Andrew Benson
Chief F1 writer

It's the Austrian Grand Prix this weekend and in first practice at the Red Bull Ring Nico Rosberg heads his team-mate Lewis Hamilton, as Brackley-based Mercedes dominate the session.

Image source, Getty Images

Meanwhile, world champion Hamilton fears engine-related grid penalties will harm his attempts to win the world title this year.

A maximum of five changes are permitted to the six parts of an engine before a grid penalty is incurred.

The Mercedes driver has made a fifth change to two parts for this weekend's GP.

This Week

Last night political commentator Iain Dale disagreed with former deputy Conservative leader Michael Portillo (right) that Michael Gove was a frontrunner for the party's leadership.

On the BBC's This Week, he suggested Andrea Leadsom was leading the race with Home Secretary Theresa May.

Andrea Leadsom has been receiving support from several more MPs since she announced she would stand to be the next leader of the Conservative party.

The South Northamptonshire MP has already had backing from county colleagues Tom Pursglove (Corby) and Chris Heaton-Harris (Daventry), as well as former ministers Penny Mordaunt and Tim Loughton.

Sam Read
BBC Radio Northampton politics reporter

Commemorations are being held to mark the centenary of the start of the Battle of the Somme.

Members of the Western Front Association, together with Northampton's mayor, held an all-night vigil at the museum of the Northamptonshire Regiment, located in Abington Park Museum.

This was the moment the Last Post was played at a service at the park at 07:30 to mark the moment troops went "over the top" 100 years ago...

Pete Cooper
BBC Local Live

Philip Hollobone, the MP for Kettering, admitted he "doesn't know how to tweet" to respond to Lindsay Lohan's acceptance to turn on Kettering's Christmas lights.

Image source, EPA/BBC

But he told BBC Radio Northampton "it would be marvellous if we can bring this about", and asked the BBC's "good offices and high reputation" to help contact the actress.

Can you actually imagine if she turned up? Let's make it happen!

So... if Lindsay Lohan does switch on Kettering's Christmas lights, then she'll be following in the footsteps of Eastender's actor Jake Wood, who plays Max Branning, who turned them on last year.

In 2014 the lights were turned on by former The Bill actor Mark Wingett, who was in panto in Kettering.

Really? Will she?

Yesterday in the House of Commons, Hollywood actress Lindsay Lohan was invited to turn on Kettering's Christmas lights by the town's MP to make up for a Twitter snub on EU referendum night.

Ms Lohan, who supported Remain, tweeted: "#REMAIN Sorry, but #KETTERING where are you", during coverage of the count in which Kettering voted Leave.

Conservative Philip Hollobone, who supported the Leave campaign, said the tweet was "fierce and offensive". He told the Commons her appearance in the town would redeem her political reputation.

And then last night she appeared to accept the invitation.

Elizabeth Rizzini
BBC Look East weather

A mainly dry start, but showers will become more widespread through the day. Some turning heavy and thundery.

Top temperature: 19C (66F).

Here's my full forecast...

There are more details on the BBC Weather website.

If you'd like to read more about the Battle of the Somme commemorations going on across the UK today, the BBC is running a special live page reflecting events.

You can find it here.

BBC News UK

• Began on 1 July 1916 and was fought along a 15-mile front near the River Somme in northern France
• 19,240 British soldiers died on the first day - the bloodiest day in the history of the British Army
• The British captured just three square miles of territory on the first day
• At the end of hostilities, five months later, the British had advanced just seven miles and failed to break the German defence
• In total, there were more than a million dead and wounded on all sides, including 420,000 British, about 200,000 from France and an estimated 465,000 from Germany

Image source, Getty Images

Among those from Northamptonshire that fought in the Battle of the Somme was Cobblers' footballer Walter Tull.

He was the first black solider to be made an officer in the British Army. He died later in World War One in 1918.

He is remembered at the Tull memorial at the Sixfields Stadium...

Ceremonies have been taking place around the county to mark 100 years since the start of the Battle of the Somme.

Windmill Primary School in Raunds held its own whistle-blowing ceremony, to mark the moment troops were signalled to leave their trenches.

Sam Read
BBC Radio Northampton politics reporter

Commemorations are being held across the UK and in France to mark the centenary of the start of the Battle of the Somme.

Members of the Western Front Association, together with Northampton's mayor, have been holding an all-night vigil at the museum of the Northamptonshire Regiment, which is located within Abington Park Museum.

Earlier there was a special service held outside the museum, which ended with a two minutes' silence at 07.28 - when troops went "over the top".

Pete Cooper
BBC Local Live

Good morning.

Today we'll be reflecting the 100th anniversary of the Battle of the Somme - the bloodiest day in British military history.

We'll also keep an eye on any manoeuvres in the race to be the leader of the Conservative party, with South Northamptonshire MP Andrea Leadsom throwing her hat into the ring.

Plus there is T20 cricket tonight, the Austrian Grand Prix weekend starts, and with a former Wales captain now the manager of Northampton Town, we'll have peak at Euro 2016 which resumes this evening.