Hello there and welcome to todays Levy Letter. Its a new week and the suns shining brightly, in Hull at least! I hope you had a very good weekend and if you did anything special I hope it went well.
Coming up on Mondays Look North today, we'll report on the fears of taxi drivers as one of them is attacked with a taser type stun gun on a Saturday night in Hull. We report from Grantham to find out how residents have been affected three weeks after losing their Post Office. As Scunthorpe United grab their first home win since September, we'll report on what's changed in the world since then, and how important Saturday's victory could prove to their campaign. And tonight we'll meet the mother coping with the birth of 16 offspring! But Im not talking about children, these are puppies! We'll have the Irish Setter celebrating her record breaking litter on Look North tonight. Im looking forward to seeing that. And of course well have the detailed weather forecast. Thats all coming up on Look North today at half past six on BBC One. I hope youll be able to join me then. Cold I often feature some outlandish scientific research and experiments in the Levy letter, and today I think Ive got one that might just top the lot. In a piece of research that boggles the mind, scientists have succeeded in creating a mouse that can catch a cold. It sounds rather cruel to me, but the experiment is designed to help us understand human ailments such as asthma and respiratory conditions. Now that theyve achieved their goal of growing a mouse capable of wheezing and sneezing, scientists hope that the rodents will prove a valuable test-bed for new medicines. Its a little worrying how some of these stories sound like what would have made unbelievable science fiction just a few years ago. It conjures up images of a cackling mad scientist a little bit doesnt it? Well you never know, it could lead to a cure for the common cold. I wonder if they do mouse sized hankies. Ventura I see that the one of the major cruise ship operators is taking the launch of their new ship very, very seriously. It must be a publicity stunt, but when the new superliner Ventura is given its traditional launching ceremony later this year, a team of Royal Marines will be on hand to ensure the bottle of champagne breaks on its hull. According to sea faring folk, its a sign of bad luck if the bottle fails to break when its swung against the new ship on its first voyage. You might remember an awkward situation last year when the Duchess of Cornwall attempted to launch The Queen Victoria and didnt break the bottle. Just weeks later, tens of passengers were taken ill on the ship with a contagious stomach bug. The Ventura will be the largest liner ever to be built specifically for the UK market apparently, weighing in at an incredible 115,000 tonnes and carrying close to 5,000 people at full capacity. In a surreal touch, the team of marines will be lead by none other than Dame Helen Mirren as they abseil down the ship to smash a bottle against it. As I said, it sounds like a publicity stunt, but then I hear sailors do take these things very seriously indeed. Well if youre a sailor, let me know what you think about that one, and any other unusual superstitions. Id be interested to hear any stories more bizarre than that. If youve got a story or anything for the letter or Look North, you can contact me as always at [EMAIL PROTECTED] Norman Wisdom I received an email recently with a lovely tale about a British legend of entertainment, Sir Norman Wisdom. Sadly Norman is suffering from dementia at the age of 92, and has recently moved into a care home, but before he did, one of our viewers had a lovely encounter with him from the sound of it, have a look at this We recently watched the documentary "Wonderland" about Sir Norman Wisdom having to go into a home at the age of 92. This was filmed by the BBC back in January 2007. Unaware of this at the time we visited Norman at his lovely home on the Isle of Man in April 2007. He welcomed my wife Samantha, children Jack 10 and Chelsea 6, and myself with open arms and gave me permission to film the whole event on my camcorder. Looking back at it now were we the last visitors to have met him at his home? Thats a lovely story, and sounds like Sir Norman is still a perfect gentleman and I wouldnt be surprised if he was still hilarious too. Thank you for that email. Heels Just before I go, a very brief mention of a story in the news today about high heeled shoes. According to a female Italian doctor, wearing high heels can improve your sex life by improving your pelvic floor muscles! The much maligned footwear is often blamed for a range of physical ailments, but according to Dr Maria Cerruto they dont damage your posture and have their own benefits. I dont really know what to say about that, except that I assume the benefits only apply to women. On that note Ill finish todays letter. I hope you have a very good day and I hope youll join me for Look North as always 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
