Drivers of 4x4 vehicles are to be banned from using parts of Britain's oldest known road -- The Ridgeway. Quadbikes, trail bikes and off-road cars will face a winter ban from vulnerable sections of the ancient trail, which passes through Oxfordshire.
The "sad, sorry saga" and "orgy of incompetence" of the Oxford Cornmarket Street repaving debacle is about to take another dramatic turn. Granite seating soon to be used in Cornmarket Street The time has come to name, blame and shame all those responsible
Have we gone stark raving bonkers? For stealing money from parking meters on three occasions, Albanian Vasile Bondor gets three weeks' holiday, is waited on and addressed as 'Sir' (Oxford Mail, March 16). In my day, a lad stole a watch from the 'big house
Market towns in Oxfordshire could be in danger of losing their character, according to a new survey. The Campaign to Protect Rural England carried out the study last year in 120 market towns and found a "creeping blandness". The pressure group investigated
More than 100 people have been made redundant by one of Thame's biggest employers. The Elliott group which makes portable cabins is closing its manufacturing plant and offices in Rycote Lane, Thame. The company has put a gag on employees talking to newspapers
Sutton are now certain to provide the Division 1 champions in the Didcot & District League for the seventh successive season. Their A and B teams cannot be caught at the top, and the race for the prize is now a battle for club pride. The A team look
Autotype UTV League: Wootton RBL kept up their title challenge as they thrashed Bell Grove 10-2 in Division 2. Kevin Kogel and Richard Chilvers led the way, as the pair bagged four-timers, while Paul Richardson and Paul Empson were also on the mark. David
Professional tournament golf returns to the The Oxfordshire this summer, when the course host a leading event on the European Seniors Tour. The Mobile Cup, whose last two winners have been Bernard Gallacher and Carl Mason, will be held at the club, near
Travis McGowan spent a very fruitful winter Down Under, and is upbeat about the new season. "I had a reasonably successful Aussie season, finishing fifth in the Australian Championships, which is pretty much what I aimed for," he said. McGowan, who has
Di Sutton led a trio of Frilford Heath golfers into the semi-finals of Oxfordshire Ladies' Bronze Championship at Huntercombe. Sutton, who plays off 21, collected the Bronze Medal after producing the best qualifying round of the 51 competitors, representing
We can have little sympathy for Clare Newson, the 19-year-old girl jailed for falsely accusing a man of rape. While one of her neighbours described her actions as a 'stupid mistake', the Oxford Mail sees it more as a wicked fabrication that not only caused
Key workers in Oxfordshire have welcomed a £690m Government scheme to help healthworkers, teachers, police, probation and prison staff get on the property ladder. The scheme, announced on March 23, aims to help more key workers get their own home, particularly
A teenager who falsely accused a man of raping her after having sex with him outside her parents' home has been jailed for six months. Clare Newson, 19, claimed Andrew Grindle had raped her after they had sex against a wall in Horsham Close, Banbury,
Traders have welcomed plans for a new retail guide which aims to attract shoppers to Oxford. City centre management company OX1 hopes to launch the shopping directory in July. Chief executive Bill McCardle said the move was in response to requests by
A Didcot woman was buried in a cemetery on the site of her first home in the town. Auria 'Nori' Rouse, of Park Close, died aged 73. She was buried in Didcot cemetery -- formerly the site of temporary post-war homes where she and her husband first lived
Wallingford mayor Betty Atkins has praised people in the town for supporting their threatened hospital. Mrs Atkins told the annual town meeting: "The support of the people of Wallingford has been superb." She added: "They have attended meeting after meeting
Oxford & District saw their bid to win the Egham Trophy, the English national mixed inter-club championship, foiled 84-79 by Exonia, of Exeter, in the final at Desborough, Northants. Howard Watts, with England international Kathy Hawes operating at
Joe Cook, 20, the leading rider in the Oxford Academy Conference League squad last year, has surprisingly announced his retirement. He is disillusioned after his proposed move to Stoke went wrong, but I wouldn't bet against him turning out in the Academy
Police are urging people to be vigilant after a spate of arson attacks on cars. Since January, vandals in Bicester have set fire to 12 cars -- eight of them in the Glory Farm area last month. In the same period last year there were six incidents. Earlier
Tributes have been paid to classical musician Vilem Tausky CBE, who contributed to a popular music festival. Mr Tausky, who was blind and deaf, died last week aged 96, in a London nursing home. He and his wife Margaret had lived in Rose Cottage in Chinnor
Banbury Utd 3, Oxford City 1: Banbury United will meet Oxford United in the Oxfordshire Senior Cup final after they beat Oxford City last night at Thame's Windmill Stadium. An early free kick was driven over by Banbury's Chris Jackson before City's Neil
Morrells of Oxford Sunday League: Hot-shot Michaes Herbert bagged a brace as Division 2 leaders Nelson steamrollered Division 1 outfit Northway 6-0 in the quarter-final of the League Cup. Keiron Powell also netted a double for Nelson, with Anaclet Odhiambo
Sculptures featuring prosthetic limbs made and used by landmine victims in Cambodia will be at the centre of a special exhibition in this year's Oxfordshire Artweeks. Organisers have promised this year's 23rd annual event will be the biggest and best
Leading businesses, including motor racing team Williams F1, say they will be forced to move if a major housing development in an Oxfordshire village goes ahead. They have joined forces to fight plans to create hundreds of new homes and two new roads
A third power station is planned for Didcot -- burning waste cooking oil from fish and chip shops and food factories as fuel. But proposals for a 15 megawatt "bio-fuel" power plant, which would be dwarfed by its massive coal and gas-fired Didcot A and
Parents throw about 100 children out on to the streets of Oxfordshire every year, according a report by the Children's Society. The research shows that one in five are physically or sexually abused after being thrown out of their homes. The Children's
Oxfordshire's Chief Constable fears that cuts in basic police training could leave Thames Valley Police having to pick up the bill to get officers up to scratch. Peter Neyroud criticised proposals to reduce the time spent by rookie officers at training
A pensioner attacked with a plank of wood as he worked on his allotment has told how he feared for his life. Stephen Perkins, 70, was beaten over the head with a 4ft piece of wood by a man who had crept up behind him as he was sawing wood. Mr Perkins,
Church-goers in Oxford have pre-booked hundreds of cinema tickets to watch the controversial blockbuster The Passion of The Christ. The movie, which opens in the city on March 26 has been criticised for its violent depiction of the last 12 hours of Jesus's
The Lord of the Rings star Andy Serkis met film fans in Oxford to sign copies of his new book. Molly Ramsay, eight, and Miriam Jenkins, nine, with their Gollum mask The 39-year-old actor, who played Gollum in the film trilogy, was at Waterstone's in Cornmarket
Andy Scott headed for Leyton Orient today - hoping that the "deathly silence" at Oxford United does not cost the club another promotion. The 31-year-old striker had his contract cancelled by the U's last night, and signed for the east London club until
Growth within Oxford is long overdue (Oxford Mail, March 22). I think most county residents would feel some sort of embarrassment towards the city. For too long, it has relied on its architecture for tourism, but at the same time, it has appalling shops
I was upset to learn about the troubles Aron Whitehouse, of Ferry Road, New Marston, Oxford, is experiencing (Oxford Mail, March 13). It is not fair that Aron's devoted parents should have to push him to the top of the road to meet his transport because
