Archive
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FOOTBALL: Henderson banned for Oxford City's trip to Chorley
Defender Lee Henderson misses Oxford City’s trip to fifth-placed Chorley in Vanarama Conference North tomorrow. The right back is serving a ban after being sent off in the 2-0 home win over Hyde United last month. City will be looking to striker
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Abstract work fills gallery with colour
THE boiler room in the Jam Factory has gained some warmth this winter from artist Petra Lea’s painting and collage exhibition. Dick Was Now Mayor and Phoebe Wished Him Well is on display until next Wednesday and mainly features abstract works by
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Couple have a ball raising cash for defibrillator appeal
AFTER sinking hoops solidly for four-and-a-half hours, a mighty cheer went up from the crowd as Lewis Purbrick dunked the 2,000th ball. Mr Purbrick and his wife Liz trained for the last six months for their challenge at Wantage Leisure Centre on
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New book of Oxford walks draws on wealth of historical knowledge
WHEN Debbie Dance set off for the launch of the new book series Oxford Heritage Walks, she made the mistake of strolling there with the two people responsible for this new treasure chest of information. While walking through central Oxford, author
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‘Rat run’ lorry drivers will be facing a fine
AN agreement to fine lorry drivers who “rat-run” through Sutton Courtenay to a new warehouse has been backed by a district councillor. Diageo Pension Trust Ltd has won permission for a one-million sq ft warehouse on land off Harwell Road, to the
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Bellringing TV stars hoping others will find the ap-peal
BELLRINGING TV stars Alan and Gay Cooper have been ringing in the New Year by trying to get more people shaking their stuff. The couple, who had a busy bellringing year in 2014, will be hosting beginners’ sessions in Benson and Marcham in the coming
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Ramblers walk off the Christmas pud
AFTER feasting over Christmas, these brave ramblers took to the windy wilds of West Oxfordshire to walk off their extra pounds. In an annual post-Christmas tradition, Oxfordshire members of The Ramblers took a scenic walk around the Costwolds village
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Man found safe and well
THE public have been warned not to approach a missing man last seen in Littlemore. Arthur Efedua, 24, was last seen at 2.20pm today in Littlemore, walking towards Oxford Brookes University. He was said to be wearing a cream cardigan and dark
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Rudy the reindeer enjoyed all that jazz
A YOUNG jazz-loving reindeer and his musical animal friends helped keep the Christmas magic alive this winter. Families flocked to The Mill Arts Centre, in Spiceball Park Road, Banbury, for its first festive production The Ballad of Rudy. Stewart
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Story Museum’s backing for disabled access
DISABLED Access Day will be celebrated by Oxford’s Story Museum with a series of events. On Saturday, January 17, from 10am there will be tours for those with a visual impairment. There will also be gaming demonstrations with West Oxfordshire
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Mince pie steam train is a tasty treat
SEVEN-year-old Ben Chapman’s post-Christmas mince pie was made more exciting by being served on a steam train. He was one of hundreds to go on the Chinnor Railway’s mince pie train, a festive tour through the foot of the Chiltern hills. As
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UPDATE: Services back to normal after delays between Didcot Parkway and Swindon
NORMAL service has resumed between Didcot Parkway and Swindon after earlier delays. Trains were delayed by up to 25 minutes due to emergency engineering work at about 5pm. Services were back to normal just after 6pm, according to travel reports
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More homes linked to superfast broadband
Another 3,500 homes in Oxfordshire have been given access to superfast broadband since November. More than 25,000 homes across the county now have high speed fibre broadband technology available to them following the roll-out of the Better Broadband
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Are speed cameras still in the best locations possible?
Most speed cameras are now going digital. This means they will be able to take pictures of your car and mine 24 hours a day indefinitely. As a result the number of speeding fines handed out by the courts has reached the highest level for four years
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Breast cancer battlers raise their festive eyebrows
BREAST cancer survivors and sufferers made Christmas feel a bit more festive by replacing their eyebrows with glitter, tinsel and decorations. Members of the Younger Breast Cancer Network Facebook group decided to get creative by painting and decorating
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May the Force be with you, even in rural areas
THE Kidlington police team have introduced themselves to almost every farmer in the Kidlington area. They are trying to tackle rural crime, which includes theft of machinery and tools from farms, attacking or stealing livestock and other wildlife
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RUGBY UNION: West to make first Premiership start for London Welsh
London Welsh head coach Justin Burnell has made five changes ahead of the Aviva Premiership clash with Harlequins at Oxford’s Kassam Stadium on Sunday (2.30). Former Quin Seb Stegmann starts on the right wing, with Nic Reynolds playing at outside
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Roundabout work in Headington is double the trouble
TWO sets of roadworks will take place on the A40 London Road, Headington, from Monday after work was delayed. Resurfacing and road widening work from Thornhill park-and-ride to Green Road roundabout was due to finish in mid December but will continue
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Four people appear in court accused of keeping a man as a slave
FOUR people have appeared at Oxford Crown’ Court today accused of keeping a man as a slave. Michael Joyce, 24, of Redbridge Hollow, Old Abingdon Road, Oxford, has been charged with conspiring to hold another person in slavery or servitude and conspiring
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New year services honour soldiers who died in 1915
A COLONEL is determined to carry on commemorating the fallen in 2015 following last year’s special services to mark the centenary of the First World War. The first Turning the Pages ceremony of 2015 will take place tomorrow, when soldiers killed
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Two men bailed following Risinghurst post office armed raid
TWO men arrested in connection with an armed raid on a Post Office in Downside Road, Risinghurst have been released on police bail. The raid happened at 8pm on Tuesday evening when a man entered the Post Office brandishing what is believed to have
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Friday’s letters: What are your fellow readers writing in about today?
Want to give your opinion? Email letters@oxfordmail.co.uk
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Many stall customers will be upset over this
The Country Market stall organisers have been told that their stall is no longer welcome at Abingdon Farmers’ Market. They have been banished. Many customers will be both surprised and upset to hear this has happened, as the stall always looks
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Council should shoulder blame for the damage
This year has been a disastrous year in the history of Port Meadow, with the university flats at Roger Dudman Way, and the rail track-laying operations. Responsibility for planning decisions are with Oxford City Council, and they should therefore
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It’s time for us to move on from Castle Mill saga
I’m sick to the back teeth hearing about the Castle Mill development. It’s like a mill going round and round and round ad nauseam. I value my mental health, and so haven’t gone through every detail of the controversy surrounding the building
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Forms seem designed to discourage participation
We are writing on behalf of a number of Cumnor residents to highlight the concerns we have about the Vale of White Horse Council’s consultations on their Local Plan 2031, the overwhelming feeling being that the forms provided by the council were completely
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Number of jobs destroyed could outweigh the number ‘created’
In the last couple of weeks we have seen councillor Alex Hollingsworth on television, and councillor Tom Hayes in your pages patting themselves on the back because, they say, by approving the Westgate extension, the city has “created” 3,400 new jobs
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Update: Michael Raynes says goodbye to Oxford United
Michael Raynes has thanked everyone at Oxford United as the defender appeared to confirm he had left the club. The Oxford Mail reported this morning the 27-year-old was on the verge of leaving, with Hartlepool United believed to be his likely destination
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Interactive: Explore all our United v Cheltenham match preview stories
Post by Oxford Mail Interactive Graphics.
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Abandon car to reach Witney’s railhead
Sir – Hanborough station’s new car park is overflowing only 18 months after it was opened. The Cotswold Line Promotion Group says about 204 cars a day now cram into a park with only 191 spaces. In December, the Office of Rail Regulation published
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How many jobs lost?
Sir – In the last couple of weeks we have seen councillor Hollingsworth on television, and councillor Hayes in your pages patting themselves on the back because, they say, by approving the Westgate extension, the city has “created” 3,400 new jobs.
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Hair-dos to help fund Aids worker’s trip
WITH little more than a month to go until she flies to South Africa, Rebekka Stredwick is appealing for donations to help her tackle HIV and Aids in the country. The 42-year-old from Headington, Oxford, lived in South Africa in the mid-1980s and
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Stand for election
Sir – Tory councillors and their Lib Dem fellow travellers choose Christmas as the ideal time to announce that they have voted themselves an 19 per cent pay rise (what happened to local government as a voluntary service for the public good?) — presumably
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Playground response
Sir – Re the current story of a member of the public who has asked a question of Oxfordshire county councilors, if they would give their opinion and detail of the allowance increase for councillors. For councillors to reply with ‘you tell me yours
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Too many children
Sir – Matt Oliver does well to inform us (Report, November 27) that Oxford City Council is under pressure to deliver 28,000 homes by 2031. What urgently needs to be included in the debate are findings by arguably the most comprehensive analyses
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Pressure on services
Sir – You report (December 11) that nearly half of all births in Oxford are to mothers not born in this country. You also report that we need to build tens of thousands of homes to accommodate Oxford’s expanding population. The evidence that
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Unfriendly to cyclists
Sir – With the ‘development’ of the new intersection at Worcester Street/Hythe Bridge Street the path for cyclists to go directly through to George Street from West Oxford has been blocked. This is the opposite of what a cycle-friendly city should
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Endless whingeing
Sir – I’m sick to the back teeth hearing about the Castle Mill development. In the December 11 edition of the paper, I was horrified to see the ‘Letters extra’ section, once replete with interesting letters on wider issues of human rights, homelessness
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Planning discomfort
Sir – We are writing on behalf of a number of Cumnor residents to highlight the concerns we have about the Vale of White Horse Council’s consultations on their Local Plan 2031, the overwhelming feeling being that the forms provided by the council were
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Utter obsession
Sir – I received your article (Midwives’ president presented with CBE Report, November 6) from a journalist who knows that I’m interested in this topic. As an academic obstetrician/gynaecologist with 28 years’ experience in clinical research please
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Newborn party
Sir – How to vote at the coming General Election? Until now the choice, in Oxford as elsewhere, has been uninspiring or worse. The big parties are tired, untrustworthy and increasingly not fit for purpose. They operate an 18th-century political
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Poor park pavilion
Sir – How pleasing it is to see the hard tennis courts at Bury Knowle Park being used so regularly over the past years. In fact the investment in the facilities in this park and others in the city is commendable. So what a shame to see how the
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Kennington Library revamp will start new chapter
A VILLAGE library will get its first refurbishment in 25 years after villagers raised £6,000. Kennington Library will get new carpets, a new, smaller counter to create more space for readers and shelving will be re-arranged. The money has been
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CABBAGES & KINGS: My challenge to be nice to cyclists was abandoned, says Peter Unsworth
IT was Ken’s idea to start making the world a more tolerant place – and I was with him all the way in principle. A recently retired school teacher and like many people who have spent a lifetime encouraging primary school children, he retains a bucketful
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New Year sales get off to a lack-lustre start
IN years gone by eager crowds would queue in Cornmarket Street for the January sales, but just one street cleaner was about early yesterday. With UK sales now starting on Boxing Day, Oxford City Council street scene operative Jeremy Gilbert cut
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Michael Appleton all set for January sales
Oxford United are preparing for a busy month of activity when the January transfer window opens tomorrow. It is viewed as an opportunity by head coach Michael Appleton to mould the squad more to his liking, after running out of time to do so in
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Oxford teenage rugby star dies in motorbike crash in Bermuda
A 19-year-old rugby player for Gosford All Blacks died on New Year’s Eve after a motorbike accident in Bermuda. Stephen Edwards, who won the Gosford All Blacks Young Player of the Year award, was involved in a collision on December 30 and was subsequently
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Oxford United's star striker Roberts takes goal rush in his stride
James Roberts’s debut season as a professional has already surpassed his expectations, but the teenager is in no mood to slow down his rise. The highlights have come thick and fast in the last three months, from the Oxford United striker’s senior
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Risinghurst shopkeeper tells of gun raid ordeal
A POST Office owner has told how his life flashed before him as an armed robber held a weapon to his head. Mahesh Gandhi, who owns the community shop and Post Office at Downside Road in Risinghurst with his wife Hema Gandhi, was forced to hand
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Dunkley out to end Oxford United's long wait for a scoring defender
Chey Dunkley is aiming to make contributions for Oxford United at both ends of the pitch after setting up their equaliser at Plymouth Argyle on Sunday. The centre back has made only three appearances for the U’s, but his ability in the air has
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Crazy weather statistics come as no surprise
IT WILL come as no surprise to Oxford residents to discover how topsy turvy last year was for weather. Residents had to endure floods at the start of the year with the wettest winter for nearly 250 years but were able to bask in a sunny Indian
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PM has a right to some peace as protesters continue campaign
THE right to protest is a fundamental part of our liberties. Freedom of speech is ingrained in our society and can be an effective way to demonstrate opposition to an idea, institute or even an individual. As Prime Minister, David Cameron is always
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Delays warning over soaring 999 call-outs
Ambulances were called to 225 emergencies in Oxfordshire on Christmas Day this year, down from 226 last Christmas Day. But on most other days over the festive period, the number of calls to South Central Ambulance Service increased. The biggest
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29 drink driving arrests
Twenty-nine people were charged with drink driving during December, Thames Valley Police said. A further 15 were released on bail and another 10 were released without charge. They were all arrested as part of the force’s “Is it worth the risk
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Ebola tests negative on county health worker
A WOMAN from Oxfordshire has tested negative for Ebola in Scotland, the NHS has said. She had returned to the UK from Sierra Leone on December 21 having visited Scotland as part of a group of 30 for New Year, NHS Highland said. The health-worker
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Ignore the frosts, 2014 was city’s warmest in 200 years
PEOPLE in Oxford can look forward to more warm and wet weather, according to scientists who recorded the warmest 12 months on record for 200 years. Readings carried out yesterday at the Oxford University weather station by Dr Ian Ashpole, Radcliffe
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Friday, January 2
3:39pm Two men bailed following Risinghurst post office armed raid %if(after3) %if(after7)
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FOOTBALL: Banbury United and Redditch United play out stalemate
Banbury Utd 0 Redditch Utd 0 Banbury United battled their way to a valuable point at home to high-flying Redditch United in the Evo-Stik Southern League Premier Division. The bottom club’s Luke Cray was taken ill just before kick-off and
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FOOTBALL: Adi Yussuf's double sees Oxford City return to winning ways
Oxford City 3 (Yussuf 59, 69, Wilson 66) Leamington 1 (Goddard 87) Oxford City took immediate revenge on Leamington with a home win in Vanarama Conference North yesterday, writes MATTHEW BRUCE. There was little to separate the two
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TENNIS: Alice Wilkinson wins home town event
Alice Wilkinson, from Abingdon, won the 14 & under grade four tournament at the White Horse, Leisure & Tennis Centre in her home town. Wilkinson beat top seed Francesca Hurley, from Warwick, 6-3, 6-3 in the final to record her first success
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Professor will lead nursing research
PROFDebra Jackson has been appointed as Professor of Nursing at Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust. In the new role she will work in partnership with Oxford Brookes University to develop nursing research and will start work on Monday, January
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FOOTBALL: Jamie Cook salvages point for North Leigh
Didcot Tn 1 (Elkins 49) North Leigh 1 (Cook 89) A last-minute goal by Jamie Cook earned North Leigh a draw at Didcot Town yesterday as both sides extended unbeaten runs in Evo-Stik Southern League Division 1 South & West. Connor
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RUGBY UNION: Chinnor drop top scorer Ed Keohane for stiff test at Dorking
Chinnor have dropped their leading scorer, Ed Keohane, to the bench for tomorrow’s tough match away to second-placed Dorking in National 2 South. A prolfic goalkicker, Keohane started this season at fly half, but has been switched to the wing in
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ICE HOCKEY: Oxford City Stars sign US star Evan Mackintosh
Oxford City Stars have signed US star Evan Mackintosh from the Park City Pioneers in Utah for the second half of their English National League South Division 1 campaign. The 27-year-old forward brings a host of experience, having played for teams
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Bianchi’s family says thanks for support
Marussia driver Jules Bianchi is still unconscious after a crash in October, his family said. The 25-year-old Frenchman’s car aquaplaned off the wet track while driving for the Banbury-based team in the Japanese Grand Prix. He crashed into
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Widower plans to set up a nudist colony in his garden
WE all want friends that we can bare all to. But for one man in Southmoor, he’s looking for that in a more literal sense. Avid naturist John Weston, 72, is hoping that in 2015, he can some forge firm friendships with fellow enthusiasts.
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Cash is stolen from a cup on a bar
Police want to speak to this man over the theft of cash from a cup on the bar at Cafe CoCo, Cowley Road. Thames Valley Police said a man went into the bar at about 11.10pm on Monday and asked to borrow a pair of scissors. While a 23-year-old
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FIXTURES: January 3-7
SATURDAY FOOTBALL SKY BET LEAGUE TWO Oxford Utd v Cheltenham Tn. EVO-STIK SOUTHERN LEAGUE Premier Div: Poole Tn v Banbury Utd. Div 1 South & West: Didcot Tn v Sholing Spts, Merthyr Tn v Wantage Tn, Wimborne v North Leigh
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Man dies in car crash in Faringdon
A 45-year-old man died last night in a car crash in Lechlade Road, Faringdon. The accident happened at about 10.20pm when a silver Honda hatchback crashed into a fence and tree. The driver, from Gloucestershire, died at the scene. A spokeswoman
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Garden makeover is the perfect gift for residents
STAFF at a landscape firm gave a festive boost to care home residents by sprucing up their garden. Employees of Topiarus Horticulture in Chipping Norton tidied up the garden at the town’s Henry Cornish Care Centre before Christmas. They also
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Joy of parenthood is set to raise a bundle for hospitals
A FATHER-of-two’s website for new parents to coo over their newborns could raise thousands of pounds for hospitals. Simon Haynes’s social networking site Birthooray offers a safe way for parents to share updates, images and video clips of their
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Fireworks welcome couple’s New Year baby
THERE was an explosive start to the new year for Victoria McGovern as fireworks accompanied the birth of her daughter. Mrs McGovern was the first mum of 2015 to give birth at the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford. Baby McGovern — her parents
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Injury denies Asa Hall a reunion with Oxford
Asa Hall will miss out on a chance to come up against Oxford United after a miserable season continued with news he requires an operation. The 28-year-old, who has had two spells with the U’s, moved to Cheltenham Town last summer. But Hall
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Oxford United's Ruffels keen to push on after a testing time
Josh Ruffels is hoping he can hold on to his place in the Oxford United side for the clash with Cheltenham Town tomorrow after admitting his second season at the club has been tougher than last year. The 21-year-old made 35 appearances during 2013
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Justice dads won’t be moved
A GROUP of New Fathers 4 Justice campaigners banned from protesting outside David Cameron’s home have said they will not be deterred by police. The protesters have been camped-out in Dean since December 23 and were issued with a harrasment order
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Air Ambulance on TV
THE crew of the Thames Valley and Chiltern Air Ambulance are to feature in a new documentary. Air Ambulance ER will be shown on Sky 1, with the first of six episodes airing at 9pm on Tuesday. The series will follow the crews of Britain’s emergency
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Claim Brookes to move 2,500-student business school this year
OXFORD Brookes University is set to move a 2,500-student business school from Wheatley to Oxford this year, it has been claimed. The university told the Oxford Mail that it would make an announcement about its estate this month, but denied it would
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Rusty pram covered in mussels is New Year haul
IT was a chilly start to the new year for members of Oxford BSAC Scuba Diving Club as they took the plunge in Hinksey Lake, South Oxford, yesterday. Five divers continued the club’s annual New Year’s Day tradition of hunting for things which have
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Missing key theory after a burglary
A burglar may have got into a house in Springfield Avenue, Banbury, to steal a Sony PlayStation 4 using a missing key, police said. The console and games were in a Toy Story Christmas gift bag belonging to a 30-year-old man and were taken between
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Village houses would make most of rural setting
A PLANNING application has been submitted to build 63 homes in a village near Didcot. Glasgow developer Miller Homes has applied to Vale of White Horse District Council to build the homes on Abingdon Road, Steventon. The application, for a
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Dad whose family died in Gaza hopes to return to UK
AN Oxford Brookes University graduate who lost his family in an attack in the Gaza strip is hoping to return to Oxford this spring. Seven members of Hassan Alhallaq’s family including his heavily pregnant wife Samar, 29, and sons Qinan, six, and
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Hindus hopeful prayers will be answered soon
OXFORD could soon have its first Hindu temple if fundraisers reach their £500,000 target this year. Leaders of the Oxford Temple and Community Centre Project are in desperate need of a permanent base for the county’s 5,000 Hindus. They have
