Image source, Crown Copyright/PA

You might remember the injured Household Cavalry horses which were filmed by a BBC cameraman bolting through the streets of London back in April.

One of the horses, Vida, returned to military service last month after a peaceful recovery period.

After receiving five months of respite care, Vida joined three of five military horses back on duty after they were hurt during their stampede through the city.

"It’s been our honour to give Vida a place of respite and recovery," said Jeanette Allen, CEO of The Horse Trust. "Vida has come to hold a particular place in our hearts, he’s been a joy to care for.”

Updates on the horses' movements and whereabouts gripped the nation on the day they ran loose. We covered their escapades at full speed in one of our most-read live pages of the year.

A special edition of Nicky Campbell's BBC Radio 5 Live show has just started, where guest host Qasa Alom will hear listeners' heartwarming stories on air.

As a reminder, you can tune in by clicking watch live at the top of the page, or call 08085 909693 to share a story of your own.

A nine-year-old boy with cancer who wished to meet his hero Deadpool. In November, he had his dream come true.

Riley, from Hartlepool, was diagnosed with osteosarcoma in 2023 and had his lower leg amputated.

This year, the family found out the cancer had returned and spread.

An online appeal on Riley's behalf caught the eye of Ryan Reynolds. The Deadpool actor got in touch with the family via video call, and personally invited them for a meet-up.

Reynolds, who owns Wrexham AFC, said he loved meeting Riley at the Wrexham vs Cambridge United match on Saturday and called him “an inspiration".

Riley’s mum, Sarah, said “for Ryan to make his dream come true means everything".

Qasa Alom is hosting a special edition of Nicky Campbell's BBC Radio 5 Live programme this morning, taking calls from listeners with their own cheerful and moving stories to share.

You can join in by clicking the watch live button at the top of the page from 10:00 GMT, or call 08085 909693 to get involved.

We'll bring you highlights from the programme here.

Ray Frewing is 101 years old and still making a difference in his community.

He shops for his neighbours, makes bird tables to raise money for local preschool activities, and supports the local food bank, alongside a host of other activities that help out his neighbourhood.

"It would be very sad to live somewhere if you couldn't know your neighbours," he told the BBC back in August.

"I think it's so important when you're retired to have something to get up to in the morning. Makes for an interesting life."

When asked why he helps others, Frewing said: "I just do it."

"I don't think there's any particular reason other than wanting to help people and be helped myself," he added.

This year, he's become one of the finalists for the BBC Make a Difference award.

Your Voice, Your BBC News
By Emily Doughty

Image source, Hannah Willis

It was a joke which prompted Hannah to organise dog nativities on Instagram.

After getting in touch through Your Voice, Your BBC News, the dog owner from Wales said: “I was talking to another dog Mum on Instagram and we said, 'imagine if there was a dog nativity', and it just started from there.”

Three years later, the event has now grown to include 167 dogs, and will be raising money for charity Broken Biscuits this year to help buy 25 new dog wheelchairs.

And, like true artists, it seems some of the pooches have certain demands. Hannah's dog Alffi is “not one for dressing up” and so, she can only get him into antlers. But others wear home-made costumes, or even borrow them from school nativities.

But will the dog nativity continue next year?

Hannah thinks so, but maybe a different story: “Maybe we will do a pantomime next year!”

Danny Fullbrook
BBC News, Buckinghamshire

Image source, Adrian Paternoster

A Buckinghamshire man with sight loss has been gifting his artwork to strangers "to make other people happy".

Adrian Paternoster was diagnosed with Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP) - a condition that degenerates the light sensitive cells of the retina - after he noticed he kept bumping into things.

At the urging of his wife, Paternoster started making art - and now gives his work to strangers or leaves it near landmarks for people to find. He says that sharing his work has given him "pure happiness".

Paternoster said in February that he also sells or auctions his work to raise money for sight loss charities. Paternoster hopes that his artwork will show others that "you can make the impossible into the possible", and dreams of one day having his work hung in the Tate.

Image source, JESS LORD/BBC

A Lincolnshire weightlifting coach is helping girls in her community "find their strength".

Kristen Ingraham-Morgan, who founded Strong Girl Squad, said her project focused on showing teenage girls that the gym "can be a safe, fun and encouraging place".

"This environment gives them an opportunity to find their strength," she added. More than 350 girls have attended her sessions since she launched the programme in 2022.

Ingraham-Morgan was selected as one of several BBC Unsung Heroes from regions around the country.

"I love these girls so much – I am so proud of them," she said.

"I could not love them any harder if they were mine."

Alex Moss and Andrew Barton
BBC News Yorkshire

Michelin-starred chef Tommy Banks had 2,500 pies stolen from his van earlier this month - but thanks to help from an 11-year-old from Peterborough, at least some of the baked goods have been replaced.

Joshie Harris, a budding chef who is non-verbal and autistic, heard about the theft and used his iPad to talk to his dad about the incident after seeing it on the BBC website. "I see sad man. Pies finished," he wrote.

Last weekend, Joshie travelled 120 miles to York with his father Dan to deliver his pies to Banks. "Joshie doesn't speak but cooking and baking is his way of showing creativity," Dan said.

"He wanted to show especially at Christmas that these kinds of things shouldn't be happening."

Banks said he felt "lucky" to have spent time with Joshie and has offered to support the boy's future career.

Image source, Dan Harris

All week we've been featuring some of the moments sent in by you, like the village hall bringing people together and a family uncovering their heritage through marketplace furniture.

We're on the final stretch of our 100 heartwarming stories of 2024, so there's no better time than now to tell us your uplifting moments from the past 12 months:

Here's how to reach us:

• Email: bbcyourvoice@bbc.co.uk
• WhatsApp: +44 7980 682727
• The Your Voice, Your BBC News contact form
• Upload your pictures and video

Please read our terms & conditions and privacy policy

Ian Aikman
Live reporter

Good morning and welcome to the final day of our 100 heartwarming stories live page.

Over the past week, we've shared 80 uplifting updates from 2024 - from the tale of a long-lost family reunited by a stray postcard, to a profile of a supersized, superstar penguin, plus picks from BBC presenters and other uplifting and quirky moments.

But it's not over yet! We still have at least 20 more stories to share today - and hopefully many more, but we need your help.

We couldn't have come this far without your submissions. So please keep on sending us moments that made you smile, acts of kindness you've witnessed, or people (and animals) who deserve to be featured here.

We'll have details of how to get in touch in the next post.

For now, get ready for what we promise will be another page that puts a smile on your face.

Rachel Flynn
Live reporter

That's a wrap on our penultimate day of heartwarmers.

Today we've heard about a whopper of a penguin, a couple in their eighties who've fostered more than 150 children, and how a dream came true for two best friends after bagging roles in Wicked. , external

There's still time to share your own heartwarming story with our team for a chance to be featured. You can follow these instructions to learn more. We'd love to hear from you!

We'll be back bright and early tomorrow for one last day of non-stop joy. Thanks so much for sticking with us.

There's been plenty of stories we've shared over the past week that could leave you chuckling.

Whether it is the cat that got stuck in a drainpipe, the man who forgot to walk his daughter down the aisle or the woman who confused the lights of a nearby tomato factory for the Northern Lights.

But, if none of our picks have tickled your fancy, you'll be glad to know fake laughs are just as effective.

Earlier this year, BBC's Rachel Candlin spoke to Clive St James, a laughter yoga leader, about the power of fake giggling.

Laughing yoga was started by Dr Madan Kataria, a doctor in Mumbai, India, in 1995, who discovered that our brains are unable to tell the difference between fake or real laughs.

"It supercharges you. It's about having fun while you're exercising. Once you gain the basic skills, you can change someone's life," said Mr St James.

"If you laugh for no reason, you still get your daily dose of those lovely endorphins," he added.

Image source, Clive St James

It took just a few taps on social media for Laura Cooper to make hundreds of new friends.

After moving 30 miles from home to Scunthorpe, the care worker and teaching assistant was missing home when she decided to post online in search of new friends.

Sandra Ferguson was the first to reach out. "I saw Laura's post and thought, this is what I've been looking for," Sandra told BBC's Simon Spark.

By the end of one evening in late October, nearly 100 women had gotten in touch - they met up at a local pub not long after.

"The numbers kept going up and up and up," Laura said. "I was just like 'whooo', this is real - I can't believe it."

Now, the 300-strong Scunthorpe Lovely Ladies group get together regularly. Its members range from the age of 16 to 75.

"It warms me, it just makes me feel like I'm doing something good," she said.

Your Voice, Your BBC News
By George Walker

Rozanna Mohammed was just 12 when she sang Disney's smash-hit Let It Go at the Japanese embassy in Cairo, Egypt, alongside another young girl who sang in Japanese.

The original song from the movie Frozen amplifies a message of self-acceptance and courage. For Rozanna, that moment at the embassy inspired her to set out on her own unique path.

“I was mesmerised by the language and began to delve deeper into the culture, teaching myself Japanese,” she says.

Determined to learn the language, Rozanna eventually became fluent in Japanese. Now 16, she has written two textbooks.

“When I studied from other books, they were dull and boring, so I added colour, diagrams, and small boxes with my concise explanations of the language.”

“I even teach people using my own book”, she says.

Image source, Rozanna Mohammed

Nicky Schiller
News correspondent

Image source, EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock

I got to report on a lot of the award ceremonies this year - we're talking The Academy Awards, Baftas, Grammys and Brits.

What I really loved was the fact that when it came to the Oscars it wasn't an actor that stole the spotlight during the show but Messi. No - not the footballer, but the dog.

Messi was the breakout star from the movie Anatomy of a Fall - he portrays a guide dog that nearly overdoses on pain medication.

It was only a few minutes into host Jimmy Kimmel's monologue when the camera cut to the border collie in a prime seat near the stage wearing a bow tie.

What got everyone talking was he appeared to be clapping. Only later did we get to see a photo that let us in on the secret - a human hand and some fake paws were behind the illusion. But by then Messi had gone viral.

He's used to the fame though: last year he won the Palm Dog in Cannes. I look forward to seeing what 2025 holds for him.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Family handout

Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts aren't the only ones to find love in west London’s Notting Hill.

Earlier this year, the BBC reported on the love that blossomed between Sheyi and her husband, Simon, who met at the annual Notting Hill Carnival.

Sheyi has been to the famous event every year since she was 10 years old and reflected on her “amazing memories”.

"My husband grew up on a farm in Winchester and happened to be in London because he was about to start his first teaching job in Tottenham," said Sheyi. The pair met at the carnival in 2012.

Fast forward to now, and Sheyi and Simon have taken their daughter Isabella to experience the joys of carnival with them.

We caught up with the couple to see how they'll be celebrating Christmas this year. Sheyi told us their son Noah would celebrate his first Christmas. "We are very excited about it. Both sets of grandparents will be with us, so it will be a lovely Christmas for us all!"

Kamilah McInnis
The Upbeat

Hello! I’m one of the lead writers for The Upbeat, the BBC’s weekly newsletter showcasing uplifting stories and remarkable people from around the world.

Our readers often get in touch to let us know about their favourite stories from the newsletter. This week, Anne told us she was delighted with Chris McCausland’s Strictly win - and said his dancing partner Dianne Buswell should be “recognised and highly commended”.

Anne also reflected on the reopening of Paris’s Notre Dame, a story previously featured in the newsletter. “I am 86, but in the early 60s I visited this magnificent cathedral," she said. "Bravo to everyone who had a hand in raising the funds and giving of their time and expertise to the re-building.”

Sign up to our newsletter, The Upbeat, and get uplifting news delivered to you every week.

Jonny Humphries and Phil Cunliffe
BBC News

Image source, BBC/PA

When comedian Chris McCausland lifted the 2024 Glitter Ball trophy on Strictly Come Dancing, it represented more than a reality contest win.

For fans living with partial or full sight loss, his journey from a nervy start to his confident - and winning - performances broke down barriers.

Fellow blind dancer Shaun Hayward, from Manchester, said McCausland's triumph showed disabled people "dreaming big" and pursuing their ambitions "fearlessly" - and proved his inclusion was not merely "tokenism".

There are hopes the message has been received at the highest levels of TV production companies.

Hayward has the hereditary condition retinitis pigmentosa, the same condition as McCausland, and says dancing gives him a sense of "liberty and freedom".

"For me personally it was great to see because I've been banging this drum for years and I really needed someone of Chris's profile to raise the awareness of dancing for people with sight loss," he said.

Image source, Shaun Hayward/BBC

Joe Campbell
BBC South Today

Back in August, we told you about 12-year-old Dexter, who was preparing to set off on a 230-mile (370km) cycling trip from Berkshire to the Paralympics in Paris.

We got back in touch with Dexter, who successfully completed the trip and raised over £13,000 for a group of charities supporting wheelchair users accessing sport and those experiencing poor mental health.

Dexter arrived in Paris in August after three days on the road - just in time for the start of the Paralympics.

“It was a lot harder than I thought, but also I had a lot more fun than I expected, “ Dexter tells us. “I was proud I’d done it and relieved that I could finally rest, because I was quite saddle sore.”

Dexter already has plans for his next challenge, a so-called Snowdonia Triathlon in the May half-term holidays.