Gary Trigg is fundraising for Gloucestershire Royal Hospital staff who treated him for Covid-19.

Kathryn Stanczyszyn
BBC Radio WM

Osama and Diana Masfary said they "do feel very safe" with all the Covid checks at Birmingham Airport.

The couple, from Derby, and their one-year-old daughter Gabriella are among the 118 passengers on the first flight to Portugal as lockdown in England eases.

They booked last Sunday and then had to wait until the ban on foreign holidays was lifted.

Then it was "go, get your Covid test and we are here" and the pair said what they wanted from this trip was "sun, beach, sea water, a sun tan, everything."

The country last week admitted there were growing virus clusters in two jails outside Bangkok.

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The first minister tweeted as almost all of the country moved down a level.

Kathryn Stanczyszyn
Political Reporter, BBC Radio WM

Lots of checks are going on at Birmingham Airport as people prepare to fly on holiday for the first time in months.

The first flight to Portugal leaves at 09:35 with 118 passengers expected to be on it.

There's a really excited vibe among holidaymakers and they've told me the pre-flight checks have been "really easy".

Good Morning Scotland
BBC Radio Scotland

Image source, Siberia Bar

Stuart McPhee, director of Siberia Bar in Aberdeen is getting ready to get back to serving alcohol indoors later.

He told Good Morning Scotland there were new measures in place to make customers feel safe.

"It's another step back towards normality," he said. "We have a healthy booking pipeline and people are keen to get back indoors and enjoy socialising again. We are looking forward to it."

He said the outdoor opening had been encouraging.

"People are not scared to get out and about," he said.

Restrictions and Covid safety measures are still in place.

He said: "We have everybody doing a mandatory track and trace at the front door and we have to display a capacity notice and we have a curfew time of 22:30. "Those times are quite restrictive and the sooner we can get back to normal the better things will be for us in terms of viability."

Image source, Siberia bar

Kathryn Stanczyszyn
Political Reporter, BBC Radio WM

Mum and daughter Caroline and Emily Ingalls-Tomb are excited to be jetting off from Birmingham to Portugal.

The pair, from Warwick, said they had booked as soon as they had known which countries were on the green list.

Mum Caroline said her daughter had rung her with the idea and they "could not believe the availability, quite surprised".

Both were tested for Covid on Saturday, they will be tested again this week to come back on Friday and once more when they touch down in Birmingham.

Emily said: "I am more excited about going away and would rather do three tests in five days than stay in England."

As for the first thing they will do in Portugal? "Sunbathe - and a cocktail."

Despite lockdown easing, businesses say they need more support to manage the impact of the last year.

About 100 people gathered for a drink in the early hours at a pub in Coventry which opened its doors at midnight.

Image source, PA Media

Customers in England are able to get served indoors again as lockdown eases.

The owner of the Oak Inn, Darren Lee, said the pub was not "overly busy" but the early opening had been well received.

He said his locals were "really glad to be back inside - they're really up for it" and hoped larger numbers would build through the day.

Image source, PA Media

BBC Radio Solent's Dorset reporter Laurence Herdman speaks to Weymouth sea swimmers Claire and Christian, who've hugged for the first time in months, just after 0700 this morning.

And Dorset breakfast presenter Steve Harris spoke to holistic massage therapist Sarah MacDermot, based in Cattistock, about the physiological science behind human contact.

The government will increase testing in three English towns, as more of the economy opens up.

Kathryn Stanczyszyn
BBC Radio WM

The sound of suitcases rolling across tarmac is all around us at Birmingham Airport.

There are big smiles, the atmosphere is really buzzing and people are getting directed to the check-in desk where there was quite a big queue forming already at 07:15 BST.

I have been here at the airport at times during the pandemic when it has been ghostly quiet, but today feels a lot more normal.

Portugal is on the green list of countries people can visit and there are lots and lots of people here at the airport heading out on this morning's first flight to Faro at 09:35.

Cases have continued to rise and neighbouring East Renfrewshire has overtaken Moray for new infections.

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India says 2-DG will help those suffering in the deadly second wave, but critics question poor data.

The largest single supplier to the international Covax scheme has made no shipments since March.

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The video-sharing site will pay for ads on buses, billboards and its own site to promote vaccination.

The boss of Odeon on how her cinemas are adapting with extra Covid safety measures in order to reopen.

The operators of a family-run cinema in the Borders say it is a "relief" to welcome back customers.