Brig Vol. 50 No. 4: March 2020

University of Stirling’s student newspaper | March Edition | Vol. 50 No. 4

Brig

End of an era

The final in the loop with Stoop

Est 1969

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@brignewspaper - brignews.com

Amy Smith (pictured in the middle) with her campaign team after being elected Union President. Credit: Blair McPake

Smith to lead new sabb team Sam Ormiston News Editor

AMY Smith has been elected with an overwhelming majority to serve as the next Students’ Union President.

She won convincingly by 972 votes to 296.

Speaking after her election, she said: “Thank you to everyone who voted and to my amazing campaign team.

“Regardless of your identity, I will do my very best to represent you and I won’t let you down.

“I’m excited to get stuck in and see what I can achieve. To have a proper chat about climate change and to do

something about it.”

Her other priorities for her first 100 days as Union President include using the data she has collected from her travel consultations to progress conversation with First Bus and take the lead on Gender Recognition Act (GRA) form.

Her opponent, suspended student Mo Wilson, managed to rack up nearly 300 votes, despite currently facing allegations of misogyny within the Stirling University branch of the Scottish Socialist Party.

He failed to turn up to the results night and claimed at last week’s al-

ternative hustings that he was mainly running to draw attention to the protests.

But he came under fire as he appeared to not be taking the campaign seriously, admitting that he did not think he was going to win.

Joshua Muirhead was successful in his re-election campaign for Vice President Communities, beating Jess Reid by more than 200 votes.

In an emotional victory speech, Josh praised his opponent on her campaign, saying: “You were fantastic.

Thank you for reminding me of the reason that I ran for the role in the

first place.

“I will continue to fight for students and take those hits, so we can all hit back.

He voiced his surprise at the results, admitting that he “did not see that coming.”

He added: “Jess pushed me to the point that we were constantly working; it was such a hard-going campaign.

“My thing for this year is to keep on fighting, especially for our clubs and societies, which is a reason why so many people stay in university.

“Come Monday, I will be contacting

Elections

2

Executive Officers 20/21

Editorial Abigail Taylor Editor-in-Chief

Saying goodbye to something that means so much to you, is never an easy thing to do. After four years of being a writer, section editor and finally, Editor-in-Chief, Brig has been the best experience of my university career. I am so thankful to my friend Harry McArthur, who without, I would never have joined this amazing newspaper and society.

The journey has been incredible, from writing about the Stirling City Deal, to interviewing Maisie Williams, the good times have been exceptional. But it hasn’t always been easy. As much as Brig has been incredible, it has also provided times of stress, frustration and anger. I have learnt that these times are what makes it all worth it. Fighting for what’s right, holding those in authority to account and providing a trusted news source to not only Stirling students, but to many others outside of our community. This year we have expanded further than any of us could have imagined, from local shops in Stirling City Centre, to hundreds of thousands of views on social media, and it continues to grow. Brig has taught me how to love journalism.

This year has easily been Brig’s best year and I am honoured to lead the most amazing team of journalists who are responsible for that. This group of people are next to none, we’ve created a family and will remain like that for the rest of our lives. Brig made university for me and many of my team feel the same and without it I would not be here today, ready to graduate. I will always love Brig, I will always Bleed Green and I will always be Stirling.

Turnout more than 1,000 down on last year

accommodation to start work on housing committees, social space and just keep pushing forward.

“I have the benefit of having extra time to do what I said, to basically make students’ lives better.”

Jess Reid was disappointed in her loss but wished Josh all the best in his role.

She said: “I think it was clear from both sides that it was a hard campaign, but you know what, it was all worth it.”

Edd Keeler was elected Sports President with a 27 vote majority over Craig Stephen.

He said that it was a “dream come true” to be elected by students.

Although the result for Vice President Education was a foregone conclusion, Lexi Ehresmann was thrilled to be elected.

She said: “The last couple of

days have shown me how wonderful the student community is here in Stirling.

“I think we have a solid team for next year and we’re going to do a lot of great things.”

For the voluntary part-time

officer positions, there were few surprises.

Most of the contests were one horse races with candidates running unopposed.

The number of votes for R.O.N (Reopen nomina-

tions) was not particularly significant in any of the races.

Although suspended student Cian Ireland was re-elected housing officer, there were more than 200 votes for

Left to right: VP Communities Josh Muirhead, Sports President Edd Keeler, Union President Amy Smith and VP Education Lexi Ehressmann. Credit: Blair McPake

Elections

Josh Muirhead gave an emotional speech following his successful re-election bid. Credit: Blair McPake

R.O.N, which stands for an active vote against the candidate running.

The voter turnout was more than 1,000 votes down on last year, at 1562 voters, compared to more than 2,500 last year.

Third years were the most

engaged year group, while Brig Newspaper registered the highest turnout on the clubs and societies side of things.

Netball were the most engaged sports team, registering more than 100 votes.

As usual, the clubs, socie-

3 ties and sports teams which voted in the largest numbers were the ones with affiliated members running for the sabbatical officer roles.

These clubs include Basketball, Stirling Clansmen and the Sexual Health and Education society.

Speaking on how turnout and student engagement can be increased next year, Union President elect Amy Smith said: “Now that we have the atrium back, we can utilise it to the best of our abilities.

“We can run campaigns publicly. Not having that space has been really challenging.

“The sabbs will be able to get out there and show everyone how amazing it is to get involved in the Union.”

Coverage of the Sports President results can be found on page 28.

Meet the sabbatical team

Sports President, Edd Keeler

VP Education, Lexi Ehresmann

VP Comms, Josh Muirhead

Edd Keeler is a fourth-year sports science student set to graduate in June.

His main manifesto points included supporting mental health in sport, improving accessibility and inclusion, and developing all the things that are already happening in the Sports Union.

Speaking on his election, Edd said he is humbled by everyone who voted for him.

The Sports President role involves overseeing the dayto-day running of more than 50 sports clubs, and running campaigns to imrpove accessibility and inclusion in sport at Stirling.

Lexi originally came to Stirling as a study abroad student, but fell in love with Stirling.

She decided to transfer here, where she is about to complete her degree in international politics. She is committed to supporting sustainability within education and finding an alternative to the Erasmus programme.

The VP Education remit includes representing students in their educational needs and desires, and ensuring a quality learning environment for all students.

Current VP Education Amy Smith said she is looking forward to sharing an office with Lexi.

Incumbent Josh Muirhead was successful in his re-election campaign.

He is looking forward to continuing to fight for all students at the University of Stirling.

His main manifesto points include improving housing and decreasing social isolation.

The VP Communities role is one of the largest remits, including housing, volunteering, sustainability and clubs and societies.

There are more than 70 clubs and societies here at Stirlling, ranging from the Yogurt Appreciation Society to the Wizarding Society.

THE RESULTS Union President

Amy SmithH - 972 Mo Wilson - 296 R.O.N - 31

Sports President Edd KeelerH - 709 Craig Stephen - 682 R.O.N - 25

VP Communities Josh MuirheadH - 751 Jess Reid - 525 R.O.N - 31

VP Education

Lexi EhresmannH- 1185 R.O.N - 48

Part-time officers International Officer - Dimitrios Terzis Co-Curricular Officer - Jamie McDiarmid Housing Officer - Cian Ireland Sustainability Officer -Matthew Morrison Arts Officer - Jack Williamson Health and Wellbeing Officer -Sam Davis Sports Engagement Officer - Tash Miller Sports Communications Officer - Juliette Oliveras Engagement Officer - Euan Stainbank Non-Traditional Students Officer - Alt air Seel Postgraduate Officer - Sonny Bail ey There were no candidates for Media Officer.

News Uni drug rates rising every year

Stirling bars nominated for national awards Scott Fitzsimmons

Harry Williamson News Editor

The number of drug offences in university accommodation has more than doubled in five years, Brig has learned.

A Freedom of Information request has revealed that the number of drug offences has jumped every year from 16 in 2015 to 44 in 2019.

Last year, Juniper Court, Beech Court and Union Street had the highest reported rates, with seven incidents reported in each accommodation.

Both the university and the students’ union classify drugs as level two discipline offences. As a result, students risk exclusion from university, a fine of up to £400 and expulsion by the university’s discipline committee.

In 2018/19, the university disciplined 17 out of 44 drugs cases.

The highest number of disciplines was in 2016/17 when 22 out of 23 cases were disciplined.

The biggest jump was between 2016 and 2017, when the number of disciplines increased from 3 to 22.

Despite these disciplines, no student has been evicted from university accommodation for

drug offences between 2015 and 2019.

A University spokesperson said, “The University of Stirling is proud of the safe learning and living environment which our students experience while here.

“Our commitment to maintaining that safe environment includes our policy to always inform Police Scotland of any illegal drug use on University property.

“This is made clear to everyone living in University accommodation as part of their Occupancy Agreement.” 36 out of the 44 incidents in 2019 were reported to Police Scotland.

Eight incidents involving drugs have been reported so far in 2020.

The VP Communities Josh Muirhead discussed the reasons that could be behind the rise.

“As we have long understood, students can be placed under intense stress and pressures.

“However, at the end of the day it is about the safety of students.

“The important thing is that students know that they can reach out for support.”

Muirhead spoke about the way that the university can respond to drug offences:

“Punishment is not the way forward for lower class drugs.

“I would encourage the university not to be harsh but to be supportive, like we all should these days.” Stirling Professor Catriona Matheson, who heads the Scottish Drug Death Taskforce, the group tasked with lowering the number of drug related deaths in Scotland, studies substance addiction has said that she supports the decriminalisation of drugs for small amounts of personal use. “I don’t think it’s helpful to criminalise someone who is found with a small amount of drugs for their own use, not for supply, and who is not associated with any other form of criminal activity.” The university offers support for students who are struggling with substance abuse, stating that, “The University also urges any of our students who may be experiencing drug or other substance misuse to contact Student Support Services to discuss the range of support services available. Student Support Services can be reached by contacting the Student Services Hub.”

Three Stirling venues are celebrating after making the shortlist for the 2020 Best Bar None Scotland awards.

Molly Malones is in the running for Best Pub, Fubar for Best Nightclub and the Stirling University Students’ Union for the Social Responsibility award and Best Specialist Entertainment Venue.

Best Bar None Scotland’s National Awards aim to reward venues which work hard to reduce crime and raise standards.

Best Bar None Scotland’s National Coordinator, Robert Hogg, said: “The standard of applicants for the National Awards has been extremely high this year.

“Venues throughout Scotland have been working very hard to improve standards and this really shines through in the applications we have received.”

The nominated bars have reacted warmly to their nominations.

Molly Malones won the Best Pub category last year, their General Manager Craig Reilly spoke about being shortlisted for the second time: “Its great to be nominated for best pub for the second year running.

“Molly’s is what it is thanks to our amazing staff, great customers and talented singers.”

Fubar’s General Manager, Aimee MacIvor commented, “We are extremely humbled to be shortlisted in the National Best Bar None awards. We are proud to be locally credited as a Gold venue for the past three

4

years and are delighted to be nominated for a national award two years running.

“With 36 years of operation under our belt, we believe that a key part of operating involves upholding the best bar none values and ethics.

“We pride ourselves upon being a socially responsible venue that is a safe place for all customers. We look forward to taking part in this accredited scheme for years to come and will continue to raise the bar in good practice.”

A spokesperson from the Students Union said, “The Students’ Union has once again been nominated for two national Best Bar None Awards.

“This sits alongside the Union’s current gold standard status, reflecting our commitment to ensuring the best possible student experience for our members, and is testament to the hard work our commercial team do.”

Commenting on the news, Union Vice President Communities Josh Muirhead added: “It’s fantastic to see that the Students’ Union has been nominated for the Innovation in Social Responsibility award. This nomination recognises the level of work that staff have gone to this year by going through Mental Health First Aid and Bystander training as well as embracing the “Ask Angela” Scheme creating a Union Bar which is both inclusive and safe.”

The final awards ceremony will take place on 19 March 2020 at the Dunblane Hydro Hotel. The drinks reception starts at 6.30pm with dinner, speeches and the awards ceremony starting at 7pm.

News

5

MP urges against Coronavirus panic Credit: The Herald

Peter Humfrey With panic buying leaving shelves bare in Stirling, MP Alyn Smith has called for calm and urged people to “buy sensibly” as the coronavirus outbreak continues to worsen.

STIRLING’S MP Alyn Smith has called for people to “buy sensibly” after panic buying has left shelves bare in Stirling. Smith released a statement saying: “It is expected that there will be a significant rise in the number of people affected by this virus. So far, many people seem to be doing the right thing: self-isolating when they have symptoms and washing hands more regularly.

“A pattern of behaviour that we’ve seen across the world is that of panic buying goods where the virus has had an impact, and this seems to be filtering into the Stirling area too.

“My advice is to buy sensibly and only what you need. We are not at a stage where the supply of goods is being severely affected by the outbreak. “The best anyone can do to ensure that they are prepared for any possible infection is to familiarise themselves with the advice set out on the nhsinform.scot website – or to seek the advice of their GP or NHS24 over the phone if they have symptoms.”

Tesco is amongst a number of supermarkets to introduce restrictions on certain products such as anti-bacterial gels, wipes and sprays, dry pasta, UHT milk and some tinned vegetables. The MP’s statement follows a joint call with MSP Bruce Crawford last week for people to remain calm but take precautions.

Mr Smith advised people to follow NHS advice saying:

“There are a number of measures that people can take in order to significantly reduce the chances of catching the virus, all of which are generally good practice in maintaining hygiene. What’s important is not to panic, but rather take the precautionary steps set out by health professionals.” Mr Crawford echoed these comments and praised the work of the NHS saying: “I’d like to commend the work of our health professionals who have had to put in extra effort to ensure that all that can be done is being done to reduce the spread of the virus in the country.

Anyone with symptoms who have come into contact with confirmed cases or have been to areas abroad affected by the virus should self-isolate and call NHS 111 for further guidance.

Return tickets to be replaced with all day travel Scott Fitzsimmons

First Bus have announced changes to some fares that will come into effect on Sunday March 15.

Student fares are being restructured in preparation for a new fare capping system being introduced in the coming months.

The new system will bring day and night tickets into line, leading to a reduction in the prices of night fares and four-week tickets.

University return tickets will be replaced by Day Validity tickets that will allow unlimited travel between the campus and town.

Students will also now be able to

get unlimited travel across any one zone for £4.50 per day.

Graeme Macfarlan, Commercial Director for First Midland, said: “We generally need to review our fares each year to ensure we meet the rising costs that we face as a business, but we have worked hard to keep any increases to a minimum.

“Travel by First Midland still offers great value for money. Our new and improved First Bus App means our customers can plan their journeys, buy their ticket and track their bus all in the one place.

“We are working hard to encourage more customers to convert to

using mTickets or contactless, as this will have a further impact on reducing boarding times and will help us in the battle to improve journey times and punctuality.”

“Now with the introduction of more ticket options for Students and Children as well as the new 4-weekly ticket, there really has never been a better time to take the bus.”

VP Communities Joshua Muirhead welcomed the opportunity for students to have all day travel and said that “The Sabb team will continue to fight for affordable, inclusive and sustainable travel.”

Aussie week raises over £2000

Charlie Harris Last month’s ‘Aussie Action Week’ raised £2,759.93, following a week of support from various clubs and societies, the final total confirmed.

The week, which was aimed at raising money to help Australian people and wildlife recover from the bushfires earlier this year, was planned by the university’s Marine Conservation society.

The total raised will be equally split between the Australian Red Cross, the New South Wales rural fire service, and charity Wires.

Various events were put on during the week including, a ‘Roaring 20s’ club night, coffee mornings, and a craft workshop amongst numerous other fundraising initiatives.

The week also included a vigil of light which showed, “love and support for the human and animal lives impacted by the fires”, whilst also standing in support of organisations providing aid to those in need.

Speaking at the unveiling of the total, organiser Caitlin Turner, from the university’s Marine Conservation society told Brig, “We were feeling sad and helpless at the bushfire situation in Australia and wanted to see what we could do to.”

“We originally put out a call on the Marine Conservation society Facebook page and then

more societies jumped in to get involved”. “It was absolutely amazing. We had activities on every day, with something for everyone”.

The total raised came as a surprise to the organisers, who originally set a realistic goal of £500. “The money just kept coming in”, said Caitlin, “to end up at such a high amount, smashing well over £2000, was unexpected”, but a pleasant surprise for the group.

Support for the cause extended across the university with more than ten societies taking part. This included the Video Games and E-Sports society, the Anime society and the Uni Boob team, amongst numerous others.

The local community also got involved with help from businesses such as the Kilted Kangaroo and Dusk nightclub, with the student union helping with the day to day running of events.

Caitlin welcomed the support saying: “this week really showed a sense of community amongst the student body, everyone came together, and everyone was so passionate about the cause, and related issues like climate change”.

Whilst the GoFund Me page is now closed; you can still donate to the cause by following the links on the ‘Stirling Uni Aussie Action Week’ Facebook page.

Politics

6

Scottish Government budget backed by Greens Ryan Barclay Politics Editor The Scottish Government has agreed a deal with the Scottish Green party to secure enough votes for the new Scottish budget so that it can pass through the Scottish Parliament.

The budget which was announced in Feburary by the new finance secretary Kate Forbes included £15 billion for health and care services, £220 million of funding for the Scottish National Investment Bank and money to enable the creation of a Scottish Child Payment as part of a plan to reduce child poverty.

However, the Scottish Green party secured additional investment in several areas such as transport and councils with the Scottish Government agreeing to invest around £15 million to provide free bus travel for those aged under 19 in Scotland , and an additional £95 million funding

for local goverment.

Commenting on the Budget deal , Labour MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife Claire Baker told Brig “The deal secured with the Greens does little to improve a budget which falls well short of delivering what the people and communities of Scotland need. Local government still faces alarming real-terms cuts to non-ringfenced revenue funding, while the intention to consider free bus travel for young people is a pale imitation of what Scottish Labour was seeking and completely excludes 19-24 year olds. Scottish Labour cannot support a budget which will fail our economy, put essential services at risk and impose further cuts on local government.”

Bruce Crawford the SNP MSP for Stirling said he was “delighted” that a deal had been struck , adding “This commits record funding

to our NHS, an above-inflation rise in the policing budget, and protects bus passes for older people as well as introducing free bus travel for under-18s.

“The SNP is a minority govern-

ment in Holyrood which means that the Scottish Government has to work with other parties to get things done. I commend those in Holyrood who worked constructively with the Scottish

Government and has helped to deliver this agreement.”

The budget will reach stage 2 of the Scottish Parliament on March 4.

Credit: The Scottish Sun

Can Joe Biden really defeat Donald Trump?

Dominic Cooper Politics Editor

The mass primaries that took place on super Tuesday ensured that the fight for the democratic nomination was now a two-horse race. In the blue corner - the self-declared democratic socialist - Bernie Sanders. His opponent is the former vice president Joe Biden who hopes to reign in the support of moderates in the party after his sweeping comeback.

He’s been endorsed by dropouts Pete Buttigieg, Amy Klobuchar and Mike Bloomberg which is sure to buy him vital supporters going ahead. But is Joe’s nostalgic offer of a return to normalcy enough to push him over the finish line? If not, we might be faced with four more years of Donald Trump.

If we want to figure out how to beat Trump we might need find out how he won in the first place. Let’s take a look back to 2016. The primaries looked eerily familiar to what we’re seeing now. The radical Bernie Sanders against an establishment, mod-

erate figure of Hilary Clinton.

After her nomination, Clinton’s campaign was ridden with scandals and stories of corruption.

In hindsight, the unthinkable victory of Donald Trump was easy to see. He was a charismatic, provocative and anti-establishment figure who wasn’t held back by a plastic PR team. His xenophobic, sexist rhetoric only added to his ‘outsider’ image. He wasn’t someone that belonged in politics as he couldnt be censored by the pompous rules and regulations of the Democratic establishment. It was years of neoliberalism and false promises under the democratic wing that led to Trump’s working-class support. To the extent the vote for Trump was an anti-Hilary vote is hard to measure, but if someone like Biden builds his platform on returning to the same conditions that created Trump, he needs to be extremely persuasive about it.

It’s something that his supporters champion - his electability.

Against Sanders’ campaign which highlights policies such as Medicare-For-All and the Green

New Deal, it’s hard to think of a Biden policy other than ‘defeating Donald Trump’ - which might not be enough to inspire the support he needs to beat a populist candidate. Maybe if this Obama-era prospect may have some of the former president’s charisma he’d be able to run his campaign on personality and wit.

If you’d asked me five years ago, maybe I could have believed that.

However, as his campaign trail has gone on, its descended into a frequent series of uncomfortable to aggressive interactions with voters. This has ranged from calling a constituent ‘fat’ and and ‘challenging him to a push up contest’ to telling an activist concerned with his history of deporting migrants to ‘vote for Trump. This is just two examples in a sea of blunders and bizarre episodes that’s made viewers confused as if this was the same ‘Uncle Joe’ we knew or if something is seriously wrong with his well-being. Every time he’s able to make a public appearance there’s another strange episode which questions his competence

for the job.

So far, these events have been limited to viral videos online and quick 20 second speeches in packed democratic debates.

When it comes to the highly viewed and scrutinised presidential debates against an aggressive and mocking Trump, Joe’s ability to hold his own and keep his cool should be a cause of concern. He can be targeted for many of the same things that Trump targeted Clinton for - the Iraq war and millionaire lobbyists to name a few. Furthermore, Trump is going to target him as being senile,

his history of touching women inappropriately and we’ll end up in a scenario where Clinton will have put up a better fight.

Make no mistake, this isn’t the same Biden we knew five years ago. His public appearances have been limited since his campaign began and what has been seen has cost his reputation dearly.

Trump will not be kind and ignorant toward these flaws as the Democratic candidates have been. If Joe’s public performance doesn’t imrpove soon, Trump may end up with a bigger victory than the first-time round.

Credit: Forbes

Politics

7

UK Bill of Rights - do we need it?

Credit: The Residential Landlord

Heather Dalgleish One of the reasons Leavers argued against EU membership was that it diluted parliamentary sovereignty – legislation like the Human Rights Act 1998 incorporated European directives into UK law, Britain agreed to accept European courts as the supreme legal authority in the EU. If the Leave campaign was all about taking back control of UK law,

control of UK borders; well then, job done. Now it’s time to action everything that’s been on the backburner since 2016.

The idea of a UK Bill of Rights has been floated by multiple actors across the political spectrum. Theoretically, it isn’t a bad idea to entrench civil liberties like freedom of speech and trial by jury into law. But what examples have we got to look to?

The most tangible is that of the

USA, a list of ten amendments to their original constitution which are still the basis of US law some 200 years later. The rigid nature of their constitution has created diehard devotion to what British society might consider outdated practices, such as loosely regulated personal firearm possession.

The fluid, uncodified nature of the UK constitution could be its biggest strength – theoretically, it is never outdated because

every new bill ratified becomes part of it, without a complicated process of having to un-ratify the previous law. This meant European directives could be quickly and easily adopted into the UK constitution, and served as our de facto Bill of Rights as new bills were required to pass a statement of compatibility with it.

So perhaps, rather than focusing bloodymindedly on regaining parliamentary sovereignty, we

should consider what we do with it. A Bill of Rights could be useful in the short term, but similarly could develop into an outdated and oppressive document as society moves on without it.

The British government should think very carefully, and have a detailed contingency, if it really is to completely unsubscribe from the legislation that has become part and parcel to 21st century parliamentary proceedings.

Labour leadership race - Who will continue Ryan Barclay Politics Editor

After Labour experienced its worst general election result since 1935 and Jeremy Corbyn announced that he would not be leading the party into the next election, Brig examines those who wish to be his successor.

Before entering politics in 2015 as the MP for St Pancras and Holborn , Sir Kier Starmer had been the Director of Public prosecutions between 2008 and 2013.

Starmer currently serves in the shadow cabinet as the party’s Brexit secretary, a position which he has held since 2016. Starmer has made several pledges if he is elected as Labour leader such as the abolition of both universal credit and tuition fees and bringing things such as water, energy, mail and rail into public ownership. In a campaign statement about

why he was putting himself forward for the role, Starmer said: “I’m now standing to be leader of our Labour Party because I’m determined to unite our movement, take on the Tories and build a better future.“Labour only wins when we’re united and when we have a radical vision of the future that people can trust.If I’m elected leader, I’ll bring the movement together and I’ll retain the radicalism of the last four years.”Another contender to replace Corbyn as leader of the party is also a member of the current shadow cabinet as the party’s shadow secretary of state for business and industrial strategy, Rebecca Long-Bailey. Long-Bailey has been an MP for Eccles and Salford since 2015 and prior to becoming an MP was a solicitor. Long-Bailey said in a statement about the reasons behind her candidacy.

Long-Bailey said “Austerity,

entrenched privilege and class divides all work against the overwhelming majority.

“To realise collective aspiration, Labour must take on vested interests, not accommodate them.

Whether we live in Blyth or Brixton, my vision of aspirational socialism and a democratic revolution will excite a movement for renewal. has expressed support for the ideas of an elected senate to replace the House of Lords Credit: The Times of Israel

and creating a constitutional convention.

The final candidate for Leader of the labour party is the current MP for Wigan, Lisa Nandy who has held several junior ministerial roles in the shadow cabinet such as shadow Minister for children and shadow Minister for charities but was promoted to a more senior role within the shadow cabinet after Jeremy Corbyn first

became leader of the Labour party and was a member of the shadow cabinet for energy and climate change until she resigned in 2016. Nandy has published a plan to tackle antisemitism , In a statement about her candidacy, Nandy has said: “In December, voters sent us a clear message – change, or die. There are no more second chances for Labour

Comment

8

Suicide is not a dirty word Sam Ormiston

THE recent tragic death of Caroline Flack has sparked a public debate over the way in which the media reports on suicide.

The National Union of Journalists (NUJ) has a very strict code of conduct when it comes to reporting on these issues.

And the media has a duty to report on suicide, whether it be the tragic death of a celebrity adored by millions, or, as Brig did in November, report on the increase in suicide rates among students at Stirling University.

Individuals within Stirling Students’ Union were keen to influence our decisions over reporting on the rise in student suicide rates back in November.

We were highly encouraged

by Students’ Union staff and a member of the university’s trustee board that we should take the word ‘suicide’ out of our front page headline.

It was even insinuated to us that, had we published our article

with the word ‘suicide’ on the front page, that students may then be more likely to take their own lives.

I strongly believe that suicide is not a dirty word.

Nor is it a criminal act.

It is a horrifying feeling of emptiness that overwhelms you when you feel like you cannot go on.

In mental health training, one is actively encouraged to use the word.

And a study led by University of Stirling professors said that “mental health professionals treating children and young people with suicidal feelings should refer to ‘suicide’ explicitly to ensure they feel listened to.”

The research identified “a silence around suicidality” within conversations between mental health practitioners and children and young people – and within academic research reporting.

The team found that use of the term ‘self-harm’ to encom-

pass suicidal behaviours was potentially contributing to this silence, by avoiding the word ‘suicide’.

The study also suggested that children and young people with suicidal feelings typically do not know where or how to access help, and do not feel listened to by health professionals.

What we desperately need to do is to normalise conversations around suicide.

Mental health is not an isolated issue and we all know someone affected.

Coronavirus may be the current reason for hysteria but the fact is that people die every minute by suicide.

Be kind and look out for your loved ones, and don’t be afraid to ask them: “Have you considered suicide?” if you feel comfortable in doing so.

Union President Chloe Whyte said: “I agree that the student voice should never be altered, and was therefore glad to have reached a compromise that

Credit:Esquire

allowed an honest portrayl of mental health on campus to be published, that was factual from the student perspective without being sensationalist.

“It’s important that the way in which we report on these stories

is always to the benefit of our students.”

If you are struggling and in need of help, contact Samaritans on 116 123 for free, or visit www.samaritans.org

Why is contraception still a woman’s burden?

Iman Mackenzie I was talking to a friend recently and the topic of birth control came up. We shared with each other the horrible experiences that we have had while on the pill, the side effects of which destroyed our skin and wreaked havoc on our mental health, and dreamed of a time when we might not have to deal with it ever again. We also discussed the nauseating idea of getting a hormonal rod shoved in our arm (the implant) or a plastic stick lodged in our womb (IUD).

While both of these are effective methods, it is a common feeling among women to not like the idea of them being semi-permanently placed inside them. Then I stopped to think, why is it just women that have to worry about these things?

There are 15 methods of contraception, of which only 2 can be carried out by men. Not to mention only one of them, the vasectomy, is largely reliable.

Condoms, probably one of the most used on the list, is effective when used properly. This begs the question, why hasn’t more male forms of contraception been developed? There has, of course, been attempts but despite some positive results, including an Edinburgh couple who were part of a study to test a contraceptive gel for men, we still seem so far away from shared responsibility.

It is not just about the availability of these products but about the attitude that surrounds it. Men are not in position of risk like women are, they do not have to directly deal with the consequences of unprotected sex in the same way. Condoms, despite being a male birth control method, very frequently still becomes the responsibility of the women to handle and, more often than it should, women have to convince men to even wear them. Even then there are phenomenon’s like stealthing, a form of sexual abuse where men remove or purposely

damage the condom without their sexual partner knowing.

This attitude around birth control seems to be rooted in a culture of misogyny. Society doesn’t force men to face the reality of unprotected sex or to think about their part in preventing pregnancies. Effective male birth control is possible, there have been a number of studies with many actually succeeding in creating a safe pill but instead of releasing

it investors decided it ‘wasn’t marketable’, deciding, on behalf of men, that there wasn’t a point because they wouldn’t take it even though studies have shown many British men would be open to taking a contraceptive pill.

The female pill has in many way Why is birth control still a woman’s burden? liberated women, it gave us a way to decide when we wanted to have children, without having to involve men. It gave us the ability to postpone motherhood in

favour of other avenues like work and higher education, a luxury that men have always had. Access to proper birth control is proven to be beneficial to women, yet men have used it as an excuse to not have to deal with it, to push the responsibility off of themselves because ‘it’s not their job’. This has to change, women shouldn’t have to be the sole person in charge of birth control, they also shouldn’t have to go through horrible side effects because that is their only reliable

Credit: WomanLog

Comment

It’s about bloody time to break the cycle

9

Making light of Scotland’s alcohol problem

Iona Young Comment Editor

Alcohol has always had a

Morvan Mackay The stigma surrounding the fact that women have periods still exists in 2020. Although since the beginning of time, women usually bleed once a month.

And it has been a glorified joke for far too long.

Periods themselves are hard enough to deal with. Tampons and sanitary pads come at an extortionate cost; Plan International UK found that 1 in 10 girls in the UK can’t even afford period products.

And that’s not including the painkillers women pay to survive the cramps.

Fortunately, women now have a voice in society. More than ever there is a need for women’s menstrual cycles to be accepted.

Because women shouldn’t be suppressed about something so natural, and the way to encourage this normalisation is to discuss it.

Research conducted by The Guardian said, “One in five girls and young women in the UK are teased or bullied about their periods,” The study was based on Plan International UK’s survey that included 1,000 girls. Raising awareness about the negative impact shaming girls and young women for having periods.

Statistics showed that 66% of their survey pool missed school because of their periods.

Yet, people still fail to see the impact of this. It’s time to acknowledge the risk period shaming imposes on the mental well-being of young women and girls.

Female students gathered outside the Shree Sahajanand Girls Institute (SSGI) in protest after 68 girls who attend the university said they were forced to strip and

Credit:B&T

show their underwear to female teachers on Feb 11.

All because the SSGI is run by a wealthy and conservative Hindu religious group actively oppresses women on their periods. Despite the school authorities attempting to get the girls to stay quiet about the incident.

The hostel where the students board are requested to register when they get their periods.

Stripping impressionable young women of their privacy so to ‘help’ officials identify when and which students are menstruating.

Only to then enforce restrictions on them.

India’s conservative outlook on periods should encourage societies acceptance of it. Because women shouldn’t be stopped from doing something as simple as attending school or banned from places of worship all because they’re menstruating.

Which is why this talk isn’t just for women; it’s for everyone.

It’s for the men in and out of our lives who still have no idea what periods are. They’re not just something gross that happens in women’s panties. Or a monthly milestone that relieves everyone because we don’t have surprise guests in their wombs.

An immeasurable amount of women all around the world bleed once a month. Women you walk by on campus may or may not have them too. Your mum, your sister, your aunt and even your grandmother.

Yet, their sons, brothers, nephews, and grandsons actively make a mockery of it. And this is the price of their stupidity.

YouGov, a polling company, conducted a study that found 43 per cent of girls stated that boys teased or joked about periods.

And it’s unfair. There shouldn’t be any shame surrounding

something so natural, but Clue, a menstrual health app, discovered around 5,000 different wordings and terms to refer to women’s menstruation cycles.

“That time of the month”. “Menses”. “Red rivers of the panties”.

“Mother nature’s vacay”.

All these euphemisms to refer to periods. All of it because of the shame we have systematically made to feel about it. Women are so indirect that we’ve come up with so many different ways to hide the word ‘periods’ like it’s a dirty secret we have to hide.

The real shame is that women’s universal passage into womanhood has been sullied. To the point where young, impressionable teenage girls, have associated shame and humiliation to periods and menstrual blood before liberation and excitement.

But society may be closer to ending period poverty that originally thought.

On a brighter note, Scotland’s parliament recently approved a bill that would make Scotland the first country to end “period poverty.”. A momentous step forward for women across the country. Despite the huge amount of work it will take, knowing the government is aware of the issue is a step forward itself.

According to BBC, “The Period Products (Free Provision) (Scotland) Bill would create a legal duty on the Scottish government to ensure that period products are available free of charge “for anyone who needs them”.”

It is the first step on a seemingly very long journey towards acceptance, but one to be celebrated. Because with every voice that speaks out about the injustice of this ridiculous taboo, women are closing on the verge of bleeding in peace.

humorous side from the scots representation of being the crazy drunk in many American films and TV think Willy from The Simpsons.

In the past five years a new phenomenon has come about through twitter in the form of Scottish humor.

Scottish people will always celebrate their nationality and quirks that make them one of the greatest nations in the world for their acceptance, open outlook on the world and massive intake of alcohol.

Just being Scottish is an excuse I have used for being far too drunk plenty of times, but it wasn’t until today where I saw someone’s new Pinterest board, “How to be a classy Alcoholic.”

When I realized there could be toxic consequences characterizing alcoholism like a funny quirk or something to be proud of. It can mask all the very real problems with alcohol. That kills people, and rips families apart.

The new trend of normalizing our extreme relationship with alcohol could have a much more sinister side to it.

I remember at work many times seeing five young guys order a bottle of wine each and then three more, drinking till they can barely eat never mind

Credit: Onward Connections

stand up. Some girls drinking so much they are laying on the pavement, pishing in front of ten strangers outside a club like it’s a normal thing. We laugh, mutter something to our friends like “someone’s having a good night” chuckle and move on but it is all of these incidents with drink and our reaction that makes drinking culture in Scotland more toxic than ever.

Countries from all across Europe Spain, Poland, France where the alcohol is much cheaper and there is less regulations over when you can buy alcohol and how much you can buy do not have the same problems. In fact when Poles and the Spanish come here they are shocked by what is going on.

Part of problem I think it comes down to is our non-existent relationship with moderation. It just doesn’t exist. I perhaps only speak for myself but I find you can never just have one drink, one turns into another and before long you are wasted in a club having spent far too much money, drank far too much and are still ready to go to someone’s for after’s at 3am when the clubs shut.

Scotland has so many things to be proud of, let’s extend it past our relationship with alcohol.

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Music

12

Leaving Bordeaux: What it’s Brig followed up-and-coming Glasgow band Leaving Bordeaux

Credit: Leaving Bordeaux

Elizabeth Hunter Music Editor In a freezing cold industrial estate in Greenock, Leaving Bordeaux are recording their second single.

The studio is small, with carpets stapled to the walls for soundproofing, but fairy lights hang from the furniture and guitars decorate the walls, giving the rooms a strangely welcoming atmosphere.

It’s a place familiar to Leaving Bordeaux – they recorded their first single, Caught Out Cold in the same studio, and now they’re back for more.

In preparation for their first ever headline show on March 28 at Broadcast in Sauchiehall Street, Leaving

Bordeaux invited Brig to the recording studio to see the process behind recording their second single, Adrenaline, set to be released in late March to early April.

So on a cold Sunday afternoon, I found myself perching on a couch in a tiny room, surrounded by speakers and instruments and excited band members.

“It’s going to be loud,” they warned.

“Before we actually start, we do a quick playthrough of the song, it’s called a scratch track,” explained bassist Caleb Blackwood. “And that’s so we actually know what we’re fucking doing with the song.

What usually happens is we go the drums first, then the bass, then usually key-

boards, rhythm guitar, lead guitar, vocals, and then any other mad shit.”

The drums, bass and keyboard parts of the song had already been recorded the day before, so they moved on to the guitar.

“In every band, one guitarist will have a white Stratocaster,” quipped guitarist Darren Houston. The song began to play as Darren plucked his way through the riff. Any scepticism I might have had disappeared when the music started playing.

He played the same parts over and over, until the notes became second nature.

Frontman Jamie McAulay kept a watchful eye on the guitar, occasionally providing encouragement in the form of “fucking brilliant!”

Every few minutes, they would stop the music to discuss how they could make it better. “You play better when you’re grooving,” noted Jamie.

As more and more elements were added to the song, the excitement grew – drummer Louis Kane mimed playing his part as the song played.

This tiny room had transformed from a cold studio to an environment filled with music, creativity and a lone pack of Jammie Dodgers passed around by keyboardist Alex Curran.

“In the studio, we add onto the roots of what we already have, what we can’t hear when we’re rehearsing,” Alex said.

“I think if any band tells you that that doesn’t happen,

they’re lying,” agreed Caleb.

“Usually the changes aren’t very drastic, nothing huge has been changed in our songs. We discuss everything too.”

I only witnessed one major disagreement during my time in the studio – the lyrics. During the recording of the vocals, a debate broke out over the order of the lyrics.

Recording stopped temporarily while everyone threw their opinion into the spotlight, with the producer James often acting as a mediator.

“It was fifteen minutes of trying to choose what fucking order the words would go in,” said Darren.

“I was ready for a fistfight over that,” laughed Caleb.

Music

13

like to be a new band in Glasgow as they record their new single ahead of their first headline show

They would try every idea that was put forward, trying to find the perfect fit for the song.

When they eventually agreed, it was time to start recording the vocals again, but it took Jamie longer than expected to adjust to the changes, resulting in some frustrated yells.

“Vocally, it’s annoying!” said Jamie. “It does get tedious at times when you’re hearing the same bar and a half over and over and you just think ‘I don’t want to hear this bit anymore.”

It was clear that the frontman of Leaving Bordeaux was the perfectionist of the

Credit: SoundShape Studios

group.

“Jamie’s a bit over the top,” Caleb said.

“He’s never satisfied, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. He needs to be exactly the way he is, or we wouldn’t get any further. He’s always pushing us to be better than before and it’s annoying, but it’s necessary.” As they discussed the need to change parts of songs during the recording process, Jamie laughed and admitted “I’m a nightmare for it!

But when we hear the full thing at the end, we just think, ‘that’s why we spent so long trying to make this perfect, it needs to be good.”

Once the band were well and truly satisfied with the vocals, they relaxed.

It was time to add the finishing touches – one of which involved a shaker shaped like a banana that Louis seemed thrilled to have found.

After a brief break to record some Instagram stories, they sat down to hear the final recording of the song.

The excitement was apparent; everyone had their phones out, eager to record as much as they could of it.

It sounded nothing like what I had heard when I walked into the studio earlier that day.

In the space of one day, they had turned a basic instrumental track into a radio-worthy song.

They thanked producer James McKenzie once more and set off to the pub to discuss the day’s events and more importantly, their plans for the near future.

“We have our first ever headline coming up, on March 28 in Broadcast in Glasgow.

Our focus now, because the studio session is done, will just be on that show,” Jamie said.

“It’ll be continously just trying to strive towards it and see what we can get.”

“I’m practicing a lot more,” Caleb noted.

“As a band, I think we’re preparing for it by writing more songs. We’re dusting off a lot of things, making sure all the songs are good enough and tweaking things that we’ve been working on for ages.

We want to make sure that every song’s a good one, every song should be there, and every song has its place.

We’re planning on playing these gigs and getting more popularity so we can grow and write more and better tunes.”

It hasn’t been easy for Leaving Bordeaux, however.

Exposure as a small band can be difficult to achieve.

Caleb explained how they got to the point of being able to headline a show.

“We got gigs quite fast, through continuously selling our ticket allocation or going beyond that. We’ve then got increasingly harder to sell out gigs and better gigs.”

A question that every band needs to answer in an industry becoming more and more saturated is ‘what makes you different?’

Leaving Bordeaux had a range of answers.

“We don’t like sticking to a trend,” said Jamie. “We don’t do the stereotypical things that you would

expect.

We don’t like sticking to a trend, we’d rather do things our own way. In some sense, that’s a selfish attitude, but we’re happy with it. We have our own style.”

“At the moment, there’s a specific kind of scene in Glasgow, and I think we’re slightly different to it,” agreed Alex.

“It’s a lot of our combined music tastes coming together.”

“Except for Caleb!” interjected Louis. “Which is good, because we have someone who can come in and do his bassline, and it’s not the standard bassline.”

Caleb thought for a minute and added, “What makes us different is our ability for the five of us to be heavy contributors.

We have a certain image we’re going for; we decide what we’re doing – we don’t fuck about.”

Leaving Bordeaux have a distinct aura of a band that love what they do.

Throughout the entire recording process, each one of them had their input.

Each member had a remarkable ability to pick out the tiniest details in the song that they wanted to change, and each one of them supported each other throughout the process.

They work well as a team, and they handled conflicts reasonably and lightheartedly.

The excitement they all feel towards their upcoming gig was very apparent.

“We know we enjoy what we do,” said Jamie emphatically. “We really enjoy the music that we’re writing.”

The other four nodded in agreement.

This band are new, but they’re not going anywhere anytime soon.

Glasgow will be seeing a lot more of Leaving Bordeaux in the coming months - and their Broadcast gig is sure to be one to watch.

Music

14

Live review: Beartooth at SWG3

Elizabeth Hunter

IS there a more fitting venue for a metalcore band than a converted warehouse? Nobody at Glasgow’s Beartooth show could disagree.

February 25 saw Beartooth take to the stage at SWG3 for the first time since January 2019, and they did not disappoint.

Bringing with them the up and coming English band Higher Power and emo favourites The Amity Affliction, this was not a show to forget.

Higher Power opened to a welcoming crowd and though they may be less well known than the acts that followed, they successfully got the crowd prepared.

Combining songs from their debut album Soul Structure with songs from their January release, 27 Miles Underwater, they will surely have earned some new fans.

The Amity Affliction followed, playing songs from their new album Everyone Loves You… Once You Leave Them for the first time in Scotland.

Opening with new tracks Coffin and All My Friends Are Dead, the Australian rockers put on an explosive

performance. However, the real show-stopper from The Amity Affliction came when they played fan-favourite Pittsburgh.

The crowd surfers began, drinks were thrown, and everyone in the room was ready for Beartooth.

Caleb Shomo’s impressive vocal range was on full display from the moment Beartooth walked on stage, as they opened with the harsh, heavy notes of The Lines. This swiftly lead into the equally as energetic Enemy, which was when the mosh pits went into full swing.

Shomo’s energy was matched equally by the crowd, who screamed along with every word he sang.

A roar spread throughout the crowd as the first lyric of Hated rang through the warehouse.

The excitement didn’t fade as the band moved into Aggressive, a fan-favourite from the album of the same name.

Then came an emotional speech from Shomo, who stated that, “Anyone who doesn’t fit in has a place at a Beartooth show,” before launching into quasi-ballad Afterall.

Credit: SWG3 Nobody could deny the emotion in the room as the crowd screamed in unison, “I guess I’m just human after all.”

The vaguely melancholy mood didn’t last long at all, as the band launched into the crushingly heavy Bad Listener.

The crowd became more pit than anything else, and this didn’t change throughout the classic I Have A Problem and the newer You Never Know.

They powered through several tracks from their newest album, 2018’s Disease,

including Manipulation and crowd-pleaser Fire. Then came another anthem for those who don’t fit in, in the form of Beaten In Lips.

Sick of Me followed, another emotional track that the crowd sang along to enthusiastically.

However, the best was yet to come. Beartooth ramped up the energy right before the end of the show, performing the uber-aggressive Body Bag and singalong anthem Disease.

With that, they left the stage.

But it wasn’t over yet.

Bursting back onto the stage to wild roars, they fired straight into In Between.

Confetti cannons showered the crowd in white and blue paper, clouding the view of the stage, not that anyone minded.

It was an explosive finale to a wild show – Beartooth performed with such enthusiasm and energy that it would be difficult to imagine anyone not enjoying it.

Live review: Twin Atlantic at Motherwell Concert Hall

Elizabeth Hunter

After splitting from their label of ten years, Twin Atlantic started off 2020 with a ‘back to their roots’ tour, playing smaller venues in towns around Scotland. March 3 took them to Motherwell Concert Hall for the first stop on their Power tour.

With them as support was alternative rock band Bloxx, who had several fans scattered around the venue.

Their short setlist included crowd-pleasers like Go Out With You and new release Coming Up Short.

Twin Atlantic burst onto the stage with the explosive Novocaine, and even though it’s one of their newer songs, it seemed like everyone in the crowd knew the lyrics. They

followed immediately with Volcano, an arguably underappreciated standout from Power.

Sam McTrusty’s charisma as a frontman can never be underestimated – he had the crowd laughing on several occasions as he singled out friends in the crowd and even video chatted with one fan’s mum.

From there, the crowd only got more excited. As they launched into No Sleep, the floor began to shake as fans jumped enthusiastically while screeching along to the lyrics.

They then moved on to the emotional Hold On, before going old-school with Make A Beast of Myself, a fan-favourite from their debut album.

I Feel It Too came next, a surprisingly catchy tune that

everyone seemed to dance to.

Twin Atlantic smashed through song after song, powering their way through an impressive 19 song setlist, with highlights including Whispers, Oh! Euphoria! and Edit Me. There was no denying the enthusiasm from the crowd as they screamed along with McTrusty to Free – a song that never fails to excite the audience.

They also dusted off the lesser known What Is Light? Where Is Laughter? before reminding everyone why they were there by bursting into the newer Ultraviolet Truth.

When they finally played the long-awaited Crash Land, it was difficult to spot a dry eye. McTrusty looked visibly

Credit: Twin Atlantic emotional as he heard the sold-out venue sing every single word to the song – it was a lovely thing to hear.

Not wanting to let the energy die, the band launched into their last few songs, the super energetic hit Barcelona, another song that had the

crowd jumping and the floor shaking.

To finish off what was a truly special show, they performed Heart & Soul, which had the crowd chanting the chorus word-for-word. They didn’t play an encore, but let’s be honest – they didn’t need one.

Arts

15

A Picture of Dorian Gray Review Stirling’s Drama Society triumphant in their adaption of Oscar Wilde’s classic tale

Dominic Cooper Arts Editor

Directed by Claudia Edwards, this modern re-imaginging of ‘A Picure of Dorain Gray’ was ambitious. It mixed things up with a modern setting and a gender swapped cast. According to an interview with Edwards, many of the decisions that changed this adaption from the original text were collaborative with the cast and crew. It’s fair to say this project was going to be a refereshing take an a classic story.

While slow paced, the first half effectively sets up the atmosphere of Dorian’s world. The sinister piano theme as the audience entered warned us that while the start of the play seemed like we were in calm waters, there was trouble brewing just over the horizon. The pleasant openning features Basil (played by Ceinwen Hemmingway-Brunt) fascinated by Dorian’s beauty.

Her perfomance really begins to take off as a contender for Dorian’s attention enters the scene.

She manages to subtly convey her jealousy to the audience and immediately establishes the protagonist’s powerful effect over those around her.

Abby Ferguson managed to convey a complex and convincing character arc for Dorian. There’s lots of long philosophical speeches and exposition in the play’s

Credit: SUDS dialogue, laying groundwork for Dorian’s gradual shift to moral abandonment. This certainly had the potential to be a boring portion of the performance but Ferguson’s excellently delivered transition from naive, young Dorian to an old, haunted and vain version kept us interested in this character’s descent into madness.

These philosophical scenes were largely carried by Ross Batey’s - Henry Wotton. This smug aristocrat’s presence was magnetic and one of the best parts of the first half. His superb pompous

Credit: SUDS

self assured vocal delivery made him an antagonist we loved to hate. Whilst most characters find him morally apprehensible, his chilled out demeanour makes his sinister monologues a joy to watch. His relationship with Dorian was one of the most entertaining parts of the performance - slowly tempting her to embrace a hedonistic and selfish lifesttyle.

An inviograted and egotistical Dorian is let loose into the night..

There she encounters the tragic Shakespearian actor of Cyril Vane (played by Django Msrsh) who finds comfort in playing characters other than himself.

Impressed by his skill, Dorian falls for him and I found myself feeling happy for her. For a while, I was completely swayed by Lord Wotton’s advice. Dorian seizing the moment and living for life’s pleasures seemed liberatng and, for this breif moment, everyone in the play seemed happy...and alive.

The suicide of Cyril Vane at the climax of the first half is what marks the play’s exciting descent into madness, the supernatural and plenty more deaths. Gaining our sympathies, Django Marsh

effectively plays Cyril as a naive and love struck young actor who is helplessly enthralled in Dorian’s spell. His heartbreak after our protagonist mercilessly leaves him to find more taleneted suitor completely shifted the audiences view on who was right and who was wrong. It was important that Django’s performance as Dorian’s first real ‘victim’ was as emotional as it was. It’s what makes his demise so much more hard-hitting and makes us question whether we should even be rooting for Dorian.

The second half of the play is where everyones performance’s really began to shine. It takes place a few decades later, Cyril’s death has had a sort of butterfly effect on the character’s we met at the start. One stand out character for this was Cyril’s brother (played by Nathan Barr) who is now grief stricken and hunting for revenge.What was impressive about this performance is how contrasting it was to his first appearance as a younger, more optimistic figure. His jaded atittude was part of what conviced us these characters had truly transformed.

In order to convey this passage

of time, makeup artist Tsmara Gamble carried out an impressively speedy operation on the cast during the halftime break.

This included sleeves of tattoo’s down James Vane’s arms and the drained, decayed face of Cyril’s corpse. Cyril’s death only made Dorian double down on her narcissistic world view. Hemmingway-Brunt returns in a gut wrenching appearance as Basil who is desperate for Dorian to repent. The stabbing of Basil is a paticularly poignant moment in the play as, similarly to Cyril, her death is caused by her inablility to look past Dorian’s natural beauty and see the monster underneath.

The captivating and constantly evovling characters engrossed us in this new vision of Wilde’s world. From the play’s idyllic and slow burning beginning to it’s tragic and bloody conclusion, the audicne understanding of the story’s message underwent a similar transformation. What started as an embrace of hedonism and individualism quickly became a cautinary tale of its dangers. SUDS have done it again wiht another resounding success.

Film & TV

16

Uncut gems: five Netflix hidden jewels Peter Stewart Film & TV Editor

NO-ONE can credibly claim they expected that from Adam Sandler in the Safdie brothers’ crime thriller Uncut Gems, released in January to critical acclaim and awards season clamour.

It was a performance so good we nearly forgot Billy Madison and Click existed. Nearly. And it ar- rived on Netflix so soon after its cinematic release here in the UK that it took many viewers off- guard – certainly the ones expect- ing standard, comedy scrapheap Sandler fare.

If you haven’t yet watched Uncut Gems, do so as a matter of urgen- cy, but we’re not going to discuss it further here.

What we are going to do, in the spirit of the pleasant surprise of the film, is tell you about five more uncut gems – hidden jewels, you could say – to be sought out in that daunting Netflix cata- logue and enjoyed as exam period stress relief.

EARTHQUAKE BIRD This Netflix original film directed

by Wash Westmoreland came out in November, and while strange, it is more than worth checking out.

The superb Alicia Vikander is Lucy, a European translator living in Tokyo who is brought in for police questioning over the dis- appearance of her best friend Lily (Riley Keough).

The narrative plays out in an unconventional manner, some sequences ambiguous in terms

Credit:Netflix

of their reality. The whole thing has an obliqueness some will find off-putting, but others will be intrigued by.

Earthquake Bird plays to a very different audience to the ones that lapped up the award-nominated Marriage Story and The Irishman. It is evidence of Netflix’s admirable willingness to invest in quirky projects as well as big-hitters.

HOW TO SELL DRUGS ON- LINE (FAST) With probably the best title of any show ever, this German comedy-drama created by Philipp Käßbohrer and Matthias Murmann came out in May last year.

At six half-hour episodes, How To Sell Drugs Online (Fast) can easily be digested in one evening – no half-doses required. It stars Maximilian Mundt as Moritz, a geeky high school student whose girlfriend Lisa (Lena Klenke) breaks up with him after spending a year abroad.

Naturally, Moritz decides the best Credit: Netflix

way to win her back is to get his hands on a huge stash of ecstasy pills. The initial plan escalates and soon he and best friend Lenny (Danilo Kamperidis) are using their nerdy genius to create a dark web drug marketplace right under the noses of Moritz’s police officer dad and a local dealer.

A more serious show with this premise would be a Breaking Bad knock-off; one with less substance would be indistinct from any number of forgettable high school shows. This gets the balance of self-referential humour and constrained drama just right and scarcely threatens to hit a comedown.

Its brevity is a virtue and Mundt’s natural awkwardness is endearing. Its attitude towards drugs is relaxed in a very European way, so as long as you’re OK with that, you’ll laugh pretty much from start to finish.

GOOD TIME Josh and Benny Safdie’s previous film is a must for anyone who liked Uncut Gems.

Robert Pattinson stars in Good Time as Connie, alongside co-director Benny Safdie, who plays Connie’s learning disabled brother Nick.

Connie pulls Nick out of a therapy session and hatches a bungled plan to rob a New York City bank – the first of many terrible ideas he has. Like Uncut Gems, it has an un- sympathetic central character who is his own worst enemy, and yet in both movies, you just about go with that character and a part of you, somehow, wills them to succeed.

SEE YOU YESTERDAY Speaking of brevity, this 2019 Netflix original film clocks in at a breathless 84 minutes.

A sci-fi drama written by Fredrica Bailey and Stefon Bristol, it follows kid-genius high fornian city of Oakland – but is so much more than that.

Written by and starring Daveed Diggs and Rafael Casal, the pair are real-life Oakland natives, and those organic origins are evi- denced by the clear affection the film is made with. Diggs is Collin, a young black man and convicted criminal who has three days left on parole before he’s free. His best friend Miles (Casal), along with CJ and Sebastien (Eden Duncan-Smith and Dante Crichlow in star-making turns) create time machines in their garage in Brooklyn, New York City. As you do.

A Black Lives Matter theme is much more a part of the film’s DNA than anything to do with science-fiction, and although the time travel looks shiny and polished, its vibrant evocation of Brooklyn and emotional core are what make it a triumph.

The ending at first seems abrupt, but it is one of the film’s many geniuses. Essential viewing.

BLINDSPOTTING A US indie picture from 2018, Blindspotting is about the California.

Diggs is white, brash, loudmouthed and erratic but unwaveringly loyal to Collin as the pair live and work in the city.

Although comedic, it has a serious message about contemporary ra- cial injustices, identity, friendship, masculinity and more – at times subverting expectations of those themes.It is often funny,but also shocking and sensitive.

A stylistic flair is present most memorably in musical-inflected sequences and climax with pefor mance poetry as a key element – how’s that for originality?

Interesting and fresh, Blindspotting is on the surface about one city, but like all great movies, it possesses relatability and accessibility no matter where you are in the world.

Rafael Casal and Daveed Diggs in Blind- spotting. Credit: Summit Entertainment

Credit: Collider

Film & TV

17

TV review: I Am Not Okay with This HHHHH Bethany Middleton-Bain

BASED on the comic book of the same name, Netflix’s ‘I Am Not Okay with This’ follows the story of seventeen-year-old Sydney Novak (Sophia Lillis). Navigating life in your late teens is difficult enough, without throwing in the added hassle of dealing with newfound ‘superpowers’.

It’s impossible to explain the plot further without giving too much away, so we’ll settle for saying it is like Carrie, Akira, and a John Hughes film rolled into one. The opening scene of the show itself is an homage to Carrie, but as it turns out, not in the way that you’d think.

Despite knowing from the beginning that this is not going to be a happy story, I Am Not Okay with This never seems to falter in providing laughs.

Quirky and hilarious in places, the show is wellpaced and easy to watch, with Syd’s voiceovers - pulled from her diary entries leading you through the story.

The disenfranchisement of teen girls is an interesting emotional ground to play on, and has led to various supernaturally-tinged takes on the angsty teen girl over the years. Dealing with trauma

and the general troubles that come with being a teenager, Syd, the oldest child in a newly single-parent family, is dealing with more than just emotionally-triggered telekinesis.

Struggling with sexuality, unrequited love and theawkwardness of teen friendships, Syd is a character that many can relate to, in one way or another.

This is the ultimate strength of the show – the characters themselves.

Tried and tested American coming-of-age tropes are at the fore here - Syd is ‘weird’, but is best friends with Dina (Sofia Bryant) who is pretty and popular, and Syd ‘doesn’t understand’ how they’re friends. Dina is dating Brad (Richard Ellis) who is popular and a football player, and Syd doesn’t like him - how original! Syd befriends Stanley (Wyatt Oleff), who is also ‘weird’ because, well… of course. Episode five even sees the characters do a stint in detention. Despite the potential of becoming something typically average and something done before, the show still seems fresh and innovative.

Reunited onscreen following

their performances in It (2017), Lillis and Oleff work well opposite each other as Syd and Stan, creating an endearing sense of friendship. Oleff ’s Stanley Barber reads as Pretty in Pink’s Duckie for the new generation, with Lillis’ Syd being a supernatural Molly Ringwald. Like other recent Netflix originals such as Sex Education, I Am Not Okay with This aesthetically and thematically pulls from the coming-of-age films synonymous with the 1980s.

That seems to be a real selling point in original Netflix content at the moment, following the runaway success of Stranger Things.

The soundtrack is pretty stellar

too, another throwback that this wave of shows is embracing.

From the writer and director of The End of the F***ing World, and based on a comic by the same author, this is similar in both style and tone to that show.

It is also recommend viewing if you liked the goofy awkwardness of Scott Pilgrim vs the World (2010), orthe genre bending new cult-classic Jennifer’s Body (2009).

You might be taken aback by the shortness of the episodes, and how little of them there are.

Seven episodes, approximately twenty minutes each, gives the season a runtime of less than three hours.

This does, however, mean that it’s

perfectly fit for binge-viewing.

Still, a lot of story and character building is crammed into that short timeframe.

Don’t expect any of your questions to be answered this season, though. The show pretty much stops dead in the final episode, leaving multiple loose ends. You will not get closure here, as this has clearly been set up for a further season or more, which hasn’t yet been confirmed. However, don’t let this put you off, I Am Not Okay with This is still a great show - thoroughly entertaining, hilarious and well thought-out.

I Am Not Okay with This is available to stream on Netflix

Sophia Lillis and Wyatt Oleff in I Am Not Okay With This. Credit: Netflix

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Gaming

19

Pure nostalgia at 60 frames-per-second Andrew de Los Perros Picture this: it’s late, you and your pals are playing a Team Deathmatch on Rust, you have your favourite class set-up and you’re about to call in your nuke, but it’s 2020.

Rust is back. That’s the article.

With season 2 now live on Modern Warfare, there’s more reason than ever to get stuck-in.

Through a massive 60GB update, we see the greatest amount of content added to date and the return of fan-favourite maps, faces and my former best friend, the UMP45.

This is a trip down nostalgia lane, and one that I will be traversing for a while.

The Modern Warfare franchise, developed by Infinity Ward, covers four games over the past 14 years, single-handedly shaping many features that we still see in the current first-person shooter culture.

in this latest season, we see the inclusion of character (and poster-boy) Ghost, from 2009’s Game of the Year, Modern Warfare 2, as well as Rust, Scrapyard and the UMP45.

It cannot be understated the impact that these pivotal aspects had on gaming culture when they were launched, spawning a momentous montage community on YouTube and integrated firmly within meme culture.

What’s great to see is this is now included in the latest installment within the wide roster of gametypes, the ‘1V1 Me Bro’ playlist allows for the purest form of grudge match skirmish.

The re-introduction of tournament mode too, which pits you against 32 teams in a 2v2 gunfight mode until one final team reigns supreme is exhilarating and tense. Small maps and fast and manic

Credit: Metro.co.uk

gunplays are at the heart of this season and a welcome return to what made the franchise stand out over a decade ago.

If you’re looking for something more frenzied however, infected ground war mode launches 48 players into a match with 6 initial infectees until there is nobody left. Stray throwing knives and the deteriorating trust in your friends has never felt so thrilling.

What is more, is the constant teasing of ‘Warzone’, a battle royale mode that was hinted at within the reveal trailer for this

current season. The clip shows a squad of soldiers dropping in from an aircraft over a colossal map surrounded by green smoke closing in.

This would not be the first inclusion of a Battle Royale mode within the Call of Duty series, but with the inclusion of some of the most iconic maps in first-person shooter history visible within those few seconds, how could you not be excited?

The exact date for this mode is still unconfirmed, but speculation and leaks have suggested that it

could accommodate up to 200 players, over a map 9km in size, and be playable this month.

Whether rose-tinted glasses have tarnished my ability to be critical of a game series that I have spent (in-game time) literal months of my life playing.

The features which made the series exhilarating back in 2009 still pack-a-punch today.

And with no signs of stopping power the franchise seems to take aim at it’s opponents with a seemingly infinite roster of content.

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order review HHHHI Rowen Rennie Gaming Editor

Respawn Entertainment’s Jedi: Fallen Order is the most fun that I’ve had with Star Wars in a long time, blending elements of “Metroidvania”, Dark Souls and the most recent God of War. In recent years, there has been a distinct lack of good Star Wars games, but this represents a return to form.

You play as Cal Kestis, (portrayed expertly by Gotham’s Cameron Monaghan via motion capture) a young Jedi padawan on the run from the Empire. After surviving Order 66, he lays low in a starship scrap yard until Jedi hunters arrive to kill him.

The story and plot are some of the best Star Wars writing in recent times, as you

Credit: Engadget

visit planets both new and familiar, and interact with a colourful cast of humans and aliens on your journey.

The voice acting and motion capture performances bring the world to life, and we see elements of the Star Wars galaxy previously unexplored.

The imposing antagonists, two Imperial Inquisitors,

hound down Cal and his allies aboard the ship, the Stinger Mantis. Some major and minor characters from the films and shows make appearances to help connect the mostly standalone entry into the rest of the franchise.

Most of all, the whole thing feels like a Star Wars film, with a young Jedi coming into their power, along with

twists that complicate things. As with the best theatrical Star Wars moments the game has a lot of heart and emotion.

Mechanically, the game is very similar to the 2018 reboot of God of War and often seems like a Star Wars-themed mod. However, this is not a negative point, as the combat makes you feel like a real Jedi, to an extent not yet reached by other games.

Its similarity to the Dark Souls franchise is clear too. After dying, you must retrace your steps and attack the specific enemy that killed you in order to get back your life, force and experience.

Wielding a lightsaber is certainly the highlight of the game. Nothing quite beats slicing through a squadron of Storm Troopers, accenting your lightsaber strikes with force pushes.

Fallen Order is an amazing blend of iconic Star Wars elements, planet-hopping story and awesome combat. On the whole, all of this adds up to give the experience of playing through a Star Wars film.

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is available now on Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and Microsoft Windows.

just that? Something we cannot control with to-do lists, planners or money. Is it to teach us to trust and surrender?

As I’ve tried to fool love time and time again, and miserably failed time and time again I think it’s time for me to do just that. Trust the baby wearing diapers and surrender to his love arrows. Or lack off.

I’ll live and laugh, and one day soon I’ll love. I’ll just have to find a different, non-supermodel career for my children. Since we all know cupids got a wonky taste in men. Well looks wise then. Maybe his guys are always a whole lot nicer, smarter, kinder and caring than my selections. Details.

Lifestyle

20 5 steps to mental wellbeing

Picture: pinterest.com

Richàrd Bacskai

1.

Spend as much time as possible with your loved ones.

Your family and friends are there to listen to you, share ideas, discuss experiences. If possible, try to avoid technology and go to a park or coffee shop.

In the Loop with Stoop Cat Stoop It’s an odd thing, a name - A collection of vowels, which bear the responsibility to be “the distinctive designation of a person or thing”.

Parents must come up with one of these when their children are still small blobs with chunky limbs and toothless smiles. It’s surprising they get it right so often.

Mine didn’t.

I was given the name Anne.

It roughly translates to grace, and apparently, the goddess of war and the Virgin Marys are also involved. It used to be popular, but nowadays my name has plummeted to number 599 in the top 1000 popular girls’ names.

I quickly found out that the UK used my name solely for grannies.

The Netherlands uses it for posh blond girls who play hockey and vote conservative.

I’m not graceful, nor a grandmother or a hockey player. My name is too sweet, too dull, too common, too wrong to be my ‘distinctive designation’.

My big plans to change my name when I moved across the ocean years ago were fruitless. Stirling would be my rebirth, my rebranding. I failed within minutes when my first flatmate introduces himself and I blurted out that dreaded name.

From then on there was no going back - Until last night.

The topic of Joe Lycett came up, the comedian who recently changed his name to Hugo Boss. The credits of Legally Blonde were still rolling when

it hit me.

Who is stopping me from changing it now? Who decided there was no going back? Blame it on the stress for my upcoming dissertation deadline, or Elle Wood’s inspiring transformation from sorority girl to Harvard Law student, but it clicked.

We have the freedom to reinvent ourselves every single day.

Whether that means you switch careers, gender, interest or identity. You can.

If for me that means I finally commit to a different name, and for another a hair colour or career path, so be it.

It is as Oscar Wilde so famously said, ‘Be yourself, everyone else is already taken’. So hereby I return the name Anne. Gift it to someone whom it does suit. I’ve changed it on Facebook. It feels like I’ve reset my own factory settings.

Perhaps this new me will be able to get a first, cultivate abs or enjoy oatmeal. There is one thing she will do for sure, live a life that suits her and no one else.

The most ironic thing about my new name? It has been with me all these years. It’s in my passport, on my birth certificate and in June it will be printed on my undergraduate degree.

It’s my middle name, one that just followed that dull first one.

So, let me introduce myself. I’m Cat.

2.

Stay fit and do some exercises.

3.

Improve yourself and seek new skills.

Active physical lifestyle effects on your mental wellbeing and supports your self-esteem. The University of Stirling Gym provides multiple opportunities from swimming to golf, you can easily find the most suitable sport. In case you do not have the financial background to pay for the membership, you can still do some exercises at home. It is free.

Life is a never-ending learning game, acquiring new skills to develop your character and boost your self-confidence. Not to mention the fact that during your studying you have the chance to get to know more people who can support you in your journey. But make sure you like what you do and do not force it if it annoys you.

4. Be kind with others, act and speak to them as you expect people to talk to you.

A nice word and a selfless act help you to feel better. Making someone’s day better with a kind gesture and receiving a warm smile is already a reward, moreover, it makes a relationship even stronger.

5.

Live in your present and appreciate what you have.

You can learn from your past, but you cannot change it. You can have plans for your future, but you do not possess it. Do not forget to enjoy the present. Life is a journey, learn how to enjoy the moment. Your mental health will appreciate it.

For more details, check nhs.uk and do not be afraid to ask help if you need it!

Credit: Unblast

For one, the people you want t love truly something to live an some, areinhardly ever the peop Oh sure, the movies it is.

Gi reasonably girl and boyattractive. stay together fore Icut remember to black. a date I once had, Love. It’s a word that s solid pass.

Sure, he wasn’t ugl

In real life, it’s all a bit and perfumes. There’s a big ch supermodels. of course, th as those damnYet, actors and seco on her upper thigh. If not, at le soul on fire the second he graz three-stage act. piece that shouts “Live, Laugh Mostly because I had o For one, the people you want t These aggressive signs supermodel children. only some, are hardly ever Not the peop just because they’re hideous b cool mountain van and would reasonably attractive. love truly something to live an marshmallows over a fire. You I remember a date I once had, Oh sure, in the movies it is. Gi multiple times. all I could solid pass.

Sure,And he wasn’t ugl girl and boy stay together fore While you startth supermodels.

Yet, might of course, cut to black. ambition to become a Hollywo soul on fire the second he graz

In real life, it’s all a bit is not truly directed at the hoto Mostly because I had as those damn actors and seco around the lack of control. supermodel children.

Not only three-stage act.

Why canvan I not cool mountain andconsciou would For one, the people you want t Who is actually in charge of th marshmallows over a fire. You some, are hardly ever the peop to have wobbly sig multiple times. knees And allatIthe could reasonably attractive.

Is there truly not start a way While you might I remember a date I once had, selection Ora is that ex ambition process? to become Hollywo solid pass. Sure, he wasn’t ugl just that? canno is not trulySomething directed atwe the hot supermodels. Yet, of course, th money.

Is itlack to teach us to trus around the of control. soul on fire the second he graz As I’ve tried love time a Why to canfool I not consciou Mostly because I had o time time again I think Who and is actually in charge of it’ th supermodel children. Not only baby wearing diapers and surr to have wobbly knees at the sig cool mountain van and would I’ll live and laugh, Is there truly not aand way marshmallows over a fire. You find a different, non-supermod selection process? Or is that ex multiple times. And all I could know cupids got a wonky taste just that?

Something we canno While you might start his guysIs are whole lot money. it always to teacha us to trus ambition to become a Hollywo my selections.

As I’ve tried to Details. fool love time a is not truly directed at the hot time and time again I think it’ around the lack of control. baby wearing diapers and surr Why can I not consciou I’ll live and laugh, and Who is actually in charge of th find a different, non-supermod to have wobbly knees at the sig know cupids got a wonky taste Is there truly not a way his guys are always a whole lot selection process? Or is that ex my selections. Details. just that? Something we canno money. Is it to teach us to trus As I’ve tried to fool love time a time and time again I think it’ baby wearing diapers and surr I’ll live and laugh, and find a different, non-supermod know cupids got a wonky taste his guys are always a whole lot my selections. Details.

Lifestyle

21

Lighter Than My Shadow Clara Fors Wisbyse

“Lighter Than My Shadow is a personal story of struggle with and recovery from eating disorders and sexual abuse, told through the language of comics,” Katie Green says when asked to describe her book with simply a few words. Fascinatingly enough she wouldn’t even need to say that to describe her own story of recovery and struggle – already the title discloses it all. These few simple words seem scarier than any name of any illness.

Lighter Than My Own Shadow. Only imagining being a sliver of oneself, not even as substantial as one’s shadow, seems daunting - but this book is so much more than that. At the first pencil scribble, it represents hope and light at the end of the tunnel.

The reader follows Katie from the very beginning of her innocent relationship with food as a

Credit: Katie Green

picky eater to the very end as an adult sitting by a desk drawing all the twists and turns of her own story. The one element that never leaves her side is the scribbled little ball of dark lines – the shadow. Her shadow represents the darkness of mental health and thoughts that are as hard to get rid of as physical scars on a body, and throughout the story, it shrinks and grows depending on her mental state.

“What happened, both my eating disorder and the abuse that followed will always be there. Those experiences shaped my entire adolescence and young adulthood, and are part

“There are days now, weeks, when I might not even think about it but I doubt I’ll ever forget, or that I’d want to.”

Credit: Katie Green

to change to fit in is perhaps not what you’re ready to hear,” Katie says.

The vision with the book was to create something that spoke to the experience of people struggling with eating disorders and sexual abuse, and of the person I’ve become. There are that was honest about the length and days now, weeks, when I might not difficulty of recovering, but simultaneeven think about it but I doubt I’ll ever ously hopeful. In the end, the struggle forget, or that I’d want to” says Katie. is always personal, needs to take time,

She was never really worand as Katie Green says herself: “Noried about telling her story, and if she body who struggles with disordered could go back and tell her younger eating can get better overnight, and self something, Katie isn’t even sure there’s no one thing I can say which that her younger persona would have might help or make it easier. Getting listened. “I would tell her she’s loved, better involves making the same hard and it’s fine for her to be just the way choices day after day after day when she is. “But when you’re young, and in it feels like every fibre of your being school, feeling different is painful and wants oblivion. But I would say that isolating and being told you don’t need it’s worth it, and you are worthy of it.”

Credit: Katie Green

The Lioness Shows Her Scars

People never talk about the ugly side of mental health.

People chose to see the good parts: the getting help, the light at the end of the tunnel. People tell you to ‘hang in there’, ‘you’re looking well’, ‘look at how far you’ve come.’

But there is no one looking at scars with an expression of beauty

“You get stares, whispers, comments. You get the looks of pity, the quick glances.”

Heather Dalgleish and marvel. your skin. But unlike the scars of You get stares, whispers, comments. someone who has changed to make You get the looks of pity, the quick themselves better, yours are looked glances. upon in a way that makes them feel It’s easy to shy away from experiencugly. Met with gawping mouths, ing bits of life for your scars. Avoidsympathetic stares and even the odd ing swimming, stop wearing certain comment now and then. clothes, avoiding sexual encounters.

The marks fade over time, It’s easy to hide and avoid the looks whilst they may stand out just for from strangers, from those whom you now, eventually, the redness dies love. down. And as the hotter months come But this isn’t recovery, this isn’t facand more skin is on show, it shouldn’t ing the facts.

Showing scars shouldn’t carry a stigma, it’s a mark of wounds from facing your demons. It’s an upward battle from which you come out mentally battered, bruised and physically different.

But like a patient in recovery from surgery, you are left with marks on

“We can get better, because we’re not dead yet.” - Frank Turner

be something to dread showing. It should be something that, like all physical anomalies, you don’t stare, assume, comment on. You act as if it’s any other bit of skin in any other place ever.

Become educated, understand with those suffering but don’t question the marks on their skin.

Some people may choose to share, but that is on them and no one owes you a story behind the marks. Mental health is incredibly personal and although for some people it may work to share their stories, for some they are simply not ready, or may never be. And that is ok too.

Take the words of Frank Turner: “We can get better, because we’re not dead yet.”

Food Clara Fors-Wisbye

22

The Swedish Fika

Moving from Sweden to Scotland was not always easy.

Swedish fika, which also happens to be my favourite:

Method:

As if a different language, climate and currency weren’t enough; Scotland was missing one of the most substantial parts of Swedish culture – Fika.

Ingriedients:

o Whisk all the ingredients together in a bowl and place it in the fridge for approximately 1 hour

‘It is a concept...’

Directly translated fika means taking a coffee or drinking tea together, but it is so much more than that. It is a concept, a state of mind, an attitude.

It means that you make time to sit down and eat a little something and drink some coffee together with friends or colleagues. It is a tradition that I love and would like to share.

• • • • • • • •

Chocolateballs 100 g butter 1 dl sugar 1/2 tbs vanillaextract 3 tbl cacao pow 3 dl oats 3 tbl cold coffee Sugar, sprinkles, coconut shavings for garnish

o Melt the butter

o Make the dough into approximately 30 balls and roll them in the garnish And voila, you have the humble Swedish Fika, a dessert enjoyed in Winter Spring, Summer and Fall by so many of us native Sweeds.

Here’s the recipe of one the easiest and most traditional pastries consumed during a

Facts About Fika: 1. Fika is often not translated by Swedes, in order not to lose its meaning as being more than just a coffee break 2. Fika is often represnted as a time to take away from life to socialise with loved ones and connect.

3. There can be two fikas a day, at least for workers torelish in tradition.

4. Fika finds its origins when coffee was banned and later after black market trades, reinstated, making it a national historical concept.

5. Fika typically occurs mid-morning and mid-afternoon.

6. Studies have shown taking out time of your day to practise the art of fika can lead to a more productive workforce.

7. Fika provides a simplehome during the winter to increase happiness levels in the colder months.

Transform your overnight oats... photo credit: eatthisnotthat.com

Sprinkle with flaked almonds for extra crunch.

Overnight oats are a winner for breakfast, but its easy to find them repetitive. Overnight oats are incredible if you are wanting a filling breakfast with minimal morning effort. Feeling a little uninspired by your oats? Here are seven different ways to transform your oats from drab to fab for everyday of the week.

5. Berry Compote A personal favourite, using a frozen berry mix, cook in a pan and mash together with sugar to boil. Sweeten with honey or syrup for an extra sweet, warm winters breakfast.

6. Peanut butter and jelly Similar to the first but with the addition of jam, incorporate into the oat mixture for a refreshing twist.

1. Peanut butter One for the nut lovers out there, and no not that kind. Peanut butter provides a tasty crunch to your oats without overpowering if stirred in correctly. Sweeten with honey for an extra tasty boost.

2. Banana Bread Oats Mash one banana and incorporate throughout the oats.

Crush a handful of walnuts and add a quarter of a teaspoon of cinnamon. Top with a few slices of banana and a sprinkle of chai seeds.

3. Super Strawberry Add a couple of spoonsful of

7. Apple Cinnamon Dice the apple until in small pieces. Add a teaspoon of cinnamon and sweeten with honey.

strawberry yoghurt. Using frozen strawberries, add a splash of water and a heaped spoonful of sugar and let simmer. Mash the strawberries down and simmer until mixture begins to bubble.

Pour onto of the mixture and sprinkle with chai seeds to serve.

4. Chocolate dream cake Incorporate half a tablespoon of cocoa throughout your oats.

Taking your favourite chocolate hazelnut spread, warm your oats and place two tablespoons in and incorporate until melted.

To eat hot or cold?

Either! I tend to eat mine warm, unless using yoghurt, then its best to eat cold which is delicious in the summer months.

Why not mix and match though? When making a berry compote, heat that in the morning and add over cold oats.

Adventures of a poor eater I’m sure my boyfriend would want me to open this article with the line ‘he’s the greatest person who ever lived, but…’. Well, he’s not getting the satisfaction this time. Whilst from time to time I enjoy his company, he has got one really annoying quality: he’s a fussy eater. That’s right folks, he loves pizza, but he doesn’t like cheese. Where is the logic?!

My mum jokes that we should blindfold him and continually feed him things he hasn’t tried (which, believe me, is most things) and try to bring his palette up to the 21 years the rest of him has aged. And sometimes, sure, it can be a stumbling block when it comes time to cook dinner.

But don’t despair if you’ve got one too – it’s been almost four years, and I’m about 30% of the way to converting him to an adult. Maybe it was my Dad’s showing off with homemade Cointreau pancakes when he first started to come round to ours for tea, maybe it was not wanting to disappoint my Grandma when she presented him with a whacking great bowl of mussels.

Maybe he’s just growing up!

Either way, if you’ve got a fussy eater at home like I have, don’t worry. If they care about you, they will try (most of the time!).

It’s been almost 3 years since I gave up eating meat, and though he hasn’t made the jump yet, and still occasionally gets caught eyeing up those tins of beans with sausages in, we still sit down most nights to eat the same meal together.

Moral of the story is, don’t let them embrace their fussiness!

There are so many amazing foods to try around the world and acclimatising to loads of different flavours as soon as you get the chance can help you appreciate the cuisine wherever you go. Our personal favourite is tapas – and the less fussy you are, the more spoilt for choice you’ll be.

Features

24

Occupation: Behind the barricades

Harry Williamson

An academic court, what is usually a place where the running of the university is carried out, with its long wooden tables, floor to ceiling windows and grand portraits of previous Chancellors hang, is now cluttered with sleeping bags, political pamphlets, red flags and cereal boxes. This building is under occupation.

Occupation protests took place across Scotland to show support for university lecturers who are on strike. Students have entered university buildings and have barricaded the doors. While occupations are a very public form of direct action, very little is known what goes on behind locked doors; The planning, the community feel, the personal beliefs of each individual inside, the effort, the struggle, the triumph and perhaps what occupiers hold closest, the solidarity, is mostly unknown to the outside world.

Occupying and maintaining a building is not something that comes just at the drop of a hat.

Edinburgh University students took over the David Hume Tower on their campus as part of a joint solidarity effort between staff and students over the strikes.

Ella Rook is a second-year visiting student from the eastern United States studying psychology, she spoke about the planning that went into taking over the 14-story building.

“We plan things as carefully so that they can be as coordinated and as impactful as possible. If plan A fails, then we have a Plan B and a Plan C to back it up.”

Ella’s plans from the first moment of the occupation involved sneaking into the building when there was very little security, they asked the cleaning staff to leave and barricaded the front doors and basement doors with bike locks and furniture.

“When we were taking the building it was so stressful, I was super excited after all of the planning, “We were finally doing this.

“When we were running about barricading doors and security were shouting at us, I was so pumped on adrenaline that nothing felt real, and at the end of it I realised it, “Holy shit we just took this whole building.”

Alongside the occupation, the students host a series of events and other activities to allow more students to know about the issues that they are protesting.

They have set up working groups to organise the occupation’s activities, to arrange picket lines, work with the media and to maintain the building.

“We host teach-outs that are open to all. Most of them are about radical issues that the staff are passionate about that they don’t always get to teach.”

The Edinburgh occupiers attended picket lines daily and protested outside lectures that were still taking place.

“We stood outside a 300 person law lecture, and by the time we were there only 40 had gone in, it was a real win for us and showed students what we were doing and made us feel like they had their support.”

The Principal of Edinburgh University, Peter Matheson was due to appear on BBC Radio 4 during the strike, but the occupiers interrupted his radio interview and managed to successfully disrupt the interview.

The occupation has seen a lot of support from striking staff, “The staff-student relationship has really been improved, it’s great for our morale that we have a unifying mission to get us through.”

Ella urged the importance of a good relationship with staff, “The whole reason that we are doing this is to be in solidarity with our lecturers. Our goal is to put pressure on the university to meet the demands of our lecturers who are on strike.”

How the occupation of David Hume Tower is run is democratic, every decision is decided democratically with members of the protest taking a vote on every action that they will take. All of the meetings are respectful, every person who enters the building is told that it is a safe space and that they must be respectful of others.

Ella revealed that there is a deeper meaning behind the whole decision-making process.

“We run this occupation based on how we would want society to be run, anyone can come to our general meetings and everyone there, whether they are a staff or student is equal.”

The tower has been renamed by

the occupiers from David Hume Tower to the Mairi Mhor Nan Oran tower, as a protest action against the racist history of David Hume.

One aspect of occupations that never becomes public knowledge is the physical and mental toll that it takes on the people taking part in the occupation protest.

Matthew Ferrie is a third-year history student who took part in the occupation of the management building on the campus of Stirling University, he too had similar feelings to Ella when their occupation began.

“When we first came in and started to chain the doors, I was fucking shitting myself, it was so surreal, I was just there like, what the fuck have we done?”

“For the first few nights I was really nervous, the building is so cold and the floors are so hard that it is really hard to get any sleep. I couldn’t sleep for the three days, and on top of this, I had three essays to write.

“I really freaked out and had a bit of a meltdown.”

Adding to Matthew’s stress was when their protest was issued with a discipline notice, “I was really freaking out, I got annoyed at how calm people were being about the whole thing, and I had to go home for a few days and when I returned I was in a much better mindset.”

The sense of community that happens within occupations was the one thing that helped Matthew get through his stress.

“We all know how to have a bit of banter and we all get along, a lot of us second and third years already knew each other but we’ve really got to know the first years. It’s a good group of people we have here. It helps get you through it.”

Matthew was not the only one to feel stress, Morgan Lewis-Wilson, one of the activists most heavily involved in the Stirling occupation described it as “being couped up for a week with no escape.”

“I’ve been going through a bit of a difficult time personally and I can tell that over this past week my mood has just worsened, I’ve become more inward-looking.

“We’re not here to play games, we’re here for a reason, if it were up to me then I wouldn’t be here.”

Yet again, it was a sense of friendship and community that helped

Morgan through his stress from the situation, “I’ll be honest, I didn’t expect to get on as well with people as I did, but there is an aspect of solidarity. The longer stays will impact your mental health but the relationships between everyone here have really improved.”

Morgan discussed some of the personal benefits that can come from occupation protests. Much like Edinburgh, the Stirling occupation uses votes as a method of decision making, and Morgan believes that this can be extremely beneficial.

“It can encourage people to take control, leadership can be forced onto people under circumstances, but this provides a really good opportunity for people to develop themselves.”

One first-year student at the Edinburgh occupation said that taking part in that occupation had helped her develop, “I get to really feel empowered.

I really enjoy living here [David Hume Tower] because we are learning constantly, with the practical activities and the teachouts we are just learning 24/7.

“I cannot believe how much I’ve grown in the past week. I’ve realised that I’m more confident with more responsibility now.”

Although not every occupation is the same, some have very noticeable differences. One such case is with their demands.

Edinburgh stuck to the basic demands that came from the strike, whereas Stirling added demands of their management that related to mental health and housing.

Ella said that their occupation felt that a narrow focus was more achievable and that if occupiers pile on too many demands then they risk having the rest of the student body losing interest in their protest.

Stirling occupiers have taken a different approach and have raised issues regarding mental health and rent.

“Management know we’re mad about this,” Matthew explained.

“When I was living in halls, I had £70 left after rent, and I was on a mental health waiting list for so long that I was hospitalised before I was seen by any support staff.

“That’s why we’re demanding change, it’s not good enough.”

Yet another different approach

taken by the two groups, while Stirling have met with their university management to discuss their occupation and their demands, yet Edinburgh has ruled out meeting their university’s bosses, and have urged the other occupations to do the same.

“We actively discourage other occupations not to engage with their university’s management.”

Ella explained.

The upkeep of the buildings under occupation is a priority for occupiers. They have strict rules about the upkeep of the building.

Stirling’s occupation considers the upkeep of the management building to be so important that their occupation is considered a “closed occupation” that they have limited access to people coming in to ensure that no one who would be disruptive or who would damage property would get in.

Matthew went over the rules for upkeeping the building, “We clean daily, it’s a good way to relax and blow off steam and there is no alcohol, if anyone has had a drink then they can stay outside till they are sober, we don’t want anyone doing anything to damage the building or undermine what we are trying to do.”

The main mission of the occupations can be summed up by Ben O Ceallaigh, a 30-year-old PhD student at Edinburgh, “We just want to show solidarity with our lecturers, the quality of education and the quality of working conditions are heavily linked because don’t forget we are the employees of tomorrow.”

Ben is optimistic that occupation protests can work, “Key to our potential success is to stick to our guns, collective action is the key to getting our unis to listening to our demands.”

Morgan, however, was more sceptical of the success of their occupation, “I don’t think our demands will be met but this is not the end of something, it is just the start of something.”

Occupations took place on university campuses across the UK in 2018 and across Scotland this year for the lecturer strike. One of the most public forms of direct action is often easily ignored, and behind the barricaded doors lies little communities of their own.

Features

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Faux or for real: Yoga with animals Iman MacKenzie

The twenty-first century has first-hand experience with many passing trends, from the range of mood rings and crystals to the rise of cryotherapy, and even the return of leeches for ‘medicinal’ purposes.

New forms and approaches to exercise have also been on the rise over the last few decades, some of which claim to also be mental-health boosting practices.

One particular example of such an activity, which has seen a boom over the last decade, is Animal Assisted Therapy (AAT). But is it actually beneficial, or more hype than health?

For many, animals inherently have a calming impact on people’s mental well-being.

Psychology Today reported that this may be a biological phenomenon, due to humans being pack animals themselves.

It seems, therefore, that it was only a matter of time before the world’s furry friends would be recruited for wellness programs such as yoga.

Yoga itself has shown promising statistics that suggest the practice aids in reducing stress.

Fitness Health 101 found in a recent study of people who experience large amounts of stress that 76% of their participation pool said they felt better after three weeks of three weekly 90-minute sessions.

But whether this is another Insta-post-worthy hype or a genuine step forward in the evolution of wellness, is something to be discussed.

Research throughout the years has shown that interaction with animals aids in the release of positive hormones.

Yoga works hand-in-hand with animals due to both

Credit: Wellness 7

the mental benefits, such as reducing loneliness, and the physical impact like managing your breathing when anxious.

It is especially beneficial for those who are not comfortable with social situations, as having animals to cope with the stress of interation can often mitigate the anxiety of the experience.

A possible indicator of this practice’s benefit is the sheer amount of worldwide attention yoga with animals has received.

Currently, yoga with goats appears to be taking charge of this newest wellness craze.

As currently, according to Psychology Today, one in five people suffer from mental illness, GoGa (Goat Yoga) posits that animals can perhaps help with the wellness struggle.

They are not a cure by any means, but their presence is enough to act as a calming

balm. Goat interaction itself has been credited for encouraging calmness and aims to reduce stress.

Besides, participating alongside animals also has a fun element. Connecting to your inner-self becomes a lot more humbling when you have the careless free roam of goats surrounding you.

Credit: Pinterest

This positive impact on mental wellbeing has been acknowledged by the NHS - NHS Scotland introduced goats, alongside other animals, to their Animal Therapy centre. “Bonding with animals is often much easier than getting people to like and trust you, so animals as therapy is a great first step in the rehabilitation process,” Rehabilitation Instructor for the centre, Aileen Galt, commented.

Fortunately, this growth in therapeutic yoga is not restricted to a handful of animals, it’s a growing movement in the mental wellness community.

Including a variety of different yogas that balance nicely alongside bettering your mental wellbeing.

For instance, horseback yoga, most of which is performed - you guessed it - on the back of a horse, which may be daunting, but is proving popular.

This form of yoga has been recognized for connecting the horse and their rider through conscious breathing, allowing for a deeper bond to be forged, with the rider being more grounded and aware on horseback, as studies are finding that during animal

interaction your awareness is heightened.

Realistically, it must be hard to focus on the self when furry little critters are all over you. For many, this might be the major stressor. Sometimes not being able to focus can be worse than anything, and takes the attention away from yourself.

Also, this is clearly not a practice ideal for non-animal lovers. Animals like goats are the sort that enjoy the attention, and dogs are the icons of attention- seeking.

So, if you aren’t wild for animals then this sort of practice may not be for you, and that’s okay.

Because the world of health and wellness is advancing in a myriad of different directions at the moment.

However, if you are wanting to diversify your exercise routine, love animals, and would like to work on your mental wellbeing and combat anxiety, it seems that finding emotional support in animals whilst meditating appears to be a promising new form of mental wellness.

Whilst it may be distracting from the actual yoga, that in itself can be part of the fun.

Features

Is postgrad for you?

26

The pros and cons Credit: Salesforce

Irina Nakon Features Editor Whether you are a first or fourth-year student, career prospects are at the forefront of your undergraduate degree, all of us naturally wishing to secure suitable employment following the four-year university journey.

Yet, for the growing many, the academic experience is far from over with the attainment of a Bachelor’s, as postgraduate diplomas are in increasing demand by employers and, therefore, in increasing popularity with aspiring employees.

Whereas, as recently as 20 years ago, postgraduate study was primarily reserved for those wishing to go into medical, educational, legal, scientific, and a few other STEM-related careers, over the course of the last two decades the popularity of postgrad courses has permeated a much wider array of career tracts. You can now get an MSc in Brewing and

Distilling, Baking Science and Technology, Equestrian Psychology, Floral Design, and even Dairy Herd Management, for example.

The sheer variety of the options reflects not only the worldwide interest in diversifying postgraduate courses, but also its financial lucrativeness for higher education institutions. Yet, the benefits of postgraduate study are not to be underplayed – aside from emerging with a diploma in hand, you will undoubtedly have narrowed your area of interest and research via your postgrad course, made vital connections with industry professionals, gotten work experience, attended, or participated, at conferences, identified a specialisation which suits you, and taken a definitive step in the direction of you chosen career. All within the relatively-short 9-18 month span of a Masters degree. So, what is there to think about?

Well, the financial repercussions, for one. As previously mentioned, the international boom of postgrad options was, in no small part, catalysed by the high lucrative value the courses hold for universities, with some of the most in-demand courses costing students upwards of £30,000, excluding accommodation and living expenses. An MBA (Master of Business Administration) – which remains one of the most popular postgrad diplomas, accounting for almost a quarter of all postgraduate degrees in the UK, according to the Chartered Association of Business Schools (CABS) – from the University of Glasgow, for example, will cost you just under £18,000; almost £30,000 if you are an international student.

The competition for UK-university MBA admission likewise reflects its popularity, with hundreds of students competing for one spot through rigorous multi-tier interviews.

Yet, according to both graduates and employers, the

attainment of the degree is worth the uphill struggle – the Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC) interviewed over 6,000 MBA alumni last year, finding the graduates dispersed across various consulting, government, non-profit, technological, and financial career branches, the malleability of the MBA thereby suiting a wide scope of professional growth. Moreover, GMAC found that over 90% of Fortune Global 100 and 500 companies are looking to hire MBA talent.

Traditional Masters and PhD aside, there is an array of other qualifications you can enrol for. Conversion courses, for example – such as Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL, Psychology (GDP), or Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCEs), are shorter courses which are directly aimed at helping students change careers, or progress to a full postgraduate degree.

Professional courses, mean-

while, such as Postgraduate Certificates (PGCerts) and Postgraduate Diplomas (PGDips), are vocational courses which are frequently taken in conjunction with a Masters or PhD, in order to augment your degree and increase your work experience. And let’s not forget that to counterbalance lofty fees, there are equally-extensive funding opportunities. From course-specific to gradetier, from research-based to demographic-oriented, UK universities are replete with awards opportunities, many of which you will automatically be considered for.

So, whether you have already embarked on your career path, are about to complete your undergraduate degree or are still undecided about your professional future, postgraduate study remains a solid option for bolstering your prospects or helping you find your vocational niche.

Careers

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Sport

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Out with the old, in with the new

Gill Thayne reflects on year as Edd Keeler elected Sam Ormiston Lewis Fraser Edd Keeler says being elected Sports President is a dream come true.

The newly elected Sports President said: “I went into this thinking I could give Craig a race and to come out on top is unreal.

“It’s pretty much been what I’ve dreamt about, it’s been incredible.”

Edd pipped Craig Stephen to the post by only 27 votes, in a contest that both candidates knew would be close.

Edd puts his success down to personal preference of voters, saying: “Craig and I had similar manifestos, but for me I think promoting sport for everyone was important.

But in the end, it probably

just came down to personal preference.

“The first steps are to catch up with everything Gill has been doing, I really want to make sure I hit the ground running.

I want to use this handover period to address that I have less experience. I’m going to really learn about it all and make sure I can hit the ground running at the start of June.”

Immediately though, his priority was to make contact with home.

He added: “Mum was excited as I am, she had been following the campaign. So it was great to be able to tell her the good news.”

Despite being narrowly beaten, Craig Stephen was in good spirits after the results were announced.

He said: “I’d be lying if I said

I wasn’t disappointed.

“But, we both knew we were going into it as good candidates that would be good for the role. It just means I get

“Being elected is a dream come true” to explore different options now.

“I’m just so happy for Edd, I really am.”

Outgoing Sports President Gill Thayne was keen to reflect on a busy but rewarding year, as she is set to pass on the reign to Sports President Elect, Edd Keeler.

In an exclusive interview, Gill told Brig: “It’s been a fantastic year. We’ve had lots of interesting challenges, but we’ve realty pulled together as a Union team.”

Her personal highlights include securing funding for disability inclusion training and putting on various mental wellbeing events throughout the year.

She added: “My biggest challenge was re-aligning priorities when the Union President position was vacant.

“But I’ve been really lucky to do some equality work and take the lead on mental health campaigns.

She has also been working on a new kit deal which is likely be in place by the time Edd takes over at the start of June.

Stirling University are cur-

rently sitting in tenth place in BUCS. And with Sports Ball just around the corner, Gill is excited to celebrate all the successes within the Sports Union.

Commenting on her decision not to re-run, Gill admits that she has had a brilliant year, but is ready to move on.

She said: “I feel like I can bring everything to a nice close with the redevelopment works and kit deal being sorted.

“I’ll work really hard to make sure that everything is prepared for the new Sports President coming in.

The redevelopment will be completed, and the new sports centre will be up and running in time for students returning in September.

Sport

29

“They’ve got through on a BUCS technicality” Continued from page 32 “But the team we were fielding was not weak. “We would have been happy to play them but it would be silly to play on a course that is partially under-

water.”

SUGC launched an appeal against the decision made by BUCS (British University and College Sport), but the decision was upheld.

Lewis added: “They’ve got through on a technicality that has nothing to do with playing golf.

Last year’s tournament winners. Credit: Stirling University Golf Club “Everyone on our team wanted to play. At this level, it would have been much more satisfying if they’d beaten us fair and square.

“It’s demoralising for the team.”

Northumbria University Golf Club have been contacted for a

response, but had not replied by the time of going to print.

And a BUCS representative told Brig that they do not comment on matters of appeals, unless it is directly with the Sports Unions of involved clubs.

Sports President Gill Thayne

voiced her disappointment over the unfortunate result of the appeal.

She said: “I was really disappointed to hear the outcome of what happened.

“The welfare of all our athletes are a top priority, and it

Swimming make history in Sheffield Petra Kotkova

University of Stirling Swimming club (USSC) made history in Sheffield last month, as the first university outside of Loughborough to claim the overall men’s title in the BUCS Long Course Swimming Championships in 32 years.

USSC men’s team was able to end Loughborough university’s 32-year winning streak of the Long Course Championship with 176 points, merely 8 points more than Loughborough.

“This was a massive win for the Stirling Men’s Team,” says Martyn Walton, president of USSC. “Hopefully Stirling can

now build on our successes and string back to back wins as Loughborough have done for many years.”

This victory, as Walton recognize, was thanks to Para swimmers Ollie Carter and Jon Law who were able to achieve numerous points for the men’s team and bring them victory.

The Stirling mixed team also brought home 22 medals: 10 gold, 6 silver and 6 bronze.

This was enough for the USSC to finished second in the overall performance and for the women’s team to finish third overall.

While claiming goal, the men’s 4x100m Freestyle Relay team (Duncan Scott, Scott Mclay,

Lorenz Weiremans, Calum Bain) and men’s 4x100m Medley Relay team (Martyn Walton, Craig Benson, Duncan Scott, Scott Mclay), were able to get a record-breaking time.

Cassie Wild was named the Top Female Performer after she broke the championship record in 100m backstroke in a time of 1:00.08.

Sport

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Ultimate fly into the top division Jessie Hosking Stirling University’s men ultimate frisbee team have been crowned Division 2 champions and will play in Division 1 in September.

The team, made up of Rory Shannon, Chris Rainford, Ruairi Macleod, Lewis Taylor, Aidan Kelly and Thomas Trim and captained by Charlie Cooper, will play in Division 1 in September.

The road to gaining the title took place over two semesters. Last semester, the team travelled to St Andrews, where they beat St Andrews and Edinburgh’s second

teams.

This semester, the team played in Edinburgh against Dundee and Strathclyde’s second teams. Despite the high winds making for difficult playing conditions, the team eventually beat the former 9-2 and the latter 14-0.

Speaking after their triumph, Cooper said: “it’s a fantastic feeling, it makes all the work we have put in over the year worth it and it show how far we have come as a team which is just amazing for everyone involved.”

Whilst acknowledging that the

Rory Shannon, Chris Rainford, Ruairi Macleod, Lewis Taylor, Aidan Kelly, Thomas Trim and Charlie Taylor. Credit: Stirling Ultimate team can expect some high quality matches against some great teams, Cooper is excited for their future in the top Scottish division.

“We will have a very similar squad next year which has been improving all the time and I think we are going to give some of the teams a bit of a surprise.”

The win also sees them qualify for nationals, which will take place in April next year.

“As a dressing room, we know what we’re capable of”

O’Hara, above, formerly played for Falkirk FC. Credit: Alloa Advertiser

Continued from page 32 The young striker was given a chance by boss Peter Grant in the summer, following a poor couple of seasons for the player,

and the risk has paid off for all involved.

Alloa currently sit in eighth place in the league, one point above the relegation play-off zone.

The Wasps face an uphill task to survive however, with two full time teams looking to move

above the Clackmannanshire side.

O’Hara said: “we have played some really good football this year and we have sometimes had to dig in to get results but that’s part of the game, and as long you get the right result that’s the main thing.”

In what can be an unforgiving league, O’Hara is confident of his team’s chances.

He said: “As a dressing room we know what we are capable of, every week we just take each game as it comes and that’s what we are going to continue doing right until the last day of the

season.”

After what has been a difficult start to a promising career, Kevin O’Hara will be one to watch over the coming seasons. If and when he helps keep Alloa in the league, he will undoubtedly be in line for a move back to where he belongs: a full-time club.

Sport

31

Madness at the pool Credit: Wiggle Guides

Trampoline and Gymnastics succeed against the odds

Happy faces all around after leaping to success. Credit: University of Stirling Trampoline and Gymnastics Club.

Charlie Harris

The University’s Gymnastics and Trampolining club swept up a whole host of medals at the Scottish Student Games Trampoline Open last month, despite coaching and equipment difficulties.

Ranging from novice to advanced level, the club scooped up a total of seven medals at the event which was held at the University of Edinburgh.

Cora Jones won gold at the advanced ladies trampolining, whilst Nelli Piehl and Darby Walker took top place in the level 2 synchronised event. Carson

Camilla Hannes also won gold for advanced Double Mini Trampoline (DMT).

This was despite the club not having the apparatus to train DMT, unlike other universities who were competing.

The gold medallists were joined

by Leona Scott who won silver on elite DMT and Pauline Konwerski who won bronze for novice DMT. Darby Walker also took home a bronze medal for intermediate DMT. Club secretary Laura Menendez said: “We definitely did not expect so many medals in DMT as it’s an apparatus we do not own ourselves, so we don’t train

it.

“We have been working hard this year, and it was great to not only to see so many medals but also see so many people coming to the competition.” The club boasted its largest number of entries to date, at 34.

Whilst the club has had success this year, they have had to do it against the odds, with lack of equipment and coaching issues making it difficult to compete.

Laura said: “The future looks complicated again because of the lack of coaching.

“Getting a coaching qualification

is very expensive so we are struggling in this sense.”

Despite the struggles, the club are positive about the future, especially after such impressive performances this year.

She added: “Otherwise the future is looking quite good. We are growing a lot as a club and there is a lot of engagement and excitement from freshers.

The club will be looking to add to their medal tally this year with a competition in Glasgow this month and a trip to Ireland in April.

Petra Kotkova Sports Editor It’s that time of the year again; dissertation deadlines are fast approaching, assignments are being submitted late and freshers are finding out just now where the library is located. Panic and craziness dominate the campus.

For the University of Stirling Water Polo Club (USWC), March means only one thing: Madness. The club’s annual fundraiser, appropriately named March Madness, is back this year and it is crazier than ever before.

The ‘blitz‑style’ water polo tournament, traditionally hosted by the USWC, is attended by water polo teams from all over Scotland.

“This is the first year we also have English teams entering the tournament, which is quite exciting,” says Natasha Love, the president of USWC. March Madness is held over one day and the teams play against each other in “mini”, one quater water polo games.

“It’s a great fundraiser for our club but also a great way to grow the game, meet the teams in a less competitive way and make good friends,” says Love.

Sport Brig

Thayne passes on the reign

Golf club lose out on Cup chances Sam Ormiston Sports Editor

Credit: Alloa Advertiser

On form O’Hara: Alloa survival more important than full-time return

Charlie Harris

FORMER Wallace High School footballer Kevin O’Hara has prioritised his side’s league survival over a return to full-time football, following an impressive season with Scottish Championship club Alloa Athletic.

The local striker has been lavished in praise for his individual displays, which have helped his team move out of the relegation

play-off place, earning him the January player of the month award in the league.

And now, O’Hara is tipped for a return to full-time football, having formerly played for fellow Forth Valley club, Falkirk.

Speaking of the interest, Kevin O’Hara told Brig: “My focus just now is on putting in performances that will help the team get the results that we need, trying to add more goals and assists

to help us climb up the table.

“Eventually I’d like to get back into full time football, I’ve never hidden from that, but right now it’s about keeping Alloa in the league.”

His role in an impressive Alloa team cannot be understated, scoring 14 goals and laying on a further ten.

His form even earned him a feature on BBC Scotland’s ‘A View from the Terrace’, where the

presenters noted O’Hara’s rising stock in Scottish football.

O’Hara credits his form to the help from others, saying that he couldn’t have hit double figures in goals and assists, without the help of his team and manager, maintaining that the team comes before his personal goals.

Continued on page 30

STIRLING University Golf Club (SUGC) have been knocked out of the BUCS championship, following a controversial walkover.

The club’s first team were due to play Northumbria University in the first round of the high-profile competition, which sees the nation’s best student golfers battle it out in a knockout format.

Stirling University won the competition last year, so were optimistic about their chances going into the prestigious event.

However, Northumbria University have claimed a walkover, which sees them advance through to the second round of the competition without stepping foot on the golf course.

The match was due to be played at Fairmont golf course in Saint Andrews last month.

Due to a large portion of the course being underwater in the aftermath of Storm Denis, Stirling got in touch with their opponents to advise them against making the journey up in case of cancellation, suggesting a rescheduled date.

Golf president Lewis Fraser said: “The Northumbria team thought that we were trying to seek an advantage because some of our best golfers were out playing in the USA.

Continued on page 29