75% of Newcastle University students say they binge drink every week

Inside: pull-out guide to this week’s Union elections
ISSUE 1188 MARCH 9th 2009 courier.unionsociety.co.uk
FREE
A. WILSON
75% of Newcastle University students
say they binge drink every week
Martin Green &
Steve Impey
A survey conducted by The Courier
has discovered that 75% of students at
Newcastle University drink in excess
of government safety guidelines each
week.
Perhaps unsurprisingly the results
showed a significant split between
first and third year students.
64% of third year students asked
admitted they regularly drink too
much, compared to 86% of first years.
Most worrying though is that of these,
42% of third years recognised that
their drinking habits were dangerous
compared to only 14% of first year
students questioned, highlighting the
need for more awareness regarding
alcohol abuse.
According to the Institute of Alcohol
Studies, young people in the UK are
the third worst binge drinkers in the
EU. This is confirmed by the Joseph
Rowntree Foundation, that found
that 44% of 18 to 24-year-olds in this
country are regular binge drinkers.
The NHS definition of binge
drinking is drinking over double the
number of recommended daily units
in one session. One unit is 10ml or
8g of pure alcohol. This equates to
one 25ml single measure of spirits
(ABV 40%), or a third of a pint of
beer (ABV 5-6%) or half a standard
(175ml) glass of red wine (ABV 12%).
It is recommended that men should
not exceed three to four units per day
and for women the recommended
amount is no more than two to three
units per day.
It is generally also recommended to
have at least one or two alcohol-free
days per week.
According to the NHS, between
15,000 and 20,000 premature deaths
in England and Wales each year
are associated with alcohol abuse.
A report carried out by a group of
scientists for the Lancet Medical
Journal concluded that alcohol is
contributing a factor to over 60
different diseases, including cancer
of the mouth and liver, stroke, and
heart disease, and is as harmful to
health as smoking.
Students
are
finding
these
guidelines increasingly difficult to
stick to, however, and it’s easy to
see why. Newcastle is fabled for its
64%
of 3rd year students asked
admit they binge drink
42%
of the same students realise
their health is at risk
86%
of 1st year students asked
admit they binge drink
14%
of the same students realise
their health is at risk
nightlife, and several bars and clubs
compete for the custom of the city’s
large student population, constantly
lowering their prices and offering a
variety of deals. On the aptly named
‘Bladderburst’ night at Rockshots on
Waterloo Street, a £7 entry fee gets
you free drinks all night. Not to be
outdone, another establishment, Sea
Club in the Neptune House on the
Quayside, offers drinks for just 70p
between 10 and 11pm.
Crawling
through
the
Bigg
Market on Saturday night amidst
semiconscious revellers, Jo, a 19-yearold student, said: “During Freshers
week I was drunk every night. Since
then, I go out about four nights a
week and I usually end up drunk.”
Grace Kerr, a first year Business
Management student took part in the
survey and told The Courier “I do
drink more than the recommended
amount of alcohol but drinking is
part of life as a student!”
Discount cards such as the EdgeCard
and the Xcard offer a plethora of liverbusting offers to local students: £3
premium trebles (three shots of 40%
alcohol) at Bar Berlise, £1.95 trebles at
Flynns, two shots of Sambuca for £1
at Bar Six, £5 for a six shot ‘crucifix’ at
Sinners, a free shot with every drink
at Idols, Jimmyz, Luckies, Sam Jacks,
and Perdu; and many, many more,
including 2FOR1 deals on cocktails,
lagers and wines.
Supermarkets are also contributing
to the debate by selling alcohol for
less than the price of bottled water.
Tesco recently had its own-brand
dry cider on offer for the equivalent
of 34p per pint, compared with 50p
for San Pellegrino water. Sainsbury’s
was retailing own-brand lager for
the equivalent of 28p per pint. Last
June, Asda was selling three cases
of 20 cans of Carlsberg for £20 at
some stores - the equivalent of 42p a
pint, compared with an average-pub
price of up to £2.50. Asda’s head of
licensing, Rob Chester, told the Home
Affairs Committee: “Price is always
going to be an issue. We will certainly
at times sell alcohol below cost.”
Radical measures to reduce drinkrelated casualties are being enforced
in Scotland after health-ministers
described drinking as the new
smoking. The Scottish government
are suggesting a minimum price per
unit of alcohol to decrease mortality
rates.
This week’s meetings:
NEWS: 1pm Monday, Training Room, Union 2nd floor
FEATURES: 11pm Tuesday, Training Room, Union 2nd floor
ART: 12.30pm Wednesday, Training Room, Union 2nd floor
ENTS: 1.30pm Wednesday, Training Room, Union 2nd floor
FILM: 12.30pm Wednesday, Training Room, Union 2nd floor
MUSIC: 1pm Wednesday, Training Room, Union 2nd floor
SPORT: 12.30pm Monday, Training Room, Union 2nd floor
PHOTOS: 2.30pm Monday, Training Room, Union 2nd floor
Inside this issue:
New survey suggests anger is the best medicine
pg. 5
NUTV launch night success
pg. 7
Why we should embrace sex education in schools
pg. 9
NEWS & COMMENT
Has texting caused us to lose our grip on language?
pg. 14
How to combat insomnia
pg. 16
Is reality TV rubbish?
pg. 19
FEATURES
The importance of art in eduction
pg. 21
New play ‘Men at Arms’
pg. 22
DJ Format reviewed
pg. 37
news
Working class shuns University
Report highlights class divide within UK Universities
Samantha Hockney
MP’s this week attacked leading
universities for being ‘elitist’ as a report
indicated that over two thirds of students
who attend university are from wealthy
backgrounds.
The report, by the Commons public
account committee, points to a continuing
class divide within UK universities and
suggests only a third of those in higher
education are from lower socio-economic
groups. It also states that students from
deprived areas and men from working
class backgrounds are significantly
under-represented.
Efforts by the government to get
more working class youngsters to
attend university are stalling, despite
universities being given £392million to
recruit students from such backgrounds.
The Commons committee told BBC News
they are ‘dismayed’ that the government
seems to have little idea as to what
universities have done with the money.
The report suggests universities should
work in connection with teachers and
parents in order to provide sound advice
for potential students and reach out to
them while they are still in school. MP’s
want to rule out the instances where
young people have possibly made the
wrong decision about higher education
after being given outdated information
by teachers, or where parents have
been reluctant to recommend the more
selective universities due to perceived
prejudices about the student types who
study there.
The government also needs to work
hard on giving students from poorer
backgrounds vital financial assistance
during their time at university. In 200607, over 12,000 students did not apply
for a bursary, although many were
likely to have met the necessary criteria.
Information on claiming grants from
the government is available from many
sources, but the report claims it is not
easily accessible or understood.
Committee chairman Edward Leigh,
said of the report: ‘It is of crucial
importance to raise the aspirations of
talented pupils from backgrounds where
going to university is considered ‘not for
people like us.’’
The Higher Education Minister has
said that the findings contained within
the report have already been superseded
by actions taken by the government,
adding ‘Strong progress is being made
on widening participation due to our
continued long-term investment,’.
CULTURE
Exclusive interview with Falcons’ Tom May
pg. 46
Intra Mural Rugby Cup action
pg. 51
Football firsts on brink of promotion
BACK PAGE
SPORT
The Team 08/09
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NE1 8QB
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Established in 1948, The Courier is the fully independent Student Newspaper of the
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or the University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne.
75% of Newcastle students admit to binge drinking
Continued from front pageIn Finland, the correlation between
alcohol consumption and drink-related
deaths has increased since tax cuts on
alcohol were established back in 2004.
And no more than a year after, alcoholrelated problems became the most
common cause of death among Finnish
people – killing more than cancer and
cardiovascular disease.
The manner in which alcohol is
promoted is also being addressed with
schemes to control the way products are
advertised to the public.
All this opportunity to drink inevitably
produces dire consequences. A student
who wished to remain anonymous said,
“A couple of weeks ago, I was rushed to
hospital after a night out in town, and I
had to have my stomach pumped. Since
then, I haven’t touched a drop.” Her
friend has also cut down on her drinking:
“My college work was suffering and I
was prone to getting colds and felt tired
all the time. Now I feel much better.”
Student support officer Pete Mercer said,
“It’s true that many students probably
don’t need lecturing and already know
the risks; yet they continue to binge
anyway and for some it’s seemingly just
part of their “culture”, so it’s important
that we remind ourselves that yes, it’s ok
to go out and have a good time and have
a few drinks, but to be wary of crossing
that limit - and most importantly, to look
out for your friends when on a night out
and to try and be as safe as possible.”
Opinion:
How much is too much?
Sarah Scott
Like many others students, going out
and drinking with my friends is just
something I enjoy doing and I freely
admit that I give absolutely no thought
to how many units I drink on a night
out.
For women, the NHS recommends no
more than 2-3 units per day. To put this
in perspective, the maximum of 3 units
barely covers one treble at Sinners.
Therefore, I am, according to the NHS,
a binge drinker.
This is not a label that I am
particularly keen to be attached to;
however, it is difficult in a city where
drinks promotions are abundant and a
lot cheaper than at home to seriously
consider the impact of those cheeky
few on my long term health.
T-shirt pub crawls, although very
popular, have received a lot of bad
publicity in the past year. Any pub
crawls, such as those taking place
during Freshers Week and RAG Week
are limited to four bars as a method
to stop students from binge drinking.
However, if you had a treble at each
of the four bars then you’re too late,
you’re already a binge drinker.
I do think it is important for us to
consider the impact our drinking
sessions have on our health but I do
not think the government should
intervene to the extent which the
Scottish government are proposing,
stopping cheap drinks promotions and
reduced priced alcohol.
“...If I fancy two
large glasses of wine,
should that not be
my prerogative?”
The government shouldn’t have
such control on our drinking habits;
otherwise we will become a nanny
state. Should we not be responsible for
our own decisions and be trusted to
behave in a sensible manner? Alcohol
related illnesses may cost the NHS a
great deal of money, but then again
so do obesity related diseases, are
the government now going to make
it even more expensive for us to buy
McDonalds or stop 2 for 1 deals on
chocolate bars?
So although many of the proposals
by the Scottish government may have
a positive impact and to a certain
extent discourage the negative image
of a British drinking culture, are these
measures dictating our own drinking
habits too much? Personally, if after
a hard day at University I fancy two
large glasses of wine, should that not
be my prerogative?
C
M
Y
K
C
M
Y
K
NEWS
5
9th March 2009
National
Florence Stuart-Leach
Supermarket fraud
An 18 year old student studying in
Brighton was last week convicted of
fraud and sentenced to 120 hours of
community service after he cheated
5 Sainsbury’s shoppers out of Nectar
points to the value of £500.
James Patterson from Brooks Meadow,
Poring land was heard in Norwich
Crown Court where it was revealed that
he used the points to purchase items
at the Sainsbury’s branch where he
worked and later returned some of the
goods, keeping the cash.
Having pleaded guilty to five counts
of obtaining pecuniary advantage
by deception, Mr Patterson was also
ordered to repay £482.50 to Sainsbury’s
in £5 instalments due to his current
financial situation.
Oxford student suicide
An inquest into the death of a South
Korean PhD student at Oxford last
year has confirmed that Juncnok Park
hung himself hours after hearing
that his submitted thesis may require
improvement.
The 43 year old student and former
monk was studying for a doctorate in
Buddhism. He attended a meeting with
his academic supervisor on 18July 2008
but was told that he was not ready to be
awarded the doctorate that he had been
working towards. He later returned to
his college where he was found dead
in his room by police after a cleaner had
noticed his locked door and blood on
the floor.
[email protected]
Leading UK Universities
accused of social engineering
Michael Watt
Admission tutors at leading
universities across the UK have
recently been accused of attempting
to ‘socially engineer’ a more
representative intake of students
by favouring applicants from lower
income backgrounds.
The scheme, which echoes the
Government’s plan to get more
working-class children into higher
education, is designed to balance
the perceived over-representation
of students from privately educated
or wealthy backgrounds – the most
affluent 25% of families provide
over half of university students,
whereas the poorest 25% of families
provide just 6%.
The Sunday Telegraph has reported
that Newcastle University has
initiated an ‘applicant profiler
system’ which will encourage
admissions officers to ‘make
standard, or slightly lower offers,
to applicants who appear to have
potential but whose predicted
grades are lower than standard
offers because of contextual factors’.
These ‘contextual factors’ include
coming from a deprived postcode
or a school with a poor exam record,
or having parents in manual or non-
skilled occupations. These factors
may come into play in a ‘dead heat’
between two applications, or if
the candidate is on the borderline
between acceptance and rejection.
Other top universities, such as
Edinburgh and Oxford, have
introduced admissions systems
with similar aims, although all
stress that they are not automated
processes. The final decision over
whether to make an offer is left up
to the judgement of the individual
admission tutors.
However, these sorts of ‘social
engineering’ policies have come
up against heavy criticism. There
is a suspicion that they have been
introduced at the behest of the
Government, whose plans to boost
working class participation in
higher education have largely failed.
Geoff Lucas, a representative of the
country’s top private schools, told
The Sunday Telegraph that these
universities ‘are running untried
and untested elaborate mechanisms’
to find students from poor
backgrounds, mechanisms which
many fear will start a systematic bias
against other worthy candidates
from the middle or upper-classes.
Opinion -
in equality of opportunity are so
marginal in this country that one’s
socio-economic or educational
background has no real bearing on
their chances of securing a place at
university.
The only person to blame if you
can’t get in is yourself. Certainly,
middle class children have better
working environments, schools
with more books and probably
more intellectual parents but the
disparity this generates can easily
be mediated by some good old
fashioned hard work.
If people choose to work
insufficiently hard enough to get
themselves three ‘A’s or whatever’s
necessary then that is their decision.
I deplore any institution that
employs positive discrimination
and the attempt by universities to
get more working class students
through their doors is doomed to
fail. If they can’t get in on a level
playing field, it’s grossly unfair
to simply raise part of that field
instead.
Universities set the bar, and the
only thing they should care about is
whether one can surmount that bar
or not.
I worked hard to get my three
‘A’s at A-level (at a chronically
under-funded school by the way,
so lets not pretend it’s not doable)
and I will not have anyone suggest
that they are ascribable to anything
other than my own efforts.
After all, if the socio-economic
divide were so terrible, wouldn’t
all state school students get exactly
the same results in comparison to
private school students?
The range of results from both
types of school and the typical
economic background they reflect
is indicative of how success is and
should be based on individual
merits rather than attributing it to
some other irrelevant factor such as
the school you went to.
Nic Fidler
The issue surrounding social
engineering through university
applications is symptomatic of that
most destructive believe in society:
positive discrimination.
A prominent Victorian philosopher
once wrote a book espousing
the belief that the only thing the
state should provide is equality
of opportunity; what people do
with that opportunity is irrelevant
so long as they have it. The same
should hold true of university
admissions.
It doesn’t matter if your Dad sits
in the Lords, it doesn’t matter if
you went to Eton, it doesn’t matter
if you went to an underfunded
dysfunctional school. The differences
Graduates face salary
freeze as economic
downturn continues
Cambridge Quarantine
Students of Sidney Sussex College,
Cambridge were ordered not to leave
their rooms following an outbreak of a
norovirus last week.
The college which holds between
70 and 80 students and was once the
college of Carol Vorderman, acted in
response to advice from Cambridge City
Council’s environmental health officers
and the Health Protection Agency.
Approximately 370 undergraduates
and 130 post-graduates are thought
to have been infected with the bug;
symptoms include fever, diarrhoea and
projectile vomiting.
Despite the health threat, tutorials
continued and the student bar remained
open.
Offensive spoof
student newspaper
The resignation of the student editors of
Oxford University newspaper follows
uproar after a spoof edition of the paper
was deemed racist and offensive by its
publisher Oxford Student Publications
Ltd, and the student body.
The edition which mocked the
Holocaust, superimposed images
of students and academics onto
pornographic images and featured a
front page article of students abusing
and killing babies was issued as part
of an Oxford tradition held at the end
of term in which old editors hand over
their job with a satirical version of the
student newspaper.
Joint editors Sian Cox-Brooker and
Michael Bennett denied responsibility
for the edition but did offer an apology
on behalf of the newspaper. Around
50 copies were printed last November
rather than the usual 15,000 copies of
the official paper printed each week yet
some copies of the paper were leaked to
the wider university last week sparking
controversy.
Survey suggests; ‘Get angry!’
Charlie Oven
A recent study by the Harvard
Medical School found that getting
angry at work may not be a bad
thing and may in fact help you move
up the career ladder.
Finding your flatmate’s dirty
dishes piled in the sink to the size
of a mini Everest is just one of the
many ways you might feel the urge
to erupt in a raging fit of anger.
However, rather than invoke
your wrath like a classical God by
throwing the odd lightning bolt or
two, we often listen to that inner
voice of tranquillity and calm that
tells us to restrain ourselves in
that terribly British way of days
gone by. Perhaps it’s now time to
throw caution to the wind and say
no to frequent forced politeness,
particularly in the workplace.
The team of researchers that
followed 824 people over 44 years
claim that those who repressed
frustration were three times more
likely to have stalled on their career
path.
Hence if anger is such an arguably
beneficial human outlet in work, can
it overlap to everyday life?
Tom Robinson a first year Financial
and Business Economics student
describes himself as ‘a naturally
passive person’ but admits that at
times even he has ‘succumbed to the
red mist.’
When recently being mocked by
a man in a bar over his ‘mop top
hairstyle’ Tom’s response to the
large bald gentleman was ‘at least I
have hair’.
Although the situation was taken
in good jest with Tom describing
it as ‘a cathartic moment’ he also
claims he wouldn’t make it a routine
as ‘you wouldn’t want a reputation
for constantly being an angry
person.’ So is anger in moderation
both at work and life in general the
best path to take?
Talking to the BBC, Professor
George Valliant argued that
‘negative feelings were crucial for
survival’ but outright fury was
destructive leading to ‘explosive
and self destructive consequences.’
Therefore it can be argued that an
assertive self-controlled nature is
the best solution where people are
able to stand their ground while still
being respectful of others.
If unadulterated anger is still
unjustified then we can say that
society hasn’t quite witnessed the
death of passive group therapy and
anger management sessions which
are so synonymous with office life.
Christabel Dickson
As the economic recession worsens,
students across England looking to
graduate this summer are likely to
be hit hardest, in the form of reduced
salaries.
A survey published last week by
Incomes Data Services (IDS) which
investigated 69 big employers,
revealed that the average graduate
starting salary is now £25, 984 – the
lowest in a decade.
Jessica Evans, author of the report,
told Channel 4 News: “Graduate
salaries really will be lagging
behind those of their more senior
colleagues.”
This year’s graduates are the first
generation of students to pay off
the top-up fees introduced in 2006.
It is estimated that students will
now leave university with debts
of between £20,000 and £25,000, as
opposed to the previous £10,000
student debt.
Speaking to The Times Jessica Evans
said: “This is the lowest forecast
rise that we have seen since IDS
started reporting comparable data
on graduate pay in 1999. Not even
during the dot-com crash was there
such a small increase in graduate
salaries.”
On top of the anticipated pay
freezes it has emerged that thousands
of companies are planning to reduce
the number of University graduates
they hire in 2009. Further research
from IDS shows that Law and
Accountancy firms will reduce the
number of graduates they take on
by 0.4 per cent, while manufacturing
businesses plan to lower recruitment
by 11.1 per cent.
One third year history student
told The Courier: “For students
graduating this summer this is
very worrying news. I am already
anticipating a struggle to pay off the
huge debt I have accumulated over
the last three years, and to hear that
we will now face the added strain
of lower salaries is disturbing to say
the least.”
Despite the doom and gloom, there
is some good news; Ms Evans told
The Times that the public sector was
expected to prove very popular
this year, with job increases and
relatively high salaries. The public
sector currently has a higher median
salary of £25,000 compared with that
of the private sector which stands at
£24,500.
In addition, many big public
sector employees, such as the NHS
management scheme, Civil Service
fast stream and Teach First, have
reported a rise in applications this
year. Findings of the IDS survey
suggest public sector graduate
recruitment will increase by 30.1 per
cent.
C
M
Y
K
NEWS
7
9th March 2009
[email protected]
HEFC University tables show
overall cut in research funding
New funding allocations for next year show some top Universities facing reductions
Marina King
News Editor
Top Universities face research
funding cuts, it has been revealed by
the release of The Higher Education
Funding Council’s grants for the next
academic year. Newcastle University
has seen a 3.5 percentage increase in
the total grant awarded, which is just
above the current rate of inflation of
3%.
The
reallocation
of
funding
has meant that high performing
institutions
such
as
Imperial
College London, University College
London and Cambridge will face
substantial cuts in funding. In total,
53 Universities will suffer, resulting
in the Russell Group fearing it will be
forced to make staff reductions.
Although Imperial College London,
Oxford and Cambridge share 27%
of the research budget, Russell
group institutions on the whole will
receive just 3.3% increase in funding
compared with 120%, for the former
polytechnics, who are represented by
the lobby group Million+.
The funding allocation comes after
last year’s changes in the research
assessment
exercise,
resulting
in extending funding to more
Universities. The budgets also show
a dramatic decline in research in
traditional science subjects, with a
shift to media studies and sports
science.
This is evident when the figures
for Newcastle University, which
concentrates on traditional academic
subjects,
are
compared
with
Northumbria
University
which
specializes in sports and media
courses. The tables published by
The Higher Education Funding
Council (Hefc) show that although
Newcastle University’s funding
total is substantially higher than that
of Northumbria, with Newcastle
being awarded a total recurrent
grant of 105180 thousand pounds,
compared to the 67545 thousand
grant Northumbria will receive,
Northumbria has seen an increase
in funding by 5%, which is not only
higher than that of Newcastle, but 2%
above the current rate of inflation.
Newcastle University’s Education
Officer
Charlotte
Ellis
said,
“Newcastle’s slightly above average
increase in HEFCE funding for 2009/10
reflects our solid performance across
the board in recent RAE assessments.
“ The diversity of subjects offered at
Newcastle has also meant these shifts
towards greater funding increases
in arts subjects, such as Business
and Media Studies, has shielded
Newcastle from the larger funding
drops seen at other Russell group
institutions” she told The Courier.
Although some Universities have
lost out on funding grants, there
has been evidence published that
reveals a demand for academics in
subject areas such as media studies,
sports science and business due to
the dramatic increase in the number
of students taking courses in those
areas.
This has had an impact on the
staffing of other subjects, as media
studies has seen an increase in 239%
of academics, Languages has seen a
dramatic drop with declines of 13%
in French and 12% in German, and
research funding dropping for these
subjects, by £3 million for French and
£1.6 million for German. Although
staffing in science subjects increased,
the percentages were below the 29%
average increase across all subject
areas.
David Eastwood, chief executive
of Hefce, expressed his views to The
Guardian: “The changes in subjects
are following student demand ...
Universities will face quite hard
choices over the next few months.”
Pam Tatlow, chief executive of
Million+ welcomed the new allocation
of funding, ”Post-92 universities have
paid back with abundance the very
modest levels of research funding
received in the past,” she told The
Guardian.
However, Malcolm Grant, chair
of the Russell group, expressed his
concerns, explaining to The Guardian,
“If you don’t receive a total grant that
keeps pace with inflation, something
has got to give. Across Russell group
institutions, there will be reviews of
staffing. Some institutions will want
to reduce staff or not hire new staff.
It’s going to be quite tight.”
EU students fail
to pay back loans
Rebecca Richards
Almost 70% of students from other
EU countries are failing to pay
back student loans taken out while
studying at UK universities, due to the
“shockingly ineffective” procedures
that the Student Loans Company
(SLC) have in place to recoup the
money, it has been revealed.
Of the 2,240 EU students due to start
repayments in 2007 and 2008, 1,580
of them, with loans totalling around
£3.8million, cannot be accounted for
by the SLC.
The current repayment system
relies on foreign graduates to inform
the SLC of their earnings and to make
their own repayment arrangements,
because the debts cannot be
automatically recovered through
the UK tax system, making it easier
for students to avoid repaying their
debts.
“If, on graduating, I was not
contacted to repay my loan I would
not go to the effort of contacting
the SLC to sort out repayment,
particularly because the debt gets
written off after 25 years,” a 2nd Year
Newcastle student, who does not
wish to be named, told The Courier.
“The longer you are able to fall under
the radar the better.”
This has been branded as being a
“shockingly ineffective” method of
collecting the money that is owed,
by the Shadow Secretary of State for
Innovation, Universities and Skills,
David Willetts.
“It is very important that the SLC
is as energetic in collecting debt built
up by students across Europe as they
must be in collecting debts from
students in Britain,” he told BBC
News.
The government have defended the
SLC, insisting that the company are
doing everything they can to trace
students who have moved overseas.
EU students became eligible for
the same tuition fee loans as British
students in 2006 and, whilst the vast
majority are not yet due to repay
their loans, 46,000 EU students have
so far borrowed £130million.
News in Brief
Free pint of Guiness
Celebrate St Patricks’s Day on the
17th March with a Free pint of
Guiness from the Union and the
chance to win an all zone annual
Metro Student Card. Simply register
on-line at www.stpatricks.me.uk
Freshers Crew Interviews
Taking part in Freshers Crew is an
amazing experience; a chance to
make new friends, help 5000 new
students settle into University life
and it even looks good on your CV!
Getting involved in Crew is really
easy, simply pick up a form from the
Union’s Reception, fill it in and hand
it back by the 12th March.
Interviews are then on the 13th
(all day) and 16th (morning only)
March for Supervisors and the 16th
(afternoon only) 17th, 18th and 19th
(all day) March for Crew and Drivers.
Just come along to the Function Suite
in the Union!
Check out the Facebook event for
more info (search for “Freshers’
Week Crew Interviews”).
Ethical Extraviganza
Thursday 12th March will see the
basement of the Newcastle University
Students Union transformed into a
fantastic fashion lover’s paradise.
The event, organised by Newcastle
Ethics and Environment Society is
in aid of Dan’s Fund for Burns. In
collaboration with some of the North
East’s biggest ethical names; Daisy
Green Magazine and Ethic Boutique,
the event starts at 3pm with over 20
stalls selling affordable ethical and
vintage clothes as well as jewellery
and bags, beauty products and
much more. The event will include
demonstrations on how to revitalise
your wardrobe and will continue
with a Fashion Show at 7.30pm.
Tickets are just £4 in advance or
£5 on the door which will allow
you to come and go as much as you
please! Tickets are being sold outside
the union every lunch time from
Monday 9th March or pick them
up from the Scrumpy Willow And
Singing Kettle country. To have your
name placed on the guest list, please
contact nicola@daisygreenmagazine.
co.uk or join them on Facebook.
Hospital plans rejected
Mia Douglas
“Of the 2,240
EU students who
should have started
repayments in 2007
and 2008, 1,580 of
them, with loans
totalling around
£3.8million, cannot
be accounted for
by the SLC”
The SLC have claimed that measures
to track down European students will
be in place by April next year, when
large numbers of European students
who have benefited from the loans
begin to graduate. Ralph SeymourJackson, the chief executive, told
The Daily Mail, “By April 2010 when
the first major cohort of European
students become eligible to pay back
their loans, measures will be in place
to identify and trace them.”
L. Beldeninova
NUtv hold live presenter auditions
Ben Puddle
Last Monday Nutv, Newcastle’s
brand new TV channel assembled a
wacky assortment of characters for a
final of crazy challenges to determine
their new team of presenters.
Three tasks were devised, as are many
great ideas, in the pub the night before.
Round 1) was to devise a fantastical
tale that centered around the object
grabbed out of the sack - feather,
venetian mask, traffic cone, handcuffs,
broken umbrella and rubber chicken.
The next storyteller starts from
where the previous account finishes.
Round 2) saw the contestants assume
the roles of characters in series of
bizarre scenarios. Each contestant will
be provided with provided with props.
The final round was a chance
for all the contestants to give the
crowd their reasons for wanting to
be crowned NUtv Presenter. Each
presenter with met with incredible
noise and after these, the contestants
were whittled down to just three.
It was a tight call and was clear
that the 3 finalists were going
to be impossible to separate. In
an unprecedented move NUtv
decided to congratulate all three
brilliant Presenters and declare
them the faces of the new channel.
If you want to get involved, with
Nutv email – [email protected]
Newcastle city council has rejected
new proposals which aimed to
regenerate the Newcastle General
Hospital site.
The Campus for Ageing and
Vitality was due to carry out crucial
research into age-related illnesses
such as diabetes and Alzheimer’s.
Sir Len Fenwick, chief executive of
Newcastle NHS foundation Trust
is concerned that this controversial
decision will jeopardise Newcastle’s
reputation of being a leader in
geriatric health. The council has
some environmental concerns about
the project, and it has also raised the
issue that the new Tesco could pose a
serious threat to local businesses.
The new development was a
joint venture involving Newcastle
University, Newcastle Hospitals
and Tesco. The supermarket giant
was due to invest £30 million in the
hospital scheme as well as opening
a new 24-hour store in Fenham, but
if the project does not go ahead as
planned, Newcastle stands not only
to lose money but also the 600 jobs
that the new Tesco store was to
create.
8
COMMENT
[email protected]
9th March 2009
comment
The ultimate
retirement
plan?
In the context of the current economic climate
MICHAEL FOSTER examines the morality of
awarding such a large pension to Sir Frank Goodwin
and asks, do we still have lessons to learn?
I
know for many students it’s a way
off, but how much do you think you
could retire on and live a comfy and
pleasant existence until you shuffle off
this mortal coil? Does £700,000 sound
cosy to you? What about that amount
into your pension pot every year?
It sounds like something you could
only dream about, however if this is
the pension you feel you deserve then
all you have to do is become the Chief
Executive of a major British bank.
Sir Frank Goodwin used to be just
that for the bank RBS, until last October
when the credit crunch began to bite
and he left with the bank on the verge
of collapse, and ultimately rescued
by the government. At the time noone else thought much of it, however
on the back of the announcement a
few weeks ago of the record losses at
RBS of over £24 billion, news of Sir
Goodwin’s pension was leaked and
suddenly everyone thought a lot of it.
Everyone, from the Government, the
MP’s, the Press and the commentators
on the forums and phone-ins, were
all quick to condemn the size of this
pension. Thus began a long drawn
-out tug of war as members of the
Government, including the Prime
Minister and deputy Labour leader
Harriet Harman, vowed to claw this
pension back whilst Sir Goodwin
vowed to keep his claws firmly dug
into it.
You do have to question the morality
of this revelation. Sir Goodwin, as the
head man of a major bank, does hold
some serious responsibility for the
state of his business, and currently his
old business is in the toilet, putting
it politely. Moreover the failings of
RBS are but one of a series of failings
across the world that have led us into
the grip of recession. Yet Sir Goodwin,
despite being one of the men who
failed to spot it coming and act, need
not worry a thing about it. His future
either way looks very rosy.
What drew the most ire was the
notion that due to the recession many
regular people have seen the values
of their pensions slashed, yet one of
the men partly responsible for this
downturn will be walking away with
a pension many could only imagine.
In this sense many had the right to
feel a little bit hard done by.
There aren’t many people out there
who won’t argue that 700,000 quid
a year on top of whatever wage you
may earn is a tad ludicrous, even out
of the shadow of the credit crunch.
Many could only dream of earning
that amount in a lifetime, yet this is
the amount one man earns every year
as a bonus, and for life.
Sir Goodwin is entitled to a large
salary. He does a highly important
and stressful job, one that affects
thousands across the country, one that
he has had to work very hard for all his
life to reach, and one that if I were to
take on would lead to destruction and
panic on a global scale. What many
people are debating is the morality of
such a huge bonus being handed out
on top of his already large salary, and
in the context of recent failings of his
bank for which he must hold some
responsibility.
Getting him to give up his entire
pension is unworkable and would
also set up a dangerous precedent, so
perhaps the decent thing for him to do
would be to donate a large proportion
of his pension to charity. It’s probably
not going to happen though, as all Sir
Goodwin knows he has to do hold out
for a couple of weeks and then people
will move on.
There does however seem to be the
smell of a witch hunt going on at the
moment. It is amazing the instant this
news leaks everyone else becomes
a bastion of morality. MP’s and
reporters were lining up to launch
scathing attack after scathing attack on
the good banker, almost as though he
was solely responsible for the whole
downturn. All the while many of his
fellow bankers and chief executives
were wiping the sweat off their faces
in relief, realising it could have been
them instead.
Sir Goodwin is not a special case,
there are many more in the world
out there with similar salaries and
bonuses, all of them struggling to keep
their floundering banks afloat. Yet in
this country everyone’s undivided
attention is focused on one man. It’s
a very narrow point to be focused on,
and seems to be more an outlet for
everyone’s frustration at the state of
the economy.
The recession has not been created
by one man, but by a combination of
factors and mistakes on all sides. From
the bankers who handed out loans
like penny sweets, to the governments
who failed to see it coming and act,
even to ordinary people who spent
heaps of money without thinking of
the future.
Sir Goodwin has undoubtedly
played a part in this which is why
many are questioning his extremely
large send off. But to be arguing over
ultimately one man’s mistakes when
there is a much wider problem that
needs solving is perhaps a mistake we
can’t afford to make.
Spend a penny, it’ll cost ya!
As Ryanair consider adding an in-flight toilet tariff to their air
fares, RACHEL NAYLOR explains why she’s not as outraged as
she should be...
A
s Ryanair considers adding
a toilet tariff, RACHEL NAYLOR
explains why she’s not as outraged
as she should be.
Irish budget airline Ryanair are
contemplating charging customers
£1 to use the on-board toilet. Chiefexecutive Michael O’Leary told
the BBC he was looking into ‘the
possibility of maybe putting a coin
slot on the toilet door.’ Ryanair
claims than not everyone uses the
lavatory and that the ‘wee fee’
would help keep wider costs down.
When asked what would happen if
a passenger didn’t have the money
on them, O’Leary replied ‘I don’t
think there is anybody in history
that has got on board a Ryanair
aircraft with less than a pound.’
Too right, I hear you say, that’s
‘cause a coffee’s £2.50!
Predictably, consumer groups
and rivals alike were quick to
criticise O’Leary’s latest costcutting initiative. Easyjet quipped
‘Inflation appears to have gone
crazy if it costs £1 to spend a
penny.’ Rochelle Turner, head
of research at Which? Holiday,
accused Ryanair of ‘putting
profit before the comfort of its
customers’.
Thanks
Captain
Obvious, but where’s Which? been
for the past ten years? Ryanair is
hardly renowned for its customer
care. And ABTA (the Association
of British Travel Agents) had
similar complaints, calling the
proposal ‘outrageous’, adding
that ‘it’s underhand to charge for
something which should be part
of the deal.’ Whilst I see ABTA’s
point, perhaps we should take
everything Mr O’Leary says with
a pinch of salt?
So before we get on our high
horses, listing all the other
occasions that Ryanair has ripped
us off and rising to the bait,
perhaps first we should listen to
what Ryanair’s spokesmen have
to say. PR chief Steven McNamara
openly admits that often ‘Michael
makes a lot of this stuff up as he
goes along and, while this has
been discussed internally…I don’t
think it’s going to be happening in
the foreseeable future.’ A second
company representative even
wittily retorts ‘Maybe O’Leary
was just taking the piss.’
So let’s look at his track record.
Just who is this Michael O’Leary?
This is the man who recently
promised first class customers
aboard Ryanatlantic (Ryanair’s
proposed long-haul service) ‘free
beds and blowjobs’. Now does
this sound like a man we should
be taking seriously? No. But did
it get him lots of free publicity?
Yes. Famed for being an arrogant
loudmouth, O’Leary and his
Dublin-based carrier are rarely
out of the headlines. O’Leary is
undoubtably the master of the
scathing sound-bite and has been
quoted as saying that airport
operator BAA are ‘overcharging
rapists’ and said that travel agents
are ‘fuckers’ who ‘should be taken
out and shot’. He went on to attack
rival Easyjet, declaring they should
be called ‘Frequentlydelayedjet.’
Ok so it’s not the wittiest insult
you’ve ever heard, but I must
admit I’m finding it hard not to
admire his brio. When questioned
regarding whether his recent
initiative to enable mobile phone
use whilst flying (at a mere £3/
minute) was really necessary,
O’Leary countered ‘If you want
a quiet flight, use another airline.
We’re always trying to sell you
something.’ O’Leary may be
many things: crude, unapologetic,
brash… but he is refreshingly
honest.
O’Leary’s
preoccupation
is
simple – low fares. And credit
where credit’s due, he does
deliver. Ryanair’s average ticket
costs £27 compared with £41 on
Easyjet and £178 with British
‘robbing bastards’ Airways. And
as we’re all well aware, he is only
able to do this owing to overpriced
but ‘avoidable’ ancillary add-ons.
Though Ryanair’s website is a bit
sneaky, if you play by the rules,
there are some genuinely cheap
flights to be had. After choosing
your flight and entering your
details, Ryanair asks ‘Would you
like to be one of the first passengers
to board the aircraft?’ Followed
by ‘Confirm country of residence
to purchase travel and medical
insurance’ I answer honestly and
click Yes and UK and somehow
add £8.96 to my fare. Whilst it
does seem somewhat devious to
ask us these leading questions
and to trick us into handing over
more cash, if we go into it with
our eyes open all of these charges
can be avoided. If you select No
that you do want to be one of the
first on board and select No travel
insurance required, then they
won’t charge you a penny. Equally
if you check-in online, pay by
VISA Electron and don’t take hold
luggage. Otherwise you could be
charged up to £25.
The only thing that surprised me
about Ryanair’s latest headline/
PR gambit was that it’s taken
O’Leary so long to come up with.
I guarantee that the toilet charge
will not be implemented in the
near-future. I think it’s completely
irrelevant when people argue
that perhaps it’s feasible since we
already have to ‘pay to pee’ in
train stations. But that’s precisely
the point: train STATIONS, not on
the train. The truth is that on-board
toilets are regulated by the JAA and
the FAA as a safety services and
equipment items, just like the seats
or the air-conditioning system,
and any unilateral alteration, e.g.
fitting coin-slots, would invalidate
the Public Transport Certificate of
Airworthiness of each aircraft. So
now you know.
So in brief, O’Leary’s latest
suggestion seems to smart of
the trademark Ryanair business
model, namely bash the customer,
get a free name-check. With an
estimated fortune of £280m and at
the helm of a staggeringly successful
airline, perhaps O’Leary’s the
smartest boss in the industry.
Customer care is evidently a low
priority, yet it didn’t seem to deter
49m passengers travelling with
the airline last year alone. I think
it’s incredibly naïve when people
criticise the overpriced levies
such as changing your name on
your ticket (£100). I think O’Leary
would be the first to admit that it is
extortionate, but how else do you
expect Ryanair to make a profit?
They wouldn’t be able to offer us
such cheap flights if they weren’t
making money elsewhere. £4 to
Ibiza anyone?
And for O’Leary’s next trick?
Charging for sick bags? Reclining
seats? Or perhaps going to the toilet
will only be payable exclusively
by credit card, complete with £10
charge? Only time will tell.
C
M
Y
K
COMMENT
9th March 2009
9
[email protected]
Out of the mouths of babes
ALICE VINCENT discusses plans to educate primary school children about same-sex relationships and asks, why
do we find it so difficult to shift social predjudices and embrace a big step forward in sex education?
‘O
ut of the mouths of babes and
sucklings’. It’s ironic that a Biblical
phrase gives good evidence for
something some Christian groups
are attacking.
What I’m referring to is a pilot
scheme which has been launched
to educate primary school pupils
as young as four and five about
homosexuality. The aforementioned
Biblical phrase which has made its
way into public use implies that it
is the voices of the innocent which
speak most wisdom. Bearing this in
mind, reception age children seem
the most appropriate audience to
learn about same sex relationships.
Children’s innocence to sexual
relationships, basic understanding
of love and affection, and willingness
to show it without the constraints
of gender makes them the most
accepting of homosexuality. The
pilot scheme uses fairy tale-style
books such as King and King, in
which two princes fall in love, and
Asha’s Mums, a tale of a girl brought
up by lesbians to demonstrate
the normality and encourage
acceptability of homosexuality.
The scheme has been unfortunately,
but not unpredictably, controversial.
Unsurprising, but also unjustified,
attacks have come from religious
groups
including
Christians
and Muslims. Teaching about
homosexuality is as blurry a grey
area of education as the age-old
debate that is Creationism vs.
Darwinism.
However, more worrying are
the objections of parents, some of
whom even claim they will happily
go to jail for their truanting children
than let them be educated about
homosexuality such is their level of
homophobia.
Discomfort surrounding such new
education arises for many a reason.
From concerns that four and five year
olds are too young to understand
the concept of homosexuality, to
the more extreme fears of children
learning the intricate ins and outs,
pardon the pun, of sexual relations
between same sex couples.
This epitomises why we need to
educate children at this age about
these issues. For most adults,
sexual
orientation,
especially
homosexuality, is associated with
sex. Hell, it’s even in the word. This
is one of the major reasons why
people have problems accepting
homosexuality, and why it’s accused
of being ‘abnormal’ or ‘unnatural’. I
swear that one of the most common
questions asked amongst hetero
women when the topic of lesbianism
springs up is, ‘well, how do they do
it?’
Many adults’ problems with
accepting homosexuality stem from
a mix of ignorance and morbid
curiosity. We spend more time
fascinating over the bedroom antics
between same sex couples than we
do over the extent to which they love
each other. It is adults’ exposure
to others’ prejudice and lack of
innocence that makes homosexuality
a controversial subject.
The power of literature and
teaching upon young children
is obvious – the importance and
longevity of fairy tales is due to their
educative and resonating influence.
Cinderella and Snow White discuss
love and parenting and have not
been associated with sex since the
nineteenth century.
Why would a similar story but
with a same sex theme have any
greater inclusion of sex, and why
would innocent children have any
reason not to accept a same sex
relationship as the norm? After
all, nobody is raised in a fairy tale
castle or wears magic slippers,
yet we accept the moral lessons in
these narratives. The same message
of love and tolerance would come
through a book such as King and
King, even if a child wasn’t brought
up around homosexuals.
By educating schoolchildren about
same sex couples we are not teaching
them about wider, potentially more
inappropriate associations with
homosexuality. They are not going
to be exposed to S&M clubs, sex toys
and renowned lesbian fiction writer,
Sarah Walters.
This may sound like hyperbole
but it is this kind of subject matter
that parents feel their offspring are
going to be immediately exposed
to because of their own stereotypes
with homosexuality. Instead, we
are creating in children’s minds
homosexuality as the norm it
actually is in today’s society, as
this is what they will accept it as if
we can summon the courage to tell
them it is.
Ideological reasoning aside, it
makes far more practical sense to
make our infants aware of the extent
of homosexuality in our society.
Even since our own days at
primary school the ways of the
school gate have changed. Indeed,
to quote my primary schoolteacher
mother, ‘when you were at school,
and one of the mums saw a man
collecting or taking kids, they’d go
and ask if his wife was ill! Now, it’s
about 50/50 men and women doing
the school run.’
It’s arguably bad form to use
personal experience to evidence
an argument, but the increase in
house husbands, the level of people
working from home and the higher
acceptability of women having a
career after childbearing has made
the amount of stay-at-home dads
far greater.
Furthermore, with divorce rates
steadily rising a whopping 37% in
the last two decades and a similar
drop (34%) in marriages over the
same time, children with more
complicated parental relationships
are becoming far more common.
If we, and, more importantly,
young children, are able to accept
single parents, new parental
partners and unmarried parents so
easily, how much of a difference
will two parents of the same sex
really make?
Indeed, the question that really
begs to be asked is how can a
country legalise gay marriage and
yet treat the issue of educating
children about it as taboo?
Within a decade, same sex
marriages will be so commonplace
that it is hugely short-sighted not
to educate the next generation
about homosexuality. Why create
ignorance, which breeds prejudice,
over something entirely legal and
increasingly normal?
By letting our own prejudices
obstruct the learning of the next
generation we are at serious risk
of isolating what is becoming
an increasingly accepted part of
society, and to think such antiquated
attitudes remain in a country where
Gok Wan is a national treasure is
worrying to say the least.
Exploiting the slumdog children?
After Slumdog Millionaire conquered the box office and the awards ceremonies SIMON MURPHY and
CAROLINE ARGYROPULO-PALMER ask, have producers expolited the real stars of the slums?
NO
Caroline Argyropulo-Palmer
‘S
lumdog Millionaire’ is a highly
emotive film, particularly in its
depictions of the slums of Mumbai.
Most distressing within this is the
portrayal of the young children for
whom the images seen fleetingly by
international audiences is a daily
reality. This has inevitably prompted
discussion, but rather than focusing
on the living conditions of the
thousands of children who still live
in these awful conditions, it has
centred around whether the children
who appeared in the film have been
exploited by its producers.
The lives of the children in
question have obviously not been
easy, but the complaints that they
have been mistreated by the film
company due to underpayment or a
delay in re-housing are unfounded.
With regards to the latter, although
the local authorities have now
stepped in and offered new housing,
materials for the families to build
houses was to be provided by the
film-makers. Re-housing cannot
take place over night, and any calls
that the family should have been
whisked away to a wealthy suburb,
or moved into a ‘westernised’ life
style, smack of neo-colonialism; in
order for changes to be effective
and sustainable they need to work
within the community.
Charges that the children have
been underpaid also require
further examination. The children
are in education for the first time
and a fund has been set up so this
can be sustained, something that
could have a more positive effect
on their lives than a generous
cheque ever could. Some of the
complaints of underpayment also
seem to stem from the children’s
parents. Understandably given
the families’ situations money is
needed, and this could be part of the
motivation of these requests, but is
it not exploitation if the money these
children worked for and can give
them a better future is taken by their
parents?
What has been put in place for the
child stars of ‘Slumdog Millionaire’
are measures which could make a
real, sustainable difference to their
lives, and hats off to Danny Boyle et
al. for not caving to a quick publicity
stunt instead.
YES
“The welfare
of Azhar
and Rubnia Simon Murphy
has always
been a top T
priority for
everyone
involved with
Slumdog
Millionaire.”
Spokesperson from
Slumdog Millionaire
he kids’ll be all right on the night!
Child stars of Slumdog Millionaire
Azharuddin Ismail and Rubina Ali
were all smiles on the Oscar red
carpet as they were paraded in front
of the cameras with director Danny
Boyle.
Eight Oscars, seven BAFTAs, four
Golden Globes, £135 million grossed
world wide- what a success! Crikey!
These young actors must be set for
future stardom? When the camera
stops rolling it’s a different story.
Just ask their parents how much
each child received for their roles
in the Oscar glory. Of course, you’d
have to find them first.
A world away from the bright lights
of Hollywood, buried in the slums of
Mumbai lives Azharuddin and his
family. After filming, their illegal hut
was demolished by local authorities
so he now sleeps under a sheet of
plastic tarpaulin with his father, who
suffers from tuberculosis.
...Talk about a raw deal. The £1700
young Azharuddin received for
his role in the film has been totally
spent on treatment for his father’s
tuberculosis. Meanwhile, Rubina
resides in a make shift shack that she
shares with her family.
Her father, Rafiq Alo Kureshi,
a carpenter, broke his leg while
working on the film - to add insult
to injury, his daughter received just
£500 for her acting work.
A spokesman for the film said:
“The welfare of Azhar and Rubnia
has always been a top priority for
everyone involved with Slumdog
Millionaire.”
Then why, subsequent to filming,
were these poor children left to rot
in the same squalid slums the film
depicts for a whole year? They were
vulnerable to the same dangers
their onscreen characters faced:
homelessness, starvation, and even
child prostitution.
Only since the media outcry has
the studio acted - and they’ve acted
out of guilt. Trust funds have been
set up for the children that they will
receive when they turn eighteen if
they stay in education until then.
But the reality for these real life
slumdogs is that a life of education is
as far flung an idea as winning Who
Wants to Be a Millionaire?
Exploited? Time to ask the
audience.
10
COMMENT
[email protected]
9th March 2009
Education is a right,
not a privilege
The Union Society’s Student Support Officer PETE MERCER
discusses the issue of University funding and wonders whether
HEI stands for Higher Education Institutions or Higher Education
Injustice?
E
ducation is certainly not a
privilege, it is a right.
It seems like only yesterday that
the government’s proposal for the
top-up on tuition fees as the solution
for the Higher Education Funding
“problem” was narrowly passed.
Now, there’s already whispers of
plans to raise and eventually even
completely remove the cap on these
top-up fees, granting universities,
in particular those of Russel Group
or red-brick repute, the liberty
of charging whatever they want,
essentially turning our education
system into a market economy.
The inevitable implications of this
will be a trend of polarisation in
teaching and learning: traditional
universities and those high up
in the league tables will receive
more revenue from the higher fees
they charge, “justified” by their
reputation and academic standing,
which will in-turn be returned
back into superlative facilities
and resources, thus perpetuating
a system that reeks of elitism and
socio-economic divide.
‘The Higher Education Policy
Institute (HEPI) has projected
that if the variable fee cap was
set at a maximum of £7,000, we
might expect an average annual
fee of £4,300 to emerge across the
sector. If a student were to pay a
fee at this level over the course of
a three-year degree, and also take
up the average loan for living
costs (projected at £3,500), then at
the end of their programme they
would have acquired a public debt
of around £25,000, once interest
has also been added for each of the
three years.’
For students borrowing money
at the high end of the extreme,
in receiving a loan that would
adequately cover the costs of the
maximum fee (£7000) and the
maximum amount for maintenance,
this total debt, including interest,
would rocket to no less than £37,000.
Sure, bursary schemes have been
introduced to assist those from
poorer backgrounds to pay for the
top-up fees; however, the criteria
of discretion for these awards is
riddled with complications and
massive assumptions about an
individual’s personal and financial
circumstance, with many cases
being no more than what Wes
Streeting, NUS President, dubbed
a “post-code lottery”.
Moreover, the provision of
financial student support for
the
underprivileged
appears
to be beginning to subside into
a “shadow market” in which
bursaries are awarded according
to marketing and recruitment
incentives and academic merit, as
opposed to financial need. Financial
contribution
from
employers
(particularly in the private sector)
may be limited, but any potential
grants are more than likely to be
based on this criteria, possibly
giving graduate employers a
larger say in curriculum, into
which values and ideology are
inevitably, however minimally
and undesirably, incorporate – a
somewhat disconcerting prospect
for greater society.
The estimated life-time premium
(as opposed to that of someone
with just 2 GCE A-levels) for arts
and humanities graduates is £35k
and £51k, respectively. Within the
OECD (Organisation for Economic
Co-operation and Development),
there are just three countries that
spend less per GDP percentage on
Higher education, namely Italy,
Slovakia and the Czech Republic. If
the UK government were to match
the OECD average expenditure
on Higher Education, fees would
be reduced by £1000 per student
per year. In October 2007, Gordon
Brown declared that “…our
ambition must be nothing less than
to be world class in education” –
and where’s all the money for this?
Surely not where his mouth is.
“According to a
recent NUS survey,
46% of students have
to work to cover
their basic living
costs, with a third of
them working more
than 17 hours a week
– notably having
an adverse effect
on their studies.
Combine this with
the Student Price
Index findings that
students’ inflation
is essentially 50%
higher than the
average citizen and
it’s not difficult to
see that students
from lower
socio-economic
backgrounds are
already heading for
financial crisis.”
With the notorious credit crunch
in full-loom, research shows
that today’s undergraduates are
grossly underestimating living
costs. The total average shortfall of
students’ predicted outgoings (i.e.
before they arrive at uni) is 10%,
with groceries, bills, socialising
and daily travel being particularly
underestimated. Having sat in on
University Access to Learning Fund
panels (meetings that award grants
to those in financial hardship),
I see how bad things get for
underfunded individuals – in some
cases, a student’s loan and bursary
won’t even nearly cover their fees
and rent, let alone composite living
costs and course materials.
According to a recent NUS survey,
46% of students have to work to
cover their basic living costs, with
a third of them working more than
17 hours a week – notably having
an adverse effect on their studies.
Combine this with the Student
Price Index findings that students’
inflation is essentially 50% higher
than the average citizen and it’s not
difficult to see that students from
lower socio-economic backgrounds
are already heading for financial
crisis.
The emergence of these elitist
proposals, for a system rigged
partially in favour of those who are
lucky enough to be able to afford it,
concerns me to the core. In light of
our own Chancellor’s (soon to be
ex-Chancellor’s) – also, markedly,
the Chancellor of Oxford University
– public declaration that the current
tuition fee cap is “intolerably low”
(though not necessarily a view
representative of the institution as
a whole, it must be noted), I feel
that it’s down to those who’ll be
affected to speak out against what
may soon become a miscarriage
of representation. And whilst it’s
true that not all students in our
democracy do actually oppose top
up fees, I challenge anyone to tell
me that the majority of students
want to pay £7K a year for their
education to compensate for shortfalls in government spending.
Recent press releases have
indicated that perhaps the risk
of the new bill isn’t as immediate
as initially anticipated; however,
just because the debate has been
temporarily shelved, don’t be
fooled into believing that the threat
of the fee increase is receding.
Of course it makes perfect sense
that top-up fees are nudged off
the agenda in the run-up to the
general election – to spark a debate
on education funding right now
would be political suicide for any
candidate – but mark my words,
once the votes are in the fee reviews
will come flooding.
On the 3rd of September last
year, NUS launched the ‘Broke
& Broken’ campaign against
the Higher Education Funding
proposal, beginning with a critique
of the current system, and will
continue to campaign over the next
couple of years, engaging students’
unions across the UK. I implore
anyone who believes in the right
and equal access to education to
rise up and speak out against what
will surely be a travesty should it
come to pass.
On the 18th March, I plan to
attend a mass lobby of parliament
held by NUS with guests such as
David Cameron and Paul Farrelly
to debate alternative funding
models. If you would like to find
out more about the event or would
like to articulate your views on the
matter then please contact me on
[email protected]
To do your part in holding the
government to account, contact
our local MP at: www.writetothem.
com
For further information on the
debate, visit:
www.nus.org.uk/en/
Campaigns/Broke-and-Broken/
Where is feminism
today?
In the context of International Women’s Week,
DEBORAH SMITH talks about feminism in
contemporary society and reveals why the
battle for women’s rights is not over yet
A
s a feminist and member of
Newcastle
University
Women’s
Society I was thrilled to be given the
opportunity to express my opinion
on feminism today. I had planned
to consider the aims and activities of
the current feminist movement and
to discuss the views of young people
today on issues affecting women, but
upon discussing the topic with some
fellow students I found that the issue
of gender equality and feminism are
viewed by many young people as
irrelevant in today’s society. It seems
that many young people today feel
that the battle for gender equality has
been won. Of course, huge advances
have been made in women’s rights.
We can vote, achieve successful
careers and are protected by law
against discrimination. Does this
mean then that total equality has been
achieved and feminism is no longer
necessary?
The truth is that there are many issues
that need to be addressed in order to
ensure the continued progression of
women’s rights, indeed it appears
that some of the current battles are
to protect rights which have already
been granted. This has lead me to
question whether the rights already
achieved by women in the past are
under threat and to consider the new
issues that must be addressed.
An example that is relevant to all
of the female students reading this
article is the issue of inequality in
the workplace. Despite legislation
such as the Equal Pay Act of 1970,
a recent study showed that women
in Britain are paid 17.1% less than
men, with 40% of the pay gap due to
women being paid less than men in
the same job. As a result of this pay
gap, female graduates will take an
average of 5 years longer than men
to repay student debt. As a young
women intending to achieve a degree
and pursue an ambitious career I find
this information shocking.
A further issue is the portrayal of
women in the media, particularly
in women’s magazines. A glance at
the selection of magazines available
in the newsagents reveal that young
women are being bombarded with
images of what is unattractive, what
is attractive and advice on how to
avoid the former and achieve the
latter. They are being conditioned to
believe that their self worth should be
measured in their ability to live up to
what the media tell them men desire.
Young women should be encouraged
to realise that talent, intelligence and
individuality, among many other
things, are attractive and admirable
aspects of their identities.
These are just two of the many
issues affecting women in our society.
Unfortunately the issues affecting
women in the western world pale in
comparison to the violation of women’s
rights on an international level.
Despite the Universal Declaration
of Human Rights, practices such as
female genital mutilation, honour
killings and child marriage continue
in many parts of the world. Surely it
can not be argued that women have
achieved equality with men?
It is clear that there remain many
issues affecting women today that must
be addressed. Why then are so many
young people reluctant to identify
with feminism or acknowledge these
problems? It seems that feminists have
come to be identified as angry women
who hate men, refuse to wear make
up or dresses and burn their bras.
The truth is actually that feminism is
something that is individual to each
person, man or woman. Overall it is
the desire to address issues affecting
women in society today and the belief
that women have the right to total
equality to men.
I am pleased to report that feminism
is not dying out and that a number
of young men and women today
continue to campaign for the rights
of women all over the world.
Anybody interested in learning more
about women’s rights can contact
the Women’s Society on womens.
[email protected] or check out
our website www.societies.ncl.ac.uk/
womens
C
M
Y
K
INBOX
9th March2009
11
[email protected]
inbox
To let The Courier know what you think of our stories, just email editor.
[email protected], or if you’d prefer to send us your opinion in a quick
message, contact the Courier Mobile on 07964921116
‘...it is possible
to believe in
the foundations
of faith but
at the same
time reject the
institutionalised
ideas that
accompany it...’
Dear Editor,
In response to “Agnostic or Catholic,
everyone has the right to their
opinion” in issue 1187
To begin with, I would like to
raise the use of the terms agnostics,
atheists and theists.
Defining yourself within these
limited terms is not beneficial when
discussing a broad open topic such
as religion.
Belief is something different from
religion, it is possible to believe
in the foundations of a faith, like
following the ten commandments,
living a good life, but at the same
time reject the institutionalised ideas
that accompany it, the heaven and
hell rhetoric.
So, I would argue that it is possible
to question the factual evidence of
their being a god, whilst at the same
time respect the beliefs and lifestyle
of any religious people.
People like Dawkins are not out
to disprove the existence of god,
they are attempting to increase our
knowledge of the scientific world.
To increase our understanding, we
have to work with facts; anything
not proven and supported by
evidence has to be met with some
scepticism. The argument that you
cannot disprove god, does not lend
weight to god’s existence.
The article’s attack on the atheists
as being ‘selfish and petty’ is not
unsupportable. In a world in which
we have freedom of speech, attacking
a group of people for expressing their
own views is unforgivable.
Are we falling back into a police
state where independent thought is
not allowed? The message recently
placed on buses across the UK, is an
expression of a people’s viewpoint,
should this be censored just because
some people find it confrontational
or controversial?
People who are sceptical of faith are
fully within their rights to express
their views, in the same way that
Christians can advertise their faith
through courses such as Alpha.
Atheists will not argue the
point that religious belief in some
circumstances can be beneficial; but,
the institutional aspect of religion is
another matter.
Claiming that religious troubles are
only caused by a few fanatics is not
reflective of the innocence of religion,
rather reflective of the fact that in this
modern world religion is becoming
increasingly marginalised.
However, if we look back 1000
years, we are seeing the church
condoning religious crusades to holy
land, as well as actively targeting
intellectual and progressive thinkers
such as Galileo in the inquisition.
Were people back then blaming these
acts on the work of a few fanatics?
In countries where religion is still
dominant we are still seeing similar
atrocities. Iran and Pakistan are still
countries in which the death penalty
can be dealt out to those accused
of blasphemy. Religion cannot be
separated from some of the major
problems in this world.
The salient point of Radcliffe’s
argument is that Atheism is just
about disproving faith, ‘belittling
what people do believe.’ This is
entirely wrong.
As an atheist myself, I would argue
that it is about keeping an open
mind, leaving yourself open to all
options out there, and not restricting
yourself. Yes, this does sometimes
mean that we disagree with religious
teachings, but that is inevitable, we
do not set out with this in mind.
The article as a whole takes a very
short sighted and predictable view
of atheism and does not do it justice.
Even the title of the article, ‘Agnostic
or Catholic, everyone has the right to
their opinion’ is highly questionable
considering the article then goes on
to say that perhaps atheists should
be censored.
As for the question of whether or
not we celebrate Christmas or Easter,
I cannot resist the opportunity to
point out that both these festivals are
pagan in origin.
Charles Hume
‘...As well
intentioned as I’m
sure this article was, I
can not help but find
parts of it distinctly
patronizing...’
Dear Editor,
In response to the article “Is politics
coming out of the closet” in issue
1187
As well intentioned as I’m sure this
article was, I can not help but find
parts of it distinctly patronising.
More seriously, it plainly reinforces
the key differences between the
‘minorities’ and everyone else that
years of campaigning have tried to
remove.
My take on life is that my sexual
orientation is small part of my
character,
as
significant
and
deserving of as much comment as
the colour of my eyes or the size of
my feet.
I therefore find it deeply unsettling
that even in this advanced age,
someone will probably be more easily
recalled in people’s minds for being
gay, than for having an impressive
intellect or talent, or showing great
compassion etc.
To take up some of the points made
in the article; I do not find it likely that
Ms Sigurðardóttir (the new Icelandic
premier) won the election because
the electorate like the fact she is a
lesbian. Rather, I think they probably
thought she was the best choice to
help the struggling country with the
far graver issues it is battling.
That she is a lesbian is a fact as
insignificant in this case as her mild
shoe obsession and love of winter
sports.
Similarly, in this country, I highly
doubt Gordon Brown was furthering
the LGBT cause in abruptly recalling
Peter Mandelson to the government.
I have focused on gay issues here,
but I think what I’m about to say
holds for most of the people classed
as ‘minorities’ in this article; if any of
us were given a job, or opportunity
or any other benefit on the basis that
we were of a minority group, we’d
be quite offended that the ‘normal’
people pityingly thought we couldn’t
earn such things on our own merits.
This country has happily become a
largely tolerant place, but I think the
vast majority of people would rather
get on with their lives, rather than
having a single, apparently defining
characteristic, repeatedly cited, even
if in a positive light, as this just
underscores that we are somehow
different from everyone else.
Ross Dent
‘...The
article
was
well thought out and
balanced...’
Dear Editor,
In reponse to the coverage of the Stan
Calvert Cup tournement in Issue 1187:
I would like to commend the Courier
on its coverage of the Stan Calvert Cup
last week.
Despite my many talents, I don’t
happen to play sport at University,
and have to admit to rarely reading the
sport section of the paper as it does not
always appeal.
However, I felt the combination of
match reports from those that played,
comment from your sports editors,
and the photo montage really did our
victory justice.
Bearing that in mind though, I did
wonder if so much space would have
been devoted to the Cup should the
result have been different...!
Nevertheless, it all seemed good
quality journalism.
Shame about that final quote from
James Greene mind - I’d be intrigued
to hear if he really knew the definition
of the phrase ‘melting pot’!
Best,
Randy Willis
RETRACTION
The Courier would like to acknowledge
that a quote was wrongly accredited
to Mr. Nathan Maude in Issue 1187’s
‘Vox Pop’ section.
The Courier realises that by error,
views were expressed on Mr. Maude’s
behalf that were not his own, and
would like extend its full apology to
the person concerned.
C
M
Y
K
INTERVIEW
9th March 2009
13
[email protected]
The Courier talks to Jon Snow about Obama, drugs, and his unusual taste in ties
Kate McCann
& Sam Parker
KM: What were your personal
experiences of university and how
do you think they might compare
with going to university today?
JS: I don’t think that there was much
pressure on us in those days. I was at
university in the late 60s, which was
a very revolutionary and rebellious
time. We didn’t have the problem of
student fees; the local authority just
paid for everyone. I think that times
are very different. We had time to
revolt, and we did plenty of it. We
were very revolting!
I would do. I never thought that the
university would respond like that. I
went to work for a drug dependant’s
day centre in central London. I was
meant to stay there for only 6 months
and then go back (to university). But
in fact I was so absorbed in what was
then a very big problem in London,
heroin was a major concern, that I
stayed for three years. I gradually
realised that I was better talking
about it than doing it, so I began to
look for ways in which I could write
about it. I wrote in The Guardian and
I wrote in the New Statesman. I then
saw an ad in the New Statesman
for a new radio station, which was
going to be the first legal commercial
station, LDC, and I got a job on it. My
first day was the first day it started
and I read the news at 6:30 in the
morning.
KM: Do you think students
nowadays are more apathetic?
JS: No I don’t. I feel students today
have vastly more problems than
we had. Students now live at a
very different pace and under very
different pressures. I think the
thought of being a student now and
carrying four, five, ten thousand
pounds worth of debt (KM: £30,000!)
is absolutely horrendous. The thought
of going into a recession wearing that
amount of debt, and bearing in mind
that you might not get a job at the
end of other than pulling a few pints
beggars belief. Who could afford to
protest with the danger of blighting
your initial career? We didn’t care a
damn because we knew we would
come out and find a way forward.
We didn’t have any debt. I think
student debt is like the way they
use drugs in America you know. If
you have an inner city problem, just
make sure that there is a bit of pot
circulating and it keeps everybody
down. That really is how it works in
places like Chicago and Los Angeles.
If you load students up with debt,
you inevitably get some very well
behaved students.
KM: Did you get involved in
protesting when you were at
university?
JS:I did. There were all sorts of
things to protest about! In the
end we concluded that the best
thing to protest about was the fact
that university investments were
made in Tate and Lyle, which had
very big holdings in South Africa.
South Africa was then of course
an apartheid state. But they got rid
of us. I was excommunicated, sent
away, sent down.
KM: So where did you go from
there and how did you end up in
journalism?
JS: I felt pretty desperate about being
sent down, because I had tried jolly
hard to get there (to university), and
I wasn’t very bright. I got very bad A
levels; a C a D and an E. You wouldn’t
get into university nowadays with
that lot. I didn’t know what an earth
responding to events and there are
plenty of events these days.
SP: How difficult is it to maintain
composure when you are reporting
a story that you find particularly
upsetting or emotive?
JS: I think you do feel removed in
the studio. But on the ground it’s
different. I make no bones about it,
I cried when Obama was elected. I
was in a room full of black students
in a black university in the suburbs
of D.C. and it was highly charged;
extraordinarily emotional. It’s hard
to imagine here but virtually every
student was in tears. That moment
when it tipped over the emotion was
absolutely fantastic and I’m just glad
that my head was turned away from
the camera. I was interviewing a girl
who was streaming with tears.
I make no bones about it, I
cried when Obama was elected
KM: How do you start your days?
JS: I listen to the radio. I never watch
the television in the mornings ever,
no matter how dramatic the news
might be.
KM: Why is that?
JS: I don’t know. I don’t want images
in my mornings. I want to think about
the world. And actually, the pictures
are much better on radio. I tune in at
about 6 o’clock in the morning, while
I’m getting myself sorted.
KM: Do you read the newspapers?
JS: I do. I read the Financial Times and
The Guardian before I get to the office.
And then I read the others when I get
back.
KM: Do you find it difficult to
maintain your composure when you
are interviewing? I have watched
you in interviews before
concerning Palestine where
you looked to be getting
particularly frustrated.
JS: It’s very tricky; they’re
very good at getting your
goat. You’ve really got
to hang on because
it’s not useful to
get into a state,
either to the
interviewee or
the public.
KM: What did you read when you
were younger?
JS: I’m a bit of a creature of habit; I
read The Guardian. I talk to my own
daughter who is a student at Leeds.
She informs me that her lot don’t
read any papers at all. They tell me
that that’s common place.
SP: To what extent do you have a
hand in the agenda for the news?
JS: Well of course I think I have an
agenda for the news. I’m in at 9.30
in the morning to be at the first
editorial meeting. Actually it’s a
very collegic thing. We have around
20 people, everybody who is going
to be working on the programme,
sat round a table and we throw stuff
about. We talk about what happened
during the night, what happened
yesterday, what’s going to happen
today, the running themes. A lot of
the stuff is “pre-ordered”; someone
might have been in the Congo, or
Afghanistan. But in the main you are
They
don’t
want
to see people
getting in a
state.
SP:
How
do
you respond to
a
politician
that
constantly
refuses
to
answer
your
questions?
JS: I think they hoist themselves up
in that way to be honest. I’m just sick
to death of talking to people who
don’t answer the questions I put to
then, and come in with no interest
in engaging in onversation.
They
alienate
the
viewer. The viewer
wants to have
an experience
that is like
you and me
talking now,
and instead
you have a
seriously
crazy thing.
You say, “Is
this
room
pale blue”,
w h i c h
between
ourselves it
is, and the
answer is,
“We have
just built a
new bypass
around this
town
and
I want you
viewers
to
know that.”
KM: What’s your proudest or
defining moment as a journalist?
JS: You’re only as good as
your last story. But I would
say that I was thrilled
to be at the Obama
election.
However
his
presidency
turns out, that is
something
that
can’t be rolled
back.
KM:
What
inspires
your
choice in ties
and socks?
JS: I have a sense of
my own dullness.
Someone
said
you should never
wear bright colours
on television, so I
thought lets wear bright
colours on television. It’s
remaining
consistent
with my Liverpool
revolutionary
days!
North by
South
I
Alice Vincent
ventured into the land of teenagers
again last night. Yes, again. I’m not a
weird teenphile, I just seem to get myself
into these situations.
Our work colleague, or ‘Little Jacky’ (often with the prefix of ‘our’, if I’m swayed
by fellow Geordies enough), was playing
his first ever gig at the Cooperage and to
say that abstaining was the equivalent of
maiming orphaned puppies would be an
understatement.
So, after a couple of hours of rolling around on the sofa, moaning that I
couldn’t be arsed to get into a change of
clothes, let alone a metro carriage, I was
forced into an outfit picked by my flatmate and out of the door.
This in itself demonstrates my gain in
years. Four years ago I would have been
anticipating such an event with near-incontinent glee. After all, there might’ve
been some non-alcoholic dancing and
boys there.
Walking firstly down the treacherous
steps to the Quayside (how I’ve not broken my neck down those when in heels
and a state of intoxication is by a means of
divine grace) and then back up the Cooperage’s stairs was strongly reminiscent
of gatecrashing a polite social gathering
‘mortal’ and realising by the second step
it was going to be a disaster. Although
in this instance I refrained from clinging
onto the banister screaming “It’s a social
car crash. A CAR CRASH!”
My even older accomplice and I used
our hardened knowledge of Newcastle’s
drinking establishments to accidentally
avoid paying, which suited my depleted
end-of-January coffers just fine. Also, not
meaning to sound tight, but seeing as
I’ve saving up for my own overdue gap
year, I don’t see why I should donate my
moneys to some other kid’s. In the end,
however, principles failed under tin rattling and I grudgingly handed over the
scrapings of my purse to a fresh faced
beaut who’d clearly spent longer getting
ready than I had.
We sat drinking in the curiously darkened sofa-y bit until we could delay no
longer and had to go and see Our Little
Jacky drum. I don’t know how many of
you will be familiar with this, but when I
was fourteen and a keen attendee of such
events there was always a huddle of parents and older people who stood at the
side, drinking, with dispositions that oscillated frequently from pain, pride and
the least cool form of boredom.
I have become that person. My teenage self would think most lowly of me,
which is fine, as I look patronisingly at
my teenage self.
In fact, so comfortable was I with my
situation that I made the very most of it.
Rather than rise to the rude and quite bizarre actions of the mop-haired creature
barging beside me at the bar, I ignored
him, thanking God that I can now identify that hamster smell of adolescent boys.
When I found myself openly looking at my watch and yawning, I felt no
shame. After a performance of a song
about burning so trite I thought it was
only worthy of teenage ingenuity was
revealed as a Biffy Clyro cover, I also felt
similarly shameless.
When my retort to the lead singer’s
cocky banter that he had no talent came
out in a more-than-audible whisper, I
couldn’t care less.
All this demonstrates my making into
one of those shouting,
mad
old
women,
quite
happy wearing
slippers out of
the house and
thinking themselves normal
in doing it.
Yeah, ok, I’m
only 20, but that
kind of self-certainty looks pretty
good to me.
features
Two cultures, four days, one goal
R.E.S.P.E.C.T is a six letter word, but understanding is so much more... housemates Caz Bass and Danya Bazaraa
recently popped up on the Feature’s radar with the idea of both taking part in a four day fast, to better understand
the background and implications of Ramadan. For Danya, a practising muslim, the fast was a bit of a no brainer, but
for Caz, of minimal faith, it really hit home how hard the fast is, but more importantly what it really means.
According to the most recent
national census, unsurprisingly
Christianity remains the most
popular religion in the UK with a
whopping 41 million.
What you might not have guessed
is that coming in second, as the
largest non-Christian religion is
Islam with an impressive 1.6 million
followers.
So this tells us that people of
different religions are rubbing
shoulders on a daily basis; living,
working and socialising together.
In today’s multicultural society,
respect is, in virtually all cases, a
given.
But what we wanted to investigate
was how much we actually know
about each other and further still,
to what extent do we actually
understand one another’s cultures,
beliefs and ways of life?
It cannot be denied; certain events
over the past decade have altered
the way that people view religions
that are not their own and this poses
a threat to the respect that we have
come to take for granted in this
country.
It is now more important than
ever to realise that extreme minority
groups should not be taken as a
representation of certain religions
as a whole.
This isn’t a problem that is just
going to go away. It seems that
the only way to try and overcome
it is for individuals to take on
themselves the responsibility of
dispelling crude misconceptions.
Not an easy task - how can we
do this? For us, that involved
going
beyond
respect
and
entering the domain of informed
understanding.
We like to think that we represent,
on a very small scale, the blending
of two very different cultures
and sets of beliefs; Africa meets
England, Islam meets minimal
faith. We have now lived together
for almost two years, and nights in
involving in-depth discussions on
life and religion are by no means
unfamiliar.
In order to go one step further
than words, the challenge was set
to perform our own experiment to
find out just how much harder it is
to actually put yourself in the other
person’s shoes.
“We like to think that
we represent, on a
very small scale, the
blending of two very
different cultures and
sets of beliefs; Africa
meets England, Islam
meets minimal faith.
We have now lived
together for almost
two years, and nights
in involving in-depth
discussions on life
and religion are by no
means unfamiliar.”
Our experiment came in the form
of a four day trial fast.
For all you non-Muslims here’s
a quick re-cap of all those very
distant RS lessons. Let’s begin by
eliminating those terrible myths of
what fasting actually entails.
No, it doesn’t mean you perform
the impossible and don’t eat for a
whole month and yes you can brush
your teeth and in case you were
wondering, orchestral Muslims
are still allowed to play brass
instruments during Ramadan!!
The reality is that Muslims,
following the example set to them
by Prophet Mohammed, refrain
from eating or drinking for one
month every year during Ramadan
in the hours of daylight.
Millions of people in poorer
countries starve every day and
by fasting, Muslims are placing
themselves in their shoes for a set
number of hours each day.
The idea behind it is to learn
appreciation of all the things that we
take for granted in life, not just food.
Having watched Danya go through
this experience with relative ease,
Caz thought she would try her
hand at it!
The night before our four day
fast began, we sat and discussed
our expectations with surprising
excitement! Advice given from
experience by Danya was that it
wouldn’t be nearly as difficult as
Caz expected it to be- fasting sounds
so much harder than it actually is.
This didn’t seem to ring quite so
true when the next morning, the
sun streaming through the blinds,
Caz woke up dry-mouthed and
reaching for that glass of water,
only for reality to kick in moments
before it reached her lips!
After this shaky start, things did
take a turn for the better. The best
way to cope is to avoid thinking
about that buttered scone in the
kitchen and the best way to do that
is to keep yourself busy.
Caz found her first day fasting to
be one of the most constructive days
she’d had in months! As the clock
struck 4.30, and the sun had sunk,
she was shocked to realise that she
wasn’t even that hungry, but
had struggled more
with the mere
habitual concept
of not eating.
Day
two
found
a
s l i g h t l y
hungrier
Caz, but as
her stomach
rumbled furiously it made her grasp
what Ramadan is actually about.
That feeling of knowing that your
stomach will soon be comforted is a
luxury that so many people in the
world could only dream of.
This all may sound rather dramatic,
but Caz realised that feeling pensive
and extremely lucky was all part and
package of the fasting experience.
After just one mouthful, you start
to wonder what on earth you were
whinging about!
For Danya, who never once
moaned, the experience was very
different, of course because it
wasn’t the first time fasting, but also
because her faith kept her patient.
It was maybe therefore a more
rewarding experience for Caz,
because the challenge was greater
and yet she never gave up.
So what did Caz learn from this
experiment, and would she do it
again?!
At the time, even thinking about
a repeat performance seemed
impossible, but weeks down the
line things have changed.
It wasn’t about taking on Danya’s
religion, but more about taking
that step from respecting to
understanding.
Maybe our experiment was
a bit intense; we’re
not trying to say that
everyone
needs
to fast for four
days- what we
are trying to
say is that by
learning about
one
another’s
c u l t u r e s
you
are
ultimately
expanding
your own...
TXT ME BACK - Eleanor Wilson discusses
whether text messaging has made us lose our grip on the English language
There are many people who
disapprove of the influence that ‘text
talk’ has on the English Language.
These purists cannot see anything
positive in the language used in
texts, and would certainly not
think it deserved the status of a
language.
However, there are those that can
see the bright side, and those that
positively welcome the changes
brought about by the technology of
texting.
Those that see text talk as bad
mostly see it as laziness and letting
the English language slip. Its use is
also seen as a marker of intelligence
(or lack of), employers look very
poorly on text talk in applications.
And in 2003 many outraged
newspaper articles followed the
story of a young Scottish girl who
wrote an exam essay entirely in
text speak, the marker complained
that the script was written in
“hieroglyphics” and that she could
not understand a word of it.
Some would say that this showed
how poor the education system in
the UK is, but others might point out
that if a teacher didn’t understand
text speak, then how could it be a
sign of education going awry?
Despite the many that hate the
influence that text talk has on our
language, there are those that
support it.
Text talk is economic, it speeds up
communication and allows people to
send something in one message that
otherwise might take two (useful
in the current economic situation
where every penny counts!).
It can also be said to enrich our
language by bringing in new
words and expressions, English is
a language that thrives on variety
and borrows words from here there
and everywhere.
The
English
language’s
adaptability has made it what it is
today. Would those that say that
text talk is ruining English think
that the terminology brought in by
other technological phenomena is
just as bad?
Should we all speak like
Shakespeare or Beowulf, as if
nothing had ever changed in our
country?
English has kept on
developing over the centuries,
adapting to everything that comes
in its path, from invasions to new
technology.
The French are scared of similar
changes and set up L’Academie
Francaise in order to keep the
language “pure” and free from
influence, should we follow suit
and have an elected body to keep
our language “clean” from change?
On Friday Night with Jonathan
Ross, Stephen Fry cast off aspersions
that he’d be against language change
by remarking with admiration on
the use of “book” as another word
for “cool” in a group of young teens
because “book” came before “cool”
in mobile phone predictive text
dictionaries.
Fry celebrates this as diversity
and richness, but others might say
that “book” should keep its original
meaning.
It is clearly mostly younger
people that use text talk as a means
of communication (much to the
annoyance of the older generation),
and it helps form identity with the
youth culture.
But this could contribute to a
communication
gap
between
generations that already have a lot
of differences.
However, they may not need to
worry, Jonathon Green (author of
the Cassell Dictionary of Slang) has
said that no text speak will make it
into the new edition, as he sees it as
a technology soon to be on its way
out.
For the time being, texting is
as popular as ever, and new
expressions are coming in all the
time. While it is so successful,
there will always be differences
in opinion between those that see
text talk as a valuable contribution
to English, and those that see it as
laziness and sloppiness leading to a
general collapse of ‘good’ English.
Until the day that text talk is seen as
an accepted form of communication,
I would not advise its use in formal
writing such as exams and job
applications, but I would tell those
that slate it because it is a change to
think of what Shakespeare would
say if he saw the way our language
is used today.
C
M
Y
K
FEATURES
15
[email protected]
9th March 2009
The Lazy Student’s
By Olivia Gill
Guide to...
Beloved student soap Hollyoaks
has attempted to tackle certain
misnomers surrounding the HIV/
AIDS virus.
Despite the soap’s widely
celebrated far-fetched nature,
Malachy’s HIV storyline has
successfully exposed a receptive
audience to common myths,
misconceptions and importantly,
medical
advancements
surrounding the virus.
Students are reminded of
the risks of contracting STDs
such as Chlamydia on a daily
basis through government and
university initiatives but how
much do students really know
about HIV?
HIV AND AIDS
What is HIV/AIDS?
The Human Immunodeficiency Virus
(HIV) is a sexually transmitted retrovirus
that attacks the body’s immune system,
destroying CD4 cells responsible for fighting
infection.
It breaks down DNA and can rapidly
mutate, creating a virus that is incredibly
difficult to treat.
The body acts by trying to create more
of these defence cells but eventually the
number of CD4 cells rapidly deplete and the
immune system stops working. The body is
in result at a high risk of developing serious
infections and cancers.
It must be understood that the time it takes
between initial infection and advanced
breakdown of the immune system can be
relatively long, allowing people with the
HIV virus to lead normal and fulfilling
lives.
This, however, depends largely on the
person’s socio-economic environment and
whether medical treatment is available.
AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency
Syndrome) is a term used to describe the
later stages of HIV when CD4 cells are
dangerously low and other infections are
apparent.
Mercedes perception that Malachy has got
“The AIDS” is therefore wholly inaccurate.
He has got what is known as asymptomatic
HIV infection; a period after initial exposure
to HIV when there is often no symptoms or
signs of the virus.
This period can last over a decade without
any visible symptoms becoming apparent.
During this time, however, the virus is still
damaging the immune system and it is vital
for medical treatment to be accessed.
Facts and figures about
HIV/AIDS
ABOVE: An advertisment funded by the French government to raise awarenessd of the
risk of HIV/AIDS
How is HIV passed on?
HIV is transmitted via infected bodily fluids
including blood, semen, pre-seminal fluid,
vaginal fluid and breast milk.
Therefore, HIV can be passed on through
unprotected sex, whether vaginal, anal or oral,
the sharing of infected needles and from a
mother to her unborn child.
Although AIDS was first officially reported in
1981 after an outbreak of AIDS-related illnesses
amongst homosexual men in the USA, HIV is
not a ‘gay disease’; a term used to stigmatise
people who contracted the virus.
Despite receptive anal sex being considered
the riskiest form of contracting HIV, anyone
who has had any form of unprotected sex is
at danger, regardless of sexual orientation and
race.
The best method of preventing HIV
transmission, like all STDs, is through practising
safe sex and using a condom, a potentially
lifesaving measure.
HIV cannot be passed on through kissing,
sneezing, sharing towels or by using the same
toilet seat as someone who is infected.
Symptoms and Treatment
At the time of initial HIV infection, only 60%
of patients will develop any symptoms. These
usually occur 2-6 weeks after infection and
include fever, a sore throat, tiredness, joint pains
and swollen glands.
As these symptoms are not dissimilar to that of
a cold, it is difficult for those infected to notice
anything wrong.
After the period of asymptomatic HIV,
which could last anything between 10-20 years
depending on treatment, symptoms of a serious
infection arise.
“The
best
method
of preventing HIV
transmission,
like
all STDs, is through
practising safe sex
and using a condom, a
potentially lifesaving
measure.”
These include persistent tiredness, unexplained
weight loss, prolonged swollen glands and
persistent diarrhoea.
There is no cure or vaccine for HIV, however,
there are advanced medical treatments known
as anti-retroviral drugs that help control the
virus and allow people to stay healthy for a
prolonged period of time.
Treatment usually consists of a combination
of different drugs taken throughout a patient’s
lifetime.
For Hollyoaks fans, the medication Kris
(Malachy’s brother) takes after he fears initial
exposure to HIV is known as PEP (post-exposure
prophylaxis).
This can be taken up to 72 hours after exposure
and is intended to prevent initial HIV infection.
It involves a 4 week course of anti-HIV drugs
that can have uncomfortable side-effects.
PEP, however, is not always successful and
HIV can still be contracted. PEP can be obtained
at GUM clinics and at A&E. The quicker PEP
can be obtained, the higher the chance HIV can
be prevented.
• Over 33 million people around
the
world
are
HIV-positive
• Since the virus was identified,
over 28 million people have died
due to AIDS related illnesses
• Since 1999, the most common
way of contracting HIV is
through
heterosexual
sex
• In the UK, there are 73,000 people
living with HIV and experts believe
that 30% of people with HIV do
not know they have the condition
• Botswana and South Africa have
a negative population growth
due to AIDS related mortality.
Origins of HIV/AIDS
The origin of the HIV virus has been a
source of much debate since its recognition
in the 1980s.
There are countless theories of how
the virus came into being but there is no
conclusive evidence of when and where the
first instance of HIV began.
It is widely accepted that HIV is a descent
of the Simian Immunodeficiency Virus
(SIV), a retrovirus found in monkeys.
Many strains of SIV bear significant
resemblance to the HIV virus and it is
thought that the virus transferred from
certain primates to humans in West Africa.
Some believe this happened due to hunters
eating chimpanzees or blood getting into
their wounds and causing infection.
How to get tested
Don’t know your HIV status? It is
important to always get tested, even if
you are a low risk candidate for HIV.
HIV testing involves a simple blood
test that can be performed in strict
confidence at your local GUM clinic.
Most blood tests detect HIV
three months after exposure but it
sometimes takes up to six months
before
antibodies
are
detected.
It is therefore important to take a
blood test six months after exposure
or take a second blood test at this
time. HIV tests can be performed in
conjunction with tests for other STDs.
To arrange a test or find out further
information either contact you GP
or Newcastle GUM clinic on 0191
2195011 for appointments and advice.
“It is widely accepted
that HIV is a descent
Simian
the
of
Im m un od ef ici en cy
a
(SIV),
Virus
in
nd
fou
us
vir
ro
ret
monkeys.”
16
9th March 2009
Material
Girls
Margaret Clunie &
Jenny Greenwood
T
his week, in our post Fashion Week
depression we looked into our wallets
and realised we would never be able to
afford that Alexander McQueen number
we had our eyes on, and it was unlikely
that that Luella dress would be hanging
in our wardrobes any time soon. Oh
woe is us with our end-of-term, financially suffering wallets. But lo, there is
hope for us all, we have searched out
some bargain wonderlands, and this
week have news of the revolution; aka
the jumble sale/market.
First on the list comes from a notice Margaret saw on the back of a toilet door
whilst scouting out the enemy (Northumbria Uni) - the design students are
holding a second hand sale of stuff as a
fundraiser on both Monday and Tuesday in the entrance hall of their design
building. They’re the arty students so
it’s likely to be a good selection of stuff
and cheap as bloody chips!
Next, a small plug for a gem of a market
we discovered in first year, not entirely
fashion, but great for costume jewellery,
old comics and vintage maps; the Tynemouth Market, officially for antiques
and bric-a-brac is on between 9am
and 4ish every Saturday and Sunday
(although Sunday sees more general
market stuff). Just jump on the metro,
get off at Tynemouth, et voila! Le market c’est right there infront of you, tres
bien, non?!
The final hot spot we must alert you to
(bear in mind Grainger Market is great,
although we have run out of space to
give this a proper mention) is the legendary Star and Shadow Market. This
intimate event plays host to local art,
jewellery and fashion designers, as well
as selling music, books and vintage all
to a backdrop of acoustic sets from local musicians! Yes, you may have just
missed its 1st birthday last Sunday but
join the myspace group (myspace.com/
ourmarket) for information on the next
one.
One more fashiony thing you NEED to
know about this week is the Newcastle
University Fashion Show in aid of ‘Abbeys Fund’ at Lineker’s. For VIP entry
at £15 get there at 7pm, otherwise doors
are at 8pm and it’s £6 to get in. Come
and support a great cause!
WHATS SO HOT:
-The M&S Kitchen on Northumberland
Street, go after 2pm and get a really good
coffee and slice of home-made(ish) cake
for only £2!!
-Men At Arms 8pm in the Union Basement this Tues and Wed
WHATS SO NOT:
-The onslaught of mothers’ day. Does
she really want a small Cath Kidson
rose flavoured lip balm Mr Fenwicks?
No. I pity your mother sir.
- All the shops’ insistence on selling
the nice new summer clothes…even
though it’s snowing again.
FEATURES
[email protected]
HOW TO...combat insomnia
Danya Bazaraa and Caroline Bass, ‘part-time insomniacs’ bring you their best dos
and don’ts for avoiding those sleepless nights.
Counting sheep just isn’t working
out, and you’re starting to feel seasick
from all that tossing and turning.
A 9 o’clock lecture tomorrow, it’s
already 5am and you’ve not even
had a wink of sleep – arghh!!!!
If this scenario is sounding all too
familiar, then luckily for you, as parttime insomniacs ourselves, we’ve
gathered together some ideas...
About one in five of us suffer, at
some point, from the torment of
sleepless nights, but what actually is
insomnia?
Insomnia is not being able to drift
off, waking up for long periods in the
middle of the night when everyone
else is deep in dreams, rising at an
unsociably early hour or simply not
feeling as fresh as you should after a
night’s sleep.
As if torturing you throughout
the night isn’t enough, the effects of
insomnia can also come and haunt
you during the day causing the
expected such as daytime fatigue
and moodiness, right through to
the more physical symptoms of an
upset stomach and headaches.
54% of adults say they suffer
or have suffered from bouts of
insomnia at some point during their
life, but what causes this surprisingly
common problem?
Perhaps now is a good point at
which to reassure you that it’s
perfectly normal, and the causes
of it can simply be stress, anxiety,
change of routine, too much caffeine,
alcohol or nicotine before bed- or
even just being too hot or cold under
the covers.
Obviously, if the problem persists
and you find that you’re suffering
with it for weeks, or even months at
a time, it may be worthwhile to go
and see your doctor.
If, however, it comes and goes, as
it does in most cases, here are some
handy hints on how to banish those
dreaded sleepless nights!
The worst thing you can possibly
do when you find yourself not
sleeping is to worry about the fact
that you’re not sleeping.
Easier said than done of course,
but once you get yourself into that
vicious cycle, you’ll just end up
spinning completely out of control!
Following from that, clock watching
is equally a no-no! Watching every
dire minute tick on by, thinking
“there goes another minute...hour...
night...and I’m still wide awake”
will only aggravate you to the max,
so tuck away those bedside clocksout of sight and out of mind!
However tempting it may seem at
the time, a midday nap should be
avoided at all costs! This will only
disrupt your sleeping patterns and
lead to what is beginning to feel like
another eight hours of uninterrupted
solitary confinement...and so the
cycle continues.
Another bad idea is to use your
bedroom for non-sleep related
activities such as work, TV or eating.
Keep your rooms stress free and
associate them only with all things
calm.
Although you might think that
Londis and Tesco Express stay
open late for a reason, indulging
in that greasy microwavable pizza
or creamy raspberry cheesecake
just before ‘hitting the sack’ will do
you no favours- trust us, tried and
tested...
So, there you have it- a hefty list
of ‘don’ts’, how about some ‘dos’?!
You may have heard this before, but
it’s actually true- regular exercise
can do wonders!
Best to work out in the morning or
early afternoon though, so that your
body has time to relax before it’s
time to shut those eyes.
Maybe not such a hit with the guys
but yoga and pilates are proven to
help you unwind- both physically
and mentally. You may not feel so
cool and chic when you’re trying
to negotiate that tricky ‘down-dog’
position, but rest assured, all the
celebs are doing it too!
So come on, get those leotards
and sexy leg warmers out from
hibernation!!
Establishing a routine where you
go to bed and wake up at the same
time every day is also proven to
help- but we appreciate that this
may not prove to be so plausible on
a Wednesday morning after a heavy
night at Cosmic...!
Perhaps a more realistic option is
to deal with the day’s unfinished
business by jotting down any
thoughts/worries/to do lists etc.
This way you can clear your mind
and avoid lying there while those
thoughts run over and over again...
Hopefully you’ll now be able to
keep that dreadful head-nodding
and shameful dribbling in lectures
to a minimum!
You may even find after reading
this that your phone bill isn’t quite
so ghastly and can no longer be
explained by your attempts at
calling everyone in your phonebook
in the hope of finding some other
poor insomniac...
Curl up and Die.
From Barack Obama and Sarah Palin to our very own Uncle Knobhead, we all
have them: embarrassing relatives. Charlotte Buchanan explores how to cope
with them.
I will never forget one tiresome
school day when everyone was
just staring at the clock wishing
the bell would go when, all of a
sudden, a teddy bear appeared in
the classroom window.
The whole class burst out laughing,
amused by the random change to
the usual monotony of everyday
school.
However, I was not laughing like
the rest of my friends; instead, I
was turning a light shade of red, as
I instantly recognised the bear and
unfortunately it happened to be one
of mine.
I sat there desperately trying
to hide this fact (and my everreddening checks). Until, all of a
sudden I was busted, as my dad’s
grinning face popped up alongside
the teddy bear.
The whole class was in stitches. I
just sat there with a face as red as a
beetroot and now desperate for the
bell to go.
When the bell finally went I dashed
to the door and vaguely heard the
teacher say, “Don’t worry Charlotte,
we all have them.”
Apparently, (well, according to
my teacher) I am not alone. In fact,
I join a group with many renowned
names; where some of the most
recent members include President
Barack Obama and Sarah Palin.
No, I am not alluding to the fact
that we all have teddy bears (which
I am sure we do all probably have)
but embarrassing relatives.
President Barack Obama’s half
brother - George Obama - was
recently arrested for alleged drug
possession.
Although, Barack and George live
on different continents and have
only met each other twice (once
when he was five and then again
briefly in 2006) this incident is
still an embarrassment to the new
President.
Ok, so maybe Barack Obama’s half
brother didn’t wave a teddy bear in
the window at the oval office but he
still embarrassed Barack Obama’s
‘clean’ and ‘wholesome’ reputation.
So this shows that distant relatives
can be an embarrassment to
members of their families; but my
dad is hardly a distant, long-lost
relative.
In reality he is very much part of my
immediate family, so does everyone
have
embarrassing
immediate
family members? Is it common for
everyone to be embarrassed by a
member of their immediate family
at one point or another?
Sticking with the theme of the 2008
American presidential elections,
Sarah Palin (the Republican vicepresident candidate) presented
an image to the media of a hardworking, loving and religious
mother.
However, shortly after her selection
to become the vice-presidential
candidate, her daughter –Bristol
Palin – announced she was pregnant,
automatically embarrassing her
mother and her campaign which
prided her on upholding traditional
Christian values.
However, Sarah Palin quickly
embraced the idea and hastily
focused on praising her for
not having an abortion.
Furthermore, Sarah Palin
was able to show
that Bristol had her
“unconditional
love and support”
helping
to
reiterate
the
idea of her
wholesome,
loving image.
Overall,
using
the
i n i t i a l l y
embarrassing
story (of an
immediate
family member
I must add) to
her advantage and
perhaps even enabling
her to gain a few more
votes?
So perhaps, we
do “all have
them” but it
is how we
deal with the
embarrassing
relatives that
matters.
We can turn
into a beetroot
and
run
quickly from the room (which has
always been my favourite option) or
try and see it from a more optimistic
view, as well demonstrated by Sarah
Palin.
Whichever, we choose though
we must remember
we are not alone
as “We do
all
have
them.”
C
M
Y
K
17
17
[email protected]
FEATURES
9th March 2009
Super-skinny or super-size?
Uni Verse
I
was reminded recently of a book I
read in my early teens called Feed. It
was pretty standard young-adult fiction
futuristic crap: Post-apocalyptic America and the vast majority of civilians are
unaware of the state of things, because
everyone receives information solely
through chips implanted in their brains
at birth. Yawn.
One scene has, however, remained
lodged in the grey matter: A passage
where two of the characters are left paralyzed because the nostalgia function in
their chips breaks and they become nostalgic for the moment they’re currently
in.
I hope to God that that section isn’t
quite as prophetic as I think it is, but
nowhere can you better experience the
kaleidoscopic nature of society at the
moment than at university. The whole
place serves as a complete microcosm
for how obsessed we currently are with
re-hashing concepts barely deceased and
still warm, whacking just enough new
paint on them so that when we inevitably try to pass them off as new, we can
appreciate the subtle bitter-sweet hues
just below the surface, and self-indulge
in the thought that everything was better in the really not-too-distant past.
For example; I recently caught two of
my friends fawning over the memory
of semester one. It was only about 3
Mirror, Jessica Simpson, once months ago! This is not some far-off utothe epitome of skinny, is heavily pia of youth they were chatting about,
criticised for revealing a curvier this is, um, last November. When I enbody stating that “her now more quired as to how they could possibly
relaxed approach to fitness and a be getting misty-eyed about one of the
good dose of her family’s Texan shitter winter months, they replied that
cuisine over the Christmas holidays “life just seemed so much simpler then”.
No people, this is incorrect. Life was
have caught up with her.”
However, earlier on the very same simpler when someone changed our
page it is stated she used to endure nappies when we crapped ourselves,
two hour workouts six days a week when all we had to do for food was cry,
with her personal trainer to maintain or when the idea of homework meant
nothing more than colouring in a picture
her previously skinny frame.
Which other normal human being of a sheep. Grand complications in life
has the time or money to do that do not arise from having to do slightly
and why now that she looks like more dissertation work. Fact.
This anecdote serves merely to illusthe average young woman are we
trate the tip of the iceberg, however.
scathingly attacking her?
University
is a virulent breeding ground
Surely she is a positive role model
proving that success does not always for almost every known variety of nostalgia.
My
entire first year it seemed,
have to be inextricably linked with
was spent talking about TV shows I
eating rice crackers and celery.
I think we all need to question watched as a kid, and there are about
whether it’s truly our dress size 40 facebook appreciation groups apiece
that makes us happy, or whether for virtually every consumable prodwe should accept ourselves as uct that was available between 1988-95.
individuals, all very different, but This isn’t, and shouldn’t be, surprising
though, for University is for the vast maall equally beautiful.
jority of us, the last great structured period of our lives. The future is scary and
uncertain, but the past is warm, fuzzy
and contains our care-free childhood, no
prizes for guessing which we’d rather
dwell upon.
Nonetheless, this is no kind of licence
to take the whole thing to extremes.
Championships at which Poker Constantly obsessing over your summer
Societies from around the country travelling or life in halls, or anything remeet to compete against each other. ally, is deeply unhealthy because it stops
you getting on with new things and, more
means those new things
“It is, of course, the importantly,
will almost never live up to the old. The
Texas Hold’em version pace of society may have accelerated a
fold in the last 80 years, but it’s
of the card game being hundred
still no excuse to ‘really miss’ that tramp
played, which has sky- you drunkenly befriended on the metro
last night.
Has body image gone crazy? And who is to blame? Lucy Marsden reports.
Are magazines like Heat and OK
creating illusions of what it is to be
a role model?
Smack bang on the front of a
recent copy of ‘Heat’, a weekly
gossip magazine bought by many
aspirational young and vulnerable
girls, is the headline “Has skinny
gone too far?” accompanied by a
harrowingly thin picture of Mischa
Barton.
The answer is “Yes”, it has, but
I call it hypocrisy that an industry
that originally initiated such high
levels of insecurity regarding self
image and weight consciousness
amongst young females should
now so quickly recant its previous
criticism of the female form and
delude itself into believing it is not
culpable for its actions.
This very same magazine that
attacks the remake of the 90s
classic 90210 on E4, in which
several dangerously thin girls
are glamorised as role models we
should all aim to emulate, then
inserts an advert endorsing the new
Milky Way snack bar for only 70
calories, listing the calorific content
of several other slimmer versions of
chocolate.
Which are we to believe? Should
we watch our weight and calorie
intake or remain outraged at how
we can see Cheryl Cole’s ribs in her
dress, because in my opinion these
conflicting messages serve only to
exacerbate the new skinny epidemic
that has emerged in celebrity circles
and has inevitably infiltrated into
the ways ordinary girl’s view
themselves.
In an age in which we are told
youth and beauty is everything,
celebrities have become our role
models.
We are brainwashed into believing
Sarah Jessicca Parker is perfect and
anybody above a size zero is deemed
overweight. As a result, how are we
ever meant to feel fulfilled?
Are we also guilty for reading
and absorbing these magazines,
internalising
these
high
standards and judging each other
accordingly?
Having suffered from an eating
disorder myself I know how easy
it is to fall into the trap of feeling
eternally dissatisfied.
I strongly believe magazines such
as ‘OK’ and ‘New’ should take
responsibility for the role they have
played in prioritising unattainable
perfection over health.
We
are
inundated
with
programmes such as Super Sized Vs
Super Skinny and told that neither
is healthy, but it’s hard to gain the
correct balance, because after all,
we no longer know what normal is
anymore.
Gone are the days when
voluptuous curves and shapely
hips were feminine, instead the
succession of bones we see poking
through Fearne Cotton’s dress is
regarded as sexy.
The idea of skinny being attractive
is simply impossible to ignore and
this will never change unless the
media and magazines which criticise
the flaws of celebrities as a means of
entertainment revolutionise their
priorities.
In a recent article in The Daily
Society Profile: Poker
Know the difference between a ‘big’
blind and a ‘small’ blind? Can you
read a flop or decide when to call
and when to bluff?
Such skills are essential if you
want to succeed at the Poker
Society. They meet
on
Monday
nights
from
7-10 in the MLK on the top floor of
the union for three hours of frenetic,
top-draw poker.
The number of players averages
at about 50 a week, divided into
tables of around 7-8. From each
table, players are awarded points
according to their finishing position
which then goes into a weekly
league ranking.
At the end of the semester the top
six players are awarded lucrative
prizes ranging from an X-Box
360 to an iPod Nano to
HMV vouchers.
S o c i e t y
President,
T h a i
Truong, has been able to offer these
prizes through sponsorship from a
poker website and a grant from the
Union.
He says the member base has grown
substantially this year, in particular
the number of female players. There
were six girls playing on Monday,
one of whom won her table and
another who finished second, so this
is certainly not a male-only domain.
It is, of course, the Texas Hold’em
version of the card game being
played, which has sky-rocketed in
popularity in recent years.
The rules are fairly easy to pick
up but be warned: the game is also
scarily addictive! Thai says that the
Poker Society is about having fun,
meeting new people and maybe
winning some prizes if you’ve
got the talent!
He
has
also
planned a trip to
Birmingham in
April to the UK
Student
Poker
Dave
Wingrave
Steve Robson
rocketed in popularity
in recent years. The
rules are fairly easy to
pick up but be warned:
the game is also scarily
addictive!”
If you’re a beginner or a pro,
this well-run society is a great
opportunity to get involved and
hone your poker skills.
C
M
Y
K
FEATURES
19
[email protected]
9th March 2009
Virgin on the ridiculous
What sort of world do we live in when you can bid for a girl’s virginity online? Katie
Jennings has a browse through the most recent list of eBay’s hottest items.
Within the last few years, the
popularity of internet trading on
websites such as eBay has soared;
people will buy and sell anything
online, including cars, woolly
mammoths and most recently…
virginities.
In Nevada, USA, twenty two
year old student Natalie Dylan has
offered the world her cherry, in
exchange for a negotiable fee.
She first unveiled her offer on
Howard Stern’s US radio show last
September, not expecting to attract
worldwide attention; however, as
the bids have soared, so has the
interest.
At present, a divorced Australian
businessman, father of two, has the
highest bid of £2.6 million, with
over ten thousand offers having
been placed!
After her stepfather successfully
applied for student loans in her
name and then proceeded to spent
all of the money, Natalie devised
her cash creating scheme in order
to fund herself through university.
Inspired by her sister, Avia, who
worked as a prostitute in order to
fund her own education, Natalie
plans to carry out the deed at the
Moonlite Bunny Ranch in Nevada,
owned by Dennis Hof, who is
facilitating the auction.
However, Natalie refuses to do
the deed with just anyone, but
hopes to find someone who “seems
intelligent?!” Nor will the lucky man
necessarily be the highest bidder;
rumour has it that she has already
been in contact with several men,
trying to find the special someone
that she “feels comfortable with.”
With her possible £2.6 million,
surely she will be more than
comfortable…?
Due to such huge interest, Natalie
has even hinted that she could pull
out of sleeping with anybody at all,
if she can make enough cash from
her many possible deals before
actually putting a pen to paper;
apparently she could make in the
region of £1 million, without so
much as taking her socks off.
Despite having had sexual
encounters in the past, this porno
princess has allegedly always
abstained from intercourse, and
has even passed two unbiased liedetector tests to prove it.
Nevertheless, there are still those
who question the validity of her
story, as well as her self worth.
Still, is it unsurprising that Natalie
has received such backlash for her
plan?
The virgin herself describes
the whole affair as a “business
transaction,” saying “it will be a
strange feeling having my first time
with somebody I don’t love.” The
irony here is that she has a degree
in Women’s Studies – surely the
fundamental basis for such a subject
is the affirmation that women-arenot-objects?!
Is this what our society has been
reduced to? “Selling your soul” as
Natalie’s mother puts it, for cold
hard cash? The extent to which
people will go for money is reaching
crisis point, yet it is a sad fact that
sex sells and money talks.
Across the pond, there has been
a similar case here in the UK,
when eighteen year old Bristol
student Rosie Reed caused a stir
by sleeping with a forty-four year
old BT engineer, after receiving an
£8,400 bid from him on eBay.
The sad fact is that Rosie was so
hard up that she was willing to
sleep with a man, despite it being
abhorrent to her, as she was a
lesbian.
How have we let obtaining an
education become so difficult that
this student was prepared to make
a sacrifice this huge, chillingly later
describing the act as “horrible…I
felt nervous and scared.”
Reed went on to describe how
relieved she was once it was over,
and how the next morning, upon
being reunited with her partner,
she “just cried and cried.”
Yes, there may be a whole host of
bizarre products on sale out there,
such as the woman who sold her
fifty thousand year old woolly
mammoth for £61,000, or the man
on eBay who is currently flogging
his forehead as advertising space.
Yet, with cases such as Natalie
Dylan’s, ethical values are being
pushed to such extremes, that the
morality of our society is becoming
truly questionable.
Natalie, however, claims that
her situation is perfectly moral,
as it is purely her own decision,
and her own body. She has also
nominated Barack Obama as her
ideal candidate to win her auction
– surprisingly, the president is yet
to bid…
The trouble
with reality
TV is that
it’s based
on reality...
by James Stubbs
The trouble with reality TV is that
it bases all of its entertainment on
just that: reality. Reality is rubbish.
Fiction is always the winner in my
mind, as it allows someone who has
thought a lot about something to
put it into words and images for the
benefit of an audience, rather than
putting some cameras in a garish
looking house full of garish people.
Admittedly Big Brother was quite
a novel idea and I did watch it from
time to time, but it’s still going on.
I find it amazing that there is a
percentage of the population that
will still tune into it every night and
chuckle at its stars various antics.
The British public should be
encouraged
to
expand
their
minds, not shrink away from
them by watching a group of self
obsessed and annoying morons
argue about a shopping list.
These people are not interesting,
you owe it to yourself and whoever
else is in the room to turn it off or
change to that documentary on
UK TV History about Rommel.
I think our North American
friends started it all with MTV’s
The Real World, and it has spawned
a whole series of different and
less and less interesting clones.
Big Brother, I’m a Celebrity Get
Me Out Of Here, something about
some students on an island, and
lately one of the most mindless ones
that follows some rich kids around.
Apparently it’s scripted but the
point is that it has been made to
look like reality TV. Watching
The Hills the other day I noted
down in my mind what happened.
Two good-looking people are on
a date of some kind in a restaurant.
They are staring vacantly across
the table at each other but not
in a way that suggests romance,
rather apathy and boredom.
They are talking about either
their relationship or someone
else’s. X kissed Y the other night
and Z is unhappy about it all. Is
Z going to get angry and shout?
No, vacancy continues and he
starts to look at his glass of water.
Will something happen? Yes! The
waiter is coming over! Z will have the
chicken, X the beef. The food comes
after a short spell of more nothing.
How is the chicken? It tastes so good.
How is the beef? It is also good.
After agreeing that the food is
good they then talk more about
something really dull. This goes
on for an entire episode, they just
change the restaurant to someone’s
kitchen and the whole static
dance starts all over again. These
people are getting paid for this.
My suggestion is that we should
move to a Battle Royale/Escape From
New York set up where celebrated
people such as these are sent to a
remote island and given weapons
with which to destroy each other.
Imagine the delicious irony of
Peaches Geldof swinging from
a peach tree. Perhaps that’s a
little too dark, but I maintain
that the idea is a sound one.
The danger of the situation might
actually evoke some real emotional
responses in the celebrities rather
than just bore the hell out of the
people on the other side of the TV.
The world was a better place
when thick nobodies were not
given the opportunity to get their
rat out on prime time television.
This reality craze has gone far
enough. My theory is that hopefully
after 2010 comes around people will
realise that ten years has been too
long and they don’t want to watch
anymore. It’s not clever, it’s not
funny and it is certainly not good.
Splurgings
I
Tom Ford
n a 2003 interview with The Guardian, the controversial and fiercely potent
satirist Chris Morris was asked about the
possibilities of dealing with the topic of
terrorism.
After thoroughly and skillfully exploring such areas as paedophilia and drugs,
this was the next obvious but forbidden
subject of his masterful and unique brand
of satire. “I’m not sure you can play with
that,” he said of terrorism. “I’m just not
sure what you could do with it all.” In
keeping with the nature of this unpredictable comedian, writer and producer
Morris has gone against his own words
and written a new film dealing with the
‘farce of terrorism’ which will be filmed
this summer. I can’t ruddy wait.
The film has been in the pipeline for a
while because of its contentious subject
matter. Morris is no stranger to controversy, with his hour long programme
on paedophilia in 2001 being publicly
denounced by politicians, and the crap
celebrities he embarrassingly duped. His
latest script, however, is surely the last
and greatest taboo with which to make
satire and comedy. “There is this Dad’s
Army side of terrorism and that’s what
this film is exploring,” Morris has said.
Already I am salivating over the prospect.
He is reacting emphatically to the
universal attitude of fear and hysteria.
Everyone has their own opinion on the
unknown implications of Muslim extremism, with varying degrees of ignorance and feverishness. True, terrorism is scary, but it can also be funny. It
shouldn’t be taken so seriously. “Even
those who have trained and fought jihad
report the frequency of farce”,“Terrorism
is about ideology, but it’s also about
berks,” says Deidre Steed who worked
on the film. Brilliant.
Indeed, as Morris did in his 2001 work
on the hysteria of paedophilia and paedophiles, he is now inviting us to question our perceptions of terrorism. And
why not? We can all see the irony and
incredulousness of terrorists protesting
about cartoons, whilst simultaneously
hastily building bombs. Indeed, the film
will use some real absurdities around
Islamist terrorism. It cites one of the
ringleaders of the September 11 attacks,
Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, who spent 2
hours trying to select clothes that would
avoid making him looking fat before
conducting a revelatory interview about
9/11. At terror training camps, young jihadists argue about honey, accidentally
shoot off one another’s feet or get thrown
out for smoking. Back in Britain, they
spend evenings having rows over whose
turn it is to do the washing-up. “Most of
us would dearly love to laugh in the face
of our worst fears. Why aren’t we laughing at terrorists? Because we don’t know
how to, until now” says Morris.
Although equally as contemporary and
as unworn a path as the subjects of paedophilia and drugs, I feel this latest venture could be Morris’ most controversial,
and best. He could, I suspect, be in deeper water than the backlash he faced from
minor celebrities after his satire in 2001.
If he gets blown up, he’ll definitely go
with a smile
on his face.
FEATURES
9th March 2009
20
[email protected]
s
i
r
Pa
Paris, je t’aime. Sara Frost vainly struggles with her GSCE
French, battles train strikes, flees transport police. C’est la vie.
CUT OUT AND KEEP
TOP TEN PLACES
TO VISIT IN PARIS
1. The Louvre
To learn the Louvre in and out,
you might need a lifetime. Start
with the Mona Lisa and the Venus
de Milo, stopping to check out
Vermeer, Caravaggio, Rembrandt,
and countless other masters on the
way.
2. Notre Dame Cathedral
A marvel of gothic architecture
and home to Quasimodo. Climb
the north tower to see Paris from
his eyes!
There’s definitely a bonus for being
friends with language students at Uni –
you get to visit them on their year abroad
(which slightly makes up for them
deserting you for a whole year).
My best friend is in Paris, and before
she could even say “Bonjour” I’d booked
my flights. Having never been to Paris
before, I was eager to don my beret and
get exploring.
A worthwhile visit is Le Louvre (a glass
pyramid) which is spectacular when lit
up at night, and home to the Mona Lisa.
It is also so big it would apparently take
an estimated 4 months to walk round
everything inside it.
Paris is full of (ridiculously) expensive
shops, the mother of these being Galeries
Lafayette (France’s version of Harrods).
This tries to rival the Fenwick’s window
display, but I must say its exhibition of
flying and singing rabbits was verging
on scary.
While walking round the shops, you
will walk through swarms of people
(mainly homeless) trying to sell you
weird trinkets and souvenirs.
I saw several homeless people roasting
chestnuts over a bin (set on fire and placed
in a shopping trolley) and selling the
chestnuts wrapped in dirty newspaper. I
can’t say I was hugely tempted to sample
them.
For those not used to the likes of the
London Underground, getting around
Paris can be a bit daunting. No one buys
tickets for the trains (although you’re
certainly supposed to). Instead they
literally all just climb over the barriers,
one after the other, and guards do very
little about it – or so we thought.
After cheating the barriers ourselves,
we smugly set off to find our train – only
to spend the next 10 minutes on a high
speed chase running through the station
from a guard who had seen us. Eventually
we managed to shake him off and made
our way to the Eiffel Tower.
Images don’t do the landmark justice
– standing at its base with it towering
over you makes you feel as small as an
ant. The lights sparkling from it at night
provide a magical sight, whilst taking the
lift to the top will provide amazing views
of the whole of Paris.
All the sight-seeing and running from
traffic police will no doubt make you
“Before she could
even say “Bonjour”
I’d booked my
flights. Having
never been to Paris
before, I was eager
to don my beret”
tired, so you need to find a good place to
sit down and eat a good meal. However,
when it comes to dining in Paris, you’re
spoilt for choice and won’t have to look
far to find something tasty.
When it was finally time for me to leave,
I was a little apprehensive. My friend
couldn’t take me to the airport as she was
teaching, so I’d have to find my own way
there. It sounded easy enough – travel for
two hours on the train and change once.
However, what I had not anticipated
was my train not turning up. After many
conversations with the public and police
(thank the lord for my “A” in GCSE
French) I managed to decipher that there
was a strike on the trains.
Getting to the airport was an adventure
– travelling alone on various trains and
getting stuck in some god forsaken
suburb of Paris.
When I eventually got to the airport,
I purchased some French cheese –
something which I immediately regretted
as it had a very interesting odour. I was
hoping the saying “the smellier the
cheese, the better” was true, because it
smelled like a dead sheep. Things were
not going so well.
As I’ve been writing this article, I’ve
already lost my passport and boarding
pass in a bin with my McDonald’s Happy
Meal, had my flight delayed and gates
changed, and lost this article at airport
security. Oh well – c’est la vie.
3. Musée d’Orsay
Over the bridge from the
Louvre, this museum houses
the world’s most important
collection of impressionist and
post-impressionist paintings
from Degas’ ethereal dancers
to Monet’s water lilies, all the
way to Gaugin’s leafy jungles.
4. The Sorbonne and the Latin
Quarter
The Sorbonne University
is the historic soul of the
Latin Quarter, where higher
learning has flourished for
centuries. It has hosted
countless great thinkers,
including philosophers JeanPaul Sartre and Simone de
Beauvoir. Don’t forget to
explore the winding little
streets of the Latin Quarter
behind it.
5. Eiffel Tower
The iron tower, built in
1889 by Gustave Eiffel,
was wildly unpopular
with Parisians when it
was unveiled, and was
nearly torn down. It
has since attracted
over 220 million
visitors.
Cliché?
Maybe. Essential?
Yes.
6. Arc de Triomphe and the
Champs-Elysées
Commissioned
by
Emperor
Napoléon I, the Arc evokes sheer
military power and triumph. Built
in an age when leaders erected
monuments in their own honour,
and scaled to their egos, you can’t
help but feel grand yourself.
7. Centre Georges Pompidou and
the “Beaubourg” Neighborhood
Parisians consider the Centre
Georges Pompidou to be the
cultural pulse of the city.
Recognisable by its skeletal
design, which evokes bones and
blood vessels, it is either loved
or reviled.
8.
Sacre
Coeur
and
Montmartre
With its unmistakeable white
dome, the Sacre Coeur sits
at the highest point of Paris.
Explore the winding, villagelike streets of Montmartre and
while expensive, it’s worth
considering a traditional
Parisian cabaret at the
legendary Moulin Rouge.
9. Père Lachaise Cemetery
Countless famous figures are
buried here: the most popular
being The Doors lead singer
Jim Morrison, whose tomb
is kept constant vigil by
fans. The French playwright
Molière, Oscar Wilde, Edith
Piaf, and Richard Wright
are a few others.
10. Boat Tour of the Seine
River
Seeing some of Paris’
most beautiful sites
glide past as you drift
down the Seine river is
an unforgettable and
essential experience.
There are lots of boat
trips on offer, so
make sure you
shop around to
get the best deal.
C
M
Y
K
CULTURE
9th March 2009
21
[email protected]
Ents Alex Bowell
Previews Arcane pg. 32
Art Olivia Mee
on Ctrl.Alt.Shift pg. 31
Music John Daly
on Joris Voorn pg. 28
Film Adam Williams
on 3D cinema pg. 34
The icing on the cake
Following a recent annoucement that primary schools are too concerned with literacy
and numeracy, Alice Vincent discusses the importance of art in education
This February Cambridge University
announced that the primary school
curriculum was too concerned with
literacy and numeracy. Britain’s kids
are the most tested in the world.
Their lives are suffering from an
‘overt politicisation’. Three facts all
suggesting that the arts are being
increasingly excluded from the
classroom.
It’s a highly plausible claim. In fact,
it’s a well known fact that we are at
massive risk of raising a generation
of hoop-jumping monkeys free from
all independent thought, let alone
awareness of major artists. Even
within our own student generation
we have sat thousands of tests, and
probably know more about how to
pass formulaic exams than Dadaism
or Brecht.
But then, just how important is an
awareness and education in the arts
as children, or indeed throughout
“...art can be
introduced into
pretty much
every primary
school subject.”
our schooling career?
In Alan Bennett’s The History Boys,
the reference to art as ‘just the icing
on the cake’, to which the art teacher
replies, ‘is it ever anything else?’,
always sticks in my head. Because, in
an educative context it is easy to treat
the arts as superfluous, especially
with SATs, GCSEs, A-Levels and all
the other gubbins that was thrown
at me in my cramming Grammar
school.
In secondary school, art lessons
were a mission of frustration. I think
this frustration was only actually felt
by my teacher and myself; me being
a massive art geek (well, geek in
general), and she probably reviewing
her career path and wondering
how on earth she got into middleclass crowd control from being an
impoverished painter in Paris (she
did actually do that). Everybody else
in our 30-strong class deemed our biweekly lessons as an opportunity to
muck about with paint.
It wasn’t just art. Despite paying
money to have private music lessons,
me and everyone else in the class
used our music lessons to play the
‘DJ’ button (of Klaxons’ ‘Atlantis to
Interzone’ fame – they were noughties
teenagers too) repeatedly on Yamaha
keyboards. Drama was just that,
drama, rather than anything creative.
Indeed, arts lessons were just like
sport lessons for disinterested, except
with non-tyrannical teachers to make
the fat kid equivalent run.
Maybe it was just our sciencestatus,
poorly-equipped,
artsignorant school. But the treatment of
the arts in most state schools seems
to be to push it aside to concentrate
on passing ‘the exams that count’,
and allow teachers to suffer from the
attitudes inherently created in pupils
by the education system. Those that
manage to survive the joke of KS3
and 4 arts lessons and decide to
study them at a further education
level still aren’t seen on an equal
par as with those studying more
academic subjects.
Maybe it’s just my own
sensitivity as an English Lit
student, having suffered one too
many snubs for doing a ‘dossy’
subject, but it seems the arts are
treated with a slightly patronizing
‘ooh, that sounds interesting’ in
the academic world. After all,
Oxbridge doesn’t offer practical art,
drama or music courses.
So does this mean that arts are
being treated appropriately in
education? After all, there are plenty
of flourishing arts, drama and
music courses, schools and further
education institutions. But why
should we have to hunt out specialist
education for something that should
be integral in upbringing?
Because by excluding the arts from
primary education we are quashing
a natural instinct to create that all
of us are born with. Even if you’re
not remotely creative or artistic in
later life, chances are high that you
would’ve splodged something on
paper at playgroup, known exactly
what it was meant to be, and been
thoroughly chuffed with it.
That innate confidence in one’s
own creativity is something hugely
precious. By the time we reach
primary school, social conformity
and a growth of our own selfcritique means that this confidence
is somewhat reduced. Regardless,
children’s passion for the arts is still
at a hugely adaptable stage.
Having the advantage of
being the daughter of
a highly enthusiastic
arts coordinator of
a primary school,
I’ve been made
aware of the
ways in
E. LAWS
which art can be introduced into
pretty much every primary school
subject.
Studying India in Geography?
Then why not create Indian-inspired
art. Why study 3D shapes in the flat
in Maths, when you can make and
decorate them yourself? Plus kids
have far greater opportunity to make
the arts fun. I just received a picture
message of my Mum’s home-made
Cat in The Hat hat for the obligatory
fancy dress World Book Day.
Even if these frivolities didn’t exist,
you can’t deny the fact that the arts
are way more fun under the age of
eleven. From the politics of who
plays Mary in the Christmas nativity,
to those loathed country dancing
lessons, I feel they were enjoyed
far more, and maybe because they
weren’t deemed so inferior in
comparison to the 3Rs.
So perhaps the next generation
of ‘unfit philistines’ stem not from
SATs-obsessed primary schools, but
from our arts-belittling secondary
schools. If only we could channel the
blissful, self-conscious confidence
of our infant creativity, and remove
the negative associations we insist on
holding against the arts.
Surely the fact my entire argument
rests upon a quotation from a play
demonstrates the presence of the
arts far better than anything
else. Because although
art may only be the
icing on the cake,
what’s a cake
without
icing?
CULTURE
[email protected]
22
9th March 2009
For someone whose entire school art project once consisted of a shoebox sellotaped to a couple of toilet rolls, which was subsequently painted red and pretentiously
labelled “Dawn” (in my defence it was due in the next day and I panicked), I have always been incredibly jealous of anyone who is genuinely creative and
talented.
I used to regard Neil Buchanan on Art Attack with a sense of awe: he was my art guru and the PVA glue that he seemed to use even when sketching a banana was
like the elixir of life. I loved that programme, despite the weird talking head that popped up occasionally and thoroughly distressed me. Sadly, my first and last
attempts to follow the great Neil’s mantra of “do it yourself” ended with the mother of all tantrums and a subsequent lifetime of arty disillusionment.
My time management and use of recyclable household rubbish has not improved but, thankfully, my appreciation of other people’s creative outpourings has.
This week, the Arts section previews two events that promise to celebrate talented students and their designs. Who needs mega-rich, and some would argue megajaded, artists such as Tracey Emin, the woman who re-labelled the staple component of every student bedroom, an ambiguously stained duvet, as modern art or Mr
Formaldehyde himself, Damien Hirst? After all, we have a whole wealth of home-grown local talent here in Newcastle and, best of all, we don’t have to hotfoot it
down to the White Cube gallery to experience their work.
Katie xxx ([email protected])
Bright Young Things
Alicia Clovis investigates an auction that promises to showcase work
by the hot new artists of the future. Bargain Hunt it ain’t...
Rising StART, an enterprise
company run by Newcastle
University students Ben Cox,
James Gilham, Rosita Fong,
Emily Zhang and Greg Entwistle
will be promoting the region’s
most talented rising artists in
a prestigious showcasing and
auction event. I had a cheeky
interview with Greg to get the
inside scoop on this exciting arty
venture.
AC: Hi Greg, can you explain a
bit about Rising StART; where
did the inspiration to sell art
come from?
GE: Well, business enterprise is a
new 20 credit module offered by
the university to students of any
discipline (I’m actually doing a
Geography degree), and basically
as a team you go through the
entire process of setting up a
business. We came up with a
few business ideas initially, like
merchandising T-shirts and
stuff, but there isn’t much profit
and we decided that by hosting
an event to sell art we could be
promoting other students too.
AC: So can students approach
you now to sell and promote
their own art or is it too late?
GE: Definitely, we have about
25 pieces at the moment but
there should be about 40 by
the big night. We’d be pleased
to hear from anyone else at all
who’d like to be involved. We’ll
be showcasing around 20 artists
from both Northumbria and
Newcastle University. It’s really
Joseph Steele, Untitled
Men At Arms
Terry Pratchett is undeniably one
of the UK’s most iconic authors:
he has sold millions of books,
has legions of fans, and seems to
publish a novel every four years
or so.
Sadly, Pratchett has now been
diagnosed with Alzheimers and
this debilitating disease means
that there will eventually come
a time when his condition will
no longer allow him to write.
The literary cognoscenti will
undoubtedly agree that it will
be a tragic day when that finally
happens.
Pratchett’s writing career began
when, at thirteen, he sold his first
story and subsequently earned
enough money to buy a second –
hand typewriter. He later went on
to create one of the most popular
series of books ever written;
the phenomenally successful
Discworld series. The adventures
of the eccentric and wittilydescribed characters in Discworld
have a cult following and, to
date, there are a total of thirty –
six novels in the series, from the
very first novel, The Colour of
Magic written in 1983, to the most
recent addition, the international
bestseller Making Money.
Weird, wonderful and always
eye-opening, Pratchett’s unique
novels are not to be missed and
nor, for that matter, is the current
staging by NUTS of one of the
funniest books in the series.
Men At Arms is the fifteenth
novel in the Discworld series; but
can Steven Briggs’ stage adaption
accurately
portray
AnkhMorpork?
Ankh-Morpork is a city like
nothing you’ve seen or heard of
before: it has a Guild for Assassins
and another for Thieves, and its
inhabitants range from undead
vampires to the indeterminate
Corporal Nobby Nobbs.
We enter the play just as the
Night Watch is swearing in its
new recruits. Sounds easy? Well
maybe not seeing as they include a
troll, a dwarf and a woman (most
of the time), and they’re about to
be thrown in at the deep end.
Something shifty is going on
involving a new weapon and Sam
Vimes, Captain of the City Watch,
and his men(-ish), are having
trouble keeping their noses out
of... whatever is going on, even if
the Patrician (“a bloody cunning
bastard”) has forbidden it. Twice.
Trolls, dwarves and gargoyles
are standard for a Pratchett
hard to get to know the business
environment; we’ve had to
learn quickly, but the galleries,
art shops and artists we’ve
approached have been generally
helpful and receptive.
AC: Is this limited to just Art
student’s work, or can any
budding artist participate?
GE:
No, we were happy to
hear from any artist so you don’t
have to be studying art at all. We
really just want this to be a great,
fun event; for people to turn up
to buy or just browse and enjoy
themselves.
AC: What can I expect to see
then?
GE: It’s mostly fine art and
photography but there may be
some live art….hmmm, what
would you call it?
AC: Performance?
GE: Yes that’s it, performance art
too, which should be interesting!
The emphasis is not just on
selling a product, we’re really
more of an events company, so
we want to create an enjoyable
experience that also provides an
opportunity for people to view
art that might not otherwise be
seen or sold.
AC: So what happens with the
unsold work at the end, does
it go on a website or are there
other events in the pipeline?
GE: Each artist specifies a reserve
novel but putting it on stage is
something else - it’s a combination
of a dream and a nightmare.
Sound effects have to be on cue,
lighting is needed to quickly
change between scenes, costumes
for clowns and guards need to
be made, and be prepared to see
some pretty incredible papiermache!
Men At Arms is a great
introduction for Discworld virgins;
a taste of fantasy but with enough
nods to commonly known genres
and send ups so that everyone
can enjoy it, and Discworld fans
won’t be disappointed either! The
Watch are ready to serve the city
and comedy is certain to ensue.
Buy your tickets for the latest
NUTS show this season on the
door at 8pm on Tuesday 10th
March, or 1.30pm or 7.30pm on
Wednesday 11th March: don’t
miss out! After all... “Alle the
Dysk’s a stage and the men and
wimmin but players.”
Rachael White and Sebastian Kivi
price on their work, so if the
bidders don’t match or beat that
reserve then obviously the artist
keeps hold of it. Initially we
considered showing and selling
the art on an e-bay type set up,
but due to the visual nature of
art, the experience of visiting
a gallery is the done thing. The
artists like to be there too, to
talk about their work with the
people that come to view it, so
we are focusing on the 16th as
our main event. However, we
have talked about the possibility
of expanding to other Unis and
hosting seasonal events, so watch
this space for future events!
This uber trendy night of
entertainment is due to take
place on Monday March 16th at
the Art Works Gallery, Stepney
Bank in Ouseburn (quite close
to the Star and Shadow cinema
I believe), and kicks off at 6pm
with the auction at 7pm. For
location and general details:
www.theartworksgalleries.com
For anyone who wants more
info on Rising StART check out
www.risingstart.co.uk or if you
want to get your own artwork
out there email the team on info@
risingstart.co.uk.
This is a great opportunity
to view and possibly purchase
some unique artwork whilst
supporting local rising artists
so I urge you wander off the
beaten track and opt for a wicked
cultural night out! Jot it down:
16th March from 6pm!
Alicia Clovis
C
M
Y
K
Union Elections 2009
Your complete 8 page pull-out guide,
including all candidate manifestos.
vote.ncl.ac.uk
Welcome...
...to your complete guide to this year’s
Union Elections
This week, from Monday moring to Thursday
evening, 35 hopeful students and their friends
will be braving the March cold to ask you
to vote for them in the forthcoming Union
Elections.
This is by far and away the most important
week in any Student Union’s year as the team
of students who will shape its future are
democratically elected by the people they want
to represent.
Why should I bother voting?
Ever hear the accusation that students today
are politcally apathetic? Well here are students
who want to be elected - not just to better
themselves, but to better things for every
student at Newcastle University.
In their varied roles, they will be tasked with
fighting for your rights on everything from
the way your sports programme is run to our
collective stance on national issues like top-up
fees.
Ever think that the Union has no role in
your student experience? Chances are, you’re
wrong.
If you’re involved in any societies or play any
sport at University, all of it is run through the
Student’s Union.
If you’ve ever benefitted from a welfare
campaign around campus, or been given the
opportunity to feedback on your course to
university, chances are your elected officers
were the ones who organized it.
The bars, the gigs, the food in the Union
building - even the newspaper in your hands
- are all part of the roles and responsibilities of
your full and part-time Union Officer team.
Success in all of these areas and many more,
including Freshers’ Week and RAG Week,
depend on the qualities and abilities of the
elected officers - it’s your right and your
responsibility to use your vote to make sure we
get the right people in the posts.
same budget and absolutely no negative
campaigning is allowed. You should never
hear any candidates or their teams tell you
why not to vote for anyone else, only why you
should vote for them.
They have also all written a manifesto, which
make up the bulk of this special pull-out.
Take a moment to read what each candidate
has to say and if you have more questions
for them, consult their facebook groups (or
speak to them in person!). In addition to
this, make sure you pop along to hustings
- a live debate all candidates take part in on
Monday - the details of which you can find
over the page.
How do I make my mind up?
The elections results are read out in
private to the candidates themselves on Friday
afternoon - they are then annouced over the
speak system in the Union building and posted
on our website. Make sure you check to find
our whether or not your prefered candidates
have won!
When will I find out the
results?
The candidates are encouraged to campaign
with all the effort and imagination they can
muster to convince you they’re worthy of your
vote.
The conditions are simple: they all have the
Memories from Campaign Week...
“‘The toughtest week of my life’ is how I
described it at the time, but looking back it feel
more like one of the best for several reasons.
Ok so I barely ate, didn’t sleep and spent the
entire time feeling sick with nerves, but at the
same time it made me realise how much my
friends cared about me - so much so that they
were willing to stand out in the cold for hours
on end just to help me realise my ambitions!
I found hustings quite scary, particularly
when I ran out of time giving my speech, but
the read of campaigns week was much better.
Speaking to people, I realised how much a
part of their student experience reading The
Courier had been. Everyone had an opinion
on what was good and what was wrong with
the paper, and it was thrilling to think that I
might be able to make some of the things they
wanted happen if I won
The actual moment the results were read out
was terrifying. I took my best friend Nicole
and don’t think I let go of her hand once. When
I realised I’d won I couldn’t stop crying with
relief - everyone else in the room was the same
- then the six sabbs were brough together for
the first time for a photo - the results of which
we still laugh at now!”
- Sam Parker, Editor of The Courier 2008/09
“Scariest week of my life? Potentially.
Toughest week of my life? Definitely. Election
Week was a hard slog, mainly because it was
more than just a week.
forming a campaign team all took precedence
over my degree, and was also far more
intensive (I did do History mind).
Organising my election campaign technically
started at the beginning of last year when I
decided I wanted to run for Union President,
having gained experience of Union politics
and services, but from then on I was constantly
planning my campaign.
The number of rules and regulations around
the election meant that jumping through all the
necessary hoops became more stressful than
the dissertation, and the mind games between
yourself and fellow candidates bettered
Fergie and Jose (not least because negative
campaigning is not allowed).
The weeks leading up to the main event were
the most painful. Organising my publicity,
making banners, spray painting t-shirts,
With the run-up out of the way though, the
worst was actually over. Despite having to
make a speech in Hustings (aided by some
“Campaigning for a week of your life (or even
longer given all the preparation involved) is
one of the hardest things you can do while at
uni.
To spend a week giving everything you’ve
got, and then to lose, is a really tough
experience to take.
When I ran for Freshers’ Week Organiser in
2007 this is exactly what I went through, and I
can definitely say that it has really shaped my
time here since.
Campaign Week is an incredible experience;
filled with the biggest highs and lows.
The elation I felt on our first night out,
when over 40 people gathered in Mens Bar
all wearing our colours, was in stark contrast
to the disappointment of coming 2nd and
the shock of “what do we do now?”
Since then I’ve run in two further elections
and won them both, and the experience of
losing has definitely spurred me on to work
even harder.
It completely confirmed for me that I wanted
to be involved in the Union more than almost
anything else.
It’s made me a stronger person and, although
it didn’t feel like it would at the time, things
have really worked out for the best.”
Dutch Courage), and spend 50 solid hours
campaigning, the week flew by. Cheesy as it
sounds, the support of the campaign team to
prevent me from losing my bottle (and from
turning to it) kept me going, and without them
I never would have managed it.
Technically the worst wasn’t really over,
as results day was a vomit-inducingly tense
affair. Whilst I may have ended up with the
result I wanted, it didn’t stop the tears before,
during and after the announcement. Hardest
thing I’ve ever done? Potentially. Worth it?
Definitely.
- Will Richens, President 2008/09
- Alex Elwick, Freshers’ Week Organizer
09/10
Who is RON...?
When you come to vote in any of the elections,
you’ll notice a mysterious candidate named
RON is there also asking for your vote.
RON is not the mascot of that certain multinational conglomerate, nor is he a real person
who has decided not to submit a photo or a
manifesto.
RON stands for Re-Open Nominations.
If it so happens that you do not want any
of the prospective candidates to be elected
into a position, you can vote to RON. In the
event that RON has more votes than any of
the other candidates, the election will be
run again at a later date, meaning that other
people not previously nominated can now
become candidates.
RON is also useful if you do not have a second
preference, for example, if there are two
candidates in the election and you’d rather
the election be re-run if your favourite does
not get in.
Basically, RON is your get out clause. It’s
not used very often but if you feel strongly
enough then do it.
Remember: it’s your right to RON!
C
M
Y
K
The Full-Time Positions...
These are the six positions that make up the full-time team of sabbatical officers. They are paid members of union staff who work collectively to
help run the Union and individually on their own roles.
President
The Union President is the figurehead
of the Union, and the first person
called upon to fight for students
or defend their rights to external
parties. They are the symbolic head
of the institution that deals regularly
with the University big wigs to
ensure students are treat fairly.
Athletics Union Officer
Activities Officer
The AU Officer looks after all the sport
that takes place at Newcastle University.
They make sure that Team Newcastle
maintain their excellent national league
position, as well as ensure that sport
is as inclusive and widely enjoyed by
students as possible.
This officer is responsible for the 120
student lead socieities we have at
Newcastle University. They train,
co-ordinate and support all of these
groups as well as organize major
Union events such as the Snow and
Graduation Balls.
Editor of The Courier
Education Officer
Student Support Officer
The Editor of the Courier is responsible
for producing and distributing
your weekly student newpaper and
preserving its autonomy and position
as one of the country’s leading student
newspapers. They also supervise the
Union’s other media arms (radio and
TV).
This officer represents you on all
academic issues at the University to
make sure you get the absolute most
for your tution fees. They train and coordinate the Course Representatives
who are vital to student experience
and opinion being fed back to their
schools..
Student Support Officer is the position
in charge of student welfare issues
in the Union. They will plan and
execute important awareness and
welfare campaigns on political, social
and health issues. They also fight for
student welfare at the University and
in the wider community.
...The Part-Time Positions
These are the part-time positions being contested in this round of elections (there are several more!). Students still finishing their degree perform
their duties in this role alongside their studies, under the supervision of the full-time officers.
Chair of Union Council
RAG Officers
The Campaigns Officer works closely
with the Student Support Officer to
organise and implement the various
campaigns that the Union runs each
year. They will always campaign on
the behalf of students, mainly from a
welfare perspective.
Union Council is the democratic body
that is charged with representing
students. It is made up of students
who collectively represent the wide
demographic of students at Newcastle
University. The Chair of Union Council
does exactly what it says on the tin they ensure that Council meetings run
effectively and constitutionally.
RAG (Raising and Giving) is designed
to raise thousands of pounds worth
of cash for charity throughout the
academic year. The RAG Officers coordinate all of this fundraising via
RAG Week, RAG Raids to cities across
the UK and one-off events. They also
decide which charities benefit from the
money raised.
LGBT Officer
Ethics & Enviroment
Officers
Convenor of Debates
These help to maintain and improve
the energy and sustainability policies
in the Union and University. They
sit on several committees, as well as
having their own sub-committee which
enables more students to get involved
in E&E campaigns.
The Convenor of Debates is dedicated
to promoting Debating within the
Union Society. They work closely with
the Debating Society, and also organise
a number of debating competitions.
These include varsity competitions,
national and even international
events.
Campaigns Officer
The LGBT Officer is elected to act
as a contact and spokesperson on
behalf of all Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual or
Transgender students. They act as a
link between the Union and the LGBT
Society, as well as having contact with
the University on issues affecting the
students that they represent.
Hustings: 1pm, this Monday, Union Basement...
‘Hustings’ is the name given to the debating
event that kicks of each Union Election week.
All the candidates will gather in the Union
Basement for what is one of the most daunting
aspects of running you campaign: standing up
in front of everyone and answering questions
from the debate floor.
Candidates in contested elections are
each given two minutes in which to make a
speech - this is their ‘I have a dream’, ‘We’ll
fight them on the beaches’ or ‘Yes we can’
opportunity to inspire the crowd and win new
followers through the power of speech making.
Uncontested candidates only have a minute to
make the same impression.
Candidates then have to field question
submitted from the floor. These questions can
be directed at all candidates or strategically
aimed at a single candidate by an opponent’s
team trying to trip them up! Anything goes,
providing the questions pass the judgement of
election committee who make sure everything
being asked is fair.
Hustings is the perfect opportunity for you
to see in person the people you are thinking of
voting for, as well as your chance to put them
on the spot with a good question of your own.
You might be interested, for example, to find
out how the potential AU Officer is going to
ensure you have your Wednesday afternoons
free to play for your team, or ask the Presidential
or Education Officer hopefuls how they intend
going to get more people involved in Union
Council... hustings is your chance to hear the
candidates answer your own concerns in a
public environment.
While all of the speeches are being made and
the questions being answered, The Union are
putting on a special food offer to enjoy while
you watch.
For the duration of Hustings, £5 will get you
a Indian food special deal: an onion bhaji, a
choice of curry with pilau rice with a bottle of
lager or a soft drink - perfect for sitting down
with to watch the debate!
Once Hustings is finished, voting officially
opens at 4pm - it’s from then that you can log on
to vote.ncl.ac.uk and actually cast your vote.
It might be worth holding back a moment
though to let the campaign team through they’ll be hitting the street immediately to start
flyering, stickering and whatever else they have
up their sleeves to try and encourage people to
vote for them over their opponents!
Athletic Union Officer
Clair Herdman
Joe Chamberlin
Sarah McChesney
Thomas Rhodes
“Dedicated to Winning
Wednesdays!”
Having spent the last
two years as president
of the American Football
team and this year on the
AU Exec as deputy AU
officer, I feel qualified for
the role of AU officer.
Hi, my name is Sarah
McChesney and I am
running for the AU
Officer position. I am
currently a SPORTS
VOLUNTEER and the
LADIES SQUASH CLUB
PRESIDENT and I believe
that my love of sport and
the skills I have acquired
from these roles make
me an ideal candidate
for the job. I am committed to making sport at
Newcastle bigger and better than ever before by
protecting your interests and making sure we
remain in the top-flight of the BUSA rankings.
About Me:
Newcastle
University
Sport has been central to
my university career, if
elected I intent to make
this experience bigger
and better!
Money:
- Increased sponsorship
and increased allocated grants to clubs making
a fairer easier financial system.
- Work with the finance department to make
the financial process much easier for all clubs
(BUCS and non-BUCS).
Wednesdays:
- Increase the profile of sport within the
university.
- Work with the university and sports centre
to build a better understood relationship about
sport.
- Improve on our amazing results; ensure
Newcastle is well and truly on the sporting
map.
Socially:
- Increased integration between clubs, creating
the best socials for all AU clubs; bigger and
better Wednesdays!!
Stan Calvert:
- Another WIN for the Uni!
I
understand
how
significant the BUCS
standings are and aim to
keep the university in the
top 15, if not the top 10.
BUCS:
Make sure that teams are classed in the correct
category for BUCS, this will avoid a situation
like this year where teams were being destroyed
in their categories.
AU FUNDING:
Recognition of the importance of Alumni to the
University and teams, this will add an extra
source of funding to a horrifically underfunded
AU.
VOTE FOR ME & I WILL:
- Make WEDNESDAY NIGHTS the biggest
and best they have ever been with ALL AU
CLUBS celebrating their successes together
- Ensure FAIR DISTRIBUTION of the AU
BUDGET for both BUSA and Non-BUSA
clubs
- Strive to retain the STAN CALVERT CUP
- Provide SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES
for all clubs
* Display video highlights of all successful
BUSC matches in the Union.
- Work closely with other Officers to improve
all areas of the UNION as well as the AU
Intra-Mural:
- Guarantee REGULAR OFFICE HOURS,
making life easier for you
* Strengthen the relationship between BUSC
and the intra-mural system.
- Work with the University to
WEDNESDAY AFTERNOONS FREE
Social:
STAN CALVERT
Beat the Poly!
- Give all clubs the opportunity to INCREASE
THEIR ALLOCATED GRANTS
keep
VOTE SARAH MCCHESNEY FOR A.U
PRESIDENT!
PROFIT
•
Aim
to
increase
sponsorship
opportunities and provide fair allocation of
grants for ALL clubs
•
Aim to increase funding from the
University by demonstrating the importance of
sport
PRIDE
•
Develop and raise awareness of the
TEAM NEWCASTLE brand across campus
•
Do everything possible to WIN Stan
Calvert
PARTY
•
Ensure that WEDNESDAY NIGHTS
are the BIGGEST and BEST ever for all AU,
Intra Mural and society based clubs
Sport at Newcastle has never been better, if you
vote me as AU Officer I will ensure that we do
not become a victim of our own success and
remain at the forefront of university sport.
After working on the AU Executive Committee
and as 3rds netball captain and secretary of the
club, I believe I have harnessed the skills and
knowledge to be perfect for this role!!!
Vote Vicky for Victory!!!
* Aim to ensure that the current budget of
£200,000 is not reduced as warned against.
* Encourage the University to introduce a
specific sports programme to help Newcastle
attract the best sports men and women to
maintain our competitive status within BUSC.
WEDNESDAY FUN TIMES:
Look for a venue that will offer similar drinks
deals but more incentives to all AU clubs and
their members.
PARTICIPATION
•
P r o v i d e
greater publicity and
development of Intra
Mural leagues to make sport accessible for all at
every level
•
Work with the education officer
to ensure Wednesday afternoon’s are
COMPLETELY free for sport
* Work with the 65% of club officials who are
unhappy with current funding to resolve this
issue.
EXPANSION OF SPORTS EXPERIENCE AT
THE UNIVERSITY:
Introduction of an intra mural Cricket 20-20
competition.
As Club Captain of Hockey I believe I can use
my experiences to understand the problems
and issues sports clubs have at university. I am
very enthusiastic about sport and I believe I can
make sport at Newcastle better for all.
PERFORMANCE
•
Work with the
Sports Centre to ensure
we stay in top 10 of the
BUCS rankings
Finance:
- Increase support and advice for NON-BUSA
CLUBS
Establish methods for signing promising and
highly talented sportsmen/women to the
university on a form of scholarship.
VOTE VICKY FOR:-
I umpire hockey from BUSC to Intra-Mural
level, giving me an insight into how various
teams, both male and female work.
SPORTS COVERAGE:
Further integration with the Courier to further
increase sports coverage including extra page
space for Non-Bucs sports.
Intra-mural:
- ‘Sport for all’; work closely with the sports
centre to make intra mural more accessible to
all.
- Better integration between intra-mural and
Team Newcastle
Vicky Tyas
As a member of the Mens’
Hockey 4th team which
frequently
performs
above expectation and
present ranking, I am fully
aware of the difficulty
which lower-order teams
and minor clubs face to
gain recognition. I have
been Vice- Captain for
two years and enjoy organising and leading the
team on occaisons.
Awareness:
* Continue the work of the present AU Officer
and ensure all clubs and teams enjoy the
benefits of a strong relationship between the
AU and local bars and nightclubs. Wednesday
Nights will be the benchmark of the week!
Editor of the Courier
David Coverdale
I have been Sports Editor
for the last two years
making me The Courier’s
MOST EXPERIENCED
section editor. I have
contributed
to
The
Courier every week
since I began university.
In my role I have secured
strong
links
with
Newcastle United and
Newcastle Falcons and brought to you TOP
CLASS interviews and the most university
sport coverage the paper has ever seen.
I believe I am the man to edit YOUR student
paper.
If elected, I will use my three years experience
with The Courier and six years journalism
experience with local and national newspapers
to bring to YOU:
• MORE investigative news journalism so
you know what’s really happening at YOUR
university.
• NEW and improved website with message
boards, blogs and photo galleries for events
and sports.
• NEW student property section to make
house hunting for students easier than ever.
• NEW television section featuring a guide to
the week’s best TV.
• MAXIMUM sports coverage including more
BUCS, Intra Mural and big name interviews.
• DEDICATION to raise the profile of NSR
and NUTV.
• GREATER opportunities for all to contribute
to the paper including international students.
Coverdale – Probably the best editor in the
world.
Kieran Picken
Socialists have a long
tradition of fighting for
those
oppressed
and
exploited. The Socialist
Worker Student Society
has been active on campus,
providing solidarity with
the people of Palestine
during the recent Israeli
assault on Gaza, fighting
against any increase of
tuition fees for students and
fighting against job cuts.
The world we find ourselves in now is not a world
we have seen since the early 1980’s; we are in what
is widely seen as the biggest financial crisis since
the 1930’s. This is why we need to elect a Socialist
for Courier Editor, a socialist that will put students
before profit; a socialist who will fight for every
student regardless of race, nationality, religion,
sexual orientation or gender; a socialist who won’t
back down under pressure from above; a socialist
that will build the campaigns against war, racism
and for student activism here on campus.
Use your vote in these Union elections. Vote
Socialist - Vote for Kieran Picken
* SOCIALIST WORKER STUDENT SOCIETY *
Dave Wingrave
Hi, I’m Dave Wingrave.
I’ve written for The
Courier for three years,
I’ve been published
in every single issue
and this year I’ve been
music editor. Now I’d
like to be full editor, so I
can work on increasing
the professionalism of
the paper, enhancing
its already excellent
reputation, and therefore
readership.
yours
as
its
I propose to introduce a new system of
proof-reading, comprehensively sorting out
the typos and the crossword. Mistakes look
deeply unprofessional and betray the high
quality of student journalism at Newcastle.
I propose to devote a full page spread to
societies – a place for you to advertise your
events, allowing potential new members to
read about them and get into something new.
I’d carry this on to the sports pages where I’d
include a diverse range of clubs, celebrating
both the ones that have substantial coverage
now and the others we hear hardly anything
about.
I propose to expand Culture by adding a
fashion section. It’s an area that many students
are interested in and have fun with; it’s time it
got the attention it deserves.
Above all, I believe in thorough, comprehensive
and investigative journalism, delivered
with integrity and honesty – by students for
students!
C
M
Y
K
President
Thomas Huggon
Chris Newlove
Morgan Richardson
My aim is to make
Newcastle
Union
a
place that welcomes
and attracts you and an
organisation you want
to be involved in!
Socialists have a long
tradition of fighting for
those
oppressed
and
NO
exploited. The Socialist
Worker Student Society
PHOTO
has been active on campus,
providing solidarity with SUBMITTED
the people of Palestine
during the recent Israeli
assault on Gaza, fighting
against any increase of
tuition fees for students and fighting against job
cuts.
I’m Morgan, 20, and I’m
running for President of
the Union. As the only 2nd
year running, I believe I
am an excellent candidate
for this position.
-Participation
For all students who
want to be involved in
any aspects of the Union
– what is on offer should
be welcoming and accessible
- Profitability
A sustainable Union ensures a better experience
for ALL students - facilities and services should
be of a good quality at a reasonable cost
-GOAL
Go out and Listen, I will listen to your views
on anything that affects you at Newcastle
University – it is important to listen beyond just
the Union building,
I aim to arrange regular meetings at your halls
of residence or prime student areas.
Why me?
- I have experienced much of what is on offer
in our Union and I aim to establish greater
awareness of the multitude of services available
for ALL students here.
- As a 1st team player and Badminton Club
President for the last two years I have been able
to view many aspects of sport in Newcastle.
- I have also written for the Courier and
been involved in events such as RAG week
and volunteering in the Sports Volunteer
Programme
The world we find ourselves in now is not
a world we have seen since the early 1980’s;
we are in what is widely seen as the biggest
financial crisis since the 1930’s. This is why we
need to elect a Socialist for President, a socialist
that will put students before profit; a socialist
who will fight for every student regardless of
race, nationality, religion, sexual orientation or
gender; a socialist who won’t back down under
pressure from above; a socialist that will build
the campaigns against war, racism and for
student activism here on campus.
I am unique; I would
still be a student of
this University during
Presidency, returning to
complete my Linguistics
degree afterward. I feel that this connects me
to the university and its students.
My actions as President have a direct effect on
me the following year as I return to my studies,
which I believe will motivate me to do the best
job possible.
I will be the driving force securing a multimillion pound redevelopment project that will
modernise the Union.
The new union will be a buzz of activity, with
‘open-door’ offices allowing you to see what
support is readily available to you. It will be a
Use your vote in these Union elections. Vote fun, exciting place to be when not in lectures!
Socialist - Vote for Chris Newlove
I will bring the fun back in to the union, treating
* SOCIALIST WORKER STUDENT SOCIETY *
our students more like adults.
I believe in the maturity of our students.
I believe that events like T-shirt Pub Crawls can
be safe and fun. Bringing these events back to
our union will allow us to control how they are
run.
Andi Georgiou
VOTE ANDI
GEORGIOU FOR
PRESIDENT!
Why vote for me?
Experience:
I
have
extensive knowledge of
the Union, University and
student experience from
different perspectives;
- Organiser of Freshers’ Week 2008
- Racial Equality Officer 05/06
- President of Pound Soc
- Volunteered in various Freshers’ and RAG
Weeks as crew, supervisor and officer
- Union Councillor for two years
- Studied here as both an undergraduate and
postgraduate
Policies
- Implementing a new Commercial and
Entertainments Focus for the Union
- More representation of minority, international
and faith groups on Union Council
- To bring student issues, including financial
problems and housing to the University’s
attention
- Increase academic representation for students
To improve the Union I will:
- Invest in better facilities and renovation of the
Union building
- Work closely with the Activities Officer to
further our excellent reputation for Societies
and invest in developing new Societies
- Increase funding from the University for
Sports Clubs
- Increase the representation and participation
of international students, postgraduates and
mature students within the Union
My overall aim:
To increase participation in the Union, which
can potentially enable all students to make the
most out of their time at university.
Activities Officer
Cat Foley
Georgia Morgan-Wynne
Helen Ashman
Holly Phillips
I’m cat, vote for me to
be your activities officer!
Why? Well because...
Hi, I’m Georgia and
I want YOU to GET
INVOLVED!
I love societies!
I believe I have the
energy, enthusiasm and
expertises to be your next
ACTIVITIES officer.
Why me?
I am heavily involved
in many activities
the Union offers. I sit
on the Disciplinary
committee and am
in the process of coproducing a play for
RAG. I’ve participated
in Fresher’s week,
RAG and WAC from
crew to supervisor to
committee level.
Hello, I am Holly
and I am running for
Activities Officer. Being
both a member of Union
Council and president
of a newly developed
society I understand a lot
about what is needed in
the union and specifically
the activities department.
From my own experience
I have realised there are a
few areas which could be made a lot easier for
students to handle; especially on the executive
committees of societies. The following areas I
aim to target:
I have:
• been president and
treasurer
of
Swing
Society, and member of
many others.
• stood on Societies
Executive
Committee,
Union
Council
and Housing Committee, so have a good
understanding of how things work.
• organised many successful events whilst at
uni- including theatre, comedy and a national
dance camp, (Newcastleswingthing: nominated
best event at societies awards 2008).
• been involved in charity events, IGF,
Snowball, Re-freshers Fayre and ‘GiveitaGo’.
• led ‘Improv Group’, a community based,
student run independent theatre company for
2 years.
I will:
• build on existing strengths.
• be approachable, help societies to be the best
they can be.
• increase participation in societies and
encourage even more to be set up.
• develop inter-society collaboration, through
joint events such as IFAM, RAG and diversity
week.
• improve links between societies and the
union.
• establish more ties between societies and the
local community.
University should be more than studying - I
want to make sure that you and every student
gets as much as they possibly can from their
short time at Newcastle Uni.
VOTE CAT!
Why vote for me?
MY EXPERIENCE:
- As President of Biology and an active member
of many other societies I’ve organised events
and founded successful sports teams.
- I’ve been involved in Freshers Week, RAG
and WAC crew giving me great insight into the
running of the union.
MY AIMS:
- Snow Ball and Grad Ball: Create spectacular
evenings to typify your University experience,
all at a reasonable price!
- Help and Support: EASY contact for ALL
societies, to help increase size and sponsorship,
and to make YOUR events work!
-Training- Make society training more fun, and
revise the society guide!
-Re-Freshers Week- Use this to increase
involvement in societies by providing taster
sessions and inter-society events.
- Development – I want you making the most of
University, increasing skills to maximise your
potential, remember Uni isn’t just about your
degree!
Additionally I am the treasurer of a society,
and through SCAN I volunteer weekly with
children.
From this experience I’ve had an invaluable
insight into the Union’s operation, providing
me with the skills necessary for this position.
I’ve loved participating in the Union, and
feel it is massively important to encourage
more students to do the same!
1) Complete written guide together with
personal support to society exec committee
members with :
ŏ Setting up societies
ŏ Organising trips and Balls (events)
ŏ Getting members
ŏ Refreshers Fayre.
If elected I will:
Help you reach YOUR full potential, making
it easier to get involved, from creating new
societies to taking advantage of SCAN’s vast
opportunities.
2) Ensuring societies are able to access their
funds from the finance department with ease.
Encourage inter-society relationships and
friendly rivalry though regular society
dedicated events.
4) Arrange a slightly cheaper Snowball situated
somewhere closer to the university
Improve Union facilities specifically for
societies whilst encouraging loyalty to the
Union by introducing rewards for societies
which use its amenities.
3) Bringing back society awards ceremony at
the end of each year
5) Arranging a different fun-filled night
monthly at the union!
6) Listen to all of your opinions!
Ask YOU what YOU want from your Grad
and Snow balls.
MY PASSION:
-I want to make societies an accessible
opportunity for ALL students to develop useful
skills and ultimately have FUN!!
I feel university is the best place to start
something new which is why I plan to give
everyone the best opportunities of their life, so
PLEEEEEEEASE vote for me
Further promote the NCL+ Awards, so
students not only know about them but
WANT to get involved!
Thank you
Thank you for reading this and please…
VOTE HELEN ASHMAN FOR ACTIVITIES
– it’ll be one HELL of a year!
Get involved!
Vote ‘GEORGIA’ for ACTIVITIES @ vote.ncl.
ac.uk
Holly XXXX
Student Support Officer
Katie Ashworth
Katie Carter
Adam Cornell
Pete Mercer
* I am committed to the
wellbeing and health of
students, and will try
to help no matter the
problem; I will be the
student representative
for a range of issues,
including housing, sexual
health and diversity.
Hi, I am Katie and
currently your Campaigns
Officer! I am running
for Student Support
Officer because after
getting involved in the
welfare services offered
by our union I feel I have
developed the drive
and innovative vision to
make a difference and to
do the job to the best of its
potential.
Socialists have a long
tradition of fighting for
those oppressed and
exploited. The Socialist
Worker Student Society
has been active on
campus,
providing
solidarity with the people
of Palestine during the
recent Israeli assault on
Gaza, fighting against
any increase of tuition
fees for students and fighting against job cuts.
My name’s Pete Mercer
and I’m your current
Student Support Officer.
I propose to:
The world we find ourselves in now is not
a world we have seen since the early 1980’s;
we are in what is widely seen as the biggest
financial crisis since the 1930’s. This is why we
need to elect a Socialist for Student Support
Officer, a socialist that will put students before
profit; a socialist who will fight for every
student regardless of race, nationality, religion,
sexual orientation or gender; a socialist who
won’t back down under pressure from above;
a socialist that will build the campaigns against
war, racism and for student activism here on
campus.
* I have worked in the
union for over 2 years on
committees and events, so I’m already familiar
with how these things work! I will be new to
the sabbatical position, so I’ll bring fresh ideas
to the role.
* I have previously worked with ‘Love Music,
Hate Racism’ and RAG week, and will continue
to work with causes such as these, as it’s gone
very well before
* I will work closely with various officers,
including LGBT & Racial Equality to ensure the
happiness & wellbeing of students who are in
related societies or require the assistance of the
officers.
* I’m currently the Head of Newcastle Student
Radio, and I’ve improved it by leading a team
of talented exec & presenters. If I’m elected
Student Support Officer, I’ll use my experience
to improve the student support service, and
organise campaigns to raise awareness of
important issues that may help you.
Support me & I will definitely support you!
* Run campaigns on issues such as health,
finance, housing, crime and current issues that
arise
* Improve community relations by encouraging
student representation in local community
meetings
* Increase spending on effective marketing of
welfare services to reach a wider audience
* Ensure the hall representative system is
successfully implemented with all halls being
represented in union committees
* Re-organise the structure and entry protocol of
the WAC crew and provide more opportunities
for volunteering in the local community
* Re-vamp the union website to provide a
valuable point of contact
Overall, I intend to effectively advertise,
maintain and extend the services that the
union provides in order to give the students of
Newcastle a reason to use their union and be
proud of it!
Use your vote in these Union elections. Vote
Socialist - Vote for Adam Cornell
*SOCIALIST
SOCIETY*
WORKER
STUDENT
For a bright future for you and your union
vote Katie Carter for Student Support Officer
at vote.ncl.ac.uk!
This
year
I
have
protected your welfare
and
defended
your
rights relentlessly and
passionately at every
level.
If re-elected I will use
this experience and the breadth of knowledge
I have gained to significantly benefit our Union
and all its members.
EXPERIENCE:
• Organised 9 campaigns including SHAG,
‘Take One for the Team’, Stand Up Against
Poverty
• Drastically improved sexual health provision
• Created proposals for the first ever Hall
Representation system
• Devised and written a Community Strategy
• Selected as the North England representative
to the Student Loan Company
• Chaired 4 committees: Welfare & Campaigns,
Housing, Diversity and Freshers’ Week
Working Group
MY PLEDGE:
• To revolutionise WAC crew structure and
operations
• Launch my Hall Representation system •
Implement my Community Strategy
• Obtain council funding to improve studentcommunity relations
• Extend Nightbus hours
• Continue to lobby the government and local
City Council on keeping the top-up fee cap
• Conduct and publish the results of a housing
survey to ensure better landlords
• Initiate the creation of a non-profit Union
Society letting agency
Vote for experience,
determination...
continuity
and
VOTE FOR PETE!!!
Matthew Riggall
Convenor of Debates
Hi I’m Matthew and I’m
running for the position
of
Student
Support
Officer. Over the past
year I have been actively
involved with many
aspects of the union and
I feel my own personal
beliefs make me the ideal
candidate for the job.
Hello, I’m David and I’ve
been involved with the
debating society since I
first came to Newcastle.
To me the whole point
of taking this role is to help you students with
your day to day problems; and ensure what
you feel is important is listened to. My main
areas of focus will be
Finance
Housing
Sexual Health
Welfare – because if you aren’t happy you don’t
get the most out of life!
I aim to do this by making the current WAC
crew into a full-blown ratified society with
weekly meetings, regular socials and heavy
campaigning. I would also like to make sure
your wallets remain intact, keeping free
services free and reducing the cost of other
union services. Also on a larger scale make sure
you are informed about housing issues so you
and those that come next know what they are
getting into.
We all need to work hard but I will work twice
as hard to make your student life a better one.
So Vote Matthew for Student Support.
David Codling
James O’Sullivan
The
creation
of
a
Debating Union presents
an exciting opportunity
for Newcastle University.
I believe my enthusiasm
Currently
a
fourthand energy will encourage
year medical student,
the development of a great
I have a passion for
Debating Union. Studying
debating, having been
politics has demonstrated
involved since I came to
the
importance
of
Newcastle.
representation to me and
this would be a priority
I have experience of working in the Union, if elected. I am a friendly, approachable and
being both a society treasurer and social outgoing person.
secretary, and everything I’ve done, I’ve put
everything into it.
My involvement as a project leader in Student
I really believe that the Union can, and should, Charity READ has helped my organisation and
do more to engage people and that people communication skills, complementing what I
should get more involved in how the Union is have already learnt from my participation in
run.
debating society.
I would:
Main proposals:
• Increase Union Accountability: Large,
interesting Union issues could be solved using
large-scale debates, with everyone having a
say, publicised through the courier. If people
have strong opinions, they should be heard!
-To open up debating to as many students as
possible by catering for all abilities.
-To hold a ‘week of debate’ at the beginning
of the year to promote awareness of the new
Union.
• Put Newcastle on the map: We are a large
University with the potential to attract top- -To hold regular events which encourage
quality speakers. I would promote societies students to discuss and debate topical issues
with an interest in this working together. After that they feel strongly about.
all, we deserve the best!
-To get more public speakers to give talks at
the University
• Hold more national debating competitions:
to make Newcastle University the debating - To give students who take part in debating
capital of the North East.
competitions (IV’s) help with their expenses.
• Enthusiastically promote and improve Union -To ensure that Newcastle hosts high quality
democracy for all students
debating competitions (IM, IV and open) by
I’m ambitious but, when people ask whether creating a subcommittee that would oversee
we can do it, I say
their organisation.
Yes We Can
Campaigns Officer
Vicky Jones
Throughout my three
years at university I
have
been
involved
with the Union Society
on freshers’ and RAG
crew and a member of
various societies. These
experiences have taught
me vital skills which I
can bring to this officer
position.
My involvement on welfares and campaigns
crew means that I am aware of how current
campaigns are run and how I can improve and
add to them in the future.
As campaigns officer I will:
- Co-ordinate campaigns that are effective and
relevant.
- Raise knowledge of Union campaigns with
methods such as: promotion in halls; advertising
in the Courier; lecture shout-outs; WAC crew
and facebook, to ensure all students are aware
of the campaigns.
- Work with societies on issues they want to
address.
- Give students a voice for the campaigns that
they want run.
- Liaise with the student support officer and
other officers to organise efficient
campaigns.
I am friendly, hard-working and trustworthy
and will bring enthusiasm and creativity to the
post of Campaigns Officer…
...so if you want to have your voice heard on
the matters that mean the most to you please go
online to vote.ncl.ac.uk and
C
Vote Vicky for Campaigns!
K
M
Y
Education Officer
Emma Budge
The Education Officer
is an integral position
affecting all students.
My Experience:
• 2008-09 RAG Officer.
• Member of Union
Council and Officers
Forum
• Student spokesperson
for the Teaching Space
Working Group.
• Only undergraduate, representing 18,000
students, on the Library Advisory group.
• Working at a secondary school encouraging
pupils into higher education.
• Supervisor on Fresher’s Week.
I feel privileged to have experienced these vital
elements of the Education Officer’s position
and am eager to take on this role.
Aims:
• Further unite the union and university,
encouraging mutual feedback.
• Regular education committee meetings, more
contact between the Education officer and
representatives.
• Bi-weekly newsletter containing educational
positions, further training information and
career options.
• Encourage greater student led representation
within the union from courses and faculties,
involving undergraduates and post-graduates.
• Representation of post-grad and mature
students, recognising their differences.
• Greater communication between Student
Support and Education Officer’s- education is
one of many pressures felt during university.
• Review union council. Diversify membership.
Encourage greater student participation.
• Ensure National Student Survey results make
a difference!
• Vary academic assessment, detailed results
feedback, anonymous marking for all courses.
L.G.B.T. Officer
Chris McCallion
Robin Quinn
As education officer
it would be my job to
represent
all
18,000
students of this glorious
union to the university
and the wider world.
Ahoy there!
I’m Robin Quinn,
a 3rd year Politics
and
History
buff
and I need your vote
for
EDUCATION
OFFICER.
I have experience in
representing
large
proportions of the student
body to the union and all
of you to the university
at senate. I also have experience in running
campaigns and activities that benefit you the
students. I have spent many hours in the union
getting to know the staff and how its run from
all levels.
The union is owned and run by you the students,
but you the students are not as involved as you
could be. We need to throw open the doors
of this building to you, we need to clarify the
democracy, representation and decisions that
are made on your behalf.
And above all, we need to get you the students
back into the building for bigger better events,
with more offers, music and together we can
make the union the best I can be.
If elected, I pledge to
- Increase participation in union democracy
- organise bigger better events with more
offers
- challenge top up fees
- To get your voice heard within the halls of
university power.
1.
I will improve
student representation
within student and
academic bodies.
2.
I will make student voices actively
fought for- not just heard.
Working with students on Fresher’s Crew and
being a supervisor on RAG Crew, along with
partaking in Newcastle Work Experience and
through my role as an Enterprise Intern in
the Careers Service, means I KNOW WHAT
STUDENTS WANT.
Success means good representation.
• As an Enterprise Intern my role is to
liaise with students and ensure they receive
the correct and most beneficial advice on
decisions that affect the rest of their career.
Close working relationship with students.
• I am President and founder of LadSoc, a
society that aims to highlight the problem
of excessive drinking amongst students.
I am in the process of setting up The
Enterprise Society to help students engage in
entrepreneurship and encourage and assist
them to find the often hidden resources that
the university has to offer.
.
Pledges
• To improve the Student Rep system
•To encourage faculties to promote
participation among students in all aspects
of student representation
Isobel Owens
I’m Isabel Owens, I am
a second year Politics
student. I am an active
member of the LGBT
society and am passionate
about LGBT issues.
If I am am elected I
promise
to
provide
a solid base for the
Union Society’s LGBT
campaigns.
I want to raise awareness around several
areas. Most significantly the Blood Ban which
prevents Gay and Bi men donating blood. I also
wish to campaign in school to raise awareness of
discrimination and bullying of LGBT students.
I would like to liaise with local groups outside
the University, such as Mesmac and Lesbianline,
to ensure support for the LGBT community
improves across Newcastle. Furthermore I wish
to increase the profile of Trans issues, as these
are a group which are often under represented
and under supported.
Finally I wish to use events such as International
Day Against Homophobia to campaign and
raise awareness of homophobia around the
world.
Make a difference. Emma for Education!!
Chair of Union
Council
Lil Collingham
Hi!
I’m Lil Collingham a
second year History
student.
Becoming
Chair of Union council
is something that is
really important to me,
and a job that I think I
can bring a lot to. After
participating in RAG
week, Freshers crew and
volunteering for S.C.A.N over the past year I
have developed a strong desire to become more
involved in the University and in particular,
the student union.
Like many students, in my first year I wasn’t
even aware that there was a union council! If
appointed Chair I aim to spread awareness
about what is going on within the Union, letting
students know how much their opinion can
directly influence what decisions are made.
I really appreciate your support and I would
love to be given the opportunity to put my
ideas into practice. Please take the time to vote
at http://vote.ncl.ac.uk from 4pm on Monday
9th March until 5pm on Thursday 12th March.
I believe I have the confidence and drive to
take on this challenge and as Chair I can help to
strengthen the relationship between students
and the Union.
Thanks very much.
Lil xxxx
Ethics &
Enviroment Officer RAG Officer
(job share)
Fearns / Hardaker
Ball / Delamere
Hi, we’re Katie
and Tom and
we are running
for Ethics and
Environment
Officers.
We
feel we have
the
energy,
enthusiasm and
Union experience
to fulfil this role
and need your
vote!
Between us we have been on Freshers’, RAG
and WAC Crew, hold positions on society
committees and have been on Staff Student
Committee; therefore we have a good
understanding of the union and of working
with and representing students.
If elected, we would like to:• Further enhance the fair-trade status of the
Union and better the environmental impact of
the University.
• Partake in ethical campaigns.
• Promote recycling amongst students
especially in areas of student housing.
• Hold environmental awareness events, such
as clothes swaps and an ethical fashion show.
• Advance possibilities for student involvement
in ethical and environmental matters.
We believe we are friendly and approachable
and would enjoy advocating student’s ideas
and addressing concerns.
Together we hope our experience and drive
will make us more than capable of representing
you, the students, to tackle the pressing ethical
and environmental issues facing our global
society.
Vote Katie Ball and Tom Delamere for Ethics
and Environment Officers!
Hello all!
We’re ‘RAG Rabbits’
Sarah and Holly, and
we’re running for RAG
Organisers. We’re so
excited to be up for the
position, and think we’ll
do a brilliant job. Here’s
why!
• We’ve got bucketloads
of experience. We’ve campaigned, been on
RAG Committee, taken part in RAG Week as
supervisor and crew, and worked for charities
outside of university.
• We’re hugely enthusiastic, with bags of
energy, and also know how to get the job
done.
We’ve wanted this for ages, and have already
put loads of thought into making RAG Week
even more successful. Here’s how!
• Upping publicity and awareness, and getting
lots more people involved. We want to eliminate
the question: “What’s RAG Week?”
• Running more events regularly throughout
the year, as well as one legendary RAG Week.
• Adding more day-time events to existing
RAG favourites.
• Improving night-time events and showing
Newcastle just how much fun RAG can be.
We’ve been great friends since day one and
work really well together. We think we’re the
right girls for the job, and your support would
make us very happy bunnies indeed!
We’re hopping mad about Raising and Giving
– are you?!
Vote RAG Rabbits!
Russell-Hughes / Mann
RAG UP and VOTE for
US!
Hey guys,
Helen and Manny here
and we’re running for
RAG
ORGANISERS
09/10
Together we have vast
experience of organising
events and fundraising; also being part of
Freshers and Rag weeks. We feel we have the
right enthusiasm and skills for this role. We’re
passionate about making RAG count and
involving as many people as possible into the
RAG way of life.
We are keen to make RAG more successful
than ever!!!!!!
HOW?
* We’re going to create a week full of diverse
events to appeal to the wider student masses,
so everyone can join in on the RAG week fun!
* Keeping RAG favourites that always work,
we want to RAG them UP with our own unique
creativity; also adding our own new ideas to
the RAG events.
* RAG week is only 1 week of the year, we will
make all the other weeks count too, by have
continuing events during the year ensuring we
raise a record amount!
RAG has always been a significant organisation
and we really want to take the lead for Newcastle
next year, to help make a difference.
So RAG UP and VOTE for US!
@ http://vote.ncl.ac.uk
C
M
Y
K
31
[email protected]
CULTURE
9th March 2009
Art with a heart
Olivia Mee describes the ethos behind groundbreaking new project Ctrl.Alt.Shift.
and interviews one of the innovative young artists involved with the exhibition
Olivia Mee, Conflict
On the 13th of March, the BALTIC
gallery in Gateshead will exhibit
the work of art students from
Newcastle University. The theme
running throughout the work is
conflict; specifically conflict in
Colombia.
The project centres on the
guerrilla war that has now been
raging for over half a century,
which most outside of South
America know little about. The
students have been working
with local artists, as well as big
names from the London art
scene; Matthew Stone, Graham
Hudson, T.Magic and Benjamin
Wachenje. They have also been
up to Glasgow to visit the project
ambassador and well known
artist David Shrigley.
This high profile project has
been a brilliant opportunity for
Newcastle students to work
with one of the country’s leading
contemporary art galleries, and an
exciting young charity initiative:
Ctrl.Alt.Shift.
The students have been working
closely with mentors and the
BALTIC team to produce a group
show which will open this Friday
and hang in the gallery for the
next 6 weeks. Run under the
auspices of Christian Aid, the aim
behind Ctrl.Alt.Shift is to involve
politically aware young people in
bringing about change.
In a series of high profile projects,
including a sell-out dance piece
made in collaboration with
Sadler’s Wells and a photographic
competition running in Vice
Magazine, the BALTIC Project is an
important part of a programme of
creatively minded events trying
to bring about a change in society
through the arts.
The fourteen Newcastle students
involved, who span all four years
of the course, as well as a couple
of post-grad students, were asked
to respond to a specific issue: the
conflict in Colombia, a country
torn in half by guerrilla warfare.
The country has been locked
in a war since the 1950s, and
yet many know little about it.
The usual issues are all present;
corrupt politicians, a hugely out
of balance rich-to-poor divide,
and international governments
with vested interests constantly
working to keep the country in a
state of instability.
These issues are all adding up
to keep the country in turmoil.
Rural communities are forced
from profitable land, and families
are divided by allegiances
to either the governmentbacked paramilitaries or to The
Revolutionary Armed Forces
of Colombia Guerrilla group
(FARC). Atrocious human rights
violations are taking place daily.
Between 1996 and 2004 over
27,000 civilians were killed or
disappeared. 73% of these acts
were carried out by paramilitaries,
often with the direct support of
the state.
The aim of the BALTIC project
is to promote widespread
recognition of a conflict that
has suffered from a neglect of
international attention for many
decades. It aims to sow the
seed of enquiry, stir up debate
and challenge young people’s
increasing political apathy. The
show will present a group of young
artists working together to make
sincere statements about an issue
that they feel should be ignored
no longer. High profile artists
have been drafted in as mentor
figures for the students involved,
most notably the London based
photographer Matthew Stone
and the installation artist Graham
Hudson.
London based artist and the
students
mentor,
Graham
Hudson,
acknowledges
the
need for such exhibitions; ‘All
art is political- writing, music or
visual art are all comments and
responses to the world and reality.
They are a reaction, and an effort
at comprehension. The problems
in Colombia can not be separated
from Iraq or the Gaza strip; as long
as there is social injustice, there
will be armed responses. We can’t
want cheap goods in Tesco’s and
OM: How did you come to be
involved with ctrl.alt.shift?
BW: I have known the project’s
editor, Chantelle Fiddy, since we
both worked at Touch Magazine in
2002-3. We have worked together
on several projects since. When
she contacted me about ctrl.alt.
shift, I was glad to get involved.
OM: How has working with the
students up here been?
BW: I have enjoyed working with
the students. The group is full of
free thinking and free-spirited
individuals who have had a
positive effect on my creative
process. I miss working in groups
like I did whilst studying at art
school over 10 years ago. It is good
to bounce your ideas off other
people to see how they evolve.
This is obviously a motivated
group of artist who are already
actively furthering their talents.
OM: Do you think that the
Colombian conflict is something
that should be more exposed?
BW: I am worried about the
conflict because I don’t think
the international community is
too concerned about the fate of
Colombians. We don’t hear much
about Colombian history or about
the human tragedy that is ongoing.
Instead we are desensitized by a
barrage of reports about a nation
rife with drug cartels and militias
who wait to ambush and make
hostages of innocent American
tourist to fund more bloodshed.
The conflict in Colombia has
had plenty of exposure over the
decades; however, what we need
is the right kind of exposure; an
exposure that will help to effect
positive change.
OM: Do you think that art is
in a good place to start trying
to instigate political change, or
make comments on issues that
are often ignored?
BW: I think that, as artists, we
underestimate our own political
influence. Others don’t. The
most powerful governments
have always known how key
the artist is in winning the hearts
and mind of the people, and
skilfully use this artistic leverage
to steer the masses. Whether
Olivia Mee
Will Strong, Home Riot Kit
Portrait of an artist
Olivia Mee talks to up-andcoming young artist Benjamin
Wachenje about his involvment
in ctrl.alt.shift and the influence it
has upon his artwork.
low taxes and not be aware of the
knock on effect - cheap oil means
cheaper goods. Education is the
key- in Colombia and in the Home
Counties, and it’s a lifelong thing
- awareness and action - local and
global. So this is about the human
condition, and all good art deals
with that.’
Using art to speak out about
conflict and the atrocities of
war is nothing new; throughout
history artists have been war
correspondents and commentators
on the nature of conflict.
Our students are continuing
this tradition by producing
provocative artworks such as
Will Strong’s’, Home Riot Kit, a
piece which is particularly apt
at capturing the violent mob
culture that fuels conflict. In the
process, they have produced an
exciting and important show
that is definitely one to check out
over the next 6 weeks. For more
information, see www.balticmill.
com or www.ctrlaltshift.co.uk.
it’s the Communist posters, the
Nazi propaganda, or President
Obama
embracing
Shepard
Fairies’ portrait & guerrilla street
art campaign during the 2008
presidential election, the artist has
a voice. Sometimes a single image
can capture the imagination of a
nation. I would love to see a surge
of political art that highlights
ignored causes.
OM: Have you produced work
for the show?
BW: My role for ctrl.alt.shift is
only in a mentoring capacity.
However,
discussions
with
students during the workshops
have inspired me to start putting
together my first exhibition in 10
years. One theme I am exploring
at the moment is the impact that
conflict or war has on the young
mind.
OM: The show is in the BALTIC;
it is a brilliant opportunity for
our students to show work in
such a highly regarded gallery.
Do you have any advice to other
students who are thinking about
getting involved in projects
outside of the university?
BW: You don’t become an artist
when you receive a degree. You
become an artist the first time you
produce a work of art. While I was
at university, I used the studios
and facilities to produce work; it
was never about the certificate.
Only you can certify yourself as
an artist. So why wait until you
leave university to start exhibiting
in public galleries or spaces?
www.benjaminwachenje.com
Olivia Mee
CULTURE
[email protected]
32
9th March 2009
Ah, to be surrounded by Jilly Cooper paperbacks...arguably, who needs to leave the house in such a position?
However, studious though I am, we are students, and despite the similar etymological roots of those two words, studying and studenting are two very different
kettles of fish, my friends.
In previews this week you can witness leotards, cops and robbers and get your fill on interesting Newcastle happenings on the most influential blog of late in the
city, should these humble pages not be enough for ya. Chris Mandle’s been cracking himself up with Newcastle Student comedian Carl Hutchinson overleaf, too,
which makes a good read.
There really just isn’t enough time to do everything, which is why, after a week of doing everything, I now have a nasty phlegmmy disease and am restricted to
bed, fuelled only by lemsip. It’s ok though, I can get all the Coops action I can tackle. Hello, Rannaldini...
Snuffle, Vince-Ents xxx
previews
Roll Up, Roll
Up, The Circus
is Coming to
Town!
Thu 12th - Sun 15th @
Metro Radio Arena
Bringing their famously unique and
slightly bizarre stage show to British
arenas for the very first time, circus
troupe Cirque Du Soleil promise
to astound and mesmerize their
audience for 7 shows running from
the 12th to 15th of March.
Now, when I say ‘circus’, I don’t
mean the tacky fairground ones that
you may have gone to during your
childhood – you know, populated
with seedy ringmasters, mistreated
and malnourished animals and creepy
clowns that you suspected would try
and molest you if they had the chance
– but a cirque nouveau (that’s means
‘new circus’ in French), which is a
modern masterpiece which combines
traditional elements of circus – such
as clowns, trapeze artists etc. – with
more contemporary elements of art,
dance and comedy.
First founded in Canada in 1984,
Cirque Du Soleil now features 50
extraordinarily talented performers
from 14 countries all across the world
and with the motto of “bringing the
impossible to life”, it promises to be
a spectacular show which will thrill
old and young alike; an exhilarating
combination of gravity defying
acrobats, awe-inspiring aerial acts,
contortionists,
rope-jumpers,
a
balancing duo and – what circus is
complete without them? – clowns.
Sounds great, doesn’t it?
However, I have a few problems
with the Cirque Du Soleil. Firstly is
the price – every single ticket costs
a whopping £50, which is out of
reach of just about the entire student
population of Newcastle, minus
those lucky few who don’t actually
rely on either a soul-destroying job
or their life-saving student loan for
cash money.
Secondly, I can’t take the Cirque Du
Soleil seriously following an episode
of South Park entitled ‘Quintuplets
2000’ which profiles a thinly veiled
Cirque De Cheville, a moneyobsessed, over-the-top circus infested
with annoying clowns, pretentious
opera singers, and, of course, identical
8-year-old quintuplet contortionists
from Romania.
Of course, the writers of South Park
are spot on in their depiction of the
Cirque Du Soleil; it is over the top,
and it is ridiculous, but it is also a
great deal of fun. So, if you can deal
with the extravagance and the price,
then the Cirque Du Soleil is sure to be
a night not to miss!
Philip Copley
Burglar Bill andThisZane
Saturday,
@ The
Lowe at Arcane 14th
Union
Mark Cocoran-Lettice reports on the new
We used to play cops and
robbers in the playground
before yo-yos hit the scene.
If memory serves me right
the point of the game was the
same as with all playground
pastimes. The fat lazy kids,
the ‘cops’, had to pursue the
‘robbers’, the athletic kids who
inevitably outmanoeuvred the
chunkies time after time.
Thinking about it now, it was
probably a form of systematic
bullying, but I doubt the Arcane
crew meditated that much on
playground hierarchies when
coming up with this term’s
fancy dress theme.
They were probably thinking
more along the lines of foxy
uniform regalia, sexy fun times
with fluffy handcuffs, and how
much students love playing
‘find the truncheon’.
But in a way, Arcane is like
those childhood escapades,
because as soon as you
walk through the Union’s
pearly gates, you somehow
immediately lose track of
your friends, and your night
devolves into the biggest,
drunkest game of hide and
seek you’ve played since… last
term’s pirate-themed Arcane!
Apart from perhaps a haunted
castle, or the set for the Crystal
Maze, our Union is the best
place for these into-the-weehours shenanigans, because it’s
just so sprawling, and because
every room offers something
different. What an adventure
waits in store for us.
And potentially a cracking
soundtrack too. Baggy-shorttoting, hairy-leg-revealing kiwi
radio Gonzo guy Zane Lowe is
the headline act, which should
draw the crowds in.
Although not the greatest
Dj in purely technical terms,
he knows how to pull some
wopping tunes out of the bag,
firing them off like a Gatling
gun.
His sidekicks in the main
room are local lads TC
Monckton (Wax On) and Ben
Yates (Born in the 80s).
In other Union Bassment
cubby-holes we’re provided
with a Drum & Bass room,
some reggae from Prince Wey
I & The Rude Boyz, and a room
of electro quirks and glitches
hosted by Sonix.
And if you’ve overexerted
yourself a bit by gallivanting
all over the place, then you can
pop up to the Cochrane Lounge
for some Homemade Jam and
a gentle unwind.
Although technically that’s
what the Easter holidays are
for.
Alex Bowell
little blog taking Newcastle by storm
Launching this month, the Isolationist
is a new online publication
that provides information and
commentary on the arts and media
in Newcastle.
Headed up by freelance music
journalist and NARC co-founder
Andrew Fenwick, the Isolationist
aims to showcase some of Newcastle’s
hidden gems, promote the numerous
events happening in the city but also
cast a critical eye upon the received
opinions of the mainstream.
While artists, musicians and
writers are the predominant focus
of the website, there’s also dedicated
sections to film, food, politics and the
media (with the latter two sections
set to be bolstered by the addition
of some yet-to-be-announced guest
bloggers, with the aim of making it a
first port of call for breaking industry
news).
Written by local journalists, artists,
photographers and film-makers
(not to mention several past and
present students from this very
university), the Isolationist aims to
use the expertise of its contributors
to provide a new, independent voice
for the arts in the Newcastle area.
Accessible
at
http://www.
isolationist.co.uk/, it’s set to become
increasingly comprehensive not
only in its commentary but also in
its listings, aiming to involve local
promoters to provide as complete a
service as possible.
It may be in its infancy, but the
Isolationist has the potential to
become a key player in the Newcastle
cultural world.
Mark Corcoran-Lettice
C
M
Y
K
33
[email protected]
CULTURE
9th March 2009
reviews & comment
‘The Credit Crunch it’s a big lie!’
Chris Mandle interviews
Funnyman Alumni Carl Hutchinson
Barely able to stand up, I tried
to pour a pint of Guinness for a
portly looking man.
People were giving me odd
looks, perhaps because everything
was making me giggle. And I was
trying to sing ‘Sex on Fire’ word
for word. Badly. This is what
happens when you have a few too
many with Carl Hutchinson.
It’s
all
this
journalism
malarkey. When I was told I’d
be interviewing the Geordie
comedian I imagined meeting
him, Dictaphone in hand, calmly
asking him a few questions. I
n true interview style, I’d ask
about the road he took to get to
stand up comedy, every now and
then asking him trivial muck like
his opinion of ‘Dancing on Ice’,
just to remind people who read
the article that he’s really normal
and knows about everyday stuff.
I’ve never interviewed a
comedian before. Walking to the
Men’s Bar early Saturday evening,
I had two very different scenarios
playing on how my meeting with
Carl would go .
The first, and easily the worst,
was that that this sharp-tongued
Geordie would invariably tear
me to pieces with decisive wit,
like slashing apart a canvas with
a sword.
The other, more favourable
result, was that he was one of
those people who you’d happily
chat around with and find you
have everything in common,
resulting in adding on Facebook
and relishing life itself.
It soon transpired that Carl was
a potent mix of both. We went
from chatting about bouncers
(‘they’re always called Dave’, he
points out) to effortlessly making
up band names (’how about
Great Times With Your Mates?’)
to the philosophical angle of how
the Tyne bridge looks nothing
like a heart - see the Newcastle
Brown Ale T-shirts for more
information.
How long have you been doing
stand-up?
About 2 years now, my first gig
was at the Dog & Parrot.
What current comedians would
you say you’re like?
Comedy is about character, and
personality, so I’m very much
unique in what I do - just like
everyone else. Saying that though,
I would cite Ricky Gervais and
Ross Noble as influences, they’re
great to watch.
When asked about how much
confidence is required, Carl
told me it was important to lose
yourself slightly. ‘I mean, a bad
reaction to a joke can be a right
kick in the crotch,’ he said. ‘But
using it can be effective’. After
buying me a pint (great guy!),
Carl told me about his current
lifestyle, which involves working
around the clock doing comedy
gigs and…teaching kids?
So you teach during the day and
make people laugh at night?
[Laughs] yea, I do. I suppose
when you put it like that it sounds
quite exciting. But I’ve only just
graduated from Newcastle, so
I’m still quite new to it.
What did you do at Uni?
Maths!
That’s quite a jump!
Yea I know [Laughs]. I was always
good at it, I suppose. [Teaching
and Comedy] sound worlds
apart, but if you can control a load
of kids, you can handle the worst
audiences at gigs. It’s all about
just acknowledging a bad reaction
instead of getting embarrassed
and cocking up.
Any thoughts on the Credit
Crunch?
Thousands. First of all - it’s a big
lie! People blame the credit crunch
for draining their money, when
really, if they stopped shopping at
Marks and Spencer’s and buying
toilet paper from Fenwick’s they’d
probably be fine. At Christmas
everyone kept saying on the
news ‘oh well you know, it’s the
credit crunch, but it’s Christmas
so…fuck it!’ as if it’s Rock, Paper
Scissors. Christmas beats Credit
Crunch, but Credit Crunch wins
over…something else.
Alcohol?
Good one. Credit Crunch wins
over Alcohol because nobody goes
out on the weekends anymore!
And Alcohol subsequently wins
over Christmas…
Right, because Crimbo is way
better when you’re splattered.
You’re good at this!
Comedians are good at thinking
quick on their feet…so what was
the best excuse you ever gave?
My house was broken into!
Did you?
No! That was the excuse. I had an
old job [Carl refuses to state this
job for fear of being caught] and
said my house was broken into to
skip work. I also said I got hit by
a car once…that was to get out of
this rugby gig. It wasn’t going to
be a lot of money which wouldn’t
cover my expenses…so I ducked
out of it the manly way.
Let’s hope they don’t find out…
Chris Mandle
Oldfields: How did it
win all those prizes?
‘Best of British’? Well, if that is the
case then we should be thoroughly
embarrassed as a nation, that
Oldfields decided to market
themselves as such.
When i received the offer, I was
quite excited at the prospect of
reviewing Oldfields in Newcastle
after having been told by several
friends that one can expect an
excellent dining experience there.
However, both myself and my
friend were bitterly disappointed
with our lunch.
The service on the whole was
very good, except they seemed
ever so keen to have us in and
out within the hour. We had three
different members of the waiting
team attending to us, and one
particular waiter most certainly
made a lasting impression.
Due to his overly enthusiastic
approach in trying to impress us he
sent the salt cellar hurtling across
the floor before embarrassingly
backing away from the table in
such a manner which could only
draw a comparison with Manuel
from Fawlty Towers.
The food can only be described
as poor. To start I had smoked
salmon and capers, which was just
that. No dressing, no little salad
accompaniment, not even a wedge
of lemon, just salmon with a handful
of capers thrown on top. For the
main course, I opted for potato
dumplings. With no description
on the menu, I envisaged a hearty
meal, however, I was very much
confronted with what appeared to
be an oversized bowl with a lump
of melted cheese in the base of it.
After probing the nauseatingly
smelling cheese, I discovered some
soggy little potato croquette-like
‘things’ with pickled onions thrown
into the mix.
It was quite simply foul. My
friend decided on lamb, which
appeared to be quite tasty, however
the roasties, which accompanied it,
were, according to her, soggy and
tasteless.
To finish off, we went for Eton
Mess and sticky toffee pudding,
both of which lacked anything
even remotely different.
After having paid the bill,
with our dessert plates still on
the table, we walked away with
our stomachs distinctly vacant
of anything wholesome and a
certain resentment towards the
establishment for attempting to
provide ‘the best of British’.
With Pizza Express just across the
road, Oldfields is best being left
well alone until something changes,
such as another restaurant opening
in its place, as it is such a waste of a
stunning building.
Luke Kershaw
BOOM!: Re-visiting your childhood
was never this inappropriate...
Oh we all know what runs
through everyone’s heads when
they discover this particular bar –
“BOOM BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! I
WANT YOU IN MY ROOM!”
While the nonsensical lyrics
of the Vengaboys don’t exactly
appeal to everyone, Boom! is a bar
that every student should try at
least once!
Erring on the cheesier side of
Newcastle nightlife, the upbeat
nineties bar can be found in
Charlotte Square, just down from
the Gate.
I was first introduced to it in my
first year on one of the legendary
and alcohol-hazed uni badminton
club socials.
It’s a favourite of the society - the
pole by the flashing dance floor
is a regular feature on Facebook,
adorned by a tiddly badminton
enthusiast who more often than
not, looks like an absolute tit.
Last Wednesday saw our
raucous group flood Boom!, with
the ladies team high on an 8-0 win,
and everyone else merrily enjoying
the bi-annual 2-til-2 social (yes, 12
hours of drinking!).
To be honest, whether we were
under the influence or not, rest
assured that we had a brilliant and
frankly hilarious time.
The plentiful 90’s memorabilia
splattered across all the walls,
including the slightly creepy
Tellytubbies are a real nostalgia
kick for those who remember
the days of “Fun House” and
e-numbers.
The epilep-tastic flashing dance
floor and anthem that is “CottonEyed-Joe” were magnetic and
within five seconds, we were all
flinging ourselves about and dosi-so-ing wildly.
As should be expected from
a bunch of students, numerous
pile-ups ensued, much to the
bemusement, rather than irritation
of the bar-staff.
Once the Macarena came on, the
President of the badminton club
was, in fact, brought to tears of joy
by one particular (boy) fresher’s
enthusiastic wiggling.
As previously mentioned, the
infamous pole received a LOT of
attention – mostly by the guys,
who all tried and failed to pull
off some convincing pole-dancing
moves.
The pole is shielded from the
entrance so that those who have
just arrived aren’t greeted with
the sight of a drunk and probably
sweaty student gyrating along to
Take That.
Boom! certainly isn’t just for
the cheesy-pop lovers; as the
generation who remember the
glorious nineties, it’s an injection
of kitsch that snuggles in between
the generic indie clubs, and that’s
just why we love it.
Stephanie Ferrao
CULTURE
pulp.fi[email protected]
34
9th March 2009
Tragic news, film fans. The last munchkin has died. Yes, the last living actor to portray one of the munchkins in The Wizard of Oz passed away at the grand old
age of 91. Clarence Swensen was one of 124 little people used in the Munchkinland sequences when the movie was made 71 years ago. These are sad times,
gentle readers, these are sad times.
While pondering the subject of munchkins and death - a topic I frequently alight on - I got thinking about other memorable little people throughout the years.
Whatever happened to the oompa loompas of the 70’s classic Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory? From the serious amounts of detective work on the imdb,
it seems that most of them have been taken from this earthly plane also. Who can forget the sing-song music of oompa-loompa-doo-pa-tee-doo, and the bright
orange faces of those lost actors?
Nowadays we only really have pseudo-celebrity Verne Troyer kicking about the little person scene. He, like the munchkins before him, capitalises on his
physicality, using his size for comedy in films like Austin Powers. He has even got a Hilton-esque sex tape floating around - which I won’t be looking up any
time soon. So this editorial goes out to all the munchkins and the oompa loompas of the film world - we love you, guys.
As for me, I’m thinking a cup of tea and a date with Dorothy would go down a treat this evening. See you next week!
Ashley x
Life Through a Lens
Adam Williams explores the rise and fall of 3D cinema...
The history of 3D films is
distinctly
underwhelming.
Hollywood studios have never
successfully
launched
and,
more importantly, sustained the
presentation of movies in this
format.
While the technology has links
back to the 1920’s, it wasn’t until
the 50’s that a serious attempt at
launching 3D was made. With the
threat of the television worrying
the studios, they were eager to
create new incentives for people
to come to the cinema.
The early 50’s craze for 3D had
died out by 1954; both studios and
theatres were frustrated by the
complicated techniques needed to
screen the films correctly.
It would generally take 2
projectionists to monitor a film
and worn reels would often cause
eye strain and headaches. During
the 60’s and 70’s there were few
3D films released. Those that
did get released were largely
pornographic or horror and,
with no major studios making
these films, the quality of the
productions was obviously low.
Horror was seen as an area
where 3D could be put to good use
and the start of the 80’s spawned
a series of films utilising the
technology. Jaws 3, Amityville III
and Friday the 13th Part III all used
3D as a way to scare audiences,
with mixed results.
With these film franchises already
in decline public perception of 3D
was that it was being used as a
Clerks (1994)
Director:Kevin Smith
Starring: Brian
O’Halleran, Jeff
Anderson
There’s a story behind Kevin
Smith’s
break-through
film
Clerks that is either an inspiring
testament to the possibilities of
self-belief or a testament to plain
stupidity. Personally, I’ve always
taken it as the former.
In order to fund the filming
of this black and white
comedy, which was
shot during his days
off in the convenience
store where he was
working at the time,
Smith
accumulated
enough bad debt in
credit cards and loans to
cripple him financially. He took
a punt on his own idea – and if it
were to flop as the great majority
of independent films do, then
he was facing an economic
meltdown all of his own.
It walked away that
season
having
taken
awards at both Cannes and
Sundance and would go
on to be voted Total Film’s
16th greatest comedy of
way to prop up a tired film series.
These films emerged at a time
when home video was posing a
significant threat to the studios, or
so they thought.
They were eager to combat any
potential shift away from cinema
and saw 3D as a way to prevent
it. Only the third instalment of
the Friday the 13th series showed
a box office improvement from
the previous film in the franchise
while the other two couldn’t even
make half the money that their
direct predecessors earned.
Once more, 3D was dismissed
as a gimmick and another forced
period of inactivity began.
Despite this, Disney launched
exclusive 3D films at
the Walt Disney
World Resort
in
Florida
in the early
90’s.
Both
Jim Henson’s
MuppetVision
3D and Honey,
I Shrunk the
Audience
p r o v e d
popular with
guests but,
while Disney
added further
3D films to
their parks, they
did not look to
release
films
theatrically in
this way for
over a decade.
It was 2003 before, under
Disney’s Dimension Films label,
the next major Hollywood release,
Robert Rodriguez’s Spy Kids 3D:
Game Over. This film surpassed
the box office takings of the second
film and nearly matched the
impressive profits of the original.
The impact of the internet and
high definition home cinema
was seen as a danger to cinema
chains. As they did in the 80’s, the
studios turned to 3D when a new
technology threatened to drive
people away from cinemas.
The problem was that they still
used the same anaglyph based
technology that was being used
50 years before. The familiar red/
blue glasses were still blamed for
headaches
and
all time. The punt worked, and, in
the financial sense at least, Smith
never looked back.
Artistically however he’s never
really moved on. Smith is to the
low-brow stoner comedy what
Spielberg is to the blockbuster;
except that with this debut he
peaked in a way that none of his
other films (with the possible
exception of 1997’s Chasing Amy)
would ever manage.
He has been plundering his own
original ideas ever since, and even
went back on his pledge to leave
the characters of Clerks alone by
making 2006’s Clerks II, a hitand-miss
revisitation that did nothing to
change his reputation as a man
who has ran out of ideas.
Nevertheless, this debut can be
considered a sort of American
Withnail & I – a low budget,
technically-inferior movie carried
beyond its means by outstanding
character
performances
and
unforgettable bouts of dialogue.
While following a pair of
perennial losers around their
menial jobs for day, Smith’s script
soars between topics as diverse as
sexual jealously, existentialism,
human failure, morality and fate
using pop culture as a constant
reference point.
It introduced two true icons
of indie cinema in Jay & Silent
Bob (the latter played by Smith
himself), as well as Randel, the
video store clerk who must
hold the record for greatest
amount of hilarious,
scathing monologues in
any one film.
It speaks eloquently
to the frustrations and
limitations of working
life, explores several of
our common denials and
our pretentions about
ourselves, and captures
perfectly the idiosyncratic
nature of true friendship.
It
is
a
genuine
independant indie great and a
fine example to aspiring film
makers everywhere.
Above all though, it’s very,
very funny.
Sam Parker
eye strain, forcing studios to look
at new ways of presenting 3D
films.They tested 3D once more
with the release of The Polar
Express in late 2004 and found
overwhelmingly positive results.
While the film may have
been poorly received, IMAX
cinemas showing a 3D version
outperformed the ‘flat’ 2D version
at a rate of 14 to 1. IMAX cinemas
had been showing 3D films for
some time but they were largely
short documentaries and not
mainstream films. They also used
an analogue technology which
was not capable of showing all
new releases. Meanwhile, digital
3D equipment was developed,
with impressive results.
D i s n e y
executives
were
so
impressed
with the
consistent
standards
that they
reconfigured
a film already
in production,
Chicken Little,
to make the
film in 3D.
This was a
success
with
the 3D version
taking
in
three times
as
much
m o n e y
as its flat
I was in such a tangle trying to
decide who to talk about for this
article; I ripped my DVD collection
apart trying to remember my
favourite film performances, and
if you’d spoken to me during the
last week it would have been a
“definitely” for someone different
every 20 minutes.
But I’ve settled on one that I wasn’t
expecting. Ladies and Gentlemen,
I give you John Cusack. Okay, he’s
been involved in some appalling
films (Con Air anyone?) but I like
to think that rather than detracting
from his cinematic appeal, Cusack
enriches these shockers by being
really freakin’ cool in them.
Look at his body of work and tell
me he’s not worthy of recognition.
He’s often overlooked, and I
don’t know why because
he really does have it
going on, and in no film
more so than my personal
favourite Grosse Point
Blank.
Cusack
plays
Martin
Blank,
a
thirtysomething
professional assassin
who decides to attend
his high school reunion
and win back the lost love
of his life. God, when you
put it like that it sounds
counterpart. More animated films,
such as Meet the Robinsons, were
put into production and this was
followed by the release of Journey
to the Center of the Earth in 2008.
This was the first live action 3D
film and the format accounted for
two thirds of the films impressive
gross. Disney again promoted
the format with the release of
Bolt while Lionsgate’s My Bloody
Valentine 3D proved that there was
an audience for 3D films aimed
solely at adults, 3D accounting for
over 80% of that film’s box office
takings.
With upcoming films such as
Disney’s Alice in Wonderland
starring Johnny Depp and Fox’s
epic Avatar being released in
3D, the studios are showing a
commitment to the format. Cinema
take up of 3D projectors has risen
rapidly with theatres now battling
it out to install new projectors
before their competitors.
Has the 3D revolution finally
arrived? Time will tell.
Adam Williams
unbearably trite. It’s not, it’s
brilliant; a dark comedy with a
razor sharp script and an excellent
supporting cast.
But I digress. This is about John,
not Grosse Point. Cusack portrays
Blank as unhinged yet apathetic;
a man on the verge of discovering
something life-changing that he’s
not sure of.
He’s uneasy and he’s jumpy,
but that’s his profession. He’s
slick and he’s cool, but that’s all
a front to win over his dream
girl. It’s a performance of subtle
contradictions played out with
effortless charisma.
I think it’s true of all Cusack’s
performances that he manages to
make you fall a little bit in love
with his character regardless of
who it is; that’s why I love him,
that’s why I love Grosse Point, and
he is why you should see it if you
haven’t yet.
Madeline Gould
C
M
Y
K
35
pulp.fi[email protected]
CULTURE
9th March 2009
Gran Torino
Director: Clint Eastwood
Staring: Clint Eastwood,
Christopher Carley, Bee Vang
Run Time: 116 minutes
Cert: 15
The cinematic legend that is
Clint Eastwood has always been
an influential cornerstone in
American film, taking on some
of the most iconic roles that
the silver screen has offered as
well as directing several films
that can only be categorized as
masterpieces.
The man’s most famous onscreen
performances can be divided
into two fundamental genres;
spaghetti westerns and gritty
cop dramas. Well if his 1992 film
Unforgiven was his final tribute to
his cowboy days and his mentor,
Franklyn
Director: Gerald McMorrow
Starring: Eva Green, Sam Riley,
Ryan Phillippe, Bernard Hill
Run Time: 98 minutes
Cert: 15
After I had secured the review
of Franklyn I realised I had no real
clue what it was actually about!
This lack of foreknowledge is
integral to enjoying Franklyn, so I
must tread carefully to not spoil
anything!
Writer/Director
McMorrow’s
first film brings together four
lost individuals. In present day
London, Emilia (Green) a troubled
art student bases her latest project
around her own suicide attempts
while Milo (Riley) searches for
his childhood sweetheart and
lonely church warden Peter (Hill)
searches for his son.
The
International
Director: Tom Tykwer
Starring: Clive Owen,
Naomi Watts
Running time: 117mins
Cert: 15
The International epitomises
the notorious mediocrity of film
releases following the Oscar
season. Offering a vaguely
topical but highly unoriginal
plot, it follows Interpol agent
Louis Salinger (Clive Owen) and
Manhattan Assistant District
Attorney Eleanor ‘Ellie’ Whitman
New in
Town
Director: Jonas Elmer
Starring: Renee Zellweger, Harry
Connick Jr, Siobhan Fallon
Run Time: 97 mins
Cert: 12A
Lucy (Zellweger) a high-powered
consultant in love with her upscale
Miami lifestyle is sent to a middleof-nowhere town in Minnesota to
oversee the restructuring of a blue
collar manufacturing plant.
Her initial reaction to the town is
a negative one - firstly it’s cold, the
people are “weird” and everything
is so slow moving. Upon arrival
she meets Blanche (Fallon) who
is to be her secretary, and Blanche
insists on throwing her a welcome
Sergio Leone, then Gran Torino
pays the same respect to his Dirty
Harry pictures and director Don
Siegel.
The story is focused on Walt
Kowalski (Clint Eastwood), a
racist war veteran, who after
burying his recently departed
wife encounters his young Asian
neighbour attempting to steal his
1972 Gran Torino sports car and
after some persuading sets out to
reform the young boy’s life away
from the criminal path that it
appears he is meant to take.
However the local street gang
violently react to this decision
forcing Kowalski to use the skills
he adopted during his military
tours to re-establish order in the
neighbourhood.
With a story that incorporates
themes such as redemption and
responsibility so deeply into the
narrative, Clint Eastwood seems
the perfect filmmaker to direct and
The fourth character is the
enigmatic
assassin
Preest
(Phillippe), who hunts a fanatical
religious leader in the Gothic,
Burton-esque Meanwhile City.
The film moves between these
two worlds which collide in a
satisfying finale. This is jarring
at first as the two worlds are so
differently presented; for instance
the Meanwhile sections are
dominated by Phillippe’s noirstyle narration, contrasting to the
human drama in London.
The film’s themes deal with the
meaty subjects of loss, trauma,
religious
fanaticism,
control,
censorship, reality, perception
and fantasy. The film is definitely
a slow-burning thinker rather than
an all-out action-fest, and brain
power is required to digest the
intelligent themes put forward.
What is fantastic about Franklyn is
that it is not in any way formulaic;
it is incredibly original and the
complex plot is well directed so as
not to alienate the audience.
star in the picture. However his
latest cinematic offering suffers
from a number of basic problems,
the most prominent of which is
that while Kowalski is a multi
layered and intriguing individual
the rest of the characters are
surprisingly clichéd and paperthin. This is amplified even
more as the supporting cast are
weak and struggle to create any
sympathy that their roles require.
Still the joy of this film is the
driving force behind it. Clint
Eastwood reassures his fans and
critics that even at the age of 78
he has still got what it takes to
churn out another memorable
performance.
Kowalski’s past experiences and
memories are perfectly brought
out by Eastwood’s performance
and while the rest of the actors may
not be up to the same standard,the
running time is dominated, quiet
rightly, by the leading man.
The casting is excellent and
every actor delivers note-perfect
performances. Green and Riley
are intensely dedicated and
Phillippe commands attention
despite spending most of his onscreen time hidden behind his
disquieting mask.
Artistically
the film is a joy, the colour palette
is rich, the art direction of the
dystopian Meanwhile City is a
sumptuous feast for the eyes and
the score is delicately magical.
Franklyn is ‘Cinematic Marmite’
you will either love it or feel really
irked by it. I loved it and have kept
thinking about it since I left the
cinema. If you enjoy films which
really make you think and you’re
yearning for something fresh and
original then Franklyn is for you!
(Naomi Watts) as they attempt to
uncover, and expose, one of the
world’s most powerful banks’
corrupt and murderous actions.
Although the plot has potential,
the dialogue is uninteresting
and riddled with over the top
analogies and cliches. Attempts at
tension fall flat, the action scenes
fall flat; the film is just an entirely
flat affair.
It fluctuates between varying
levels of implausibility whilst
exhibiting frankly odd scenes such
as Ellie being run over by a car
only to escape uninjured. These
come to a head in the laughable
final rooftop chase.
The two leads also seem to be
completely lacking in personality
and motivation. What is their
relationship? What exactly drives
them to be so fixated on bringing
the bank to justice; surely not
simply a moral obligation? Why
are they so boring?
The most we learn about them
is that Louis failed to solve a case
a few years ago and Ellie has
a husband and son. Character
development at its finest. Owen
is also given the opportunity to
again showcase his ‘moody’ side
using his patented ‘gritted teeth’
acting style.
In order for this film to work, I
really needed to empathise with
the characters. As The International
drew to a conclusion I found
myself not really interested in
which ‘side’ won and just wanting
it to end. Their plight becomes all
the more irrelevant since I do not
care if they live or die.
dinner to give her the opportunity
to meet some people in town.
There she meets Ted (Connick
Jr), a “beer drinking, truck driving
county music loving man”, and
the two don’t pair up so well.
Unbeknown to Lucy, Ted is the
union leader and the pair have to
work together.
Lucy’s role in New Ulm is
to implement new working
strategies at the Munck food plant
in Minnesota and to downsize.
She decides she has had enough
and wants to return to Miami,
however unfortunately for her,
there is a snow storm and all
flights are cancelled, forcing her
to return. As time goes by and she
gets to know the people she finds
the task of cutting jobs more and
more difficult, and even returns
to Miami in protest when her boss
says that they are closing the plant
down.
In true chick flick fashion, a love
story develops between Ted and
Lucy and they soon realise that their
initial differences are a result of
their own personal circumstances,
Ted is a widower, and Lucy has a
real rags to riches story. The pair
end up working together in order
to save the plant from closing,
thanks to her ingenious idea of
creating a new product that will
not only make good money for the
firm, it will be an excellent rival
for the competition. I thought
this film was nice and definitely
funny in parts, however it doesn’t
compare to some of Zellweger’s
other comedies.
reviews
If this is to be his final appearance
in front of the camera, as he has
stated, then it is a fantastic swan
song embedded with attributes of
past characters that he has played
and that we have come to adore.
While Gran Torino could of
done with a stronger supporting
cast and a touch of Paul Haggis
(Million Dollar Baby) in the script
it still remains another classic
turn from Eastwood and another
reminder of how much he will
be missed by moviegoers when
he leaves the silver screen for the
final time.
James Fairfield
Becca Hodgson
Christina Renner
Finally, the overall message
of despair is, although realistic,
just annoying. The issues The
International raises are important
and relevant, especially in the
current economic crisis, however it
is simply outrageously forgettable.
Definitely best to just leave your
money in the bank, you will not
be missing out.
Nick O’Loughnan
36
9th March 2009
CULTURE
[email protected]
Heath: Where did this term go? We’re talking only two weeks left now, so we’re trying our hardest to
fit all the musical happenings in. Promise. There sure is a treat of end of term partying to do, so get
on it!
Dave: Don’t even talk to me about it Heath, the thought of this all being over and us, gulp, graduating,
fills me with the greatest fear imaginable. Anyway, it’s not quite over yet, we still have loads to cram
in to the few remaining issues, so we hope you keep the faith and pour over the best pages The
Courier has to offer. Then read music if you’ve got any time left, I guess.
Peace. Dave and Heath ([email protected]) xx
interview
BOSS
Olivia Mee talks to the music section’s tip for the top this year, Jay Jay
Pistolet. He’s supported Johnny Flynn and Laura Marling amongst others
already, we hear how he feels about coming to Newcastle...
OM: Hello Justin, How are you
doing this fine February day?
show’s unifying themes of real,
surreal and illusion.)
JJP: Hello! I’m good thanks. I’m
OM: The Sage in Gateshead is an
answering your questions from
the studio which is very exciting.
OM: So, could you explain your
stage name...Where does it come
from?
JJP: Its the worst stage name
ever! My initials are JJ and I
thought having a French word to
rhyme with them might make me
sound cultured.
“
amazing venue, are you looking
forward to playing this huge
Opera house?
JJP:
I’ve played at the sage
before. Its my favourite venue in
the country!
OM: What are you working on at
the moment?
JJP: I’m doing a new EP. I’m
“favourite
...The Sage is my
venue in the
country...
OM: What has been your most
memorable gig to date?
JJP:
Without a doubt the 02
arena. It’s funny because even if
I fulfil all my dreams I doubt I’ll
ever play there again!
”
really excited. I think its going
to be really good! After the Noah
and the Whale tour I’m off to play
some shows in the USA.
...everyone
should
OM: You have played a lot of
check out Little Joy.
OM: So you have been described gigs supporting other London
Incredible!...
by fellow troubadour Frank artists such as Kid Harpoon
”
OM: You are currently on tour
with Noah & the Whale, how is
that going?
JJP: They are one of my favourite
bands and some of my favourite
people so it’s awesome! The Club
Silencio format is really forward
thinking as well so I’m really
happy to be a part of it.
(The Club Silencio tour will be
an evening of film and music
curated by N&TW. The blending
of moving-image, projection and
live sets will create a complete
evening of entertainment from
doors to coats. The name of the
tour is an allusion to the David
Lynch film scene but also to the
Turner as “the last of the great
romantic poets” How does that
assertion sit with you?
JJP: I’m not sure I agree with
it! I’m very flattered but I think I
have a
long way to go...
OM: Your latest EP, ‘Happy
Birthday You’ (produced by
Charlie Fink of Noah & the Whale)
came out last November, have
you had good reactions
to it so far?
don’t really see it as a scene
though. Scenes are dangerous.
Ultimately most people in a scene
sink and very few swim.
OM: So you’ve been ‘tipped
for the top in 2009’ amongst the
music press (The Courier notably!)
but who are Jay Jays Pistolets
recommendations for our readers
to check out?
JJP: Everyone should check out
Little Joy. Incredible!
Alex:
Oh look, Green Man
Festival has just announced that
headliners are to include Wilco,
Wooden Shjips and Bon Iver.
Quite a peaceful line up they
have there. Which reminds me;
earlier this week we were all sat
around chatting about festivals,
and what the experience was like.
Forest Gump below (he’ll get
onto that in a min) loves Leeds
fest., he savours the experience
of getting pickled as soon as he
JJP: Thank you!
See you soon..
and have since gone on to
tour with Mumford & sons,
Johnny Flynn and Laura
Marling. How does it feel
being included in this
much talked about
London folk scene?
Jay Jay plays the
Sage on the 10th
March.
The majority of people
have an idea of what song they
want played when they marry
– mine is ‘Wild Horses’ by the
Rolling Stones – or when they
die; this latter one is undecided
as hopefully it’s a long way off.
I reckon it’ll get
Arcane busy again.
Friendly Fires
new single
It’s a catchy number.
Erol hits
Victoria
Park
Maybe Field Day
Festival will be better
this year then...
Oasis banned
from China
The govs got a ‘beef’
with them apparently.
Gary Barlow
collapsing
And on his trek up
Kilamanjaro for charity.
JJP: It’s amazing
to
have
so
many talented
friends.
I
Kanye sticks up
for Chris Brown
Yeah, like, ‘cos
violence is cool.
Bin Jenga
It’s no fun clearing up a
months worth of rubbish
in one go...
thing I’ve ever done that I’m really
proud of. Being proud of your art
should come first & foremost.
Thankfully most people that heard
it seemed to understand what we
were trying to do.
Pip:
Zane coming
to our Union
for talking to us today, we hope
you enjoy playing Newcastle and
look forward to the show!
GASH
Vocals with Pip and Alex
This week, the boys discuss
festivals and dance related
injury....
All the music you could
ever want, for free.
OM: Well, Thank you very much
JJP: Yes, actually. It’s the first
wakes, shouting football chants
at people and pissing on people’s
tents. Oh, and he likes seeing
live music too. You see, this is
exactly what puts me off the big
festivals: as soon as they enter
the grounds people develop a
mob mentality and go bonkers.
They get so drunk/pilled up
that they can’t discern one act
from the other, and all they leave
the festival with is memories
of burning a load of their stuff
at 4 in the morning, and about
that one time this drunk guy
gave them a half-eaten burger to
finish off because he was about
to vomit up his duodenum. So
here’s a question for y’all, if, like
me, you aren’t into all this young
person malarkey, what’s the best
fest to opt for?
Spotify
But what about the song you
want played while you receive
a serious injury? Well, mine was
decided for me last week. Imagine
this scenario: you go for a nice,
relaxed tapas meal with two
friends who you both respect and
admire, then have a few drinks
down at the Trent. While at said
pub you witness a brilliant show
from some rappers – rapping
being, of course, a traditional
dance from Northumberland,
and not some blokes from
Compton chatting about bitches
and/or hos – and then decide to
carry on the drinking at home.
You go home, having lost one of
your companions but having also
discovered two more, and drink
like a fish. Music is playing, and
as the rhythm (and alcohol) takes
over, you dance. My drunken
dancing is like a tube of Pringles
– not only will it involve potatobased snacks at some point in the
evening, but once I’ve started
I can’t stop. Which is fine, until
you dislocate your knee, and
have to go to hospital. The
song in question, responsible
for the next 8 weeks of pain
and discomfort? ‘Buddy Holly’
by Weezer. Massive tune, and
there’s no song I would rather
have hurt myself to. Well, either
that or ‘Dr Jones’ by Aqua...
Alex:
I’d say the Pringles
analogy would be more accurate
if you linked the unorthodox
curves of the crisps to the
ridiculous shapes you pull whilst
‘dancing’… But then I’d rather
scrap all the loquacious clap trap,
and just call you a burke.
Alex Bowell
&
Philip Copley
Student
Poll
This week, we asked
100 of you:
‘Are you going to
Arcane?’
Yes
73%
C
No
27%
M
Y
K
CULTURE
9th March 2009
37
[email protected]
previews
The Boxer
Rebellion
March 15th @ The Academy
Deviate Vs Inertia
March 12th @ World Head Quarters
£5
It’s that time of the year again,
when two of Newcastle’s
best nights come together
in decktual harmony under
the one roof of World
Head Quarters. Yes it’s the
return of the now infamous
Deviate Vs Inertias 3rd
birthday extravaganza.
This year they have
something special in
the cake mix in the
form of Steel City’s
very own Toddla T,
a DJ who has quickly
moved up the ranks
and is currently at the
fore front of Sheffield’s
Electronic scene. In a town
that’s responsible for Warp
records this is no mean feat.
Toddla is a busy man; if he’s
not doing production work for
Roots Manuva and MCs such as
Sorecee and Mr Versatile he’s
remixing Hot Chip or releasing
his own Booty Bass stompers
such as ‘Dancehall Killing’ and
‘Fill Up Mi Portion’, making
this appearance even more
special. There is one thing that’s
for sure, this crossover star
in the making progressively
blends sets of Bass heavy
tunes which bring together the
sounds of the UK Dub, Hiphop,
Electro, Jungle, and Dancehall
scenes will be the icing
on the cake. Expect
those in attendance to
be moving on the dance
floor all night long.
Backing up Mr T will be
London based DJ and
producer Pangaea who
is currently one of the
most exciting artists in dubstep
today as well as being the
co-owner of Hessel Audio and
releasing the truly outstanding
You & I / Router a 12” that
wrecked heads and ranked
way up there as one
of the biggest
dubstep
records of
£8
night off will be Deviate
resident Mike Jones and
Inertia’s head honcho
Sully playing a little bit of
everything and hopefully
providing a start to what
should be an amazing night.
Andrew McEvitt
2008.
His
set will
show
off his
unique take
on the modern
dubstep sounds
while fusing in
elements of
house, techno
and 2-step
garage.
Starting
the
Howling Bells/
Future Of The Left
March 10th @ The Cluny
£8
If you haven’t heard of the Boxer
Rebellion, don’t worry, you’re by
no means alone. However it may
surprise you to hear that their latest
release, ‘Union’, is managing to
outsell Coldplay, MGMT and the
Kings of Leon over in the States.
Their story is a classic rags to
riches tale; dropped by their
record label in 2005 shortly after
releasing their first album this
alt rock foursome soldiered on
alone, avoiding total obscurity
by slugging their way through
gig after gig, recruiting an ever
increasing fan base along the
way, fighting off serious illness,
giving away their EPs for free
and making ends meet through a
variety of means (including as a
DJ at a local radio station which
continues even now on Phoenix
fm).
Now, after all the struggle, they
are finally getting the widespread
acclaim they fought so valiantly
for...Well OK, it helps that their
first record came out on Mercury
but hey let’s not ruin a good
story.
So if you’re a fan of inoffensive
chart bothering alternative rock,
go aid in putting the cherry on
their cake and help sell out their
tour, yes they’re not THE most
exciting band but go on, they
deserve it!
Boasting members of the now
defunct bands McClusky and
Jarcrew, Welsh supergroup
Future Of The Left were originally
pencilled in to play at the Cluny
in November of last year, but
cancelled at the last minute in
order to complete work on their
second album.
Said album still looks a long way
off, but new single ‘The Hope
That House Built’ sounds very
promising, if a tad on the dark
side, with its general ambience
being one of military doom.
When I first saw FOTL perform
live I was taken aback by the
energy and emotion the band
brought to the stage, as well as
the boiled sweets bassist Kelson
Mathias would throw at the
crowd after just about every
song. Howling Bells, by contrast,
are much more controlled in
their live shows – but no less
impressive.
When I saw them perform at the
Academy two years ago, I was
hypnotised by the beauty of lead
singer Juanita Bell, and although
the new albums sounds, to quote
my wise sage of a housemate, “a
bit wishy-washy,” Australia’s
finest still promises to mesmerise
their audience – and all for only
eight pounds!
Philip Copley
David McDonald
reviews
Joris Voorn
Minus IQ
@ World Head Quarters
@ The Head of Steam
Habit was positively brimming
last Friday night, this can be
explained by the appearance of
a young Dutch Techno DJ who
to no surprise was following his
date in Newcastle with a set in
Fabric the next day as part of his
global ‘balance’ tour.
For the most part, his often
dark rolling techno/tech house
got people moving
before
reaching
those ubiquitous
ambient
vibes
which have set
him apart from
many
other
techno producers
at the moment.
The
night
climaxed when
he dropped
‘ d a r k
flower’,
a
hugely
successful
remix
of
a Robert
Babicz
t r a c k ,
another
artist who
is
more
than worth
checking
out. I feel
the
word
epic is banded
about far too
Having last seen Minus IQ in a
village hall in Barnet 5 years ago,
trotting down to see them once
again at the Head of Steam two
Sundays ago was, in my mind,
going to be more of a friendly
favour than taster of what new
wave indie has to offer. But how
wrong I was. The explosion of
indie-meets-electro-meets-rock is
something not to be missed.
Rarely do you see a band
with such enthusiasm and
stage presence, their onstage
antics reflected those of some
seriously seasoned professionals
much these days but this track
certainly fits the bill and brought
everyone to the dance floor.
I couldn’t help think however
that there was something amiss.
I have had some amazing nights
at Habit in the past, but this was
my first experience of Habit at
WHQ, having recently moved
from Cosmic Ballroom. Don’t get
me wrong, I have had enjoyable
nights at WHQ, most notably at
shindig presents ‘Tweakin’.
This time, maybe it was
because the setup wasn’t quite
the same, whether it be the
speakers or the atmosphere at
WHQ, there was just something
about the last half an hour
at Cosmic’s habit when
the smoke machine
started, the lights
began to flash and
the DJs and locals
really went for
it that made it
stand out as a
great alternative
to Digital at the
weekend.
John Daly
__
– impressive for a group who
sacked off uni to go pro and
‘live the dream’.
Their feel
good sound was infectious, the
combination of immaculate vocals
and slick playing from guitar, bass
and drums persuaded the sleepy
Sunday audience onto the dance
floor.
I would highly recommend
catching them live as even though
the
website
(myspace.com/
minusiq) has a great selection of
recorded material – check out
their first single Ultraviolet – the
experience of watching the four
smartly dressed, floppy-fringed
chaps bounding around a stage
(and beating the shit out of a
cowbell at one point) is a breath
of fresh air in these post-TOTP,
Klaxon clone days.
The only thing wrong with the
night? The embarrassingly small
audience – come on Newcastle get
off your arse and start supporting
some new music!
set quickly filled the dance floor
long before the main event. Upon
leaving the decks, 4shaw also left
the crowd ‘radged up’ and ready
to dance all night; one to watch,
this one.
DJ Format took the stage and
was soon into his groove, playing
‘massive’ hip hop and dirty funk
until the cows came home (around
3am).
Although the tunes were brilliant
and the mixing almost perfect
throughout, Format didn’t seem
to create the amount of frenetic
energy that the crowd were
expecting, but he still managed to
provide a night of cracking music,
mental dancing and bloody good
fun.
Good lad.
Margaret Clunie
DJ Format
@ The Cooperage
DJ Format has been doing the
rounds for a while now - DJing
his mix of early hip hop, funk and
soul around the world since the
early nineties - so it was a pleasant
surprise to see him at a small
venue such as the Cooperage,
where there was a much more
intimate feel, although it was a
shame to see him without his MC
mates Abdominal and D-Sisive.
Tim Shaw aka dj4shaw kicked
off proceedings with his unique
blend of funk, soul, latin, disco
and house and his high energy
Tim McVicar
38
9th March 2009
CULTURE
[email protected]
releases
What A Waster?Much maligned following an extended
forray into the tabloid spotlight, Pete’s striking out on his own, and the debut solo
effort from the tortured soul impresses Samuel Campbell no end.
Peter Doherty
Grace/
Wastelands
12th March, EMI
Peter Doherty, musician and
poet or junkie and tabloid pinup? I would suggest the former,
and give evidence in the shape
of Doherty’s latest record Grace/
Wastelands, which shows Pete
for what he really is, a talented
musician blessed with a lyrical
prowess that eludes the majority
of his contemporaries. Though
Doherty may have his vices (and
let’s face it, most of us cannot
claim to be walking a path of
moral sobriety), taking copious
amounts of drugs has not
withered Pete’s ability to produce
a debut solo album of staggering
beauty and great magnitude.
The album is produced by
Stephen Street, who worked
with Doherty on his previous
Babyshambles record “Shotter’s
Nation”, notoriously finding
it difficult to get Pete to adhere
to his strict regimes within the
studio. It seems that Street- like
many before him- has warmed
to the charm that Doherty
possesses in droves, and a
relationship has now blossomed
between artist and producer.
Indeed, both have spent
recent interviews being very
complimentary of each other
in the build up to the release
of the album. It is Street who
can be credited with getting
Blur’s Graham Coxon to play
guitar on the record. This was
a stroke of genius from the
acclaimed producer, who knew
getting someone whom Pete
admires greatly involved in
the record would coax Doherty
into a more stringent work
routine within the studio.
Debut single “Last of The
English Roses” is released on
March 9th and is arguably the
stand out track from the album.
Doherty’s poetic verse and soft
vocals work wonderfully with
the gliding guitar chords of
Coxon, and light background
accompliment of Doherty’s
Babyshambles
bandmates.
Deeper into the record, Doherty
collaborates with Dot Cotton
for “Sheepskin Tearaway”, a
beautiful track which sees the
two artists sharing verses in
perfect harmony, allowing the
solitary guitar playing of Pete
to shine through impressively.
The date of March 12th is
drawing ever closer, and one
senses that the man for whom the
date looms large, in the form of a
30th birthday, Pete -now PeterDoherty, has found a new sense
of maturity. With Doherty’s solo
work flourishing, Babyshambles’
new album fast approaching,
and talk of a Libertines
reformation, the future looks
bright for this elusive talent.
9.0
Singles
Round-Up:
Friendly Fires
Skeleton Boy
This track has to make you
dance, really it does, it’s great.
Low-fi keyboard riffs, soaring
hooks and disco-tastic beats,
yeah mate.
If you like this, check out the Air
France remix; the song becomes
chilled ooout . Only Friendly
Fires can sing about a break up
and get your bones moving.
Heather Welsh
Flashguns
Locarno
Micachu &
The Shapes
Delta Spirit
Fredo Viola
Fever Ray
Ode To
Sunshine
The Turn
Fever Ray
Jewelery
(rr) 27th February, EMI
23rd March, Rabid Records
9th March, Rough Trade
(rr) 23rd March, Rounder
Mica Levi, a.k.a. Micachu, grew
up in my hometown of Guildford.
Lord knows there isn’t anything
to inspire musicians there,
especially ones as avant-garde as
this talented lass, so she relocated
to London.
Sensible really.
Multi Starbucks and a Jack Wills
store hinder the creative juices
like a machete through the head.
And creative juices aplenty
there are in this, her debut
album. It sounds like she suffers
from ADHD or something,
because the music just doesn’t
sit still and do as it’s told. It
goes everywhere, like a sniffer
dog hunting for clues; one
minute it’s doing electro noise,
but then it gets a kooky little
organ riff into it’s head and
it’s off in another direction mit
ukulele. Then the drums get
a little too excited so someone
blasts a vacuum cleaner over it.
I love it. The most animated
music I’ve heard in yonks, full of
intrigue and elaborate rhythms.
Oh, but wait, she’s a talented
female singer-songwriter, so
I must compare her to Enya
or someone else amazing.
Well stuff that, Micachu’s drawly
cockney vocals buck every trend.
Overall, a very special album.
Recorded in a desert cabin and
released in 2007, it’s taken a
while for Californian five-piece
Delta Spirit’s debut album,
Ode To Sunshine to reach the
British shores. A rag-tag bunch
of multi-instrumentalists, their
sound is indebted to a whole
cross-section of musical history,
from Delta blues to Dylan,
Spoon to the Stones, and it’s this
universal sound that permeates
the record.
New single, “Trashcan” has
all the rollicking piano ‘n’ drum
stomp of Cold War Kids but
transported to a much sunnier
place, whilst “Bleeding Bells”
sounds as though the band have
stolen all of Beirut’s horns and
played them over a campfire
singalong. It’s not just the
instrumentation that makes this
album what it is though, Matt
Vasquez’s Oberst-like wails are
consistently good, and in “People
C’mon” they’re astounding.
You could say that Delta Spirit
are simply channelling other
people’s work, and it is clear
that Delta Spirit have studied
their influences carefully, but it’s
the perfect execution of every
element they draw from that sets
them apart from being simple
copycats and makes this a truly
remarkable debut album.
This one’s a bit out of the ordinary
I suppose, although the layers
of ‘innovation’ and ‘ingenuity’
are quite underwhelming when
peeled back. First off, it’s a double
disker; if it wasn’t I would have
contracted a rampant case of
ennui within minutes. The first
CD holds the 12 album tracks,
a mix of ambient electronica
and folk, with the emphasis
resting heavily on Fredo Viola’s
(god-awful name by the way)
vocals: reminiscent of medieval/
religious hymns, utilising rounds
and repetition. Reminds me of
singing in the choir at school
actually. Choir sucked, and this
doesn’t fare much better; it’s
certainly not as groundbreaking
as
his
company
claims.
The second disk, a DVD
containing 8 videos, is the
redeeming feature.
Sort of.
Fredo’s music goes hand-inhand with his visual multimedia:
his looped and layered vocals are
mirrored, and ever so slightly
spiced up, by the innovative
arrangement of images in his
videos. That said, I’ve been
inspired more by others, perhaps
because they haven’t focused
on the lead’s disgraceful monobrow as Fredo’s vids do. He
could potentially be good live;
I’m not that fussed though.
It’s an interesting approach
to fame, certainly: 2006’s
‘Silent Shout’ album saw
Swedish electronic duo The
Knife receive critical acclaim,
complete their first world tour
and get introduced to a whole
new audience, thanks to Jose
Gonzalez’s cover of their song
“Heartbeats”; yet rather than
capitalizing on the opportunity,
they announced an as-yet
unbroken hiatus.
While the future of The Knife
may be uncertain though,
vocalist
Karin
Andersson’s
stuck out on her own with the
ten songs that make up her solo
debut as Fever Ray. Anyone
familiar with their distinctively
adroit brand of pop will find
themselves right at home here
– from icy opener “If I Had A
Heart” onwards, Karin’s ethereal
vocals and the minimalistic beats
backing her mark the album out
as a refinement of an established
sound rather than a stylistic
shift. There are many sinister
delights on here (in particular
the almost trip-hop “Concrete
Walls” and the pitch-shifted
“Dry And Dusty”), but it’s
hard not to feel that the album’s
overly monochrome, especially
when the deathly dull closer
“Coconut” rears its head. It’s an
engaging listen, but ‘Fever Ray’
never steps out of ‘Silent Shout’s’
shadow.
8.8
Alex Bowell
8.6
Joe Skrebels
4.7
Alex Bowell
7.2
Before I heard this song, I was
thinking up witty ways to slate it.
But, I’ll admit, I was pleasantly
surprised.
A combination of tender vocals
reminiscent of GoodBooks, and the
clever interaction between guitars
and drums which made bands like
the Maccabees so popular a few
years back. Very impressive.
Philip Copley
Dan Black
Alone
My expectations for this single hit
zero. Men with guns for heads,
the title ‘Alone’; a hot pink disc
and the guy’s name – Dan Black!
But I have to admit, I was
pleasantly surprised. The music
video is fantastic! Welcome back,
creativity, where have you been?
Oh, and the song ain’t that bad,
either.
Juliette Santos
General Fiasco
Something sometime
General Fiasco are labelled as
being an “indie” band but they
are not The Libertines, nor are
they The Smiths.
Their music will not change
your life, and they will not
influence your being. But what
they can do is produce catchy
tracks that you can dance to and
enjoy. “Something Sometime”
offering a perfect example of
this.
Samuel Campbell
Mark Corcoran-Lettice
C
M
Y
K
39
[email protected]
CULTURE
9th March 2009
features
No Culture Icons
Music brings you a weekly guide to harmonic happenings. In our sixth installment,
David McDonald asks the one big question: Can Eminem save Hip-Hop?
As Nas put it back in 2006 ‘HipHop is dead.’ Gone are the early
days when the genre was still in
its infancy, when the likes of the
Furious Five, Afrika Bambaataa,
and later, Run DMC, and Public
Enemy were making genuinely
innovative music mixing beats
from African music to Motown
into a new genre that gave a
voice to the African American
youth of America. No more
are the hey days of 90s G-funk,
and the gangsta rap rivalries
that brought the genre into
the mainstream. It seems now
that the genre that was able
to break down racial barriers
and infiltrate American culture
like no other
(and inevitably
most of the
Western world
as a result) has
fallen into a
rapid decline.
According
to Billboard
magazine
hip-hop
sales
in
America
dropped a
staggering
44%
since
2000
and
its reputation
is tattered and
torn.
The
genre
has
b e c o m e
stagnant,
suffering
from
its
own success.
Gangsta
rap
now fails to
reach
the
heights
that
Snoop, Tupac
and NWA once
reached. People
have
grown
tired of hearing
yet
another
song
about
pimpin’, shootin’ and smokin’,
unfortunately however, the
alternatives are equally poor,
just look back to who two of
the biggest selling hip hop
artists of last year were; Flo
Rida and Soulja Boy (everytime
Crank That is played in a club I
swear Jam Master Jay must be
spinning in his grave, sobbing
uncontrollably). The problem
is crystal clear. Like so many
art forms hip-hop’s one time
dominance may be the reason
for its downfall; there are
now so many generic records
put out featuring songs of no
genuine lyrical content and
cheap beats, that the genre is
being stripped of its credibility.
What’s In
A Name?
Unless something is done
soon, hip hop will become the
paint by numbers of music;
boring and predictable. What
it needs is a hero, some kind of
saviour…and after 4 years in
the wilderness, it seems there’s
a scrawny, middle aged white
boy who might just be the man
for the job. Marshall Bruce
Mathers III, please stand up.
Eminem
has
polarised
opinions like no other artist
in the modern age, hip hop or
otherwise. From being hailed as
a modern day Shakespeare and
the world’s greatest rapper, to
having one prominent member
most successful hip hop album
of all time, sold over 19million
copies worldwide, is bursting
with complex narratives that
few other MCs could match,
and is a genuine piece of art;
full of personal insights, social
commentary, fused with both
a wickedly dark sense of
humour and all the angst of
America’s disaffected youth.
The production is of a far higher
quality then the sample-less dry
beats we hear so often today.
Love him or hate him Eminem
is what hip-hop should be.
What’s even more impressive is
that Eminem was the first (and
perhaps only) legitimate white
of a woman’s rights group
write in the Sunday Times that
“Rather than censor him, I wish
someone who took offence at
his lyrics would leave him in
a coma”. Eminem (aka Slim
Shady) has always managed
to gage a reaction from the
public and for good reason - he
holds nothing back. He’s been
attacked for using misogynistic,
homophobic and violent lyrics
and has even been investigated
by the United States secret
services for apparent death
threats towards George Bush.
Like it or not, however, lyrically
speaking the man is in a league
of his own. His masterpiece,
‘The Marshall Mathers LP’, the
MC to gain the respect of fans,
peers and critics alike.
When faced with the weekly
Schedule for NSR, you
are most likely to feel
overwhelmed by the
list of extraordinary
but
perhaps
unrevealing
show
names. For this reason
I deem it necessary to
give some insiders’
knowledge about the
game behind the name….
with
Expect to be taken on an
orgasmic musical whirlwind
However, even Eminem has
suffered. His last album Encore
whilst selling well was met
with a muted response by fans
and critics due to it’s more
toned down and commercial
approach, and during his
hiatus, rapid weight gain, an
addiction to sleeping pills, and
the loss of fellow D12 member,
proof and persistent rumours
of his retirement have dogged
him constantly. As a result,
many seemed to have lost faith
in Eminem, and have ruled him
out of the game, but I think
these people have been far too
‘Bruce and Lettuce’s
MMMMMMM’, at the
more inebriated
Union
happy hour of
8pm on a Friday.
From an exploration
into the depths of scuzz-punk
to the mighty realms of Russian
polka, this show comes with
hasty. Remember, slim shady
is always at his best when he’s
angry with a point to prove and
his last single release ‘When I’m
Gone’ was quite frankly one of
the most honest and heartfelt
songs released this decade
from any genre; a true return to
form. Even the commercialised
Encore, once given a proper
listen has a pop art style sense
of wit and cultural awareness,
appropriating clichéd tricks
from modern hip-hop to create
increasingly scathing critiques
upon popular culture, and his
own personal self. Eminem has
always been prepared to take
a good long look at himself
in the mirror,
and hip-hop
needs to do
the same.
Ok,
let’s
be honest
here
the
new single
‘crack
a
bottle’ is no
‘my name
is’ but it’s
a start. The
production
is tight, it’s
got a hook
and
it’s
a sure-fire
hit for slim. I
have a sneaky
feeling
too
that Eminem
is holding
back some
absolute
g e m s
for
the
‘Relapse’
release
later this
year. Even
if it isn’t
the record that
shows up the
recent flux of
mindless MCs
that have swamped the scene
for what they are, Eminem’s
second coming should, at the
very least, give the scene the
kick up the arse it so desperately
needs. In his own words Slim
‘can’t leave rap alone, the game
needs me’. His return, coupled
with the new Biggie Smalls
film, is finally getting people
to talk about hip hop again in
a more credible light which can
only be a good thing. Shady’s
back people, tell a friend…
The Nu-Metal
Nostalgia
Mixtape
With most of us having recently
emerged from the horrible chrysalis
of adolescence (turned twenty,
in other words), the soundtrack
to those first few teenage years
suddenly seems all warm and
cosy. Dig out your Slipknot hoodie,
polish that chain that connected
your wallet to those tent-sized
jeans, and prepare for a nostalgic
headbang.
Papa Roach-Last Roach
‘Cut my life into pieces/this is my
last resort’: the perfect opening
line for any self-loathing thirteen
year old, this classic demonstrates
the winning formula of mixing
white-boy rapping with Deftonian
screeches. Apparently there’s a
new album out any day now…
Linkin Park-Crawling
A poptastic cocktail –one part hiphop, one part metal, and a shot of
*N-Sync for good measure- these
boys produced a platinum-selling
nu-metal album that, unlike Kid
Rock or Limp Bizkit, has aged
pretty well with time.
Slipknot- Left Behind
Maybe it was the masks. It could
have been the pentagrams.
Whatever it was, nothing seemed
as rebellious as a song entitled
‘People=Shit’. Except an album
called Never Mind the Bollocks,
perhaps. Which was released
twenty five years before hand. Aw
crap…
KoRn-Blind
Out of all the rap-rock innovators
(Faith No More, Tool, Rage Against
The Machine), they’re probably
the least cool. But all the nu-metal
hallmarks are there; down-tuned
guitars, hate-myself lyrics, Adidas
sponsored wardrobe. It also
probably created the audience for
a certain Detroit-born rapper with
similar childhood issues…
Joe Barton
the disclaimer: ‘don’t expect
to have heard anything like it
before’.
Finally ‘Sheep go to Heaven’
is ripped directly from a CAKE
song, giving an indication of
the starting point of the journey
this show will take you onexpect international and expect
new music.
Solveig Werner
The Last Word
‘’Drive slow
homie, you never
know homie”
- Kanye West
40
9th March 2009
CULTURE
[email protected]
ALL THIS WEEK’S UNION, UNI & STUDENTLED EVENTS
To use this space to publicise your event, email editor.union@ncl.
ac.uk
MONDAY
TUESDAY
WEDNESDAY
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
SATURDAY
SUNDAY
CHARITY FUN RUN
All proceeds go
Leukaemia Care.
MEDSOC
METROLINE TOUR
The imfamous
crawl...
BONE MARROW
CLINIC
Another great chance
to join the Anthony
Nolan Bone Marrow
Register, as well as
an opportunity to
chat with a councillor.
Tea & buscuits also
included!
FREE
17:30 - 20:30
Castle
Reception
Leazes
HOME-MADE JAM
Open-mic
acoustic
night at the Union,
open to all who wish ST. PATRICK’S DAY
CEILIDH
to play, perform or
watch. Officially voted
your favourite Union Featuring a Guinness
offers and the fantastic
event!
Monster Ceilidh Band
FREE
£4
19:00 - Midnight
Cochrane Lounge, The 20:00 - Midnight
The Union
Union
MUSIC/CLUB
to
£5
11:00am
Exhibition Park
annual
12:00 - 03:00
Starting at North Terrace
(Haymarket stop)
FRESHERS’ WEEK
CREW INTERVIEWS
THE BIG GREEN SOFA
A new company set up by
Uni students bring you the
perfect photo opportunity
by offering groups of
friends/societies/sports
clubs photos - for free!
FREE
20:00 - 00:00
Outside the Union
NEWCASTLE CEILIDH
PRESENTS: DISCO
CEILIDH INFERNO
ETHICAL
EXTRAVAGANZA
FASHION SHOW
Interviews
to
find
Supervisors and Chief
Supervisors - take part
in the funnest week
in the Union year!
Forms need handed by
Thurs 12th at Union
reception.
09:00 - 17:00
Function Suite,
Great clothes, stalls and The Union
music. To raise money for
Dan’s Fund for Burns
15:00 - 23:00
The Union
Dance to your favourite
70s disco hits.
£4
20:00
The
Bassment,
Union
The
MALAYSIAN
SOCIETY:
MALAYSIAN NIGHT
Featuring
traditional
art and crafts like henna
drawings,
Chinese
calligraphy,
Chinese
lanterns,
traditional
games, Dikir Barat
(a choral speaking/
singing performance)
and a fashion show
ARCANE
featuring
traditional
The finest event in the costumes. Followed by
much
more!
Union schedule, the
legendary Arcane is
back. 6 rooms, 3 floors £9 (in advance), £10 (at
- oh, and Zane Lowe. the door)
17:00 - 21:00
Not to be missed.
Northumbria Students’
Union (2 Sandyford
£10
Road, Newcastle NE1
22:00 - 05:00
8SB)
The Union
OTHER
SOCIETY EVENT
TALK/EXHIBITION
Compiled by Caroline Melloy
ACROSS
DOWN
3. Daniel ..., Star of Harry
Potter films (9)
6. Martin..., Head coach of the
England Rugby team (7)
8. The ... of Oz, Judy
Garland Classic (6)
9. Name of a really good
and righteous person (5)
12. The Grand National
is a race of... (6)
14. Over, Higher (5)
15. Currency, money (4)
17. The 2001 Johnny Depp
film From Hell was based
on this person (13)
20. Thin, Skinny (4)
22. The ... Kid, the remake of this
film will star Jaden Smith (6)
24. Beatrix ..., the creator
of Peter Rabbit (6)
26. ... Hale, one of Edward
Cullen’s sisters (7)
28. .. McKidd, played Vorrenus
in the BBC series ‘Rome’ (5)
29. This annual film ceremony
was held on Sunday (6)
30. Gary ..., the face of
Walkers crisps (7)
1. ... LaBeouf, Star of
Transformers (4)
2. Controversial American
Comedy (9)
4. Sebastian from the Little
Mermaid was one(4)
5. Slumdog Millionaire is
based in this country (5)
7. A sticky food made by
bees, goes well in tea (5)
8. ... Brown, plays right
back for Man Utd (3)
9. Kaya ..., Plays Effy
Stonem in Skins (10)
10. A place of rest, a hotel (3)
11. ... Carlyle, star of Trainspotting
and the Full Monty(6)
13. ... Spielberg, famous director (6)
16. A spot (6)
18. Anagram of mate (4)
19. The bad Octopus in
The Little Mermaid (6)
21. The Brit awards
celebrate this (5)
23. TV show starring
Jennifer Garner (5)
25. Two times (5)
27. A night time cooing bird (3)
28. Barbie’s soul mate (3)
C
M
Y
K
>>> FOR MORE PUZZLES, TURN TO PAGE 40
41
[email protected]
CULTURE
9th March 2009
International Festival of Music and Art (Alex
Wilson)
Fancy being a photographer for The Courier? Come
along to our meeting in the Training Room at 2.30
every Monday. See you there.
NUTV Finals (Lena B.)
C
M
Y
K
43
CAREERS
9th March 2009
[email protected]
Graduate Profile: PhD in Bioinformatics
DAVID COOPER
Newcastle University, 1985, BSC
(Hons) in Naval Architecture
and Shipbuilding
What was the route you took into
this job?
I did a bachelors degree in Molecular Biology at the university of Kent,
where I did poorly and received a
2:2. I wanted to do a PhD but virtually all graduate programs will not accept lower than a 2:1. I spent 3 years
working a series of unrelated jobs
such as teaching English, answering
phones in a call center, and being a
hospital technician. I decided to do
a Master’s degree in Bionformatics
to try again to find a PhD position.
I graduated from Newcastle with a
Master’s distinction and was offered
a PhD at Manchester University
which I am finishing now.
Describe your typical working day.
At the moment I am working on my
thesis so I spend most of my day
writing. An average day, however,
usually includes an hour or two
reading papers related to the field I
work in: this is essential so you have
to like it. The rest of the time I will
be writing and using computer software to analyse the biological data.
A good grounding statistics and programming are therefore very useful,
but so is a good level of knowledge
in molecular biology. Occasionally
I’ll be required to prepare a presentation or manuscript on my latest set
of results.
What’s the best thing about your
job?
Getting to do interesting analyses,
such as comparing the genome sequences of several organism and being able to identify differences that
can be linked to evolution. Biology
is advancing very quickly at the moment, and newer technologies are
creating much larger amounts of
data. Being a bioinformatician is interesting as you are able to put all of
these data together to find trends in
how organisms work.
A university environment is also
generally a fun and relaxed place to
work.
...and what’s the worst?
Academic science is extremely competitive, you either sink or swim. You
always have to be thinking about
what you are doing can be made into
a publishable manuscript. At each
careers
stage of the academic career ladder
a good proportion of people leave
for other careers. You also need to be
able to motivate yourself to keep going through the best and worst times
as no one else will do this for you.
What are your top tips for getting
into the profession?
If you get a Master’s degree, and do
reasonably well at it, you should be
able to get a PhD position. Learning
to program before the start of the
Master’s degree will also be very
helpful. Most masters programs
will accept people from any academic backgrounds, but biology,
computer science, or statistics are
the most advantageous. Newcastle has an excellent bioinformatics
programme so is worth a look.
How you can use your volunteering to gain academic credit Tip #4: Don’t
Career Development Module-use
your volunteering to gain academic
credit!
Are you thinking about your module choices for the next academic
year? Are you interested in having
a change from the usual, as well as
gaining valuable graduate skills
whilst doing so?
Why not gain academic credit for
volunteering and put the edge on
your CV post graduation?
If you’re a current volunteer, or are
interested in getting involved in volunteering either in the community
or within the Union Society, you can
now gain academic credit for doing
so! The Career Development module envelopes Students into Schools,
Learning from Work, Community
placements and volunteering which
all allow you to gain valuable graduate employability skills for post
graduation.
Previous projects have included
working in an exec position for a
club or society, volunteering in the
community through SCAN (http://
scan.unionsociety.co.uk),
helping
out with Union Society events/campaigns, or being involved in student
media, such as NSR or The Courier.
The choice is limitless, and you can
do any type of volunteering you’re
interested in, from working on environmental projects, to working with
children, animals, OAPs, people with
disabilities or LGBT issues, whatever
your interests, there could be a volunteering opportunity for you!
The Career Development Module
has been developed with the Curriculum Unit as well as the Union
Society, and is geared towards developing key graduate employability
skills, focussed on Teamwork, Communication, Planning & Organising
and Personal Enterprise – which
have been established by key graduate employers as the skills they’d
most like to see students developing
for the workplace.
To complete a 10 credit module,
you need to undertake 35 hours over
a semester, and 70 hours for 20 credits. Basic information on the module,
and examples of past student involvement is here: www.unionsocie-
ty.co.uk/cdm. Academic assessment
comes from an evaluation competed
by your placement supervisor, which
is worth 25%, and also an assessed
interview to take place during exam
weeks, which is worth 75%. This is
excellent practice for future job interviews itself!
‘I was the treasurer of the Twenty
Minute Club society and used this
as my volunteer work for the Career Development Module. I found
the course really beneficial for developing my employability skills
and found that I got rewarded for
extracurricular activities that I was
already doing.
I found that the course was very
diverse and a nice change from my
other very exam and course work
based modules. The interview process (done as your exam) was a great
practise run for the real thing after
university and with the feedback
from the module I found it very beneficial when I was actually applying
for jobs.
I would recommend this module
to everyone at university as it really
This week’s job vacancies
To
apply
for the positions below,
just call into
the Job Shop
and
bring
along your
student
smartcard.
The Student
Job Shop is
located on
the first floor of the Union Society
Building. Our term-time opening
hours are Mon, Tues, Wed and Fri
10am-4pm, and Thurs 10am-6.30pm.
These positions and many more are
also listed online at www.unionsociety.co.uk
VACANCY 5733 - BALLOT BOX ATTENDANTS
Job description: To encourage students to participate in voting for the
student elections at a local college
and to give advice on voting procedures whilst looking after the ballot
box and ensuring no foul play or loss
of papers. Main duties will be to
hand out voting papers, take down
student ID numbers and ensure that
the voting process runs smoothly.
Person specification: You should be
friendly, confident and upbeat and
very reliable.
Length of contract: Either one
or both days on 25/03/09 and
26/03/09
Start date: 25th or 26th March
Hours of work: 11am - 2pm (15
minute break)
Rate of pay: £5.73 per hour
Closing date: 21/03/09 Location:
Newcastle
VACANCY 5737 - PROMOTIONS
TEAM MEMBERS / TEAM LEADER
Job description: Required to promote 3 exciting drinks brands in bars
and clubs around the North East
- Jagermeister, Grand Marnier and
Campari. Work is initially over the
Summer period, but there is the possibility to continue on into the next
semester.
Person specification: Due to the nature of this role, applicants must be
aged 18 years or over. Industry, sales
or dance / drama experience preferred. You should be energetic and
outgoing, confident in a customer
facing role, a good team player, flexible, a good communicator, a natural
sales person. You should be available to work evenings and weekends.
Team Leaders must have their own
transport (expenses paid).
All applicants must be resident in
Newcastle May-Sept 09
Length of contract: May - Sept 09
(possibility to continue)
Start date: May 2009
Hours of work: Flexible, including
evenings and weekends
Rate of pay: £8 - £9 per hour
Closing date: 20/04/09 Location:
Mostly in Newcastle City Centre
VACANCY 5730 - RIVER CRUISE
CREW AND BAR / CATERING
STAFF
Job description: Working for a company that organises cruises on the
River Tyne. Crew required to assist
passengers and assist core staff with
the operational aspects of the cruises.
Bar / catering staff required to serve
drinks and refreshments to clients.
Person specification: You should be
friendly with good communication
skills, willing to learn and work as
part of a team. Training provided.
Previous experience desirable but
not essential. It would also be desirable, but not essential, if you were in
Newcastle over the vacation periods.
Length of contract: Until 31/12/09
Start date: 1st April 2009
adds that little sparkle to your CV
and helps you stand out in the very
competitive working environment.’
Imogen Davies, Current Activities
Officer
The Union Society is running an
event for more information on the
Career Development Module, and
volunteering for academic credit, in
the Kings Road Centre on Monday
16th March. This will include a short
presentation from everyone involved
in the module, from placement support, to academic accreditation, to
students who are currently on the
module. Each session lasts about an
hour and gives you an opportunity
to ask questions about the module.
Places are very limited. If you
would like to attend please email
[email protected] stating your
preference for the 2pm or 5pm session.
If for any reason you cannot attend
these events, then email Emily on
[email protected] to organise a
time to come and speak to you about
what the module entails, and how
you can get involved!
let the recession
stop you!
On the face of it starting a business in
the current economic climate might
sound like madness. The newspapers are
screaming at us that there’s no finance
available, you can forget about looking
for a personal loan, or trying to convince
a bank to take a chance on you.
BUT it’s not all doom and gloom and
in fact the Northeast of England is one
of the best places in the UK to start a
new business today and as a Newcastle
University student or graduate you are
entitled to some of the best home-grown
start-up help in the region. The Careers
Service are dedicated to helping you
achieve your goal of being your own boss
and starting your own business.
Here are our top five tips for starting a
business.......
1. Be Entrepreneurial..... OPEN to
possibilities, EXPLORING outside the
box, CURIOUS about new endeavours
and INVITING of change...
2. Do your Market Research... who are
your customers? What will they pay for
your service/products?
3. Do your Sums... how much will it
Hours of work: Flexible, daytimes
and evenings. Minimum 10 hours cost to get your business off the ground
and
allow you to feed yourself while you
per week.
do so?
Rate of pay: £6.50 per hour
Closing date: 20/03/09 Location:
4. Write a Business Plan... it’s like the
Newcastle Quayside
recipe for business success and helps get
VACANCY 5724 - BAR STAFF X 6 your ideas on paper.
POSITIONS
5. Talk to people who do similar
Job description: You will be workthings... Find a business mentor who has
ing in a city centre nightclub.
been
there!
Person specification: Previous experience is not necessary. You must be
If you want to take a running jump into
friendly, outgoing, trustworthy, hard
the exciting world of starting a business
working and flexible.
why don’t you enter our business plan
Length of contract: Ongoing
competition Enterprise Challenge 2009?
Start date: ASAP
Hours of work: Various part-time Find out more and enter online at http://
www.ncl.ac.uk/careers/makeitfly/
hours available
Rate of pay: £National Minimum challenge/. The closing date is 4pm
Friday 20th March 2009.
Wage
Closing date: ASAP Location: NewAlso, please drop in any time to the
castle City Centre
Careers Service, 2nd Floor Armstrong
Building, for one-to-one business advice,
also check out http://www.ncl.ac.uk/
careers/makeitfly/ for full listings of
master-classes, clinics and workshops
The Student Job
run with getting your business off the
Shop is sponsored
ground in mind.
by www.
corusgroupcareers
Dr Ciara Kennedy
.com
C
M
Y
K
FUN
9th March 2009
45
[email protected]
The tutor interview:
Vice Chancellor Chris Brink
This week, The Courier is privledged to interview Proffesor Chris Brink, Newcastle University’s top dog.
“If I hadn’t become a Vice-Chancellor I would have been a builder. It runs in the Brink family. My grandfather was a builder, my father was a
builder, my brother is a builder and his son is a builder. I’m the one who got away.
One thing I wish students at this university would do more often is vote in the elections for their Sabbatical Officers.
The best age to be is over 60. I believe that more firmly with every passing year. I’m not there yet, but I can’t wait.
One thing I wish I had known when I was a student is that there’s more to learning than being taught.
If I could have a drink with anyone, living or dead, it would be Dr Samuel Johnson, the lexicographer. I have read Boswell’s
Life of Johnson three times, and I wish I could hear him talk.
Probably my single biggest regret is never having studied Latin.
The key to happiness is work that you enjoy.
If I could change one thing about Britain it would be to improve the banks. I have had bank accounts in South Africa,
Australia and the USA, and my experience with banks in the UK is the worst.
One thing I love about my job is the opportunity to match thinking about things with doing things.
You might not think it, but I am actually quite good at carpentry. Need any built-in cupboards?”
Prof Chris Brink, PhD (Cantab) DPhil (Jhb) is the Vice-Chancellor of Newcastle University
Compiled by Isabelle Douglas
Try solve the anagrams in
the clues then fit them
into the grid. All the
answers are musicians
ACROSS
DOWN
1. Nearby Priests.
1. Been Coy.
3. There Skill.
2. Radio Gulls.
5. Clay Plod.
4. Fens Looking.
7. Sue My Lyric.
6. A Perky Try.
9. Weasel Lion.
11. Lad Gag Ay.
11. All Yell In.
13. A Rah Inn.
15. Sweaty Ken
.
WORDSEARCH
S
mber
e the Nu
D’s
Try solv For Example 12 as
Riddles Days of Christm
12
of C =
C
12 D’s of H T
11 P on ae 4 G
There ar ear
GS in a y on the
E have wme
W C 1 ti on 13 G S’s
R F has we 7 H P books
There ar
Pina Colada
Mojito
Margarita
Bloody Mary
Cosmopolitan
Woowoo
Long Island ice tea
Daiquiri
Mai tai
Tequila sunrise
Screwdriver
Orgasm
Gin Sling
Martini
Grass hopper
with Lucy Bridge
Aries (Mar 21 – Apr 19)
The stars indicate that this week your heart will reveal
what it physically and desperately desires. However,
you will fail miserably when trying to achieve it.
Taurus (Apr 20 – May 19)
Although your impressive powers of persuasion have
worked well in the past, your ability to manipulate your
loved one is put to the test this week. Cooking dinner for
a special someone will work in your favour and allow
you to take advantage of them.
Gemini (May 20 – June 20)
You’ll pray for better times once this week is over and
done with. In time you will look back on this week of
hell and be able to see the funny side… you might even
be able to crack a smile in a few years time.
Leo (Jul 22 – Aug 22)
One of the things you’ve always liked about life is how
seemingly lucky you are. Enjoy it, while you can...
WORD WISE
TARGETS
Use the clues below to fill in the Target.
All answers are 7 letters and end in a G
1. ____ on ice, ITV voting show
2. When you stay outside in a tent
3. Dakota ____, child star who
appeared in I am Sam
4. British ____, classic children’s game
5. A form of running
6. When a dog is shouting, they are ___
7. _____ Millionaire, 2009 Oscar winning film
8. Stuart ____, Middlesbrough and
England left sided footballer
9. ____ Places, 1983 film starring Eddie Murphy.
10. The __ ___ Theory , comedy
Answers
Puzzles
RIDDLE
Horror Scope
Cancer (Jun 21 – Jul 21)
Recently you have been living a sorry existence. This
week a potential partner could enter you life and make
you feel differently about the world. Find yourself someone to settle down with. Don’t be choosy - just pick at
random. As long as they smell ok that is all that should
matter.
RIDDLES; 12 days of Christmas, 11 Players in a Hockey Team, There are 4 go golf Grand Slams in a year England
have won the World Cup 1 time Roger Federer has won 13 Grand Slams There are 7 Harry Potter book
TARGETS 1. Dancing 2. Camping 3. Fanning 4. Bulldog 5. Jogging 6. Barking 7. Slumdog 8. Downing
9. Trading 10. Big Bang
CRISS CROSS Across 1. Britney Spears. 3. The Killers. 5. Coldplay. 7. Miley Cyrus. 9. Leona Lewis. 11. Lily Allen.
13. Rihanna. 15. Kanye West. Down 1. Beyonce. 2. Girls Aloud. 4. Kings of Leon. 6. Katy Perry. 11. Lady Gaga.
Edited by Caroline Melloy
CRISS CROSS
Virgo (Aug 23 – Sept 21)
Dolly Parton once said if you want a rainbow you have
to put up with the rain. Unfortunately your life seems to
be a constant torrential downpour. This is not about to
get better. Word of advice: buy an umbrella!
Libra (Sept 22 – Oct 22)
Your desire for more money will never come true unless
you get off your arse and do something about it or stop
spending it.
Scorpio (Oct 23 – Nov 21)
Such a beautiful mess…this statement effectively sums
up your life. This week you will experience a new sense
of clarity and you will find a meaning for your seemingly pointless existence.
Sagittarius (Nov 22 – Dec 21)
Don’t take life too seriously…no one gets out alive.
Capricorn (Dec 22 – Jan 19)
All the advice I could share with you would blow your
mind and leave nothing to the imagination. All I am able
to tell you is that you will survive this week but you will
experience a bizarre set of occurrences.
Aquarius (Jan 20 – Feb 17)
This week you will no longer feel irrelevant. Although
you have never really felt like you made a difference,
today, your kind words and understanding will help a
stranger in need.
Pisces (Feb 18 – Mar 20)
Horoscopes have always had a tendency to be wrong for
you, but you will find today’s to be surprisingly poignant. You will find love in Tescos in the frozen foods aisle
on Wednesday afternoon. Although, this may not apply
to all of you!
SPORT
46
9th March 2009
[email protected]
sport
Newcastle women
hammer poor
Sheffield Hallam
Full match report page 49
Come what May
STEVE IMPEY speaks to former Newcastle University student and Falcons
star Tom May - February’s Guinness Premiership player of the month
“I’m not sure Jonny will get back in
the side if we continue this run of
form” said Falcons’ Rugby Director
Steve Bates.
Jokes in and around Kingston
Park referring to the likelihood
of Wilkinson’s return to the ever
improving Falcons side have
produced a wry smile on the face of
one Tom May, who, although is well
aware he’s temporarily filling the
boots of Newcastle’s face of English
rugby, will also enjoy being in the
lime-light for once – even if he won’t
admit it.
A pretty good track record in
front of goal and a resilient body
in defence, have Newcastle found
the position in which Tom May can
finally settle in to?
February’s Guinness Premiership
player of the month has been
playing out of position at stand-off
for the best part of a season now, but
will surely be relishing deep down
every opportunity he gets to put
another three points on the Falcons’
scoreboard, pushing the side one
game at a time closer to a mid-table
finish come what May.
Courier Sport caught up with the
versatile play-maker to discuss life
behind the scenes at the Falcons and
also the time he spent studying at
Newcastle University.
After stringing
a few wins
together we suddenly find ourselves
in a completely different place, and we
need to keep this
intensity going
“Life at Newcastle Uni’ was pretty
good actually, especially in first
year,” May explained. “I stayed in
Havelock Hall in Castle Leazes, but
didn’t get to go out and socialise as
much as I would have liked.
“I had a great time living in a house
of five in Jesmond, where we used to
have all the lads from Falcons back
and have big parties.
“I
studied
Business
and
Management at Newcastle, but
afterwards when I finished uni’ I
had a year off just to play rugby,
and then went to Northumbria to
do a post-grad certificate in SportsManagement. That was a part-time
course though so it didn’t really feel
like I was at the uni’ at all.
“I took the course purely because
of my interest in sports really, with
possibly the view of doing something
with it when I finish playing.
“I have always had the belief you
need something to fall back on. If
you get a career in rugby then great,
but young players especially need to
understand that an education is also
important.”
A philosopher at heart, May shows
another side to the man most only see
on the weekend. Although the player
may be frustrated at not knowing
what position he will be starting in
week-on-week, May makes up for
this in persistence, professionalism,
and above all, preparation.
“If I had the choice I would prefer
to play at 12. Tane Tu’ipulotu and
Jamie Noon are both playing well,
so I’ll just have to make the most
of playing each week, in whatever
position that might be.
“I like to stick to a routine in the
week building up to game day, and
try to hit my goals I want to achieve in
that week. I want to achieve a certain
amount of passes, kicks, tackles in
the week, whether I am playing flyhalf, centre, full-back or wing.
“It’s not ideal getting moved
around, but it’s a question of playing
well and enjoying myself. That’s
what I aim for every time I pull on
the shirt.
“I don’t get too hyped up about a
game. I try to relax. I actually play
worse when I think about it too
much.
“If you get too over enthusiastic or
too intense you will worry over little
mistakes, so I focus on my physical
and mental well-being before a
game massively. If I get those right
in the week I should be fine by the
weekend.”
Away from the rugby spotlight,
May has taken a huge interest in
raising money for charity. The end
of last May, he began his week long
cycle visiting every single Guinness
Premiership ground in the country,
including Twickenham.
After a visit to the teenage cancer
ward in the RVI Newcastle, May
was motivated to help a cause any
way possible, and made his desire
a reality in a cycle that lasted 550
miles.
“I cycled for ‘Cash for Kids,’” May
explained. “It was very tough. I must
have been a little naive to think I
could just jump on a bike and do it.
By the end I was pretty tired.
“I did four practice runs just up
and around the airport. The furthest
I think I went was only 36 miles. On
day one of the cycle, I had to do 105!
“It was a brilliant life experience,
something I am very proud of and
something I can look back on.
“I managed to raise just over £42,000
which I am very pleased with. You
learn a lot about yourself on a bike,
and since I play rugby professionally
I thought I would be able to open a
few doors for people in doing so. It
was fantastic.”
A week away in Barbados in the
mid-season break has brought
the best out May. Fresh-faced and
tanned after the trip with his wife
to Lee Mears’ hideaway, it seems
he has brought back some of his
holiday sun to the North East, which
has evidently shown in a renewed
spirit around Kingston Park, with
the Falcons enjoying three wins out
of three in February.
One game at a time is the diagnosis
however, even though things are
finally looking up for the side who
haven’t been setting the world alight
until just recently. May though
understands the team need to keep
their feet firmly on the ground.
“Sorry for the massive cliché, but
what this team needs to do is take
one game at a time and then go from
there. After stringing a few wins
together we suddenly find ourselves
in a completely different place,
and we need to keep this intensity
going.”
The adopted Geordie has spent a
great deal of his playing career here
in the North East, moving up from
his team at home in Richmond as a
teenager.
A Tom May testimonial has been
rumoured to involve both Newcastle
and Northumbria University teams,
a sentimental occasion that would
involve May turning out for both
sides on the night.
After the great competition shown
in the Stan Calvert trophy recently,
May has said he would be delighted
to see the game take place.
“If that was to be the case it would
be fantastic to see the two universities
come together and play,” the 30-yearold said. “I’ve been to a couple and
they’ve always been great games.
“I actually played for Newcastle
but never for Northumbria when
I was at uni’, so I’ll be rooting for
Newcastle I suppose. I always
remember playing against the likes
of Jamie Noon and some of the other
lads at Bullocksteads. It was always
tough but a good craic nonetheless.”
C
M
Y
K
Tom May has been a key figure in Newcastle Falcons recent revival which has seen the Kingston Park outfit climb the Guinness Premiership table
SPORT
9th March 2009
47
[email protected]
Newcastle Angels have reason to cheer
David Coverdale
Sports Editor
It is exciting times for Newcastle
Angels who have already had a
phenomenal year, scooping nine
trophies in just two competitions.
After coming first in two dance
categories and second in the stunt
category at a regional competition
in Leeds last term, Newcastle’s
cheerleaders then excelled at the
Future Cheer University and Open
Cheer and Dance Championships at
Loughborough in February, taking
a second and third in stunting
and a third in dance, as well as the
prestigious ‘Star prize’ given to the
team ‘that other teams aspire to be’.
With the British Cheerleading
Association National competition
taking place in April and cheerleading
becoming an official BUCS sport next
academic year, the club’s success has
come just at the right time for the
Angels and Club President Jennifer
Robertson, who is quick to praise the
achievements of the girls.
“For the regionals, the competition
was in December and we didn’t
pick our squad until October so to
go there and come back with two
firsts and a second was an incredible
achievement,” Robertson said. “To
then go on to the nationals and do
really well was also brilliant.
“The cheerleading squad has only
been going for six years and we’ve
been a university sport for only two,
so to be competing against the likes
of Loughborough who have got
the best facilities and attract people
who are interested in gymnastics is
phenomenal.”
Robertson admits that the club is
the strongest it has ever been and she
is looking forward to being able to
contribute towards Team Newcastle
next year.
“I think it’s going to take a while for
the BUCS cheerleading to take off, and
Loughborough and Leeds probably
won’t bother with it because they
compete internationally,” Robertson
said.
“It’s definitely though a chance for
Newcastle to win some BUCS points
and we’d love the opportunity to do
something to contribute.
“The AU funds us so it would be
good to be able to give something
back.”
It is not all competitions for the
Angels however, and those in
attendance at the Stan Calvert Cup
at Gateshead last month will have
witnessed Newcastle’s cheerleaders
in full flow, something Robertson
and Club Secretary Beth Eyre admit
is definitely the biggest thrill.
“Competitions are really good
within the team,” Eyre said, “but
A.WILSON
Newcastle Angels cheerleading squad performing at Stan Calvert last month
nobody else in the University gets to
see you perform or appreciate your
results.”
Robertson added: “It’s great to
perform in front of people and get
recognised. This year’s Stan Calvert
was amazing. It was the biggest
crowd we’ve performed too and for
the first year, the University actually
backed our performance.
“We’re used to getting booed so for
people to come up to you and tell you
that you were amazing is great.”
It is set to be a busy remainder of
the term for the Angels, who also
attend and perform at all Newcastle
University
Raiders
American
Football games.
“We’ve been asked to do a Durham
County Cricket match in front of
10,000 people in May, which is an
amazing opportunity,” Robertson
said.
“We’re also doing an end of year
performance in the Sports Centre,”
added Eyre. “We invite everyone
along and we do all of our routines
from the year.
“It’s quite nice for people to see
what we actually do, because except
for Stan Calvert, nobody from uni
really sees.”
The girls train four times a
week, often six days leading up to
competitions, practising the sort of
stunts that see cheerleading ranked
in the top five for most dangerous
sports in the AU.
Watching the Angels perform
throws all pre-conceptions of
cheerleading out of the window and
the future certainly looks bright for
the squad as they prepare for BUCS
competition next year.
Falcons swoop in for University Fashion Show
David Coverdale
Sports Editor
Newcastle Falcons players are used
to strutting their stuff at Kingston
Park but they will be swapping the
pitch for the catwalk at Lineker’s Bar
this Friday evening in a bid to raise
money for Abbie’s Fund.
Some of Newcastle University’s Stan
Calvert heroes will also be modelling
in the Newcastle University Charity
Fashion Show organised by final year
students Kate Tilney, Kerry Kemp
and Stephanie Ritson in what is sure
to be a night not to be missed.
For the ladies, Falcons duo Andy
Buist and Tim Swinson have been
confirmed to star at the event prior
to their crunch home Guinness
Premiership match with Harlequins
on Sunday, as well as rugby stars
from the University including captain
Ben Mercer, Dom Shaw, Jonny Olly
and Dan Campbell.
Males in attendance need not feel
left out as Camilla Handford, Jojo
Gwynne Jones and Mel Mitchell
from Newcastle’s successful ladies’
hockey team will also be part of
the 40 models hitting the Lineker’s
stage.
All proceeds from the event go
to Abbie’s Fund, a charity set up
following the tragic death of five-yearold Abbie Shaw. Abbie had suffered
from Adrenal Neuroblastoma, a rare
childhood cancer, and the charity
founded by local mothers aims to
fund studies of the cancer to help
make Neuroblastoma survivable
and support those children already
suffering from the illness.
Friday’s event comes just as Abbie’s
mother, Susie, has found out she is
pregnant again with another girl and
co-organiser Kate Tilney is looking
forward to doing her bit to add to the
£80,000 already raised by the fund.
“We’re hoping to raise a minimum
of £5,000 to what we believe is a truly
worthy cause,” Kate said.
“I’ve always wanted to organise
a fashion show and so the chance
to do one for such a great charity is
amazing,
“It has been a lot of work organising,
but hopefully we can get a lot of
people down to support us in what
really will be a fantastic and fun
evening.”
The likes of Barbour, Canterbury,
La Senza and Holland and Cooper,
as well as specialised stores such as
Rellik in Notting Hill and a brand
new fur company based in New York
called Vanity have all generously
provided clothes for the show which
will be split into a number of surprise
themes.
Phaze clothing based in Gosforth
have also provided unique alternative
clothing for the finale.
Commentary will be provided by
the University’s Charlie BromleyMartin and Archie Ahern, while
London based DJ Angi will provide
the music as the models take to the
catwalk.
A silent auction will take place
throughout the evening with a
number of top prizes on offer
including two tickets to Take
That’s Wembley gig in July, signed
Newcastle Falcons shirts and balls
and a portrait from Newcastle’s own
lacrosse captain Celine Higton.
A tennis jumper with the prized
signatures of Andy Murray and
Rafael Nadal will be up for grabs
as well, following Kate Tilney’s
impromptu meeting with the pair in
an Abu Dhabi hotel the night before
their World Tennis Championship
final in January, and UniBags, a new
company providing personalised
quality kit bags, have also kindly
donated towards the auction.
UniBags Managing Director Harriet
Puddle, who knew Abbie Shaw
very closely, said: “With all profits
going towards Abbie’s Fund, selling
our bags has given me the perfect
opportunity to contribute to a charity
that is very close to my heart.”
Lineker’s doors open at 7.30pm on
Friday with the show starting promptly
at 8.15pm. Ordinary tickets are priced
at £6, with V.I.P. tickets at £15. V.I.P.
ticket holders will be able to arrive at
7pm to enjoy a free drinks reception
served by the models and secure the best
seats in the house.
Tickets can be bought at the Student
Union (please ask at reception), at Luxe
Beauty, 87 Holly Avenue, Jesmond or
else call either Kate on 07884 118 800 or
Kerry on 07876 033 336.
WIN VIP TICKETS TO SEE THE MINCOFFS VIPERS ICE HOCKEY
Consult Connect are delighted
to offer two sets of tickets for the
forthcoming bmiBaby Elite League
Ice Hockey Match between the
Mincoffs Newcastle Vipers and the
Edinburgh Capitals at the Metro
Radio Arena on Thursday 19th
March.
The two sets of winners will enjoy
VIP entry to the game, access to the
exclusive VIP Lounge, Finger Buffet
during the game intermission and
the opportunity to meet the players
after the game.
This unique opportunity is to
celebrate the partnership between
the Mincoffs Vipers and the Young
Enterprise
Company
‘Consult
Connect’ set up by four students
at Newcastle University. Consult
Connect have secured the deal for
marketing the teams matches within
the city’s student market.
Ice hockey is the fastest team sport
in the world and an exciting and
different night out in the Newcastle.
The Mincoffs Vipers have some
stars in their line-up including exNHL star Chris McAllister, GB
International and Vipers team
captain David Longstaff, and
spectacular netminder Andrew
Verner to name a few.
Student tickets are now available at
the discounted price of £5 from the
Student Union Reception or on the
night of the game at the standard
price of £9.
The last time these two teams met
was in cup competition and ended
with Vipers coming out the victors
in the two leg affair.
To be in with a chance of winning
simply send a text message to 07517
656961 with your name and e-mail
address. The competition closes on
Sunday 15th March with the winners
selected randomly by computer and
notified by telephone.
For more information on the
Mincoffs Vipers and forthcoming
fixtures visit www.vipershockey.
co.uk.
SPORT
48
9th March 2009
[email protected]
Swim Stars
Success for Newcastle at
long course Championships
SWIMMING
Martyn Stott
Britain’s
University
swimmers
descended on Sheffield’s Ponds
Forge last month for the BUCS Long
Course Swimming Championships.
Following a good Championships at
Short Course, Newcastle University’s
14 swimmers went with confidence
and hope for a number of University
records to be broken.
With the likes of Loughborough,
whose team includes Olympic
Bronze medallist Joanne Jackson and
World Record holder Liam Tancock,
making finals were the aims set out
for the weekend, medalling was not.
Friday evening got the team off
to a good start, with Steve Addison
putting in a gruelling performance in
the 1500 Freestyle, and the Women’s
Freestyle Team of Amy Jessett,
Christine Howell, Lauri Simkiss,
Emily Charlton placing a good
seventh, and comfortably through to
the final in a new University record
time of 4:14.84.
Saturday
morning
saw
a
continuation of this form with Elite
Athlete Squad member Amy Jessett
touching just outside the top three
and in a good position for her final.
Lauri Simkiss and Chrissie Howell’s
excellent form in the 50m Breaststroke
put all of Newcastle’s eligible
swimmers (two per University)
through to the final. David Carter
narrowly missed a place in the final
by 12 one-hundredths of second in
the Men’s.
The afternoon saw continued form
with Lauri Simkiss securing her
place in the final of the Women’s
200m Breaststroke, with the Men’s
and Women’s teams both making
their way to the finals of the Medley
teams.
The first finals sessions on
Saturday night started well for Team
Newcastle. Jessett finished a strong
fourth place behind a podium of
Olympic swimmers in a time of
2:10.00. Howell and Simkiss finished
ninth and tenth respectively in the
50m Breaststroke, Howell’s time just
outside her own University record.
Simkiss also finished a respectable
tenth for the 200m, during what was
turning out to be a busy night for the
young second year Medic.
Ex-Birmingham
University
swimmer Emily Charlton finished a
respectable sixth place in the 400m
IM (5:42.92), ahead of ex-team mates.
The last event of the evening saw the
Women’s Freestyle team plough to a
well earned 6th place.
Sunday morning’s 8.15am warm-up
D. STANKEVICIUS
started with a few sleepy faces after
the compulsory BUCS night-out, but
Team Newcastle got off to a good
start with Amy Jessett, Martyn Stott
and Paul Love all putting in good
performances in the 100m Freestyle.
Simkiss and Howell again pushed
through to have all Newcastle’s
swimmers in the final of the 100m
Breaststroke and Lara Mitchinson put
in a good swim in the 50m Butterfly.
Despite just being short of the final
mark, she set a new University
record of 32.60.
Sunday evening saw the last finals
session. Jessett fought a tough race
and finished in 5th position in a new
University record time of 1:00.00
in the 100m Freestyle. Simkiss and
Howell finished in seventh and
eighth place respectively in the 100m
Breaststroke, Simkiss setting a new
University record time of 1:19.93.
An impressive swim by Jessett saw
her finish her superb weekend with a
Bronze Medal in the 400m Freestyle
in a time of 4:36.38, just behind
current World Champion Caitlin
McClatchey. The evening ended
with the Women’s Medley team
(Christine Howell, Lauri Simkiss,
Emily Charlton, Amy Jessett)
narrowingly missing out on Bronze,
touching a close fourth, and the
Men’s Medley team (Adam Mcnulty,
David Carter, Steve Addison, Martyn
Stott) finishing seventh.
Overall, Team Newcastle finished
an exceptional tenth place in the Team
Rankings, with North East rivals
Durham placing a respectable 13th,
Sunderland 15th and Northumbria
failing to make a top 50 finish.
In light of recent Courier articles
about club funding, however, the
swimming team wonder just how
long they can enjoy this success.
Durham’s new Freeman’s Quay
swimming facility and appointment
of retired Olympic coach Fred
Kirby, Sunderland’s new Aquatic
Centre with 50m Olympic standard
pool which opened this year, and
Northumbria’s plan to have their
own 25m pool built at their new
sport centre due to be completed in
2010 all raise questions as to how the
team can keep up, and question if the
University place enough emphasis
on sports funding.
Thackwray provides the edge
as thirds continue comeback
MEN’S FOOTBALL 3RDS
NEWCASTLE 3RDS
YORK 2NDS
1
0
Simon Murphy
Newcastle 3rds continued their
Cinderella story cruising to a
1-0 victory against York 2nds at
Cochrane Park. Rob Thackwray
scored the only goal of the game to
complete the Royals’ fourth straight
win in the league.
Just three short months ago,
Newcastle sat second bottom of the
table with only a single point from
their opening four games. But this
win marks a stunning turnaround of
A. WILSON
fortunes for the Royals.
Having beaten Teeside, Sunderland,
Huddersfield – and now York – in
successive games, Newcastle have
climbed to second place in league
and will go into next week’s crunch
encounter with leaders Northumbria
Fourths as favourites.
The home side cast their spell
early in the game; paralysing
York’s passing moves with quick,
collective pressing. Matt Gouland
was particularly impressive in his
defensive midfield role, shielding a
defence that had previously leaked
four goals against the visitors in
November.
The majority of play belonged to
Newcastle but for all their effort, they
rarely troubled York’s ‘keeper in the
opening period. Mike Peace was at
the heart of the Royals’ best attacking
moments and he almost put the hosts
ahead on the half hour mark.
The diminutive winger darted
inside from the left flank, weaving
past bewildered York defenders as
he approached the box, but with the
goal at his mercy he disappointingly
over-ran the ball to the ‘keeper.
The second half was to prove
frustrating for Newcastle too, as they
had plenty of possession but still
lacked cutting edge in the final third.
Step forward Thackwray. If the
Royals were ever to score it was
inevitably going to come from the
inform front man.
Substitute Nick Peters’ drilled
a delightful cross-field pass to
Thackwray in the box, and he took
one touch before firing the ball into
the net.
The goal is his fourth in only two
BUCS games and Newcastle will rely
on his appetite for goal as they enter
the finishing straight of the season.
The home side were quickly into
their stride once more as Peace’s
effort was well saved after Jamie
Taylor’s superb mazy run into the
box. Moments later, Murphy’s
powerful header was expertly tipped
over by the York ‘keeper.
A second goal looked likely but as
the game entered the final stages,
the Royals seemed content with the
marginal score line.
Next week, Newcastle face their
sternest test of the season against
their bitter North-East rivals and
they will hope for another magic
result – but only in victory will their
fairytale story be realised.
Equestrian team claim league title
EQUESTRIAN
Harriet McHugh
After a long and tough season
Newcastle’s Equestrian First Team
won their league last month having
seen off strong competition from
Edinburgh
and
Herriot-Watt.
The league has been incredibly
competitive this year, with these
three highly skilled and ambitious
university teams going head to head
in a battle for the title.
However, true to form, Newcastle
sealed the deal. The previous week
saw the team grasp victory at
Cumbria; a specialist Equine college.
This meant only one more win on
the board was needed to take the
title.
The atmosphere was tense on
Wednesday with the pressure on for
a home triumph. Strong dressage
performances from Sarah Jones,
Monica Wilson and Captain Harriet
McHugh saw the team placed second
by lunchtime.
However, more was still needed
to seal a victory and the team had
to turn things around in the show
jumping phase of the afternoon.
It was decided a huge risk must
be taken with a last minute tactical
change to the course. It paid off, and
Newcastle’s finest Equestrians were
able to outmanoeuvre their closest
rivals Edinburgh, with three clear
rounds.
The results deemed Newcastle to
be the clear winners, finishing on
two penalties with Edinburgh taking
second on 26. With the Regionals
highly anticipated on the 18th March,
the team can hopefully stay focused
and continue their winning streak.
Last year’s season was a huge
success, with Newcastle winning the
League and the Regional rounds. For
the first time the team had qualified
for the Nationals and with this the
chance to compete over three days at
Arena UK in Grantham.
The experience itself was exciting
enough, but to be placed in the top
five student teams in the country was
even better. Consequently, ambitions
are high this year with an impressive
team eager to do as well if not better
than last year.
Two valuable additions to this years’
promising team are Fiona Ellwood
and Rachel Browning. Having been
involved in previous years, Rachel
made a comeback this season putting
in a great performance at Edinburgh.
As a new member of the team Fiona
quickly adapted to the demands of
this tough University league and has
received many individual placings.
C
M
Y
K
Harriet McHugh with her horse Rupert
SPORT
9th March 2009
49
[email protected]
Royals cruise past hapless Hallam
NETBALL ROUND-UP
Kirsten Pettit
NEWCASTLE 2NDS
SHEFF HALLAM 2NDS
28
32
Tate inspires Newcastle as Sheffield crushed at Cochrane
The 2nds were at home to Sheffield
WOMEN’S FOOTBALL 1STS
Hallam 2nds, and with both teams
tied on points, this meant the result NEWCASTLE 1STS
4
of the match may prove crucial at the SHEFF HALLAM 1STS
1
end of the season.
With two of their three possible
shooters unavailable due to sickness,
it fell to fresher Becky Mills to step Tom James
in at goal attack, adjusting quickly to
her new role, with good movement
and accurate shooting throughout the Newcastle ladies 1st team recorded
a comfortable win over Sheffield
match.
Despite a slow start to the match, the Hallam 2nds at Cochrane Park last
girls soon steadied and found their Wednesday with a 4-1 score line
stride, with tight defending in the that could have been close to double
circle allowing Mills and Ellie Hatt to figures, but for some erratic finishing
from the Royals in the 1st half.
capitalise and rack up a narrow lead.
As the Royals waited for the game
Issy Rhetberg dominated - in the
defending third - earned her player to begin the Hallam side had a bit
of
a sing song before the game had
of the match. Despite a strong
performance, with several players even begun, needless to say it wasn’t
quite
the haka and certainly didn’t
out of position, the girls’ lead slipped
agonisingly away, finishing the match seem to put the Newcastle side off as
they dominated the first half.
32-28 down.
The first real opportunity to open
NEWCASTLE 3RDS
60 the scoring fell to club captain Lucy
HULL 2NDS
20 Martin after a good cross from
Sophie Muller found her unmarked
Whilst sitting at the top of their table, in the box, but she sliced wide from
the 3rds faced Hull 2nds at home; the six yards.
Martin again wasted another
only team still able to deny the girls
of their title. Having only narrowly golden opportunity to break the
beaten them in their last fixture, the deadlock later in the half, when a
Royals anticipated a strong surge counter attack from a Hallam corner
saw the impressive Kate St. Louis
from the away side from the outset.
However, shortly after the start of find her with a low cross - only for
the first quarter, Newcastle found Martin to misjudge her finish.
The Royals had several chances
themselves with a five goal lead,
with no sign of the strength Hull had to score but left it until late in the
fi
rst
half to take a much deserved
shown in their last encounter.
So strong was the Royals’ dominance lead through Emily Tate. Tate’s shot
that a member of the opposition from 20 yards evaded the Hallam
challenged the Newcastle captain goalkeepers outstretched arms and
as to whether they were, in fact, the saw the Royals go into half-time a
same team who faced them before goal to the good.
It could and should have been
Christmas.
Having established that there was more as St. Louis had a great chance
to
double the lead on half-time. Her
no cheating taking place, the girls
took great confidence from such a blocked shot came straight back to
challenge, and continued to capitalise her but her header was off target
on the Hull’s errors, ending the first with the whole goal at her mercy.
The second half saw the Royals
half with a lead of 30-9.
Although slightly rushed at times, it
was a strong performance from each
player, with pocket rocket Rebecca
Meldrum securing yet another player
of the match, which has come to be
expected.
The girls ended the game with
a convincing win of 60-20, and
GO KARTING
are determined to maintain their
unbeaten record as they go into their
final match.
Ollie Nuthall
finally convert chances into goals
although they did seem to have
a 12th player in the shape of the
Hallam goalkeeper who seemed
intent on rewarding the Newcastle
dominance by having a nightmare of
a second half.
Put simply the Hallam ‘keeper
couldn’t catch a cold.
The main profiteer of the ‘keeper’s
ill fortune was the tireless Lucy
Martin who got her deserved goal
after Kate St. Louis had already
scored the Royals second with a
rifling low shot into the corner which
the ‘keeper could only admire.
Martin made it 3-0 on 65 minutes
when her speculative shot from 30
yards bounced into the ‘keepers
hands, came out again and somehow
found its way into the Hallam goal.
The ‘keeper then added to her own
and her teams misery by gifting
Martin a second goal on 75 minutes.
Hallam had just scored from a
corner to give themselves a lifeline
but straight from the kick off Martin
again tried her luck from distance
and was rewarded with another gift
from the ‘keeper, as the ball sailed
through her hands and into the net.
To be fair to Hallam’s goalie, she
did manage to keep the score at
a semi-respectable 4-1 as the last
fifteen minutes were played out with
no further goals scored.
The Royals coach said she was
pleased to convert possession
into goals in the second half: “We
dominated the game and were
creating chances right to the end of
the match. Emily Tate was our best
player today, she retained the ball
well and provided good support in
defence and attack.”
A convincing victory for the Royals
overall but it could easily have been
10-1 had they been more clinical in
front of goal.
A.WILSON
Karters impress in northern qualifiers
SHEFF HALLAM 3RDS
NEWCASTLE 4THS
46
42
The 4ths faced a long day away at
Sheffield Hallam 3rds, with an eight
hour wait before their match started.
An unfortunate amount of absences
from the Royals meant that the girls
had to take the court with just seven
players, many of whom were forced
to play out of position.
As might have been expected from
such a mixed up team, the first quarter
was frantic, and it took the girls a
few minutes to settle into the match,
coming out of the first quarter 12-7
down.
Defenders Claire Jackson and Alex
Stevens picked up some crucial
interceptions in the second and third
quarters to close the gap Hallam had
created.
The Royals coped well in an
unbelievably rough match with
the umpires doing little to sanction
Hallam’s boisterous play. With a
lack of centre court players, Anna
Rosenberg stepped in to play centre in
the second half, earning herself player
of the match.
It was a valiant performance from
those girls who played in tough
circumstances, but unfortunately the
girls couldn’t pull off their comeback.
Newcastle are all set for their first
appearance at the British Universities
Karting Championship (BUKC) after
performing well at the Northern
qualifiers last month.
BUKC takes place over eight
rounds at four kart tracks across the
UK in identical Club 100 karts.
The Warden Law track near
Sunderland hosted the qualifying,
with 29 teams racing for 23
championship places. The format
of the race day saw four 25 minute
races - one for each team member
- followed by two hour long races
with two compulsory pit stops and
driver changes.
Weather was sub-zero all day
and sections of the track remained
treacherous throughout despite
organisers’ best efforts at gritting.
The level of competition was high,
with Alex Brundle, a regular Formula
Palmer Audi front runner and son
of ex-F1 driver Martin, competing
for Nottingham and ex-Formula
Renault driver Nik Goodfellow
boosting Loughborough’s extensive
driver line-up.
Newcastle fielded only one team
made up of the mandatory four
drivers. Chances of qualification
rested on Ollie Nuthall, Rob Exelby,
Al Curry and Mitch Ralley to
consistently finish higher than 23rd.
Struggling for grip, the standout
performance in the individual races
came from Exelby, who charged from
a 29th and dead last starting position
to an error free seventh place.
The biggest mistake came from team
captain Nuthall, who, after starting
from pole, threw away a good
second position finish in the closing
stages of his race, due to a collision
with a backmarker landing him with
a penalty and 16th position.
Under pressure from some close
racing, Ralley however managed to
keep a cool head and a measured
drive through the field paid off with
a solid ninth place.
Unfortunately Curry was not able
to translate his blinding start and
early pace to a good finish due to
a spin then engine trouble slowing
his kart. His finishing position of
13th was a great result under the
circumstances.
The hour long races gave way to
some disappointing mid-field results
of 22nd and 13th despite Exelby
setting the second fastest lap of the
day at his home track.
Newcastle
incurred
several
penalties in the form of three ten
second stop and goes for overtaking
under yellow flags and unnecessary
collisions.
Some of the official’s decisions
seemed especially harsh but happily,
slick pit work gained valuable
time back with Nigel ‘Ross Brawn’
Curry acting as team manager
keeping Newcastle in the qualifying
positions.
Overall
however,
Newcastle
showed serious potential, able to
keep pace with well established
teams and easily qualified for the
championship finishing 12th out of
the 29 teams.
It was a comfortable result in the
end considering the tricky conditions
and the team’s unfamiliarity with
BUKC race format.
More disciplined driving and less
unforced errors should bring regular
top ten results within reach when
the BUKC kicks off for real.
If you are interested in karting and
would like to have a go at university
contact the motorsport society at
[email protected] which
organises regular karting events. To
be considered for the BUKC team
please contact the Team Captain at
[email protected].
SPORT
50
9th March 2009
[email protected]
Rowers celebrate
belated bronze
Gill and Durant have medal upgraded
after Serbian duo test positive
BOAT CLUB
Jamie Gavin
Sports Editor
Newcastle University Boat Club
President Mason Durant and 2008
graduate Fred Gill were recently
awarded a bronze medal for their
performance at the World University
Rowing Championships in Belgrade
last summer.
The pair were granted their medal
almost six months after the event
when the Serbian pair, who finished
first on the day of the event, were
disqualified after testing positive for
performance enhancing drugs.
Durant and Gill finished fourth
on the day, but were promoted to
the bronze medal position after a
decision by the International Rowing
Federation.
The hugely talented Durant,
described what the award meant to
him and compared it to last year’s
success at Henley.
“This was my first medal at a
World Championships so in that
respect it ranks quite highly in my
achievements,” Durant said.
“Especially considering it was
in a small boat, it is considered
more a representation of personal
achievement. It ranks up there with
winning Henley Royal Regatta.”
Durant and Gill finished just behind
the German pairing, meaning they
were just edged out of the medal
places on the day of the race.
“We felt like we had a really
good race in the final, probably our
best race together and felt that we
couldn’t have done any more, or
gone any faster” explained Durant.
“We chased the German pair for
the last 1000m after a push, but just
couldn’t get past them.
“We were still very happy with our
performance, despite not getting a
medal for our efforts, so to actually
have something to show for our
performance now, which we felt
was of a high standard, is a great
reward.”
However, the pair were not able to
stand on the podium with the other
medallists and enjoy the moment.
“After being told of our medal I
initially felt very excited and pleased
that we had something to show for
our efforts,” said Durant.
“However after a few hours, I
couldn’t help but think that I had
been slightly cheated and that I could
have enjoyed the feeling of having
won a medal whilst in Belgrade, a
feeling of jubilation that you can’t
replicate.
“It also felt slightly weird being
rewarded for something that
happened six months ago.”
The disqualification shows that
performance enhancing drugs is an
issue, even in University sport.
“I think the ruling of a two year ban
from the sport is fair for this type of
offence and that all of those people
that think they can get away with
cheating are dealt with severely”
Durant said.
“There are very few drug offences
in rowing and hopefully there will be
even less in the future.”
Performance Sport Manager Fraser
Kennedy, who hailed the achievement
as “phenomenal,” told Courier Sport
that all of Newcastle’s performance
sport athletes are educated on the
matter of performance enhancing
drugs in accordance with UK sport’s
‘100% me’ programme.
“The day after the story came out I
was doing a seminar for all our elite
athletes and scholarship athletes,”
explained Kennedy.
“We educate athletes that they are
one hundred percent responsible
for what gets put into their body
- that goes for any medicines, or
supplements.”
Kennedy also put into context the
calibre of the medallists.
“The people that medal in these
events will go on to represent their
country. Fred Gill - who graduated
last year - could possibly be in the
Cambridge boat in the Boat Race this
year.”
The
result
marks
another
outstanding achievement for the
Boat Club, who continue to go from
Fred Gill and Mason Durant after the World University Rowing Championships last year
strength to strength.
“The rowing club have set the
standard for all other clubs to aspire
to,” said Kennedy. “They have set
the benchmark.”
It is even more remarkable
considering many of the club’s
members – including Fred Gill have not rowed before coming to
University.
Boat Club coach Angelo Savarino’s
ever successful programme - a strict
regime designed to maximise rowing
technique - is regarded as a key part
in Newcastle’s rowing success.
“If you’ve got the desire and the
commitment and you follow Angelo’s
programme to the letter, you’ve got
a very good chance of doing really
well,” explained Kennedy.
“If you’re a big guy and your
powerful then Angelo can work on
your technique.”
Indoor team geared up for Lord’s date
CRICKET CLUB
David Coverdale
Sports Editor
Newcastle University’s men’s 6-aside cricket team travel down to
London this weekend for what is set
to be the biggest day in the club’s
short history.
James Irvine Fortescue’s side
will compete in the BUCS Indoor
Championships at Lord’s on
Saturday, after qualifying through
their semi-final in Sheffield last
month, the same stage where the
team agonisingly fell short last
season.
It is an amazing feat for a club
which re-formed just four years ago
and has only been playing indoor
cricket for two years, something the
University’s Cricket Club President
Luke Lynch is only too aware of.
“I sometimes have to remind
myself that the Club was only reformed four years ago,” Lynch said.
“Our foray into the semifinals last year, where we were
comprehensively beaten by Leeds
Met, was a real eye opener and it is
testament to the commitment of the
players that they have managed to
raise their level and go a step further
this year.”
“A trip to Lord’s is just reward for
their efforts and I have no doubt that
the team will give a good account of
themselves.”
Competing against Newcastle on
Saturday will be university sporting
heavyweights Leeds Metropolitan,
Bath and Loughborough, as well
as Anglia Ruskin and Aberystwyth
universities. The six teams will be
split into two pools of three with the
winners of each group then battling it
out for the honour of the best indoor
cricketing university in the country.
While Lynch accepts that the club
may go into the event as underdogs,
he sees no reason why they cannot
provide a shock and go on to lift the
trophy.
“To a large extent the draw is
irrelevant as all of the other teams
are representing strong cricketing
institutions,” the third year history
student said.
“One factor which may work in
or favour is our relative anonymity.
Most of our opponents will be
wondering who we are, but they
underestimate us at their peril.
“We have placed greater emphasis
on specialist 6-a-side training this
year and, as a result, have generally
found ourselves to be better prepared
than our opponents.
“The squad has also been
strengthened by the influx of a
couple of very talented freshers who
have adapted to this form of the
game extremely quickly.”
One of these freshers is batsman
Tom Ullyott, who has twice been
Newcastle’s hero in recent times.
Chasing 84 to beat Sheffield in the
BUCS semi-finals, Ullyott hauled his
side out of trouble at 61-4 to secure
a last ball victory and seal the club’s
Lord’s visit.
Ullyott also shone in last month’s
Stan
Calvert
triumph
over
Northumbria, coolly seeing the
University over the finishing line in
an innings of great maturity under
pressure.
“Tom and Joe Austin have been our
two most consistent performers up to
this point,” Lynch said. “However,
there is nowhere to hide in 6-a-side
cricket and so far everyone has
contributed to the team’s success.”
“The leadership shown by captain
James Irvine-Fortescue has also been
impeccable and his performance
Newcastle’s indoor team, from left to right: Luke Lynch, James Irvine-Fortescue (captain),
Joe Austin, Alisdair Barrowman, Tom Ullyott and Alex Burrows
with both bat and ball will be vital to
our bid for the trophy at Lord’s.”
The addition of indoor cricket at
Newcastle University has served
as a welcome respite to the club’s
members, who would otherwise
have been without competitive action
until the outdoor season commences
after the Easter break.
It also brings with it the chance
for the club, voted last year’s most
improved at the AU Awards, to add
some valuable BUCS points to Team
Newcastle as the University looks to
cement its top ten place in the BUCS
rankings.
Having already achieved great
success in a short space of time
outdoors, this year’s 6-a-side
triumphs have been a source of
great pride to Lynch, who now
looks forward to what will be a truly
memorable occasion at the ‘Home of
Cricket’ on Saturday.
“I know it’s a cliché, but I’m excited
and nervous in equal measure. I
could barely watch our run-chase in
Sheffield so I can only imagine how I
will be on the day.
“For us to win such a competitive
tournament in only our second year
of indoor competition would be
amazing.
“It would without question put
Newcastle on the cricketing map
and give the whole club a huge boost
going into the season proper.”
C
M
Y
K
SPORT
9th March 2009
51
[email protected]
Barrett try seals Fairies win
Southerners cup dream still alive as Armstrong crash out
INTRA MURAL RUGBY CUP
SOUTHERN FAIRIES
ARMSTRONG
26
12
Doug Miller
Southern Fairies reached the quarterfinals of the Intra Mural Cup with
a hard fought 26-12 victory over
Armstrong at Close House.
The game begun in a lively fashion
with the Fairies scoring almost
immediately after the drop start.
The ball went out wide after some
slick passing and the Fairies’ Tom
Redding went over in the far corner,
with most of the Armstrong defence
simply looking on in dismay.
The ensuing conversion kick, from
a difficult position, just missed,
allowing Armstrong to dodge an
early sucker punch. The restart
showed that Armstrong had indeed
turned up as they charged forward
to recapture possession.
Some nice passing and nice lines
meant the sturdy Fairies defence had
to hold up well; however mistakes
in the Armstrong centre allowed
the Fairies to survive the minionslaught.
The game was completely one
sided and another excellent Fairies
attack led to a superb drop goal
position that was not passed up.
Dave Smith’s kick was good and the
Fairies stretched their lead, whilst the
Armstrong team and support looked
on, trying to ignore the grey clouds
shadowing overhead ominously.
However not to be dismayed,
Armstrong pushed on, buoyed by
the loud, and at times frightening
rallying calls of Harry Stein. They
nearly had a try when the Armstrong
scrumhalf spotted the overlap on the
wing and got the ball out quickly
from a ruck, with the Fairies’ “clean
short” Skull making a fine last ditch
tackle to push the threat into touch,
and make sure that his shorts would
indeed need washing.
The effects of Stein’s war cries
seemed to be taking hold as minutes
later Armstrong got a penalty in
front of the posts and kicking hero
Rob Teare promptly chalked up
Armstrong’s first points of the match
to make the score 13-3.
Another penalty followed and it
seemed that Armstrong would rain
on the Fairies’ parade, taking the
score to 13-6 and making sure that
they were just a converted try away
from parity.
The Fairies probably had the better
of the first half with their backs
showing themselves to be superior.
Another slick passing movement
nearly heralded another try and
more misery for Armstrong, as the
ball was zipped nicely along the
backline and tipped on by Barrett to
set the Fairies winger clear only to be
denied by a last ditch tackle.
The first half whistle was seconds
away when Armstrong finally
offered some heavy hits to back up
Stein’s delicate shouts. The Fairies
were pursuing another try before
the break and the ball went out to
winger Skull but he was promptly
dispatched by a shattering dump
tackle and the whistle blew shortly
after, leaving the score at 13-6.
The second half started almost
exactly as the first. Drops of rain fell,
making sure that the backs on both
sides would have to watch their
handling.
Armstrong had a couple of good
chances, but they were denied by
some costly mistakes. The Fairies
then knocked the wind out of the
Armstrong sails with two penalties
that were expertly dispatched - one
from right in front of the posts, the
other slightly trickier out wide,
putting the Fairies over the horizon
with the score at 19-6.
Not wanting to be outdone,
Armstrong responded with two
penalties of their own, again
well kicked by Rob Teare, taking
advantage after the Fairies’ captain
Jack Campbell was sin binned for
what video replay’s showed to be
very little, if anything. With the
score balanced at 19-12, a converted
try was again all that separated the
two teams.
It seemed as if Armstrong, buoyed
by the introduction of forward
James “The Chiropractor” Conway
at half time, would finally make a
concentrated push to overturn the
deficit.
They now had the bulk to support
the pack, gathered around veteran
hooker Freddie Douglas, playing his
last game along with Alexander Blott
M. MISKINIS
and famer Harry Stein.
It was not to be, as in the aftermath
of a maul the prop had to leave the
field admist shouts of “someone call
the doctor” with his finger at a right
angle.
The Fairies ensured there would
be no Armstrong fireworks at the
end, with another lovely Barrett run
opening up the Armstrong defence
like a lukewarm knife through Tesco
value butter, and he went over in the
far corner.
The kick was dispatched by Smith
making the score 26-12. There was
late drama when the Fairies received
another yellow card, but they held on
to make sure that Armstrong, already
flagging in the Intra Mural league,
would go home empty handed.
For the Fairies, the dream of lifting
the cup is still very much alive, and
they will take heart from a confident,
and at times sublime, performance.
Larrikins stun Engines to book quarter-final berth
INTRA MURAL RUGBY CUP
LARRIKINS
ENGINES
24
20
Finnbar Payne
The Larrikins, the in-form team of
the Intra Mural league, engineered a
famous comeback victory against the
Engines last Wednesday in an epic
cup encounter at Close House.
Brimming with confidence off the
back of two wins, but without star
players Tim Bates and Finn ‘Gunn’
Payne, the Larrikins and the Engines
met to set up a mouth watering
fixture for any neutrals.
Engines started well, and pinned
the Larrikins defence within their
own 22 for the first 20 minutes.
Soon their back-three dominance
shone through and when the
Larrikins’ defence crumbled under
the pressure, the Engines scored an
unconverted try.
Soon after, the Engines added a
second try to their tally, scoring
a quick tap-and-go, and running
through the leaky Larrikins defence.
This time the Engines’ number ten
slotted the conversion.
The real fight back began with an
expert line break from Will Mellor,
who offloaded for Mike to score a
debut try, with calls for a knock on
dismissed by the referee.
Soon after club captain Tommy
Tippets had to come off due to a
niggling ankle injury, and he was
replaced by veteran second row
James Cummings.
Visibly upset, the captain could
no longer influence his team on the
pitch and would have to boss from
the touchline.
However, with the confidence from
the first score, the Larrikins believed
they could overturn the favourites
and after a great period of phase
play led from the front by Brad Cliff,
Larrikins converted a long period
of pressure for outside centre Nigel
Eastman to score from the left wing.
The Engines’ left wing lashed out
with frustration, and the referee
didn’t take to this well and sin binned
the player - Will Mellor dispatching
the conversion with ease.
With the Engines down to 14 men,
and 20 minutes to go, Larrikins really
felt the victory within their grasp, a
perturbed Engines defence started
to give away silly penalties and Will
Mellor’s right boot dually made them
lament their ill discipline.
With ten minutes left it was up to
Engines to bring the fight to Larrikins,
and some poor handling in the rucks
by the Larrikins led to increased
pressure from a determined Engines
side.
Off the back of a line out a desperate
Nick Cook kicked out and tripped
his opposite man, landing him in the
sin bin, and with the man advantage
the Engines converted a last minute
try, but it was too little too late for
the Engines and the game was won
24-20 to larrikins. The magic of the
Intra Mural Cup is not dead.
Leazes stay bottom after fifth straight draw
INTRA MURAL FOOTBALL
DIVISION ONE
CASTLE LEAZES
HENDERSON HALL A
0
0
Ed Elliot
Castle Leazes and Henderson Hall
A played out a dour 0-0 draw that
did little to appease either side’s
relegation fears in a game that was
dogged by foul throws and dodgy
refereeing decisions.
Both sides went into the game in
need of the points to help move them
away from the foot of the table but
struggled to get the ball down as the
conditions dictated a scrappy affair.
The opening to the game saw little
goal mouth action with Leazes’ only
threat coming from set pieces. Hind
and McElhinney both had chances
with free headers from de Boinville
corners but failed to find the target.
With little creativity in the final
third, it was left to full back James
Oldroyd to try and break the
deadlock.
A spirited scurry forward saw
the Leazes number two closing in
on goal. Nevertheless the versatile
defender’s edge of the area shot
lacked substance as he continues to
search in vain for his first ever career
goal.
At the other end Henderson were
looking to utilise the pace of their
quicksilver frontline and stretch the
Leazes defence.
However, Ola Kupolati and co.
were left constantly frustrated by
a combination of solid defending,
poor service and offside decisions as
an uneventful opening period drew
to a close.
Hand rallied his troops at half time
and his motivational managerial
methods appeared to pay off as
Henderson came out fighting for the
second period.
Undeterred by a frustrating first
half, Kupolati looked like a man on a
mission and was not to be denied his
opportunity.
A through-ball from centre
midfielder Craven sent the striker
rampaging through on goal. Kupolati
used his strength to hold off the
presence of Hind before seeing his
shot saved brilliantly by the legs of
Gere in the Leazes goal.
Moments later, Henderson were
again attacking and almost gained
the advantage.
Neat play in the centre of the park
released the fresh legs of Henderson
substitute Ole-Gunnar Harewood
who took a touch before unleashing
a powerful drive that rattled the side
netting with the crowd on the farside on their feet.
Leazes then hit back with a golden
chance of their own. Neat interplay
on the right wing between Dimmock
and Foster saw the latter swing a
delightful ball into the Henderson
box.
Despite the ball being slightly
behind him, miniature man Josh
Arthur used his entire five foot five
inch frame to send an acrobatic effort
flying towards the bottom corner.
With a certain goal on the cards,
‘keeper Greenhouse displayed his
cat-like instincts to claw the ball
behind with a top drawer reflex save
that can only be described as world
class.
In the dying embers of the game
de Boinville could have snatched
the points for Leazes when through
one-on-one. However the striker
failed to find the target with a finish
in keeping with a game that from the
outset looked destined to be dull.
The result sees Leazes record their
second consecutive stalemate and
fifth straight draw as they continue
to search for their elusive first win of
a frustrating season at the business
end of the campaign. Henderson also
remain teetering on the edge; a point
ahead of their relegation rivals.
[email protected]
9th March 2009
Exclusive interview
with Guinness
Premiership player of
the month Tom May
A. WILSON
Striker Dave Kewn sinks his second and Newcastle’s third in a fine 3-0 victory at a sunny Cochrane Park
Dave’s double delights Royals
Football firsts, seconds and thirds on brink of promotion
MEN’S FOOTBALL 1STS
NEWCASTLE 1STS
SHEFFIELD 2NDS
3
0
Jamie Gavin
Sports Editor
A brace from Dave Kewn propelled
the Royals within touching distance of
the league title and promotion after a
magnificent display at Cochrane Park.
Kewn’s goals, either side of a
wonderfully worked goal finished
by the in-form Ed Tizzard, capped
a
fine
personal
performance
from the striker and a return to
form for Newcastle’s top scorer.
The home side thoroughly deserved
the points in a game they dominated
against the only side to get the better of
them in this years’ BUCS competition.
They avenged their bizarre 6-4 away
defeat in style, and will look to
secure the crown in Leeds next week.
The only setback for the home
side came in the form of an injury
to their influential club captain Joe
Foote. Foote, who had the Royals’
opening chance - a long range
effort that just curled wide of the
target - suffered a knee injury with
20 minutes gone, and it forced
his side to bring on midfielder
Oliver Heywood in replacement.
Prior to this, Newcastle had an
early scare when a break from
Sheffield in the opening minutes saw
an away striker through on goal, but
a finger-tip save from ‘keeper Andy
Kilshaw denied the visitors. This
proved to be their best chance of
the afternoon on a day in which the
Royals looked resoundingly solid
at the back, with Kilshaw instilling
confidence in his side early on.
Five minutes later the Royals
were in full flow and an attack led
to a half chance for the impressive
Martin Hill who volleyed just wide.
And Sheffield were dealt another
warning shot when Tizzard had the
ball in the back of the net minutes
later only for it to be ruled offside.
On the half hour mark Newcastle’s
constant pressure finally resulted in
the opening goal. After the ball was
played forward from the back, Kewn
found Tizzard with a well cushioned
header, leaving his strike partner to
unleash a powerful drive on goal.
Sheffield’s ‘keeper did well to save
low to his right, but Kewn was on hand
to poach his eighth goal of the season.
Newcastle’s football continued to
flow on a fine Cochrane Park surface,
and their best goal of the afternoon
followed on 37 minutes. Substitute
Heywood showed skill and strength
to beat one man in midfield, before
holding off another and to produce
an inch perfect through-ball.
Tizzard latched on to it with a neat
diagonal run and a powerful firsttime left foot finish beat the ‘keeper.
At 2-0 they looked more than
comfortable and the second half
began the way the first ended with
the home side well on top. A few neat
moves came to nothing and it was
a rare route-one clearance that led
to Newcastle’s third on 56 minutes.
The away side broke down the left
and a cross was delivered only to be
met by the gloves of Kilshaw, who
caught well before launching a kick
down field. Kewn gambled, and got
there first to cleverly beat his man
before thumping home his second.
Celebrations ensued at both ends,
as Kewn at one end, ended the tie
as a contest, and at the other ‘keeper
Kilshaw claimed a rare assist.
Sheffield brought on another striker
soon after in an attempt to steal a goal
back, but Newcastle made changes of
their own with winger Gareth Pickup
giving way to Will Deledicq and
Tizzard, after a wonderful display,
being replaced by fresher Ben Burt.
The Yorkshiremen attacked more
dangerously in the final twenty
minutes, but this left them exposed
at the back, and the Royals had
further chances to extend their lead.
Heywood went very close from
long range, before Hill, on his return
from injury, curled a 25-yard left
foot strike against the crossbar.
The final whistle followed shortly
after, and this now leaves Newcastle
needing only a single point from
their final three matches to guarantee
promotion and the league title.
Another performance of this
calibre and both could well
be just around the corner.