highness. and still to come... coming up in sportsday on the bbc news channel: the fifth ashes test gets under way in hobart overnight. we hearfrom the england camp on salvaging pride and managing injuries. shoppers splashed out at christmas last year, despite the arrival of the 0micron variant. retail christmas sales soared, according to the latest figures. tesco and marks and spencer had a particularly good christmas, compared to two years ago, with m&s's overall sales up around 9% and tesco's up by 7.5%. 0ther other brands including sainsbury�*s, nxt and b and m have also reported strong christmas sales. but retailers are now wondering what will happen to consumer spending, given the looming squeeze on living standards from rising bills. our business correspondent emma simpson reports from colchester. carol singing