Oxfordshire | Archive | 2007 | December

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Stories for 13 December 2007

Abingdon

Town ready to thank troops

ABINGDON will be able to say thank you to 400 Army troops today as they celebrate their safe return from Iraq.  more...

Still in the dark

A DEVELOPER has been chosen to transform Abingdon's Old Gaol. But with the winning scheme being kept a closely-guarded secret, it has emerged that Trevor Osborne's plans for a hotel and heritage complex were rejected.  more...

Man injured in 999 crash

A FIRE engine was involved in a collision with two cars in Abingdon today, prompting police to close one of the town's major routes.  more...

Crowds welcome troops home

HUNDREDS of people waving flags lined the streets of Abingdon to celebrate soldiers returning from Iraq.  more...

Town ready to thank troops

ABINGDON will be able to say thank you to 400 Army troops today as they celebrate their safe return from Iraq.  more...

Still in the dark

A DEVELOPER has been chosen to transform Abingdon's Old Gaol. But with the winning scheme being kept a closely-guarded secret, it has emerged that Trevor Osborne's plans for a hotel and heritage complex were rejected.  more...

Man injured in 999 crash

A FIRE engine was involved in a collision with two cars in Abingdon today, prompting police to close one of the town's major routes.  more...

Crowds welcome troops home

HUNDREDS of people waving flags lined the streets of Abingdon to celebrate soldiers returning from Iraq.  more...

Abingdon News

Fire engine and cars collide

A FIRE engine was involved in a collision with two cars in Abingdon today, closing one of the town's major routes.  more...

Crowds cheer soldiers back home

Hundreds of people waving flags lined the streets of Abingdon to celebrate soldiers returning from Iraq.  more...

Art

Tom Woolner, OVADA Gallery, Oxford

Tom Woolner, who is exhibiting his work at the OVADA Gallery, Gloucester Green, until January 19, is not to be mistaken for Thomas Woolner, sculptor, poet and founder-member of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood - he was a 19th-century man.  more...

Jon Rowland, the Said Business School, Oxford

It's refreshing to walk into an exhibition and discover a diversity of works by one artist, rather than a collection which appear to be just reworks of the same theme. The 41 mixed-media and acrylic paintings in Jon Rowland's show in the gallery at Oxford's Said Business School are, as the title suggests, about Places+Spaces+Life.  more...

Books

Thames Through Time

A photograph of the Thames at Abingdon was taken by Eric de Maré just after the Second World War, while hats were still de rigeur on a summer's day. It is one of 24 images collected by English Heritage for The Thames Through Time (£5.99), a book which can be dismantled and turned into postcards.  more...

A feast of nostalgia

Some sumptuous productions are hitting the shelves this Christmas, which are clearly designed to go straight to the top of aunty's festive list. More from Unmitigated England by Peter Ashley (£18.99, Adelphi), a sequel to Unmitigated England, won't fit into an average-size stocking but would look good on any coffee table.  more...

Gothic tale with dark shadows

Like her acclaimed The Woman in Black, Susan Hill's The Man in the Picture (Profile, £9.99) is a gothic tale that reveals dark shadows lurking beneath ordinary life.  more...

Local author

Peter Schofield retired to Oxford after a career as a scientist. His book, The Enjoyment of Opera (Serendipity, £11.95) is a collection of provocative essays about his other great love - opera and its performance  more...

Strange musical tales

The classical music world is not renowned for being particularly wacky, but it does have its fair share of zany moments and colourful characters, as Frances Farrer and Brian Levison discovered when they started digging around behind the scenes. The result is the recently-published Classical Music's Strangest Concerts and Characters, a collection of 85 extraordinary but true tales from concert halls and other venues around the globe.  more...

Business News

Parkinson's disease hope

Scientists at an Oxford biotech firm are hoping to make a breakthrough in the search to find an effective treatment for Parkinson's Disease.  more...

Cimena

Enchanted (PG)

Family/Comedy/Romance. Amy Adams, Patrick Dempsey, James Marsden, Rachel Covey, Timothy Spall, Susan Sarandon, Idina Menzel. Director: Kevin Lima  more...

Cinema

You Kill Me, He was a Quiet Man, Les Chansons d'Amour, The Saragossa Manuscript

Two films this week centre on men with guns. Neither quite works. Yet each has a quirky ingenuity that makes it watchable if never compelling and both boast strong performances by their seemingly mismatched romantic leads.  more...

Enchanted and Bee Movie

Every Christmas, there are certain films which perfectly embody the festive spirit. Whether it's a small boy flying through the air with an animated snowman, Alastair Sim's Scrooge realising the error of his ways, Bing Crosby dreaming of a White Christmas or Jimmy Stewart learning to value family life (with some prompting from an angel called Clarence), cinema has the power to create a warm, fuzzy glow to stave off the winter chill.  more...

Columns

Cabbages and Kings

Is it my imagination, or are fewer people wearing gloves these days? Tuesday morning was cold - so cold that even I regretted not bringing a pair to Oxford. Yet on a simple observation, I reckon only one person in seven was wearing anything on their hands. The rest displayed digits that ranged in colour from pink to purple - apart from those who stuffed them in pockets.  more...

Country Matters

Saving the precious resources

THERESA THOMPSON hears some of the world's experts debate the threats to the world's ecosystems - from the polar regions to the wetlands of Oxfordshire Despite a poll showing that nearly a quarter of British adults were bored with eco news', Oxford-based environmental charity Earthwatch combats any idea of fatigue with lively and engaging discussion full of up-to-the-minute facts. This is the formula used in its annual public debates at the Royal Geographical Society in London. The latest, its seventh, chaired by Alistair Fothergill, co-director of the newly released film Earth, was called Precious Resources, Multiple Threats.  more...

Dance

Viva La Diva, London Apollo

To sample this bizarre collector's item I braved the draughty art deco cavern of the Apollo in Hammersmith on a frosty night, sitting throughout without removing my coat and scarf. Happily, a great blast of warmth emanated from the stage, and the source of that warmth was Katherine Jenkins. Here is a woman who would be a star even if she couldn't sing - but my goodness, can't she just! She can also act, she moves beautifully, and in an incredibly short time has learnt an impressive tap routine.  more...

Didcot

Cancer patient wins drugs battle

AN Oxford cancer patient given a year to live has won the right to have a life-prolonging drug following a three-month battle with NHS managers.  more...

Town council agrees tax increase

DIDCOT Town Council has increased its council tax by more than six per cent - the equivalent of a £4.65 increase for local taxpayers.  more...

Cancer patient wins drugs battle

AN Oxford cancer patient given a year to live has won the right to have a life-prolonging drug following a three-month battle with NHS managers.  more...

Eating Out

Eight at the Thatch, Thame

When a reader asked me what I thought of Eight at the Thatch, the Thame restaurant run by the winners of BBC 2's recent series The Restaurant, I had to admit I didn't know.  more...

Editorial Comment

Less magic

Many of us have fond memories of school Nativity plays, as parents and children.  more...

Entertainment

Run for Your Wife, The Mill at Sonning, until Jan 27

TO ensure everyone has a good time during the festive season, The Mill at Sonning is staging Ray Cooney's funniest and most popular play, Run for Your Wife.  more...

Christmas Variety Show, Wantage Stage Musical Company, Snells Hall, East Hendred, Dec 13; Benson vil

'THE Wantage Stage Musical Company continue their festive tour with their Christmas Variety Show, which includes a mini panto, Little Tommy Tucker, and loads of comic sketches and songs.  more...

Features

Stand-off on the high street

Retail tracking company Experian is reporting a jittery start to the Christmas rush. The company's Footfall survey reports that high street sales were down 7.5 per cent nationally last Saturday compared to the equivalent day last year, and 1.6 per cent on Sunday. For the whole week ending on Friday, December 6, town centre sales were down 3.7 per cent on 2006.  more...

Food

Pinwheel mince pies recipe

Mince pies were originally made in a stiff inedible pastry cases called coffins, which were shaped like a crib and acted as a dish  more...

Try a bottle of beer as a festive treat

This year I intend to serve beer on Christmas Day as well as champagne. But not any old beer - this beer has broken the £10 price barrier, retailing as it does at £12.99.   more...

Football

FOOTBALL: Luke is hero for Bicester

KELLY'S THE Luke Kelly scored the second-half winner for Bicester Town as they won 2-1 at Hook Norton on Tuesday night.  more...

FOOTBALL: Ardley are on a roll

Ardley United made it two Premier Division victories in a row with a straight-forward win against strugglers AFC Wallingford on Tuesday.  more...

FOOTBALL: Sports eye victory

Launton Sports will be aiming to get back to winning ways in Division 1 West when they host Wootton Bassett Town.  more...

FOOTBALL: Allison in the goals

Libbie Allison netted a double as KEA won 4-0 at Hook Norton in the Giles Sports Witney Youth Under 9 B League.  more...

FOOTBALL: Lawton seals it

Two goals in each half gave Fritwell a 4-0 win over Long Crendon in the only game to take place in Division 1 of the Oxfordshire Senior League.  more...

Gardening

No place for Depp

VAL BOURNE dreams not of film stars but of where to plant next spring  more...

Gray Matter

Planners act over disfiguring dishes

With some satisfaction I learned this week that I had done my bit to preserve the architectural integrity of one of Oxford's more interesting and distinguished buildings. In short, I have been able to get a pair of satellite dishes removed from the walls of Campion Hall, the Jesuits' Oxford base, in Brewer Street. They haven't actually gone yet, but I am advised by the city planners that they should no longer be there in three months time.  more...

Demotion for the Duchess

I was surprised to see the Sunday Times referring this week to the Duchess of Cornwall as "Camilla Parker Bowles". Had Style's sub-editor's forgotten her rather well-publicised appointment at the altar in April 2005 with the Prince of Wales? The reference was made in an index page plug for Camilla's "Sixtysomething makeover". "Doesn't Camilla Parker Bowles look fabulous?", trilled the newspaper, to which many of its readers will probably have replied: "No." Others might possibly be rallying to the republican cause having learned that she spends an obscene £40,000 a year on her hair. This is rather more, I think, than even Cherie Blair squandered on her dishevelled barnet.  more...

Headlines

Quad bike wrecks green

A QUAD bike is believed to have been ridden around the Chipping Norton bowls club green, churning the turf into mud.  more...

Quad bike wrecks green

A QUAD bike is believed to have been ridden around the Chipping Norton bowls club green, churning the turf into mud.  more...

Tribute paid to M40 crash victim

A HUSBAND today paid tribute to his wife who died in a crash on the M40.  more...

Quad bike wrecks green

A QUAD bike is believed to have been ridden around the Chipping Norton bowls club green, churning the turf into mud.  more...

Tribute paid to M40 crash victim

A HUSBAND today paid tribute to his wife who died in a crash on the M40.  more...

Horse Racing

POINT-TO-POINT: Dunthrop breaks new ground

Point to-point racing in Oxfordshire breaks new ground this season with Dunthrop, near Chipping Norton, staging the first pre-Christmas meeting this Sunday.  more...

Leader

Handcuffed and sent to Gaol

The Vale council is going to extraordinary lengths to keep secret the fate of Abingdon's Old Gaol.  more...

Letters

Welcome to our assault course

Oxfordshire County Council makes great play on its website on how much it cares for the environment, yet it pursues policies that actively damage it.  more...

University criteria

I worry sometimes about how low the intelligence must be of those who state that 'colour' must be one of the leading criteria for admission to universities (Oxford Mail, November 15).  more...

Not so happy

Citizens concerned about the growth of Costa Coffee should note that Costa Coffee in Summertown, Oxford, is displaying Happy 1st Birthday signs all over its premises.  more...

One rule for us and another for . . .

Sir, I refer to my letter, Fireworks (The Herald, November 22), and your article about the antique fair at Fitzharrys School, Abingdon, having to finish because of the draconian attitude of the Vale of White Horse District Council in banning signs and banners advertising events (Signs row closes fair, The Herald, November 15).  more...

Admit it

Sir, How I must agree with all the letters in last week's Herald about the traffic in Abingdon - a total disaster.  more...

Helpful move

Sir, Yes, this is yet another letter voicing frustration on this subject, but the area in question is not one I've seen anything about before and that's the junction at the bottom of Ock Street.  more...

'Swallowed'

Sir, Councillor Ian Hudspeth appears to have swallowed Government propaganda hook, line and sinker.  more...

'Conflicts'

Sir, The Abingdon Integrated Traffic System has a fatal flaw - two-way traffic in Stratton Way.  more...

Land transfer

Sir, Having read the letters in last week's Herald regarding the transfer of land to Didcot Council, it was clear that this was a 'political' issue rather than an issue about what is best for Didcot.  more...

Too valuable

Sir, John Flood's statement concerning the value of land in Didcot is the primary reason that all green spaces in urban areas should be placed under the total protection of the Environment Agency (Didcot Herald, December 29).  more...

Post disarray?

Sir, Not an original topic, but do we now have to accept that the postal service is in disarray?  more...

'A shame'

Sir, Jim Moley suggests (Letters, December 6) the best way to deal with issues of anti-social behaviour is to trust the experts, rather than follow the whims of pathetic, vote-hungry politicians. I felt I should respond.  more...

Dogs problem

Sir, Fingers crossed for Wallingford Town Council which believes that by clearing the shrubbery at the entrance of the Bullcroft Park and making it more aesthetically friendly will deter dog owners from allowing their dogs to use it as a lavatory.  more...

Music

Wells of creativity

Orson's Jason Pebworth tells Tim Hughes why he is still smiling — and why he prefers British pubs to the Californian sunshine  more...

Mario Papadopoulos, the Sheldonian Theatre

Marios Popadopoulos chose demanding works for the core of this recital - pieces which test the performer's technical and musical abilities. His readings were thoughtful and persuasive and he left the audience in no doubt of his physical mastery of the keyboard.  more...

The Coming of Christmas, Dorchester Abbey

Having battled through a blustery evening to reach a carol concert in the candle-lit calm of Dorchester Abbey, it was good to hear John Betjeman's words about "branches bending to the gale". His poem, Advent 1955, was delivered in the sonorous tones of actor Robert Hardy, whose voice had no trouble filling the historic abbey.  more...

Eclectica! concert preview

Eclectica! bring a whole new meaning to the words string quartet. The Oxford jazz guitar duo of Pete Oxley and Luis D'Agostino have replaced the accustomed second violin and the viola in this project that presents a special Christmas concert at the Holywell Music Room tomorrow.  more...

Princess Ida, Kennington Methodist Church

Princess Ida is the latest production of Kennington and District Church Choirs, who have produced concert versions of Gilbert and Sullivan twice a year since 1979. The formula is simple: a 50-strong chorus in costume seated en masse behind the front row of principals, who, in extravagant costume, stand up for their entrances, and sing and parley with each other with gusto. The whole is undergirded by John Oxlade on piano and conducted by the choir's founder, Trevor Cowlett.  more...

Pop music on CD — bring on the ladies

If you enjoy formulaic pop, packed full of electronic gimmicks and distorted vocals then look no further than Kylie's new album X (Parlophone). This is an album of songs made to be heard at clubs or through those hyperactive bass-heavy sound systems favoured by some car drivers. It seems to me that Kylie has gone through her career following in the musical footsteps of Madonna - however, there's a bit of a departure on this album as one of the indistuguishable tunes sounds in part at least, a bit like Pink's classic Get the Party Started.  more...

Carmen, New Theatre, Oxford

It's not often that you see a horsebox and a donkey conveyance parked outside the New Theatre. But Ellen Kent, that indefatigable importer of Eastern European opera and ballet companies, also loves animals. So in her production of Carmen, a donkey appears in Lillas Pastia's tavern, and a magnificent horse carries bullfighter Escamillo as he makes his grand entrance to the sound of March of the Toreadors. On the human side, Ms Kent also provides four Spanish dancers to entertain the punters in the tavern. In this production, incidentally, Lillas Pastia himself is a very jolly mine host, as opposed to the surly "I've got my licence to consider" character you sometimes encounter.  more...

John Donaldson, the Spin, Oxford

Immediate comments at the end of this evening at the Spin included "one of the best gigs ever" and from an articulate member of the audience the one word "joyous". Curiously, neither pianist John Donaldson nor saxophonist Art Themen (both pictured), have reputations that balloon before them like, for example, Julian Joseph. But this might have as much to do with ego as musicality.  more...

In at the deep end

NICOLA LISLE talks to Opera Anywhere founders Mike and Vanessa Woodward about Arias on Ice, which is coming to the Oxford Ice Rink later this month The ice may be cold, but the grand finale to Opera Anywhere's Christmas season promises to be a real sizzler. In what must surely be one of the most unusual artistic collaborations ever, Opera Anywhere singers will be joined by a team of ice skaters from the Oxford Ice Rink in a feast of operatic favourites and other festive offerings.  more...

Musicreviews

Gogol Bordello @ Hammersmith Apollo

More than a band, Gogol Bordello are a force of nature.  more...

News

Quad bike wrecks green

A QUAD bike is believed to have been ridden around the Chipping Norton bowls club green, churning the turf into mud.  more...

House bricks are ‘too red’

A HOUSE in Merton Street, Banbury, may have to be demolished after it was built in the wrong colour brick.  more...

House bricks are ‘too red’

A HOUSE in Merton Street, Banbury, may have to be demolished after it was built in the wrong colour brick.  more...

Quad bike wrecks green

A QUAD bike is believed to have been ridden around the Chipping Norton bowls club green, churning the turf into mud.  more...

Extra time for shoppers

SHOPMOBILITY, which provides scooters and wheelchairs for disabled shoppers, has extended its opening hours on Thursdays during December.  more...

Faiths unite for candlelit event

A MULTI-FAITH celebration attracted more than 200 people from across Oxford.  more...

Gargoyle contest brings out talent

YOUNG artists proved inspired by an Oxford competition to come up with some ugly work.  more...

House bricks are ‘too red’

A HOUSE in Merton Street, Banbury, may have to be demolished after it was built in the wrong colour brick.  more...

House bricks are ‘too red’

A HOUSE in Merton Street, Banbury, may have to be demolished after it was built in the wrong colour brick.  more...

Quad bike wrecks green

A QUAD bike is believed to have been ridden around the Chipping Norton bowls club green, churning the turf into mud.  more...

Quad bike wrecks green

A QUAD bike is believed to have been ridden around the Chipping Norton bowls club green, churning the turf into mud.  more...

Young writer makes charity pledge

A Kidlington schoolboy wants people to splash out on his book about a dolphin to raise funds for Save the Children.  more...

Young writer makes charity pledge

A Kidlington schoolboy wants people to splash out on his book about a dolphin to raise funds for Save the Children.  more...

Town ready to thank troops

ABINGDON will be able to say thank you to 400 Army troops today as they celebrate their safe return from Iraq.  more...

Helping hand for Thai orphans

A BANBURY couple who wanted to adopt an orphan in Thailand, found it impossible to choose one from the hundreds available at the orphanage they visited. So they decided to adopt them all.  more...

Still in the dark

A DEVELOPER has been chosen to transform Abingdon's Old Gaol. But with the winning scheme being kept a closely-guarded secret, it has emerged that Trevor Osborne's plans for a hotel and heritage complex were rejected.  more...

Brookes role for council executive

OXFORDSHIRE County Council's chief executive is to be the new chairman of the board of governors at Oxford Brookes University.  more...

Residents make Advent special

FAMILIES in North Oxford have created a real-life Advent calendar to build a more close-knit community in the run-up to Christmas.  more...

Device helps beat purse snatchers

KEY coils to deter pickpockets are to be handed out tomorrow in Witney and Carterton.  more...

Boatyard developer to appeal

DEVELOPER Spring Residential is to appeal against a decision by Oxford city councillors to reject its plans for a four-storey block of flats on the site of the former Castle Mill boatyard, in Jericho.  more...

Cancer patient wins drugs battle

AN Oxford cancer patient given a year to live has won the right to have a life-prolonging drug following a three-month battle with NHS managers.  more...

Schools shun traditional nativities

MOST primary schools in Oxford have this year opted to stage modern versions of Christmas plays with less of a religious element.  more...

Man injured in 999 crash

A FIRE engine was involved in a collision with two cars in Abingdon today, prompting police to close one of the town's major routes.  more...

Tribute paid to M40 crash victim

A HUSBAND today paid tribute to his wife who died in a crash on the M40.  more...

Muggers strike twice in park

VIOLENT muggers attacked two men while walking through an Oxford park.  more...

Fire crews called to hospital

PART of the John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, was evacuated this afternoon after a fire.  more...

Councillor expelled from Labour Party

BENEFIT cheat and Oxfordshire county councillor Olive McIntosh-Stedman has been expelled from the Labour Party.  more...

Nurse cleared of raping teenager

A MALE nurse who had sex with a teenage girl patient in hospital has been cleared of raping her.  more...

Nurse cleared of raping teenager

A MALE nurse who had sex with a teenage girl patient in hospital has been cleared of raping her.  more...

Hair consultant faces sex charges

A HAIR consultant has been charged with seven offences of sexual assault on women over the age of 16.  more...

Hair consultant faces sex charges

A HAIR consultant has been charged with seven offences of sexual assault on women over the age of 16.  more...

County eyes £115m flood relief

A LARGE slice of a £115m flooding relief grant from Europe should come to Oxfordshire, it is claimed today.  more...

Disabled being cheated

THEATRE cheats claiming to be disabled have forced the New Theatre, Oxford, to abandon its policy of letting carers in free.  more...

Update: Pile-up closes M40

DRIVERS heading out of Oxfordshire faced long delays tonight after a pile-up closed the M40 in Buckinghamshire.  more...

Crowds welcome troops home

HUNDREDS of people waving flags lined the streets of Abingdon to celebrate soldiers returning from Iraq.  more...

Quad bike wrecks green

A QUAD bike is believed to have been ridden around the Chipping Norton bowls club green, churning the turf into mud.  more...

Quad bike wrecks green

A QUAD bike is believed to have been ridden around the Chipping Norton bowls club green, churning the turf into mud.  more...

Tribute paid to M40 crash victim

A HUSBAND today paid tribute to his wife who died in a crash on the M40.  more...

Young writer makes charity pledge

A Kidlington schoolboy wants people to splash out on his book about a dolphin to raise funds for Save the Children.  more...

Young writer makes charity pledge

A Kidlington schoolboy wants people to splash out on his book about a dolphin to raise funds for Save the Children.  more...

Nurse cleared of raping teenager

A MALE nurse who had sex with a teenage girl patient in hospital has been cleared of raping her.  more...

Nurse cleared of raping teenager

A MALE nurse who had sex with a teenage girl patient in hospital has been cleared of raping her.  more...

Hair consultant faces sex charges

A HAIR consultant has been charged with seven offences of sexual assault on women over the age of 16.  more...

Hair consultant faces sex charges

A HAIR consultant has been charged with seven offences of sexual assault on women over the age of 16.  more...

Town ready to thank troops

ABINGDON will be able to say thank you to 400 Army troops today as they celebrate their safe return from Iraq.  more...

Still in the dark

A DEVELOPER has been chosen to transform Abingdon's Old Gaol. But with the winning scheme being kept a closely-guarded secret, it has emerged that Trevor Osborne's plans for a hotel and heritage complex were rejected.  more...

Cancer patient wins drugs battle

AN Oxford cancer patient given a year to live has won the right to have a life-prolonging drug following a three-month battle with NHS managers.  more...

Man injured in 999 crash

A FIRE engine was involved in a collision with two cars in Abingdon today, prompting police to close one of the town's major routes.  more...

Crowds welcome troops home

HUNDREDS of people waving flags lined the streets of Abingdon to celebrate soldiers returning from Iraq.  more...

Non Leage

FOOTBALL: Smith set for Witney debut – at last!

Dean Smith is set to make his Witney United debut - at the fourth time of asking - for their trip to AFC Wallingford.  more...

FOOTBALL: Let's start new run urges Peace

Didcot Town boss Stuart Peace has told his players to forget about their midweek defeat at Godalming and get ready for their tough trip to Paulton Rovers tomorrow.  more...

On The Box

About as sexy as leftover turkey

'I am just full of the Christmas spirit and I bring tidings of comfort and joy." Thus spake the slightly-less-than-angelic presenter of Nigella Express (BBC2) as her latest series dragged to its self-parodying end with an episode inventively titled "Season's Eatings". Bah! Humbug! You can count me out of any Christmas celebration if it involves Nigella Lawson. She is a byword for the supposedly sexy way she behaves, but her pouting leaves me as cold as turkey on Boxing Day. Even more embarrassing than Nigella's smirking at the camera is her overblown vocabulary. She talks as if she has just discovered alliteration. She showed us how to prepare "fast festive food" consisting of "get-ahead goodies" (including "holiday hotcake" and "party popcorn") for our "full-on festivities". Her recipes are full of "gorgeous goldenness" as well as "golden gorgeousness". Watching Nigella feels like drowning in golden syrup.  more...

Other Sport

BADMINTON: Oxon 2nd hit back

Oxfordshire 2nd came back from 3-1 down to pip Gloucestershire 2nd 8-7 in Division 3B of the Inter-County Championships at Bartholomew School, Eynsham.  more...

RACING: River flows home

Twyford trainer Alan Jarvis enjoyed success with River Bounty at Kempton.  more...

Oxford News

Traders fight rent demands

Angry traders in Oxford's Covered Market claim their businesses are under threat at the prospect of a major rent increase.  more...

Schools shun traditional Nativities

Most primary schools in Oxford have this year opted to stage modern versions of Christmas plays with less of a religious element.  more...

Tarte tatin proves top dessert

Budding chefs went bananas - showing off their cookery skills to celebrity chef Raymond Blanc.  more...

Hospital evacuated

The John Radcliffe Hospital was evacuated this afternoon after a fire broke out.  more...

Two men attacked by muggers

Violent muggers have attacked two men while walking through an Oxford park.  more...

Train firm still trailing

Under-pressure train operator First Great Western is still one of the least punctual in the country, according to new figures.  more...

Viva Salsa

Pupils on an Oxford estate have been strutting their stuff to raise funds for a children's cancer charity.  more...

Magna Carta causes a buzz

People queued up at Oxford University's Bodleian Library to see historic copies of Magna Carta on display for the first time in 800 years.  more...

Rail commuters want fares frozen

Rail passengers in Oxford are stepping up their campaign for London-bound commuter fares to be frozen in January.  more...

Ethnic group at uni grows

Oxford University's latest figures have shown an increase in student applications and acceptances from ethnic minority backgrounds.  more...

Stars give film club a boost

Cast members from the hit show Starlight Express took time out from rehearsals at Oxford's New Theatre to give next week's Santa's Little Film Club a boost.  more...

Hair consultant accused of sex offences

A hair consultant has been charged with seven offences of sexual assault on women over the age of 16.  more...

Labour expels benefit cheat councillor

Benefit cheat and Oxfordshire county councillor Olive McIntosh-Stedman has been expelled from the Labour Party.  more...

Go green with a £1 council bag

Oxford City Council has declared war on unwanted plastic carriers by offering ethically-traded cotton shopping bags for £1-a-go.  more...

County needs EU flood cash

A slice of £115m flooding relief grant from the EU should come to Oxfordshire, it was claimed today.  more...

Floods: Audit Commission warning

An Audit Commission report warns that some councils may be unable to cope with a second flooding disaster.  more...

Lights go down on free tickets

Cheats claiming to be disabled have forced Oxford's New Theatre to scrap its policy of letting carers in for free.  more...

City rail link to Cambridge?

Hopes for a rail scheme to connect Oxford and Cambridge have been raised after the Government said it would consider workable proposals.  more...

Pasttimes

Perpetual felicity, as the Tudors would say

CHRIS KOENIG joined the queues for a peep into a Tudor Christmas on view at at the Bodleian Library Apt somehow that the first manuscript on view at this year's Bodleian exhibition, on the theme of a Tudor Christmas, should be a Book of Hours. By the time I reached the exhibit (on my way to see the handiwork of the 11-year-old future Queen Elizabeth I) I had been pondering the unhurried pace of life of Tudor children for almost an hour - while shuffling along in the queue and wondering whether my own hour at a parking meter had expired yet.  more...

Restaurant Reviews

MALMAISON: Only for big spenders

The undisputed daddy of the swanky places to eat in central Oxford, it's difficult to imagine many folk shelling out £70 to eat here on Christmas Day.  more...

LOCH FYNE: Dining with a twist

A chain, but one that's quite stylish and doing its bit to be eco-friendly.  more...

THE BIG BANG

This is probably the most economical place to enjoy a hearty Yuletide nosh-up, writes Paul Stammers.  more...

THE FISHES

The epitome of gastropubbery in Oxford, The Fishes is offering a pre-Christmas menu with a bit of a twist, writes Paul Stammers.  more...

BROWNS

An Oxford institution, so it's all the more surprising that this restaurant hasn't opened before on the Big Day itself, writes Jeremy Smith.  more...

Restaurants

The High Table, the Eastgate Hotel, Oxford

I never went into Merton's Bar at the Eastgate Hotel in Oxford's High Street - and, judging by what I could see through its windows, neither did anyone else.   more...

Rugby

RUGBY UNION: Hawks out to break duck

Henley Hawks will seek their first ever win at the Rectory Ground when they travel to Redruth in National 2 tomorrow.  more...

RUGBY UNION: Alcock signing off

Australian flanker Chris Alcock plays his final game for Oxford Harlequins in tomorrow's home South West 1 clash with Weston-super-Mare (2pm).  more...

RUGBY UNION: Bicester's Chad Ward a boost

Bicester's Chad Ward (pictured) and James Davies are set to return to action after long injury lay-offs.  more...

Share Prices

Today's local share prices (AM)

AEA Technology 82 BMW 2978 Electrocomponents 212.75 Nationwide Accident Repair 124 Oxford Biomedica 22.25 Oxford Catalyst 147.5 Oxford Instruments 200 Reed Elsevier 621.5 RM 201 RPS Group 309.5   more...

Today's local share prices (PM)

AEA Technology 78.5 BMW 2946 Electrocomponents 209.25 Nationwide Accident Repair 124 Oxford Biomedica 21.75 Oxford Catalyst 148.5 Oxford Instruments 199 Reed Elsevier 622.25 RM 201.25 RPS Group 300.25   more...

Speedway

SPEEDWAY: Oxford on the brink after talks break down

Oxford speedway is on the brink of closure, writes ROBERT PEASLEY.  more...

SPEEDWAY: Cheetahs start search for new home

Oxford Cheetahs promoter Allen Trump has started the search for a new site to stage speedway racing, writes ROBERT PEASLEY.  more...

Theatre

Noughts and Crosses, the Royal Shakespeare Company, Stratford

Malorie Blackman's hugely popular children's novel Noughts and Crosses has obvious, if not over-stated, parallels with Romeo and Juliet.   more...

Much Ado About Nothing, Tomahawk, OFS Studio, Oxford

Tomahawk's new production of Much Ado About Nothing is further proof, if any were needed, that it was Shakespeare, not Jane Austen, who originated the genre now known as romantic comedy.  more...

Musical set to roll

GILES WOODFORDE talks to the musical director of Starlight Express.  more...

From uScrooge to Mozart with marimbas

A Christmas Carol and The Magic Flute are given exciting African treatments at The Young Vic, writes A. S. H. SMYTH  more...

U'S News

Patto is ready to crackdown

Oxford United boss Darren Patterson says he will clamp down on any player who shows a lack of discipline after a catalogue of cards in their FA Cup replay defeat at Southend.  more...

Sam poised for Aldershot test

United's coaching staff and management will probably see how young keeper Sam Warrall fares in a practice match in training next week before deciding whether to throw him in at Aldershot next Saturday.  more...

Girls are a big hit for United

The Oxford United Girls Centre of Excellence has been one of the club's major success stories this season.  more...

Tonbridge geared up for big day

Tonbridge Angels may average only 350-400 for home games in the Ryman Premier League, but the little Kent town are hoping to bring around 500 fans to tomorrow's FA Trophy tie at the Kassam Stadium.  more...

Southend set example to U's

It would be nice to think that Oxford United could do to Tonbridge Angels what Southend did to them on Tuesday night.  more...

Wallingford

Surgery not ruled out

VILLAGERS have been handed a boost in their efforts to get a doctors' surgery reopened in Cholsey.  more...

Santa raises money for lifeboat fund

FATHER Christmas will be helping the Wallingford fund to raise money for equipment for a new lifeboat when he visits the Lamb Arcade on Saturday.  more...

Wallingford News

Recipe book is success

A celebrity cook book compiled by a village pre-school attracted recipes from top chefs, local MP Boris Johnson and Prime Minister Gordon Brown.  more...

Wantage And Grove

Arts protesters vow to fight on

PROTESTERS fighting to save a music and arts block in Wantage have vowed to fight on, despite being told their campaign has hit the buffers.  more...

Wgpubs

The Windmill Carvery, Asthall: A venue to enjoy a party

IT is party time!  more...

Witney News

Husband's tribute to M40 crash victim

A 'heart-broken' husband paid tribute to his wife who was killed in a motorway pile-up.  more...

Lucky date for couple

Thirteen might be unlucky for some, but not for Ken and Vera Hester.  more...

Tasty treat to celebrate

A WITNEY couple are celebrating their diamond wedding anniversary on Saturday with a good old-fashioned meal - fish and chips and cups of tea.  more...

Design chosen as Tory leader's card

A Christmas card designed by schoolgirl Bethany Brown will be going out with season's greetings from Witney MP and Conservative Party leader David Cameron.  more...

Rats plague village homes

Rat poison and traps have been flying off the shelves of a village DIY store.  more...

Abingdon Herald News

Crowds welcome troops home

HUNDREDS of people waving flags lined the streets of Abingdon to celebrate soldiers returning from Iraq.   more...

Man injured in 999 crash

A FIRE engine was involved in a collision with two cars in Abingdon today, prompting police to close one of the town's major routes.   more...

Bicester Advertiser News

Nurse cleared of raping teenager

A MALE nurse who had sex with a teenage girl patient in hospital has been cleared of raping her.   more...

Hair consultant faces sex charges

A HAIR consultant has been charged with seven offences of sexual assault on women over the age of 16.   more...

Bicester Advertiser Sport

RACING: River flows home

Twyford trainer Alan Jarvis enjoyed success with River Bounty at Kempton.   more...

Oxford Mail News

Nurse acquitted of rape

A male nurse who had sex with a teenage girl patient in hospital has been cleared of raping her.   more...

Tarte tatin proves top dessert

Budding chefs went bananas - showing off their cookery skills to celebrity chef Raymond Blanc.   more...

Recipe book is success

A celebrity cook book compiled by a village pre-school attracted recipes from top chefs, local MP Boris Johnson and Prime Minister Gordon Brown.   more...

Hospital evacuated

The John Radcliffe Hospital was evacuated this afternoon after a fire broke out.   more...

Two men attacked by muggers

Violent muggers have attacked two men while walking through an Oxford park.   more...

Judge attacks road changes

A judge has criticised the layout of Oxford's Cowley Road after a cyclist was injured avoiding a collision with a bus.   more...

Nurse faces jail despite rape verdict

A male nurse who had sex with a teenage girl patient at the John Radcliffe Hospital faces jail - despite being cleared of raping her.   more...

Go green with a £1 council bag

Oxford City Council has declared war on unwanted plastic carriers by offering ethically-traded cotton shopping bags for £1-a-go.   more...

County needs EU flood cash

A slice of £115m flooding relief grant from the EU should come to Oxfordshire, it was claimed today.   more...

Floods: Audit Commission warning

An Audit Commission report warns that some councils may be unable to cope with a second flooding disaster.   more...

Lights go down on free tickets

Cheats claiming to be disabled have forced Oxford's New Theatre to scrap its policy of letting carers in for free.   more...

Rats plague village homes

Rat poison and traps have been flying off the shelves of a village DIY store.   more...

City rail link to Cambridge?

Hopes for a rail scheme to connect Oxford and Cambridge have been raised after the Government said it would consider workable proposals.   more...

Crowds cheer soldiers back home

Hundreds of people waving flags lined the streets of Abingdon to celebrate soldiers returning from Iraq.   more...

Labour expels benefit cheat councillor

Benefit cheat and Oxfordshire county councillor Olive McIntosh-Stedman has been expelled from the Labour Party.   more...

Husband's tribute to M40 crash victim

A 'heart-broken' husband paid tribute to his wife who was killed in a motorway pile-up.   more...

Train firm still trailing

Under-pressure train operator First Great Western is still one of the least punctual in the country, according to new figures.   more...

Viva Salsa

Pupils on an Oxford estate have been strutting their stuff to raise funds for a children's cancer charity.   more...

Lucky date for couple

Thirteen might be unlucky for some, but not for Ken and Vera Hester.   more...

Tasty treat to celebrate

A WITNEY couple are celebrating their diamond wedding anniversary on Saturday with a good old-fashioned meal - fish and chips and cups of tea.   more...

Magna Carta causes a buzz

People queued up at Oxford University's Bodleian Library to see historic copies of Magna Carta on display for the first time in 800 years.   more...

Rail commuters want fares frozen

Rail passengers in Oxford are stepping up their campaign for London-bound commuter fares to be frozen in January.   more...

Ethnic group at uni grows

Oxford University's latest figures have shown an increase in student applications and acceptances from ethnic minority backgrounds.   more...

Fire engine and cars collide

A FIRE engine was involved in a collision with two cars in Abingdon today, closing one of the town's major routes.   more...

Design chosen as Tory leader's card

A Christmas card designed by schoolgirl Bethany Brown will be going out with season's greetings from Witney MP and Conservative Party leader David Cameron.   more...

Stars give film club a boost

Cast members from the hit show Starlight Express took time out from rehearsals at Oxford's New Theatre to give next week's Santa's Little Film Club a boost.   more...

Hair consultant accused of sex offences

A hair consultant has been charged with seven offences of sexual assault on women over the age of 16.   more...

Oxford Mail Sport

BADMINTON: Oxon 2nd hit back

Oxfordshire 2nd came back from 3-1 down to pip Gloucestershire 2nd 8-7 in Division 3B of the Inter-County Championships at Bartholomew School, Eynsham.   more...

The Oxford Times News

Hair consultant faces sex charges

A HAIR consultant has been charged with seven offences of sexual assault on women over the age of 16.   more...

County eyes £115m flood relief

  more...

Disabled being cheated

  more...

Tribute paid to M40 crash victim

A HUSBAND today paid tribute to his wife who died in a crash on the M40.   more...

Parkinson's disease hope

Scientists at an Oxford biotech firm are hoping to make a breakthrough in the search to find an effective treatment for Parkinson's Disease.   more...

Pile-up closes M40

DRIVERS heading out of Oxfordshire faced long delays tonight after a pile-up closed the M40 in Buckinghamshire.   more...

Muggers strike twice in park

VIOLENT muggers attacked two men while walking through an Oxford park.   more...

Fire crews called to hospital

PART of the John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, was evacuated this afternoon after a fire.   more...

Cameron backs Cogges museum

CONSERVATIVE Party leader David Cameron was due to visit Cogges Manor Farm Museum, Witney, today to reassure the under-threat attraction he would do all he could to save it from closure.   more...

Crowds welcome troops home

HUNDREDS of people waving flags lined the streets of Abingdon to celebrate soldiers returning from Iraq.   more...

Councillor expelled from Labour Party

BENEFIT cheat and Oxfordshire county councillor Olive McIntosh-Stedman has been expelled from the Labour Party.   more...

Schools shun traditional nativities

MOST primary schools in Oxford have this year opted to stage modern versions of Christmas plays with less of a religious element.   more...

Traders fight rent demands

  more...

Man injured in 999 crash

A FIRE engine was involved in a collision with two cars in Abingdon today, prompting police to close one of the town's major routes.   more...

Nurse cleared of raping teenager

A MALE nurse who had sex with a teenage girl patient in hospital has been cleared of raping her.   more...

Tribute paid to M40 crash victim

A HUSBAND today paid tribute to his wife who died in a crash on the M40.   more...

Witney Gazette News

Tribute paid to M40 crash victim

A HUSBAND today paid tribute to his wife who died in a crash on the M40.   more...

  
Restrict search to 13 December 2007

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