this programme begins with women talking frankly about intimate health issues. hello and welcome to our programme. over the next half an hour, we'll bring you some of the exclusive interviews and original stories that we have broadcast over the last year. in april, we revealed that 800 women were suing the nhs and the manufacturers of mesh implants, implants which had left them in permanent pain, sometimes unable to have sex or walk. following that story, the organisation that sets the guidelines for doctors in england, nice, have now announced they want to ban mesh treatments in some cases. in april, this programme exposed a painful secret thousands of women were keeping to themselves. every time i walk, it almost feels like something sharp‘s inside me. the tape had come through my vagina, so it was actually all the way through and protruding through. my husband has turned into my carer, and he's so much less of my husband. we can't have sex. we haven't had sex for 4.5 years. they thought they were alone, so suffered in silence for years, unaware there were many more like them. over the last five years, i counted, actually, i've had over 53 admissions because of agonising pain. i phoned my husband and i said, "i just can't live anymore, i can't go through this." i actually do think it's — i'm believing the doctors. i think it's in my head, yeah. really? yeah. i didn't know where else to turn. this is a vaginal mesh. it's used when women have a prolapse or bladder incontinence, normally brought on by childbirth, and it's often made from polypropylene — that's the same material used to make this kind of drinks bottle. over the past 20 years, more than 100,000 women across the uk have had vaginal mesh implants. some doctors now believe a minimum of one in ten patients experience problems. i'm notjust a number. i'm somebody‘s partner, i'm somebody‘s mum, somebody‘s sister, and all these people are impacted. did you — can i ask, did you have any suicidal thoughts? you did? yeah, i planned it. i mapped it out. with us this morning, a dozen or so of those... earlier this year, we revealed hundreds of women were taking legal action against the nhs. and i wonder, would you support calls for these mesh implants to be banned on the nhs? all: yes. definitely. definitely? most definitely. the simple procedure could end up costing tens of millions of pounds in compensation. over the last seven months, many, many women have told us their stories. ijust wonder how many people are going to get crippled before anyone listens to us? what we go through on a daily basis is a nightmare. but complications with mesh can arise in other places too. oh, my god. no wonder it itches. i mean, it's really thick. just like nylon. it's... injuly, we revealed nhs england hernia mesh repairs were leaving many patients in chronic pain. it's as if i've been stabbed with something hot. i don't want to eat, i don't want to venture out too far. we even arranged for two hernia mesh patients to meet up. martin. helen. martin. you 0k? pleased to meet you. and you. yes, thank you. take a seat. i've had an operation, really, i didn't need, and six years worth of investigation. some gynaecologists claim a ban on vaginal mesh implants would risk depriving women of the option of a treatment, which for incontinence, at least, has been effective. but a growing number of doctors believe the risk is too great, and in scotland, the use of mesh has been suspended. labour have called for vaginal mesh repairs to be banned and for a public enquiry. they've received cross—party support. let's say it's as little as one in ten in whom this is going wrong — if that were a medicine, it wouldn't be on the market. now, this programme can exclusively reveal the national institute for health and clinical excellence has effectively recommended a ban on vaginal mesh repairs for prolapse. nice say the procedure should only be used for research. the health watchdog was initially going to publish its updated guidance in 2019, but as the spotlight intensified, it was brought forward to december, and they say they won't comment until then. campaigners are calling this latest development a backdoor ban and a historic moment, but also say the fight is far from over. they want a temporary suspension of all pelvic mesh repairs, while an audit is carried out to find out the true scale of the women affected. they also want nice to provide advice on other types of mesh repairs, like hernias. the idea for that story came to us from one of our viewers, who herself was in chronic pain. if you have a story you think we should be covering, do get in touch. you can email our program. next, following the collapse of the charity kids company back in 2015. its founder, camila batmanghelidjh, seemed to disappear from public life. but in october of this year, she was back. two years on, her anger and defiance that she had anything to do with the charity folding was very evident. have a look. there wasn't financial mismanagement of kids company — let's be very clear about that. when kids company closed in august 2015, we had a year's money ahead, three months‘ reserves. what shut the doors of kids company was false sexual abuse allegations being taken to newsnight, broadcast, and then the police subsequently found that no crime had been committed. we were cleared, but by then, it was too late because the funders who had pledged the money withdrew their grants, and because of that, the trustees had to close it. you couldn't pay your staff. i mean, you were in financial trouble. no, we couldn't pay our staff... it's very important that when we have this conversation, that you ask me questions — because there are so many inaccurate pieces of information... but it's true that you couldn't pay your staff. the reason we couldn't pay our staff... so that is true? no, we couldn't pay our self—employed staff because our payroll staff were paid completely to the last month that they worked with us. the reason we couldn't pay the self—employed staff is because the cabinet office created a rumour that the £3 million grant they gave us wasn't for salaries and was misspent. but you had to get an emergency grant from the government. consequently, £2.1 million of that grant was left in the bank account when we could've paid the self—employed, and that's the point. you had to get an emergency grant from the government. well, you describe it as an emergency grant. the truth is that there were significant discussions taking place behind the scenes with the cabinet office about the fact that the funding they were giving us was insufficient. the problem is that in a short television interview, i cannot give you the full detail. but what i can tell you is that there was a systematic dismantling of kids company by a kind of politically driven malicious campaign. why would that be, when this was a government who'd given you £47 million in grants? because government is not cohesive. you think all of government works together — it doesn't. 0k, a politically motivated dismantling, you say. so some kind of conspiracy to shut you down? who would that... who was involved in that? well, there were some civil servants and some politicians, and the difficulty i have is i don't know exactly who... who do you think? but we know that this has happened. who do you think? i don't know, and i'm not going to get into a guessing game. can you understand that it does sound... slightly absurd to say on the one hand, the government is giving you £47 million. that is a lot of money. and on the other hand, there is an unnamed civil servant or two trying to somehow — civil servant — dismantle you. well, look, you think you live in a democracy, but actually, it's not that straightforward. when political machinery... let me ask you then — you're not going to apologise to the children that were let down by the closure of kids company? hold on. don't put me in that position, victoria. don't frame it in that way, because that is not right. children were let down by the closure of kids company. because i think... children were let down by the closure of kids company... i'm asking you — would you like to apologise for that? in my book, i have clearly stated that the one thing that i experience is extreme sorrow at the fact that the children suffered in this way. and do you accept some responsibility for that? we were not responsible for the closure of this company. not at all? no, and i'm being absolutely clear about that. 0k. and the only way we're going to get the truth here is if there is some kind of an inquiry — i don't want us to spend the money on it — but some kind of an inquiry that is independent of government machinery. alright, 0k, next question. would you like to apologise to the taxpayers and to the people who donated, from the goodness of their heart, money that you wasted? i don't think we wasted money. why are you assuming that we wasted money? where did that come from? well, a pair of shoes for £305 for one client. well, that, i don't know what the story of that is at the moment... so, it was potentially a waste. i mean, anyone spending £305 on shoes is a waste. if that has taken place, and i don't know what the real story of that is, i would have to find out about that, and that wouldn't be something that i would want. it's in an audited report. but hold on a second... let me ask you... victoria, people gave us money — be very careful about this again — we actually fundraised to buy the children clothes, so they were restricted funds to buy the children clothes. yeah, you fundraised, and people give you money when you fundraise, so they give it from the goodness of their heart, and they probably don't expect it to be spent on designer shoes. more than £50,000 spent on someone described as the child of an iranian diplomat, including funding their phd studies. again, that isn't how the story is, and i don't think you should frame it in this way because... well, this is all from an audited report. let me give you another example. what audited report? where is this audited report? an adult client paid... no, victoria, you've just made an allegation, yeah, and i think you haven't identified the source of the report for me, i don't know where you're getting your figures from. we housed families, i don't know which family you're describing, but you're not asking me the questions that really matter, which was why was kids company left with some 17,000 children who were a statutory responsibility, with no—one willing to pay for it. 0k. why were we getting that type of child through our doors? those are the sorts of questions you should be asking me. no, those are the sort of questions you want me to ask. described as some of the most engaging coverage of the general election, we took two celebrities with opposing views out on a blind date to put serious political debate in an everyday setting. the series showed that in an increasingly polarised world, where debate is often very black and white, there can be consensus amongst people on opposite sides of the spectrum. we shined the silverware, polished the glasses and invited them to lunch — an election blind date. could you go to bed with a remainer? could you make them see the light? do you know what, i'm not going to answer that! i'm not going to answer that! are you only attracted to brexiters? no, no, no! that's a good question. he has no words. i'm stumped on that. you must ask if the story about you meeting someone on a plane is true. oh, yes. what happened on the plane? is it true? this is a ridiculous setup. you were snogging this page 3 model. just ludicrous, the whole thing. i hope someone‘s got video footage of it. a page 3 model would have been 0k. but a bit more serious than that. what was she doing in business class, though? that's a very good question. good question. anyway... were you stitched up like a ukip—er? what that episode shows me is you can't trust anybody, you can't talk to anybody, you can't. .. oh, god, nigel. that's awful. it's true. i don't think you can trust random people, though. there i was, sitting at the bar, having dinner on virgin atlantic, and someone comes and sits next to you and starts talking to you. well, what are you going to you do? snog her! no...yeah, well... what you need, nigel, isjust a nice, steady brexiteer girlfriend. because then you don't have to have a conversation with her all the time you have had with me. i ;::*:’:,:;’::::l.—,- , 7,771,131, do you want a united - of europe? i would like what we had, nigel, and, ldon‘t want to lose it. cameron i think probably did as much to lose the referendum as anyone else. the deal was rubbish. the deal wasn't good enough. so cameron i hold almost entirely responsible for this, more than you. do you? that's disappointing. and then, when we went over the waterfall in a bucket he left downing street with a song in his heart. he had to. he had to go. i used to play golf. the other big hobby that i got which used to be considered really geeky, really geeky... metal detecting. can i guess? carriage driving. no. is it sporty? it is historical. brass rubbing. am i close? not really. i am a first world war nut. oh yes. an absolute nut. nigel, what should i do with the rest of my life? what do you want to do? i don't know. i think i am swimming against the tide at the moment. well, you will lose that one, but that's ok. what do you want to do? ijust wondered if i made a terrible mistake, as well. i think you did pretty well, actually. so it doesn't matter that i'm the butt of ridicule from half the cabinet for joining the lib dems. back to politics? i was asking nigel what should do with the rest my life, and have eye dropped a massive (bleep) have at bay made a mistake? we are all allowed mistakes. how would you sum up your political first date? like... it is really interesting, because rachel is seen in this country as being this sort of hardline remainer, but when you talk to her about the european union, in france she would be a hardline eurosceptic. i think that is right. there are few of us that, even hardline... had she been from anywhere else i would completely understand why she sacrificed her reputation to join the liberal democrats. as it is! as it isiam as it is i am bemused but fascinated. do you think you have sacrificed a reputation? i seriously felt we were entering a 1—party state on an issue that i believe to be wrong in every particular. i felt that i couldn't actually live with myself unless i had made a futile gesture, and stand up and be counted. if only to be shot down. and how would you sum up your political first date with nigel farage? well, like nigel farage, incredibly entertaining and infuriating. and wrong. you can watch the full—blown date between nigel farage and racheljohnson and others, including mary beard and peter stringfellow, on our website. mental health is an issue we talk a lot about on this programme, because we know it is important to you. mental health issues affect one in four of us. 0ur correspondent wanted to share his story about how playing football had given him a reason to live after attempting to take his own life several times. in one of the most touching encounters of the year, he told us about the suicide of his own father. one morning on the ward the occupational therapist would be up and asked if i wanted to play football. and of course i said yes. i didn't really expect much at first, but i realised i had no... so i rang my mum and asked if she could get me some. within an hour she had gone out and bought me a pair. at the time i didn't realise that if my mum hadn't bought me those boots, things might have changed and i might have lost my life to mental illness. take your time. you have got all the time in the world. so every week, i attended training, and it gave me hope for the future, that i could be someone my family and friends could be proud of. to me, it wasn'tjust football. it was my life. it had given me stuff to build on. instead of destroying, i had become stronger in my war on my demons. every week i would put so much effort in that i couldn't walk a days afterwards. it changed me into a better man and it made me want to stay alive so my mum and brothers would have to bury me. instead, they could say to everyone that my son and brother plays for qpr. i have done some amazing things at qpr healthy kickers. my biggest achievement would be in my first three seasons at the club i was top goalscorer. every time i put on a kick to make it, i wasn't a schoolboy any more. i was james. i was free from my demons. unfortunately, others aren't so lucky. in 2010, i lost my father to suicide, on my sister's birthday. -- 15th —— 15th birthday. but i've taken the good from the bad, and i've met amazing people, travel to places to play football. i get to make people crowd. for a young boy you'd like me, losing my dad left me confused in this big world. i didn't have any sense of direction. i met my coaches, connor and nathan, and they helped me find my way. they stood in my corner. the support i had from them was amazing. i just felt so thankful they became my role models. they showed me that i am worth something. i am lucky enough to know them. we can never stop people getting mentally unwell, but we can help them recover with the use of football. it worked for me and many others that i have played four, against, and played with. football saved my life. well done. that was magnificent. are you all right? do you think it is important to speak out? people are suffering in silence, because they don't have someone to look up to and say enough is enough. you have got to change. people who are mentally unwell are seen as this sort of outcast in society, and once we start breaking down the stigma, people will come out and say they have got problems. we will continue to keep in touch with james in the new year, and follow his progress on our programme. and if you need help and support, you can find a list of charities at the bbc action line. finally, in 2018 we will be looking forward to a royal birth. william and kate's child, plus the wedding of prince harry and meghan markle. it was a special anniversary in september which touched the hearts of so many, the 70th anniversary of the queen and prince philip. here is how we marked their enduring relationship. # when you are in love... # it's a loveliest night of the year. the king and queen announced the betrothal of their dearly beloved and daughter, the princess elizabeth, to lieutenant philip mountbatten. i am so happy that on this, my third visit, my future husband is by my side. into the dull november morning, two greys draw the carriage. inside, her royal highness elizabeth and her father. music plays. # when it you are in love, it's the loveliest night of the year. thank you for watching. we are back live injanuary. in the meantime you can watch our programmes on our website. hello. friday starts with a number of wintry weather warnings from the met office covering many parts of the british isles. we have very specific concerns about the amount of snow that is likely to fall across the higher ground of england. into an already cool atmosphere, it will eventually bring quite a bit of moisture from the atlantic. and as that moisture falls into a pretty chilly atmosphere, so there will be a ready conversion of some of the rain into significant snowfall. here we see the extent of it, around about seven o'clock in the morning on friday. and anywhere really from the central belt of scotland down towards the higher ground of northern england, we will see lying snow accumulating. ahead of it, some of the lighter rain will be falling onto pretty treacherous surfaces. so, there are warnings about ice. but over the high ground of the pennines, we may find up to 15 centimetres of snow. further south, it is one of those mornings. that rain will again be falling onto some pretty cold surfaces. a risk of ice even across the southern counties of england. as the morning wears on, we will find the bulk of that moisture moving out into the north sea. but following on behind, just the northern portion of that front lingering for a time, just enhancing the snowfall across the southern uplands of scotland and the top end of the pennines. as that system moves away, so it makes room for another set of weather fronts to work its way in, particularly across the southern half of the british isles, as we get into the first part of saturday. a wet and windy combination gradually clearing away. you will notice the northern portion of the weather front eventually pushes up across the heart of scotland, with yet more snow to come. chilly here, as you can well imagine. further south, the temperatures rebounding. the sort of values we have seen of late. even as far ahead as new year's eve, there is another combination from another little system of some wet and windy weather. there is a great deal of mobility. nothing hanging around for any great length of time. if you happen to have plans for seeing in the new year, it will be a chilly start to the new year, no doubt about it. further south, passing showers, perhaps. given the strength of the wind we are showing eight degrees, but it may feel cooler than that. so, what news for the start of the new year? well, i suspect you have already guessed. yes. more weather fronts coming in from the atlantic, more wet and windy weather to come. this is bbc world news. i'm duncan golestani. our top stories: former footballer george weah wins liberia's presidential election, the country's first democratic handover in decades. afghanistan's president condemns kabul‘s suicide bomb attack as a crime against humanity. the blast left more than 40 dead. this is the building where the explosion happened, and you can see the building has been destroyed. an easing of diplomatic tensions between turkey and the us, as both countries say they will restart visa services. and the ugly side of beauty pageants.

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