Oxford News
Nigella Lawson will NOT host new Great British Bake Off episode
The 66-year-old was named as the replacement for outgoing judge and Cotswolds resident Dame Prue Leith in January.
Ms Lawson read Modern Languages at Oxford University’s Lady Margaret Hall, edited the student magazine Isis, later saving it from financial trouble, and graduated in 1979.
A portrait of the TV cook and food writer was then hung in the very same Oxford college, installed in 2018, to inspire students.
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It has now been revealed that Ms Lawson will not be taking over just yet, with a different name set to star as a judge in the upcoming celebrity special.
Channel 4 is once again airing its star-studded Bake Off, which raises money for Stand Up To Cancer, the campaign funding cancer research, plus new tests and treatments.
This year’s line‑up includes Love Island star Molly‑Mae Hague, One Day actor Ambika Mod, and I’m A Celebrity winner Sam Thompson, with US singer and online personality JoJo Siwa also taking part after her stint on Celebrity Big Brother.
Hosts Alison Hammond and Noel Fielding are back, as is long‑serving judge Paul Hollywood, but viewers won’t see Ms Lawson onscreen.
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Instead, Bake Off: The Professionals judge and pastry expert Cherish Finden will join Hollywood on the Celeb Bake Off judging panel.
A spokesperson for Channel 4 explained to Yahoo UK that filming for the celebrity episodes took place last year.
This was before Ms Lawson had been confirmed as the new main‑series judge, which is why she is not involved in the Stand Up To Cancer spin‑off.
The star is still due to appear later in the year when the standard series of Bake Off featuring non‑celebrity contestants returns.
Oxford News
Faringdon school gets new sensory garden thanks to Tesco
The garden has been developed at Folly View Primary School and is designed to support pupil wellbeing, creativity, and personal growth by providing a calming and engaging outdoor space.
Funding for the project was secured through a £1,500 grant from the Tesco Community Grants scheme, made possible by votes from shoppers using blue tokens at the Faringdon store.
Muddy Spades, a local gardening business led by Royston Oxendale, also played a key role in bringing the garden to life by donating plants and building bespoke planters for the space.
Richard Evans, chief executive of Cambrian Learning Trust, said: “This wonderful sensory garden is a testament to what can be achieved when a community comes together with a shared purpose.
“At Cambrian Learning Trust, we are proud to see Folly View Primary School bringing its core values of belonging, kindness, and aspiration to life in such a meaningful way.
“This space will not only enhance pupils’ wellbeing but also inspire curiosity, resilience, and a lifelong love of learning.”
The garden will also support the school’s gardening club, offering pupils hands-on opportunities to care for plants and learn about the environment.
The school has thanked Tesco Faringdon, Muddy Spades, the PTA, and everyone involved in turning the garden into a reality.
Oxford News
Pictures to celebrate World Poetry Day 2026 in Oxfordshire
UNESCO first adopted March 21 as World Poetry Day during its 30th General Conference in Paris, with the aim of supporting linguistic diversity through poetic expression and increasing the opportunity for endangered languages to be heard.
The heritage organisation said: “World Poetry Day is the occasion to honour poets, revive oral traditions of poetry recitals, promote the reading, writing and teaching of poetry, foster the convergence between poetry and other arts such as theatre, dance, music and painting, and raise the visibility of poetry in the media.”
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This time on Looking Back, we’ve found a selection of fantastic poetry celebrations in Oxfordshire from the year 2014, now 12 years ago.
Language lovers converged for the day of celebration on bookshops, schools, at recitals and conferences.
Take a look back through this Oxford Mail archive gallery to find pictures from a decade ago of World Poetry Day celebrations in Oxfordshire.
Oxford News
All the Oxfordshire locations used as TV and film sets
We’ve made a gallery of pictures showing all the Oxfordshire spots which have been used for TV and film sets over the years.
Some of the biggest productions filmed here in Oxfordshire include Spectre in the James Bond franchise, which transformed Blenheim Palace in Woodstock into the Palazzo Cardenza in Rome.
Blenheim Palace featured as a key movie set for the James Bond film, Spectre, when it was dressed up as the Palazzo Cardenza in Rome, 2015 (Image: Andrew Walmsley)
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Many period dramas were also created in the county, like the BBC adaptation of Hilary Mantel’s Wolf Hall, which was partly filmed at Chastleton House in the Cotswolds.
Cotswolds villages have been repeatedly transformed and used as filming locations for their historical appeal, like the villages of Brill, Broadwell and Castle Combe.
Find all the pictures in this archive gallery of historic Oxfordshire filming locations here.
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