TILEHURST residents were flocking to The Meadway in 1975, to catch a glimpse of an unusual pet at the home of Diane and William Wade.

Larry the sheep, who had been gifted to them by a local farmer when he was just one hour old, was proving to be a bit of a handful.

His “mum”, Diane, told the Chronicle:” When he was little he used to sit on the sofa beside me like a dog, but when he got bigger he was quite mischievous and started chewing up everything he could find.”

Larry had recently been confined to the garden and Mrs Wade admitted: “He happily chews on the grass, and the occasional flower, but we never have to mow the lawn.”

Over 6,000 people descended on Brock Barracks to attend the annual Reading Hospital fete 45 years ago and many came to catch a glimpse of BBC TV legend, Johnny Morris.

The star of Animal Magic opened the fete and he announced that he would sign autographs on anything such as scraps of paper, programmes and even the bald head of the fetes’ chairman, Ray Courtier.

It was thanks to the fundraising efforts of previous events that a new dayroom for the Nuffield block at the Royal Berkshire Hospital would be opened in August of 1975.

Reading Racers discovered a new young rider, John Davis, had the potential to go far in speedway racing after he produced two top-class performances.

During their match against Ipswich Witches, the Racers were heading for defeat, but a storming ride by Davis saw them edge home 41-37.

Revenge tasted sweet after the next match, when, with Davis’ help, they overturned a previous defeat to Hackney into a convincing 51-27 win.

Twelve young dancers from the Jannine Greville Dancing Acadamies succeeded in winning 16 trophies at the All England Dancing Championships in 1975.

Their attendance at the grand finals was the culmination of six months winning eliminating competitions, heats and semi-finals.

A dozen nurses were honoured at the RBH after training under the Reading Combined Hospitals School of Nursing scheme.

A total of 104 nurses also received certificates and badges for passing their State assessments, and another 40 nurses were presented with Midwifery School certificates.

The Shinfield Carnival came back to Millworth Lane Recreation Ground after a year’s break and the organisers announced they were delighted that over 1,000 visitors had enjoyed the event.

Local arts and crafts were a popular new feature which included a potter’s wheel demonstration, it was hoped that a new wheel, which had been made especially for the carnival, would spark interest in a new pottery group.

Other activities on the day included a Punch and Judy Show, wellie throwing contest and a dog obedience display by members of the Twyford Dog Club.