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Raise the Colours threatened with legal action for flags

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The group was initially issued a legal notice banning it from putting up flags in Oxfordshire on April 1.

It came after members livestreamed themselves hanging flags, with locals said to have been subjected to “abuse and threatening behaviour” if they criticised or challenged them.

The movement says it is placing flags around the county in the name of patriotism, but it has attracted criticism with allegations of intimidation and threatening behaviour from some members towards the public and council staff.

Now, the council has threatened group members with a High Court injunction, saying flags had continued to be hung despite the ban.

In a livestream last week, Raise the Colours co-founder Ryan Bridge was filmed holding an urgent letter from the authority, which he said needed legal attention.

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A St George's Cross painted on the Spring Road/Marcham Road roundaboutA St George’s Cross painted on the Spring Road/Marcham Road roundabout (Image: Matt Simpson)

Bridge was previously arrested in Oxford on suspicion of causing racially and religiously aggravated assault on Wednesday, April 1 in Abingdon Road, Oxford.

At the time a spokesperson for Thames Valley Police said: “Last week, we launched an investigation following reports of incidents of public order offences on Abingdon Road, Oxford.

“Officers are investigating those public order offences and have arrested a 44-year-old man from Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, on suspicion of causing racially and religiously aggravated harassment, alarm or distress.”

His arrest on Saturday followed an alleged hit-and-run crash involving a van and a pedestrian in Birmingham on Thursday, May 14.

A spokesperson for Oxfordshire County Council said: “Oxfordshire County Council has issued legal correspondence to individuals in relation to the continued unauthorised placing of flags on or near the public highway.

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A Union flag photographed on an Oxfordshire junctionA Union flag photographed on an Oxfordshire junction (Image: Ed Nix)

“As the highway authority, the council has a legal duty to keep roads and public infrastructure safe.

“The council has also seen instances of unacceptable behaviour towards employees and contractors carrying out their work and has a responsibility to protect its workforce and the wider public.

“The letters request that this activity stops and seeks assurances that it will not continue. If these are not provided, the council will consider further legal steps, including seeking an injunction from the High Court.”

Liz Leffman, former leader of Oxfordshire County Council, said at the end of March: “The scale and persistence of this activity is affecting communities across Oxfordshire.

Oxfordshire County Council leader Liz LeffmanFormer leader of Oxfordshire County Council Liz Leffman (Image: Newsquest)

“We are proud of our diverse communities in Oxfordshire and of being the first county council to be awarded Local Authority of Sanctuary status.

“We proudly fly the Union and St George’s flags, which are visible symbols of democracy and unity. However, the widespread installation of flags by Raise the Colours is not a sign of patriotism.

“It is an act of intimidation and division that is having a real and damaging impact on our communities. Our residents report feeling distressed, unwelcome and unsafe in their own neighbourhoods.”





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Oxford News

Oxford to screen Dreamers at Picture Palace for Pride Month

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The 4pm showing of Dreamers will take place at The Ultimate Picture Palace in Oxford on Saturday, May 23, ahead of Pride Month.

Asylum Welcome is organising the event to support LOCS (LGBTQIA+ Oxfordshire Community Support), their dedicated group for LGBTQ+ asylum seekers, refugees and vulnerable migrants.

Beth Nichol, women’s rights and inclusion coordinator at Asylum Welcome, said: “Over the past six months, the size of the LOCS community has expanded from 13 to 40 participants and is continuing to grow fast.

“Our support for LGBTQ+ refugees, asylum seekers and vulnerable migrants has expanded far beyond a support group.”

Ms Nichol said further funding was essential to keep the project running.

She added: “To make this service sustainable, we need more funds.

“Operating at the intersection of anti-queer and anti-migrant prejudices can make traditional fundraising a challenge.

“There are very few grants that we are eligible for, and those are massively oversubscribed.

“This is why we are looking to expand into grassroots fundraising and awareness-raising.”

Written and directed by Joy Gharoro-Akpojotor, Dreamers is set within the UK immigration detention system and explores themes of queer love, friendship and solidarity.

The film was described by The Independent as ‘the most striking British debut of 2025’.

LOCS provides a crucial network of support for people facing discrimination due to both their sexual or gender identity and their immigration status.

The group offers safe spaces, social opportunities and practical help for its members.

One member said: “Asylum Welcome has always felt like a family to me.

“Before LOCS started, I struggled for months to find a supportive space for queer immigrants in Oxfordshire.

“I wish this project had existed when I first arrived.

“Now my goal is to help make everyone who joins us feel included.”

The screening also aims to raise awareness of the challenges faced by LGBTQ+ asylum seekers, many of whom have fled countries where they experienced state-sponsored persecution as well as violence and rejection from their families and communities.

A representative from The Ultimate Picture Palace said: “We are thrilled to be hosting this screening of Dreamers in partnership with Asylum Welcome, whose vital work we are proud to support.

“Cultural venues like ours have a responsibility to stand alongside the local charities and organisations working hard to make a difference in our community.”

Attendees will hear an introduction about Asylum Welcome’s work and learn how they can support LGBTQ+ people seeking sanctuary and rebuilding their lives in Oxfordshire.





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Oxford to screen Gentle, Angry Women film this weekend

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Gentle, Angry Women, directed by Barbara Santi, tells the story of three young women retracing the historic march to Greenham Common – 40 years after the first Women’s Peace Protests.

It will be screened at The Ultimate Picture Palace in Oxford on Sunday, May 24, at 5pm.

The documentary is the latest release from award-winning Cornish production company Awen Productions and is part of the film’s 2026 UK tour, with stops including Gloucester, Cardiff, Bristol, Reading, and Cornwall.

The screening will be followed by a Q&A session with peace activists Marie Walsh, Nuala Young, and Di McDonald.

The event is being held to mark International Women’s Day for Peace and Disarmament and will celebrate women’s global leadership in advocating for peace and disarmament.

Barbara Santi, director of Gentle, Angry Women, said: “I belong to the generation that should have inherited and passed on these stories, yet failed to do so.

“I’m working to repair that broken chain of women’s collective memory.

“Every woman deserves to know her own history – yet an entire generation has been robbed of the knowledge that thousands of women once lived for years in makeshift camps, facing arrest and ridicule to prevent nuclear war.”

Ms Santi said the film’s message is especially timely in light of current global events.

She said: “In a time when young people are grappling with climate crisis, global conflicts, and technological isolation, they need to see how previous generations of ‘gentle, angry women’ faced seemingly impossible odds and refused to give up.”

The Greenham Common protest lasted 19 years and became one of the largest women’s movements in British history, although many – including the film’s protagonists – were unaware of it.

The documentary follows 19-year-old Evie from Cornwall, and her friends Xanthe, 17, and Poppy, 16, on a 110-mile march to Greenham Common to rediscover its legacy.

Along their journey, the trio meet women who spent years living at the peace camp and share intergenerational conversations on activism and the state of the world today.

The young women highlight contemporary issues, including climate change, women’s rights, Black Lives Matter, and animal activism.

She said: “The film champions small acts of defiance and community building as powerful forms of resistance.”

Audience members have described the film as ‘a really humbling story of collective women’s activism’ and ‘powerful, poetic, and unapologetically bold’.

Tickets and more information are available at the Folklife Films website.





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Oxford News

Olives on sale at market is our camera club winner

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That was their latest weekly theme and they posted plenty of photos of market stalls in Oxford, including those in the Covered Market and at Gloucester Green and Broad Street.

Some photographers also sent in photos of markets from outside the county and beyond.

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Gloucester Green and the Covered Market offer plenty of good opportunities for colourful photos as there are often food stalls open, while Broad Street hosts a popular market over the festive period.

It was tricky to choose a winner for photo of the week, but Georgina Elliott-Dew was selected for an eye-catching selection of photos, including the one above of a market trader selling olives.

Ann Faulkner’s snap of Applegate market in Covent Garden also stood out.

A market at Covent Garden (Image: Ann Faulkner)

Camera club members have drawn up their own list of weekly themes and the next one is ‘Oxfordshire stone’.





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