Oxford - OX HC Magazine

Transcription

ISSN: 2046-6781
MAGAZINE
OXFORDSHIRE’S FINEST
MALI
THE LOST KINGDOM OF AFRICA
HAZELL DEAN
“I DO EVERYTHING IN MY
OWN TIME”
DRESSING FOR
OXFORD
SUMMER STYLE IN THE
DREAMING SPIRES
FAT FREDDY’S
DROP
“THERE WAS SOMETHING
SPECIAL IN THE AIR THAT NIGHT”
AUGUST 2016
£2.99 Where sold
08
9 772046
678000
G ET T I N G MA RRIED?
13
Welcome
26
36
38
56
52
118
Summer is finally here in earnest
and Oxfordshire’s annual plethora
of summer events has roared into
life alongside it.
This issue of OX Magazine seems to have gone
slightly mad for gourmet food, reggae and
Oxonian history – perhaps not three subjects that
are often seen in the same sentence, but at OX
we’re nothing if not eclectic. We’ve met up with
world-famous dub outfit and one of the most
successful covers bands of all time – Easy Star AllStars, and spoken to New Zealand act Fat Freddy’s
Drop ahead of their performance at Boomtown
Fair, as well as the undisputed queen of Hi-NRG –
Hazell Dean.
We’ve included a veritable celebration of all
things ‘Oxford’, from some of our most notable
residents who display a truly “Olympian” spirit,
through Oxford’s college barges, to the fifty
objects that represent the people, lives and past
of the county that are currently on display at the
Oxfordshire Museum in Woodstock.
On the culinary side of proceedings, we’ve
passed our judgment on Orwells at Shiplake and
documented the rise of the all-you-can-eat dining
format which is currently enjoying an explosion
in popularity. In this issue you’ll also find our
favourite recipes from the newly published
Oxfordshire Cook Book, and if you’re interested
in a new place in which to prepare these amazing
dishes then kitchen designer Zoe Blizzard has
given us a fascinating insight into her line
of work.
We’re also incredibly pleased to have recruited
photographer Cyrus Mower to cover the most
visually enticing events on the Oxfordshire
calendar each month in our new OX Photostory
feature.
So – enjoy everything our gorgeous city and
county have to offer in August and try and catch
some sun before it disappears for another year.
See you next month
95
Jack Rayner
71
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136
NOTLEY ABBEY
NR. THAME
Once the dream home of Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh,
now your dream home for your dream day
ELEGANT EXCLUSIVITY
0345 1 3 0 9 9 6 6
YOU R DAY @B I J OU W E D D I N G S . C O. U K
B I J O U W E D D I N G V E N U E S . C O. U K
CONTRIBUTORS
is a culture journalist, nightlife
promoter and psychology
graduate who is almost
uncomfortably obsessed with arts
and businesses in Oxford. He lives
on Osney Island.
is a best-selling author, explorer
and travel writer who has written
for OX since 2007. His career
started at The Sunday Times,
and he is a regular contributor to
numerous travel magazines.
PETER HOLTHUSEN
ANNETTE CUNNINGHAM
SAM BENNETT
ANTHONY PETTORINO
ESTHER LAFFERTY
JACK RAYNER
is a seasoned theatre expert, rocksolid Sunday league left back and
editor of the Carterton Crier.
He played Friar Tuck in
Robin Hood.
JEREMY SMITH
is a multi-award-winning journalist
and columnist who has written
about Oxford for more than 10
years. He lives in – and loves –
Kidlington.
MARC CREED
Diehard Oxford United supporter
Mark Creed is the co-founder of
Idlewild Hairdressing, which has
salons in Oxford, Witney
and Abingdon.
is an award-winning architect with
a stunning portfolio of projects.
He lives in Oxfordshire and runs a
busy practice in Witney.
KEVIN HAGGARTHY
has 25 years experience as a
leading motoring journalist &
broadcaster. He has made several
TV appearances and is an ex
driving consultant for Porsche.
CYRUS MOWER
is an Oxfordshire photographer
who, luckily for us, loves to spend
his time capturing stunning images
of just about anything and anyone.
He lives in Woodstock.
is a freelance travel writer and
columnist, working in media
communications. She has two
daughters at university and lives
in Kidlington.
is the anchor of the hugely
successful Oxfordshire Artweeks
festival and a keen triathlete.
SYLVIA WARREN
graduated from Oxford in biology.
She now works for Blackwell’s as
their University of Oxford Liaison.
TOM NICHOLAS
is a specialist gardener and rugby
fanatic who lives in Harwell. His
business, ‘Me, My Spade & I’,
provides horticultural services
throughout the Home Counties
and London.
4|OX MAGAZINE | AUGUST 2016
RICK FOX
is an enthusiastic disciple of all
things food and wine,
to the despair of his doctor. His
spare time is spent seeking out
rare mushrooms and obscure
psychedelic rock albums.
RENÉE WATSON
runs her own Oxford based
science consultancy WATS.ON,
where she boasts the delicious
title of ‘Head of Explosions’.
JILL RAYNER
Jill Rayner is a spinach lover
obsessed with Northern Soul. She
now lives in Kingston Bagpuize but,
as she constantly reminds us, is
originally from Sheffield.
NAOMI HEFFER
is a 20-year old Oxford student
with an eclectic mix of interests
which include social media,
traveling, singing and biomedical
sciences.
Contents
9 What’s On
AMANDA HANLEY
is an authority on interior
design. She has worked with
an enviable list of associates
including Harrods. She lives in the
Cotswolds.
JACK TELFORD
is a musician, history student and
part-time West Bromwich Albion
fan. He can be found pouring bad
pints at The White Rabbit.
SHAUNNA LATCHMAN
works in media communications,
writes her own successful blog and
is a regular contributor to several
websites.
JULIE ANN GODSON
is an author, speaker and
ex-Oxford University historian. She
has a particular passion for the
history of our county and lives in
a converted piggery in rural West
Oxfordshire.
FEATURES
20 Curtain Call
24 People’s truth
26 OX Photostory: Nocturne at Blenheim Palace
30 OX meets Fat Freddy’s Drop
32 OX meets Easy Star All-Stars
34 OX meets Hazell Dean
36 Celebrating the Human Form
38 Oxfordshire through different eyes
42 Review: Orwells at Shiplake
45 Review: Cosmo, Oxford
46 The Oxfordshire Cook Book
52 Oxford’s College Barges
56 Oxford True Olympians
60 My Oxford: David Williams
62 Open Doors at Oxford University
65 The History of August
68 Dressing for Oxford
73 Weddings
80 Hot Stuff at 50 Plus
84 We Saw You
85 Best of British: Cornbury Music Festival
87 MG Returns to its Roots
95 The Lost Kingdom of Africa: Mali
100 Amanda Hanley: Make a Statement this Summer
120 Architecture and the Senses: Touch
131 Motors
COLUMNS
23 The After Life – Annette Cunningham
33 Gig Guru – Jack Telford
35 Memories of the Vale – Julie Ann Godson
51 The Grapevine – Rick Fox
55 Man About County – Jeremy Smith
59 University Challenge – Naomi Heffer
61 Where the Grass is Greener – Esther Lafferty
63 Made in Oxfordshire – Shaunna Latchman
79 The Big Bang – Renee Watson
83 Mane Man – Mark Creed
121 Page Turner – Sylvia Warren
THANKS TO:
Hazell Dean, Ryan Simpson, Hugh Phillimore, Zoe Blizzard, Easy Star All-Stars,
Jess Harms, David Williams, Mandala Theatre Company, Ngaio Anyia,
Heather Hawkins. Cover image © Cyrus Mower
OX MAGAZINE | AUGUST 2016 | 5
I AM SUMMER
I AM DINING OUT
I AM LOOKING COOL
CALENDAR
WHAT’S ON
Until 18th August
Oxford Shakespeare
Company presents Love’s
Labour’s Lost
Free love and anarchy?
Not so for the King of Navarre and his boys who
have all sworn an oath to scholarship, fasting and
absolutely no women.
What are the odds then, of a wandering princess and
her three friends pitching up in the same forest?
Watch the madcap antics of four (once) solemn
young men and their cohorts, as they fall over
themselves and their words, to find out whether four
weary young women love them.
Or love them not…
Oxford Shakespeare Company’s Love’s Labour’s Lost is
let loose in the 1970s with original music, inspired by
the decade that brought us, glam rock, punk and new
wave, from Nick Lloyd Webber.
This summer OSC welcomes back Nicholas Green,
director of the exceptionally received Private Lives in
2010 and last year’s hugely successful Twelfth Night.
OSC are celebrated for their open air, site specific
performances both at their summer residency at
Wadham College Oxford and across the Historic
Royal Palace sites of Hampton Court, Kensington
Palace, Tower of London and the Banqueting House
Whitehall.
The shows are designed to be interactive with the
environment in which they are performed, allowing
the audience to enter fully into the world of the play.
Wadham College, Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3PN
In 2016 the OSC also return for their third year at
Wilderness Festival (7th August)
Juste-Aurèle Meissonnier, Design for the façade of Saint-Sulpice, Paris, 1726;
Waddesdon, The Rothschild Collection (The National Trust) Bequest of James
de Rothschild, 1957; Photo Mike Fear © The National Trust
Until 23rd October (Wed-Sun)
oxfordshakespearecompany.co.uk
shakespeareoxford2016.co.uk
Bountiful Invention
at Waddesdon Manor
© Ben Galpin, Malvolio Media
An exhibition exploring the work of two
of the most innovative draughtsmen and
designers of the 18th century, Gilles-Marie
Oppenord (1672-1742) and Juste-Aurèle
Meissonnier (1695-1750).
This exhibition demonstrates the
breadth and variety of Oppenord’s and
Meissonnier’s creativity, and skill, both
valued by collectors and connoisseurs even
during the artists’ lifetimes. Prints of their
drawings spread their ideas throughout
Europe, and further afield, and were copied
by other artists and designers long after
their designs went out of fashion in France.
Waddesdon Manor, Aylesbury, HP18 0JH
waddesdon.org.uk
Gilles-Marie Oppenord, Design for a salon chimney-piece, presumed to be for the
Palais-Royal, Paris, c 1717; Photo Mike Fear © The National Trust
Discover ...
WHERE
OXFORD
BEGAN...
KIDS GO FREE THIS SUMMER
AT OXFORD CASTLE UNLOCKED!*
Kids will be treated to FREE entry to the attraction, to learn
all about the castle’s 1000 years of fascinating history, during
which it served time as a castle, royal residence and a prison.
www.oxfordcastlequarter.com
*Check website for
Terms & Conditions
CALENDAR
Until 31st December
Modern Art Oxford:
50 Inspirational Years
In 2016, Modern Art Oxford celebrates 50 years as an
internationally acclaimed powerhouse of contemporary
visual culture. KALEIDOSCOPE is a yearlong series of
interlinking exhibitions, performances and events, presenting
an unmissable opportunity to reflect on some of the great
moments in MAO’s history.
Artists include Marina Abramović, Kevin Beasley, Njideka
Akunyili Crosby, Douglas Gordon, Dan Graham, Hans Haacke,
Pierre Huyghe, Iman Issa, John Latham, Louise Lawler, Sol
LeWitt, Maria Loboda, Richard Long, Gustav Metzger, Gareth
Nyandoro, Yoko Ono, Hardeep Pandhal, Elizabeth Price, Guan
Xiao and many others.
Iconic works from the past return to the gallery from across
the globe, shown as part of a dynamic programme of new
commissions, performances and events by acclaimed artists
of the current generation. In an unconventional approach,
KALEIDOSCOPE will stay open throughout the year, giving
audiences insight into the processes of exhibition-making.
Modern Art Oxford, 30 Pembroke St, Oxford, OX1 1BP
modernartoxford.org.uk
August
Celebrate the summer season at
Bicester Village
With a burgeoning summer calendar and so much to celebrate in
the warmer months of 2016 you’ll not only be in need of some
seriously sassy summer occasion-wear but some tantalizingly
entertaining ways to spend those balmy days, and Bicester Village
has it all.
Enjoy the wonders of Shakespeare in celebration of his 400th
anniversary as the Village brings a pop of culture to your shopping
experience with extraordinary perambulating performances of
the Bard’s greatest hits throughout the Village. Brought to you by
Creation Theatre on Fridays across the summer, there is no better
way to pick up something beautiful from one of the British brands
which include Rupert Sanderson, Mulberry, Temperley, Smythson,
Stella McCartney, Anya Hindmarch, and Hunter whilst basking in the
seminal words of Britain’s greatest wordsmith.
August-September
Blenheim Palace
Blenheim Palace has a packed summer holiday events calendar,
with everything you need to entertain all the family throughout the
season.
Picnic at Blenheim Palace
With over 2000 acres of ‘Capability’ Brown Parkland and beautiful
Formal Gardens there are plenty of excellent spots to picnic.
Private Apartments Tour
Daily until September
Don’t miss the last chance to tour His Grace, The Duke of
Marlborough’s Private Apartments. Discover the family home and
learn all about life at the Palace.
Countryfile Live
4th-7th August
An unmissable event this summer! BBC Countryfile Live will
showcase the very best of the countryside at Blenheim Palace.
Explore every aspect of the British countryside through exciting live
arena shows, talks, hands-on activities, Adam Henson’s farm, animal
displays, farming in action, Q&A with the Countryfile presenters,
shopping from more than 600 exhibitors including food, craft and
luxury producers and even a great British pub garden. It all adds up
to a fun, inspiring and informative day out in the countryside.
With food offerings to melt in the mouth including delicious
vegetarian, vegan and halal options, a champagne pop-up to rival
the lawns of Wimbledon and the largest collection of international
designers, the proposition of summer shopping has truly never
looked so good.
To help make your summer shopping experience as seamless and
enjoyable as possible, Bicester Village offers comprehensive VIP
services to cater to your every need so that you can enjoy the
fabulous brands, delicacies and live entertainment whilst your
bags are carried. From valet parking, luggage drop, hands-free
shopping and personal shopping to multi-lingual concierges, and not
forgetting the Bicester Village Bell-Boys, there is no moment of your
shopping story that is not carefully curated for your pleasure.
To ensure you don’t miss out the Village will be operating extended
opening hours throughout the summer, making that post-work
summer shop that much easier. Open every Thursday, Friday and
Saturday until 10pm in July and August and only 45 minutes out of
London from Marylebone there is no style situation that can’t be
made better at Bicester Village.
Bicester Village, 50 Pingle Drive, Bicester, OX26 6WD
bicestervillage.com
Family Cycling
14th August
Enjoy this once-a-year exclusive opportunity to cycle around the
picturesque Parkland at Blenheim Palace. Bring your bicycles (and
helmets!) and take in the scenery and fresh air, stop for a picnic and
make it a day to remember. Two routes will be available to take, one
around Queen Pool and one around the Park perimeter.
CALENDAR
4th-7th August
Wilderness
Before Wilderness, festivals didn’t offer forests or feasts. No one
knew of a festival where you woke early to swim, or stayed late to
learn. The story of Wilderness is one of gently rolling back the steel
fences and quietly asking people of all ages to live together for one
weekend; a story of exploring the widest lens of cultural ambition
and inviting the outdoors back into the heart of the artistic
experience.
Jousting Tournament
19th-21st August
Enjoy an exciting historical jousting tournament with the Knights
of Arkley. Recreating the glorious jousting matches of Britain’s 13th
century, knights will do battle in a daring display of bravery and skill.
Watch a thrilling falconry display and see the birds of prey in action.
Families can also have a go at archery and watch interactive dragon
puppet shows.
This year Wilderness hosts Robert Plant & the Sensational Space
Shifters, The Flaming Lips, Goldie, and the Wilderness Orchestra
presenting a tribute to David Bowie. Plus Raymond Blanc OBE hosts
another utterly incredible long table banquet.
Cornbury Park, Oxfordshire, OX7 3EJ
wildernessfestival.com
Festival of Transport
28th-29th August
A family-friendly summer bank holiday, the annual Classic Car
Show returns with even more excitement to Blenheim Palace.
Expect vehicle judging, roaming experts and plenty of motorcycles,
Minis and VWs, plus customs, hot rods, kit and sports cars. A truly
unmissable event for all petrol heads!
Salon Privé
3rd September
Salon Privé presents automotive style and elegance against the
sensational Blenheim backdrop. It is the UK’s most exclusive
automotive Garden Party as well as one of the most glamorous
social occasions on the calendar. Attracting exhibitors, concours
entrants and visitors from around the world, it has become a
destination to which like-minded friends and enthusiasts flock every
year to indulge in their shared passion of all things automotive and
luxury. Away from the crowds and queues of public shows and with
lobster on the luncheon menu and champagne throughout the day,
it’s an opportunity to relax, admire and experience this uniquely
intimate event.
Blenheim Palace International Horse Trials
8th-11th September
2016 will be the 26th annual Blenheim Palace International Horse
Trials. The competition is now firmly established in the eventing
calendar, attracting the world’s best riders and thousands of
spectators who come each year to watch the four-day event.
The first two days of the International Horse Trials consist of
dressage competitions, with cross country and show jumping
running on the last two days.
Browse the huge selection of trade stands, the food hall or the wellstocked craft pavilion, or watch a series of thrilling demonstrations
and displays in the Blenheim Arena. Two days of the event will also
see various Pony Club and Riding Club challenges.
Animal Encounters & Miniature Pony Rides
Selected dates
Get up close with Blenheim Palace’s Animal Encounters Show in the
Pleasure Gardens this summer. Join Zookeeper Charles, a Fellow of
the Zoological Society and lecturer at the Natural History Museum
in Kensington, to learn more about the Animal Kingdom. Plus for an
additional charge enjoy pony rides!
History Variety Show
Selected dates
Head to the Pleasure Gardens to learn something new this summer.
Learn all about Britain’s exciting past with living history characters
and performances.
Creative Music Workshops
Selected dates
Younger children will love joining in the interactive group music
workshop. The workshops are structured by age and will take the
children through a variety of musical concepts in a creative fun way.
Blenheim Palace Woodstock, OX20 1PP
blenheimpalace.com
6th August
STEAM at Didcot Cornerstone
The Urban Playground Team animate a skeletal scaffold steam
locomotive through scenes inspired by the slapstick comedy
of Buster Keaton, the rooftop chases of James Bond, the trainjacking of the Wild West, the heartbreak of the First World
War and the dark future of inner city commuting. These guys
combine contemporary and urban dance with parkour and
physical theatre and are a delight for audiences of all ages.
Following each performance, there’s an open workshop
for anyone aged 10+. There’s also a more intense series of
workshops (5th, 6th, 7th and 9th August) where participants
will help devise a scene and perform in STEAM LOCAL LINE at
Didcot Railway Centre on Wednesday 10th August.
Cornerstone Arts Centre, 25 Station Road, Didcot, OX11 7NE
cornerstone-arts.org
5th-7th August
Supernormal
Supernormal is a three-day, experimental arts and music festival
taking place at Braziers Park. It offers a platform for artists,
performers and musicians to work collaboratively and creatively for
a new kind of audience seeking experiences out of the mainstream.
It is determinedly small and intimate with an audience of 1,500 and
has been born from a place that values the currency of ideas and
imagination rather than commercialism and profit.
Supernormal allows the exploration of the unspoilt and
extraordinary grounds of Braziers Park; an eco-site with fresh
running water, eco toilets and hot outdoor showers set within a
glorious wooded camping area.
Braziers Park, Ipsden, near Wallingford, OX10 6AN
supernormalfestival.co.uk
Tileright
Quality Wall, Floor & Specialist Tiles
Oxfordshire's Tiling Specialist
Tileright
94 Oxford Road
Kidlington
Oxford
OX5 1BL
(free parking available)
01865 373059
[email protected]
www.tilerightoxford.com
Approved
Retailer
CALENDAR
12th-14th August
Retro Festival
11th-14th August
BoomTown
This year featuring Madness, Imelda May, Sonic Boom Six and a whole
host of others, BoomTown rose up from the underground in 2009
to become one of the UK’s wildest and most inspiring independent
festivals.
This August Newbury Showground will see the biggest and
best retro festival anywhere in the UK. Retro Festival is a
celebration of all things vintage from the 1920s right through
to the 1980s. Over 1,000 classic vehicles will be on show and
three live music marquees will keep you boogie-ing. Along
with over 200 vintage stalls and a 100 year old fair there really
is everything for the family. With it being the festival’s 10th
Anniversary the Guinness Book of Records are in attendance as
Retro try and break the world record for the number of vintage
caravans in one place, plus Chris Bromham will be attempting
to jump over 20 double decker buses on a motorcycle. The
event hosts a fly over by a Spitfire plus a stationary Spitfire on
the ground for the whole weekend. Also dropping in will be the
Falcon Display Team!
Newbury Showground, RG18 9QZ
retrofestival.co.uk
From a humble village fair BoomTown is now a sprawling creative
metropolis and home to every species of artistic miscreant! We invite
thousands of citizens to embark on an immersive audio-visual joyride,
dancing through the labyrinthine streets and plazas on a non-stop
weekend journey of discovery!
Every kind of musical genre is celebrated at BoomTown, from ska,
folk, gypsy, reggae, world, punk, pirate and disco to electro-swing, jazz,
blue-grass, bass, jungle and techno, all enjoyed in a spirit of unity and
freedom.
© Darren Coleman
BoomTown Fair, Matterley Estate, Alresford rd,
Nr Winchester, SO21 1HW
boomtownfair.co.uk
19th-21st August
Rewind
The World’s Biggest 80s Festival is back with a bang.
Rewind attracts 40,000 festival-goers and has sold out in
advance during the last three years. As with the previous
star-studded Rewind Festivals, this year’s Henley weekend
extravaganza features another outstanding line-up of iconic
80s recording artists and performers.
This year promises to boast the biggest 80s knees-up to
date, with Andy Bell from Erasure (‘Sometimes’, ‘A Little
Respect’) and Adam Ant (‘Antmusic’, ‘Prince Charming’,
‘Stand and Deliver’).
14 new acts make their debut performances at the festival,
including Leo Sayer, Lloyd Cole and The Leopards, Living in A
Box and The Trevor Horn Band. Horn has produced massive
hits for The Buggles, Seal and Grace Jones to name but a
few.
That’s not all! The weekend will also play host to a number
of iconic, star-studded performances from the likes of
Rick Astley, Marc Almond, Earth, Wind & Fire Experience,
Heather Small, Jimmy Somerville, The Beat, plus Tony
Hadley performing for the first time with a full orchestra
accompaniment at a festival.
One of the biggest highlights at this year’s Rewind South
is the return of the British Electric Foundation. B.E.F. is the
brainchild of Heaven 17’s Martyn Ware, and will showcase
a unique and dazzling performance featuring a raft of
legendary pop artists.
Temple Island Meadows, Henley-on-Thames
rewindfestival.com
A Local
Oxford Company
Dramatic • Atmospheric • Romantic
Your garden beautifully lit
at night forever
We are always happy to visit you to discuss your requirements and give a free, no
obligation quote alongside a demonstration of our design and products - enabling
you to visualise the transformation of your outdoor space
Call Steve today:
M: 07795 321444 | T:01865 460300
[email protected] www.lightmynight.co.uk
The Garth | Yarnton | Oxford | OX5 1LZ
CALENDAR
20th August
27th-29th August
Elder Stubbs
Festival
Peace in the Park
Imagine…the world of your
dreams. Discover how creative
folk crank up their imagination,
enjoy music that takes you to
a higher place, and relax in a
feel-good atmosphere.
Bringing together over 150
community groups, musicians,
artists and volunteers, the 25th
anniversary of the Elder Stubbs
Festival is set to be the best
yet. Taking place in a nineacre allotment site, this year’s
theme is ‘Under The Sea’.
The festival is organised by
members of Restore – a local
mental health charity that
supports people to recover,
develop skills, and get work in
Oxfordshire. Get involved! If
you are interested in booking
a stall, performing, running a
workshop, or volunteering at
the festival, email festival@
restore.org.uk or call 01865
455823.
Elder Stubbs Allotment,
Rymers Lane, OX4 3LB
restore.org.uk
26th-29th August
The Chilterns Craft & Design Show
With engaging workshops, British crafts and design, and more than
250 stands on offer, The Chilterns Craft & Design Show is one of the
most prestigious craft shows in the country. Boasting activities for
all ages, it’s also an ideal summer family day out.
Stonor Park, an historic country house and private deer park situated
in a valley in the Chiltern Hills at Stonor, creates the perfect setting
for the show.
For the keen gardener looking for floral inspiration, green-fingered
guru Michael Slevin of Wokefield Flowers will be on hand to share
his top tips for gardening success. Michael’s beautiful creations have
included a gorgeous Swan Lake floral display and a masterpiece of
anemones.
At Peace in the Park visit
the Meditation Lounge, the
Mystical Music Chapel, the
Imagine Glade or chill out at
Tea Under the Trees. Let your
spirit soar in the Feelgood
Space or feed your mind at the
Mindset pavilions and Tree Hall
Roundtable Discussions.
This is an event powered by
love and designed by artists,
authors and musicians who
believe in the world of their
dreams.
Join us for one of the most life
changing weekends of the year.
Global Retreat Centre,
Nuneham Park, Nuneham
Courtenay, OX44 9PG
peaceintheparkfestival.org
During the show there will be a fantastic range of demonstrations
for all ages. Visitors can try their hand at shrink pot making
with Luca Fedrizzi and willow weaving and basket-making with
Willowpool. Willowpool specialise in working with individuals,
conservation and environment groups as well as schools to create
willow structures that enhance parks, school grounds and gardens.
The amazing Birds and Beasts Roadshow will give youngsters and
grown-ups alike the chance to get up close and personal with an
exciting mix of creepy crawlies and reptiles. Visitors will also be
able to enjoy the exhilarating Falconry Displays each day from
The Hawking Centre, owned by popular falconers and television
presenters Leigh and Jo Holmes.
Stonor Park, Henley-on
26th-29th August
Tadstock
26th-28th August
The Big Feastival
The Big Feastival, the ultimate
music, food and family festival
of the summer returns for its
fifth year. With music from
Mark Ronson, Tinie Tempah,
Ella Henderson and Kaiser
Chiefs, and appearances by
chefs Tom Kerridge, Raymond
Blanc, Nadiya Hussain and –
of course – Jamie Oliver, this
extravaganza promises great
music, mouth-watering food
and drink and a fully-charged,
fun-filled programme of
entertainment for all ages.
Churchill Heath Farm,
Kingham, Chipping Norton,
OX7 6UJ
thebigfeastival.com
Tadstock in association with CCP and Studio340 is proud to present its annual festival for the
people of Oxfordshire, Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and beyond. Set in the heart of the picturesque
Cotswolds and uniquely powered by solar energy, Tadstock will host a number of bands and musicians
performing over the weekend but the headline acts are being kept a secret until they walk on stage.
You will just have to come along and be part of Tadstock to find out who you will see. When the live
music stops, the after-hours party and fun begins with various DJs turning sets in the woods.
Born in 2005 as a space for local family and friends to commune, Tadstock has quietly grown to
embrace a wider community of creative people who gather to share a love for great music, art and
entertainment. Since partnering with Cheltenham based charity, CCP, who exist to improve the
lives of children, young people, families and vulnerable adults, and with its music driven initiative,
Studio340, Tadstock plays an important part in the transformation of young lives from within the
local and surrounding area. Whilst the festival welcomes friends, families and music lovers from
all walks of life, Tadstock gives young people supported by CCP the opportunity to showcase their
musical talent and expand their knowledge and experience in a safe, inspirational and encouraging
environment.
Free car parking and camping with shower facilities are offered
across the weekend to all ticket holders and with stunning views
of the Oxfordshire and Gloucestershire countryside on your tent
step, there is no doubt you’ll be coming back next year.
Tadstock, Kencot Hill Farm, GL7 3QY
tadstock.co.uk
CALENDAR
4th September
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra at Wycombe Swan
2016 is set to be an exciting year for the world-famous Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. As well as
returning to the Wycombe Swan for its seventh season in 2016, the Orchestra will celebrate the 70th
anniversary since it was founded by Sir Thomas Beecham. Bringing together outstanding soloists,
conductors and pieces of music, the season at the Wycombe Swan will delight audiences.
Fresh from international tours to Geneva, Istanbul and USA, the Orchestra is excited to be bringing
classical music to High Wycombe. Managing director of the RPO Ian Maclay said, “It’s wonderful to be
returning to the Wycombe Swan during our 70th anniversary year. The audiences are always enormously
appreciative and we’re grateful to have such supportive and loyal fans.”
28th-29th August
The Uffington
White Horse
Show
On Sunday 4th September the RPO’s Principal Associate Conductor Alexander Shelley leads in a classical
concert perfect for the start of autumn. Opening the concert will be Mendelssohn’s mysteriously intense
Fingal’s Cave, which depicts the stormy tides and still waters in Scottish scenery. The centrepiece of the
programme is without doubt one of the most popular works ever written for the piano – Grieg’s Piano
Concerto, performed by Danny Driver. Its powerful opening progresses into rich lyrical melodies and
passages of show-stopping virtuosity. Then Brahm’s majestic Symphony No.4 opens in a dramatic vein
and continues to flow with an urgency and lyrical beauty.
Wycombe Swan, St. Mary Street, High Wycombe, HP11 2XE
wycombeswan.co.uk
The Uffington White Horse
Show is a traditional two day
country show which takes
place every year over August
Bank Holiday Sunday and
Monday. It offers a wide range
of attractions for families and
people of all ages including
arena events, craft stalls,
animals, historic vehicles and
much, much more.
Between Uffington & Fawler,
Nr Faringdon, OX12 9QJ
whitehorseshow.co.uk
7th September
Humphry Repton Study Day
at Woburn
Enjoymagical
magical walks
summerthrough
walks. Browse
our
Enjoy
the summer
fantastic range
of plants,
gardeningtree
supplies
wildflowers
beneath
the beautiful
canopy
and gifts and
up the
sun from the deck of
at soak
Batsford
Arboretum.
the Garden
Terrace
Café.
A gardening
perfect day
outand
forgifts
Browse
our fantastic
range of
plants,
supplies
and soak upallthe
sunfamily
on the –
deck
of friendly
the Garden
Terrace Café. A
the
dog
too!
perfect day out for all the family – dog friendly too!
When the 6th Duke of Bedford inherited Woburn in 1802, he
commissioned the famous landscape gardener, Humphry Repton
(1752-1818), to create designs to enhance the gardens and
parkland.
On this study day, take an in-depth look at Humphry Repton’s
career, what made him such a remarkable and visionary landscape
gardener, his techniques and processes and the creations he
conceived. Woburn’s Red Book and Woburn Abbey’s archived
journals and account books from 1805 to 1810 will give firsthand
accounts of Repton’s methods and ingenuity. An exploratory guided
walk through the gardens and deer park will reveal how Repton’s
designs were implemented, how they have fared throughout the
centuries and the restoration and recreation projects happening
today.
This study day is presented by writer and landscape designer Keir
Davidson.
Woburn Abbey and Gardens, Woburn, MK17 9WA
woburnabbey.co.uk
Visit www.batsarb.co.uk
Visit www.batsarb.co.uk
for details onevents
our summer
for details on our forthcoming
events and updates on the latest Batsford news.
Batsford Arboretum & Garden Centre, Batsford
Batsford Arboretum & Garden Centre, Batsford,
Moreton-in-Marsh GL56 9AD
Moreton-in-Marsh, GL56 9AB
T: 01386 701441 E: [email protected]
T: 01386 701441 E: [email protected]
At Bridge House care home we
treat all our residents as unique
personalities, each with their own
interests, preferences and needs.
We inspire our residents to live a
better quality of life by providing
exceptional care, companionship
and support from a dedicated and
compassionate team in a vibrant
and exquisite home - much
comfort for everyone.
Isn’t that what we all deserve?
Exceptional Care, No Exceptions.
Discover Life at Bridge House 01235
bridgehouseabingdon.co.uk
856 002
/bridgehousecarehome
Residential Care. Nursing Care. Dementia Care.
@BH_Abingdon
Thames View, Abingdon, Oxfordshire OX14 3UJ
EDITS xxxxx
Curtain Call
In each issue of OX a selection of local theatres tell us what they’ve got coming up,
highlighting the reasons to get excited about whatever it may be. If you’re a theatre
and want to get involved… email [email protected]
THE NORTH WALL
ARTSLAB
By Sherrell Perkin,
general manager
CREATION THEATRE
HAMLET
Until 13th August
critics and wowing audiences with
If you were to open The North
their performances
in Educating
Rita
Wall’s brochure
to look at
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at The Mill
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audition
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seductions in his mother’s apartment.
writers, musicians and designers
Director Robin
Herford
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haveprojects
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We can’t wait for the play to
summer.
open.”
In August, we’ll be running our very
The Mill at Sonning Theatre Ltd, Sonning Eye,
first opera project, led by the Olivier
Reading,award-winning
RG4 6TY
OperaUpClose. A
0118 969group
8000 of young singers and dancers
www.millatsonning.com
will work with the company to
explore an exciting but lesser-known
opera, Bartók’s Bluebeard’s Castle.
ArtsLab is an essential part of the
creative process. It takes several
years for someone’s idea to grow
and transform into a full-scale
production. But look out for
upcoming ArtsLab work-in-progress
performances to see how we’re
doing.
The North Wall, South Parade,
Oxford, OX2 7JN
01865 319450
thenorthwall.com
Robin Herford
18
© Richard Budd
E
A chat with Christopher York, Hamlet
Hamlet is Shakespeare’s
biggest male part, how have you been finding it?
Creation
Theatre
I think the best thing to do, and this goes for any actor, playing any part, is to treat it like any
From
11thYou
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other role.
have to take the ego out of it, otherwise it’ll consume you. It’s just another
part celebrates
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ple getting to grips with classic texts and bringing their own spin to these already renowned
affected the way you have developed the character?
works.
It gives me an immense opportunity to be me. If this was a ‘classical’ production, I might be
forcedour
to change
my Scarborian
Join
Drama
Club accent and manner. It means my Hamlet can be ‘grimy’ – our
production feels anarchic and so we can break some of the ‘traditional’ rules. It means my
Creation run 18 Drama Clubs across Oxford and Abingdon, for kids aged 5-16. Over the 12
Hamlet can be a proper human being.
week term, we watch children transform as their stagecraft develops and they become more
How do you feel about performing outdoors compared to working in a
dents
are as involved
in the creative process as possible, from suggesting shows to staging
traditional
theatre?
scenes,
andelephant
we’re always
to hear their ideas.
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in theenthusiastic
room, the weather...that’s
scary. But I’m from the North East, I grew
up
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outdoors
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clouds,
clouds.
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are going
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Whether
it’s
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Minack
or
Oxford
Castle,
there’s
something
lot of exciting texts planned, so now’s the time to join!
spiritual about it.
Holiday Workshops
Oxford University Parks, South Lodge, South Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3RF
We’ve got plenty going on during the school holidays, with workshops running every half term
01865 766266
and holidays. We’ll be at St Andrew’s Church this May half term, running Put on a Play in a
creationtheatre.co.uk
Week workshops for kids aged 6-12. And keep an eye out for our summer programme –we’ll
have six weeks of Shakespeare workshops running across Oxford!
www.creationtheatre.co.uk
THE WATERMILL
THEATRE
CRAZY FOR YOU
Until 17th September
By Paul Hart, director
For my first musical at The
Watermill Theatre, I was
looking for something that
would continue and develop
the theatre’s great tradition
of actor-musicianship. Crazy
for You is a musical that
pushes performers to the
limit but is also a masterpiece
in musicality. I felt we could
bring songs like ‘I Got Rhythm’
and ‘Slap That Bass’ to life in
a whole new way with actors
who play, dance and sing.
With a fabulous score by the
Gershwin brothers, which
also includes ‘They Can’t
Take That Away From Me’
and ‘Embraceable You’, Crazy
for You is exhilarating. It’s a
multi-award winning romantic
comedy with great dance
numbers as well as memorable
tunes. I’m delighted that
Tom Chambers and West End
leading lady Caroline Sheen are
playing the lead roles. Tom’s
previous stage appearances
include Private Lives and Top
Hat, and he won TV’s Strictly
Come Dancing in 2008.
Caroline’s extensive theatre
credits include Les Misérables,
Mamma Mia and the leading
role in Mary Poppins. Both
actors, along with the majority
of the cast, are making their
Watermill debuts in this great
celebration of theatre.
The Watermill Theatre,
Bagnor,
Newbury RG20 8AE
01635 46044
watermill.org.uk
OXFORD PLAYHOUSE
PETER PAN IN SCARLET
12th August-4th September
By George Sawer,
development assistant
As excitement about Oxford Playhouse’s big summer show builds, let’s pause to take stock of
what Peter Pan in Scarlet is. Geraldine McCaughrean’s acclaimed novel is the official sequel to
JM Barrie’s classic, and Theresa Heskins has adapted it for the stage in this ground breaking coproduction between Oxford Playhouse and Newcastle-under-Lyme’s New Vic theatre.
The story picks up a few years after the events of Barrie’s original. Strange things are happening in
Neverland and dreams are beginning to enter Wendy and the Lost Boys’ heads. Although grownup now, they feel compelled to return to Neverland where old friend Peter needs their help, but
will they find him as they remember him?
McCaughrean was selected by Great Ormond Street Hospital, who own the rights to Barrie’s
original work, to continue the Peter Pan canon. Her pedigree in children’s fiction is well
established, having retold other classic stories such as Moby Dick and Homer’s Odyssey. Heskins,
who has served as artistic director of the New Vic since 2007, has directed numerous productions
there including Peter Pan itself.
For all the team’s experience in quality children’s fiction, Peter Pan in Scarlet is more than a
children’s show. It has edgy elements which will appeal to adults without spooking children, and
as such it’s the perfect show for all ages. All you really need is to love theatre, and if you don’t
already, you probably will by the time the curtain comes down.
So, as the unpredictable weather of British August arrives, we look forward to flying off into the
sunset with this sparklingly fun show, and we’d like you to join us.
Oxford Playhouse, Beaumont Street,
Oxford, OX1 2LW
01865 305305
oxfordplayhouse.com
© Pamela Raith
THEATRE
NEW THEATRE OXFORD
THE GLENN MILLER STORY
30th August-3rd September
By Stephanie Tye, press officer
It remains one of the most intriguing mysteries
– what happened to Glenn Miller when his plane
vanished while over the English Channel during
the Second World War. Did he crash? Was he shot
down? Will the mystery ever be solved?
Whatever the answer, The Glenn Miller Story is
guaranteed to entertain and delight. The musical,
starring the original song and dance man Tommy
Steele, tells the extraordinary tale of America’s
most famous big band leader.
The show came about after producer Bill
Kenwright discovered Tommy’s adoration for
Glenn Miller and his orchestra. Bill learned that
Tommy is a true devotee who has travelled all
over the world to hear what remains of the
original orchestral sounds, and is steeped in the
knowledge and the glory of what Glenn Miller
did for popular music. Tommy enthuses that he
changed the face of music from 1939-1943
when he was the most popular recording artist
in the world.
Bill knew it would make a great musical and there
was only one man who could play Glenn Miller –
and that is Tommy.
New Theatre, George St, Oxford, OX1 2AG
0844 871 3020
atgtickets.com/oxford
BRIEF LIVES
13th-17th September
By Helen Taylor, director
The Bodleian Library in Oxford houses the collected writings
of John Aubrey: the scholar, antiquarian and biographer
who died in 1697. They are the most fascinating trove of
collected stories, anecdotes, scraps of half-finished plays and
reminiscences – the handwriting cramming the page as the
author continually annotates and adds detail, going off on sometimes
bewildering tangents. They speak of a colourful character, fascinated with the
workings of the world and most particularly with the follies and foibles of his
fellow man.
This is the character which Patrick Garland has captured in his one-man play
Brief Lives, adapted from the writings of Aubrey. The play is set in the cramped
and crowded room where Aubrey is living out his last days, surrounded by his
beloved collection of antiquities, and still working on innumerable projects –
most particularly his Brief Lives, biographical pieces which tell the ‘naked truth’
about some very well-known figures from history. As he potters around he
shares some of those anecdotes about Charles I, Shakespeare, Raleigh, Thomas
More and many others, in all their glorious frailty.
ElevenOne Theatre has had a diverse output over the years, but we quite often
gravitate towards plays with a biographical element, as it’s such an intriguing
process to bring to life a real person from history. John Aubrey is a great subject;
funny, endearing, and fascinating. Needless to say, it takes a very talented actor
to perform such a role. Colin Burnie is one of the stars of the Oxford theatre
scene, always a joy to watch on stage, and this play is the perfect vehicle for
his talents. It has been a pleasure to explore the character with him. I can
guarantee that an evening spent with Mr Aubrey won’t be easily forgotten.
Arts at the Old Fire Station, 40 George Street, Oxford, OX1 2AQ
01865 263980
oldfirestation.org.uk
WIN!
Oxford food-lovers can look forward
to another taste-bud-tickling weekend
this summer as Foodies Festival, the
UK’s biggest celebration of food &
drink, returns to South Park 2nd-4th
September…
• MASTERCHEF WINNER JANE
DEVONSHIRE COOKING LIVE IN THE
CHEFS THEATRE
• CELEBRITY CHEF ROSEMARY SHRAGER
AND TOP LOCAL CHEFS SHARE THEIR
FAVOURITE RECIPES
• FOCUS ON BRAZILIAN STREET FOOD ON
THE STREET FOOD AVENUE
• MORE AWARD-WINNING PRODUCERS THAN EVER BEFORE
• NEW VINTAGE TEA TENT WITH AFTERNOON TEA
• CHAMPAGNE, WINE AND CRAFT BEER MASTERCLASSES
• BURLESQUE BAKER CHARLOTTE WHITE
IN THE CAKE & BAKE THEATRE
• NEW BUG-EATING COMPETITION
AND THE FAMOUS CHILLI-EATING
CHALLENGE
• NEW 1920S THEMED VIP TENT WITH
GRAND PIANO AND MIRROR BAR
• LOCAL BANDS COMPETING TO WIN THE
UNSIGNED MUSIC AWARDS
• GIANT PIMM’S TEAPOT AND
MOJITO SHIP
We’re giving away 3 pairs of VIP day tickets
to Foodies Festival, Oxford. These tickets
can be used on any one of the days.
To win
a pair
email [email protected] with your
name, address and telephone number.
Please put ‘Foodies Festival Competition’
as the email subject.
This competition closes on
18th August 2016.
Annette
Cunningham
THE AFTER LIFE
It was one hell of a challenge, although to be fair, it hadn’t actually
been issued as one. When we were planning a two week break in
Italy with a small group, there was a unanimous decision that we
wouldn’t need to take much – the statement “we’ll manage with just
our hand luggage won’t we?” was met with a sea of vigorous nodding
and murmurs of consent.
However, for me, the definition of travelling light has never meant
packing a torch for emergencies and a pack of citronella candles to
ward off mosquitoes. Certainly not. I’m the kind of woman who needs
a large handbag and a shopper just to get through a day at work and
an entire family suitcase for a weekend away in London. Friends who
have invited me to stay the night have been so alarmed at the size of
my overnight bag that they’ve asked me to confirm in writing that I am
planning to leave the very next day. On this occasion, I think I hid my
horror reasonably well as I found myself nodding along with the rest,
truthfully agreeing that I don’t ever use even nearly half as much of the
stuff that I pack, but then my stomach started to churn at the idea of
two weeks of necessities packed into one small bag. It just didn’t feel
doable.
I can’t even blame it on being a mother and feeling the need to have
everything from baby wipes, a healthy snack, a change of clothes (for
the entire family and anyone sitting next to us) and a small assortment
of toys within arm’s reach 24/7. No, in my early twenties, well before
motherhood, I once travelled to Dublin for five days over Christmas
by coach, ferry and taxi and managed to fit nine pairs of shoes
(obviously just taking the truly essential ones) into my rucksack, which
incidentally could have doubled us an overnight shelter for a family of
four. To my credit, I think I wore all of them and yes, trying something
on and then rejecting it for fear of a visit from the Fashion Police does
count as wearing it, thanks.
So, the simple fact is that I always pack far too much of everything
(in fact, I even have recurring nightmares in which I travel and haven’t
got a change of clothes), and also tend to take enough medication to
set up a small pop-up chemist. For some reason, whenever I travel, I
always fear that my travelling companions and I will be beset by insect
bites, blisters and upset stomachs – and that’s just on a train journey
to Didcot.
Indeed, as soon as an airport and foreign clime become involved I
am normally weighed down and prepared to set a broken limb, sterilize
water and supply a small community with their vitamin requirements
for a month or two. But this time I cleverly decided to do the sensible
thing, wised up and achieved the status of a seasoned traveller by
secretly booking a hold bag and taking my credit card … in case there
was anything I forgot to pack (and yes, there was).
THEATRE
People’s truth
Sam Bennett meets Mandala Theatre Company to discuss the refugee crisis and how
their production of Night Light has ended up part of Oxford Shakespeare 2016.
Left to right;
Oliver Davis, Aimee
Powell, Yasmin Sidhwa
and Brenton Hamilton.
P
lace, identity and belonging – the basis of
Mandala Theatre Company’s three year
plan. They’re in year one, during which
they are bringing Nadia Davids’ Night
Light to Pegasus Theatre, where company director
Yasmin Sidhwa worked for 17 years.
With just a couple of days before the Night
Light premiere in France, I stepped off the wet
St Aldate’s pavement into Oxford Town Hall. I
was met in reception by Yasmin, whose funky
cardi and cheeriness contrasted with the miserable
rain outside. Through we went to the Heritage
Learning Centre, where she had been rehearsing
with actors Oliver Davis, Brenton Hamilton and
Aimee Powell.
“It’s about having pathways for actors from
diverse backgrounds,” Yasmin says of Mandala.
“They’re recruited from Oxford and the
Midlands specifically, because people get far more
opportunities in London and Manchester.”
Mandala is an organisation that concentrates on
social justice; it’s a subject that has shaped Yasmin’s
work for years. One piece she did at Pegasus was
about the recent Gaza conflict, and then came the
Pegasus Gaza Scholarship which saw young people
from the affected territory come over to work with
Pegasus. Yasmin still receives messages from some
of these young Gaza residents fearful of the bombs
that continue to hit. The topics she addresses are
not the sort that can be forgotten about after a
theatre project.
“What you can’t do is go: ‘this is just a little topic
I’m going to take and then I’m going to put it
away’. You don’t switch off,” she says.
Nadia Davids’ play caters to Mandala’s ethos.
“This show focuses on young people who come
here aged 11 and 12 as lone minors,” Yasmin
informs. “At 18 they’re often chucked back out of
the country and they’ve got nowhere to go back
to. Their families aren’t there and their homes
have been destroyed. It’s a really difficult situation
because they feel they belong here.”
Oliver Davis embodies a social worker in Night
Light: “Some companies choose their plays based
on what the director wants to put on,” he says,
“and not particularly on why they should do it
and why now. That’s what I find enticing about
Mandala’s ethic: it wants to explore current issues.”
A play about refugees seems to me as relevant
today as it could be. “Do you think we’re so busy
talking about numbers, jobs and houses that we
forget refugees are actually human beings?” I ask.
“Absolutely,” Aimee Powell answers. “These are
actual people. They’re not just statistics and they’re
not numbers on a piece of paper or screen. They’re
actual people with actual lives, and actual families,
who have actually experienced this.”
“And they’re not coming here for no reason,”
Yasmin continues. “That’s the big thing.” Refugees
have seen a rehearsed reading of the production.
“They were saying: ‘It’s our lives and we want
people to know it’,” the director recalls. Asylum
seekers Mandala spoke to would also tell them to
show audiences why they have left their countries.
“I see it as a responsibility to never judge a
character,” Brenton Hamilton tells me. “There’s
always justification for why a character is doing
what they’re doing. It’s about understanding
where they are, where they’ve come from, and that
they’re reacting to their environment. Role play
and improvisation help you put yourself in that
scenario.”
“It has got really emotional,” Aimee states of
what she has come across in the process. “But as an
actor I don’t want to shy away from that because
it’s people’s truth. It’s happened. Why should I
switch off from that just because it’s horrific? I’d
THEATRE
feel like I was doing an injustice to the young
people we’ve met, it’s their story, I can’t say ‘that’s
too much, I’m not going to go there’ – because
they’ve been there.”
Night Light finds itself on the programme for
Shakespeare Oxford 2016. Salma, portrayed by
Aimee, draws parallels between her world and the
western world using Pericles.
“We’re not really taking the Pericles story,”
Yasmin says. “We’re taking elements that are really
relevant.
“In Pericles there’s a boat full of people begging
fishermen to help them,” she tells me, highlighting
the parallels between Shakespeare’s work and
today’s refugee crisis, which has included the
scenes that saw three year old Aylan Kurdi lying
lifeless on a Turkish beach – the famous imagery of
which has a role in Night Light.
I was talking to the company prior to their
trip to Grenoble’s Rencontre International
Theatre Festival, where Night Light premiered.
In September it comes to Pegasus as part of the
autumn tour.
“I hope more of the young people seeking
asylum will see it, as well as young people and
their parents who have anti-asylum seeker views,”
Yasmin says. “I think it’s really important for
everybody to not necessarily think like we do, but
to just come, see it and say: ‘well, I hadn’t thought
about it like that’.”
Each Mandala show will be followed by a debate.
The company is aiming to involve refugees,
NGOs, local councillors and politicians in these.
“I’m going to try and contact Nicola Blackwood
and Andrew Smith,” Yasmin reveals.
“I think it’s really good to hear what people are
feeling,” she also says of the debates, “and I hope
it will be people who don’t necessarily share my
perspective because I think that makes it a proper
dialogue.”
“Oxford strikes me as a very understanding city,”
Oliver remarks about his current location. “It’s
very tolerant and open to diverse viewpoints. But
it will be great to take Night Light out to places
that are less so and where we’re more likely to
make people think again about their beliefs.”
“We’re also going to Bury St Edmunds,” Yasmin
says. “That’s quite a rural monoculture. We don’t
only want to go to urban cities where there are
many immigrants and people seeking asylum, but
also to areas where it’s more rural – they
maybe haven’t been confronted by the
situation.”
“That’s what theatre is there for,” Aimee
points out. “It should be making us
question, making us think, inspiring
us…”
“Making us feel,” her director adds.
Night Light comes to Pegasus
Theatre 29th & 30th September.
mandalatheatre.co.uk
pegasustheatre.org.uk
this show focuses on young people who come
here aged 11 and 12 as lone minors
OX Photostory:
Nocturne at Blenheim Palace
The Nocturne series of concerts blazed into life at Blenheim Palace over the last
weekend of June, and our masterful photographer-in-residence Cyrus Mower (whose
work graces the cover of this copy of OX) was there to document the four-day
extravaganza which featured Elton John, The Corrs, Jack Savoretti, Ennio Morricone
and the music from Bond performed by The Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra.
MUSIC
OX meets
Fat Freddy’s Drop
A potent mixture of jazz virtuosity and diaphragm-wrecking digital sonics,
eight-piece band Fat Freddy’s Drop are internationally regarded as one of
the world’s finest contemporary bands. One of the most forward-thinking
reggae outfits to appear over the last decade, they have sold in excess of
three quarters of a million albums independently since the early noughties,
with a sound that demands to be heard live. OX spoke to the group ahead
of their performance at Boomtown in August.
MUSIC
Firstly, thanks for taking the time to speak to
us today. How does it feel nearing your 1000th
show? Was that a landmark you always had in
mind as a band?
To be honest, I wouldn’t know how many shows
we’ve done but 1000 does sound impressive. I
don’t think any of us have been counting, but
every year we manage to write new music and get
out on the road and tour. That’s a blessing and a
privilege.
You have a substantial fan base in the UK.
Earlier on in your career, was Europe a
deliberate target audience?
Looking at the rest of the world from the very, very
distant land of New Zealand, the obvious targets
are the US and Europe. As soon as I had made
some music that I thought was any good, I always
felt Europe was the place. I thought Europe was a
little more progressive and probably friendlier than
the US, and I also knew more people in Europe.
How many of your songs were born from
on-stage improvisation? What was your most
memorable or successful improvisation?
It’s hard to say exactly which songs and how many
were actually written on stage, but many of them
were certainly conceived there. Probably more of
our earlier work, because in the earlier years the
shows were smaller and lent themselves more to
longer jams and more self-indulgent performances.
Independently controlled music is a rare thing
in this day and age. In what ways has your
decision to release your music yourself affected
how you make and distribute your music?
Being independent means we are our own label.
We have two record distributors – Rhythmethod
for New Zealand and Australia and !K7 for the rest
of the world. From the beginning it’s always made
sense to us to run our own business. We backed
ourselves and amongst our crew we felt that we
had enough smarts to take it on and make it work.
Of course, you make mistakes, but you also enjoy
the triumphs. We have eight core members in
Freddy’s and each individual has their own family
to fend for, so we’ve always ensured that we are
fully involved and in control of our future.
What do you like about performing in the
UK? What are you looking forward to about
performing at Boomtown?
Our UK fans are amazing – they get into it and
don’t hold back. That’s very reassuring for us
because it usually encourages us as performers to
dig in and deliver our strongest performances.
Our two shows at the Brixton Academy earlier this
year were off the hook, possibly some of the best
gigs of our career in my opinion. The audience
were locked in and fizzing. There was something
special in the air that night. I think we responded
and played really well with energetic arrangements
and solid playing by all on stage. I’m really looking
forward to Boomtown; it feels like a freaky indie
festival but with scale. Their website looks fresh
with plenty of flavour.
What has been your most memorable festival
experience so far and why?
We really enjoyed playing at the Secret Garden
Party a couple years ago. We played on the last day
and the line-up had been very cool. The highlight
was David Rodigan’s set in the afternoon, he
smashed it – a tasty, eclectic selection put together
for the dance floor. What I also notice about
Secret Garden is that there was a lot of exciting
visual activity constantly in play. Aside from the
main stages there was lots of eye candy, much of it
didn’t make sense but it just looked cool. A lot of
thought had gone into keeping people amused and
engaged.
Which artists have influenced you most over the
years? Are any of them playing at Boomtown?
It’s hard to talk about influences when there’s
just so many. There are some artists performing
at Boomtown that have given me much musical
pleasure and inspired moments. Right up there is
Roni Size & Krust rocking the Full Cycle Sound.
I also have some good buddies playing – I look
forward to catching up with George Evelyn aka
Nightmares on Wax and also having a laugh and a
pint with Brad and Dom – The Nextmen!
What should new fans look forward to? Will
there be songs from the new album BAYS as
well as some Fat Freddy classics?
New fans showing up should expect eight very
excited musicians doing their damnedest to excite
all those in front of them, and yes we will be
playing tunes from our new album but we will also
drop some old favourites as well. Can’t wait!
New fans showing
up should expect
8 very excited
musicians doing
their damnedest
to excite all those
in front of them
Fat Freddy’s
Drop perform
at Boomtown
Fair, 11th-14th
August. Tickets
are available at
boomtownfair.
co.uk
MUSIC
OX meets
Easy Star All-Stars
Reggae/dub collective Easy Star All-Stars shot to notoriety after the release of their
2003 album, Dub Side of the Moon, a track-for-track reinterpretation of Pink Floyd’s
Dark Side of the Moon, which was met with critical acclaim across the world. The
follow-up, 2006’s Radiodread, was a reimagining of Radiohead’s OK Computer that
– with the help of guests such as Toots & the Maytals – helped cement their position
as one of the most innovative and stylish cover bands around. Their current UK tour
revisits the Radiodread material on its 10th anniversary, and OX’s Jack Telford caught
up with drummer Ivan Katz and trombonist Buford O’Sullivan before their show at
the Bullingdon.
Hello guys. How have the shows been going so far?
So far, great. We’ve only had three shows but we’ve had great crowds and loved
every second of it.
How does it feel to go back to the Radiodread album after 10 years?
It’s fun. Some of the songs get a little dark, such as ‘Exit Music’, there are some
really interesting progressions that happen so it’s fun to bring those back but
also bring in ‘Dub Side’ and as well as our originals that we rock as a band too.
When we released it, it wasn’t intentional to only cover dope British bands but
Radiohead appeals to a different generation as an anthem rock band so it was a
cool contrast to the ‘Dub Side’ album.
When you were deciding to do ‘Radiodread’,
were there any other choices?
With every time we go to make an album, there’s a
bunch of options on the table – there’s always lots
of possibilities that come up. It’s fun when people
make guesses – they are always good guesses! We
always try to go for anything that makes a huge
impact – album-wise – so the only criteria is that we
deal with full albums that are wonderful, that is why
we can go from Pink Floyd to Michael Jackson.
When you made ‘Radiodread’, did Radiohead
themselves get in touch?
They liked it – Thom Yorke really liked ‘Let Down’
especially.
With there being so many guests on the album,
how does that translate to the live circuit?
The recording projects are in and of themselves, so
it is a separate thing - we hire in special guests to
play all sorts of instruments. Although we play on
all the albums, we are also the down-and-dirty road
team that goes out and plays the shows.
There has previously been some trouble gaining
permission to do certain albums, what elements
of your versions changed the artists’ mind to
allow you to cover it?
I could only make a guess, but once these people
had listened to and digested our versions, then they
would see that it is not just covering it but doing
something totally cool and totally different. As it’s
a reggae arrangement, it’s drastically different as
opposed to someone covering it and it being the
same – ours is a reinvention, a whole other thing.
As artists, we are inspired by imitating but if we can
imitate then we can also make it our own somehow.
They saw that we had a concept and we did it
justice – that would be my guess.
You played in Oxford at the Zodiac about 10
years ago. Do you have any memories of that gig?
Yeah, I remember it being down the street, we
played upstairs. It was a really great show with great
energy. Generally, in the UK, we get a lot of love so
it’s one of our favourite places to play and the UK
audience completely gets what we’re trying to do.
Does the fact that Radiohead hail from Oxford
hold any significance in your set?
That does hold a certain significance, as this is the
epicenter of the songs that we are playing – the
crowd embraces it that bit more.
Finally, what’s in the pipeline for the future?
We’re working on records currently, but it’s
top-secret – we’re not allowed to tell or we’ll be
killed! There’s going to be another tribute album,
something really dope as well as working on
original material and a new single of ‘High & Dry’
which we’re playing on this tour too.
Thanks guys.
Jack \
Telford
GIG GURU
On a muggy summer’s night on Cowley Road, the
Bullingdon is crammed full of sweat-drenched reggae
and dub-heads waiting for New York kings-of-the-cover
Easy Star All-Stars.
On the tenth anniversary of their seminal Radiodread album, there can
hardly be a more apt place for them to play ‘OK Computer’ in all its glory.
As they take to the stage, the distorted guitar of ‘Airbag’ glides through the
hazy backroom as bassist Ras I Ray’s soft vocals gently ease the crowd
into proceedings. Reggae, by nature, is not the kind of music that gets out
of third gear, but the All-Stars managed to craft a set which manages to
captivate and entertain. The band have such a strong repertoire to choose
from at this point that it would be difficult feat not to please the crowd.
Tonight, they play classics like MJ’s ‘Beat It’ alongside tracks from their Pink
Floyd tribute Dub Side of the Moon as well as the Radiodread material in a
concoction of heavy basslines, delayed guitars and sweet vocal melodies.
The horn section of Buford O’Sullivan and Jenny Hill add a strong dynamic
to the performance and in tracks like ‘Paranoid Android’ adds an almost
psychedelic feel to the songs. Obviously, the popular Radiohead tracks
such as ‘Karma Police’ and ‘No Surprises’ incite the biggest sing-alongs,
but it is with lesser-known tracks such as ‘Let Down’ and ‘Electioneering’,
where Easy Star really show their power – the latter, in particular, works
superbly in its dub format. Rarely does a tribute band imprint itself on the
musical world as much as Easy Star has, and with shows of this calibre, it is
easy to understand why.
This month also saw the return of Poledo for a homecoming show at
the Wheatsheaf. As part of a countrywide tour with fellow indie-punkers
Radical Boy, the three-piece have come out of hiding to exercise their
fine ability to emulate the early-90s indie of Pavement and Dinosaur Jr.
This show feels like business as usual for the boys, all jangly guitar riffs and
chugging bass lines as it becomes clear that Poledo are the closest heir to
the Ride crown from the mid-90s. Although mainly reliant on the slightly
older material, the band plays a few new tracks which suggest a welcome
deviation in their sound in the use of drum pads and samples. While
the set is slightly flush of any hits, they save the best until last with the
wonderful ‘Loser’, which manages to cram everything that’s good about
early American indie into four and a half minutes. While not a classic, it’s
a welcome sight to see local lads in fine form – here’s hoping they come
back again soon.
Jack’s Picks for August
Wilderness Festival – 5th-7th August
The Besnard Lakes @ O2 Academy – 20th August
Whitney @ The Bullingdon – 25th August
MUSIC
OX meets
Hazell Dean
Hazell Dean, the undisputed queen of Hi-NRG, rocketed to fame with the release of
her first Top 50 hit, the huge gay anthem Searchin’, which shot to number 1 in the
summer of 1984. She then went onto give Stock, Aitken and Waterman their first
Top 10 hit with Whatever I Do (Wherever I Go), and continues to write, produce
and perform music to this day. OX caught up with Hazell ahead of her performance
at Rewind Festival in August.
Oh, they were fantastic. Absolutely sensational.
Searchin’ was number 1 in the chart when I
performed at Heaven for the first time, and the
crowd were going crazy even before I’d even
stepped on the stage. Once I’d stepped on, I fell in
love with the whole thing.
Your first single went straight to number 1.
What was it like to have such a sharp upward
trajectory?
It was very exciting, although it was what I’d been
aiming towards. Before Searchin’ came along, I’d
been singing in bands and doing session work for
a long time, but my whole thing in life was that I
wanted to be successful, so in many ways it’s what
I expected. When it came, it was fast and furious,
but I think I rose to the occasion and I enjoyed
every minute of it.
Hazell Dean
performs at
Rewind Festival
South in Henley
on Saturday
20th August.
Tickets are
available at
rewindfestival.
com
You’ve been a massive gay icon over the last few
decades and you play at a lot of the Pride events.
How have you seen the gay scene change over
the years? What’s the atmosphere like playing at
those events compared to, say, a decade ago?
I don’t think it’s particularly changed, really. It’s
always great fun doing a gay venue, and although I
don’t do as many as I did back in the 80s and 90s
the atmosphere, in most cases, is still pretty good.
What was it like to play at clubs like Heaven
back in the day?
So how did it actually happen? Who put you
into that spotlight?
Back in the 70s I had a record deal with Decca,
and I made some records at that time that were
very big on the Northern Soul scene. Ian Anthony
Stephens, who wrote and produced Searchin’, was
a DJ from that scene. He’d always loved my voice
and he had the track ready to go, so he tracked
me down. When I first heard the finished track I
fell completely in love with it, because at the time
it was different, very fresh and very new. A very
exciting track.
Searchin’ was very much part of the Hi-NRG
wave that came across America and Britain at
the time. Stock, Aitken and Waterman were a
huge part of that and you worked with them on
a few projects. What were they like as people?
After we’d finished recording we’d always go to the
pub afterwards and talk – I’ve always gotten on
really well with all three. Mike [Stock] and Matt
[Aitken] used to do the same sort of gigs that I was
doing in and around London, so we had quite a
lot in common, we knew a lot of the same people,
and we always used to have great fun. Obviously
as time went by and they had more artists, it did
become more like the ‘Hit Factory’ as the press
called it, but even in those times we used to go to
the pub and have fun together.
Your newer material has a more modern, housey
feel to it. Do you listen to a lot of modern dance
music yourself?
Yes, I try to keep up to make sure I’ve got new
ideas. I work with Peter Ware and we also work
with a fantastic producer called Matt Pop, who is
sensational. We’re very lucky to have those good
remixes – I’d say Peter and I do the glossy, poppier
mixes and then Matt provides the more modern
feel on the remixes.
Do you still have the same energy in the studio
as you did back in the day?
It’s different now because I’m co-producing as
well, which is a whole different ball game. I like to
think that I’ve always had a lot of ideas, whether
in the studio or on stage, and I like to keep things
interesting so that provides momentum. Nowadays
it’s much easier to get my ideas down because I
have that knowledge and role as co-producer. It’s
great fun.
Presumably nowadays you have more time to
think about what you’re producing.
Well, I have a family now so I have to balance it
out, but yes I might have a day where I can just
spend time looking over the tracks. What I do
have is less pressure from the record labels and
I do everything in my own time. I’m also not as
pressured to do as many live shows, although I still
love to do them.
Do your family see you as a big 80s pop star?
Oh yes!
Fantastic. You’re appearing at Rewind Festival
this year alongside loads of other great names
from your era. What can we expect from your
set this year?
I’m going to sing Who’s Leaving Who and
Searchin’.
Who are you looking forward to seeing at the
festival?
Well Toyah Willcox is one, and she’s great. The
Real Thing, Tony Hadley, Rick Astley...
What are your plans for the future?
To carry on. As long as I can do what I’m doing in
my own time, I’m quite happy. If anything special
should come along then I’ll do it, but it’s nice to
be able to ease back a bit – I could never work at
the rate I used to anyway. It’s all about enjoying it.
Thanks Hazell
Julie Ann
Godson
MEMORIES
OF THE VALE
In 1866 a Stanford in the Vale clergyman set about
collecting from his older parishioners their memories
of the ancient customs and traditions of the Vale of the
White Horse. Exactly 150 years later, Julie Ann Godson
chooses an extract each month from Reverend Maine’s
book to show how the ordinary folk of the Vale lived in the
past. This month: the farmer’s wife.
“There is scarcely a farmhouse in this neighbourhood where the duties
of the day do not commence at the very earliest possible hour. For cows
must be milked, and dairy-work attended to. The universal Stanford
dinner-hour among all classes is half- past eleven, and the hour for tea
half-past three.
“Farmers’ wives must have been patterns of diligence and industry. It
was their duty to measure out the quantity of corn to be ground, and see
that it was sent to the miller. They took care of the poultry and pigs, and
superintended the brewing and baking. The housewife spun the wool
and flax produced on the farm. The garden was especially the care of
the yeoman’s wife. She had to depend upon it for various herbs which
are now no longer in use, but which could not be dispensed with in times
when spices were rare and costly. Besides pot-herbs, strewing-herbs
were required for the chambers, and herbs possessing medical virtues.
A knowledge of herbs still lingers in this neighbourhood, but principally
amongst aged women of the labouring class.
“What was customary in the last generation in the way of female
costume may be gathered from Mrs Trimmer’s tale of the ‘Two Farmers’.
Mrs Simpkins, on her marriage, was presented with her wedding dress,
of which the following is a description. She had a neat Quaker-colour silk
and stuff, a white stuff petticoat, quilted in small diamonds. The gown was
made with robings, and laced before with white satin ribbon, and it had
no train. She, it should be explained, was not a topping farmer’s wife, and
laid no claim to gentility. Therefore, her cap was made of fine lawn, with a
pretty edging and a snug crimped wire border, trimmed with white ribbon,
pinned on in very exact puffs, and a bow before and behind. It had also a
lappet trimmed with the same edging, which went behind the ribbon and
came a little below the ears, but no ribbon streamers. She had also a clear
double muslin handkerchief, with a narrow worked border, a pair of robings
to match it, and a clear lawn apron. In addition, she was presented with a
neat black cloak and bonnet, a pair of silver buckles, and a pair of white silk
mittens.”
• “Memories of the Vale” by Reverend Lewin G. Maine, edited by Julie Ann
Godson, published by Alley Cat Books, available on Amazon £8.99,
ISBN 978-1523690862. Also available on Kindle.
ART
Celebrating the
Human Form
In Oxford’s renowned Pitt Rivers Museum, full of anthropological artefacts and
fascinating finds, several cases display objects that are classified as ‘Human Form in
Art’. Although they display enormous diversity in materials, techniques, function,
beliefs, and notions of beauty, they all highlight the shared humanity of the
cultures represented. Today, in almost all cultures around the world, the enduring
theme that is the human figure remains central to decorative art.
T
ESTHER LAFFERTY,
FESTIVAL DIRECTOR
OF OXFORDSHIRE
ARTWEEKS
he earliest known representations of
the human body were found in Europe
and date back to between 25,000
and 12,000 years ago. Carved from
stone and ivory, these ‘Venus’ figures represent
the female form and may have been associated
with fertility. Humans feature in other prehistoric
art including the cave paintings of early Europe
and in the rock paintings of southern Africa.
Although there is no way of telling for certain,
the production and meaning of art amongst these
cultures was probably spiritual, the figures perhaps
representing deities or ritually important people.
Shallow carvings of schematic human figures in
rocks in western Sweden from 2500-3500BCE,
for example, are thought to reflect Bronze Age
myths or religious episodes involving combat and
dancing. By 5000 years ago, in Ancient Egypt,
it then became more common for non-spiritual
persons to be depicted and for the human form to
feature in more secular contexts.
The German philosopher Kant (1724-1804)
refers to the human figure as the ideal of beauty,
and the study and appreciation of the human
body’s beauty underpins its presentation in art,
sculpture and other forms of expression. Figure
drawing involves the depiction of the body in
different postures, in motion, or at work, and
much sculpture is a three dimensional approach to
the same end. Both involve a working knowledge
of body shape, including body postures (sitting,
standing or sleeping) and movements (walking,
running or dancing). After all, the human
figure conforms to the general law stating that
form follows function, a result of evolution
over thousands of generations. The expressive
musculature of Michelangelo’s nudes, for
example, owes much to his study of anatomy and
musculoskeletal structures through observation,
and today an acclaimed East Oxfordshire
printmaker, Debbie Sutcliffe, who was once a
medical illustrator for Oxford University Press,
now reduces the human form to simple shapes,
capturing in a perfect line the arch of a back or
breast in a reclining position, or a dance or other
movement.
Ancient Greek athletes were naked when they
competed to display their physical prowess, to
pay homage to the god Zeus by showing him how
they had trained their bodies to the max, and also
to intimidate their opponents. That they were
often an inspiration to artists and sculptors, can
be seen in archaeological finds: sculptors from
the 5th century BC endow their statues with an
unprecedented sense of vitality, creating standing
figures that look as if they were frozen in the act of
moving.
And today, in a small flat tucked away in the
heart of Jericho, British contemporary artist
Rachel Ducker creates incredible wire sculptures
equally inspired by the shape and movement of the
human form. She originally trained as a jeweller
but then wire sculpture “just happened!
“One day I was helping out in a florist’s and I
was left alone in the shop,” Rachel explains. “I
started fiddling around with the wire they use to
tie up bouquets and made a rough sculpture of my
boyfriend, very loose but recognisably him. We
put it in the window and someone wanted to buy
it, and that’s where it all began.”
Well practised in life drawing as a basis for an
appreciation of the human shape, her vibrant and
emotive wire sculptures capture movement, human
nature and something ephemeral – fairy-tale even.
There’s a sense of life and character, in these static
yet dynamic pieces that look as if they could spring
into action any moment, whether they are small
winged ‘tinkerbell’ pieces or full-size sculptures
emerging from the earth and expressively bounding
into the space ahead of them.
The translucency and silhouettes of her female
forms are not only striking in their own right, but
with particular lighting can cast dramatic shadows
showing the three dimensional forms in two
dimensions, and creating an effect resembling a
pencil sketch on the wall.
Rachel uses no model and she doesn’t form
the shape around anything. The posture is first
designed and then the pieces are carefully moulded
by hand, with the gradual addition of layers of
wire, wrapped painstakingly as the character takes
shape bit by bit, every angle important right to the
tip of the finger. “The slightest movement in the
angle of the hand or fingers, or the tilting of the
head changes everything the figure is portraying,”
she explains.
Her sculptures have no facial features, leaving the
posture of the body to express the feeling provoked
by each. “I love people watching,” says Rachel,
who has always had a keen interest in psychology,
“and if you take a moment, you see how much is
actually communicated through body language.
People express themselves very physically.”
© Simon Murison-Bowie
ART
For more
on Debbie
Sutcliffe see
debbiesutcliffe
printmaker.
wordpress.com
For sculpture
and more by
Rachel Ducker
visit rachelducker.co.uk
The hair of each of Rachel’s sculptures is her
trademark, perhaps, and its crowning glory – like
her own vivid locks, the wire hair is dramatic,
fun and funky, and a touch untameable, adding
another layer of latent movement into the
equation.
Although mostly working to commission,
producing pieces that are shipped all over the
globe and with regular events including the
Chelsea Flower Show, Rachel still finds time
to create pieces for display locally and you can
see her trademark style at Branca Restaurant in
Jericho, or pick a piece to take home with you at
Burford’s Affordable Art Gallery (Burford Garden
Company) or Witney’s SOTA Gallery – all the
better if you can drive it home as your passenger in
a two seater sports car.
ART
Oxfordshire through
different eyes
BY ESTHER LAFFERTY
I
f someone asked you to describe Oxfordshire
in fifty words, you’d probably mention
Oxford city with its heritage and university,
the River Thames meandering through green
countryside, quaint Cotswold villages and the
historical market towns of Banbury, Abingdon,
Witney and Henley. There’s the Ridgeway and
the Great Rollright stones, the science centres at
Culham and Harwell and so on.
It would, however, be harder to describe
Oxfordshire in fifty objects, which is exactly what
a new exhibition at the Oxfordshire Museum in
Woodstock has done. And instead of capturing
and celebrating an obvious Oxfordshire, they’ve
dug beneath the surface and unearthed fifty varied
items that represent the people, lives and past of
the county.
These unrelated objects each tell a very
individual story, and if you piece together the
tales of different people and groups, the periods
of history from which the chosen artefacts have
been taken, and the reasons for the choices made,
you find yourself immersed in an unexpected
Oxfordshire you’ve never explored before.
“It’s a fascinating collection of personal tales
drawn from the communities that live here and
linking them with the past,” explained Stephen
Barker, Heritage Advisor. “The labels are written
by the individuals and community groups
themselves and so their voice speaks right to you.”
There’s a stunning 20th century bowl made by
Lucie Rie (1902-1995), a 1938 émigré from Nazi
anti-Semitism in culturally dynamic Vienna, who
became a Dame of the British Empire in 1991
and was one of the most innovative studio potters
of the 20th century. The story here is that this
delicate piece was part of a collection of items
taken around the county for schoolchildren to
handle – until its value was realised! It’s now worth
around ten thousand pounds.
There’s a sign from the King Alfred’s coffee shop
in Wantage, frequented by John Betjeman, dating
from 1937; a propeller from a Handley plane in
the 1940s from the Brize Norton Military Wives
Choir, and a dress uniform of the Oxfordshire
Yeomanry. There’s a pocket watch marking the
passing of time, and a violin, a bike and an old
fashioned pram, each’s place in the exhibition
ART
“It’s a fascinating
collection of personal
tales drawn from
the communities
that live here”
ART
ART
explained and adding a thread to the fabric of
Oxfordshire, as woven at the museum.
Marking the importance of wool production
and trading to the county, there’s a cloth and yarn
cabinet from Bliss Tweed Mill which operated in
Chipping Norton between 1847-1980, and had
changing fortunes in the twentieth century from
a strike in 1913/4 to unexpected riches from the
production of khaki for WW1 uniforms. The
quality and colours of the cloth samples invoke the
spirit of the landscape and the essence of rural life
even today, particularly in rural Oxfordshire.
From Tooley’s Boatyard, an eclectic chandlery
between Banbury’s Castle Quays and the canal,
there’s a model of a canal boat representing
the importance of the canal to trade – it
was commissioned in 1769 by the Duke of
Bridgewater to link the waterways from Oxford
to Coventry and transport coal from the mines to
London.
Head back in time and there are jewels and
riches – a large Anglo-Saxon brooch in copper,
gold and silver, for example, discovered in Hanney.
From the same era there’s a spearhead chosen
by the children at Watchfield Primary School to
“remind us that in the past people didn’t have
lives as safe as we do today” and go further back
to 3000BC or earlier when hunter-gatherers
were settling down to farm the land, and there’s
Neolithic pottery and, equally old and found
in Ascott-under-Wychwood, a human vertebra
pierced by the flint of an arrow!
Be moved by the story behind a German
Teddy Bear, learn about strawberries and fruit
farms in Longworth, discover why Cogges Farm
is represented by a character from The Magic
Roundabout and consider what it is about oldfashioned barbery that appeals to today’s teenagers!
The Oxfordshire in Fifty Objects
exhibition runs until 11th
September at the Oxfordshire
Museum in Woodstock.
FOOD & DRINK
Review:
Orwells at Shiplake
H
dreaming up
exceptional
flavour
combinations and
executing them
with utter finesse
iding amongst the manicured lawns
and winding roads of Shiplake
Row at the very tip of South East
Oxfordshire, Orwells is a remarkably
unassuming building considering the soaring
ambition of the chefs that reside within. Whilst
technically still a pub (Brakspear owns the
building, but you won’t find any ale pumps
inside), the food served at Orwells is as far outside
of the usual boundaries of gastropub fayre as
you can feasibly get. Headed up by the young
partnership of Ryan Simpson and Liam Trotman,
the modest artwork, exposed beams and clean
but unfussy paintjob inside belie the spectacular
sensory assault that Orwells can provide you
with through fresh, well-sourced ingredients and
culinary flair from the kitchen staff.
When I visited the place on a damp Thursday
evening we ordered a three-course meal, but the
starters as referred to on the menu were far from
the first dish to be served up. What I first thought
was a decorative pair of candles the waiter had
brought to the table turned out to be whipped
smoked salmon and cream cheese terrine, piped
into jet black wafer cones and topped with caviar,
served plateless in a glass dish of raw, wild rice.
If you’re looking for sausage and mash, there are
other pubs in the area.
The edible comedy doesn’t end there. Our
second unannounced entrée was introduced as
a “ploughman’s” but consisted of a thick, smoky
cheese sauce layered over a sharp relish and a
strong hit of celery, served in a wooden ramekin
that fires sweet smoke into your nostrils when you
remove the lid. The chefs also make their own
(very, very good) sourdough and focaccia on site
each morning, should you need a starchy anchor
for the parade of slapstick appetisers.
When the menu begins in earnest you really
begin to appreciate Ryan and Liam’s skill, not
just in their ability to deconstruct British classics
and assemble witty amuses-bouches, but in
dreaming up exceptional flavour combinations
and executing them with utter finesse. Squid and
oxtail comes accompanied by ice-cold horseradish
cream, samphire and a crisp, paper-thin sourdough
cracker, a deft balancing act of meaty depth and
ocean salinity. Smoked pork and pheasant egg
with celeriac and tart brown sauce is like all the
best elements of a fry-up condensed into a fleeting
moment of joy.
I carried on the ‘land and sea’ theme into the
main course, with lobster tail and claw meat
draped over cuts of beef so tender they felt closer
to a paté than whole cow parts. Juicy shiitake
mushrooms provide an earthy richness and purple
potatoes add some vibrant colour to what is a truly
spectacular dish. The Cornish monkfish, onto
which a steaming broth is poured, at your table, by
the maître d’, is served atop a pile of clams, bacon,
peas and mixed seashore vegetables, and as one of
the simpler dishes on Orwells’ menu is a pleasure
to behold.
At this point I have an admission to make: I
don’t really like desserts. Sure, a proper baked
cheesecake is a thing of beauty and nobody can
honestly say that they don’t like key lime pie, but
finishing off a good meal with a bowl of sugar and
cream often sends me past satisfied and into the
realms of uncomfortable. It’s all the more credit
to Ryan and Liam, then, that their puddings
manage to be inventive, confident and indulgent
whilst remaining balanced enough to fully enjoy
without enduring a hideous blood sugar crash
on the drive home. Light, syphonated chocolate
makes an appearance several times on the menu,
and the coconut brûlée is just perfect, served tall
with vanilla crumb and a gorgeous milk chocolate
ice cream.
The gin menu is extensive and curated by the
chefs themselves (do these guys ever sleep?) and 40
varieties are available, from classic London drys to
those made with more outlandish botanicals like
elderberries and Devon violets.
There are many restaurants that attempt to
do what Orwells do, but very few manage to
combine the ingenuity and showmanship of
‘modernist’ cooking with the sheer skill and choice
of ingredients required to make the food taste as
it does here. Hats off to Ryan and Liam – this is a
truly special place to eat.
with top chefs
oxford
south parks
chefs
tasting
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FOOD & DRINK
COSMO
BY JACK RAYNER
“At midnight every self-respecting casino premières its buffet – the eighth wonder of the world, the one true art
form this androgynous harlot of cities has delivered herself of.... We marvel at the Great Pyramids, but they were
built over decades; the midnight buffet is built daily. Crushed-ice castles and grottoes chill the shrimp and lobster.
Sculptured aspic is scrolled with Paisley arabesques. They are, laid out with reverent artistry: hors d’oeuvres, relish,
salads, and sauces; crab, herring oyster, sturgeon, octopus, and salmon; turkey, ham, roast beef, casseroles, fondues,
and curries; cheeses, fruits and pastries. How many times you go through the line is a private matter between you
and your capacity, and then between your capacity and the chef ’s evil eye.”
T
he idea of an all-you-can-eat
buffet was established by
savvy Las Vegas entertainment
wizard Herbert Cobb
McDonald, presumably because he
realised that if casino customers didn’t
have to leave the building to eat,
they’d spend more time in front of slot
machines and roulette wheels. The above
quote, from William Pearson’s 1965
novel The Muses of Ruin, highlights the
sheer unfamiliarity of the all-you-can-eat
format felt by casino punters five decades
ago.
The more general concept of self-served
meals from a large display table of food,
of course, is far older, most likely from
the Swedish brännvinsbord format,
where guests would gather around a table
for a pre-dinner drink. Smörgåsbords
(literally “sandwich tables”) came later.
Fast forward 51 years and the trend for
gargantuan buffets encompassing myriad
cuisines and styles of cooking has spread
to the UK in spectacular fashion. A
branch of Cosmo, which first opened its
doors in Eastbourne in 2003, has sprung
up on Magdalen Street where JD Sports
used to be and represents probably the
most all-encompassing of these rather
surreal restaurants within reasonable
distance.
I have certainly had my doubts about
the vertigo-inducing level of variety on
display at eateries like Cosmo – how
can any product possibly be cooked or
prepared to a high standard when the
staff have to oversee over 150 dishes at
the same time? The more meals there
are on offer, the more opportunities
there are for things to go wrong, and
once you get over the novelty of being
at what is essentially the 21st century
equivalent of a Roman orgy, I just
couldn’t imagine that the food would
taste any good. This, combined with
rushed and inattentive service at a visit
to a similar, Bristolian establishment a
few years ago (presumably due to the fact
that the quicker the staff can get you out
the doors, the more entry fees they can
ring through the tills) made me file the
all-you-can-eat restaurant under “good
idea but only on paper” and return to my
à la carte status quo.
Here’s the problem – Oxford’s branch
of Cosmo is actually rather good. The
unassuming entrance gives way to a
cavernous dining hall, tables on one
side and stations of the encyclopaedic
selection of food on the other. I assumed
this would be a student-heavy sort of
place, but families, businessmen and the
older generation were all in attendance.
The staff manage to be ever-present but
never impatient or pushy, and take your
orders for drinks before you dive into
the preposterous array of food on display
across the room.
In the spirit of true investigative
journalism, I decided that the only way
to pass an informed value judgement on
the place was to try everything I could
possibly manage before I burst a blood
vessel in my eye. I won’t bore you with
an out-of-ten judgement on each of the
three-figure list of meal components
that I piled through before my blood
sugar caught up with me, but in general
the quality and freshness of each batch
of ingredients was a pleasant surprise.
There are cooking stations where chefs
fry up objectively fresh produce in front
of you, and the Asian side to the menu
is particularly good, the curries bursting
with flavour and the sushi perfectly
serviceable. The meat carvery, which
tends to ring alarm bells by name alone,
serves up a very good selection – the
sheer number of people being served at
one time means that dishes are replaced
with new batches at a rapid rate.
The real highlight, though, and
worth the per-person price alone, is the
desserts – a chocolate fountain forms the
centrepiece of a goliath display of fruits,
meringues, pavlovas, mousses, cakes
and ice creams. Top tip: suspend a piece
of Irish cream cheesecake on a wooden
skewer and pass it through the chocolate
fountain. Need I say any more?
So, whilst describing this insane
restaurant as “the eighth wonder of the
world” might be erring on the side of
sycophantic, there is serious fun and
genuinely great food to be had with this
buffet format, and the staff at Cosmo
definitely do it justice. Give it a try.
Have a go at some of these stunning recipes
from some of our favourite Oxonian eateries,
taken from The Oxfordshire Cook Book.
JACOBS & FIELD
King prawn and coriander pizza
with San Francisco sourdough
INGREDIENTS
For the dough (enough for 5
large pizzas):
300ml sourdough starter (you
can buy a variety of these
online,
we use a sixty year old San
Francisco starter)
250ml warm water
300g Tipp Italian 00 flour
200g semolina flour
For the sauce:
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp butter
170g onion, chopped
85g celery, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
225g passata
170g tomato paste
2 tbsp parmesan cheese,
grated
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried oregano
½ tsp salt
½ tsp sugar
¼ tsp black pepper
1 small bay leaf
1 tsp fennel seed
For the topping:
3 tbsp mozzarella, grated
3 tbsp parmesan, finely grated
5 sun blushed tomatoes,
halved
6 large prawns (frozen and
defrosted is fine), patted dry,
deveined and butterflied
1 bunch of coriander, roughly
chopped
Generous pinch chilli flakes
Handful pitted green olives,
halved
Small drizzle extra virgin
olive oil
METHOD
To make the sourdough:
Weigh the ingredients into a mixing bowl and mix into a rough
dough. Knead the dough until smooth, stretchy and soft, then cover
with cling film and allow to rest for 30 minutes.
Divide into 5 equal pieces and shape into rounds and cover. Rest for a
couple of minutes.
One at a time, roll (or throw them) to make a delicious thin pizza
base.
To make the sauce:
In a large pan, melt butter with the oil. Add the onion, celery and
garlic and sauté until soft and transparent. Add the passata and
tomato paste and stir until smooth. Add remaining ingredients and
bring to a slow simmer. Simmer for 45-60 minutes, remove the bay
leaf and leave to cool.
To build:
Put your pizza base into a pizza tray or large baking tray. Spread a
ladle of the tomato sauce over the pizza base, leaving an inch around
the edge. Sprinkle on the mozzarella, place the prawns around
the pizza at uniform intervals of a clock face. Spread the rest of
the toppings randomly over the pizza and add a sprinkling of the
parmesan cheese.
Place in a hot oven for 8-10 minutes, until the cheese is bubbling and
the prawns are cooked through. Drizzle with olive oil and serve.
FOOD & DRINK
THE OXFORD KITCHEN
Lamb loin with taboulé and confit baby tomatoes
METHOD
INGREDIENTS
300g lamb bones, chopped
20g butter
For the mirepoix:
30g carrot, 2cm dice
30g onion, 2cm dice
20g celery, 2cm dice
20g leek, 2cm dice
For the lamb:
200g lamb shoulder, diced 2
inches
20g butter
1 litre lamb remi/brown
chicken stock
80ml white wine, reduced
to 50ml
50g tomatoes, chopped
1 tsp thyme
Pinch of rosemary
1 tsp garlic, crushed
For the taboulé:
200ml water
1 tsp salt
15ml olive oil
200g couscous
1 tsp fennel seeds, soaked in
warm water for 1 hour
40g pumpkin seeds (toast in a
hot pan until golden brown)
40g pine kernels
40g raisins, soaked in warm
water
10g parsley, fine julienne
10g coriander, fine
julienne
60ml olive oil
30ml lemon juice
Pinch of cayenne pepper
For the confit tomatoes:
1kg baby plum tomatoes,
blanched and peeled
100ml extra virgin olive
oil
2 tsp thyme
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp pepper
To make the lamb
Sear the chopped bones over a strong heat until they just begin to
colour. Add the butter and continue to cook in foaming butter for 10
minutes until nicely caramelised. Drain well.
In a separate pan, brown the mirepoix and drain well. Slowly caramelise
the diced lamb shoulder in the foaming butter, then bring the stock to
the boil and reduce to sauce consistency. Mix the remiage, white wine,
bones, mirepoix and tomatoes. Bring to the boil, skim and simmer
for 20 minutes. Strain, reduce to sauce consistency. Refresh with
caramelised shoulder, herbs and garlic.
Pass through a fine chinois, season and if too flat, add a little reduced
white wine or sweeten with more tomato. Pass through a double sheet of
wet muslin cloth.
For the taboulé
Bring the water, salt and oil to the boil. Add the couscous, stir and cover
with cling film. Place on the side and leave for 3 minutes until the grains
swell. When tepid, add the seeds, pine kernels, raisins, herb julienne and
finish by mixing in the olive oil, lemon juice and cayenne. Taste and
correct the seasoning.
For the confit tomatoes
Blanch the tomatoes in boiling water for 5-10 seconds or until the skin
starts to split, then refresh in iced water. Peel the tomatoes and place in
a bowl. Season with thyme, salt and sugar. Place the tomatoes on a tray
and place in oven at 80°C for 2 hours. At this point you will notice the
tomatoes starting to dehydrate. Remove tomatoes from oven, place in a
container and reserve until needed.
To finish
Season the lamb with sea salt, sear in a hot pan with a small amount
of rapeseed oil until light golden brown, place on a tray and put
into a preheated oven at 200°C for about 6 minutes or until the core
temperature is 55°C. Allow to rest for 6 minutes.
Warm the couscous, peas, broad beans and baby tomatoes and arrange
nicely on the plate.
Warm the sauce, slice the lamb into thin slices and place onto the
couscous.
Pour the sauce around the dish and finish with pea shoots.
THE NUT TREE INN
Ginger panna cotta with Yorkshire rhubarb sherbet
INGREDIENTS
Double cream
Semi-skimmed milk
Caster sugar
200g fresh ginger, chopped
2 leaves of gelatine
4 sticks of Yorkshire
rhubarb
1 split vanilla pod
1 star anise
100ml of the rhubarb
cooking juices
Lemon juice, to taste
Sugar, to taste
To garnish
Pieces of meringue
Pieces of honeycomb
Mint, Thai basil or lemon
verbena
METHOD
To make the panna cotta
Mix 400ml of cream, 100ml of milk, 155g of sugar and the ginger in
a pan and bring to the boil. Remove from the heat and leave to stand
for 30 minutes to infuse, then strain. Soak the gelatine in cold water
until soft. Add the gelatine to the warm mixture and stir until dissolved.
Divide the mixture between 4 dariole moulds and place in the fridge to
set for a minimum of 6 hours.
To cook the rhubarb
Preheat the oven to 180°C. Wash and cut the rhubarb into 7.5cm sticks.
Place in an ovenproof dish or deep tray, sprinkle with sugar, vanilla pod
and star anise. Cover with tin foil and bake in the preheated oven for
approximately 8 minutes or until tender. Chill and reserve.
To make the rhubarb sherbet
Mix 50ml of milk, 50ml of cream and the rhubarb syrup together and
check taste for sweetness and acidity. Add lemon juice and sugar to taste,
then churn in an ice cream machine. Place in the freezer until required.
To serve
Turn out the panna cotta by dropping in hot water and place slightly off
centre on a round plate. Place the rhubarb batons, rhubarb juice and a
scoop of rhubarb sherbet on the plate and garnish.
FOOD & DRINK
THE WHITE HART AT FYFIELD
Roasted rump of Cotswold lamb, black olive
and feta tart with ratatouille
INGREDIENTS
For the feta tart:
250g plain flour
250g unsalted butter (125g to be
cold and diced)
2 egg yolks
6 onions, finely sliced
Thyme and parsley, destalked,
chopped
125ml double cream
50ml cold water
200g feta, diced
50g black olives, sliced
For the smoked aubergine purée:
3 aubergines
2 sprigs rosemary
4-5 garlic cloves
50ml double cream
Salt and pepper
For the ratatouille:
1 small red onion, peeled and
diced
½ red, green and yellow pepper,
diced
1 small courgette, diced
½ small aubergine, diced
Olive oil (good quality)
3 tomatoes, skinned, seeds
removed and diced
Basil, finely chopped
For the lamb:
6 x 6-7oz lamb rumps
Thyme and rosemary sprigs
For the basil crisps:
Basil leaves and olive oil
For the garnish (optional):
Roasted red peppers quarters
Chargrilled courgette ribbons
Herb olive oil
METHOD
We are privileged to be featured in the Oxfordshire Cookbook,
which showcases recipes from the very best chefs and
restaurants in the area. The produce we have in Oxfordshire is
amazing and we are proud to make the most if it!
Located in the picturesque village of Fyfield, this historic 15th-century
former chantry now houses one of the most stunning interiors of any
dining establishment. Customers can choose to eat under the soaring
eaves of the great hall or up high in the minstrel’s gallery.
The award-winning food is modern British and focuses on local
seasonal produce. Mark catches his own crayfish, forages in local
woodlands and has developed a large kitchen garden. Watch out for
the signature slow roasted pork belly with foot long crackling!
THE WHITE HART
01865 390585 www.whitehart-fyfield.com
To make the feta and olive tart
Place the flour, the cold butter (125g) and a pinch of salt
in a food processor. Blend until the mix resembles fine
breadcrumbs. Add 1 egg yolk and the water. Pulse until the mix
comes together into a dough. Roll in cling film and refrigerate
for at least 1 hour. Roll out the pastry and line a 24cm, loose
bottomed tin. Blind bake for 30-35 minutes at 170°C (remove
the baking beans for the last 10 minutes). For the tart filling,
cook the onions, remaining butter and thyme gently until the
onions are soft but not browned. Remove the mix from the pan
and allow to cool. Whisk 1 egg yolk and the cream together.
Add this, together with all the remaining ingredients, to the
onions. Pour into the prepared tart case and bake at 180°C for
20-30 minutes until golden brown and set.
To make the aubergine purée
Take 2 aubergines, cut in half lengthways and place a sprig of
rosemary inside. Roll the 2 halves together in tin foil. Cut the
garlic in half and roll in foil. Bake the aubergines and garlic
at 200°C until very soft. Meanwhile, place the remaining
aubergine directly over a gas flame or under a hot grill, until
charred all over. Scoop out the soft flesh of the aubergines and
garlic and place in a blender. Add the cream, salt and pepper.
Blend until smooth.
To make the basil crisps
Cling film a microwaveable plate. Dip the basil leaves in olive
oil and place them on the plate. Place another layer of cling
film tightly over the basil leaves. Microwave on full power for
3 minutes. Place the leaves on kitchen paper and reserve.
To make the ratatouille
Gently sauté the onions, peppers, courgettes and aubergine in
olive oil separately and then combine in a bowl. Add the raw
tomato and basil. Season to taste.
To cook the lamb
Season the lamb generously. Preheat a pan on a medium heat.
Add the thyme and rosemary to the pan and seal the lamb
all over until golden brown. Place the lamb skin side down
in an oven at 180°C for 10-14 minutes. Rest for 10 minutes
before serving.
To serve
Carve the lamb rump into 3 slices and plate according to the
photo. Roasted red pepper quarters, chargrilled courgette
ribbons and a drizzle of herb oil can be added if desired.
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FOOD & DRINK
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Tel:
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830500
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good
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steaks,
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meal
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hot
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[email protected]
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back ribs.
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01865
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Tel:
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Crown
eat
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Shaven
Crown
Tel:
01491
836665
eat for every occasion.
Tel: +44 (0) 1993 830500
George
Hotel,
High
Street,High
Wallingford,
Email:[email protected]
[email protected]
Email:
George
Hotel,
Street, Wallingford,
www.mpwrestaurants.co.uk/restaurants/
High
Street,
Shipton-under-Wychwood,
Tel:
01865
248
695
Email:
[email protected]
Email:
[email protected]
www.mpwrestaurants.co.uk/restaurants/ Email: High
Street, Shipton-under-Wychwood,
Email:
[email protected]
[email protected]
Oxfordshire,
OX10
0BS OX10 0BS
www.peelhotels.co.uk/hotels/george-hotelwww.peelhotels.co.uk/hotels/george-hotelOxfordshire,
Email:
[email protected]
marcos-oxford
OxfordshireOxfordshire
OX7 6BA OX7 6BA
Tel:
01865 248
695
marcos-oxford
www.peelhotels.co.uk/hotels/george-hotelwallingford-oxfordshire-england/
Tel: 01865
248 695
The Shaven
Crown
Marco’s
New
York Italian
Email:
[email protected]
The Shaven
Crown
Marco’s
New Oxford,
York Italian Oxford,
George
Hotel, High
Email: marcos-oxford
[email protected]
The
Shaven
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George
Hotel,
High Street,
Street,Wallingford,
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Street,
73 High Street,
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cooked
meal
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drink.
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[email protected]
light
lunch
or
a
candlelit
dinner,
The
Lamb
Inn
Bicester.
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by
beautiful
scenery
cooked
meal
or
a
well
earned
drink.
2.30pm
to
5pm
finger sandwiches
with
scones and a
2.30pm
to fruity
5pm
Email:
[email protected]
light
lunch
or [email protected]
a candlelit dinner, The Lamb Inn
Bicester. Surrounded by beautiful scenery
Email:
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sandwiches
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www.browns-restaurants.co.uk
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Oxford,
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01869
351153
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Oxfordshire,
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TAKE
ADVANTAGE
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&
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01865
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The
Lamb Inn,
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MENU
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STEAK
SUNDAY’S
Every
Friday
for
Lunch
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Dinner
we are
Oxford,
Oxfordshire,
OX2 6HA TWO
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SUNDAY’S
Email:
[email protected]
Oxford,
Oxfordshire,
OX2 6HA
The Lamb
Inn,
Steep
Hill,
Crawley,
Witney,
PURCHASE
A STARTER AND A MAIN
Email:
[email protected]
FOR
£11.95,
AVAILABLE
12PM-7PM,
Oxfordshire,
OX29
9TW
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Black
Sheep, Weston on the Green
offering
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OX MAGAZINE
| AUGUST 2016
| 49
Tonic
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65
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A BEAUTIFUL PLACE TO STAY, EAT,
DRINK, AND ENJOY THE COTSWOLDS.
WEDDINGS, SPECIAL EVENTS & PRIVATE PARTIES
We are able to offer exclusive use of the Shaven Crown for many and varied events,
including weddings and cocktail parties, up to 100 people.
We have a new private room which is ideally suited for lunches, dinners and meetings for up to 10 people.
Menus are available on request or we are also happy to offer bespoke options.
BOOK NOW: 01993 830500
or email: [email protected]
High Street, Shipton under Wychwood, Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire, OX7 6BA
Rick Fox
A traditional country inn
overlooking the Coln Valley
15 stunning rooms
The Inn dates back to the sixteenth century so all the
rooms are different and individually furnished.
Children and dogs are most welcome
“Tranquil village pub with a good menu ”
THE NEW INN, COLN ST ALDWYNS
01285 750651
www.new-inn.co.uk
THE GRAPEVINE
Plenty of casual wine drinkers are deeply
suspicious of dessert (or ‘pudding’) wines.
For someone whose idea of wine heaven is a crisp, fresh white
or a smooth and silky red, the very idea of a sweet, cloying
and treacly bottle of ‘cough syrup’ is a complete turn off. I
understand that, and I wouldn’t really want to tackle a dessert
wine on a daily basis myself. However, there are times at the
end of a good meal where a happy glass of something to
accompany the sweet course is just the job.
Also, if the meal has been substantial and there’s no way
that the roly poly is going to fit, a small glass of a decent
dessert vino can provide a satisfyingly sweet flavour to round
things off on its own.
Most dessert wines go extremely well with cheese too, so no
matter which order you prefer your dessert and cheese to be
served, you can carry on drinking regardless. It’s a win-win! So
let’s have a look at some of the dessert wines you might enjoy.
Domaine de Leyrissat Monbazillac (Waitrose, £9.99) This
one is for those who like peaches and honey. It hasn’t got
much of a nose to it, but it has plenty of flavour and slips down
very nicely indeed. This elegant wine would be perfect with a
mellow creamy blue cheese, something like Dolcelatte would
be ideal.
Lácrima Purpura Moscatel (Morrisons, £6.99) This light
and refreshing Moscatel is dangerously easy to drink and
comes in a full size bottle too. The flavour is very clearly that
of apricots with a spicy hint of citrus. It is very enjoyable
indeed on its own but would be perfect with a sharp cheddar
or glorious apple crumble.
La Fleur Renaissance Sauternes (Waitrose, £8.99) Of
all the wines here, this is the strongest flavoured and most
intense. It has an unmistakeable acetone blast of modeller’s
dope on the nose and a powerful deep taste of marmalade
and tropical fruits. This would be a splendid with a rich
smooth pâté and equally at home with, for example, pizza. For
me, this Sauternes is a sweet wine that is far more at home
with savoury dishes than sweet ones.
Mavrodaphne of Patras Greek sweet red wine (Asda,
£5.00) is a real corker. It is rich, full bodied and succulent with
a raisin and dates flavour, and offers a fantastic alternative
to port, so a great accompaniment to strong cheeses. The
idea of a sweet Greek red may not be immediately appealing,
but trust me on this. You’ll be glad you did. It is just like a good
port, but served chilled, it is lighter and more refreshing. Try it.
You’ll thank me if you do.
Oxford’s College Barges
Any visitor to the picturesque Oxfordshire village of Goring-on-Thames, with
its adjacent lock and cascading weir, will have noticed the ornate barge moored
alongside The Swan at Streatley, a unique 4-star hotel set in 23 acres of stunning
countryside, hugging the Thames on the Berkshire banks of the river. This is the
former Magdalen College barge, one of the few remaining University of Oxford
college barges still in existence, and now used by the hotel as a conference centre.
O
BY PETER
HOLTHUSEN
riginally built in 1927 and faithfully
restored using the original blueprints,
the barge is beautifully maintained
and a sobering reminder of a bygone
age when they were used as the rowing clubs of
the colleges. These elaborately designed barges
were eventually superseded by the properly built
boathouses needed to house the more fragile
boats which soon developed when rowing became
fashionable in the 19th century.
Rowing appears to have become popular as a
recreation within the University of Oxford around
the end of the 1700s, with groups of college
friends getting together to take out fours, sixes or
eights for a mixture of exercise and ‘amusement’,
the term ‘sport’ in those days implying some sort
of wager on the outcome. The major Oxford
college competition, ‘Summer Eights’, is reckoned
to date from the summer of 1815, a few weeks
prior to the Battle of Waterloo.
Crews from Brasenose and Jesus, probably at
the end of a day’s excursion downriver, decided to
race the final leg home from Iffley Lock. Brasenose
won that race and are thus credited with being
the first ‘Head of the River’. This soon became an
annual contest and by 1826, with four colleges
participating, recognisable ‘bumping’ rules had
been drawn up: each crew started alongside a post
in the bank (with an umpire to check that each
boat was in place), and a pistol shot signalled the
OXFORD
commencement of racing. If a bump occurred, all
crews behind immediately ceased racing while the
crews ahead continued. The two crews involved
in the bump exchanged places in the next race,
usually two or three evenings later.
On this rule I am painfully reminded of the
outcome of the controversial 2012 OxfordCambridge Boat Race, when the two rowing
crews were forced to stop the race after an idiotic
35-year-old Australian protester Trenton Oldfield,
deliberately swam into the path of the boats. The
blades of both teams’ oars narrowly missed the
swimmer as they passed either side of him.
Cambridge won the 158th running of the Boat
Race after it was restarted near Hammersmith
Bridge some 30 minutes later, but Oxford broke
an oar allowing their rivals to win back the title.
The two crews were neck-and-neck when the
race was stopped between the two and threemile markers of the four-and-a-quarter mile
race between Putney and Mortlake, but the
momentum was clearly lost.
In the 1800s the River Thames looked very
different. There was a lock at Folly Bridge, the
remains of which can still be seen today in the
narrower of the two channels around the island.
The wider northern channel was blocked by a weir.
On the island itself stood The Boat House Tavern.
There were no boathouses downstream, just
‘King’s Barge’ moored alongside Christ Church
Meadow. This barge, owned by the renowned
boatbuilder Isaac King, served as the finishing
post for bumping races and it became the custom
to indicate the results of each day’s racing by the
order of the flags raised on the barge flagpole, as
shown on many contemporary photographs and
paintings.
This ornate barge and the Tavern were also used
as changing rooms by the oarsmen. Messrs John
and Stephen Salter took over the barge in 1852 for
their own boatbuilding business, before eventually
acquiring The Boat House Tavern, their current
premises.
The opposite bank sloped gently down to the
river. There were no boathouses and the towpath
between Folly and Iffley Locks was blocked by a
dozen gates at various fences and bridges (much
like the present towpath outside Oxford). Punts
were then, as now, a nuisance, although instead of
tourists, the problem then was the large number
of professional ferrymen plying their trade across
the river, and their general disregard for other river
users. Originally a large number of sailboats were
also kept near Folly Bridge, eventually moving
upstream to Port Meadow to make way for more
college barges.
In 1829, three years after the bumping rules
had been drawn up; a representative Oxford
University crew raced their Cambridge University
counterparts for the first time. Oxford won that
race, but lost the next two encounters in 1836
and 1839. As a result of the second defeat it was
realised that the previous haphazard system of
putting together University crews was inadequate
and it was decided to copy the Cambridge system
and the ‘Oxford University Boat Club’ was
formed. Prior to that, Oxford rowing had been
organised by meetings composed of the strokes
of each crew, with the stroke of the Head crew
presiding, but the formation of the OUBC also
provided a more permanent body to supervise
college rowing.
During the mid 1800s, many colleges purchased
their own barges, often from London livery
companies, which were used as club rooms and
moored them alongside Christ Church Meadow.
The remaining colleges used Hall’s Boathouse,
which was probably located between Christ
Church Meadow and Folly Bridge, the site
currently occupied by The Head of the River pub.
In 1867, Christ Church installed railings along the
bank and began to charge the colleges rent for each
gate. On the opposite bank, things also changed;
in 1872 the present raised towpath was completed
and, in 1882, the Oxford University Boathouse
was completed.
Colleges began to keep barges moored on the
side of the river on Christ Church Meadow from
1839; these would be used for crews to change,
for spectators to watch the races and for a variety
of social functions. Jesus shared a barge with New,
St John’s and Pembroke after 1857. In 1911, Jesus
purchased their own barge from Salters, at a cost
of £940.14s.8d (approximately £71,000 in today’s
money). It had been previously owned by one of
the livery companies of London and had been used
in the days when the Lord Mayor’s Show took
place on the River Thames in London rather than
through the streets of the city as it is today.
The college barges were originally built for
the livery companies to use for ceremonial river
processions and other water based events on the
Thames in the 15th century. As time went by these
were gradually replaced with purpose-built barges,
some by prominent architects such as John Oldrid
Scott and T.H. Jackson. By the turn of the 17th
century they were built in a grand manner with
elaborate carving and gilding and rowed up to 30
A rare photograph of
the 1st Torpid of The
Brasenose College Boat
Club in 1899.
This elaborate carving
and gilding on Frederick,
Prince of Wales principal
royal barge is now on
display in the National
Maritime Museum,
Greenwich, and still
attracts admiring
attention.
OXFORD
oarsmen. In addition to coronations, state funerals
and similar events they were used for the Lord
Mayor’s Show before becoming waterborne.
Among the livery companies with state
barges were Goldsmiths, the Merchant Taylors,
Stationers, Coopers, Skinners, Fishmongers,
Vintners, Ironmongers, Brewers, Tallow
Chandlers, Drapers, Grocers, Joiners, Cloth
Workers and the Lord Mayor’s Barge. However, by
about 1820, Thames based events were becoming
less popular and the cost of building and
maintaining the barges was becoming a burden.
By 1834, there were only six barges appearing on
the Lord Mayor’s Day and the last procession was
in 1856.
As interest in these great pageants waned, some
100 miles upstream in Oxford, the gentleman’s
sport of rowing was gaining ground. By 1850
most Oxford colleges had boat clubs and suitable
accommodation was required, both to store their
boats and for young gentleman to change into
their rowing colours. Thus, old unwanted livery
barges were purchased and rowed upriver by
paddle tugs where they were moored off Christ
Church Meadow as headquarters for the college
boat clubs.
The Oxford University Boat Club purchased
the Merchant Taylors barge, Oriel College bought
the Stationers barge, and the Skinners barge was
bought by Balliol College in 1857. It is thought
that six of the college boat clubs had acquired
these grand and once stately vessels. As time went
on the barges were remodelled and redesigned
with reinforced roofs to accommodate the
increasing number of spectators and without the
original rowing positions, but they still maintained
their grand appeal and the original spirit and
therefore always attracted interest from prestigious
buyers once they were no longer required by the
boat clubs.
The origins of St John’s College Boat Club are
lost in the mists of time. However, the club as
we know it today was formed in 1863 by New
Zealand born undergraduate, C.Y. Fell, who
immediately propelled the club to bumping
success in 1864 as the college 1st VIII won blades.
Like many Oxford colleges they soon purchased
their own barge which still survives today.
Christ Church built the first college boathouse,
at the downstream end of the island, at the
end of the 1930s. Given the obvious practical
benefit of having both club rooms and boat
storage at the same place, it is perhaps surprising
that this development took so long, but over
the next couple of decades the island filled
with new boathouses, usually shared by two or
three colleges. The last boathouse was added
only relatively recently, in 1989, filling the one
remaining space at the upstream end of the
island. With the move to boathouses, the college
barges became superfluous and were gradually
sold off; the last, owned by St Catherine’s, finally
disappearing at the end of the 1970s.
Fortunately, quite a few of these magnificent
college barges can still be found today. After
sinking in 1955, the old Jesus College barge was
salvaged and restored. In 1964, Jesus replaced
the barge with a boathouse, which is shared
with the boat club of Keble College. The barge
was subsequently moved to Maidenhead where
it was later restored and returned to Oxford in
1987. However, less than a year later it was badly
damaged by fire.
After further restoration, it was moved to
Richmond upon Thames, moored alongside
Richmond Bridge and used as a new and exciting
restaurant, appropriately named The Boat. This
splendid boat is thought to be one of only 11 such
barges still in existence, and they have made every
attempt to uphold the original spirit of the boat
and this glorious section of the river. The barge
was decorated for some years in the college colours
of green and white, with a Welsh red dragon on
the prow. By 2009, however, it had been repainted
with blue instead of green.
Sadly, shortly after 1.30am on 17th April 2015,
the floating restaurant capsized at its moorings in
Richmond. It was pulled underwater when the
pontoon it was attached to did not rise as the tide
did. Fortunately, there were no casualties but the
old Jesus College barge was severely damaged for
the second time in her illustrious history and the
restaurant is now closed.
The old St John’s College
barge has been lovingly
restored to her original
splendour and now
forms an integral part of
The Oxford Thames Four
Pillars Hotel at Sandfordon-Thames, and makes
a unique venue for
weddings, private parties,
functions and a variety
of corporate events.
The old Jesus College
barge was moved to
Richmond upon Thames,
moored alongside
Richmond Bridge and
once used as a new
and exciting restaurant,
appropriately named
The Boat.
XXXX
Jeremy
Smith
MAN ABOUT
COUNTY
Maybe it’s me, but every time I look at a
photograph of Victorians, I always think:
how quaint, how antiquated, how archaic.
The old St John’s College barge was also lovingly
restored to her original splendour and now forms
an integral part of The Oxford Thames Four
Pillars Hotel at Sandford-on-Thames, where she is
moored alongside the hotel in an idyllic riverside
setting and makes a unique venue for weddings,
private parties, functions and a variety of corporate
events.
The 11 remaining barges have mostly been
transformed into house boats, offices or
restaurants and are situated on fixed moorings,
but each of these historic college barges still shed
a subtle but quickly detected aura of opulence
and style. They are living monuments to a bygone
age when classical boatbuilding, exquisite art and
elaborate craftsmanship defined the most admired
public spaces.
Now maybe that’s unfair, but to my mind, they don’t look like any
kind of human being I might bump into today. Indeed, they seem as
primitive to me as, say, a Neanderthal or Cro-Magnon might, but this
month I’ve been forced to reconsider this point of view after someone
asked what I thought people would think of me 100 years from now.
And you know what? It’s a scary thought.
Currently I consider myself to be extremely... how shall I put it...
contemporary? You know, smart, cosmopolitan, urbane and seasoned,
as much at home with the IT uber-geeks of computer-dom as I am
with the hip-hop Young Turks of cutting edge music. But I guess 100
years from now, my very passionate embrace of all I currently consider
to be quintessentially ‘cool’ will almost certainly seem old-fashioned,
twee, and at worst, positively primeval. After all, just consider how
dangerously ‘severe’ the Victorians looked, and yet sartorially they
doubtless considered themselves to be at the very front of chicness.
To us, however, they do rather look like repressed perverts, one
minute condemning the pleasures of the flesh while the next drooling
over the shock horror sight of an unwrapped table leg.
What then a century from now will Oxonians think of our attire? (In my
case, a veritable showcase of Gap).
Well it’s hard to say, of course, because we’ve no idea just how people
will be dressing then. Indeed, it’s difficult to imagine just how much
further fashion can progress. I guess if global warming continues it
wouldn’t be too farfetched to assume that our great grandchildren
might consider it very savvy to conduct high-powered business
meetings in loin cloths and sandals. Plus, in 100 years we’re all going to
look physically very different too – thanks to breakthroughs in science
filtering their way down to the Boots beauty aisles, most of us will
probably be tall, slim, blonde, blue-eyed, with perfect tans and breasts
so pert they could be used as door hooks (and if you looked like that,
why would you want to wear clothes?)
What is truly intriguing is this – what if between now and 2116 nothing
much changes? Sure, there’ll doubtless be some sheep called Dolly, all
identical (aren’t they anyway?) “baaaing” their way around, and maybe
everyone will look like Paris Hilton, but what if that’s the extent of our
progress?
How sad would it be to be transported 100 years into the future and
pretty much identify with everyone and everything?
It’s probably just as well, then, that time travel doesn’t exist. At least
it means we need never hear the laughter and outright guffaws of our
great-great-grandchildren as they stare in horror at men with bald
heads (surely to be outlawed in 2035).
OXFORD
Oxford True Olympians
When we say someone is “Olympian”, it isn’t just a definition of their physical
prowess – it can also refer to their manner and bearing, intelligence and intellect,
commitment and dedication, and nowhere is this description more apt than when
applied to some of Oxford’s more famous progeny. During a month then in which
the world’s finest athletes will compete at the 31st Olympiad in Brazil, Annette
Cunningham and Shaunna Latchman take an alternative look at some of Oxford’s
greatest “Olympians”...
it will always
be Sir Roger
who put Oxford
on the map
Sir Roger Gilbert Bannister
(1929-present)
SHAUNNA
LATCHMAN
AND
ANNETTE
CUNNINGHAM
There’s something magical about being the first
person in the world to achieve something – it
doesn’t matter how many other people do it
afterwards, or even if they have the damn audacity
to do it with more panache. Neil Armstrong was
the first man on the moon and Roger Bannister
was the first person to break the four minute mile
– and that is set in stone.
The fact that the shoes Sir Roger wore on 6th
May 1954, when he ran that first ‘magical mile’
in less than four minutes (three minutes 59.4
seconds to be exact) at the city’s Iffley Road track,
fetched £266,500 at auction bears testimony
to the greatness of his feat (no pun intended).
Apparently, it was Bannister’s performance in the
1952 Olympics in Helsinki, when he finished
in fourth place but managed to set a new British
record in the 1500 metres race, that strengthened
his resolve to be the first four-minute miler.
Bannister was still a medical student when he
smashed the record, and during the race he was
helped by two pacemakers: Chris Brasher and
Chris Chataway. Brasher took the initial lead,
with Chataway taking over when he tired. With
only 200 yards to the finish, Bannister used what
strength he had left to overtake Chataway and
sprint to the line in record time.
Pandemonium broke out among the 3,000
spectators when the announcement was read
out – nobody hearing the exact time because of
the enormous roar after the miraculous words
“the time was three minutes …” were uttered.
Bannister went on to become a distinguished
neurologist and Master of Oxford’s Pembroke
College before retiring in 1993. Allegedly, he is
prouder of his contribution to academic medicine
through his research into the nervous system than
of his athletic prowess.
He held the record for only 46 days, losing it
to Australian John Landy who ran the mile in
three minutes 57.9 seconds (the current record by
Moroccan Hicham El Guerrouj, achieved in 1999,
is three minutes 43.13 seconds). However, it will
always be Sir Roger who put Oxford on the map
for doing it first.
OXFORD
Felicia Skene
(1821-1899)
Victorian novelist
Felicia Skene sounds
like someone we’d all
love to have a drink
with. After spending
much of her early life
travelling through
Europe (without a
single inflatable neck
pillow in sight or air mile earned) she returned
to England, and through a social circle, met with
the Revd Thomas Chamberlain of St Thomas the
Martyr, Oxford and his cousin Marion Hughes.
Between them they convinced her to move to
Oxford, where she organised teams of nurses to
look after the victims of smallpox and cholera in
1849 and 1854.
After these outbreaks she focused on the women
incarcerated in Oxford prison, and believed that
prisons should be places where people had the
opportunity to reform and felt there was benefit in
offering prisoners individual counselling. She was
officially given permission to be a regular visitor
in a public prison, becoming the first woman in
England to receive such authorisation. As well as
meeting prisoners inside the prison walls she also
greeted them at the gates to freedom when they
were released at 6am, providing them with food
and employment opportunities.
The conditions she witnessed in women’s
penitentiaries encouraged her to campaign for the
reform of such institutions. The hideous plight the
women prisoners faced was depicted in Felicia’s
1865 pamphlet, ‘Penitentiaries and Reformatories’,
in which society’s outlook on ‘fallen women’ was
criticised. Felicia also encouraged ex-prisoners
to get married, and would provide the wedding
breakfast for those that did – a service which
allegedly never lacked gin.
As well as her writing (Hidden Depths was a
notable success) and prison visits, she also kept
an open house for the destitute and assisted with
the correspondence and sick boys at St Edward’s
School.
It seems Felicia was unaware of how highly she
was regarded by the people of Oxford – who
thought of her as a saint. She remarked in her later
life: ‘I am like the Martyrs’ Memorial: everyone
knows me and no-one is interested in me.
William Richard Morris, Lord Nuffield
(1877-1963)
Despite not being born within earshot of Christ Church’s Tom
Tower, car manufacturer and philanthropist William Morris is
someone Oxford is happy to claim as its own – and after moving
to Headington Quarry from Worcester with his family at the age
of three, he rarely strayed from the county. He left his first job as a
bicycle seller in St Giles following a disagreement about a pay rise,
and set himself up repairing and making bikes from his parents’ house
at 16 James Street – an occupation which might still see him gainfully
employed in the city today.
Business flourished and in the late 1890s he also started building
motorbikes from his new shop at 48 High Street, and became
interested in car mechanics. Around this time, Morris was persuaded
to become a partner in an automobile company but went bankrupt
after a year, but at this point he was only just getting started. In 1908,
he sold his bike business and began to sell and repair motorcars at
his new Morris Garage in Longwall, the site where he built his first
Morris-Oxford Light car. The Oxford Light became renowned for
being light on the pocket and reliable to run, and Morris was turning
out 100 cars a month from a new site in Cowley. When war broke
out in 1914, he used his skills to manufacture hand grenades.
Following the war, Morris returned to car production and began
to dominate the British industry. He was recognised for his services
to the car industry by receiving a baronetcy. In 1938 he was given
a peerage, becoming Viscount Nuffield, the name of the village he
lived in. Morris also became renowned for spending money – but not
on himself. He became a public benefactor, donating to numerous
projects to improve community facilities where his workers lived,
and he is chiefly remembered for his enormous donations to the
University of Oxford and to the city hospitals. The name Nuffield
lives on though some of the institutions that resulted from his
generosity, including the Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre and Nuffield
College, and through his cars, the name Morris is inextricably linked
to the city.
OXFORD
John Betjeman (1906-1984)
Alice Liddell (1852-1934)
Having more than one sibling can
often make it feel like a struggle to be
seen or heard, yet even with nine other
brothers and sisters, Alice Liddell was
the inspiration of the timeless children’s
book Alice in Wonderland. Born in
Westminster, Alice moved with her
family to Oxford at the age of three
following her father’s appointment as
Dean of Christ Church. A year later,
whilst playing in the Deanery garden
with her sisters Lorina and Edith,
the young Alice found herself in the
company of Charles Dodgson, who
wrote under the pseudonym Lewis
Carroll. It wasn’t long before Dean
Liddell and Dodgson bonded over their
mutual appreciation of photography,
and Dodgson was encouraged to capture
images of the Liddell family, especially
Alice.
Far from the iconic, blonde-haired,
blue-eyed girl we have grown up with,
Alice was a small girl with a blunt dark
bob and big brown eyes. Nevertheless,
Dodgson was taken with her and her
sisters and started taking boat rides along
the Thames with the family, exploring
the Natural History Museum from time
to time.
It was on one of the boat rides that
Dodgson conjured up the story of Alice
getting lost in a fascinating underground
land with quirky characters that either
helped or hindered her on her journey.
Like any young girl would be, Alice
was mesmerised by the tales of her
make-believe life, and begged Dodgson
to record the story so she could have
it to read whenever she pleased. Using
the museum’s very own dodo and
incorporating various aspects of Oxford
and the people he encountered, two years
later, he gifted her the first illustrated
manuscript as a Christmas gift in 1864.
If Betjeman had been told that he would one day be a “National Treasure”
or appointed CBE, he would have struggled to believe it. Born into a family
with a Germanic surname in the First World War, Betjeman felt the cold cut
of snobbery and judgement from a very early age. He was insecure about his
family’s social standing, and was a quiet child.
Moving to Oxford in 1917 seemed to do wonders for the young boy.
Attending the Dragon School in North Oxford, he used his free time to cycle
around the city exploring churches and small villages, which seems to have
sparked his love for “Victorian neo-gothic” architecture.
It was at this time that he began reciting poetry and acting in plays. Studying
at the School of English Language and Literature at Magdalen College under
the watchful eye of CS Lewis sounds far more glamorous than it actually was
for Betjeman – entering the University of Oxford was a struggle, as he failed
the mathematics portion of the exams, and once he was accepted as a “nonscholarship student” he allowed himself to be seduced by the daily distractions
that are ever present to those at university. Lewis was not amused by Betjeman’s
lack of interest in his studies, and Betjeman felt he was “uninspired” as a tutor.
Eventually, Betjeman left university without a degree, but soon found himself
a job at the Architectural Review with the help of his Oxford friends. Upon
leaving this post to be a freelance journalist and write poetry, Betjeman went on
to sell over two and a quarter million copies of his Collected Poems.
Sir Christopher Wren
(1632-1723)
“Architecture aims at eternity” – the
words of the greatest British architect of
all time, Christopher Wren. A zealous
student, Wren attended Wadham
College where he studied Latin and the
works of Aristotle, yet by the time he
graduated with a master’s degree his focus
was firmly on astronomy, physics, and
anatomy.
Wren’s reputation for ingenuity soon
spread and he was appointed Professor of
Astronomy at Gresham College, London
in 1657. During this time, friends,
fellow scientists, mathematicians and
astronomers attended his free lectures
and would sit for hours after discussing
their theories, with no idea that these
very meetings would eventually create the
body we now know as the Royal Society.
Four years later, Wren took up the same
post at Oxford University, and it is said
that his study of physics and engineering
was what drew him to architecture. His
first opportunity to exhibit his talent
was presented in 1664, when he was
commissioned to design the Sheldonian
Theatre in Oxford and again in 1665,
when he designed a chapel for Pembroke
College in Cambridge.
At this point in his life, Wren felt that
he had found his calling and stepped
away from teaching to focus purely on
architecture, turning his attention to
a crumbling St Paul’s Cathedral. Even
though the first two concepts were
rejected by Parliament, when the Great
Fire of London consumed the city, the
disaster presented Wren with a great
opportunity to design 52 churches
alongside the cathedral.
Wren was appointed Surveyor of the
Royal Works in 1669, which gave him
control of all government buildings
in the country, and was knighted in
1673. He was responsible for numerous
historical structures including the Royal
Observatory at Greenwich, Trinity
College Library in Cambridge and Tom
Tower at Christ Church, Oxford to
name a few. Laid to rest at St Paul’s, his
tombstone aptly reads: “If you seek his
memorial, look about you”.
Naomi
Heffer
Icolyn Smith (1932-present)
Icolyn Smith’s story is one of courage, love and
determination. Originally from Jamaica, Smith
was raised cooking healthy meals using the
produce from the family’s farm, and with a large
family of 12, she was in the kitchen at the age of
six. Moving to England was both a challenge and
a necessity: with the crime rate in Kingston rising,
Smith and her husband Eric decided to make the
move in a hope that they would be able to provide
a better life for their four children.
Eric moved to Oxford in 1960 and Icolyn joined
him five years later. From the sudden drop in
temperature to the cultural differences, Smith
faced many trials, yet her only focus was to work
as hard as possible for her children – she managed
to get a job working in the canteen at the British
Leyland car factory in Cowley while her husband
worked at the Atomic Energy Establishment in
Harwell.
Once they had found their feet, their children
joined them in their new home, which was open to
all as Smith often welcomed her children’s friends
who were experiencing their own difficulties.
Working as a nurse for some time at Cowley Road
Hospital and then taking on two more jobs when
her husband died in 1975, she was the strength of
her family and later, her community.
One evening, Icolyn saw a young man
scavenging for food in the bins, and deeply
saddened by this, she felt that there must be
something that she could do. Approaching her
family and local church, The Church of God of
Prophesy, she made them aware that she wanted
to provide support for those in need by opening
a soup kitchen. Luckily, the manager of the
Asian Cultural Centre, Jawaid Malik, was able
to help, providing the space on Wednesdays at a
reduced rate, and soon after her bishop offered a
contribution and a donation of £1,500 was made
by Tyndal House. The church members and local
butchers, Aldens, all rallied together to offer their
support and the soup kitchen was opened in
September 1989, feeding nine men on the first day
and 60 people in the second week.
In 1998 Smith was made an MBE for services
to disadvantaged people and in 2012 she
received £11,500 funding through the Channel 4
programme The Secret Millionaire. Affectionately
known as ‘Ma Smith’, she is loved across Oxford
for her giving nature and motherly approach.
UNIVERSITY
CHALLENGE
Many of my friends went to university a year ahead of me, so by
the time I started at Oxford I had received numerous reassurances
throughout my first year that first year exams ‘counted for nothing’,
were a breeze to pass, and were definitely not something to be worried
about. As such, I expected that my first year preliminaries would not
be very memorable, but as with many things at Oxford University, I
was once again surprised to learn of the reality. In addition to being the
method by which they assess students’ progress, the way that Oxford
exams are conducted are as much a part of the Oxford traditions as
the May Morning singing from Magdalen College tower or the Corpus
Christi Tortoise Fair.
After poring over my notes for many long nights in the college library
(which thankfully is open 24 hours) the day of my first exam arrived. I
woke up early to dress in my subfusc, which is the compulsory academic
dress required for examinations. This consists of a suit or equivalent
for girls, worn under a commoner’s gown, or a scholar’s gown if you’re
entitled. We are also required to carry a mortarboard hat with us, which
frustratingly we are not allowed to put on, but which I’ve found can also
serve as an effective holder for pencils, sweets and good luck charms.
The final touch is a carnation in the appropriate colour which is pinned
to our gowns - white for the first exam, red for the last and pink for any
exams in between. This must be bought for you by another student, as
it is terrible luck to buy it for yourself (this caused mass hysteria as my
friends and I tried to coordinate who was buying carnations for who and
when).
Before the exam, we gathered in a giant marquee outside the exam hall
which was intended to serve as a cloakroom, but as a result of recent
rain, conditions inside the marquee were quite muddy during the week
of my exams, giving the impression of a “music festival gone wrong” as
one of my friends described it. Conducting the exam in such a large hall
surrounded by around 400 other students had me feeling overwhelmed
even before I’d opened the paper. However, it was strange how quickly
I became accustomed to it and by the end of the week it all seemed
strangely normal.
By far the most memorable part of the whole experience was being
‘trashed’ - when Oxford students finish their exams, their friends wait
outside the exam halls to throw glitter, champagne, silly string, confetti,
shaving foam and anything else they can think of at their friends in
celebration of their new found freedom. This is then often followed by
the ‘trashed’ students jumping into the river.
Walking out of my last exam, I was greeted by my two best friends who
handed me a bottle of Cava, which I consumed with impressive speed,
adorned me with a party hat and proceeded to throw copious amounts
of confetti at me. Throwing myself in the river shortly afterwards, I felt all
of the stress of the past weeks suddenly lift from my shoulders as I finally
began to look forward to the summer.
OXFORD
My Oxford
David Williams
David Williams is the manager of Oxford’s best loved arthouse cinema, The Phoenix
Picturehouse on Walton Street. Having opened its doors more than 100 years ago,
the cinema today continues to provide audiences with a wide and diverse programme
of independent, international and mainstream releases.
Hi David, can you tell us a bit about your
relationship with Oxford?
I’ve worked in Oxford for seven years, having
moved here with my wife (then fiancé) when I
was looking to move from a small independent
cinema chain to a multinational group.
Ironically, seven years later, I’m back at an
independent chain and couldn’t be happier. I’ve
lived and worked in many places over my career,
from small Welsh towns to the capital, and none
of them have had the charm of Oxford.
What are your favourite haunts around
the city?
It’s difficult to know how to pick a favourite
place as Oxford has so many historic and
interesting places. Sometimes, though, it’s the
simple things that bring us the most joy, and
there can be few things more relaxing than
sitting in the beer garden of one of the many
restaurants occupying the riverside and watching
the world float past on a summer’s day.
What to you are the most iconic aspects of
Oxford?
I don’t think it’s possible to have spent any time
in Oxford and not think of the ‘dreaming spires’
whenever talking about the city. Few cities
have such an iconic and instantly recognisable
skyline, there’s an incredible amount of history
contained within Oxford and whether it’s one
of the fantastic museums or the universities
themselves, it’s all contrasted against an
incredible sense of vibrancy and life.
Where do you eat and drink?
I don’t think I have one particular favourite
in Oxford. We truly are spoilt for choice, and
even in Jericho where the cinema is located, you
could never want for more food choices –
if you’re after a quick Mediterranean lunch,
some Spanish Tapas, Italian or a fish dinner, it’s
all here.
What about Oxford has inspired you or
helped your creative process?
The sheer diversity in the people of Oxford
is amazing – we are very lucky to have
people from many different countries and
backgrounds, living, studying and working
in Oxford.
The different cultures and views on offer
mean it’s always easy to find a new way of
looking at things. After all, there aren’t many
places where you can have a conversation
with a college professor who has lived
here their entire life and then five minutes
later chat to a foreign student who is
experiencing the city for the first
time.
What’s the worst or least
attractive thing about
Oxford?
Ha! This one’s pretty
easy – I don’t live in the
centre of Oxford, so the
commute (despite the fact
Oxford has fantastic bus,
and soon rail, services) can
still take a very long time,
often longer than it would take
me to get to London.
Do you have an area, street or village in
Oxfordshire that is special to you?
Having lived here for several years, I have
many fond memories of different areas in
the county, but the one that will always
stand out for me is where my wife and I
got married: The Holt Hotel, just outside
of Bicester. It’s a 15th century coaching
inn and provided an incredibly picturesque
backdrop to our big day.
I don’t think it’s
possible to have
spent any time
in Oxford and
not think of the
‘dreaming spires’
whenever talking
about the city.
OXFORD
Where the
Grass is Greener
Esther Lafferty looks at the perks and pitfalls of Oxfordshire life.
I
work from home. This has the brilliant
benefit of a five second commute from duvet
to desk. It also means I could be answering
the phone to high-level executives in my
dressing gown with Weetabix on my chin (I don’t).
My unusual working attire doesn’t only include
the possibility of cosy jim-jams: I also have a
multitude of hats. For those of us who have a
‘portfolio career’ (jack of several trades and master
of only their own destiny), these morph together
and so I’m almost indistinguishable from the
whimsical character in Edward Lear’s nonsense
rhyme:
On the top of the Crumpetty Tree
The Quangle Wangle sat,
But his face you could not see,
On account of his Beaver Hat.
For his Hat was a hundred and two feet wide,
With ribbons and bibbons on every side
And bells, and buttons, and loops, and lace,
So that nobody ever could see the face
Of the Quangle Wangle Quee.
And over the phone, it doesn’t matter whether
my face is clean, obscured, or otherwise.
However, as I’m in an open plan office (that’s
to say, my panoramic view takes in the garden,
the kettle, the stairs, the TV and the fireside rug),
working from home can be a risky business over
the summer holidays with children cluttering up
the flooring, and while I chat to Alan Sugar in
professional dulcet tones, there’s every chance of
an unexpected explosion of The Lonely Island’s ‘I
Just Had Sex’ from across the island unit.
Whilst at home there’s no Monday morning
gossip or camaraderie over the printer’s perpetual
paper jam, these deprivations are offset by the
pleasures of freedom of movement. Not only can
I leap forth with an unexpected contemporary
dance routine at any time the fancy takes me, I can
also set out into the countryside for a ‘thinking’
run, something that would be hard to explain
in a corporate outfit in an office environment. I
often write on the run, for example. Not while I’m
actually on the move, of course (it’s hard to keep
the paper steady), but as soon as I get back. And
promising to catch up later in the evening, I’m also
able to take advantage of any burst of sunshine
with an impromptu trek along the footpaths and
bridleways of the Oxfordshire countryside.
Over the school holidays, I use these moments
to prise the teenage children from the downward
pressure of the duvet and animal magnetism
of pixelated beings. Using the terrible threat of
switching off the Wi-Fi, I herd them miserable as
convicts into the car, grumbling “oh, not another
fun family trip out,” and other less repeatable
sentiments. I learnt early never to suggest ‘going
for a walk’, instead coming up with increasingly
inventive ways to wrap up a common or garden
stroll into something else like ‘country adventure’
or ‘tiger hunt’, but now they’re savvy teens this
no longer washes. I now could do with a degree in
negotiation with an MA in hostage release to get
them moving.
I once took them geocaching and we strolled
down a secret byway before spending an hour
thrashing through a glade of thistles to unearth a
hidden Tupperware. Their high hopes of a pirate
chest of gold were dashed on the spot and their
plan to become rich was no more realised than my
lottery dreams. We never geocached again.
However, when we get the unmentionable ‘walk’
right, there is true treasure to be found just not of
the gem variety: a rope-swing in Badbury woods,
a river ford in Duxford, a ruined manor house
in Minster Lovell or the panorama at the top of
White Horse Hill and suddenly they’re a healthy,
happy brood, enjoying the great outdoors in a
timeless fashion, and it’s the perfect moment for a
wonderful mum to whip out the gingham picnic
blanket, ginger beer and pickled eggs.
While that neighbouring family dine in style
from a wicker hamper, I whip out a water bottle
and might have some fluffy Polos in my bag. Even
so, we do find peace and it’s just like the ancient
Himalayan monks who had to overcome struggle
and strife to reach this moment. And then, having
reached serenity, and eaten the Polos, it’s time to
rush home and catch up with the emails.
Esther Lafferty is
the organiser of
Oxfordshire Artweeks,
a visual arts festival,
and the oldest open
studios event in the
UK, involving around
1000 artists and over
400 venues each year.
She is married with
three children and
lives in Faringdon. This
hyperactive mermaid
lists her hobbies as
triathlon, kayaking,
dancing, writing,
theatre and cryptic
crosswords.
OXFORD
Open Doors at
Oxford University
There’s more to the University than meets the eye...
By Annette Cunningham
D
id you know that
throughout the year Oxford
University invites you to
marvel at badgers in their
natural habitat, join them for rooftop
observing sessions to gaze at the stars,
attend fascinating lectures on a diverse
range of topics and visit their unique and
historical spaces?
The annual Oxford Open Doors event
(which takes place this year on Saturday
10th and Sunday 11th September),
a partnership event between Oxford
University and the Oxford Preservation
Trust, offers the perfect chance to get a
taste of the great opportunities that the
local community and visitors to Oxford
have via access to the University –
together with special events only available
over the Open Doors weekend.
Open Doors attracts over 20,000
people keen to step inside the numerous
sites (around 200) that throw open their
doors to visitors. Around three quarters
of the visits involve the museums,
colleges and departments of the collegiate
University. Here’s just a handful of some
of the great events that shouldn’t be
missed at this year’s Oxford Open Doors
event:
Community Fair
Make sure you drop into the University’s
first Open Doors Community
Information Fair, taking place in the
Weston Library’s stunning Blackwell
Hall in Broad Street. The Fair, open
on Saturday 10th September between
1pm and 4pm, will showcase many of
the amazing ways the community can
benefit from, or get involved with, the
University’s services and activities in and
out of term time. Representatives from
across the University will be on hand to
offer information and advice.
Go along to find out how to sign up
for the Department of Continuing
Education’s courses, make the most of
the family-friendly events hosted by
the city’s world class museums, attend
free lectures, become a permit holder
of Wytham Woods, make the most of
University Parks and get involved with
science outreach opportunities – and
that’s just the tip of the iceberg!
Blavatnik School of
Government
The Radcliffe Observatory Quarter’s
newest building (main entrance on
Walton Street) is opening its shiny doors
on both Saturday 10th and 11th between
10am and 1pm for self-guided tours and
pre-booked short talks to find out about
their work to support better government
around the world. Take a look around
the building’s stunning open forum area
and enjoy the roof terrace and café.
St Luke’s Chapel
Formerly the church for the Old
Radcliffe Hospital, this Grade I listed
chapel has been sympathetically restored
by the University’s Estates Services
Department for use as a small, selfcontained conference centre. Visit the
chapel on Saturday 10th September
between 9.30am and 4pm to enjoy its
beauty and to find out how it has been
lovingly restored to its former glory.
Estates Services Joiner’s
Workshop
If you’re impressed by the beautiful
woodwork on show at St Luke’s, and
other University sites, pay a visit to the
Joiner’s Workshop at The Malthouse,
Tidmarsh Lane. Meet members of this
highly skilled team who create intricate,
bespoke carpentry and cabinet making
work. Half hourly tours between 10am
and 1pm on Saturday 10th September –
first come first served.
Oxford University
Department for Continuing
Education
Call into the Oxford University
Department for Continuing Education
offices, Rewley House, 1 Wellington
Square between 10am and 4pm on
Saturday 10th September to join music
tutor Roger Thomas in the hands-on
production of an album of electronic
music. Participants of all ages are
XXXX
encouraged to play a wide and unusual variety of
instruments. You can also book to enjoy free short
courses and workshops in art history, writing skills
and more from 10am to 2pm.
Saïd Business School
Ever been tempted to step inside the Saïd Business
School in Park End Street on your way to the
train station? If so, now’s your chance to admire
the School’s award winning contemporary
architecture, its beautiful gardens and find out
about it fascinating site history on this tour at 12
noon on Saturday 10th September – no booking
required.
Green spaces
Open Doors is not just about buildings – many of
the University’s green spaces are open to the public
every day, but on Saturday 10th September there’s
an opportunity to find out just a little bit more
about these beautiful places:
University of Oxford Botanic Garden, Rose
Lane – between 9am and 9.45am there is free
entry to the Botanic Garden to listen out for the
bells ringing out from Magdalen Tower to mark
the opening of Oxford Open Doors. Following the
bell ringing visitors are welcome to stay to view the
Garden and to visit the Glasshouses which open
at 10am.
University Parks, South Parks Road – sign up for a
guided tour of the Park (taking place between 11am
and 2pm) and find out more about its fascinating
history, and its flora and fauna. Otherwise, visit
anytime from 8am to dusk just to enjoy the peace
or maybe to eat your picnic lunch.
Wytham Woods – meet at Wytham Woods’
Sawmill Office at 2.00pm to take a guided walk
through the most researched area of woodland in
the world and find out about the history, ecology
and research interests found within this one
thousand acre woodland (please note that no dogs
are permitted in this research woodland).
* More information about the Open Doors
Weekend, together with booking information
(where relevant), is available at
www.oxfordopendoors.org.uk and
www.oxfordpreservation.org.uk
Details about how Oxford University works with
the local community are available at
www.ox.ac.uk/local-community
Shaunna
Latchman
MADE IN
OXFORDSHIRE
Name: Michelle Branch
Age: 26
From: Oxford
Education: Botley Primary School, Matthew Arnold School,
Abingdon & Witney College, University of Brighton
What has she done?
One degree in Fashion with Business Studies, two internships with
world famous designers and one fashion show; Michelle Branch is on
her way to becoming a household name.
Branch speaks for the majority of millennials when she says she
wasn’t really sure of what she wanted to do growing up.
Spending a lot of her time with her grandparents, Branch was always
encouraged to develop her sewing skills, and with one grandmother
having been a seamstress in London, she taught a young Branch how
to cross-stitch.
Yet it was only when she took on Textiles as a key subject at Matthew
Arnold and met her tutor Chrissi Sharkey that she began to think about
a career in fashion.
Branch describes Sharkey as an “amazing, creative and innovative
teacher” that showed her a route that she had never thought possible
– especially when all her friends were “academics” in Oxford.
But finding her feet in the world of fashion did not start as smoothly
as she had hoped, and after a year at Middlesex University in London,
studying Fashion Design, Branch decided to take a step back when she
found herself unfulfilled by the course.
Fast forward a year and she attends the University of Brighton. In her
four years here she was given the opportunity to live in New York for
six months where she interned for Marc Jacobs and later in London,
British designer Phoebe English.
After her whirlwind experience in New York, her final collection
proved a hit at Graduate Fashion Week in Brick Lane, London, earlier
this year and was also featured on the Vogue website in June.
From the way her face lit up as she shared her experience, it is safe to
say that New York has her heart, but “Oxford will always be home”.
When she is home she can often be found taking walks around Christ
Church Meadow, where her grandfather was the Clerk of Works.
She is also a big fan of the Cowley Road Carnival and the bars,
especially Kazbar and their white sangrias.
Where is she going?
Taking some time to catch her breath after an intense few years,
Branch is doing what most 20-something’s do after they graduate,
seeing the world.
But once her feet are firmly back on English soil she plans to move
to London where she says she is more than happy to “start at the
bottom”.
University of Oxford Botanic Garden
We get
CONSIDERING
YOUR NEXT STEPS
AFTER GCSES?
MORE
STUDENTS
INTO
UNIVERSITY
than anyone else*
Getting your GCSE results this summer? It’s not too late to get advice about your
next move.
At City of Oxford College, our teams are on hand to help you explore all the
options.
Come and speak to our independent careers advisors, or find out more about our
pathways to university, employment and apprenticeships.
Our Oxford city centre campus at Oxpens Road is open throughout the summer,
with drop-in advice sessions available on GCSE results day (Thursday 25 August).
Find out more:
www.cityofoxford.ac.uk/events
/cityofoxfordcollege
@cityofoxfordcol
*UCAS data for
Oxfordshire and
Berkshire schools
and colleges 2015
OXFORD
The History of August
BY JEREMY SMITH
1ST AUGUST
“Britons never, never, never
shall be slaves”
“written more as
a protest against
King George II
than as a
patriotic anthem”
• 1740 ‘‘Rule, Britannia!’, credited to James
Thomson and David Mallet, is sung for the first
time in public in Thomas Arne’s masque Alfred’.
And according to Oxford University historian
Oliver Cox, it is written more as a protest against
King George II than as a patriotic anthem.
He believes audience members at Cliveden,
Buckinghamshire where it was performed
interpreted it more as a rallying cry against the
King and Prime Minister (Sir Robert Walpole)
than as a quintessential expression of British
national identity.
• 1833 Britain abolishes slavery. The act however
does not free enslaved people immediately: instead
they become ‘apprentices’ for six years (protests
finally force the government to abolish this scheme
on 1st August, 1838).
• 1871 The first legislation relating to bank
holidays is passed when Liberal politician and
banker Sir John Lubbock introduces the Bank
Holidays Act 1871. Under the Act, no person
is compelled to make any payment or to do
any act upon a bank holiday which he would
not be compelled to do or make on Christmas
Day or Good Friday. The English people are,
understandably, so thankful that some call the first
Bank Holidays ‘St Lubbock’s Days’.
• 1932 The first Mars Bars are produced. In 1932,
Forrest Mars, son of American candy maker Frank
C. Mars, rents a factory in Slough and with a staff
of twelve people, begins manufacturing a chocolate
bar consisting of nougat and caramel covered in
milk chocolate, modelled after his father’s Milky
Way bar, which is already popular in the US.
3RD AUGUST
“And then there was light!”
• 1926 Britain’s first set of electric lights
appear on the streets of London.
4TH AUGUST
“Humanity. Impartiality. Neutrality.
Independence”
• A public meeting is held in London and a
resolution passed that “a National Society be
formed in this country for aiding sick and
wounded soldiers in time of war and that the said
Society be formed upon the Rules laid down by
the Geneva Convention of 1864”.
In 1905 the British National Society for Aid to
the Sick and Wounded in War is reconstituted
as British Red Cross and granted its first Royal
Charter in 1908 by HM King Edward VII and
Queen Alexandra, who becomes its president.
5TH AUGUST
“... and stay out!”
• 910 Last great Viking raid is defeated
• 1583 The first British colony in North
America is founded by Sir Humphrey
Gilbert, a British navigator and explorer.
He spots the Newfoundland coast and
takes possession of the area around St.
John’s harbour in the name of the Queen.
Lenscap Photography
/ Shutterstock.com
OXFORD
“Tis better to have loved
and lost than never to
have loved at all.”
• 1809 Poet Alfred Lord Tennyson is
born in Somersby, Lincolnshire. He is
appointed Poet Laureate in succession to
William Wordsworth.
• 1881 Penicillin discoverer Alexander
Fleming is born in Lochfield, Scotland.
By accident he discovers mould from
soil kills deadly bacteria without injuring
human tissue. He receives the Nobel
Prize in 1954.
7TH AUGUST
“Brum, Brum”
• 1926 Britain’s first Grand Prix is held at
Brooklands.
• 1993 Buckingham Palace opens to
tourists. Cost is £8.00 for adults and it is
hoped profits will pay for the £40 million
cost of restoring Windsor Castle, which
was managed by fire in 1992. More than
380,000 visited the Palace in this first year.
10TH AUGUST
“And did those feet in
ancient time...”
• 1895 The first Proms concert.
Although Henry Wood is today
synonymous with The Proms, the
first Proms concert took place on
10th August 1895 and was the
brainchild of impresario Robert
Newman, manager of the newly
built Queen’s Hall in London.
While Newman had previously
organised symphony orchestra
concerts at the hall, his aim was to
reach a wider audience by offering
more popular programmes,
adopting a less formal promenade
arrangement, and keeping ticket
prices low.
• 1971 first Mr Men book
published. Written by Roger
Hargreaves, the very first Mr Men
were Mr Tickle, Mr Greedy, Mr
Happy, Mr Nosey, Mr Sneeze and
Mr Bump.
Olga Popova / Shutterstock.com
urbanbuzz / Shutterstock.com
6TH AUGUST
11TH AUGUST
“... and lashings of
ginger beer”
(even though this line never appears
in a single Famous Five adventure)
• 1897 Birth of best-selling children’s
writer Enid Blyton, who not only created
The Famous Five but also Noddy, Malory
Towers, The Secret Seven, the Naughtiest
Girl and St Clare’s. In total she wrote 186
novels, 269 character books, 983 short
story series books, 268 education books
and 252 recreation books. But she will
always be best remembered for Julian,
Dick, George, Anne and Timmy.
• 1711 The first race at Ascot. In 1711
Queen Ann goes riding near Windsor
Castle and finds the area soon to become
the site of Ascot, to her an area “ideal for
horses to gallop at full stretch”.
On Saturday 11th August that year,
Ascot’s first ever race meeting takes place.
The inaugural event is Her Majesty’s
Plate, in which any horse, mare or
gelding over six years of age can race.
Featureflash Photo Agency /
Shutterstock.com
8 TH AUGUST:
“One report said that since my time on the run I’ve had
2,500 girlfriends. I mean, you have got to realise I’ve been
on the run for more than 30 years. I have got to have had
more than that”
• 1963 Britain’s Great Train Robbery. More than £2.6 million is stolen from the
Travelling Post Office (TPO) on route from Glasgow Central Station to London
Euston Station. Up until this time Britain had a proud record of operating a vast
rail network without a single major robbery. The robbery stuns the nation because
of the enormous amount of money stolen.
It also captures their imagination as the highly organised style of the robbery
sounds more like a Hollywood script. Tales of a criminal gang co-ordinated by a
single mastermind were soon spreading through the press.
In the aftermath of the robbery a total reward of £260,000 was offered for the
detection of the thieves. Indeed, it is not until 2001 when the last of the known
suspects is sent to jail. In the period in between the plot continued along the lines
of a classic suspense movie with two of the men being arrested and then escaping
from prison separately, arrests being made in Germany, Canada and Brazil.
The gang members are Ronnie Biggs, Bruce Reynolds, Ronald Edwards, Charles
Wilson, Roy James, Brian Field, Gordon Goody, James Hussey, Roger Cordrey,
James White, Tommy Wisbey, Bobby Welch, Bill Boal and John Wheater.
13TH AUGUST:
“People always mean well.
They cluck their thick
tongues, and shake their
heads and suggest, oh,
so very delicately!”
• 1899 British film director Alfred
Hitchcock is born in London. During
his career, he creates more than 50
feature films including Psycho, North by
Northwest, The Birds, Rear Window, Dial
M for Murder, Strangers On A Train and
Vertigo.
OXFORD
20TH AUGUST
“so much owed…”
“The trick, William Potter,
is not minding that it hurts”
• 1888 Birth of Thomas Edward
Lawrence of Arabia in Tremadoc, North
Wales. He only became famous as
‘Lawrence of Arabia” when American
war correspondent Lowell Thomas
launched a 1919 lecture tour recounting
his assignment in the Middle East.
His photographs and films transfixed
the public and transformed the British
colonel into both a war hero and an
international celebrity.
Interestingly, while six-foot, three-inch
Peter O’Toole cut a towering figure in the
1962 epic, the real Lawrence was only
five feet, five inches and remained selfconscious about his height all his life.
He also first travelled to the Middle
East as an Oxford archaeology student in
the summer of 1909.
“if there is no blood on the
line, it is not rugby league”
• 1895 Birth of Rugby League. A
meeting of major Northern rugby
clubs is called at The George Hotel
in Huddersfield with representatives
from 21 clubs attending (Stockport
participating over the telephone).
Among them were names still revered
in the game: Wigan, Widnes, Bradford,
Warrington, Huddersfield and by a
majority of 20–1 they voted to leave the
Rugby Union, and form the Northern
Rugby Union, which in time became
the Rugby League. They arranged a
championship, with Manningham of
Bradford the first winners in 1896.
31ST AUGUST
• 1951 First Benny Hill. Benny Hill’s
solo TV career begins with his own
show, named Hi There It is broadcast on
Monday 20th August 1951. It was not,
however, until 15th January 1955 that
the first show actually titled The Benny
Hill Show aired and continued to run for
40 years.
“I’d like to teach the
world to sing, in
perfect harmony...”
• 1900 Coca Cola is
sold for the first time in
Britain.
AlenKadr / Shutterstock.com
16TH AUGUST
• 1940 In one of his most memorable
speeches (and there were many) Winston
Churchill says of Britain’s brave RAF
pilots: “Never in the field of human
conflict was so much owed by so many
to so few.”
29TH AUGUST
17TH AUGUST
“All animals are equal, but
some animals are more
equal than others”
• 1945 Animal Farm is published.
Written by George Orwell, acclaimed
writer Malcolm Bradbury has called
it “surely the most important work of
fictional political satire to be written
in twentieth-century Britain”. Manor
Farm is a small farm in England run
by the harsh and often drunk Mr.
Jones. One night, a boar named
Old Major gathers all the animals of
Manor Farm together. Knowing that
he will soon die, Old Major gives
a speech in which he reveals to the
animals that men cause all the misery
that animals endure.
Old Major says that all animals are
equal and urges them to join together
to rebel. Old Major dies soon after,
but two pigs named Snowball and
Napoleon adapt his ideas into the
philosophy of Animalism. Three
months later, the animals defeat
Jones in an uprising and rename the
farm...“Animal Farm.”
22ND AUGUST
“The Loch Ness Monster is a mixture of gas-filled vegetable
mats, turbulence caused by gas escaping from faults in the
bed of the loch, commonplace objects including boats and
birds seen at a distance... waves... otters... and doubtless other
things besides”
• 565 The earliest report of a monster in the vicinity of Loch Ness appears in the
Life of St Columba by Adomnán, written in the seventh century AD. According
to Adomnán, writing about a century after the events described, Irish monk
Saint Columba was staying in the land of the Picts with his companions when he
encountered local residents burying a man by the River Ness.
They explained that the man was swimming in the river when he was attacked by a
“water beast” which mauled him and dragged him underwater. Although they tried
to rescue him in a boat, he was dead. Columba sent a follower, Luigne moccu Min,
to swim across the river. The beast apparently approached him too but after Columba
made the sign of the cross and said: “Go no further. Do not touch the man. Go back at
once” the creature stopped and fled.
OXFORD
Dressing
for Oxford
When the weather starts to change, we all start to consider the alterations
we can make to our existing wardrobes. Whether that may be an investment
in a fashion lead piece, or an upcycle of an old favourite, the upcoming
summer season is a key time for your transitional look.
A
ny change that you make to your wardrobe
should be one that you feel comfortable with,
but pushes you out of your comfort zone.
Innovation is key to finding the right balance
between function and fashion, so opening your eye to
collections and designers that usually wouldn’t appeal to
you is a step in the right direction.
If I was to suggest key trends that are worth investing
in now, I would step straight in with the metallic trend.
Seen everywhere, from the abundantly available street
style looks, and mastered in the cruise collection at Louis
Vuitton and resort drop from Marc Jacobs, metallic is
set to be a huge thing for the remainder of this summer
season. As we head back into the fall season, metallics will
become transitional, and more wearable than any other
styling piece for the foreseeable future.
Street style in Oxford varies tremendously. Women
who reside here tend to be trend-aware but content with
a manner of dressing that is classic and simple. The busy
city woman is aware of her comfort zone, but is open
to pushing the boundaries – A Day in the Life of a City
Woman was the premise for a photo shoot I was fortunate
enough to attend, to promote the summer collection at
Olivia May on Little Clarendon Street. Many women
juggle numerous tasks, on an hourly basis, whilst still
maintaining their own look and notion of fashion. The
Olivia May woman is sure of her own style, and wants to
demonstrate this creative flair in all things. She wants to
wear pieces that flatter her shape, and create the illusion
that she has the time and inclination to spend on her
look. Each look, styled by in-house stylist Denisa, gives a
connotation of complete trend acknowledgement, and are
all aimed at variable age brackets, body shapes, and tasks.
Take this look opposite, from Nuovo Borgo. Versatile
and inexplicably chic, this could be worn with anything,
from a box bag and shoe boot for a more daytime look,
or with a classic black court shoe for a more workwear
take on this beautiful two-piece. The colour palette is the
interesting factor in this case. The caramel and black tones
complement each other perfectly, and make for a wearable
and functional look, yet still with that nod to style and
trend.
If you’re in the market for something a little more
playful, or an outfit for an upcoming summer event,
why not try this adorable ensemble?
In a beautiful shade of lilac, and soft linen fabrication,
this two-piece would look stylish and classic with a
fun, embellished heel and clutch bag. I cannot think of
anything more perfect for an English country wedding.
Worn with a chunky boot, black choker and leather
jacket, this could be a well-considered nod to the nineties
trend that is set to stick around for the entire summer.
BY KELLY HOUSTON-WALLER
OXFORD
Another take on the nineties trend
that can be style in numerous
different ways, is this soft,
feminine dress, by Ewa i Walla.
Shot in the beautiful grounds
of Christ Church Meadow, this
gorgeous piece encapsulates all that
is romantic and reserved, yet it is
how you style this piece that really
sets it aside from a lot of designer
offerings. Worn in this manner,
this piece would be great for those
long, warm, summer evenings with
a sandal, or flat shoes. I would also
love to see this piece with a classic
Chelsea boot and statement bag.
This dynamic and eye-catching
look is flattering on so many, and
holds that key sense of versatility
that is so crucial to everyday living.
It gives the feel of having been
thrown together at the last minute,
but is styled in a manner that leaves
the entire ensemble looking chic.
The long black tunic, designed by
womenswear brand Lilith, is paired
with the practical culotte-style
trouser from Crea.
For a little added drama, take a
risk with high fashion tailoring.
A wide legged crop pant is an astute
alternative to the classic black
trouser that we all fall into the habit
of wearing in the cooler months.
They are also a lot more flattering
and calculating than a classic fit, as
they show the ankle, and give more
room for the shoe choice to do the
talking. Paired with a classic blazer,
also from Lilith, in a feminine and
flattering cut, this ensemble gives
the impression of knowledge when
it comes to style and fashion. Either
piece would be a great addition to a
transitional wardrobe.
All pieces mentioned are
available at Olivia May,
31 Little Clarendon Street.
oliviamay.org
Four amazing venues for your perfect day
Go with your heart - have the wedding of your dreams
CHATEAU RHIANFA
SOLENT FORTS
ACKERGILL TOWER
STANBROOK ABBEY HOTEL
Treat your wedding guests
Make your wedding a real
Pledge your love with a
Capture picture perfect
to award-winning food and
showstopper with exclusive
backdrop that will leave your
memories of your wedding day
incredible views across the
use of one of the UK’s most
guests speechless in the UK’s
at Stanbrook Abbey Hotel, the
Menai Strait. Originally built
unique venues. Push the
most northerly five star castle.
best kept secret in the heart of
as a dower house, this French-
boat out as you tie the knot
Surrounded by stunning coastal
Worcestershire. Walk down the
style château in Anglesey,
and celebrate on a historic
scenery, acres of private land
aisle of the historic former chapel,
North Wales, strikes the
man-made fortress off
and a secluded loch this 15th
Callow Great Hall, then party
perfect balance between
the coast of Portsmouth.
century castle is a place where
in style within the 26 acres of
dreams really do come alive.
beautifully landscaped grounds.
romance and intrigue.
Choose an inspirational venue for your dream day
It’s the most important day of your life, so why do things by the book?
Choose between four unique venues. Create lifelong memories for you and your guests.
For more information please call us on: 0333 920 1 847
Alternatively, to book a showaround or view our brochures please visit:
www.amazingvenues.co.uk/weddings
WEDDINGS
Ultra-Luxe
Honeymoon Villas
No matter what your tastes or preferences, the choices available to couples when
dreaming up their honeymoon grow year on year – these are some of the most
exclusive, luxurious and downright gorgeous estates, houses and villas available this
year for your ultimate couple’s retreat.
Riad Mamounia- Marrakech, Morocco
New for summer 2016 is Villa Guru’s first foray into Morocco with the
stunning Riad Mamounia; a three-bedroomed riad from Marrakech’s
luxurious La Mamounia hotel. One of three, Riad Mamounia offers guests the
chance to experience La Mamounia’s five-star service from their own private
hideaway located amidst beautifully manicured gardens. A relaxing base away
from the hustle and bustle of Marrakech, the villa boasts two living rooms,
three en-suite bedrooms and a private courtyard swimming pool, as well as
24-hour butler service and a private chef to cater for your every culinary need;
perfect for newlyweds looking for some real R&R.
Price: From £4,700 per night, including return airport transfers in a
Range Rover, 24-hour butler service and private chef.
The Beach House at Ao Yon Bay
– Phuket, Thailand
A bijou beach villa perfect for two? Yes
please! The Beach House at Ao Yon Bay is
a contemporary villa hideaway on one of
Phuket’s most stunning beaches, designed by
well-known Thai architect Khun Navachon
Suksawat. Small yet perfectly formed, the
villa boasts floor to ceiling windows which
open up fully from the living area onto the
private garden terrace, landscaped beautifully
with tropical plants and trees. Outside,
honeymooners will find a fully-equipped bar
and barbeque area with sunken seating and
dining table, a plunge pool which doubles as
a Jacuzzi and the beach’s golden sands and
sparkling waters, literally steps away from
the villa. Back inside there are two double
en-suite bedrooms to choose from, one of
which benefits from incredible beach views,
as well as a hi-spec kitchen should you want
to whip up a feast. Phuket’s bustling town
is just 15 minutes away, but Ao Yon Bay’s
plentiful beach bars and restaurants make it
perfectly feasible for honeymooners to stay
put throughout their stay.
Price: From £1,645 per week based on
two sharing on a self-catering basis.
Breathtaking outdoor civil ceremonies • Personal professional and flexible approach
Intimate candlelit indoor weddings and receptions • Brand new bridal preparation area ‘The Nook’
Superior quality sound and lighting • Unrivalled bride and groom crash pad • Wood fired oven
WWW.THETYTHEBARN.CO.UK • TEL: 01869 321442
d
The former 16th Century Coaching Inn situated only 12 miles from
Oxford is a superb one-stop wedding location.
Sympathetically updated, the George retains its character and
charm, giving it an unrivalled atmosphere for every occasion.
The Castle gardens, behind the hotel, make a great backdrop for
your photographs. Plus our experienced wedding organisers will
work with you to ensure everything goes to plan. You can rely on
the George to make your wedding dream come true.
OUR FACILITIES INCLUDE:
Events For Up To 150 Guests • Licenced For Civil Ceremonies
Choice Of Wedding Packages • Extensive Menu Selection
39 Exquisite Bedrooms • Ample Free Car Parking
Wedding dreams
are made of t
his!
GEORGE HOTEL High Street, Wallingford, Oxfordshire, OX10 0BS
Tel: 01491 836665 • Fax: 01491 825359
XXXX
Villa Chiocci Alto- Tuscany, Italy
Located in the hills overlooking the Il Borro estate in Tuscany is Villa
Chiocci Alto; a beautifully-restored rural property where traditional
Tuscan style and elegance sit comfortably alongside modern design and
comfort. It’s quiet hillside location make it ideal for newlyweds looking
for an escape-from-it-all, with the property itself boasting four bedrooms
for couples to choose from. It packs a lot in for guests, with two living
rooms, an elegant dining room, two kitchens and its own fitness room –
complete with Turkish bath. Outside, guests are greeted with incredible
panoramic views over the Valdarno valley, with several terraces, mature
gardens and a sparkling swimming pool offering plenty of comfortable
outside space to unwind in. The villa is part of the Il Borro estate,
meaning guests have access to the estate’s two fantastic restaurants, with
breakfast delivered in the villa each morning for a stress-free wake up. A
private chef can also be arranged – perfect for romantic evening meals for
two.
Price: From £1,500 per night based on two sharing on a B&B basis.
Observatory Bush Villa – Leobo Private Reserve,
South Africa
Arguably the coolest villa in all of Africa – a seriously stylish treetop hideaway
amidst the 20,000 acre Leobo Private Reserve in the Waterberg Mountains.
Designed by award-winning architects Silvio Rech and Lesley Carstens, the
villa expertly blends beautiful indoor and outdoor living spaces to make the
most of the stunning surroundings and utilises state of the art technology to
create a stunning yet functional escape. The villa itself homes 4 bedrooms,
and amongst its many quirky touches boasts a research grade observatory
for stargazing, an expansive roof terrace and heated infinity pool. The
surrounding reserve offers endless adventures for newlyweds, with couples
able to explore on horseback, quad bike or Polaris, and even hire a helicopter
for the duration of their stay for helicopter safaris or helicopter paintballing;
perfect for adventurous types (or a mountaintop picnic for the romantics….)
Price: From £1,600 per night based on two sharing, including all food
and drinks, private chef and butler, plus exclusive use of the 8,000
hectare reserve and concierge service.
WEDDINGS
an undiscovered secret in
the heart of oxford
the Oxford
Union
make the legend yours
Call 07507 683129 or
01865 241353
www.oxford-union.org
Bridechilla
JILL RAYNER
A
wedding without stress? Is this an impossibility?
Well, according to numerous advice sites,
magazines and forums, it is. However, as a very
busy, time-limited
and determined bride-to-be who refuses to become
embroiled in either wedding politics or expectations, it will
be very possible. That’s my theory, anyway.
Getting married in your mid-50s can either be a
nightmare or just a reason to be surrounded by people that
matter to you. The older I get, the more I realise that there
are people in my life that I meet solely at funerals, and
maybe this is a reason to change that. Unless someone dies
beforehand, that is.
My wedding is booked for December, and what have I
done to plan for this logistical challenge? Well, I’ve booked
a venue. What else have I done? Precisely nothing.
According to the rules of the “must have done by now”, I
should have sent save-the-dates, had the invitations printed,
spoken to a florist, booked the entertainment, ordered a
wedding dress, had tasting sessions, attended numerous
wedding fayres and lost sleepless nights worrying about who
sits with who.
Now, as no one has been invited yet, invitations are not
a huge issue, and if the date is not important enough to
the people receiving the invitations that they won’t cancel
a prior appointment, then it’s no problem. After all, they
always make it to the funerals. If I was worried about the
food, then I wouldn’t have chosen a venue I’ve stayed at and
adored (deerparkcountryhotel.co.uk) to host my wedding.
A wedding fayre might be a nice day out, but then so is the
spa, or a bar, or any other activity
that doesn’t involve spending a Saturday afternoon shuffling
around a hotel conference room. As for a florist: I’m
banking on my December wedding meaning that the venue
will be dressed for Christmas already.
Naïve? Maybe. Selfish? Possibly. Stressed? Not in the
slightest. Watch this space.
WEDDINGS
We introduce Anne Veck
Your Style Master 2016!
She’s only gone and done it... Anne Veck has
been chosen as the Global Winner of The Style
Master International Contest 2016 – the first
ever winner from the UK!
Over 4,400 stylists from 60 countries
came together in Paris to witness Revlon
Professional’s annual global competition, which
recognises the best talent within the industry
from the world over. The Style Master 2016
International Contest was created to give a
platform for stylists to show their creative
talent amongst the industry’s most-gifted
hairdressers, trade press and Revlon’s portfolio
of brands. “I am thrilled to have won the
global award in the biggest hairdressing
competition in the world! My team of Oxford
and Bicester hairdressers supported me in
Paris and we came through against 9 other national
winners before an audience of over 4,400 hairdressers
and industry professionals. Revlon Professional organised
the most amazing event and I am delighted to have been
part of it,” says Anne Veck, Owner of Anne Veck Salons.
For more information on
Anne Veck, please visit
www.anneveckhair.com
PERFECT DAY PERFECT HAIR
Wedding Hair and
Make-up by Anne Veck
On location or in salon
33 St Clements Oxford OX4 1AB | 01865 727077
27-29 Causeway Bicester OX26 6AN | 01869 248495
www.anneveckhair.com/hairdressing-services/bridal-hair-and-makeup
WEDDINGS AT WADDESDON
Two stunning exclusive-use Buckinghamshire wedding venues
Five Arrows Hotel
The Dairy
Save
the date
Wedding Inspiration Day
Sunday 30 October
Find out more at www.waddesdon.org.uk/weddings
The world-famous Ashmolean, located in the
heart of Oxford, is licenced for civil ceremonies,
civil partnerships and wedding receptions.
Surrounded by the rich collections and the magnificent
architecture, choose from countless backdrops for
your photographs, leaving you with unique and lasting
memories of your day.
Our exclusive catering partners, Clerkenwell Green,
offer menus to suit your requirements, which are both
appetizing and exquisite.
© Kate Hopewell Smith
www.ashmolean.org/weddings
E: [email protected]
T: 01865 610 406
© David Bostock Photography
With our dedicated team looking after you from start
to finish – just relax and enjoy your big day!
Ren'ee
Watson
THE BIG BANG
We’ve all had dreams of robots that clean the house, cook up
a Sunday roast and give us a foot massage, right? Near-human
computers that we can programme to do those things we loathe
without answering back, complaining or questioning.
Good news: artificial intelligence is booming, bringing us robotic vacuum
cleaners that wiz around cleaning, without us having to do anything
and robots that are becoming more and more like humans. We’re OK
with this idea because there has always been a line dividing humans
and robots, but that is all changing and some of science’s most revered
minds are urging us to pay attention. One of our clearest dividing lines is
called The Turing Test, which was devised by Alan Turing (yes the same
one played by Benedict Cumberbatch, swoon) back in the 1950s. Turing
wanted to test whether a computer could be so intelligent that it would
be indistinguishable from a real person during a conversation.
Until last year, we could take comfort from knowing that no robot
had ever crossed the Turing line, but in June 2014, US-based scientist
Vladimir Veselov put his chatter robot to the Turing Test and won.
Valdimir spent 13 years creating “Eugene Goostman, a boy from
Ukraine” who, in a display that would make Pinocchio jealous, has
been widely mistaken for a real boy. Whilst the Turing test is all about
conversation, there is obviously a lot more to intelligence. A Russian
robot, dubbed Promobot IR77, which is clearly unhappy with its living
conditions, has recently escaped from its lab home for the second time.
Fortunately for its makers, Promobot keeps running out of power before
getting too far down the road, but it is a remarkable example of just how
powerful artificial intelligence has become. And it isn’t just R2D2-looking
creations that are taking AI by storm. Chatbots, which are thought to be
a more intelligent app substitute, are being earmarked by the likes of
Facebook and Microsoft as the future of online interaction. However the
recent trial of a test chatbot on Twitter showed just how dangerous this
tech can be when, within 48 hours, the bot was making severely racist
comments.
So, we can make robots that can have a human conversation and can
think for themselves – it sounds like a Hollywood blockbuster, doesn’t
it? Even Stephen Hawking and Elon Musk have expressed concern
over the potential dangers of this technology; AI has huge potential
to make a positive impact on our lives but as with all revolutionary
technologies there are risks. Hawking has said “success in creating AI
would be the biggest event in human history. Unfortunately, it might
also be the last, unless we learn how to avoid the risks”. There is a lot of
debate about how we define intelligence and whether the Turing test is
a good measure of computer intelligence, but one thing is certain: the
line between the robots of science fiction and those of reality is getting
very fine and we all need to wise up to what that means before we start
getting outwitted by our own creations.
BODY & SOUL
Hot Stuff
at 50 Plus
If you assume that a Barre class is adult ballet …
Here’s what happened in my
quest to be Oxfordshire’s answer
to Margot Fonteyn
What to wear?
Ideal: Blush, elegant dancewear
Real: Vest and leggings
On arrival
Ideal: Walk tall, graceful and refined.
Real: Lots of women of different age
groups stood behind chairs.
W
ell, you would be verging on the right idea, but if the
thought of a pink tutu and points fills you with horror, don’t
despair. My last encounter with a barre was at the age of
seven, when a less that empathetic ballet teacher exclaimed
that “I had neither the physique nor the temperament to become proficient
at such a graceful art”. Harsh as it may have been, it was absolutely true,
and the thought of being in a room with lithe beauties forty-odd years
later was not an experience that I wanted to repeat. Consequently, to say I
was a little apprehensive when I was invited to attend a barre class was an
understatement, but in the true spirit of this “Body & Soul” area of our
magazine, off I went, armed with no more than the knowledge that it may
be a little less traumatic than my childhood experiences and my well worn
philosophy of “what’s the worst that can happen?”
Barre tutor
Ideal: Petite, lithe, beautiful
Real: Depressingly, exactly as above
Coping with mirrors
Ideal: a reflection of elegance
Real: Luckily and thankfully, no
mirrors
Class members
Ideal: Tall, haughty, superior
So what is it?
According to Wikipedia:
When used for promoting general fitness, barre exercises incorporate a wide
variety of activities to increase stamina, flexibility and strength, including
ballet movements that require balance and stimulate the core such as pliés and
pirouettes. Barre classes have become a popularized form of exercise. A barre
class includes the use of the barre as a tool for repetitions of small, pulsing
movements with emphasis on form, alignment and core engagement. Devices
such as yoga straps, exercise balls and hand weights are sometimes used during
barre classes. Barre classes draw from yoga as well as dance and pilates and
focus on breath and the mind-body connection.
Real: All sizes, all ages, all abilities
Outcome
Ideal: Challenged, stretched, strong,
elegant
Real: Exhausted, smiling, shaking
BODY & SOUL
The first thing I noticed: no barre, as the chairs I mentioned earlier were
used as an alternative. There were lots of very friendly, welcoming women
in a school hall, and not a pair of ballet shoes in sight. The tutor was great –
very encouraging and, of course, extremely fit with a butt to die for. In fact,
I’m sure that the thought of the class giving you a Kylie bum was a great
motivator. The mix of exercises were obviously geared to a range of fitness
levels with options for those not quite as flexible but whatever level you are
used to working at this hits the spot.
Would I recommend it?
Without a doubt. The class I attended was very informal but there are other
classes that are held in more serious surroundings if that floats your boat.
Barre, like all exercises, may not tick all of your boxes, but give it a go and
don’t be put off by thinking that it’s just for the six foot tall, prima ballerinas.
If I can do it and enjoy it – believe me, anyone can.
Rayner recommends
Jill Rayner attended a class by:
Zumba & Barre with Sarah Oxford. www.zumbasarahoxford.com
There were lots of very friendly,
welcoming women in a school hall, and
not a pair of ballet shoes in sight.
Hook & EyeCosmetics
Treatments offered:
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bespoke cosmetic and medical
micro pigmentation
Digital Needling to reduce the
appearance of wrinkles,
stretch marks and scars
Laser tattoo removal
Felicity Denham CPCP
01993 701117
Combination
brows
I 07917569287
Correctional
lip blush
Hook and Eye • 16 Corn Street • Witney OX28 6BL
[email protected]
Your HEARING
is as important as your vision...
Oxford Hearing Centre is a local
independent hearing healthcare practice.
‘Providing high quality, discreet & confidential hearing
healthcare in the Oxford area for more than 30 years.’
• Ear wax removal
and advice
• Hearing screening testing
• Full audiological assessment
• High specification hearing
instruments
• Noise protection
• Shooting ear plugs
• Musician ear pieces
• Wireless connectivity for
hearing aids
Tel: 01865 861861
Oxford Hearing Centre Ltd, 157 Eynsham Road, Oxford, OX2 9NE
Email: [email protected] Website: oxfordhearingcentre.co.uk
Opening Times: Monday to Friday 9.00am to 5.30pm • Easy Parking
10019_134x91-OxfordHearing_Ad-Amend.indd 1
08/02/2016 12:38
Om & Bass Yoga
Festival
S
et in the stunning locale of Braziers Park near Ipsden, Om
& Bass is a festival of yoga, meditation, dance and food
that aims to remove the usual enormous price tags from
these kinds of events and make the benefits of yoga practice
available to all.
“A lot of other yoga festivals aren’t priced badly per se, they’re just a
lot larger and don’t allow for the small and inclusive atmosphere that
we can provide for everyone,” explains founder Rachel Cox. “What
we’re offering is different because we’re bringing an element of diverse
culture to it – we’ve got the Karma Culture tent, which will have
dance, martial arts, tai chi, chi gung, belly dancing, breakdancing,
capoeira, drumming circles… Something from all over the world.”
Because of her experiences with these practices in the past, Rachel
has been able to draw from an experienced and highly skilled range of
tutors, instructors and societies to guide you through what promises
to be an enlightening, relaxing and thoroughly enjoyable weekend.
“Yoga is non-judgemental and noncompetitive, and that’s very
much what we try to do at the festival,” Rachel says. “Nobody
else minds what you’re doing and it can always be tailored for
everyone’s differences. As a small-scale festival it’s a lot easier for us to
accommodate people’s needs in that way – injuries, disabilities, age.
You get time to spend with the teachers and everyone leaves with new
friends at the end of the weekend – it’s not impersonal or clinical in
any way. It’s inclusive in terms of who can come but it’s exclusive in
terms of numbers.”
The festival will include sessions and classes for complete beginners
all the way up to seasoned experts, and although Om & Bass is
focused around yoga, health and well-being, there is no obligation
to attend yoga classes – you can simply soak up the atmosphere and
chill out. Food will include wood-fired, gluten-free pizzas, salads, and
healthy breakfast options.
Tickets start at £50 for the weekend and are available on
Eventbrite –
search for Om & Bass Yoga Festival for more information.
Mark
Creed
MANE MAN
If Bad Hair Days are the bane of your life, our style
expert is here to help. This month, Mark reveals the
tips everyone can try for better-behaved hair.
GET INTO A RELATIONSHIP – with your hair cutter
and colourist. Like all the best relationships, they take
time to develop and good communication is key. Be
clear when it comes to exactly what you want from
your hair (how long you want to spend styling, salon
visit frequency etc). Your hairdresser can then make
suggestions and offer advice and your relationship
can start to blossom! Don’t be afraid to show pictures
– they’re a great communication tool and allow us to
understand your expectations more easily.
MAKE THE COMMITMENT – by booking your hair
appointments in exactly the same way as you book
your regular dental appointments – in advance!
You know your hair will grow; in six-eight weeks it
may look unruly and unkempt and it’s unrealistic to
expect a salon to be able to fit you in at short notice.
Ensure you’re always looking and feeling your best
by rebooking when you check out of each salon
appointment.
TAKE LESSONS – from your hairdresser! Many clients
(male and female) leave the salon perfectly coiffed
but find that their attempts to recreate the look at
home literally falls a little flat! Get advice and ask
your hairdresser about blow-dry lessons or finishing
tips which will help you to manage your style more
successfully.
CHECK YOUR TOOLS – are they up to the job?
When did you last invest in new appliances or styling
equipment? Most of us have had the same brushes
and hairdryer for years. Usually (and hopefully) your
image has changed with fashion and so the regime
and tools you are using may no longer be fit for
purpose. Ask your stylist about the latest salon goodies
(including products) to style your hair at home.
HANDHELD DEVICES – are your hair’s new best
friend! Color Wow is a pressed colour powder (it
looks just like an eyeshadow compact) that can be
applied between salon visits to disguise any telltale
root regrowth. Simple to apply and available in seven
shades, it works brilliantly on both full global colours
and highlighted hair alike.
Mark Creed is Technical Director at Idlewild Hair,
which has salons in Oxford, Witney and Abingdon.
Visit idlewildhair.co.uk for more information, or find us
on Facebook.com/IdlewildHairdressing
2
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5
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WE SAW YOU
A true highlight in the Oxfordshire summer calendar, Cornbury
Festival returned to Great Tew Park over the second weekend
of July. Surprisingly, members of the OX team held onto their
composure long enough to take these snaps of the event’s brightest
and best attendees enjoying themselves…
1. Kat Orman 2. Orlando Seale 3. Caroline O’Connor & Richard Ellis 4. Dom Joly 5. Nick Barberry
6. Jo Thoenes 7. Mehdi Aoustin-Sellami, Tom King & Mary Ann Angano 8. Ali Mayo
BEST OF BRITISH
Best of British
Cornbury
BY JILL RAYNER
“Best of British” is an overused phrase, but Cornbury Music Festival has
carved itself a niche in the festival calendar as a top-notch, beautifully crafted,
extraordinarily civilised and quintessentially English weekend.
I
haven’t attended over the last fifteen years, and
for me, 2016 was a triumph.
Soul II Soul and Lemar, Booker T and Stax
gave me no excuse to sit down, and Bryan
Ferry (himself the country gentleman with
a stylish twist) took me back to days of art
school cool. On Sunday, Seal performed an
intimate gig, just for me. His ability to make
it feel that way when thousands of people felt
exactly the same was testament to his sheer
stage presence and ridiculous sex appeal.
Cornbury is addictive. The place oozes a
charm and class that rejuvenates you more
effectively than any anti-ageing treatment ever
could. Cornbury radiates what we do best:
talent, tradition, class and eccentricity. Roll
on 2017.
Images © Nigel Brown
ts charm has never faulted over the 15
years that Hugh Phillimore and his genius
of festival programming has mixed soulful
floor-fillers with icons from past and
present, crooning to an eclectic crowd of city
dwellers, country gentlemen, toffs, ladies on an
extended weekend lunch and hardcore music
buffs drinking champagne, eating Cotswoldmade paella and shopping for Alpaca spun
luxurious knitwear.
For me Cornbury, is a sensory overload. Pig
roasts, wood-fired pizzas and pots of tartiflette,
flags and banners, hats and wraps, children’s
laughter and a sea of voices singing to the
sounds of three stages bringing together a
melting pot of talent, new and old. It is my
annual excuse for me to dress to excess, dance
until I drop, meet strangers that become festival
buddies and sing until I have no voice. There
is only a couple of Cornbury weekends that I
EXHIBITIONS
Racing
The
MG
Car
Club
The
MG
Car
Club since 1930
Supporting
MG
ownership
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Supporting MG ownership
Supporting MG ownership since 1930
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01235
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www.mgcc.co.uk
01235 55 55 52
Monday -Hours:
Thursday
Opening
Monday
- Thursday
9am - 5:30pm
9am - 5:30pm
Monday - Thursday
Friday
9am
- 5:30pm
Friday
9am - 4pm
9am - 4pm
Friday
Weekends
9am
- 4pm
Weekends
By appointment only
By appointment only
Weekends
By appointment only
30 September - 20 December
Abingdon Museum, Sessions Gallery
MG have been in the realms of motorsport since their
inception in the 1920’s. Fighting against the biggest names
in Motorsport including Ferrari, Alfa Romeo and Bugatti,
MG has been part of an elite racing heritage that has
seen them win challenging circuits and break the toughest
records. This exhibition collectively highlights the best of
MG’s participation in competitive motorsport, from racing at
Mille Miglia 1933, to the record breaking EX181 in 1957.
We celebrate a remarkable racing heritage, all conceived
by an Abingdon based car manufacturer.
MAGAZINE
A b i n g don County Hall M u s e u m
Market Place • Abingdon • Oxfordshire • OX14 3HG
[email protected] • 01235 523703
NEW PREMISES
IN OXFORDSHIRE
The largest selection of MGA/MGB and
MGC in the UK. Established in 1989
MGOC Recommended
25 cars in stock at www.classicmg.co.uk
Tel: 01844 281700 Email: [email protected]
POSTCOMBE SERVICE STATION, A40 LONDON ROAD,
THAME, OXON, OX9 7ED • 1.5 MILES FROM M40 JUNCTION 6
VIEW ALL STOCK AT WWW.FORMER-GLORY.COM
LOVE YOUR COUNTY, LOVE OX
FIND US IN NEWSAGENTS NOW
MOT • Service • Repairs MGF/MGTF Specialist
Service, repairs, and MOT’s
to all makes and models.
MG mania approved hood specialist.
Free collection local area.
Unit 6 & 7, 154 Newland, Witney, OX28 3JH
T: 01993 778060 M: 07825 836320
[email protected]
www.justrightautos.co.uk
BEST OF BRITISH
MG returns to its roots
They are an icon of Britishness, a symbol of class and a reminder of a time gone by.
Anybody who owns an MG knows that it will always be a car to turn heads. Now
this icon of the British motoring industry has at last come home with the first MGs
in many years appearing on an Abingdon forecourt.
I
t has been 90 years since the MG company
started in 1924 and was founded by Morris
Motor’s employee Cecil Kimber. William
Morris retained a large stake of the company
for most of MGs early years, but it was Kimber
who was the brains behind the company. The
company got its name from Morris Garages, a
dealer of Morris cars in Oxford which began
producing its own customised versions to the
designs of Cecil Kimber.
At first, the sports cars MG made were Morris
models that had been made in Coventry and were
modified at the Alfred Lane premises in Oxford.
Demand for MG cars grew and their premises
moved to Bainton Road, also in Oxford before a
further move in 1927 to Cowley. But a permanent
home was desperately needed and eventually the
company moved to a disused leather factory in
Abingdon in 1929. William Morris himself owned
the company personally until 1935 when he sold it
to his other car company, Morris Motors.
Knowing that publicity was the best advert
for cars, MG also had a motorsport division. Its
dedicated racing cars were competing in various
races during the 30s. When MG was formally
merged with Morris Motors in the late 30s, focus
turned from races to pure speed. A design and
engineering department was set up specifically to
help Captain George Eyston to take several world
speed records. Later, Goldie Gardner drove for
MG and achieved speeds of over 200mph.
In 1945, production turned towards helping
the war effort. The fortunes of MG were further
set-back by the tragic death of Cecil Kimber in a
rail accident.
However, production continued again after
the war and the town was home to the MG
production line until 1980 when the factory
closed. While many of the sites around the town
were demolished, a few parts of the production
plant are still standing and now used as warehouses
for various local businesses. There is also a
memorial garden to the MG plant, which lays
just a few metres from where the main factory
once stood
And now, over 90 years later, MGs will once
again be sold in the town where they were first
made so many years ago. The marque is now
owned by the Nanjing Automobile Group and
they are keeping the spirit of the MG by launching
a range of new cars. The new MG GS cars started
to roll off the production line recently and for the
first time in many years, a dealership in Abingdon
will sell them. Lodge Hill Garage, well known for
having a replica Spitfire on display at its location
on top of the hill by the Abingdon North A34
junction, is now the place to go if you are looking
to buy your own little bit of Abingdon history.
The garage also recently had a fully restored
vintage MG TC on sale as well, which was lovingly
restored by a local expert. Director at Lodge Hill
Nigel Murrin says:
“We’re delighted to have MG back in
Abingdon, the home of MG, and at Lodge Hill
Garage, a garage that in the past sold the MG
mark and we’re looking forward to serving the
people of Oxfordshire”
The history of MG is forever aligned with
Abingdon and even though the cars are no longer
made there, the town retains a loving affection for
what many consider to be one of the most iconic
car companies in history.
And now, over 90
years later, MGs
will once again be
sold in the town
where they were
first made so
many years ago.
Palo_ok / Shutterstock.com
FOR THE
ALL NEW
THE LATEST ADDITION TO THE MG FAMILY
FROM
£14,995*
INCLUDING 5 YEARS WARRANTY
FIND OUT MORE AT MG.CO.UK/GS
Fuel consumption: URBAN 37.6 mpg | 7.5 l/100km (Manual) 36.6 mpg | 7.7 l/100km (Auto), EXTRA URBAN 53.2 mpg | 5.3 l/100km (Manual) 53.2 | 5.3 l/100km (Auto), COMBINED 46.3 mpg | 6.1
l/100km (Manual) 45.5 mpg | 6.2 l/100km (Auto). CO2 EMISSIONS 139 g/km (Manual) 141 g/km (Auto)
Model shown is MG GS Exclusive with Sunset Orange paint and black A-post decal at £19,989. *On the road price of £14,995 applies to the MG GS Explore with no optional extras. On the road (OTR) prices include VAT where
applicable, vehicle first registration fee, delivery, number plates and 12 months’ ‘Vehicle Excise Duty’. From prices exclude optional metallic paint, accessories and graphics packs. Fuel consumption values shown are based on official EU
test figures and are to be used as a guide for comparative purposes and may not be representative of actual driving results.
Lodge Hill Garage Ltd
Oxford Road Abingdon Oxon OX14 2JD
01865 326666
Limited
Tel: 01865 326666
www.Lodgehillgarage.co.uk
Welcomes the MG GS
Family, affordable, fun
The wait is over. Today, MG Motor UK’s all-new SUV, the MG GS, was
officially launched and the lid has been lifted on what a fantastic package
this new vehicle is offering.
The MG GS is
competitive in
many ways and
we are confident
it will do well in
the SUV market
M
G is proud to announce that, like
the other models in the range, the
MG GS is no exception to being
affordable; with the line-up starting
from only £14,995 and finishing at £19,495 for
the manual transmission and £20,995 for the
DCT (dual-clutch transmission).
The good news keeps coming, with the MG GS
benefiting from a full five year factory warranty
as standard; which shows the confidence the
manufacturer has in the quality of this new model.
The MG GS holds its own against others in
its sector in a number of areas, including CO₂
output, torque, mass efficiency and towing weight.
The MG GS has:
For information or
to book a test drive
on this or any other
models both new
and used give
Lodge Hill Garage
Ltd a call
01865
326666
· more torque than its two wheel drive
gasoline competitors with 250Nm
· more power than competitor two wheel drive
gasoline variants, with 122kw available
· a competitive CO₂ value of 139g/km for the
manual and 141g/km for the DCT
· a competitive towing mass of 1750kg,
making it suitable for towing a large family
caravan
· a competitive 0-60mph time of 9.6 seconds
The MG GS, which has been designed and
engineered in Longbridge, Birmingham, has been
developed to make it drive and handle like an
MG should. The chassis has been tuned to deliver
agility and great handling, making the driver feel
confident when they take on the most challenging
of roads.
The MG GS is available in three trim levels,
with an option of manual or DCT on the top
specification. Introducing the:
MG GS Explore:
This entry level model at £14,995
MG GS Excite:
More toys for their money at £17,495
MG GS Exclusive:
Top of the range. Manual is available at £19,495
and the DCT at £20,995.
Matthew Cheyne, Head of Sales and Marketing
for MG, said: “This is a great day for us, as we can
finally share the information so many people have
wanted to know. The MG GS is competitive in
many ways and we are confident it will do well in
the SUV market.
“This car offers so much for comparatively little,
making it the SUV to choose. The specification
on these cars is phenomenal and when you add
in the five year warranty it’s a no-brainer. There
are some really great features as well, such as the
adjustable rear seats that not only recline but fold
completely flat making it adaptable for whatever
the customer’s lifestyle.
“Customers choosing the MG GS will save
money over more expensive SUVs. They will have
all the specification they could want and still have
money left to enjoy holidays or family days out.”
The MG GS is on sale now at Oxfordshire’s only
MG dealerships now.
BEST OF BRITISH
“My goal for every job is to create an interesting
design that works with its environment and
reflects my skills as a craftsman”
Meet Adam & Olive
A
dam began his career as a blacksmith
apprentice in Sussex and swiftly
acquired an immense passion for
metalwork, both the history and future
of the blacksmithing craft. He quickly proved
his worth by winning several awards including
champion blacksmith in the South of England
Show in 2004 & 2011 and has been recognised
with a certificate of merit from the Worshipful
Company of Blacksmiths. In 2013 he immersed
himself into the world of historical conservation
by training with the National Heritage Ironwork
Group in prestigious locations such as Hampton
Court Palace and Duxford Imperial War Museum.
Adam says – “The opportunity to work on some
of Britain’s finest and oldest iron work gave me
an incredible insight into a rich history of a
fascinating craft.”
www.baillieandco.
co.uk
Unit C Park End
Works, Croughton,
Northamptonshire,
NN13 5LX
01869 810771
In 2014 Olive (his wirehaired dachshund) joined
the team and together they embarked on a journey
of self-employment and entrepreneurship, by
launching Baillie & Co – Blacksmiths. With the
support and mentorship of the Princes Trust, and
his unique and interesting approach to design
along with his warm and friendly approach to
customers, he quickly built up a loyal client base.
His passion for design details and traditional
craftsmanship is injected into his work with
great attention to detail and has acquired him
some fabulous bespoke commissions. He recently
completed a commission for Waitrose and has
been working alongside other interior designers,
developers and individuals to transform boutique
hotels and chic homes with his unique ironwork.
Adam is continuing to develop his business with
an impressive portfolio of clients and bespoke
commissions as well as opening the doors to an
online shop with an intriguing range of uniquely
crafted items.
“My goal for every job is to create an interesting
design that works with its environment and
reflects my skills as a craftsman,” Adam says. His
enthusiasm for his craft is infectious; and, now that
he can direct his passion into his own brand and
business, he has achieved a long awaited ambition.
XXXX
1
With Oxford gearing up for next month’s hugely popular Open Doors event, we
thought we’d take an appropriately behind closed doors look at Oxford as it used to
be, courtesy of Oxford University’s very own online image library.
And afterwards, in keeping with the theme of Oxford’s Open Days, Annette
Cunningham takes a look at ten FREE activities offered up by Oxford University.
2
3
1. A procession of Halls Drays crossing Magdalen Street, 1912 2. The May ‘King’ and ‘Queen’ with other children during Iffley’s May Day celebrations in 1906
3. A window display in the Oxford andOX
District
Co-operative
store,
MAGAZINE
| AUGUST
2016May
| 911936 (from the collection of Basil Savage)
FACT FILE:
* OXFORD OPEN DOORS 2016: This year’s event takes place
on 10 and 11 September.
Keep an eye on its website - oxfordopendoors.org.uk - for
further details. Brochures are available now to pick up from the
Oxford Preservation Trust office (Oxford Preservation Trust,10
Turn Again Lane, St Ebbes, Oxford OX1 1QL) or across the City.
Want to find out first? Visit www.oxfordpreservation.org.uk
* OUImages, the online digital media library of the University
of Oxford, brings together every element of Oxford’s visual
identity into a single, easily accessible database.
Oxford’s traditions, events, student life and academic activities,
form the basis of its extensive photographic and video content.
For further information, go to oxforduniversityimages.com
4
5
6
8
10
7
4. Skating and playing ice hockey on the River
Cherwell during one of the coldest winters on record
(1895) – from the collection of Henry W Taunt
5. Woman welding petrol cans during World War II
at the Pressed Steel factory, Cowley, 1939
6. The Order dispatch department of Underhill’s,
Cornmarket Street, Oxford, 1901
7. A queue outside Timms toy store, Oxford, 1944
8. The staff of F Capes and Co preparing for an
outing by charabanc, Oxford, 1920
9. US military signs in Carfax, 1944
10. Girls with their toys in the yard at Summertown
Infants School, 1924
11. Pupils in fancy dress for a carol concert at West
Oxford School, December 1929
9
11
Make yourself at
home in the heart
of Gleneagles
Glenmor at Gleneagles
The Gleneagles experience is one of a kind – and now there’s a way
to enjoy it which is just as unique: from the comfort of a Glenmor®
luxury holiday home, in the heart of Gleneagles. On your stay you
can enjoy complimentary golf for one person, plus access to all of
the facilities of a 5 star resort right on your doorstep.
A main season 2 bedroom property starts
from £2,720 for 7 nights. To find out more:
Visit gleneagles.com/glenmor
call 01764 694 321
or email [email protected]
© The Gleneagles Hotel 2015. ® The GLENEAGLES and GLENMOR words and the EAGLE Device are trade marks. The Timeshare, Holiday Products, Resale and
Exchange Contracts Regulation 2010 requires Gleneagles to provide you with certain key information in relation to the proposed seasonal ownership contract.
A standard information form which contains this key information in relation to that contract may be obtained by contacting Gleneagles at The Gleneagles Hotel,
Auchterarder, Perthshire, Scotland, PH3 1NF.
A FAMILY HOLIDAY
The Lost Kingdom of Africa
TO REMEMBER
TRAVEL
MALI
Glenmor Holiday Homes are available to rent and give you the chance to enjoy staying
at one of the most sought after destinations in the world – The Gleneagles Hotel®.
Glenmor Village is a development of luxurious 2, 3, and 4
bedroom holiday homes set around its own village green,
in the heart of Gleneagles’ spectacular grounds. You can
rent one of Glenmor’s delightful homes for 7 nights as well
as for three night and four night stays.
Fun, excitement, and adventures in endless acres of
beautiful countryside are all part of family holidays at
Glenmor – it’s the perfect playground for hours of thrilling
and exciting family activities, no matter what your age.
From cycling around lochs, playing Polo, training a gun
dog or even driving an Argo Cat there are so many outdoor
activities on offer, your children will never get bored –
and that leaves grown-ups with plenty of time to sample
the delights of The Spa or the three championship golf
courses!
BY PETER HOLTHUSEN
Visit gleneagles.com/Glenmor,
call 01764 694 321 or email
[email protected] for more information.
W
e arrived at BamakoSénou International
Airport in Mali shortly
after 7.30pm, just as the
sun was setting over Bamako. Among
my fellow passengers were a group of
Malians returning from a pilgrimage to
Mecca, and there was also a fresh-faced
white American aid worker and her local
support team who offered to take me
to my hotel in the heart of the city, the
Laico El Farouk.
This was only my second visit to Mali,
so their offer of help so soon after my
arrival was all the more welcome and
warmly appreciated. I arranged to meet
my escorts outside of the arrivals hall and
as I made my way through the bustling
crowds in the terminal the beckoning
sanctuary of a sparkling white Save the
Children 4x4 seemed an altogether more
pleasurable means of escaping the chaos
that surrounded me.
With its giant mud-built mosques,
villages carved into cliff faces and massive
camel caravans traversing the desert,
Mali makes for a stunningly surreal
destination.
Rapidly developing, particularly in the
main cities, tourists can now find very
high standards of accommodation and
cuisine on offer. Intriguing and colourful
markets, vast desertscapes and ancient
tombs and relics are all waiting to be
discovered. All of this makes it hard to
believe Mali remains one of the world’s
poorest countries.
Few places in the world posed more
difficulties for early explorers than West
Africa. Its terrain was ferocious, with
dense jungles, swamps and waterways
that were almost impossible to navigate.
Many native peoples were hostile and
the wildlife was a constant threat. But
worst of all were the tropical diseases:
malaria, blackwater fever, typhus, Guinea
worm, dysentery and trypanosomiasis,
the latter also fatal for pack animals. The
region had such a high mortality rate for
Europeans that it came to be called the
‘White Man’s Grave’.
Nevertheless, explorers continued to
try to unveil its mysteries, and nothing
was more uncertain than the source of
the Niger. Did it link with Lake Chad,
the Nile, or the Congo? No one knew.
And was the fabled city of Timbuktu
truly full of gold? But when the African
Association in London began sending
expeditions across the Sahara to find
answers, they also dispatched men from
the sub-Saharan west coast. The first
was the Irish explorer Daniel Houghton
(1740-1791), one of the earliest
Europeans to travel through the interior
of West Africa.
In 1790, Houghton approached the
African Association proposing a mission
to travel up the Gambia River and
explore the hinterland of Africa’s west
coast. His optimism, determination
and apparent fearlessness worked in his
favour, as did his basic knowledge of
Arabic and Mandingo. His proposals
were accepted by the Association.
Houghton’s instructions were to sail to
the mouth of the Gambia, navigate the
river to the Barra Kunda Falls, and then
travel overland to the Hausa lands to the
east. He was also tasked with pinpointing
the exact location of Timbuktu as well as
charting the course of the Niger River.
Houghton sailed for Africa in October
1790. He landed at Barra in present-day
Gambia and proceeded to the trading
post of Pisania, eventually reaching the
frontier of the Kingdom of Wuli in early
1791. But he never did find a direct
route to the fabled city of Timbuktu,
and died of starvation in the hostile
3
TRAVEL
The Dogon remain
dogged defenders of
their customs, religion
and art, but in more
recent years they have
become the object of
a fairly intense tourist
industry.
The Dogon live in the
central plateau region of
Mali, south of the Niger
and are world renowned
for their mythology,
mask dances and
artwork.
interior of the Sahara. As the African Association
later noted on receiving the news of Houghton’s
death: “He had already passed the former limits
of European discovery”, for he explored the Niger
basin and rediscovered many of the lost Kingdoms
of Africa – countries that were once part of the old
Mali or Mandinka Empire.
Although Mali is today one of the poorest
countries in the world, it has a long and illustrious
past as an integral part of the great African
empires. The first of these empires was the Ghana
Empire which from the 4th to the 11th century
grew rich from the trans-Saharan caravan routes
in gold, ivory and salt. The Ghana fell under
invasions by the Muslim Almoravids in 1062
under the command of Abu-Bakr Ibn-Umar, but it
was succeeded by the Empire of Mali, which rose
to power under the rule of the great Mandinka
king Sundiata Keita. Mali reached its zenith
of power and wealth during the 14th century,
extending over almost all of West Africa and
controlling virtually all of the rich trans-Saharan
gold trade. It was during this period that Mali’s
great cities, Timbuktu and Djenné, became fabled
centres of wealth, learning and culture.
Mali’s power didn’t last much longer, for in the
15th century it fell to the Songhai Empire, who
had established their own capital at Gao, where
a small Songhai state had existed since the 11th
century. Its base of power was on a bend in the
Niger River in present-day Niger and Burkina
Faso. The Songhai held power until the end of
the 16th century, when the Moroccans crushed
the Askia dynasty in an invasion force led by the
indefatigable eunuch Judar Pasha. In the 17th
and 18th centuries, several small states developed
along the Niger basin but they fell during the
19th century holy war waged by the controversial
Muslim leader Al-Hajj Umar, whose theocratic
Tukulor Empire extended from Timbuktu to the
headwaters of the Niger and Sénégal. His son
and successor, Ahmadu Seku, was defeated by the
French in 1893.
After a short-lived federation with Sénégal, the
independent Republic of Mali was established
in 1960 under President Modibo Keita, who led
the country on a path of socialism, with a heavy
emphasis on the role of the public sector in the
economy. The country has suffered from periods of
internal and external strife ever since, as well as a
catastrophic drought in the early 1970s, but today
under President Amadou Toumani Toure, Mali
appears to be moving toward a stable, multi-party
democracy.
Mali is the seventh largest country in Africa, and
is bordered by seven other states: Algeria lies to the
north and northeast, Niger to the east, Burkina
Faso and the Ivory Coast (Côte d’Ivoire) to the
south, Guinea on the southwest, and Sénégal and
Mauritania on the west.
Although it cannot compete with the major
safari countries for sheer natural spectacle,
Mali is a nation of unusual interest and charm.
Like Egypt, Mali is a country that is intimately
related to its most renowned geographical
feature, the Niger River. Today, 1300 km of the
river, from Koulikoro in the west to Gao in the
northeast, is navigable at least for a few weeks of
the year (though the Sélingué Dam, upstream
from Bamako on a tributary of the Niger, has
considerably reduced the water level), and most of
the population lives on or near the Niger’s banks.
The Niger long fascinated the Europeans, but
it took them nearly 2000 years – until the 19th
century exploits of Daniel Houghton, Mungo
Park, Alexander Gordon Laing, René-Auguste
Caillié and Heinrich Barth – to find its source.
Despite the presence of the Niger, and the
headwaters of the Sénégal River which flow
through the western tip of the country, much
TRAVEL
of Mali lies in the Sahara. The extreme north is
almost entirely arid desert, empty except for a few
isolated oases and Tuareg camps. In the central
region, known as the Sahel, life follows the Niger’s
annual flood cycle, with high water between
August and November. In the southwestern area,
rainfall and rivers are more plentiful, and this
region is marginally more lush than the rest of the
country. Although Mali experiences only negligible
rainfall, the ‘rainy’ season in the south extends
from June to September.
Mali’s population comprises a number of
different peoples, including the Bamana (also
known as the Bambara). Numbering more than
three million, the Mande-speaking Bamana are the
largest linguistic community in the country and
they are concentrated in the region of Bamako and
Ségou. To the west, from the Manding Highlands
to the Sénégal River, the Malinké share a similar
language and customs and trace their roots to the
Mali Empire. The Songhai are concentrated in
the region of Gao to the north, while the Fulani
– after the Bamana, are one of the most populous
groups in Mali. The Tuareg, who are of Berber
origin, were pushed southward into present-day
Mali after the Arabs spread into North Africa from
the Arabian peninsula. The Moors (Maures), who
are localized in between Timbuktu and Nioro has
a sizeable population, and the Senoufo, who reside
near the Ivory Coast to the south are second in
status only to the Dogon.
The last of these groups, the Dogon, live in the
central plateau region of Mali, south of the Niger
and are world-renowned for their mythology, mask
dances and artwork, and a visit to their traditional
cliffside villages in the Bandiagara escarpment east
of Mopti is a fascinating experience, if not a little
strenuous in the heat.
Bamako, the capital of Mali, is located on the
Niger River, near the rapids that divide the Upper
and Middle Niger Valleys, in the southwestern
part of the country and has grown quickly since
independence. Today, evidence of modernisation
is only slowly penetrating the dusty city centre,
and with a population of over 1,800,000 it is
estimated to be the fastest growing city in Africa.
It contains many visitor attractions such as the
Grande Mosquée (a gift to Bamako from Saudi
Arabia), the street market around the new Marché
Rose, a zoo and botanical gardens, and a splendid
museum. The city also possesses many research
institutions and is the commercial hub of the
country.
The ancient commercial towns of Djenné,
Ségou, Mopti and Timbuktu owed their prosperity
to the Niger River, and you can still see why
the first European explorers were so impressed
by the richness and diversity of these cities.
Djenné, located on a meander of the Bani River,
is unquestionably the most beautiful city in the
Sahel and a memorable place to visit. In the main
square, the famous Grande Mosquée dominates
the town, and is the largest mud brick (or adobe)
building in the world. It is considered by many
architects to be the greatest achievement of the
Sudano-Sahelian architectural style, albeit with
definite Islamic influences. Djenné was designated
a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1988.
The third largest town in Mali, Ségou, makes a
very pleasant stopover between Bamako and Mopti
The Le Main de
Fatma mountain is
a spectacular rock
formation near Hombori
village, and offers the
best technical rock
climbing in West Africa.
Peter Holthusen,
pictured here on the
road to Timbuktu,
has often travelled
along the routes of
those early explorers,
reflecting on the issues
that preoccupied these
intrepid Victorians
and the nature of the
ultimate destination
which they were so
eager to reach.
and is fast becoming a worthwhile destination in
its own right. The town used to be the centre of
the old Bamana Empire, described in the famous
book of Maryse Condé.
Built on three islands connected by dykes, the
riverside town of Mopti was a backward village
in medieval times when Timbuktu and Djenné
were great imperial cities, but now the situation is
reversed and Mopti is an important port on the
Niger and a popular tourist destination. In the
Fishing Harbour, large, traditional ‘pinasses’ with
their canvas awnings and colourful flags come and
go. Traders sell their merchandise directly in the
market at the wharf.
Renowned as ‘The Forbidden City’, the
legendary desert town of Timbuktu has become
synonymous with remoteness and isolation. From
the time of the crusades, it was one of the main
entrepôts for the West African gold and rock-salt
trade which European finance relied on. It was
made prosperous by the tenth Emperor of the Mali
Empire, Mansa Musa. Today, Timbuktu is home
to Sankóre University and other madrasas, and
was an intellectual and spiritual capital and centre
for the propagation of Islam throughout Africa
in the 15th and 16th centuries. Its three great
mosques, Djingareyber, Sankóre and Sidi Yahya,
recall Timbuktu’s golden age. It is true, much of
the ancient lustre has disappeared, but you can still
feel the atmosphere of the legendary sultans, great
warriors and rich tradesmen ... but then, this is
Mali, ‘The Lost Kingdom of Africa’.
FURTHER INFORMATION
The Tourist Office of Mali
officetourismemali.com
HOW TO GET THERE
Air France
airfrance.co.uk
Royal Air Maroc
royalairmaroc.com
WHERE TO STAY
Laico El Farouk Hotel
laicohotels.com
Located on the banks of the Niger
River, in the heart of the capital and
just steps from the famous Martyrs
Bridge, this landmark hotel is one of
the finest in Mali.
Radisson Blu Hotel
radissonblu.com/hotel-bamako
This hotel offers a restful and
luxurious oasis away from the
bustling city centre of Bamako,
enviably located in the newly
developed district of ACI 2000.
A FAMILY HOLIDAY
TO REMEMBER
Glenmor Holiday Homes are available to rent and give you the chance to enjoy staying
at one of the most sought after destinations in the world – The Gleneagles Hotel®.
Glenmor Village is a development of luxurious 2, 3, and 4
bedroom holiday homes set around its own village green,
in the heart of Gleneagles’ spectacular grounds. You can
rent one of Glenmor’s delightful homes for 7 nights as well
as for three night and four night stays.
Fun, excitement, and adventures in endless acres of
beautiful countryside are all part of family holidays at
Glenmor – it’s the perfect playground for hours of thrilling
and exciting family activities, no matter what your age.
From cycling around lochs, playing Polo, training a gun
dog or even driving an Argo Cat there are so many outdoor
activities on offer, your children will never get bored –
and that leaves grown-ups with plenty of time to sample
the delights of The Spa or the three championship golf
courses!
Visit gleneagles.com/Glenmor,
call 01764 694 321 or email
[email protected] for more information.
3
HOMES
Amanda Hanley
Make a Statement
This Summer
This summer bright colours and vibrant patterns are integral to all the key trends
– and what better time to inject a new lease of life into your interiors and make
a statement, with stunning fabrics and wall coverings.
W
© Mulberry Home
© GP & J Baker
hether it’s a touch of the exotic with the latest tropical prints
and Caribbean colours, or a nature-inspired style with
vivacious horticulture patterns, summer is all about being
bold – so be brave and make a statement.
There is no doubt that colour has an important part to play in the success of
interiors. But, interestingly, it is much more subtle than just colour. You have
to add into this mix the other essential ingredient: texture. Both of these come
in the guise of fabrics, of which there has never been a better choice available.
For many interior designers, fabric has been an enduring passion. Each
season new fabric collections are introduced, marrying exquisite colour
combinations and designs with traditional and new weaving and printing
techniques for looks to inspire a whole scheme.
For the novice, choosing fabrics that work as
a family of colours can be a conundrum. So it’s
good to see so many fabric manufacturers now
producing collections combining a series of fabrics
that combine perfectly together. You can’t go
wrong with the many beautiful ranges currently
produced by GP & J Baker, Mulberry Home,
Lewis & Wood, Thibaut, and Threads. Use them
as a starting point to see how colour and texture
can be used to create a look that is anything but
contrived. Your eye will undoubtedly be drawn to
the colour first, but then take the second step to
feel the fabric. The texture is so important yet is
often overlooked.
Fabrics lend a softness to a home although they
can also add a sense of glamour and luxury. Once
you pick up on the feel of fabric, it’s easier to
become discerning about the choices you make.
Then it’s all about contrasting the textures to give
an interesting mix of colour and design. This mix
has the ability to create a home that appears to
have evolved over time, in the way many of the
most beautiful homes we admire in books and
magazines have been created.
Create a focus
© GP & J Baker
© Mulberry Home
Bright, bold and warming is a great look for
summer and can be easily achieved with the latest
prints and patterns. There’s no doubt that it’s wise
to think through a complete concept of colour,
but it’s not always possible to consider a complete
renovation in one fell swoop. If your home needs
to develop at a slower pace, choose a focal piece
and the colour and fabric choices you make will
bring rich rewards.
One stand-out piece of furniture can really make
a room. Give your antique pieces of furniture a
modern-day makeover and dress them in bold
floral or exotic prints to make a huge impact on
your space.
Simple solutions
Embrace the latest trends by investing in a
stylish new wall covering for your living space.
As well as the bold and busy tropical and floral
prints you will also find feather patterns, which
are timeless.
If playing with colour and texture seems a daunting prospect, gain
confidence by adding a few key colourful pieces to your home. A small
armchair or chaise covered in a luxurious fabric creates a focal point
and a feeling of opulence. A pair of elegant velvet upholstered chairs in
a hallway engenders an inviting space to welcome visitors. The ideas are
endless. And the satisfaction you’ll gain when you achieve the look and
feel of a comfortable home, through colour and fabric, is huge.
ABOUT AMANDA HANLEY
As fashions go, window treatments have taken a back
seat of late, but there is nothing more beautiful than
elegant curtains in a dining room. Framing windows
attractively by day, at night they add a sense of glamour
and richness to the simplest of rooms.
A friendly, Burford-based interior
designer offering a long-established
and highly regarded service, Amanda
works across London to the Cotswolds
and has built relationships with an
enviable network of suppliers and
craftsmen, giving her clients access to the
very best services and home décor.
Amanda Hanley by Design at the Gallery,
Burford, is a unique space packed with an
unrivalled collection of hand-picked fabrics,
wallpapers, lighting, mirrors, flooring, furniture
and objets d’art to suit all budgets. Amanda
sources her exclusive furniture stock on frequent
buying trips to Belgium and France, as well as
from prestigious brands like Mulberry Home, GP
& J Baker, Designers Guild and Lewis & Wood.
© GP & J Baker
Amanda Hanley by Design Tel: 01993 822899
amandahanley.co.uk
Visit Amanda’showroom: The Gallery, 69,
High Street, Burford, OX18 4QA
Adding Value HOMES
H
nt
al
at
er
a
e
a
o
e
k
d
a
e
or
g
Built in Solutions
Furniture
01865 575 579
www.built in solutions.co.uk
Over 40 internal and external doors displayed in real
settings featuring traditional and contemporary designs
combined with the highest possible levels of security
Visit us:
53 Westlands drive, Oxford OX3 9QS
Mon-Thurs 9am-5pm, Fri 9am-4pm Sat 9am-1pm
Contact us:
[email protected] | 01865 741135
Hand Crafted Custom Made Fitted Furniture
www.oxforddoors.co.uk
Mill Farm Barns, Lower Road, Long Hanborough, OX29 8LW
113
Real Wood
KITCHENS
01993 898808
www.realwoodkitchens.co.uk
Showroom Open
Visit our Bloxham
showroom to see our
inspirational new displays
Monday-Friday 9-5
Saturday 9-4
or by appointment
I take immense pride in designing and creating bespoke,
handmade objects in metal for the home and garden.
With many years of experience across the metalwork
industry and access to a great network of incredibly talented
craftsman in other disciplines I can complete a wide range
of unique projects.
I am passionate about maintaining the ancient craft whilst
incorporating modern design. I make everything by hand
using traditional blacksmithing techniques.
Unit C Park End Works, Croughton
Northamptonshire, NN13 5LX
t: 01869 810771 e: [email protected]
baillieandco.co.uk
NORTON LEISURE BUILDINGS
Oxfordshire’s Leading and Largest
Outdoor Building Suppliers
We are a family run business with
well over 25 years experience based in
Chipping Norton. We have a huge range
of garden buildings & conservatories
in Oxfordshire, Buckingham and the
surrounding areas.
Open 7 days a week
10am – 5pm
WIDE
RANGE OF
GARDEN
HOUSES
FAST & RELIABLE SERVICE • HIGH QUALITY SHEDS • COMPETITIVE PRICES
Banbury Road, Chipping Norton, Oxon OX7 5SY
Contact us today on:
01608 643 784
a building for every lifestyle
Visit our showsite in Wallingford,
Oxfordshire where you can see
about theallgardening
of our designsindustry.
in various sizes.
Open
7days
Never too scared to
take
onaaweek.
big
We have a keen eye for all things relating to gardens and are extremely passionate
We strive to provide the best possible service with a professional and friendly attitude.
challenge, we have a real knack for garden design, especially country gardens, often encompassing some quirky ideas.
FULLY INSULATED AND DOUBLE-GLAZED BESPOKE TIMBER BUILDINGS FOR USE AS:
Offices • Studios • Summerhouses • Hobby & Games Rooms • Workshops • Gyms
Wyndham House, Lupton Road, Wallingford, Oxfordshire OX10 9BT
Tel: 01491
839379NEEDS:
www.homesteadtimberbuildings.co.uk
CALL NOW TO DISCUSS ALL
YOUR GARDEN
07920 112 887 3 WANTAGE ROAD, HARWELL, OX11 0LJ
134
Your style,
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HOMES
Bring beach hut glamour
to your back garden
Summer is in full swing and there’s never been a better time to jazz up your garden
with a splash of colour that will last far beyond the floral blooms.
As part of a series of expert decorating features,
Paula Taylor, Marketing Manager of Crown
Decorating Centres gives the lowdown on
colour trends that will make your outdoor space
as stylish and bright as the interior.
Remember the days when you could have any
colour shed, fence, garden furniture or decking as
long as it was a shade of brown? How things have
changed from the days of pine, oak and mahogany
hues.
Now the choice of colour and finish for the
outdoor space of your home is vast – opening up
the opportunity to really stamp your personality
on it, in the same way you would for your lounge,
kitchen or bedroom.
A fresh coat of paint on your garden shed or
wooden furniture can breathe new life into your
al fresco space, create a whole new ambience and
make visitors think you’ve splashed out a fortune
on new kit.
The most popular trend has to be the beach hut
look – bold colours in an opaque finish that make
a major statement, while harking back to the good
old days of summer holidays, ice cream and walks
along the promenade.
Don’t be afraid to go for a suite of colours
either – much like this line up of beach huts at
Bournemouth (pictured), you can paint wooden
planters in complementary pastels or even mix and
match the colour of your tables and chairs for an
eclectic feel. Add a bit of bunting and fairy lights
to the equation and you have the perfect venue for
a summer evening barbeque.
Raid the loft for old
pieces of furniture and
spruce them up with
special exterior paint like
this old blanket box in
Sadolin Classic,
lilac shade.
Abingdon
Beds
Abingdon
Beds
Outstanding
offers for National
bed Month
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offers
for National
bed Month
(Offers
thrOughOut
March)
(Offers thrOughOut March)
We design, engineer and build beautiful wooden furniture at Abingdon Beds. We combine traditional
skills with precision technology to produce stylish, well-built, hand-finished pieces.
Vert
ss WIth thIs aD
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abingdon Beds, 13 sspring road, abingdon, Oxfordshire OX14 1ah
abingdon Beds,
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road, abingdon,
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tel:
fax: 01235
524141 OX14 1ah
tel: 01235 555255 fax: 01235 524141
What makes us different? We can make any item in any size and finish. Whether you need something for a
large period house or a neat contemporary space, you choose the size and finish to fit with your style.
www.abingdonbeds.co.uk
www.abingdonbeds.co.uk
OXFORDSHIRES BIGGEST INDEPENDENT
CARPET AND FLOORING SHOWROOM
free estimates | free measuring guides
VISIT OUR SHOWROOM
Kennington Flooring Ltd, Chancerygate Business Centre,
Transport Way, Cowley, Oxford OX4 6HE
Phone us on
A•C•H
FLOORING
SERVICES
01865 401700 or visit our website www.kenningtonflooring.co.uk
HOMES
Subtle shades of grey and green on decking,
furniture and wooden structures can give a
calming effect and remain a popular, classy
alternative to standard woodstain. Just like this
cabin in the south coast resort of Lyme Bay it
retains an air of calm while appearing fresh and
clean in the still popular Scandinavian style.
On a practical level, make sure you get some
advice on the best products to use. Even if your
shed or fence have seen better days, there are
products especially coloured or tinted ones, such
as Sadolin Superdec, that give excellent coverage to
weathered and previously painted surfaces.
Finally, if you take a look in the loft or shed you
might just find some old furniture that could be
given a new lease of life in the garden. Wooden
blanket chests (pictured) can be painted with
flexible yet durable outdoor paint such as Sadolin
Beautiflex to create extra seating and double up as
storage.
Meanwhile, old wooden step ladders with a lick
of paint or tinted woodstain make the perfect
backdrop for displaying terracotta plant pots, glass
jars with candles in and a gathering of garden
ornaments.
Remember, though, the better prepared your
wooden surface is, the better finish you can
achieve. Ask at your decorating store for advice.
Subtle shades of green make for a calming
effect on big structures such as sheds or
summerhouses.
Check out
www.crowndecoratorcentre.co.uk
for details of a wide range of woodcare
products as well as how-to video guides at
www.sadolin.co.uk/how-to-videos/
to help you to achieve a truly
professional finish.
Bring the great British beach hut feel to your
own back garden with Sadolin Superdec in
Lapis Lazuli. Add a little bunting and flowers
and you have a ready-made summer haven.
Give planters a makeover with fresh colours –
they’ll be good as new and protected from the
elements with Sadolin Superdec.
MANOR FLOORING
TALKS:
KITCHENS
ST12 
ST12 
If you’re lucky enough to have
a kitchen island, why not make
a statement by introducing a
border around it? Karndean
Designflooring offer numerous
options for personalising your
floor. Come and visit us in store
to get some ideas for your home.
VGW44T 
When planning the colours for your
new room, try pulling together a living
mood board of all the things you already have - or
plan to include - in your space. Group crockery,
fabrics, wallpaper and flooring samples together to
see how colour schemes work together.
Flooring in a hurry?
Not every project involves a complete
remodel. A lick of paint and a new floor can
be all you need to transform your kitchen.
Palio Clic by Karndean and Karndean
LooseLay are innovative easy-fit ranges quick
and easy to install and be laid over most
existing floors.
Come and see us in store:
Manor Flooring Ltd
11 Besselsleigh Road
Wootton OX13 6DN
Tel: 01865 321 554
Years ago, kitchen cabinets were either
wooden or beige. Nowadays you can have
any colour of the rainbow.
Why not team pastel blue units with a black
parquet floor for a trendy 50’s retro look?
Use bright coloured chairs, tables and
accessories to inject an extra splash of
colour to your room.
AP03 
CT4302 
Visit www.karndean.com/looselay and
karndean.com/palioclic for more information.
Make a statement with colour
xxx HOMES
VINYLS
CARPETS
WOOD FLOORING
INSTALLATION SERVICES
FULL FLOOR PREPARATION
FREE NO OBLIGATION
QUOTATIONS
11 Besselsleigh Road, Wootton OX13 6DN
Tel: 01865 321 554 Email: [email protected]
www.manorflooring.co.uk
115
H
Avenue 4
ROBERTS GARDEN MACHINERY
Station Lane, WitneyROBERTS GARDEN MACHINERY LTD
Tel: 01993 703833
LTD
ROBERTS
GARDEN
ROBERTS
GARDEN
MACHINERY
Formerly MACHINERY LTD
Formerly
Formerly
FREE ESTIMATES
Monday - Saturday 9.00am - 5.30pm
Formerly• Professional
servicing
Established: 1983
QUALITY PRODUCTS
at affordable prices
For a huge choice of carpets, vinyls,
wood & rugs, visit our showroom opposite
Sainsburys and see for yourself
GENUINE
GENUINE PRICING
PRICING
I EXPERIENCED
EXPERIENCED STAFF
STAFF I IMMEDIATE
IMMEDIATE DELIVERY
DELIVERY
Up to 12 months interest free, subject to status
www.carpetoptions.co.uk
PROFESSIONAL
SERVICING
• Professional
servicing
and
repairs
to most
AND REPAIRS TO MOST
and repairs
to
most
LEADING
BRANDS
GARDEN
leading
brands
ofOF
garden
MACHINERY
leading brands
of
garden
machinery
• Professional servicing
machineryNEW AND SECONDHAND
• New and secondhand MACHINERY
machinery
supplied
and repairs
to most
SUPPLIED
• New and secondhand machinery supplied
leading
brands
of garden
• Collection and delivery
by arrangement
COLLECTION
AND DELIVERY
BY
ARRANGEMENT
• Collection and delivery by arrangement
machinery
• Agents for:
• Agents for:
ARDISAM,
BRIGGS
&
•AL-KO,
New and
secondhand
machinery
supplied
Agents for
AL-KO,STRATTON,
ARDISAM, BRIGGS
&
DANARM, DR, MITOX,
•MASPORT,
Collection
and delivery
by arrangement
STRATTON,
DANARM,
DR,
MITOX,
AL-KO
• ARDISAM
• BRIGGS
& STRATTON
MURRAY,
TANAKA
DANARM
•
DR
•
MITOX
MASPORT,
MURRAY,
TANAKA
• Agents for:
OpenMASPORT
8-5 Mon-Fri
& 8-12• Sat
• MURRAY
TANAKA
Open 8-5
Mon-Fri
&
8-12
Sat
Unit H5,ARDISAM,
New Yatt Business
Center,
AL-KO,
BRIGGS
&
Unit H5,
New
Yatt
Business
Center,
Open
8-5
Mon-Fri
&
8-12
Sat
New
Yatt,
Witney.
OX29
6TJ
STRATTON, DANARM, DR, MITOX,
Unit H5,
New Yatt
Centre
New Yatt,
Witney.
OX29
6TJ Business
MASPORT,
MURRAY,
TANAKA
(01993) 881320
or Witney
07583 479724
New Yatt,
OX29 6TJ
881320
or 07583
479724
(01993)Open
881320 01993
or Mon-Fri
07583
479724
& 8-12
Sat
Email:8-5
[email protected]
H5,[email protected]
New Yatt Business Center,
Email:
Email:Unit
[email protected]
New Yatt, Witney. OX29 6TJ
(01993) 881320 or 07583 479724
Visit our beautiful
refurbished showroom
Oxfordshire’s
Leading
andParkLargest
2a Thorney
Leys Business
Witney OX28 4GE opposite B&Q
Outdoor Building Suppliers
Open 7 days a week
10am – 5pm
Homestyle are proud
to be introducing
flush-fitting casement windows
We are a family run business with
well over 25 years experience based in
Chipping Norton. We have a huge range
of garden buildings & conservatories
in Oxfordshire, Buckingham and the
surrounding areas.
conservatories
windows
doors
WIDE
RANGE OF
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The timber alternative window, without
the high price tag or maintenance costs.
Whilst traditionally used in older cottage
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If you are window shopping, visit our
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to see• COMPETITIVE
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Banbury
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Chipping Norton, Oxon OX7 5SY
T:
01993
768618
Contact us today on:
www.homestylewindows.co.uk
01608 643 784
We have a keen eye for all things relating to gardens and are extremely passionate about the gardening industry.
We strive to provide the best possible service with a professional and friendly attitude. Never too scared to take on a big
challenge, we have a real knack for garden design, especially country gardens, often encompassing some quirky ideas.
CALL NOW TO DISCUSS ALL YOUR GARDEN NEEDS:
134
07920 112 887 3 WANTAGE ROAD, HARWELL, OX11 0LJ
GARDENING
My gardening pride,
passion and local politics
I
www.memyspadeandi.com
Introduction
It brings me enormous pleasure to
write this monthly column, which
includes lots of practical gardening
tips, what to do now and how to
do it, as well as introductions to a
vast array of plants you may not be
familiar with. I am extremely excited
to be walking you through this year’s
long adventure, talking you through
the seasons, bringing you informative
articles on all sizes of garden,
gardening techniques, showcasing
our landscape projects to inspire you,
and most importantly reminding you
of the jobs that you need to be doing
each month.
Whether you love your garden and
long for the summer, so you can see
it come to life again, or find it a real
burden, there is definitely a garden
for everyone.
Above all, I hope you will learn
something new along the way……..
n the wake of our recent historic,
political events, I feel it is my duty
as a gardener to stand up and get on
my soapbox. I know this all sounds
serious and is essentially just gardening,
however, what I am about to say does
actually involve every single person that
pays their taxes to the community.
Have you noticed over the years that
the hanging baskets and the floral
displays in our cities, towns and villages
are not what they used to be? I am highly
critical of the gardens that Me, My Spade
& I look after, so I may be overly cynical
with my view but it pains me to see that
there isn’t a wide-spread love of gardening
and pride in public spaces that there
once was.
As I walk through the Oxfordshire
town of Didcot, where I was born and
bred, I see weeds growing rapidly on the
kerb side, brambles and stinging nettles
growing out of over-grown hedge rows
and the grass, oh the grass... It is such a
shame that the councils are employing
nothing more than labour to look after
our parks, green spaces and flower beds.
Some of the grass in our parks is being
left to grow for up to six weeks, and
when it is cut, the cuttings are simple
left on top (a real pet hate of mine). The
grass can then send up flower heads,
which are the primary cause of hay fever
– an allergy which I suffer from in a
horrendous manner. (The irony of being
a gardener as well as a hay fever sufferer is
not lost on me). My memory of Didcot
from when I was a child was of ‘Tony the
Tractor Man’ and huge hanging baskets
from lamp posts, so big that the plants
virtually touched the ground from 15
feet up. Tony would drive along the high
street with his blue tractor and water
tank and water the baskets daily. The
lawns would be cut weekly, parks cut
fortnightly and the flower beds planted
for the winter and then for the summer.
Didcot was a pleasant place to be, it was
tidy and loved, Didcot to me, does not
feel like that now.
I understand that there are budget cuts
and that councils are under pressure to
spend less, but there is no longer any
care taken in horticultural planning.
Grass cutting, weeding, cutting back
bushes in the summer and digging over
beds in the winter are essential for health
and safety.
I have seen women and children
walking into the road in order to make
their way around low branches on
trees near the pathways, this simply is
dangerous, Things need to change and
change quickly, I would love to speak to
the people in question and help reform
the way we approach the commercial
horticultural work in our communities.
Imagine a world where people who
enjoy horticulture had the power to
look after our cities, towns and villages,
delivering some old-fashioned hard work
and care to the green areas that give so
much to us and ask for so little in return.
Why are we happy to accept these
scruffy careless conditions? Personally
I don’t think we are. I think we are all
unhappy with how the parks look or that
the grass is only cut every six weeks and
left to rot, which makes these areas far
more unhealthy.
Instead of throwing unskilled labour
with machinery at the ground, why not
allow skilled professionals and dedicated
members of the public to work in the
areas in question?
I would welcome the powers that be to
contact me to see where I could possibly
offer assistance in bringing a better
working system within the needs of the
council budgets with regards to grounds
maintenance contracts.
I would also welcome pictures from
you in the trouble areas of your towns
or villages and together we can right
the wrongs and make for a better
community.
GARDENING
Fabulous Filkins…….
We look after an incredibly unusual
garden in Filkins, near Burford, which is
split by a dry stone wall running straight
through the middle. When my team
first arrived at the property, one of the
stipuations from the owner was that no
pink plants should be used. The previous
designer presumably misheard this
instruction as “only pink plants”, as that
seemed to be one of the only colours on
show. When Me, My Spade & I started
maintaining the garden, the owner was
open to suggestion and other than the
“no pink” brief, we were given free rein to
redesign the space as we saw fit.
We started with a very formal small
bed near the back door, I filled this area
with box balls, white hellebores, white
dicentra or bleeding hearts and two
amazing Jasmonides ‘Trachelospermum’
climbing the walls. It is a simple but
stunning design and the effect looks
wonderful in its first full year of growth.
The small bed along the front of the
patio that runs parallel to the drive took
on a similar theme, surrounded by a
box hedge with box balls in the middle;
it was softened
with Nepeta and
lavenders.
The third patio
bed is around
twice the size of
the first two, it
also has a box
hedge surrounding
it with box balls
running through
to keep the theme.
That is where
similarities finish
and we move in
to a new style of
bed, more cottage
planting with a
bed full of Stipa
‘Tenuissima’ with
roses, phlox and Lillium ‘Regale’ to add
fragrance while Jenny and Nick dine
outside in the summer.
The same planting theme runs through
the middle lawn beds, very cottage in
style with yew trees in the dark corner of
the bed to add shape and structure to the
bed during the winter months. The big
August in the garden….
1. Water features
Keep an eye on your ponds and water
features. With the heat in August and
over the last few months, water features
can lose the water that resides in them.
Obviously for wild life it is imperative
to keep the water topped up but many
people forget that pond pumps can run
dry which results in a broken pump,
keep them topped up whenever you can
and, if possible, use rain water.
2. Wisteria
Give your wisteria its summer prune.
Wisterias are brilliant plants and react
well to pruning; the purpose of pruning
at this time of year is solely to keep
them looking neat. If left through the
summer, not only do they not look their
best but pruning in October will be
harder as that is when you prune them
by half before a further spring prune.
3. Bearded Irises
I love an iris, not only are they majestic
plants but they bring joy to any garden.
They are easy to grow and they tend
to look after themselves beautifully,
however they do like to be split. If they
are growing on top of each other you
may find that they won’t want to flower.
On an overcast day when the sun won’t
bake the root system, lift and divide as
much as possible and be sure to keep
them watered for the next few weeks.
4. Collect seeds
Whether it is from alliums or foxgloves,
whatever your choice, collect the seeds
from your plants so you can pot-up in
the greenhouse and germinate over the
winter, this is the time to do so.
5. Deadhead
By deadheading your plants as much as
possible you are ensuring lots of growth
and plenty of flowers throughout the
year. You often hear me say this and
always will, such is the importance of
this point for a colourful garden.
6. Cut back faded perennials
Be brave, cut back any faded perennials
as they don’t look their best anymore.
Sometimes you will get a second flush
of flowers and sometimes you will
just get new, green growth, either way
you will end up with a tidier looking
garden.
show piece of this bed is where the wall
splits the garden, there is an opening to
the rear garden and we have planted two
big cardoons or you may also know them
as artichoke.
In the spring we spent over £12,000
on trees which included eight Betula
‘jacquemontii’ standing six meters tall,
with six instant yew columns at three
meters tall and measuring 90cm x 90cm.
The reason we planted the columns was
to bring structure to the garden through
the winter months, creating giants that
look over the garden and keep up interest
in the dark days of winter. They get
eclipsed through the summer by sheer
colour from the plants surrounding them
almost like they can disappear in the
busyness of the flower beds below them. I
love yew trees and although a major risk,
the garden works brilliantly and hits the
“Chelsea Flower Show” demands Jenny
requested!
In short, we have had so much fun
with the planting of the rear garden and
I was allowed free reign which is almost
never allowed. With some clever planting
and creative design, we managed to
turn a dull area of the garden which was
avoided most of the time into a show
piece that Jenny and Nick can now enjoy.
Me, My Spade and I, based in
Oxfordshire and providing specialist
horticultural garden services
throughout the Home Counties and
London. From residential houses
to commercial sites which include
full garden design, plant selection,
landscaping and installation.
Tom Nicholas of Me, My Spade and I.
memyspadeandi.com 07920 112 887
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116
HOMES
Spotlight:
Parlour Farm Kitchens
At OX we love small, local businesses who display a true passion for attention to
detail, artistry and pride in what they do. Each month, we’re going to shine our
Spotlight on a small to medium scale business who we think embody these values
and celebrate the best of Oxfordshire’s small business. For August, we spoke to
Parlour Farm Kitchens’ designer Zoe Blizzard about her attitude to her work and the
best way to approach the usage of space in your kitchen.
savvy to the fact that there are very good
quality polished concrete worktops, for
example, as well as Stilestone which is a
granite composite. When I was younger,
granite was seen as quite high-end,
whereas now it’s very much the norm. The
rule of thumb with worktops is that the
more work it is for the manufacturer, the
more expensive it is, so wood and granite
are often the two most cost-effective
options, probably followed by Stilestone,
which uses set granite crystals so you can
regulate the pattern going through them.
At the top end you have resin worktops
like Corian which are more expensive.
They offer different qualities.
Hi Zoe, what’s your background in
kitchen design?
I fell into it, in a way. I worked in the
design team of another kitchen company
for around four years, then decided to join
Parlour Farm because they really fitted
with my way of working and how I wanted
to work. The difference was that Parlour
Farm are completely bespoke, which gave
me the freedom to design how I want. If I
can draw it, they can probably build it.
What factors do you take into
consideration?
Essentially, we have a series of criteria
which we try to fulfil in collaboration
with the customer. We focus on their
wants and needs in terms of appliances
that they need or storage solutions that
they have their eye on. Then I’ll draw up
a plan using the customer’s preferences
but also with my creative input in
terms of the best way to use the space.
We’ll talk about textures and colours,
as well as the type of worktops they’re
looking for. A lot of people don’t take
things like taps and handles into too
much consideration, but when you start
talking to them they tend to realise that
the “kitchen jewellery” can make such a
massive difference to the result.
How do you choose which materials
to use?
Worktop-wise, there’s a lot more on offer
these days and people are becoming more
Do you have a kitchen that you are
most proud of?
We did a large kitchen [pictured] that
I’m incredibly proud of. The customers
had a plan for the kitchen, but due to
some changes they had to make to their
extension building, they had to reassess
the plan. We had a look over their ideas
and went to look at the space available
to us, and we came up with a fresh idea
based on what they originally wanted and
it came out beautifully.
What’s your kitchen nightmare?
I’m not a big fan of the high-gloss trend
that’s in at the moment. We deal with
solid timber, so we tend to be quite
traditional in finish, although there
are methods of modernising the look
depending on how you fit the kitchen. I
feel that high-gloss frontals have become
a bit of a fad at the moment, and I’m
hoping that the trend swerves back
towards the more classical styles.
parlourfarm.com
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HOMES xxxx
HOMES
Architecture and the Senses
TOUCH
Architect Anthony Pettorino shares his thoughts on human experience
through the sense of touch and how it connects with design.
The stone handrail in Gaudi’s
Sagrada Familia shows the
stone made smooth by countless
hands sliding their way up for
over a century
Gaudi’s
ws the
countless
ay up for
torino
ough
how
n.
pleasure and pain are understood very quickly, from birth (or
sooner) when our touch memories begin. Hot hurts, soft is nice,
wet is just wet and then words for describing the way things feel
start to occupy a large chunk of the dictionary.
In life, I have found that there are a handful of things
less abstract
than
create
smell
orIn a
encountered
thatthose
are so that
profound
they sight,
never leave
you.
previous
I mentioned
blind children
heads
sound. Sightarticle
is upside
down,
yet themodelling
world their
is the
where one model included gums, teeth and a tongue. This next
rightone
wayis to
up.
The
fact
that
the
sensation
of
touch
do with infants’ drawings of houses. An American art
and make
writer I came
across
whento
researching
at university
is so teacher
real may
us less
likely
be aware
of
how children’s drawings evolve from when they first
how studied
abstract
it
actually
is.
pick up a pen and trash the living room wall. A child of any
Philosophers
frequently
debate
tactile
concepts
age will happily
draw a house,
usually the
one they
live in, or at
attempt it. There is one thing you can almost guarantee
such least
as
pain.
Is
it
a
level
playing
field?
Do
I
feel
that will be recognisable on the drawing. There might be wobbly
the same
amount
pain
you if aandpin
is curly
stuck
windows,
a roof ofof
some
sort,asa chimney
some
smoke
but hat
oneor
thing
a door
most importantly
into my
flesh
do isyou
justand
complain
more? theNodoor
handle, because that is how you get in.
one knows
answer
to this
question.
Or more
Childrenthe
mostly
draw from
memory,
visual memories
are fairly
unreliable,
but tactile
such as using
a door handle are
weirdly,
can pain
be memories,
simply willed
away?
less so. Children’s drawings of people will have five fingers, but
To Igrasp
how
sense
of touch
is, like
look
wouldn’t
wantprimal
fingers orthe
hands
that looked
anything
a ball
skewered They
with five
needles.
Theypoke
are notand
drawing
is seen,
at children.
prod,
they
putwhat
things
but what is known. A strange thing happens as they get older,
in their
havesoa the
ridiculous
number
theirmouths
knowledge(lips
increases,
detail in the
drawings does
too. Clothes
mightPhysical
have buttons,
shoes gain
(or are
Velcro),
of nerve
endings).
pleasure
andlaces
pain
nostrils appear, eye lashes and so on, but does it look like a
understood
very
quickly,
from
birth
(or
sooner)
person? More like an elaborate stick figure with too much detail.
whenThere
our istouch
Hotinterest
hurts,in soft
is
a pointmemories
where many begin.
children lose
drawing
they start to see that their artwork bears little resemblance
nice, as
wet
is
just
wet
and
then
words
for
describing
to reality. Ask these same people to draw a person when they
the way
things
feel
start there
to occupy
a large chunk
of
become
adults,
invariably
will be embarrassment,
as they
are drawing from the same memories, five fingers, buttons, laces
the dictionary.
etc. To draw what you actually see requires looking. Something
In life,
I have less
found
there
areexpect.
a handful
that happens
oftenthat
than you
might
It takes lots of
time toencountered
take in and accurately
drawso
all that
detail. Hard
enough
of things
that are
profound
they
normally but in this world of diminishing attention spans it’s a
nevermiracle
leavethat
you.
In
a
previous
article
I
mentioned
artists continue to emerge.
TOUCH
P
TOUCH
blind children modelling their heads where one
Possibly the least considered sense when it comes to designing buildings.
model included
gums,
teeth
and a pre-conceptions
tongue. This
ossibly the least considered sense when
now that I’ve
messed
up common
It’s easy to underestimate how muchSo
of
our tactile
experience
makes
up our
thisistaken
for with
granted
tactile existence,
how,
we as
next of
one
to do
infants’
drawings
ofdohouses.
it comes to designing buildings. It’s
designers,
ensure
that this primal
sense
is not ignored?
general awareness
and
memories.
previous
articles
I’ve
mentioned
‘the
An In
American
art
teacher
and
writer
I
came
across
easy to underestimate
how much
of our
The legendary Catalan architect Antoni Gaudi took touch very
mind’s
nose’
(Aroma)
and
‘the
sphere
of
perception’
(Intro
to
Architecture
and
Every one
of his projects
addressed
whenseriously.
researching
at university
studied
howthe smallest
tactile experience makes up our general
detail. Experimenting
withhow
clay hedo
designed
handles
for doors,
the
Sense).
Tactile
awareness
is
undeniably
real
but
we
describe
it?
Do
children’s
drawings evolve from when they first
awareness and memories. In previous articles I’ve
windows, taps and cupboards, handrails and seating. Every
we
have
a
mind’s
body,
or
just
a
mind
and
a
body?
Possibly the least considered sense
when it ‘the
comes
to designing
buildings.and ‘the
pick object
up a pen
trash the
wall.
mentioned
mind’s
nose’ (Aroma)
took and
into account
everyliving
part ofroom
the body
thatAwould
It’s easy to underestimate how sphere
much ofof
our
tactile experience
up our
contact with it resulting in beautiful organic objects with
childbeofinany
age will happily draw a house, usually
perception’
(Intromakes
to Architecture
and
places for fingers and palms to nest whilst doing mundane tasks
general awareness and memories. In previous articles I’ve mentioned ‘the
the one
live
or The
atisleast
attempt
it.up.
There
the Senses).
Tactile
awareness
is undeniably
real
suchthey
as opening
doors.
stone
handrail
in Gaudi’s
Sagrada
Biologically,
touch
is defined
as a combination
yet
thein,
world
the right
way
The
fact that
mind’s nose’ (Aroma) and ‘the sphere
of perception’
(Intro
to Architecture
and
showsalmost
the stone
made smooth
bywill
countless
is oneFamilia
thing(photo)
yousensation
can
thatreal
how doreal
we but
describe
we have
atemperature,
mind’s
the Sense). Tactile awareness isbut
undeniably
doit?
weDo
describe
it? Do
of how
sensory
experiences;
texture,
the
of guarantee
touch
is so
may make
hands sliding their way up for over a century.
we have a mind’s body, or just abody,
mind or
andjust
a body?
recognisable
on
the
drawing.
There
might
be
a mind
and aand
body?
pressure
the stretching of the skinbeare
aThe important
us less
likely
to be
aware
of
howwe
abstract
it
thing
is to
think
about
the things
that
touch
and windows,
makeactually
the experience
as possible.
Every now and
few. isNot
muchashelp
really but just stop
and
wobbly
a is.
roof asofgood
some
sort, a chimney
Biologically, touch
defined
a combination
Biologically, touch is defined as a combination
yet the world is the right way up. The fact that
then I get a thank you message from a client in Australia. It
focus on
the
endlesstexture,
flow
of tactile data
Philosophers
frequently
debate
tactile
Anthony
can temperature, of
andthat
some
smoke
but
that
oneallthing
is ofa door
sensorytheexperiences;
temperature,
of sensory experiences;
texture,
sensation of touch
is so real may
make
will be curly
winter there,
early
morning
and
because
a small
Architect
Anthony
Pettorino
is
finding
itsofthe
way
to are
creating
mind’s
concepts
as
pain.
itbecause
a level
playing
pressure
and the stretching
are a
us less
to be aware
how
abstract
ita few. your and
electrically
heated mat such
installed
beneath
theIs
floor
tiles
under his
most
importantly
the door
handle,
pressure
and
thelikely
stretching
of
skin
be
contacted
at of the skin
much help really
and
actually is.interpretation of your physical contact with
in front
of theDo
sharesfew.hisNotthoughts
onbut just stop
field?
that isfeethow
you
getloo.in.I feel the same amount of pain as
NotthatmuchPhilosophers
help really frequently
but just stop
and focus
Pettorino
Design of tactile data
focus on the endless
debate tactile
human
experienceflow
through mind’s
the
world.
I data
can’t
find
an
equivalent toChildren
the
you if adraw
pin is
stuck
into myvisual
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PAGE TURNER
they get older, their knowledge increases, so the
detail in the drawings does too. Clothes might
have buttons, shoes gain laces (or Velcro), nostrils
appear, eye lashes and so on, but does it look like
a person? More like an elaborate stick figure with
too much detail. There is a point where many
children lose interest in drawing as they start to
see that their artwork bears little resemblance to
reality. Ask these same people to draw a person
when they become adults, invariably there will be
embarrassment, as they are drawing from the same
memories, five fingers, buttons, laces etc. To draw
what you actually see requires looking. Something
that happens less often than you might expect. It
takes lots of time to take in and accurately draw
all that detail. Hard enough normally but in this
world of diminishing attention spans it’s a miracle
that artists continue to emerge.
So now that I’ve messed up common preconceptions of this taken for granted tactile
existence, how, do we as designers, ensure that
this primal sense is not ignored? The legendary
Catalan architect Antoni Gaudi took touch very
seriously. Every one of his projects addressed
the smallest detail. Experimenting with clay he
designed handles for doors, windows, taps and
cupboards, handrails and seating. Every object
took into account every part of the body that
would be in contact with it resulting in beautiful
organic objects with places for fingers and palms to
nest whilst doing mundane tasks such as opening
doors. The stone handrail in Gaudi’s Sagrada
Familia (photo) shows the stone made smooth
by countless hands sliding their way up for over a
century.
The important thing is to think about the things
that we touch and make the experience as good
as possible. Every now and then I get a thank you
message from a client in Australia (it will be winter
there, early morning and all) because of a small
Architect
Pettorino
electrically Anthony
heated mat installed
beneath the floor
tiles under
feet in front
shares
his his
thoughts
onof the loo.
The stone handrail in Gaudi’s
Sagrada Familia shows the
stone made smooth by countless
hands sliding their way up for
over a century
When my editor told me my next assignment would be ‘beach
novels’, I asked for clarification. Did he mean the delicious
crop of summer literary fiction that would delight you all?
No, he said, I want you to read airport novels – chick lit and
commercial fiction. So, not wanting to spend too much money,
I raided charity shops and Poundland to bring you this column.
Someone give me a Pulitzer for investigative reporting.
Beach novels fall broadly into two categories. The first, a hard-bitten
detective/lawyer/cop/spy who exerts devastating charm over the
women in his environs solves a case despite interference from those
in power. The second has Our Heroine, who is either single or with
very much the Wrong Man, dealing with her work and family, and who
ends up with the right chap by the end of the book. The classic beach
novel is thick enough to be used as an improvised offensive weapon,
although this is not always the case. Both types have stock characters,
an undemanding but page-turning plot, and are forms of wish
fulfilment. The characters have the sex we want to have, the wardrobe
we wish we could afford, and the lifestyle we know we deserve.
So, are they any good? They certainly do not offer deep
philosophical insights into the human psyche, but they are not trying
to. That is like going to McDonald’s and expecting Michelin-starred
food. I suspect we all have our favourites – my dog-eared, battered
copies of Jilly Cooper may be hidden under the bed, but I will sink
into the muscled arms of Rupert Campbell-Black as he shags his way
through Rutshire when I am having a particularly bad day.
My Poundland adventures brought back The Desperate Bride’s
Diet Club, the epitome of chick lit. It has a pink title in cursive. It has
a sparkly wedding dress and a woman eating cake on the cover. It
features an Italian Stallion, two weddings, friendship forged through
adversity, and neatly ties up all storylines with a big sparkly bow. I
Possibly
the least
sense
when with
it comes
designing buildings.
wanted
to hateconsidered
it. Instead, I spent
an evening
my besttofriend
reading
bits aloud with her
andmuch
cackling.
reports
say that
It’s easy
to underestimate
how
ofHowever,
our tactile
experience
makes up our
lit sales areand
falling.
The new breed
of beach novel
is a bitI’ve
darker
generalchick
awareness
memories.
In previous
articles
mentioned ‘the
edgier,
with psychological
thrillers like
Girl on the Train
mind’s and
nose’
(Aroma)
and ‘the sphere
of The
perception’
(Introand
to Architecture and
Gone Girl taking the normally harmless character quirks of the heroine
the Sense). Tactile awareness is undeniably real but how do we describe it? Do
and ramping them up to alcoholism and psychopathy. But they are still
we have
a mind’s
orthe
just
a mind
and
a body?
beach
novels,body,
taking on
mantle
of the
juggernaut
John Grisham
with their tight plotlines and gritty descriptions of suburban life.
Beach
novels
have their
place. They are notyet
great
andright way up. The fact that
Biologically,
touch
is defined
as a combination
the literature,
world is the
reading
too manytemperature,
in a row is liable
to make you
ill. But being
po- is so real may make
of sensory
experiences;
texture,
thefeel
sensation
of touch
andstretching
highbrow allofthe
at dinner
pressurefaced
and the
thetime
skinmakes
are ayou dull
us and
lessbad
likely
to be aware of how abstract it
don’t
pack
that
copy
of Murakami
that youis.
said you would
few. Notparties.
much So
help
really
but
just
stop
and
actually
read
on
holiday,
and
indulge
in
a
little
trash.
I
won’t
tell,
I promise.
focus on the endless flow of tactile data that
Philosophers
frequently debate tactile
TOUCH
human experience through
the sense of touch and how
it connects with design.
is finding its way to creating your mind’s
interpretation of your physical contact with
the world. I can’t find an equivalent to the
mind’s eye or mind’s nose here. It’s too real
on one hand, but then equally as abstract
on the other. It may be that because touch
is so primal that it is taken for granted. Touch
concepts such as pain. Is it a level playing
field? Do I feel the same amount of pain as
you if a pin is stuck into my flesh or do you
just complain more? No one knows the
answer to this question. Or more weirdly, can
pain be simply willed away?
To grasp how primal the sense of touch
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EDUCATION
Not So Trivial Pursuits
C
All activities
encourage pupils to
set their sights on
a world beyond the
school gates.
okethorpe School offers a broad range
of subjects at both GCSE and A Level,
but it also believes that pupils should
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All activities encourage pupils to set their
sights on a world beyond the school gates. An
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group Modernising Medical Microbiology
(‘ModMedMicro’), to improve hand hygiene
education. As part of this initiative, they visited
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hands and environment and see what resulting
bacteria grew up on agar plates. The resulting
multi-coloured bacterial colonies were examined
under the microscope and were identified
using the widespread lab technique known as
‘gram staining’.
The students also presented an Assembly to
the Junior School which inspired the children
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handwashing in hospitals. The entries were so
well-received by ModMedMicro that their art
was blown up and displayed on the walls at four
major Oxfordshire hospitals to promote WHO
International Hand Hygiene Day.
The Cokethorpe-ModMedMicro collaboration
was spearheaded by Dr Dona Foster at the
University of Oxford and Dr Flaherty, Head
of Science at the School. Dr Foster used the
collaboration to investigate whether hand hygiene
education could have an impact on children’s days
of absence and an abstract of this research has been
submitted for publication.
For the students to participate in real world
research and see the process through to potential
publication is a remarkably valuable experience
and a perfect showcase for what the extracurricular programme is aiming to achieve.
Find out more at our
Open Morning
Saturday 24
September 2016
9.30am - 12.00pm
www.cokethorpe.org.uk
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Adver
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ment
feature
New lease
of life for 85-year-old Jim
Bridge House has become a real home-from-home for Jim Hall since he moved
there in 2014 and he has become a welcome addition.
“Coming here has given me a new lease of life! I was
nervous about it to start with, but I’m so glad now that
I’ve made the move. Bridge House Care Home provides
the companionship I lacked and offers so much more
than I expected,” says Jim, aged 85, who is from Scotland.
Jim was born in The Gorbals in Glasgow in 1930, at the
start of the Great Depression. He nevertheless went
on to work in plasma physics at the nearby Culham
Laboratory and set up the first screen-based online
information service in the UK – 10 years before Google!
“With my son and my daughter we looked at quite a few
Care Homes in the area and, to be honest, when we saw
Bridge House we weren’t sure that it was affordable – it
looks so luxurious and there is so much laid on for the
residents. There’s a wonderful bistro, health club and spa,
a cinema, a gym – which I use every day! – a library, a bar,
organised outings and lots and lots more.
“With all the home comforts that Bridge House offers, it
really is the wonderful staff who make all the difference.
“They are so warm and friendly and made me feel
comfortable and at ‘home’ within a matter of days”.
Bridge House manager, June Maharaj, says: “We are
delighted that Jim has come to join us. We provide
totally personalised care for all our 71 residents and we
try to make everyone feel that they can be part of our
community whenever they wish, whilst still giving them
privacy, if that’s what they need.
“We know we are getting it right when, like Jim, our
residents tell us they feel totally at home.
“We are particularly proud of our Riverly Club. It adjoins
Bridge House and is open to Abingdon residents aged
55 and over, offering exercise classes, a spa and a range
of other activities. Our residents all have automatic
membership of the club and so feel as though they are
still part of the wider community as they can mix with
visiting club members on a daily basis.”
Tel: 01235 856002 www.bridgehouseabingdon.co.uk
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MOTORS
“We’re grown-ups now and things have changed”… a
road trip in the Infiniti Q70
How will Brexit impact on Britain’s motor industry?
The F-Pace is already a winner for Jag
Dream Drive…Rolls-Royce Phantom II
Our running report…Suzuki Swift
BY KEVIN HAGGARTHY
MOTORS
“WE’RE GROWN-UPS
NOW AND THINGS
HAVE CHANGED”
INFINITI Q70
combination of the performance it delivers along
with the environmentally friendly plug-in hybrid
aspect of it make it ideal for him, not to mention
the fantastic M sport package it has. I will of
course focus on the Q70 – it makes a lot of sense
to make some comparisons, but I’m not here to
review the two.
With the 2.2 litre diesel engine in the Infiniti, we
were worried that four days of driving in France
would become a problem, with warnings of a fuel
‘crisis’ in France as everyone was on strike. The
plug-in option of the BMW looked by far the
safest option, but as it turns out our worries were
unfounded, as with the large tank capacity we still
had half a tank in the Q70 by the time we got
back to England, despite hauling 5 people around
at all times and with a well-utilised boot.
Scott Penn and
friends take a
road trip in the
Infiniti Q70
T
ake ten friends, two cars, 2,000
kilometres and a long bank holiday
weekend and what do you get? An
epic road trip, worthy of stories to be
told years down the line? Drunken nights doing
dangerous things?
Perhaps ten years ago, or five years for the
younger ones among us…
But we’re grown-ups now and things have
changed. Those of us who still drink don’t get
drunk, and it’s more likely to be a glass of wine
with dinner than a bottle of Lambrini at the park.
We do the washing up. We make the beds. The
only thing that hasn’t changed is the reliance on
cars.
We’ve all been on this particular trip a few times.
A Fiat Punto and a VW Polo from the first trip
were upgraded to a Renault Laguna and a Golf
GTi for the second. Granted, we were all smaller
back then, so the compact hatchbacks didn’t seem
quite as small, but they just don’t compare to what
we were equipped with this time: an Infiniti Q70
2.2d and a BMW 330e, two very capable mile
crunchers and similarly priced as well.
I won’t dwell too long on the BMW. It’s a very
nice car and suits the needs of its owner well – the
Let’s talk about that boot.
I overpack, I’ll admit it. What with the emergency
kit, breakdown kit, French driving kit (required by
law), snow shovel, spare shoes, spare waterproofs
for passengers in event of an accident, spare bottles
of water, screen wash, emergency diesel, spare
towels, and chocolate bars in case of emergency,
you’d imagine we would have been pushed for
space, and that’s just what occupies my boot most
of the time. Added to this was a large coolbox
for the beach picnics, beach towels, a whole stack
of board games and their huge boxes. It was a
struggle to get five people’s luggage in on top of all
of that, but miraculously, it all fitted.
The Q70’s boot is absolutely cavernous. Perhaps
it might look about the same size as the boot on
the 330e, but the BMW has a battery where the
Q70’s spare wheel would be, which reduces space
inside the boot. The BMW is also a smaller car, so
the fact that three suitcases could stand up in the
boot of the Q70 made the world of difference. No
one had to have their bags on their laps, no one
had to have anything in the footwells, and I didn’t
have my view obstructed by things on the rear
shelf. It was as comfortable as it could be.
Although with three tall guys, how comfortable
can they be in the back of a car, squashed in there
Infiniti Q70
INFINITI Q70
A DIFFERENT
KIND OF LUXURY
The Pulse-Racing Luxury Saloon
Infiniti Centre Reading
25-27 Rose Kiln Lane,
0118 907 1333
Reading, RG2 0JZ
[email protected]
 InfinitiRetailGroup
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www.infiniti-reading.co.uk
Official fuel economy figures for the Infiniti Q70 range in mpg (l/100 km): urban 19 to 47.9 (5.9 to 14.9), extra urban 38.2 to 64.2 (4.4 to 7.4), combined 27.7 to 57.6 (4.9 to 10.2). CO2
emission: 129 to 235 g/km.
117064J
MOTORS
together? Another surprise – quite comfortable.
Okay, so it worked out better when we had one
of the smaller people of the group swap into the
middle seat in our car from the BMW, but for
some of the longest journeys we had three guys
dozing in the back of the car.
There are two things I’ve not commented on
yet: the traditional selling points of cars – the
performance and the sound system. Speak to me
ten years ago and the first thing I would have
asked was how fast it could go.
Well here’s the answer – 110km/h on the
motorways, 50km/h in town. Yes, it can go much
faster, and at times the power of the car was put to
good use, but with four friends inside and another
car to keep in convoy with, it never even crossed
either of our minds to drive any faster than the
legal limit, despite it being lower than what we’re
used to in the UK.
So why haven’t I focussed on the performance?
I know from driving this beast for the past few
months that it’s more than capable of competing
with its peers, especially using paddle shift gear
changes in Sport mode, so surely that’s a great
thing to talk about? No, this is a taste thing, and
I didn’t want performance for this trip. I wanted
comfort, a bit more refinement and class. Give me
ventilated, air-conditioned seats over acceleration.
Give me lumbar support, memory seats, welcome
lighting and intelligent cruise control over horse
power.
Everyone’s tastes were quite aligned when it
came to the sound system. Yes, I’m a lucky so
and so, I had the Bose Premium Sound System
in my car because I was driving a Sport Tech.
Everyone remarked on the speakers embedded
into the front seats at ear level for surround sound
and the fantastic sound quality, and as if Infiniti
anticipated this very trip, the car has doubleglazing front and back as standard for a whisperquiet journey.
I may write like a retiree, but believe it or not I’m
a spritely 28 years old, not exactly the poster-child
for youthful abandon, but at the same time we
kept active on our trip. We hit the beach and had
a barbecue, drove to more beaches and harbours,
had dinner in town, and so on, but gone are the
days of spending eight hours twisted sideways
with suitcases on our laps, of shouting above the
engine/road/wind noise, and of caring more about
the speed and handling of the car than the comfort
of our passengers.
I said on the trip that if I were spending my own
money I’d buy the Infiniti over the 330e. Both are
similarly priced in cash but the Infiniti is by far
the cheaper of the two on finance. Not everyone
would go with my choice – that taste thing again
– but all of my passengers would wholeheartedly
agree. This is a new generation of driver, and
we want different things from our cars, without
making any compromises. It’s lucky Infiniti is on
hand to cater for our ever-growing list of demands.
infiniti.co.uk
MOTORS
BREXIT:
WHAT HAPPENS TO
OUR CAR INDUSTRY?
How will Brexit impact on Britain’s motor industry? Naturally, we’ll be keeping a regular
eye on this, but the only thing we can be sure of at this stage is uncertainty. It’s too
early to make predictions of doom and gloom, and only the long and tedious process
of negotiation will in the end tell the real story.
A
t this point, the prospects don’t look
great. The pound has gone deep sea
diving, and no major car company is
talking about future investment plans
in Britain…for now.
BMW (who own Mini and Rolls-Royce), the
Volkswagen group (Bentley), the Indian company
Tata (Jaguar and Land Rover), Nissan (with a big
manufacturing investment in the UK), and of
course Ford and Vauxhall all have massive stakes
in achieving commercial and trade agreements
fitting their global market status and all are saying
‘business as usual’…for now.
It’s worrying of course, the global car industry
is booming, currently one of the biggest growth
industries in the UK, and the world. The
industry needs both skilled and increasingly more
specialised personnel to take on new challenges
and opportunities.
If we end up getting into tariff wars with Europe
it’ll be a hell of a lot more expensive to buy a new
European car, even with a stronger pound. Brexit
means car companies have many new problems to
face. Nissan, for example, build not far off half a
million cars in the UK and export most of them
abroad. Successful Brexit negotiations will prove
critical to sustaining the thousands of new jobs in
Britain Nissan have created.
So what of the future? What will
happen to British jobs?
Some researchers are predicting billions in losses to
the UK motor industry. The truth is it is genuinely
too early to say. Negotiations need to take their
course. Her Majesty’s advice is to keep calm; we
suggest that’s probably the best advice for now.
Panic doesn’t achieve sound results.
The industry
needs both
skilled and
increasingly
more specialised
personnel to
take on new
challenges and
opportunities.
© Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Ltd
MOTORS
DREAM DRIVE
ROLLS-ROYCE
PHANTOM II
We all have our dreams. One day Andy Murray dreamed of winning Wimbledon. He’s won
it twice. Lewis Hamilton dreamed of winning the British Grand Prix; he’s won it four times
and is three times world champion. Both are absolutely remarkable achievements. But
dreams are made of many things, and for many it is the dream of owning a Rolls-Royce.
The stuff of dreams
It is often said the realisation of a dream can be an
anti-climax. But we doubt winning Wimbledon
was anticlimactic for Murray, and Hamilton’s
victory at Silverstone looked to us like it was one
of the best days of his life…and if a Rolls-Royce is
the making of your dreams we can assure you that
the Phantom II will exceed them.
Price by the way is not the issue here. With this
vehicle the price is a guide only; you simply order
your specification, and then at some point RollsRoyce will send you an itemised bill. You’ll receive
the spec sheet and cast a cursory glance over it
before you get it paid. You thus become custodian
of one of the world’s greatest ultimate luxury cars
with prestige beyond rival.
The credibility this car deserves should not be
taken away. It is an amazing experience from the
very second you enter the cabin. The leather seats
are sumptuous and the wood is exquisite. Your feet
are wrapped in deep sheepskin rugs (most people
take their shoes off just to savour the experience)
and just in case that’s not enough there is an
electric foot adjustment panel to turn the comfort
level from excellent to perfect.
MOTORS
Every area of touch and feel on the Phantom
is a sensuous experience – the chromed door
handles, the switchgear, and the leather panelled
doors. Should you be seated to the rear the
fridge contains room and depth for a full bottle
of champagne, and behind it sits an illuminated
glass cabinet with crystal champagne flutes – of
the highest quality of course. Whilst settled in
the back you may choose to watch television or
work on your lap top. You could be excused for
forgetting that you are in anything but a luxury
lounge, for the Phantom II lacks nothing in the
way of both luxury and comfort. If you’re tired
of working you can always just opt for a Shiatsu
massage.
Seamless power
You’d think then that driving the Phantom
should be left to the business of a chauffeur.
In many cases it will be, but this should not
detract from the rewarding driving experience
the Phantom II delivers. The biggest factor is
the size, but with familiarity you get used to it.
Seamless power, surprising overtaking ability and
effortlessness are the ‘driving forces’ here. So driver
friendly is this car that you could use it day to day;
your biggest hurdle being only finding somewhere
to park it!
© Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Ltd.
The 6.75 litre V12 engine that powers this car to
149 mph generates a staggering 460bhp and 531lb
per foot of torque. It does so silently, and many a
Rolls-Royce owner is known to have forgotten the
engine is still running once they have parked up,
so unbelievably quiet and refined is this machine.
You glide to your destination, regardless of the
terrain, wiping away the day’s mental stresses
with its serenity and sense of making you feel
‘oh so special’ – especially at night when you’re
accompanied by the unique star effect lighting in
the roof lining. Everywhere you will see quality
and craftsmanship. This is the experience you are
paying for, and whilst a few brands do it very well,
none make you feel as special as Rolls-Royce. The
reputation a Rolls-Royce has for being one of the
finest luxury cars on the planet is both earned and
deserved.
MOTORS
JAGUAR F-PACE
Sports Utility Vehicles, commonly known as SUVs are all the rage now. Trends
show that we buy these cars much more than others. Sport and utility are the
key words here. We love stylish sporting cars, but practicality is important too.
There’s hardly a mainstream manufacturer without an SUV model, and now the
luxury brands are picking up on their popularity by introducing their own.
B
entley’s new Bentayga is their first shot
at the sector, and with an 187 mph top
speed it’s quoted as the fastest 4x4 in the
world, Maserati have also just launched
their first SUV, the Levante, and now Jaguar are all
excited by their new F-Pace, and so would you be
if you were in their shoes as it is the fastest selling
Jag yet!
The F-Pace is built at Jaguar Land Rover’s
Solihull Advanced Manufacturing Plant, along
with the Land Rover Discovery, Range Rover,
Range Rover Sport and Jaguar XE. It uses
Jaguar’s aluminium lightweight architecture for
both lightness and stiffness, achieving strong
performance along with good emissions figures.
Engine options begin with the 2.0 litre 180PS
4-cylinder turbocharged diesel starting from
£35,020, moving up to a more powerful 3.0 litre
V6 Diesel putting out some 300PS. And there’s
a sure driver’s choice, the meaty V6 supercharged
petrol version generating a whopping 380PS.
The F-Pace comes with a selection of high-tech
equipment too, including something neat called
an Activity Key. This is a wristband that allows
owners to leave their traditional key inside the car
while they are taking part in sporting activities.
There’s also a Wi-Fi hotspot in the car and an
InControl app, which lets owners remotely preheat
the F-Pace, as well as check their fuel status or the
location of the car.
The F-Pace is already a winner for Jag. We’ll keep
an eye on its progress for you; right now they can’t
sell enough of them.
The F-Pace is already a winner for Jag
IS THE ORIGINAL SUV
STILL THE BEST?
Take a closer look at the Jeep Grand Cherokee and you’ll
begin to see why it is the most awarded SUV* ever.
Is it the best? Book a test drive and you decide.
0% APR REPRESENTATIVE†
UP TO £3,000 JEEP DEPOSIT CONTRIBUTION
Call us today to arrange a test drive: Unity Oxford
Banbury Road, Shipton-on-Cherwell, Kidlington, Oxfordshire OX5 1JH.
Tel: 01865 376000 www.unityautomotive.co.uk
Model shown is the Jeep Grand Cherokee 3.0 litre V6 Summit at £52,715 OTR including special paint at £720. OFFICIAL FUEL CONSUMPTION FIGURES FOR THE JEEP® GRAND CHEROKEE
RANGE IN MPG (L/100KM): EXTRA URBAN 29.4 (9.6) – 43.5 (6.5), URBAN 13.9 (20.3) – 30.4 (9.3), COMBINED 20.9 (13.5) – 37.7 (7.5), CO2 EMISSIONS: 315 – 198 G/KM. Fuel consumption and CO
2
figures are obtained for comparative purposes in accordance with EC directives/ regulations and may not be representative of real-life driving conditions. *Claim relates to Jeep Grand Cherokee nameplate over its lifetime. †Promotion available on new Grand Cherokee models
registered between 1st April and 31st July 2016. Jeep Deposit Contribution only available in conjunction with Jeep Hire Purchase. 0% APR Representative Hire Purchase available for a 3 year term with a minimum deposit of 12% required. Finance subject to status. Guarantees may be
required. Terms and Conditions apply. Jeep Financial Services, PO BOX 4465, Slough, SL1 0RW. We work with a number of creditors including Jeep Financial Services. Jeep® is a registered trademark of FCA US LLC.
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everyday from 10.00am
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