Oxford's oldest student newspaper

Independent since 1920

Headlines

Oxford City Council passes Boycott Divestment and Sanctions motion

News Asma Issa -
Oxford City Council passed a motion on 24th March in support of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel. The motion, which cited International Court of Justice (ICJ) rulings, passed with a unanimous vote by councillors across multiple political parties. The motion called for “strengthening” the Council’s “ethical procurement and investment policies” to “reaffirm” its “commitment to human rights and international law”, as well as diverting funds from companies prolonging the use of fossil fuels. Councillor Barbara Coyne, who...

Comment

Features

Sextigation 2025: Top one percent of shaggers do 15% of all shagging

Cherwell Features Section Editors -
You may have seen the headlines about income inequality – the top one percent in Britain earn somewhere around 15% of all income. Cherwell’s fourth annual Sextigation has found an inequality just as yawning in Oxford’s sex...

“All faiths and none?”: What college chapels can offer their students

Archie Johnston -
The rustle of a scholar’s gown. Dappled evening light glowing behind a stained-glass saint. The crackling of a candle being lit. The college chapel can easily feel removed from the 21st century university that...

You wouldn’t steal a Cherwell article: AI and copyright infringement

Chloe Smith -
Hello, Cherwell reader! Think this is a good article? A TikToker probably thinks so too. ‘Korean Consultant’ posted a TikTok on 5th January 2025 titled “What your university says about you - Russell Group...

Do ‘you-need’ Youni? 

Rose Evans -
More than a year on from their official launch in Oxford University, it is time to consider the success of the alumni-founded startup app ‘Youni’, and whether there really is a gap that needs filling within the student community.  We’ve all seen Youni in Oxford. You may have been interviewed...

My music doesn’t break tradition. It is traditional

Selina Chen -
"It is precisely because I love Oxford’s traditions that I’m inviting my culture to be part of it."

MLK Day: Anti-Blackness isn’t just a Western problem

Michael-Akolade Ayodeji -
"If we truly believe in equality, it’s time to hold up that same mirror to ourselves and confront what we see. Change begins when we stop making excuses."

Profiles

Samantha Shannon: ‘My mantra with the series is ‘Don’t be afraid to take big risks’ and so far, I’ve stuck to it’

Charlie Stevens -
Samantha Shannon is a New York Times and Sunday Times bestselling author, and an alumnus of St Anne’s College, Oxford. She is the author of two ongoing fantasy series: The Roots of Chaos, and The Bone Season, in which her latest novel, The Dark Mirror, is the fifth novel....

Ever wondered about the man singing on Cornmarket Street? Meet Richard

Sydney Walter -
CW: Drug or alcohol abuse You may not know him by name, but you’ve definitely heard him. If you picture the Wasabi on Cornmarket street, what may also come to mind is a man in front with a microphone and a speaker. On most days, you can find him with a...

Adam Leslie: ‘It felt like an ongoing adventure with characters I knew. That’s when writing became a language of its own’

Dylan Brennan -
Adam Leslie has always wandered among stories – daydreaming them, curating them, and now crafting his own. The Lincolnshire-born author, screenwriter, and Blackwell’s employee has stepped into the spotlight with Lost in the Garden, his debut novel that has won the 2024 Nero Book Award for Fiction. The novel...

Student Spotlight: swap shops, self-defence classes and mutual aid with Cowley Community Closet

Sara Rourke -
Cowley Community Closet is a self-described, “sustainable, anti-capitalist, queer-run collective”, founded by students Delphi, Abby and Connie in the spirit of creating a diverse and inclusive community within Oxford. They began with swap shops, creating a space for people to come together and exchange clothing and have since incorporated...

Culture

40 years after the miners’ strike, James Graham’s ‘This House’ still has a lot to offer

Thomas Armstrong -
‘Humphrey: ‘If the right people don’t have power, do you know what happens? The wrong people get it. Politicians. Councillors. Ordinary voters.’Bernard: ‘But aren’t they supposed to, in a democracy?’Humphrey: ‘This is a British democracy, Bernard!’ ― Yes, Prime Minister (1988) A Labour government that doesn’t know where it stands; a...

Persuading the public: The play as propaganda

Nancy Gittus -
The play as propaganda has a long history. From the regime-affirming productions of Hieron, tyrant King of Syracuse, to Lucy Prebble’s play The Effect, we can understand that theatre has consistently been used throughout history to promote ideologies and propound beliefs. In the case of Hieron, he was attempting to...

Something is rotten in the state of San Andreas: Grand Theft Hamlet in Hertford

Morien Robertson -
‘Hamlet: “O’, that this too too solid flesh would melt, thaw…” ’ Don’t quite remember this scene from the bard’s masterpiece? You won’t forget it after watching Pinny Grylls and Sam Crane’s spectacular docu-drama about the staging of a production of Hamlet inside the game of ‘Grand Theft Auto Online’...

The Ghosts She Felt Acutely

Polina Kim -
This year, with the inaugural Blackwell’s Short Story Prize, Cherwell aimed to reconnect with its roots as a literary magazine in the 1920s, when our undergraduate contributors (including Evelyn Waugh, Graham Greene, and W.H. Auden) showcased the best of Oxford’s creative talent. We received nearly 30 entries, and they were all...

Life

Disability and deferral: My unconventional journey to Oxford

Beth Barker -
Just over three years ago, I received my Oxford offer.  Like most sixth formers, my Oxford acceptance email came in the middle of my mock exam season. On the 11th January 2022, I had two A level mock exams to sit: a two-hour history paper in the morning, followed by...

Reflections on the perils of overthinking

Meg Howard -
here is a lot to be said for blind positivity. On a good day, I’m a manifester, a big believer in my ability to speak things into existence. During my English A-Level, I had complete confidence that the crystals hidden in my bra would provide enough luck to snag me an A*. Today, I put great faith in words, relying on the same ‘I can do it’ that gets Olympic athletes across the finish line, to help me through difficult situations.

The fourth year: Oxford after your year abroad

Josie Thornton -
I’m now in my fourth year, and as such, must grapple with the reality of my Oxford days drawing to a close. Granted, this is something that every student must contend with, and I watched on as most of my friends bade a fond farewell to this city where our friendships began when they graduated last summer. Yet there is something about the fourth year that I’m certain makes the final year even more strange: a sense of something already lost, of living in a moment that has already passed.

An evening at Pierre Victoire: French bistro dining at its best

Amanda Li -
Pierre Victoire has been here on Little Clarendon Street for decades – one of our porters even worked there before coming to college. So I was personally delighted to have the chance to try their menu for a second time, after the arrival of Chris Prow, who had 2...

Support Student Journalism

Cherwell is Oxford’s oldest independent newspaper, established in 1920. We are entirely student-run. By supporting us, you will contribute to keeping our paper in print and online. Every donation makes a difference.

Donate

Explore

Follow us

More

Oxford Student Publications Limited © 2025 - All Rights Reserved | Privacy Policy

Website by James Ashley