Great-aunt Lucy asked Britons to “please look after” Paddington Bear when he arrived on UK shores. Perhaps she was thinking of the risks of him running into two RAF engineers out on a bender in Berkshire.

Fortunately, Paddington’s aunt didn’t have to watch the CCTV footage shown to Reading magistrates court on Tuesday of Daniel Heath and William Lawrence tearing apart a newly installed statue of her nephew – before absconding with the severed half.

The judge seemed to share her love for the famous bear when he said the 22-year-old vandals were “the antithesis of everything Paddington stands for”.

“It was an act of wanton vandalism,” district judge Sam Goozee told the pair. “Paddington Bear is a beloved cultural icon with children and adults alike. He represents kindness, tolerance and promotes integration and acceptance in our society.

“His famous label attached to his duffel coat says, ‘Please look after this bear’ but on the night of 2 March 2025, your actions were the antithesis of everything Paddington stands for.

“Your actions lacked respect and integrity, two values you should uphold as members of the armed forces.”

To prevent upsetting local children, the remaining half of the damaged statue was hastily concealed, said Trish Willetts, the chief executive of Newbury Business Improvement District, which owns the statue.

“We were aware that children would find it upsetting to see the statue completely destroyed,” said Willetts, adding that Michael Bond, the bear’s creator was born in Newbury, which added to the statue’s cultural significance.

Heath and Lawrence were arrested at the RAF Odiham base and admitted the offences when interviewed by Thames Valley police. Part of the Paddington Bear statue was later found hidden in the boot of Lawrence’s car.

The pair were told to pay £2,725 each towards the costs of repairing the statue. They have also been sentenced to a 12-month community order and required to carry out 150 hours of unpaid work.

Insp Alan Hawkett, of the Newbury neighbourhood policing team, said “after a short stay at Newbury police station,” Paddington had been handed back to his owners so he could be restored.

Hawkett did not say whether the traumatised bear had been offered marmalade sandwiches at the police station.

But perhaps Mrs Bird had popped a few extra rounds in his pocket that day – because as Paddington himself is fond of saying: “Things are always happening to me. I’m that sort of bear.”