Hello and welcome to todays Levy Letter. We had a big response yesterday on a couple of our stories about fuel prices and bus safety, thank you for all of those, if I have time Ill read out some of those on the programme tonight. Weve got a busy programme again today with a special report into the state of the region's Sea King helicopters and how they're dealing with maintenance problems. Theyre such a vital service in this region as were constantly reminded by events unfortunately.
We'll also have a report into plans by the Environment Agency to bring a Lincolnshire river back to life following disastrous pollution problems in 2003. 100,000 fish were killed, but now theyre hoping to reverse the damage and put fish back in the water. Well be finding out why Hull Trains are running into trouble with their rolling stock. And we'll be speaking to double Olympic champion Dame Kelly Holmes to hear why she's in the region today. Well have that plus more of the days news and stories tonight, and of course well have the weather forecast for our region. Thats all on Look North at half past six on BBC One. Chitterlings Well this is the last word on chitterlings Im going to include in the letter. I didnt realise they were so popular! I had an email letting me know that chitterlings, the delicious treat made from pigs intestines, are freely available from Doncaster market, so form an orderly queue and no pushing! Im sure theyre very tasty, but they just dont sound very appetising! The Law I think most of us try to be law abiding citizens, but I think there are a few laws that you might feel justified in ignoring. Im talking about a rather amusing survey undertaken by a television channel recently asking people to vote for the most ludicrous laws, and some of them are very obscure. Did you know, for example, that in France its illegal to name a pig Napoleon? I didnt, although I can safely say I havent broken that one. Some of the other bizarre laws from around the world are that in Ohio its illegal to get a fish drunk, in Florida its illegal for an unmarried woman to parachute on a Sunday, and in Milan its a legal requirement to smile at all times except during funerals or hospital visits. These are incredible, but apparently theyre all genuine laws. I cant see them being enforced though, or at least I hope not. The survey listed the UKs top most ridiculous laws, which are good for a laugh unless, I suppose, you end up being prosecuted for breaking them. Top of the list is that it is illegal to die in the House of Commons. I dont know how you can help that. It is illegal to place a postage stamp with the Queen or Kings head upside down on a piece of mail. Number three is that its illegal for a woman to be topless in Liverpool unless shes working as a clerk in a tropical fish store. Now that is a bizarre one. The forth most ridiculous law is that eating mince pies on Christmas day is banned! We can blame Oliver Cromwell for that in the 17th Century. And the fifth most ludicrous law in Britain states that in Scotland if somebody knocks on your door and demands to use the toilet, you must let them enter. So next time youre up in Scotland remember that one. Some of those sound like they couldnt possibly be real laws, but apparently they are all genuinely on the statute books! Try not to fall foul of any of those, although some might be easier than others Just before I finish, I dont know if you saw this story in the news, its quite incredible and hopefully it will have a happy outcome. Surgeons in India are midway into a pioneering operation to separate a two year old girl from her undeveloped conjoined twin. The girl was born with four legs and four arms after she absorbed her twin while still a foetus in the womb. The condition affects around one in 50,000 births and doctors say the girl has an 80 percent chance of survival. Whats quite touching about this story is that the girl, who comes from a very poor background, is being treated for free after one of the doctors involved saw her story in a newspaper. What theyre hoping to achieve in the surgery is quite unbelievable, theyre having to separate two spines, four kidneys, two stomachs, and lots of these vital organs are entangled and meshed together. The undeveloped twin has no head, and the surgeons hope to remove the unneeded limbs which would hopefully leave Lakshmi able to lead a normal life. Its incredible what doctors can achieve these days, and I think we all hope she comes through the surgery. Dont forget if you have a story for the programme or a picture youd like us to see, or something for the letter, you can drop me a line at [EMAIL PROTECTED] and itll go directly to me. I hope you enjoy the rest of your day, and dont forget to join me if you can for Look North at half past six on BBC One. Take care, bye for now Peter And for the latest news and more where you live, go to: http://bbc.co.uk/humber and http://bbc.co.uk/lincolnshire ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the BBC Look North newsletter, go to http://www.bbc.co.uk/england/looknorthhull/newsletter/newsletter_index.shtml, enter your email address in the unsubscribe box. 1.94.4
