Wednesday 25th February 2026

Profiles

Haleh Blake: A vessel for the voices of Iranians

Haleh Blake was always told she was worth half a man. “As you grow up as a girl, from very early on, you realise that you're treated as a second-class citizen”, she tells me.

Larry Sanders on Trump, climate change, and moral conviction

Sitting in his kitchen in East Oxford, Larry Sanders, local Oxford politician and brother of Bernie Sanders, speaks with honesty and conviction.

Anna Olliff-Cooper on being a 76-year-old student, her three-month prognosis, and defying time

When Anna Olliff-Cooper applied to Oxford, she had just been diagnosed with a rare form of blood cancer.

Ruth Chang: ‘If we keep going down this road, we are definitely going to get AI misalignment’

How do we make hard choices? Not the choices which are hard for us to make – because the right choice is psychologically difficult – not choices between options which we have incomplete information about, or choices that are incomparable. No. Hard choices are decisions between options neither of which is better, nor are they equally good.

Behind the scenes with Oxford’s queens

Oxford, like much of the UK, has experienced the phenomenon of drag over the last few years. The unprecedented success of RuPaul’s Drag Race...

“The Ants & The Grasshopper”: Meet environmentalist filmmaker Raj Patel

Food security has long been one of the most pertinent issues arising from the climate crisis. With the global environment changing immensely and countries...

“You write things and get lucky”: In conversation with screenwriter John Hodge

Although you may not know John’s name, you’ll certainly know his work. Having written the screenplays for Trainspotting, The Beach, A Life Less Ordinary,...

“All it takes is one yes”: In conversation with Sian Eleri

It’s a rainy January day and I’m sitting alone in my room, anxiously scrutinising my face on Zoom as I wait for Sian Eleri...

Art is a form of “resistance”: In conversation with Liu Wei at the Oxford Union

Pioneering artist Liu Wei gave an exclusive interview at the Oxford Union as part of the Union’s Michaelmas Art Festival on the weekend of...

“We didn’t do Blackface, but you could argue that we did”: Mathew Baynton on Horrible Histories, type-casting, and his acting career

On November 23rd, Mathew Baynton visited the Oxford Union. There was a frenzy of excitement around his attendance, with members queuing from 5:30pm to...

“Do you want to be a leader or a follower?”: In conversation with Claire Adler

Practically all of us have, at some point, been unsure about where we’re headed after university. It’s certainly not an anxiety that’s unique to...

“Some people claim a right not to be offended. And I think that’s unfortunate.” Vice-Chancellor Professor Louise Richardson in conversation with Cherwell

Serving since January 2016, Professor Louise Richardson’s term as Vice-Chancellor comes to an end this year. The first female vice-chancellor, presiding over a significant...

“Freedom will be achieved by women”: Oxford Iranian students on protests of Islamic Republic

Students in Iran are in an existential fight for freedom. At academic institutions such as Sharif University of Technology and Khajeh-Nasir Toosi University of...

Nocturne Productions: A new take on filmmaking in Oxford with “Breakwater”

‘Breakwater’ is an upcoming feature-length film, produced by Oxford-based Nocturne Productions, and the first film by Oxford University students since Privileged in 1982. The...

Will the economy be Republicans’ trump card in the 2022 midterms?

This week, I sat down with Kyle Kondik, Professor of Politics at the University of Virginia and Managing Editor of Larry Sabato’s Crystal Ball,...

In Conversation with CosmicSkeptic: Cancel culture, contrarianism and Christ.

“I take inspiration from the figure of Jesus.” Unlikely words to be coming out of the mouth of an atheist, but perhaps unsurprising, given...

It’s not rocket science: Alyssa Carson on the journey to being an astronaut

Alyssa Carson is an Astrobiology major with a rocket license. She’s doing Astrophysics homework at the Florida Institute of Technology and visiting the launch...

Creation, Not Art: At the Table with Ethaney Lee of @tenderherbs

CW : mention of disordered eating, body dysmorphia Ethaney Lee welcomes you to @tenderherbs. From her inventive take on the Instagram business byline with “ethnic grocery...

Does “power makes all the difference”?

Sudhir Hazareesingh is a tutor in international relations (IR) and won the 2021 Wolfson History Prize for his book 'The Black Spartacus' about the...

“Colorful Queer & Bright”: Jasper Soloff Reflects on His Creative Style

Jasper Soloff isn’t afraid to call Hollywood out on its false virtue signalling regarding queer representation. In a comment on Instagram in May, the...

Music as Ammunition: Ukrainian Bandurists Give Tradition New Life in Their Concert Series

Julia Kogut-Kalynyuk and Kateryna Trachuk escaped the shelling of Lviv with only their banduras on their backs and their concert outfits in hand. The...

Wilde at heart: In Conversation with members of the Lincoln Drama Society

It’s practically a cliché to say that with such short and busy terms, there are more events happening in Oxford than any person could...

In Conversation with Dr Luke Evans MP

CW: eating disorders, body image issues, dysmorphia I interviewed Dr Luke Evans, the Member of Parliament for Bosworth, on a cold London morning via Zoom....

In Conversation with Cameron Saul

Cameron is the co-founder of British luxury sustainable fashion brand BOTTLETOP, which originated through a design collaboration with the Mulberry fashion label in 2002.

Follow us