The buildings have inspired replicas throughout the world in addition to being featured in films such as Harry Potter and The Golden Compass, helping Christ Church become the most popular Oxford college for tourists with almost half a million visitors annually.

[10][11] Major additions have been made to the buildings through the centuries, and Wolsey's Great Quadrangle was crowned with the famous gate-tower designed by Christopher Wren.

[12] King Charles I made the Deanery his palace and held his Parliament in the Great Hall during the English Civil War.

Until the later 19th century, the students differed from fellows in that they had no governing powers in their own college, as those resided solely with the dean and chapter.

Distinctive features of the college's architecture have been used as models by a number of other academic institutions, including the NUI Galway, which reproduces Tom Quad.

This stopped, in September 2022, when the fishes were moved to a spacious lake home somewhere in Oxfordshire while the College perform essential maintenance on the pond.

[41] The boys, whose ages range from eight to thirteen, are chosen for their musical ability and attend Christ Church Cathedral School.

[citation needed]Throughout its history, the cathedral choir has attracted many distinguished composers and organists – from its first director, John Taverner, appointed by Cardinal Wolsey in 1526, to William Walton in the twentieth century.

In recent years, the choir have commissioned recorded works by contemporary composers such as John Tavener, William Mathias and Howard Goodall, also patron of Christ Church Music Society.

[citation needed] The choir, which broadcasts regularly, have many recordings to their credit and were the subject of a Channel 4 television documentary Howard Goodall's Great Dates (2002).

Treasures of Christ Church (2011) is an example of the choir's recording and debuted as the highest new entry in the UK Specialist Classical chart.

[citation needed] Christ Church holds one of the most important private collections of drawings in the UK, including works by Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael and Michelangelo.

The collection is composed of approximately 300 paintings and 2,000 drawings, a rotated selection of which are available to the public for viewing in the purpose-built Christ Church Picture Gallery.

Many of the works were bequeathed by a former member of the college, General John Guise (1682/3-1765), enabling the creation of the first public art gallery in Britain.

They are emblazoned: "Between quarterly, 1st & 4th, France modern (azure three fleurs-de-lys or), 2nd & 3rd, England (gules in pale three lions passant guardant or), on a cross argent an open Bible proper edged and bound with seven clasps or, inscribed with the words In principio erat Verbum, et Verbum erat apud Deum and imperially crowned or.

"[citation needed] The college preprandial grace reads: Īnsuper petimus, ut cibum angelōrum, vērum panem cælestem, verbum Deī æternum, Dominum nostrum Iēsum Christum, nōbis impertiāris; utque illō mēns nostra pascātur et per carnem et sanguinem eius fovēāmur, alāmur, et corrōborēmur.

[49] And above all we beseech thee to impart to us the food of angels, the true bread of heaven, the eternal Word of God, Jesus Christ our Lord, so that the mind of each of us may feed on him and that through his flesh and blood we may be sustained, nourished and strengthened.

The first part of the grace is read by a scholar or exhibitioner before formal hall each evening, ending with the words Per Iēsum Christum Dominum nostrum ("Through Jesus Christ our Lord.")

Members are generally expected to dine in hall, where there are two sittings every evening, one informal and one formal (where gowns must be worn and Latin grace is read).

The college offers subsidies on the costs of accommodation and dinners for UK and ROI students from families with lower household incomes.

In recent years the Christ Church Netball Club, which competes on the inter-college level in both mixed and women's matches, has become known as a popular and inclusive sport.

""I must say my thoughts wandered, but I kept turning the pages and watching the light fade, which in Peckwater, my dear, is quite an experience – as darkness falls the stone seems positively to decay under one's eyes.

I was reminded of some of those leprous façades in the vieux port at Marseille, until suddenly I was disturbed by such a bawling and caterwauling as you never heard, and there, down in the little piazza, I saw a mob of about twenty terrible young men, and do you know what they were chanting We want Blanche.

And once, in winter, on the causeway chill Where home through flooded fields foot-travellers go, Have I not pass'd thee on the wooden bridge, Wrapt in thy cloak and battling with the snow, And thou has climb'd the hill, And gain'd the white brow of the Cumner range; Turn'd once to watch, while thick the snowflakes fall, The line of festal light in Christ-Church hall—

"Also included in: Vaughan Williams|An Oxford Elegy (1947–9) and Hilary Mantel's Wolf Hall trilogy (referred to by its previous name, Cardinal College).

From outside the UK, politicians from Canada (Ted Jolliffe), Pakistan (Zulfikar Ali Bhutto), Sri Lanka (S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike) and the United States (Charles Cotesworth Pinckney) have attended the college.

There are numerous former students in the fields of academia and theology, including George Kitchin (the first Chancellor of the University of Durham 1908–1912 and Dean of Durham Cathedral 1894–1912), John Charles Ryle (first Bishop of Liverpool 1880–1900), John Wesley (leader of the Methodist movement), Rowan Williams (Archbishop of Canterbury 2002–2012), Richard William Jelf (Principal of King's College London 1843–1868), Ronald Montagu Burrows (Principal of King's College London 1913–1920) and William Stubbs (Bishop of Oxford 1889–1901 and historian).

Two Olympic rowing gold medallists studied at the college: Jonny Searle and Spanish Civil War volunteer Lewis Clive.

In other fields, Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, twins associated with the founding of Facebook, King Edward VII (1841–1910), King of the United Kingdom and Emperor of India, King William II of the Netherlands, Prince Paul of Yugoslavia, entrepreneur and founder of Pennsylvania William Penn, broadcaster David Dimbleby, MP Louise Mensch, BBC composer Howard Goodall, actor Riz Ahmed, the writer Lewis Carroll, poet W. H. Auden, and the former officer of arms Hubert Chesshyre are other notable students to have previously studied at Christ Church.