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Nine photos of Oxford in the year 2000 when Inspector Morse ended
It was the year when Blackbird Leys fair drew a crowd, including Oxford East MP Andrew Smith and his wife Val, and John Thaw and Kevin Whately were still starring in Inspector Morse.
The series ran for 33 episodes on ITV from 1987 to 2000.
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The then director of the Ashmolean Museum, Dr Christopher Brown, is pictured looking slightly glum, perhaps with good reason, after a precious painting was stolen on New Year’s Eve, 1999, as people partied to mark the millennium.
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When the museum’s only Cézanne was stolen in a daring rooftop raid, it was one of the worst days of Dr Brown’s life.
The £3m oil painting Auvers-sur-Oise, by the French impressionist has not been recovered.
Police discovered burglars had got in through the glass roof and the painting has never been recovered, but other stunning works of art by Paul Cézanne are now on their way to the Ashmolean.
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In 2014, the museum staged an exhibition featuring Cézanne.
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About the author
Andy is the Trade and Tourism reporter for the Oxford Mail and you can sign up to his newsletters for free here.
He joined the team more than 20 years ago and he covers community news across Oxfordshire.
His Trade and Tourism newsletter is released every Saturday morning.
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