Why has the dipstick from Renault megane rxe 1598cc broken how do you go about getting it out of the oil?

I just had the same problem in my Megane, after a lot of head scratching poking and proding and pushing it further down the channel. I decided to use a skewer i.e. a cheap one from tesco, that had a spiral effect on the metal, heated this up on the gas stove, ran outside to the car and gently pushed on to the plastic top i could see. left it to cool down for a minute or two and gently pulled it out. Jobs a good'en now i have to get a replacement, preferably a metal one. Phew.