Latest news with #NewburyBusinessImprovementDistrict
BBC News
09-04-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Crowds cheer as repaired Paddington Bear unveiled
The unveiling of a repaired Paddington Bear statue has been met with applause and Odiham engineers Daniel Heath, from Thornton, near Bradford in West Yorkshire, and William Lawrence, from Enderby, Leicestershire, ripped Paddington from his bench in Newbury, Berkshire, in the early hours of 2 was recovered and repainted, and unveiled by Ian Batho and Ashley Morris from Newbury Business Improvement District (BID) on statue was unveiled in front of an applauding crowd, including pupils from John Rankin School, with BBC Radio Berkshire's Phil Mercer leading the countdown. The statue was originally unveiled in the hometown of Paddington creator Michael Bond in October was one of dozens put up across the UK as part of the Paddington Visits trail to celebrate the film, Paddington in and Lawrence, both 22 and based at RAF Odiham in Hampshire, admitted criminal damage and were ordered to carry out unpaid work as well as pay £2,725 to cover the cost of repairs. You can follow BBC Berkshire on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Repaired Paddington statue unveiled
A Paddington statue that was ripped from a bench by two RAF Odiham engineers has been repaired and unveiled. Daniel Heath, from Thornton, near Bradford in West Yorkshire, and William Lawrence, from Enderby, Leicestershire, removed part of the statue from its bench in Newbury, Berkshire, in the early hours of 2 March. It was recovered and repainted, and unveiled by Ian Batho and Ashley Morris from Newbury Business Improvement District (BID) at 11:30 BST. Chief executive officer Trish Willets said she was "so excited" about the return of the statue. "That fateful Sunday morning at half seven when we realised something awful had happened, we were beyond upset," she said. She said Newbury "came together in a moment of grief". "We had no idea that he was so, so loved by Newbury," she continued. "It's just been amazing and we are delighted with everyone's comments." She said the installation team worked behind the scenes "first thing in the morning, popping him back on his bench, making him all secure, polishing his little sandwich and his nose to get him all ready". As part of the unveiling, children were encouraged to write a letter welcoming Paddington back to Newbury. They can be delivered to a special postbox next to his bench until 14:00 on Wednesday. The statue was originally unveiled in the hometown of Paddington creator Michael Bond in October 2024. It was one of dozens put up across the UK as part of the Paddington Visits trail to celebrate the film, Paddington in Peru. Heath and Lawrence, both 22 and based at RAF Odiham in Hampshire, admitted criminal damage and were ordered to carry out unpaid work as well as pay £2,725 to cover the cost of repairs. You can follow BBC Berkshire on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram. Paddington vandals 'antithesis' of bear, says judge CCTV shows men vandalising Paddington Bear statue Paddington statue to return 'sooner rather than later' Paddington statue unveiled in creator's hometown Newbury BID
BBC News
09-04-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Repaired Paddington Bear statue to be unveiled in Newbury
A Paddington statue that was ripped from a bench by two RAF Odiham engineers has been repaired and is set to be unveiled on Heath, from Thornton, near Bradford in West Yorkshire, and William Lawrence, from Enderby, Leicestershire, removed part of the statue from its bench in Newbury, Berkshire, in the early hours of 2 was recovered and repainted, and will be unveiled by Ian Batho and Ashley Morris from Newbury Business Improvement District (BID) at 11:30 executive officer Trish Willets said she was "so excited" about the return of the statue. "That fateful Sunday morning at half seven when we realised something awful had happened, we were beyond upset," she said Newbury "came together in a moment of grief"."We had no idea that he was so, so loved by Newbury," she said."It's just been amazing and we are delighted with everyone's comments." She said the unveiling would begin at 11:30 on Wednesday."The installation team will be working behind the scenes first thing in the morning, popping him back on his bench, making him all secure, polishing his little sandwich and his nose to get him all ready," she said."We're so excited."As part of the unveiling, children are being encouraged to write a letter welcoming Paddington back to can be delivered to a special postbox next to his bench between 10:00 and 14:00 on Wednesday. The statue was originally unveiled in the hometown of Paddington creator Michael Bond in October was one of dozens put up across the UK as part of the Paddington Visits trail to celebrate the film, Paddington in and Lawrence both 22 and based at RAF Odiham in Hampshire, admitted criminal damage and were ordered to carry out unpaid work as well as pay £2,725 to cover the cost of repairs. You can follow BBC Berkshire on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
BBC News
07-04-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Vandalised Paddington bear statue to return to Newbury
A Paddington statue that was ripped from a bench by two RAF engineers is to be homage to the famous bear has been repaired and repainted and will be unveiled during a ceremony in Newbury, Berkshire, on of the statue was removed and taken in the early hours of 2 March by Daniel Heath and William pair, both 22 and based at RAF Odiham in Hampshire, admitted criminal damage and were ordered to carry out unpaid work as well as pay £2,725 to cover the cost of repairs. The statue was originally unveiled in the hometown of Paddington creator Michael Bond in October was one of dozens put up across the UK as part of the Paddington Visits trail to celebrate the film, Paddington in repaired bear will be unveiled by Ian Batho and Ashley Morris from Newbury Business Improvement District (BID).Ben Beardmore-Gray, marketing manager at Newbury BID, said: "We have received so many lovely messages from parents who wanted to share how much their children have been missing Paddington..."...we are delighted to announce that Paddington is finally ready for his much-anticipated return to Newbury."The reinstallation offers a unique opportunity for us to provide a special moment that parents can share with their children, so we'd like to invite any families along on the day to join us welcoming Paddington home." As part of the unveiling, children are being encouraged to write a letter welcoming Paddington back to can be delivered to a special postbox next to his bench between 10:00 and 14:00 BST on Wednesday. The unveiling ceremony will begin on Northbrook Street at 11:30. You can follow BBC Berkshire on Facebook, X, or Instagram.
Express Tribune
26-03-2025
- Express Tribune
Paddington Bear statue: Two RAF engineers convicted for damaging statue
Listen to article Two RAF engineers have been sentenced for criminal damage after vandalising a Paddington Bear statue in Newbury, Berkshire, earlier this month. Daniel Heath and William Lawrence, both 22 and based at RAF Odiham, admitted to damaging the statue in the early hours of March 2 while intoxicated. District Judge Sam Goozee, sentencing the pair at Reading Magistrates' Court, described their actions as the 'antithesis' of everything Paddington stands for. The statue, located on Northbrook Street, was damaged when the two men attempted to lift it from its bench. The bear's seam broke off, and the men were seen walking away with the broken piece, which was later recovered from Lawrence's car. The statue, unveiled in Newbury in October 2024, was part of the Paddington Visits Trail and holds particular significance as the home of Paddington's creator, Michael Bond. The two men were each ordered to complete a 12-month community order, pay £2,725 to cover the statue's repair costs, and were criticised for failing to respect the values of kindness and tolerance that Paddington represents. The damaged statue had to be covered with a bin bag to prevent upsetting children, according to a statement by Trish Willetts, CEO of Newbury Business Improvement District. The exact date for the statue's return has not yet been confirmed.
