutely
:19:15. > :19:20.incredible. A look at the little boy on the back. He is not afraid
:19:20. > :19:25.of being on the television. Absolutely terrific. They are
:19:25. > :19:31.making their way down the street. The little girl, 30 ft high, you
:19:31. > :19:39.heard the story that links all of this to the Titanic. The Titanic is
:19:39. > :19:43.inextricably linked to Liverpool, having carried the city's name on
:19:43. > :19:46.its turn on its ill-fated voyage all those years ago.
:19:46. > :19:51.They are getting very excited over here because we know it is not very
:19:51. > :19:54.far away from us. We cannot quite see them just yet. We have been
:19:54. > :20:03.following it may's footsteps through her long journey and
:20:03. > :20:11.joining me now is that Jillian Kearney, the actress as. There is a
:20:11. > :20:18.special documentary on Wednesday night. It is called Liverpool's
:20:18. > :20:23.Titanic Girl. We went to France and met the director of C show. He told
:20:23. > :20:29.us all about his vision. It is fantastic. How have you managed to
:20:29. > :20:36.see heard today? Yes, we woke up with her this morning. We also met
:20:36. > :20:42.the diver, who is her uncle. dog is turning out to be the star
:20:42. > :20:49.of the show. He really years. sure I just saw him cocking his leg,
:20:50. > :20:53.did I imagine that? Yes, he does do that. He drinks and he shakes!
:20:53. > :20:58.this documentary follows her right the way through because it is a
:20:58. > :21:02.tragic story. It is a very poignant story. At May McMurray lived 100
:21:02. > :21:08.years ago and she was a little girl who wrote a letter to her father.
:21:09. > :21:13.It did not reach him and it was returned to sender. The director
:21:13. > :21:17.saw the letter in the Maritime Museum and he created the dot of
:21:17. > :21:22.May. The diver is meant to be her uncle who brings her the letter
:21:22. > :21:32.back. Thank you. We are just going to get a look at what the weather
:21:32. > :21:34.
:21:34. > :21:39.Hello. We have had a lot of a slow- moving showers through this
:21:39. > :21:44.afternoon and it will continue over the weekend. You can see sunny
:21:44. > :21:52.spells, some sunny spells, and I am afraid a lot of heavy showers over
:21:52. > :21:57.the weekend. There will also be some hail. Today we have had a lot
:21:57. > :22:01.of cloud around. You can see this area of low pressure sticking
:22:01. > :22:06.around this weekend. It tries to drift away on Sunday but then
:22:06. > :22:15.slowly drifts back. For Monday there is no let up. Slow pressure
:22:15. > :22:20.is still in charge and bringing you plenty of heavy shower was. --
:22:20. > :22:24.heavy showers. I saw some big hailstones this afternoon in
:22:24. > :22:28.Greater Manchester, but as we head into this evening I think the
:22:28. > :22:33.showers will ease away and hopefully leave you with a night
:22:33. > :22:40.which should be mostly dry. There will be some clear skies in between
:22:40. > :22:47.patchy clouds. Also, in terms of temperatures, it is not so bad. It
:22:47. > :22:53.will be four or five Celsius. For the weekend, sunshine and heavy
:22:53. > :23:02.showers. Tomorrow we will start of mostly dry and then the showers
:23:02. > :23:06.will pile in. The showers will be very slow moving because we have
:23:06. > :23:11.this westerly breeze bringing the showers in. They could be thunder
:23:11. > :23:17.and maybe Hale. Highs of 10 or 11 Celsius tomorrow. This is the
:23:17. > :23:25.picture for Sunday. It is not so bad for Sunday, 12 Celsius, won a
:23:25. > :23:29.two showers. But Monday is not pretty. Rain will slowly drift in
:23:29. > :23:39.from the Atlantic on Monday and it looks as if the rest of April could
:23:39. > :23:49.
:23:49. > :23:57.be a bit of a washout. These are Roger has made it here very quickly
:23:57. > :24:04.and we can just see the dog over our shoulder. It is really
:24:04. > :24:10.spectacular. Let's talk to Wendy Simon who is the Cabinet member for
:24:10. > :24:14.tourism and culture on Liverpool City Council. It is spectacular.
:24:15. > :24:20.is fantastic, the day has been brilliant. The crowds have been out
:24:20. > :24:26.on the street all day. Crowds have been waking -- waiting for her to
:24:26. > :24:33.go to sleep. This is great that Liverpool should get at two events
:24:33. > :24:36.like this. Yes, the other event in 2008 was fantastic as well. This is
:24:36. > :24:40.building on the legacy of this event. But I think that people are
:24:41. > :24:49.more emotionally attached to bits. They really relate to the girl and
:24:49. > :24:52.the dog. They are really working the puppets well. We have to ask
:24:52. > :24:56.you at a time when the council is having to make cuts, it this has
:24:56. > :25:02.cost over �1 million in taxpayers' money to put this on, can you
:25:02. > :25:07.justify it? The cost of the event has not been borne by the city
:25:07. > :25:12.Council, just a small proportion of it. The private sector and public
:25:12. > :25:17.organisations have contributed. You can see the cloud -- crowds at here
:25:17. > :25:23.today and you can see the lift that this is giving them. People see
:25:23. > :25:27.that Liverpool is alive and it is open for business. It offsets what
:25:27. > :25:31.the council tax payers may have put in. For every pound that we spend
:25:31. > :25:36.we get more money back. We're expecting over a quarter of a
:25:36. > :25:45.million people here and the hotels are full. The image it gives us as
:25:45. > :25:51.a region is fantastic. Thank you. I hope it stays dry. This event
:25:51. > :25:57.will go on all over the week. Check the website for any road closures.
:25:57. > :26:03.You can check out what is going on on our late bulletin tonight. Don't
:26:03. > :26:08.forget the special programme on Wednesday evening, here on BBC One