Race day is almost upon us and today will see me complete final preparations. Rest and relaxation is crucial, so after a good 10 hours' kip I had a lazy breakfast before meeting up with a few team mates. I might get in the lake to swim the course one
AEA Technology 105.25 BMW 2725 Electrocomponents 239 Isoft Group 52 Oxford Bio 28.25 Oxford Instruments 203.5 Oxonica 129 Reed Elsevier 564.25 RM 180.25 RPS 229.5 Torex Retail 50.75 Courtesy of Redmayne Bentley, Abingdon
STAMFORD 0 BANBURY UNITED 1 BANBURY dominated the game for the majority of the first-half but were prevented from scoring by a resolute home defence. In a rare Stamford attack, new goalkeeper Milan Barasic was forced to make a great save as he palmed
BANBURY'S Ride a Cock Horse Folk Club starts its autumn season next week with north/east folk icon Vin Garbutt as the star act. Club organiser Mary Droscher said Garbutt was one of the best entertainers in the folk world - and one of the most sought
HONDA boss Nick Fry has asked the near impossible of Jenson Button by aiming to steal third place in the championship from McLaren. Button won the Brackley team's first race three weeks ago in Hungary but, not content with that achievement, Fry wants
A PROJECT to plan the future development of Chipping Norton Theatre will start next month after a £60,000 grant was secured. Management were delighted to hear that a bid to Arts Council England for funding was successful. They said the money would
SINGERS, poets and storytellers are being invited to a special 'Sing Out' tomorrow, organised by Chipping Norton Heritage and Traditional Music Club. The group said it would be an extra special event at The Fox Hotel, Market Place. Spokesman Bill
MUSICALLY-minded people in the North Oxfordshire area are being sought to join a local choir. Brackley male-voice choir is looking for a male or female pianist as well as male singers. The choir rehearses at Magdalen College School in Brackley on Mondays
THE number of patients registered with an NHS dentist in Oxfordshire has risen by more than two per cent. Figures just published show in March a total of 253,089 adults and children were registered with the NHS. That is 2.2 per cent more than in 2005
SIX board members are needed for a new charity, set up to help conserve the Cotswolds. The new organisation, Friends of the Cotswolds, has been created by the Cotswolds Conservation Board to help promote conservation projects and foster a greater understanding
ARCHAEOLOGISTS from Oxfordshire hit gold - in a sense - during their TV dig at Buckingham Palace. Oxford Archaeology found a Victorian diamond earring, presumed to have been lost in the grounds, a 17th century ornamental water feature and even prehistoric
A HOMELESS drug addict died of pneumonia in his sleep as the methadone he had taken masked the symptoms, Oxford Coroner's Court heard. Michael Buckle, 19, of no fixed abode, died on October 2 last year at his father Stephen Buckle's home in Saxton Road
ADDERBURY licensee John Bellinger is planning a pub crawl with a difference. Mr Bellinger, who runs the Bell Inn, is gearing up to cycle to 28 pubs belonging to Hook Norton Brewery to raise money for the village's Katharine House Hospice. He will
THE Conservative party headquarters in North Bar, Banbury, is to close under party re-organisation. It will be relocated in Watlington, south Oxfordshire, as part of a move by the national Tory party to organise administration offices on a county by
DRAYTON School in Banbury was celebrating a massive increase in GCSE successes on Thursday of last week - with top grade passes up by 14 per cent on last year. Headteacher Richard Sutton said the number of pupils gaining five or more A to C grade passes
PARENTS have been sent letters by police informing them that their children have been caught "hanging around" on three estates in Banbury. A total of 179 youths on the Ruscote, Hardwick and Neithrop estates were stopped and checked by police over a
A WOMAN has been arrested over the fire which saw three people needing hospital treatment. The 24-year-old was arrested on suspicion of arson with intent to endanger life after the fire at the home in Appleby Close, Banbury, in the early hours of Wednesday
ONE IN THREE Adam Wishart (Profile, £15) Wishart's account of his father's illness and eventual death from cancer is a truly moving story - all the more touching because it avoids the usual clichs about 'battling through adversity'. One in three of
The famous gold mask of Tutankhamun looked very different before he was given a makeover by archaeologists. The first glimpse inside the gold coffin was captured by the British archaeological photographer Harry Burton during the famous excavation of
ANCIENT AMERICANS: REWRITING THE HISTORY OF THE NEW WORLD Charles C. Mann (Granta, £20) Ask a visiting US high-school student about the early history of their homeland and most likely they will wax lyrical about Columbus, 1492 and the Pilgrim Fathers
ONE GOOD TURN Kate Atkinson (Doubleday, £17.99) The author sets her stall out on the dust jacket by describing her latest novel as a "Jolly Murder Mystery". This kind of contradiction would normally put me off, but for Kate Atkinson, the author of
Wednesday, September 20 William Boyd will read from his new novel Restless, about a young female spy in the Second World War. Tickets £3. Waterstone's, Broad Street, Oxford, 7pm. Tel. 01865 790212. Details of book-related events can be sent to Maggie
Nobody Told Us We Are Defeated Stories From the New Iraq Rory McCarthy (Chatto and Windus, £11.99) After George Bush and Tony Blair have gone, the issue of Iraq will remain etched on their record for a very long time - perhaps forever - upstaging
Pete Annells, who lives in Didcot, became interested in the Dunch family after doing a local history study of Long Wittenham, where they originated. The Dunches feature in a local name for Wittenham Clumps - Mother Dunch's buttocks. The Berkshire Dunches
It's not only antiques fans who follow Cash In The Attic regular Jonty Hearnden's TV appearances. He also has a huge female following and has apparently become a gay icon both here and in the US. But the antiques expert and happily married father-of-three
Business gurus are fond of saying that behind every problem lurks an opportunity. The ongoing saga of the former US airbase at Upper Heyford is a classic case in point. Here is a 1250-acre estate in beautiful, rolling countryside, complete with 300
SMOKERS who flout the forthcoming ban in Oxford bars and restaurants face the prospect of being reported to a special hotline. A 'shop-a-smoker' line is being launched next summer to coincide with the start of the national smoking ban. However, one
SPEED cameras will not be used to catch motorists breaking the new limit on Oxford's Eastern Bypass. Police have only just been able to enforce the revised 50mph speed limit after a mix-up over signs on the stretch where four people died in last year's
OXFORD City Council has broken its silence over the city's controversial animal experiment laboratory. Until now the £18m Oxford University project in South Parks Road has been a non-political affair, locally at least. However, most city councillors
MICROCHIPS will be placed in Oxford's bins, with people potentially being charged based on how much rubbish they dump. More than 500,000 electronic chips have already been planted in wheelie bins in council districts across England, and when Oxford's
POLICE are still baffled about a chainsaw attack on a man on a remote Oxfordshire road. The 33-year-old victim was left with serious injuries after the attack on an unclassified road known as Hen and Chick Lane, close to the Cotswold Wildlife Park,
POST Office staff in the city are as baffled by a new Royal Mail shape and size charging guide as the public, an investigation by The Oxford Times has revealed. Last month, the Royal Mail changed the way letters and packets are priced - basing it on
STAFF sickness rates at Oxford City Council are on course to be the worst ever, latest figures have shown. Employees took an average 2.88 days off each in the three months since April this year, up on 2005 figures. The results were made public in
A MURDER investigation has been closed after it was revealed the victim probably died of a combination of drink and drugs. Thomas Tait, 40, was found dead in a flat in Luther Court on Sunday, November 6, last year and six men and a woman were arrested
AN OXFORD man has received the backing of a High Court judge for a review of the future of the Chronic Pain Relief Unit at the city's Churchill Hospital. Kevin Comley, of Pegasus Road, Blackbird Leys, and Vera Marriott, from Waddesdon, Buckinghamshire
AN inmate at an Oxfordshire jail is suing after he fell off the top bunk in his cell. Gerry Cooper cut his head open after rolling out of bed at Bullingdon Prison, near Bicester, and is complaining the beds breach health and safety as he seeks a pay-out
LEISURE services in Oxford - labelled as "unacceptable" by auditors earlier this year - could be privatised as part of a shake-up of city council provision. The Town Hall, which wants a 50-metre swimming pool in the city for Olympic athletes to train
SPRINKLERS and alarms linked to fire stations look like being fitted in some Oxfordshire schools in the wake of major classroom blazes. Risk assessments evaluating the fire threat facing individual schools will in future have to examine the case for
THE extent of criminals carrying knives on our streets has been exposed after The Oxford Times discovered hundreds have been confiscated at Oxford Magistrates' Court. Records obtained under the Freedom of Information Act show that in just seven months
SIR John Betjeman had a guilty secret - he did pass his Divinity exam at Oxford. Research carried out by Bodleian Library archivists for their current exhibition on Britain's best-loved Poet Laureate, who would have been 100 this week has revealed that
THE chief executive of the Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre will be spending at least six months away from Oxford working at a new NHS Trust on the Isle of Wight. Ed Macalister-Smith has agreed to serve as the interim chief executive of the new Isle of
BUS fares to and from Oxford's park-and-rides are being frozen as part of a new travel package being unveiled by Oxford Bus Company. A new travel zone system is being introduced, and some fares will be increased when the new package is launched on Sunday
OXFORD University's black heritage is to be celebrated with a walking tour funded from a £45,900 Lottery grant. The new tour will focus on black figures associated with Oxford, said to have been ignored by guides anxious to concentrate on the likes
STAFF at Oxford University Press are trying to find out how a copy of the long-awaited sequel to children's classic Peter Pan was leaked to an American newspaper. The book, Peter Pan in Scarlet, by author Geraldine McCaughrean, is due out on October
THE public will finally have a chance to speak at a public meeting about controversial plans to charge residents for parking outside their homes. Oxfordshire County Council leader Keith Mitchell has agreed to hear people's views on the proposals at
THREE people walked away with just bruises after the light aircraft they were flying in crashed through a hedge and on to an Oxfordshire road on Wednesday. A pilot and two trainee pilots were in the PA28 Piper Warrior training aircraft which took off
PLANS to build an Aldi supermarket off Botley Road, Oxford, will be fought by residents, who fear worsening congestion on the western route into the city. The German retailer wants to create its new food store on the vacant site between Toys 'R' Us
When the Kirkland family booked a holiday in the Mediterranean sun, they were expecting the aroma of sea air - not the foul stench of sewage. Paul and Rowena Kirkland, from Grove, had spent more than £4,000 on a luxury holiday in Corfu, as a birthday
AEA Technology 106.25 BMW 2715 Electrocomponents 239.25 Isoft Group 53.25 Oxford Bio 27.5 Oxford Instruments 204 Oxonica 130 Reed Elsevier 561.25 RM 180.5 RPS 230.25 Torex Retail 51 Courtesy of Redmayne Bentley, Abingdon
AEA Technology 106.25 BMW 2715 Electrocomponents 239.25 Isoft Group 53.25 Oxford Bio 27.5 Oxford Instruments 204 Oxonica 130 Reed Elsevier 561.25 RM 180.5 RPS 230.25 Torex Retail 51 Courtesy of Redmayne Bentley, Abingdon
The Formula One calendar will be trimmed to 17 races after Italy and Germany each lost a race on the 2007 schedule. In a short statement, the FIA revealed the 2007 season will begin in Australia on March 18 and feature 17 Grands Prix. The European
Oxford Cheetahs 64, Arena Essex 26: Well and truly hammered - that was the fate of Arena Essex Hammers as Cheetahs ran riot in their basement battle at the Stadium last night. A first ever Elite maximum for Adam Skornicki plus paid maximums for Todd
Hook Norton captain Simon Richards has spoken of his pride after lifting the OCA's Airey Cup for the first time in their history. Richards, named man-of-the-match for his unbeaten 65 in Hooky's nine-wicket win over Eynsham at Charlbury on Monday, said
A batting collapse saw Oxfordshire's development side struggling on day one of their Tom Orford Trophy clash with Berkshire at Thame yesterday. They lost five wickets in just 14 overs to leave Berks a commanding 309 runs ahead. Sixteen-year-old debutant
Hagbourne are celebrating their second successive title in the Waitrose Men's English National Championships at Worthing. Twelve months after Dale Hall, Malcolm Edney, Ian Snowdon and Jon Stradling captured the fours crown for the Berkshire club, Hagbourne
Police arrested a man this morning on suspicion of attempted murder following a stabbing in Oxford. The arrest comes almost two weeks after Samuel Gray, 20, was stabbed in the neck following a disturbance at a barbecue in Pegasus Road, Blackbird Leys
How many Dutchmen does it take to make a lightbulb? The answer, I was assured by a group of students in the hotel lobby on my first night in Eindhoven, was to be found at the Philips Museum and factory, where the first lightbulbs were manufactured in
HOOK Norton put behind them the disappointment of last season's one-run defeat by Twyford as they lifted the Airey Cup for the first time with a crushing nine-wicket victory over Eynsham at Charlbury on Monday. Hooky captain Simon Richards asked Eynsham
FULKE Johnson Houghton, who trained two St Leger winners and two Irish Derby winners from his stables at Blewbury, near Didcot, is to retire at the end of the season. The 66-year-old handler's licence will be taken over by Eve Johnson Houghton, his
TEN locals in eight different crews were involved in the World Championships held at Dorney last week, but only one, Frances Houghton from Wheatley, left the Eton lake with a medal around her neck. However, she and her crewmates were not happy since
A special frisson arises from watching this late Shakespeare play in a building so closely connected with its writer and his subject. Holy Trinity Church was the setting for Shakespeare's baptism. I feel sure, though, that this can have been nothing
Oxford City 2, Didcot Tn 2 ANTHONY Alleyne bagged a brace for Oxford City as they shared the points with Oxfordshire rivals Didcot Town in Division 1 South & West at Court Place Farm on Monday. He fired City into the lead 35 seconds into the second
Banbury Utd 2, Hitchin Tn 3 ON-LOAN goalkeeper Milan Barisic's home debut turned into a nightmare for Banbury United as they lost their unbeaten Premier Division record to Hitchin at Spencer Stadium on Monday. The Oxford City keeper was at fault
A production of one of Shakespeare's greatest tragedies has suffered misfortune before it even reached the stage - because funding for the show could not be secured. The Oxford Playhouse has been forced to cancel the Maly Drama Theatre of St Petersburg's
Abingdon United 1 Marlow 3 ABINGDON United were outplayed by Marlow in their Division 1 South & West clash at Northcourt Road on Monday. Simon Tricker, in the home goal, pulled off three saves in the first 12 minutes. But he could do nothing with
As always with the Liberal Democrats, it would seem, someone else is to blame... this time for former leader Charles Kennedy's now rather public drink problem. Evan Harris, the Lib Dem MP for Oxford West and Abingdon, certainly seems to think so.
FIXTURES Div 1: Shipton v Aston Rowant, Dinton v Banbury XX, Banbury 2nd v Challow & C, Buckingham v Milton Keynes Park, Oxford Downs v Oxford 2nd. Div 2: Bledlow Ridge v Cumnor, Leighton Buzzard v Great Tew, Kingston Bagpuize v Henley 2nd, Abingdon
Ralph Leavis is wrong to imply that "Arabs are trying to destroy the nation and drive the Israelis into the sea" (Oxford Mail, August 25). All Arab countries, with the exception of Iran, are willing to recognise Israel's existence, so long as she abides
OXFORD 3rd look set for a top-two finish in Division 6 after overcoming main rivals Great & Little Tew 2nd by four wickets. Sam Catling hit 68 for Tew, but his teammates struggled against Tom Crouch (5-53) and Reg Finch (4-38) as they were bowled out
THE lowest scorers were Stanton St John Willows, who condemned themselves to finish bottom of Division 5 by being bowled out for 64 at Shipton-under-Wychwood 2nd. Chris Morgan (4-25) and Steven Carvey (4-32) did the damage. The hosts needed only 11.5
MARTIN Wright fired leaders Long Marston to a seven-wicket victory at relegation-threatened Didcot in Division 4. Wright hit 72 not out as Long Marston easily passed Didcot's 162 all out. Lee Beesley starred with the ball to take 5-62, while only
MORRIS Motors Exiles stay hot on Horspath's heels after a hot tempered home win over Cumnor 2nd in Division 3. The visitors' 193-8 was a decent effort in damp conditions, and the Exiles needed all bar the final four deliveries to reach the victory target
THE match of the day came at Abingdon Vale where their clash with Bledlow Ridge ended in a draw with the scores level in Division 2. Matt Orford hit 62 in Ridge's 178-8, which featured 4-68 from left-arm spinner Paul White. Ben Humpage smashed 81
ASTON Rowant maintained their advantage at the top with two matches remaining after a comfortable six-wicket victory at home to Dinton in Division 1. Chris Watling was the pick of Rowant's bowlers, taking 4-43 as Dinton were skittled for 151. Ashley
Oxfordshire County Council has bowed to pressure and finally agreed to hold a public meeting on its controversial plan to charge for residents' parking in Oxford. The big question is - will the council take any notice of the views expressed? County
I can never understand why our councillors are quick to sell our assets or destroy sites and buildings which are a part of our heritage for short-term gain. The very thought of revamping Oxford Town Hall into a cultural centre was a grievous mistake
Bus stops across Oxford are to be improved in an effort to get more people using public transport following a successful pilot scheme in Banbury Road. Oxfordshire County Council has announced that hi-tech electronic display screens will be installed
A Russian themed night will be held to raise funds for orphans in Kathmandu and aspiring young musicians from Oxfordshire. A celebration of Russian culture, including a two course dinner, vodka and music from three famous opera singers and a Russian
The Conservative party office in North Bar, Banbury, is to close under party reorganisation. It will be relocated in Watlington, south Oxfordshire, as part of a move by the national Tory party to organise administration offices on a county by county
FRILFORD HEATH Ladies' Mary Carslaw Memorial Cup - par competition: 1 C Jones +7, 2 B Sandys-Lumsdaine +4 (cb) 3 S Bowen +4. Five Star Pineo Shield - Blue Course: 1 'The Hogs' 91pts, 2 'Frilford 4' 90, 3 'Seven Handed + 1' 89. Longest drive: A McKecknie
Elderly residents at a Didcot housing complex are still waiting for news on their future 10 months after they were told their home would be closed. Around 24 tenants remain in the bedsit accommodation at Royal Berkshire Court, in Green Close. Many
Surgeons at Oxford's John Radcliffe Hospital are using airline pilot team training in a groundbreaking project to improve communication in operating theatres. Top surgeons in Oxford believe the training established by ex-British Airways crews could
GLENN Oakes landed the Oxford Mail Junior Open title after shooting a stunning second-round 68 at Waterstock. The North Oxford member's four-under-par score took him from fifth place after the first 18 holes to record a two-shot victory. And he was
Thames Water's plans for a £1bn reservoir between Abingdon and Wantage will come under public scrutiny next month. Thousands of leaflets are being distributed inviting people to visit exhibitions in Abingdon, Wantage, Steventon and East Hanney as part
A building left by Oxfordshire County Council to stand empty for years should be used for social housing, a city councillor claims. Until 2003, Marywood House, in Wood Farm, was home to people with learning disabilities, but it was closed as part of
The £500,000 refurbishment of St Mary's, Wallingford's civic church, will be featured on a national television programme once work starts. But the name of the programme is being kept under wraps until the official launch date of the fundraising campaign
A salsa evening will be held in Oxford tomorrow night to raise money for a garden built in memory of a teenager killed in the Eastern Bypass crash. The event takes place between 7pm and midnight at the Cowley Community Centre in Barns Road. It is
A campaign has been launched to save the railway van which carried Sir Winston Churchill to his final resting place in Oxfordshire. The Southern Railway parcels and luggage van was repainted in Pullman colours and decorated to form part of the Second
Things are really hotting up here in Lausanne with the first competitions getting underway yesterday afternoon and the sun even making an appearance. Wednesday was a rest day for me which was spent relaxing and running race-related errands: registering
After conquering her fear of flying, Miss Oxford now faces a new challenge - fitting all her outfits and accessories into her suitcase. Eleanor Glynn, who is the reigning Miss England, is struggling to pack everything she needs for the Miss World contest
Staff at Oxford University Press are trying to find out how a copy of the long-awaited sequel to children's classic Peter Pan was leaked to an American newspaper. The book, Peter Pan in Scarlet, by author Geraldine McCaughrean, is due out on October
The public will finally have the chance to speak at a public meeting about controversial plans to charge residents for parking outside their homes. Oxfordshire County Council leader Keith Mitchell has agreed to hear people's views on the proposals at
Three people walked away with just bruises after the light aircraft they were flying in crashed through a hedge and on to an Oxfordshire road yesterday. A pilot and two trainee pilots were in the PA28 Piper Warrior aircraft, which took off from Oxford
Bus fares to and from Oxford's park-and-rides are being frozen as part of Oxford Bus Company's new travel package. A new travel zone system is being introduced, and some fares will be increased when the new package is launched on Sunday, September 10
As traffic slowed to a snail-pace through the A40 roadworks on the way into Oxford during rush hour yesterday morning, motorists were warned the worst is yet to come. Commuters driving into Oxford along the A40 were restricted to one lane of traffic
