Nuffield College, Oxford

The buildings of Nuffield College, one of the colleges of the University of Oxford, are to the west of the city centre of Oxford, England, and stand on the site of the basin of the Oxford Canal. Nuffield College was founded in 1937 after a donation to the University by the car manufacturer Lord Nuffield; he gave land for the college, as well as £900,000 (approximately £246 million in present-day terms) to build and endow it. The architect Austen Harrison, who had worked in Greece and Palestine, was appointed by the University to design the buildings. His initial design, heavily influenced by Mediterranean architecture, was rejected by Nuffield, who called it "un-English" and refused to allow his name to be associated with it. Harrison reworked the plans, aiming for "something on the lines of Cotswold domestic architecture", as Nuffield wanted. Construction of the second design began in 1949 and was finished in 1960. Progress was hampered by post-war building restrictions, and the effects of inflation on Nuffield's donation led to various cost-saving changes to the plans. In one change, the tower, which had been planned to be ornamental, was redesigned to hold the college's library. It was the first tower built in Oxford for 200 years and is about 150 feet (46 m) tall, including the flèche on top. The buildings are arranged around two quadrangles, with residential accommodation for students and fellows in one, and the hall, library and administrative offices in the other. The chapel has stained glass windows designed by John Piper. The architectural historian Sir Howard Colvin said that Harrison's first design was Oxford's "most notable architectural casualty of the 1930s"; it has also been described as a "missed opportunity" to show that Oxford did not live "only in the past". Reaction to the architecture of the college has been largely unfavourable. In the 1960s, it was described as "Oxford's biggest monument to barren reaction". The tower has been described as "ungainly", and marred by repetitive windows. The travel writer Jan Morris wrote that the college was "a hodge-podge from the start". However, the architectural historian Sir Nikolaus Pevsner, although unimpressed with most of the college, thought that the tower helped the Oxford skyline and predicted it would "one day be loved". The writer Simon Jenkins doubted Pevsner's prediction, and claimed that "vegetation" was the "best hope" for the tower – as well as the rest of the college.

The Corn Exchange and Fire Station is a commercial complex in George Street in Oxford, Oxfordshire, England. The structure is now occupied by an arts charity, Arts at the Old Fire Station, and a homelessness charity, Crisis Skylight Oxford.

New Road is a street in west central Oxford, England. It links Park End Street and Worcester Street to the west with Queen Street and Castle Street to the east. To the south is Oxford Castle and the former Oxford Prison, now a Malmaison hotel. To the north is Nuffield College, a graduate college of Oxford University. At the eastern end on the south side is New County Hall, the headquarters of Oxfordshire County Council.

Arts at the Old Fire Station ('AOFS') is a charity operating an arts centre, comprising a Theatre, Gallery and Shop, in George Street, Oxford, England.

Worcester Street is a street in west central Oxford, England.

Oxford Castle is a large, partly ruined medieval castle on the western side of central Oxford in Oxfordshire, England. Most of the original moated, wooden motte and bailey castle was replaced in stone in the late 12th or early 13th century and the castle played an important role in the conflict of the Anarchy. In the 14th century the military value of the castle diminished and the site became used primarily for county administration and as a prison. The surviving rectangular St George's Tower is now believed to pre-date the remainder of the castle and be a watch tower associated with the original Saxon west gate of the city. Most of the castle was destroyed in the English Civil War and by the 18th century the remaining buildings had become Oxford's local prison. A new prison complex was built on the site from 1785 onwards and expanded in 1876; this became HM Prison Oxford. The prison closed in 1996 and was redeveloped as a hotel and visitor attraction. The medieval remains of the castle including the motte, St George's Tower and crypt, are Grade I listed buildings and a Scheduled Monument.

George Street is a street in central Oxford, England. It is a shopping street running east–west.

The Lighthouse is a public house in central Oxford, England. The pub is located at 1 Park End Street, next to the Castle Mill Stream and close to the end of the Oxford Canal. The site of the modern-day Lighthouse pub was within a stone's throw from the Norman city walls. Flanked on either side by the 11th century St George's Tower and Castle Mound, the area was part of the moat system guarding Oxford Castle. The area remained without significant development or residence until after 1790 opening of the Oxford Canal.

Gloucester Green is a square in central Oxford, England, and the site of the city's bus station. It lies between George Street to the south and Beaumont Street to the north. To the west is Worcester Street and to the east is Gloucester Street. The green was once an open space outside Gloucester College (now Worcester College), after which it was named. From 1783 to 1915 a fair was held on the green, and from 1835 to 1932 it was the site of the city's cattle market. In 1935, after the cattle market had been moved, the western half of Gloucester Green became the site of the city's bus station, and the eastern half became a car park. In 1987, a major redevelopment of the area began. The eastern half became a square, surrounded by shops, restaurants and residential accommodation. A new, smaller, bus station was built on the site of the old bus station, and an office block was built between the bus station and Worcester Street. An underground car park was also provided. Today, the Gloucester Green bus station is the Oxford terminus for long-distance coach services, including services to London, coaches to Heathrow, Gatwick, Luton and Stansted airports, and route X5 to Cambridge. The bus station is too small to accommodate more than a few local bus services. A food market is held in the square every Wednesday to Saturday and an antiques market every Thursday. Gloucester Green is surrounded by Oxford theatres: close by are the Oxford Playhouse and Burton Taylor Studio theatres on Beaumont Street and Gloucester Street, respectively, and the Old Fire Station Theatre and the New Theatre, both on George Street.

Quaking Bridge is a bridge over the Castle Mill Stream in the city of Oxford, England. It connects to St Thomas' Street and Paradise Street and Tidmarsh Lane to the east. It is close to Oxford Castle, immediately to the east. To the north on the Castle Mill Stream are Pacey's Bridge and Hythe Bridge. To the south is Swan Bridge. There has been a bridge at this location from at least the late 13th century. Quaking Bridge was first mentioned in 1297, but is probably much older. It crossed the Castle Mill Stream immediately west of Oxford Castle, on a road that connected Oxford and St Thomas's parish (hence St Thomas' Street here now) before the castle existed. The Canons of Oseney Abbey used it each day for services in St George's Chapel at the castle. The responsibility for the bridge's upkeep was meant to be that of the King. The bridge was originally wooden. In 1821, it had three arches and open timberwork acting as railings. The bridge was replaced with an iron one in 1835. The name of the bridge may derive from its former unsafe condition.

County Hall is a municipal building on New Road in Oxford, Oxfordshire, England. County Hall, which is the headquarters of Oxfordshire County Council, is a Grade II* listed building.

The City of Oxford High School for Boys (a.k.a. Oxford High School for Boys and City of Oxford School) was founded in 1881 by Thomas Hill Green to provide Oxford boys with an education which would enable them to prepare for University.