Archive

  • Residents demand a new road crossing

    RESIDENTS who live at a new housing development near Wallingford say a crossing is urgently needed to make their lives safer. Niall Hammond and his partner Cathy Block, who live in Villa Close, Cholsey Meadows, have launched a Facebook campaign

  • ‘More time’ plea on transport blueprint

    COUNCILLORS are calling for consultation on the county’s new transport plan to be extended to give them enough time to consider it properly. Oxfordshire County Council has been accused of trying to “steam roll” through its local transport plan,

  • Hundreds join fight against renaming station

    MORE than 300 people have signed an online petition to stop Bicester Town Station being renamed Bicester Village. In a decision made by Chiltern Railways, the railway station will be renamed as part of the £130m high-speed rail line connecting

  • Dogs to have their day at 18th Thame Country Fair

    SKATEBOARDERS towed by horses and a new World of Dogs Arena are set to appear at the 18th annual Thame Country Fair. On Easter Sunday and Monday the traditional fair in Kingsey Road, Thame, will draw visitors from across Oxfordshire with stalls

  • Experts spread their advice on self-build homes

    HUNDREDS turned up to find out more about proposals for the UK’s largest self-build site in Bicester. A series of free self-build seminars were led by industry experts, including TV presenter Charlie Luxton, to advise residents on building their

  • Rare artefact to take pride of place at revamped museum

    A RARE 17th century bronze mortar will be the star attraction at the newly renovated Tolsey Museum in Burford when it opens for the new season tomorrow. Museum chairman Chris Walker decided to purchase the Burford-made mortar for the museum when

  • Tale of young sleuths lands award for first-time author

    FORMER Dragon School pupil Robin Stevens found inspiration for her prize-winning children’s book in the Jericho Cafe. Miss Stevens was awarded £2,000 for Murder Most Unladylike, which won the Best Younger Fiction category at the Waterstones Children

  • Looking back...

    2005 * Graham Rix, regarded by many as one of the worst managers in Oxford United’s history, has left the club, chairman Firoz Kassam announced. * A boozed-up burglar from Didcot broke into a Swindon cafe to raid the drinks cabinet, then called

  • Search for painter of pool mural

    Does anyone know who painted the underwater mural on the walls of Blackbird Leys swimming pool in Oxford? We would like to know before we lose the pool. TERRY BREMBLE Swimming teacher

  • Offer extended to house owner

    I am hoping you can reunite this picture, showing work on a house extension, with its owner. I came across it in a book I bought from a charity shop some time ago. If anyone wants to claim the picture, please contact Memory Lane.  

  • Former pupils provide further Donnington School memories

    What a pleasant reminder of happy times at Donnington School in Oxford (Memory Lane, January 19). Lessons were well structured and serious, and playtimes were terrific. Playground games followed one craze after the other - conkers, skipping

  • FOOTBALL: Berinsfield send Watlington down

    Berinsfield needed two late goals to see off bottom side Watlington Town 3-1 and keep their North Berks League Division 1 title aspirations alive, writes PHIL ANNETS. With the away side’s league status on the line, they hung on until late in the

  • Three generations caught on camera

    I enclose a picture of my grandfather, who was a blacksmith in St Peter’s Place, Wallingford. As you can see from the sign above, his name was Lansley, but he died when I was very young and I do not know his first name. In the doorway with

  • Bakery makes 90,000 buns

    Staff at the Cadena Bakery in Oxford must have been sick of the sight of hot cross buns when they finished their lengthy shift. June Wheeler, 17, a bakery apprentice, is pictured with some of the 90,000 buns the bakery produced in 1965. The

  • Crowds flock for procession

    More than 150 people – and a donkey – took part in a Palm Sunday procession between Crowmarsh and Wallingford in 1982. Richard Fanston, six, is pictured as Jesus, on Annabel the donkey. The procession, marking Christ’s triumphant entry into

  • Changes ensure pupils are on right track

    PUPILS at a North Oxford school have succeeded in persuading transport bosses to make changes to a cycle route they use. Last November Cherwell School collected the signatures of more than 600 students on a petition to divide a cycle route beside

  • Club spawned by gatecrasher

    The Oxford Club League, which organised a host of mainly indoor sports, owed its existence to a woman ‘gatecrasher’. She caused consternation when she turned up as a member of a hitherto all-male bar billiards team. At a meeting of the bar

  • Princess graces palace for a charity fashion show by Dior

    It was the fashion show of the year when Christian Dior agreed to bring his latest creations to Oxfordshire. The famous French designer was persuaded by the Duchess of Marlborough to stage the show at Blenheim Palace in 1954 in aid of the British

  • Sub-aqua club opens its doors

    The Oxford Sub-Aqua Club held an open evening to show newcomers what they could expect when they joined its ranks. Sylvia Whitaker, one of the organisers, is seen fitting lungs to new member Alan Bloomfield at Temple Cowley baths in 1964.

  • Families are singled out for their wartime contributions

    It was not unusual for families to have a large number of relatives serving in the First World War. We reported (Oxford Mail, December 24) that a Mrs Lord, of Magdalen Road, Oxford, had six sons and six nephews fighting the Germans – and received

  • The changing face of Chilton

    Auctioneer Ivor Bowden cajoled atomic energy staff to part with money at a lunch in 1978 to support Red Cross famine relief work. One of the items on sale was a giant pumpkin. Sixty people attended and nearly £70 was raised. A drainpipe was

  • Youngsters’ dreams come true thanks to mum’s idea

    These young performers were preparing to go down the Yellow Brick Road. They were members of the Oxford-based Sparkle Stage Set, and were getting ready to entertain audiences with four performances of the timeless classic The Wizard of Oz.

  • Charities’ delight at fund boost

    TWO Oxfordshire charities have joined three other organisations across the South East to benefit from the latest round of Big Lottery Fund grants. Style Acre, based in Crowmarsh Gifford, near Wallingford, received a £271,874 three-year grant to

  • Plenty of trails to keep the off-road bikers thrilled

    Cycling-wise, my family’s move from East Oxford to Charlbury couldn’t have been smarter. There’s a fantastic range of formal and informal off-road riding in the rolling hills all around, with trails literally on my doorstep. Some of these trails

  • Protesters seem to be incomers not real locals

    Regarding the housing development protests in Benson, I would like to put forward my view on the situation. I’ve been a village resident for more than 25 years and have, along with many of my peers, grown up in Benson. This is something I believe

  • Can we invoice foreign criminals’ governments?

    All those officers involved in smashing this £24m drugs ring (Mail, March 25) are to be highly commended for their hard work and the sentences passed must have given extreme satisfaction for a job well done. One thing occurs to me though. If foreign

  • Kenny hoping to end unlucky 13 months of being homeless

    AN UNWANTED dog is in desperate need of a loving home after spending more than 400 lonely days an Oxfordshire animal centre. Homeless hound Kenny, a collie-cross Staffordshire bull terrier, has spent more than 9,700 hours at charity Blue Cross’

  • £100,000 a day on agency workers is just ridiculous

    Essential services, especially in hospitals, should not have to depend on temporary staff (March 16). To read that the NHS pays out £100,000 a day to keep staff, the majority being agency workers is ridiculous, especially in a country that promotes

  • With austerity, how can the HS2 cost be justified?

    In these days of austerity where there are cuts here, there and everywhere, how can we afford £50bn to spend on a HS2 rail link between London and the Midlands? The Lords have said it cannot be justified and Ukip is against it. The proposed

  • What a lot of fuss over the bones of Richard III

    What an absolutely pathetic testament to human folly that all this fuss, both official and popular, should be made over the mortal remains, such as they are, of some medieval king. Whether saint, sinner or simply of average virtue for the time,

  • Lack of parking could cause a patient’s death

    Oxfordshire County Council and Oxford City Council’s “assertion” (March 20) that there will be no more car parking spaces at the John Radcliffe or Churchill hospitals should be allowed is illogical and dangerous. It will cause deaths as patients

  • He keeps on running for charity challenge

    A FAMILY man who set himself a target of running three miles a day for a year says he is determined to reach his goal. Toby Christensen, from Grove near Wantage, has run at least three miles a day for the last 216 days as part of a 1,095-mile challenge

  • Youngsters get lesson in flower power

    BEES, butterflies and beetles were at the heart of a bid to brighten up The Stinky organised for the children of Marston. Youngsters from New Marston Primary School and the Northway and Marston Children’s Centre planted wild flowers in Peasmoor

  • How to find health advice during Easter

    PATIENTS in Oxfordshire have been reminded there are a range of health services available if they need help and advice when their GP practice is closed for Easter. Most surgeries in the county will close for four days from Good Friday (April 3)

  • ‘Match at Twickenham is great for women’s rugby’

    Tess Braunerova Captain of Oxford University Women’s Rugby Club The Oxford University Women’s Rugby Blues will step onto the hallowed pitch at Twickenham Stadium in December to take on old rivals Cambridge for the Varsity match. It will be

  • New Blavatnik building beginning to take shape

    THE Blavatnik School of Government in Jericho is starting to take shape as building work entered its 80th week yesterday. It is hoped that the Radcliffe Observatory Quarter building – one of the newest and most prominent in the city – will be finished

  • Gold engagement ring stolen in Banbury burglary

    Burglars broke into a property in Banbury and stole jewellery including a gold engagement ring. The incident took place between 12.30pm and 2.30pm on Saturday, March 21 in Causeway but Thames Valley Police only released the information today.

  • 100 people facing redundancy at Agilent Technologies

    ABOUT 100 staff at a Yarnton office are facing being made redundant after US-based life sciences company Agilent Technologies decided to stop manufacturing one of its products. Neil Rees, Agilent’s country managing director for the UK, said the

  • Police still working to identify body found in Thames

    POLICE are still working to identify the body of a woman that was found in the River Thames on Friday. It is thought Thames Valley Police will not be able to name the woman, who was found in the water behind Weirs Lane, South Oxford, until the

  • Patrick Hoban happy to reward Oxford United's faith

    Patrick Hoban thanked boss Michael Appleton and his Oxford United teammates for keeping faith in him after the longest scoring drought of his career came to an end. The striker had racked up exactly 19 hours on the pitch when he headed Kemar Roofe

  • Two people charged following slavery raids

    TWO people have been charged this morning with slavery and fraud offences. Christopher Joyce, 81, of Redbridge Hollow, Old Abingdon Road, Oxford, and Mary Joyce, 59, of Redbridge Hollow, Old Abingdon Road, Oxford, have both been charged with several

  • Rapist nurse blames spying addiction + video

    AN A&E nurse with an “addiction” to spying on women has admitted raping and sexually assaulting unconscious patients at Oxford’s John Radcliffe Hospital. Andrew Hutchinson yesterday pleaded guilty to 27 offences in a case a senior police officer

  • City council told new on-the-spot fines infringe human rights

    A GROUP that campaigns against excessive red tape has spoken out against Oxford City Council’s plans to introduce on-the-spot fines for antisocial behaviour in the city centre. The Manifesto Club said the council’s plans to ban some begging and

  • Rail bosses 90 per cent confident Easter work won't overrun

    RAIL bosses say they are more than 90 per cent certain major engineering works over Easter will be completed on time. Overrunning works caused chaos on routes into London after Christmas but Network Rail managers said they have learnt lessons and

  • Nicola Blackwood: I'm battling a genetic mobility condition

    NICOLA Blackwood has revealed she has been battling with a genetic condition for years but believes it has not affected her performance as a politician. The Conservative prospective parliamentary candidate for Oxford West & Abingdon spoke to

  • MOTORSPORT: Georgina Polden puts bike on show

    Kidlington teenager Georgina Polden will put her new Moto3 bike on show at an open evening at the Kings Two Wheel Centre in the village tonight (6-8pm). The 18-year-old will be competing on the machine in the British Championship this year.

  • RACING: Rhapando ends wait for Paul Webber

    Rhapando gave Banbury trainer Paul Webber his first winner for more than three months when scoring at Kempton yesterday. Tom O’Brien sent the six-year-old into the lead after the fourth last in a handicap chase over an extended two and a half miles

  • Rollright Stones recognised as top spot for star gazers

    AN ancient site popular with astronomers has been officially recognised as a top place to stargaze. The Rollright Stones, near Chipping Norton, received the Dark Sky Discovery award at a special ceremony on Saturday. The status is awarded to

  • RUGBY UNION: Bicester lose to basement boys Milton Keynes

    BICESTER were unable to build upon their recent good form as they were beaten 24-17 by relegated Milton Keynes in Southern Counties North. The league’s bottom side recorded their first points of the season in a scrappy encounter, but Steve Limbrick

  • DARTS: Oxon's title hopes dented by rock bottom Somerset

    JON Jukes starred as the men’s A team won, but it was not enough for Oxfordshire as they lost 19-17 away to Somerset. The result against the basement side saw them lose ground in the British Inter Counties Championship Division 1 title race.

  • HOCKEY: Hawks end campaign with convincing win

    OXFORD Hawks ended their South League Premier campaign on a high note with a convincing 4-1 win away to fourth-placed Old Cranleighans. The visitors made a bright start as Matt Wood fired them ahead with a fierce shot and he added another before

  • GOLF: New captains breeze into office

    WET and windy weather did not dampen spirits as captains drove into office at three clubs. A year in charge began for skippers at Studley Wood, Oxford City and Oxford Ladies in difficult conditions on Sunday. More than £1,100 was raised for

  • DARTS: Corner House hit back to lift crown

    CORNER HOUSE came from behind to beat Chequers Inn A 6-3 and claim the Section 2 title in the Greene King Oxford & District League. Chequers Inn held a two-point advantage ahead of the match, but blew a 3-2 lead. Steve Coling, Paul Bustin

  • RUGBY: Banbury Bulls secure third despite Pinley loss

    BANBURY Bulls secured third place in Midlands 2 West South, despite falling to a 10-3 defeat at the hands of Pinley. Bulls picked up a bonus point from the defeat and they are an unassailable seven points ahead of Malvern. Banbury’s final match

  • Teen threatened to burn down ex-girlfriend's caravan

    A TEENAGER who threatened to burn down his ex-partner’s caravan has been given a suspended sentence after admitting affray. Alex Tobin, 19, of Station Caravan Park in Banbury, had an argument with his ex-girlfriend on January 18 in which he grabbed