Catch up with all your latest news across the county with Abby Hook.
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00:00Hello, good evening and welcome to Kentonite live on KMTV. I'm Abbey Hook. Here are your
00:24top stories on Thursday the 23rd of January. Music to our ears. Rockstar's multi-million
00:31pound guitar auction saves Kent Wildlife Park. The end of last year was real financial difficulty
00:37for us and we were facing closure. Safety in sheds. Gillingham Community Space launched
00:43Women's Group to help tackle loneliness. Women in Sheds is a new project for us. Out with
00:48the old, in with the new. Veterans Village reveals plans to transform Ellesford Factory.
00:55Veterans deserve a better place to work, so the new factory is really important. First
01:10this evening, storm Airwind is set to hit the Kent coast with wind speeds of up to 70
01:14miles per hour. The Met Office yellow weather alert comes into force tomorrow and officials
01:19are warning to stay indoors, away from the sea and cliff edges. The RNLI's advice is
01:24to call 999 or 112 and ask for the Coast Guard if anyone finds themselves or others in danger.
01:30Well, Oliver Leader de Sacks is at the Strand in Medway. Now, Oliver, perhaps the calm before
01:35the storm where you are there, it is nice and calm there, but a bit more inland. Those
01:41main concerns are really at the coastal areas. Yeah, I mean, right now there's not a lot
01:47of wind here, but it is cold. You can really smell the sea air, which is where most of
01:53the issues tomorrow will happen. Out that way, up towards the estuary, past Sheerness,
01:58towards Whitstable, Herne Bay, Margate, around the coast of Fulton and Dover. That's where
02:03you'll start to see lots of those quite bad conditions, because obviously tomorrow from
02:08around 5 a.m. we're going to get that yellow weather wind alert. That will be around 40
02:12to 50 mph winds across parts of the county, maybe on the coast and on hilltops like the
02:18North Downs, that the winds will be even higher than that. And that's where you start to see
02:22those storm surges, those trees falling down. That's where there's a real risk to life.
02:28As the RNLI were telling us earlier today. Winds of 60, 70, 80 mph put a massive amount
02:36of energy into the water. Those waves really, really are powerful. And there's plenty of
02:41potential there to wash people off their feet, wash people off piers, wash people off promenades.
02:46Hopefully here in the southeast, whilst we will see some significant weather, it won't
02:51be quite as extreme as other parts of the UK. That said, we are urging extreme caution
02:56and only venturing outside unless it's absolutely necessary.
03:00Some of those key concerns from Guy there, Rolly. But what else should we bear in mind
03:04for tomorrow?
03:05Well, Abi, it's what Guy said there. No unnecessary risks. Being cautious. If you're along the
03:13coastline, know your route. Don't let your dog go off lead. In an emergency, call 999
03:19or the coastguard. And if you're going somewhere, if you need to travel around tomorrow, plan
03:25your route. Bus times, train times, they will be your friend tomorrow. Check those timetables
03:31and make sure those roads are clear. Check conditions before you leave. It's not the
03:36only bad weather we're going to experience in the coming days. Sunday through to Monday
03:40will be a lot of heavy rain, a yellow weather alert for that as well. And we've already
03:45seen recently quite a lot of flooding in the Tunbridge area. So rural parts of the country
03:50and the county should really keep an eye out for that over the weekend going into next
03:55week.
03:56And, Olly, as you say, of course, this is affecting the whole county, not just bad around
04:00the coast there is too, but that flooding in place. Olly, thank you for joining us from
04:04Medway there. Well, following that, let's take a look at the forecast there where you
04:08are for the coming days.
04:16Tonight it'll be relatively mild. The calm before the storm there. An average temperature
04:20of around four degrees. Wind speeds hitting 23 tomorrow morning when that alert comes
04:25into force. Wet weather right across the county. So make sure you are checking before you travel
04:30and only leaving if it's necessary. Tomorrow afternoon, much of the same, but slightly
04:35calmer into the afternoon. Saturday, a bit of sunshine, but that warning still remaining
04:39that wind continuing across the county. And as Olly said, Sunday and Monday will bring
04:43a lot of wet weather too.
04:52Now an animal park in Kent's been saved from shutting its services and potentially leaving
04:57the many hundreds of wild animals in its care with nowhere to go. It's all thanks to
05:02the sale of a guitar. The family of the late 60s rock star Jeff Beck have donated money
05:07from a multi-million pound auction to Folly Wildlife in Tunbridge Wells, all in a bid
05:12to secure its future. Bartholomew Hall has more.
05:19This is the moment a guitar was sold in auction, saving a Kent animal rescue centre. Four months
05:25ago, Folly Wildlife Rescue in Tunbridge Wells was considering closing its doors, leaving
05:30the hundreds of animals in its care with nowhere to go, all due to a lack of funding.
05:35There's nowhere else local to take these, this wildlife, the birds, the hedgehogs, we
05:41have deer in here, swans, you name it, it comes through the doors and if there's nowhere
05:45else local to bring these animals, you know, they're not going to be saved.
05:56Before his death in 2023, former Yardbirds guitarist Jeff Beck had been patron of Folly
06:02Wildlife since 2005. This week, more than 120 guitars, amps and pedals from his collection
06:08were put up for sale, making £8.7 million, more than eight times the pre-sale estimate.
06:16As a way to continue supporting the charity, Jeff's wife and their close friend Johnny
06:20Depp, who is also a patron to the centre, dedicated the total sale of the final four
06:25lots to Folly Rescue. It included a guitar signed by performers at a Jeff Beck tribute
06:30concert, such as Rod Stewart, and three canvas paintings signed by both Depp and Beck. It
06:36means, thanks to the £100,000 raised, Folly can stay open and continue preparing for the
06:42summer months, when they expect more birds and other animals to come into their care.
06:47It was quite a shock. I know there were some quite key parts weren't it, that fetched huge
06:50amounts of money, but even the lot that was funded for us went for £75,000 and we didn't
06:55expect that at all, so it was wonderful. We're not eligible for government or lottery funding.
07:01It's quite easy to get grants for equipment and projects, but sometimes that day-to-day
07:05cost just to support your work and keep us open, there isn't enough. At the end of last
07:09year was real financial difficulty for us and we were facing closure. We launched an
07:13appeal and it brought in about £350,000, which was huge, so this will be added into
07:20that pot. Sandra Beck has been incredibly supportive and Johnny Depp as well, just in
07:25sharing our work and promoting the auction, and supporters and volunteers, it's been amazing,
07:29so thank you very much.
07:31So even if these birds aren't quite singing to the tune of Jeff Beck, the legacy of his
07:35music will help them to continue chirping in the care of Folly Wildlife. Bartholomew
07:40Hall for KMTV.
07:44Now tributes have poured in from a woman dubbed Britain's oldest cleaner, who spent years
07:48keeping the mall and maidstone in its best shape. Marjorie Rose, who has died at the
07:54age of 101, spent 25 years working tirelessly in the town, becoming a well-known figure
08:00amongst regular customers, with colleagues previously describing her as a hard worker
08:04with a zest for life, while the shopping centre says she was the heart and soul of the community.
08:14Next this evening, inspired by men in sheds, a new women's group has been launched in Gillingham
08:19to try and tackle loneliness. Every week the Sunlight Centre opens its doors for those
08:23battling mental health issues or physical challenges, by taking part in woodworking,
08:28gardening and music production. The initial group are sharing the funding they get, intended
08:33to tackle isolation in men, so that everyone struggling has somewhere to go. Kai Wei went
08:38down to meet the Women in Sheds group.
08:42Men in Sheds has been running for nearly 10 years, and now they've decided to give in
08:46to the high demand and start up Women in Sheds.
08:48Currently I'm involved in recruiting people to it, by them coming in and having a chat,
08:55finding out what they'd like to do, their goals, their aims, and find out their interests,
09:00and from there we will be able to put a programme together that they'll enjoy.
09:05It's really important because you can be lonely in a crowded room, and I think the stigma
09:11attached to loneliness can be broken by bringing people together, just in a nice social space,
09:18nice warming cup of coffee, chatting and nattering like women love to do, and it breaks that
09:25barrier of I'm alone.
09:29After the initial success of Medway Men in Sheds, Women in Sheds has now been up and
09:33running for about four weeks. Meeting here at the Sunlight Centre, it is a community
09:38and member-led group where they get together to tackle loneliness.
09:42It's kind of like we're a new territory, and it's being run by women, and they're devising
09:50and evolving from the ground up. You know, women say, why can't we get involved and do
09:55what you're doing? Why can't we join your group? And unfortunately it's funded for men.
10:02We can use what we've got to share with this new Medway Women in Sheds group, and it will
10:08make life so much easier for them to get going.
10:12Not only do they help each other mentally, but physically too, with specialists in the
10:16centre checking up on everyone's wellbeing.
10:18It's a health project, so whilst you're creating something, you might talk about what your
10:24health problems are, and it might be women's health, it might be menopause, during menopause
10:30week, and just, you know, you might talk about a certain problem that you've got. Somebody
10:35else might think, ah, yeah, I might have that too, maybe I ought to get that checked out.
10:40As a society, we're becoming more disconnected, so when we're working, women are very much
10:47focused – well, women and men – are very much focused on their working life, might
10:51not get to know their neighbours as well as they used to, and then when they have children,
10:56they're suddenly at home, and they're lonely, because they're missing that contact with
11:01their colleagues and day-to-day talking with other people.
11:04The majority of our people are out of work, or retired. They've got a lot of opportunities
11:10here, we've got music, we've got sheds, we've got gardens, they can be creative,
11:15we've got painting, we've got upcycling. Whatever they want to do as a group, we will enable.
11:21Kai Wei, for Game TV.
11:23Lovely shared initiative. Well, now it's time for a very quick break, but coming up,
11:28a petition to return a dog to its owners has hit 1,200 signatures, after it was taken by
11:34police. They're worried that the dog poses a danger as an Excel bully. All that and more
11:39after this very short break. See you in a few minutes.
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18:26We have a lot of guys that suffer with mental health issues, so things like PTSD.
18:32They carry that with them all day.
18:36They can have good days, bad days, but on some days it really is a struggle for them to get to work.
18:42The event saw the public come to the Capel Morris Centre to give their opinions on the project and what they hoped to see.
18:50After which, the RBLI will be putting this forward as an application towards Tunbridge and Morling Borough Council,
18:58with the hopes of transforming this space behind me to be fit for the modern day.
19:04In addition, the proposals also include the construction of a training and conference centre,
19:10as well as the employment of 80 more people to add to the 158 already working in Aylesford.
19:18Speaking to the company's managing director, he spoke about the problems current workers face.
19:24So the current building has done us really well over the last 50 years or so.
19:30But it's an old building. It was built in the 1970s.
19:34It's not very environmentally sound. It gets very cold in the winter, very hot in the summer.
19:39And our veterans deserve a better place to work.
19:44So the new factory is really important because it secures their work and it secures the right working environment for them for the next 50 years.
19:53The RBLI's planning permission will be submitted next month,
19:57with the goal of beginning construction in spring next year and moving into the new facilities in summer of 2027.
20:06Henry Luck for CAME TV in Aylesford.
20:11Now don't forget you can keep up to date with all your latest stories across Kent by logging on to our website, cametv.co.uk.
20:18There you'll find all our reports, including this one about NHS wait times and the government's plan to create 2 million more appointments.
20:25This is the year we roll up our sleeves and reform the NHS.
20:29A new era of convenience in care, faster treatment at your fingertips, patients in control and NHS fit for the future.
20:40A big promise in the Prime Minister's first big speech of the year.
20:45Today, Sir Keir Starmer outlined plans to cut the NHS backlog.
20:50That has left millions across the UK waiting for an appointment, including here in Medway.
20:58Yeah, I had to wait quite a few months for a new place.
21:03I've had a condition for the last 13 years that I've just been pushed from pillar to post.
21:09Neurology is horrendous. There's at least a two year waiting list.
21:15I've just got on through the pain management after a year's waiting list, so it just goes on and on and on.
21:24You just feel like you're banging your head against a wall.
21:27I had elderly parents. Unfortunately, they're both dead now.
21:31But while they were alive, it was not a nice thing to have to go into hospital and see them wait for hours to get attended to.
21:45To cut the backlog, community diagnostic centres will be open for longer alongside new surgical hubs.
21:54GPs will be offered cash to discuss with doctors whether patients can be treated outside hospital
22:01and patients will be provided more choice over where they'll be treated.
22:06Currently, there's 7.5 million people on NHS waiting lists.
22:12The government wants to get those numbers down by the end of next year.
22:17They want about 65% of people to be seen within 18 weeks.
22:22But those numbers, to some medical professionals, feel a tad ambitious.
22:28I think they've got to do something and I can see where they're going.
22:33I do have some doubts as to whether it's going to work as well as they think.
22:38It's very dependent on having extra capacity and that's both having beds in hospitals, rooms in GP practices and additional staff.
22:47Because if you're going to do additional consultations, you need additional doctors, nurses and so on to carry that out.
22:53Where is the workforce going to come from to do this extra work in the community?
22:58And also the estates, general practice particularly has huge problems with its estates.
23:04Not enough rooms to even get the current staffing, let alone the additional staff to run these hubs.
23:11Doctors divided. But with the government hoping to provide 2 million extra appointments in its first year,
23:20change cannot come fast enough for those on Kent's waiting lists.
23:25Oliver, leading the sats for KMTV in Medway.
23:31And now with less than 40 days to go until Hollywood's biggest night,
23:35Film fans across Kent have been in anticipation for today's release of the Academy Award nominations.
23:41You could say it's been a wicked year for film, but a record-breaking 13 nominations have been handed to a foreign language film for the first time.
23:49I was joined earlier by a reporter and film student, Brandon Knapp, with a round-up of the Oscars.
23:55So Brandon, the long-awaited Oscars nominations, they came out this afternoon for us here in the UK.
24:00What were some of this year's top picks? What were the favourites?
24:03Well, Emilia Perez has actually broken the record with 13 nominations for a non-English language film,
24:08breaking the previous record holders, Corrupting Tiger, Hidden Dragon and Roma with 10 each.
24:13And of course, Wicked and The Brutalists have come in at second place with 10 nominations each,
24:19bringing Best Picture for both, and Best Actress and Supporting Actress for the Wicked cast members,
24:24Cynthia Erivo in the lead role, and the former Disney star Ariana Grande for Supporting Actress,
24:30which many people, musical fans, will be happy with.
24:32Yeah, of course, that was highly anticipated, that. Lots of chatter about Wicked.
24:35Were there any surprise nominations?
24:37Well, due to the extremely violent, gory nature of the substance,
24:41it's quite surprising that it was in the Best Picture category for this year,
24:46as historically the Academy have been quite discriminative against horror films.
24:51The Silence of the Lambs is actually the only horror film to have won Best Picture back in 1992,
24:56and only five others have ever been nominated.
24:58Wow, it's interesting. And were there any snubs?
25:01Well, many people we've seen Gladiator 2 will be quite disappointed about Denzel Washington
25:05not receiving a Supporting Actor nomination as the villain.
25:10That's not to say that the other nominees aren't deserving, of course.
25:14An Irish comedy-drama film, Kneecap, actually did not get any recognition
25:20in the International Film category either.
25:22Again, it's a very competitive line-up, though.
25:24Okay, and if you were on the judging panel then, who do you think, who would you be picking?
25:28Who deserves a nomination or perhaps the win?
25:31Well, as a film-scientist, it's not great that I haven't actually watched many of these films.
25:35However, Alien Romulus, I think, definitely deserves Best Sound,
25:40as watching it in the cinema is a great experience.
25:43The sound was amazing.
25:44And I think that Dune Part 2, by Denis Villeneuve,
25:47definitely deserves something for cinematography or visual effects, I'd say,
25:51as, again, in IMAX, absolutely stunning movie.
25:54Okay, well, brush up on your films and you can be there next year on the judging panel, perhaps.
25:57Hopefully, I will do that.
26:00Brandon Knapp joining me there, all about the Oscars today.
26:03But finally this evening, put them to the side.
26:06Somewhere in Kent has been ranked as the best place to visit in the whole of the UK.
26:10Folkestone.
26:11It's been praised for its nature and local cuisine by Time Out magazine.
26:15It's been voted as one of 15 of the very best seaside destinations to see in 2025.
26:20Perhaps not this weekend with the weather.
26:22But being the only Kent entry this year,
26:24the town trumped Stratford and Stoke-on-Trent,
26:27despite recent controversies with the harbour's regeneration plans being dismissed.
26:31But the current Harbour Arm and all its events,
26:33alongside prestigious art festival in the summer,
26:36well, they all went a long way to solidifying its number one spot.
26:39Who would have thought, to Folkestone?
26:40Well, that's it for this evening on Kent Tonight.
26:42See you tomorrow. Bye-bye.
26:54.