England Guide
Oxfordshire, the Chilterns and the Cotswolds
New College
Opening time: Daily: Easter to early Oct 11am–5pm; mid-Oct to Easter 2–4pm
Price: Easter to early Oct: £2; mid-Oct to Easter; free
Address: Queen's Lane
Telephone: 01865/279 555
Website: www.new.ox.ac.uk
Founded in 1379, New College kicks off with an attractive Front Quad, though the splendid Perpendicular Gothic architecture of the original was spoiled by the addition of an extra storey in 1674. The adjoining Chapel has been mucked about too, yet it can still lay claim to being the finest in Oxford, not so much for its design as its contents. The ante-chapel contains some superb fourteenth-century stained glass and the west window – of 1778 – holds an intriguing (if somewhat unsuccessful) Nativity scene based on a design by Sir Joshua Reynolds. Beneath it stands the wonderful Lazarus by Jacob Epstein; Khrushchev, after a visit to the college, claimed that the memory of this haunting sculpture kept him awake at night. An archway on the east side of the Front Quad leads through to the modest Garden Quad, with the thick flowerbeds of the College Garden beckoning beyond. The north side of the garden is flanked by the largest and best-preserved section of Oxford's medieval city wall, but the conspicuous earthen mound in the middle is a later decorative addition and not, disappointingly, medieval at all. Notable New College alumni include Tony Benn, the author John Fowles and the actor Hugh Grant.