Hi Chris,
This is not good. Have you asked TfL what is happening? Perhaps send them a screenshot of your pending transactions. You could also ask your bank whether there is anything they are aware of, just in case it’s at their end. I’ve never seen anything like this occur on my card. Can you disclose who you bank with and whether it’s a debit or credit card?
The 10p authorisation is a separate issue. As you say, it’s made when the card hasn’t been used recently for TfL travel. Usually it is replaced by the correct figure for the whole day. I am aware of an annoying glitch with Curve where the 10p gets treated as a transaction and the full amount is reduced by 10p at the end of the day.
As you say, if it’s happening with people travelling from Reading then it could be a serious drain on funds until it drops off.