Sangeeta Bhabra: Race for Life Diary Entry 1

I have two pairs of trainers. One is a trendy pair that I wear with my jeans when my style statement is ‘teenager’. The other pair - the pair I fear - still look brand new even though they were bought in the days of Mr Motivator. I’m not what you call ‘naturally sporty’ so when I was asked to think about taking part in the ‘Race for Life’ earlier this year - I suddenly found a sprinting ability I didn’t know I had… I couldn’t get out of that office fast enough.

Four months on - in the interests of telly and belly - I’m all signed up to take part. Adrian our planning editor is an absolute love. He said ‘Sangers you don’t have to run it… lots of women walk it too’. That was it. I now have visions of me turning into Beyonce by the Summer whilst raising money for a very good cause - the only problem is I haven’t started training yet.

I am quite grateful to Sarah from ITV Local - who came up with the idea for my first blog. Because when this goes up - my commitment to running the three miles (sounds better than 5 km) is OFFICIAL. So - the venue: Mote Park in Maidstone. The Date June the 8th.

I’ve even got a training partner who is running the race on the same day. Her name is Deborah Puxty. She is about my age, has survived bowel cancer and this is her third race. And the best thing about her - she’s a real laugh. You must watch our Rocky style warm up session - and if my star jumps don’t make you laugh (is that the correct term?) my leggings, shorts and woolly hat ensemble should make you smile.

I’ll update you soon and any advice (fashion or otherwise) gratefully received x

Council spies on family to prevent 'cheating'

Is it a case of Big Brother overstepping the mark? Or is a council - which suspects parents of cheating to get children to the school of their choice - justified in carrying out covert surveillance operations?

Today Poole council in Dorset has admitted spying on three families suspected of trying to beat the school system. Using new laws passed to track criminals and terrorists they tracked separate families for a number of weeks recording details such as “female and three children enter target vehicle and drive off”.

The council says it acted responsibly and in the best interests of the community but human rights group Liberty called the spying “intrusive”.

So where should the government draw the line? We’ve all heard stories of perfectly healthy people being prosecuted for claiming monetary benefits – is this surveillance any different? Surely the bigger picture the problem of the school catchment system – would families consider bending the rules if good schools were easier to come by?

One thing for sure is that it caused much debate in the newsroom and on the web. So what do you think?

Watch the lunch time news report on the story.

Has the Olympics been tarnished by politics?

For weeks now Meridian and Thames Valley have been following local athletes as they train hard for the Beijing Olympics. We have seen synchronised swimming in Hampshire, hockey in Berkshire, judo in Surrey and much, much more. It’s always very exciting to see what talent we have in the region – there seems to be an Olympic athlete around every corner!

However as the protests continue to follow the Olympic torch as it travels the globe you have to fight hard to remember what the Olympic meaning actually is. Is it just another sporting event encouraging tourism and development? Is it designed to make money? Is it reserved for sporting superiors alone? Or does it unite people in a worldwide event?

Politics aside it’s still important to remember the remarkable people throughout our region and the world that make the event possible. Whether you are for or against the 2008 Olympics you can’t deny that running the 100m in about 10 seconds is no easy feat. Hard determination, skill and dedication are driving the best of our athletes to the games this year. We wish them all the luck in the world and look forward to sharing the celebrations when they return.

Meet the region’s Olympic athletes in our special Beijing channel.

Dreamland’s dreams end after Margate fire

It’s been a sad few days in Kent as many across the region mourn the loss of a favourite tourist sport – Dreamland in Margate.

On Monday we got the sad news that the wooden rollercoaster, the Scenic Railway, had 80 firefighters tackling a serious blaze that seemed to spring out of nowhere. The famed rollercoaster that entertained thousands for more than 80 years went up in flames that destroyed about a third of the attraction. And sadly police have now confirmed that the blaze was started deliberately.

The mood in the newsroom was one of dismay as pictures of the burning Scenic Railway poured in. Members of the newsdesk sat reminiscing about childhood days out at the seaside resort. ITV Local news editor Sharon said that being on the rollercoater was like stepping back into the 1950s – it’s dated décor still charmed years later!

Facebook is also already full with Dreamland groups – some expressing sadness, others expressing anger that the fire was ever able to happen. A petition has been started in the resorts name with the simple quote ‘The Scenic railway was the Heart of Dreamland, and Dreamland was the heart of Margate’.

Captured on a mobile phone here is the sad moment when part of the railway collapsed.

You can upload your own footage of Dreamland to YourNews.

Plus share your Margate memories here on the ITV Local blog.

Snow!

My usual Sunday morning lie-in was a non-starter last weekend - rudely awakened by both husband and son at 7am, equally excited that our street was under a thick blanket of snow, which was still falling in abundance, despite the local shops selling easter eggs off at half-price and big ads everywhere for barbecues and swimsuits.

There was nothing for it - we bundled up in our warmest gear (where DID I put my left leather glove?) and took a walk down to Winchester Cathedral. (Son travelled in style in his wagon as usual). After the usual snowball fun, we posted some footage from a mobile phone here but to be honest it doesn't really do the scene justice.

Anyway, there are lots more snow clips on Your News at the moment though, and some of the ones from further east and inland show much more snow than we had. We're not going to forget April 2008's snow for a long time I suppose, unless this becomes the new norm. I guess climate change is more than just global warming then, eh kids?

You never know - just after we took that footage, a man of the cloth wandered past (we were in the cathedral grounds) and commented that it was like Christmas. Well actually, I don't remember a white Christmas for many years, maybe the church should consider moving it back a few months to take advantage of spring snow. Swap Christmas and Easter perhaps? Or Christmas card manufacturers might consider depicting scenes of carollers wearing cap sleeves and shorts?

Jason Donovan, the Ventura and blogging - all in a days work...

Today has been a really busy one for the ITV Local team. Sharon and Heather were busy holding the website fort as Casey and I were out of office in London for the day. They had some exciting extras such as an extended interview with Jason Donovan. The Echo Beach star is going to be busy this weekend running the OX5Run in aid of the Oxford Children’s Hospital this weekend. We wish him the best of luck!

We also have a special report from travel correspondent Mike Pearce. Mike has been getting ship-shape having a special tour around cruise ship the Ventura. Its Britain’s largest ever cruise ship and it’s due to sail to Southampton any day now.

Meanwhile Casey and I were busy learning how to be expert bloggers! We had a really exciting meeting with 1000 heads who have been monitoring internet social networking since 2000. Hopefully this means a new and exciting future for the ITV Local blogs and with a redesign in the pipeline we hope you will all ‘tune in’ to see how we are getting on. We will now be bringing you all the latest gossip and information direct from the newsroom so stay tuned the ITV Local Meridian & Thames Valley blog!

Were you a fool this April?

Traditionally April Fool’s day is when journalists across the country rack their brains for bizarre stories about mutant animals and spaghetti harvests just so they can con the public for a day. And this year was no exception – we had flying penguins on the BBC in a spoof 'Miracles of Evolution' documentary, French president Nicolas Sarkozy decided to undergo stretch treatment to add inches to his height in The Sun and Gordon Ramsey banned restaurant swearing in The Independent.

The Meridian and Thames Valley news teams were no exception and entered into the sprit in style.

Weather man Simon Parkin went out to Oxfordshire to try and spot the mass April Fool in Henley-on-Thames. Villagers clubbed together in a two week long prank set as a competition by councillors. Ever seen a slimming sausage filled only with air? Well, they’re on special offer now in Oxfordshire!

Artist Jonathan Truss uploaded these scary photos of a leopard at large in his Bournemouth garden. But if you’re panicking about the beast reaching your garden then fear not as he won’t be getting very far – he’s stuffed.


The air show in Eastbourne is set for a different look this year with some special flying formations. However, instead of the Red Arrows, or the Tigers Parachute team, they've got a more unusual team lined up. Pigeons from across Sussex have started training for Eastbourne Airborne and we set reporter Charles Lambert to see how they are getting on…

If you have some great April Fool pranks you’d like to share you can email us here.