A BICESTER dance school and its pupils will be celebrating its 20th anniversary at the end of the month. Starting out with just five pupils, the Bicester Dance Academy has gone from strength to strength and is now home to about 120 dance students
OXFORD United were dragged back towards the relegation battle as they stumbled to a desperately poor defeat at home to the Football League's bottom side. Both goals came via similar routes, as Ryan Bird and Neil Austin reacted quickest to parries from
TWO stories about a teenage yob who plagued his neighbours are the latest items removed from Google’s search listings under the controversial ‘Right to be Forgotten’ ruling. Sandeep Kumar, then 14, was given an antisocial behaviour order in 2009
A CRASH has partially blocked a road near Didcot. The A4130, between Long Wittenham Road and the B4016 Broadway, only has one lane of traffic flowing because of an accident at about 4.30pm. Police are still on the scene and one vehicle still
SECONDARY school pupils returned home with their views of the world changed forever after a First World War history trip to Belgium and France. The students, from Gosford Hill School, Kidlington, Bartholomew School, Eynsham, and the North Oxfordshire
A TEENAGER calling for more girls to start apprenticeships voiced her opinion at a Cabinet meeting in 10 Downing Street. Mechanical manufacture engineering apprentice Paige McConville, from East Hagbourne, near Didcot, was invited by Business Secretary
FAMILIES are being asked to apply their creative talents to provide distinctive decorations for this year’s Florence Park festivities. Organisers are in the midst of preparing for the third Flofest event, set to hit the 1930s park on Saturday,
LITTER, graffiti and antisocial behaviour in Cutteslowe is being targeted as part of a two-week campaign. Community leaders have called on residents on the North Oxford estate to join in and help tackle rubbish left in public spaces and boost recycling
A WOMAN has died after a fire near Faringdon, police have just confirmed. The woman in her 50s was dragged from the burning building at Manor Farm in Little Coxwell at 6.39am today. Police spokeswoman Rhianne Pope said the fire was in an office
A FIGHT took place outside a fast-food restaurant in Oxford’s main shopping street. Thames Valley Police said the incident happened outside KFC in Cornmarket Street, between 7.40pm and 7.50pm on Saturday. Following an argument, a group of youths
YOUNGSTERS got close up with nature and science on a bumper day at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History. The museum hosted its annual science bonanza along with the Pitt Rivers Museum as part of the Oxfordshire Science Festival, which
A MAN charged with mudering his 11-week-old baby has been refused bail. Jordon Saxton, 21, will now have to stay in the Bullingdon prison until his trial begins on September 1. Saxton, of Untons Place, Faringdon, is accused of the murder of
Thieves stole a car from the driveway of a house in a village near Bicester. They took a silver Mitsubishi Shogun, registration J337 OGV, between 1am and 11am on Wednesday last week in Station Road, Lower Heyford. The vehicle, which was locked
THAMES Valley Police has again refused to confirm if it has been misusing anti-terrorism laws to spy on journalists, claiming it has been asked ‘too many times’. Last month it was revealed that 19 police forces used the Regulation of Investigatory
A man has been sentenced to more than six years behind bars after pleading guilty to drug offences. Wakas Khan, 22, of Furlong Close, Blackbird Leys, pleaded guilty on the first day of his trial yesterday to possession with intent to supply crack
OMG! I still have not got over the shock. Here I am sitting quietly to read my Oxford Mail as I have done for the last 50 years and then I get to page 25 on Friday. I’m so overcome I’m completely at a loss. Who decides on the contents of
IT could not be a better time to take up outdoor swimming. With outdoor and open water swimming becoming increasingly popular, and lidos making a comeback, there are venues and training opportunities round the country open to people who are keen
IN response to Jim Lynch’s question regarding the route of the number 8 bus, it travelled between Canning Crescent, at the end of Abingdon Road and Meaden Hill terminus on Northway estate. EDWINA HUMM Copson Lane Stadhampton
NICOLA Blackwood, MP for Oxford West and Abingdon, has accepted a campaign donation of £10,000 from hedge fund boss, George Robinson. Mr Robinson was caught in a tax avoidance scheme which was closed down by HMRC in 2009. The then Treasury
ONCE again we have Oxfordshire County Council officers Daniel Round and Stuart Wilson not facing reality, when one says we do not need the link road and the other that there has been no significant change in the volume of traffic in the past 10 years
A GROUP that runs free computing courses in Blackbird Leys is once again up and running after being out of action for almost a year. Staff at Leys Information Technology Zone (Litz) have put months of trouble behind them and are accepting more
AS I approach my third month as Vice-Chancellor of Oxford Brookes University, I thought this was an excellent opportunity to give an insight into what it is like to lead this very special institution. The first thing to say is, of course, that
I NEARLY choked on my muesli last Friday morning at the sight of the Oxford Mail headline: “New bus route planned over nature reserve and golf course”. The story highlights the county council’s desperation to keep public transport moving in the
WE all value urban parks, and Bury Knowle Park is no exception. But removing solar panels from neighbouring, new affordable houses because they are an ‘eyesore’ is a step too far. We need more renewable energy but, more importantly, those residing
MY dad Albert Clapton was the landlord of the public house the Nuffield Arms for many years. He would turn in his grave to see the Co-operative wants to turn his beloved pub into a mini supermarket. I was was born in the pub and I felt sick
A CORRESPONDENT asked the route of the erstwhile No 8 bus. I used that route every day from 1961 to 1967. It ran from New Hinksey up the Abingdon Road and St Aldate’s, down The High and thence along the Marston Road. Half the buses then went to
QUESTIONS covering ‘Nature’ and ‘Round Britain’ were interwoven in order to provide the content for the last themed ‘Tabletop’ of the 2014/15 Oxfordshire Winter Quiz Leagues. The contest itself was then staged at three separate locations around
THE sign promises improved journey times, but drivers using Frideswide Square in Oxford will have to wait. The £5.8m revamp of the busy junction at the end of the Botley Road, expected to be completed in December, is starting to cause holdups for
A PLANE carrying thousands of tonnes of survival gear for the victims of a tropical cyclone in the South Pacific left RAF Brize Norton yesterday. Cyclone Pam tore through Vanuatu and the surrounding archipelago of islands on Saturday with winds
A woman believed to be one of the oldest people of Oxfordshire has died aged 105. Mollie Fletcher died on February 26 in a care home in Suffolk, where she had lived for the last six months, her family said yesterday. She was the proprietor
George Baldock believes Oxford United can start looking up the Sky Bet League Two table if they can claim maximum points at home to Hartlepool United tonight. The U’s have eased nine points clear of the relegation battle thanks to a five-game unbeaten
REPLACING freshlycooked food with chilled ready meals at Oxfordshire’s community hospitals will be a “step back into the dark ages”, a patients’ watchdog has warned. Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust, which runs the nine hospitals, said the new
A TRIP to the hospital can be a distressing experience. The more that can be done to make patients feel relaxed and at ease, the better. Chief among this is the food served to those staying in wards. Firstly, a healthy nutritious meal is
THE biggest archaeological dig Oxford has ever seen is under way at the site of the Westgate Shopping Centre. More than 60 archaeologists are working there to investigate the remains of 19th century housing and a medieval friary. It comes as
THE search for missing Oxford woman Emily Stiff drew another blank yesterday after police divers scoured a 200-metre stretch of the River Thames. Two teams of divers from Thames Valley Police’s specialist search and rescue team, took to the water
HUNDREDS of visitors to Dorchester Abbey were treated to classical and operatic pieces in a charity concert. Arias at the Abbey 2 raised the roof for a second time on Saturday, following the success of the first event in 2012. Performers this
A STUD farm owner has spoken of his horror after a mare and two foals died when fire ripped though a stable block yesterday. Spencer Chapman, who owns Aston House stud farm in Aston Rowant near Chinnor, said he was “devastated” by the death of
Bleddyn Phillips admitted any coach would have found the prospect of leading London Welsh in the Aviva Premiership daunting, following the axing of Justin Burnell. The Exiles chairman named defence coach Rowland Phillips as Burnell’s replacement
Wantage-based jockey Cathy Gannon, who has not ridden since November 2013 due to a shoulder injury, is set to make her comeback at Chelmsford City tomorrow, writes RUSSELL SMITH. The 33-year-old rider will partner Rambo Will in the 4.00 for Royston
THERE was a special guest at Millets Farm Centre near Abingdon when children’s TV star Peppa Pig put in an appearance. Hundreds of children turned out to meet their favourite pig, who was the main attraction at a VIP tea party on Saturday.
Rowland Phillips has vowed to salvage whatever he can from London Welsh’s miserable season after taking over as the club’s head coach. The 49-year-old, who joined Welsh as the defence coach in November, replaced the axed Justin Burnell with immediate
Banbury United manager Paul Davis believes the decision to replay their Evo-Stik Southern League Premier Division match at home to Slough Town, which was abandoned in October, is the correct one. The Puritans were 2-1 down at half-time when referee
Bleddyn Phillips admitted any coach would have found the prospect of leading London Welsh in the Aviva Premiership daunting, following the axing of Justin Burnell. The Exiles chairman named defence coach Rowland Phillips as Burnell’s replacement
Coneygree is set to return to the spotlight after his fairytale triumph in the Betfred Cheltenham Gold Cup when he parades at Newbury’s meeting on Saturday. Mark and Sara Bradstock, who train the eight-year-old at Letcombe Bassett, near Wantage
THE health provider criticised over the “preventable” death of 18-year-old Connor Sparrowhawk may lose a multi-million-pound contract with the county council. Southern Health NHS Foundation Trust – which provides inpatient and community services
EMERGENCY services have been called this morning after a car collided with a telegraph pole near Thame. The A4129 was blocked both ways after the car overturned between Haddenham Road, Kingsey, and the B4012 Kingsey Road in Thame. Our top stories
FOUR milk vans have been stolen from a depot at Redbridge, South Oxford, police said. Officers said the vans were stolen between 2am and 8am on Sunday from the Dairy Crest Ltd depot at Towles Mill. Thieves broke in and stole keys to several
THE headquarters of the Church of England in Oxfordshire is to be sold off in favour of a move to a newer building. The Diocese of Oxford has announced it wants to find a new home for its North Hinksey offices and will discuss the issue at a synod
MOTORISTS fear part of the revamped Kennington roundabout which dips down is dangerous. According to regular motorists who pass through it, the roundabout where Abingdon Road meets the Southern Bypass dips through the middle and the lanes are too
Oxford Hawks have to win at home to bottom club Cheltenham this Saturday to guarantee their place in Investec Conference West for next season. This follows, the 1-1 draw at Bristol Firebrands. Hawks took the lead after five minutes through
QUESTIONS have rightly been asked over whether political correctness played a role in the failure to spot the grooming of young girls in Oxford. This paper has raised the issue during its award-winning coverage of Operation Bullfinch and the resulting
A LEADING race tsar has said sex gangs, like the men jailed under Operation Bullfinch, got away with abusing children for years because of their race. Trevor Phillips, former chairman of the predecessor to the Equality and Human Rights Commission
HENLEY Hawks took another step towards being crowned National 2 South champions with a 28-13 win at Redruth. Fly half James Comben scored 13 points as Hawks maintained their 15-point cushion at the top of the table with four games left to play.
OXFORD Harlequins suffered another setback in their battle to avoid relegation, as they were dealt their heaviest defeat of the season in a 56-0 hammering at Hornets. The loss leaves Quins in the last relegation spot in National 3 South West with
BLUE Boar lifted the Oxfordshire County Shield after an entertaining 21-15 victory over Wheatley at Iffley Road. Giles Blanchard scored 11 points, and Hamish Malone went over twice, as they won the shield for the third time. Wheatley pushed
ARMOURERS from RAF Brize Norton held a 24-hour ‘spinathon’ last Monday in aid of Sobell House Hospice, Headington, Oxford. From 8am the team of three, led by Corporal Dan Stubbins, used spinning bikes for a full day. They even ate on the bikes,
BOYS at risk of being targeted for sex by gangs of men in Oxfordshire are being forgotten, say support workers. A Serious Case Review into child sexual exploitation (CSE) case Operation Bullfinch, published earlier this month, identified 373 child
A PRIMARY school in North Oxford can finally expand its playground after a planning row over a bridge was resolved. SS Philip and James Primary School, in Navigation Way, needed land used as a path to a level crossing and allotments so it could
Gerald Bauer and Arlene Nicholson recorded a combined driving distance of 385 yards when they drove in as Bicester’s new club captains. More than 70 members took part in the competition, which raised more than £500 for chosen charity – the Kamran
A STEEPLE ASTON dog owner and his 22-month-old German Longhaired Pointer Gretta proved every dog does have its day after walking away with a top prize at Crufts. Gretta was one of 22,000 dogs that competed at Birmingham’s NEC this month for the
A CAMPAIGN group has been set up to preserve under- threat Green Belt land that would make Cumnor “utterly unrecognisable” if it was built on. Villagers have launched the action group Keep Cumnor Green to co-ordinate efforts to preserve the area
