A giant baby penguin, a man wearing 350 puddings and stitching a 16ft tree – 100 heartwarming stories of 2024

Summary

• To mark the end of 2024, we’ve been sharing 100 heartwarming, inspiring and cheerful stories
• We’ve had tales of a man who bought a Santa bigger than his house, as well as Pesto, the ‘absolute unit’ of a Penguin and a 22-year-old mince pie
• Want more good vibes? Kick off the new year on a high with our newsletter The Upbeat

Live Reporting

Edited by Emily McGarvey

1. That’s a wrap on our 100 heartwarming stories of 2024published at 00:50 21 December 202400:50 21 December 2024Emily McGarvey and Lana LamImage source,Tiktok / JamesMarcusPaleyAfter a bumper week of reporting on the most inspiring and joyful moments of the year, we’ve come to the end of our 100 heartwarming stories live page.With just days to go until Christmas, it’s been great to take a step back and appreciate all the moments that have made this year a good one.Some of our favourites were the man who ate his mum’s 22-year-old mince pie to celebrate Christmas, and who can forget Pesto the “absolute unit” of a penguin who turned into a viral superstar.There were smiles aplenty from Dee Harrison’s mix-up of the red hues of a tomato factory with the Northern Lights, to Cinnamon the capybara’s cheeky zoo escape.So whether you’re spending the holidays with mates like these who’ve grabbed a pint every month for the past 64 years, or going on blind dates to meet new buddies, or going a bit overboard with the Yorkshire puddings like this gentleman, who wore 350 of them, make it a good one.Thanks for joining us throughout this week and here’s to a safe, happy and heartwarming holiday season.Image caption,Pesto the penguin rose to international stardomShare
2. Kind strangers save stranded bride’s wedding daypublished at 00:34 21 December 202400:34 21 December 2024Image source,Eyecandy PhotographyWe’ve arrived at our 100th heartwarming story, with a cheerful tale of how a couple’s wedding day was saved by the kindness of strangers after a wheel fell off of the Volkswagen campervan transporting the bride to the venue.Paige Lawson, 28, who was on her way to her Plymouth wedding to Steph Lawson, 37, was left standing at the side of the road in tears.Paige’s luck changed, though, when strangers came to help – florist Catherine Scawn “twigged” what was happening and she and her husband David offered to take Paige and her mum, Cat, to the wedding.Quote MessageIt was amazing – we would have been too late without them – they genuinely saved the day.”Paige Lawson, BrideAfter the wedding, the brides tracked down their heroes to thank them for their kindness.Catherine said: “Hopefully it didn’t spoil her day too much and she can look back at it and laugh, that on the way, the wheel literally fell off.”It connects us all the way back to the beginning of our epic week of recapping the most positive stories of the year, which started with our very own Live Reporter Thomas Mackintosh getting married for £100 with 99 other couples.Share
3. The Grinch gets ‘arrested’ by nursery kidspublished at 00:17 21 December 202400:17 21 December 202400:41Media caption,Watch the Grinch get ‘arrested’ for nursery break-inIt’s our penultimate heartwarming story and it’s not your typical scene in Glasgow – the Grinch, in full Santa splendour, being bundled into the back of a police van.But that’s exactly what happened when a group of kids dressed as pint-sized police officers “arrested” Dr Seuss’s green-faced anti-Christmas character at their nursery recently.Earlier this month, an intruder broke into the Ivy in the Park nursery and stole an iPad. Staff cleaned up the broken glass door but the boarded-up windows got the children a little worried.To allay their fears, staff told the children that the Grinch was responsible and hatched a plan for them to catch him.With the help of the nursery’s caretaker and local police officers, the nursery children – donning their best police uniforms – caught the Grinch and even managed to recover a bag of chocolate.Share
4. Tofu the cat burglar who’s cleaning up Britain’s streetspublished at 00:08 21 December 202400:08 21 December 2024Image source,JANE SWEETImage caption,Tofu enjoys bringing home “tat” to his owner JaneYou might be used to your cat bringing in food scavenged from bins or even live prey, but this pet owner says her cat Tofu is “cleaning up Britain’s streets” by bringing random bits of “tat” through his cat flap.Tofu was taken in by Jane Sweet from Stevenage, Hertfordshire, who found the stray kitten last September.Jane set up a camera so she could watch Tofu and his adoptive sister Sushi – who proudly brings home mice – but found Tofu bringing home crisp packets, cardboard containers and even a roll of unused dog poo bags.”It wasn’t until he brought home a bag of cat treats (that was more than half full) that I thought, actually, maybe he is entering people’s homes,” she told the BBC in April.Jane has apologised on a community Facebook group for Tofu getting into someone’s house and “stealing things” – luckily it put a smile on many faces in the town.Share
5. Drunken mistake creates Yorkshire giant Santa traditionpublished at 23:44 20 December 202423:44 20 December 202401:21Media caption,The giant Santa was a drunken purchase but is now used to raise money for charity.Four years ago, Peter Routledge was shopping online after a few festive drinks, when he realised he’d made a huge error.In a drunken mistake, he’d purchased an inflatable Santa that was actually taller than his two-storey home in the North Yorkshire village of Poppleton.Peter said his wife, Katy, was “not hugely amused” when it arrived. But once they put it up in their driveway, “everyone sort of loved it”.Now, each year, the Routledges reinflate the supersized Saint Nick. “The last few years we’ve been putting him up and raising money for charity,” said Peter.In the spirit of Christmas, has Katy forgiven her husband for making this extra-large error? “Absolutely, he is forgiven,” she said.