Kevin Spacey lands post at Oxford

Since becoming artistic director at the Old Vic theatre five years ago, Hollywood actor and all round luvvie Kevin Spacey has stitched himself neatly into the fabric of British life, attending Labour Party conferences and even being the victim of a mugger. Now he has embraced another great institution, Oxford University.

Spacey, 48, who has won two Oscars for his roles in The Usual Suspects and American Beauty, has been appointed the Cameron Mackintosh Visiting Professor of Contemporary Theatre at St Catherine's College, replacing Star Trek actor Patrick Stewart. The post, which is funded by the Mackintosh Foundation and set up by the West End impresario Sir Cameron Mackintosh, aims to promote interest in and the study and practice of contemporary theatre.

Spacey's entree into academia is unlikely to place him under the fierce critical focus he's had to endure at the Old Vic, where reviewers have been quick to point out his inadequacies. He received stinkers for the first two plays he staged, and even when he had a success with The Philadelphia Story, which featured Jennifer Ehle, the theatre critics remained unimpressed. "I still feel London's Old Vic deserves bigger, bolder, more exciting fare," said the Guardian's Michael Billington, while the Observer's Susannah Clapp was more harsh. "Kevin Spacey's Old Vic is becoming a byword for the undistinguished." ·