Introducing the New Committee

Having been interim Chair during 2024, I am honoured to be formally elected as Chair. I have been a Freeman since March 2019.  I have lived on the western edge of Oxford, a short walk from Port Meadow and the Town Hall, for over 20 years. I was a chartered surveyor but retired at the end of October last year. I am settling into retirement, including volunteering at the Museum of Oxford and delving more into local history.

I was admitted to the Freedom in 1978 as probably the first Butterfield on the roll. The reason for this is that I was admitted by servitude, not patrimony. Embarking on a legal career as a solicitor I had to serve my time as an articled clerk, and was fortunate in having as my principal the late Tom Eeley. Not only was he an excellent tutor; he was one of a long line of hereditary Freemen. Hardly had I been admitted than I was coaxed or coerced into taking on the post of Secretary, in which I served for nearly 30 years, followed by my present position of Vice Chairman, which has seen me representing the Freemen of the City on many occasions and in many different places.

I was proud to become a Freeman of Oxford in 2008, when daughters were able to be admitted for the first time. I have lots of fond childhood memories of going with my family to the Port Meadow Sheriff inspection and Aunt Sally matches. I would often tell school friends about the “bone in a little coffin” that we had in our house because my Dad had won it at Aunt Sally! I have a degree in visual arts, and qualifications in interventions such as Lego based therapy. I am currently teaching secondary school art and supporting SEN students with behaviour and emotions. I am looking forward to helping with Freemen of Oxford events and social media.

I was admitted in 1986 as the son of a Freeman, my father Leslie became a Freeman in 1966 and was admitted by being the son-in-law of Willie Cox. The first Cox Freeman was Ralph Cox, as mentioned by Simon. A noble was a gold coin with a notional value of six shillings and eightpence, or a third of a pound.  Subsequent to Ralph, the paternal Cox lineage is made up of tradesmen and craftsmen who were sometimes admitted following apprenticeship to a Freeman or more commonly by inheritance through being the son of a Freeman. More recently, in 2018, I was pleased to attend the admission ceremony of my wife, oldest daughter and son-in-law.

Admitted through patrimony in February 2000, my family background has already been explained by my father, Simon, above. I was co-opted on to the  committee and took over editing the Journal from John Carroll in 2017 and set up the website at around the same time. Away from the Freemen, I live and work as a software engineer in Oxford.

When I was first elected to the City Council in 1996, I represented Jericho and Osney Ward, which included Port Meadow. I quickly got involved with events like the Round‑Up, the Annual Inspection of the Meadow and the Aunt Sally match. Then in 2008‑2009 I had the honour of being elected as Lord Mayor, which was an amazing year. When it came to choosing my Lord Mayor’s Childe (who automatically becomes a Freeman), I wanted to choose Alison Cobb. She lives in Binsey Village, loves Port Meadow dearly and possesses an encyclopaedic knowledge of its ecology. However, at that time women were not allowed to be Freemen (except through the loophole of the apprenticeship route). As Lord Mayor I had to chair a meeting of Common Hall to get the Freemen’s agreement to changing the rules. Then one of the City Council’s senior lawyers had to plead the case at the Privy Council in London. I was thrilled when we finally got the law changed.

Monica Gregory

I work for a charity called The Gatehouse in Oxford and I become a Freeman in 2018 and was co-opted onto the committee shortly before being elected at Common Hall.