we are looking at the legacy of that european capital of culture to liverpool. we have got the sofa with us as well, and on the sofa one of the guests will be phil redmond, the guy who created things like grange hill, brookside, what a classic that was, and also hollyoa ks. classic that was, and also hollyoaks. more from me here and little bit later on. first, let's get the news, travel and weather where you are this morning. good morning from bbc london news, i'm alpa patel. the daughter of a pensioner who died of legionnaires' disease says she is still waiting for an apology from the care home responsible for his death. kenneth ibbetson died after moving into the bupa—run hutton village care home in brentwood in 2015. last week the private company was ordered to pay £3 million pounds. his daughter valerie says his death was preventable. he wasn't ready to die. he gave the home a new lease of life and he was looking forward to his twilight years, really. we all know that at some point in our lives we're going to lose our parents. but the circumstances under

first though, welcome to valletta, capital of malta, and for this year only, european capital of culture. the cultural programme for 2018 has a strong travel aspect, key themes include routes, cities and islands. valetta's twin capital is the northern dutch city of leeuwarden, where the artistic highlight in september and october involves 100 friesian horses performing in a drama about the perpetual struggle against the sea. next, matt taylor from stafford in the english midlands is getting married in april, and he still hasn't decided on a honeymoon location. the bahamas are expensive to reach and to stay in, and not renowned for their depth of culture or great sightseeing. there's more on offer in dubai and the maldives, but that involves a long and expensive flight, at a time of year when the southern mediterranean is at its best. whether you are on the island of sicily, or here in malta, you can expect temptingly empty beaches, beautiful, clearskies, and feast on thousands of years of history, as well as heavenly cuisine. next, rita from verona in italy, is currently in singapore, wh

obviously, the uk cities can no longer become european capital of culture, post—brexit. is there a way of harnessing what we have learned from the previous experiences to be able to make that mitigated? of course, there is the uk city of culture, which commentary is in 2021 and hull has just culture, which commentary is in 2021 and hull hasjust been, —— which cove ntry and hull hasjust been, —— which coventry is in 2021. but also the world, we did huge relationship building with china, indonesia and with america actually, around how we engage artists to do great things in oui’ engage artists to do great things in our cities and places, and to tell that story especially in places like liverpool, a port, a huge melting pot of cultures, how we tell that international story to the world. where do you see the balance lying between positive and negative as to what the cultural life of britain might be like outside the eu? the positives, we have to keep those relationships going and keep telling the stories of the uk and different places. we need to really invest in t

years european capitals of culture. kick starting a year of cultural events, the crowds came out for a night of music and light shows. king alexander and queen maxima started things off ringing in the opening bell. carnival is up and floating on the canals of venice. spectacularly dressed acrobats, dancers and musicians were part of a show with a circus theme. it's one of the oldest carnivals in the world, dating back to the 11th century. thousands of people from around the world are expected to visit the italian city to see the two—week long event, that will include masked balls, concerts and gondola parades — on land and water. that is the way it is looking. don't forget, you can reach me on twitter. hello again, good morning. yesterday, we had some rain for a time, then we saw the cloud thinning, but we will see the clouds thickening up again and more rain returning across northern parts of the uk on that weather front. that area of low pressure to the north, though, for a while has been bringing some very windy

year's european capitals of culture. kickstarting a year of cultural events, the crowds came out for a night of music and light shows. king willem—alexander and queen maxima started things off, ringing in the opening bell. 60 years ago, godtfred kirk christiansen, the second generation owner of lego, patented the lego brick, which took the world by storm. godtfred's then 10—year—old son kjeld regularly helped his father test out the new toys in the family workshop founded by his grandfather. kjeld kirk kristiansen spoke to witness about his —— kjeld kirk christiansen spoke to witness about his family's extraordinary business. the village was invented when there was not enough work. spare time toymaking has developed into a huge danish export. my grandfather was a very happy person. he made a lot of different kinds of wooden toys. for him, it was about making quality toys that were good for children. that is why he came up with the name lego, which means "play well" in danish. after the second world war, so many

of culture, a title it took up in 2008, so where better to look at the impact of europe on the arts and culture. i am joined impact of europe on the arts and culture. iamjoined by impact of europe on the arts and culture. i am joined by stand—up comedian will vranken. a lot of people in the creative industries seem people in the creative industries seem to have voted remain. do you think this has created something of a problem? i think that it has done is inadvertently highlighted the fa ct is inadvertently highlighted the fact there is a difference of opinion, and for a long time in the arts there has been one political direction only. so by brexit happening, the people spoke up and all of a sudden their artist agreeing saying that they don't agreeing saying that they don't agree with the status quo and we're finally hearing from those artists. has it particularly affected you? finally hearing from those artists. has it particularly affected you ?|j think has it particularly affected you?” think so, i have a pretty big mouth andi think so, i have a pretty big mouth and i don't

it is ten years since liverpool was europe's european capital of culture. every artist wants to perform here now, all the artists had a love for the city but now they really want to perform here. this is all about moving spectacle of street theatre on a grand scale. for the next 48 hours, merseyside really is the land of giants. danny savage, bbc news, liverpool. ok, it is now time for news watch. this week the bbc‘s politicaljournalism comes under the spotlight. hello and welcome to news watch. the dancing prime minister garnered most of the headlines at this week's conservative party conference but did the bbc do itsjob in covering policy as well as performance. and has the way we have got to talking about politics on the news just got too rude and argumentative? the party conference season is when we expect a leading politicians to set out their big ideas in the full glare of the media spotlight. sometimes though they declined broadcasters invitations to submit themselves to questioning and this week that led to a row. on tuesday, representatives from

capital of culture, over 1 liverpool was crowned european capital of culture, over1 million people came to see this event and crowded down the quayside to see the ships. amazing spectacle. later, there are three here this morning and 17 in total tucked away behind the liver building and they will come out for a parade of sale later and take part in the tall ships regatta. it is not a race for seasoned sailors, it is about bringing young people from different backgrounds together a different abilities coming together on the sea to build skills, to build friendships, and hopefully they reckon change lives. i want to bring in the race director, paul bishop. good morning. tell me what schooner fever is. it isa fever is. it is a phrase used for any young person who comes on these magnificent tall ships, they are captured by everything, they want to come back and sale on these tall ships time and time again. must be incredible, most of them are owned by charities and most of the young people who take part in this amazing event will be sponsored by charity and they will have a bursary you have

nearly 15 years to the day it was named european capital of culture, a title is then took up in 2008. there were lots of exa m ples took up in 2008. there were lots of examples around here of what that has meant for liverpool. of course leaving the eu means uk cities are no longer eligible to be named capital of culture for europe, one of the more visible effects leaving the eu has had on the arts and culture industry, but of course it is something that has affected entire swathes of british life. my colleague david sillitoe has been looking at what post brexit britain might look like, the potential benefits and deficits for what might happen once we do leave the eu in a rts happen once we do leave the eu in arts and culture... what you're looking at is the work of a british company called jellyfish, which isjust a part of the uk's fast—growing visual effects industry. this is rogue one, star wars, we've done a lot of work on star wars within the last two or three years. this is really high—end hollywood stuff, though. yeah, and we are one of the — if not the leading centre for

this year marks the tenth anniversary of liverpool as the european capital of culture. as newcastle gateshead gears up for their great exhibition of the north — steph mcgovern has been back to liverpool to find out what impact their year in the cultural spotlight is still having on the city. for so long it was so easy to talk liverpool down. but then came a moment. the uk's nomination to be capital of culture in 2008 is liverpool. 2008 definitely felt like a moment. hundreds of thousands of people celebrating and everybody wanted to be a scouser. i was right there in that crowd as 2008 drew to a close. i was right there in that crowd as 2008 drew to a close. at one time we were getting really bad press, and now it isjust wonderful, i am choking up again. you are, aren't you? aw, bless you! an occasionally cynical city had been won over. were there cynics? well, yeah. i would have been foremost among cynics. really? because i've been trying to save my culture lots and lots of times. frank went from early day doubter too firm believer that something brilliant would come

we are starting off this week in bulgaria's beautiful capital, sofia. this vibrant european city is the perfect place for a break, laid—back, affordable, and picturesque. with its roman, byzantine, and ottoman sites, it's packed with culture and history. but for much of the 20th century, bulgaria was part of the eastern bloc, and under communist rule. as you walk the streets, you can find reminders of the communist era everywhere. one of the strangest is found at your feet. all across sofia there are shops called kleks sunk beneath pavement level. so these shops might seem really odd now seeing as they are close to the ground, but it is an interesting history. they were basements and bomb shelters. after the fall of communism, people needed to get resourceful. there was not much money going around and people had to use their basements to sell things. i'll grab some mnms! it drops down another 2—3 metres there. he's got another step to step up to see me. blue or... i'll take blue! after the iron curtain fell, kleks were some of the first private busi

and given that. to the bbc newsrooms around the uk. years since the city was european capital of culture.. liverpool was the capital of culture ? liverpool was the capital of culture? 2008 it was. this is going to be a huge event. to be a huge event. them puppets, whatever you do, don't call them puppets. call them puppets. for a final time in october, for anyone who hasn't seen them before. anyone who hasn't seen them before. they are until you see them close up. the liverpool giants are an odd phenomenon. phenomenon. them and they have added millions of pounds to the local economy. pounds to the local economy. hardly notice the cranes holding them up. them up. centenary of the sinking of the titanic. titanic. the girl wasjoined by her grandmother. it was brilliant. wandering the streets until she was reunited with her granddaughter. reunited with her granddaughter. very emotional. impressive puppets! you can't call them puppets! i know, i only said that to wind you up! i only said that to wind you up! do you know which ones are coming? not yet. yet. naughty, he used to clock his leg an