Editing University of Oxford (section)

==Oxford in literature and popular media==<!-- This section is linked from [[Oxford]] -->

The University of Oxford is the setting for numerous works of fiction.   Oxford was mentioned in fiction as early as 1400 when [[Chaucer]], in ''[[Canterbury Tales]]'', referred to a "Clerk [student] of Oxenford".<ref>Bert Dillon,  "A Clerk Ther Was of Oxenford Also." in ''Chaucer's Pilgrims: An Historical Guide to the Pilgrims in'' (1996): 108–115.</ref>   Mortimer Proctor argues the first campus novel was ''The Adventures of Oxymel Classic, Esq; Once an Oxford Scholar'' (1768).<ref>see [https://archive.org/details/bim_eighteenth-century_the-adventures-of-oxymel_1768_2 online copy]</ref> It is filled with violence and debauchery, with obnoxious, foolish dons becoming easy prey for cunning students.<ref>Mortimer Proctor, ''The English University Novel'' (U of California Press 1957) pp. 46–49. [https://archive.org/details/englishuniversit0000proc online]</ref> Proctor argues that by 1900, "novels about Oxford and Cambridge were so numerous that they clearly represent a striking literary phenomenon."<ref>Proctor, ''The English University Novel''  p. vii.</ref> By 1989, 533 novels based in Oxford had been identified and the number continues to rise.<ref>{{cite book|title=Oxford in Fiction: an annotated bibliography|first=Judy G.|last=Batson}}</ref>

Famous literary works range from ''[[Brideshead Revisited]]'' by [[Evelyn Waugh]], which in 1981 was adapted as a [[Brideshead Revisited (TV serial)|television serial]], to the trilogy ''[[His Dark Materials]]'' by [[Philip Pullman]], which features an alternate-reality version of the university and was adapted for [[The Golden Compass (film)|film in 2007]] and as a [[His Dark Materials (TV series)|BBC television series in 2019]].

Other notable examples include:
* ''[[Zuleika Dobson]]'' (1911) by [[Max Beerbohm]], a satire about undergraduate life.
* ''[[Gaudy Night]]'' (1935) by [[Dorothy L. Sayers]], herself a graduate of [[Somerville College, Oxford|Somerville College]], a [[Lord Peter Wimsey]] mystery novel.
* The ''[[Inspector Morse]]'' detective novels (1975–1999) by [[Colin Dexter]], adapted for television as [[Inspector Morse (TV series)|''Inspector Morse'']] (1987–2000), the spin-off ''[[Lewis (TV series)|Lewis]]'' (2006–2015), and the prequel ''[[Endeavour (TV series)|Endeavour]]'' (2012–2023).
* ''[[True Blue (1996 film)|True Blue]]'' (1996), a film about the mutiny at the time of the Oxford-Cambridge [[Boat Race]] of 1987.
* ''[[The History Boys]]'' (2004) by [[Alan Bennett]], alumnus of [[Exeter College, Oxford|Exeter College]], a play about a group of grammar school boys in [[Sheffield]] in 1983 applying to read history at Oxford and Cambridge. It premiered at the [[Royal National Theatre|National Theatre]] and was [[The History Boys (film)|adapted for film in 2006]].
* ''[[Posh (play)|Posh]]'' (2010), a play by [[Laura Wade]], and its film adaptation ''[[The Riot Club]]'' (2014), about a fictionalised equivalent of the [[Bullingdon Club]].
* ''[[Testament of Youth (film)|Testament of Youth]]'' (2014), a drama film based on the memoir of the [[Testament of Youth|same name]] written by [[Somerville College, Oxford|Somerville]] alumna [[Vera Brittain]].
* ''[[Middle England (novel)|Middle England]]'' (2019), the prize-winning novel by [[Jonathan Coe]], portrays a deeply divided Britain in the 2010s that is so frustrating that dissatisfied Oxford dons reject elite academia and take their talents elsewhere.<ref>Igor Maver, "CK Stead's 'Campus' Novel Talking about O'Dwyer: Oxford, New Zealand, Croatia, Greece." in ''The Campus Novel'' (Brill, 2019) pp.154–165.</ref>
* ''[[Saltburn (film)|Saltburn]]'' (2023), a film about an Oxford student, by [[Emerald Fennell]], alumna of [[Greyfriars, Oxford]].

Notable non-fiction works on Oxford include ''Oxford'' by [[Jan Morris]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.spectator.co.uk/2016/10/jan-morris-the-greatest-descriptive-writer-of-her-time/# |title=Jan Morris – 'the greatest descriptive writer of her time' |first=Maggie |last=Fergusson |work=The Spectator |date=29 October 2016 |access-date=16 May 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161118204511/http://www.spectator.co.uk/2016/10/jan-morris-the-greatest-descriptive-writer-of-her-time/ |archive-date=18 November 2016 |url-status=live }}</ref>