POLICE in Witney are inviting residents to post concerns and feedback through a special new Tardis-style box. The 3ft blue box, modelled on the old police phone boxes made famous by BBC One drama Doctor Who, will be placed in busy areas including
BOSSES at logistics, manufacturing and consultancy business Unipart say the firm is growing despite slipping into the red. Annual accounts for the company, based at Garsington Road, Cowley, show it made a pre-tax loss of £6.1m for the year ended
OXFORDSHIRE needs new speculative office developments to keep up with demand. That is the conclusion of a major new report into the sector after a major hike in take-up last year. The Commercial Edge Oxfordshire 2014 research report, compiled
A SECONDARY school in Abingdon has been told its senior leaders are taking “effective action” to tackle areas which need improvement. Fitzharrys School, in Northcourt Road, had its first monitoring visit last month since it was told by Ofsted inspectors
Uruguay 2 (Suarez 39, 84) England 1 (Rooney 75) England stand on the brink of an early World Cup exit after Luis Suarez blew Roy Hodgson's men away with a deadly double in Sao Paulo. Wayne Rooney thought he had snatched a draw for
KELLY Ryan felt her IT job was “sucking her soul away”, so she embarked on some lifestyle changes. She took a part-time admin job at Oxford University’s department of computing – and joined a knitting group. “A year later I went vegan and I
A SIMULATED explosion at a concert provided vital training for members of St John Ambulance. The charity held a training event at its Hill End base in Eynsham Road, Farmoor, to assess skills in dealing with a serious emergency. About 40 fake
A FUNDING application to refurbish Witney’s Corn Exchange has been turned down. Witney Town Council bid for £1.8m from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) to fund the updating of the Grade II-listed building, in Market Square, after it closed suddenly
A DRIVER hurt his arm in a crash that closed the road between Marcham and Abingdon. A blue Skoda and a white Ford Ranger collided near the entrance to the Dalton Barracks on the A415 Marcham Road, a police spokeswoman said. One of the drivers
WASTE firm Viridor’s £200m incinerator has received its first delivery of rubbish – nine tonnes from Oxford – and its equipment is being tested to make sure it is in full working order. The company, which won the Oxfordshire County Council contract
A TEAM of nine northerners made a special trip down south to raise money for Oxfam. Jacqui Power, from Preston, dressed up as movie character Austin Powers for the ride, which raised more than £900. She said: “We had lots of fun. It was remarkable
A FORMER Oxford Mail reporter and National Union of Journalists (NUJ) deputy general secretary has died aged 85. Eric Blott, who worked as a reporter in Oxfordshire in the late 1950s and early 1960s, helped launch the Wallingford Herald in 1961
HISTORIC toilets in the centre of Oxford could soon be turned into plush new office space. Plans for the St Giles toilets have been submitted to Oxford City Council by city hotelier Gwyn Harries-Jones after he won a tender to lease the undergound
MARILYN BUTLER A FOREMOST expert in the work of Jane Austen and the first woman to head a formerly all-male Oxford college has died aged 77. Professor Marilyn Butler was a prominent academic who established her reputation as an original thinker
A 19-YEAR-OLD man has been given a suspended prison sentence for throwing a punch which may have broken a man’s jaw. David Carnall, of Mallard Drive, Witney, was sentenced on Tuesday at Oxford Crown Court after he admitted causing grievous bodily
WORDS cannot describe how I felt after finishing tenth on Sunday – but I’ve not worked this hard to give up. However down you are, you just have to keep the faith after all the hard work and sacrifices you have made. There are plenty of grands
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A MAJOR recruitment drive for apprentices has been launched by Oxford City Council. Up to 12 young people are required for roles across the organisation including electricians, vehicle technicians, business administration and even pest control.
A CENTRE supporting small and start-up businesses is expanding again just 18 months after opening. The Witney Business and Innovation Centre will open a further 12 offices next month covering 2,000 sq ft and is set to boost the number of people
A SECURITY van driver has been held up by a robber outside the Templars Square Shopping Centre in Cowley. The G4S employee, who is believed to be relatively unharmed, was walking back to the vehicle from Barclays bank when he was set upon by an
OXFORD’S largest six-a-side football tournament will take place for the fifth successive year this weekend to raise money for the blind. The Oxford Ambition Project will hold its annual tournament at St Gregory the Great Catholic School, in Cricket
A YOUTH ambassador has been chosen for the first time for Wallingford Carnival following the decision to abandon the selection of a carnival queen. Alice Walkey, 11, a pupil at Wallingford School, will be the town’s first youth ambassador, with
Hugh Mendes' exhibition of newspaper obituaries translated into portraits of the great and good, gives Sarah Mayhew-Craddock pause for thought A room of famous faces greets me, some staring wistfully into the middle-distance, others holding one
WHEN little Xander Gibbs was born with meningitis he spent the first weeks of his life in hospital. Battling the odds, the three-year-old from St Michael’s Close, Fringford, near Bicester, made a full recovery. But his mum Miranda, 43, made
* There has been so much going on this week in Oxford restaurant-wise it’s no wonder I’m knackered, with new openings and menus galore. The TVC roof terrace, pictured, opened on Thursday night with a terrific party, framing the astonishing views
Jeremy Smith tries out an Oxford restaurant's breakfast offerings on the way to work I normally only pass this restaurant and press my nose up against the glass. Especially in winter when it looks so warm and plush and inviting. So it was something
Katherine MacAlister escapes from the office for a reviving riverside lunch that doesn't break the bank Some pubs are designed to tantalise you, to make you resent going to work on these gloriously sunny days. They taunt you with their al fresco
If it's time for a brew, this Bodum teapot comes in a variety of exciting colours and features a classic chrome frame with a coloured plastic lid and handle. Complete with a removable plastic filter, this one-litre teapot will add a fun touch to
It was as though ghosts were walking through the throng at The Fishes on Sunday. Among groups of friends in deckchairs and children playing Garden Jenga, strolled ladies in tailored dresses with velvet collars, Land Girls and men in uniform.
Shanghai Sweet Soy Duck is traditionally served cold or at room temperature as a cold dish. However, because of health and safety rules in the UK, SoJo has adapted this recipe and it is now served as a hot dish. The stock or base gravy is known
Efforts to squeeze more from every gallon of fuel have stepped up remarkably in the last couple of years. Where 40+ miles per gallon was once the benchmark for an economical car, even larger models can now achieve that easily on the motorway. Now
To celebrate its 40th anniversary, Chipping Norton Theatre is going for broke with a daring panto challenge. Katherine MacAlister talks to writer Ben Crocker about what's in store Just when you thought it was safe to go out, Chipping Norton Theatre
One of the most compelling books about aviation is Tom Wolfe’s iconic The Right Stuff, which tells the story of the development of American jet and rocket planes and the pilots who flew them. The central tenet of the book is the legendary ‘Right
VISITORS to an Oxford museum are able to experience the eternal winter of C.S. Lewis’ Narnia and walk a pirate ship deck from Treasure Island in an interactive exhibition of great British authors. Award-winning celebrity photographer Cambridge
As London's BST festival lines up a season of music for all tastes and ages, Tim Hughes looks ahead to a top summer of live music It’s the festival of the summer, with a dream line-up to appeal to all tastes. And you don’t even have to stay in
Kelly Ryan felt her job in IT was “sucking my soul away”, so she decided on some lifestyle changes. She took a part-time admin job at Oxford University's department of computing — and joined a knitting group. "A year later I went vegan and I realised
After a short-lived stint in the X Factor musical, Charlie Baker tells Katherine MacAlister why he's happier than ever plying his comedy trade Charlie Baker is very relaxed for a man whose first stint in the West End closed after just six weeks
Alexander Ewing reveals his softer side as the end of the year nears To the quiet delight of all Junior Deans, we are almost over the line. The end of Trinity Term draws nigh. Soon, parents will whisk the undergrads away, bleary-eyed from their
Meet Jon Bright, who is Oxford Rural Community Council's new head Before joining the Oxfordshire Rural Community Council (ORCC) in April, I was a civil servant in Whitehall (responsible for homelessness policy and neighbourhood renewal, among other
My eye was caught by a headline in the Daily Telegraph last week that read: “Reclaim the word ‘fit’ and get girls into sport, says schools’ leader.” (It is arguable, incidentally, whether the apostrophe is required after schools. Personally, I think
In the space of two hours last week I learned much more than I had previously known about roses and about a group of artists and writers who were particularly partial to them — and to each other. My education came courtesy of my old friend Robert Mattock
THE Insider understands that the decision by construction firm Mace to invest in the controversial West Way redevelopment has bemused industry specialists. When The Insider glanced at The Construction Index website he noticed that the £100m development
IN response to Hugh Jaeger's letter (June 6): many of you will recollect the UKIP leaflet that was delivered through letterboxes recently. In bold letters, there was the message and reminder that £55m of British money has to go to the EU in Brussels
CLLR MARY Clarkson’s reply (June 11) gives a little bit of hope to the Covered Market traders that they will not be taken to the cleaners by our Labour councillors. However, what it does demonstrate is the power and very big influence a Labour-backed
IN regard to Labour Councillor Van Coulter mentioning that only a small slice of Green Belt needs to be utilised for a housing solution for Oxford, he sounds like being stuck between a rock and a hard place. The Belt’s conception by the Labour
CALLS for more housing have been dropped by Kidlington Parish Council over concerns it could lead to additional homes in the Green Belt. Parish councillors had supported plans for housing in the Green Belt in the Langford Lane area along with businesses
REGARDING Dan Robinson’s article (June 14): “An air ambulance service has not explained why it was used to take Hollywood actor Harrison Ford to Oxford’s John Radcliffe Hospital for a broken ankle”, perhaps it’s something called patient confidentiality
BOB Price is correct (Letters, June 16), in stating that the suggestion in an Oxford Mail article that the decision about Temple Cowley Pools was made behind closed doors is unfair. That allegation was made by somebody who has not been involved
I READ with great sadness of the demise of the HMV store in Oxford’s Cornmarket Street recently. The company went into administration in January, following a difficult period at Christmas as well as weak consumer spending, combined with competition
BANBURY MAGISTRATES Sophia Matthews, 46, of Brook Hill, Woodstock, admitted drink-driving on the A41 at Bicester on May 9. Had 73 micrograms of alcohol in 100ml of breath over the 35mg legal limit. Fined £250 and ordered to pay a £25 victims
Reg Little on the Oxford footballer who skippered his country in the first ever international Were Steve Gerrard to inspire his team to victory tonight against Uruguay before leading England to World Cup glory, he would surely be put on a football
Late arriving she may have been, but Katherine MacAlister says here was a meal worth the wait The best-laid plans of mice and men often go astray, so says the Robert Burns adage, and such was the case on Friday night, despite my most concerted
Helen Peacocke reckons it's hard to beat the traditional 'pleasure party' in the great outdoors This week is national picnic week and picnics can be such fun, but a memorable picnic is more than just food and drink. It’s about making an effort
Val Bourne reveals how healthy hybrid musks always produce a wonderful crop of flowers in late-September We are coming up to rose time, or perhaps you are in the middle of this fragrant period already. There has been a significant change in rose
Ben Vanheems of BBOWT recommends you take a trip to the tranquil meadows for some magical butterfly and moth spotting We’ve all marvelled at the spectacle of a butterfly’s wings. Yet fewer of us will appreciate the intricate biology that lies behind
Damon Smith says keep the tissues handy to watch this teen love sobfest Only a frozen heart could be unmoved as E.T. bids farewell to Elliot, Bambi cries forlornly in the forest for his fallen mother or Carl falls in love with Ellie in the opening
‘What muscles she’s got, and what a pair of lungs!” As quoted by Miguel de Cervantes, Don Quixote’s faithful squire Sancho Panza is considerably less starry-eyed than his master concerning Dulcinea, the old fighter’s muse who supplies the principal
A motorcyclist has been taken to hospital after a crash on the A329. An air ambulance was sent to the scene, near the turn for Great Milton, but the driver of the Suzuki motorbike was taken to the John Radcliffe hospital by land ambulance.
Giles Woodforde sees some trump performances in Dealer's Choice at the Playhouse To some, a game of poker conjures up images of men crouched over green baize tables, piles of gambling chips in front of them, smoking fat cigars. To the ignorant
I think the cause of rows of empty seats in the theatre is the show’s title. It doesn’t give you any idea of what to expect. I looked up its meaning. “A flashmob is a group of people who assemble suddenly in a public place to perform an unusual and
Nicola Lisle hears how Fidelio is at the heart of a weekend offering plenty of inspiring intellectual events Garsington Opera doesn’t normally do revivals. But this year, artistic director Douglas Boyd decided to revive the company’s 2009 production
Iam not what you would call a connoisseur of opera. Folk, rock and blues are more up my street. It was fortunate, then, that all those genres were combined in Humphrey ‘Huck’ Astley’s new operetta, Alexander The Great. Last Thursday, I meandered
Imagine, if you can, Lewis Carroll’s Alice transported into the 21st Century. This exhibition does. It celebrates Alice and her Wonderland, 150 years on and in doing so introduces contemporary ideas, images and fantasies, each taking the imagination
QUESTION: Outside of this office, I am to be found most evenings and weekends working on my allotment. What exactly is the legal position of someone holding an allotment? ANSWER: An allotment is an area of land leased either from a private body
AT the moment Oxfordshire County Council does not have much control over the expansion of its primary schools and it has no way of tackling it unless the Government listens to submissions, writes John Howson. If the Government wants to hurtle ahead
A GROUP is hoping to make food tastier in Oxford after the launch of a new charter, but it cannot enforce change. City councillor John Tanner has signed an opt-in constitution called the Good Food Oxford Charter. Good Food Oxford, which formed
Anne James reports on a show by students of the Ruskin School of Art Twenty-three young artists are taking part in this year’s Ruskin Degree Show. Last year it attracted more than 5,000 visitors, including art professionals and representatives
This week I made an astonishing discovery and found something I thought had been lost. As a student in the late 1980s it seemed everyone had a cause to fight for, an injustice to right and a protest to make. It is a wonder there was any time left in
Katherine MacAlister talks to Emma Williams who, along with Jason Donovan, will take on Annie with all guns blazing Having harboured a crush on her teen idol for years, Emma Williams had to kiss Jason Donovan within minutes of meeting him. “It
GARY Waddock admitted the unveiling of the Sky Bet League Two fixtures yesterday has really got him buzzing. Oxford United will start their 2014-15 campaign with a home match against Burton Albion on Saturday, August 9 – their first opening Football
JOB roles could be gradually lost as part of a partnership scheme involving four councils to save £55m over the next decade. West Oxfordshire District Council’s cabinet yesterday agreed to share services with Cheltenham Borough Council, Forest
THE sun was shining as two leaders unveiled their new plans for an Oxfordshire solar network. Oxford City Council deputy leader Ed Turner and Barbara Hammond, chief executive of Low Carbon Hub, said a £2.3m council loan will power a new generation
A WOMAN has said she feels betrayed after her step-father admitted setting up a secret camera to film her. Scarlett Seldon, 23, has waived her right to anonymity to be named in the Oxford Mail to talk about the impact it has had on her and her
THE closure of HMV is a sign of the times. For many, the sight of Nipper the dog and the gramophone was an integral part of amassing their record collection. Pop fans would rush to the store for the latest releases on vinyl, then tape, then CD.
DRAW your own stickers is a wonderful idea. The Pratchett family have saved themselves a small fortune given the cost of buying official Panini World Cup stickers. It also brings them all together as they sit and plan which football player they
AN OXFORD couple’s bizarre attempts to draw their own World Cup sticker book have become an internet hit. Alex and Sian Pratchett, of Iffley Road, have had 30,000 hits on their blog, Panini Cheapskates. Mr Pratchett, 30, started collecting
A BROKEN-down bus is causing delays through Abingdon. The double decker vehicle has broken down at the junction of Oxford Road and Radley Road. Thames Valley Police was called to the road at about 8.10am to help clear traffic.
A controversial application for a betting shop in Rose Hill has been approved. Councillors passed the bid to change the use of the shop in Courtland Road to a bookmakers at the East Area Planning Committee last night. There had been local objections
Oxfordshire kept their Middleton Cup hopes alive with a 121-110 win over the Isle of Wight at Shanklin. The 15-7 points victory means that Oxon are still in with an outside chance of qualifying from South Group Section B. But, with Hampshire
Oxfordshire's Katherine Hawes helped England retain their British Isles Women’s International Series title in Jersey. Having received a late call-up into the team, the Oxford City & County star played her part as England won all four of their
Oxfordshire Under 25s were pipped 45-42 by Surrey in the White Rose Trophy national double rink regional semi-final at Iver Heath. Oxfordshire U25 42, Surrey U25 45 (Oxon U25 rinks first) Rink 1: S Watts, L Wilkinson, S Cooper, G Schwab
Young mum Joanna Bull died of multiple injuries after a collision on the M40 last week, an inquest heard yesterday. Mrs Bull, 29, of Kenilworth, Warwickshire, died after her Peugeot was in a collision with a lorry southbound between junctions nine
A JCB digger worth £15,000, has been stolen from the Hithercroft industrial estate in Wallingford. Owner Matthew Hopkins, 40, from Garford, near Abingdon, said the digger was insured for road use, but his insurance cover did not include theft.
THE chief executive of Oxfordshire County Council has been given an honorary degree by Oxford Brookes. Joanna Simons received the award at the Faculty of Health and Life Sciences ceremony yesterday. She is one of a number of people to get the
OXFORD Brookes University’s controversial new building has won a prestigious national award. The Royal Institute of British Architecture (RIBA) has awarded the £132m John Henry Brookes Building its National Award. It means the building could
Caroline Campion and Carole Galletly (Banbury Central) together with Gail Gilkes and Myra Lewis (Oxford City & County) qualified for the National Pairs Champion-ships at Leamington in August. Campion and Galletly booked their place with a resounding
Headington A maintained their advantage at the top of Division 1 in the Oxford & District League, sponsored by Yarnton Nurseries, with an emphatic 5-1 win at Witney Mills. Allan Wiggins’s rink provided the only point for the home side with
Tim Hughes meets the brains behind the low-carbon, largely acoustic Tandem Festival Generations of Oxfordshire schoolchildren have known it for bracing breaks in the coun-try, communing with nature and learning about the environment. This weekend
HEADINGTON Road Runners A came on strong to retain their Ridgeway Relay title. Despite only taking the lead on leg nine of ten, they finished 5½ minutes clear of second-placed Vale of Aylesbury during an exciting day’s off-road racing along the
Can you imagine not being able to speak the language in the country where you live? It makes ordinary everyday tasks like catching a bus, talking to the doctor, talking to your child’s teacher or buying something from a shop a huge challenge.
When Katie Griffiths left Oxford Brookes University, she knew she wanted to do 'something creative', but at first she did not think of drawing on the skills she had learned in her holiday job, nor of the joy she had experienced in her grandmother's
THERE are reports that the A415 Westbound is partially blocked after a collision on the A420 at Kingston Bagpuize. More to follow.
MORE than £3.8m is invested in Oxford’s economy every year by McDonald’s, the fast food chain has claimed. The retailer said it had calculated the figure by adding up how much money its restaurants and suppliers make. McDonald’s opened its
AN ARREST warrant has been issued for a woman who admitted kicking someone in the head as they lay on the ground. Joanne Moriarty, of Hart Street, Oxford, pleaded guilty at Oxford Crown Court to carrying out an assault which caused actual bodily
PROUDLY flying the flag of your country during the World Cup is an essential part of the experience for many fans. But Ivor Saunders, of Abingdon Road, has taken it a step further having put up 16 outside his home in celebration of the tournament
7:12pm A bid for cash to refurbish Witney's Corn Exchange has been rejected by the Heritage Lottery Fund 2:15pm A security van is believed to have been
THE A40 has re-opened after an earlier collision between the Cutteslowe Roundabout and the B4150 at Marston. Police have confirmed it was a damage-only collision and the road has now re-opened.
ENGLAND fan Darren Bungay is confident the Three Lions will still progress to the knockout stages. Darren, 42, from Grove, allowed his 11-year-old son Richard, and his two school friends to stay up late for Saturday’s 11pm showdown with Italy,
AFTER weeks of exciting build-up, the World Cup has well and truly begun with the first round of group fixtures completed. For the football fans from across the world who call Oxfordshire home, it has been a mixture of highs and lows following
Always a director to divide audiences, Bruno Dumont applies his patented brand of naturalist minimalism to a biopic in Camille Claudel 1915, which departs from the austerity of his earlier features only to the extent that as he has broken with tradition
As the World Cup approaches its mid-point, football fans are going to need something to plug the gaps in their nightly viewing schedule once the group stages are over. Produced by Fernando Meirelles and directed by Marcelo Machado, Hank Levine and
Ghanaian Pauline Anaman, 24, watched her side’s 2-1 defeat to the USA with fellow countrymen and Americans in Oxford University’s Wadham College bar. She said: “It was really tough on Ghana to concede at the end but I think the players put in a lot
LAWRENCE Clarke says England are aiming for another one-two-three at the Commonwealth Games. The 24-year-old, from Christmas Common, won bronze in the 110m hurdles as a relative unknown at Delhi 2010, with Andy Turrner taking gold and William Sharman
ASTON Rowant’s Nick Ferraby has been picked in Oxford University’s team to face Cambridge in the One-Day Varsity match at Lord’s tomorrow (11am). The Oxford side, who will be hoping to retain their one-day crown, are captained by former Magdalen
TWO Oxfordshire teams who have played in finals at Lord’s will meet in a special celebration match at Tiddington tomorrow (2pm). The game is between the Oxfordshire Over 50s team who beat Lancashire to win the national title in 2008, and the Tiddington
THE chairman of the county’s official health and social care watchdog has quit over rows with “hostile” and “unpleasant” board members. Healthwatch Oxfordshire’s Larry Sanders stepped down after walking out of a board meeting of the group last
SHOPPERS visited HMV in Oxford for the last time before the music store closed its doors for good yesterday. Administrators announced in January the Cornmarket Street store would shut in March, but the closure date was then extended until yesterday
HUSBAND and wife David and Jessica Bruce, from Oxford, both secured top-three finishes at the Man v Horse race in Llanwrtyd Wells, Wales. The 23-mile off-road race sees runners set off first, with the horses in pursuit. David came third in
PAUL Fernandez fell just short of the 200km barrier during the Gloucester 24-hour track race. The Abingdon AC ultra marathon specialist finished third after completing 498 400m laps. This gave the 40-year-old a total distance of 199.2km, with
A MAN campaigning for fathers’ rights has been fined £50 for illegally parking his car outside Prime Minister David Cameron’s constituency office in Witney’s High Street. Chris Tompson, 38, has had his car parked for more than three days, when
THOUSANDS of pounds have been raised for good causes at a boxing club’s annual charity competition. South Moreton Boxing Club invited 28 fighters to take part in 14 fights for their chosen charity at its Summer Rumble earlier this month. About
AN ARSON attack which killed two children was motivated by a turf war between rival drug dealers, a barrister said. The claim was made yesterday by an advocate representing Fiaz Munshi, who is on trial facing two counts of murder at Oxford Crown
PROTECTION for Oxford’s world famous views of the dreaming spires is set to be updated following a major study. It comes in the aftermath of the controversy over Oxford University’s Castle Mill student blocks scheme, which campaigners say has blighted
PLAYING with the traditional toy of a wooden cup and ball, Tristan Matthews learns about the First World War. The Five Acres Primary School pupil was taking part in a project with the Soldiers of Oxfordshire Museum in Woodstock to mark 100 years
ACCLAIMED children’s author Michael Morpurgo gripped his audience at The Manor prep school near Abingdon yesterday. The War Horse author visited the school to thank pupils for helping out at the musical reading of his book The Mozart Question at
THE number of Oxfordshire girls calling a forced marriage and honour abuse helpline is set to double this year. And an Oxford Muslim leader admitted there was a problem in the city and warned the new law criminalising the practice cannot fight
(senior men unless stated) RIDGEWAY RELAY Top 10: 1 Headington A (R Skilbeck 1.09.13, J Woods 42.20, R Ashby 1.04.00, R Campbell (L) 38.18, D Gavaghan 1.09.56, F Campbell 1.03.14, A Heuck M 59.09, D Moore (L) 51.21, C Dettmar 1.03.37, J Smith
CRY Havoc Morris dancers sang and danced farewell to their favourite landlords, Phil and Karen Middleton. The couple, aged 56 and 54, have run the Prince of Wales pub in Shippon for four years and hosted Cry Havoc many times, but are stepping down
