A CYCLIST was in hospital with a fractured skull tonight after his bike skidded on ice and was involved in a collision with a bus. The accident happened in Benson Lane, Crowmarsh Gifford, near its junction with the A4074, shortly before 9am today. The
Drivers faced delays after a three-car collision on the A40 at Witney. A Skoda Fabia, Vauxhall Vectra and Volkswagen Passat crashed on the eastbound carriageway shortly after 3pm today. One elderly man was taken to hospital with hand
AN ASPIRING referee was this week’s Oxford Mail Face in the Crowd. Teenager Lewis Harper, right, was spotted by our photographer during Oxford United’s 2-1 win over Bradford on Saturday. The 16-year-old, from Bodicote, near Banbury
A VOLUNTEER-RUN libr-ary on an Oxford estate has been hailed as a vital part of the community a year after it opened. The Read/Swap Library, based in the community centre in Rose Hill, is now regularly used by more than 100 people. The centre, in The
Alfie Enoch didn’t set out to get a part in the Harry Potter films, yet he’s played one of the wizard’s best friends for the past 12 years. Now that his role as Dean Thomas is over and his degree at Oxford University nears its end, the future beckons.
MORNING GLORY (12A). Comedy. Rachel McAdams, Harrison Ford, Diane Keaton, Jeff Goldblum, Patrick Wilson, Ty Burrell, Patti D’Arbanville, Matt Molloy. Director: Roger Michell. Laden with polished one-liners, Morning Glory is
Yee-ha! Tim Hughes gets a taste of anarchic barn dancing, courtesy of the Cut a Shine collective. GRAB your partners and do-se-do. Yep, if you want to join the hip crowd, these days you need to go barn dancing. Once the preserve of rednecks
Rachel O’Connor gets into the festival mood early at EquiTruck@The 02 Academy, Cowley Road, on Saturday. Festival season seems but a faint mirage at this murky time of year. The thought of lazing about in the sun while watching your favourite
SUMPTUOUS is not a word that I use on a regular basis. It doesn’t come up much in conversation, and should only be used for special occasions. And if we’re talking special occasions, Tylney Hall, in Hook, near Basingstoke, sums up everything
Expect great food and better service at a new Thai restaurant, writes Katherine MacAlister. Imagine being invited to dinner at a friend’s only to find that you have to let yourself in, find your own seat, serve yourself drinks and wander
Stephanie Beacham has been there, done that and even got the Celebrity Big Brother T-shirt. But to balance the books she’s back and this time in the all-encompassing role of the tragic diva – opera singer Maria Callas. Katherine MacAlister investigates
BLACK SWAN (15): Drama. Natalie Portman, Vincent Cassal, Mila Kunis, Barbara Hershey, Winona Ryder. Director Darren Aronofsky. Natalie Portman collected a Golden Globe award as Best Actress on Sunday for her tour de force portrayal
Tim Hughes talks to singer-songwriter and folk icon Richard Thompson. AS one of this country’s greatest ever singer-songwriters, and one of the world’s best guitarists, Richard Thompson is used to plaudits. Over more than 40 years
SWIMMERS can take part in a unusual underwater music concert in Oxford. The Wet Sounds performance will be held at Temple Cowley Pools with the music played underwater. Organiser and ‘noisician’ Joel Cahen said: “The idea is for people
THREE talks to be given by José Henriquez, one of the Chilean miners trapped 2,300ft underground for two months last year, have already been booked out. The 55-year-old, pictured right, is due to speak at Grove Parish Church on Tuesday at 7.30pm
SCHOOLGIRLS could be on the way to Wembley after getting through to the final eight of a football tournament. The Cheney School, Headington, team is through to the quarter final of the national npower Under-13 Girls Cup, which has involved 72 schools
Rising fuel prices are good news for an Oxfordshire company developing a way of using 'stranded' gas fields. Oxford Catalysts, of Milton Park, is piloting small-scale production of synthetic fuels using gas reserves too small for conventional technology
CAMPAIGNERS in Oxfordshire have welcomed a decision by a health watchdog to allow access to previously denied Alzheimer’s drugs. The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (Nice) sparked outrage from Alzheimer’s sufferers in 2006 and 2007
AEA Technology 6.1 BMW 4736 Electrocomponents 250 Nationwide Accident Repair 100.5 Oxford Biomedica 5.5 Oxford Catalysts 71.5 Oxford Instruments 653 Reed Elsevier 558.25 RM 167.25 RPS Group 222.2 Courtesy of Redmayne Bentley, Abingdon
Thousands of youngsters from across the county will be attending an event designed to give them ideas about their future after school. More than 4,000 students aged from 12 upwards are expected to attend the Careers Fest at the Kassam Stadium in Grenoble
LOYAL Oxford Mail readers can use their favourite newspaper to send greetings to family and friends. Holders of the Oxford Mail Loyalty Card can pick up a fresh deal – and some beautiful greetings cards – thanks to Witney store Fresh. The shop is the
TOURISTS, students and residents are being targeted in a crackdown on litter in Oxford. Volunteers are being urged to don their rubber gloves and get ready to clean up the city for Spring Clean 2011. The fourth annual clean-up is organised
Oxford Saints are holding two open days to attract new players. The events will take place at Abingdon RFC, Lambrick Way on January 30 and February 6 from noon to 3pm. For more information, visit www.oxfordsaints.com or find them on Facebook ‘Oxford
LANDLORDS have warned a proposed Wetherspoon branch in Witney could be “another nail in the coffin” for some of the town’s best-loved pubs. The cut-price chain has applied to open a pub in the former Palace nightclub in Market Square, opening
A GREAT-grandmother who was once chairman of the Oxford Young Women’s Christian Association has died, aged 92. Deborah Kirkwood, below, was one of a generation of dons’ wives who dedicated much of their younger adult lives to supporting their husbands
ONE of the founding members of Oxfam’s African aid team has died at the age of 84. After leaving Radley College in 1944, he enrolled in the Coldstream Guards, serving in Palestine and Egypt, before joing the King’s African Rifles in Uganda.
Robin Busby hit a six in a 13-doll haul as North Oxford Conservative Club beat Punchbowl 4-2 in the Kidlington Indoor League. RESULTS Banbury Indoor League: Deddington 2, Chipping Norton 4; Banbury 6, Tysoe SSC 0; George 0, Bicester 6; General Foods
VETERAN postman Michael Maguire is being forced to retire – despite wanting to keep on delivering to his customers. Royal Mail bosses have told Mr Maguire he must retire at 65. The Government has confirmed plans to scrap the default retirement age of
AUTHOR Joanna Trollope will speak at a special event at Thame Town Hall in March. The event on Friday, March 4, at 7.30pm, is part of Along the Way, a series of events leading up to the Thame Arts and Literature Festival. The writer is launching her
Contemporary style meets 18th-century grandeur in an architect-designed conversion. The two-storey property spans half of Kirtlington Park’s east wing which once housed the mansion’s kitchens. The main house is a single dwelling but both wings are sub-divided
Renovation work on a derelict 17th-century house revealed a hidden passage leading to a secret bedroom. GP Dr Tim Hurst, pictured, who owns Grade-II listed Carters Cottage near Banbury, said: “A boarded-up opening was discovered on the first floor and
Tenants who prefer a period cottage with character have several to choose from across the county. Stable Cottage is a converted stable block in Ramsden, near Witney, with exposed wooden beams and an open fireplace. The sitting room includes an open
A pair of newly-built houses in North Oxford are ranged over three floors with gardens and off-street parking. The semi-detached properties at Blandford Gate, in Blandford Avenue, include kitchen/dining/family rooms with windows on three sides, vaulted
A SENIOR policeman and his lover sent a series of text messages to each other on the night he allegedly set his car on fire, a court heard. Chief Superintendent Jim Trotman and his mistress Karin Gray also made a string of phone calls, the
Oxford's Michael Smith can’t wait for the new season to start after topping the British Minigolf Association’s (BMGA) rankings for 2010. Smith, 25, finished first on the 160-player tour, despite it being his maiden competitive campaign.
Oxfordshire Premier have won Group 2 of the English Short Mat Association Inter County Competition, with a game to spare. They defeated Gloucestershire 31-9 at Wallingford to maintain their 100 per cent record and will now play Dorset, West Sussex or
JACK Taylor scored 103 and took 3-34 from ten overs for the Darren Lehmann Academy in Adelaide. The Gloucestershire all-rounder, from Great Tew, opened the batting to lead the academy to 310-6 against Knox Grammar School (Sydney). In
Craig Hewing was celebrating after landing an ace during round five of Bicester’s Men’s Winter League. Hewing used a five-wood to achieve the feat on the 167-yard par three 12th
IT’S not just about the fat lady singing. That was the message from opera enthusiasts yesterday as they took part in a project to bring performances to youngsters. Members of Garsington Opera teamed up with Oxford University music students
Sir – At 2am on January 1, when my husband and I bicycled home from a delightful New Year’s party in Appleton, we were met by a chorus of birds singing their hearts out. They sang all the way from Cumnor village, down Cumnor Hill and into the Botley Road
EXACTLY two centuries after first setting up in Oxford, a music shop is to close its doors for the final time. Brothers Graham and Russell Ansell, the third generation of their family to run Russell Acott, have decided to retire, blaming crippling competition
James Cathcart has finally got his hands on the Oxfordshire Cup final man-of-the-match trophy. Chinnor fly half Cathcart received the new Ron Grimshaw Memorial Trophy from the Oxford Mail on Saturday. He was named man-of-the-match in last April’s victory
AEA Technology 6.1 BMW 4750 Electrocomponents 254.9 Nationwide Accident Repair 100 Oxford Biomedica 5.6 Oxford Catalysts 71.5 Oxford Instruments 665 Reed Elsevier 557.25 RM 166.5 RPS Group 219.9 Courtesy of Redmayne Bentley, Abingdon
THIEVES chopped off part of a goat’s horn with an axe during a raid on an small-holding. The tame rare breed, which is particularly friendly to humans, was found by her owner Derek Turner covered in blood the next morning. Mr Turner said his Iveco tipper
IT is sickening that the burglars who rampaged through Derek Turner’s smallholding decided to try to hack off a goat’s horn. The bill for the damage they caused and the items they stole is about £10,000, yet did they really have to turn their
In London on Tuesday for the Michelin guide lunch, I could not resist a further invitation, though this meant rising earlier than 6am. Breakfast at the Royal Academy was in a new restaurant run by Oliver Peyton’s Peyton and Byrne. Usually it’s open between
The publication this week of the Michelin red guide to Great Britain & Ireland was an extra special occasion because of a double anniversary. Not only does 2011 mark the centenary of the British guide itself, but also that of the company’s long-time
Here is a cure for headache from the lips of someone who claimed never to have had one. “You get a bit of assafetito and stick’n under your nose; it do smell bad, but you won’t ever have no more headaches.” By ‘assafetito’ the speaker, known only as
Steve MacLean has agreed to stay with Oxford United until the end of the season – and instantly targeted promotion. The Edinburgh-born striker’s loan with the U’s expired after the victory over Bradford. And although United had already reached agreement
PENSIONERS will be allowed to use their bus passes on ‘Dial-a-Ride’ after a U-turn by transport chiefs. But bosses warned they face the biggest funding shortfall of all English shire councils for free travel schemes. Oxfordshire County Council wanted
Oxfordshire RFU will investigate the fracas during Alchester’s 41-21 BB&O Premier Division victory over Gosford All Blacks on Saturday. Players from both sides were involved in a second-half scuffle, which ended with Alchester’s Garrick Kimber and Gosford
EXPLAINING the shake-up at BBC Oxford, station editor Marianne Bell said: “We want to deliver more focus on local news and stories which reflect life for us living here in Oxfordshire.” Definitely not Berkshire then. But no one told new boy Phil Gayle
Congratulations to Rob Strange, chief executive of the Institution of Occupational Health and Safety, on his robust and sensible defence of health and safety following the Sassy and Single piece in the Oxford Mail last week. There is a necessary place
Just under a year ago, West Oxfordshire District Council planning staff visited our village and announced that they were going to build another housing estate on land adjacent to Carterton. It seemed a foregone conclusion that what could be 1,000 homes
The article that appeared in the Oxford Mail last Friday, Villagers say no to wind turbine, highlighted the strong feeling that Horspath residents have against the giant turbine proposed for the field adjacent to their historic village. However, while
I understand the concerns of Horspath people about a wind turbine close to the BMW car plant (Oxford Mail, January 14), but I don’t share those worries. Wind power is a cheap, quiet, pollution-free and renewable energy for the future. With the prices
A CYCLIST has been taken to hospital with head injuries following a collision with a bus near RAF Benson. The crash happened just before 9am, police said, in Benson Lane, near its junction with the A4074. The cyclist's head injuries were said not to
Former Oxford City athlete Mara Yamauchi will miss April's London Marathon with a hamstring injury. Now 37, the Japan-based Briton was hoping for a return to form after two disappointing runs in last year's London and New York Marathons
BENSON Lane is closed following a crash near Crowmarsh Gifford. The road is shut between The Street and the A4074. The accident is thought to be at the A4074 end of Benson Lane and both police and paramedics are at the scene.
In THE article in Saturday’s Mail headed “A cash carrot for council workers” it stated that the city council had “highlighted a potential £6m of efficiency savings”. As a tax payer I would like to know why these savings were not identified and implemented
Paul Everett (Oxford Mail January 17) should study his Bible more carefully, and should know you cannot have Darwinism and the Bible in the same corner. They are mutually exclusive. The Bible makes the following clear: (a) We are not just an evolved
Oxford City Stars have found their recent trips to reigning champions Invicta Dynamos tough going, and it proved the case again with a 6-2 defeat in South Division 1. But Stars, who included new import Damian Matla, can take positives from the performance
It happens occasionally that I arrive at a restaurant or pub where I have made a telephone booking to find that the table I have been allocated is the very one I would have picked had I been given the run of the whole place to choose from. It happened
If you go to the Compass Brewery website (www.compassbrewery. com) you will see that Mattias is developing a recipe page featuring dishes that can be flavoured with his beers. This recipe calls for cremini mushrooms, or morels. I used a mixture of wild
It’s a brave man who sets up a business during an economic downturn, but Mattias Sjoberg’s virtual brewery, which he established in 2009, is going from strength to strength. He is now producing three different beers: Baltic Night Stout (4.8 per cent),
Natalie Portman collected a coveted Golden Globe award as Best Actress on Sunday for her tour-de-force portrayal of an emotionally fragile ballerina in Black Swan. She deserves to win the Oscar on February 27 for this career-defining performance that
Potter Ben Drew works on a large scale producing substantial, tactile stoneware. These he decorates with roulettes, slips, oxides and ash glazes. He then further decorates and striates to create patterns with natural rhythm, as exemplified by the handsome
The tale of the cheeky, loveable puppet Pinocchio is brought charmingly and vividly to life in this latest production by the Cherwell Theatre Company. An eclectic range of theatrical styles — including physical theatre, mime and shadow puppetry — dovetail
Two young artists — one vision. Both are bewitched by the Radcliffe Camera, but both see it quite differently. Emma Dougherty and Tim Stewart share an obsession with Oxford’s most beguiling icon, and have joined forces on an exhibition of their interpretations
As I was leaving the British Museum I saw their poster for the exhibition I’d just seen. It asked bluntly: “What happens after death.” I laughed, thinking that would hardly attract the visitors! But it will, of course. Any show on ancient Egypt is bound
This production has a real fairy-tale quality, with sumptuous and very imaginative costumes by Christina Fyodorova. It’s like looking at a selection of crystallised fruits, their pastel shades sparkling gently with a coating of sugar — a delight in a
The West Ox Arts Gallery in Bampton, under a new curator, is attracting a lively group of artists who explore a wide variety of media. Flora Mclachlan’s etchings of woodland are shot through with bursts of light. In Foxnest a vixen is curled up, womb-like
Industrial-size electric stoves were being juggled with lights to avoid overloading the wiring as Edward Higginbottom rehearsed the Woodstock-based European Union Baroque Orchestra in New College Ante-Chapel. “The length of that last note: it should go
The Phoenix Piano Trio is recently formed but not altogether freshly minted: Jonathan Stone (violin), Marie Macleod (cello), and Sholto Kynoch (piano) are friends and colleagues of long standing, but only now are they playing together as a regular trio
DOCTORS and union officials last night attacked the Government’s prescription for an overhaul of the NHS. Yesterday Health Secretary Andrew Lansley announced details of the Health and Social Care Bill, which he says will transform the country
Chinnor captain Matt Hutchings feels the pressure is off his side as they seek to stay in the National 3 South West promotion hunt. Hutchings’s men, who won the title in 2006 and 2008, lie fourth ahead of Saturday’s crunch trip to second-placed
Asperatus as well as being the title of the exhibition is also one of the images on show. Asperatus is a classification of a cloud form, derived from the Latin and best translated as to agitate. In this picture a boiling mass of cloud-forms, do
A new play by an award-winning young writer opens tonight at the Burton Taylor Studio behind the Oxford Playhouse. At First Sight is the work of Barney Norris (above) and won last year’s one-act play competition organised by the Drama Association of Wales
NO-ONE with a heart will be able to look at the photographs of young Charlotte Nott today and feel anything other than deep sadness and sympathy. Charlotte has had parts of all four limbs amputated after almost dying from meningitis and septicaemia
Given that Truck enterprises seem to find it hard to go more than a month without putting on a festival, the three-month gap between October’s OX4 and tonight’s EquiTruck has seemed like a lifetime. But they’re back, with a stellar line-up of local bands
BETH Hawtin stole the show for Oxford City as she took home a brilliant bronze medal in the Under 15 girls’ race at the McCain Cross Challenge in Cardiff. The event, which also incorporated the Welsh Cross Country Championship, attracted some of the
TIM Hughes led the way for White Horse Harriers as he finished fifth in the Highworth Half Marathon. Hughes clocked 1hr 17mins 40secs to lead Harriers to ninth place in the men’s team competition. Dan Peace recorded 1.27.32 for 21st place. Lucia Singer
STEVE Naylor gatecrashed the fourth round of the Chiltern Cross Country League as he romped to victory at Luton. Running as a guest for Headington Roadrunners, Naylor stunned the regulars as he clocked 28mins 29secs over a tricky and undulating
A sex attacker may rape in the future after gaining confidence from two assaults, police have said. Women in Bicester have been warned not to walk alone after dark following a sex attack in George Street last week, which could be linked to a November
GLADIATORS B opened up a two-point lead at the top of Section 3 after a 3-2 win at Headington Conservative Club. Keith Hollis scored 9,940 to put Headington in front, before Grant Johnson, Phil Clark (2,220) and Reg Johnson (3,210) won the
The renovated wedding barns at Caswell House, Brize Norton, have been announced as the Southern Counties Commercial Project of the Year by the Federation of Master Builders. Hayley Fry, director of the Southern region at the FMB, said: “This is the title
A coffee-break discussion by two Oxford surgeons about a difficult operation on a baby with a cleft palate sparked research into a new material for medical devices. The resulting invention by consultant plastic surgeon Tim Goodacre and registrar Marc
What was your first job and what did your responsibilities include? I was an editorial assistant in the journals department at Oxford University Press and co-ordinated the production of monthly editions. How much was in your first pay
THE mum of a toddler who had all her limbs amputated after contracting meningitis has thanked medical staff for saving her daughter’s life. Two-year-old Charlotte Nott was left fighting for survival after being struck down with killer disease
It does not take a rocket scientist to work out that recessions are not very good for your health. Stress is one of the biggest results of the economic downturn and that can manifest itself in a variety of ways, depending on individual circumstances.
Biotech specialist Cherwell Laboratories has expanded to a third unit at Launton Business Centre, Bicester (above). The business, which has been at the centre since 2004, has struck a new deal on its existing two units, as well as signing a new 15-year
Japanese superstition is having a magical effect on a Witney firm’s fortunes by quadrupling its sales in a few months. Preseli Bluestone International has struck a deal to supply a Far Eastern distributor with jewellery crafted from the same stone
A pub/restaurant has bucked the trend by re-opening following a £130,000 renovation. The Turnpike at Yarnton has undergone a major overhaul, including new seating and lighting inside, while the exterior has also been given a makeover. New landlady Sandy
Rapidly expanding electrical installation business Clarkson Evans has moved into new premises in Kidlington. The company has bought an industrial unit at the Chancerygate Business Centre, covering 2,329 sq ft, for an undisclosed sum. Director Steve Evans
Sport and safety netting specialists Leon De Oro, has moved into new premises in Bicester. The company, which provided sports nets to the World Cup in South Africa, has moved its six staff into the 3,226 sq ft unit at the Arena 14 development, Bicester
Specialist pharmaceutical company Zinc Ahead is relocating its business to the Oxford Business Park. The company has agreed with global property group Goodman to take sole occupancy of Building 4240, Nash Court, relocating from its current premises in
Patient monitoring systems, which check and record various aspects of condition and physiology, are generally bulky, expensive and confined to intensive care units. All the body sensors are plugged into the equipment, and the patient is immobilised as
Hilary Simpson and Nadine Delamillieure, of Oxford-based management consultancy Rewley Associates, explain how managers need to approach inevitable change in the current economic climate The rhetoric of austerity is now firmly embedded in the
Where do you go to buy a watch or clock of a particular type, or a find business specialising in timepiece restoration? Or, for enthusiasts, where can you find a museum to learn more about the subject of clocks and watches through the ages? The answers
There is no question that our attitudes to waste have changed significantly in recent years. You do not have to think far back to remember the days when a trip to the tip was just that — everything was tipped into a skip and away it went to landfill.
Sir – As the proprietor of the establishment featured on the front page (January 13), I would like to make it clear that Rochester’s Story Supplies caters only to Oxford’s fictional community. Alas, the shop is unable to serve customers in the Real World
Trespass Rose Tremain (Vintage, £7.99) Atmospheric story set in the heat of the Cevennes, which may dispel the winter gloom. As elsewhere in France, thoughtless newcomers have invaded an area once inhabited by peasants with centuries-old links to
If you are planning your childcare arrangements, then perhaps best not to read Everything and Nothing by Araminta Hall (HarperPress, £12.99). This really is a chilling tale. On the face of it, Agatha seems such a perfect nanny. She comes into
Ever since Harold Macmillan’s wind of change hit Oxford particularly hard in the 1950s, the city has seemed undecided over the question of whether the centre should be constantly “regenerated” as a shopping destination. Should it compete with Milton
A novel sparked by the Josef Fritzl abuse case might seem likely to be a miserable read. But Room, by Emma Donoghue, is one of the most heart-warming books I’ve read in a long time. Like Fritzl’s victim, Donoghue’s protagonist is imprisoned in a room
CRIMEA: THE LAST CRUSADE by Orlando Figes (Allen Lane, £30) Look beyond the battlefields of the Crimean War through the searching eyes of Figes and you find a deep obsession with religious crusade, from the Holy Land to the Caucusus.
HEROES ALL by Steve Bond (Grub Street, £20)The Voices format has proved a popular way of publishing oral histories: the individual stories are recorded, transcribed and then thoughtfully grouped in thematic chapters. In a similar style, Heroes All focuses
Sir – We live near Wantage — where our local postmen are excellent — but today, January 14, we received a letter posted from a London charity in November (with the usual request for a donation before Christmas and enclosing Christmas parcel stickers)
The Government has determined that the way to offset cuts in the public sector is to boost the private sector. Individuals are being urged to start their own businesses and a new wave of entrepreneurs is being encouraged. But Kim Hills Spedding has seen
Information technology is a continually evolving brave new world — a few years ago the idea of downloading an application for just about anything onto a hand-held telephone or computer was just a pipe dream. Back in 2008, Alex Powell recognised
Beds have always seemed to be a cut-throat business. Along with chairs and sofas, there always seems to be a plethora of advertisements for discounted deals, zero per cent finance for five years, and buy now pay later from major operators such as Dreams
It is not easy being young these days, what with unemployment levels for people in their 20s being at record levels. And it is particularly tricky for young people with few qualifications — like Hugo Lamdin, 28, for instance. He left Cherwell School,
Sir – I was somewhat mystified by your article (January 6) on the arrival of Ms Felicity Lusk at Abingdon School. The previous headmaster, Mark Turner, was hailed by the Tatler as the independent schools headmaster of the academic year 2009
Sir – May I be among the first to congratulate Mrs and Mr Ekeland on the birth of their son Fredrik (Report, January 6). However, could I please point out to you that it was midwives who looked after Mrs Ekeland not nurses. The training of midwives is
Sir – I have every sympathy with your correspondent (January 6), who fears that the closure of the Redbridge recycling facility to the general public will encourage fly-tipping on the nature reserve that she administers. All her arguments make sense
Sir – Wendy Alesbrook told your reporter (January 6) that she “would go in to save her rottweiler again”. I am curious to know what thinks she would achieve by doing this, since it is clear that she is not physically able to rescue her dog by jumping
Sir – I would like to say an enormous thank you to everyone who has supported CLIC Sargent, the children and young people’s cancer charity, throughout 2010. With the help of local families, groups, businesses and schools we have raised over £65,000 in
Sir – In response to the reader disgusted by the dog poo on Port Meadow, (Letters, January 6) I too, could not fail to notice how the deep snow which enveloped our village had been punctuated by stacks of dog excrement balanced alongside doodles in yellow
Sir – I was put out to discover that a 30-yard section of the Broad — perhaps its least crowded section, at the western end — has been closed to cyclists. Why, for heaven’s sake? Who benefits? Are pedestrians, who have increasingly fallen into the habit
Sir – Many people believe that Temple Cowley pool and gym will be closed, that it is a ‘done deal’. This is not the case, it is what the council want us to believe. In the same way that they want people to believe that it is in a dire state of disrepair
If you are planning to set up a new charity or social enterprise in 2011, there will soon be a new legal structure available — the Charitable Incorporated Organisation. First mentioned in a White Paper in 2002, introduced in the Charities Act 2006,
I must admit I was congratulating myself when the weather closed in just before Christmas. Having planned a trip to snow-bound North Yorkshire for the festivities, I was delighted with my foresight in choosing a Kia Sportage to be my chosen mode of transport
The current breathtaking evolution in the capability of mobile devices, driven by increases in processing power, touch screens, memory sizes and data rates is resulting in many of the things we traditionally do with PCs and laptops migrating to handheld
An old-fashioned village pub within the city of Oxford. That is what you will find in Iffley in the solid red brick Edwardian shape of the Prince of Wales. It is a lovely place for fogies young and old to frequent and eat winter comfort fodder
If your idea of a remote-handling engineer is Homer Simpson standing outside a leaded-glass window with his arms shoved into rubber gloves, juggling rods of plutonium, then think again. Remote handling has gone beyond even the realms of science
Sir – The blatant hypocrisy of county council leader Keith Mitchell is making him the laughing-stock of Oxfordshire. His letter (Letters, January 13) repeats his continual pretence that nobody is proposing alternatives to the cuts his council intends
Sir – Whilst Keith Mitchell’s letter (January 13) shows no great imagination, it does at least leave open an invitation for people to suggest alternatives to closing local libraries. Here are some possible alternatives for Mr Mitchell to consider and
Sir – When my own council, Wirral, on Merseyside, announced plans to close 11 of its libraries, the reaction of residents right across the borough and from all sections of society was immediate and vocal. Libraries sowed the seedcorn of the future —
Sir – It is interesting to see how the county council is not only cutting public spending, but is attacking local democracy at the same time. A small group of service users turned up to lobby the council to be met not only by police, but also a private
Sir – I was surprised to read Keith Mitchell’s letter (January 13) repeating what he wrote to you in December: “They must put themselves in the shoes of the decision makers and say where else that £2m can be saved, if not from library spending. Should
Sir – Perhaps we should have just an ounce of sympathy for Keith Mitchell. He may seem to be relishing his decimation of the library service, but he’s surely dealing with a genuine financial problem. So can anyone suggest another way of finding the money
Some say Britain no longer has much in the way of a home grown manufacturing base. But Mark Johnstone, chief executive of JSP, which has a factory in a former Witney blanket mill, would certainly not number himself among them. Indeed, ghosts of early
The Government has determined that the way to offset cuts in the public sector is to boost the private sector. Individuals are being urged to start their own businesses and a new wave of entrepreneurs is being encouraged. But Kim Hills Spedding has seen
Investors abhor uncertainty — for most, it’s about as welcome as Nick Clegg at a student rally — but as the fallout from Government overborrowing on an unprecedented scale continues to wreak havoc, just where does ‘investment certainty’ exist? Not too
Oxfordshire County Council is having to find £4.4m from its financial reserves to fund concessionary bus travel for over-60s, it has been revealed. The council claims that the relatively low level of overall funding it gets from the Government
A GREAT-grandmother who was once chairman of the Oxford Young Women’s Christian Association has died, aged 92. Deborah Kirkwood was one of a generation of dons’ wives who dedicated much of their younger adult lives to supporting their husbands
WHEN Kathleen Simmonds joined the Women’s Institute, the world could only dream of moon landings and Beatlemania. But now the 87-year-old from Headington is celebrating 50 years with the WI today. Mrs Simmonds joined the Headington Quarry WI in January
PEOPLE are being urged to don their rubber gloves and get ready to clean up the city for OxClean 2011. The annual clean-up is organised by local group OxClean — once again acting in partnership with The Oxford Times — and will take place on
There's always something exciting about finding a new film-maker. In the last couple of years, arthouse audiences in this country have become better acquainted with the likes of José Guerin, Lisandro Alonso and Mahamat-Saleh Haroun, who were celebrated
Dudley Nichols was one of the great screenwriters during Hollywood's golden age. Best known for his collaboration with John Ford, he typified the jobbing writer who sustained the studio system by producing scenarios across the generic range that
This weekend, the Blackbird Leys Choir is marking its fifth birthday by staging a celebration concert. With orchestral accompaniment, the concert features a full performance of Vivaldi’s Gloria, the choir’s most ambitious work yet. The glittering event
PILES of dog mess are making life miserable for young footballers in Abingdon. Members of St Edmund’s Football Club, which is based at Boxhill Recreation Park, say they have to spend an hour before matches picking up dog muck before children
I have always loved books and one of my earliest memories is being pushed down the road in a bike basket by my oldest brother, Eddie, who was eight years older. We were on the weekly trek to get library books and it was a highlight. Thanks to my brother
Taking a walk down, or more accurately in, the River Cherwell during the Christmas holidays, I carefully picked my way across the mud and boot-deep floodwaters, gingerly crunching from icy tussock to frosted clumps. My wintry trudge through the flood
Here is a thing; I can run 100 meters. It happens slowly and inelegantly and nobody with an ounce of sense would think to put me and Usain Bolt on a running track together and expect any sort of contest. It would be ludicrous. As ludicrous, I would argue
How long should a work in progress take to gestate and produce a result? The answer, so far as the Oxfordshire Theatre Company is concerned, is at least a year. Some weeks before Christmas, they held an intriguing rehearsed reading and sung performance
Richard Thompson has been musically active for more than 40 years. He began his career as a guitarist in Fairport Convention in the late 1960s before recording, in partnership with his ex-wife Linda, for ten years. He then went solo and has released
