Issue 81

Q

MONDAY 18th NOVEMBER 2013 ISSUE 81

QMESSENGER.CO.UK

THE OFFICIAL NEWSPAPER OF QUEEN MARY STUDENTS’ UNION

ISoc vows to keep the faith Zoe Cantley News Editor

On the 17th of last month a statement was released on Islamic Society’s (ISOC) Facebook page expressing unhappiness with the current facilities available to carry out prayer and plans to protest. The purpose of the protest was outlined in this statement as ‘in order to bring to the university’s attention the fact that this predicament can no longer continue and that they must respond with utmost urgency, to provide: a suitable venue that can accommodate 500+ students that attend the service; catering for both male and female student/ staff and that this venue be made permanently available once a week, every Friday afternoon, at the agreed time-slot.’

Currently, there is a MultiFaith room in the Student’s Hub that caters to all religious groups, offering anyone who wishes a place to worship. QMessenger has spoken to students, asking their opinions on this room and many believe it to be a ‘cop-out’ and inadequate. Arguably, this is an issue of space and a lack of facilities. In more general terms, the University’s official stance on space is that there is none, with no free rooms available. The issue of space is becoming an increasing problem, affecting students across the board, religious or otherwise. We are one of the most multicultural universities around, situated in the vibrant, diverse East End, with a particularly strong Muslim presence.

As a result of the large quantity of Muslims at Queen Mary, the small Multi-Faith room is not big enough for all Muslims in attendance at the University to pray together, and this is especially a problem during Friday prayers.

NEWS Tony Blair visits campus

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When asked to comment, the University revealed their side of the argument, ‘space is limited and our priority is to provide lecture and seminar rooms for our 18,000 students. It is not feasible, nor within our educational

COMMENT Brand versus Paxman

remit, to make a permanent commitment to provide facilities for large congregational assemblies of 400-500 people.’

‘We have a Multi-Faith Centre, in our new £5m student hub, providing prayer and washing

CULTURE Christmas is coming

facilities for all faith groups on campus. On Fridays these spaces are booked for Jumu’ah. We are also a five-minute walk from four local mosques and under a mile from the East London Mosque, one of the largest in the UK.

‘This semester, the Great Hall and Octagon are booked and used for teaching and exams on Fridays until mid-afternoon. On occasion, the teaching may fin-

Continued on News 02

SATIRE

SOCIETIES

SPORTS

HS2 Speed harder

Are you Saving Face?

Evening with an Olympian

02NEWS EDITORIAL TEAM: Student Media Officer Tom Wyke

Editor in Chief Sarah Power

Deputy Editor Jasmine Virhia

Sub Editors

Sarah Pinder, Aisha Rimi and Stephanie Relf

News

Zoe Cantley and Sao Mai Ly

Features

Fern Champion and Tasha Mathur

Comment

Natasha Frith, Laura Gilbert and Charlie Pullen

Culture

Alice Howarth and Ciara Judge

Satire

Lucretia McCarthy and Keumars Afifi-Sabet

Societies

Fariha Alauddin and Minerva Amador-Christie

Sports

Michael Barraclough, Richard Maher and Rumman Sikdar

Proofreaders

Thasnima Begum, Francesca Brown, Lydia Lewis, Jade Tolley and Leigh Whitlie

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Station Manager: Finlay Milligan www.qmtvchannel.co.uk

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Managing Editor: Lauren Cantillon www.cubmagazine.co.uk

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Station Manager: Vuki Popović www.questradio.co.uk QMessenger is printed at Mortons of Horncastle Ltd, Media Centre, Morton Way, Horncastle, Lincolnshire, LN9 6JR. Tel: 01507 523 456. Each issue has a print run of 1,000 and costs £445 to print and deliver.

Established in 2008, QMessenger is the free bi-monthly newspaper of Queen Mary Students’ Union. We are proud of our editorial independence and endeavour to always hold the College, Union and external bodies to account and to provide the best news and analysis to the students of Queen Mary, University of London.

QMessenger is created entirely by students and the publication retains all copyright of design, text, photographs and graphics, along with the individual contributor.

Any views expressed in QMessenger are those of the individual writer and do not necessarily reflect those of the paper, the editorial board, Queen Mary Students’ Union or Queen Mary, University of London.

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Continued from front page ish early, but it varies week to week. Both are in high demand and there would often be a need to remove more than 200 tables and chairs, which would take at least an hour to provide a space suitable for prayers."

ISoc have also launched a petition on change.org directed at Queen Mary’s principal Simon Gaskell. The petition is entitled ‘Queen Mary University of London: Petition for Permanent and Adequate Friday Prayer Provision’. Currently, 2718 people have signed the petition, surpassing the required target of 2282 signatures. Gaskell has said he will not be making any changes to policy regarding prayer rooms, ‘We say we're here to accommodate private acts of worship ... like most universities we are very pressed for resources’.

The Islamic community prays five times a day and Friday prayers are particularly important, as it is their holy day. ISOC have used this holy day as an opportunity to demonstrate their discontent at the current situation using their vast numbers, which in turn demonstrates a key issue: the fact that the size of the Islamic community at Queen Mary is disproportionate to the size of the Multi-Faith room provided. According to ISOC, 20% of QM is Muslim. For two consecutive weeks (and with plans to continue until their voices are heard and change is implemented) ISOC have held their Friday prayers outside the iconic Queen’s Building. Last week, many praised the dedication and

MONDAY 18TH NOVEMBER 2013 perseverance of these individuals as they continued prayer through the torrential rain.

The protest, or campaign, as it could possibly now be called, has gathered much momentum with national publications such as the Huffington Post and The Independent reporting on the ‘Friday Prayer Protest’.

Commenting on the ongoing situation, President of Queen Mary Student Union, Sarah Sarwar said ‘the union is in full support of the ISOC’s ‘Right to Pray’ protest. It is vital that the university recognises the demands of such a large proportion of the student body. The ISOC are requesting space to be found for an hour a week, and have displayed the collective will and desire of over 300 people - they have given ample evidence of a demonstrable demand and any university that cares for its student experience should really consider this.

The ISOC have made it clear that this is not an aggressive campaign, but one where the aim is to engage in dialogue with the University to establish good relations and come to some sort of agreement where both parties are satisfied.’

QMessenger also spoke with the Head Sister of Queen Mary Islamic Society who described how she thought the campaign was going, ‘right now, the campaign has gained momentum since the ‘prayer protest’ last Friday, and we’re at a stage where we’ve generated a lot of support from the wider student body, Muslims and non-Muslims alike, as well as local media outlets and influential

leaders in the surrounding community. It’s looking promising and the Islamic Society will continue working alongside its Students’ Union and other faith and non-faith societies in the next few weeks to essentially drive this campaign forward, ultimately putting as much pressure on the University to revoke its decision in denying its large Muslim populous adequate provisions for Friday Congregational prayers.’

She continued, ‘the Islamic Society will not stand down until change is implemented and the Muslim students and staff at QM are catered for. This is no longer a campaign; it’s a movement and all those who believe in the freedom to express their rights, are welcome to stand with us and we openly invite you all, faith or no faith, to stand with us. It’s simple; we at the Islamic Society simply wish to pray and learn.’

In the initial statement some background and context of this continued and worsening situation was given, ‘over the past 4-5 years, there have been ongoing discussions with the Students’ Union and university management, which has seen the ISOC call for the establishment of a permanent prayer facility to cater for Muslim students on campus … In 2012, there were student-led consultation meetings to determine time slots and arrangements for shared use amongst the faith societies, for the recently developed Multi-Faith Centre (MFC) on the 2nd floor of the SU Hub.’ ‘We at the ISOC envisaged many logistical problems that we wanted to avoid such as timeta-

ble clashes etc, which have unfortunately come to fruition. The ISOC have kept up discussions with both the SU and university management to resolve this issue, and in doing so, passed a motion in the Student Council as well as preparing a case document for the university, supported by the SU, students and staff. With regards to Friday prayers, the ISOC have traditionally conducted the weekly service in either the Octagon or the Great Hall, which sufficed in accommodating the 500+ student/staff that regularly attend the service, both male and female. In the last two years, the university management has gradually restricted the use of these two venues.’

It was revealed that students’ (in particular female Muslim students) fundamental right was being taken away due to this problem, ‘this has unfortunately lead to many being unable to exercise their fundamental right of prayer on campus. Since Jumu’ah is not obligatory upon sisters, the ISOC took the hard decision to prioritise brothers upon whom it is obligatory, whilst acknowledging that the situation is far from the ideal arrangement and that our sisters ought not be barred from attending if they so wish.’

It seems that this academic year the problems with booking space have only increased with the only two suitable venues to hold Friday Prayers, The Great Hall and The Octagon unavailable leaving ISOC nowhere large enough.

QMessenger will be keeping you updated as this campaign continues.

Raise and Give’s Macmillian Coffee Morning Helena Crossley and Jeny Podgorska This October, which also happened to be Breast Cancer Awareness Month, RAG joined in with the World’s Biggest Coffee Morning, Macmillan’s largest annual event.

Every year people unite for this cause and participate in different initiatives and fundraising events but the pinnacle is always people of all ages and backgrounds coming together for a brew and a biscuit.

This year Macmillan’s World’s Biggest Coffee Morning raised over £12 million, and here at Queen Mary we are proud to say we also made our own contribution, albeit a small one.

RAG’s own Macmillan Coffee Morning proved to be a very successful one and with your kind

support we raised £194 in just two hours!

Our event couldn’t have been so successful without the Support of The Baking Society who donated some homemade cakes and cookies!

We want to thank everyone who came to buy coffee and cupcakes. No matter how little you gave you have helped Macmillan carry on its valuable work.

Find us on Facebook under “QM RAG 2013/2014” to keep up to date with our upcoming events including ticket information for the sell-out Itchy Feet, Jailbreak, and much more.

To find out more information on The Baking Society just drop them an email bakingsociety@ qmsu.org image credit Spitalfields_E1

NEWS03

MONDAY 18TH NOVEMBER 2013

“Brilliant Atmosphere of Empowerment” at the Annual Reclaim the Night March Heather Mew On Saturday 26th October members of QMEquality took part in the Reclaim the Night March – a feminist march which occurred in Central London. The event was a self identifying women-only march, and was held in protest against male violence towards women and the victimisation of rape survivors.

Reclaim the Night is an annual march to mark the 25th of November, the United Nation’s International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women.

Reclaim the Night marches have been occurring across Europe and America since the 1970’s, with the first march in the UK staged in 1977. The first marches were held to protest against rape, and for women’s right to walk the streets at night without fear. Today, the aim of the march is to show support for essential women’s services, to demand justice for rape survivors, and to spread the message that no woman is ever ‘asking’ to be treated violently.

The march was organised by the London Feminist Network who argue that today, women are still blamed for rape and male violence towards them. Susuana Antubam, the ULU women’s officer, organised ULU’s first student, womenonly panel to discuss violence against female students before the event. By chance, ULU students ended up leading part of the march with chants that discussed the fight for safer streets, and how the campaign needs to be all encompassing - including all women. Students from many different London cam-

puses turned up to support and take part in the march, including many from our own Queen Mary.

Susuana argued that marches such as Reclaim the Night are “very empowering, and it is important to involve the student body in this because sexual violence happens on campuses and we need to speak up about it”.

Members of QMEquality, a society aimed at challenging sexism and encouraging female equality, attended the Reclaim the Night March. Issy Leach, QMEquality president, claimed that “there was a brilliant atmosphere of empowerment” and that “overall we had a positive reception from people on the streets taking leaflets and cheering throughout the march”.

However, the London Feminist Network and the Reclaim the Night marches have been criticised by some for having negative attitudes towards sex workers. Issy Leach highlighted how there were “some anti-sex work chants from some sections of the march”. Wanda Canton, the founder of QMEquality, argued “the march still perpetuates negative attitudes towards sex workers, with demonising chants which continue to divide us”.

Despite the short fallings of Reclaim the Night, the overall consensus was that events such as this increase awareness of violence against women and the victimisation of rape survivors, whilst also empowering the participating women.

Find QMEquality on Facebook and Twitter for information on other upcoming gender equality events in, or around Queen Mary.

image credit katjung

Near Field Communications Rushdan Sifar

NFC isn’t another fried chicken shop. Near Field Communications, if you are familiar with QR codes, work in a different way to give a similar outcome. Tap your phone on an NFC tag whilst on your home screen and a webpage will pop up.

Unlike QR codes, you don’t have to open an app to use the technology.

Sam Amrani, 22, is a Queen Mary alumnus who co-founded Tag Mobile Company (TAMOCO) and sits as Executive Chairman. TAMOCO does NFC marketing applications, where companies use the tags to interact with their customers. For example, TAMOCO carried out a campaign in New York City for a book publisher. Consumers went

on a scavenger hunt, finding hidden tags and winning a signed book at the end. Increasingly creative efforts by retailers, brands and companies to engage customers are being made possible by partnering with TAMOCO for their growing expertise in setting up and running the operation.

In a push to make Queen Mary’s world-class research engage with students and the public, Queen Mary is partnering with TAMOCO for a tag campaign. TAMOCO is also using this engagement to further test and analyse their system in action. The scheme is being piloted on posters at Mile End, and the project is rolling out to other University of London campuses as well. Look out for them at the

School of Physics and Astronomy and the Centre for Public Engagement for instance. Tapping your phone on a tag will bring up information on the activities taking place inside the building as well as additional information. The tags are rewriteable, and can be remotely programmed so that they can be updated with new content and for new uses.

However, iPhone users will not be privy to the NFC campaign. Apple has not embraced the technology, perhaps planning to include the features of NFC in a different way.

Some critics say Apple lags behind other mobile manufacturers by not considering technologies such as NFC. At the moment though, Apple has arguably dealt a bigger blow to

the fledgling NFC industry than it has been affected by not including NFC. In any case, there will still be QR codes corresponding to the tags on campus.

Peter McOwan, QM’s Vice-Principal of Public Engagement and Student Enterprise, said “This innovative partnership will help us explore new methods to make our campus more accessible, informative and interesting for students and our local community, while promoting student enterprise and giving Sam that data he needs to help grow his company.”

TAMOCO, founded in 2012, is not Sam’s first start-up. He set up Kace London, a phone accessories company while still an undergraduate. Sam applied for seed funding

from Queen Mary’s Student Enterprise fund and got the money, allowing him to accelerate marketing for Kace London. Now TAMOCO has received £5000 in funding from ‘Start-Up Loan’, a government-backed scheme with investor James Caan as chair.

If you are inspired by Sam’s unfolding story, or Tory Burch, or Jack Dorsey, remember; Queen Mary wants to support your entrepreneurial efforts. Queen Mary has a compelling Student Entrepreneurship Prize Fund, and an impelling Entrepreneurs’ Society to join.

College is the one sure convergence of place and time where you have the hours, energy and spark to set up a company without risking anything, so why not give it a shot?

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04NEWS

MONDAY 18TH NOVEMBER 2013

University of London snubs Rememberance Day service

Keumars Afifi-Sabet Representatives from University of London Union (ULU) were absent from the University of London Remembrance service on November 10 following a ‘blanket ban’ on representation, passed at Student Senate late last month.

Members of the Senate voted in favour of a motion which prohibited officers and staff from attending the University of London’s Remembrance ceremony in an official capacity. However, the motion stipulated elected representatives were free to attend the ceremony in a personal capacity “in line with the political beliefs they may hold”.

Michael Chessum, ULU president,

did not attend the service. Speaking with the Telegraph, Chessum said: “ULU has democratically established a policy on its engagement with official Remembrance which leaves room for officers and students to act freely.”

He added: “Either attending or not attending official ceremonies is a political act. Personally, I will commemorate the dead killed in war by fighting for peace and challenging the policies of governments, not by standing next to war criminals like Tony Blair on plinths, pretending that these acts are ‘triumphant’.”

The recent snub follows the ‘Poppygate’ debacle a little over 12 months ago. In November 2012

Daniel Cooper, ULU vice-president, declined an invitation to lay a wreath at the University of London service.

He justified his decisions, suggested: “Mourning the butchery of thousands of ordinary people through an act of remembrance side by side with the inheritors of an economic system which created the war is not something I wish to take part in. It is an insult to those sent to die, victims of the self interested advancement of the British Empire.”

The ban on representation at this year’s service has been met with complaints from a large contingent of the University of London student population.

In an open letter critiquing the decision, Jay Stroll, General Secretary of the London School of Economics Students’ Union (LSE SU) wrote: “Whilst clearly people are free to not attend such a service, putting a blanket ban on representatives attending in an official capacity is utterly absurd.” He added: “LSE should be proud to stand together, for if only a couple of minutes, to remember those to whom we owe such a very great deal.”

Meanwhile Joe Glenton, a former British soldier and author, wrote in the London Student, challenging the political interpretation of remembrance in modern society.

In an article entitled ‘The way we remember war is political and al-

ways has been,’ Glenton wrote: “The politics of remembrance have always been contested, not least by soldiers themselves. He added: “There will be no mention in this year’s ceremonies of the disgruntled veterans who returned from war in 1918 to a land ‘fit for heroes’ but to grinding poverty.”

The piece concluded: “War is inglorious and should be presented as such. Even if a given war could be just in theory, its fundamental aim is still to pound the human spirit until it submits or dies. The act of remembrance, as it pertains to those killed in wars, then should, in my view, reflect this reality of war; I believe Remembrance in Britain no longer does this.”

Ex-Prime Minister Tony Blair comes to Queen Mary

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Zoe Cantley News Editor Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair came to our very own Queen Mary at the 100th meeting of the Mile End Group on Monday 28th October. The session was chaired by John Rentoul of The Independent on Sunday. Blair served as Prime Minister from 1997 to 2008 in what could be called a very controversial ‘reign’ with the invasion of Iraq in 2003. Blair was at Queen Mary to answer questions from a mixture of students, alumni and academics. There were even two former Cabinet secretaries in the audience.

The title of the discussions was ‘How Government Works’ with Blair offering many opinions of our current government, “If it’s a coali-

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tion of conviction I’m for it (…) If it’s a coalition of convenience, it can blunt the impact of government change”. The former Prime Minister accepted that there were coalition-like elements to his own government; “If you don’t have a coalition between parties you tend to get one within the party.” In addition he discussed how there is a need for governments to grow, adapt and modernise in our fast changing society. He also reminisced on his own time as leader of the Labour Party and his time at number 10 Downing Street. He also revealed his belief that future Prime Ministers and politicians in general need to explore a life outside of politics and gain some real life experience. He believes politicians should have a career outside of politics for ‘several years’ before

taking a seat at the House of Commons.

We spoke to students asking for their opinions of Blair’s visit to campus, and many were happy that such a prominent figure in politics was at our university and involved in discussion with students and staff. However not everyone was happy with his visit, after the war in Iraq many believe him to be a ‘war criminal’ and ‘terrorist’ with Wanda Canton, a member of QMEquality commenting that she just only wished students like her had been given more notice in order to ‘disrupt’. The issue of advertisement about Mr Blair’s visit is one that has been reiterated by many students. For example Nigel Wong expressed his unhappiness, ‘as a final year politics student I was really disappointed we weren’t told

or invited to the talk even with heavy security checks were required.’ Blair’s visit to campus was not released until last minute.

Mr Gaskell, the Principal of Queen Mary expressed his enthusiasm and happiness over the visit from the ex Prime Minister, “I’m delighted that the Mile End Group is celebrating its 100th meeting.

This is a significant achievement and MEG’s success and longevity is testament to the excellent and innovative work carried out by Dr Jon Davis and the team of postgraduate students over the last 10 years, as well as to the knowledge and support provided by a number of very prominent individuals from the worlds of politics and business.”

He continued, “Engaging the public in our academic work is

a central and defining feature of Queen Mary and MEG has been a cornerstone of this activity. It has led the way in promoting an understanding of how government works, to the great benefit of our students, staff and the wider public.”

Overall, there were mixed opinions about Blair’s visit to our East End campus, however it can be said that having influential figures such as Blair in discussions such as these is a very positive for the already excellent Mile End Group If you didn’t get the chance to see the Q&A go to the Mile End Group’s online page to see it in full http://www.mileendgroup.com/ event/how-government-works/

NEWS05

MONDAY 18TH NOVEMBER 2013

Quest Radio relaunches Krishna Halai Media is one of the most effective ways for us to stay part of this ever connected world. The University has various forms of student media that are funded through the Student Union including QMessenger, Cub Magazine, QMTV and Quest.

Quest Radio is a part of the strong student media team at Queen Mary and relaunches this term on 11th November, with regular student hosted programmes. The radio was established in 2006, initially intended to be a separate student society, but is now part of student media at Queen Mary. Quest describes itself as having a dual purpose; intended to entertain and inform students and staff at the University, as well as being set up professionally, which helps provide radio experience for those who intend to go into the media industry. Quest Radio has proved to be popular amongst students, both with listeners, and with those who present and produce

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the shows. Last year’s programming under previous Station Manager, Chris Smith, was nominated for the Student Radio Association (SRA) awards. The SRA is an organisation that represents student radio stations all over the UK. The SRA awards ceremony took place at the IndigO2 on 7th November, but unfortunately,

Quest was up against some great opponents and didn’t win, but they hope for a win at next year’s awards. This year’s Station Manager is Vuki Popović, a third year IT student at QM. He is working with a dedicated team of students who have worked endlessly to make this a successful year for the radio. Vuki told QMessenger, “We’ve invested a lot of money

into the broadcast centre this year to offer students the experience of working at a real radio station”.

Though you may not have heard of the radio this academic year, you are sure to be hearing about it every day now that it has launched. Quest is going to be played during weekdays in the Student Union Hub, Drapers and

Ground café, and will be hosting specialised shows produced by students. For those interested in joining any of the various media outlets, more information can be found online on the QMSU website.

To listen to Quest in action visit http://www.questradio.co.uk and hit play.

Queen Mary to collaborate with Pakistan’s Lahore College for Women University Sao Mai Ly News Editor Queen Mary University of London will work in partnership with Lahore College for Women University (LCWU) in order to promote women’s education in Pakistan in Linguistics and English Language Teaching.

The collaboration will consist of

workshops, collaborative teaching, staff and student exchanges, publication exchanges and staff visits.

Queen Mary’s School of Languages, Linguistics and Film (SLLF) and LCWU’s Institute of Language and Culture (ILC) will work together in the fields of Applied Linguistics and Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL).

Joint activities will include the

creation of an English Language Support Unit at LCWU, which will provide an intensive course in English language – English for All: Access and Equity for Higher Education and Employment.

Kathryn Richardson, Chair of the Language Centre within Queen Mary’s SLLF, has commented: ‘We are proud to sign such a prestigious collaboration with a university of

the standing of LCWU, which offers a wide range of programmes across so many disciplines. We look forward to a long and sustainable partnership and to seeing the fruits of our work inspire generations of students to come.’

She was in Lahore last month to sign a Memorandum of Understanding with LCWU. LCWU’s Vice Chancellor, Pro-

fessor Sabina Mansoor, expressed optimism that the partnership will contribute in developing the teaching of national and regional languages.

Queen Mary’s work to improve gender equality has earned the university bronze and silver Athena SWAN awards in 2013.

QMUL joins Research Libraries UK Sao Mai Ly News Editor Queen Mary University of London has joined Research Libraries UK (RLUK), which represents 34 leading research libraries in the UK and Ireland.

The decision to join RLUK has come after the completion of an Open Access project to make the work of university researchers available to all.

Funded by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, the project ensures that the results

of publicly funded research studies are accessible to students and academics.

Emma Bull, QMUL Librarian and Director of Student Services said ‘It’s a great honour to join RLUK and an opportunity to work with other member libraries on scholarly publishing and relationships with publishers, to secure best value for our researchers.’ She added ‘We’re currently working to build a stronger research support team and to develop and exploit our Library and Archives Collections.’

‘In March we launched our re-

search support blog, discussing the latest developments in Open Access initiatives and guidance.’

RLUK Executive Director David Prosser commented ‘We are very pleased to welcome Queen Mary to RLUK.’ ‘Research libraries play a vital part in our continued research excellence and support the contribution our world-leading research institutions make to the economic and intellectual prosperity of the UK and Ireland.’

‘RLUK is defined by the collaborative strength and experience of

our members, and we look forward to the expertise and energy that Queen Mary will undoubtedly bring

in helping us achieve the best research library support in the world.’

Image credit stevecadman

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06COMMENT Brand vs Paxo: “The green bench pantomime”

MONDAY 18TH NOVEMBER 2013

Liam Anderson Anyone who witnessed Russell Brand’s recent Newsnight headto-head with Jeremy Paxman will have been broadly split into two groups: those who were swept up in the lavish eloquence of the articulate and revolutionary sex god (that’s Brand not Paxman), and those who smugly sprinkled the pinch of salt they had been advised to equip themselves with, whilst in the digital presence of Brand, as once again it seemed Paxo had come out on top.

For all you who missed it, Paxman repeatedly berated Brand for having a political stance and vision when he himself had never bothered to vote. Then came the revelation, just a week after this verbose scuffle, that Paxman had abstained in the last election due to what he called ‘the green bench pantomime in Westminster’. Although many people saw this as an ‘egg on your face’, ‘eat your slice of humble f****ing pie’ moment for Jeremy, it also brought light to the greater issue of both men feeling as though there wasn’t an adequately strong left wing party for them to turn to.

Though Brand’s radicalism cannot be too bunched up with Paxman’s centre left views, it still brought the political dilemma into the light.

As a freethinking, peaceful and loving twenty-year-old I sympathised with the bulk of Russell

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Brand’s argument and am proud to admit to being a happy clappy member of the first camp. However, I did concur with Robert Webb (the self-proclaimed ‘other one from Peep Show’) when he said in an open letter that it was irresponsible of Brand to tell a nation not to vote. That’s not because I agreed with Webb when he garrulously ranted and reeled off his rigmarole of googled facts that proved how wonderful the Labour party really are, but because I think most of the people, by and large, who will adhere to Brand’s political cry will be

left-leaning youngsters like myself.

The current disillusionment with politics means the right are having a field day as Nigel Farage and his abhorrent UKIP troupe of armchair racists amass a steadily more frightening amount of support.

Whilst the left is so disparate that the disenchantment articulated by both Brand and Paxman is shared by much of the country, there is no faith in it as a movement or as a genuine threat to Westminster.

The Labour party has tried to be the ‘go to guys’ on the left again, but it just hasn’t come to fruition.

Despite being dubbed ‘Red Ed’ by the Mail, Miliband’s feeble attempt to distance himself from the New Labour years has been fruitless (personally, I see him more as ‘Mauve Ed’, caught in no man’s land between the crossfire of the red and blue splatterings of the tabloid press’ ever cocked paintball gun). The left needs to not get caught up in the political nuances that are currently hindering them from any progression, and unite against the common enemy.

Like Brand, I too believe that the zenith of capitalism is looming and

that the apex of economic disparity that we are living in will push people over the edge. Revolution is nigh, both spiritual and political, but it must happen through the democratic constitution that we have in place because then, and only then, will it be free to beat its wings. Otherwise Brand may find himself in a Robespierre-esque situation; being worshipped as a God by some bloodthirsty hate mob who are out to get anyone and everyone who ever even considered voting Lib-Dems. Worst of all, he’ll have Paxman to answer to… again.

Once again Britain becomes a nuclear nation Rumman Sikdar With the announcement that the UK will be building a nuclear power plant in Hinkley, our first in almost two decades, many have been quick to point out the greatly exaggerated safety concerns of nuclear energy, whilst reducing the many benefits it will provide.

More than two years on from the Fukushima nuclear disaster, it may come as a surprise to those that paid attention to tabloid reports of the incident, that the area is not suddenly awash with multi-limbed sea urchins, nor at the mercy of mutant super humans, and Godzilla isn’t terrorising the islands of Japan. Yet, the primary concern for many is the threat of a meltdown, an explosion, or the irradiation of the South West, completely ignoring the fact that Fukushima was the result of a series of freak accidents.

The plant was not prepared for

a 13m tsunami, having a seawall of just 10 metres; the huge waves flooded the generators that were integral to the coolant systems.

Since the advent of nuclear energy there have been around 85 deaths from accidents and resultant radiation exposure, and a highly debated figure of 9000 for future deaths related to radiation exposure. In comparison to these figures, the Harvard Medical School estimates 13,200 people are killed every year by coal power plants in the USA alone. Going back to Asia, a series of floods in 1975 resulted in the failure of 30 hydropower dams, killing around 230,000 people: another figure that dwarves the number of deaths caused by nuclear power. One research paper even suggests the switch from carbon to nuclear fuel between 1971 and 2009 saved over 1.8 million lives –and that being a conservative figure according to the writers!

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Despite there being significant danger and lasting damage associated to other power sources, people continue to fixate on the dangers of nuclear energy. It is understandable that people fear the unknown and radiation is definitely an unknown for most, but with better education on the matter, most would realise how minimal the risk of radiation exposure is, and how well-managed plants are.

There are obviously some risks associated, especially as we eventually move from using uranium (we’re expected to run out by 2050) to plutonium, as the latter can pave the way to nuclear weapons technology. But surely a cheap, clean fuel source should not be squandered because of unfounded fears of radiation? Because it is cheap: the high cost of setting up a power plant is offset by the significantly low cost of fuel, and it is clean: apart from the mining and initial

construction emissions, greenhouse gases are not emitted.

Whilst there are some serious political questions to ponder –namely how in one generation we’ve gone from the UK having some of the best nuclear scien-

tists and technicians in the world to having to rely on a French and Chinese collaboration to get our industry going again- there should be no question that the plant should go ahead, and definitely no fear of Godzilla terrorising our shores!

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MONDAY 18TH NOVEMBER 2013

Fist pumps, botox and lavish weddings: Reality TV Anum Ahmed A decade ago, achieving fame required raw talent and exceptional contacts; today, on the other hand, you and I could become instant superstars by contacting a TV producer to create a home-grown reality television programme.

This sounds rash and absurd but the 21st century has brought about a new wave of toxic television that is infiltrating the minds of children, adults and even our lecturers; it’s time we told TV Producers to “SHUU..UUP!” Excuse the pun!

Last month, I was picking up a Turkish take-away, when I came face to face with a plasticised female. I noticed others pointing and staring at her and when I examined her closely, I gave a girlish shriek after discovering that it was Essex’s ultimate ‘fake and bake’ Chloe

from The Only Way is Essex. Unfortunately, I’ve become immune to the sickness of reality TV and I find myself longing for more tears, fights and relationship disasters that create a buzz in our ordinary lives.

But that is the problem!

Through the power of post-production, these programmes exaggerate the lives of the everyday man or woman, in the hopes of creating enthralling and heart wrenching episodes that make us feel pathetic, poor and boring, and the horrifying thing is, we don’t even realise all this when wasting 60 minutes glued to our television screens.

Keeping up with the Kardashians, Big Brother and Made in Chelsea are just 3 of the most popular reality TV shows, where stars earn over £300 for every teeth clenching episode. In fact my seminar leader

has also professed that one of his most embarrassing guilty pleasures is MTV’s hit show, Geordie Shore, renown for “tashing on, obscure colloquialisms and mahogany tans” with the lads and lasses of Newcastle. As much as it kills me, I too, have become a huge fan of such repulsive yet highly entertaining shows.

I’ve cried at the break up of best friends Lauren and Heidi from the Hills, been scarred by Jade Goody and Shilpa Shetty’s racial row in the Big Brother house and have found myself in fits of laughter with the idiotic mannerisms of Amy Childs from our very own, The Only Way Is ESSEX. These shows have clawed their way into mainstream television with absolutely no limits and it almost seems as though we have all become oblivious to the impact

of such so called ‘unscripted’ programmes.

In addition to the overly dramatised personalities of reality shows, it is also clear that the content of such programmes lacks the moralising narratives of former soap operas. In fact, reality shows are submerged in material gluttony, glorifying the economic disparity within our society.

To put this into context, I don’t ever recall waking up and getting a £200 manicure whilst being swarmed by paparazzi, nor have I swept away to Hawaii in my very own private jet for some spiritual cleansing. If that doesn’t make you feel even a slightly bit agitated and unlucky, then you certainly have strong willpower!

The eternal longing for fame has transcended beyond adults and has even seeped into the minds

of young children with America’s insanely addictive show Toddlers and Tiaras. The show depicts overly sexualised young girls and mothers that are infatuated with orange skin, volumised hair and pouty, glossy lips.

There’s no denying that these shows encourage its viewers to adopt an ambitious drive for success, fame and wealth, however, in doing so, the programmes merely reinforce a selfish, materialistic culture, drowning out the importance of family, community and the beauty of a simplistic way of living.

Are we really and truly entering an age where society condones and applauds foul language, commercialised greed and shallow views on beauty?

Exec Officer Column: behind the big wooden doors Sarah Sarwar President What we’ve been talking about behind those big wooden doors.

As a student I can’t say I was the poster child for the most engaged. I didn’t really get involved with the Students’ Union in any other way than running a society.

Now some might argue that’s engagement enough, but even then as a society president; I never understood ‘the issues’. Now as an elected paid Executive Officer we’re constantly speaking in jargon about ‘engagement’ and ‘hard to reach groups’ and my alltime favourite ‘accountability’.

They’re all important wordsjust words that not a lot of people BAR the hard-core unionists (council chair I’m looking at you) will really use. This year we’ve really tried to make the SU something that students can actually relate to, it’s been about stripping back and in a sense really trying to start afresh.

Early on in the year we recognised that we keep ‘engaging’ (there is that word again) with the same people, and we decided that all of our activities were spread so far across the year that they never really made an impact. So we decided to have action weeks dedicated to the liberation groups and international students. I’m very proud of our Welfare Zone for the incredible

amount of work that has been put into these weeks. International Week in particular has been a joint Executive Officer effort, and it has really opened up my eyes to a few things; 1. We don’t do enough for our international students; and 2. International Students are a group that will require more support than some other groups.

We’ve agreed to a ‘freeze the fee’s’ campaign and will be lobbying the university throughout the year to provide better academic support to international and EU students. We will be ‘internationalising the SU’ making our activities more accessible to international students as well.

Over the past few weeks many students may have noticed the Islamic Societies (ISOC) ‘Right to Pray’ protest outside the Queens Building on a Friday. The Students’ Union has been in full support of this campaign to lobby the

University to provide facilities for Muslim students and staff to have space for the Friday prayer; which normally attracts over 300 students every Friday at lunchtime.

There is simply not enough space for the students in the Multi-Faith Centre (MFC), and the Students’ Union really believe that it is the Universities responsibility to provide space for these students.

Faith is an important aspect of life for many students, and we must accept that the student experience remains incomplete without it for many.

The University are arguing that there is not enough space for the Friday prayer, because all space that is large enough is occupied for teaching. However the Students’ Unions space audit (an incredible feat of organisation lead

by Gaby Dale Leal, Vice President Education) has revealed that

space is simply not used effectively enough and spot checks on the Great Hall and the Octagon by the ISOC have shown us that space is indeed available.

I think this is one of the best examples to prove how we are putting student interests first; Muslim students make up one fifth of the student body, one fifth of the student body requires one hall for one hour every week.

I wholeheartedly believe that we have a duty to follow our mandate and support such action. There is no use us speaking of ‘representation’, if as the Students’ Union we do not recognise causes such as this.

Bringing me finally onto the issue of; accountability. How can we prove to students that we are doing what we’ve said we would and what they want us to do? I’ll be frank- this one is really hard.

Columns like this certainly help.

Events like the’ Principal and

the President’s Address’ on the 2nd of December for the ‘STATE OF THE UNION’ designed as an opportunity for students to grill us directly will also go a long way.

Our Student Council certainly give us a once over at council meetings. But how do we hear directly from students? How can we talk about what students really want? Has Students’ Union life rendered us slightly out of touch? The last question scares me the most.

Sometimes things like a ‘guerrilla’ Facebook groups with over 600 students demanding a ball forces the SU into action but we need more than that. Next term this will be one of our biggest priorities, I will pledge to ensure that we reach students directly through trying a scheme similar to ‘Teesside University’s “SU on Tour”’.

We will be spending time out of the office and braving ‘the outside’ to spend time with and talk to students properly, those that are less engaged and may not know where my office is.

Whether it’s a Ball or coursework feedback, or timetabling issueswe want to hear from you. As always it’s easy to get in touch with me (president@qmsu.org) I love hearing from students and societies- it’s the best part of the job.

Or you can just grab me at the Winter Masquerade Ball on the 6th of December- grab your tickets while you can!

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The Great Debate Should we sacrifice our freedom for security?

Chris Thomas

NO

YES

lic’s.

In truth, espionage, whether commercial, governmental or otherwise will not generally affect welfare in any negative way. In the aggregate, commercial espionage is likely to increase income thus making it economically viable. The data ‘observed’ will be eventually reabsorbed into the markets, this time with greater exposure, leading to employment gains via innovation and competition. Furthermore, the market of espionage employs workers of its own and develops technology which often spills over to other industries.

On an ideological level, this fifth estate we are growing into promotes pluralism, with all the societal benefits this bears. This new classification is used to encapsulate the power accruing to organizations and activities which do not belong to the other four estates of society; namely to the clergy, the nobility, the commoners or the media.

A solid legal framework must be agreed upon and enforced on a global scale. More importantly, the legislation must focus on how this information is to be used and shared so that the gains to society are maximised. It should also focus on preventing criminal use of such information and it is important to ensure that healthy competition in markets is not obstructed, but supported. Only once such rules are established will society be able to endogenise this new framework.

What are we truly sacrificing? The majority of the private information that is gathered is of overstated significance. I believe this public uproar is simply a natural reaction to an inevitable development of civilisation.

Emile Marin

Surveillance networks have existed since the very birth of societal structures. They have been typically controlled by the most powerful institutions, but this is changing. With power structures more diluted than ever, it should come as no surprise that the scope of the aforementioned activities has grown and adapted. The terrorist attack of September 11th naturally marked a turning point in U.S. government policy regarding the gathering and use of sensitive information. Other countries have followed suit. This year, Chinese state-owned enterprises have been accused of several instances of corporate espionage, relating to trade secrets and technology.

If Europe, America or any other nation can intercept information which can ultimately prevent terrorism or war, the social and economic benefits of this surpass any personal costs. Symmetry of information is often sufficient on its own as a preventative factor.

Should, for example, a government know of an imminent terrorist attack, they have the option of either withholding this knowledge in an attempt to intercept the culprits, or revealing it and discouraging the strike. Alternatively, phone conversations could be used in court so that justice is optimally served. If there is reason for information to be revealed, then it will often be the case that there was a justified reason to gather it. The relative cost to society of countless, meaningless phone recordings stashed on a hard drive should appear minimal. This is especially true if the information is handled with care and gathered by trustworthy institutions, whose incentives are in line with the pub-

When the Guardian first reported the revelations from NSA contractor Edward Snowden that the NSA was conducting a massive surveillance programme, it probably came as no big surprise to most. What was and still is surprising is the extent of the data collection. As one former US intelligence officer has stated, the NSA’s Director, General Keith Alexander’s approach to data collection is: “Rather than look for a needle in a haystack, let’s collect the whole haystack.” This largely indiscriminate approach to data collection threatens privacy and the civil liberties of millions of people globally.

The relationship between intelligence services of allied states has always been a murky one. However, given Germany’s close ties to the United States since the end of the Second World War, and the use of West Germany, particularly West Berlin, as a symbol and stronghold for the “free world” during the Cold War, it seems strange that they would decide to spy on Angela Merkel, especially given her relationship with the U.S. It is therefore unsurprising that Merkel is upset by these disclosures.

Even more startling, though, are the leaked documents which suggest that the NSA were spying on Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff, specifically with regard to the state oil company, Petrobrás. This seems to suggest that the NSA’s programme takes an interest in information beyond security, and brings its activities into the world of industrial and economic espionage.

As revealed by Snowden and the Guardian, the NSA’s surveillance can encompass anyone within three degrees of separation of their

target. This means people who talk to people who talk to you. When one considers the magnitude such a dragnet covers, the extent of their surveillance coverage becomes quite shocking. This is a system that does not abide by the maxim of “innocent until proven guilty.”

Worse still are those who say “if you have nothing to fear, you have nothing to hide.” What nonsense.

It is not a stretch to believe that there are things people would rather keep between themselves and the people whom the private matter relates to. Would you really be comfortable with everything you’ve ever done on the internet, phone, and computer being exposed? All the emails, phone calls and all the sites you’ve visited, read by someone. Disconcerting would be an understatement.

It is a fundamental part of the US constitution, and indeed a core part of living in a free, democratic society, that people have a right to be “secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures.” In modern times this has translated to the need for a warrant in order to search someone’s house, tap their phone, or go through their correspondences. The digital age has now changed this, apparently.

Anyone can be a suspect. It is a hypocrisy to justify this surveillance as “protecting the people” and “securing your freedoms against terrorists” when the very actions they take limit our freedoms. Compromising the fabric of a democratic and free society for security simply means the terrorists are getting what they want.

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MONDAY 18TH NOVEMBER 2013

Has the gender gap really narrowed since the 60s?

Martha Munch After the 60s and 70s feminist movements, many people debate the existence of feminism nowadays. Now that women and men have equal rights, do we still need feminist movements?

On the surface, it appears that the gender gap has completely withered away or at least narrowed to a great extent. But looks can be deceiving. According to Eurostat, a site gathering European statistics on the European Union and its social attitudes, over 75% of women will study humanities and services in university. Women find themselves socially restricted to fields of work that are related to the private

sphere. Sciences and mathematics remain dominated by men.

When discussing this with friends, the assumption that comes across is that women are more caring and motherly and therefore more suited to jobs that require nurturing. Politics, which will require MPs to be dynamic and sometimes ruthless, is therefore considered to be inappropriate for women, as they can’t “handle” the arguments that take place in the House of Commons. The women that do make it into politics are the exceptions and can be judged as being manlier or even “bitchy” to make their way to the top. This as a social construct makes feminist issues so much harder to deal with

because it requires for people to change their ways of thinking.

When looking at the gender differences in Parliament the lack of balance is striking. Scandinavian countries over the past decades have led the way in terms of gender equality. The Nordic countries are establishing laws seeking to change the patriarchal society that has dominated in the past. Through the enforcement of laws regarding parental leaves and gender quotas, Scandinavian countries have managed to push women to pursue careers in male dominated fields and remain engaged in the public sphere.

Growing up in Paris, I found the concept of a stay-at-home Dad

completely abnormal. According to how I had been brought up, the man is supposed to provide for the family; this is what all other families around me were doing. But after spending all my summers in Norway I started realising that a mother is not automatically forced to remain in the private sphere.

I have never seen as many men behind baby strollers in the middle of the day as I have in the Norwegian capital. Men are not only taking their paternity leave or deciding to be stay-at-home fathers: it has become “in fashion” for men to take part in the upbringing of the children in the family and let the mother be the primary bread-winner or at least make sure she can

remain in the workforce.

When looking at the British Parliament the lack of female representatives is shocking. Even though there are no legal barriers for women to get into politics, the structure of British institutions remains more accessible to men.

Women having to balance work and family are unable to keep up with the British political lifestyle that might require MPs to stay in the commons until 1am to go through votes. The gender gap might be absent on paper but when looking at the everyday practice of social, economic and political life, barriers to entry are still a reality for women in the UK.

Image credit The Prime Minister’s Office

The “Bishop of Bling” is finally suspended Joe Jamieson The Vatican recently suspended a senior German Church leader, dubbed the “Bishop of Bling”, for his extremely lavish lifestyle. The big-spender, Bishop of Limburg Franz-Peter Tebartz-van Elst, was accused of spending no less than €31M doing up his house. His spending habits provoked angry local protests in Germany, where many people pay a church tax to the state. There were further accusations of hypocrisy with reports that he took a first-class flight to India to visit the poor.

“A situation has been created in which the bishop can no longer exercise his episcopal duties”, a Vatican statement said. In other words, he has been kicked out and he is unlikely to return. The bishop had made an attempt to placate Pope Francis. He took a flight to Rome (reportedly with Ryanair this time), and tried to justify his spending sprees - including a €15,000 bathtub. His attempts proved to be in vain.

Few were surprised that the Pope was outraged at these allegations as he has often emphasised the need for the Church to connect to the poor. He notably chose to stay in a Vatican guest house rather than the grand papal apartments; he also told his clerics not to live “like princes”.

So the apparent lack of financial transparency is another chink in the ecclesiastical armour of the Catholic Church, but can Pope Francis begin to rebuild its credibility? Well, it seems he will have to do a little more than reprimand the occasional spendthrift bishop.

The recent controversies he has also had to deal with include the church’s staunch position against gay marriage. The Archbishop of Westminster, the Most Reverend Vincent Nichols, remarked that the true nature of marriage is between a man and a woman, and homosexual couples who want to get married should not be allowed as they merely enjoy a “profound friendship”. The church has also always taken a notoriously reac-

tionary position against contraception and abortion. What was Pope Francis’s response to all this? He said the church should stop talking so much about issues like gay marriage, abortion and contraception, claiming the church had become “obsessed” with a few moral issues. No inspiring moment of reform, then.

There seemed to be some chance of change in the proposal of woman bishops. But the Vatican declared that any attempt to ordinate women was a “grave crime”; their feeble counter-argument seemed to centre, more or less, on reminding people that ‘Christ was a man’. And so the church continues to regard women as an inferior creation.

I am aware that I am only focusing on the controversial aspects of the Catholic Church; these aspects often have an impact on all of society, however, and they cannot simply be ignored. I certainly don’t intend to take Pope Francis’s advice and “stop talking about these issues”.

Image credit Wikimedia Commons

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Faith Societies fight for space at QM In the last few weeks Queen Mary has featured in national news as faith space on campus is becoming an issue, Tasha Mathur finds out why

Tasha Mathur Features Editor Opened in November last year, Queen Mary University’s Multi Faith Centre (MFC) aims to provide a space for prayer and quiet contemplation from students of all faiths. Located in the Students Union Hub, the centre consists of two rooms each accommodating an estimate of 80 students. However, in the past few weeks, the Centre has proved to be unable to fulfil these needs, specifically for the Muslim students’ Friday prayers which has led to the Islamic Society (ISoc) launching their ‘Right to Pray’ campaign.

The campaign aims at lobbying the university to establish a facility where Muslim students on campus can perform their prayers at suitable times. Although this has been an issue in previous years, this year the campaign has been specifically directed towards ‘Jumu’ah’; the Muslim faith’s Friday afternoon prayers. In the past, the Islamic Society has been permitted to use the Octagon or Great Hall for this specific prayer, however, the university have now stated that they are unable to provide these venues to accommodate for the 300-400 students.

Stating that these spaces are now being used for teaching, members of ISoc, have resorted to praying on the lawn outside the Queen’s Building and using bin bags as makeshift prayer mats. Dozens of members turned up a few Fridays ago in the rain to complete their prayers much to the admiration of many supporters.

However, what seems to be the most crucial argument of debate here is the question of whose responsibility it is to accommodate for these needs. QMessenger spoke to the President of the Islamic Society, Alamgir Islam, who explained, “A reason they’ve [the university] given us for not providing a space is that they don’t see it to be within the remit of the university to accommodate public prayer. There’s no issue with performing prayer in private but to accommodate for a public prayer, like the Friday congregation, they don’t see that to be their responsibility and they’ve relegated that duty to the local community”.

Which begs the question: is it the university’s responsibility to provide a public prayer space for their

students if required?

To further confuse the matter, it was discovered that the Octagon was found to be empty one particular Friday afternoon despite the Islamic Society being told this space was unavailable anymore.

In regards to this incident, Alamgir has stated, “We are baffled as well. There’s an interesting issue someone has raised in terms of the timetabling problems at the beginning of the year because the Octagon has been free at certain times.

So one of the issues might be due to the fact that there has been a

miscommunication in terms of how they’ve done the timetabling this year. Perhaps this is also a factor which contributes to this problem.”

The issue of timetabling is not a new one. Many students have complained of incorrect timetables and clashing classes and the booking of rooms (for non-educational purposes) has been no exception. The President of the Christian Union, Ricky Kimachia, has also come across some difficulty with booking space in the MFC stating, “It can be quite

awkward and embarrassing when there’s a clashing of cultures who aren’t aware of each other’s praying habits but I would say that it’s a good opportunity to learn about other cultures.” With the current system of monthly consultation meetings (therefore having to wait a whole month if you need to change a room booking), Ricky suggests more regular meetings are needed.

In full support of ISoc’s ‘Right to Pray’ campaign, Ricky tells QMessenger, “It’s great that there are students of different faiths on

campus who feel comfortable to pray here so when they’re being told by the university they can’t, without giving an alternative, it’s a problem.”

It’s great that there are students of different faiths on campus who feel comfortable to pray here Although there has been wide-

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theless, they are determined to go ahead with the debate in the near future with the hope that the Students Union will also participate.

Despite the story being covered by established publications such as ‘The Independent’ and ‘The Huffington Post’, Alamgir has told us that so far, the Islamic Society has received no correspondence from the university on the issue.

However, there has been a recent update on the Multi Faith Centre website on the issue which states, “Unfortunately the MFC last week reached capacity for Friday prayer. For your own safety, if the prayer rooms are full please could you find an alternative place to pray. We understand the importance of collective Friday prayer and will continue to work with you and the college to find a suitable place. However for now please refrain from praying in the corridor and landing.”

Nevertheless, Ricky feels strongly about the positive uses of the Multi Faith Centre believing the rooms to generally be quite accommodating with the changing prayer times for all societies.

He also went on to say, “The Multi Faith Centre is brilliant as a space given that there was nothing like this when I started. It’s also a great opportunity to rub shoulders with other faith groups. Clashes of culture means we‘ve been able to meet face to face with groups and learnt more about them. It’s more of an issue with organisation and providing suitable alternatives to very direct problems.” Alamgir also states, “We need the university to realise that this a problem and they need to think of a better solution rather than working on compromises.”

spread support for this issue, not all people agree with the campaign. The President of the Queen Mary Atheism, Secularism and Humanism Society, Robert Hainault, official statement given to QMessenger is as follows: “We must remember that the Islamic Society, just like any other society, is a student group and thus is bound by the same restrictions as our society and every other society at QMUL. While the Octagon and Great Hall becoming unavailable to societies is a shame, it must be a rule applied fairly to

all without exceptions based on religion. The demand for these spaces has been exaggerated, as not all protesters are current members of ISoc and some are external protesters joining ISoc in solidarity. The advice the Atheism Society would give to ISoc is that they use the Chapel - it is sufficiently spacious and is not allowed to deny anyone the use of it based on religion.”

On the contrary, Alamgir has told us, “We hope that the college realise that it is their responsibility to look out for the welfare of their

students and for them to provide a viable or alternative venue which can accommodate for the numbers that we’ve outlined.” Although the university have stated they have no problem with private prayer, Alamgir tells us the important of Jumu’ah to held in a public group, “The nature of the prayer dictates that it is done in a congregation.

When we say ‘public’, it doesn’t necessarily have to be out in the open. The point behind the Friday prayer is that it is a large congregation of both men and women and this is one of the pillars of

the week. You get people from all backgrounds. Regardless of what background, what upbringing, we have all sorts of people turning up.”

The Athiesm Society is currently working with the Debate Society to arrange a debate about this issue.

However, both societies have attempted to reach out to the Islamic Society on this but haven’t received any response (and haven’t done so in the past) which Robert finds ‘disheartening- particularly in this case when it is their campaign we wish to debate.’ Never-

We need the university to realise that this is a problem It is clear that the Multi Faith Centre has proved to be extremely beneficial to many students of faith, therefore it is crucial to improve the facility. However, the debate continues on whether it is the university’s responsibility to accommodate for large groups of students for prayer purposes of any faith.

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International week at Queen Mary

Fern Champion Features Editor Last week at Queen Mary (Monday 11th – Friday 15th November) was International Week, which entailed a week of Students’ Union run events celebrating all that is international about our diverse campus.

Queen Mary has long been renowned for its high intake of international students, with current statistics showing that 30% of its students are from overseas, representing 100 different countries.

With our location being so close to central London, not to mention the infamous Dixie Chicken, the appeal of Queen Mary is clear and so we spoke to international student Martha Munch to find out what else attracted her to QM. “When I chose to apply to universities in the UK I had decided from the start I would only go to London”, she begins. “I had only visited London a couple of times and fell in love with the diversity of cultures there is in this city.

Having grown up Paris I had lived

in a big city before, but London can’t be compared to Paris. Paris is French, whilst London is multicultural.”

She then went on to describe the multi-cultural environment at Queen Mary in particular, explaining that “when [her] group of friends is united there are about 6 different nationalities combined”, which makes Queen Mary “an incredible environment to be in”. Cultural diversity truly is a “unique” factor of Queen Mary and so a week of events dedicated to that diversity is clearly a just cause.

QMessenger also spoke to Vice President of Welfare, Katarina Nordanger, to find out why she feels International Week is so important to the Queen Mary community.

“We have such a diverse intake of students here at QM”, she starts, “that the Students’ Union feel it is really important to highlight our international diversity and showcase what we can all do.” Katarina also wanted to emphasise that this was an inclusive, not exclusive,

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event and that all students were welcome to partake, even if they are home students. She went on to explain that “the overall aim of these activities was to get different communities to engage with each other, whether they be Chinese students, American students or even Home students.

There were a lot of fantastic activities planned, ranging from cookery classes and movie marathons as well as some insightful fairs and debates. We just really wanted everybody to get involved.”

She also explains why these events were important for home students too, as “working with different cultures will help increase their employability” and so lessons learned from these activities will hopefully be ones that can be acted on and extended beyond this week also.

QMessenger also took the opportunity to quiz Katarina on what, as Welfare Officer, she would like to work on with international students in particular.

She explained that within her role, she would like to “integrate international students more, particularly with respect to get-

ting more international students involved in the Mums and Dads scheme and encourage more to become Course Representatives”, in order to emphasise the international community at Queen Mary overall.

The Vice President also gave an insight into some of the more practical changes she would like to introduce to Queen Mary to benefit international students. “We’re really trying to push the University to become official guarantors for international students, in order to help them when they’re renting accommodation privately during their studies at Queen Mary. We are also looking at ways of getting the £50 transaction charge that international students have to pay when they pay their tuition fees removed as well.” The needs of international students therefore appear to be something that the Students’ Union takes very seriously, with International Week helping to get everybody engaging with each other.

To kick start the week’s events, Monday was dedicated to Africa

and the Middle East, with a Middle Eastern Cookery Class taking place between 1-2pm in Blomeley Room 2 where students had the chance to ‘cook some taboulleh and ful medamas with the one and only Ali Jawad, Barts and the London Students’ Association (BLSA) President’. A ‘film marathon’ was then held in Francis Bancroft 1.13a, where viewings of ‘Persepolis’, ‘Hotel Rwanda’ and ‘The Gods Must be Crazy’ were shown. If, however, students were looking for something more engaging to fill their Monday evening with, then a special simulation looking at ‘tacking economic disparity in Sub Saharan Africa’ was held by Model United Nations .

Tuesday was then dedicated to Eastern Asia and Oceania, with an East Asian Cookery Class being held at the Drunken Monkey from 3-4pm. QMessenger spoke to Drunken Monkey bartender, Thomas Fletcher-Wilson, to see why the restaurant wanted to be involved with International Week.

“International week is a great

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opportunity not only for students and businesses to experience different cultures, but for them to also promote and educate others on their own culture!” He explains, “The Drunken Monkey is offering an ‘East Asian Cookery Class’ to let others experience the fantastic cuisine offered at the restaurant, whilst also letting students take away the skills required to carry on the oriental culinary tradition.”

Another film marathon was then held in Francis Bancroft 1.13a between 5-9pm, which included the films ‘Battle Royale’, ‘Chungking Express’ and ‘Spirited Away’. An ‘International Evening’ was also held at BLSA from 6-10pm, which entailed an ‘evening of talks, food and movies from around the world’, showing that International Week really was a whole university event!

Furthermore, we have all heard of Bollywood, but what about its African counterpart, Nollywood?

Students were invited to ‘come together in a fusion celebration of both cultures’, at Drapers for a ‘jam-packed night with lots of ex-

citing music from both cultures’, 8pm ‘til late!

Wednesday was a day to celebrate all that is great about Europe, with an Italian Cookery Class taking place in Drapers from 3-4pm – an event for students who live on a diet of Sainsbury’s Basic pasta everywhere! The Students’ Union Hub also hosted a Language Taster session in the SU Hub, featuring European languages such as, Spanish, French and even Norwegian taught by ourvery own VP Welfare! There were also short workshops on how to take your career to a global level, giving students plenty of incentive to get involved! Furthermore, political society, New Turn, who describe themselves as ‘the foremost political society at Queen Mary, bringing current events and political debate to campus in an engaging and entertaining way’, will be held a session in Blomeley Room 2 from 7-9pm titled ‘What is the future of the EU?’ With the European Union ap-

pearing to be a topic that is forever in tabloid news, as well as a vast number of international students at Queen Mary being from member states of the EU, this promised to be an exciting and engaging event!

Thursday was dedicated to all y’all friends from across the pond, the United States of America, as well as Mexico and the vibrant countries of South America.

A tasty Mexican Cookery Class was held in Blomeley Room 2 from 1-2pm as well as a film marathon from 5-9pm in Francis Bancroft 1.13a, featuring classics such as ‘Zoolander’, ‘Mean Girls’ (so fetch) and ‘Big Lebowski’. In addition, there was a chance for students to get their dancing shoes on at the ‘ALCANDANZ Salsa Night’ held at Drapers!

International Week then ended on a high with Friday being dedicated to Asia and Southern Asia, with, you guessed it, another Cookery Class being held in Blomeley Room 2 from 1-2pm led by no other than QMSU President, Sarah Sawar!

A ‘Queen Mary Students’ Union Visits the World’ event was also held in the Blomeley Rooms from 11am-3pm, which comprised of an ‘International Societies and Students’ Group Fair’. Cultural societies from QMSU ‘showcased their culture’ and students were invited to ‘come take a look at their different stalls; experience music, clothing and food’. In our interview, Katarina also explained how the Students’ Union are looking to create more cultural societies, “particularly those from the US, Sweden and Nigeria, since these form a large group of international students at QM, but this is not currently reflected in the societies available”. Therefore, a stall was also present at the fair with people in place to explain exactly how students can go about creating these societies, or any other they feel is necessary.

Furthermore, there was also a workshop on ‘Mental Health Across the World’, where students had the opportunity to have a ‘tea and talk with the Mental Health Society and the Psychology Soci-

ety’.

Mental Health is clearly something that is very important to those at QMSU, with Vice President of Welfare, Katarina Nordanger, initiating a Mental Health and Wellbeing Campaign on campus in line with World Mental Health Day, just a few weeks ago. Bollywood was then revisited with a showing of ‘Rang De Basanti’ shown in Francis Bancroft 1.13a, accompanied by ‘the well-loved India snack, Paani Puri’, from 7pm onwards.

The last event of the week was a Debating Society event held in Blomeley Rooms 1 and 2, where they debated ‘This house believes the UK governments have not done enough to combat FGM (female genital mutilation)’, providing a somber and insightful end to a very eventful and successful week at Queen Mary Students’ Union!

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MONDAY 18TH NOVEMBER 2013

CULTURE15

MONDAY 18TH NOVEMBER 2013

Vevo: A Holloween with ‘Bounce’ Ciara Judge Culture Editor

her own music – her “alternate” dancing was rather fitting. UK’s number 1 Royals were met with cheers from the audience and a thoroughly good set overall.

Straight afterwards Nina Nesbitt and her band came on stage.

Although her music is lively and upbeat the singer herself didn’t seem to be as enthusiastic as her band members on the night oddly enough. Although her new single Eighteen Candles had a very fun rockabilly feel to it and was a nice upbeat change from her other similar sounds. For her last song, Radio 1’s favourite, Stay Out was received well and the crowd woke up and met with the band’s energy.

I think everyone in the room can agree that Iggy Azalea stole the night. As soon as she came on stage dressed up as the infamously fabulous Cruella De Vil the crowd surged forward and the energy went a few notches. The Bollywood inspired ‘Bounce’ had everyone fist pumping and dancing like it was 1999. The intimate venue definitely suits this performer down to the ground. Azalea is in a league of her own and dominated the stage with just her and two back up dancers. She interacted well with the audience and having her sing Work in front of us and pointing to us was a highlight of the night.

On October 31st, Vevo hosted an incredible night of live music to show off the best up-andcoming musicians of 2013. On Hallow’s Eve the streets were full of the ghostly and monstrous as fans lined up fake blood and all in Bethnal Green’s Oval Space, to try and get into the small intimate venue. The dress code?

Fancy dress and even the stars of the night made an effort. As the tickets were free the crowd were definitely a mixed one with a miniature festival feel to match the some may say odd fitting line up including Lorde, Nina Nesbitt, Iggy Azalea, John Newman and Bastille. Luckily at front row, the event seemed much more intimate than anticipated.

Lorde opened the night and I have to say I was blown away. Her debut album Heroine has received great reviews and is charting well, her free online EP has also gained a cult following and with hundreds of thousands of followers on twitter, it’s safe to say this is a star in the making. At a mere 17 years of age she held her own on stage in front of a crowd who were all older than her (an over-18s event).

Throughout her set she seems otherworldly, completely absorbed in

Kudos to John Newman, who had a hard act to follow, managed to hold his own and in style. Although a slightly more chilled set than the one before him, Newman still got the crowd dancing and hypnotised them with his soulful and unique voice. His last song, the charting Love Me Again was a crowd favourite and Newman was able to hold those notes with real passion and emotion.

The headline act, Bastille closed the night. Their latest album Bad Blood is fantastic but live, even better. The sound quality and acoustics showcased their evolution as live performers, getting stronger each time I see them. The atmosphere was buzzing as everyone in the room chanted the lyrics to Things We Lost in the Fire and is a true testament to their fan following and popularity. They definitely cemented their place as one of the best bands from the past couple of years.

The applause that resonated long after the performers came off stage speaks louder than words on the success of the night. Each performance was ultimately faultless and met with great reception.

If I had to choose who owned the night however, personally, it has to be said quite unexpectedly, Iggy Azalea reigns as the Dalmatian spotted queen of the night.

Image Credits: Ciara Judge

Review: Launch of ‘Diesel Tribute’ Ciara Judge Culture Editor On the 8th November, I went to the launch event for the new Diesel collection ‘Diesel Tribute’ and finally got to see the rebranding of this popular designer house in person. Recently the brand has had a make-over with the help of world renowned designer Nicola Formichetti. Previously a stylist for Lady Gaga and creative director to Mugler, Uniqlo and his own designer label Nicopanda, I was excited to see what he could do with this dated brand and to see as an artist how he has evolved from catwalk to high street.

Constantly mixing the fresh with the unconventional Formichetti has built a career as one of the world’s leading imaginative forces to take the fashion world by storm. He is sought out to revolutionize everything from shops to magazines, major clothing brands

and even social media sites. Formichetti has created some of the world’s best known controversial and memorable images of the decade, including the infamous meat dress worn by Lady Gaga. As the industry’s biggest proponent of digital media, and being a major voice for emerging creative voices, it is only fair that the Diesel’s im-

age make-over has a huge online following. The entire campaign was shot on iPhone from one of the world’s biggest fashion photographers Nick Knight, although considered an odd choice of photography equipment; it is a fitting medium for this new urban controversial and evocative collection.

Having been to launch events

with Formichetti before it is has to said he really does make time for his supporters. He gets on a personal level with us, whether it is keeping touch through Twitter/ Instagram or inviting us to events or even sending us Christmas presents - he is one the the most genuine designers out there and is certainly one of the most sought

after. Away from the media and prying eyes of adoring fans we talk about his work, the passion and drive he puts into creating his pieces is clear, it is an inherent part of his life. After having a quick catch up with the main man himself, we went and browsed the collection. The collection ‘Diesel Tribute’ has a real urban edge to it and the craftsmanship is impressive. From trying on the pieces itself, there is a real rawness to the clothing from the denim vest covered in spikes and bottle caps to simple statement T-Shirts and denim dresses - all show stoppers in their own right. Who knew denim on denim could look so fresh?

The event itself was well organised and the staff at the Convent Garden Diesel flagship store were very helpful as well. If you’re a fan of the brand or want to check out more news for the Diesel Reboot, search online for more updates or visit the stores for more info!

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MONDAY 18TH NOVEMBER 2013

Recipe: Ready, Steady, Quiche Review: Vapiano Camille Brochant de Villiers

Image credit Diekatrin CC

Camille Brochant de Villiers Here is another one of our featured recipes that are both affordable and enjoyable. It’s delicious and much cheaper than shop bought and lots more fun to make! Make sure to check on our online website for more recipes and reviews that are coming up soon.

Quiche Lorraine (Serves 5-6 people)

Ingredients:

•one short crust pastry sheet •6 lean rashers of ham or bacon •5 eggs •250ml of sour cream •130g of Cheddar, grated •Salt and pepper (Serves 5-6 people)

Method:

•Start by pre-heating your oven at a high heat •Put the short crust pastry sheet in a tart tin and put the bacon (chopped in small pieces) on the pastry.

•Put the pastry with the bacon on it in the oven and leave to cook for 10 to 15 minutes. Once the pastry is puffed and the bacon cooked, take it out of the oven.

•Mix the eggs and the cream together and add a bit of salt and pepper •Put the mix in the tart tin over

the bacon.

•Put the grated Cheddar all over the surface of the quiche.

•Put the quiche in the oven and leave to cook for 30 minutes. It might take longer to cook, as it depends on your oven.

•But when the quiche looked puffed then it is ready to be taken out of the oven.

•Leave it to rest for 30 minutes and then enjoy!

A good trick to know: the quiche is also delicious cold. So you can keep in your fridge for several days and enjoy it again!

Leek Quiche (Serves 5-6 people)

Ingredients:

•one short crust pastry sheet •2 to 3 leeks (depending on their size) •5 eggs •250ml of sour cream •130g of Cheddar, grated •Salt and pepper

Method:

•Start by cutting your leeks in small pieces (do not use the end and hard part of the leeks as it might not be good).

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•Put a large pan on a low heat and put a bit of butter in it.

•Once the butter is spread in the pan put all the leeks in it.

•Turn the leeks frequently and after about 30 minutes, your leeks should have reduced and be cooked.

•Put the leeks on a plate and cover it.

•Pre-heat your oven at a high heat.

•Put the short crust pastry sheet in a tart tin and put it in the oven.

•Leave to cook for 10 to 15 minutes. Once the pastry is puffed take it out of the oven.

•Mix the eggs and the cream together and add a bit of salt and pepper •Put the leeks in and mix in the tart tin.

•Put the grated cheddar over the surface of the quiche.

•Put the quiche in the oven and leave to cook for 30 minutes. It might take longer to cook, as it depends on your oven.

•But when the quiche looked puffed then it is ready to be taken out of the oven.

•Leave it to rest for 30mins and then enjoy! * A Good trick to know: the quiche is also delicious cold. So you can keep it in your fridge for several days and enjoy it again!

I hope you enjoy both of the quiches! Bon appétit!

For the years I have lived in London, I have always looked for new places to eat. Hence, a few years ago, a friend and I discovered Vapiano. And how appropriate to have found it with my friend, as Vapiano is such a friendly place.

How different would that place be from another would you say?

Well a lot of restaurants look the same, and repetition has proven to be boring. However, Vapiano is one of a kind. Firstly, when you enter the restaurant you do not sit down. You have to queue to get your food. Yes, for some that may be annoying, but the best part is that you get to see the food made in front of you.

You can choose between pasta, pizza and salad. Even though those choices may appear to be limited, the varieties are quite impressive.

Take for instance the pastas; you can choose which kind of pasta you desire and what to put on your pasta, such as for instance tagliatelle pasta with carbonara sauce. And so is the case for pizzas and salads.

Moreover, the atmosphere of the restaurant is in itself very nice.

The music is rather low, so you can speak with your friends or family without problems. The bar like decor is also agreeable. You sit on long wood tables, so if you were to come with a large group of friends you would not have difficulties finding a place to sit. The staff are also very nice and helpful, and we all know how important that is.

Although, the concept of getting your food at ‘stands’ is not easy to grasp, the staff is always ready to help and explain. Last but not least, the prices are more than affordable. Ranging from £6 to £12, it is excellent but nevertheless affordable food. So if you are a food lover as I am, and if you crave a new culinary experience, then Vapiano is for you!

For more information do not hesitate to visit Vapiano’s website: http://www.vapiano.de/frame. php?section=home&lang=uk London I, 19-21 Great Portland Street London II, 90 B Southwark Street

Review: The Bodyguard Alice Howarth Culture Editor Being sat on Row B at any Westend show, let alone London’s best new musical, The Bodyguard, will always make for a fabulous night.

Add onto that a star-studded line up including the unstoppable Beverly Night (who by the way is one of the most down to earth women I have ever met) and ex-Eastenders star Tristan Gemmil makes for an unforgettable night.

The musical which slightly alters the 1990s film is backed by the legendary ballads of Whitney Houston sang by the lead role (played

by Night) Rachel Marron. In a nutshell, the Lady Gaga of her day, Marron is faced with daily threats via mystery letters by an anony-

mous super-fan. The solution: employ a new bodyguard (Gemmil) who is willing to sacrifice limb and life for Rachel. It’s a ROMANTIC thriller, so you can figure out with who the romance appears for yourself.

Beverly Night shines in the lead role and despite some critics prejudice about her acting ability, its now obvious to all that her acting matches her voice. Not a single note was sung without gusto and precision, making for a dazzling performance and a presence that filled the Adelphi Stage on The Strand. See her for yourself until she steps away from the role in March.

Tickets:http://www.thebodyguardmusical.com/tickets/

CULTURE17

MONDAY 18TH NOVEMBER 2013

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas Alice Howarth Culture Editor Since last week saw the official airing of both John Lewis’ controversial ‘All I want for Christmas is a puppy’-esque ad and M&S’s annual Christmas Advert featuring the beautiful Rosie Huntington-Whiteley as array of childhood fairy-tale characters, it is undeniable that Christmas has officially began.

The bah-humbugs and Scrooges amongst you may be slightly annoyed at this article as well as the supermarkets, high-street stores and petrol stations which are all stocked and ready to go with all things St Nick but for the most of you, the start of the party season brings with it the prospect of hope, happiness and lots and lots of mulled wine.

Here is a pair of the best Christmas light turn-ons and ice rink popups taking place over the next fortnight which will guarantee to put you into the Christmas Spirit:

far outweigh hers, of course its Dick and Dom (most famously known for the creation of the marvellous game, Bogies). Head one tube stop east on the 16th November to kick-start Westfield’s 12 days of Christmas Celebration.

ICE RINKS

Canary Wharf: Until mid-February there shall be an ice rink amongst the towers of Canary Wharf. Below the buildings of Canada Water shall be an ice rink dotted with trees and fairy lights with on the side treats from a jukebox bar.

Somerset House:

Image credit Britain on View

LIGHT TURN ONS Oxford Street:

outside the Selfridges Mansion on the 12th November, Jessie J who alongside Connor Maynard and James Arthur, shall light up and

perform on London’s most loved shopping destination in what will surely be a highlight of the season.

The official switch on at 18:15 will reveal the lights £1.5million transformation. Arrive early to

ensure yourself a good spot.

Westfields, Statford City:

One of London’s most glamorous and beautiful ice rink has to be this one. Head down in an evening to skate and dance to some of the world’s finest DJs but be sure to book in advance to avoid disappointment.

following in Rihanna’s footsteps from last year are two | people whose talents and success

‘Tis the Season to be cooking Alice Howarth Culture Editor Since I was tiny, my Mum would start to bake this delicious biscuit around this time in November. Delicious, sweet and crunchy they melt in the mouth and are the perfect match to a nice and warm winters drink. So I am sharing with you the recipe that her mother passed onto her.

Enjoy!

-The perfect treat for this time of yearInfo: Serves: 10-12 (depending on how big you want them) Prep: 10 mins tops Cook: 13 ish mins

Ingredients: 325g self-raising flour 2 tsp ground ginger 0.5 tbsp cinnamon 125g butter 175g brown sugar 1 medium egg 4 dessert spoons of golden syrup

Method: 1. Sift the flour, ginger and cin namon into a mixing bowl 2. Rub in the butter and add the sugar 3. Beat the egg and syrup and add to the flour mix 4. Roll out onto a floured surface and use cutters of your choice or make your own human-like shapes 5. Bake at 160C for 12-15 minutes depending on the ferocity of your oven until golden. Leave on a wire rack to cool.

6. Decorate how you wish Enjoy 7. Share with friends!

Image credit Menue 4340 CC

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MONDAY 18TH NOVEMBER 2013

SATIRE19

MONDAY 18TH NOVEMBER 2013

A Brand new revolution?

Mya Medina’s satire soapbox

Mya Medina I’m tweeting again. Not because I want to, but because I have a platform to update the world with mundane statements I can’t via Facebook. Now I can blabber into the abyss - to people I don’t know, and who definitely don’t care. It gives me a sickly sense of smugness that someone, somewhere, might be reading my pompous mutterings about the state of my burnt toast, or the traffic on the M4, loathing me; that I’ll never see the consequence of their justified hatred.

I recently gazed at the ‘trending’ section, and Russell Brand seems to be at its top. Expecting a new porn scandal that may provide some veritable wanking material for the next week I clicked away. The links were of Brand partaking in a Jeremy Paxman interview. Unlucky for me, I hadn’t yet come across a Pax-

man interview known to descend into a fully-fledged orgy. I spent the duration of the video staring into his deep brown eyes, then had to re-watch for actual content.

The evolution of Russell Brand seems to have mirrored that of a child’s; starting with prepubescent prank calls, and teenage drug taking. Now he’s at uni, and he’s realised he has to be eloquent and idealistic for a chance to get girls, but unfortunately he’s joined the Marxist Society and Student Television.

He seems to have the informed opinion of an A3 poster on a freshers’ stall, and about the same level of credibility. Which is all well and good. But just because one super sexy ex-drug addict and part-time womaniser tells me not to vote, doesn’t mean I’m going to do it.

Sorry Brand, I’ll follow you into the bedroom, but not into the battle.

Matthew Walsham Brand also claimed to be part of Anonymous, but didn’t wear his mask when he protested with them on November 5th... which is sort of the whole point of being in Anonymous; clues in the title. Suddenly every celebrity under the sun has an opinion. Of course, it’s only an opinion, because I don’t imagine Russell Brand, with his net worth of $15 million, will be standing on a balcony any time soon flinging his bank notes to the proles.

Media attention surrounded Robert Webb as he flaunted his disgust at Brand’s eloquent ramblings (and they are eloquent), insisting he will rejoin the Labour party. Since when did Robert Webb become Ed Miliband’s Malcolm Tucker? Needless to say, two privileged white men pretending to have invented socialism doesn’t interest me. I’m simply waiting for Paxman to have his own slot on ‘Babes XXX’.

Image credit David Holt London

British glee as weather cools Kaisha Langton British citizens have been jumping for joy at the return of the cold winter season; ecstatic to revive their moaning regime about the weather, and to lament with others as a means of introductory chatter.

The British summer heat wave allowed UK citizens to moan on a daily basis, mostly about the weather being just too darned hot. But in the past few weeks the weather has been steadily cooling, mixing sporadic sunshine with chillier winds. However, these mild and reasonably comfortable conditions have been too balmy to enable the British to truly grumble.

Hale, and Rayne Storm, who reside in Cold Blow near Tenby, Pembrokeshire, suggested a mixture of the hot summer and the impending glacial winter have saved

their marriage. They said, “We’ve been together for thirty years now - and there’s only a finite amount of words we can use. The weather is always changing, it provides us with fresh material to speak about.”

Meanwhile the general public’s delirium has peaked at the prospect of record-breaking snowfall through November, which will provide ample opportunity for protest.

In the past, entire communities have halted to a complete standstill at the very moment of snowfall, wreaking absolute British pandemonium. Citizens perch in public domains, frown into their teas, and grumpily glare at children who deign to enjoy frolicking about like deer in the snow.

BBC Health correspondent, Doctor Chills, released a statement suggesting the snow can be employed as an extra supply of water

HS2: Speed harder

for British citizens. He said, “the snow may be used as a source of fluid for when our pipes freeze over in the coming months - as long it hasn’t been utilised before it reaches boiling temperature. I would however, like to warn the blind and the elderly that it isn’t worth using any snow that may have been tampered with. Snow which is brown or yellowish in colour is not worth the risk to anyone’s health. In addition, the impact upon taste would be rather dire.”

Weather forecasters across the country suggest the incoming snow ought to continue into early December. It is unclear as to how the weather will develop from then on. But, they have confirmed there should be abundant opportunity for maximal levels of moaning and groaning through the rest of the month.

This week the Coalition announced additions to the High Speed 2 rail line, in light of recent criticism over the spiraling budget.

David Cameron, speaking sensually into the ears of Andrew Marr, was clear. “Of course there’s a limit, £42.6 billion. Or so. But let’s make this clear, this is not simply an overpriced train. Britain is sick, and speed is the answer. High speed.”

The Prime Minister continued, “Look, this isn’t a vanity project for Ozzy or I - it’s a vanity project for Britain. As such, we’re pleased to announce the addition of mirrors to the carriage exteriors, reflecting the beauty of Britain through the 130 protected wildlife zones we’ve built through. Furthermore it will help cut the welfare bill in the North West, as job-seekers are forced to take a good look at themselves as it passes.”

Brian May, controversial crittercriticiser, was quick to hail the mirror’s environment impact in that it “might blind those goal post moving Badger fucks” and aid the cull.

The Prime Minister continued to explain that despite using three times more energy than current train services, HS2 would “end global warming and persuade illegal immigrants to go home.”

When pressed by Marr’s right lobe to elaborate, Cameron responded that HS2 would “bring a glorious end to the plight of climate change and cajole illegitimate aliens to return to their foreign lands.”

Losing his cool, David snapped; “Britain is broken Andrew. And after my fracking proposals, it will

be fractured as well. HS2 will serve as a giant Y shaped bandage across the British isles.” In response, Labour moved to criticize the Government’s plan but unfortunately Ed Balls, the Shadow Chancellor, could not be heard over his smug expression. It is presumed he did say something.

Ed Miliband instead sought to clarify his position. He said “While I support the HS2 project, I do not support a blank cheque. That would be ridiculous. You would not know who it was to, how much you’re giving out and where to scribble your name. It would cease to be a cheque. It would become a small piece of thin paper. This is another sign that the government are out of touch with ordinary, hardworking people who deal in cash.”

Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin dismissed attacks from “moaning London commentators,” arguing “Brunel didn’t have to put up with this shit.” He added, “even the bloody Indian’s didn’t complain this much when we gave them the railways. It’s just a small minority of ‘Guardian’ reading hummus munchers who are more irritating than the hemp underwear they wear. I’m proud this government are supporting ambitious projects, it’s a Great Exhibition on fucking rails. That sort of thing costs money.”

The proposed HS2 plans are currently being debated in the House of Lords. Peter Mandleson, senior vampiric Lord, has led the attack on the plans claiming that it would “suck the very life blood out of the country’s rail network.” Negotiations between the parties are ongoing.

Image credit Nigel Chadwick

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20SOCIETIES

MONDAY 18TH NOVEMBER 2013

Greetings from the Saving Faces Society Simon Oldfield Saving Faces was set up in 2000

by Professor Iain Hutchinson, a renowned Consultant Maxillofacial surgeon working at St Bartholomew’s Hospital. He realised that there was very sparse research into the treatment of facial diseases, such as oral cancers, and also into the treatment of trauma involving the face, head and neck.

Now, after thirteen years, there are more than forty facial surgeons nationwide who collaborate with a team of nine researchers, all working to broaden our knowledge of such conditions and to produce groundbreaking research into new treatments.

In addition to the surgeons who volunteer their services, the charity is also fortunate enough to

have patients willing to participate in clinical trials, who aim to give hope to those who will undergo these treatments in the future.

There is also a support network of former patients who work to support those who have been newly diagnosed with facial diseases, and to help them through the trauma of their prospective surgeries.

The research that Saving Faces conducts is partly funded by institutional donors, but relies heavily on the support of individuals, and societies like ours, who want to see progress in this much-neglected area of medical research. Many of these donors are patients themselves - both past and present, who know the devastating effect of facial disease and injury.

What you can do?

Our society works to fundraise for

the Saving Faces charity, whilst also providing educational events and other exciting opportunities for its members in their field of interest. We are very lucky to work so closely alongside Professor Iain Hutchinson, who led a fantastic set of interactive talks last academic year on a wide range of subjects such as craniofacial deformity, facial reconstruction and craniofacial trauma. In these talks, consultant surgeons from around the country would come and present cases and in some instances, bring the patients involved who would speak about their experiences to our audience. These lectures were free for Saving Faces members or £2.00 per lecture for other attendees, and were an enriching experience for all those involved.

This year, we have some exciting

plans ahead of us, with some much larger aspirations. This includes; A Masquerade Ball in the spring term, in which students, consultants and patients will all be welcome. A charity Santa Run in Victoria Park – The Santa run is fast approaching!!! On the 8th of December in Victoria Park hundreds of Santas will take to the streets.

Raise money, get fit and have fun for what is an incredible cause.

Go to.www.doitforcharity.com for interactive talks, with top consultants, their patients and often other medical professionals such as psychologists, microbiologist.

These talks have received interest from around the country, with many universities asking for live streaming of these talks, providing a fantastic opportunity for further fundraising and raising awareness

of our charity. Educational and enriching opportunities, including the possibility of shadowing prestigious surgeons, essay competitions and student presentations in front of some of London’s maxillofacial surgeons, and much, much more!

How do I get involved?

We’re having a promotion evening on Monday 28th November in the Milton Lecture theatre for you all to meet the committee and to hear a little from Professor Iain Hutchinson, to find out more; join us on Facebook to get updates on events and information for our members; https://www.facebook.com/ groups/BLsavingfaces/ Find out more about the charity, including news, events and research at; www.savingfaces.co.uk.

Image credit Military Health

Beckett and Corbyn Come Out on Top...Just!

Megan Corton Scott On Wednesday 30th October, The Queen Mary Labour Society hosted John Rentoul, Jon Davis, Jeremy Corbyn MP and Francis Beckett in debating the rise, resignation and resulting legacy of Tony Blair. The motion of the debate was entitled ‘This House Believes Tony Blair Saved The Labour Party’, with society President Nick Garland chairing the debate. It may have been the nature of the topic, the quality of the speakers or the endless enthusiastic advertising of the event, but for whichever reason it was the biggest turn out the Labour Society have seen this year.

Queen Mary’s own took to the proposition: Rentoul, who is a visiting professor in contemporary history at QMUL and chief political commentator of the Independent, and Davis, director of the Mile End Group and history lecturer.

On the other side sat Corbyn , MP

for Islington North for 30 years, and Beckett, former president of the National Union of Journalists, former education correspondent for the New Statesman and renowned political biographer.

The debate began with Davis, who filled his five minutes with enthused recollections of New Labour and the rise of Blair, making his much younger audience realize the extent of the excitement and fervor of 1997.

A good move, on his part, as many of the audience were UG students, and only remembered the more criticized moves at the end of Blair’s tenure, as opposed to his glorious beginnings. Rentoul also backed this up in his speech, telling us that the 1980’s and 90’s were “private affluence and public squalor”, citing how it took Blair to rebalance the social damage of Thatcher’s underinvestment in social services.

Whilst Davis and Rentoul’s reminisced about the Blair golden years, acerbic Beckett did not hold back when laying blows.

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Restraining himself to eye rolls and one snort of derision during his opponent’s speeches, he packed his speech full of contempt. We would expect nothing less from a man who co-authored a book on Blair so harsh that Roy Hattersley took to the Guardian to defend him, stating “Even Macbeth had redeeming features”.

Beckett condemned Blair for siding with the ‘rich and powerful’, as opposed to Miliband who sides with the ‘poor and powerless’. If Beckett is the extrovert, peppering his speech with damning hyperbole and New Labour caricatures, Corbyn was the quiet force, knowing that his 30 year Labour MP experience spoke for itself. When he spoke, it was obvious to the room why his career in politics has been so illustrious, as he neither hurled vitriol at Blair, nor focused solely on the contentious topic of the Middle East. Instead he drew from his first hand knowledge of Blair, a man who is heralded as bringing peace

to Northern Ireland, remembering Blair’s fury at Corbyn’s meeting with Gerry Adams (president of Sinn Féin), a meeting with intent to keep dialogue open.

Whilst the four speakers had had time to prepare their speeches, questions from the floor meant they were put on the spot by QM students. Though the topic of the Iraqi invasion hadn’t been a focal point in the speeches, for QM students it was a pressing issue, with excellent answers from both sides.

Both Rentoul and Davis agreed it was the right thing to do, whilst Corbyn (who is fiercely opposed to the war itself) and Beckett decried it as an error through and through.

Interestingly, both sides agreed that Blair was not pressured or pressed to go into Iraq with the United States, it was wholeheartedly his decision. Whether this makes him a strong leader or a ruthless warmonger is subject to opinion.

Both sides were impeccably prepared, answering every question

with calculated reason and just the right touch of affection and/ or contempt for Blair. Davis and Rentoul were a Blair dream team, currently lecturing together on QMUL’s MA ‘New Labour in Government’, and writing a book together about Blair’s legacy.

Beckett and Corbyn decried Blair with just the right amount of disdain, which considering Corbyn has defied the Whip 238 times since 2005 (making him the second most rebellious Labour MP in Parliament) and Beckett’s tendency for dramatization, as seen in his biographies, was an achievement in itself.

Though the motion went to Beckett and Corbyn, by a narrow margin, it was interesting to see that not a single audience member changed their mind from start to end of debate. Which is testament to the fact that Blair is not only a divisive topic, but also a topic upon which people have extremely strong opinions.

SOCIETIES21

MONDAY 18TH NOVEMBER 2013

11th

Monday’s Calling Drapers 9pm-2am

12th

Coffee House Sessions , presenting Ellie Rose Ground

13

Go Wild 9pm - 2am Drapers

th

14

th

15th

Salsa Classes 7pm - Midnight Drapers Mental Health Across the World 11am-3pmw

Students’ Union Hub

16

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Altered Consciousness 19181980 Conference

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Get Active Dodgeball Tournament

Mondays Calling 18 8pm - 2am Drapers Bar Sound of Ground - 6:30pm 19th 4:30pm Ground Cafe th

Go Wild 20th 9pm - 2am Drapers

21st

International Volunteer Fair 5pm - 7pm Student’s Union Hub

22nd

Anime Society Screening

23

Get in the festive spirit with a trip to Winter Wonderland

24th

Day of rest!

rd

PhotoSoc’s ‘Wild’ Night Davey Brett Not many can boast having been in a museum at night. Even fewer can boast having had a glass of wine next to the skeleton of a dinosaur at 10.30pm. On 25th October, QMUL Photography Society treated members to that and much more! Having managed to pull off the coup of acquiring 30 severely discounted tickets to the opening night of ‘The Wildlife Photographer of the Year’ exhibition at the Natural History Museum, we are happy to report that our first exhibition trip of the year was a total success! The exhibition itself was a visual feast that would make even David Attenborough tingle. The images were expertly presented on backlit screens and provided a mixture of vibrant colour, explosive emotion and expert photographic execution.

Highlights included Richard Packwood’s ‘The Greeting’ (an almost surreal black and white picture of truly jaw-dropping contrast and perfect composition based around the reflection of two elephants on a lake) as well as Ellen Anon’s ‘Ice Aurora’ and Łukasz Bożycki’s ‘Eye of a Toad’, both boasting exquisite definition and colours. The underten years of age entries also proved

to be especially impressive, shockingly depressing (why can’t I take pictures like that 9 year old?) and jealousy inducing (wish I got a £800 camera for Christmas aged 8.) Win-

ner of the ’10 years and under’ category Louis Pattyn is a name to look out for in the future! Despite a brief power cut the exhibition was a huge success with glowing reviews from members. All the entries on show can be seen online, but anything other than seeing the photographs in person doesn’t do them justice!

Once the exhibition had been viewed there was nothing else to do but go home right? Think again.

Wine and beer (delicious non-alchoholic beverages were also on offer) were purchased and the exploring began! The museum running its monthly ‘lates’ event was open to the alcohol-swilling public until 11pm and members took full advantage. The building itself was beautifully lit, abuzz with atmosphere and sound-tracked by passionate live musical performances. We were able to explore the building back to front, get to know members and generally have a delightful evening in what was a truly surreal experience. Wine and dinosaurs, who would have thought? Bearing in mind that it was our exhibition debut, you can only imagine what else we have in store for the upcoming year. Watch this space…

Meet the Russians The Russian Society Did you know that there are 114 Russians currently studying at Queen Mary? I’d imagine not, but if you were to do your research you would find that there are also 46 Ukrainians, 70 students from Kazakhstan, 13 Azerbaijanis - and many more from other countries within the former Eastern Bloc.

So it’s not all that surprising that there is a QMSU society geared specifically towards integrating Russian speakers into our community.

It was significantly more surprising to find out that around 1 in 3 Queen Mary students were willing to take a Vodka shot with us before 1pm at our welcome desk in Library Square last Tuesday, although we have to apologise that - due to the serious legal repercussions inherent in providing alcohol without any form of licensing - these “vodka” shots were in fact water. Nevertheless, we enjoyed meeting everyone

who came and hope to see you all at our events.

This semester we’ve already cohosted an event with the Russian societies of UCL, LSE, KCL and other University of London Colleges at Doggett’s Bar in Blackfriars. Over 400 Russian speakers attended the event, including the contestant’s from this year Miss USSR UK, with only a brief rainy spell interrupting a wonderful evening of Friday night socialising on a terrace overlooking the Thames. In typically lavish Russian style various after parties were held at some of London’s top venues - including Paramount, DSTRKT & Trader Vic’s.

However, while we also participate in the KVN (A well-known Russian comedy competition) and attend numerous charity balls with other universities, not all our events are held in collaboration with other Russian Societies.

On Thursday 14th November, we are hosting a party of our own at Walkabout (in Temple), to cele-

brate the re-launch of our society for the 2013-14 Academic Year.

Entry will be free for all members and guests, and we will be providing as much free alcohol and food as our budget allows. There will also be an after party at Jalouse in Mayfair, with a table provided for our members and guests.

With so many parties, it is easy to forget that we also organise many other activities for our members, in order to help all Russian speakers make friends they will always remember: We play football games 2-3 times a week; organise paintballing trips; and last year we helped to raise money for the Naked Heart foundation as well as organising many other activities. We are constantly looking for new ways to improve, and if you have any suggestions, please feel free to get in contact to help us bring the Russian community together.

societiesqmessenger@gmail.com

22SPORTS

MONDAY 18TH NOVEMBER 2013

QM Horse Racing Society

Richard Maher What is the second most-watched sport in the UK? I doubt many would’ve guessed this ‘dark horse’, but there are a group at Queen Mary who are very much aware of the popularity of horse racing, and are doing their best to promote it.

Lewis Grant, President of the ‘QMUL Horse Racing Society’, is quick to point this out; ‘Based on gate receipts, horse-racing is the UK’s second most watched sport’, he said, ‘whilst popularity could be seen as on the rise, more needs to be done to promote the sport to younger people’.

Appealing to younger people certainly raises a heated debate in horse racing: does the industry change in order to attract a new audience, or does it remain faithful to its history and hope that it survives?

Many feel that, in the drive to attract young fans, horse racing could risk betraying itself. Lewis Corfield, treasurer of the society, believes that focus should be placed on making the attractions surrounding horse racing more fun and accessible, rather than altering the sport itself.

“It is a bit of an ‘old man’s’ sport at times”, he concedes, “it needs to change to become a bit more exciting. They could provide stalls

at racecourses to attract younger audiences. There is a large push within racing to attract more students recently though, which can only be a good thing”.

Despite this push, which has involved hosting concerts alongside race meetings and the formation of groups like the ‘Next Generation Club’, Queen Mary appears to have one of the only student horse racing societies in London. The team are not aware of any others like themselves.

Student apathy towards horse racing has often been blamed on the mistreatment of the horses.

With the young population becoming increasingly passionate about animal rights, especially those in higher education, the whipping and drugging of horses which has been associated with

the sport alienates many.

However, the society are keen to stress regulations are being put in place to stop this kind of thing.

“Whipping is discouraged”, Corfield said, “they’ll ban jockeys that don’t adhere to the rules. However it cannot be totally eliminated as it mimics the natural ways horses encourage each other to run in the wild, so should be kept to a minimum but not eliminated totally”.

One industry which the popularity of horse racing is heavily reliant upon is gambling; in this area, horse racing is huge business. It is estimated that six hundred million pounds is gambled over the four days of the Cheltenham Festival, one of the UK’s most illustrious horse racing events.

But this is another area horse

racing is failing to attract a younger audience. Just like in the viewing statistics, horse racing is struggling to keep up with the rising popularity of gambling on ball-based sports. Even with the boom in internet bookmakers, young people generally tend to feel more comfortable betting on football scores, as it is something they have a greater knowledge of and is far more accessible.

The QMUL Horse Racing society Facebook page is very vibrant in terms of updating members (of which there currently about 20) on betting odds, tips and information, as those involved strive to help each other in this aspect of the sport. But whilst this might provide extra incentive and enjoyment for some individuals, the group maintain the society itself

Image credit tpower1978

does not promote this.

“We believe going to the races is a brilliant day out and a spectacle that everyone can enjoy, without gambling being any sort of necessity”, Corfield insists, “it is enjoyed widely for the sporting and social aspect and is by no means just a platform for betting. We hope those at our trips see how fun horse racing is and how it is a social occasion not to be missed!”

Excursions are planned to visit Kempton Park, which is quite local being in Surrey, and also the famous Cheltenham Festival in March, which it is hoped can be extended into a 2 day trip. The possibility of a Royal Ascot visit is also being mooted but, being in its first year, the society will be taking things one step at a time.

With most of the key individuals of the society in their third-year, the group are trying their best to raise the profile of horse racing in the university enough for younger students to feel compelled to pick up the baton and continue the society in the future.

This is an aim reflective of the sport as a whole: will it continue to grow by accumulating new supporters? Or will it decline and reach its own metaphorical finish line? If the enthusiasm of these boys is anything to go by, then the odds looks pretty good for horse racing.

Middlesex 22-22 QMBL Women’s Rugby Eleanor Matthews QMBL Women’s Rugby first fixture of the season was an eventful one, as they headed out to the Saracen’s home ground, Allianz Park, to play on their state of the art 3G pitch, only to find that the pitch had been booked until 4pm when kick-off was supposed to be 2:30pm. The new additions to the team were raring to go, and the old girls were ready to dust off the cobwebs. When the match finally got underway, it was clear to see that the team were playing a vastly improved Middlesex side, with a stronger scrum and fitter players than were faced last year. However QMBL gave as good as they got, with Abbie Buttery and Christie Brennan making some great breaks and good yards with the ball. Newcomer Jemima O’Keefe

showed brilliance on the wing, with excellent hands and breaking a few tackles to take the ball up the pitch. A strong forward pack made its mark with prop Ellie Boyce, prop Karen De Freitas and second row Kate Collins all going over for a try (2 for Ellie). With a few minutes left to play, scrumhalf Lizzie Cannon converted the last try of the match to make the score a very respectable 22-22.

Manasi Menon, playing in her new position at fly half, was awarded Player of the Match by Middlesex for great control of the game, with the referee noting she was a natural 10. It was great to see such an enthusiastic and talented bunch of people take to the pitch to make a solid start to the season, with each and every player making a valuable contribution to an exciting game.

sport.qmessenger@gmail.com

Image credit QM Women’s Rugby

SPORT23

MONDAY 18TH NOVEMBER 2013

‘An Evening with an Olympian’ Marcus Yarwood This November, Queen Mary Boat Club presents ‘An Evening With An Olympian’ with former Olympic champion Ben HuntDavis MBE. A member of the gold medal winning men’s 8+ at the Sydney 2000 Olympics (the first British eight since 1912 to win gold), Ben Hunt-Davis will be giving an inspirational speech on his experiences of training for and competing in three Olympic Games. His speech will highlight how these winning strategies can be applied to everyday situations for success in business, sport and education. Ben Hunt-Davis is one of the most in-demand keynote speakers and business trainers in the UK, and is also author of ‘Will It Make The Boat Go Faster?’. As well as competing at three Olympic Games, he was also part of the staff of Team GB at Beijing 2008 and London 2012. This unmissable speech will be held in Janu-

ary, and tickets will be sold on the door for £2. All students are welcome! This is a chance for all to gain valuable skills key to success in their everyday lives, even without any sporting interest or experience.

‘An Evening With An Olympian’ is one of many fundraisers that QMULBC will be organising throughout the year. Another event that is currently ongoing is a chance to name the best boat that the club own, the unnamed Wintech coxed four (4+), for which the naming rights are being raffled off to raise money for the club. This is an amazing opportunity for students past and present to have their name in the Boat Club history books by providing a name for a boat that will be racing throughout the year.

The new name will be displayed on the side of the boat, along with ‘Est. 1910’, which represents the year that the club was founded.

Raffle tickets can be bought for

£2 each at the Hub reception and on the QMSU website. The draw will take place on the 1st December, and the winner will be notified by email, when they will be asked for their chosen name. All money raised from both the motivational speech and the raffle will go towards the funding of a new coach for Boat Club.

After getting significantly reduced funding from the SU for this academic year, QMULBC are now looking to fundraise in order to employ a new coach. Owing to a partnership between QMULBC and the University of East London Boat Club (UELBC), the two clubs had previously shared a coach. However as this partnership has since been dissolved, and the club receiving foundation status funding, the new committee are determined to support and improve Boat Club over the coming year.

Barts Club Sport Pos. Team W D L

Pnts

Men’s Rugby in South Eastern 1A

1 UCL 1st 2 Imperial 1st 4 Barts 1st 7 Kent 1st

2 2

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0 1

6 6

1

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0

3

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Netball in South Eastern 2B

1 Barts 1st 2 UCL 2nd 5 LSE 1st 6 Kings Col.

1

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3

1

0

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3

0

0

2

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2nd

Football in South Eastern 4B

1 2 5 6

Barts 1st

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6

Canterbury

2

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6

Imperial 2nd

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1

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Kent 2nd

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CC 2nd

QM Surf Team Natalia Reca

Image credit 5lab

Surf QM had a hectic weekend of parties, surfing and meeting likeminded students, as we journeyed over to Newquay in Cornwall for the BUCS Surf Championships, the biggest student surf weekend in Europe!

The weather was good with an October swell coming in. We caught some solid 2-4 footers, with waves reaching up to 7ft on the Sunday. This made for an in-

teresting competition with the weather getting tricky with some strong rips and some blown out waves by the end of the weekend.

It was an amazing few days of surfing and non-stop parties at the surfer’s village. The QM team had a great time dressed as pirates, mixing with UCL, the first London club to win BUCS with Irish junior champ Iarom Madden claiming the men’s title, beating over 200 other competitors.

Surf QM is a great bunch of water sports enthusiasts, welcoming everyone from beginners to seasoned boarders.

We aim to line up some trips in the coming months, from short, cheap weekends away in the UK, to overseas trips in France. Get involved!

Find us on Facebook; https://www.facebook.com/ groups/surfqm/?fref=ts https://www.facebook.com/surf. qm?fref=ts

sport.qmessenger@gmail.com

24

MONDAY 18TH NOVEMBER 2013

QM Club Sport Pos. Team W D Men’s Rugby in South Eastern 2B College 1 Kings2nds

3

0

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5 8

Canterbury

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CC 1st

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QM 2nd

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Herts 2nd

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Netball in South Eastern 3B

1 Essex 1st 2 QM 2ND 3 Kent 2nd

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6 Middlesex 1st

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Men’s Football in South Eastern

1 QM 2nd 2 2 Herts 3rd 2 5 East Lnd 2nd 0 6 Canterbury 0 CC 4th

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Women’s Fencing in 1A

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3 Holloway 1st 2

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UCL 1st

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Royal

QM 1st

6 Brunel 1st

Queen Mary 33-32 Royal Holloway Michael Barraclough Promotion to BUCS Basketball South Eastern Division 1A hasn’t slowed down the success of Queen Mary Women’s Basketball First Team, as they achieved their third consecutive victory at their new level on 30th October and maintaining their 100% record in the process.

After dominating matches against the University of Brighton and Portsmouth (55:45 and 57:32 respectively), the ladies entered the match, at St Pauls Way School (Mile End), in a justifiably confident mood, firmly believing that they can achieve the aims of President Ivy Lim – namely that they ‘…finish in the top half of the league’.

After this battling display against one of the stronger teams in the division, there is no reason why they can’t do

this, or even more.

Unlike the previous two fixtures, this match was a much tighter affair, albeit one that Queen Mary had under control at all times. Despite the low scoring nature of the contest (QM were up 12:7 at half time), the game was exciting and tense. The home team were in front for most of the match, yet Royal Holloway were good at closing the gap in the scores, and managed to level the match at 19:19 in the third quarter. After a topsy-turvy final quarter, it was QM who were victorious, by the narrowest of margins in a 33:32 thriller.

One of the main reasons for this victory was the solid defence, anchored by Kim Lane and backed up at the top of the zone by Ivy Lim and Myriam Castello, as well as the all action and committed performances of Anika Jakobsen and Roachey Ratcheman. Offensive

success was created by Guiditta Trinci, whose clever play and work in the middle was at the heart of many good QM moves, and will be an important ploy for the rest of the campaign.

However, as much as these individual performances were instrumental, it was the team effort, which was the most admirable aspect of the game.

Players were willing to forgo personal glory and game time for the greater good of the team; such teamwork and unity is going to be crucial during the rest of the campaign.

All things considered, it wasn’t the most fluid display, however, winning when not playing your best is the sign of a good team and with such battling qualities coming to the fore, there is no reason why Queen Mary cannot extend their 100% record further, and consolidate their place at the top of the table.

QM Women’s Hockey 4 -3 University of Kent Fern Champion As captain of Queen Mary Women’s Hockey club, Wednesday 30th October was a proud day for me. Following the previous week’s successful 4-2 win against Kings’ Medics, the whole team were eager to get another win behind us, as we faced the University of Kent. This is a team who we played last year with mixed results, when we smashed them 7-4 at the beginning of the season, but inconsistent play and sloppy stick skills saw us lose 1-0 in the return fixture. We had some making up to do, that was for certain.

The game had a tense start with Kent managing to sneak a goal through our illprepared defence and novice goal keeper within the first 10 minutes. Not a team to shy away from a challenge however, Queen Mary fought back with valour and determination; strong play from the midfield, namely Inez Conway and Sarah Power, led to two goals in quick succession from player of the match, Catherine Mills. Kent responded with another goal just before the half-time whistle to make it 2-2 at the break, and leaving QM hungry to secure their victory in the 35 minutes to follow.

After a shake up of the defence, the

second half started much stronger, with fresher Sophie McLellan vindicating her place on the team with some solid defending at the back. Applying what they had learnt at training the previous day, Queen Mary showed that they were there to win, with sophisticated team work between the midfield and

Image credit www.pitchero.com

the forwards leading to another goal.

This time it was from Inez Conway, who swept the ball passed the goalkeeper on her reverse side with apparent ease. An unlucky stick tackle in the D saw a short corner awarded to Kent, which they converted into a goal, bringing the score to 3-3, and simultaneously making Queen Mary all the more determined to come away with a win.

With only ten minutes of play left, Zoe Cantley took it upon herself to secure the win, by scoring the fourth and final goal for Queen Mary with an elegant sweep of the ball. Time seemed to stop as the ball travelled through the air and one can only imagine the fear the Kent goalkeeper must have felt as she saw the ball hurtle towards her- no wonder she let it in! Aware that their winning days were numbered, Kent responded with feisty play which saw the ball not leave our defensive 25m for the last five minutes. The defence, however, resilient as ever, responded positively and strongly to every attack on goal until at last, the final whistle went. Queen Mary 4 – 3 University of Kent. What a game!

With promotion now firmly in our sights, we now look ahead to our next BUCS fixture against Hertfordshire.

Moving on up? Most definitely!

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