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Martin Pladdys, 34, of York Road, West Hagbourne, admitted drink-driving in Between Towns Road, Oxford, on October 29. Namely having 81 microgrammes of alcohol in 100ml of breath, above the legal limit of 35 microgrammes. Fined £495, a £15 victims’ surcharge

Helen Alabi, 20, of Cottington Street, London, admitted shoplifting a pair of £184 Versace PVC jeans, a Versace bikini, a pair of £389 Dolce and Gabana sunglasses and two Dolce and Gabana bikinis valued at £800 from Bicester Village on July 25. Also

A GROUP of Oxford residents have hit out after one of their bus stops was roped off without warning. The bus stop at the junction of London Road and Latimer Road, Headington, was closed for nearly a week because of work being done by Southern Electric

CHILDREN from the most vulnerable backgrounds are lagging behind at Oxfordshire pre-schools. Figures from the Department for Education show a big gap between children from non-white backgrounds, those who don’t speak English as a first language, children

RESIDENTS plan to spruce up their subway with a lick of paint. The subway runs under Marston Ferry Road, connecting Old Marston to the Marston estate, in Oxford, but it has been hit by vandalism and graffiti. Now Friends of Old Marston Play Areas hope

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If you’re a movie lover and you’re aged over 60, why not join us at the Phoenix Picturehouse in Walton Street, Jericho, for three days of seasonal film magic? Co-sponsored by the Oxford Mail, all of our movies start at 11am, so you don’t have

An Oxfordshire folk rock band is hoping to land a Christmas number one with a protest song about Government cuts. Leatherat want an internet campaign to see online sales of We’re All In This Together inch out this year’s X Factor winner. The Banbury

STUDENTS applying to top universities will find it increasingly difficult to get a place, an Oxford headteacher has warned. Headington School’s Caroline Jordan has also said there is increasing pressure on the county’s A-Level students to gain A* grades

A CHARITY for the homeless is asking the community to give a little something to those less fortunate this Christmas. The Gatehouse, which provides food and shelter for the city’s homeless from its base at St Giles Parish Rooms, is hoping people living

Natasha the cat is looking for a new home after she was dumped from a car in Banbury. The kitten and another black-and-white cat were left on the roadside by a woman who stopped her silver car in Harlech Close and drove off without them. Short-haired

Oxford City Council has vowed to cut the time it takes to process benefit claims, following a damning report earlier this year. And the councillor responsible for the service has admitted people will suffer if the authority fails. The Audit Commission

We’ve decked the hall with boughs of holly, wrestled a fir tree into the living room, and have pipers leaping with festive cheer from the advent calendar each morning. We’ve paraded in our dressing gowns as shepherds for the umpteenth year and are finally

Headington Secondary School swept the board in the Oxford schools’ gymnastics championships in 1963. They won the team event for the third year running and also did well in individual events. They led the nearest of nine rival schools by 42 points to

These were the men who defended part of West Oxford during the Second World War. They were the Osney platoon of the 6th Oxford Home Guard D Company. They served from 1940 when the Home Guard was formed and it is believed the picture was taken in 1944

Nativity plays have been an important feature of school life for many years, as these pictures from the Oxford Mail archives show. Picture One shows a scene from Journey to Bethlehem at St Christopher’s First School at Cowley, Oxford, in 1977. The angels

When two old cottages were renovated in 1976, owner Rex Powell was determined not to forget the past. A plaque with the dates 1840 and 1976 was unveiled by villager Lillian Bennett, seen in the final picture, to make sure their history was

CAMPAIGNERS say a plan to build 49 homes in Marcham is a taste of things to come for villagers across the Vale as a new housing policy is set to come in. Vale of White Horse District Council wants to relax rules to allow more development in villages

SUMMERTOWN shoppers were treated to a Regency Christmas experience on Saturday, as Jane Austen fans Austentation played songs from the period. The duo, made up of Jane Austen Project members Frank Underwood and Gillie Tunley, has researched the Pride

THE end of term meant only one thing – a Christmas party! The paper chains were put up, the Christmas tree was decorated and hats put on, and it was time to forget lessons and have fun. The festive picture was taken at St Christopher’s School in Temple

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A man was forced to flee his burning car after it hit a tree. The 67-year-old’s silver Volkswagen Golf went up in flames just after 8.03am today on the A44, close to the junction with the A361. A police spokesman said the driver was taken to the John

Thame United battled to a 1-0 win over Wantage Town in the Uhlsport Premier League Premier Division on Saturday – despite having central defender Jon Steedman sent off early in the second half. The visitors were reduced to ten men when Steedman pulled

PLANS to build 26 student flats overlooking a school are to be reconsidered by city councillors. Parents, staff and governors at East Oxford Primary School, in Union Street, have opposed the plans, fearing traffic and safety problems. They persuaded

Some cars are a delight for people who like to fiddle with settings. I know because I am one of them. On that score alone, Citroën’s civilised DS4 is a driver’s dream. Strongly sculpted, with a confident, distinctive stance, the DS4 has a real

FIREFIGHTERS used hose reels and thermal imaging cameras to tackle a shed blaze in Filkins on Friday. Crews from Burford, Witney and Bampton attended the fire, which happened at about 1.30pm. The shed contained building materials.

TWO black widow spiders found in a car imported from the USA have been given a new home. Mechanics at Bicester firm Damax found the spiders nesting inside a 1964 Ford Falcon. The car was imported in January, but the arachnids were only discovered when

DETECTIVES have released a CCTV image of a robber as he carried out a gun-point raid at a betting shop. A 47-year-old man working at the Stan James bookmakers, in Roundway, Risinghurst, Oxford, was targeted as he shut up the shop at just after 9pm on

HUNDREDS of fundraisers created a blur of red and white as they raced through Oxford dressed as Santas to support a city hospice. Helen and Douglas House, in Magdalen Road, East Oxford, provides respite and end-of-life care for children and young adults

Sorry, I’ve upset the ladies again (Ms L. Logan, Oxford Mail, December 1). Of course, you are smart in the presence of the Queen, proper respect. As for bishops in “presence of king of kings”, rubbish, our Lord was a man of very simple tastes. He

We know that former strategic director for the environment at West Oxfordshire District Council Cath James decided to leave the council of her own accord. We know this was her own decision and the council paid her £110,000 for ‘loss of office’ (after

So R Lee thinks I should know that we are already in the EU (Oxford Mail, November 23). Not according to the French leader Nicolas Sarkozy, who says the UK is not part of Europe. In the EU proper you do not need passports to go from one EU country

Chipping Norton trainer Charlie Longsdon landed a 251-1 double at Hereford yesterday with Tarbeck and Strongbows Legend. Having his first start for the yard, Tarbeck defied an absence of 665 days to spring a 66-1 surprise in the novices’ hurdle over

Nuisance lorries parking overnight on a major road in an Oxford estate look set to get banned next year. For years, residents have complained about dozens of vehicles parking in Grenoble Road, Blackbird Leys, while the drivers rest. There were complaints

OXFORDSHIRE County Council’s five scrutiny committees will examine the Cabinet’s budget proposals in a series of meetings on Thursday. The committees will look at spending proposals ahead of the budget going to councillors for a vote in January.

OXFORD city councillors are to ask GPs and council officers what can be done to improve the population’s health. The select committee hearing will examine how to tackle public health through advice, education and training, and whether the 19

OXFORD United’s first-team coach, Andy Melville, said that the desire of the players to end their poor run was very evident in Saturday’s 0-0 draw at Morecambe. United produced a really gritty all-round team display to end their five-game losing run,

A 31-year-old man has admitted burgling a house while it was being renovated. Gareth Atkins appeared at Oxford Crown Court on Friday, where he admitted one count of burglary. A property in Scott Road, North Oxford, was burgled between November 14 and

A CARAVAN was destroyed by a fire in The Park, Harwell, in the early hours of yesterday morning. Fire crews from Didcot were called to the blaze shortly before 2am, and prevented the fire from spreading to a nearby shed. No-one was injured in the blaze

SOLDIERS have marched the repatriation route taken by fallen comrades to help complete an £18,000 fundraising drive for a memorial bell. Troops have been repatriated to RAF Brize Norton since September 1 and campaigners want a bell put up at the Memorial

ASK most people about sex attacks in East Oxford and Cowley, and they will probably believe the numbers of incidents shot up this year. But figures reveal that, despite a high-profile spate of linked sex assaults, there was only one more such incident

Wimborne Tn 1 (Kemble 86) North Leigh 1 (Osborne-Ricketts 47) Controversy raged as North Leigh were denied victory by a late equaliser at Wimborne Town in Evo-Stik Southern League Division 1 South & West. Wimborne were awarded a free-kick just inside

Musicians gave their time for free to help a school charity left out of pocket by the collapse of a summer festival. Commotion, which raises money for Kingham School, lost £7,000 after the collapse of the Harvest festival, which was held on

IT’S small wonder public sector workers went on strike. Their pay rises have been, in the main, below inflation rates for the best part of 30 years and now their pension rights are under attack. However, next time there is industrial action of this

Abingdon Utd 3 (Kingsbere 48, Collier pen 50, 75) Stourport Swifts 2 (Campbell 10, Willetts 55) Sam Collier capped his double with a stunning winner as Abingdon United beat bottom club Stourport Swifts in Evo-Stik Southern League Division 1 South

FIVE of Oxford United’s squad had a shock on Friday night, when they got stuck in the lift in their hotel! Harry Worley, Asa Hall, Andy Whing, Jake Wright and Simon Heslop were stranded for more than 45 minutes before they were eventually set free.

I’m sure many were delighted by the switching on of Oxford’s Christmas illuminations. But was it really necessary for roads all around Oxford to be closed and traffic re-directed from the early hours of the morning? It’s not clear if this was a decision

Redditch Utd 1 (Berwick 83) Banbury Utd 0 Banbury United conceded a late goal in the Evo-Stik Southern League Premier Division as Redditch United exacted swift revenge for their midweek defeat. The Puritans ran out 2-0 winners in the Red Insure Cup

Bashley 0 Oxford City 2 (Whitley og 1, Lyon 62) Oxford City got back to winning ways in the Evo-Stik Southern League Premier Division by completing the double over Bashley. City, without a victory in their previous three league games, got off to a

If there’s one thing that creeps me out about Christmas, it’s perfectly decorated trees. You know, colour co-ordinated ones that look like they’ve just been lifted out the store window of Debenhams. I can’t abide them and for some deep-rooted psychological

THE arrogance of our Tory controlled county council deputy leader beggars belief. David Robertson now tells us (Oxford Mail, December 1) how disappointed he is that central Government money – tax payer to you and me – is not available to allow the proposed

Didcot Tn 0 Basingstoke Tn 1 (McAuley 69) Didcot Town’s run in the FA Carlsberg Trophy ended with a narrow defeat by Basingstoke Town in the first round at the npower Loop Meadow Stadium on Saturday. As with the FA Cup adventure last season, the Railwaymen

Former Radley athlete Hatti Dean finished 16th in yesterday’s European Cross Country Championships in Slovenia as Great Britain topped the medal table. Britain’s senior, under 23 and junior women won team golds, while the junior men took gold and the

ANTHONY Tonkin said that Oxford United’s 0-0 draw at Morecambe on Saturday came about because the team went back to doing what they do best. The point ended a run of five straight defeats for the U’s, and was fully deserved. And Tonkin said that the

ROSE Hill’s oldest resident switched on the lights on the Oxford estate’s first community Christmas tree, as hundreds of neighbours watched the event. The switch-on, at The Oval, was followed by music from local primary schools and a multi-cultural

CITY councillors have granted permission for a “21st century”, five-storey block of flats to be built in Park End Street. The plans will see the existing Cantay House, to the rear of Conference Centre Oxford, being demolished and nine two-bedroom flats

A 23-YEAR-OLD Banbury man has admitted sexually assaulting another man. Panneer Deepam admitted one count of sexual assault when he appeared at Oxford Crown Court on Friday. The incident occurred in Banbury on September 25. Deepam, of Castle Street

A TEENAGE boy was stabbed in the shoulder, back and torso in East Oxford in the early hours of Saturday morning. The 17-year-old from Oxford became involved in an argument with three men who had got out of a dark-coloured Volkswagen Golf, at the junction

IT is the bell tower that has been silent for at least four decades. But now the tower at St Nicholas the Wonderworker, in Marston, Oxford, could ring out once more. Despite having a bell tower, the Russian Orthodox Church does not have permission to

FIRE crews were called to Wyndham House care home in Plantation Road, Oxford, after a toaster caught fire. Following the small blaze at 10.25am on Saturday, an elderly woman living at the North Oxford home was treated by paramedics for smoke inhalation

ADAM Chapman made his first appearance for Oxford United since their play-off final victory at Wembley when coming on as a last-minute substitute at Morecambe on Saturday, writes MARK EDWARDS. The midfielder was released from prison at the start of September

THE Home Office tries to dismiss a connection in the rise in burglary in Oxford and elsewhere and the flagging economy as ‘simplistic’. Yes, it is simplistic. Because it is largely true. In tough economic times acquisitive crime – things like burglary

With Christmas around the corner it is easy to get swept up in shopping, queues and commercialism. So it was great to see so many Rose Hill residents showing us what the spirit of the season is all about. They came together to celebrate their community

Advances in medical treatments and technologies have been nothing short of miraculous over the past decades. And it is impossible to calculate the human importance of each new treatment and procedure, including the implantable cardioverter defibrillator

HUNDREDS of patients implanted with a lifesaving device at Oxford’s John Radcliffe Hospital were not told about their potentially devastating side-effects. Implantable cardioverter-defibrillators (ICD) are designed to detect a dangerously

Badvent day 12 is an appeal for a suspect police have being trying to track down since 2005 on suspicion of defrauding the taxpayer. Harriet Uwimbabazi, below, is wanted over fraud and deception offences on a warrant issued by Oxford Crown Court more

Almost one in four children in Oxford are living in poverty. Ten estates in Oxford, one in Banbury and one in Abingdon are in the worst 25 per cent in England for levels of child poverty. Each day this week the Oxford Mail will profile