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Jaine Blackman finds a book which makes her laugh... and cry Quicksand is both wonderfully funny and heart-breakingly sad... often on the same page and sometimes in the same sentence. Ideas come thick and fast and it’s packed with clever insights

DRIVERS on Botley Road are once again facing long delays heading in to the city tonight. Traffic is building up with cars at a standstill from Frideswide Square right back to the McDonalds on the Botley Road. Reports also show Beaumont Street

AN OXFORD woman whose sister was killed in the 7/7 London bombings has created a website to teach schoolchildren about the terrorist attacks. Cowley Road resident Esther Hyman will launch the site to mark the 10th anniversary of the tragedy in

Sir – Surprise, surprise. Charges up, number of cars using Water Eaton park-and-ride drop by more than a third. Congestion on Oxford’s ring roads up. Charges at city car parks up. Number of proposed expensive alternative schemes, like trams, tunnels

Sir – Neil Riley (Letters, May 14) rightly draws our attention to the devastating illness ME/CFS. Here in Oxfordshire the patient support and campaign group is OMEGA (Oxfordshire ME Group for Action). Research has indeed shown ME to be the biggest

Sir – I am not sure how figures can be arrived at about damage done to business in Oxford since introducing park-and-ride charges. This is because particularly in the case of those that used to park at Water Eaton and described as having gone somewhere

Sir – All the people I have spoken to feel that the £1.6 million cost of revising the Plain roundabout could have been better used. Except for buses, all traffic going to and coming from the John Radcliffe Hospital has to use Headley Way. Difficult

Sir – Last Friday, May 22, at 9pm I unexpectedly watched on BBC 2 the third episode of four directed by Steve Humphries for the BBC, a programme series called Britain’s Greatest Generation. It was a fascinating documentary series dedicated to the nation

Sir – The managing director of the Oxford Bus Company, Phil Southall, claims that the proposed rises in bus fares are due in the main to rising costs. Would Mr Southall like to inform the travelling public just how much his and other bus companies

Sir – May I thank publicly the expert-and sympathetic help I got from NHS staff on the night of Monday, May 11. I thought I was having a heart attack, but it turned out to be no more than a muscle strain. Nevertheless, the paramedics (Dawn,

Sir – I have been busking in Oxford for the past 30 years and I have never seen any of those demonstrators before, apart from Mr Walker who has just appeared recently. I think they should also mention the true reason why they want to busk in Oxford

Sir – I have noticed recently that the lights in the new parking section at Thornhill park-and-ride are switched off late at night. I understand the need to save electricity but I think it would be possible to install some motion-activated lights

Sir – Thank you Oxfordshire County Council, your notice “Variation” of Charges to Pay and Display On Street Parking Places in Central Oxford did make me smile, (Public Notices, May 21). I compared all the current charges and the new charges and

Sir – Your columnist, Christopher Gray, was a little unfair on broadcaster Brian Matthew and his producer in his column of May 21 – inadvertently, I’m sure. Mr Gray asserted that Messrs Matthew and Swern allowed a record to be played which could have

Sir – Oxford Brookes’ new Vice-Chancellor tells us that “the average life of a university building is 30 years” (Feature, May 21). Anyone looking around Oxford might conclude that for the average to be 30 years, some buildings must last less than

Sir – I am really beginning to think that I must be living in some kind of ‘wonderland’. How can a proposed selective Free Grammar School be described by Oxfordshire County Council cabinet member Melinda Tilley as a “brilliant idea” (Report, May

Sir – Your leader and Reg Little’s front page piece (May 21) deserve serious attention. An undergraduate in 1950, I returned to Oxford in 1959, excited to become a GP, the third doctor in a city practice. The NHS was in its early days and had transformed

Sir – Your correspondent Frank Newhofer speaks of the ‘terrible consequences’ that will result from the Conservatives having won an overall parliamentary majority despite winning the votes of only a quarter of the electorate, and of how a new political

Sir – It is great news that the Corn Exchange, Witney, has reopened but I was dismayed to see that the stage has been completely removed during the restoration. As a teenager I was involved in many productions with Witney Dramatic Society and I

Sir – Part of the unique charm of Oxford, and not least its distinctive physical layout, comes from the river valleys of the Isis and the Cherwell. A look at the ‘blue’ areas on the Environment Agency flood risk map provides the reason: little

Sir – Is the city council mad? One of the few things that helps lift the atmosphere of our depressing city shopping streets is the busking. Compared to the desultory buskers you see in many other foreign cities, street music in Oxford is something

Sir – John Barrow’s letter regarding the poor quality of the cook-chill food prepared in Wales and served 24 hours later in Oxford city hospitals (May 14) brings to mind the will of Dr John Radcliffe; he of the Radcliffe Camera, Radcliffe Square, the

Sir – You report (May 21) that surgeries are struggling to retain GPs. There are things patients can do to help. For example, if you don’t already, can you limit your sitting and sleeping to just 23.5 hours a day? There’s an excellent short video

Sir – It’s been a hard time recently for trees in Oxford. The fine mature plane trees in Castle Street have been felled to make room for possible bus stops, when moving the projected stops two feet would have saved them. A far worse environmental

Sir – Tongue-in-cheek Mark McArthur-Christie writes (Letters, May 14): “cyclists are “dreadfully hard done-to” and always “right” about almost everything“. What might a former policy director of the Association of British Drivers be saying? Why?

David McManus asks if playing violent video games links with crime The controversy over the potential social impact of violent video games never falls too far from current headlines. Without doubt the most talked about titles over a number

When Blenheim Palace held an exhibition by dissident Chinese artist Ai Weiwei, it had the desired effect of attracting different types people compared to those who usually visit the historic site. Blenheim Palace chief executive John Hoy said:

Giles Woodforde speaks to David Mather who has spent his life keeping us moving When David Mather first arrived in Oxford in 1972 as British Rail’s assistant area manager, it was impossible to imagine today’s overcrowded commuter trains – let alone

Seamus Perry is slipping away from the drama of ‘the election’ Nominations for the Professor of Poetry are now closed, and our five contenders stand before the great institution of Oxonian democracy. Some colleagues are offering me their predictions

Author Graham McKechnie on the remarkable life of Frederick Kelly From T E Lawrence to Field Marshal Sir Douglas Haig and British Prime Ministers Herbert Asquith and Clement Attlee to name but a few, Oxford has given the country more than its fair

RAIL companies through Oxfordshire have reacted to the news of a rail strike next week. Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union members will hold a 24-hour strike from 5pm BST on June 4 and a 48-hour strike from 5pm on June 9. A strike

Cycling along the Cowley Road a couple of days ago, I noticed the advertisment you can see below in a photograph taken with my iPhone. The purpose of the display is to promote the sale of Lurpak butter, though the ‘b’ word isn’t actually used.

The book-buying habits and library of the late F.E. Smith, Lord Birkenhead, are not subjects that had ever crossed my mind. But then, twice on the same day, I found references to them in books that I was reading. The first one came in the journals

Reg Little meets a doctor whose deep brain stimulation treatment is used worldwide When Prof Tipu Aziz implanted electrodes inside the brain of a young woman, the potential of his life’s work became known to millions. For this experimental

RADIO plays about Oxford’s famous canal that dazzled an audience in Jericho last year have been given the professional treatment. The four 10-minute performances were produced as part of a competition held by Oxford Canal Heritage, which aims to

Dominic Utton is entertaining us one last time Brace yourself, dear reader: I have news. After nearly three years and 71 fortnightly half-pages, this is to be the final missive from Off the Rails. I started this column back in August 2012 as

Christopher Gray makes triply sure he can recommend a revamped pub As with any long-established institution, good stories abound about the Perch, the wonderful riverside hostelry made famous by Lewis Carroll’s patronage which is now restored to

Helen Peacocke takes a look at a republished cookery book written by the PM’s personal chef It is such an ordinary little collection of recipes that if it wasn’t for the dishes with French names that weave their way through the pages, you might

Save yourself some money by propagating your existing plants to fill spaces in your beds and borders. Hannah Stephenson offers her tips on replenishing the gaps Living in a frost pocket, as I do, it is inevitable that each year I lose plants which

Scott Billings, public engagement officer at Oxford University Museum of Natural History, gets ready for a wild fortnight with the Oxford Festival of Nature I have witnessed the gasp on many occasions: the first time people walk through the doors

Damon Smith on the London-set movie in which Jack confuses a 34-year-old single woman for his 24-year-old blind date The romantic comedy goes back to basics in Man Up, a sweet, funny and charming tale of boy-meets-wrong-girl-but-doesn’t-realise-it

Bromance, an outstanding circus trio who took the Edinburgh Fringe by storm, are coming to the Playhouse. Louis Gift talked about the show to David Bellan Louis Gift’s discipline is free running and parkour, Beren D’Amico does martial arts and

Exactly 50 years after its memorable double staging of Christopher Marlowe’s The Jew of Malta and Shakespeare’s slightly later (and obviously derivative) The Merchant of Venice, the Royal Shakepeare Company is again performing these two plays in the

Christopher Gray enjoys city’s first amateur production of popular musical Fizzingly physical, camply comic and with its heart ever in the right place, Legally Blonde The Musical roars into the New Theatre this week in a production that can’t fail

The four works in this programme of dance are very different, yet they have much in common. They all portray extremely complex characters. Richard Alston’s choreography combines three pieces of music by Benjamin Britten and three very different

Nicola Lisle talks to Lorenzo Ghielmi about his forthcoming recital in Oxford, which honours the memory of a former graduate Italian organist Lorenzo Ghielmi last came to Oxford to join the team of coaches at the Oundle International Festival,

Singer-songwriter Joan Armatrading Oxford Playhouse Tonight Tickets £30.50 from oxfordplayhouse.com The Love and Affection singer returns to charm fans with her intimate, open-hearted songs dating back over 40 years in the business.

* Festival season hits its stride this weekend, with the first major local event of the summer. Organised by a team in Witney, Wychwood Festival is among the earliest, but nicest, al fresco gathering in the area. Held on Cheltenham Racecourse –

When it was announced back in September that Status Quo – the band with more hit singles than any other ever – would be headlining Lechlade’s fledgling festival, there was naturally a sense of shock around the quaint little Cotswold town. This

Tim Hughes on a band which knows what it’s like to swap guitars for guns With their flowing robes and turbans, Tinariwen cut an imposing dash. Their name means “people of the desert” and they look as if they have just stepped out of a Saharan sandstorm

Sarah Mayhew Craddock looks at a powerful protest to aid women Some things in life can be so difficult to stomach that it’s easier to sweep the subject under the carpet and pretend it doesn’t exist rather than tackle it head-on and try to instigate

Andy Atkinson talks to Professor John Schad about a special event that will take place at the Sheldonian Theatre Oxford’s iconic Sheldonian Theatre, which once hosted a famous interview with the controversial philosopher Jacques Derrida, is the

Katherine MacAlister talks to Nell Gifford, the founder of the magical touring circus that’s about to reach Oxfordshire again While watching an old documentary of the 1902 film A Trip To The Moon, Nell Gifford knew with absolute certainty that

THE FIRST female Vice-Chancellor of Oxford University has been nominated by committee members and could take up her post next January. Professor Louise Richardson, currently the Principal and Vice-Chancellor of the University of St Andrews, said

It is one of the jewels in Oxford’s crown. Sitting arrogantly in its over-the-top gothic splendour on Parks Road, the Oxford University Museum of Natural History is the kind of establishment other cities most gaze upon in envy. Dinosaur skeletons

Tim Hughes enjoys a great-value taste of modern French cuisine, courtesy of master chef Raymond Blanc There’s nothing fake about Raymond Blanc. Unlike countless celebrity chefs who give their name to streams of identikit chain eateries, the

Starting Up with Chris Bowling @ The Oxford Wine Festival I have lived in and around Oxford for more than 20 years, experiencing it both as a student and now as a local resident. Two years ago I finally got the chance to pursue a dream, and

Chef's Special with Chris Bentham at The Black Boy, Headington I studied at college in Derby, and worked in a five-star hotel before gaining a position under Raymond Blanc and working my way up to be one of his head chefs. I now have my own

Stuart Macbeth talks to Nickolas Rossi about his directorial debut Heaven Adores You Filmmaker Nickolas Rossi was a student in Portland, Oregon, in the 1990s when he first heard the music of the late Elliott Smith. Rossi frequently saw the

A WOMAN is still in hospital three days after being in a collision with a Landrover Discovery in Banbury, police said. The 73-year-old woman was involved in the accident at the Banbury Cross Retail Park, Lockheed Close, on Monday. She was walking

Andrew Ffrench looks at Didcot – a town in the throes of renewal and regeneration. And then there were three. During the early hours of July 27 last year the view of the horizon in Didcot changed forever. Following months of detailed planning

Andrew Ffrench soaks up the beauty of a Saxon town with its head firmly in the 21st century. Historic market town Wallingford is proud of its past and its appearance has not altered a great deal since Victorian times. But its 8,000 residents

TWO people from Wantage are set to go to court after a teenager was assaulted, police said. Brian Huntley, 26, of St Mary’s, Wantage, and a 17-year-old boy from Wantage, have both been charged with one count of using threatening or abusive words

Pete Hughes finds himself strangely at home in a town which could lay claim to being the county’s quirkiest. With its guerilla gardening, wife carrying race and slightly-barmy lord of the manor, Faringdon ranks as one of Oxfordshire’s quirkiest

Katherine MacAlister finds out more about an award-winning comedy debuting at the Fringe Off The Canvas and Red Dog Theatre Company present the UK premiere of award-winning dark comedy Arthur and Esther at this year’s Oxford Fringe Festival.

Pete Hughes on the rustic charms of Wantage, in the heart of the Vale of White Horse. After nearly two millennia of continuous habitation, the peaceful market town of Wantage is changing more now than ever. The population is set to double as

Jazz band leader Stuart Macbeth talks to one of his heroes – the equally eccentric American country, ragtime and blues artist Pokey LaFarge, ahead of his Oxford show Pokey LaFarge can trace his musical roots back to the aptly named town of Normal

Alex Wynick delves into the history of the proud market town of Abingdon. It has only been part of Oxfordshire since 1974, after a change in boundaries took it out of the county of Berkshire, but Abingdon is one of the county’s greatest towns.

Duo Morgan & West tell Katherine MacAlister how their new magic show took two years to conjure up Morgan & West are very excited. Not only because they are showcasing Morgan & West’s Utterly Spiffing Spectacular Magic Show for Kids

Matt Oliver discovers Witney is a lively mix of traditional market town and modern shopping destination. The thriving heart of West Oxfordshire, Witney is a town on a steady upward trajectory. It is characterised by charming Cotswold Stone

OXFORD-BASED ethical investment platform Ethex expects about 100 people to attend its annual gathering on June 8. The firm’s chief executive Lisa Ashford said of the day-long, free event: “It’s a chance for all of our investors to learn about positive

WHEN Blenheim Palace launched a radical new initiative last year by holding an exhibition by dissident Chinese artist Ai Weiwei, it had the desired effect of attracting different types of people from those who usually visit the historic site. Blenheim

Want to give your opinion? Email letters@oxfordmail.co.uk

SO, THE truth is out. Oxfordshire County Council could afford to offer the Dial-a-Ride for the elderly. Are we not eligible for recompense? Why doesn’t the council revise the present amount per year? All passengers I have spoken to agree this is

A CAR was stolen after a burglary in Wantage, police said. Officers said thieves stole car keys from a house in Springfield Road between 7pm on May 13 and 2am on May 23. Burglars got in through a kitchen door and stole the keys to a red Nissan

BRIAN Duffy (May 21) has a point. Housing benefit enriches landlords, allowing them to increase rents above what rents would have been without the intervention of housing benefit. Yet landlords are not the only ones to gain. Housing benefit allows

I SEE that you published an article in respect of the Barton Park development but failed to publish a report on when the hedgerow was cut down and removed at Foxwell Drive. The concerns of many residents are the safety of children who will, when

REFERENCING your article (May 22) surprise, surprise, charges up and ‘Number of cars using Water Eaton park-and-ride drop by more than a third.’ Congestion on Oxford’s ring roads up. Charges at city car parks up. Number of proposed expensive alternative

WITH regards to the plans being turned down for a Hungry Horse outlet in Templars Square, there is already a family pub opposite the proposed site. Would another pub be an asset as regards the parking problem? Templars Square is surrounded

I AGREE with Catherine Bearder MEP that the Lib Dems have done much to promote civil liberties by objecting to Control Orders and various snoopers’ charters. We have a paradoxical dilemma of upholding civil liberties while protecting our national

I WOULD like to express my concerns following the report in the Oxford Mail (May 23) over the resignation of Cllr Brian Lester from Blackbird Leys Parish Council. I have been working as clerk for the parish council for over a year now and it is

A MAN was handed a two-year prison sentence after blackmailing a mother-of-two and driving while disqualified. Jonathan Mitchell, of Bennett Road, Faringdon, was sentenced at Oxford Crown Court yesterday. The 27-year-old pleaded guilty to one

OXFORD MAGISTRATES Gavin Minns, 37, of Freelands Road, Oxford, admitted stealing tanning products worth £24.98 from Sallys Salon in Nuffield Industrial Estate, Ledgers Close, Oxford on March 24. Fined £70 and ordered to pay £25.98 compensation

Sadly, domestic abuse is hardly ever out of the news. The statistics are sobering. Each year more than 120 women are killed by their partner, and more than 30 men are killed by theirs. Domestic abuse crimes account for 29 per cent of all recorded

A WOMAN who won an Oxford University award for inspirational state school teachers believes giving karate lessons honed her classroom skills. Stella Vassiliou, 37, won a 3rd Dan black belt in Shotokan Karate at the tender age of 11, and taught

THRILLSEEKERS were greeted with trapeze artists and knife throwers when the circus came to town. The high-top tent of John Lawson’s Circus will remain at Millets Farm Centre until the end of the month. Thousands of spectators were expected

A COUPLE who say they are still as much in love as the day they met on a steam train in 1951 will celebrate their diamond wedding today. Reg and Marina Pinker held a party at South Leigh village hall on Sunday, where they had their wedding reception

Tom Hayes Labour city councillor for St Clement’s For years, Oxford scientists have been leaders in warning about the threat of climate change. More recently, we’ve seen these urgings backed up by climate change-related emergencies and damage

THESE dancers will be body-popping while country hopping as they travel to Germany. The members of Oxford-based dance crew Ajos Dance will be heading to Bonn as part of the city’s twinning celebrations from May 27 to May 31. The group is a

EIGHT months after work started on the new Rose Hill Community Centre, the beginning of the final stage of construction will be marked with a special event. A topping out ceremony for the building in Ashhurst Way will be held on Friday, June 19

A tribute to blues guitar legend BB King, recorded by a 10-year-old boy in a tiger-striped onesie has been viewed more than five million times. Toby Lee, from Bloxham, posted the video on Facebook in April after the musician was taken ill in hospital

CHILDREN have been rocking out on cardboard guitars as part of the Story Museum’s children’s concert. David Gibb, from the museum in Pembroke Street, Oxford, said: “It was a triumph and a real pleasure. There were even children dancing on the way

A man accused of raping a woman in a Headington flat will be tried at Oxford Crown Court on July 27. Catalin Horhota, 41, of no fixed address, faces charges of rape and attempted rape on September 20, and two further charges of sexual assault in

Former Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney is visiting the Said Business School to give a seminar to Oxford University students today. Canada’s 18th Prime Minister will give a talk entitled The View from North America: Leadership in uncertain

The inquest was opened yesterday into the sudden death of a teacher. Oxford Academy assistant headteacher Nina Von Eichstorff, pictured, was found dead at her home by friends in Southfield Road, East Oxford, on Saturday, March 28. Assistant

A BUSINESSMAN accused of starting a house fire to target his best man has denied trying to “punish” him for having an affair with his wife. Martin Nganga, of Tiverton Road, Wembley, London, has pleaded not guilty to arson with intent to endanger

An inquest was opened yesterday into the death of a 16-year-old boy from Abingdon who died on May 18. Hamzah Abbasi was found dead at home by his mother, assistant coroner for Oxfordshire Alison Thompson told Oxford Coroner’s Court. But she

Police are still appealing for help to find a Cowley woman who has been missing for nearly a week. Sandra McDonald, from Ivy Close, was last seen on Friday and officers are becoming increasingly concerned about her. Police spokeswoman Connie Primmer

AN AMATEUR Oxford apiarist managed to wrangle a rogue swarm of bees in his garden yesterday with a little help from the Oxford Mail. Hugo Crombie, a director at Hogacre Common eco park and part-time beekeeper, was giving reporter Pete Hughes a

THE Didcot community continued to pay tribute to the three murder victims yesterday. Anaiya Turner, four, and mum Seanne Turner, 33, tied three ribbon rosettes to pay respect to Derin Jordon, six, who was murdered with her mother Jan Jordon, 48

THE view was stunning – with some of the highest peaks in the Alps spreading out in all directions, mist rising beneath them from ridges of thick forest. Sightseeing, however, was the last thing on my mind. I was perched on a small platform

A LEUKAEMIA survivor who took up wheelchair rugby has been handed his first England call-up. Matthew Wooloff was diagnosed with the cancer in 2009 and could not play any sports because it left him with weak ankles. But instead of throwing in

HASHTAG has been chosen by Oxford University Press as its Children’s Word of the Year for 2015. The publishing company analysed more than 120,000 short stories submitted by children to a BBC competition. It said the word ‘hashtag’, or

OXFORD United’s ability to land their main targets this summer is down to selling players a vision for the future rather than offering the most money, according to chief executive Mark Ashton. This week Ryan Taylor became the club’s third signing

OXFORD United have announced big changes in their retail department, which will give them more control over their design of merchandise. As part of the new plan, the shop near the ground will close on Friday and a new unit is planned onsite before

DRIVERS went from despair to delight in 24 hours as the huge traffic delays experienced on Botley Road on Tuesday disappeared yesterday. Oxfordshire County Council altered the traffic light sequence at Park End Street yesterday morning after motorists

MOTORISTS travelling into Oxford took a staggering 14 minutes to complete one mile on the Botley Road last year. Figures for 2014 show there were more vehicles than ever before travelling into Oxford and were taking longer than ever to complete

MORRIS Motors footballers will finally get their hands on the Oxfordshire Senior Cup on Saturday – more than 30 years after winning the final. And it appears that all the players, who started their 1-0 victory over Bicester Town in the 1985 final

A PROTEST at Didcot Power Station at the weekend will be monitored, police said. Officers said the No Dash For Gas group is planning a demonstration, called Reclaim the Power, between tomorrow and Tuesday. Anti-fossil fuel protesters may establish

FAMILY, friends and colleagues gathered at Oxford station to unveil a plaque commemorating a ticket barrier man who died earlier this year. The plaque has been put up where father-of-two Steve Cross stood for the best part of a decade before his

5:20pm Two new strikes have been announced by rail staff after Bank Holiday walkouts were called off 3:57pm First female nomination for Vice-Chancellor

OXFORD’S amateur ice hockey team conquered France by winning the prestigious Lyon Friendship Tournament. The Shooting Stars side had finished their English League season bottom of the Southern Conference without a victory. But they won eight

THE mother of a man who died in a supported living home has welcomed an inquiry into his death. Nico Reed, who had cerebral palsy and learning difficulties, died in Barrantynes home in Chalgrove on August 22, 2012, at the age of 23. Last December

THE future of a West Oxford pub has been thrown into doubt after its proposed licensing hours were reduced. The owners of The Holly Bush Inn, in Bridge Street, had applied to reopen the pub with a 3am closing time at weekends before Oxford City

OXFORD City & County’s Paul Lopez is set to make his Middleton Cup debut for Oxfordshire against Buckinghamshire at Waddesdon on Saturday (2pm). Lopez will play lead in the South Group Section B opener on the rink skipped by Headington’s Mark

Last week, the New York Times confirmed that it can no longer guarantee to cover every film debuting in the city. This has nothing to do with a shortage of personnel, as the paper has bucked the global trend of laying off movie reviewers in the face

Cinema has a curious habit of repeating itself. In 1967, Julie Christie was cast as Bathsheba Everdine in John Schlesinger's adaptation of Thomas Hardy's Wessex novel, Far From the Madding Crowd. Christie had become an international superstar two years

OXFORD Saints ran riot in their West Division 2 game at Torbay Trojans, winning 72-30. It sees them top the table with four wins from their opening five Southern Conference matches. Kev Brooks went over for the first score, with Spencer Duffy

SHIPLAKE took advantage of Headington’s week off to beat Oxford City & County A 5-1 and go top of Division 1 of the Oxfordshire League, sponsored by Bridle Insurance. The south Oxfordshire hosts came out on top 79-68 on shots, with their rink

OXFORDSHIRE Ladies lost by two shots to Surrey in a thrilling Walker Cup clash at Windlesham BC. A tense match came down to the final wood, with Katherine Hawes just missing the jack to give Surrey the shot they needed to clinch victory. Pat

BADEN Sparkes’s rink was key as Oxfordshire began their Home Counties League campaign with a 131-108 success away to Berkshire. Sparkes guided his men to a 22-shot win, which was just shy of the winning margin at Three Mile Cross BC. Their

Didcot Conservative Club are Section 1 champions in the Johnsons Buildbase Oxford & District League, writes PETE EWINS. A 4-1 win at Marlborough Club wrapped up the title ahead of Masons, who lost 3-2 at home to Gladiators Club. Stuart

Aston Rowant trainer Alan Hill beat his previous best tally with a double from Harbour Court and Start Royal as the curtain came down on the South Midlands Area season at Kingston Blount, near Chinnor. Hill’s brace of winners at the Berks &

Ryan Craze continued his impressive run of form with a sprint double in the Oxon & Bucks Track & Field County Championships at Horspath. The Radley ace set championship best times of 10.94 and 22.85 seconds in the under 17 100m and 200m

WITNEY Town Bowls Club went down to a single shot defeat against some of the country’s top bowlers at the official opening of their new pavilion at The Leys in Witney. Work was completed in late 2014 to replace an ageing wooden clubhouse, the new