Black and white portrait of 4 people (two men and two women). One of the men is Oscar Wilde. The men hold an oar each. A speech bubble next to one of the women has the words: "Do you keep Christmas, Oscar?" in it.

Black and white portrait of 4 people (two men and two women). One of the men is Oscar Wilde. The men hold an oar each. A speech bubble next to Wilde has the words: "No, Brookfield; the only festival of the church I keep is Septuagesima" in it.

To those who celebrate Christmas – and to those who don’t – we hope you have a wonderful day. Quoted in 'Aspects of Wilde' by Vincent O’Sullivan, published by Constable and Company. #WeeklyWildeWitticism

St John's quad, Magdalen College in the evening. At the centre, a Christmas tree is lit up with fairy lights. In the blue sky, a silhouette of Santa's sleigh with his reindeer fly in the sky. There are 6 rows of 4 dotted rectangles with numbers in them - totalling 24. It is an advent calendar, and fourteen of the ‘doors’ are open.

The Selfish Giant by Oscar Wilde [Ephemera: Box 3, Item 5. Wilde, O. (1973)]

Book cover featuring a geometric design. The book is The young king and other tales by Oscar Wilde. [Magd.Wilde-O. (YOU) 1924]

Roses and Rue by Oscar Wilde [Ephemera: Box 2, Item 6. Wilde, O. (1962).]

We certainly wouldn’t mind getting these books for Christmas. These rare editions of works by Oscar Wilde were all previously given as gifts. They feature in our new exhibition: Wild About Printing. #WeeklyWildeWitticism
wildaboutprinting.magd.ox.ac.uk

St John's quad, Magdalen College in the evening. At the centre, a Christmas tree is lit up with fairy lights. In the blue sky, a silhouette of Santa's sleigh with his reindeer fly in the sky. There are 6 rows of 4 dotted rectangles with numbers in them - totalling 24. It is an advent calendar, and nine of the ‘doors’ are open.

Books lined up next to each other. The books are: The ballad of Reading Gaol (Magd.Wilde-O. (BAL) 1907); Impressions of America (Magd.Wilde-O. (IMPR) 1906); The portrait of Mr. W.H. (Magd.Wilde-O. (POR) 1901); De profundis (Magd.Wilde-O. (DEP) 1905); Vera; or, the Nihilists. : A drama in a prologue and four acts. (Magd.Wilde-O. (VER)) ; La ballade de la geôle de reading (Magd.Wilde-O. (BAL) 1952); and Poems in prose (Magd.Wilde-O. (POE) 1905) Behind them, bays of bookshelves with a rope blocking off their entrance and a stool at their side - in Magdalen's Old Library

It's not just at Christmas that the library gets gifts. Here we have some lovely editions of Oscar Wilde books which were gifted to us earlier in the year by an Old Member. They were previously owned by our late President, Tony Smith. #Magdvent #WeeklyWildeWitticism

Sepia photograph of Oscar Wilde, holding a cane. A speech bubble next to him has the words "Her trust makes me faithful, her belief makes me good" inside it

Would be much more fun to be a Traitor, though, right? A quote from The Picture of Dorian Gray. #WeeklyWildeWitticism Enjoy the final! #TheTraitorsUK

Black and white figure (Oscar Wilde) with a green and white party hat superimposed onto his head. At the centre, a black rectangle with white text inside reading: "Most modern calendars mar the sweet simplicity of our lives by reminding us that each day that passes is the anniversary of some perfectly uninteresting event" - Oscar Wilde, quoted in Oscar Wilde: his life and wit, p. 114

#WeeklyWildeWitticism Oscar Wilde was born #OnThisDay in 1854. Last 16th Oct, we opened our exhibition, Magdalen's Wilde, celebrating the writer's time as a student at Magdalen and his life afterwards. You can see the online version of our exhibition on our website: magdalenswilde.magd.ox.ac.uk

Black and white portrait of Oscar Wilde, wearing a fur coat and holding a cain. Above him, text reads: Education is an admirable thing, but it is well to remember from time to time that nothing worth knowing can be taught — Oscar Wilde, The Critic As Artist

It's the beginning of Michaelmas Term! Happy 1st week and welcome back to all our returning students. Here are some words of wisdom from a former Magdalen student! #WeeklyWildeWitticism

View of Magdalen College cloisters, with the New Buildings in the distance, from the top of the Great Tower. In the sky, text reads: "I was the happiest man in the world when I entered Magdalen for the first time. Oxford—the mere word to me is full of an inexpressible, an incommunicable charm. Oxford—the home of lost causes and impossible ideals." Quoted in Oscar Wilde by Frank Harris

Tomorrow is the beginning of 0th week, a busy week for the library - we'll be welcoming our new students at their Longwall Library inductions. We hope our new students like Magdalen as much as former student, Oscar Wilde, did. (Let's not focus on the last part of the quote...) #WeeklyWildeWitticism

Statue of Oscar Wilde, Dublin. At the top, text reads: "One should either be a work of Art, or wear a work of Art." — Oscar Wilde, Phrases and Philosophies for the Use of the Young, The Chameleon

We suppose Oscar Wilde would have approved of this statue of him in Dublin #WeeklyWildeWitticism

Aerial view of Oxford from Magdalen's Great Tower. In the sky, text reads: "Oxford - 'that sweet city with her dreaming spires,' lovely as Venice in its splendour..." - Oscar Wilde, Art and the Handicraftsman lecture

This weekend is #OxfordOpenDoors, where the city opens its doors to visitors free of charge. We have to agree with this quote from our favourite alum, Oscar Wilde. Be sure to visit Magdalen this weekend! #WeeklyWildeWitticism

Bookshelves. Across them, text reads: 1375 "I can be perfectly happy by myself. With freedom, books, flowers, and the moon, who could not be happy?" -- Oscar Wilde, De Profundis

Quite right. #WeeklyWildeWitticism Happy #BookLoversDay 📚 📚 📚

Two bookshelves filled with titles about Oscar Wilde. In between the two shelves, a black rectangle has white text reading: "Every great man nowadays has his disciples, and it always Judas who writes the biography." -- Oscar Wilde, The Critic as an Artist

#WeeklyWildeWitticism We wonder what Wilde would have made of the many, many books in Magdalen Library written about him? buff.ly/hUjDMIe

A photograph of Oscar Wilde, reclined on an armchair. In a speech bubble is text reading "Football is all very well as a game for rough girls, but it is hardly suitable for delicate boys."

Quoted in Oscar Wilde: His Life and Wit. Wilde would definitely have been a Lionesses fan. #WeeklyWildeWitticism #EURO2025

An open book of sheet music, overlaid with a black rectangle with white font reading: "I never talk during music, at least during good music. If one hears bad music, it is one's duty to drown it in conversation" Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray

It's #InternationalKaraokeDay. What's you go-to karaoke song? #WeeklyWildeWitticism

Aerial view of Paris. In the sky, white text reads: "I won't got to Paris, because I should spend all my money in no time." - Oscar Wilde, letter to Robert Ross (Letters, page 1138)

Good advice. Happy #BastilleDay 💙🤍❤️ #WeeklyWildeWitticism

Portrait of Oscar Wilde. He is holding a walking stick and wearing a suit and a coat with fur cuffs and collar. At the top, text reads: "We have really everything in common with America nowadays, except, of course, language." - Oscar Wilde, The Canterville Ghost.

Happy 4th July to all our members from across the pond. #WeeklyWildeWitticism

A female lion sits on grassland with her two cubs. Above, text reads: "Fathers should be neither seen nor heard. That is the only proper basis for family life. Mothers are different. Mothers are darlings." - Oscar Wilde, An Ideal Husband.

Happy Father's Day #WeeklyWildeWitticism

Volvelle in Astronomicum Caesareum by Peter Apian (published 1540)

“We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.” — Oscar Wilde, Lady Windermere's Fan. #WeeklyWildeWitticism. This image is from Astronomicum Caesareum, a 1540 work by Peter Apian, featuring volvelles—rotating paper disks for calculating eclipses and tracking celestial bodies.

Photograph of a rosebush in Magdalen's Longwall Quad. There are several peach-coloured roses in full bloom and plenty more buds growing. At the bottom of the image is a black rectangle with white text in it. The text reads: "I can be perfectly happy by myself. With freedom, books, flowers, and the moon, who could not be happy?" Oscar Wilde, De Profundis

We think Oscar would have liked the roses in our Longwall quad. #WeeklyWildeWitticism 🌹 🧡 🥀

View of Oxford city from Magdalen's Great Tower. In the clouds, text reading: “Oxford – ‘that sweet city with her dreaming spires,’ lovely as Venice in its splendour…” — Oscar Wilde, Art and the Handicraftsman lecture "

We love Oxford and we love Oscar Wilde — so we love this quote! #WeeklyWildeWitticism

Portrait of Oscar Wilde, reclining on a sofa, holding a book. At the top, the quote "the majesty of the mighty lines of the play seemed to me to gain new music from the clear young voices that uttered them, and the ideal grandeur of the heroism to be made more real to the spectators by the chivalrous bearing, the noble gesture and the fine passion of its exponents." — Oscar Wilde reviewing a performance of Henry the Fourth performed in Oxford, Dramatic Review, May 23, 1885.

Happy #ShakespeareDay. Here is another great playwright, Oscar Wilde, reviewing a performance of Shakespeare by the Oxford Dramatic Society. #WeeklyWildeWitticism 🎭

Black and white portrait of Oscar Wilde. Cartoon bunting in pastel colours has been added above him. To his left, a speech bubble containing the words "I can resist everything except temptation" and to his right, a cartoon basket containing Easter eggs.

Happy Easter 🐣🍫🐥 #WeeklyWildeWitticism

Black and white photograph of a young Oscar Wilde with three companions, one male and two female. Two speech bubbles have been added. Inside one, text reads: "There are a great many things you haven't got in America, I am told, Miss Worsley. The say you have no ruins and no curiosities" and in the other a reply reading "What nonsense! They have their mothers and their manners." This exchange is a quote from Oscar Wilde's play A Woman of No Importance.

Another scathing quote from our favourite alum, Oscar Wilde — this time from 'A Woman of No Importance.' #WeeklyWildeWitticism This #MothersDay, we hope you are treating your Woman of Great Importance as well as she deserves!

Fritillaries in the Fellows' Garden at Magdalen College. At the bottom of the image, is a black rectangle with white text reading "She finds her home by the Isis as once she did by the Ilissus; the Magdalen walks and the Magdalen cloisters are as dear to her as were ever the silver olives of Colonus and the golden gateway of the house of Pallas: she covers with fanlike tracery the vaulted entrance to Christ Church Hall, and looks out from the windows of Merton; her feet have stirred the Cumnor cowslips, and she gathers fritillaries in the river-fields. — Oscar Wilde"

Oscar Wilde on Art and the beauty of Oxford, including our fritillaries ❤️🥀 #WeeklyWildeWitticism

a koala bear asleep in a tree. A black rectangle covers part of the image. Inside the black rectangle white font reading: "Nothing that actually occurs is of the smallest importance." -- Oscar Wilde, Phrases and philosophies for the use of the young

We hope you've all had a relaxing weekend so far. We know Oscar would have approved #WeeklyWildeWitticism

Portrait of Oscar Wilde. An Oscar statuette has been photoshopped in, as if he were holding it. Above Oscar Wilde, text reads: “It is not good for one’s morals to see bad acting.” - Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray.

It's always Oscar season here at Magdalen College Library and Archives. 🎬🍿📽🏆 #WeeklyWildeWitticism

Black and white portrait of Oscar Wilde, A black banner across the middle, with white text reading: "I think that God in creating Man somewhat overestimated his ability."

#WeeklyWildeWitticism

A border of confetti hearts in varying shades of pink and red surrounds a red square with white text reading: "What a silly thing love is! It is not half as useful as logic, for it does not prove anything and it is always telling one things that are not going to happen, and making one believe things that are not true." The Nightingale and the Rose, Oscar Wilde.

Happy Valentine's Day 💕 #WeeklyWildeWitticism

An array of fresh fruit. At the centre, a black square with white text written over it. The text reads: "I do not approve of anything that tampers with natural ignorance. Ignorance is like a delicate exotic fruit: touch it and the bloom is gone." Oscar Wilde, The Importance of Being Earnest

And this is why we advise people to avoid the library. #WeeklyWildeWitticism

View of Oxford city, from the Great Tower at Magdalen College. In the clouds, text reading: “Oxford still remains the most beautiful thing in England, and nowhere else are life and art so exquisitely blended, so perfectly made one.” - Oscar Wilde, Henry the Fourth at Oxford, Dramatic Review (Uncollected, p.79)

Who are we to disagree with the great Oscar Wilde? #WeeklyWildeWitticism

Bookshelves, whose various books have aesthetically pleasing binding. A white square in the centre, with black text reading: "... you can get along very well without philosophy if you surround yourself with beautiful things..." Oscar Wilde, The Decorative Arts lecture

Why do you suppose we buy so many books? #WeeklyWildeWitticism 📚