Central And Finally

A couple of dogs have a unique role at a funeral directors in Aldridge in Walsall.

Billie and Ben help people who are grieving. Staff say they lift people's mood through physical interaction or just by watching them play.

They are a year old and half poodle/half cavalier.

Dogs in Northampton have been auditioning for a new production coming to the town's Royal and Derngate theatre.

Six canines have been competing for a starring role in 'Legally Blonde the Musical'. They'll join the cast during the week the touring production is in Northampton.

Watch a report by ITV News Anglia's Stuart Leithes.

And after months of planting, pruning and preening, Northampton is welcoming judges from the East Midlands in Bloom competition.

The team in the town are hoping they can win this year. The competition covers the six counties of Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire, Northamptonshire and Rutland.

Organised by the Royal Horticultural Society, the aim of the competition is to encourage the improvement of our surroundings through the imaginative use of trees, shrubs, flowers and landscaping. It also aims to achieve a litter free and sustainable environment.