You know, thankfully, enormously successful. And not a day goes by when i dont go somewhere and someone will come up and and theyll say, excuse me. And i think, oh, theyre going to say how much they like springwatch. And they say that programme you made, inside autistic minds, has touched our lives. And quite clearly it has been bigging me or us up here but its played quite a constructive role in in generating that wider understanding that we wanted. Obviously, the best thing is when you meet other neurodiverse people and they tell you directly that its helped them because, you know, it articulated things which they were unable to do themselves and theyve noticed a very positive outcome because of the way that people that they know or live with or work with have basically changed their behaviour. You know, at the outset i said. And the teams mission was to, you know, transform peoples lives for the better. And for me it was just one target. Ijust wanted one teenage person who was in a very dark place to recognise that there was a brighter future. And on a couple of occasions, young people have said, we thank you for making that programme. And that, for my perspective, isjob. Job done. Yeah, i had a message from someone who said that theyve been speaking to their neighbour about it a bit more and that the programme had saved their life. I mean its quite, quite difficult to know how to comprehend that. For most of my teenage and 20s i thought that i was broken. Im not a great fan of chris packham. Thats a legacy of loathing myself because i was different. There seemed to be more people who were different than me and i didnt know anyone who was like me, so it was clearly me that was wrong. And somewhere upstairs amongst my, you know, sort of library of, and catalogue of my life, there was a piece of a4 paper that says repeatedly as if i was given lines at school, everything i am is wrong. And i wrote that out. You know, i was obviously in a very dark place. I had Mental Health issues at that point, but thats where i was at. I thought that i was broken. And yet even at that time, you know, i have good sensory capabilities visually, i have a really good memory, im good at putting things into patterns, but i couldnt identify that i had attributes. All i could see were my deficiencies and, you know, and there was no one there at that point to say, listen, chris, actually, you are quite good at this because youre very, very focused, youre obsessionaly interested in things, you remember everything, and then you put all of that into somewhere where you can actually communicate it. That would have helped. So i think its incredibly important that we focus on the abling aspects of that because and again, you know, im not one for advice. Im not a health care professional, but people do ask me for my advice. And if its parents with autistic youngsters or children, i do Say Something which my strikes is a little odd. May strike you as a little odd. I say, look, frankly, just put them under a microscope, watch them with all the detail that you possibly can, and try and develop an understanding of the triggers that makes thing that make things go wrong. But equally, the triggers that make things go right. Because once youve identified those, then you can transform their environment to a place where theyre less anxious, more capable, more able to explore the things that they are good at. And if theyre adults or young adults, you could actuallyjust ask them and they may be able to tell you the answer to that. I can certainly tell you the answer now, but im a mature adult. I couldnt have done that when i was a child. One in five people are neurodivergent. Give me a sense of how much of the population that is and how much of a priority its currently being made in society . Well, not enough, because if one in five are neurodivergent and were not enabling them to maximize their capacity to be happy, fulfilled, employed, educated, socially stable, so on and so forth, then were failing one in five people in society. Thats not tolerable. Why should they have less opportunity than anyone else, particularly at this point when science and experience is allowing us to learn a lot more, a lot more quickly about these conditions and how they impact peoples lives. And what weve also got to think is that that neurodiversity is there for a reason. Its not an artifact. Now, you and i have got different colour hair. Vaguely. Weve got the same colour eyes. We, you know, were all manifestly physically different than one another. And that physical difference is there as a back up, we need variation in any species because if resources change and conditions change, certain members of that species will prosper above others, its a survival mechanism. Why on earth would we think that the way that our minds work would not be part of that as a biological Security Mechanism . So neurodiversity is an inbuilt important part of our species, probably other species too, but certainly our species. And there will be people at certain times whose attributes and abilities could be essential to our species. And its tempting, of course, to look back through history and retrospectively diagnose people as perhaps autistic, but thats a very dangerous thing to do. We dont really have the the data or capacity to do that. But what we see is that some of those people whove made Quantum Leaps in ourthinking, our technology, engineering, art, whatever it happens to be music, have certainly had traits which we could equate to being autistic. Chris packham was speaking to the bbc as part of 5 live� s neurodiversity celebration week 202a. You can catch that interview and more on bbc sounds. The cabinet secretary simon case will give evidence to the uk Covid Inquiry on the 23rd of may. His planned testimony had to be cancelled last year because of ill health. That news came in just one hour that news came injust one hour ago. Mr case is expected to face questioning about whatsapp messages he sent during the covid pandemic which were critical of the governments response. A study into suicide by Armed Forces Veterans the first of its kind in the uk is calling for an urgent review of the Mental Health services which are meant to support them. Our reporter, alison freeman, met the parents of veteran ben riches, who died in 2019. Some viewers may find her report upsetting. He always wanted to be a soldier. His bedroom was just covered in posters of military. At only 16, he went to the Army Foundation college. He was the life and soul of the party. I think that was. Reflected at his funeral when the Funeral Director estimated about 500 people most of them his former comrades from the army turned up for his funeral. Ben was 30 when he took his own life. It followed a number of failed suicide attempts, and numerous conversations with Mental Health professionals. It was on his return from a tour of iraq that his family noticed serious signs of trauma. There was an occasion carolyn was woke up in the middle of the night. Ben was in the Toilet Washing his hands, and he was asleep. And he was saying, ive got to wash the blood off my hands, ive got to wash the blood off my hands. He was burning his hands under the tap. Thats when we suspected there might be problems. As he got worse, his family tried to get help from Senior Officers at Catterick Garrison for suspected ptsd. And i was told theres nothing they can do unless he goes and asks for help himself. Well, back in those days, thats the last thing a soldier would do, because of the stigma of Mental Health within the armed forces. Ben was discharged from the army, and struggled to engage with a variety of Mental Health services. He died in 2019. Bens mum and dad are now among more than 20 families whove told their stories to researchers at Northumbria University for the one is too many study into veteran suicide. The study which is the first of its kind found disjointed, overstretched and inconsistent Mental Health services, as well as a lack of understanding of military personnel. Ben could be. He would come across as being aggressive, but he wasnt being aggressive. He was trying to mask his vulnerability. And our care givers dont recognise that, because theyre not trained or educated in dealing with the veterans. The reports authors spoke to hundreds of Mental Health staff and bereaved relatives, and found similar stories of missed opportunities over more than a decade. The crux of it is, if we want to save lives, then families need to be involved. The biggest message that the families have kind of articulated to was, there were times when there could have been an intervention, or they could theyve spotted something, but no one would listen. To keep reading that over and over again is for us as a research team, its a significant finding. We often talk about people slipping through the net. What can be changed to stop that from happening . We need to remove the net, because people fall through the holes in the net and we need to move to a safety blanket. The study makes a number of recommendations to help Mental Health organisations improve, and prevent unnecessary deaths like making sure families are included in care plans. If people had have listened to us when we was saying that we have these problems with ben we know ben, hes our son. You know, if they had listened to us, then maybe. Maybe he might still be here. Alison freeman, bbc news. The National Grid has unveiled a £58 billion plan to connect britains offshore wind capacity to the grid over the next decade. The Utility Company says the investment is needed to hit Government Targets to decarbonise Power Generation by 2035 but there are concerns about the number of new pylons included in the proposal. Our business editor, simonjack, has more. Green, cheap, home grown Offshore Wind Power has been a massive british success story, and there are plans for more huge wind farms like this one. But you need to get the electricity from where its produced out at sea to the homes and businesses where its used. And that will mean more of these. Todays grid upgrade involves a thousand miles of new onshore power lines mostly overhead pylons 4,000 miles of undersea cables at a cost of £58 billion which means an extra £20 to £30 on annual bills for the next decade. The system planners insist theyve kept as many cables out at sea as possible, but new pylons through scotland, west wales, the north west, east anglia and essex are inevitable. Weve tried to balance cost, environmental impacts, impacts on communities, and the security of the electricity system. What thats meant is that weve got in the plan four times as much Offshore Infrastructure new Offshore Infrastructure as onshore. But inevitably that does mean, in balancing those four factors, that there is still going to be some infrastructure onshore. So that inevitably means more pylons. Yes, it does for some communities. No 0pponents say theyre not anti wind power, but more of the network should be at sea, and power lines can and should be buried underground. You cannot keep offering each wind farm a connection one by one onshore and then have it trenching across miles of countryside to get to a substation thatsjust plain bonkers, and its really expensive. So the problem weve got in this country is when everyone thinks great, grid upgrade, they think pylons and the whole rhetoric is around pylons and no one thinks about these other better ways of doing things. So. So thats what upsets people who are told theyre going to have a pylon outside their garden. But burying cables underground can be up to four times more expensive, according to National Grid. The government said these were preliminary plans that would have to go through a robust planning process a stage at which many Infrastructure Plans have failed. But without a grid upgrade, the uks wind power risks going to waste. Simon jack, bbc news. The availability of childcare is falling as costs go up, according to a survey of councils in england, scotland and wales. Fewer than a third say theres enough childcare for under twos in all areas. 0ur Education reporter Vanessa Clarke explains. See you later come on, guys, lets go. Its drop off time at Granby Nursery on the border of nottinghamshire, and the children here are ready to start the day. But the cost of a Nursery Space like this is rising fast. An increase in the minimum wage and other costs mean nurseries are finding it hard to balance the books. We do want to pay the staff more because they are very valuable to us, but were simply unable to do that because of the amount of money that were getting in, in order to provide the care for the child, just simply doesnt meet the costs that were facing. So does that mean that unfortunately, you have to put costs up for parents . Yes, and this year is a primary example where weve had to put the costs up by a significant margin just to remain sustainable. Todays report highlights notjust the rising cost of childcare, but how tricky it can be to find a place. This nursery is full with a waiting list and there are many other areas where there just arent enough nursery and childminder spaces to meet demand. In england, wales and scotland, fewer than a third of councils say there are enough Childcare Spaces for children under two, down from 42 last year. Forfamilies living in rural areas, only i6 of councils say there are enough spaces. And for children with special Educational Needs and disabilities, the number drops to just 8 . Parents are facing a double whammy of above Inflation Price Rises and dramatic drops in availability of childcare places. We are a short way away from a really big expansion of childcare and obviously its really concerning that we might not have enough places for every parent who needs them and every child who needs to take one up. How about this bit . Has that got Dinosaur Spike on it . Yeah the expansion of government funded hours orfree hours in england, which is due to begin injust two weeks, was welcome news for therese, who works full time in northamptonshire. Her two year old daughter quinns nursery bill is more than her mortgage, £13,000 a year. Quinn is eligible for 15 hours from april, but it wont be coming her way. So our nursery has had to take the really tough decision to opt out of the funding hours because they are currently running at a massive deficit. Theres so little help available. The fact that we cant actually access the little help that there is is. Its really frustrating when you do work, when you do work full time, you do work hard. Would you consider moving quinn to another nursery . Weve had four, i think between four and five nurseries close in the local area and even. There is another nursery in the village but even theyre having to look at the same thing, whether they can actually afford to run with the scheme thats currently in place. The english, scottish and welsh governments all say theyre investing more money in early years education and councils in england say despite concerted effort, historic underfunding and wider pressures have left them less prepared to support nurseries and childminders with the expansion of funded hours. With demand expected to increase, these sought after nursery places would become even harder to find. Vanessa clarke, bbc news. It was the interview which caused Prince Andrew to withdraw from all public duties. Now his 2019 newsnight head to head with Emily Maitlis has been turned into a film. Scoop tells the behind the scenes story, with billie piper as the producer sam mcalister, who landed the interview, and Gillian Anderson playing Emily Maitlis. Theyve both been speaking to our entertainment correspondent colin paterson. Tomorrow night, in an unprecedented interview, we will hear from the duke himself. Its newsnight, the movie, or rather, a netflix dramatisation of how producer sam mcalister, played by billie piper, secured Emily Maitliss 2019 interview with Prince Andrew. The allegations surrounding Jeffrey Epstein include his friend Prince Andrew. With Gillian Anderson as Emily Maitlis. Like a walk in the park. Why do you need to make a dramatic version of it when the original is still there for everyone to see . Well, because this, as much as anything, is about the story behind the acquisition of the interview. Why not dramatise up until one of the most important and dramatic interviews in history, really . I think it is, in history, yeah. Myjob is booking the people we cantjust call up. Hello, everyone. Billie, its important to say this is very much from the Point Of View of sam mccalister, who you play . Shes so high energy and unlike anyone ive ever met, actually, and i dont say that lightly. Ive never been smuggled into a palace before. At first, Gillian Anderson actually turned down the role of Emily Maitlis. I cant tell you what the questions will be because i dont know myself yet. But when i do know, i still wont tell you. I mean, its just too scary to play Emily Maitlis. Why . Well, because shes still living, because shes so formidable, because people know her so well and they said, well, then, you have to do it. Do you remember dancing at tramp . No. And to make things more complicated, Emily Maitlis herself is Executive Producer on an upcoming rival three part amazon drama about the interview, which made it slightly awkward when Gillian Anderson bumped into her. I had come to this Charity Event not having prepared at all and was really dishevelled. And she showed up as Emily Maitlis, who looks like a movie star and was tanned and short white skirt and tanned legs and everything. And i literally looked like her great aunt in the pictures no, i thought that went very well. Prince andrew famously thought that the interview had been a triumph. Gillian anderson and billie piper both agree that there is almost no chance he will watch this version. This interview, does it matter . Colin paterson, bbc news. Yeah, it matters. And scoop lands on netflix on april 5th. The British Board Of Film Classification which gives films in the uk age ratings is tightening its rules on violence, sex and bad language in response to its latest audience research. The changes only affects future releases. But, as charlie rose reports, some popularfilms would have faced stricter ratings if they were released in cinemas today. Released in 1964, goldfinger is one of the classic bond movies, but some of the content hasnt stood the test of time. Now lets both play. The British Board Of Film Classification or bbfc says people who took part in its research feel this scene actually portrays sexual assault. And these drama and media students in bury in Greater Manchester agree that the films current classification of pg or parental guidance is too low. Its not appropriate for younger viewers, for the younger audience, i dont think its suitable. I think it should be at least a 12a, minimum. I tend to ignore the kind of not as appropriate side of it because thats more how i was brought up tojust see the Better Things of it. The bbfc says its guidelines are updated every few years to ensure standards reflect the expectations and values of audiences. In its new survey, the organisation spoke to more people than ever before. 12,000 people there or thereabouts responded to your latest survey. Tell me what they told you. This time theyve told us that theyre slightly more concerned about violence and sexual activity. Theres a degree of tightening up on language, particularly at the lower levels, but theres a bit more relaxation when it comes to cannabis use. Dont worry about that. And thats why the new film about bob marley has been classified as suitable for children over 12. Gonna be all right. You like that one . Yeah. Our research had come out already, so it enabled us to apply the new research to the film. The film was now given a 12a. If we had received that film six months ago, it would have been given a 15. And olderfilms put forward for re release must also be tested against current attitudes. Last month, the original mary poppins from the 1960s was reclassified from a u which stands for universal to a pg, because of concerns about discriminatory language. Bumblebee, from 2018, was among the more recent films shown to focus groups as part of the bbfc� s latest research. And at school, the children had their own firm views. Do you think the pg rating is right . Yeah, because there are, like, toys that Children Play with. And i think that if kids can play with those toys, they can at least see the movie. I think the violence should at least be toned down a little because the younger audiences, they see stuff, they want to copy it, its like they might think its right. And 2021s Mitchells Vs The Machines sold as a Family Comedy and classified as universal. Yes, it does show violence. And although it is humans against machines, theres still the threat of humans doing that to other humans. Having it as a pg, the parents can talk to the child about it. Its not that violent, but its a little bit violent. Do you think the rating is fair at the moment . Um. Yes, i do, because itsjust a cartoon, actually. But the British Board Of Film Classification says, following audience feedback, it now adopts a stricter position on the classification of violence. So these films would be labelled differently if they were released today. Charlie rose, bbc news. An original pair of Ruby Slippers worn byjudy garland in The Wizard Of Oz are to go on a world tour before being sold at auction. The shoes one of four surviving pairs used in the film previously made headlines when they were stolen from a museum in 2005 before being recovered 13 years later. They will go on display in cities including new york, london and tokyo before being sold in december. Now its time for a look at the weather with carol kirkwood. Hello again. Many of us started the day on a cloudy note with a fair few showers. A lot of the showers will ease through the course of the day. But as we go through the next few days, well, we are still looking at spells of wind and rain. Its going to be mild by day and by night, but it will turn colder at the end of the week. Well be talking about significant wind chill, for example, by the time we get to the weekend. This is the kind of rainfall you can expect. Were looking at accumulations, especially in the west where you see The Dark Blues and greens. This is the key. So up to 50 millimetres, possibly a bit more in places, falling on already saturated ground. Now, today, a lot of the cloud will tend to break up. Sunny spells will develop. Therell still be a few showers here and there. The cloud thickening in the south west, heralding the arrival of some rain, and the wind will continue to ease. Temperatures nine to 16 Degrees North to south. This evening and overnight the rain gathers pace as it pushes northwards and eastwards. It will miss a lot of the south east. It wont get into the north west of scotland, where well have clear skies. Here, temperatures could dip down towards freezing so we could well start the day with a touch of frost, but mild for the time of year as we push down towards the south. Now, tomorrow, we start off with all this rain across parts of wales, Northern England, southern and eastern scotland. It could travel a bit further north than this, but sunny skies will follow on behind, pushing eastwards. The sunnier skies, though, for much of the day will be in the south east, where we could have highs of 18 degrees. But a lot of cloud will linger across Northern England and wales with some patchy light rain. Now, as we move from wednesday into thursday, the south hangs onto this ridge of high pressure, Weather Fronts across the north of the country. And you can see from the isobars, its going to be windy. In fact, were looking at the risk of gales across the northern and western isles, the rain pushing from the west towards the east, drier conditions as you come further south. But it will be fairly cloudy, but it still is mild here 16 degrees, 12 in stornoway. Beyond that, well, you can see how a cold front comes in and pushes south, chasing away that mild air the blues representing the colder conditions and the wind changes to more of a northerly direction. So this weekend we will be talking about a significant wind chill. It will be wet and windy at times and the temperatures will be lower anyway. So dont put away your big coatjust yet. Live from eastjerusalem, im anna foster. The us warns israel, a planned assault on rafah in Southern Gaza would be a mistake, as americas top diplomat says gazans are in desperate need. 100 of the population of gaza is at severe levels of acute food insecurity. Thats the first time an entire population has been so classified. Im Azadeh Moshiri in london. Also making the news. A new picture of the princess of wales the Sun Newspaper publishes photos of catherine out shopping with prince william. Haiti descends into anarchy how violent gangs now control large parts of the caribbean nation. Hello, im anna foster in eastjerusalem. Americas top diplomat, secretary of state, antony blinken, has said that 100 of gazas population is at severe levels of acute food insecurity. His comments come as a United Nations backed report says famine is imminent in northern gaza, as the war between israel and hamas continues. The un is warning that 1 Million People thats almost half the territorys population are now facing starvation