Dons and Dragons

[Bêthberry]

But doesn't Cambridge have a similar architecture? I know it has a different academic tradition--chairs of Mathematics and all--but it too has famously medieval architecture. I would wonder if this idea wouldn't put fantasy squarely in the realm of nostalgic escapism (not that I'm saying it is, mind you, just wondering at some of the implications).

And, while Tolkien was married, he certainly pursued a rigorous round of hearty male gatherings. Oxford is a bastion of singlehood still. I have a friend who won a research scholarship there for a year. She brought her two children--she's a single mum--and was told that it was a pity she brought them as otherwise she would have been given room in a residence. So she had to find accommodation she could afford--the other side of the town. Made for a lot of extra commuting and really dipped into her small finances.