Archive
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CCTV clue to £7,000 Eynsham rooftop raid
Police have released CCTV images of two men wanted in connection with a burglary at an industrial estate in Eynsham. At about 2am on November 7, five men broke into one of the business premises on the Oakfield Industrial Estate on the outskirts of the
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Co-op volunteers help spruce up Leys community centre
SUPERMARKET staff left behind their day jobs to become decorators – giving an estate community centre a much-needed revamp. Twenty members of Co-op staff stepped in for a day to transform the Blackbird Leys Youth and Community Centre, with a spruce-up
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It’s all child’s play thanks to revamp
A BRAND new play area will be created in Oxford, and another revamped as part of an ongoing overhaul of city parks. Following talks with families, a new play area will be built in Girdlestone Road, Headington, close to shops and schools, while
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ROYAL WEDDING: Fans plan to repeat 1981 trip
THREE decades after watching Charles and Diana’s wedding, a trio of fans are planning another trip to London to watch Prince William marry. Sisters Rachel and Nicola Morgan, aged 11 and 13 respectively, older sister Christine and friend Christine Weller
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ROYAL WEDDING: Bodleian would be a perfect venue
IF KATE Middleton and Prince William are looking for a historic venue for their wedding, they couldn’t do better than Oxford. The Bodleian Library’s Divinity School has applied for a licence to hold civil marriage ceremonies. But the
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Wacky events boost Children in Need funds
FROM sitting in bath tubs and throwing jelly throwing to visits from daleks, people all over Oxfordshire celebrated Children in Need in true wacky style today. This year marks the 30th anniversary of the annual BBC chairty fundraiser, and county
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Light at the end of the tunnel
I was talking to Councillor David Robertson this week and when we got past the preamble, which was largely about Witney and specifically the excellence of Curry Paradise on the High Street, we got to talking about business throughout the county
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Didcot train changes due to line closure
DUE to engineering work, the Didcot-Swindon railway line will be closed all weekend, with buses replacing trains. Trains between Oxford and London will make extra stops at Didcot Parkway station on Saturday and Sunday to maintain service frequencies.
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Local share prices (PM)
AEA Technology 5.85 BMW 4793 Electrocomponents 266.4 Nationwide Accident Repair 92.5 Oxford Biomedica 9.55 Oxford Catalysts 65.5 Oxford Instruments 537.5 Reed Elsevier 539.25 RM 148.75 RPS Group 223.4 Courtesy of Redmayne Bentley, Abingdon
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Green building event
A second Sustainable Construction Oxfordshire event is being held in Oxford. The theme will be on how businesses can drive a successful low energy building market in the county by promoting green construction methods and products. Speakers will include
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Cable takes Savage advice
OXFORD: Serial scientifc entrepreneur Bruce Savage who is based in the city has joined Business Secretary Vince Cable’s new Entrepreneurs’ Forum. The forum is being created to provide Mr Cable with informal and personal advice on new business and enterprise
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Animated movie wins award
A GROUP of aspiring filmmakers with learning disabilities have won their own version of an Oscar in a national competition. The users of Carterton Daytime Support won best animation at Oxford Film and Video Maker’s (OFVM) Flash Forward Film Festival,
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Elderly man defrauded of £15,000 in Spanish lottery scam
Police are urging people to be vigilant to postal scams after an 83-year-old man was defrauded out of more than £15,000. The man, from Kennington, received a letter informing him that he had won the Spanish Lottery back in July this year. The letter
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WHEELING IN: Honda CR-Z GT 1.5 i-VTEC IMA
FIRE up Honda’s hi-tech CR-Z and your mood will colour your driving experience – literally. The most eye-catching element of the stylish, if not dazzling, interior is the instrument panel, with its array of hi-tech 3D glowing gauges and displays.
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MY WHEELS: MGB Roadster
Q. What vehicle do you drive? A. I drive a red MG BRoadster (pre 1972 – so chrome bumper, locally made!) Q. How long have you had it? A. Well, the truth is I don’t have it, it’s officially my mother’s, but she finds it too temperamental, so I have
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THE WORST CARS EVAH! Talbot Tagora
The French are great believers in the expression vive la difference. And when it comes to cars, they have produced some fantastique examples of just how different they can be, from the fabulously futuristic Citroen DS to the bizarre Renault Avantime.
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Grave revealed after church vault collapses
THE REMAINS of what could be an 18th century vicar have been unearthed after ground over a church burial site collapsed. The tomb at the St Augustine of Canterbury church in East Hendred, near Wantage, was revealed after heavy rainfall. The grave has
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THE CAR'S THE STAR: Ford Anglia
There’s a new sort of music about at the moment known as Dubstep. It looks as though it’s going to be very successful too. No critic can find any flaws with it and there’s a simple reason for this; there’s nothing to criticise. There are no words to
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MOTORMOUTH: Horsey hell
Horseboxes. Ahh, it’s that time of year again. If you were a foreign visitor to these shores you could easily be forgiven for thinking that foxes were giant slavering beasts with huge talons and dripping fangs, capable of smashing their way into a home
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Woman attacked by same man twice in a week
Police are appealing for information after a woman was assaulted by the same man twice in one week in Carterton. The 23-year-old woman was first assaulted as she walked along Faulder Avenue in the early hours of November 12. The second assault
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Anne Frank novel puts author on Costa award shortlist
AN AUTHOR who grew up on Oxford’s Blackbird Leys estate is in line for a £30,000 prize for retelling one of the most moving accounts of life in the Second World War. Sharon Dogar has been shortlisted for a prestigious Costa Book Award for her reimagining
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A Streetcar Named Desire: The Oxford Playhouse
A recurring criticism of the surprisingly infrequent productions of Tennessee Williams’s influential early success A Streetcar Named Desire at the Oxford Playhouse has been of the actors speaking too quietly — at least on the opening night. The
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BADMINTON: Bradbury is director
Double Olympian Julie Bradbury has been appointed director of badminton for a new academy at Bisham Abbey National Sports Centre. Bradbury, from Drayton, near Abingdon, is heading up the The Badminton @ Win Academy, which opened its doors in September
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Local share prices (AM)
AEA Technology 5.9 BMW 4761 Electrocomps 265.4 Nationwide Accident Repair 97.5 Oxford Biomedica 9.6 Oxford Catalyst 65.5 Oxford Instruments 523 Reed Elsevier RM 150.5 RPS Group 223.5 Courtesy
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Park-and-ride buses gear up for Christmas
Oxford Bus Company is to start laying on extra buses on Sundays from two park-and-ride sites in the run-up to Christmas. Starting this Sunday, the 300 service that links Redbridge and Pear Tree park-and-rides with the city centre will run up to every
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BADMINTON: Ahmed's on song
Oxfordshire's Ibby Ahmed and Jeremy Lu won the doubles gold medal at the Bournemouth Bronze Grade under 13 tournament. Ahmed also won a singles bronze, while Molly Naylor picked up a doubles bronze with Louise Aitkins and a mixed doubles bronze
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Diesel at 'highest price this year'
The price of diesel at the pumps has returned to around its highest level of the year, according to the AA. The average cost of a litre of diesel is now 123.07p compared with the 2010 high of 123.08p reached in May, the AA said. Diesel has risen
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College appoints V&A head as new Master
Sir Mark Jones, the director of London’s Victoria & Albert Museum, has been chosen as the new master at St Cross College. Sir Mark will take over mastership of the postgraduate college in St Giles in September next year following the retirement of Prof
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Man bailed on Asbo breach charge
A 49-year-old man has been bailed after denying breaching his asbo. Leslie Belcher, of Magdalen Road, East Oxford, appeared via a video link at Oxford Magistrates’ Court yesterday. He was given a two-year asbo on October 15 preventing
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Nice instrument, shame about the sound
A COLLECTION of weird and wonderful instruments inspired by the artist Hieronymus Bosch is now on display at the Bate Collection in St Aldate’s, Oxford. The exhibition runs until next year with creation of the instruments drawing on the painting The
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Emergency surge in admissions to county hospitals
THE number of people being admitted to Oxfordshire hospitals as an emergency has risen 10 per cent in a year despite a campaign to cut it. Health bosses last night admitted the rise was unexpected, and partly blamed the increase on an ‘ageing population
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Soap stars switch Christmas lights duty
CORONATION Street actress Helen Flanagan, who plays Rosie Webster in the soap opera, has been forced to pull out of switching on Banbury’s Christmas lights due to her filming commitments. Instead, colleague Jennie McAlpine, who plays Fiz, will press
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Crash closes Station Road in Didcot
Police closed Station Road, Didcot, today after a serious crash involving a car and a motorcycle. The road is closed in both directions near Didcot Parkway station.
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Man held after destroying own car
A MAN who single-handedly wrecked his BMW car yesterday was being held by police last night. Officers were called at lunchtime after reports of a man with ‘a knife’ in Gibbs Crescent, off Mill Street, West Oxford. According to witnesses
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South Oxfordshire homes plan approved
COUNCILLORS have approved a controversial homes plan for South Oxfordshire. The plan will see about 9,000 homes built in Didcot, 400 to the west of Wallingford, and 530 in Thame. Twenty-five councillors voted for, and eight against, its core strategy
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Pub goes dry after licence mix-up
A PUB had to give away its beer after being banned from selling alcohol over a licence blunder. Landlords Catherine Loydall and Alistair Tuffin, who run the Fox, in Souldern, between Bicester and Banbury, were told last Friday they had been trading
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COMMENT: Licensing matters
YOU have to feel a lot of sympathy for Catherine Loydall and Alistair Tuffin, the landlords barred from selling alcohol at the Fox Inn in Souldern, because of an mix-up over the premises licence. But what is worrying – without wishing to heap any further
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Abingdon Afghan vet in medal protest
A FORMER soldier will today hand back his military medals to Prime Minister David Cameron in protest at Britain's continuing involvement in the war in Afghanistan. Joe Glenton, who served six months in a military jail after refusing to return to Afghanistan
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Poor school results 'a wake-up call' says MP
OXFORD WEST and Abingdon MP Nicola Blackwood says the city’s school results are a “wake-up call” for Oxfordshire County Council and has asked Education Secretary Michael Gove for help. Miss Blackwood said Key Stage One attainment levels
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Action needs taking
On November 11 at 11 o’clock, we saw a few Islamic radicals break the two-minute silence in central London. They held up banners stating ‘British Soldiers Burn in Hell’, while burning poppies. This protest was unlawful and it was advertised. So why
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Why Gown should do Town more favours
WHEN it comes to state-school education, I’m afraid that Oxford has one huge problem. A very brilliant and clever problem, and it’s called Oxford University. Its very presence distorts its neighbourhood unlike virtually any other. Doubtless for the
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CABBAGES & KINGS: Clegg's no show and cries of 'chicken'
BUSKERS had the sense to realise they couldn’t compete with the band of about 20 protesters in Cornmarket Street on Wednesday. Clucking hens commanded the airwaves. Some dressed in chicken costumes or wore hats and masks of a fowl nature. They
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RUGBY UNION: Big guns to clash
The two highest-ranked sides in the Oxfordshire Cup have been paired together in the quarter-final draw. Henley Hawks, who this year can field their first team, will visit Chinnor on February 12 or 13. Oxford have been drawn at home
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Don't defend them
I DOUBT if any of your readers will take seriously Councillor John Tanner’s tirade against the coalition Government and his desperate attempt to defend Labour’s record. In their 13 years in government, Labour managed to widen the gap between rich and
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Parking before plots
REFERRING to the Brookes students having 25 allotment plots at the Wheatley campus (Oxford Mail, Monday), I think it is a good idea for students to grow their own vegetables. However, I think that they should sort out the parking for student cars before
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Doing their job
YOUR report headlined “Remembrance parade troops get parking tickets” (Oxford Mail, Wednesday) no doubt made an impression on a lot of readers. However, I am concerned that in reporting this you may have left some readers thinking that the parking tickets
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FOOTBALL: Quartet are set to return
FA Carlsberg Vase CARL Evans, Vinny Byfield, Matt Blenford and James Morrison return as Witney try for a third time to play Colliers Wood in the second round. The match is being played at Croydon after it was again postponed in midweek. Sean McKeon
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FOOTBALL: Boss Ford hails Steele's return
Zamaretto Southern League OXFORD City boss Mike Ford believes the return of striker Lee Steele has proved a turning point in their season. Steele, who rejoined the Premier Division club two weeks ago from Ashton United, has score twice in three games
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FOOTBALL: Headington face selection poser
Uhlsport Hellenic League DIVISION 1 West leaders Headington Amateurs face selection headaches ahead of their top-of-the-table clash at Lydney, writes KIEREN BUSHNELL. The Forest of Dean outfit are also unbeaten this season, while Headington have been
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Brave Luke battles rare form of cancer
LITTLE Luke Chadney is battling a cancer so rare he is he is only the eighth-known case in the world. But that didn’t stop the three-year-old beaming with delight when he received his shiny Little Star award. Luke, from Burcot, near Abingdon, started
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RUGBY UNION: Harlequins eye mid-table spot
Oxford Harlequins must use tomorrow’s National 3 South trip to Redingensians as a springboard. That is the view of director of rugby John Brodley, whose side are seeking their third win in a row after a poor start to the season. Brodley said: “We are
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SPORT CALENDAR November 19
SATURDAY FOOTBALL NPOWER LEAGUE TWO Oxford Utd v Gillingham. FOOTBALL LEAGUE YOUTH ALLIANCE South West Conference: Oxford Utd v Cheltenham. ZAMARETTO SOUTHERN LEAGUE Premier Div: Chippenham Tn v Banbury Utd, Tiverton v Oxford City. Div 1 South
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King's Arms, Woodstock
I took a trip down memory lane recently when, in a bid to avoid the crowds pouring out of Oxford’s South Park following the annual fireworks display, I popped into The Duke pub nearby. The long bar, bustling crowd of mainly students and young people,
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Leys women's business network
Enterprising women in Blackbird Leys have set up a business network with a difference. As well as giving businesswomen the chance to forge new contacts, the group includes some who had never considered setting up a business before joining. The Leys Women
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Don't speculate on food
When food retailer Greggs announced solid interim results just over a month ago, few people will have been overly concerned when the company’s chief executive suggested rising wheat prices may add a penny to the price of a pasty. But if wheat prices
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Boss Wilder is staying cool
Chris Wilder feels that a win is just around the corner as Oxford United look to end their four-match losing streak at home to Gillingham in Saturday's League Two encounter. Saturday’s defeat at Rotherham means that it is important that the U’s get back
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Pothole damage payouts soar
COUNTY Hall has paid out more than £300 a day to motorists whose cars have been damaged by potholes. The harsh winter saw Oxfordshire County Council hit with double the number of compensation claims. And last night there were fears the county’s roads
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Gills boss wants maximum effort
Gillingham manager Andy Hessenthaler is demanding his players give everything in pursuit of ending their own run of poor results. Hessenthaler said: “We’ll be much better and stronger this week and we go to Oxford, two points behind them, and we can
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Wotton eyes Oxford United's signs of recovery
Midfielder Paul Wotton says there is no reason why Oxford United can’t start climbing the table when they host Gillingham at the Kassam Stadium tomorrow. Wotton, 33, who is on-loan until January, from League One Southampton made his U’s debut in Saturday
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COMMENT: Bumpy ride ahead on winter roads
CRUMP... Yes, the familiar sound of yet another Oxfordshire motorist’s car hitting a pothole. And if this winter is as bad as the last, the chances are it could become a deafening chorus. Especially if threatened Government cuts mean less is spent on
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Fighting cancer
Malignant melanoma is unfortunately one of the cancers on the increase. Our love of sunshine holidays, and using insufficient protection against the sun’s rays can result in one of the deadliest cancers. Estimates suggest that in 2010, 68,000 melanomas
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Tile venture
A former soldier who used to help defuse bombs for a living has taken up a tamer occupation. Previously, Andy Whitley did one of the most important jobs in the bomb disposal team. He was the man trusted to ensure equipment was maintained and ready for
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Lighter batteries
‘I have one word to say to you,” an elderly bore in the 1967 film The Graduate said to star Dustin Hoffman: “Plastics.” These days that one word might be “batteries.” Already the consumer market for lithium batteries is worth about £7bn a year, and
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Metal coating breakthrough
Erosion, abrasion and corrosion cause many of the highest-cost component failures and unscheduled downtime in high-value industries such as oil and gas drilling, power generation and chemical processing. But Oxfordshire surface engineering technology
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Organic bacon butties
When Alan Joyce was offered the chance of redundancy from his high-flying job as a buyer with luxury car-maker Aston Martin, he jumped at the chance. He felt like a change, and that is what he got, because the biochemistry graduate is now flipping bacon
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Organic bacon butties
When Alan Joyce was offered the chance of redundancy from his high-flying job as a buyer with luxury car-maker Aston Martin, he jumped at the chance. He felt like a change, and that is what he got, because the biochemistry graduate is now flipping bacon
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Making fashion fun
Edgy, rock ’n ’roll and glam — that’s the style of a new range of dresses created by two Oxfordshire fashion graduates. They have gone to great trouble to ensure that none of their customers will turn up to a Christmas party to find someone else wearing
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Webmart profile
What was your first job and what did your responsibilities include? I ran my own car washing business in Barnsley, South Yorkshire. How much was in your first pay packet and what did you spend it on? I received about £6-8 a week depending on who
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Set in stone by masons
Ask Angus Jones what he could build and it seems the sky is the limit: “Anything you want, we can make it. We could even build you a cathedral, if you would like,” said Mr Jones, managing director of AF Jones Stonemasons, based in Ipsden. While clients
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Tithe Barn, Thame
A historic barn dating back to the 16th century has come on the market. The Tithe Barn in Thame was built alongside St Mary’s Church, and the wealth of the church at that time is reflected in the size of the building, which had to be large enough to
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Security protection
The cult of celebrity these days is such that it is not just the stars of stage, screen and football pitch that are in the limelight but those involved in the feeding-frenzy that often accompanies them. And the greater the hype, the bigger the need for
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Blenheim Court
Two major lettings have been achieved at a Banbury office development. PDP Management Services has taken 3,610 sq ft of space at Blenheim Court (pictured) while IT training firm Zenos has snapped up a further 3,600 sq ft. PDP, which specialises in arrears
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Current trends
Experts at property consultants Cluttons Styles & Whitlock offer an overview of current trends in the commercial, retail and educational sectors in Oxford. A ‘two-tier’ office market is developing in the city, according to Mike Watson, an associate
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Susan Bradley Design
Blenheim Place might be 300 years old but thanks to Susan Bradley, it is about to be re-invented as a funky accessory. The Summertown-based designer is well known for her brightly-coloured 3D bookends in the shape of iconic objects and buildings such
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Legal aid under strain
A struggling economy is the time when pressure mounts on families as they battle to cope financially and the result can be a breakdown in a relationship, divorce or separation, and disputes over children, housing and money. We have experienced a steady
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Cuts to come
At last, the uncertainty is over. But while cuts to Government departments’ budgets over the next four years will be less severe than expected, it will still be tough. Wherever you stand, deficit reduction was inevitable and from a business point of
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VW Touran
Fuel costs are really starting to have an impact. At one time sticking £20 in the tank would have lasted me a week or more, but now I find myself dropping into the garage forecourt far more often and each time it seems I am receiving less and less for
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U's boss positive ahead of Gillingham visit
CHRIS Wilder believes his work in the transfer market can reap rewards – starting with the visit of Gillingham on Saturday. The Oxford United manager put the final touches to re-shaping his squad yesterday by letting winger Sam Deering go on loan to
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Knitters stitch up festive cheer
KNITTERS in one small Oxfordshire village have been putting their needles to good use, to help put a smile on the faces of deprived children this Christmas. Volunteers in Launton, near Bicester, have been busy making warm woollens for orphans, sick youngsters
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CRICKET: Ricks is new Cherwell League chief
CLIVE Ricks recorded a convincing victory in his head-to-head battle with Roger Mitty to be the new chairman of the MP Sports Cherwell League last night. Clubs voted 21-13 in favour of the former Cumnor stalwart, who moved to Horspath this season, at
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Youngsters take over theatre
A THEATRE was taken over by young people for a day, to give them a taste of running a business in the real world. Arts-lovers, aged 11 to 20, came from all over Oxfordshire to take part in the event at the newly revamped Pegasus Theatre, in Magdalen
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Ken, 90, goes back to school
IT HAS been 75 years since Ken Lansbury last set foot in his old East Oxford secondary school. But according to the 90 year old, it has not changed all that much. In 1934, Mr Lansbury was one of the first pupils to be enrolled at the
