Wednesday 3rd December 2025

Lifestyle

The Gee’s knees: Brunch in North Oxford

Good things often come in threes. Having reviewed both Parsonage Grill and Quod, it was only right that we complete the trilogy with their North Oxford sister restaurant, Gee’s.  On...

The luxury of political ignorance

PPE at Oxford is often seen as a one-way track to ending up in...

It’s beginning to look a lot like Oxmas

I begin listening to Christmas soundtracks in September. I theorise decorations in October and,...

‘Designed to be deleted’: The unHinged world of online dating

I’d been warned about the dating scene at Oxford. There’s something about self-entitlement that...

In defence of living out

"All things considered, then, I’d still choose to live out. Maybe it isn’t perfect, but living out has been a staple of Oxford student life for decades, and it’s one of the only similarities it has to the typical student experience at any other university."

How to have a Hot Girl Hilary

Hilary is grey. It drizzles, it’s cold, and all the trees are bare. Caught between the post-Christmas blues and the happy warmth of Trinity,...

The patience of ordinary things

"A different perspective exposes something new in Oxford’s tangle of streets and colleges; from afar, students on bikes and tourist groups and traffic disputes stop feeling like a nuisance, revealing instead a quiet, understated sort of loveliness."

To all the pubs we’ve loved before

We are Réka and Suzy, two law finalists on a mission to find the best pubs in Oxford. We will begin our journey by reviewing our clear favourite...

A fresh(er’s) perspective on Michaelmas term

"My approach to Michaelmas term was that it was a trial run for the rest of my university experience."

Wild swimming in Oxford: ready to take the plunge?

"Swimming in Oxford offers a chance to leave behind the stress of the Radcam rat race. While it certainly isn’t a cure-all, I have found it helps me balance my student life."

The Patience of Ordinary Things

"How truly can we say that our past selves are gone, when there they are, right now - pressed between the pages of an old diary..."

0th Week: ‘Dough(nut) trust strangers!

Thursday evening. Eighth week. My head has finally stopped spinning after a tumultuous Park End (I think). A crinkled pastry bag is tucked under...

New Year’s Resolutions: Why are we so bad at keeping them?

New year, new start. It is a terrible cliché. But the fact is, as another year ticks by, it’s a good opportunity to close...

‘Home is where the heart is.’

"It can feel like a bit of a conflict - the home where I grew up now feels like a waiting room before I get back to my ‘real life’ at Oxford."

Cherwell Food dines at Lula’s Ethiopian and Eritrean Cuisine

I knew it would be good when we were sat opposite Lula’s poetry library.  On a warm afternoon in early June, my friend and I...

The Not So Secret History: Family dynamics

After the madness of the first half of term, these last few weeks have seen at least three of the household retreating back into...

Hooked!

I never thought to pick up crochet. Other than a few lessons from my grandmother as a child, the thought didn’t cross my mind....

X days ’til Christmas

Ah yes, November. The clocks have gone forward, Halloween has been and gone and, according to TikTok, Mariah Carey has officially begun her annual...

A guide to homesickness

We’re now in the middle of the Michaelmas term. The first term always feels like the longest because there are no bank holidays or...

Vegan sage gnocchi

Outside the church at the end of my street I recently spotted a small, carefully cultivated herb garden. Upon further inspection of this aromatic...

The Not So Secret History: moments of clarity

Is ‘happy fifth week’ a contradiction in terms? Either way, I hope yours isn’t going too badly. We’ve reached the stage in term where...

I bought pesto, pissed

I can only wonder at what I was thinking, spending so much on so little

A care leaver’s note on Oxford’s whacky traditions

This week is National Care Leavers Week. The act of dedicating a week to raise awareness for a cause is a PR strategy as...

The Not So Secret History – The Party

I’m beginning to think a fortnightly column simply isn’t enough to cover everything that goes on in this house of mine. To give you...

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