Broadcast timeline
BBC News
Friday 18 September 2026 · 06:00 BST · 30m · 7 stories · 15 annotated moments · 23 of 30 min on news stories (76%)
Broadcast overview
An AI-generated overview based on this broadcast's transcript.
The programme opened with fresh allegations from Earl Spencer, Princess Diana's brother, in extracts from his new book serialised in the Daily Mail. He claims that the then Prince Charles sounded "giddily elated like a lottery winner" in a phone call hours after Diana's death, and suggests the King was more focused on his future with Camilla Parker Bowles. Prince Harry made a public appearance in London and was approached about the book, while Buckingham Palace has reiterated its earlier statement that a brother's grief can cloud reason and memory. The full publication is due next Tuesday.
Voting began in Russia's first parliamentary election since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, with President Putin's party all but guaranteed to win. An expert described the elections as fake, noting that even the Yabloko party was barred, and said repression is increasing. Separately, President Trump said the US is working to establish a new military base in Poland, while NATO's Secretary General Mark Rutte, meeting UK leaders, said Russia's drone strikes near Poland showed desperation and that NATO would not intercept drones over Ukrainian territory. UN investigators reported reasonable grounds to believe the US committed war crimes in early strikes on Iran, citing two attacks that killed at least 178 civilians; the State Department rejected the findings.
Other stories included an announcement that UK MPs will scrutinise the country's poor Eurovision record, a pilot project using drones for routine crowd control at football matches, the discovery of a new cat species in Bolivia via DNA testing, and a centuries-old Aztec codex going on display in Mexico after almost 200 years abroad.
- 0:10
- 4:27
- 9:04
- 13:02 Story begins UN finds grounds for US war crimes in Iran
- 17:53 Story begins MPs launch inquiry into UK's poor Eurovision record
- 17:53
Claim MPs launch inquiry into UK's poor Eurovision record
MPs are to scrutinise the UK's Eurovision selection process, which involves the BBC, with BBC figures expected to give evidence.
BBC News, 18 September 2026, 17:53-17:59
- 18:49
Claim MPs launch inquiry into UK's poor Eurovision record
MPs are to scrutinise the UK's Eurovision selection process, which involves the BBC, with BBC figures expected to give evidence.
BBC News, 18 September 2026, 18:49-18:57
- 18:57
Claim MPs launch inquiry into UK's poor Eurovision record
MPs are to scrutinise the UK's Eurovision selection process, which involves the BBC, with BBC figures expected to give evidence.
BBC News, 18 September 2026, 18:57-19:03
- 18:57
Claim MPs launch inquiry into UK's poor Eurovision record
The BBC selects the UK's Eurovision entrant.
BBC News, 18 September 2026, 18:57-19:03
- 18:57
Claim MPs launch inquiry into UK's poor Eurovision record
The BBC selects the UK's Eurovision entrant.
BBC News, 18 September 2026, 18:57-19:03
- 19:03
Claim MPs launch inquiry into UK's poor Eurovision record
MPs are to scrutinise the UK's Eurovision selection process, which involves the BBC, with BBC figures expected to give evidence.
BBC News, 18 September 2026, 19:03-19:13
- 19:03
Claim MPs launch inquiry into UK's poor Eurovision record
MPs are to scrutinise the UK's Eurovision selection process, which involves the BBC, with BBC figures expected to give evidence.
BBC News, 18 September 2026, 19:03-19:13
- 19:03
Claim MPs launch inquiry into UK's poor Eurovision record
MPs are to scrutinise the UK's Eurovision selection process, which involves the BBC, with BBC figures expected to give evidence.
BBC News, 18 September 2026, 19:03-19:09
- 19:48
Claim MPs launch inquiry into UK's poor Eurovision record
The UK last won Eurovision in 1997 with Katrina and the Waves.
BBC News, 18 September 2026, 19:48-19:51
- 19:48
Claim MPs launch inquiry into UK's poor Eurovision record
The UK last won Eurovision in 1997 with Katrina and the Waves.
BBC News, 18 September 2026, 19:48-19:51
- 19:49
Claim MPs launch inquiry into UK's poor Eurovision record
The UK last won Eurovision in 1997 with Katrina and the Waves.
BBC News, 18 September 2026, 19:49-19:57
- 20:54
- 22:17
Claim Drones used to police Coventry game in £2m football disorder trial
Premier League provided £2 million for a drone pilot running from February until the end of the season.
BBC News, 18 September 2026, 22:17-22:24
- 22:17
Claim Drones used to police Coventry game in £2m football disorder trial
Premier League provided £2 million for a drone pilot running from February until the end of the season.
BBC News, 18 September 2026, 22:17-22:21
- 23:13
Claim Drones used to police Coventry game in £2m football disorder trial
West Midlands Police first used a drone at a football match in 2016.
BBC News, 18 September 2026, 23:13-23:20
- 23:46
Claim Drones used to police Coventry game in £2m football disorder trial
A drone operation at a Coventry vs Brighton match passed off peacefully; Coventry lost 5-0.
BBC News, 18 September 2026, 23:46-23:55
- 23:59 Story begins New wild cat species Tilkayo discovered in Bolivia
- 25:33 ~4 min without annotations
Source: BBC NEWS, "BBC News", Friday 18 September 2026. Transcript excerpts and stills are shown only to support the analysis annotated alongside them. Search-result excerpts are distinct from the editorial annotations — see our copyright basis. The full broadcast is not reproduced.