"Trashing" Oxford Style
Oxford is steeped in traditions and one of the more crazy and unusual tradition is that of "trashing" the final year students at the end of their exams.
Friends gather at the back of the Examination School on Merton Street armed with champagne, confetti, silly string, flour, eggs, and glitter.
Upon leaving the Examination School, student are then bombarded by their waiting friends.
At Oxford subfusc or formal academic dress is still worn. Students must wear their gown, cap, and white bow tie or black tie or black ribbon to take their exams. They also wear a carnation in their lapels: white for the first exam, pink thereafter, and red for the last of their final exams.
“Trashing” is a relatively new tradition -- it began about 25 years ago and traditionally involved throwing eggs, rotten fish, baked beans and other food at the graduating students.
By 2010 "trashing" was a bit out of hand so the proctors at the examination school made new rules: no rotten food, no eggs, no beans, ketchup, no fish, broken glass or excessive alcohol.
Now final year students spray one another with foam, confetti, champagne and flour -- still a huge mess but at least no rotten food!
Officially he University discourages the practice of trashing and many colleges have threatened fines and other sanctions for students caught engaged in the activity. That doesn't seem to deter most of the students though.
It's now part of the rich tapestry of traditions that makes Oxford so unique.
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