From Old Marston, head north, away from the B4495, to the junction with Mill Lane. The parish Church of St Nicholas is to the right. Follow Mill Lane, passing a stone house with a blue plaque on the right. Turn left at the sign for the Victoria Arms and follow the long drive to its car park. Make for the far corner and follow the woodland path beside the River Cherwell.
Cross the B4495 and continue on the footpath. On reaching three gates, side by side, go through the right gate and keep to the riverside path, passing Wolfson College. Continue along the path, briefly leave the riverbank to enter woodland, then sweep back to rejoin the Cherwell. Turn right at a path junction and go over the river bridge. Turn left on the opposite side and pass a seat in memory of J R R Tolkien. Walk through the University Parks, keep right at the fork and follow the path as it sweeps to the right, keeping left when it forks. Pass alongside a boundary and turn left to pass South Lodge.
Keep Linacre College on your left and continue along St Cross Road. Pass the entrance to Holywell Cemetery on the left, cross Holywell Street and bear left along Longwall Street, passing the William Morris garage on the right. Walk along to the High Street, turn left and pass Magdalen College to cross Magdalen Bridge. Keep left at the traffic island to follow St Clements Street and branch left along Marston Road. On the right is Headington Hill Park. Follow the road, pass the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies and turn immediately left at a footpath sign for University Parks.
Take the path down to the Cherwell and follow it between the river and a mill-stream at a T-junction of paths. Turn left eventually, over two bridges, then swing right on the opposite bank to re-enter the University Parks. Turn left at a gate and follow a concrete path, crossing a bridge to turn right at a kissing gate. Fork right, keep alongside the Cherwell and make for the Tolkien seat. Cross the next bridge again and follow the path ahead, away from the r
Turn left at the next path junction, in front of a sports pavilion and then right at the next junction. Cross a footbridge and stile, skirting a field to enter light woodland. Go through a kissing gate and eventually the path reaches the entrance to the Harlow Centre. Follow the drive and swing left just beyond a primary school. Turn right after a few paces, passing through the subway. Follow the walkway to the right and turn left at Oxford Road, back to the start.
Midway round this very varied city and country walk stands one of Oxford’s greatest landmarks and finest buildings – Magdalen College. The college buildings have changed little since they were built at the end of the 15th century and the historic bell tower is one of the city’s best-known features.... During the Civil War Royalist forces defended the bridge here by throwing rocks from the top of the tower down on to the heads of Parliamentarians beneath. Today, on May morning, a famous Oxford tradition is upheld when the dons and the Magdalen College choristers gather at the top of the tower to sing a Latin hymn. Magdalen College is open to visitors and a tour offers a fascinating glimpse into the traditions and daily routine of college life. Eagle-eyed film fans will recognise parts of the college from the big screen adaptation of Shadowlands, made in 1993 and starring Anthony Hopkins in the role of C S Lewis. In December 1916 Belfast-born Lewis won a classical scholarship to University College, Oxford. He arrived in the city in 1917 to train in the University Officers’ Training Corps. Later that year, he joined the Somerset Light Infantry and crossed to France. Lewis was wounded at the Battle of Arras in 1918 and convalesced until hostilities ceased. In January 1919 he returned to Oxford, and in 1925 Magdalen College elected him as a Fellow and Tutor in English Language and Literature, a post he held for 29 years. Lewis’s famously scruffy appearance often led to him being mistaken for a labourer. Robert Hardy, the well-known British character actor, famous for playing Siegfried Farnon in the BBC’s original adaptation of All Creatures Great and Small, was an undergraduate at Magdalen in the mid 1940s. Lewis was to be his tutor. The young Hardy was terrified at the prospect of meeting the distinguished Oxford academic but soon after his arrival Hardy encountered a shambling figure in the college precincts. ‘Are you Hardy?’ the man inquired. It was of course Lewis, but Hardy was convinced at first that he was a college gardener.
Located at the heart of England, Oxfordshire enjoys a rich heritage and varied scenery, with Oxford’s elegant streets a highlight for visitors. The landscape encompasses open chalk downland, picturesque rivers and attractive villages, while northwest of Oxfordshire is home to the sleepy backwaters of Abingdon, Wallingford, Wantage, Watlington and Witney that reveal how Oxfordshire’s old towns evolved over the centuries.
From Old Marston, head north, away from the B4495, to the junction with Mill Lane. The parish Church of St Nicholas is to the right. Follow Mill Lane, passing a stone house with a blue plaque on the right. Turn left at the sign for the Victoria Arms and follow the long drive to its car park. Make for the far corner and follow the woodland path beside the River Cherwell.
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Cross the B4495 and continue on the footpath. On reaching three gates, side by side, go through the right gate and keep to the riverside path, passing Wolfson College. Continue along the path, briefly leave the riverbank to enter woodland, then sweep back to rejoin the Cherwell. Turn right at a path junction and go over the river bridge. Turn left on the opposite side and pass a seat in memory of J R R Tolkien. Walk through the University Parks, keep right at the fork and follow the path as it sweeps to the right, keeping left when it forks. Pass alongside a boundary and turn left to pass South Lodge.
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Keep Linacre College on your left and continue along St Cross Road. Pass the entrance to Holywell Cemetery on the left, cross Holywell Street and bear left along Longwall Street, passing the William Morris garage on the right. Walk along to the High Street, turn left and pass Magdalen College to cross Magdalen Bridge. Keep left at the traffic island to follow St Clements Street and branch left along Marston Road. On the right is Headington Hill Park. Follow the road, pass the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies and turn immediately left at a footpath sign for University Parks.
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Take the path down to the Cherwell and follow it between the river and a mill-stream at a T-junction of paths. Turn left eventually, over two bridges, then swing right on the opposite bank to re-enter the University Parks. Turn left at a gate and follow a concrete path, crossing a bridge to turn right at a kissing gate. Fork right, keep alongside the Cherwell and make for the Tolkien seat. Cross the next bridge again and follow the path ahead, away from the r
4 of 5
Turn left at the next path junction, in front of a sports pavilion and then right at the next junction. Cross a footbridge and stile, skirting a field to enter light woodland. Go through a kissing gate and eventually the path reaches the entrance to the Harlow Centre. Follow the drive and swing left just beyond a primary school. Turn right after a few paces, passing through the subway. Follow the walkway to the right and turn left at Oxford Road, back to the start.
Midway round this very varied city and country walk stands one of Oxford’s greatest landmarks and finest buildings – Magdalen College. The college buildings have changed little since they were built at the end of the 15th century and the historic bell tower is one of the city’s best-known features.... During the Civil War Royalist forces defended the bridge here by throwing rocks from the top of the tower down on to the heads of Parliamentarians beneath. Today, on May morning, a famous Oxford tradition is upheld when the dons and the Magdalen College choristers gather at the top of the tower to sing a Latin hymn. Magdalen College is open to visitors and a tour offers a fascinating glimpse into the traditions and daily routine of college life. Eagle-eyed film fans will recognise parts of the college from the big screen adaptation of Shadowlands, made in 1993 and starring Anthony Hopkins in the role of C S Lewis. In December 1916 Belfast-born Lewis won a classical scholarship to University College, Oxford. He arrived in the city in 1917 to train in the University Officers’ Training Corps. Later that year, he joined the Somerset Light Infantry and crossed to France. Lewis was wounded at the Battle of Arras in 1918 and convalesced until hostilities ceased. In January 1919 he returned to Oxford, and in 1925 Magdalen College elected him as a Fellow and Tutor in English Language and Literature, a post he held for 29 years. Lewis’s famously scruffy appearance often led to him being mistaken for a labourer. Robert Hardy, the well-known British character actor, famous for playing Siegfried Farnon in the BBC’s original adaptation of All Creatures Great and Small, was an undergraduate at Magdalen in the mid 1940s. Lewis was to be his tutor. The young Hardy was terrified at the prospect of meeting the distinguished Oxford academic but soon after his arrival Hardy encountered a shambling figure in the college precincts. ‘Are you Hardy?’ the man inquired. It was of course Lewis, but Hardy was convinced at first that he was a college gardener.
Located at the heart of England, Oxfordshire enjoys a rich heritage and varied scenery, with Oxford’s elegant streets a highlight for visitors. The landscape encompasses open chalk downland, picturesque rivers and attractive villages, while northwest of Oxfordshire is home to the sleepy backwaters of Abingdon, Wallingford, Wantage, Watlington and Witney that reveal how Oxfordshire’s old towns evolved over the centuries.
