Katy Prickett
BBC News

Essex-based band Shooty and the Bang Bang were raising funds for The Robin Cancer Trust, external at a Boxing Day gig in Colchester when some thieves broke into their car and stole £12,000-worth of equipment. 

In a bid to replace it, they've set up a Crowdfunding page, external which features a range of eye-catching incentives.  

Image source, Crowdfunder

You can donate money in the usual way OR you can opt for a number of rewards.

These include:

• For £1,000 they'll clean your house - although they warn "we hate cleaning and can't promise we won't moan the whole time, but we will do a good job"
• For £1,000 bassist Sam Fraser will pose for a life-drawing class
• For £200, The Vera Lones, another band, will perform a gig naked - hmmm... I see they've added "they probably won't be naked"

So far they've raised £1,100. But no-one's bid for Sam's naked pose - or appears to trust their cleaning. 

Will you be the first? 

Andrew Sinclair
BBC Look East political correspondent

The prime minister has praised people along the east coast for their response to last week's threat of coastal flooding.

Theresa May told the House of Commons that the work of local councils, the army and emergency services "had protected tens of thousands of homes".

But referring to the many people who refused to leave their homes, she said: "When warnings are given they are given for a good reason and people should take notice."

It was a chilly, clear night and that lead to some pretty amazing sunrises - as captured by our BBC Weather Watchers in Heybridge, Harlow and Southend.

Image source, BBC Weather Watchers/Marilyn

Image source, BBC Weather Watchers/Great Grandad

Image source, BBC Weather Watchers/ChrisG

Helen Burchell
BBC News

Panic not - it was the police. They've been detonating explosives at their headquarters.

Why, you may well ask? 

They've just told us "it was a real explosion in controlled conditions"... 

Four men armed with a crowbar and a hammer robbed the Co-op in Abels Road, Halstead, last night.

Det Insp Mark Cadd said: "This was a frightening incident for the members of staff involved.

"We are investigating whether or not this is linked to a series of other robberies in the Braintree district in recent months."

The four robbers were wearing black and had scarves over their faces, police said.

Will Jacob Rees-Mogg, Chris Bryant, Lindsay Hoyle or Douglas Carswell be the next Speaker?

Four men armed with a crowbar and hammer robbed a shop in Halstead last night.

Essex Police said the robbery took place at the Co-op, in Abels Road, at about 20:00.

The men made staff open the office safe and "stole a four-figure sum of cash" before making off on foot, the force said.

Thought it was cold this morning? Here's a look at just how chilly it was:

Kate Williams
BBC Local Live

Officials at Tendring District Council say they're aiming to reopen a leisure centre affected by a Legionella bacteria outbreak by mid-February. 

Image source, Tendring District Council

The Lifestyles site in Walton on the Naze was shut down at the start of December after one of its customers was taken ill.

The showers are being replaced at the centre and changes are being made to the water system.  

Kate Williams
BBC Local Live

A young woman from Chelmsford - who was given drugs and sexually abused over a period of several years - says anyone in a similar situation must talk to to someone before it gets out of hand. 

Kelly, whose name has been changed to protect her identity, says she doesn't want anyone else to suffer in the way she has. 

At the age of 13, in 2006, a gang of men began grooming her in 2006. 

Last week one of the men responsible was jailed for 21 years. 

She said: "Maybe talk to a teacher, someone from social services, a care worker..anyone. 

"You have to get out, it will only get worse. I wish I had said something now, but I was only 13 and I didn't know right from wrong." 

The RSPCA reveals it has received nearly 5,000 calls about dog fighting in the past decade.

Kate Williams
BBC Local Live

We start this morning with the story of a young woman from Chelmsford, who's been speaking out about her years of abuse to try to stop it happening to anyone else. 

Kelly, which is not her real name, was given drugs and groomed by a gang of men over a period of several years. 

It started in 2006 when she was 13 years old, and one of the men responsible was jailed last week for 21 years. 

Image source, Getty Images

Kelly said: "If any of this is sounding familiar to any young girl, I'd just get out. 

"No normal man would want to date someone under 16, that's not right. He's using you, he doesn't want anything else. I've been in proper relationships now and I know the difference between right and wrong. If a man makes you do something you feel uncomfortable with, tell someone about it."

Last week one of the men responsible was jailed for 21 years.

Kate Kinsella
BBC Look East weather

Today is going to be cold, bright and frosty across most areas to start, but possibly a little cloudier towards the north. 

Remaining sunny and dry with light winds throughout the day, but it will feel cold when out and about. 

Maximum temperature: 5C (41F). BBC Weather has more.

Kate Williams
BBC Local Live

Morning all, and welcome to Wednesday. 

The Essex team will be bringing you all the news, sport, weather and travel through the day, with live updates until 18:00 tonight.

It's looking pretty frosty out there but this is a taste of what things look like in Manningtree this morning - thanks to Weather Watcher Mariner for sending in a picture of the sunrise.

We'll bring your the forecast shortly.

Around 5,000 calls about dog fighting received in the UK during the past decade

With the 2017 county season here, keep up to date with the latest signings, departures and rumours ahead of next season.

Patrick Byrne
BBC News

That's it from the Essex Live team so goodbye and have a good evening...we'll be back from 08:00 tomorrow, bringing you the news, sport, travel and weather updates as they happen. 

If you missed anything today just scroll down to read, but here are a few headlines:

• Train firm wins reliability accolade but travellers want more 
• Drug dealer jailed after being caught twice in less than three weeks
• Five routes proposed for A120 to A12 road improvement

If there's anything happening that you'd like us to know about, you can contact us via email, Facebook, external or Twitter, external.

Julie Reinger
BBC Look East weather

A largely dry night with clear spells, although thicker cloud will eventually feed down from the north-west. Temperatures could fall as low as -1C (30F) , perhaps even a few degrees lower in some spots, so there will be a frost under clearer skies.

Tomorrow will be a largely dry day, although the thickest cloud in the north and west could produce a bit of drizzle.

The best of any brightness and sunshine will be in the south-east of the region. Elsewhere there will generally be more cloud than today. It’ll remain cold with highs between 3-5C (37-41F).

There are more details on the BBC Weather website.