Media playback is not supported on this device Gerrard, playing his first game since announcing he would depart in the summer to play in the United States, illustrated the hole he will leave behind. Liverpool's captain, who will celebrate his 35th birthday on FA Cup final day on 30 May, headed them in front, then came to their aid, as he has done so often, when they slumped into trouble. Media playback is not supported on this device Adebayo Akinfenwa's equaliser revived memories of the original Wimbledon's FA Cup final win against Liverpool at Wembley in 1988 - until Gerrard stepped in to restore order with a superb trademark free-kick just after the hour. It helped to steady Liverpool, whose defence had looked horribly vulnerable under pressure from Neal Ardley's side, who are 12th in League Two. Irrespective of the outcome, this FA Cup night was a credit to the rebirth of AFC Wimbledon, who started life in the Combined Counties League in 2002 and went through five promotions before returning to the Football League in 2011. But AFC Wimbledon - like so many teams before them since Gerrard made his Liverpool debut in 1998 - discovered that this is the player who can be relied upon to help the Reds through moments of adversity. This was another example as he took his Liverpool tally to 182 goals in 696 appearances for the club. Gerrard took the applause of the visiting fans, waiting to acclaim him following news of his impending departure, before the game and was able to calm their early nerves with a goal after Sean Rigg had almost given AFC Wimbledon a shock lead with a shot across the face of goal. "How many times have we said Steven Gerrard has dragged Liverpool by the scruff of the neck? Without a doubt, he was man of the match. He gives Liverpool more the further forward you push him. He knows where to go and what positions to take up." Gerrard timed his arrival in the area perfectly in the 12th minute to meet Javier Manquillo's cross and direct a low header beyond keeper James Shea into the bottom corner. Liverpool then enjoyed a period of relative control but, as has happened so often this season, they were undone by the vulnerability of their defence and the uncertainty of goalkeeper Simon Mignolet. The Belgian did well to turn over from 10 yards as Rigg threatened again, but the weakness in Liverpool's rearguard was exposed when a long kick from Shea found its way through to the feet of Matt Tubbs, who pulled a poor finish across the face of goal. AFC Wimbledon's confidence and threat was growing and it resulted in an equaliser nine minutes before the break. Mignolet missed George Francomb's corner, Mamadou Sakho bundled the ball onto his own bar and Akinfenwa was the first to react to poke in from six yards. Gerrard came to Liverpool's rescue in the opening moments of the second half when he cleared off the line from Adam Barrett as AFC Wimbledon picked up where they had left off. And when Liverpool needed inspiration at the other end, Gerrard provided it with a free-kick curled beyond the reach of the despairing Shea. Gerrard was denied a hat-trick by a stoppage-time goalline clearance from Callum Kennedy as Liverpool secured a home tie against Bolton Wanderers in the fourth round. AFC Wimbledon manager Neal Ardley: "In the first 25 minutes we looked nervous. They took me too literally about our shape but when we grew in the game and in confidence we caused them problems. "In the first half, we had all of the best chances, but they have some good players on the counter-attack and in the last 20 minutes we ran out of legs and they had a lot of chances. "I've told the players they have done the club proud but also they should kick themselves because we are in the business of winning and not being good losers." Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers told BBC Sport: "It was a very tough game. Congratulations to AFC Wimbledon - they made it very difficult. "We started well, controlling the game, but then we lost our shap and we presented them chances by giving the ball away. "We adapted at half-time but we still had to defend all the way through to the end. "The physicality always puts you under pressure - they have good delivery. The ball came into the box consistently and of course that can be a threat. You'll never be overly comfortable in those situations. "I've got to give a lot of testament to my players - they showed a lot of character. In the second half, we should have had two or three more goals. Match ends, AFC Wimbledon 1, Liverpool 2. Second Half ends, AFC Wimbledon 1, Liverpool 2. Corner,  Liverpool. Conceded by Jake Goodman. Attempt blocked. Steven Gerrard (Liverpool) right footed shot from the right side of the six yard box is blocked. Assisted by Mario Balotelli. Attempt saved. Mario Balotelli (Liverpool) right footed shot from very close range is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Emre Can. Corner,  AFC Wimbledon. Conceded by Simon Mignolet. Attempt saved. Adebayo Azeez (AFC Wimbledon) right footed shot from very close range is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Matt Tubbs with a through ball. Foul by Mario Balotelli (Liverpool). Jake Goodman (AFC Wimbledon) wins a free kick in the defensive half. Attempt missed. Emre Can (Liverpool) right footed shot from the right side of the box misses to the right. Assisted by Jordan Henderson. Corner,  Liverpool. Conceded by Callum Kennedy. Corner,  Liverpool. Conceded by Barry Fuller. Mamadou Sakho (Liverpool) wins a free kick in the defensive half. Foul by Adebayo Akinfenwa (AFC Wimbledon). Substitution, Liverpool. Kolo Tour¨¦ replaces Lazar Markovic. Substitution, AFC Wimbledon. Harry Pell replaces Sammy Moore. Substitution, AFC Wimbledon. Frankie Sutherland replaces George Francomb. Attempt saved. Lazar Markovic (Liverpool) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the bottom left corner. Assisted by Philippe Coutinho. Corner,  AFC Wimbledon. Conceded by Martin Skrtel. Attempt blocked. Adebayo Azeez (AFC Wimbledon) right footed shot from the left side of the box is blocked. Foul by Jordan Henderson (Liverpool). Sammy Moore (AFC Wimbledon) wins a free kick in the defensive half. Attempt blocked. Mario Balotelli (Liverpool) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Philippe Coutinho. Attempt saved. Steven Gerrard (Liverpool) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the bottom right corner. Assisted by Jos¨¦ Enrique. Attempt saved. Philippe Coutinho (Liverpool) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Steven Gerrard. Lucas Leiva (Liverpool) wins a free kick in the defensive half. Foul by Adebayo Akinfenwa (AFC Wimbledon). Substitution, AFC Wimbledon. Adebayo Azeez replaces Sean Rigg. Substitution, Liverpool. Mario Balotelli replaces Rickie Lambert. Foul by Emre Can (Liverpool). Matt Tubbs (AFC Wimbledon) wins a free kick in the defensive half. Attempt blocked. Martin Skrtel (Liverpool) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by Jordan Henderson with a cross. Corner,  Liverpool. Conceded by Adam Barrett. Philippe Coutinho (Liverpool) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul. Foul by Philippe Coutinho (Liverpool). Matt Tubbs (AFC Wimbledon) wins a free kick in the attacking half. Attempt saved. Jos¨¦ Enrique (Liverpool) with an attempt from the left side of the box is saved in the top left corner. Assisted by Rickie Lambert with a cross. Offside, Liverpool. Philippe Coutinho tries a through ball, but Rickie Lambert is caught offside. Attempt missed. Steven Gerrard (Liverpool) right footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses to the left from a direct free kick. Substitution, Liverpool. Jos¨¦ Enrique replaces Javier Manquillo.

Question: Steven Gerrard demonstrated the @placeholder and leadership Liverpool will miss when he leaves Anfield as he inspired them to an FA Cup third - round victory at AFC Wimbledon .


The Crown Prosecution Service said 1,892 cases were dropped at court due to the "significant ill-health, elderliness or youth" of a defendant. Another 439 cases were abandoned before the suspect was charged. The CPS said the number of cases dropped for these reasons accounted for 0.3% of all prosecutions in 2014. Such prosecutions dropped at court were 1,714 in 2013 and 1,402 in 2012. Those dropped before charge were 354 in 2013 and 128 in 2012. Between January and March this year, 516 were dropped at court and 132 before charge. The charity Victim Support said it was important that the decision not to prosecute was explained to victims. Chief executive Mark Castle said: "Victims often fear that they will not be believed, so it can be many years before they come forward. "It is critical that victims have the reasons behind a decision not to prosecute properly explained to them so that they understand that it does not mean they have not been believed." The figures - released after a Freedom of Information Act request by the Press Association - did not specify the nature of the suspected offence. The CPS said the decision to prosecute was made if there was both sufficient evidence and it was in the public interest. A spokeswoman said: "The Code for Crown Prosecutors recognises that the more serious the offence, the more likely it is that a prosecution is required, and the age or ill-health of a defendant will be taken into account when deciding whether to prosecute." In the case of former Labour MP Lord Janner, who has dementia, the CPS decided not to pursue historical child sex abuse claims against him. The decision was overturned following a review, and a fitness to plead hearing is due to take place on 7 December. Lord Janner denies the allegations.

Question: More than 2,000 suspected criminals avoided prosecution in England and Wales last year because of their ill - health or age , figures have @placeholder .


In December, four local teams boycotted games in protest over unpaid wages. "The situation is a result of bad management, and a lack of control and accountability in the management of clubs and football institutions," said Gabon's footballers' union (ANFPG). The ANFPG hopes the Nations Cup can improve local players' conditions. The union says many first and second division players are still owed substantial salaries from last year. In December, world governing body Fifa intervened to ensure that Mangasport - league champions in 2014 and 2015 - paid a former player, Ivorian Mariano Beugre, his outstanding wages. "We can confirm that the Dispute Resolution Chamber judge dealt with a dispute opposing the player Mariano Beugre to the club Mangasport," a Fifa spokesperson told BBC Sport. "According to the relevant decision, the club is ordered to pay to the player the amount of ($28,000)." Gabon will stage the Nations Cup, which runs from 14 January until 5 February, for the second time in five years, having co-hosted with Equatorial Guinea in 2012. "We believe this Nations Cup must allow us to have a collective awareness and take stock of our football since the last Nations Cup in 2012," Remy Ebanega, president of the ANFPG, told BBC Sport. "[We need] to put in place general rules for the best practice. "Our football is deteriorating every day of every year simply because its leaders have not yet understood that the main player is the footballer. Without a footballer, there is no club, no league, even less a federation. "Everything is done in an anarchic way, with the sole interest of a handful of people, and no reflection on the short, medium and long term objectives of our football." In a survey published by global players' union FIFPro in November, 96% of players in Gabon reported payment delays. On 29 December, players from Stade Mandji - title-winners in 2009 - and Adouma FC refused to play matches in protest (with their opponents awarded technical 3-0 victories as a result). Two teams in the second division also went on strike. One of the Stade Mandji players, defender Franck Perrin Obambou, has been included in Gabon squad for the Nations Cup, which the hosts open on Saturday against Guinea-Bissau in Libreville. Only two other domestic players have made the squad, with both Yves Bitseki Moto and Cedric Ondo Biyoghe on the books of league leaders Mounana. Some of the continent's finest footballers are set to play on Gabon's pitches this month, including recently-crowned Confederation of African Football's African Footballer of the Year Riyad Mahrez of Algeria and Senegal's Sadio Mane, Africa's most expensive footballer. All eyes will also be on Gabon's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, the free-scoring striker with Germany's Borussia Dortmund and an ANFPG vice-president as well. But Africa's flagship sporting event has been beset by problems, with opposition members of parliament calling for the public to boycott matches in protest at the country's political and economic problems. Some fans have responded by posting images of ripped-up matchday tickets on social media. While Gabon hosts some of the richest African footballers for the month-long tournament, local players will continue their fight to be paid. The league, which is suspended for the duration of the Nations Cup, is set to return on 18 February. No club from Gabon has ever won a major continental football title, while the national team has never surpassed the quarter-final stage of a Nations Cup. The BBC contacted organisers of the Gabonese league who have yet to comment.

Question: Just days before Gabon hosts the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations , the @placeholder of league football in the country has been described as " anarchic " .


The S-400 Triumph missile systems were earmarked for troops in Crimea last month, Russian media said at the time. Moscow also announced exercises in Crimea next week to simulate an attack by weapons of mass destruction (WMD). Russia, which annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, said this week it had foiled a Ukrainian sabotage mission. It accused the Ukrainian government in Kiev of trying to send saboteurs into Crimea and reported the deaths of a soldier and a secret police officer in an operation to foil the alleged plot. Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said Moscow might be forced to cut diplomatic ties with Ukraine if the crisis worsened. Denying the accusations, Ukraine placed its troops on alert along its de facto border with Crimea, and along its front line with Russian-backed rebels holding parts of Donetsk and Luhansk in the east. A column of Ukrainian tanks could be seen rolling towards Crimea on Friday. A statement by Russia's Southern Military District, which incorporates Crimea, said the missiles had been received by an air defence regiment in Crimea. According to the statement, quoted by Russian news agencies, the missiles were successfully tested on the Kapustin Yar test range in southern Russia. Russia's Interfax news agency says the missiles are designed to hit airborne targets at a range of up to 400km (249 miles) and ballistic missiles at a range of up to 60km, flying at speeds of up to 4.8km per second. The missiles are being installed in Crimea to protect Russia's Hmeimim air base in Syria among other things, it adds. Last November, Russia deployed S-400s at Hmeimim, after Turkey downed a Russian Su-24 bomber. The Russian defence ministry announced (in Russian) exercises in Crimea and the Volgograd region for 16-19 August to simulate the effect of an enemy attack using WMD. Radioactive, biological and chemical defence troops will be deployed in the manoeuvres, which will involve the use of Solntsepyok rocket systems in Volgograd, as well as an artificial smoke screen to block any surveillance. Separately, the ministry said (in Russian) it would be sending an additional 40 aircraft to the Southern Military District this year. Ukraine's envoy to the UN asked Russia on Thursday to prove its allegations, and said some 40,000 Russian troops were massed on the Crimea-Ukraine border. His Russian counterpart told the UN Security Council of Moscow's "concern and outrage" at the alleged incursions. Russian state TV broadcast an apparent confession by a man named as Yevhen Panov, saying he was part of a Ukrainian defence ministry force sent into Crimea "to carry out acts of sabotage". He said the group also included officers of Ukraine's military intelligence. Reports in Ukraine say Mr Panov is a former volunteer fighter who has more recently been associated with a charitable organisation called Heroes of Ukraine. Crimea was annexed by Russia after a majority of its mostly ethnic Russian population voted to secede in an unrecognised referendum on self-determination, held under military occupation. The annexation was relatively bloodless, in sharp contrast to the ferocious fighting which followed in Donetsk and Luhansk.

Question: The Russian military has announced the delivery of new air defence missiles to Crimea , in a move @placeholder before the latest tension with Ukraine .


The objects include pottery and pieces looted from ancient Peruvian graves dating back from before the arrival of the Spanish in the 16th Century. They were found during four separate investigations over several years by US the customs service. A spokesman said the objects belonged to the people of Peru, and were part of the country's rich heritage. Investigators say a middleman in Peru bought some of the pre-Columbian items from local farmers in Peru who robbed burial sites. They were then shipped by post to a smuggler in the US. Since 2007 the US authorities have returned 7,150 items to 27 countries including France, China, Poland and Iraq.

Question: The US has returned about 20 ancient @placeholder - some more than 1,800 years old - to Peru.


In April, the Daily Mail claimed that just ¡ê14,115 out of ¡ê1.7m donated to the Didier Drogba Foundation had gone to help causes in Africa. The Charity Commission launched an investigation into the case, and says that is now "coming to a close". Ex-Chelsea striker Drogba, 38, said the story was "false and defamatory". He previously said in a statement: "There is no fraud, no corruption, no mismanagement and no lies." The Mail said it "stands by every word of this important story" and had not alleged corruption or fraud. The Didier Drogba Foundation was set up in the Ivory Coast in 2007 and registered in the UK as a separate entity in 2009 to allow Drogba to raise funds while in England playing for Chelsea. In the article, the Mail claimed that ¡ê439,321 was spent putting on "lavish" fundraising parties attended by celebrities, and more than ¡ê1m "languished" in bank accounts. But Drogba said he had spent his own sponsorship earnings first and planned to use UK fundraising money for future projects. In his statement, he listed the accomplishments of his foundation, including building a mobile clinic, investing in orphanages, and funding the purchase of school bags, books and a dialysis machine. The Commission said in April it would set out to assess "concerns about the administration of the charity and the oversight provided by trustees, all of whom appear to live abroad, as well as allegations that the charity has provided misleading information to donors and the public. "Further, the charity has raised and accumulated significant sums of money that have not yet been spent and further information is required over the plans to spend those funds." The investigation is still ongoing, but the Commission said a case report will be published due to the high-profile nature of the charity. Take part in our new Premier League Predictor game, which allows you to create leagues with friends. Subscribe to the BBC Sport newsletter to get our pick of news, features and video sent to your inbox.

Question: A report into the " serious regulatory concerns " surrounding a charity @placeholder by Didier Drogba is due to be released by the Charity Commission within a month .


Media playback is not supported on this device Rather than join the 10th British club of a nomadic career after leaving Gateshead, the 25-year-old midfielder headed for India to join champions Bengaluru FC in the I-League. "India was somewhere I'd never even thought of going on holiday, let alone to play football," Walker told BBC Inside Out. "The things I was being offered to stay in the United Kingdom, I thought, it's time to try something new." Culturally, the move to India has given him a new perspective. As his Bangalore-based team's 'marquee' signing for 2014-15, Walker is a player to be respected and an ambassador for the growing league - featuring on billboards to promote football to a cricket-mad population. "It's different, sights you see on the road and the street," the Tynesider continued. "You might find a few cats on the streets in England but here you see a load of cows just roaming the streets. "The fans are that fanatical, you're known. It makes you more professional because you're an idol to them." If Walker was unsure of the lifestyle he would encounter, his on-the-field experiences were even more of a surprise. However, he had heard good things from former Boro academy team-mate John Johnson who was already with Bengaluru, and was also reunited with another man he used to play with in manager Ashley Westwood. "The football is a lot better than what I imagined," Walker said. "I didn't know anything about Indian football until John came out here. "Since I've been here there's some real talent, we've got some good young Indian players and the Indian captain." The I-League - not to be confused with the high-profile Indian Super League tournament which started last year  - was set up in 2007 and features 11 teams. Walker's team are fifth in the league and had an average attendance last season of 7,038 - a far cry from Gateshead's 886. For the lad from Killingworth in Newcastle to find himself in India at all is something of a surprise, given his early promise. After making the grade with Middlesbrough, to the extent that he made his Premier League debut at the age of 17, Walker says he found not being involved tough to take as a hungry young player. "I wanted to play week in, week out in the Premier League at 17," he said. "I'd find myself knocking on managers' doors at 17 or 18 asking why I wasn't playing. I look back and to be honest I cringe at myself." Current England Under-21 manager Gareth Southgate was team-mate and then manager of Walker during his Boro career. "He was a really good professional from a really young age, with a great attitude to the game and he captained England at youth level for a couple of years," Southgate said. "You always wonder whether to give youngsters their debut and we did - he did really well. "It's a new opportunity and a great life experience for him." Walker is not the only player out of contract to consider the switch to new climes. "It's become more of a thing because it is tough at home," team-mate Johnson said. "When you take a step abroad you can see it's exciting and different, it's a definitely a thing that will become more and more popular with English players." In addition to Walker and Johnson, ex-Bristol Rovers striker Daryl Duffy, former Rochdale winger Leo Bertos and Romuald Boco - who made more than 100 league appearances for Accrington Stanley - are other known names in this growing entity. For some it is the experience, for others the attraction is purely financial. "I'm out here for a year and only here to save enough money to be able to buy our house - we bought a house in the summer," said Curtis Osano, whose professional career in England took in Luton, Reading and Rushden & Diamonds. "There's no way I'd have stayed in England for 10 years grafting and trying to get as much money as I can, borrowing money from wherever to put money down on a house with the way the climate is in the UK." The only downside for Walker is the distance between him and his partner, not to mention a two-year-old daughter. Yet the rewards are great and he would consider bringing his family over to India if he is successful during his spell at Bengaluru. "I don't have any regrets about coming, not at all," he said. "It's incredibly hard missing my daughter and I miss her everyday but at the end of the day I've got to work and this is my job. "My career was going nowhere back home. I got an opportunity here and I'm going to grab it with both hands."

Question: When former England Under - 20 captain Josh Walker found himself without a club last summer , a move to a place where " a load of cows just roam the streets " @placeholder him more than any other .


A total of 228 people have put themselves at the mercy of the voters, and will battle it out for 90 seats split across 18 constituencies. Many eyes will be on the number of female candidates put forward by the parties, and a total of 70 are set to stand, which marks a 4% rise on last year's proportion. There were 276 candidates running in the 2016 assembly poll, which was a significant increase on the 218 who stood in the 2011 election. But directly contrasting those numbers with the figures this year would be like comparing apples and oranges, for a number of factors. Firstly, the cut in the number of assembly seats from 108 to 90 in this election will have had an effect on the amount of candidates the parties feel it is worthwhile to stand. And the short notice at which the election was called means parties have had much less time to organise and raise funding than they would for a poll during the typical five-year election cycle. That will have been a particular challenge for smaller parties and independents, and five parties that stood last time round will be absent from this year's ballot papers. The reasons mentioned will go some way to explaining why each of the larger parties have cut their overall numbers of candidates. The Democratic Unionist Party drops by six to 38 and Sinn F??in goes from 39 to 34. The Ulster Unionists opt for nine fewer runners with 24, the Social Democratic and Labour Party cuts three to run 21 candidates and the Alliance Party has a reduction of two to 21. But looking at the figures a different way, each of those parties has actually increased their proportion of candidates to seats by about a couple of percent. The Green Party continues to run a candidate in every constituency. The UK Independence Party sees the largest fall in candidate numbers, with just a single name on the papers this year after running 13 in 2016. The Progressive Unionist Party drops from six to three this year, while the Citizens Independent Social Thought Alliance, which ran last year as Cannabis Is Safer Than Alcohol, drops one candidate and now runs four. But People Before Profit are looking to capitalise on their success last year, and have expanded their number from three to seven, while the Traditional Unionist Voice, the Conservative Party, the Workers Party and the Cross Community Labour Alternative all increase their offerings by one, to 14, 13, five and four respectively. Rounding off the list are the 22 independents, one fewer than last year's number. You can find a full breakdown of candidates by constituency at the Electoral Office for Northern Ireland website. Theresa May has said she "fervently" hopes that agreement will be reached between the political parties after the election to form an executive. The prime minister also said the government would do "whatever is necessary" to implement recommendations from the Historical Institutional Abuse (HIA) inquiry report will be acted on. She was responding to a question from Ulster Unionist MP Tom Elliott in the House of Commons, who asked if the report's recommendations would be implemented if an executive is put together. Mrs May said she would ensure the findings of the HIA report "are taken into account and acted upon". "I don't want to see the benefits that have come of progress being undone," she added. Not sure yet who'll get your first preference vote? The BBC is looking for you. The Leaders' Debate will feature the five main political parties later this month, and you could be in the audience. Noel Thompson will chair the event, which will be broadcast on 28 February, just a couple of days before voters go to the polls. To apply to be there, drop an email to leadersdebate@bbc.co.uk. BBC News NI's Campaign Catch-up will keep you across the Northern Ireland Assembly election trail with a daily dose of the main stories, the minor ones and the lighter moments in the run up to polling day on Thursday 2 March. Hear more on BBC Radio Ulster's Good Morning Ulster at 07:40 GMT and on BBC Radio Ulster's Evening Extra at 17:40 GMT each weekday.

Question: If your name is n't in , you wo n't have a chance to win , because nominations for candidates for the assembly election @placeholder at 13:00 on Wednesday .


The boy, named Daniel, sent the stretchy man toy back to Whitelee Windfarm visitor centre along with a letter explaining the mix-up. Scottish Power, which runs the facility on Eaglesham Moor in East Renfrewshire, now wants Daniel to get in touch. The firm said it wanted to send him a "gesture of thanks" for his honesty. The letter said: "Dear sir/madam, I was in the shop and picked up the enclosed thinking that my mum had paid for it. Unfortunately, she had not so I am returning the item." Whitelee Windfarm visitor centre manager, Ian Parkinson, said: "We're often contacted by people wishing to find out more about the UK's biggest windfarm, but it's not often we receive mail like this. "I'd certainly like to praise this very honest young boy for admitting his mistake, and for his sincerity in his actions. "It's certainly heart-warming to think that someone would go to such lengths to return an item of very small value to us." Mr Parkinson added: "Unfortunately we don't have Daniel's return address to send him back our own gesture of thanks, but I do hope he gets touch or visits us again with his mum."

Question: One of Scotland 's largest energy firms is hoping to @placeholder a boy who returned a 10 p gift shop souvenir by post after realising his mum had not paid for it .


Terms with the Welsh striker, 26, have been agreed and the deal is close to being finalised despite a backlash, including a 60,000-strong petition. However, there are still legal issues to overcome which could cause a delay. A board member told the BBC they were "minded" to sign Evans but said the Professional Footballers' Association was a key driver in the move. Owner Simon Corney said on Wednesday that the club, who are 14th in League One, were 80% likely to sign the striker. The former Manchester City and Sheffield United player was jailed in April 2012 for raping a woman and was released from prison in October after serving half of a five-year sentence. Guardian sports writer David Conn: "There's been no decency shown to her after the event. You can still say 'I maintain my innocence of the crime, while apologising for what I did which I don't dispute,' and show some decency and empathy for this woman. "When I saw that Evans' supporters' website, and understood the way the victim has continued to be treated, that was a tipping point for me to make me feel that he has not done enough to show himself as someone who should have that second chance. I don't think he's ready yet." Former England international Danny Mills: "The dressing room is unlike any other place on the planet. Rightly, or wrongly, morally right or morally wrong, the dressing room is a sanctum of protection. Things will be said. There might be press cuttings quite possibly put on his locker, or where he gets changed." "Trouble is with football, it becomes very, very selfish at times and if Ched Evans goes into that dressing room and starts to play good football and starts to score the odd goal then, rightly or wrongly, whatever you think should happen, those players will forget about everything off the pitch if he's doing the business on the pitch." Guy Mowbray, BBC commentator: "What does it do to members of the squad who think, 'If you're that desperate to get that sort of player in, with everything that it brings, then thanks very much. You can't rate me very highly can you?'." Former Sunderland striker Kevin Phillips: "The interesting thing for me is that Oldham are struggling, they need a centre forward, and it'll be quite interesting to see how the supporters react when he scores his first goal. "I'm pretty sure there's going to be many in that crowd saying they won't turn up, but I'm sure they will at some point, and it'll be interesting to see whether they celebrate if he scores a goal. "It's quite unique being on that football pitch because you put everything to the back of your mind. If he scores a goal, I'm pretty sure the players at that time will celebrate. They need a goalscorer." Mills: "To play devil's advocate for a moment, he's committed a crime, he's served his sentence in prison - supposedly - therefore he should have been rehabilitated, therefore he comes back into it. Should he not be allowed to do his job of work? Conn: "You have the right to work in theory, but you don't have a right to walk back into your chosen profession. No employer, no football club has a duty to employ him." Chief sports writer for the Daily Mirror, Oliver Holt: "The last thing I want to be is to be seen as some sort of champion of Ched Evans... but I believe in a society where once criminals have served their sentence they deserve the chance to rehabilitate. "I just think we're on dangerous ground when we start making slightly random judgements about which criminals we allow back to work, and which criminals we don't." Mowbray: "I am very, very surprised that they're going down this route. With everything that's gone before it, I can't believe that they're that desperate that they would take this signing with all the baggage and the problems that will come with it. "There are financial implications, with sponsorship deals being lost, there might even be implications with policing costs, with the extra security needed. "I struggle to see it really ending positively for the club, or indeed the player, because if they're going to all this trouble, there's immense pressure on him as well." Mills, Phillips, Mowbray, Conn and Holt were speaking on BBC Radio 5 live.

Question: Oldham Athletic are hoping to @placeholder the signing of convicted rapist Ched Evans on Thursday .


Trucks are lined up along the edge of the road. In the middle, a group of people are stretched out on rugs placed on the road, under a canopy. Some of the older men are pulling on a hookah. They have been here for the past several days, not allowing any traffic through. They are protesters from the Jat community who are demanding quotas in government jobs and educational institutes. Groups of aggressive young men patrol the road, armed with sticks. Pedestrians are let through but nothing else. "I need to get through - it's the first day of my new job at the next town, but they've turned me back,"  one frustrated young man tells me as he heads away on his motorcycle. The protesters watch us warily, as we film some of the barricades. "The media's been unfair to us," a couple of them mutter as they come closer. "You're only saying we're troublemakers when we are gathered peacefully here." As I attempt to speak on camera, one man covers the lens with his hand. "Speak to us first, hear us out, only then will we let you do your job," he says. "We've been here all these days but none of the politicians have come to meet us," says one protester, Sukhram Dhankar. "The police have been needlessly provocative. They've used force. So many of us have been injured." Even as he finishes speaking, a group of armed riot police turn up. As their officer calls out orders, they swiftly begin removing the trucks to clear the road. The canopy is dismantled and the people asked to leave, but no one does. The protesters simply sit down on the ground and begin chanting slogans as the police look on. Within minutes, some men deflate the tyres of a few of the trucks still left in place to prevent them from being moved. The police decide to retreat. The canopy is swiftly put back up and more trucks are moved in to block the road as the protesters cheer. "We are not going to move," says one of them who refuses to tell me his name. News that the government has offered concessions cuts little ice. "We don't trust them. Let's get something in writing. Let them spell it out," he says. We are on the edge of Delhi. Much of the area around us was farmland about a decade ago. Now you can see tall buildings in some places, others are under construction. "We are farmers," Sukhram Dhankar says. "But there is no land left for us to farm. It's taken over by developers.  So we need government jobs."

Question: It is 8 am on the Bahadurgarh border on the west of Delhi . At this time , this busy road should be choked with traffic , but it is completely @placeholder .


Members of the Glentoran Board are set to meet with the H&W Welders boss as early as Monday night to discuss the vacancy at the East Belfast club. Smyth does not currently possess the necessary Uefa Pro Licence but an arrangement could be put in place until he achieves the coaching requirement. Patterson was sacked on Saturday after watching his side beat Carrick Rangers. Among the other contenders for the position are Pat McGibbon, who was edged out by Patterson for the job in 2012. The former Manchester United and Northern Ireland defender holds a Uefa Pro Licence and played for the Glens for two seasons, winning an Irish League title medal in 2005. The 42-year-old was manager of Newry City for 16 months before stepping down from the post in July 2012. McGibbon was appointed first-team coach by Dungannon Swifts three months later. He was interviewed for the Glentoran manager's job before Patterson was appointed but the ex-Cliftonville manager got the nod to take over from Scott Young. Another of the club's former defenders, Paul Leeman, has also been linked with the job, but, like Smyth, he does not currently possess the requisite licence. Smyth's Welders knocked Glentoran out of the County Antrim Shield after a penalty shootout last month.

Question: Former Glentoran defender Gary Smyth @placeholder the contenders to succeed Eddie Patterson as manager of the Oval side .


The first Christmas card was commercially produced by Sir Henry Cole in 1843 but it was not until the 1870s, and the introduction of the halfpenny stamp, that sending cards was affordable for almost everyone. Victorians then leapt upon the idea with alacrity. It was usual in the 19th Century for friends and relations to exchange letters at Christmas time, according to the Library of Birmingham, which has a collection of Victorian scrapbooks containing Christmas cards. They would tell of the year's events and their wishes for the coming year. As Stephanie Boydell, curator of special collections at Manchester Metropolitan University explains, the cards were "cheap and cheerful, leading to a real fad" of sending greetings in such a way. "There was a huge amount of material, publishers would produce loads and loads. Popular images were reused and reprinted as Christmas cards, even if they weren't particularly festive," Ms Boydell said. The cards were not only overwhelmingly secular, but some were grimly non-festive. Rosy-faced children gathered round a decorated tree might be seen on a card - but so might a dead robin or a turnip wearing a hat. Food features a lot - not just in family feasts and traditional spreads. One card shows a group of rats, nattily dressed, sharpening knives and settling down to a nice meal of roast cat. A sinister Christmas pudding leaps out of a pot to startle a cook with a woman's body and a bird's head. So why were such odd things depicted? "They're only odd to our eyes," Ms Boydell says. "The Victorians had a different idea to what Christmas was about - not particularly Christian, but a time of good humour. You may find a mouse riding a lobster strange - I find it funny. It's horses for courses." Of course, there were also cards more like the ones we post today - with frosty scenes, Father Christmas and family get-togethers. "For all the more unusual ones, there were probably 1,001 entirely Christmassy ones. It's just the unusual ones which stand out." And stand out they certainly do. Merry Christmas - and don't have nightmares.

Question: Murderous frogs , children @placeholder in teapots and a mouse riding a lobster are generally not images seen today on Christmas cards . But in Victorian times it was all par for the course . BBC News takes a look at some of the more unusual cards of Christmas past .


The striker scored from a rebound after Yoel had saved his initial effort and then turned home James Rodriguez's free-kick to double Real's lead. Benzema set up the third with a cross which Rodriguez slid home over Yoel. Marco Asensio scored a fourth after Rodriguez's effort hit the post before a late Ruben Pena consolation. Real briefly went top of the table, but Barcelona's 5-0 win over Celta Vigo later on Saturday restored their one-point lead. Match ends, Eibar 1, Real Madrid 4. Second Half ends, Eibar 1, Real Madrid 4. Attempt missed. Rub¨¦n Pe?a (Eibar) right footed shot from the right side of the box is close, but misses to the right. Assisted by Cristian Rivera. Foul by Mariano (Real Madrid). Mauro Dos Santos (Eibar) wins a free kick in the defensive half. Corner,  Real Madrid. Conceded by Anaitz Arbilla. Substitution, Eibar. Takashi Inui replaces Pedro Le¨®n. Attempt missed. Sergi Enrich (Eibar) right footed shot from the right side of the box is close, but misses to the right. Lucas V¨¢zquez (Real Madrid) wins a free kick on the right wing. Foul by Anaitz Arbilla (Eibar). Attempt blocked. Rub¨¦n Pe?a (Eibar) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Foul by Mateo Kovacic (Real Madrid). Dani Garc¨ªa (Eibar) wins a free kick in the attacking half. Offside, Real Madrid. Mariano tries a through ball, but Lucas V¨¢zquez is caught offside. Corner,  Eibar. Conceded by Nacho. Dangerous play by Mateo Kovacic (Real Madrid). Gonzalo Escalante (Eibar) wins a free kick in the attacking half. Offside, Real Madrid. Marco Asensio tries a through ball, but Mariano is caught offside. Substitution, Real Madrid. Isco replaces James Rodr¨ªguez. Offside, Real Madrid. Nacho tries a through ball, but Mariano is caught offside. Offside, Real Madrid. James Rodr¨ªguez tries a through ball, but Mariano is caught offside. Attempt missed. Mariano (Real Madrid) header from the centre of the box misses to the right. Assisted by James Rodr¨ªguez with a cross following a set piece situation. Nacho (Real Madrid) wins a free kick on the left wing. Foul by Ander Capa (Eibar). Goal!  Eibar 1, Real Madrid 4. Rub¨¦n Pe?a (Eibar) with an attempt from the centre of the box to the bottom right corner. Assisted by Pedro Le¨®n with a cross. Substitution, Real Madrid. Mateo Kovacic replaces Luka Modric. Foul by Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid). Sergi Enrich (Eibar) wins a free kick in the attacking half. Attempt missed. Pedro Le¨®n (Eibar) right footed shot from outside the box is too high. Assisted by Ander Capa. Attempt blocked. Mauro Dos Santos (Eibar) right footed shot from very close range is blocked. Offside, Eibar. Mauro Dos Santos tries a through ball, but Gonzalo Escalante is caught offside. Attempt saved. Sergi Enrich (Eibar) header from very close range is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Pedro Le¨®n with a cross. Corner,  Eibar. Conceded by Luka Modric. Offside, Real Madrid. Pepe tries a through ball, but Mariano is caught offside. James Rodr¨ªguez (Real Madrid) wins a free kick in the defensive half. Foul by Rub¨¦n Pe?a (Eibar). Substitution, Real Madrid. Mariano replaces Karim Benzema. Substitution, Eibar. Cristian Rivera replaces Adri¨¢n Gonz¨¢lez. Nacho (Real Madrid) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul. Foul by Nacho (Real Madrid).

Question: Karim Benzema scored twice as Real Madrid overcame the absence of @placeholder Cristiano Ronaldo and suspended Gareth Bale to beat Eibar .


Lewis, 28, spent last term on loan at Fulham from Cardiff City and has signed a two-year contract at Pittodrie, while Morris, 26, has agreed a one-year deal. Alexander, 38, moves to Pittodrie after leaving Hearts and will compete with Lewis for the number one jersey. Lewis told Aberdeen's website the club's upcoming Europa League qualifiers "were a massive attraction". "Hopefully we can get through the first few rounds and get as far as we can," added the Englishman. Capped five times by England's Under-21 side, Lewis was twice an unused substitute for the senior side while playing his club football at Peterborough United. On-loan Liverpool goalkeeper Danny Ward was Aberdeen's first-choice keeper for the first half of last season but he was recalled to Anfield in January. Adam Collin, on loan from Rotherham United, Scott Brown and Aaron Lennox also featured in goal for Derek McInnes' side as the Dons finished the season as Scottish Premiership runners-up. "A lot of goalkeepers when they get into their late 20s and 30s become better players so hopefully I can do the same," Lewis said. Morris spent two seasons at Dundee United after a switch from Dunfermline Athletic. He made 15 appearances last season as United were relegated, with his campaign interrupted by injury. He can operate in central defence or at right-back and has played up to Under-21 level for Republic of Ireland. "What an opportunity it is for me," said Morris. "I am really looking forward to the European games starting later this month. "I got a call from my agent to say the manager had been in touch. As soon as I heard that, I had my mind set on coming up here. "It is obviously a huge club with a very good squad and they showed that when they pushed Celtic all the way last season." Find all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.

Question: Goalkeepers Joe Lewis and Neil Alexander and defender Callum Morris have @placeholder Aberdeen .


They are looking for a way of asserting the sovereignty and authority of parliament over the EU in a way that convinces voters - and Boris Johnson - that Britain's relationship with the continent is changing. But they need to do this without claiming that UK law has primacy over EU law, something that would be tantamount to leaving the EU. As you might imagine, this is not proving an easy piece of constitutional carpentry. Clever minds in Whitehall are looking at two potential options, both of which would involve parliament giving greater authority to the Supreme Court to question rulings coming from the European Court of Justice (ECJ) in Luxembourg. One option would involve the Supreme Court assessing decisions by the ECJ and considering whether they breach the fundamental principles of Britain's constitutional norms that have been laid down over the centuries in various Acts of Parliament and common law. This would follow a similar path to the German constitutional court which can assess whether ECJ decisions challenge Germany's constitution. The problem with this option, of course, is that Britain does not have a single, codified constitution and so legal comparisons would be complex to say the least. And there is also the small problem that placing British constitutional traditions ahead of EU law would effectively leave the UK in breach of the many treaties it has signed over the years as a member of the European Union. If you don't sign up to the club rules, you can't be a member of the club. So a second option is being considered that some see as being perhaps more feasible. This would again involve parliament beefing up the authority of the Supreme Court to question rulings coming from the European Court of Justice. But - and here's the clever part - the Supreme Court would do this only in exceptional circumstances if it thought the judges in Luxembourg were breaching not UK law, but EU law. Crucially, the Supreme Court would not be questioning the supremacy of EU law. It would simply be ensuring that the UK obeyed the EU treaties which it had signed up to, rather than how those treaties were being interpreted by judges in Luxembourg. Now this might sound mad, or at the very least counter-intuitive. But national courts like the UK Supreme Court have already questioned what some see as the "judicial activism" of the European Court of Justice. Some courts think that the ECJ has on occasion exceeded its jurisdiction and made judgements that are not based on EU treaties. In a case last year, the Supreme Court was asked to decide whether Home Secretary Theresa May was legally able to deprive a Vietnamese man of his UK citizenship because he was considered by the security services to be a threat to national security. The European Court of Justice has in various judgements challenged such decisions because it believes that EU citizenship is dependent on national citizenship and therefore it has a right to poke its nose in decisions like this. But the Supreme Court questioned this judicial activism which it considered was not based on any EU treaty text. In a judgement on the so-called Pham case, on 25 March 2015, the judges said in, paragraph 90: "A domestic court faces a particular dilemma if, in the face of the clear language of a Treaty and of associated declarations and decisions, such as those mentioned in paras 86-89, the Court of Justice reaches a decision which oversteps jurisdictional limits which Member States have clearly set at the European Treaty level and which are reflected domestically in their constitutional arrangements. But, unless the Court of Justice has had conferred upon it under domestic law unlimited as well as unappealable power to determine and expand the scope of European law, irrespective of what the Member States clearly agreed, a domestic court must ultimately decide for itself what is consistent with its own domestic constitutional arrangements, including in the case of the 1972 Act what jurisdictional limits exist under the European Treaties and upon the competence conferred on European institutions including the Court of Justice." Now that might read as a lot of rather wordy legalese but it is in fact the highest court of the land very gently and very politely telling its counterpart in Luxembourg to go stick. This led the legal expert, Professor Derrick Wyatt QC, to conclude in a lecture on November 2015 that: "There is no doubt that some of the case-law of the Court of Justice has been regarded by the supreme courts of Member States as exceeding the jurisdiction conferred upon it, and in so doing encroaching in an unauthorised way upon the national legal systems. UK judges have expressed concerns of precisely this kind. In my mind they have been right to do so." He added: "Leaving the protection of the UK constitution to UK judges is not necessarily at odds with the UK government considering whether something further might be done in support of the role of the national judiciary. That "something further" might include providing statutory recognition of the limits of EU law supremacy under the European Communities Act. It is understandable that the prime minister might think that the present is an appropriate time for review of the UK constitutional position." And Professor Wyatt is not alone. Anthony Speaight QC, who served on the government's Commission on a UK Bill of Rights, gave evidence to MPs on the All Party Group on the Rule of Law this month and he told them in a written submission: "It would do no violence to UK legal principles, and arguably would be to perfect and enhance them, if Parliament were to amend (section 2 of the European Communities Act 1972) to clarify that the domestic courts are not to enforce EU instruments and decisions if they find them to be outside EU competences, and that ECJ decisions as to whether acts are within or without competence are to be no more than persuasive authority." Mr Speaight accepted that such a power would be "a nuclear weapon" that the Supreme Court would be reluctant to use. But he concluded: "It might be judged that the theoretical existence of the review in the hands of a court with so high an international reputation as the UK Supreme Court would act as a salutary warning to EU institutions to respect the limits of competence and subsidiarity." Now this option, of beefing up the powers of the Supreme Court, is not without its problems. Some lawyers argue that there is no distinction between EU treaties and how the ECJ interprets those treaties. The former attorney general Dominic Grieve told BBC Radio 4's The World at One his week that the attempt was pointless because ultimately the ECJ has the final say. Some MPs think that judge-led law is just as bad coming from the UK Supreme Court as it is from the European Court. And politically there is no guarantee that a rarely-used constitutional long-stop would be enough to persuade London Mayor Boris Johnson to vote to remain in the EU. But, right now, it appears to be the only game in town and it is the one the government is playing.

Question: Governments rarely perform @placeholder but they do try to square circles . And that is what David Cameron 's ministers are attempting right now with Britain 's constitution .


Sophie Lindley, who uses stabilisers, was cycling on Trent Road, Grantham with dad Dale, when they were stopped. Police accepted while cycling on pavements was illegal, officers should use discretion with young children. One cycling charity pointed out being under 10, Sophie is too young to be able to break the law. Mr Lindley said they regularly let Sophie cycle to school. "We stopped to look at some ducks when the officer pulled over and said she had to get off," he said. "He said 'The law is the law' and she was not allowed to ride on the path. "He said 'If I catch you put her on her bike further up the road I will turn around and confiscate the bike'. "I couldn't believe it. It's daft." Sophie's mum Emma Stephenson said she understood it was illegal to ride on the pavement. "But, it is ridiculous to think a four-year-old is not allowed," she said. "The most unbelievable thing is they were going to confiscate the bike." Lincolnshire Police apologised and said: "Safety is our priority and cycling on the pavement is illegal. "However, common sense obviously prevails and in the case of young children officers should use their discretion and offer the most appropriate advice for the circumstances." Roger Geffen, of national charity Cyclists' Touring Club, said the officer was "unfair" and "wrong". "The police officer has forgotten that children under the age of 10 are below the criminal age of responsibility so they can't break laws and can technically ride on the pavement," he said. "Everyone lets their children ride on the pavement. It is perfectly normal and not criminal."

Question: Parents of a four - year - old girl were @placeholder when a police officer threatened to confiscate her bike because she was cycling on a pavement .


Mr Farron, along with his leadership rival Norman Lamb, was one of only eight MPs left standing after May's election, which saw the party's dreams of remaining in government dashed and its presence in the Commons dramatically diminished. In the wake of Nick Clegg's resignation, the 45-year old father of four and MP for Westmorland and Lonsdale was immediately installed as the bookies' favourite to succeed him. The fact that he did not serve alongside the Conservatives in the coalition government and could present himself as a "clean skin" was always likely to appeal to members still trying to come to terms with one of the worst setbacks in the party's history. Mr Farron maintains that he "did not make the cut" when Mr Clegg dished out ministerial positions in 2010. Instead, he became party president, positioning himself as a critical friend of the coalition and building up his power base within the party. Although he endorsed the government's austerity measures, including controversial spending cuts and benefit restrictions, he frequently took aim at his coalition partners, describing them at one point as "toxic". Who is Tim Farron? Crucially, he voted against plans to raise the cap on university tuition fees to ?¡ê9,000 in January 2011, a U-turn which became a defining moment for the Lib Dems and one from which they struggled to recover. Mr Farron is popular with activists for his tub-thumping party conference speeches and easy-going manner, but he has not always been regarded with similar affection by party elders. After suggesting the Lib Dems deserved only two out of 10 for its performance in government, he was rebuked by, among others, former leader Lord Ashdown, while former deputy leader Vince Cable very publicly questioned his judgement. Mr Farron always insisted he had been referring to the party's handling of coalition relations and the wider politics involved rather than its achievements in power but it was taken by some as evidence of disloyalty and future ambition. After joining the Liberal Party at the age of 16, Mr Farron - who was born and educated in Lancashire - was active in student politics at Newcastle University, becoming the first Lib Dem to head the university's Union Society. After graduating with a politics degree in 1992 - a year in which he also stood for Parliament - he worked in higher education for Lancaster University and St Martin's College in Ambleside for over a decade before entering Parliament in 2005 at the fourth attempt. He has put his experience of grassroots, pavement politics - learnt from years serving on Lancashire County Council, South Ribble Borough Council and South Lakeland District Council - to good effect, building the parliamentary majority in his Cumbrian seat from less than 300 in 2005 to nearly 9,000 in the 2015 general election. A keen Blackburn Rovers supporter, Mr Farron was a once a goalkeeper in a local team. His other passions include music. In an interview with the BBC in 2008, he named his three heroes as former Clash singer Joe Strummer, former Liberal leader Jo Grimond and the novelist, academic, and theologian CS Lewis, best known as the author of the Chronicles of Narnia but also a prolific writer of meditations on Christianity. During the two month leadership campaign, Mr Farron has spoken openly about his faith, telling the Guardian that he had sought advice from God before deciding whether to put his name forward. He has insisted there is no dichotomy between his political and spiritual beliefs, a position he was forced to address after it emerged that some members of Mr Lamb's campaign had conducted private polling of party members about issues related to Mr Farron's faith. Speaking on the BBC's Victoria Derbyshire show last month, he said the row went to the heart of the often unspoken issue of whether it is "compatible for anybody to lead a Liberal Party and be a Christian". Mr Farron, who was baptised at 21 and rededicated himself to God at 30, accepts some in his party regard his faith as a weakness, wryly observing that "in the US, everyone has to invent a faith to get elected" but in the UK "you're not allowed to have one". He has taken flak for abstaining in a Commons vote on same-sex marriage last year, although he supported the landmark bill legalising gay marriage at all its crucial stages, and for recently describing a woman's decision to terminate a pregnancy as a "tragedy", although again he has clearly supported the right to choose and the current abortion law as it stands. Before winning the leadership election - with 56% of votes cast - Mr Farron vowed to reconnect the leadership with party members and champion stances that have become unfashionable elsewhere in Westminster, such as stressing the benefits of immigration and membership of the European Union. The party may have a mountain to climb if it is ever to get back to power but Mr Farron has signalled that he will not be content with wallowing in opposition, saying that "if you want to change the world, then you have to come first".

Question: Popular with Liberal Democrat activists for nearly a decade , Tim Farron has long been regarded as a potential future party leader , although his @placeholder at the top job may have come a little bit earlier than he expected .


The move follows a monitoring programme by Caerphilly council of 7,000 randomly-selected homes which found only 38% were recycling. Over the next few weeks, council officials will go to 80,000 homes in a bid to increase that figure. The authority said 7,000 tonnes of food waste was not being recycled. Councillor Nigel George, cabinet member for community and leisure services, said: "If every household participated in recycling food waste, the council could save nearly ?¡ê200,000 a year which could go towards protecting other frontline services." The Welsh Government has set targets which require councils to recycle at least 64% of all waste collected by 2019-20 and 70% by 2024-25. Failure to do so could lead to significant fines of up to ?¡ê1m being imposed on councils.

Question: Every home in Caerphilly county will be @placeholder as part of a new campaign to get more people recycling their food waste .


Crowds of people chanting and setting fire to bins gathered in Gwilliam Court, in Monkton, Pembrokeshire, at about 21:30 BST on Tuesday. Police were called and took two people from a property before the disturbance ended six hours later. On Wednesday, about 100 protesters gathered outside a council office. The crowd outside the office in Argyle Street, Pembroke Dock, were shouting and chanting about the situation in Monkton, with some saying they were not leaving until they had answers. Dyfed-Powys Police said officers were present and "engaging with the community about their concerns". It comes after the overnight protest on the housing estate. Police issued members of the 100-strong crowd with dispersal orders and the incident ended at about 03:00 BST on Wednesday. Nobody was arrested or injured. Dyfed-Powys Police said it received additional help from South Wales Police and Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Team. Officers remained at Gwilliam Court on Wednesday and extra patrols are being carried out in the area to reassure people. Pearl Llewellyn, a local councillor, said she would contact the housing office. "They'll be made aware of it," she said. A Dyfed-Powys Police spokeswoman confirmed the force was "liaising with Pembrokeshire County Council housing officers, and the concerns voiced by the community during the incident will be raised with them". Pembrokeshire council said it was aware of the incident on the council estate. "Housing officers from Pembrokeshire County Council attended the scene at the request of police," a spokesman said.

Question: Angry protesters staged a six - hour demonstration through the @placeholder after concerns a convicted criminal was living in their community .


Stephen Probert, 40, and Vicky Banks, 31, both from Caerphilly county, were on the run for two years before the BBC TV appeal helped police to catch them. They posed as a couple hoping to buy a new car before stealing over 25 high-value vehicles. They and other gang members have been sentenced at Newport Crown Court. Cars, including an Audi A3 and a Volkswagen Golf, both worth ¡ê10,000, were stolen around Britain between June 2013 and October 2014. Four of Probert's criminal gang were arrested, but ringleader Probert and Banks, both from Blackwood, went on the run. Tip-offs from the public helped officers apprehend the couple, who were living in Cyprus and travelling back to Wales. Probert pleaded guilty to conspiracy to steal motor vehicles and was jailed for one years and eight months. Banks was given an eight-month jail sentence, suspended for two years. Probert was already serving 16 years for conspiracy to steal motor cars and and conspiracy to pervert the course of justice. Judge David Wynn Morgan called him "a devious and manipulative criminal". Gang members Keri Davies, 31, of Risca, and Anthony Woodington, 40, of Maerdy, were jailed for eight months. Neil Roberts, 33, of Trebanog, and Kelly Stephens, 32, from Risca, were each given a one year community order. Samantha Wright, 28, of Mountain Ash, was bailed for a pre-sentence hearing.

Question: A couple involved in a gang which stole ¡ê 250,000 in cars have been convicted after an appeal to track them down was @placeholder on TV 's Crimewatch programme .


The 30-year-old Wolverhampton-born defender has rejoined the National League's bottom club on a contract until the end of the season. Lowe was a free agent after being released by League Two strugglers York City on 9 December. "Being bottom of the league doesn't scare me at all," he said. "For me, the season starts now. I am not worried about what's happened in the first half. We have to concentrate on this second half, start picking up points and see where we can get." Lowe first joined the Harriers from his hometown club Wolves in August 2008. He scored three goals in 52 appearances before leaving to join Hereford United, followed by a move to Cheltenham Town, where he was reunited with former Harriers boss Mark Yates. After four seasons there, he joined York from Cheltenham in January 2014 after an initial loan spell. Harriers sit bottom of the National League, 13 points adrift of safety, with 20 games of the season left. Because of successive postponements, they have not played since 28 December. During that time head coach Dave Hockaday has departed and the team is now in the hands of chief executive Colin Gordon. Find all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.

Question: Kidderminster Harriers have boosted their hopes of @placeholder the drop from the National League by bringing Keith Lowe back to Aggborough .


Lauri Love, of Stradishall, Suffolk, said he would appeal against the order signed by Home Secretary Amber Rudd. The 31-year-old, who has Asperger's syndrome, is accused of hacking into the FBI, the US central bank and Nasa. He said he had not seen any of the evidence against him, which he said was an "aberration of justice". For more on this story and other Suffolk news Mr Love was first arrested at his Suffolk home in 2013. He said Ms Rudd's "hands were tied" in signing the extradition order, but fears he will not be given a fair trial in America. He said "like anyone else arrested in the UK", he wants a fair trial in this country. He said: "If no evidence has to be shown and somebody can be taken away from their country, to a country where they have never lived, and potentially face 99 years or the rest of their life in prison, that's something that should trouble us. "The government and the court should try to prevent this situation." Mr Love, who has had depression and periods of acute depression, said it was "likely" he could "lose the capacity to avoid the temptation" to end his life if he were to be tried in the US. "This is not paranoia, I've been paying attention to the US justice system for years and sadly people don't get a trial, sadly people are treated inhumanly and people die in prison," he said. Mr Love has 14 days to appeal against the decision. If accepted, there would be a hearing next year.

Question: An autistic man facing claims he hacked US government computer systems has @placeholder a ruling to extradite him .


Media playback is unsupported on your device 2 July 2015 Last updated at 17:41 BST Born in London, raised in Zimbabwe and educated in the United States, she has caught the attention of fashion enthusiasts around the world. She has worked with pop star Beyonce and is currently the senior designer for hip-hop artist Nicki Minaj's fashion collection. The designer is now in the UK, as the main attraction at the Zimbabwe Fashion Week in Birmingham which opens on Saturday, 4 July. She spoke to the BBC's Farayi Mungazi, who first asked her about the inspiration behind her clothing line.

Question: New York - based Farai Simoyi is one of the rising stars of the catwalk with her self - @placeholder clothing line .


Several emails they claim to have cracked are linked to Vladislav Surkov, one of the architects of Russia's current political system. He is also a key Kremlin figure in Moscow's intervention in Ukraine. The self-styled "hactivists" claim they have no link to the Ukrainian state or security services but refuse to say how they hacked into Mr Surkov's inboxes. In amongst the thousands of emails, a proportion of which the BBC has been given access to, are small details. Taken together they support the notion that Russia controls the separatist authorities in eastern Ukraine, who have been fighting a war with Kiev since the spring of 2014. Read more on Russia and Ukraine Moscow has consistently distanced itself from the separatist militias, describing the conflict as a "civil war". There are documents which, it is claimed, are budgets for the breakaway pro-Russian "republics" in eastern Ukraine. There is an alleged plan for Moscow to provide fuel to the separatist-held regions to deal with shortages. And there is a list of separatist politicians, which was apparently sent to Mr Surkov's office. The implication is that Russia has a say in who governs separatist-held eastern Ukraine. Attached to one an email, allegedly sent by the separatist leader Denis Pushilin in January of this year, is a map of Ukraine carved up into three regions. The eastern part is marked as "Novorossiya" (New Russia). The central region is labelled "Malorossiya" (Lesser Russia). In the words of Eliot Higgins, a British journalist and founder of the website Bellingcat, there is "nothing in there which is individually hugely dramatic".  He characterises much of the information leaked so far as "day-to-day boring business". However, Mr Higgins believes that, taken as a whole, the emails are significant. "We haven't seen a hack of this type before, showing so much direct linkage between the Kremlin and separatists on the ground." Taken with previous evidence that the Russian military has been involved in the war in eastern Ukraine and supplied weapons to the separatists, Moscow's actions in Ukraine are, according to Eliot Higgins, "at this point completely undeniable". Other emails suggest that Russia was interested in fostering discontent and organising and paying for protests in Ukraine's second biggest city Kharkiv, which lies close to the Russian border. Analysts argue that the sheer volume of mundane material contained in the emails adds to the hack's authenticity. A more colourful confirmation of the emails' credibility comes from an invitation sent to Mr Surkov in 2014, to a party at which singer Robbie Williams performed. Robbie Williams was photographed singing at the event in Moscow, which according to the email was paid for by the owner of Chelsea Football Club, Roman Abramovich. For Ruslan Deynychenko, from the Ukrainian website Stopfake.org, the number of documents and the number of events and people mentioned make it "hard to imagine" that is has been faked. "It is beyond reasonable doubt that the emails come from Mr Surkov's office," said Mr Deynychenko. He thinks "there are too many documents, and too many events and people mentioned" for it to be a fake. The emails leaked so far relate to two inboxes: prm_surkova@gov.ru and pochta_mg@mail.ru. The hackers say they have run checks on information in the second inbox and established that it belongs to one of Mr Surkov's staff. The inboxes contain thousands of mundane emails, from people such as IT office workers. The emails have the relevant coding and details of the servers they were routed through, which would be incredibly difficult to fake. In response to the initial leak of emails last week, President Vladimir Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov was quoted by the Russian news agency Tass as saying Vladislav Surkov does not use email. At a briefing with journalists he said that Mr Surkov, whom he has known for 10 years, "is always being said to have said or done somethinga€| often it is not true." But the revelations are not expected to stop after this second leak of emails, linked to Mr Surkov, a secretive but powerful man in Moscow, sometimes referred to as President Putin's "grey cardinal". The BBC understands the emails of two other top Kremlin officials have allegedly also been hacked and that the content of those is still to be published. When we asked the Ukrainian hackers whether their actions were ethical, one of them laughed. "Is it ethical to kill people with guns and tanks?" he replied. "I guess nota€| so hacking is more ethical than killing people." The Russian government denies all the allegations contained in the emails and made in this article.

Question: Two Ukrainians have given details of emails they @placeholder to hack belonging to top Russian officials at the Kremlin .


Media playback is not supported on this device Beneath the gloss provided by Eden Hazard, Diego Costa and N'Golo Kante, there is an unheralded efficiency to this Chelsea side. BBC Sport takes a look at the players who have had a quiet impact on a title-winning season, and the unexpected areas that have sealed the championship for the Blues. All statistics are correct as of 22:00 BST on 12 May, with Chelsea having played 36 games. Once you have taken a look, consider how many of this current crop of Chelsea players would make it into the squad that won the club's first Premier League title in 2004-05. Use our team selector below to find out. Pick your best XI from Chelsea's Premier League winners in 2004-05 and 2016-17. Cesar Azpilicueta has proven his adaptability this season, moving from right-back to a position in a central-defensive three. One thing has not changed though - his reliability. The Spain defender is one of only three outfield players to have featured in every minute of every Premier League game this season - clocking up 3,240 minutes. His defensive colleague Gary Cahill has only missed six minutes of action, giving boss Antonio Conte a dependable duo at the back. When it comes to minutes played, Cesc Fabregas is way, way down the pecking order. The former Arsenal midfielder, who has said he could have left Stamford Bridge in the summer, has started only 12 league games this term, but his impact has been substantial. Only three players have provided more than his 11 assists in the top-flight campaign - Manchester City's Kevin de Bruyne leads the way with 15, while Gylfi Sigurdsson (Swansea) and Christian Eriksen (Spurs) have 12. That trio have played much more football than Fabregas, so it is no surprise that the averages show the Spaniard far outshines his rivals, with an assist every 111 minutes he has been on the pitch. And having seen his reaction when he was told he might lose one of his assists - which Opta later gave him back - we think he'll be pretty pleased. You know where you stand with Gary Cahill - block it, head it, get rid of it. Right? Wrong. The England centre-half fancies himself as a bit of a ball player, it seems. Of all the Premier League defenders to have played at least 20 games this term, only Manchester City's John Stones has a better passing accuracy. Not only has Cahill been composed in front of his own goal, he has been deadly at the other end too. The same can be said for Marcos Alonso who, until joining Chelsea in the summer, was best known in England for spells with Bolton and Sunderland. The pair have six goals each this season - the only defender with more is Liverpool's James Milner, and all seven of his were from the penalty spot. So while Costa has been grabbing the headlines for being on target 20 times, maybe his defensive team-mates deserve a bit of recognition. Though Alonso has scored those six goals, it is the wing-back on the opposite flank who has been the more adventurous this season. No Chelsea player has seen their career revitalised so sharply under Conte than Victor Moses. The Nigeria international, previously recognised as a forward in four unspectacular years at Stamford Bridge, has flourished as a right wing-back. The 26-year-old has had 99 touches in the opposition area this season, more than any other Blues defender. In fact, the only defender to have had more touches in the opposition box this term is Michail Antonio (122), who plays in a similar role for West Ham. The old adage of not scoring if you do not shoot has been very apt for Chelsea this season. Their tally of 12 goals scored from outside the box is a league high, with Liverpool closest on 11. And Spain international Pedro, who leads the way for the Blues, has found the net three times from long distance. Costa, Fabregas and Alonso have each pitched in with two. It must be tough playing alongside the best defensive midfielder in the world. Kante is considered the king of Hoovering up, the emperor of the track back and the don of mid-pitch duels. Nemanja Matic gives his partner-in-midfield-hustling a run for his money, though, particularly when it comes to discipline. Matic has been shown yellow cards to Kante's nine, and given away 33 free-kicks to 52. And when it comes to recoveries [the number of times a player has picked up a loose ball], he is only 22 behind Kante's tally of 263.

Question: Chelsea 's run to the Premier League title may not have had the same @placeholder as Leicester 's unlikely success last season , but there is still something to celebrate for the way they have gone about it .


Simon Murray drove his 17th goal of the season to put United ahead. The Bairns regained their composure and Joe McKee crossed for James Craigen to perfectly time a scissor-kick finish. Blair Spittal restored the Tangerines' lead but Falkirk equalised again when McKee found the top corner with a wonderful 30-yard free-kick. The sides will meet again at the Falkirk Stadium on Friday and the eventual winner will face Hamilton Academical or Inverness Caledonian Thistle - whichever side finishes second bottom in the top flight - in the final. Both sides experienced spells of dominance, with Falkirk edging it before the break. Bairns boss Peter Houston - who led United to Scottish Cup glory almost seven years ago to the day - did have to watch his former employers take the lead, though. Tangerines forward Thomas Mikkelsen got the better of Luca Gasparotto to flick on Cammy Bell's long kick and Murray raced on to the ball and rifled it confidently across goal into the far left corner. The Dundee-born striker has been prolific for his home city club in these play-offs - that being his third goal in as many games after netting in both legs of the quarter-final against Greenock Morton. But the visitors responded. Craigen was primed and ready to make the most of McKee's delicious delivery, connecting acrobatically to send the ball into Bell's net. Craigen, Lee Miller and Nathan Austin all went close for the Bairns before half-time, yet it was the home side who nudged themselves in front again at the start of the second period. Like Murray, who turned creator, Spittal netted to make it three goals for him in the three play-off matches. The former Queen's Park midfielder produced an accurate, if unexpected, low finish into the far corner from the right edge of the box. The game would swing again, however, and it was another strike of tremendous quality for both the Falkirk fans and Houston on the touchline to enjoy. Most thought McKee would send his set piece from wide on the left into the box, but the former Morton man hammered the ball into the top left corner past a despairing Bell. Miller's replacement John Baird thought he had added a third for the Bairns with a really nicely directed header from Craigen's cross, but referee Bobby Madden disallowed after the flag was raised by his assistant. And, in stoppage time, Bairns goalkeeper Robbie Thomson clawed away Mikkelsen's looping header to ensure it ended all square. Dundee United manager Ray McKinnon: "I enjoyed the game. It was an interesting game. "They've come out and given everything, they've taken the lead twice, there's a desire to win the game so I'm very pleased and the game's still sitting in the balance going into Friday. "We can certainly go down there and win and we'll go down there with a really positive mentality and we can't wait for the game. "We'd obviously have liked to have taken a win down there, an advantage. I'm sure it'll be an open game." Falkirk manager Peter Houston: "It was a terrific game. Both teams had a go. We showed great character. We changed our system and the system worked for us. "I thought for 10 minutes of the first half, we lost it but I think the rest of the game, we more or less dominated. "We look forward to Friday night. We know it's going to be a difficult game - winner take all - but we're more than confident that we can make the final of the play-off again. "What we have to cut out is silly goals." Match ends, Dundee United 2, Falkirk 2. Second Half ends, Dundee United 2, Falkirk 2. Corner,  Falkirk. Conceded by Willo Flood. Attempt blocked. Aaron Muirhead (Falkirk) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Attempt saved. Thomas Mikkelsen (Dundee United) header from the centre of the box is saved in the top right corner. Attempt missed. Thomas Mikkelsen (Dundee United) header from the centre of the box misses to the left. Foul by Thomas Mikkelsen (Dundee United). Aaron Muirhead (Falkirk) wins a free kick on the left wing. Mark Durnan (Dundee United) wins a free kick in the attacking half. Foul by John Baird (Falkirk). Substitution, Dundee United. Paul Dixon replaces Jamie Robson. Substitution, Falkirk. Robert McHugh replaces Nathan Austin. Substitution, Falkirk. Tom Taiwo replaces Craig Sibbald. Attempt saved. John Baird (Falkirk) left footed shot from outside the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Nathan Austin (Falkirk) wins a free kick in the defensive half. Foul by William Edjenguele (Dundee United). Craig Sibbald (Falkirk) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul. Sean Dillon (Dundee United) wins a free kick on the left wing. Foul by Craig Sibbald (Falkirk). Attempt saved. Charlie Telfer (Dundee United) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Attempt missed. Tony Andreu (Dundee United) right footed shot from outside the box is too high from a direct free kick. Blair Spittal (Dundee United) wins a free kick in the defensive half. Foul by Craig Sibbald (Falkirk). Substitution, Falkirk. John Baird replaces Lee Miller. Substitution, Dundee United. Charlie Telfer replaces Wato Kuate. Goal!  Dundee United 2, Falkirk 2. Joe McKee (Falkirk) from a free kick with a right footed shot to the top left corner. Foul by Mark Durnan (Dundee United). Nathan Austin (Falkirk) wins a free kick in the defensive half. Corner,  Dundee United. Conceded by Aaron Muirhead. Attempt blocked. William Edjenguele (Dundee United) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Corner,  Dundee United. Conceded by Peter Grant. Willo Flood (Dundee United) wins a free kick in the attacking half. Foul by James Craigen (Falkirk). Goal!  Dundee United 2, Falkirk 1. Blair Spittal (Dundee United) right footed shot from outside the box to the bottom left corner. Assisted by Simon Murray. Corner,  Falkirk. Conceded by Jamie Robson. Foul by Willo Flood (Dundee United). Lee Miller (Falkirk) wins a free kick in the defensive half. Attempt saved. Willo Flood (Dundee United) left footed shot from outside the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Corner,  Falkirk. Conceded by Wato Kuate. Corner,  Falkirk. Conceded by Willo Flood.

Question: Dundee United and Falkirk @placeholder four brilliant goals in an enthralling Premiership play - off semi-final first leg at Tannadice .


Glen Evans was left with a broken nose and his bride Georgina was punched at Fanhams Hall Hotel in Hertfordshire, St Albans Crown Court heard. Lee Doyle, 37, of Houghton Regis denied punching the groom. He and Gary Hutson, 46, of Luton, both charged with affray, were guests at another wedding. Both deny affray on 10 August 2014. The court heard an argument broke out when Mr Doyle and Mr Hutson asked Mr and Mrs Evans and their friends to move away from a fireplace. The newly married couple and their group were having drinks at the hotel following their own reception at another hotel. Mr Evans said the two men and the other groom confronted him, saying the area was reserved, although his party had been put there by bar staff. He said the two men hit him, and he was kicked and punched by others who joined in the attack. Mrs Evans was then also punched, leaving her with bruising to the head. However, Mr Doyle told the court he was trying to defuse the situation, which he described as "volatile". He admitted pushing Mr Evans and "grappling" with him as he thought he was going to attack Mr Hutson. Mr Doyle described Mr Evans as "irate and aggressive" but denied hitting him. Earlier this week Mr Evans denied allegations that he had thrown the first punch and had been "aggressive". The trial continues.

Question: A man accused of punching a groom when two wedding parties @placeholder at a hotel has denied hitting anyone but admitted " grappling " on the floor .


He said some shows now neglect traditional storytelling for the sake of "gratuitous" use of CGI graphics. The 84-year-old, who was a fixture on Jackanory from the 1960s to '90s, said: "You can't help but notice how children's TV has changed". Cribbins is returning to the genre in the new Cbeebies show Old Jack's Boat. He said the series, which starts on Monday, has "a very nice balance" between traditional storytelling and animation. But of other children's programmes, he said: "It's all very fast and noisy now I think. "You think of the gentleness of Jackanory, somebody would walk onto the set, sit down and say 'hello I'm going to tell you about Ratty and Mole and the Wind in the Willows' and off you went. "Nice and gentle, and the only thing you saw, apart from the guy or lady talking to you, was a few captions and illustrations, which were stills. That was how it used to be. Pure, simple storytelling. "Now there seems to be - sometimes, not always - a tendency to use every single opportunity to put in CGI and animation and a lot of it is, I think, gratuitous when the story is actually doing the work for you. "I think we've got a very nice balance with Old Jack's Boat of story and little bits and pieces [of animation] as well." Old Jack's Boat was co-written by former Doctor Who scribe Russell T Davies and features ex-Doctor Who actress Freema Agyeman. Cribbins is also known for playing Wilfred Mott in Doctor Who as well as for roles in Coronation Street, Last of the Summer Wine and Worzel Gummidge. He holds the record for the most Jackanory appearances - 111 in total - and played station porter Albert Perks in classic 1970 film The Railway Children.

Question: Actor Bernard Cribbins , who provided the @placeholder of 1970s TV favourites The Wombles , has said modern children 's TV has become too " fast and noisy " .


Amnesty International supporters are zipped into some of the bags in the first few rows, alongside a banner saying #DontLetThemDrown. Bags are lined up in rows in front of the East Sussex resort's Big Wheel close to the pier. The protest comes ahead of an EU leaders' meeting over the crisis. David Cameron will attend the summit in Brussels, which will discuss a response to the growing problem. Amnesty UK director Kate Allen said: "Until now, the UK government's response has been shameful but finally they have been woken up to the need to act. "EU governments must now urgently turn their rhetoric into action to stop more people drowning on their way to Europe."

Question: Two hundred @placeholder bags have been placed on Brighton beach in a protest to highlight the UK 's response to the migrant crisis in the Mediterranean .


More than 150 world leaders have converged to launch the two-week talks, known as COP21. The last major meeting in 2009 ended in failure. But French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, who is chairing the meeting, said a deal was within reach. Most of the discussions are expected to centre on an agreement to limit global warming to 2C (3.6F). Assessments of the more than 180 national plans that have been submitted by countries suggest that if they were implemented the world would see a rise of nearer to 3C. Peruvian Environment Minister Manuel Pulgar Vidal declared this year's meeting open on Monday. Strong action on carbon emissions is essential for multiple reasons, said Mr Vidal, who hosted last year's UN climate conference in Lima. Mr Vidal said a deal would show the world that countries can work together to fight global warming as well as terrorism. COP21 live: The latest updates from Paris. Christiana Figueres, the head of the UN's climate change negotiations, addressed delegates at the start of the summit. "Never before has a responsibility so great been in the hands of so few," she said. "The world is looking to you. The world is counting on you." COP 21 - the 21st session of the Conference of the Parties - will see more than 190 nations gather in Paris to discuss a possible new global agreement on climate change, aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions to avoid the threat of dangerous warming due to human activities. COP21 live: The latest updates from Paris Explained: What is climate change? In video: Why does the Paris conference matter? Analysis: From BBC environment correspondent Matt McGrath More: BBC News special report The talks are taking place amid tight security, two weeks after attacks in Paris claimed by the so-called Islamic State (IS) group. Negotiators from 195 countries will try to reach a deal at the meeting. This year, world leaders are attending the start of the two-week meeting to give impetus to the talks. Some 150 heads of state, including US President Barack Obama and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, have arrived at the summit. Major points of contention include: Among those attending the talks is the broadcaster and naturalist Sir David Attenborough.  He said he was not confident that the Paris talks would produce a deal to tackle the "hideous problem" of climate change. "We know the consequences of a rise of temperature, what it will do for the oceans, for example," he told the BBC. "Increasing temperature of the oceans will cause havoc amongst the fish stocks and similarly increasing the temperature of the Earth is causing the spread of deserts. "The problems of a rise in temperatures are huge; it has to be avoided at all costs." The Prince of Wales said that humanity faces no greater threat than climate change, as he issued a call for immediate action to tackle rising temperatures. Charles told the summit: "Rarely in human history have so many people around the world placed their trust in so few. "Your deliberations over the next two weeks will decide the fate not only of those alive today, but also of generations yet unborn."

Question: High - level climate talks have begun in Paris , aimed at @placeholder a long - term deal to reduce global carbon emissions .


Branagh used a similar visual style in his big-budget 1994 film Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, in which he also starred as the overambitious scientist. That film performed poorly at the US box office and marked a period in the relative wilderness for the hitherto golden boy of British theatre and film. The experience may also explain Branagh's return to form as a first-league Hollywood director 21 years later, with his live-action Cinderella now a major box office hit. He was always on sure ground with critically acclaimed cinematic treatments of classic Shakespeare and more recently opera such as The Magic Flute (2006). Transferring that depth to mass-market family entertainment has been key to his breakthrough, starting with Thor in 2011. Branagh went out to LA to pitch to direct Thor, the Marvel film that transformed the fortunes of the comic-book-based studio. Not an obvious choice, he convinced them to let him inject Shakespearean grandeur and acting into Thor's Norse mythological world. Like an Elizabethan actor-manager he draws on an evolving "company" of great and diverse stage actors (Anthony Hopkins as Odin in Thor, Derek Jacobi as the ageing King and Nonso Alozie in Cinderella) prepared to put in deep preparation. Branagh's awards Twenty-nine wins and 56 nominations, including: Richard Madden, who plays Prince Charming, said he was made to read Machiavelli's Renaissance text on statecraft, The Prince. Perhaps most importantly, Branagh emphasises brilliant, damaged villains who win legions of adoring fans. He has compared Tom Hiddleston's Loki in the Thor films with Cate Blanchett's femme-fatale stepmother. Branagh is clearly a master, not the slave, of the computer-generated imagery (CGI) effects demanded of both superheroes and Cinderella's impressive transformations. It is a lesson learnt perhaps from the CGI-mad disaster of Wild, Wild West (1999), in which he played the scenery-chewing villain. Crucially, Branagh is hungry for mainstream success, making a straight action film Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit (2014) to prove it. As he told The Scotsman recently: "I wanted the chance to do something in a form where more people would see it." Cinderella, shot on real film stock, looks sumptuous, but Branagh has had to defend it against accusations from some critics that the movie is too old-fashioned and does not do enough to challenge the passive endurance of abuse in the traditional story. At the Berlin Festival premiere of the film he said Cinderella has "a strength of character that is sort of a form of non-violent resistance". Disagreement with Disney over the darker version conceived by the original signed director Mark Romanek is reported to be the reason the American left the project in 2013. Disney's Maleficent (2014), a live-action retelling of the 1959 Sleeping Beauty from the wicked fairy's point of view, suggested a desire to play with darkness, though many critics felt it fell short of its promise. However, Maleficent did well with audiences and, in the light of Cinderella's similar success, Branagh's upbeat approach appears to be the template for the live-action remake projects ahead. Cinderella on the big screen The Jungle Book, starring Bill Murray, Scarlett Johansson and Idris Elba, is scheduled for release in 2016. Like Lily James in Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast will star another Downton Abbey alumnus, Dan Stevens (Matthew Crawley) as the Beast alongside Emma Watson as Belle. By strange coincidence, there is a Frankenstein connection for its director, Bill Condon, who made his Hollywood directorial debut with his own screenplay of Gods and Monsters about the celebrated 1931 Frankenstein horror film. Tim Burton, best known for his own love of the Gothic, is back with Disney for Dumbo after Alice In Wonderland (2010), which - even more than Maleficient - defied poor reviews to be a huge box-office hit. Disney now owns both Marvel and the Star Wars franchises and appears to be committed to a major strategy of remaking its back catalogue of animated classics for a modern family audience, and building on the worldwide success of its new animated princesses in Frozen. Rival Universal studios is thought to be going back to its own classic catalogue for remakes. It has had mixed success with dark fairytale reboots. Snow White and the Huntsman (2012) fared much better than Hansel and Gretel: Witchhunters (2013) or Jack The Giant Slayer (2013). Universal turns out to have been ahead of the game though, with its remake of The Mummy (1999). Now it is thought that Dracula and Frankenstein may well be brought back to life. In a way, it is all thanks to Branagh, who has proved that with courage as a superpower and a little Disney magic anyone can be transformed into Hollywood royalty.

Question: If you know the films of Sir Kenneth Branagh there is something familiar about Cinderella 's ballroom dance scene , when the Prince swirls her round in a glow of colour and light , all @placeholder in bold , sweeping camera movements .