Coastal counties across the south. Tuesday is quieter, the winds easing, more rain heading towards scotland, Northern Ireland, Northern England on wednesday. Hello. This is bbc news. With me, reeta chakrabarti. Lets ta ke with me, reeta chakrabarti. Lets take a look at the headlines. Theresa may announces plans to Freeze University tuition fees in england on the first day of the conservative party conference. French soldiers have shot dead a man who stabbed to death two people outside the main Railway Station in marseille. The man is reported to have shouted Allahu Akhbar before launching his attack. The mayor of barcelona says over 460 people have been injured by riot police sent to catalonia to stop people voting in a disputed independence referendum. The low cost travel company, monarch, has been granted a 24 hour extension to its licence to sell package holidays. Now on bbc news sir viv richards, sir wes hall and david lloyd recall the impact west indian players made on the Lancashire Cricket League over the last 90 years. This is a story about small white towns and the biggest black stars. We are talking about the best players in the world. These guys were clamouring to come and play in Lancashire League cricket. When east meets west. Rainy east lancashire meeting the sunny west indies. What a marvellous stroke. For the biggest name ever to play in the Lancashire League, it was a welcome to match. It was a special time in a home away from home. A story that starts with reticence and racism. He broke the barriers. They had been fed with the idea that black people are not really people, that they are lesser and that they are not very bright. And ends with lifelong friendships linking accrington with antigua, burnley and barbados. Weve remained friends for 50 odd years and every Christmas Morning we speak to each other. Two continents, two cultures. United by one spirit. One sport. I can remember every player i played with 57 years ago. It means that they are in my heart. An unlikely cricketing love affair. But how did it happen and what impact did it have . Hidden beneath brooding pennine hills lies the towns and villages of east lancashire. Until this year, the Lancashire League has been unchanged since 1897. 14 clubs, 20 miles apart. Local rivalry runs high and the chance to see the indian and west indian professionals in action along with the local lads creates tremendous enthusiasm. It is probably the most famous Cricket League in the world. It would be the only thing in summer. It was a social occasion. People came to the games in theirfinery. Top hats, tails, collars, ties, ladies in lovely dresses and hats. Each team was made up of ten local amateurs and one paid professional. Everton weekes, he is the only player ever to have scored five consecutive centuries in test matches. You would see these professionals Walking Around town. They were celebrities. They really were. Oh, look, heres the pro. Heres the pro it was terrific. Pros were the stars. The big draw. Paid to perform in front of thousands. The professional must lead. If you have a professional in the league that does not lead then the team will not do very well. I played with a team, i cannot do it alone. The pro is the centre, he is the team. Until 1928, the pro had meant usually an englishman but occasionally an australian or a south african. That changed when nelson hired the trinidadian, learie nicholas constantine. He was a magical player to watch. An attacking batsman. A demon of a bowler. And more than either of those things, the most wonderful fielder that i think anybody had ever seen. Nelson, heavily in debt, had taken a chance with constantine hoping that as a cricketer and curiosity would draw the crowds. He had taken a leap into the unknown, unsure how he would be received. My parents had a very hard time being accepted in the town. I think they were quite unhappy. People used to pass on the other side of the road when they saw them coming, kind of thing. Many people tried. They ignored them, more or less. How did you and yourfamily find the people of nelson . At first, the strangeness, what we discovered later on to be strangeness, we thought at one time it was prejudice. We took that as true. Schoolchildren were peeping in the window to see him through his living room window. They were lining up to go and see him because they had never seen a black man. Dad always said when he went to nelson, on one or two occasions, he shook hands with people, they used to do this with their hand to see if it rubbed off. Ignored in the street, but on the cricket field, constantine was a huge attraction. When nelson came here, the crowd for the game was 7000. Nothing has been seen like it on this ground before or since. In the 1930s it was packed. It was absolutely packed. My father, my uncles, my neighbours, they all came straight from work to get a seat. They even came from yorkshire to watch him. The stands were packed. But after a year, constantine was ready to pack his bags. It was very difficult to dislike him. Although some people did. He said for two pins he would have gone back to trinidad. It was my mother who decided we are not moving. We are staying here. He would have gone back. He would have gone home after the first year. But she said no and that is when they took me up. Aged two, gloria had moved tojoin her parents in nelson. The family ended up staying for 20 years. We used to call her the only fly in the ointment. She was the only dark student at the secondary school in nelson. What happened was that the people who accepted you, accepted you. Those who didnt, didnt, and they ignored you. People at school ignored me and pretended i was not there. I remember them distinctly. I ignored them. You ignore me, i ignore you. That is all. But her father was far from ignored. Despite the great depression, crowds continued to rise and so did constantines contracts. The cotton industy was on short time and short money. For six pence on a saturday afternoon you could see cricket played as well as anywhere in the world. Constantine was probably the best paid sportsman in the country, including footballers and boxes and jockeys and other cricketers. Constantine led nelson to seven titles in nine seasons. Once taking all ten wickets in an innings for only ten runs. No one in nelson was crossing the road to avoid him any more. My father was a very friendly person. So if you wanted to stop and talk, he would stop and talk. I used to hate going out with him because he was stopped every minute. He was stopped to talk to somebody. But that is how it was. And, also, he grew very fond of the people. Constantine went on to become a barrister, a knight and then britains first black peer. Baron constantine of nelson. He tackled racism whenever he found it. He also paved the way for generations of west indian professionals to play in lancashire. Being the first coloured professional cricketer to come to Lancashire League, i had a job to do to satisfy people that i was as human as they were, so in truth and in fact i carried a burden. He broke the barriers. He had something to do with a lot of the ones who came. Not only the west indians, the indians as well. And here come the west indians. This sightscreen that i am leaning on now, wes hall started his run up here. It was so far and he was so athletic. He was a huge man. Shirt wide open and a big gold crucifix swinging side to side as he ran up. Getting nearer and accelerating until he reached full pelt at the crease. By 1960, the league was full of brilliant batsmen and furious fast bowlers. Wes hall arrived in 1960. He made quite an impression. He came down here. I will never forget. The first night he walked down here he came across this pitch to the net behind my shoulder here. He had a west indian cap on. All his whites on, a long raincoat down to his ankles. He walked across and we were looking and thinking that is wes hall. Accrington was the defining moment in my life. I was away from home, i had to live with strangers, i had to perform and i had to be the type of person that people would love to be around. It was the first time that i had ever lived for six months with people other than west indians. I was like a fly in coconut ice cream. Very, very noticeable. The first time i ever heard and out, i learned the language. Within two or three months i was the greatest fish in lancashire. I was quite grateful, you know . That they were so good to me. There he is in the middle. An absolute colossus. And he was good to them. Especially one talented teenager at the club. Former england player and coach, david lloyd. He would be the guy who got me hooked on the game. And the rest of the juniors here at the time. He gave me my first cricket bat. Everton weekes. Wes wasnt alone. In the late 1950s, 12 of the leagues 14 teams had a west indian pro. So many professionals around. In manchester we would go over where we had ourfriends, we would have a big cook up. Every saturday you had a test game. I was either a great batsmen or a great bowler. Wes hall was one of a battery of quick bowlers dotted around the league. Most potent was Charlie Griffith at burnley. In 1964 he took a League Record 144 wickets in a season, nearly 100 lbw or clean bowled. Yes, he is out many of those amateurs had never come up against fast bowling and before you got there you could see that they were quite nervous. Some batsmen came in and you could see the fear on his face. Obviously they were thinking i hope i get to work on monday morning. If you did not get out of the way then you would get hit and could get hurt. A lot of the senior lads would look at the fixtures and book their holidays when you are up against one of the big quicks. They would have a fortnight off. There was real apprehension. And a bit of fear. Does not matter what sort of wicket you produce when you let go at this pace. There was fear among opponents but in their own dressing rooms there was only friendship. When you are doing well, everybody is upbeat. I think that is what i took to burnley. We had a great time every week. They used to buy me mentos. We had a great time. The people were fantastic. He was the professional, i was the amateur, but weve remained friends now for 50 odd years and every Christmas Morning we speak to each other and he usually tells me that its a lovely morning, going to the beach and then to see his racehorses, while im telling him that its either snowing or pouring with rain. Even now when i go back to burnley i have an enjoyable time. And ive got these friends from all 50 years until now. That speaks a hell of a lot. Whenever i see them they talk about that. They say, you came to burnley and created History History that will never go away. Thats wes. Right. Thats me. You are the handsome man at the end, are you . Yeah. Jim eland used to open the bowling with wes hall. He has alzheimers, but his memories of his west indian colleague remains strong. Some days he might not remember how to switch the television on with remote, but the minute a cricketers name is mentioned it all comes flooding back. Will always have a special place in their hearts for wes hall. He was a giant in the game and will be forever remembered at thorneyholme road. True. He will. Its nice thatjim has the photographs and items in books, where theyre both mentioned in the publications and thats a wonderful prompt for him and makes him happy, yes. Jim came to barbados about ten years ago. I was so pleased, you know, to reciprocate all the good thing they had done for me. We took him to kensington oval. I said, jim, you go down to that end, because this end is mine. You know . And, oh, i was so happy to have him there. There on my heart, you know . I pray for them, you know, i talk about them all the time. I often remind people of brotherly love and peace and things like that and thats what accrington brought to me. Commentator were really seeing something here, i can tell you. Thats the shot hes waiting for. The most fearsome batsman of his era, the most famous cricketer in the world. In the mid 80s, no one in the game was bigger than viv richards. Great shot again. Absolutely magnificent. Yet in 1987, he signed up for a season in the small village near blackburn. Coming from a very small island, rishton was the ideal sort of environment for me. It wasnt as sunny as where i grew up. When i first went, it was so gloomy, i couldnt understand how could cricket be played in this part of the world, but anything goes in that part of the world when it comes to cricket here. And that went for vivs arrival into the Lancashire League. They said, why not a chopper . It was quite a spectacular landing. I remember still at this particular spot, looking in the distance and seeing this little lot get bigger and bigger, until eventually this massive helicopter landed on the field there and the place erupted. A helicopter dropping him off right by the wicket after an overnight flight from the west indies. And, for the biggest name to ever play in the Lancashire League, there was a welcome to match. What do you think you can do for the club . Well, im just trying to do what ive done for teams like somerset. Add a bit of spice, i hope. One of the things that i remember more than anything else, the hailstones. Im saying, is there going to be a cricket match here today . There was, and viv warmed up the crowd with 87 runs. Richards was finding the middle of the bat. The bat, and the ball, were disappearing from the ground. His teammates were suddenly sharing a dressing room with the captain of the all conquering west indies. They still cant quite believe it. This is the exact spot we sat in after the game, vivs first game, except the worlds best players sitting there and im 30 years old or something. When i went into the dressing room, it was like i would have known these guys for a number of years. Everything clicked and i guess its because of the people, the personalities. Richards reignited the heyday of the league, as crowds flocked to see him. We were so lucky. To hit rishton twice at home, with great weather, and get a couple of thousand people on, that must have set us up for two years. And the big debate from the committee down here was how many pies do we need . Weve got to get plenty of pies in. David lloyd was then in his 40s, but still bowling. Viv was a daunting process. He was in his pomp he was as good as it gets i looked at this ground and the end i was bowling from, i thought, this is not big enough for us two ijust kept bowling up and, bang, theres another ive gone out of the ground again. Away from the pitch, viv threw himself into lancashire life. I found out about another cuisine that you have in that part of the world. Mushy peas and pie it looked a little foul at the time, but, at the end of the day, i am a temp, an honorary lancaster at that particular time, so im going to let it work. If viv was introduced to mushy peas, the ca ptains family learnt about caribbean cuisine. Ijust thought, oh, heck, viv richards is coming in my house yeah, it was a great, great summer. His wife used to come with food and his favourite was monkfish and she used to cook it on this hob here. It was magnificent. I was playing with viv richards for five months of the year. Absolutely unbelievable. Everybodys supposed to get their day in the sun and mine was saying that i captained viv richards they played a huge part. From the first night that i went to david and his wifes house, it wasnt all about the mushy peas and pie, but humour. They were very, very, very good people. Theres some change for my ticket. The Lancashire Leagues best days are behind it. Crowds a fraction of the full houses which once packed places like nelson. Constantine had thousands clamouring to see him here. Today, at times, it can bejust a few men and a dog. I dont think anybody would pretend that its the same as it was. You get a handful of people who are watching the games and the golden era of the great professional is gone. West indian pros are a rarity these days. The depth of talent in caribbean cricket has declined. South africans are now a more popular choice among league clubs. 12 months a year cricket, the indian ipl, there are so many other demands on the top players. Its hard to get them when theyre at their peak now. Yet one thing hasnt changed. These cricket clubs remain crucial parts of the community. The league is 125 years old, so that history is always there, whichever club you go to. Its great. You learn a lot from other peoples coaches, obviously, while youre out there and playing with each other week in, week out. Its a good experience. Nelson is often portrayed as a divided town. A place where whites and asians live separate lives. The last British National Party Councillor in the country represents part of this town. But theres no divide at its cricket club. We have had problems within the town, of segregation and communities not mixing, but the club itself has really helped with that and i am sure we can use it as an example for other organisations in the area, to show how weve helped integrate our society and our communities to come together just through one sport. Nearly 90 years after constantine came to nelson, the memories remain. Notjust on the walls of the clubhouse, but in the values of its members. Were very proud of constantine and what he did and what he stood for and people here have the same kind of attitude as what he had. 4,000 miles away in the hills above trinidads capital, port of spain, consta ntines great grandchildren are learning about his impact. Heres your great granddad. Thats my dad. Yeah, thats our house. What number was that . Three. Its a nice house. It was a small house. I did not realise until much later what a contribution the family had made. And the links between east lancashire and the west indies live on. Ill always be grateful to nelson and in many ways nelson will always be home. You know, i am only 80, so if theres one thing im going to do is to return to accrington some time. Rishton just sort of opened their arms and its notjust the memories of what you accomplish in county cricket, test match cricket, all this sort of stuff, but that was something very special. Fairly dreary sunday. A good deal of cloud. Fairly muddy. Its getting india as we go through the night and into tomorrow because of this area of low pressure. Batting to the north of scotland, trading weather fronts have given us the rain. Behind those, wind picking up. The last of the rain will clear east as we go into the night, though, fairly heavy showers following. Some developing into parts of Northern Ireland and Northern England through the night. South of that, there will be clear whether around but because of the strengthening wind, the temperature is not going down too far. Itll be a blustery monday wherever you are. The strongest winds in scotland, Northern Ireland and Northern England. Well see gales, perhaps severe in exposure. To the rush hour costs of around 5060 to the rush hour costs of around 50 60 miles per hour. There could be travel disruption. Bridge closures, that sort of thing. Worth checking the situation before you head out. Along with those wins, further showers in scotland, frequent in the west, heavy ones. A few for Northern Ireland and Northern England, maybe later in the afternoon, spreading to wales and the midlands. South of that, dry until outbreaks of rain heading towards South West England as the afternoon goes. Most of us falling short of these temperatures. Itll feel fresher tomorrow. And colder. Southwest wind. A north westerly tomorrow from a colder direction. There will be a chill, especially in that wind. Outbreaks of rain and monday, going through monday night across southern counties of england from this weather system giving us a glancing blow. As the pressure moves to scandinavia way from scotland, still strong wind initially on tuesday, thats with gales or severe gales. For most of us, as High Pressure builds on tuesday, the wind slowly eases and most of us will be fine with sunny spells. Enough wind to make it feel chilly. I pressure getting squeezed away south as we go into wednesday, bringing more rain bearing weather fronts into scotland, Northern Ireland, eventually Northern England with strengthening wind. Once again, pretty wet across western scotland and into cumbria for a time on wednesday. South of that, itll stay in the dry, but even here the winds will be picking up again, too. This is bbc news. The headlines at five. On the first day of the conservative party conference, the Prime Minister promises to review the whole system of University Funding in england. People are worried about the level of debts that the students build up so we will look at it again. French soldiers have shot dead a man who stabbed to death two people outside the main Railway Station in marseille. The mayor of barcelona says over 460 people have been injured by riot police sent to catalonia to stop people voting in a disputed independence referendum. Also in the next hour Monarch Airlines has been granted a 24 hour extension on its licence to sell package holidays. That means the government will refund customers and ensure theyre not stranded if the low cost travel firm collapses