Updates on Thursday, 3 November 2017
X Factor reject backs his brother in next stage
Train problems have knock-on effect for King's Lynn services
'Trust lost in village' over bonfire
Kate Kinsella
BBC Weather
There's a little bit of mist around first thing but it will lift to bring a bright day with some sunny spells.
It will feel quite pleasant in the sunshine, with a maximum temperature of 13C (55F).
The cloud is high so it will be bright this morning with sunny spells following for the afternoon.
Feeling very pleasant in the sunshine with temperatures peaking at 13C that 54F.
More local details from BBC Weather.
Championship side Norwich City's accounts up to 30 June show post-tax losses of £2.7m and a £25m drop in income.
Read MoreWolves return to the top of the Championship, beating Norwich City with goals from Willy Boly and Leo Bonatini.
Read MoreSouth Norfolk and Breckland councils are among five authorities working with the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital in a bid to get patients home, external as soon as they are ready.
A man who works at the James Paget Hospital as a payroll clerk is travelling to Kenya next month to compete in the World Scrabble Championships.
John Ashmore, from Bradwell near Great Yarmouth, won 16 of his 32 games at the 2015 championships in Perth, Australia and achieved a highest game score of 538, placing him among the best 100 players in the world.
Image source, James Paget HospitalMr Ashmore said: "I have been working hard to improve my game, but I know other competitors will be doing the same.
"There are a number of resources online and computer programmes that you can use to learn new obscure words that you would normally never use, and there are new teenage whizz kids every year, so the competition is tough and across all age groups."
Each participant completes 32 games, after which the two top-ranked players go head-to-head in a best of seven games final to find the winner.
It won't just be a "working" trip for John - he says as well as the five days competing, there will be four days of trips, which he "hopes will include a safari".
He might even see an elephant (scores 13 points on the Scrabble board unless there are any double letter or double word bonuses), a giraffe (14 points) or a gazelle (17 points, or 67 if he puts all his tiles down at once).
Here's a look at the front page of the Lynn News, external:
Image source, Lynn NewsA parents group says it won't give up trying to prevent the merger of two schools in Great Yarmouth.
The Inspiration Trust, external want to combine Trafalgar College and the Charter Academy.
Last night the Trust said it had listened to views of parents in a consultation.
They'll now put off setting up a sixth form on the Charter site until 2021, but the merger will still go ahead.
A parents group says its views haven't been addressed.
One of them, Jimmy Dwyer, says parents are making quick decisions because of uncertainty: "It forces people into rash decisions or to get stuck somewhere where they don't want their kids.
"If everything goes as we plan we've got another 18 months or so at the Trafalgar site, and hopefully we've got time to change and people are patient.
"We’ve also got time to fight the merger."
The Inspiration Trust says that forecast for pupil numbers at Trafalgar College has been reduced and that they "have to reflect that" in their plans.
Residents in a south Norfolk village found something unexpected, external delivered through their letter boxes this week.
We brought you news earlier of plans for a number of affordable properties in Hunstanton.
Jill Cairns, of Birds Estate Agents, external, confirmed the need for the homes: "I really can't remember the last time I had an inquiry from a first time buyer let alone made a sale to a first time buyer.
"It's the prices.
"They can't afford the prices we have in the area."
Kim Wilson, who works at one of the town's charity shops, said the low contracted hours that people have don't help either: "Nobody's going to give you a mortgage on seven-and-a-half hours a week."
Quote MessageIt means youngsters will move out because they can't afford to live here, there's only seasonal contracted hours, so we'll end up with a lot of old people."
Kim Wilson, Local employee
Victoria's Halloween costume turned heads and attracted social media snappers in city centre.
Read MoreTWTD understands Town’s head of academy recruitment Steve McGavin is set to join, external Norwich City’s youth set-up in a similar role having left the Blues.
Image source, TWTDA man's body has been discovered in Norwich.
Police were called shortly after 07:00 to reports of the discovery on Duke Street.
The death is being treated as unexplained, but is not thought to be suspicious at this stage.
The area was sealed off while officers carried out initial inquiries, but is now open.
An investigation is continuing.
Andrew Sinclair
BBC Look East political correspondent
The seven defections in Great Yarmouth matter because, until last night, the town was seen as the last bastion of UKIP support in the East of England.
The party had lost all its county councillors, and at a district level its supporters were slowly fading away but in Great Yarmouth - an area with pockets of deprivation and where immigration has been a big issue, the party's 12 councillors held firm insisting that UKIP still had a future and this would be the place which would lead the fightback.
The Conservative group poses outside Great Yarmouth Town Hall
But ever since last June it's been very clear that support for the party has been crumbling, even in Yarmouth.
In every conversation I've had there people have kept saying the same thing: "Job done - what's the point of supporting UKIP anymore?"
This is what Kay Grey, who lead the UKIP group and her six colleagues had also found.
They enjoyed being councillors, they were good at representing their communities, but they knew that with a UKIP tag they wouldn't win another election.
They also felt very lonely.
The UKIP leadership has never been interested in local councillors who have often complained to me that there has been no central direction or support. The defectors saw no reason for staying with the national party.
UKIP still has five councillors in Great Yarmouth and a smattering of district councillors in other parts of the east.
And if Brexit doesn't go as planned, it may yet see a resurgence in support.
But for now things are looking very bleak for a party which has had a major impact on the politics of our region.
The Tories now have control of Great Yarmouth Borough Council after seven UKIP councillors moved across to the party last night.
The Conservative leader of the council, Graham Plant, says the council "can now move forward, and bring forward the policies and actions" needed.
Councillor Plant says, with elections due in May, there is no need for immediate by-elections.
Quote MessageThose people who've felt they've been turned aside, they can vote another way... but a majority and a lot of people who normally voted Conservative wanted Brexit and felt that UKIP was the way to go, so I hope that those people now feel the job's done, they come back to the Conservatives... and if any of those members stand they'll be fighting on a Conservative ticket which is to get Britain out of Europe."
Graham Plant, Leader of Great Yarmouth Borough Council
The leader of the Labour group on Great Yarmouth Borough Council, external says there should be by-elections following the defection of seven UKIP councillors to the Conservatives last night.
Trevor Wainwright says the "honourable thing" would be for the councillors to stand down.
"Call a by-election, put yourself forward for re-election as a Tory councillor and let the public decide," he said.
He says the councillors' defection was nothing to do about representing people.
Quote MessageIt's just opportunism, purely self-interest... they knew the ones that were up for election next year were going to lose their seats and this is a way for them to try and keep them. It doesn't surprise me."
Councillor Trevor Wainwright, Leader of Labour group, Great Yarmouth Borough Council
Following the defection of seven UKIP councillors in Great Yarmouth to the Conservatives, the Tories now have a majority on the Borough Council.
The former leader of the UKIP group, Kay Grey, says they made their decision as a group.
"We want to be supporting a party that's going to see Brexit through, and we also believe locally that the hung council is damaging the council slightly," she explains.
Brexit was the most important reason for her joining UKIP, she says, adding that they "achieved the impossible with UKIP" and did a "fantastic job".
Having given up being leader of the UKIP group at the council, Ms Grey says she's happy to take a back seat.
She doesn't believe UKIP as a party is dead, adding it can make a comeback, but it "may not be as strong as when Nigel Farage was its leader".
Ms Grey says she does feel sorry for people who voted for a UKIP councillor, but now have a Conservative.
Her Gorleston ward seat will be up for election next year.
Quote MessageThere's an old saying in politics - you have to change and move with the times. If they don't elect me, they don't elect me... they've got an option at the ballot box... I will be the same person as a Conservative, I'm not changing, I've just changed political allegiance to a party that I feel is going to see Brexit through."
Cllr Kay Grey (Con), Great Yarmouth Borough Council
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A man in his 50s was taken to hospital yesterday with serious head and chest injuries after he was hit by a car at the Forest Retail Park in London Road, Thetford.
At about 14:45, a BMW 320i hit a parked Renault Traffic van which was shunted into a man who was standing at the rear of the van.
The BMW then hit two more parked cars, a BMW 116 and a Vauxhall Zafira.
Officers are keen to hear from anyone who witnessed the incident.
A consultation into proposals to merge two Great Yarmouth schools has led to a slight change of plan.
The Inspiration Trust will still combine Trafalgar College and the Charter Academy next year, on the Charter's existing site on Salisbury Road.
But it will delay the start of the new sixth form until 2021 - two years later than planned, when pupil numbers should have increased.
