A CORTEGE carrying the bodies of Marine Adam Brown, of 40 Commando, Royal Marines, and Lance Sergeant Dale McCallum, of 1st Battalion Scots Guards, passes through Headley Way, Headington, yesterday. They were taken to Oxford’s John Radcliffe Hospital
WORK to overhaul the Oxford Canal towpath in Jericho is set to begin this week, marking the latest stage in four years of waterway improvements across the city. The path connecting Isis Lock and Walton Well Road will be resurfaced in a project costing
Sophie Egleton finds practice makes perfect in David Dixon’s new installation. This week sees the opening of Entangled Practice at Art Jericho, an exhibition of striking sculptural design, steeped in scientific research, by installation artist
STEP UP 3D (12A). Musical/drama. Rick Malambri, Adam G Sevani, Sharni Vinson, Alyson Stoner, Keith Stallworth, Joe Slaughter, Cheryl Alessio. Director: Jon Chu. Anything StreetDance 3D can do, Step Up 3D can apparently do better
Two shows open in Oxford this week that will keep your children spellbound – Fame and George’s Marvellous Medicine. Both casts include local youngsters, so we spoke to some of the budding stars. Today the New Theatre becomes New York City’s
RICHARD BELL soothes his fevered brow with a night at Alcopops @ G&Ds. I’ve been ill...really horribly ill, all coughing, spluttering, aching and exhausted all week, suffering terribly and lamenting at length about my terrible ordeal to anyone
This week the Bard’s on the menu for KATHERINE MACALISTER. Fighting is breaking out at the Said Business School in Oxford every night. Violence erupts in the courtyard with frightening regularity. Blood is shed, hearts are broken, a spell
AN ASBO imposed on an “aggressive alcoholic” who attacked paramedics, screamed at a vicar, and was wrestled off stage at Abingdon’s Got Talent, has been criticised for still allowing him to visit pubs. Thames Valley Police secured an order against 55
Sara Allerton’s first novel takes a pivotal wartime battle as its theme, writes ANDREW FFRENCH. TWO former Oxford University students are making waves with a debut novel inspired by the memories of a Second World War maritime veteran. First-time
KNIGHT AND DAY (12A). Action/comedy/romance. Tom Cruise, Cameron Diaz, Peter Sarsgaard, Jordi Molla, Paul Dano, Maggie Grace, Marc Blucas. Director: James Mangold. Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz have starred in some of the most
CATS AND DOGS: THE REVENGE OF KITTY GALORE (U) . Family/comedy. Chris O’Donnell, Jack McBrayer, with the voices of James Marsden, Nick Nolte, Christina Applegate, Bette Midler, Katt Williams, Sean Hayes, Neil Patrick Harris. Director: Brad
A shrunken granny and a giant chicken may not seem like your dream roles, but for Ilona Sell and Fay Goodwin, being part of a Roald Dahl production at the Oxford Playhouse is a dream come true. And to make sure they don’t exhaust themselves, the two
Tim Hughes raises a foaming tankard to the world’s most habit-forming festival - Cropredy. IN a fast-moving world, it’s comforting to find some things never change. As we make our lazy way through August, the crops ripen, the woods and hedgerows
Tim Hughes dons his leathers ready to join the Hell’s Angels for Bulldog Bash, Europe’s biggest rock and bike festival. Close your eyes and think of Shakespeare Country. Cosy thatched cottages, rolling countryside and swans gliding along
STAFF at the Cotswold Wildlife Park are welcoming four new arrivals to add to their collection of lizards. Olive, Emerald, Sage and Moss are all Yemen chameleons and are the first to be bred at the park near Burford. They all measure
A NEW plan to allow 350 houses to built in Wallingford by 2016 is being prepared by the district council. The stop-gap measure, which would replace a previous target of 750 homes by 2026, is set to be unveiled by South Oxfordshire District Council in
SATURDAY. FOOTBALL. NPOWER LEAGUE TWO. Burton Albion v Oxford Utd (3pm) FRIENDLIES. Horsham v Oxford City, Old Woodstock Tn v North Leigh, Banbury Utd v Leighton Tn, Wanrtage Tn v Didcot Tn, Abingdon United v Swindon
AEA Technology 17.25 BMW 3718 Electrocomponents 221.5 Nationwide Accident Repair 82.5 Oxford Biomedica 9.9 Oxford Catalysts 73 Oxford Instruments 349 Reed Elsevier 561.75 RM 130.5 RPS Group 194.6 Courtesy of Redmayne Bentley, Abingdon
A PINT-SIZED music festival is preparing to put itself firmly on the music map. This year will be the fourth Livestock festival to be held in Stratton Audley, near Bicester. But for the first time the three-day festival, which kicks
Police are appealing for help to trace a missing man from Berinsfield. Derek Taphouse, 52, was last seen when he left his home address in Evenlode Drive on Monday, July 26, and has not been in contact with his family since. Mr Taphouse is white
Police are appealing for witnesses following a series of fuel thefts from vehicles in West Oxfordshire over the past two weeks. There have been five incidents in total; three in Burford, one in Bampton and one in Chadlington. PC Rachel Fewtrell
Anyone who has spent the recent warm weather wishing they had a swimming pool in their back garden, may regard Beyond the Pond as their dream property. The detached house in Oddington includes a heated outdoor swimming pool, patio and lawn
A classic country cottage set in secluded gardens and tucked away in a village could make the perfect hideaway. Easter Cottage, in Bletchingdon, which is stone-built and ranges over three floors, has many period features including exposed timbers, quarry
A Grade-II listed 16th century house still has its original brickwork, beams and leaded light windows, including a feature Oriole window. Causeway House, in Cholsey, includes three reception rooms, each with an inglenook fireplace. The main
St Giles Cottage in Hinton Waldrist is a period thatched cottage with Tardis-style qualities, according to agents. Jackie Smith, of John D Wood, said: “This is a beautiful chocolate-box style cottage but its quaint exterior belies a spacious and beautifully
CHILDHOOD sweethearts who met while they were in the Scouts and Guides are set to celebrate 70 years of marriage. Vernon and Elsie Blowfield were just 14 and 12 respectively when they first met. And on Wednesday, the couple, from Burford Road, Witney
A GREAT-GRANDMOTHER who still lives in her own home has received her fifth card from the Queen, as she celebrates her 105th birthday. Elsie King, of St Leonard’s Lane, Wallingford, was nine when the First World War broke out, and has lived in the same
Two men have been arrested on suspicion of wounding and grievous bodily harm without intent following an incident in Oxford. The men, aged 20 and 19, were arrested yesterday after an incident in Magdalen Street, Oxford, where a 21-year-old American
OXFORDSHIRE’s answer to Mozart is dazzling audiences in the unlikely setting of Bicester. Michael Ng, 10, of The Buntings, in Langford Village, has only been playing the piano since he was five, but he has already passed all his music grades. He passed
A “LARGER than life” doctor has said farewell to patients in Abingdon after 35 years working in the town. Dr Frank Debney retired from Malthouse Surgery on Friday. Known for wearing shorts during the summer, and dressing up as Father Christmas every
A NEW business centre in the heart of Didcot is set to give a boost to the town’s economy. Up to 30 people working for 16 small companies could soon be based at the Thames Business Advice Centre, in Market Place, which was officially opened by South
FORMER pupils of Witney’s Wood Green School are getting together again – 20 years after they went their separate ways. On Saturday, September 4, Christina Wilson and fellow past pupils are organising a 1990-style get-together. She inviting everyone
CYCLISTS riding from Land’s End to John O’Groats made a pit stop in Oxford to deliver two cheques totalling £5,500. Father-of-two Graham Frogley, a teacher at Bicester’s Cooper School, his brother Michael and three friends set off from Land’s End, Cornwall
Kennington and Comrades Club are Oxford & District League champions. Kennington wrapped up the Group A title with a 3-3 draw at Didcot Conservative Club, while Comrades beat Gladiators 5-1 to land the Group B crown. Mark Trafford (5,520) and Kevin Godfrey
THEY know what to do if you’ve had your milk stolen, you’ve got a kangaroo in your garden or witnessed a pile-up on the M40. Specially trained operators at Thames Valley Police’s largest police enquiry centre handles hundreds of emergency and non emergency
OXFORDSHIRE’S speed cameras caught more than a quarter of a million drivers speeding over the past five years – netting the Government about £1m a year. Statistics obtained from the Thames Valley Safer Roads Partnership by the Oxford Mail show 255,526
CHANGES have been promised at Banbury’s Horton Hospital after it scored only an ‘acceptable’ rating for two key areas in its latest health audit. The Oxford Road hospital recently had its future secured after a seven-year battle to save the maternity
Radley produced an impressive display in their final Southern League Division 3 match of the season in Portsmouth to win by 12 points. The Oxfordshire team dominated the field events, dropping just one point across all jumps and throws. The result was
White Horse Harrier Paul Jegou scored a resounding victory in Sunday’s Cirencester Park Trail Half Marathon. The 13.4-mile race place in the grounds of Cirencester Park, consisted of two laps off road. Jegou took an early lead, gradually increasing
Oxford City’s Nathan Douglas remains positive about his future, despite bowing out after three jumps in the triple jump final. Douglas, who qualified for the final with a leap of 16.80m, failed to repeat the feat in the final, with a best jump of 16.48
Harry Hill, from Radley, and the Abingdon trio of Jamie Copus, Vassilis Ragoussis and John Carter, were in the boys’ eight and fours as Great Britain’s juniors took part in the 12-nation Coupe de la Jeunesse in Belgium last weekend, writes Mike Rosewell
WIGGY Smith rolled back the years for Henry Candy’s Wantage stables with a game victory at Leicester.The 11-year-old battled on well for Dane O’Neill to beat Sagredo by a nose in a handicap over a mile and two furlongs. It was his first win since 2008
Former Radley ace Hatti Dean insisted the world was her oyster after she smashed her lifetime best, but missed out on a European medal by the narrowest of margins in Barcelona. The ex-St Helen and St Katherine’s School pupil was sent to Spain to gain
Oxford City’s Hannah England admitted she ran out of gas in the final of the 1500m at the European Championships in Barcelona after attempting to go toe-to-toe with the best on the continent. England breathed a huge sigh of relief earlier in the week
Mystery surrounds the apparent closure of a well-known letting agency. Lyttons, in Abingdon Road, Oxford, has sold and let homes in the city for more than 15 years. Nobody from the company was available for comment.
OXFORD’s oldest theatre worker celebrated her 90th birthday in style yesterday, when colleagues threw a surprise party. Peggy Barson, from Radley, has been working at the New Theatre in George Street for a staggering 70 years. She started
CHILDREN will have the chance to step back in time at Oxford Castle over the weekend — and become a knight in shinning armour. The Knight School will take place on Saturday and Sunday between 11am and 4pm both days. Visitors can drop in and take part
HE’S one of Oxford United’s biggest fans and has supported the team through thick and thin. But Joshua Smith admits he was still pinching himself after lining up alongside his heroes for this season’s official team shot. Joshua, who has learning difficulties
A MAN accused of sexually assaulting a woman said he could not have raped her because he suffers from impotence if he is drunk. Mohammed Shahjahan, 27, of Slaymaker Close, Headington, Oxford, denies rape and assault by penetration, while Feizal Ali,
The Government is planning to let people stay in work into their 70s. It is an attempt to end age discrimination and keep the income tax coffers healthy. Some welcome the move and will embrace the opportunity to stay active for longer
AEA Technology 17.25 BMW 3685 Electrocomponents 222.8 Nationwide Accident Repair 82.5 Oxford Biomedica 10 Oxford Catalyst 73 Oxford Instruments 350 Reed Elsevier 563.75 RM 129.5 RPS Group 194.8 Courtesy of Redmayne Bentley, Abingdon
A £4M project to improve one of Oxfordshire’s worst traffic trouble-spots begins tomorrow, but the roadworks will last until Christmas. Motorists are being warned to allow extra time to travel through the M40-A34 interchange at Wendlebury
Members of the public and Royal British Legion will pay their respects when two soldiers who died in Afghanistan are brought back to the UK today. Marine Adam Brown of 40 Commando Royal Marines and Lance Sergeant Dale Alanzo McCallum of 1st Battalion
I just wanted to write a quick note to say thank you for the fantastic day we had at Renault F1 on Sunday after winning the Oxford Mail competition last month (Your Wheels). My husband, son and I thoroughly enjoyed ourselves with excellent entertainment
I am writing on behalf of the Meningitis Trust to say thank you to everyone who took part in, and supported, our London to Paris Cycle Challenge. Our team of 41 cyclists took on the sweltering heat and are on track to raise over £130,000 – our best year
THE demands of opportunists, abusing British benevolence, continues unabated. Meanwhile, international and domestic recipients of our charity are myriad. We band of idiots are suckers, who continually offer succour, but never really ask why. Even
Can the county council personally guarantee to me that by switching off all of Oxfordshire’s speed cameras, my family, friends, colleagues and employees will not be at greater risk of death and serious injury as they travel the county’s roads? There
OXFORDSHIRE County Council boss Keith Mitchell keeps writing letters to the Oxford Mail, blaming the previous Labour government for the council’s financial woes. That government admittedly made many mistakes, but Mr Mitchell seems to forget that the
In the age of e-communications, South Oxfordshire District Council’s rubbish policy looks just that, a rubbish policy – particularly if you need to contact them with a problem. Residents can alert environmental health teams to issues instantaneously
A man has appeared in court charged with robbery after cash was stolen from a city centre bookmakers. Michael Hardisty, 27, of Speedwell Street, Oxford, appeared before magistrates in the city yesterday. He is alleged to have threatened
James Griffin’s glorious picture of poppies in Dorchester (Your Photos, in Tuesday’s Oxford Mail) took me back to the days when our fields were full of flowers. How sad that our landscape is now largely devoid of such colour as a result of farming efficiencies
It is a proper rush-hour headache for anyone who has to use junction nine of the M40. To many of us who flick on the radio in the morning, the tailbacks on the traffic report are all too familiar. But, despite cuts, cuts and more cuts
SO IT finally looks as though Didcot, Appleford and Sutton Courtenay will be spared the unacceptable risks of old technology waste incineration. What I find worrying though, is that many of the the same opponents of the incinerator project seem equally
Tom Fleming will be hoping local knowledge comes into play when he competes in the Glenmuir PGA Professional Championship at The Oxfordshire next week. The Frilford Heath assistant professional qualified for this prestigious tournament, which starts
PRIME Minister and Witney MP David Cameron will write to the family of Alexander Codrington after the aristocrat’s son was found dead in woodland, it emerged last night. The 16-year-old, whose father is baronet Sir Christopher Codrington, is thought
FOREIGN language students are holding night-time drinking sessions in Oxford parks, causing misery for neighbours and hours of clean-up work for council staff. More than 100 under-age drinkers, who come to the city to learn English over the summer months
DEFENDING champion Steve Gibson (Oxford City & County) faces West Witney’s Kevin Alder in the Oxfordshire Bowling Association’s Officers’ Cup semi-final at Oxford City & County on Sunday (10.30am). The winner will face Oxford City & County’s Mike Petersen
The fight is on for Oxfordshire to be recognised by central government as a stand-alone, single, viable economic area rather than part of a larger development region — according to the leader of the county council, Keith Mitchell. A joint
The Last Stand Nathaniel Philbrick (Bodley Head, £20) American history is studded with legends. foremost among them is the battle of the Little Bighorn, in which Custer and his Seventh Cavalry were ambushed by Indian tribes led by Sitting Bull.
THE WOODCUTTER by Reginald Hill (HarperCollins, £17.99)Reginald Hill’s latest novel, a psychological thriller of love, betrayal and revenge, opens thus: “Once upon a time I was living happily ever after.” Wolf Hadda, a character in his own fairy tale
Sir – This year, when we are in the midst of celebrating the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Britain, it is timely to remember the significant contribution of No 1 Civilian Repair Unit, at the long-gone Cowley Airfield. While the conflict raged over
Sir – It was depressing to read that the Liberal Democrats in Oxford want to put Grenoble Road (the 4,000-house urban extension in the Green Belt) back on the agenda (Report, July 22). CPRE Oxfordshire recognises that Oxford has serious housing issues
Oxfordshire bowlers made their presence felt in the Bowls England Women’s National Cha-mpionships in Royal Leamington Spa this week. Carole Galletly led the way by reaching the semi-finals of the two-wood singles before bowing out, and she also helped
ABINGDON will be hoping to lift the Preston Cup for only the third time in 90 years when they host the final stages at Albert Park on Saturday (9.15am). Having won through to the quarter-finals, Abingdon will line-up alongside Hagbourne, Carterton
The Man on Devil’s Island Ruth Harris (Allen Lane, £30) The torturous scandal that rocked France over the Dreyfus affair in the 1890s pitted the bigoted military establishment against left-wing intellectuals. Dreyfus had been accused of passing
As a young woman Jo Eames harboured two ambitions — she wanted to be a lawyer and she also wanted to be a novelist. Jo achieved the first with ease and practised the law until she was 30, when she became involved in running and developing Peach
If you want to know about 1066 and all that, there can surely be no shorter book than The Norman Conquest, one of Oxford University Press’s A Very Short Introduction series. The author, Oxford University lecturer George Garnett, an expert on the period
CHARLES JESSOLD, CONSIDERED AS A MURDERER by Wesley Stace (Random House, £16.99)An unusual and intriguing thriller set knowledgeably by Wesley Stace against the changing cultural landscape of the first half of 20th-century England, this is a novel
Sir – On the evening of Monday, July 26, my wife and I went to see Reginald D. Hunter at The Regal on the Cowley Road. Whilst we enjoyed his performance, we were less impressed with the rest of the evening. The show was scheduled to start at 7.45pm
A NEW material to repair worn-out knee joints has been inspired by spiders weaving their webs. The technology of spiders is being harnessed by Orthox, based at Milton Park, near Abingdon, which has received two Government grants worth £469,000 to help
SOUTHFIELD PRO-AM. Professional: 1= P Simpson (West Berks) & J Templar (Henley) 66, 3 D Gavrilovic (Studley Wood) 67. Team: 1 M.Kendal, J Simpson, R Campbell, P Simpson (pro) 127. OXFORD LADIES. Charity Stableford – Silver Div: 1 T Raw-lings 38pts
Sir – In Reg Little’s delightful piece on Flora’s first visit to Lark Rise (Juniper Hill) (Feature, July 22), Olivia Hallinan, who plays the part, is told “this is the view you would have had from your cottage” and responds “I find it quite magical
Sir – The coverage given to speculation on the extent of imminent cuts to county services included a reference to the possible closure of libraries. The idea that thousands of books might lie unread and mouldering on shelves should surely be unthinkable
Sir – My sister was killed in a traffic accident leaving four children motherless. So road safety is not an academic issue for me. I know how much safer speed cameras have made our roads, and I was dumbfounded to discover that Oxfordshire is abandoning
Sir – In the centre of town, there are now two sets of redundant traffic lights — one is at the end of the Broad by the Kings Arms and Clarendon building at the junction of Parks Road and Holywell. The other is outside Debenhams at the junction of
Sir – Keith Mitchell, in his letter (July 22), stated that the residual waste (that which is not or cannot be recycled) “. . . has to be dealt with — either by burying it in the ground or by burning it in an incinerator . . .” This suggests that there
Sir – Congratulations to Stagecoach’s Martin Sutton, for launching the first fleet of green hybrid buses in the country here in Oxford (Report, July 15). This is another step towards a low carbon Oxford and represents very welcome investment
Sir – I am writing in response to Keith Mitchell’s request for response to Oxfordshire County Council’s Big Debate (Letters, July 29). The current circumstances the country and also the county finds itself in can be taken as an excellent opportunity
Sir – Ian East (Letters, July 29) is wrong to blame the Liberal Democrats for the removal of speed cameras from Oxfordshire's roads. Rodney Rose, cabinet member responsible for transport, has admitted that cuts in Government funding for the roads
Sir – In initiating the turning off of speed cameras in Oxfordshire, David Cameron and the county council must take moral responsibility for future deaths and injuries and costs of accidents which the record of the last decade shows have been saved
Sir – Wouldn’t it be lovely if road safety was as simple as some people believe? Lots of nice ‘facts’. A clear, easy solution to save lives. Even better if we could enforce that solution automatically by machine. Pity it it’s not so simple. Driving
Sir – Can the county council personally guarantee me that by switching-off all of Oxfordshire’s speed cameras, my family, friends, colleagues and employees will not be at greater risk of death and serious injury as they travel the county’s roads? There
Sir – The two excellent letters in last week’s issue make a compelling case for retaining speed cameras. However, the county council has to make cuts and they must fall somewhere. There is however a pragmatic compromise. According to this week’s
Sir – I read your article about language school students drinking in Headington Hill Park (July 29) with interest. I don’t go to Headington Hill Park, so I can’t comment upon how bad the situation is there, however, I can tell you with confidence
Oxford is buzzing ahead of the new Football League season. Those are the vibes from United chairman Kelvin Thomas ahead of the new campaign. And the U’s chief admits he can’t wait. Although United start with an away game at Burton on Saturday, two
A MAJOR project to tackle one of Oxfordshire’s most notorious traffic blackspots begins this week — and the roadworks are expected to stretch on until Christmas. Motorists will be bracing themselves for long tailbacks at the M40/A34 interchange
The destruction of a farmer’s near-ready crop of barley by a wayward Chinese lantern should make everyone stop and think. In one of the longest dry spells for years, fields are tinder-dry and the smallest spark can quickly lead to damage running into
An admittedly unscientific spot-check on drivers that we carried out in Marston Ferry Road, Oxford, and in Nuneham Courtenay this week, found that very few drivers were speeding. Is this surprising, following the switch-off of speed cameras in the county
The emphasis is on actualities this week and Craig McCall's Cameraman: The Life and Work of Jack Cardiff looks set to feature among the year's best. Packed with examples of Cardiff's visual mastery, this is the most consistently revealing screen study
Comiing just a year after Anne Fontaine starred Audrey Tautou in Coco Before Chanel, Jan Kounen's Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky continues the current vogue for biopics that focus on a specific romantic interlude as an indicator of both a celebrity's
Blenheim Palace’s famous duck has gone. As for the teddy bear, we will all have to wait and see, for David Evans is a man who likes to keep a few surprises up his sleeve. One of the treats for the thousands who head to the Blenheim International
Motoring experts questioned whether Oxfordshire drivers would continue to obey speed limits after the county became the first in Britain to switch off all its speed cameras. A speed check this week discovered that just 15 out of 840 drivers (1.8 per
AGE and crippling arthritis have failed to deter one Oxford grandmother from taking on new challenges – she’s going paragliding at the age of 85. Retired headmistress Gwynneth Pedler will soon be soaring into the clouds 4,000ft above the Sussex
BENSON will be left without a Post Office for the first time in more than 100 years because there is no-one to replace the outgoing owners. Sub-postmistress Cindy Olley, 68, who is retiring due to health problems, will close the doors in just 13 days
Wanted: An audience with a wardrobe housing stout walking shoes and clothes to suit all weather conditions. Open-minded individuals keen to experience a different kind of theatre and possibly interact with the show. The intention to either arrive with
Good music, fantastic food, real ale and a party atmosphere — these are the ingredients that make up Cropredy’s annual folk festival, formed just over 30 years ago by folk-rock band Fairport Convention. In those days, it was just a small village event
I am not sure why, but many more of my friends seem to be holidaying at home this summer; a good decision but one that is invariably accompanied by concerns about the British weather. As I watched one of my best friends load up the hatchback with clothes
The Cotswolds have one of the highest concentrations of dovecotes still in existence in this country and there are more than 20 good examples in Oxfordshire of this historic feature. When the Friends of the Cotswolds was considering a project for dovecote
The southern Rhône is the homeland of the grenache grape variety, which, when blended with grapes such as syrah, mourvèdre and cinsault produces wonderfully rich, meaty and spicy reds which are ideal for this time of the year. Try this delicious
Home-grown strawberries are one of the great joys of summer and normally we harvest pounds of them from three 8ftx4ft beds. The tragedy is I usually miss most of the crop because I go to Japan in late June every year. This year I opted to stay home and
