Whether it's meeting a comedy hero, playing a bit of basketball or planning a surprise Saturday night on the town, it's good to break up the routine every now and then.

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After one of my earliest ever Wimbledon finishes on Wednesday, I get the middle weekend off for only the second time I can remember.
Don't worry, I won't be out until the early hours, but it does give me the chance to go for dinner if I want, or at least to have a few of the guys round to watch the football.
Having two days without a match could have a positive effect on the court too, as I can hit for a bit longer on Saturday and work on a few things before getting back to my normal routine on Sunday.
During a tournament you usually just have one day off, so you can't really practise anything different, but maybe I'll try a couple of things out on Saturday.
I was very happy with the way I played  and it's been a good start to the tournament for me.
Sometimes you can start to see the finish line and lose concentration when you get up in the third set of a match, but I've experienced it before when I've been playing well and guys have started to come back. You just try to keep it going, keep concentrating, and don't give them a chance.
The last moment you see me after a match is probably my TV interview, but I'm usually at the All England Club for several more hours. That's when the tried and tested routine kicks in.
After speaking to TV, I head straight to the locker room and drop off my bag before going to the gym and getting on the bike for 10 minutes. My team will be there so I can speak about the match with my coaches, Amelie and Dani, and sometimes ice my knee, elbow, shoulder - any bits of my body that feel a bit sore.
Then it's back upstairs for a shower, some food, 45 minutes of physio treatment and finally doing my media commitments.
This week there has also been a bit of extra competition going on in the locker room as there's a mini basketball hoop, which has been hung on Milos Raonic's locker for most of the tournament.
One of the physios, Clay, is pretty useful, but Daniel Nestor, the Canadian doubles player, talks like he's the best thing since sliced bread. He's really not that good.
There was also a new face in the gym after Friday's match as comedian Ricky Gervais came along, as I'd invited him to sit in my player box - he even tried out one of the bikes. I'd never met him before, although had plenty of Twitter banter and I've watched all of his shows and his stand-up.
I watched The Office pretty much every night when I was training in Spain as a kid. I could probably recite every line from every episode, but I resisted the temptation. I imagine he gets asked about that stuff all of the time.
Ricky said it was the first time in a while he had been to Wimbledon, and that he plays a bit of tennis - he also asked why my opponent was slipping over more than me!
He might come along to the US Open because he spends quite a lot of time in New York, so I promised we'd have a hit on the courts over there. It was cool to meet him and, like Shaquille O'Neal's visit to Wimbledon the other day, it's good for tennis to attract the interest of these big stars.
Promoting the sport is part of our job and I think tennis players probably do more media than other athletes. I know football managers do a lot, but in terms of the actual athletes I don't think many do more media.
We've always done it and I don't mind, but from a player's perspective it can become repetitive as you do it after every single match. The questions can start to get a bit silly because nobody wants to be asking the same thing over and over.
Sometimes I think it might be more fun if there wasn't the same structure all the time as the journalists would be more creative, and it would be better for everyone.
Next up for me on Monday is Kevin Anderson in the fourth round. He's a big guy with a big game, so I'll work on my returning a bit over the weekend, but everyone plays well from the back of the court these days, too.
It's the second week of a Grand Slam, so the matches are obviously going to get tougher, but I've given myself another opportunity and it's just down to me to play some good tennis now.
Andy Murray was talking to BBC Sport's Piers Newbery.


Thursday's failure of yet another Russian Proton rocket is going to delay the roll-out of Britain's biggest single commercial space project.

London-based telecommunications company Inmarsat was due to use the vehicle to launch the second and third satellites in its $1.6bn Global Xpress network.
The latest Proton suffered an engine failure nine minutes after lifting off from Baikonur in Kazakhstan.
Inmarsat concedes the failure review process will impact its timelines.
The company told investors that the prospect of getting another of its I-5 Ka-band satellites in orbit by the autumn was now unrealistic.
"The cause of the failure will be assessed by a process known as the Failure Review Oversight Board ("FROB") and a report of its findings is expected to be completed in the next two months," a statement read.  "While the conclusions of the FROB will be important in determining the impact on our launch schedule, we believe a delay in the planned launch of both the Inmarsat-5 F2 and F3 is now likely, which would delay the launch of GX services on a global basis."
Inmarsat said regional services delivered by the first I-5 launched in December would not be affected.
Protons have experienced an alarming deterioration in reliability in recent years.
There have now been five outright failures since the turn of the decade, with most of the problems linked to the upper-stages.
The July 2013 mishap saw a vehicle veer violently out of control just after leaving the pad and then explode as it impacted the ground a short distance away.
Manufacturer Khrunichev has had to instigate a whole-scale review of its production processes to try to identify the root causes of the poor track record.
Lost on Thursday's failed flight was the six-tonne Express-AM4R satellite, which was to be used to deliver broadband internet across Russia.
Federal space officials have suspended all future missions while the FROB conducts its investigation.
Inmarsat was expecting to loft its I-5 F2 on a Proton in the third quarter of this year. The F3 model would have followed not long after to complete the Global Xpress network.
The I-5s are high-throughput satellites that will provide telecommunications "on the go" in remote locations.
Inmarsat's principal customer base is the shipping sector, but the company also caters for any groups that need connectivity away from a fixed line.
These include oil and gas installations, the aviation sector, armed forces, aid agencies and NGOs in disaster areas, and TV news crews reporting from trouble zones.
Customers can use Inmarsat services to make phone calls, to transfer audio-visual material or simple data.
Traditionally, the company has served these customers using the L-band part of the radio spectrum. However, the new GX constellation will operate in the higher-frequency Ka-band, enabling much higher bandwidth connections - up to 50Mbps download, and 5Mbps upload.
Jonathan.Amos-INTERNET@bbc.co.uk and follow me on Twitter: @BBCAmos


Shares in troubled electronics maker Sharp have surged on a report that its lenders might waive some of its debts to allow new investment.

At one point, shares in the company were up 35%, but they then fell back to close 13.7% higher.
Without citing sources, Kyodo News said a state-backed fund may invest in Sharp if Japanese lenders agreed to write off an unspecified amount of its debt.
Kyodo said the banks were expected to consider the plan, among other options.
In May, the firm agreed to a 200bn yen ($1.7bn; Â£1bn) bailout from banks and announced more job cuts.
Mizuho Bank and Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ each provided a 100bn yen investment in Sharp. It is also received 25bn yen from Japan Industrial Solutions to help fund its "business growth strategy".
The bailout was the firm's second in three years and was announced as Sharp reported larger-than-expected losses for the year to March 2015.
The report said that if Sharp's debts were cut, the government-backed Innovation Network Corporation of Japan -  which was created to help increase the competitiveness of Japanese firms - might spin off the firm's troubled liquid display business (LCD).
The firm's LCD unit saw a loss of 12.7bn yen ($102m; Â£67m) for the quarter to September. In October, Sharp cut its earnings outlook for the full year to March 2016 to 10bn yen from 80bn yen.
The tech giant, which makes televisions, solar panels, tablets and phones, has been facing stiff competition from cheaper Taiwanese, South Korean and Chinese electronics firms.
Last week, Sharp said it wanted its workers to buy its products, in a attempt to boost sales.
The electronics giant said it was not mandatory for staff to buy its goods, but confirmed it wanted workers to choose its products over that of its competitors.
Sharp has also announced cost-cutting plans such as selling the company's Osaka headquarters and pulling out of the television business in North America.


Surrey have signed Warwickshire all-rounder Rikki Clarke on a two-year deal, to begin in 2018.

Clarke started his career with Surrey, but left to join Derbyshire in 2007, before moving to Edgbaston in 2008.
The 35-year-old, who played 20 one-dayers and two Tests for England, has scored over 16,000 runs and taken 629 wickets in all forms of the game.
"As a product of the club's academy, he's one of our own," said director of cricket Alec Stewart.
"I was disappointed when he left the club back in 2007, but it's great to see him come back to The Oval."
"It's going home for him," Warwickshire sport director Ashley Giles told BBC WM. "He's been a great pro for us and I'm sure there'll now be a bit more on it when he comes up against us next season in a Surrey shirt.
"But we need to be looking forward to the next generation. It provides a fantastic opportunity for our talented, young players to step up to the senior ranks and cement a place in the team."


Sharply rising food prices in China pushed up inflation to a one-year high in the world's second largest economy.

The consumer price index (CPI) unexpectedly rose to 2% in August from a year ago, mainly on higher food prices and not due to a pick up in economic activity.
On the back of that, the producer price index (PPI) fell 5.9% - marking its 42nd consecutive month of declines.
Deflation fears in China are growing as manufacturers continue to cut prices.
The decline in the PPI was the biggest drop since the global financial crisis in 2009 due to falling commodity prices and slumping demand.
Economists said the continuing fall in producer prices poses the risk of trickling through to consumer prices.
"The change in PPI is very worrying. It could affect corporate profitability, which in turn could affect consumption and the economy," said Li Huiyong, economist at Shenyin & Wanguo Securities.
Meanwhile, pork prices which weigh heavily on consumer prices in China, rose from 16.7% last year to 19.6% in August, while vegetable prices surged from 9.7% to nearly 16%.
"A sharp fall in pig numbers in recent months will continue put upward pressure on pork price inflation," said Julian Evans-Pritchard, China economist at research firm Capital Economics.
Economists are expecting the government to step up with more policy measures to stimulate the economy.
Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Dalian on Thursday, Premier Li Keqiang was the latest policymaker to reiterate that the government will continue to support the economy to ensure stable growth.


Swindon Town have confirmed former Bury and Barnsley boss David Flitcroft has been appointed as their new manager.

The 43-year-old replaces former head coach Luke Williams, who left the County Ground in May following the club's relegation to League Two.
"David has a fantastic footballing background," a club statement said.
"He has been given a very competitive budget and will now begin the job of putting a squad together with the aim of competing at the top of League Two."
In May, Mansfield Town refused Swindon - who finished 22nd in League One in 2016-17 - permission to speak to their boss Steve Evans, and chairman Lee Power said the search was down to "three candidates".
Former England striker Teddy Sheringham - who previously managed Stevenage in League Two - had been linked with the vacancy.
Swindon's statement continued: "The club has taken its time over this appointment as it was vital after relegation that we got the right man to take the club forward and give us the best chance of promotion back to League One at the first time of asking.
"We are convinced David is this man. Most importantly, he knows this level of football and how to get out of it, having guided Bury to promotion from the League Two during the 2014-15 campaign."
The job is former Chester City, Rochdale and Bury midfielder Flitcroft's third in management, after parting company with Bury in November after an 11-game winless run.
He was in charge at Gigg Lane for almost three years, having previously helped Barnsley avoid relegation from the Championship in 2012-13 after a dramatic final-day draw at Huddersfield.
Swindon appointed former Tottenham boss Tim Sherwood as director of football in November, but he took a step back from the role before the end of the season and the Robins are now expected to move away from the head coach and director of football model, with the appointment of new manager Flitcroft.
The Wiltshire outfit will be playing in the fourth tier for the first time since 2012 next season.


Claims of alleged corruption in Qatar's successful 2022 World Cup bid have been published in the German media.

The Bild newspaper says it has obtained the 'suppressed' 2014 report authored by former Fifa independent ethics investigator Michael Garcia.
Bild's report includes details of a $2m (£1.6m) sum allegedly paid to the 10-year-old daughter of a Fifa official.
Garcia quit in December 2014 in protest at the handling of his report into the bidding process.
The American lawyer cited a "lack of leadership" as he left football's world governing body, whose executives unanimously agreed to publish a "legally appropriate version" of his report.
That 42-page version cleared Qatar of corruption allegations.
Bild says it will be publishing the full details of Garcia's 403-page report from Tuesday.
The newspaper claims:
In a Facebook post, Peter Rossberg - the journalist who claims to have obtained the report - said it "does not provide the proof that the 2018 or 2022 World Cup was bought".
He described its findings instead as "like a puzzle that only makes sense when all parts are put together".
Fifa's inquiry looked at the conduct of all nine bidding teams who were trying to win the right to stage the 2022 World Cup or the 2018 event, which was awarded to Russia at the same ceremony in 2010.
Speaking before he resigned, Garcia said the version of his report that Fifa published contained "numerous materially incomplete and erroneous representations".
Simon Johnson, who led England's 2018 bid team said: "Now that I have seen Mr Garcia's statement, I am absolutely convinced that the report is a politically motivated whitewash."
British MP Damian Collins also described it as "a whitewash" and "an attempt to con people".
"The result is that allegations of bribery and serious wrongdoing remain unanswered and they are still suppressing the full report," he added.
Fifa's final report strongly criticised the English Football Association.
It said the body had tried to "curry favour" with its former vice-president Jack Warner, who quit his role in 2011 amid bribery allegations. The FA rejected the claims, insisting it "conducted a transparent bid".
French prosecutors have also been investigating the bidding process for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, and in April questioned former Fifa president Sepp Blatter "as a witness".
France's National Public Prosecutor's Office began its investigation last year.
BBC sports editor Dan Roan
Ever since ex-Fifa ethics chief Michael Garcia dramatically resigned in protest at the way his landmark investigation was handled two years ago, the contents of his secret report have been one of sport's great mysteries.
The German journalist who has obtained a copy of the leaked document has suggested it does not provide proof that the 2018 and 2022 World Cups were 'bought'.
But, while this may not represent a 'smoking gun', there are early signs it will raise further awkward questions, especially over Fifa's decision back in 2014 to controversially clear Qatar's bid to host the event.
With the Arab kingdom's staging of the tournament under renewed scrutiny after it fell out with its neighbours, and 2018 hosts Russia forced to fend off new doping allegations, these revelations are the last thing Fifa needed.


England's Ross Fisher suffered defeat in the World Golf Championship Match Play quarter-finals in Texas.

The 36-year-old was beaten 4&2 by Japanese 38-year-old Hideto Tanihara, having earlier defeated Bubba Watson 4&3 in the last 16.
In the other quarter-finals, Spain's Jon Rahm beat Soren Kjeldsen of Denmark 7&5, while world number one Dustin Johnson beat Swede Alex Noren 3&2.
And Bill Haas beat fellow American Phil Mickelson 2&1 for a semi-final place.
Tanihara, who earlier knocked out England's Paul Casey, goes on to play American Johnson, who is seeking a third straight tournament victory and a clean sweep of WGC events.
In Sunday's other semi-final, exciting 22-year-old prospect Rahm takes on 34-year-old Haas for a chance to claim the £1.28m winner's share.
Full results


More than 300 staff have lost their jobs after a bus company went into administration.

Ruabon-based GHA Coaches employed 320 people and operated 230 vehicles on school and bus routes across north Wales, Cheshire and Shropshire.
Its closure has caused major disruption for passengers.
Jason Bell of administrators Grant Thornton said: "We will explore all options in terms of bringing any part of the business back to life."
The company recently received a winding-up petition from HMRC in respect of unpaid taxes.
Attempts by the directors - Gareth and Arwyn Lloyd Davies - to secure an emergency funding package proved unsuccessful and the company was placed into administration on Wednesday.
"Our immediate responsibility is to look after the interests of the creditors," Mr Bell added.
"We are also liaising with the local authorities involved on contingency arrangements for the routes affected."
Workers - who first received the news by text - have expressed shock at the closure.
Denbighshire, Flintshire and Wrexham councils have put urgent contingency plans in place to minimise disruption for passengers.
The authorities say they have given priority to school transport services, putting on replacement buses.
Wrexham council said it was "very concerned" at the news.
GHA operated up to 30 public routes in the county, none of which ran on Thursday.
"Our priority at the moment is to ensure that our statutory services such as home to school transport are maintained and all pupils get to school," said a spokesman.
"With regard to the regional transport services provided by GHA, we are working with other authorities across the north west and north Wales to mitigate the disruption.
"We are confident other operators will take on some of the routes."
Denbighshire council said it provided alternative transport to 95% of the pupils affected by the closure.
Out of the 28 public services GHA ran in the county, only four were running on Thursday.
"The council is using its contingency plans to try to ensure that as many former services as possible run by GHA are able to continue to operate by other suppliers on a temporary basis," it said in a statement.
"There will be some gaps in service, as it will take a few days to arrange the necessary vehicles from other suppliers."
Flintshire council said no public services would be covered immediately but it was working to cover them as soon as possible.
GHA also operated a handful of services in Gwynedd and Conwy and, over the border, routes in Cheshire West and Chester, Cheshire East, Warrington and into Greater Manchester council areas.
Lloyds Coaches has been brought in to run the Welsh Government-funded Traws Cymru route between Barmouth, Dolgellau, Bala, Corwen and Wrexham.
A Welsh Government spokeswoman said: "We have for some time been working with local authorities to try to protect the bus network provided by GHA Coaches.
"We will continue to work collaboratively to minimise any adverse effects of the company entering administration."
It is the second large Welsh bus company to close after Pembrokeshire firm Silcox collapsed in June.
In south Wales, drivers at Newport Bus have voted to take industrial action in a row over pay, the company said.


A detailed study into how a deposit-return scheme for bottles and cans would work has been commissioned by the Scottish government.

The initiative would see customers pay a small surcharge which is refunded when the bottle is returned to a shop.
Design options and potential costs will be examined by Zero Waste Scotland, with the findings then being put to a public consultation.
International drinks giant Coca-Cola has already backed the idea.
Environment Secretary Roseanna Cunningham said she had asked Zero Waste Scotland to start work on how a deposit return scheme would work in practice.
She said: "I am grateful to Zero Waste Scotland for its work so far on deposit return and to everyone who provided evidence to help us better understand the benefits of deposit return for recycling and reducing litter, and potential impacts on retailers and local authorities.
"Clearly there are a number of issues for the Scottish government to consider when it comes to deposit return schemes that can only be addressed by carrying out work to understand the design of a potential system."
Organisations like Coca-Cola have been coming under significant pressure to reduce the impact of plastic on the environment.
Greenpeace has just completed a study of Scotland's coastal habitats which found plastic in the nests and beaks of seabirds.
It said plastic bottles, bags and packaging were found on every one of the 30 remote beaches it surveyed.
Drinks companies, retailers and packaging firms will be invited to join a steering group along with environmental groups.
The Association for the Protection of Rural Scotland has been running the Have You Got The Bottle? campaign.
Campaign manager Jenni Hume said: "This decision by Roseanna Cunningham will break the log-jam on this issue, and today she will be cheered from the rooftops by a wide range of businesses and campaigners.
"Whether or not organisations are already persuaded that deposit return would work well for Scotland, as it does around the world, we can now look forward to a proper discussion about a Scotland-specific proposal.
"We will be making the case for a system that works well for the public, for local authorities, and for small Scottish businesses, including retailers and bars as well as producers."
Zero Waste Scotland's initial study into the potential benefits of a scheme estimated that local authorities could save between Â£3m and Â£6m on litter clearance alone.
A spokeswoman said the final decision on introducing a scheme would be for the government to make.
She said: "It's important that we understand the evidence around potential costs and benefits of a deposit return scheme,  in a specific Scottish context, and that's why we're undertaking further work for the Scottish government to look at designing a potential Scottish system and testing that out."
However, Ewan MacDonald-Russell, the Scottish Retail Consortium's head of policy and external affairs, described the proposals as "unnecessary, anachronistic, and expensive".
"We know this scheme will be hugely expensive for retailers, costing tens of millions to install reverse vending machines, cannibalising profitable floor space for unprofitable waste machines, disrupting operations and hugely inconveniencing customers," he said.
"In fact, the costs are clear. What is still uncertain is whether such a scheme will significantly improve overall recycling rates."


The last of nearly 70,000 coins has been removed from one of the largest Celtic hoards in the world.

The cache - thought to date from about 30-50 BC - was found in Jersey by two metal detector enthusiasts after a 30-year search sparked by a tip-off.
Experts from Jersey Heritage removed the coins one by one from the field in Grouville for three years, with the last set extracted on Friday.
They said there was still work to do, such as cleaning and logging the finds.
More on the coin story, and other news from around the Channel Islands
"This is a significant milestone for the team," said Neil Mahrer, senior conservator. "It has been painstaking but thoroughly intriguing work, which has delivered some very unexpected and amazing finds along the way.
"There is still plenty to do, and I am sure the hoard will continue to surprise us as we clean and record the material."
The hoard is believed to have been buried by the Coriosolitae tribe of Celts as they fled from the invading forces of the Roman Empire.
It was excavated by a team from the Societe Jersiais, Jersey Heritage and Guernsey Museum in 2012.
Known as Catillon II, the Iron Age coin hoard is about six times bigger than any other Celtic hoard found in the world.
It also includes a large number of gold neck torques and other pieces of jewellery, as well as glass beads, a leather purse and a woven bag of silver and gold work.
Now the hoard has been separated, it will be valued and Jersey's government will vote on whether to pay to keep it on the island.
When it was first discovered, its value was estimated at about Â£10m.
Reg Mead and Richard Miles spent three decades searching in fields near where it was found after being told folk tales of ancient coins being found nearby.
It was unearthed in 2012 and quickly made headlines around the world because it was said it could change the way experts view Iron Age trade.
Mr Miles said: "There was something there that drew us to it. Every Sunday, we would give it a try.
"The original story said the pot had been discovered on the tree line and we saw on old maps an old boundary that had been taken out.
"I found the first coin - and by the end of the first day we found 20 coins.
"Gradually, the tally began to climb."
That led them to find the hoard even deeper in the ground.
"We were literally scooping out the earth it was so deep," said Mr Miles.
"Reg said 'Give it one final try' and he forced the spade into the ground as deeply as he could and it struck something solid.
"You could hear the metal [striking the] hoard."


Yn 79 oed bu farw Elwyn Wilson Jones o Lanberis - baswr enwog y grŵp poblogaidd Hogia'r Wyddfa.

Gydol y dydd mae pobl wedi bod yn cofio am y "baswr â'r llais dwfn godidog".
Un a oedd yn ffrind agos iddo ac yn canu gydag ef yn Hogia'r Wyddfa oedd Arwel Jones. Wrth rannu ei atgofion gyda Cymru Fyw dywedodd: "Newyddion hynod o drist - ro'n i gydag e neithiwr ac yn gweld e rywfaint gwell a sioc fawr oedd clywed bore 'ma ei fod wedi'n gadael ni."
"Doedd neb wrth gwrs yn ei adnabod e fel Elwyn Wilson Jones - Elwyn Llanbêr oedd e i bawb. Ro'n i ag o yn gymdogion bore oes yn Llanbêr ac ry'n ni wedi bod yn ffrindiau ers dyddiau mebyd.
"Doedd Elwyn erioed wedi symud o'r ardal. Arferai weithio yn amgueddfa chwarel Dinorwig. Rownd y cornel i ni roedd Myrddin a Viv yn byw - aelodau eraill Hogia'r Wyddfa.
"Digwydd dod at ein gilydd 'nathon ni a chanfod bod ein lleisiau ni yn asio," ychwanegodd Arwel.
"Triawd yr Wyddfa o'n ni i ddechrau - Elwyn, Myrddin a fi ac yna mi ddaeth Richard a Viv atom i gyfeilio.
"Roedd llais bendigedig gan Elwyn - llais unigryw a byddai pawb trwy Gymru yn gofyn o hyd lle mae'r baswr. Fe allai Elwyn fod wedi dilyn gyrfa yn y byd canu ond na'th o ddim.
"Fe oedd canolbwynt y criw. Fo fuaswn i'n dweud oedd y cymdeithaswr gorau ohonom - mi allai e siarad ag unrhyw griw neu gynulleidfa.
"Mae'n drist meddwl ei fod wedi mynd - diwedd cyfnod. Roedd e'n rhan o'n steil unigryw ni o ganu - sef canu barddoniaeth beirdd enwog a phoblogaidd megis Williams Parry, Parry-Williams a Cynan - mi roddon ni stamp ein hunain ar bethau.
"Mae'n chwith meddwl ei fod wedi mynd."
Wrth siarad ar raglen Dewi Llwyd ar Radio Cymru fore Sul fe roddodd Dafydd Roberts, Ceidwad Amgueddfa Lechi Cymru yn Llanberis deyrnged i'r baswr o bentref bach Llanbêr.
"Fe fyddai yn cofio yn annwyl iawn am Elwyn, mae'n ddrwg gen i glywed am ei farwolaeth o.
"Mi oedd Elwyn wrth gwrs yn llinach y teulu, yn dod i'r amgueddfa lechi, ei dad o, y diweddar Huw Richard Jones yn brif beiriannydd olaf yn Chwarel Dinorwig, a fo achubodd gasgliad yr adeilad, sydd bellach yn yr amgueddfa wrth gwrs.
"Mi oedd Elwyn yn falch iawn i ddilyn oel ei draed yn ôl i'r adeilad ac yn falch iawn i ddangos crefft y peirianwyr, crefft y moldiwr i'r ymwelwyr.
"Mi oedd yn gyfathrebwr serchog, yn ddyn cefnogol, yn ddyn oedd yn ymdeimlo hanes Dinorwig i'w fôn, ac mi wela'i golli fo yn fawr iawn."ychwanegodd Mr Roberts.


A powerful cyber-attack came close to destroying a French TV network, its director-general has told the BBC.

TV5Monde was taken off air in April 2015. A group calling itself the Cyber Caliphate, linked to so-called Islamic State, first claimed responsibility.
But an investigation now suggests the attack was in fact carried out by a group of Russian hackers.
The attack used highly targeted malicious software to destroy the TV network's systems.
Wednesday 8 April was a big day for Yves Bigot, the director-general of TV5Monde.
His network, which broadcasts around the world, had just launched its latest channel. French ministers had been in attendance at the Paris headquarters.
That evening Mr Bigot went for dinner to celebrate with a counterpart from Radio Canada.
Just as they were being served their appetisers at 20:40 local time, a flood of texts and calls informed him that all 12 channels had gone off air.
"It's the worst thing that can happen to you in television," Mr Bigot told me in his Paris office.
It quickly became clear that the network had been subject to a serious cyber-attack.
"We were a couple of hours from having the whole station gone for good."
It was a race against time - more systems were corrupted with every passing minute. Any substantial delay would have led satellite distribution channels to cancel their contracts, placing the entire company in jeopardy.
"We were saved from total destruction by the fact we had launched the channel that day and the technicians were there," said Mr Bigot.
"One of them was able to locate the very machine where the attack was taking place and he was able to cut out this machine from the internet and it stopped the attack."
At 05:25 local time, one channel was restored. Others followed later that morning.
"We owe a lot to the engineer who unplugged that particular machine. He is a hero here," Mr Bigot said.
The attack was far more sophisticated and targeted than reported at the time. The perpetrators had first penetrated the network on 23 January.
They carried out reconnaissance of TV5Monde to understand the way in which it broadcast its signals. They then fabricated bespoke malicious software to corrupt and destroy the internet-connected hardware that controlled the TV station's operations - such as the encoder systems used to transmit programmes.
The attackers used seven different points of entry. Not all of them were part of TV5Monde or in France. In one case, a company based in the Netherlands was targeted because it supplied the remote controlled cameras used in TV5's studios.
At 20:40 local time - when the first calls were made - the people in charge of digital content at the broadcaster told Mr Bigot that messages had been posted on the channel's Twitter and Facebook pages.
The hackers said they were from a group calling themselves the Cyber Caliphate, and made threats against France. It was only a few months since the Charlie Hebdo attacks and it seemed this could have been a follow-up strike by so-called Islamic State (IS).
But as the investigation by French authorities began, a different picture began to emerge.
France's cyber-agency told Mr Bigot to be careful about linking the incident directly to IS - instead he was advised to say only that the messages claimed to be from IS.
The investigators had come to believe that the attackers had used the jihadist posts to try to cover their tracks.
Mr Bigot was later told evidence had been found that his network had been attacked by a group of Russian hackers, who are known as APT 28.
"I have absolutely no idea," said Mr Bigot, when I asked why TV5Monde had been targeted.
He explained that the investigators had only been able to prove two things.
Firstly, that the attack was designed to destroy the channel, and secondly, that it was linked to APT 28.
"There are two things that the investigation won't probably be able to achieve," he added.
"The first one is why us - why TV5Monde?
"And the second one is: Who gave the order and the money to that Russian group of hackers to actually do it?"
It's not uncommon for cyber-attackers to enter a target's network to look for information.
But what happened to TV5 was not espionage - the aim was destruction. And that is indicative of a new trend: attacks with physical-world consequences.
Arguably, the pioneering state-backed attack of this type was Stuxnet.
This was carried out - it is widely believed - by the US and Israel against Iran's nuclear programme and involved damaging the centrifuge programme at Natanz.
More recently, a power station in Ukraine was switched off by cyber-attackers.
The TV5 attack fits into this pattern of highly-targeted attacks, rather than the kind of general criminal activity typically seen on the web.
The issue as to why Russian hackers targeted the company is one that has occupied intelligence analysts in the UK and US, as well as France.
In London, the conclusion was that it was most likely an attempt to test forms of cyber-weaponry as part of an increasingly aggressive posture.
The impact on TV5 was enormous.
In the immediate aftermath, staff had to return to using fax machines as they could not send emails.
"We had to wait for months and months before we reconnected to the internet," recalled Mr Bigot.
The financial cost was €5m ($5.6m; £4.5m) in the first year, followed by over €3m ($3.4m; £2.7m) every following year for new protection.
But the biggest challenge has been to the way the company works. Every employee has had to change their behaviour.
Special authentication procedures are needed to check email from abroad, flash drives have to be tested before being inserted.
For a media company that exists by moving material in and out of its systems, the costs in efficiency have been real.
"We never will be as we were before," said Mr Bigot. "It is too dangerous."


A man has been jailed for 17 years for a string of sex offences against two children.

Philip Spriggs, 51, from Oxford, was found guilty of a total of 20 charges including 11 counts of rape, sexual assault and making indecent photos.
Oxford Crown Court was told the offences took place in Headington over seven years between 2007 and 2014.
Thames Valley Police praised his victims for being "brave" and "speaking out".
Spriggs was given an additional seven years on licence and placed on the sex offenders' register for life.
Det Sgt Tracey Shepherd said: "The victims in this case have been very brave at speaking out against their abuser.
"They can now begin to rebuild their lives knowing they do not have to suffer further abuse."
Spriggs, who was arrested and charged last October, was found guilty of 20 charges following a trial in April.
The charges were 11 counts of rape, two counts of assault of a child under 13, one charge of attempted rape, two charges of sexual assault of a child under 13, two counts of causing a child under 13 to engage in sexual activity, one charge of assault by penetration, and one count of making indecent photos.


A dead whale has washed up on the Devon coastline.

The mammal's body was discovered on Red Rock beach near Dawlish Warren on Thursday morning.
Coastguards had been tracking the 30ft (9.1m) whale as it drifted down the coast, after it was mistaken for an upturned boat.
Initially thought to be a sperm whale, it has since been confirmed as a fin whale by Rob Deaville of the Zoological Society of London.
Teignbridge Council, which has begun work to remove the whale, has advised members of the public not to approach the badly-decomposed carcass.
More on the washed up whale, and other Devon and Cornwall news
The whale has been attracting a crowd throughout the day, with people describing it as a "magnificent beast" and saying it "deserved respect".
"It's so beautiful", described one onlooker. "It's the closest I'm ever going to get to a whale, so I feel very, very sad."


Police have praised the "good family atmosphere" among the thousands of people who turned out to watch Guid Nychburris events in Dumfries.

In previous years crime figures have seen a significant rise during the annual celebration.
Good weather on Saturday meant a larger number of spectators than usual turned out to the event.
However, Insp Stuart Wilson said that other than a "few minor incidents" it had passed peacefully.
He said: "The annual Guid Nychburris celebrations started early with police cyclists escorting about 200 horses through the traffic in Dumfries.
"The good weather meant that there were a large number of spectators out to watch the horses, the crowning ceremony and the parade in the centre of Dumfries but it was a good family atmosphere and there were no policing issues.
"Local police were assisted by police horses and Operational Support Division from Glasgow to make sure the crowds were safe."


It's a beautiful spring day at Lulworth Cove, a striking part of the Jurassic Coast, which stretches across south Dorset and Devon in the UK.

Visitors are scouring its pebble beach for fossils and taking photos of the stripes of rock strata embedded in the surrounding cliffs - a visual reminder of millions of years of history.
And they are all asking each other the same question: "What time is it?"
The clocks on our phones have reset themselves to French time, and for the surprising number who are not wearing watches, the confusion is palpable.
Then the phones start beeping. "Welcome to France!" read the incoming text messages. "Your roaming costs are..."
Inadvertent roaming, as it is called, is surprisingly common in this part of the country, despite France itself being a fair distance away - there are 74 miles (119km) between Poole and Cherbourg, a popular ferry route.
Visitors to the surrounding areas, including Portland near Weymouth, can find themselves suddenly connected to French networks, and, if they're not careful, run up their phone bills with every phone call, text and social network update being charged as if it was made from abroad.
It's not only a problem along the south coast of England - residents and visitors along the borders of Northern Ireland face substantial issues with their phones connecting to Irish networks, often without them even realising it.
In 2012 research carried out there by industry regulator Ofcom found that on average those affected were spending Â£300 a year each on accidental data roaming, and only 11% of them had thought to switch the service off on the phone itself.
The worst affected areas were east and north County Londonderry - notably Portstewart, south County Armagh and south County Down.
"The EU Roaming Regulation requires that mobile operators take reasonable steps to protect their customers from paying roaming charges for inadvertently accessed roaming services while situated in their home member state, and to make information available to their customers on how to avoid inadvertent roaming in border regions," said an Ofcom representative.
With the EU looking to lower the existing cap on data roaming charges this summer, inadvertent roaming may soon become a less expensive accident - and for local residents it can be something of a mixed blessing.
Daff Tambling lives in the popular walkers' haven of Worth Matravers, to the east of Lulworth. The village played a key role in the development of the use of radar during World War Two - but it is no longer a hotspot for communications technology.
"On certain windowsills in certain weather conditions I can just about get enough UK signal to receive a text," she said.
"The phone has to stay at the same angle."
Ms Tambling estimates that most days she will end up with either a French connection - or nothing at all.
"It preserves a stillness - there's something nostalgic and romantic about it. I quite like it on many levels," she added.
"But when it gets irritating is when companies are increasingly relying on texting you. If you need to verify your PayPal account or change your email password... even with deliveries and doctors' appointments, they want to remind you by text. I can't engage with any of that. That can be really frustrating."
She also feels short-changed by deals offered by UK mobile phone providers.
"Tariffs have no value for me at all. They are useless to me. It doesn't matter if I can get 5,000 free UK texts because I can't send them."
So why is the French mobile signal spilling over? The answer is fairly straight forward - but difficult to counter.
"Radio propagation over water is much easier than propagation over land since we don't have the hills and buildings in the way," said Andrew Nix, professor of wireless communication systems at the University of Bristol.
"Base station powers can actually go many tens of kilometres if there are no blocking objects in the way."
"If the French base station can 'see' the coastline they can actually generate quite strong signals in coastal regions of the UK. We've done wi-fi tests over 15km [9 miles] from coastline to coastline, yet I often can't go 7m [23ft] from one end of my house to the other."
Mobile network O2 confirmed that its nearest masts in the Purbeck area were further inland, while EE pointed out that it had no control over French transmitters.
The advice of the mobile phone companies and industry regulator Ofcom is to switch off data roaming - but it's not necessarily something you would think to do within the borders of your home country.
"There are a number of ways that consumers can avoid incurring roaming costs, including by switching their phone to 'manual' rather than 'automatic' network selection," said Ofcom.
"However this may restrict the use of the phone."
It points to a guide on its website that demonstrates how to deactivate specific mobile devices.
The anomaly is also familiar to those who live in Dover.
Sam Wydymus, who owns the cliff-top Coastguard pub, just 23 miles from Calais said: "We keep our phones switched off.
"On the left hand side of the White Cliffs you get a strong French signal but no British one at all. Those who live here and can afford it have French and British mobile phones. They keep the French phone at home and take the British phone when they go to work in London."
British TV and radio reception is equally elusive, Ms Wydymus added.
"We only get [BBC] Radio 4," she said, "and I have never seen EastEnders."


A surfer who was rescued after spending 32 hours in the sea has thanked the "heroes" who saved him.

Speaking from his hospital bed in Belfast, Matthew Bryce said he was grateful to be receiving treatment following his ordeal.
The 22-year-old from Glasgow was picked up by a coastguard helicopter 13 miles off the Argyll coast on Monday night after going surfing on Sunday morning.
He is now receiving treatment for the effects of hypothermia.
In a statement, issued through Ulster Hospital, Mr Bryce said: "I am so grateful that I am now receiving treatment in hospital.
"I can't thank those enough who rescued and cared for me - they are all heroes.
"For now, I am not facilitating any interviews as I am exhausted. Please respect the privacy of myself and my family at this time as I recover."
Mr Bryce was reported missing by his family after failing to return from a surfing trip on Sunday. He had last been seen at about 09:00 on Sunday in the St Catherines area.
He was believed to be heading to Westport Beach near Campbeltown but is understood to have set off from Machrihanish beach.
Police Scotland and the coastguard launched a large-scale search which eventually resulted in the surfer being spotted by a rescue helicopter at 19:30 on Monday, drifting 13 miles out to sea.
Mr Bryce's father, John Bryce, described his son's rescue as "unbelievable" and said it was even better than a lottery win.
He said: "The past 48 hours have been an absolute rollercoaster of emotions for our family and we are so grateful that Matthew has been found safe and well.
"To get that call from the police last night to say that he was alive was unbelievable - it was better than a lottery win - you just can't describe it.
"Matthew means the world to us, he is such a strong character both mentally and physically, and we are looking forward to being reunited with him."
Mr Bryce said he had had limited contact with his son but that he was in good spirits.
He added: "We've managed to speak to him briefly on the phone and he is obviously exhausted after his ordeal, but he is in good spirits and happy to be alive.
"Our family cannot thank the Coastguard, RNLI volunteers and police officers involved in finding Matthew enough. I would also like to thank our friends and family as well as the hundreds of people who offered their support on social media.
"We have been overwhelmed by your support and good wishes and we will be forever grateful to every single one of you."
The coastguard said they believed Matthew Bryce's knowledge and wetsuit saved his life.
Conditions in the Irish Sea were also "fairly benign" throughout Monday.
Dawn Petrie, from the Belfast coastguard operations centre, said: "He'd been in the water for some 30 hours when the helicopter was delighted to spot him.
"He was extremely lucky.
"He was wearing the right equipment, had a very thick neoprene wetsuit on and did the right thing by staying with his surfboard.
"That must have helped him to survive for so long."
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On Friday 13 November a number of attacks took place in Paris, the capital city of France.

The French police and army were called in to help keep people safe.
More than 120 people were killed.
The French government quickly declared an emergency and 1,500 soldiers were called in to help police across the city.
If you're upset by anything in the news take a look at the advice here.
On the Monday after the attacks people across Europe took part in a minute's silence to remember those affected in Paris.
Many people took to the streets of the French capital to show their support.
Lots of you have been sending in questions about the attacks so we asked the BBC's security correspondent to answer them for us.
Several museums, cafes and tourist attractions were closed in the days after the attacks but were reopened by the middle of the week.
Jenny went to Paris for Newsround to find out how people there are trying to get back to normal life.
Children in the city have been trying to make sense of what happened and supporting each other.
Jenny went to meet some kids there to find out about how they're dealing with it all.
The events in Paris have not just affected people there.
People all round the world have been reflecting on what the attacks mean for them.
Leah went to speak to some school kids in the UK about what it's made them think about.
The extremist Islamic group known as IS, or the Islamic State, have now said they are responsible for the attacks.
IS are an extremist group based mainly in Syria and Iraq.
Read Newsround's guide about radicalisation and why people join IS here.
There are lots of problems and fighting in Syria and Iraq.
One cause is the difference between two groups - Sunnis and Shias - who both follow the religion of Islam.
Find out more about the situation in Syria here.
French President Francois Hollande has called the attacks in Paris an "act of war" carried out by IS.
He declared three days of national mourning after the events.
Hollande, said France will stay determined, unified and pull together.
Immediately after the events in Paris British Prime Minister, David Cameron, said he was shocked and pledged to do "whatever we can to help".
He said Britain will "stand united" with France.
US President Barack Obama said America would also stand with France.
The Prince of Wales has sent French President Francois Hollande a message of "profound sympathy and solidarity with the people of Paris", a spokeswoman said.
The world of sport paid its respects throughout the week with most sporting occasions holding a minute's silence.
Football fans gathered to watch England play France at Wembley on Tuesday, and came together to sing La Marseillaise, the French national anthem.
Have a look at our gallery of sporting tributes here.
Many countries have shown that they're standing side by side with France, by sending messages of support and lighting their iconic buildings with the colours of the French flag - red, white and blue.
We've put together a gallery of the special tributes that have been made.
Advice if you're upset by the news.


Nicknamed "The Hangman of Prague", SS general Reinhard Heydrich was a man even Hitler himself feared as "the man with an iron heart".

Heydrich - one of the architects of the Final Solution when he was governor of occupied Bohemia - was assassinated by British-trained Czech and Slovak troops in May 1942.
It was an operation which was so audacious in its planning and execution that it inspired John Martin from Mold, Flintshire, to research the topic for more than 40 years.
He interviewed Heydrich's son, and descendants of the Special Operations Executive hit-team which killed him, as part of a book which has now been made into a film.
Anthropoid, named after the mission's codename, has just gone on general release.
It stars actors Cillian Murphy and Fifty Shades of Grey star Jamie Dornan who portrays a Czech resistance fighter.
Mr Martin, who is an extra in the film, said: "Not many people have heard of Anthropoid, partly because it was earlier on in the war, and partly because afterwards Britain's role was played down by the Soviets.
"It took me until after the fall of the Iron Curtain to be able to get into Prague and properly investigate what happened."
Born in 1904, Reinhard Heydrich was a decorated German naval officer in the Weimar Republic.
During the rise of the Nazis he progressed quickly to head several branches of the Nazi secret police, including the Gestapo and SD, and was a key figure in both 'The Night of The Long Knives' and 'Kristallnacht'.
As Nazi head in occupied Czechoslovakia, he was instructed to improve the productivity of the region's flagging munitions and automobile factories.
It was a role which he performed so successfully that the Allies determined he must be removed.
Mr Martin said: "Before Heydrich's appointment the Czech Resistance had been quite successful in reducing productivity by as much as a third through go-slows.
"Heydrich introduced a policy he called 'Sugar and Whip', whereby those who cooperated gained extra rations and clothing, whilst those who didn't were kidnapped, tortured and killed.
"In one way the fact he rewarded people might be seen as a humanising feature, but I think it makes him all the more chilling.
"For him, it wasn't about the violence, he'd do whatever it took to achieve the Nazis' ultimate ambitions."
In December 1941 the SOE assassination squad of Josef Gabcik and Jan Kubis was parachuted into Bohemia from an RAF Halifax bomber.
They spent six months undercover planning their assault, before finally ambushing Heydrich on a blind hairpin bend on the Prague to Dresden road on 27 May 1942.
Heydrich died of his injuries a week later, and although the Nazis reaped devastating revenge, Mr Martin contends it was still a worthwhile mission.
Mr Martin said: "Hitler personally ordered the levelling of two villages - Lidice and LeÅ¾Ã¡ky - where all the men over 16 were shot and all the women transported to concentration camps.
"The ordinary population paid a terrible price for what was essentially an economic and military attack. Yet you can see in Hitler's response just what a devastating blow the assassination was.
"Hitler was furious at the arrogance which led Heydrich to travel in an unguarded open top car, and later he'd say that the loss of Heydrich was the beginning of the end in the battle for the Eastern Front."
Mr Martin currently works on cruise ships, where he gives both comedy performances and history lectures on Heydrich.
"It's a strange life for me," he said. "One night I'll be telling jokes, and the next afternoon I'm lecturing on the holocaust.
"Some comedians can make jokes about things like that, but I have to keep the two completely separate.
"I'm delighted that my book's been made into a film. I can tell people about Heydrich, but it's only now they'll see him on the screen, that his true horror will really sink in."


Samoa international Ahsee Tuala has agreed a new deal with Northampton Saints for next season.

The 26-year-old has scored six tries in 19 appearances since joining the club in February 2015.
"Ahsee has been a good player for us over the past year and we're delighted that he's agreed to stay with us," said director of rugby Jim Mallinder.
Saints have also agreed contracts for next season with prop Matt Beesley and hooker Charlie Clare, both 24.
Clare will join from Championship club Bedford, while former Yorkshire Carnegie academy player Beesley has been training with the Saints for a number of weeks.
"Matt has impressed while he's been training with us, with his technical abilities and willingness to learn," forwards coach Dorian West told the club website.
"Charlie has a solid grounding from his time with Leicester and Bedford. He has been one of their standout players in an impressive season."


Nearly £14m funding for improvements in emergency and urgent care at a Gwynedd hospital has been announced.

The cash will fund extra triage and resuscitation areas as well as more treatment rooms at Ysbyty Gwynedd, Bangor.
Paediatrics facilities and waiting rooms will also be improved.
Health Secretary Vaughan Gething said it would make "a real difference to patients accessing emergency and urgent care in north west Wales".
Gary Doherty, chief executive at Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board, said: "The current department is too small and is not designed to meet the requirements of modern clinical practice.
"This major scheme will provide state-of-the-art accommodation for the 52,000 patients who use the service each year and will help us transform medical and emergency care."
The funding is for 2017-20, with work expected to start in March.


The proportion of Welsh students gaining top A-level grades has fallen, although the overall pass rate has stayed stable.

The percentage of A* or A grades is 22.7%, down from 23.1% and the lowest since 2010 when the A* grade came in.
The overall pass rate stayed at 97.3%.
Exam board WJEC called the fall in top grades "disappointing" while the education secretary said some subjects could learn from improvements in maths and history.
A-level performance remains lower than England, which remained at 98.1% while top grades were down 0.1% on 2015.
As thousands of students collected their results, the main points are:
As well as overall grades, there is always interest in performances in the most popular A-level subjects - maths and English.
More students in Wales have been getting top grades in maths over the last six years than in England - and this continues with 43.2% getting the top grades in Wales compared to 41.6% in England.
But in English, Wales has been trailing and there is still a gap of 3.2% with those students over the border.
There have also been more students getting D and E grades in English (23.2%) than those getting A* and A (15.9%).
Education Secretary Kirsty Williams said: "The number achieving the highest grades is  encouraging, we can be proud of our pupil's performance in maths and the progress when it comes to the Welsh Baccalaureate.
"However, there are some areas where we are not where we would want to be.
"I will be looking closely at the full details of these results and those we expect next week to see what lessons we can learn and what we can do differently.
"Our performance at the top grades in maths show what Wales can achieve."
For the first time this year, students got their results for 14 new AS subjects including English, Welsh, history and the sciences.
These qualifications are usually taken by 17 year olds a year into the A level course and account for 40% of the final grade. AS-level passes were up in Wales, including 18% getting the top A grade.
Wales has the lowest percentage of A*-C grades - 73.8 - of any area - including every English region.
It also has the lowest for A* and A - apart from the North East of England.
Gareth Pierce, chief executive of the WJEC, said comparisons with England had been fairly similar over a number of years.
"Maybe there are questions that Wales needs to look at in terms of the extent of investment in excellence of provision which includes everything from the opportunity to study and the teaching workforce," he said.
A-levels in Wales: All you need to know
Shadow Conservative education minister Darren Millar said: "While our students and teachers are due congratulations, the first minister and his cabinet secretary for education deserve no such praise.
"Their failure to close the gap on educational standards is a damning indictment of their ability to properly govern the nation.
"It is frustrating to see that the number of students achieving the highest A-level grades is down, marking a consistent year-on-year decline - and yet again we are being outperformed by the rest of the UK."
Plaid Cymru's education spokesman Llyr Gruffydd said the drop in students gaining the top A* or A grades further underlined the need to introduce curriculum, teacher training and professional development reforms.
"These are all important to ensure the Welsh education system improves," he said.
The National Union of Teachers (NUT) cautioned against sweeping conclusions.
"We will have to examine the reason for the marginal fall in the very top grades, although it should be recognised that last year's result was the high water mark for these grades since 2010," said David Evans, secretary in Wales.
Rob Williams, Welsh director of the National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT) praised the collective effort of students and teachers but said: "One area of potential concern is the decline in entries to certain subjects at both AS and A Level - including French, drama and music.
"Plans for the new curriculum in Wales call for balance and breadth and schools will need support in order to ensure that this can be achieved."
Altogether there are 23,740 students from Wales applying to universities in the UK, around half of them 18-year-olds who picked up their results on Thursday.
So far, 16,600 students from Wales have secured places, which is the highest number at this point for five years.
Around 4,000 are now using the clearing system to find their university place.
Ucas says clearing has "transformed into a respected and important route" into higher education but Welsh universities have been finding competition tough from colleges in England.
CLEARING DETAILS


The last year or more has had Bombardier buckling-up like a passenger on a plane being hit by turbulence.

That it remained airborne was at least partly down to a $1bn bail-out from its home government in Quebec.
An additional $1.5bn was raised from selling a stake in Bombardier's train division.
It employs 74,000 people in 28 countries - Northern Ireland is home to around 7% or 5,500 of its staff, all working in aerospace.
A major source of trouble has been its gamble on the C-Series, a first shot at the larger passenger plane market dominated by Boeing and Airbus.
The project has cost at least $5.4bn - $2bn more than anticipated.
A three-year delay in getting the C-Series into service has damaged an order book gathering dust since September 2014.
Positive industry reaction to the aircraft's performance data appeared lost as Boeing and Airbus did discount deals to gobble up orders from airlines.
At the same time, global market conditions have wobbled Bombardier's business jet market, with demand falling in the likes of Russia and China.
Armed with a turn-around plan, but warnings of reduced profits, 2016 was billed as a year of transition.
The strategy is now known to include job cuts.
Unwelcome? Yes. Unsurprising? No.


Leicester City will not face Uefa charges after FC Copenhagen fans let off flares before Tuesday's Champions League game at the King Power Stadium.

European football's governing body has opened disciplinary proceedings against the Danish champions for supporters in the away end "setting off fireworks".
Uefa holds host clubs responsible for security inside and around the stadium, "unless they can prove that they have not been negligent".
Leicester won the game 1-0.
Uefa's control, ethics and disciplinary body will deal with Copenhagen's case on 17 November.
Elsewhere, three Polish football fans were arrested in Spain on Tuesday hours before Legia Warsaw's Champions League meeting with Real Madrid, AFP reported.
The three supporters, aged 31, 33 and 34, are alleged to have attacked waitresses in a bar in the La Latina district of Madrid, stealing the mobile phone of one woman and attempting to rob cash from the till, a police spokesperson told the news agency.
Legia have already been made to play their home game against Real, on 2 November, behind closed doors.
The Polish champions were punished by Uefa last week for racist behaviour and fighting among the home fans during a 6-0 defeat by Borussia Dortmund.
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The head of a congressional committee in Brazil set up to analyse whether President Dilma Rousseff should face an impeachment vote has given his recommendation.

Lawmaker Jovair Arantes said he thought there were enough grounds for impeachment proceedings to continue.
President Rousseff is alleged to have manipulated government accounts to hide a growing deficit, which she denies.
Mr Arantes' decision is non-binding but could sway undecided lawmakers.
The 65-member committee which Mr Arantes heads will vote on Monday on whether it thinks the impeachment proceedings should go ahead.
513 members of the lower house of Congress
342 votes needed for her suspension
172 votes needed to block her impeachment
180 days she would be suspended for while the Senate debates her impeachment
Regardless of the outcome, the full lower house of Congress will convene on 17 April to vote on the matter.
That latter vote will be key in deciding whether Ms Rousseff stays in power.
But she was boosted on Wednesday when the centrist Progressive Party said it would remain in her governing coalition until the vote.
"It is clear a majority [of the PP] does not want to break with Rousseff," party leader Senator Ciro Nogueira said. "They will tend to vote for the president over impeachment."
If two-thirds of the lower house vote for her impeachment, Ms Rousseff will be suspended for 180 days, while the matter goes to the upper house, the Senate.
During this time, Vice-President Michel Temer would take over as acting president.
However, Mr Temer could also face impeachment proceedings of his own.
On Tuesday, a Supreme Court justice said a congressional committee should be set up to investigate if there were grounds to impeach Mr Temer.
The allegations against him also relate to the manipulation of government accounts, which he has denied.
The two men next in line to stand in for Ms Rousseff should she be suspended are also facing legal trouble over allegations of corruption.
The speaker of the lower house of Congress, Eduardo Cunha, and Senate speaker Renan Calheiros, are under investigation in connection with a massive corruption scandal at state-oil company Petrobras.
They both deny any wrongdoing.
Ms Rousseff has likened the moves to impeach her to a "coup attempt" and is lobbying hard to get the 172 votes needed to block her impeachment in the lower house.
She has also dismissed calls by an opposition senator for a snap election to be held in October to end the political impasse.


A new law making it illegal to smoke in a car with anyone under the age of 18 has come into force in Scotland.

Legislation aimed at protecting children from second-hand smoke was unanimously passed at Holyrood in 2015.
Smokers' rights campaigners have dismissed the change as pointless "virtue signalling".
Public Health Minister Aileen Campbell said the "poisonous chemicals in second-hand smoke" were particularly dangerous to children.
People caught breaking the new law could face a fine of up to Â£1,000.
But Ms Campbell said the point of the law was to change behaviour rather than punish people.
Speaking on BBC Radio's Good Morning Scotland programme, she said: "Six months from now, from the point when the legislation goes live today, we are seeking there to be no on-the-spot fines so there is a concentration on awareness raising and education across the country."
The law came about via a members' bill by then Lib Dem MSP Jim Hume in the previous session of parliament, and came into force at midnight.
Mr Hume, whose mother died of cancer caused by second-hand smoke, introduced the Smoking Prohibition (Children in Motor Vehicles) Bill and won unanimous backing from MSPs.
A similar law came into force in England and Wales in 2015, although there have been difficulties over enforcing the ban.
Research shows that second-hand smoke can cause serious conditions including bronchitis, pneumonia and asthma.
Ms Campbell said: "It's simply not safe to smoke when a child is in the car. Dangerous levels of chemicals can build up, even on short journeys, and 85% of second-hand smoke is invisible and odourless so you can't always see what they're breathing in.
"We know for a fact that the poisonous chemicals in second-hand smoke are extremely damaging to our health. We also know that children breathe faster than adults, meaning they ingest more of the deadly toxins."
Mr Hume added: "It fills me with great pride that through hard work and cross-party consensus we are now seeing the introduction of a law which can potentially save 60,000 children a year from the hazards of second-hand smoke.
"I thank all members of the previous Parliament's health and sport committee for their constructive work, the ministerial team, fellow members, the numerous charities, organisations, academics and my own office who have supported me.
"There is one other person I would like to thank; a woman who inspired me and drove me on to make a difference in my community, a non-smoker who died five years and one week ago today from lung cancer, my mother, Joyce Hume.
"Thanks to all those in support of this measure, we have taken a huge step in the right direction to having a healthier Scotland for all."
The move has won backing from health and anti-smoking groups.
Sheila Duffy, chief executive of health charity Ash Scotland, said: "We know from speaking to parents that they want to protect their children from tobacco smoke, but often don't know enough about how smoke is harmful and lingers in the air even after you can't see or smell it.
"This legislation sends a clear message that children should grow up in a smoke-free environment, and who could disagree with that?"
Irene Johnstone, head of the British Lung Foundation in Scotland, added: "This new law will not only help reduce the exposure of second hand smoke, but will also go a long way in helping Scotland becoming a tobacco free generation."
However the smokers' group Forest has criticised the new law as "utterly pointless".
Its director Simon Clark said: "The regulations are patronising and unnecessary. Very few adults smoke in cars with children. Smokers know it's inconsiderate and the overwhelming majority don't do it.
"So few people smoke when there's a child in the car it will be like looking for a needle in a haystack. In England only one person has been caught and fined since an identical law was introduced last year.
"The law is a classic example of virtue signalling. It's utterly pointless and a complete waste of time and resources that could be better spent elsewhere."


The UK's inflation rate rose last month to its highest since September 2013, official figures show.

Inflation now stands at 2.7% - up from 2.3% in March - and above the Bank of England's 2% target.
The main reason was higher air fares, which rose because of the later date of Easter this year compared with 2016.
Rising prices for clothing, vehicle excise duty and electricity also played a part, but a fall in the price of petrol and diesel slightly offset this.
Last week, the Bank of England warned that inflation as measured by the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) would peak at just below 3% this year.
It also warned that 2017 would be "a more challenging time for British households" with inflation rising and real wages falling - leading to a consumer spending squeeze.
Pay including bonuses rose at an annual rate of 2.3% in the three months to February, according to the ONS. The latest figures on earnings growth are due out on Wednesday.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the cost of air travel went up by 18.6% from the month before, with Easter falling on 16 April this year compared with 27 March last year.
The price of clothes jumped to the highest level for six years, with a rise of 1.1% between March and April.
Electricity and food prices also went up, but there were falls in the cost of gas, petrol and diesel.
The Retail Prices Index (RPI), a separate measure of inflation which includes council tax and mortgage interest payments, reached 3.5% last month, up from 3.1% in March.
The ONS's new preferred inflation measure of CPIH, which contains a measure of housing costs, rose to 2.6% from 2.3% in March.
Chris Williamson, chief business economist at analysts IHS Markit, said: "The timing of Easter looks to have played an important role in pushing inflation higher in year-on-year terms.
"But sterling's depreciation since the referendum last June is also clearly a significant factor, lifting prices for imports and likely to pile further upward pressure on consumer prices in coming months.
"There are nevertheless signs that inflation could perhaps rise less than many had been fearing.
"Survey data are already showing companies' costs are rising at a slower rate than earlier in the year, and recent weeks have seen some easing in global commodity prices, notably oil."
Suren Thiru, head of economics at the British Chambers of Commerce, said: "Businesses continue to report that the substantial increases in the cost of raw materials and other overheads over the past year are still filtering through the supply chain, and are therefore likely to lift consumer prices higher in the coming months
"However, it remains probable that the current period of above target inflation is transitory in nature, with little evidence that higher price growth is becoming entrenched in higher pay growth.
"This should give the Bank of England sufficient scope to keep interest rates on hold for some time yet, despite their recent warning."


A helicopter pilot killed in a crash on the Isle of Man struggled to regain control in gusty conditions, an accident report has found.

Matthew Chapman, from Lincolnshire, was the only person on board when the helicopter crashed during the TT Festival on 6 June last year.
The 48-year-old had dropped off two passengers in the Baldwin Valley shortly before the accident.
The Air Accidents Investigation Branch said he battled "turbulent conditions".
The helicopter crashed after lifting off for the return journey, facing gusts of 46 knots (53 mph), the AAIB said.
It began swinging from side to side before plunging to the ground.
The impact "was not survivable for the pilot", the report said.
Businessman Mr Chapman, of Louth, had 786 hours of flying experience, including 126 on helicopters.
An inquest heard he had set off from Milton Keynes at about 06:00 BST with two passengers on board the Bell Jetranger aircraft.
After travelling to the island, he dropped both of them off at the Creg Ny Baa - a popular viewing area for the annual TT races.
The helicopter crashed at about 09:00 BST after lifting off for the return journey. Mr Chapman was pronounced dead at the scene.
The AAIB concluded that appropriate training in mountain flying techniques and the associated hazards "could have assisted the pilot in executing the flight successfully".


Western-backed rebels of the Free Syrian Army (FSA) have rejected an offer of military support from Russia.

An FSA spokesman told the BBC that Moscow could not be trusted and that its help was not needed.
Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Saturday that Russia was ready to help the rebels if they attacked militants from the Islamic State (IS) group.
Russia, a key ally of the Syrian government, has carried out air strikes in the country since last month.
Moscow says the strikes have mainly targeted IS, but Western powers say most have hit the FSA and other factions backed by the West and Gulf states.
In his offer to the FSA, Mr Lavrov said the Russian air force could support the FSA provided the US shared information about rebel positions.
But on Sunday, an FSA spokesman told the BBC that Russia had no role in Syria.
"[Russian President] Vladimir Putin, is assisting a regime that indiscriminately kills their own people," Issam al-Reis said.
"How could we trust the Russians' help?"
Mr Issam said the FSA would continue fighting President Bashar al-Assad, who "was not part of the solution" to ending Syria's civil war.
"If the Syrians stood with Assad he would not ask for invaders to come to Syria," he said.
Saudi Arabia's foreign minister has also insisted that President Assad should have no role in Syria's "future".
Russian air support has allowed President Assad's forces to launch ground operations in several provinces in recent weeks.
The president for his part on Sunday hosted a visiting delegation of Russian parliamentarians in Damascus.
He again expressed his gratitude for Moscow's support, and said that eliminating "terrorist" groups would resolve his country's problems.
Why is there a war in Syria?
Anti-government protests developed into a civil war that, four years on, has ground to a stalemate, with the Assad government, Islamic State, an array of Syrian rebels and Kurdish fighters all holding territory.
Who is fighting whom?
Government forces concentrated in Damascus and the centre and west of Syria are fighting the jihadists of Islamic State and Jabhat al-Nusra, as well as less numerous so-called "moderate" rebel groups, who are strongest in the north and east. These groups are also battling each other.
What's the human cost?
More than 250,000 Syrians have been killed and a million injured. Some 11 million others have been forced from their homes, of whom four million have fled abroad - including growing numbers who are making the dangerous journey to Europe.
How has the world reacted?
Iran, Russia and Lebanon's Hezbollah movement are propping up the Alawite-led Assad government, while Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar back the more moderate Sunni-dominated opposition, along with the US, UK and France. Hezbollah and Iran are believed to have troops and officers on the ground, while a Western-led coalition and Russia are carrying out air strikes.


China has formally charged Ling Jihua, a former aide to ex-president Hu Jintao, with corruption.

Mr Ling had taken bribes, stolen state secrets and abused his power, state prosecutors said.
He was in effect chief-of-staff to President Hu, but was demoted in a surprise move in 2012.
China is running a high-profile campaign against corruption, and says it punished nearly 300,000 officials in 2015 alone.
Mr Ling had held a senior position in President Hu's government as head of the Central Committee's General Office.
There was speculation that his demotion may have been the result of political manoeuvring ahead of a leadership change - but there were also reports that his son's involvement in a Ferrari crash may have been to blame.
The authorities announced an investigation into him in late 2014, and he was expelled from the Communist Party and arrested in July 2015.
President Xi Jinping has made a campaign against corruption a centrepiece of his governing agenda.
Many high-profile political figures have been jailed after being caught in the net.
However, some observers see the anti-corruption campaign as a way for the Party to rein in officials seen as becoming too influential, or as a means of pursuing personal vendettas.


In the wake of the death sentences confirmed against Muslim Brotherhood members in Egypt this weekend, BBC Middle East correspondent Yolande Knell looks at the group's dramatic reversal of fortunes since the 2011 Arab uprisings.

Drive west of Cairo, and finally the noisy, overcrowded Giza slums give way to open, green fields.
Water buffaloes are tethered next to the road and farmers dressed in loose galabiya robes are cultivating wheat and giant cabbages.
I visited the town of Awsim, before Egypt's presidential election nearly three years ago.
At that time, the only banners on display were for the Muslim Brotherhood's Mohammed Morsi and another candidate who was a former member of the Islamist movement.
Women told me how the Brotherhood had won their backing by handing out free canisters of cooking gas.
The rest is history. Mr Morsi went on to become president - only to be ousted from power by the military a year later following huge street protests.
Many people from Awsim joined the counter demonstrations and several were killed when they were brutally crushed by the security forces.
Some locals are among the thousands of Islamists who have been arrested.
Now the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt is not just banned, as it was for much of its eight decades of history in its country of origin - it is classed as a terrorist group.
That makes life extremely risky for those in Awsim who remain staunch supporters.
After Friday prayers, I meet a band of men who have been to four pro-Brotherhood rallies since the morning.
"The security forces have an iron grip now. When we go to the streets, they fire tear gas, bird shot and sometimes live ammunition," says Sayyid.
Many Brotherhood leaders are on trial, charged with inciting violence.
On Saturday, a court confirmed death sentences on the group's General Guide, Mohammed Badie, and others for planning attacks against the state.
But another man, Ahmed, insists they have done nothing wrong.
"God willing, we'll see the democratic process get back on track soon," he says.
Yet many in Egypt accept the clampdown on the Brotherhood, believing it failed its test in power, and across the entire region the fate of this relatively moderate Islamist organisation has undergone a dramatic turnaround.
For a long time, its offshoots were the main political opposition in many Arab countries. Their social welfare projects helped them maintain strong grassroots.
Then the uprisings of 2011 enabled them to emerge as key players in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya and Syria. That emboldened offshoots in Gulf states and some started to talk of a grand Islamist project.
However such dreams were over quickly.
Revolutions unravelled and ruling families in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia moved to check the Brotherhood's influence. Both nations have classified it as a terrorist organisation.
There have been setbacks even in places where its position seemed most secure.
In his smart villa in Amman, I sit with Abdullatif Arabiyat, as he sips a glass of lemon juice with mint.
He is a veteran member of Jordan's Muslim Brotherhood and former leader of its political party, the Islamic Action Front. He was once speaker of parliament.
Right now, he is deeply worried. After 70 years, his group has just split in two.
A new, officially licensed branch defines itself as strictly Jordanian, saying it has cut ties to the regional movement, so it is not identified as militant.
The legal status of the other, larger faction is less clear, but it is keeping its links to the wider Brotherhood.
Mr Arabiyat, a lightly-bearded, dignified man, suggests that "foreign factors" have stirred up trouble in Jordan and that Jordanian security officials "enhanced the conflict".
Not far away, in the Palestinian territories, Hamas - which is aligned to the Muslim Brotherhood - is also suffering from the organisation's demise.
Its leaders were treated like VIPs in Egypt during the Brotherhood's brief reign.
But in February, a court in Cairo joined Israel, the United States, the European Union and others in pronouncing Hamas a terrorist organisation.
In Gaza, which is controlled by the political faction, ordinary people feel more isolated than ever.
"After Egypt's military coup the siege on Gaza has been tightened," says a policeman, Abu Zaher Qttawi.
Mustafa, a student from the Islamic University of Gaza, says: "We're saddened by the suffering of our Brothers in Egypt."
"The real terrorists are those who shoot dead peaceful demonstrators."
Across Gaza, the green flags of Hamas still flutter defiantly above the mangled metal and rubble of homes destroyed in last summer's war with Israel.
But throughout much of the Middle East, there is a sense that times are changing.
And what worries many is that just as the Muslim Brotherhood, the grandfather of Islamist groups in the region, is in decline, so fanatical ones - like Islamic State - are gaining momentum.
The danger is that efforts to suppress the Brotherhood could radicalise its younger supporters and help swell the ranks of the extremists.


Diwali celebrations in the Indian capital Delhi have seen air pollution rise to hazardous levels after many firecrackers were set off.

Residents awoke from a night of colourful fireworks to find the city covered in a thick grey blanket of smog and authorities warned that pollution levels were critically high.


A therapy dog used to help patients going through cancer treatment has a poignant twist to his tale after he had seven months of chemotherapy himself.

Charlie, a Border collie, makes weekly visits to the North Wales Cancer Centre at Ysbyty Glan Clwyd as part of the Pets As Therapy (PAT) scheme.
His owner Jane Howatson said patients were able to empathise with him when they heard his story.
Charlie was diagnosed with cancer of the lymph nodes in August 2012.
He is one of 41 PAT dogs and one cat who work across north Wales as therapy for humans visiting hospitals, hospices, homes and schools.
Ms Howatson, from Llansannan, said: "Happily Charlie is in remission at present, he loves coming here to meet the patients and they enjoy seeing him too.
"He comes here and you can see he is concentrating all the time, working in his own little way when he sees the patients.
"When patients stroke Charlie and find out what he has been through, you do see a sense of empathy from both.
"We come here every Thursday and it's nice as Charlie gets to see the same people who are going through regular treatment and it's nice for him and them to get familiar with each other.
"I'm so proud that he is doing this for these patients as they have taken to him so well."
Charlie has been adopted as the honorary mascot for the centre's staff.
Two of the people he visits regularly at Bodelwyddan are Keith and Jen Lloyd.
Mrs Lloyd said: "He's lovely, he is a really relaxing dog. It's lovely to see him here."
Staff have also welcomed Charlie into their midst due to his inspirational support.
Carmel Barnett, acting radiotherapy services manager, said: "He lights up the reception every time he comes in on a Thursday as he's such a friendly happy dog with a wonderful inspirational tale that lifts everyone who meets him."


Mahmoud Abbas, also known as Abu Mazen, has led the Palestinian Authority since he was elected as its president in January 2005.

But his term in office has been dogged by the deep schism between his own Fatah movement in the West Bank and the militant Hamas movement, which controls the Gaza Strip.
Mr Abbas, opposed to armed struggle and committed to pursuing an independent Palestinian state through negotiations, has enjoyed strong support from the international community.
Under his leadership, US and European money has flowed into the West Bank to build up security forces which he has used to crack down on militant activity and Hamas's political infrastructure.
But in the face of scant progress from years of negotiations, and the tough stance of the right-wing government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu elected in early 2009, his strategy has looked increasingly bankrupt to many Palestinians.
A year after Mr Abbas won presidential elections, he suffered a major blow as Hamas gained a sweeping victory in legislative polls.
A short-lived unity government was formed after months of wrangling, but fell apart in June 2007 as factional street battles broke out in Gaza and Hamas drove Fatah's security forces from the Strip.
From then on, Mr Abbas ruled the West Bank only, essentially by presidential decree.
And when his four-year term ended in January 2009, Hamas declared him illegitimate - although he argued that the Palestinian basic law called for presidential and legislative elections to be held at the same time, so he could legally stay in post for a further year until legislative polls due in January 2010.
In November 2008, he also was elected "president of a future Palestinian state" by the Palestine Liberation Organisation.
He had been chairman of the umbrella body - which represents Palestinian political factions (although not Hamas) and conducts negotiations with Israel - since the death of its previous leader, Yasser Arafat, in 2004.
But the move was seen as a way of shoring up his authority.
Mr Abbas has walked a delicate line between appeasing Israeli and US demands that he improve security and participate in peace negotiations, and popular Palestinian pressure for genuine political and economic progress.
And he has, in the past year, undermined his already fragile poll ratings with misjudged comments and actions.
Even Fatah supporters were angered when Mr Abbas was slow to condemn the punishing military assault that Israel launched on Gaza in December 2008, and criticised the Hamas rocket fire Israel said it was trying to end.
And Mr Abbas's credibility suffered further when the PA initially agreed, under Israeli and US pressure, to allow the postponement of a UN vote on the Goldstone report which was heavily critical of Israel's conduct during the operation.
But, under him and his appointed Prime Minister Salam Fayyad, the West Bank economy has shown signs of improvement while Gaza has suffered under a crippling Israeli-Egyptian blockade aimed at weakening Hamas.
Born in Safed in British Mandate Palestine in 1935, he is one of the few surviving founder members of Fatah - the main political grouping within the PLO.
In exile in Qatar during the late 1950s, he helped recruit a group of Palestinians to the cause. They went on to become key figures in the PLO.
He co-founded Fatah with Arafat and accompanied him into exile in Jordan, then Lebanon and then Tunisia. In the early days of the movement, he became respected for his clean and simple living.
Mr Abbas studied law in Egypt before doing a doctorate in Moscow. He is the author of several books.
But some Jewish groups have criticised both his doctorate and the resulting book, The Other Side: the Secret Relationship Between Nazism and Zionism, as works of Holocaust denial.
They claim he downplayed the number of victims and accused Jews of collaborating with the Nazis.
He denied that charge in an interview with the Israeli daily Haaretz in May 2003.
"I quoted an argument between historians in which various numbers of casualties were mentioned. One wrote there were 12 million victims and another wrote there were 800,000," he told the newspaper.
"I have no desire to argue with the figures. The Holocaust was a terrible, unforgivable crime against the Jewish nation, a crime against humanity that cannot be accepted by humankind," he said.
Mahmoud Abbas always kept to the background, but also built up a network of powerful contacts that included Arab leaders and heads of intelligence services.
This enabled him to become a successful fundraiser for the PLO and to take on an important security role in the early 1970s, before being appointed head of the PLO's department for national and international relations in 1980.
Regarded as a pragmatist, he was one of the main initiators of the dialogue with Jewish left-wing and pacifist movements in the 1970s and in the difficult years before negotiations were eventually started between Israel and the Palestinians.
Viewed as one of the architects of the Oslo peace process, he accompanied Arafat to the White House in 1993 to sign the Oslo Accords.
Mr Abbas was the PA's prime minister from May 2003 until his resignation almost four months later after a power struggle with Arafat over control of Palestinian security forces.
His leadership assumption of leadership after Arafat's death was meant to open a new chapter in Israeli-Palestinian relations in which the peace plan known as the roadmap was meant to lead both sides towards resolution.
But the bitter struggle between the Israel and Hamas has to a large degree left him on the sidelines.
Mr Abbas currently governs only a portion of the territory controlled by Palestinians. And, in spite of all his pragmatism, he faces a right-wing Israeli prime minister with whom he cannot find common ground.


An arson attack targeted the office of a Kiev judge shortly before the trial of two alleged Russian special forces soldiers resumed.

Petrol bombs were hurled inside the courthouse and a fire broke out in the office of judge Nikolai Didyk, Interfax-Ukraine news agency reported.
Last month the Ukrainian lawyer of one of the two Russians was found dead. He had been kidnapped and brutally beaten.
Ukraine has charged the Russian pair with waging war in eastern Ukraine.
Alexander Alexandrov and Yevgeny Yerofeyev were captured in eastern Ukraine last May. They are suspected of serving with Russian military intelligence, the GRU.
Russia says they were volunteers who had left active service.
A shaky ceasefire is holding in eastern Ukraine, where pro-Russian rebels control large swathes of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions.
Western leaders and Nato accuse Russia of helping the rebels with heavy weapons and regular troops - something Moscow has repeatedly denied.
The Kiev fire was quickly extinguished and no vital court documents were damaged, reports say.
Ukraine's chief military prosecutor, Anatoliy Matios, was quoted as saying several men had infiltrated the court premises and hurled several petrol bombs, before fleeing the scene in a car, which was later found abandoned. He called it an attempt to intimidate the judge.
The trial of the two Russians is a high-profile case - they are accused of "terrorism" and waging a war of aggression against Ukraine.
Lawyer Yuriy Hrabovsky was defending Mr Alexandrov but disappeared last month mid-trial. His body was found in a forest 125km (78 miles) south of Kiev.
Ukrainian officials say Mr Alexandrov and Mr Yerofeyev confessed to serving in the Russian special services, but later retracted their confessions.
The two men deny charges of terrorism. Prosecutors have called for life sentences.
During his kidnap, on 6 March, Hrabovsky made a video statement, saying he was giving up defending Mr Alexandrov. Investigators say he appeared to be drugged in the video.
A kidnapper asked him "Why? Why?", to which he replied: "I made a mistake."
He was last seen rushing into his office and grabbing something from the safe, accompanied by an unidentified man, Anna Nemtsova of BBCRussian reports.
Two men have been detained in connection with the murder, but their possible role has not been explained. According to Iosif Bronz, vice-president of the Ukrainian lawyers' union, the murder "looks like a special operation".


Millions of people across the US are enjoying one of the most incredible space sights that you can see from the Earth.

21 August 2017 Last updated at 19:15 BST
A total solar eclipse is sweeping across the States, plunging whole areas of the US into complete darkness for a few short moments.
Here is the moment when some of the first pictures of the total solar eclipse were seen from a special Nasa aircraft.
You can hear how excited everybody is!
For more updates from the Great American Eclipse 2017, click on this link.


Top clubs will wait to see how Kieran Tierney performs in the Champions League before considering a bid for the left-back, believes Kris Commons.

But Commons thinks the 20-year-old "could be the captain of Celtic for the next 15 years" if he stays.
"I think they will be waiting to see how he is in these Champions League games," said of his former team-mate.
"If they are going to spend £10-30m on a player, they need to know he's able to play against Ronaldo and Bale."
But Commons points out that Tierney, a product of Celtic's youth system, has already impressed at Champions League level and will be a key player as they attempt to beat Astana of Kazakhstan to reach the group stage.
"He played against Raheem Sterling and more than matched him there and he was still a teenager, 19 I think," the former Celtic midfielder told BBC Scotland.
"If they do get to the Champions League, that's where he is ultimately tested, watched by these big guns, because they need to tick all the boxes."
Tierney stood in for the suspended Scott Brown against Kilmarnock to become Celtic's youngest-ever captain earlier this month.
Commons believes that the defender is not quite ready to assume such responsibility full-time.
"To be a captain of a club like Celtic you need to have that bit of edge, which he shows on the field, but off the field he is still a quiet, good, honest boy," said the former Scotland midfielder.
"As a captain, you have to be the manager on the park. That will come with experience.
"But he is a Celtic fan and you see from the way he celebrates. It's like he is on the terraces. He was a ball boy. He is living the dream."
Commons, 33, thinks Tierney, who already has four Scotland caps, has a great future ahead of him.
"Defensively, he is one of the best I've seen at his age," he added.
"He seems to get better every single week and it's his work ethic, not just on the park, off it as well. He is forever working on his weaknesses in training.
"He has a great relationship with all the players and coaches, they want to keep making him better.
"And, let's not forget, he's broken his leg twice in the last two years.
"For him to maintain fitness levels and that amount of enthusiasm is impressive and, for a guy who's broke his leg twice, he still won't back out of a challenge."