Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford
Christ Church is the grandest of the Oxford colleges, and the only one whose chapel is also a cathedral. Behind Tom Tower and the great quadrangle stands a small Norman church that was a priory long before the university took it over, with a stone vault of hanging pendants, a medieval window of Thomas Becket and glass by Edward Burne-Jones. The college also has the dining hall that inspired Hogwarts.
From priory to college to cathedral
The church stands on the site of the convent of St Frideswide, the patron saint of Oxford, a Saxon noblewoman who died in the early eighth century. In 1122 a priory of Augustinian canons was founded here, and they built the present church in the late twelfth century.
In the 1520s Cardinal Wolsey closed the priory to found Cardinal College, and cut off the west end of the nave to make room for his great quadrangle. After Wolsey’s fall Henry VIII took over the college, and in 1546 refounded it as Christ Church, with the priory church as the cathedral of the new diocese of Oxford.
The visitor's cheat sheet
| Where | Christ Church, St Aldates, Oxford, OX1 1DP |
|---|---|
| Getting there | In the city centre, about 15 minutes’ walk from Oxford station; visitors enter from Christ Church Meadow; park and ride by car |
| Opening hours | Open to visitors most days; times vary, and parts close for college events and services. Check the known closures on the Christ Church website |
| Admission | Visitor ticket roughly £21–£27 for adults depending on the season and day, £2 less booked in advance; reductions for students, over-65s and children; under-5s free. Evensong is free |
| How long | 1.5 to 2 hours |
| Best time | First thing in the morning, or Choral Evensong at 6pm |
| Dress code | No rule; respectful dress in the cathedral |
| Tours | Multimedia guide included; guided tours on set dates (ages 11 and over) |
Hours and admission checked against the official site in October 2026. They change; the official site is always the last word.
101 strokes, five minutes late. Every evening at 9.05pm Great Tom, the bell in Tom Tower, rings 101 times: once for each of the college’s 100 original students, and once more for a student added in 1664. The time is 9pm in Oxford’s old local time, five minutes behind Greenwich.
What to see, in the order you meet it
Tom Quad and Tom Tower
Wolsey’s great quadrangle is the largest in Oxford. The tower over the main gate was left unfinished, and was completed in 1681–82 to a design by Christopher Wren, who matched it to the Tudor gateway below.
The Great Hall
Up the fan-vaulted staircase is the hall, hung with portraits of famous members of the college. Among the windows is one remembering Lewis Carroll, who taught mathematics here as Charles Dodgson, and Alice Liddell, the Dean’s daughter, for whom he wrote Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.
The cathedral
The cathedral is small, one of the smallest in England, with sturdy late-Norman pillars and an early thirteenth-century spire, one of the earliest in England. Look up in the choir: the late-medieval stone vault has pendants that seem to hang in mid-air.
St Frideswide’s shrine and the windows
In the Latin Chapel are the reassembled remains of the shrine of St Frideswide, with its carved stone leaves. Nearby, the Becket window of about 1320 shows the murder of Thomas Becket; at the Reformation the face of the saint was knocked out of the glass. The windows designed by Edward Burne-Jones include the St Frideswide window and the St Catherine window, in which the saint is said to be modelled on Edith Liddell, Alice’s sister.
Tickets and services
Visitor ticket
Expect to pay roughly £21–£27 for an adult, depending on the season and whether it is a weekend, with £2 off for booking in advance. Tickets for each week are released on the Friday before. The ticket includes a multimedia guide. Choral Evensong in the cathedral, every evening at 6pm, is free.
The hotel link goes to Booking.com. This site earns nothing from it at present — it is here because it is the quickest way to check what is actually available.
Don't miss
- The choir vault Pendants hanging in mid-air.
- The Becket window With the saint’s face missing.
- St Frideswide’s shrine The patron saint of Oxford.
- The Burne-Jones glass Including the St Catherine window.
- The Great Hall And the staircase from the films.
- Great Tom 101 strokes at 9.05pm.
Insider tips
Check the closures first. Christ Church is a working college, and the hall, the cathedral or the whole site can close for services, exams and private events. Look at the known closures page before you book, and go in the morning if the hall is what you most want to see.
Christ Church Meadow, between the college and the rivers, is free to walk in all year except Christmas Day. The Christ Church Picture Gallery has its own ticket.
Common questions
How much does it cost to visit Christ Church?
A visitor ticket covers the college and the cathedral, with a multimedia guide. In 2026 an adult ticket costs roughly £21–£27 depending on the season, the day of the week and whether you book ahead, with reductions for students, over-65s and children; under-fives go free, and booking in advance saves £2. Check the Christ Church website for today’s price.
Can I visit the cathedral for free?
Yes, by going to a service. Choral Evensong is sung in the cathedral every evening at 6pm Oxford time (6.05pm by the clock) and is open to everyone, without a ticket. Come to worship, not to tour: the rest of the college is not open at that time.
Is the Great Hall the Hogwarts dining hall?
It inspired it. The hall was recreated in a film studio for the Harry Potter films, and the staircase leading up to it appears in the first film. The hall is part of a working college, so it closes at lunchtime and for college events.
Why is it both a college and a cathedral?
Henry VIII refounded the college in 1546 and made its chapel, the old priory church of St Frideswide, the cathedral of the new diocese of Oxford. It has been both ever since, and its head, the Dean, is in charge of both.
How do you get to Christ Church?
Christ Church is on St Aldates, a few minutes’ walk south of Carfax in the centre of Oxford, and about 15 minutes’ walk from Oxford station. Visitors usually enter from Christ Church Meadow, not through Tom Tower. Use the park-and-ride buses if you come by car.
Where to stay and eat nearby
Oxford has hotels in the centre and around the station, and plenty of places to eat around St Aldates and the Covered Market.
More English churches
- King’s College Chapel — Cambridge’s answer
- Dorchester Abbey — about 20 minutes south of Oxford
- Canterbury Cathedral — where Becket was murdered
See all the cathedrals and churches worth visiting in England →