A star has been born in Oxford - Cinderella has come to town. But she didn't arrive by horse-drawn carriage or pumpkin. Instead she was delivered by emergency Caesarian section at the John Radcliffe Hospital.

Her proud mum, Green party county councillor Sushila Dhall, gave birth at 3am on Sunday and the pair are both doing well.

But why the name Cinderella?

Sushila said the original Cinderella was a resourceful girl who went after what she wanted. But she admitted the name had already caused quite a stir.

"It's raised tons of eyebrows and some people are obviously against it, but if anyone bothered looking Cinderella up they would find it has a lot of ancient and cultural history behind it. "It's a shame Walt Disney has made it so soppy."

As for a fairy godmother, Green party representative Deborah Glass has been invited to take up the role.

But what of Oxfordshire's other secret "celebrities"? How hard is it for the average man or woman on the street living in the shadow of a famous namesake?

Bicester's Geoffrey Archer said his connection with the famous author and politician was more of a help than a hindrance.

The 68-year-old local councillor claimed his name opened lots of doors. "I remember phoning Cherwell District Council once. There was a lot of whispering and giggling and I got straight through to the top man," he said.

The former chief clerk at Upper Heyford RAF's base used to be called "Geoffrey Archer, News at Ten" by his workmates, after the ITV reporter, but when Lord Archer came to prominence it was switched to Sir Jeffrey.

And the lesser-known of the two even admitted: "I read all his books." Julie Walters, 45, works in admin support at the Oxfordshire Museum in Woodstock and has to put up with jokes about her sharing the same name as the actress and comedienne.

The Yarnton mum-of-two said: "When I had to have an operation, the anaesthetist was really disappointed when he realised Julie Walters wasn't quite the celebrity he'd hoped for.

"Every time I get my cheque book out when I go shopping, everyone notices my famous name.

"I wouldn't change it because she has probably been around as long as me. It's my married name and it really doesn't bother me at all."

Watlington, too, has its own secret celebrity - none other than Chris Evans.

But unlike the DJ and TV celebrity, the Rev Christopher Evans has his mind on less worldly matters.

Meanwhile, Alf Price's name may not be famous, but it has brought him his share of good fortune. Vision Express recently advertised a half-price sale by offering free spectacles to anyone called... Alf Price.

But staff at the Oxford branch were still surprised when the local pensioner came forward to claim his prize.

Story date: Wednesday 27 January

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.