Archive
-
Date
Banbury School celebrates record GCSE results
PUPILS celebrated years of hard work when they opened their GCSE results, with some schools reporting their best ever year. They included Banbury School’s Catlin Ryman, who landed six As and four Bs. The Easington resident will now take A-Levels
-
Date
Scales of Justice
People convicted of offences at Banbury Magistrates' Court recently: Ryan Sinclair, 35, of Ridgefield Road, Oxford, admitted driving while unfit through drugs in Station Road, Hook Norton, on November 27. Fined £300, a £15 victims’ surcharge
-
Date
Abingdon to Oxford bus service switches operators
THE X2 bus service which runs from Oxford to Abingdon and Didcot is switching operators. From Sunday, responsibility for the service is changing from Oxford Bus Company to sister company Thames Travel. Operators say the switch makes sense as
-
Date
Council pitches in to upgrade sports area
A POPULAR all-weather floodlit sports pitch in Wood Farm is having a £23,000 upgrade. Oxford City Council is improving the Peat Moors all-weather sports area, next to the Bullingdon Community Centre in Wood Farm. The area, which is regularly
-
Date
'Getting an inbred cat could cost you a fortune'
CAT owners have been warned of the dangers of inbreeding after a kitten was born needing £2,000 worth of surgery. Eight-week-old Sidney has problems with the tube which should link his kidneys and bladder as a result of inbreeding, and has no control
-
Date
Fan takes old Cortina to its namesake town
A CORTINA enthusiast will celebrate the car’s 50th anniversary by driving his pride and joy to its spiritual Italian home. Roger Hampshire, 65, from Witney, will set off on Friday on a 2,000-mile round trip to the town of Cortina d’Ampezzo with
-
Date
CHARITY MATTERS: Sale for grandson's bravery
A WITNEY woman will hold a fundraising event on Saturday to raise money for the charity that helped her grandson. Pamela Evans’ grandson, Garvey, was diagnosed with a brain tumour 18 months ago, when he was 11 years old. His family, from Cornwall
-
Date
CHARITY MATTERS: Football marathon supports prostate cause
FIFTY footballers arrived at Little Milton Recreation Ground at dawn to embark on a gruelling 16-hour football marathon for the Prostate Cancer Charity. Each team played 12 five-a-side matches each before the winning five were awarded their trophy
-
Date
CHARITY MATTERS: Round Robin hits the road
IT’S either the trip of a lifetime or the road journey from hell. But next month three servicemen based at RAF Brize Norton will be taking to the streets for charity. On Friday, September 7, Cpl James Booth, SAC(T) Daniel Wellstead and Sgt
-
Date
Couple scent success with bathtime treats
GRADUATE Tom Lillicrap and Georgie Carter, from Eynsham, came up with a bright idea after months of fruitless job-hunting – a giant scented teabag for the bath. Mr Lillicrap, 23, said: “We were looking at tourist shops in Oxford and there was nothing
-
Date
Local shares (PM)
AEA Technology 0.15 BMW 4747 Electrocomponents 223.7 Nationwide Accident Repair 61 Oxford Biomedica 2.07 Oxford Catalysts 60 Oxford Instruments 1320.5 Reed Elsevier 587.75 RM 79.75 RPS Group 240.2 Courtesy of Redmayne Bentley,
-
Date
Atomic Burger, Cowley Road, Oxford
Imagine the scenario: Cheech and Chong are crashed out on the floor of their student house in Oxford, worse for wear after an epic night out, kebab juice and lager stains down the front of their shirts, Camberwell carrot in hand. And one says to
-
Date
Recipe for dauphinoise potatoes: serves 6
Dauphinoise potatoes are often found on restaurant menus as they are easy to prepare and they taste good. On the Bird in Hand’s menu you will find them served with Matt’s slow-roasted half-shoulder of lamb and his steak pie. You can also order them
-
Date
Matt's dream pub is my kind as well
Combining an interesting walk with a pit-stop at a pub that knows the meaning of hospitality is not always as easy as it sounds, particularly if you have a dog in your party. However, we really hit the jackpot last week when we met up with Matt Tucker
-
Date
How Norman was Edward the Confessor?
How Norman was the saint and king, Edward the Confessor, born in Islip in about 1005, and now regarded as one of the last Anglo-Saxon kings? Answer: very. He left England for Normandy when he was only eight years old, and did not return for 28 years
-
Date
Total Recall and A Few Best Men
The human brain is capable of processing hundreds of billions of instructions every second, putting to shame many supercomputers. But like those supercomputers, the brain is susceptible to viruses and corruption. False memories can be planted — without
-
Date
Open submission photography: Art Jericho
Art Jericho’s second open photographic submission has attracted enthusiastic and imaginative responses from a wide range of photographers, resulting in more than 60 images in the exhibition. They represent a broad span of interpretations of what
-
Date
Reel Big Fish: O2 Academy
Do you have a multi-faceted taste in music? Enjoy live music, singing with a crowd and a bit of the ridiculous? If so, Reel Big Fish couldn’t possibly disappoint. The action begins with the latter part of support act New Town Kings’ set. The eight-strong
-
Date
Bully Boy: Royal&Dergate, Northampton, and St James Theatre, London
Famous as a radio presenter, comedian and novelist, Sandi Toksvig possesses yet another side to her exuberant talents, as a writer for the stage. After supplying the book for the musical Big Night Out and co-authoring the comedy Pocket Dreams, she
-
Date
Hysteria: Oxford Playhouse
Though Terry Johnson’s Hysteria was named Best Comedy in the 1994 Olivier Awards, the play is not exactly, well, hysterical. Unlike Johnson’s next success Dead Funny, which supplies what the title appears to promise, Hysteria — skilfully revived
-
Date
The quest to become 'forever families'
THERE are an estimated 65,000 children in care in the UK, 4,000 of whom are waiting to be adopted. But while the number of children being taken into care is rising, the number of adoptions has been falling since 2007, with just 2,450 in 2010, a
-
Date
Farmers cream of crop in show contest
A WEST Oxfordshire farm has been named as one of the best in the North Cotswolds ahead of the area’s top agricultural show on Saturday. The Smith family, who run Kingham Hill Farm, near Chipping Norton, have been honoured by the Moreton Show Society
-
Date
Rail firms get set for Paralympics
OXFORDSHIRE'S train operators are getting ready for another surge in passenger numbers during the Paralympics. First Great Western handled about 10,000 extra passengers per day at London Paddington during the 17 days of the Olympics, with 7,500
-
Date
Record crowd flocks to festival
OLYMPIC fever gripped Stanton St John as thousands flocked to its Summer Festival. To celebrate the London 2012 games, the festival included a Community Games project, with youngsters able to take part in a range of sports. The weekend event
-
Date
No crash arrests
Police could not say last night whether anyone had been arrested or reported after a car mounted the pavement at the Heyford Hill roundabout and injured a man and his three children. Two girls, aged five and nine, a three-year-old boy and their
-
Date
Tea party turns back the clock
DRESSED in Edwardian costume, dozens of villagers in Enstone gathered for a traditional 1900s-style tea party. The event, organised by the Enstone History Society, was held at the sports and social club on Sunday. Society member John Pritchard
-
Date
New director for bus group
Phil Southall is now in charge of steering Oxford Bus Company in the right direction. He is the company’s new operations director, taking over from Louisa Weeks. Mr Southall was a divisional manager for sister company Go-North East, based in
-
Date
House prices dip
House prices in the county have fallen for the second month in a row. Latest figures for July from the Government’s Land Registry show the average price of a home stands at £240,260, a fall of 0.2 per cent on the previous month. But year on
-
Date
Serious assault inquiries go on
POLICE have not yet made any arrests after a 21-year-old man was left unconscious with serious head injuries when he was assaulted on a night out. The incident happened in Chain Alley, off George Street, at about 2.25am on Monday.
-
Date
Meeting called over loss of Burford School bus link
PARENTS in Charlbury whose children attend Burford School are holding an emergency meeting tonight about the loss of the bus service to the school. Charlbury Travel has decided not to continue operating its term-time service between the town and
-
Date
Map shows Oxford’s one-way streets
A SPECIAL map showing Oxford’s one-way streets is available to visitors to the city for the first time. Although one-way streets are marked on Ordnance Survey maps, a document showing exactly which routes to follow to avoid dead-ends was not available
-
Date
NHS meeting time correction
People can have their say on the future of healthcare in Oxfordshire at a meeting tomorrow night. The consultation meeting will be held at the Thame Barns Centre in Church Road and will start at 6pm, not at 7.30pm as earlier reported.
-
Date
Man admits drugs offences
A MAN has admitted supplying drugs and handling stolen goods. Abdul Hanif, of Bretch Hill, Banbury, admitted four offences at Oxford Crown Court yesterday. The 31-year-old admitted possessing heroin, a Class A drug, with intent to supply, supplying
-
Date
US waitress travels from Florida to return stick
AMERICAN hospitality may be famous, but rarely does it extend to travelling half way around the world to return a lost walking stick. But that is exactly what has happened to Joan Brice, a pensioner from Oxford, who left her folding cane in a Florida
-
Date
AUNT SALLY: Adams shines in title surge
Philip Adams (6-6-3) led the way with a 15-doll haul as Cricketers B moved a step closer to retaining the Greene King Oxford & District League Premier Section title with a 2-1 home win over Gladiators A, writes ANDY BEAL. He was well supported
-
Date
PARALYMPICS: Natasha aiming to land a medal
Natasha Baker says that winning any medal at the Games would be a dream come true. The 22-year-old competes in dressage and is hoping that both her and her 11-year-old gelding, Cabral, can produce when it matters. “You just never know with
-
Date
CRICKET: Andrew Strauss retires from professional cricket
England cricket captain Andrew Strauss - the former Oxfordshire batsman - has this morning announced his retirement from professional cricket. Alastair Cook has been named as the new England Test captain. Strauss has decided to call time on
-
Date
Should there be an inquiry into the grading of this year's GCSE English language exams?
-
Date
Group aims to make Rose Hill sound harmonious
MELODIC voices will echo across Rose Hill as a community chorus comes together. The Rose Hill Community Singing Group will launch on Wednesday, September 12, at 2pm and meet on alternate Wednesdays at Alice and Margaret House, in Desborough Crescent
-
Date
CRICKET: Kaufman climbs to sixth
Minor Counties Championship RICHARD Kaufman’s late surge saw him finish the season as the Minor Counties Championship’s sixth highest run scorer. Kaufman, who captained Oxfordshire for their first four Western Division matches in Ian Hawtin
-
Date
Sister's son jailed for attack on former nun
THE adopted son of the founder of Helen House hospice imprisoned a former nun in his car before punching her in the face. Kojo Ritchie, who was adopted as a baby in Ghana by Sister Frances Dominica, was jailed for two-a-half-years at Oxford Crown
-
Date
PARALYMPICS: Smith's pedal power
Nathan Smith will represent New Zealand in cycling. But it was while in Oxford that he tragically lost a leg after being hit by a car early one Sunday morning in 2004. Smith was in his first season of rugby for Oxford Harlequins and worked
-
Date
A brilliant mind
THE tragic loss of Tony Nicklinson whose brilliant mind was functioning well up to the moment of his demise, must be felt deeply by his family and friends. Tony used all the resources available to him to prove his intelligence which unfortunately
-
Date
The Coalition continues to attack the poorest
AS AN ex-Lib Dem councillor and someone who helped out at the last election, I have become used to despairing of the Coalition’s attacks on the poorest and most vulnerable in society. Council plans that there should be a disposal of their best
-
Date
Why we must debate immigration
Sir – With reference to Judit Brody’s response to my letter of August 8, data from the 1991, 2001 and 2011 censuses available online at the National Statistics website shows that the population in England and Wales increased from 51 million (1.6
-
Date
Alternative perspective on immigration
Sir – In response to Mr Robertshaw’s letter on immigration it is important to debate social issues such as immigration and for debates to be balanced. In that spirit, I would like to offer another perspective. The impact of immigration should not
-
Date
Disgusted by bigoted behaviour
Sir – I am writing about a nasty experience last week in a cafe in Witney. After finishing our meal, I was waiting at the till to pay when I heard the staff behind the counter talking rudely about two female customers. One of the members of staff
-
Date
CRICKET: Smith's ton puts Rowant in final
Bernard Tollett Oxfordshire Cup JOSH Smith smashed a brilliant 136 to set Aston Rowant on the way to a crushing 97-run victory at home to Oxford & Bletchingdon Nondescripts in the semi-finals. Smith’s superb innings came off 60 balls and
-
Date
PARALYMPICS: Gemma is still buzzing
Gemma Collis is still coming to terms with competing at the Games. The Oxford-born fencer gets under way in the women’s epee competition on September 4. The 19-year-old, who before being diagnosed with Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy two years
-
Date
PARALYMPICS: Lily hopes for golden Games
Great Britain cox Lily van den Broecke is determined to do Oxfordshire proud at the London 2012 Paralympics. The 20-year-old, from Oxford, hopes to steer the legs, trunks and arms (LTA) mixed four to gold at the Games. But unlike in the Olympic
-
Date
Thanks for your help
I fell over in the road, on the corner of Holyoake Road, on Tuesday, August 14 and I would like to say many thanks to the dental nurse who stayed with me until the ambulance arrived. Many thanks also to the ambulance crew, one of whom was named
-
Date
Letting off steam
FASTER trains to get us to London quicker? — Ha! Train companies, are you sitting comfortably? Because what you’re sitting in is what us passengers want –seats, seats and more seats. Never mind faster trains, comfort is what we’re after
-
Date
British Gas confusion
I WAS pleased when I received a letter from British Gas stating, as a dual fuel customer, I was entitled to a £15 reward. In the letter it said: “Take this letter along with a form of ID to your nearest pay point outlet to claim your reward.
-
Date
Please support us
Oxfordshire Unlimited is delighted Mr Fagg’s letter (View Points, Monday August 27), concerning the Parade for Equality has shown that our advertisement has alerted the public to this important event taking place on Sunday. Mr Fagg points out
-
Date
A fairer system's needed
IN THESE tough economic times it makes sense for the county council to charge motorists for parking at park-and-ride (Oxford Mail, August 21). But let’s do the job properly. The proposed £3 for more than 11 hours at Thornhill and Water Eaton will
-
Date
Charges dropped
l LIKE RW Tucker, I too was rather baffled and dismayed that the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) dropped charges of failing to stop and report an accident against Carol Glynn. Nonetheless, although they tend not to be precisely the “crème de la
-
Date
MAC THE KNIFE: We all think we can turn our hand to anything
A friend took me aside during a party this weekend. “Can I have a word?” she asked. “Those restaurant reviews you do... “I thought they looked quite fun, and since I have a bit of spare time after the gym in the mornings and my girlie lunches,
-
Date
The Disabled Space: We won't accept our limitations
THE sky’s the limit; off limits; speed limits; parking limits. Our life is ruled by these limits and many more that I am sure you could mention. But could we live without them? Probably some but not all, I guess. However, disabled people
-
Date
Rise in day centre charges scandalous
Sir – I would like to draw people’s attention to the scandalous hike in fees which Oxfordshire County Council is proposing to pass on to elderly and disabled people who use its day centres. At Witney's The Elms Centre, in Moorland Road, service
-
Date
Amazed at RAF safety switch
Sir – I was amazed to read in the Witney Gazette (August 8) that the RAF will be using civilian terminology in future so that a small minority of civilian pilots understand air traffic control orders. A near-miss by one foreign pilot, who had
-
Date
Pubs retain place at heart of community
THE Oxford branch of the Campaign for Real Ale has labelled Witney “unique” for managing to retain almost all its pubs over the past 30 years. No other town of Witney’s size has retained a similar number of licensed premises over that time.
-
Date
Boss Wilder urges Oxford United to stay positive despite Capital One Cup defeat
CHRIS Wilder felt Oxford United had plenty to be proud of after they exited the Capital One Cup at the hands of Leeds United. The npower Championship side ran out 3-0 winners at Elland Road to book their place in round three. U’s boss Wilder
-
Date
County's councillors claim less than UK average
COUNCILLORS in Oxfordshire are almost all being paid less than the national average in allowances. The TaxPayers’ Alliance has released a report showing the most and least expensive councillors in the country. But Oxfordshire’s five district
-
Date
'Oxford can follow in the footsteps of Freiburg'
THE deputy mayor of a German city which has inspired designs behind Oxford’s major expansion said any city could achieve its success. Deputy mayor of Freiburg Martin Haag, who has responsibility for urban development, spoke after the Oxford Mail
-
Date
Car park delay
A meeting to decide whether to give controversial plans for 140 student rooms on St Clement’s car park the go-ahead has been delayed. It was hoped the city council’s planning review committee would meet tonight to look at the proposals. It
-
Date
Car crash victim dies in hospital
A 66-year-old woman who was seriously injured in a collision in Finstock on Friday night has died from her injuries. The woman died in Oxford’s John Radcliffe Hospital on Monday afternoon. Her identity has not yet been released. The woman
-
Date
Flypast tribute to 'queen of the skies' VC10 plane
A ROARING three-plane flypast helped celebrate the golden anniversary of one of Oxfordshire’s most iconic aircraft. It was the centrepiece of celebrations at RAF Brize Norton yesterday marking the 50th birthday of the VC10. But the impressive tribute
-
Date
COMMENT: An icon of our skies
Happy 50th birthday to the VC-10. It is an icon of the Oxfordshire skies and wonderfully described as "the last of the gentleman's aircraft". Next year, it will be decommissioned but no-one will forget the contribution it has made to the RAF
-
Date
RUGBY UNION: Welsh to take no further action over Henson injury
London Welsh have confirmed they will not be taking any further action over the injury suffered by Gavin Henson in last Saturday’s friendly with the Scarlets at Parc y Scarlets. The former Welsh ace suffered a fractured cheekbone after just
-
Date
Violent teen left baby with brain damage
A TEENAGER who shook a baby so hard it suffered a brain injury and permanent disability has been locked up. Curtis Taylor, now aged 20, was sentenced alongside 18-year-old Danielle Moss at Oxford Crown Court yesterday. Taylor, of Jackson Road
-
Date
Library talks get under way
TALKS between library bosses and volunteers have started as part of the controversial shake-up of the way libraries in Oxfordshire are run. Meetings between the county council’s library service manager and groups of “friends” of the libraries have
-
Date
Estate benefit cheat in court
OXFORD: A benefit cheat who dishonestly claimed more than £5,600 has been fined and ordered to pay back the money. Omar Green, of Brambling Way, Blackbird Leys, Oxford, dishonestly claimed £5,665.47 in housing benefit and jobseeker’s allowance
-
Date
Heads want inquiry on ‘unfair’ GSCE marks
HEADTEACHERS across Oxfordshire have backed calls for an independent inquiry into the grading of this summer’s GCSE English language exams. The National Association of Headteachers has written to Education Secretary Michael Gove and the chief executive
-
Date
Gould funeral
OXFORD: A memorial service for former teacher and theatre director Gerard Gould will take place at the Newman Rooms, Rose Place, St Aldate’s, Oxford, on Sunday at 4pm. In an obituary published on Thursday, the incorrect date of September 4 was
-
Date
Crime in your Neighbourhood: Cowley Marsh
CRIME in Cowley Marsh has dropped by 10 per cent – but the proportion of crimes being solved has also dropped to less than one in 10. The area, which centres on Marsh Park, saw a fall in public order offences, criminal damage, assault and burglaries
-
Date
Rise in recycling fires West Oxfordshire up league
WASTE recycling in West Oxfordshire has rocketed by 50 per cent over the past year, firing the district to fifth place in a league table of areas that recycle the most. The district leaped from 146th place in last year’s letsrecycle.com survey
-
Date
Dedication brings Freedom of the Vale
A MAN who has dedicated decades of his life to caring for his community has become the first person to be awarded the Freedom of the Vale of White Horse . White Horse Show chairman Derek Kelsey, 69, has already received an MBE from the Queen for
-
Date
Plans cooked up for kebab van in heart of Witney
A CONTROVERSIAL licence application could see a kebab van operating in the heart of Witney town centre. Alex Ulusoy wants to park his van in Market Square, outside the Post Office, from 11pm to 2am, seven days a week. He currently runs his
-
Date
Who was your Oxford United man-of-the-match against Leeds