From memoir to movie - here's the story behind The Boy with the Topknot, which featured on BBC Two recently.

The 90-minute film was eight years in the making and adapted from a memoir by the journalist Sathnam Sanghera about his upbringing in Wolverhampton and relations as an adult with his family.

The BBC Academy look at how it was made in the West Midlands.

Wolverhampton is preparing to switch on its Christmas lights, external tonight, as well as host a firework display.

A festive market is being held along Dudley Street until 20:00 - and a number of shops are offering late night shopping.

Here are the road closures in the city centre.

Image source, Google

Plus - Leeds United are travelling to Molineux tonight.

The club is reminding supporters, external to arrive early for the 19:45 kick-off, as roads around the stadium will be closed off.

Image source, Wolves

And for those interested in Christmas... The lights will be switched on at 18:30 by stars from this year's pantomime Jack and the Beanstalk, featuring at the Grand Theatre.

Comedian Sean Lock is also in town at the Civic Hall., external

Nicholas Redding is among three people who have absconded from a Buckinghamshire jail.

An assurance of extra spending power for the Midlands leaves Labour unimpressed

Tim Page
News Editor, BBC Shropshire

A restaurant and bar in Oswestry will go ahead with its outdoor Christmas events in its beer garden over the festive period as planned.

The Townhouse had asked for permission to run the events, featuring food, drink and music, in a tepee in the walled garden on 17 nights in December, though local residents raised concerns about noise.

Image source, Google

Shropshire Council’s licensing committee has granted an extension to its current license to run entertainment at the venue until 01:00 on Friday and Saturday nights throughout December.

The son of a 56-year-old woman found dead at a house in Warwickshire says she was "the greatest mum I could ever have wished for".

Patricia McIntosh, was found at a house in Knightcote last Wednesday, with facial injuries.

Image source, Warwickshire Police

Her husband Andrew Thomas McIntosh, 54, of Woolscott, Warwickshire, appeared in court yesterday charged with her murder.

A trial date has been set for May next year.

Shrewsbury Town boss Paul Hurst says losing to bottom club Bury highlights a need to strengthen the squad in January.

BBC Shropshire

Ambulances have been parked up for more than 70 hours waiting to handover patients at Shropshire's two main hospitals this week, according to health bosses.

Image source, Google

The NHS trust that runs the Royal Shrewsbury and Princess Royal says Monday was its second busiest day of the year.

Managers say one ambulance had to wait more than four hours to hand over a patient at Shrewsbury and are reminding people to only go to A&E if they are "seriously unwell or critically injured".

BBC Weather Watchers

A range of typical autumn scenes for you now, care of our BBC Weather Watchers.

They come from users GrannyAnne in Tibberton, Alvechurchweather in Alvechurch and Savannahuk in Telford.

Image source, GrannyAnne

Image source, Alvechurchweather

Image source, Savannahuk

The pop star and TV celebrity Aleesha Dixon will be special guest at Coventry's Christmas lights switch-on later.

The Britain's Got Talent judge will be performing in Broadgate where a host of activities will be taking place from 17:00, external

Faith Page
Reporter, BBC Shropshire

A charity that helps former military personnel to overcome problems like post-traumatic stress disorder has confirmed it's ending residential treatment at a centre in Shropshire., external

Image source, Combat Stress

Combat Stress says it's shutting its residential centre for Specialist Clinical Treatment at Audley Court, Newport , externalbut is exploring the possibility of keeping some out-patient services.

The charity says it has seen a 143% increase in referrals for specialist treatment which has made it "more challenging" to provide treatment for former servicemen and women.

Combat Stress, which has been consulting on the plans, says it can't confirm the number of people who'll be made redundant until next month.

Life-long Aston Villa fan Prince William is visiting his club today as he and Kate tour the West Midlands.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are meeting apprentices at Coach Core which was set up by The Royal Foundation in 2012, external "to help young people graduate with qualifications in sports coaching and leadership".

Hereford Times

These are among the main headlines on the Hereford Times website today:

• Owners send warning after car crashes into house near Hereford, external
• Primary school opens new outdoor learning cabin, external
• Manager on Hereford's back-to-back home wins, external

The arrests follow two ATM thefts within 24 hours in Leicestershire.

Just in from the Budget.

The chancellor says it "cannot be right" to leave properties empty "when so many are desperate for a place to live".

Local authorities will now have the power to charge a 100% council tax premium on empty properties.

On rough sleeping, he says it is "unacceptable that in 21st century Britain there are people sleeping on the streets".

The government will invest £28m in three new “Housing First” pilots in the West Midlands, Manchester and Liverpool in response.

And the government will establish a homelessness taskforce in a bid to halve rough sleeping by 2022 and eliminate it by 2027, Philip Hammond said.

Worcester Warriors flanker Sam Lewis signs a new, undisclosed-length 'long-term' contract.

Statues vandalised during Birmingham's Big Sleuth Trail are gifted to a city recycling centre.

Faith Page
Reporter, BBC Shropshire

The Conservative MP for the Wrekin says plans to reorganise hospital services in Shropshire are "not fit for purpose".

Image source, Google

Mark Pritchard has been meeting the Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt and strongly believes the best option for the county would be to leave the Shrewsbury and Telford hospitals as they are.

He would then want to see a new, smaller hospital built in between the towns to deal with emergency care.

A public consultation on the future of hospital services is expected soon, external. At the moment the document only looks at the option of specialising care at the existing hospitals. An earlier report ruled out the option of a new, third hospital as costing too much.

The Budget might be the big news in Parliament today, but Nigel Huddleston, MP for Mid Worcestershire, used Prime Minister's Questions to call for grandparents to be given better access to children after a family break-up.

"If access to their grandchildren is removed or blocked, some grandparents call this a form of living bereavement," he told fellow MPs, external.

He called for a change in the law to give grandparents access rights.

Image source, House of Commons

Prime Minister Theresa May said many grandparents played a key role in the lives of children and understood the "anguish" experienced by many.

She said the first responsibility was to the child, but family courts already had the power to grant grandparents access.

The Sentinel

Here are some of the top stories The Sentinel is covering today on its website:

• Body found in park believed to be missing man, external
• First Potteries bus fares are going up this weekend , external
• Burslem's Ryan Colclough scores two for Wigan and is subbed to attend birth of son, external