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Portal:Oxfordshire

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The Oxfordshire Portal

A panoramic view downstream of the River Thames from Folly Bridge, in Oxford
A panoramic view downstream of the River Thames from Folly Bridge, in Oxford

Oxfordshire (/ˈɒksfərdʃər, -ʃɪər/ OKS-fərd-shər, -⁠sheer; abbreviated Oxon) is a ceremonial county in South East England. The county is bordered by Northamptonshire and Warwickshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the east, Berkshire to the south, and Wiltshire and Gloucestershire to the west. The city of Oxford is the largest settlement and county town.

The county is largely rural, with an area of 2,605 km2 (1,006 sq mi) and a population of 691,667. After Oxford (162,100), the largest settlements are Banbury (54,355) and Abingdon-on-Thames (37,931). For local government purposes Oxfordshire is a non-metropolitan county with five districts. The part of the county south of the River Thames, largely corresponding to the Vale of White Horse district, was historically part of Berkshire.

The lowlands in the centre of the county are crossed by the River Thames and its tributaries, the valleys of which are separated by low hills. The south contains parts of the Berkshire Downs and Chiltern Hills, and the north-west includes part of the Cotswolds; all three regions are Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The county's highest point is White Horse Hill (261-metre (856 ft)), part of the Berkshire Downs. (Full article...)

Selected article

Harwell in 1957

The Atomic Energy Research Establishment (AERE) was the main centre for atomic energy research and development in the United Kingdom from 1946 to the 1990s. It was created, owned and funded by the British Government. A number of early research reactors were built here starting with GLEEP in 1947 to provide the underlying science and technology behind the design and building of Britain's nuclear reactors such as the Windscale Piles and Calder Hall nuclear power station. To support this an extensive array of research and design laboratories were built to enable research into all aspects of nuclear reactor and fuel design, and the development of pilot plants for fuel reprocessing. The site became a major employer in the Oxford area.

In the 1990s demand for government-led research had significantly decreased and the site was subsequently gradually diversified to allow private investment, and was known from 2006 as the Harwell Science and Innovation Campus. (Full article...)

Selected biography

Timothy Henry Henman OBE (born 6 September 1974) is a British former professional tennis player. Henman played a serve-and-volley style of tennis. He was the first British man to reach the singles semifinals of Wimbledon since Roger Taylor in the 1970s. Henman reached six major semifinals and won 15 career ATP Tour titles (eleven in singles and four in doubles), including the 2003 Paris Masters. He also earned a 40–14 win-loss record with the Great Britain Davis Cup team.

Henman was the British No. 1 player in 1996 and again from 1999 to 2005, at which point he was overtaken by Andy Murray. He reached a career-high ranking of world No. 4 three different times between July 2002 and October 2004. He is one of the most successful British players of the Open Era, winning $11,635,542 prize money. In the 2004 New Year Honours, he was appointed an OBE.

Henman started playing tennis before the age of three, and began systematic training in the Slater Squad at eleven. After suffering a serious injury which affected him for the better part of two years, he began touring internationally as a junior and achieved some successes. He rose quickly up the ATP rankings, and by 1996 had reached the quarterfinals of Wimbledon. For most of his career, Henman was considered a grass court specialist, reaching four Wimbledon semifinals in the five years between 1998 and 2002. He also achieved considerable success on hard courts early in his career, with his first title on the top tier ATP tour won in Sydney with a straight sets win over Carlos Moya. He became comfortable on clay only later in his career, when in 2004 he reached the semifinals of the French. Henman retired from professional tennis in late 2007, but remains active on the ATP Champions Tour (a tour for former professional tennis players). (Full article...)

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