Courier 1357

thecourier courier

Monday 6 November 2017 Issue 1357 Free

thecourieronline.co.uk Film Are we bored of Marvel? Is it time to take a break?

Page 25

Travel Talia Gillin talks us through her adventures in South East Asia Page 18

Science The latest development in sex robots is weighed up against humans Page 30

The independent voice of Newcastle students

Est 1948

Noise reports to be passed onto landlords Council to inform landlords of all noise complaints against their tenants, with or without evidence James Sproston Editor Newcastle University students could be faced with housing issues after the Students In Newcastle Forum’s Crime and Antisocial behaviour (ASB) subgroup announced that unwitnessed noise complaints will be reported directly to landlords.

In an effort to tackle anti-social behaviour in residential areas of Newcastle, Tracy McCann, a Senior Practitioner in Anti-Social Behaviour, listed a number of updates, one of which states “all landlords will, as of 2017, be informed of all complaints, even if they have not been witnessed (landlords have asked for this so they may be aware at the earliest opportunity).”

Speaking to The Courier, a spokesperson for Newcastle City Council said: “We have a duty to ensure landlords are managing their properties in accordance with the conditions of their licence and this includes the management of tenants who cause antisocial behaviour or nuisance to their neighbours.

“Sharing this information could be a breach of the data protection act” Sarah Craggs, NUSU Welfare Officer

“As part of this we need to ensure landlords are aware of any potential issues relating to their properties so that they can provide appropriate reminders for their tenants to comply with the terms of their tenancy agreements where necessary.

“If a report of anti-social behaviour is received about an incident that has not been independently witnessed this is made clear to landlords and such a report would be insufficient grounds for a landlord to take formal action against their tenants.

“We believe early intervention and avoidance of future complaints is key to ensuring good neighbour relations and seek to avoid complaints escalating

to formal action. When matters are investigated formally this would be done in line with procedures which are designed to ensure tenants are not treated unfairly.”

According to Newcastle University Students’ Union’s Welfare and Equality Officer, Sarah Craggs, informing landlords about unwitnessed noise complaints could potentially put a number of students in difficult situations: “Whilst NUSU have been working with students and the council to tackle antisocial behaviour, I do have some concerns about this new development.

“We would need to conduct more investigatory work into this but these concerns relate to whether or not this applies to just students or all tenants, how landlords might react to this, and whether or not sharing this information could be a breach of the data protection act. I plan to work with the Student Advice Centre and the City Council to discuss these concerns and find out more about the intended purpose of this is.”

For some students, unwitnessed noise complaints have already caused unnecessary distress. Third year Electrical Engineering student Ciara Ritson-Courtney has been the recipient of a number of complaints from a neighbour.

“Over the last two months our neighbour filed several noise complaints against us. One of them was whilst we were eating tea, and another we weren’t even in the house, so it must have been totally unfounded. I’ve already contacted by the university about it, and if this goes through then our landlord will think we’re disruptive, even though we’re not. The last thing I want is to be on the wrong side of an antagonistic landlord.”

On a regional scale, this is just the latest development about the relationship with students and the community.

Earlier this year, Tracy McCann was involved in the production of a number of informative videos about house parties, which were produced because the City Council were “increasingly concerned about the nature of some parties.”

However, there have been signs of tension between local communities and students for years in Newcastle. continued on page 4

Mission Nutrition: Campus welcomes the inaugural Food for Fuel Week Preview p6 Events p19 Inside today >>>

‘McCarthyist’ MP criticised

Veganism debate

Student life hacks

Chris Heaton-Harris has been criticised for “intimidation” in an open letter to universities News, page 6

Jack Coles and Jamie Cameron go head-to-head in a convenience vs survival discussion Comment page 8

Grace Dean tells you why you should say goodbye to your picky side and eat mouldy food Lifestyle, page 12

Yellow is the new black

‘My Week As A Muslim’

Ultimate returns

Jaymelouise Hudspith runs us through the best way to don yellow from the high street Fashion page 15

The controversial TV documentary gets a good going over by our Culture Editor Errol Kerr TV, page 22

We’ve got mixed indoor regional followed by the BUCS curtain raiser for you to sink your teeth into Sport, page 38

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thecourier The Courier is a weekly newspaper produced by students, for students. It’s never too late to get involved in the paper, whether you’re a writer, illustrator or photographer. Just visit thecourieronline.co.uk/about for more information.

Editor James Sproston Deputy Editor Alex Hendley Online Editor Jared Moore Copy Editor Laura Staniforth Current Affairs Editor Sunil Nambiar News Editors Valentina Egorova, Hanson Jones, Louise Hall, Laura Higgins and Isabel Sykes Comment Editors Jamie Cameron, Caitlin Disken and Alexandra Sadler Life & Style Editor Izzi Watkins Lifestyle Editors Sophie Henderson, Jaymelouise Hudspith, Lauren Sneath and Victoria Young Fashion Editors Chloe Bland, Sophie Schneider and Zofia Zwieglinska Beauty Editors Laura Greatrex, Lois Johnston and Susanne Norris Travel Editors Charlotte Hill and Talia Gillin Culture Editors Zoë Godden and Errol Kerr Arts Editors Scarlett Rowland and Carys Thomas Music Editors Toby Bryant, Charlie Isaacs and Ally Wilson TV Editors Jacob Clarke, Joel Leaver and Alex Moore Film Editors Helena Buchanan, Daniel Haygarth and Christopher Wilkinson Gaming Editors Gerry Hart, Georgina Howlett and Richard Liddle Science Editors Jack Coles, Christopher Little and Ciara Ritson-Courtney Sports Editors Tom Shrimplin, Courtney Strait and Mark Sleightholm The Courier NUSU King’s Walk Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 8QB Tel: 0191 239 3940 The Courier is printed by: Print and Digital Associates, Fernleigh House, 10 Uttoxeter Road, Derby, Derbyshire, United Kingdom, DE3 0DA. Established in 1948, the Courier is the fully independent student newspaper of the Students’ Union at Newcastle University. The Courier is published weekly during term time, and is free of charge.

The design, text, photographs and graphics are copyright of the Courier and its individual contributors. No parts of this newspaper may be reproduced without the prior permission of the Editor. Any views expressed in this newspaper’s opinion pieces are those of the individual writing, and not of the Courier, the Students’ Union or Newcastle University.

LOCAL NEWS

Difficult times for the Metro

Passengers have been left frustrated after power failures, ageing trains and leaves on the line have contributed to delays and disruption across the Tyne and Wear Metro.

All services were suspended last Sunday after trains were trapped in the Metro depot due to a power failure, while leaves on the line caused further delays in the following days.

These issues could potentially be eclipsed by more substantial disruption, however, if a stalemate over funding is not resolved soon.

Pressure is mounting on the Government to commit the £400 million needed to replace the Metro’s deteriorating trains. Designed to last for 35 years, they have been in constant use since the Metro opened in 1980 and Metro bosses warn that if new trains are not ready by 2021 they could be forced to cut Metro services.

Last year researchers from Newcastle University helped run an innovative consultation programme to involve local residents in designing the new Metro trains, but the project has stalled over the issue of funding.

Local politicians are concerned that, rather than funding the new trains with public money, the Government will propose a complex private finance initiative deal that would take longer to realise and place a greater financial burden on the North East.

Local businesses, politicians and community groups have stepped up calls on the Government to commit to funding the new trains soon.

CROSS-CAMPUS NEWS

UCD’s prolife president impeached Students at University College, Dublin have voted to remove the president of their students' union, Katie Ascough, after she removed information on abortion from a student handbook.

Ascough, who had previously campaigned on pro-life issues in the union, rewrote part of a handbook produced by the union to take out advice on pregnancy and prices of abortions in other countries. Abortion is currently illegal in Ireland but a referendum on the issue is due to be held next year.

Ascough claimed that she removed the information to comply with a ban on promoting abortion, but legal experts have challenged the necessity of this, and Ascough caused further anger by rewriting the handbook without consulting other sabbatical officers. Reprinting the handbook cost the union €8,000 (£7,185).

In one of the largest turnouts in the university's history, 69% of the votes cast called for Ascough to be impeached. All four of her fellow sabbatical officers supported her impeachment, with three of them even applying for time off work so they could spend longer campaigning against Ascough.

After the result was announced Ascough said: “This is a sad day for me but it is also a sad day for our university.

Universities should be a place of freedom of speech and... respect for others with different beliefs.” During her time as a student Ascough had campaigned against proposals for the union to adopt a pro-choice stance.

A by-election to replace Ascough will be held at the end of November.

From the archives 47 YEARS AGO

Brown rice, the macrobiotic miracle food Smart cards, the best thing since brown rice Image: Mark Sleightholm

15 YEARS AGO

20 YEARS AGO

The fact that students would no longer need to pay 25p to get their hands on a Courier made both front and back page news in 2002. No other words were deemed necessary than “Courier goes free”, legible from a substantial distance, whichever way up the paper was.

The early Couriers cost a whole threepence, which equals 45p in today’s money, or about halfway between a Daily Star and the Daily Mail, to put it another way.

Rampant inflation raised the price in the 1970s and 80s, before the paper followed the example of many other student newspapers, along with the newlylaunched Metro, and abolished its cover price completely.

That card in your pocket doesn’t just help the University keep tabs on your attendance, or entitle you to discounts around town.

The student of 1997 was burdened with multiple cards – one giving access to the Students’ Union, another for the library, yet another for the sports centre... until some bright spark decided to merge all of this into a single piece of plastic.

At the time the University was adamant that these would not be used to monitor attendance, and then-president of the Union Ben Sadler was keen to “ensure that the system isn’t developed to the extent that the University is ‘watching’ students.”

Courier free at last Uni set to get smart

Never mind the paleo or 5:2 diets, in 1970 going macrobiotic was all the rage. “Macrobiotics is not just another pretentious aspect of the ‘hippy’ movement,” Courier features editor Phil Stringer declared. Balancing “yin” and “yang” foods would supposedly lead to a healthier, cheaper and more enjoyable diet.

Meat should generally be avoided because it’s too “yang”, while sugar is dangerously “yin”. Instead, you should focus on “balanced” foods like brown rice, yoghurt, muesli, brown rice and brown rice.

The feature offered advice on how best to cook brown rice, the key to a good macrobiotic diet – “you can eat it on its own, add sauces to it, add vegetables and so on. The list is endless. All you need is a bit of imagination.”

There was also a very simple recipe for some macrobiotic goulash, disappointingly devoid of brown rice. This recipe included tinned chopped tomatoes, however, whereas a true macrobiotic devotee would avoid any tinned food because “most of them lack in everything they shouldn’t”.

“Nuts are fine to eat between meals,” too.

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@TheCourier_News courier.news@ncl.ac.uk thecourieronline.co.uk/news Current Affairs Editor Sunil Nambiar News Editors Valentina Egorova, Hanson Jones, Louise Hall, Laura Higgins & Isabel Sykes

Proposals to end student debt interest Hanson Jones News Editor The think tank UK2020 has put forward proposals for a reform in the way students pay for their university studies. Fearing a severe debt crisis in the coming decades, the organisation has suggested scrapping interest on student loans and extending the repayment period beyond the current thirty-year period.

The suggestions come after Theresa May’s concerns about the current loan repayment system, saying that the government “has to look again” at the system, with a move to a different plan such as a graduate tax possibly on the horizon.

The Prime Minister asserted that the Conservatives should “listen to voters” The Prime Minister also asserted that the Conservatives should “listen to voters”, after plans to increase the tuition fee cap once again to £9,500 for the

next academic year were cancelled. At the same time, the income threshold at which graduates will be expected to start repayments has risen from £21,000

Such a move would save UK taxpayers “hundreds of billions of pounds” to £25,000, meaning that many lower and middle earning graduates could save thousands of pounds, according to founder of the Money Saving Expert website Martin Lewis.

The changes were criticised by the Labour Party as “desperate”, whose aim as part of their policy on higher education is to scrap tuition fees altogether.

Current interest rates on student loan repayments are on average 6% per year, considerably higher than the rate of inflation. UK2020 has suggested scrapping interest on student loans entirely in order to reduce the amount of unpaid student debt by an average of 10%.

The organisation also believes that such a move would eventually save UK taxpayers “hundreds of billions of pounds” in what would otherwise be

unpaid student debt, and avoid a catastrophic debt crisis in the next ten years.

The organisation previously published a report accusing universities of running a “cartel”, bringing in as much money as possible with little regard to future consequences.

It also criticised the university system for not offering two-year degrees, which may also serve as a solution to the student debt crisis.

The proposals may be welcome news to both students and graduates who are currently under the burden of tens of thousands of pounds in debt.

The removal of interest on their loans would see students eventually having to pay less back, and possibly completing their loan repayments in a shorter amount of time.

Mark Walker, a history student, said of the proposals: “I don’t think students should be expected to pay so much to go to University anyway, especially since the politicians making these decisions went for free. But the interest rates are a ridiculous aspect of the student loans system, so scrapping them goes some way towards making the system fairer.”

Student loan application form Image: Wikimedia Commons

Voting for Racial Equality Officer opens Valentina Egorova News Editor In the Autumn Elections set for this week, Newcastle University students will decide who is to become the next Racial Equality Officer. The voting opens online on November 6 at 4pm, and closes on November 8 at 12am.

Any Newcastle University student can see the candidates’ manifestos and vote on www.nusu.co.uk/yourvoice/elections/vote/.

“At Student Council, ensuring that all voices are heard is of paramount importance, and when this space is filled, it guarantees that BAME student voices can be heard” The Racial Equality Officer is a parttime position at Newcastle University Students’ Union that is aimed to promote anti-racism and racial equality on campus. The winner will become a member of the University’s Diversity Consultative Group, work with external bodies and review the Equal Opportunities Policy.

It’s also expected that the Officer will launch various campaigns to further racial equality on campus as well as represent Newcastle University students who self-identify as people of colour.

The Racial Equality Officer should’ve been elected in the spring NUSU elections, but the Union received no nominations for this position, and it has remained vacant.

Errol Kerr, Chair of Student Council, said: “As the past Students with Disabilities Officer, and having worked with last year’s Racial Equality Officer, it’s been a shame that we haven’t had a similar voice to work alongside within the Officer team. ”At Student Council, ensuring that all voices are heard is of paramount importance, and when this space is filled, it guarantees that BAME student voices can be heard at the highest level of the Students’ Union.

“Representative work is so very important at this University, with current student satisfaction rates among marginalised groups being low currently, as well as the many groups that do require stronger BAME representation. I am looking forward to having a Racial Equality Officer – the more BAME officers on the team, the better.”

Samantha Louise Cooke, who was Chair of Student Council last year, said: “It’s a real shame that we started the new academic year without a Racial Equality Officer.

“Even though the city has been celebrating 50 years since Martin Luther King’s visit, the Union hasn’t celebrated Black History Month because we haven’t had an Officer to put together the events programme.

Students of colour are poorly represented in the Union’s officer structure at the moment, so I look forward to the election and hope they do well in the role.”

Any student, self-identifying as a person of colour could apply for the position of Racial Equality Officer.

The Union welcomed nominations from undergraduate and postgraduate, international and home students.

The Autumn Elections results will be announced on Thursday, November 9.

Newcastle University Students’ Union Image: Qiushi Song

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Stand up to Injustice raises UNICEF awareness Louise Hall News Editor

Over the course two days last week the Stand up to injustice society ran a campaign on campus for UNICEF, hoping to raise both awareness and money for the charity in the name of keeping children across the world safe.

Standing outside the Student Union the campaign involved a bake sale, fundraising, and the handing out of leaflets about what UNICEF and the Stand up to injustice society are attempting to achieve with their charity work.

“Our aim this week is to raise awareness of the Myanmar refugee crisis and to help alleviate the negative impact of the crisis” Adam Warner, Stand Up to Injustice President

UNICEF, the subject of the campaign aims to ensure that more of the world’s children are vaccinated, educated and protected. The charity also works to influence laws, policies and customs to help protect children from danger.

Talking to The Courier during the campaign, Henry Bowman, Stand Up to Injustice’s Vice President commented: “Today we are serving up a cake sale to raise money for UNICEF. The charity is helping with the Burma crisis in the Myanmar area where people have been culturally segregated despite having lived in the community for many centuries.

“There have recently been many in-

cidences of extreme crimes of brutality leaving many people living in fear.

“UNICEF are trying to help the more vulnerable groups in the area such as women and children, making sure they are able to get education and protection, so this is what we’re standing out here funding for today.

“The idea behind the Stand Up to Injustice society was to create a more regular charity fundraising society that doesn’t just have one or two campaigns a year but hosts something weekly.”

Stand Up to Injustice is a new society at Newcastle University this year. It is a student led organization that helps fundraise for different charities, participates in political debates and discussion and organizes demonstrations and protests and allows students to meet with like-minded socially conscientious individuals.

Adam Warner, President of Stand Up to Injustice commented: “The Stand up to Injustice society aims to encourage action, discussion and education around social issues by offering members a chance to discuss and take action against issues which they feel strongly about.

“Our aim this week is to raise awareness of the Myanmar refugee crisis and to help alleviate the negative impact of the crisis through charity fundraising.

“This particular issue was chosen as one of our members felt strongly about it and argued that we should take action as our first society fundraiser. We chose to work in partnership with UNICEF because we believe that they feel as passionate about the issue as we do and we felt that they could offer the necessary support needed to achieve our aims.”

The society plans to run many different events and campaigns throughout the upcoming academic year.

Stand Up To Injustice Image: Adam Warner

North Shields new Local Food Hub Laura Higgins News Editor North Shields is proud to have established a food hub at the heart of their community. Based in Meadow Well, it caters for local interests and supports businesses in the region.

Subsequently, food producers and consumers are brought together in an unprecedented collaboration with an aim of creating delicious and cost effective meals. The food hub will be carefully monitored over the next four weeks by researchers Amy Fielden (school of Psychology) and Sebastian Prost (Open Lab) at Newcastle University.

North Shields Food Hub aims to bring local flavours, an array of fresh produce and delicious recipe ideas at reasonable prices to their local community. Each week promises a wide range of food, de-

Fresh produce Image: Wikimedia Commons

pending on local demand and the supplier’s quota. Staple foods, fundamental to consuming a healthy diet, include bread, fish, meat and vegetables will be available at the hub.

Starting from Friday 27th October, it will be easy to place an online order to buy your weekly groceries or alternatively you can seek inspiration from the producers directly at the Meadow Well Connected community service before placing your order. Your delivery will then be ready the following Friday between 10am and 4pm. It is a stress free way to ensure that local citizens are eating a healthy and balanced diet. Promoting strong relationships between producers and citizens, North Shields Food Hub promises to cater for all dietary requirements and to reflect upon the region’s distinctive food heritage.

Including the famous Geordie Stottie,

the market will boast delicious sliced meats from The Fat Butcher, North East Organic Growers’ seasonal vegetables and local catches from North Shields’ Seaview Fisheries. These local businesses will define what ‘local and healthy’ food really means. From a commercial perspective, this means catering for local likes and dislikes and acting upon feedback the following week.

Graham Bone, coordinator of the project launched by Meadow Well Connected and Newcastle University, describes his aspirations for the food hub: “we want the people in North Shields to feel like they own what’s on their plate. Everything we eat has a story to tell and leaves something that goes beyond taste. Acknowledging the journey of what’s coming into our mouth is the starting point of a healthier, happier and more resilient community life.”

“Potential to lead to harsher consequences” continued from front page According to The Chronicle, ‘Living and Learning in Newcastle’ Student Housing Strategy was scrapped in 2009, following feedback that claimed that it aimed “to force students out of parts of Newcastle”.

More recently, more measures have been put in place to tackle studentrelated anti-social behaviour in residential areas with a high concentration of students, as The Chronicle reported “Northumbria Police have reported a hike in problem house parties making locals’ lives hell since 2016.”

“We need to ensure landlords are aware of any potential issues” Newcastle City Council Spokesperson

The Jesmond Residents’ Association website links to ‘The Student ASB Early Intervention System’, which suggests that warnings should be given to students for the first and second anti-social offences, with the third offence resulting in an ‘Acceptable Behaviour Agreement’, a “written informal intervention between the occupants, Newcastle City Council and Northumbria Police designed to engage the individual in recognising their behaviour and its negative effects on others, in order to stop such behaviour.”

However, Newcastle University have taken a more active role in recent years in an attempt to reduce anti-social behaviour of their students. Currently, a ‘reported noise disturbances and/or anti-social behaviour’ results in a caution, whilst the first witnessed offence is punishable by a written warning and individual disciplinary fine of £30.

Regarding the update announced by

Tracy McCann, a spokesperson from Newcastle University said: “We recognise that anti-social behaviour is an ongoing issue and we continue to work with the police, council, Northumbria University, local residents and other organisations to tackle this problem.”

The update from the Crime and Antisocial behaviour (ASB) subgroup is understood to have the potential to lead to harsher consequences for Newcastle University students, who were recently revealed in a report by The Times to have been fined a total of £38,410 in relation to anti-social behaviour, the largest such figure in the country.

Though the update may put the reputation of some students at risk, Nick Clennell, Head of Property Management at Pat Robson, has told The Courier: “While we are obligated to inform our landlords of any complaints that have come to light, we would always investigate the matter first to make sure that we have all the facts so we could take the most appropriate action.”

However, students are not considered to have an entirely negative influence on local communities in Newcastle.

Several businesses, including the locally run Acorn Hardware, are dependent on students, whilst some residents believe that the Keep Jesmond Clean campaign has had a positive impact on the community.

On 8th November, the ‘Jesmond Welcomes Students’ event takes place at Jesmond Library, which, according to the Facebook event, offers “the best chance for students in Jesmond to learn about what’s going on, and how they can help make a positive difference in their neighbourhood.”

Both Newcastle University and the Students’ Union continue to look to engage with the local community, whilst the SU offers advice to students through the Student Advice Centre and campaigns such as Housing Week.

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Political societies ‘remain’ active post-brexit Scott Houghton The political uncertainty in Westminster has proved to be a boon for student political societies all over the country. It seems we live in political times, when decisions really seem to matter and can generate fanfare across the country and throughout political movements.

Newcastle University has a moderate selection of political societies. Ranging from the Marxist Society to the Liberal Dems, to the Conservative Society.

We’re going to take a look at what different societies are getting up to this year.

“Our aim this year, as ever, is to be a welcoming, inclusive and fun introduction into Labour for as many students as possible, as well as a serious campaigning force” The Newcastle University Liberal Democrat Society was formed in June 2017 to support the Lib Dems at the 2017 General Election, and participated in canvassing and leafleting.

President Alexandra Logan said since re-starting the society in September “the society has had many successes. From getting to know students at the Freshers’ Fair, hosting a successful pizza night

and achieving ratification of the society by the University, the society hopes to provide a liberal-centrist minded community for students on campus”. The society’s latest events include a talk by leader of the Liberal Democrats Vince Cable last week, as well as a trip to the Redhouse Pub on the 13th of November and participating in the Politics Society’s Question Time event on the 7th of November.

Newcastle University Labour Society has a long and established history. The society regularly campaigns and canvasses in the local area, most recently in Heaton in October, and backs national campaigns such as the right for sixteen and seventeen year olds to vote in general elections. As well as regular socials with Northumbria University Labour Society. The Labour Society will also be taking part in Question Time on the 7th of November.

Harrison Taylor, the president of the Labour Party, said: “The Labour Society had an unprecedented amount of interest this year and we’re absolutely thrilled to welcome so many enthusiastic new members. Our first social was frankly way bigger than we’ve ever had which was very exciting! At one point we ran out of chairs, after having filled out the entire room we hired in the pub. Keeping the momentum going we’ve got out traditional NULS Christmas do ‘Ednog’ which involves mince pies, secret santa and karaoke. Always a laugh.

“We will also have an EGM at some point before Christmas to elect some of the vacant committee positions we have; LGBT officer, Womens officer, BAME rep. We’ve also got regular local coucil campaign sessions leading up to the full

City wide councils elections next year.

We’ve also got talks from Chi Onwurah MP and hopefully Laura Pidcock MP in the works as well as a campaign in the new year to try to get the NUSU accredited by the living wage foundation. Our aim this year, as ever, is to be a welcoming, inclusive and fun intorduction into Labour for as many students as possible, as well as a serious campaigning force.”

The Marxist Society, although not represented by a mainstream political party, holds regularly weekly theoretical and topical discussions. On current affairs such as the Catalonia Referendum to questions such as ‘what is Marxism and why is it relevant?’ President Ethan Cameron says “while this makes up a large chunk of what we do in the society, we also get involved in demos, strikes, and campaigning. At the end of the day, we are fighting for Marxist ideas on and off campus to bring an end to this exploitative system and fight for socialism.”

The Young Green Society hosts regular debates and meetings on green issues. Holding it’s first meeting at the Trent House Pub on the 5th of November. It will be taking part in the Student Question Time Event on the 7th of November, as well as a canvassing and door knocking campaign in Heaton on the 11th of November to elect Green councillors in Heaton.

The Conservative Society holds regular meetings and works with local Conservative groups. They will also be taking part in Student Question Time.

“The Conservative Society ‘aims to represent students at the University with beliefs in line with the Conservative Party, according to its Facebook page.

The House of Commons Image: UK Parliament

Dr Ian Burrows defends trigger warnings Isabel Sykes News Editor Writing for The Guardian on the 31st of October, Dr Ian Burrows, a teaching associate for the faculty of English at University of Cambridge, defended his use of trigger warnings for lectures concerning sexual assault.

On the 19th of October, The Guardian told its readers that Cambridge students had been given trigger warnings on their timetables regarding a Shakespeare lecture that “could be upsetting”, leading to criticisms that universities were being overprotective of students.

Dr Burrows’ article responds to this and similar reports from The Telegraph, The Daily Mail, and others.

“Trigger warnings are nothing to do with censorship; they are a basic courtesy” Dr Burrows said that he issued the warnings to prepare students for detailed discussion of how sexual assault is presented in drama, in recognition that this may be difficult for people who had experienced sexual assault or abuse.

The warnings specifically related to lectures on Sarah Kane’s 1995 play Blasted and Shakespeare’s Titus Andronicus.

Dr Burrows stressed that he did not intend to shield or censor students but to inform them that he was going to talk in-depth and at length about challenging issues.

He criticises The Daily Mail article headlined ‘Alas, poor snowflakes’ which expresses concern that trigger warnings risk sheltering students from the world’s

problems. In response to the article’s conclusion that “many believe this has led to censorship”, Dr Burrows said that “trigger warnings are nothing to do with censorship; they’re a basic courtesy.”

The article emphasises the purpose of the warnings as not only preparing students to critically discuss sexual assault, but to prepare those who have been victims of assault or abuse themselves. He writes: “a warning like this one might also allow a victim of trauma to prepare themselves for the discussion, rather than being abruptly and unexpectedly confronted with it. What is the justification for forcing that shock upon a student?”

A spokesperson for the University of Cambridge has said that “it is not a policy of the English faculty to have such warnings” and is “entirely at the lecturer’s own discretion”.

Newcastle University also has no university-wide policy on trigger warnings, but the School of English Literature, Language and Linguistics offers guidance for studying sensitive topics.

A Newcastle University spokesperson said: “This guidance was introduced in response to student feedback and is intended to help students who may have concerns about the content of particular modules consider how they can best prepare themselves to study challenging material in a way that is appropriate to them.”

“All module leaders provide information in advance about the content of modules and students are encouraged to take responsibility for managing their own engagement with difficult material safely and in an appropriately supported context. Module leaders, personal tutors and the Student Wellbeing Service can all provide support and guidance with this process.”

Caution Sign Image: flickr

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Campus-wide health kick at Food for Fuel Week Yiming Gao Food for Fuel Week at Newcastle University begins on Monday 6th of November. Students will see activities related to food, organized by the University’s Students’ Union, taking place throughout the week.

The purpose of this nutrition week is to give students the resources and experience to make their own homemade food and drinks and to teach students, especially freshers, some essential cooking skills.

From Monday to Thursday events such as Go Volunteer’s Veggie Giveaway, Smoothie Bike, and free breakfast giveaways will take place in the Students’ Union Building and Sports Centre.

“These activities are to give healthier options compared to preprepared items you can buy in a shop” Sarah Craggs, NUSU Welfare Officer

From 12 until 2pm on Monday, students have the opportunity to participate in Go Volunteer’s Veggie Giveaway and pick up a ‘Soup in a Bag’ pack for free outside the Students’ Union.

Volunteers will be there will be giving out recipe cards with step-by-step cooking instructions, a bag full of the ingredients, and a potato masher. The

vegetables are all grown by groups of student volunteers who spend Saturdays in Cockle Park helping to grow healthy produce such as tomatoes, lettuce and cucumbers.

Sarah Craggs, the Welfare and Equality Officer at the Students’ Union, told The Courier: “The reason for this activity is to provide students with the resources and skills to be able to produce their own wholesome soup, which is cheaper and with no hidden preservatives compared to supermarkets.”

Another highlight of the nutrition week is the Smoothie Bike activity. It offers students a chance to experience making healthy smoothies themselves.

When students come along and pedal the bikes, it blends up fruits and creates a smoothie. The aim is to give students healthy alternatives to often sugar-filled shop bought smoothies.

Free breakfasts are offered at Newcastle University Sports Centre from Monday to Wednesday so students can pick one up after their workout on their way to lectures.

An interactive cooking session scheduled on Tuesday will provide students with hints and tips on how to make most of their shopping lists.

On Thursday, a Grainger Market trip has been organized to help students to find out where to buy healthy food at low cost prices.

Sarah Craggs told The Courier: “These activities are to give healthier options compared to pre-prepared items you can buy in a shop, at a fraction of the price, and to help people be more aware of what consists of healthier food resources.”

AU Officer, Clara Pettitt Image: James Sproston

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Monday November 6 2017

Plans for state-of-the-art teaching centre announced Esther Michael Newcastle University is finally making a move on the empty land behind the View. Construction has started on a new Learning and Teaching Centre, which will provide more study space and lecture theatres for our ever-growing university.

The university has predicted that the construction will cost £34m and should contribute to the University climbing ranks as a leading institution and sustainable campus.

The University describes the project “as an exemplar of sustainable urban development” which will hold “a mixed community, encompassing a variety of R&D, educational, business and residential uses”.

In a quick overview, the University announces the construction of an auditorium, which will separate into two more lecture theatres, in addition to another lecture theatre.

Incorporated in the building will essentially be a new version of Marjorie Robinson Library Rooms, where students will be able to relax, eat and study.

The facilities will also include exhibition space for the university and students to present their work.

As the project creates a buzz between engineers and important directors of the university, students share their thoughts on whether or not a Learning and Teaching Centre is exciting news.

Some students commented on the aesthetic of the building, stating that it seems luminous and spacious.

Rachel, an architecture student remarked, “It blends in well with the surroundings.”

The modernisation of the land complements the neighbouring tower blocks of the View, Verde and St James’

An artist’s impression of new teaching centre Image: Sheppard Robson

Park Stadium. The area is developing into a new, business-park style campus, emphasizing the presence of a high quality research university.

Students are also interested in the availability of new study space, which becomes scarce during deadline and exam period. There is enthusiasm at the thought that space will be available after 10am.

However, in the University’s attempt to expand the campus, it might end up being a ghost town.

“Incorporated in the building will essentially be a new version of Marjorie Robinson” Library Rooms” When told about the building and its location, Laura, from Spanish, Portuguese and Latin American Studies remarked, “I hope we don’t have any lectures in it next year.”

The Learning and Teaching Centre will be a 20-minute walk away from main campus, which is feasible for first year students living around the area.

In later years, students generally live in the Jesmond, Sandyford and Heaton areas, which will entail a 40 to 45 minute walk. Following the example of other universities, Newcastle blends the city and the university into one.

The new extension of campus is due to open in September 2019, ready for a new generation of Newcastle University students.

Despite the distance, the centre promises to provide state-of-the-art study spaces and teaching facilities for the increasing student population.

Universities will not respond to “intimidation” by Heaton-Harris Megan Thrall In a move many consider uncomfortably similar to Cold War philosophy seen in America during the height of McCarthyism, Tory MP Chris Heaton-Harris has come under fire for penning letters to Vice-Chancellors of UK universities requesting the names of politics and European studies professors as well as their course and lecture content regarding Brexit.

“It would seem that this letter is a rather more subtle attempt to intimidate and silence another sector of society” Dr Murray Dick, Lecturer

The letters were met with widespread criticism both from university officials and government parties. While the Prime Minister’s official spokesman has maintained that Theresa May respects the freedom of universities, many remain concerned with what actions like those of Mr Heaton-Harris means for academic freedom in post-Brexit UK. On behalf of Universities UK, the representative organisation for the UK’s universities founded in 1918, Chief Executive Alistair Jarvis said: “I would ask that Chris Heaton-Harris MP explains his motive for asking universities to share names of their European studies Professors, their course content and lecture notes. This request suggests an alarming attempt to censor or challenge academic freedom.

“It is essential that universities remain places where free speech flourishes.

This means protecting independence in academic study, encouraging rigorous debate and providing opportunities to hear and challenge a diverse range of views.”

Murray Dick, a lecturer at Newcastle University in Multimedia Journalism, stressed the importance of context in a letter such as the one sent by Mr Heaton-Harris, citing the Daily Mail regularly accusing people and organisations of being ‘enemies of the people’ or ‘enemies of Brexit’.

“Against this backdrop it would seem that this letter is a rather more subtle attempt to intimidate and silence another sector of society that refuses to blindly and unquestioningly soak up and churn out Brexit propaganda.”

Owing to the fact that UK universities have been unanimously against Brexit since before the vote, Dick says, “it’s little wonder that those VCs who bothered to dignify this letter with a response have given it short shrift. In this respect there’s no real comparison here with what happened in US higher education during McCarthyism.”

“This request suggests an alarming attempt to censor or challenge academic freedom” Alistair Jarvis, Chief Executive, Universities UK

As for Newcastle University’s response, a spokesperson provided a statement saying: “A letter from Mr Heaton-Harris MP was sent to our Vice-Chancellor and we will not be responding to it.”

Chris Heaton-Harris MP Image: UK Parliament

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the courier

Monday 6 November 2017

@CourierComment courier.comment@ncl.ac.uk thecourieronline.co.uk/comment Comment Editors Jamie Cameron, Caitlin Disken & Alexandra Sadler

Veganism: the steaks are high

Animal agriculture accounts for 51% of greenhouse gas emissions. Something has to change now, but must it be our taste buds?

Jack Coles

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et’s just get one thing out of the way first.

Three of my closest friends are vegans; one of them is my best friend from my hometown. I’ve known him for nine years, we’re in a band together, we tag each other in memes, et cetera. By declaring this bias outright I hope that you will trust me more when I say that political veganism is really sodding annoying.

I will admit that a lifestyle that completely avoids cruelty to animals is not without merit – a little less suffering in the world is always welcome, even if the suffering involved is not human in nature. Hell, I’ll even go so far as to say that my vegan friends have encouraged me to reduce my overall meat intake by around 30%. Then there’s all the health benefits to a reduced-meat diet, such as lower blood cholesterol and reduced chances of developing ulcerative colitis.

Any attempt at moderation is seen as aberrant Unfortunately, political veganism takes things a bit too far. It’s not enough to reduce your meat intake, you need to cut it out completely (along with eggs and dairy). Don’t want to do that? Well I guess you are technically Satan now. Political veganism is an extreme, like communism, fascism, or even religious dogmatism, where any at-

tempt at moderation is seen as aberrant and must be punished.

1 /3

of Jack Coles’ closest friends are vegan

A lot of the vegan food substitutes are either prohibitively expensive, tasteless, or common allergens. It’s all very well saying that you can eat nuts and beans for protein, but what if you’re fatally allergic to these things? What do you do then, splice in bacterial genes so you can generate amino acids (and therefore protein) out of atmospheric nitrogen? Or just eat a fucking sausage? That avoids the whole genetic engineering issue for a start.

Also, I’ve yet to find a vegan substitute that tastes anything like what it’s supposed to substitute; they can sometimes taste alright, I guess, but it’s still completely the wrong taste. This is why I’m a big fan of growing meat from stem cells; it’s more energy efficient than animal husbandry, and it doesn’t directly kill animals. Plus you avoid all those gristly bits.

In short, if you’re vegan then that’s great. You do you. But please let the rest of us live our lives in peace. Telling us how we’re all terrible people is only going to make us go “mmmmmmm” when eating steak in front of you.

Jamie Cameron

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e still tend to think of our diets and eating habits in a frame of choice and personal taste. We will be lucky if this luxurious mindset can continue for much of our lives. It doesn’t matter if you feel guilty or not this is a survival situation.

Our international food security will likely be assaulted on multiple sides by a host of environmental factors. As it stands, animal agriculture is utterly unsustainable - it is by far the main leading cause of greenhouse gas emissions (51% of emssions). Cows alone produce 150 billion gallons of methane per day, an emission 25-100 times more destructive than CO2 on a twenty year time frame, while meat consumption is only continuing to rise across the world.

It doesn’t matter whether you feel guilty or not - this is a survival situation Climate change is on course to threaten fresh water sources with rising sea levels, also sinking swathes of entire countries, while helping to cause more and deadlier natural disasters. Obviously, we don’t have much of a choice. When at all possible we have to stop eating meat, and ideally go vegan.

So what if you’re a troglodyte and you think climate change is a hoax? A regular meat-eater will still use 18x more land than a vegan for food production, as well as much more fossil fuel

and water, while producing far more waste. 1.5 acres can produce 37,000 pounds of plant-based food. 1.5 acres can produce 375 pounds of beef.

This all destroys natural beauty, oxygen-producing rainforests, and the precious biodiversity of the world’s ecoystems.

Humans eat 21 billion pounds of food each day... cows... 135 billion A single pound of beef also takes 2500 gallons of water to produce. Let’s remember that when we’re sucking on saltwater. Humans drink 5.2 billion gallons of water and eat 21 billion pounds of food each day. Worldwide, cows drink 45 billion gallons of water and eat 135 billion pounds of food each day. As people continue to die every day from starvation, I don’t think I need to spell out how suicidely insane our eating habits are.

I’m also assuming even climate change deniers don’t like dying from the plague. 80% of antibiotics sold in the US are for livestock, and this is contributing massively to superimmune diseases that we have little protection from.

However much one may disregard the twisted mass of suffering of humans and animals that swells each and every day - nobody is going to teach you empathy in a short article - we at least tend to have regard for our own survival. We can either collectively choose a change in diet now, or we can accept starvation and chaos later. Feel free to disregard all of this if you think its too much of a downer on, like, the general vibe, and stuff.

Exploitation, exploitation, exploitation Most of us couldn’t bear to work in the terrible conditions others do so we can eat. Scott Houghton suggests a radical change

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his week it was revealed that UK supermarket chains have been sourcing products which use exploitative, enforced labour. It came as UK supermarkets stacked their selves with products from two Italian food giants, Mutti and Conserve Italia, which had used labour under ‘conditions of absolute exploitation’ which sold their premium tinned tomatoes and passata in the UK. But is this simply something we must turn a blind eye too for our cheap food?

The claims were first aired when an immigrant labourer from Sudan, forty-seven year old father of two Abdullah Muhammad, suffered a heart attack whilst working in the tomato fields of Nardó in southern Italy in June 2015. An argument against his employers was that Abdullah was denied medical treatment and had a strong chance of survival if he had been permitted to see a doctor. However, an Italian prosecutor, Paola Guglielmi, had been able to use her legal powers to track the supply network of the produced tomato industry.

Her report found that labourers like Abdullah

would start their day at 4am picking fresh tomatoes in the fields by hand, not finishing until 5pm.

Meaning they would work through the intense heat of the Southern Italian summer, considering that this summer Italy suffered a heatwave so severe a glacier melted for the first time in ninety years.

Guglielmi also discovered labourers would earn as little as 30 euros a day, and half of that would need to be paid back to the farm heads for transport, food, shelter, and water. The files accuses the owners of manslaughter.

Labourers would earn as little as 30 euros a day... half of that would need to be paid back to the farm However, is this just something we must turn a blind eye too for our cheap food in a globalised world? One may think so, however both Mutti

and Conserve Italia both sell premium products.

It’s not what we might expect from premium brands which cost more on supermarket shelves, and which many consumers expect to be ethical anyway considering the price they pay. Premium products don’t necessarily come with the tag of being produced by exploitative labour.

We cannot rely on... or expect corporations to maintain their own ethical standards independently What this shows is that we cannot rely on employers, or expect corporations to maintain their own ethical standards independently. Despite Guglielmi’s investigation, Mutti claimed in a statement that “Mutti has always been committed to fight any exploitation of workers’ systems by all means” whereas Conserve Italia said in a statement that it

plans to sue the prosecution “to protect its reputation as the most ethical company in this business”.

Clearly this isn’t borne out by the mounting court documents.

If we want products produced fairly we must begin to seriously support international trade unions The answer to this is simple. If we want products produced fairly on a mass scale we must begin to seriously support international trade unions, such as the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), and these must be encouraged by our governments and institutions, such as the EU. We should all join unions and try to consume from ethical sources. Only then can we know our products are produced fairly and safely, and know what we are really paying for.

the courier

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comment

Monday 6 November 2017

A Remoaner’s Revenge

The Daily Mail front page attacked ‘remoaner’ universities. Errol Kerr hits back with the sass

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i, The Daily Mail. It’s me! Errol! And I’m a filthy remainer! You and I are gonna get on just fine. So, your recent front page, yeah? “Our Remainer Universities”. I’ve got a few notes I’d like to add.

Firstly... uh, of course they are. Brexit votes showed that people above graduate level were more likely to vote Remain than Leave. In fact, I’m pretty sure that areas with universities, and thus higher numbers of people with degrees or in study at higher education, were kind of hotspots for Remain votes across the country. That’s both students and staff by the way. In fact, The Independent – who I imagine you aren’t fans of – found a study by Leicester Uni stating that better provision of Higher Education may have changed the vote result.

To do things like science... you need money, and that doesn’t grow on trees Secondly, there’s this thing called “Funding”. I don’t know if you’ve heard of it but, basically to

do things like science and research and study, you need money and that doesn’t grow on trees. Theresa May told us all that. So, it has to come from somewhere. You know where is really good for providing funding? You guessed it, the EU. In the past five years we’ve contributed €5.4bn to the EU’s research budget, and out of that we’ve received €8.8bn back, solely for research. Nothing else we’re getting more science for our money here.

These numbers come from the Royal Society, you know, that huge group of researchers. That huge sum of money is literally so that academics can pursue knowledge.

You know where is really good for funding? You guessed it, the EU I mean, maybe you don’t want that. Maybe you don’t want the UK to pursue knowledge. I can’t exactly comment in detail on your rhetoric as I don’t really read your paper but suffice to say, doesn’t seem like expertise is your thing. This isn’t about

open-mindedness and it never has been. PhDs have been refused and people can’t do their jobs because of this.

A large and educated group don’t subscribe to your viewpoint But don’t post it like it’s shameful to have a viewpoint. Don’t write about wanting to stay part of the EU like it’s heretical. As much as you might not like it, a large and educated group don’t subscribe to your viewpoint and that’s ok. Not only that, but whilst they’re in education, they’re responsible for telling the truth about things. I’m starting to see the brush of history painting Brexit in an unfaithful light already and you guys know you’re not helping that, right?

Sincerely, Errol. PS. I hope you realise the irony in talking about open-mindedness when it comes to the EU debate and how much anti-immigration and anti-freedom rhetoric you have been churning out since basically the Nazis.

Uni censorship defeated

SOAPBOX COMMENT’S HOME OF WEEKLY RANTS AUDACITY OF TRUST

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rust is often portrayed as something naïve, foolish or unwise. True, the act of trusting is a risk, however even when misplaced, complete confidence in someone or something is no cowardly act.

It is something that takes a degree of courage, it is not to be scorned. In modern society, value is frequently placed on traits of less sentiment and more practicality. ‘Trust nobody but yourself ’ has become a popular philosophy, and even as someone who disagrees with the idea, I can understand why.

Whilst it is tempting and natural to turn away from the idea of trusting others after betrayal and disappointment, I believe this is the most dangerous thing to do. By trusting others, we open ourselves to human connection; as much as it can bring pain, it equally enables access to support and hope. The bravery in trusting is something to be applauded and taken seriously.

Not this time: Fred Hunt exposes Tory MP Heaton Harris’ sordid attempt to censor universities

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he word “McCarthyism” doesn’t get bandied around much nowadays, and one would hope that in this day and age, we take freedom of expression so much for a given that to divulge it would never be necessary. Yet Brexit is full of surprises and it’s thrown up another anomaly. Conservative Eurosceptic MP Chris Heaton-Harris has written to every university in the UK requesting the names of their lecturers on European affairs, particularly relating to Brexit, and their course content and syllabus.

Many would argue that it is his opinion that universities are a source of anti-Brexit bias, and are indoctrinating our students with the agenda of “Project Fear”. Heaton-Harris’ fellow Tory MP Philip Davies asserted that the universities were creating “false outrage” because they had been “rumbled”.

Tired of “left wing left wing lecturers forcing their opinions on their students”, Davies added that universities should be “more balanced”.

The backlash has come from all sides, with not only Labour MPs condemning the letter as an at-

The truly heartening takeaway... the full force of the university backlash

tempted purge of “Brexit Heretics”, but also universities and the Government. Universities minister Jo Johnson said the letter “should probably not have been sent” after an eye-wateringly embarrassing attempt to paint it as mere intellectual curiosity, with Chris Heaton-Harris supposedly leading “an academic enquiry that may in time lead to a book”.

To add salt to the wound, this could also constitute an abuse of his parliamentary power.

This country still has a keen sense of malign governance The truly heartening takeaway of this story isn’t the amusing government attempted clean-up job, but the full force of the university backlash. Lord Patten, Chancellor of Oxford University labelled it an “extraordinary example of outrageous and foolish behaviour - offensive and idiotic Leninism”.

Professor David Green, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Worcester, who was the first publish the copy of the letter, also robustly rebutted the request. “Here is the first step to the thought police, the political censor and Newspeak, naturally justified as ‘the will of the British people’.” In what

was a highly encouraging victory for academic freedom in the UK, Downing Street distanced itself from Heaton-Harris’ comments retrospectively and stated that they did not reflect official government business.

And so we come back to question whether nefarious authoritarian control has spread its roots in British society. In an era of fake news, highly partisan and vicious political discourse, it will surely inspire optimism that this country still has a keen sense of malign governance, as well as an eager appetite for free speech.

Joe Holloran: Don’t be complacent; stay sharp. The gutter press appeals to anti-intellectualism

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n the 3rd October of this year, Eurosceptic Tory MP Chris Heaton-Harris sent out a letter to the chancellors of UK universities, asking them to hand over information about academics and courses that teach on European affairs, particularly around Brexit. Many called the letter sinister and compared it to the dark days of McCarthyism in the US.

The right-wing press jumped on the opportunity to denigrate our institutions In some ways, this letter is worse, because it links together the issue of campus free-speech suppression and the idea of ‘open-debate’. By open-debate it seems Mr. Heaton-Harris is referring to forcing universities to give equal ‘balance’ to views by those who hoodwinked the nation into Brexit, and those in academia, on the left and right, whom dedicate themselves to predicting Brexit’s effects on all areas

of life in the UK, as well as our standing abroad.

As is to be expected the right-wing press jumped on the opportunity to denigrate our institutions for their own ends. But this false equivalency and antiintellectualism is not harmless, because regardless of the truth these papers and the MPs in the European Research Group will continue to plan seeds of doubt and suspicion into their readership. By the very nature of this story there will be those who pause and ask themselves “what are they brainwashing our kids with?”, while ignoring the fact that they themselves are the ones who have been brainwashed. The Brexit decision did not come in a vacuum, it came after years and years of falsehoods, dog-whistle politics and the neglect of our poorest communities.

The Brexit decision came after years and years of falsehoods, dog-whistle politics, and neglect

This letter was a failed attempt by the pro-Brexit group to intimidate our higher education sector into silence about these truths. Thankfully this time it backfired on them. The letter raises other questions as well about what goes on behind the scenes in Downing Street and who has the ear of Jo Johnson. Maybe the angry response to this letter by those on the right is not due to its content, but due to its lack of subtlety.

The letter was a failed attempt to intimidate higher education Historically universities have always been the target of government attempts to stamp out dissenting opinion, often done so under the guise of being ‘patriotic’. This letter lacked any of that coating or spin. Let us not be complacent though. Brexit and its aftermath will define this nation for the future, so be wary about who those who would knowingly conflate facts and opinions for their own ends.

Megan McManus

WAR WITHOUT BLOOD

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Bruce Skelton

ho knew answering a simple question could lead to so much anguish? The course long annoyance that follows Politics students everywhere. It could be a brief encounter or an introduction to someone new, you dread the question, ‘what are you studying?’

Once you’ve stated that you study Politics there is always an inevitable response. An anger fuelled reply of their (often factually incorrect) ideals and opinions, which are of no significance to you. Do they think I’m interested?

Should I Inform them of their flaws? No. Instead you awkwardly acknowledge them, adding a subtle sigh of disapproval and hope they don’t think you are being rude. You attempt to push the conversation in a new direction.

Somehow, every topic seems to curl straight back to politics. An endless cycle.

And no, I don’t want to be the next Prime minister.

CHASING REALITY

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Jamie Cameron

spend much of my life in something of a daze, in a place halfway between concentration and sleep that drifts on a wind of fleeting enjoyment and idle pleasure.

I’m never entirely sure if this is all there is supposed to be. Maybe satisfaction is an illusion crafted by our genetic history, that blooming oasis always in the distance, but always close enough in sight that we keep on walking.

Dopamine soothes the nerves, and stings equally when it wears off. Seretonin’s there to stay, usually, but it’s always quiet. A wax and wane marks the days, yes, but naught eclipses the whole.

Now and then, a pinprick light pierces through the veil, and I realise all of a sudden why I’m here. My eyes widen and my hands grasp for a way through.

I know it’s beautiful in there, whatever place that is. I realise something. I close my eyes, I savour the moment. And then I forget.

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student voice

editor.union@ncl.ac.uk Student Voice Editor: Alex Hendley

the courier Monday 6 November 2017

Chat: Kemi Adediran

Kemi’s Manifesto

Hi Kemi, you’re running for Racial Equality Officer, could you tell us a bit about yourself?

What’s the plan with being officer for your course then?

has and continues to celebrate its black and minority population with pride.

Yeah of course, I’m a first year Media, Communications and Cultural Studies student, I’m originally from Croydon in London and so I’ve just moved up north. Newcastle so far is great.

Well I just got the role a week ago! Most departments don’t have an equality rep, but Media, Culture and Heritage wanted one as we have so many international students. I’ll be there for them to talk to – as I’m the first person to have this role I will mainly just be providing a safe space and any social events they might want, to meet other international students, for example. Hopefully it will help people settle in to a new environment and provide a bridge between their cultures and ours.

I’d also love to bridge my two roles linking my work in the department to the Union.

Alex Hendley chats to Racial Equality Officer candidate From Fredrick Douglass who found a safe abode in Fenham, to Kemi Adediran about her campaign, including her manifesto the works of the Gateshead and Newcastle Anti-Slavery Society, and plans for the year ahead as a NUSU Part Time Officer and the vibrancy of Chinatown and Newcastle Mela, Newcastle

So you’re just a first year student and you’re already getting well involved!

Definitely. I met Safiya (Robinson) who was the Equality officer a few years before at BAME (Black and Minority Ethnic) Society and she introduced me to the role; I knew it was right up my alley. I knew straight away it was for me, because I’m really passionate about equality and race, it’s something I’ve always been intrigued about and interested in promoting. I want to make sure minority voices are heard, so when I saw the role I was determined to make sure I could be that person who makes a difference to students. Talking to Safiya I realised exposure of the role is really important, making people aware that there is that person, whether you’re a home or international student, that you cant talk to.

Sounds like you’re really up for it. Did you know before you arrived in Newcastle that this was something you’d be interested in?

Newcastle has a long history of diversity, with Chinatown and our connection to MLK here at the university, it would be great to promote that

I didn’t even know the role existed! Until I met Safiya I hadn’t heard of it, so that’s why more exposure is really important.

And you mentioned your blog, how will that help you as Racial Equality Officer and is it something people might want to go and check out?

I’d like to encourage minority students as people. I want them to feel at home in Newcastle and for there to be a celebration of culture

Absolutely, love a good promotion! It’s called Urban X Declaration (urbanxdeclaration.blogspot. co.uk) and it’s basically a blog where I talk about ideas that are overlooked by the mainstream media. The main themes are race, for example my most recent post was ‘five things most people don’t know about black British history’, for example black Tudors, black Vikings and black Romans.

There was a bit of controversy on Twitter a while back where Mary Beard wrote something on black people in Roman Britain and everyone started kicking up a fuss. That’s the sort of thing I love talking about; it’s just a cool place to learn about a few new things.

Well now you’re here, have you looked into what the officer has done in the past and where you’d like to take it?

Yes, I know that in the last few years they’ve focused on improving satisfaction rates, but specifically for me I’d like to promote and encourage minority students as people. I want them to feel at home in Newcastle and for there to be a celebration of culture! I’m involved in BAME and ACS (Afro-Caribbean Society) and I’d love to create an environment where culture and diversity is celebrated. The key to that is the communication between the Union and the students where there can be more discussions and understanding across campus.

Brilliant. What about your manifesto then, can you go into a bit of detail about that?

Finally then as you look to the year ahead, is there anything you think Newcastle University really needs to improve on in terms of racial equality?

My main goal, as I’ve said, is just to raise satisfaction rates. I think on average BAME students have satisfaction rates of around 2% lower than white students, so I’d love to help the university bring that up. Newcastle has such a long history of diversity, with Chinatown and our connection to Martin Luther King here at the university, and it would be great if we could help promote that. For the future, there are so many things minority students can do, and I’d love to help continue the legacy of the great students that have come before.

My main points are communication between students and the Union, but I also want a promotional culture through societies and events.

Whether it’s Chinese New Year or a Nigerian Independence Day event, something where home students can learn about different cultures and international students can celebrate where they come from in a safe environment.

Going forward, what’s your plan? Carry on as long as possible? And what about after university?

Hopefully stay in the role for as long as I can, yes, then look at my options. If I manage to get to work in journalism then my focus would be on politics and racial issues. I have a blog on that too, and it links well with my degree. I’ve always been passionate about writing and making sure there’s a voice for people as I’m also Equality Officer for my course.

Kemi Adediran is running for Racial Equalities Officer

However, with the political climate we are in, I find it more important than ever to ensure that Newcastle University can be a place where BME students are not only celebrated but a place that they proud to call their home.

As your Racial Equality Officer I will aim to... t CONTINUOUSLY ensure voices of BME are heard > creating a comfortable environment whereby BME students are freely able to discuss their issues t RAISE AWARENESS through events and societies on culturally sensitive issues > heritage cultural days, ACS and BAME (I am a member of both) t CELEBRATE diversity in the university > not only our incumbent students but prospective students too

My goals are simple...

1) Continue basic dialogue between BME and the students’ union 2) Move towards a culturally inclusive university 3) Achieve higher satisfaction rates from BME students

the courier Monday 6 November 2017

life & style

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@CourierLifestyle c2.lifestyle@ncl.ac.uk thecourieronline.co.uk/lifestyle Life & Style Editor Izzi Watkins Lifestyle Editors Sophie Henderson, Jaymelouise Hudspith, Lauren Sneath & Victoria Young

Blind Date Emma on Thomas

Emma Jelpke, 2nd Year Modern Lanuages meets Thomas Placidi, 1st Year Civil Engineering

Hi Emma, how was the date? What was your first impression of Thomas like?

I had a good first impression. He was the one who had to approach me because I was there first and he was very confident.

Thomas on Emma

Hi Thomas, how was the date? What did you two do?

The date was nice!

We met outside Jesmond Waitrose then headed to 97 & Social. We ordered a few cocktails as it was 2-4-1 Thursday, and thankfully she was really nice and talkative so it wasn’t awkward at all

Where did you guys go, what did you have?

We met in Jesmond and then went to 97 and Social as it was a Thursday so 2 for 1 cocktails!

Were you nervous?

I wasn’t actually nervous because I reassured myself before hand that surely anyone that agrees to go on a blind date must be able to have a nice conversation – I was right!

So did you meet in the evening?

Yes, originally it was supposed to be 9pm, but we were both running late so it was more around 9:30 I think

What did you guys talk about- any weird topics come up?

We spoke about lots of things. Obviously we had to start with the basics as I had no idea who he was but then we got speaking about societies and clubs, housemates and accommodation, quite a lot about travelling and a bit about our families. I don’t think anything weird really came up.

Was she your usual type?

She was chatty and confident which is what I like in a girl! She also plays saxophone in a jazz band and does dance which shows she’s an active person. That fits my personality, I’m always tied up in sporting commitments I’ve gone for taller girls in the past, but I can make an exception...

Would you say he’s your usual type?

If I’m honest I don’t really know what my usual type is but we got on well and I was attracted to him so yeah.

Are you guys from similar places?

She’s from Nottingham and I’m from Oxford!

A fair distance apart

Do you think your his usual type?

No clue!

If he were an item of clothing, what would he be?

That’s a very tricky question… let’s go with a nice shirt because he’s good looking and was wearing one.

Have you been talking since?

We exhanged numbers after the date and we’ve been chatting a bit. I think we’ll continue to talk and see how things play out!

Would you say the date went well?

Yes the date went well, conversation was flowing and we were the last people left in 97 and social as they were closing up!

And finally, do you think you will see each other again?

Yeah, we exchanged numbers at the end and said we would see each other again.

So do you think there could be a second date?

There’s potential for a second date, we got on pretty well so we’ll have to see And what would you give your date out of 10?

I’d say an 8.5/10, based on the fact that it wasn’t awkward, it was pretty fun and the conversation flowed

Fancy a date? We’ll set you up.

Rate the date?

9/10

Find us on our 2017/ 2018 Facebook page or

Thanks Emma!

drop us an email at c2.lifestyle@newcastle.ac.uk

Rate the date?

8.5/10 Thanks Thomas!

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12

life & style lifestyle

Recipe of the Week with Hope Coke

‘Greens and Goats Cheese Gratin’

Monday 6 November 2017

Preparing for post-university life

Leaving university can be daunting, so Rowena Tylden-Pattenson has all the tips you need to prepare for applying for graduate jobs, and keeping in touch with your university friends

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oing to university is all about the experience: making friends, trying out new things, ‘adulting’… and ultimately, getting that degree so you can go out and get your dream job. But ‘what can I do to get the job I want?’ I hear you cry. Well, you’re probably already on the path to getting it, without even having thought about it consciously.

The hobbies you start at university don’t have to finish with the end of your degree

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Image: Hope Coke

his isn’t a really gratin in the traditional sense but more like a savoury crumble, with plenty of green vegetables and haricot beans topped with a crunchy, golden, oaty topping, and goats cheese.

For the vegetables: 200g brussels sprouts 1 courgette 1 leek 100g frozen peas 150g frozen spinach 1 x 400g tin haricot beans (or another white bean like cannelinni or butter beans if you prefer) juice of 1 lemon 1 tbsp mustard a big handful basil, and/ or mint 1/4 tsp salt big pinch pepper 2 tbsp olive oil For the topping: 100g oats 3 tbsp flour (I use gram flour but plain should work fine too) 25g pine nuts 1/4 tsp salt big pinch pepper 4 tbsp olive oil 100g goats cheese

Directions:

Start by preheating your oven to 200 degrees C. Prepare your veg, chopping the brussels sprouts in half (or quarters if they’re particularly big) and slicing the leek into chunky rounds, then halving the courgette lengthways and slicing the halves into thick rounds too. Toss it all together with the 2 tbsp olive oil and a good sprinkle of salt and pepper, then tip into a roasting tray and transfer to the oven. Cook for 20 minutes, or until all the veg is tender and starting to turn brown and crisp in places.

Meanwhile, prepare the topping. Roughly chop the pine nuts and stir together in a large bowl with the oats, flour, salt, pepper and lemon zest. Once it’s all combined, add in the oil and stir again until the mixture is clumpy and moist. Lastly, crumble in the goats cheese and stir through, but don’t worry if there’s still some cheesy chunks (they’re the best bit).

Once the roasted veg is done, remove from the oven and set aside. Cook the frozen spinach and peas in the microwave or on the hob, according to packet instructions, and drain and rinse the haricot beans. Roughly chop the basil and/ or mint, setting a little of it aside to sprinkle over at the end.

In a small bowl combine the lemon juice and mustard and stir together, then tip into a large bowl with the roasted veg, peas and spinach, beans and herbs and toss to combine.

Tip the vegetables into a medium baking dish then sprinkle over the cheesy oat mixture, spreading it in an even layer. Place the dish in the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the topping is golden and crisp. Once it’s ready, remove from the oven and let stand for a couple of minutes so you don’t burn your tongue, then sprinkle over the remain mint or basil, if using. And you’re ready to serve! Spoon into bowls and eat while it’s hot, and any leftovers should keep in the fridge for a couple of days and can be reheated in the microwave or oven.

when you’d rather be revising. While you’re at it, set up a Twitter account. Follow as many accounts related to your career path as possible- Twitter is great for keeping up with the latest news, papers, jobs, and getting your name out there as well, simply by retweeting or responding to other academics and employers. Oh, and reposting the occasional meme- sometimes it can’t be helped.

Anyone and everyone at university could be a useful person to know in the future. Go to careers events and gather leaflets, or chat to some of the employers on stalls- they’re genuinely interested in you, otherwise they wouldn’t be there! Be sure to show your enthusiasm and follow up email contacts that you make- who knows, you might be in line for a job opportunity six months down the line!

By now, you’ve probably joined a society or two.

Make sure to put this on your CV! It’s great to have extra-curricular activities to showcase the fact you didn’t just spend all your time studying or down at the pub. Getting involved with student life, or engaging with the public through volunteering is great. It’s something interesting to talk about- that you’ve got Beesoc, or Pole dance, or RAG on your CV might be the thing that makes you stand out amongst the other papers in the pile. The hobbies you start at university don’t have to finish with the end of your degree, either. Outside in the ‘real world’, societies still exist. Graduate life can be very different at first, and it’s always nice to have some semblance of normality with a familiar hobby.

On the topic of CVs, a great idea is to head to the careers service to have yours checked over. Exam season rolls around too soon, and it’s very hard to focus on something like queuing up for a CV check

Not all contacts have to be career-orientated, however. From my first time at university as an undergraduate, one of the best things I took away was my little circle of friends, and that group chat that just won’t stop pinging every twenty minutes.

Yes, it’s annoying, but it’s a fantastic thing to fall back on after a long day at work and just have some fun reading back the hundred messages from your old university friends. Weekends will never be boring with so many cities to visit when your friends head off to new destinations- Surrey this week?

Worcestershire? Or perhaps Spain this time, mix it up a little- and even years after you’ve left university, you’ll still get that student life feeling when you meet up with your old friends to crack out the board games and chat until the early hours of the morning.

Image: Wikimedia Commons

The best student life hacks

The myth of the ‘savvy student’ is explained by Grace Dean, along with ideas for stress-free student life

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s a student the perfect balance between termly loan instalments, rent payments and oh-so-tempting trebles can be difficult to find. Any opportunity to save pennies, therefore, is of vital importance to the savvy student.

It’s vital to know the basics of budgeting, even after you’ve survived freshers week without declaring bankruptcy. The savvy student knows to go grocery shopping at Grainger Market; they also know to always bring a plastic bag with them to avoid that pesky 5p charge. They see central heating in November as a luxury and not a necessity; they also keep tabs on the sales of their favourite high street stores to enable them to flirt with fashion without paying a high price. However, these typical student money-saving tricks alone are not what make this student so “savvy”. The savvy student indeed exploits a number of life hacks to make every penny go that little bit further.

After enjoying a tub of ice-cream during a romantic Netflix date with their duvet, they know better than to throw the tub away. Tupperware can cost an arm and a leg, and all you need to do is wash the tub out to have a wonderful and completely resealable container perfect for packed lunches, stationery and Haribos alike. It’s also key to recognise that, as a somewhat fussy eater, the average recipe book will just be a waste of them.

A smart student also knows better than to throw away groceries that look past their best They therefore are sure to take home the new issue of the Tesco, Asda or Morrisons magazine when they go shopping, so they can instead compile their own scrapbook-style one featuring only the recipes they definitely like. Additionally, alongside containing money-off coupons, these magazines also often feature useful calorie information, and also state the cost per portion of the recipe using that

supermarket’s groceries.

One little known fact is that full-fat milk is the way forward in life. Even though it is higher calorie than skimmed, they need to use less to achieve the perfectly-coloured cup of tea or coffee, despite the two types of milk costing the same. If the taste of full-fat milk is too strong, the savvy student can simply water it down, thus using less milk and spending less money to achieve exactly the same taste.

The burrito method is sometimes the most efficient way to change a duvet cover without having someone there to help you A smart student also knows better than to throw away groceries that look past their best. Mushy bananas make perfect banana bread, sprouting potatoes are still delicious in soup, and stale bread is ideal for making breadcrumbs for burgers or meatballs – or even bread and butter pudding.

Another key to being savvy is the ‘egg trick’. Whilst it is particularly important to be careful when eating grocery products, the savvy student accepts that supermarkets can sometimes just be overly vigilant with regards to use-by dates, for want of protecting themselves against potential complaints. To check whether an egg is still edible or not, the savvy student places it in a bowl of cold water – if the egg sinks then it is fresh still, if it floats then unfortunately it is one for the dustbin.

The savvy student isn’t just aware of how to save

money, however – they also know that’s important to be conscientious and mindful in other aspects of life too. The mantra they chant every time before leaving the house for a night out is “purse, keys, phone, plans to get home”, and in this way they never get stranded, locked out or strapped for cash.

The savvy student, despite having the smallest room in the house, never runs out of storage space, as they use rings from cans of student staples such as Coke and tinned tomatoes to double up their hanger space in their wardrobe. They also understand that the burrito method is sometimes the most efficient way to change a duvet cover without having someone there to help you (see YouTube).

Furthermore, the savvy student utilises mealplanning apps and online recipe websites such as MyFridgeFood.com to ensure no time, money and food are wasted during the cooking process. They even colour-coordinate their keys using small dots of nail polish to tell them apart – this is also easy to remove at the end of the year should you need to give your keys back.

Image: Wikimedia Commons

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13

Monday 6 November 2017

Stronglifts 5x5: is it effective?

Samantha Reveley delves into the latest fitness programmes receiving raved reviews

lifestyle life & style

Rant of the Week: Subway Sandwiches

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ubway sandwiches- individual, expressive, tasty….and hell, they aren’t half controversial!

Whether you’re a die-hard fan of all things meat, spectating as a 6-inch Italian is packed full of lettuce, tomatoes and onions; or you’re simply devastated as you witness a subway newbie opt for a cheese toasted falafel flatbread, everyone has their annoyances with fellow subway-goers.

Considering that I rarely stray from the safety of my usual order I can understand those that would preach ‘don’t knock it ‘til you try it’ in the comments below. Granted, I’m yet to try a combination of two sauces, and certainly haven’t conjured the courage to be that one brave, ‘a bit of everything please’ person; However, I would still consider myself enough of a veteran to unleash some of my biggest hatreds in this blog.

“Meatball Marinara on Italian Please”

Image: Flickr

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t’s no secret that the physical fitness industry is growing, and with the rise of affordable gym memberships more people than ever are getting themselves into the gym to transform their bodies. Many people are turning to training programmes to guide their daily workouts and help them achieve their fitness goals, with the StrongLifts 5x5 programme being one of the most popular, freely available strength programs on the internet.

The StrongLifts programme is a whole-body workout program carried out across three days of the week. The program consists of two workouts, both incorporating compound movements using a barbell. The first workout is a squat, bench press and barbell row, and the second workout is a squat, overhead press and deadlift. Trainees do five sets of five reps with the same weight; for example, for a squat you would lift 20kg for five repetitions, rest for 90 seconds and then repeat until you’ve done five sets before moving onto the next exercise.

The goal of the programme is to build muscle,

gain strength and develop good muscle definition.

Trainees should start light to ensure they lift with proper form and progressively build the weight across each workout. It is usually recommended that around 2.5kg is added to each side of the bar bell for each lift. Trainees continue to add weight for each set, as long as they can complete the five repetitions for each set. If they are unable to complete five reps, then the weight is dropped down until they can do so. This progressive increase in weight helps your body to build strength and muscle across twelve weeks.

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The programme is carried out across three days of the week

The training program is simple, and easy to follow with there being a virtual encyclopaedia of guides, walkthroughs and forums available online to sup-

port beginner lifters through the programme. The workout is effective if your goal is to build muscle and strength, as well as improve muscle definition.

While the simplicity of the programme is a major strength for beginners, it can be considered a negative from the perspective of more intermediate and advanced lifters as the exercise routine is not varied enough to enabled them to challenge their body enough.

It is simple to follow and allows trainees the flexibility to manage the weight increases at a level which matches their ability and own strength gains across the programme. For the more intermediate and advanced lifters, the programme is unlikely to be as effective as it does not offer enough variation to enabled a continuation of gains to both size and strength. While a more complex programme with more variation would be more suited to more experienced lifters, the simplicity of the programme offers a great and effective introduction for beginners.

5 tips for better time management Efficiently managing your time can be the key to successfully balancing your university life and social life. Charlotte Cooper shares her top tips on how to create a stress free balance.

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ave you ever wondered how some people seem to have their life together? Going to all their lectures, sports training and are always up for a night out - they manage their time almost effortlessly.

The key to perfect life balance is time management. Once you have mastered these easy steps to managing your time better you will no longer question what you are doing wrong.

1.Make a plan

Firstly, by writing all the things you need to do down will help you see clearly what needs to be tackled. By planning what to do each day you structure your week and make time for both your work and social life.

One rule to follow is plan for the minimum you need to get done 2.Be realistic

When planning your week, you need to be realistic about how much you can do in a day. You are not going to go to a full day of lectures, the library, training and a night out. One rule follow is plan for the minimum you need to get done. Knowing you

have a busy day at uni, plan to do one or two things.

This allows for breathing room in your week and if something came up unexpectedly then it wouldn’t throw the whole schedule out the window.

3.Prioritise

When it comes to actually getting these things done you need to make an order. Prioritising is crucial - creating an order of what tasks are vital to complete and what could be left a few days. Not everything needs to be done at once. If you have your friend’s birthday and a deadline, ask yourself if you have time to get the assignment done before the party or if you can leave it till next week.

5.Balance is key

This is tip is probably obvious but it is the most important. The success of time management all comes down to an equal balance with all the things

One rule to follow is plan for the minimum you need to get done The Meal without the Deal?

I can only assume those that fit under this category are too ill-informed to understand the purpose of the ‘Meal-Deal’. Whilst it makes complete sense to avoid the crisp or cookie and drink if only hungry for the subway itself, if you’re already getting the drink, why on earth are you turning down the free cookie?

There isn’t any dodgy small print, there’s no strings attached, Subway know we love a little sweet or salty something extra, and are offering it as part of their deal.

It irritates me to hear foolish customers stating, ‘I’m not hungry for a cookie right now’ or ‘no thanks I’ll be full of my sub’; for goodness sakes you’ve paid for the deal, take the cookie and give it to a friend, keep it until your hungry again, put it in the bin for all I care…your losing out by not having this snack or cup in your life, so just take it its free!

Taking the ‘Sub’ Out of Subway

4.Keeping motivated

We all know when we have a lot on our plate it can be very tempting to throw in the towel. The easiest way to try to prevent this happening is to plan what you need to do based on what you like doing and don’t. If you have a big test coming up and need to revise, plan to do something like going to the cinema or going out for dinner with your friends as a revision break. With your priorities in check it will be simple to keep yourself motivated. I always make sure I am doing something I enjoy at the end of a task or when I am most likely to lose motivation

In order to address my issue with that ‘meatball marinara guy’ clearly, I am going to be blunt in telling you that I’m afraid you are… the basic bitch of subway. Considering that most of the people ordering this horribly minimalist sub are actually regulars at Subway, it’s somewhat annoying that they are yet to find something a little more creative, expressive or adventurous, than subways readymade meatballs inside a plain baguette, maybe with the added luxury of cheese if they’re feeling really ‘rad’.

I would like to extend an apology to any people using said meatballs for innovative, weird and wacky subway combinations; you might be trialling meatballs with jalapenos and southwest sauce, or with chicken tikka and lettuce… you’re a bit of a freak, but you’re paving the way to crazy new Subway sandwiches, and I respect that.

My particular hatred lies with the people that opt out, in order not to opt in. They haven’t had time to consider what they want, or simply can’t be bothered to find their own sandwich- in a moment of blind panic they ask for the most unoriginal option on the board behind, and are surprised at the transparency of the sandwich artist’s smile.

Image: inastagram that go on in your life. The point is, it’s essential to allow time for your social life, your studies, the things you enjoy etc. without putting pressure on one or the other.

Now knowing the secrets to the perfect way to time manage you can make your life a little simpler. People who seem to be superhuman, and get everything done, are just like everyone else, expect they have very good time management skills.

Now as far as I am concerned, Subway is, and will only ever be king of one thing, and that’s sandwiches. As delectable as Subway nachos and salads may be, the thought of someone ordering these things as anything other than a side for their sandwich is quite upsetting.

I would put this down as a huge wasted opportunity; not only are you missing out on a fresh hearty and filling sandwich, but you could make that salad or nacho dish equally as well from the comforts of your own home. Sandwiches are their speciality… you wouldn’t go to a bingo night and play scrabble, don’t go to Subway and get nachos.

Victoria Young

@Courier_life @courier_lifestyle

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life & style fashion Allegations against Terry Richardson

the courier

c2.fashion@ncl.ac.uk Fashion Editors Chloe Bland, Sophie Schneider and Zofia Zwieglinska

Monday 6 November 2017

Refreshingly honest fashion Charlotte Brook gives us her verdict on the new sustainable ethical brand- ‘Honest By’

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Models recounted horrifyingly degrading acts of him exposing himself Hooray another sexual predator has been exposed! It is going to deter others who are using their influence and power in exchange for sexual obligations, is everything is going to be sunshine and flowers from now on? Most likely no, I’m afraid. There are others like Harvey Weinstein and Terry Richardson who are still roaming free among us, and I’m sure that there are many similar experiences that remain hidden behind the Hollywood façade.

Though this move by Conde Nast International represents a pledge to fight against clout-wielding perverts, it is baffling that Terry Richardson can terrorise rising models for over two decades without any repercussions until now. Most importantly, why did the victims only care to speak out now? We are well aware that behind the glitz and glamour of the fashion and entertainment world lies a cutthroat industry. It is a very competitive business, and we are constantly discovering more about the pressures placed on young stars, both male and female, with those higher in the industry using their vulnerability for personal gain.

With this, it is becoming more and more common that victims feel they must remain silent about their experiences. Even if she speaks out, who will listen to her? Others may just dismiss her as being overly sensitive, or for being a prude.

Over time the victims themselves will dismiss it as a small episode and decrease the disturbing nature of these crimes. The danger lies when it becomes normal to give sexual favours for a rapid rise to the top, or to keep quiet about sexual abuse. This can have serious consequences. Cases like this show a feeling of unworthy and lack of value, one of the reasons why sexual assault can go unreported.

There needs to be a strong and clear message to all who have been tormented sexually, that they are worthy of being listened to and people are willing to fight for them and with them.

Amanda Yap

The brand focuses on producing luxury, ethical fashion that is completely transparent to its buyers ‘Honest By’ sustainable and fair fashion ranges from all vegan-made pieces, to unisex, upcycled vintage denim, all in designs and styles that you won’t find anywhere else. However, originality in design doesn’t correlate to originality in manufacture. Trendsetting by luxury brands like this, producing honest, ethical fashion is having a knock-on effect throughout the industry, such as the collaborations by ‘Honest By’ with other brands and designers show. Their latest collaboration is a capsule collection with Y/Project released this month; think statement trench coats, flattering

ASOS Recycled Denim ASOS have just recently announced the launch of a line of jeans made from recycled cotton in partnership with the Recycle Movement. With styles including skinny, tapered, straight, mom and slim fits, with all of them in finishes from dark and light washes to ripped and raw hems, there’s something for everyone. For each pair of jeans, the label will include information about where and how the denim was recycled, and even the percentage of water that was saved! Now that is a serious eco stamp on the hazardously waterwasteful jean industry.

Jeans Mom ycled S Re c ASO 0 £38.0

he dust of the Harvey Weinstein debacle has not quite settled, and yet another tsunami of sexual allegations against renowned fashion photographer Terry Richardson, has surfaced once again.

The rundown goes like this; in a leaked email sent internally to all staff by the CEO of Conde Nast International, James Woolhouse announced that they will not be cooperating with celebrity photography Terry Richardson any longer. Shoots which have been arranged or any other shoots which have been completed but have yet to be published, “should be killed and substituted with other material.”

Such abrupt news came as the 52-year-old has been accused of engaging in sexually inappropriate behaviour with his models, some as young as 19 years old. In his defence, his work has always been sexually explicit in nature, known to all in the fashion world and those who have worked with him. Terry or ‘Uncle Terry’ as he is called by young models, has defended himself against these allegations by insisting that they were consensual acts. He was called out by models such as Anna Del Gaizo, Charlotte Waters, and Jamie Peck. Those who worked with him recounted horrifyingly degrading acts of him exposing himself and coercing the models to perform sex acts on him during photoshoot sessions. Subsequently, he admitted to the Daily Mail that he “sometimes behaved in a sexually explicit manner” during interactions with the models.

thigh split dresses and double layered shirts. The collection is gender-free and season-less, so anyone can wear anything at any time. Not only is each item sustainably made, but they are all entirely transparent, and you can trace each part back to an ethical production in France.

But of course, luxury brands (aka luxury price tags) aren’t for all of us, especially on a student budget. Luckily for us, ethical fashion has made its way to the high street through some of our favourite brands.

ASOS Recycled Florence Jeans £32

Image: Pexel

here’s a lot of stipulation about honesty in the fashion industry; pictures are photoshopped, and who can say they know just where their clothes come from? Yet, the new talented Belgian fashion designer Bruno Pieters is defining honest, ethical fashion through his brand ‘Honest By’.

Launched in 2012, the brand focuses on producing luxury, ethical fashion that is completely transparent to its buyers. The man himself works by the belief that “fashion is about beauty and that the story behind fashion can be equally beautiful”.

He puts this philosophy into practice by making sure customers can trace everything they buy back to the manufacturer, by publishing its entire supply chain for every product and even providing pricing transparency. Everything from the fabrics to the brand label and buttons. And it doesn’t stop there; keeping to its namesake, ‘Honest By’ uses equally honest images. No unrealistic photoshopping or extravagant hair and makeup. In this case, the truth definitely isn’t ugly.

Honest By Unisex Upcycled Denim Jacket, £190

H&M Working towards sustainability since 2009, H&M is consistently working towards brand wide ethical fashion with their products being made by independent suppliers, often in developing countries. Each year they launch a range of highend environmentally friendly pieces called the Conscious Collection showing that as well as their everyday fashion, sustainability can have a luxury label too. Honesty and fashion have not always been two words that have gone hand in hand, but increasingly influential designers, like Bruno Pieters and some favourite high street brands, are recognising that along with the ever-growing industry, is a need for more ethically sourced materials to minimise the effects on our environment. Guilt free fashion? Don’t mind if I do.

H&M Conscious Collection Long-sleeved jersey top £8.99

Honest By Quilted Ruffle Skirt, £290

Nothing better than a backpack

Natalya Baranovskaya shows the diversity of styles for the humble backpack for this winter season

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ackpacks are generally recognized as the most convenient accessories which are always present on the catwalk. Today, on the highstreet you can find a diverse range of colourful backpacks. Some of them are covered with pictures and prints, others are stamped with sparkles, and some are so elegant you can take them to a romantic dinner. But the diversity of backpacks is so huge that it becomes more difficult than ever to choose the best option to buy. So, here is your little guide to help you in the search for your dream backpack.

This autumn, pay attention to the fluffy faux-fur backpack. These are extrememly popular with all ages at the moment, as they are bang on trend! At first glance, these backpacks may appear childish, however they will add a cute factor to your look and will cheer you up instantly with their innocent charm. This model is very popular among the famous brands such as Dolce&Gabbana as well as high street options from Mango, Top Shop, Zara, River Island, and New Look.

Some backpacks are so elegant you can take them to a romantic dinner Luscious velvet mini backpacks are equally as popular. They’re pleasant to the touch, and these cuties will add femininity to both your day and evening look. They are made in pink, yellow, and in royal burgundy colours, which never go out of style for autumn.

Another backpack style is the not-so-mellow yellow or ‘Gen-Z’ yellow nylon backpacks. These are the trend of the season not just because of their roominess inside, but mostly due to the ‘Gen-Z yellow’ shade. This unusual color is a combination of several shades from buttercream to a ‘melted butter’ shade, making this colour even more trendy that ‘millenial pink’. Search for these bags in STATE

and ASOS. Classic black and brown leather ‘bucket’ bags perfectly suit every outfit. The leather material makes these bags look elegant and compact enough to put the daily necessities inside. They look best with faux-fur coats and leather jackets, other autumn trends. You can find them in Top Shop, Abercrombie or Tictail.

Backpacks with art prints have become very popular, especially with prints such as tigers, eyes, and lemons. These will add more glamour and and a unique twist to your outfit. You can find these backpacks in collections of brands such as Gucci, Chiaraferragni and Kenzo, with their famed tiger backpack prints.

With all these choices, how to pick the best one?

If you are looking for something more functional than elegant and easy to use for University, then the backpacks from Fjällräven are the best option for you. Their rectangular shape will serve as an ideal place for your laptops, academic books, and lunch boxes. They are also the best option for travelling or for any expeditions outside of the toon, as you can pack lots inside. These backbacks have endless colour options, from bright yellow to dark green.

Run to Urban Outfitters before everyone else does (oops, might be too late) and manage your clutter in one roomy, handy backpack.

Zara Bucket backpack, £29.99 UO, Fjallraven Backpack £75

Topshop vera mini velvet flower backpack, £29 Zara kids monster backpack, £19.99

Topshop, Skinny Dip Furry backpack, £35

Topshop, Skinny Dip Lobster backpack, £36

UO, Fjallraven Backpack £75

the courier

@CourierFashion c2.fashion@ncl.ac.uk

Monday 6 November 2017

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fashion life & style

Yellow is the new black T

Fashion Fakers

Jaymelouise Hudspith shows us the best yellow items to buy from the high street retailers

; Sparkle & Fade Teddy Mock Neck Jumper Urban Outfitters, £95

Leandenhall Check Scarf; Accesorize £20.00

piece to your outfit with the featured fringe edges and oversized blanket effect. Couple with a leather jacket to compile the perfect autumn day outfit.

Jackets: A biker jacket is a must-have all year round, so bring a bit of sunshine to the dark autumn mornings with Bershka’s mustard faux-leather jacket. This is perfect for autumn while still being warm enough to wear a lighter leather instead of your big winter jacket. Team this with a scarf and matching hat and you’re ready for uni, or any day out.

Trousers: Paperbag style clothing is one of the biggest features this season. This unique style is suitable for any figure type as it pulls you in at the waist, and grazes your ankle to give the appearance of longer legs, making it very flattering. PrettyLittleThing has combined paperbag style and mustard yellow to give you a fashion-forward pair of trousers perfect for any night out.

Playsuits: Channel your inner Beyoncé with this dark yellow ruffle playsuit. With a plunge neck, long sleeves, cut out back and a feminine falling ruffle finish, you too can be as fashion fierce as Queen B herself.

Match with this a black biker jacket, heeled boots, diamond choker for an edgy finish to a bold outfit.

Camis: A cami top is the easiest option for university, a meal out, cocktails, or a night out. Missguided’s satin slip cami top in mustard yellow has adjustable straps and a knot detail front. A perfect addition to everyone’s wardrobe, it’ll accentuate your cleavage and the knot feature will cover your stomach (and your food baby). Team with skinny jeans and bold accessories to tie the outfit together while accentuating the satin finish of the top.

Teddy Jumpers: Sweater season is upon us, which means it’s time for comfort and fluffy jumpers. The Urban Outfitters Sparkle & Fade Teddy Mock Neck Jumper is available in dark yellow or red.

Urban Outfitters describe this jumper as the ultimate cosy-cool vibe, with it’s long line mock-neck and long sleeves creating the perfect relaxation outfit that can be worn with anything.

You don’t have to try too hard to make yellow work in your outfit!

Bershka Faux Leather Biker Jacket; ASOS, £44.99

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his season black has not made the cut; instead we seem to be moving onto brighter colours like yellow. Before you start fretting, your neutrals are still current and on-trend, and shouldn’t be discarded from your wardrobe.

However, yellow shades should definitely be prioritised, after actresses and artists have been seen proudly sporting the colour, like Emma Stone in ‘La La Land’ and Beyoncé strutting away in ‘Hold Up’. This has led to a huge boots in sales with everything in mustard to sunshine yellow sky rocket this season.

Whether you’ve seen stores launching feature products, or you’ve been bombarded on social media, I can guarantee you’ve seen the rise in yellow as a trend. To make it easier for you, I’ve compiled all my favourite pieces from fashion high-street retailers.

Scarves: Throw it back to the 90’s with the Leandenhall check scarf; if this doesn’t make you think of the iconic ‘Clueless’ outfit that Cher wore then we can’t be friends. Not only does this scarf have a heritage-chic vibe, it also brings an edgy statement

Ruffle Plunge Playsuit; Topshop, £95.00

Missguided Muastard Yellow twist-front cami Top, £20

Mustard Paperbag Trousers; PrettyLittleThing, £22

he question that’s every fashion follower is pondering about; why do so-called ‘celebrities’ deserve to acquire precedence over true fashion lovers, when they suddenly get famous for blabbing a few words on TV? Reality TV stars seem to suddenly be involved with the fashion industry five minutes after they get ‘famous’ (I remain to use this in inverted commas because it is so ridiculous to call them actual celebrities). It seems to me that while they’re basking in the oh-so-temporary spotlight, they don’t actually care about fashion or what it means to be a fashion icon, it’s simply personal marketing.

Instagram:@oliviajade_attwood

Love Island 2017 star Olivia Attwood seems to be pulling publicity stunts left right and centre, with the rapid decision to move in together with ‘the love of her life’ Chris Hughes, who she’s known for approximately five minutes. Of course, compared to life changing publicity stunts this, becoming the face of a fashion brand as a reality star is going to be a walk in the park. With continuous posts sponsored by In The Style, Miss Attwood is indulging in every second of her momentary spotlight with frequent sponsored advertisements of her OOTD etc. Yet, if we scroll way down her Instagram, there seems to be not much interest in fashion, just a bunch of selfies. With these pictures being taken just a year or less before this year’s Love Island premiered, it seems very unusual to suddenly take an interest in fashion and to start to inform your followers where your outfit is from.

The only logical conclusion... dollar, dollar, dollar.

RuPaul’s Drag Race: Sashay away?

Laura Buckle explores the glamorous world of drag and its impact on the fashion industry

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hen American drag competition, ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’, hit our screens back in 2009 the whole world went hysterical for the drag industry and the notion of their everyday double-life. For many, RuPaul has produced an international platform for the art of drag and more and more people are adoring the transformations, cosmetics and costuming behind every style from the legendary queens. Yet, it’s not just us viewers who are ‘living for’ the reality show, international fashion houses are also doing their best to snatch RuPaul’s latest star.

Have drag queens really inspired catwalks of the world or are the face of fashion just huge super-fans?

Undoubtedly, fashion has forever been a vital part of the series with each episode involving a fashion related task; whether it be designing and creating garments from trash or walking the runway in ‘high fashION’ couture inspired by Commes des Garcons or Chanel. When the likes of Season two queen, Raja or Season seven beauty, Miss Fame, took to the runway like a duck to water, the world went crazy for their runway-ready pieces.

Take, Season seven queen, Violet Chachki’s tartan number from episode one… This could easily be mistaken for an autumn/winter release from a Vivienne Westwood collection! RuPaul’s Drag Race without fashion would simply not be the ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ as we know it.

Even fashion faces such as Jeremy Scott and Marc Jacobs have been judges on the show, and models like Gigi Hadid and Chanel

Iman, have also starred on season eight’s ‘Snatch Game’. But it doesn’t stop at famous appearances from celebrities. Miss Fame is now also rubbing shoulders with supermodel Miranda Kerr through her scouting by IMG Models and Laganja Estranga, Season six, has also been spotted on a recent Marco-Marco runway, showing that the involvement of the drag queens goes both ways in the fashion industry.

It’s true, the borderline between drag and fashion is becoming narrower as the seasons go by and the fashion world is ‘obsessed’ with it; as shown by the New York Times. But, with only around 30% of the show being ‘serious fashion’ and the majority being about humour or impersonations (which a lot of drag audiences love) have drag queens really inspired cat-walks of the world? Or are the faces of fashion just huge super-fans of the show?

Perhaps we could see Miss Fame’s pieces on a Paris runway, but for comedy queens like Bob the Drag

Queen or Bianca del Rio (previous winners) it’s clear it is not on their agenda to be an active part of the fashion world. Queens such as Alaska have literally walked the runway in a bin bag and relied on their charm to sail through the competition.

And it’s worked, with Alaska snatching the ‘All Stars 2’ crown, so what does that say about fashion on the show?

It’s subjective. Some will look at the show and see clear ‘fashion’ whereas others may simply see ‘dress-up’, ‘amateur’ and ‘unprofessional’ in regard to the runway. Designers will continue to appear on the show but the real question is whether they’ll continue to hire the contestants or begin crediting drag designs. Yes, RuPaul’s Drag Race is fashion motivated. Yes, RuPaul’s Drag Race is best friends with some of the fashion world. But Is RuPaul’s Drag Race a fashion show? Not entirely. Whether this will change is something future seasons will decide.

Instagram:@kourtneykardash

It’s also key to recognise that not only newbies on the block do this... Reality star Kourtney Kardashian has suddenly burst out with a fashion contract with Pretty Little Thing. It could be said that Kourtney’s interest in fashion is more credible, as her and her sisters founded a clothing chain called DASH in 2006 which 2 of 3 original stores still operate. However, Kourtney’s sudden outburst onto the more affordable side of fashion is questionable, as all Kourtney and her family seem to do is flash what expensive items they own via Instagram and their reality show, Keeping up with the Kardashians.

Instagram:@prettylittlething

Images: Instagram @rupaulsdragrace

Thus, the question remains, why do public figures deserve immediate, easy contact with the world of fashion when there are people truly passionate about fashion, who struggle to get anything near the high street contracts that Kourtney and Olivia get at the drop of a hat. Fashion isn’t just about clothes, it’s about ethics and what is right too.

Evidently, ‘celebrities’ like these don’t understand this and just care about the money. Sad, really.

Emily Cartwright

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life & style beauty

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Body hair: Taboo or not?

n the last 30 years, a clean-shaven body has become an important feature of the western image of femininity, and it is thought that over 99% of women in the Western culture remove hair through one means or other. The image of a smooth, bald female body is one we are all familiar with, but why is this the ideal, when it is the exact opposite of what is natural?

According to Anneke Smelik, author of ‘A close shave: The taboo on female body hair’, the trend for bare bodies is positively correlated with fashion’s tendency to show more skin. We associate armpit hair with sweat and pubic hair with excretion and urination, this creates a sense of repulsion, which makes hair seem ‘dirty’ and increases our desire to remove it. Moreover, body hair is linked to our ape ancestry and hair removal can create a boundary between us and animals, which makes us seem more sophisticated and evolved.

courier.beauty@ncl.ac.uk Beauty Editors Laura Greatrex, Lois Johnston & Susanne Norris

Magic make-up masterclass Nimra Rafique talks us through the sensational north-eastern make-up artist Gordon George Milward’s make-up masterclass, what she loved about it, and the techniques she learned

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ordon George Milward is a well-known makeup artist in the North East. He studied graphic design at university and always had a passion for art. Upon discovering makeup, he found a way to express his creativity and began to explore his newfound interest.

In 2013 Gord began working at Urban Decay, and through this he was able to practice his makeup skills, as well as develop his customer service skills.

Working on the brands makeup counter allowed him to communicate and interact with costumers, which helped grow his confidence as a makeup artist. Now Gord, with a big Instagram following of 23.5k and a YouTube channel, is acclaimed for his beautiful makeup skills which he has practiced and perfected over time. He took the risk of leaving Urban Decay to become his own boss by working as freelance makeup artist at his own personal makeup studio.

24.1 Image: @mileycyrus

However, this does not explain why men are not subject to the same beauty standards. Although male grooming is gaining more prominence in society (beard maintenance and chest waxing are more popular than they were 10 years ago) men are still not frowned upon for displaying hair in the way women are. Seen from some feminist’s perspectives, this is due to the fact that hair removal is a result of the patriarchy. Being cleanshaven is depicted in many adverts as a way to please men, through this both men and women learn to react negatively to female body hair. The advertisers’ new definition of what it is to be a woman is a way of defining gender characteristics and controlling femininity. This suggests the taboo has been created in order to marginalise and control women.

This relates to Freud’s idea of the ‘horror’ of the female body. Psychologists suggest that hairremoval has gained popularity, particularly in porn, due to a fear of adult female sexuality.

Hairless bodies are childlike, when this image is transposed onto an adult female body, it can make women seem less mature, more vulnerable, or even submissive, as well as more familiar and safe.

It seems clear that we need to concentrate more effort on removing the stigma The imitation of childlike body, also fits in with the current beauty goals of appearing ‘forever young’. There are numerous products on the market from anti-ageing make up remover wipes to Botox, expressly designed with the aim of giving the aura of youth. Some sociologists put this down to the cold-hearted approach of businesses and advertising agencies, whose sole purpose is to generate profit. They use advertising and commercials to sell us the dream of a bare bodied beauty.

Although it’s impossible to say which of these factors contributes the most towards the taboo against female hair anywhere but the head, which contrastingly epitomises female beauty, none of the reasons can fully justify body hair removal. It, therefore, seems clear that we need to concentrate more effort on removing the stigma against it and the double standards between men and women, than the body hair itself. Body hair is natural for both men and women, and whilst there is nothing wrong with removing it, we should not be judged for deciding not to.

Miranda Stoner

the courier

Monday 6 November 2017

thousand accounts follow Gordan George’s instagram, @gordgeorge

On the 22nd October 2017 I attended Gord’s first ever makeup masterclass. The sold out event was held at Hidden Heights Studio, with forty people excited to hear all the tips and tricks Gord would reveal, as well as an in depth demonstration of a gorgeous makeup look on his model and fellow makeup artist Chloe Elizabeth.

Gord started the makeup look by revealing how he gets his signature brows, a step everyone was eager to learn about as he is known for creating brows that look very full, fluffy and natural on all of his clients. Gord then opted to create a bold purple eye look, he explained how he loved using colour and would always encourage his clients to experiment with different colours. He began by layering shades of purple, starting with a vibrant purple Sugarpill

eyeshadow, blending each one out very well to get a seamless effect. A useful tip Gord shared with everyone was that good quality makeup tools are an essential part of creating a great makeup look; when creating the eye look Gord frequently used fluffy eyeshadow brushes, which allowed him to blend the shadows together creating the perfect gradient effect. On the centre of the eyelid, Gord used various glitter products which really made the makeup look pop. Instead of doing precise winged eyeliner, Gord prefers to use a creamy pencil eyeliner, such as Perversion by Urban Decay, in order to create the smudged out wing effect seen on the majority of his Instagram photos. This was a technique I was happy he shared, as I love the way it looks. Lashes are a favourite for me, as I find they complete a makeup look. Gord used Doll Beauty lashes in the style ‘Oliva’.

Gord explained that he always starts off with eye makeup as there is always fallout that gets onto the skin, therefore it is easier and more time efficient to do the face makeup after the eye look is complete. After priming and prepping the skin, he shared that his favourite foundation to use is by the makeup brand Illamasqua, and from the demo I can see why. The foundation left the skin looking flawless. He went onto use a cream contour, concealer, bronzer, blush (GALifornia by Benefit, which I’ll probably buy now as it looked beautiful) and, of course, highlighter (OMG by Illamasqua).

The final step in the makeup look was lips, since Gord created a bright, bold glam eye look he decided to balance it out with a nude lip. This is another good tip he shared during the masterclass; it is useful to focus on one area of the makeup look (either eyes, face or lips) that you wish to make the focal point of the whole makeup look, and tone down the other aspects to create a good balance.

Gord finishes the look by using a lip liner, a Winnie Beau London liquid lipstick, and a little bit of gloss in the centre of the lips.

The finished outcome was gorgeous, and lived

up to the high expectations I had. Gord then went onto answering a few questions and expressed that ‘there are no rules when it comes to makeup’, we must simply decide what style works best for us as individuals and practice. He said that he still practices on his friends now, still trying to develop and improve his skills because, as you’ve probably heard many times before, practice makes perfect.

The masterclass was very enjoyable and helped me learn much more about different makeup techniques and makeup products. Everyone who attended also received a goodie bag with vouchers and makeup products, including some that were used by Gord in the masterclass. As well as having such a talent for makeup, Gord was a really lovely person and delivered the masterclass in a very nice and cheerful manner. I would definitely recommend attending his next makeup masterclass.

Image: Nimra Rafique

Self-love and beauty

Beauty editor Laura Greatrex explains why she wears make-up and how it inspires confidence

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ou wear too much make-up. I can’t be the only person who is just a tiny bit fed up with how frequently and how carelessly this clichéd and narrow-minded comment is thrown about nowadays. My response to this is a heavy eye roll and a sarcastic thumbs up. Well done, you’ve noticed I’m wearing make-up (to be honest I would be offended if you didn’t), but no one has the right to judge whether I’m wearing the ‘right’ amount or not. In my opinion, as long as you’re happy with the final result of what you’ve daubed and blended onto your face, then there’s no such thing as too much make-up.

After all, it’s your face and no one but you should dictate what you do with it.

Image: @shaaanxo

What some people don’t seem to realise is how personal make-up can be. I would like to explicitly state now that I don’t wear make-up for anyone else

but myself. I admit that I am very insecure about how I look without make-up (unfortunately, this is something the majority of people can relate to) but I don’t spend time applying it in the mornings, sacrificing an extra half an hour in bed, for the benefit of anyone else but myself.

Having said that, it’s nice when my efforts don’t go unrecognised or unappreciated. Despite being tipsy on trebles, I still remember the moment last year when I was queuing at the bar in Soho and two random girls complimented me on my makeup shout out to these lovely girls for making my night!

It might sound small and insignificant, but just one positive comment on my make-up can keep me buzzing all day. But again, this comes back to the fact that I have decided for myself to apply specific products in a specific way. The fact that someone has recognised my efforts is just a bonus.

Make-up is about personal expression and experimentation. It’s about having fun, and yes to some degree it’s about confidence. But in today’s warped society that is extremely focused on the physical appearance, sometimes we need something to give us some confidence and protection against the constantly critical gaze we are subjected to.

I love a good meme as much as anyone, but the ones I’ve seen circulating about how you should take a girl swimming on a first date to see her without her make-up, and therefore her ‘true’ appearance, I find cruel and immature. If you’re on a date with someone who has clearly spent time on their appearance, firstly, and most importantly, you shouldn’t assume they have done this for your benefit, and secondly you should appreciate and admire the effort they have gone to. Applying make-up isn’t the easiest thing to do, it’s a form of artistry, and like any artist, it would mean the world if someone noticed and complimented us on our final masterpiece. Contrary to the popular,

and quite frankly frustrating, belief make-up is not deceiving. By applying it, we’re not out to trick you, we’re not attempting to change our appearance.

Make-up is purely for enhancing your appearance.

We use it to bring attention to the features we’re proud of, and draw the eye away from those things we’re feeling a bit insecure about.

I would love for society to abolish the misguided societal assumption that we can only look good when we’re wearing make-up. I definitely wouldn’t describe myself as a natural beauty, but way to make a girl feel rubbish about herself. However, despite the stubbornness of these shallow stigmas, I will continue to maintain that I wear make-up for me, myself, and nobody else.

Image: @urbandecaycosmetics

@CourierBeauty @courier_beauty

the courier

@CourierBeauty thecourieronline.co.uk/beauty

Monday 6 November 2017

Kitchen commotion

Ever thought a good skincare routine was unaffordable? Emily Cartwright gives her top tips and tricks on creating and using a skincare routine with nothing but everyday kitchen essentials

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kincare. Sounds expensive even saying it, right? So you settle for a cheap, dried out face wipe to take your makeup off and it’ll be fine. Well, I’ve got news for you! Skincare should be an essential part of your daily routine, ideally morning and night, with the odd exception if you’ve had a little too much to drink (I can vouch for that). However, we all know that it can be very expensive, for example the La Mer ‘Creme de la Mer’ sits at an extravagant £330 per 100ml.

So, finding the ideal skincare routine might be a difficult one when considering budget. Thus, we turn to the kitchen, where our skincare routine can be cheaply replenished within a matter of minutes.

Image: @thepipercenter

TIP ONE: Removing makeup Running out of your face wipes or trustee micellar water can be a nightmare, to put it lightly. Not to worry though, grab some olive oil from your kitchen and simply massage it into your skin for

a couple of minutes. Follow by washing it off with a flannel and some hot water and your skin will be left squeaky clean. Plus, if your skin is feeling super dry; repeat this to boost moisture levels.

We turn to the kitchen, where our skincare routine can be cheaply replenished TIP TWO: Exfoliating As it’s my favourite step in skincare, I constantly run out of my exfoliating products. Never fear though...the kitchen is here! Simply use a combination of sugar and honey to create a gentle scrub for the face and body and wash it off in the shower or with a cloth and hot water. A top tip of mine for this is to use it on your legs just before shaving, you’ll never feel softer. Plus, sugar scrubs can also be used on the lips, so if it’s the middle of winter and you’re feeling like wearing a drying liquid lip, throw some sugar and honey on your lips just before application and you’re good to go.

TIP THREE: Pore probs Even if you exfoliate like mad, reducing the size of pores and the amount of blackheads that invade your face can be difficult. If you’re having trouble, grab a slice of lemon from your fruit bowl and rub it on your nose and in your t zone. This will soften and lighten your skin, making it easier to get shut of those pesky blackheads. You can also whip up some egg whites and create a face mask to tighten the pores and clean the skin in general.

TIP FOUR: Banishing blemishes As mentioned before, honey can be a really useful condiment to add to your skincare routine. It can

be used as a face mask (just tie your hair back tight, otherwise it can get very messy) which results in much softer and clear looking skin, as it calms redness and blemishes. For spot preventative and banishing measures, I tend to mix about three tablespoons of honey with half a tablespoon of cinnamon and leave the mask on for 20 - 30 minutes about once a week. Both these ingredients have natural antibacterial properties in them, and so will help clear the skin. Honey can also be used to hydrate your hair - so basically, if you’re buying anything on your last penny...buy honey! Just note, be careful if you have sensitive skin, as cinnamon can aggravate certain skin types.

TIP FIVE: Bye bye under eyes Under eye discolouration is common to most people, so the solutions advertised by cosmetic and skincare brands tend to be expensive. However, by taking some brewed, cooled, chamomile tea bags wrapped in a paper towel and putting them under your eyes for 10 to 15 minutes does just the trick.

As a sufferer of blue/green discolouration under my eyes, I swear by this tip, and it can be done 3-4 times a week.

Image: @ marijamagdic_fotografie

Beauty to buy again (and again)

Ditch going back to the same badboy again and again and channel your interests into beauty instead! Nimra Rafique talks us through the beauty products you should always re-purchase

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t’s always nice to experiment when it comes to make up. We all like to try different looks and different products, especially with the fast paced and ever growing beauty industry providing us with so many brands and products.

However, there are always some beauty products we find ourselves going back to time and time again. Here are some of the beauty products I love and always find myself repurchasing.

Image: @ benefitcosmeticsuk

Let’s start with face makeup products. Finding the perfect foundation, I find, is an ongoing struggle I have. I’ve tried so many foundations, both highend and drugstore, but the one that I always go back to and have repurchased many times now is Makeup Forever Ultra HD Foundation. It’s a great, medium coverage foundation that is suitable for all skin types. What I love most about this foundation is that it comes in 40 shades, so you’re bound to find the right match for you, and it’s also great for flash photography.

A concealer almost everyone has raved about is the NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer, and from the first time I used it I understood the hype. It blends into the skin seamlessly, with buildable coverage to give any desired effect. The creamy

formula leaves you with a smooth complexion, covering up imperfections and fine lines. Again, this is a product I have repurchased many times and will continue to do so in the future.

Because I have oily skin a face powder is a must for me, and there are two powders that are an essential in my makeup routine. The first being Laura Mercier Translucent Loose Setting Powder; you’ve probably come across this product before as it’s a ‘cult-favorite bestseller’, as stated on the official Laura Mercier website. The finely milled powder leaves the skin with a flawless, matte finish and is a must have in my beauty collection.

The second powder I love equally as much is the POREfessional: agent zero shine by Benefit, this product will be particularly good for those of you who have oily skin like me, it keeps my skin matte all day and leaves it looking really smooth.

Brows are definitely an essential part of my makeup routine, and a product I’ve fallen in love with is the Micro Brow Pencil by NYX, with a crayon-like thin brow pencil on one side and a spoolie on the other. It’s very quick and easy to use, so is great for days when you’re in a rush and want effortlessly great looking brows, which is something us uni students can appreciate.

There are always some beauty products we find ourselves going back to time and time again When it comes to eyeshadow, there is only one palette I always use, whether it’s for a natural, everyday look, or a full on glam look, and that is the Huda Beauty Textured Shadows Palette, Rose

Gold Edition. This eyeshadow palette has 18 beautiful shadows, including ‘foil-effect textures’ which easily glide onto the lid, making any eye look pop. My favorite matte shadows in the palette would definitely have to be ‘Henna’ and ‘Coco’, I always incorporate both beautiful brown shades into every eye look.

Image: @ narsissist

For lipsticks, I tend to stick to warm-toned, natural brown shades that compliment my skin tone. A favorite of mine is ‘Taupe’ by MAC, it is a buttery, highly pigmented lipstick with a matte finish. Another lip product I have grown to love is the Creamy Lip Stain Liquid Lipstick by Sephora Collection. Unlike most liquid lipsticks I’ve tried, this doesn’t leave the lips looking or feeling dry.

It effortlessly glides onto the lips and is very long lasting, living up to its name ‘Lip Stain’.

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beauty life & style

Cruelty-free swap: Haircare products

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wapping to cruelty-free beauty products is becoming increasingly popular as our generation is becoming more educated on the manufacturing and testing process of cosmetics and other beauty products. Social media is an exceptionally beneficial platform towards progressing public knowledge and awareness of cruelty-free and vegan swaps that we all can make. The benefits of using crueltyfree brands are almost endless and by avoiding buying from companies that exploit loopholes regarding animal testing, it makes it harder for them to turn a profit, arguably pushing them towards cruelty-free products.

If you are a fan of Aussie’s 3 Minute Miracle, a perfect and affordable dupe is Pacifia’s Coconut Super Powder Deep Conditioning Mask, perfect to re-hydrate tired or damaged hair. For a swap you can find on any high-street, look no further than The Body Shop. They have a fantastic Ginger Anti Dandruff Shampoo that is one of their best-selling products with one sold every minute. In addition to this The Body Shop have a wide range of Rainforest inspired shampoos and conditioners containing various essential oils, these products are both cruelty-free and support the fair Community Trade programs. Many of The Body Shop’s products support various Fair-Trade schemes so these products benefit you, growers and animals worldwide.

If a 9am start is too early to shower, you’ll be glad to know that a wide range of popular dry-shampoos are already cruelty-free! Batiste is a company that does not test on animals and has various dry shampoos from colour specific to glittery. Much of Superdrug’s own brand of products are all crueltyfree and includes a 3-in-1 Hair and Body Wash that’s ideal for a post-workout shower.

OUAI HAIRCARE OUAI products are manufactured without the use of sulfates, and none of the products are tested on animals

Finding hair dyes that are vegan can be a seemingly impossible task, but the ever-reliable Lush has a fantastic solution- henna hair dye bars.

The dye blocks give the same colour coverage as other popular brands but cause considerably less damage due to the absence of harsh chemicals.

Their colours are a perfect way to achieve a rich, dark hair colour with shades ranging from coppery red to deep black. Alternatively, vibrant, rainbowlike hair colours look gorgeous on everyone and Artic Fox has an incredible range of hues that 100% will make you want to dye your hair pink!

They even have some UV hair dyes for a truly eye-catching Halloween costume! Manic Panic is another favourite of daring colourists and they stock many alternative colours from muted pastels to their bold High-Voltage colours.

Lush is a wonderful place to find high-quality hair (and beard specific) styling products such as hair creams, moisturisers, mists, dressings and waxes! Equally, the Paul Michelle Super Skinny Serum is a godsend for anyone struggling with unruly frizzy hair as the lightweight serum helps to smooth strands whilst simultaneously acting as a heat and weather protector. If you’re looking to enhance your natural waves or try out the classic beachy look, Ouai Wave Spray forms bouncy waves that aren’t heavy and the formula is less sticky than most so will help to avoid the crunchy feel that most salt sprays result in.

To keep your naturals curls beautifully bouncy, Deva Curl’s No-Poo Shampoo is a conditioning cleanser that is specifically designed for curly hair, providing essential vitamin oils to keep hair healthy. Many shampoos can over-dry curly hair, leaving it brittle and dull but Deva Curl has a vast range of cruelty-free products that cater to wavy and curly hair alike. To keep aware of any new cruelty-free products, maybe follow a bunch of cruelty-free Instagram accounts and try and make even more swaps to cruelty-free beauty. Favourites include @crueltyfreesquad, @crueltyfreefinder and beauty brands such as @lush and @thebodyshop.

Erin Holley

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life & style travel Britain’s best adreneline rushes

courier.travel@ncl.ac.uk Travel Editors Charlotte Hill & Talia Gillin

the courier @Courier_Travel thecourieronline.co.uk/travel Monday 6 November 2017

Exploring South East Asia This week, Talia Gillin writes about her recent travels to Singapore, Bali & The Gilli Islands

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he UK is fast becoming a haven for adrenaline junkies worldwide and offers a host of well known activities from mountain boarding to other more niche exploits such as coasteering.

The landscape of the UK is perfect for outdoor adventure on fantastic mountains like Ben Nevis in Scotland and offers some incredible caving and costal exploration around Wales. If a weekend surf trip down to the coast of Dover isn’t in your student budget or time frame, Tynemouth is a bus drive out of Newcastle city centre and is a popular surf spot. Mountain boarding, the child of skateboarding and snowboarding, is also perfect for the UK’s general lack of snow. This can be done in almost any terrain if it includes a downhill stretch.

Indoor extreme sports are a fantastic way to experience the realistic atmosphere of adventure, without having to travel miles and miles

’d seen the pictures of the beaches, the sunsets and not forgetting, that oh- so instagrammable swing. So after completing the gruelling up-hill struggle that is commonly known as third year, I decided to book the trip of a lifetime: Singapore, Bali and The Gili Islands.

Having meticulously saved for the trip for over a year, I was keen to get the very most out of my experience and really approach my time in Southeast Asia with an open mind. Fast forward an action packed two and a half weeks later and I can easily say that the trip has been the best 17 days of my life. Returning to Newcastle Airport in my staple elephant adorned ‘traveller pants’, I had experienced things beyond my wildest imagination and truly made friends for life.

My journey begins in the not so exotic location of St Marys Place, Newcastle at STA Travel. Located just opposite Newcastle University Campus, STA has over 35 years of experience in enabling students and young adults to travel around the world. Organising as little or as much as you need, the company has the resources to tailor your whole trip from the comfort of their office. My friend and I decided to organise the first leg of our trip, Singapore, independently and book our organised tour directly through STA. Our advisor, Dom, could not be more helpful throughout the planning process- having recently travelled to Indonesia himself, his advice was enormously valuable in helping us decide which tour to select. The tour company we ultimately decided on was Tru Travels. Aimed at young people, their tours aim to exhibit the very best of South East Asia without the dreaded school trip vibe. The tour we selected was their ’10 Day Bali Experience Tour’ and proved to be incredible value for money. Costing £450 for 10 days, it included 9 nights accommodation, trips to

One of the UK’s best locations is the Haredown Mountain Boarding Centre in the South Downs as it contains over 20 acres of slopes for various abilities. Coasteering is an adrenaline-fuelled way to explore the Welsh coastlines and is a unique blend of adventure swimming, climbing/canyoning, and jumping and diving off cliffs. Coasteering is perfect for an all-round extreme sport experience whilst simultaneously exploring caves and shores of the UK, and is particularly popular in Pembrokeshire intertidal zones. Indoor extreme sports are a fantastic way to experience the realistic atmosphere of adventure, without having to travel miles and miles.

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Build up your confidence on one of the 71 dry or real snow ski slopes that the UK has to offer Instagram @taliaalise

Indoor ice-climbing is making a rise in the UK and centres in London and Manchester house real ice-walls with internal temperatures that can range from a freezing -5 to -12 degrees. The sport is similar in form to rock climbing as adventurers are attached by a series of ropes and cables, but instead of secured handholds, they have two ice picks and must hack their way up an 8m vertical ice cube! The UK is rife with opportunities for thrill-seekers and dare-devils of all tastes.

Erin Holley

Words of the Week Dutch: Hello: Hallo Thank you: Dank u Please: Alstublieft Goodbye: Vaarwel

Instagram @taliaalise

attractions and full time support throughout our stay in Indonesia.

We began our trip with three nights in Singapore.

From the Avatar- like Gardens by the Bay to the city’s iconic Marina Bay Sands hotel, the city certainly doesn’t do things by halves. Our hotel was located in the city’s Novena district, an area that we found to be ideal for accessing all the major tourist attractions by metro.

It's easy to see how year after year travellers are seduced by the Balinese lifestyle The highlights of our stay in Singapore has to include The Gardens by the Bay and the Marina Bay Sands light show. Both free of charge, these attractions are a must see for anyone who wants to see the very best of Singapore on a budget. Further must haves include The Art Science Museum and the downtown districts of China Town and Little India. Rich in colour and heritage, they really exhibit the cultural diversity of Singapore and provide an interesting contrast to the city’s sleek skyline.

Following Singapore, we moved on to Bali and spent our first three nights in the beach district of Canggu. A true surfer’s paradise, the district is renowned for providing some of the best waves in the world. Described as the younger, cooler cousin of the more well known town of Seminyak, Canggu is a popular hangout of tourists and locals alike. Offering the perfect combination of culture, a thriving restaurant scene and beach parties that last well into the early hours, it’s easy to see how year after year travellers are seduced by the Balinese lifestyle. Canggu also offers the perfect location to visit some of Bali’s most beautiful temples. For those interested in architecture, a visit to Tanah Lot Temple is a must. Dating back to the 15th century, the temple is constructed on a rock formation in

the middle of the sea and offers tourists the chance to get blessed by a Hindu priest upon visiting.

The tour next moved on to Ubud. Less commercialised than the village of Canggu, here you can get a real sense of the authentic Balinese culture. Whilst in Ubud we participated in a traditional cooking class, visited the rice terraces and took a trip to the famed Monkey Forest.

During our stay we also decided to take part in an organised hike up the nearby active volcano Mount Batur. A one for the early birds, the hike begins at 2 AM and involves a steep uphill climb of 1717m.

Once you reach the top however, the view of the sunrise is unbelievably breath-taking and well worth the dull ache of your hamstring muscles.

The final leg of our tour ended in Gili Trawangan.

Affectionately known by travellers as Gili T, the island is home to crystal blue waters, spectacular sunsets and a famous party scene. Motorised vehicles are banned on this island (only horses and bikes are allowed) so be prepared take a step back in time and embrace a more relaxed way of life.

The laid back daytime vibe is, of course, juxtaposed with the island’s night-time activities; offering beach bars and night clubs in the abundance, the island is perfect for those who want to dance the night away. When in Gili T, snorkelling is a must- if you’re lucky enough, you may even spot some turtles! Saying farewell to our tour group that had quickly become family, we ventured back to Seminyak for our final two days in the Balinese sunshine. Bidding island life goodbye, we reluctantly embarked on our 31 hour journey back to the grey skies of Newcastle, leaving behind a little bit of our hearts in Indonesia.

Instagram @taliaalise

The very best of Berlin Emily Wilkinson gives the low down on what to do in the vibrant and edgy German capital

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egardless if you’re looking for a couple’s destination, or somewhere to party with your lads and lasses, Berlin is definitely in my list of top-rated must-see cities. The German capital has something to please everyone; whether you’re an early bird that loves history and culture, or a night owl who’s more into beer and edgy nightlife, Berlin does not disappoint.

One of my favourite things about this city is its art.

Literally every street is covered in amazing graffiti and posters in such bright colours unlike anything we have at home. On my visit we happened to stumble across the Berlin Wall, the longest openair gallery in the world, along the river between Oberbaumbrucke and Ostbahnof.

I’d recommend having a walk in the evening and trying out some of the city’s cool bars where you HAVE TO sample Berlin’s arguably most famous attribute: it’s beer. Not a particularly big beer drinker at home I thought I’d struggle, but for

anyone like me, I’d definitely recommend giving Berliner Kindl a try.

The efficient and surprisingly cheap German underground made sightseeing easy. From Checkpoint Charlie to the Olympic Stadium, there

There is so much rich culture to immerse yourself in all over the city is so much rich culture and history to immerse yourself in all over the city. If this is not your thing and you want something a little more lighthearted, there is a mirror maze, just around the corner from Checkpoint Charlie (so much fun

after a few drinks) and UV mini golf!

If you really want to see Berlin in its entirety, you can head to the top of the Berliner Fernsehturm, the tallest building in Germany, which conveniently has a restaurant and bar at its viewing point (warning: not recommended if you have a fear of heights!)

The Berlin nightlife is as far as you can get from Flares. The best known, but equally the most clandestine, some clubs stay open for entire weekends, rife with rumour and rules, with some of the most intimidating bouncers in the world. From “you won’t get in anywhere unless you’re wearing black”, to a story we heard that one guy was sent away on the basis that “his Karma smelt bad”, there is no photography allowed inside any of Berlin’s largest club venues which create an exciting air of secrecy. With the best of luck, head to Berghain, Tresor or Watergate for a night out like you’ll never experience anywhere else.

culture What’s on 19

the courier Monday 6 November 2017

student voice

editor.union@ncl.ac.uk thecourieronline.co.uk Culture Editors Zoë Godden and Errol Kerr Student Voice Editor: Alex Hendley

NSR SHOW OF THE WEEK Luke Oddie Tuesdays 12pm-1pm

Newcastle is a busy place, especially for a music fan. Every week Luke Oddie brings together a series of hand picked songs and accompanies it with gig reviews of his own as well as information, locations and dates of the week’s upcoming gigs in and around the city. His rundown of upcoming gigs in the city is not to be missed for any fan of live music.

Luke’s show compiles the biggest and best stories from a week of music news and he brings his own love of music to curate a perfect afternoon playlist. Like many of NSR’s daytime presenters, Luke is the perfect accompaniment to a busy, or perhaps not so busy, university day by proving an informed and well-crafted show with a whole heap of topical music.

STU BREW BEER OF THE WEEK True Wisdom Available now

The latest beer we’re looking at is one for those of you who like to live life a bit differently, to be a bit daring. The sour. These beers are very distinctive both in colour, flavour and aroma, being much sharper and fuller of zesty notes than other beers.

This means that you end up with something that almost electrifies your taste-buds, shocking them into life with a rambunctious punch to the palette. True Wisdom is Stu Brew’s first kettle sour, and was pioneered by former president Sophie Murta. Explaining the name, she said: “The name was based on the fact that ‘wisdom’ is the Greek meaning of ‘Sophie’. It was also based on Socrates’ quote ‘the only true wisdom is to know that you know nothing’, showing that Stu Brew has been continually learning while brewing.”

First the sourness and the sharp citrus hit you, making sure you’re paying attention to what you’re drinking – before the whole thing mellows, and a fragrant sherbet lemon remains, which is complemented by the subtly piney Simcoe hops.

If this seems to be up your street, you can catch it in Luther’s, while stocks last, and if you are interested in joining or working with us you can reach them at contact@stubrew.com or through the NUSU Societies page.

Union University Campaign Society Monday 6 November

8am-12pm Food for Fuel: Breakfast Club Location: Sports Centre 12-2pm Food for Fuel: Veggie Giveaway Location: Oustide NUSU 12-4pm Food for Fuel: Smoothie Bike Location: Oustide NUSU 5-6pm Talk from Frontline CEO Josh MacAlister Location: L1.26, King’s Gate 5.15pm GIAG: Golf Meet: Hatton Gallery 5.30pm Food for Fuel: Talk on our relationship with food from Dr Martin and Dr Woodhouse Location: MLK, L1, NUSU 7.15pm Coast 2 Coast and MSF Pub Quiz Location: Hancock 7.30pm CoppaFeel! Quiz Fundraiser Location: Bar Blanc

Tuesday 7 November

8am-12pm Food for Fuel: Breakfast Club Location: Sports Centre 12pm Table Tennis Location: Venue 1 & 2, NUSU 12-4pm Food for Fuel: Smoothie Bike Location: Oustide NUSU 5pm Catpawcino Cat Cafe Meet: Outside NUSU 6.30pm PolSoc Question Time

POETRY IN ACTION POEM OF THE WEEK ‘This month her depression began.

He obsessed her.

She tied her heart with ribbon like a present, Licking his fingers and kissing his feet.

Words failed her.

She breathed him in like a terrible secret, A childless woman beneath the ivory moon.

But what about his eyes, his eyes, his eyes.

Walking in the Winter trees Were his shadows in the fog.

He was innocent as a lamb.

Sleep, my Angel, Deaf and dumb As the drugged summer sun.

My Love, I want you.’

FOOD FOR FUEL WEEK Monday 6 - Friday 10 November The week is here to help you fit in your five-a-day, with healthy gievaways and nutritional advice.

See the NUSU website for full events.

Wednesday 8 November

8am-12pm Food for Fuel: Breakfast Club Location: Sports Centre 12pm Coast 2 Coast Fundraiser Location: NUSU 12-2pm Food for Fuel: Healthy Giveaway Location: Oustide NUSU 1.30pm Lip Balm Making Location: The Lounge, NUSU 5-6pm We Are Donors Training Session Location: B29, Barbara Strang 5.15pm Mandarin Starter Class Location: LRC, Old Library Building 6.45pm Quilliam’s Tea Tasting Meet: Outside NUSU

Thursday 9 November

9pm Creative Writing Soc Write-In Location: Warkworth Room NUSU 11am Food for Fuel: Grainger Market Visit Meet: Oustide NUSU 12pm The Wandering Hearts, Coffee House Sessions Location: Luther’s, NUSU 12-6pm Vintage Clothes Fair Location: NUSU 5.30pm Vertigo Rock Climbing Meet: Outside NUSU

Friday 10 November

All day Russell Group Roadshow Location: Hadrian Building

Saturday 11 November

3pm Non-League Soc, Jarrow v Roofing v Seaham Red Star Meet: Haymarket, 12pm TBC CoppaFeel! Night Out Fundraiser Meet: Mono

Sunday 12 November 6.30 Qawwali Night Location: Venue, NUSU

Student spotlight COAST 2 COAST FUNDRAISER

Spinathon: Wednesday 8 November

Dan Jordan

Location: Lec 3 Herschel Building 5.15pm GIAG Cookery with Canny Kitchen Meet: Venue, NUSU

What is a spinathon I hear you ask? Is it a terrible play on words? Is this more students finding new and inventive ways to avoid doing actual work in the name of charity? All valid questions! Members of the Coast 2 Coast society along with MSF and Help The Homeless will be attempting our annual spinathon where we will cycle on the spot, continuously for 24 hours outside the SU. We will be starting at 12pm on Wednesday and yes, we will be cycling throughout the night!

Both of our charities are great causes, with MSF supporting people in need of medical help in lesser developed countries and countries in conflict and The People’s Kitchen who help the less fortunate here in Newcastle by giving them food and clothing along with helping them get back on their feet.

So please come and say ‘hi’ (optional) and donate to our amazing charities (not optional).

NEWCASTLE UNI BOOB TEAM

Quiz Night: Monday 6 November

We’re your team on campus spreading the message of breast cancer awareness on behalf of the charity; CoppaFeel!

We have 2 great events coming up this week and we’re hoping to raise a huge amount of money for CoppaFeel! in the process.

Monday 6 November: Join us at Bar Blanc from 7.30pm for our Boobie Pub Quiz. Expect your classic pub quiz rounds and themes, with a boob related twist. We have some fantastic prizes to be won from some of the best spots in town. And what’s even better, your £2 entry money will be going towards helping CoppaFeel! spread the message of breast cancer awareness all across the boobsphere.

Saturday 11 November: Unicorns, boobs, glitter, clubbing? We’ve got your night sorted. Come along and join the fun and frivolity at MONO on Saturday night.

A club night to raise money for our fab cause and have a classic Newcastle night

out in the process.

Our Christmas raffle will be launched at the pub quiz so don’t miss out on winning, we’ve got some fab prizes lined up.

Facebook: Newcastle Uni Boob Team Twitter: @UBTNewcastle Instagram: ubtnewcastle Ellie Collins

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culture music

On Campus Musical Medics

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n the 26th, 27th and 28th of October, the Musical Medics Society performed their take on 9 to 5: The Musical at the Jubilee Theatre in St Nicholas Hospital in Gosforth.

The musical took place seven weeks after the initial auditions back in September, as the cast, crew and band were formed almost entirely of fourth year medicine students.

Though there’s rumours that fourth year medics used to put on a musical back in the 80s and 90s, the BBC reported that the Society has only been in existence since 2010, when they performed Footloose with a group of about 30 people. Since then, the Society’s performances have included Fame: The Musical, Disco Inferno, Sweet Charity, Anything Goes, Cabaret and Pippin.

For those that aren’t familiar with 9 to 5: The Musical, it’s based on the film 9 to 5, from which the famous Dolly Parton hit is the titular theme song. Set in a misogynistic 1970s workplace, the musical follows the story of three women and their experiences in the face of routine sexism.

The show opens with the titular tune, with the character Dolly, portrayed by Joey Gwinnell, introducing the three main characters in turn. The personality of the characters shines through, as Adele Pope’s Judy Burnley comes across as polite and nervous, Shayna Franzetti’s Doralee warm but objectified, and Elish McKenna’s Violet fierce, independent, but tied down with responsibility.

A recent production of 9 to 5 Image: Lewis Palmer

They each have their own interactions with ‘the boss’, Franklin M. Hart Jr., brilliantly brought to life on stage by James Worthington, who appears to not only get away with his everyday sexism, but be triumphed for it. The song ‘Here For You’ encapsulates that, as do the following three psychedelic and somewhat prophetic numbers, during which each of the lead characters conjures up a scenario in which they’d like to give Hart his comeuppance.

Throughout the end of Act I and the start of Act II, the show superbly balances humour with the deeper aspects of the plot. After accidentally poisoning Hart, the three leads kidnap and tie up Hart in his own wardrobe. Within moments of his near escape, Adele Pope belts out a heartfelt rendition of ‘Get Out and Stay Out’, as she casted out her estranged ex-husband.

Special mentions must also go to Jasmine Morrish, who played Hart’s nosy administrative assistant Roz Keith, and Joe Sagar, who played Violet’s love interest Joe. Both smashed their own numbers, and nailed the delivery of their lines, often with comedic value.

Needless to say the musical was a massive success. Everyone in the band, cast and crew seemed to play their part brilliantly. The director Nicole Cripps, musical directors Anna Homes and Jake Hawkyard, producer Bronwyn Woodburn, stage manager Kate Stanton, and the choreographers all did brilliantly.

The Society dedicates all of the proceeds to a certain charity each year. Back in 2010, the beneficiaries were the East End Health Out and About Stroke Club; since then Dementia Care, Divising Psychosis Project, Changing Lives, Mind (in both 2015 and 2016), and now Newcastle Women’s Aid have been the chosen charities.

James Sproston

@MusicalMedics17

@TheCourierMusic

Monday 6 November 2017

Music Industry Fame: Dollar or Determination?

Was Adele rolling in dough before ‘Rolling In The Deep’? Was all Stormzy needed Gang Signs and Prayers? Molly Greeves and Liam Austen look at the two opposing routes to musical stardom - the Brit School and Grime. Which will come out on top?

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The BRIT School

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The Rise of Grime

he BRIT school is the UK’s most well-known music academy and has rom the first hip hop and drum and bass influenced underground launched the careers of some of the biggest pop-stars of all time. But sounds of grime artists in the early 2000s, to the modern day grime is the school an example of a larger class problem within music: peosuperpowers dominating the UK music scene, the genre has always ple paying their way into fame? played a quintessential role in British sub-culture.

Based in London, the BRIT School for Performing Arts and Technology is a However, it is in the last year that grime has begun to cultivate not only a secondary school that teaches students ages 14-19 to dance, sing and act. De- much more significant following, but an important place in mainstream Britspite what many people may think, the BRIT school is the only performance ish culture. arts school in the UK that is free to attend and accepts students based on their application and audition. This being said, 90% of the students that the BRIT Number of grime school accepts must live within the catchment area, the other 10% needing to fans who voted show “unusual merit” to get in.

58%

The BRIT School of Performing Arts and Technology in Croydon Image: Wikimedia Commons

@Courier_Music

the courier

c2.music@ncl.ac.uk Music Editors Toby Bryant, Charlie Isaac & Ally Wilson

1200

Number of students who attend The Brit School

£400, 000

Average price for a house in The BRIT School’s catchment area

So, what’s the issue here? Arguably, there is none. The school is free for anyone to attend. Therefore, you could say that the training required to become the next Adele or Jessie J is accessible to everyone. However, the necessity of living in the catchment area (i.e. living in Borough of Croydon where the housing price is around £400,000) arguably means that the school is only accessible to those whose families are well-off.

Additionally, the process of auditioning children as young as 14 puts a lot of emphasis on children being especially talented from the get-go in order to “make it”. Some of the most successful musicians in the world were really terrible before they started getting better (see Ed Sheeran playing an old song on the Johnathon Ross Show).

But is the phenomenon of parents paying their children into fame exclusive to the BRIT school? Absolutely not. Behind every other mainstream musician is a wealthy parent who paid a pretty penny for them to be there. Miley Cyrus auditioned with her already famous father for her career-launching role in “Hannah Montana”, Ariana Grande’s father is the CEO of Ibi Designs INC. and even Rebecca Black’s parents paid $4000 for the production of the infamous song “Friday”.

This isn’t necessarily an issue. As learnt from Black, just because a parent pays for their child to have fancy singing lessons, access to a recording studio or a place at the BRIT school doesn’t mean they are going to resonate with an audience. On the flip side, a musician having certain short-cuts into the industry doesn’t make them talentless. Whilst Amy Winehouse may have had an advantage from her prestigious place at the BRIT school, it’s hard to listen to “Back to Black” and argue that her success was not well-deserved.

Ultimately, we live in a world where money and status does have an impact on the likelihood of your success in any field. However, money is not the only way in. Whilst there are many mainstream musicians from privileged backgrounds, the impact of YouTube and SoundCloud is making the Justin Bieberstyle success story more and more common. Whilst elitism has and will always exist in the music industry, it is also becoming more and more democratic.

Hard-work and talent can never be bought.

Labour in 2017

300,000

Number of views of Corbyn’s interview with JME

Not only are artists such as Skepta, Stormzy, JME and AJ Tracey becoming part of our national identity in terms of their musical exploits, these figures are beginning to partake in the political conversation of our country.

The 2017 parliamentary elections saw a massive upsurge in the youth involvement in political discussion. Social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter have facilitated a nationwide connection between young people and the bigger issues of the day.

Traditionally, politics in Britain has been an area of culture occupied by older generations. The youth, along with the politically disenfranchised, have never really had a voice in the mainstream media. However, this has changed with the increasing popularity of Labour Party Leader, Jeremy Corbyn, who has spearheaded a movement towards youth inclusion in politics.

One of the main methods Corbyn h a s used to target this emergent teen and young adult political demographic is through music, and in doing so has earned the endorsement of some huge names in UK culture.

Performing speeches to the young, wide eyed and inspired music fans at Glastonbury Festival, as well as appearing alongside the Libertines in Merseyside in May of this year, Corbyn has proven that he is willing to explore alternative ways to help give young voters a political voice.

Perhaps Corbyn himself even underestimated the effect this outreach may have had, as the likes of JME and Stormzy began to support the Labour leader with the social media campaign “#Grime4Corbyn”. Both JME and Stomzy appear on the list of most streamed Grime artists on Spotify in 2016, meaning that this integration between the electoral candidate and UK Grime culture reached a vast number of fans.

A Ticketmaster press release reported that 58% of grime fans voted for Labour in the general election, with 24% saying that the #Grime4Corbyn twitter campaign influenced their vote. Appearing in a viral video interview in May alongside JME, Corbyn generated over 300,000 views on the J-D magazine youtube channel, a popular media outlet amongst young members of UK subculture.

Regardless of political persuasion, age or interest, and no matter whether your musical influences are a little more Beethoven than Bugzy Malone, it must be said that Corbyn’s youth focus through music is a step in the right direction, and can hopefully pave the way for the recognition of music and its power to communicate even the most important of issues.

the courier

Monday 6 November 2017

Glasshouse Jessie Ware

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or years I had heard of Jessie Ware, be it in passing on the radio, in conversation or elsewhere. I’d never, however, actually sat down and listened to an album of hers all the way through. Having just done that several times for her newly released Glasshouse, I’m now even more confused about her popularity than before.

After a three year hiatus, Jessie Ware seems to have little to show for it.

It’s not that it’s bad, exactly. That would almost have been better perhaps; a truly bad album can at least be entertaining in other ways, if for example it’s so bad it’s funny. This album, however, is just earth-shatteringly bland.

Despite this, the opening track, ‘Midnight’, is a good start; Ware’s soulful vocals course over a jazzy chord sequence. There are also some great backup vocals that build to an anthemic final chorus.

Don’t get too used to it though.

This is one of only a

Images: Wikipedia & Line of Best Fit

All These Countless Nights (Reworked) Deaf Havannah

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n January of this year, Deaf Havana released top 5 album All These Countless Nights; 9 months on, ahead of their UK tour, they have released a reworked version of the album – essentially a recreation of the songs. Deaf Havana are not one to shy away from this, as they have always been keen to experiment in their music.

This album seems like a completely new invention. Songs such as ‘Sing’ and ‘L.O.V.E’ have been reinvented from energetic rock to folk-y pop songs, comparable to Jason Mraz. The introduction of strings provides a lot more depth to the music, particularly evident in album opener ‘Ashes, Ashes’.

Overall, as far as deluxe albums go this is something special; the band have showed their musical reaches in multiple ways. This is a re-release worth listening to.

However, some of the songs lack any real invention. The reworked version of ‘Happiness’ stands out in this respect; you could easily mistake it for the original as the musical ideas added are very tame - it almost seems a bit far-fetched to be called a rework.

So what is the motive behind Deaf Havana’s reworked music? In a documentary produced about the making of their third album Old Souls, lead singer James Vecki-Giloudi talked of how most of the band’s songs are layered, so it is very easy to take a song back to one layer and rebuild it in a different way. In an interview with Kerrang about the reworked release Vecki-Giloudi stated that “I tried to get as far away from the original tracks as we could.”

Many tracks feature the Prague Philharmonic Orchestra, which can put songs in a whole new light. Vecki Giloudi stated “we really want fans to buy something worth spending their money on.”

Given the motives of the band, it seems not just an opportunity to grab a few extra bucks. It is likely we will see some of these reworked songs on their UK tour next month.

Tom Cox

@CourierMusic thecourieronline.co.uk/music

To...

No Wave

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‘First Time’ is the album’s most successful shot at emotional profundity ticks off the raw emotional closing song cliché, and about as well as you’d expect, with the only silver lining being that this nasty cash grab of an album has ended.

Jessie Ware’s latest effort, or lack thereof, will probably bore even her staunchest fans. The instrumentation is plain and forgettable whilst the song writing is lazy to the point where it feels cynical. The only exceptions are the singles that pop up to provide life support, which defeats the point of even making an album in the first place. Whilst it isn’t terrible, Glasshouse is as uninteresting as it gets.

Max Hobbs

Editor’s Picks

E

ach week, The Courier’s Music Editors are working with Newcastle Student Radio to bring you the best new tracks from the week before...

Beck

A

fter the huge success of Morning Phase in 2014, this year on October 13th, Beck released his 13th creation: Colors.

This album left me with a more negative impression the more I listened to it. First of all, the album has 11 tracks; not that many, but as a whole it felt like one long, very boring song. The only break from it is in the middle and at the end in a form of ‘Dreams’, which I like because of funky beat and catchy chorus, but nothing else. And yes, this track is placed TWICE on the album, in two, only slightly different versions.

Not memorable or touching in any way, just dissapointing The vague title of the album might suggest a whole spectrum of music, something new and original in the terms of lyrics and production, but no. My impression is that Beck’s understanding of “colors” somehow resulted in lively, incredibly traditional pop music for this album and nothing beside it. It’s not memorable or touching in any way, just disappointing.

I can sum it up by saying this: ‘Morning Phase’ won a Grammy back in 2015 because of its originality, meanwhile the most original part of this new album is the design. So not even a part of the album itself.

Fun fact: this amazing cover was created by graphic artist and director Jimmy Turrell. His exhibition Unforsaken (Part 1) will be available, for anyone further interested, this year at the “Northern Design Festival” (3-8 November) at The Assembly House in Newcastle.

Eloise Doherty

by Callum Costello

ou don’t just stumble upon no-wave. Before the advent of Wikipedia-ing, before Amazon gave the world access to all music, you’d of only crossed paths with no-wave if you lived in a certain time and place. Specifically New York, Lower East Side, in the late ‘70s during the economic downturn and societal breakdown post-Vietnam and ‘Summer of Love’.

This album is just earth-shatteringly bland

Color

music culture

A Love Letter

handful of good tracks tactically scattered through the album’s listing to try and keep the whole thing together, being about as effective as intermittent life support.

The next two tracks, ‘Thinking About You’ and ‘Stay Awake, Wait for Me’ are where the mindnumbing begins. There isn’t much to say for them other than they are forgettable. The former has some interesting harmonies at points, but that’s sort of it.

This lull is broken by track four, ‘Your Domino’.

Some great synthesised textures are paired with grooving guitars and danceable percussion. It is also one of the melodic high-points of the album, having some of the catchier hooks.

The next few tracks keep this momentum going, with some Spanish-influenced electric guitars on ‘Selfish Love’ adding refreshing character to what has otherwise been a very paint-by-numbers project. There is also the album’s most successful shot at emotional profundity with the song ‘First Time’.

The second half of the record, however, is horribly boring. ‘Hearts’ is easily the worst track of the album, proving dull and generic even by Glasshouse’s standards. The chords are terrible and the melody is instantly forgettable; a song of heartbreak that’s depressing for all the wrong reasons.

It is this latter half of the record that shows what it truly is; an album of fillers propped up by singles, and with no singles left, the whole thing gradually dissipates like a damp fart. The final track, ‘Sam’,

21

‘Love You So Bad’ Ezra Furman I stumbled across this track as a complete accident. It’s far from what I normally listen to but there’s a really quirky, almost retro, vibe to Chicago-born singer Ezra Furman’s new single. I just can’t stop playing it!

Toby Bryant, The Courier ‘Always Ascending’ Franz Ferdinand Who knew these guys were still around? This single has the familiar Franz funky guitar riff and catchy chorus that we’ve all missed since our early teen years. More of the same, really, but a good throwback to high school house parties.

Ally Wilson, The Courier ‘Crumbling Castles’ King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard Clocking in at a whopping 10 minutes, ‘Crumbling Castles’ contains a little bit of everything that has made King Gizzard one of the most exciting rock acts of the decade. Of course, there’s also a brilliantly trippy music video to go with it.

Charlie Isaac, The Courier ‘Queens Speech 7’ Lady Leshurr If you’ve not heard Lady Leshurr before, please note that there are 6 amazingly individual ‘Queen’s Speeches’ prior to this 7th instalment. In this most recent single, she raps about Brexit, Gun Control, and Big Shaq.

Meg Smith, NSR ‘Push Button Age’ Sugarmen When I saw the Sugarmen live at SoundCity 2016, I was instantly a fan of their music and was excited to see what they were going to do next.

‘Push Button Age’ puts a modern twist on the post punk sound of the 70s.

Amy Woods, NSR Hear the Editors’ Picks first, as well as all the latest music news, reviews and gossip on NSR’s Music Show, Wednesdays at 4pm.

I wasn’t around then. I tracked down no-wave in a particularly lengthy Wikipedia binge during my first serious infatuation with Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. I was looking up past work by individual band members - The Birthday Party (Nick’s preBad Seeds band), Dirty Three (Warren Ellis’ first group) and a band in which drummer Jim Sclavunos was involved called Teenage Jesus & the Jerks.

Initially I thought all three bands were shit - particularly Teenage Jesus. A few years later though, during another Bad Seeds deep dive, I listened again and really got into the other two - but still couldn’t wrap my head around Teenage Jesus & the Jerks. What was this rubbish? How could the guy who was in Sonic Youth, The Cramps and The Bad Seeds make such a crap racket? I decided I needed to persist - to really expose my ears to violent noise.

They were young, angry and abandoned Fast forward half a decade, and I realise what a glorious farce it actually is. No-wave was a reaction to two things: firstly to New Wave and New Wave Punk, where they decided to deconstruct the genre. Secondly, it was a response to the abandonment of the Lower East Side during the New York bankruptcy. Imagine making art in the world of Martin Scorsese’s Taxi Driver; they were young, angry and abandoned, but also empowered with violent frustration to make some noise about their situation And noise was certainly made; artists such as Lydia Lunch and Richard Hell experimented with a reactionary sound, and bands such as Mars, DNA and James Chance & The Contortions created a sound that reflected the society it existed within By the early eighties, no-wave was gone - flushed out by the new-new wave and the gentrification of bohemian New York. Its influence persists however; bridging the noise timeline between The Velvet Underground and Sonic Youth, as well as inspiring the likes of LCD Soundsystem and The Rapture.

No-wave is a reduction of the form to its basest, and a reaction to society at its most artistic.

Newcastle Student Radio: nsrlive.co.uk @NSRlive

22

culture TV

the courier

c2.tv@ncl.ac.uk TV Editors Jacob Clarke, Joel Leaver & Alex Moore

Monday 6 November 2017

Did we really need a white ‘Week as a Muslim’?

In this heated post-Brexit climate, Errol Kerr asks; was Channel 4’s controversial documentary on Islam insensitive or insightful?

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hannel 4, well-known for their short documentaries providing insight into communities and groups, is facing some serious backlash for their most recent doc, My Week as a Muslim. The premise of this documentary was to pick out a white woman who was initially quite opposed to the concept of the hijab, pop her in a hijab for a week, and see how her perceptions changed.

Before I get into the more fun part, I’ll review it.

Was it a decent documentary? Yes. Would I watch it again? Probably not, it’s no Louis Theroux piece.

Was it insightful? Should you know little of the awful situations that British Muslims experience every day, I’d say so.

She was placed in situations that are reported as the norm by Muslims across the UK Could you have just Googled it and read some articles or a few pieces by actual Muslims and got the same experience? Most definitely.

Channel 4’s little concept makes sense, I suppose.

Put a person who is on one side of an argument in the shoes of the person they speak against and see how they feel by the end of it. Thing is, this is televised, and there are literally millions of Muslim women in the UK, many of whom wear hijab, who Channel 4 could have followed. Katie Freeman, the white woman Channel 4 followed, was placed in situations that are reported as the norm by Muslims across the UK – bombing jokes, shouting and insults, amongst other racist and Islamophobic actions.

Issues arose when Freeman was made up and prosthetics were applied to her nose, alongside her wearing hijab. Discussions around “brownface” arose, and the question was asked: Why not just… ask a Muslim about their week as a Muslim? Which is, you know, every damn week? Comments on Twitter have commented on how the oppression

of Muslims doesn’t exist until experienced through the eyes of white people, as well as the offence that would have been felt had Channel 4 done this for, say, gender or disability.

Channel 4 wanted to “try something different” in

Why not just... ask a Muslim about their week as a Muslim, which is every damn week? this without asking why it hadn’t been done before, or why there might be some problems with placing white people in the shoes of people of colour rather than just listening to people of colour. Did the documentary work in what it wanted to do?

That could be argued. Could you have done better?

I could probably find a tweet thread or blog post from a Muslim woman that covered this mini documentary from the perspective of those who face it every day. I feel that would probably be better.

I fear it’s endemic, though, of TV representation

500%

The reported increase in hate crimes against Muslims since the Manchester bombings on the 22nd of May 2017.

of marginalised groups. When it comes to TV, whether it’s a documentary, fictional TV series or non-fiction, representation of Muslims in the UK is poor at best, awful at worst. Stereotyping and typecasting is rife when it comes to Muslim actors - in the same way as disabled characters are often

there to score pity points with an audience, Muslims are often shoved into the ‘terrorist’ box.

This could have been a perfect opportunity to change this environment, to offer Muslims another high-profile chance to show the world what they experience. Instead, Channel 4 might have just shot themselves in the foot with this. Which is a shame - Channel 4’s documentary series is usually pretty damned good, and this one’s just outright disappointed me. And, I’d imagine, many other Muslims - those I’ve spoken to are just as outraged as I am. That many unhappy voices aren’t likely to be wrong.

Image: YouTube

Fozia Khan

Images: YouTube

Katie Freeman, before and after her transformation, which involved the use of make-up; a prosthetic nose; prosthetic teeth and brown contact lenses.

The show’s producer defended the use of ‘brownface’, saying it was designed to “inform and promote understanding between communities, not to caricature them.”

She also supported the controversial decision of following a white, nonmuslim woman rather than a muslim woman, stating that the latter “has been done before and we wanted to try something different.”

Image: Huffpost

The Great TV License Debate

2017: Suited and Re-booted

Phoebe Griffiths explores legality, morality and TV Licenses

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y attempting to crack down on TV license dodgers, the BBC have now made it so you need a registered email address and password to watch online shows. To many of us, this news is just downright annoying. We grew up in the digital age, where if we randomly want to re-watch Drake & Josh, no questions asked, for free, we can. I think we’d be lying if any us here said we didn’t know how to go about illegally downloading or streaming.

So, when we’re trying focus on the intense showstoppers on Bake Off but we can’t seem to shake off an underlying fear of being caught and smacked in the face with a huge fine, we’re annoyed. I mean, the cheek of it.

But, what If I were to tell you there are two sides to the licensing fee. Some argue that the licensing fee keeps the BBC ad-free and independent, which are two very positive things. Also, the BBC needs funding so if they were to scrap it, they would have to replace it with a new heavily commercialised system, or worse, a subscription fee. As it stands, we have to pay £147 a year or £12.15 monthly, if we want to be on the right side of the law. Which isn’t even that much if you’re sharing it with your housemates.

LICENSE INCOME In the 2016-2017 period, the total income from TV licenses was nearly £4 billion. This comprised 76.4% of the BBC’s income for the period.

Image: Wikipedia

However, many students own subscriptions to Netflix or Amazon Prime and only ever so often watch anything by the BBC, so is it fair that they have to pay the full, whopping £147, simply because they’re a fan of Strictly Come Dancing? Many students, perfectly innocently, just forget, and blissfully continue catching up on their favourite shows. Is it fair that they could be fined up to a

maximum of £1000? There are of course grey areas, and not all parts of the enforced licensing fee are fair.

It also seems kind of silly that some of the money of the fee you pay goes towards catching others out, probably not much, but still, not cool. The use of linking o n l i n e dodgers with their email isn’t even fool p r o o f , as many Image: Flickr people have at least one ‘throw away email’ or can simply stream shows on online catch up sites.

It should be said, however, that the BBC does do great work. It is the envy of other nations and the BBC often make attempts at being progressive risk takers. This is down to opinion, but can you really rely on the other channels to bring such a variety of content? Even the side ventures such as BBC Three provided us with Stacey Dooley’s critical documentaries to unheard of/up and coming comedians to Sun, Sex and Suspicious Parents.

Even now, since it’s gone online, it is still producing interesting things, for example the mini-series adapted from an award-winning play on Anorexia (Overshadowed).

We have to pay £147 a year if we want to be on the right side of the law” So if paying the fee keeps the BBC independent, progressive and ad-free, I guess it’s not so bad.

That said, nothing will probably ever stop me from complaining about a mandatory fee.

Amy Gildert shares her opinion on 2017’s TV reboot problem

017 has been a busy year for the reboot.

Beauty and the Beast was back in cinemas, Crash Bandicoot is out for PlayStation, and the Crystal Maze is back on TV. A surge in nostalgia has producers in a frenzy, making reboots that no one asked for. When it comes to television reboots, successful endeavours are few and far between, and I can’t help but want to tell these producers that sometimes just because you can, doesn’t mean you should.

POWERPUFF GIRLS As part of the reboot a fourth Powerpuff Girl was added. Although praised for being one of few BAME cartoon characters, Bliss was met with mixed reviews from fans.

Image: YouTube

The problem with reboots comes when they are mindlessly churned out in pursuit of cash grabbing. A reboot with no changes flops because it is just a lesser version of the show we have already seen. There has been an increase lately in rebooted animated shows, such as Duck Tales, Teen Titans, and The Powerpuff Girls. Each of these shows draw off the nostalgia of the 90’s and 00’s to lure in viewers. This surge in reboots does pose the question of originality, and whether or not relying on nostalgia is enough to justify the recycling of material as opposed to creating new shows. Very few reboots live past the initial interest that is given to it by nostalgia.

When it comes to television reboots, successful endeavours are few and far between However having said that, there are instances where a reboot can breathe life into an old or

forgotten show. Doctor Who for example, is a perfect example of this. The original series ended in 1989, and came back to the BBC in 2005. When it came back, it brought with it new directors, a new production team, and a younger cast that mirrored the direction they would take the show.

The reboot managed to keep the tone of Old Who whilst simultaneously bringing a new and interesting take on the beloved show.

I can’t help but want to tell these producers that just because you can, doesn’t mean you should A good reboot is a difficult thing to make, keeping the familiar tone of the original but making enough changes to bring it in to its modern setting in an interesting way. And although there are a few cases of reboots being more popular than their source material, it appears that successful reboots remain in the minority.

9.9m

The return of Doctor Who with the 2005 episode ‘Rose’ saw over 43% (9.9 million) of the available TV audience tune in.

@thecouriertv @Courier_TV

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@CourierTV thecourieronline.co.uk/tv

Monday 6 November 2017

23

TV culture

The Doctor’s companions: who’s chasing Who? Throwback: Sex, Sian Dickie shares her views on the odd casting for Doctor Who’s three newest companions Over the years several companions have been in and out of the TARDIS but I have never been so curious to see the companion that would be accompanying Jodie Whittaker, the first woman to take on the role of The Doctor since the show began in 1963.

Matt Smith was pretty successful with the combination of couple, Amy and Rory. However Amy was always considered a companion in her own right, before her fiancé set foot in the TARDIS. Despite this, it was announced that Jodie would be acting alongside three people: quiz show host, Bradley

Walsh, and new talents, Mandip Gill and Tosin Cole.

Blue Planet II BBC One

Gordon Ramsay On Cocaine ITV

Reviews

40.79%

A Radio Times poll found that over 40% of readers were excited by the announcement of Jodie Whittaker becoming the first female Doctor.

What I question is why the writers of Doctor Who feel it necessary to add all these extra talents into the show, while we are just starting to get to know our new Doctor. I like the aspect of new talent, since I haven’t seen any of Mandip and Tosin’s work, I look forward to finding out about their characters and how they’ll play the role. They also add some much needed diversity into the show, which has only had three companions that are people of colour: Mickey, Martha and most recently Bill.

The most talked about casting is of course Bradley Walsh who is most well-known out the group.

The 57 year old is only comparable to past regu-

lars like Bernard Cribbins or Catherine Tate, who played Wilfred Mott and Donna Noble. This was a very successful casting as we got to see The Doctor interact with an older actor and a comedian.

This showed a more sympathetic side of them but also demonstrated that a companion can be just as quick witted. I feel like Bradley will keep up with the rest of the group by showing his comedic side much like Tate did in David Tennant’s era.

Image: BBC

Robot Wars BBC 2

Drugs and the Surreal: Nineties Cartoons

Callum Costello delves into the 1990s animated surreality

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Open your eyes Morty!” In a time of cartoon renaissance it feels fitting to throwback to a time where warped realities and moralities were a staple of television animation. In the nineties there were a slew of debauched and surreal cartoons populating primetime television that paved the way for modern day classics such as Rick and Morty, Bojack Horseman, Archer and Bob’s Burgers. From the counterculture of MTV, to the goofiness of Cartoon Network through to the experimental weirdness of Nickelodeon, we can retrospectively appreciate what a golden chapter in the history of animation the decade was.

Image: YouTube

Image: YouTube

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avid Attenborough could describe someone making a cup of tea to me and I’d still think it was the most amazing sight to ever grace my screen. The long-awaited release of Blue Planet II led to a whole nation overwhelmed with love and fascination of surfing dolphins, leaping Manta rays and Attenborough himself, with the show getting chart-topping ratings higher than Strictly and a peak of 10.6 million viewers.

In comparing the show to it’s predecessor, Blue Planet, what amazed me is how much more advanced the technology of this series was. It only feels like a mere few years have passed since the last season of Blue Planet aired, and it shocked me to realise it was in fact 13 years ago. What isn’t surprising is that it’s taken this many years to produce a second series. With the show’s filming adding up to 6,000 hours of underwater footage, the series has taken care and craft to produce, which definitely shows.

National Treasure to National Treasury?

Attenborough recently topped a YouGov poll of who Britons would like to see on the new £20 note, beating JMW Turner with 40% of the vote.

Image: Johann Edwin Heupel (flickr)

But it’s not only the stunning shots and brightly coloured funny faced fish that make Blue Planet so great. Throughout the show Attenborough regularly reminds us that this planet and our oceans will only be so fascinating and beautiful as long as we preserve them. It is a show that both entertains and informs us of the wonders of the ocean and how necessary it is for us to preserve it.

The show’s filming adds up to 6,000 hours of underwater footage

A particular favourite moment of this first episode had to be what we thought was a False Killer Whale versus Dolphin chase, which turned into two bunches of old friends chatting and joining forces. Occurrences like these are fascinating ones which millions of people who watch the show would never find out about without it.

So thank you, Blue Planet - we owe you big time.

Carys Thomas

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Image: YouTube

oca leaves. Cement. Sulphuric and battery acids. Petrol. Top it off with a bit of bicarbonate of soda, and you have cocaine.

Was seeing this process onscreen the most shocking part of the documentary, or was seeing Chef Gordon Ramsay himself – so adamantly against the substance – dip his finger into the cocainewater and have a taste? The title of this two-part documentary certainly may have conjured a different mental image to the actuality of the story (some viewers were ‘disappointed’ to find out that two hours of ITV’s time were not dedicated to showing the celebrity chef on a cocaine-fuelled rampage) but nevertheless, seeing Ramsay go from cosy, inner city London to the ‘near-warzone’ Honduras still makes for interesting television.

Without context, it seems almost random that Gordon Ramsay would make a documentary on cocaine. However, it has deeply personal connotations for him. After losing one of his head chefs, and best friends, to a cocaine-fuelled accident in 2003, Ramsay sought to investigate the extent to which the drug was used in his industry; particularly his own restaurants.

Without context, it seems random that Gordon Ramsay would make a documentary on cocaine Unsurprisingly, cocaine usage is rampant – not just within busy industries, but in the UK alone.

We now consume around 300 tonnes of the stuff per year, which is one of the highest in the world.

Despite the law’s best efforts, more and more of the drug is making its way to the UK each year, via illicit gangs in South America. Supply and demand …a member of a drug cartel in Honduras tells Ramsay that there is little option for a lot of people; massive unemployment means that the drug trade is often the only way a family can even begin to prosper.

There is a lot of sympathy on Ramsay’s behalf for the disaffected – both the users and the suppliers. It’s a tough issue to tackle, we’re all sure of that. Nevertheless, if you see the documentary and swear off the stuff – Gordon will be happy.

Emma Brady

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Image: YouTube

hree. Two. One. Activate! BBC One’s Robot Wars is back with its usual silliness for the third series since the show’s revival in 2016. The dynamic duo of Dara O’Briain and Angela Scanlon do a fine job in bringing some order as six teams and their handmade robots commence for battle each week for a place in the season’s grand finale.

In episode one, there’s some familiar faces for Robot Wars fans, with season one winner ‘Apollo’ jumping back in the ring, as well the as all-time unlucky ‘Behemoth’ who hopes to finally find glory after a career of failed attempts.

Of course the methods of victory remain the same: being flipped out of the arena, being sent down the ‘Pit of Doom’, or simply being left ‘immobilised’. Roboteers also have to avoid fire, spikes and the often-rogue ‘House Robots’ as they navigate the arena floor.

Match Of The Day commentator Jonathan Pierce is the only survivor from the original show’s crew and that’s because he lives and breathes Robot Wars. I honestly believe he enjoys doing this more than live Premier League football. He probably sleeps in his commentary position. He is Robot Wars.

New features come in this third series in the way of the ‘Fog of War’ — an impenetrable mist that descends on the arena when activated — as well as a brutal ten-way fight.

‘Team Sabretooth’ claim to have spent a whopping £8000...

But while this may all sound like fun and games (and the perfect Saturday morning hangover TV), the competitors are taking it far more seriously. In episode one, ‘Team Sabretooth’ claim to have spent a whopping £8000! Need I remind you that’s almost a full year’s worth of university? Speaking of which, it is medical student James who is the highlight of the opening episode. He enters the scene with his amusingly named ‘Donald Thump’, outfitted with a ‘Make Robot Wars Great Again’ cap, and a tragically poor impression.

With Robot Wars you know what you’re getting: crashes, bashes and Jonathan Pierce getting far, far too excited. It’s not everyone’s cup of tea, and it probably grabs a quite different audience to the Great British Bake Off. But you’ll be hard-pressed to find anything else on TV quite like it.

Sebastian Ward

First, MTV, who before the reality television era was determined to carve their corner of the market out by experimenting with programming that fit with its aesthetic. In the early nineties they put out avant-garde classic Aeon Flux; a dystopian thriller that cashed in on the breakout success of anime juggernaut Akira. A few years later MTV struck gold with Mike Judge’s Beavis and Butt-Head - a subversive and juvenile reflection of the emerging grunge culture. Beavis and Butt-Head became a cornerstone of the MTV programming and image for the rest of the decade as well as popularising an animation style that would be imitated and explored for years to come. Credit due also to later decade hit Daria which was ahead of its time in both style and content.

A surreal masterpiece, its style and risqué humour opened the market for cartoon content.

Before Beavis and Butt-Head though, there was Nickelodeon’s The Ren and Stimpy Show. As much an anomaly now as it was at the time, Ren and Stimpy found a place in Nickelodeon’s programming despite being favoured by older audiences.

A surreal masterpiece, it’s style and risqué humour opened the market for cartoon content aimed at those between the early morning and late night age brackets. Nick would continue to invest in alternative animated content for years after, and are too often overlooked despite having the likes of Rocko’s Modern Life, and CatDog. King of nineties animated entertainment though is undoubtably Cartoon Network, who launched a litany of classics in the second half of the decade including Dexter’s Laboratory, Cow and Chicken, The Powerpuff Girls, Johnny Bravo, I Am Weasel, Ed, Edd n Eddy and Courage the Cowardly Dog all cartoon greats that defined the television childhood of a generation whilst finding appreciation amongst older audiences too. They refined the experimentation and style of their competitors to create highly polished and successful programming that nearly twenty years later still holds up as both quality entertainment and gorgeous art. They, along with the work of MTV and Nickelodeon, laid the groundwork in contemporary animation which made it easy for older audiences to fall for the Rick’s and Morty’s of this world. Those suffering a post R&M hangover could do far worse than revisiting some of these classics.

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culture film

c2.film@ncl.ac.uk Film Editors Helena Buchanan, Dan Haygarth & Christopher Wilkinson

Golden Oldies Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)

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his is the greatest western ever made. Not Unforgiven, not The Magnificent Seven, not even The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. But Butch Cassidy is not just a brilliant western, it’s a fantastic buddy movie, beautiful drama, epic biopic, and it’s brilliantly funny as well.

Made in 1969, when the genre was falling out of favour with audiences, director George Roy Hill brought together Paul Newman (Butch Cassidy) and Robert Redford (Sundance) for one more cinematic venture into the Wild Wild West, and later, Bolivia. The story follows the two titular outlaws as they rob trains in America and banks in Bolivia, always with the heat of the law just around the corner.

“You think ya used enough dynamite there Butch?”

The Sundance Kid The first scene is tinted sepia and, in typical western style, there’s a saloon, a card game, and a stand-off. From here the action kicks off and the film never drags.

The scenes that are sparse of gunfights and robberies are packed with sharp dialogue between the antiheroes, both of whom are genuinely funny characters and not the painfully obvious comic relief of lesser movies (see Three Amigos).

One of my favourite scenes in this film comes when both wit and action are combined. Butch loads a train carriage up with dynamite with the intention of blowing open a safe. ‘That ought to do it’ he says as he detonates the explosives and, in Italian Job style, blows up half the train, knocking himself and Butch off their feet in the process.

Sundance then asks, ‘You think ya used enough dynamite there, Butch?’

There’s also a subtle love plot that for once doesn’t take over the story, but does mean that guys can suggest this film for a cute movie night with their significant other. And although the romantic theme remains firmly in the background, Katharine Ross fits the role of Sundance’s lover, Etta perfectly. She’s sexy, mysterious, and always up for a bit of daylight robbery.

There’s a saloon, a card game and a stand off What puts this movie up there above the other great westerns is the stuff between the shootouts and the card games. The three protagonists are lovable rogues because they have fun together in every sequence, be it with wise cracks or the newly discovered bicycle. This is also what makes the final scene such a gut punch and one of the most iconic moments in all cinema history.

Steven Ross

Image: Flickr.com

the courier Monday 6 November 2017

Don’t need an erection for the art of direction

Joe Holloran looks at the lack of female directors in Hollywood. Are women talentless props only worth decorating the arms of more eminent men at the awards? Or something else...

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n the 86 years since the birth of the Oscars, only four women have ever been nominated for Best Director. Of those four only one, Kathryn Bigelow, has won. The winning film for Mrs Bigelow was 2008 The Hurt Locker, a highoctane modern war drama. So, we must ask, how is it that of the hundreds of directors nominated over the years so few have been nominated?

It is not the case that over the years women haven’t produced enough quality to warrant a nomination. Lizze Borden’s Born in Flames (1983), Marzieh Meshkini The Day I Became A Women (2000) and Ida Lupino’s ground-breaking Outrage!

(1950) all won awards at other festivals both in the US and in Europe.

So, perhaps the problem is the Academy of Arts & Sciences itself.

The nominees and winners are chosen from a wide range of retired professionals from the industry, over 6000 in total. The nominees themselves often have a say in who the judges should be. This all sounds positive, surely not all are like-minded and hegemonic in thought. Well according to The Economist, 94% of these judges are white and an incredible 77% are male. Therein lies the problem.

I do not think that these judges and the Academy is pro-actively misogynistic. It is simply just an echo-chamber of tradition.

Most of the ex-professional judges are white and male, most of the current professionals are white and male, therefore the pool of nominees are going to come from what this group determines to be the most worthy.

A few years ago, the Twittersphere was set ablaze with #OscarSoWhite trending worldwide for several days, with film goers around the world calling for action to be taken to recognize the efforts of ethnic minorities in the industry. The same campaign is needed for women, but it needs to go further than that.

There is no overnight solution, but there are clear

Image: Wikimedia Commons steps that can be taken immediately to help set things right.

Perhaps the problem is the Academy itself?

One is a form of affirmative action. From now on all Oscars judging groups must be equal proportioned 50/50 men and women. Another idea is to force the Academy to nominate at least one female director every year, I don’t believe that this approach will work as every future female director nominee will be accused of tokenism.

I think the answer has more to do with fears for the box-office than anything else. Female directors still have the reputation for creating emotional, dialogue driven films of the Sofia Coppola model.

These films may receive critical acclaim, but they seldom enjoy big opening weekends at the box-office. Hollywood studios need to be willing to produce films by women that span all genres, as this year’s Wonder Woman has shown, actionadventure is not something that only the boys can do.

Until the other studios learn from Warner Bros. and Patty Jenkins, do not expect things to progress in La La Land, it is a land of business first, art second.

We Are The Weirdos: Female-led horror shorts

Isobel Clark visited the Tyneside for a night of Horror shorts from female directors. Will they satisfy both feminist tendencies and a lust for horror? Are the two mutually exclusive?

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orror in general, has fascinated and thrilled me since I was young, yet from a female viewpoint, it becomes increasingly irritating to see in film after film, women sexualised, tortured and forced to play the victim by middle aged, white, male directors.

Therefore, I was immediately excited when I saw We Are The Weirdos, a screening of short horror films directed by women and starring women.

As the films commence, I’m immediately drawn in by the aesthetically pleasing The Puppet Man and it only goes up from here.

Amelia M o s e s’s Undress M e where w e

Image: Wikimedia Commons

see our protagonist peel off her skin in gory detail, gives me a feeling I’ve never quite experienced before when watching a horror: complete discomfort in my own skin, suddenly my body doesn’t feel at ease in any position and I’m itching to move.

But of course, this is exactly what it’s meant to do, and I’m left impressed at the physical effect the film has on me.

Sorry We’re Closed stood out to be to me as the most ‘feminist’ film, with the roles clearly reversed, as a lady running a diner poisons sleazy male customers to then serve up their body as burger meat- Sweeney Todd style.

Humorous and brilliantly produced- this held a charm that many professional feature horrors rarely hold.

Natasha Austin-Green’s Dead. Tissue.

Love shocked the audience with hesitant applause at the credits. The films that make people unsure whether they should be applauding are always my favourite. We are given the ‘normal’ sounding voice of a young British girl discussing her life as a Necrophile, and how it feels to be demonised by society. This was paired with close-up shots of cells, feasting insects, and calm, breath-taking woodland nature.

This was not a typical horror film as the script was the main attraction, yet with these words the audience were left shocked and speechless than.

The more light-hearted films like Shortcut, Shortcut I Want You Inside Me, Me and Pulse, gave us room to breathe between the more serious horrors, whilst still being brilliantly put together, and thought provoking underneath the

comical tone.

A personal highlight was Suraya Raja’s Don’t Think of a Pink Elephant. We are introduced to a quirky animated world, where young girl Leila and her brother are left home alone, where Leila’s mind takes her to places she doesn’t want to go every time she sees a sharp object.

Films which make people unsure whether they should be applauding are my favourite The fear here came from knowing that Leila is not a bad person: she is normal, humorous, likable, but her gruesome mind taunts her to the point where she is out of control of her own actions.

Although certain films still leaned towards the female roles being subordinate, the knowledge that we were watching female directed films, a rare occurrence in the cinema world, was very gratifying.

Anna and Olivia, the faces behind The Final Girls, managed to inspire, intrigue, and most importantly scare us, and they did so with complete professionalism.

If the night told me anything, it told me that the future of horror truly is female.

NATASHA AUSTIN-GREEN Based in Bristol, Austin-Green has a growing reputation as an experimental, documentary filmmaker. Her film Dead.

Tissue.Love follows her first film, At The End of The Tunnel, which dissected societal views on menstruation, providing a platform for a diverse range of women to talk through their experiences

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Monday 6 November 2017

Thor: Ragnarok

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Breathe (15)

Image: Youtube

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Image: Vimeo style romp, he has created a film that is incredibly funny, fast-paced and as entertaining as any of its MCU predecessors.

Continuing Marvel’s effective trend of hiring indie directors with a background of low budget filmmaking, Waititi excels with the film’s band of eclectic characters and handles the action with aplomb, especially the two set pieces which bookend the film - both set to Led Zeppelin’s ‘Immigrant Song’, which caused such excitement in the trailer. Though the hackneyed Marvel trademarks are frequent and notable, the New Zealander has been given the freedom to make a film that is distinctively his, which is all the better for it.

Hemsworth has proven that there is much more to him than just his physique

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Sebastian Ward

Goldblum thrive in their supporting roles, while Chris Hemsworth’s excellent comic timing, which had been criminally underused in his two previous solo films, comes to the fore.

Superb in Ron Howard’s Rush and In the Heart of the Sea, Hemsworth has proven that there is much more to him as an actor than just his physique.

Here, he owns the role. He not only excels in dramatic scenes shared with Anthony Hopkins and Tom Hiddleston, but perfects the God of Thunder’s naïve arrogance during his incessant bickering with Mark Ruffalo’s Hulk.

Cate Blanchett is bombastically entertaining as the villainous Hella, but is hampered by a lack of screen time. The abundance of the film’s ensemble cast means that certain characters do struggle to make an impact, although its variety of cameos are very entertaining.

A considerable improvement on the two previous Thor films, Ragnarok is incredibly entertaining, often hilarious, and one of Marvel’s best films to date. The comic-book film is far from dead.

Jigsaw (18)

Call Me by Your Name (15)

Image: Youtube

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his film was a stunning example of what a Romance should be. I am wary of any film selling itself as a rom without the com but in this case it hit the nail on the not-too- sappy head.

It was funny, moving, and shot beautifully.

Never once did you wonder who the actors were of if they actually liked, let alone loved one another (a dreadful anxiety brought on with the realisation that Patrick Swayze hated Jennifer Grey throughout the making of Dirty Dancing) because the characters were constructed and performed so beautifully. They may have been aided by the beautiful setting (Northern Italy in the 80s can’t be much more idyllic), brilliant writing and score, but all actors in this film performed superbly. Though it is hard to argue that anyone stole the film, the performance given by Timotee Chalamet was flawless, helped not a little by his perfect French and Piano playing.

It would be hard to watch this film and not be overwhelmed by a sense of the classical. The father and one of the lovers, Oliver, are archaeologists looking for classical sculptures. Images of late classical works helps create an atmosphere of sensuality in the heady Italian summer.

Though the use of the Classical world to frame a gay romance may seem a little obvious, we are reminded throughout that this is the 80s, and their relationship is still taboo, if not forbidden. The classical world therefore helps to make their love acceptable, as well as igniting their romance.

The film is filled with tension and desire, love scarcely fulfilled, in this tale of awakening.

Indeed it may be the ideal of a sexual awakening: glamorous yet natural, but it is not. It honestly displays the confusion and embarrassment of this time in our lives.

This film is moving without being tragic, and ideal without being unreal.

Helena Buchanan

e have just recovered from the emotional release that was SpiderMan: Homecoming, finally getting over our obsession with Tom Holland (ha, who am I kidding, I’ll always be obsessed), and now Marvel are bringing back the feelings with Thor: Ragnarok. My heart physically cannot take all of these emotions in one go. It’s too much.

From the first release of Iron Man in 2008, my Dad and I have been dedicated fans to every Marvel film that has been made. We are those people that queue on the first day of the showing, chatting away about how excited we are. Even so, as we book the tickets, I find myself sitting there saying to my Dad: there are too many superhero films.

Every week there seems to be a new trailer for a new comic-book film that will only add to the big pile of them Marvel has in their inventory. From the forthcoming Black Panther film (you can bet I am excited for this) to the third instalment of the Avengers, Marvel seem to be showing no signs of slowing down. It’s ridiculous.

If we detach ourselves from the hardcore fan inside of us, I think we can all admit that the quality of these films is deteriorating with each new release.

There are too many superhero films

Even though much of the film’s success can be credited to the direction, its cast is just as vital.

Series newcomers Tessa Thompson and Jeff

Image: Youtube

aving learnt a thing or two alongside Peter Jackson on The Lord of the Rings, Andy Serkis delivers in his directorial debut with this heartwarming true story.

It is a film cast from the same mould as The Imitation Game, documenting the success of a pioneering individual against all odds. In this case it’s an upper class chap named Robin Cavendish (Andrew Garfield) who, after falling in love with the alluring Diana Blacker (Claire Foy), tragically contracts polio and is paralysed from the neck down. But a life consigned to the hospital bed is no viable option: ‘I don’t want to just survive, I want to truly live’, and so begins a quest of liberation and revolution.

The establishing shots with which the film opens not only offer a beautiful sweeping view of the British countryside, but are representative of his sense of liberty as he whizzes along in his car below. The loss of this freedom is reflected in the closer, static frames that come to dominate as Robin’s situation deteriorates.

Andrew Garfield is excellent; providing an emotional and expressive performance with just the use of his face, while also nailing the selfreflective humour that makes Robin so endearing.

Witty lines such as ‘I was wondering what it’s like to get drunk given I am legless already’ are most heartening.

The love that he and Diana share is the anchor for both characters. Overcoming Robin’s condition becomes another adventure, and they come to relish big risks for even greater rewards. Serkis does well not to paint Diana as a saint-like character; she does not stay with Robin out of a sense of guilt or obligation; she does so because her devotion is so entrenched and so human.

The film is quite predictable, but that doesn’t really matter. It’s a moving and rewarding piece of cinema that is a strong start for Serkis’ directorial career.

film culture

Marvel not so Marvel-ous

Dan Haygarth reviews the latest Marvel installment, and asks the prevalent question: are we not yet sick of comicbook films? hor (Chris Hemsworth) finds himself imprisoned on the far side of the galaxy and faces a gladiator battle with the Incredible Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) in order to win his freedom. Meanwhile, his home world and the entire Asgardian civilization are under threat from the Goddess of Death, Hela (Cate Blanchett).

Thor: Ragnarok is the seventeenth entry in the nine-year-old Marvel Cinematic Universe. Since the release of Iron Man in 2008, the series has become a pop culture juggernaut, taking over $12 billion at the worldwide box-office and receiving consistent critical praise. There has, however, been a few missteps along the way. Lacking the panache of the Iron Man series and the thrills of the Captain America trilogy, the two preceding Thor films have been the weak link in the Marvel canon. While Kenneth Branagh’s original was a decent introduction to the character, its sequel The Dark World was a tedious mess and contained the franchise’s weakest villain in Christopher Eccleston’s Malekith.

Whereas Branagh attempted to channel Shakespeare and Alan Taylor’s sequel was strangely dark, Hunt for the Wilderpeople director Taika Waititi has found the perfect tone and style for Thor and his universe. By embracing a 1980s sci-fi aesthetic and treating Ragnarok as a Midnight Run

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he game returns for its eighth instalment seven years after its last chapter. A contemporary imitation of eighties horror franchises such as the Friday the 13th and Nightmare on Elm Street films, the Saw series has continued to churn out sequels, prequels and content fourteen years after its short film debut.

With 2017 being a year of horror reinvention in the shape of successes such as IT, Split and Get Out, the rebooted blood lust of John Kramer falls disappointingly into the category of uninspired horror franchise fodder somewhere between the equally forgettable Rings and Jeepers Creepers 3.

Whilst Jigsaw is sure to scratch the itch of die hard horror fans, it feels once more that lazy writing and cheap thrills serve only to undermine a franchise that has so much to offer. Lest we forget the Saw films that have some of the best marketing in horror history and have helped establish the torture gore sub-genre, as well as created icons in Billy the Puppet and The Jigsaw Killer as well as the brilliant ‘Hello Zepp’ theme, the film presented is far less than the sum of its parts.

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million taken at the box office on the opening weekend by Jigsaw

Without spoilers; ten years after his death Jigsawesque traps and villains appear and brutality ensues. Gruesome autopsies, and a cat and mouse ‘whodunnit’ amongst the protagonists unfold, as ‘victims’ try to escape elaborate traps and dark pasts.

Unlike previous sequels there’s an attempt to inject comic relief into this incarnation, but weak dialogue and a green cast struggle to engage.

The gore is no longer shocking and the twists are predictable. One for the purists - John Kramer deserves a lot better.

Callum Costello

The worth is devalued by the sheer amount there already is. Take Captain America: Civil War – it was just not as good as The Winter Soldier. Or, Avengers: Age of Ultron – which compared with the first one was a big disappointment. And it’s only going to get worse. Can we really trust the creators to make the next Guardians of the Galaxy just as funny as the last two? Will Deadpool 2 live up to the hype of the first one? It’s highly unlikely.

To add to this, the films all follow the same formulaic structure. They all depict a villain who was most likely wronged in the past and wants vengeance on all of humanity. A villain who these same typical superheroes need to get rid of to protect the world but in the process they will most likely end up destroying half the city.

To me, it feels like every film I go to has the same plotlines, the same action – there is no originality and eventually, I can find myself and others simply just not going because I can guarantee I will know what will happen anyway.

Maybe it’s time for a break. Let’s switch things up and go see a horror movie for once, Jigsaw anyone?

Nah, you’re right. Thor: Ragnarok it is. Too many or not, Marvel have me wrapped around their little finger.

Lucy Lilystone

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culture gaming

courier.gaming@ncl.ac.uk Gaming Editors Gerry Hart, Georgina Howlett & Richard Liddle

the courier Monday 6 November 2017

Top 5 Weapons South Park: The Fractured But Whole Review Daniel Fern goes on down to South Park to beat up some friends in Ubisoft’s superhero sequel in Gaming

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Image: Flickr.com

5. Hidden Blade - Assassin’s Creed

Oh, the hidden blade. The weapon made by nerds in their basements in what surely constitutes a violation of UK knife control laws. (Actually, I just Googled it, and it does; bladed weapons that operate upon the push of a button or through inertia are illegal here.) That doesn’t stop it from being really quite cool. Just walk up to your target, flick your wrist, and boom, they’re dead. It only comes in fifth, though, because I find it hard to imagine that using it wouldn’t get blood all over your sleeve.

4. BFG900 - Doom This weapon was the first to come to mind when the phrase “top five weapons” was uttered. “Bio Force Gun”, “Blast Field Generator”, or simply “Big Fucking Gun”, this weapon is capable of making an entire room resemble the contents of a jar of strawberry jam. What more do you want me to say? It’s Doom, the game that popularised gruesomeness and fun side-by-side in a way that doesn’t involve torturing naked women *cough* Duke Nukem Forever *cough*. The BFG9000 is big, green, and could likely kill you, so I like to think of it as weaponised Shrek.

3. Fat Man - Fallout

he eagerly anticipated sequel to Obsidian Entertainment’s 2014 hit South Park: The Stick Of Truth (or TSOT) is finally here after being delayed from an initial launch date of December 2016. This time however, it’s not the work of Obsidian Entertainment but the work of Ubisoft San Francisco. This change had a lot of people questioning how well the sequel was going to live up to the expectations set by the original.

The humour is exactly what you’d expect from South Park – very vulgar and offensive. Basically, if you find the TV series funny, there’s no reason you won’t find this game funny; however, that does mean that if you don’t like the TV series, you should probably stay away from this. As a fan of the series, this game has given me the most laughs I’ve had playing any game, probably since TSOT. As well as getting the humour right, Ubisoft nailed the aesthetic of South Park, weird walking animations and all.

left South Park. Unfortunately, there’s none of that here as the entire game is set in South Park itself.

I expected the story to have us travel to Canada again, or even somewhere else entirely, just to mix it up a bit.

Character customisation has also been significantly changed, but not in a good way The biggest change that’s been made since TSOT is the combat system; it’s still turn based, but now there’s an added element of positioning your characters in a grid system, to avoid attacks or

Image: Daniel Fern

Basically, if you find the TV series funny, there’s no reason you won’t find this game funny Just like its predecessor, The Fractured But Whole (TFBH) is filled with almost endless references to the TV Series; interacting with everything you can will almost always leave you with something you’ll remember, all the way from boss music, to the contents of drawers. This shows that TFBH is absolutely aimed at long-term fans of the show that will enjoy spending hours trying to find everything they can.

One of the first things I noticed with TFBH was that the map is almost the same as that in TSOT. There aren’t really many other places they could possibly have added but, in TSOT there was a section of the game where you went to Canada and

What I’m Playing - Lisa: The Painful RPG

Al Ridley braves apocalyptic wastelands, tough moral choices and awful leopard print shirts useless as I’d thought. The game would end if I fell in battle, rendering all my reviving perfumes pointless. I had my sweet knife, but Brad, being a bare-knuckle fighter, couldn’t equip it.

When I saw the corpses of those Columbo’s gang had trampled through the guilt finally got to me and I took the coward’s way out: reloading my file, making the opposite choice. Even as my guilt was soothed, progression was no cakewalk. Without any jerky for healing or mags to buy more, even casual battles were staggeringly dangerous. I was struck by just how different the fight against Hoops Jardeen and his allies became with Terry but without food.

Politically insensitive though it may be, the Fat Man is a weapon that is almost as iconic to Fallout as the Vault Boy or blatant hatred for China. Loses points for having a mushroom cloud that couldn’t actually exist with a blast of that (relatively small) magnitude, but gains points for killing most things in a single shot. Loses more points for including me in that list of things it kills in one shot. Recovers all those points for being awesome. Immediately loses them all again for having really rare ammunition.

Third place!

2. Plasma Sniper Rifle - XCOM: Enemy Unknown Good lord, the number of times my squad’s bacon has been saved by a soldier wielding this piece of kit, especially before the Enemy Within expansion was released. Prior to the nerf of the Sniper, one guy holding one of these could oneshot a really tanky alien from across the map while being boosted by a jetpack. For a while, I considered giving this slot to the Blaster Launcher (a homing rocket from XCOM), I decided not to.

Partly because there were already two explosives on the list, but mostly because the Plasma Sniper Rifle is just so. Damn. Good.

1. The Penetrator - Saints Row I was going to make my chosen Saints Row weapon the Dubstep gun and put it in third base – I mean place – butt fuck it. This painfully large weapon (in both senses of the word “weapon”) really shows that pain can be pleasure, in a schadenfreudian way. My only problem with this weapon of ass destruction is that, as a biologist, I cannot condone its usage as something to beat people up/off with, as it is simply too large. Additionally, it features in my list of Bottom 5 Weapons as well. (Editor’s note - the Penetrator is literally a giant phallic baseball bat, if you were wondering what all those innuendos were about.)

Jack Coles

deal as much damage as they can. This adds a layer of complexity which fixes one of the problems in TSOT where the combat felt too easy.

Character customisation/upgradability has also been significantly changed from TSOT, but not in a good way. There are no upgradable weapons or gear, or even any skill trees. What we have now are so-called, “Artifacts”, that alter your character’s stats. Any equippable items you find in the world, other than the “Artifacts”, are purely cosmetic and don’t alter your stats in any way. For a game that’s labelled as an RPG, upgradable gear and skills are something I think it should have.

Despite its lack of some key RPG elements, South Park The Fractured But Whole is absolutely worth playing if you enjoyed the first game and are a fan of the show. With the humour and aesthetic being so good, it feels just like an extra-long episode of the TV show.

It was a choice that affected how I played, changing the very structure of the game around it

Image: IGDB.com

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n a medium where the term has become indelibly associated with lazy writing, you can imagine my consternation when LISA: The Painful RPG gave me a ‘moral choice’ about fifteen minutes in. Blithely trekking the wasteland of Olathe, rendered lifeless, lawless and without women since an apocalyptic event named the Great White Flash, my player character – Brad – was ambushed by an old childhood bully. There, I was given the choice to either hand over all my items, equipment and magazines – the game’s currency – or he’d kill the only party member I had, self-proclaimed “Lord of the Tutorial” Terry Hintz.

Terry was, frankly, useless. He hit for quite literally zero damage in combat, could only use a terrible healing skill and wore a really gross-looking leopard-print shirt. He had forced his way into my party for pretty spurious reasons, and kept on interrupting me with vaguely desperate dialogue.

To recruit him, I’d had to kill a pathetically weak dog named Cheese Legs.

Meanwhile, I’d amassed a sizeable collection of mags, healing jerky and perfume, and a sweet poison-causing knife. Was this idiot really worth losing all of these good items in a game that so emphasised survival? And would the game actually permanently kill one of my party members so early? Dropping to 0 HP so far had only knocked characters unconscious, after all.

Would the game actually permanently kill one of my party members so early?

So I called their bluff, and to my surprise Terry Hintz was indeed taken off-screen, never to be returned.

I was playing with one character now, and the implications hit hard. Turns out Terry wasn’t as

This is why I keep on returning to LISA: the way in which its choices change the game around them. It wasn’t a Telltale choice, little more than a well-dressed illusion. It wasn’t a Fallout choice, remedied by punching a puppy or giving water to a beggar. It wasn’t a Mass Effect choice, where all I chose was what flavour of ice cream I wanted in my ending slideshow. It was a choice that affected how I played, changing the very structure of the game around it. It stuck the knife in my bleedingheart morality and twisted it in as Oak Tree Steve destroyed me in combat.

Even casual battles were staggeringly dangerous Rooster Coleman’s house is empty. I’m not sure if I can recruit him next run after what I did to him.

the courier

@Courier_Gaming thecourieronline.co.uk/category/gaming-2

Monday 6 November 2017

In defence of Tom Nook, a good boy at heart Animal Crossing’s real estate racoon is the unsung hero of the series, Jordan Oloman argues S o, Nintendo have done some fans dirty.

They have got our boy Tanukichi taking the flak (AGAIN) for their mobile moneylaundering schemes. Everybody’s favourite debt collecting Tanooki boy Thomas Nook is back in the headlines. He’s the fall guy. A scapegoat without the horns, you might say.

What people don’t understand about Thomas is that he’s a dog, a raccoon dog, and he has a family.

You have to understand what this man is doing for you. You come to this town, you, with your little hamper and a head full of dreams, and you rock up expecting real estate. Try doing that in New York in real life, bozo. This guy goes out of his way to give you a spider-ridden home in an already densely populated town. He takes a chance on you, by giving you a right to life. You expect to do this for free, you monstrous parasite?

Have you ever stopped to wonder Tom Nook is just a raccoon trying to make an honest living?

Everybody loves to hate him because he’s just the man with the cash. But that’s the only reason you don’t like him. The bells. Negative association. He’s Wall Street. Have you ever stopped to wonder that maybe Tom Nook is just a raccoon trying to make an honest living in a world that lacks many of the basic capitalist routes to fiscal responsibility?

Do you understand the conversion rate on 19,800 bells? Are you trying to tell me that you could get a one room detached house for that kind of cash anywhere on the planet? The busywork he makes you do is not even demoralizing either. Oh, what a shame, you have to go write some letters, introduce yourself to some lovely people. Plant a god damn flower. Woe is you, right.

And if that doesn’t satisfy you, he owns a shop with his two cute nephews, Tommy and Timmy.

Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp coming to mobile

They will starve without patronage. You can walk around in real life (positive reinforcement) and you earn coins you can trade for his fortune cookies (yummy) which you can exchange for old video games consoles and memorabilia for your home. Collector’s items, in exchange for your everyday commute. What an asshole, huh?

Say we remove Thomas from the game. Goodbye. No more debt. You’re now playing Animal Crossing on creative mode (BORING). Who cares what the value of anything is. Who cares about goals or progression or house upgrades? You want to buy a shovel? You better fucking make one, dude. Tom doesn’t stock a store if nobody pays any rent. You people fail to realize that Thomas is the heart and soul of your damn town. He also happens to be a cute, raccoon old man who has helped millions of people find housing sans credit score, previous employment records or a god damn cent to their name. How dare you shame him?

He has to deal with an economy founded on bugs and fucking shells. He has to build houses so you guys don’t fucking die when the winter rolls round. He makes the tools you need to sustain yourselves.

He is the paragon of the proletariat. The adorable scion of social mobility. Long live Tom Nook.

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fter the huge success of mobile apps such as Pokémon GO, Nintendo has announced a mobile game from one of their most beloved series: Animal Crossing Pocket Camp.

This will release on Android and iOS in late November, giving Tom Nook the ability to take your real-life money through in-app purchases of resources like Leaf Tickets, which allow you to obtain new materials to improve your campsite.

Pocket Camp focuses on building a campsite and crafting furniture so various animals can visit.

You craft furniture by gaining resources through completing tasks for the animals, such as catching fish or shaking trees to collect fruit. They then give you rewards that you can redeem to craft furniture and improve your campsite, thus attracting more adorable visitors. Unlike other Animal Crossing games, you have a friendship bar with characters: the higher your friendship level, the more they will visit! Instead of the usual Animal Crossing town, you explore various areas on a map such as an island, beach, forest and river. This incorporates all of the elements of the towns from previous games, but is compact enough to visually fit on to a phone screen. Instead of a house to decorate, you have your own customisable camper van, and the alternative for shops are other camper vans with stalls outside where you can purchase items that you cannot craft normally.

Whilst it is very different to other games in the series, it is still familiar as it has the memorable characters, with an added bonus of the furniture choices of Happy Home Designer. If you love the series, or if you are looking for a relaxing game, be sure to download Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp!

Sophie Hicks

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The NeoGaf Controversy

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Image: Wikipedia/ Redbubble

Could Gamecube classics be headed for the Virtual Console in the near future? George Boatfield squares up to investigate Image: Nintendo

gaming culture

Image: NeoGaf .com

eoGAF, one of the most pre-eminent, and longest-running, forums for gaming discussion on the internet was offline for a few days earlier this week. What caused this trouble? NeoGAF’s owner, Tyler “EviLore” Malka, was the centre of allegations of sexual harassment. Soon after this allegation was made, it spread like wildfire across the forum.

NeoGAF’s community leans left politically, and many of its members are vocal supporters of movements like feminism and LGBT+ causes.

Many were understandably horrified that the owner of the forums had been accused of sexual assault while the forum publicly decries such behaviour. This news was especially damning, coming hot off the heels of the Harvey Weinstein debacle. Some members were confused wanting to hear what the site’s owner had to say.

Latest Nintendo Switch update adds Gamecube controller support

ince the release of the Switch, Nintendo has been on a roll with both regular drops of their top-notch first party content and the encouragement and curation of indie highlights.

Heck, two weeks after the newest standout exclusive - Super Mario Odyssey - we’ll be getting a healthy dose of Bethesda and Rockstar content with Skyrim, Doom and LA Noire all available to play on the go.

And yet, there’s still something missing.

Something fans have been clamouring for since the announcement of the system: Virtual Console.

More specifically, the ability to play GameCube games on the go. The latest crumb of info to kick the rumour mill into fifth gear comes in the form of a hidden function within the Switch’s most recent update - GameCube controller support has been added to the system!

Following the discovery, Nintendo of America’s president Reggie Fils-Amie has said that the update “enables third-party peripherals to work on Nintendo Switch. As a result, the peripheral for the Wii U that allows it to attach GameCube controllers also works. [...] I think it’s fair to say [...] that that peripheral working was as much a surprise to us as it was for consumers.”

This could just have been a convenient bit of spin from Fils-Amie, but we’re not going to let that stop us from speculating! Following the announcement of Metroid Prime 4, releasing previous entries in the series on Switch could serve as an excellent way for fans to pass the time before release.

Thinking about multiplayer GameCube games, using the two joy-

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con for split screen play could be as convenient of an instant multiplayer set up as any game built straight for the Switch. Something like Mario Kart: Double Dash (possibly the most underrated entry in the series) could work brilliantly with this setup.

As for single player options, it’s clear that cult classics like Eternal Darkness and Killer 7 would be great additions considering finding a way to play these games right now is a challenge.

Nintendo’s continuation of the ‘Classics’ line with the SNES Classic this winter shows they’ve found a way to turn retro gaming nostalgia into a novelty stocking filler. That said, they’ve got a long way to go before they get to the GameCube Classic, so whether this news marks an imminent Virtual Console announcement or not, the wait for a portable GameCube collection might well be over soon.

Image: Wikimedia Commons

Many moderators resigned from their positions in response to the allegations Others took their chance to voice long-standing complaints about the forum they felt scared to voice prior. Some made “suicide posts”, asking to be banned or choosing to flood the board with memes and nonsense. Much of this behaviour was unusual for the site, due to its heavy moderation and stringent registration requirements. Many of these moderators resigned from their positions in response to the allegations made against Malka.

The site soon went down after this.

So why is this a big deal? NeoGAF has long been a major hub of activity and discussion for gamers.

Many developers and figures within the industry have taken to the forums to discuss upcoming projects or hardware. Some members of the site have become industry insiders. Many of the leaks we have read in the last few years (from leaked game projects and ideas to hardware specs of unreleased consoles) originated on NeoGAF, and NeoGAF is usually one of the first places to break any major gaming news.

Issues of sexual harrassment are rife across the media industry and video games are no exception Malka eventually released a statement, saying that the allegations were made by a vindictive ex, and have no factual basis. Despite this, the damage has already been done. Issues of sexual harassment (especially to women) are rife across much of the media industry and video games being no exception. This incident, involving the owner of a site very vocal of its stance against such behaviour, has stained the site’s reputation. Many members have since quit for greener pastures, leaving the site in droves. Only time will tell if NeoGAF can recover from this blow but, as of now, the community remains upset and fractured.

It also goes to show just how widespread the issue of sexual harassment is, and that more needs to be done to making many walks of life (including the gaming industry) more welcoming, and safer, places to be.

Michael Hicks

the courier

c2.arts@ncl.ac.uk Monday 6 November 2017 Arts Editors Scarlett Rowland and Carys Thomas

@CourierArts thecourieronline.co.uk/arts

Can art be separated from its creator?

In light of the recent allegations, Pablo Charro de la Fuente and Jagoda Waszkowiak discuss

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Instead of despising the creations of someone, we must despise them

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n the face of recent events related to Harvey Weinstein’s sexual harassment allegations, we as an audience ask ourselves again: If I can still enjoy his work, despite what he had done and what kind of person he is? It comes back to a wider, deeper thesis, that artists and their art cannot be separated.

Weinstein produced some of the big, universally loved films, like Pulp Fiction, Good Will Hunting and The English Patient and countless others. In this case, my personal view is that he helped not necessarily with the creation of the work itself, but mostly financially with only the production part.

That means, as a viewer we must remember from which pocket those films were funded and that the

We must acknowledge the dark truth about all artists

What’s On: Parallel Lives @ Vane Galley Preview: Nov 9, 5pm8pm 10 Nov - 16 Dec

actual artists involved, directors, actors, scriptwriters, are not to be blamed for this one man’s actions.

I wouldn’t be fair to the modern artist and our shared morality if we still don’t acknowledge the dark truth about all artists, even those behind the legendary artworks.

This thesis gains different meaning when talking about more individual forms of art. We saw that only a few years ago in comedy with Bill Cosby’s sexual assault allegations and trial. Most of the people agree that because of its personal undertone, his work is now unwatchable. Not only the audience but also comedians, other artists who were influenced by him faced that question.

What about works of art admired for years? We have that problem with works of Dalí - an openly obnoxious man who willfully claimed necrophilia, cruelty to animals and people, fascism, selfobsession, and greed. What should we do with issues which were ignored for centuries, these days would be unacceptable? I wouldn’t be fair to the modern artist and our shared morality if we still

writings of all time, described by Harold Bloom as one of the poets that shape the western cultural canon. The beautiful lines of lines of Neruda will never be forgotten and they will keep influencing future writers. And that is the point where the criticism should be directed. If the words of Neruda are contaminated by those horrible ideas when portraying Neruda we should never forget to describe him as a rapist.

If we want to enjoy and analyse someone else’s work we need to discover first their reality and what acts and thoughts moved them to create that work. Unmasking those factors will just help us to understand better their art. Instead of despising the creations of someone, we must despise them.

- Pablo Charro de la Fuente

A dash of comedy, a sumptuous smattering of original theatre, some fresh slam poetry and finish off with a garnish of live music. There you have it, ALPHABETTI SOUP, damn tasty.

Jinkx Monsoon & Major Scales: The Vaudevillians @ Northern Stage Nov 7, 8pm RuPaul’s Drag Race winner Jinkx Monsoon is going on tour with The Vaudevillians, a bawdy, rowdy musical comedy co-starring composer and musician Major Scales.

@TheCourierArts @thecourierarts

Yarn Bombing

SCARLETT ROWLAND

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ave you ever seen bits of knitting or crochet in a public space? There is a good possibility that, no, someone hadn’t droppped their hat but infact you may have seen a yarn bomb.

Often seen to be supporting and supported by feminism, such craft based acts of activism (craftivism) have become more and more popular in recent years. It is a part of the guerilla art movemt in which there are no boundaries between the environment and the craft.

Inherent to this practice is the degredation of historically women’s practices such as crocheting, so to see it now used as a form of protest and a symbol of power is heartening. In many places it is considered a form of graffiti and is technically illegal - making it a pretty bad ass form of craft.

Not only can yarn bombing make a statement, it can also make areas look far nicer and more homely. Initially it was mostly about reclaming public spaces, the tangible nature of knitting or crochet add a perfect personnal touch to those sterile spaces.

Basically yarn bombing is pretty cool. So get out there and set your woolen creation free (though I don’t condone breaking the law of course).

don’t acknowledge the dark truth about all artists, even those behind the legendary artworks.

- Jagoda Waszkowiak

Review: Starless Midnight

PHOTOBOX

Rosie Minney gives her thoughts on the new exhibition based around Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. at the Baltic Centre

Man In Pizza Pronto RORY CAMERON

For ‘Parallel Lives’ Morten Schelde and Flora Whiteley have each made a series of drawings. Schelde combines disparate elements that hover together on the edge of collapse, a moment as short as a sharp intake of breath.

Alphabetti Soup @ Alphabetti Theatre Nov 3, 7:30pm

arts culture

SWEET COLUMN

the importance of recognising an artist’s private actions when considering their public works n art, we should never underestimate a work just because of the person that created it. I consider it very important to know that the artist and the art are two different worlds. It is true that every piece that an artist does is going to be influenced by her or his experiences, thoughts or actions.

That is the case of the Chilean poet, Pablo Neruda, when he described in his memories how he raped a Tamil woman in 1929 when he was consul of Ceylon. Therefore, the creations of Neruda reflect this significant act and the terrible idea of white male supremacy.

Yet still the work of Neruda is one of the finest

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ifty years ago, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., face of the Civil Rights Movement, received an honorary degree from Newcastle University. King addressed urgency in resolving ‘the problem of racism, the problem of poverty and the problem of war’ in an impromptu speech upon the reception of his award, and it is upon this that Starless Midnight was conceived. Edgar Arceneaux has co-curated contemporary responses from nine artists confronting the social and political climate within which we live.

Try being a woman in the patriarchy, we have been tired for over 2000 years With the words of King woven audibly throughout the rooms via the videos by Cauleen Smith and Charles Gaines, three female artists play an integral role in the exhibition. Likely due to the entrenched association posters have with peaceful protest, Micol Hebron of Gallery Tally dominates an entire wall with an antagonistic retort to

sexism in the art world through crowd-sourced posters. Hebron found herself ‘data obsessed’, delving into the realms of the Internet for statistics on the imbalance of gender representation in galleries. Throughout her research, some institutions attempted to sue on defamation of character, but Hebron and over 2000 contributors obdurately continue their mission of exposure. In response to any men ‘tired’ of belligerent feminists? Hebron says ‘Try being a woman in the patriarchy. We have been tired for over 2000 years.’

The room amalgamates Hebron’s posters with Kenyatta A C Hinkle’s series The Evanesced, the oblong formats mimicking steps taken towards equality – but how successful have we been? Hinkle communicates both contempt and vulnerability of ethnic minorities through the symbiosis of abstract forms and detailed figures in her works.

Hinkle’s work draws upon the 64,000 black women who have fallen victim trafficking, colonialism and other forms of erasure stimulate her work across the African and American diaspora.

Karen Davies’ Waiting Room delivers the perfect, if somewhat ambiguous introduction to the exhibition; a waiting room for the prognosis of the world, a world still rife with racism, poverty and war, half a century after King’s speech.

t was the recommendation of a local that brought us to Pizza Pronto on Liverpool’s Bold Street at around 5am.

The local vicinity is somewhat of a Jekyll and Hyde area- lovely artisan shops filled with the middle class and hipsters in tea and coffee houses during the day; and by night, flashing neon lights illuminate your way past screaming scantily clad locals, as your feet crunch over broken glass and squelch through regurgitated chips.

Whilst we took selfies, we met the unnamed man pictured here. He demanded to know why we were taking photos of him. Fortunately, the situation was defused when I explained that the photos weren’t of him; but if he wanted, he could model.

After several pictures, including the one seen here, our model’s ego was sufficiently placated, until he began to berate the weary shop owners.

‘Where are my chips?! Bruv, you ain’t got no ticketing system in this place, where is your system?!’

Apparently, anyone else in the shop could be eating his order of chips.

Image: Rory Cameron

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science & technology

Are you Tech-ing the piss?

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Mating with robots

echnology has changed the face of the planet in so many ways, we can connect anywhere to anyone, we have machines to clean for us, to cook for us, technology can give us every human need except the needs of love and lust. Until now. All these years we thought reproduction and love were what differed us from machines,and that the spreading of our genome was special, but now we’ve mechanised it!

Yes that’s right, we might be able to ‘reproduce’ with robots, and yes again, of course a man designed this.

Inventor Segi Santos has created one of the first sex androids, otherwise known as ‘Samantha’.Sergi, whose work can be found by a quick google search (at your own risk, some is very very graphic), has created a robot that is allegedly capable of enjoying sex. She operates offline to protect your details, has a ‘family’ mode which includes some very strange family activities, she remembers your past interactions, will call you and needs attention.

40.3%

courier.science@ncl.ac.uk Science Editors Jack Coles, Christopher Little & Ciara Ritson-Courtney

Resisting the resistance In this follow-up to antibiotic resistance Orestis Katsoulis explains our remaining options

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hat can be done about antibiotic resistance? An easy answer would be to keep discovering or creating new antibiotics to which bacteria have not (yet) developed resistance. Although this is becoming increasingly hard to achieve, scientists around the world are still making valiant efforts to win this microscopic arms race against bacteria: One of the most recent is the discovery of an antibacterial compound named ‘Gladiolin’ (which, ironically, is produced by a bacterium). Researchers from Cardiff University and from the University of Warwick who managed to isolate this compound, believe that it may prove very potent in treating strains of tuberculosis that are resistant to multiple antibiotics.

Even though the discovery of ‘Gladiolin’ is an encouraging example of what can be done to combat antibiotic resistance, it is only a temporary fix, since it is only a matter of time before the tuberculosis bacterium develops resistance to it as well.

£3,750

The cost of a fully customised version of ‘Samantha

Nicole Krämer from the University of DuisburgEssen in Germany, the number of hetrosexual men in a sample of 263 who would ‘become intimate’ with a sex robot within the next 5 years was 40.3%.

Just to put that into context, that is a number high enough to pass your first year at university.

However sex robots aren’t a new phenomena, while Samantha might be the first to incorporate machine learning, sex robots are becoming increasingly popular in countries such as japan.

This is slowly leading a decline in normal sexual behaviour among couples. Sergi himself shares his home in Barcelona with both Samantha and his wife Maritsa Kissamitaki who both claim that his close intimate relationship with Samantha is not detrimental to their human married sex life, but instead has improved their relationship.

For those lonely hearts out there, the cost of your new custom made girlfriend will come at a price, around £3,750 to be exact. While some may consider this value for money when the parts, programming and sheer learning capabilities of the system is taken into account, others may argue that dinner and drinks with a real human can cost just a fraction of this.

Science Editor Ciara Ritson-Courtney

ever, increases the probability for the development of antibiotic resistance.

Therefore, an efficient solution to the above problem would be to develop very accurate, fast and reliable diagnostic procedures, that would allow HCPs to identify the exact disease-causing organism and thus administer a more targeted, pathogen-specific treatment.

Additionally, HCPs are often pressured by their patients into prescribing antibiotics for diseases on which they will have no effect whatsoever, such as the common cold, thus unnecessarily subjecting the pat i e nt’s

The discovery of ‘Gladiolin’ is an encouraging example of what can be done to combat antibiotic resistance, thought it is only a temporary fix

The percentage of a study of 263 heterosexual men claimed they would sleep with a sex robot within 5 years

According to Sergi, an electronic engineer, he will work on a program enabling samantha to have personality traits and values that humans have.

He then plans on creating an algorithm combining his personality and values along with ‘hers’ to produce a 3D printed baby. Sergi believes within the next decade or so that the integration of robots into families will be a normal transition with many families wanting 3D printed children with their robot wives.

Samantha can be heavily customised to suit each buyer, which so far there are only 15 of. A human or robotic voice can be chosen, all aspects of physical shape, hair colour, eye colour, skin tone, name can be changed along with various vibrating abilities in 2 different regions. Samantha can remember your previous encounters, chat to you about deep subjects such as philosophy and will call you when she gets lonely or misses you. However Sergi has so far only created female robots capable of heterosexual sex. With such a range of personalisation it is surprising that the number of previous buyers are so low. In a study by Jessica Szczuka and

the courier Monday 6 November 2017

Perhaps a more effective strategy would involve re-evaluating and redefining the point at which an antibiotic should be prescribed. Studies conducted in U.S. hospitals have shown that in nearly one out of every two cases, healthcare practitioners (HCPs) prescribe an antibiotic that is either incorrect or unnecessary, mostly because they neglect ordering laboratory tests to confirm that the patient’s symptoms are caused by a bacterium. Even when these symptoms are indeed caused by a bacterium, HCPs usually prescribe multiple antibiotics at the same time so that the treatment will be effective against a broader range of pathogens, which, how-

ranted use of antibiotics is avoided, since most mild respiratory infections caused by viruses will have improved by then.

On the other hand, there are scientists that have given up on antibiotics altogether and have found a new ally at the face of bacteria-eating viruses, more scientifically known as bacteriophages. Ever since its establishment in 1923, the George Eliava Institute in Tbilisi, Georgia, has been at the forefront of bacteriophage research and its scientists have made tremendous progress at using bacteriophages to treat diseases caused by antibioticresistant bacteria. Simply put, bacteriophages are small viruses that infect bacteria, replicate within them and finally cause the bacterial cell to burst and release multiple copies of the bacteriophage.

Besides being harmful solely against bacterial cells (and thus leaving human, animal and plant cells unharmed), each type of bacteriophage can only infect one type of bacterium, hence allowing for a very targeted and precise treatment.

There are scientists that have given up on antibiotics altogether and have found a new ally at the face of bacteria-eating viruses commensal (i.e. beneficial) bacteria to antibiotics to which they may also eventually develop resistance.

In an effort to rectify this problem of ‘patient demand’, a review of multiple publications conducted by the Cochrane organisation in 2005 proposed the implementation of a policy called ‘delayed prescription’. Where applicable, the policy dictates that if HCPs prescribe antibiotics to patients, they should instruct them to fill their prescription only if the symptoms have not subsided on their own after a couple of days have passed. This way, the patient’s demands are satisfied while the unwar-

Anyone familiar with the concept of evolution will probably ask: Won’t the bacteria evolve to develop resistance to the bacteriophages, just like they did with antibiotics? And the answer is yes. But, unlike antibiotics, bacteriophages also constantly evolve in order to bypass the bacteria’s defences and succeed in infecting them and reproducing within them.

It would therefore seem that there is actually plenty to be done about antibiotic resistance.

Whether it is using our current antibiotics wisely and strategically or enlisting tiny bacteria-eating viruses to help us in our battles, is trivial. All that matters is that the disaster of antibiotic resistance must be averted.

Reaching the peniceiling of antibiotics Regular correspondent Ng Yi Min sheds some light on cancer’s deoxygenated tendencies

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sually, when people hear the phrase ‘global catastrophe’ their minds immediately jump to events of immense size, such as a nuclear meltdown, an earthquake creating a tsunami or a meteor crashing onto Earth. But an equally threatening, if slightly more likely, scenario may be caused by something so small that it cannot even be seen by the naked eye: antibiotic resistant bacteria. These are bacteria that through random mutations in their genes have developed resistance to certain antibiotics, which gives them a selective advantage over other bacteria.

700,000

In 2014 the World Health Organisation issued a press release stating that unless immediate action is taken to combat antibiotic resistance, ‘’…the world is headed for a post-antibiotic era, in which common infections and minor injuries which have been treatable for decades can once again kill… ‘’.

But what is it that brought about this surge in antibiotic resistance?

The answer lies in the use, or rather the overuse and the misuse of antibiotics ever since they’ve been commercially available starting in the mid1940s. One of the most significant ways in which

The number of people that already die from antibioticresistant infections every year

The principle of antibiotic resistance can be demonstrated using Darwin’s theory of natural selection. Consider a population of 100 bacteria, all of which are susceptible to a certain antibiotic (for example penicillin). One out of the 100 bacteria undergoes a random genetic mutation that grants it the ability to survive in the presence of penicillin, i.e. it is now resistant to penicillin. If this population of bacteria is exposed to penicillin, 99 of the bacteria will die while the penicillin-resistant one will survive. Due to the lack of competition, the sole surviving bacterium now has greater access to a nutrient-rich environment where it can thrive and repeatedly divide, to give rise to a population of penicillin-resistant bacteria. In addition to passing down the gene of antibiotic resistance to their offspring, bacteria can also transfer this gene to other species of non-resistant bacteria, in a process called conjugation.

humans have contributed to the increase in antibiotic resistance is by using antibiotics as ‘growth promoters’ in farm animals, in order to maximise profit. This overexposure of the farm animals’ bacterial populations to antibiotics leads to a rapid development of antibiotic resistance, which can then easily spread to human bacterial populations.

Unfortunately, things don’t get any better as far as antibiotic use in humans is concerned. Ever since its accidental discovery by Alexander Fleming in 1928, penicillin and antibiotics in general have been overprescribed by doctors to treat misdiag-

nosed diseases on which they have no effect whatsoever, such as infections caused by viruses. Again, the bacterial populations within the human body that will be exposed to the antibiotic will almost certainly develop some degree of resistance as a result of this unnecessary exposure.

As if that were not enough, even when the use of antibiotics is actually warranted, many people stop The Scottish microbioligist’s discovery of the world’s first antibiotic earned him a Nobel Prize and a knighthood.

taking them a few days after because they start feeling better. What these people don’t realise is that by doing so, instead of killing the bacteria, they only weaken them and thus allow them to survive and reproduce, eventually forming populations that will very likely be resistant to the antibiotic initially used to kill them.

An obvious solution to the problem would be to keep coming up with new antibiotics. Sadly, this is easier said than done, since it’s becoming increasingly difficult for pharmaceutical companies to develop new antibiotics, which in turn has led to them investing their funds in more profitable drug developments.

Years after the discovery of penicillin, Alexander Fleming said: ‘’ the thoughtless person playing with penicillin is morally responsible for the death of the man who finally succumbs to infection with the penicillin-resistant organism’’. Maybe it’s time we started putting some serious thought into how we use our antibiotics.

the courier

@CourierScience thecourieronline.co.uk/science

Monday 6 November 2017

science & technology

Look at this graph-ene

Al Ridley finds yet another use for the substance that people claim will end up saving the world

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t’s no secret that medical equipment has been miniaturising for decades now. The data that previously took a machine the size of a room to monitor can now be measured by something as small as a watch or a smartphone camera, allowing information about our bodies to be gathered, tracked and plotted with almost trivial ease. But the gap between device and patient has recently been fully breached by researchers at the University of Austin, who have drawn up plans for the next innovation in medical technology: Health tattoos that use conductive graphene – a synthetic sheet of one-atom thick graphite – to gather vital information directly from the patient.

The tattoos, which are temporarily applied to the wearer through water, are film-thin and mould tothe contours of the skin when applied. Through a similar process to a FitBit or health application, the graphene circuits inside the tattoos gather data such as heart rate, muscle and brain activity by reading the bioimpedance – response of the body’s tissues to electrical current – of the tissues below.

They can be peeled off like stickers, wrinkle and stretch with the skin underneath them, and current models remain functional and useful for about two days before losing potency.

They can be slapped onto a patient for an easy way to read biometric data The upshot of this is one can be slapped onto a patient and provide a hands-free, quick and easy way to read biometric data, almost like a video game UI on a patient’s flesh. As a result, your average hospital doesn’t need to assign each person an expensive and awkward suite of machines that both take up space and resources to read their vitals. Having access to the tattoos outside of medical facilities ill also aid in self-diagnosis and care the way health apps have in recent history.

But why is this such a big deal? The astute reader should already know none of this functionality is new: all of the data a graphene health tattoo pro-

vides can already be gathered by other methods, including the ones I’ve detailed above. Measuring a heart rate or brain activity is so commonplace you can buy about a hundred different devices that can do it in your average store. But the implications of graphene as a health material are far greater than this specific product.

$100

Cost of graphene per gram in December, 2015. At the time, gold cost $34.64 per gram

For one, these self-contained circuits are small, self-powered and easy to use. This is utterly invaluable for field hospitals or medical facilities without the resources necessary to run a standard diagnostic suite, as well as first responders in accidents who can use their readings to speed up priority processing. If this kind of device becomes as affordable as similar hardware, it could massively improve the quality of medical services in underfunded locations.

What is perhaps more ambitious is the applications of graphene in bionics. Bio-integration b e -

Bright lights, futuristic city

Skeptic Grace Dean has the run-down on Toronto’s big plans

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oronto is already seen by many as a highly-developed city in a country famed for its diversity, openness and technological growth. Despite this, the post-industrial east downtown area, which encompasses roughly 800 acres, is one of the largest underdeveloped urban sites in North America. Because of this, Sidewalk Labs, a sister company of Google, has chosen the location as a guinea pig for its new project, Sidewalk Toronto. Sidewalks Labs is rolling out the project in the 12-acre Quayside district with $50m (£37m) for initial planning and testing and, if successful, will then expand it across the rest of waterfront area.

Sidewalk Toronto will be a digital city utilising a range of smart technologies including ultramodern WiFi functions, sustainable energy (featuring a thermal grid with on-site generation), an integrative technology and healthcare system, and household monitoring of pollution and noise levels. Smart technology will be used to even control rain and sunshine levels through weather mitigation technology, and monitor park benches and overflowing dustbins.

The micro-city, which plans to restrict private vehicle access, will also boast an impressive smart traffic management system. Current proposals include heated bike paths, a light-rail line, adaptive traffic lights, and self-driving taxis and buses controlled by apps. A network of underground tunnels will be used for freight delivery and waste removal services. Alongside a fifth of the housing on the site being available to low-income residents, Sidewalk Toronto will additionally be home to Google’s Canadian headquarters.

Sidewalk Toronto follows a global movement in which urban planners are increasingly turning to

technology companies to find innovative solutions to problems caused by urban over-population and pollution. To create a truly sustainable city, Sidewalk Labs is focusing on implementing technologies which bring social, economic and environmental benefits, which Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau hopes will lead to “smarter, greener, more inclusive cities - which we hope to see scale across Toronto’s eastern waterfront and eventually in other parts of Canada and around the world.”

Whilst the project is being celebrated by many, some people remain sceptical. In the US there is a growing political outcry against smart technology due to privacy concerns. Sidewalk Toronto will indeed rely on substantial data collection to operate the technology from an immense system of sensors. From monitoring where people go grocery shopping to observing anti-social behaviour in public spaces, Big Brother will be watching over the residents at all times.

Furthermore, the success of the project depends on existing legislation being waived, including current building, transport and energy regulations. Urban planning expert Robert Puentes said, “Cities are trying everything they can to boost their economies and build infrastructure, but they have to realise that companies are not doing it for altruistic reasons - they are interested in generating profit for their shareholders.”

The question is ultimately whether Sidewalk Labs has purely philanthropic reasons for wanting to develop such a city, or whether the potential of drawing in mass profits is instead the ultimate motivation for using Toronto as a guinea pig. Justin Trudeau has to ask himself whether the privacy of his countrymen is worth risking solely to reinforce Canada’s place on the world’s technology map.

tween technology and user has been hampered because the key conductive material these devices, gold, is expensive, rigid, potentially poisonous and difficult to work with flesh. Graphene’s flexibility, elasticity and ability to fold without breaking combine with a conductivity rivalling gold’s to provide a material suitable for bionics work that won’t break or possibly damage the person that it’s implanted into. Prototype devices have already been created that allow drones to be controlled through graphene tattoos implanted on the pilot’s eyelids.

2020

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The Austin team wishes to start production in 2022, when they project graphene will become cheaper than gold

It’s a while off – the Austin team wishes to start production in 2022, when they project graphene will become cheaper than gold – but it’s a phenomenally exciting development for the integration of humanity and machines. If graphene proves to be both safe and capable of mass production, how far are we away from commercially available cyborg implants?

Mythbusters:

Is vitamin B17 good for you?

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hen you were growing up, you probably encountered B vitamins. You have vitamin B1, B2, B3, B4, B5, B6, B7, B9, and B12. Oh, and B17, mustn’t forget that one… or maybe we should?

A “vitamin” is defined as a molecule that the human body requires (but cannot manufacture) that is neither an amino nor fatty acid. B vitamins are further defined by being water-soluble and acting as catalysts in the body. The gaps in numbers are due to people thinking they had discovered a B vitamin, which were later disproved.

“Vitamin B8” was shown to be two self-made chemicals. B10, B13, and B16 are self-made as well. “Vitamin B11” is not necessary as a supplement (but is used as an ingredient in some ointments– it’s also called salicylic acid). B14 is straight up excreted by the body, and B15 has no medical evidence to show that it acts upon any disease. The fact that even finding this information was harder than usual attests to the fact that most people accept that these chemicals are not true vitamins, and therefore have little dietary use.

80.7mg

Amount of cyanide needed per person to kill half of the UK population

On the other hand, searching for “Vitamin B17” aka amygdalin or laetrile) throws up a wide array of websites, articles, clinical trials, and even shopping adverts. Chief among the claims made by its proponents are that it cures cancer, which is a massive dick move if it doesn’t actually cure cancer.

And it doesn’t cure cancer. The guy who said it cured cancer believed that the disease was caused by vitamin deficiency, which it bloody well isn’t.

This is the same guy who invented Vitamin B15 , so at least he’s consistent. The only reason we still hear about B17 nowadays is because of a highly successful marketing campaign coupled with public desires for cheaper remedies in the United States.

Word of the Week:

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Octothorpe

f you’ve ever come across basic Greek or Latin, you’ll probably know that the prefix ‘octo’ means the number ‘eight’. In the case of this week’s word of the week, the ‘octo’ of ‘Octothorpe’ refers to the eight points of the symbol it is the name of. What symbol is that, you ask? Why, it is the # symbol, of course – now more commonly known as the ‘hashtag’, or ‘number sign’ if you’re feeling your childhood years with dial-up phones or electronic calculators.

Though the exact origins of the term is unclear, it is thought by most scholars to have been invented by workers at Bell Telephone Laboratories circa 1968, combining ‘octo’ for the eight points of the symbol with the surname of Jim Thorpe, an Olympic medallist. The ‘thorpe’ section of the word may also have been derived from the Old English word for village, ‘thorp’, as the symbol looks like a village surrounded by eight fields.

Georgina Howlett

Not only is it useless, B17 can be actively harmful. Amygdalin is broken down by the liver into two glucose molecules, one benzaldehyde molecule, and one hydrogen cyanide molecule. The first two are completely safe, the latter is very dangerous (if you didn’t already know). Granted, the liver can deal with small quantities of cyanide, so eating bitter almonds won’t cause any kind of lasting damage. A “vitamin B17 supplement”, on the other hand, contains a little bit more than what’s safe.

Not only is it useless, B17 can be actively harmful If you could just indulge me for a minute, kindly multiply your weight (in kg) by 0.6, and by 1.5.

Those are your theoretical minimum and maximum tolerances (respectively) of cyanide in mg.

For example, I weigh just 80kg, so I could soak up 48mg of cyanide with no problem, while 120mg would kill me outright; anything in between has a variable chance of bumping me off. The amount of amygdalin – and therefore cyanide – in a B17 supplement is 350mg! You would need to weigh a minimum of 584 kg for that to not kill you; for reference, the world’s heaviest man was 635kg.

So why don’t B17 supplements kill you? It’s because your liver needs to break down the amygdalin before the cyanide is released, and this is a relatively slow process. The amount of cyanide released is still harmful, however, and given amygdalin has no proven use, you’re probably better off buying a pint of tequila instead; at Jack Coles least consuming that is more fun.

c o

puzzles

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the courier

Monday 6 November 2017

Puzzles Editor Joey Barton Deputy Puzzles Editor Alex Hendley

Word pyramid Row 1 Pronoun Row 2 Present location Row 3 We _____ kings Row 4 Used in the winter Row 5 Every student has a...

1

2

3

Each row is an anagram of the row above, with one additional letter

3

4

4

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6

5

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2 4

9

1

3

7

7 9 4 3 2 8 6 1 2 6 6 3 8 7 7 3 8 5 How many official James Sproston business cards can you spot here?

8 9 10

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Across

6 Town 15 miles north of Newcastle, as a unique accent known as ‘Pitmatic’ (9) 7 What Lewis Hamilton will demand everyone calls him (3) 8 Someone like you... (5) 9 Despairing, dejected (8) 10 Striking glass structure in central London (5) 12 Roman siege weapon (6) 13 Difficulty of a golf hole (3) 14 Posh school where all your favrouite politicans come from (4) 17 Opposite of pause (6) 18 Has just celebrated five years in charge of Burnley FC (5) 21 Extraterrestrial (5) 22 ‘Blue Monday’ artist (3,5)

Down

1 George Michael and religion demand it (5) 2 Chemical element, used to make matches (10) 3 American footballers have been doing this (5) 4 A Courier crossoword that’s too hard makes you... (8) 5 Birch and spruce are types of this (4) 7 Rod _______ (7) 11 London ________, popular tourist attraction (8) 13 Enter at your own _____ (5) 15 Your Spanish friend (5) 16 First name of famous Boston born poet (5) 19 Renault model (4) 20 A little (3)

Last Week’s

Solutions...

Issue 1356 quiz solutions: Henry (175), Yorke (123), Heskey (110), Bent (106), Crouch (105), Drogba (104), Davies (88), Torres (85), Deane (71), Cantona (70) The Shining (1980), Scream (1996), Nightmare Before Christmas (1993), The Addams Family (1991), Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974), Coraline (2009)

D E A E C C U T L O D I L L U M I N N E E I Q I S M I L U N O E E L S C A N I A T V I A E G M A R M O S E O R

T A E R A R I T Y

H G Y S A R K S E T I Y E P R S O N I U A B P I S O I Z O N A C R S K I N O

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the courier

sport

Monday 6 November 2017

The long game: the legacy and At the upcoming ATP finals Roger Federer will play Sascha Zverev, who was literally a baby when Federer turned professional. We take a look at sporting careers that have just gone on and on Roger Federer (tennis) One great athlete is a true professional and one of the greatest players in the history of tennis is Roger Federer.

The Swiss star began playing tennis at the age of 8 in his hometown, Basel, back in Switzerland. The talented youngster started to play professionally at the age of 17.

After becoming a professional in 1998, he was continuously ranked between the top 10 best players in the world according to ATP rating between 2002-16. Moreover, the player saved the number one position in the ATP rankings for the longest time in the history- 302 weeks in total.

At the moment, at the age of 36 years, he is currently in second position. The talented Federer still continues a very long and successful career, but is a father of four children, is married to another tennis playerMirka Federer and is fluent in four different languages.

Egle Vaitekenaite

Image: Flickr

Wladimir Klitschko (boxing)

Image: Wikimedia Commons

From professional debut in 1996 after a gold medal win at the Atlanta Olympics to retirement in 2017, Klitschko took to the ring 69 times, winning 65 times and becoming the second longest reigning heavyweight champion in history, his 9 years and 7 months just behind Joe Louis’ 11 years.

Despite unifying the heavyweight titles and exercising his dominance over the division, he is sometimes criticised for dominating a weak di-

vision compared to earlier decades.

However, Klitschko has faced adversity, relinquishing his WBO title in 2003 and losing 2 consecutive fights before forcing his way back into world title contention and winning the IBF/IBO World Championships in 2006.

More recently, having lost his titles in a shock 2015 defeat to Tyson Fury, he challenged Anthony Joshua, and despite being 14 years his senior, sent Joshua to the canvas

in the 6th before being dropped twice in the 11th and enduring brutal combinations until the referee’s stoppage.

Nonetheless, he showed real endeavour, and proved that his dedication to gruelling training camps even at the age of 41 was second to none, and in defeat still exuded the perseverance that allowed him to box at the highest level for such an impressive period.

Tom Hardwick

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the courier

sport

Monday 6 November 2017

d successes of sporting legends Cristiano Ronaldo (football) One of the greatest players of all times in the world, the Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo still leads his professional career, which has been lasting for more than 15 years. The talented player was born in small city- Funchal in Madeira’s island in Portugal.

A headstrong and determined child from as soon as started to walk, he became interested in football, often kicking the ball in and around the local neighbourhoods. Quickly, he was discovered by Sporting Lisbon scouts and at the age of 17, made his debut in Portuguese league SuperLiga.

One year later, he was noticed by the British football legend, the main manager of Manchester United, Alex Ferguson. The young athlete

was bought for the price of £12.24 millions by Manchester United team.

At the young age, and without good knowledge of the English language, he was a bit confused in this foreign country, but also very determined to conquer the Premier League. At the age of 23, the Portuguese player won his first Ballon D’or award, the first of four. Then in 2009, Ronaldo was bought

by Real Madrid for the sum of £80 million.

Even today, he continues to be one of the best players in Spanish La Liga and is the highest paid footballer in the world. He also does a lot of philanthropy work and owns various funds to help the children back home in Madeira.

Francesco Totti (football)

in the Roma history books as the “Emperor of Rome”. His positions shifted over time, playing as a typical number ten as a playmaker and later on in his career as a striker.

Throughout his career, Totti was famed for his technique on the ball; being able to pick out passes and crosses as well as scoring from set pieces. He is also remembered for his cheeky lobbed goals, this is best seen in the Rome derby against Lazio in 2002. Totti’s remarkable career is evidenced by the amount of records he has broken. He has been Serie A’s youngest captain, the Champions League’s oldest goalscorer as well as Roma’s alltime leading goalscorer and appearance maker. Although Totti has stopped playing for his beloved Roma, he still continues to work for them as a director and continues to make an impact behind the scenes.

When considering long sporting careers, it would be impossible to overlook the footballing career of Italian Francesco Totti.

Although he played for Roma’s youth team since 1989, he started playing in the senior team from 1992 right up until his retirement in May this year.

Including his time in the Roma youth side, Totti’s football career lasted 28 years. What makes this achievement even more remarkable though, is the fact that he was a oneclub man and stayed at Roma for his entire career.

Totti’s special career has firmly cemented him

Egle Vaitekenaite

Rebecca Johnson

Image: Wikimedia Commons

Katherine Grainger (rowing) Katherine Grainger began to develop her rowing prowess at the University of Edinburgh in 1993, where she was studying a bachelor degree in law alongside representing the university’s boat club.

She certainly wasted no time in snatching up titles, and won silver at the Sydney Olympic games in the women’s Quadruple Sculls event only seven years later Little did she know aged 25 when she became an Olympic medal holder at the Sydney 2000 games that she would go on to become the

Following her unparalleled rowing career, she was appointed MBE in 2006, CBE in 2013 and now holds the title of Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) for services to sport and charity.

In the same year she was appointed DBE, she was also appointed chair of UK Sport and was awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of Aberdeen.

Emma Bancroft

Brian O’Driscoll (rugby) “In BOD we trust”, an adage adopted

by Irish rugby fans expressing support for their inspirational captain, Brian O’Driscoll. His career was hallmarked by success, winning three European Champions Cups with Leinster at club level, as well as winning the Six Nations with a Grand Slam in 2009 and the Six Nations again in 2014.

His career, which spanned from 1999 to 2014, also saw him earn 133 Ireland caps, and a further eight for the British and Irish Lions, making him Rugby’s second most capped player in history. O’Driscoll’s time as a player was one of great individual and collective success, establishing

himself as a cult figure in his homeland. His talent as a player was coupled with an inherent ability to lead, and these qualities quickly cemented him as the talisman of Irish Rugby.

Furthermore, what allowed for such longevity is the commitment he showed to the game. Whereas others are content to wind down their careers and relax, O’Driscoll showed a real dedication to training and competition. This allowed him to maintain such a high level of ability and end his long and illustrious career with a final Six Nations triumph, and his status as a legend ensured.

Tom Hardwick

Image: Wikimedia Commons

Sachin Tendulkar (cricket)

Merlene Ottey (athletics) 2012’s European Athletics Championships came just a few weeks before the London Olympics, and saw medals won by the likes of Mo Farah, Robbie Grabarz and Jo Pavey.

The 1980 Olympics, complete with the Cold War and US-led boycott of the Games, played host to Nadia Comaneci, Seb Coe and Daley Thompson. Incredibly, Merlene Ottey was part of both these eras; her nearly-40-year career making her one of track and field’s most successful athletes.

The Jamaican sprinter has broken numerous world records, won enough medals to fill a bank vault and was Jamaica’s Sportswoman of the Year 13 times in a 17-year period.

A failed drugs test and allegations that she bullied her way onto the Jamaican relay team for the 2000 Olympics threatened to end her al-

most decorated female Olympic athlete in Britain boasting an incredible four silver Olympic medals, one gold Olympic medal and six World Championship titles.

Alongside her impressive collection of medals, she is also known for winning an unbelievable eight medals at World Championships in just 15 years, breaking the world record alongside Anna Watkins in 2012 when qualifying for the Double Sculls final and also being the first British woman to win medals at five successive Olympic games.

ready-illustrious career at the turn of the millennium, but she was awarded Slovenian citizenship in 2002, having lived there for four years, and represented the Eastern European nation for the next decade. The

57-year-old recently congratulated Usain Bolt on his retirement after seeing the whippersnapper equal her record of 14 World Championship medals.

Mark Sleightholm

Image: Wikimedia Commons

Although the Little Master stands at a mere 5 foot 5, his stature in the game of cricket is huge. Like a fine Roman Chianti Tendulkar became an even finer vintage as he grew older. His legs, similar to said wine, became richer and he is one for the purists. You’d never see him try a Jos Buttler scoop, but there was nothing unusual about the length of his stay at the top becoming India’s most revered player of all time.

Scoring the tiny sum of 16000 runs in test cricket, his was the golden age of Indian

Cricket playing alongside the likes of Rahul Dravid, Anil Kumble and a young Mahindra Singh Dhoni.

A special player on the pitch, he has also tried to use his influence to help develop the game off it.

Tendulkar’s 14-a-side match idea has been implemented in areas of Mumbai, the size of the team making it difficult to simply just aim for the boundary and giving younger players the chance to develop the sometimes forgotten skills of placement and timing. Suffice to say, Tendulkar’s career may be over as a batsman but he remains a talismanic figure in the Indian game.

Josh Nicholson

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In praise of Poch: the view from the Emirates Arsenal fan Matt Proctor offers a begrudging admiration of the man who has ushered in an era of success at White Hart Lane Writing this article is not easy. The recent circulation of the quite tragic screenshot depicting Tottenham’s lead over Real Madrid with an advert below for Arsenals upcoming game on BT against Red Star Belgrade, really did sting. It underlined a truly horrid reality that at this current moment, Tottenham are a far better team.

The reason? I refuse to accept that it’s because of that bean pole up front, but instead the work of the man who picks him: Mauricio Pochettino. Wenger vs Redknapp/AVB/Tim Sherwood etc was never even close. However, it seems now that Daniel Levy has finally got it right.

He unearthed a quite unanimous feeling that Southampton are once again a relatively big side For my whole life I have watched Arsenal continually hold the bragging rights over the ‘Spuds’ over the road. Not just in terms of league position, where for 19 years straight Wenger’s teams had looked down on Tottenham when May came around. It was always better than just that. Even in their good(ish) days, where they would record the odd victory at the big grounds with Bale and ‘the rest’, there was always a guaranteed three points for the Gooners at the Emirates. Successive 5-2s highlighted the sheer difference in class between

the two sides; going 2-0 at home by no means ever meant there was a feeling that The Arsenal wouldn’t get a result.

So, what has changed? Simple. Mauricio Pochettino is a world class manager.

98

Dempsey. Spuds fans will be quick to point out that they did buy Erikson with their Bale money, but - by a sheer matter of quantity, they were always bound to buy at least one, not-rubbish, player.

Pochettino has made quality signings, but it has been his desire to implement a British core that has been so impressive.

He can’t take the credit for the natural ability of Dele Ali or Harry Winks, but he can take credit for picking them, and for how these players are performing.

He can also take credit for, unfortunately, having the best back three in the league.

wins by Tottenham under Pochettino’s managership

With a father who did his best to get me to support Southampton, I took a keen interest in how good Pochettino was for the Saints. Like everyone else, with a manager who would go on to require a translator for every interview conducted whilst at the club, I was not convinced. However, Ronald Koeman aside, those who have come before (certainly since the early 2000’s), and definitely since Pochettino, have failed to galvanise the fans like he did.

He unearthed a quite unanimous feeling amongst fans of the Premier League that Southampton are once again a relatively big side. They are still a selling club, and remain Liverpool’s academy, but nevertheless can attract good footballers. Mario Lemina, Van Dijk and Gabbiadini were not unknowns. I digress slightly, but it shows the bench mark that Pochettino has set down on the South Coast.

It is not just a question of money Tottenham managers before “Poch” have had plenty of money to spend.

The difference is that Poch wouldn’t have signed Roberto Soldado or Clint

They will always have a chicken on their badge, but they are far closer to success than Arsenal

The man of the moment Image: Wikimedia Commons

Unlike most managers, including Arsene Wenger, Pochettino has shown his ability to change his tactics. He is more than willing to switch from a back three to a back four if the game demands it. This is no mean feat. Arsene Wenger refused to ever change from his beloved 4-2-3-1 no matter what the form or who’s available. Such stubbornness has been echoed with the new formation, which has seen Mohammed Elneny play at centre back and Ainsley Maitland-Niles at left wing back. Don’t get me started on that.

Tottenham are by no means the fin-

ished article, their Wembley record in the Premier League is certainly not the form of Champions, and any injury to the lump up front would undoubtedly affect their form. Yet Pochettino’s class can be confirmed quite easily.

Ask any Arsenal fan if they would take any former Tottenham manager to replace Arsene Wenger, you’d probably hear a resounding no. However, I can’t comprehend, or even believe, any fan who wouldn’t welcome Poch making a Sol Campbell-esque switch from the dark side.

With the North London derby just around the corner, Poch’s side will have another stern test. The difference now is that I can no longer look forward to this fixture like I once did.

Two draws at the Emirates in the last two seasons has revealed the disturbing truth that Tottenham are no longer the bottle jobs they always were. I refuse to believe that this will be enough to catapult them to either Premier League or Champions League glory, and they will always have a chicken on their badge.

54

2nd place in the top division in 16/17 was Spurs’ best league finish in 54 years

But the disturbing truth: they are far closer to success than Arsenal. If you can accept that money is not the reason for this, you have to look towards the increasingly impressive gaffer.

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Toon fight back to take a point against Brum WOMEN’S HOCKEY

Birmingham 2nds 1 Newcastle 1sts 1

Mollie Roberts at Bournbrook Pitches After Birmingham’s undefeated season last year, they finally met their match in the Newcastle Hockey firsts XI, who held them to a stirring 1-1 draw at their Edgbaston stronghold.

Newcastle, competing in BUCS Premier North B league, went into this clash as the underdogs knowing Birmingham were yet to drop a point in their last two seasons. Undaunted, and buoyed by Captain Louise Beechener’s warm up, Newcastle met the challenge head on, in a game full of momentum shifts.

Tilly Olney took the big leaps and aided transition down the pitch Image: Olivia Hurrell

Newcastle’s upcoming fixtures

Feisty performance beats Leeds WOMEN’S LACROSSE

Newcastle 1sts 8 Leeds 1sts 7

Olivia Hurrell at Longbenton The firsts have had a turbulent season so far but after an impressive 22-1 home win against Liverpool last week, they walked onto the pitch with their heads held high.

Their confidence was hardly shaken when Leeds turned the ball over after the draw and they went 1-0 down in the first minute. Unphased but determined to level the score so early on, the girls rallied and Louisa gave them a hint of what was ahead by unapologetically slinging the ball into the back of the Leeds net.

Defence quickly settled into the game and after an impressive interception from Emily they were spurred on to score yet another. The Newcastle attack quickly found their feet, practicing a few of the set plays they had executed so skilfully in training. The excitement and energy quickly turned to feisty aggression, however, and a time out was soon called.

After a tactical team talk Newcastle were back in the game and the ball was flying into the back of the opposition’s

net with goals coming in left right and centre, and Ella, Freya and captain Kitty bringing the goal count up to 6-4 at half time.

The score was close enough to not let Newcastle become complacent and with Leeds breathing down their necks they were quick to put the pressure up and turn the ball over at every opportunity in the second half.

To say that emotions were running high would be an understatement With a new goalie on the pitch this half, fresh faced and ready to put the defence in their place, Newcastle were forced to be louder and faster than before. In the defensive end Lara made a neat, but only too easy check and quickly had the ball in her stick. After a great run down the pitch, attack sprinting towards goal, Louisa effortlessly transitioned the ball off to Kat who scored her third goal.

Well-deserved man of the match Tilly had a solid game, seemingly playing every single position on the pitch, back-

ing up every pass and aiding transition down the pitch.

With Newcastle’s eighth and final goal from Bella bringing them back into the lead and winning her the title of “Shot of the Match”, tension was running high and the play became more and more furious from both teams.

With three minutes to go and only one goal up Newcastle had only to maintain possession until the whistle was blown.

I don’t know whether those on the side line were shouting louder than those on the pitch, or which team was more determined but to say that emotions were running high would be an understatement.

So with the ball down in Newcastle’s attacking end they had three long minutes of teasing the Leeds defence and passing it around amongst themselves, holding the ball behind goal and catching their breath until finally the whistle was blown, signalling the end of an hottempered match and, more importantly, Newcastle’s hard fought win!

With the final score of 8-7 being perfectly representative of an incredibly exciting and closely matched game the team are very much looking forward to playing Leeds away in a few weeks, and hoping for an equally competitive (albeit less aggressive) game.

8 November

Northumbria

away

15 November

Nottingham

home

22 November

Edinburgh

home

29 November

Leeds

home

6 December

Durham

away

Birmingham, who began well, picked up a fluid run of play early in the first half, with their left midfield driving towards baseline and firing the ball across Newcastle’s D to an unmarked forward at the penalty spot, who got a quick shot away. Sophie Adams, the Newcastle goalie, denied the Birmingham forward’s shot on goal and cleared the ball from her D with a dynamic save.

Having quelled the early pressure, and looking more poised, Newcastle picked up the tempo and had a good bout of possession resulting in a sequence of short corners, which, alas, came to nothing.

Then, in the final minute of the first half, Birmingham strung together a good passage of play, putting pressure on Newcastle’s defence resulting in a penalty corner, despite multiple Newcastle sticks surrounding the ball. As the umpire lowered his hand, Birmingham projected the ball to the top of the D and, with a first-time strike, the ball hit the backboard of the Newcastle goal.

Going into the second half 1-0 down was not a fair reflection of the play.

Newcastle, unfazed by that late first half goal, started the second half deter-

mined to get something from the match and were producing slick episodes of play, entering the opposition’s D more and more as time progressed, and managing to get a few shots away.

Unfortunately, the strong Birmingham goalkeeper denied these chances.

As Birmingham began to regain posses-

Newcastle quelled the early pressure and had a good bout of possession sion, Rosie Dale showed her feisty side by taking out a Birmingham player resulting in a two-minute green card.

Newcastle’s time finally came 15 minutes into the second half. Dale offloaded the ball in the centre of the pitch, and at pace, eliminated multiple Birmingham players. Dale, on her reverse, found Mollie Roberts in the D, who deflected Dale’s reverse sweep over the diving goalkeeper to make the score 1-1.

Now back in the game, Newcastle were determined to take the lead. And with energy levels running high, Newcastle pushed into Birmingham’s half and Hannah Cashell, receiving the ball at the top D, took onto her reverse and attempted to secure the winner, but sadly the ball went wide.

As the whistle blew for full time, Birmingham looked disappointed with the score-line, whilst Newcastle celebrated the hard-earned point.

The Newcastle coach described the team’s performance as “their best yet”, whilst in the Birmingham dugout, the coach commented on the fact that Birmingham were so close to losing the tie.

Roll on the return fixture at the “Fortress” in late January.

North B Pld

W

D

L

GD

1 Leeds 1

3

2

0

1

2

Pts 6

2 Birmingham 2

2

1

1

0

2

4

3 Newcastle 1

3

1

1

1

0

4

4 Nottingham 2

3

1

1

1

-1

4

5 N’umbria 1

3

1

0

2

-2

3

6 Durham 2

2

0

1

1

-1

1

New leagues extend casual sport on campus

Liam Isaac, the coordinator of Campus Leagues, spoke to Sports Editor Mark Sleightholm about the new sports programme With Newcastle persistently knocking on the door of the BUCS top 10, and many of our clubs playing in their sports’ top divisions, it’s fair to say that sport is serious business here.

All well and good, but what about those students without the skill, time or money to take part in such intensive programmes of sport?

Sitting somewhere between top-ofthe-nation performance sport and a kickabout with some friends in Exhibition Park, the new Campus Leagues offer opportunities to get involved in sport without such a substantial commitment of either time or money.

The programme complements the existing Intra Mural sports and gives students a chance to play badminton, five-a-side football, netball, touch rugby, basketball and indoor cricket. With less formality than AU sport or even some of the more competitive Intra Mural leagues, Campus Leagues welcomes students of any ability and there is no expectation that participants need

to play every week. Aside from a small membership fee, there are none of the expenses associated with club-based sport, or even a requirement to hold a silver level membership of the Sports Centre.

The man behind the new leagues is Liam Isaac, NUSU’s inclusive sport coordinator. He sees the leagues as a link between one-off participation pro-

48

teams competing across six divisions of Campus League five-a-side football

grammes such as Give it a Go and the club-based Athletic Union. “Campus Leagues aims to bridge the gap between somebody’s who’s a real social player and somebody’s who’s played sport all their life,” he explained.

Campus Leagues grew out of the old Hall Sport programme, which was set up three years ago with funding from

Sport England. Isaac hopes the new branding will encourage more students to participate, recounting: “We changed the name to stop the confusion that’s it’s just for first years or it’s just sport that’s being played in a hall.”

A key feature of the new Campus Leagues is their close cooperation with Intra Mural sport. While Campus Leagues are run from the Students’ Union and the Intra Mural programme is delivered by the University Sports Centre, the two programmes are deliberately designed to complement one another.

Intra Mural sport offers an array of traditional options such as rugby or five-aside football, the Campus League programme is intentionally more focussed on more niche sports. Isaac points out, for example, that the University’s provision of touch rugby rests solely within Campus Leagues.

As with Intra Mural, the emphasis in Campus Leagues is on participation as much as it is about competition. While students can – and do – take their

League commitments very seriously, the programme also offers an opportunity to get involved in sport in a more relaxed environment, and is particularly helpful for students who are unable to commit to something every week. Badminton matches, for example, are arranged on the night, so that whoever turns up will get a chance to play and those who can’t make it can join in again

6

sports currently on offer, including football, netball, touch rugby, indoor cricket and dodgeball

the following week.

The largest aspect of Campus Leagues is the five-a-side, which now includes 48 teams playing in six divisions. Come December clubs will be relegated and promoted ready for the next season, with prizes including free kit on offer to the overall champions.

Students can even participate in

Campus Leagues on a one-off basis, by taking part in one of the many tournaments that are held regularly throughout the year. The biggest of these is the Campus Sport Tournament, now in its second year. Isaac describes this as “like a mini, internal Stan Calvert”, and the competition allows teams – often based on student societies – to compete across four different sports over a weekend.

Held twice a year, the next tournament will hit campus in December and involve netball, badminton, dodgeball and five-a-side football. As with the regular Campus Leagues, the costs to participate are minimal and students only need to commit their time to a single weekend’s competition.

As Newcastle’s BUCS success ramps up the competition for places in University-wide teams, the combination of low membership costs, lack of weekly commitment and welcoming of all sporting abilities makes Campus Leagues a much-needed part of Newcastle’s sporting offer.

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Mixed fillings for the Pies: regional

Many Pies “leave teams scared” ULTIMATE Fred Davies at UCON, Preston Expectations were high as a Newcastle (Too Many Pies) horde of four teams made their way to Mixed Indoor Regionals; a tournament in which they made up a quarter of the teams, threatening the Northern region with their sheer depth of players.

Pies 1 made light work of their group on Saturday although, they were taught a valuable lesson on how ferocious Pies beginners are when Pies 4 threatened to cause an early upset.

Pies 2 had a strong group stage with an important win against Manchester 2 but struggled against Durham 1’s clinical offence.

Pies 3 placed third in their group on goal difference with a well fought draw against Northumbria 1 giving them a promising start to the weekend. Saturday came to a close with power pools to decide seeding for Sunday.

Pies 3 killed their power pool, finishing 2nd and climbing to 12th seed, utilising a fast handler weave offence that many teams struggled to keep up with.

Pies 1 and 2 met in the same power pool and put on an inspiring display of Ultimate before Pies 2 proceeded to defeat Lancaster 1 to propel them into 6th seed and a chance at qualifying for Division 2 Nationals.

Pies have an incredible future ahead of them with these players leading the way Pies 1 destroyed Durham 1 12-4 to take 2nd seed, edging ever closer to Division 1 Nationals qualification.

After being one of the only teams partying on Saturday, Sunday started with Pies 3 edging ahead of Pies 2 in the early minutes of a nail-biting showdown and nearly causing a huge upset.

Pies 4 exhibited some impressively fluid offence while putting strong score lines against teams with years more experience throughout Sunday.

They ended the weekend on a high

and left many other teams scared of their extraordinary level of skill.

Pies have an incredible future ahead of them with these players leading the way.

Pies 3 ended the weekend by defeating Liverpool 2 and finishing above most second teams at the tournament. They controlled the middle bracket with their intense defence and stunning handler play.

Pies 1 gave themselves a tough semi-

5th

The second team ended in 5th place to join the winning first team to reach the Nationals

final by conceding three points to Liverpool 1 early in the game however, by bringing absolute defensive fire for the remainder of the game, they turned it around and progressed to the final with an 11-9 win.

The final saw Pies 1 facing Manchester

Pies 2 outclassed UCLan 1 with clinical offence and earned their place in the Division 2 play-off 1 and both teams approached the match with an unbeaten record. Pies 1 promised to leave everything on the pitch and so they did, tearing around the pitch on offence, putting their bodies on the line on defence and reigning superior with technically perfect throws.

A huge Pies side-line gave the encouragement and hype to help them become Regional champions and claim the top Division 1 Nationals spot. Pies 2 outclassed UCLan 1 with clinical offence and earned their place in the Division 2 play-off.

Northumbria 1 fought hard and took the lead in the middle of the qualification match but Pies 2 stayed cool and utilised their fierce defence to take the game, 5th place and the first ever Division 2 Nationals spot for a Northern second team.

Get rekd Northern Region and bring on Nationals!

Jake Hawkyard is inches away from a point for the Pies Image: Megan Lord

Halcyon days for Mancunians under ULTIMATE

Newcastle 1sts 4 Manchester 1sts 15

James Sproston at Cochrane Park On a typical windy Wednesday afternoon at Cochrane Park, Newcastle were overcome by a very clinical Manchester side, as they debuted in the Northern 1A.

Having been promoted out of the Northern 2B last year, Newcastle knew that this match was always going to be a tough one. In previous meetings, Manchester had always stamped their authority, with Halcyon having bageled the Pies in a previous indoor tournament.

With the help of the Cochrane Park wind, Newcastle were hoping that the blustery weather would give them a

level playing field over their Northern rivals, and it looked to be just that early on. After some slick movement with the disc, captain Fred Frisbee Davies picked out long-serving cutter Jake Hawkyard in the end zone.

Three consecutive Manchester points may have dejected Newcastle briefly, but they bounced back with a decent point of their own. After a quick turnover of possession, newcomer Ross Nu-

Northumbria dealt derby day defeat by WOMEN’S WATER POLO

Newcastle 2s Northumbria 2s

4 2

Megan Lord at Sport Central Following a whitewash of Durham 3rds last week, Newcastle 2nds were looking for another successful night in the pool against new team Northumbria 2nds.

This was Northumbria 2nds first ever BUCS game, after their introduction to the BUCS leagues this season, so it was impossible to predict what sort of form they would be in. Having beaten Northumbria 1s last season, Newcastle were feeling confident about their chances.

However, from the off it was clear that this would be a very equally matched game, with Newcastle’s Charlotte Duff winning the swim off, only for Northumbria’s Lauren Hall to steal the ball seconds later.

Both teams worked the ball up and down the pool a couple of times without success, following multiple saves from

both keepers. After a shot from Duff, the ball finally saw the back off the net, but was disallowed due to an incorrectly taken foul, much to the annoyance of the strong presence of Newcastle fans.

Not one to give up, Duff managed to steal the ball back, but her next shot made into the hands of Georgie Hogg between the Northumbria posts. This gave Northumbria the chance to work the ball up the pool to Kathryn Buchanan, but her shot was easily saved by the Newcastle keeper Holly Jackson.

The next few minutes saw some incredible defensive work from Newcastle, preventing several Northumbria advances on the Newcastle goal. A clear chance for Northumbria came when Newcastle captain Lucy Aubrook gave away a major foul, giving Northumbria a 20-second period with one more player. Fortunately for Newcastle, Northumbria wasted the chance with a lacklustre attempt on goal, which was picked up with ease by Jackson.

Next came Newcastle’s chance to capitalise on a major foul from North-

umbria’s Holly Denton, leaving the red and white-clad Newcastle girls a man up. The girls worked the ball round well, directed by interim coach Sarah Poyntz, feeding it to Mollie Smith who’s shot was saved by Hogg, ending the first quarter goalless.

The second quarter brought some excitement to the pool. Duff once again effortlessly won the swim off, to give Newcastle the first attack of the quarter.

The girls worked the ball up the pool, but couldn’t capitalise as once again Hogg found her hands on the ball.

Northumbria’s Amelia Lowry wasted no time in the following passage of play, counter attacking up the pool to place the ball in the back of Newcastle’s net, putting Northumbria 1-0 up.

However, the Newcastle girls didn’t let this phase them, and quickly equalised following a brilliant swim from Helen Murray, who launched the ball into the top right-hand corner of Northumbria’s goal.

Northumbria continued to play a strong attacking game, but Jackson

saved shot after shot, including a oneon-one with Northumbria’s Catherine Young. Following a great pass from Haleigh Blair, a strong defence from Northumbria saw a further attempt from Murray impeded, as the quarter ended 1-1.

Duff was the Player of the Match, and was deservedly awarded MVP by captain Aubrook. Could a promotion to the firsts be on the cards?

Duff won her third swim off of the game, but the ball was immediately given back to Northumbria after a foul.

Duff, again showing her resilience, immediately stole the ball back and drove straight through the Northumbria defence. Her shot on goal was impeded by

the Northumbria defender, but she was unable to reach the back of the net with her second effort.

Hogg subsequently sent the ball flying up the pool to Northumbria’s Lauren Hall, who escaped the Newcastle defence to find herself one on one with Jackson. But the calm-headed Jackson, expertly saved the attempt from Hall just before it crossed the line. Despite the appeals from the Northumbria fans, referee Carl Watson simply shook his head and play continued.

Having been picked out by Jackson, Duff swam the ball up to the Northumbria 2m line, where two Northumbria defenders descended on her.

She stayed calm and flicked the ball to the unmarked Murray by the Northumbria goal. She easily pinged it in to bring Newcastle ahead 2-1, just as the buzzer sounded to mark the end of the penultimate quarter.

An exhausted Duff won the fourth and final swim off of the game, but Newcastle’s first attack of the game was unsuccessful as Hogg made another

39

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Monday 6 November 2017

victory offsets league defeat its way back to Nugent via Davies.

However, his long pass had too much on it, as Manchester counter-attacked down the other end and scored through Nicholas.

Though some neat interplay between Tom Allan, Chris De Leeuwe and Nick Carter didn’t pay off, the next attack did.

For all the work that Newcastle put into that point they threw away immediately after as Dixon scored straight away from restart

pressure from the Pies gent sent a long haul for Brad Metcalfe to chase. The unashamedly herpes-ridden cutter latched onto the throw with a layout that left him face down in the mud.

After cutting out Ollie Gray’s pass, Newcastle’s playmaker Chris De Leeuwe passed the ball onto Metcalfe, who in turn found Davies.

The captain’s pass was seen early by Manchester’s Alex Aiton, who’s pin-

point pass let Manchester double their lead.

Manchester were again able to stretch their lead as a give-and-go between Hawkyard and Nugent didn’t come off.

From the resultant turnover, Steve Dixon scored after some small interchanges between Phil Nicholas and Evan Smith.

Newcastle looked to strike back immediately as Nugent flicked the disc onto Theo Turvill, before the disc found

Toon in the pool save. Newcastle’s Smith gave away a major foul for swimming on the back of her opposition, giving Northumbria another 20-second man up.

Coach Neil Bowers instructed the Northumbria girls in black and red to set up a 4-2 formation. The ball worked its way round the arc to find Lowry, who placed the ball past Jackson, drawing the score level to 2-2.

Newcastle once again responded with a quick goal, starting with a fantastic drive from Murray, who effortlessly smashed the ball into the Northumbria goal, securing her first hat-trick of the season, once again putting Newcastle ahead.

With the clock ticking down, the Newcastle girls looked to increase their lead and secure the victory. The highlight of the game came from Newcastle’s Neve Walsh, who found herself unmarked in front on Northumbria’s goal, following a brilliant swim.

Receiving the ball from Duff, Walsh dispatched it without hesitation past Hogg to score on her NUWPC debut.

The delight was clearly displayed across her face, as Newcastle were surely safe at 4-2 with less than a minute on the clock.

However, Northumbria didn’t plan on going down without a fight, and won a penalty after Jackson was pushed into the goal-post. Reflective of the inexperience of this new Northumbria team, Lowry incorrectly took the penalty, and the ball was given to Jackson.

In the dying seconds, Duff sprinted the length of the pool for a final time, but was unable to get the goal she deserved.

Nonetheless Duff was the Player of the Match, and was deservedly awarded MVP by captain Aubrook. Could a promotion to the firsts be on the cards?

This Newcastle team face a further two games this week against top of the table Durham 2s, and Leeds Beckett, following some questionable organisation from Club President Megan Lord.

But following two convincing wins, the girls could potentially be heading for a successful week.

Building again from CDL at the back, small passes around the arc from Davies, Turvill and De Leeuwe kept the attack alive. From there a long punt from Allan found its way into the hands of Metcalfe, who held off the challenge of Dixon to take the catch.

For all the work that Newcastle put into that point, they threw away immediately after as Dixon scored straight away from restart.

Compounding on that, a 10-pass move that concluded with club president Jack Westerman smartly finding Turvill ended in Manchester turning over possession and using the wind to their advantage for Harvey Lee Hughes to score.

After a Tom Allan pass was too low for Hawkyard, Smith looked to counter, but Carter got across quickly to shut the move down.

From there, Newcastle launched a quick counter of their own as vicacaptain George Perry played three onetwos with De Leeuwe before finally fidning Davies in the end zone.

At 8-4, Newcastle looked to still be in the game, and having started the second half well, they had the momentum to press on.

However, Manchester defended well and wore Newcastle down. Hughes scored again after Metcalfe couldn’t get a strong enough hand to Gray’s pass, and Nicholas notched up another after cutting out Davies’ pass to Perry himself.

Though there wasn’t any easy solution, the issue behind Newcastle’s struggle was that the passes to the ‘Iso’ (isolated

player) weren’t coming off. In the bucket formation that Newcastle were playing, they had four handlers sitting in the middle of the pitch and two men deeper down the pitch.

In between, as a third cutter, is a pivot connecting the two lines, but the passes to that creative player were being regularly cut out.

Soon enough the score was 12-4 to Manchester, as Nicholas scored another, as well as Dixon and Luke Heseltine adding to their personal tallies.

The only clear-cut chance after that stage for Newcastle was a Nugent pass that was just too high for Hawkyard, and a counter attack in which Westerman couldn’t spot a man fast enough to lay the disc onto.

Further goals for Nicholas and Dixon, as well as one for Tom Moran rounded off the scoring and finished the game up quickly.

The 15-4 scoreline certainly flattered Manchester, though the lack of creativity and penetration towards the end of the second half for Newcastle was somewhat alarming.

With big players such as Charlie Huins and Will Mulvaney missing, Newcastle could potentially have been more dangerous.

63

goals scored in the first round of the Northern 1A league- but Pies unlucky to only get four of those

But in reality, the real focus for the Pies will be on the Bangor, Leeds and Sheffield Hallam fixtures, which will be crucial if they want to avoid the drop and finish in the top four in the league.

As for Manchester, it looks like a straight fight between themselves and Durham for the top spot, which will be interesting one to keep an eye out for come March.

Northern 1A Pld

W

D

L

GD

Pts

1 Manc 1sts

1

1

0

0

11

3

2 Durham 1sts

1

1

0

0

7

3

3 Leeds 1sts

1

1

0

0

1

3

4 Sheff Hal 1sts

1

0

0

1

-1

0

5 Sheffield 1sts

1

0

0

1

-7

0

6 Leeds 1sts

1

0

0

1

-11

0

Explosive start for TNT TRIATHLON Clara Pettitt at Temple Park Newcastle University had a successful weekend at the third race in the Start Fitness North East Harrier League series. The team consisted of three Team Newcastle Triathlon members (TNT) and an AU officer still suffering from Freshers’ Flu. The race took place at Temple Park in South Shields. On arrival, it was clear that the race was not going to be a stroll in the park due to the strong breeze that was threatening to blow tents onto the 6km course.

We headed to registration whilst realizing that being a team of 4 from Newcastle University we had no shelter. As amateur as we looked we didn’t care and decided to ask if we could pitch up inside the registration tent.

The clock hit 1.05 and we headed to the start line for the 1.10 start of the 6km race. 1.10 passed and there was no sign of the race starting anytime soon, it

was at 1.25 that they announced that the race was going to start in 10 minutes.

At 1.37 after standing around for a solid half an hour huddled together freezing in vest and shorts, the gun was fired and 350 runners headed out onto the undulating, open course.

A steady but strong first km put all the Newcastle runners well within the top 100. Amelia was up there in the leading pack with Susie not far behind followed

by Ellie and Clara.

At the end of the first lap we all wondered how we were going to get around again with the wind getting stronger.

Nevertheless this was where the training was going to show and it was at this point that Amelia hit the front. 22 minutes and 51 seconds later Amelia crossed the finish line in 1st place followed by Clara, 27th, Susie, 36th and Ellie in 50th.

This meant that Newcastle University finished 1st overall out of 18 teams and 350 runners. Sara Tomassini ex TNT ran the race for Tyne Bridge Harriers and finished in 71st.

BUCS RESULTS BADMINTON

M1 v Leeds 2nds M2 v Leeds Beckett 2nds W1 v Loughborough 1sts W2 v Hull 1sts

BASKETBALL

W1 v Loughborough 1sts W2 v Sheffield 1sts

7-1 1-7 2-6 8-0 74-52 38-56

FENCING

M1 v Loughborough 1sts 112-122 M2 v M3 135-69 W1 v Durham 1sts 52-135 W2 v Keele 1sts 128-118

FOOTBALL

M1 v Sheffield 1sts M2 v Sheffield Hallam 2nds W1 v Lancaster 1sts W2 v Sunderland 1sts

FUTSAL

M1 v Chester 2nds

GOLF

Mix1 v UCLAN 2nds

HOCKEY

M1 v Sheffield 1sts M2 v Durham 4ths M3 v Leeds Beckett 3rds W1 v Birmingham 2nds W3 v Sheffield 3rds W4 v York 2nds

LACROSSE

M2 v Bradford 1sts W1 v Leeds 1sts W2 v Sheffield 1sts

NETBALL

W1 v Liverpool 1sts W2 v Durham 1sts W3 v Durham 3rds W4 v Hull 1sts

RUGBY LEAGUE

M1 v Leeds Beckett 1sts

RUGBY UNION

M1 v Birmingham 1sts M2 v Sheffield Hallam 1sts M3 v Leeds 2nds M4 v Leeds 3rds W2 v Teesside 1sts

SQUASH

M3 v York 1sts

TENNIS

M1 v Leeds 2nds M2 v Leeds Beckett 5ths W1 v Manchester 1sts W2 v Durham 4ths

VOLLEYBALL

M1 v Manchester 1sts W1 v Sheffield Hallam 1sts

WATERPOLO

M2 v York 1sts

2-0 5-2 3-1 2-3 w/o Ncl 6-0 6-2 3-2 0-4 1-1 2-0 w/o Ncl 4-11 8-7 5-11 39-39 30-61 35-34 27-37 6-62 50-17 53-15 33-12 17-20 10-29 6-4 12-0 2-10 6-0 10-2 3-1 3-0 6-16

OVERALL BUCS POSITION Pos

University

Pts

9

Cardiff ■

1282

10

Northumbria ■

1272

11

Newcastle ■

1129

12

Notts Trent ▲

1090

13

Leeds Beckett▼

1032

sport the courier

Monday 6 November 2017 Issue 1357 Free

@Courier_Sport courier.sport@ncl.ac.uk thecourieronline.co.uk/sport Sport Editors Tom Shrimplin, Courtney Strait & Mark Sleightholm

Cyclists rise to new heights in Sheffield CYCLING Isabella Ash at Pea Royd Lane The last weekend of October is always a busy weekend for road cycling as it hosts the last events of the racing season before the winter really takes hold.

“Hill climbs” are a discipline of road cycling which involve a time trial with one attempt up a hill, with the fastest time producing a winner. The hills can vary from two to ten minutes long and are usually between 10-20% in gradient. You would certainly notice a gradient this steep in a car so you can imagine how this all-out effort cycling is a real test of fitness.

ALEX PLATT A new recruit to the Cycling Club, Platt achieved the second best time out of Newcastle’s men in the BUCS event

The University Hill Climb Championships is always held on the last Saturday of October and the National Hill Climb held the next day with both hosting locations varying each year. Having come back from a great trip to the Lake District the week before all the riders were excited to represent the University in the first events of the academic year.

The BUCS Hill Climb was held on Pea Royd Lane in Sheffield. Whilst only 700m long it averages a 17% gradient and the winning time on the day was 2mins 21s.

The Newcastle University Cycling Club headed down with a team of six: two BUCS Hill Climb

Time

Pos

00:03:04,639

74

Men Richard Allen Alex Platt

00:03:10,963

92

Andrew Berry

00:03:26,228

134

Calum Spence

00:04:02,377

173

Women Izzy Ash

00:04:18,788

27

Florence Shekleton

00:04:39,224

33

Time

Pos

Freddie Jagger

04:27.8

27

Alex Platt

04:47.7

76

National Hill Climb

women and four men. Some alumni and friends of the club also came along to support in what promised to be a great atmosphere.

Florence Shekleton was off first, followed by club president Izzy Ash shortly after. Both put in great times to finish 33rd and 27th respectively.

Next was the turn of the men with only road secretary Andrew Berry having done a hill climb before. Richie Allan was the highest finisher for Newcastle, coming in 74th from a field of 188, but only 20 seconds off a top 20 place, which shows how close the timings are in these short events more suited to hill climbers.

Freshers Alex Platt and Calum Spence completed the team performance in what proved to be a great introduction to University cycling. The experience set them up for many more opportunities looking forward.

The overall event was a great success As well as providing an experience in racing for newer members to the club and encouraging others to put themselves forward for events in the 2018 season, the overall event was also a great success in bringing the club together and raising its growing profile.

Sunday saw the National Hill Climb being hosted at Hedley, just 30 minutes from Newcastle and so often a feature of the club’s well-attended group rides.

It promised a great opportunity for club members to spectate in what is one of cycling’s most exciting disciplines to witness live at the roadside.

Alex Platt and alumni club member Freddie Jagger being accepted to the 280 strong start list also gave the club’s spectators a chance to cheer on familiar faces whilst watching the best climbers in the country race up the hill.

The two Newcastle representatives, cheered on by the strong University club fan group, put in great rides and really soaked up the occasion. Alex finished a commendable 76th, especially impressive given he had raced the day before whilst Freddie finished a brilliant 27th in his first Hill Climb Nationals. Both riders with many years ahead of them are sure to improve on these results, with the experience leaving them wanting to come back for more.

The event helped showcase the Cycling Club and Newcastle University to a wide audience with racers and spectators travelling from all over the country to the event which hopefully will encourage more riders to join in the future and inspire more students to take up cycling.

Newcastle’s Freddie Jagger racing in Hedley Image: Craig Hodgson

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