Culture

Review: Cyrano de Bergerac – ‘A clever adaptation of a timeless play’

I’m ashamed to admit I almost mistake Cuigy (Kate Burke) and Brissaille (Nancy Gittus) for incredibly dapper audience members before the play begins. The sweet jazz that pipes out...

Why reading for pleasure still matters at Oxford

The idea of students reading for pleasure during term time has sparked much debate....

The Pasts Contained in Preloved Books at the Oxford Premier Book Fair

Although post-collections celebrations usually involve nights out, followed by long, long lie-ins, I spent...

Review of ‘Intermezzo’: Chess, law, and the philosophy of language in yet another Rooney masterpiece

I thought it perplexing that critics felt Intermezzo similar to other works by writer...

Exploring ‘Into the Woods’

Last week, I sat down with Luke Nixon, Lydia Free, and Isobel Connolly, the directorial force of a new ‘vivid and visionary’ production of...

Review: The Proof of My Innocence by Jonathan Coe

There are some writers whose line of literary descent is so clear as to resemble a kind of genealogical chart. The lineage of the...

BookTok: The Last Page of the Publishing Industry?

The #booktok stands that have become fixtures of bookshops across the country inspire intense feelings in me. It’s a mix of guilty curiosity, superiority,...

Gladiator II: A lack-lustre return to Rome

With Gladiator II, Ridley Scott returns to the streets of imperial Rome not in triumph, but to decidedly muted applause.

Review: Moth – ‘An unabashed, piercing piece of theatre’  

An acute attention to detail marks Moth as a standout in the world of student theatre.

Review: The Outrun

The Outrun Review: Choosing recovery in a wild place

Defiance: Racial Injustice, Police Brutality, A Sister’s Fight for the Truth by Janet Alder

At Oxford’s Wesley Memorial Church, Janet Alder offered a harrowing and unflinching account of resilience in the face of systemic injustice.

Review: Making the Weather: Six Politicians Who Shaped Modern Britain by Vernon Bogdanor

Six essays are included here, one for each Carlylean “great man”, covering biographical and ideological context as well as political analysis.

Cricket jumpers at the club? What Oxford students are really wearing

Perhaps style at Oxford is ultimately about learning how not to let the mask slip.

Review: ‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore – ‘A drama of extremes’

John Ford’s ‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore, working within the already violent genre of the revenge tragedy, has to be one of the most...

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Review: Endgame – ‘Nothing is funnier than unhappiness’

The play invites us to laugh at our powerlessness in the face of an apocalyptic fate.

A literary map of Oxford

Look no further for the perfect afternoon dawdle, as you chase the ghosts of literary greats through the town.

Should we judge a book by its cover?

Maybe we need to start giving a chance to the books we wouldn't usually take a second glance at. 

Blood is compulsory: The films of Martin McDonagh

In these uncertain times, his films speak to us more than any traditional morality tale could.

Papicha, power, and cinematic patriotism

How can we say that Papicha is Algerian, if the film was banned without any explanation in the country shortly before its release?

Review: NUTS – ‘a harrowing portrait of deceit and desire’

NUTS works in its ability to keep the audience on edge, waiting for the delicately thin emotional facades the characters have built to come crashing down. 

“Mummy said I’m pretty”: Nepo babies on the runway

What positive changes are the people born into this system going to advocate for?

‘The Pink City’: Ten generations of Jaipur gems

Cherwell visited the Choudhary family's prestigious jewellery collection, now almost 300 years old.

Lessons From A Taiwanese Coaster

I woke up in a world Where everything was beautiful, And nothing hurt.