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Oxfordshire | Archive | 2007 | February

Stories for 2 February 2007

Bicester News

Father fears for his family

A father fears his family is being targeted after paint bombs were thrown at his house and his locks were glued up. more...

Hundreds sign grave petition

Hundreds of Bicester residents have signed a petition against plans to build above-ground graves near their homes. more...

Neighbours from hell who waged a campaign of harassment against a Bicester family who complained about the smell of their Chinese cooking have been told to pay more than £26,000 in compensation. more...

Nightmare next door

Business News

'I was a whistleblower' — Torex boss

Oxford businessman Neil Mitchell, who has been asked to step down as chief executive of Torex Retail, said he blew the whistle to Britain's Serious Fraud Office (SFO) over the state of the company accounts. more...

'I was a whistleblower' — Torex boss

Cimena

Scandalously good

Notes on a Scandal is a riveting adaptation of Zoe Heller's best-selling novel about a naive comprehensive schoolteacher, who entertains the sexual overtures of a student and falls foul of a vindictive colleague. more...

Columns

Cabbages and Kings: February 2, 2007

THE Renault van bore a personalised 04 number plate and a flashing light unit attached to the roof. The words Dog Walking Service' were painted, together with Oxford phone numbers along its sides. It was a highly professional-looking set-up. more...

Editorial Comment

Dirty old man should be in jail

Pensioner Eric Cole is a very lucky man. more...

Features

Pooling creativity

TALK about being thrown in at the deep end. George Fenton, long recognised as one of the world's best film score composers, had not been keeping up to date with events at his old Oxford school. more...

Films This Week

Click to see films from 2 Feb - 8 Feb

Corn Exchange, Newbury: Sixty-Six, 12A, Fri 2.30pm. Box office 01635 522733. more...

Football

FOOTBALL: Boss Still in Pegasus warning

Ardley United manager Dan Still has warned his side against complacency when they travel to Pegasus Juniors for tomorrow's Premier Division encounter. more...

FOOTBALL: Fowler praises Bicester battlers

Bicester Town boss Tim Fowler has praised the efforts of his players after they fought back to draw 3-3 at Witney United in Sport Italia Hellenic League Premier Division on Tuesday night. more...

FOOTBALL: Launton trio hit doubles

SAM Donaldson, Aarron Davies and Wesley Lewis all bagged doubles as Launton Sports fought back in style to beat Kennington 9-4 in the Oxfordshire Senior League Premier Division. more...

FOOTBALL: Buckley nets a hat-trick

Daniel Buckley hammered a hat-trick for Chesterton Juniors as they eased into the semi-finals of the Under 14 Knockout Cup with a 4-2 win at Moreton Rangers. more...

Headlines

Accused headteacher has to wait until April

A HEADTEACHER accused of bullying staff and professional misconduct will have to wait until April to find out whether the charges have been upheld. more...

'Witney has a real community spirit'

SHOPPERS and market traders have been praised after coming to the assistance of a pedestrian hit by a bus. more...

Leader

Square deal

It is a little worrying to see the price tag for the revamp of Oxford's Bonn Square rising by 30 per cent to £1.9m. The city council rather brushes this off saying that costs are not out of control. more...

Cleanest county

If there is one thing that gets our readers going, it is an unsightly mess on the streets and spaces of our beautiful city and county. more...

Cleanest county

If there is one thing that gets our readers going, it is an unsightly mess on the streets and spaces of our beautiful city and county. more...

Cleanest county?

If there is one thing that gets our readers going, it is an unsightly mess on the streets and spaces of our beautiful city and county. more...

Letters

Let us make up our own minds

I totally agree with David Young (Oxford Mail, January 23) that using a mobile phone in any form is a distraction. more...

Wide of the mark

City councillor David Rundle's 'revolution in rubbish' epitomises present day politics (Oxford Mail, January 23). more...

Canal basin revival offers viable vision

Sir - There never was a lock between the canal basin and Oxford Canal. The basin could be reinstated at its original level, without the lock that Paul Hornby (Letters, January 26) claims would cost so much. more...

Central library needs improvement

Sir - As an appreciative regular user of Oxford's Central Library, I am very concerned by rumours - as yet there is no publicly available information - that the Westgate development will lead to an actual reduction in size of this key city centre building. more...

Monumental project

Sir - Your paper reported on the ambitious plans for the new Oxford Brookes campus. more...

Scandalous treatment

Sir - I would like to point out one of the more serious iniquities that the Government has imposed on our National Health Service. more...

Real benefits

Sir - I would like to put another (the patient's) perspective and correct some errors in last week's article on Choose and Book Referral process could get worse by Victoria Owen (January 26). more...

Unitary sense

Sir - Oxford City Council is making a unitary bid to take over all the functions which the county council handles in the city, to add to its own. more...

Abysmal performance

Sir - Councillor Stephen Tall waffles endlessly (Letters, January 26) with the bitterness and siege mentality that so characterises politicians at Oxford City Council. In doing so he draws a convenient veil over the appalling shortcomings of his own authority. more...

Superb training

Sir - Your correspondent Irene Gill disregards the positive aspects of soldering to make her case (Letters, January 26). more...

Urgent subjects

Sir - At the age of 85, and admittedly a has-been, nevertheless I am genuinely perplexed by the number of pedestrians, together with a few cyclists and even the odd vehicle driver, who pass me by with what appears to be a mobile phone clamped to one ear. more...

Shooting messengers

Sir - English, Welsh and Scottish Railway (Report, January 19) have really lost the plot here. No, they are not operating a "secure site with entry through a locked gate requiring a security code". They are operating an "open site which anyone can walk into by crossing the railway". A chain is only as strong as its weakest link. more...

Unwanted tax

Sir - Once again Oxfordshire County Council is seeking to impose a residents' parking scheme on the North Summertown area of Oxford, despite the fact that such a scheme has already been rejected once by a majority of residents in a previous consultation last year. more...

Aesthetic storage

Sir - We think that congratulations must go to the council for their latest recycling initiatives. more...

Notoriously rude

Sir - Having recently been a guest in one of the colleges of Oxford University, I was utterly flabbergasted by the rudeness and disrespect shown by the porters toward myself and the college's students. more...

Name change needed

Sir - More than 30 years ago the Governors of the Radcliffe Infirmary, anticipating the ultimate closure of that hospital, agreed that the building at Headington should be named The John Radcliffe Hospital so as to perpetuate the memory of Oxford's great medical benefactor. more...

Motoring News

Peugeot peps up city car range

PEUGEOT'S 107 entry-model is available in a new three-door Sport XS' trim level for young-minded individuals who like a more racy and personalised vehicle. more...

Cooper gives turbo boost to Mini

A COOPER badge will appear on a diesel-powered version of the Oxford-built Mini for the first time in showrooms in April. more...

Peugeot peps up city car range

PEUGEOT'S 107 entry-model is available in a new three-door Sport XS' trim level for young-minded individuals who like a more racy and personalised vehicle. more...

Cooper gives turbo boost to Mini

A COOPER badge will appear on a diesel-powered version of the Oxford-built Mini for the first time in showrooms in April. more...

Lone Wolf

Patrick Wolf has been obsessed with musical instruments since buying his first keyboard at a car boot sale, at the age of 11. more...

A 21-year-old man has been given an £80 fixed penalty notice for causing criminal damage to Christmas lighting in the Westgate Centre, Oxford. more...

'Drag' vandal fined £80

A 21-year-old man has been given an £80 fixed penalty notice for causing criminal damage to Christmas lighting in the Westgate Centre, Oxford. more...

Sex offender recaptured

A SEX offender who went on the run in Oxfordshire after breaking a curfew on Wednesday was back in police custody tonight. more...

Non Leage

FOOTBALL: Brooks ponders Salisbury move

Didcot Town manager Stuart Peace is hoping to hold on to his former Oxford United winger Jamie Brooks (pictured) after Conference South outfit Salisbury City put in a bid. more...

FOOTBALL: Kidlington hit by DeBanks injury

Kidlington youngster Jamie DeBanks could be out for the rest of the season after breaking a leg while on county duty last week. more...

FOOTBALL: Kidlington hit by DeBanks injury

Kidlington youngster Jamie DeBanks could be out for the rest of the season after breaking a leg while on county duty last week. more...

FOOTBALL: Kidlington hit by DeBanks blow

KIDLINGTON youngster Jamie DeBanks could be out for the rest of the Hellenic League season after breaking a leg while on county duty last week. more...

Obituaries

Mr David Edwards Transport and planning manager for Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals Trust

Some could say that David Edwards had one of the hardest jobs in Oxford. more...

Mr David Edwards
Transport and planning manager for Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals Trust

Some could say that David Edwards had one of the hardest jobs in Oxford. more...

Mr David Edwards
Transport and planning manager for Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals Trust

Some could say that David Edwards had one of the hardest jobs in Oxford.  more...

Other News
Mental health care cuts row

MENTAL health patients are being put at risk by NHS managers' cost-cutting plans to reduce psychology services in Oxfordshire.  more...

Other Sport
BADMINTON: Oxon 3rd on brink

OXFORDSHIRE 3rd continued their great run in the County Championship with a 10-5 victory over Cornwall 2nd at St Austell.  more...

MOTOR SPORT: Groves lands top accolade

Martin Groves (pictured right), from Wendlebury, near Bicester, received his 2006 MSA British Hillclimb Champions Trophy from former world champion Damon Hill at a star-studded awards ceremony at the exclusive Royal Automobile Club on London's Pall Mall.  more...

MOTOR SPORT: Groves lands top accolade

Martin Groves from Wendlebury, near Bicester, received his 2006 MSA British Hillclimb Champions Trophy from former world champion Damon Hill at a star-studded awards ceremony at the exclusive Royal Automobile Club on London's Pall Mall.  more...

Oxford News
Sex attacker spared jail

A pensioner who sexually abused a six-year-old girl was spared jail by a judge - and told to compensate her with money for a new bike.  more...

Ben's bike found

This is the bike Oxford teenager Ben Halsey-Jones was riding when he fell into the River Thames at Port Meadow.  more...

Raid uncovers cannabis farm

Police have uncovered another cannabis farm in Oxford after being tipped off that every room in a Headington house was being used to grow the drug.  more...

Billy Bragg Hosts music debate

Political activist and musician Billy Bragg is to host the first in a series of three debates at Oxford's Ruskin College on the power of music.  more...

Yobs leave residents fearful

A gang has been terrorising residents in Headington, Oxford - so much so that some are now afraid to leave their homes.  more...

Two join police on estate beat

Crimefighters on an Oxford estate have been given a shot in the arm as two police community support officers hit the beat.  more...

You WILL have a water meter

Oxfordshire households may have to install water meters under Government proposals to tackle water shortages.  more...

Headline

On sea level, there has been a more fundamental debate.  more...

Missing man found

A man with mental health problems who escaped from his carers has been found by police.  more...

Smoke alarm saves family

A family in Headington had a lucky escape after they were woken by their smoke alarm when a fire started in their home.  more...

Missing sex offender found

A dangerous sex offender who went on the run in Oxfordshire after breaking a curfew on Wednesday was back in police custody tonight.  more...

'Mounties' tackle city crime

The cavalry has arrived - mounted police are in Oxford for the return of Operation Backlash - a clampdown on the city's most prolific criminals.  more...

'Mounties' tackle city crime

The cavalry has arrived - mounted police are in Oxford for the return of Operation Backlash - a clampdown on the city's most prolific criminals.  more...

Oxford United
JIM SMITH: THE BIG INTERVIEW

JIM Smith is rallying his beleaguered Oxford United troops by insisting: "A new season starts here."  more...

Restaurant Reviews
Razalla dazzle!

It had been years since I'd stumbled into the Aziz on Cowley Road, and having written unfavourable things about its new sister restaurant, the Aziz Pandesia at Folly Bridge, I thought I'd better trot back to where I'd started and revisit the ghost of Christmas past.  more...

Results And Fixtures
FIXTURES: February 3

SATURDAY FOOTBALL NATIONWIDE CONFERENCE Oxford Utd v Cambridge Utd.  more...

FIXTURES: February 3

SATURDAY FOOTBALL NATIONWIDE CONFERENCE Oxford Utd v Cambridge Utd.  more...

Rugby
RUGBY UNION: Lynch-Smith is success story

MATT Maudsley says Duncan Lynch-Smith's promotion to Oxford Harlequins' first team is another boost for the city's rugby partnership.  more...

RUGBY UNION: Witney recall Chatterton

SIMON Chatterton replaces Alan Richens at lock and prop Andy Gosling returns on the bench when Witney host Tadley in Southern Counties North.  more...

RUGBY: Bicester promotion hopes fade

Bicester's promotion bid suffered another jolt as they went down to Premier Division leaders Wallingford in a hard-fought 12-7 defeat at Oxford Road.  more...

Share Prices
Today's local share prices (AM)

AEA Technology 112.75 BMW 3099 Electrocomponents 287.5 Isoft Group 50.5 Oxford Biomedica 42.25 Oxford Instruments 270.25 Reed Elsevier 594.75 RM 194.75 RPS Group 296 Oxonica 142.5   more...

Today's local share prices (PM)

AEA Technology 109.75 BMW 3101 Electrocomponents 288.25 Isoft Group 49.75 Oxford Biomedica 46 Oxford Instruments 272 Reed Elsevier 599 RM 196 RPS Group 296.25 Oxonica 142.5   more...

Theatre
Lenny as himself - it’s scary!

Life's not all 'katanga my friend', you know. There are other things out there. It can't all be crotch jokes, although I do a lot of them and they're greeeeat," Lenny Henry says in that trademark squeal.  more...

Witney News
Ebay lonely heart gets a makeover

Bachelor Mark Broughton, who is seeking the love of his life on eBay, is confident of finding a partner after getting a stunning makeover.  more...

Discover war role of palace

Visitors to Blenheim Palace are being given the chance to 'Fly To The Past' a few months early.  more...

Discover war role of palace

Visitors to Blenheim Palace are being given the chance to 'Fly To The Past' a few months early.  more...

Identical twins celebrate 95th

Two of the oldest identical twins in the country are celebrating their 95th birthday.  more...

Banbury Cake News
Trust's hunt for Upton House volunteers

THE National Trust is looking for volunteers to help out at Upton House, near Banbury.   more...

'Ratty' is alive and well – for now

OXFORDSHIRE'S waterways are overflowing with wildlife - including Britain's most endangered mammal, a survey has revealed.   more...

Council even recycles its bins

BROKEN wheelie bins are being turned into drainpipes and plastic boxes as Cherwell District Council lives up to its reputation as a top recycler.   more...

Civil servants walk out on strike

PICKETS were on duty outside Banbury's Inland Revenue offices this week in support of a one-day strike by the Public and Commercial Services Union.   more...

Mound height to be reduced

VILLAGERS are celebrating after a waste firm was ordered to cut the height of a 15-metre tower of rubbish on land in north Oxfordshire.   more...

Letter: Positive vision

Sir - I am writing in response to your article entitled Schools Beat National Average, dated January 18, 2007.   more...

Carpets to carve out a life

A CARPET sale in St Mary's Church, Banbury, will help create work for young people in war-torn Afghanistan.   more...

Toxic spill led to M40 fears

A TOXIC chemical incident in Banbury almost led to the M40 being shut.   more...

Oxford Mail News
Missing sex offender found

A dangerous sex offender who went on the run in Oxfordshire after breaking a curfew on Wednesday was back in police custody tonight.   more...

Smoke alarm saves family

A family in Headington had a lucky escape after they were woken by their smoke alarm when a fire started in their home.   more...

'Mounties' tackle city crime

The cavalry has arrived - mounted police are in Oxford for the return of Operation Backlash - a clampdown on the city's most prolific criminals.   more...

Nightmare next door

Neighbours from hell who waged a campaign of harassment against a Bicester family who complained about the smell of their Chinese cooking have been told to pay more than £26,000 in compensation.   more...

Father fears for his family

A father fears his family is being targeted after paint bombs were thrown at his house and his locks were glued up.   more...

Yobs leave residents fearful

A gang has been terrorising residents in Headington, Oxford - so much so that some are now afraid to leave their homes.   more...

Hundreds sign grave petition

Hundreds of Bicester residents have signed a petition against plans to build above-ground graves near their homes.   more...

Identical twins celebrate 95th

Two of the oldest identical twins in the country are celebrating their 95th birthday.   more...

Two join police on estate beat

Crimefighters on an Oxford estate have been given a shot in the arm as two police community support officers hit the beat.   more...

You WILL have a water meter

Oxfordshire households may have to install water meters under Government proposals to tackle water shortages.   more...

Sex attacker spared jail

A pensioner who sexually abused a six-year-old girl was spared jail by a judge - and told to compensate her with money for a new bike.   more...

Missing man found

A man with mental health problems who escaped from his carers has been found by police.   more...

Ben's bike found

This is the bike Oxford teenager Ben Halsey-Jones was riding when he fell into the River Thames at Port Meadow.   more...

Raid uncovers cannabis farm

Police have uncovered another cannabis farm in Oxford after being tipped off that every room in a Headington house was being used to grow the drug.   more...

High-risk sex offender on run in county

High-risk sex offender Kevin Aldred, 39, is on the run in Oxfordshire after failing to obey a curfew order, police said.   more...

Ebay lonely heart gets a makeover

Bachelor Mark Broughton, who is seeking the love of his life on eBay, is confident of finding a partner after getting a stunning makeover.   more...

Discover war role of palace

Visitors to Blenheim Palace are being given the chance to 'Fly To The Past' a few months early.   more...

Billy Bragg Hosts music debate

Political activist and musician Billy Bragg is to host the first in a series of three debates at Oxford's Ruskin College on the power of music.   more...

Oxford Mail Sport
SCHOOL SPORT: Double delight for Traynor and Hawtin

TIM Traynor and Melissa Hawtin claimed their second successive Oxfordshire Schools' Cross Country titles at Radley College.   more...

SCHOOL SPORT: Lord Williams's bow out

LORD Williams's (Thame) bowed out of rugby's Daily Mail Under 18 Vase with a 20-10 defeat at Reading Bluecoat in the south west fifth round.   more...

SCHOOL SPORT: Cherwell pipped

OXFORDSHIRE champions Cherwell (Oxford) bowed out of the ESFA RAF Under 16 Schools Cup at the first hurdle with a 3-2 defeat after extra time by Hastingsbury (Bedford).   more...

SQUASH: County girls prove class above rivals

Oxfordshire's Under 19 girls produced a devastating display to reach the National County Finals.   more...

ANGLING: Back on the Thames – at last!

Good news at last! For the first time in weeks, clubs were able to get back on to the Thames last weekend.   more...

ANGLING: Oxon – home of big roach!

More big roach are being caught from Oxfordshire waters, writes ANDY WEBBER.   more...

SAILING: Oxon duo help Britain to gold

Oxfordshire's Claire Lasko, from Thame, and Stanton St John's Imogen Stanley were celebrating after being part of the six-strong Great Britain team that won gold at the fourth Australian Youth Olympic Festival in Sydney.   more...

GREYHOUNDS: Ready for a party Poopa!

Brian Clemenson, no stranger to plundering the top prizes at Oxford Stadium, could prove the party pooper with his Shelbourne Poopa in the £1,000 Blanchford Building Supplies Oxfordshire Trophy final tonight.   more...

BADMINTON: Oxon 3rd on brink

OXFORDSHIRE 3rd continued their great run in the County Championship with a 10-5 victory over Cornwall 2nd at St Austell.   more...

The Oxford Times News
Sex offender recaptured

A SEX offender who went on the run in Oxfordshire after breaking a curfew on Wednesday was back in police custody tonight.   more...

'Drag' vandal fined £80

A 21-year-old man has been given an £80 fixed penalty notice for causing criminal damage to Christmas lighting in the Westgate Centre, Oxford.   more...

Revamp ready

TEMPLE Cowley Library in Temple Road, Cowley, Oxford, which has been closed for redecoration since Monday, reopens today.   more...

Two join police on estate beat

PEOPLE fighting crime on an Oxford estate have been given a shot in the arm as two police community support officers hit the beat.   more...

Hundreds sign grave petition

HUNDREDS of Bicester residents have signed a petition against plans to build above-ground graves near their homes.   more...

Team gears up for OX5 event

MECHANICS and office staff from Motorworld are tuning up to hit top gear for the OX5 charity run through the picturesque grounds of Blenheim Palace.   more...

Phone fault

MORE than 180 residents, businesses and Wood Green School, Witney, suffered problems with their phones because of an underground cable fault.   more...

Blaze-hit unit opens

CHILDREN and staff at Bloxham Primary School are gearing up to celebrate the opening of their new building next Friday after it was destroyed by fire in 2005.   more...

What's in a name?

WELCOME to a new feature where we will look at the origins of the place names of Oxfordshire.   more...

Missing man found in Oxford

A MAN who went missing in Oxford last week has been found safe and well.   more...

'I was a whistleblower' — Torex boss

Oxford businessman Neil Mitchell, who has been asked to step down as chief executive of Torex Retail, said he blew the whistle to Britain's Serious Fraud Office (SFO) over the state of the company accounts.   more...

Water meters could be compulsory

OXFORDSHIRE households may have to install water meters under Government proposals to tackle water shortages.   more...

Oxford loses action over animal rights’ list

OXFORD University has lost its contempt of court action against an animal rights campaigner over his failure to produce an e-mail list of subscribers.   more...

A40 crash leads to jams

A PILE-UP caused long queues of traffic on the outskirts of Oxford today.   more...

Toxic spill led to M40 fears

A TOXIC chemical incident in Banbury almost led to the M40 being shut.   more...

Divers find Ben's bicycle

POLICE divers have recovered the cycle ridden by Oxford teenager Ben Halsey-Jones when he fell into the River Thames near Port Meadow.   more...

Ex-head faces verdict wait

FORMER Carterton Community College headteacher Alan Klee will have to wait to hear whether charges of bullying staff and professional misconduct have been upheld.   more...

Drivers face Wolvercote road closure

HIGHWAYS staff are to conduct an overnight inspection of the Goose Green railway bridge, in Wolvercote, tonight.   more...

The Oxford Times Sport
New drive for Williams

AT&T Williams F1 team boss Frank Williams said the team start the new season with a new look and new determination.   more...

Witney Gazette News
'Witney has a real community spirit'

SHOPPERS and market traders have been praised after coming to the assistance of a pedestrian hit by a bus.   more...

Accused headteacher has to wait until April

A HEADTEACHER accused of bullying staff and professional misconduct will have to wait until April to find out whether the charges have been upheld.   more...


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