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ISSUE 706 2 DEC 2019 exepose.com @Exepose
THE UNIVERSITY OF EXETER’S INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER SINCE 1987
Students back striking UCU staff
News Team
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N 25 November, striking University of Exeter staff members took to the picket lines across Streatham, and the students stood with them. At around 8am on a damp Monday morning, UCU members gathered across five picket lines: Stocker Road,
Queen’s Drive, Thornlea, St. Luke’s and the Penryn campus in Cornwall. On the Queen’s Drive picket, an English third year undergraduate said “The people teaching me deserve a fair wage. It doesn’t take much for students to stand on the picket for a couple of hours. We have to show solidarity.” The University and College Union
(UCU), the largest higher education union in the world, went on strike from 25 November to protest against freefalling working conditions and changes to their pension benefit. As a result, union members from over 60 universities will not give lectures, mark assessments or step onto campus grounds. UCU members include aca-
demics, professional service staff and postgraduate researchers. Picketers, who included both university staff and sympathetic students, handed out leaflets and cookies to passing students. Some picketers waved flags and placards branded with slogans such as “We Earned It – We Deserve It – We Demand It.” Image: Aaron Loose
Sharon Strawbridge, President of the Exeter UCU branch (EUCU), helped lead the week’s demonstrations. She noted a warm reception from the student body. She said “The support we received from students is because the students know we actually really care. The people out here aren’t trying to ruin student’s lives. We work intensely hard to make the student experience fantastic. It’s almost like we have been disrespected by the senior management.”
The picket line is a place of learning and there is warmth and camaraderie here UCU member “We have chosen to stay in Exeter, and we rely on Exeter to look after us. A lot of private sector jobs would be paying a great deal more than in academia. We are taking a hit by being here, but we like our students, and we like our jobs.” Another lecturer said “I’ve been manifestly delighted to see so many students coming here joining us on the picket lines. “I know that there were some nerves about this last week but those that have come along seem to have discovered and discovered quickly that, the picket line is a place of pedagogy, of learning and there seems to be warmth and camaraderie there.” The UCU are striking on two different disputes. One centres on a dispute between UCU members and University employers over the University Superannuation Scheme (USS), the £60bn pension fund for university staff. The other dispute focuses on staff working conditions, which many UCU members believe in serious decline.
CONTINUED ON PAGE 4
UCU Strikes
Best of the Decade
Interviews and images from the picket line
The stories, music and films that defined us
PAGEs 1-5 Image: Blonded
Image: Harry Caton
News Editors Print: Louis Donohoe & Henry Jones Online: Emma Hussain & Pete Syme news@exepose.com
Features Editors Print: Jaysim Hanspal & William Harrop Online: Bryan Knight & Kate Norman Foreign Correspondents Co-ordinator : Maddie Baker features@exepose.com
Arts + Lit Editors Print: Cherry-Anastasia Boroceanu & Zach Mayford Online: Ariane Joudrey & Greta Sanna artsandlit@exepose.com Music Editors Print: Richard Ainslie & Bryony Gooch Online: Megan Frost & Stephen Ong music@exepose.com Screen Editors Print: Jonathan Chern & Samuel Thomson Online: Jacob Heayes & Abi Taphouse screen@exepose.com Science Editors Print: Elinor Jones & Scarlett Parr Reid Online: Sira Charbel & Tom Dormer sciandtech@exepose.com Sport Editors Print: Josh Brown & Nick Powell Online: Ben Bampton sport@exepose.com Chief Photographer Rory Selvey photography@exepose.com Copy Editors Charlotte Forrester & Catherine Lloyd Proofers Catherz, Johnny is King, Hash Brown, Nick, Gooch, Richard's beard, Fozz, Dan, PS Yeet Me, The Big Dipper, Emily Hassan, Faulkner, Anna, Loosey.
@ exepose facebook.com/exepose issuu.com/exepose Advertising Kate Watkins kate.watkins@exeterguild.com (01392) 722607 The opinions expressed in Exeposé are not necessarily those of the Exeposé Editors nor the University of Exeter Students’ Guild. While every care is taken to ensure that the information in this publication is correct and accurate, the Publisher can accept no liability for any consequential loss or damage, however caused, arising as a result of using the information printed. The Publisher cannot accept liability for any loss or damage to artwork or material submitted. The contents of this, unless stated otherwise, are copyright of the Publisher. Reproduction in any form requires the prior consent of the Publisher.
Ben Bradshaw, Labour MP candidate, visits the Queen's Drive picket
PAGE 3
COMMENT
Our writers speak out against the erasure of bisexual identities
PAGE 9
FEATURES
Interview with Floella Benjamin, Baroness and former Exeter Chancellor
PAGE 14
SCIENCE Considering responsibility & medical research
Image: W. R. McManus
Lifestyle Editors Print: Izzy Cole & Anna Romanovska Online: Amy Butterworth & Emily Pirie lifestyle@exepose.com
of mine. Features have two incredible interviews this issue, including an exclusive interview with Grenfell activist Moyra Samuels, on page 13. Science envisions what the world will be like in ten years and the importance of responsibility in medical research, page 35. Lifestyle takes a more personal reflection on the decade, discussing experiences of personal growth and activism, page 16-17. The best and worst trends in fashion are discussed on page 18, so get ready to be called out. We have personally never felt so basic. Finally, in Sport, check out the match report for Basketball varsity, a genuinely exciting game to catch up with on page 40. The end of the year is an incredibly nostalgic time. We cannot believe soon we will be going into our final term of university. It has completely flown by, let alone the last ten years. Use the Christmas holidays to try and relax a bit, eat some mince pies (If you are insane enough to find those nice to eat). It's certainly been a really busy and often difficult term, so do take the time! We feel honoured to complete the last Exeposé issue of this decade, and we really hope you enjoyed reading it. Merry Christmas from all of us from Exeposé and see you in 2020!
Image: Prosthetic Head
Comment Editors Print: Kamila Bell & George Clark Online: Olly Haynes & Gaia Newman comment@exepose.com
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UR last issue of the term, year and decade is upon us! Final deadlines are round the corner but Christmas is tantalisingly close, so there’s always that. And we have got a lot of content to celebrate and commemorate the last ten years, including Music (pg 24-25), Screen (pg 28-29), Arts and Lit (pg 21). The end of the decade is certainly a strange celebration. I can’t say I exactly remember feeling that conscious of a new decade at the end of 2009. I guess I was too busy watching 500 Days of Summer over and over again. Okay, maybe I wasn’t at ten years old, but it’s just a great film. On another, more important note, we are stepping into our second week of the UCU industrial action with lots of coverage online and all over the News section, including an angelic dog on the picket, page 5. The atmosphere on the pickets has been amazing, with strikers keeping up amazing energy. Below you will find a guide to all that’s going on. One really helpful way to help strikers is donating to their hardship fund. With a loss of pay and Christmas coming up, it’s a really difficult time of the year as it is. Some are left with no choice but to turn to food banks. With all the tiresome work our lecturers, librarians and professional service staff do for us, the least we can do is donate a couple pounds, and even that small of an amount can do wonders. The details to donate are at the end of the piece!! After you have done that, feel free to have a look through our wonderful paper. Comment delves into the 'Ok boomer' meme on page 8, a personal favourite
NEWS
Image: r4vi, flickr
Editors Print: Isabelle Gray & Aaron Loose Online: Harry Caton & Ellie Cook Deputy: Anne Chafer & Neha Shaji editors@exepose.com
Editorial
Image: Steve Haywood
EXEPOSÉ
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PAGE 35
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Iszy, Aaron, Neha & Anne Details for the UCU Hardship Fund Account name: UCU Exeter LA21 Hardship Fund Sort code: 60-83-01 Account no: 20392549 Reference: Exeter Hardship Fund
UCU Strikes Explained
Why are university staff members striking?
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niversity staff began an eight day strike across the country last Monday. The action, which is taking place across 57 universities, is in response to pensions, pay, and working conditions. It is being coordinated by the University and Colleges Union (UCU), who are making two separate disputes. The first focuses on changes to staff pensions. The union estimates that changes to pensions could leave lecturers up to £240,000 worse off when they retire. For professors, that number could be as high as £730,000 over the course
of their lifetime. Staff are now having to pay 9.6 per cent of their salary into pension contributions, up from 6 per cent in 2011. The figure is set to rise to 11 per cent in 2021. The second dispute is regarding pay, casualisation, workloads and inequality. Casualisation means employing staff on fixed term contracts, so they have less job security and will need to find a new job once their contract ends. According to the UCU, Exeter has the eighth highest employment insecurity ranking among UK universities, with 58 per cent of its academic workforce employed on casual or fixed-term contracts.
Who is who? • • • • •
UCU-University & College Union USS-University Superannuation Scheme UUK-Universities UK JEP-Joint Expert Panel UCEA-Universities and College's Employer's Association
What is the JEP Report?
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n November 2017, the University Superannuation Scheme (USS) reported that it had a £7.5bn deficit. Universities UK (UUK), the body which speaks for more than 350 higher education institutions, proposed phasing out the defined benefit pension in favour of a higher-risk defined contribution plan. After 14 days of strike action by UCU members in 2018, the independent Joint Expert Panel (JEP) was established to undertake a new valuation. The JEP's report highlighted serious flaws with the methodology used to calculate the initial 2017 valuation. USS was forced to reduce that deficit
to just £3.6bn in 2019 after JEP reviewed its methodology and concluded the position was not as bad as first thought. The JEP report would have resulted in combined contributions of no higher than 26 per cent. Employees would pay 8 per cent of their salaries into their pension pots However, USS then presented three options that failed the union's "no detriment" policy of no increases in contributions and no cuts to benefits. The UCU is now challenging the size of staff pension contributions, which it thinks should be capped at 8 per cent of a lecturer’s salary, rather than the 9.6 per cent proposed by employers.
Pension Schemes: What's the difference?
Jo Grady, UCU General Secretary
Defined benefit: How much you get depends on your pension scheme’s rules, not on investments or how much you have paid in. The pension provider will promise to give you a certain amount each year when you retire.
Defined contribution: The pension's value is based on how much is paid in. Contributions are held in investments made for you by the people responsible for the scheme. Your final payout depends on investment's success. If an investment fails, your pension could fail as well.
News
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NEWS EDITORS: Louis Donohoe Henry Jones
Shifting focus: professional service staff speak up
Olly Haynes Online Comment Editor
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HE focus of the UCU strike has shifted from 2018 to include the poor working conditions of non-academic support staff. On 22 February 2018, UCU members went on strike for an unprecedented 14 days over changes made to their pension benefit. However, the new round of strikes are also striking on a separate ballot. Working conditions, pay, and casualisation are all key concerns. As a result, the 2019 action has also seen a new focus on the experiences of professional service staff, who are also able to join the UCU and pay contributions into the University Superannuation Scheme.
Professional service staff are nonacademic employees, such as library technicians and porters, who do not teach but provide essential maintenance and administration work.
We’ve had cuts to funding and staff which has led to big increases in workload,
Library technician
One library technician said: “For me, the pensions issue is a really important issue, but all these other areas have been neglected or degraded over a long period of time. “Pay and workload are real issues, especially for those of us who work in professional services and not academic roles.
“I work in the library and we’ve had lots of cuts to funding and staff numbers and professional services – which has led to big increases in workload particularly with student increases.” Since 2007, the University of Exeter student population has increased by over 10,000 students. The council forecast that there will be a need for over 20,000 bedspaces in the city by 2020. Another library technician suggested: “If we had a proper union and the cleaners and the IT went out that would be very different, but those positions are discouraged from joining this union. Unite, Unison and UCU are the three. “If all the porters, cleaners, people who unlock the buildings came out, that would be a very different kind of strike.”
Labour candidate Ben Bradshaw stands with striking staff
Concerns over Tier 4 Visas Pete Syme Online News Editor
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Image: Neha Shaji
Neha Shaji Deputy Editor
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EN Bradshaw, the Labour candidate for Exeter for this month’s general election, joined staff on Wednesday. Speaking to Exeposé, Bradshaw confirmed his support for the action: “I’m a trade unionist myself, and I wanted to show solidarity with people who I think have a very just cause. “I think we really have to do something about the marketisation of our higher education system, which has resulted in this action. The only way of doing that is by electing a Labour government. I hope that’s what we get and Image: Neha Shaji
I’m not on the picket line. I’m out in Exeter campaigning flat out to make sure that happens.”
University should be a public service Ben Bradshaw, Labour Candidate The Labour candidate also spoke about his party’s manifesto promise to end university tuition fees, which in 2012 almost trebled from a maximum cap of 3,250 per year to a maximum cap of £9,000 per year. These changes were enforced by the Conservative & Liberal Democrat coalition government. Bradshaw said Labour would “fund
the system properly to make it what it used to be, which is a public service, and a right for everybody – and with proper pay and working conditions for University staff.” “Other countries, like Germany, have managed to do this. There’s no reason why we can’t do it in this country.” Bradshaw later posed for a photograph with University staff and students on the Queen’s picket. After the photo was taken, one university staff member exclaimed “here’s to a Labour majority”, and the crowded picket cheered in response. The 2019 general election will be held on 12 December.
Image: Owain Evans
Image: Harry Caton
COLLECTION of student organisations and unions have released a statement in solidarity with the UCU strikes, asking that universities do not monitor international students’ attendance during the strike because of the impact it has on Tier 4 visas. Whilst the University’s FAQ section explains that missing teaching sessions because of the action “will not affect your attendance record” students will often have to cross the picket line to know if their session has been cancelled, or may miss it under the impression that it has been. An international PhD student at Exeter explained that “many international students are feeling pressured to cross the picket line, and cannot afford to fall behind/have absences.” Likewise, an administrator at another university told The Guardian that “our student welfare services are stretched at the best of times, now, they are overrun.” She said that she had been dealing with a significant number of panicked international students whose visa status relies on their attendance. The statement explained their demand that senior managements cancel attendance registers during the strike: “monitoring migrant students’ attendance on strike days amounts to the cynical use of students’ visa precarity against workers’ right to industrial action.”
Essay deadlines pushed back David Fallshaw Senior News Reporter
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HE ongoing UCU strikes will have provided some respite for students in the College of Humanities this week. It was announced through a collegewide email that deadlines for upcoming written assignments will be extended by a period of eight working days. Although the industrial action has not affected all modules with some staff choosing to remain at their posts, the College has decided that the overall impact of the strikes merits a deadline extension across the board. The extension will be enforced up until the last day of term, meaning that assignments that were due in from 3 December onwards will have been extended until Friday 13 December. Whilst this will please many students in one of the busiest times of the year, it has also led to deadlines being piled up, putting stress on time-management skills. A University of Exeter spokesperson said “We know that strike action can be unsettling for many of our students and we have set up a number of additional support sessions at both our Exeter and Penryn campuses. In addition to this, we have been working to carefully manage the potential impact the industrial action may have on our university community and to ensure any measures we put in place are the right ones for students and staff.
EXEPOSÉ | 2 DEC 2019
Staff speak out against “brutalising” casual contracts
CONTINUED FROM FRONT Sharon Strawbridge also cited gender pay and equality issues and workloads as “major problems." The median pay gap at the University of Exeter shows that female staff members receive 84p for every pound paid to their male colleagues. The University has not yet released BAME pay gap figures. However, the UCU calculates the pay gap between white and BAME staff could be as much as 14 per cent. Phillipa Davey, the South West UCU Regional Official, spoke on on fixed term and zero hours style contracts. Davey credited the University for holding negotiations with the UCU on reducing casualised contracts, but felt frustrated that the process had slowed down. She said “There are people on this picket line using food banks, and that needs to stop." Casualisation was a key topic on picket lines across Streatham. According to UCU figures, the University of Exeter employs the eighth highest number of casualised or short term contracts in the United Kingdom. One academic, who worked in casualised placements during their early caImage: Emma Hussain
reer, told Exeposé that they were striking for casualised staff in particular. They said “in terms of the brutalising working conditions that I have experienced back in the 2000s, I’ve seen that there has not been any improvement." The academic was also concerned that casualised contracts would dissuade graduates from working in universities. They said “I think it’s really important that academia as a viable career path remains open to the next generation of scholars.” On approaching the subject of strikes with students, they were initially “actually scared ofbroaching it with my students in a seminar room."
People at Exeter are using food banks, and that must stop
Phillipa Davey, South West UCU Regional Offical
However, the academic was moved to learn that most students supported the strikes and wanted to help out during the industrial action. “What I took away was that most students were in solidarity, and that re-
NEWS
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Image: Aaron Loose
flects the survey that the Guild did.” They were referring to the results of a Student Guild survey that polled students on their views on the industrial action. 78 per cent of students were in support of the EUCU's cause for striking. One picketer detailed their own experience of precarity. They said “for some years after my PhD, I was employed on a series of fixed term contracts, usually of a year in length, but sometimes less." “This is an endemic situation in higher education, where you are often called to teach at very short notice and suddenly need to come up with the teaching materials.” They continued about the everyday reality of precarity, which can lead to stress and financial insecurity. The staff member said “it’s a piecemeal existence and very stressful. When you spend enough time applying for jobs, during that time you can’t really focus on teaching. The students suffer as a consequence.” They acknowledged the positive impact of “camaraderie and solidarity” on the picket lines, but also described the personal cost of strike action as “very difficult, because it is a complex situation. Not everybody is onboard and you do feel some hostility from some quarters.”
You can't really focus on teaching , and students suffer An UCU member speaks on casualised contracs t
In a 2016 investigation by The Guardian, Exeter was ranked the 6th most insecure university in the UK. At the time, 63.2 per cent of teaching-and-research
staff were on temporary contracts. PhD students make up a large proportion of this casualised workforce. Exeposé also spoke to a PhD student who stood in solidarity with the striking staff members. They claimed advertisements for casualised contracts “preyed” upon postgraduates seeking a career. They said “everyone who goes into academia now is very aware of the possibility – or inevitability – of them ending up as casualised staff, and universities prey on this resigned acceptance by constantly advertising such positions and giving the impression that they are a ‘stepping stone’ to a more stable and permanent career. “It is particularly disheartening for younger academics to be counting pennies while living with the reality of having to move cross-country at any given moment depending on who offers a stable and permanent contract.” Despite the cold and drizzle, the atmosphere was warm on the picket lines. Drivers honked their horns in support as they drove past and one lecturer commented that the strikes represented a rare chance for staff to talk and meet each other. One academic told us “the environment at the moment, it’s energetic, it’s mobilized – yet it’s important to remember that so many of us are angry, are sad, are disillusioned by all of this. We’re here because we want to be heard.” A University of Exeter spokesperson said "We respect the right for staff to take industrial action and remain hopeful that the dispute on pensions and pay can be resolved at a national level. Locally, we are already working with the UCU and other colleagues on the areas where we can make a difference such as casual and fixed term employment, the gender pay gap and equality, workloads
and wellbeing. “We know that strike action can be unsettling for many of our students and we have set up a number of additional support sessions at both our Exeter and Penryn campuses. In addition to this, we have been working to carefully manage the potential impact the industrial action may have on our University community and to ensure any measures we put in place are the right ones for students and staff.
There are no plans for senior mangement to visit the picket lines University of Exeter spokesperson
“There are no plans for senior managers to visit picket lines in the week ahead but we did invite UCU representatives to a recent Council meeting and remain open to discussion on the issues where we can work together.” The eight days of planned demonstration follow the unprecedented two weeks of industrial action that brought universities to a standstill in February 2018. The action prevented a change to the pension scheme that would have meant members would lose a guaranteed fixed payout upon retirement. The current action has also triggered a response from University employers. On 26 November, UCU negotiators met with representatives from the University and College Employer Association (UCEA) for the first time since the original ballot on pay and working conditions opened. UCU negotiations emphasised that they expected progress “on all aspects” of their requests for improved pay and working conditions. The UCEA have committed to releasing a written response this week.
NEWS
EXEPOSÉ | 2 DEC 2019
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Picturing the picket line
The Streatham UCU industrial action in six snapshots
Students support the UCU at the Stocker Road picket.
The Thornlea and Queen's Drive pickets join up on Stocker Road on Monday.
Image: Harry Caton
Image: Harry Caton
The Guild Officers visit the Thornlea picket line on Tuesday Image: Harry Caton
A picketer's placard. Image: Harry Caton
#DogsOnPicketLines Image: Fatima Zehra
The Teach-Outs took place at St. Davids Church last Friday Image: Harry Caton
Image: Jim Wileman
Image: Arts and Culture Department
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Comment
COMMENT EDITORS: Kamila Bell George Clark
A decade of change
Anne Chafer Deputy Editor
Jonathan Chern Screen Editor
STILL remember the march I went to with my father in 2010. It was a peaceful summer protest down one of the widest avenues in Barcelona. The mass demonstration, which had as a slogan “We are a nation. We decide”, was the biggest march in Catalan history to date, and protested autonomy limitations enforced by the central Spanish government. I did not know it back then, but this would be the start of a long process that is still ongoing, a people-led movement the objective of which was to reach Catalan national independence. Since 2010, there has been a protest every year, breaking the records of the previous year. Discussing the reasons why Catalonia might want independence would take far too long for this article, as they are many, often interconnected, and have evolved through the years – one could argue the want for an independent Catalan national identity can be traced back to 1714, when a cultural repression was enforced by Spain and France. But I digress. Let me give what is, to me, the best example of this movement that will now have spanned a decade. The protests started as marches, but have taken on all sorts of different forms in subsequent years. On 11 September 2013, Catalonia’s National Day, instead of walking down a street in Barcelona, Catalans organised to form a 400-kilometre human chain. This spanned from the Pyrenees and the northern border to the furthest southern point in Catalonia, the coastal town of Alcanar. This was inspired by the 1989 Baltic Chain that united Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, which at the time were occupied by the Soviet Union. To me, this is as of today the protest that has represented what Catalonia stands for the most so far. The movement has had its ups and downs, and politicians have tried to appropriate collective demands, but if one thing has become clear over the years, it is that people are at the centre of this – and we are patient enough to campaign for what we believe in for a long, long time. The push for Catalan independence, to me, is a lesson in persistence and resilience.
HE university where I studied last year is shut. Each entrance to the campus is barricaded with whatever students can use - fences, tarpaulins, chairs from the library. The corridors and walkways that zigzag around campus are graffiti-ed with nationalist slogans. Residents try to clear the surrounding roads of debris left by the student-resurrected roadblocks. The lecture theatres I sat in half a year ago are locked. There’s no learning taking place now. In Hong Kong, after six months of protests, universities have become the latest front line between activists and the police. The spark of the protests may have been over a new extradition law which would allow China to prosecute anyone in Hong Kong, but they have endured long after the controversial bill was repealed. The Hong Kong metropolis has never had democracy. The British colonial administration was known for having banks as the most powerful authority in the city. Since the British left in 1997, little has changed. The British and Chinese governments presented a constitution where big businesses and the (supposedly Marxist) Chinese Communist Party (CPP) would have a mutually-beneficial relationship. The losers, of course, are everyone else in the territory. Where most seats in the Legislative Council are owned by business interests, and without universal suffrage, it is little surprise that an explosion of protests and riots should become the most vivid way that a civic voice can be realised. Hong Kong universities are officially uncritical of the Chinese regime, but in the classrooms, they are unofficially critical. That policy was one I had found out after writing essays on the CCP’s influence in the city. But in the centre of Hong Kong University’s campus stands a monument to those killed in the Tiananmen Square Massacre 30 years ago - a sobering reminder of the threat the state holds over dissident academia. And at the bottom of the monument, it reads: ‘The old cannot kill the young.’
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Images top-bottom: Jeanne Menjoulet (Wikimedia), lecreusois (Pixabay) Piqsels, Kurious (Pixabay)
Anna Romanovska Lifestyle Editor
Olly Haynes Online Comment Editor
Y first time taking to the streets was on the 17 November 2014 at the mere age of 15 to present a red card to our first directly elected president, Milos Zeman. Fast-forward to a couple of years later, the Czech Republic now holds a corrupt, former member of the communist secret police (StB) as its Prime Minister, who is accused of several counts of conflict of interest and fraud. A man of his nature, in power, brought back memories of the totalitarian regime to those who truly suffered in it and posed a threat to freedom and democracy to younger generations. Million Chvilek pro Demokracii (A Million Moments for Democracy) rose as a movement fighting for the demission of Babis. Headed by Mikulas Mynar, the movement began to accumulate a large number of protests, climaxing with the Letna protest in June of this year with 300,000 people gathering in one place. It was then followed by ‘Letna 2’ on the 16 November, where again, 250,000 to 300,000 people gathered in one place to remember the events of 17 November 1989 and to give an ultimatum to Babis: resign (by 31 December at the latest) or face the protesters again. Unfortunately, I was unable to attend the full protest on 16 November. However, I did travel to London where, in front of Marble Arch, 300 Czechs and Slovaks gathered to commemorate 30 years of freedom and to express our dissent towards our leadership. Even though our protests are consistently shot down by the presidential office and those supporting the Prime Minister, I strongly believe that our efforts will not be deterred. For me, A Million Moments for Democracy is a unifying force that has the ability to make a nation forget all of their differences and fight for the legacy of 1989. A legacy of freedom, respect and the upholding of democratic principles that dissidents and students alike fought for in 1989.
HE Gilets Jaunes movement was fraught with problems and contradictions from the beginning. It never had a coherent identity and there was an ongoing battle for the soul of the movement between progressives and those comfortable with racism and misogyny. These darker currents notwithstanding, the Gilets Jaunes, and the movements that exploded off it like fragments of a cluster grenade, remain some of the most awe-inspiring protests in the western world since 1968. I should know too. I was there for a lot of it. In an atomised era in which the collective is supposedly dead, to see such an aggressive and proud afront to the suffocating atmosphere of capitalist realism was unbelievably hopeful. The Gilets Jaunes coalesced into a genuine vox populi and harnessed the immense power of the people united. Cynics ask why protest? Yet these yellow jacketed people in French streets and on roundabouts forced the neoliberal deficit hawks Emmanuel Macron and the European technocracy, into running a budget deficit to pay for the minimum wage rise and cancellation of the fuel tax. While the movement failed to achieve many of the goals it was setting out at its most ambitious, there are two striking features to note. The Gilets Jaunes movement was born 17 November 2018 but carries on to this day. The networks and friendships made during the height of the movement persist, because of the righteousness of what they were fighting for and the refreshing nature of being involved as part of a collective. The age of neoliberal loneliness in which trying to dream of something beyond market logic is deemed a pretentious affection, the Gilets Jaunes embodied two somewhat cliched, but nonetheless true, slogans of the left; ‘anger is an energy’ and ‘democracy is joy’. The final thing to think about is the violence with which they were met. Police in France have killed, maimed and traumatised members of the Gilets Jaunes movement. I have spoken to many of the incredibly brave victims who did nothing to provoke these attacks beyond exercise their right to protest. The Gilets Jaunes have revealed the way capitalism works in non-hegemonic times. Their crowning achievement is to expose the rot at the heart of neoliberalism.
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2 DEC 2019| EXEPOSÉ
COMMENT
Strikes: Who is university for? Neha Shaji Deputy Editor
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OU spent over seven years of your life learning to whistle through a singular nostril, and you turn up for one of the final nostril whistling jobs possible, edging out six other people. You find out then, that this nostril whistling place of employment pays you a pittance compared to the tear-duct whistling industry, the bloke who has to physically pinch the other nostril to even attempt a wheezy whistle is paid £1 for every 84p a woman makes, and you’re on a short-term whistling contract with no opportunity for advancement in the near future. And to top it all off, they make you whistle so much your left nostril is now six times the size of the other. You’d bloody well go on strike yourself. This is a farcical and somewhat gruesome metaphor. But this is also the fourth article I’ve written in the last two years where I had to include the sentence “staff are people too”, and at this stage I think I must resort to farce and egregious analogies due to the difficulty of getting this message across to both some sections of the student body, as well as institutional management. The question isn’t why students should care about strikes, as if the default is an inherent negative, the question is why on earth would a student not care about deeply entrenched marketization, casualisation, and toxic working
environment so closely intersected with their academic experience? And you know, for the fifth time, staff are people.
It is basic human decency to stand in solidarity with those affected by hostile sectors
I’ve written about the marketisation of higher education to the worrying extent where strangers have come up and said, “ah yes, I loved it when you said the phrase ‘capitalist elephant in the room’.” When it comes to higher education, it isn’t just one corporate elephant sat in the corner of the room, it’s a stampeding herd of profiteering wildebeests. This is, of course, why some student discourse on the industrial action is so toxic, due to thinking of the student as a consumer. A waste of money? Only a small amount of your fees go to staff: you’d get a Gregg’s meal deal from a period of strike action if you really wanted to weigh up the cost you “lost”. Missing out on education? Well, that is quite literally the point how much more education will you miss out if the academic staff who teach you, who maintain your labs, who digitise your work: are underpaid, undervalued, and demoralised? When you study for a job for nearly a decade and then that job turns around and scrapes all the joy from research, and engaging with academia - that is what
makes you miss out on education far more than any period of strike action. This is not a set of researchers complaining about how the copy of Moby Dick in the library has a single nick. This is a worker’s strike, this is a worker’s struggle: academic staff are arguing for fair pay, fair pension contributions, addressing the frightening problem of precarity and wage gaps. And these are not strangers you can relegate to being “some protest in town”, these are people who you see weekly who you know so well, that are asking for these heartbreakingly basic necessities. And if we’ve (and this is to use the collective we, I’m not singling out our dearest institution, long live Exeter) got people at the top with who I assume are paid enough to pay casualised staff salaries several times over. - we need to start thinking in terms of a bigger picture.
This is a worker’s strike and this is a worker’s struggle
Who is university for? Who makes a university? Is it a tree to student ratio, outstanding sports facilities or is it the early career academic getting paid an hour’s wages for six hours of preparation for an early morning seminar? Who makes your education, the plush Forum Auditorium seats? Or the academic who loses his voice from five hours of straight lectures
Image: Aaron Loose
and the technician who uploads it onto ReCap? Over the hours I’ve spent reporting at and supporting staff at pickets both this strike period and last, one message is echoed across the lines. That it is so difficult for people to strike because so many adore teaching - yet when the environment within is so stifling and hopeless there is nothing to do except step outside. Students should care about the strike because it is human decency to stand in solidarity with those affected by hostility. Don’t cross pickets, make the picket into a holistic learning experience instead. Write to Senior Management about the environment staff work under. You aren’t missing out on an education. It is not the layout of Queens D that makes a classroom. It’s the people who make
a room a classroom, and so please do go on the picket and experience education in a way marketising, profithungry institutions would flinch at.
A comment from the Guild President Patrick has provided the following statement: Industrial Action is a challenging situation for everyone involved. We’re happy to stand behind our membership as they vote decisively to support the cause of the strike, but we recognise that nearly 50% of those polled did not support strike action so we will be allocating our support and time proportionally to these differing positions. I am personally in regular conversation with the Vice Chancellor; encouraging the university to find a solution with UCU that satisfies the interests of all parties involved.
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No-kay boomer
Catherine Lloyd Copy Editor
F
OR Generation Z, memes are our culture, they emerge from the depths of the digital world, shape our discourse and are exclusive to our generation. If any meme is definitive of 2019, it has to be “ok, boomer.” “Ok boomer” is most comparable to a dismissive eye-roll, when you’re at a non-negotiable family meal and your baby-boomer uncle - approximately between the ages of fifty-five to seventy-five - rejects the existence of gender fluidity. That feeling of exhaustion, an exhaustion of constantly trying to validate a truth to someone so opposed to it, is captured in the sarcasm-laden “ok, boomer.” Whilst seemingly light-hearted,
beneath its casual use lies deep who “boomer-ed” Lord Alan Sugar generational fractures and disconnect. after Sugar’s public critique of Ellis’ It speaks to our anxieties of the world tattoos. we’re set to inherit, one in crisis. The Every life choice we make is meme is indicative of how polarised scrutinised, by a generation resistant we are, youths politically at odds with our elders, who impact the political structure and economic stability of our future. There is a festering resentment of how the economic recession, climate crisis and the experienced austerity of our country is a direct consequence of ‘boomer’ decisions, policy and leadership. Meme culture has been politicised and for good reason, our future is looking bleak and to endure we must humour ourselves. Let’s take a look at the hall of fame: top honours go to apprentice Image: Rajasekharan Parameswaran (Wikipedia) candidate Lewis Ellis
to change who still hold an outdated mode of thought and who characterise us as highly-strung “snowflakes.” We are depicted as PC culture gone awry. Ironically, for a generation so quick to label us as the “constantly offended”, they seem to have quickly taken offense.
In typical ‘boomer’ fashion, they failed to understand that this is not about age Baby boomers have criticised ‘ok boomer’ as a defiant act of ageism, an ageist slur that’s been equated to the severity of the “n-word.” The absurdity of that very notion pinpoints how out-of-touch and dangerous their mindset really is. “It’s
the n-word of ageism.” Ok boomer. In typical ‘boomer’ fashion they have failed to understand that this is not about age or the generation gap, it’s about politics. Boomer can apply to anyone that is defiant of change, in our rapidly changing society; the term does not prejudice purely on the basis of age, but on the basis of denying modern realities and lived experiences. We’ve all heard a boomer use the phrase “when I was your age…” and it reminds us of the old-age adage that “they were once us.” They once held our youthful frustration, lived amid the sixties youth culture but youth culture has moved on. Soon, “ok boomer” will disappear into the digital void again, a shortlived moment and it’ll be our turn to become the “boomer.”
EXEPOSÉ | 2 DEC 2019
COMMENT
Students speak out on bi-erasure
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Content Warning: bi-phobia George Clark Comment Editor
M
Y first experience of bi-erasure came courtesy of a girl I hardly knew when I was out clubbing a couple years ago. The subject of my sexuality had come up the day before (as it often does) in a drinking game which she was a part of, though at the time I hadn’t received any backlash. However, when alcohol had loosened her tongue a little, I was told that I was just “a gay guy who was too afraid to say it”. The implication here is that I am a coward who can’t admit to myself, let alone the rest of the world, that I am actually gay. Now, this comment upset me for a couple of reasons. Firstly, the implication that bisexuality is an act of cowardice, or refusing to commit to one “side” or the other. Secondly, the idea that this attraction to both genders was not a valid sexual identity, but a conscious, invalid choice. Why would someone make up their own bisexuality if they are consistently told they don’t exist? Who would choose that? While it is certainly true that there are some people, for fear of backlash in coming out as gay (which is absolutely understandable), first identify as bisexual, this doesn’t by proxy invalidate everyone who is genuinely attracted to both genders. The primary reason for bi-erasure is the assumption that sexuality (and in-
deed gender) are binary cases: it must be one or the other. Any deviation from this by people who are bi/homophobic is put down to an “experiment” or “experience”, temporary deviations from the norm of heterosexuality. And while bi-erasure is more of an issue outside of the queer community, it is also a prevalent issue within it. I have regularly been accused of being sexually promiscuous, homophobic (for also being interested in women?) and, in the same vein as the girl in New Zealand, a liar from within and outside the community. Bisexual people are not hyper-sexualised, indecisive people who have a fixed percentage of attraction to one gender or the other day-by-day. We’re here, we’re queer, so don’t tell us that we aren’t real.
Neha Shaji Deputy Editor
I
WAS told at eighteen to kiss another girl at a party. She was wearing a suit and had shaved an undercut into her hair and I did not know her and I did not want to kiss her. But a boy told me to do it, because he liked me and because he thought that since I was bisexual, I would kiss anyone and anything and because he was “into it.” Bisexual fetishization is a part of bisexual erasure, or at least contributes to the phenomenon. I understand (and disagree with) people making us feel excluded, but the hyperfocus on promiscuity and performing sexual acts with other genders on command is another, more
Queerness is fluid, not prescribed in what I perform
Before that, I dated a girl in my first year for a period, at that time when my romantic life was explicitly queer I was seen as just being gay. But the “point” per se, if there ever was one, is that I am and always will be attracted to both my own gender and others: queerness is fluid, not prescribed in what I perform regarding my romantic or sexual life. The dismissal of bisexuality leads to irritation and alienation, but it is also based on very similar preconceptions to what other segments of the queer community were attacked based on. Essentially, accusations of promiscuity that has its roots in misogyny, as well as the erasure of the sexuality in the first place - the slightest hint of liking someone of an opposite gender and you’re straight. What I’m trying to say here, basically, is that though I’ve been with a big ex-rugby player gamer lad for two years, I would still kill for Lana Del Rey to sit on my face. by those dearest to me: my family. Looking into my parents’ eyes and saying “I am bisexual” was one of the hardest things I have ever had to do. Then, listening to them say “You will grow out of it”, “Bisexuals aren’t real”, “You’re confused” was even harder. After being rejected by non-LGBTQ and LGBTQ+ individuals, there is no community left in which you can feel supported.
Anonymous Contributor
B
EING bisexual and Slavic often seems like a contradiction to me. Though my country has only recently become accustomed, though to a minimal extent, to the idea of homosexuality, bisexuality remains the demon that most people born before 1990 fear. The scepticism surrounding the existence of bisexuality within my country had an immense impact on my mental health and on my journey with my sexuality. Hearing bi-phobic remarks such as “they’re just greedy” or, my personal favourite: “you can’t decide that you’re both masculine and feminine at the same time!” As if the ideals of masculinity and femininity weren’t fluid but solid, polar, biological concepts that should not be allowed to co-exist within one person. And so, to hide the fact that I like gals as well as guys, I amped up my heterosexual alterego. This included a lot of objectifying remarks towards men I didn’t even find attractive per say, but felt the need to do so out of pure fear that someone would find out that I didn’t follow the heteronormative stereotype that is engraved into the minds of Slavic children. It wasn’t until university that someone finally saw through my act, straight up asking me if I was bi. It terrified me and so I laughed: “don’t be ridiculous, of course not!” Three months later, I was out. But it didn’t escape the confines of the UK border. For some reason non-straight women are often seen as a biological anomaly by older generations. My dad and step mum have often followed the
insidious kettle of fish. I’ve had people ask me jokingly about threesomes, I’ve had people ask me countless times to just “kiss a girl.” Another aspect of bi erasure is the immediate pigeonholing, the impossibility of embracing the fluidity of bisexuality. I’ve been with a (male) partner for over two years and thus am considered atrociously heteronormative by both communities.
narrative that non-straight women somehow, aren’t ‘real’ women. They’re unhygienic, unsanitary, wear worn-out clothing and there is just no way that they are human. I have lost count at the amount of times I would cry myself to sleep after hearing one of these rants.
Non-straight women are often seen as a biological anomaly My best friend back at home never received the official coming out from me, yet there has been an understanding that yes, I’m not straight and saying that out loud, outside of the confines of our trust, would set off an avalanche of attempts to change my mind on who I am attracted to. Maybe one day, I will finally feel comfortable enough to stand up to my family and say “hey, I’m bisexual” and they’ll shower me with hugs and love. But for now, all I can do is dream. Image: Clker-Free-Vector-
Isabella Birt Contributor
A
S a young woman, bi-erasure has always been deeply ingrained within all aspects of my life: my education, my family, and my personal relationships. Growing up in France, where religion is heavily embedded within the culture, I was carried forward from one Catholic school to the next. Sexuality was a topic that was simply avoided. Even amongst friends, people barely spoke about their feelings. Hence, you can imagine how little discussion there was about the LGBTQ+ community! It was not until the age of 14, when I met my first girlfriend, that I learned women can love women too. And the ignorance did not stop there. Even after moving to the UK at this age, I still experienced bi-erasure. As this was during the era of “coming out fame” on social media, my own eventual public announcement was deemed to be “attention seeking” by my peers. Meanwhile, teachers believed it was a cry for help and pushed me towards well-being services as a means of helping me “adjust” to my new school. All whilst trying to reassure me by saying: “It’s just a phase”. This last sentence has also been spoken
There is no community left in which you can feel supported So it’s devastating when your own family dismisses you as well. It is as though the world is quite literally erasing your identity. It is telling you that an entire part of your life, who you love, is non-existent. And so who you are as a person is non-existent. Bi-erasure is subtle, but present everywhere. Even if it’s not overtly homophobic, it’s still hurtful. In future, I hope people will become more aware of the phenomenon and erase it instead of us.
É If these issues affect you, you can get in touch with: Switchboard LGBTQ+ Helpline: 0800 612 3010 Wellbeing Services: exeter.ac.uk/wellbeing Exeter Nightline: 01392724000
EXEPOSÉ | 2 DEC 2019
Beyond Exeter Welcome! This new section aims to broaden the scope of our content and provide a space for international students to voice their opinions on topics that matter to them. We are looking for students from other countries, living and/or studying here for the duration of their degree to write about issues that affect them. If you want to contribute, please get in touch by emailing editors@exepose. com or messaging our Facebook page.
Anne Chafer Deputy Editor
C
HRISTMAS has never been a big thing for me, not going to lie. It stopped being a thing at around 15, maybe a couple years earlier. But the winter holidays don’t necessarily mean Christmas. To me, they are a time to recharge, to get back in touch with those that you’ve been meaning to see but have been too busy to. Any break between terms, in general, is an opportunity for which I am very thankful. But it all changes when you move to a different country. Spending Christmas abroad is very different than spending it with your family, and if you are an international student, I am sure you will agree with me. For some, it is easy to fly or travel back home for Christmas, but there are many factors that may mean you don’t
The holiday season: an international perspective
have that privilege: financial insecurity, not enough time or even violent conflict. Whatever the reason, sometimes you find yourself on an empty campus at the end of the second week of December, walking through the corridors and expecting the food outlets to be open, but no. Nothing. Or is there? Below, Yudy has compiled a few practical resources to make your Christmas a bit warmer. But sometimes it just doesn’t compare. It’s a struggle. It’s hard.
There are factors that mean you don’t have the privilege of flying home The Christmas holidays are a time when most celebrate family union, and it’s ironic, seeing it all happen around you... without being able to join in. Life as an international student is isolating, but especially during the holidays. It’s awkward to have to say goodbye to every university friend, knowing you’ll struggle to keep your mood up while trying to find someone to have a meal
with. Don’t even get me started on parttime work, which is the reason I don’t go back home during the holidays. If I was not feeling the Christmas holidays before, imagine now. And the seasonal depression!
It is going to be okay, whatever your situation or anxieties might be now Right, let me stop you there. Take a breath. Release the tension. First of all, let me reassure you – it is going to be okay, whatever your situation, whatever your anxieties might be right now. Four weeks go by faster than one would think. Instead of focusing on what you’re missing out on, make yourself a priority. Term-time work can make us forget that, under all that academic work, we are actually human beings that need space, both emotional and physical - even if you’re the most extroverted person ever. Stop, think about this year, your priorities, the things that make you happy and those that make you who you are. Use the holidays to create projects
for yourself, to try things you wanted to try but never had time for before (I tried doing parkour in the summer holidays here in Exeter, and I had the best time.) If you read our last issue, you will have seen Tamara’s article on using food from your country as a way to feel more at home when you’re abroad. I think this is especially true during the winter holidays. When every country pulls out their best dishes to impress their families, impress yourself instead. Videocall your family if you can! Show them your Christmas meal, maybe even eat it at the same time, as if you were at their table too. Take yourself out to the Christmas market! Nothing’s too cheesy if it makes you feel better. One of my favourite women ever, Carly Rae Jepsen, once said that “it’s very easy to put yourself in second gear and then treat all the people around you with all this love, but I think deciding to love yourself means being romantic when no one is around. Like, all the little extra things that make you feel happy and make you feel worthy, you know?” She was talking about heartbreak, but still. What she said.
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Christmas, alone: some resources
Yudy Wu Contributor
A
H, Christmas. Fun, festive, joyful, not to mention all the roast trimmings and mince pies. But sometimes, all of that goodness doesn’t apply when you are an international student who has to stay in Exeter over Christmas Even if your country doesn’t celebrate Christmas at all, it still hurts when you are all by yourself. You will see happy families on the street, lights and markets and concerts, which can make you miss your family, at the same time you feel annoyed at them for not buying you a plane ticket back home. Host Family If you don’t get to see your real
family during Christmas, you can always get yourself a temporary family. HostUK.org is a charity that helps international students to find host families during Christmas; by signing up for their project, you can learn more about Christmas culture in the United Kingdom, if you are not familiar with it yet, and best of all: think about all the lovingly-prepared food you will get to try!
and it gets you a full meal, a present, and an opportunity to know people who are also staying in Exeter during Christmas. Spending this season on your own can make you new friends: ideal!
The happy families, lights and markets can make you miss home
Chaplaincy It doesn’t matter at all whether you are religious or not – the Chaplaincy always welcomes everyone. The most inclusive event they do would be their “Christingle service” on the 10th of December, where free mince pies and mulled wine are provided. Pop by and get into the festive spirit! More details
Christmas Lunch Every year, the university holds a Christmas Day Lunch in Lopes Hall – it only costs you 15 pounds for a ticket,
and events from the Chaplaincy can be found at www.exeter.ac.uk/chaplaincy/ events When does everything close? It’s worth getting ready and doing your shopping before everywhere’s
BEYOND EXETER 10
EDITOR
Anne Chafer
tiny winter handbag A poem Neha Shaji Deputy Editor Now winter is disillusionment And bare bones and Anglicized Jumpers and markets and beer And I don’t like beer. Winter for me is watching the Grin and the grease spread Across my brother’s face As he reserves the turkey For himself. Winter is mum and I pooling Crisp Christmas cash (no coins) To buy a tiny Jacquemus bag For us to share between us. Now there’s no tiny winter tote And I’m exhausted because Winter here is blinding white Even when there isn’t a trace Of snow in sight. Winter here is alienation, A quiet demarcation between Having mum drive up smiling Or catching a slow train And having to tiredly reverse Patterns and routes that were Decades and colonies ago Travelled more painfully. But winter for me did not Wave over remnants of old sins But rather let me forget them And shove them away, laughing Into a tiny winter Jacquemus That we share between us.
closed. If you are not sure when places on campus close, take a look at this website by the university, which provides you all the information you need to have a merry Christmas. www.exeter.ac.uk/christmasatexeter
The Chaplaincy will welcome you, religious or not
Image: Jan Baker, Geograph
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Features
2 DEC 2019 | EXEPOSÉ
FEATURES EDITORS: Jaysim Hanspal William Harrop
Climate Watch: A decade of crises Exeposé Features Writers review the most significant moments in the climate crisis of the 2010s
Small islands and the climate crisis by Alina McGregor
O
VER the last few decades, islands have been disappearing under water, becoming victims of climate change and rising sea levels. Five Pacific islands have been receding since 1947 but in 2014 they completely vanished swallowed by the sea and others are following. Sea levels have risen six to eight inches in the past 100 years; implications include loss of habitat for animals and damage to reefs who can’t adapt fast enough. Oceans are warming due to increase in greenhouse gases, according to the National Ocean Service and as temperatures rise, mass coral bleaching and infection outbreaks become more common. Moreover, ocean acidification further damages reef ecosystems through decreases in pH levels which alters seawater chemistry.
Small islands are the first to suffer from this climate crisis One of the receding islands include Nuatambu, where families are facing relocation. This brings up many other concerns such as the role of the government in this crisis and how migration will be managed. The Green Climate Fund was created by the UN framework convention to help countries deal appropriately with climate change but how this will be allocated as more and more countries face crisis is uncertain and will not fix the fact that these families have gone through upset. Some Nuatambu islanders have moved to a neighbouring volcanic island that is higher ground and have been forced to rebuild their village.
Image: Gage Skidmore
The Republic of Fiji, a popular tourist spot is also at risk. Even though its mountains reach over 4,000 feet above sea level, residents who live on the flat are having to relocate inland and are attempting to limit the effects by planting mangrove trees to protect the soil from further eroding. The fact is, small islands are the first to be facing the crisis and it can mean that larger countries do not feel the pressure yet. The same is true of the more frequent and violent storms that mainly affect small islands. This is a potential future for us, but for these people it is their reality happening now.
states that a notice of a country’s withdrawal cannot be given within the first three years of the agreement being implemented within the signatory country. Trump announced the withdrawal a mere seven months after the date of the agreement’s implementation within the U.S. On 4 November 2019, exactly three years after their start date, the United States finally gave a formal notice of
America’s withdrawal from the Paris Agreement by Anna Romanovska, Lifestyle Editor
O
N 1 June 2017, US President Donald Trump announced that he would withdraw the United States from the 2015 Paris Agreement. The agreement details its goals to limit the global average temperature increase to 1.5°C and makes it the duty of each signatory to report upon the measures it takes to lessen their impact on global warming. Although this move was taken to fulfil his campaign promises, there was an initial lack of consideration to the actual process of withdrawing from the agreement. Article 28 of the agreem e n t
Image: Daria Devyatkina
withdrawal. If the process were to go smoothly, the withdrawal would be due to take place exactly one day after the 2020 presidential election. In addition to this, if the United States were successful in withdrawing from the agreement, it may mean that the country would not be held accountable for any contributions it makes towards the further development of global warming. It also frees it from its duty to ascribe to a control of a rise in temperature, which may have a disastrous impact not only on the future of the Earth, but also in motivating other nations to fully follow the terms of the agreement. There is still some optimism remaining within the national reaction to the US intention to withdraw. Prominent figures such as Al Gore and Nancy Pelosi have condemned the plan to withdraw, and the decision was only supported by 35 per
cent of the population. It all hangs in the balance for 2020.
The Californian wildfires by Issy Murray
T
HE 2018 Californian wildfires reaped chaos across the state, spanning from mid-July until November, with new fires starting all the time while previous ones were being brought under control. In total there were 8,527 fires ranging in severity, but together they made up the most fatal and devastating period of wildfires in recorded California history, killing 103 people and burning just under two million acres. The fires even began starting their own phenomena, including pyrocumulus clouds and fire whirls that had strength equivalent to a tornado, with winds up to 143 miles per hour. Causes of the fire were found to be linked to global warming, with an increased volume of dead trees acting as natural fuel and intensifying atmospheric conditions due to climate change being crucial elements. Although wildfires are sometimes purely natural occurrences, the much higher temperatures alongside less frequent rainfall that global warming provided created the perfect environment for these wildfires to grow out of control. The wildfires represent an event where we can see the direct impacts of human activities, changing climate, and catastrophic natural disasters. These fires should be a wakeup call. Part of the reason for the widespread media coverage of these wildfires came down to their impact on celebrity homes. Among the list of high profile public figures affected by the fires was Miley Cyrus, who lost her home in the blaze. In addition, an acceleration in the rate and seriousness of these fires has been revealed. According to one Vox article, out of the ten most destructive wildfires in California, six have occurred within the past three years, while another article
by The Balance states that since 1970, the frequency of wildfires in this area has increased by 400 per cent.
Flooding in Venice by Pete Syme, Online News Editor
T
HE city of Venice has always been susceptible to floods, having been built on a group of 118 islands in the Venetian Lagoon. In fact, the term ‘acqua alta’ meaning ‘high water’ is a known phenomenon in the Veneto region. Venice is expected to be one of the first areas to feel the effects of climate change, and the recent severe flooding is some of the worst ever seen. According to records from the city, storm tides measuring over 140cm have occurred just once between 1872 and 1950, nine times before 2000, and twelve times since the new millennia.. “These are the effects of climate change” the city’s Mayor Luigi Brugnaro tweeted, with the water levels of 1.87m being the second highest since records began. Moreover, this was just the sixth time in 1,200 years that St. Mark’s Basilica was flooded, and four of these have occurred within the past 20 years.
Climate change denying politicians have taken a toll the city’s infrastructure
The rise of right-wing, climate change denying politicians has taken its toll on infrastructure. An ironic tableau of the Veneto regional council being flooded for the first time ever occurred just minutes after councillors rejected measures to combat climate change in the 2020 budget. Against accusations that nothing was being done, the council’s president Roberto Ciambetti, of Matteo Salvini’s League party, explained how €2.6 billion was spent on hydrogeological safety after flooding in 2010. The MOSE project has suffered from multiple delays and connections with corruption, and having missed its 2018 deadline is now expected to be finished in 2022. The recent flooding was caused by a combination of high tides and a storm surge driven by a strong low-pressure system off the coast, which will only increase with a warming climate. Combined with rising sea levels and sinking foundations, this is a stark reminder of what the future of Venice might look like.
EXEPOSÉ | 2 DEC 2019
FEATURES
13
Justice4Grenfell, two years on Jaysim Hanspal, Features Editor, discusses race, politics and Grenfell with Justice4Grenfell activist Moyra Samuels Moyra Samuels was my primary school teacher when I was five years old. Back then, all I remember is that she seemed pretty cool and kind. Since then, I’ve watched her career as an activist explode, specifically as she has voiced her anger on behalf of the Grenfell survivors as part of the Justice4Grenfell campaign. Grenfell was a particularly hard news story to watch coming from South West London and demonstrated a clear lack of care from the local government. I spoke to Moyra about her career and the continuing campaign for Justice4Grenfell. I remember you as my primary school reception teacher. How has your career progressed into that of an activist? I have been involved in political activism as a student in South Africa, where we were challenging the institutionally racist apartheid system. In London, before I became a teacher, I experienced the opportunity to challenge injustice and discrimination in a range of ways from street protests to protesting at council meetings or outside parliament. It was the miners’ strike in 1987 that galvanised so many of my generation into becoming part of a socialist movement.
The miners’ strike galvanised so many of my generation towards socialism
Moyra Samuels, Activist
Some people argue that peaceful protests are ineffective. Have you found this to be the case? Protests are our democratic right and even if our protests do not shift politicians to behave differently they send a powerful message to those experiencing oppression that they are not alone. Protests in an age of widespread social media inform citizens from across the globe about the injustices experienced by people and can bring international support for a cause. It is also empowering for those who participate in protests as it takes us from the isolation of responding to injustices from social media to physically doing something about those injustices. How can young BAME students make a difference in their communities?
It is important that BAME students become involved in political groups on their campus – not just groups that reflect their identity: • In your communities, join in activities against racism, islamophobia and antisemitism. • Support youth projects that help to uplift those in our communities who feel marginalised. • Speak up at local meetings about issues which are impacting on you. • Use your talents to organise events for the community.
Remember that firefighter risked their lives on that night and they are not to blame
Moyra Samuels, Activist
I was at Notting Hill carnival this year where they did a minute of silence for Grenfell. Why is it so important that we all remember this tragedy, even if it hasn’t directly affected someone we know? The Grenfell Tower fire holds a mirror to our society. It reflects everything that is wrong with our society: inhumanity, an institutional indifference to the voice of working-class people and race and class discrimination. The impact of austerity, privatisation and outsourcing is apparent, and it’s important that the local and central government protects its citizens. For the past decade, the direction of this government has been profit and not people. Everyone should have the right to safe and decent homes, which is further emphasised by the fact that a close community, in one of the richest boroughs in the country lost 72 loved ones, in the biggest loss of life in a fire since WWII. People across the country, in more than 300 buildings still have dangerous cladding on their dwellings.
that the fire service was under-resourced and many of their communications systems and equipment were not up to those expected of modern 21st century service in the sixth richest country in the world. The stay-put policy that meant that families waited to be evacuated has also been heavily criticised as it has been argued that if people were told to self evacuate fewer lives would have been lost. It is important that we remember that firefighters risked their lives on the night and they are not to blame for why the building was a death trap. They are not the ones who covered the building in flammable cladding. So far there has been little change or political will to see through any changes. ACM cladding (that was on the Grenfell building) has been banned but other more flammable cladding (HPL) has not. Building and fire regulations have not been changed and tenants in council housing are still not been listened to. Do you think voting in the upcoming general election can make a difference to this attitude of indifference that we see from the government? What would you say to young people who don’t vote? Voting is one of the few forms of democracy that is available at the
Recently the LFB was criticised for not being able to put out the Grenfell fire. Do you feel like this was unjust? How supportive has the government been in making sure this tragedy doesn’t happen again? This is a difficult question. The fire at Grenfell was unprecedented. Based on evidence from phase one of the inquiry, the fire service could have done things differently on the night. It became clear
Image: Facebook page of Moyra Samuels
moment. We have had a government that has inflicted almost a decade of austerity on working-class communities and seems determined to slash all public services to the bone. The impact is greater poverty and earlier deaths, more violence on the street and unfulfilled potential. Young people must go and vote as this is about your future. However, it is not enough to just vote. Young people need to take to the streets to have their voices heard-look at the difference that the youth climate strikes have made to the debate about the climate crisis.
Voting is one of the few forms of democracy available at the moment
Moyra Samuels, Activist
We’ve just had Black History Month. Every year many people criticise the fact that black history is sidelined to just one month. As an ex-teacher, how do you think we can make the curriculum be more inclusive? Despite BHM (Black History Month) only being one month, it is important while racism still exists in our society that we celebrate those who have gone
before us and pay respect to the fight for the rights we now take for granted. But many of these rights are slowly being eroded and we need to keep fighting against overt discrimination and institutional racism. It is important that the curriculum includes an accurate history of the role of Britain as an imperialist country and the impact of colonialism on those countries and communities. We in Britain are here because Britain was there in our parents and grandparents countries of birth. The movement for the decolonisation of the curriculum is an example of the struggle to make the curriculum more inclusive. In addition, the arts in the curriculum must reflect the contribution of cultures from across the world and begin with students experience of their own culture. We can make the curriculum more inclusive by not ‘othering’ certain communities (especially Muslim communities). Finally, we need to make the curriculum and learning a joyful, exploratory experience rather than one which just prepares students for tests. For more information on how you can support the Justice4Grenfell campaign visit: justice4grenfell.org This interview has been edited for clarity.
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FEATURES
2 DEC 2019 | EXEPOSÉ
Staying power: Floella Benjamin Bryan Knight, Online Features Editor, interviews the Baroness and former Exeter Chancellor
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RESENTER. Author. Actress. Baroness. It is very difficult to summarise a person down to a single title. This task is made increasingly difficult when the person being described has lived a life as vibrant and varied as Baroness Floella Benjamin. Lady Benjamin spent her early years in Trinidad before coming to England in 1960. She, like many postwar migrants from the Caribbean, was confronted with the harsh realities of an intolerant and racist Britain. Lady Benjamin recalled how “every day there was a fight, every day there was a feeling of rejection and you realised, living in here in Britain, you were no longer a person, but you were a colour”. Having moved to Beckenham, her family were met with hostility from neighbours who moved out of the area, verbally abused them, and even placed dog waste through letterboxes. "When we went to live there, they sent the police to arrest us because they said ‘black people don’t live here."
Living in Britain you were no longer a person, but you were a colour
Lady Floella Benjamin
Lady Benjamin spoke of her parents influence in her formative years. Her father, a musician, encouraged her to explore the world, whilst her mother reminded her that “education is your passport to life”. She was aware of her dual identity as a young girl and mastered the art of cultural code-switching. “We had to live in two cultures, in those early days. Caribbean at home. English when we went to school. So I learned to speak the Queen’s English as well as carry on with my Caribbean culture: my food, my music, the dancing… I had the best of both worlds”. At 16, lady Benjamin left school and started working at a bank, with the hope of becoming the first black female bank manager. She went to audition for a theatre show, during her lunch break and was offered an acting role. She then secured a string of other roles before breaking into television. In the 1970s, she took on a job with the BBC presenting Playschool, an educational children’s programme. Her visibility on-screen was new to television. Lady Benjamin recounted the innocence of her young viewers. “Many of the children used to write
and say ‘when I grow up I want to be you’ and they would send me pictures of themselves: blonde hair, blue-eye, ginger hair, freckles, but all they saw was Floella. Someone who loved them and they, in turn, loved me. They didn’t see the colour.”.
You can't make changes unless you're sitting around the table
Lady Floella Benjamin
In 2010, the children’s TV presenter entered the House of Lords as a Liberal Democrat Peer and was granted the title Baroness Benjamin of Beckenham. She dedicated the title to her parents, in honour of their perseverance during the unwelcoming early years. Her appointment was a significant moment. “I now feel as if I’m standing on the summit of life’s mountain looking down at the valley of experiences and bringing all of that to the House of Lords. A place where 400 years ago the people who decided the fate of my ancestors stood. I’m now standing in that same place deciding the fate of the future. Who would have thought?” One issue of great concern for Lady Benjamin is black people’s participation in this county’s politics. “I try and encourage people from BME (black and minority e t h n i c ) backgrounds to join their local parties, to speak out, to join the council." Lady Benjamin spoke of the importance of the upcoming election. “People of colour can hold the balance because they can say to the politicians 'what are you going to do for me?' and, even more so, put themselves forward as parliamentary candidates”. Lady Benjamin spoke of her dismay at the defeatism
she had witnessed in certain sectors of the black community. She described how some black people had turned down honours due to the attached colonial legacy. “They
won’t take it because of the word ‘empire’ and what Britain stood for. Those are the days gone by. I’m working with the powers that be to change the title and that will happen eventually. But for now, you need to take the title”. She continued to argue her point, stating “You need to be vocal, to be visible for people to know what you stand for. Glance back at your history and move forward. You can’t make changes unless you’re sitting around the table”. Another big moment came back in 2006 when Lady Benjamin became Chancellor at the University of Exeter. You may recognise her face from the bronze bust of her the University unveiled in 2017, making her the only living black person in the UK to have a sculpture. During her ten-year tenure, she became famous for hugging graduates and instructing them to “change the world”.
She explained why she adopted hugging as her signature gesture. A graduate had sent Lady Benjamin a letter saying that she had not initially planned on attending the graduation day because of tough family issues, but when she went and received a hug, she felt comforted and reassured of her value. At that moment, she “realised the importance of hugging those graduates.” Whilst representing the University, she championed social mobility and sought to find new ways to encourage minority students to pursue higher education.
Everybody in this country is part of the Windrush story Lady Floella Benjamin
In 2018, a commemoration committee was established in response to the Windrush Scandal which saw black British citizens falsely deported under the Home Office’s ‘hostile environment’ policies. Former Prime Minister Theresa May appointed Lady Benjamin Chair of the committee and gave her a million-pound budget in order to commission a Windrush monument. Lady Benjamin explained how, prior to the scandal, she had consistently fought for such a recognition of the post-war Caribbean migrants. She stated that the monument was of importance as it enabled that generation “to see that their history is being celebrated and for the wider society to celebrate Black history and feel part of it. Everybody in this country is part of the Windrush story”.
Every disappointment is an appointment with something better Lady Floella Benjamin
Lady Benjamin's story is not only special due to its testimony of honour and determination, but also because within it lies a story about the making of a multiracial Britain. My biggest take-away from our discussion is a message she passed on to me as a guide for life: “every disappointment is an appointment with something better.” You can check out Lady Floella Benjamin's podcast From The Heart With Floella Benjamin on Global Player. This interview has been edited for clarity and length. Image: Chris McAndrew
lifestyle
MUSIC
ARTS + LIT
STUDY BREAK
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fashion of the 2010s: best and worst
best books of the 2010s
VIDEOGAMES: THE DECADE’S BEST
The best albums of the decade
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LIFESTYLE EDITORS Izzy Cole Anna Romanovska
ARTS + LIT EDITORS Cherry-Anastasia Boroceanu Zach Mayford
MUSIC EDITORS Richard Ainslie Bryony Gooch
SCREEN EDITORS Jonathan Chern Samuel Thomson
STUDY BREAK Puzzles by Matthew & Anne 2 DEC 2019 | EXEPOSÉ
lifestyle
TEN YEARS IN RET Lifestyle Writers travel back in time to reflect on their experiences of personal growth, activism
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OR many, the past decade has been one of change, loss and self-reflection. This issue, we have provided a platform for our writers to reflect on their experiences in the past ten years. With this, we aimed to provide an insight into how others have grown within this decade. We believe that you, as a reader, will find this retrospection useful as you reflect on your own experiences of the 2010s. Hopefully this reflection will prove to be useful as you embark on your journey into a new decade. Bring on the 2020s with the clearest vision you can get.
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HIS picture was taken roughly two years ago. Although to some people, it may look like I’ve just shed a bit of baby fat and developed a reasonable dress sense, to me there is a much more progressive narrative. As a disclaimer, I understand that everyone has their own story to share because everyone faces different hurdles - that is ultimately the
beauty of variation amongst individuals. However, I wanted to share this, not only as a selfreflection of how I’ve progressed, but also as a way to relate to you. The people who can relate to the place I was in two years ago, the people who are going through hurdles now or the people who feel proud of where they are today (I’m proud of you too!). (Content warning: Weight loss, body image issues) I didn’t treat my body properly, it had gotten to the point where I’d given up because it felt pointless. My lifestyle didn't cater to being healthy so I didn’t bother changing. I substituted water for Coca-Cola, and treated Domino’s like a convenience store. I grew used to pulling all-nighters to the extent that I’d stay awake through the night even when my eyes were burning. On top of all that, I was on Propranolol (better known as Beta Blockers) to handle my anxiety and used television series and Twitter as a means of a social life. Although I don’t think there’s anything wrong with Domino’s, Coca Cola or even Twitter for that matter (though I do have my reservations), I had begun abusing my body in every way possible but I didn't know how to change. The first picture makes me upset because I remember feeling so helpless. The funny thing is, I didn't have a point where 'everything changed' or an (insert happy music here) moment, because that only happens in movies (and on social media). It’s a gradual process - a journey which I am still going through. However, as I began visiting the gym, sleeping more and drinking water often, I realised I was beginning to enjoy the effect it was having on body. My reflection on this isn't about how I lost weight, or how I became a gym-goer, but more how the relationship I have with my body changed and how, in turn, my mental wellbeing improved. Personally, going through this process illustrated to me that there is undoubtedly a pressure, in today’s society, to look, do or say certain things, which ultimately begins to define who we are. This underlines the importance of committing yourself to a diet that works for you and feeling comfortable with the lifestyle you have developed, ensuring it still makes you HAPPY. The products of my so-called 'happiness' two years ago were there to fill a void, my wellbeing was something that I was just
about managing, but I wasn’t finding ways to enrich it. By having a healthy relationship with food, exercise and water (basic needs for every human), my mind and body became healthier and ultimately, happier. Danielle Darrah
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STILL liked protests at the start of the year. I thought it was glorious, the cause, the carnivalesque cacophony calling for change, the gaudy signs. And me, stood up in the middle of the crowd with a fist in the air and the scent of solidarity around me. I began to realise over the course of the year though, that I was not stood up in the middle of the crowd but pushed there, propped up on a pedestal. I looked at photos of me taken last year at various protests and one stood out specifically; I’m wearing a high-vis jacket, my hair is bright red, my face is tight, and my arms are spread so wide it looks Messianic. It was at the rally after the Bracton Law Society debacle, I had not slept, so many of us had not slept. I thought when the photo was taken that I looked spectacular; and then I realised spectacular takes on an entirely different meaning when you become the spectacle itself. Over the course of the year, I realised I’d become one of "the race people". Indeed, a student society had invited myself and a similarly radical friend to speak at their event and on the planning sheet he and I were described as “the race people”. I was invited again and again, to events, to rallies, as a ‘face’, as a speaker, as a writer – come on, queen, let’s watch you call the University out! Becoming a spokesperson for something I had not even scratched the surface of, for groups of people I have never interacted with, for trauma I had never felt: it was spectacular, I was spectacular, I became the spectacle. So I had to look differently at resistance over the year: the thrill of overwork and ex-
haustion and representation lasted mere weeks, I was bone-tired of it all three months into 2019. I began to look at resistance and radicalism pragmatically: how do I enact change, or help to enact change, without becoming essentially a wind-up toy soldier who potters around for entertainment? Becoming part of the system would never do, working from within meant tolerating the within: I was seeking ways to disrupt without carrying the sole burden of disruption and all the fallout that crumbled from it. It’s paramount to say I still do go to protests. And it may be anticlimactic to this reflection, but I still haven’t found my feet when it comes to becoming a symbol (the danger with symbols of course, is that they become martyrs). But I suppose realising when institutional and societal structures are using you for both activism points and entertainment is the first step to figuring out how I could go about this without losing whatever it was within me that made me want to do it in the first place. Essentially, yes, I still do go to protests. But there is now something tiresome and saddening alongside the euphoria and excitement of it. Frankly, I’ll be damned if I attend another protest as “the race people.” Neha Shaji, Deputy Editor
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EDITORS: Izzy Cole and Anna Romanovska
lifestyle
ROSPECT and recovery
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2 DEC 2019 |
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THE DECADE
in the past
N the surface, this picture looks like many taken during my early teenage years, characterised by poor fashion choices, terrible haircuts and a colour-co-ordinated bedroom. Digging deeper it is an image that in its simplicity captures the sheer joy finding happiness in making incremental changes, that small improvements in life can be just as fulfilling as bigger gains that may be more Facebook-worthy. This photograph was taken on 15 April 2013, approximately eight months after my life had changed more than I could have ever imagined when I was taken ill from school with a terrible migraine, feeling weak and suffering severe pain in my chest. Three weeks later, after the symptoms intensified, I was an inpatient on a children’s’ ward in Plymouth. I managed to make the short walk from the drop off to the lift on the way in. On the return I was wheeled out and the months followed included talk about hoists, bath chairs and stair lifts. That was my life for the foreseeable future. As the weeks passed, I got weaker, the pain got worse and the chance of recovery was on the decline, managing less than an hour of schoolwork a week, unable to read, eat or sleep without difficulty. It was only the following spring that I could see a new life, a life beyond living with chronic pain and fatigue, a life where I could get back to school, I could do sport again and I could see my friends.
So, on 14 April 2013 I had a controversial new treatment, a form of neurolinguistic programming that aims to ‘re-wire’ how your body responds to stimuli. In the morning I was unable to move unaided, unable to wash or even use the loo on my own, then by the end of the day I walked downstairs from an isolated part of the house, albeit a little shaky, into the kitchen, somewhere I’d not seen in months. Tears were shed and my family and I danced to Sigur Rós’ 'Hoppípolla', which stands to this day as my favourite song. This picture is me overcome with excitement at the prospect of moving back into my own bedroom, with all my own things, and being able to sit on the bed on my own, cross-legged and free of pain. For me what this image encapsulates about the last decade is accepting the little things in life. The last seven years have thrown up their own challenges in ways I could never have predicted but I have always held the belief that celebrating small victories is essential to keeping your motivation up when life throws you curveballs. Whilst these days my celebrations might be different from being able to walk downstairs or wash my hair on my own, the strength that these challenges gave me has helped me navigate what has been a turbulent decade and helped me find joy in the journey. Elinor Jones, Science Editor
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T the start of this (very long) decade my parents split up and we moved 400 miles south to live with my grandparents. At just 11 years old, I was simply told this is your new life now, this is your new school and basically get on with it. I remember being terrified, I was joining a brand-new school where everyone was already best pals and I stuck
out like a sore thumb with my thick Yorkshire accent. Having had the same group of friends from day dot to the end of primary school and grown up in a small town where everyone knew everyone, I immediately felt out of my comfort zone being the ‘new girl’. As much as it wasn’t easy, it taught me how to adapt to new environments, new people and a whole new place. But overall it showed me that change is a natural part of life, even if it’s incredibly unwanted. Now going back to the photo which is from A Level Results Day 2017 and oh boy does it feel a lifetime ago! I was so excited to start university and knew it would be the start of a very happy and exciting journey. I couldn’t wait to make new friends and start another brand-new chapter. It was a big change which I’d seriously considered; I’d spent hours researching my course, the University and Exeter and really thought I was prepared. However, when I got there it was a whole different ball game and my lack of life experience really showed through. I’d never travelled or experienced serious alcohol consumption (thank you to Harry and Alex for being my uni parents.) Having thought before university I had a pretty good knowledge of life, I was very naïve. First year really opened my eyes to reality, I travelled a lot throughout my first year (cheers strikes and snow) and almost dare I say it – ‘found myself’. All in all, first year taught me how not to take life too seriously, though I wish I’d learnt to enjoy it whilst it last (how I wish I could be a fresher again.) Then the next greatest challenge has been my work abroad year, again a change I decided to do and knew it was for the greater good. Having been dithering the whole of second year whether I really wanted to do it, it’s been one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. I went into it naively too. I was only properly offered my job after exams in May and less than two
months later I was living in Brussels, I didn’t feel like I had time to mentally prepare for what I was about to undertake and was really thrown in the deep end. Before going into I wasn’t aware of how tough the lifestyle change from being a student to working full time is and how difficult it can be adapting to a new country on your own. Not only have I now adapted to this ‘new life’, I have also learnt an awful lot about myself. From reflecting on my three biggest life events, I now know that change is the best thing. The more you undergo new adventures, the more you learn about yourself. Be open-minded as the best thing yet may just be around the corner. Georgia Shepherd Images (L TO R): Danielle Darrah, Neha Shaji, Elinor Jones, Open Clip Art Library, Georgia Shepherd
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EDITORS: Izzy Cole and Anna Romanovska
lifestyle
2 DEC 2019 |
The teen trends which got us talking
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Izzy Cole, Lifestyle Editor, takes us through a timeline of the best and worst fashion trends TRENDS OF THE PAST
UGG BOOTS: It was an unspoken rule that Ugg boots could only be worn with jeans tucked into them or over leggings. The longer versions in the camel colour were the real deal, so I’m sorry but if you had the shorter versions in dark brown or white, then I fear for your dress sense now. Whether they were the real versions or fake, who could forget the warmth and comfort they provided – that was until you stepped in a puddle.
THE HOLLISTER CRAZE: This was a time when wearing Hollister just made you super cool. Especially those simple tees with the logo on. Not only was it the clothes we all loved, but I bet at least once in your younger years you got a picture with an Abercrombie model? Knew it.
JONI JEANS: This was a time when Topshop was flourishing. The stretch, comfort and variety of Joni jeans made them a must-have item for the wardrobe, that was until they'd start to fade within a month. HAIR DONUTS: Claire’s was in its prime time when they used to sell these. But looking back, they were absolutely gross. Safe to say mine ended up in the bin and that is where it stayed.
JANE NORMAN BAGS: Forget Chanel and Louis Vuitton, Jane Norman bags were the key players. If these bags didn’t define our era of PE then I don’t know what did. God knows what girls brought in there but we all seemed to have one. Strutting down the corridor with one of these bad boys is something we all can’t forget and it is a shame the youth of today won’t be able to experience the same thing. Where have you gone Jane? We miss you. SKATER SKIRTS: I must admit thirteen-year-old Izzy loved this trend back in the day. When the Friday school discos came around, it became a ritual to go around my friends after school, eat our turkey dinosaurs and smiley face potato pieces and listen to Justin Bieber whilst trying on our skater skirts we’d brought from New Look 915. Izzy was really living her best life. THE JACK WILLS GILET: Ah yes, the gilet, what an absolute statement piece back in the day. If you can’t remember every girl at your school having one of these then you must have been living in a ditch. I remember non-uniform day being blinded from the never-ending sea of fur hoods and blue fabric which walloped around the halls. Did I partake in this tradition? Well is the Pope Catholic? Of course I did.
TRENDS OF THE PRESENT NIKE AIR FORCE 1: These are a funny one. There are still fourteen-year-old girls wearing these with their blue skinny jeans and crop top, but they are also worn by university students with their Nike socks and vintage sweatshirts giving them a more edgier vibe. Safe to say that uni students win this one.
NORTH FACE NUTPSE JACKET: These are absolutely everywhere: they’ve even ended up in my dreams. Who knew North Face could go from being clothes for the outdoorsy middle-aged geography teacher to a popular student puffer. Although, these seem to be for the more wealthier student who have a spare £230 lying around or for those who have taken a cheeky dip into their student loans. All I can say is it's money well spent.
ALICE BANDS: These have the ability to make anyone's hair look nice. Especially with a big pair of hoops. Lovely.
BUCKET HATS: These are most likely to be found in their natural habit: a festival such as Boomtown. Fair play to anyone who can pull these off, sad to say I've tried them but they don't agree with my short hair and make me look bald. I have to admit they do look cool (on the right person) but also look like you're trying a bit too hard. A controversial one.
FLARES: Do you even go to Exeter if you don’t own a pair of Topshop ribbed flares? I think not. TINY SUNGLASSES: The thinner, the better. They may not actually shield your face from the sun, like other sunglasses, but who cares?
CARGO PANTS: Who knew that a trouser style, originally worn by the army to store maps and medical supplies could become a big hit with us 21st century girls. The selection of multiple pockets score points for practicality, even though I'm pretty sure those pockets have stayed empty since they day I brought a pair.
RALPH LAUREN FLEECE: I'm pretty sure every boy who plays sport at Exeter owns one of these. Usually in navy, usually Ralph Lauren. Not quite sure why this is, but I'm not complaining, they do look nice.
A well needed Czech-up
Anna Romanovska, Lifestyle Editor, addresses the existing issues of race, class and sexism in her home town
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HREE weeks ago, I went back home for a much-needed break. Much to my dismay, as is the case with most of my visits, I was hit with another course of sighing at the ignorance of my country. Sat in the comfort of my mum’s living room watching TV, we stumbled upon a show favoured by many. "Tvoje tvář má známý hlas," or "Your face has a famous voice" in English, runs on the concept that Czech "celebrities" are given a famous singer or band to perform a cover of. However, this is not a simple vocal cover. The performer needs to adopt the dress sense, choreography, body type and, you guessed it, the skin colour of whoever they imitate.
I HOPE PEOPLE WILL BECOME VOCAL ABOUT RACISM IN OUR CULTURE The particular episode we were watching included a cover of ‘Hey Ya’ by Outkast. In it, a male celebrity dressed up as Andre Benjamin, complete with a dreadlock wig and brown body paint all over his face and body. In that
moment, I felt disgusted that such ignorance was greenlighted to be featured on our TV screen. It is important to note that not many Czechs will understand that the adoption of blackface to imitate someone is incredibly insensitive. Though I myself am Czech, the only reason as to why I lack a complete ignorance of these issues is because I went to an international school where cultural sensitivity is drilled into us every day and for good reason. Having so many cultures within one place, especially in a country as non-PC as the Czech Republic, requires an insane amount of safeguarding to prevent BAME students and staff from feeling ostracised by the rest of the student body. Furthermore, the Czech Republic was closed off to the rest of the world from 1968 to 1989, filled with censorship of the happenings occurring outside of our borders. Many people had
no idea what the Civil Rights movement was, only that it was the Achilles’ heel of the capitalist western world. We were also invaded quite a few times during the twentieth century, or had a foreign nation decide our fate. All of this has led to a great extent of mistrust and scepticism of anything nonCzech amongst the older generations. They focus on themselves only, fearful that if they opened their mind to anything from the outside, their nation will be lost again. That doesn’t mean that people are unaware of racism being an issue. I have had many conversations with my dad and other members of the Prague intelligentsia (students, lawyers, government workers, etc.) about the racist statements often uttered by our President and the nature of the ignorance present in our nation. Be aware, however, that I categorised these people as an
‘intelligentsia.’ These people have all gone to the top gymnasiums in Prague, many of them private, hold a university degree from (probably) Charles University, have a sufficient proficiency in another language (usually French, English or German) and often spend their free time reading the news to keep up with the dynamics of the world around them. We’re all in a well-educated, pretentious bubble, surrounded and fuelled by a privilege of knowledge and a good education. The rest of the country is not as lucky as we are. With public school teachers earning approximately £500 a month and the government consistently cutting the Ministry of Education’s funding, there is simply no space to teach issues of racism, sexism and homophobia within our education system. Unless it’s the case of genuine racism and xenophobia, I often argue that ignorance towards microaggressions are a case of miseducation, rather than purposeful ignorance. I just hope that one day, people will become more vocal about the fleeting racist instances within our culture. There are some shouts arising from the corners of our country, but they are not enough to enact change. Images: Felix Mittermeier; Jerónimo Bernot
arts + lit Oh, word?
Performance poetry in Exeter: Evanna Kappos has the word on the street
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POKEN word is running riot across campus. Exeter’s own Razz magazine recently had a sold-out spoken word night, and the art society Lightbox’s 19 November Performing Arts Evening in the Fat Pig pub offered a bouqet of passionate performers from all around the world. But this love of spoken word isn’t just a 21st century phenomenon, and certainly isn’t restricted to our little patch of Devon.
WELL-CHOSEN WORDS MAGNIFY TEN-FOLD IN THE EYES AND EARS OF A CAPTIVE AUDIENCE Spoken word poetry has an undeniable, timeless power. The ability to give direct, literal voice to the emotions and ideas of the poet. Just a few, well-chosen words, so resonant even on the page, are magnified tenfold by the presence of a living, breathing audience. Like a tension-filled moment for the audience of a horror movie before a jump-scare, but on par with live theatre, spoken word works with silence, voice and tension.
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It continues to grow in prevalence, undoubtedly thanks to the opportunity the internet gives for recording and sharing of spoken word artists doing their thing. Have a look over at Button Poetry on Facebook. This US-based poetry company publishes viral videos of slam poetry performances, covering a range of contentious issues including breaking mental health taboos; attempting to express the previously thought inexpressible. The most-viewed slam performance in history, as dubbed by the Knight Foundation, was created thanks to them. “OCD” by Neil Hilborn continues to pull in views, and as an example of impressive recorded spoken word, this video is not alone. If you haven’t seen it, we at Arts & Lit
judge you, and gently, but with frustration, hit you with your laptop. It is almost like spoken poetry is the way we were always meant to enjoy poetry and storytelling. Because, well, it is. The original stories were told as epic poems to make them easier to remember, and some of these original Epics continue to hold us captive today. Any English student worth their salt probably has a dust-covered copy of the Iliad or the Odyssey lying around. Not only this, but the rhythm built into a poem structure can’t possibly hope to be enjoyed and understood until read aloud. Poetry is designed for the air, not the page. Would you rather read poetry shyly to yourself at home, or hear a modern, spoken word artist
Booky season
perform their poetry on today’s issues, live in an electric atmosphere? Please be aware, there is a right answer to this.
KEEP YOUR EYES PEELED FOR OUR EVENT WITH POET SHAREEFA ENERGY ON 11 DECEMBER Sad that you have missed out on the events playing with this brilliant form on campus? Well, no fear. Keep your eyes peeled for the collaborative event between our stellar Arts & Lit team and Shareefa Energy, on 11 December. This event is to launch her debut collection, Galaxy Walk and Shareefa can be found over at @ShareefaEnergy on twitter if you’d like to get an idea of who you’ll be seeing. She is a breath-taking example of how spoken word poetry can give a voice to the voiceless. Taking on the still contentious issue of Grenfell and unsafe housing in Britain, the poet Caleb Femi has called her poems ‘brave and proud’ and poems that ‘demand to be known’. So don’t miss out. We did warn you. Image: Harry Caton
#NaNoWriWho? Will Evans covers November’s National Novel Writing Month
HE month of November, also known as NaNoWriMo, is not just a regular month. For amateurs and professionals worldwide alike it is a month of ambitious challenge. By the end of this 30 day period many writers will hope to have written a new 50,000 word novel. Established in 1999 by the writer Chris Baty, the challenge now includes 60,000 writers worldwide every year. Baty has written author guidebooks such as No Plot? No Problem and Ready. Set. Novel. So, by extension, the challenge functions as a period of high intensity writing practice for new or established authors alike. The challenge has faced criticism from writers in the past for encouraging a “quantity-overquality” mentality and for forcing an inorganic writing process. Many fans of the challenge have responded that the challenge makes no claims of being an optimal writing strategy but rather aims to help kickstart a new writing project or develop and hone skills. Many feel that the merit of the challenge can be proved by the crucial part it has played in the production of bestsellers such as Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen and The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern, showing how the challenge can be used
by writers to get started on a project that they will later improve and revise. Anne Chafer, third year English and Drama student and now two-time participant of NaNoWriMo, is using this year’s challenge to write a novel to stage play adaptation of The Secret History by Donna Tartt. Anne told me that she was currently at 35179 words for this year’s challenge and has aimed to keep ahead of her daily target so that she doesn’t fall behind if she misses a day. She talks about how her adaptation project has enlightened the interaction between different forms of writing such as prose novels and plays and how she is learning about the rules and conventions of literature in the process of the challenge.
THINGS NEED TO BE BAD IN ORDER TO BE GOOD ANNE CHAFER, EXEPOSÉ DEPUTY EDITOR
For Anne, the challenge is about creating something big in a short space of time and using the experience to learn and improve.
Image: Morian Library
She told me “Many of us never write anything because we’re afraid it won’t be good, and the best thing I’ve learnt from this challenge is that things need to be bad in order to be good.” Adding later with more advice for potential participants Anne advises to resist looking back at what you have written so far and focus on just getting ahead. The rush to write so much in such a short space of time means that perfectionism has to be done away with, enabling many nervous first-time writers to get over the fear of failure. Anne also emphasises writing about something that you truly enjoy and that
you can be proud of at the end of the month. She finished by stressing the writing community at the centre of National Novel Writing Month encouraging any participants to “Find people online, interact in the website forums! The sense of community is one of the best things about NaNoWriMo.” Taking part in National Novel Writing Month is as easy as signing up on www.nanowrimo.org and being ready to take part in November 2020. NaNoWriMo also runs challenges in April and July where participants can decide on their own word count goal.
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EDITORS: Cherry-Anastasia Boroceanu and Zach Mayford
2 DEC 2019 |
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Battle of the books
Arts + Lit Writers discuss their top picks from the past decade
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Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
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ILLIAN Flynn begins Gone Girl with protagonist Nick Dunne imagining asking his wife the questions that will summarise the books premise, “What are you thinking? How are you feeling? Who are you? What have we done to each other? What will we do?’” And with this opener alone, we know we’re in for a batshit crazy marriage. Gone Girl is what it says in the title; on the day of their anniversary, Nick Dunne leaves for the day, plucks up the courage to return home that night and ask for a divorce, and on his return, his wife Amy is gone. The first half of the novel follows the investigation into her disappearance. Flynn pushes the psychological element of a first person narrative, orchestrating her protagonists to admit to things most would never dare admit. Nick wrestles with the fact that he doesn’t seem to mind too much that his wife is missing, and presumably dead. And that’s only the beginning of how messed up it gets. Somehow, Flynn is able to make us care about these two people who are objectively
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unlikeable, calculating and immoral. She takes the ‘shock’ element to a new level and that’s what makes the novel so gripping. The ‘cool girl’ monologue is iconic and hits home, reminding us of the pressures women face to be the perfect girlfriend or wife - always appealing to the man’s needs, only to treat you badly anyway. Flynn reminds us just how performative love can really be. Essentially, Gone Girl is a tale of what goes wrong when two narcissists fall in love. Without too many giveaways, (trust me, this isn’t even the half of it), Amy asks Nick, “I’ve killed for you, who else can say that?!” Flynn creates a perfect mix of romance turned psychological thriller, emulating just how far people will go for ‘love’. Flynn writes in such a way that you are able to hate Amy, feel sorry for Nick, but also value why she did what she did, hope you never experience a relationship like it but also kind of root for them, in the worst ways possible. Isabelle Gray, Editor
Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
CHOED by the fight for Nigerian independence, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s 2013 novel Americanah, follows two young lovers from Lagos across decades and continents in their struggle for survival in the face of discrimination and racial typecasting. Blinded by glamorized ideals of the West, the novel’s two protagonists flee a military dictatorship in search of a better life. Ifemelu, the acerbic and animated heroine, journeys to America on an academic scholarship, but is swiftly confronted by the cruel realities of living as a black woman in a country still haunted by the scars of deeply rooted racism. Obinze, her childhood sweetheart, travels to London equipped with a false name and undocumented status, but battles to survive under the paranoid gaze of a post 9/11 world.
Adichie delves into the beating heart of identity and race and illustrates their stories with biting lyricism. Merited by its elegant prose and resonant themes, this novel acts as a powerful comment on the oppressive climate of our society and stands as a pillar of literary prowess. In her delightfully sharp and unforgiving tone, Adichie serves to remind us that racial tensions and prejudices remain a persistent force in our world and continue to cast a shadow on the lives and freedom of many. The significance and poignancy of this novel cannot be ignored, and the bravery of its premise should solidify its value as a feat of contemporary literature. Hannah Wendland
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The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
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N 2008 Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games, changed thousands of young people’s view of reading. The novel threw readers into the world of a dystopian future, shaking their perception of their own realities. In the post-apocalyptic nation of Panem we see how young people can be sacrificed for the art of entertainment through the eyes of the feisty and fierce, Katniss Everdeen. The novel has a similarly disturbing feel to that of The Handmaid’s Tale, as there are parts of these dystopian futures that could come true in the century that we now live in. The hugely wealthy Capitol’s exploitation of its twelve surrounding districts is reminiscent of colonial exploitation. The fact that these districts are exploited for entertainment purposes has incited a sense of anger in vast numbers of readers, for we cannot help but be devastated when characters that we have grown close to begin to die just so that the public can remain entertained.
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However, the trilogy is not purely a tearjerker. Collins’ also introduces romance, centring around a love triangle between Katniss, Gale and Peeta. As the plot continues into the other books of the trilogy the evocative descriptions of love can make the reader feel that they too are having to chose who to go with. Katniss Everdeen’s strength and independence makes her an important heroine in modern literature. The Hunger Games has the capability to transport the reader into another world, positioning them in Katniss’ fight for survival. Emily Pirie, Online Lifestyle Editor
Image: Mike Mozart
Normal People by Sally Rooney
HE literary part of me looks only to canonical or academic sources to figure out which are the best books of the decade. The other part looks to mainstream sources, such as which film adaptation busts the most blocks. Sally Rooney’s second novel, Normal People, does both. Excitingly, it unifies pop culture and pretentious literati. It is being adapted by the BBC for a television series, and wreaked havoc across the internet- Sally Rooney made it on to Emily Ratajkowski‘s Instagram story, for heaven’s sake- she truly earns the title of “the great millennial writer”, as she is increasingly being dubbed. But what is Normal People about, and what does it do? Well, it does the impossible- it is a fresh and interesting take on the “English student becomes writer” trope and honestly, the
book is exhilarating from start to finish. I’m not alone in saying I read it from start to finish in one sitting, and would do it again. Formally, it does away with superfluous punctuation, making it immediate and riveting. Rooney is articulate on political and class based issues, banishing the pernicious rumours that there’s no class divide in Ireland. Normal People flips social scripts, subverts conventions, and does it with electric style. An accolade second to recognition from Emily Ratajkowski, Rooney was again longlisted for the Booker prize in 2018 – it’s only a matter of time before she wins it one way or another. By far the most communicative popculture Rooney, Sally has another must-read in Normal People. Zach Mayford, Arts and Lit Editor
Image (left to right): Pattern Pictures, Alfred A Knopf, White Wash Walls, Global Paranorma
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EDITORS: Cherry-Anastasia Boroceanu and Zach Mayford
2 DEC 2019 |
New age Makeup Artists
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Freya Insoll captures the artistry of online make-up professionals
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VER the past decade, the makeup industry has witnessed astronomical creative and economic growth; a plethora of makeup moguls have emerged from the newly booming social media beauty scene, with some leaving a trail of controversy in their wake. Stars such as Kylie Jenner, Huda Beauty and Jeffree Star have grown out of the Insta-centric social media boom, taking controversy in their stride while building multibillion-dollar businesses. Other potentially lesser known creatives, such as Isamaya Ffrench, Dain Yoon and Celine Bernaerts have taken a more artistic and creative approach to their makeup artistry – becoming staple backstage fashion week gurus, and curators of international fashion magazine covers.
THE MAINSTREAM IS RECOGNISING THE SURGE IN MAKEUP AS AN ART FORM The surge in popularity of makeup as a form of art is reflected in its increasingly mainstream presence; shows such as Glow Up and Ru Paul’s Drag Race have introduced makeup in its many forms to a wide-ranging audience. Makeup has always existed as a form of escape and expression for many; in the world of drag, it provides artists a chance to express sides of themselves that would not shine through without the help of paint and powder. Stars such as Trixie Mattel have been instrumental in the development of makeup as an art form, demonstrating the intricacies of makeup in performance art and refining popularised daily techniques of makeup application.
accessible creative fields available. Artists such as Nikki de Jager (aka. Nikki Tutorials) have taught people around the globe how to apply their makeup in a skilful manner, these free tutorials have chimed with the younger gener-
full potential. Artists are taking traditional techniques and applying them to highly experimental looks – transforming themselves into gristly skinless beings, pop-culture icons and conceptual forms. 18 year-old artist Abby Roberts is a perfect example of the modern success; she utilises Instagram and TikTok to animate her looks and push boundaries, recently achieving one million followers to her new and unusual style of makeup expression. Not only is this a massive audience and a massive financial avenue for a career, the example that Roberts sets goes to show other aspiring artists just how much is possible in the industry.
THE BIGGEST TAKEAWAY FROM MAKEUP’S LAST DECADE IS THE BIRTH OF THE INFLUENCER Techniques adopted from the world of drag have also been seen in the booming insta-makeup trend; possibly the biggest takeaway from makeup and beauty over the last decade has been the birth of the Youtuber and the online influencer. Makeup artists are frequently refining their art online, recruiting huge numbers of followers in the process and thus gaining lucrative commercial deals. Instagram and Twitter have become the galleries of the online world, showcasing the work of thousands of budding and acclaimed artists alike, arguably making the world of makeup artistry one of the most
Image: Igshopping, DVSROSS
ation, sparking a widespread love of glamour and experimentation. Those who grew up under the tutelage of such artists are now coming into a class of their own; smaller and younger independent artists are exploiting platforms to their
Thus, while the world of makeup and beauty has seen dramatic development in the recent past, the end of makeup domination and change is not yet in sight. Artists have forecast an increasingly technologically inclusive beauty scene – incorporating elements of animation and AI in their look development. New technology, new materials and new, boundary-pushing motifs await, integrating dynamic lighting and movement. Those with a wide imagination and a passion for creativity have chanced upon the greatest period in makeup to date; one that provides the opportunity for success, no matter how abstract your form of selfexpression. For artists and followers alike, the future is bright.
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10 MY LOVE IS COOL
9 SUCK IT AND SEE
WOLF ALICE
ARCTIC MONKEYS
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OLF Alice’s debut studio album preserves the motif “Keep your beady eyes on me / To make sure I don’t turn to dust”. Like the album cover, it’s all about preserving something burning – fiery grunge – just before it fizzles into silky dust and coming-of-age fear. ‘Turn to Dust’ pinpoints Rowsell’s softer vocals – sounds of objects dropping through “clouds beneath”, dangled in stringy guitar. ‘Silk’ is also ethereal as its rocket-take-off opening blots single staccato guitar-notes. Yet, swirly-sounding ‘Soapy Water’ does not fool the album's underlying demonic-anxiety that reaches “for the hand of the devil”. ‘Bros’ builds rapport as strummed acoustics turn to flickered electric – like flames kindling from a state of forgetting “past lovers” to a “me and you” section. It recalls an intertwined wildness, envisaging being raised by wolves; guitar-riffs howl like wild animals across the grungier side to the album. ‘Giant Peach’ spits embers repeatedly in numerous build-ups; it’s a chase between vocals and instruments. My Love is Cool isn’t just celestial and ‘Cool’ – it’s blazing, burning, and heart-warming: a stepping-stone to later releases. Megan Frost, Online Music Editor
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HOUGH Suck It and See is not Arctic Monkeys’ best-known album of the 2010s, the stylistic change from their earlier material makes it a highly influential record. Like how The Beatles broke out of their comfort zone with their experimental Rubber Soul and The Smiths changed things up with Strangeways, Here We Come, Arctic Monkeys’ sound in Suck It And See is unusual compared to their previous albums. While Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not and Humbug fit comfortably into the genre of indie rock, Suck It and See, having a less heavy, and more ‘poppy’ sound, is harder to pinpoint. A highlight is ‘Piledriver Waltz’, which sounds vintage and slightly bluesy with gorgeously bittersweet lyrics. The opening lines, “I etched the face of a stopwatch, on the back of a raindrop”, show Alex Turner’s vocals at their best: wistful and melancholy. Though this is a stand-out track, the entire album is beautiful and potentially the best out of Arctic Monkeys’ entire discography. Suck It and See is one of the best albums of the decade, not just because of how it diverges from Arctic Monkeys’ other music, but also because of how it diverges from the indie rock genre as a whole. Bridie Adams
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7 RED
6 LEMONADE
SUFJAN STEVENS
TAYLOR SWIFT
BEYONCÉ
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RIEVING the death of a loved one is an immensely painful process. Moreover, when the relationship with the deceased was a turbulent one, the complex emotions thrown up make any form of closure and acceptance seem unobtainable. The death of his estranged mother sent Sufjan Stevens into a spiral. Being the songwriting deity that he is, Stevens was able to channel feelings of depression, shame and anger into an album of delicate power. After the lavish Age of Adz, Carrie and Lowell’s minimal and mostly acoustic folk sound underlined the record’s personal and confessional nature. It acts as a diary, an unfiltered window into the mind of a man unable to rectify the turmoil thrust upon him. Though like always, amongst the disarray Stevens finds impossible beauty – be it in snapshots of childhood memories, poignant ruminations on mortality, or just the comforting lilt of his voice. Sufjan has long been a master tugger of heartstrings, but here he yanks them with reckless abandon. What he achieved is nothing short of remarkable. To turn a mountain of pain and confusion into a work of divine art, an album both stunningly melodic and devastating. Carrie and Lowell was a gift, cherish it. Bob Waters
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AYLOR Swift was recently presented as artist of the decade by the American Music Awards, but her success this decade is owed to her masterpiece, Red; her first number 1 album in the UK, and her crossover from country to pop. None of Red was in any way calculated like her subsequent albums have been; the insert of Red describes its concept: "moments of newfound hope, extreme joy, intense passion, wishful thinking, and in some cases, the unthinkable letdown." Released during a tumultuous period in Swift’s life, Red is every bit wild and fiercely unpredictable as the love it represents; songs alternate between bouncy pop and heartwrenching ballads.
E a c h track is fantastic; opener ‘State of Grace’ remains her best song, huge yet fragile in its portrayal of love, ‘All Too Well’ has become a fan-favourite for its intense, emotional lyricism, and ‘Holy Ground’ is a nostalgic piece of rock where the pain in Swift’s voice is palpable. This is Swift at her most poetic and vulnerable, and Red is peerless in its portrayal of how it feels to love and to lose. Stephen Ong, Online Music Editor
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OBODY would dispute that Beyoncé can make anthems, songs that people have at least heard of if not can sing most of the words to. But in Lemonade, Beyoncé redefines anthem. Lemonade reels off cries of hurt, pain, oppression, and tales of lies, anthems never really heard before from the famously private artist. Through a huge range of styles from reggae to electronic, Beyoncé ruthlessly calls out her husband for cheating on almost every track, broadcasted it worldwide and won herself two Grammys along the way. And perhaps the success of this album is due to the common narrative – adultery, something most people have seen in their lives and if not, then she offers us stories of appreciating yourself and cultural rooting. She offers up so much of herself that in turn we grow through our relationship with her, no matter the distance. 'Hold Up', one of her more iconic songs and videos of the album, encapsulates the album so well. Ruthless pride, straightforward honesty whilst also attaining silky vocals and now, slick rapping. An album this monumental not only culturally but also for Beyoncé as an artist, developing from guilty pleasure type pop music to raw, personal testimony. Ria Kalsi
Image Credits (L to R): Jana Beamer, Flickr, Abby Gillardi, Anton Mak, Flickr, Def Jam Recordings, Universal, Dirty Hit, Interscope, Universal, Asthmatic Kitty, Domino, Boys Don't Cry, Columbia, Big Machine, Diego Quintana, hds, Flickr
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EDITORS: Richard Ainslie and Bryony Gooch
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1 TO PIMP A BUTTERFLY KENDRICK LAMAR
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5 CURRENTS TAME IMPALA
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HE first time I encountered 8D sound was when I listened to Tame Impala’s Currents. In 8D, the music circles your head like a spinning halo of sound, and when partnered with Tame Impala’s multicoloured synthesizers and acidic basslines, it feels like a glimpse into the head of a 1969 Woodstock weirdo. Now I’m an unashamed psych-rocker. Throughout the 10s a little bit of me feared that amongst the Euro EDM pop tracks and squelching pan-Atlantic trap beats that the psychedelic lessons of the 60s had been forgotten. With Currents, Tame Impala shot the reverberating mulch of Hendrix and the Beatles out of pop-culture’s blind spot and into full view like a bollard on a B-road. 51 minutes of wobbling psychedelic storycraft, documenting Parker as he grows up and enters adulthood. I find the album is best listened to alone in pitch blackness with noise cancelling headphones. You can fully appreciate the depth of the sound then, particularly the 8 minute, operatic opening track ‘Let It Happen’. Parker somehow writes a musical story and lyrics that both perfectly reflect the mantra of the LSD godfather, Timothy Leary: "Turn off, tune in, and drop out." Let yourself go with the currents. Richard Ainslie, Music Editor
HE cover of Kendrick Lamar’s third album is loud. In monochrome, in front of the White House, Kendrick and his friends pose around a knocked-out, gavelholding white man. Some are holding cash, some are holding booze - Kendrick himself is carrying a baby. This scene is referenced in the opening track ‘Wesley’s Theory’, where the point is crystallised: African-American culture is contrasted with the white American view of status. Kendrick’s astute and intuitive To Pimp A Butterfly stands out, also, for his aesthetic blending of musical styles. His lyrical rapping is infused with jazz, soul and funk, and the sorts of instrumental arrangements that are no longer found in hiphop. At one point K-Dot breaks out into slam poetry, slamming the white American culture that will only accept black people when they are profitable, drawling the refrain “This dick ain’t free.” In ‘i,’ he breaks from the studio recording and plays a live version of the song, because halfway through his performance a fight breaks out in the audience. “We ain’t got time to waste time”, he tells his fans, “the judge make time.” This sentiment, about racial self-hatred, is echoed
in the preceding track ‘The Blacker the Berry’ In fact, this point is everywhere. Kendrick’s theme stays consistent throughout, making TPAB one of the most politically developed albums of the decade. The titular Butterfly is the black artist, who is pimped out be the American entertainment industry. Kendrick makes the story of black exploitation in American culture vivid and accessible. It’s his riskiest and most experimental album, and fittingly so as he is raging against an industry that tends towards homogeneity. In spoken interludes throughout the record, Kendrick teases a poem, before delivering it in full in the final track. The poem, it is revealed, is intended for the ears of his fellow West Coast artist Tupac Shakur. The track then mixes audio from a Tupac interview to imply Kendrick is interviewing hip-hop’s GOAT. It might be audacious for Kendrick to stage a conversation between himself and Tupac, but he pulls it off. Just like he revives old-school hiphop sounds for a new generation of listeners, he revives Pac for a new generation of race politics in America. Is there a new GOAT?
3 MELODRAMA
2 BLONDE
LORDE
FRANK OCEAN
4 MY BEAUTIFUL DARK TWISTED FANTASY
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T the 2009 MTV VMA awards Kanye West infamously interrupted Taylor Swift, a whole new height of controversy for the controversy king. The world backed West into a corner from which he would emerge and, love him or hate him, defend his musical genius. MBDTF exemplifies collaboration of the heaviest hitters, not simply using but straining and stretching them. Kanye pushed Pusha T, crushed Rick Ross, elevated Kid Cudi and supercharged Jay Z. Meticulous mixing and production permeate the project, with reportedly 5,000 man-hours producing solely the certified tribal anthem ‘Power’. Varied musicality is illustrated by Elton John’s classical piano on ‘All Of The Lights [Interlude]’ matched against guitar solos synthesised to be grit-filled-filth on ‘Hell of a life’ but also liberating on ‘Devil In A New Dress’. Let’s not forget the notorious minimalist piano opening of the masterpiece ‘Runaway’; toasting scumbags has never sounded so appealing. MBDTF is produced luxuriously whilst maintaining an unparalleled intensity of emotion, exploring what it means to be surrounded by vices, lost in lust and found by love. Tom Bosher
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HE period between the age of 18 and 23 is more tumultuous than we could have ever been prepared for. Some of us are eating cereal at 2am and crying over boys while others are pregnant or worse - have mortgages. Considering this, it is no wonder why Lorde’s Melodrama captured the hearts of so many. The album deals with the heartache, the whirlwind parties and the sheer mania of being officially an adult but still not quite feeling, well, adult. Maximalist electronica is the backdrop to existential imagery – in ‘Homemade Dynamite’ Lorde describes the possible consequences of drink-driving after a party as ending up “painted on the road/red and chrome/all the broken glass sparkling.” Piano ballads leave you feeling stark-naked. ‘Liability’ cuts a little too close to the bone as Lorde weeps that “they say you’re a little much for me/ you’re a liability”. But it’s the album’s anthemic ‘Perfect Places’ that manages to summarise the restlessness of our age – I can’t be the only one who felt especially seen when Lorde sang “I’m 19 and I’m on fire”. After all, we are all constantly looking for our own perfect places in society, unsure of where we stand. And in that way, Melodrama unites us all. Bryony Gooch, Music Editor
Jonathan Chern, Screen Editor
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RANK Ocean’s highly anticipated followup to the critically acclaimed breakout project Channel Orange did not disappoint. Blonde is a true demonstration of Frank’s impressive, harmonious vocal performances, whilst also supplying listeners with the glamorous instrumentals that we know and love. Tracks such as ‘Pink + White’ and ‘Self Control’ combine Frank’s sensational vocal melodies with various orchestral elements that illustrate his versatility. The jazzy chord progressions on show throughout ‘Solo’ complement lyrics that touch on the emotional experiences of isolating ourselves from the world around us. Many tracks on Blonde highlight Frank Ocean’s rich and raw storytelling, especially those that epitomize the ongoing identity crisis that we face in a society threatened by toxic masculinity and the stigmatization of emotional expression. Debuting at No.1 on the Billboard 200 chart in his own country, Blonde was a commercial and cultural success. Frank’s ability to empathise with his listeners through themes of friendship, disillusionment and heartbreak throughout the album establish it as one of the most significant talking-points in music over the past decade. Rory Chapman
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2 DEC 2019
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Live at Jamnesty International O
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Anna Romanovska, Lifestyle Editor, reviews local charity festival Jamnesty, showcasing the best of Exeter
N 22 November, the Lemon Grove came alive with some of the very best in the Exeter student music and poetry scene. A mix of wholesome acoustic music, political commentary, personal statements and some head-bang-worthy tunes, there really was something for everyone. Though they got off to a rocky start with technical issues, Emma and Gaia still managed to deliver some wonderful acoustic covers of all-time favourites such as ‘Jolene’. However, there was no doubt that Gaia’s vocal control and range was the main aspect that enchanted every spectator in the room. James Barruol then came on the stage with what can only be described as the re-awakening of the acoustic pop idol. His jaw-droppingly amazing voice and snazzy accompaniment secured quite a few heart eyes. I even overheard bystanders gushing over his performance. Safe to say, if James ever secures a record deal, we may be looking at the next Ed Sheeran, followed by screaming girls everywhere he goes. Only this time, we would be graced with some originality. Campus giants Paradigm and Foniee were easy to depend on when delivering quality music with a couple of surprises along the way. Paradigm’s instrumental piece managed to wrestle
out a mild mosh pit from the crowd, breaking completely grasp my attention. Corin told a the wholesome magic of the acts before them. convincing story of the stigma and struggles he deals with as a result of his concentration issues, whereas Leah captivated the audience with a striking analysis of the stigmas surrounding sexual harassment and abuse. Sira man-
A LOVELY MIX OF WHOLESOME ACOUSTIC MUSIC AND POLITICAL COMMENTARY
The Sweet Nothings, an all-female acapella group, empowered the audience with some spectacular power ballads. Cam Downing showed off his skills on the guitar and Charlie Robbins warmed the hearts of everyone in the room. My personal musical favourite was the magical duo consisting of Aliyah and Aayushi. With one playing the guitar and the other singing, the audience was blessed with a melodic Arabic voice and a haunting cover of Regina Spektor. Their music was best enjoyed with closed eyes to allow for the development of one’s imagination. I can say without a doubt that I will be searching for their future performances. After all, such unity between a singer and their accompaniment is hard to come by. From the spoken word acts, Corin, Sira and Leah were the ones who managed to
aged to blend the personal with the political by reacting to the crisis her country, Lebanon, is currently facing. Pip, being the poetry night veteran she is, did not fail to amaze with her bewitching performance. Overall, the night was full of great talent and new perspectives. Hats off to the Amnesty International Society for curating a line-up that blessed the audience with such a diverse range of voices and experiences. I know it’s a bit of an anomaly that barely any criticisms soured this review, however, that’s to be expected of a night that delivers what it promised: an unpretentious showcase of Exeter’s best. And the best part? It was all for charity.
Image: Talka Zmelonek-Mulligan
My Chemical Reunion
Exeposé Music Writers remember their favourite My Chemical Romance songs YOU KNOW WHAT THEY DO TO GUYS LIKE US IN PRISON
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HIS song is a rollercoaster of energy that is sure to bring you back to your 13-year-old angsty self. It’s got everything: the simple, suspenseful intro, angry vocals, shouting, fervent instrumental accompaniment and a cut to Gerard Way’s melodic bridge to give you a break from all the anger you’re feeling for being misunderstood. It perfectly embodies the confusion felt during adolescence, thus making it the perfect temporary company to your lonely suffering. ‘You Know What They Do To Guys Like Us In Prison’ is the song that added the purple clip-on hair to my daily moody aesthetic. Now, it can do the same for you. Anna Romanovska, Lifestyle Editor
SUMMERTIME
DISENCHANTED
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ERHAPS one of the best songs My Chemical Romance had ever written, ‘Disenchanted’ is written from the perspective of the cancer patient facing his death, cynically exploring how the magic of life disappears for him – how he feels “disenchanted”. The song beautifully depicts what it feels like to be at the lowest point in your life, and just speaks to my emo heart every time life gets difficult. Gerard Way’s vocal in this track is excellent as always and Ray Toro’s haunting guitar riffs at the beginning and the end of the song adds even more to the cynical theme of the song. The line ‘I hate the ending myself, but it started with an alright scene’ is the way fans of MCR would describe the band’s journey. But perhaps we might not have to hate the ending anymore with the announcement of the band’s reunion shows. I really do hope they play ‘Disenchanted’ live. Penny Dinh
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N 'Summertime', My Chemical Romance's defining love song from the much-maligned Danger Days, Way sings "You can run away with me anytime you want". Set in the nuclear dystopia of California, 2019, the album is pop-rock banger after banger, focusing on the exploits of the band masquerading as superheroes. Amidst all the fun is ‘Summertime’, a beautiful song that features Way’s happiest lyrics, a superb guitar solo, and emulates The Smashing Pumpkins’ ‘1979’ fifteen years later. ‘Summertime’ is a middle finger to their ‘emo’ label, and its nostalgic lyrics and sound have helped it stand the test of time, compared to much of Danger Days. If you haven’t – check out the acoustic performance of the song on YouTube, which is one of my favourite videos ever! Stephen Ong, Online Music Editor
Welcome to the black parade
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S we come together once again to join the Black Parade, I feel it’s only natural that we look back to where it all began. In the anthemic ‘Welcome to the Black Parade’, Gerard Way roused an army of fans to unite, no matter how broke, beaten, or damned they felt. Don’t deny that when you hear those four solo piano keys at the beginning of the song, at any party, you don’t feel a little more connected to the people you’re surrounded by. I don’t know a single person – whether they spent their teen years donning scene haircuts and lip piercings or not – who doesn’t know the lyrics to this song. Its screaming guitars, Way's phenomenal layered vocals of the outro, and the general sentiment of belonging to something more turned the lead single of a rock opera album into a rock epic. Bryony Gooch, Music Editor Images (both): Stuart Sevasto
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EDITORS: Jonathan Chern and Samuel Thomson
screen For the full Film, TV, and Game Best of the Decade lists, head online to exepose.com/screen
MOONLIGHT
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ITH its translucent social realism, Moonlight explicitly addressed the intersections of race, class and sexuality with a delicately constructed tripartite structure. The film is a stifling ode to growing up surrounded by invisible barriers in every direction. The film seems more an introspective character study than a realist social commentary, yet integrates both with the intersectionality of existence. Several films have explored the seeming impossibility of upward economic mobility yet Moonlight pairs economic with social, with the explicit LGBT storyline. It is, unfortunately, one of very few films explicitly centering Black gay men, and Trevante
LADY BIRD
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T the beginning of Lady Bird, the title character and her mother quietly sob in the car to the final beats of The Grapes of Wrath. It’s a brief moment of poignancy before, out of nowhere, a heated argument breaks out, escalating as the mother dismisses her daughter’s aspirations. It is punctuated as Lady Bird jumps out of the moving vehicle. Reading this back might seem shocking and even painful, but it's one of the many moments in Greta Gerwig’s directorial debut that matches emotional conflict with rip-roaring hilarity. No one expected Lady Bird to jump out of the car, but the sheer impulse of it was admirable. It is through her character arc that we resonate with
BOOKSMART
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LIVIA Wilde blessed us with the decade’s best coming-of-age comedy, Booksmart, just under the wire in summer 2019. Especially today, filmmakers often end up presenting youth culture in a way that feels cringeworthy, but here it feels completely genuine. While the 2010s have seen their fair share of great moments for women in film, it’s still cheering to see a female friendship take centre stage in a high school comedy also smoothly situate diversity into its landscape. This success perhaps stems from Booksmart’s overwhelmingly female crew, including an allwomen writers’ team. Aside from this, though,
Images (Clockwise from top): A24, Sony Pictures, Sony Pictures, United Artists, A24
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BEST OF
Rhodes and André Holland are mesmerising in their roles. The multilateral film was divided into three parts, each titled by what people call the protagonist, Chiron; Little as a child, Black as an adult. Here, even the structure of Moonlight portrays one of its several messages: “At some point you’ve got to decide for yourself what you’re going to be.” The film embodied the unseen
nature of these barriers with the structure itself, that of societal perception and the reliance on labels given by environmental factors. It is a message of positivity and of agency, of breaking through said unseen boundaries. Yet this message is never fully realized: Chiron (or Kevin, or Juan, or many of the characters) were not necessarily able to stumble to the freedom of adulthood and choice because of
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the idea of growing to appreciate the idle moments of adolescence. At its heart, Lady Bird is Gerwig’s love letter to mother-daughter relationships and youth. I certainly related to Lady Bird’s tumultuous relationship with her mother, and the subsequent understanding of her mother’s perspective after flying the nest. Lady Bird as a character is charming, witty, and complicated – even when she is sulky you can’t help but root for her. And the exact same can be said for the film. Bryony Gooch, Music Editor
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the film could have won me over on the merit of its truly laugh-outloud comedy alone. You really are chuckling along for the entire 100 minute runtime. The market may be relatively saturated with high school movies, but, cliché as it is to say, Booksmart feels completely fresh. It’s got a great soundtrack, and young leads and ensemble cast members with a lot of promise. It’s the film teenage-me was looking for, and I’m so happy it’s one the teens of today will get to see. Emma Hussain, Online News Editor
2 DEC 2019 |
WHIPLASH
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AMIEN Chazelle's Whiplash has Miles Teller and J.K Simmons deliver an enthralling, excruciatingly tense performance depicting the limits of artistic ambition. Some may call the teacher-student dynamic ‘tough love’, but sado-masochist humiliation may be more apt. Actually, let’s call it what it is: abuse, as the chiding “are you rushing or are you dragging” still lingers in my own memory whenever I dare to touch a musical instrument. Watching the film dismantles any preconceptions of jazz as just elevator music; rather it’s gruelling, exciting, conflict, danger, all encapsulated in this pressure cooker of a film. Notice the claustrophobic cinematography,
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those invisible strictures. This is where social realism cleaves translucent filmic beauty, by emphasizing how it may have been all well and good to have agency, but agency only goes so far in the case of oppression. It is easy for a film like Moonlight to become depressing, yet it does not. The camera carries the load here whilst the characters embody the realist fare: at the end of the film, these barriers are still in place despite the characters’ entanglements and struggles. This is what incongruously juxtaposes the transcendent camerawork capturing the beauty of the cityscape with the difficulties and impossibilities narrated by the story.
Neha Shaji, Deputy Editor
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the pervasive sense of discomfort, lovingly accompanied by the sickening feeling of your heart in your throat. It’s only fitting that a film centred on pushing yourself beyond the limits of human endurance, egged on by an abusive mentor, would be accompanied by hypnotising drum patterns, indelible rhythms which ramp up the psychological torture, as rhythm itself becomes a tangible villain. The final scene and Andrew’s Pyrrhic victory leave us feeling ambivalent and beyond uneasy – but that’s jazz, baby. Amy Butterworth, Online Lifestyle Editor
THE SOCIAL NETWORK
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ACEBOOK may not be the most popular social network anymore, but the film regarding its infamous creation and tumultuous development stands strong as a perspective-based documentation. The title is ironic as the film conveys the fast paced nature of social media through the rise of Facebook and fall of its creators. Screenwriter Aaron Sorkin encapsulates a traditional drama through a new modern medium: a social network playing puppet master to Harvard teens. What makes this film most intriguing is the multi-faceted nature of the tale with manifold truths and perspectives, leaving viewers to reach their own conclusions. David Fincher produces
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an immersive experience; a fly on the wall. The story of Facebook continues off screen, which increases the film’s value. Jesse Eisenberg brilliantly embodies a young innovator invested more in his creation than his actual relationships. Mark Zuckerberg was not keen on his representation. The ongoing conspiracies surrounding Facebook only makes the film more compelling as a time capsule to help piece together the events. Hilda Sheridan Hewlett
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THE DECADE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL
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ES Anderson does not shy away from drawing our eye to cinematic form, that is his brilliance. He is the architect of an elaborate fictional universe, set against the stage of pre-war central Europe - a fictitious 1932 - whereby we stand within the well-oiled, mechanical clock that is The Grand Budapest Hotel. You fall awestruck at Anderson’s precise visual palette and Ralph Fiennes’ deadpan, comic delivery as Gustave is just as flawless. Every scene is purposely contrived, from the fluctuating aspect ratio to the distinctive Anderson symmetry. This masterpiece is a storybook in every respect. The narrative is told like a carefully constructed Russian Doll revealing each story
GET OUT
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ORDAN Peele’s debut feature has been described as a lot of things: horror; social commentary; thriller; dark comedy; even documentary. It can be all those at once, but one thing this suggests is the gravitas that Get Out landed with. When Chris (Daniel Kaluuya) visits his white girlfriend’s parents, something becomes off-putting, but one can’t quite put a finger on what. The shivering horror sequences and anxious setting makes Get Out at times uneasy, but the brilliant direction undercuts the action just enough through comedy to give the film its taste. For his debut feature, Peele didn't choose an easy subject, nor did he dance around a difficult one. Peele exposes the arrogance
within itself; his work is a testament to how stylistic touch doesn’t override our ability to empathise with the plethora of characters that adorn this cinematic universe. The film takes no solitary genre but a myriad: a witty social comedy artfully interwoven with an adolescent love story, an art theft, a murder, a jailbreak, a budding friendship, and a tale of loss. Catherine Lloyd, Copy Editor
in society that racism breeds; it’s about the kind of racism that white people embrace assuming it is benevolent. But as we come to see, the wealthy white community visited in the film is literally propped up by the bodies of black people. It might be a cliché to say Jordan Peele turns a mirror on white culture, but he does and he does it tactfully and provocatively, and that is perhaps why Get Out makes its way on this list.
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CALL ME BY YOUR NAME
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UCA Guadagnino's Call Me By Your Name explores the sensual romance between Elio and American student Oliver, the latter of which is staying with his family for the summer. Set in rural northern Italy in the summer of 1983, the relaxing long days are presented on-screen with a similarly understated plot. The screenplay, which earned James Ivory his first Academy Award, focuses on developing characters and their relationships. Timothée Chalamet in his breakout role as Elio shines in one of the best the closing scenes in recent film history. Staring into the fireplace, eyes glazed with tears, we can truly empathise with Elio. As Sufjan Steven’s ‘Visions of Gideon’
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Our hero is Miles Morales, a new Spider-Man on a par-for-the-course mission against evil. Consciousness of Spider-Men past is built into the text. Miles learns dusty old lessons of power and responsibility, but it's all achieved with style. We've heard the same Spider-tales countless times – the genius of Spider-Verse is its selfreflection. A genuine love for what successive superhero franchises would simply overwrite? In this decade, that's something special. Harry Caton, Online Editor
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comes in and the credits begin to role, we are transfixed as we share in Elio’s heartbreak. The film was not without controversy, as both the gay leads are portrayed by straight actors. There has also been some discussion as to whether the age gap (24 and 17) inappropriate. Nonetheless, the cinematography creates a film oozing in beautiful nostalgia. And it made us all look at peaches slightly differently. Katie Jones
PADDINGTON 2 DON'T know what we, as the human race, have done to deserve a film as wonderfully wholesome and uncompromising in its pureness as Paddington 2. The film plays host to some of the best British actors working today, Hugh Grant in tasselled flares, animated sequences to make your jaw drop. It combines moments of comedy with beats of melancholy in a tonal blend so rich that it becomes a positively cathartic experience. Paddington is a character so lifelike in both his rendering and persona that my dear Grandpa asked ‘who was wearing the bear costume?’. It celebrates community, friendships and family through the point-of-view of an outsider and tackles issues of bigotry. It
Jonathan Chern, Screen Editor
INTO THE SPIDER-VERSE ERHAPS enough has been said about Spider-Man. The character came of age in the 2000s, the Raimi trilogy, a flawed-butendearing herald of modern superheroes. Peter Parker, teenaged twenty-something, marks the memories of so many. Now, though? Three separate franchises, two Spider-Man 2s, in this decade alone. It's a troubling sight. Yet here we are, celebrating Spider-Verse. What gives? To be honest, many things. Certainly, this is a great film. Pair meticulous, psychedelic animation with an often hilarious script, and you have something that feels vibrant in ways other incarnations fell flat.
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has a stylistic flare that celebrates many historic cinematic visuals, but still feels uniquely grounded in the world it has so painstakingly constructed. It’s selfaware enough to flip tropes on their head, allowing characters to inhabit new and exciting spaces. It achieves what few other sequels have: it improves on the first. There’s a warm tingling in my tum-tum. It feels a lot like pride. Tabitha Burnett
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EDITORS’ PICKs SAM
JOHNNY
exit through the gift shop
THE tree of life Images (Clockwise from top left):Fox Searchlight, Sony Pictures, Studio Canal, Fox Searchlight, Revolver Entertrainment, Sony Pictures, Universal Pictures
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EDITORS: Jonathan Chern and Samuel Thomson
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2 DEC 2019
TELEVISION OF THE DECADE FLEABAG
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BOJACK HORSEMAN
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LEABAG is not your typical main character, but that is precisely what makes her so fucking wonderful. Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s masterpiece is the perfect blend of comedy and drama – utterly devastating one second, and completely hilarious the next. There is an overwhelming OMEWHERE in Bojack Horseman’s feeling of empowerment in finally seeing that character we have been third season, Diane Nguyen declares craving for years. An “oversexed, emotionally unfiltered and self“All those perky, well-adjusted people obsessed woman” who represents the best and the worst in us. you see in movies and TV shows? I don’t think they Overflowing with sex, shame and sadness, Fleabag is quite possibly exist.” Considering the show’s lengthy, heart-wrenching the most realistic show on television. catalogue of perceptive quotes, this one in I think there is a moment for particular captures the heart that creator all of us. A moment we relate Raphael Bob-Waksberg translates so palpably. to so much, that it hurts a The show presents a zany, animated little bit. Maybe it’s the grief, catalogue of outlandish situational comedy or the heartbreak, or the in a universe shared by humans and anthropomorphic insecurity (hopefully not the animals. The razor-sharp wit and pop culture nods play Obama scene). The magic of palate cleanser to the show’s carefully crafted pathos. Fleabag is that it makes us feel seen. The writers have consistently impressed and devastated in It makes us feel less alone. What their explorations of loneliness, fame, nihilism, happiness and what more could you ask for? “Love the pursuit of the latter does to the human psyche. By its final season, is all any of us want and it’s they’ve asked these questions of a whole ensemble of characters, leaving hell when we get there! us with a show that teaches as much about the art of crafting and studying So, no wonder it’s characters as it does comedy and farce. Blind-drunk on its own maze of metasomething we don’t want references, and with sincerity and insight that defy anything else on television, to do on our own.” Bojack has forced us to examine the troubled, lonely, washed-up horse actor that lives within every single one of us. Ben Faulkner Francesca Sylph
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GAMES OF THE DECADE
1 MINECRAFT
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OR God’s sake, this game is decade defining. Much like the past ten years, Minecraft is hilariously shit. It’s janky to the extreme, but despite any aesthetic or mechanical flaws, it brings a category-shattering creativity and optimism. Notch’s magnum opus is a sandbox game that smashes down the wooden sandbox walls, stretching across its corners to reinvent worlds in blocky, soaring infinity. In a post-modern 21st Century where, as Marx predicted, all that is solid melts into air, and we find ourselves enveloped in a swirling existential tempest, Minecraft is solid and reliable. Even if you can’t move yourself out of bed, you can sprint-jump with Steve or Alex through meadows or magma to the End. You can build gravity defying sculptures and explore the depths of imagination, armed only with an evolving knowledge of your environment, and maybe an iron pickaxe. If the server is rendering only the void ahead of you, you can jump into the unknown in good faith, safe in the knowledge that you possess the tools for any eventuality. I’ll leave this Mojang manifesto with an excerpt from the Minecraft End Poem. If this is yet to be read at a funeral, it’s only a matter of time. Like the game, these words aren’t just for minors, they’re for miners. “And the Universe said ‘you are not separate from every other thing’. And the Universe said ‘you are the Universe, tasting itself, talking to itself, reading its own code’. And the Universe said ‘I love you’.“ Zach Mayford, Arts and Lit Editor and official Minecraft correspondent Images (clockwise): All Fleabag - Amazon Studios; All Bojack Horseman Netflix; All Minecraft - Mojang All Skyrim - Bethesda
SKYRIM
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H, Skyrim. From the first time you stride oh-so-confidently near a giant and are yeeted across the stratosphere, to absorbing dragons like some soul-sucking Henry Hoover, to unleashing enormous fireballs of doom, to crafting that first sweet sweet set of Daedric armour to “arrow to the knee” memes... this game consistently generates a delicious digital smorgasbord of iconic moments. It’s the game I always find myself going back to. When social life seems a distant dream, I can quite happily waste away the hours killing random people for the Dark Brotherhood over and over again. Every time I come back, there’s always a new cave to explore, a funny NPC to irritate or a random side quest that can keep me entertained for the rest of the day. Even when it was broken, it was just broken in a fun way: has anyone else tried putting a bucket on someone’s head and stealing from them? And there is always so much more to do. Just when you’ve finished the main story, got your insanely overpowered, enchanted armour and maxed out your destruction spells, along comes the Dawnguard and Dragonborn DLCs to keep you going for an extra 100 hours (I’m not complaining)! From the insane amount of quests, to the rich lore, to the meme-generating technical issues and fantastic main story (and DLC) to boot, Skyrim is just the perfect RPG. God help Bethesda; Elder Scrolls VI has a lot to live up to! George Clark, Comment Editor
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study break
| 2 DEC 2019
STUDY BREAK CROSSWORD
SUDOKU
Down
Across
1 3
9 10 11 12 15 16 19 21 23 25 26 27
Not hard (4) Building with toilets - abhor Tom? (anagram) (8) On edge (7) Fashion (5) Group - wrap (4) Morally correct (7) Steam generator (6) Liveliness - priest (anagram) (6) Flee (3,4) Without (4) Strong point (5) Notice (7) Lofty - get in row (anagram) (8) Were (anagram) - pitcher (4)
1 Mail - post (4) 2 Structure (9) 4 Respond (6) 5 Emerge (from an egg, for example) (5) 6 Raw mineral (3) 7 Adjust - balance - tea mould (anagram) aaaaaaaa(8) 8 Raw beginner (informal) (6) 13 Spiral (9) 14 Deviating - Arab rent (anagram) (8) 17 Spatter - splatter (6) 18 Business magnate (6) 20 H2O (5) 22 Bring up (4) 24 Cutting tool (3)
Trivia corner 1. What does J.E.P. stand for? 2. Who is the UCU General Secretary?
3. What is R&B Vocalist Frank Ocean’s Birth Name? 4. Who directed BookSmart?
ANSWERS
5. Name all five Exeter Picket Lines St. Luke’s & Penryn Cooksey 4. Olivia Wilde 5. Stocker Road, Queen’s Drive, Thornlea,
6. Who is the Labour Candidate for MP of Exeter in the upcoming Election?
Answers: bJoint Expert Panel 2. Jo Grady 3. Christopher Edwin Water, 22 Rear, 24 Saw. 8 Rookie, 13 Corkscrew, 14 Aberrant, 17 Splash, 18 Tycoon, 20 Down: 1 Send, 2 Formation, 4 Answer, 5 Hatch, 6 Ore, 7 Modulate, Observe, 26 Towering, 27 Ewer. Ethical, 15 Boiler, 16 Esprit, 19 Run away, 21 Less, 23 Asset, 25 Across: 1 Soft, 3 Bathroom, 9 Nervous, 10 Trend, 11 Pack, 12
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Science
34
2 DEC 2019 | EXEPOSÉ
SCIENCE EDITORS: Scarlett Parr-Reid Elinor Jones
A duty to your Queen and climate Kamila Bell, Comment Editor, homes in on the significance of climate education
Education is needed in order to address climate change; it can inform as well as empower people from a young age to take responsibility for their actions and their future. Climate education being added to the curriculum is something that schools cannot afford to dismiss if we are ever truly going to be able to reverse the damage generations have caused to the planet. Our generation’s biggest fight is the fight against climate change.
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Every day we are a spectator to the effects of climate change
Although the relationship between climate change, have the ability to coscience and religion has not always exist as a responsibility to the planet been harmonious, when our duty to without undermining each other. All the climate is as important as schools today now have a it is now, there seems to duty to facilitate the be a mutual underscientific understanding between standing bethe two. Nahind climate ture is a key change n Mat o i t component and quash ters ca Edu of many reexternal ligious docsources trines and that deny wanting to rethe existspect and supence of cliport what has mate change been created for as a global issue us can still be pursued that affects us all. whilst accepting the science Image: Mohamed Hassan, Pixabay Teaching not only the behind this issue. social implications of climate Climate change education about change, children will begin to underwhat is happening globally and our stand the true impacts of their actions responsibilities for our planet, this from a scientific perspective also. can be seen only to reinforce religious Through educating the youth of teachings about caring for our world today about the science that is drivas a gift to us. Ultimately religious ing climate change, we can create the schools and science, with regards to bridge between action and responsibilClim ate
C
LIMATE change is happening. Every day we are a spectator to the effects it is having on our world and it is evident that action is required immediately. It is our climate and our future we must fight for. Attitudes must be altered. Behaviours must be transformed and responses must be revolutionary.
Technology: to fear or not to fear?
Tom Dormer, Online Science Editor, on skepticism over the technological revolution
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EOPLE have long been sceptical of the changes science and technology bring, with most sceptics increasingly cautious about the progression of science. However, as humanity now faces the introduction of autonomous artificial intelligence and runaway automation, how likely is it that a fear of misuse will hamper the technology of future generations? Society’s fear of future technologies became widespread with rapid changes to modern science in the 19th century. Nowhere were these feelings more exemplified than in the works of the Romantic movement, Image: Rajesh Sahu, Flickr
with Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein bearing caution to natural philosophy, describing a creature ‘not even Dante could have conceived’.
AI’s full potential might not be being realise Today, it seems Artificial Intelligence is Dante’s most recent creature, with works like Ex-Machina and The Matrix echoing the same directive of Shelley. However, these suspicions do not always have a positive effect on the progression of science. Professor Jim Al-Khalili warns that AI’s full potential might not be being realised due to the UK’s ‘fear-driven backlash’. This could possibly lead to scientific discoveries being delayed or even completely missed. Nuclear power has also been a target of suspicion due to the fail-
ures of Three Mile Island, Chernobyl and Fukushima. However, rather than a just a call for increased safety surrounding current plants, many have pressured some of 450 nuclear power plants to shut down before their lifetime is over. For the United States, this would mean 40 per cent increase in carbon emissions, with energy replaced using fossil fuels or solar (which has a larger carbon footprint than nuclear).
It seems AI is Dante’s most recent creature No professional scientist would like to see Earth destroyed by radiation, or enslaved by AI, so while many people’s fear of future technologies is backed by good intentions, it is also important to remember that too much fear may prevent science from developing at all.
ity. If climate education is institutionalised globally, people will understand that they may not personally have caused this crisis, but that they must be a part of the ‘everybody’ to help solve the problem.
Nature is a key component of many religious doctrines Climate education can focus on why we need to protect the environment, how a changing climate is altering our weather and steps they can take to help in what can be a global strive for climate action. Simple steps such as turning off lights when leaving a room, decreasing the amount of time they use electronic devices or even growing some of your own food in your garden can empower people to feel as though their actions are meaningfully helping reduce the impacts of climate change from a young age.
Education on environmental sustainability has been optional for schools to teach for many years and has primarily consisted of basic teachings such as ‘switching lights off as you leave the room’. However, we can see that these programs have evidently failed us as just this time last year the UN stated we have just 12 years to avert the climate change catastrophe. What we need is a united front, a universal, enforced climate education program that creates a collective understanding of the dominance of this crisis. It is only through a nonoptional education system that we can ensure people have a comprehensive understanding on climate change and can ensure they know the ways in which they can help, whilst additionally advocating for change from big companies alongside. For today and for tomorrow, introducing education on climate appears to be vital if we are able to truly reverse or minimise the effects it is having on our world.
Misleading science
Scarlett Parr-Reid, Science Editor, on authority’s apathy to appreciate the science of vaccinations
V
ACCINES are injections that we are given to prime our immune system against harmful infectious diseases. Injecting a small amount of a component of the disease-causing microorganism kickstarts the body’s defence against it, triggering production of protective antibodies, which can last for many years. In spite of this information, there have over the years been examples of misleading research, such as that of the ex-physician Andrew Wakefield who published a 1998 paper stating that the combined measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine caused the neurodevelopmental disorder, autism. The paper’s claims could not be replicated and are factually incorrect. Consequently, the fraudulent paper was retracted and Wakefield was struck off. However, the paper did appear in a reputable scientific journal, The Lancet - an example of how bad science can reach the public. Since it was published, the number of children vac-
cinated against MMR fell and the number of cases of measles has increased. There are still groups of people known as anti-vaxxers, who spread misinformation against vaccines. A proponent of the anti-vax movement is president Donald Trump, who was quoted to have threatened to overthrow the pro-vaccine medical establishment in the United States. The spread of bad science by those at the very top is troubling. In the UK, to combat this, public health campaigns aimed at parents of young children aim to tackle the uncertainty people feel when making decisions about their health. Unfortunately, Britain is now no longer measles virus-free, despite the fact that it was eliminated three years ago due to apathy and publicity of poor scientific practice This is the shocking consequence of spreading bad science. The UK’s campaign is just the beginning of the fight against misinformation in science.
SCIENCE
A game of risk
35
Anna Romanovska, Lifestyle Editor, exposes the bias halting the male pill NOTE: sex is referred to as male/female sex, rather than gender, as many different genders can take the hormonal birth control that is specific to the female sex organ. HERE does seem to be a sexbased bias when looking at how hormonal birth control can affect mental health. Most studies on the association of hormonal birth control methods, such as the pill, the patch and the ring, and mental health issues such as depression, stated that there was not enough evidence to suggest that such an association existed. However, a further investigation into the development of these studies found that they were of low quality and relied excessively on “self-reporting, recall and insufficient numbers of subjects,” as stated by Monique Tello, a contributing editor of the Harvard Health Blog. Though I may be slightly hypocriti-
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cal by saying this, having criticised the association studies between mental illness and birth control for relying on self-reporting to reach their conclusion, I myself have experienced a grand difference in my mental health before, during and after using the pill. Yes, my low mood is chronic, however it had improved significantly after I had stopped using it. I am not the only person who has experienced this. By being open about it with other people who have taken the pill, I found that this issue is much too common to ignore.
It is terrifying that a small tablet influences your relationships Sarah Hill, author of the book This is Your Brain on Birth Control, is only one of the few people to take a risk and speak out on how hormonal birth con-
trol can affect the mental health of its user. Despite specialising in studies of attraction and the effects of ‘female’ hormones upon behaviour, it took a while for Hill to realise that it would make complete sense for hormonal contraception to have an effect upon the behaviour of those who used it. In fact, in order for Hill to reach this realisation, she read a paper detailing the effects of the hormonal pill upon romantic and sexual relationships. According to it, the pill can influence the relationship satisfaction and the divorce rates of the pill user. Honestly, it is terrifying that such a small tablet has the ability to do that. Moreover, there is empirical evidence about the effects of the pill on mood for example. A University of Copenhagen study found that women who were on the combined pill were 23 per cent more likely to be diagnosed with
depression. Even with the existence of studies like this, doctors are still telling their patients that the pill does not affect mood.
23 per cent on the combined pill have depression Despite the male contraceptive injection having a 96 per cent success rate, there is something suspicious about how quickly the trials for the male birth control injection were stopped, once it had been found that the male birth control pill had been affected the mental health of its users. Of course, there was a lot of outrage from the users of the female birth control pill, where the rise of reports of low mood while on hormonal birth control has been subtly ignored. Perhaps this is a bias that has re-
Power to the patients
It is about time
Elinor Jones, Science Editor, highlights the importance of responsibility in medical research
Exeposé Science Writers time travel to 2029 and explore what the future may bring
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N 2011 the medical world witnessed an unfounded breakthrough due to the vivid determination and persistence of one man, Paolo Macchiarini. However, in the years that followed, the scientific community realised this was a breakthrough of another kind, one that would ensure horrors like this would never happen again. What was hailed as a sensational discovery, Macchiarini had, supposedly, successfully performed the world’s first synthetic organ transplant, replacing a windpipe, or trachea, with a man-made plastic tube. Working at the prestigious Karolinska Institute in Sweden, the surgeon made headlines, with this advancement that has potential to significantly reduce waiting times for those in need of a transplant; if it worked it could be trialled for a host of other organs.
His work resulted in the deaths of seven of nine patients However, Macchiarini’s patients were given false hope that the treatment would work, with some living perfectly healthy lives joining the trial in the hope of helping people less fortunate. Unlike the gold-standard in science, the synthetic windpipe had not been properly tested previously to the human studies, resulting in deaths of
seven of the nine patients. Macchiarini also lied about the results of the studies and relied on companies making the synthetic material to ‘sell’ the prospect of an artificial trachea to patients. As both a doctor and a scientist, Macchiarini had a duty not only to his patients but the wider community. He held a position of trust and responsibility where he had the chance to perform ELF-DRIVING cars are becoming comscientific greatness but monplace. A few protest groups oppose instead used his power their implementation, but generally the lowfor the immediate draw er accident rate is accepted by the public. By the end of fame that such a of the decade, they make up more than half of combreakthrough could muter traffic, and 80 per cent of heavy goods vehicles. bring. His thirst for A new social media appears in the early 2020s, fame and fortune put growing quickly to have over 900 million active usmany lives at risk, as ers. The app is bought by Google for 4 billion USD if his malpractices in 2028. had never been unThe topic of genetically edited 'designer babies' covered, millions of has moved to the forefront of ethical scientific dispatients could have course. Public opinion is undecided due to aggressive died due to having a propaganda from politicians and activist groups on faulty synthetic trachea both sides. transplanted. Sam Thomson, Screen Editor In history of scientific discovery, risk has been essential to advance knowledge and thinking. However, there is a substantial difference between taking a risk that pays off and a risk that harms life without appreciating a duty to care. The only breakthrough he had was that now, scientists generally take greater responsibility for their actions.
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mained since the first introduction of ‘female’ contraception. However, it is rather obvious that more work is still required to bust the double standards those taking female-specific birth control may face, despite paying the greater costs in conception.
Hill is only one of the few to take the risk Overall, the increased discourse on the effects of the pill and the double standards associated with contraception is possibly one of the most significant games of risk of the past decade. Let us hope that these discussions remain high on the agenda and health biases are battled into the 2020s. Let us hope this game continues well into the new decade.
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CAN see it now, whilst we sit in traffic of our electric, driverless cars, we turn on the radio (somehow that media format has survived) to listen to people argue about the cure for cancer being up for sale, the next to go after the NHS. We get a notification that our phone battery is running low on our iPhone 24, because of course crap battery life is still an issue in 2029. It's no worries though, because of course our jeans now come with a wireless charger in the pocket, anything else would be far to convenient. We must always be logged in. Hopefully, women and women of colour specifically will continue to make significant discoveries, and maybe actually be credited for them! The world is as dying as ever, but at least a trip to the Moon has a Black Friday sale, and now only costs one arm and a leg, as opposed to your standard two. But hey, joke's on them, because I can just go use my 3D printer and get myself a shinier, more toned leg, everyone wins! Isabelle Gray, Editor
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N 2020, whilst I may or may not have finished my studies by then, science will (I’m ever optimistic) be in a better place than it is currently, with greater appreciation for the scientific method, rigour and attention to detail. Politicians will finally accept that they need to listen to scientists, whether it’s to promote vaccinations or to reduce the impacts of climate change. I hope that both these examples are not a hot topic of debate in ten years; I would hope that the general consensus was that these are important aspects of our daily lives, vital to protecting both the planet and the people in it. Elinor Jones, Science Editor
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2 DEC 2019 | EXEPOSÉ
SPORT
Match of the Decade: Man City 3-2 QPR Max Shepherd decides on his top three matches of the 2010s
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S we draw close to end of the unsatisfyingly named “tens”, it only feels right that we should look back and recognise the best of basically every cultural category imaginable. I am tasked with picking out the best match (of any sport) of the decade, and I must say for me there is only one option. Very often, high stakes matches can lack drama, and dramatic matches can lack significance, but every once in a blue moon the stars align to produce the perfect fixture. Such was the case on the 13 May 2012 at the Etihad Stadium. Now I must admit that as an avid football fan I may have some inherent biases. However I challenge anyone to think of any match of any sport that lived up to its potential more than Manchester City and Queens Park Ranger’s clash on the last day of the 2011/12 Premier League season. The stage was set, both Manchester City and Manchester United went into the final game with 86 points, yet crucially City had a superior goal difference which meant that a victory at home against QPR would undoubtedly secure them a first ever Premier League title. Though on paper a fairly easy opponent, QPR themselves were
in a relegation battle and needed a win to ensure that survival was not reliant on other results going their way. United on the other hand, faced a Sunderland side nestled in mid-table with nothing to play for.
The Etihad was stunned, all over the stands there were City fans in distress The first half went largely to script, with City going 1-0 up from a fumbled Pablo Zabaleta shot going in off the woodwork. Meanwhile, over at the Stadium of Light, United took the lead from a Wayne Rooney strike. Things started to get interesting in the 48th minute when Djibril Cissé pounced on a defensive error to draw QPR level. The rest, as the old cliché says, is history. A key player in creating said history was
the always entertaining Joey Barton. Deciding the game was a bit too civil, Barton decided to elbow Carlos Tevez in the face, then upon receiving a red card walked behind Sergio Agüero and kicked him in what has got to be the most unsportsmanlike act of the millennium, let alone decade. The fact that this incident, along with its ensuing brawl involving Mario Balotelli having to be manfully restrained, is often ignored when discussing this match only goes to show how much of a classic it truly was. Facing ten men, City looked sure to win the game comfortably, yet unbelievably QPR took the lead through a Jamie Mackie diving header barely ten
minutes after going a man down. The Etihad was stunned, United were still winning in their fixture, and all over the stands there were City fans in varying degrees of distress being caught by the Sky Sports camera crews in crystal clear high definition. This torment continued past the 90-minute mark, so late in fact that over in Sunderland the game finished 1-0 to United, and some of Ferguson’s men famously began celebrating a 20th League title at the expense of their local rivals. These celebrations would later prove to be unwise. Manchester Roberto Mancini had decided to throw Edin Dzeko, Mario Balotelli and the kitchen sink at QPR in a last gasp bid for glory. These substitutions would go down in history. In the second minute of added time, Dzeko rose magnificently to head in an equalising goal that gave City hope, but still a mountain to climb in the remaining two minutes of Image: Oldelpaso injury time. With
QPR retreating into their own box, City surged forward at will but faced a congested penalty area. Up steps a fresh faced Sergio Agüero; after being slipped the ball by the recently introduced Balotelli, the Argentinian ace stayed on his feet in the box despite a clear foul and smashed the ball near post to send the City fans into meltdown. Over in Sunderland, a shirtless Phil Jones looked confused as always, as news of City’s win filtered through to the United players doing their victory lap. There was something special about Andy Murray ending his wait for a Wimbledon title in 2013, and England ending their wait for a Cricket World Cup win in 2019, but the sheer drama of City's wait being ended in such extraordinary scenes surely surpasses both. Martin Tyler’s hysterical “AGUEROOOOOOOOOOOO” will echo on through the ages and to this day is still my favourite piece of commentary ever. When considering the context of this game, the drama it entailed and its significance in marking the rise of Manchester City and simultaneous demise of Manchester United, I think it is more than worthy of the title “Best Match of the Decade.”
Athlete of the Decade: Serena Williams
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Nick Powell, Sport Editor, gives his top three: 1. Serena Williams, 2. Eliud Kipchoge, 3. Lionel Messi
ERHAPS the most extraordinary thing about Serena Williams is that she could easily have won this award in the 2000s. Indeed, Williams had already notched five grand slam titles and reached seven finals by the end of the 1990s, including her first major singles title. But of a career likely to span into a fourth decade soon, there can be no doubt Serena will always look upon the 2010s most fondly, and it was the decade that established her as the greatest sportswoman, and arguably greatest sportsperson, of all time. Image: Paulo Brad
Twice in the decade, Serena came close to death. At the end of 2010, a year where she had won four grand slams across both formats, she suffered a life threatening pulmonary embolism. Seven years later, she came close to dying as she gave birth to her first child. A drop to World Number 169 after that first embolism, combined with a desperate defeat in the 2011 US Open final led many to believe Serena had finally lost her winning touch. She was 30 now, an age after which only the greatest female tennis players had managed to sustain their dominance. But Serena proved she was more than one of the greatest, and what followed was two sensational years, her game now complete and an array of shots and power that was unmatched.. During the second half of the 2012 season she had a record of 33 wins and one defeat. In that time she won the Wimbledon singles and doubles titles, the US Open, double Olympic gold and the season-ending WTA Finals. 2013 saw her amass the largest amount of money for a female tennis player ever ($12,385,572). She ended an eleven year wait for the French Open
title, defended the US Open and WTA Finals trophies and became the oldest woman to be World Number One. By now, Williams was truly carving her name out as the greatest in the game. Another relentless winning streak saw her earn a third straight US Open title and draw level with Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova on 18 Grand Slam titles overall with her seventh of the decade.
Williams was dominant to the point where defeat was totally unthinkable This win would begin a historic run where, for the second time in her career, Serena held all four grand slams at one time. A record eighth major final victory at Wimbledon made her the oldest female winner of a grand slam and ensured she had qualified for November’s tour finals by early July. She may well live to rue the tight defeat to Roberta Vinci in the 2015 US Open semi-final, a defeat many labelled as the greatest upset of all time, largely
Image: Charles Thompson
because she had now truly established herself as so dominant that defeat was becoming completely unthinkable. Two further slams brought her within one of 24-time winner Margaret Court in 2017, beating sister Venus in the final in the Australian Open, while she was extraordinarily a month pregnant already. Though she took the rest of the season off for obvious reasons, she made a return aged 36, and has reached four finals since, showing there are no bounds to sporting success. Though Lionel Messi has likely captured the imagination of more sports fans, his battle with Cristiano Ronaldo has prevented him from having the kind of sole impact Williams has enjoyed. Williams' success has made her so
intrinsically associated with her sport, that every young girl with aspirations wants to be like her, play like her, is unrivalled in this decade. Eliud Kipchoge has likely had the same effect on young runners. The Kenyan has won 12 out of 13 major marathons he has competed in this decade (losing only once to a World Record, which he subsequently broke), and shown a human being can run 26 miles in under two hours. However, such has been the adversity Williams has faced, and the results that she has produced, there could be no other athlete of the decade. After losing her last four finals, Serena will be hungry to end the search for further silverware in the twilight of her glittering career.
SPORT
2 DEC 2019 | EXEPOSÉ
Moment of the Decade: London 2012
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The three most iconic moments, chosen by Ben Bampton, Online Sport Editor
OLLOWING from Beijing’s spectacular 2008 Games, few expected London 2012 to rival the ceremonious and sporting accomplishments of four years before. Sure, London was a landmark capital and Britain a relatively successful sporting nation, but China’s Olympic achievements, it seemed, couldn’t possibly be topped. Director Danny Boyle had other thoughts, and his vibrant opening ceremony – making the world sit up and take notice – set the scene for Britain’s most successful Olympics since 1908. The subsequent achievements of Team GB were unprecedented, surpassing their target of 48 medals with 65, including 29 golds and big wins in cycling, rowing, track and – of course – dressage.
Team GB won 29 gold medals and won 65 in total Saturday 4 August – while dubbed ‘Super Saturday’ in advance of events for London’s icons Jess Ennis-Hill and Mo Farah – epitomised Britain’s sporting suc-
cess at the 2012 Olympics. Before noon, two golds in the rowing – including an unexpected win in the women’s double skulls – had the medal charge well underway. Early evening brought another cycling gold in the women’s pursuit, and attention turned to the Olympic Stadium. First up was Jessica Ennis-Hill in the heptathlon. London 2012’s poster girl, Ennis-Hill had – quite literally – thrown away her chances of gold with her javelin attempt in the world championships the year before. Ennis-Hill threw a personal best, to practically guarantee victory before the final 800m event. She crossed the line and the Olympic Stadium erupted. Four golds down and – whisper it – ‘Super Saturday’ was becoming a reality. Forty minutes later, Greg Rutherford – an unlikely gold-medal candidate who turned up on the day as bouncy as his celebrations were emphatic – stormed the long-jump with an 8.42m leap. Five golds, done. Attention turned straight back to track, however, where Mo Farah’s 10,000m race was in full swing. Just moments after
Rutherford’s winning jump he was leading the cheers from the side, as – with 500m remaining – Farah made his move. With each rangy stride towards the finish line, the noise inside Olympic Stadium went up a notch, as this most dramatic finale hurled fans and commentators into superlative ecstasy.
After years of preparation, billions of pounds and countless hours - it happened Then Farah crossed and, for a splitsecond amidst the noise and the delirium, it seemed quiet, dream-like. After the years of build-up, after billions of investment and countless hours of training, London 2012 had really happened. That summer saw another landmark British success, when cycling’s cult-hero and 2012 Sports Personality of the Year Bradley Wiggins cemented his place in history, by becoming the first British rider to win the Tour de France. Finishing with a winning margin of 3 minutes and 21 sec-
onds, Wiggins placed ahead of fellow Brit and team-mate Chris Froome, who went on to win the Tour in 2013, 2015, 2016 and 2017. Professional football continued its astronomical growth this decade, with Neymar becoming the first £200m player and the Premier League’s transfer window rising to a record £1.43bn in 2017. So it was all the more incredible when Leicester, 5000-1 ‘contenders’ and rooted to the bottom just over a year before, finally clinched the Premier League title on 2 May 2016. In today’s Premier League era of lucrative TV-rights and cutthroat survival stakes, where the top four is considered the exclusive domain of the ‘big six’, Leicester’s success was so unexpected it saw Gary Lineker honour a bet by hosting Match of the Day in his boxers. But Super Saturday stands above as the finest moment of the decade. From a British perspective, in a decade that has ended with the country the most divided it has been for 100 years, Super Saturday was a magnificently uplifting symbol of British pride, and one that will live long in the memory.
Team of the Decade: England
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Jack Holmes's top three teams of this decade, with England taking the crown
N this modern world of sport, filled with immense riches, otherworldly athletes and global brands, it can be hard for fans to establish meaningful connections with teams. Yet occasionally, certain sides come along that have something special, something that rekindles that connection. These squads aren’t necessarily winners in a traditional sense, they just possess that extra, unquantifiable quality about them that really fires the imagination England’s Cricket World Cup winning group is deserving of a third place in this list. Entering the competition as favourites, the pressure was piled on. This led to some early slip ups like their calamitous game against the Aussies. With all their following games being must win matches the still unfit Jason Roy was recalled to the team and what a decision that ended up being. England would go on to beat India in a tense encounter then sail past New Zealand to claim revenge against the Aussies in the semi-final. England went into the final as firm favourites against the Kiwis and yet the match went down to the wire. With England’s talisman Roy out for 17 this could have become the all too familiar England collapse. However, up stepped Ben Stokes to play (at the time) the innings of his life to salvage the game and force a super-over.
It all came down to the final ball and with the fall of the bails England were world champions. This group had done wonders for a sport that was losing popularity in this country. We had just witnessed perhaps the greatest final of any modern sporting competition and English cricket gained millions of new fans, myself among them. Just ahead of them in the list are the protagonists of this decade’s ultimate underdog story. The Leicester City title winning side from the 15/16 season. At 5000-1 it was frankly laughable to suggest that the team that had just survived relegation the season before would go on to lift the coveted trophy. Yet, this Foxes outfit was about to give the footballing world one of its greatest tales. With individual brilliance like Jamie Vardy’s record-breaking scoring streak, N'golo Kante’s immense presence in the middle of the park and the no-nonsense defensive stylings of Wes Morgan, this was a group that truly fought for each other and a side that most neutrals were desperate to win the league. Despite being the weakest team to win the premier league this decade, their story will undoubtedly be the one that takes on legendary status. Ultimately though, one team has had the greatest effect on this country. England’s squad for the 2018 FIFA World
Cup made it to the semi-final of a major tournament for the first time in 22 years. Before the competition began, the mood of the country was glum and divided. The coming World Cup was just seen as another avenue for the country to embarrass itself with pundits spouting the ‘same old England’ cliché before a ball was even kicked. It looked as if they were right when England were tied 1-1 with Tunisia in the dying embers of their group opener. Step up England’s new captain Harry Kane to slot home the winner. This was new; England weren’t meant to get last minute winners. Confidence began to grow with the demolition of Panama and progression onto the next round. The round of 16 saw England play a fiery Colombia only to concede a last-minute equaliser, this perhaps seemed like the end of the road as penalties once again came to ruin England’s party. Yet, in what felt like a dream like sequence of events, this new-look England side took their penalties with selfassurance while Jordan Pickford stood tall in goal, they had done it. The quarter-final was an altogether simpler affair with England progressing to their semi-final against Croatia, which they would unfortunately lose.
Despite coming away empty handed this squad had an important, yet quite unquantifiable effect on this country. The side often previously associated with, well, disappointment, was now fielding a young, brave and diverse line-up. A team that truly represented and spoke to a new generation of England fans who before, would have felt excluded.
The squad had an important yet unquantifiable effect on the country For that month, packed beer gardens and pubs overflowed into the streets with jubilation, a unifying atmosphere that was so infectious even non-football fans were being swept up. That team provided a desperately needed moment of shared euphoria, a respite from Brexit infused divisions and a reason to feel together. ‘That’ free kick on 11 July at 19:05 will live long in the memory of football fans up and down this country, as well as all others who witnessed it. Even though football hadn’t come home that summer, it didn’t really matter anymore and for that reason they were the team of the decade. Image: Антон Зайцев (Wikimedia)
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Where are they now? Alumni edition Josh Brown Sport Editor
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HE University has played host to a whole range of sporting talent since 2010. Exeposé Sport highlights some of the most notable athletes to grace the University's sporting pitches since 2010. First and foremost, it would be impossible to start with anyone other than Lagi Tuima. The former sports scholar had already scored her first international try by the time she played her last game for EUWRFC, which proved to be at Twickenham as her side claimed BUCS Gold. Tuima herself now plays for England and Harlequins having earned herself a central contract for the current season, and anyone fortunate enough to have watched her play rugby will understand why. Tom Abell, formerly of the University and EUMCC, now captains county side Somerset CCC who narrowly missed out on winning the County Championship in the summer. Abell made his first-class debut while still at the University, and graduated in 2015 having led EUMCC to the final of the BUCS outdoor championships and the indoor league title.
Former EUWRFC star Lagi Tuima has a central contract with England Sam Skinner - another product of the excellent rugby scheme run by the AU - captained EURFC to BUCS Gold at Twickenham in 2016, before establishing himself as a mainstay in the Exeter Chiefs side since graduating. Skinner has since made his international bow, representing Scotland for the first time in October 2018 before featuring in the Six Nations this year. He was only ruled out of the 2019 Rugby World Cup due to a hamstring injury sustained in the warm-up fixtures. Joining Skinner in the notable list of EURFC alumni is Henry Slade - predating Skinner's inaugural appearance, Slade made his Premiership debut back in 2013, and was part of the Chiefs side that were victorious at Twickenham in 2017 as they won the Premiership. His England debut came in 2014. Welsh netball player Clare Jones - currently still at Exeter to complete a PhD - represented Wales as a Wing Defence for the first time in 2016, but has since been selected - alongside fellow current EUNC players Christina Shaw and Carys Llewellyn Jones. Exeter's competitive sporting scene extends beyond the university, with the likes of Ethan Ampadu also moving on to Chelsea and RB Leipzig. The Welshman has received his first international cap this decade as well as lifting the Europa League title.
Sport
2 DEC 2019 | EXEPOSÉ
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SPORT EDITORS:
Mo-victory
Josh Brown Nick Powell
EUMBC record a 79-71 victory over Plymouth in the Mo-Varsity fixture
Image: Rory Selvey
Men’s Basketball Exeter 1s.....................................79 Plymouth 1s................................71 Josh Brown Sport Editor
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XETER University Men’s Basketball turned on the style in their first ever varsity fixture as they overcame a strong Plymouth side by eight clear points inside Exeter College’s sports hall. The event attracted over 400 spectators who were royally entertained by a superb display from the home side, in a performance that was described afterwards by Elliot Murray as “absolutely fantastic.” Exeter started with an electric energy and were ahead within 20 seconds, with Murray scoring the first two points after
Exeter won the tip-off. Frenchman Tristan Vivier would add the second score for the men in white after superb strength from Hubert Bozcar – the ‘beast from the east’ proving too strong for the Plymouth defence, and he found a pass for Vivier to score. Plymouth replied through Patrick Carrey, Achilleas and then the game’s first three pointer from Carrey again to surge into a 7-6 lead, but the Plymouth attack and Achilleas in particular were wasteful with their shooting and would ultimately pay for it. Bozcar and Emmanuel Nwachukwu would prove the main threats – the former with his pure strength from close range and the latter with his technical ability and speed – to lead Exeter into a narrow, but deserved, 16-15 lead at the end of the first quarter.
The visitors would respond immediately after the short interval, with Jakob Weekes adding an impressive three points soon after to give Plymouth a 20-16 lead, but the Exeter attack was irresistible with Nwachukwu and Aaron Goh both scoring important three-pointers to help the home side recover from their slow start to the quarter. The visitors responded strongly, however, and began to penetrate the zonal defence utilised by Exeter, with Dominik Wyka showing his prowess from range to add important scores for the men in blue. At half-time, Exeter trailed 37-41. The second half of the game was a case of Plymouth being wasteful where Exeter were clinical. Murray’s athleticism combined with the skill of Goh, Jeff Chan and Theo Spira gave Exeter a foothold
that they ultimately capitalised on. Murray added several scores before the play of the game from Goh – selling a superb dummy to the nearest Plymouth player before scoring – gave Exeter a commanding lead. The home side would enter the last quarter with a four-point lead, at 59-55.
We had a great intensity and that stems from the fans EMMANUEL NWACHUKWU
It wasn’t all plain sailing – Exeter’s Ryan Turner missed two free throws at the start of the last quarter that would have put the game to bed – and Plymouth were soon right back in the game, with Achilleas adding a two-pointer with eight minutes
to play. The home side’s dominance with rebounds and shooting accuracy would eventually take the pressure off – Bozcar was utterly dominant in the attacking zones – before Vivier would put the game to bed with two scores either side of Nwachukwu’s two pointer, to give Exeter a 7163 lead going into the final stages. Exeter dominated what was left of the game, and Bozcar, Povoas and Nwachukwu added points in the closing stages of the game to cap off a brilliant showing. EXETER: Wang, Chan, Spira, Povoas, Vivier, Plowman, Nwachukwu, Turner, Goh, Bozcar, Murray, Lawrence. PLYMOUTH: Whittle, Weekes, Wyka, Hatziplis, Corbin, Turner, Carrey, Nanos, Olowu, Achilleas, Gonzalez, Reid.
For live scores and in-depth reports, follow us on Twitter @exeposesport CONTINUED ON PAGE 31