Archives for November 2007
Is your bread too big?
Baroness Gardner of Parkes thinks so. She's told the House of Lords that the width of a standard slice is getting thicker, and it's contributing to our expanding waistlines: "In central London you can hardly buy a thin or medium-sliced loaf of bread and any sandwich that you buy in any supermarket is now made with thick bread," she says. "There should be more pressure from the Food Standards Authority to reduce us back to normal-size bread again instead of these super-sandwiches."
Nicky spoke to Baroness Gardner about what's wrong with a nice thick slice of toast - listen back to the interview here.
More on bread http://www.sourdoughhome.com/breadblog.html
Morrissey hits out
Morrissey has been talking about life in Britain - in an interview with the NME but the interview is causing a lot of controversy - read more here.
His manager isn't happy at the way his interview is portrayed in the magazine. Read more here and here.
A New Union Jack?
Could this be the new look of the Union Jack?
Listener Wally Greeninker has sent in two of his ideas to the programme, on the back of proposals to change the famous British flag to included a representation of Wales in the design.
Labours Wrexham MP said that the red dragon of Wales should be added to the flag in a Commons debate.
At the moment all the home nations are represented on the flag, except Wales. Now, Culture Minister Margaret Hodge has said she'll look at the proposal.
She said the government is "keen" to make the Union Jack "a positive symbol of Britishness reflecting the diversity of our country today and encouraging people to take pride in our flag".
Dudley's mines
5 live's Phil Mackie has been given access to a hidden system of caves and canals under the town of Dudley.
80 years ago the area was mined for limestone.
Now there are plans to open the caves and tunnels to the public as the centrepiece of a regeneration project, if a bid for £50m of lottery cash is successful.
Middle East peace talks
The first big peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians for seven years get underway today.
President Bush wants a peace deal agreed before he leaves office in 2009.
Representatives from 40 countries are meeting in a Naval Academy in Maryland, but Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, won't be attending.
So how likely is it there'll be a breakthrough?
More from HMS Ark Royal
It's rare to spend a morning on somewhere like HMS Ark Royal, which is why we decided to arm the production team with a camera and cameraphone so they could send back pictures. You can see some of them on Ellie's post about Friday morning about being On board HMS Ark Royal and some of the pictures of Breakfast onboard HMS Ark Royal on Flickr.
We'll be adding a few more today, now that the camera has returned to the office so that we can sort through them and pick some of the best ones.
We also decided that we would try something new, in this case audio slideshows. We've picked two bits from the programme where we felt that we had some pictures that really help tell the story in a way that we can't do with just the words.
So we've put together one for Stephen Chittenden's description of helicopters taking off from the deck and one of Nicky wearing himself out by joining in with the PT exercises. You can view them below by clicking the start arrow on the one you want to watch and listen to.
In your parallel world...
In my p u, they have found a cure for alzheimer's and my mum would know who i am. Jay
In my universe my partner christine who passed away five weeks ago would still be alive. David
I would have found somene to love. Single 51
In my universe i am going to the fire station on jan 10th 1995 and during the exercise at the has tower i went back to the station had some good shouts them went home have my lovely wife a kiss and spent the evening playing with my 2 very young children and we lived an excellent life super birthdays hav ing holidays and day trips BUT instead i went to the fire station and the exercise, broke my spine have not been ably to lift my daughters since i miss ed their first days at school and we have not had a family holiday or day trips i am incontinent in a wheelchair and will miss my daughters 18th birthda y as i will be having my 16th operation if only nicky if only tim ruislip
Are ambulances too dirty?
We've been hearing from ambulance crews that the vehicles could be spreading dangerous infections. One paramedic from the North West of England, who does not want to be named, explained how time pressures make it hard for him to do his job.
“We’re doing a basic wipe over of the ambulance; we’re just wiping the sides, wiping the stretcher, and just doing our best with what we’ve got,” he said.
“We could start the cleaning and we start taking stuff off and we get a call and we’ve got to put it all back again and off we go.”
On board HMS Ark Royal
It was all hands on deck on Friday morning as Nicky took Breakfast to HMS Ark Royal, the flagship of the Royal Navy. Here's a picture of Nicky en route.
We have lots of other pictures of Nicky, the crew and the ship. Check out our photos.
We heard from the captain, crew and the man in charge of the whole fleet, the First Sea Lord.
Listen again to the programme (available for seven days after broadcast)
We'd like to hear what you thought of the programme so please post a comment below.
Nicky heads to the Ark Royal
Nicky's not here this morning (Thurs). It's not because he's still reeling from England's defeat to Croatia - it's because he's en route to HMS Ark Royal.
He's presenting the programme from there tomorrow. If you have any thoughts on the state of the Royal Navy - or about the Ark Royal - post them here. And keep coming back to the blog for pictures of Nicky on board.
Celtic and the IRA - controversy
At 08:15 on Tuesday Nicky spoke to Jeanette Findlay the secretary of the Celtic Trust. The former Home Secretary Dr Reid was branded a "war criminal" by one fan at at the club's annual general meeting on Monday night. He supported the invasion of Iraq. Read more on this Celtic blog
The conversation also embraced some of the songs sung by some Celtic fans.
Jeanette described the chants as "songs from a war of independence going back over a hundred years". Celtic have distanced themselves from her comments saying they're "totally unrepresentative of the Celtic support."
The Giant Sea Scorpion
On Wednesday's programme we will be featuring the discovery that has turned science fiction into science fact.
Listen to our interview with Dr Simon Braddy from Bristol University
The prospect of an 8 foot-long scorpion dwelling in the deep seas of Europe may be something that previously could only have featured in a horror movie, but in unearthing a 9 inch-long fossilised claw in a Quarry near Prum in Germany, scientists believe it was a reality.
Researchers believe the claw belonged to the Giant Sea Scorpion, or Eurypterid, which lived in the sea 400 million years ago and is possibly a distant relative of spiders.
It's believed that during this time Anthropods - the group of joint-legged animals such as insects, spiders and crabs- were much bigger than they are today, but the reason why is still a mystery.
The discovery of the Giant Sea Scorpion however, with its strongly armoured body, eight walking legs, a pair of large "paddles" and dwarfing the average human, goes someway to demonstrate just how big they were.
Wild circus animals - it's no laughing matter
On the programme this morning we're asking if you can remember seeing wild animals in circuses.
Green MSP Mark Ruskell believes that the tradition of creatures such as lions and elephants being used in travelling circuses is "medieval practice".
He has proposed an amendment to the Animal Health and Welfare Bill which is going through the Scottish Parliament
and is hopeful that MSPs will back it.
We had the owner of Zippos Circus Martin Burton on Breakfast this morning and he told us that there's 'overwhelming scientific evidence' that circuses are an excellent place for captive animals.
Mr Burton has given his views to the government's Circus Working Group and later today they're going to report back on the welfare of performing animals. He also believes that animals like having the opportunity to "show off" in their performances and life in the circus offers them companionship and mental stimulation.
Listen back to our interview with him and Jan Creame, the Chief Executive of Animal Defenders International
Tell us if you would support the re-introduction of animals in circuses.
A Diamond Couple...
This morning on the programme we're talking to Anne and Alan Kenyon. They got married on the same day as the Queen and Prince Phillip in 1947 and they'll be at today's service at Westminster Abbey.
Alan and Anne were 25 and 21 and got married at St. Paul's Church, Scotforth, Lancaster. They'd met in 1944 at a dance at the Royal Infirmary in Blackburn.
They left the church on Alan's motor bike and sidecar for a night at a local hotel, then went to a hotel near Penrith for the honeymoon.
This is a picture from the big day (If you're wondering, Anne was wearing blue)
And here is a picture of the couple today
Birrrrrr-mingham
It's been snowing overnight in Birmingham. Megan sent us this pic
You can send us your weather pics - by texting them to 85058. You can see some others here
On board HMS Ark Royal
Next Friday Nicky Campbell will be on board HMS Ark Royal.
Are you in the Navy? Were you? Have you ever served on board the flagship of the Royal Navy?
Read about the Ark Royal's visit to Greenwich (and look at the 360-degree panoramic view) by clicking here or here
Read other military blogs here
Read the blog of the Commanding Officer of HMS Somerset here
See Ark Royal on Youtube
Talking Jargon
A survey says there's too much jargon in the workplace.
Here's who Britain's bosses rated as the country's worst jargon-using offenders.
IT professionals - 66%
Finance experts - 37%
Lawyers - 31%
Sales people - 30%
Accountants - 28%
Business advisors - 25%
So it's people from IT who are reckoned to be worst - but we've been hearing plenty of examples.
A crisis in women's fitness?
Kelly Holmes may have won two golds at the Athens Olympics - but there are concerns not enough girls and women are doing enough sport.
Lots of people contacted us to say we weren't hearing enough about successful women in sport - like the English netball team who are into the quarter finals of the world championships.
Can slavery be blamed for educational failure?
The American civil rights activist Reverend Jesse Jackson said the legacy from slavery is still being felt by young black people - too few of whom are going to university.
Listen to his interview with Nicky Campbell here
A listener, Roger's already been in touch with the programme:
"Rev Jackson is wrong to cite slavery. Todays reasons are poverty, prejudice, lack of aspiration, appropriate role models. This applies to black and white working class people."
Do you agree?
Radio pictures
Radio used to be just about the sound coming out of the speakers. Not any more.
Breakfast's photo archive is getting extensive -
to see Nicky at St Pancras click here
To see Tori Lacey at the weather desk click here
To re-live Shelagh at the World Scout Jamboree click here
You can check-out Nicky's golf swing here
And see pictures from a variety of OB's including the police training college. Wembley Stadium, Eton College and a Scottish sweet factory, click here
There are loads of other 5live pictures too.
Breakfast beauty
Being a tall, leggy, beautiful brunette, it was with some trepidation that I prepared to talk to the tall, leggy, beautiful blonde Penny Lancaster. The lingerie model and I have a lot in commmon. We both wear underwear and spend most days in the company of a Scotsman who can hold a tune. Penny and her erstwhile dance partner, Ian Waite, came to talk to us about their shock exit from Strictly Come Dancing.
Everyone knows Penny is tall and doesn't shy away from a heel. What you can't appreciate until she is in the room is just how traffic stoppingly beautiful she is. (Suddenly my low key approach to grooming at 4am struck me as a mistake!). She was fun, too - happy to make fun of her nerves and tears on the dancefloor and happy to Salsa out of the studio just because we asked her to. We all liked Penny, one way or another. In the meeting after the programme, Nicky, gallant as ever, reassured me I was much more attractive than she was. Oh how we laughed!!!
Have you been a victim of youth crime ?
When a ten year old girl started shouting at an old lady on my bus yesterday, I decided to step in. The woman - easily in her seventies - had complained about loud music coming from the girl's phone. "I'm not annoying anyone else am I?" yelled the child. Well yes actually, I thought, you're annoying me - and I said so. Then, while fellow adults on the bus sat in silence, five or six other children travelling with her turned on me. I was told by one boy that if I didn't shut up I'd get badly hurt. He can only have been eleven, but even so I felt quite scared.
Children shouldn't be frightening. But when you're heavily outnumbered or they live in your street, they can be. Today we want your experiences of young people and crime.
Have you been confronted by a gang? Was it just abuse, or something worse? Are there times when you've got involved - as I did - then wondered if you should have kept out of it. We also want to hear from young people who've been victims of crime.
We heard from this listener - who left us a voicemail outlining an attack by young people. Listen to it here.
FIVE WORDS FOR BRITAIN
Should Britain have a national motto?
The suggestion is being discussed in Whitehall. But many of the suggestions have been either negative or rude or just not very uplifting.
So this morning on Breakfast we asked for a positive five-word motto. Some of the texted ideas are here
Practically perfect in every way - john from brentwood
Would you live anywhere else? David lincs
Strength and progress through diversity Mike from st mary hoo
Hoodies or goodies?
Hoodies or goodies? Criminals, victims or both? What's your experience of young people and crime? It's a complex subject and one that's challenged all governments. Click here for more information.
On Tuesday, 5live Breakfast will be trying to paint a picture of the problems, causes and possible solutions. We want to hear your experiences.
Sat Nav - going the wrong way?
Is sat nav sending you the wrong way - and driving you mad?
Plenty of people told us it was. Councils are apparently getting cross at the number of people being sent the wrong way.
Earlier this morning we spoke to Scott Sinclair from the Ordnance Survey. You can listen again to the interview here
(You'll need realplayer)
Sat Nav I use two different Sat Navs - the arguments make the journey go quickly - trouble is neither are right all the time. Edzell of Bristol
Where has all the common sense disappeared to ? You dont need a Sat Nav to find most destinations, just a good map (And map reader!) Perhaps they should be renamed Pratt Navs, as most people who use them are! Rob Chatham
The sat nav fitted in my Japanese car shows under 'points of interest' for Stratford upon Avon 'William Shatner's house'. AlanSAT NAV nightmare.
We were stuck in traffic heading for Stansted airport and decide to opt for the 'shortest' route. We couldn' believe our luck as we drove 3 miles down a grassy single track lane... Problem was there was a locked gate at the end so we had to turn back! Somehow we made the flight - very stressed out! David from Tring
Big day for the weather
Tori Lacey will be bringing us all the news of a big weather morning.
We're keeping tabs on a storm surge heading down the North Sea coast. Tell us what it's like where you are. There are pics of what's happening in Suffolk here and here and click here for webcams from Norfolk
What's Manchester like....
...tell us
Former Tory leader Iain Duncan-Smith says it's a divided city with serious social problems - despite parts of the city booming and massive refurbishment.
Earlier this morning we spoke to 3 generations of the same family in the North Gorton area of Manchester. You can hear the inteview here
(This requires realplayer)
Tribute to firefighters
The bodies of three missing fire fighters were recovered last night from a burnt-out warehouse in Atherstone in Warwickshire.
The fire started on last Friday and up to 100 fire fighters tackled the flames, which burnt into Saturday morning.
One Stratford-upon-Avon firefighter Ian Reid died at the scene and his body was recovered on Friday.
The other three have been named as Darren Yates-Badley, Ashley Stephens and John Averis - they all lived in the Stratford-upon-Avon area
The deaths of these four men counts as the worst loss of life for the fire service in 35 years.
Earlier we spoke to Tony Nutting, Regional secretary of the Fire Brigades Union and David Hancox, the mayor of Alcester.
You can listen again to the interview here (this requires realplayer)
Later this week, there is a special programme on 5live and Newsnight this week about immigration.
Plenty of people are already talking about it - join the debate here
Find out more about Richard Bacon's programme here .
Railway Cathedral
Nicky's at St Pancras Station this morning. It's reopening after having £800m spent on it. For more pix click here
It's been described at a cathedral of the railways - and will be the home of Eurostar services. We got lots of reaction from people - some sceptics but others rail enthusiasts
Earlier this morning we spoke to Oliver Ueck, the UK representative for Deutsche Bahn, the German rail service, and rail expert Christian Wolmar.
Listen to our report on the relative journey times to Paris from around Britain by train or air (this requires realplayer)
Joan wrote excitedly to tell us how much she is looking forward to usign the new service:
"Every year for at least the last 10 years (since SNCF opened Lille Europe) we have travelled to France on our holiday via the train - GNER, Eurostar and TGV. So much less hassle. We live in the North Pennines in Co. Durham and are a least 1 hour's journey from any major form of long distance transport. We leave our car at either Durham or Darlington, take the train to King's Cross and then - what used to be - either taxi or underground to Waterloo."
"Can't wait to 'Take the Train' next year when we will be able to WALK from our train at Kings Cross to Eurostar. It can only improve what has always been a fantastic experience. Great stuff is what I say!!!"
Are you a winner?
Paula Radcliffe, Joe Calzaghe and Justin Rose - all big winners this weekend.
We spoke to Justin Rose who claimed the European Order of Merit title. You can listen again to the interview here
We also spoke to another winner, his 44th win in a row..... Joe Calzaghe - hear his interview again here (you'll need realplayer to listen to both of these interviews)
A weekend for winners...... we asked who else has had a winning weekend?
My weekend triumph is i got tickets for the sex pistols final tour at manchester M.E.N arena in november, and my wife paid. RESULT.gary the trucker
East kilbride mini rugby primary 4 5 and 6 teams all won yesterday. Robert
Wot a result - I baked my first chocolate beetroot cake. It certainly hit the spot. Decidedly unsporty Paul, NewCross
Weekend triumph? Being part of a Norwich crowd that gave the team standing ovation when we were 2 nil down to Ipswich at half time and seeing our boys draw Soj
Add your winning story here...
Super mouse
Want to run faster? Live longer? And maybe have more sex?
We've been hearing about a genetically modified mouse and considering how such science could impact on us.
Listen to the interview here (requires RealPlayer)
On the programme we also got to talking about clever animals, after the death of a chimpanzee which could communicate 250 words in sign language.
We had this email from Lucas Gardiner M.Sc. Adv Dip. Ed. Member Society of Expert Witnesses. F. Coll. T. about the question: Scientific Study - Do domestic animals differ in relative intelligence?
The responses varied from 88% in animal sciences to 100%. Surprisingly,when asked to rank different animal species byintelligence, there was a remarkable degree of similarity across all groups regardless of background; the overall ranking from highest intelligence to lowest was dog, cat, pig, horse, cow, sheep, chicken, and turkey.
Most of the respondents believed that the possession of minds, thought, and intelligence were relevant factors in how animals should be treated and the prevalent concept was that we should not be cruel to animals, but should treat them humanely.
What do you think. Have your say below...
Egrets, we've got a few
1st November sees the start of the biggest ever bird survey to hit the UK. The British Trust for Ornithology is mobilising an army of 50,000 birdwatchers to undertake a stock-take of the UK's birds, the first such operation for nearly twenty years.
We already know that we're two hen harriers down since the weekend with that incident on the Queen's Sandringham Estate.
We spoke to Dawn Balmer, the co-ordinator of Bird Atlas 2007-11about what they will be looking for.
Listen back to the interview here.
You sent us in your pictures of Egrets that you've seen this year.
Paul saw this Egret in Christchurch Harbour
Norman's wife spotted this in South Devon a week ago
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