Cherwell

History and Founding

Cherwell was founded in 1920 by two Balliol College students, Cecil Binney and George Adolphus Edinger, both veterans of the First World War. The pair conceived the publication on a ferry from Dover to Ostend during the summer vacation, while traveling to Vienna to perform relief work for the Save the Children charity. The newspaper's founding ethos was explicitly progressive: Edinger later recalled that the early paper was "anti-convention, anti-Pre War values, pro-feminist," and that the editors "did not mind shocking and we often did." The first editorial declared the paper's purpose as giving voice to Oxford undergraduates, free of outside influence, and named the publication after the Cherwell, one of the two rivers running through the city, as a symbol of what was "most truly Oxford."

Throughout the 1920s, Cherwell maintained a distinctly literary character, with a stated policy of not editing literary contributions from undergraduates. This era yielded a remarkable roster of early contributors, including Evelyn Waugh, Graham Greene, W. H. Auden, John Betjeman, Cecil Day-Lewis, and L. P. Hartley. In a notable episode during the UK General Strike of 1926, Cherwell became one of only three newspapers printed in Britain — alongside the British Gazette and the British Worker — producing its edition from the offices of the Daily Mail in London.

The 1930s brought political turbulence: Cherwell publicly opposed the attempts by Oswald Mosley's fascist movement to organize within Oxford, and the paper's offices were destroyed by fire in 1932. The publication survived both calamities. During the Second World War, Cherwell endeavored to keep publishing but was eventually forced into a temporary hiatus due to wartime paper shortages.

By the early 1950s the paper shed its literary orientation to become a conventional university newspaper. In January 1953 the owners formally reoriented Cherwell toward campus journalism. The 1960s marked a period of activism: the paper campaigned for the admission of women to the Oxford Union and for the creation of representative student governance structures. The decade also saw the launch of the long-running satirical gossip column "John Evelyn" (nicknamed "Jevelyn") in 1964, which has run almost continuously ever since.

In 1961, Oxford Student Publications Limited (OSPL) was established as a holding company for Cherwell, and later acquired the Isis magazine brand in the late 1990s. In the summer of 2001, Cherwell and OSPL came close to insolvency due to financial mismanagement, but were rescued through the concerted efforts of students and supporters. The paper emerged on more stable financial footing and has continued publishing since. In 2025, OSPL became the first and only fully student-run media organization in the United Kingdom to receive regulation by the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO), a recognized mark of commitment to editorial standards and professional accountability.

Coverage and Content

Cherwell describes itself as Oxford's oldest independent student newspaper and one of the oldest and largest student publications in the UK. Its coverage spans news, opinion, features, profiles, culture (including books, film, music, theatre, and art), lifestyle, sport, and innovation (science, technology, and business). The paper serves both a campus-focused audience — reporting on University of Oxford governance, college affairs, student campaigns, and Oxford Union events — and a broader audience of alumni, academics, and general readers interested in the university.

The paper is notable for its independence: it operates with no affiliation to Oxford University's student union or to the University itself. Ownership rests with OSPL, a private company limited by guarantee, registered at Companies House, and staffed entirely by current Oxford students. Income derives from college common room subscriptions and advertising revenue, with no subsidy from the University.

Among Cherwell's enduring editorial traditions is the "John Evelyn" column, a faux-condescending gossip feature that has chronicled Oxford life since 1964 and has counted future politicians, writers, and broadcasters among both its subjects and contributors. Over its history, the paper has broken or covered stories on matters ranging from University investment practices to NHS misconduct at Oxford hospitals, alongside its ongoing coverage of student life, arts, and sport.

The paper's alumni network is extensive and illustrious. Notable former editorial contributors include Peter Preston (editor of The Guardian), Simon Jenkins, Michael Crick, Evan Davis, Christina Lamb, Nick Cohen, Martin Sixsmith, Emma Brockes, and Hadley Freeman. OSPL's business operations have in the past involved future media magnates and politicians including Rupert Murdoch and Michael Heseltine.

Access and Publication

Cherwell is published five times per term — roughly once per week during the Oxford academic year — with approximately 3,000 print copies distributed each edition to the majority of Oxford's colleges, the Oxford Union, department buildings, and selected locations around the city of Oxford. The paper's website, cherwell.org, launched in 1996 and is updated daily with news, analysis, and cultural content; it received a Guardian Student Media Award in 2011.

The paper is entirely free to read online. Print distribution is funded through college common room subscriptions, while the publication accepts advertising through its commercial team. Donations from the public and alumni are also solicited to support the continuation of print editions.

Cherwell / Oxford Student Publications Limited
Oxford, England, United Kingdom

Website: cherwell.org
Contact: cherwell.org/contact
Print Editions: cherwell.org/print-editions
Podcast: Spotify

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Regulated by the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO)