Tower Poppy Memorial Proves Too Popular

People have been asked to delay visiting a First World War memorial at the Tower of London because it has proved so popular.

Tens of thousands of people made the trip to view the sea of red ceramic poppies in the former moat of the landmark on Friday, leading to problems of overcrowding as the country basked in unseasonably warm temperatures.

London Underground was forced to temporarily close nearby Tower Hill Tube station due to the number of visitors.

The public is being advised to postpone visits, or to go earlier or later in the day.

A spokesman for Historic Royal Palaces, which manages the site, said: "Please note that the Tower of London and the surrounding area is currently very busy due to half-term and interest in the poppies installation.

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"We're advising people to postpone their visit to the Tower until after half-term if possible, or to visit earlier in the day, before 10am, or later in the day, after 6pm."

The poppy memorial, Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red, was created by ceramic artist Paul Cummins.

By Armistice Day on November 11 there will be 888,246 ceramic poppies planted, one for each British and Colonial death during the conflict which began 100 years ago.

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Fireworks Warehouse Blaze: Tributes To Victims

Tributes have been made to the two men who were killed after a series of explosions at a fireworks warehouse.

The bodies of Simon Hillier, who worked at the industrial unit, and Stewart Staples, one of his customers, were discovered by police late on Friday evening.

Mr Hillier's relatives said: "Whilst we are still waiting for a formal identification to be made, as a family, we are resigned to the fact that we will not see Simon again.

"We are all very proud of his sporting achievements and everything else he did in life. He was a fantastic son, brother and a terrific dad, we all miss him dearly."

Mr Staples' family – his wife, three children and a young grandson – added: "We are totally shocked and devastated about Stewart's death.

Video: Five Hurt In Fireworks Factory Fire

"We need to come to terms with the tragic loss of someone who was a devoted and much loved family man."

Staffordshire Police have said it could take some weeks to formally identify the victims, but evidence has placed Hillier, 41, and Staples, 57, at the scene.

Supt Ian Coxhead said: "Our sympathies remain with the families involved and we're doing everything we can to help them at this distressing time.

"We anticipate this will be a lengthy and complex investigation. Our work to establish the cause of the fire is going to take considerable time."

A man in his 40s remains in a critical condition at Birmingham Hospital after Thursday's explosion, and is suffering from serious burns. Another victim has been discharged and is recuperating at home.

Police have said the warehouse is completely destroyed, and described the building as a "dangerous scene".

The unit, based on an industrial estate, had been used to store "a significant volume of fireworks" for four years, and Staffordshire County Council has confirmed that "no safety issues" had been reported with SP Plastics, which owned the unit.

It took hours for dozens of firefighters to bring the blaze under control. One witness described the "deafening and constant noise" as fireworks detonated in the heat.

Police have released a 53-year-old man who had been arrested in connection with the explosion, and he is now being treated as a witness.

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Terror Warning: Brits Not Safe Anywhere In World

A worldwide travel warning has been issued by the Foreign Office, amid fears that Britons flying abroad could be targeted in terrorist attacks.

The Government has updated its travel advice for 225 countries and territories to reflect a "generalised threat" that extremists will seek revenge for Britain's involvement in airstrikes against Islamic State.

On Friday night, the Foreign Office warned: "There is considered to be a heightened threat of terrorist attacks globally against UK interests and British nationals from groups or individuals motivated by the conflict in Iraq and Syria. You should be vigilant at this time."

However, it stressed that the updated advice was not in response to a specific attack.

In August, Home Secretary Theresa May announced that the UK's terror threat level was to be raised to "severe", which means that acts of terrorism are "highly likely".

Video: Aug: Terror Threat Level 'Severe'

At present, the Foreign Office is advising against all travel to five provinces in Iraq – including Anbar and Kirkuk. It has urged Britons to travel to other regions in the country only if it is absolutely necessary.

The FCO is also compelling British nationals to avoid Syria in its entirety, while urging anyone currently there to "leave now by any practical means".

In Turkey, visitors are recommended to stay at least 10km away from its border with Syria, as IS militants and Kurdish troops continue to battle for control of Kobani.

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RAF Fighter Jets Intercept Russian Bombers

Typhoon fighter jets were scrambled to intercept Russian military 'Bear' bombers for the second time in a week, it has emerged.

The Typhoons were sent up from RAF Lossiemouth on Friday to escort the Soviet-era Tupolev Tu-95 aircraft, just two days after UK jets intercepted another two Russian bombers over the North Sea.

It comes amid what NATO described as an "unusual" increase in activity from Russian military jets over European airspace ranging from the Black Sea to the Atlantic Ocean.

An RAF spokeswoman said the Russian aircraft had been picked up by the RAF Control and Reporting Centre at Boulmer in Northumberland, which scrambled the Typhoons.

She said: "Following a similar incident on Wednesday 29 October, the RAF Typhoon pilots visually identified the Russian aircraft and escorted them through the UK flight information region."

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Air Vice-Marshal Gary Waterfall, who is in charge of UK air defence, said: "The Royal Air Force was formed to secure the skies over the UK, and it remains our main task.

"This week's news has shown yet again that the RAF's quick reaction alert is an essential element of our nation's security."

The increased Russian activity in the air comes against a backdrop of months of heightened tensions between Moscow and the West following Russia's annexation of Crimea and military incursion into Ukraine.

Analysts say it appears to be a "show of force" by President Vladimir Putin.

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NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg has said the alliance "remains vigilant and ready to respond" to any Russian threat.

On Wednesday, two Typhoons from RAF Coningsby were sent to escort a suspicious plane to Stansted Airport in Essex.

A sonic boom was heard as the jets made their way to the location of the plane, which turned out to be a civilian Latvian cargo aircraft heading for Birmingham with car parts.

The Prime Minister was overheard on Thursday referring to the incident as "nerve-wracking", saying the RAF were "busy over the skies".

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Father-Of-Three Shot Dead Tackling Robbers

A father-of-three has been shot and killed as he tackled two robbers who attacked him as he closed up his shop for the night.

Pragaret Singh, 35, was blasted in the chest and abdomen as he tried to grapple with one of the men outside his store in Openshaw, Greater Manchester.

The shopkeeper was just leaving Manchester Food Traders when he encountered the pair and confronted them, detectives said.

Mr Singh, known to family as Charlie, died later in hospital.

Detective Superintendent Jon Chadwick said: "Although this investigation remains in its infancy, at this stage we believe Charlie's death was the result of simply trying to protect his business from armed robbers, during which he was shot at least twice."

It is thought that the robbers may have made off with a "large amount of money".

Police arrived at the scene at 6.20pm on Friday and found Mr Singh nearby.

Det Supt Chadwick added: "At this stage of our inquiry we believe this is the tragic death of an innocent businessman and father-of-three who was simply trying to protect his livelihood from criminals.

"As a result, Charlie's entire family have suffered an unimaginable loss.

"Their lives have been shattered and specially-trained officers will be providing as much support as the family need over the coming days and weeks."

Assistant Chief Constable Zoe Sheard urged people to ensure their security measures were in place, such as making sure any CCTV was working and looking out for anyone suspicious.

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Woman's Driving Ban For Wheelchair-Towing Prank

A woman has been banned from driving for two years for towing a man in a wheelchair around a supermarket car park.

Maria Adams, 20, drove her Nissan Juke outside Tesco in Roker, Sunderland, as her friend gripped a towel hanging from the boot.

Security cameras captured her driving up and down as the man sped behind in the wheelchair, which was owned by the store for customer use.

The man then climbed out of the borrowed wheelchair

After several minutes, he climbed out of the chair as astonished shoppers looked on.

He then got into the car and Adams, a call centre worker, from Whitburn, South Tyneside, drove off.

Judge Penny Moreland at Newcastle Crown Court described her actions as "a piece of stupidity".

Adams admitted dangerous driving and was ordered to pay £1,369 prosecution costs and a £60 victim surcharge.

She was also given a four-month curfew and a 12-month community order.

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Animal Abuse Spikes At Full Moon, Says RSPCA

Reports of animal abuse rise substantially whenever there is a full moon, a study by the RSPCA suggests.

On average, the charity sees a 12% increase in phone calls during the lunar activity – the equivalent of 169 additional cases.

During April's full moon, it received an extra 339 calls – a 28% hike compared to a day earlier.

A connection between the lunar cycle and changes in human behaviour has been established before, with the Polish Academy of Sciences arguing that a full moon could affect health and levels of criminal activity.

A three-month study of 1,200 prisoners at a jail in Leeds found that instances of violence rose precipitously during the first and final quarter of every lunar cycle.

Dermot Murphy, staff officer at the RSPCA, said: "We can't explain why this phenomenon occurs.

"It could be the fact there is increased light during the full moon, so people out and about are more likely to spot an animal in distress, or the legend is true and it really does bring out the darker side of human nature."

The RSPCA released the "ghoulish statistics" on Halloween to coincide with its Christmas campaign. It is bracing itself for 140,000 reports of animal abuse, neglect and abandonment in November and December.

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Man Held After Body Parts Found On Island

A man has been arrested after a 33-year-old woman's body parts were found by ramblers on an island in Essex.

Angela Millington's remains were discovered in a salt marsh area on Foulness Island on 21 June.

Hikers initially found a collection of bones. Police were called and more body parts were found.

An aerial view of the police murder inquiry

Police have arrested a 51-year-old man, from Westcliff-on-Sea, on suspicion of murder.

He has been taken to Southend Police Station for questioning.

Ramblers found Angela Millington's remains on Foulness Island

Ms Millington was identified after forensic and DNA tests and, while it is not known how long the bones had been there, police believe she was murdered.

She was last seen alive when she visited a housing officer in Westcliff on 21 November last year.

She took money out of her bank account that day and her mobile phone has not been used since the end of that month.

Essex Police said Ms Millington had no fixed address and was known to mix with street drinkers and homeless people.

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Britain Welcomes Warmest Halloween On Record

Britain has experienced its warmest Halloween on record, with temperatures passing 23 degrees early in the afternoon.

The previous record of 20C (68F) set by Dartford in Kent in 1968 was broken by Filton in Bristol just before midday as the mercury there hit 20.5C (68.9F).

But at 1.15pm the Met Office announced that the temperature in Gravesend, Kent, had soared to 23.5C (74.3F).

Forecasters had predicted that temperatures could reach 21C (70F), a continuation of the mild weather that has already seen 2014 become the hottest on record.

Nine months of this year have seen above-average mean temperatures, with only August falling below average.

Video: Latest UK Weather Forecast

Sky News Weather Producer Chris England said: "The highest temperature we've seen was 23.3C at Gravesend, which is well above the previous Halloween record 19.4 C in 1968.

"That follows a warm October, and a warm year so far. In fact, it's the warmest on record so far, but it will turn much colder next week.

"It will cool off a little over the weekend, and there will be some rain, but there will still be some warmth to enjoy."

The average temperature across the UK this month has been 11C (51.8), which is 1.5C above normal and a few degrees below the 2001 record of 12.2C (54F).

Despite the warmer weather, however, sunshine hours have been 15% below average and rainfall has been 16% higher than average.

Parts of Scotland, the Isle of Man and Cumbria have been much wetter than average, while Wales was drier.

Sun seekers will want to make the best of the warmth though, as temperatures will plunge back to the November average of around 10C (50F) next week.

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Puppy Farm Killer Jailed For At Least 25 Years

By Richard Suchet, Sky Reporter at Guildford Crown Court

An elderly puppy farm owner from Surrey who murdered his partner and her daughter in February has been sentenced to life in prison - with a minimum term of 25 years.

John Lowe, 82, from Farnham, used a shotgun to kill 66-year-old Christine Lee and her daughter Lucy, 40, on 23 February this year.

Lowe denied murder and claimed the deaths were a "terrible mistake".

But the jury of six men and six women convicted him of their deaths after hearing that, following his arrest, he told the police he had "put down" the women because they had been "giving me s*** for weeks".

Prior to sentencing, Ian Lawrie QC, mitigating, conceded that "the reality is, whatever term is given, he is going to die in prison".

Meanwhile, the prosecution argued that Lowe, who turns 83 next week, should not receive a lenient sentence – as the minimal jail term for a double murder with a firearm is 30 years in prison.

Stacy Banner said her loved ones "didn't stand a chance" in the shooting

"A defendant can't expect a dramatically reduced sentence simply because of the limited years they have to live," Mark Dennis QC said.

As Lowe entered the dock for the sentencing hearing, he was seen winking and grinning at the public gallery, where grieving relatives of the two women were sitting.

Video: John Lowe Trial 999 Call

Guildford Crown Court was also played a recording of the "desperate" 999 call made by Lucy Lee to report that Lowe had killed her mother.

She told the operator: "I don't know whether I'm going to be alive if I go back in there."

The younger woman was then shot twice, with Lowe reloading the .410 calibre double-barrelled weapon between shots.

Sentencing Lowe, Justice Singh said: "In an act of extraordinary courage, she went back to see if there was anything she could do to help her mother."

The prosecution said police were met with a "scene of carnage" at the farm.

Christine Lee had been shot in the chest from close range, and her daughter received a fatal shot to the back of the head.

Lowe was licensed to own the weapon, which he normally used to kill rats.

Video: Reaction: Victim's Daughter

But Surrey Police took the gun - and other shotguns - away from him in March 2013 after Christine Lee's other daughter, Stacy Banner, was threatened by Lowe.

The weapons were returned to him - a decision condemned by Ms Banner after the verdict.

In a victim impact statement read to the court, she wrote: "Every time I close my eyes, I see [my mother and sister]. I have nightmares. I'm haunted by what John did to them."

Surrey Police has since apologised, and three employees are now being investigated for gross misconduct.

It is also reviewing all cases where guns have been removed and later returned to people within the last three years.

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