The bitter backlash against Bollywood star Amir Khan's remarks about "growing intolerance" in India tells us a few things about the world's largest democracy.

At a journalism awards ceremony, Khan said there was a growing sense of fear, insecurity and despondency in the country, and that when he discussed things with his filmmaker wife, Kiran Rao, she wondered whether the family should move out of India.
"It is disastrous and big statement for Kiran to make to me. She fears for her child, what the atmosphere around us will be, she feels scared to open the newspaper every day. There is a growing sense of disquiet, and despondency. You feel depressed, you feel low. Why is this happening?" Khan said.
Many believe Khan was spot on. In drawing-rooms in recent months, friends and acquaintances have told me that they worry about India - the dull economy, shambolic criminal-justice system, unchecked corruption, the fussing about non-issues, and now the acts of intolerance and the coarse and polarised levels of debate - and they would prefer their children to leave. There is a sense that the immense hope that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had offered before sweeping to power last year is fast slipping away.
Many high-profile writers and artists have raised concerns about what they feel is rising religious and cultural intolerance - rationalists have been killed and a Muslim man lynched over suspicions he consumed beef.
To be true, India is certainly not imploding with religious violence. But the protests against intolerance by artists and writers appear not to be so much a reaction to the scale of incidents, but a creeping anxiety over whether the highest levels of the government, including Mr Modi, seriously want to condemn or put their imprimatur behind them.
To make matters worse, Mr Modi and his senior ministers have not been quick enough to speak out against the incidents and hate speech, and when they have eventually done so, they have sounded scripted and remote. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, for example, famously said that the lynching of the Muslim man would actually hurt India's image and "amount to policy diversions".
But the fierce public and social media backlash against Aamir Khan by the ruling BJP and supporters of Mr Modi possibly holds up a mirror to hardened positions in today's India.
One is the rise of what a commentator calls a "species of hardcore supporters" of Mr Modi, who are derisively called Modi Bhakts - bhakt means worshipper of a deity - by liberal opponents.
They are not the fawning, old-fashioned sycophants that India's leaders are used to. Their identification with Mr Modi goes beyond mere spirited support, and they defend their leader with a sense of identification and aggressiveness which is unprecedented in India. Some of them behave more like his self-appointed intellectual guardians.
Many of these supporters also believe that the world is out to get Mr Modi and say people with a history of reservations against him - Khan had condemned the 2002 Gujarat riots - have not been able to reconcile themselves to Mr Modi becoming prime minister.
What accounts for the emergence of the uber supporter? "Maybe, many of us were looking desperately for a strong leader and when we thought we had found one and elected him to power, we lost all perspective," wonders analyst Pratap Bhanu Mehta.
Secondly, criticising Mr Modi is increasingly being conflated with defaming India.
Junior Home Minister Kiren Rijiju says Khan's comments on intolerance "only bring down the image of the country and the prime minister". This, many believe, follows from rising hyper-nationalism and fragile self-esteem.
Many Modi supporters appear to be defining nationalism by the hard, irreconcilable position of loyalty rather than the values that India stands for. Mr Modi and his party cannot be entirely blamed for this worrying trend, which is becoming more glaring as India continues to frustrate its aspiring millions.
Thirdly - and most disturbingly - is a tendency to tell India's Muslims that they should be grateful that India is looking after them.
Bollywood actor Anupam Kher, who is an ardent supporter of Mr Modi, said Khan should remember that "this country has made you Aamir Khan". Implicit in such remarks, believe many, is a barely disguised sectarianism.
BJP chief Amit Shah spoke about crackers being burst in Pakistan if the BJP lost the recent Bihar elections. (The party suffered a drubbing, and there were no reports of any such celebrations across the border.) Senior party leader Giriraj Singh openly said that "those opposed to Mr Modi should go to Pakistan".
"There is a sense among the practitioners of  majoritarian politics in the ruling party of creating a fantasy world of politics where Muslims don't matter. Also, now prejudice can be expressed without describing somebody as Muslim," says Mr Mehta.
But there is hope.
Far away from the shrill echo chamber of social media, the majority of Indians have proved to be calmer and more sceptical. The results of the recent Bihar election are a good example of that.
Critics say Mr Modi's government needs to realise that silence and inaction can breed anxiety.
There were a number of federal ministers present when Khan made his remarks at an awards ceremony on Tuesday. Many wondered why Arun Jaitley, the senior-most minister in the audience, did not stand up and say he understood the actor's anxiety and that his government would guarantee that every Indian, irrespective of his belief, was safe?
Why are Mr Modi and his ministers not articulating some of these elementary things?


Outlander, Empire Of Dirt and Don Poli are among eight horses withdrawn from the Grand National at Aintree by Irish owners Gigginstown House Stud.

Gigginstown boss Michael O'Leary was furious with some of the weights allocated by handicapper Phil Smith.
Devil's Bride, Clarcam, Tiger Roll, A Toi Phil and The Game Changer were also taken out, but eight Gigginstown contenders remain in the 8 April race.
A total of 95 entries go forward, with a maximum final field of 40.
Fifteen horses were withdrawn at the latest entry stage. The others are: Champagne West, Devils Bride, Triolo D'Alene, Vieux Morvan, Gallant Oscar, Tour Des Champs, Dromnea and Otago Trail.
Trainer Gordon Elliott had indicated Outlander would not run as soon as he was allocated top weight of 11st 10lb, and Ryanair boss O'Leary has lived up to his vow to withdraw several of his leading hopes.
Road To Riches and Rogue Angel are among his horses still in the marathon contest, for which the weights are now headed by Carlingford Lough,  with last year's runner-up The Last Samuri next on the list.
Smith has denied the suggestion there might be an anti-Irish bias. He said British handicappers keeping their own performance figures for Irish races has "given our handicaps greater equality and fairness".


Welsh swimmer Chloe Tutton's "meteoric rise" has been a boost for British swimming, says Sharron Davies.

Tutton won European bronze in the 100m breaststroke on 18 May after setting a national record for the 200m in April.
Davies, an Olympic silver medallist in 1980, says the 19-year-old "came out of nowhere" but does not expect her to win a medal at Rio 2016.
"We needed it because British women's breaststroke has not been amazing," said the 53-year-old Briton.
Tutton shaved three seconds off her personal best when she broke the British record in Glasgow - a performance that led to selection for the GB team going to this summer's Olympics in Brazil.
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Her bronze medal-winning performance at the European Championships in London was followed by sixth place in the 200m final.
After that race Tutton vowed to improve before the Games, which start on 5 August.
"It's an amazing experience and I think I can learn a lot," she said.
"So that's what I'll do - I'll go away and I'll see what I can improve on and hopefully come back stronger."
Davies, runner-up in the 400m medley in the 1980 Moscow Olympics, added: "I don't think we're expecting Chloe to go there to win medals.
"She could probably make a final, which I think would be her target - certainly a semi final."
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CIA director John Brennan has said he is "outraged" by the hacking of his personal email account.

The top US spy said his experience demonstrated that everyone was vulnerable to cyber attacks.
Speaking at George Washington University, he also criticised the media for "giving air to what is criminal activity".
Documents from Mr Brennan's account have begun appearing on the website of anti-secrecy group Wikileaks.
Responsibility for the hack has been claimed by a man purporting to be a high school student protesting at US policy.
The hacker said he tricked telecommunications company Verizon into providing him access to the CIA chief's personal account.
Documents from the director's account that have been published so far include a list of contacts, as well as policy recommendations for Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Mr Brennan said that nothing he had done was wrong.
He took time to criticise the press for their reporting on the hack, saying that "the implication of the reporting was that I was doing something wrong or inappropriate or in violation of my security responsibility, which was not certainly the case".


Premiership club Bristol have signed loosehead prop Tom Bristow on loan from Wasps for the remainder of the season.

Bristow signed for Wasps in 2015 and has made 11 appearances this season.
The 25-year-old, who has also played for London Welsh and Leicester Tigers, has been added to the squad as cover for injuries in the loosehead position.
Bristol coach Mark Tainton told the club website: "It was important to bring in someone of Tom's ability to bring us a bit of depth there."
Meanwhile, Bristol have loaned hooker Chris Brooker, 30, to Bath until the end of the season.


A Scottish short film screened at festivals in France, the USA, Canada, Ireland, Italy and Cyprus is finally to be shown in Scotland.

Perfect Strangers was made as a test run during preparations for making a feature-length romantic comedy, Journey Bound.
The 26-minute short will be given its first Scottish screening at Glasgow's Southside Film Festival next month.
Perfect Strangers was shot at locations on Rannoch Moor.
The comedy was made by Bafta-nominated director Ryan Hendrick and David Newman.
With actors Kenny Boyle and Clare Sheerin in the lead roles, the short features music from Scottish-based singer-songwriter Jack Henderson's debut album.
Hendrick said: "We are thrilled that our little film is finally returning home for its first Scottish screening after a successful few months on the festival circuit.
"We were so incredibly lucky to be able to take Perfect Strangers to the Cannes Film Festival, it has opened so many doors for us."
Perfect Strangers tells the story of two people stranded in the Scottish Highlands on Christmas Eve who team up to try and get home in time for Christmas.
It was shot on Rannoch Moor over five days days last winter during preparations for Journey Bound, a forthcoming comedy road movie starring Ford Kiernan, Clare Grogan, Sylvester McCoy and Rutger Hauer.
Hendrick said: "It is crucial to enable independent filmmakers working with very little resources to get their films out there.
"It's incredibly challenging on the festival circuit and you always receive far more rejections than you do acceptance notices."
He added: "Independent film festivals like the Southside Film Festival need to be supported."


One of the "finest" portraits of the Jacobean era has been bought so it can remain at its home in mid Wales.

The 17th Century miniature painting of Edward Herbert, 1st Baron Herbert of Cherbury, was painted in watercolour on vellum by Isaac Oliver.
It will be restored before going back on display as the star attraction at Powis Castle, near Welshpool.
It was bought for £2.1m by the National Trust with help from the National Heritage Memorial Fund and Art Fund.
The artwork shows Herbert, who was a poet, socialite and philosopher, with his head resting on his hand as he lies stretched out along the banks of a stream running through a forest.
He bears a shield with a burning heart and the painting is said to reflect his life as a chivalrous romantic.
The painting was put up for sale on behalf of a private owner but was secured by the National Trust with the help of donations.
Painted by royal miniaturist Isaac Oliver between 1602 and 1617, it measures 23cm by 19cm (9in by 7in) and is mounted on oak board in a contemporary 17th Century tortoiseshell and ebony frame.
Justin Albert, National Trust Director for Wales, said the charity was proud to retain the "incredible" painting, which was of Welsh, British and European importance.
He said the painting was fragile and would be restored before possibly being loaned to museums ahead of returning to Powis Castle.


Australia says a man who killed himself and several other people in a suicide attack in Iraq last week was an 18-year-old from Melbourne.

The attack took place in a market near a Baghdad mosque on Thursday.
The man detonated explosives in a suicide vest, killing at least three other people and injuring dozens more.
The Islamic State (Isis) militant group, in an affiliated Twitter feed, said it was behind the attack and named the man as Abu Bakr al-Australi.
Australia's Attorney-General George Brandis, in a statement, said the news was a "disturbing development".
"The government deplores the violent actions being undertaken by ISIL (Isis) and other extremist groups in Iraq and Syria, and is deeply concerned about the involvement of Australians in these activities."
The involvement of Australians posed "a significant domestic security threat to Australia when those involved return home and seek to pursue violence here".
The man was the second Australian suicide bomber in the Iraq and Syria conflicts, the statement added.
Late last week, Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said the government was working hard to stop young Australians becoming radicalised.
"We're doing all we can to prevent people going overseas as foreign fighters," the Australian Broadcasting Corporation quoted her as saying.


British boxer Chantelle Cameron's hopes of competing at the Rio Olympics are over after she lost at the Women's World Championships in Kazakhstan.

The lightweight, 25, needed to reach the semi-finals to qualify for Rio, but lost a split decision to Mira Potkonen of Finland in the preliminaries.
Nicola Adams' quest for a first world title began with a points win over Dilnozakhon Odiljonova of Uzbekhistan.
The 2012 Olympic champion has already qualified to defend her flyweight gold.
Ireland's Katie Taylor, who also needs a last-four spot to secure a place in Brazil, progressed to the last 16 with a unanimous decision against Sweden's Agnes Alexiusson.


Senior judge Lady Smith has been appointed as the new chairwoman of the Scottish government's child abuse inquiry.

It follows the resignation of Susan O'Brien QC, who quit the post earlier this month citing government interference in the inquiry.
A second member of the three-person panel, Prof Michael Lamb, also resigned over similar concerns.
The inquiry will examine historical allegations of child abuse in Scotland.
It is expected to last four years, and will look at the extent of abuse of children in care and identify any systemic failures.
But it has been criticised from the start by survivors of abuse, and was left with Glenn Houston as its only panel member after both Ms O'Brien and Prof Lamb resigned within days of each other.
Deputy First Minister John Swinney said Lady Smith - who has been a judge since 2001 and was appointed to the Inner House in 2012 - would bring a "wealth of knowledge and experience" to the leadership of the inquiry.
He said: "It is in the nature of Lady Smith's background as an experienced judge that the inquiry will be taken forward without fear or favour to identify how individuals and institutions failed many of Scotland's most vulnerable children.
"We must ensure children are effectively protected as a result of what we learn from the inquiry."
Lady Smith said many children had not been given the protection they deserved after being placed in residential care.
She added: "Their voices now require to be heard and questions of when, where, how and why it happened require to be fully addressed.
"Real efforts must be made to try to effect healing, repair, restoration of dignity and hope for the future.
"It is, accordingly, very important that the work of the Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry continue and it is for these reasons that I welcome the invitation that has been extended to me by the deputy first minister and have today given my commitment to being its chair."
Mr Swinney said at the time that he had accepted Ms O'Brien's resignation after starting the formal procedure to remove her from her post.
He said complaints had been made about Ms O'Brien "revealing views" during a training session for inquiry team members.
Child abuse trauma experts judged that two comments made by Ms O'Brien had "indicated a belief system that is incompatible with the post of chair of such an inquiry".
The two comments were revealed in a series of letters published by the Scottish government.
Ms O'Brien accepted she had made the comments, but said they were "acceptable in the context in which they were made" and that she would "never underestimate the gravity of child abuse".
She said she had "accurately reported, without endorsing, what a survivor had said to me about their attitude to their own abuse" during the training session.
She further claimed the Scottish government had "sought to micro-manage and control the inquiry", and had "undermined" her and threatened to sack her when she resisted.
Prof Lamb also said he had resigned because of "repeated threats to the inquiry's independence", which he said had "undermined the panel's freedom" and "doomed the inquiry before the first witness has been heard".
Mr Swinney has said he rejects any charges of interference in the independence of the inquiry, and that the government wants a "robust independent inquiry that can operate without fear or favour."


The recent news about male sports stars coming out as gay has made me think that things are moving in the right direction regarding homophobia in sport.

England and Lincoln Ladies captain Casey Stoney will be writing regular columns for the BBC Sport website during the coming season.
NBA basketball star Jason Collins is still playing and declared his sexuality this week, while former Leeds winger Robbie Rogers revealed he was gay in February.
The disappointing aspect for me was that Rogers felt he had to retire to do that, which is perhaps a reflection of the problems that still exist in the game on this issue.
Homophobia was rife in society not so long ago, but I believe the man and the woman on the street have changed their thought processes - and it is time football caught up, especially the men's game.
It's time prehistoric attitudes changed.
• Twitter: @caseystoney
Having spoken to a lot of male professional players, the one issue that keeps cropping up is the amount of grief an openly gay player might get from fans.
Supporters will use pretty much anything to put a player off their game so I think it is that fear, more than anything, that is stopping a player coming out while they are still playing.
I just hope Collins and Rogers are setting an example for others to follow. Who knows what can happen then?
It's a completely different world in women's football and, dare I say, more grown-up.
Being gay is not a problem and never has been. Players just don't experience the same fears as they do in the men's game.
Admittedly, we don't perform in front of the same crowds as the men's game and there are not 40,000 people hurling abuse at you because of your sexuality. Women's football has never been as high profile as men's either, so the media scrutiny is less intense too.
Hopefully, the women's game will get to a point where we have that many fans in the ground, but being gay still won't be a problem.
On average there have been one or two gay players in most teams I have played for, up to three in some, but it's not caused any trouble.
A person's sexuality is never at the forefront of anybody's agenda or thought processes anyway, so it's just been about what they do on the pitch and what sort of person they are, not who they are going with.
I've been in teams in the past where there may have been a relationship between players in the same team, although you never really know because it is their private life - but, again, it's never caused any divisions.
I'm not saying everybody in women's football is out and open about their sexuality because you don't know if they are not. But those who are seem perfectly comfortable just having normal conversations about their lives and their partners and what they are doing on a Saturday night, just like every other person in a workplace or team.
In my experience, being gay isn't kept a secret but it's not a case of announcing it as soon as you meet someone. As you grow as a team, you get to know people and they become your friends and you get to know more about their background and their personal lives.
That's normally how you find out things with anyone, anywhere. If you think about it, it's pretty common behaviour - but not, it seems, in men's football.
The responsibility does not lie only with the players.
As a fan, just because you have paid £900 for a season ticket, it doesn't give you the right to abuse someone from the stands.
Clubs also have a responsibility to take a stance on it themselves, especially Premier League clubs. I know recently there was the Football v Homophobia campaign and it was disappointing to hear that some clubs almost refused to take part in that.
It shouldn't matter whether you are straight or gay, you should still back the programme and it's the same with racism; the Kick it Out campaign doesn't lack for support so I would like to see the same stance with homophobia as well.
While I can sympathise with a player not wanting to come out, I also agree with those people who suggest that a player's performance can be hindered by keeping their sexual identity secret.
If you are not living your life in the way you want to, or living in a world where you don't feel like you belong and you are pretending to be something that you are not, that must affect you as an individual.
So I can only imagine it must impact you when you are walking on to the pitch and taking all those feelings with you.
Unfortunately, when faced with the choice of keeping a secret or getting abuse from 40,000 people sitting in the stands, players are probably going to keep quiet.
It's a real sad state of affairs and it's sad for the players who feel like they have to live their lives that way. You only get one life and you have to try and live it the best you can and be happy because you don't get a second shot at it.
I'm really hopeful that men's football can go the same way as women's football on this issue.
How long will it take for an active male player to come out? Time will tell. But hopefully with an NBA player and Rogers coming out, it just depends on the next person taking that brave step.
Casey Stoney was talking to BBC Sport's Alistair Magowan.


Tens of thousands of people have attended rival mass rallies in Yemen's capital Sanaa, a week after some 50 people were shot dead at a protest.

Protesters predicted their biggest rally yet to demand the resignation of President Ali Abdullah Saleh.
Mr Saleh told a rally of his own supporters he was ready to hand over power, but only to "safe hands".
Soldiers fired in the air to hold back Saleh loyalists when they tried to march on the opposition rally.
In his speech, the president - who has been in office for more than three decades - condemned bloodshed but also urged his supporters to "stand firm".
He earlier denied that government forces had played any part in the shooting of demonstrators last week.
Amnesty International has warned the government against any further use of "deadly force", saying: "The government cannot just shoot its way out of this crisis."
Yemen, the Arab world's most impoverished nation, is a key ally in the US-led fight against al-Qaeda, which has established a strong presence there.
Two recent bomb plots against US targets - two American cargo planes in October and a Detroit-bound airliner in December 2009 - originated in Yemen.
Both the government and opposition have set up checkpoints in Sanaa and the streets are full of armed men.
There is real fear of a new confrontation, a BBC correspondent reports from the city.
By Damien McGuinnessBBC News, Sanaa
Mr Saleh is clearly running out of things he can offer the opposition but he still has plenty of military might and he has vowed to protect himself.
His speech on Friday was rather vague. He has offered to step down before, so it still looks like a stalemate.
The Western concern is that any chaos could be exploited by al-Qaeda, which has a presence in Yemen.
The opposition are calling the new rally a Friday of Departure but one student activist told me that Friday of Uncertainty would be more appropriate.
According to an AFP news agency report, Friday's crowds number in the hundreds of thousands.
President Saleh, dressed in a smart suit and sunglasses, took the microphone before a huge crowd.
"We don't want power but we need to hand power over to safe hands, not to sick, resentful or corrupt hands," he said.
"We are against firing a single bullet and when we give concessions, this is to ensure there is no bloodshed," he added.
"We will remain steadfast and challenge them with all power we have."
Some Saleh loyalists were carrying guns and waving traditional Yemeni daggers at Friday's rally, Reuters news agency reports.
Others rode motorbikes with large posters of Mr Saleh affixed to them, waving flags and playing patriotic music.
"No to chaos, yes to security and stability," banners read.
Mr Saleh has said the unrest risks taking Yemen into civil war. Several senior officials have left his side to go to the opposition.
In another part of the city, on a square near the university where protesters have been camped out since February, tens of thousands gathered for an anti-Saleh demonstration.
An Associated Press news agency report estimated that the crowd there was bigger than the rally in support of the president, despite attempts by the authorities to restrict access to the city centre.
Demonstrators chanted slogans calling for Mr Saleh's removal and waved red cards emblazoned with the word "leave".
Affrah, a protester and blogger in Sanaa, told the BBC the president could step aside earlier if he chose: "He keeps repeating that violence will happen, chaos will happen. It's really not going to happen, he's the one who will start it."
She said she was determined to carry on fighting for democracy even though she had received threats.
"Someone... sent me a [Facebook] message giving me private details about my mother, my sister and telling me that apparently I don't want to live in security.
Protests: Country by country
"Nevertheless, I am continuing. We deserve a better life than this, we deserve a better life full of democracy and freedom and people speaking their minds without any kind of fear or any kind of limitation."
Student Abdullah Jabali, 33, told Reuters at Friday's rally that he did not believe Mr Saleh's promises to stand down within a year.
"I came here to get rid of this butcher because he killed our comrades," he said.
On Wednesday, Yemen's parliament passed sweeping emergency laws giving the security forces far-reaching powers to detain suspects and prevent demonstrations.
Amnesty International responded on Friday by saying: "After the horrific killing of dozens of protesters last Friday, it is incredibly disturbing that Yemen's leaders have given the security forces more powers through a new emergency law instead of reining them in."
Yemen is one of a number of countries in the region that have seen unrest since the presidents of Egypt and Tunisia were ousted in popular revolts.


It's getting harder to remember what a slow news day looked like.

But 87 years ago, on 18 April 1930, the BBC's news announcer had nothing to communicate. "There is no news," was the script of the 20:45 news bulletin, before piano music was played for the rest of the 15-minute segment.
The wireless service then returned to broadcasting from the Queen's Hall in Langham Place, London, where the Wagner opera Parsifal was being performed.
How different 18 April 2017 has looked.
It has been packed with news.
As people up and down the UK went back to their jobs following the Easter long weekend, speculation built around an announcement that the Prime Minister, Theresa May, would be making just after 11:00.
The press and broadcasters, unusually, had been kept in the dark about the subject - so there was plenty of speculation all over Twitter and other social networks.
When Mrs May said she sought to call a snap general election, in less than eight weeks' time, it was immediately the subject of online articles, analysis pieces, live news pages, radio bulletins and programmes, TV commentaries, and more - all accessible by smartphone.
Perhaps you're more interested in news from outside the UK, in which case we give you pictures of a new Russian military base in the Arctic; the aftermath of a failed missile launch as North Korea keeps accelerating its nuclear programme; a major candidate in the upcoming French election pledging to suspend immigration; and calls for Turkey to investigate its own election process after a "Yes" vote in a referendum that would give the president sweeping new powers.
None of those are fluff stories for sure.
These days, the BBC has more staff and more capacity than it did in 1930. But it also has a different definition of what the news is.
Then, it was very dependent on news agencies and official government announcements. Today, less so.
And in other changes; back then, announcers were anonymous, and they wore dinner jackets to work.
This was out of respect for the music and drama performers, who had to dress up to entertain in the evening.


China's military parade celebrating its World War Two victory may have been a tightly choreographed show with nothing out of place - but it was a totally different story on Chinese social media.

Netizens on microblog site Weibo had a field day poking fun at the parade, posting satirical pictures and jibes at po-faced leaders. Their efforts were quickly scrubbed off by censors determined to keep the national conversation on script.
Some of the posts were captured by Hong Kong-based coder Cedric Sam and Weiboscope, a Hong Kong University project that monitors deleted Weibo content.
One popular topic was President Xi Jinping, who at the start of the parade inspected the troops from a car.
Weibo user Diuz posted a picture of a Winnie the Pooh toy. It came without a caption, but thousands got the joke - it was one of the most popular deleted posts, shared more than 65,000 times before it was taken down, according to Weiboscope.
Mr Xi has been closely associated with Winnie the Pooh since 2013, when netizens noticed that a picture of him walking next to US President Barack Obama looked a lot like Winnie the Pooh and Tigger - those posts were swiftly deleted at the time, of course.
Mr Xi's expressionless face also provided fodder for endless jokes.
Weibo user Buyuesangw posted this image of Mr Xi, saying: "Enjoy this new Winnie military parade expression - it's so cute." The caption reads: "My soul is so tired."
Another user, Dadadadadabazhao, captioned this picture: "It's so bloody hot, I want to die, urgh."
One topic which particularly excited netizens was the appearance of former President Jiang Zemin.
Rumours of his death periodically circulate when he is not seen in public for a long time.
One deleted post contained a picture of him at the parade, and commented: "Today's biggest news has broken."
Others juxtaposed pictures of him with frogs, in a nod to a meme last year on a giant inflatable frog's likeness to Mr Jiang.
Another image that made the rounds was of a grandmother feeling sorry for Mr Xi, who's affectionately known as Xi Da Da (Daddy Xi).
One caption read: "Beijing is too hot, granny feels bad for Xi Da Da."
But it wasn't just jokes that were scrubbed - so too were a number of Weibo posts, particularly from Taiwanese users, that accused the Chinese Communist Party of revisionism in its celebrations.
This included a statement by Taiwanese President Ma Ying-Jeou, noting that the Kuomintang (KMT), also known as the Chinese Nationalist Party, had played a major role in repelling the Japanese in WW2, and a picture of KMT general Chiang Kai-shek.
Weibo user Visionanimal posted it saying: "Saluting the real hero of the Chinese people!"
The Communists and the KMT had both worked to repel the Japanese, and many in Taiwan believe China has downplayed the KMT's efforts.
The KMT fled to Taiwan after a civil war with the Communists, and set up a government under Gen Chiang.
However, the Chinese government claims the island of Taiwan as part of its sovereign territory and threatens to counter any move to outright independence by military force.


Police have released CCTV images of a man suspected of committing a racially-motivated offence in a Stirling shop five months ago.

The incident took place at the Sunny Express store, Friars Street, at about 22:30 on 28 May.
The man was described as being in his late 20s, with light brown, short hair.
He was about 5ft 9in tall, of slim build, with a local accent and was wearing blue jeans, a blue jumper and dark brown moccasin shoes.
Sgt Robert Russell said: "We are treating this as a racially-motivated incident and we are keen to trace the male in the CCTV footage.
"I would urge anyone who can assist us to contact police immediately."


MLA Jonathan Bell has claimed he was told he would not be able to challenge the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) scheme because two DUP special advisers "have extensive interests in the poultry industry".

16 January 2017 Last updated at 20:01 GMT
Mr Bell made the allegation while speaking under parliamentary privilege in the Northern Ireland Assembly.
The advisers named by Mr Bell, Timothy Johnston and John Robinson, have denied the allegations.
The DUP said the claims were "outrageous".


Coventry City have asked caretaker boss Mark Venus to remain in charge until at least January, while they take their time over a longer-term appointment.

Venus, 49, has been in caretaker charge since Tony Mowbray resigned on 29 September, during which time the Sky Blues have won twice in three matches.
But League One's bottom club have now given themselves three months to assess their position, based on results.
City have so far won just one of this season's 12 League One matches.
"The table doesn't lie," Venus told BBC Sport. "After a quarter of the season you can't just ignore it, but we do have to move on and try and change things for the better.
"It will take hard work and commitment but these players are capable of that."
After inspiring a 2-0 win in his first game in charge at Port Vale, Coventry were unsuccessful on Saturday, beaten 3-0 at Charlton.
But, having also enjoyed a 3-1 EFL Trophy win at home to Northampton, Venus now takes charge of his first home league game, against Oxford United on Tuesday.
The Hartlepool-born former Leicester City, Wolves, Ipswich Town and Cambridge United defender made 567 Football League appearances in a 19-year playing career.
All his time in management has been spent in coaching roles under Mowbray at Hibernian, West Bromwich Albion, Celtic and Middlesbrough.
When he then joined Mowbray at Coventry, it was in more of a senior scouting role as technical director - and he has spent time weighing up whether he wanted to return to more day-to-day coaching duties.
Since Coventry's relegation from the Premiership under Gordon Strachan in 2001, the Sky Blues have had 14 managers in just over 15 years.
Venus is the ninth since owners Sisu took over nine years ago, of which only Chris Coleman has taken charge of more than 100 matches.


A production line at Deeside's Shotton steelworks is being mothballed which could affect 40 jobs, a union has said.

One of Tata's two galvanised steel lines could be closed from the end of October or November, according to Keith Jordan from the Community union.
The company said the line could be restarted in better market conditions.
Last month, Tata announced it was mothballing part of its plant in Newport for the third time in six years with the loss of hundreds of jobs.
Mr Jordan said it was hoped many of the Shotton workers will be moved to the second line, which produces 350,000 tonnes of steel per year or 7,000 tonnes per week.
The Shotton site is part of Tata Steel Colors which produces metallic and paint coated products for the construction industry and domestic appliances.
A company spokesman said: "We continue to be in discussions with employees, their representatives and the employers of contractors and agency staff about possible implications for employment levels.
"Every effort will be made to redeploy any affected employees within the business."


A 38-year-old woman has appeared in court charged with murdering her sister at the home they shared in Troon in Ayrshire.

Lynnette Greenop is accused of assaulting her 46-year-old sister Sharon on various occasions between August and November this year.
The charge accuses Ms Greenop of repeatedly striking her sister on the head and body.
It said she compressed her neck and assaulted her by other means unknown.
Lynnette Greenop is also accused of neglect and failing to obtain medical assistance for her sister.
Her lawyer Peter Lockhart confirmed she appeared on petition at Ayr Sheriff Court on Monday afternoon and made no plea. She was remanded in custody.
Sharon Greenop's 19-year-old daughter Shayla, who had also been detained by the police, did not appear in court and was released by police pending further inquiries.


Lottery funding worth £98m is being given to nine heritage sites, including projects to preserve Britain's scientific and technological history.

The Heritage Lottery Fund said it hopes some of the projects will inspire young people to take a greater interest in science and technology.
One of the biggest awards - worth £12.1m - is for Jodrell Bank in Cheshire, home to the Lovell Telescope.
Physicist and TV presenter Brian Cox welcomed the support for it.
"When I was young, visiting Jodrell Bank was one of the things that inspired me to become a scientist," he said.
"The rich scientific history of the UK is a key part of our culture and Jodrell Bank is the stand-out icon of UK science and engineering," he said.
Jodrell Bank is the only remaining site in the world that showcases the entire story of the development of radio astronomy.
The funding will create an exhibition pavilion to explain the role the site played in international scientific development.
There will also be a new volunteer and skills programme and a schools programme that will reach an additional 6,000 school visitors a year.
London's Science Museum will receive £8m for a major redevelopment of its medicine galleries, which is due to be completed in 2019.
It will showcase 3,000 objects from the world's largest medical collection and reveal personal stories of how lives have been transformed by changes to medicine and health over the last 500 years.
Derby Silk Mill, formerly known as Derby Industrial Museum, will receive £9.4m.
The money will be used to restore the museum, which is housed in what was the world's first fully mechanised factory.
The Great Central Railway, which runs through Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire, is being given £10m to create a new heritage railway museum in Leicester.
Some exhibits will come from the National Railway Museum in York, which has been part of the project.
The British Library will receive £9.6m for its project to digitise the nation's "rare, unique and most vulnerable" sound recordings and open them up online for people to hear.
It will ensure the survival of more than half a million recordings, ranging from interviews with Kindertransport child refugees from Nazi Germany to extinct birdsong, accents and dialects from around Britain.
Dorset County Museum is being given £10.4m to help fund a planned expansion which was revealed last July.
The collection spans 170 years of Dorset's natural, geological and social history, with many of the items coming from the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site.
Lincoln Cathedral, which is the only cathedral on Historic England's buildings at risk register, is being given £12.4m to pay for urgent repairs.
The funding will also pay for the creation of a new interpretation centre and a programme of activities to double school numbers and widen the range of visitors to the cathedral.
The Burrell Collection, which houses more than 8,000 objects gifted to Glasgow by Sir William Burrell in 1944, is being given £15m.
The money will be used for a major refurbishment project which will increase the number of objects on display from 20% of the collection to 90%.
The Geffrye Museum in London, which specialises in the history of the English domestic interior, is being given £11m.
The funding will allow the development of a new entrance from Hoxton station, accessible spaces for the collections, library and archive, new learning facilities and a new cafe.


One of the most prominent buildings in Castle Douglas could be set to come back into use.

The clock tower has latterly been used as homeless accommodation.
However, Dumfries and Galloway Council stopped letting it in October last year because of the high cost of heating the property.
Officials are now recommending that the local Common Good Fund provides Â£9,500 to install new heating and roof insulation.


A Nottinghamshire woman says she has been seriously ill and undergone five operations after having low-grade silicon breast implants fitted.

Tara Smith, 40, from Newark, had the controversial Poly Implant Prothese (PIP) implants in 2006.
France banned the PIP implants, found to be made with industrial silicone, in 2010 and 30,000 women were advised to have them removed.
Ms Smith said UK women should have their PIP implants removed by the NHS.
The UK is set to reveal its updated advice to 40,000 affected women later.
"I had the implants done in 2006, then had to have them changed as they ruptured but have since had five operations, infections and illnesses due to the PIPs," said Ms Smith, who has spent Â£23,000 on trying to correct her surgery.
"I had the PIPs replaced with allergen implants last year but there is still silicon left in my body and it has been horrendous for my health, I am ill all the time."
Concerns about the safety of the firm's implants were raised when French surgeons noticed they ruptured more easily than others.
PIP had used low-grade industrial silicone gel, that had been manufactured for use in mattresses, in place of specialist medical materials.
When an implant ruptures, the silicone gel filling can leak into the body. Some women will not notice anything at all and there is no evidence of an increased cancer risk.
However, it can result in the formation of scar tissue which can change the shape and feel of the breast.
The gel can be an irritant, causing pain and inflammation. It can also be more difficult to remove an implant once it has ruptured.
"I think people need to know about this, as they just don't seem to get that we are walking around with mattress filler in their bodies," said Ms Smith.
"I have had constant pain, headaches and feel as if I am about 80, not 40."
"I think the government needs to force [private] clinics to take action because, they've got to, because they think they're getting away with it."
Since first becoming aware of the PIP problems, Ms Smith has started a Facebook group which has attracted membership from 700 women who have experienced problems or have concerns about the implants.
The French government has quoted a rupture rate of 5% and will fund operations for women to have their implants removed.
But UK ministers have previously said the risk is much lower - with authorities putting the rate in line with other implants at 1%.
However, they ordered a review after reports from one cosmetic surgery group, Transform, suggested it could be as high as 7%.


A man who died on a holiday to Egypt might have had his drink spiked with heroin, an inquest has heard.

The body of Aaron Edwards, 31, was found in another guest's hotel room in Sharm el-Sheikh on 7 March 2014.
A pathologist said the cause of death was linked to heroin use, but a friend insisted he had not taken drugs.
The coroner recorded a narrative verdict and said it was possible the drug had been put in his drink.
"It is not known how Aaron Edwards came to have heroin in his his system," said coroner Anne Pember. "It was possibly administered by a spiked drink."
More on this story and others from Northamptonshire
The inquest heard Mr Edwards had gone to the resort with three friends.
Daniel Gregory said the group had gone for food and he and Mr Edwards had then gone out for drinks.
He said they went back to another woman's hotel room to drink vodka, but while there Mr Edwards fell asleep and Mr Gregory began to feel unwell.
He said he left his friend sleeping and returned to his own apartment, where he was sick.
In the morning, he said he was informed by the resort's security team that Mr Edwards had died.
He told the coroner he "had no experience of him [Mr Edwards] taking any drugs whatsoever".
He added: "I felt my drink had been spiked. I was dizzy and felt really ill."
The Edwards family were initially told by Egyptian authorities that Mr Edwards died of coronary problems, the inquest heard.
Dr Kevin West, the pathologist who examined Mr Edwards once his body had been repatriated, said: "There is no polite way of saying it. What they suggested was nonsense."
He found Mr Edwards died as a result of heroin use and said it was possible for drinks to be spiked with the drug.


The boyfriend of Bobbi Kristina Brown has been accused of assault and theft, on the same day her family announced she was being moved into hospice care.

Brown, the only child of Whitney Houston, was discovered face down in a bath at her Atlanta home in January. She has never regained consciousness.
Her boyfriend Nick Gordon has now been accused of causing her "substantial bodily harm" in a $10m civil case.
The legal action was filed by Brown's court-appointed conservator.
Bedelia Hargrove told People magazine in a statement:. "I filed this lawsuit to pursue justice on behalf of Bobbi Kristina Brown. No human being, male or female, should endure what Bobbi Kristina endured."
The legal case accuses Gordon of assault, battery, infliction of emotional distress and maintaining "the fraud that he had married Brown" after she inherited a substantial amount of money.
It claims that Bobbi Kristina confided to an unnamed person that Gordon "was not the man she thought he was" and made plans to meet them on 31 January to talk about it.
Court papers claim she never made it to the meeting and "became embroiled in a loud argument" with Gordon, which ended with her "face down in a bathtub, with her mouth swollen and another tooth knocked out".
"Even after Brown's hospitalization, and while she was in a coma, (Gordon) accessed Brown's bank account and stole in excess of $11,000 (Â£7,000)," the documents say.
Gordon has yet to comment on the accusations. Last night, he posted a message about Brown on his Twitter, which read: "We keep praying, she has fought hard this long don't give up hope."
He was partly brought up by Whitney Houston, and the couple's relationship became public after Houston died.
Police were called to Brown's home in suburban Atlanta on 31 January, in response to a "drowning".
Despite months of treatment in two Atlanta hospitals and a rehab facility, including being placed in an induced coma, the 22-year-old has never regained consciousness.
A police investigation has been launched, but no findings or charges have been announced.
A statement released by Brown's aunt Pat Houston on behalf of the family said that "despite the great medical care at numerous facilities, Bobbi Kristina Brown's condition has continued to deteriorate, as of today, she has been moved into hospice care."
"We thank everyone for their support and prayers. She is in God's hands now."
The case holds similarities to Houston's death in a hotel bath in 2012.
An autopsy concluded the singer died of accidental drowning due to the effects of cocaine use and heart disease.
Houston left everything in her will to Bobbi Kristina.
Brown is also the daughter of singer Bobby Brown. Her parents divorced when she was 14.


Blackburn Rovers have been subject of an investment proposal by local businessman, reports BBC Radio Lancashire.

Ian Battersby and Ian Currie, through their company Seneca Partners, are understood to have contacted Indian owners Venky's about the proposal.
Venky's, run by the Rao family, last month revealed debts of £102.4m.
Boss Paul Lambert is leaving the club and his replacement will be an eighth permanent manager in eight years.
Venky's bought the club in 2010 but have seen their debts rise after relegation from the Premier League in 2012.
"The interest from Seneca Partners is genuine. What remains to be seen is how it's viewed in India.
"Seneca Partners have offered their services to help before, something which wasn't welcomed but it's clear that fresh ideas are required to take the club forward.
"Whatever happens, Blackburn Rovers have some key roles to fill this summer. Notably a first-team manager, which might now have to wait."


The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) has said the government must provide funding to recruit an additional 800 police officers.

North Antrim MP Ian Paisley said the money would enable the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) to do its job, and counter record levels of low morale.
The Police Federation has said urgent action must be taken after thousands of rank-and-file police officers said morale was at an all time low.
Federation chairman Mark Lindsay described the findings in an independent survey as bleak, but not surprising.
Mr Paisley said the government was obliged to provide the extra funding as part of its endorsement of the Patten reforms of policing, which led to the creation of the PSNI.
"We need to address the root cause of this morale problem," he said.
"The Patten report said there had to be 7,500 officers policing a state the size of Northern Ireland.
"We are almost a thousand beneath that.
"We need to start recruiting an additional 800 offices to make up the gap, to ease the burden, spread the load, and allow officers to do the job they really want to do."
The survey was conducted by an independent team of academics who also carried out similar work for the Police Federation of England and Wales.
An online questionnaire was completed by 2,527 PSNI officers, 37% of the total number.
Some 96% of respondents described morale within the police service as low with reasons including budget cuts, pensions, and internal change and restructuring.
Mr Paisley described the survey results as worrying and added that the party's eight Westminster MPs would push for the funding.
"If this level of morale continues, police officers will not be able to do their jobs and we will see mass haemorrhaging of officers leaving the service," he said.
Mr Lindsay said the survey results were highly significant.
"This is the first time that officers, from constable to chief inspector, have been surveyed for their views, and also the first time that the issue of morale within the service has been quantified," he said.
"The findings are not a surprise. We have been saying this for some time.
"Up until now, all we had to go on was anecdotal evidence.
"Now, we have robust, cold hard facts which show just how low morale is within the PSNI."
The PSNI said it was aware that morale was a significant issue for policing, especially during "challenging financial times".
Ass Ch Con Chris Noble said police would work closely with the Police Federation on a day-to-day basis to address its concerns and those of its members.
"The majority of officer issues raised are about changes to pay, pensions and conditions that have been implemented across UK policing over the last number of years," he said.
"Our organisation is going through a period of unprecedented change.
"We know the personal and professional impacts of change and we are committed to doing all we reasonably can to help colleagues adapt to and adopt new ways of working."
Urgent matter
The Northern Ireland Policing Board (NIPB), which monitors the work of the PSNI, will discuss the survey's findings when it meets the chief constable next week.
In a statement, a NIPB spokesperson said the PSNI has "been through a significant programme of policing reform and more recently further organisational changes have been necessary to achieve required reductions to policing budgets".
"The fiscal picture is unlikely to change and, as such, it is important that all resources are used efficiently by the chief constable. The PSNI workforce strategy must also provide the necessary support to officers and staff in their work," it added.
Policing Board member and Ulster Unionist MLA Ross Hussey told the BBC's Good Morning Ulster programme: "This is a real shock to the system and it's something that must be dealt with as a matter of urgency."
Mr Hussey added: "If we have a survey that indicates that 96% have low morale, I think that's something to take very, very seriously and it's something we must look at - how we fund our police service."


Heather Watson saw the defence of her Hobart International title come to an end at the hands of Sweden's Johanna Larsson in the quarter-finals.

The British number two lost 3-6 6-4 6-4 to Larsson, ranked one place below her at 54 in the world.
It was Watson's second match of the day after she earlier wrapped up a three-set win over Romania's Monica Niculescu.
That match had taken three hours and 13 minutes over two days to complete.


An experienced quad biker died after his bike flipped at a motocross event in Ceredigion, an inquest has heard.

Daniel John Roch, 19, from Narberth died on 20 July 2014 following the incident at Talsarn motocross track near Lampeter.
Coroner Peter Brunton concluded the teenager died as a result of misadventure.
A post mortem found he sustained a fractured vertebra and skull.
The inquest heard Mr Roch had been riding bikes since he was four-years-old and began competing at age seven.
James Evans, a marshal at the event, told the inquest: "On the second lap I saw the quad flip up.  The quad was airborne and landed vertically."
Track and accident inspector, Stephen Murty, conducted an investigation following the death and found the surface was "expertly laid" but the gully where Mr Roach crashed was an "unnecessary hazard" that would "affect the fastest riders by the most margin".
Mr Brunton said competitors would have been familiar with the gully as it had been present for around five years.
He extended his sympathies to Mr Roch's family, describing his death as "the nightmare every parent dreads."


A man who stabbed a County Antrim restaurant owner to death during a robbery now feels "sick and sorry" about what he did, a court has heard.

Wing Fu Cheung, known as Nelson Cheung, was murdered after his car was forced off the road in January 2015.
The 64-year-old Ballymena man ran the Double Value Chinese takeaway restaurant in Randalstown.
Mr Cheung's wife Kam-Fung, known as Winnie, was also wounded and robbed in the ambush near the town.
On Monday, she and other members of the Cheung family watched proceedings via Skype in Hong Kong.
Last year, Portuguese national Virgilio Augusto Fernando Correia, 35, who had been living at Grant Avenue in Randalstown at the time of his arrest, and 25-year-old Christopher David Menaul from Barra Street in Belfast admitted Mr Cheung's murder.
They also both pleaded guilty to wounding Winnie Cheung with intent to do her grievous bodily harm, and robbing her.
The court heard they had been attempting to steal money to pay off drug dealers.
Earlier this year, husband and wife, Gary and Lisa Thompson, admitted assisting offenders by allowing Correia and Menaul to take refuge in their home after the murder, as well as letting them clean themselves and remove clothing.
Both also pleaded guilty to perverting the course of justice.
Gary Thompson, 34, formerly of Cunningham Way in Antrim, admitted robbery.
Mother-of-two Lisa Thompson, 34, from Erskine Park in Ballyclare, admitted handling stolen goods.
Belfast Crown Court heard that Mrs Cheung was driving her husband home after they had closed their restaurant for the night.
She noticed a car was following her and believed a vehicle had been following her along the same route on another occasion.
She pulled in to let the car pass, but another started to follow her and then rammed her, trapping her in the vehicle.
Mr Cheung got out to speak to the driver and was confronted by Correia who was heard by Mrs Cheung demanding: "Money, money."
She saw Correia drag her husband away.
Menaul then dragged Mrs Cheung from the car by her hair. She sustained a head injury and stab wound to her hand.
Her handbag was stolen. It contained a mobile phone and tablet, bank cards, a book with passwords in it and Â£200.
Once Corriea and Menaul made off, Mrs Cheung found her husband lying on the road drenched with blood.
He had been stabbed 18 times in the neck, chest and stomach.
The court was told his injuries "would have led to a rapid death".
It was heard that an hour after the murder, there had been an attempt to use one of Cheung's credit cards. That attempt was made from the Thompsons' home.
The court was told that CCTV cameras in Randalstown picked up the Cheung's car being followed in what was described as a "dry run" in the days before the robbery and murder.
A prosecution barrister said the murder had been "committed for gain in the course of a pre-planned robbery".
The court was told that a victim impact statement from the Cheungs showed the murder had caused them "extreme pain and trauma".
He said the family had led "an industrious and unblemished life" before Nelson Cheung was murdered.
A defence barrister for Lisa Thompson said she had become involved due to "misguided loyalty, stupidity and greed".
A barrister for Virgilio Correia told the court he had been under threat from paramilitaries and drug dealers to come up with money at the time of the murder.
The court heard he had a serious drug problem at the time, and that stabbing Mr Cheung to death had been "a devastating over-reaction".
The lawyer said Correia now feels "sick and sorry" for the two victims and their family.
A defence barrister for Menaul told the court he was the first to plead guilty, and that he was a secondary party in the act of murder.
The court was told he was also under pressure to pay drug dealers for substances that had been bought "on credit".
Gary Thompson's defence barrister said his client was a secondary party to the robbery and had been "passive" in what happened.
All four will be sentenced next week.


One person is dead after two small planes collided mid-air over a large shopping centre south of Montreal.

Three others were injured in the accident on Friday, which took place over the Promenades Saint-Bruno.
Police say one of the planes crashed into the mall's roof, while the other slammed into a car park.
One pilot is dead and the other is in hospital, and two bystanders had minor stress-related injuries, they confirmed.
The aircraft carried only one pilot each, and no passengers.
Nheil Martinez, who works inside the shopping centre, told the Canadian Press he saw the shadow of a plane and heard its motor before hearing a loud boom.
He saw pieces of the plane fall out of sky.
Quebec Public Safety Minister Martin Coiteux offered his "sincere condolences" to family members of the victims and thanked first responders at the scene.


A dairy farm which converts manure into methane gas has increased production so fast it is now making enough gas for 6,000 homes.

So-called biogas has become controversial in recent years, with claims that land is being turned over to fuel production rather than food.
But dairy farmer Richard Clothier insists there is huge untapped potential in natural waste.
"For us, the muck is now as important as the milk," Mr Clothier said.
He is the third generation of his family to farm dairy cattle near Bruton, in Somerset. His firm, Wyke Farms, has grown to be one of the UK's largest independent cheese makers.
When you visit a dairy farm, they usually show you fine young cattle and perhaps a fancy new milking parlour. Mr Clothier starts his tour with the slurry tank. A large, steaming, swirling pool of brown cow muck and water. He loves it.
He said: "We bring school children here and they love the fact that we make power out of poo. They never grow tired of saying it, and nor do I."
Next to the slurry tank, three huge green domes the size of a circus big top rise from his Somerset pastures. Stainless steel pipes emerge from the top of each dome, feeding small industrial buildings. Everywhere you go there are doors with official hazard signs, much as you would expect in a power station.
And that is exactly what this farm has become. A power station. The methane gas produced inside the sealed tanks by millions of bacteria is collected, filtered and cleaned.
Once it has reached the standard of the national gas grid, it has the regulated odorant added to it, the familiar safety smell you get if you leave the gas on at home.
The final shed is the one the farmer is most proud of.
"This is where we connect to the grid," he said.
There are dials, pressure gauges, yellow pipes. And a gas meter that spins quickly.
"Here we are pumping 13,500 cubic metres every day, that's the pipe that goes down to Bruton. All their gas comes from us now, it must be the greenest town in Britain."
In fact, the farm feeds much more than just the nearby village - Bruton has a population of about 3,000. Mr Clothier's dairy gas works is producing enough for 6,000 households.
Most do not realise their gas comes from a dairy farm, it is exactly the same as any other gas on the National Grid. So could more farms follow suit?
For Mr Clothier, the light bulb moment was a huge energy bill a few years back. Oil was more than $100 a barrel and one month the dairy's power jumped Â£70,000.
He said: "There's obviously no way you can go to the supermarkets and tell them the cheese will cost more, they just won't be interested."
So he and his family sat round the table and decided they needed to take control of their energy.
Some of the gas is now used on the farm to power a generator building, producing around 500 kWh of electricity to run the cheese making process. They also recover water from the whey, allowing the entire operation to run self-sufficiently.
But the system is not cheap, in total they spent Â£14m. Clearly not every dairy farm could raise that but Mr Clothier insists more anaerobic digesters should be built.
He said: "On farms around Britain there's an untapped potential of organic waste.
"Some domestic houses are not collecting food waste yet, so there's so much organic waste out there that can be used to generate gas and electricity."
Others have raised concerns about the growth of anaerobic digesters. Mr Clothier's plant runs on waste, but others are fed with crops grown for fuel, especially maize.
This has led to large parts of the UK being cultivated for fuel crops. Worse, maize is often grown in a way that increases soil erosion, accelerates the run-off from rainfall and exacerbates flooding.
Environmental journalist George Monbiot believes the original aims of anaerobic digesters have now been corrupted.  "There could scarcely be a better formula for subverting everything biogas is supposed to achieve," he claimed.
Back in Somerset, Mr Clothier has read all the controversy. He insists he is only going to feed his gas tanks with waste.
"My grandfather always used to say 'be good to nature, and nature will be good to you'. We're here to make cheese, and if we can make power out of what was once waste, that's great. And there is plenty of muck to go round."


Foreigners must not be able to buy UK homes with "plundered or laundered cash" as part a global effort to defeat corruption, David Cameron has said.

Speaking in Singapore, the prime minister vowed to expose the use of "anonymous shell companies" to buy luxury UK properties - often in London.
The PM said his message was "London is not a place to stash your dodgy cash".
Corruption, he added, was "a cancer which is at the heart of so many of the world's problems" and must be tackled.
Mr Cameron is on a four-day tour of South East Asia. On Monday, he announced the UK and Indonesia had agreed measures to counter the "shared enemy" of Islamic State (IS) extremism.
Later in the trip he will travel to Malaysia and Vietnam.
He has been accompanied by 31 British business leaders in an attempt to drum up trade with the UK and has also discussed the fight against terrorism with his counterparts.
Describing corruption as "the enemy of progress", he called for a "global effort" to tackle it, saying the world has "looked the other way for too long".
Citing the steps taken by the UK and Singapore to tackle corruption as part of enforcing a rules-based financial and legal system, Mr Cameron said a zero tolerance approach boosted trust and could improve business profitability and economic growth.
A 2014 report by anti-poverty organisation One said an estimated $1tn (Â£600bn) a year was being taken out of poor countries because of corruption, warning of the use of phantom firms and money laundering.
And last week the National Crime Agency said foreign criminals were pushing up house prices in the UK by laundering billions of pounds through the purchase of expensive properties.
In his speech, Mr Cameron said properties in the UK, particularly in London, "are being bought by people overseas through anonymous shell companies, some with plundered or laundered cash".
Shell companies are non-trading companies that serve a particular purpose for their owners.
More than 100,000 UK property titles are registered to overseas companies, with more than 36,000 properties in London owned by offshore firms.
About Â£122bn of property in England and Wales is owned by offshore companies.
The government is to publish Land Registry data later this year, setting out which foreign companies own land and property in England and Wales. It will also consider forcing a foreign company bidding for a government contract to "publicly state who really owns it".
While the majority of foreign-owned business investing in Britain had "nothing to hide" and were welcome, the rules needed to be more transparent to counter those who were seeking to launder "their ill-gotten gains without being tracked down".
"There is no place for dirty money in Britain," he said.
"Indeed, there should no place for dirty money anywhere. London is not a place to stash your dodgy cash."
Welcoming the pledge, Laura Taylor, head of advocacy at Christian Aid, said it was "another step forward in the battle for greater transparency worldwide".
"Countering corruption is of fundamental importance in the fight against global poverty because of its impact on developing countries," she added.
Diane Sheard, UK director of One, said: "Lifting this veil of secrecy will help developing countries to identify and recover these funds, which should be spent on essentials like health and education.
"We hope that making information public about foreign companies that own property in the UK will deter money-launderers from doing business here."
And Robert Palmer, head of the money-laundering campaign at the charity Global Witness, said: "London is a very attractive destination for very wealthy people, including corrupt officials who have looted their state coffers."
He added: "What the Prime Minister has announced today is a really good step forward."
In his speech, Mr Cameron also pledged to boost the UK's trade links with Asean nations, pointing out that Britain had larger two-way trade with Belgium than with Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam and Indonesia combined.
The UK had become "too reliant" on its European market and must "not lose out" on the vast market that South East Asia represented - heralding a "partnership that can drive our shared prosperity for decades to come".


Jay O'Shea scored either side of half time to extend Millwall's winless run and move Chesterfield into the top six.

The Spireites started brightly and went in front on 17 minutes when O'Shea struck a volley from the edge of the area, which went in off the post.
Tommy Lee denied Millwall an equaliser with a stunning one-handed save to keep out Jimmy Abdou's deflected shot.
O'Shea had the final say in injury time when his deflected shot beat Lions goalkeeper Jordan Archer.
Millwall are now four games without a win in League One and sit two points above the relegation zone.
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Millwall manager Neil Harris told BBC London 94.9:
"I'm extremely disappointed and frustrated. In the first half we started well and then we didn't get a foothold for 20 minutes - their midfield was on top of ours.
"In the second half we came out and we looked a lot brighter, we looked much better in possession, we dominated the game for the next 40 minutes but couldn't find the end product.
"We chased the game and concede by deflection in the end. It's frustrating."


As Alastair Cook closed in on his 10,000th Test run during the first Test against Sri Lanka, his partnership with Alex Hales produced 28 runs off the first 15 overs of the match.

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The previous night in Bangalore, Chris Gayle and Virat Kohli had piled on 211 for Royal Challengers in exactly the same number of deliveries.
Because this is cricket, the contrast served only to underline Cook's particular charms as a batsman. In a fast-forward world he is a player from another time, a writer of epic novels in an age of the tweet, probably the last of the pure Test specialists his country will produce.
Were Cook to be judged in the same way as England's international cricket this summer - a 'Super Series' amalgam where success in each of the divergent formats directly affects the other - he would look one-dimensional and dated. Only 60 of those 10,000 runs have come from shots that have cleared the ropes.
But one-dimensional and dated is a rather wonderful recipe for an opener in Test cricket.
Cook may have just four main scoring shots - the straight push-drive, a cut, the clip off his legs, a rolling wristy pull. He may occasionally still look at the crease as he did to Nasser Hussain when the then Essex captain first saw him in the nets at Chelmsford: stiff-legged, heavy headed.
Of the 12 men to get past the 10,000 mark, only the cussedly idiosyncratic Shivnarine Chanderpaul has perhaps as restrained a repertoire. Cook also has the lowest average of that elite set.
He is also the only one who has spent his entire career at the top of the order (Sunil Gavaskar slowly migrated there), and has scored his runs at such a clip that he has reached the milestone faster and at a younger age than every one of them.
The comparison with Chanderpaul, who took 18 years and 37 days to get there, is an unfair one. Cook has more in common stylistically with Rahul Dravid, the next quickest to 10,000 runs in terms of time - and much more in temperament with Steve Waugh, who took 15 more innings.
Just like Waugh, who could score a critical half-century just when Australia needed it most, or score a ton on one leg when the occasion demanded it, Cook is a batsman defined as much by his mental toughness as his strokeplay.
Do not be fooled by the choirboy past or his reported terror of snakes. Cook's 10,000 are about attrition where others have fallen, about treating the 100th ball of an innings just the same as the first, about being imperturbable when panic has gripped and turned elsewhere.
That toughness was there on his very first scoring shot in Test cricket, when he pulled a Zaheer Khan bouncer for four, and in the second innings century he compiled in that match in Nagpur despite being just 21 years old and fresh off a plane from an England A tour of the Caribbean.
It has been there in his captaincy, in the way his batting average as skipper (46.69) almost exactly matches his mark as a player (46.36), in the way he carried on as skipper through the Ashes horrors of 2013-14 and the unholy civil war that followed and emerged to bat on, and on, and on again.
Paul Collingwood also made his maiden Test ton in that same innings in Nagpur. His recollection of the occasion is of the intense nerves he felt as his own century approached, and of meeting Cook halfway down the pitch to discover that the kid eight years his younger felt nothing of the sort.
As it began so it has carried on. Cook has scored runs on the familiar pitches of home, as one would expect, but he has been more successful in the more challenging conditions overseas.
Sixteen of his 28 Test centuries have come away from home; his 766 runs to lay the foundations for England's first Ashes win in Australia for 24 years not only broke records but came after only one ton against that opposition in 19 innings. He adapted, he learned, he pushed on.
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Cook does not carry the charisma of the man he will one day overtake as his country's leading run-scorer across all formats, Kevin Pietersen. He is admired rather than adored, functional rather than flamboyant.
He is all the better for it. As his mentor Graham Gooch once observed, Cook's demeanour at the crease and his shot selection are exactly the same if he is on 20 or 200.
Despite those sporadic sixes he is a physically strong man. He has the same outsized forearms of all elite batsmen and the athlete's physique that modern conditioning methods have created.
He may not use those to improvise wildly as so many elite batsmen of this era do, but Cook is a player for whom less is more.
Even that 10,000-run target will soon slip away in his slipstream, even as the achievement is lauded, because he has so many years and innings ahead of him.
Arguably too, it is no longer quite the magic mark it was, at least outside England where it had never been seen before.
While it took a century of Test cricket for Gavaskar to become the first there, 11 batsmen have done it in the last 11 years. When Sachin Tendulkar is almost 6,000 Test runs on, Cook's accumulator instincts will have already adjusted his sights.
Only injury is likely to hold him back. But there can never be the suggestion that Cook, unlike more naturally gifted players, has failed to fulfil the limits of his potential.
It might sound like a curiously mealy-mouthed compliment. It isn't. Cook has been the best he can be, across a decade of exhausting Test battles. And there is more, much more, to come.


UK charities in receipt of EU funds should not campaign for a vote to stay in the EU solely because of potential losses in income, new guidance says.

The Charity Commission said political activity should be in support of a charity's aims and proportionate, with transparency about funding sources.
It has warned charity trustees of the "reputational risk" of getting involved in the EU referendum campaign.
The commission said it would take action against any rule breaches.
The in-out referendum on Britain's membership of the EU will take place on 23 June.
The guidance said: "Many charities are funded by the EU or its institutions, and conditions are usually attached to the funding.
"For charities that are in direct receipt of such funding, the possibility of a loss of funding will clearly be an issue.
"However, knowing that the outcome of the referendum could result in a loss of funding would not in itself justify political activity directed at the UK remaining in the EU."
The commission said the key issue should be whether staying in, or leaving, the EU would affect an organisation's "charitable purposes and the ability of your charity to continue its work", and that the extent of engagement "must be proportionate to the issue involved".
"Trustees must consider issues such as the risk posed to the charity by the loss of funding and the ability to replace the funding that is at risk of being lost," it added.
The commission said charities that choose to get politically involved in the referendum should be transparent about their sources of funding.
Failure to do so, it said, "could seriously undermine and detract from the quality of your contribution to these very important issues and may attract regulatory scrutiny by the commission".
Kenneth Dibble, the commission's director of legal services, added: "Political activity by a charity can only ever be undertaken in support of its charitable purposes.
"The guidance clearly says that there are reputational risks for charities which engage in political activity on the EU referendum."


BBC Get Inspired caught up with Dennis Yarwood who is running Sunday's Great Manchester Run for the deaf blind charity Sense.

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Dennis began running after thinking he was overweight and wants to take part on Sunday to "help those less fortunate."
Great Manchester Run 2016 takes place on Sunday May 22 and you can follow the action on BBC TV and also on our live text commentary.
You can get involved and send us your Great Manchester Run stories and messages by using the hashtag #GetInspired on social media
Feeling inspired? There are events for all abilities so use this handy guide to find the best one for you.


A town centre footfall study across eight main Borders towns has recorded its highest figures since 2012.

Duns, Hawick, Peebles and Selkirk saw numbers rise with a regionwide increase of 1% last year compared with 2015.
There was a drop in footfall recorded in Galashiels, Jedburgh, Kelso and Melrose.
Eyemouth - which has only been included in the figures for the past five years - also saw its figures decline compared with last year.
Stuart Bell, executive member for economic development on Scottish Borders Council, said the results painted a "very mixed picture".
However, he said it was good to see a "substantial increase" in Hawick where the council was working with a range of partners on an action plan to boost the town's economic fortunes.
"The co-operation of local community groups and businesses is a key element of that work, and particularly so in areas around tourism and positive promotion of the town, which would hopefully drive even more people to visit," he said.
"The recently-established town centre resilience index uses a range of statistics, including footfall and retail vacancies, to help us target council resources for maximum impact in the towns in greatest need.
"These latest figures confirm that we must extend our efforts in Jedburgh and Eyemouth to help their economies."
Ron Smith, executive member for planning and environment, said the results, when read with other indicators showed "consolidation" which he said was positive in itself in "tough economic times".
"However, there are certainly indications that some of our town centres are struggling, particularly Jedburgh with a further fall in footfall and an increase in vacant shops, and we are already investigating steps to address such issues," he said.
"The council alone cannot revive our high streets and our partners, community groups, businesses themselves and the public have a role to play in ensuring that bustling Borders towns are not a thing of the past.
"On a personal note, I must welcome the improvement in the figures for Hawick, which brings with it an optimism that a corner may be turning."


A painting by Italian artist Modigliani was sold at auction on Monday for $170.4m (£113m), the second-highest price ever for a work sold at auction.

Nu couche (Reclining Nude) was sold at Christie's in New York to a Chinese collector.
It had never been sold at auction before, having been in the same private collection for about 60 years.
The top price achieved for an art work at auction was Picasso's Les femmes d'Alger which sold for $179m (£118.5m).
That was also sold at Christie's in May this year.
Nu couche, painted during 1917 and 1918, was estimated to fetch more than $100m before the auction took place. The price achieved was also a record for the artist.
Chinese billionaire Liu Yiqian confirmed to the New York Times that he had purchased the painting.
•One of China's biggest art collectors
•Born in Shanghai in a working class family in 1963
•Previously worked as a handbag seller and taxi driver
•Made his fortune trading stocks in the 1980s and 1990s
•He and his wife have opened two art galleries in Shanghai
•Known for his high-profile bids and stunts - including when he drank from an ancient $36m ceremonial cup he had just bought at an auction in 2014
The eccentric billionaire
Last night Amedeo Modigliani joined Francis Bacon, Pablo Picasso, Edvard Munch, Andy Warhol and Alberto Giacometti in the highly exclusive 100 Million Dollar Club. Membership requires an artist to have had a work sold at auction for more than $100m.
You'll recognise a pattern. They are all: male, modern, Western, white, figurative artists whose record-breaking works could loosely be described as expressionistic. Are they the four best artists in the modern canon? I don't think so. Picasso, certainly, but the others are debatable. Modigliani wouldn't make it into my Top 20.
Why, then, has his painting Nu Couche fetched such a lot of money? Condition, rarity, provenance, and fierce competition all played a role. The colour palette, with a generous helping of bright red paint was in its favour, as was its sexy, rather unsubtle subject matter. The picture is easy on the eye, instantly recognisable, and has terrific wall-power. And that's enough to make it a trophy acquisition over which several bidders were willing to scrap.
It is good. But it's no Matisse.
About half a dozen bidders competed for the Modigliani at the sale, which also included 33 other works, such as Paul Gauguin's sculpture Therese, which sold for $30,965,000 (£20,502,440).
Roy Lichtenstein's Nurse, fetched $95,365,000 (£63,123,067), a new world auction record for the artist and was the second-biggest seller of the night.
The sale took an auction total of $494.4m (£327.3m) but it was not all good news - nearly 30% of the works up for grabs went unsold, including Lucian Freud's Naked Portrait on a Red Sofa, which was estimated at as much as $30m (£19.85m) but failed to sell.
Jussi Pylkkanen, Christie's global president said the sale of Nu couche was "well-deserved recognition for the artist to have realised a price $100m higher than any other (Modigliani) work previously offered at auction".
Referencing the sale's unsold lots, Pylkkanen said that was the risk of "pushing the envelope" and pointed out that some works were either not fresh to the market, or were perhaps aggressively priced.
While Picasso and Modigliani are the top two sales at auction, the most expensive work of art ever sold was a Paul Gauguin work which fetched $300m earlier this year. Nafea Faa Ipoipo, or When Will You Marry? was painted in 1892 and was sold privately.
The top 10 most expensive works of art sold at auction:


President Donald Trump has said he wants the United States to expand its nuclear arsenal, in his first comments on the issue since taking office.

Mr Trump said it would be "wonderful" if no nation had nuclear arms, but otherwise the US must be "top of the pack".
He told Reuter that the US had "fallen behind on nuclear weapon capacity".
Critics say the US and Russia already have more weapons than necessary to deter a nuclear attack.
The US has 6,800 nuclear weapons and Russia has 7,000, according to the US nonpartisan Arms Control Association.
Speaking to Reuters in a wide-ranging interview, Mr Trump said: "I am the first one that would like to see everybody - nobody have nukes, but we're never going to fall behind any country even if it's a friendly country, we're never going to fall behind on nuclear power."
"It would be wonderful, a dream would be that no country would have nukes, but if countries are going to have nukes, we're going to be at the top of the pack."
His latest comments on nuclear weapons echo a tweet he sent a few weeks after his election win, in which he pledged to increase the country's capability.
A new strategic arms limitation treaty between the US and Russia, known as New Start, requires that by 5 February of next year, both countries must limit their arsenals of strategic nuclear weapons to equal levels for 10 years.
The independent Arms Control Association non-profit group criticised Mr Trump's remarks.
"Mr Trump's comments suggest, once again, that he is ill-informed about nuclear weapons and has a poor understanding of the unique dangers of nuclear weapons," the group said in a statement.
"The history of the Cold War shows us that no one comes out on 'top of the pack' of an arms race and nuclear brinksmanship."
Mr Trump also told Reuters:
During Mr Trump's campaign he referred to nuclear proliferation as the "single biggest problem" facing the world, but he also said he could not rule out using nuclear weapons against Europe.
His Democratic opponent, Hillary Clinton, repeatedly cast Mr Trump during the campaign as too erratic and lacking in the diplomatic skills required to avoid a nuclear war.
She mocked him by saying "a man who can be provoked by a tweet should not have his fingers anywhere near the nuclear codes".


A man has been arrested on suspicion of murder after a prisoner was found dead in a London jail.

Officers were called to Wandsworth Prison in south London at 07:35 BST on Monday to reports a male prisoner was dead in a cell, Scotland Yard said.
The man, who has not been formally identified but is believed to be in his 60s, was pronounced dead at hospital at 08:52 BST.
A man in his 40s, also a prisoner, has been arrested on suspicion of murder.
A post-mortem examination is to take place in due course, a Yard spokesman said.
Wandsworth, a category B prison, is the largest in the UK and one of the biggest in western Europe, and can hold more than 1,800 prisoners.


Police are attempting to trace four people who fled from a car after it mounted the pavement and hit a woman in the Hillington area of Glasgow.

The hit-and-run happened as the 41-year-old woman was walking with her adult son in Mossland Road, near Atholl Avenue, at about 17:35 on Tuesday.
A burgundy Vauxhall Astra went out of control, mounted the pavement and hit a road sign before hitting the woman.
She is in a stable condition in hospital. Her son was not injured.
Police said the woman is being treated for her injuries at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital.
Insp Lorraine Lorimer said: "At this time, officers are checking CCTV in the area to identify those responsible and would appeal for anyone who either witnessed the crash or who has any information that will assist officers with their enquiries to get in touch."


A plaque unveiled by the Queen at a County Londonderry train stop will be reinstated in October, Translink have confirmed.

The plaque was taken down just 24 hours after it had been unveiled at Bellarena station during a royal visit in June.
The Department of Infrastructure said it was taken down due to "vandalism fears".
Translink said the plaque had been taken down but would be mounted in a more suitable location.
A Translink spokesperson confirmed the plaque would reinstated "in early October, following internal discussions to expedite the process".


Wales' Bradley Dredge will take a one shot lead into the final round of the Made in Denmark event.

The Welshman has an excellent record at Himmerland, finishing second in 2014 and sixth last season.
His one over par round of 72 left him 12 under, a shot clear of Thomas Pieters, David Lipsky and Adrian Otaegui.
"I've been up there a couple of times this year, you know I want to win, that's what I play golf for," he said.
He continued:  "It was not my best day today.
"I really struggled with the driver which has been a big strength of mine in the last two days so it was a tough day and I just had to try and make the most of it to stay in there and hopefully I'll play better tomorrow.
"I always believe that if you want to win a tournament you've got to go out there and win it, so for me I try and play aggressively off the tee and into the pins."
Dredge got into trouble on the 12th when he made a double-bogey after twice finding the heavy rough down the left and taking a drop, and that brought him back towards the chasing group.
Dredge, whose last win came at the 2006 European Masters, began the day three clear.
Though he lost his tour card in 2012, Dredge is experiencing a career renaissance having earned 687,099 euros (£586,713) in 2016 and victory in Denmark would push him further into Race to Dubai contention.
Belgium's Pieters, a wildcard contender for the European Ryder Cup team, could clinch his spot in Darren Clarke's side should he topple Dredge tomorrow.
The captain's picks are made on Monday.
Find out how to get into golf with our special guide.
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A camp housing 1,500 migrants in northern France has been destroyed in a fire that officials said began during a fight between Afghans and Kurds.

At least 10 people were injured when the fire tore through closely-packed huts at the Grande-Synthe camp, near the port of Dunkirk.
Last month officials said the camp would be dismantled because of unrest.
The French north coast has been a magnet for migrants trying to reach Britain.
"There is nothing left but a heap of ashes," said Michel Lalande, prefect of France's Nord region.
"It will be impossible to put the huts back where they were before," he added.
The population of the Grande-Synthe camp has grown since last October's destruction of the "Jungle" camp near Calais, about 40 km (25 miles) away.
The arrival of more Afghans increased tensions with Kurds living in the camp, AFP news agency reports, citing witnesses and officials.
The migrants have been evacuated and will be sent to emergency accommodation, with two gymnasiums nearby already made available, Mr Lalande said.
There have been several violent incidents at the Grande-Synthe camp, which was built by the charity MSF (Doctors Without Borders) and opened in March 2016.
Six people were left injured with knife wounds after the fight that started the blaze.
Police intervened last month after five men were injured in a fight, and another man was stabbed in November, AFP reported.


A mother who went on the run with her three-year-old son for more than two weeks has said she will never give up on trying to keep her "beautiful baby".

Rebecca Minnock, 35, went missing from her home in Highbridge, Somerset, with son Ethan for 17 days after a court ruled he should live with his father.
Writing on Facebook, Ms Minnock said she had endured "two years of hell."
She handed herself in to police in Oxford on Friday following pleas from police, family members and the courts.
The pair vanished on 27 May - the day Ms Minnock was due to attend a family court hearing in Bristol and hand her son over to ex-partner Roger Williams, 39.
Mr Williams, of Burnham-on-Sea, confirmed on Saturday that he had been reunited with Ethan, and said: "Ethan is safely back in my care now."
Avon and Somerset Police have made no arrests since Miss Minnock came forward.
In Ms Minnock's social media message, she thanked supporters who had signed a petition urging social services to re-examine the custody case.
"That heart-breaking moment when you see that the little seed your baby planted weeks and weeks ago has finally started to grow, and he's not here to see it," she wrote.
"To say I'm devastated is an understatement, I have today read all the support from all of you and am speechless.
"I am preying (sic) that this case gets re looked at properly and the judge can see that my son belongs with his mama who absolutely loves him to bits.
"Think you all know how much I adore Ethan. Two years of hell, but would do it over and over if it meant he was safe with me. Xx"
In another post on a separate page, Ms Minnock wrote: "To all the mums and dads fighting for their children: please keep going and never give up.
"I will never give up on keeping my beautiful baby safe."
Judge Stephen Wildblood QC, the judge dealing with the case, confirmed a family court hearing would take place at 10:00 BST on Monday at Bristol Crown Court.
Ms Minnock's mother, Louise Minnock, of Highbridge, and her partner, Andrew Butt, of Cheltenham, were sent to prison on Friday in relation to the pair's disappearance.


West Indies captain Darren Sammy says his World Twenty20-winning side were motivated by the "disrespect" of commentators and administrators.

Sammy's team beat England by four wickets after Carlos Brathwaite hit four consecutive sixes in the final over, to become the first two-time winners of the tournament.
"Nobody gave us a chance," said Sammy.
"We had a lot of issues, we felt disrespected by our board. All these things brought this team together."
West Indies' build-up to the tournament was overshadowed by a pay dispute with their board, which was almost forced to send a second-string squad to India.
In addition they were riled by a pre-tournament Cricinfo column written by broadcaster Mark Nicholas, in which he described the Windies as "short of brains".
"People were wondering whether we would play this tournament," Sammy said. "Mark Nicholas described our team as a team with no brains.
"I'm yet to hear from our own cricket board [during the tournament]. That is very disappointing.
"I really want to thank these 15 men, the ability to just put all those adversities aside and to come out and play this type of cricket in front of such passionate fans, it's just tremendous."
With the next men's World Twenty20 not until 2020, Sammy cast doubt on the long-term future of this West Indies side.
"For today, I will celebrate with these players and staff," he said.
"I don't know when I'll play with them again because we don't get selected for one-day cricket and we don't know when we'll play another T20."
Sammy was supported on Twitter by high-profile former cricketers including Sachin Tendulkar and Michael Vaughan.
"WI players emerged true champions overcoming challenges on and off the field," India batting legend Tendulkar wrote. "West Indian Board should support them and address their concerns."
"Respect Darren Sammy," ex-England skipper Vaughan tweeted. "Great words tonight. Passionate with a huge amount of meaning. Let's hope your West Indies board take note."
Meanwhile, West Indies batsman Marlon Samuels was fined 30% of his match fee for using abusive and offensive language directed at England all-rounder Ben Stokes.
The Jamaican also used his interview at the man-of-the-match award presentation to continue his long-running feud with former Australia spinner Shane Warne.
"I woke up this morning with one thing on my mind," he said. "Shane Warne has been talking continuously and all I want to say is 'this is for Shane Warne'. I answer with the bat, not the mic."
Samuels and Warne angrily confronted each other during a Big Bash League match in Melbourne in 2013, an incident for which Warne was fined and suspended.


Spies and others who leak classified information could face tougher sentences under a proposed overhaul of the four Official Secrets Acts.

The Law Commission's proposals come after it was asked by the Cabinet Office to examine how effective the acts are in the 21st century.
Proposals include replacing three of the acts, from 1911, 1920 and 1939, with a single Espionage Act.
It is the first time in 100 years the acts have been fully reviewed.
The acts aim to protect government information from unauthorised disclosure of classified information, which is protected because it could harm national security or damage international relations.
The Official Secrets Act 1911 is still the main source of legal protection in the UK against espionage, more than a century after it was first drawn up.
The review found it should now be expanded to include offences committed by people other than British subjects.
The Law Commission - an independent body set up to reform the law - also proposed an increase in maximum sentences.
Currently, most offenders prosecuted under the Official Secrets Act 1989 receive a maximum of two years' imprisonment.
The consultation points out that it is the same penalty for information disclosed which damages national security as for a data breach by a National Lottery worker.
It also argues that in the "digital age", the "ability to cause damage to the national interest" and the risk of doing so has increased.
Law Commissioner, Prof David Ormerod QC, said: ""We have made a number of provisional conclusions as to how the legislation could be improved that we believe will enhance the protection that is currently afforded to official information."
Speaking to the Daily Telegraph, Prof Ormerod said the review was a "once in a century opportunity".
The review is currently at consultation stage- with members of the public invited to respond until 3 April.