Something one of my fine friends said to me a while back has been troubling me. “How could you say that?” she retorted, a look of incredulity darting across her face, after my oh so confident precis of Coldplay’s latest album, X&Y, as being one of the “all-time great recordings”. “Have you heard every recording ever committed to vinyl, cassette or CD?”
Obviously not, I protested, trying to qualify the assertion by referring to the record’s staggeringly rare, towering quality. But I sensed myself almost retracting the comment by having to defend it so vociferously. It, in fact, rocked the core of my sensibility as a ‘critic’ more than I would have liked. It actually got me thinking hard about what I had written. Can such a comment ever stand solo as suitable appraisal of any given artwork? What then is the purpose of an arts review if not to compare the piece with what came before it? Far from being a bout of soporific self-questioning that at one point or another has besieged even the best of us, this soul searching was more an attempt to dispel (or indeed reluctantly prove) a criticism levelled at our urbane culture of reviewery.
Yet it seems now that the habit is spreading. Vintage, the paperback division of publishing Random House, last month launched a range of fifteen novels entitled Future Classics; the result of a poll which took into account the reading habits of over a hundred book groups from Dundee to Devon.
In all earnestness, the campaign does smack of cash cow antics on the part of Random House to bolster sales of their recent, much-debated books. Are we really ready to say that the critically well received, widely read novels of the past few years – Ian McEwan’s Atonement to name but one – will become classics in time to come? The foremost critical issue to consider in all this is that obviously only novels published by Vintage could be considered. So that while Arthur Golden’s Memoirs of a Geisha made the grade, Zadie Smith’s epic debut, White Teeth, could not. And if the critic’s word is the wisest, why was Louis de Bernieres’ Captain Corelli’s Mandolin favoured over his infinitely better reviewed Birds Without Wings? The backlash has already begun.
I remember a similar scoffing reaction from many I knew a few years back when Halle Berry won her Best Actress Oscar for Monster’s Ball, and I declared that her performance was arguably peerless in all of screen history (Incidentally I still and will continue to maintain the comment has actuality). There can certainly be no doubt that Berry defines the mould for modern-day tragic heroine in that role.
Is that ultimately not the mark of greatness in art? The ability of any given piece, be it a strikingly nuanced performance, a genre-defining novel or indeed a Coldplay album to breathe life past its creator’s intention? I’m always nominating the greatest this or that of its kind. It is deeply satisfying to apply the G word. The recent BBC Radio 4 and National Gallery poll to find The Greatest Painting in Britain did in fact turn up a decent shortlist, with JMW Turner and David Hockney both honoured, but seeing the usage I regularly bandy about deployed by someone else gives me pause. If greatness in art has any meaning, it is certainly at odds with opinion polls and people’s choice votes, even if the survey in question is of an informed audience as in Vintage’s case. Greatness suggests sublimity. Greatness stresses the ability of the work to transcend style and signify the supreme. But alas, it will always be rooted by definition in an opinion formed prior to yours or mine. Perhaps I will never be qualified to judge with such haughty epithets, but I’m not about to kick the habit. We should be careful lest we forget the nature of our art’s purpose.ARCHIVE: 0th week MT 2005

Keble College has paid out hundreds of thousands of pounds after a tribunal ruled an ex-employee had been unfairly dismissed and racially discriminated against.
In April 2005 an employment tribunal concluded that Keble College Bursar Roger Boden had pursued a “personal vendetta” against college accountant Diamond Versi on the basis of his ethnicity, launching a “sham” investigation, cutting him out of decision-making and eventually making his position redundant.
Versi’s evidence cited an Asian employee to whom he claimed Boden had paid a higher wage to prevent her transferring from the college’s hall to the account’s department.
Versi also claimed that Boden had refused to authorise a loan of £4,000 for a Pakistani employee because of her ethnic origin.
At the time Boden “utterly refuted the allegations” and argued that Versi’s post was made redundant as part of the College’s restructuring of the accounts department, aiming to make it “more cost effective” by reducing its salary bill and creating a single position.
Professor Averil Cameron, the college’s Warden, stood by Boden, saying that they “did not accept the findings of the tribunal” and said, “I think that we can all say we’re absolutely shocked.”
Former JCR President Moshin Zaidi repeatedly showed his support for Boden, writing letters to various national newspapers and saying, “I can 100 per cent say there was no racism involved.”
“Roger Boden is genuinely one of the nicest people at Keble. I know him well enough to know that racism is not what he’s about.”
A joint appeal between Keble College and Boden was then launched in July.
The court immediately dismissed the appeal in relation to unfair dismissal but did allow the college to proceed with a hearing on the grounds of race discrimination. Keble, however, then decided to make an out-of-court settlement.
Tim Jenkinson, Keble’s Acting Warden, said: “Keble is glad that Mr. Versi’s claim could be resolved without the need for further hearings.
“Keble was pleased that College was given permission to appeal at the preliminary hearing of the Employment Appeal Tribunal – but it is in the interests of all parties to draw a line under this dispute and move forward.”
Jenkinson maintained that Boden would not be forced to resign his position as Bursar: “Keble does not agree with the inferences drawn by the Employment Tribunal – that is why we appealed, and that is why the Governing Body continue to support Mr Boden.”
He added, “We have over the summer completely revised our equal opportunities policies, and published these on our website. We commissioned an independent review of our human resources practices, and are currently implementing all the recommendations.
“For example, one of these recommendations was to appoint a Human Resources Manager, and we will be interviewing for this post in the next few weeks. The person appointed will have responsibility for driving the equality agenda within the College.”
Although both Jenkinson and Versi refused to comment on the details of the financial settlement owing to a confidentially agreement, speaking to Cherwell Versi said that he had received a “six figure sum” in compensation and estimated that the total bill for the tribunal and appeal could have cost Keble “up to £500,000”.
He said, “It is bizarre how they simply think that they have done nothing wrong, although there is not exactly very much they can say now they have been found guilty.
“The only person that won this case for me was Roger Boden – he has made me a rich man.”
Roger Boden refused to comment.ARCHIVE: 0th week MT 2005

Aarght!
various artists
The Marmalade GalleryThe Marmalade Gallery pretty much fulfils any expectations that one might have of a small backstreet gallery. Unusual name? Check. Whitewashed walls with the occasional exotic pot plant? Check. Beat music playing softly in the background? Check. Gold painted radiator? Obviously. Okay, so the building isn’t exactly breaking any barriers in art decor, nor is the gallery itself going to leave sufferers of agoraphobia struggling to remain calm but there exists within all of this genuine arty charm. Was it the fact that none of the cafe’s chairs matched and boho-chic is just so appealing? Probably, but the real reason was that the place felt like one of Oxford’s best kept secrets. Adjacent to the gallery is a spacious cafe area, and though the menu seems a little preoccupied with all things marmalade, it appears the perfect place to work, read or just ponder the surrounding art.
The Aarght! Exhibition currently running at the Marmalade celebrates the promotion of the new Arts and Development Company of the same name whose aim it is to promote new artists. It is truly in keeping with the very ethos of the gallery itself. The Marmalade prides itself on two things, namely its close ties with local young artists, and its easygoing attitude towards theme, style and content.
When one first hears of the setup, natural reactions may tend towards snobbery, and to a certain extent they are justfied. Some of the pieces are rather pedestrian. While a few of the exhibits are lacking in real technique, what is even more striking is that they are also limited in focus and disciplined thought. Many will find the idea of separate pieces, with little thematic direction, rather too lax, and in some cases confusing. Conversely, the atmosphere of unrestrained and new ideas will invigorate others. Aarght! is ultmately about the duality of embracing disorder or shying away from it.
One cannot help but admire the courage of both the gallery and Aarght! in supporting these new artists. There is the occasional piece which displays a twinkling of potential, a diamond in the rough. And perhaps this is what makes the Marmalade Gallery, and Aarght! in particular, so appealing. They are willing to offer opportunities, often at little or no expense to themselves, to artists first setting out.
For those willing to drudge past remedial still lives and collages that mimic the texture of Moroccan rugs and to find hidden originality, there awaits the smug sense of satisfaction that can only come from knowing something others do not.ARCHIVE: 0th week MT 2005

A tutor has been the subject of a formal investigation after a student made a claim of harassment at the end of last term.
The student from St. Benet’s Hall, who Cherwell has decided not to name, made a formal complaint about Father Bernard Green, who is a fellow and tutor in Theology, as well as being the chaplain and in charge of student welfare at the Hall.
The complaint related to an incident that took place at the JCR’s picnic in Port Meadow during 7th week of Trinity term 2005, and was supported by other students. Father Green has since apologised and will continue with his normal duties this term.
Father Leo Chamberlain, Master of St. Benet’s Hall, confirmed that “a complaint about harassment at the picnic was made on Thursday 9 June 2005 and investigated immediately” adding, “the Proctors were informed at an early stage”.
“A panel was convened in line with procedures usual in the University. It had three members, two unconnected with the Hall and the third a non-tutorial fellow,” he said.
“Procedures of this kind are always pursued maintaining the rights of all concerned to confidentiality. The matter has been settled and there are no changes in personnel or duties consequent upon it.”
He added, “No other complaints have been made against Father Bernard to my knowledge while he has been at the University and nothing is held on file.”
Father Bernard Green said, “The incident … was dealt with in a process that is now completed. Everyone has accepted its outcome but as it was a confidential process there is no more that I can say.”
The student who made the complaint did not wish to comment on the investigation.
Further investigations made by Cherwell have found that Father Green pleaded guilty to indecently assaulting a 13 year old student in 1996 while he was employed at Ampleforth College. At the time he was a housemaster and, after fully cooperating with an investigation by the local police and social services, he was sentenced to two years’ probation and 50 hours’ community service.
A statement released in 1996 said, “Father Bernard will remain a Benedictine monk under the direct authority of the Abbot of Ampleforth. The Abbot will ensure that in future his work will not include any contact with or responsibility for children.”
A spokesman for Ampleforth at the time added, “Father Bernard, in the light of his repentance and co-operation, will continue to live as a monk. Following the provisions of Church Law, any future exercise of his priesthood will be subject to canonical restrictions imposed by the Abbot of Ampleforth in Council. The restrictions will be designed to avoid any further problems with the young.”
Father Bernard left Ampleforth in 1998, the same year that he became a member of St. Benet’s Hall where he finished his D.Phil before taking up teaching responsibilities.
The Hall has direct links to Ampleforth, and was originally founded as a Catholic house for the monks of Ampleforth’s abbey by an ex-headmaster of the college, Edmund Matthews.
Father Chamberlain was appointed headmaster of Ampleforth in 1992, and retired in 2003 before being appointed Master of St. Benet’s in 2004. The hall’s current tutor in Philosophy, Joseph Shaw, is also an Old Amplefordian.
Students at St. Benet’s have expressed a mixture of anxiety and support regarding Father Green’s current situation. Separate to the investigation, St. Benet’s JCR Treasurer Nick Hanson wrote to the Master of the Hall to express concern and support the student who had initiated the complaint. He later met with Chamberlain and has since said that he is completely happy about the situation.
One undergraduate at St. Benet’s said that the Hall’s authorities had contacted a number of people by e-mail. The undergraduate said the correspondence had enquired as to whether anyone had strong opinions either way about Father Green remaining at the Hall.
He continued to say, “Those who did reply to the email focused very much on Bernard’s success and high regard within the University rather than condoning his very unfortunate actions … nobody at Benet’s would have done that.”
“Leo was trying to gauge the general feeling, as one would expect, but if a handful of people had been significantly upset with Bernard sticking around there could not have been any other option for him but to leave,” but added that “it obviously couldn’t have been the case.”
Finn Carew, a third year Theology student at St. Benet’s, who is taught by Father Green, said he fully supported his tutor and that it was a “private matter that neither he nor the hall wanted publicised.”
Carew said, “It was dealt with internally and an investigation was carried out, and was not something that was taken lightly. But the outcome was that it was not considered serious enough for him to be sent away.”
“Father Bernard is a sensitive man, it has been very difficult for him and he is under massive stress. He is a very very good tutor, an incredibly professional, loving, gentle and kind man.”
Andy Grant, St. Benet’s JCR President, also supported Father Bernard and said, “Father Bernard is a very well respected member of the hall, as well as the University.”
He concluded, “The investigation has been dealt with appropriately”.
Although the Proctors and the University do not comment on individual cases, a spokesperson said that employers only have a legal requirement to carry out a police check via the Criminal Records Bureau and sex offenders register when employing staff who work with children or other vulnerable members of society, and that it does not simply allow employers the privilege of a “blanket check”.ARCHIVE: 0th week MT 2005

Gentlemen & Players
Joanne Harris
DoubledayA new academic year and the venerable halls of St Oswald’s Grammar School for Boys are beset by change in its most pressing guise: progress. But amid the advance of Information Technology, the influx of new staff and the arrival of a fresh crop of boys, old ghosts are walking and a scandal long since buried is scratching its way to the surface.
With her ninth novel, Harris exploits the dark and chillingly absurd facets of reality which she first drew on in last year’s collection of short stories Jigs and Reels. Published as a deliberate departure from the joie de vivre of her Whitbread nominated breakthrough Chocolat and the novels that followed, the collection showcased a new side to Harris.
Not steeped in the Gallic sensuousness which pervades much of this author’s work, Gentleman & Players is nonetheless wrought with rich and distinctive prose. A former teacher herself, Harris seems to delight in recalling the climate of the staff room and sharp observations are made vivid in lush description. Her image of the school as a living organism in itself, creative yet endlessly consuming, provides a necessary constant amid the ever shifting perspective of the reader.
Narrative is divided between voices of the past and the present, the old and the young. Straitley, veteran Latin master at St Oswald’s, is devoted to his pupils. He binds himself to the school and to tradition, remaining indignant in the face of enforced retirement and a heart condition. His counterpoint Snyde seethes with quiet megalomania, consumed by a twisted relation to St Oswald’s. The school is to Snyde a haven and a torment. It is the pinnacle of childhood aspiration, an escape from the daily hell of Sunnybank Park Comprehensive and the slur-spoken abuse of an alcoholic father. It is also the unforgiving observer of this pinchbeck imposter amid its golden boys.
Gentlemen & Players fits the bill as a murder mystery, but its meticulous chaos harbours a criminal unlike most: one who has been invisible for too long and is crying out to be seen. Harris might tell us that “a crime unseen is a crime unpunished,” but she is equally willing to admit that being seen is half the fun.ARCHIVE: 0th week MT 2005

Oxford University has published an official academic ranking of its 30 undergraduate colleges for the first time in its history. Merton came top, closely followed by St John’s, with Balliol in third place.
There are significant differences between the positions in the official Norrington table and this year’s unofficial version, as published in The Times, which puts St John’s first. The largest discrepancy is Pembroke’s rank – ninth in the unofficial and seventeenth in the official table.
The University hopes that its own table will make the inaccurate, unofficial one redundant. For this to happen, the University may have to release its table more quickly – the Times published its version on 22 July, the University on 6 September.
In February 2005 it emerged that the University had secretly been compiling its own Norrington table for internal distribution; a revelation which hastened the University’s change in policy.
Dame Fiona Caldicott, chairwoman of the Conference of Colleges, which represents the colleges’ interests, said, “Ranking colleges on the basis of degree results is not very significant, as the numbers involved per college are small, and the results are dependent on the performance of a particular group of students in a particular year, rather than on the college itself.
“However, in order to be open and transparent, we are publishing these tables so that the public has access to the full, accurate data.”
The Norrington table was originally proposed by Sir Arthur Norrington, a former President of Trinity College and Vice-Chancellor, and first published in 1964. The Norrington Score which determines each college’s rank is calculated by allocating a certain number of points for each degree class: five points for a first, three for an upper second, two for a lower second and one for a third. The total score is then expressed as a percentage of the maximum possible score (i.e. if every student obtained a first the college would score 100 percent).
Unofficial versions of the Norrington table are published annually in some national newspapers. However, their methods of data collection are unreliable when compared to the University’s access to full, accurate tables of results.
The newspapers compile their tables by paying enterprising graduates to copy down the finals results posted outside the Examination Schools on the High Street, a method which has obvious potential for errors. Furthermore, under the Data Protection Act, students can opt out of having their results publicly posted, and so for several years the unofficial tables have been based on incomplete data.
From year to year there is much movement within the table – University College shot up from 26th in 2004 to fifth in this year’s unofficial Norrington table. Merton, however, has come top for five of the past six years.
Claire Palmer, a student at St Edmund Hall, said, “We are a nation obsessed with league tables. We need to remember that there’s more to a college than its position in the Norrington Table.”ARCHIVE: 0th week MT 2005

Tony Orchard, Fellow in Inorganic Chemistry at University College has died, aged 64. Orchard was a pioneer in inorganic chemistry, whose research helped to lay foundations for much modern technology.
Orchard first studied Chemistry as an undergraduate at Wadham and then gained a D.Phil at Merton in theoretical inorganic chemistry. He left before completing his doctorate to take up a fellowship at University College, aged 26, where he remained until his death.
During the 1970s Orchard led a group of researchers to produce work on photoelectron spectroscopy that allowed scientists to examine the electronic structure of materials. This research helped pave the way for technological innovations included in PCs and mobile phones. In 2003 he published his defining work, Magnetochemistry.
Professor Bob Williams, a Wadham Chemist, said “Tony Orchard was my undergraduate and graduate student. He was one of the cleverest of all my pupils. His early theoretical and experimental work on electronic structures of inorganic materials was of great interest.”
As well as such academic success, Orchard also excelled at both tennis and snooker playing, including notable victories at a young age in matches against future world champions Ray Reardon and Terry Griffiths.
Orchard was able to number among his friends former US president, Bill Clinton, who he met during the 1960s, when Clinton was a Rhodes scholar at Univ and Orchard was a young Junior Dean. Orchard was invited by Clinton to Washington for his inauguration, although Orchard was unable to attend due to academic commitments.
Orchard was keen to improve the system of undergraduate applications for chemistry in order to attract strong candidates in the subject and increase numbers of applicants. Williams further stated, “Later in life his commitment to his students and his college came at the cost of his practical research interest but he was always of great assistance to others whenever he was consulted.”
Tom Muir, a Chemistry student at Univ, told Cherwell “[Orchard] was a very genuine guy, who cared about his students. His tutorials were always enjoyable and he was enthusiastic and knowledgeable about a vast range of subjects. He made a massive contribution to both Univ and Oxford chemistry. He will be greatly missed.”
Lord Butler, Master of Univ, described Dr Orchard as “a good-natured, sociable, affable man who was always good company. He knew his pupils well and cared deeply for them. He is remembered with great affection by many generations of Univ students”.
A Memorial Service for Tony Orchard will be held in the University Church at 2.30 p.m. on Saturday 29 October, followed by refreshments in Hall in Univ.ARCHIVE: 0th week MT 2005

For the first time in 33 years, the Islamic festival Ramadan is falling during Freshers’ week. Muslim Freshers will have to balance abstaining from all food and drink during daylight hours whilst participating in their introduction to Oxford student life.
The festival lasts for one month and is traditionally centred around the family meal at sunset and tarawih prayers later at night with the community.
Asma Nizami, a second year at Wadham, found fasting during her first term at University “really tiring and especially difficult,” saying she was “in an entirely new situation, trying to meet new people and make essay deadlines whilst balancing the demands of Ramadan.”
Graduate Fresher, Samir Ahmed, is worried about missing the induction lunches around which the graduate Freshers’ Week is centred. “It’s going to be hard because you have to miss all the initial interaction with people you are tring to meet.”
College welfare reps have been briefed by OUSU about the situation and are adjusting plans to make them more sensitive to the needs of any fasting students. OUSU VP (Welfare and Equal Opportunities), Aidan Randle-Conde told Cherwell “Ramadan can be one of the most important times of the year for Muslim students, even more so this year as the first day falls in Freshers’ Week.”
Ed Mason, JCR president of Trinity, insists that “Trinity JCR always provides alternatives to traditional Freshers’ Week events. Also, we have information on how we can best provide Kosher or Halal meals at appropriate times.”
Colleges have become increasingly sensitive to the needs of freshers over the last few years. This has been demonstrated in a concerted effort around Oxford to prove non-alcohol related freshers events to include students who don’t drink.
Freshers’ Week has also coincided with the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah, which is celebrated on Tuesday and Wednesday of 0th week. On Rosh Hashanah it is customary for families to gather together for the holiday meal, something this year’s Jewish Freshers will have to either forego or choose to remain at home for.
Coming up to Oxford during a Jewish holy day last year, Andrew Freedman of Exeter College described Freshers’ Week as “more strange” and found himself “quite disorientated.”
The president of the Oxford Islamic Society Hassan Malik says, “The ISOC provides services catered to the specific needs of Muslim students; in particular during the testing month of Ramadan.” Free meals are provided at the end of every fasting weekday for fasting Muslims and nightly prayers are held at the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies.ARCHIVE: 0th week MT 2005