Christ Church, Oxford

An old friend has moved to London — and it's free to visit 🎨

One of Christ Church Picture Gallery's most significant paintings, Filippino Lippi's The Wounded Centaur (c. 1495), is now on view at the National Gallery in London (Room 62, Sainsbury Wing) for the duration of our Picture Gallery's major refurbishment.

Among the most intriguing mythological paintings of the Italian Renaissance, it captures a moment of stillness just after something has happened — but before we understand what. A centaur examines a quiver of arrows, one of which has pierced his hoof; a female centaur shelters two young in a cave; and Cupid reclines with an orange bow. Did the centaur wound himself, or did Cupid loose the arrow? Filippino leaves it to us to decide — the ambiguity was the point, designed to spark debate and admired in Florence as a mark of true artistic genius.

Given to Christ Church in 1828 by the collector William Thomas Horner Fox-Strangways and rarely moved since because of its fragility, the painting now hangs among fellow Florentine giants: Botticelli's Mars and Venus, Uccello's Battle of San Romano and Piero di Cosimo's Death of a Nymph.

The National Gallery welcomes millions of visitors a year and remains free of charge — so if you're near Trafalgar Square, do drop in and see it.

Read the full story: https://www.chch.ox.ac.uk/news/italian-renaissance-masterpiece-goes-view-national-gallery-london

Are you hoping to come to Oxford’s Open Day on 18 September?

There’s just one week left to apply for travel support and free accommodation at Christ Church.

Accommodation ➡️ https://forms.office.com/e/M0H3FGS5C7
Travel support ➡️ https://forms.office.com/e/1ZxMp99Ek3

If you’re a teacher who’d like to bring a group to Christ Church, but are concerned about the cost of coach travel, we may be able to help. Find out more about our Open Days and the support we can offer here ➡️ bit.ly/ChChOpenDays

Big news from one of our alumni 👏

Declan Pang — doctor, researcher and Christ Church graduate — has taken his startup Dermalere to the finals of the Evening Standard x AXA Startup Angel competition. There's a public vote, and with it being out of term time, we'd love to rally the Christ Church community behind one of our own. Every vote counts, and it only takes a moment:

🗳️ Vote here: https://www.standard.co.uk/business/axastartupangel/axa-startup-angel-people-s-choice-award-b1289818.html

More about Declan: (MB-DPhil, 2016) he was among the very first cohort of MB-DPhil students, the programme that integrates a DPhil alongside medicine. After First Class Honours in Medical Sciences, he completed a DPhil on the immune system's response to the microbiome under Professor Dame Fiona Powrie, returned to clinical medicine in 2024, and founded Dermalere in his final year. He now builds the company while working as a doctor in London — and, for good measure, is a Full Blue swimmer and former Blues swimming captain and president.

Voting closes at the start of September, with winners announced at a ceremony in London. Good luck, Declan!

Congratulations to Christ Church graduate Lucas Colley! 🎓

Lucas has been awarded the H***e Prize for the best overall performance in the Final Honour School of Computer Science and Philosophy — an award given each year to the top student in the degree across the whole University.

It's the perfect end to four remarkable years. Alongside a first-class degree, Lucas became a maintainer of SciPy — one of the world's leading open-source scientific computing libraries — after first getting involved through a Christ Church Summer Bursary. This summer he travelled to Kraków to speak at the EuroPython and EuroSciPy conferences, and closer to home he served as co-president of the College men's football club.

Reflecting on the news, Lucas said: "It means a lot given that I didn't think I would even get into Oxford when I was applying, never mind graduate with a first-class degree. I'm pleased to have proved to myself that I could achieve something which I thought was unachievable."

Congratulations, Lucas — we're all incredibly proud. 👏

Read the full story: https://www.chch.ox.ac.uk/news/lucas-colley-awarded-prize-outstanding-performance-computer-science-and-philosophy

⏰ Applications close tomorrow!

If you’re a UK state school student planning to apply to Oxford this October, don’t miss your chance to join us for our free Application Preparation Day on 17 September.

Applications close Thursday 6 August.

Find out more and apply ➡️ https://www.chch.ox.ac.uk/college/outreach/application-preparation-day

There’s just over six weeks to go until the University of Oxford Open Day on Friday 18 September!

Come to Christ Church to meet current students, get a taste of student life and discover whether Oxford could be for you.

Need somewhere to stay or help with travel costs? Applications are still open.

Accommodation ➡️ https://forms.office.com/e/M0H3FGS5C7

Travel support ➡️ https://forms.office.com/e/1ZxMp99Ek3

Learn more ➡️ bit.ly/ChChOpenDays

Professor Mike English has returned from the Democratic Republic of Congo, where a Christ Church Research Grant enabled him to work with local clinicians at Vanga Evangelical Hospital — one of the country's most remote hospitals — to improve the safety of maternity and newborn care.

Vanga serves around 350,000 people with only six permanent doctors and no tarmacked roads nearby, meaning women with pregnancy complications often arrive in urgent need of care. Alongside Dr Mudji E'kitiak and his team, Professor English ran improvement workshops and trained the next generation of Congolese doctors and nurses.

"It's inspiring to see the enthusiasm of staff and students… to improve care in Vanga Hospital despite the huge resource challenges they face on a daily basis." — Professor Mike English

Read the full story: https://www.chch.ox.ac.uk/news/supporting-safer-hospital-care-rural-congo

We're proud to support the next generation of poets. Through a new grant programme, Christ Church's Tower Poetry is helping young writers develop their craft and take the next step in their creative journeys.

📖 Read more: https://www.chch.ox.ac.uk/news/tower-poetry-backs-next-generation-poets

🍫 Why has chocolate become so expensive?

Christ Church biologist Dr Tonya Lander was featured on BBC Radio 4's Food Programme, discussing how climate change, crop disease and global markets are affecting cocoa production and the price of chocolate.

🎧 Listen here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m002yw72

🎼 A new album showcasing the organ music of Professor David Maw, Lecturer in Music at Christ Church, has been released by the award-winning classical label Resonus Classics.

The recording features internationally acclaimed organist Stephen Farr performing five of Professor Maw's compositions on the recently restored Harrison & Harrison organ at Norwich Cathedral.

Read more: https://www.chch.ox.ac.uk/news/new-album-showcases-david-maws-organ-works

Faculty of Music, University of Oxford