OPPONENTS have criticised Oxfordshire County Council for approving plans for a fifth park-and-ride near Kidlington. The proposed 1,000- space car park between Kidlington and north Oxford will now be the subject of a public inquiry, possibly in July. The
A BUSINESSMAN has won his battle to keep a Witney nightclub open. Police claimed The Palace nightclub in the town's Market Square was a threat to public order and its owner Reg Neale was an unfit person to hold a licence. Mr Neale lodged an appeal with
BRAVE Thomas Franklin is back at school and making a great recovery after surgery following a chip pan accident. Seven-year-old Thomas had to have skin grafts on his left cheek and right arm after boiling fat spilled over his face and head. He suffered
BOBBY Chris Sharp laid out £3,700 for his shiny silver Volvo - then discovered it had been 'clocked' by a dodgy dealer. The crook had cut the mileage of the F-reg Volvo 760 by a staggering 200,000 miles, or EIGHT TIMES round the world. Police sergeant
CENTENARIAN Walter Peck has laid down a challenge to other gardeners in his home town - beat me if you can! Mr Peck, who turned 103 two weeks ago, has been gardening most of his life - and has no plans to let his age stop him now. He has decided to enter
Margaret Gray has had her life threatened and been insulted to her face by people who think she is too old to be heading the Oxfordshire Animal Sanctuary. She has seen dogs arrive with their legs broken, skinned kittens and puppies found in plastic bags
DANISH star Jan Staechmann faces a late fitness test as Gresham Oxford Cheetahs take on all star Coventry Bees in a Speedway Star KO Cup clash at the stadium tonight (7.30 pm). The Dane took a battering in the narrow defeat at Wolverhampton on Monday
GUN fears sparked an alert at an Oxford school when a youth was spotted carrying a weapon. Children were kept indoors and the police helicopter launched a manhunt after residents in Blackbird Leys raised the alarm. But the "gun" turned out to be a paintball
MOTORSPORT company Prodrive has been chosen as a shining example of Cool Britannia. The world championship-winning Banbury firm was invited to exhibit to 25 international heads of state at yesterday's preview of powerhouse::uk. Based in a futuristic structure
OWNER Andy Stokes has been re-united with his falcon Cherrug which flew off during a display. The powerful bird, which has a 4ft wingspan, veered off course in high winds, but was found by another bird expert in Enfield, north London, two days later.
YOUNG widow Susannah Stobart wants to help other people to fight their way through grief. Mrs Stobart, 33, lost her husband Andy, a member of Wallingford Rowing Club, to cancer last April when he was 32. Now she is trying to organise a Wallingford branch
A GROUP of Oxford hairdressers are celebrating after winning £60,000 on the National Lottery. But they came within a whisker of missing the windfall. The 12-strong syndicate from Richard's Hair Group, in Little Clarendon Street, will get just over £5,000
THAMES Valley FM has had its knuckles rapped by radio watchdogs after it played a record containing a swear word on a Sunday afternoon show. The BBC station was ticked off by the Broadcast Complaints Commission after DJ John Hutson aired the song, called
OUTSIDERS St Mellion Fairway and Do Rightly carry Oxfordshire's hopes in the Martell Grand National tomorrow. And the two geldings will be breaking new ground for their trainers, Paul Webber and Mark Bradstock, by becoming their first runners in the Aintree
By Oxford Mail racing editor RUSSELL SMITH (Blewbury) Him of Praise looks to have all the credentials required to land the Martell Grand National (3.45) at Aintree tomorrow. The eight-year-old gelding, trained by Oliver Sherwood at Lambourn, jumps well
OXFORD United are down to the bare bones for their Division 1 match at relegation-threatened Port Vale tomorrow. Paul Powell has had a virus all week and young players Tony Wright and Rob Folland, who might otherwise have been set for a place on the bench
