Revd W. A. SPOONER (1844–1930)
Warden of New College, Oxford
11 Keble Road, Oxford
W. A. Spooner in 1913. From the portrait by Hugh Rivière
in the
Hall of New College, Oxford, © and by courtesy
of the Warden and Scholars
of New College, Oxford
William Archibald Spooner’s fame derives from the distinctive verbal slips named ‘spoonerisms’ after him. These involve the transposition of initial letters or syllables of adjacent words, with comic effect. It has always been difficult to pin down authentic examples uttered by the man himself but it is usually accepted that in 1878 he announced from the pulpit the title of the hymn ‘Conquering kings their titles take’ as “Kinquering congs their titles take”. Many highly amusing examples are considered made up by undergraduates and others:
- “You have hissed all my mystery lectures,
and were caught fighting a liar in the quad”
(You have missed all my history lectures,
and were caught lighting a fire in the quad) - “You have tasted two worms” to a student who wasted two terms.
- “You will leave by the next town drain”
(You will leave by the next down train) - “It is kisstomary to cuss the bride” (It is customary to kiss the bride)
William Archibald Spooner was born in 1844 at 17 Chapel Street, Grosvenor Place, London, the eldest son of William Spooner, barrister, of Walton Lodge, Stafford and Jane Lydia Spooner (née Wilson) of Seacroft Hall, Leeds. He was nephew to Archibald Tait, Archbishop of Canterbury. Educated at Oswestry School, he won a scholarship to New College, Oxford in 1862. Spooner remained at New College for more than sixty years, serving as fellow, lecturer, tutor, and dean before becoming Warden (1903–1924). He lectured on ancient history, divinity, and philosophy (especially on Aristotle's ethics). He was also ordained priest in the Church of England in 1875, although this was no longer required of college fellows.
Unanimously elected as Warden in 1903, Spooner oversaw the transformation of New College into one of the most highly regarded in Oxford. He was active in the wider university, serving as Pro-Vice-Chancellor. He was on the Council of Lady Margaret Hall, Council Chair of the Warneford Hospital and served on various charities. His principled stance on the German alumni of New College who had died in WWI is notable. He insisted that they too should be named on the war memorial in the chapel.
He had married Frances Wycliffe Goodwin, daughter of the Bishop of Carlisle, in 1878. At first they lived at 10 Keble Terrace (now Keble Road) and later leased number 11 (below), a larger house on the corner with Parks Road, from 1882.
When they moved to the Warden’s Lodgings in 1903, they had to be greatly enlarged to accommodate his surviving family of one son and four daughters. Spooner was an albino with cherubic face, white hair and poor eyesight, and much loved by undergraduates who nicknamed him The Child. In retirement he lived at 1 Canterbury Road, Oxford. He died on 29 August 1930 and was buried in the cemetery at Grasmere in Cumbria near his wife’s family home.
Sources:
- Spooner, A Biography by William Hayter (1977)
- Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, article by Alan Ryan
The plaque was unveiled at 11 Keble Road (now part of Oxford University Department of Computer Science) on 19 October 2024. Miles Young, Warden of New College, gave the tribute to Spooner. Among those attending were the Lord Mayor of Oxford (Cllr Mike Rowley), the Chair of Oxfordshire County Council (Cllr Alison Rooke), the Chair of West Oxfordshire District Council (Elizabeth Poskitt), and a number of Spooner’s descendants. The event ended with a splendid tea in the Warden's Lodgings, hosted by Miles Young, the Warden, and a visit to the Hall to see the portrait of Spooner which hangs there.
Photographs taken at the unveiling ceremony:
- Miles Young, Warden of New College, delivering the tribute
and showing the famous Vanity Fair “Spy” cartoon of Spooner - Spooner's great-grandson Professor David Murray unveils the plaque,
watched by other members of Spooner's family and Miles Young, Warden of New College - Descendants of the Revd W. A. Spooner
in front of his portrait in the college hall - Warden's Lodgings at New College:
Alison Rooke (Chair of Oxfordshire County Council), Mike Rowley (Lord Mayor of Oxford), and Elizabeth Poskitt (Chair of West Oxfordshire District Council) - Tea in the Warden's Lodgings
Tribute to Spooner given by Miles Young, Warden of New College, at the unveiling ceremony (PDF)
Oxfordshire Blue Plaques Board
The Revd W. A
SPOONER
1844–1930
Warden of New College
Eponymous word transposer
Lived here
1882–1903
“Kinquering congs their titles take”
