InQuire 8.2

InQuire visit our website at - www.inquirelive.co.uk

Issue 8.2

are the olympics worth it? summerball extravaganza adventures with greenday

comment - page 6

iq entertainment - page 16

iq culture - page 19

1st June 2012

summer pimm’s cupcakes

iq food - page 14

ku supports equal marriage

Photography by Matt Gilley

Matt Gilley Newspaper News Editor BETWEEN 21st and 28th May, Kent Union held its first All Student Vote (ASV) on whether or not it should take a stance to support equal marriage – whereby homosexual couples are allowed to enter into civil marriages instead of civil partnerships.

The result, released exclusively to InQuire, is a resounding 73% of students voting ‘Yes’.

The vote came about when a student brought the proposal to the Your Rights democracy zone. After discussion, it was decided that it would be unfair to accept or reject the wider policy “within the room”, so the matter was put to an ASV. ASV’s require at least 100 Union members to participate, and if the motion is passed, then it becomes Union

policy for one year.

Matthew O’Riordan, President of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) society, welcomed the result: “I think it’s fantastic that the students here at UKC have chosen to take a stance on such an important issue and continue to fight for the equality and diversity that students have been campaigning for since Kent Union was founded”.

In order to best publicise the vote, a significant presence was given to the online campaign. The Union’s promotion of the vote was through email, with a mention in their regular newsletter and a news story on their website.

The LGBT society set up a ‘Yes’ group on Facebook and although most of the posts in the group were supportive, some disputed the Union’s right to take a firm position on the issue since its purpose is to represent “the diverse

nature of the student population”. To definitively support either side of the debate would be to “quash” the views of many students. Doug Hogg, of the Christian Union, says this may have worked to the advantage of “a handful of zealous but wholly unrepresentative individuals” who are now “erroneously able to say they represent the university body student opinion”.

Turnout was 456, or 2.3%, of the university’s students. Despite this seemingly low turnout, VP Welfare Colum McGuire said: “I’m really pleased with this, considering this was our first ASV under the new system and the quorum is only 100. I think it’s shown that students are really interested in this matter and took the opportunity to have their say.”

The LGBT society took some of their campaigning outside of the internet.

Katie, campaigning outside Blackwell’s, focused on the issue of equal marriage itself, saying that refusing homosexual couples the opportunity to marry amounted to making them “second class citizens”.

She referred to the Union previously supporting women’s rights as an example of it promoting equality. Katie presented equal marriage as a progressive policy that Universities should be supporting: “Universities are the voice of the country, we’re the tomorrow”.

McGuire concluded: “In the 60s, Kent Union campaigned against the Apartheid movement and since then have continued to work towards the rights of minority groups.

Students’ Unions should absolutely be speaking out and campaigning on human rights that affect students outside of the work they do in the classroom.”

2

News Editor’s Note

Hey, Welcome to the last issue of InQuire for this year. As you might be able to tell, we’ve made some changes to the look and feel of the paper and this is something that’ll continue in September as we add new features.

We hope you enjoy it, and if this isn’t enough for you then make sure to check out our website, www.InQuireLive.co.uk throughout the summer to keep in touch with your university.

In the meantime, we want to wish the old InQuire committee all the luck, love and success in the world as they move on to the real world. We’ll miss you guys!

Pamela.

2012/2013 Editorial contacts: Rex Ejimonyeabala Chairman chairman@inquiremedia.co.uk Pamela Head - Editor newspaper.editor@ inquiremedia.co.uk Chandni Makhecha - IQ Editor iq.editor@inquiremedia.co.uk Nina Collins - Website Editor website.editor@inquiremedia.co.uk Matt Gilley - News newspaper.news@ inquiremedia.co.uk Jamie Ovens - Comment newspaper.comment@ inquiremedia.co.uk Natalie Tipping - IQ Features newspaper.features@ inquiremedia.co.uk Harriet Cash - IQ Culture newspaper.culture@ inquiremedia.co.uk Chad Greggor IQ Entertainment newspaper.entertainment@inquiremedia. co.uk Alex Cassidy - Sports newspaper.sport@ inquiremedia.co.uk Perpetual Brade - Website News website.news@inquiremedia.co.uk Amelia Guttridge - Website Comment website.comment@ inquiremedia.co.uk Laura Ricchetti - Website IQ Features website.features@ inquiremedia.co.uk Alice Bryant - Website IQ Entertainment website.entertainment@ inquiremedia.co.uk George Hopkin- Website Sport website.sport@inquiremedia.co.uk

employment in kent ukc employability points scheme ends first year

Sara West RUNNING for the second year, the Employability Points scheme aims to pair up talented, hard-working students with successful businesses to help develop their skills and employability.

The scheme piloted last year, involving 30 companies and over 1,000 students applying for the positions available.

More than 2,000 students participated in the scheme this year, with a number of big companies offering prizes, such as the KM media group, Tesco, Kent County Council and the National Trust.

The rewards vary from vouchers and CV advice to internships and work placements. The idea is to help students improve their skills and increase their employability to give them a better chance in the highly competitive graduate job market.

The Employability Points scheme is aimed at students with self-motivation and initiative, who have already begun to get ahead of the crowd of graduates

by joining societies, volunteering and holding part-time employment outside of their degree. ‘Employability points’ are assigned for each extra-curricular activity, which are totalled up and used to match the students with the rewards.

Each student has a choice of three rewards and an opportunity to write a motivation letter stating why they’d like the reward. Each reward is open to all and there is lots of variety; activities range from working in a newsroom to learning how a hotel operates.

The University’s Business Engagement Manager, Stephanie Barwick, praised the way the scheme benefits both business and student: “Our Employability Points Scheme is innovative in that it bridges the gap between offering students a way to enhance their own employability and providing employers with easy access to some of our most outstanding students.”

The awards ceremony for the first year will take place on 7th June at the University. The Employability Points Scheme will continue next year.

£40 million unemployment for businesses falls in Kent Josh Kingston FIGURES released on 16th May show that unemployment in Kent has dropped by over 1,000. The Office for National Statistics figures for April put unemployment across the county at 37,062 (or roughly 4% of the workforce); a fall of 1,072.

Unemployment is defined as the amount of people of working age who are out of work, actively seeking a job and are available for work within two weeks.

Although changes in unemployment lag behind other economic changes (because in tough climates, businesses often delay laying people off) they are seen as a major indicator of the health of the economy.

Canterbury saw a fall of 59, to 2,524, while the Medway total fell 131, to 7,410.

All other individual areas of Kent also saw drops.

Nationally, unemployment fell by 45,000 to 2.63 million, or 8.2% of the national workforce. Youth unemployment also declined by 17,000 in the three months leading up to March, falling to 1.02mm.

Employment Minister Chris Grayling heralded the drop as “a step in the right direction”.

Pamela Head Newspaper Editor A new scheme launched by Kent County Council allows businesses in Canterbury to apply for interest-free loans in order to increase job opportunities and grow their companies, after a £40 million government-backed scheme was given the go ahead.

Expansion East Kent seeks to create 5,000 extra jobs in Thanet, Dover, Shepway and Canterbury. £35mm will be invested in loans directly available to businesses. The remaining £5mm will be dedicated to improving rail transport times.

Paul Carter, leader of Kent County Council, said: “Expansion East Kent will provide financial support to firms as interest free loans. This intelligent use of funding means we can recycle the money to provide vital business support on an on-going basis, benefitting local firms and creating local jobs for years to come.

Expansion East Kent is being delivered

by Kent County Council. We will bear the administration costs, which means it will be run at zero cost to business.”

Only time will tell what effect this new cash injection will have on the businesses in Canterbury and surrounding areas.

News 3

student gang leader convicted Jonjo Brady A student and leader of a taser gang from the University of Kent has been charged for his part in the brutal robbery of three victims and with the Possession and Use of a Prohibited Weapon.

Richie Mansende, 20, who lived in university accommodation whilst studying electrical engineering, devised a scheme to rob motorists by luring them into Canterbury with offers of cut-price cars.

Originally from Catford, London, Mansende has been sentenced to four years in a young offenders’ institution.

The court heard that he advertised offers on the website Gumtree at a price significantly below market value, and urged buyers to bring cash. Those who showed interest would be invited to come to Canterbury to collect the car and bring the money. Then Mansende and two others would proceed to take them to remote areas of the city with the intention of attacking and robbing the victims.

Wayne Vidler, the first of the gang’s victims, was coaxed into the city with the interest of buying a car for his girlfriend.

Mansende met Vidler and accompanied him down to the railway station to where the car was allegedly parked.

As they came to a rail bridge, Vidler became aware that there were two other

men following them. One of these men jumped onto his back and stunned him.

He was then kicked in the head, stunned for a second time in the neck and robbed of a small amount of cash and his mobile phone.

Two other victims, Mohammed Sameem and Mohammed Uvial, were lured to Canterbury on the pretence of buying a car with the agreed price of £1,000. Mansende took them on a short car ride to a secluded area where the other two gang members were waiting, one of whom was armed with a wheel brace. The two victims were threatened and robbed of their cash, Uvial’s wallet and an iPhone.

The stun gun was later found by the police hidden under Mansende’s bed in his student accommodation.

Tasers are illegal in the United Kingdom under the Firearms Act 1968, the same act that prohibits possession of weapons like rocket launchers and mortars.

Since 2008, specially trained police officers have been allowed to use the weapons, but only when facing possible violence, and if they themselves, the public or the subject are in danger.

Two other University students were also charged with robbery. Abdul Bangura, 20, from Sydenham, London, was acquitted and Michael Ogolo, 20, from Deptford, had his case dropped by the Crown Prosecution Service.

The student gang used a stun gun like this one to rob their victims.

university to award airport up in the air honorary degrees Chad Greggor Newspaper Entertainment Editor

Alison Wonderland THE University of Kent has announced the 12 people who will be receiving an honorary degree in July. Amongst the recipients are Nobel Prize-winning Sir Paul Nurse, and Jools Holland, the musician and broadcaster. Aside from Nurse, all those being awarded have a connection to Kent, having lived, worked or been educated here.

Potential recipients are judged on a number of criteria. The university seeks to reflect a range of disciplines, recognise diversity and honour distinguished individuals. The Honorary Degrees Committee also focuses on those with a “direct or indirect” association with the university, and who reflect important areas of university policy, such as research excellence and Europe.

Others receiving honorary degrees are: Brian Philp, an archaeologist who has worked on over 700 projects in Kent; UKC graduate Rebecca Lenkiewicz, the first female playwright to have one of her plays performed in the Olivier Theatre; and comedy writer John Lloyd, educated

at the King’s School Canterbury, who has, among other programmes, helped to create Blackadder, Spitting Image and The News Quiz.

Jools Holland is among the recipients.

BORIS Johnson, after his re-election as the Mayor of London, has renewed his interest in plans to build an airport on the Thames Estuary.

Dubbed Boris Island, the plan has been labelled as a typical Boris eccentricity, although proposals to build an airport on the Thames Estuary stretch as far back as 1943.

The Deputy Leader of Kent County Council, Alex King, said: “We are still against the building of a new airport in Kent or Medway. Building a new airport on land or sea in the Thames Estuary will cause significant environmental problems, and the case has not been proven that this is the correct solution to the issue”.

King has “written to David Cameron reminding him that in October 2010 he effectively said the Government had no plans to build an airport in the Thames Estuary”.

An open meeting held at the Thamesview School in Gravesend saw members of the public attending to discuss the Estuary Airport plans.

Opinions remain varied amongst the

residents of Kent.

The News Shopper states that “while some families in Essex support the idea, residents in North Kent remain dead against it”, while comments on KentOnline express approval at “having an airport nearby”, many agreeing that “Thames Estuary Airport… is the best plan for Kent, London and the UK”.

Meanwhile, more fuel is being added to the debate around the proposal. Issues such as the risk of congestion in areas around the estuary, environmental issues such as pollution and danger to native birds, and the question of affordability, are being pitted against benefits such as the creation of jobs, convenience, and a long-term solution to an ever growing demand on Heathrow Airport.

Kent County Council’s position on the proposal remains clear, and Kent MPs recently met with David Cameron to discuss the issue. King acknowledges that people “may welcome it because of the jobs but there are wider issues than that. You have to have a balance between introducing jobs to an area and spoiling the quality of life for everybody else”.

The government is expected to announce a consultation on the plans soon.

4

News

view from westminster greek election troubles

Nathan Sparkes

THIS week, two events caused a stir in Westminster, and neither of them were the death of a disco pioneer.

Firstly, al-Megrahi finally died. That may sound insensitive, but his death has been a long time coming.

Al-Megrahi was convicted in Scotland for being solely responsible for a terrorist attack in the 80s involving a plane crashing over the town of Lockerbie, killing 270. The Scottish government, as might be expected, had him locked up. Just a few years ago though, doctors assured the Scottish authorities that al-Megrahi was so ill with cancer that he'd be dead within six months, so they went ahead and released him for compassionate reasons to allow him to spend his last few months with his family.

The English were not happy - the government didn’t comment, but the opposition of the time, the Tories, and the press reacted negatively to the release. Unfortunately for the Scots, however, al-Megrahi went on, quite against doctor’s orders, to live for several years as the Scottish Government became increasingly embarrassed and the English increasingly irate.

Secondly, we had this week the publication of the TaxPayers’ Alliance and Institute of Directors which argued for a new flat tax rate of 30% and the abolition of inheritance and other wealth taxes.

Now, what should be remembered about the TaxPayers’ Alliance is that they’re not so much an alliance of people who pay tax (i.e. everyone), but rather, an alliance of people who hate tax. They’re the TaxHaters’ Alliance.

By proxy, this of course also means that they hate all the stuff taxes are spent on - hospitals, policemen and policewomen, schools and universities.

Basically all the stuff that’s free.

So the FreeHaters’ Alliance, which is considered close to the Conservatives in government, has argued for a whole new tax structure in the name of enterprise and aspiration. The

argument runs that, by setting one rate of tax, earning a higher salary will no longer be disincentivised by the prospect of falling into a higher tax band. The report claims that this will simplify the tax system and make it fairer. Needless to say, the Alliance has had some trouble getting people on board. Left-wingers argue that the tax system is as it is because there is so much inequality already, and putting everyone into the same bracket will only increase that. By lowering the taxes of the wealthy, as these proposals would do, the government won’t be able to reduce the deficit without even deeper and even longer term cuts to public services.

Either way, the report will test the resolve of David Cameron, as he knows that many within his party will applaud the document’s suggestions, but its arguments are almost certainly too far to the right for him to take up.

How he continues to navigate the tensions between the right of his own party and the left of the Liberal Democrats will be interesting to watch, as both sides continue to exert pressure on the Prime Minister.

Tom Hagues

A NOTE FROM THE CHAIRMAN

Rex Ejimonyeabala

AS we near the end of the year, and exam fever starts to ease away along with our enthusiasm for education in general, all of us can look back on this academic year and hopefully say we have enjoyed the experience.

In just nine months, InQuire has provided you with coverage from the former Foreign Secretary David Miliband, to sporting heroine Kelly Holmes, whilst praising the achievements of our own students and

commemorating the poignant death of Bihari Payagala.

Although this is our last issue of the current academic year, InQuire will return in September with stories that matter by students, for students and about students.

As you enjoy the sun and this issue of InQuire, be sure to enter the competition and spot the new and exciting changes we have made to the layout for a chance to win excellent prizes.

Until September, enjoy the Summer!

GREECE’S election on 6th May left the nation in political turmoil and without a government.

The country’s party leaders entered talks to try and come to an agreement soon after, but these proved to be as inconclusive as the election. The party leaders ended the talks and emerged only to criticise each other, displaying rampant political conflict.

Antonis Samaras, leader of centre-right New Democracy, attacked the left-wing parties, calling them “irresponsible and arrogant”. The leader of the centre-left party Pasok, Evangelos Venizelos, was accused by Syriza’s (a coalition of more radical left-wing groups) party leader, Alexis Tsipras, of trying to pressure his party into a coalition with Samaras and Venizelos. The lack of consensus prevented any progress toward a coalition government, so a second election is to be held next month.

Some believe that Greece’s second election may also be inconclusive, and the country will again be without a stable government. Others think that the antibailout parties who enjoyed a rise in popularity for the first election may well win the second one.

It is not impossible for left-wing party, Syriza, who won the second largest amount of votes with 16.78%, to win the election and implement its antibailout promises, which include freezing payments to creditors and renegotiating measures included in Greece's latest

€130bn (£110bn) rescue package.

These policies would hinder the country’s chances of receiving further financial aid. Without the backing of the IMF or the EU, the country may be forced into returning to the Drachma, Greece’s currency before the Euro. The general opinion of the public is against the idea of exiting the single Euro currency.

Despite the country’s lack of leadership, it must still carry out spending cuts next month, which the former government committed to in order to receive the previously mentioned €130bn bailout bundle.

Greece’s relationship with the rest of the Eurozone faces radical change.

Lashing out against Angela Merkel, Konstantinos Mihalos, President of the Greek Chamber of Commerce, believes that Germany “has to realise that these [austerity] measures are not leading anywhere” and that the economy needs “stimulating growth” and “a renegotiation of certain parts of the bailout deal”.

Should an anti-austerity government come to power, Greece will undoubtedly follow the lead of the new French President, François Hollande, who believes in pro-growth. This attitude will appeal to many Greek people and provide a welcome respite from the constant austerity measures.

Until a government is formed, the country must delicately pick its way through a crisis that it cannot allow to get out of control – for its own sake, and for the rest of the Eurozone.

News 5

sitting down with katie and hanna InQuire follows Katie Kaemmnitz and Hanna Lawrence, two University of Kent students hiking up Mount Kilimanjaro in September in a bid to raise money for the Meningitis Research Foundation. On a sunny Sunday evening, InQuire Chairman, Rex Ejimonyeabala, caught up with the duo to talk training, campaigning and fundraising.

COULD you begin by telling us the purpose of your expedition to Africa’s highest peak?

Hanna: It’s a University of Kent project with RAG that will allow us to visit Kenya in September.

Katie: We wanted to do something different for our final year and this is something we’ve always wanted to do.

Now is our best opportunity and we can do it for a really good charity in the Meningitis Research Foundation.

What is it exactly that the MRF strive to do?

Katie: Their main goal is to find a cure for meningitis and help prevent the disease before it is able to spread.

Hanna: The foundation helps survivors of the disease because it is a really horrible illness to go through.

They provide a service to aide sufferers and their families. Some people lose limbs…

Katie: It’s much more common than we thought and it’s surprising how many people we’ve been able to meet through the process. We knew then that we were actually making a difference.

How many people in the UK suffer from this disease?

Hanna: Figures aren’t normally released, but research shows that there are approximately 2,500 cases every year meaning 1 in 3 people for every 100,000 of the population will get meningitis. That is a huge amount.

You can carry the bacteria in the back of your throat and you wouldn’t even know it.

Katie: The symptoms are very similar to a common cold and the only thing that stands out is the rash, so if you didn’t get the rash – which isn’t always the case – you wouldn’t even know that you had it. Especially because it progresses very quickly.

How many University of Kent students will be participating with you on the hike and how did you get them to do so?

Hanna: There are about seven. There are two different charities, Meningitis Research Foundation and then Practical Action has a lot more people participating - but that is an African charity.

Katie: We decided to go with MRF because it’s a charity that is a lot closer

to home.

Hanna: It’s surprising because I didn’t realise that one of my best friends’ dad lost his brother to meningitis. You don’t really realise how many people have coped with this until you get involved with something like this.

We did a Zumba-thon charity event a few weeks ago and one of the ladies that came gave us £50 because her son had it as a child. You really don’t realise how many people have been affected by it.

Which age groups are most vulnerable to the disease?

Hanna: Children are most likely to catch it, with under 18’s having the most sufferers, but specifically babies because their immune system is not able to react to it.

Katie: It can also spread quite rapidly in an environment like a university where a lot of people are close together.

Hanna: They say the symptoms are very similar to having a hangover so you wouldn’t really know, that’s why it’s important to make students aware!

How have the both of you been promoting your expedition and the cause?

Katie: We have been keeping everyone informed on a Facebook group called ‘Just The Two of Us, We Can Make It If We Try....’ and we basically keep people up to date on all our events.

For each individual one, we make a separate event and post it on our page.

Hanna: Also a lot of communicating with our friends and family, posters, going to local businesses to ask whether they can help us, that sort of thing.

What would you like to say to the University of Kent students, to try and encourage them to help raise money for your hike?

Katie: We would appreciate any support we can get really, we would like to raise £5,000 and we are very close to the half way mark.

Hanna: Even the smallest donations make a difference. For example, when we did some charity collections in London, people were only giving us 50 pence but it all makes a difference.

It really does add up because £1 buys 150 symptom cards, which tells people what the symptoms are.

Obviously this is not an everyday charity fundraiser, so how have

Left to Right: Rex with Hanna and Katie in the Student Activities Center. you ladies been training for the hike and the challenges it’ll pose?

Katie: Well, we joined the gym for the first time…ever, but we’re going to Wales in a few weeks…

Hanna: I’ve got family there as well, so we are using the opportunity to do a lot of climbing. We’re going to do the Welsh 2000 and Snowdon with the other girls also doing the hike.

We’ll also do a weekly walk to build up our stamina. When we were doing the London Marathon for the London collection, I ended up doing 10 miles a day. It doesn’t need to be too much, just little bits of walking. We’re walking to the top and the peak is at 5,000 metres.

Katie: On the fourth day of our climb, we’ll be walking for 15 hours because it’s the summit day. We’re woken up at 10pm at night so that we can walk and see the sunrise.

What aspects did you find difficult when fundraising, and how do you think this experience is going to help you as students and in later life?

Katie: I think it was fun that we were able to do different events. We got out there and started doing different things that we wouldn’t normally have done, such as pop quizzes and Zumba-thon’s (it’s an exercise dance routine).

Hanna: I think we’ve learned a lot about ourselves through the process.

It’s surprisingly difficult to actually plan and execute an event well, but we’ve managed to do it quite successfully a few times now. We wanted to do

another Zumba-thon in Canterbury but people weren’t so keen on the idea.

Katie: It was quite close to the end of term so people had deadlines. A lot of people had commitments but at home people were really up for it and jumped on it straight away.

How else can people contact you if they want to donate money?

Hanna: We’ve actually got a Just Giving page so you can donate online.

But we’re more than happy to be contacted personally via our e-mails if people wanted to know more.

Katie: If anybody wanted to know more about an event that we’re doing, it’ll be great for them to come along and contact me on kek3@kent.ac.uk and Hanna’s is hll22@kent.ac.uk.

For contact information, including getting in touch with Katie and Hanna, use the emails provided above. For information on their Facebook page or to donate online visit: www.justgiving.com/hanna-lawrencekatie-kaemmnitz.

For more information on getting involved with Student Adventures, visit their website at www.studentadventures.co.uk

6

Comment

it’s the taking part that counts Joel Goodman

WITH a short amount of time to go until the blaze takes hold signifying the start of the Olympic games, the amount of disdain for the events is overwhelming, at least for someone like me who not only looks forward to them, but actively celebrates their existence.

“It’s expensive and we are in the middle of a double-dip recession!” some will say; “It’s going to inconvenience hardworking Londoners who don’t care!” others will chime in with. These are oftheard arguments that, while certainly hold to reason, don’t quite gel with the meaning of the events anyhow.

In my mind, the Olympics represent so much more than the sporting achievement of humanity. The Beijing games’ opening was viewed by over one billion people over the world. I don’t believe that the only reason they watched was for fireworks, as impressive as the slightly CG-enhanced showcase was, but that it celebrated the unity of the world.

Okay, so that might sound a little bit soppy, but there’s a charm about this.

When Usain Bolt cruised to claim the Gold in the Men’s 100m final, I did not think of Jamaica’s superiority over the world in running fast, rather “Holy crap, a human just ran that quickly!” Also, that he should have had to run it again, but not slowing down at the end and seeing if he could break 9.5s, although that one may just be me.

You can use the economic climate as an

excuse any time as well. “Oh, we’re in a recession, can’t afford that.” We could afford (apparently) the Royal Wedding last year, as well as the Queen’s Jubilee now, but because it’s a sporting event, nope? What if the economy is doing well? “We’re doing well because we don’t have expenditure on these sort of happenings.” That’s a bit lame though, isn’t it? I’m not saying it’s full-proof, or that the Olympics can make back the money spent or that all the investments will be completely successful, but there must be a point of acceptable loss. Of course if you get through that issue, then you have to contend with pessimism surrounding inconvenience.

My brazen response? A few months of

inconvenience in your entire life? That’s what you’re complaining about? Jeez, when did London become the home of buzz-killers? We voted in Boris Johnson, didn’t we? Someone’s clearly having a laugh!

Politics and economy aside, they completely miss the point. I don’t want to dismiss people who have no interest in sports either, because fair enough, not everyone cares about how fast someone can run, or if they can successfully fulfil that gymnastic routine. I have no sufficient argument for you, nor do I hold any disappointment about that fact.

What I’m ultimately getting at, is that notion of the “Olympic Spirit”. It seems to have been completely forgotten about

in the sea of general not-caring, notenjoying, not…funning? Oh, right, is fun in a double-dip recession as well?

Think at least of the morale boost for the people who do want to see this. “Our country, even after its disputes, rallied behind it!” Huzzah! If we can celebrate the Queen’s Jubilee, when many people are apathetic to the royal family, I’m sure there’s enough people to justify the Olympics.

It just strikes me as a little bit bizarre that the greatest sporting event in the world, hopefully agreeing with me here that that isn’t an exaggeration, is met with such regret. To me, it just screams of missing the point entirely. Where did the idea of the “Olympic Spirit” come from if it wasn’t relevant in some way, if it didn’t actually exist at some point?

The United Kingdom, and Londoners by extension, need to take away the grey filter of boredom that appeared sometime between the run-up to winning the Olympic campaign and some point last year it magically emerged. So it costs some money?

I’d rather be in debt because of hosting this then because of a coin flip on where my bank-saved money is going to go on the roulette table. I’d rather be on a stuffy Northern Line underground tube because of this than because of yet another signal failure forcing cramped carriages.

The Olympics is something many of us can, should and have got behind. There’s no need to ruin this for us.

do you know what isn’t funny? sexism Alice Bryant Website Entertainment Editor

AT the end of a comedy gig, most (proficient) female performers will be confronted with something akin to “Oh hi! I really enjoyed your performance; most women I don’t find funny, but you actually made me laugh” or something to that effect.

At this point, the jaded comedienne will sigh, force a smile, and say “thanks”.

Would it not have been enough to say “You were great”? Apparently not. The media is constantly congratulating women for acting as some sort of comedic pioneer, bravely journeying into a male dominated industry and, well, actually succeeding. As if it’s some sort of massive achievement that a woman (yes! an actual woman) could ever be funny. It’s a self-perpetuating myth that needs to be eradicated.

Obviously, not ALL women are funny.

Not ALL men are funny. There is not one particular gender that makes me laugh more, although admittedly I have not conducted a scientific study on the ratio of male:female giggles that I receive on

a daily basis. The thing that terrifies me is that some people have, which demonstrates to me that this whole debate (that should never have existed in the first place) has been taken way too far.

As Carol Hartsell of The Huffington Post wrote, it’s like saying: ‘Hey, ladies, you think you’re funny? Science says you’re right. You’re welcome!’

Women don’t need to have their sense of humour validated. It should be obvious to everyone that some people are funny and some people aren’t; some people have charisma, and some people are lacking; some people have an irrational fear of Moomins (e.g. my friend Grace) and some people still occasionally play with a fingerboard at the age of 26 (e.g. my brother). Everyone is different; gender is irrelevant to most things. So why do we place such emphasis on it when we’re talking about what makes us laugh?

If I had to think about it, and I have, I would say that what makes me giggle is largely based on personality traits, social skills, the type of language used, timing, and yes, to an extent, appearance. It’s

never been about the sort of genitals anybody possessed (although, saying that, the male anatomy is pretty hilarious) – and that should never enter into the equation.

Whenever a new female comedy troupe/stand-up emerges, the media present the success in question as a triumph in some sort of unspoken battle of the sexes, rather than focusing on their actual talent, their comic prowess, or what their material actually entails.

We’re consistently taught to see them as female comedians. Not just comedians.

And women deserve better than that; this isn’t the 70s.

There are evidently a great deal of obstacles that women face in the standup industry, and I am in no way arguing that these should be overlooked or ignored. Any form of prejudice doesn’t disappear immediately, and for some peculiar reason, it’s lingering in comedy (oh, and politics). Maybe if we started promoting success resulting from talent as an achievement in itself, things would start to change. Maybe if journalists stopped harping on about the difficulties that women face in the industry, more

women would be encouraged to actually go for it; to stand up and make a difference.

Comment 7

exam board errors make a-levels pointless Jennifer Laishley STUDENTS may have missed out on university places, following basic mistakes in marking.

David Leitch, Chief Examiner for OCR, carried out an investigation and found over 100 papers had errors in them.

Leitch assigned a team to deal with the matter, but was forced by his managers to stop the investigation. Rather admirably, Leitch took it upon himself to inform 30 schools of the clerical errors in the marking of scripts resulting in incorrect results. OCR responded by suspending him, but are they the only exam board letting students and teachers down?

In 2009, Edexcel had problems with students feeling disappointed with their results. One of the most common complaints came from drama students across the country, left frustrated by their marks. In the case of one school, only two students achieved B grades whilst the rest of the year failed. Not being alone in their disappointment, these students wrote a letter to Gordon

Brown and are still awaiting a reply from the former Prime Minister.

A Channel 4 investigation suggested that examiners were under time constraints with A-level examinations and were forced to mark around eight papers per hour, giving only ten minutes per script. Surely after weeks of hard work and revision, students deserve to have a little more time spent on marking their papers?

Mathematical errors in calculating scores were common in the papers investigated by David Leitch’s team, and can cause students to narrowly miss out on achieving grades. There were also errors made in giving students too many marks. Could bad marking lead some students to miss out on the experience of university?

Could others could have taken the place of someone who potentially deserved it more?

Clearly, there is something wrong with the regulation processes used by exam boards. Poor marking makes examinations unfair and not a true measure of a pupil’s ability. Universities

should not rely too heavily upon A-level results when examining candidates and their suitability for university; they should take into account their wider achievements as an individual.

With numerous exam boards in the UK and students sitting different tests, it is difficult to make comparisons between exam boards, as some are well known for being tougher on marking than others.

Differences also arise over the resit process in A-levels, which has not only left students unprepared for university, but unfairly disadvantages pupils from poorer schools.

In most of the poorer state schools the school cannot afford to fund resits, and it is up to the students themselves to find between £23 and £60 per paper. Many pupils in state schools also receive extra tutoring to pass examinations, further illuminating the comparisons. Are exam board grades really a true reflection of our ability, or of the standard of education that we can afford? Should the obvious injustices of the education system really impact whether a student

gets a place at university?

Perhaps more universities should start setting entrance examinations to examine students’ abilities.

So, do still have a place in our education system? Exam culture has gone too far and the number of exams sat by some students leaves pupils no time to acquire the skills necessary to succeed at university.

is there still a left- like it or not, you’re wing bias to the bbc? probably a feminist Chris Peel THE conduct of the BBC is an endless source of debate. Whether it’s about the huge cost of running the provider, or about the need for stations such as BBC 3, it continually provides something to argue about.

Recently, Boris Johnson made comments that have thrown into question the biased nature of the broadcaster, claiming that the director general should be replaced with a Tory.

Admittedly, it is Boris we’re talking about here; the same person who suggested we build an airport in the Thames Estuary, but it isn’t the first time that the BBC has been accused of having a left-wing bias and it’s certainly a question worth considering.

Some of the most vocal critics of the BBC, such as Rupert Murdoch, simply have no right to protest. Their criticisms can almost certainly be identified as attempts to put the BBC down for their own commercial gain as well as their own ideological reasons. And even if it wasn’t for these reasons, on what grounds can Murdoch really claim the BBC is unbiased?

Yet the BBC has to strive to be as impartial as possible because it is paid for by taxpayers’ money and, as an unarguable enforcer of morals and values, should represent diverse views.

It is perhaps inevitable that its political

stance will lean to one side or the other at a given point, such as in wartime or when human rights are concerned, and although it does seem to be more left wing sometimes, the BBC also airs programmes with a right-wing bias, such as the daytime show Saints or Scoundrels.

So is the answer to a left-wing bias really installing a director general who is a Tory? Surely that’s admitting that the director influences the journalists’ views and work.

It’s also perfectly possible that this notion of being completely unbiased is just a dream, as suggested by James MacIntyre in the Guardian, and is actually creating a toxic environment that is damaging in itself. He argues that the BBC “is far too vast, multi-layered and chaotic to be coherently ‘biased’ in any direction,” and this is something that I’m inclined to agree with.

With programmes like Question Time and Newsnight, in which panellists are evenly spread out between the parties, it becomes practically impossible for a political bias to be maintained.

“Impartiality”, claims current director general Mark Thompson, is “going up and up the agenda”, and so in an organisation as huge as the BBC - one of the biggest employers of journalists in the world - the pool of divergent perspectives can remain balanced, if not entirely without predilection.

Dan Singh A while ago, I went to a seminar on feminism. The first question the seminar leader asked, naturally, was: Who in the room identified themselves as a feminist? Three people put their hands up, all male. The girls in the room, who outnumbered the guys, remained still.

I thought, “All right, then. Make me a sandwich.” Reasons given for their nonidentification included that they liked to dress up and wear make-up, which feminists don’t do.

I’d already had a similar conversation with a flatmate. He didn’t consider himself a feminist because feminists want more rights than men.

The faulty impressions on display in these instances are the result of our tendency to identify a group solely with its most extreme elements. Certainly, the kind of radical feminist the word evokes for many people does exist. I stumbled upon a blog recently where the most recent entry at the time suggested that pregnant women who post their ultrasound images on Facebook are guilty of insensitivity towards women who have had or need an abortion.

Further, they are a detriment to the cause of women’s reproductive rights because they are enforcing the notion of a foetus’s personhood.

These feminists are only a small part of the picture. They’re the relative that

drinks too much at parties and says awkward things: no problem when it’s just family around, but in mixed company it becomes embarrassing.

We all know that there is a disparity in the ways men and women are treated, and that this applies to every aspect of life.

This is where we are in the UK at the moment on some of the key issues:The average weekly earnings of men in full-time employment, making less than £100 per hour, is estimated at £589.

For women, it’s £470.

One in four women will be a victim of domestic violence in their lifetime, many on multiple occasions. On average, two women a week are killed by a current or former partner.

Nearly a third of girls aged between 12-18, compared with 16% of boys, are subjected to some form of sexual abuse by a family member. The figures are almost identical in relation to violence perpetrated by a sexual partner.

Some progress has been made in all of these areas, but in recent years, with ‘feminist’ becoming a dirty word and less attention being given to the treatment of women, that progress has slowed.

If you believe in equal social, economic and civil conditions for women, in their ownership of their own bodies and reproductive systems, and in their right to live without fear of violence, you’re a feminist. Own it.

8

Editorial Special

english: the language of the world?

The first thing that I heard from the back of the bus was the loud

Daniela Prataviera moan, followed by the incredibly loud

Newspaper Editor muttering of “Jesus Christ, this is going

2011/2012 to take forever... Why not learn bloody English before bothering to come over?”

As awkward as the situation was- made much worse by the fact that the group weren’t entirely sure where they wanted THE woman bustled her way to to get off and had to ask the bus driver the front of the bus queue. She was to describe the route, I couldn’t help loaded with a variety of plastic bags, all stretching under the weight of a fruitful day of shopping. So much so that, in order to reach into her handbag to retrieve her purse, her arm was forced to bend behind her in some kind of unnatural half-nelson. As she shoved towards the back of the bus, her face said it all: f*ck these bags.

She sat quietly watching the rest of the queue pile on pretty much in silence, only the odd muttering of “Single to Hales Place” and the rattle of change.

It was then that he arrived. I’d noticed him somewhere in the queue behind me as I’d shuffled forward.

There was nothing particularly stand out about him; he was a small, thin Asian man, black hair arranged in a quiff.

but think about this woman’s idea that foreigners should learn English before coming here.

True, I agree that if someone is coming to the UK with the intention of staying long term and working, learning English is helpful before they arrive. But then why can’t it be considered the other way around?

The English are, after all, famous for our ineptitude at learning other

languages. Why should students who come to England to learn English be look down upon?

In August, I will be moving to China.

I will be teaching English at the Nanhai Experimental High School in Foshan, which is in the very south, near to Hong Kong. I’m going to go not knowing a single word of Mandarin.

Not for a lack of trying, but learning Mandarin solo is pretty difficult. Even the few phrases that I do know I would be reluctant to say to anyone Chinese, for fear that I made a mistake with the tones and said something completely nonsensical.

Should I be, in the same way, looked down upon? When I get there, I have every intention of starting lessons, and finding some unsuspecting Chinese friends that I can learn and practise with. In return, I will provide English practise and tuition.

Full immersion is undeniably the best way to learn a language. You are exposed to the culture, the variety of accents, the colloquialisms of a language... things that cannot be taught. So, lady on the bus, pipe down. Let him try, let him learn.

keep calm and carry on: is austerity the way forward? we are sure to see the stock markets

Laurie MacDonald plummet as consumer and investor

Chairman confidence crashes, which in turn will

2011/2012 lead to a deepening of the recession as people refuse to spend any money and investors running for the safety of commodities such as gold, which always rises steeply in price in a recession due to demand as a safe haven.

AS I write this, the big news of the This, of course, is completely absurd. month is that, according to the Office for As mentioned, fractional economic National Statistics, the UK is technically contraction makes very little difference back in recession. in real terms.

Just as we are seeing the The ONS figures confirm the worst first tentative steps towards reducing fears of the Coalition, that the UK is unemployment, the markets panic like experiencing a double-dip recession, headless chickens at the first sign of which, simply put, means the country experienced one period of economic contraction; 2008-2009, followed by a period of recovery where there was modest growth; 2010-2011, then another period of contraction; the last two quarters of 2011.

This is undoubtedly a bad thing.

Economic contraction means, in short, the country is making less money. This is not all there is to it however; the figures show that this “recession” is, so far, extremely mild, with the economy shrinking by just 0.2%-0.3% in the final quarters of 2011. In real terms this isn’t going to affect the economic wellbeing of the nation hugely, growth between the end of the last recession in 2009 and today has been modest, rarely rising higher than 1%.

What the announcement of recession does expose is how ridiculous economics really can be. In the next few months

slight economic difficulty, which will inevitably lead to further contraction, shattering any chance of a quick recovery and dashing the hopes of hundreds of thousands of unemployed people.

It seems that the lives of most of the population are held to ransom by the fickle machinations of the markets. On top of this, the Sunday Times rich list showed us that the thousand richest people in the country have increased their wealth by 4.7% to the tune of £414bn.

Although there is nothing wrong with this in itself, it comes in the wake of the Coalition scrapping the 50p top tax

rate and slashing corporation tax in the budget. Increasingly, it seems that politicians are happy to pander to the needs of the super-rich at the expense of everyone else.

All of this comes with data from the National institute of Economic and Social Research that this economic crisis is the worst to have ever hit Britain, except the Great Depression. All this makes the Coalition austerity program seem not just ill conceived, but positively insane.

The PM and Chancellor doggedly stick to their line that eliminating the deficit quickly is the only way to pull Britain out of the economic free fall we’ve been pushed into. In the US, President Obama has shown us that the way to stimulate growth and create jobs is not to cut but to spend.

The Obama administration poured billions into state stimulus programs and has been rewarded by strong signs of economic recovery and encouraging employment figures, whilst in the UK we continue to wallow in economic misery while our government resolutely declares that there is no Plan B to austerity.

We can only hope that the recent data suggesting that Labour are almost ten points ahead in the polls, enough to win a majority if a general election was held tomorrow, will show the Coalition that people in this country are not happy to play second fiddle to the super-rich.

Maybe, just maybe, austerity isn’t working this time.

As this academic year comes to an end and the exam period approaches us, this issue’s IQ welcomes you to the summer joys of 2012. With coverage of student film festivals, the latest film releases and the biggest books of the academic year, I hope this issue helps you de-stress and look forward to post-exam celebrations.

IQ Editor: Chandni Makhecha

Take a look at the review of the talented author Maurice Sendak on page 20 ...

Email me your photos in the Canterbury sun to iq.editor@ inquiremedia.co.uk and they may feature on the InQuire Website!

Sunny days at UKC

Check out how to make yummy Pimm’s- and mojitoflavoured cupcakes on page 14...

IQ jubilee competition for the chance to win cream tea for two at the traditional Moat Tea Rooms in Canterbury, answer this question:

On page 17, Newspaper Features Editor Nat Tipping reviews ‘The Dumb Waiter’ performed in the Gulbenkian.

what year was the queen’s coronation ceremony? email your name, answer and email address to iq.editor@ inquiremedia.co.uk.

12

IQ Features

looking back upon literature...

What’s the best book you’ve read this academic year? Four InQuirers let us know...

George Hopkin

Rebecca Snowden

Ian McEwan Amsterdam

Suzanne Collins The Hunger Games

Amsterdam - winner of the 1998 Man

Being a Literature student, I read a variety of assigned texts. On the odd occasion that I am able to read a book of my choosing, I tend to be quite picky, as I want something enjoyable and disassociated from my course. I found this in The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. The film adaptation has just been released and having read the hype online, I resolved to read the novel.

Told from the perspective of Katniss Everdeen, the novel is set in postapocalyptic America. The Hunger Games itself is an arena in which 24 children aged between 12 and 18 are annually subjected to fight to the death at the hands of the authoritarian Capital, with only one victor. Katniss’ sister, Primrose, is selected for the Games, but Katniss volunteers to take her place.

The concept of forcing children into the Games is unthinkable, however the central focus of the novel is Katniss’ choice between morality and survival.

This conflict is why I enjoyed the novel so much.

The reader witnesses Katniss becoming more ‘human’ as she delves deeper into the contest. She refuses to admit that she is more than a representation of a machine, whose aim is to win the Games. Her acts of defiance towards the Capitol, combined with the caring gestures she makes, are more human than she could have imagined.

Humanity in the face of adversity makes it a memorable novel.

This has to be my favourite teen book since I read Malorie Blackman’s Noughts & Crosses at age 13. There’s never a dull moment. If you haven’t read it by now, do - you won’t regret it.

Booker prize - is a superb, eerie book.

In it, McEwan’s theme is the moral limit of man when the potential for personal greatness and fame is present.

McEwan constructs a world that is recognisably our own, using key components of modern society and culture, rooting every idea and word that he writes in our time and place.

This is something that I love about McEwan’s work: it is situated in a dimension that is recognisable, and his commentary is wry and intelligent.

Although it’s key to remember that this piece was published in 1998, I don’t think our world has changed dramatically enough since then to wash away the relevance of McEwan’s message here.

It may not be McEwan’s most highly rated book in terms of popular appeal, but it did win the Man Booker prize - and I can see why. It’s an up-todate and technically brilliant story of morality in a world that seems to neglect it, and this novel shows the author’s consummate skill when it comes to writing for a contemporary audience.

In a way, McEwan is a bard for the modern day. This book may not be his greatest, but you won’t be making a bad decision by choosing to read it. It is definitely interesting, mired in a bog of moral murkiness and grey postmodernity, and the writer’s language, as ever, demonstrates mature mastery.

A short, rewarding novel, crafted purposely for an audience living in the modern day, that is certainly worth reading.

Charlotte Wright

George R.R Martin A Game of Thrones

I am doing a degree which demands a lot of reading, so it can be hard to find a book that holds my attention. Luckily, Game of Thrones appeared at just the right time; exam period. Putting my worries aside, this is one of the most engrossing books I’ve read in a while.

Heralded as the series at the forefront of fantasy fiction, George R.R. Martin immerses his readers in the continent of Westeros and its Seven Kingdoms.

Game of Thrones is the first book in a series of seven entitled A Song of Fire and Ice and at just under 800 pages, is not an undertaking for the faint hearted. This heroic fantasy introduces the reader to a vast array of characters, good and bad, as the struggle for the Iron Throne begins.

The noble families of Lannister and Stark battle to win the game, while the forces of darkness make their presence known beyond the wall of ice.

Martin’s style is intelligent and engaging, and the promise of what was to come always kept me reading. The change of character viewpoint each chapter allows you to find a figure and a side to root for – whether they are good or evil.

Martin isn’t one to shy away from explicit violence, sexual content or death and the fact that this is a well written adult fantasy is a breath of fresh air. A word of warning, commitment is needed for this novel. The vast character index at the book’s close may be off-putting to some, but in my eyes, it just encourages greater intrigue of the infinite world Martin has created.

The novel is exquisitely readable as, I imagine, the rest of the series is.

Jack Bridgewater

William Faulkner The Sound and the Fury

Sometimes, it feels as if I don’t do a lot. In an attempt to pretend that I am whiling my life away in a useful fashion, I read a fair amount of fiction. Sometimes it is a struggle and sometimes it is a joy. Either way, I usually get a strangely satisfying feeling from reading a book, which I don’t get from listening to music or watching films.

I try to work backwards from my favourite current authors, and find out their influences. From Hemingway, I discovered Faulkner. His work is far more abstract than many of the American authors he is associated with.

At first, it can seem impenetrable.

The cryptic nature of his work is in part what makes his writing so unforgettable. I have read more enjoyable books than The Sound and the Fury, but never have I read something that has made such an impression on me. A tale told from four different perspectives, Faulkner’s masterwork pays no attention to the usual rules of storytelling, constantly shifting between time and place.

The reader is left to scratch away at the different layers, becoming immersed in the dark subject matter, rambling prose, and a plethora of dislikeable characters.

In time you realise Faulkner has created a world of breathtaking reality. The speech is stuttering, the characters raw and unpredictable.

That’s what makes The Sound and the Fury the best book I have read over the past year. It is the sense that Faulkner has invented a family of characters that will continue to exist after the story has finished.

IQ Features 13

the grad factor tv show

Natalie Tipping, Newspaper Features Editor, spoke to businessman Keith Chaplin Mabbutt about his new venture, TV show The Grad Factor, which aims to help youth with unemployment. would prefer to go it alone.

Why do you think it is so important that people like yourself help graduates and other young people find employment?

Could you give a brief outline of the show - the format of the show, what it aims to achieve etc.

The Grad Factor is the first ever UK digital TV show that is dedicated to university students focusing on graduate employment, enterprise and entrepreneurship. I managed to secure backing and sponsorship for the show’s first series of six shows from the founder of StartUp Britain, and CVSeeMe.com. In short, the core focus of The Grad Factor TV show is to help university students become more employable and secure suitable work after gaining their degree whilst also encouraging, inspiring and supporting student entrepreneurship for those that

With The Grad Factor we’re aiming to help educate and inform students to allow a greater knowledge exchange about both largely recognised employers and as importantly, the lesser known Small & Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs).

I’m trying to get students to look beyond the big blue chip names.

The fact is, small and medium sized enterprises make up 99% of UK commerce, so if you think that if a quarter of them took just one graduate on, we’d solve youth unemployment.

I’m looking to help young people realise that there are plenty of opportunities out there if you look hard enough.

What steps do you think students should take whilst at university, to try to help themselves not to suffer from unemployment?

It’s all about attitude. Of course, speak to your careers service - and not just in your final year - but don’t stop there.

This is about you and your career - not theirs. You will typically gain good solid

advice, but you shouldn’t rely on this and this alone. Ask yourself how flexible you are. Private or public sector? Large or small? Which type of industry?

If you’re unsure, get online and start researching. Speak to as many people as you can. Know yourself, understand your strengths and where your passion lies - and go after it with as much knowledge as you can glean. Finally, whatever year you’re in, start doing this now!

How much work experience would you say is necessary to get a job nowadays?

I wouldn’t necessarily say there’s a set period of time required to secure a job. Naturally, work experience, especially if related to the job you are applying for, can be beneficial, but this will depend on the company and the hiring personnel. Many employers will ask for the classic ‘6-12 months work experience’. The important thing is to harness whatever skills and experiences you have gained.

To see the full interview with Keith, go to www.inquirelive.co.uk/ features.

jubilee joy: our queen’s a diamond

Annie Trafford

Following the death of George VI on 6th February 1952, Princess Elizabeth ascended to the throne of the United Kingdom and became Queen Elizabeth II. This year, Britain celebrates her 60 year reign, with the main festivities taking place this Bank Holiday

weekend.

There is always great furore surrounding Royal events, with last year’s Royal Wedding being an obvious example. Thousands of people flocked to the streets of London to see William and Kate on their wedding day, and even more are expected to descend on the Capital this weekend to celebrate a monarch who has done so much for our country.

The Queen has been joined by her husband, The Duke of Edinburgh, on a Diamond Jubilee tour of the country, where she has been greeted all over by loving members of the public, coming out in their thousands to catch a glimpse of their long-standing monarch.

Although many people at this university and around the country would say that they do not see the point in a monarchy, it truly gives a sense of propriety to the modernised country of Britain, allowing for a little bit of tradition in the high-tech world.

Though the royals may not seem to do

much for the general public, Britain without a monarchy seems like an incredibly strange concept.

InQuire wishes the Queen the very best with her Jubilee celebrations and hope that she will be ruling the country for many years to come.

revision tips Charlotte Dampier

It’s that time of year again. Exams are looming, revision is calling, and the nerves are starting to set in. Sitting down at a desk hunched over textbooks may not be the most appealing idea right now, but it doesn’t have to be all doom and gloom. Below are some tips for a stress free, productive revision season: •Make a plan. You’ve probably heard it all before, but you will feel a lot better if you’ve planned everything out. Hang a little schedule on your bedroom door.

That way, your housemates will see what times you are revising and will hopefully help motivate you to stick to your timetable (as well as perhaps trying to keep their noise down)!

•Work in 20 minute segments, and then take a five minute break. Go get a drink, have a little walk round the garden, get away from your desk for a little bit.

•Write on yellow paper. It sounds strange, but yellow is a memory colour. Apparently you can remember facts better if they are on a yellow background. Definitely worth a try, right?

•Stick a few little ‘post its’ on places you look at every day, for example on the bathroom mirror or on your wardrobe door. Be careful not to go overboard though! Aim for just three or four. Pasting hundreds of stickers all over an entire wall will just fluster and confuse you, not to mention ruin the wallpaper.

•Wear a particular perfume or aftershave when you revise, then wear this same fragrance on the day of your exam. Sense of smell is very powerful for invoking memories, so this will help you visualise what you have learned in your revision sessions.

Above all, do not panic. Remember, nerves are a good thing! They are your body’s way of getting ready to overcome a challenge. If you put in the work now, you can look forward to the time when exams are finished and you’ll be free to relax, hang out with friends and sunbathe - if the sun sticks around that long!

14

IQ Food

“let them eat cake!”

What are you doing this Bank Holiday Weekend? Whether you’re having a street party, barbecue or just a lazy few days off, here are some summery recipes for you to try out!

pimm’s cupcakes

mojito cupcakes

Laura Hunter

May Berryhill

For the Cupcakes:

3. Cucumber buttercream: Very finely chop cucumber and mix into one portion of the buttercream. Add a few drops of green food colouring, but keep it quite pale.

200g of Golden Caster Sugar 200g of Margarine 200g of Self-Raising Flour 4 Eggs 100ml of Pimm’s

4. Orange buttercream: Mix in the juice and rind into one portion of the buttercream, then add a few drops of orange food colouring to give a gentle hint of orange.

For the Buttercream:

5. Mint buttercream: Very finely chop the mint and add to buttercream, then add a few drops of green food colouring.

120ml of Buttermilk 1/2 teaspoon dark rum 210g flour 110g butter, room temperature 150g icing sugar 2 eggs, room temperature 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 teaspoon baking powder salt

To Ice the Cupcakes:

For the Syrup:

11. Drizzle the syrup evenly over the cupcakes, place the domed tops back on top of each cupcake, and set aside while you make the icing.

1. Place a piping bag in a tall glass, spreading the top of the bag over the top of the glass.

100g sugar 2 tbsp water 2 tbsp dark rum zest of 1 lime a few mint leaves

12. To make the icing: With the stand (or an electric) mixer, beat the cream cheese and butter at high speed until creamy. Reduce speed and add the icing sugar gradually.

For the Icing

13. Beat for 1 minute until well incorporated. Beat for another 2 minutes at high speed. Scrape the edges of the bowl, add the rum and lime zest.

Beat one last time at medium speed.

Ingredients

400g of Icing Sugar 250g of Margarine Strawberry Flavouring 30g of Cucumber (skin included, but no seeds) Juice and Rind of 1/2 an Orange 8 Mint Leaves Red Food Colouring Instructions For the Cupcakes: 1. Heat the oven to 180°C. Lay out the cupcakes cases in either a 12 hole muffin tin or in two 12 hole bun tins.

2. Cream together the sugar and the margarine.

3. Mix in one egg at a time, adding a little flour with each.

4. Fold in the remaining flour and add the Pimm’s mixing until well combined.

5. Spoon the mixture evenly into the cupcake cases.

6.Bake in the oven for 15 - 20 minutes until they feel spongy and are golden in colour.

7. Once out of the oven, place on a wire cooling rack to cool down before decorating.

For the Buttercream: 1. Divide the margarine and icing sugar into four separate bowls and mix until light in colour and fluffy.

2. Strawberry buttercream: add the strawberry flavouring and a few drops of the red food colouring into one portion of the buttercream. Only add enough food colouring to achieve a hint of pink.

2. Using a tablespoon, take a scoop of one of the buttercreams and gently push it to one side of the piping bag. Repeat with the other flavours of buttercream.

Once you’ve done one layer you can repeat again with the four colours – you don’t need to make sure each buttercream goes on the same side as the one before.

Ingredients For the Cupcakes:

400g cream cheese 50g butter, room temperature icing sugar to taste 2 teaspoons dark rum zest of 3 limes

3. Twist the top of the piping bag closed and ice your cupcakes. As you make the swirls they should come out in a tie dye style.

Instructions

4. Decorate the cupcakes with slices of strawberry, cucumber, orange or mint leaves as appropriate.

2. In a bowl, mix together the buttermilk, rum and vanilla extract. In another bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder and salt.

1. Heat the oven to 180 C. Line a mini muffin tin with paper cases.

3. In the bowl of a standing mixer, mix the butter and sugar on high speed until creamy.

4. Reduce speed and add eggs one at a time, scraping the sides of the bowl after each addition.

5. Add 1/3 of the flour mixture (while mixing at low speed), then 1/2 the buttermilk mixture.

6. Add another 1/3 of the flour, then the remaining buttermilk, and finally the remaining flour. Scrape the edges of the bowl to ensure all of the flour has been incorporated.

7. Pour the mixture into the prepared tin, filling the cases halfway.

8. Bake for 20 mins in the preheated oven. Meanwhile, prepare the syrup.

9. In a small saucepan, bring water and sugar to the boil. Once the sugar dissolves, remove from heat and add rum. Then add the zest of lime and mint. Let steep for 5 minutes.

10. Once the cupcakes are cool, with a small paring knife cut the domed bit off the tops of the cupcakes and set aside.

14. Once cupcakes are fully cooled, ice with the cream cheese icing.

15. Decorate with slices of lime and mint leaves.

Enjoy the Jubilee everyone!

IQ Fashion 15

fusion 2012 fashion show Natalie Tipping Newspaper Features Editor

Each year, the BA and foundation fashion students work incredibly hard to design their own fashion lines.

This year, the show was called ‘Fusion 2012’ and featured work from 23 students, here’s InQuire’s pick of the designers featured.

The foundation students kicked off the night, each showing around three pieces. Collette Osunsami displayed a collection consisting mainly of blue dresses formed out of panels of fabric.

This panelling effect allowed for many different shades of blue to be distinct in each dress, and worked well.

After the second student, Cindy Buxton, showed her collection, I began to think that each student had been given a different colour palette to work with, as she displayed a hippy like collection, predominantly made up of creams and browns.

Mary Louise Weir’s Midnight Vintage collection proved this hypothesis wrong however, showcasing black, punky clothing, covered in gold polka dots.

Weir’s collection seemed to be the turning point, as the next collection – African Essence by Alice Oluwole – contained a two piece outfit covered in blue velvet tassels. This questionable and yet interesting piece was nothing in comparison to the umbrella dress shown by Jenna Baptiste in her Metissage collection.

Many of the lines appeared to be influenced by popular culture, with

each designer choosing a song to be played whilst their collections were shown. Two notable shows were Kiruja Nagarajah’s Floribunda collection, which was accompanied by Madonna’s Vogue, and Emma Everest’s Beautiful Disaster collection, the soundtrack for which was Lady GaGa. Both of these songs seemed to tie in perfectly with the clothes shown, with one dress of Nagarajah’s collection containing patches with Vs on, and Everest’s collection consisting entirely of metallic green material, with horned shouldered jackets and dresses.

For journalists such as myself, Abigail Stephenson’s text print fabric was wonderful; whilst Naomi Cutmore’s three tone textured circle skirt was absolutely beautiful.

After the short break following the Foundation collections, it was time for

the BA students to exhibit their skills, and boy did they. Janine Arnold-Burthe opened, showcasing glitter and horned shoulders galore, followed by Fatima Gaspar’s orange Balenciaga like collar detailing on an otherwise simple dress.

There was a definite feel that the BA students had pulled out all of the stops, with Stacey King’s blown out harem pants and Chloe Grech’s futuristic cube print dresses and blouses.

The real star of the show however was Julie Phillips, whose Haunted Fantasy made many audience members gasp with excitement, showcasing a jacket covered entirely in feathers, a real couturier in the making.

The evening was incredibly enjoyable, displaying the best that the University of Kent has to offer, and the real talent we have here on campus. These students are definitely worth watching!

One of the models preparing for the show. Photography by Vijay Dubb

vogue launches new initiative

Rebecca Snowden

In the most recent issue of Vogue UK, there featured a letter from the editor, Alexandra Shulman, stating their new ‘Health Initiative’, in which they aim to encourage a healthier approach to body image within the fashion industry.

For numerous years, there has been controversy surrounding the weight and health of models worldwide, as they have displayed increasingly shrinking frames, even resulting in the deaths of a number of young models suffering from anorexia.

The magazine sets out six premises, including not knowingly working with under 16 year olds who appear to have an eating disorder, and encouraging designers to consider the consequences of making unnaturally small sample sizes. This has been a long time coming, considering the constant issues associated with the fashion industry,

with some past fashion weeks being scrutinised whilst others (namely Italy) promised to include ‘normal sized’ models.

Supermodel Tyra Banks recently spoke out about this, stating that when she began modelling, she had never even heard of a size 0 and refused to lose weight once her natural curves had developed. She believes that her decision not to let the pressure to lose weight affect her is why she is still so prominent in the modelling world today. She has praised Vogue’s decision to take the initiative and work to promote healthiness.

In our society, everything revolves around body image. It is hard to be a young woman and attain a healthy outlook on body image as everything is so distorted. So many girls see the images of models in magazines and at fashion week and wonder why they do not have jutting bones and

boyish figures. With the invention of Photoshop this has become more of a problem as imperfections are hidden and body shapes are altered to appear thinner and more ‘smooth’.

It seems that Vogue has gone a little over-the-top this month as both the UK and US editions used the upcoming Olympics as a theme to showcase top athletes as models, seemingly to prove that they are using healthy bodies.

They may have used healthy bodies this month to avoid being deemed hypocritical, but the biggest challenge will be to introduce models to catwalk shows who are not severely and unnaturally underweight.

It will be up to everyone in the industry to try and keep to the initiative and educate everyone on healthy weights, diets and lifestyles.

Hopefully, this influential magazine will bring about positive changes to our perceptions of what beauty is.

vidal sassoon dies Will Atherton

After a childhood spent living in poverty, and a stint in the Israeli Defence Force during the ArabIsraeli War, it is amazing that Vidal Sassoon came to be the celebrated hairdresser that he is today.

Sassoon trained in Mayfair during the Second World War, opened his first salon in 1954 in London, and began creating his trademark geometrically shaped haircuts – most notably geometric perms and bobs. Sassoon recreated the classic bob in 1963, fashioning a short, angular hairstyle, which propelled him into the hair-dressing elite.

By 1983, Sassoon had moved from London to the US, and sold the empire that was making him $113million per year to pharmaceutical company Richardson-Vicks. Sassoon sued Richardson-Vicks owners, Procter & Gamble, in 1985 for neglecting to market his company in the same way they did with other brands under their control, such as Pantene.

After being named as a Commander of the British Empire in 2009, Sassoon had finally received every accolade he deserved for revolutionising hairdressing.

Unfortunately, the 84 year old legend passed away on the 9th of May 2012 after a three-year battle with leukaemia.

Following his death, his family issued a statement that said: ‘he will be greatly missed by his wife of twenty years Ronnie, his children, grandchildren, family and friends’.

It’s safe to say that the fashion industry will also miss the man responsible for many of the iconic cuts of today too, as an entire industry will miss his influence and talent.

16

IQ Entertainment

Music kent union summerball preview Dan Green shares his Summer Ball experiences, and what to expect this year...

Noah and the Whale, girl group The Saturdays and Radio 1 DJ Annie Mac. As an MA student, this is now the fourth Summer Ball line up I have seen, and will be the third I have attended. There have been acts ranging from Dizzee Rascal to Florence and the Machine, Tinie Tempah to Goldie Lookin’ Chain, and am yet to be disappointed by the event. After not attending last year due to other commitments, I cannot wait for this one!

Whether you love it, hate it or are completely new to it, Kent Union’s Summerball is just around the corner.

3,499 students have the opportunity to celebrate the end of the academic year and the start of summer at the Union’s flagship event, which will this year be hosting acts including indie folk band

what’s hot with Sean Mackey Head of Music

But the music is not the only entertainment on offer. Walking from the red-carpeted entrance through the tent – which is in fact one of the largest in Europe – to the outdoor area, you are immediately presented with a host of rides and stalls that resemble a smaller version of the fairgrounds we probably all enjoyed when we were younger.

Luckily for the guests, the Summerball lets them all admit for one night that they never stopped enjoying them.

Every year there is also the predictable professional photographer, so you and your friends can capture the night on more than just your phone or camera.

I’d recommend that you get these done at the start of the night though, for obvious reasons…

Overall, the Summerball is a great night, and for me it will be the end of four very happy years as a student at UKC. There will always be the voices contesting the price, acts or validity of an event like this, but for a university that has over 18,000 students, I think that’s simply expected.

Maybe the acts aren’t top of your playlist, but as the biggest party of the university year, the Summerball is a perfect end to it.

jack white: blunderbuss Kuba Shand-Baptiste

Fans of Jack White and his other

various musical endeavours will be excited to know that his debut solo album Blunderbuss has finally dropped. bringing you the best music from a It comes almost a year after his split variety of genres, keeping what you hear fresh and current. I’ve handpicked from wife Karen Elson (who provides backing vocals on several tracks on the five of my favourites from our current album) and, as one would expect from playlist for you to enjoy during the Summer holidays. We broadcast all year material released by a musician fresh out of a long-term relationship, it boasts round so keep listening! a distinctly confessional tone.

Matrix & Futurebound – All I Know: But Blunderbuss is far from a This drum and bass power house has collection of overindulgent ballads. been championed by Radio 1 and CSR White, with his eccentric lyricism are doing the same. (as seen in the quirky track Missing The Maccabees – Went Away: This Pieces, in which Jack describes a track proves the Maccabees are going lover physically removing parts of his from strength to strength. anatomy), blues tendencies and creative virtuosity, makes sure of this.

Florence and the Machine – Breath of Life: Featuring on the Snow White & However, those who prefer a grittier the Huntsman sound-track, out soon. sound, a faster pace or any great deal of variety where style is concerned may Avicii – Silhouettes: Will no doubt have find themselves mildly disappointed. you up and jumping in Venue.

The furthest the album seems to stray Kindness – House: This brilliantly from the general “rock blues” feel is in chilled indie track is perfect for those Sixteen Saltines, the second single from long summer evenings as the sun is Blunderbuss (and one of my favourite setting. tracks on the album), which exhibits a punk edge and an all too familiar Fun – We Are Young: Has an depiction of juvenile infatuation. impressive pop vibe throughout and

Every month, we update our playlist

CSR are in love with this band.

There are also plenty of other little additions that Kent Union add every year to the Ball. Over the years I have attended, I have seen ice sculptures that dispense vodka, novelty photo booths and a giant track Scalectrix to name just a few!

I also enjoyed the last song on the

album, the folksy Take Me With You When You Go. It features the unpolished and vaguely haunting voices of several backing vocalists, a charming and repetitive riff and, later on in the song, a piercing and wordy duet between a female vocalist and Jack White himself.

Aside from these tracks however, White tends to keep the general feel of the album pretty much stagnant. As much as I enjoyed the album, this level of stylistic consistency seems to pose a mild threat to the individuality of each song. Yet, as with most albums, one listen doesn’t do Blunderbuss justice, and on my second, third and fourth encounters with the album, tracks become more distinctive and I was able to pick out favourites.

the summer mixtape

Joe Dassin – Les Champs Elysées Paul Simon – You Can Call Me Al Wilco – Heavy Metal Drummer King Charles – Lady Percy Dexy’s Midnight Runners – Geno Joni Mitchell – Chelsea Morning Cornershop – Brimful of Asha Best Coast – Crazy For You Madonna – La Isla Bonita DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince - Summertime Mark Ronson & The Business Intl – The Bike Song The Dandy Warhols – Solid Van Morrison – Jackie Wilson Said Patrick Wolf – The City The Chiffons – One Fine Day Althea & Donna – Uptown Top Ranking Vampire Weekend – Holiday Manu Chao – Me Gustas Tu Bananarama – Cruel Summer Prince & The Revolution – Raspberry Beret To get the Spotify playlist, join InquireLive on Facebook or follow us on Twitter.

IQ Entertainment 17

Theatre & Film not nordic noir? film review: headhunters Harriet Cash, Newspaper Culture Editor, reviews the newest and surprisingly different Scandinavian import... reminiscent of the Coen brothers in In the midst of a glut of sombre,

its sheer improbability – one scene in particular, involving a large dog and the prongs of a forklift truck, drew chuckles from an audience who seemed to feel this was so bizarre it was okay to laugh.

There are times when it feels like the film, unsure what it really wants to be, is trying a bit of everything and hoping something sticks.

politically challenging Scandinavian crime dramas, Headhunters (Hodejegerne) – while ticking the ‘Norwegian’ and ‘crime novel adaptation’ boxes – proves an awkward bedfellow for the likes of Stieg Larsson’s Millennium trilogy.

Morten Tyldum’s adaptation of Jo Nesbø’s novel veers from the sublime to the ridiculous, a slightly mad cocktail of genres and themes. Gritty crime thriller? Moody relationship drama?

Screwball comedy? Elements of all three appear. Eponymous headhunter and high-end art thief Roger Brown (played

by Aksel Hennie, who can only be described as the Norwegian love child of Conan O’Brien and Steve Buscemi) attempts to solve his financial woes with one last heist, and finds himself in a series of increasingly bizarre and grisly situations. Outwardly polished and confident, once the excrement hits the proverbial fan we are led to believe that Roger’s espionage skills are somewhat lacking.

Having become accustomed to the dense, tightly knitted, slow-burn

plots of both the actually be “Aksel Hennie can only might aforementioned one step ahead. Its be described as the Swedish series and absence until the Danish TV shows Norwegian love child denouement means, such as Forbrydelsen however, that (The Killing), Borgen of Conan O’Brien and thoughts of trying to and The Bridge, this unravel the plot are Steve Buscemi” film’s light-hearted largely forgotten, as opening is unexpected and refreshing. his tangle with the wrong people leads Laying his cards out at the very him on a bizarre chase across what beginning with a lesson in successful art seems like half of Norway. The chase is thievery, Roger’s authoritative voicepeppered with spectacularly gruesome, over narration obliquely suggests he almost laughable violence, vaguely

harold pinter double-bill at the gulb “The audience sat giggling to themselves, immediately understanding the subtle humour that is Pinter’s true genius.”

Waiter – began, the Pinter fans in the audience sat giggling to themselves, immediately understanding the subtle humour that is Pinter’s true genius. This incredible wit was key, having a huge effect upon the audience’s reactions to both plays.

Nat Tipping Newspaper Features Editor

Walking in to the Gulbenkian theatre on the evening of May 14th, audience members encountered an incredibly simplistic set, made up of two beds, three greying walls, and two doors.

For people who were completely unaware of Pinter’s work, such as myself, this didn’t give much away. As the first play of the evening – The Dumb

The Dumb Waiter in particular would have been much darker without this humour, telling the story of two hit-men – Gus and Ben – who are hired to kill a man, whom they spend the play waiting for.

On the whole, The Dumb Waiter was witty and alluring, with neither character really getting on audience members’ nerves, even though they got on each other’s.

During the interval, we were asked to leave the theatre whilst the production company changed the set. When we

returned, we appeared to be in the living room of a house in the 1970s. There was more furniture, but the set was again rather simplistic.

In The Lover, Pinter creates a farcical marriage in which the husband leaves each morning after enquiring as to whether his wife’s lover will be round that day.

The problems in Roger’s relationship with his beautiful wife Diana, while yielding the occasional touching moment, are slightly textbook, and some of the most enjoyably wacky characters are only peripheral.

Headhunters is redeemed, however, by its last five minutes.

The resolution is neat and satisfying, stylistically and thematically circular, and makes you realise that it did know where it was going after all.

Aside from its Scandinavian credentials, the film shares more DNA with screwball and black comedy than with its ‘Nordic noir’ cousins. For enjoyably bizarre and unpredictable entertainment, you could do far worse.

events spot june highlights UKC

Kent Union Summerball: 2nd June

Gulbenkian Titanic 3D: 2nd June David Copperfield: 2nd June Chris Addison: 8th June

The husband seems to be completely accepting of his wife’s adulterous behaviour, a fact that could easily outrage many an audience member. It is only at the climax of the play that the audience realise why the husband is so understanding.

The Cabin in the Woods: 11th June

I would say that, overall, The Lover would be my preferred play, as the plot twist was somehow less obvious to me.

Although the set design and lighting were simplistic, these plays did not need embellishment as they relied entirely upon the talent of the actors.

The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Concert: 3rd June

Three actors staging two plays over the course of an hour and a half is no mean feat, but the fact that they managed to create an immensely enjoyable theatrical experience as well was just the cherry on top.

End of Term School Disco: 15th June

Michael Winslow: 18th June Film Talk - The Gospel of Us: 19th June

Marlowe Theatre

Legally Blonde The Musical: 5th - 16th June

The Venue

The Attic

The Alternative Summer Ball: 1st June For more events, go to www. inquirelive.co.uk/entertainment

18

IQ Entertainment

film & Games new and exciting upcoming film releases

Matt Gilley, Newspaper News Editor, looks at some of the upcoming film releases for this summer... world of Alien, his 1979 horror/sci-fi masterpiece. While it looks to be a lot more expansive than the claustrophobic corridors of the original Alien, Prometheus seems no less thrilling, boasting a stellar cast that includes Charlize Theron, Michael Fassbender, Idris Elba and Noomi Rapace.

The Dark Knight Rises (July 2012)

Blockbuster season is approaching and 2012 looks to be a particularly good year, with offerings from some of cinema’s most intelligent directors.

Summer won’t be entirely taken over by big budgets and spectacle. The indie world is by no means staying quiet in the coming months. Here’s a selection of what to look forward to.

Prometheus (June 2012) If you haven’t seen the latest trailer, go and watch it. Right now. Prometheus sees Ridley Scott return to the habitual

Possibly the choice blockbuster series of the discerning film-goer, Chris Nolan’s phenomenal Batman trilogy is set to conclude with all the darkness, moral ambiguity and impressive set pieces that we’ve come to expect. With Tom Hardy’s beefedup, rumbling Bane prowling across the screen, for once, it is not obvious how this superhero film will end.

Brave (August 2012) Pixar can do no wrong (apart from Cars 2… but we won’t talk about that).

This is definitely one to keep in the diary. Set in mythical Scotland, the visuals they have released so far are absolutely gorgeous, so it’s worth seeing for the landscapes alone.

Lawless (August 2012) The gritty, Cormac McCarthy-esque Lawless follows three criminal brothers in prohibition America. The script, written by Nick Cave (the musician and master-lyricist), is suitably dry and poetic, complementing director John Hillcoat, who has proven adept at handling bleak American tales such as The Road and The Proposition.

Cosmopolis (June 2012) Robert Pattinson stars, but do not turn your head and sniff haughtily just yet.

It is also directed by David Cronenberg and is based on a novel by Don DeLillo.

Not to mention that the story of a billionaire going for a haircut only to find his life collapsing around him sounds intriguingly topical and twisty.

We probably shouldn’t write Pattinson off just yet.

The Angel’s Share (June 2012) Although it also concerns alcohol and crime, Ken Loach’s latest is a very different beast. The young Scottish lads at the centre of this bitter-sweet comedy get involved in stealing rare whiskey, more out of boredom than as part of some master-plan. When Loach is on form he’s one of the best directors in the UK, so keep your eyes peeled for this.

games review: dungeon-crawling with diablo III

The belated sequel of the cult-classic Diablo II has a lot to live up to. Matt Jarvis reviews...

Arriving over a decade since its

predecessor, the third instalment of Blizzard’s dungeon-crawler series - a cult classic that even now continues to be played online - could have seen a smoother release.

Instead, the always-online requirement subjected players to hours of error codes and far fewer hours of gaming. This led to an onslaught of low user scores on Metacritic, as fans already angered by rumours of dumbeddown gameplay began to label the game as a watered-down version of their beloved series. Well, is it?

In my opinion, no. Having finally managed to play a large portion of the game, it seems like Diablo III is the best compromise between retaining the popular mechanics of the previous games and allowing new players to jump in and enjoy Diablo’s distinctive atmosphere.

While catering for first-timers, oldschool hardcore players will also have available a new difficulty level of Inferno, which sets all of the enemies to a level above the player progression cap.

The self-awareness of Diablo’s own legacy runs throughout this game. The

“...the third instalment of Blizzard’s dungeoncrawler series could have seen a smoother release.” first act is set in an updated version of the same town built on top of Hell in the original Diablo. The graphics, while certainly lacking when compared with the recently announced CryEnginepowered Umbra, allow the modernised art style and improved physics to shine through, making the town feel like an entirely new setting.

The whole game seems to be balancing the inclusion of old favourites with the introduction of newer, streamlined replacements.

The classes feel much like revamps of the classes available in Diablo II. While the graphics and UI have evolved, the click-click-click slash ‘n’ loot gameplay remains and this may feel a little dated when compared with other games.

It is hardly an issue, though, and the game feels like an extremely polished throwback. The speed and flow of

Diablo III is far more streamlined than before and the constant internet connection makes jumping into a game with friends, or purchasing items from the auction house for in-game gold and real money, seamless. All in all, Diablo has become a game for everyone.

The option exists to play as though

nothing has changed in twelve years, or to embrace the modern idea of casual and connected gaming that was not so prominent back in 2000.

I will certainly be heading back to Tristram for many more hours and I highly advise you to join me.

IQ Culture

my first gig: green day (2005)

Alice Bryant Website Entertainment Editor

It was June 19th 2005, and my friends

and I were going on an adventure. We arrived at the National Bowl in Milton Keynes, giggling with anticipation and eager for the show to start. We proudly produced our tickets, standing on our tip-toes slightly, hoping against hope that we would be presumed to be fourteen. Two years too young, I soon found myself meandering through the hot-dog stalls and bars, looking to find a spot. 65,000 people were packed into the arena, filling up the entirety of the floor and spilling out onto the sides of the bowl; people in their early twenties, young families with children, people with peculiar piercings and chains on their jeans and above all, teenagers.

The sun was shining overhead, and just as we sat down with a drink in hand, the first support act, Jimmy Eat World, began to play Bleed American, bringing me to my feet once again.

Without knowing it, I was developing my signature awkward foot tap/nod routine that would be repeated at gigs and festivals for years to come.

Next to play were Taking Back Sunday, who attracted the attention of the crowd with backflips and stabbing riffs that

made you want to dance. A shout of ‘Are you excited to see Green Day?!’ was met with a roar of enthusiasm. And as the sun started to set and the heat dwindled, the stage was being prepared for the main act.

YMCA begins to pump from the PA system. The crowd dances, throwing their hands in the air, impatient for what is to come. The Ramones’ Blitzkrieg Bop is piped out next, and chants of ‘hey, ho, let’s go’ eventually produce the desired effect: Billie Joe Armstrong comes on stage in his trademark skinny jeans and red tie, followed by fellow band members Tre Cool and Mike Dirnt. The crowd screams and surges towards the stage.

They nod to one another, and the show begins.

Choruses of ‘don’t wanna be an american idiot’ resonate throughout the bowl as everybody jumps to their feet.

Fists are raised in the air, a mosh pit quickly developing towards the front of the stage. The band are jumping manically around the stage with such excitement and enthusiasm that their fans are sent into a hysterical frenzy.

Armstrong continually works the audience, screaming ‘I want you to sing so loud that every fucking redneck in

America hears you tonight, alright?!’

The crowd, completely devoted, screams out in delight.

Among the American Idiot tracks, old favourites such as Basket Case and Longview are played, with the audience half drowning Armstrong’s voice with their own.

By the time the band reach the encore, my voice is raw and my legs are aching.

But it’s totally worth it. Good Riddance sends a shiver down my spine, and as the confetti falls from a sky ignited by fireworks, I realise that I’ve witnessed something truly special.

19

the art roundup

A look at the fortnight’s art news, by Zelda Katz A new work believed to be by graffiti artist Banksy has appeared on the wall of a Poundland in North London. The image, in a style typical of the artist, shows a small boy kneeling over a sewing machine making union flag bunting – with the implicit message a criticism of child labour in the run up to the Queen’s jubilee.

An exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery, called The Queen: Art and Image, will display two portraits of Elizabeth II by Pietro Annigoni together for the first time in over 25 years. The gallery will be showing 60 portraits from 60 years, by artists including Lucien Freud, Andy Warhol and Annie Liebowitz.

student film festivals at ukc Matt Gilley Newspaper News Editor

June sees the University of Kent hosting two so-called ‘pop-up’ film festivals: independently organised events screening independent films.

Film festivals have a long tradition of promoting movies that might otherwise slip under the world’s collective radar.

Today’s most famous festivals, like Cannes or Sundance, invest almost their entire reputation in quality indie features, no matter what language they’re in (What? It’s Swedish? I’ll just wait for the inevitable Hollywood remake) or how famous their actors are.

Yet still, have you seen Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives, winner of the Palm d’Or at Cannes in 2010?

So, in an industry increasingly dominated by multiplexes and a few big studios, where even world famous festivals struggle to impact our collective consciousness, it’s refreshing to find young enthusiasts out to celebrate quality rather than business.

The problem with any DIY art of course is that however rebellious and furiously anti-mainstream it may be, it can sometimes just lack a certain quality and professionalism. Not so here though, with the festivals boasting work by some renowned indie filmmakers as

well as up-and-coming talent.

Two or Three Sights Unseen, the first of the two student-run festivals, states its noble aim as screening films that “we believe would not normally have had the exposure they deserve”. Likely to be the highlight of their selection is This is Not a Film, by Iranian auteur Jafar Panahi.

The Iranian government banned Panahi from directing films and so he decided instead to write one and act it out in his own home. Getting a friend to document him doing so (since he himself wasn’t allowed to take up a camera), the result is a poignant exploration of what it means to be a filmmaker and of the very purpose of film.

Also student-led, Rough Cuts takes a much different approach, having invited filmmakers to create seven-minute shorts, seven of which will be randomly

selected at the event and screened immediately. Naturally this approach brings with it some level of risk, with the quality of the films being unregulated.

But it is also exciting.

The films may well be a mixed bag, but there is a unique joy in discovering some hidden gem that you would never have come across otherwise. There is something wonderfully democratic about it; whereas big studios and famous directors might be a million miles away from us across the social spectrum, there’s a charming intimacy in enjoying the artistic talent of someone who’s probably not so unlike yourself.

If you are looking for an authentic way to support independent filmmaking, to find an intriguing new director, or even if you just like films, then pop-up film festivals are a great way forward, and these two come well recommended.

Rough Cuts is on at the Gulbenkian on Mon 11th June at 6.30pm.

Two or Three Sights Unseen is on Weds 7 and Thurs 8 June; screenings are in the Gulbenkian and MLT2.

Ai Weiwei has sold a tonne of his porcelain sunflower seeds for $782,000. The 8 million seeds are a fraction of the 100 million that filled the Tate Modern’s Turbine Hall floor for the artist’s exhibition.

An early O series Leica camera from 1923 has been bought at auction for £1.7 million, making it the most expensive camera ever sold. The camera is one of 12 surviving cameras from an original 25 produced to test the market for 35mm.

A painting by Amy Winehouse and Peter Doherty, created with their own blood, has sold for £35,000.

The piece, titled Ladylike, uses the technique Doherty terms ‘arterial splatter’.

The Hayward Gallery is to show an exhibition of ‘Invisible Art’, with pieces including invisible ink drawings and a plinth once stood on

by Andy Warhol. Hayward director Ralph Rugoff has called it “the best exhibition you’ll never see”.

20

IQ Culture

the world of maurice sendak Laura Hunter

Maurice Sendak - author, illustrator, creative genius. Probably best known for the hugely popular children’s book Where the Wild Things Are, which has sold over 19 million copies worldwide, Sendak’s career spanned an incredible six decades - during which he illustrated in excess of 100 children’s books before writing and illustrating over 20 of his own.

Born in 1928 in Brooklyn, Sendak was the son of Jewish Polish immigrants and had a traumatic childhood which saw his parents’ families perish during the Holocaust. It was an event that greatly affected him and his imagination; Sendak has described how it made him realise that “children were as vulnerable as adults”, and his work gained a “secret purpose” to make children want to go out into the world and live.

It is perhaps because of his own personal tragedy that Sendak can be credited as one of the few writers who truly wrote for children. His stories are written honestly by someone who understood the importance of embracing the freedom and opportunities of childhood. Sendak

wrote to entertain, captivate and amuse his young audience, never with the intention of pleasing parents or teaching children how to behave.

His stories blur the line between dreams and reality, taking his readers on journeys that capture the essence of being a child. His books tell of exciting adventures full of dressing up, monsters, cake and the thrill of escaping danger, enthralling children as they are drawn into worlds that are magical in both ordinary and extraordinary ways. Sendak’s stories allow children to believe that freedom and adventures can be found anywhere in the world, even their own bedroom.

Guiding the reader on their adventure are characters who are messy, rebellious but ultimately believable children.

Max creating chaos in his wolf suit and Mickey causing commotion in the Night Kitchen are just two examples of Sendak’s loveable rogues.

Sendak’s genius has captured the imagination of generations of children and his account of one little boy’s appreciation shows the love felt for him in its purest form: “Once a little boy sent me a charming card with a little drawing on it. I loved

it. I answer all my children’s letters — sometimes very hastily — but this one I lingered over. I sent him a card and I drew a picture of a Wild Thing on it.

I wrote, ‘Dear Jim: I loved your card.’

Then I got a letter back from his mother and she said, ‘Jim loved your card so much he ate it.’ That to me was one of the highest compliments I’ve ever received. He didn’t care that it was an original Maurice Sendak drawing or anything. He saw it, he loved it, he ate it.”

Maurice Sendak, a man whose talent was so great you could eat it.

best of the web As exam season rages on, Matt Jarvis gives us his pick of the internet’s best procrastination aids.

ZeFrank.com Regarded by many as the first prominent video blogger when he rose to web fame in 2001, Ze now runs a thrice-weekly video series titled ‘a show’, covering everything from news and culture to audiencesubmitted problems.

Lifehacker.com A site dedicated to making life easier, Lifehacker provides daily tips on everything from getting more exercise to making your browser unbeatable. It even tells you how to cook bacon perfectly.

What more could you ask for?

the power of photography

Rosa Furneaux

Scrolling through the Guardian’s website last week, two articles placed next to one another caught my eye.

The first was an obituary for the late photojournalist Horst Faas, best known for his Pulitzer prize-winning images of the Vietnam War. The second drew attention to the plight of the Nuba civilians in Sudan, who are facing a double assault: food and aid shortages coupled with vicious and persistent air strikes by the Sudanese air force.

The Nuba, one of Sudan’s marginalised ethnic African communities, have been targeted for months by Sudan’s government – actions which some have equated to genocide. Yet here in Europe and America we have received far fewer images of these hostilities than of other recent conflicts, such as the Syrian violence. Whether this is due to fewer photojournalists reporting from Sudan, or a press who are reluctant to publish their images, remains to be seen. But the power of photographs in raising public action on behalf of those who are suffering should not be doubted.

Horst Faas understood this power.

His images, forced onto a ‘reluctant America’, helped contribute to the antiwar sentiment in the US and across

the world as people were exposed to photographs telling the story of civilians struggling to survive. With this shift in public opinion came a shift in government policy, and America pulled out of Vietnam in 1975.

Photography’s power works for the good of the people, whether it be those suffering in conflict or in peacetime. This summer I will be travelling to Tanzania with the charity READ International, as their in-field photographer. Charities understand the power images possess in rallying support back home, where the reality of situations abroad appears to us only in picture form. While we may not all have to see it to believe it, for most of us the incentive to act comes most strongly from seeing suffering for ourselves.

Horst Faas in Vietnam

Most often this act will be to donate to the charities who are helping on the ground.

READ commissioned me to take photographs not of the suffering that is being experienced in Tanzania, but of the good work they are doing to help relieve some of the hardship.

READ collects unwanted textbooks from UK schools and distributes them to schools in Tanzania, where the syllabus is the same but teachers lack the resources they need. Images of READ’s distribution projects and library renovations play an important role in explaining the importance of the charity’s work, and encouraging people to get involved.

Photography reminds us all of our shared humanity, and the moral necessity of answering another’s cry for help. These cries were ignored in 2004, when it is estimated over 70 000 were killed in the Darfur crisis, which is today thought of as the first genocide of the twenty-first century. Photography’s power needs to be utilised now more than ever if we are to help the Nuba in Sudan, and stop what history may come to call the twenty-first century’s second genocide.

To get involved with READ International, contact Rosa at rjy4@ kent.ac.uk.

Tested.com Originally an independent site focused largely on technology, Tested has since been combined with Mythbusters Jamie Hyneman and Adam Savage. It now covers all sorts of culture including art, photography and science, and produces content from app reviews to in-depth coverage of events and technological breakthroughs.

StumbleUpon.com I’m sure many of you know of the useful procrastination tool that is StumbleUpon. You plug in your interests, hit ‘Stumble’ and the site provides unlimited personalised website suggestions. It’s the easiest way to find something new, and to lose hours to the internet. Whoops!

Also check out: • last.fm: personalised internet radio • tumblr.com: hipster blogging tools • screened.com: community driven film website

IQ Culture

21

tracey emin at turner contemporary Julia Smith

She Lay Down Deep Beneath the Sea is artist Tracey Emin’s first major solo exhibition at the Turner Contemporary here in Kent. Conceived especially for the town of Margate, which was home to the artist during her “misspent youth”, the exhibition is billed as an exploration of the themes of love, sex and eroticism in Emin’s oeuvre.

Sharing an exhibition space with intimate nude studies by J.M.W Turner and Auguste Rodin (whose sculpture The Kiss is on display at the Turner Contemporary until September), Emin presents a huge range of embroidery, drawing, painting, tapestry, sculpture, monoprints and rather idiosyncratic neons in this major presentation of her most recent body of work.

The focus of She Lay Down Deep Beneath the Sea is immediately clear upon beginning to experience the exhibition. One is continually surrounded by the same figure; the reclining female nude, an enduring motif throughout the history of art, is explored by an increasingly tender Emin in scenes marked by a degree of sober femininity.

Gone are the days of reckless controversy for this artist – though there is, in a somewhat ironic move, still a bed to be seen here. Instead, this exhibition seems to herald new development in the career of a formerly brazen Young British Artist. “I’m really enjoying everything Classical … What

this week in: 5 June 1963 Profumo scandal reaches peak Secretary of State for War, John Profumo, resigns over his relationship with 21 year old call girl Christine Keeler, believed to be the mistress of a Soviet spy. Profumo was accused of having lied in Parliament, and the scandal seriously damaged Prime Minister Harold Macmillan’s government.

6 June 1966 James Meredith shot on civil rights march The first black man to break the colour bar at the University of Mississippi, James Meredith was shot while at a civil rights protest.

A federal lawsuit had given him the right to enrol, but he was turned away by a white mob. The resulting riot killed two people and injured 375.

2 June 1984 Wham! are at Number 1 in the UK with Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go.

am I going to do, keep fighting? I don’t have time for that. I see a whole new future for me and my art. I’ve fallen back in love with it. I have a lot to work towards; and I have a lot in my life that is positive,” she says.

Following her hugely successful retrospective at the Hayward Gallery in 2011, the artwork featured in She Lay Down Deep Beneath the Sea was created by Emin with her hometown of Margate specifically in mind. Rather than simply curate another review of her career, the artist decided to present a collection of work that signifies a departure from the characteristic exploration of her past, suggesting instead a natural evolution in her practice and life beyond the town. “No memories from Margate feature in this show.” Emin says. “I could have created a show just with work that features something of the town and of my memories – but I wanted to create something for Margate. I owe it to Margate for everything it’s given me.”

Margate, enduringly known as a workingman’s town as harsh as the North Sea it faces, has been dramatically revitalised since the inauguration of the Turner Contemporary in 2011 as the largest exhibition space in the South East.

With J.M.W Turner himself having once remarked that ‘the skies over Thanet are the loveliest in all Europe,’ it’s interesting that Emin’s tumultuous relationship with Margate has put Kent back on the map as a viable creative and

Photograph by Julia Smith

cultural centre outside of London.

Upon opening the multi- million pound gallery in April of last year, Emin herself had pronounced “The brilliant thing about Turner Contemporary is that it has given people hope that things are going to change here.” And change they have.

One could say that Margate now has as many independent boutiques as it does gauche slot machines. The grubby glow of abandoned arcades has been replaced with the subtle, soft twinkle of successful commerce in Margate Old Town. And forget suspect seafood sold from ancient vans, the town now has a Cupcake Café.

Though Emin chose not to revisit her youth in the work displayed in She Lay Down Deep Beneath the Sea, Margate is the perfect coastal town for Kent

students looking for some introspection.

The Turner Contemporary offers a wonderful opportunity to connect with the arts in an approachable environment, with some truly impressive artists and exhibitions being featured there regularly.

When speaking of the process behind this current show, Emin explained, “Art is like a lover I’ve fallen in and out of love with. When I feel as though I’m on the low ebb of the tide, art comes in and picks me up. It reminds me of what’s good again.” Perhaps the art of Emin - or the delights of Margate - could remind you of what’s good again, too.

She Lay Down Deep Beneath the Sea is open now and runs until 23 September. For more photos of the exhibition, see www.inquirelive.co.uk

viva la (disco) revolution

Harriet Cash Newspaper Culture Editor

If you think disco is just about John Travolta in a tight white suit, think again: the recent deaths of Donna Summer and Bee Gees frontman Robin Gibb are food for thought about how disco shaped the pop landscape. While the late 1970s saw a commercialised version of the genre become tragically passé, a decade earlier disco had been truly revolutionary music.

Born out of the black gay scene in New York, disco was genuinely a new sound.

The original club DJs were playing R’n’B and soul music, mixing records to get people dancing. Importantly, while the 1960s had seen massive leaps forward in terms of sexual freedom and women’s rights, gay liberation was still a long way off. Created without major record labels, this was the music of rebellion, the soundtrack to which repressed minorities could freely express themselves. Everyone thinks of punk as the politically rebellious

genre of the 70s, but disco was pushing boundaries much earlier.

But why are Donna Summer and Robin Gibb important? For one thing, they represent different ends of the disco spectrum, but were both massively influential. Donna Summer was, together with producer Giorgio Moroder, a true musical pioneer. In a pop world saturated with sex, it’s hard to understand today how radical a song like Love To Love You Baby was when first released. Amid the context of the

women’s liberation movement, records like this highlighted female desire in a serious way.

The Bee Gees, on the other hand, never deliberately made disco music – they were blue eyed soul boys whose songs were a perfect fit for Saturday Night Fever, the film which sealed disco’s fate as a global phenomenon.

Gibb was a formidable songwriter, and while the film soundtrack made disco so ubiquitous that a backlash was inevitable, the cynical 70s music press which derided the band while hailing acts like Jethro Tull now seems tragically misguided.

Equally derided by funk and soul fans, and by ‘serious’ rock afficionados for whom it was frivolous nonsense, disco had its revolutionary moment and then morphed effortlessly into the dance music of the early 1980s. Its influence can be heard in practically ever major phase of pop music from the last thirty years, and yet – once you get past all the Travolta clichés – has remained outside classification. Viva disco.

22

Sport

SUN SHINES IN SUCCESSFUL SOCIAL SEVENS

Lorcan O’Duffy Mens Rugby PR & Communications

SATURDAY 26th May saw the Annual UKC Men’s Rugby Social Sevens Tournament at Parkwood Pitches, with 11 teams competing and well over 350 people descending on Parkwood to enjoy the sun, music, flair and ridiculous stash.

The eleven teams came from all parts of the university (even a Team of Christ Church Old Boy) and arrived early to be greeted by some glorious weather, pristine pitches and the Red Bull Truck that provided the soundtrack to the day. With the music pumping, the sun shining and the crowd gathered, it was time to kick off what was set to be a cracking tournament.

The group stages were first, which saw some fierce matches, as well as a lot of top tries.

Some quite large margins appeared, The Flair Fathers suffered an eleven try deficit against the formidable Mountain Trouts and the rest of the games tended to have at least eight tries scored between the two teams.

The group stages led straight to the quarters where Team Pants Down nearly suffered a scare but came back from being 3 tries behind to beat the Christ Church Barbarians 5 tries to 4. The other

Photography by Calum Ashurst

quarters saw the dismissal of The UKC Old Boy’s Team and Alpha All Stars but some strong play from The Mountain Trouts and the AlphaSick*#*#s saw them advance to the semi finals.

Before the Semis kicked off DJ Toby P kept the tunes coming, creating a summer vibe that added to the mood on the day. With the small break sorted and the players having refuelled themselves with Red Bull, the crowds gathered and the Semi Finals started up. Team Pants Down took on the AlphaSick*#*#s whilst

The Mountain Trouts were challenged

by Team Pow. With unrivalled levels of flair the games were extremely close all round but in the end AlphaSick*#*#s and The Mountain Trouts proved to be too strong for their opponents and made their way into the final.

With the sun beaming down and the crowd surrounding the pitch, the final got underway. The Alpha Boys, favourites at the beginning of the Tournament, put on a lot of initial pressure but the Trouts always seemed

to have the extra bit of flair to break their lines. The Mountain Trouts took the day by winning seven tries to eight.

For the final big sports event of the UKC Men’s Rugby Calendar, Social Sevens 2012 sent the Leavers out in style, with a cracking day combining rugby, friends, music and flair, what more could you want?

If you want to find out about the other events running throughout the year, look us up on Facebook at University of Kent Men’s Rugby.

ENGLAND’S NEW LOOK SQUAD: SINK OR SWIM?

Our writers give negative and positive opinions on England’s squad ahead of Euro 2012...

Alex Trayling STAR player suspended? Check. Injuries forcing promising youngsters to miss out?

Check. A destructive race row engulfing former captain? Check. Sound familiar?

Well, it could only be an international tournament involving England.

Yes, we’ve heard it all before – so what suggests this time in Ukraine things will be different for Roy Hodgson’s Three Lions?

For better or worse, goalkeepers have a history of making headlines in England’s recent tournament escapades.

The first time in years that we have an established, genuine world class man between the sticks should encourage us.

Joe Hart is Manchester City’s reliable goalkeeper who could potentially be England’s number one for the next decade. He had an impressive season picking up not only the Premier League title, but also the Golden Glove for most clean sheets. Let’s not forget about his performance against Swansea this year either- he isn’t bad at saving penalties.

Against all odds, Chelsea’s “parking the bus” antics won them the Champion’s League knocking out Barcelona no less en route to the final. Hodgson has picked 3 of Chelsea’s defensive stalwarts and if they can demonstrate the same desire and

competence shown in that competition, leaking goals should not be an issue.

England’s so-called golden generation contained an embarrassment of riches but none more so than in midfield.

For years, Eriksson, McClaren and Capello all failed to make the LampardGerrard combination tick, and Euro 2012 represents the last chance for some. Barry, Parker and Lampard may all be labelled as “slow” but in Ashley Young, Walcott and OxladeChamberlain, England have added some much-needed pace, width and skill.

Now I may be wearing rose-tinted glasses when I say that when Wayne Rooney misses two group games, it is a blessing in disguise. He was quite frankly knackered, burdened with expectation and in need of a rest before South Africa. He gets that this time. He has forged a promising partnership with Danny Welbeck at Manchester United of late, and with Andy Carroll finally starting to repay some of the £35m paid by Liverpool, the striking options are not as toothless as some parts of the media would have you believe.

England expects? Not so much this time around, but perhaps with no real expectation levels, the Three Lions can at last do themselves justice at a major tournament. No pressure then, boys.

Euan Anckorn WE have already accepted it, England are not going to win Euro 2012. We cannot possibly compete with the likes of Spain, Germany and Holland.

But England cannot always be the tournament favourites. This is not even necessarily due to something being wrong with English football.

Some generations of footballers are just not as good as others, and this generation is certainly not the best we’ve ever seen.

Of course we do have two great players in Joe Hart and Wayne Rooney but many of the ill-fated ‘golden generation’ are now looking distinctly past their best.

Because of this, many expected the squad for the European Championships to be a revolution. It would be used to give a chance to our new bright hopes to build tournament experience.

With the appointment of Roy Hodgson it seemed even more likely that this was the direction the English national team was going in. That didn’t quite happen.

Roy Hodgson’s squad was for the most part the group of players that have let us down before.

To be fair, there are a few new faces, with Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, John Ruddy, Phil Jones and Danny Welbeck

being named in the twenty three.

Andy Carroll is of course also fairly new to the international scene, though his inclusion seems rather strange considering how terrible he has been through the vast majority of the season.

You have to remember, both Jack Wilshere and Kyle Walker are out injured. But there are some glaring omissions which have really taken the gloss off of the squad.

I was rather excited to see what Daniel Sturridge could do in an England shirt, and it is a great shame that Micah Richards, Adam Johnson and Aaron Lennon have missed out.

Whichever squad Hodgson had named, England were always going to struggle. In fact, I do not think we will even get out of group.

France will be more than an uphill struggle, Sweden have always been a bogey team for England and facing the hosts Ukraine will be no easy task either.

Got an opinion? We’d like to hear from you, visit www. inquirelive.co.uk for more Sports related opinions, news and features.

Sport 23

the future of wake & surf society Alex Cassidy Newspaper Sport Editor SET up in October last year, Wake & Surf is the newest sport society on campus, and has quickly developed a successful following. Elliott Caen, the president and founder of the society, sat down with InQuire to discuss his motives and future plans with Wake & Surf.

Hi Elliott, thank you for joining us.

First things first, What is Wake & Surf?

The full name is Wakeboarding & Surfing. In initial talks about getting the club started, we were only going to create a Wakeboarding society, but we decided that there was enough interest around campus to broaden our scope to become a dual sport society.

Wakeboarding is one of the newest upand-coming sports, which gains interest year on year and has so much potential for expansion. Whereas Surfing is one the oldest international sports and really deserves a place on campus.”

What drove you to create a Wake & Surf Society in the first place?

I was really enjoying Wakeboarding over Easter and Summer last year, so when this academic year started I

wanted a way to continue Wakeboarding and get others involved.

Starting the society was the obvious solution. The initial reaction that I got was really positive and interest has continued to grow, which is very exciting in terms of next year and realising our potential.

What events do you do now, and do you have any that you hope to be planning in the future?

For the rest of this year we will be continuing our weekly trips to Thorpe Wakeboarding Park, one of the best parks in the country. On top of that we have one of our biggest events of the year coming up at the end of June, the student Wakeboarding nationals in Sheffield.

The weekend attracts student competitors from over 30 universities around the country. It’s a chance to see some great riders, win prizes, and have a fun time. Next year we plan on having several big events as soon as term starts, with a Surfing trip to Cornwall as well as a big Wakeboard development weekend to get all our beginners started.

How many active members do you currently have, and what are your plans for recruitment at the beginning of next year?

Photography courtesy of Claire Herbert.

We are still a relatively small club, although we have already made a lot of progress this year.

We hope that Fresher’s Fayre and time to prepare for next year can help us create a bigger presence on campus and give us the chance to build on the progress we have already made.

Our new committee is very ambitious and has some big ideas.

Elliott, why should potential new

members join Wake & Surf, and what level of experience is required to play the sport?

It’s a chance to try something new at a very good price with a welcoming group of people.

We have lots of ideas and ambition and we are always looking for new members of all experience levels. We are also a very social team with a lighthearted approach.

NINTH CAPOEIRA BATIZADO HELD IN CANTERBURY Rebecca Gracher KENT Capoeira Students currently learning with Brazilian Capoeira instructor, Madeira Muzenza gathered at the University to begin The Grupo Muzenza Capoeiras 9th Batizado which began on Saturday 19th May and lasted throughout the weekend.

On the Saturday morning, they met the people who would be examining their expertise – or lack thereof – and deciding whether or not to give them the belts they had been training for.

Unfortunately there were mild interaction problems with Contra Mestre Nil, who did the exam for the students despite only speaking Portugese and only able to communicate with one student. Even with this problem, all of the students managed to pass the exam. Later that day the group of 20 people gathered in their Grupo Muzenza uniforms to have a demonstration Roda in front of the Marlowe Theatre in Canterbury. A Roda is a game that literally means ‘circle’ in Portugese.

A fundamental aspect of Capoeira, it consists of a ring of people led by a group of musicians , with two players inside it. The musicians play a rhythm that determines the style and movements used by the players. The Roda is vital to the nature of Capoeira, as it greatly affects

the energy and excitement of the game.

It was here that they brought a taste of Brazil to England; singing, playing and fighting throughout the afternoon.

A second Roda was organized only a short while later at the UKC campus in front of the Venue. This provided a lot of enjoyment for the students, and a small audience soon gathered.

After playing for a while, the rhythm of the instruments changed and gave way to samba, leading to a climactic end resulting in everybody dancing.

The next morning, the group gathered again for a workshop with one of the leading masters of Grupo Muzena, Mestre Sargento, who had come to England from Portugal especially for the occasion.

In his class he playfully explained a little about the history of Capoeira and taught the participants some new moves and sequences. Later we had the honour of welcoming Mestre Paulão, the founder of Grupo Muzena, who gave a presentation about the origins and history of the art and sport of Capoeira.

The final and possibly most exciting event for this jam-packed weekend was the Batizado itself. Batizado is Portuguese for ‘baptism’ and describes a rite of passage for new students of the art. Following a successful first exam, they take part in a Roda with other students, instructors and masters.

Photography courtesy of Anoop Singh Kung.

After receiving and putting their belts on, they wait for their turn to enter the circle and play against one of the instructors. They play until their more experienced opponent decides to take them down. This is the process that makes each individual a real Capoerista.

The ‘axe’ - the proper name for the ‘energy’ within the Roda - was immense and everyone who was there felt like they were experiencing something great. Those that received their first belts were among the most

proud, especially due to the group’s founder being present at the Batizado.

It was a great honour for Capoeira UKC to be hosting this prestigous event and to some of the significant figures of Capoeira Muzenza come from Brazil, Portugal and Spain.

Special thanks should go to our instructor, Madeira, who brought the Batizado to Kent, and to Rhodri Batatinha Brown, our President, for all the time and effort he put into our club and the Batizado this year.

visit our website at - www.inquirelive.co.uk/sport

InQuire sport

Photography courtesy of Dawn Nigli.

KENT CHEER ‘GO DOTTY’ FOR DEMELZA Amandine Courtois On 23rd May, Kent Cheer visited Demelza Children’s Hospice as part of their new partnership with the not for profit organisation in South Kent.

After raising funds for Demelza at the Kent County Cricket game on Sunday 20th, Kent Cheer provided entertainment at the hospice the following Wednesday, performing a routine in the afternoon for Demelza’s annual Go Dotty week.

From the 18th until the 25th of May, the charity tries to raise funds and awareness, while people supporting the cause are asked to wear polka dot clothes.

After raising £45,000 last year, their goal this year is to reach £50,000, with over 180 organisations taking part in the special event. Kent Cheer is also planning on attending Demelza’s annual run in Mote Park in Maidstone on 16th September.

The cheerleaders involvement is a good way to draw attention to the charity, not

only on campus but also through friends , families and social networks. Kent Cheer had a very successful first visit at the Hospice, and cannot wait to embrace this partnership next year thanks to a really friendly welcome from the charity.

Demelza Hospice Care for Children is a charity that looks after children with life threatening illnesses and provides their families with any support they might need.

With three different locations, including a six bedroom Hospice in Eltham and Hospice at Home services in East Sussex, Demelza expanded progressively with their new addition of two bedrooms in their biggest site in Sittingbourne, which now welcomes up to ten children and their families. The charity counts around 200 workers and relies greatly on about 1,200 volunteers representing around 60 full time members.

Demelza also provides the children and families with great equipment and facilities such as a multi-sensory room, jacuzzi, an arts and craft room

and big areas where the children can socialise and play or watch TV. The children and families do not live in the hospices, but choose to stay there when they want or need to, offering the kids some of their best memories and giving their relatives some time to relax.

Kent Cheer’s aim for next year is to use this partnership to its fullest and give as much time to the charity as they can, providing entertainment for the children and their families as well as helping to raise funds.

Kent Cheer’s current Shadow President and the person responsible for the partnership, Jody Miller, chose this organisation “not only to raise money for the charity but also to help brighten the days of children not expected to reach adulthood”.

Following the charity’s motto “Adding life to days when days cannot be added to life”, Demelza’s Corporate Partnerships Manager, Donna Wells, believes that this alliance with Kent Cheer is a

“perfect fit and the best way to celebrate the time that the children do have”.

This partnership can also be seen to help improve the reputation of university students, as well as highlight the importance of university sports clubs within the local community.

Miller, speaking on this subject said: “As well as being a competitive cheerleading squad, part of our role is to offer support and to entertain.

A large amount of students at Kent participate in sport, and if each club takes an active role in fundraising for charities then a lot of money and attention can help benefit those in need.”

Donna Wells echoed Jody’s feeling and thinks it is essential to send a message to young people and especially university students, since they are “the ambassadors of the future in the business world”.

For more information about Demelza Hospice Care for Children, please visit www.demelza.org.uk