Courier 1326 by The Courier Online

www.thecourieronline.co.uk Monday 22 February 2016 Issue 1325 Free

The Independent Voice of Newcastle Students

ELECTIONS PULLOUT A who’s who p.23

Est 1948

TOPGEAR CHINESE NEW YEAR Analysing the show’s Celebrating the year of the relaunch p.23

monkey p.24

• Annual LGBT+ Week a success, p5

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Image: Matt Horne

Disabled student mugged on campus By Hamish Auskerry Police still hunting for cowardly campus mugger. A CCTV image of a man suspected of mugging a disabled Newcastle student has been released by Northumbria Police. Alex Nicklen, 19, a Politics and History fresher who suffers from bona bifida, a spinal condition that leads to poor mobility, had his phone stolen on campus in a terrifying ordeal. While walking home past Merz Court in broad daylight on Sunday 14th, a man told Alex, to ‘give me your phone or I’ll put a gun to your head’. A week on, Alex has talked to The Courier about his Valentine’s Day nightmare. “I was walking much slower and limping slightly that afternoon so it was clear that I wasn’t going to be able to defend myself at all”. “When he was in front of me, my body was telling me to run but consciously I knew I didn’t have the capabilities to defend myself or escape from the situation”. “My thought was not that I was going to

get shot - I didn’t think at the time that was very likely - but he was about 5”11 with an athletic build and he clearly had the capacity to beat me up at the very least”. Northumbria Police are investigating whether Alex, who is from Morpeth in Northumberland, was targeted specifically because of his disability. Newcastle Superintendent Bruce Storey said: “Enquiries are ongoing into this incident and we will look into the possibility that the offender has targeted the victim because of his vulnerability. “If this is the case then this is completely unacceptable and cowardly behaviour and we need to identify the offender as soon as possible and take action”. Although Alex was physically unhurt by the incident, he has told The Courier about the ongoing effects on his emotional wellbeing. “Everyone has been so helpful and caring about it which has helped a lot but it’s still very difficult for me to return to the site of where it happened”, Alex explained. The response of the public to the attack has been one of shock and disgust, as well as concern about the safety of students on campus.

Alex said: “Some people, especially many of my Chinese friends, said to me that they had been told Newcastle was a safe city and so they were surprised and anxious that it could happen to them”. Alex himself admits that the ordeal is having an adverse affect on his life at university. “Sometimes if someone makes a sudden movement or comes into my eye line I jump a bit”, explained Alex, who lives in Park Terrace. “I already felt quite vulnerable generally, although I don’t necessarily show it. When I’m around people who look like unsavoury characters I do often think that they can see my vulnerability and so they might do something to me. “I guess that fear is going to exacerbated by this incident”. Police are still appealing for witnesses. Anyone who was in the area and who may have seen or heard anything suspicious is asked to contact the Police. Anyone with information should contact police on 101, quoting log number 684 of 14/082/16 or ring the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

CCTV footage of the suspect

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Christian Union reveal the ‘Naked Truth’

Monday 22 February 2016

The Courier

Deputy Editor: Mark Sleightholm News Editors: Peter Georgiev, Antonia Velikova, Sinead Corkett-Beirne & Sophie Norris courier.news@ncl.ac.uk | @TheCourier_News

Eldon’s Got a Talent for fundraising

Beach campaigners prove point

COMMENT

‘The dickhead awards’ 2016

CULTURE

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Blind Date:

The Dance Society showed off their skills on stage Images: Sophie Chapman

India meets TJ RAG’s fashion show Getting graphic with eyeliner

Is it Leonardo DiCaprio’s turn yet? What to watch now: A TV insight The myths behind ‘man ﬂu’

By Sophie Chapman Last week the Eldon Society held a charity talent show to raise money for Cancer Research UK. The Eldon Society is the biggest society at Newcastle University and is open to anyone with an interest in law, whether this means you are completing a law degree or are simply a novice with a passion. The event, which took place in Venue in the Student Union, comes as the latest in a series of fundraising events organised by the new welfare office. The first being a raffle and the follow-up hopefully being a Great British Bake Off style event. Abi Marshall, the first welfare officer for the Eldon Society and member of the Irish Dance Society, orchestrated the event to make the debut year of the welfare department a memorable one. Speaking before the event she said, “This is the first year the Eldon Society has had a welfare officer so we wanted to do something special to mark our introduction, the talent show is a great way to raise money for our charity of the year, Cancer Research UK, and have fun in the process.” The acts included both members

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of the Eldon Society and volunteers from other societies wanting to support the cause. Acts included Elise, a law student, who sung ‘Riptide’ and ‘Say Something’ and was followed by an individual stand-up act from Philippa, a Northumbria biomed student. The Dance Society also submitted an entry with their advanced street dance team who performed a routine they had been working on for national competitions to a compilation of hip-hop songs, Abi said, prior to the competition, “Potentially the street dance team will be our biggest competition on the night.” Following a brief intermission another comedian, this time from the Newcastle Comedy Society named Haaris, performed a stand up act calling on members of the audience (much to their embarrassment) and making jokes about everyday life. Finishing the show was the Irish Dance society. The Irish dancers performed five impressive routines and showcased a multitude of skills both with and without tap shoes. The audience were very enthusiastic, clapping along to the music, and giving the biggest applause of the night. Having formed in October after recruiting in fresher’s week the

Irish Dance society had put months of rehearsal into the routine they gave on Wednesday night and this shined through in their performance. Eleanor Browne, a first year maths student at Newcastle, said “The highlight of my night was the Irish Dance society, I came to support my friend in the society and I was really impressed with everything from how quick their footwork was to the lighting they chose to complement their performance.” The intimate show was hosted by

Harry Dyson, who had previously taken part in the RAG Take Me Out night, and tickets were sold with all proceeds going to charity. The event is thought to have raised £100 for Cancer Research UK. Eldon’s Got Talent showcased some of the best talent from within the society itself and from other societies wanting to raise money for a good cause. The night was enjoyed by all who attended and made a meaningful contribution to the society’s fundraising efforts.

“The talent show is a great way to raise money for our charity of the year, Cancer Research UK”

Editor Victoria Armstrong Deputy Editor Mark Sleightholm News Editors Antonia Velikova, Peter Georgiev, Sophie Norris and Sinead Corkett-Beirne Comment Editors Jack Dempsey, Hanson Jones and Daniel Robertson Culture Editors Ellie McLaren and Laura Staniforth Lifestyle Editors Lauren Exell, Ruth Loefﬂer, Katie Ackerley and Fiona Callow Fashion Editors Sara Macauley, Ellen Dixon and Liz Rosling Beauty Editors Lucy Cochrane, Ellen Walker and Flo Davies Arts Editors Holly Suttle, Jade Holroyd and Emily Watton Film Editors Rhian Hunter, Simon Ramshaw and Emma Allsopp TV Editors Helen Daly, Jack Oliver Parker and Hannah Bunting Music Editors Jamie Shepherd, Dominique Daly and Connor McDonnell Science Editors Iqra Choudhry, Louise Bingham and Anna Jastrzembska Gaming Editors Ollie Burton, James McCoull and Michael Hicks Sports Editors Calum Wilson, Alex Hendley and Lewis Bedford

The Courier is printed by: Print and Digital Associates, Fernleigh House, 10 Uttoxeter Road, Derby, Derbyshire, United Kingdom, DE3 0DA. Established in 1948, The Courier is the fully independent student newspaper of the Students’ Union at Newcastle University. The Courier is published weekly during term time, and is free of charge. The design, text, photographs and graphics are copyright of The Courier and its individual contributors. No parts of this newspaper may be reproduced without the prior permission of the Editor. Any views expressed in this newspaper’s comment pieces are those of the individual writing, and not of The Courier, the Students’ Union or Newcastle University.

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Monday 22 February 2016

Mongolia trek for youth charity

By Sima Nikolajeva During last summer, three students completed a challenge of a lifetime, trekking on horseback in Mongolia for 17 days. The expedition, which took 28 days in total, was supported by Mark Evison Foundation, which aims to promote personal, mental and physical development in young people by asking them to complete various challenges. Tomos Davies, Jack Morphet and Joshua Hosford, all aged 21, rode 250 miles unsupported with 5 horses from a town called Murun to the top of Lake Khovsgol Nuur - the 14th largest lake in the world. Jack said: ‘Going through an alien wilderness on horseback is something so far detached from our modern day lives, but is something that all three of us crave to be doing, so to tread alongside Mongolian nomadic footsteps and live under conditions they do is something of a dream come true. “The experience has benefited us hugely: not only have we learnt many new practical skills in both an equestrian and expedition sense, but also strengthened our mental skills necessary for expeditions”, added Tomos, a 3rd year Agriculture with Animal Production Science student. The main inspiration for young explorers, who have all previously committed to the similar, but smaller-scale projects ranging from a gillie role in the remote Scottish Highlands to hiking in Fiordland National Park in New Zealand, became Tim Cope - an Australian adventurer, filmmaker and trekking guide, who rode 10,000 km on the horseback from Mongolia to Hungary between 2004–2007. The team started researching and planning at the beginning of last year and considered themselves to be wellprepared both physically and mentally – “as prepared as we could be going to a place so unknown and alien to us, and one which is relatively poorly documented”, Tomos said. All three of them had previously gained some experience of horse-riding before embarking on the journey, and

Josh and Tomos’ stockmanship skills as experienced farmers came in handy when looking after the horses along the way. The crew started their expedition in Murun, heading north towards Lake Khovsgol with 120 kg of equipment. Travelling for around 6 hours and 20 miles per day along vast open flat plains alternating with mountainous woodlands, Jack, Josh and Tomos had some difficult moments of surviving on less than 1,000 calories a day and staying alert all night with an average of 4-hours sleep in freezing temperatures. On the topic of night watches, Jack said: “Ever since we told the natives about what we wanted to do, we were told that we would have our horses stolen from us right away. “This, alongside a limited time to reach our goal, meant that the trip would become an endurance adventure rather than the journey we had originally planned for”, he added. Riding horseback on temperamental Mongolian horses around Hovsgol National Park did not come without its twists and turns. The team had a moment of true desperation when two of the five horses tore their tethers and galloped off into the night while being spooked by wolves or wild horses in the area. Tomos said: “We spent a whole day searching for them to no effect, then found a local nomad and paid him a small sum to help us search for them. The next day he came to find us and told us he had found them. “While losing the horses was the lowest point of the journey, getting them back was probably the happiest”. The fact that the team went on trip around those wild solitary lands unsupported might seem somewhat extreme. “We had GPS satellite phones with us, but other than that… in the event of an emergency we would have had to ride to the last locals gher (tent home) and ask

“Going through an alien wilderness on horseback is so far detached from our modern day lives”

The students travelled across Mongolia Images: Tomos Davies

for their help.” At first they didn’t have many interactions with locals, however later on, as the trio were getting more and more support from Mongolians, their attitude changed significantly, which resulted in a few stay-overs with locals and following food share, gesture communication and ’creature comforts’ such as antibiotics for horses, sweets, pens and paper, cigarettes - give away as a token of gratitude. Josh added: “For these people what we were doing seemed crazy, as their way of life is incredibly difficult and requires so much hardiness that doing suchlike things to make our own lives harder is understandably difficult for them to fathom. “The lesson we learned was know who to trust: for the city and townsfolk it was wise to be wary of them as there are thieves and drunks around willing

“The trip would become an endurance adventure rather than the journey we had originally planned for”

to fleece you for money or possessions, but in the more rural areas they could be depended on and were incredibly helpful and kind for no gain to themselves.” After reaching their destination in Turt, Khankh, the team sold the horses back to some of the nomads, paid a local to drive them back to the town they started from and spent next 24 hours in a soviet van, wading through torrential rain and flooding with the car breaking down along the way several times. “Exploring the untamed natural world with friends is something that cannot be beaten by any material gains or wealth, and I wouldn’t change anything that happened on the trip. “I would love to go back and explore more of what is an awe-inspiring country in every way”, Josh added. Having filmed the whole process, the

guys have made a short documentary about their trip, and are now raising funds for the Mark Evison Foundation. “The team have done amazingly well with their project, especially considering all the early challenges they faced at the start; they have come back with not only a new set of practical skills but also a sense of real adventure which is something the charity encourages w holehe ar te d ly”, said Dr Margaret Evison, Executive Trustee of the Mark Evison Foundation. “No matter how well-prepared you think you are, there will always be doubts about whether or not you can handle anything like that, but it gets to a point when you just have to bite the bullet and take the plunge. “This challenge has made us keener than ever for future expeditions, and we hope this acts as a springboard to achieve that”, Tomos concluded.

“No matter how well prepared you think you are, there will always be doubts about whether or not you can handle anything like that”

4.news

Monday 22 February 2016

The Courier

Christian Union reveal ‘The Naked Truth’ over lunch By Sophie Norris News Editor

The Christian Union Society has organized a series of events this week at the Students Union and St. Luke’s Church. Running from Monday 14th-Friday 19thFebruary, The Naked Truth: Exposing Christianity will hold various talks and answer any questions surrounding the claims and challenges of Christianity. Two free events will be held each day, in both the afternoon and evening, with a free meal at both. Live music and wine or punch is also available at the evening event, as well as artwork around the theme of truth, that will be displayed at St. Luke’s Church on Claremont Road. Afternoon events, all held in the History Rooms on the first floor of the SU from 1-2pm and 2-3pm, include a discussion on ‘What does Christianity have to do with me?’ on Monday and ‘How can Christians claim God and Science are compatible’ on Tuesday, and ‘What kind of God would put us through this?’ on Wednesday. Later in the week a debate on Christians justification of faith

despite their history of hate will be held on the Thursday, before a talk on ‘What is Christianity if not rules?’ on Friday. Evening events include a ‘How can Christianity be applicable to everyone?’ talk, located at Castlegate on Monday, “Is human purpose made, given or discovered?” at St Luke’s Church on Tuesday, and “What kind of God would put us through this?” on Wednesday. Thursdays’ discussion is on ‘Why do questions go on about love?” before closing with “What is Christianity if not rules?” on Friday, to think about what it means to be free. President Natalie Hunter said: “The week has been a great opportunity to share our faith with other students and get to the heart of what the God that we follow is like. “We have been massively encouraged by the engagement of hundreds of students with our talks and activities around campus across the week” By “The Naked Truth” we have sought to get behind the claims that Christians make about the person of Jesus. As a result, we’ve looked at questions of science, love, the relevance of Christianity today and freedom.”

“We’ve looked at questions of science, love, the relevance of Christianity today and freedom”

The Courier

Monday 22 February 2016

news.5

LGBT+ Awareness Week combats stigma and challenges stereotypes By Sinead Corkett-Beirne News Editor

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) Awareness week commenced on 15 February 2016 as various events organised by Newcastle University’s Student Union in conjunction with the LGBT Society took place throughout the week. There was a range of discussions that focused on the different aspects of the LGBT community, including talks on trans-health, bisexuality, mental health, queer women in the 21st Century, and LGBT people with faith. The Albert Kennedy Trust, which is a charity that provides support to young LGBT homeless people under the age of twenty-five, also featured in a separate discussion. A colour festival was organised for 19th February after the LGBT society recorded a promotional video for the event at Exhibition Park. During the course of the week, an LGBT Awareness tent was set up outside the student union for three consecutive days. An action day prompting the university to change ‘unnecessarily’ gendered toilets to a more gender-

neutral sign occurred on 18th February, whereby a prize was awarded to an individual who documented the most gendered toilets along with their location. Dan Robertson, PR and Communications Officer for the LGBT+ society said: “I think that the week was important because it helped to raise awareness of issues that weren’t commonly asociated with being LGBT+, such as mental health repurcussions. Third-year Physiology student, Iqra Choudhry said: “During LGBT+ awareness week I read an article online that reaffirmed my belief in the importance of these events. “The article perpetuated lots of negative stereotypes associated with bisexuality and went so far as to suggest that bisexuality isn’t real.” Several of the events during the LGBT+ awareness week focused on challenging such stereotypes, such as Josh Hally-Milne’s talk about stereotypes of ‘camp’ gay men and internalised homophobia. One of the events was a QuestionTime panel which featured representatives from the sub-communities under the LGBT umbrella.

“The week helped to raise awareness of issues that weren’t commonly associated with being LGBT+”

Saffron in front of THEIR ‘beyond the binary stall’ which a number of students organised Image: Mark Sleightholm

Sports clubs unite against homophobia By Mark Sleightholm Deputy Editor

Newcastle’s latest student campaign kicked off last Tuesday with the official launch of Come Out And Play, a campaign tackling homophobia, biphobia and transphobia in sports. Set up by five third-year Geography students, the campaign aims to make Newcastle’s Athletic Union more inclusive by promoting equality within sport. Tuesday’s launch event saw presidents and members of many of the University’s sports clubs wearing campaign t-shirts and gathering outside the Students’ Union alongside Athletic Union Officer Angus Taylor. The campaign was initially envisaged as part of a project for their Geography degrees, but James Shorthouse, Calum Wilson, Emily Wassell, Sophie Entress and Flora Gilbert decided to take it one step further and launch their campaign for real. Shorthouse came up with the initial idea after seeing the media attention that Premier League footballers got when they announced that they were gay. With support from Luke Allison, NUSU’s Welfare and Equality Officer, Angus Taylor, AU Officer, and the LGBT Society. Wilson explained: “With Luke’s financial backing we were able to print some very colourful t-shirts, which we hope to see being worn all over campus by the AU members that came along to the shoot.” He continued: “The whole process from brainstorming in our seminar room to actually putting the campaign into action has been very fast but in

the short time we’ve been campaigning we’ve had so much support and positive feedback, it’s really helped the campaign to develop. The turnout on the day of the photoshoot was far greater than we’d hoped and anticipated and we were all really proud and thrilled to see so many AU members coming down to support from a number of different clubs.” Over 40 students attended the photoshoot, wearing Come Out And Play t-shirts in the red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple colours of the LGBT+ flag. The campaign organisers have also set up a Twitter account to keep followers updated on the campaign’s progress. Wilson pointed out: “Despite our catchy name, we wanted to make clear that we are not forcibly encouraging anyone to ‘come out’ or express their sexual orientation. Rather, we set out with the aim of promoting safe sporting environments where anyone can express their sexual orientation, should they wish to do so.” The campaign builds on the work of last year’s rainbow shoelaces campaign, where the Athletic Union participated in Stonewall’s nation-wide campaign tackling homophobia in sport. Wilson explained why Come Out And Play tried a different tactic: “We wanted to create an opportunity to get AU clubs together in one space to show everyone that sport at Newcastle is united in tackling homophobia, transphobia and biphobia.” The photoshoot formed part of NUSU’s LGBT+ week, a programme of events designed to raise awareness and prompt discussion of various issues surrounding sexuality and gender.

“We were proud and thrilled to see so many AU members coming down to show support”

Over 40 AU members gathered outside the SU to show support Image: Mark Sleightholm

6.news

Monday 22 February 2016

The Courier

Insects can see in 3D, according to Uni By Sophie Norris News Editor

A recent study published in the journal Scientific Reports and researched by a Newcastle University team has found that praying mantises use 3D vision to aid hunting. The team included Vivek Nityananda, Ghaith Tarawneh, Ronny Rosner, Judith Nicolas, Stuart Crichton and Jenny Read. The invertebrates had to wear specially made 3D glasses, modelled on an original design for the glasses in humans, however instead of being red and blue, the glasses have blue and green lenses. The 3D glasses were developed especially for insects so that researchers can show them different images, presenting other opportunities for research in the field. The leader of the team, Jenny Read, Professor of Vision Science at Newcastle University, said: “Despite their minute brains, mantises are sophisticated visual hunters which can capture prey with terrifying efficiency. We can learn a lot by studying how they perceive the world. “Better understanding of their simpler processing systems helps us understand how 3D vision evolved, and could lead to possible new algorithms for 3D depth perception in computers.” The experiment involved fitting the glasses to the mantises with a beeswax substance.

Bugs appeared on a screen in front of the mantises. When they did not have the glasses fitted, they did not try to hunt the bugs, however when they were fitted with the glasses and had 3D vision, they tried to catch them. Research Associate, Dr Vivek Nityananda added: “When this system failed we looked at the old-style 3D glasses with red and blue lenses. Since red light is poorly visible to mantises, we used green and blue glasses and an LED monitor with unusually narrow output in the green and blue wavelength. “We definitively demonstrated 3D vision or stereopsis in mantises and also showed that this technique can be effectively used to deliver virtual 3D stimuli to insects.” It is hoped that further research will help us to understand how human sight developed and in the creation of new computer and robotic technology. 3D vision is one of the most widely used contemporary technologies and research using this method has enabled scientists to understand more about how the human eye works as well as study animal behaviour. The report states: “A large body of work has investigated and shed light on the mechanisms by which humans and other primates achieve stereopsis. It has also been demonstrated in other vertebrate species including horses, falcons, owls and toads. The overwhelming majority of work investigating mechanisms of stereopsis has, however, thus far been restricted to primates, cats and owls.

“Mantises are sophisticated visual hunters which can capture prey with terrifying efﬁciency”

The researches put 3D glasses on grasshoppers Image: Newcastle University Press Office

FemSoc run National Period Pride Day events By Sophie Norris News Editor

The event included a bake sale, book exchange and workshop Image: Newcastle University Feminist Society

Last Thursday, Newcastle University Feminist Society hosted several events in order to celebrate National Period Pride Day 2016. Events included a bake sale, a book and DVD exchange stall and a Period Pride workshop, all with the aim of raising money to fund menstrual care packs for the homeless. The workshops taught those who attended how to make their own reusable menstrual care products at home, mooncup use, how periods are not shameful and how to avoid being cisnormative when talking about periods. ‘Cisnormativity’ is the assumption that everybody has the same gender as the sex they were assigned at birth. The workshops taught those who attended to discuss periods using the term ‘people’, or ‘they’, as opposed to ‘she’ or ‘her’ because it excludes transgender and non-binary people. They also explored the link between the gender pay gap and periods, as well as issues for those in prison or who are disabled. The day is a way to spread awareness but also to celebrate organisations who have removed tax from menstrual products in their shops. Last year, FemSoc ran a successful campaign against the charging of tax on menstrual products and now, as is the case with many places nationwide, the Student’s Union does not charge tax on these items. Sanitary products in the UK are cur-

rently classed as a ‘luxury non-essential item’ and taxed at five percent. This day, celebrated by even Barack Obama, campaigns for reform of this pricing. An online petition on change.org urging George Osborne to remove the tax from santiry products, called ‘Stop Taxing Periods. Period’ has gained over 315,200 signatures. The National Union of Students has also got on board with the campaign, with Susuana Amoah, Women’s Officer for the NUS, launched a toolkit for student unions across the country. Feminist societies in other universities also followed Newcastle’s example and joined in Period Pride Day. Rohan Kon, secretary for FemSoc and chair of NUSU council said: “I’m so happy about how it turned out. Over 30 organisations nationwide got involved. “We raised over £130 to make menstrual care packs (tampons, pads, underwear, gloves, sweets) and we’ve got a lot of coverage of it including by the BBC. “It’s so exciting that activism that started in Newcastle has become a national celebration.” The workshop also looked at political debates regarding the ‘tampon tax’ and asked groups to discuss media and advertising representations of the issue. The menstrual care packs include tampons, pads, gloves, sweets and underwear. The Period Pride Day events gather so much attention that Rohan was interviewed by BBC Newcastle on Thursday morning.

“Activism that started in Newcastle has become a national celebration”

The Courier

news.7

Monday 22 February 2016

Beach campaigners stick heads in the sand By Mark Sleightholm Deputy Editor

Campaigners from Fossil Free Newcastle spent Valentine’s Day cleaning Tynemouth Beach before sticking their heads in the sand as a protest against the lack of divestment from fossil fuels in Newcastle. The Fossil Free campaign aims to get institutions such as Newcastle University to stop investing in companies involved in the fossil fuel industry. Valentine’s Day saw the campaign’s “Show the Love” action day, with over 50 divestment-related events happening across the country. The students joined another group, Surfers Against Sewage, who campaign for more to be done to tackle water pollution. Around 50 volunteers in total took part in the beach clean on Sunday afternoon, despite the cold conditions and frequent hail showers. After removing several tens of bags of rubbish from Tynemouth Beach the students stood in a spiral and placed their heads in the sand, reflecting their view of the University’s environmental record. Rob Noyes from Fossil Free Newcastle explained: “Today, we placed our heads in the sand to call out the ostrichlike response to climate change we have witnessed since the start of the year. University is about creating the stewards of our future – yet they continue to invest millions into an industry that actively destroys that future.” Fossil Free Newcastle was set up in

September 2014, calling for the University to divest from the fossil fuel industry. The group’s actions have resulted in the University setting up a Carbon Advisory Group to look into the possibility of divestment. So far 17 UK universities have made some form of divestment commitment, and Newcastle’s Carbon Advisory Group is due to make its recommendation to the University in the summer. Noyes added: “The campaign has gathered huge student support, but it seems our words fall on deaf ears. As such, we took to cleaning the beach while taking part in this action. We are not interested in hypocrisy and mere protest – but in truly creating a clean, green future.” Several students from Durham University’s Fossil Free group also attended the beach clean, along with Newcastle students who were new to the Fossil Free movement. Sophie White, a Mathematics student who joined Fossil Free at the beach, said: “I went because I love Tynemouth Beach and it’s thanks to projects like this that it’s so beautiful and relatively clean compared to most beaches. I wanted to contribute to that effort. “Despite the hail it was a great day out. Who’d have known picking up rubbish could be such good crack? Met some really fun people as well as doing my good deed for the day! “I hope to get involved with more campaigns like this in the future; it was well worth it and was great to see how much support it got.”

“We placed our heads in the sand to call out the ostrich-like response to climate change”

Fossil Free campaigners protested at the University’s lack of environmental action Images: Mark Sleightholm

Arts meet science in medical film festival MILAN By Valentina Egorova

There is nothing like MILAN Film Festival week at Newcastle University to bring together staff and students from medical and artistic disciplines. The MILAN Week, which began 15 February and ran through to 19 February, featured powerful and stimulating health-related films and post-discussion sessions. There was no admission fee and students were encouraged to attend as many films as they wanted. The festival opened with the screening of Inside Out, a computer-animated film, followed by discussion of memory and emotional development in childhood and the films of DisneyPixar. Algorithms, a documentary on the thriving but little known world of blind chess in India, was played on Tuesday. The director Ian McDonald and Producer Geetha J took part in the post-film discussion. Other films screened included Shame (directed by Steve McQueen), The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (by Schnabel) and 50/50 (by Levine). The festival was organised by the MILAN team and sponsored by NICAP (Newcastle University Institute of Creative Arts Practice) and The MDU (Medical Defense Union). Dr Eleanor Holmes, MILAN Director, told the Courier what was the primary

aim of the film festival: “The purpose of MILAN week was initially to explore health-based narratives through books and films and to promote creativity and empathy in medical education. “I believe passionately that we should have the Arts and Humanities incorporated into medical education curriculum. “At the moment we have bits of it, but it’s not core, and I want it to be core. So this is why I organised this event trying to get into people’s heads really, trying to explain medicine through films, through music, through arts.” The MILAN team, which consists of both staff and students, had a long and thorough preparation for the event. They explored the medical literature collection in the library to retrieve what would work best for the festival. Sami Anjum, a final year medical student at Newcastle University, was one of the MILAN Week organisers; he told The Courier how the festival was planned: “We sat down, voted on which films would be good to demonstrate how books and films can enrich our understanding of what it is to be human. We voted what could be a good mix for a week.” The most moving film at the festival was Shame, a tough watch about a sex addict played by Michael Fassbender and directed by Steve McQueen.

“We should have the arts and humanities incorporated into the medical education curriculum”

Anjum was the one who suggested Shame, he explained his choice: “Shame is a really powerful portrayal of addiction. It might not to be on the top of everyone’s list, but I think the film is a powerful way of demonstrating how addiction can affect someone’s life.” The screening was followed by a post-film discussion titled “Exploring clinical and societal perspectives on sex addiction, masculinity and the films of Steve McQueen” which involved four speakers: Dr Chris Haywood, a senior lecturer at Newcastle University, Carol Featherstone, psychosexual therapist, Luke Robson, a PhD student at Newcastle University, and Sami Anjum. Those who came were very enthusiastic about the topic. Arms were reaching high into the air during the Q&A time with questions about sexual addiction and psychological reasons that stand behind it. Dr Chris Haywood shared his thoughts of MILAN week: “I tell you what is really good about this festival. Different disciplines come together: artists, practitioners, some of the cultural theorists. “I learnt so much tonight based on those disciplines and that makes this event really important.” The MILAN Film Festival week is increasingly looking like the place to visit and get an intellectual and spiritual enlightenment. The MILAN team intends on running the festival next year. Holmes promises that each year MILAN Week will be a whole new experience for guests.

8.nationalstudentnews

Monday 22 February 2016

The Courier

NEWSTACK Anti-Semitic row Oxford

The Labour Club at Oxford University, the biggest student Labour society in the UK, has been embroiled in an anti-Semitism row over its decision to endorse Israel Apartheid Week. Co-chair Alex Chalmers a student at Oxford’s Oriel College, issued a strongly-worded statement on Monday in which said he was stepping down from his position because a large proportion of both Oxford University Labour Society and the student left in Oxford “have some kind of problem with Jews.”, adding that the society is currently split between “varying factional disputes” and that certain members of the clubs views towards certain disadvantaged groups was “becoming poisonous.” Oxford University Labour Club said to The Independent that: “We are proud of the long history we have of working with the Union of Jewish Students and the National Union of Students to protect Jewish students on campus, and this will always be a top priority for Labour Students.”

Tory loan threat National

The Tories have warned it will prosecute graduates from across the UK and overseas who fail to pay their student loans back on time as part of a new plan, as the number of students is expected to rise. The Minister for Universities Jo Johnson said in a statement to to the House of Commons, that the new plans were needed to ensure the repayment system remains “fair, robust, and efficient” as the higher education system sees more people gain entry than ever before, due to a cap-lift on numbers. The decision has been met with hostility from current students and graduates, who say that it is unfair and criminalises students. It comes at a time when the Government has recently been criticised for making a U-turn on a student loan promise which originally saw post-2012 students repay the amount they borrowed once they earned £21,000 or more.

LGBT+ Week Newcastle Work Experience - Social Media Officer Fit Gurus | Newcastle upon Tyne | £700 bursary Newcastle Work Experience (NWE) is a flexible 100 hour placement scheme providing undergraduate and postgraduate students with the opportunity to undertake challenging project-based placements within Newcastle University and North East businesses. Fit Gurus is a fitness app for gym workouts. As a company we live the brand, and have created a product our customers love. We are seeking a creative individual to manage and grow our social media presence, and build a community of fitness fanatics. We already exist on various channels but require support to take us to the next level! Closing Date: 28/02/2016 Location: Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle Work Experience - Marketing and Communications Officer Blyth Cricket and Rugby Club | The Club is located in Blyth, easily accessed from Newcastle city centre by bus. | £700 bursary Newcastle Work Experience (NWE) is a flexible 100 hour placement scheme providing undergraduate and postgraduate students with the opportunity to undertake challenging project-based placements within Newcastle University and North East businesses. One of the key aims of the role is to provide a single voice for the Club, providing regular news and information from all sections in a clear and consistent manner. Developing an internal communications plan is key to ensure we engage with our existing members and keep their interest in the Club to ultimately maintain membership. There are many volunteers involved in the Club in various sections, performing various tasks. A big part of the role would being able to effectively communicate with each of those groups to ensure there is one, consistent message. You must also be able to gather relevant information from various sources in order to be able to promote a “One Club” ethos. Finally, there is a need to grow the Club within the community to allow us to continue to grow commer-

cially and increase the number of members we have. You will need to ensure this growth is made possible by advertising the Club beyond the walls of the Clubhouse. Closing Date: 28/02/2016 Location: The Club is located in Blyth, easily accessed from Newcastle city centre by bus. Apple Retail Specialist Apple | Eldon Square & Metrocentre Apple Stores, Newcastle | Competitive As a Specialist, you’re highly skilled at uncovering customers’ needs, then following through with enlightening solutions. Not only are you the ﬁrst person customers meet when they enter the store, you’re also the person who guides them — advising, selling and even setting up their new products. You perform other roles within the store too, whether it’s maintaining visual merchandising or assisting team members. Always curious, you stay on top of news about products and initiatives, ready to apply your learning in customer interactions. Your success is measured by team and individual productivity as well as overall store performance. You’re proud to represent Apple, and you get great satisfaction from helping customers develop lifelong relationships with Apple. Closing Date: 30/09/2016 Location: Eldon Square & Metrocentre Apple Stores, Newcastle Person Requirements: Qualiﬁcations Ability to deliver great customer experiences in a very active environment and to be invigorated by constant personal interaction. Strong interest in technology, particularly Apple products, and agility at learning new products and features. Strong communication skills that let you converse as freely and comfortably with small groups as with individual customers. How to Apply: If you are interested in this position, please apply via https://www.apple.com/jobs/uk/retail. html.

BigChoice Brand Ambassador Big Choice Group | | Up to £10 per hour We have marketing opportunities in the following areas: Outdoor Promotions: Throughout the year we have paid work on a projectby-project basis. You will be deploying marketing activity on behalf of our clients and will be involved in working on campus interacting with fellow students. You will have the opportunity to be at the forefront for some of the largest national student marketing campaigns, and build on skills that will prove useful on your CV. Social Media Marketing: Brands are increasingly using the powers of social media to promote their products. You will be responsible for peer to peer and viral marketing campaigns through the use of Facebook and Twitter. Closing Date: 01/06/2016 Person Requirements: You will be: • A University student or student about to go to University; • A sociable, pro active and creative people person with a large network of student friends, online and ofﬂine; • Tough, resilient, and persistent; How to Apply: Click on the link below: http://www.thebigchoice.com/Jobs/BigChoice_ Group_LTD/Student_Brand_Ambassador/30002965. html Face to Face Interviewer Ipsos MORI | Newcastle upon Tyne, Scotland, London. | £8-12 per hour, performance related. Ipsos MORI, one of the UK’s most recognisable market research agencies, are currently recruiting FaceTo-Face Interviewers to work in their local areas. If you have natural communication skills, have self-motivation and an eye for accuracy, then we would like to hear from you. The Role: Conducting face-to-face interviews with the general public across a wide range of topics and recording all data accurately via a tablet device (provided). Closing Date: 30/12/2016 Location: Newcastle upon Tyne, Scotland, London. Person Requirements: Skills required: - Computer literate - Excellent oral and written communication skills - Personable, a people person - Bright, engaging, energetic and enthusiastic - Reliable and dependable - Speak ﬂuent English How to Apply: Please read the information and then

Campaign against cuts Warwick

Organised by Warwick for Free Education (WFFE), the demonstration to save maintenance grants has called on the University of Warwick to publicly condemn the Tories’ decision to scrap maintenance grants, which the WFFE points out was “forced undemocratically” through a backdoor parliamentary committee which the vast majority of the public haven’t even heard of. The WFFE has a set of demands for Russell Group universities – which Warwick University is part of – to oppose the slashing of maintenance grants and pressure the government to reverse the cuts, adding that by not the Russell Group is supporting some of the “worst aspects of government policy,” including the set of higher education reforms proposed recently, “These proposals would amount to nothing less than the full marketisation of education, and the cuts to maintenance grants are just one element of this programme.”

Best student city revealed National

Berlin has recently been named as the best city in Europe for students followed by Paris, Copenhagen, Brussels, and Amsterdam. Criteria consisted of the cost of tuition fees, nightlife, value for money, cost of tuition fees, English-taught courses, standard of culture and nightlife, ease of getting around the city, and of travelling back to the UK were all considered too.Berlin and Copenhagen do not charge any tuition fees. Whereas Paris charges around annual amount of around £136, Brussels around £621, and Amsterdam £1,950. Compared to UK cities such as London and Manchester which charge around £9000 tuition fees and are expensive. Berlin was praised for its cheap cost of living, culture, and vibrant nightlife.

By Scott Houghton

The Courier

Monday 22 February 2016

Comment thecourieronline.co.uk/comment

Comment Editors: Dan Robertson, Hanson Jones & Jack Dempsey courier.comment@ncl.ac.uk | @Courier_Comment

Should sexting get kids arrested? Three writers tackle the contentious issue of whether minors who send sexually explicit messages should be legally accountable Phoebe Hoi Ng

nder the present British law (Protection of Children Act 1978), anyone who takes, allows others to take, distributes or advertises indecent images of children could face prosecution and end up on the register for sex offenders. This is the case even if it is the child themselves who takes the picture. It means that youngsters who send sexts (defined as a “selfgenerated explicit message that is sent to other people over the Internet”) could risk facing prosecution. Sexting is not risk-free even in itself, and that’s without the interventions of the law. It was revealed in a letter sent to various schools last year by Nottinghamshire Police that a topless picture of a teenage girl had been spread around by her exboyfriend. The picture had initially been sent to her boyfriend privately. As a result however, the teenage girl faced investigation, being deemed to have “distributed an indecent image of a child”, while the ex-boyfriend received only a caution.

“A topless picture of a girl was spread around by her ex-boyfriend. The picture had been sent privately. As a result however, it was the girl who investigated”

It is obvious where the responsibility should lie, as the teenage girl is clearly a victim of ‘revenge porn’ and it was the ex-boyfriend who made the indecent image widely available; a new law was passed in April 2015 which makes it illegal to disclose a “private sexual photograph or film” without the consent of the person depicted in the content. All teenagers make foolish mistakes — it is part of the process of growing up; teenagers who ‘sext’ now run the risk of making potentially life-altering ones. Vicious pranks like spreading revenge porn could result in problems like ostracism and psychological stress to the victims. We do not want to further criminalise the actions of the victim when he or she has already been exploited.

Emma Bancroft

There are a lot of milder but still effective ways to offer incentives against underage sexting — social contracts, fines, etc. All of these send a clear message that it is not okay to sext.

“All teenagers make mistakes, only for those ‘sext’, the mistake can be potentially life-altering”

Not only is it unfair to youngsters, the current law is also not up to date. Just because a young schoolgirl sends her nude selfies to her boyfriend does not mean she is a porn star. Not that I approve of this phenomenon, but sexting has almost become a “modern style of flirting”. Problems of sexting amongst youngsters cannot be tackled simply by banning them from doing so — it has already become a trend that they might be pressured to do in order to please their partner. They are so young that they may not be able to make the right decision. To tackle the issue is to go from the root cause, prosecute the paedophile who lures young boys or girls in the attempt to groom them, or the boyfriend who encouraged the girl to send him nude pictures. The whole point of this law is suggested by its title — Protection of Children Act. Denouncing sexting kids as “sex offenders” and prosecuting them is by no means protecting them, it is more the opposite, destroying their lives and their chances of a decent future.

clear difference must be made between sexting amongst teenagers and sexting between a teenager and an adult in order to safeguard minors from grooming and paedophilia — laws were originally implemented in order to prevent adult paedophiles from taking advantage of young children and in this case, prosecution is undoubtedly indispensable. But, where do we draw the line? At a glance, we can see in the last 20 years how quickly technology has developed and how it is still changing so rapidly. Ten years ago it was MSN, Bebo and MySpace, but times change and now we’re left juggling Snapchat, Instagram and WhatsApp. It’s a struggle to see how authorities who intend to prosecute underage sexting, such as the police would be able to keep abreast of these ever-changing technological developments: not only would it be extremely time consuming and expensive to trawl through the Facebook and WhatsApp messages of teenagers but teens also have a fantastic way of finding alternatives once the adults caught

onto them. In this sense, it’s important not to make sexting a ‘forbidden fruit’. So then, if it’s nigh on impossible to keep up with teenagers and their constantly developing forms of communication, the answer is, of course, prevention and not cure. Instead of talking about prosecution after it has occurred, we should be talking about education. Sexual education has improved massively in the last decade, with fewer and fewer subjects being considered taboo, but as sexting is relatively recent, it could be the case that the people who should be discussing it are neglecting to do so. If there were sufficient guidance in schools about how images and messages could be potentially seen by everyone, and how are permanent, it would be down to the down to the individual on whether or not they continue.

consequence severe enough, like prosecution and being registered with police as an offender, that would affect all future career prospects, it could be said that she would have decided not to share the naked photograph. This would have prevented the emotional trauma and sexual abuse she later experienced as a result of sending the image. It is important to note that once an image is on the internet it is almost impossible to remove it. Even with this danger teens continue to send naked texts, suggesting that teens have a disregard for the dangerous consequences, or they think that it won’t happen to them. The latter is a particular problem for teenage girls. They often fall victim to ‘snaking’, which

is when someone leads on another and asks for a naked picture, then once they have one, they distribute it to their friends and leaves the victim. This is a serious consequence and not enough is being done to prevent it. Again, the threat of prosecution is a hugely influential deterrent, when other things have not worked.

“What of sexting is now just a natural part of growing up?”

Unfortunately, they will be the ones to bare the brunt of any future consequences, and although seemingly harsh, we’re always being told to learn from our mistakes and that we must suffer the consequences of our actions - so why should it be presumed any different in this case? We are entering a process of punishing our teenagers through prosecution and justifying it by saying they are vulnerable. But how vulnerable are they if we have given them all the correct information and they choose to ignore it? Teenagers are given so many responsibilities, put under so much pressure and are expected to be mature and yet we refuse to give them enough credit to make their own relationship choices. We would let them drive on our roads before letting them send a risqué text to their girlfriend or boyfriend. Surely, it’s all a bit hypocritical. It’s also worth remembering that the people enforcing prosecution for teenage sexting belong to an entirely different generation, a generation who didn’t have the luxury of social media and constant access to the phones when they were courting. Times have changed; what if sexting is now a natural part of growing up in this modern world?

Chloe Barker

exting is a widely known phenomenon involving the exchange of explicit words or images via the Internet and mobile phone apps like Snapchat or WhatsApp. Schoolchildren are faced with the danger of prosecution if they choose to partake in such activities. If a person is aged over 10 years willingly shares an indecent image they can be arrested, charged and, if they are found guilty, have their name registered on the sex offenders list. Sexting has become increasingly common among teenagers, which means that the risks of sexting have become much more widespread. With this increase, measures have to be taken in order to protect young people from the dangers of the Internet and photo sharing; the rationale being that it has to be understood — actions have consequences. Being prosecuted as a registered sex offender could be the kind of deterrent young people need. Despite appearing extreme, can these laws be considered too harsh if they successfully prevent the psychological trauma that sharing a nude photograph could entail? Perhaps even harsher consequences would be beneficial to their welfare in the long term. In 2015, a woman received £25,000 in compensation in a case involving sexting. When the wom-

an w a s 16 she sent pornographic pictures of herself to a school teacher. She described how it affected her education and future relationships. If there was a

“As long as people have the means to do it, sexts will never cease to exist”

Although education is vital in learning what sexting is and when it is and isn’t acceptable, it does not do enough to stop the humiliation, emotional trauma and openness to blackmail that sexting can cause. Adolescents should be made aware of possible prosecution for sending indecent images as this would greatly reduce the amount of sexting in existence, and encourage teens to only send them to people they know they can trust as the risks are so significant. As long as people have the means to do it, sexts will never cease to exist, but implementing these laws will encourage young people to be more careful with the photos they take and who they send them to.

10.comment DONALD TRUMP Helena Vesty

t’s difficult to know where to start with the, frankly, incredible number of instances where Donald Trump has demonstrated himself to be one of the most divisive, controversial and truly hated political figures of the past few years. Since the bizarre announcement of his presidential campaign, Trump has provided a steady stream of examples epitomising modern-day ignorance and elitism, which wouldn’t seem more at home in the United States of the 1960s. Never has someone seemingly loved to be so loathed by the world in the way Trump does, preaching his offensive vitriol across the American nation. One of the most recent of his logic-defying statements struggles to be believed, detailing his wish for a “complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until” the “country’s representatives can figure out what is going on’”. This joins his infamous policy of a building “a great, great wall” at the US-Mexico border, on the ‘Donald Trump Quotes Hall of Fame’. I’m all for free speech, but he is living proof that just because you can say something, doesn’t mean you should, or that you are remotely right. Trump, the walking-caricature of the Republican Party, has made so many outrageous claims and laughable statements, that it has becomes unclear as to where the cartoonish, Disney villain performance ends. With the significant audience and traction he has garnered so far in the primaries, Trump’s increasingly extreme rhetoric crosses over into a more worrying and dangerous influence on voters. Whilst one could hope that growing exposure would bring to even more attention and furious opposition his irrational world views, Donald’s New Hampshire victory suggests his support base is stronger than ever. As so many people have asked, who could ever seriously contemplate him as a candidate fit enough to be the leader of the free world? How on earth has he amassed any kind of following? What kind of horrors would transpire if this man had his finger on the nuclear button? His glaring hypocrisies and xenophobic attitudes should not be worthy of our time and attention, let alone be considered suitable for the realms of international diplomacy. Barack Obama has commented that he “continues to believe that Mr Trump will not be president”. It would a colossal shame if the

JEREMY HUNT

Henry Holborn

o far, 2016 has been a year permeated by the ongoing struggle to save our NHS. Jeremy Hunt and the Conservative government has stepped up its campaign to alienate and demoralise not only current workers, but prospective employees, creating a climate of instability. The newly imposed contract for junior doctors demands a “7-day service”, equating Saturday pay to that of ‘plain-time’, and removing the option to claim higher wages for working antisocial hours. All of this has come despite largescale industrial action headed by the BMA, 98% of members favouring strike action. The 24 hour strike period, which began on the 10th of February, saw 160 picket lines demonstrate across England, including in Newcastle. This marked a desperate outcry of NHS employees, whose institution has been marred by cuts and privatisation. This also coincided with proposed cuts to grants for nursing and midwifery students, denying a viable future for essential professions. Consequently, there is significant uncertainty for the future of the medical profession as a whole. A 2015 survey of 4,000 junior doctors suggested that 70% would rather work abroad or adopt another profession if such a contract was imposed. Unfortunately, these changes should be no surprise to the British public. Hunt is following an established Conservative tradition of NHS erosion, tracing its lineage to Thatcher. In 2005, Hunt co-authored a policy book calling directly for “denationalisation”. As if the political agenda is not clear enough, the 2012 Health and Social Care act

Monday 22 February 2016

American people were to take a step backwards from one of the most progressive and historic two term Presidencies, to four years led by a man promoting institutional inequality and fear. For once, Trump may have been correct when he himself once called today’s politics a “disgrace”, saying “good people don’t go into government”. Maybe a little self-reflection is in order here, Donald.

ABU BAKR AL-BAGHDADI Max George

ou have to be especially awful to qualify for dickhead of the year. Any number of miscreants, tyrants, megalomaniacs and narcissists has seemingly made every effort to be in contention, but most have been befallen by some unwitting remedy for their general malevolence. Vladimir Putin thoughtfully invaded Ukraine and ratcheted up the Syrian conflict, but his and our common cause in defeating Daesh has tempered much of the hostility. Donald Trump has gone out of his way to insult Muslims, Mexicans,

Comment presents the Dickhead Awards

OUR WRITERS’ CHOOSE THEIR HIT LIST OF

2016

officially removed the responsibility of the Health Secretary to secure and provide healthcare for all in England. What is particularly disturbing about Hunt is his patronising, paternalistic attitude in the face of rational criticism. Upon hearing letters being read out to him from doctors expressing their concern, he immediately deflected the issue, declaring the BMA as “totally irresponsible”. Intrinsic to the political program of austerity is a continued rhetoric that governmental changes are part of “essential” technical reform. Alongside his trademark NHS badge, Hunt has made remarkable comments to foster an image of impartiality: “everything I do is automatically controversial because I am a politician and it’s automatically seen through the prism of ideology of party politics”. Hunt somehow equates the legitimate concerns of thousands to a mere ‘controversial’ misunderstanding. Hopefully there will be a sustained effort to combat further destruction of our hard-won universal healthcare service. In the words of Nye Bevan: “The NHS will last as long as there are folk left with the faith to fight for it”.

think that the worst person of the year would have to be George Osborne, the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the architect of austerity. While we know relatively little about the man himself, as he prefers to stay out of the public eye, his actions as Chancellor are completely indefensible. In trying to cut down on the deficit by decimating public services, he has instead increased our national debt by over half a trillion pounds since he took office, and has made it even harder for the working class to maintain a decent standard of living. Meanwhile not only have large corporations and bankers gotten off scot-free for their role in the financial crisis, they have increased their wealth on the back of it. George’s ‘marvellous’ medicine, rather than being the cure, is actually the disease. In the last year, there have been two highlights (although it would be more accurate to say lowlights) of his time as Chancellor following the election in May. The first is his attempt to cut child tax credits as part the 2015 Budget, by lowering the threshold from which credits could be withdrawn from £6,420 to £3,850. This was met with furore, with it squeezing the pockets of nearly 3 million work

The Courier

women, disabled people etc., but in so doing he has provided ample comedic material. Martin Shkreli has revelled in the hatred directed at his conceited and egomaniacal c**tishness, but in many ways his life is quite pathetic and rather inconsequential. Only one man can be festooned with this prize, and his victory is a sombre one. Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is the self-styled Caliph of the Islamic State – or, more accurately, the unIslamic non-State. The political goal of an ‘Islamic’ caliphate is not in and of itself an illegitimate one, but the barbarous cruelty and inhumanity that permeates the territory controlled by this group defies comprehension and is surely among the most depraved behaviour in human history. Gay men are thrown to their deaths from tall buildings. Aid workers have their heads sawn off. Elderly women are executed because they are too old to use as sex slaves. Disabled babies are euthanised. Opposition fighters are made to kneel on landmines. Inhabitants of Daesh territory who sarcastically call the group by this disdainful name have their tongues sliced off. And make no mistake: this sadistic savagery is all carried out by either the sanction or the legitimation of Mr Baghdadi’s command and rhetoric. This is not a critique of Islamic terrorism or Salafist/Wahhabi fundamentalism – grotesque as those phenomena may be. The indescribable horror of what Mr Baghdadi leads stands regardless of the ideological or political foundations that underpin it. It takes a degradation of a person’s basic understanding of justice and dignity to perform the evil that occurs within Daesh. Mr Baghdadi is responsible for this destruction of minds. It is difficult to make sense of this vileness. It is something worse than evil. It is fascistic, yes. It is masochistic, yes. There can be no adequate explanation or excuse. Perhaps the dictum that ordinary people can be made to do extraordinary things rings true – that depravity is a conceivable condition of humanity. Nevertheless, the man who has created the aura of righteousness surrounding every despicable act perpetrated by Daesh enforcers must take huge responsibility for this conditioning. Mr Baghdadi is the dickhead of the year, if not the decade.

GEORGE OSBORNE Tom Shrimplin

ing-class households - losing out on an average of £1,000 a year. Furthermore, this goes against the rhetoric that the Conservatives stand for hard working families (and the last time I checked, bankers aren’t generally considered to be working class). Thankfully, the House of Lords had the common sense and decency to block this frankly cruel move but George lives on to fight another day. The second lowlight is Osborne’s role in negotiating the pitiful £130 million offered by Google in payment following an inquiry into the company’s 10 years of tax avoidance. This deal was considered a victory by the Chancellor, but was rightly condemned as a miniscule payment relative to the billions of sales the corporation made during this period. The fact that he expressed pride in receiving this derisible sum of money compared to the tax Google actually avoided is simply ludicrous, and what’s more, he then hid away from questions by his critics. Yet Osborne appears to have escaped from most of the blame, with the HMRC scapegoated as being responsible for this farce. Yes, Jeremy Hunt is a detestable idiot who is out of his depth in trying to undermine the NHS and junior doctors. Yes, Trump is an utter moron spitting out vitriolic nonsense. But Osborne is actually intelligent in that he knows what precisely what he is doing and remains silent, operating behind the scenes, allowing him to escape relatively unscathed. In a way, his skills in elusion are almost admirable. However it should be obvious to us all that his actions are completely wrong. He is the ‘anti-Robin Hood’, taking from the struggling poor and giving to the comfortable rich. Hence why I’m giving the silent, cold and unemotional Osborne the award as worst person of the year. It’s always the quiet ones, as they say.

The Courier

comment.11

Monday 22 February 2016

Criticisms over the Churches’ prayers for Dawkins After Richard Dawkin’s stroke last week, a media storm brewed over the Church of England’s tweet sending their prayers to him

Robin Richards

t was a source of embarrassment for me until very recently that I’d never seen what is arguably the greatest British TV show of the last two decades: The Office. So, as a house, we decided to binge it in between exams at breakneck speed over the course of a couple of days. Satisfied with neither its abrupt end, nor the prospect of returning to the library, we hurtled through Extras - another gem of subtle, “British” humour from Ricky Gervais. Looking back on it, I should have stopped there and not, as I decided at the time, sample some of his stand-up. Now Gervais’ comedy, whilst not entirely devoid of humour, takes the very worst aspects of the growth of militant atheism. Not content like the rest of us to simply let religion with all its faults (and there are many) dwindle as people become more enlightened - he seeks to actively insult those who choose a different path to him. The poster boy of this church of thought, however, will always be the one and only Richard Dawkins. But the great irony of Gervais, Dawkins and more specifically their followers is just how remarkably thin skinned they are. So it proved with the reception to recent well wishes from the Church of England; abuse reigned in on the Church’s tweet

wishing Dawkins a “speedy recovery” from his recent stroke. Disregarding the obvious ridiculousness of complaining about the no-lose situation of praying for someone’s recovery, this response is synonymous of sort of society Dawkins, through his beliefs, has created. By castigating and mocking anyone associated with religion he encourages a divide in society between those who are religious and those who aren’t, be they caring and genuine or not. It has been made impossible for the Church, which at its heart is an inclusive, caring organisation to grant goodwill to those not on their “side” without inflaming the tension of the divide.

“Those so desperate to criticise religion would do well to gain some perspective and grow up” There is a fundamental problem with the views of those who cast religion as Satan; they simply cannot accept benevolence from the opposing side. It simply doesn’t tie in with their view of the modern church as a repressive, restrictive and reprobate institution. This was not a spiteful gesture, but Dawkinites have managed to interpret the ex-

tending of a hand as an upper cut. Those so desperate to criticise religion would do well to gain some perspective and grow up. The Middle East through to Bangladesh is rife with brutal attacks on secularists, repressive Islam is in place in vast swathes of the globe and they’re complaining about well wishes from a moderate, charitable institution. Grow up, peel yourself off the ceiling and find something better to do - watch The Office if you have to, it’s a hell of a lot more enjoyable than inventing offence.

Do not get me started on the Student Council

Student, Glenn Foster discusses what he feels is wrong with the Student Council at our University

isinterested, self-serving and out of touch. This phrase immediately springs to mind following my experience at the NUSU council Thursday February 11th. While I freely acknowledge this was my first taste of student politics within the NUSU, first impressions are key. Our ‘representatives’ failed to leave anything close to a positive one. Professionalism and objectivity were lacking with the majority, if not all those present. Many people standing to vehemently defend or rail against motions relevant to their own interests, but those same strong ‘politically minded’ characters sitting silent while relevant but not per-

sonally impacting motions slipped past with absolutely no debate. This toxic attitude is no better surmised than during the debate surrounding a motion to provide incentives for Part Time Union Officers (PTO’s.) This proposal was put forward by none other than the Head of Student Council, a PTO themselves. While the motion was denied its 2/3 majority to be passed it is indicative of the state of NUSU politics that those that spoke in favour of the motion were none other than PTO’s, who had remained silent throughout the meeting until this motion appeared. One of these PTO’s working within the equalities department of our union, who had sat in silence while a motion to expand legislation

regarding vulnerable individuals to include students convicted of criminal offences, went virtually undebated or scrutinised.

“The council’s practices are out of touch, minimising debate and using dogmatic styles of legislation creation” The council’s practices are out of touch, minimising debate and using a dogmatic style of legislation creation, rarely allowing policies to be amended before being passed. The policy to protect students with criminal past went through, despite it not protecting accused and acquitted students; despite this issue of accused students being raised it was acknowledged by the proposer, but not included. Only allowing four voices to speak, two for two against, for any policy stifles debate and focuses on good time keeping rather than students being represented. The overall amateurishness of the council is capped off by the countdown music being played to ‘accurately’ measure the time allocated to votes. The open debate provided the closing act to the amateurish council, emphasising everything wrong with its methods and membership. ‘How do we get minorities involved more in elections’ the debate subject was fine and had the possibility to a good debate. The

problem is the partisan and self-interest of the members shone through again, people only cared about the demographics they filled, so stats about female parliament representation, LGBT+ and minorities were regurgitated around, with complete ambivalence to other minorities. People with social anxiety, mental health as well as both mental and physical disabilities were largely ignored, except for one passing comment about disabilities which was then sharply disregarded. It was at this point that I realised how unrepresentative this council is, the disabled were largely ignored in the debate, regardless of their extreme relevance to the topic. From personal experience, it is lucky that student services provide such a platform for people with disabilities and mental health issues. If the council meetings are anything to go by, the majority of NUSU outside their own officer, do not seem to acknowledge them on the levels of other minorities.

“An embarrassing unrepresentative body, full of ‘idealists’ who only seek to help people similar to themselves” The council is an embarrassing unrepresentative body, full of ‘idealists’ who only seek to help people similar to themselves, largely ignoring people who they do not identify or emphasise with. The council can push all its initiatives to better representation. These initiatives will fail if the council members continue to be un-empathetic, self-serving and immature students; who are unable to work for the betterment of the university due to their own aims and desires.

12.lifestyle

Monday 22 February 2016

Lifestyle Editors: Katie Ackerley, Ruth Loeﬄer, Fiona Callow & Lauren Exell

oes the thought of dressing up fill you with fear? Do you have a stack of animal onesies you pass off as ‘costumes’ because you can’t think of anything better to dress in? Have you ever uttered the phrase ‘I’m dressed as myself ’ at a fancy dress party? Don’t worry- costumes needn’t be hard to make, or expensive! With a few simple items and some creativity, you can get through any party season. You just need to know how. Luckily for you, we’ve compiled a countdown of some of our favourites…

1. Togas A staple costume that everyone should have in their closet. Voile sheets are £3 from the home bit of Primark, and actually look really convincing. Pair it with summer sandals and a belt and voi-la, you’re sheeted up and ready to hit the toon. Typically an ‘ancient Greek’ outfit costs about £20 online or from a costume shop… but you can definitely do better for a quarter of the price.

Costume calamity

Brooklyn Shakeshaft Ward shares her best ideas for directional dressing to get you through the neverending stream of the ‘unaay’ classic; themed parties.

3. Hippies

Harder to find in charity shops, but still possible! Flares are making a comeback (apparently) so if you find some you can reuse them and look super fashion-forward. Cut up an old shirt and tie a strip round your head as a bandana, old blankets with a hole in make an easy poncho and accessorize with beads and a lax attitude to monogamy.

4. Space

Remember the sheets from your toga? Reuse them as wings! Soak them in green food colouring for a few days and they’ll have a nice green tint and look pretty scaly. Wear them over an all green outfit- you probably already have something! Paper masks might feel a bit primary schoolbut all you need is paper, glue and an hour or so to kill to gain guaranteed appreciation for the effort you’ve gone to, even if it isn’t as much as people think.

10. Facebook And finally for all those truly last minute people: Do you constantly forget to make costumes? Are you very lazy, but still want to be part of the fun? Never fear, Facebook is here and all you need is a pen and your sweet self! Pretty self-explanatory, write book on your face and bask in applause all night. You’re no longer a disappointment, you’re a comedy genius! .

2. The 90s

Long enough ago enough to be classed as vintage, but not so long that charity shops aren’t still full of 90s gear. Most people own some 90s(ish) clothing they can class as a costume. And if you don’t, borrow an Adidas jacket from your Jesmond-dwelling friend and tie your hair in a scrunchie. Some say this theme is overdone, but its minimal effort and you can wear your outfit again afterwards, so what’s not to love?

5. Charity shop chic

Glittery leggings, Tinfoil, the space theme is literally infinite… Glitter packs go a long way and are only £1 from Wilkos. Spray a bin bag silver- you can buy spray-paint from Blackwells - and for a fraction of the price NASA pays you are now a worthy astronaut. You’re welcome.

6. Dragons

The Courier

Getting ready is usually one of the best parts of the night… why not make it last all day? Set a £10 limit and see what you can get- go as a pair and dress each other! If you want to be glamorous, this isn’t the theme for you, but if you want to look like a summer goth or a 90 year old geography teacher, you’re going to have a great, and cost effective time.

8. The Simpsons

A daunting concept, but choose an easy character and use what you already have. If you’ve got spiky hair, spray it yellow. If you haven’t shaved in a few days, your stubble could double as Homer‘s five o’clock shadow. Blue eyeliner for eyebrows, a purple t shirt and red football shorts make a great Millhouse. Jaundice is optional, but Simpson themed outfits needn’t be as intimidating or as expensive as you think.

7. Devils

Another staple- good for Halloween, birthdays, Christenings- everyone looks great in red. Grainger Market sells massive pieces of netting and elastic for under £4- fashion a skirt out of it, or tie it round your back to make a cloak. Net makes every costume look pro. Add a poundland pair of horns and a sassy attitude.

9. Wayne and Garth

This is the ultimate couples costume, but don’t get trapped buying expensive accessories online. For Garth, any blonde wig off Ebay will do- you can back comb it to create his signature wild look. Use some of the countless lanyards you’ve collected from the freshers fair to make VIP Alice Cooper badges. Tippex and markers are your new best friends, buy plain hats and t-shirts and draw Wayne’s World logos on them- much cheaper than premade items, and yours will be unique… You are worthy of this costume! You are worthy!

Illustrations by Katie Wiseman

The Courier

.13

Monday 22 February 2016

Culture thecourieronline.co.uk/culture

Culture Editors: Laura Staniforth & Ellie McLaren Sections: Lifestyle, Fashion, Beauty, Arts, Music, Film, TV, Gaming & Science courier.culture@ncl.ac.uk | @CourierOnline

Blind Date India on Tj You went to 97 & Social because you each had 3 free cocktails from being coupled up on RAG Take Me Out last week, how were they? Fab. Tj hadn’t tried cocktails that much before, so the ball was in my court. I got a couple of mojitos and a gin genie, they were really good. He just had whatever I had. Did he enjoy them? Well, he said he’d only had one experience of drinking cocktails before, and they were absolutely grim. Apparently he doesn’t like alcohol… he does drink, but just to get drunk. I don’t think he could understand that if I get home at the end of a long day I would have a glass of wine because I like it. But he said he liked the cocktails there actually, they were really good. Who got there first? He got there first, but I don’t think I was that far behind. I think he’s a bit of a BNOC, he kept bumping into people he knew. When I arrived he was with some rugby guys. It was a Wednesday so all these sports socials were there who were having a drink before Tiger. What did you talk about? Erm, I don’t really have a filter on dates, so I think we probably covered just about everything. Poor guy, I think I’ve terrified him. Everything from travel, degrees, families, school, all sorts. We had totally different music tastes though. Why, what’s he in to? He likes grime, and I was like “I’m really sorry, I’ve only just found out today who Stormzy is, I’m sorry I’m so square!” [Laughs]. I had to tell him I liked the sort of music they play in Flares. What did he think of that? I think he found it funny. There was quite a mix of music going on in 97 & Social, they had a DJ in. I think he still quite liked the cheesy stuff, Aretha Franklin came on and we were both dancing away. Half way through the date, would you have “no likey, no lightey-d” by now? No, I would’ve kept my light on. Will you see him again? Yeah, he’s coming to my birthday party on Saturday, so that should be nice. How long did it last? We stayed til close, so just after 11. We basically stayed until we got kicked out, and we met just after 8. Did you feel quite drunk at the end? Yeah, after our 3 cocktails he bought us each a pint, so after that I was definitely not sober, I came back pretty pissed. I woke up in the morning and I was like “oh no…” Why, do you think something embarrassing happened? Well, I’m pretty sure we went through my entire relationship history. He asked me when my last date was, and it was only when I was talking about this guy I’d been on a date with recently that I thought… you don’t talk about this when you’re on another date. To be fair he asked me, but still! Did you ask him? Yeah. He was telling me his mum and dad want him to bring home a nice Nigerian girl. Did you feel a bit inadequate because you’re not Nigerian? I dunno, I’ll win him over, it’s fine! If he was a biscuit what would he be? A custard cream, because he’s got a hard looking exterior but he’s a wee softie on the inside.

India Tyndall 4th Year Languages meets Tj Ighomereho, 3rd Year Biomed

Tj on India Were you nervous before you met her? No, I kinda talked to her after Take Me Out so I knew she was a nice girl. She said that you’d not really had cocktails that much before, how did you find them? They were really nice! I’m a cocktail guy now. But you don’t usually drink to get drunk? No, I’m not the kind of guy who would get home and crack a beer open, beer doesn’t taste nice at all to me, it doesn’t sit well. So for nights out I just get vodka. Cocktails are nice, but they’re like £5 each time so I don’t usually bother. Did she have good conversation? She had great conversation. She likes to do all this charity stuff where you go abroad to Africa and help children, that’s cute I like that about her. Aesthetically, do you think she’s attractive? Yeah, she’s good looking. What’s her best feature? She’s got good hair. She said she was talking about her past boyfriends a lot… can you expand? That was interesting. I dunno it just kind of went that way. I kind of thought that we were gunna be friends anyway so it wasn’t really a weird topic to bring up, not that I didn’t fancy her, but the way it was going just didn’t seem romantic. So I was just getting gossip basically. Did you get drunk? Near the end yeah, after the cocktails and I bought a beer and a cider for us both too. Being a gent and all. Will you see her again? Yeah, she invited me to her birthday party next weekend, so I’ll definitely go to that. She said that your mum would prefer you to bring home a Nigerian girl, do you think she felt like she couldn’t live up to those standards? No not at all! That’s what my mum tells me but I’ll do what I want. So would your parents not approve of her? Yeah they would! She’s really nice and she’s got her head screwed on, and she got a grad job the other day! Would you date her again? Probably not. Not because it was a bad date. It was a good enough date to go on a second date, but I don’t know if there was enough there romatically. I asked her this weird question so I might as well ask you as well, if she was a biscuit, what biscuit would she be? You know an oreo, but like the custard crème version, so like a white oreo. Like a custard crème but nicer, she’d be that because they’re my favourite biscuit.

Looking for love? Send in your details to c2.lifestyle@ncl.ac.uk

14.lifestyle lifestyle Done With ‘Danone’

Charlie Isaac lets rip on the adverts that annoy the masses; yoghurts.

have never once gained the slightest enjoyment from eating yoghurt. This is an unpopular opinion, I know. Countless times people have expressed shock and disbelief that I’m not a fan of ingesting what is essentially lumpy, rotting milk, but as hard as it is to believe, I simply do not like the taste. However, yoghurt itself is not what this rant will be about. No, what I am about to complain about is far, far worse… I am, of course, referring to yoghurt adverts.

“I sincerely doubt a single person in the real world has ever eaten anything... with this level of intensity”

Dear God they are annoying as hell. I can’t imagine a single person reading this won’t at some point have had to sit through 30 or so agonizing seconds of one of these while innocently watching TV. But what exactly do I find so irrationally irritating about yoghurt adverts? I suppose my main complaint is this: regardless of brand or flavour, near enough every single one is identical. A woman in her mid to late 20s – inevitably attractive to the most esteemed Aryan standards – engulfing a spoon with her mouth in painstaking slow motion, eyes closed in pure, euphoric pleasure. I sincerely doubt a single person in the real world has ever eaten anything, let alone a pot of bacteria-infested cream, with this level of intensity. Why do advertisers feel the need to pretend people eat yoghurt this way? Is your product really so bland and uninteresting that all you can muster is soft-filter shots of ‘attractive people slightly younger than your target demographic’ pretending to gain near-orgasms?

“Yoghurt lies somethere between toast and broccoli on the scale of food fun-ness” There is also, of course, the obligatory close-up of a spoon slowly digging into some creamy white substance which so blatantly is not the actual product, accompanied by cringe-worthy adjectives such as ‘silky’ ‘smooth’ and guilt-free’, narrated by a soft, sensual voice perhaps more appropriate for a softcore porn video than an advert on mainstream television. Somehow even worse are the times they include some half-assed attempt at humour, as if to say “Hey, our yoghurt is not only delicious and healthy, but also FUN”. Needless to say, saidadverts are rarely actually funny beyond an ironic ‘so cringe it is sort of amusing’ way. This is also ignoring the fact that yoghurt is, objectively, not fun. Pizza is fun. Yoghurt lies somewhere between toast and broccoli on the scale of food fun-ness.

“If you enjoy people putting spoons in their mouths in bizarre ways, terrible jokes and casual sexism, go and watch a yoghurt advert” Finally, there is always a wonderful underlying hint of sexism in these adverts. Yoghurt, for whatever reason, being a product only ever marketed towards women, these advert will inevitably feature women performing feminine activities in femalefriendly settings, somehow ticking near-enough every gender stereotype on the list throughout the course of a 30 second advert. So in summary, if you enjoy people putting spoons in their mouths in bizarre ways, terrible jokes and casual sexism, go and watch a yoghurt advert. For what I assume is the vast majority not in this category however, try your best to steer away from daytime television.

Monday 22 February 2016

The Courier

Housemate house rules

The passive aggression seems to be a consistent presence in Student Housing. Amanda Yap shows us the rules to live by by to keep the arguments at bay

Food thieves: It is an existing fact that university students are skint so show some consideration and do not steal people’s food; it is emotionally excruciating to see food disappear into thin air especially when you’ve been dreaming about eating it for an entire day. For most, it is the only motivation to get through a full day of lectures. Borrow sauces and condiments if you must but please, keep your roving hands away from people’s rare luxuries! Consent for overnight guests: Your flat is a sacred space for all occupants, so advance notice would be appreciated when a stranger is about to invade the joint personal space. Your housemates could have the habit of wearing sloppy house clothes, so its both unsightly for the visitor and very humiliating for your housemates at the same time. So spare everybody the awkwardness and inform early before having anybody over, so that everybody has time to look at least border-line decent.

“it is emotionally excrutiating to see food disappear into thin air expecially when you’ve been dreaming about eating it for an entire day”

Clean up promptyl: Obviously living in a compact communal area where everyone cooks seperately and leaves their dirty dishes everywhere means the kitchen will turn into a breeding ground for creepy-crawlies. So wash your dirty dishes, clean up any split food and please for Heaven’s sake, flush the toilet after use. Additionally, let’s not make the same person clean up every time or resentment will fester. Life is hard enough; don’t make it even harder.

Discuss money matters: Money can be a sensitive topic for some people, nonetheless the sooner such complications are clarified, the less conflicts there will be. Usually utility bills and household expenses are divided equally according to the number of people living in the flat, just to simplify matters. Also, planning who should buy household products every fortnightly is efficient, so that nobody would land in an awkward situation of desperately needing toilet roll when there’s none in the house.

“nobody is a mind-reader, so if you are irritated by something, put it across tactfully to the person privately”

Communication is key: Lastly, the most important factor to having any successful relationship: Communication. Gossiping about a particular housemate or displaying passive-aggressive behaviour creates a terribly unpleasant atmosphere for all present in the flat. Besides, it is rude and acutely hurting for the person who you are directing your negative energy at. Simply put, nobody is a mind-reader, so if you are irritated by something, put it across tactfully to the person privately. After all, a private matter should be kept within the people involved; there is no need for the entire flat to be involved in your drama. House sharing might seem fun at the beginning, with the prospects of mass-cookouts, late night movie marathons and mini impromptu flat rave parties. To get down to the nitty-gritty, it often takes compromises from all parties involved. To sum it up, it is just showing respect to your housemates and your shared surroundings.

Everybody has experienced this heartbreaking moment and also the stand-off that follows of who will fold first and buy the next lot of toilet roll. Fortnightly planning could solve your toilet troubles!

Catch it while you can! Errol Kerr tells us that despite your imminent graduation, don’t let love pass you by

or many of us now, it’s the final semester of our final year at university, and with February being important for some reason to do with some arbitrary day concerning some Valentine guy, the question must be asked: Is it really going to be worth getting into a relationship now? I mean, we’re here till, what, June or whatever, we all graduate, and then we’ll go our separate ways, moving onto different places. How could it be remotely beneficial to get into a situation of commitment when many of us have no clue where we’ll be in the next six months? Some of us mightn’t see a point in something like that. It could easily be argued that at this point, where individuals have the possibility of being on the opposite ends of the country - or planet - there’s little point in making that kind of connection, only to risk it being a possible waste of their time. Of course, I’m going to put it out there as a disclaimer and say *each to their own* - but here’s my take on it all, because that’s literally the point of me writing this.

“Getting into a relationship now isn’t much different to getting into a relationship at any other given time at university” At one time earlier this year, you’d have caught me saying something remarkably similar to the spiel that I’ve come out with just before. However by this point in our final years at university, we’re all going to be old enough and aware enough that we’re not children anymore. If you’re not after anything, that’s okay and I completely advocate that. If you’re only after something casual, I completely advocate that, it’s a whole load of fun. However, if

you’re looking for some kind of commitment, I’d wholly suggest taking that leap of faith instead of being afraid of the possibilities that decision will lead to. If you find yourself one of the people who luckily finds someone, at whatever stage, I can only say to just go for it. Who knows? Might be the best decision you end up making at university. (Don’t hold me to this, please, I don’t want a mob of angry also-in-my-uni-year divorcees at my door when I’m happily settled down in my forties or something…)

“It might be the best decision you end up making at university”

Getting into a relationship now isn’t much different to getting into a relationship at any other given time at university. Despite the inevitability of graduation and the future, if you do find someone and you’re unwilling to make it work because of a possible distance, then you’re really just shooting yourself in the foot - with the furthest thing away from one of these fabled Cupid’s arrows that we hear about in these tales of… is it *love* that they call it? That weird emotional thing? Anyway, whatever it’s called. However, we’re not children anymore. We’ve climbed out of the rabbit-hole of school, childhood relationships and all that jazz and into the real world of post-uni life, graduate employment and, possibly, long-term relationships, and if you’re going to commit to a relationship, you’re looking at something a bit more real than the stuff that you may have experienced before, and that’s okay.

The Courier

lifestyle.15

Monday 22 February 2016

thecourieronline.co.uk/lifestyle c2.lifestyle@ncl.ac.uk | @CourierLifestyle

It’s the Final Countdown The end is nearly upon us ﬁnal years, but don’t fear, Amy Baird is here to guide you through it

ou’d put it to the back of your mind but somehow it’s crept up on you, the end is in sight. You’re greeted with e-mails congratulating you for reaching your final semester; you’re desperately trying to create a plan for post-uni so you can finally respond with a semi logical answer next time the taxi driver (or your parents) asks. Although, this final Semester will undoubtedly be stressful, we need to remember to make the most of it.

“It’s all about balance, and at the end of the day are you really going to look back and remember all the lectures?”

Firstly, be organised, even if you’re the kind of person who used to turn up 15 minutes late for lectures, make a pledge that this will no longer be you. Just think doing the work in the designated lecture time will save you 15 minutes of desperately catching up outside of class. And if you stop missing 15 minutes of each lecture every week that’s a lot of minutes – they all

add up. This time can then be spent doing far more fun and student-y things, things that you’ll actually remember - laughing with friends, meeting new people and going to new places. Next, as hard as it may be to hear, don’t put unrealistic expectations on yourself. Even if you’re starting to think you might not get the degree you wanted don’t make yourself poorly worrying. What will be, will be! Equally, as tempting as it may be, don’t give up now. The end is in sight, although you’ve barely had time to recharge over Christmas because January deadlines, keep going, hard work pays off. - It’s all about balance, and at the end of the day in 10 years’ time are you really going to look back on your time at uni and remember all the lectures and assignments? Yes you might remember some of them, but my point is it’s not only the work you’ll remember, but rather the people you met, the friends you made and the fun things you did. Something really important is prioritising your time. This is a biggie for ensuring your final Semester is as amazing as possible. Make a bucket list of all those places you’ve meant to try since First year – never been to the Quayside, to Mog on the Tyne, done a bar crawl in Jesmond, gone to the beach, had hangover brekkie at Butterfly Cabinet

or tried a particular night out? Then DO IT. Try all of them, make the most of being in Newcastle. Make sure you won’t look back at the end of your degree and think ‘I never did go there, or do that’.

“Make a bucket list of all those places you’ve meant to try since first year” Equally, don’t forget to do/go to some of your favourite places in Newcastle, make them a priority too. Have you found a trebles bar where you can get sufficiently drunk for a reasonable price? Well, some things don’t need changing! Finally, prioritising your time also applies to friends. Spend time with those who you truly appreciate, make the most of having all your uni friends together in the same city! It won’t ever happen again!

We’re all students. We’re all poor. But is getting a part time job really worth the fear of missing out? Alex O’Brien discusses the pros and cons of taking on a diﬀerent kind of work at university

“Having a job at University would be amazing because of one thing...the money”

You probably won’t be able to find the time to sit in your flat and do nothing all day anymore, but you never really liked that anyway, so what could you possibly be missing out on when you get a job? The most common answer; nights out. Whether you work late nights at a bar, or stack shelves in the afternoon, you’ll realise that you’re going to have to make some cuts in your social life occasionally. No human can function properly (let alone work an 8 hour shift in Waitrose) after staying in Digi until 3am. So you may have to miss out on the occasional flat party or birthday night out, but you can still ‘just go to predrinks, right?

“You enter into the endless cycle of needing experience to work but needing work to get experience”

Although you may feel slightly restricted socially here, it is possible that another social aspect can bloom from its ashes. The workplace is not only a great place to meet different people every day, but you will begin t o make friends and enjoy spending time with your work colleagues too. Plus sometimes there’s nothing better than a bit of workplace gossip to make your shift fly by. This positives are only available to the few who are lucky enoguh to actually find a job. In a student city it can be so hard to find a job that even if you think the pros outweigh the cons it can be almost impossible to find work if you have no experience. You enter into the endless cycle of needing experience to work but needing work to get experience. At least you are preparing youself for after university when being unemployed will become all too familiar. One final frustration that can come with

Unable to chill at Harry’s Bar, Emma Foddy gives the restaurant a frosty reception

hose of you who read my article last week may remember that I mentioned a disastrous experience at a restaurant on Grey Street, which ended in my boyfriend and I having to down our wine and leave mid-meal to go elsewhere. I also promised that I would rant about this experience in another article, so here it is. Last Sunday we decided to treat ourselves to a meal out in the city centre. After hearing positive things, we thought we would try Harry’s Bar opposite the Theatre Royal. First impressions were encouraging as Harry’s was tastefully decorated, with elegant lighting and a huge marble bar in the centre. The waiter was extremely attentive, arriving at our table as soon as we’d sat down to present us with menus.

“The souffle seemed to be floating on a suspiciouslooking watery green sauce”

Bored If You Do, Poor If You Don’t art time jobs at University come with a lot of stigma, but what’s all the fuss about? Let’s get the obvious positive out the way, having a job whilst being at University would be amazing because of one thing… the money. One experience that is shared by all University students (from freshers to postgrads) is the feeling of being broke. No matter who you are, everyone could use that extra bit of money at University. Whether it’s needed for a new coat, a second hand textbook, (or more realistically) trebles and entry to a club, or the much more grown up option of rent. Some things in this world require money and sometimes we just have no choice but to spend it. So the steady influx of money is always going to be at the top of the list as to why getting a job is a good idea. It is common to find yourself becoming more organised after getting a job, with both your money and time. Once you get yourself a job you will inevitably find yourself balancing your job with your course, societies, and of course… social life. This may result in you having to make a couple of sacrifices, but you will find that your time management will improve more as time goes on, as you cling onto all of the aspects of your previous life. The only drawback to this is that you will probably begin to realise you don’t actually have the time to watch that new American murder documentary on Netflix with your housemates. But then again, does it really matter to you if you never find out if he really did it?

Foody Foddy

having a job at University is the transition to using a new mental currency. You will realise that you will no longer measure the cost of anything in pounds. Instead you will begin to view all your purchases in time. You start to wonder if that pair of trainers is really worth the seven hours of your life it would take you to earn back. That’s if you have any money left for yourself at all. With most student loans struggling to cover a year of rent, you’ll probably find yourself spending your work money on eating something other than everyday value pasta. So if you’re thinking of getting a job at University, make sure you weigh up all the pros and cons before you take the big scary step into the working world.

At least I’m richer than you!

However, impressions soon started to change when they informed us they had run out of most of the meat for the Sunday roast and were left only with chicken. We were a little surprised at this, as it was still quite early in the afternoon. We asked whether it would be possible to have some of the lamb off of the normal menu cooked with the Sunday roast. Our waiter politely excused himself and went over to ask one of his colleagues who, I have to say, looked a bit pompous and promptly refused. He told us we would have to order off the normal menu, which was much more expensive. We felt a bit put out that he was so unwilling to compensate for the lack of ingredients mid-afternoon. We’d already ordered our drinks by then, so we decided to just go for it and order off the normal menu. I ordered broccoli soup followed by the chicken kiev and my boyfriend chose the cheese soufflé, followed by the lamb shank. Happy with our choices, we both relaxed and waited. The starters arrived in no time at all and my soup smelt delicious. However, we could soon tell that something was wrong with the soufflé. For starters, it seemed to be floating on a suspiciouslooking watery green sauce. Hardly appetising but fair enough, we thought. It’s the taste that counts, right? My boyfriend tried it and wrinkled his nose a little, clearly unimpressed. It was an unpleasant consistency, watery and clumpy rather than the fluffy cloud-like texture he had been hoping for. The final straw came when we found it was still frozen in the middle. It had clearly just been reheated - and not very well. Unfortunately I cannot comment on my soup as I never got round to trying it!

“The meal was a complete disappointment” We called the friendly waiter over who was extremely embarrassed and apologetic. We decided we’d just pay for our drinks and leave, fearful our mains would be of a similar standard. The waiter was very understanding and seemed even more annoyed at the kitchen than we were, even offering to personally pay for our drinks as an apology! We refused this as the fault wasn’t his, although it was extremely kind of him to offer. Despite the lovely waiter, everything else about the meal was a complete disappointment. We felt it was very unprofessional to run out of all the Sunday roast meats mid-afternoon and then refuse to compensate for this. The food was expensive and just not up to scratch; the presentation was poor and the quality abysmal. If you insist on serving reheated food rather than making it fresh (which it should be at that price!) then stick a thermometer in it to make sure it’s not still ice in the middle. Needless to say, we will not be returning. Rant over. 77 Grey Street, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, NE1 6EF

16.fashion

Monday 22 February 2016

The Courier

Fashion Editors: Ellen Dixon, Liz Rosling & Sara Macauley

The rise of the fashion app

Emily Higgins questions whether the rise of the fashion app is the demise of second hand vintage shops

6 outﬁt staples that are for life, not just for Christmas Emma Gladwin on the 6 staple pieces your wardrobe needs right now

Mango £59.99

“The best way to make the extra pennies to buy these vintage goodies is through selling your own old clothes, your trash becomes someone else’s treasure”

You don’t have to be a wannabe fashion buyer to enjoy these apps either, as they link directly to your phone camera meaning photos can be uploaded in minutes, making the buy and sell process even easier. Linking the apps with online payment apps like PayPal is super simple too, meaning you don’t even need your card with you to buy a new wardrobe edition and with an endless supply of clothing, accessories and homeware you’ll be sure to find even the most obscure of items with enough searching. Bye bye student loan. As fun as all of this sounds, these ‘flea-market’ apps have been criticised for a few reasons. Mostly because they remove the real fun of buying second hand clothing; rooting through reams of random questionable shirts, ugly trousers and jumpers with unusual stains until you find something exciting. Also, many sellers don’t allow returns so you’re really taking a gamble when pressing that “confirm purchase” button, whereas in a shop you can at least try on and see the item for yourself. They also discourage going to charity shops to find your second hand clothes, which means that charities are missing out on potentially vital donations. ‘Granny chic’ is always recreated by the most popular high street brands, but nothing is better than the real thing. Any of the genuine old lady garms found on these apps have probably already been bought and resold, meaning that you’re paying a premium for something which you could get for a quarter of the price in your local Oxfam. Even the most tech savvy granny probably won’t be uploading their favourite knitwear to a depop account. In saying that, although these apps might take away the fun of true vintage shopping, they do give you an endless supply of second hand gems to access quickly and easily, and make selling your own clothes an absolute doddle.

1. The Timeless Leather Jacket The leather jacket has endured the test of time and will probably be a staple piece year after year. Pair this number with some heels and your favourite lipstick and create the perfect evening outfit, or keep it casual and wear with jeans and a shirt. Looking good has never been so easy.

Topshop £30

3. The Classic Striped T-Shirt Chic has never been so easy with this classic striped T-shirt. Simple and affordable, this classic piece looks great thrown on with a pair of boyfriend jeans. Don’t underestimate the stripy tee though. For an evening event, it can be dressed up with a statement necklace, skirt and a pair of heeled boots.

4. The Trusty Shirt Perfect for the long days cooped up in the library, this Topshop shirt is effortlessly cool and looks great thrown over a band tee and your favourite jeans. Bonus points for its comfy material.

Nike £72 Topshop £16

2. The Essential Scarf As much as we hate to admit it, the summer sun is still a long way away, so a scarf is the number one accessory for the 9am trek to university. Draped over a printed dress or tucked into a trench coat, this Topshop grey scarf is elegant and reasonably priced.

4. The Investment Footwear So it’s February, and your New Year’s resolution of going to the gym everyday has got off to a rocky start. That’s ok though, because trainers have become a daily fashion staple. These Nike Juvenate’s would look great with jeans and a jumper, but could also a quirky evening ensemble. Who knows, they may inspire you to work out.

New Look £19.99

6. The Handy Backpack Nothing says start of semester optimism like a brand new bag, and at only £19.99, this fauxleather New Look backpack is a total steal. Style meets practicality with this tassel drop bag, creating the perfect staple for university students.

RAG Fashion Show 2016

Christina Lau brings us the behind the scenes goss from the video shoot

f you haven’t heard already, this year’s RAG Fashion Show will be held on the 10th of March. All donations and money raised will be used to support Mind, a mental health charity that provides help and support for those experiencing mental health problems. It will be a fabulous night of fun, fashion, and raising money for a really good cause. The theme of the fashion show is affordable student fashion, and the show’s co-ordinators are creating high fashion looks with cost effective pieces to inspire university students with ideas on how to create a high end look but for a reasonable price. Those who have an interest in fashion or love creating different looks with their #ootd’s should definitely come along for some ideas! The full line of brands that the models are showcasing are still in the process of being confirmed, but Topshop, Ann Summers, Jack Wills and Doc Martins are definitely in for the show. There are a diverse range of gorgeous models this year, representing different heights and body shapes. This has always been a crucial aim of those organising the fashion show, as they aim to represent the beauty of all of our very own Newcastle University students. Open castings meant that aspiring models from all over campus queued up to audition, with 30 lucky finalists bagging themselves a place in this year’s show. This week, I went behind the scenes of the promotional video shoot, and I was able to see it being filmed and directed. I managed to interview a few of the gorgeous models - Katherine, Yasmine and Ellie - about why they wanted to be part of the fashion show. They talked about how this is a really enjoyable way to raise money for charity, an ideal way to make lots of new friends, and a great opportunity to get involved with RAG. So if you missed

out on trying out for the auditions this year, make sure you come along next year. The show is very professionally done, and lots of people will be coming together and working hard to organise it all in the name of charity. The video will be posted soon on the Facebook RAG page and also on TCTV, so make sure you watch and share it with all your friends! The big night will be set out with entertainment between walks - mostly singing acts and dances organised by the NU Dance Society - so look forward to exceptional performances as well as hot fashion walks. There really is no excuse not to attend this amazing night to have lots of fun and drinks while raising money for a good cause. It’s always one of the most popular events of the Newcastle Uni calendar, and there’s an infamous walk that you DON’T want to miss. Tickets will start to sell this week on the NUSU website, so remember to get yours before they’re sold out!

Follow RAG Fashion Show on Instagram: @N.R.F.S

Make-up by @katyp_makeup

here’s nothing in a fashion lover’s world that is more exciting than striking gold in a vintage shop. The novelty of finding something unique with a bit of history is so exciting, and secretly gives you an ego boost when your friends ask you where you found your items, knowing that they will not be able to get one in a high street shop. When you find a gold mine of a charity shop, you get new clothes and you’re making a donation - bonus! The best way to make the extra pennies to buy these vintage goodies is through selling your own old clothes, your trash becomes someone else’s treasure. Apps like Depop, ASOS Marketplace and Alexa Chung’s Villoid are making this cycle so much easier, by hosting all the buying and selling fun directly from your phone. These apps open up a whole world of second hand loveliness and broaden your horizons further than your local high street, giving you so much more to explore. Fashion apps are also a brilliant way of giving small clothing brands recognition, while not impacting their profit too heavily as many of these apps only take a small commission (much less than if they were to be put in a store.) As much as high street brands are fun, supporting little labels and independent lines is a brilliant way of broadening your wardrobe and benefitting small businesses.

Warehouse £16

The Courier

fashion.17

Monday 22 February 2016

thecourieronline.co.uk/fashion Instagram:@thecourierfashion | Facebook: facebook.com/thecourierfash |Email: c2.fashion@ncl.ac.uk

You’ve got a trend in me: athleisure

Miranda Stoner investigates the rise of the sportswear trend going for gold this Spring/Summer

Izzi Watkins and Rosie Setford battle it out as to whether Carrie Bradshaw should be classed as a true fashion icon

Escapology Crop Top £20 Topshop bumbag £20

Adidas Tee £30

sparked an interest in sport. Alternatively it could be accredited to the clear move towards health conscious lifestyles through the platform of social media, with the success of Youtube channels such as X-Hit Daily, and the rise in workout themed Instagram profiles such as Rachel Brathen aka. Yoga Girl.

“There must be something which has led to the dramatic increase in the number of psychedelic yoga leggings and neon Nike trainers seen on campus and indeed, worldwide” Whatever it was that brought about this craze, it seems clear that it is only becoming more prevalent. It has already spread from fashion bloggers to the runway. Look at Dior’s embellished trainers, and then back to the high street with Beyoncé’s Topshop active-wear collection. H&M and even Miss Selfridge, who are notorious for their glamorous sparkly dresses, have created an active-wear range. So there must be something which has changed the role of sports clothing. Could it be that it is the answer to the old style-over-comfort dilemma? There’s no denying active-wear is comfortable,

it is designed to be to enhance your performance and when chosen carefully athleisure can also look very flattering. Moreover it gives off the vibe that you look after your body and health even if the only work-out you’ve done in it is perusing the Topshop sales. However, as with denim, leggings and trainers have their limitations. It is still unacceptable to jog your way through the grand doors of the Ritz in a trainers and tank top combination, even if it did cost the same as an Oscar de la Renta gown. And sadly, it’s probably still not ok to go to a ball or a wedding in leggings and a head band. That’s not to say that this trend isn’t versatile, it’s all about striking a suitable balance and knowing the dress code. By layering pastel colours and soft jersey materials and putting your hair up you can create a casual look perfect for lazy days or stuffy lecture theatres. Whilst choosing more metallic styles and swapping the sweatshirt for a fitted jacket, it gives a more polished impression. Maybe it’s the adaptability that makes this trend so strong. Suffice to say, that with the Rio 2016 Olympics just around the corner I can only imagine its popularity will rise and rise.

Spotted on campus

see more online

n 2014 at the Women’s Innovation Summit in in New York City, Mark Parker, CEO of Nike, proclaimed that ‘Leggings are the new denim’ and thus far nothing has happened to disprove his point. Sports-wear as day-wear may once have seemed lazy, however today, with British Vogue layering an Umbro training vest under an organza dress by Dior, the bold sporting style has been given an elegant feminine twist which makes it more suited to everyday life. Obviously, minus the Dior. What’s more, with celebrities such as Rihanna - who has taken over as Creative Director for Umbro - climbing on board and targeting the traditional sports brands to a more fashion-conscious audience, this trend is becoming almost impossible to avoid. There must be something which has led to the dramatic increase in the number of psychedelic yoga leggings and neon Nike trainers seen on campus and indeed, worldwide. Perhaps this trend in women’s fashion has arisen as a result of the campaigns such as Nike’s ‘This Girl Can’ which saw Nike developing more advanced and stylish active wear in order to encourage more women to participate in sport. Or it could be part of the aftermath of the 2012 London Olympics, which for many

Fila Leggings £40

arrie Bradshaw has arguably broken every rule in the fashion book. In fact, in some instances, she’s chucked the book into a massive fire and danced around it (in Manolos of course). Over six series of Sex and the City, Carrie taught us a lot, but perhaps the most important lesson she gifted us with was one of fearlessness. Be that in the form of heartbreak and careers, or wearing a brightly coloured tutu past the age of six. By no means has she always got it right, the fur coat, jeweled turban, leather boots and pajamas look was perhaps a low point…but that’s exactly why Carrie Bradshaw is a style icon. In the rocky path to finding your own style identity mistakes are made, and if you’re gonna make a mistake you might as well make it a BIG one (ha get it?). Carrie taught us that in the sometimes daunting and dark world of fashion, colours ARE allowed, as are ridiculous shoes and weird little feather headdress things. Her style may not have been eternal, but it was fun at the time, which is surely all we can hope for.

“Over six series of Sex and the City, Carrie taught us a lot, but perhaps the most important lesson she gifted us with was one of fearlessness”

instagram: sexandthecity___

Jaded Crop Top £40

Nike Roshe Flyknits £120

Carrie Bradshaw-ly you’re not going to wear that?!

Lottie Bovill scouts out this week’s best dressed students and grabs them for a chat

Name: Leona Age: 24 Course: MA Translation Clothes: Coat- Zara, scarf-Japanese brand, jeansVera Moda, backpack- Kanken, shoes- Adidas Style inspiration: Browsing Instagram and YouTube

Name: Meg Age: 18 Course: English Literature Clothes: Coat and Top- Topshop, Dress- Primark, Bag- Newlook, Boots- Vagabond Favourite Music venue in Newcastle? Think Tank Favourite trend: Wearing tops under dresses

Name: Matt Age: 21 Course: Architecture Clothes: Jacket- River Island shoes- Nike, jeansRiver Island Favourite place? I don’t leave the architecture building much but when I do I love Quilliam’s

instagram:ciaraw94

There is no doubt that Carrie Bradshaw has sported some serious fashion statements, however in my opinion, her outfits are e not always “iconic” as they seem. Over the six seasons and two films of Sex and the City, Carrie has been documented wearing some seriously questionable outfits. if anyone was going to strut about NYC with their stomach hanging out, it was always going to be Carrie Bradshaw and her washboard abs. However, a belt floating around between a crop top and mid-length skirt is a definite no-no from me. Even Patricia Field, Carrie’s costume designer admits that, in hindsight, the crop top/belt combo was pretty “extreme”. Showing too much flesh does seem to be Carrie’s biggest fashion faux pas, as seen with her mini shorts, velvet strapless top and beret combo. Unfortunately for Bradshaw, this ensemble just makes her look like she got dressed in the dark. Although Carrie does parade around New York City in some flawless outfits, it’s difficult to class her as “iconic” in the most positive sense of the word. Instead, I’d class her as a risk-taker in the fashion world, confident wearing anything in any way, even if it looks truly, truly awful.

18.beauty

Monday 22 February 2016

The Courier

Beauty Editors: Flora Davies, Ellen Walker & Lucy Cochrane

Avoiding beauty blunders

Conscious Beauty Phoebe Hoi Yiu Ng gives us the scoop on H&M’s new beauty range

e often have an impression that sustainable beauty products are bound to be unaffordably expensive. But the new H&M Conscious Beauty Range is going to prove us all wrong. The motto says everything - “good for people, the planet and your wallet”. Conscious Beauty is in short a purse friendly version of eco-friendly brands like LUSH, Body Shop or L’Occitane. Their products are Ecocertapproved with organic certification. It means that the products consist of at least 95% natural products and at least 10 out of the ingredients have been grown organically. H&M is well-known for its achievements in offering sustainable but affordable fashion. Now the Swedish retailer is expanding it into the beauty kingdom. The new line incorporated skincare, haircare and bodycare - all comes with a modest cost. The Conscious Beauty line includes over 30 products and contains whatever you could think of. From aluminium-free deodorant, dry shampoo, to tinted lip balm and handbag-sized hand creams. It encourages a natural approach to beauty. My favourite feature of the line is that the body care collection are fragranced in two scents derived from essential oils - “vitalising” which is citrusbased mix of mandarin, grape and lime; and “relaxing” which is combination of lavender, vetiver and rosemary. Great news for people with sensitive skin, as synthetic fragrances could trigger allergic reactions or other sensitivities. It is set to rival other high street beauty brands like the M&S Autograph, Topshop and New Look Beauty.

“Vitalising; which is citrusbased mix of mandarin, grape and lime; and Relaxing; which is combination of lavender, vetiver and rosemary”

The biggest surprise in the new line is the Hydrating Face Mask. Despite its rather unappealing packaging (well, you can’t ask for everything at this cost), it contains all the natural ingredients we love: organic aloe vera, shea butter and jojoba oil. On the other hand, the White Tea and Peppermint Hand Cream has similar contents but with added white tea leaf extract. Other products I am looking forward to try are the hand creams. They come in different interesting smells. The more traditional one would be the Sweet Lemon Hand Cream, containing pomegranate seed oil, shea butter, jojoba oil, apricot kernel oil, beeswax and aloe vera. The packagings may seem a bit minimalist in its design, but they are actually all recyclable or made from recycled materials. H&M first launched its beauty section last year and had already over 700 products, and were described as “fashion for the face”. So it was expected that a Conscious range would be soon to follow. In a statement, the concept designer of H&M Beauty Sara Wallander said “We already offer conscious choices with our fashion collections so it is natural for us to have the same offering within our beauty collection.” “We always aim to develop our products to high and responsible standards in both materials and production. With the Conscious range we have taken this philosophy even further. We are very proud to now be able to offer organic beauty to our customers.” The release is coinciding with the hyped up the launch of H&M’s new Conscious Exclusive Collection in April.

Molly Harris brings us the most common beauty mistakes and gives us her top tips on how to avoid them

fter weeks of watching YouTube tutorials you’ve finally nailed the perfect blend of eye shadow, flicked eye liner and cheeksculpting contour. But lets not be fooled. These skills don’t come naturally, and they take hours and hours of practice with a lot of trial and error. We’ve all made our fair share of mistakes…so here’s my run down of top beauty mistakes and the best ways to avoid them:

Gravy Lines No not the kind of gravy Northerners love on their chips, but the obvious ring of unblended foundation around your face. It is of course a right of passage to buy a dream matte mouse at least three shades too dark when you’re first experimenting with make up, but if you insist on wearing darker foundation, remember to blend it down the neck and into the hair line. If you’re buying a high end foundation most beauty counters will offer a free shade assessment and sample.

Dodgy Contour I myself am totally guilty for this and get carried away by the prospect of chiselled cheekbones; it is hard to face facts and admit I will always have a round face. Contouring should be subtle and well blended and not just a line down your face. I’d say the best way to avoid it is just keep blending in small circular motions to achieve that truly shadowed effect that we’re all after.

Overdrawn Lips You are not Kylie Jenner. You do not have a million-dollar surgeon on speed dial. You may want a fuller looking lip but do not try and fake them by massively overdrawing your natural lips, it does

not look good. By all means, a little over line and a bit of highlight on the cupids bow does wonders to give you that perfect pout, but don’t over do it.

Brow Dilemma Circa Cara Delevingne. I’m pretty sure no one even cared about eyebrows but now they have become the single most important step in many girls make up routine. From shaved brows, to tattooed brows to just badly drawn ones, they are the source of many people’s beauty mistakes.

“From shaved brows, to tattooed brows to just badly drawn ones, they are the source of many people’s beauty mistakes” I recently received a text from my nan who got her eyebrows tattooed whilst on holiday in Turkey (believe it or not). She claimed her bad eye sight made it hard to get even brows on both sides. I couldn’t quite believe it until I saw it for myself but sure enough my 70-year-old Nan has tattooed eyebrows. I can also say that I would not recommend following in her footsteps. They say brows should be sisters and not twins and that god for that rule, one brow always always goes better than the other it is one of life’s harsh realities.

Greasy Hair Just buy some dry shampoo! Its only £2.99 from boots or if you’re on a budget talcum powder does that same job.

Chipped Nails I’m totally guilty of this but it does look scruffy. Just get yourself some nail varnish remover or chuck on a fresh coat of polish.

Feeling Oily Most of us can’t help getting oily; especially those of us with blemish prone skin. I’d recommend a primer like The Body Shop’s Tea Tree Pore Minimiser (£8.00 and works wonders for me). A setting powder to stop yourself looking shiny in them all-important night out selfies is also a must have.

“Most of us can’t help getting oily; especially those of us with blemish prone skin”

Nailed it:2016’s hottest trends

Nathasya Gunawan ﬁlls us in on this year’s best styles to decorate your dexterities

ew year, new trends and if we learned anything for the past years, nail art is here to stay. Like makeup and hair, nail styles change all the time and many have tried to predict what nail trends are going to hit the beauty industry in 2016. For this year, it seems that minimalism is taking over. Nude nails are in and a lot of twist on classic nails trend that we love. First up, the French manicure. With whitetipped and nude or pink overlay, French manicure is an everlasting nail trend. It’s effortless and looks great on everyone. This year, we expect to see a twist to this classic look; bold colours on the tip of the nails. Another rather interesting twist is the line efInstagram: Florisnailaccount

fects on top of the cuticles of your fingernails. This means instead of having colours at the tip of the nails, you line around your cuticles with colours and paint the rest of your nails with creamy or nude colours. Nude nails are another classic nails look predicted to stay in 2016. Nude shades leave the hands looked clean and more sophisticated. Although it has been in trend for a while, there is no sign that it’s going out of style anytime soon.

Instagram: Essiepolish

“Other than bold colours, glitters are also everywhere. Many looks on the runway match their shimmering eye shadow with glittery nails” Stripes are in. Whether it’s horizontal, vertical, or diagonal, they are all over the runways. Some appeared with silver stripes on their nails while the others appeared with one thick stripes or two thinner strips. Other than stripes, sticking embellishment on your nails is also another predicted trend of 2016. More and more people seem to add 3D embellishment, small stones, and crystals onto their polished nails. One of the most noticeable trends for the new year is the matching eyes and lips to nails feature. We see matching nails and eye makeup at the Monique Lhuillier fashion show with the bold French manicure. Celebrities also opted for this look on the red carpets, often matching their lip color with their nails. Other than bold colours, glitters are also everywhere. Many looks on the runway match their shimmering eye shadow with glittery nails. Naeem Khan added sparkles to nude or creamy nails to bring about a jewel-like look.

“Nude nails are another classic nails look predicted to stay in 2016. Nude shades leave the hands looked clean and more sophisticated. Although it has been in trend for a while, there is no sign that it’s going out of style anytime soon”

From nude to bold colours, matching your makeup look to your nails, and plays on the classic nail trends, there is an awesome nail art trend for you to choose and try this year.

The Courier

beauty.19

Monday 22 February 2016

thecourieronline.co.uk/beauty Instagram: Courierbeauty_ | @Courier_Beauty

Get graphic with your liner Ellen Walker gives us the low down on the best graphic liner styles and how to wear them

hen you think of graphic liner, you probably think of editorial photo shoots and mega intense runway looks, but things are changing. Graphic liner has been slowly adapted into more subtle looks which will give your peepers an exciting twist to the every day. Stick with a pastel shade if you’re shy, a light yellow or white, or really push the boat out with a flash of electric blue or something more vibrant.

Peek-a-boo liner

Just about as subtle as it gets, the ‘peek-a-boo’ look gives you a little pop of colour while keeping a classic wing shape. It’s a good place to start if you’re still a bit sceptical about the whole graphic liner game. The idea is to layer the coloured liner slightly thicker under your normal black winged liner so that it peeks out from under or on top of the wing. Start by creating a slightly thicker wing than usual with your chosen colour (I personally love a light yellow shade or even A touch of glitter for a night out), don’t worry about taking this across the lid, it would only get covered later. Then take your chosen black liner, liquid or gel works best, and do a normal wing ensuring you leave a bit of that colour showing. It might take you a bit of practice but when you get the hang of it you’ll have a quick and easy methods to glam up your every day look.

Instagram: glamnanne

Cut crease liner

This one’s a little more adventurous and may take a couple of goes to get right. When your eye’s open, it’ll look like any other winged liner, but when shut, you can see where this look has a bit of dimension. Take your normal black liner and create a winged look, it may make it slightly easier to have it a bit thicker and longer than usual. Then, at a point about halfway up the wing, drag your liner back into the natural crease of your eyelid and sweep it into the crease. The key here is to really find the natural shape of your eye lid and work with it, this will give you a much more subtle and effortless look. To make it stand out, leave the rest of your lids bare or prep them with a nude primer or shadow beforehand. If this is a bit dramatic for you, then give it a go over a smokey eye on a night out, this will make the liner stand out less against your normal make up.

“Graphic liner has been slowly adapted into more subtle looks which will give your peepers an exciting twist to the every day” Instagram: Francescaronco

Under eye pencil pop

This version is by far the easiest and can be just as effective as the first two options. I love that it can be a last minute decision and can be applied in a matter of seconds. Complete this look after you’ve applied your usual liner. Use a kohl pencil in any shade that suits you and run it along the lower lash line, I find that this works better than the waterline as the colour is more prominent and lasts much longer. To elongate the eye and give it more of a Kendall Jenner ‘almond’ shape, apply it thicker at the outer corner of the eye and finish the colour about two thirds of the way in.

“There are inventions such as EpiSkin™, EpiDerm™ and SkinEthic that are artificial sheets of skin that mimic reactions that real skin would feel from chemicals”

The sad thing is, there are non-animal alternative ways of testing that are, possibly, more accurate. There are inventions such as EpiSkin™, EpiDerm™ and SkinEthic that are artificial sheets of skin that mimic reactions that real skin would feel from chemicals. There is also a Lymph Node skin allergy test that can reduce the use of guinea pigs and mice by up to 75 percent. These are just a small sample of the inventions that are available to companies wanting to test their cosmetics. With

“You can’t claim to be empathetic towards animals and then go back on your stance purely to expand and make more money” After the 2013 EU ruling, cosmetics were banned from being tested on animals by law. L’oreal are one brand that I was extremely happy with for leading the pack and saying NO to animal testing before this ruling; but then I delved deeper. Whilst it is true that L’oreal do not test on animals in Europe, they do test on animals in China. But it’s not that simple. Every cosmetics brand in China has to test on animals by law to distribute their products there. But for me, this makes L’oreal seem completely hypocritical. You can’t claim to be empathetic towards animals and then go back on your stance purely to expand and make more money. This isn’t me putting the blame solely on L’oreal, it is clearly an issue that stems from China’s cosmetics distribution laws as a whole. In fact, many cosmetic companies that claim to be cruelty-free test on animals if their cosmetics are distributed to certain countries. MAC, Max Factor, Bobbi Brown, Benefit, Maybelline, Revlon are just some companies that are known to test on animals for these reasons. Maybe I have convinced you, or maybe I’ve just confused you. But I hope this encourages you to do a bit more reading on the subject, as it’s much more complex than I can fit into 600

Instagram: @viviennewestwoodofficial

Whichever method you choose, definitely don’t be afraid to give this trend a go! Although its a trend which started off on the catwalk, it’s definitely time for it to branch out and become part of everyone’s make up repertoire. It’s such a quick and easy method to glam up any make up look, perfect for those last minute nights out.

Instagram: Lustrelux

Tamara Duﬃeld tells us why she feels so strongly against animal testing on makeup, and how to ﬁnd alternative, cruelty-free brands to grace your face this in mind it does beg the question: why don’t more companies at least try them?

Flo Davies ﬁlls us in on how the Vivienne Westwood menswear show shocked the beauty world

“The key here is to really find the natural shape of your eye lid”

How to combat animal testing ’m against animal testing for cosmetics since as long as I realised it went on. I haven’t always been able to avoid products that did test, partly due to the lack of information I had on cosmetic brands. But since then, there has been much more media spotlight on the issue. The main question I ask people who are for animal testing for cosmetics is one of logic: why don’t the companies use ingredients that are known to have a long, safe history from use? I realise this can only go so far. A face cream can’t claim to have a ‘patented, innovative ingredient’ if it is one that has already been used for years. However, it is a pretty good marker for the majority of cases. The irony of this is, of course, that these safe ingredients were likely to be tested many years ago on animals, but it could still stop further animals being hurt for the sake of a new Benefit mascara.

Menswear meets Makeup

words. My view is that it doesn’t hurt to look for cosmetics that are completely cruelty-free because it won’t change the quality or price of the product. crueltyfreekitty.com is an amazing site to use as a starting point as she has compiled lists of cosmetics, bath and body and skincare brands to help you easily find companies that don’t test. Lastly, don’t worry! You won’t be switching to a brand that is made and sold from anybody’s shed, many of the brands are well known . So don’t throw away your Urban Decay Naked palette out of protest just yet, you might be pleasantly surprised.

Instagram: Mariairmavaeroy

or A/W16, Vivienne Westwood dedicated her collection to the 70’s. Vivienne Westwood gave us the strongest modern update of the century in her liberated collection. The decade was the headline influence on Burberry’s show at the politically charged London Fashion Week A/W16 collection in Milan, as its really got people talking… Vivienne Westwood’s shows are known to be quirky, eccentric and unconventional. We love the sometimes-mad beauty creations that compliment the clothes, and the AW16 Menswear show was no exception. Westwood’s show ‘Be Specific’ expressed itself as something of an ode to the late Bowie. “It was gender-blending, with male models in platforms, the occasional ball gown, but forget that for a moment and focus on the false lashes and block coloured eye shadow. What we learned? Boys look good in mascara. Bowie knew best”. -Westwood.

“Though gender neutrality is nothing new to the fashion scene, Westwood’s collection saw an army of androgyny adorned in everything from clean tailoring to hooded coats and asymmetrical gowns” ‘Statement eyes’ summed up the beauty look for Burberrys A/W16 and a nod to the 70’s and modern elaborate trends captivated London Fashion Week. For the eyes; a somewhat rugged look was portrayed by a 70’s sweep of a forest green hue placed across the lid and an earthy khaki smudged in the inner corner of the eye for added definition. With a natural complexion to complement, it was all about the eyes in this LFW show. Continuing on the path to saving the earth, Westwood’s collection draws on the “Politicians Are Criminals” show from last year with a twist of anarchy, as she touched on how politicians are ruining the planet. Though gender neutrality is nothing new to the fashion scene, Westwood’s collection saw an army of androgyny adorned in everything from clean tailoring to hooded coats and asymmetrical gowns, to male models looks completed with wedges and heeled brogues. The bright pink and orange hues infused the collection, made for a powerful clash of colour with the green hues thrown in the mix and smudged across the lid. Because this autumn/winter 2016 collection was about bending and blending gender, letting men strut out, adorned in eye shadow had a bold statement. Westwood has always been a provocateur, and this show potentially pushed us further than any of her recent excursions, it was Westwood’s non-specific gender style that made the show oddly appealing.

20.arts

Monday 22 February 2016

The Courier

Arts Editors: Holly Suttle, Emily Watton & Jade Holroyd

Nothing As It Should Be

A short story by Anonymous

ir fills the empty spaces, it floods in, expanding the once vacant void, swirling down tubes and dilating mineral pockets. All too soon, the breath leaves between my lips. I snap my teeth shut – clenching my jaw. The clack that follows this movement is identical to the database’s knowledge of a copper kettle being set down of a warming pan. My still closed eyelids tighten as I cannot help but well on how such an antiquated specific sound should relate to me. Why must copper and steel clopping together mimic my movement? I expect my forehead to wrinkle, but it feels stiff. The expectation for my eyes to immediately open made me realise that they should already be open.

What a pretty sight I see...

Melissa Wear reminds us of the hidden architectural beauties around campus which we often miss on our morning dash to lectures

“The light becomes more than blank whiteness and progresses to reveal my surroundings” It should not take concentration. My forehead again refused to furrow, my brow immobile. Each detail of this inactivity is catalogued. That is not my normal behaviour - details cannot be taken and analysed exactly. This coded thought cannot be sustained without loss of it. I multiply my focus to lift my eyelids. A grating sounds. It grinds and squeaks as a miniature spring used for first time. It would not be noticeable and yet it was. The tuneless waves are consequently broken down and filed into individual notes - anything can be saved for later use. Light widens from non-existence into a slit, and then gains height steadily. The light becomes more than blank whiteness and progresses to reveal my surroundings. The room that can be nothing other than an office in a clinic, snaps into focus. The immediacy of this clarity should not have happened. Blurring and gradual revelation of details is what the database expects. I dislike the disparity of the shades of white. The W-B-200 Popped-Corn walls clash with the W-B-400 Vermont Cream counters worsened by the W-B-720 Oyster tone of the cabinets. They are wrong and ill purposed; intended to match but blindness failed to see their differences. Failure fried circuits and prevents duty. I blink and the irritation subsides – it is unimportant. The significant part of this moment is the weight on my limbs that makes movement difficult. The effort should not be present in order for me to raise my torso from the hard surface on which my body rests. My breath provides a metronome as each molecule in my muscle tightens and releases to allow the movement. Yet I do not ache. I feel no stress, only the need to complete the endeavour to combat the weight and achieve the action. When I am sat upright, I am prevented from seeing why my arms and legs weigh more than they should by a whirring above me as a screen descends from the ceiling to come to rest at eye-level 1.27 metres away from me.

“My face appears on the screen, healthy, pale and smiling”

I feel the energy singing through the wires. Before I would have said ‘zinging’ but I realise my error in this assumption. The energy surges with direction and power making the screen light up and the speakers momentarily fuzz into action. My face appears on the screen, healthy, pale and smiling. One corner of the mouth is 0.43 mm below the other corner, I’ve never thought of my face as lopsided. I dislike that also. Myself claps her hands. ‘Right me in two weeks time! Hullo, don’t worry! Ya gonna love this… you are now mechanised. I will become – and you are now – a product of the greatest feat of engineering since I don’t know when. Things will be different but, ‘ Myself winked, ‘we’ve always loved a challenge.’

Hadrian’s Bridge

Devonshire Building

Designed as a mixed-use office space intended to host the Institute of Research for Environment and Sustainability, this university building applies a high standard environmental strategy. The outer skin is a shading system that controls solar gain whilst optimising natural light. The steel and glass cantilevers offer shelter at the entrance to the building or keep you dry en route across Devonshire Place.

The pedestrian bridge acts as a part of the Great North Cycle Route. Its solid appearance has been criticised by the local authorities for obstructing view to the gateway of the city from the Great North Road. However, our views of the attractive Robinson are well focused and the solidity offers some great acoustics.

Are you snapper happy? Send us your artsy photos taken in and around the Toon for a chance to appear in the paper/on our Instagram account! Email us! c2.arts@ncl.ac.uk

Claremont Tower

This construction is known, quite prestigiously, as the eighteenth tallest building in Newcastle upon Tyne. The concrete of the building fabric has been cast using moulds made of timber. This leaves an imitation of the wood grain, a confusing conflict of nature and the man-made. Exposed concrete’s popularity in Modernist and Brutalist architecture is well known. Timber formwork gave what was believed to be a more ‘neighbour-friendly’ visual appearance.

Theatre for students - yay or nay? Zoe Godden questions the feasibility of theatre-going as a past-time for students W hen a university student thinks of a night out, their mind normally wouldn’t drift to the cobbled stones of Grey Street to see a French opera (unless you plan to have a few drinks at Harry’s Bar). Indeed, theatres seem to be one of the more neglected of Newcastle’s night-time offerings, with most preferring to ingest trebles rather than two and a half hours of Shakespeare. However there are many merits to be had with such forms of entertainment that make them worth more than your old primary school trips.

“This many sound great on paper - but check your bank balance and you may not be as eager” First of all, it’s quite posh isn’t it? There’s no denying the Theatre Royal is a marvel to look at, with stunning Georgian architecture that automatically makes you feel

the need to spend that extra 30 minutes getting ready to head out. Sir Ian McKellen has even said it’s his favourite theatre, so there’s that to boot. In its 178 year history, it remains as authentic as ever, showing us that Geordies have always been a classy bunch. If that’s a bit too formal for your tastes, we’re privileged to have the Northern Stage right on campus, a contemporary producing theatre with 3 performance spaces and a foyer café. They’ve got stand up comedians, DJs, and of course your classic stage adaptations such as the current crime thriller Get Carter. With such a short walking distance, who says you can’t get there on time? If you live in Heaton, you can even claim a hipster status by booking a seat in The People’s Theatre, a small auditorium fit for 500 that takes pride in showing off local talent, such as in the upcoming young people’s production of Eclipse and Sense and Sensibility.

“Unless Unless you’re based in the School of Arts and Cultures, you may not have the motivation to see a production at all”

This may all sound great on paper - but check your bank balance, and you may not be as eager. Though it could be once in a lifetime to see that West End touring production of your favourite musical, for up to £31.50 per ticket, theatre-going is an expensive hobby to justify. Add the fact it costs only £5.25 to see a film with your NUS card at the Tyneside Cinema, and heading down to the theatre on a Saturday night

seems out of the question. What’s more, unless you’re based in the School of Arts and Cultures, you may not have the motivation to see a production at all; I mean really, how would your Chemical Engineering degree tie into a ballet version of Sleeping Beauty? Stereotypical, yes, but for many students, theatres simply aren’t marketed towards them.

“Perhaps take a detour and see how a true three dimensional screen can alter your outlook”

Ultimately though, it’s the wide range of artistic grandeur we see upon those stages that make them worth coming back to on multiple occasions. Just taking a glance at the Theatre Royal’s upcoming events gives us a sense of the sheer scale of productions theatres are offering nowadays; book adaptations like Lord of the Flies, childhood classic Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, and even Derren Brown showing off his mastery of mind manipulation. There really is something for everyone – so next time you head down to Empire to catch the latest Hollywood blockbuster, perhaps take a detour and see how a true three dimensional screen can alter your outlook.

The Courier

arts.21

Monday 22 February 2016

Gallery Review: Champagne Life Ailish Fowler comments on Charles Saatchi’s London gallery exhibition M

odern art has been, and always will be, a question of taste. What I may find inspiring, you may call tacky, amateur, pretentious. Charles Saatchi has always been at the forefront of this discussion – providing cutting edge art and political expression. His most recent exhibition, ‘Champagne Life’, does not fail to join this ongoing conversation. With pieces ranging from images of Kanye West and Kim Kardashian to intricate, magnified portraits of elderly women the exhibition appears to cover all bases. The pieces are created by 14 “emerging” international female artists ranging in age from 25 to 59 in celebration of the gallery’s thirtieth birthday. Saatchi’s decision to provide an all-female show appear to me almost patronising. Yes, it’s important to show more work by female modern artists, but is this really the right way to do it? All at once.

“Consuming whole walls, the defined wrinkles and sinking eyes forced you to stop and look”

Along with the, not very subtle, woman inspired title, ‘Champagne Life’, feeding on all the stereotypes we aim to ignore, the whole thing seems a little condescending. With no discussion of gender, no political mention at all, I feel Saatchi is missing a trick. This is an opportunity to bridge the discussion of gender with the conversation of art but all I feel leaving the gallery doors is uncomfortable confusion.

Sunderland Empire REVIEW: The Rocky Horror Show

his week I went to watch the highly acclaimed Rocky Horror Picture Show at the Sunderland Empire. Richard O’Brien’s classic is filthy, funny and can even prompt the odd tear. Not only did I thoroughly enjoy the show but I was also amazed at the level of talent in the performance. The only logical starting point is the heart of the show himself, Frank N’Furter. Played by the incredible Liam Tamne (a former contestant on The Voice), Frank N’Furter was everything I could have dreamed of and more. His grand entrance was met with such excitement from the audience that it made me ‘quiver with antici…pation!’ Tamne’s voice was exquisite, the vocal range and sheer characterisation in his voice really brought the well-loved ‘sweet transvestite’ to life. Surrounding Tamne was a wonderful cast, including X-Factor’s Diana Vickers. Every cast member was phenomenal, including the four phantoms. At first I thought that Vickers was perhaps a little out of her depth, seeming so sweet and innocent amongst a cast of rampant sex fiends; however she soon came into her own in Toucha Toucha Toucha Touch Me and showed the audience that she wasn’t just sweet, little Janet Weiss. By the time I got to see the performance, the cast were half way through their run at the Sunderland Empire and it was still as brilliantly chaotic as I’ve ever seen it. All the classics were welcomed with such excitement by the audience that we all couldn’t help but sing along. By the end of the performance every single member was up on their feet doing the Time Warp (even the big, burly men who had been clearly dragged along by their wives) singing their hearts out and dancing as if no one was watching. The audience broke out into such a rapturous applause that truly showed the cast the adoration that they deserved for such a phenomenal performance. I could watch this show over and over again. My advice? ‘Give yourself over to pleasure’ and bask in the chaos that is The Rocky Horror Picture Show!

Stacy Williams

importance of Bulajic’s decisions. These previously threatening images are brought back to life. Reallives mapped onto canvas. By enlarging these very normal portraits we can appreciate the details of the art, and of the beauty of the human body’s ageing process.

“The horse I admit had a profound stare and the piece itself had a large crowd slowing surrounding it”

However, putting this slight issue to the side it’s the art itself that should speak louder than the title. Although some of the work seemed even to me unusual and ostentatious, there were a few artists who took me by surprise. One being Jelena Bulajic, whose work I mentioned above. Her largescale almost photographic monochrome portraits of elderly women were impossible to ignore. Consuming whole walls, the defined wrinkles and sinking eyes forced you to stop and look. The vast canvases have an impending power creating sensational pieces that tower over you to make you feel insignificant. When then placed next to smaller, identical, images you are made to consider the

NUTS REVIEW: The Nether

To counter this there were pieces I found hard to enjoy. One being Soheila Sokhanvari’s ‘Moje Sabz’: a horse on a blue balloon? There isn’t much more I can contribute here as to be honest there wasn’t much to it. I found the art itself was in the taxidermy, and less so in the way it was presented. Sokhanvari is known for her use of visual metaphor but I’m not quite sure I get it. The horse I admit had a profound stare and the piece itself had a large crowd slowly surrounding it. However, each face held the same disconcerted expression as my own. As a whole the collection doesn’t quite work. It doesn’t feel complete; more a collection of strikingly repelling pieces forced into one building. On top of Saatchi’s poor efforts to bring gender politics into the art scene the pieces themselves are confusing and verging on ridiculous (with a few exceptions) making the exhibition one of the most disappointing I have seen at the gallery.

thecourieronline.co.uk/arts c2.arts@ncl.ac.uk | @CourierArts

Review: Eight by Melissa Wear

ight distinct individuals through fifteen-minute monologues introduced us to how intense emotion is. The inspiration draws from writer Ella Hickson’s survey of twenty-somethings in our generation. The wholly apathetic responses have brought about this explorative whirlwind of reflection. This play reviews the actualities of feelings that are blatantly relatable, as well as those that are absurdly distant. You will have met at least four of this spectrum of curiosities, who stem from distances of Liverpool and Surrey and carrying trades from soldiers to prisoners. Whilst Hickson’s poetry riveted and revolved the scenes, the small theatre offered an intimacy that allowed these poignant characters to catch my eye frequently enough. The opening act presents us with Danny, a soldier recently returned from Iraq. This scenario somehow manages to link a fixation on his mother’s profession as a graphic designer, the impact of moving to Preston, a bodybuilding obsession, and his tour of duty, all from the comforts of a morgue. Quite how these factors build upon one another requires some drawing of strings. Danny’s shocking injury to the fire of sound effects is gently guided into Geordie Jude’s story of his coming-of-age summer trip to the South of France. This transportation into the lusts of a teenage boy was even more enthralling than his suitcase of props that virtually assembled the set. This demonstrated Hickman’s ability to formalise inexpressible sentiments into physical words.

“The small theatre offered an intimacy that allowed these poignant characters to catch my eye frequently enough” Newcastle Gilbert & Sullivan Society

REVIEW: Patience

o put it simply, this play is brilliant. Whether I can say that I liked it or not, I’m not sure due to the themes and ideas that are raised in the play. But the questions that it put forward about our society are ones that we really should be thinking about. Our dependence on technology for one – the world that The Nether presents us with is a world where all aspects of our lives are online: businesses, schools, universities. Social interaction is limited almost entirely to the Nether. This new form of the internet has allowed the development of different realms in which there is complete sensory immersion, which leads to the focus of the play. How far can we really go in indulging our imaginations in a non-physical world? Where and what is the line? The Hideaway is one of the realms of the Nether. It is first described as completely idyllic, a return to the Victorian times of simplicity and the beauty of nature. It has, however, a far sinister purpose as it is revealed to be a place where paedophiles can go and fulfil their fantasies involving children – they are even encouraged to murder them with an axe at the end of their ‘sessions’. The Nether was a very dark and sinister offering by NUTS, but also completely amazing. I personally thought the cast performed their roles convincingly and to a high standard – Mr Sims (a.k.a Papa) changed from a cagey, nervous and irritated character into one that was thoroughly creepy, compelling and pitiful, while young Detective Morris was headstrong to start, but by the end dealing with darker parts of herself that she hadn’t known existed. By the end of the show, I was left a little uncomfortable at the thought of feeling pity for a paedophile, who was trying to make a place where he could be himself but not actually hurt anyone. That I was able to feel like this goes to show the brilliance of the play and the questions it provokes about ethical and moral behaviour and the acting itself.

efore I start, I do have to mention that this was my first foray into the world of Gilbert & Sullivan. I started off a bit doubtful that this would be my ‘thing’, but by the end, I was completely won over and I will be going back for more! In this 1950’s take on ‘Patience’, the story follows a high school crowd who are navigating their way through love, and what it mean. Reggie Bunthorne, school heart-throb, is followed by a gang of 20 “lovesick maidens”, who are determined to win his affectations at the cost of their former jock partners, The Dragoon Guards. ‘Patience’ was written to satirise the aesthetic movement of the 19th Century, which placed ideals of beauty above other more important social issues in works of art and literature. This is shown in the show through Reggie and his nemesis in love, Archibald Grosvenor, both poets/singers who idolise beauty and win over all the girls in school. These two roles were played brilliantly and were very convincing in their pontifications about love – though they were completely ridiculous! The comedic effect of the show was fantastic – I definitely wasn’t expecting anyone to run onto the stage dressed in nothing but Speedos… But it all worked, especially the routine of the jocks trying to become more ‘aesthetic’ and Rock ‘n’ Roll in their clothes and actions. The girls were also brilliant in their fawning over the two lead boys, highlighting the fickleness of love as they eventually went back to their old jock boyfriends at the High School Prom. Patience was also fantastic in her portrayal of a girl who really doesn’t understand what love means – she thinks that love has to be utterly unselfish and then makes herself completely miserable in the process. But of course, there was a happy ending to the show and Patience ended up with her true love, Archibald. I really thought that this production of ‘Patience’ by NUGSS was brilliant, and would definitely recommend anyone to go to their future productions. A fantastic show, and good luck to them in the summer when they perform at the International Gilbert and Sullivan Festival in Harrogate!

Katie Read

The equally relatable twenty-something Astrid invites us into the secrets of her adulterous equations. As her mute boyfriend rolls around in bed (or Millie’s kitchen table), the blur associated with black and white occurrences becomes evident. Whereas Mona, born to a Bohemian mother, draws upon the coexistence of divinity with desire. American stockbroker Miles lent ten pence to Hasib Mir Hussein to buy a Mars bar ten minutes before he boarded the bus to Hackney Wick and pressed ‘detonate’. I sympathised with the 2008 origins of a line on ‘earning more money than he knew what to do with’ that was teeth-grittingly Wolf of Wall Street. Meanwhile, upper-class seeming housewife Millie defends her family’s 500-year history in the trade of prostitution. She promises a pressed shirt, a roast dinner, and a bonk, all in under an hour. Yet, she conditions herself never to “bed a Beckham”. For me, the highlight of Eight was in the likeability of a skinhead Scouse prisoner whose eyes are perpetually squinting. He has Koumpounophobia, a fear of buttons incidentally shared with Steve Jobs, and an obsession for Victorian women. Hickson’s poetic syntax reaches his foul language and persuasive Scouse dialect (I have never been to Liverpool and my guest argued otherwise). This performance had a luring use of dynamics. The evening ended with Scottish single mother Bobby clad in a red Adidas tracksuit (non-vintage). As she establishes a jealousy and an admiration for her gently laughing and serene employer, the elderly Mrs Beaton, we are whisked into their kitchen of Christmas preparations and engulfed by an on-stage smell of oranges and the imagination of “cinnamon, spice and all things nice” as these opposing mothers unite on their longing to provide for their children. When this play debuted at Edinburgh Fringe, the audience were invited to pick just four characters to perform based on their initial appearance and a short description. Much of its beauty is in addressing the familiarity of human nature even in its most foreign guises. I am pleased that this rendition did not allow my preconceptions to interrupt an evening of absorbing inquisition.

ELECTIONS VOTING OPEN MONDAY 9AM TO THURSDAY 12PM Welfare & Equality OfďŹ cer Rachael Kitching Emily Wassell

Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m RACHAEL KITCHING, & I wish to be your next Welfare & Equality Officer!

Why vote Emily Wassell #1 for your Welfare and Equality Officer?

I aim to enable: De-stress! -YOGA. I aim to introduce yoga classes to the student campus during stressful exam periods. -HERBAL TEA GIVEAWAYS. Introducing alternatives to coffee, in the form of herbal tea that leaves you feeling energised during those latenight library sessions. -STRESSED OUT STUDENT EVENTS. I aim to continue events such as the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;puppy dayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; during exam periods.

"T BO BDUJWF GFNJOJTU -(#5 BXBSFOFTT campaigner and advocate for environmental sustainability, I have become moved, driven and motivated to be the voice for your student welfare and equality issues.

Wind-down time! -I aim to get rid of the 15 min rule between 11:30 - 2:30 in Robinson library. I aim to enable students to use printing credit for cafe facilities if they so choose. I will try to introduce re-fillable hot drinks in library cafĂŠs. Sexual Health Checks! -I aim to introduce a permanent sexual health facility in students union. Travel! -I will try to introduce bicycle hire for students across campus, as an effective way to encourage good physical health.

Ensure you receive the advice and support you need for: -Housing - create a forum for students to provide advice and discuss issues regarding landlords and estate agents, this will involve progressing the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Rate Your Landlordâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; scheme. -Exams â&#x20AC;&#x201C; continue the Stressed Out Students campaign, ensuring you receive support around exams, with freebies that will aid your studies and well-being.

Awareness! -In order to tackle discrimination, I aim to enhance awareness of inequalities relating to ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation and mental health during awareness week. -I aim to introduce a student board detailing all of the welfare activities/ services open to students.

Adam Brown

Introduce further campaigns to embrace diversity, equality and welfare: -Self-Care and Awareness week â&#x20AC;&#x201C;aimed at encouraging self-love and improving mental

well being for all students, as well as reducing the stigma associated with mental health. -Diversity week â&#x20AC;&#x201C;celebrating racial, sexual, gender, ability and cultural diversity. Educating the student body on the importance of understanding intersectionality. Addressing the use of derogatory language and how we can act to prevent this.

Hi Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m James Howlett and Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m looking to be you next Welfare and Equality Officer.

From the success of this year, I plan to continue;

-Work with the officers of all Welfare and Liberation societies to create a greater network in which ideas, problems & queries can be more easily communicated. Also raise awareness on issues regarding equality and liberation to minority/oppressed groups.

Continue campaigns that are vital to embracing diversity, equality and welfare: -S.H.A.G week -Go Green week -Black History Month -(#5 XFFL

James Howlett

My aims as Welfare & Equality Officer:

t 4 ) " ( XFFL BOE UIF GSFF DPOEPN MVCF campaign. t Ä&#x2021; F TUSFTTFE PVU TUVEFOUT DBNQBJHO JO XIJDI I will maintain to provide resources for students to help aid in their revision over exam periods, and provide stress relief in the forms of free tea and coffee or activities such as puppy petting. t -(#5 8FFL BOE IPQFGVMMZ FYQBOE JUT radius so that other universities can get involved t 5P QSPWJEF NFOUBM IFBMUI BXBSFOFTT BOE remove the stigmas associated so that students feel more comfortable in approaching the wellbeing services available. Also continue to improve the speed and access to these services. t Ä&#x2021; F QSPNPUJPO PG UIF 4UVEFOU )PVTJOH Database so bad landlords/Student homes can be called out and also provide information to students who have been mistreat by their landlords.

2016

I am: t" UIJSE ZFBS #JPDIFNJTUSZ 4UVEFOU t"O BWJE NFNCFS PG UIF -(#5 BOE /FXDBTUMF 6OJWFSTJUZ Ä&#x2021; FBUSF 4PDJFUJFT t" NFNCFS PG UIF 'SFTIFST XFFL BOE 3"( crews for 2015 and 2016 What would I aim to do? Helping students: -Continue with the Stressed out Students campaigns with hopes of making them more accessible throughout the year and not just during exam times. -Increase ease of access to counseling services for students with mental health problems and reduce waiting times in this area. - Include in fresherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s welcome packs a booklet overviewing the welfare side of our university, including information about the Mental wellbeing service and info about all the societies which represent minority/liberation groups and different religious groups. Vote Adam #1 For Welfare & Equality

Educating: -Continue with the amazing campaign weeks that highlight and tackle stereotypes and biases -(#5 XFFL %JTDPWFS *TMBN BOE FYQBOE PO this with further campaigns on causes that the students feel are not fully represented. -Make it easier for students who have faced inequality to come forward and discuss it openly.

Housing: -Introduce workshops to help students find estate agents that work for them and equip them to tackle any issues they may have with their housing/ landlords. Vote James No.1 for Welfare and Equality!! QMFBTFy

Editor of The Courier

Mark Sleightholm I believe I am the most experienced candidate â&#x20AC;&#x201C; as deputy editor I work with every part of the paper, and over the past three years I have written for various sections and got involved with TCTV and NSR, the filming and radio branches of Newcastleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s student media. Last year I was part of the team that were runners up at the Guardian Student Media Awards, but I believe I can make The Courier the best student paper in the country. I believe voting me your editor will give you: -More INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISM, to hold YOUR uni to account -UNPARALLELED SPORTS COVERAGE -More exposure for SOCIETIES, celebrating student interests and achievements -Unbiased reporting of STUDENT CAMPAIGNS and the issues that matter to you -Coverage of Newcastleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s diverse and vibrant ARTS AND CULTURE -A fresh look for The Courier with a PROFESSIONAL DESIGN -Opportunities to DEVELOP SKILLS, in writing, presenting, filming or editing -Better promotion of TCTV, which deserves a dedicated page on The Courierâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s website, and NSR -VIDEO CONTENT and more LIVE COVERAGE of important events -A greater SOCIAL MEDIA presence, for a stronger relationship between The Courier and its readers

For experience, dedication and innovation, VOTE MARK #1 FOR EDITOR

Eleanor McLaren )J * N &MMJF B -JUFSBUVSF TUVEFOU BOE * XPVME MPWF to be your new Editor. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m the Culture Editor for The Courier at the minute, so I already have an insight into the logistics of running the paper and coming up with ideas to engage the student body. If elected, I aim to: Put web first. Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been awarded for our abilities in print, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s about time we stepped into the 21st century and gave our website some TLC. I would: - elect a dedicated online editorial team - have a Facebook and Twitter page for each section with daily posts - publish exclusive online content Get social I want to give The Courier a social vibe to encourage more writers than ever before. There will be: - fortnightly events â&#x20AC;&#x201C; pub quizzes, nights out, talks with professionals - no cost to members - better relations between editors and writers, and across media platforms: NSR, Courier & TCTV Strive for SU Support we need to support and promote the hard work that goes into student media - have NSR streaming across the union building all day

- promote TCTV features on screens throughout the building with trailers and links for full shows

Dan Robertson

)J * N %BO 3PCFSUTPO BOE * E MJLF UP CF ZPVS Editor of the Courier! I have been the Courierâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Comment editor for the past year and a writer for two. Additionally, I am a PR and Media representative for a welfare society, on the Executive Education committee for the Union and try to get involved within as many Union activities as I can. My ambitions as Editor are: t$SFBUF B OFX 3&%&4*(/&% BOE GSFTI MBZPVU t"DUJWFMZ JOWPMWF 40$*&5*&4 DMVCT BOE individual students as writers, content generators and contributors within the student media; FTUBCMJTI B OFUXPSL QBHF GPS TPDJFUZ TQPSUT UFBN heads to supplement this. t(VBSBOUFF B XJEF 410354 $07&3"(& GPS BUCS, non-BUCS and inter-mural matches and establish a greater network of sports writers and specific sports reporters to cover a great diversity of sport coverage. t*ODSFBTF DPWFSBHF PO TUVEFOU JTTVFT DPODFSOJOH welfare, equality and student wellbeing. t&TUBCMJTI BO *--645"5*7& UFBN UP TVQQMFNFOU the pages of the Courier. t*ODSFBTF FODPVSBHFNFOU GPS BTQJSJOH XSJUFST BOE readership. t&YUFOE QVCMJD SFBEFSTIJQ FMFDUSPOJDBMMZ t%FWFMPQ HSFBUFS DP PQFSBUJPO CFUXFFO UIF Courier, NSR and TCTV. Vote Dan Robertson No. 1 for Editor of the Courier! VOTE #ROBBO

Jade Holroyd

)FMMP * N +BEF UIJSE ZFBS )JTUPSZ TUVEFOU BOE UIF Courierâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s current Arts Editor. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been involved with the Courier since starting uni and Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve contributed regularly to several sections including arts, lifestyle, comment, beauty, TV and fashion. Now, I want to be your Editor of the Courier. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d like to use my experience and passion for journalism to create the best possible newspaper for you. As your Editor, I aim to: 1. Ensure the Courier represents and celebrates the diversity of our students 2. Guarantee all content is of interest to the student readership *ODMVEF NPSF DMVC TPDJFUZ CBTFE DPOUFOU BDSPTT all student media 4. Improve the website and establish a solid online presence through social media 5. Introduce workshops for writers to maintain standards and establish a sense of community I also pride my active involvement within NUSU over the past 3 years and I believe I can use my knowledge to ensure that the Courier reflects your uni experience. I want to take YOUR ideas and YOUR interests to give YOU a voice. For a newspaper that represents you, vote Jade #1 for your Editor of the Courier.

Jamie Shepherd

Who the hell is Jamie Shepherd? Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been music editor for the last two years. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been publicity officer and president of MACSoc. I present Bigg Market Banter and Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve also appeared on NSR news. In first year I stole Best Critic at the Media Awards and since then Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been debating whether itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s acceptable to put â&#x20AC;&#x153;award winning journalistâ&#x20AC;? on my Tinder profile (I decided not). Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve also wrote for various other regional publications. Why should I vote Jamie #1? I aim to: t" EFEJDBUFE TQBDF JO UIF QBQFS UP QSPNPUF campaigns and address student well-being. t" GPPE BOE ESJOL TFDUJPO UP TBWF ZPV GSPN UIF horrors of Eat4Less. t" DMVC OJHIUMJGF TFDUJPO UP LFFQ ZPV SBWFST informed about all to the best events from disco to donk. t" XFFLMZ FEJUPS T GPSVN UP HP PWFS XIBU ZPV XBOU covered in the paper with an open door policy. t)PTUJOH XSJUFS T XPSLTIPQT UP CPPTU UIF BMSFBEZ phenomenal quality. t*NQSPWFE BOE FYDMVTJWF POMJOF DPOUFOU XJUI UIF aim of developing a shiny and proper fancy new app. t%ZOBNJD BOE EFEJDBUFE NVMUJ NFEJB 48"5 UFBN specialising in up to date events, news, BUCS and

increased intra-mural sports coverage so you know the goss as soon as it happens.

President of The Students’ Union Saffron Kershaw-Mee Jack Taylor VOTE JACK TAYLOR FOR PRESIDENT I’m Jack Taylor and I would love to be your next President of the Students’ Union. I want your student experience to be as fantastic as possible. I am personable, driven and enthusiastic and will use my skills learned within senior positions in the Athletic Union to represent the whole student population.

Hello! I’m Saffron, a 2nd year Media and English Lit student. I would be stoked if you voted for me as President! I have put all of my efforts into my SU roles as: Activities Assistant, Community Rep, FilmSoc and Chapter Chat Secretary And previous roles of: Hall Rep President, Student Ambassador, Scrutiny Committee Member and Social Media Officer for FemSoc.

Making University Affordable I want to campaign to reverse the government’s recent decision to abolish maintenance grants. I also want to reduce the cost of new accommodation to reduce the issue of financial constraints.

Through this vast experience and interaction with students, I know how vital it is that YOU feel represented, listened to and most importantly can enjoy your time with NUSU. I will achieve this through: * NUSUpdate APP: this bit of kit will include exclusive deals for NUSU students. You’ll be able to subscribe to receive notifications for upcoming SU gigs, student council meetings, GIAG/Go Play events and more! * INTERNATIONAL CELEBRATION: I will celebrate the diversity of our students through running World Week 2017, a festival to spotlight the uni’s global influence! * REPRESENTATION & SUPPORT: Times can be difficult for students with recent cuts etc. I will ensure the Union reflects all student opinions on issues relating to their education and wellbeing

The Student and the Union I will promote sports, societies and other union initiatives to increase extracurricular engagement. There is a wealth of opportunity on our door step; I want to make sure you guys know about it.

including the marginalised, working-class, mature, post-grad and international students. Vote for Saff: NUSU’s next leading role!

Jack Paisley

A Home from Home I want to introduce microwaves, extra locker space, free tea and coffee during exam periods

and more affordable food to make the difference while you study.

Chris Young

PAISLEY FOR PRESIDENT

Howay man! I hope you’re well. I’m Chris Young and I am running for NUSU President to make the university a better place for you!

#ShakeItUpPaisley I’m Jack Paisley and I want to be your next Student Union PRESIDENT. The time I’ve spent at Newcastle has been the best three years of my life, and I want you to have the same experience.

The NUSU is one of the best nationally; but here are 5 points you may, like me, think would help improve our Union:

About Me * A dedicated member of the Hockey club for three years and currently the 1st XI captain. * 3rd Year Ancient History Student. * Student Ambassador involved in promoting our university in videos on the website and in person at open days. My Ideas * An app/website for you to sell or buy books, bikes or anything else you want to get rid of or need to buy (all in an attempt to save you money). * A huge push on anti-stress throughout the year, not just during exam period. This would include dog days, massage tutorials and more- something at the beginning of each month. * More events in Mens Bar throughout the day such as quizzes and music from students to make Mens Bar your first choice of hangout between lectures. * Housing. I want to keep up the work done this year with local letting agencies to help you secure

Supporting our Students I want to support as many student campaigns as possible, especially related to current affairs. I also want to increase awareness of student wellbeing and mental health services to combat an issue so prevalent in society today.

the best deals for houses around the Toon.

1) Improve our student feedback service to avoid spamming and ensure all Student Staff Committees (SSC) are better heard and communicated with 2) Create a university-wide textbook exchange so that students can buy or sell second-hand textbooks and continue investment into green energy and green industry at Newcastle University 3) Further integrate post-graduate and international students but also ensure all students, regardless of background, are made to feel welcome 4) Further promote and showcase our own talented societies around the university and outside as well as better advertise our sports team results and their upcoming fixtures 5) Make the Union more transparent so that students have a clearer and more detailed understanding of, for example, what our tuition fee money is being spent on I am a team player who is hard-working, very approachable with vast amounts of experience.

Vote Chris for NUSU President and let’s have a great year in 2016/2017!

www.nusu.co.uk/vote

Athletic Union OfďŹ cer Sophie Matthews * N 4PQIJF .BUUIFXT BOE * XBOU UP CF ZPVS OFYU Athletic Union Officer! * N B UIJSE ZFBS (FPHSBQIZ TUVEFOU BOE 5SFBTVSFS of the Tennis Club. I have participated in sport since day one of my University experience and have loved every second of it. I feel my enthusiasm can ensure a great sporting experience for everyone! VISIONS Wednesday Timetable Rescheduling * Work with timetabling services to ensure Wednesday afternoons are kept free so minimal teaching is missed. * Ensuring ReCap is available for all Wednesday teaching sessions. Participation and Variety * Increase the variety of intramural sports to promote a larger, more inclusive sporting community. *OUSPEVDF NPSF TQPSUT UP UIF (P1MBZ TDIFNF BOE build on their good work. * Increase promotion of all clubs and AU opportunities. (SBOUT BOE 3FXBSET * Bonuses for clubs who show great development, improvement and teamwork over the season. 5SZ UP NFFU UIF Ä&#x2022; OBODJBM OFFET PG BMM DMVCT OP matter how big or small. Facilities * Ensure clubs have increased access to training facilities both on and off campus that are of a high

standard. * Continue to work on the development of the Sports Centre and improvement of training grounds. VOTE SOPHIE #1 FOR ATHLETIC UNION OFFICER (*7& 5)& 5301): 50 401)*&

Calum Wilson

About me: Hi Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m Calum Wilson and Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m campaigning to be ZPVS OFYU "6 0Ä? DFS * N B SE ZFBS (FPHSBQIZ TUVEFOU 4QPSUT &EJUPS BU Ä&#x2021; F $PVSJFS BOE DP creator of â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;ComeOutAndPlayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;, a social campaign which aims to tackle homophobia in sport. Experience: * BN DVSSFOUMZ 4QPSUT &EJUPS BU Ä&#x2021; F $PVSJFS BOE * have been heavily involved with sport at Newcastle University for the last 2 years. I have been working hard to increase press coverage of all sports at Newcastle. Unlike other candidates, I am not BÄ? MJBUFE UP KVTU POF DMVC SBUIFS * IBWF XPSLFE with a whole range of clubs, observing, listening and reporting on the key issues and development of all sports at Newcastle. Aims: )FSF T B QPJOU QMBO PG XIBU * XPVME XBOU UP achieve as AU Officer: * Equal representation Ensure all clubs and students are fairly represented. * Wednesdays afternoons free Keep your Wednesday afternoons free for sport and activities. * Promote equality Work closely withEqualities Officer to create fairer sporting environments. * Facility development Ensure students have their say on key sports facility upgrades.

.Z OBNF JT $)-0& #6350/ BOE * XBOU UP CF ZPVS "$5*7*5*&4 0''*$&3 * DBSF BCPVU the students here; past, present and future and Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m very dedicated to making sure that everyoneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s university experience is the best it can be. Society involvement: t 'SFTIFST BOE 3"( $SFX BOE 4VQFSWJTPS t 4PDJBM 4FDSFUBSZ GPS '*-.40$ t 1SPEVDFS BOE 4UBHF .BOBHFS JO /FXDBTUMF 6OJWFSTJUZ Ä&#x2021; FBUSF 4PDJFUZ t -(#5 BOE .JOVUF 4PDJFUZ NFNCFS .Z BJNT .03& 3&$0(/*5*0/ GPS UIF IBSE XPSL BOE time people put into societies t *OUSPEVDF B TPDJFUZ PG UIF NPOUI BXBSE t 1SPNPUF UIF BOOVBM ODM BXBSE BOE /FXDBTUMF Pride awards to recognise individual commitment .03& 4611035 GPS CPUI OFX BOE FTUBCMJTIFE societies t .PSF BENJOJTUSBUJWF BOE Ä&#x2022; OBODJBM TVQQPSU especially for large societies t &ODPVSBHF TUVEFOUT UP WPMVOUFFS CPUI XJUI BOE outside the university t .PSF SFHVMBS 4PDJFUZ 0Ä? DFS 5SBJOJOH GPS Presidents, Secretaryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s and Treasurers and encourage them to run for Societies Executive committee .03& */5&3"$5*0/ CFUXFFO TPDJFUJFT BOE UIF union t *OUSPEVDF NPSF CPPLBCMF SPPNT BMM BSPVOE

campus for societies t0SHBOJTF NPSF TPDJFUZ JOUFSBDUJPO XJUI /43 5$57 BOE Ä&#x2021; F $PVSJFS t"DUJWFMZ FODPVSBHF QPTUHSBEVBUF BOE JOUFSOBUJPOBM involvement t*OUSPEVDF TUVEFOU A)BWF :PVS 4BZ POMJOF QPMMT and actively promote Student Council VOTE CHLOE BURTON #1 FOR ACTIVITIES Feel certain with Burton!

Katherine Powell

* Participation Encourage students to get involved with Intra .VSBM (P 1MBZ )BMM 4QPSUT BOE *ODMVTJWF Newcastle. 705& $"-6.

Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m Katy Powell and I want to be your ACTIVITIES OFFICER Experience t4FDSFUBSZ PG %BODF 4PDJFUZ t8PSLJOH UPXBSET /$- "XBSE t'SFTIFST $SFX BOE 3BH $SFX TVQFSWJTPS t&SBTNVT TUVEFOU JO 'SBODF t'SFTIFST $SFX BOE 3BH $SFX NFNCFS t4UVEFOU NFOUPS GPS .PEFSO -BOHVBHFT TUVEFOUT 2013 .Z BJNT BSF UPy Increase awareness of volunteering and charity $SFBUF MJOLT CFUXFFO TPDJFUJFT BOE (P 7PMVOUFFS 4FU WPMVOUFFSJOH BOE DIBSJUZ UBSHFUT WJB UIF "EPQU a Charity scheme Further integration of international students )BWJOH CFFO BO &SBTNVT TUVEFOU * N BXBSF PG the struggles of living abroad. I therefore want to IFMQ FOTVSF JOUFSOBUJPOBM TUVEFOUT KPJO TPDJFUJFT and socialise early on, such as by increasing their QBSUJDJQBUJPO JO 3"( BOE 'SFTIFST DSFX Provide ongoing support for societies throughout whole year $SFBUF B NPSF FÄ? DJFOU BOE FÄ&#x152; FDUJWF SPPN CPPLJOH system in the Union. 4FU VQ ESPQ JO TFTTJPOT GPS DPNNJUUFF NFNCFST to give suggestions on changes they would like to see in the way that societies are run.

shaping how all sport happens here at Newcastle University. KPTGPSCPTT

Hey! Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m REBECCA WALKER and Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d love to be next years ACTIVITIES OFFICER! Bursting with enthusiasm and a constant smile, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d love more than anything to represent you and everything activities related here at Newcastle, making 2016/17 a year to remember with all activities and societies being accessible to all students for an unforgettable university experience. PERSONAL EXPERIENCE: t)JUDI 1SFTJEFOU t3"( $PNNJUUFF 3"( $SFX t.VTJDBM Ä&#x2021; FBUSF 5FBDIFS %BODF 4PDJFUZ t'SFTIFS T 8FFL 4VQFSWJTPS %PSPUIZ Wizard of Oz), Fresherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Crew 2014 t#JPNFEJDBM 4DJFODFT 4UVEFOU .FOUPS ."*/ "*.4 1) Wider Participation t*ODFOUJWF GPS BMM TUVEFOUT UP TJHO VQ UP BU MFBTU POF society t*ODSFBTF NFNCFSTIJQ PG TUVEFOU NJOPSJUJFT t"O FYUSB EBZ BOE NPSF TUBMMT BU 'SFTIFS T 'BJS t"OPUIFS $PNQBOJFT 'BJS JO TFNFTUFS UXP t"UUFNQU UP FOBCMF NPSF HSBEVBUJOH TUVEFOUT UIF PQQPSUVOJUZ UP BUUFOE (SBE CBMM (SFBUFS 1VCMJDJUZ t"DUJWFMZ QSPNPUF FWFSZUIJOH BDUJWJUJFT SFMBUFE 4UVEFOU DPVODJM ODM (JWF JU B (P (P 7PMVOUFFS t$SFBUF BO "DUJWJUJFT "QQ t4PDJFUZ TIPXDBTF WJEFPT TIPXFE BSPVOE DBNQVT

Josiah Herbert

Since winning Clash of the Titans at Kingston Park as a Fresher, Newcastle University Sport has CFFO UIF EFÄ&#x2022; OJOH JOÄ&#x2DC; VFODF JO NZ UJNF IFSF * KVTU BCTPMVUFMZ MPWF JU *OKVSZ IBT TUPQQFE NF QMBZJOH but with 2 years serving on both the Rugby committee and on AU exec I have strived to make NZ NBSL PO VOJWFSTJUZ TQPSU Ä&#x2021; FTF BSF NZ NBJO aims for my term as AU Officer: * To continue Calebâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s legacy in developing and delivering an inclusive sports program. 5P TVQQPSU "OHVT XPSL JO Ä&#x2022; HIUJOH GPS UIF protection of Wednesdays to allow students to SJHIUGVMMZ QBSUJDJQBUF XJUIPVU KFPQBSEJ[JOH UIFJS degree. * To support Performance Sports and encourage their growth and success whilst investing in /PO 1FSGPSNBODF 4QPSU UISPVHI JNQSPWFE communication channels, funding and increased opportunities to create a more professional environment. 5P XPSL DMPTFMZ XJUI .J[VOP UP JNQSPWF UIF TQSFBE PG UIF LJU QBSUOFSTIJQ UP CFOFÄ&#x2022; U CPUI QBSUJFT * To build the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Team Newcastleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; brand, to be top 10 in university sport. I believe it is critical to play for TPNFUIJOH CJHHFS UIBO KVTU ZPVS JOEJWJEVBM DMVC I want my term to be distinctive in positively

Activities OfďŹ cer Chloe Burton

*ODSFBTF SFDPHOJUJPO PG FYUSB DVSSJDVMBS BDUJWJUJFT #PPTU BXBSFOFTT PG UIF CFOFÄ&#x2022; UT PG UIF /$- award. Let me be your superhero. Vote Powell #1 for Activities!

Rebecca Walker

t&YQBOE TPDJFUZ BXBSET .PSF 4VQQPSU t 5P OFXMZ SBUJÄ&#x2022; FE TPDJFUJFT t 4VQQPSU 3"( XFFL BOE TPDJFUZ GVOESBJTJOH t "EEJUJPOBM IFMQ UP TUSVHHMJOH TPDJFUJFT Please VOTE REBECCA WALKER #1 for ACTIVITIES OFFICER! You wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t regret it!

Education Ofﬁcer Abdullahi Kawu

Hi, I am Abdullahi Abubakar, I am excited and most willing to serve and represent you as Education Officer in NUSU! Giving my relevant experiences, bold ideas and sustained passion, you are right to Vote Abdullahi as your Education Officer! My recent role as a Course Rep is indicative among others. Find below my proposal:

Vote Chris Duddy #1 for Education! I endeavour to introduce the following: YOUR EDUCATION: * LIBRARY FEEDBACK – Discover & rectify where our libraries fall short * PC CLUSTERS – Extended opening hours * COMBINED HONOURS – Improved communication between schools to avoid module clashes * MARKING - Clear guidance on what markers expect.

Exams: Exam question papers returned to every student shortly after exams. A faster alternative identification process during exams, in case a person’s ID card is missing or forgotten at home, he/she should be identified at the venue.

‘Breeze Dump it Wall’; walls around the campus which student can dump thoughts and feedback anonymously.

I’m Chris Duddy and I believe I am your ideal candidate to take on the role of Education Officer 2016/2017! With experience at both Students Union and Society level, I believe I am best suited to represent your academic needs. My determination and enthusiasm for the role will improve Newcastle University for all students.

Facilities: Use of Lapel-Clip/Wireless microphone in ReCap Venues by teaching staff to reduce interferences. Bicycles owned by the university which can either be freely provided to or be hired by students as a way of getting around campus. More days within the week for free Bicycle Support Services (repairs and maintenance).

Generally, Send email with Monthly doodles and infographics about student personal development tips, news and exciting moments on campus. Tailored Student-led Open Days for students & the community!

Chris Duddy

YOUR COURSE: * ANONYMOUS FEEDBACK – Ensure students have a voice with a direct link to course reps. * RECAP – Too many courses opt-out of Recap. I hope to persuade these courses to opt-in for the benefit of all students. So go for it, let’s do this, VOTE Abdullahi for Education Officer!

Beth Robertson

I’m Beth Robertson and I would absolutely love to be your next Education Officer. Being part of the Education Executive Committee, Societies Executive Committee and Student Council means I have a good insight into the areas where improvement is needed.

YOUR SOCIETY: * TRAINING – Refined training programme to ensure school reps have complete confidence. YOUR UNIVERSITY: * UNITY – Improve the links with our London and Malaysian Campuses. * INCLUSION – Encourage greater dialogue with PGT students.

Experience: > Eldon Society President & Law Course Rep 2015/2016 > Eldon Society Sports Secretary 2014/2015 > Freshers Crew Supervisor 2015/2016 > Freshers Crew Member 2014/2015

Tom Gordon

TOM GORDON for Education Officer 2016

Hi, my name’s Tom Gordon and I’m running to be your Education Officer, yes, again! I’m endlessly dedicated, enthusiastic and have the experience needed to be the best Education Officer yet! Here are a few tasters for fantastic policies I would aim to see introduced at NUSU:

My main aims: DIVERSITY * To create a survey into student satisfaction on the diversity of their curriculum. * Use findings to campaign for greater diversity.

INCREASED FEEDBACK: -Return of your exam scripts -Feedback via email

EQUAL ACCESS TO RESOURCES * Ensuring all students have equal opportunity to access study spaces and learning materials. * Raise awareness to staff on the benefits of RECAP to encourage greater use.

REDUCED COSTS: -Fewer hidden unavoidable in-course fees -A text book cooperative providing huge discounts for essential course materials

STANDING UP FOR THE RIGHT TO HIGHER EDUCATION * Use my position to speak out for students against changes in the government’s education policy which threaten the fairness and quality of your education.

IMPROVED FACILITIES -RECAP for every course and every lecture

FEEDBACK * More tutorials, greater detail and quicker turn around.

encourages you to come and speak to me about issues that affect your education and help tackle them together always.

MOST IMPORTANTLY - A FRIEND HERE FOR YOU * To ensure my approachable, friendly nature

I sincerely believe I can do a great job for every student and would really appreciate your support in helping me achieve this – vote Beth for #1!

YOUR VOICE -Raise awareness of school & course reps -Drop-in clinics with school & course reps and your Education Officer Unfortunately, I’m stuck in labs 9am-6pm all of January & February making campaigning extremely challenging, but watch out for me online and please vote for policy not popularity! In the meantime feel free to check out last year’s campaign video: https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=MDw2swZB4nQ

Your education matters to me. Vote Tom Gordon, one more time! If you have any further questions, suggestions or queries please drop me and email at t.gordon@ncl. ac.uk !

National Union of Studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Delegates There are three positions for this role. Cynthia Adiele Oras Al-Ani

Hello! My name is Cynthia Adiele; I am a 3rd year student of Economics. In simple terms, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d describe myself as friendly/approachable, outspoken yet polite, resilient and meticulous. I wish to Represent you as an NUS delegate come this April in Bristol. WHY VOTE FOR ME Having served as a course rep, student ambassador and student mentor for the university, I have not only gained but applied good inter personal skills through my encounters with stakeholders of the system and have also enhanced my understanding of the major concerns of students both within and aspiring. I have served as a racial equality officer (2014-2015), through this I have helped the union in organizing various integrating events and learned first-hand about the politics of student union. AIMS AT THE CONFERENCE I would, t $POUJOVF UP PQQPTF UIF */$3&"4& */ '&&4 for both home and international students, and further canvas for FREE tuition for undergraduate as Finland, Norway and 3 others countries have. t 4USPOHMZ QSPQPTF B GBJSFS USFBUNFOU PG international students in accessing part time work(hours) and even post degree job opportunity. t 1SPQPTF GPS B 7&3#"- DPVSTFXPSL GFFECBDL to all students who wants such. VOTE FOR ME, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;M HERE TO HEAR YOU!

Victoria Armstrong Hi, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m Victoria, your current Editor of The Courier, and I want to be your representative at the NUS conference. I believe that the NUS should be an effectual voice for students nationally, and focus on helping tackle key student issues. However, I believe it remains mired in bureaucracy and inefficiency, frequently seeming entirely oblivious to alternative perspectives, and is entirely unable to run successful campaigns. I believe it is important to challenge this. I think that the NUS should be focusing on promoting LGBT+ equality, the adoption of sensible drugs policy, divestment from fossil fuels, and an increased awareness of the prevalence of mental health issues. If my views reflect yours, please vote Victoria #1 for NUS Delegate.

WHY SHOULD YOU VOTE?

hy should you vote in this yearsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; NUSU election? Well, despite appearances, the candidates are not peddling for a future in the production of lowbudget music videos, door-todoor sales or high street flyering. The ÂŁ18,000 wage is of course a good incentive but the chance to represent you and every other student at Newcastle to the University is at the heart of this role. Because of this, it is really important to flood to the polls â&#x20AC;&#x201C; via your phone, tablet, computer, carrier pigeon if you so wish â&#x20AC;&#x201C; and pick out the candidates who you think will work best for you, and

represent your views within the Union. The Sabbatical Officers have the ability to affect real change that you want to see, whether thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s by getting more support for sports and societies, helping you feel represented with the University, reporting on the matters you care about, or dealing with issues affecting your education or personal welfare. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s likely that at least one of these areas will concern you at one point during your degree, so take a few minutes to peruse the manifestos now!

Vote Oras for Self-defining Women * N 0SBT "M "OJ B UIJSE ZFBS 1I% TUVEFOU BU ETM Group, School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering. I want to be one of the NUS delegates to represent Newcastle University students at the annual National Union of Studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; (NUS) conference. Why me? 4DIPPM SFQ GPS 1I% SFTFBSDI TUVEFOUT JO UIF school of Electrical & Electronic Engineering 2015/2016. -Event coordinator of Annual Research Conference (ARC 2016) at Newcastle University. -IEEE Student Branch Committee member (role: women in engineering), 2016. - Committee Member of the Iraqi Student Society at Newcastle University (150+ members), 2014. Organised several social activities. - Worked as a lecturer in the College of Electrical and Electronic Techniques/Foundation of Technical Education, Iraq. -Member of Al-Kindi Society for Engineers, London, UK. 1BSUJDJQBOU JO B HSPVQ NFFUJOH UP EJTDVTT UIF matters that related to supporting females in science and technology, 15 October 2014. - Member of IEEE and IET. - Member of Iraqi Students Society (IQSS), UK. I believe that I can employ my skills and wide experiences to represent Newcastle University in the annual National Union of Studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; (NUS) conference, 2016.

The Courier

featuretv.23

Monday 22 February 2016

Stuck in ﬁrst gear? After the dramatic exit of Jeremy Clarkson and co. last year, Top Gear is set to return to our screens in July with a brand new line up. Ritwik Sarkar has a look at the seven new faces to see if they can match their predecessors

ome say the BBC have lost their marbles, and that bringing in seven new presenters is a great idea, all we know is, it’s not going to go down well. Chris Evan’s appointment as the host of the rebooted Top Gear series, served as the death-knell for the show’s previous format, as all three hosts exited the show, following the firing of Jeremy Clarkson. Lead presenter Chris Evans has a good reputation of replacing former hosts, replacing the late

Terry Wogan in the presenter’s chair on the Radio 2 breakfast show. Things initially looked quite bad for Radio 2, as after a brief ‘honeymoon’ period, Evans shed one million listeners in 2010. By 2014 though, he’d turned things around and was hitting record highs. BBC will no doubt bank on lightning striking twice, although the task is a lot more daunting for two simple words –Jeremy Clarkson No stranger to controversy, Jeremy Clarkson set the foundations for the show, that became Brit-

ain’s greatest export since Lancashire cotton. Evans has already taken a few jabs at the man he’s replaced, and while it might be light-hearted, it shows that Evans’ confidence is not on cloud nine. Evans aside, BBC thought it a masterstroke to add six more presenters in an effort to provide better representation. The new cast contains motoring journalist Rory Reid, and former F-1 driver and pundit Eddie Jordan, a seemed to make sense. Fan favourite, Sabine Schmitz, is likely to add an extra dimension to the show, as she is both a current racing driver, and a delightful on-screen presence. Her lapping of the Nurburgring in a van still serves as one of the show’s fondest memories, and one that many would like to see happen again.

“No stranger to controversy, Jeremy Clarkson set the foundations for the show, that became Britain’s greatest export since Lancashine cotton” Then however, came Matt LeBlanc. The collective female audience abused their star-struck emojis at the announcement. The announcement however seemed to draw the collective ire from the core motoring fans of the world. While that may be a sexist statement, the V-8 testosterone fuelled fan base that has made the show what it is, might need more convincing. While a motoring enthusiast in his own right, LeBlanc’s appointment was possibly made to drive up their presence in the United States, where a combination of US Top Gear’s inability to achieve mainstream success, combined with Clarkson’s unsavoury comments about the nation has not endeared the show to the American majority. The show did receive some positive PR from former host James May, commenting that he’d

‘like to see Chris Evans’ Top Gear do well’. He added further that ‘there must be a way of reinventing it. We always said it would survive beyond us.’ May’s comments however highlighted BBC’s biggest problem with the show- Its promotion. Rather than showing who the presenters are to the audience beyond England, they’ve taken to re-publishing old Top Gear videos starring the previous hosts, adding more hype to the Amazon re-make starring those very personalities. Furthermore, Evans had stated that ‘The car, is going to be the star’ of the new show. Referring quite evidently to the electric chemistry of the show’s former hosts, Evan’s has made a critical erroring judging the show he’s about to adopt. Top Gear was never a show solely about cars. It was about ‘Three middle-aged blokes, going on an adventure” and that in essence is what had people hooked. If people wanted an informative show about cars, they’d have watched Fifth Gear, Top Gear’s far less successful cousin. The point of rebooting something successful, is acknowledging what made it good, and building a new framework with that in mind Though it’s easy to label the new show a ‘failure’ before it beings, the shows old format, a brainchild of Clarkson, was a bold step to recover the show after half a decade of failing ratings. In order to make this reboot a success, Evans and co. will have to really push the envelope and deliver a new interpretation of a show that a lot of people know, and don’t want messed with. With seven presenters however, it almost seems like the BBC are grossly over compensating, by throwing everything at a wall and hoping that some of it sticks. The new Amazon show will hang over BBC’s reboot like the ghost of Christmas past, but the BBC have proven themselves a creative workforce time and time again. Time will inevitably tell if their gamble pays off, but as things stand, the beddingin period could well serve as the shows death knell.

Seriously uncool or sub-zero?

We asked our writers to share their thoughts on the new era for everyone’s favourite motoring show Top Gear is one of the most infectious shows ever to grace our screens, the ‘golden trio’ (Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, and James May) making an otherwise motor-filled petrolheaded programme entertaining for people of all ages. It is due to these presenters, who bring their comic genius week after week, that the show has been so successful, it winning numerous National Television Awards, and ultimately making Sunday nights a little more bearable as Monday morning quickly approaches. But alas, sometimes being so successful can make the presenters a little hot headed, and punching your producer in the face is the only way to deal with such emotions. Thus with the sacking of Clarkson, Hammond and May followed in his footsteps and quit the show, Amazon Prime offering them a job presenting an as yet unnamed Top Gear-like programme. The BBC aren’t finished with Top Gear, however, and have decided to replace the ‘golden trio’ with the ‘magnificent seven’, the new line-up including radio presenter Chris ‘I would never replace Jeremy Clarkson’ Evans and Friends star Matt LeBlanc, who is known to be a keen car-lover. Joining these two are motor journalist Chris Harris, TV presenter Rory Reid, Formula 1 commentator Eddie Jordan, and racing driver Sabine Schmitz, becoming the show’s first female presenter in 15 years. With the new series being tipped to move from BBC Two to a prime time BBC One slot, there are clearly high expectations, although it is likely that there will be changes to the format of the show, the focus being primarily on the cars. Will it be as successful as they’re hoping? We’ll soon find out.

Robyn Colclough

Top Gear ceased to exist the moment Jeremy Clarkson decked that guy over a steak (or whatever the reason for fisticuffs was). You can’t get rid of everything that is quintessential to a show’s premise and still sell it as the same thing. Just because the BBC have mainTop Gear’ and still have tained the rights to the title ‘Top a crash helmet-clad, jumpsuit-wearing guy (probably a randomer off the street) driving fast cars, doesn’t meant they have won this battle. Chris Evans still thinks he’s as good as he thought he was in the nineties, in the heyday of TGIF and his radio career, and when Billie Piper still hung on his arm. He’s 20 years older now, a bit chubbier, and even less funny. Matt le Blanc is only funny when people give him the funny lines to say, and what does he have to do with cars? It is literally like the BBC have dipped into their pool of TV cast offs and hoped for the best, because hiring le Blanc makes no sense. No one wants to see Joey Tribbiani in his 50s driving a Ford Fiesta instead of his beloved Porsche-a. And the rest of them? I couldn’t name them to you or recall their faces even if you held a gun to my head. That’s not to say I think Clarkson and co have ‘won’ either. Both parties are clinging onto something when it’s already dead. Who even has an Amazon Prime account? Ellie McLaren

Top Gear have just announced their new presenting line up, and it’s certainly a lot more comprehensive than the original. The SEVEN strong presenting team seems to be the BBC’s secret weapon against their former employees and their forthcoming Amazon Prime motoring show. The appointment of Matt LeBlanc certainly got the twittersphere talking. I personally don’t know how I feel about an American taking on a role in what has had such a strongly British feel to it for so long now. I can only suspect that the BBC wanted someone so well know to a global audience so that they can keep the good ship Top Gear going, after all it is a massive cash cow for them. I am however really excited, ecstatic that Sabine Schmitz is joining the show. Of course, some people accused the BBC of ticking boxes, and having a token women (god forbid) on the show. Yet I feel the complete opposite about her appointment. She genuinely knows her cars, she lives and breathes motorsport. She is a true petrolhead, and the person that I can see having the most promise. She’ll be a welcome accompaniment to the god-awful Chris Evans, who seems to be able to rub people up the wrong way wherever he goes. Hopefully Sabine will move to become a main presenter. I can’t really see all seven presenters lasting long, they’ll see how things go and hopefully cut down the line up when they inevitably realise that it’s just too much. If they don’t, I suppose they could all go on tour as a seven piece band, a-la S Club 7. Jack Parker

Chinese New Year

24.artsfeature

Monday 22 February 2016

The Courier

Feeling the New Year here

Georgie Morgan gives us her take on the city festival’s atmosphere

alking down via St James’ Park I could hear the festival drums beating and could see crowds gathering on a sunny day in Newcastle’s Chinatown. One of only five Chinatowns in England. This Chinese New Year celebrates the incoming of the year of the monkey. I joined the substantial crowds that were watching the traditional dragon dance in time to the drums and cymbals lifting its head up and down and kicking out its legs by the Chinatown gateway. Everyone seemed to be enjoying the performance which ended with fire crackers lighting up the streets and filling the sky with bangs. The event was mainly spectated by families with plenty of children on their father’s shoulders giggling in joy as it also started to snow, but the show carried on despite the cold conditions. There were some stalls where I bought a brightly coloured paper dragon on sticks that you can open and move around as you wish. Other traditional Chinese decorations were on sale such as bold red hanging lanterns, monkey masks and tiny drums known as Den-Den Daiko drums, which are originally a Japanese pellet drum but is also used throughout Asia. It has two heads and is suspended on a rod, with beads or pellets hanging on threads on either sides of the body of the drum which when twisted hit the drum which fills the air with noise. The atmosphere was buzzing as I followed the

Georgie Morgan

Bianca Ionici

crowd to a street filled with Asian restaurants where there was another dragon parade. The air was filled with the smell of Chinese food and the dragon was going from shop to shop dancing, even venturing inside to dance for the customers. Outside every restaurant it seemed to have some sort of offering as the dragon started eating lettuce and throwing it up in the air as people tried to get better viewing point, hanging out of the windows of the car park above. In the road, it was quite hard to see but as the dragon went from place to place I was able to get to the front and was lucky enough to have it walk straight past me which was slightly scary as it’s face it quite terrifying when up close with crazy eyes and brightly coloured patterns. Further down the street there was a small fairground with rides such as spinning teacups and a bouncy slide. There were stalls selling Chinese crafts and foods. I indulged in buying some noodles and dumplings for lunch at a very reasonable price and despite the long queue I was served quickly. There were also other stalls selling somewhat untraditional fish and chips and candy floss. All in all, it was a fun afternoon out celebrating the new year with a light, friendly atmosphere full of dancing and bright colours and delicious food and I would recommend everyone to attend next year. My advice would be to get there a bit early to get a good spot to watch the events.

Bianca Ionici

A Brief History of the Chinese New Year by Charlotte Firth

W Yiwei Shan

Yiwei Shan

alking down via St James’ Park I could hear New Year in Asia is something to be marvelled at, with its countless things to do and varied images to see. Each year the festival coincides with vibrant coloured arrangements and delicately formed set pieces. It only takes one look at this festival to become engaged with the vivid reds and cultural significance of this event. Whether it is focused on the costume designs, or in the minute details. There’s no doubt that such a festival is rich in artistic licence and beautifully crafted decals: with every area polished and decorated to a tee. Rows of lanterns hang, often lining the streets in a dull glow, as the parade of bounties beneath them. Each person adorned in a mix of gold and red tints. This semblance outfits the festivals, beckoning the new spring and the coloured costumes that swim through the parade as the dragons, or lions, are floated down the streets. It’s not just the visual arts that are established in this period. With each day of the festival there is a rich display of flavours and culinary arts. A range of foods are prepared, all of which are beautifully showcased throughout the festivities, with flavoured dumplings and rice cakes up for offer.

Yiwei Shan

Bianca Ionici

The Courier

artsfeature.25

Monday 22 February 2016

Celebrating the Year of the Monkey Yiwei Shan describes the cross-culture at a New Year party her student accommodation

n 12th February, Newcastle 1, a student accommodation of Derwent Student Company, held a Chinese New Year celebration at common room. The room was filled with red and had a cozy atmosphere. The decorations consisted of Spring Festival couplets, paper cuttings and red lanterns. Something particularly of a special mentions was the lovely lucky monkey toy in a red Chinese traditional costume hanging from a potted plant to commemorate the year of monkey. There was a lot of delicious Chinese cuisine on the buffet table, such as: sweet lotus root, honey cookies and very yummy Chinese chow-mein. Besides these, there was plenty of western dishes for everyone, like sandwiches, ham and victoria sponge cakes. Having a British guy, wearing a traditional red apron, cooking the chow-mein for the guests was interesting for me. There are two main elements to the party: one was the drink and the other was the people! Some were Chinese and some people from other countries who live in Newcastle 1 and had decided to join the fabulous party. My Chinese friends, British flat-mate and I enjoyed ourselves a lot there. I taught my flat-mate how to say Happy New Year in Chinese, “xin-nian-kuai-le!” “Xin-nian-an, ku—uai, la!” she pronounced it in a little differently but did practice again and again. Almost after four minutes, she held her bottle of beer, focused on me said: “ Oleander, xin-nian, kuai- le! Happy New Year, cheers!” We laughed each other and I thought about how great it was that such

emotional communication can come from sharing each other’s languages, although we were born in different countries and live in different culture backgrounds. Near the end, the workers put out some Fortune cookies for everyone, mine read love your inner family; love yourself. At that time I was missing my family and my hometown. Although I didn’t celebrate the Spring Festival with my parents, I felt the party felt like a family reunion. The party integrated those from different nationalities, who had different complexions and religions. We celebrated the New Year together, shared cross-culture together and wished each other good luck for the year to come!

Georgie Morgan

Jonathan Hastings looks at the creativity that surrounds the Chinese New Year Festival New Year in Asia is something to be marvelled at, with its countless things to do and varied images to see. Each year the festival coincides with vibrant coloured arrangements and delicately formed set pieces. It only takes one look at this festival to become engaged with the vivid reds and cultural significance of this event. Whether it is focused on the costume designs, or in the minute details. There’s no doubt that such a festival is rich in artistic licence and beautifully crafted decals: with every area polished and decorated to a tee. Rows of lanterns hang, often lining the

streets in a dull glow, as the parade of bounties beneath them. Each person adorned in a mix of gold and red tints. This semblance outfits the festivals, beckoning the new spring and the coloured costumes that swim through the parade as the dragons, or lions, are floated down the streets. It’s not just the visual arts that are established in this period. With each day of the festival there is a rich display of flavours and culinary arts. A range of foods are prepared, all of which are beautifully showcased throughout the festivities, with flavoured dumplings and rice cakes up for offer.

How to do Chinese New Year Korean Style

Sin-Rou Chen interviews Jooyoung about the Korean celebrations and traditions for Chinese New Year

he date of the Korean New Year is usually the same as the Chinese one. In 2016, the Korean New Year holidays last 4 days, from 6th to 9th February, which is much shorter than other countries that celebrate Chinese New Year. Influenced by Chinese culture, the Korean New Year and the Chinese one are very much the same, but there are some differences.

New Years Eve

Generally family members gather around and have

rice cake soup as a sign of good luck in the forthcoming year. After dinner, the children dress in traditional costumes, assemble in the living room and bow to the elders to express their respect. In response, the elders in the family give them envelopes with money. Usually, children get envelopes every year until they grow up and get their first job.

Traditional family activities

As family members are together for three or four days, there are some special activities to do besides

Sin-Rou Chen

watching TV and gossiping. Hanafuda is kind of card game from Japan, nevertheless, the rules of Hanafuda is very similar to Mahjong in China. Besides Hanafuda, Yut is another old-fashioned board game, which not many people still know how to play nowadays. The board and the game are known to be used in fortune telling. In New Year, while everyone is relaxing in the living room, wives are generally in charge of food and therefore busy in the kitchen. New Year is a festival that is very stressful for wives.

Traditions are fading

Jooyoung also told us that Korean people don’t really care about traditions that much now. People may still remember some traditions but forget what they mean originally. Today’s Chinese New Year in Korea is more like simply spending time with the family - everything else doesn’t really matter anymore.

Sin-Rou Chen

26.music

Monday 22 February 2016

The Courier

Music Editors: Jamie Shepherd, Dominique Daly & Connor McDonnell

Living La Vida Local Whether its sing-a-long indie tracks, melodic alternative vibes or soothing psychedelia music editors Dominique Daly and Jamie Shepherd have their ears to the ground when it comes to new local music and have picked out some current favourites to delight your ears Crying Lions Crying Lions are unashamedly indie, they ooze everything that made me fall in love with the genre in my teens. Its fun, its bouncy and there’s a hell of a lot of sing along potential. The four piece hail from Jarrow and have recently been rising in the ranks of the local scene, supporting Fletcher Jackson at his headline show at THINK TANK last week. Their EP Rocket Science includes some real gems, which have the potential to take the band far. ‘Hurricane’ draws in fans of Artic Monkeys with its fuzzy, ripping guitar riffs and tinge of disillusioned youth, while ‘Parasitica’ chorus is hugely infectious and calls for numerous back-to-back plays.

El Cid Some real old-fashioned psychedelia is hard to come by on the Newcastle scene, often falling further to the heavier side of the psych genre (not that that’s not awesome). Sometimes its nice to get back to the roots and El Cid capture that just perfectly – their brand of surf-y psych will have you longing for a hot summers evening and a bottle of whiskey (or perhaps something a little hazier if you catch my drift). Their eponymous EP El Cid has me completely obsessed, its basically a reincarnation of everything I love about the Nuggets: Artefacts from the First Psychedelic Era compilation(which if you haven’t listened to, go do it right now). With Groovy rolling bass lines and the jangly joy of ‘Last Day of Sunshine’ and the garage growls of slick riffs of ‘Lunar Sun’, El Cid are a band worth getting really excited about.

Plaza Plaza are a really promising local band, whose hometown is simply listed on Facebook as ‘The North’, so all bases covered there but for the sake of the local article lets say they’re from the North East. This band first came to my attention when they put out their 2015 mixtape, a 6 track EP of sorts which brilliantly showcases the many versatile faces of Plaza. From the float-y dream-like bliss of ‘Origami’, with its hypnotic riffs and soaring backing vocals, to the feel good, bouncy vibes of ‘Antumbra’, their music is interesting and refreshingly natural. Recently taken on by Beyond The Wall management, the band are about to set off on tour of major UK cities with Trash. Time to move out of the North and show off round all directions.

A Festival, A Parade These are a bunch of lads who’ve been on our radars for a while and with the release of their upcoming debut EP A Piece of Meat, An Irregular Heartbeat these guys look like they’ll be assaulting the audiowaves around Tyne and Wear. Heavily influenced by the alternative stylings of Manchester Orchestra, these are the sort of band you’d witness in the sweatiest Head of Steam basement gig whilest clutching a battered can of Red Stripe. Named after lyrics from a song by Cincinnatti rockers The National, this band are one of the best are a slice of grunge inspired Americana that you can catch for well less than the cost of a transatlantic flight.

Be sure to follow us on Spotify so you can have a little listen to local music and more at - https://play. spotify.com/user/thecourierdoesmusic

Brit, Brat or Twat Awards?

Meg Long considers whether the 2016 Brit Awards has any credibility whatsoever or whether it is essentially a grand old ‘circle-jerk’ for the commercially successful musical

ith the BRIT Awards on Wednesday (24th), we ask if the awards show actually holds any credibility or is it an exercise in satisfying music big cats and pop execs? In 2010, Lily Allen came out and said they were fixed. Yet, when Tom Odell, an artist signed to her record label In the Name Of there were no complaints. In the Name Of is a subsidiary of Sony – one of the ‘Big Three’ - who we imagine any ‘fixing’ is benefiting. There is a correlation between who wins Critic Choice Award and who is nominated for British Breakthrough act. The music industry decides said artist is worthy of being the Critic’s choice one year, ultimately platforming the artist for Radio 1 play and major endorsement, only to nominate them the following year for successfully ‘breaking’ the music industry. There is irony smothering the Award. Along with last year’s Critics’ Choice, expect artists fawned over by the BBC to make the

nominations. You only have to take a look at this year’s nominees for British Breakthrough to question if they really deserve to be considered for ‘breaking through’ the music industry, or just playing the game the way the music bosses like. This year 2015’s critics’ choice James Bay goes against BBC Sound of 2015 winners Years & Years, 2014 BBC introducing winners Catfish and the Bottlemen, and Sound of 2015 longlist nominees Wolf Alice. The only smidge of credibility that I can identify is that the nominees then go to public vote. This year The Brits Critics’ choice and BBC’s Sound Of 2016 goes to the same artist; congrats to Jack Garratt who sucked up to exactly the right people and landed both awards. If you play the music game, you can revel in your nominations. James Bay, Adele and Years & Years are all receiving 4 n o m i n at i o n s . All white artists. Forget about even receiving a nomination if you were black and

British this year with the only non-white nominations being in the International categories. Apparently Stormzy proved that being on the BBC Sound Of 2015 list doesn’t secure you any hint of a nomination.

“This year The Brits Critics’ choice and BBC’s Sound Of 2016 goes to the same artist; congrats to Jack Garratt who sucked up to exactly the right people and landed both awards”

The BRITs have also been criticised for its lack of diversity in genre, Serge Pizzorno from Kasabian calling them ‘A conspiracy against Rock n’ Roll’, although in 2014 Arctic Monkeys won best album for AM. Does it matter even if there is very little authenticity in the Awards though? The BRITs are just a sliver of this industry-wide problem of unreality. Isn’t authenticity and originality what we want? The NME Awards do own some credibility. These are 100% public voting, and even asks for suggestions on nominations, but has stopped having their awards aired on TV due to the lack of popularity it receives. With performances from Rihanna, The Weeknd and Coldplay it is an awards ceremony that satisfies your parents and your pop-indulged siblings. Everyone can watch it together, and everyone does. You complain about the winners and enjoy doing it. It probably brings you together more than if you’d found the whole thing credible in the first place.

Record Store, yay or nay?

Is Justin Beiber’s inclusion on the Record Store Day 2016 roster a sign of the mediums downfall to the mainstream, much to the dismay of hipsters everywhere? Luke Acton delves into the vinyl vaults to ﬁnd out

n a leaked list, a picture disc for Justin Bieber’s new album Purpose is to be among the in-store exclusive releases for Record Store Day 2016 (RSD). The organisers of RSD have described the list (which includes a Bowie re-release and a remix LP of The Weeknd’s ‘The Hills’) as ‘not complete’ and ‘inaccurate’, saying that it was a mistake on Universal’s part for releasing a preliminary list for last year’s US edition of RSD.

“To make it clear, the purpose of Record Store Day is not to promote independent labels. It is to promote independent record shops (the clue is in the name)”

The list first appearing on the website Modern Vinyl, the site has backed the list, saying it has verified many of the items of the list independently. Some are angry at the appropriation of the event (that many saw as a means to promote both independent record store and independent artists and labels) by large music labels. The fact that Justin Bieber’s Purpose and its ‘topical house’ (it’s fucking dancehall) are included in the2016 releases, indicates that the niche market that vinyl facilitated might have to look elsewhere for a platform, due to the continuing encroachment of the wider music market and industry into the medium. RSD has notoriously ruined pressing schedules at vinyl plants had due to the mass of special

releases and limited editions that are produced for the event, making it more difficult for smaller artists to get their work made on the medium. The event going from 10 special releases in its first year, 2008, to over 200 in 2012. This, largely being due to the big labels grasping for anything they can make money off post-streaming. This trend is shown in corporations like Urban Outfitters stocking vinyl and feeding off the general ‘indie’ aesthetic. It’s effectively killing the medium as a platform for independent artists. The medium may be falling from grace in terms of its supposed transcendence from economic exploitation from the industry. RSD released a statement clarifying the purpose of the event: ‘To make it clear, the purpose of

Record Store Day is not to promote independent labels. It is to promote independent record shops (the clue is in the name).’ But in even this RSD is lacking, last year three shops in Peckham opted to host their own anti-RSD event called ‘Every Day Is Record Store Day’ and this year, Berlin’s OYE, a centre for European music, is abstaining from the event. The store saying that it is no longer

“Corporations like Urban Outfitters stocking vinyl and feeding off the general ‘indie’ aesthetic. It’s effectively killing the medium as a platform for independent artists” compatible with their own aims. Record Store Day is turning into more of a financial scheme rather than a legit effort to boost sales for independent businesses. This is just a sign of the bigger issue in the industry: the desperate clawing at any opportunity to monetise the product that most people now get for free. But in the criticism of RSD and partial shunning of it, the independent music community seems to be at least somewhat closing ranks against the event, and maintaining support and love for music without having to have a day for it. So don’t blame Justin Bieber’s face (on a record), it’s just a symptom of economic forces far out of its control.

The Courier

music.27

Monday 22 February 2016

The Life of Pablo Kanye West I

n the space of 72 hours, Kanye revealed the third season of his fashion label at a lavish, sold out Madison Square Garden event, announced a video game, dropped an album, started beef with Taylor Swift, performed on Saturday Night Live, un-dropped an album, and finally released it a few hours prior to me writing this article. The emotional ride towards The Life of Pablo has certainly been strange. And after all the speculation around the title’s origins, we now know the album’s title is not about Pablo Escobar, Picasso, or Zabaleta. According to his Twitter, it’s about Paul the Apostle, who taught the gospel of Christ to the people. Kanye has moved from proclaiming “I am a God” on Yeezus, to becoming his messenger, through the medium of his music.

“It serves as a love letter to his past, whilst also being a cutting commentary on the culture of the present” The album itself is an 18 track behemoth. Something you need to sit down and listen to in full with no crossfade from start to finish. The tracks fade into each other seamlessly, and feel like pieces of an elaborate puzzle that by the end, make you feel something. Whether that is confusion or joy will depend on your outlook, but the ride is certainly worth it. It’s an introspective album, controversial due to its subversion of the genre but not as outspoken and abrasive as Yeezus. Kanye is a sample architect, and some of his choices here are compelling. From Nina Simone to the soundtrack of Street Fighter II, there’s a real range here, and the music is masterfully crafted.

Ritual Spirit Massive Attack

lthough Trip Hop pioneers Massive Attack have sporadically played shows in recent years, they haven’t released new music independently since the 2010 album Heligoland. 6 years have passed, but their music is still as relevant as it was in the bass boom of the 90s. Just one example of their commercial continuity is the fact that ‘Paradise Circus’ still soundtracked the new episodes of the BBC’s disturbing detective series Luther. The ominous production of new EP Ritual Spirit does sound like it’s been festering away in Bristol’s underbelly for some time, but it lacks a traditional Trip Hop flavour as collaborators Azekel and Young Fathers make it contemporary. Opening track ‘Dead Editors’ featuring Roots Manuva doesn’t hide the fact that the last thing Massive Attack released was a limited vinyl single mixed by Burial. The track could well have been endorsed by the South London badboy with its rickety beats, sub-bass rumble and wail throughout which was probably produced by a rabid wild animal. Title track ‘Ritual Spirit’ also emits a chilling tone as it is unveiled by a hypnotising guitar riff which is gradually layered with Azekel’s soothing falsetto and tropical percussion. The theme of hypnosis bleeds into ‘Voodoo In My Blood’ with Young Fathers, which continues to entice with melodic tribal chanting. Although Grant “Daddy G” Marshall was referring to race when he told The Guardian he intended to ‘bring the black back to Massive Attack’, this track brings black magic too. Closing track ‘Take It There’ is most quintessential of the group’s style, with 3D’s distinctive vocals and Tricky’s involvement. Massive Attack have tried something different here; the bass drones rather than thumps as on tracks like ‘Angel’, but this could be a metaphor for the endurance of their legacy, no matter what they do. Sophie Ahmed

Electronic Blanket

The features on this album also contain some huge names, including the likes of Rhianna, The Weeknd, Kendrick Lamar and Frank Ocean. If anyone was going to get Frank Ocean to make some new music, it was going to be Kanye. A few choice tracks from the album include the opener ‘Ultra-Light Beams’, which I can only describe as an inspiring experimental blend of gospel and rap. Kanye takes a back seat on this track, singing the hook accompanied by a choir, with Chance the Rapper taking centre stage and Kelly Price and Kirk Franklin delivering a stunning pair of gospel verses to close the track off. It’s sombre and quite

Sophie Ahmed talks about a brand new EDM festivals and her Cirque Du Soul abstinence

“The album itself is an 18 track behemoth. Something you need to sit down and listen to in full with no crossfade from start to finish.” moving. This album, as you traverse it will reveal quickly that it’s not an album of floor filling club favourites like Graduation in 2007; it’s about sending a powerful message and subverting the genre. ‘FML’ is another stand-out, with Kanye singing about how he struggles to deal with so much criticism, being truthful to those he’s close to, and his warring emotions. He also mentions his struggles with anti-depressants. It’s a deep track, and The Weeknd’s unique voice compliments the slow flow with an infectious hook. Kanye shines on numbers like ‘30 Hours’ and ‘Feedback’ where he’s left to his own devices. The album picks up the pace, replicating his fast paced style and genius wordplay that made Late Registration so remarkable almost 11 years ago, even calling back to the famous ‘Wake Up Mr. West’ skit in reference to him getting back on form in the rap scene. The Life of Pablo is an absorbing experience, and a serious piece of art. It serves as a love letter to his past, whilst also being a cutting commentary on the culture of the present. Jordan Oloman

More than this To Pimp A Butterfly - Kendrick Lamar Coming in at joint 5th on our Albums of 2015 list, To Pimp A Butterfly is a universally accepted achievement. The album is a monument in the world of msuic, not just for its hiphop mastery, but the political significance that floods the album. The video for ‘Alright’ shows Kenrick’s take on the controversry surrounding American police shooting people of colour, and ‘King Kunta’ revels in the narrative of a fictional slave on a plantation, and is probably the greatest song of last year, if not the decade. Indulging himself in a rich blend of numerous musical genres, it is the underlaying jazz tones that seem most salient from the Compton representitive. It leaks through, tinting Kendrick’s music as a stand-out among the plethora of stagnant, tawdry hip-hop, while he raps as utmost aristocracy.

Commontime

Human Ceremony

Field Music

Sunflower Bean

ield Music have spent over a decade breathing colour and cleverness into British indie music. As a creative pairing, the Brewis brothers have quietly courted critical acclaim (despite meagre commercial success). They have made a career of stirring funk riffs and art rock twists into a genre that would be scarcely recognisable without their influence. With the release of their seventh album Commontime, the duo remain as unapologetically Northern and unconventional as ever. In the final assessment, they’ve also never been more deserving of attention from mainstream audiences. Their album’s breakout hit ‘The Noisy Days Are Over’ speaks to the past ‘it’ friend who still stubbornly clings to the clichés of youth. But its message of urging close ones into old age is somewhat at odds with the song itself. Bouncy, spry and packed with a funk that winds from saxophone interludes to a taut bassline - this is the sound of ageing gracefully. It lends credence to the idea that the Sunderland-born siblings are only getting better with age. The progression from ‘That’s Close Enough For Now’ is airy acoustics to ‘But Not For You’ is chirpy 80s pop send-up charts the stylistic range of this work. The gulf between the bluesy opening to ‘Disappointment’ and the soaring string-borne tenderness on ‘The Morning Is Waiting For You’ plots the emotional breadth of the album. The ultimate product is eclectic and richly satisfying, even though the portions are perhaps greater than is necessary to sustain the interest of most listeners. Overlong and ponderous, Field Music would do well to be more ruthless in the editing phase in future. But this is one act that has always delighted in following each creative kink down the full length of its respective rabbit hole, and Commontime has more than its fair share of wonders for those with the patience to listen. Jack Marley

eo psychedelic for the digital age. his is Thow Sunflower Bean introduce themselves. The three-piece, Long Island natives, have assembled fresh sounds on their debut Human Ceremony, which slip from somnambulant states in to delighted shimmies and back again. All this was put together – writing and recording of the album - in a mere seven days, as the band has candidly made public. That is a astonishingly speedy output from a band that have existed for just shy of three years. The title track, and opener to the album, blushes with Nick Kivlen’s echoing guitar before Julia Cumming’s wafting bass and Jacob Faber’s steady drums join for a delicate harmony. With a bit more vivacity is the ‘2013’, in recognition of the year of the band’s formation. The band have been pigeonholed with Sonic Youth, for their NYC connection, female fronted and rugged sound. However, Sonic Youth blurt disorder, whereas Sunflower Bean have a precision in the craft of Human Ceremony. Take ‘Creation Myth’ and ‘Oh, I Just Don’t Know’. They are melancholic without too much sorrow. You get a sense that the band intended to make the gloom of these songs just perfectly. Whereas ‘I Was Home’ jolts in all directions with distortion aplenty, feedback foolery and a stunning final half consisting of a sharp solo from Kivlen, before a final riffage. This song encompasses the entirety of Human Ceremony. Throughout the album, the guitars hark back to an overlooked style of melodic, jangling guitars, which early psychedelic bands such as Led Zep and T. Rex hold dear. This would make sense; Cummings has a T.Rex tattoo. The East Coast missed out on engraving their name on the first wave of psychedelic music. Maybe Sunflower Bean are seeking some redemption. Connor McDonnell

n a modern age where electronic music is become more and more prevalent, it’s unsurprising that new festivals dedicated to those genres alone are still being created. One example is Sunfall Festival which will make its debut in London in July 2016, and is working in association with the established platforms like Phonox and Outlook. The line-up features Jamie xx, Goldie, Joy Orbison and more, and the concept is simple: ‘Party together by day, go your own way by night at one of our many late night club sessions’. Whilst I welcome this with open arms, it seems that established UK festivals are increasingly prioritising DJs to live bands. Take a look at the Parklife line up for instance. Wolf Alice, Blossoms and Circa Waves are virtually the only bands on the bill. Called me old fashioned, but I think live bands sound better in a massive isolated field during the height of British summer, and electronic stuff sounds better in a club setting. Sunfall may just teach us all that DJs sound good anywhere.

You Need To Hear: Denis Sulta

Everyone knows that Techno is like marmite; you either love it or hate it. Once again I’m going to break the mould, as I stand somewhere in between these two positions. Whilst I can’t listen to it for pleasure, I can somehow manage to get into it on a night out when I’m surrounded by Techno enthusiasts. I recently managed to catch a fraction of Jane Fitz’s 3 hour set for Backdrop, a fairly new night at World HQ, and I found myself entranced by the repetition and infectiousness of the mental moves around me. Raving aside, there is one Techno track that I’ve managed to enjoy from the comfort of my own bed. This is Denis Sulta’s ‘It’s Only Real’ which was released in December 2015. It came as no surprise that Sulta is from Glasgow, a city with a close affiliation to Techno, but what did strike me was his ability to fuse the two elements of an energising beat and a sedating and melancholic melody on ‘It’s Only Real’. If you know your Techno, you’ll recognise the track as a staple of many recent sets, but if not, give it a try.

Listen To: It’s Only Real

Cirque Du Soul ft. Toddla T & Stylo G, 16th February, Digital

I’m trying something new and attending my first ever Cirque. I feel like I’m regressing, as Cirque is one of the more mainstream music events in the city, and in most cases people progress from seeing the big names at Cirque, to developing more edge. Through observing others, Cirque seems to be that stepping stone between getting incredibly intoxicated so that you can tolerate a DJ, and realising that you actually do enjoy the music produced by said DJs of an electronic persuasion. I’m not selling out just yet, but I thought I’d try to see what all the hype is about after a friend messaged me promostyle: ‘The new Cirque event has given me so much life!’. Trusting his judgement, I bought a ticket and checked out the two headliners, Toddla T and Stylo G. Born and bred in Yorkshire, Toddla T’s most well-known track ‘Take It Back’ grates on me with its uplifting Pop and topic of unfulfilled romance, but if I managed to enjoy Blonde and Bondax, I shouldn’t have too much trouble getting into this on the night. The struggle will come with Stylo G. ‘Call Mi A Leader’ is a pretty excruciating take on Bob Marley’s ‘Could You Be Loved’, and please, let’s just not talk about how wet ‘My Number 1’ is. I’ll try not to speak too soon though, as it remains to be seen whether Cirque Du Soul’s priority is music or throwing a party which is appealing to the eyes. I hope I’m proven wrong.

Go follow us on intagram for live gig updates, fun pictures and the latest music gossip- @courier_music

28.filmfeatures

Monday 22 February 2016

The Courier

Film Editors: Emma Allsopp, Rhian Hunter & Simon Ramshaw

MEGA FAN Red carpet publicity stunts: yay or nay? Zoolander 2’s premiere featured a world-record breaking selﬁe stick. Jordan Oloman takes a look at the funniest, cringiest, and weirdest red carpet publicity stunts of the ages

GIANT CYNIC With Zoolander’s return to cinemas this week, Helen Daly and Errol Kerr are our mega fan and giant cynic of Ben Stiller who will win this round?

Mega Fan

always consider Ben Stiller as having one of those names that you see on a movie poster and think, ‘yeah, that’ll be alright’. Starring in comedy classics such as the ‘Focker’ trilogy, Tropic Thunder, and of course, Zoolander, Stiller is a comedy actor who is versatile. You see comedy actors like Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson, to an extent, and whilst they’re good at what they do, they always seem to play the same character in every film. Stiller has proven time and time again that his comedy is versatile, going from lovable dad, Greg Focker, to lovable (in more of a love-to-hate kind of way) high fashion model, Derek Zoolander, Stiller is almost always involved in the best comedy films of the past twenty years, even bagging a guest appearance in Anchorman. To paraphrase Derek Zoolander, to me, Stiller is a really, really, ridiculously good comedy actor in today’s cinema. Helen Daly

here is no such thing as bad publicity, or so the old expression goes. So when celebrities do incredibly strange things at the premieres for their movies, it’s not so shocking. We live in a world where Facebook has its own ‘viral’ section now, and recently, Ben Stiller put this to good use by breaking the world record for the ‘longest selfie stick’ at the Zoolander 2 premiere. Apart from making me a bit sick to my stomach, I can understand that going to lengths such as that can keep you relevant in the public consciousness that bit longer, but it’s probably not going to be the straw that breaks the camel’s back, sending me running to the cinema to watch what is pretty much a cash-in before people forget about an old joke. A cash-in that doesn’t look like it’s working either, as it’s currently sitting at about 23% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes. Ouch.

“Stiller isn’t the only one to pull a quick stunt to get an extra few punters through the door, and there have been some very interesting events unfolding at movie premieres which are dying for a bit more publicity”

Regardless, Stiller isn’t the only one to pull a quick stunt to get an extra few punters through the door, and there have been some very interesting events unfolding at movie premieres which are dying for a bit more publicity. Steve-O, of Jackass fame, decided to just go ahead and urinate all over the red carpet, not in a statement against the film industry or anything with an inch of thought, no, he just wanted to wee on the carpet. This is probably the weirdest one for me because, having seen and enjoyed the Jackass movies, it is incredibly tame in comparison to most of the things they do in the film. He should’ve gone all out and recreated

Zac Efron once dropped a condom on the red carpet during the premiere for The Lorax. Now this I think was less about the film and more about his image. We’re talking about a Zac that had just finished his High School Musical tenure, and he probably wanted to give himself a bit more of a bad boy image and prevent some typecasting. Probably not the best place to do it though, at a premiere for a kid’s movie. Good going Troy. Shia LaBeouf also arrived at the premiere of Von Trier’s Nymphomaniac wearing a paper bag with the words “I Am Not Famous Anymore” scrawled across it. This was just after Shia announced that he was quote unquote retiring from public life, so turning up to a premiere with a bag on your head was of course the right thing to do. Because that’s not something the public will talk about. But hey, it was a better performance than Transformers, so I’m not complaining. It’s all a bit concerning really, in the sense of,

“Zac Efron once dropped a condom on the red carpet during the premiere for The Lorax”

Giant Cynic

where do we go from here? When will the buck stop? Real mutated Kaiju at the 10 Cloverfield Lane premiere? Robert Downey Jr floating down to the Civil War red carpet in his very own tech suit? I don’t know, but colour me interested, these stunts aren’t harming anyone.

Is it Leonardo DiCaprio’s turn yet?

With the Oscars imminent, Zoe Godden speculates on the nominations for the most elite ﬁlm awards ceremony this year. Who will win the prized gong?

’d rather watch a night of paint drying than spend a Night at the Museum with this guy. When not wringing out every possible sale from an endless childrens’ franchise, he spends his time being painfully and endlessly offensive. Zoolander’s humour was outdated and offensive when it was released and still isn’t much better than the second unnecessary instalment – I was stone-faced watching both. Steel-faced, even. And not the blue kind. Then came the disastrous Tropic Thunder, which he directed and starred in. That just crosses the border entirely, with unnecessary use of blackface and portrayal of autism as a method to, hang on, what was it – “satirise method acting”? There’s no way that’s not plain absurd. His child humour is overused and boring, and his offensive adult *humour* seems more applicable in the early 20th century, not today. And don’t excuse it as satire, because that’s the worst possible excuse. Errol Kerr

the Poocano if he wanted to get my head through the door. Weeing on the red carpet should not be the benchmark of publicity for a film like that.

poiler alert: white people win. Shocker, right? Poignant racial tensions aside, 2016’s Oscar nominees were a rather uninspired bunch; not that any were truly awful choices, but rather there is a distinct lack of diversity, with multiple big films hogging the nominations whilst Beasts of No Nation got criminally snubbed. Regardless of how worthy some nominees are (seriously, why is Jennifer Lawrence in there?), the fight for the major categories is one of the tightest in recent years, well worth heading to the bookies for. This is certainly prevalent in the Best Actress category. Claustrophobic drama Room could gain Brie Larson her first win, though others argue Saoirse Ronan’s transformation in Brooklyn could do the same. The award for Animated Feature is also an even race, with Pixar’s hit Inside Out leading the pack, but immediately followed by the stunning Anomalisa and Studio Ghibli’s potential final film, When Marnie Was There. Visual Effects is a similarly close call between The Force Awakens and The Martian, the latter likely to nab Adapted Screenplay and a few technical awards. Original Screenplay is a battle of the underdogs as Straight Outta Compton and Ex Machina attempt to take on potential big winner Spot-

light, a true story on uncovering Catholic priest controversy that the Academy love to prey upon.

“Poignant racial tensions aside, 2016’s Oscar nominees were a rather uninspired bunch”

This year is not without its deadlocks though; Ennio Morricone’s triumphant return is sure to win Best Score for The Hateful Eight, and Sylvester Stallone similarly seems to be favourite for Supporting Actor after donning the Rocky persona once more in Creed. Lady Gaga’s haunting ‘Til It Happens To You’ from The Hunting Ground is set to crush Sam Smith’s abysmal Bond tune for Best Song, Amy is without question Best Documentary, and the snubbed Sicario could likewise earn twelve-time nominee Roger Deakins his first statue for Cinematography, but it’ll be

tough for him to top Emmanuel Lubezki’s current streak. And though ignored for Ex Machina, Alicia Vikander is set to win Supporting Actress in the more prevalent Danish Girl. We were all a bit shell shocked to see Mad Max: Fury Road get 10 nominations, the grumpy old Oscar panel trying to ‘get down’ with the cool kids. Of course it’s truly deserving of each nod, and is set to be the biggest winner of the night. Costumes, editing, makeup, production design, sound; it’s almost certain to dominate the technical categories. It’s also possible for George Miller to take Best Director, but this will probably go to Alejandro G. Iñárritu for the Best Picture favourite, The Revenant, making it two wins in a row after last year’s Birdman Birdman. However it’s important to remember the Academy aren’t always keen on giving awards consecutively, so we can’t rule out financial crash comedy The Big Short, Spotlight, or even the ‘mainstream’ Fury Road just yet.

“Lady Gaga’s haunting ‘Til It Happens To You’ from The Hunting Ground is set to crush Sam Smith’s abysmal Bond tune for Best Song”

Last but not least, Leo looks to finally win Best Actor after years of being our favourite award season meme in The Revenant Revenant. He took method acting to the max by wrestling that bear, and the Academy probably feel bad for trolling him for so long. It’s a pity win if there ever was one – let’s hope his Departed co-star Matt Damon can dash his dreams once more for The Martian.

The Courier

reviewsfilm.29

Monday 22 February 2016

thecourieronline.co.uk/ﬁlm c2.ﬁlm@ncl.ac.uk | @Courier_Film

The Good, The Bad and The Ugly: Tom Hiddleston

Zoolander 2 (12A)

ormer male models, Derek Zoolander (Ben Stiller) and Hansel (Owen Wilson), are drawn back into the world of fashion by Interpol agent Valentina (Penélope Cruz) in order to stop a conspiracy to kill the world’s most beautiful people. Despite taking only $60 million from the worldwide box office on its initial release in 2001, Ben Stiller’s Zoolander became one the most loved comedies of the 2000s. Its eccentric humour, memorable cameos and sharp satire garnered the film a large cult following and established its place in popular culture. Unfortunately, this long-awaited sequel fails to recapture the zest of its predecessor, as its lack of originality and weak script make for an underwhelming experience. At $50 million, Zoolander 2’s budget is almost double that of the original film. This is evident from the outset, as the past fifteen years of Derek’s life are displayed in a sleek title sequence. While the increased budget does include the glamorous setting of Rome, it cannot compensate for a bloated plot and tired script. However, the film does introduce a number of new characters, including Kristen Wiig in an underwritten role as Alexanya Atoz (an ally of Will Ferrell’s Mugatu) and Kyle Mooney as fellow designer, Don Atari. Wiig’s appearance and accent provide some humour, though Don Atari is an early contender for 2016’s most irritating character. Both are indicative of the script’s failings, Atoz’s presence becomes gratuitous once Mugatu enters proceedings, while the character of Don Atari em-

Trumbo (15)

The Good: Only Lovers Left Alive (2013)

bodies the humour’s lack of relevance. Stiller and Wilson do their best with the limited material, but as outsiders to the contemporary fashion industry, Derek and Hansel lose the satirical edge of their previous incarnations. Rather than their stupidity being the sardonic humour’s focal point, they are resorted to fish-out-of-water comedy, as they come to terms with the changing nature of fashion. This largely falls flat, particularly during their scene with All, Benedict Cumberbatch’s gender-fluid supermodel, which is handled clumsily and reinforces the failings of the film’s satire. On a more positive note, Will Ferrell is underused, but entertainingly bombastic as he returns to the role of Mugatu. Enjoying the film’s best dia-

logue, he shines in a closing scene that includes many of the world’s leading fashion tycoons – all wishing to appear in on the film’s joke. Ferrell’s performance and the abundance of celebrity cameos are its saving graces. While none reach the heights of David Bowie’s appearance in the first film, the unexpected situations in which some of the world’s biggest stars are found, deliver a number of laughs. While there are moments to be enjoyed, long periods without laughter and an over-reliance on jokes from the original film mean that Zoolander 2 fails to beat the comedy sequel curse. Derek and Hansel are not quite so hot right now. More like this: Tropic Thunder (2008)

A Bigger Splash (15)

Dad’s Army (PG)

film with Tom Hiddleston and Tilda Swinton starring as a stupidly attractive vampire couple, what could possibly be wrong with it? Nothing, that’s what. This film is as close to perfect as you can get with Mr Hiddleston playing a moody and suicidal vampire named Adam (yes, Tilda plays Eve; I love you, Jim Jarmusch). The dingy streets of Detroit as well as pretentious intellectual tastes of the characters make this an absorbing filming with you being unable to walk away. The soundtrack is perfection with most songs being composed by Jarmusch’s own band, SQÜRL. This atmospheric and downright sexy film should be on everyone’s watch-list. Go, watch it now.

Dan Haygarth

The Bad: Thor: The Dark World (2013)

alton Trumbo, one of the pivotal figures against the McCarthy blacklisting, was an inspiration to all of Hollywood. In attempting to bring his story to the silver screen however, director Jay Roach focused more on meticulous presentation, and less on the juicy story that exhibited Trumbo’s true genius. Following the story of blacklisted Hollywood during the fear of Communism in the 40s, Trumbo weaves the story of a quite clever defiance against political forces through film. Forced to go underground, Trumbo and his cohorts write under pseudonyms, producing some of Hollywood’s most memorable films without even an ounce of credit until America’s gripping fear of communism waned. The emotional core of the movie tells Trumbo’s dogged survival. He sold his ranch in California, moved to Mexico with his wife Jean (Diane Lane, primly anxious as per usual), and got work on Poverty Row for the producer Frank King, a hardline vulgarian of such mercenary disposition that it’s no surprise John Goodman plays him. While driving most of the plot through Bryan Cranston’s acting prowess as Trumbo himself, the representation of the antagonists leaves much to be desired. The villains here, barring the relative pity afforded to turncoat star Edward G Robinson (Michael Stuhlbarg), are almost Disneyish in their cackling obviousness – none more so than Hedda Hopper (Helen Mirren), the notorious gossip columnist who waged a weekly smear campaign against Trumbo and his associates. Mirren was utterly wasted by the script, as her Cruella DeVille-esque character was portrayed with an underwhelming sense of simplicity that hardly does the dame justice. As a movie that celebrates and glorifies Hollywood, during one of its darker periods, Trumbo delivers a standard box-office crowd pleaser. As a biopic of one of the industry’s unsung heroes however, it underwhelms. More like this: Argo (2012) Ritwik Sarkar

id you think I was here for the capers?’ asks Harry (Ralph Fiennes), bemused that Marianne (Tilda Swinton) cannot see the proverbial wood through the trees. Marianne sees perfectly well, though; she just chooses to exist parallel to reality, acknowledging without engaging. A Bigger Splash works best as the psycho-sexual drama it spends ninety percent of its time exploring with unrelentingly entertaining results. But director Luca Guadagnino casts his net further, though with mixed results. The relevance of his film’s politics might feel loosely tethered to its story, but both elements hold rich rewards for audiences. Marianne Lane is a rock & roll idol, recovering from throat surgery on the Italian island of Pantelleria with her lover, Paul (Matthias Schoenaerts). Suddenly, former producer/lover Harry Hawkes arrives with his daughter, Penelope (Dakota Johnson). Their villa soon becomes the crucible where the four are pitted against one another; smiling through gritted teeth, brandishing knives behind their backs. The simmering tension takes place during shifting socio-political climates, as Italy is inundated with migrants. A Bigger Splash shines when its punchy dialogue and frisky performances (particularly from the eccentric Fiennes) mix into a prickly cocktail of dramatic tension. These characters are modern monsters, products of their ephemeral lifestyles, and the audience is never encouraged to sympathise with them. Guadagnino deconstructs their personalities carefully, gradually exploring the contrast between their personal plights and the plights of those around them. The brilliant script flourishes in the first two acts, and while the ending is a little heavy handed, it is tough not to respect the though-provoking intentions. Dehumanising celebrities like the media and conceited public dehumanise migrants is a bold theme to take on half-heartedly, but A Bigger Splash has a pool of breezy humour, searing vistas and thrilling suspense to back itself up. More like this: L’Avventura (1960) William Leng

he final episode of Dad’s Army aired nearly forty years ago, and its fans have had a long wait to see Britain’s most loveable home guard recreated for a feature film. In this recreation of the 70s sitcom, it’s 1944 and the war is coming to an end. The home guard of Walmington-on-Sea receives a visit from alluring and glamorous journalist, Rose Winters (Catherine Zeta-Jones), whose beauty turns the heads of many of the officers. To complicate matters further, Captain George Mainwaring receives a call from MI5, reporting there’s a German spy in the village, and it’s up to this loveable bunch of foolhardy misfits to save Walmington-on-Sea from Nazi invaders. Casting as perfect as this is rare to find. Toby Jones brings Captain Mainwaring to life in all his brash pomposity, as he shamelessly competes with his bashful second-in-command, Sergeant Wilson (Bill Nighy), for Rose’s affections. Also among the ranks are the panicky Corporal Jones (Tom Courtenay), and the permanently gloomy Private Fraser (Bill Paterson). The stand-out performance comes from Michael Gambon, charmingly portraying the doddery, well-meaning Private Godfrey. Rest assured, all the old catchphrases make an appearance, including Corporal Jones’ cries of ‘Don’t panic!’ and Private Fraser’s miserable ‘We’re doomed!’ Dad’s Army retains the slapstick silliness and ridiculous characters of the original, while adding new characters, such as Mainwaring’s officious wife (Felicity Montagu), who is just as wonderfully pretentious as her husband. Rebooting a well-loved sitcom like Dad’s Army is a formidable task. What director Oliver Parker has managed to do is admirable, even if some fans may be disappointed that it doesn’t follow the original as closely as it could. I, however, found it to be a fun little film, a cosy blanket of nostalgia, and I left with a smile on my face after the credits rolled and the triumphant tune of ‘Who Do You Think You Are Kidding, Mr Hitler?’ filled the cinema.

More like this: Shaun the Sheep Movie (2015) Jamie Gomersall

iddleston made his name playing Loki in Thor and The Avengers, so when it was announced he was going to reprise his role in Thor: The Dark World I was ecstatic. But then I saw the film. Hiddleston was not bad (in fact he pretty much saved the film) but the film itself was far from great. With more chemistry between Thor (Chris Hemsworth) and Loki than Thor and his actual girlfriend, Jane (Natalie Portman), it was clear this was not going to be Marvel’s best work. It felt unfinished and I felt unfulfilled. I still get mad to this day about how great it could’ve been, but alas, here it is, The Bad.

The Ugly: Archipelago (2010)

oanna Hogg was one of the first directors to give Tom Hiddleston his big break when she cast him in her debut, Unrelated, so it was no surprise when she asked him back for her second, Archipelago. This is The Ugly not because I don’t like it, I personally love it, but because it splits opinion. Hogg’s distinctive style of social analysis with an extremely naturalistic study of relationships is not for everyone. With lots of lingering landscape shots and tonnes of dialogue scenes which seemingly add nothing to the plot could annoy a lot of viewers. However, I implore you, please check it out. If you want something a little grittier than this then Unrelated is definitely the way to go and the one that I favour. Happy watching! Emma Allsopp

30.tvfeatures

Monday 22 February 2016

The Courier

TV Editors: Jack Parker, Hannah Bunting & Helen Daly

Thirst Dates To take your mind oﬀ your perpetual singledom, Emily North has put together a First Dates Drinking games to make you feel better about yourself You will need: A significant other (just kidding) Red wine (box wine preferable) Tissues The Rules, in no particular order are as follows: Starting with the rules relating to Fred 1.Take drink every time Fred (the Maître d’) imparts a pearl of wisdom 2.Take a drink if Fred comments on someone’s outfit. 3.Take a drink if Fred tells a couple not to be ‘naughty’ 4.Take a drink whenever Fred twinkles his eyes at the camera or does something cheeky

What to watch now

With so much good stuﬀ out there on TV at the moment, our writers share with us their favourite boxsets that they binge out on, as well as why you should put down your seminar readings and switch on your TV

American Horror Story

equiring approximately 63 hours out of your university timetable, that’s only like a week and two days for you medics, but a good 10 weeks for you Literature students: throw away the Joyce and the Dickens, Murphy is the only author you should be studying this semester. The creator of Glee and Nip/Tuck, Ryan Murphy has created an anthology of miniseries that has everyone begging, what is the connection between the five series? So far, we’ve had Murder House (which brought us the gimped-up Kyle), Asylum (my personal favourite, especially because of the name song), Coven (which saw Stevie Nicks as a witch, what more do you want?), Freak Show (and the very awful but very attractive Dandy), and finally, Hotel (hello Gaga).

And the rest: 1.Take a shot if on the first meeting one of them goes for the double cheek kiss and their date was only expecting one **Bonus Points for awkward handshake//hug 2.Take a shot whenever a background character pulls a face 3.Take a shot whenever someone makes a phone call from the loo - take another if they hate their date. 4.Take a shot when someone reveals a weird hobby or interest

Each miniseries will repulse and entice, and simultaneously put you off your food and make you want to bulk order your Dominoes and stay in your room for a full week to binge it. That’s what I did anyway… AHS is a gripping watch, and showcases some of the best TV talent out there. FYI, Jessica Lange is a goddess. Be prepared to start believing in ghosts, and expecting yourself to suddenly get magical powers. It’s like the impact Harry Potter had on us 15 years ago, but for the adult age. Ellie McLaren

Orange is the New Black

f you’ve never seen any of Netflix original series Orange Is the New Black, where on earth have you been? Following the lives of female inmates, and based on a true story, the show has been such a success it has already been renewed for a fifth, sixth, and seventh season, before the fourth season has even aired. Despite the protagonist, Piper, being the most annoying woman on TV in history, the characters that surround her story make OITNB one of the most gripping shows t o come out of Netflix (coming second only to Making A Murderer). The heartwrenching tales of women: being denied access to their children; battling terminal illnesses; and dealing with the prejudices that come with being a transgender woman in an all-female environment; all make the hour-long episodes get you right in the feels. With three seasons already available on Netflix for your binging pleasure, and season four imminent, starting OITNB now (like, right now) would mean sacrificing 39 hours. That’s booking a week’s holiday from a fulltime job, or a flight from Ne wc a s t l e International Airport to New York City, back again, then back to NY again. You’ll save yourself a few grand just watching OITNB though. Ellie McLaren

5.Take a shot for a cheesy chat up line **Bonus Points if their date doesn’t get it 6.Take a shot when an old person (or for the hard core if they are only middle aged) makes a surprisingly raunchy remark. 7.Take a shot when someone brutally cuts down their date at the post date interview **Bonus Points if they don’t look at them 8.Take a drink when the voice over man makes an innuendo 9.Down your drink if they kiss

10.Down the bottle if one leans in and the other dodges it 11.Take a shot every time someone mentions their ex 12.Take a shot whenever Merlin the bartender appears on screen in honour of his noble profession 13.Take a shot when a girl can’t walk in her heels 14.Take a shot if they can’t remember their date’s name 15.Down your drink if you thought it was going well and then in the post date interview they say that they hated every minute of it 16.Take a drink every time the waiter makes a terrible joke 17.Down your drink if someone outright insults their date

RuPaul’s Drag Race

f you’ve been asleep for the past year or so, you probably haven’t heard of the phenomenon in the making RuPaul’s Drag Race. Drag race has been bubbling under for the past seven years now, but has only recently managed to make its way to the cultural fore. In essence, it’s the most fabulous talent show in which 12 of the fiercest drag queens serve up the best of their drag for the chance of winning the title of ‘America’s Drag Superstar’ and $100,000. The show sees drag superstar RuPaul challenge his queens to complete some pretty crazy challenges, from recording a charity single to making couture outfits from nothing but trash. Literally. This show is loud, proud, colourful and insane. It’s also insanely quoteable, and leaves you with a whole new lexicon. For instance, ‘no tea, no shade’ means ‘I’m not tr ying to be mean but’. You’ll soon find yourself saying the same things that Ru does (‘good luck, and don’t fuck it up’ comes to mind). The judges who assist Ru are also amazing, especially his right hand woman Mischelle Visage (did you know that she had a song on a number one album?). She’s literally an inspiration of mine, and she’ll soon become one of yours too. Seasons 1-6 were on Netflix the last time that I checked, and season 7 and the upcoming new season should be showing on TruTv very soon. Seriously, you need to get into this show, your life will be a million times glamorous as a result. Get to your laptop now and get onto Netflix. Good luck, and don’t fuck it up! Jack Parker

The Walking Dead

ast September, my sister passed me the first series of The Walking Dead, with the simple phrase, ‘I think you’ll like this’. As the box set touched my hands, I knew I was a goner; it was, to put it plainly, the beginning of my transition into a zombie myself. Skip forward two weeks and I was already on to season five, hooked, and constantly craving more. I will admit that I have a little bit of shame when I say that I watched thirteen episodes in one day; yes, that’s thirteen hours of one TV show. ‘But why The Walking Dead’, I hear you cry. The answer is very simple: the writers and producers are very, very clever. Leaving almost every episode on a cliffhanger, viewers simply can’t get enough. Believable characters mixed with an almost certainly impossible situation makes for compelling viewing. Seeing the plight of Rick Grimes as he battles scary zombies and even scarier humans is basically irresistible. But aside from Rick, The Walking Dead provides us with genuinely loveable characters. Glenn, Maggie, Beth and Daryl to name a few become like friends and family when you end up not actually seeing your own due to marathoning purposes. That’s why it’s genuinely gripping when one of the team members dies (spoiler alert: a lot of team members die). Now the current series is on, waiting for new episodes each week seems completely banal. Binge-watching The Walking Dead is easily the most immersive experience you can have with the show as the apocalyptic setting literally becomes your life. And the best bit of it all? Three words: Zombie. Apocalypse. Dreams. Enough said. Helen Daly

The Courier

highlightstv.31

Monday 22 February 2016

Armchair Detective

Following the release of BBC Two’s The People vs. O. J. Simpson, Reece Hanson discusses the latest onslaught of true crime stories that turned the U.K. into a nation of detectives

xploring the chaotic behind-the-scenes happenings from both legal teams, The People vs. OJ Simpson represents the first attempt to recreate the 1995 trial of the former NFL star. When the bodies of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ronald Goldman were discovered outside Nicole’s house in June 1994, the police quickly identified the former footballer turned actor as their star suspect. More than twenty years after the trial, the case still remains one of American legal system’s

It’s no secret real life ‘true crime’ documentarydramas are sweeping the nation. Whether it’s scrutinising the evidence in these shows, or simply investigating who didn’t do the dishes, everyone’s a detective. Just a matter of days before Christmas Making a Murderer was released on Netflix, and amateur sleuths haven’t looked back since. The case of Steven Avery has fuelled countless threads on Reddit, social media outbursts and even deep discussions in the pub. Everyone has their own theory, disbeliefs and verdict and it’s impossible not to spend hours reading everything Google throws up after finishing the series. Yet while the success of the show popularised the genre to unprecedented levels, the breakthrough was first made with the podcast Se-

best-known and most controversial decisions. The latest in the true crime wave sweeping our TV screens and Netflix accounts focuses on the murder trial of OJ Simpson. The hugely controversial case is examined in the BBC’s new ten-part series, which debuted last week on BBC Two. Yet while the series scores big with viewers across the pond, it remains to be seen how well its recreated account grasps viewers’ attention in the UK.

rial, which dominated iTunes charts in late 2014. Taking more of a detective angle than Making a Murderer, although lacking in the shocking impact from the sight of evidence, Serial represents the start of the thirst for the true crime genre, examining the conviction of Adnan Syed for the murder of his ex-girlfriend Hae Min Lee in 1999. Yet while the support for Steven Avery has been widespread, the case of Adnan Syed was considerably less clear-cut. Donning the Sherlock hat and dissecting the evidence, the audience must sit amongst the jury, tasked with making your own mind up,

The Simpsons

Fuller House

The Shannara Chronicles

e’re in an age of controversial cartoons – from American Dad to Archer, our screens are no stranger to animation designed to shock laughs out of us. Amongst all this, The Simpsons. You might say The Simpsons has remained an island of relative innocence, an often heart-warming picture of American family life that has been at the forerunner of its genre for over two decades. Yet recent years have seen the show become the centre of its own controversy. As the family sitcom enters its 27th season, many viewers, even die-hard fans, are beginning to ask one big question, namely: has The Simpsons, once a show with its bright yellow finger firmly on the comedic and political button, become irrelevant? The show’s creators say no, of course, but they’ve certainly been left with something to prove in this premiere episode of the new season. Hardly surprising, then, that the run up to the American airing was preceded by news of the biggest celebrity breakup since Kermit and Miss Piggy: Homer and Marge, the producers revealed, would be formally separating in the new season. ‘Every Man’s Dream’ promises to test their relationship, with Homer’s newly-diagnosed narcolepsy leading, unsurprisingly, to a chain of events that drives the marriage past breaking point and ends in the separation of TV’s most stable couple. Only time will tell if the separation proves to be permanent, though Homer’s new relationship with his pharmacist (voiced by Lena Dunham) adds a new dimension of division within the Simpson family that may be hard to come back from. Hannah Bunting

Neon Genesis Evangalion The action of this mecha anime (mecha meaning an anime involving giant robots, just like in Power Rangers) takes place in a postapocalyptic era. Humanity is under threat from extra-terrestrial beings called “Angels” which come to the Earth after finding out their “ancestor”, Adam, has been hidden here. Angels want to combine with Adam (as they have been separated eons ago) but that will cause an explosion strong enough to destroy the planet. Therefore, the Japanese military has created Evangelions – giant robots that can only (for a reason explained later on) be operated by teenagers. Evangelions (also called Eva units) are humanity’s last hope in the survival against Angels, as conventional weapons are useless. Enter Shinji Ikari. As the son of the mastermind behind Evangelion creation, Gendo Ikari, he struggles to accept the role of an Evangelion pilot that has been imposed on him by his father. The series explores the complicated relationship he has with his father, as he befriends other Eva unit pilots, Rei Ayanami and Asuka Soryu. The three fight against the Angels in an increasingly tense atmosphere – politics in the shadows concerning the “Human Instrumentality Project”, difficulties in teamwork and personal dramas all contribute to the slow erosion of Shinji’s sanity... I highly recommend anyone to watch it, but beware – it will impress you, but not in the ways you’d expect. Oscar Stepien (President)

9pm, 5*, Thursday

Netflix, Friday

9pm, Sky1, Friday

Anime-zing Oscar and Yemi, from the Anime Society Exec, recommend two animes to a wide audience

and that’s what makes these shows so compelling. Yet perhaps the biggest motivation behind the huge audiences for these shows lies in the effect on everyday people. The show has given rise to the prominence of cases such as Steven Avery and Adnan Syed, both of whom have spent the bulk of their adult lives in prisons. While a petition to pardon Avery failed, despite collecting over half a million signatures, the public outcry and attention has given both men hope to fight the convictions. In this lies the key difference to the OJ Simpson case. Before December’s premiere, few people could point to Manitowoc County on a map, never mind spend hours discussing evidence and speculating suspects. Yet the OJ Simpson case is the polar opposite. For some, Simpson was among the best of his generation in his sport, while others simply know him for the connection to America’s most tedious family through his defence attorney Robert Kardashian. Yet in some form or another, and to varying degrees, the world is aware of OJ Simpson’s 1995 trial. Time will tell if the BBC’s new series captures the imagination in quite the same way.

“Donning the Sherlock hat and dissecting the evidence, the audience must sit amongst the jury”

thecourieronline.co.uk/tv c2.tv@ncl.ac.uk | @courier_tv

he trailer for the much awaited reboot of Full House was so cheesy, that it’d put Swiss fondue to shame and we wouldn’t want it any other way. Banking on an overwhelming sense of nostalgia, Netflix’s bold decision to re-live the exploits of the Tanner family, with a clever plot-tweak is guaranteed to have the loyal fans of show’s previous instalment tuning in. The show will centre on the oldest sister DJ, widowed mother of three, returning to her former Californian abode, trying to restart her life. Much like the original show’s premise, she’ll have the help of her family. While massively aged since the show’s finale episode, over a whopping twenty years ago, the trailer seems to show that much of the old guard returning to their famed brand of cheesy family humour, morals and a whole lotta love. The absence of Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen, will leave some of the returning viewers with a tiny hole in their hearts, but considering how Michelle would be in her early working years, it seems natural that she wouldn’t feature As much as many expect this to be the second coming of one of the most fabled American TV families, there is a risk involved when trying to fix what’s not broken. While it will be refreshing to see the gender roles reversed, the need to introduce the new characters might be overshadowed by focussing on those that made the show what it is.

Ritwik Sarkar

he Shannara Chronicles gives us a group of teenagers, each one more implausibly attractive than the next, scrambling through the woods in search of salvation for themselves, their community, and the world at large. A few years ago, no one would have thought that the world was ready for a new fantasy series, particularly not one that promises to tackle the sprawling world of Terry Brook’s much-loved novel series, Shannara. But if Game of Thrones has taught us anything, it’s that sword-andsorcery epics need not only be the domain of pure-bred ‘fantasy fans’, as long as it’s done well. The series follows a princess of the elves, a halfhuman/half-elf, and a human in an epic quest: to protect and ancient and magical tree, the Ellcrys, the last barrier between the people of the Four Lands and the return of a horde of banished demons, none of whom seem to be hankering for a happy reunion. It’s a big concept, and one that takes itself very seriously, despite the relative youth of its main cast members. Reassuringly, however, the series seems determined to make the most of its budget, the trailer alone introducing a beautifully complex world – both visually and in terms of narrative - that, if done right, promises to be immersive rather than distracting. All the same, it’s still a lot to pull off, and the show will be heavily reliant on the quality of the performances from its principal actors. Only time will tell if The Shannara Chronicles will be able to walk the fine line between satisfying die-hard fans of the novels and newcomers to the TV show. Hannah Bunting

Erased Now that the Winter 2016 season (January – April) of anime is fully underway, we can watch artistic, wonderfully presented shows like Hai to Gensou no Grimgar (Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash) to the alternate future, sci-fi wonderland of Dimension W. However, what I’ll be looking at in this article is a show that many would have considered to be a middle-of-the-pack show, but has definitely become the number one contender for AotS (anime of the season). Boku Dake ga Inai Machi (ERASED) follows the story of 27-year-old Satoru Fujinuma, a struggling manga artist who also works part-time as a pizza delivery man. He is afflicted with a strange ability, known as “Revival”, where he is involutarily sent back in time 5 – 10 minutes whenever an accident near him occurs, as if he is meant to prevent it. However, when he is sent back 17 years to his days as an elementary school child, a bigger, much darker story begins to unfold. With its cinematic style and movie like production, ERASED tackles themes such as loneliness, child abduction and love, whilst managing to have a few well placed funny moments. If there is any show that you should definitely make time to watch, it’s ERASED! Yemi Oladimeji (Secretary)

34.gaming

Monday 22 February 2016

The Courier

Gaming Editors: Michael Hicks, Ollie Burton & James McCoull

We didn’t start the ﬁre

Top 5 Moral Choices in Videogames Jack Caulﬁeld dons his ranger uniform in Firewatch

Michael Hicks examines the dilemmas often faced by players 5. Knights Of The Old Republic

This was not the first Star Wars game to offer a choice between the light or dark side; just about all of them have. Both sides of the force come with their own unique sense of morals and powers. Bioware’s Knights of the Old Republic tops the rest because it was the first Star Wars game to put actual weight behind the decision to be a Sith or a Jedi. Do you want to help your friends and allies bring order to the galaxy, or do you want to trade justice and their lives for absolute power and shooting lightning from your fingertips? The choice is yours, young padawan.

4. Fallout: New Vegas The idea of karma, that your actions have farreaching consequences both for you and the people you meet on your journey, is one of the key ingredients in making Fallout, Fallout. New Vegas had a far more intricate system than Fallout 3; choices in New Vegas are much deeper than the simple “good or bad” that they often were before. Your experience in the Mojave can change drastically depending on whether the Courier is a saint or sinner, with new gameplay options opening up for each style. There’s even an option to defeat the final boss with words alone should you be morally against violence. However you play New Vegas, there’s always a way to rig the deck in your favour.

e rarely talk directly about it, but a sense of movement and physical embodiment in a video game world can be a deeply impressive thing. It’s clear that the people at Campo Santo, developers of Firewatch, understand this. Much like Gone Home, Firewatch takes care to counterbalance its relative quietude with animations and gameplay systems that foreground your physical embodiment of the protagonist Henry. When you’re rappelling down a cliff, you see his legs and hands. When you come to an obstacle, you don’t merely hop past it but stop and heave yourself over. Though every supply cache has the same code, you always have to enter it. You navigate everywhere with a map and compass. This sounds like a strange thing to focus on as a positive at the start of a review – and it is clunky – but clunky in a way that’s evocative of the physicality of real-life movement. It’s a good indicator of the game’s overall design ethos. Dialogue, for example, is handled similarly. When Julia calls, the game doesn’t stop and wait for you to reply. You have to manually pull out your radio and choose

an option in the middle of whatever else you were doing. Take too long and you remain silent.

“It’s a recipe for strong characterisation that facilitates the game’s genuine emotional impact”

The dialogue options themselves also don’t fit the typical angelic/sarcastic/evil model of choicebased narrative games. Like Lee from Telltale’s The Walking Dead (a game with the same creative leads as Firewatch), Henry is a character in his own right, and you can only steer him down paths that make sense for him. Some players might find it limiting, but it’s a recipe for strong characterisation that facilitates the game’s genuine emotional impact. The opening few minutes, which play out textadventure style, set out the tragic backstory that’s led Henry to this strange place, with remarkable concision. Overlong exposition is sacrificed for evocative fragments that tell us everything we need to know and (for me at least) achieve a se-

rious emotional impact. It’s a style that’s carried through the rest of the game, too. You spend the entire summer in the wilderness but that would be impossible to show in full, so your time is limited to (often lengthy) scenes that have something to tell us, plot- or character-wise. The sense of time passing emerges from Henry’s growing immersion in the wilderness and his deepening connection with Julia. And I’ve buried the lede here, but that wilderness is astonishingly gorgeous. Rather than photo realism, the visual design of the game goes for bright colours that shift completely with the time of day and the weather. It’s difficult to describe in words how lovely Olly Moss and Jane Ng’s work is to look at. The music accompanying your travels, too, could not be better-judged. Chris Remo’s score pops up only when it’s needed and is as quietly, colourfully gorgeous as the game it inhabits. If you’ve ever valued pathos, beauty, mystery, or just the feeling of inhabiting a virtual world, Firewatch is unmissable.

3. Spec Ops: The Line In the game’s most notorious scene, your teammate Lugo tells your character “there’s always a choice”. He’s immediately told “No, there’s really not”, by your own character none the less. Most games define your actions as either good or evil. Spec Ops is not like that. The game forces tough choices on you all the time: do you save the civilians or protect the informant? Do you brutally avenge a close comrade’s lynching or turn a blind eye? There is never a “right” choice to make, and the game will often flat-out tell you that you made the wrong one. Even the game’s writer states that the unofficial ending to the game is for the player to put down the controller rather than play on. Truly the hardest decision to make.

2. The Walking Dead Season 1 Telltale’s The Walking Dead isn’t so much about the zombies or survival when you get down to it. The Walking Dead games are really about throwing impossible situations at the player, forcing you to make snap and difficult decisions with long-lasting consequences. The choices you make can range from massive storyline affecting decisions that can seal the fates of the many loveable characters to just the small things that make “Clementine will remember that” pop up in the corner. I second guessed myself throughout the entire game. Nothing was ever as stressful as the choice you have to make during the finale of Season 1; Michael will definitely remember that.

1. Undertale Many games offer ‘moral choices’ to the player in very simple terms, but the choices run much deeper in Undertale, even the small, subtle things you do have long-lasting effects. And believe me when I say long-lasting. I really mean it. Undertale is the RPG in which no one has to die; players can be merciful to monsters and spare them, avoiding killing them and even in some cases befriending them. This does not mean murder isn’t a viable choice, it is in fact very accessible, and one that’s entirely yours to make. Depending on your actions, what starts out as a light-hearted game with a quirky sense of humour can very quickly take a sharp turn both narratively and tonally. Just remember, you can never truly run from your mistakes; Flowey never forgets.

Vigilo Conﬁdo, Commander

James McCoull spends a week with Firaxis Games’ XCOM 2 f you played XCOM: Enemy Unknown, as I new is very satisfying, and adds a great deal to the soldiers, so it’s nice to be back on the teeth-gritting

did, your reaction to the setting of XCOM 2 might well have been the same as mine: ‘hang on a minute, didn’t we win?’ Well I’ve thought about it and I don’t think we actually did. See, even if you beat the game, how many times did you have to restart after you made too many mistakes? How many times did you reload a save because your only Colonel took a crit they really, really didn’t need? XCOM 2 is just set in the world you left behind when you abandoned that save file. There you go Firaxis, I patched that up for you. Whatever explanation you choose, the story of XCOM 2 goes like this: after twenty years lying dormant in the shadows, hiding from the ADVENT coalition that struck a deal with the aliens which rings bells very much in tune with those of Half Life 2, the XCOM project is suddenly revitalised by the retrieval of the Commander from Enemy Unknown, who had been kept in stasis and used as a comatose strategy-producing supercomputer by the aliens. Newly revived and jammed squarely back in the director’s chair at XCOM’s new flying HQ, you re-assume the position of the only person in the entire world qualified to coordinate a military project and take the fight to ADVENT and the aliens. Series fans will find a lot familiar here: the gameplay is fundamentally unchanged from Enemy Unknown, and anyone hoping for radical differences will be disappointed. However, what is

game. Your soldiers once again come in four flavours, with slight variations on the old. The Assault class is now the sword-wielding Ranger, adaptable to close-quarters encounters and a reliable point lead. The Heavy is now the Grenadier, essentially unchanged but for having swapped out the shitty bazooka for a more versatile grenade launcher that can be loaded with different shells. The Support has become the Specialist, whose medic-ing is now predominantly done via a hovering drone which can also hack and disable enemy mechanical systems. Finally, the Sniper is now the Sharpshooter; not a great deal revolutionised there. The class tweaks are all very satisfying, especially the Ranger’s swordplay, and really do consolidate a lot of problems from which the classes in Enemy Unknown suffered. And God knows you’ll need those little buffs, because the enemies in XCOM 2 really don’t mess around. Returning enemies are far stronger than before, and even they are weak compared to some of the hellish new additions such as the Archon and the Codex. The challenge rating this time round really has been boosted significantly, and even if you’re fine-tuned to the strategies of XCOM you’ll find yourself reloading out of tricky situations with increasing frequency. Of course, that’s no complaint; by the end of Enemy Unknown, little could pose a threat to your super-

end of challenging gameplay. More than anything else, XCOM 2 represents more of the same in the most beautiful way. New challenges, new missions, new troops, and a shiny new graphical sheen update the series to an installation that builds on its predecessor in every way. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have some doomed soldiers to escort into an early grave. ‘80% chance to hit’ my arse.

Alien Muton - watch out for their plasma rifles!

The Courier

gaming.35

Monday 22 February 2016

thecourieronline.co.uk @Courier_Gaming

Memory Card: No Need to Hide When It’s Dark Outside

Rise of the Let’s Play

Jordan Oloman revisits Pajama Sam’s early adventures

et me set the scene. Its 1998, date unknown. I’m 3 years old, and I’m ogling my Dad’s huge CRT monitor in the study of my childhood home. I can feel the weight of the rubber ball they used to use as an oscillator for old computer mice as I click play. A splash screen for ‘Humongous Entertainment’ flashes before my eyes, accompanied by a bunch of cutesy characters and some modulated MIDI tuneage. Little would I know this would be my first foray into the world of the point and click adventure, and boy was it a ride. So, snap back to 2016, and here I am, 18 years later, mulling over the privilege of having all my games stored in Valve’s DRM prison, meaning I can load up any game from Sam and Max to Max Payne 3 at the push of a button, regardless of when they were released. I manage to fight back the existential crisis and the internal monologue “Jesus Christ I’m old” and jump back in my little emulator time machine, ready to face the darkness for the second time around.

“The puzzles are compelling, the characters are easy-going and memorable, and Gilbert employs just the right amount of common sense”

Pajama Sam (Americans spell ‘pyjamas’ weird, I know) is a point and click puzzle adventure, in the same vein of Monkey Island and Maniac Mansion. For some reason, when Ron Gilbert wrapped on Monkey Island in 1991, he upped sticks and created a company that made point and click games for kids, and introduced the world to character’s such as Putt-Putt, Spy Fox, and my personal favourite, Pajama Sam. These games subverted the typical point and click game, using puzzles and wild adventures to teach kids morals and lessons, whilst keeping the same charming wit and humour that made the Monkey Island games so addictive

Behold his sleepwearbased glory! and hilarious. The plot of the game follows Sam, a young lad who can’t put head to pillow because he’s scared of the dark. He gets inspired by his favourite comic book to journey into the closet with his mask, lunch box, and flashlight, the “Illuminator Mark 5 Jr”. In doing so, he stumbles into the Land of Darkness and loses all of his gear, and has to solve various puzzles and face his fears, culminating in a meeting between Sam and Darkness himself, who really is just a lonely guy who needs a friend. They crack a few eggs and Sam can finally rest easy. It’s the kind of storytelling that is simple, charming, and quite useful, especially for 3 year old me, who, like Sam,

was absolutely terrified of whatever was hiding in that massive closet across the room from me. The puzzles are compelling, the characters are easy-going and memorable, and Gilbert employs just the right amount of common sense that any age could get into it and enjoy it. The Humongous pack is on Steam somewhere, and I’d recommend them all if you like your point and clicks and you’re up for a few short, nostalgic thrills. Hell, even though the difficulty of the puzzles should be lost on me 18 years later, I am ashamed to say at some point I did consult a guide. It’s no Dark Souls, but make sure you know your peas from your carrots. Spoilers.

More Like ClubTrope-icana:Non- Andromedon’t standard Game Over A O

James McCoull is sick of the RETRY button, but fears its absence even more s we all know, there's always more than one way to end a game. Generally, this comes in two forms, specifically those famously summarised by Cersei Lannister: 'you win, or you die'. But sometimes, there's other ways, and I'm not talking about multiple endings like Silent Hill or Mass Effect. Sometimes you fuck up in just the right way to change the world. Take XCOM for example, and scanning this spread for a moment you might realise why this particular game is on my mind. In XCOM: Enemy Unknown and its expansion Enemy Within, you can lose by enough Council nations dropping out of the XCOM project, after which you'll be treated to a cutscene of the aliens mind-controlling the Council spokesman as he admonishes you for your failure. But did you know that there's other ways to fail? One mission in Enemy Within (spoilers to follow, by the way) sees your base's hidden location revealed, and wave after wave of aliens lays siege to the base. Failing here won't just mean game over, but rather you'll be treated to a cutscene in which the headquarters lay in burning ruins, key NPCs slumped bloodied against the smouldering walls. Sometimes, the non-standard game over isn't a game over at all. In Dark Souls and Bloodborne, dying to a specific kind of enemy results in you being kidnapped and whisked away to a jail cell, rather than simply restarting at your last bonfire/lantern as per the norm. But why do developers do this? Why implement alternate means of failure? The answer is simple: because it's unsettling as shit. Dying is bad enough. That doesn't really need

explaining, I feel. But when you don't just die, but die in such a specific way that the game pulls the rug out from under you and shows you something different from the 'RETRY/QUIT' screen you've seen a hundred times up to that point, it really has another effect entirely. You don't just feel like you've failed; you feel off-guard and disoriented, and that's a powerful thing indeed. As is the case with Chrono Trigger, it can also be an extra punishment: losing in this game's final boss will force you to watch the world fall apart as you fail to save it. On the other end of the scale, it can be something as minor as your character dying in a spectacularly gruesome way, and Dead Space and Resident Evil 4 really take the cake on this one. Dying to a particular brand of los Ganados will treat you to a horrifying clip of Leon's head being brutally sawn away, before his decapitated corpse collapses forwards. Meanwhile, Isaac Clarke is a record-holder in unique ways to die. You'd think the Necromorphs had a grudge over losing all those limbs with the way they treat his. Fail a certain stage of a certain mission in Hotline Miami 2 and your character will be dragged unconscious to a cell where they're tortured and executed. You don't even get to retry the level after that, it just moves on. Now that's horrifying. Losing a game is never fun, but in the hands of the most macabre developers, it can be traumatising, too. There's a lot of games that won't hold back out there, so maybe next time the stakes are especially high, you'll be a little more careful not to let them have their fun with you.

Errol Kerr comments on a lead-writer abandoning BioWare to change his Destiny

n the 16th of February, the lead writer of Mass Effect: Andromeda, Chris Schlerf, announced via Twitter that he has left Bioware Montreal. Previously a senior writer for Halo 4, Schlerf was nominated by the Writers Guild of America for an Outstanding Achievement in Videogame Writing award in 2013, narrowly losing out to Ubisoft’s writers for Assassin’s Creed III: Liberation. Returning to Twitter from a 6-month social media hiatus, Chris returned to his handle @schlerf to reassure fans that Mass Effect: Andromeda is going to “blow people away, [and he] couldn’t be prouder to be part of it” BioWare has lost three senior members in the past three months – senior development director Chris Wynn left in December, and writer David Gaider in January. With ME:A scheduled for a release in the holiday of this year, it leaves much regarding the storyline up for debate. Mass Effect 2’s story (and gameplay, and... well, everything) was nothing short of spectacular, and the plots of Dragon Age: Origins and Dragon Age: Inquisition are remarkable, however Dragon Age 2 lacked somehwat in regards to plot, and Mass Effect 3... well, that was nothing short of painful for those who had experienced the previous game. We all despised that ending, didn’t we? The last thing Bioware needs right now is a questionable plot and storyline. However, all is not lost – following this upsetting revelation, he soothed the worries of other gamers by announcing that he is “back in Seattle, working with this scrappy little company called Bungie that some of you may have heard of” – confirming rumours that he has indeed begun work on writing for Destiny. Considering the criticism of Destiny’s story this is great news for fans of the creators of the Halo and Marathon franchises. Perhaps it’s a good time for Bungie, famed for their expansive stories, to finally get a writer who can, you know, actually hold a story together…

Tom Shrimplin talks to the editor of Pocket Gamer and the writer of the Game Maker’s Toolkit

he bread and butter of many if not all gaming channels on video streaming websites such as YouTube and Twitch, Let’s Plays are an increasingly popular and wellknown phenomenon. The rise of the Let’s Play has led to the surge in celebrity status of those who create them, ranging from Pewdiepie (the #1 channel on Youtube with over 40 million subscribers) to Stampylonghead, as well as groups such as Achievement Hunter and the Yogscast. Of course this proliferation of Let’s Play channels is somewhat led by the fact that monetisation of ad revenue could provide a full time job for those who are successful, but the reasons for their ever-growing popularity is down to what they offer. The entire appeal of Let’s Plays is that each channel offers its own unique playthrough of a video game. Some channels focus on presenting more of a critical commentary, discussing the positives and negatives of the game usually in the form of a review. These can act as a guides on whether you should buy a game or not and whether or not it is game you would enjoy playing. Some channels are more humorous in nature, focusing on the fun of video games, often joking at funny experiences in games or their own screw ups. In groups of gamers especially, the banter between one another, often with jokes or pranks at each other’s expense the results can be hilarious. Of course, the type of humour differs from channel to channel, with some offering more absurd, wacky humour and some dry, understated humour while others have a mix of both. Moreover, certain channels focus on different types of games, from survival horror to firstperson shooter action games, and even animethemed dating sims if you are that way inclined. Ultimately it is not difficult to find the channel for you. Normally you tend to watch Let’s Plays as you cannot afford the game or don’t have the time to organise friends for a proper, lengthy multiplayer sessions (especially during term time at university). However over time from watching these channels you often grow attached and invested in the person or group, picking up on long-running jokes, catchphrases and gags which newer viewers may not understand. You may even start talking to other fans and become part of a community. Oftentimes you can find yourself watching a Let’s Play of a certain game just because it is your favourite channel and you like the person or groups who are commentating over the walkthrough, even if you are not interested in the game itself.

“Normally you tend to watch Let’s Plays as you cannot afford the game or don’t have the time”

Let’s Plays are continuing to rise in popularity and are now established as a type of online entertainment in the modern age. This rise has come from their variety, ranging from formal reviews to wacky adventures or even people just messing about. However, together with a unique experience, the sense of community and a personal connection between you as the viewer and them as the gamer or gamers built over time, these often misunderstood Let’s Plays offer a distinct form of entertainment that cannot be matched on TV or film. Let’s face it: who wouldn’t rather watch gamers dogfighting in jets in GTA V over yet another murder in dreary EastEnders?

’Game Grumps’ Arin and Barry

36.science&technology

Monday 22 February 2015

The Courier

Science Editors: Anna Jastrzembska, Louise Bingham, & Iqra Choudhry

Peake performance on the ISS

So, what do astronauts actually do in space? Errol Kerr gives us some insights into the day-to-day life of Tim Peake, the only British astronaut on the international space station and the research he’s conducting up there

n 15th December 2015, a Soyuz spacecraft was launched to the International Space Station. Leaving the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, the Soyuz TMA19M docked with the station six hours after its launch, and British astronaut Tim Peake left his wife and two sons planetside to become the first British astronaut from the European Space Agency to visit the ISS. As part of expedition 46 and 47, he is spending six months in the confines of the station, surrounded by the infinity of space, in low Earth orbit. As you’re reading this, Tim Peake will have been on the ISS for 10 weeks of his stay. His mission is “Principia” – a name of his own choice, a reference to Isaac Newton’s books on the laws of motion, planetary motion and universal gravitation. With the ISS at his disposal, Peake and his fellow astronauts and cosmonauts intend to use the environment of space to their advantage. The International Space Station exists as a completely unique scientific research facility. It tests human physiology and biological states, the physics of radiation, solar physics, the biology of microorganisms, cells and tissue, as well as

materials science and technology. In doing so, the crew intend to improve quality of life in space and on Earth, as well as provide future scientists with ways to better assist in human exploration of the solar system. In particular, Tim Peake wants to inspire individuals to better understand and develop an interest in science. Peake’s experience in sub-orbital conditions may be currently minimal, but he logged around 3000 hours of in-flight time across over thirty different types of helicopter and fixed-wing aircraft as a test pilot. Having been in the cadet force and the Army as an Air Corps officer from a young age, Peake’s knowledge of aircraft, as well as his training, indicates his aptitude for the job – after all, he pretty much lived off the ground anyway, looking at his service logs, so this should just be a (space) walk in the

(space)park for him. A day aboard the station begins and ends with a planning conference to check what has been completed throughout the day and what mission parameters have been accomplished. Like the other astronauts and cosmonauts aboard the station, Tim Peake has had to conduct physical examinations on himself frequently. Weekly questionnaires are conducted to record Peake’s state regarding the phenomenon of Space Headaches – resulting from the stresses of launch and the effects of zero gravity upon the human bloodstream – in order to keep an eye on his condition.

“Peake then became the first British astronaut to conduct a spacewalk across the outside of the ISS”

Peake spends 120 minutes a day exercising, whether on a bike or treadmill, in order to maintain his strength whilst in space, where the human body atrophies. Yes, two hours. Daily. Do any of you guys do that? (if you do, points to you, now get into space and you’ll really impress me.) Bodily tests are taken to test immediate effects of life in space, from taking skin and bodily fluid samples, to cardiovascular, fine motor and eye tests, in order to fully evaluate human life in space. Life in space is not restricted to the maintenance and evaluation of human health, however – they’ve got to work when they’re up there, too. Peake himself assisted in maintaining the recycling system, the biolab, airlock system, the combustion experiment facility and the electrostatic levitation furnace. You read that last one right. This isn’t a sci-fi novel. Tim is also in charge of several experiments during his sojourn in space. He is involved in a test experiment known as Meteron, in which he operates rovers on Earth remotely from the confines of the ISS, with the hope of one day doing the same on Mars from the station, circumventing Earth’s atmosphere and satellite traffic. Another key experi-

ment, Expose-R2 (which has nothing to do with inappropriate things involving our favourite Star Wars astromech droid) intends to investigate the effect of extreme environmental pressures, similar to that found on the surface of Mars, on bacteria and organisms found on Earth. Supplies are sent to the station regularly, brought by unmanned Cygnus resupply ships. These ships are loaded with thousands of kilograms of cargo – from food, other provisions and care packages, to structural and mechanical equipment, as well as various scientific facilities that are installed into the station. These are unloaded by the astronauts, before the Cygnus craft is sent back. Having assisted one session of extra-vehicular activity (I’d have said spacewalk, but the technical term sounds way better) on the 21st of December through helping equip the other astronauts and coordinating between them and mission control, Peake then became the first British astronaut to conduct a spacewalk across the outside of the ISS on the 15th of January. A month into his stay he left the confines of the station with American astronaut Tim Kopra to replace a sequential shunt unit on the station’s solar arrays.

“Life in space is not restricted to the maintenance and evaluation of human health, however - they’ve got to work when they’re up there, too”

It’s not all hard work, though. Follow the astronaut on Twitter at @astro_timpeake to watch his daily activities, including #SpaceRocks, when, a few times each week, followers can guess what song Peake is playing from his playlist in order to win a patch from the European Space Agency. So, go get on Twitter, because contrary to popular belief, you can be heard whilst in space. At least via Mp3 player.

Do humans dream of electric sheep, too? Our understanding of what technology is might be a bit skewed. James McCoull addresses all technophobes out there

et’s get one thing straight: technology is inescapable. Sorry technophobes, but even if you bin your phone and retire to the Rockies to live in tune with nature, chances are, at some point you’re going to need to start a fire to keep warm and the moment you do, surprise surprise, you’ll be using technology. It’s not always a matter of microchips and vacuum tubes: technology is a table, a piece of clothing, a ruler, a cup. It’s the core concept behind the things we do, not just to make great strides towards a better world, but to simply get by every day. So how reliant are humans on technology? Well as a matter of fact, it’s the only thing that makes us human. S o m e other animals can use tools, sure, but it’s the way humans shape the world and objects around them to fit

them - rather than adapting to the world, as other animals do – that makes us what we are. We can’t survive in the cold, so we cover up our skin with something better suited; we can’t eat raw meat and certain kinds of plants, so we cook and change them until we can; we can’t share the complex ideas our brains constantly produce by gesturing and grunting, so we build sentences out of words built out of letters and so on. In a more modern sense, technology certainly appears predominant. Chances are you’ll check your phone before you’ve finished reading this article, and you’d be hard pressed to not have a screen within eyesight in any given city centre. This can be scary, from a certain perspective, and there are plenty out there who are worried that technology is using us just as much as we’re using it. Is that worry justifiable? Maybe, but at the end of the day it’s still nothing new. Technology has been used to subdue, exploit and kill people ever since our primordial ancestors discovered

you could swing a rock much more effectively by fastening it to a stick. Responsibility lies, and always has lain, with the person using the technology; it’s nothing more than a means to an end, and those ends are invariably the product of wholly human intentions. Certainly there are things to fear. The world has lived in the looming shadow of nuclear armageddon for the last seventy years, and more recently, military drones have presented troubling possibilities of human deaths at the hands of ever-more efficient killing machines. But ultimately death on a massive scale has never been hard for humans to achieve. Conversely, we’re now living longer, healthier lives than ever, even by the standards of just a hundred or even fifty years ago. We’ve abolished entire strains of diseases that once scourged whole continents with nothing more than a tiny jab for toddlers. We’ve visited our nearest celestial neighbour,

with a permanent space outpost in orbit around the Earth at this very moment. We’ve mastered global communication on a scale that was unprecedented even in the nineties, with devices capable of accessing an international web of data that are small enough to fit in our pockets and powerful enough to do that and a million other things.

“Technology is the core concept behind the things we do, not just to make great strides towards a better world, but to simply get by every day... it’s the only thing that makes us human”

That’s a small part of the reason I scoff at technophobes, and a big part of the reason I can’t be anything other than hopeful for a future built on the back of technology. Science fiction dreams of these worlds, and mere decades later we get to live in them. Sure, there are bleak things ahead – the world is still suffering irreparable ecological damage and modern warfare mutates into something only more horrifying every day – but frankly bleak things are going to happen anyway. The real miracles, the wonders of technology, will never come to fruition if held back by naysayers that believe in cultural stagnation in the vain hope of preventing some kind of machine apocalypse.

The Courier

technology&science.37

Monday 22 February 2015

thecourieronline.co.uk/science c2.science@ncl.ac.uk | @courier_science

Sweet dreams are made of this...

Food glorious food, we’re anxious to try it. But, as Ellis Charlesworth asks, is it just a deeply-rooted fear of hunger or some chemical properties that make certain foods addictive?

t’s a question many of us will have asked ourselves at some point. Whether it’s snacking on crisps or chocolate, or getting in pizza or Chinese, there are some foods which just seem to leave us craving more. As it turns out, in many cases science offers us an explanation. Food has been an important part of our survival for a very long time, forever in fact, and so the motivational systems of the brain are highly aware of it. The body has sensors in the mouth and gut which measure the nutritional content of foods, and then the level of motivation is set by the brain based on this information via dopamine release in the nucleus accumbens, the reward centre of the brain. Addiction is often associated with excessive levels of

dopamine in this region, which can lead to selfdestructive behaviours. As you probably already expected, junk food tends to be the most addictive group of foods. When people were asked to rank a series of foods by order of addictiveness, top answers included chocolate, chips and pizza. When the nutritional content of these foods were analysed, it was found that the fat content and the glycaemic load – a measure of the amount of carbohydrate is in the food and how quickly blood glucose is raised – were strongly associated with the potential for addiction. What this means is that we are drawn to foods that are concentrated in calories and are rapidly digested. A number of experiments have shown that intense sweetness, whether from sugar or artificial sweeteners, produces an indication of physical craving. In fact, sweetness has been shown to surpass cocaine as a reward in laboratory animals. As it turns out, an analysis of over 100 articles revealed that humans produce opioids as a derivative of digestion of excess sugars and fats. Opioids are the chemically active ingredient of many drugs known to be addictive, such as heroin and cocaine. Testing using the opiate blocker naloxone reduced the level of interest in sweets compared to others who had not been treated. There is also a correlation between ov e rc o n s u mp tion of fat and brain systems which stimulate the intake of fat when activated. Rats given fat-rich foods did not show opiate withdrawal symptoms

when treated with opiate blockers or during fasting. So, although fat rich foods seem to result in addiction like effects, overeating fatty foods affects the opioid systems in the pleasure centres of the brain differently to sugar.

“Intense sweetness, whether from sugar or artificial sweeteners, produces an indication of physical craving”

There are also elements of flavour which make food moreish. The ‘fifth taste’ umami, from the Japanese word for ‘deliciousness’ or a pleasant savoury taste, arises from the presence of the amino acid glutamate. This is the basis of monosodium glutamate, an additive which is seen in many processed foods, where it used to enhance meaty and savoury flavours. Umami can also be the result of ribonucleotides, which occur naturally in many foods. Umami is a marker of protein in food, which could explain why we seek it out. It is possible that it has evolved so that we could get suitable levels of protein in our diet. Combining ingredients with different umami compounds results in a greater flavour than the individual components, which may explain why dishes such as Bolognese with cheese or cheeseburgers with ketchup may be your flavour of choice, as all three amplify the umami of the other parts to create a moreish taste. So, as it turns out, here are many factors that play into our love of certain foods, and while some of it is psychological, there are also physical responses at play. Next time you find yourself reaching for another cupcake, don’t feel guilty. After all, it’s down to science.

Breakingdownthe myths of Man-ﬂu Y

they’re too proud to straight up ask for it. That’s my theory, at least.

“It’s a raw deal for those guys, and I think Manflu is a reaction to that. Sometimes, blokes just want to get a bit soppy”

It seems odd to discuss such a trivial matter in the science section, but you’d be extremely surprised in the amount of research behind this concept. Back In 2014 when the Daily Mail ran out of news, they published a Harvard study that found when you inject male mice with a heavy dose of female sex hormone Oestrogen, which bolsters the immune system, they could fight off infections more efficiently. So, the cure to Manflu is actually rooted in femininity, in the most ironic, paradoxical way possible. In addition, when men get older, they produce more Oestregen due to an increase in aromatase activity. So really, the older you get, the less you should have to complain about. Go figure.

It’s a fact: Brits don’t care about global warming. Ciara RitsonCourtney explains what’s at stake

fter months of floods and warnings about the ever present dangers of global warming, the population of Britain have been ranked 15th out of 17 by YouGov in its concern levels over climate change. Why? This year the UK has been hit by storms and floods, which have been mainly claimed to be due to climate change, yet it hasn’t changed the general populations concern around global warming issues. Only 10.8% of the population ranked global warming as their most important issue and only the US and Saudi Arabia had lower scores. So, why should we care? Projected models suggest that at the current rate of warming that many of the most populated regions in the UK could be underwater within the next few decades. This is mainly due to the fact that the main areas of civilisations are near rivers, which are expected to expand due to ice cap melting in global warming. This would affect many people including not only people immediately close to rivers, but also transport systems and flood planes further up and down river. It appears the impact on the day to day life of people living in Britain would be huge, not to mention the alterations predicted to impact the nation and worldwide economies. Increases in rain in winter would also lead to flooding in flat areas with minimal drainage as well as even more discussions about weather. Summers would become warmer and drier leading to droughts in areas of the UK. These changes could ruin many of the crops grown here, as well as our exports leading to a higher amount of imports and the loss of many jobs. With increased temperatures many people would have to move worldwide as regions could become inhabitable, this could lead to the loss of natural resources form the region and valuable living space therefore further impacting the economy worldwide.

“At the current rate of warming, many of the most populated regions in the UK could be underwater within the next few decades”

Jordan Oloman investigates the urban legend of Manﬂu to decide once and for all, the truth behind the aﬄiction ou know when your Dad starts grousing about the sniffles for no reason, and he’s sat trying to compare a tickly cough to the West Nile virus? That, my dear friends is the mythological pathos known as Manflu. I’m just going to set the record straight first of all. If you’re alone, wallowing in self-pity and nursing all fifty seven of Heinz varieties then you do not have Manflu, you’re just a bit under the weather. Manflu, in a court of law, is where you’re ill and trying to solicit the attention of a partner or other human being. Having a big moan basically, because of your obviously grievous symptoms. Men are bloody miserable beasts, and can be hellishly grumpy when they want to be. Generally, we’re not terribly emotional, and whilst you’ve probably seen your mum cry hundreds of times when the little boy with the gammy leg who lives in a shoebox with his eight brothers gets through on the X Factor, your dad probably sits there stiff upper lip, reading his copy of Hegemonic Masculinity monthly. It’s a raw deal for those guys, and I think Manflu is a reaction to that. Sometimes, blokes just want to get a bit soppy. They need a cup of tea, a roast dinner and a hug to get them back on track. A smidge of attention, a little bit of TLC, because

Should we be bothered?

Word of the Week: THORIUM Named for its Norse mythological counterpart and offering potential as a nuclear fuel, Thorium is periodic element number 90. Discovered in 1828 by Reverend and Esmark, it has a silvery metallic appearance and will tarnish to black upon exposure to air. Each of its seven natural isotopes are weakly radioactive, which led to ceasing of its use in gas mantles and alloys. Thorium is commonly used in the manufacture of high-end optical systems and scientific instruments, and may come to replace uranium in powering reactors. However as of 2016, only several Thorium reactors exist so we have quite a way to go just yet. Ollie Burton

Ecosystems may not have time to adapt to changes externally therefore endangering animals and plants vital to their environments and to humans and could aggravate pollution levels as they would no longer be limited by CO2 intake. Yet we are still sceptical about how real the problem is. The scepticism in the UK, however, is, to some extent, understandable. Scientific bodies such as the IPCC are seen by many to be an unreliable source of information as they have repeatedly changed their own data collection and has appeared to make the data fit their hypotheses. Many argue the change in climate is completely natural, with earth having a varying temperature throughout its existence to ice ages and other natural phenomena’s, yet as is argued by many scientific bodies, this is the quickest and most rapid fluctuation on record. So are we right to not care? With an ever growing online population fighting against the idea of climate change with a huge basis in the UK, its understandable many out rightly disagree with the concept. There are many claims of corrupt science and governments attempting to scare the masses, and while all of these play a part in how much we care, it rightly could be just put down to the fact that we have things we consider to be more important. The recent immigration crisis and the multiple countries in need of aid are at the forefront of many peoples thoughts as well as the continuous cuts to funding throughout the country, its easy to consider these instantaneous issues as more important as they lead to deaths tomorrow, but it isn’t considered that climate change could do the same. None of the climate change models are certain, and there is no unanimous agreement it is taking place, but surely this is an issue we should be considering.

The Courier

puzzles.39

Monday 22 February 2016

Puzzles Editors: Jack Parker & Mark Sleightholm

Puzzles ?? ?

Can you guess where the hell we’ve taken this photo, and why?

7 8 9 10 11 12

14 16

15 17 20

Image: Ultra7, wikimedia commons

“Sudok-who? Nah, never heard of them”

24 25

Across

1 1980s policy of openness in the Soviet Union (8) 4 Baby sheep (4) 8 Christopher _____, actor known for roles in Doctor Who and Our Friends in the North (9) 9 Middle Eastern delicacy, now a popular delicacy (5) 10 Cow-related protein (5) 11 Solid water (3) 13 Medley of vegetables (5) 15 Host city of the 1996 Olympics (7) 17 Verse from a poem (6) 20 Trident’s predecessor (7) 22 Yoko ___ (3) 23 Clever, sharp humour (3) 24 Famous person (9) 25 Vegetable that makes people cry (5)

Connectword Find the word that

Down

1 Spanish city bombed by the Nazis (8) 2 Covered walkway, often home to amusements (6) 3 Get in the way (8) 5 Southern US state, known as the Yellowhammer state (7) 6 Justin ____, Canadian teen idol of the late 2000s (6) 7 Canadian teen idol of the late 1950s (4) 12 1970s funk and soul group, sang ‘Don’t Take Away the Music’ (7) 14 Student ____: debt (4) 16 Bond before Brosnan (6) 18 Japanese city known as Edo until 1868 (5) 19 Immediately (3) 20 Speed, velocity (4) 21 About 15 years ago both Tony Blair and Kylie Minogue did this a lot (4)

Water

connects these three words.

Alley

____

Drop

Completing the entirety of this puzzles page will entitle you to the respect of (some of) your peers. Feel free to bring the proof of your achievement into the Courier office, where you’ll receive a firm handshake.

40.sportfeatures

Monday 22 February 2016

The Courier

not least, Harry the ‘Hurri-kane’ has proven Tottenham Hotspur but himself as one of the top Tottenham were previously the team under-‘under the radar’ with surprise leaders Leicester, attracting much of the interest from the media and football fans. However, Pochettino has instilled a hard working ethic to a talented and well-balanced team with a young, British core leading to them being title contenders. In fact, Pochettino has been rated by old Fergie (which is high praise considering his own accomplishments) as being the best manager in the Premier League. Spurs also have strength and depth in their team. Club captain, Hugo Lloris, is safe-hands in net, proving to be a top goalkeeper. Vorm is also a very capable back-up. In defence, the young Austrian defender, Wimmer, is performing well in place of the injured Vertonghen. Vertonghen had previously provided a strong backbone for the team, alongside Alderweireld, the Belgian centre back with an unpronounceable name. The solid British quartet of Rose, Walker, Davies and Trippier all compete for the full back positions. Then in midfield the likes of Dier provide the steel in supporting the defence, while the gifted attacking players such as Eriksen, Alli and Lamela all create the chances. The young Brit, Dele Alli has excelled following his debut arguably scoring one of the best goals of the season. Last

British strikers, banging them in left, right and centre. With a victory against a surprisingly uninspired Man City, albeit with the referee’s help with a rather dodgy handball decision, Spurs have only gained more momentum. Important to mention is that they have won their 5 matches and only dropped 4 points out of a possible 30. Consistency, form, and a bit of good luck, are all signs of champions. There is also an increasing sense of belief instilled by Pochettino, which is only going to help them in their final push in the next 12 games of the season. Meanwhile, Leicester have the pressure of being favourites for the title and a thin squad so injuries to either Vardy, Mahrez or Kante will probably end the Foxes’ title charge. Arsenal will no doubt crumble under the pressure in typical fashion, and end up returning to their well-worn fourth place after a season’s absence. Whereas Man City are too inconsistent, with the imminent arrival of Guardiola no doubt disrupting any momentum they previously had. The only thing potentially stopping Spurs’ charge is an injury to Kane, but otherwise Spurs are my pick to be number one by the end of the season, and to finally win their first Premier League title. Tom Shrimplin

A mardy looking Vardy: with his track record, he hasn’t got much to be upset about Images: YouTube

Leicester City Leicester City: the chat shit, get banged brigade. In truth, their 40-point aim got turned to shit as they banged just about everyone in the league. An underdog run that just hasn’t ended; Leicester have endured with bargain signings, lost causes and bottom half of the table stalwarts. What has emerged is a team that would be 18th in the league if it was based on first xi transfer value. As Mike Basset notes “4 4 FUCKING 2”, in a world of 3 in the middle, this is what the Foxes have lived by. An explosive counter attacking system that has constantly put teams that think they can dominate Leicester to the sword. Much credit must go to Claudio Ranieri, often

lauded for not changing much since coming to the helm. Though it must be said I think they would have been much further down the league under Pearson, who at best could be described as “unstable” before the end of his tenure. Ranieri on the other hand has been the epitome of “grounded”, first aiming for 40 points and a pizza, and now remaining coy in public but as ambitious as ever with his tactics. The ‘Tinkerman’ has done away with his nickname, maintaining the most consistent line-up in the league. Then why would you? Schmeichel, Morgan and Huth, Kante and Drinkwater, Vardy and Okazaki. Work rate and quality throughout the spine, without even mentioning a revitalised Fuchs, player of the year candidate Mahrez and potential Euro 2016 call up Albrighton.

That leaves the likes of Inler, Dyer and Gray on the bench. Though understated, Leicester have serious talent. The only top four team without cup commitments. The only team that are top of the league. Some may see the Arsenal defeat as their downfall, but with their previous two losses Leicester have responded like Champions. All in all, Arsenal are Arsenal, City have been abhorrent and Spurs have the curse of Europa League football. Who will stop them? Highest goal scorer, the most wins, the fewest defeats says it all. Anyway, fairy tales always have happy endings. I for one can’t wait to see Ranieri smashed on WKD and flying the v’s at Roman. Scott Trotter

The race for the Premier League:

who will be coming out on top? With the Premier League title race hotting up, The Courier asked students who they think has the bottle and bravery to take the crown. Can Leicester really pull oﬀ the impossible dream? Or will Arsene Wenger ﬁnally break Tottenham hearts and return the trophy to North London?

Arsenal

As Arsene Wenger felt that his team could go all the way two seasons ago, he had an infamous battle with the zipper on his long jacket. To an outsider, his actions seem like a man in disagreement with his zipper, when in actuality

that Arsenal might just pull it off. Flamini and Campbell in particular have been granted an uncharacteristically long run of games, and have kept the ship steady for when those whom they replace, return. Despite Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez providing the silky skill and flashy effectiveness

“The zipper is never fully up” Wenger’s zipper is indicative of the fact that he knows to keep his hopes realistic. Hence the zipper is never fully up. Arsenal’s season thus far has been symptomatic of a fundamental problem plaguing their club for the last decade: having the ability to climb the mountain, but not having the belief that they can do so. A forgettable January has been wiped clean from memory, as the scalp of table-topping Leicester, with the last kick of the game, shows

Arsenal have had quite an impressive line-up throughout the Premier League Images: Joshjdss, Flickr

that’s come to be associated with the club, Arsenal’s defence has been it’s true saviour throughout the season. If you predicted that Hector Bellerin would become the premier league’s breakout star a year ago, you would’ve drawn many laughs to your face. Half a year into the new season, and you’d be looking pretty smug. The former La Masia grad has earned rave reviews from all corners, and has been putting consistent performances to earn them. Shedding his initial hiccups, the Span-

iard has come into his own, much like his national compatriot David De Gea. Nacho Monreal has also statistically proven himself to be the best left-back in the league. With an average of 3 interceptions and 5 assists, the Spaniard has proven to be a cornerstone of Arsenal’s success, and may well serve to define the defense for future seasons. At the base of it all lies one of Arsenal’s most pivotal signings, Petr Cech. The former Chelsea man has added level of class and consistency that has often gone awry in Arsenal squads of the past. While his shot stopping abilities might have gone a tad rusty, his ability to communicate and organize his defense is an attribute that puts him in a league of his own. Arsenal might yet fail at the final hurdle, but they currently exhibit the hunger and drive that is expected out of a league winning squad. Ritwik Sarkar

Manchester City How can Manchester City win the title? Surprisingly there’s more than just blind faith that City fans can rely on. Why? Well we’ve done it before. Cast your minds back to the 8th of April, 2012. City had just lost to Arsenal 1-0 and United had gone eight points clear at the top. At the time Phil McNulty claimed that

against the teams battling to stay in the league. As for Spurs, they’re in the Europa League, so travelling to Azerbaijan and back three times in a month is going to take its toll. Thursday night football has always ruined title bids. So how can City win the title, and what do they need to change to be able to make the difference? Stage 1 is already complete: get Kompany fit.

“Surprisingly, there’s more than just blind faith City fans can rely on. Why? Well we’ve done it before” City’s already “faltering title challenge lies in tatters.” I don’t blame him either. No one thought we could claw it back. Six matches later, including a derby victory and a heart-stopping win against QPR, City were crowned Premier League champions. Why can’t we do it again? We still have largely the same team, besides instead of Adam Johnson, Gareth Barry and Joleon Lescott, we’ve got Raheem Sterling, Fernandinho and Nicolas Otamendi. Top-placed Leicester are currently six points ahead of City, with twelve games to go. Remember also that City were chasing an experienced United side led by the ‘genius’ that is Sir Alex Ferguson. Whereas Leicester have no Premier League winners except Robert Huth, who likes to pretend that he was a pivotal figure in the original Mourinho Chelsea team. City can rely on Arsenal to slip up at some point. Historically Arsenal have always managed to compete with the big boys, but have struggled

So long as that man is in the starting eleven, City are capable of anything. Sometimes I’m not convinced he’s mortal. I’ll look a bit stupid if he gets injured against Chelsea, but he is crucial so we have to keep him fit. Stage 2 is also simple: shoot Yaya Touré in his kneecaps. The Ivorian has been far and away City’s worst player this season. He never used to put any effort in, but at least his legs used to work. Hopefully Pellegrini won’t have too much of a dilemma dropping him now that Kompany has returned to reclaim the captain’s armband. Stage 3? Make up six points in twelve games. With City’s quality and history, you’d be foolish to even consider any other team clinching that coveted Premier League title.

James Sproston

42.sportbucs Gus’ Club of the Week

By Alex Hendley Sports Editor This week’s club of the week chosen by AU Officer Angus Taylor is NUAFC, Newcastle University’s Association Football Club. This week, the first team beat rivals Leeds in the BUCS cup, a result that pleased everyone at the club. NUAFC’s stat-partner STATZONE provided this match report from last Wednesday. NUAFC suffered their first defeat of the calendar year last week against Leeds 4-2 in the league following an impressive 6 wins in all competitions to start the year, so Newcastle were looking for a reaction going into this BUCS cup last 16 game against the same opponents. A relatively cagey start to the game with the home side Leeds seeming comfortable sitting off NUAFC and conceding the vast majority of possession. As the half developed, the Royals started to find gaps in the stubborn Leeds back line with Walker hitting the post and Owen forcing a good save from the keeper, however, no breakthrough came and the half finished with parity, 0-0. The second half started as the first ended with NUAFC on top and looking for the opener, and it came just after the hour mark when a nice flowing move resulted in the keeper parrying Owen’s effort into the path of Walker who slotted home to give Newcastle a deserved lead, 1-0. Leeds then started to come back into the game, commanding more possession and creating a handful of half chances; Newcastle remained resolute and quelled the pressure comfortably. With around 15 minutes left, Alex Ames was brought down in the box following a clumsy challenge by the Leeds centre back after a ball over the top, penalty Newcastle. Walker stepped up and slotted it home to make it 2-0 and to score his 30th of the season, game over. Despite some late pressure from the Yorkshire team, the blues saw the game out to progress into the next round setting up an away tie with either MMU or LJMU. Goal scorer Walker had this to say after the game,” It’s great to bounce back from last week’s disappointment and to keep a clean sheet after conceding four and to keep ourselves in contention for a lot of silverware this season, the atmosphere in the squad at the minute is second to none and we believe we can beat anyone on our day.” That win now makes it 17 wins for the season and NUAFC have now won their last 13 cup games in all cup competitions carrying on from the end of last season. Despite no longer being able to win the BUCS league, NUAFC is still in contention to win 5 competitions this season. In the next round of the cup, Newcastle will either face Manchester Met (Cheshire) or Liverpool John Moores, the former of which tops Newcastle’s BUCS league.

Monday 22 February 2016

The Courier

Raiders touchdown in the playoﬀs By Kai Assoun The Newcastle Raiders, our resident American Football team have undoubtedly had an excellent season so far as they march in to the playoffs heralding an impressive five wins and just two losses. This kind of success typifies the Raiders, who have enjoyed relative success in the last few years also. The pre-season focused on fitness, preparing the team for direct physical exertion, and training the new recruits in order to give them the skills needed to start the first game confident in their new abilities. This year, perhaps due to the growing reputation of the NFL and in general American Football in the UK, the Raiders saw a significant rise in the number of new recruits showing interest and consequently joining the team, which has boosted both the squad size and the talent. These freshers added to the already talented roster of returning players, and it has proved a successful squad as the season has gone on. The Raiders’ season began on a cold autumnal day in early November, against the Glasgow Tigers. Returning players proved to be rusty on both sides, and new players proved naïve and inexperienced. Defence proved to be the key to the game, which saw frustrating incomplete drives for the whole game on both offences. The game ended a disappointing 2-0 loss for the raiders, proving a dull start to what was hoped

The Raiders have beaten Northumbria twice this season Image: Newcastle Raiders

to be a big season. Following the week immediately after, the Raiders travelled up north to visit the Tigers once more, who had asserted themselves as the outright favourites for the division already, despite the season still being young. This resulted in a 14-0 loss for the Raiders, which was a large

5 wins and 2 losses sent the Raiders into the playoffs Image: Newcastle Raiders

blow to the hopes of an ambitious team. However, it seemed that this blow was taken as a wake-up call for the team. The next two games were crucial for both the season and pride. In the two Northumbria games, the latter of which counted toward The Stan Calvert Trophy, both sides were nervy, and it was apparent that this was the strongest the Northumbria Mustangs have been in many years. After winning the first of the two games 14-7, the Raiders visited Northumbria riding the high of the previous week’s glory, and heads were high in anticipation of doing the double over the noisy neighbours. The Raiders picked up where they left off on defence; the Northumbria offense seemed to have no answer to the strength of the Raiders, led by Ashley Kirby and fan favourite Houston Brown. All seemed well in the camp, especially when quarterback Adam Pynn threw a long ball into the safe hands of Jack Stainthorp, who proceeded to put on the burners and run the ball home gloriously for the first touchdown of the game. However, Northumbria refused to be beaten. Hope came for the Mustangs as a deep throw found its way over the top of cornerback Tom Rickard’s head and

into the hands of a grateful wide receiver, who took the ball into the endzone for the equaliser they so desperately wanted. The game was now in the balance. The game then descended into a particularly cagey affair; both sides wanted the victory, but couldn’t risk the loss. It became stalemate. In the dying seconds, however, Northumbria had found themselves with an opportunity to kick a field goal for the win. If not for Captain and President Kai Assoun’s block of the kick, the game would have been lost. His clutch heroics had pushed the game to overtime. In overtime, Adam Pynn took over and threw the game’s winning touchdown to an open receiver. Job done. Since then, the Raiders have satisfyingly dispatched the threats of Lancaster and Sunderland, with a further game against Sunderland to come before they march into the playoffs. Olivier Masnyk, a 5 year raider and self-proclaimed support beam for the team stated, “this is a really good group of lads. With the new members that have come in this year, we look like our success this season could be just a start as they have just begun and have years ahead of them.” Wednesday 17th February results

Overall BUCS Position: 9th

Football M1 v Leeds 1sts W1 v Sunderland 1sts

2-0 0-0

Netball 1 v Cardiff Met 1sts 4 v Sheffield 2nds

31-63 22-40

Golf 1 v Leeds Beckett 2nds

5-1 2-2 0-2 2-3 4-4

Rugby Union M1 v Durham 1sts M3 v Durham 4ths W2 v Bradford 1sts

17-7 20-4 2-23

Badminton M1 v Edinburgh 1sts W1 v Birmingham 2nds

0-8 7-1

Basketball M1 v Edinburgh 1sts M2 v Sheffield 2nds W1 v Sheffield Hallam 1sts

90-65 53-34 56-79

Hockey M1 v Leeds 1sts W1 v Leeds Beckett 1sts W2 v Leeds Beckett 2nds W4 v Leeds 5ths

Fencing M1 v Imperial 1sts M3 v Hull 1sts W3 v Northumbria 1sts

122-112 137-105 135-127

Lacrosse M1 v Edinburgh 1sts W1 v Bath 1sts W3 v Durham 3rds

Table Tennis M1 v Robert Gordon 1sts W2 v UCLAN 1sts

9-6 5-0

0-27 6-22 W/O

Rugby League 1 v St Marys 1sts 2 v Huddersfield 1sts

Tennis M1 v Northumbria 1sts M2 v Leeds 3rds W1 v Stirling 1sts W2 v Keele 1sts

2-10 4-8 0-12 2-10

4-36 4-44

Ultimate 1 v Lancaster 1sts

15-0

Squash M1 v Edinburgh 1sts M2 v Sheffield 2nds M3 v Liverpool 2nds W2 v Lancaster 1sts

5-0 4-1 3-0 2-2

Volleyball M1 v Edge Hill 1sts

3-0

The Courier

sportbucs.43

Monday 22 February 2016

Knights into quarters as Scots brushed aside Men’s Basketball Newcastle 1sts

Edinburgh 1sts

By Mark Sleightholm at the Sports Centre Having already won the Northern 1A league, the Newcastle Knights remained on top form in a convincing win over Edinburgh in the Basketball Trophy, putting the Knights through to the quarter finals. Newcastle’s strong performance in last season’s Trophy saw them through to the semi-finals, allowing them a bye in the first round of this year’s competition. This put them straight into the final sixteen to host Edinburgh, who had narrowly defeated the Sheffield Hallam Firsts 79-75 back in November. Both teams currently sit at the top of their respective leagues. Newcastle have already earned themselves a play-off match for the Premier North division, whilst Edinburgh are virtually guaranteed to win the Scottish first league. Newcastle coach Ian Hewitt said after the match: “We’ve won the league, so we’re waiting for the play-offs on that side, we want to finish having won them all, but for us the BUCS Trophy is something we want to win. We want to win every game.” The match began scrappily, with both teams trying to establish themselves. Despite several scrabbles round the away net it was Edinburgh who pulled ahead in the first quarter, with the score 7-2 to the visitors after just three minutes of play. Newcastle managed to win back several points, before Jack Beresford managed to score off the rebound to level the two teams at 10-10. Almost immediately Edinburgh pulled ahead again, but Newcastle’s Chuck Duru scored from behind the three-point line to put the hosts in the lead.

The Knights’ fast passing put pressure on Edinburgh, but the two teams remained level for the remainder of the first quarter, which ended 19-17 in Edinburgh’s favour. Newcastle came back refreshed after the break, scoring 10 points in the first two minutes, leaving Edinburgh floundering. Despite coach Danny Costello’s vocal instructions, delivered standing on the bench, the visitors were unable to have any significant impact on Newcas-

“Newcastle seemed much more comfortable than their guests, with the Knights passing the ball over large distances”

tle’s defence. The Knights pulled further ahead while Edinburgh played more desperately, leading to dives, falls and a much faster pace. In the final minutes of the first half Edinburgh recovered slightly, with a casual over-the-shoulder shot from Davy Rowan taking the score to 46-30. Charlie Wallrapp and Robbie Lemons soon responded for Newcastle, with two points each contributing to the halftime score of 50-30. Ron Adrian’s close miss for Edinburgh in the opening seconds of the third quarter marked the start of a series of missed shots for the visitors, before one went in to take the score to 50-32. Adrian and Rowan provided a strong partnership for Edinburgh, frequently passing to each other and taking the majority of Edinburgh’s shots. Throughout the match the pair worked together, with one finding space for the other even when the rest of Edinburgh’s team were unable to assist. Newcastle benefited from several penalties in the third quarter, while Chuck Duru scored three points from a shot taken from the side of the court, almost 90 degrees from the net. A jump

Derby Day: Newcastle travel to the midlands in the next round Image: Mark Sleightholm shot from Wallrapp left the hosts in the lead by 63-32, before a two-pointer from Edinburgh ended the visitor’s fiveminute drought. By this point in the match Newcastle seemed much more comfortable than their guests, with the Knights passing the ball over large distances and able to work together much more smoothly. With four minutes to go in the third quarter George Beard passed the ball from underneath the net to Lemons, who scored an easy jump shot; the score was now 66-36.

Edinburgh’s rapid response narrowed their deficit by two points, but within seconds Newcastle had taken the score up to 68-38. For the rest of the third quarter every Edinburgh point was followed quickly by several Newcastle points, and the teams went into the final quarter with the score at 78-42. There were few shots from either side at the start of the fourth quarter, but following a time-out the pace picked up and Edinburgh were able to score 13 points in the same time that Newcastle scored just three. Edinburgh’s frantic at-

tempts to gain control of rebounds led to repeated shots from the visitors, but even the few that went in were too little, too late, and the match ended 90-65. Coach Hewitt said afterwards: “I was really happy with their performance, a lot of guys stepped up. They’re a well organised team so I thought how we performed and reacted was all really good.” Newcastle’s victory means will now face Derby away on the 24 February, with the potential for a semi-final against Northumbria the following week.

Squash team oﬀ to the Premier Division Men’s Squash Edinburgh 1sts

Newcastle 1sts

By Jack Hunter at Sports & Exercise Pleasance The whole season seemed to be building up to this match. The stakes were huge. Winning meant promotion to the premier division and progress to the quarter finals of the BUCS championship, a feat that had never been achieved by a Newcastle squash team. Fresher sensation Dave Daly asserted himself early in his match, dominating the court and dictating the pace from the off. The youngest member of the team showed great composure and maturity on his way to securing a comfortable 3-0 victory. Club legend Sam Smith seemed to show no nerves and produced his trademark squash from the first point, attacking the front corners with delicate drop shots and pinpoint volleys. Each game went down to the wire but Sam used his experience in the business end of each to claim a convincing 3-0 victory. 1st team captain Jack Hunter showed his nerves in the initial encounters and found himself behind in the first game.

He settled down quickly though and began exerting severe pressure on his opponent, forcing him deep into the back corners, opening up the court for some timely winners. Jack took the first game and the next two followed in a similar manner. The longest serving member of the team and club legend Mikey Collins was next on court. He struggled to take the initiative in the first game and his opponent capitalised on a few loose balls to win the first. Early in the second game

up a final showdown in the fifth. Points were quickly exchanged as both players began to feel the effects of over an hour on court. Mackay showed his class at the end took the final game, concluding a magnificent day for the first team. A resounding 5-0 win for Newcastle. Thanks must go to the coaches and support staff in Newcastle and to Ryan Doran for his exceptional leadership and organisation as club president. President Ryan Doran later added “I’m absolutely delighted that everyone’s

“Winning meant promotion to the premier division and progress to the quarter finals of the BUCS championship, a feat that had never been achieved by a Newcastle squash team” however, Mikey showed his superior fitness and began to take the ball earlier forcing his opponent around the court. He took the second game and the next two followed quickly leading to a 3-1 victory for Collins. Michael Mackay, the number 1 player from Newcastle had a brutal match. His opponent took a 2-0 lead and Mackay was on the ropes, desperately retrieving balls from all corners. He changed his tactics in the third and began to vary the pace and use his volley to greater effect. He clinched the next two games and set

hard work has paid off, and I look forward to being a serious contender in the Premier League next season”. In the next round of the cup, Newcastle travel south to Birmingham in the hope of keeping their dream alive. The team have already become the most successful Newcastle squash team in terms of their cup run, and will be hoping to make it into the semi-finals. A strong Birmingham team stand in their way, currently third in the Premier Upper division.

The Men’s 1’s are the 1st squash team to reach the Premier league Image: Ryan Doran

Sport

www.thecourieronline.co.uk Monday 22 February 2016 Issue 1326 Free

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LOW POINTS OF THE YEAR P.41

Sports Editors: Alex Hendley, Calum Wilson & Lewis Bedford courier.sport@ncl.ac.uk Twitter: @Courier_Sport | Instagram: thecouriersport

RAIDERS TO THE PLAYOFFS P.42

ON A RUN: BUCS TROPHY P.43

Newcastle Pies batter the Fish Men’s Ultimate Newcastle 1sts

Lancaster 1sts

By James Sproston at Cochrane Park Newcastle Ultimate once again turned it on for the Courier as the lads were too good for a Lancaster side looking to cause an upset. The Fish arrived in Newcastle on the back of an impressive win against Sheffield 2nds last week, whereas the Pies’ form has been sketchy of late. They have underperformed in the league, sitting two places and three points off the top spot. But this is the cup. Anything can happen. The Northern Conference Cup is played between teams across the two Northern Second Divisions (A&B). Although Sheffield Hallam look to be the team to beat, Newcastle will fancy themselves to go all the way as they’ve proven that they can beat any team on their day. With this in mind, the Pies wasted no time in breaking the deadlock. After receiving Lancaster’s pull, Chris De Leeuwe got the first play of the match underway. The following exchange between Will Mulvaney and Andrew Macgill allowed Colin Wan to return the disc to De Leeuwe. The handler then delivered a superb pass through to Mulvaney to open the scoring. Moments later Wan doubled the team’s lead. Despite being two points up, Newcastle didn’t relent. Eric Mussell-Webber almost made it three in as many minutes, but Nathan Rudge’s pass was deflected, and the captain wasn’t able to hold it. However Rudge was more successful in the following passage of play. Scott Trotter, Macgill and Mulvaney combined well to give Pierre McCarthy the opportunity to pick out Rudge in the end zone. De Leeuwe then compiled Lancaster’s misery, assisting two points. Firstly he fed Charlie Huins beyond the Fish defence, and then, after receiving the disc from Mussell-Webber, found Macgill to make it 5-0. Having conceded yet another point when Trotter picked out Max Vasey, Lancaster called for a timeout to tactically reshuffle. God knows they needed it. However it was the Pies that made most of the break. Two minutes after the restart, a misplaced Fish pass was intercepted by Mussell-Webber who speedily dispatched a world-class pass onto De Leeuwe to score his first point of the match. Immediately following that point,

The bog on the Tyne: The Pies battled through muddy conditions to reach the semi-finals of the cup Image: James Sproston Newcastle applied the pressure again. Throughout the match thus far, Pies had been well-organised defensively and set up well; epitomised by Trotter’s point block just before half-time. The break itself was finally brought about by Macgill after a tightly contested period. The tall No.22 scored the eighth point of the game without response from a pinpoint Pierre McCarthy pass. Although Lancaster took the chance to shake up their team at half time, Newcastle started the second half as they had finished the first. A MussellWebber interception started a blistering counter attack, finishing with George Perry latching onto a long pass from Macgill into the corner. Despite not managing to covert in their next attack, Newcastle turned over possession yet again through a McCarthy interception. He shifted the disc onto De Leeuwe, who was once again provider as McCarthy ran on into the end zone.

Whilst two more displays of defensive perfection from De Leeuwe and Perry ensured Lancaster remained scoreless, Rudge was sought out but yet again couldn’t latch onto a pass destined beyond the goal line. Nonetheless, the Pies maintained the pressure and were rewarded with yet another point. De Leeuwe starting and finishing the move via Macgill and Trotter. In the subsequent attack, Trotter was the provider once again. On this occasion, the handler picked out Mulvaney with a sumptuous roll curve that made the sell-out crowd purr with admiration. As the game progressed into its final stages, the game became more open. Tired passes by the Fish players were intercepted by McCarthy and De Leeuwe, while at the other end Mulvaney wasn’t able to hold on to a Colin Wan pass. Pies continued to swing the disc from side to side to draw the Fish defence out of position, with Trotter again splitting

the Lancaster defence with a superb lofted pass to find an unmarked McCarthy past the opposition’s goal line. The crowd thought that Newcastle had scored again from the Lancaster pull, as Rudge was the target in the end zone. This time the receiver was unable to get a grip to a fast-paced MussellWebber throw. After yet again intercepting a loose Fish pass, De Leeuwe set up the penultimate point of the game from the side line. Before the Lancaster defence had time to organise, Newcastle’s No.3 had sourced Charlie Huins to move Pies within one point of winning the match. Although the neutrals were secretly hoping for a Lancaster comeback, it was probably for the best for Lancaster to be put out of their misery. George Perry had the honour of wrapping up the game, nonchalantly latching onto a characteristically precise pass from Huins; an accurate personification of the match as a whole. During the post-match debrief cap-

tain Eric Mussel-Webber apologised for the state of the pitch. Although this is typical of the comradery within the sport, from my perspective a wet, windy Wednesday afternoon in Heaton is the stage that separates the real winners from the pack. What’s also impressive about this Newcastle side is the strength in depth within the squad. Jack Westerman, Jake Hawkyard and Fred Davies were on the side line supporting the team; just a snippet of the wealth of players available, and more than talented enough to step into the team. As for the tournament, Newcastle now progress into the semi-final of the Northern Conference Cup. They’ll meet either Hull or Huddersfield, who have had their quarter-final clash postponed due to waterlogged pitches. However both Bangor and Sheffield Hallam were able to play and win their respective matches, and meet in the other semifinal on 2nd March in Wales.