Capital culture
Oxford: a city brimming with current and future world leaders in the arts and sciences. A place with a richly diverse population. A centre of culture for centuries - both in Britain and abroad. Why then, is the town's bid to become the European Capital of Culture in 2008 lagging behind its rivals? The comparatively unglamorous competitors from Belfast, Liverpool and Newcastle-Gateshead are already attracting the smart bets as the bookmakers' favourites. And when Tony Blair makes his selection on behalf of the UK next year, it seems that one of these cities will be sucking up even more bureaucratic bounty. Up to £100m, to be exact. It is also projected that winning the title could create around 10,000 new jobs. ...
Features: Blair's bass babe
"Guuuys, guuuuuuys. We... we could be quite good. No nooo, we could. We just have to make sure that we're all playing the same song, at the same time." The frightfully middle-class pleading tones of persuasion of everybody's new best friend are convincing enough as they are, let alone with the thrusting hand actions, earnest head-bobbing and constant eye-contact that accompany them. Mark Ellen's impression of bandmate Tony Blair during his time as frontman of the Ugly Rumours in the Oxford of the early seventies is uncanny. So it was true; our Prime Minister really did want to be a rock'n'roll star....
Features: A scandal in the stables - an insider's view
We've all heard the joke at least a hundred times; the 'broke' in Pembroke, it is said, is more than a coincidence. With the greatest of respect to the Earl of Pembroke, this Oxford college couldn't have picked a more unfortunate name. Since its considerable decline in the latter half of the previous century, Pembroke, we were told, was financially much more settled now. Recent events would prove otherwise, for how else, we Pembrokians cry, was the Reverend Platt's and Ms Mary-Jane Hilton's behaviour necessary?...
Features: Holiday Hitch
If you were leaving Oxford by the Abingdon bypass on Monday of 9th week last term, you may have seen hoards of hitchhikers at the roundabout. These were the brave Morocco hikers as they started their 1600-mile trawl through France and Spain in aid of Link Community Development. All 47 Oxford hitchers made it in the end. Of the ten universities which do the charity hitch, we had both the fastest and slowest hitch pair: Ed Davey (Brasenose) and Tina Tolonen (Merton) made it in a staggering 44 hours, while Boris Lau (St. John's) and Nathaniel Charlton (Balliol) took 13 days! ...
Features: Birds on the ball
Don't blink, you did read right. Girls and Football in the same sentence. Yes, they do go together. Not quite like birds of a feather perhaps, but birds do flock onto football pitches. Contrary to popular (male) opinion, girls can play football. We know our Puma Kings from our Adidas Predators, and if you catch us in a cocky mood, we'll even explain the offside rule to you males who try and fob us off with half-hearted dribble. No pun intended. ...
Features: Letter from America
Sinking down from 30,000 feet into the heart of the most powerful nation in the post Ice-Age era, how on earth are you supposed to feel on entering America for the first time? Cool detachment won't hold, the place will be too big and weird - big people, big cars, big noise. Irony will be lost, people will be too neurotic or too trailer-trashy. But the other option, being genuinely open, interested and impressionable, seems unthinkable because then you'd be... just like them. ...