unfortunately lost about 70% of capacity so we have had to a0 people unfortunately and cancel new year's eve. —— phone a few people. 0micron is causing chaos in the airline industry — 6,000 flights cancelled around the world over the christmas weekend. swimmers take the chilly plunge across the uk. we hearfrom one group — getting ready to continue the christmas tradition. hello and welcome to bbc news. archbishop desmond tutu, the leading anti—apartheid campaigner who helped bring down white rule in south africa, has died at the age of 90. desmond tutu was uncompromisingly opposed to violence and was awarded the nobel peace prize in 198a. after nelson mandela became president, he headed the truth and reconciliation commission investigating the crimes of white rule. nomsa maseko looks back at his life. he was first and foremost a priest, not a politician. but for the best part of half a century, he was the face of reconciliation and south africa's moral compass. the system of this country, apartheid, is immoral! the system of this country is evil! desmond mpilo tutu remained outside of party politics, but he used the church as a platform for protest against white minority rule. it was under south africa's oppressive government that he first campaigned against apartheid. when emotions were boiling over, his influence helped prevent bloodshed. and in 198a, he was given the highest recognition for his efforts. when you've been given the nobel peace prize, it doesn't really belong to you. or, in a way, you can say it makes you answerable to the world. i mean, the world has a piece of you. he was a compassionate and sensitive man, one who would cry along with the victims as they gave their harrowing evidence at the truth and reconciliation commission. it was tutu who coined the phrase rainbow nation to describe south africa's ethnic diversity, preaching unity in the face of adversity. but even after south africa became a democratic country, desmond tutu was not afraid to speak out against injustices, and he was often scathing in his criticism of the governing anc. i am warning you, i am warning you that we will pray as we prayed for the downfall of the apartheid government. we will pray for the downfall of a government that misrepresents us. a spiritualfigure with a global influence, there were few issues in the world that desmond tutu has not spoken out about. from human rights abuses to climate change to poverty. when you want peace, you negotiate not with your friends, that is at least what we discovered in south africa. that is what they discovered in northern ireland. you talk to the ones that you least like. i will remember his moral courage. after going on his knees, no situation was insurmountable. and for him, that romans passage that if god is for us, then nothing can be against us, it was not just a cliche, it was something that he lived. it is an enormous loss for south africa. but desmond tutu's irrepressible sense of humour and relentless pursuit ofjustice will long be remembered by all. tributes have been coming in from leaders around the world. the president of south africa, cyril ramaphosa, has posted on twitter saying "the passing of archbishop emeritus desmond tutu is another chapter of bereavement in our nation's farewell to a generation of outstanding south africans who have bequeathed us a liberated south africa." the prime minister of india, narenda modi, said "archbishop emeritus desmond tutu was a guiding light for countless people globally. his emphasis on human dignity and equality will be forever remembered. his emphasis on human dignity and equality will be forever remembered. i am deeply saddened by his demise, and extend my heartfelt condolences to all his admirers. may his soul rest in peace." let's get more reaction now from people in south africa to the archbishop�*s death. it is actually very sad and not only for south africa but for africa as a continent. we have lost a great icon, a father, a human who was there notjust for the south african people but for africa as a nation, africa as a unit, africa as one. i africa as a nation, africa as a unit, africa as one.— africa as a nation, africa as a unit, africa as one. i feelvery, ve , unit, africa as one. i feelvery, very. very _ unit, africa as one. i feelvery, very. very down _ unit, africa as one. i feelvery, very, very down emotionally i unit, africa as one. i feelvery, i very, very down emotionally right now because he was somebody that almost _ now because he was somebody that almost everybody liked, especially the kids. _ almost everybody liked, especially the kids, they loved him. xliter? almost everybody liked, especially the kids, they loved him. very sad, it was a real — the kids, they loved him. very sad, it was a real shock _ the kids, they loved him. very sad, it was a real shock to _ the kids, they loved him. very sad, it was a real shock to us. _ the kids, they loved him. very sad, it was a real shock to us. he - the kids, they loved him. very sad, it was a real shock to us. he was i the kids, they loved him. very sad, it was a real shock to us. he was a | it was a real shock to us. he was a ureat it was a real shock to us. he was a great man- — it was a real shock to us. he was a great man. somebody _ it was a real shock to us. he was a great man. somebody to - it was a real shock to us. he was a great man. somebody to look - it was a real shock to us. he was a great man. somebody to look up | it was a real shock to us. he was a l great man. somebody to look up to, we are really — great man. somebody to look up to, we are really going _ great man. somebody to look up to, we are really going to _ great man. somebody to look up to, we are really going to miss - great man. somebody to look up to, we are really going to miss him. - milton nkosi worked in the bbc�*s south africa bureau for 30 years — he has met and interviewed you knew him for quite a young age, give us an insight into what he was really like. my give us an insight into what he was reall like. y , give us an insight into what he was reall like. g , _, really like. my first encounter with desmond tutu _ really like. my first encounter with desmond tutu was _ really like. my first encounter with desmond tutu was in _ really like. my first encounter with desmond tutu was in 1977 - really like. my first encounter with desmond tutu was in 1977 when i l really like. my first encounter with i desmond tutu was in 1977 when i was still going through my catechism class in soweto. and i think you are still at dean at the time and the bishop ofjohannesburg, and that is when i really came to know desmond tutu and he came to live in the same time ship in soweto that i come from and i met him on numerous occasions and i met him on numerous occasions and got to understand and to be glued to his speeches and his rallying cry for freedom and also his great wicked sense of humour. he had such wicked and impish sense of humour. what made him such an effective campaigner against apartheid and from the point of view the white rulers of south africa, what made him so dangerous? i think because he was _ what made him so dangerous? i think because he was the _ what made him so dangerous? i think because he was the voice _ what made him so dangerous? i think because he was the voice of— what made him so dangerous? i think because he was the voice of the - because he was the voice of the voiceless at the time when people like nelson mandela were in prison and many other leaders were in exile and many other leaders were in exile and desmond tutu was then appointed to be secretary general of the south african council of churches in 1978 and that is when he started to reignite the energy within the church about the immorality of apartheid because as you will recall apartheid because as you will recall apartheid was used quite largely by the church within the white community as a justification of the system of separation, racial segregation by the white minority so desmond tutu brought the church back into the centre of that debate and his main characteristic was that he was eloquent and he was so forthright and he told it like it was. , ., ., forthright and he told it like it was. ,., ., ., ., was. there were some who wanted to o- ose was. there were some who wanted to oppose apartheid _ was. there were some who wanted to oppose apartheid through _ was. there were some who wanted to oppose apartheid through violent - oppose apartheid through violent struggle but he was very much a man of peace and won the nobel peace prize. ., ., , of peace and won the nobel peace prize. . ., "s of peace and won the nobel peace prize. . ., "3 ., prize. that was in 1984 when he won the nobel peace _ prize. that was in 1984 when he won the nobel peace prize _ prize. that was in 1984 when he won the nobel peace prize in _ prize. that was in 1984 when he won the nobel peace prize in recognition| the nobel peace prize in recognition of his fight against the evil system of his fight against the evil system of apartheid and also what he managed to do was galvanise people who did not want to get involved in the armed struggle of the african national congress that characterise their campaigns so he campaigned for international companies not to invest in apartheid south africa and that really got him quite close, face—to—face with the apartheid regime and they did not like at all. to sum up, when we look back at the history of the struggle against apartheid, where will desmond tutu stand in the pantheon of heroes of that struggle? he stand in the pantheon of heroes of that struggle?— stand in the pantheon of heroes of that stru: .le? , ., ., ' i: i: , ., that struggle? he is a hero 10096 and with that struggle? he is a hero 100% and with no doubt- _ that struggle? he is a hero 100% and with no doubt. in _ that struggle? he is a hero 100% and with no doubt. in fact, _ that struggle? he is a hero 100% and with no doubt. in fact, across - that struggle? he is a hero 100% and with no doubt. in fact, across the - with no doubt. in fact, across the spectrum know you will have heard from those vox pops black and white people mourned his death with equal measure. i remember robert mugabe did not like him and described him as an angry, evil embittered little bishop. he also got along with nelson mandela but they had differences. he told nelson mandela he did not like his fashion sense of the colourful shirts nelson mandela used to wear and nelson mandela said he would not be told how to dress up by a man who wears a dress in public. pa. by a man who wears a dress in ublic. �* ., by a man who wears a dress in ublic. �* . ., . ., ., , public. a great anecdote to finish with. public. a great anecdote to finish with- thank _ public. a great anecdote to finish with. thank you _ public. a great anecdote to finish with. thank you so _ public. a great anecdote to finish with. thank you so much - public. a great anecdote to finish with. thank you so much for- public. a great anecdote to finish with. thank you so much for your memories of desmond tutu who has died at the age of 90. the bbc spoke to the archbishop of canterbury, justin welby, who told us that desmond tutu had a great sense of humour. he had this kind that with forgiveness so he was angry with injustice so if the perpetrators of injustice turned away from what they'd done wrong he was quick to form forgiveness and form friendships. his life was patterned on jesus form friendships. his life was patterned onjesus christ form friendships. his life was patterned on jesus christ and form friendships. his life was patterned onjesus christ and he had this extraordinary bubbly overwhelming sense of humour. you laugh the whole time when you met him. the last time i met him two or three years ago i went to see him in south africa and he was there with his family and i think that stands out because here was someone who with his family was what you saw in public, you saw what you got. and he was there surrounded by those closest to him, he was up with the news and willing to tease and to challenge and he was just the most remarkable man and he used to send fantastic e—mails, always signed off as arch, short for archbishop and tv is extraordinary. but she also knew that to his dying day he was constantly focused on jesus christ and that was where he got his sense of integrity and truth from. new coronavirus restrictions have come into force in wales, scotland and northern ireland — to try to slow the spread of the 0micron variant in the uk. borisjohnson has not announced any further restrictions in england. ministers in england aren't expected to discuss whether to impose further measures until tomorrow. it comes as nearly 6,000 flights have been cancelled around the world over the christmas weekend, as the spread of the 0micron variant causes chaos in the airline industry. more than 100,000 daily infections have been recorded in france. that's a new record for three consecutive days. and cases of the virus are surging in countries around the world. we'll have more on the situation across europe in a moment, but first tomos morgan has been looking at how the rules now differ across the four nations of the uk. another winter and another set of restrictions. social life will be curtailed yet again in wales, scotland, and northern ireland as the devolved governments have brought restrictions in again as an attempt to slow the spread of the 0micron variant to ease pressure on the nhs and to give more people the opportunity to be boosted at mass vaccination centres. having only reopened less then six months ago, nightclubs will have to turn their lights off once again in both wales and northern ireland from today. some industry bosses feel like they're being made scapegoats in this latest round of rules. we've essentially had a.5 months of trade and we're back here again. and the issue is, we are not clear when this will be lifted. we have not been provided yet with any data on why this sector particularly has been closed and what conditions will need to be met for the sector to be reopened again. restrictions on large events and spectator sports will also apply from today in wales and scotland. they were due to be 10,000 fans here at cardiff's arms park today to watch the festive rugby derby — they will now have to watch from home. a total ban on spectators at sporting and large events in wales from now on. but in scotland, the premier league have moved their winter break forward due to measures to limiting maximum capacity in stadiums there, much to the dismay of fans. maximum capacity in stadiums there, across all hospitality venues, the rule of six is back in wales, as is social distancing. smaller tables mean smaller profits and two metres means fewer guests. the two metre rule obviously has a massive effect. new year's eve, we've got full capacity but with the two metre rule we've probably lost 20% of the capacity so we have had to phone a few people and unfortunately cancel people for new year's eve. while restrictions in northern ireland and scottish pubs and restaurants come into force tomorrow, the stormont executive said they would keep the measures under review. the public theirs would be in place for at least three weeks. meanwhile, her counterpart further south, mark drakeford, said rules will be reviewed frequently. his next three—weekly assessment is due at the end ofjanuary. with large events due to be attended by thousands of people across the uk called off, it looks like this new year's eve will be just as subdued as the last. more than 1,500 flights across the globe were scrapped on sunday, bringing more misery for travellers planning to fly over the festive period. according to flightaware data tracking website, nearly 6,000 flights have been cancelled today, christmas day and christmas eve. chinese and us airlines appear to be the hardest hit. further disruption is expected on monday. companies have blamed staff shortages on the fast—spreading 0micron variant. simon calder is the travel writer and editor of the independent. bring us up to date with the situation in the united states. it certainly is. if you are at gate b ten at all airport in chicago hoping catch the first united flight to houston it is not going anywhere. —— 0'hare. . the airline saying it is cancelled during two covid affecting crew availability. there were around 150,000 people affected by flights being cancelled on christmas eve and christmas day and the spread of 0micron means the airlines don't have enough pilots and flight attendants and dealt out, jet blue and united are the worst affected. the chief executive of delta said last week to the us health regulator please reduce the length of isolation because we can't run our airline. well over 500 cancellations today just within the airline. well over 500 cancellations todayjust within the united states and a fair share in europe but most of those due to the various travel bans in place. for example, easyjet has cancelled flights from gatwick to munich and berlin and bog roll and to nice and to paris. —— bordeaux. the uk does not look too bad because partly of all those cancellations. a good 10% to 15% or 15% have been taken out of the system that were expected and while there are some impacts of 0micron spreading affecting ground staff and flight crew pretty much everything is running to time. we are seeing quite a lot of flights get away airily which is a good thing. security queues are very small at the airports. i have monitored them. for anybody hoping to get away on boxing day it should be a good experience but i am afraid and gatwick airport there will be people waiting for a flight that was supposed to be leaving on the 23rd of december from sanjose supposed to be leaving on the 23rd of decemberfrom sanjose in supposed to be leaving on the 23rd of december from sanjose in costa rica and it will only get ten this afternoon. passengers on board, i have been in touch with a number of them, they have been having the most miserable christmas when they were hoping to be back in good time to spend it with their families. as we've been hearing, cases of the new 0micron variant are surging across europe, to talk about that a bit more, we can speak now to dr raffaele bruno who is professor of infectious diseases at the university of pavia in italy. thank you for being with us as the covid situation in italy, at the beginning of the pandemic italy was having so many cases, what is the situation now?— situation now? right now the situation now? right now the situation in _ situation now? right now the situation in italy _ situation now? right now the situation in italy is _ situation now? right now the situation in italy is worseningj situation in italy is worsening rapidly and we now have more than 50,000 people infected. however the pressure on hospitals is sustainable. the prevalent strain is 0micron. i would like to underline we need over 12% of already vaccinated. —— the majority of the population over 12 are already vaccinated. right now the problem is the north but the spread is very fast because right now it is rich in the south of italy.— the south of italy. what sort of government — the south of italy. what sort of government restrictions - the south of italy. what sort of government restrictions are . the south of italy. what sort of government restrictions are in | the south of italy. what sort of - government restrictions are in place to slow the spread of coronavirus and the new variant it is compulsory to wear a mask _ and the new variant it is compulsory to wear a mask even _ and the new variant it is compulsory to wear a mask even outdoors - and the new variant it is compulsory to wear a mask even outdoors and l and the new variant it is compulsory. to wear a mask even outdoors and all concerts and all parties are banned until the end of january. concerts and all parties are banned until the end ofjanuary. 1&5 concerts and all parties are banned until the end of january. 1&5 i concerts and all parties are banned until the end ofjanuary.— until the end ofjanuary. as i was sa in: , until the end ofjanuary. as i was saying. italy _ until the end ofjanuary. as i was saying. ltaly has _ until the end ofjanuary. as i was saying, italy has suffered - until the end ofjanuary. as i was saying, italy has suffered as - until the end ofjanuary. as i wasl saying, italy has suffered as much if not more than most european countries in terms of deaths. what about the vaccine take in italy at the moment, how many people are being vaccinated against covid? be’s being vaccinated against covid? 8596 ofthe being vaccinated against covid? 35:96 of the population over 12 is already vaccinated. ~ ., of the population over 12 is already vaccinated. ~ . ., of the population over 12 is already vaccinated-— of the population over 12 is already vaccinated. ~ . ., vaccinated. what about the booster programme — vaccinated. what about the booster programme which _ vaccinated. what about the booster programme which he _ vaccinated. what about the booster programme which he had _ vaccinated. what about the booster programme which he had in - vaccinated. what about the booster programme which he had in the - vaccinated. what about the booster programme which he had in the uk| vaccinated. what about the booster . programme which he had in the uk the government are really prioritising, getting boosterjabs into as many people as possible, is that the same in italy? people as possible, is that the same in ital ? ., , in italy? the same in italy. the focus of the — in italy? the same in italy. the focus of the government - in italy? the same in italy. the focus of the government is - in italy? the same in italy. the focus of the government is to i in italy? the same in italy. the - focus of the government is to push at the maximum level the possibility to do the third dose, the booster dose.~ . to do the third dose, the booster dose. ~ ., , to do the third dose, the booster dose. ~ . , ., , dose. what is the mood of people in ital ? dose. what is the mood of people in ltaly? they — dose. what is the mood of people in italy? they suffered _ dose. what is the mood of people in italy? they suffered so _ dose. what is the mood of people in italy? they suffered so much - dose. what is the mood of people in italy? they suffered so much at - dose. what is the mood of people in italy? they suffered so much at the| italy? they suffered so much at the very beginning of the pandemic. this must feel it has been such a long struggle for them and they must be desperately really. the struggle for them and they must be desperately really.— desperately really. the situation is worsenina desperately really. the situation is worsening and _ desperately really. the situation is worsening and people _ desperately really. the situation is worsening and people are - desperately really. the situation is worsening and people are afraid i worsening and people are afraid because it is like the first wave of the situation. thank you very much for speaking to us. for some, a dip in the sea is as much of a christmas tradition as turkey and crackers. 0n the yorkshire coast in northern england, swimmers will be hopping into the north sea, braving the waves in all manner of costumes and fancy dress. alison freeman has been to meet some of them. they're used to being in the cold and getting wet, but the lads from redcar rugby club's under—1as are still a little nervous aboutjumping in the north sea as part of the annual boxing day dip. freezing! it's going to be horrible. it will be very cold. i know that. but they're doing it for a good cause, thejunction, a charity in the town which helps support the mental health of young people like them and their friends. i'd just lost a whole lot of confidence, like not being able to talk to people, just normal day—to—day general stuff. i needed it in primary because it was bad in there. so they took me into a room and they talked to me and asked how i was and then they tried to help me through it. how did that make you feel? it made me feel better, a lot better. we've seen, kind of, an increase in numbers accessing our service due to covid, limiting people social activity, the community fund—raisers are a vital part of our funding stream and the money they raise is able to buy resources and materials that we just wouldn't have been able to provide otherwise. adam illingworth is the reason his mum kate will be taking part in the dip for a fourth time. mum kate will be taking part aged five he was diagnosed with a brain tumour and spent a lot of time in hospital, where his family relied upon the support of young lives vs cancer. to see him going through all that was horrendous. but the help and support you do get from the likes of young lives vs cancer is just amazing. and they were always there for us. any time of the day, night, any time, they helped us so much. despite beating cancer, adam died at the age of 20 from a seizure. so his family set up a fund in his name to support the charity that helped him. the rugby boys will be braving the cold as a team. something that their coach, who is also kaiden's mum, thinks is important. the team are getting behind them and sort of backing them up, that is really good and really special. are you going to be going in the water? is it worth it because you you will be raising money? yes. if you just do it for a laugh there's not really a point, is there, it's just getting cold. alison freeman, bbc news, redcar. please mr postman, has died at the aged of 78. young was the lead singer of the marvelettes for several years in the nineteen 1960s, before going on to have a solo career. the marvelettes were widely regarded as first key female motown group. hello, merry christmas. if you have plans today to get out for a boxing day walk, the weather looks really mixed out there. we have a bit of everything thrown into the forecast. some rain and sleet and hill snow around but it should ease later on. and there will be some sunshine for those lucky few across parts of south—west england, wales and perhaps northern ireland. for the bulk of the uk, though, it is quite cloudy. we have a couple of weather fronts pushing northwards. as milder air pushes into that cold air that's still in place across the north—east of the uk, that's where we see that mix of rain, sleet and hill snow. there's been quite heavy snow for the pennines and the southern uplands as well. as we move into the afternoon, most of this snow in the north will tend to ease a little bit. but we will still see quite a lot of wet weather across parts of eastern england, some low cloud, some murkiness around, too. some brighter skies for parts of northern ireland and wales and the south west but still a few showers working in, and it will feel quite breezy, too — average winds around 1a mph in the east but we could see gusts of up to about a0 mph. it's not going to feel particularly warm — four or five degrees across scotland and northern england, particularly where you've got lying snow around into the afternoon. a bit milder towards the south and south—west. through this evening and overnight, we'll see some drier weather developing, but also some quite extensive mist and fog as well — quite a murky night for many of us. temperatures holding on into mid single figures for most places, but we'll see a touch of frost for parts of northern england and scotland under some clearer spells with lying snow around in places still. heading on into monday, the next area of low pressure arrives from the south—west bringing potentially wet and quite windy weather for the likes of the channel islands, south—west england into wales through the course of the morning. pushing slowly north and east, so much of wales and the southern half of england seeing some blustery and wet weather. but further north for northern england, northern ireland and scotland, an improved day on monday with some sunshine coming through — six or seven in the north and 11 or 12 further south. so, quite a contrast in temperature at the moment, but we have got very mild air working in through the course of this week across all of the uk, dragging in that breeze from the south—west. so, it looks fairly unsettled for the final week of 2021, but temperatures certainly very mild, 16 or 17 degrees through the middle of the week. an unsettled end, though, for 2021. bye— bye. this is bbc news. the headlines... archbishop desmond tutu, nobel peace prize laureate and veteran of south africa's struggle against apartheid, has died at the age of 90. after nelson mandela became president, tutu headed the truth and reconciliation commission, investigating the crimes of the apartheid era. new coronavirus restrictions have come into force in scotland, wales and northern ireland, to try to slow the spread of the 0micron variant in the uk. england is waiting for more data. more than 6,000 flights have been cancelled around the world over the christmas weekend, as the spread of the 0micron variant continues to cause chaos in the airline industry. police in britain have arrested a 19—year—old man who broke into the grounds of windsor castle, where the queen is spending christmas. now on bbc news, review 2021, the year in politics.