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Schwarzman Centre to open doors to public with major celebration

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The Schwarzman Centre’s Open House on Saturday 25 April 2026 offers a free-to-attend opening programme to mark the launch of the cultural programme and the new 500-seat Sohmen Concert Hall.

Audiences can attend performances by the Scottish Ensemble, and see the world premiere of 360 Vessels by artist Es Devlin and composer Nico Muhly, performed by chamber choir Schola Cantorum beneath the glass dome of the Great Hall. Artists Anna Ridler and Refik Anadol each present digital works that have been created using AI. Additional performances include ZooNation’s The Mad Hatter’s Tea Party in the new theatre, along with a line-up of artists including ground breaking Head over Wheels and physical theatre company Justice in Motion.

Es Devlin. Credit: Victor Picon, Cartier

The Schwarzman Centre’s cultural programme, directed by John Fulljames, will offer fresh new experiences for audiences drawing on the research and teaching excellence of the University of Oxford, and placing experimentation and co-creation at its heart.

Central to the programme are the Schwarzman Centre Cultural Fellows, a group of outstanding artists from around the world who are collaborating with Oxford’s leading academics to create pioneering new work. The initial cohort of Schwarzman Centre Cultural Fellows are: Refik Anadol; Lil Buck; Anna Clyne; Bryce Dessner; Rhiannon Giddens; Sarah Jones; Taylor Mac; Sir Wayne McGregor; Suzan-Lori Parks; Anoushka Shankar; Kae Tempest; Nitin Sawhney; and Bloomberg-Oxford Fellows, Es Devlin, Hans Ulrich Obrist and Marshmallow Laser Feast.

The Schwarzman Centre’s new collaboration with Bloomberg Connects, which supports the sharing of new and historical perspectives from the cultural programme’s renowned artists, writers, and thinkers, will enable visitors to access exclusive content via the Connects app to add to their experience.

ZooNation Dance Company. Credit: Foteini ChristofilopoulouZooNation Dance Company. Credit: Foteini Christofilopoulou

John Fulljames, Director of the Cultural Programme, The Schwarzman Centre, said: ‘We can’t wait to welcome everyone into this new home for arts & culture. It’s a place where people from across the region and beyond can come together to make sense of what it means to be human in today’s world – that’s what the arts & humanities are all about. With a free opening celebration including music, theatre, dance, cabaret and more, we can promise the chance to connect both with some much loved stories and artists and also encounter something new and surprising.’

Alexandra Vincent MBE, Managing Director, The Schwarzman Centre, University of Oxford, said: ‘We are thrilled to unveil this unique and exciting programme, developed by leading artists and performers working with Oxford research and researchers, for the opening of the Schwarzman Centre. We look forward to welcoming audiences of all ages and backgrounds to the Centre over the April weekend and beyond.’

We can’t wait to welcome everyone into this new home for arts & culture. It’s a place where people from across the region and beyond can come together to make sense of what it means to be human in today’s world – that’s what the arts & humanities are all about. 

John Fulljames, Director of the Cultural Programme

The Schwarzman Centre’s inaugural 2026 programme will present two themed seasons:

Other keynote performances throughout the year include an evening with Kae Tempest; ROBOTA, a new staging of Karel Capek’s R.U.R. by Headlong Theatre; a day-long exploration of the psalms curated by Edmund de Waal, in collaboration with Oxford scholars, the Aurora Orchestra and the Colin Currie Group. 

Sigur Rós will collaborate with spatial sound specialists Loss>

Find out more about the events and book tickets on the Schwarzman Centre’s website.



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Katy Perry forced to cancel gig ahead of Blenheim Festival

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The 41-year-old pop icon was due to perform at Werchter Boutique festival in Belgium last night, Saturday, June 28, when the event was unexpectedly cut short.

The festival’s committee decided to end the day’s performances early, at 9pm just after a set from Pitbull, due to a weather forecast of ‘severe thunderstorms from midnight onwards at the earliest’ and a government warning.

READ MORE: Jeremy Clarkson’s pub staff ‘walk out after many problems’

Perry wrote on Instagram: “Sadly my set at Werchter Boutique tonight can’t happen due to a government mandated cancellation because of the incoming inclement weather and crowd safety concerns.

“I was backstage at the show in the middle of hair and makeup when this news was delivered, and they gave me no choice.

“I am just as unhappy as you are. Unfortunately this is beyond my control, but the safety of all 55,000 of you always comes first and foremost.”

The performance was due to mark the popstar’s return to the one-day event held in Belgium’s Festivalpark for the first time in more than 15 years.

READ MORE: Sara Cox in new venture as UK charity collapses with £430k owed

Perry added: “I am sorry I can’t change the weather, and even sorrier that all of us can’t be together tonight. I was looking forward to being back after 17 years, I was even gonna wear the same outfit from that 2009 show again. I love you all, and please get home safe.”

It comes just a week before the star’s next scheduled festival appearance, at the brand-new Blenheim Festival in Wodostock, Oxfordshire, where she is due to perform on July 4.

The current forecast for that date is sunny skies and temperatures in the mid-20s.





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BBOWT shares tips for helping wild bees this summer

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CAN you imagine summer without the sight of bumblebees buzzing from flower to flower, or a summer lunch without juicy tomatoes or strawberries?

If we don’t help our wild bees, this could be a glimpse of the future.

Our bees are in trouble.

Bees pollinate flowers, but also many of our favourite food crops, equivalent to every third mouthful of food we eat.

But they’re losing the habitat and plants they need to survive.

In the countryside, 97 per cent of lowland meadow has already been lost and the dramatic decrease in suitable habitats isn’t just confined to rural areas.

Gardens used to act as ‘green corridors’ for wildlife to move around towns and cities, and into and out of urban areas, but are increasingly being paved over or even covered with fake grass – with no real plants at all.

Helping bees is easy though.

Anyone can take action to help wild bees whether you have a wall for vertical planting, window box, or back garden.

It’s easy to plant a bee haven and fun choosing between bee-friendly beauties like borage, foxglove and honeysuckle.

There are 15 million gardens in the UK.

Put together they cover an area that’s seven times the size of the Isle of Wight.

If we all made our gardens more bee-friendly it would have a huge impact on our wild bees.

So, what should you plant in your garden?

Bees need a supply of pollen and nectar throughout the year, from late winter/early spring when some emerge from their winter hibernation right through until the end of the year.

Plant a selection of perennials, such as bergamot, globe thistle and knapweeds, for pollen through the summer.

These will provide bees with food year after year.

Add a few annuals each year, such as borage, cornflower and sunflower for variety.

Later in the autumn, hebe and ivy provide food when summer plants have gone to seed.

Then make sure you’ve got a few winter-flowering crocuses and hellebores to help bees as they emerge on warmer winter or early spring days in need of food after their winter hibernation.

Did you know there are around 250 species of bee in the UK?

Just one species of bee, the honeybee, actually makes honey.

Then there are bumblebees, which are familiar to most of us, and many different kinds of solitary bee.

Solitary bees are fantastic pollinators for our garden plants.

They don’t live in colonies, but instead the females make their own nest without any ‘workers’ to help them.

Some make their nests in gaps in the walls of old buildings or dig holes in bare ground (look for small piles of earth with a tiny hole in the middle).

You can help some species of solitary bee in your garden by providing a ‘bee hotel’.

Cut lengths of old bamboo and tie together, or drill long holes in old pieces of wood.

Hang somewhere sunny and sheltered and, in time, the bees will move in.

The exposed cliffs at BBOWT’s Dry Sandford Pit nature reserve near Abingdon are a haven for many types of solitary bee, which burrow into the soft, sandy layers.

Look for the ‘honeycomb’ of tiny holes.

You may see the UK’s newest bumblebee in your garden – the tree bumblebee.

These were first recorded here in 2001 but they’ve now spread throughout much of England and Wales.

They have a distinctive ginger-coloured back (thorax) and black and white abdomen.

Some make their homes in old bird nest boxes as they prefer to nest above the ground.

Help ensure our bees’ survival by making your garden bee-friendly this summer.

You’ll be making a real difference to our bees and helping to ensure our summer strawberries are here to stay.

Find out more about bees and how to help them at bbowt.org.uk/different-kinds-bees.





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Buckland Primary School Weins Homes Badbury Green village

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Year Six pupils from Buckland Primary School visited Wain Homes’ Badbury Green site to learn about the housebuilding process and future career opportunities.

During the visit, students explored the stages of construction, the importance of green spaces, and the wide variety of roles available in the industry.

James Stevens, class teacher at Buckland Primary School, said: “Thank you to the Wain Homes team for giving our children an enjoyable and informative experience in a way they could easily understand.

“The children now have knowledge of how the homes they live in are built and some of the careers they may be interested in as they get older. They particularly enjoyed looking round the show homes and having a go at laying some bricks.”

The pupils toured two show homes and tried their hand at bricklaying.

A time capsule, filled with children’s notes describing life in 2026, was also buried during the visit, set to be be opened in 2076.

Tim Lund, regional sales director at Wain Homes, said: “We hope the visit inspired some of the children to consider construction as a future career. They were eager to learn and now understand each stage of the process of building a modern energy efficient home.”

Wain Homes is building 125 energy-efficient homes at the site.





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