Alice Powell Column THE cost of motorsport is quite a hot topic among people not just inside the sport, but outside of it too. So is it expensive? The answer to that is yes. But how expensive? The road to Formula 1 is the route
London Welsh 23, Bedford Blues 14 LONDON Welsh began their Greene King IPA Championship season with a hard-fought victory over Bedford at Allianz Park today. Tries from Will Robinson, Joe Ajuwa and Nathan Morris, plus eight points from Gordon
WITH 33 children, grandchildren, great grandchildren and great-great grandchildren to buy for, it’s an impressive feat that Stanton Harcourt’s Cynthia Goodman never forgets each of their birthdays. The 80-year-old has recently welcomed the latest
THEY have rung out at weddings, funerals, and Christmases for more than 600 years. But it seemed the majestic bells of North Moreton All Saints Church would toll for a final time unless major repairs were carried out. Following an appeal in
A NURSERY set up to care for the children of students and staff at Oxford University has been rated outstanding by Ofsted. Kidsunlimited Nurseries in Jack Straws Lane was judged satisfactory by Ofsted in 2009. But, when inspectors visited last
A PRIMARY school criticised over results and leadership has been taken out of special measures amid praise by Ofsted inspectors. Grange Primary School in Banbury was rated inadequate and put in special measures following an inspection in March
OXFORD United twice came from behind to claim a point against Cheltenham Town to keep their unbeaten start to the season intact. Johnny Mullins again showed his ability in the opponents' box with a cool finish to earn the point near the hour mark
GIRL Guide leaders celebrated 145 years of service to the association this month. Ten women were give long service awards for between five and 40 years. Pam Howard, joint district chairwoman for the Brize Norton and Carterton branch, joined
Residents can get rid of unwanted items at a charity collection scheme in Banbury this weekend. Following last weekend’s collection, the British Heart Foundation’s Great British Bag-athon will take place again at Castle Quay Shopping Centre today
PLAYING an instrument takes a certain amount of skill, but performing music when you are deaf or hard of hearing is another level of achievement. More than 140 musicians will take to the stage at Oxford’s Town Hall on Friday, September 27 and some
HE’S pulled a truck and even played tiddlywinks in his trademark thong to raise money for sick children. But now “Thong Ranger” Clifford Oakes is to take on his greatest near-naked challenge – leaping from China’s Macau Tower. The dad-of-two
First match finished London Scottish 44, Ealing 13. Just half an hour before match two kicks off. Such was the short turnaround between the first and second matches, that Welsh and Bedford had to begin their warm-ups on a random piece of grass at
THERE are just three more days for charities to apply for thousands of pounds in the Oxford Mail’s parent company’s big cash giveaway. The Gannett Foundation is offering up to £10,000 to registered charities across Oxfordshire. The Oxford Mail
Oxford finished their ECB League season on a high note with a 95-run victory over Cambridge NCI in their Midlands Division 1 East match at Roman Way. In a game reduced to 30 overs due to rain, Cambridge soon regretted their decision to insert Oxford
Good afternoon everyone and welcome to overcast Gloucestershire. Away trips have been very fruitful for Oxford United so far this season and they have arrived looking for a fourth win on the spin to continue their unbeaten start to the season.
Horspath are due to take on Aston Rowant in the final of the Oxfordshire Under 17 Cup tomorrow. The match, at Horspath, is set to start at 10am.
TWO schemes have been approved that will see dozens of homes made available to hard-up house-hunters. Oxford City Council’s executive board has approved plans to spend £10m over the next two years to buy between 50 and 55 homes for people considered
FOUR intrepid explorers are set to arrive in Hungarian capital Budapest today after driving 1,026 miles in a £500 car. Richard Ash, Philip Donigan, Steve Evins and Brendan Cross of Witney telecoms company STL Communications joined the 2013 Gamma
Oxfordshire's Aofie Clark was lying second after the end of the dressage phase at the Fidelity Blenheim Palace International Horse Trials yesterday. Riding for Ireland, Clark, from Middle Barton, on Fenyas Elegance, has 40 penalty points. Great
LET’S be honest – school dinners don’t have a great reputation. But staff at Wantage Church of England Primary School are doing their best to tackle the problem by bringing in catering staff from Wantage’s King Alfred’s Academy. King Alfred
RESIDENTS at an East Oxford care home will soon surf the internet for the first time. St John’s Home in St Mary’s Road has bought a £600 Samsung touch screen computer for communal use thanks to donations. The home, which is a charity, raised
LEADERS of a Scout group are stunned after thieves broke into their hut for the fourth time in four years. Minster Lovell Scout Group is now facing a £2,000 bill to improve security after the latest burglary. The back door of the building in
A MAN in his sixties has died after his car left the road in Great Rollright near Chipping Norton and hit a tree. Police and paramedics were called to the junction of Banbury Road and Long Compton at 11.20am to reports that the vehicle had left
Horspath had to settle for runners-up spot in the British Team Championship at East Park, Wolverhampton. Led by captain Lewis Bates, Horspath knocked the Poole Comets out in their semi-final to qualify for the final against Wednesfield Aces.
Eddie Pepperell carded a one-under-par 69 in the second round at Zandvoort yesterday. Pepperell, from Frilford Heath, is tied for 79th at the halway stage, eight shots behind joint leaders Miguel Angel Jimenez, who hit a three-under-par 67, and
Banbury Under 15s’ hopes of a national title fell just short as they lost at the semi-final stage of the Lady Taverners T20 finals day at Leamington Spa. After being inserted, Banbury struggled against some accurate bowling from West Midlands side
OXFORD can be a weird and wonderful place at the best of times. And now it has celebrated Christmas... in September... on a beach. Oxford Castle Quarter kicked off its Christmas market – which will take place from November 21 – with a special event
CALLS from the police and crime commissioner to charge clubs and bars for serving booze after midnight have been snubbed in Oxford. Anthony Stansfeld has urged Oxford City Council to use late-night levy powers introduced last year and spend the
Oxfordshire's Bradley Smith finished 14th on the first day of practice for Sunday’s San Marino Grand Prix. Smith, 22, had just set his best time of the day with a 1.36.004 when he fell unhurt at the first corner at the beginning of his 11th lap
A FORMER home of Narnia author CS Lewis could be torn down for “potential redevelopment”. Campaigners and neighbours near 14 Holyoake Road in Headington, have called for it to be saved. CS Lewis lived there from 1922 to 1930 after he returned
TOMORROW, cyclists are being asked to pedal 10 miles to support an animal sanctuary which has spent 45 years – and used up many of its nine lives – re-homing 18,000 animals. Debbie Waite reports on the inspiring work of the Oxfordshire Animal Sanctuary
London Welsh captain Tom May says the players are desperate for their season to start. The Exiles play Bedford Blues in their Greene King IPA Championship opener at Allianz Park in Barnet today, having been training since June. And 34-year-old
An appeal has gone out to cake bakers to help provide goods to sell at a cake sale run by Cutteslowe Community Centre in Oxford. The centre will be holding the sale at the United Reformed Church, Summertown, on Saturday and is raising money to
The deadline is approaching for applications to West Oxfordshire District Council’s community facilities grants scheme. Grants up to £50,000 are available under the scheme to support community assets such as village halls, community centres, play
London Welsh will field eight summer signings against Bedford Blues in their Greene King IPA Championship opener at Allianz Park today (3.15). Tom May, Will Robinson, Nathan Trevett, Andy Titterrell, Peter Edwards, Rob Andrew, Carl Kirwan and Ollie
Two bikes were stolen after sheds were broken into in Moulsford. A thief unscrewed the bolt to one shed to take the bikes and a padlock to another shed was cut but nothing was stolen. Police have not revealed which street the incidents happened
A planning application has now been submitted for a solar farm near Eynsham. Solarcentury, the company behind the plans for the park at Salutation Farm, wants to instal panels to cover an area of about 64 acres of land on the site. It would
There will be some changes to the X90 bus service from Oxford this weekend due to the World Triathlon Finals in central London. Hyde Park Corner will be closed because of the event so the X90 will operate directly to Victoria Coach Station between
ALMOST £17m in European Union funding could be on its way to Oxfordshire to help boost growth, jobs and low-carbon projects. The Oxfordshire Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) is finalising a bid for €19.4m (£16.95m) from the European Regional
SHE signed up to be the council’s “poster girl” for a new housing scheme back in 2004. But mother-of-five Sarah Livingstone didn’t expect to still be on the waiting list for a permanent council house nine years on. The 30-year-old appeared in a 2004
Banbury captain Jimmy Phillips felt they were robbed of their big day after losing to Wimbledon in a semi-final bowl out in the ECB National Club Twenty/20 Finals Day at the Kia Oval yesterday. The rain which fell for much of the day meant proceedings
TWENTY four illegal crayfish traps have been fished out of the River Thames in Oxford. The Environment Agency seized the unauthorised traps yesterday morning. The traps can harm wildlife, including pike and otters. Three traps were taken from
AN £840,000 plan to cut congestion near Oxford’s busiest roundabout has been approved. David Nimmo-Smith, cabinet member for environment and transport at Oxfordshire County Council, gave the go-ahead for major changes to part of London Road in
IT will be the chair of chairs for the library of libraries. That is what the judges are hoping for in a competition to find a new chair for Oxford’s Bodleian Library. The winning design will be just the third chair in 400 years to be commissioned
The Cherwell League’s annual dinner is at the Kassam Stadium, Oxford, on Saturday, October 19. Meanwhile, Tony Carter has issued a plea to clubs for handbooks from 1974-93 to help compile the statistics. His address is 9 Pendarves St, Troon
Match fishing Simon Willsmore won the Thames Three-day Festival, fished by 41 anglers around Oxford. The Drennan matchman did not win any of the three conests, but two second places gave him top spot with four points. Second came Paul Passmore
POLICE had yesterday made no arrests after a 16-year-old boy was hit in the face in a park in Barton, Oxford. The victim was attacked by a teen who was part of a group in the playing fields off North Way at 6pm on September 6. He was treated
A NEW cycle shop was opened by Prime Minister David Cameron yesterday. The Witney MP officially cut the ribbon at Mickey Cranks, a new sales, repairs and fitting shop set up by former RAF serviceman Mick Murphy at the Two Rivers Industrial Estate
POLICE fined 55 drivers in Oxpens Road, Oxford, yesterday. They stopped and fined 32 motorists for not wearing a seatbelt and caught 21 drivers using their mobile phones. One driver had no MOT and another had no tax. They were all told to pay
Oxford City Stars travel to take on Chelmsford Warriors in National League South Division 2 tomorrow full of confidence. A 12-1 trouncing of Basingstoke Buffalo last weekend, when Josh Oliver scored four goals, was a superb start to the season.
Oxford's Jason Plato bids to keep his fading Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship title hopes alive when the series continues at Rockingham, near Corby, tomorrow. The MG KX Momentum Racing driver struggled to find the right set-up for his
Hannah England is determined to finish her season on a high note by shining in two road races. The 26-year-old Oxford City star competes in the mile race at the Great North City Games in Newcastle today (1.17pm) before racing over the same distance
ZOMBIES are normally killed off in a brutal, bloody way. But a new game taking over Oxfordshire schools involves a rather more civil way of wiping out the creatures. It’s the brainchild of father-of-three Matthew Tidbury, from Didcot who has
MATTHEW Tidbury has seemingly helped mankind with his invention of the cordless kettle and now we hope his bid to help children’s maths skills is equally successful. Maths is alongside literacy as a core foundation for education and if it takes
IT IS remarkably easy to wander into a city as an overseas expert, make some pronouncements about what is wrong and then leave. Professor Wulf Daseking is clearly a clever and capable architect. You don’t go designing German cities by getting a
THE man who helped rebuild one of Germany’s biggest cities said Oxford is being strangled by traffic. Prof Wulf Daseking, the architect behind the German city of Freiburg, made the comments about the 885-home Barton West development – which he
RESIDENTS have voiced concerns over traffic and drainage in a question and answer session on Oxford’s biggest planned housing development in a generation. On Thursday night, residents and councillors had the chance to quiz planning officers over
Oxford United are likely to be without James Constable for their Sky Bet League Two clash at Cheltenham today. Boss Chris Wilder admitted there were fitness concerns over a few of his players, but the club’s five-time leading scorer is the biggest
Stub out for better sex. 10 good reasons to stop smoking "I'm not your average girl" Meet our new columnist - musician Nikki Loy The modest woman behind the literary festivals Who the hell is Helen Flanagan? Rebecca
IN a flood, these men could save your life. They are the Environment Agency (EA) workers who know how to operate this floodwater pump. On Thursday, they were topping up their skills by the Thames at Osney lock. They can get the pump, worth
CAMPAIGNERS for a new skate park in Botley say they were left disappointed after decisions stalled at a parish council meeting. A motion was proposed by Councillor Simon Sellars to set up a working group to consider suitable leisure facilities
SIX Oxford United fans were yesterday cleared of taking part in the violence that broke out before the visit of Bristol Rovers to the Kassam Stadium. The trouble began near the stadium's ticket office before the League Two match on February 9.
