Oxford Lives

Oxford is a wonderful city in which to live, and If you have the good fortune to call yourself a resident you are probably here because you value its incredible mix of people and cultures. However, whether local or visitor, your own personal network of friends and colleagues can only touch a small proportion of the fascinating people who call this place home.

We set up this podcast to seek out some of the individuals that we find interesting and explore their lives and stories. They are not all celebrated or well-known, but what they do and what they think add another dimension to the familiar narrative of town, gown and tourism. Hopefully you will find it an insight and an introduction to interesting and unfamiliar parts of our community.

So, relax and select someone from the cast below and get to know a bit more about a particular Oxford life.

As a compliment to our podcast we have produced a self-guided tour where we look at Oxford’s links to fantasy literature and the many writers who have lived and worked here. So if you find yourself in Oxford prepare to be whisked away to other worlds full of Hobbits, Orcs and parallel universes!

Literary Legends and Landmarks: A fantasy fiction tour of Oxford

If you have any comments or any suggestions for people to interview, please contact us at: oxford.lives@protonmail.com

Oxford Lives - Episode 27 with Larry Sanders

Dec 4, 2019

Larry Sanders is a living legend. New York born and raised, Larry moved to Oxford fifty years ago and can now safely call himself an Oxonian. Health Spokesperson for the Green Party of England and Wales, Larry's extensive career spans academia, social work and politics. He has recently been heavily involved...

Oxford Lives - Episode 26 with Andrew Mason AKA Mani

Nov 15, 2019

Nobody embodies the spirit of Oxford more than Andrew Manson AKA Mani AKA The Big Orange M. You’ll recognise his distinctive art work from around the city: Cowley Road, Covered Market, New Theatre, to name a few. Painter, street artist, accomplished sketcher, Mani embodies the concept of a community artist. Here he...

Oxford Lives - Episode 25 with Jerome Arab

Oct 25, 2019

Jerome Arab is a Zimbabwean rapper, singer, songwriter and entertainer with a following in 40 countries. He spends his summers in Oxford and was kind enough to pop into Oxford Lives to share with us his creative message and plans for the future, which include a forthcoming album and the release of 52 tracks (one...

Oxford Lives - Episode 24 with Liz Woolley

Oct 18, 2019

Liz Woolley (MSc Dist.) is a highly acclaimed local historian with a wealth of knowledge about Oxford and its multifaceted past. She is particularly interested in the “town” side of the city, as opposed to the “gown”, and her many talks reflect this with subjects as diverse as industrial architecture, rural...

Oxford Lives - Episode 23 with Jamal Ibrahim - Part 2

Oct 8, 2019

Part Two of this fascinating interview with Oxford-based artist, biochemist and teacher Jamal Ibrahim. Here we pick up where we left off, with Jamal telling us an interesting story about a Samurai sword he once owned. He also talks about his time in Malaysia and lets us into the secrets of his trailblazing...