Discover the 9 Most Fascinating and Entertaining Facts About Oxford University You Never Knew!

1. Harry Potter College Dining

When the sorting hat goes AWOL and you're left with a questionable stew: The Christ Church dining hall at Oxford University may resemble the Hogwarts dining hall from the Harry Potter films but was not a filming location, and is often dubbed the "Harry Potter college." Students at Christ Church eat all three meals a day in this iconic dining hall, complete with formal attire and Latin graces, but the food is notoriously disappointing.
Source => whatshotblog.com

2. King Charles I Library Rejection

Books behaving badly: they used to have a way with chains and doing the time in Oxford's Bodleian Library, making even royalty take a back seat! The serious reveal: King Charles I was denied permission to borrow a book during his stay in Oxford amidst the English Civil War, all thanks to the Library Statutes preventing any book from being removed, even for the monarch himself.
Source => bodleianlibs.tumblr.com

Did you know Cambridge University has educated royalty including Elizabeth I? Discover more about this prestigious institution and its unique connections to the throne!

=> Fun Facts about Cambridge-University

3. Oxford vs. Paris University Rivalry

When the 'School of Rock' meets the 'School of Frock': Although it sounds like a zany musical throwdown between Jack Black's eccentric character and a 14th-century gown-wearing academics, it's actually a historical connection between the University of Paris and the University of Oxford! These two prestigious institutions frequently had scholarly exchanges in the Middle Ages, but their bond got quite shaken on St. Scholastica's Day in 1355 when a infamous town vs gown confrontation in Oxford led to several deaths and a longstanding rift between the universities.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

4. Sub Fusc Fashion Statement

Warding off fashion faux pas like a knight in sub fusc armor: At Oxford University, students don a traditional academic dress called sub fusc, comprising a dark suit or skirt, white collared shirt, black shoes, and a black ribbon, bow tie, or straight tie, at important occasions like matriculation, degree ceremonies, and end-of-year exams, with no obligations to embrace the attire during every exam.
Source => walters-oxford.co.uk

5. Isis Magazine's Heroic Journey

If Oxford's Isis magazine were an action hero, it'd likely have survived explosions, won literary battles, and been rescued by A-list celebrities: Founded in 1892 by Mostyn Turtle Piggott, this enduring student magazine faced banishment in Germany, extortion threats, and precarious financial straits, boasting contributions from the likes of Evelyn Waugh, Sylvia Plath, Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, and even Nigella Lawson, who financially saved the publication, allowing it to continue garnering award nominations for its website, magazine design, and specialized content.
Source => isismagazine.org.uk

6. The Muggle Hogwarts Library

If Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry fashioned itself a secret muggle science library, the Radcliffe Camera at Oxford University would surely be it: This spellbinding structure, a tribute to English Palladian architecture, was conjured up by James Gibbs between 1737 and 1748 with the relatively modest budget bequeathed by physician John Radcliffe, amassing a mere £40,000 for its mystical stone-clad construction and maintenance.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

7. Royal Rhyming Ruler Mnemonic

When royal roll call turned rhyming game and mnemonic enthusiasts bid "Sayonara, baby" to trouble with remembering English monarchs: Students once used verses like "Willie, Willie, Harry, Stee, Harry, Dick, John, Harry three" to commit to memory the rulers of England since William the Conqueror, even infiltrating pop culture in Alan Bennett's play Forty Years On and the film King Ralph. Albeit amusing, the catchy mnemonic isn't all-inclusive, leaving out a few disputed monarchs and bypassing the whole Commonwealth of England era.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

8. Oxford's Ghostly Encounters

Are ghosts running amuck at Oxford or is it just finals week revisiting past students? Who's to know!: Oxford University is home to several spooky spirits, including the malevolent force that once tormented guests at The Black Drummer Inn by producing pig-like noises, destroying luggage, and even causing physical harm, which was eventually exorcised by hacking apart and burning a suspected corpse, as well as St. John's College being haunted by headless William Laud, who kicks his detached noggin across the library floor while clutching a candle.
Source => hauntedrooms.co.uk

9. A Million Dried Things: Unusual Snacks or Plants?

Does the phrase "a million dried things" send you on a wild trip down the snacking aisle of your local grocery store? Hold on to your shopping carts, folks: This actually refers to the roughly one million dried plant specimens housed at the Oxford University Herbaria, which happens to be the oldest herbarium in the United Kingdom. Established back in the 17th century, this botanical treasure trove even boasts wall prints from the Hortus Elthamensis – an illustrious book on exotic plants from the 18th century, written and illustrated by the University's very first Sherardian Professor of Botany, Johann Jacob Dillenius.
Source => obga.ox.ac.uk