What really happened in Reading in August 2026
Looking for the best Reading news and stories from August 2026? Here are the biggest investigations, interviews and features published by The Reading Reporter during the month.
Sun, sea and the sound of emergency alerts warning us not to have a barbeque – what a perfect summer holiday.
The Reading Reporter won't forget the flight home in a hurry, when the plane filled with unexplained, unending beeping going off all over the cabin.
People on that flight were variously relieved, baffled and a bit miffed – and perhaps all three at once – to learn that the noise was caused by the Government's mobile phone alert about wildfires.
But I did some digging and discovered two little-read reports that revealed that there was good reason to take that alert seriously – because “a growing and complex” wildfire risk in Berkshire means that Reading is facing a threat to life, property and the environment.
These reports also raised questions over whether Berkshire’s fire service is fully equipped to face this threat, with climate change meaning wildfires look set to become a problem that will return again in future https://thereadingreporter.substack.com/p/reading-is-facing-a-wildfire-threat
For those who stayed home over the summer – or if you just fancy learning a bit more about our home town, The Reading Reporter also published the second part of my complete guides to the Station Hill artworks.
This time Rivers, Ruins & Regency was the focus – and I explained exactly who and what is really in the artwork, and why they are important to Reading.
Ever heard of Lettice Curtis? Or about the mummified hand that "healed" medieval pilgrims?
Want to know why a herd of elephants once destroyed a local pub?
Read on to find out the full story – and how these artworks have captured Reading's soul - https://thereadingreporter.substack.com/p/inside-readings-other-station-hill
One person was missing from the artwork though. Or rather, I thought there was until realising that I'd somehow overlooked one extraordinary woman.
Edith Morley was the first ever female professor at a British university.
But the Morley oversight got me thinking.
Why does Reading not have an individual memorial to her in the town centre?
That extraordinary, historic achievement was in 1908, and the university does its bit to honour her – but the town doesn't.
This is a story about how Reading so often hides its history, and what we might do to let it shine brighter. https://thereadingreporter.substack.com/p/one-extraordinary-woman-and-one-glaring
There's no hiding Reading Gaol. Despite the high brick walls and shuttered gates, it remains a glaring, mothballed site in the town centre.
The Reading Reporter's investigation into the Gaol's proposed redevelopment continued – and I revealed the unusual network of companies now based at the Gaol, which has been renamed The ReCentre.
It is a complex network of companies, operating across an unusual range of often apparently unrelated sectors, that offers some clues into the business activities taking place there.
The Gaol's owner, Channing Bi, has resigned as director from nearly all of these companies.
The Reading Reporter continues to lead the way on investigating what is happening at the Gaol, and what its future might be - https://thereadingreporter.substack.com/p/the-unusual-network-of-companies
If you enjoyed these stories, and you want to know what’s really happening in Reading, you'll find many more like them on Substack.
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Find out what happened in September – as it happens!
See you there,
Chris (The Reading Reporter)