Malcolm College, Oxford, is celebrating today after picking up first prize in the Oxbridge College Pageant Finals.
The college, founded in 1448 as a local gambling den, bounced back from a disappointing competition last year in which they were pipped at the post by Churchill College, Cambridge.
‘We’re thrilled, obviously’, said JCR President John Johnson. ‘Malcolm’s always held a special place in our hearts and we’re delighted that its beauty is being appreciated by the Oxbridge community at large.’
The Pageant, which began as a mistake in the mid 1980s, has its roots in a 16th-century pie-eating contest, traditionally held in Magdalen College deer park after its annual cull.
The judges, who are usually celebrities and renowned academics, rate the Colleges based on architecture, flora, cleanliness and student image.
‘Having gone round the top five colleges with a fine tooth comb, we all decided that Malcolm was one that would look best in the prospectus’, one judge commented. ‘Ultimately, of course, that’s what matters, and we congratulate Malcolm on their well-deserved win.’
The prize is a free photo shoot in next week’s Cherwell along with a specially-commissioned cake in the college’s image. Runners-up, Christ Church, received a personalized bone-china mug.