Archive

  • Cricket: Weather denies Oxon hero Hole

    The Oxfordshire Development XI were denied victory in their two-day match with Bucks at Dinton when a thunderstorm washed out play half an hour after tea. Oxfordshire were left high and not so dry on 246-5, chasing the home side's 313 all out. Freeland's

  • Call for more golfers to help conversion project

    A round of golf will take a project a step nearer the £200,000 it needs to convert a town centre building for church and community use. All the money raised at the charity golf competition at the Springs Golf Club, North Stoke, will go the the conversion

  • Vandals force club to move

    Wallingford Bridge Club is moving out of town after 35 years because its Bullcroft HQ is not fit to use any more. Vandalism has meant the windows in the 60-year-old wooden building are all boarded up. In winter it is freezing and in summer stifling. Chairman

  • Rugby: Harlequins' delight at surprise reprieve

    Oxford Harlequins, relegated from South West 1 last season, are celebrating this week after being given a shock reprieve. Quins went down to South West 2 East on points difference after losing to Clevedon on the final day of last season. However, Wakefield's

  • Asian pupils praised for raising standards

    CHILDREN have been rewarded for their efforts at a summer school aimed at raising academic achievements within Oxford's Bangladeshi and Pakistani community. The course, the first of its kind in Oxford, was organised by Oxfordshire County Council's education

  • Rugby: Cavaliers suffer play-off defeat

    Oxford Cavaliers' hopes of play-off glory in the totalrl.com Conference fizzled out with a 35-14 home defeat by Telford Raiders. The visitors began at a gallop, opening the scoring with a try after only three minutes. At the heart of every Telford move

  • Tennis: Banbury set sights on battle of Woodstock

    Banbury Town A can win the Men's Division 2 title in the Wilson OLTA Inter-Club 3-Pair League if they get at least a draw with closest rivals Woodstock in their final game. Woodstock need to win the game, as a draw would see Banbury take the title on

  • SATURDAY

    FOOTBALL COCA-COLA LEAGUE TWO Boston Utd v Oxford Utd. GLS HELLENIC LEAGUE Brian Wells Memorial Trophy Div 1 play-offs: Purton v Letcombe, Wantage Tn v Ross Tn. FRIENDLIES Abingdon Tn v Bristol City Academy, Oxford City v Maidenhead Utd, Thame Utd v Northampton

  • Athletics: Daly and Plateau shine to help clinch second spot

    Radley's juniors shone to finish runners-up in the last match of the Southern 1 West division of the UKA Young Athletes League season at Southampton. They finished second in the match behind Isle of Wight. Two more athletes won coveted athlete of the

  • The show's over folks

    The Lord Mayor's Parade in Oxford is being cancelled for the first time in its 27-year history after the city council scaled down its support for the event. Oxford Isis Lions Club, which organises the annual event, said it could not continue without the

  • Cropredy - last chance to see?

    Organisers of the 23rd Cropredy Festival in Oxfordshire are hoping the rain holds off for the three day folk extravaganza, which kicks off on Thursday , near Banbury. Up to 20,000 are expected to turn up this year to what started off as a Fairport Convention

  • August 4: Improve or stagnate

    Littlewoods was no longer one of the major players on the Oxford shopping scene. It had given up its prime site in Cornmarket Street for a corner site in the Clarendon Centre. But its sudden departure will come as a shock to staff and hundreds of shoppers

  • Debate over store scheme

    Confusion reigns over plans by a discount German food retailer to open its first Oxfordshire store. Cowley councillors have in principle supported plans for a Lidl supermarket in Blackbird Leys - just days after plans were rejected. Lidl, which sells

  • Serial burglar jailed for preying on elderly

    A serial distraction burglar who stole £1,800 from an elderly couple at their Oxford home has been jailed for six years. Bernard McDonagh, 39, was told his act of posing as a water board official was "of the most mean and despicable character", when he

  • Drink-drive blitz finds 8% breaking the law

    More than eight per cent of motorists stopped by police in Oxfordshire tested positive, during a summer clampdown on drink driving by Thames Valley Police. A total of 62 of 751 drivers stopped in the county were arrested for drink driving. Across the

  • Move to bridge gap in housing advice

    The city council has agreed to look at ways it can help plug the gap in specialist housing advice caused by the closure of Oxford Housing Rights Centre. The centre, in New Road, which helped homeless people find accommodation and provided legal advice

  • Football: Dream team is ready to roll

    The likelihood of the dream team of Tommy Mooney and Lee Bradbury leading a new-look Oxford United attack on their own at Boston tomorrow increased greatly yesterday. Julian Alsop fell awkwardly in training while Steve Basham was sent home with a virus

  • Future existence dependent on post

    Sir - Our future existence and survival is said to depend on advice given in a Government booklet, Preparing for emergencies, which we will all receive soon. Of course, this is not quite true. Our future existence and survival depends on whether Royal

  • Why is my 50p green bag put in dustcart?

    Sir - Can anyone tell me why Oxford residents can put garden waste out for collection only if it is in a special green plastic bag which has to be bought from the city council at 50p each? I always thought that this meant it would be recycled. I was happy

  • Troubled bar beyond fixing

    Sir - Well done to Oxford city councillor Val Smith for speaking out about the bar at the Blackbird Leys community centre (Oxford Mail, July 27). The council is in the business of providing much-needed services to the local community and, for the life

  • Beware councillors who stir prejudice

    Sir - I was disgusted by the sweeping generalisations by Independent Working Class Association councillors, Stuart Craft and Claire Kent, at a meeting of Oxford City Council (Oxford Mail, August 2). How can they be fit to represent the citizens of Oxford

  • Transport chiefs dismiss M40 link 'plan'

    Oxfordshire County Council has quashed reports that a link road between the M40 and Oxford Road in Banbury is in the pipeline. Newpaper and radio reports stating the road was part of the council's future plans have been labelled 'irresponsible.' The council

  • Germans may offer Bonn Square help

    City council leaders could get help from German architects to create a stunning new look for Oxford's Bonn Square. Following public consultation on two possible schemes - either to level the area or keep a raised mound - a report to council leaders concluded

  • Brutal assault that tore a family apart

    A teenager repeatedly stamped on his friend's head after a dispute over a girl - then went to use his Playstation computer. Lee Davies, 19, was jailed on Friday, August 6, for six-and-a-half years for the attack on Stephen Taylor. Mr Taylor, also 19,

  • Work begins on pedestrian zone

    Work has begun on a scheme to make an Abingdon road more friendly to pedestrians. The £500,000 project to turn Saxton Road into a Home Zone should have started a month ago, but was held up following complaints from residents over car parking arrangements

  • Royal Mail delivery woes far from over

    Sir - I spoke to a Royal Mail representative about a month ago when you gave a telephone number for people to call if they had a complaint or concern. At the time I called, it was to report that we, as well as many other Royal Mail customers, were not

  • 'Remove this monstrosity'

    A leading firm of architects and planning consultants is at the centre of a row over a conservatory in the garden of a 16th century house overlooking the River Thames in Abingdon. David Tetlow, left, and Michael Black, who both oppose the conservatory

  • Cricket: Thame ace Merry is set for county debut

    Former England Under 15 player Luke Merry makes his Minor Counties Championship debut in Oxfordshire's three-day game with Cheshire at Banbury, which starts on Sunday. The 20-year-old Thame left-arm seamer comes in for Banbury off-spinner Jimmy Phillips

  • Rock Dentistry

    A vet using hi-tech dental technology tried to clean the paint from an ancient stone circle on August 4 - but conservationists may have to resort to tooth picks. Chipping Norton vet Peter Aylmer, front, with assistant Kate Ormston, The 3,500-year-old

  • Hospital fears provoke plea

    The Government is being asked to intervene in the crisis surrounding Wantage Community Hospital's future. The appeal is being made after revelations of meetings by NHS managers who have been secretly discussing closure of the Garston Lane site. Confidential

  • Cricket: Fate takes a hand for sad Murrey

    Just when Banbury all-rounder Ollie Murrey appeared to have consolidated his place in the side, he has been struck down by injury. Murrey's spell of 4-28 did much to set up the victory over Potters Bar last Saturday. However, while fielding late on in

  • Drinkers pipe up in favour of ban

    Customers have congratulated a Bicester pub for banning smoking - and so far there has only been one complaint. One month after The Acorn Hungry Horse, in Pingle Drive, introduced a complete ban inside the pub, managers Simon Jerrison and Rachael Whalley

  • Chefs wanted for competition

    Chefs are gearing up to test their skills in a Ready Steady Cook-type competition organised by Cherwell District Council. The contest will take place at the Banbury campus of Oxford and Cherwell College on Monday, August 23. Each chef will be allowed

  • Athletics: England races in for club record

    Radley's women finished their second season back in the UK National League Division 4 in fifth place after a tough final day at Tilsley Park, Abingdon. Although finishing second-from-bottom in the league, which would normally be a relegation spot, Radley

  • Athletics: Heartbreak for Radley men

    Radley's men missed out on promotion in heartbreaking fashion - after winning the final match of their Southern League Division 3 season at Salisbury. They edged out arch rivals Oxford City by two points to win the match, but later learned that they had

  • Review: Annie (New Theatre, Oxford)

    What do you get if you take 200 bright young things, put them through an intensive week of rehearsals and add one dog? It sounds like a recipe for disaster, but the first night of Annie, the New Theatre's first-ever youth production, was a triumph. The

  • Bodyshell is Mini Clubman classic

    Witney-based British Motor Heritage has added yet another feather to its cap - the Mini Clubman saloon bodyshell. This new shell is suitable for rebuilding any Mini Clubman saloon or Mini 1275 GT from 1972 to 1980, and is a complement to the 'normal'

  • Costly chairs offer well-travelled luxury

    An Oxfordshire company is manufacturing office chairs converted from old Concorde passenger seats - which will cost up to £10,000. The distinctive grey leather seats are aimed at those who flew on the supersonic jet, as well as businessmen seeking an

  • 'Mayor should have eco-limo'

    Oxford's Lord Mayor should get a 'green' car instead of a new BMW. The call came from Green city councillor Craig Simmons, who said the Lord Mayor's car should set a good example by reducing harmful vehicle emissions - and getting on his bike whenever

  • Flood of relief on city streets

    Families in west Oxford have given a welcome thumbs-up to new flood-beating pumps which proved their worth during the torrential rainstorms of the past week. The new pumps were installed in the New Year, following joint funding between Oxford City Council

  • We'll never forget them

    Oxfordshire's last surviving First World War veteran was a special guest at a lunch at the Ministry of Defence yesterday to mark the 90th anniversary of Britain's declaration of war on Germany. William Stone, 103 William Stone, 103, from Watlington, was