Berkshire: Remember these? Some of our unusual most-read stories of the year

The Bruce Willis of crane drivers, a one-legged owl rescue and a urinal on a bridge.

As 2023 draws to a close, we look back at some of the unusual and heart-warming stories that made the news in Berkshire.

Here are some of the highlights:

A cat was reunited with his owner almost six years after he went missing.

Kate Makin was living on a boat on the Thames, between Henley and Shiplake, when her cat Oscar went missing in the summer of 2017.

The 40-year-old landlady said she searched for months before giving up hope.

But in February she received a phone call from a vet who told her Oscar, who was chipped, had been found near Sonning.

Street artist Banksy confirmed he was behind the artwork that appeared on the wall of Reading Prison in March.

The picture showed a prisoner - possibly resembling famous inmate Oscar Wilde - escaping on a rope made of bedsheets tied to a typewriter.

It came as Oscar-winning actress Kate Winslet, who grew up in Reading, joined the calls to turn the old jail into an arts venue, saying it was "incredible" Banksy had chosen it for his painting of an escaped prisoner.

The guerilla artist confirmed the work through a video on his website.

A life-sized bust of the King was made from more than 17 litres (3.7 gallons) of melted chocolate in April ahead of his coronation.

The sculpture, which weighed more than 23kg (51lbs), was created using about 2,875 Celebrations chocolates.

It took four weeks to make and showed Charles in the uniform he wore on 6 May.

Miniature bars of Snickers, Mars, Twix, Milky Way, Galaxy and Bounty were among those used to decorate the model.

A urinal appeared on the side of a bridge in an apparent protest at the water quality of the River Thames.

The installation was added to Sonning Bridge in August by the anonymous artist Impro.

It was the latest in a string of works he has attached to the side of the same bridge, with previous additions including a telephone and a post box.

The artist joked his latest work was causing the council to ask questions about the urinal's usefulness.

A bird rescue expert described spending "night and day" during the summer caring for a one-legged barn owl that is believed to have lost its limb in a rat trap.

Colin Sutherland found the bird in Shinfield and said the injury meant it would never be released back into the wild.

He said barn owls mate for life, meaning its "heartbroken" partner had likely been left to live on its own.

Mr Sutherland said rodent traps were too often injuring unintended targets.

Hero crane driver dubbed 'Bruce Willis of Reading'

A crane operator was dubbed "the Bruce Willis of Reading" during his first interview since rescuing a man from a burning building in November.

Glen Edwards was captured on video saving the man from the blaze at the Station Hill development.

He told ITV's Good Morning Britain (GMB) he hoisted a rescue cage, attached to his crane, up to the roof after seeing the man waving his coat.

The 65-year-old said it had been emotional watching the footage back.

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