Lee Agnew
BBC Three Counties Radio

A gross misconduct investigation at Bedfordshire Police in the case of an officer who suffered racial discrimination has been widened.

Five more officers and staff members are being investigated by the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) in the case of  Harmit Bahra , who won a £200,000 payout from the force.

It takes the total to 11 Bedfordshire officers and four staff members who are under scrutiny. They will now be interviewed by the IPCC.

Image source, Google

BBC Weather Watchers

Sadly today isn't quiet as nice as yesterday - we've had a bit of a cloudy day, as this BBC Weather Watcher picture shows . 

The good news is that the cloud should break up to reveal some spells of sunshine and the odd chance of a shower.   

Maximum Temperature: 16C (61F).   

The new town is celebrating its 50th birthday and a herd of heifers has come to join the party.

Katy Lewis
BBC Local Live

A man from Bedford who admitted hitting a woman with a wheel-brace has avoided jail.

John Kinsella has been given a 15-month sentence for actual bodily harm, suspended for one and half years.

His victim had written to the judge to say he wasn't guilty and she wanted to marry him.

Kinsella, 44, of Crown Quay, Prebend Street, Bedford, pleaded guilty at Luton Crown Court on 6 March to causing actual bodily harm, but sentencing was delayed because the judge wanted to find out why she said he was not guilty.

He also admitted having an offensive weapon and driving with no insurance.  

The court heard police were alerted to the attack by someone who saw him hitting his victim in a black Mercedes.

The witness could see the woman being punched and covered in blood, but when officers went to Kinsella's home a woman told them she hadn't been assaulted.

When officers viewed CCTV from the scene they realised the woman they had spoken to was not the one who had been assaulted.

The Mercedes was stopped by the police later that night and the woman on the CCTV was in the passenger seat. 

Blood was coming from a wound on her head, she had a reddening to the bridge of her nose and bruising around her eyes, prosecutor Sean Smith told the court. 

The victim did not make a statement to police, but later wrote the letter to the judge.

Dani Bailey
BBC Local Live

Today is the day that police dog Finn officially starts his retirement.

After seven years of loyal service, he's now off duty as he retired from Hertfordshire Police on Thursday.

Finn was stabbed on duty in Stevenage last October but went on to make a miraculous recovery and returned to service.

You can watch his story below...

Katy Lewis
BBC Local Live

You can't celebrate the 50th anniversary of Milton Keynes without milking the story of their concrete cows.

The Herd About MK, external project, which has just been unveiled at Centre:MK, looks to raise funds for three local charities - Willen Hospice, MK Community Foundation and MK Dons SET.

Fifty organisations have sponsored a cow, which they beefed up and decorated as they saw fit.

Don't they look udderly brilliant!

All of them will be mooooved around the city throughout the year, with a number of showcases planned at different landmark sites.

You can hoof down to Middleton Hall this weekend, where you can see all the creations. 

In the summer holidays eight or nine cows will be hidden in the town each weekend. The cows' sponsors will provide a series of clues to help the public find them.

North Wales police have released a statement saying the recovery of the bodies of the five family members killers in a helicopter crash in Snowdonia has resumed. 

Feared to be among the dead are Milton Keynes businessman Kevin Burke and his wife Ruth, who are from the Bedfordshire village of Hulcote - near junction 13 of the M1. 

Police say weather conditions are still "very poor" and the area is "very challenging", with "hazardous terrain and under-foot conditions".

They say because of this the recovery is expected to take some time. 

Work had to be suspended last night due to poor weather conditions. 

Alex Pope
BBC Local Live

The licence of a Bedford nightclub has been suspended after a number of violent incidents were reported to police.

They include a man being stabbed at Vibe, on St Peter's Street, at the weekend. 

The Bedfordshire Police licensing team said a full review hearing would take place next month.

Image source, Google

Simon Oxley
BBC Three Counties Radio

Animal rescue specialists were called to retrieve a horse stuck in deep mud and silt in Buckinghamshire yesterday.

Image source, Bucks and MK Fire

It was found on Old Rectory Lane in Denham in the Colne Valley.

Image source, Bucks and MK Fire

Firefighters were also called and they managed to prise it out, give it a brush down and left it in the care of a local vet.

Brennan Nicholls
BBC News

A football-playing tortoise from Aylesbury has become an internet sensation.

A film of Bubba crawling at speed (seriously!) across the kitchen floor while nudging a purple ball has clocked up more than 60m views so far. 

You can watch it on the link below...

Owner Paul Milham said: "The ball happened to be on the floor and we got him out as we usually do just to have a runaround and exercise and he saw this ball and went for it, which had us in stitches, so I thought I'd record it and stick it out for a bit of fun on Twitter." 

His daughter Ciara said: "It's just the fact that it's a tortoise going so quickly - that's not what people think tortoises are like."

Katy Lewis
BBC Local Live

It's not exactly Club Tropicana, but the dilapidated scout hut where George Michael played his very first gig is getting a makeover.

Image source, PA

Michael moved with his family to Bushey in Hertfordshire in his teens, where he met Andrew Ridgeley, a fellow pupil at Bushey Meads School.

The two discovered they had a shared interest in music and in 1981 they formed Wham! - in The Three Crowns pub where they met Pepsi and Shirlie.

In a 2006 interview he revealed his first gig was at a scout hut in Bushey in front of 400-500 people, but it is not clear exactly what year this was, only that it was pre-Wham!

The 1st Bushey Heath Scouts launched a £20,000 Buy a Brick Scheme to give their HQ a new lease of life. New windows and woodwork have already been installed, but about £5,000 more needs to be raised to complete the revamp.

Image source, Michael Duffy

Image source, Michael Duffy

Michael Duffy, who is the scout group chairman and owner of The Three Crowns pub, said: "Interestingly the stage is still pretty much as it was when George performed on it and we want to keep it just as it is."  

He added that they may even put up some kind of plaque, because it "would be good to commemorate a wee bit of pop history".

BBC Sport

League One side Northampton Town have signed striker Leon Lobjoit from non-league Buckingham Town on a two-year deal.

The 22-year-old has scored 62 goals in 36 games for the team who play in the 10th tier of English football.

Image source, Getty Images

He has spent time at MK Dons and Coventry City during his career and impressed on trial at the Cobblers.

"His attitude since coming in has been first class," boss Justin Edinburgh told  the club's website., external

"Leon knows this is an important opportunity for him and he is determined to take it."

BBC Wales News

The recovery of the bodies of five family members killed in a helicopter crash in north Wales is due to continue today .

Image source, Facebook

Two of those on board have been named locally as  Kevin and Ruth Burke  from Hulcote, near Milton Keynes, who were travelling to a christening in Dublin. 

North Wales Police said the victims were all adults and members of the "same extended family" from the Milton Keynes area.

The helicopter had left what's been described as "the Luton area" before losing radar contact at about 16:00 on Wednesday and crashing in the Rhinog mountains, between Harlech and Trawsfynydd in Gwynedd.

Image source, PA

A search started on Wednesday and on Thursday rescue teams faced poor weather on the "treacherous terrain" around the site.

A mountain rescue team found the wreckage before the bodies of all five people were found.  

Specialist officers from North Wales Police will continue recovery of the bodies.

The Air Accident Investigation Branch will then begin the forensic recovery of the Twin Squirrel helicopter, registered to Kevin and Ruth Burke, who are believed to have been directors of the Milton Keynes-based Staske Construction company.

Simon Oxley
BBC Three Counties Radio

Dallow Road in Luton is closed this morning while police investigate a shooting. 

Bedfordshire Police says it was called to the area at about 21:20 on Thursday after reports a man had been shot.

He was taken to hospital with serious, but not life-threatening injuries.

One man has been arrested and is being questioned. 

The road remains shut between Shirley Road and Vernon Road.

Elizabeth Rizzini
BBC Look East weather

It will be a very mild start to the day, with any early brightness soon clouding over.

Through the afternoon the cloud will break up to reveal some good spells of sunshine and just the outside chance of a shower.

It will be a little less warm than yesterday, but temperatures could still reach 17C (63F).

Here's my full forecast...

You can find more details on the BBC Weather website .

Katy Lewis
BBC Local Live

Good morning and welcome to another day of live updates from Beds, Herts and Bucks. We'll be here from now until 18:00 bringing you the very latest news, sport, weather and travel.

Today we'll bring you the latest news from Wales as the recovery of the bodies of five family members killed in a helicopter crash resumes.  

But first, as always, there'll be a full regional weather forecast. 

If you want to get in touch, you can do it by  email ,  Facebook, external  or  Twitter, external .        

BBC football expert Mark Lawrenson takes on comedian and actor Omid Djalili in this week's Premier League predictions.

Thanks for joining us today. The main story we have covered concerns a helicopter crash in which five people were killed.

Ruth and Kevin Burke, from Hulcote, near Milton Keynes , and three other family members were killed when the aircraft they were travelling in crashed in mountains in north Wales, having taken off earlier from the Luton area.

Image source, Facebook

Our live updates have now finished until 08:00 tomorrow but any breaking news will appear here overnight.

Thanks for joining us and have a good night.

Julie Reinger
BBC Look East weather

Any evening showers should soon ease, to leave mostly dry conditions for the rest of the night with some clear spells. It will be mild with a minimum temperature of 10C (50F).

Tomorrow morning some showery rain will move eastwards. By the afternoon it will turn drier and brighter, with sunny spells and a few light showers. 

It'll be a little less warm than today with a maximum temperature of about 17C (63F).

There are more details on BBC Weather website .

Alex Harris
BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

A Romanian man has been jailed for more than eight years for his part in a number of jewellery store raids across England, including two at Fraser Hart in Peterborough and Milton Keynes. 

Six members of a gang have already been sentenced for stealing jewellery worth more than £3m from 11 stores. 

Cosmin Moraru, 25, from Spring Grove, Naden Road, Birmingham, was today sentenced to six years and six months for conspiracy to commit burglaries and 18 months for conspiracy to commit arson, at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court.