our understanding of the universe. welcome to our viewers on pbs in america and around the globe. more than 2000 flights have been cancelled across the world, as people try to complete last minute journeys to spend christmas with friends and families. some major airlines have blamed the cancellations on the pandemic. china and the us are the worst affected countries. azadeh moshiri reports. which one would you like? festivities may be going ahead this year but millions are still having difficulty reaching their families. with the 0micron variant surging quickly around the world, it's causing chaos within airlines with crews testing positive or needing to isolate. in the us, united airlines and delta air lines already cancelled hundreds of christmas eve flights and warned of more cancellations throughout the weekend. the flight tracking firm flightaware has said more than 2000 christmas eve flights have been cancelled globally. explaining their decision, united airlines said: and delta airlines warned: in the us, daily 0micron cases have risen beyond the peak of the delta wave and hospitals are quickly filling up. despite this, many are still taking the risk to reach their loved ones. i'm very scared to be flying, to be honest. i'm glad to see everyone looks pretty masked up. ijust hope people on the plane as respectful of those around them. fully vaxxed and boosted and all of that and i said, you know, i'm just so glad to be back with people, doing what we do. it kind of feels good. i mean, i'm still worried about the variant, omicron and all that, but at the same time, i'm just like you know what? let'sjust — let's get back to living our lives a little bit. airlines are now calling for reduced quarantine for vaccinated staff with delta's ceo asking for those experiencing breakthrough infections to isolate ten days instead of five. but in the meantime, many will still be struggling to make it home for the holidays. azadeh moshiri, bbc news. we can now speak to dr william schaffner, who's professor of health policy and infectious diseases at the vanderbilt university school of medicine. airlines are suggesting that cancellations are not because of restrictions but because of the virus in staff catching the environs. are we entering new territory now with covid—19? merry christmas to you first and, yes, we are entering new territory. this variant can cause mild illness that is not requiring hospitalisation in people who are vaccinated and, indeed, boosted. but the important thing is that hospitalisation is not required. 0n the other hand, if it strikes someone who is unvaccinated there is still the risk of hospitalisation and hospitalisations are creeping up hospitalisations are creeping up around the country at the present time. as a result we have a great deal of confusion in the travel industry and elsewhere.— in the travel industry and elsewhere. , . ., elsewhere. given that, what advice do — elsewhere. given that, what advice do you _ elsewhere. given that, what advice do you have - elsewhere. given that, what advice do you have four- elsewhere. given that, what i advice do you have four people watching now who are thinking of travelling for christmas may be to see loved ones but who may be worried about catching the virus? be may be worried about catching the virus?— the virus? be sure and contact our the virus? be sure and contact your airline — the virus? be sure and contact your airline first _ the virus? be sure and contact your airline first bite, - the virus? be sure and contact your airline first bite, then, i your airline first bite, then, where a mask when you are in a public place, do a lot of good hand hygiene and if you have those rapid tests available before you gather together with your family and friends, everybody get a yourfamily and friends, everybody get a rapid your family and friends, everybody get a rapid test yourfamily and friends, everybody get a rapid test and if they are all negative then you can share the joy. you can share the 'oy. share the 'o you can share the 'oy. share the joy indeed. _ you can share the 'oy. share the joy indeed. 5 h you can share the joy. share the joy indeed. 5 million - you can share the joy. share i the joy indeed. 5 million tests that make 500 million to six to be sent out to american families but that will not happen untiljanuary. is families but that will not happen untiljanuary. is that too late? — happen untiljanuary. is that too late? it— happen untiljanuary. is that too late? it is _ happen untiljanuary. is that too late? it is never- happen untiljanuary. is that too late? it is never too - happen untiljanuary. is that l too late? it is never too late. we would wish more, more quickly of course but we're going to using testing along with vaccination and all of the other interventions to try and ring 0micron to a low level so that we can open up society more safely in the future. testing will be part of that strategy and very helpful as witnesses start to get together, entertainment venues are using it. you in europe are using testing more than we are at the present time and i think we can catch up and learn from your lessons. and in terms of vaccine take—up, what does the us look like in general? is the message getting out there now the people do need to be jabbed and boosted in order to spend time with loved ones over christmas? the message has been out there for a long time and, quite seriously, people are getting their boosters but they are not bringing their children into be vaccinated. those aged five and older. and then we have a residual group of adults with resisted vaccination until the present time and that is rather vague then, as we say. i don't know what can motivate them other than it may be mandates, requirements for vaccination to do any number of things around society. interesting to speak to you and you have some wise words there. have a happy christmas, whatever you do. christmas celebrations have taken place in bethlehem, including an annual procession led by the head of the roman catholic church in the region. the events culminated in a mass at the church of the nativity, built on the spot where it's believed thatjesus was born. 0ur middle east correspondent tom bateman reports. in manger square, they wait for the biggest night of the year. a christmas procession follows the route believed to have been taken by mary and joseph. it's a march of faith. but this season's greetings are mainly between the locals. the scout bands are a fixture of christmas in manger square and you can feel the energy. but what is missing are the international visitors and pilgrims that would usually be thronging the square here, and that is a devastating blow for the second year running because bethlehem needs tourism to keep surviving. the glimmers of tourism restarting last month have gone, derailed by border closures due to the new covid variant. people trying to find joy and happiness from nothing. so it's very interesting, very impressive. since the beginning of 2020, everything is closed. all hotels are empty. it's very, very difficult - for people — especially those who are working i in tourism sector. they are selling somej of the land to houses. the characters of christmas come to life. in this olive wood factory, ibrahim is the only worker here today. normally, he'd be joined by four more. for palestinian christians in this part of the west bank, life has been a challenge, says nabeel, whose family has run the shop for decades. we could keep our workers till the moment, but i don't know. you know, it's hard. i have two shops — one is here. the one on the manger square, it's been like 2a months, zero income. it's sad — it's not normal to see bethlehem this way. but at christmas, there's always light to look up to. as this town celebrates, it remains a year of hope against the odds. merry christmas! tom bateman, bbc news, bethlehem. the final preparations are under way for the rescheduled launch of a space telescope that could transform our understanding of the universe. the rocket carrying the james webb space telescope will take off from french guiana later on saturday. it's the successor to the hubble space telescope — and it will give us a much deeper understanding of our universe and how it came about. 0ur science editor rebecca morelle reports. it's taken 30 years to develop, cost more than $10 billion and has involved thousands of scientists. now the james webb space telescope is finally ready to launch to begin the most ambitious astronomy mission ever attempted. this telescope is absolutely the biggest and most complex and most powerful telescope that we've ever attempted to send to space. all of us astronomers are extremely eager to get this telescope into space. but i think it's going to work and i think it's going to, again, just completely revolutionise how we understand the cosmos. the telescope is a successor to hubble, which has given us amazing images. butjames webb is much more powerful. its mirror is almost three times bigger, which means it can reveal parts of the cosmos we've never seen before. gazing up into the heavens can help us to answer some of the biggest questions like where we come from and how did we get here? this space telescope will help us to look further back in time than ever before to 13 and a half billion years ago, revealing the light from the very first stars to shine. the final preparations have been under way. it's an incredibly tight fit, as the rocket is tentatively lowered over the folded telescope. this is high stakes science, but if it works, it could lead to discoveries that scientists haven't even dreamt of. rebecca morrell, bbc news. dr sarah kendrew is an astronomer with the european space agency, and is based at the space telescope science institute in baltimore. she says the team involved is excited — and a little apprehensive. yes, it has been a very interesting christmas. we're all very excited. a small team of us here from the european space agency in french guiana went for a very quiet, low—key christmas eve dinner. we're all trying to get an early night now because we're going to be up and early tomorrow to get ready for the launch. if all goes according to plan, what will this telescope allow us to do in the future that others, including the hubble, haven't? so it's giving us really crucial coverage in infrared light, which is something that the hubble space telescope was much more focused on visible light. and the infrared coverage is really a key to letting us probe back further into the history of the universe. so really giving us a view of those very first, kind of, generation of stars and galaxies that formed after the big bang. also other things like atmospheres around exoplanets, so planets around other stars in the galaxy. it's going to tell us about the chemistry and the conditions on those other planetary systems and really kind of help us understand how the building blocks of life may have formed. it's been 30 years in the making, it's cost billions of dollars, just why has it taken so long? it's an incredibly ambitious project. there's a lot of technical complexity. it's also a huge project, as we heard just before, there have been thousands of people who have worked on this project over the lifetime of the development. you know, it's taken a long time, it's been a long road, but, really, considering the scale and the ambition of the project i think that's not surprising and it's — with the number of technical challenges that we've had with the mission — it's been really important to address them carefully and to take our time, and do not rush things. it's an incredibly expensive piece of kit, you don't want to get it wrong, i guess, at the last minute. compared to other projects, what has it been like working on this one for you? yes, i think compared to other projects worked on it's definitely that next level of ambition and that next level of scale. there are so many different subsystems to the observatory. i work personally on one of the four science instruments on board, but every aspect of the observatory touches on so many other different systems, all the instruments work together — work together with the telescope, the spacecraft, everything is sort of that next level of challenge and complexity. so that's definitely been, you know, an incredible experience to be able to work on that for many years. and coming up, he's checked his list, and now santa claus is coming to town! we'll have an update on his progress live a little later. the world of music's been paying tribute to george michael, who's died from suspected heart failure at the age of 53. he sold well over 100 million albums in a career spanning more than three decades. the united states' troops have been trying to overthrow the dictatorship of general manuel noriega. the pentagon said it's failed in its principle objective to capture noriega and take him to the united states to face drugs charges. the hammer and sickle| was hastily taken away. m its place. — the russian flag was hoisted over what is now— no longer the soviet union, but the commonwealth of independent states. | day broke slowly over lockerbie, over the cockpit of pan am's maid of the seas, nosedown in the soft earth. you could see what happens when a plane eight storeys high, a football pitch wide falls from 30,000 feet. christmas has returned to albania after a communist ban lasting more than 20 years. thousands went to midnight mass in the town of shkoder where there were anti—communist riots ten days ago. this is bbc news. the latest headlines: millions of travellers are facing disruption over christmas, as the world—wide record surge in 0micron cases means cancelled flights and staff shortages. a christmas midnight mass at the church of the nativity in bethlehem. and a message from the pope calling for more solidarity with the poor. the queen is expected to give a very personal christmas message later. herfirst since the death of her husband, prince philip. she'll speak beside a framed photograph of the couple taken during their diamond wedding anniversary in 2007 and she'll wear the same sapphire brooch that she wore on her honeymoon. there are some flashing images in this report from our royal correspondent, nicholas witchell. rehearsing at windsor for their part in the queen's christmas broadcast, the central band of the royal british legion will play the national anthem which begins the broadcast. this year's christmas message — a still from which has been issued by buckingham palace — will be an unusually personal one. the queen is wearing a brooch which she wore on her honeymoon, and on the desk beside her, a photograph of her and prince philip taken in 2007, when they celebrated their diamond wedding anniversary. it's eight months now since philip's death. so far, the queen has not spoken publicly in any detail about how much he meant to her. her broadcast will be an opportunity for her to do so. within the royal family, mindful that this will be the queen's first christmas without her husband, arrangements have been adjusted so that she won't be alone. the prince of wales and the duchess of cornwall will be with her at windsor, other members of the family, the wessexes and the gloucesters, will also be there. absent, of course, will be the duke and duchess of sussex. from their home in california, they've issued this photograph wishing their supporters happy holidays. it shows harry and meghan with their son, archie, and their daughter, lilibet, pictured for the first time. and so, at the end of a year touched by personal sadness, and some family tensions, thoughts will start to look ahead to next year and the celebrations to mark the queen's 70 years on the throne. uppermost in the minds of the palace planners, of course, will be the question of the queen's health. it's always a sensitive matter. it has particular significance after the recent concerns, and given that next year is the year of her platinumjubilee. the queen will certainly want to be involved in thejubilee as fully as possible, and there will be another event of special significance to her — a service of thanksgiving for the life of the duke of edinburgh, which, it has been announced, will take place at westminster abbey in the spring. nicholas witchell, bbc news. and now for a christmas treat, see if you can guess this famous holiday track. instrumental music plays well, the instrumental is, of course, jingle bells from joni mitchell's classic river. the song first appeared on her landmark album blue back in 1971 and 50 years later it's gotten its first music video in time for christmas. let's have a listen. # they're cutting down trees. # they're putting up reindeer. # and singing songs ofjoy and peace. # oh, i wish i had a river. # i could skate away on. # but it don't snow here. # it stays pretty green. # i'm going to make a lot of money. most of the video is in black and white, until the end, when the river turns blue. and while it may sound christmassy, there's another theme throughout, as you can guess from this message from joni which accompanied the video. we can now speak to the animation artist who directed the music video, matvey rezanov. hejoins us from portland, oregon. thanks a lot for coming on. a christmas song for people who are lonely at christmas. how did you try to get this across in this video? i did you try to get this across in this video?— in this video? i tried to, i think the _ in this video? i tried to, i think the choice - in this video? i tried to, i think the choice of - in this video? i tried to, i think the choice of black| in this video? i tried to, i . think the choice of black and white was really essential here and, as you rightfully pointed out, the colour symbolises hope and solace, because even in the deepest sadness there is some kind of calmness. ijust tried to do justice to the lyrics and that was my goal, basically, and to the song itself and what it means but it's really effective, congratulations. why did you decide on the watercolour effect, is that a nod to joni watercolour effect, is that a nod tojoni being a painter herself? it is definitely a nod to joni being herself? it is definitely a nod tojoni being a painter, it was made by rhino records, iwork with them. they approached me because that is what i'd do, i do watercolour animation. but the idea came from them, i just... the idea came from them, i 'ust. .. ., . the idea came from them, i 'ust... ., . ., , . just... how much artistic license _ just... how much artistic license did _ just... how much artistic license did you _ just... how much artistic license did you have - just... how much artistic- license did you have yourself, did you have a complete blank canvas to do what you wanted? they did indicate the general idea and they wanted to be like symbols, symbolic. 0ther idea and they wanted to be like symbols, symbolic. other than that i had really a loss of creative freedom and a really appreciated it.— creative freedom and a really appreciated it. 169,000 views on youtube — appreciated it. 169,000 views on youtube and _ appreciated it. 169,000 views on youtube and just - appreciated it. 169,000 views on youtube and just today, i appreciated it. 169,000 views i on youtube and just today, what has the reaction been like that you have been getting? it has the reaction been like that you have been getting?- you have been getting? it has been really — you have been getting? it has been really overwhelming. i you have been getting? it has. been really overwhelming. this song means a lot to different people and it really speaks to different people, hearts and lives. a lot of people approached me and i'm really grateful that they say that the visuals correspond to the lyrics quite well. so that's a huge honourfor lyrics quite well. so that's a huge honour for me.- lyrics quite well. so that's a huge honour for me. and you have the _ huge honour for me. and you have the black _ huge honour for me. and you have the black and _ huge honour for me. and you have the black and white, i have the black and white, obviously, they go through the video. at the end there is an element of hope with the colour coming in?— coming in? that's correct, yes. and what _ coming in? that's correct, yes. and what has _ coming in? that's correct, yes. and what has joni _ coming in? that's correct, yes. and what has joni said - coming in? that's correct, yes. and what has joni said to - coming in? that's correct, yes. and what has joni said to you l and what hasjoni said to you or to people about it herself? you know, she saw the storyboards, and that was a really crucial moment because that's when i've presented the overall flow and how it will look and she approved it. which was a really, really big deal. and i was actually really nervous. because, as you said, she is an artist herself, a great artist, she has an incredible artistic eye. so when a sent the video it got approved in an hour. that meant the world to me.— the world to me. how long did the world to me. how long did the whole _ the world to me. how long did the whole process _ the world to me. how long did the whole process take, - the world to me. how long did i the whole process take, because obviously it has been released just in time for christmas, perfect timing, but i guess you have been working on this for quite a long time?— quite a long time? actually it took me 40 _ quite a long time? actually it took me 40 days. _ quite a long time? actually it took me 40 days. while. - quite a long time? actually it l took me 40 days. while. there we no. took me 40 days. while. there we go- there — took me 40 days. while. there we go. there we _ took me 40 days. while. there we go. there we go. _ took me 40 days. while. there we go. there we go. matvey i we go. there we go. matvey rezanov, thank you very much for speaking to us. congratulations on what is a really powerful video and thank you for coming to talk to us about it. you for coming to talk to us about it-_ and we played you the beginning of the video and here's how it ends. instrumental music plays that is the end of the video forjoni mitchell's song river. for millions around the world the big day has arrived — and for millions more it is only hours away. christmas is being celebrated across the globe. a lot of food will be eaten and a lot of presents will be opened, assuming one man in particular heads in the right direction. the bbc�*s tim allman explains. # you better watch out, you better not cry, better not pout i'm telling you why, santa claus is coming to town. this has become almost as big a festive tradition as crackers, turkey, and tinsel stop for more than 65 years, the north american aerospace defence command, or norad, has been tracking father christmas as he makes his way around the world. of course, this year he has to deliver presents in a covid secure environment. i’m deliver presents in a covid secure environment. i'm sure santa claus — secure environment. i'm sure santa claus is _ secure environment. i'm sure santa claus is taking - santa claus is taking precautions. 0bviously when he is riding the slay he has to callout the commence of the reindeer, i'm sure he has his mask. he is six feet away and wearing his mask when he is around others, his elves, et cetera. �* ., ., cetera. before he left, father christmas. — cetera. before he left, father christmas, or— cetera. before he left, father christmas, or someone - cetera. before he left, father christmas, or someone who l cetera. before he left, father- christmas, or someone who looks like him, took a christmas, or someone who looks like him, tooka —— christmas, or someone who looks like him, took a —— took a quick detour to thailand, extending his reindeerfor elephants. elephants with face mask. they were delivering presents to the school not far from bangkok. the children seemed to enjoy, although animal rights groups thanks this tradition is one that has had its day. we this tradition is one that has had its day-— this tradition is one that has had its day. we want to teach children a _ had its day. we want to teach children a christmas - had its day. we want to teach l children a christmas message, if we want to spread the christmas spirit, the best thing that we can do is leave animals out of performances like this one and use people instead. a . ., like this one and use people instead. 1, . ,, ., , ., , instead. back on his 'ourney and there is t instead. back on his 'ourney and there is no h instead. back on his journey and there is no chance - instead. back on his journey and there is no chance the l instead. back on his journey i and there is no chance the big man would miss this house. here in danvers, massachusetts, they like this building up to raise money for a local children's hospital. most practical, more bright lights this time in taiwan. a giant santa claus next to a giant christmas tree. this time of year is a special, wherever you are. tim allman, bbc news. that is just about it from me for now. you can reach me on twitter. i'm @sipusey. you can get much more news on our website. you can get much more news on ourwebsite. from me you can get much more news on our website. from me and the rest of the team, thank you for watching, and have a very happy christmas wherever you are and stay tuned radio two bbc news. hello there. merry christmas to you. some of us will see some snow during this christmas period, mainly across the hills of the northern half of the uk. further south, it'll tend to be milder, so any precipitation will be rain. and we've got areas of low pressure pushing into the south west, and they're weather fronts bringing outbreaks of rain. as these weather fronts slowly push north—eastwards into that stubborn area of colder air which is sitting to the north—east of the country, then this is where we're likely to see some of that rain turn to snow. so, we're starting christmas day morning off on a very cold, frosty note across scotland, the far north of england, but less cold, milder for northern ireland in towards wales and the south west. but here, we have more of the cloud, outbreaks of rain, which will be slowly spilling northwards and eastwards through the course of the day. quite a bit of cloud for most of england, but the far north of england, scotland off that cold, frosty start, will be dry and sunny throughout the day. maybe just the odd wintry shower around, some patchy cloud, but it will be windy, particularly across the northern half of the country, as you can see here. these are the mean wind speeds. so, when you factor in the wind with that cold air, it really will feel chilly, colder than these temperatures suggest, 3—5 degrees in the north, seven to maybe 11 degrees across the south and south west. now, as we head through christmas day evening, it looks like the rain will start to push its way northwards and eastwards, and overnight, as it bumps into that cold air, we could see a bit of snow for north wales on the hills first, and then into northern england, central, southern scotland, mainly over the pennines, across the southern uplands and the higher ground of central scotland. quite a covering here, maybe even some down to lower levels for a time. you can see it's going to be another cold night here, less so further south and west. so, some places on boxing day starting off with that snowfall, across the north pennines, into the southern uplands, perhaps into central scotland, but through the day, any snowfall will become reserved to the hills of northern scotland as the milder air begins to push its way northwards. quite a lot of cloud generally across the country. we could see some brightness, a few showers pushing into northern ireland, wales and the south—west quadrant of england, where it'll be mild again. but still chilly across the far north east. then, as we move out of boxing day to the run—up to new year's eve, we can see some really mild air starts to move in, and right across the uk on a south—westerly wind, pushes all that cold air well away from the uk. so, it turns milder even. very mild for a time in places in the run—up to new year's eve. but with that, it will be unsettled, some areas seeing some spells of wet and windy weather. this is bbc news, the headlines: millions around the world face travel disruption over christmas, as the surge in 0micron variant cases sees more than 4000 flights cancelled due to staff shortages. united airlines says it's contacting impacted passengers before they arrive at the airport. china and the us are the worst affected countries. christmas celebrations have taken place in bethlehem, culminating in a mass at the church of the nativity, built at the site where jesus is said to have been born. earlier, in his christmas eve mass, pope francis called for more solidarity with those living in poverty around the world. and — final preparations are underway for the launch of a rocket carrying a space telescope that could transform our understanding of the universe. the rocket carrying the james webb space telescope will take off from french guiana later on saturday. it's the successor to the hubble space telescope. now on bbc news, it's time for hardtalk.