Excessive noise at the Oxford IV debating competition on Saturday has led to complaints from Brasenose students living nearby. Students rang the Oxford City Council helpline as the noise escalated during the evening’s final until the results were announced around midnight.
Most affected were Brasenose students living in the Frewin Court accommodation which overlooks the Union where the Oxford IV was being held. Second year Thomas Purdy spoke of how “myself and the hundred other residents of Frewin were subjected to chanting and songs for several hours.” The noise was said to have started at 8am and peaked with “drunk whooping, clapping and cheering” in the final debate that lasted from around 10pm to midnight.
An individual involved behind the scenes at the debating competition commented that “no complaints were made directly to the Union or any of the organisers” and that “as soon as the result was announced, the planned drinks reception was cancelled because organisers were aware that participants were being far too loud and this was unacceptable.” Consequently debaters were sent home immediately after the end of the competition.
The same individual remarked that “The worst noise occurred late in the evening, around the grand final when the debaters from other institutions were most rowdy”. The traditional ‘Irish Intervention’ was identified as a considerable source of noise but, being a custom, they remarked that “I doubt there is anything the organisers could have done about that”.
The use of megaphones to make announcements throughout the day was also a decision criticised by several living in Frewin Court.
Brasenose student Tristan Puri concurred that “the cheering of the Irish the other day was very annoying indeed, especially since it was a result of alcohol” in reference to the tradition in which Irish delegates interrupt the final debate to sing patriotic songs in a symbolic protest against English colonial rule.
One debater, representing Durham University at the competition, remarked that “all finals generate quite a bit of noise” and that this was the inevitable consequence of “unlimited free gin” and around “500 people in the Union chamber” to watch the final. He suggested the noise was not unusual and it was simply unfortunate that the event is held in the centre of Oxford
The Oxford IV, which was attended by debaters from as far as Sydney and Bangladesh, is not the first instance of disturbances to Brasenose accommodation. Purdy commented that “ I was nervous about living in Frewin this year after reports I’d heard about the Union”.
The extent of the noise problem is such that Brasenose’ Dean, Dr. Christopher Timpson, sent an email during 5th week encouraging students in Frewin to complain of noise to the City Council and to inform college in order to “make vivid to the Council the scale of the problem”. Timpson added that he wanted to be “properly informed of all the disturbances so that we are best placed to raise our objections as forcefully as possible.”
James Blythe, another Frewin Court resident, said, “ the Union is regularly (several days a week) very noisy” and fellow students “have become much more annoyed, I think partly because the Union never seem to communicate or apologise or show any interest in being considerate”. He proposed a potential limit on the number of nights a week that the Union should be able to hold evening events.
Puri remarked that the problem has certainly become worse recently with “music, cheering and masses of people standing in the courtyard talking” in the evenings. He added, “if it is just a bunch of people making noise for no reason it is harder to put up with”.
Frewin Court residents have previously experienced disturbance from the Purple Turtle Union Bar, OUCA events, the Union ball and now the Oxford IV debating competition.
Oxford City Council deals with noise complaints by sending an inspector to measure the noise level, however response time is often over half an hour and even up to an hour later. Union IV organisers declined to comment.
