A tale of blue vs purple robes in sages...
I made a typical faux pas at my last graduation. I was chatting with Graham Loud, Prof of Medieval Italian History, and he was wearing his gown for the convocation.
"I see you were at Bristol?" I offered by way of small talk, seeing the colours of his attire (I'd done my doctorate there before going to Leeds).
I was greeted with a look that combined embarrassment, mild irritation and well-meaning pity.
The gown was actually Oxford, and the dark blue facings accompanying the red had faded over the years to purple (the colour of Bristol).
Stu.
P.S. I should point out that Bristolians would say they pwned Oxford in Earth Sciences (grudgingly recognising Cambridge above them in some ways), but to make such an association in the Arts...
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