The Vice-Chancellors of both Oxford and Cambridge Universities have today issued joint statements apologising to all the victims of the Magdalene regimes over the decades.
"We realise the hurt and stigma that this treatment has caused", they said. "It is totally unacceptable in this day and age that anyone at university should be persecuted for coming from such a working class background that they pronounce the name of one of our colleges "Mag-da-linn" even though it should clearly be pronounced "Mawd-linn."
In recognition of the hurt and suffering which this "linguistic snobbery" has caused over the years, both universities have announced their intention to make substantial donations to Trans-late-Atlantic,a charity that educates Americans how to pronounce things properly.