O.U.D.S .

The Oxford University Dramatic Society was born out of the struggles of Victorian undergraduates to put on plays despite opposition from Oxfords Vice-Chancellor and the stuffier dons. Plays had been banned at Oxford almost since the days when Shakespeare and his strolling actors performed in the city's inn-yards. But by 1885 a few brave pioneers had managed to turn the tide of opinion, a Dramatic Society was formed, and Henry IV, Part I was staged - to the delight of an audience which included an enthusiastic Oscar Wilde. Since then OUDS has played a large part in training actors and directors who have enriched English theatre. Those involved with its productions have included Sir John Gielgud, Richard Burton, Emlyn Williams, and a host of other celebrated names, down to the present day and Diana Quick, star of televisions Brideshead Revisited, who was the Society's first woman President.