On the occasions when I do see members of the program (fairly rare now that it has completely broken down into small groups working on the optional papers), it seems that everyone is caught up in the double effort of finishing the thesis and finding something worthwhile to do when this all ends. With the last day for possible viva exams now six months off, minds are getting focused. With the more stressful elements of research degrees making themselves known, the general enthusiasm for the D.Phil has been waning. Many people who seemed gung-ho about carrying on to convert their M.Phil to a doctorate in two additional years are now leaning towards other uses for their time.
This is a bit contradictory, really, given that it is precisely the people who want to carry on the for the D.Phil who need to worry most about their theses. The chances of anyone at a different school giving it such a careful looking over (or even any examination at all) are a lot lower than those of Oxford taking it strongly into account, when considering you as a doctoral candidate.
In any case, I am off to work on my potted history of the Kyoto Protocol.