St John's College

Just out and about in city centre this afternoon, and liked this typical street scene in St Giles. You have the Lamb and Flag pub, the Red English telephone box in front of St John's College, which is in the sun. To me this photo just says, Oxford.

TED Conference Arrives In Oxford

TED Conference hits Oxford for the next three days. TED which I have been told is the Technology Education and Design conference has a very international following bringing the brightest minds in these fields together in Oxford. This TED movement has become very popular in recent years, with the worlds best and brightest attending, however the streets of Oxford can still be confusing to navigate so the event organisers have staff on hand to direct delegates to the conference venues.

The Lamb, the Flag and the Passage...

One of my favourite pubs in Oxford is the Lamb & Flag at St. Giles. The pub is managed and owned by St. John's College, which is well-known as (one of) the wealthiest and biggest colleges in Oxford. Last night I heard a funny story about St. John's owning this pub and the fact that the college is so wealthy. Everytime St. John's pay their academic staff they will visit the pub and spend some of their salary on drinks or some food. Now I heard this happens so often with some staff members that a big part of their salary flows back to college immediately (it's like you give them something and take it back after a couple of pints). I can imagine that some staff members' partners don't like this very much. They might pay a visit to the pub to see if this story applies to their husband or wife. If so, staff members: you can run away via the back of the pub using the Lamb & Flag passage....