Sandish Shoker
BBC News

The memorial has started at Guildford Cathedral for Eric Swaffer and Izabela Lechowicz who died in the helicopter crash at the King Power Stadium in Leicester.

Ben Gonzales, a friend and colleague from King Power International, said the support from the "aviation family" since the crash "has been unbelievable".

Close friend and colleague of Ms Lechowicz, Nick Metcalfe, said: "Izzy had such ambition and motivation" and called her a "role model for women in the aviation community in Poland".

He said the couple "certainly lived life to the full" and it was "fitting they were together at the end".

Nick Smith
BBC News Online

A man has been jailed for a stabbing which happened in front of a police officer because he believed the victim took too long in a queue at an Asda petrol station.

Jack Oldfield, 26, of Stanhope Road, Swadlincote, pleaded guilty to wounding with intent and three counts of carrying a bladed weapon after stabbing 30-year-old Robert Taylor at the garage in Burton Road, Woodville, on 11 July this year.

He was jailed for eight years at Derby Crown Court on 16 November.

Image source, Derbyshire Police

CCTV footage captured the moment Mr Taylor was stabbed in front of PC Kim Wheldon, who had just finished refueling her car. PC Wheldon detained Oldfield and called for back up.

David Pittam
BBC News Online

Firefighters have released images of an overturned car thrown from the road into a field in a crash.

No-one was injured in the crash attended by the Melton Mowbray Fire Station on Tuesday.

Image source, Melton Mowbray Fire Station

But the service wanted to use the images from the crash on Melton Road in Long Clawson to highlight how dangerous roads can become in cold and wet months and how drivers should "adjust your driving to reflect this".

Image source, Melton Mowbray Fire Station

Amy Woodfield
BBC News

An investigation into the helicopter crash in Leicester has found the aircraft lost control after the pilot's pedals became disconnected from the tail rotor blades.

Image source, Pete White

The Air Accident Investigation Branch, who have been carrying out the investigation, said the tail rotor actuator control shaft became disconnected from the actuator lever mechanism.

This disconnected the pilot's pedals in the cockpit.

Image source, Air Accident Investigation Branch

The Leicester City chairman Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha and four other people died when the aircraft came down aftera game at King Power Stadium in October.

David Pittam
BBC News Online

A man and a woman who died in a crash on a Leicester road have been named by police.

Kye Cunningham, 30, and Laura Cramp, 25, died in a crash involving a BMW late on Friday, 23 November.

Two other men were taken to hospital with serious injuries. One is still in a serious condition, the other has been discharged.

Police said they arrested a 25-year-old man in connection with the crash on Soar Valley Way, near Fosse Park, and released him pending further inquiries.

The investigation continues.

Image source, Google

Leicestershire chief executive Wasim Khan is to leave the county to become managing director of the Pakistan Cricket Board.

Rachel Taylor, from Derby, is jailed for smuggling drugs and mobile phones into a Nottinghamshire prison.

Nick Smith
BBC News Online

Leicestershire Cricket Club's chief executive Wasim Khan is to leave the club as early as February to become the new managing director of the Pakistan Cricket Board.

In a statement, the club reflected on Mr Khan's "four successful years at the helm of Leicestershire CCC", saying the club made "significant progress" during his tenure.

Mr Khan said: “It is with sadness that I am bringing my time with Leicestershire County Cricket Club to an end.

"However, this is an extremely exciting opportunity to lead Pakistan cricket in the international game. It is something that I couldn’t turn down."

Image source, Leicestershire County Cricket Club

Hugh Casswell
Political reporter, BBC Radio Nottingham

Nottinghamshire County Council has approved plans to install permanent anti-terror barriers around the City Ground and Trent Bridge cricket ground.

They will replace the temporary barriers already in place and could cost £850,000.

The council are keen for the barriers to be more "aesthetically pleasing" than the ones currently on Trent Bridge.

From what I understand, they're likely to be bollards similar to those recently installed around the Victoria Centre, but could have club crests stamped on them as well.

BBC Sport

Mansfield boss David Flitcroft has likened the lack of patience shown to managers in modern football to the dating app Tinder.

"Everyone wants things instantly now," he told BBC Radio Nottingham. "You can put a boxset on and watch it for 10 hours instead of waiting for a week for the next episode.

"You used to have to chat a bird up but now you can just swipe left or right on Tinder. It's the way life is. Nobody's got any patience anymore.

"There's no respect for building or time. People just want things now."

The Stags boss was asked about the managerial situation at rivals Notts County, who are on their third boss of the season and travel to Mansfield on Saturday.

Image source, Getty Images

Sandish Shoker
BBC News

A memorial is taking place in Surrey today of two pilots who died in the helicopter crash at Leicester City FC in October.

The helicopter's pilot Eric Swaffer and his partner Izabela Lechowicz, who was a passenger on the night but also a pilot, lived in Camberley, Surrey.

Image source, The Vegan Society

A public service will be held at Guildford Cathedral this afternoon.

Photos of the pair, who have been described by their families as "passionate about many things" including animal welfare and veganism - have been placed inside the cathedral.

Gavin Bevis
BBC News

A woman has been jailed for eight years after being found guilty of killing her boyfriend during a row at a hot tub party.

Demi Harris, 21, found Christopher Pearson naked in the tub with two men and two women at their home in Hucknall on 18 February.

Harris fatally stabbed the 39-year-old after he pulled her into the tub fully clothed when she complained about noise.

She was cleared of murder but convicted of manslaughter at Nottingham Crown Court in October.

Amy Woodfield
BBC News

An administration assistant at HMP Lowdham Grange has been jailed for smuggling drugs and mobile phones to inmates.

Nottinghamshire Police said 24-year-old Rachel Taylor was working in the psychology department of the prison in March 2016 when her colleagues became suspicions of her relationships with two prisoners.

Image source, Nottinghamshire Police

Later that year, officers searched the cells of Raphael Davis and Jordache Smith-Challis (pictured) and found mobile phone parts and drugs.

A diary also found by the East Midlands Special Operations Unit found evidence of Taylor’s involvement, along with mobile phones and cannabis found at her home.

Money was also found to have been transferred into her bank account by Davis, his girlfriend and Smith-Challis's mother.

Image source, Metropolitan Police

Taylor, from Merrill Way in Derby, has been jailed for two-and-a-half years.

Davis, 27, was sentenced to four years imprisonment for conspiracy to supply Class B drugs and conspiracy to convey Class B drugs into prison.

Smith-Challis, 24, was sentenced to three years for the same offences.

Shelagh Challis, 43, from Bexhill Road in Brighton, was given a 12-month community order for possession of criminal property.

Cherrice Bennett, from Tile Croft in Stourbridge, Dudley, was sentenced to a four-month custodial sentence, suspended for 18 months. The 26-year-old also has to carry out 100 hours of unpaid work for possession of criminal property.

Mansfield boss David Flitcroft likens the lack of patience shown to managers in modern football to the dating app Tinder.

England woke up to spectacular purple skies this morning, with BBC Weather Watchers sharing images from across the country.

BBC Radio Nottingham

Leicester is a better place for shoppers to park than Nottingham, says a retailer with a foot in both cities.

Sangita Tryner, who runs Delilah Fine Foods, opened a second branch in Leicester this year.

She says there's a marked difference in how motorists are treated - with the high cost of parking in Nottingham putting people off "popping in" to shops.

But the city council says the fact Nottingham's car parks are constantly busy suggests the charges are appropriate.

Image source, Google

Amy Payne
Reporter, BBC East Midlands Today

One of three men accused of causing a huge explosion in Leicester which killed five people has denied he was involved.

Hawkar Hassan (middle) is one of three men charged with murder, manslaughter and conspiracy to commit fraud in relation to the blast at a Polish convenience store on Hinckley Road in February.

It is alleged his role was to drive a co-defendant away from the scene to the home they shared in Coventry after the explosion.Today his legal representative Peter Birkett QC said: "You were the getaway driver, that's the allegation. Do you understand?"

He said: "No, I'd never do this, this is wrong. Nothing to do with me."

He told the jury at Leicester Crown Court he first found out about the explosion the next morning from his Facebook feed and television news, saying he was "shocked".

Image source, EPA

Mr Hassan also denied claims that he, Aram Kurd and Arkan Ali planned the explosion so they could benefit from an insurance payout.

The three men are accused of meeting at the city's Highcross Shopping Centre hours before the blast took place.

When asked if there was any discussion about starting a fire Mr Hassan said: "No, I didn't hear anything."

Mr Kurd, Mr Hassan and Mr Ali deny all charges. The trial continues.

Sandish Shoker
BBC News

For those who are feeling generous as Christmas approaches, Nottinghamshire Police has a warning - be careful of bogus charity collectors.

Two girls, aged 14 and 17, were arrested in the city centre on Tuesday after they were suspected of fraudulently collecting money for a deaf charity.

Image source, Getty Images

The force said they have also had reports of distraction thefts where people carrying clipboards and claiming to be raising money for charity have used a petition to distract a member of the public while money from a purse or wallet is stolen.

On Saturday two other teenage girls, aged 18 and 16, were arrested on suspicion of theft in West Bridgford.

The girls arrested on both occasions have since been released under investigation.

Amy Woodfield
BBC News

Who needs tinsel and baubles when you have police tape and warning notices? Not Blaby police.

Image source, Leicestershire Police

Amy Woodfield
BBC News

Scientists from the University of Nottingham are involved in the first UK-led experiment on the International Space Station.

The institution was involved in launching into space a cargo of microscopic nematode worms from the Kennedy Space Centre last night.

The worms - which have their own Twitter account, external - will travel to the ISS to be part of a Molecular Muscle experiment.

This will test new therapies to try to prevent muscle loss in zero-gravity. Currently astronauts lose up to 40% of their muscle after six months in space.