Oxford University
Alumni
My husband is forever being sent magazines from his Oxford college inviting him to give it money. I suggest he…
The ghosts of academe
It could be said that the power of a horror story depends on the possibility, however minute, of it being…
Revealed: Huawei’s Oxbridge millions
British universities have received twice as much funding from Huawei as previous estimates suggest, according to new figures obtained by The Spectator.…
Oxford has more to be ashamed of than Gove
Being the most prestigious university in the English-speaking world comes with its drawbacks. While the rolls of alumni are littered…
(no title)
Listening to Trees A Crowd, a podcast exploring the ‘56(ish) native trees of the British Isles’, solved one of childhood’s…
Rhodes to redemption
Not since September 1642, when a mob of Parliamentary soldiers opened fire on the sculpture of the Virgin Mary carved…
Sense and sensitivity
‘Whatever you do, don’t call them snowflakes,’ Caroline said the last time I spoke to Oxford students. ‘That’s not a…
Oxford, ‘sensitivity readers’ and the trouble with safe spaces
The list of things that students must apparently be protected from grows longer every day. Controversial speakers, rude comedians, sombreros…
What happens now that Rhodes didn’t fall?
Oriel College, Oxford’s decision to retain the statue of Cecil Rhodes has generated the usual voluminous fury. It has also shown it…
The Spectator’s Notes
My inbox is crowded with messages from Old Etonians attacking Simon Henderson, the headmaster of Eton. They are furious that…
What we know so far about the Oxford vaccine
It’s three for three as far as positive outcomes from Covid vaccine trials are concerned. But the announcement from AstraZeneca…
What I learnt as an Oxford vaccine guinea pig
Was the Oxford vaccine trial paused? Mine wasn’t. I signed up for it last week, in the 55 to 69-year-old…
Ventriloquising
‘What! No one told me,’ my husband shouted when I explained that the Hebdomadal Council at Oxford no longer existed…
Healthy debate
One of the paradoxes of the coronavirus crisis is that the need for public scrutiny of government policy has never…
Oxford has taught the no-platformers a lesson
Three weeks ago Amber Rudd travelled to Christ Church, Oxford, to speak to students about her experiences of being a…
Blind wine-tasting
The cellar room is almost silent save for the sound of slurping and spitting and the odd gentle sigh. One…
Rockall
In 1978, an invitation was sent to some 200 members of Oxford’s Dangerous Sports Club, which simply read: ‘Tea, Rockall,…
Helena Morrissey: my manifesto for the next govenor of the Bank of England
The start of term at Oxford University is bittersweet for the close-knit Morrisseys; we have just ‘lost’ three offspring to…
If you’re going to leave Notre Dame in ruins, why not set fire to Oxford University?
Almost everyone agrees it is a pity that so few pupils from ‘disadvantaged socioeconomic backgrounds’ get into Oxford. But no…
Fantasist, bigamist and cheat: the colourful career of Robert Parkin Peters
In 2010, Adam Sisman published a masterly biography of Hugh Trevor-Roper, who was not merely one of the best historians…
An Oxford treasure trove
‘What distinguishes Cambridge from Oxford,’ wrote A.A. Milne in 1939, is that nobody who has been to Cambridge feels impelled…
Write a leftie column and win a doctorate
I see that law students at Oxford University were told that if they found the contents of a lecture on…
Organic chemistry
My old Oxford college, Mansfield, isn’t a famous establishment, though its current principal, ‘Baroness Helena Kennedy’, as she incorrectly styles…
Public offence
Bad public art pollutes our townscapes. Stephen Bayley names and shames the worst offenders as he unveils the winner of The Spectator’s inaugural What’s That Thing? Award
Club class won’t fly any more
I’m getting a lot of abuse on Twitter for saying that having been a member of the Bullingdon is more…
