Archive
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Police crack down on Didcot dealers
POLICE have made four arrests after targeting drug dealers on a Didcot estate. Last month officers pledged to targets on dealers in the town’s Fleet Meadow estate after residents raised concerns at a neighbourhood action group meeting. Since September
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Footballers battle to stop cemetery extension idea
YOUNG footballers and worried residents have stepped up their campaign to stop a North Oxford recreation ground becoming a new cemetery. The site at Five Mile Drive was listed by Oxford City Council earlier this year as an option to provide extra burial
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Tandem hire firm counts cost of theft
pA TANDEM cycle enthusiast is appealing for help after thieves stole four of her hire bikes from her Blackbird Leys back garden. Student Patricia Kacprzak and her boyfriend started a hire business earlier this year, buying eight tandem cycles to rent
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Stonemason wins study bursary
A STONEMASON from Bampton has been awarded a £14,400 scholarship to help him study his craft at a top art school. Thomas Nicholls, 29, won the Queen Elizabeth Scholarship to study at the City and Guilds of London Art School. The former Burford School
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Music festival's up and running
Voices echoed around Oxford’s Radcliffe Square for the launch of Oxford’s Lieder Festival. The festival, in its 10th year, runs over two weeks, featuring 33 concerts along with a host of other events. On Friday, conductor Tom Hammond-Davies
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Swim for deaf children
The mother of two deaf boys has made a splash for a charity supporting young people with hearing difficulties. Emma Tyreman, whose five-year-old sons Matthew and Joshua suffered hearing loss after being born prematurely, was joined by two other women
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Local author
Colleen Laybourne-Smith, who lives in Shrivenham, has written an illustrated a children's book The Tales of Mr and Mrs Bartholomew Fox (Book Guild, £6.99). It contains four stories about a fox living in a magic wood, told in rhyme. She has distributed
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Impromptu protest against trafficking
ANTI-slavery day was marked in Oxford this lunchtime with a flashmob in Cornmarket Street protesting against sex trafficking. Student actors and volunteers from Oxford Community Against Trafficking (OXCAT) stunned shoppers by holding a fake
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Fright night with The Horrors!
THE only way is Essex this Friday, when Southend’s finest, The Horrors, return to town for a pre-Halloween show to sooth our tortured souls. The show follows the release of the former-Mercury-nominated shoe-gazing garage-punk-rockers’ third album Skying
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Skate park is no longer just a pipe dream
A NEW £65,000 skatepark has opened in Chalgrove – thanks to the hard work of three teenage skateboard and BMX enthusiasts. Zac Payne, Alex Goodchild and Chris Bell, all 16, approached Chalgrove Parish Council a year ago asking for improvements to be
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Families in a spin at Combe Mill event
FAMILIES enjoyed a host of country crafts at a special event at Combe Mill in Long Hanborough. It was the last chance to see working steam engines and waterwheels, as well as learning about traditional crafts, before the mill closes for a major
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Sun shines on eco-day
FAMILIES basked in the sunshine as they enjoyed a harvest festival at Hogacre Common eco-farm. The sun shone as people brought their own apples to be pressed, listened to music and took part in harvest activities at the site off Whitehouse Road, South
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Apprentice's jaw is broken by workmate
A WORKMAN on a building site left a teenage apprentice unconscious and with a broken jaw after a row over a scratched work van. Paul Aldridge punched 19-year-old Sam Hibbins to the floor after accusing him of damaging his vehicle with a bucket. The
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HOCKEY: Foster to the fore
Martha Foster scored twice as Oxford ran out 4-1 winners at Amersham & Chalfont in the England Under 18 Girls’ Cup first round. Margeaux Wilson and Marian Cooper were also on target. OTHER SCORES Girls Under 14: Oxford Hawks A 3, Witney 0; Oxford
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HOCKEY: Nunneley brace lifts Banbury
Tash Nunneley scored twice in Banbury’s 3-1 win at Wycombe in South Clubs League Division 2. Ali Sturla was also netted. Oxford went down to a 1-0 defeat at home to Tulse Hill & Dulwich. The decisive goal came in the second half after Tulse Hill won
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City pioneers new IVF test
SCIENTISTS are developing a test which could dramatically boost IVF success rates from a single cycle of treatment. Oxfordshire IVF campaigners welcomed the breakthrough and said they hoped it would help ease stress for couples. At the
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COMMENT: Fresh hope for couples wanting kids
THE apparent breakthrough by scientists in embryo testing may not only boost the success rate of IVF treatment but may also lead to something less tangible yet no less important – fewer broken dreams. The heartache that couples suffer when
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Oliver's army of fans in town
COAST presenter Neil Oliver charmed readers at Waterstone’s in Oxford as he signed copies of his new book. The queue started at 9.30am yesterday, with the presenter and writer not due to arrive until 1pm. By the time he reached the store
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HOCKEY: Controversy as Hawks are held
Controversy surrounded Oxford Hawks’ 3-3 draw at Tulse Hill & Dulwich in South League Premier Division 2. The match was all-square with two minutes to go when Ted Bennett picked the ball up on the top of the D, and was just about to shoot when
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All ages enjoy rapidplay at Witney Chess Club
Experienced players joined the fun at Witney Chess Club’s annual rapidplay tournament last week. For the first time, the event, at The King’s School, pictured, featured an adults section alongside the junior event, attracting 20 people.
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Flight Sergeant tends Bastion bank
YOU can certainly bank on Flight Sergeant Daz Ealey. The Witney RAF serviceman has served in a range of places around the world, but his latest job is not your everyday military post. Flt Sgt Ealey has been given one of the biggest responsibilities
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Man gets suspended jail term for pub attack
A MAN who was involved in a glassing attack on a drinker in an Oxford pub has been handed a suspended jail term. Liam Bayat was sentenced at Oxford Crown Court yesterday, having earlier admitted affray. Lee Washington had a pint glass thrown at his
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RUGBY UNION: 'Wasps' stung by rampant Blues
Oxford University ran out ultimately comfortable winners against stand-in opponents in a 35-0 triumph at Iffley Road last night. Wasps were the Dark Blues’ scheduled opponents, but provided just a handful of junior academy boys to entertain
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Look back at my old house
I was born at no.23 Wallingford Street, which belonged to my grandparents at that time. I contacted Vanderbilt and asked for their permission to look round before their work started. I found the stairs, which originally rose from the hall opposite the
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This is not an improvement
RE: Thursday, October 6’s, pictures of Abingdon shopping centre, what a big improvement, scrapping the shops’ covers so we can now get soaking wet when we do our shopping. More seats to sit on so we can have more youngsters dropping their half-eaten
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Salaries are aid to democracy
Gordon Clack (Oxford Mail, October 11) has not been following local events as closely as one might have hoped. County councillors’ mileage allowance has been cut along with that of our staff. County councillors’ allowances have been frozen for the third
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We lose out to foreign aid
I completely agree with Peter Holloway, charity really begins at home (Oxford Mail, October 7). David Cameron gives away millions to foreign countries while his people are crucified with high prices and cuts. There would have been no need for quantative
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All these changes are making life harder for less able people
Help! Do tell me, is there someone somewhere sitting at a desk thinking up sadistic schemes to further bewilder the elderly and/or disabled and make their lives even more difficult? First the much-lauded digital TV. We not only had lines across the screen
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Park and rides were put in the wrong places
COUNCILLOR Jean Fooks uses several strong words in her letter about the city and county councils failing to work together regarding park and ride services in Oxford (Oxford Mail, October 13) but just in the wrong context for each. I’m not
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Fair was a traffic nightmare
We’ve just had the annual street fair, which blocks off Abingdon for two-plus days a year. The organiser said there were “no problems at all”. Well, he would say that, wouldn’t he? I needed to get into Abingdon, Monday tea-time and what an absolute nightmare
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Racing dogs always suffer
I AM writing regarding Greyhounds: cash injection boosts owners (October 8). Oxford racing owners and trainers will receive cash but certain racetrack attendees will have nothing to celebrate. It will be business as usual for the greyhounds, the unfortunate
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Boycott store if it's truly not wanted
TESCO is determined to have a shop in every part of Oxford and I am not surprised by concerns that it will open a shop in Jericho. This will definitely threaten the character of the area and also seriously undermine the other treasured local
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On Yer Bike: More cyclists is the solution to our congested roads
While Oxford’s arterial roads, and those in the market towns, suffer heavy traffic at commuter times, Cowley Road is rammed all day long. The crawling queues start at 8am and stop-start traffic appears, car after car, until mid-evening. Even outside
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THE MAN ABOUT TOWN: TV schedule is a cure that ails you
In our endless quest to provide premium health care to those in need and pain, the healing effect of exposure to long-term quality broadcasting is often overlooked. Yet the simple truth is if daytime television were subject to the same focus and resourcing
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Simple solution to parking
It’s not often I support Thames Valley Police, but I have to stick up for them regarding the parking in the service road (Oxford Mail, October 12). In the HQ there is a computer, so take the car numbers and, if it’s owned by an employee, tell them to
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Accusations are misguided
Love him or hate him, Keith Mitchell appears to be completely out of touch (see Comment: ‘Wind it down a bit’ Oxford Mail, October 8). When he accuses library campaigners of being lefties, Greens, liberals and luvvies, has he not noticed that the weight
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|Where can Government get all this money from?
On October 3, George Osborne said he intends to lend tens of billions to small firms. I ask, with the state of our economy and the billions we already owe, where are all these billions going to come from? We have all this trouble with Eurozone bosses
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FOOTBALL: City boss wants repeat show
Oxford City boss Mike Ford has urged his team to go out and do it again after they were handed a trip to Weston-super-Mare in the FA Cup fourth qualifying round. It followed their shock 3-1 win at Weston’s Blue Square Bet South rivals Eastleigh at the
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Cars targeted in spate of city thefts
THIEVES broke into a string of parked cars in East Oxford and Headington. The spate of break-ins and attempted break-ins included five vehicles parked in streets near Cowley Road and seven in Cheney Lane, Headington. A laptop and two mobile phone chargers
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Teen suspect shot with taser after stabbing incident
A WOMAN was stabbed in the back of the leg as she shopped at Templars Square in Cowley yesterday. A teenage suspect was shot by police with a taser gun on the shopping centre roof half an hour after the victim was attacked. The 44-year-old woman was
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I support pensions strikers
l I don’t have a pension. I don’t work in a sector where I’m likely to get one any time soon. And I wholeheartedly support everybody planning to take strike action on November 30. People in the public sector are being attacked on so many fronts. Over
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Why is Government censoring TV channel?
BRITAIN’S Office of Communications, known as OfCom, has decided to take Press TV off air in the UK by having it deleted from programmes broadcast on Murdoch’s monopoly UK satellite broadcasts, citing administrative problems in Press TV’s application
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RUGBY UNION: Chippy crush Bicester
Matt Dawson bagged a try treble as Chipping Norton roared into round two of the Oxfordshire Shield with a 43-10 victory over a lacklustre Bicester side at Greystones. Referee Andrew Graham blew up eight minutes early after Bicester replacement Simon
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RUGBY UNION: Henley are edged out
Henley Hawks could not pull off another last gasp win as they lost 10-9 to Worthing Raiders in National 2 South at Dry Leas. Defeat ended Henley’s 100 per cent start to the campaign, while Worthing, who had three players sin-binned, maintained
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Good and bad news for county drivers
COMMUTERS battling rush-hour traffic yesterday morning found one former blackspot blissfully clear. The Heyford Hill roundabout is now open to traffic after six months of work to turn it into a ‘hamburger’ junction. Motorists faced long delays over
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COMMENT: Support initiative
OUR position that the Key Stage One results in our county are a disgrace has not changed. But at least Oxfordshire County Council is taking a far stronger leadership role. There is no magic wand, but we await the county’s initiative
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Schools show hard work can turn things around
TWO Oxfordshire primary schools have proved standards can be improved for pupils. Less than four years ago Dashwood Primary School, in Banbury, was haemorrhaging pupils after a damning Ofsted report. Now the school has been rated good
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Schools pledge to turn the tide
OXFORD’S seven-year-olds have shown marginal improvements in their reading, writing and maths but are still near the bottom of the pile. Last year the city was worst in England for the three Rs in Key Stage One results. This year Oxford
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Power cut affects radio stations
A power cut in the Boars Hill area caused problems for Oxford radio stations Jack FM and Glide FM this morning. Station managers said problems with the transmitter in the Boars Hill area caused technical difficulties as they prepared for this
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Man charged with murdering wife and mother-in-law
A 21-year-old man is due to appear at Oxford Crown Court tomorrow charged with murdering his wife and mother-in-law. Ensar Gol, pictured, of Ireton Court in Thame, is charged with killing 28-year-old Michaela Gol and Julie Sahin, 50. He is also charged
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RUGBY UNION: Witney pipped by leaders
Witney were pipped by South West I leaders leaders Coney Hill’s late fightback to lose 21-20 at Hailey Road. The Gloucester side, who had taken 30 points from 30 beforehand, needed a try and touchline conversion to seal the win two minutes from time.
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RUGBY UNION: Bowers over the moon at Chinnor victory
Chinnor head coach Jason Bowers was in buoyant mood after routing Oxford Harlequins 66-3. Bowers said: “I was over the moon with the way we played. “To get a big win was great, but we would have taken any win. “Perhaps we should have had two or three
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Hard work can turn things around
Two Oxfordshire primary schools have proved standards can be improved for pupils. Less than four years ago Dashwood Primary School, in Banbury, was haemorrhaging pupils after a damning Ofsted report. Now the school has been rated good with outstanding
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Turning the tide on education
Oxford’s seven-year-olds have shown marginal improvements in their reading, writing and maths but are still near the bottom of the pile. Last year the city was worst in England for the three Rs in Key Stage One results. This year Oxford is still worst
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RUGBY UNION: Stoop stars as Chinnor rout sorry Quins
Chinnor 66, Oxford Harlequins 3 Make no mistake, this was a demolition derby. Chinnor crushed Oxford Harlequins 66-3 in a ten-try romp, which was their biggest victory over their local rivals. Centre Sam Stoop bagged a hat-trick of
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Nail biter and Hinksey Park
A tough game battled out by both teams top earn a point each. Hinksey Park scored 2 great goals by Adam Iveson and Richel Lagerda and Kidlington Youth also levelled the proceedings with 2 goals by Elliott Dandridge an Thomas Leach. Kidlington could
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United accept FA charge with reluctance
Oxford United are to contact the Football Association and the Football League after accepting an FA charge following an incident in their recent League two match against Bristol Rovers at the Kassam Stadium. United are claiming that the
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Woman falls from A34 bridge
A WOMAN fell from a bridge over the A34 last night. A member of the public rang police after becoming concerned for the welfare of the woman, who was on a bridge in Bagley Wood Road in Kennington. Officers attended just after 7.30pm and the A34
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Women's festival adds a fringe weekend
WOMEN from across Oxfordshire are invited to take part in a festival celebrating all things female. The Oxford International Women’s Festival, which takes place in March, has been running for 22 years but for the first time this year, organisers are