Oxford's biggest student newspaper, produced by and for members of the University of Oxford, since 1991.
Recently, a spate of cases from the Home Office have cropped up involving academics being threatened with deportation or having their or their children’s visas rejected. This has doubtless caused significant emotional and psychological turbulence for these academics, but we might go deeper and ask: Why now, are there so many patently unfair decisions being […]
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Living in Oxford sometimes feel like living in a bubble: the big quads, formal halls and black-tie events seem to bring us ever further away from reality. I wished so many times that I could go back to the normal-looking, charming streets back home with shops that don’t just sell souvenirs or over-priced food. But […]
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From cannon-bluster to the Turl Street dash, and from recognition in the Daily Mail in 1979 to more modern recognition as a particularly fierce rivalry on Wikipedia, the Turl Street rivalry between Exeter and Jesus is rather exciting, as far as college rivalries go. Compare the pitiful ‘wars’ of recent times exemplified by the petty […]
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An anonymous second year student at Hertford college, has recently been fined £500, as well as being banned from all social spaces within his college for Michaelmas term due to stealing a stuffed fox from Hertford’s MCR. The student was trashed after his first year exams holding the fox, and has since then been discovered […]
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Reuben Cooper – DON’T BAN BORIS FROM BALLIOL IF YOU BELIEVE IN FREE SPEECH Whatever your opinion of the man, to bar Boris Johnson from Balliol would be censorship in all but name. It would feed into the unfortunate stereotype of ‘wokeness’ or ‘snowflake-ism’, often touted by the political right to decry the increasing levels […]
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Common Ground Oxford released a statement on Monday condemning the ‘Gandhi at 150’ symposium that is being held by Somerville and Balliol on the 23rd October. The symposium marks the 150th birthday of Mahatma Gandhi and is being organised by the Oxford India Centre for Sustainable Development. There will be an introduction from the Chancellor […]
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Image description: scenes from the protest on Monday evening The Oxford Climate Justice Campaign disrupted a recruitment event held by Glencore on Monday night. Glencore is one of the world’s largest natural resource companies and the Climate Justice Campaign described them as “climate criminals”. The official event, organised and advertised by the University careers service, […]
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Imposter syndrome is an idea spoken about a lot in Oxford, especially during the start of the academic year. It’s the feeling that you don’t quite belong here – that your offer was a result of a mistake and someone else should have been accepted instead. Imposter syndrome is not unique to Oxford, but the […]
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Image description – Library books tunnel The ‘Oxford bubble’ is a concept we all know well – when in the bubble you can think of nothing but your Oxford workload. Completing your essay feels like a matter of life and death. But it is also a dangerous one. When I was in my worst place, […]
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My dearest Solomans, You’ve been my one and only since freshers’. I cemented our love with a loyalty card, each smiley stamp bringing a sense of achievement I have yet to experience in other aspects of my life. But I have a confession. I didn’t mean to do what I did, you have to […]
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Image description: Jessica Searle, Merton Gender Equality rep Jessica Searle is a 2nd year Mertonian studying Politics, Philosophy, and Economics. She was voted Gender Equality Representative by the JCR, a role made especially interesting by Merton celebrating 40 years since women were introduced into the college. Speaking to Jessica about what her role includes and […]
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Let’s assume you’re a fresher. If you’re actually reading this in print form, then let’s face it, you probably are. Having just arrived in a new, unfamiliar environment, and needing to be heavily caffeinated to get any work done, you contemplate your options. You’ve found the big coffee chains in the town centre, but you […]
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Forgive me Father, for I have sinned. I am a Gen-Z-Millennial cusp, and I do not like avocados. Or rather, I do not share my generation’s fanatical fetish for the green fleshy fruit. Done well, they’re fine. I could take them or leave them. Done badly, they taste like texture. My mother and […]
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Bethan Roberts reflects on the stress of collections As everyone knows, the best way to start a term at Oxford is with a healthy burst of exam stress. At least it must be, since every term begins with a collection. As I start my final year, I still do not understand collections. As we all […]
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An open letter condemning the university’s decision to accept a £150 million grant from Stephen A. Schwarzman, Chair-man of multinational investment firm Blackstone, has attracted nearly a hundred signatures from numerous Oxford stakeholders. The university has accepted the do-nation in order to fund the building of a new “Stephen A. Schwarzman Centre for the Humanities”. […]
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Nathan de Giorgi, a second year music student at Hertford College, made a name for himself last year off the back of several successful musical theatre appearances including ‘A Little Night Music’ and ‘Made in Dagehnam’. As the President of the Hertford Music Society (HCMS), choral award holder, and conductor of the Hertford Orchestra, Nathan […]
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It’s surreal to think the term is about to start. After four months away, and it being well into October, it seems ridiculous to say it’s the end of summer. The holiday is so long the new school year almost feels like New Year’s (I am pulling at strings here). Point is it’s a […]
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Image description: My boyfriend and I at Wadham Commemoration Ball 2019 The life of an Oxford student can, at times, create a certain disconnect with the world outside. For me, my link to home is my partner, James. From the beginning, our relationship has been closely tied to my Oxford journey: our first date was […]
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Image Description: Photo of the Radcliffe Camera Bleary eyed and bawling, a new group of students will find themselves thrust into the confusion and terror of Oxford University this October. Having passed through the group stages and achieved their offer, they’ll realise with dismay that the real contest begins now: the relentless pursuit of relevance […]
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