Issue 92, The Stag (University of Surrey Student Magazine)

THE STAG ISSUE 92 / SEPT 2017 / FREE!

UNIVERSITY OF SURREY STUDENT MAGAZINE

Inside!

A Fresher’s Guide pp. 6-7 Your Health at Surrey pp. 14-16

THE FRESHERS’ ISSUE!

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feat. FASHION / INTERVIEWS / NETFLIX / YOUTUBE / MUSIC / OPINION & MORE!

The Stag Editorial Team Head of Marketing

Alice Papadopoulou

Head Editor

Katie O’Brien

Head of Design

Matthew Nolan

With Special Thanks to Our Team Editors Opinion: Ricardo Mendes Creative: (Open to applications) Literature: Helia Daryani Sport: (Open to applications) Societies: Michał Frąckowiak Features: Megan d’Ardenne Food: Susanna Guri Music: Aaron Jackson Beauty: Ross Carter Fashion: (Open to applications) Science & Tech: Adil Aslam Entertainment: Alice Papadopoulou Have an idea for a new section?

Email editor@thestagsurrey.co.uk

Writers Saskia Cochrane Katie O’Brien Matthew Nolan Alice Papadopoulou Michał Frąckowiak Megan d’Ardenne Aaron Jackson Jamie Law Ricardo Mendes Toby Manhire Eve Willis Interviewees Jess Wreford Chris Caine Joel Amey Rufaro Mazarura Sinead Ashcroft

Design & Proofing Matthew Nolan Katie O’Brien Connor Ibbetson Alice Papadopoulou Photography Michal Mlynarczyk Connor Ibbetson Ross Carter Katie O’Brien Matthew Nolan Michał Frąckowiak William Beckwith Rufaro Mazarura Eve Willis

Front & Back Cover Yousif Sadik

Disclaimer: THE STAG© is an independent, not-for-profit magazine run by students, for students at the University of Surrey, England. Founded in 1967 as ‘Bare Facts’, the publication has undergone multiple rebrandings over the years, moving from a newspaper to magazine format in 2015. Today, we release new issues both in print and digitally a few times each year. For more information, please visit www.thestagsurrey.co.uk

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Head Editor’s Letter Hello! A warm welcome back to our Surrey veteran students. If you’re returning to Surrey, this is where the real work begins. Long gone are the days where a piece of work can be frantically put together the night before it’s due assignments are longer, harder and actually count towards your degree.

My advice for returning students would be to write up your lecture notes every week, even if it’s just a brief summary of what you’ve learned. Then, when it comes to revise, you’ll have some more detailed or concise notes to refer back to rather than just lecture slides; it definitely made my revision period less stressful! But don’t forget to enjoy yourself, maybe join a society that you didn’t get around to joining in first year, I think I might join snow sports for the first time this year!

And for our brand-new students – welcome! You’ll spend your first year at Surrey finding your feet. Join as many societies as you possibly can, keep your doors open and say yes to every social opportunity. Whilst your first year doesn’t count towards your degree, it’s important to start working reasonably hard to develop good habits and revision strategies that will help you later in your degree. The things you learn in first year will create the foundation of your subsequent years.

There is a lot of pressure to enjoy your first year. I personally didn’t have the best first year at Surrey, my health wasn’t great and I quickly fell behind. It’s important to know things don’t always pan out as you anticipate, but Surrey has a huge variety of services available to support you through the harder periods you might encounter at university, so you’ll never be alone. Some of these will be discussed in this issue.

This year will be a tougher year for freshers. Enrollment is at an all-time high, class sizes are swelling, and the University doesn’t have enough accommodation to support all of these new students. The housing crisis is at the top of the Union President’s list this year, so this problem is definitely being addressed.

Again, welcome back! I hope you all have a great year. The Stag really is shaping up to be the best it’s ever been (not that I’m biased or anything!)

Best wishes,

Katie O'Brien Katie O’Brien

editor@thestagsurrey.co.uk

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SOCIETIES

Societies Spotlight: The University of Surrey Law Society, pp.58-59

UNION

Union President’s Letter, pp.10-11 Students’ Union Officers (2017-18), pp. 12-13

FEATURES

A Fresher’s Guide, pp.6-7 Student Life Mentoring, p.9

PHOTOGRAPHY

Photospread, pp.24-25

INTERVIEWS

Girl on the Bench (Rufaro Mazarura), pp.26-31 Your Health at Surrey (Jess Wreford, VP Support), pp.14-16 A Dotwork Orange (Sinead Ashcroft), pp.22-23

CONTENTS 4

CONTENTS

TRAVEL

A Summer in South America (reflection), pp.32-35

NETFLIX

To The Bone (film review), p.46

YOUTUBE

This is Everything (documentary review), pp.38-39 Just Between Us (channel review), pp.40-41 The True Geordie (channel review), pp.42-43

MUSIC

Coasts (album review), pp.50-51 Coldplay on a Hot Day (concert review), pp.54-55 The Guildford Music Scene (a case study), pp.47-49 The Most Anticipated Pop Albums Coming This Fall (feature), pp.56-57

FASHION

Fall Update: Sustainable Fashion, pp.36-37

INTERVIEWS

Catching Up With (Coasts’ Chris Caines), pp.52-53 An Interview with Wolf Alice’s Joel Amey, pp.44-45

OPINION

Opinion Editor’s Letter, p.17 Are Military Coups Ever Justified?, pp.18-19 Power Play & Divisive Politics, pp.20-21 5

FEATURES

A Fresher’s Guide //Megan d’Ardenne

Going to university can be daunting; for most students it’s the first time living away from home and that comes with a whole range of responsibilities such as cooking, budgeting, and doing laundry (boring, I know). However, having just about survived first year, here are some tips and tricks that helped me experience Freshers to the full, and also enabled a smooth transfer to university life...

Invest in a door stop Your flat mates are going to be the first people you meet when you arrive at university.

A door stop is a great way to socialise as you’ll be able to introduce yourself easily!

Unpack quickly

I was one of the first people to arrive in my flat, and I found it really convenient as I was unpacked quickly.

Go out and explore the campus with new friends and get involved with all the fresher’s events!

Go to freshers’ fair

Freshers’ Fair was one of my favourite events from Fresher’s week: not only are there loads of freebies but it’s where all the societies will be with sign-up sheets for you to join! Sign up to as many as you can! Take your Surrey email address as that’s what most societies will use when signing you up!

Go to your course welcome tours We’ve all been there. Gone too heavy the night before and woken up with a killer hangover.

Even if the thought of going to a welcome talk may seem like a rubbish option compared to bed, it’s a great way to make friends on your course, and to familiarise yourself with your lecturers.

Take your student card everywhere Your student card gives you access to the library, the gym (if you buy membership), Rubix nightclub entry if you buy a student ticket, and also student discounts for some shops!

Therefore it’s useful to have wherever you go!

Know your limits

First impressions count, therefore if one night you have one too many shots of vodka and crash on everyone, you’ll not only ruin your night, but also your friends’ night!

The campus will still be new to you and security probably won’t be very impressed if you end up in the lake at 4am because “you couldn’t find your accommodation.”

Plan food shopping

One challenge I found when starting university was budgeting and meal planning, resulting in a lot of wasted fresh food and thus wasted money. As the year went on, I found a lot of the fresh food I was buying (for example vegetables) were available in frozen packs and so wouldn’t go off if it isn’t finished in a few days.

In terms of food shops in Guildford, Tesco (between Stag Hill campus and Manor Park) is a good option for a weekly shop, and Simply Fresh is good for on-the-go bits and bobs as it’s right on campus (if your accommodation is at Manor Park there is a little M&S in the hospital which is closer than Tesco!)

Moreover, Tesco does free delivery for clubcard holders if you spend over £40, so it’s great to club together with flat mates to save lugging heavy bags back!

For more Freshers’ tips and exclusive content, visit www.thestagsurrey.co.uk Also, sign up to our newsletter by emailing editor@thestagsurrey.co.uk with the subject line ‘newsletter’

Let yourself be a little homesick if needed Some people can’t wait to leave home and get independence, but for others the transition to university can be daunting. Try to refrain from spending hours crying down the phone and going home too much. You’ll only end up upsetting yourself more, missing out on experiences with new friends, and most importantly worrying your family back home.

That being said, if you’re lucky enough to not feel homesick, don’t forget to update them from time to time as they will be missing you and want to be included in your new life!

Don’t leave uni work until the last minute With all the new friends and societies you’ve hopefully made and joined it can be hard to remember the primary reason you’re at university is to get a degree! Establishing a work-life balance can be hard as well as combatting procrastination! Although first year doesn’t count to your overall degree marks, it is important to get a working structure to implement when the work does start to count; we’ve all been there, 3am isn’t really the best time to be whipping out a first class essay!

Don’t leave referencing until the end!

One difference I found between sixth form and university was that for university assignments every time you use someone else’s work (which will be a lot) you will need to give them credit and properly reference them using Harvard style in a bibliography at the end of your work.

This is such a bug bear when you think you’ve finally completed an essay and then have to go back and find all the books and articles you’ve used (no one likes referencing, not et al). Instead, it’s a lot easier to update your bibliography as you go to save a lot of time and frantic searching!

Student Life Mentoring Student Life Mentoring (www.surrey.ac.uk/mentoring) is a fantastic service for students at Surrey that is about to enter its 12th year of operation in 2017/18.

Student Life Mentoring is a proactive peer support service for all first year students at the University.

If you are living in University accommodation you’ll be automatically allocated a Student Life Mentor. If you’re living off campus you can also meet with a Mentor, just get in touch to arrange this (mentoring@surrey.ac.uk). Mentors are current Surrey students who are available to answer any questions you may have about student life and provide you with helpful information.

experiencing an academic or personal challenge since starting university. A huge 88% said yes!

In May 2017 the Student Life team (based in the Student Services Centre – www.surrey.ac.uk/ask) conducted a survey. Just under 500 students responded, included numerous free text comments such as:

• We asked students if they would agree that having a Student Life Mentor has improved their university experience. 57% of students said they either strongly agreed or agreed with this.

“My student mentor was an amazing mentor, I can speak for my flatmates in saying we thoroughly enjoyed and looked forward to her visits. We would often talk to her for a long period of time. She always had positive things to say and provided us with many useful tips for life at university. I was extremely impressed with her as a mentor and she has definitely improved my time at university.”

In the same way that having a Student Life Mentor helped students last year (and for 10 years before that!) we are here for you as you start your Surrey journey. Mentors are experienced students who can offer advice and support to help with your transition to University. They are carefully selected and trained in the different support services Surrey offers, and in skills such as communication, effective listening and mental health awareness. Mentors can facilitate mediations between housemates, and, on a cheerier note, they run social activities throughout the year to help students settle in and make friends.

We were pleased to read how positively students regard their Mentor, for example: • We asked students if having a Mentor was helpful for students who experienced communal living issues. A staggering 97% of students said yes!

• We asked students if having a Mentor was helpful when

Mentors allocated to first year students living in the residences work on a rotational basis between 18:0020:30 Monday-Friday (Monday-Thursday at Hazel Farm)

during semester time throughout the year (excluding exam periods).

Mentors will visit your flat once a week during Semester 1 (once a fortnight in Semester 2). You may see your Mentor in the kitchen, or they will knock on your door for a chat.

If you are out when they visit you can contact them yourself – if you are unsure who your Mentor is, just email the Student Life team (mentoring@ surrey.ac.uk) or find the ‘Life at Surrey’ poster in your kitchen with your allocated Mentor’s details on.

If you are living off campus we can match you with one of our Mentors, who will offer to meet with you – this might be a one-off meeting, or every week – you can discuss this with your Mentor when you first meet them.

They can meet with you for around 10 minutes at 18:00, Monday – Friday (Monday – Thursday at Hazel Farm) at Battersea Court Reception on the main campus, Manor Park Reception, or the Hazel Farm common room, so you can pick the closest location to where you live.

We hope that you have a great time at Surrey!

UNION

Union President’s Letter Dear Surrey Freshers, My name is Saskia and I am the President of the Students’ Union here at Surrey. I hope you are all excited to start your journey as a student here. It may have been five years ago but I still remember my Freshers’ Week as if it were yesterday!

To start with, I should say that the Students’ Union is not part of the University: we are a charitable organisation, entirely independent of the University, but paid for by you, through your tuition fees.

This means we are here to represent your views as students and to encourage you to make your voice heard, whether that be about academic related issues, accommodation, facilities – everything related to your experience here.

The way our structure works is that we have 5 Sabbatical Officers (a.k.a. the Sabbs) who are Surrey students that have either just graduated, or have taken a year out of their studies, to work full-time in the Students’ Union. They are all elected by the student body each year through our annual election process and are made up of four Vice-Presidents and a President. Further to this, each Vice-President leads a zone of 5 part time officers who are current students – just like you.

My team this year is made up of VP Support Jess Wreford who is a recent Nutrition graduate, VP Voice Alex Harden who has just completed his PhD in Popular Music, VP Activity Ali Douglass who’s recently graduated with a degree in Physics, and last but not least, VP Community Helena Mason – a recent Maths graduate.

As a team we feel passionately that all Surrey students should have the best university experience possible, and so each day we attend meetings and committees, we organise events and campaigns, we facilitate the running of sports clubs and societies – to make sure that the best experience is what you get.

When you have a problem with the University that you can’t resolve yourself, we are here to support you and help fight your corner. My advice to all students starting at Surrey this year is to get involved with as much as you can.

Go to all the welcome week events, meetings and talks, go to our Students’ Union Freshers’ Fair and sign up to everything that takes your fancy! My advice extends as well to opportunities you will be presented with over your years here at Surrey: join that club or society, run to be a committee member, go on that trip, become a Course Rep or Community Rep, volunteer to be a Freshers Angel, get a part-time job, further your skills, run in the student election.

I know for a fact that I wouldn’t be sat here writing you this letter, as your Students’ Union President, if I hadn’t seized the opportunities in front of me whilst I was a student.

This year the Students’ Union will continue our ‘Living at the Limit’ campaign for better housing provisions in Guildford, we will increase pressure on University management to put the day-to-day student experience at the top of their priority list and we will increase our visual presence on campus to make sure students are making the most out of their Union. In the next few months look out for Support Zone ‘Let’s Talk’ Campaigns, Black History Month events, Activity Zone’s #ThisGirlCan campaign and Interfaith Week. Looking further into next year we will have GetFitFeb, our annual Elections Surrey Decides, Varsity against Royal Holloway in March, One World Week and Colours Ball!

I’d like to finish by saying I hope you all have an incredible time here at Surrey, I’m sure the Sabbs and I will see you out and about but please come to visit us in the Students’ Union offices (below Rubix) when you get a chance.

Best wishes,

Saskia Cochrane

Saskia Cochrane President of the Surrey Students’ Union

UNION

Students’ Union Officers 2017-18 VOICE

ACTIVITY

Alex Harden

Ali Douglass

VP Voice

VP Activity

Olivia Mitchell

Alexa Hughes

Voice Committee Member

(Exec)

Team Surrey Chair

(Exec)

Taz Kingdon

Voice Committee Member

(Exec)

Hira Arab

Voice Zone Committee

Atefeh Eslahi

Activity Zone Committee

Diana Dakik

Voice Zone Committee

Biray Kayhan

Voice Zone Committee

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Olly Shearman

Activity Zone Committee

H

EXEC Saskia Cochrane

Sam Bryanton

SUPPORT

COMMUNITY

Jess Wreford

Helena Mason

President

VP Support

Union Chair

VP Community

Holly Marquez

Community Committee Member (Exec)

Alice Wells

Community Committee Member (Exec)

Izzy Watkins

Support Zone Committee

Paul Olaniyan

Community Zone Committee

Connaire Jenkins

Support Zone Committee

Hannah Androulaki-Khan Support Zone Committee

Gemma Paine

Community Zone Committee

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YOUR HEALTH AT

SURREY A N E X C L U S I V E I N T E R V I E W with

Jess Wreford (VP SUPPORT)

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I NT E R V I E WER K A T I E O ’ B R I E N

Whilst we hope your time at university is amazing, and relatively bump free, it’s very possible that occasionally this won’t be the case. There are many possible scenarios which may mean you find yourself falling behind in your studies. Whilst these are incredibly stressful situations, the university has an abundance of services to support you through these times. In my case, I had to defer my first set of January exams to the summer period, and around that time I went through just about every service available to me, such as the Centre for Wellbeing and extenuating circumstances. It was a horrible time, but the support the university provided meant that by the time second year rolled around, I was back on track and able to excel in my studies. My case is not isolated, but it is very possible that people in similar circumstances were not aware how the university could support them through these patches. So, I had a chat with Jess, our VP Support, to get her advice regarding various situations you may find yourself in...

For students joining Surrey with mental and/or physical health issues, what support systems are in place to support these students?

The two main areas of support are Centre for Wellbeing and Additional Learning Support. Centre for Wellbeing has a variety of counsellors, Mental Health Nurses and an Eating Disorder Psychotherapist who can help students with their mental wellbeing. The Additional Learning Support (ALS) team are based in the Library and can help support students who have mobility, mental health or learning difficulties throughout their time at University.

What are your tips for helping students settle in after moving to university?

Don’t be afraid of introducing yourself to people! Remember that everyone is in the same boat and life truly begins at the end of your comfort zone. Try saying ‘hi’ to that first person that sits next to you in your first lecture, you never know, they might be a friend for life. Get involved – join a sports club, join a society, become a Course Rep, take part in #SurreyDecides – there is a whole range of opportunities. You never know who you will meet; people from all areas of the world, people you never knew you would click with, like-minded people. It is all part of the experience – relish in every moment.

I think it's probably very common for students to feel like they are struggling to cope, particularly in the first semester of university (being away from home, etc.), what is your advice to these students?

It is completely normal to be struggling but do not let that stop you from having this experience of a lifetime. Opening up is the most powerful tool I can give you, whether that be speaking to someone at the Centre for Wellbeing, coming to the 15

Happiness Café, phoning Nightline (coming soon!) or chatting to a friend over coffee – these can all help you get through whatever you are struggling with!

If someone finds their mental or physical health is really affecting their studies, what should they do?

In this situation, my advice would be to speak to someone as soon as possible. This is sometimes easier said than done, but it’s important to help you decide on the best way forward.

There are three main support services that I would recommend... (It doesn’t have to be in that order as it depends on the situation, but they are all good places to start!)

1. Speak to your Personal Tutor about how it is impacting on your course – they are here to help and should be able to offer you advice on your study options.

2. Speak with one of the Students’ Union’s Academic Advice team – they can advise you on the process if you decide it would be best to apply for extenuating circumstances to either extend a deadline or defer an exam, or to take a break from University.

3. If you need to, seek professional support from the Centre for Wellbeing or Guildowns medical practice.

I myself had to go through the process of extenuating circumstances to defer exams due to poor health, have you yourself had similar experiences at any point throughout your time at university? If so, were you aware of the various services available to you that you are aware of now as VP Support?

I actually failed an exam during my final year. Although I had reasons to apply for extenuating circumstances, I chose not to as I managed to pass the module and to me, it was not worth retaking it in the summer. If your studies are being affected by your physical or mental health, talking to someone about applying for extenuating circumstances as early as possible is my biggest piece of advice - do not wait until the deadline or exam has been and gone. At the Union, we also have Helen & Hannah who are here to offer independent academic advice – you can contact them at ussu.advice@surrey.ac.uk

Following on from Jess’ advice, I personally spoke to my Student Life Mentor. They are a fellow student (usually a few years ahead of you) who visit you on a regular basis in halls. They are given training on various situations, and are great for directing you to relevant university services quickly. They are also great listeners! Sometimes you may have something on your mind that you just need to get off your chest, they are the people for that! There is further information on the Student Life Mentoring scheme in this issue!

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Opinion Editor’s Letter Dear Readers, Welcome students both new and old to Opinions, under new editorship!

I was very privileged to have been voted to be the new Opinions editor at last year’s Stag Annual General Meeting (AGM). From my experience writing for The Stag previously as well as Incite magazine, I put myself forward to encourage journalism among the student body and to publish the many voices Surrey has to offer. I’m incredibly excited to demonstrate some opinions of my own and showcase the breadth of opinion at the university. This issue may appear a little bare, but hopefully will help to demonstrate what we at Opinions would like to see from you guys...

Our main article (penned by me) looks at current events and puts a spin on it. This type of article is more news-based, and factual, but at the heart of it is an opinion around the topic at hand.

While this isn’t an exhaustive list of the kind of thing we’d like to see in the Opinions section it should give a rough idea of what we want to see.

The more the merrier - so don’t be afraid if you think three articles have already been submitted for this issue - we can make room and wish to display Surrey’s diversity of opinion as much as possible.

Beyond the articles, we’re planning to include short comments for further issues. We would like you, dear readers, to issue short comments on the articles here: a selection of them will be taken from our Facebook and Twitter but they can also be submitted at https://ask.fm/StagOpinions Be sure to submit articles to opinion@thestagsurrey.co.uk and we hope over the course of this year to fill these pages with some of your best thoughts!

Thanks,

Ricardo Teixeira-Mendes Ricardo Teixeira-Mendes opinion@thestagsurrey.co.uk

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OPINION

Are Military Coups Ever Justified? //Ricardo Teixeira-Mendes

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017 has marked a year on since an attempted military coup in Turkey. Massive celebrations occurred on the streets of Ankara as the Turkish government celebrated the survival of their electoral democracy and the bravery of the Turkish people one year on after hundreds of people lost their lives in the course of 48 hours starting on the 15th of July 2016. But as Turkey celebrated its democracy’s survival, thousands of suspected coup-sympathisers rot in jail cells, thousands of public servants (especially teachers) have been sacked, and a controversial referendum will now transform Turkey into a presidential system where power is more tightly controlled by the ruling government. The dream of a secular, democratic Turkey with aspirations of joining the European Union now seems in tatters as Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan even suggested bringing back capital punishment.

I remember very clearly at the time that despite the reservations people have had for the Erdoğan regime, the sanctity of the democratic process - where power is transitioned through free and fair elections, rather than by force, had to be upheld, even if those in power aren’t the liberals and democrats some of us would wish they would be. Yet the constant undermining of the democratic process as well as

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the slow transition of Turkey from a liberal democracy to an authoritarian one alarms many of us who cherish freedom and democracy. Ultimately this creates a dilemma - how can we back a democracy where people elect and support politicians who push for anti-democratic policies? And above that, how is it ever justified to use force to remove a democracy for the sake of preserving democracy? But this dilemma has been played out before, much before Turkey’s slip from liberalism to authoritarian populism - regime change and democratisation is not easy, and it is difficult to pull out intense public outrage when marshal law and fear of the regime keeps the public at home instead of protesting in the streets. The aftermath of the Cold War demonstrated that states in Eastern Europe like Poland, Hungary and Czechoslovakia could democratise from popular pressure alone, but in some cases (like China’s 1989 Tiananmen Square incident) the army and brute force can crush even very popular rebellions.

Portugal’s transition to democracy in 1974-75 came as part of a military coup led by democratic-leaning officers against the fascist “Estado Novo (New State)” regime, despite hiccups in the transition, including counter-coups from anti-democratic communists and

even an American-supported plan to get neighbouring fascist Spain to invade, Portugal came out of this process a successful liberal democracy and European Union member. But is Portugal simply an exception and not the norm?

Countless examples of military coups in Latin America and Africa demonstrate that supposedly democratic army officers can simply just replace the same repressive governments they plan to remove, and in the case of

‘how can we back a democracy where people elect and support politicians who push for anti-democratic policies?

And how is it ever justified to use force to remove a democracy for the sake of preserving democracy?’

nations like Turkey, is it simply undermining democracy itself to strike while the country is it least still a democracy?

We try to think of democracy as an almost inevitable conclusion of societal development, but almost as easily as regimes can turn from dictatorships to democracies, so can the reverse. Venezuela is another perfect example of a democracy decaying towards dictatorship. The economic woes of Venezuela have empowered the Chavez, and now Maduro regime to disregard constitutional limits, trash the rule of law and enact repression against legitimate democratic opposition.

Recent attempts from the regime to re-write the constitution (effectively transforming Venezuela into a dictatorship) resulted in civil unrest, mass-arrests of opposition leaders and refugee outflows. As expected in such chaos, a police pilot Oscar Perez and some supporters attempted to overthrow the government in Caracas promising to restore the constitution and democratic order - however, this failed and these would-be “liberators” are now under custody of the Venezuelan government.

As a result, economic sanctions have been placed on members of the regime by the United States and the EU and it seems unlikely that a large-scale military-coup will ever overthrow the brutal, increasingly dictatorial regime. The alternative to an uprising (if regime change is your goal) is of course to get a foreign country to invade and implant democracy that way - yet with the failed democratisations in Iraq and Libya that erupted from Western military intervention, this is an unsustainable and often catastrophic solution to ridding the world of chaos, war and oppression.

Lisbon street art depicting the Carnation Revolution (© Jeanne Menjoulet / Flickr) The U.S. founding father Thomas Jefferson once stated, “The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants”, by that he meant that democracy is a fragile thing, and without using force to remove those who have taken over democracy and become tyrants, it’ll wither and die. I broadly agree with his sentiment, and if I were a Venezuelan I would judge the government to have slipped into tyranny and would do whatever I could to remove it now that democracy itself has been circumscribed by Maduro and his cronies. However, while it is never easy to suddenly rebel against the government - whether you’re an ordinary citizen with his rifle or a section of the state’s armed forces, it is fundamentally always just and right to use force to remove a tyrannical regime in power.

To the Turkish people, I believe they should hold on, and prepare for the worst as the regime removes the last few vestiges of real democracy.

Until democracy becomes corrupted and destroyed by the regime itself, it is our strongest and best tool to remove tyrants and evil people who wish to disregard human rights - voting, campaigning, discussing, writing and protesting will always be a safer bet than trusting a few men with guns to remove regimes that can enrich a few at the expense of the many - but any group that takes that bold step to forcibly remove dictatorship and kleptocracy (and successfully sees democracy through) should be celebrated, as the heroes of Portugal’s April 25th revolution are.

‘Until democracy becomes corrupted and destroyed by the regime itself, it is our strongest and best tool to remove tyrants and evil people who wish to disregard human rights’ 19

OPINION

Power Plays & Divisive Politics //Connor Ibbetson (Former Editor of The Stag)

Image via The Northern Echo

I

t’s no secret, look around. The United Kingdom is perhaps the least united it’s ever been. Brexit vs Remain. Tory vs Labour.

Millennials vs Boomers. So in this time of division, should the divisive actions of new labour MP Laura Pidcock be celebrated as standing up for what she believes in, or condemned as unnecessary divisiveness, at a time when our country needs to stand as one, or risk falling as many.

Laura Pidcock, the recently 20

elected labour MP for North West Durham made headlines with her controversial statements regarding her position on her fellow MPs across the hall. In an interview with Refinery29 a little over two weeks ago, Pidcock stated that she wouldn’t “hang out with Tory women” continuing on to say that they are “no friends of mine” and “an enemy to lots of women”.

Of course, given the recent revelations regarding Jacob Rees Mogg, Tory MP and potential future party leader. Who believes

abortion, even in the case of rape should be illegal. The comments

‘the United Kingdom is perhaps the least united it’s ever been’

by Pidcock have been welcomed by many of the leftist persuasion

“Whatever type they [Tory MPs] are, I have absolutely no intention of being friends with any of them. I have friends I choose to spend time with. I go to parliament to be a mouthpiece for my constituents and class – I’m not interested in chatting on.”

- Laura Pidcock, MP for NW Durham especially feminists. Praise for Pidcocks stance has poured in from traditionally left-leaning media outlets. Jane Middleton of the Guardian liken Pidcock’s stance to that of Harriet Harman during the Thatcher years.

Of course Pidcock’s statements have been suitably denounced by many on the opposite end of the political spectrum, with Daniel Finkelstein of The Times going as far to claim that with Pidcock, comes the return of the Stasi (Thats the communist east-german secret police from the heydays of the cold-war). I think its safe to say that Laura Pidcock does not intend to found her own secret police force to terrorise the Tories into submission, and if she did, I am sure Theresa May would soon sack most of them.

Of course, Laura Pidcock is not the next Stalin by any means. I would consider myself left-wing, and I support her as a feminist, as a trade unionist and as a labour MP. But I cannot support such brash, divisive comments. Laura Pidcock said that she goes “to parliament to be a mouthpiece for my constituents and class – I’m not interested in chatting on.” Well surely, it is in the interest of those who voted her into her seat, that Pidcock does her utmost to work

with her colleagues, no matter their political ideology?

By no means do I suggest she must force herself to be friends with Tories, Pidcock is entitled to befriend whoever she chooses, but should she allow her personal judgement to affect her working relationships? I don’t believe so, and I don’t believe her actions should be celebrated.

Surely more can be achieved by working with the Tories, rather than alienating them from the get go and making and enemy out of all of them. In the wake of Brexit, there are more inter-party divides than ever before, but by tarring all tories with the same brush, Laura Pidcock is robbing not only herself, but the constituents she claims to represent of a chance of working together with more

liberally inclined tories towards a better future for all.

There is of course the argument that she was elected to oppose the tory party, and that is exactly what she is doing. Yes, that statement is correct but it once again presumes that the entire tory party conforms to the ‘Nasty Party’ stereotype. Now I am no big fan of the Tory party, but I do not believe that blanket statements such as the ones from Pidcock will do anything but harm. Such encompassing statements do nothing but propagate the feelings of the ‘us vs them’ all too common in politics.

The Labour motto is, after all, “For the many, not the few”, but Laura Pidcock’s actions will ironically limit her to few potential allies across the hall.

‘The Labour motto is, after all, “For the many, not the few”, but Laura Pidcock’s actions will ironically limit her to few potential allies across the hall.’

Read more of Connor’s work at: connoribbetson.wixsite.com

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FEATURES

Orange A Dotwork

AN EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW with

SINEAD ASHCROFT (3rd Year English Literature Student & Entrepreneur)

INTERVIEWER MATTHEW NOLAN PHOTOGRAPHY SINEAD ASHCROFT

In her spare time, third year English Literature student Sinead Ashcroft creates beautiful dotwork designs and children’s illustrations, selling them online via the popular shopping site Etsy. I caught up with Sinead to find out exactly how and why her creative hobby has blossomed into a successful business...

Why did you start an Etsy shop for your art?

Originally, it was to sell charity prints to raise money for the Duchess of Kent hospice in my hometown Reading as they cared for my father when he was terminally ill. I managed to raise a small amount of money for the charity in the first few months but didn’t really have the time to produce as many prints or raise as much money as I would have liked. So, I decided to make it my own little online shop to store the prints I had already made and create more in my own time at a slower pace to lessen the pressure a little bit. It’s become a great way to get my art out there for people to see and buy while storing an online portfolio for anything art related I may pursue in the future!

What kind of things do you enjoy drawing most?

I focus on dotwork/stippling style drawings which are very intricate and VERY time consuming. I enjoy them a lot as there is a real sense of satisfaction when they are finished but what I love most is children’s illustrations. I wanted to be a children’s illustrator when I was very young so I take a lot of inspiration from children’s books. Silly things like a fox wearing a suit or a dancing grizzly bear are definitely the most fun to draw!

How and why did you decide on the name ‘A Dotwork Orange’?

My favourite book is A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess and the film directed by Stanley Kubrick is definitely up there with my favourite films so, I’m a little bit obsessed! My main style of drawing is dotwork so it’s a play on words while incorporating my favourite book and film!

What are your upcoming/future plans for the shop?

I am hoping to manage my time better in third year to dedicate more time to my art as it’s so therapeutic and acts as a productive study break! I’m hoping to start producing greetings cards this year but ultimately, I’d love to create a children’s picture book. For now, I would love to take any paid commissions to broaden my style and do some personalised drawings for people.

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For more information, visit:

etsy.com/shop/DotworkOrange

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girlonthebench

adventureandlabcoats

matthewrnolan

girlonthebench

matthewrnolan

matthewrnolan

connor_ibbetson

adventureandlabcoats

adventureandlabcoats

connorjamesphotos

adventureandlabcoats

girlonthebench

GIRL ON THE

BENCH A N E X C L U S I V E I N T E R V I E W with

RUFARO MAZARURA (Writer, Storyteller, Second Year English Literature with Creative Writing Student & YouTube Content Creator)

I NTE RVI EWER M A T T H E W N O L A N

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PHOTOGRAP H Y R U F A R O M A Z U R U R A

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INTERVIEWS

INTRODUCTIONS To get things started, tell us a little bit about yourself !

Why did you decide on the name ‘Girl on the Bench’ for your social media?

Hello, my name is Rufaro! I’m a writer, storyteller, second year English with Creative Writing student and - when I have my life together - YouTube content creator!

‘The Girl on The Bench’ was actually an idea for a story that I had when I was younger. It was about a girl who sat on a bench and wrote down observations about people as she watched the world go by. I didn’t write the

story, but the metaphor of sharing my observations from a stationary point of view stuck and so I became, at least online, that ‘Girl on the Bench’. If I ever write that story, I’ll change my name but for now, it works!

‘The Girl on The Bench was actually an idea for a story that I had when I was younger. It was about a girl who sat on a bench and wrote down observations about people as she watched the world go by.’

What are three of your all-time favourite quotes?

‘Have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.’ - Steve Jobs ‘I am learning every day to allow the space between where I am and where I want to be to inspire me and not terrify me’ - Tracee Ellis Ross ‘Not everyone will understand you. Not everyone will appreciate you. Not everyone will embrace you. Do not change for them. Just smile at them, and move along.’ Jessica Hagy 28

ON

YOUTUBE

Why did you decide to start a YouTube channel?

When I was younger, I used to spend a lot of time in my room after school, bored and in need of a creative outlet. One day, I started playing around with my webcam, making stop motion videos (that the internet will never see again) and eventually I

summed up the courage to post it all online. I just really enjoy talking about the things I love and making connections with people who I’d never encounter in the same way offline. That community and opportunity is the reason why I like YouTube so much.

What type of videos do you enjoy making most on your channel, and why?

My favourite type of video to make is definitely advice videos. I was a mess from the age of 12-16 and I’d always wanted an older sister to give me advice and help me avoid doing stupid things, but instead, I became one and that role just filters into everything I do

I think the best way to connect with people is to be open about the person you’ve been, and when I give advice from a point of experience and someone responds to that and shares their story, I feel like I’m living out my purpose. In the end, that’s what life’s really about.

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INTERVIEWS

What is your favourite part of being a YouTuber, and why?

I recently decided to step up my editing and ‘branding’ game, and the process of learning how to put videos together with different software. Picking out colour schemes and fonts for thumbnails is just so much fun for me! But reading the comments

on my videos always puts a smile on my face, too. I read somewhere once that you shouldn’t allow positive comments to validate you because that only serves to strengthen the effect of negative ones. That being said, I have this wonderful community of people

who watch my videos and leave the sweetest comments. I feel like if I were to meet them we’d be instant friends - not because they say nice things about me, but because they share their stories and ‘meet’ me for the first time in a space where I’m at my peak level of comfort.

What do you think about ‘clickbait’? Do you use clickbait in your videos?

I don’t think it’s necessarily a bad thing. For some people, YouTube is a job and if clickbait is what they need to get the views that pay the bills, who am I to be some creative purist about a site literally just made for people to share videos?

But I don’t think that clickbait is a sustainable way of growing an audience. Unless you’re really delivering something valuable and entertaining (like Casey Neistat does), people will either get bored or annoyed. But, you know, if this whole university thing doesn’t work out, don’t be surprised if my titles start sounding like, ‘I DRUNK 5 BOTTLES OF ABSINTHE AND WOKE UP IN JAIL?!?’.

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Looking back over your repertoire, what would you say is your favourite video to date, and why?

I love a good character arc, so one of my favourite videos of mine is one I made a couple of years ago called ‘Girl Hate| Envy and Sisterhood’. I was one of those put-another-girl-down-to-build-yourself-up girls when I was younger, and I harboured a lot of insecurity and envy because of it.

I love that video because it represents a time in my life where I really grew as a person and it shares a positive message of shine theory, empowerment and friendship that is now a guiding force in my life.

READY FOR MORE RUFARO? girlonthebench

@girlonthebench

@rufarofaithh

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FEATURES

A Summer In:

SOUTH AMERICA //Eve Willis

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4 countries, 7 flights, 14 bus journeys, 2 boat rides, 1 train and 3962 kilometers. I can safely say that I survived and loved the wilder side of the Americas. Six weeks spent travelling in Latin America gave me a slice, although brief of the incredible sights, natural wonders and colourful cultures that South America offers...

P

eru was the first stop.

It all began with a slight hiccup, arriving into Lima in the middle of the night to find that I had booked the hostel for the wrong month! I was thrown straight into negotiating in Spanish with a slightly confused receptionist and an angry travel companion, but in the end it all worked out. Surprisingly, this was the biggest problem we faced on the entire trip! Machu Picchu, the ancient Incan city enveloped in the clouds, attracts thousands of tourists every year. The historic sanctuary of Machu Picchu was undeniably one of the highlights of the trip. We climbed up Huayna Picchu, the mountain that stands in the background of Machu Picchu. The summit displays breathtaking views of the Incan citadel. Although the hike to the summit is slightly terrifying and rather challenging, it is arguably a ‘must do’ when visiting the ruins.

Peru is a diverse landscape and aside from exploring the remnants of ancient civilizations there is plenty more to see and do. From sand buggying in desert oasis of Huacachina, to exploring the colonial white-walled city of Arequipa, or the mysterious Andes in which you can get kitted out in Alpaca jumpers and socks, there is something for everyone.

After spending two weeks in Peru we crossed to Bolivia at Lake Titicaca, the highest navigable lake in the world. Throughout Peru and Bolivia, we travelled predominately using the bus company Peru Hop.

This is a new and highly recommended company run by two Irish men that fell in love with South America and simply couldn’t leave! Travelling with Peru Hop made our first backpacking trip a little less scary and much more efficient than the alternatives. We also enjoyed meeting many likeminded people on the buses, especially when faced with a long sixteen-hour journey.

Whilst in Bolivia we visited La Paz the administrative capital and Salar de Uyuni the world’s largest salt flat. Unbeknown to us the day after we arrived in La Paz was Independence Day. No one could have prepared us for the madness that was to ensue, Bolivians certainly know how to party!

With a slightly sore head we took the long night bus to Salar de Uyuni, even with our Alpaca attire we definitely felt the cold! We opted for a three day salt flat tour and were extremely glad we did so.

The scenery was beautiful, vast and ever changing from snow to hot springs to desert.

It took four flights from Salar de Uyuni to finally arrive in Rio de Janeiro, the carnival city. It felt like we had entered a completely different continent, with the city appearing to be much wealthier and with a tropical climate. Rio is famed for being the Cidade Maravilhosa and it is undisputedly beautiful, but it was here that we felt the most concerned for our safety. We cautiously explored the sights with horror stories of other travelers etched in our memories.

In Rio, we stayed in Ipanema, a trendy, affluent neighborhood.

Our hostel advised that we used Uber, the safest method of transport in Rio in order to navigate the city’s sights. Armed with reliable advice on how to stay safe in Rio, we came to love the city despite its reputation. The views from both Sugar Loaf Mountain and Christ the Redeemer were incredible. After a few days we escaped from the bustle of the city to Illha Grande, an island roughly 70 km from Rio along the Costa Verde. Picture a paradise island with white sandy beaches and palm trees, that was Illha Grande! We spent a week hiking around the island, sunbathing, eating acai bowls and forgetting about real life. Illha Grande was the ideal place to relax and recuperate from our colds caught in the below-freezing temperatures in Bolivia.

From Illha Grande we caught a boat back to Rio, then flew to Foz de Igauçu. It was here we first experienced the incredible waterfalls of Iguazu which straddle the border between Brazil and Argentina. The Brazilian side delivers an extraordinary panoramic vista whereby you can appreciate the full scale of the waterfalls. In contrast, the Argentinean side immerses you in the falls (quite literally), and the local raccoon community. From Puerto Igauzu we flew to Buenos Aires, our final stop. We were scammed by our taxi driver on route to our hostel but this was soon forgotten when 33

FEATURES

we discovered the Malbec (so cheap and so good!). The capital city was distinctly European in style and we felt like we could have been in Barcelona. We particularly enjoyed visiting the markets in San Telmo, this was my favourite district lined with quirky shops and alternative bars.

People often ask why South America? It is true that it can be considered more expensive, and potentially more dangerous in comparison to other backpacking destinations. This being said I will always recommend South America as a continent rich with diversity and history, exuberant

with life and passion.

I only visited four countries of the fourteen that constitute South America, but you are missing out if you don’t go! I can’t wait to return and see the rest!

Top Tips: 1. It can be cheaper if you plan a trip independently as opposed to using companies such as STA. 2. Learn some of the language. Knowing some key phrases can not only go a long way with the locals but can in fact keep you safe!

3. When in a new city the best way to get orientated is a free walking tour.

Informative and affordable, as well as being a great opportunity to meet fellow travelers.

4. Download the app Maps.Me, it was a lifesaver! It requires no internet and it gives detailed and easy maps to follow.

5. Pre-arrange transport with your hostel when possible, especially if arriving late at night.

It will save money and be the safest option.

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FASHION

Fall Update: Sustainable Fashion //ALICE PAPADOPOULOU

W

ith fall officially upon us, it is only natural to feel the need to update our wardrobe accordingly. But instead of falling right back into the fast fashion trap, why not opt for something a bit more‌ ethical? Of course, it is not as easy (and cheap) to distinguish so-called ethical brands and lines, so we have put together some guidelines for you.

According to the Ethical Fashion Forum, an ethical brand focuses on benefitting the environment (by using eco-friendly practices to reduce their carbon foot36

print, by opting for animal-friendly or vegan materials, by implementing energy-saving and/or water-efficient techniques in the production or use of the item to reduce waste), but also on securing social benefits for the people involved in it.

Ethical brands place emphasis on fair treatment of employees (the opposite of the degrading environment of fast-fashion sweatshops), they may be associated with charities and support communities in need, and they, in general, subscribe to the principles of fair-trade as their priority.

In the luxury world, steps have been made towards a more ethical approach by designers like Vivienne Westwood and Stella McCartney, and, although showing up at a 9am lecture in a quirky Westwood design is definitely a statement for sustainable fashion, it hardly fits the description of what the typical uni student is looking for. Instead, here are some more suitable alternatives you can explore for your autumn fashion fix.

Thought Fashion This sustainable brand does not just focus on eco-friendly materials; it is concerned with being ethical in every aspect of its business, from garment design and production to the delivery. Additionally, faithful to their motto “Wear me, love me, mend me, pass me on,” Thought aims to produce contemporary clothing that lasts more than most fast-fashion items. If you are not crazed with the autumn collection or their print dresses, don’t leave the website without glancing at their cosy loungewear, their underwear and socks collection and their knits. As for men, they also boast a good selection of shirts, comfy sweats and underwear.

People Tree Although a bit more on the pricier side, it is not hard to fall in love with this fair-trade label, which has won over Emma Watson in the past (so much so that they collaborated in a collection). With a commitment to 100% certified organic cotton and tencel, the brand has won many awards over the short period of its existence. But other than their distinctions, they really have a good selection of essentials for everyday wear, dresses, beautiful jewellery and even yoga wear.

Chinti & Parker Proper cashmere is always an investment, so if you are looking to spend and you want to feel good about it, Chinti & Parker is the perfect brand for eco-minded fashionistas. They have a specialised cashmere shop and a very cute Moomin capsule loungewear collection, while their new line, inspired by English folklore and mysticism, will give you all the autumn feels. A big item in my wish-list is their multicoloured stripe mohair sweater dress.

Beyond Skin Featured in many fashion mag-

azines, this vegan footwear brand offers quirky designs and a wide range of footwear to choose from.

You can find sandals, boots, trainers… even bridal shoes, if there is an autumn wedding you need to attend. And, most importantly, delivery in the UK is free. Not to mention that a menswear collection is in the works and will be released soon, so keep an eye out on the website!

Veja The beloved basic trainers of uni students get an update of eco-friendly, understated chic with this French footwear brand. With their characteristic V design, the French have not just updated 80’s sneakers with sustainable material for this season, they have created their own cult product. The women and men collections come in many colour combinations and have the same air of effortless style, making Veja a brand worth investing in.

If your budget is strictly highstreet and you’d rather skip the investment pieces, there is still hope. Honourable mentions go to

the ASOS Eco Edit, a collection of clothing items, accessories and beauty products by sustainable and fair-trade brands within the ASOS marketplace, Primark’s recycling initiatives and its donations to the charity Newlife, Monsoon’s Accessorize with their ethical Code of Conduct (the brand has been part of the Ethical Trade Initiative) and Animal Welfare policies, and the H&M Conscious Collection, featuring clothes made from sustainable materials. Although controversies have surrounded some of these brands in the past, the only way for sustainable fashion to move forward is for us to forgive (but not forget; instead, to continue scrutinizing the practices of retailers) and start, slowly, to build a more ethical wardrobe. So make organic cotton and vegan boots the trend for the upcoming season!

Feature Image: Louise Carrasco via www.veja-store.com Image below: Multicolored Stripe Mohair Sweater Dress at www.chintiandparker. com/uk/lookbookaw17

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ENTERTAINMENT

DOCUMENTARY REVIEW //Matthew Nolan

This is Everything: Gigi Gorgeous A YouTube Red Original Movie Directed By: Barara Kopple 38

G

igi Lazzarato, born Gregory Lazzarato, is a Canadian YouTube personality who came out as transgender following the death of her mother, Judith, in 2012. This Barbara-Kopple-directed, ninety-minute documentary a compilation of childhood home footage, past YouTube video clips, and contemporary reflections from Lazzarato and those close to her - pieces together moments of a colourful yet challenging past as it follows the life of Lazzarato before, during and after her male-to-female transition.

Lazzarato’s transition is anything but straightforward.

It’s made up of a complex set of steps that she and those close to her follow as they attempt to navigate to a place where she is finally happy with her body and identity. She changes her name, begins taking hormones, undergoes facial feminisation surgery (FFS), receives breast implants, and this all at times creates strain between Lazzarato and her conservative father, David, as David attempts to get to grips with what he fears to be the slow loss of his son.

‘Lazzarato’s transition is anything but straightforward.

It’s made up of a complex set of steps ... she attempts to navigate to a place where she is finally happy with her body and identity’ There are several touching moments in this film, but Lazzarato’s reflection on watching her mother stop breathing is one of the most striking, and seemingly

most pivotal, in her decision to change her gender identity. As Lazzarato puts it, “When my mom passed away, I thought life is too short. I decided right then and there that I wanted to be a girl.”

In addition to these sombre moments, there are a healthy number of lighter, more optimistic scenes, which become more frequent as Lazzarato’s transition is shown to progress.

Her physical transformation is shown to be complete during her appearance at her father’s wedding, and other standout moments include her discovery of her name change and her modelling appearance at New York Fashion Week.

In terms of the quality of the documentary, the video-editing is generally very slick but reassuringly stops short of seeming overproduced, which means often at times it is easy to forget that you are really watching a curated collection of old clips.

The use of titles is absolutely excellent: the year and/or age of Lazzarato at key points in the documentary is something frequently made clear, as are the names of the people that she is with. The music is also well-chosen and rarely distracting.

As much as this film benefits from a focus on Lazzarato herself, who is extremely bubbly and charismatic, the inclusion of her brothers and father’s reflections on her transition makes the feel-good, empowerment message conveyed throughout the film so powerful. As her family members seem completely different to her, her brothers’ total support for her transition, and her father’s sincere struggle before a similar line of support, create this encouraging sense that you don’t have to be anything like someone else to empathise and support what they are going through.

A vibrant, thought-provoking and eye-opening look into the life of a transgender person fearlessly taking control over their own future, This is Everything: Gigi Gorgeous is a definite must-see for anyone who is struggling to understand, or simply interested in finding out more about, the transgender community and their past and present struggles.

‘A vibrant, thought-provoking and eye-opening look into the life of a transgender person fearlessly taking control over their own future’ Although this documentary film focuses on Lazzarato’s very personal journey of transition from Gregory to Gigi, there is a belief she embraces throughout that speaks not only to the rest of the LGBTQ+ community, but to every human being. In short, it’s this idea that you should just be you and not worry about what anyone else thinks. After all, life is too short to do anything else.

Although Lazzarato appears more upbeat than ever during the film’s closing credits, it’s important to note that the short segment preceding this, summarising her 5-hour detainment in an airport in Dubai simply for being transgender, highlights that the very real stigma associated with the community still lingers. Lazzarato left Dubai freely, but others cannot. While this film may hopefully help normalize attitudes towards people like Lazzarato, the journey to ending LGBTQ+ discrimination is far from over.

As Lazzarato says, “It’s not my fight, it’s our fight, it’s all of our fight.” Enjoy the film, then keep fighting.

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ENTERTAINMENT

YOUTUBE REVIEW //MATTHEW NOLAN

YouTube.com/justbetweenusshow

755K+ subscribers

Just Between Us

GABY DUNN & ALLISON RASKIN (USA)

F

ew people have the ability to brighten up my day like Gaby Dunn and Allison Raskin. Both talented American women, writers and comedians in their own rights, together the pair form something unlikely, inventive and hilariously spectacular: comedy duo Just Between Us (JBU). A warm, progressive, intelligent antidote to the cold, divisive world we live in today, JBU is certainly funny, and deserving of our subscriptions, but more importantly, worthy of credit for where credit’s due in representing a refreshing, modern-day brand that all of us can feel a part of.

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First thing’s first, let’s establish who the channel’s Gaby and Allison really are. In essence, they are two friends and roommates who often seem like total polar opposites when it comes to personality, appearance and actions. But let’s unpack that a bit more.

On one hand, we have Gaby.

With short, blonde hair (this is the latest look; we don’t have time for ‘the Chronicles of Gaby’s Hair’), Gaby is a confident, bisexual, polyamorous, carefree, usually unhygenic person with a strong tendency to be politically outspoken.

On the other hand, we have

Allison. With long, brunette hair sometimes bangs and sometimes not - and an often anxious, controlling demeanour, she is assertive, monogamous, insecure and in a constant battle to keep her OCD under control.

What most connects the two characters on the channel together is their quick-wittedness, common stubbornness to changing their ways, confusion over how they are so different from each other, and (occasionally) evidence of them becoming more open-minded people as they learn to live with someone so polar opposite to them.

It’s important to note that Gaby and Allison on the JBU channel are somewhat different from (although heavily inspired by) the Gaby and Allison of real life. For example, although Dunn is also polyamorous in real life, and Allison has battled with OCD, Allison is consistently calm, cool and collected in interviews whilst Gaby makes videos on a personal channel which reveal a more sophisticated, deep and intellectual side to her on topics such as politics. In other words, Raskin and Dunn may exaggerate or change parts of their JBU characters’ qualities for comedic effect.

JBU features two main streams of

regular content: high-quality scripted skits and sit-down, improvised chats on topics viewers request. Both types of video are typically short, and packed with little jokes and references to past content, with skits in particular having a very professional feel. This two-pronged formula really works well at showcasing the duo’s different sides.

Gaby and Allison are regularly joined by special guests and recurring characters, including third wheel Igor, and always-sleepy, adorable Sugar, Allison’s dog, yet the focus of the channel is always set on the friendship between the two leads and their challenges working and

living together. This is largely what makes it all so interesting and enjoyable to watch.

I’ve barely scratched the surface in this review, so please go check out the channel for yourself, subscribe and watch a few JBU videos to get a better understanding of what it’s all about.

I, meanwhile, plan to start cracking on with this book that’s just arrived for me from Amazon.

‘I Hate Everyone But You’ - catchy title, I wonder who the authors are...

Liked this review? Let me know! @matthewrnolan

CHANNEL FAVOURITES // SKETCHES : ONE OF US GOT AN AGENT! / Gaby & Allison // August 2017 When Sugar’s new ‘agent’ (Tawny Newsome) turns up at Gaby and Allison’s door, a power struggle erupts over the future of the pup’s career. Promising to transform Sugar into a money-making magnet, Tawny lays out a grand strategy to secure her big brand deals imminently. While Gaby interjects occasionally, the focus throughout is Allison (modelling a Calvin Klein Jeans t-shirt) and her anxious tussle with a confident Tawny. Is Sugar’s longstanding, dark-comedy branding about to come to an end? Don’t be so sure... this is Allison we’re talking about.

COUPLES COUNSELING // November 2016 When Allison’s Mum lands them a great deal online for a ‘workout session’ in the woods, Gaby and Allison feel obligated to attend. But upon meeting their counsellor (Jenny Yang) on yoga mats, the two discover they have in fact been booked in for couples counselling. Awkwardness ensues as Allison tries to clarify the misunderstanding whilst Gaby - amusingly contradicting her - plays along with the romantic narrative. Soft, slow-spoken Jenny hilariously interprets Allison’s refusal to acknowledge the couple’s ‘relationship’ as a classic case of denial.

THE BOYFRIEND HACK // October 2016 After Allison starts suspecting her boyfriend of cheating, Gaby transforms into a hilariously-obsessive computer hacker, determined to analyse (and overanalyse) every single part of his social media, connecting details together hastily in an attempt to accelerate her elaborate and absurd theory for how the cheating occurred. Drawing on well-known Hollywood computer hacking clichés, this Gaby-Dunn-penned sketch is cheesy, punchy and possibly my standout favourite of theirs of all time.

Don’t Read The Comments // December 2015 In this self-reflexive, behind-the-scenes sketch, Gaby and Allison obsess over their recent viewer feedback as they prepare to start filming. Allison seems consumed by fear of appearing ‘pregnant’, sounding high-pitched, and sporting an unflattering hairstyle - ‘57% of our audience prefers me with bangs’. Gaby, meanwhile, mulls over feedback her character is too ‘aggressive’. The moral of this clever sketch? Try not to take everyone else’s opinions of you too closely to heart!

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ENTERTAINMENT

YOUTUBE REVIEW //AARON JACKSON

YouTube.com/footballfan533

470K+ subscribers

The True Geordie BRIAN (UK YOUTUBER)

I

spend a great deal of my spare time watching YouTube. Judge me as you will, however, in my most humble of opinions – YouTube is the home of some of the most innovative and engaging forms of entertainment that we have ever had the privilege of enjoying. The True Geordie (aka Brian) encapsulates this.

Boisterous – frighteningly so in appearance, yet hilariously in personality – Brian has ingeniously translated the perseverance of his working-class background into the modern-day media industry. What 42

strikes me the most about The True Geordie is that underneath his no nonsense and brutal front is a man who is surprisingly poignant, with a constant desire to delve deep into anything he might engage with, in order to gain the greatest understanding and knowledge of it.

He’s certainly grown a lot since his introduction to the vague mainstream with his ‘north-east viral’ rant on Nile Ranger, it was at this point where we understood his deep infatuation with Newcastle United (a recurring theme throughout his channel –

but don’t let that deter you). In the early days his channel was relatively limited in terms of content – Brian somewhat restricted himself to football-related rants and the occasional lackadaisical attempt at a gaming video. The past couple of years, on the other hand, have been utterly pivotal in his career. Now, The True Geordie is firmly on the path to being one of the best YouTubers that the platform has ever seen – if he’s not already.

Here are a few of the highlights from the channel...

Overall, I implore anyone who enjoys quality content to engage with The True Geordie. Granted, if you aren’t into football then you

may want to stay away from The Football Hangover and/or The Kick Off, however, please do get involved with the podcast –

you won’t regret it.

Liked this review? Let me know! music@thestagsurrey.co.uk

CHANNEL FAVOURITES (AN IN-DEPTH LOOK) : ALFIE DEYES: PointlessBlogVlogs | True Geordie Podcast #54 // July 2017 Undeniably, the greatest aspect of The True Geordie channel is his podcast – a sentiment that I’m sure even Brian himself would echo. The quality is bolstered by the inclusion of co-host, Laurence McKenna, Brian’s chemistry with whom is seamless and entirely invaluable to the end product on offer here. Roughly published on a weekly basis (sometimes more, sometimes less) there will always be a reason to tune into The True Geordie podcast – whether it be for the blisteringly scathing comedy that is inevitable regardless of the guest(s), or for the provocative and even touching stories that are told when delving into the deeper side of the guest(s). This series is a huge asset to The True Geordie channel and at its launch rocketed to the top of the iTunes chart – 55 odd episodes later and the quality is concretely still there.

THE FOOTBALL HANGOVER (series) // Ongoing With the 2017/18 Premier League season in its budding stages, fans can expect a great deal of in-depth analysis of the match day action that is fundamentally fuelled with a genuine passion for the beautiful game. Disregard that natural bias for Newcastle United, and the opinions and predictions from Geordie are generally pretty spot on and if not, he is not one to shy away from his mistakes. While it is true that to enjoy this side of the True Geordie channel, you should have a certain degree of affiliation/ interest in football however, it is certainly not essential. I cannot stress enough that it is the personality of Brian that makes this channel and even The Football Hangover hangs in the balance of this integral element.

CHELSEA 2-3 BURNLEY | The Kick Off with Coral #1 // August 2017 Another recurring theme throughout the True Geordie channel is his constant jokes (not really) about his obsession with money and, therefore, his craving for sponsorship. Well, Geordie’s dream finally came true. Along with the arrival of the 17/18 football season, Coral have decided to team up with The True Geordie by sponsoring a live show hosted by both Brian and McKenna that documents the events of the weekend’s footie action.

Think of a Sky Sports News’ Match Day Live that has been revamped for the modern-day consumer with even better panel hosts – buzzing.

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MUSIC

An Interview with

Wolf Alice’s Joel Amey //Aaron Jackson

Image by Paul Hudson

Just before their sold-out show at Guildford’s ‘The Boileroom’, I was lucky enough to spend some time chatting to Wolf Alice’s Joel Amey about what music means to him...

How are you feeling?

I’m feeling good man! I grew up like 15 minutes away from here so this is a hometown show for me. More so than the other ones.

Is this the first time you’ve played here?

No. I played here when I was like 16 and I’ve done a few things here in my time and then we also played here a couple of years ago to like 10 people, 2 of which are actually in the support band tonight.

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Woah, that’s insane.

Yeah and then we played here, I think when we released our first… when we released Creature Songs and it was a sold out show and it was banging.

How quickly did it sell out?

I think in like minus 30 seconds! The whole tour was just like ridiculous, it was like 2 minutes!

Tonight’s gonna be sold out, it’s gonna be crazy! What was the motivation behind doing this intimate tour?

I think the main motivation was just, you know, not only did we have a great time and great memories playing a few of these venues in previous years on previous tours, it’s also so - in some ways - a responsibility of bands to not neglect other markets. It shouldn’t always just be Manchester, London, etc! You can play those again and yeah, it’s just nice to come back and do things like that!

For me, the most remarkable thing about your band is this switch that you’ve managed to have. There’s such a juxtaposition between these sort of pop-rock sensibilities, the nice melodic stuff, and then there’s something which will just slap you in the face...

(Laughs). Well yeah, like we all have different tastes and live music tastes but I think something we can all agree on is, when we walk away from a show and we feel like it’s been something you know? I can quite happily go and watch someone with just a piano and be just as moved as I can at like a hardcore punk show. I think all of us feel the same, we love all those attributes of playing live and with the new album as well we’ve accommodated more of those tastes in the new record and, I think we’re gonna be able to do things live that we simply couldn’t have done with the first record.

Well that’s perfect because I think you’ve answered one of my next questions. I mean, there’s no point me asking you who influences you because there’s going to be so many, right?

Yeah, and it’s not just musical, obviously like lyrically Ellie has her own touchpoints and there’s things we agree on every now and then, a song will come on the radio or whatever, we’re in the van and everyone just sort of knows like this is a good piece of music. Then there’s other things that I love that Theo hates or that Theo loves that Joff hates or that Ellie likes that I can’t stand, it’s just the way it is.

Any examples of those?

I can’t think of anything to be honest. Like, you know, it’s just, we’re very individual people but also there are things that tie us together and we are ultimately, even subconsciously influenced by the things around us whether it’s literature or films.

So, it’s any kind of art that you guys draw inspiration from?

Yeah, I mean, there’s loads of different things that we like. I like to hear albums that strike me as things that I can imagine watching something to, you know, albums that you can imagine like a video or whatever to the song. That’s always really cool and I think that’s always sometimes an influence, just like, emotions and feelings and rather than being like “let’s sound like The White Stripes” do you know what I mean? It’s more like, you know that thing where you’re like rushing from one stage to the other stage and you can hear that song starting and its just like… I know what I’m talking about but…

SUSANNA GURI

I get you. I’m following you! I just want to leave you with one question. When all is said and done, how would you guys like to be remembered?

Personally, as a man with quite nice hair. (Laughs) No, I don’t know. We really care about Wolf Alice and we take a lot of pride in it and even though we’re very self-deprecating, me especially to the point where it’s just annoying, we take it really seriously and we do love doing it, and hopefully we’ve made another record that, for us, we want to see on people’s shelves for a long time.

For sure, I mean the first record was incredible!

Thank you! We can hear limitations on the first record, like any band probably will say they can and, for us, it’s just gonna be seeing and exploring and exploring and exploring and we’re still very excited to be in a room together and very excited to be playing together. It’s been quite an intense couple of years but none of us feel jaded enough to be like “ah we can’t be bothered anymore, we had a good time lets quit” so, hopefully, after this second album thinking ahead, when the second album is done, we’ll feel the same.

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ENTERTAINMENT

NETFLIX REVIEW //Matthew Nolan

To The Bone Genre: Drama Running Time: 107 minutes Starring: Lily Collins, Keanu Reeves, Alex Sharp, Carrie Preston, Lili Taylor, Liana Liberato, Ciara Bravo and Brooke Smith.

E

llen (Lily Collins) is a 20 year old losing her fight against anorexia when she is sent by her stepmother, Susan (Carrie Preston) to the unconventional Dr. William Beckham (Keanu Reeves) for specialist treatment. Dr. Beckham’s program sees Ellen moved into a house with six other patients, with whom she begins to bond. Ellen’s journey to recovery is fraught with difficulties, and despite lighter, comedic moments, is on the whole very dark, thought-provoking and emotional.

There is so much to talk about with this film, but there were two relationships in particular that I wanted to touch on as particularly 46

moving. First, Ellen’s relationship with her half-sister, Kelly (Liana Liberato). Kelly is deeply troubled

by Ellen’s deterioration, and Liberato is excellent at portraying the effect anorexia victims can have on those around them. In one scene, her character confesses, ‘I feel kind of angry, it’s my life too, I don’t get to have... a sister’.

The second relationship is a romantic one that forms between Ellen and another patient, Luke (Alex Sharp). When Sharp’s character first appeared on screen, I didn’t get it: his personality and behaviour seemed to jarr so strongly with the conventional Hollywood image of a male teenager. But by the end of the film, it hit me how wonderful this decision really was. The romance between Luke and Ellen (who later becomes Eli) is magic because it’s endearingly absurd. He breaks down her walls powerfully, just by being his utterly eccentric self.

Overall, I found the writing, acting and editing in this film excellent; it’s clear to see that plenty of research

‘The romance between Luke and Eli is magic because it’s endearingly absurd.

He breaks down her walls powerfully, just by being his utterly eccentric self’

has gone into the work and it’s reflected in how anorexia, which is a triggering topic for many, is portrayed authentically.

‘To The Bone is a beautiful, heartbreaking, dark yet immensely captivating glimpse into the lives of people with mental illness’ When the trailer for To The Bone hit the internet, the reaction was certainly mixed. While many were hopeful that the film would bring awareness to the incredibly difficult challenges faced by those with anorexia, some were concerned the mental health issue itself would become glamourised, perhaps accidentally, through having an actress like Lily Collins - praised by many for her looks - portraying a victim. After watching this Marti-Noxon-directed work carefully, I can safely say To The Bone is a beautiful, heartbreaking, dark yet immensely-captivating glimpse into the lives of people with mental illness. Far from glamourising anorexia, this film helped me better understand the disease in a realistic light: as something incredibly destructive and undesirable. If anyone reading this suffers from, or knows someone who suffers from, anorexia, please remember that you’re not alone.

Seek professional help - things can and do get better.

Liked this review? Let me know! @matthewrnolan

MUSIC

THE GUILDFORD MUSIC SCENE (A Case Study)

//AARON JACKSON If you’re reading this as a fresher, welcome and enjoy getting to know the area! If you are already well-versed in the music scene in Guildford then I hope you enjoy this rundown of the highlights of our nightlife...

Home-grown Talent: The Origins.

Academy of Contemporary Music (ACM) Since its establishment in 1997, ACM has been moving from strength to strength on their journey to the forefront of the modern music scene. As their motto states, they are “world leaders in music education”. It appears that they have struck the perfect balance between teaching the discipline of music theory whilst never shying away from the

importance of the performance side of the art.

There is plenty of pedigree to bolster the Academy too: Newton Faulkner went on to see his album, Hand Built By Robots reach number one in the UK. Apparently, some guy called Ed Sheeran went there too? It’s also situated on top of a Wetherspoon’s, which is a bit of a madness.

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MUSIC

University of Surrey That’s right. It should be no surprise that one of Guildford’s most lucrative exports for music talent resides amongst the campus that you are most likely reading this on. UOS’s department of music and media is recognised nationwide as being superlative in its calibre of courses, with the programmes ranking 2nd by the Guardian University

Guide 2018. In addition to the teaching spaces, the University also boasts studios, practice rooms, piano rooms, edit rooms and band/amplification gear. Similar to ACM, there has also been a great deal of success emerging from the department: Brits, BAFTAs, Grammys and Mercury Prizes (to name a few) have all been won in the past – could you be next?

Live Music: The Live & Soul of the Scene.

The Boileroom In their own words: “the Boileroom has quickly garnered a reputation as one of the South East’s most established and respected independent live music venue”. My personal favourite venue in our town has seen the likes of Foals, Catfish & The Bottlemen and again, this Ed Sheeran bloke. It’s humble size and indie décor perfectly establish an intimate vibe – the kind that one really craves when watching one of their favourite bands play their set. In addition to the live music, there are a number of other events that take place at The Boileroom such as “Social Cinema” and “Punk Rock Yoga”, not to mention the fact that the upper floor is a tattoo studio.

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The Star Inn Naturally, with a lower profile than The Boileroom, the bands on show here are of slightly lesser fame than those you might find elsewhere. However, this does not mean for one second that the quality isn’t there - The Stranglers did have their first ever gig here. The Star Inn is one of the most prolific pubs in Guildford (an impressive feat due to the sheer quantity of pubs within close proximity) and in addition to their traditional pub offerings, they also boast “The Back Room” – again, entirely intimate and lets you get you get up close and personal with the bands on offer. Stand-up comedy and live cabaret shows can also be enjoyed at The Star Inn. The Electric Theatre Unsurprisingly, The Electric Theatre is predominately centred around the theatrical side of the performing arts. That being said, it’s close proximity to the aforementioned ACM has resulted in the Academy frequently showcasing the talent that they are producing – therefore, if you were to attend one of these showcases, you can expect stellar entertainment across a plethora of genres.

Bar Thirteen Bar Thirteen is unlucky to miss out on a spot in the next section of this article. It’s true that at face value, this venue is a night club – however, in my opinion, its strongest point lies in the versatility that enables it to accommodate a range of entertainment forms. In addition to it being a (perfectly serviceable) nightclub, one might be lucky enough to witness some of the best local talent that inhabit the area. Just be aware that because of the size of the dancefloor, unless a show sells out, the atmosphere can often feel on the sparse side.

Clubbing: The Good, The Bad & The Ugly: The Good: Rubix.

The Bad: Popworld.

The Ugly: Casino.

There are a number of factors that make Rubix arguably the best club in Guildford. The convenience of it being the hub that is the student’s union means that those of you living on campus have a two-minute walk home, where manor park and town are also both only roughly 20 minutes away on foot. Also, the fact that Rubix is on campus ensures that the club satisfies the whole social element of a night out – the place is guaranteed to be littered with like-minded students with the same motive as you – getting bevved and having a laugh.

Following on from the previous section of this article, Rubix also offers up the occasional demonstration of live music – most notably the “Battle Of The Bands” events that are established by BandSoc. Look forward to fresher’s week, there’s sure to be a host of great nights at Rubix.

You know when something is so bad that it’s kind of funny and then you end up enjoying it because of that? Kind of like Love Island. Well, that’s Popworld. If you love cheesy music and cheap drinks (which everyone does) then you’ll be able to find the fun in Popworld. If you’re not into sticky dancefloors, questionable toilets and substandard DJs then you may struggle.

Just don’t even bother. Casino is frequently regarded as one of the worst nightclubs across the whole country and it’s not hard to see why. With an entry fee that usually dances around the £10 mark, you would expect a half decent venue – instead, you’re greeted with a dingy room where the scent of mould and urine oozes from the walls. One famous horror story that has emerged throughout the years that Casino has existed is the small matter of mushrooms growing in the toilets – legit.

I hope that last part didn’t leave a sour taste in your mouth. Guildford truly has so much to offer in terms of the music scene. Enjoy and embrace it. Please feel free to get in touch at music@thestagsurrey.co.uk with any queries, stories or writing submissions!

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MUSIC

ALBUM REVIEW //Jamie Law

This Life

By Coasts

T

wo years on from an impressive self-titled album, Coasts are back with This Life. Flash back to the summer of 2015 and you’ll find myself eagerly awaiting the release of Coasts’ debut. I had been utterly enticed by the likes of A Rush 50

of Blood and Oceans - songs that sparked my love for this ever-talented five piece. Their first album dropped in the September of that year and it was also around this time I was fortunate enough to see them at their headline show at O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire.

Coasts, in my opinion, didn’t satisfy the hype that I had personally anticipated for the album. Perhaps this is an issue that only I experienced, however, I can’t help but feel as though this was the case for a lot of their fans at the time of the release. This

certainly wasn’t a narrative of failure – the album was laced with some stellar tracks – it just left many fans wanting a lot more.

Perhaps in response to this demand, the ‘Deluxe Edition’ appeared in the following January, showcasing a further six tracks.

Whilst serving to flesh out what was a relatively humble discography, I must admit that these songs weren’t held in the same regard as the original album, they somewhat failed to match the quality that had been previously established.

Fast forward to the summer of 2017 and, once again I find myself basking in pure excitement for the release of This Life on 18th of August. I am fortunate enough to

‘the hype this time round is very much merited ...

Coasts have achieved what they previously may have fallen short of’ have already listened to the 10-track album and I must confess that the hype this time round is very much merited - I think Coasts have achieved what they

previously may have fallen short of.

Many will agree that the second album is the make or break for bands and artists alike. The debut piece serves as a platform from which the sophomore should push on from (this being easier said than done – it is an arduous task which many fail to overcome). Here, Coasts exhibit a strong album that sufficiently makes use of the foundations that they had established in the past.

As a collective, the album works extremely well. Attention will be attracted with the incorporation of the five singles that have already been released (Take Me Back Home being a particular standout), all of which are brilliant as standalone songs too. The album also has some hidden gems, which people are yet to hear, White Noise being my personal favourite at the moment.

Just as was the case with the debut, I do wish that this album was slightly longer, however, I’m not left in such a limbo, I’m much more satisfied. This makes for an extremely exciting prospect – this band are certainly headed in the direction that I had always hoped they would.

Also, I wouldn’t be overly surprised to see Coasts drop a handful of extra tracks in another ‘Deluxe Edition’ in the next few months.

I never expected that two years on from being in their crowd that I would be in the position to listen to and review Coasts’ second album before its release to the masses.

For that, I must say a huge thank you to the band and everyone associated with them for making this happen and allowing me the opportunity to do this!

‘Many will agree that the second album is the make or break for bands and artists alike ...

Here, Coasts exhibit a strong album that sufficiently makes use of the foundations that they had established in the past’ You can get your hands on This Life now via High Time Records.

Liked this review?

Let our music editor know! music@thestagsurrey.co.uk

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INTERVIEWS

CATCHING UP with

COASTS A N E X C L U S I V E I N T E R V I E W with

COASTS’ CHRIS CAINES Coasts is a five-piece English rock band active since 2011, formed of Chris Caines, Ben Street, Liam Willford, James Gamage and David Goulbourn.

INT ERVI EWER A A R O N J A C K S O N

P H OT OG RA P H Y C O A S T S

RENDEZ-VOUS IN DECEMBER

The past few years have obviously been huge for you guys – your debut album was incredibly well received and gained a great deal of attention. How is 2017 shaping up? With the new album due, does it feel like something even bigger is coming?

2017 has been spent finishing writing and recording our second record. We've put absolutely everything into it and just hope that our fans love it as much as we do. We want to carry on growing that fan base over the course of this album through touring. We have big ambitions.

SUSANNA GURI

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I read that you started off by rehearsing in the crypt of a church. How does that come about and would you say that it had any influence on you as an outfit?

It was basically the cheapest place we could rehearse so it wasn't like we were seeking out religious locations to make noise in. I don't think it necessarily had a great impact on our music. Apart from the fact that the reverb was out of control and we had to try really hard to hear each other!

So, it’s not long until you embark on your mammoth 38-date tour. How taxing do you expect that’ll be?

We've done some pretty brutal tours over the years so this one should be a breeze! We love playing live and that adrenaline you get just blows away any tiredness or boredom. We will never complain about touring because we love it!

Do you have any crazy stories? What’s the most ‘rock and roll’ thing that you have ever experienced as a band?

Unfortunately you wouldn't be able to print many of them. We've had quite a few crazy parties whilst on tour, that's all I'll say.

What do you think the future will hold for Coasts?

I wish I could predict the future but all I can hope for is that we are still writing and playing music for many years to come. We want to be as big as we possibly can be. Let's see how long it takes us!

Finally, how would you like to be remembered as a band?

If we're remembered and not forgotten then that's all that matters.

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MUSIC

COLDPLAY ON A HOT DAY. //MICHAŁ FRĄCKOWIAK

T

hree months ago, on the 18th of June hardly any undergrad at Surrey wasn’t celebrating the end of the term and the exam period. Meanwhile, I’d already been back in Poland for more than a week for I’d finished my exams much earlier, which I’m really thankful for.

Otherwise I wouldn’t have been able to prepare to one of the biggest musical shows I have ever ever ever been to. The unbelievably successful phenomenon of 21st century.

Ladies and gentlemen, Coldplay.

This hot British band sold out a show on the biggest football stadium in Poland (Warsaw) in the middle of extremely hot June, as a part of their A Head Full of Dreams Tour. The number of participants, Live Nation estimates, is believed to have been over 60,000 people.

And trust me, not many artists or bands can really brag about selling this many tickets in Poland. We’re a tough public, I dare say.

Queuing outside the PGE National Stadium in Warsaw from the very morning on Sunday wasn’t the most pleasant thing you can imagine. Not even 54

when you’re an experienced concert freak, like myself, who likes to spend time in front of venues and queue even up to 15 hours before the gates open (please, don’t ask). I technically got sunburnt, but whatever because I was about to see Coldplay! And what I hadn’t known before the gates opened was that I was going to see Jonny, Will, Chris and Guy from the front row right at the end of the massive colourful runway. I have to admit I didn’t know what to expect. When I purchased the tickets in late 2016 I hoped to see four British guys performing Paradise, Clocks, Fix You and other classics. But it was going to be much more than just that.

My knowledge of Coldplay discography used to be vague and quite superficial, usually limited to those ‘bangers promoted on the radio’. How wrong could I be?

Very, it turned out. Guys successfully managed to mix the material from all of their studio albums released throughout the last two decades. That’s a hint for people who cry out against ‘the new, poppy-no-longer-rock Coldplay’. Catch up with me, will

you – they have never been this good! Simply the masters of stage, volcano of energy, pyrotechnics, lights, lasers, and confetti. Quite literally in the latter case, I managed to find pink and yellow paper butterflies in my underwear two weeks after the show. The setlist included Viva La Vida, Hymn For the Weekend, Princess of China, Yellow, The Scientist, club rendition of Paradise, Midnight/ Fix You, and the newest track recorded with The Chainsmokers, Something Just Like This.

The show provided lots of positive energy, smile and happiness, which we need so desperately these times. I’m grateful to have been a part of A Head Full of Dreams Tour.

I think of the £70 I spent on a Standing Pit ticket as of one of my best investments in the last months. After the show I became a thorough follower of the band and their discography collector, ready to spend any money on a deluxe edition absent from my collection.

Speaking of it, Coldplay have recently released a new 5-track EP, Kaleidoscope. Available as a CD album or 12” vinyl. In stores now!

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MUSIC

THE MOST ANTICIPATED

POP ALBUMS COMING THIS FALL... //MICHAŁ FRĄCKOWIAK

REPUTATION // TAYLOR SWIFT She doesn’t trust nobody and nobody trusts her. She’ll be the actress starring in your bad dreams just like her music video to Look What You Made Me Do, the first single of the new record. The music video shows self-analysis of the singer’s own image. Taylor has changed. She and her old self are never ever ever getting back together again.

Reputation has been widely anticipated since Taylor had wiped clean her social media and teased new track with the image of a snake. The song is a drastic departure from the country pop music Swift has presented so far.

Seems the long-play will follow a path quite alike…

Release date: November 10

YOUNGER NOW // MILEY CYRUS Since releasing Malibu, the first single of the new album, which spawned a drastic change in the public image of Miley Cyrus, everybody’s been wondering whether it’s just a one-time change of heart or if Miley has undergone some sort of revolution. The next singles, Inspired and titular Younger Now, show clearly that the concept of Cyrus’s new album will be quite humble and simmered down. The latter song’s vibes were even compared by critics to Cyrus’s 2000s works recorded for the Hannah Montana project. Younger Now will be a definite departure from 2013 Bangerz and 2015 Miley Cyrus & Her Dead Petz.

Release date: September 29

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UNDER THE RADAR, VOL. 2 // ROBBIE WILLIAMS Yes, it’s his naked bum on the cover. You’re absolutely welcome! Under The Radar, Vol. 2 is a part two of a compilation comprising unreleased songs, demos, B-sides and rarities of the English artist. The record was announced in July when Williams was still on tour promoting his 2016 record The Heavy Entertainment Show. Similarly to Vol. 1, this album will be only released exclusively on RobbieWilliams.com. That means you won’t be able to buy it on iTunes or at HMV, but you would stream it on Spotify or Deezer. You can also order the personalised hand-written autographed copy of the album on the official page. The record is promoted by the track Eyes On The Highway. Out now!

Release date: November

BEAUTIFUL TRAUMA // P!NK Alecia (P!nk’s real name) has been pretty active lately.

In 2016 she released a song Just Like Fire in order to promote Disney’s film Alice Through the Looking Glass.

This summer she had a festival tour around Europe and the UK, and barely a month ago did she receive the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award at the MTV Video Music Awards. The new album Beautiful Trauma, her first solo project since 2012 The Truth About Love, is promoted by the single What About Us, which was widely acclaimed by the critics thanks to its composition and lyrics containing some political highlights.

Release date: October 13

DESIRE // HURTS Gentlemen from Manchester, Theo and Adam, are coming back with their fourth studio album. Desire, promoted by LGTQ-related record Beautiful Ones and Ready To Go, is said to contain the most powerful pop tracks the duo ever created. The band has already announced The Desire Tour, their biggest tour to date, which will kick off at the end of October in Russia and will comprise almost 30 shows across the European countries like Finland, Germany, Poland and Switzerland.

The tour will stop in December and finish in London’s O2 Brixton Academy and Manchester’s O2 Apollo. The £27.90 tickets are on sale now!

Release date: September 29

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SOCIETIES

SOCIETIES SPOTLIGHT:

THE UNIVERSITY OF SURREY LAW SOCIETY //TOBY MANHIRE With so many societies vying for Freshers’ attention at the beginning of each academic year, choosing which one to join is no easy task. Read all about what the Law Society is planning for the year ahead and why you should join it, whether you are an aspiring lawyer and law undergraduate or just someone who wants to get the best out of society life.

T

he University of Surrey Law Society isn’t just for lawyers, and isn’t all about law (although if you’re a law student it probably helps to join in early!).

LawSoc, just like every other society, is committed to always providing great events throughout the year: from our fresher’s Lawyers Do It At The Bar Crawl and Charity Race Night, which is new for 2017, to our Christmas Dinner/Christmas Quiz and Summer BBQ, there’s always events for legal types and non-law students to enjoy.

career for you.

This year we’re welcoming far more students than ever before.

If you’re on a non-law degree but might consider the high-flying lawyer lifestyle to be perfect for you, we’ll welcome you with open arms.

Join in early and get the most out of membership! Whether you’re fresh to anything legal, or you’ve been researching since A-Level, the Law Society exists to provide you with all the information and opportunities you need.

Besides giving our aspiring For our legal students, we prolawyers a head start by introducvide study sessions and mentoring ing them to some of the top legal support on the academic end and minds in the country (including the legal networking opportu‘At the end of the day, we’re a nities on the career develsociety like no other: giving you opment side of things. If you’re looking for a career in the professional edge, a kick start law, you need to get to know in your career and offering loads of people early; which is why volunteering and work experience the Society maintains a reopportunities to make your CV lationship with legal organstand out.’’ isations in London such as The Honourable Society of late Lord Toulson, Philip Wood QC the Inner Temple and legal firms of Allen & Overy and the judges Fieldfisher and Clyde & Co. Being at Guildford Crown Court) we also a member of LawSoc gives you host our annual law ball. It’s the access to legal minds and law probiggest event on the Law Sociefessionals and enables you to meet ty calendar. We’ll be hosting this people at all stages of their careers, again in March 2018; attended by in order to advance your own and esteemed guests from a variety of help you decide whether this is the legal fields and the upper echelons 58

of the university. It’s an incredible event and one you shouldn’t miss!

Keep an eye out on LawSoc channels to see details of our annual law ball, and any other events we’ll be running.

We’re also a mini-Union for our law students. It’s important to stay on top of everything at Surrey, and when it feels like it’s all getting too much there’s many places to turn, but the Law Society offer a Student Support & Mentoring Officer who is always available to listen; we have 2nd and 3rd year mentors for 1st year students, wondering about how best to tackle coursework, or where to find work and, of course, we will always put forward

your opinions to the School of Law if you ever have feedback.

One of the biggest benefits of membership is your Law Society membership card. Last year, that card gave our members discounts in Pews, The King’s Head, Komo, Turtle Bay and all kinds of places in Guildford. We’re working on getting our members even more discounts this year. So even if you’re not a barrister or solicitor in the making and just want to get as many free/cheap drinks as you can, LawSoc has you covered!

At the end of the day, we’re a society like no other: giving you the professional edge, a kick start in your career and offering loads of volunteering and work experience opportunities to make your CV stand out.

Lawyer are typically seen as the most boring bunch, but we’re still a society which means bar crawls, race nights, quiz nights, Christmas dinners, summer barbecues, inter-society competitions, days out to great venues (fancy a tipple at Ascot, maybe?) and so many more things throughout the year!

We’ll be at Fresher’s Fair if you want to say hi!

We’re also on twitter, Insta and Facebook. You can find our noticeboard in the Law School at the top of the AB building on campus, or check out our website activity.ussu.co.uk/law. We’re always happy to talk to anyone and everyone, we hope all of our members have an amazing year and take advantage of all the opportunities we’re building for them. If you’re on the fence about joining, it’s safe to say the evidence is overwhelming. You should join! Case closed.

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THE STAG

ISSUE 92 / SEPT 2017 / F RE E !

UNIVERSITY OF SURREY STUDENT MAGAZINE

For students, by students, always.

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