Weekly round-up: Five stories you may have missed

A man in his 80s who learned to read, an artist who painted the portrait of her cancer surgeon and Waitrose opening its headquarters' gym to the public all feature among the most-popular stories in the south of England this week.

In case you missed them, we have picked five articles from the past seven days across Hampshire, the Isle of Wight, Dorset, Berkshire and Oxfordshire to keep you up to date.

Waitrose has been given permission to open its private sports and leisure club to the general public.

The supermarket chain has been based in Bracknell since 1972 and its club in Willoughby Road can be used by all of its 2,700 staff based in the town.

It said in 2025 that about 620 people were members, down from about 800 five years before that, and that the facility was "significantly under-utilised".

Bracknell Forest Council approved Waitrose's plan on Thursday but said work must be done first to make sure its car park is safe for users.

An 86-year-old man said learning to read has enabled him to read his and his wife's anniversary cards for the first time in 65 years.

Alan Hannay, fromDibden Purlieu in Hampshire, learned to read through the charity Read Easy, which helps adults across the country who struggle with the skill many of us take for granted.

Hannay told BBC Radio Solent: "It's changed my whole life, my confidence, changed my family life and everything around me.

"It's one of the best experiences I've ever had in my life."

A man was arrested after five police vehicles and a parked car near a police station had their tyres damaged.

Hampshire & Isle of Wight police said in total 13 tyres on the vehicles parked on the street on Station Street in Ryde were damaged.

The force said leaving the vehicles temporarily out of action "had a significant impact on our ability to respond to incidents and serve our communities".

A 27-year-old man from Newport was arrested on suspicion of criminal damage. He has since been bailed until 18 January while inquiries continue.

A surgeon who celebrated 40 years of his career says he had been "touched" to have a portrait painted by a former patient.

Oxford-based artist Ruth Swain was 50 when diagnosed with breast cancer in 2012 and was referred to Dr Gerald Gui at the Royal Marsden Hospital in London.

Swain said that despite the "shock" of the diagnosis, he had been "wonderful and explained everything really, really clearly", and a successful surgery had followed.

Now, almost 15 years since being cancer-free, she has donated her portrait of Gui to the hospital, which he described as "magnificent".

A vehicle recovery driver has been sentenced after he failed to secure a Range Rover that later rolled down a hill, dragging him along and crushing a member of the public who tried to help.

Sean Baker, a driver for GRS Recovery Bournemouth, was sentenced to 14 weeks in prison, suspended for one year, at Bournemouth Crown Court.

CCTV showed the two-tonne vehicle rolling down Exeter Crescent during a recovery operation on 22 March 2024, with Baker caught by a rear wheel.

Kai Dransfield was on a break from his job at TGI Fridays when he saw Baker trapped under the runaway car "hanging on for dear life" and tried to help, only to be struck by the 4x4.