It's May Day! These morris dancers were spotted welcoming in the day at Old John tower in Leicestershire's Bradgate Park.

Thanks to Weather Watcher sky girl for the snap.

And this group were up early in Uppingham to celebrate the occasion.

Image source, Margaret Hiley Kroeger

Amy Woodfield
BBC News

A church has been issued a new licence to help protect the building which has become overrun with bats.

All Saints Church in Braunston-in-Rutland has more than 400 bats roosting in the rafters.

Image source, PA

Church warden Sue Willetts said the church has had bats for decades but the number hugely increased about five years ago when a nearby chimney collapsed. The bats living inside relocated to the church.

Ms Willetts said she's been "horrified" by the amount of droppings and urine they produce claiming it has been "destroying" the building.

As a protected species the law prevents the church from getting rid of them but now a licence has been issued that allows it to block up the holes between the ceiling and the inside wall. This means the bats will still be able to live in the roof and get outside but not into the main church building.

This comes as a relief to Ms Willetts, who said she spends an hour-and-a-half cleaning up bat droppings before every service.

Kit Sandeman
Local Democracy Reporter

Senior political figures in Nottingham have paid tribute to a former long-standing councillor and magistrate who has died at the age of 89.

Mohammad Aslam was first elected in 1981, initially to the county council before serving as a city councillor, and went on to be re-elected eight times before standing down at the age of 87 in 2015.

He represented several wards in the city, including Lenton and Wilford, and later Radford and Park.

Image source, Nottingham City Council

Nottingham East MP Chris Leslie, whose constituency covers some of the areas represented by Mr Aslam, spoke highly of his fellow Labour politician.

"Mohammad Aslam was a man who dedicated his life to public service, as a county councillor, a city councillor and a magistrate.

"Representing neighbourhoods and communities in Nottingham over a political career spanning several decades, he was known for his humanity and intellect, and for taking a brave, measured and compassionate stance in public life."

BBC News

An inquest is expected to conclude later into the death of an 84-year-old man, killed when the vintage aircraft he was flying in crashed and burst into flames.

John Marshall, 84, from Willoughby Waterleys in Leicestershire, died when the P-51 Mustang hit a tree in south Norfolk in October 2016.

His three sons - who had bought the flight as a birthday gift - all witnessed the plane burst into a "massive fireball".

Pilot Maurice Hammond, of Eye, Suffolk, suffered a broken neck and has no memory of the crash.

East Midlands Today

East Midlands Ambulance Service will be questioned by health bosses about it's failure to hit targets for response times.

EMAS is meeting with NHS Improvement and NHS England to discuss its performance.

In February, the service was the slowest responder in the country. EMAS has requested extra funding for staff and vehicles - but talks with the NHS locally have failed to reach a settlement.

Alex Hamilton
BBC Weather

It's a bright cold start to the day but there will be cloud and some showers expected later.

Amy Woodfield
BBC News

A 32-year-old man is due to appear at Nottingham Crown Court charged with murdering his wife in Bestwood Village.

Marian Caliman was arrested following reports of a stabbing in Millbank Place on Saturday evening.

Faye Caliman, aged 30, was treated by paramedics but died at the scene.

Amy Woodfield
BBC News

Yesterday we told you about the discovery of a set of unused tickets for every match of the Euro 96 football championship. Well it seems the mystery has now been solved.

Image source, Hansons

The 31 tickets were found in an old suitcase in Stoke-on-Trent and are set to be auctioned in Derbyshire later this month.

A football fan has been in touch with the BBC to say that his mother had given him an almost identical set of tickets.

Chris Salt's mother had worked for Synchro, which distributed tickets for the tournament.

Amy Woodfield
BBC News

Police in Ilkeston are asking for help to identify an elderly man who collapsed in the street.

Image source, Google

It happened outside the town's Morrisons supermarket at about 19:20 yesterday. He was taken to hospital in Nottingham by the ambulance service.

He's described as being aged between 70 and 80 years, white, slim and between 5ft 10ins and 6ft tall. No details of his condition have been released.

The latest news, sport, travel and weather for the East Midlands.

Amy Woodfield
BBC News

Police investigating a shooting in the Sunny Hill area of Derby have arrested a fourth person.

It's after 26-year-old man suffered a gunshot wound to his shoulder on Friday 28 April.

Two men had already been arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit murder and another man was arrested on suspicion of possession with intent to supply Class A drugs.

Now, a woman has been arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender.

Amy Woodfield
BBC News

Good morning East Midlands - I think someone forgot to tell the weather that today is the start of May.

I'll be writing the updates for today's live page along with Gavin Bevis.

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