Today the College is hosting a Gaudy for students who matriculated between 1982 and 1984. Here we have a speech, in Latin, delivered by C. S. Lewis at a Gaudy 100 years ago.

July is Disability Pride Month! Celebrated every year in the UK since 2015, we're marking the month with this selection of books from our welfare collection on display in the Longwall library. Can you recommend any books to add to our collection?

Today is Magdalen's Commemoration Ball. Here we have a poster for the 1964 ball, which featured up-and-coming 'rock group' The Rolling Stones. They weren't even the headline act! Who knows what tonight's acts will go on to achieve? We hope everyone has a blast at the ball. 🎉🎊💃🕺

Good things come in small packages! (Pen for size comparison). It's always nice to hear that our students appreciate us; this teeny thank you card, and not so teeny message, brought huge smiles to our faces. The homemade biscuits were delicious, by the way 😋

🔎👑Can you spot the future King of England, Edward VIII, in this photograph from the Magdalen College Archives? Born #OnThisDay in 1894, Edward studied at Magdalen between 1912 and the outbreak of the First World War.

Happy Long Vacation! To all Finalists, please remember to return your library books - looks like a lot of you already have! 📚📚📚

You are cordially invited to an Early Modern gender reveal party? This anatomical flapbook has multi-layered engravings of male and female bodies, including this pregnant torso. Readers can 'dissect' the body, peeling back layers to reveal veins, nerves, and skeleton underneath.

In honour of England's first #WorldCup match this evening, here is a photo of Magdalen's starting 11 from the 1884/5 academic year. The attached slip provides the names of these players, which include 2 brothers: A. L. and H. P. Hansell. [Archival ref: P201/P1/1]

What would you do after a long day of bookselling to the Oxford public? Go for a refreshing dip in your own private pool, of course. #FromTheArchives we have some maps relating to land owned by Magdalen.

If you're looking for something new to read, we've received this selection of books from the 2026 Women's Prize shortlists for non-fiction and fiction - on display now in the Longwall library foyer. 📚👀 Winners announced tomorrow...📣

Our Wolsey Manuscripts website is now back online. You can look at Wolsey's Gospel and Epistle lectionaries, housed at Magdalen and Christ Church respectively, at the same time. Learn more about these beautiful manuscripts, their history and read research about them here: www.wolseymanuscripts.ac.uk

Happy Pride Month 🏳️‍🌈 Did you join the Pride parade in Oxford today? If today's celebrations have inspired you to learn more, take a look at the books in our Pride display in the Longwall Library. You'll also find some very prideful origami paper, if you fancy helping us decorate the display ❤️🧡💛💚💙💜🩵🩷🤍

Following a request on our Graffiti Wall, we have added a whiteboard to the breakout room at the end of the Beckwith Reading Room. We hope it helps aid your studies ✏️👩‍🏫

Vacation loans now apply. If you'd like to take your library books home over the long vacation, you can. Renew your loans now for a due date of 15th October! 📚📚📚

Did you hear about the success of our women's crew during this year's Summer VIIIs? They bumped three times over the course of the competition, bumping Keble, Christ Church, and Wolfson. Congratulations to all involved! This photograph shows the ‘Maids of Magdalen’ in action

This week is National #VolunteersWeek. We are lucky to have a number of volunteers, who regularly help us out with tasks like shelving, creating book displays, and invigilating our Old Library exhibitions. A huge thank you to Aidan, Caitlin, Rawdah, Marilyn, Fin, Maddy, and Pam for their help 🙏⭐

This season's crop of roses, in the Longwall Library quad, are pretty magnificent 😍🌹🥀

5th week is always a bit of a milestone as we pass the halfway point of term. Here in the library we have 'Welfare Week', where we provide various activities and resources aimed at improving student wellbeing. Students can:

Who called us 'marvellous, magical Magdalen'? (We're very flattered!) Find out about Francis Edward Lascelles-Hadwen and his collection of beautiful books in our new blog post: tinyurl.com/marvellous-m...

We endorse this message. Found in the Beckwith Reading Room. ❤️

We can't believe it's been 10 years since the grand reopening of the Longwall Library, following its renovation. Prince William joined us for the occasion, speaking to Magdalen students and staff, and unveiling the engraving on our wall. Happy 10th to the Longwall Library. 🎉🎈🔟 📸credit John Cairns

We're celebrating Trans+ History Week in the Longwall library with this book display - a date deliberately chosen as the anniversary of the Nazi raid on the world’s first ever trans clinic in 1933, May 6.

How did you get so wise, Yoda? Use the library, I do often. All these books, I read. #maythe4thbewithyou

Cerulean blue, naturally. #DevilWearsPrada2 This quote is from a letter to the Editor of The Daily Telegraph [The Complete Letters of Oscar Wilde, p. 465].

Did you get up bright and early for #MayMorning this year? Here are some images #FromTheArchives of the annual 6am choral performance by choristers from Magdalen College School, which takes place at the top of our Great Tower.

Today is the last time our exhibition, 'The spirit of the place': Magdalen College and its staff from foundation to the present day, will be open to the public. Curated by two of our brilliant Archivists, Dr Richard Allen and Dr Emily Jennings, it seems only right that they both feature in this post

Earth Day is celebrating its 56th year! The theme for 2026 is Our Power, Our Planet, and encourages people to act to protect our planet from people and behaviour that would endanger all life on Earth. Thank you to our wonderful student helper for the words and book selections. 💚 Happy Earth Day! 🌎

This is Horace Stanley Richardson, who joined the Magdalen staff in 1929, following roles as a bicycle mechanic and a factory worker, making parts for Morris cars. A card-carrying trade unionist since age 17, Richardson tried to organise the Oxford college servants during his ten years at Magdalen.

This photograph captures all of Magdalen’s staff at some point in the early twentieth century. Seated at centre is Herbert Warren, then President. To his right is Richard Gunstone, who was JCR Steward between 1880 and 1914.

We're pleased to advise that another of our Latin manuscripts has been fully digitised and is available to view on Digital Bodleian. MS Lat 117, John Wycliffe's Postilla super totam Bibliam, was made in the early 15th century - most likely in Oxford. digital.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/objects/3ec4...

These are the original college statutes, as written by Magdalen’s founder, William Waynflete (c.1395–1486). They cover the workings of every aspect of college life, including the employment of servants.

We think Oscar had it right — why get exhausted rowing, when you can just pose with the oars? Good luck to all 4 crews competing in #TheBoatRace this year. This photo appears in an album belonging to Jules Nicholas Guggenheim, who had a studio on High Street. [Archival ref: Acc1999/62]

2 April is Autism Acceptance Month, which marks the start of World Autism Acceptance Month, celebrated each April. Browse from this brilliant selection of books by neurodivergent educators and advocates writing and working in the field of autism, or ask about our welfare collection on floor -1.

April Fools! Earlier we posted these plans, which proposed new roads in College— one of which, bizarrely, cut across the Chapel, Cloisters, & New Buildings. They're from 1914 and, thankfully, the proposed changes never went ahead. Can you imagine Magdalen with a road passing through the Cloisters?

With #TheBoatRace happening this weekend, we thought we'd share this piece of university rowing history. Founded in 1850, the Oxford University and College Servants’ Rowing Club was formed of different college crews. Like its student counterpart, the OUCSRC competed against its Cambridge rival.

We are happy to share plans for some upcoming building work across College. The new roads will provide direct access from the High Street to the Grove, for anyone wishing to see Magdalen's deer.

🎭Happy #WorldTheatreDay! Here we have a theatre programme from a production by Magdalen College Dramatic Society from 1928. Two Gentleman of Soho ran from December 3rd-7th. It was produced by John Betjeman who was a student at Magdalen in the 1920s. [ref. Acc2025/158]🎭

Today, Magdalen undergraduates may live in College accommodation throughout their degree. In years past, they spent part of their time living outside college walls, lodging in the homes of Oxford locals. The remarkable Mrs Eleanor Richardson was landlady to generations of Magdalen students.

We hope you've been enjoying the Easter vacation. Basil has been using the time to explore our new Skills & Crafts collection. Although he was a bit put off by one cookbook's recipe for raspberry and Basil scotch pancakes! 🦡🌱🥞

Happy Spring Equinox! As we welcome the arrival of spring, here are some photos of our snake's-head fritillaries. As told by Baxter in his 1834 work 'British phænogamous botany' (ref. R.4.18, Old Library), both the purple and white varieties are abundant in Magdalen College meadow. 🥀

Gardeners have been looking after Magdalen’s expansive grounds since its foundation. The first picture shows Jack Sawyer who worked at Magdalen in various roles from 1925–1984, ending as Head Gardener. Here he is helping to plant a Golden Rain tree outside the President’s Lodgings in November 1979.

A limerick from Basil, this #StPatricksDay

Today is the start of #NeurodiversityCelebrationWeek. Thank you to our volunteer, Maddy, for putting together this display of books on autism, ADHD, and dyslexia. Any more suggestions for us to add? Let us know in the comments.

Happy Easter Vacation / triannual workout for Oxford Librarians 📚📚📚💪💪💪

A quote from our favourite alumnus. Happy #MothersDay

Richard Gunstone was JCR Steward 1880-1914. His retirement marked the end of an era. As reward for his service, the college authorities resolved to present him with a sum of money. The total eventually raised was £1,351 (£135,000 in today’s money), which was enough to pay Gunstone’s salary for life.

Happy #InternationalWomensDay. Here is a little piece of library history about women at Magdalen. This bookplate comes from a copy of The Handmaid's Tail by Margaret Atwood; part of a collection to commemorate a decade of women being allowed to study at Magdalen.

This #WorldBookDay, we thought we'd tell you about our latest book collection. Suggested by one of lovely students, who is a keen chef, we have started our Skills & Crafts Collection. The collection will include books on cooking, crafts, sewing and origami.

Standing in front of the building is a college gardener with his wheelbarrow, a sight that is still common today. The gardener’s identity is sadly unknown, but he is captured in what is potentially the oldest known surviving photograph of a member of Oxford college staff.

What a nice welcome back on a Monday morning! Found in our returns box 😁