On Friday, 14 July the Oxfordshire branch of the ESU held a dinner to mark the centenary of its first branch dinner. The 1923 event was held at Oriel College and presided over by branch chair and Warden of New College, Dr. Spooner who said, without so much as one of the spoonerisms for which he became famous, that all present were ‘all persuaded of the excellence of the aims of the English-Speaking Union, which sought to promote the happiness, well-being and fellowship of all those who spoke the English language.’
Oriel College was sadly unavailable this year but nonetheless, Oxfordshire branch celebrated in style at nearby Linacre College. They welcomed as their speaker Professor Kathy Sylva OBE PhD, a developmental psychologist who has been specialist adviser to Parliamentary Select Committees and currently advises Ofsted, the Early Intervention Foundation, and the Education Endowment Foundation.
