Day 10: “Pottering” around Oxford

The break in the fierce weather of yesterday meant that a walking tour of Oxford was on the cards. So off we headed, driving through picturesque countryside through stunning little Cotswold villages such as Lower Compton (not sure where Upper or Middle Compton ended up). An impulse decision by Chris saw us pull into the Park and Ride at the Oxford parkway where we could leave Harry the Galaxy safely parked for our commute by the 500 bus which dropped us slap bang in the centre of Oxford! Yes!!!

The walking tour point was right near the bus and we met our guide Anna, who was a wealth of knowledge. Anna explained that there is no one place in Oxford that is the university campus, but rather that Oxford is the university. She also explained that the university grew up as a place of religious study and has only become “secular” comparatively recently in its history. The system is very different to uni in Australia. To study at Oxford you apply to a particular college and you do the bulk of your study in that college, only going to other colleges if your college does not offer the full range of subjects that you need to study. So, we headed off into one of the thee oldest colleges in Oxford: Balliol  College. 

Balliol was founded in 1243 and is probably the second oldest college after University College. Terribly progressively, they actually allowed women to attend Balliol in 1979  and have marked the auspicious event some 30 years later with a stainless steel orb in the grounds! The college has an inviting quadrangle and beautiful grounds, although apparently there is no sitting on the lawns, except in the final term of the year. We were treated to a tour of the dining hall which was of course very Harry Potter and we then went to the Balliol chapel. Anna regaled us with stories of Tortoise Wars where the neighbouring and rival college Trinity College was supposed to have stolen the champion tortoise and in revenge the Balliol boys dug up the turf over the fence in Trinity... seems that boys will be boys. 

Our next stop was outside the Sheldonian, a fabulous building surrounded by sculptures of philosophers heads. This is one of the made works of Christopher Wren, but before going into its courtyard we experienced what has been described as the ugliest building in Oxford, The Weston Library. A 20th century rectangular nothingness, it was reshaped a little to make it more interesting but it is the annex to the Bodleian library and contains a collection of a mere 5 million books.  ... We took a little detour via Anna’s former college New Hertford, a somewhat more progressive college one of the first to admit women in the early 1970s. Part of the New Hertford College is a model of the Venetian Bridge of Sighs as a walkway it is very impressive.

But perhaps the thing I had most looked forward to was going into the courtyard of the Bodelian Library, the oldest library in Oxford, boasting a collection in excess of 17 million books. In the grounds of the Bodelian is the entrance to the Hall of Divinity, a spectacular Christopher Wren structure which has been used in some filming for Harry Potter- like the dancing lessons and the infirmary. Oh wow! Its vaulted ceiling is simply stunning.

Moving further down the campus we discovered the Radcliffe Camera Building, round in shape and named after John Radliffe , not Daniel “Harry Potter” Radcliffe! We then went down by the University Church where CS Lewis was a parishioner. It is thought that the doorway opposite the church and the lamppost adjacent may have provided the inspiration for the Chronicles of Narnia. The church is also famous because Archbishop Thomas Cranmer was taken there to recant, prior to his execution as a heretic during the English Reformation. Finally we looked across to the most exclusive Oxford College, All Souls. This is a post graduate college and only takes 6 students per year! Apparently in the light of this, its nickname NO SOULS is perhaps appropriate. 

The Tour finished and we were thinking about lunch. As Anna had pointed out the location of the Turf Hotel earlier in our tour, we decided to try there. Its by-line on the wall is “An Education in Intoxication” and that may well be true given that the late Bob Hawke holds the Guinness Book of Records award for skulling a yard of beer in only 11 seconds! 

And that was Oxford. It was back to the Oxford Parkway on the Park and Ride  to collect the car and go in search of another of the coaster coaching inns: the Olde Bell in Hurley. Now Hurley is a tiny place and so, I guess a coaching in in the middle of nowhere was a good idea, but this one dates back to 1169. It is on the roadside but is set in beautiful gardens. We had a drink and compulsory photo shoot and then moved on to our next stop Turville!

Turville? Really? What could possibly have happened in that tiny village which was down a stack of single lane winding roads. Well the pictures may tell the story, as it is the town in which the Vicar of Dibley series was filmed. And the church looks just the same as it does in the series as does the Vicarage. What an amazing little place. Pictures taken, the opening credits sung, it was time to go and to head back to our digs in Stratford via the biggest Tesco I have every seen! It was a big day but we did need to eat and so the Giggling Squid, a Thai restaurant was our place of choice.