Archive
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Oxford bids to become World Book Capital
TWO of Oxford’s best known authors joined forces to help Oxford in its bid to become the Unesco World Book Capital in 2014. Inspector Morse creator Colin Dexter and fantasy writer Philip Pullman attended yesterday’s launch of the city’s bid to land the
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Four deny murdering United academy player
FOUR young men have denied stabbing a promising young footballer to death and trying to kill his two friends. Godwin Lawson, 17, and two others were knifed in a park in Hackney, London, on March 27 this year. The teenager, who attended the Oxford United
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‘Scooterists’ to ride for hospice
THEY say if you remember the 1960s, you were probably never there. So it is lucky that hundreds of Mods, skinheads, and Northern Soul fans will be revving and raving in Oxford to remind us all this weekend. ‘Scooterists’ from all over the country will
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Couple plan marathon bike ride as hospital thank-you
IN HIS first three years, Kyle Thorne has suffered more health problems than most would not experience in a lifetime. Within an hour of being born, Kyle was diagnosed with a rare condition, tracheo oesophageal fistula (TOF), where his food pipe was not
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10,000 back Bicester Hospital campaign
HOSPITAL campaigners have gathered more than 10,000 signatures in an 18-month campaign to guarantee the future of Bicester Hospital. And now they are ready to hand it in. The signatories are calling for the town’s new hospital to be built at Kingsmere
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Banbury cash snatch robbers foiled
Police are appealing for witnesses following a robbery in Banbury today. At about 10.30am, a cash-in-transit driver was collecting cash from the Co-op in Rotary Way, when he was confronted by a man, aged in his twenties, who demanded that he hand over
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Girl assaulted in North Hinksey Lane
Police are appealing for witnesses to a sexual assault after a man in his twenties touched a 14-year-old girl on the bottom as she was walking home from school. The incident happened at about 3.45pm on Wednesday in North Hinksey Lane, Oxford. The
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Crash closes A4260
The air ambulance was called to a crash that closed the A4260 north of Kidlington this afternoon. Reports say the collision involving two cars and a lorry happened between the turnings for the B4027, north of Bunkers Hill, and the B4030 at
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Local shares (PM)
AEA Technology 18.25 BMW 39.35 Electrocomps 230.6 Nationwide Accident Repair 90.5 Oxford Biomedica 9.4 Oxford Catalysts 70.5 Oxford Instruments 432.25 Reed Elsevier 535.25 RM 136.75 RPS Group 180.5 Courtesy of Redmayne Bentley, Abingdon
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Biotech awards night
GREEN fuels company Green Biologics was named Best Biotech Fundraiser at an Oxfordshire awards dinner, for raising £5m to commercialise its technology. Based at Milton Park, near Abingdon, it uses friendly microbes to chew up agricultural wastes
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Homes plan for MoD land 'premature'
THE Ministry of Defence is urging residents to have their say over its housing plans for Graven Hill – despite a council ruling out homes there for at least 16 years. Defence Estates, the property arm of the MoD, wants to build 1,650 houses
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Fight for policy victims goes on
THOUSANDS of Oxfordshire victims who lost their life savings will get compensation 10 years after the near collapse of Equitable Life, it has been confirmed. MPs have now passed the second reading of the Equitable Life (Payments) Bill, giving the Treasury
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Man critically injured in Cornmarket attack
Police are appealing for witnesses following an assault in Oxford in the early hours of yesterday. Shortly before 3am, a 20-year-old man got into a verbal altercation with a man outside the Lush store in Cornmarket Street. A fight broke out shortly
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Boys robbed on visit to Oxford University
Police are appealing for witnesses after two 16-year-old boys were robbed as they sat on Magdalen Bridge, Oxford, yesterday. The two boys, from Edinburgh, had been to visit the University of Oxford on an Open Day. At about 8.10pm they
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GREYHOUNDS: Friday BAGS results
11.03: 1 GO TEDDY 8-1, 2 Collie 4-1. (3x6x5). Trainer: Mayo. Time: 28.37. Killishin Mist (2) 6-4 fav. 11.19: 1 PRIMA STAR 8-1, 2 Eagles Storm 6-4 fav. (5x4x2). Trainer: Wills. Time: 28.08. 11.34: 1 CHILLOUT PEGASUS 3-1, 2 Barn Owl 5-1. (3x4x5). Trainer
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COMMENT: Gotta dance
IT SEEMS the county’s breakdancers, street dancers and dub steppers might well be facing some new competition from the over-50s, as older people in Cutteslowe and Blackbird Leys are signing up for classes in samba, salsa, jive and rock ’n’ roll. Surely
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Telling tales to boost cancer centre
WRITERS have published a new collection of stories about Oxford to help cancer sufferers and their families. Midwinter Tales is published by the Turl Street Writers group, which has raised hundreds with two previous books for Maggie’s Centres. The charity
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21-year-old man killed in car crash
A 21-year-old man from Benson has been killed in a car crash, near Wallingford. The man was driving a Vauxhall Vectra along an unnamed road in Ewleme at around 1.10am. The car crashed and hit an embankment before rolling over. The driver was pronounced
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Council offers help to get local people on housing ladder
LOANS of up to £50,000 are being offered to West Oxfordshire residents who are struggling to get a foot on the property ladder. The money is being made available as part of a new scheme by West Oxfordshire District Council – but applicants must be local
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New dance classes aim to get older people on their feet
OLDER people in Oxford will be cutting a dash on the dance floor thanks to a programme of new classes. The sessions will give people a taste of different styles each week from salsa and jive to line dancing and rock and roll. One of
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Thomas delighted to tie-up Wilder long-term
Kelvin Thomas feels that Chris Wilder’s name should be linked to almost any Football League job that becomes available. The Oxford United chairman says the job Wilder has done means that he has to come into consideration whenever a vacancy crops up.
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Local share prices (AM)
AEA Technology 17 BMW 4013 Electrocomps 236.3 Nationwide Accident Repair 90.5 Oxford Biomedica 9.5 Oxford Catalysts 70.5 Oxford Instruments 431.5 Reed Elsevier 539.75 RM 137.5 RPS Group 182.45 Courtesy of Redmayne Bentley
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Writer unrepentant over Pope
AUTHOR Philip Pullman last night stood by his opposition to the Pope’s state visit to the UK. The His Dark Materials writer put his name to a letter, signed by 49 other high profile celebrities including Stephen Fry, which said the Pope should not have
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RUGBY UNION: Pooler out for eight weeks
Wallingford have been hit by three injury blows ahead of tomorrow’s home game with Bletchley in South West 1 East. Fly half Henry Pooler is out for eight weeks with a broken scaphoid, while wing Lee Lewis will miss six weeks with a broken foot. The
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COMMENT: An indictment of today's policing
“KIDLINGTON is a nice place to live and work and we do not want this spoilt by the actions of a few people...” So says the neighbourhood police sergeant for the village. And you might think this would indicate that Thames Valley Police
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Police petitioned to act on the yobs
TRADERS in Kidlington are calling on the police to tackle a group of teenagers who they claim are intimidating customers. More than 30 shops in the High Street and surrounding area have displayed a petition for customers to sign. Maurice Billington,
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CRICKET: Oxon Over 50s go for glory
OXFORDSHIRE Over 50s are going for their second national title in three seasons when the take on Middlesex in the final at Wormsley on Sunday (11.30am). And skipper Andrew Wingfield Digby considers that Oxon are much stronger now than when they beat
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No justice says beaten up wife
AN ARMY major who went round to his ex-wife’s home and beat her up has escaped jail. Major Norman Woodhill, of Adjutant General’s Corps, based at Didcot’s Vauxhall Barracks, last week pleaded guilty at Oxford Magistrates’ Court to assault by beating.
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‘Secret plans’ for Gateway site denied
THE consortium behind a major housing and office development in North Oxford has denied accusations of drawing up a secret masterplan for the site. The Northern Gateway Consortium has revealed how the land could be divided, including shops, offices,
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Tea may have been poisoned in prison
An inquiry was under way yesterday to establish how two female prison officers became ill – amid fears their tea may have been poisoned in jail. The victims became seriously ill and collapsed at Bullingdon Prison, near Bicester, on Monday, the Prison
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TENNIS: North Oxford Academy up and running
The transformation of the North Oxford Lawn Tennis Club junior programme was completed on Saturday with the official opening of the North Oxford Academy The Academy is the culmination of three years of dedicated work by its head coach, Chris Hampton
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Wheeling in... A heavyweight champ
THERE is one word that crops up regularly when discussing the Mitsubishi Shogun. The word is serious. With looks that would not be out of place in a war zone, the square-jawed Shogun is one of motoring’s big boys. Weighing in at about the three-tonne
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Truck 'cartel' investigation
Truck maker Daf, based in Thame, is among several UK commercial vehicle manufacturers being investigated by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) for suspected price-fixing activity. As part of the probe, the OFT raided Mercedes-Benz's offices in Tongwell
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Cherie gives talk in honour of chef
CHERIE Blair joked she would not be swapping recipes with celebrity chef Ken Hom when she arrived in Oxford to give a speech in his honour last night. The former Prime Minister’s wife was Mr Hom’s guest at Oxford Brookes University where she spoke on
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Man arrested in timeshare probe
A MAN has been arrested as part of investigation into a timeshare scheme, which may have left hundreds of people out-of-pocket. The probe followed a complaint about Golden Sands Marketing, based at Horsefair, in Banbury, which offered to arrange timeshare
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RUGBY UNION: Derby rivals all fired up
Oxfordshire's biggest rivalry will be renewed tomorrow when Oxford Harlequins host Chinnor in National 3 South West (3). Last season saw Quins win both their league encounters and Chinnor come out on top in the Oxfordshire Cup. One thing for sure is
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U's won't get carried away
Chris Wilder is urging Oxford United to produce more of the same against Stockport tomorrow. But the U’s must not forget what has helped them climb the table so rapidly – namely plenty of graft to go with their confident play. “We’re newcomers to this
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Lack of relief
SO much for John Tanner’s great plan to close public toilets in Oxford and get shop owners to allow theirs to be used instead. British Home Stores, in Queen Street, has had a long, generous tradition of having toilets for people’s use, but no doubt
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Dapper copper
I WRITE regarding the letter from Tom Holden, commenting about David Youd’s letter on police appearance. Both David and I served in the former Oxford City Police, a small but well-disciplined force. We knew that smart turnout leads to pride. This in
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Walk to fitness
I am writing to let Oxford Mail readers know that there is now strong scientific evidence that being regularly physically active reduces your risk of developing cancer later in life. One of the easiest ways to be physically active is walking. As well
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Subway farce
THE county council is asking for suggestions to help save money. Surely this is like shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted? A colossal sum has already been mis-spent on fatuous transport schemes, such as filling in the Headington subway
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Pool site should be retained for leisure
THE charade over the future of Temple Cowley Swimming Pool is over. Now councillors and officers can sit back and relax. They knew what they wanted and got what they wanted. And, best of all, fulfilled their obligations to the general public. I admire
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Talk to Mr Mitchell
Your report on Oxfordshire’s new road death investigation unit (Oxford Mail, September 4) quotes a police spokesman as saying that “people who cause serious accidents through... poor decision making... need to be dealt with.” When does the unit propose
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CABBAGES & KINGS: Old grudge lives on
WILL you sit next to me?” It’s not the sort of offer I get every week in the Pear Tree park-and-ride bus queue, and certainly not from a well-coiffured member of the ladies-who-lunch sorority. Who was I to refuse? She felt it necessary to explain why
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The Car's the Star: Ford Mustang Shelby
Many attempts have been made to document the achievements of mankind. In the 1950s, every square foot of free land had a time capsule under it; they even launched four into space. In 1936, the Crypt of Civilisation was set up to contain the greatest
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Lady Driver: Free of kids
CHILDREN and cars are a strange combination. Most mothers I know have no option but to drive around in some practical, roomy vehicle that will accommodate not only the little darlings but all their paraphernalia and a week’s shopping. In most cases
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CCTV clue issued in taxi driver attack inquiry
Police today released a CCTV image of two men they want to speak to about an assault on a taxi driver in south Oxfordshire. At about 2.40am on July 18, a 32-year-old taxi driver picked up three men in Greys Road, who asked to be taken to Wallingford
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Benson man dies in crash
Police are appealing for witnesses after a fatal crash near Wallingford in the early hours today. At about 1.10am, a black Vauxhall Vectra was travelling along an unnamed road in Ewelme, near to Warren Bottom, when it left the carriageway and travelled
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MoD criticised over Brize air fleet
MINISTERS yesterday criticised the Ministry of Defence (MoD) over “astonishing” failures in getting a new £10.5bn air fleet for RAF Brize Norton. The 14 tanker and transport aircraft, pictured – which are now six years behind schedule – were heralded
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Hop harvest lost in Southmoor farm blaze
A FARMER last night said he was devastated after a blaze ripped through a barn full of harvested hops. A large storage barn, pictured, at New House Farm, in Southmoor, caught fire at about 7.40am yesterday. Eight fire crews from Abingdon, Faringdon,
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FOOTBALL: Legend Howlett dies at 77
ARTHUR Howlett, who holds the distinction of being the first Oxford City player to score 100 goals for the first XI, has died, aged 77. Mr Howlett, of Queen’s Road, Thame, passed away in the John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, last Saturday. He was a prolific
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FOOTBALL: City boss Ford staying upbeat
OXFORD City boss Mike Ford is convinced they are about to turn a corner and climb the Zamaretto Southern League Premier Division table. City are still seeking their first win, and went down 1-0 to leaders Cambridge City on Tuesday, but Ford says performances
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FOOTBALL: Kidlington eye revenge
KIDLINGTON will seek swift revenge when they host Old Woodstock Town in the second qualifying round tomorrow, writes KIEREN BUSHNELL. Gordon Geary’s side lost 2-1 against Woodstock in the Hellenic League on Tuesday evening. They welcome back Mark Baker
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FOOTBALL: Headington go for six in a row
Uhlsport Hellenic League HEADINGTON Amateurs will seek their sixth straight Division 1 West win when they travel to Malmesbury Victoria tomorrow. Skipper Adam Simmonds is ruled out with a knee ligament injury from an otherwise full-strength squad.
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Title may go down to wire - Button
Jenson Button believes this year's fight for the Formula One world title will go down to the wire, with the winner the driver who will stay coolest under pressure. With five races to go just 24 points, less than for a race victory these days
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Attack shocks quiet crescent
A MAN was left fighting for his life in hospital after being stabbed 13 times in an attack branded “shocking” by police. The victim, who is 40 and English, was found bleeding on the stairwell outside his flat in Gibbs Crescent, West Oxford,
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Fuel duty rise 'should be shelved'
The AA has urged the Government to shelve next month's rise in fuel duty after warning that motorists face a new upswing in pump prices. The motoring organisation said plans to add 1p to petrol and diesel prices from October 1 come at a time
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Wright out of action for a few weeks
OXFORD United look likely to be without defender Jake Wright for at least a couple of weeks. But manager Chris Wilder has paid tribute to Mark Creighton, who patiently waited for his chance, and took it admirably last weekend in United’s 2-0 win at Hereford
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Four deny killing United academy player
Four young men have denied stabbing a promising young footballer to death and trying to kill his two friends. Godwin Lawson, 17, and two others were knifed in Amhurst Park, Hackney, east London, on March 27 this year. The teenager, who attended the
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Josh is Champions League record-breaker
TEENAGE Oxfordshire footballer Josh McEachran made history on his Chelsea first-team debut in their UEFA Champions League tie away to MSK Zilina on Wednesday. The 17-year-old midfielder, from Kirtlington, replaced Yossi Benayoun for the last
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Join in our run, urges charity
Organisers of a 10km charity run are calling for more people to take part in an attempt to raise £160,000 for Cancer Research UK. They are hoping to recruit a total of 2,500 volunteers to take part in the run at Blenheim Palace, Woodstock, on Sunday
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End of the ride for the Botley Bowl
Skateboarders have hit out after a parish council ordered a famed skate bowl to be filled in following an arson attack. North Hinksey Parish Council said it could not get insurance for Botley Bowl – where skaters could perform stunts – and
