The Boat Races 2017 television viewers, and were broadcast around the world by a variety of broadcasters. The two main races were also available for the first time as a live stream using YouTube. The Boat Race is a side-by-side rowing competition between the University of Oxford (sometimes referred to as the "Dark Blues") and the University of Cambridge (sometimes referred to as the "Light Blues"). First held in 1829, the race takes place on the Championship Course, between Putney and Mortlake on the River Thames in south-west London. The rivalry is a major point of honour between the two universities; it is followed
Putney East Putney ward in second place. Excluding the "Putney Exchange" in a survey by the New Economics Foundation of 27 London high streets in 2005, Putney's ranked fifth most "cloned...[meaning] offering identikit shopping with little local character". The Thamesfield ward in Putney has London's highest Australian and New Zealand communities. The Member of Parliament for Putney is Justine Greening of the Conservative Party, who has served as the MP for the constituency since the 2005 general election; and was subsequently re-elected at the 2010, 2015 and 2017 general elections. Greening has held five Cabinet-level positions under the premierships of both