POLICE have revealed that thousands of extra bogus calls in the past year have put added strain on its call-handling services.

Thames Valley Police has been left struggling to answer 1,338,835 emergency 999 and 101 calls in one year - with just 20 per cent thought to be 'actual crimes'.

Here are some of those time-wasting calls to Thames Valley Police;

  • Caller's wife left him yesterday for her boyfriend – He needed to leave college early to pick up his kids and wanted police to write a letter explaining why he needed to leave early.
  • Male caller lost his car keys in a car park and wanted police to assist in the search.
  • Lady is waiting for her National Express coach and it is 20 minutes late. Can police tell her why?
  • A coach driver (not the one who is 20 mins late) rang as roads crew were laying tarmac and had set a diversion. He said he payed his road tax and felt that the diversions should not apply to him.
  • A diner rang 999 with concerns about the quality of food which was being served to him.
  • A cat kept coming into a Sainsbury's store and appearead lost Caller saw a rather forlorn looking lady in the street and decided to give her £10 but had a change of heart and wanted the money back.
  • Call from an adult male who lives in London saying that he fell asleep on the last train and ended up in Slough. Wanted police to take him home.
  • There was a cat meandering in the vicinity of the Winnersh Triangle. It was a friendly cat who approaches people but it might be lost.
  • Caller wanted police to cook his tea for him he was drunk and not a good cook at the best of times so fearful he would burn it.
  • Caller reported a 'confused' looking horse in a field by the side of the road, nothing to indicate horse was ill or in pain but it had a confused expression on its face.
  • Lady called in to complain that her housing association sent her two letters asking her if she would consider relocation to a smaller property, She had a three-bedroom house and lives alone. She did not want to move and did not appreciate being asked.
  • Call purchased a curry from a local restaurant for home delivery. He opened it and it spilt onto him causing a burn to his arm. He called the restaurant and all they were doing was offering him a replacement which he did not think was good enough.
  • Caller wanted police to fix the lifts in her block of flats because she did not want to wait until the next day for the lift engineers to attend.
  • Caller forgot where in the car-park they parked their car.
  • Caller was being kept awake by the noise from a thunder storm and wished to complain about it Caller had a headache and wasn’t happy with the painter and decorator because it had been caused by the paint fumes.
  • Next door's cat came into callers house. It didn't want to leave. Could police officers come and put the cat out?
  • Caller wished to complain about the content provided by the BBC. Specifically continual re-runs of 'Homes under the Hammer'.
  • Caller unhappy her pizza hadn't been delivered on time and was 10 minutes late Caller got on the wrong train and now has a 90 minute wait for the right train. Wanted police to give him a lift to Aldershot.
  • Caller stated that he had travelled a long way to view a house in Abingdon and that on his way 20 mins before the appointment they called to cancel and he felt this was really unfair.
  • Lady rang 999 because she was unable to book a doctor's appointment today.
  • Caller rang 999 to state 'my cat has got fleas'and could not afford to pay for a vet.
  • Caller rang 999 to complain there was too much sweetcorn on his pizza.
  • Male unhappy with his takeaway, the chicken dish was rather dry. Caller was unable to resolve this with the restaurant and wanted police to intervene.
  • Male rang 999. Whilst waiting in his car he was awarded a parking ticket by a traffic warden. He rang 999 because he could not afford to pay the parking fine.
  • A cat was sat meowing on a street corner. Caller wanted police to knock on nearby doors to ensure its owner had not come to any mischief.
  • Male rang 999 on a Sunday afternoon. He did not like the sounds of the bagpipes being played by a busker.
  • Caller's shower was playing up, making a beeping noise, unsure whether to refer issue to an electrician or a plumber and seeking advice from police.