Police rescued three men after they jumped naked into the Oxford Canal - for a swim.

At about 12.15am today, officers received a report that a man was in the water near Park End Street, after being pulled by the currrent into the Castle Mill Stream.

When they arrived, officers saw that three men were in the water. They threw out lifebelts and managed to rescue all three men.

Pc Paul Phillips, of Oxford police, said: "The three men had jumped in and got into difficulties.

"They were naked and must have thought it would be funny go swimming, but hadn't realised the dangers and the strength of the water.

"One of the men was swept along and into a weir. He luckily managed to come through the weir with only minor injuries, but there was a strong chance that he could have been killed.

"Fast-flowing water can be powerful enough to knock you over and just 2ft of water can float a car. Please don't put yourselves at risk by attempting to swim through the water.

"The men were arrested and all three received fixed penalty notices. This is a small price to pay when their actions could have cost them their lives."