A Rotherham man who spent nine years growing a beard which stretched down to his waist has finally had it shaved off for charity.

Image source, Michael Legge

Michael Legge said his beard eventually became like "having a sleeping bag on your face".

It comes weeks after Mr Legge was placed seventh in the World Beard and Moustache competition in Antwerp in the "full natural over 30cm" category.

He said it was "a shock for my children who've never seen me clean shaven".

Mr Legge's facial hair - once dubbed "Yorkshire's greatest beard", external - also previously won him the title of British Beard Champion.

Mr Legge, 33, has raised £1,525 of his £5,000 fundraising target.

A body has been found by police searching for a missing 15-year-old boy from Wakefield.

Image source, West Yorkshire Police

Elliot Burton was last seen on Harewood Road in Eastmoor, at about 09:30 on Thursday.

West Yorkshire Police were called to a Boundary Lane, Normanton this morning after a member of the public saw the body of a male in the water.

The force say Elliot's family has been informed.

A tribute has been paid to "one of Hull's most famous sons" William Wilberforce on the anniversary of the anti-slavery campaigner's death.

A message was posted on a Twitter account for Hull's museums, celebrating the politician who led the movement to abolish the slave trade:

Local Democracy Reporting Service

It was a busy night last night for emergency services and support organisations in Calderdale as they battled flooding caused by torrential rain.

Emergency services, Calderdale Council, the Environment Agency, Yorkshire Water and Met Office staff were all involved in tackling flood water last night, which peaked late into Sunday evening.

Flood sirens were sounded in Walsden, Todmorden and Hebden Bridge and communities all along the River Calder were put on alert, while road flooding also caused serious issues at locations not just in the Calder Valley but also Halifax:

Roads which were closed for a time included Burnley Road opposite Centre Vale Park, Todmorden, Rochdale Road near Walsden Railway Station and Halifax Road at Callis, Hebden Bridge.

Earlier this morning, there were 13 flood warnings in place for Calderdale, but in the last few minutes they've been cancelled, leaving three flood alerts in place instead, external - meaning flooding is possible.

Buses are reported to be running normally now, but there are still problems affecting some rail services.

Thanks to Ian Harvey and Peter Newbury for permission to use their videos.

The animatronic Tyrannosaurus Rex, Triceratops and others should give Leeds' shoppers a surprise.

Bradford will be in the running to become UK City of Culture in 2025, it has been announced.

The council-backed bid will be led by a team including the University of Bradford, Bradford College and live arts company the Brick Box.

Detailed plans will be unveiled when the official bid is launched in late September, according to the group.

Final bids will be submitted in 2021, with the winning entry announced in December 2021.

Other entrants expected to enter the contest are Luton, Southampton, Tees Valley, Medway and Lancashire.

The status is awarded by the government every four years. Hull is the current City of Culture, while Coventry will hold the title from 2021.

Sheffield Eagles will play Widnes Vikings in the 1895 Cup final at Wembley after winning their semi-finals.

Image source, Paul Harding/PA Media

Sheffield beat Batley Bulldogs 18-2, thanks to tries from Joel Farrell, Jacob Ogden and Oliver Davies.

The final will be part of a double-header with the Challenge Cup final on 24 August.

The 1895 Cup, contested by the 12 English teams in the Championship and eight more from League One, is in its first season.

Sonny Ferry's bank card was used several times after he drowned in York's River Foss.

Two Little White Buses will escort the coffin of the councillor who helped create the bus services for people living in rural North Yorkshire as his funeral takes place.

Image source, North Yorkshire County council

John Blackie (pictured centre right), 70, died at the Friarage Hospital in Northallerton earlier this month following a long battle with cancer.

He was a well-known campaigner for the remote Upper Dales communities and oversaw the community takeover of many services in the village of Hawes, where he lived.

The Little White Bus service, which runs between villages in the Yorkshire Dales, is one of many community initiatives Councillor Blackie set up.

The funeral cortege route will take in many of the Dales communities Mr Blackie represented for many years.

Hull KR sign Dean Hadley and Jez Litten from Hull FC on loan deals, which will become permanent at the end of the season.

These are the latest pictures from the scene of a "serious accident" on the A64 in North Yorkshire.

Image source, Station Manager Bob Hoskins

A car crashed into the central barrier of the dual carriageway at Bilbrough Top earlier this morning.

The air ambulance crew has treated casualties at the scene.

Image source, Station Manager Bob Hoskins

All lanes have now reopened but there are long delays from the A1237 junction in Askham Bryan to the A659 junction in Tadcaster.

Flooding has returned to Calderdale once again after heavy rain at the weekend.

Flood sirens wailed and roads were submerged as the rain fell.

A total of 13 flood warnings are currently in place in Calderdale.

That means "flooding is expected and immediate action is required".

Thanks to Ian Harvey and Peter Newbury for permission to use these videos:

The creation of a new multi-million pound train-building plant in East Yorkshire has moved a step closer, after councillors gave outline planning permission to the proposals.

Image source, Siemens

Manufacturing company Siemens intends to build the new £200m factory in Goole after it won a contract to build trains for the London Underground.

Image source, TFL

East Riding of Yorkshire Council says it's committed to making sure the factory is built in Goole.

Have a go at BBC Sport's promotion predictor for the Championship, League One and League Two.

The A64 is currently closed westbound in North Yorkshire because of a "serious accident".

Image source, Google

A car has crashed into the central barrier of the dual carriageway at Bilbrough Top.

The air ambulance is at the scene.

There are long traffic delays from the A1237 junction in Askham Bryan to the A659 junction in Tadcaster.

This morning will start off mainly cloudy, with some rain and drizzle possible.

This will clear to leave a largely fine day with sunny spells in the afternoon.

Through the evening it will stay dry with late spells of sunshine.

Thousands of people gathered at the weekend to watch a 114m-high cooling tower at a disused power station in West Yorkshire demolished with explosives:

Tower Six at the former coal-fired Ferrybridge C Power Station was brought crashing down with a controlled blast yesterday in the first stage of demolition at the site.

Four other towers at the site will be demolished in October.

Power firm SSE closed the site, alongside the A1(M) in Knottingley, which had been producing electricity for 50 years, in March 2016.

The company said the demolition works were part of SSE's transition to low-carbon energy, in line with the government's ambition for net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

Council leaders from across Yorkshire have signed a letter to Prime Minister Boris Johnson supporting a devolution deal for Yorkshire by 2022.

Image source, PA Media

The deal would give the county more control over decisions and how it spends money from central government on things like local transport.

The group of leaders from across Yorkshire say an independent economic study has shown a deal could deliver economic benefits worth £30bn a year.

In the letter from local government leaders across Yorkshire, they say: "Devolution in Yorkshire is critical to deliver our shared objectives, which cross political divides and are about growth in a post-Brexit world."

BBC News Travel

If you're making a journey on the rails in Yorkshire this Monday morning, most services appear to be running to time.

However:

• The 08:20 Bradford Interchange to Leeds service has been cancelled
• The 09:08 Doncaster to Hull via Selby service has been cancelled.

For all the latest live updates from the county's main railway stations, click on the links below:

• York Station, external
• Leeds Station, external
• Sheffield Station, external
• Hull Station, external
• Doncaster Station, external
• Wakefield Westgate, external
• Bradford Interchange, external
• Bradford Forster Square, external

The city will discover if it has been successful when the winner is announced in December 2021.