Archive

A crash tonight partly blocked the Witney to Abingdon road at a notorious blackspot. The collision between a supermarket lorry and car partly blocked the A415 both ways close to Cokethorpe School, near Ducklington. Police are directing

Oxford's Sikh community must find a new place to worship after a planning inspector ruled they cannot use a Marston house as a temple. In January last year, Oxford City Council refused an application for retrospective planning permission to

Firefighters were called to a department store in Witney today when the shop was hit by flooding. The flooding at Debenhams, in the new Marriotts Walk shopping centre, covered about 100 square metres and was 1cm deep. Two fire engines

A STAGEHAND working at the upcoming Oxfringe festival was handed a suspended prison sentence today for possessing cannabis with intent to supply. Terence Webster, of Foxwell Drive, Headington, Oxford, was caught with 252g of the Class B drug

THE congregation of St Mary’s Church in Launton, near Bicester, has been left with a bill for £35,000 after the roof was stripped of lead. The thieves took £40,000-worth of metal, but because of a nationwide rise in lead thefts, insurers will only pay

A HUSBAND who became a widower for the second time after his wife died in a car crash last night described her as a “tremendous person”. David Undery, 64, of Thame Road, Great Milton, was yesterday at the inquest of his wife, Janet, 49, who

It's been six years since Henrietta Knight last visited the winner’s enclosure at the Cheltenham Festival. And that emotional day back in March 2004 was to claim the greatest prize of all as Best Mate completed his magical Gold Cup treble.

WORLWIDE sales of BMW’s Cowley-built Mini rose 16 per cent in February this year compared to the same month in 2009. The 13,443 sales during the month brought the total number of Minis delivered to customers this year to 25,645 — up 18.2 per cent on

PUPILS from an Oxford primary school were in perfect harmony with singers from a South African choir yesterday. The choir from St Ebbe’s Primary School, Whitehouse Road, South Oxford, met 33 members of the Soweto Melodic Voices, above, at Oxford

OXFORD’S Sikh community must find a new place to worship after a planning inspector ruled they cannot use a Marston house as a temple. In January last year, Oxford City Council refused an application for retrospective planning permission to

A MUCH-LOVED playground on an Oxford estate is to have its debt cleared by two councils to help it get back on its feet. Oxford City Council is to pay £4,000 and the county council £4,600 to get Blackbird Leys adventure playground (Blap) back into the

Police have recovered a puppy stolen during an aggravated burglary in Oxford. Boss, a 13-week-old Staffordshire Bull Terrier, was stolen during the burglary at a property in Trefoil Place, Greater Leys, on Sunday evening. Officers from Oxford’s

Police are appealing for witnesses after a 16-year-old girl was assaulted in a park in Carterton. The girl was with friends at the park in Alvescot Road shortly before midnight on Saturday, when she got into a disagreement with another girl

A man who was in intensive care after he was found on a stairwell in Banbury on Sunday has died. The 25-year-old man, who was admitted to the Horton General Hospital after sustaining serious head injuries, was pronounced dead today. At about 11.10pm

A MAN who battered a friend to death with weapons including a frying pan in an East Oxford bedsit has been found dead in his prison cell weeks before he was due for release. Robert Horrex, 45, was serving life after killing David Richards,

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According to the Electoral Commission, 3.5 million people in the UK are entitled, but not registered, to vote. While we may disagree with each other in politics, we are agreed that the right to vote is paramount. It cannot be exercised without registration

In response to your story Waste incinerator plans face new hurdle (Oxford Mail, February 24) I feel moved to voice my frustration at the way the bodies that should be defending the rights of the community are behaving. Leaving the rights and wrongs of

ALTHOUGH Judge Julian Hall has come in for much criticism recently and rightly so, I feel the latest comment made to a Chinese lady, Wei Cai, who was involved in a road traffic accident that she should learn English, (March 6) is quite correct. To drive

Could I please take the opportunity to thank the two gentlemen who came to my aid outside Bury Knowle Park on March 3, when my dog was attacked by a larger dog and could not defend herself. Thanks to Niko, who took the trouble to look after us to make

Ross Swanson showed his versatility by starring in the rugby league Varsity Match at the Twickenham Stoop. Swanson, who has started at fly half in the last two rugby union Varsity contests, scored 20 points Oxford’s 32-22 over Cambridge on Thursday.

I got a Liberal Democrat leaflet through the door the other day asking me to join their campaign to save Oxford’s public toilets. But Labour has already saved the toilets. We will modernise the popular loos at Gloucester Green and we plan a community

TWO overweight former Navy submariners have decided to get trim by setting off on an extraordinary journey. Barry Bishop and best friend Steve Mills, 40, were never interested in signing up at the gym. That is until they set themselves

One important point needs to be made about this year’s county council budget process. Neither the Liberal Democrats nor the Greens put forward a budget of their own, despite the attempts to suggest otherwise of Zoe Patrick for the Lib Dems (Oxford Mail

Overcrowded prisons are a result of the human rights brigade riding rough shod over the rights of hard working victims of crime in favour of the criminal inmate. Why should the dregs of society have any rights other than a locked cell, basic clothes,

Dom Maley’s boredom has proved to be Oxford Harlequins gain, with the centre already running in 17 league tries. Australian Maley moved to Oxford after securing a job as a PE teacher at Wheatley Park School. But unlike most of Quins’ overseas players

Oxfordshire's Matt Thomas has been named in the England Under 16 squad for next month’s Four Nations tournament in Rome. The lock, who attends Shiplake College and is part of Wasps Academy, is in the 26-man squad, who will play Italy, France and Wales

Alec Smith has been appointed Bicester’s new first-team coach after leaving Gosford All Blacks. Smith, whose son Craig is in Bicester’s first-team squad, previously coached the club’s under 17 side. He is also a member of the Wasps CoachClass team working

A puppy stolen from a family by three masked men has been found safe and well. Boss, a 13-week-old Staffordshire Bull Terrier, was stolen during a raid in Trefoil Place, Greater Leys, Oxford, on Sunday. Three men with their faces covered

Entries have now opened for the Oxford spring touch rugby competition, which starts on Monday, April 26. The eight-week competition will be played at Oxford’s Southern Bypass ground. Players are welcome to attend taster sessions at the same venue on

Oxford University flanker Jamie Gibson has been named in the England team for their RBS Under 20 Six Nations clash against Scotland tomorrow. The 19-year-old London Irish player will start on the blindside for the match at Firhill, Glasgow. FOUR-TIME

OXFORD Mail readers are often left wondering where Judge Julian Hall’s mind is when he’s dishing out justice — and now the Insider has the answer! The controversial judge, who is often criticised for handing out light sentences, and last

OXFORD Brookes University will today launch a fundraising campaign for a £1m centre for rowing to help prepare its athletes for the 2012 Olympics. The team, which has produced four Olympic gold medallists since 2000, has won planning permission for a

A QUARTET from Abingdon Amblers represented Oxfordshire in the Inter-Counties 5k Race Walk Championship at Warwick and collected the ladies’ team silver medal. The successful walkers are Judy Howard, Roz McKenzie, Katerina Johnson and Noel Blatchford

OXFORD City’s Darrell Bellinger was crowned overall and senior men’s champion, despite having to settle for second place in the final round of the season at Horspath on Sunday. Bellinger took a convincing lead into the last race, which was held on a

FORMER Oxford teacher John Fox did not have to look far to find inspiration for his new book about a red-headed spy who slept with a king. For Jane Whorwood, the romantic heroine of Mr Fox’s new book The King’s Smuggler, once lived only a short distance

MARIE-Anne Fischer of Headington Roadrunners ran her 50th Oxford Mail Cross Country League race at Shotover finishing in 71st position. She is the first female Headington athlete to reach the landmark – and has done so in only ten seasons – not missing

Oxford University coach Des Brackett could not hide his frustration at his side’s narrow defeat. And Brackett felt the decisions that cost his side victory, were incorrect. “I cannot fault the effort put in by any one of my boxers,” he said. “I can

RADLEY and Oxford City dominated the junior categories at the final round of the 2009-10 season. Radley kick-started the day as they recorded a clean sweep of trophies in the under 11 boys’ category. Robert Crowther lifted the title,

Oxford University missed out on regaining the Truelove Bowl in the 103rd Varsity Match at the Town Hall, losing 5-4 to Cambridge on a night when luck was definitely not on their side. Had two debatable decisions swung their way it would

Jolly Postboys held their nerve to claim the Gladiator Beer Seller Friday League title on the last night of the season. They finished the campaign in style, beating The Ox 6-0 to pip Cricketers by two points. Ken Maunder, of Garsington Sports, was top

ROUND 5 INDIVIDUAL RESULTS Men: (top 30, senior men unless stated): 1 P Fernandez (Abingdon) 30.36, 2 D Bellinger (Oxford C) 30.38, 3 S Fisher (Abingdon) 30.49, 4 S Male (Oxford C, V40) 31.01, 5 C Dettmar (Headington RR) 31.04, 6 L Newell

TUNE in to radio station JACK fm to hear singer Jason Donovan and ‘Jedward’ urging listeners to support sick children by taking part in this year’s OX5 Run. The former Neighbours star, who is appearing in the West End musical Priscilla Queen of the Desert

TWO Oxfordshire clubs have been helping Ox-ford University’s players prepare for their Varsity Match against Cambridge at Porthcawl. Last Sunday, Frilford Heath faced the students in a match on their Red Course, triumphing 6½-3½. This Saturday, the

TWO new headteachers recruited to run Didcot’s secondary schools have vowed to raise their Ofsted ratings to ‘outstanding’. Didcot Girls School has announced that Rachael Warwick, deputy head at Eynsham’s Bartholomew School, will take over

EDDIE Pepperell struggled to repeat his past two year’s form in the Spanish Amateur Championship at La Canada. The 19-year-old Drayton Park member, from Abingdon, failed to reach the knockout stages after finishing joint 81st in qualifying. Pepperell

OXFORD & District’s Katherine Hawes suffered a first-round exit in the English Indoor Association’s Ladies’ National Singles Championship. She bowed out 21-13 to eventual runner-up Annette Hallett, from Dorchester, at Kempston IBC, Bedford. Hawes now

Masons A stormed into the semi-finals of the Johnsons Buildbase Oxford & District League KO Cup by beating their B side 4-1 in the second leg for an 8-2 aggregate victory, writes PETE EWINS. Mick Murphy (7,400), Dave Rose (7,560) and Alan Lowe (8,890

VOLUNTEERS collected 10,000kg of rubbish during this year’s OxClean, organisers have estimated. About 1,700 people took part in the OxClean Spring Clean 2010 last weekend, leaving the city the cleanest it has looked for years. Organisers

A man found injured at the bottom of a stairwell with serious head injuries remains in intensive care today. Police sealed off the stairs at Ruscote Arcade shops, on Londelandes Way, in Banbury, after the 25-year-old man was discovered at around 11.10pm

THESE youngsters are hoping to be crowned salsa queens and kings in a dance-off. For the first time, Oxford is holding an inter-school latin dance championship. A total of 72 pupils from three different city schools have been training hard and will

JACK Pole, who held the Rhodes chair of American history at Oxford University for 10 years, has died aged 87. He was one of the most respected British experts on American history, and one of the first British historians of America whose work was taken

WINSTON Churchill, former Conservative MP and grandson of the wartime Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill, was interred in the family plot at St Martin’s Church in Bladon, near Woodstock, on Tuesday, after a two-year battle with cancer. Mr Churchill

At a time when so many of our public houses are being transformed into residential properties – and quite often into a number of residential properties – it is interesting to note that in former times the opposite process sometimes occurred. An obvious

Once again the highly respected food historian Anne Menzies has been asked to research a themed dinner at Christ Church for the Oxford Literary Festival. Last year’s historic dinner was Noble Dining, and focused on a menu that Cardinal Wolsey, the

The lunatics are taking over the asylum, or that’s what Martin Scorsese’s impeccably crafted psychological thriller Shutter Island would have us believe. But then perception and reality are completely blurred in this 1950s-set mystery, adapted by screenwriter

Like the sea she loves so much, Elspeth Hamilton’s paintings are ever-changing. Some reflect that magical moment when dawn casts its fresh – yet fragile – glow upon the waves, while others celebrate the force of waves crashing against the shore. Elspeth

Young Texan bluesman Hamilton Loomis enjoyed the singular privilege of being mentored by Bo Diddley, known as ‘The Originator’ because of his key role in the transition from the blues to rock and roll. In 1992, when he was 16, Ham’s mother took him to

Composer Andrew Lloyd Webber and his team were reportedly tinkering with the end of Love Never Dies right up until Tuesday’s spectacular opening night. It is still not right, but this is a trifling criticism when measured against the many merits

Schola Cantorum, Oxford University’s longest-running chamber choir, is celebrating its 50th anniversary with a gala concert in May, and on Sunday night they gave us a taste of things to come with a short but intense unaccompanied recital that oozed musical

The BRB celebrated the 20th anniversary of its move north from Sadlers Wells with a gala evening composed of excerpts from the many works that have formed the basis of its current glory. We started with Weber’s Invitation to the Dance, the music

Living with cancer is like riding on a roller coaster. One minute all seems to be fine, and then it can sneak up on you again when you are least expecting it. This means that I am acutely alert to any new unexpected aches and pains. I have been through

If a little levity can be forgiven concerning what is a very serious subject, it might be agreed that a drama company composed of students – all that frugal living! – would be best able to supply actors thin enough credibly to portray the inmates

The two series of Victoria Wood’s sitcom dinnerladies, shown on BBC1 from 1998-2000, enjoyed wide popularity. Its fans no doubt supply the bulk of the audience for the stage version which has now been on tour for some months. Part of the enjoyment

The recent coverage of children’s deaths at Oxford’s John Radcliffe Hospital has been blown all out of proportion. While any death from surgery is an awful event, the publicity surrounding the hospital itself has in a veiled way put responsibility on

Essex-born singer songwriter Tom McRae has always maintained a reasonable, if not huge, following in his decade of releasing records. Those who like him tend to have been devoted to him since he first appeared, and those who don’t have totally ignored

WHAT a disappointment pub quizzes have become thanks to people cheating. I know these quizzes are meant to be fun but I am fed up with seeing people using their mobile phones to surf the Internet and get the answers. Usually I enjoy the picture rounds

Cavendish Bars would like to clarify that it has no intention of operating ‘St Sinians’ or ‘School Disco’ events at the former Bar Risa/Jongleurs site (Oxford Mail, March 4). Wahoo is a food and entertainment led operation, with three successful sites

A thought-provoking exhibition in Bampton by the Oxford Art Society offers a range of skilled artists bursting with ideas. Take Alan Mynall’s muted oil painting Simmer Tree. If this is a traditional landscape why is it symmetrical? Or is it? It

This year marks the 60th anniversary of the start of the Korean War – which began on June 25, 1950. A ceasefire was agreed on July 27, 1953. However, no formal peace agreement exists between Communist North Korea and the Republic of Korea. Over 1,000

THE Oxford Mail has recently published letters from councillors Sarah Hutchinson and John Tanner taking issue with your The Issue column (Mail, February 18) in which I highlighted major problems posed to the county council by the Personal Care at Home

For a band who have only just released their third album, the Automatic have experienced plenty of turbulence in their career. They broke through in 2006 with huge smash hits Monster and Raoul, which both received massive airplay and catapulted the band

Exlovers are one of the most exciting new bands in the UK. Formed in London in 2008, they have only released one EP and two 7-inch singles, but have already built up a good following. Having completed two lengthy support tours, this jaunt sees them stepping

I was very saddened to hear of the passing of Michael Foot. He was a decent and honourable man who’ll be very much missed. I remember him campaigning in Abingdon during the 1992 General Election, and being impressed by his passion and energy

I do admire actors who take on a production requirement to occupy the stage well before the audience is seated. Romola Garai does this at the start of both halves of this taut version of Chekhov’s classic; and there is all the more impact on the audience

Atmospheric paintings by Oxfordshire artist Bee Bartlett remain on show at the O3 Gallery, Oxford Castle, until March 14. This exhibition explores many themes, including her tree studies for which she is known. The exciting thing about the show, however

As resident pianist and arranger at Ronnie Scott’s, James Pearson has the onerous and enviable task of working with some of the greatest jazz musicians in the world. Like his renowned predecessor Stan Tracey when a younger man, he has so far kept

I should be sorry if I only entertain the public,” Handel once wrote. “I wish to make them better.” In that case, he would surely have approved of Saturday’s concert at Harris Manchester College, which successfully ticked both boxes. Not only did

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A broken-down lorry at the Pear Tree Interchange today caused long delays for drivers north of Oxford. The lorry broke down on the A44 near the junction with the A34 Western Bypass by the Holiday Inn, partly blocking the roundabout.

Oxford United boss Chris Wilder described his players as “really arrogant and big-time” as they crashed to a shock 2-1 home defeat against Hayes & Yeading last night. It was one of the worst performances from a United team since he took charge, and they

Dog attack victims in Oxford have declared new Home Office proposals which target pet owners “a step in the right direction”. Home Secretary Alan Johnson yesterday announced plans which could force every dog owner to take out third party insurance

A Wantage youth club which last month unveiled plans to breathalyse children will hold a public meeting to decide its future. Tonight’s meeting will discuss how Sweatbox, held in King Alfred’s Community and Sports College, Springfield Road,

Three men who blasted a shotgun inches from the face of a 59-year-old drug dealer were jailed for a total of 30 years. Teenagers Dominic Wooloff and Aaron Peters fired the weapon towards Ronald Glover at close range as he opened his front door

Oxford City Stars had two reasons to celebrate following two English National League Division 1 South victories over the weekend. On Sunday, they fought back to beat already-relegated Peterborough Islanders 10-4, having crushed Milton Key-nes Thunder

THE two new headteachers recruited to run Didcot’s secondary schools have vowed to raise their Ofsted ratings to “outstanding”. Didcot Girls’ School has announced that Rachael Warwick, deputy head at Bartholomew School, Eynsham, will take over

A Wantage youth club which last month unveiled plans to breathalyse children will hold a public meeting to decide its future. Tonight’s meeting will discuss how Sweatbox, held in King Alfred’s Community and Sports College, Springfield Road, will move

HOME Secretary Alan Johnson has himself exposed how pointless his new dangerous dog laws are. Mr Johnson yesterday announced plans that could force every dog owner to take out third party insurance, in case their pet attacks someone, and to

IT IS naive to expect that Oxfordshire County Council will be able to put every child into the school of their parents’ choice. There are physically only so many places at each school and, rightly or wrongly, some are more in demand than others. And

DOG attack victims in Oxford have declared new Home Office proposals which target pet owners “a step in the right direction”. Home Secretary Alan Johnson yesterday announced plans which could force every dog owner to take out third party insurance

Oxford City got back to winning ways with a 3-0 victory against Evesham United in the Zamaretto Southern League Premier Division at Court Place Farm on Tuesday night. City went ahead on 36 minutes when Lee Steele fired in after keeper Richard Mace kept