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DECEMBER 22 — 28 , 2017

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Motherhood after cancer treatment

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How independent artists have changed the music industry

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CONTENTS PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22, 2017

COVER STORY IT 28 GOING ALONE ;OL YPZL VM [OL PU[LYUL[ ZVJPHS TLKPH HUK Z[YLHTPUN TLHUZ T\ZPJ HY[PZ[Z JHU UV^ IYLHR H ZJLUL [OLTZLS]LZ

CINEMA

18 On the cover: Lady Leshurr

FEATURES 16 Jolly good entertainment +LÄHU[S` \UJVVS -HUJ` MLL[ ;OL THU ^P[O H `V\UN woman’s heart /V\ZL VU ^OLLSZ 46 Monster wonder :\WLYMVVK HSLY[ *YLH[P]L ZWPU ( Z[LW [V^HYKZ OLHSPUN ( THZ[LYM\S THRLV]LY ( WLYMLJ[ 7HUPUP REGULARS 05 Editorial /H]L `V\ OLHYK& 7PJ[\YL WLYMLJ[ 33 Letters *V\U[LY WVPU[ :WVY[ UL^Z -YPKH` \U^PUK )VVRZ 64 All the goss :H` ^OH[&

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Editorial

PANORAMA Published by Taryam Omran and Abdullah Omran Editor in Chief Aysha Taryam Arts Editor Sarah Taryam Associate Magazine Editor Neena Sharma 6WRUP]\

Independent singers

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Sub - Editor / Reporter Mitchelle D’Souza

n the 2017 music scene, independent artists have been the ones to watch. An independent music artist is one who is unsigned to a label and has no contract with a label. This week we take a closer look at some of those artists and how, thanks to the age of the internet and social media, their work is changing the music scene forever. English rapper Melesha O’Garro, known as Lady Leshurr, has gathered a large following on YouTube with over 100 million views. Since emerging on the music scene back in 2009, she has released nine mix-tapes and four EPs. She does not have a full album released yet, but O’Garro’s lyrical ability and talented performing skills have HVWDEOLVKHG KHU DV D Ă€UP IDYRXULWH LQ WKH JULPH JHQUH Grime and hip hop artist Stormzy garnered attention on the UK underground music scene and went on to be mentioned as an DUWLVW WR ORRN RXW IRU RQ WKH %%&¡V LQĂ XHQWLDO 6RXQG RI OLVW +LV most successful track to date has been platinum selling Shut Up, which was originally released as a freestyle on YouTube. He has been credited with transforming the grime genre, which was once discredited by the mainstream, to an internationally acclaimed one. In other news this week, turn to our home pages to discover DERXW WKH DGYDQFHG WHFKQLTXH RI HJJ YLWULĂ€FDWLRQ ZKLFK promises hope to women who want to become mothers after undergoing cancer treatment. Dr Prankaj Shrivastav, head of Conceive – Gynaecology and Fertility Hospital in Sharjah explains the process and everything that goes along with it.

SARAH TARYAM

Senior Sub - Editor / Reporter Saleha Irfan Rauf

Chief Designer Prakash Anchal The Gulf Today P.O. Box No. 30, Sharjah, UAE. Editorial 7HO )D[ Marketing 7HO )D[ Circulation 7HO )D[ International Advertising Sales INDIA The Times of India, Group International Media Representation, The Times of India Building, Dr. DN Road, Mumbai. 7HO )D[ Bahrain Arab World Advertising & Information Centre, P.O. Box-20612, Manama-Bahrain, 7HO )D[ Published by Dar Al Khaleej for Press Printing & Publishing Ltd. P.O. Box 30, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates.

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

05

Have you heard?

GLOWING PLANTS THAT COULD REPLACE LAMPS 6FLHQWLVWV KDYH FUHDWHG SODQWV WKDW JORZ XVLQJ HPEHGGHG QDQRSDUWLFOHV LQ OHDYHV SRWHQWLDOO\ SDYLQJ WKH ZD\ IRU WUHHV WR UHSODFH VWUHHWOLJKWV ([SHUWV DW WKH 0DVVDFKXVHWWV ,QVWLWXWH RI 7HFKQRORJ\ 0,7 KRSH WKHLU GLVFRYHU\ FRXOG OHDG WR WUDGLWLRQDO OLJKW VRXUFHV EHLQJ UHSODFHG ZLWK VHOI VXVWDLQLQJ DOWHUQDWLYHV ´7KH YLVLRQ LV WR PDNH D SODQW WKDW ZLOO IXQFWLRQ DV D GHVN ODPS ² D ODPS WKDW \RX GRQ·W KDYH WR SOXJ LQ µ VDLG FKHPLFDO HQJLQHHU 3URIHVVRU 0LFKDHO 6WUDQR WKH VHQLRU DXWKRU RI WKH VWXG\ ´7KH OLJKW LV XOWLPDWHO\ SRZHUHG E\ WKH HQHUJ\ PHWDEROLVP RI WKH SODQW LWVHOI µ 7R JLYH WKH SODQWV WKHLU JORZLQJ DELOLW\ 3URIHVVRU 6WUDQR DQG KLV FROOHDJXHV XVHG OXFLIHUDVH WKH VXEVWDQFH WKDW JLYHV ÀUHÁLHV WKHLU JORZ 7KH\ FUHDWHG QDQRSDUWLFOHV FRQWDLQLQJ OXFLIHUDVH DV ZHOO DV RWKHU ODUJHU SDUWLFOHV FRQWDLQLQJ OXFLIHULQ DQG FRHQ]\PH $ ZKLFK FRPELQH ZLWK WKH OXFLIHUDVH WR SURGXFH WKH GHVLUHG HIIHFW $IWHU LPPHUVLQJ WKH SODQWV LQ D VROXWLRQ FRQWDLQLQJ WKHVH SDUWLFOHV DQG H[SRVLQJ WKHP WR KLJK SUHVVXUHV WKH VFLHQWLVWV ZHUH DEOH WR SURGXFH SODQWV WKDW JORZHG IRU QHDUO\ IRXU KRXUV :KLOH WKH ZRUN LV LQ LWV HDUO\ VWDJHV WKH WHDP KDV ORIW\ DPELWLRQV IRU KRZ LW FRXOG EH DSSOLHG LQ WKH IXWXUH

OFFICE TEA BAGS ARE UNTHINKABLY GROSS A study carried out by the Initial Washroom Hygiene came across these staggering results by analysing the bacterial readings of kitchen utensils DQG DSSOLDQFHV 7KH DYHUDJH EDFWHULDO UHDGLQJ RI DQ RIÀFH WHDEDJ ZDV in comparison to only 220 for a toilet seat. 2WKHU SLHFHV RI NLWFKHQ HTXLSPHQW DOVR VWDFNHG XS KLJKO\ LQ WKHLU ÀQGLQJV ZLWK WKH EDFWHULDO UHDGLQJV DYHUDJLQJ DW RQ NHWWOH KDQGOHV RQ WKH ULP RI D XVHG PXJ DQG RQ D IULGJH GRRU KDQGOH 0DQ\ RI XV ZRXOGQ·W WKLQN WR ZDVK RXU KDQGV DIWHU VLPSO\ RSHQLQJ WKH IULGJH GRRU RU EHIRUH PDNLQJ D EUHZ« EXW SHUKDSV ZH VKRXOG $ SROO RI ZRUNHUV UHYHDOHG WKDW SHU FHQW RI SHRSOH ZRUNLQJ LQ DQ RIÀFH ZRXOGQ·W WKLQN WR ZDVK WKHLU KDQGV EHIRUH PDNLQJ GULQNV IRU FROOHDJXHV -XVW WKLQN RI WKH VKHHU DPRXQW RI JHUPV Á\LQJ DURXQG WKH RIÀFH ZKLOH \RX VLW DW \RXU GHVN obliviously sipping an Earl Grey. Dr Peter Barratt of Initial Washroom +\JLHQH EHOLHYHV WKDW RIÀFHV VKRXOG EH PRUH DZDUH RI WKH OHYHOV RI K\JLHQH in their communal kitchens.

06

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

VET REMOVES 21 PACIFIERS FROM DOG’S BELLY An Oklahoma mother DQG IDWKHU FRXOGQ·W ÀJXUH RXW ZKDW ZDV KDSSHQLQJ WR WKHLU FKLOG·V SDFLÀHUV XQWLO WKH EDE\·V JUDQGPRWKHU VDZ WKH IDPLO\ GRJ VZLSH RQH RII D counter. One nauseous pooch and a trip to their YHWHULQDULDQ·V RIÀFH FRQÀUPHG WKH FRXSOH·V KXQFK 'RYH\ KDG SDFLÀHUV ORGJHG LQ KHU stomach. The couple told the veterinarian Dovey KDG VORZHG KHU HDWLQJ DQG ZDV YRPLWLQJ IRU D IHZ GD\V EXW RWKHU WKDQ WKDW WKH\ WKRXJKW VKH VHHPHG ÀQH .)25 79 UHSRUWV WKDW DW ÀUVW WKH veterinarian thought WKHUH ZHUH RQO\ VHYHQ WR QLQH SDFLÀHUV LQ 'RYH\·V VWRPDFK EXW WKH VXUJHU\ SURYHG RWKHUZLVH Dovey is on the mend and has already gone home. The veterinarian FDXWLRQHG SHW RZQHUV LQ D UHFHQW )DFHERRN SRVW WKDW ´GRJV ZLOO HDW DQ\WKLQJ DQ\WLPH DQG DW DQ\ DJH µ

AIR POLLUTION WIPES OUT BENEFITS OF EXERCISE 1HZ UHVHDUFK KDV IRXQG WKDW WKH GRVH RI DLU SROOXWLRQ ROGHU SHRSOH UHFHLYHG ZKHQ WDNLQJ D WZR KRXU ZDON LQ D FRQJHVWHG FLW\ VWUHHW VWLIIHQV WKH DUWHULHV DQG LPSDLUHG OXQJ IXQFWLRQ 3DUWLFLSDQWV VSHQW WZR KRXUV ZDONLQJ DORQJ WUDIÀF KHDY\ 2[IRUG 6WUHHW ZKLFK LV RQH RI WKH PRVW SROOXWHG VSRWV LQ WKH 8. RU LQ +\GH 3DUN $LU SROOXWLRQ OHYHOV ZHUH PRQLWRUHG EHIRUH DQG GXULQJ WKHLU ZDON DQG HDFK SDUWLFLSDQW·V OXQJ FDSDFLW\ DQG DUWHULDO VWLIIQHVV ZDV PHDVXUHG EHIRUH DQG DIWHU ,Q KHDOWK\ SDUWLFLSDQWV WKH ZDON LQ +\GH 3DUN OHG WR D SHU FHQW LPSURYHPHQW in the amount of air they could expel in one breath and improvements in blood ÁRZ ZKLFK SHUVLVWHG XS WR KRXUV DIWHU H[HUFLVH %XW DIWHU ZDONLQJ RQ 2[IRUG 6WUHHW WKHUH ZHUH RQO\ PLQRU LPSURYHPHQWV LQ OXQJ FDSDFLW\ ´+RZHYHU WKLV VKRXOG QRW EH VHHQ DV D EDUULHU WR PDQ\ ROGHU SHRSOH IRU ZKRP ZDONLQJ LV WKH RQO\ H[HUFLVH WKH\ GR :H VXJJHVW WKDW ZKHUH SRVVLEOH ROGHU DGXOWV ZDON LQ SDUNV RU RWKHU JUHHQ VSDFHV DZD\ IURP EXV\ URDGV µ

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

07

Have you heard?

THE HUMAN RACE HAS PEAKED IN MANY AREAS People have long thought of human development as one long process of LPSURYHPHQW JRLQJ RQ IRUHYHU %XW ZH DUH QRZ running up against the OLPLWV RI KRZ JRRG ZH FDQ EH ² DQG PRVW OLNHO\ ZH·OO QRZ MXVW EHJLQ WR fall again. $ PDMRU VWXG\ ORRNHG DW \HDUV RI GDWD and found that there appears to be limits RQ RXU FKDUDFWHULVWLFV OLNH ZKHQ ZH GLH KRZ WDOO ZH FDQ EH DQG KRZ VWURQJ ZH DUH :H DUH pushing up against those OLPLWV QRZ WKH UHVHDUFK suggests. :KDW·V PRUH WKH ZD\V WKDW ZH DUH FKDQJLQJ RXU HQYLURQPHQW ² LQFOXGLQJ WKURXJK JOREDO ZDUPLQJ ² LV SUREDEO\ JRLQJ WR SXOO WKRVH OLPLWV GRZQ and force humanity LQWR D GHFOLQH WKH UHVHDUFKHUV VDLG )RU D ORQJ WLPH KXPDQLW\ KDV looked to be improving. Sprinting speeds that once seemed impossible DUH QRZ FRPPRQSODFH IRU LQVWDQFH DQG WKH record for oldest person LQ WKH ZRUOG LV RIWHQ EHLQJ EURNHQ %XW ZLWK WLPH ZH·OO SUREDEO\ VHH IHZHU ZRUOG UHFRUGV EHLQJ EURNHQ WKH QHZ UHVHDUFK VXJJHVWV DQG little development in KRZ ROG WKH ROGHVW SHRSOH DUH 0RUH SHRSOH PLJKW reach those peaks of SHUIRUPDQFH EXW WKH SHDNV ZLOO JHW QR KLJKHU

08

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

HEALTHIEST DIETS ARE ALSO BEST FOR THE ENVIRONMENT

MEN ARE UNDER MORE PRESSURE TO BE IN A RELATIONSHIP $URXQG SHU FHQW RI EDFKHORUV IHOW ´VLJQLÀFDQW SUHVVXUHµ WR ÀQG D SDUWQHU FRPSDUHG WR SHU FHQW RI ZRPHQ D SROO KDV IRXQG 6LQJOH PHQ ZHUH DOVR VOLJKWO\ PRUH OLNHO\ WKDQ ZRPHQ WR VXIIHU IURP ORQHOLQHVV LI WKH\ DUH QRW LQ D UHODWLRQVKLS WKH VXUYH\ E\ GDWLQJ ZHEVLWH H+DUPRQ\ DQG UHODWLRQVKLS VXSSRUW FKDULW\ 5HODWH 'U /LQGD 3DSDGRSRXORV H+DUPRQ\ SV\FKRORJLVW VDLG ZRPHQ often capitalise on strong friendships more than men. “Surprising though it PD\ VHHP LW·V VLQJOH PHQ UDWKHU WKDQ ZRPHQ ZKR IHHO XQGHU PRUH SUHVVXUH WR ÀQG D SDUWQHU µ VKH DGGHG ´7KH\ DOVR UHSRUW KLJKHU OHYHOV RI ORQHOLQHVV ´7KLV FKDOOHQJHV WKH WUDGLWLRQDO LGHD RI WKH KDSS\ JR OXFN\ EDFKHORU ZKR LV PRUH VXLWHG WR VLQJOH OLIH WKDQ KLV IHPDOH HTXLYDOHQW µ 7KH VWXG\ IRXQG WKDW WKH EHQHÀWV RI EHLQJ VLQJOH LQFOXGH SHUVRQDO LQGHSHQGHQFH WLPH IRU QHZ KREELHV EHLQJ IUHH WR GR ZKDW \RX ZDQW RQ D QLJKW RXW DQG IUHHGRP WR HQMR\ QHZ UHODWLRQVKLSV &KULV 6KHUZRRG FKLHI H[HFXWLYH RI 5HODWH VDLG ´,W·V WKHUHIRUH D VKDPH WKDW VR PDQ\ VLQJOH SHRSOH DQG HVSHFLDOO\ PHQ DUH IHHOLQJ SUHVVXUH WR VHWWOH GRZQ DQG ÀQG D QHZ SDUWQHU µ

STUDY MAY OFFER EXPLANATION FOR SOCIAL MEDIA ROWS $ QHZ VWXG\ KDV VXJJHVWHG WKH NH\ WR ZLQQLQJ SHRSOH over to your side of the argument may be verbal rather WKDQ ZULWWHQ ,Q D SDSHU SXEOLVKHG LQ WKH MRXUQDO Psychological Science, VFLHQWLVWV DW 8QLYHUVLW\ RI &DOLIRUQLD %HUNHOH\ DQG WKH 8QLYHUVLW\ RI &KLFDJR IRXQG SHRSOH ZKR KDG YHUEDO GHEDWHV DERXW YDULRXV SROLWLFDO LVVXHV ZHUH PRUH OLNHO\ WR EH SHUVXDGHG E\ WKHLU RSSRQHQWV DUJXPHQW WKDQ WKRVH ZKR VLPSO\ UHDG WKHP 7KH VFLHQWLVWV VDLG WKH\ IRXQG WKRVH ZKR GLVDJUHHG ZLWK WKH DUJXPHQW WHQGHG WR ´GHKXPDQLVHµ WKH FRPPXQLFDWRU and regarded “having a diminished capacity to either WKLQN RU IHHOµ EXW WKLV KDSSHQHG IDU OHVV IUHTXHQWO\ ZKHQ \RX KHDU WKHLU YRLFH RU VHH WKHP VSHDN -XOLDQD 6FKURHGHU from Berkeley said this is because communicating through voice makes the person speaking seem more reasonable and human. Dr Schroeder said she hopes the VWXG\ PLJKW KHOS H[SODLQ ZK\ VRFLDO PHGLD KDV KDG VXFK a polarising effect on political debate in recent years. 6KH VDLG ´0DQ\ SHRSOH UHFHLYH WKH PDMRULW\ RI WKHLU QHZV IURP VRFLDO PHGLD QRZ 7KLV FDQ EH GHKXPDQLVLQJ DQG PD\ LQFUHDVH SRODULVDWLRQ µ

Scientists have found that eating a healthier diet is the best RSWLRQ IRU WKH HQYLURQPHQW )RRG production has a massive impact RQ WKH SODQHW ZLWK XS WR D WKLUG of greenhouse gas emissions coming from agriculture. The dietary recommendations made by governments tend to be based on nutritional information and not decreasing HQYLURQPHQWDO LPSDFW EXW D QHZ VWXG\ VXJJHVWV WKDW WKH WZR JR KDQG LQ KDQG ,W LQFOXGHV GDWD IURP FRXQWULHV 7KH SRVLWLYH UHVXOWV ZHUH IRXQG LQ WKH PDMRULW\ RI WKH FRXQWULHV LQ WKH VWXG\ EXW WKH\ ZHUH particularly pronounced in high income nations such DV WKH 86 DQG -DSDQ ,Q FRXQWULHV OLNH WKHVH IROORZLQJ a nationally recommended diet results in a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions of XS WR TXDUWHU ZKHQ FRPSDUHG to the average diets eaten in WKHVH QDWLRQV DFFRUGLQJ WR WKH ÀQGLQJV &RQYHUVHO\ LI SRRUHU FRXQWULHV ZHUH WR LQFRUSRUDWH more animal products into WKHLU GLHWV ² DV UHFRPPHQGHG E\ WKHLU GLHWDU\ JXLGHOLQHV ² WKLV ZRXOG DFWXDOO\ UHVXOW LQ increased environmental impact. 1HYHUWKHOHVV LI UHFRPPHQGHG GLHWV ZHUH XQLIRUPO\ DSSOLHG LQ HYHU\ FRXQWU\ WKHUH ZRXOG be an overall reduction in environmental harm.

The Independent/Reuters/AP/AFP PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

09

Picture perfect IMAGES FROM AROUND THE WORLD

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge with Prince Harry after the Memorial Service at St Paul’s Cathedral in London to mark the sixTVU[O HUUP]LYZHY` VM [OL .YLUMLSS ;V^LY ÄYL

Actor Dwayne Johnson, his wife Lauren Hashian and their daughter Jasmine attend a ceremony honouring him with the 2,624th star on the /VSS`^VVK >HSR VM -HTL PU *HSPMVYUPH

10

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

Stormtroopers attending the European premiere of Star Wars: The Last Jedi held at The 9V`HS (SILY[ /HSS PU 3VUKVU

People enjoy skiing in the popular Ukrainian ski resort of Bukovel, in [OL *HYWH[OPHU 4V\U[HPUZ

Will Smith and his son Jaden attend the Premiere of Bright in Westwood, *HSPMVYUPH

Bollywood actors Alia Bhatt and Varun Dhawan attend the Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards PU 4\TIHP

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

11

Picture perfect Miss Nord-Pas-de-Calais Maeva Coucke (left) is crowned by Miss France 2017 Alicia Aylies after winning the Miss -YHUJL WHNLHU[ PU *OH[LH\YV\_

A plus-size model takes to the runway during a fashion ZOV^ PU 7HYPZ

12

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

Riders practice with South African Lipizzaner horses during preparations for Christmas celebrations in 1VOHUULZI\YN

Bollywood actress Katrina Kaif attends H WYVTV[PVUHS L]LU[ PU 4\TIHP

Jessica Chastain attends the Molly’s Game premiere in 5L^ @VYR *P[`

Spectators visit the 8th Art of the Doll International Exhibition in 4VZJV^

AFP/Reuters/AP/TNS PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

13

Home THE ADVANCED TECHNIQUE OF FREEZING EGGS PROMISES PREGNANCY TO THOSE WHO RETURN CANCER FREE

D

r Pankaj Shrivastav was invited by the Government of Dubai in 1991 to be part of a team of specialists tasked with establishLQJ WKH 8$(·V ÀUVW HYHU )HUWLOLW\ Unit – Dubai Gynaecology and )HUWLOLW\ &HQWUH '*)& +H FXU-

UHQWO\ KHDGV WKH &RQFHLYH ² *\QDHFRORJ\ DQG )HUWLOLW\ +RVSLWDO &*)+ LQ 6KDUMDK There are a lot of unfounded fears connected to fertility and FDQFHU H[SODLQV 'U 3DQNDM ´&DQFHU LV D ZRUG WKDW HYRNHV fear and dread among many and is often viewed as a death

by Manjula Ramakrishnan

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14

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

AFTER

BIG C

VHQWHQFH %XW PHGLFDO advances have come a long way and today VFLHQWLĂ€F EUHDNWKURXJKV and research have been a blessing for effective treatment of various kinds of cancer as well as ensuring a good quality of life with and after FDQFHU ,Q SDUWLFXODU this has been seen in the case of infertility, with medical techniques and procedures that have provided couples with hope and the ability to become parents despite a FDQFHU GLDJQRVLV ¡¡ The freezing of male reproductive cells VSHUP KDV JLYHQ \RXQJ men who are battling cancer and other terminal illnesses the relief that they can still father a FKLOG &KHPRWKHUDS\ and radiotherapy treatments are toxic to reproductive cells VSHUPV DQG HJJV DQG what infertility specialists today can successfully do is harvest sperm and eggs, freeze them and use them at a later stage once the individual has Ă€QLVKHG FDQFHU WUHDWPHQW and been pronounced FDQFHU IUHH :KLOH VSHUP freezing has been known and available for many years, the same has not EHHQ VR IRU HJJ IUHH]LQJ ´8QWLO Ă€YH \HDUV DJR egg freezing was not very advanced and as a result the eggs that were frozen were of poor quality once thawed and often did not result LQ SUHJQDQFLHV 7RGD\ however egg freezing is done by a process FDOOHG 9LWULĂ€FDWLRQ 7KLV

'U 3DQNDM 6KULYDVWDY KHDG RI &RQFHLYH z *\QDHFRORJ\ DQG )HUWLOLW\ +RVSLWDO &*)+ LQ 6KDUMDK

literally means “turning into glassâ€? whereby the eggs are plunged into liquid nitrogen, which rapidly freezes them, thereby preventing the formation of ice crystals and preserving their TXDOLW\ 7KHVH HJJV DUH WKHQ XVHG IRU ,9) RU ,&6, SURFHGXUHV ODWHU ¡¡ Another revolutionary technique has been the ability to freeze and preserve ovarian tissue prior to radiotherapy DQG FKHPRWKHUDS\ 6XFK reproductive cells can EH VWRUHG IRU LQGHĂ€QLWH periods of time and &*)+ KDV D VXFFHVV VWRU\ where a lady who battled lymphoma and came out victorious, turned to her frozen eggs to be used in DQ ,9) SURFHGXUH DQG LV currently pregnant and GXH WR GHOLYHU VRRQ

+HUH LV ZKDW &- ZKR fought her cancer and is to become a mother soon, has to say‌ “There are few moments in your life where you remember every little detail of the LQVWDQFH YLYLGO\ 7KH Ă€UVW one for me was walking into Dr Pankaj Shrivastav’s consulting room with P\ KXVEDQG 1RERG\ tells you that having a EDE\ FRXOG EH GLIĂ€FXOW , PDUULHG :- ZKHQ , ZDV 29 years old and then after three years of trying we just had to make the GHFLVLRQ WR VHHN KHOS ¡¡ The hospital conducted routine EORRG WHVWV DQG , KDG DQ ultrasound scan in my Ă€UVW YLVLW :H OHIW WKH hospital feeling rather hopeful that my husband DQG , ZRXOG DFKLHYH

SDUHQWKRRG IDLUO\ VRRQ %XW ZKHQ WKH QXUVH called, she told me that my tests were grossly abnormal and that it indicated that there was much more wrong with PH WKDQ MXVW LQIHUWLOLW\ ´7KH ELJ EDG & KDG VWUXFN DQG , was diagnosed with O\PSKRPD 'U 3DQNDM called us back saying he ZDQWHG WR FKDW ZLWK XV At that moment neither :- QRU , ZDV WKLQNLQJ EDE\ DW DOO :KDW EDE\ LI there was no mummy? “Dr Pankaj talked to both of us in great detail DERXW RXU RSWLRQV +H said that in particular we shouldn’t give up on our ‘baby quest’ because together with advances in lymphoma treatment as well as advancements in egg and embryo IUHH]LQJ LW ZDV SRVVLEOH Dr Pankaj was persistent DQG EHIRUH , NQHZ LW we were back in the UK shuttling behind an infertility specialist and DQ RQFRORJLVW , VRRQ KDG my eggs frozen and after WKDW LW ZDV RII WR Ă€JKW FDQFHU ´$IWHU , HPHUJHG victorious from my EDWWOH ZLWK FDQFHU , went back to the freezer WKDW KHOG P\ HJJV 0\ embryos were placed EDFN LQWR P\ XWHUXV $QG DW ODVW , FRQFHLYHG , SURPSWO\ EURNH GRZQ and composed myself DIWHU VHYHUDO PLQXWHV 7KH ODUJHU PHVVDJH KHUH LV , want women out there to know that there is OLIH DIWHU FDQFHU ,W LV QRW D OLIH VHQWHQFH Ă€JKW LW FKDOOHQJH LW DQG EHDW LW ¡¡

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

15

Cinema

KEEPING IN WITH THE SPIRIT OF THE SEASON, HERE ARE 10 HIDDEN CHRISTMAS MOVIE GEMS TO CATCH ON NETFLIX by Ilana Kaplan

JOLLY GOOD ENTERTAINMENT

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T

he prospect of Christmas break probably means a few things to you: exchanging gifts, decorating a tree and likely watching a lot of

16

1HWà L[ :KLOH WKHUH LV a plethora of standard releases available on a regular basis, there’s no shame in getting into the KROLGD\ VSLULW $QG ER\ GRHV 1HWà L[ GHOLYHU ZLWK festive entertainment

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

IURP VRPH IDPLOLDU IDFHV From cheesy holiday romance to raunchy Christmas comedies, WKHVH DUH Ă€OPV WKDW will go perfectly with a cup of eggnog and D FDQG\ FDQH 7KHUH¡V

literally something for Scrooge, Santa and HYHU\WKLQJ LQ EHWZHHQ 12 Dates of Christmas (2011) I,Q D ÀOP FKDQQHOOLQJ Groundhog Day, 12 Dates

of Christmas brings Saved by the Bell’s MarkPaul Gosselaar front and centre once again ZLWK $P\ 6PDUW $IWHU one terrible date on Christmas Eve, Smart’s character Kate repeats the day over and over DJDLQ %XW LI VKH JHWV WR see Gosselaar each day, it can’t be that bad?

D &KULVWPDV SDUW\ 7KH GUDPD LV UHDO 7KH RQO\ thing that separates it from a regular Lifetime romance movie and a &KULVWPDV Ă€OP LV WKH KROLGD\ VHWWLQJ RI FRXUVH Dreamworks Home: For the Holidays (2017) If you’re looking for the ultimate animated escapism from your family during the holidays, this 45-minute Ă LFN LV WKH SHUIHFW EOHQG of cocoa, latkes, lights DQG &KULVWPDV FRRNLHV Through the eyes of D ´%RRY Âľ \RX FDQ experience a medley of KROLGD\ PDJLF

A Christmas Prince (2017) Embedded within the array of Christmas PRYLHV RQ 1HWĂ L[ LV WKH Christmas love story of an undercover reporter (iZombie’s Rose McIver) DQG D EDFKHORU SULQFH $FFRUGLQJ WR D FUHHS\ 1HWĂ L[ WZHHW WKH Ă€OP has 53 viewers who have watched it every day for 18 days in a row (in case you’re doubting how JRRG LW LV Mariah Carey’s Merriest Christmas (2015) In case you couldn’t make it to one of Mariah Carey’s epic Christmas FRQFHUWV 1HWĂ L[ KDV WKH next big thing: a 2015 PXVLFDO Ă€OP WKDW IHDWXUHV Carey singing some of her best Christmas hits (All I Want For Christmas Is You is in there of course) and guests like Kelsey Grammar, Lacey Chabert DQG %DE\IDFH 7KHUH¡V enough to get from the Queen of Christmas in WKLV PLQXWH VSHFLDO All American Christmas Carol (2013) $ KROLGD\ PRYLH with Orange is the New Black’s Taryn Manning, 0HDW /RDI %HYHUO\

3HQHORSH &UX] DQG 3DXO :DONHU LQ WKH PRYLH 1RHO ZKLFK LV FHQWUHG DURXQG ILYH VWUDQJHUV VHHNLQJ D PLUDFOH RQ &KULVWPDV (YH

'¡$QJHOR DQG Unreal’s 6KLUL $SSOHE\" <HV SOHDVH All American Christmas Carol is a modern-day take on, well, A Christmas Carol Manning plays a trailer park mom who is visited by three ghosts that tempt her with a more SURPLVLQJ IXWXUH Noel (2004) It’s quite possible Noel has never been on your KROLGD\ ZDWFK OLVW %XW the movie centred around Ă€YH VWUDQJHUV VHHNLQJ D miracle on Christmas Eve

stars Susan Sarandon, Penelope Cruz, Paul :DONHU DQG $ODQ $UNLQ may have fallen off of \RXU UDGDU ,I \RX¡UH QRW sure of the plot, the four lead actors should be HQRXJK WR UHHO \RX LQ 5,3 3DXO :DONHU A Christmas Kiss (2011) This movie was so good they even have D VHTXHO RQ 1HWĂ L[ ,W¡V \RXU W\SLFDO VWRU\ *LUO KDV WHUULEOH ERVV Girl falls for terrible boss’ boyfriend while decorating his house for

So This is Christmas (2013) Sometimes all you need in this life is a feelJRRG KROLGD\ ÀOP So This is Christmas features a plotline full of helping underprivileged kids in a Christmas pageant, ÀQGLQJ D soulmate and DYRLGLQJ PXUGHU 7KH drama is endless, and it’s JUHDW WR VHH 9LYLFD $ )R[ and Eric Roberts starring LQ D KROLGD\ ÀOP WRJHWKHU Christmas Belle (2013) Fun fact: Haylie Duff has starred in at least ÀYH &KULVWPDV PRYLHV $QG OXFN\ IRU XV RQH RI her Christmas classics is RQ 1HWà L[ ,Q Christmas Belle, Duff works to make the sale of a mansion go through with her IULJLG FOLHQW 2I FRXUVH the two begin to warm up together and things complicate with a love WULDQJOH The Independent

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

17

Television

18

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

MAN OF

MANY

TITLES MATT SMITH, THE FORMER DOCTOR

WHO, REPRISES HIS ROLE AS PRINCE PHILIP OPPOSITE CLAIRE FOY IN THE SECOND SEASON OF THE CROWN by James Mottram

“E

xcuse me while I pour tea and speak,” says Matt Smith, ever so politely LQWHUUXSWLQJ KLV ÁRZ WR WLS D FKLQD pot towards his cup. Dressed in black jeans, boots and a thick woolly jumper, his hair impeccably swept back, he sounds awfully regal. Perhaps two years of playing Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, on Peter Morgan’s 1HWÁL[ VKRZ The Crown has gradually begun to seep in. It would be hard not to. Last night was the premiere and today the stars — including two corgis — have gathered at London’s Corinthia Hotel to promote the second season, which aired on Dec.8.

For the 35-year-old Smith, it’s EHHQ D ÀQH DGGLWLRQ WR DQ DOUHDG\ eclectic CV that’s seen him jump from playing Doctor Who to a muscular madman in Ryan Gosling’s movie Lost River to Brett Easton Ellis’s serial killer Patrick Bateman in the musical adaption of American Psycho at London’s Almeida Theatre. If the latter “put the clappers up me,” Prince Philip was just as frightening. It was his “alpha maleness” that Smith UHVSRQGHG WR ´7KDW FRQÁLFW WKDW·V in him,” he explains. “I thought, ‘You know what? I wouldn’t want to kneel to my wife!’ I wanted WR ÀJKW WKDW EDWWOH , JHW TXLWH defensive over him nowadays.” With Morgan once again the creative driving force, this followup to the Golden Globe-winning PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

19

Television Ă€UVW VHDVRQ VSDQV WR ZLWK WKH IRFXV in the early episodes very much on marital GLIĂ€FXOWLHV EHWZHHQ Elizabeth (Claire Foy) and Smith’s Philip. Even before the trailer dropped, Morgan hinted at a panel event that this season would tackle rumours of the duke’s LQĂ€GHOLWLHV QRWLQJ “Doesn’t everyone in Britain know he had an affair?â€? Various books in the past have dug into the duke’s alleged trysts with stage actress Pat Kirkwood and TV presenter Katie Boyle among others, although The Crown prefers to make what Smith calls “subtle allusionsâ€? in scenes where the Prince is on his four month Commonwealth WRXU LQ ZLWKRXW WKH Queen or their children. These include Philip’s private secretary writing a letter in the second episode detailing the ZLGHVSUHDG ´LQĂ€GHOLW\Âľ of the tour. But as Smith points out, it’s careful in ZKDW LW VKRZV ´, GRQ¡W believe we did see him philander.â€? It’s all rather awkward timing, given the Queen and Prince Philip just celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary, but Smith praises Morgan for his bravery. “I think he’s looking at this family in an unapologetic way. They are the royal family but they are fallible like any other family, and he [Philip] is a human being. He has or has not made 20

0DWW 6PLWK OHIW DV 3ULQFH 3KLOLS ZLWK 7KH &URZQ ZULWHU DQG FUHDWRU 3HWHU 0RUJDQ DQG &ODLUH )R\ ZKR SOD\V (OL]DEHWK

mistakes in the past. I don’t think we’re ever gratuitous or salacious or explicit about those things. I made a choice

about it as a character, and I’m intrigued to see the choice that people make as an audience.� What The Crown

6PLWK ZDV WKH \RXQJHVW HYHU DFWRU WR SOD\ 'RFWRU :KR

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

certainly continues to do is humanise the Windsors. One brief scene sees Philip return to the royal boudoir,

tipsy, kicking his shoes off, before making his advances on Her Majesty (the scene cuts before anything scandalous is shown). “That’s the thing, isn’t it?â€? says Smith. “As members of the public, we think ‘Well, the royal family don’t do that!’ But they eat, breathe, s***, sleep like the rest of us. They are royal but they are a family like anyone else.â€? His early memories of Philip (who, according to sources, has not seen The Crown) were watching his puppet on the satirical show Spitting Image. “But when you delve into Philip, and you study him, he’s a very interesting, funny and intelligent man.â€? He compares him to Doctor :KR ERWK DUH DOLHQV LQ their own way, outsiderrebels who “never ask permission.â€? Season two explores further his past, particularly in the penultimate episode. “He’s lived through great tragedy. He was essentially orphaned, sent away to live with his XQFOH +H¡V KDG TXLWH D tough early life.â€? With next year’s third season due to move on a couple of decades, Smith, Foy and Vanessa Kirby, who plays Princess Margaret, will not return. But Smith can’t wait to see what Morgan does. “You’ve got Thatcher to come, you’ve got Diana and Charles.. I think he will approach Diana from a really interesting place. You’ve got Blair, \RX¡YH JRW ,UDT $QG WKHQ

+H SOD\HG D PXVFXODU PDGPDQ LQ 5\DQ *RVOLQJ V PRYLH /RVW 5LYHU

you’ve got Bush, you’ve got Clinton. There are so many great characters that come through it. Essentially, it will bring us right up to the modern world.â€? While Olivia Colman has been announced as Foy’s replacement, Smith’s has yet to be revealed (“I’ve heard a whiff and a rumour,â€? he teases). But he has already moved on, UHFHQWO\ Ă€QLVKLQJ D

movie about Robert Mapplethorpe, the photographer known for his controversial black-and-white images including erotica, BDSM and male nudes. “I didn’t know his work that much, but when you get into it, who knew these pictures would be so compelling?� he laughs. “But they are, somehow they are! You can’t help yourself.� Born and raised in

Northampton, where KH Ă€UVW VWDUWHG DFWLQJ after a serious back injury ruined his early dreams of becoming a professional footballer, Smith is clearly not afraid of a challenge. Every role he wants to IHHO ´GLIĂ€FXOW Âľ KH says. “It’s never an easy thing; I’m not coming home going, ‘I love it so much.’ It’s always... it’s a battle for me. When it feels uncomfortable creatively in the not understanding and not knowing, and feeling slightly unnerved, often that’s when you’re at your best. The best season I did of Doctor Who was WKH Ă€UVW RQH ZKHQ , felt the most unsure.â€? 6PLWK ZDV MXVW when he became the WK 7LPH /RUG WKH youngest ever to play the role and his casting was not exactly met with enthusiasm. “Before I’d spoken a word, I’d walk down the street and people would shout things at me — ‘Don’t break Doctor Who!’ It was tough. It ZDV D GLIĂ€FXOW WLPH Âľ He sympathises with the incoming Jodie WhitWDNHU WKH Ă€UVW IHPDOH Doctor Who, who has faced similar hostility on social media. He calls hers a “brilliant bit of casting,â€? then smiles. “I’m intrigued to see what are the Daleks going to do with her?â€? The Independent

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

21

Music

M

ichael Ball would be WKH ÀUVW WR admit that OLIH RQ WKH URDG ZLWK KLV VLQJLQJ SDUWQHU $OÀH %RH LV KDUGO\ URFN¶Q·UROO 7KH\ GR QRW DWWHPSW WR HPXODWH WKH EHKDYLRXU RI URFN VWDUV RI WKH SDVW

ZKR DIWHU D JLJ ZRXOG JR RXW RQ WKH UD]] DOO QLJKW EHIRUH UHWXUQLQJ WR WKH KRWHO WR WKURZ D WHOHYLVLRQ VHW RXW RI WKH ZLQGRZ ,Q IDFW %DOO DQG %RH XVH WKHLU WHOHYLVLRQ VHWV LQ D UDWKHU PRUH VHGDWH PDQQHU DV ZH VKDOO VHH

SINGING SENSATION

MICHAEL BALL

REFLECTS ON HIS TREMENDOUS CHEMISTRY WITH ALFIE BOE AFTER THEIR SECOND ALBUM, TOGETHER AGAIN, WENT STRAIGHT TO NUMBER ONE LAST MONTH by James Rampton

DEFIANTLY

UNCOOL 22

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

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WKH RQO\ WKLQJ WKH\·UH FRQFHQWUDWLQJ RQ LV WKH HPRWLRQ \RX·UH LPSDUWLQJ DQG WKH PHPRULHV \RX·UH FUHDWLQJ <RX FDQ JHQHUDWH D SKHQRPHQDO UHODWLRQVKLS ZLWK DQ DXGLHQFH ,W·V YHU\ JUDWLI\LQJ D UHDO SULYLOHJH µ 7KH VLQJHU ZKR RULJLQDWHG WKH UROH RI 0DULXV LQ WKH RULJLQDO /RQGRQ SURGXFWLRQ RI Les Miserables LQ FDUULHV RQ WKDW ´D VKRZ LV DOZD\V DERXW WZR SDUWLHV ³ \RX DQG WKH DXGLHQFH 2QH GRHVQ·W ZRUN ZLWKRXW WKH RWKHU ,W·V QHYHU MXVW DERXW \RX 7KDW·V ZK\ OLYH SHUIRUPDQFH ZLOO QHYHU JR DZD\ ´7KLV LQGXVWU\ XVHG WR EH DERXW UHFRUG VDOHV DQG VRPH DFWV VDZ OLYH SHUIRUPDQFH DV D QHFHVVDU\ HYLO %XW QRZ LI \RX FDQ·W GR LW OLYH \RX ZRQ·W JHW YHU\ IDU /RRN DW (G 6KHHUDQ $GHOH RU 7KH 5ROOLQJ 6WRQHV ² WKH\ DUH DOO EULOOLDQW OLYH µ The album Together Again LV DYDLODEOH QRZ The Independent

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

23

Fashion

FANCY FEET ELEVATE YOUR OUTFIT WITH BLINDINGLY EMBELLISHED FOOTWEAR by Sarah Young

J

ust quite where our love affair with shoes began no one knows but there’s no doubt on-screen icons have taught us the importance of good footwear over the years. From Dorothy’s ruby red slippers to Carrie Bradshaw’s iconic blue Manolos and their dazzling crystal-buckle, blinding embellishments have invariably become the ultimate way to HOHYDWH \RXU RXWÀW And with party season just around the corner notice-me shoes have never felt more appropriate. If it isn’t sparkly, then don’t bother buying it. In recent years, the highfashion world has shunned crystal-covered clogs in favour of clinical and vaguely orthopaedic looking alternatives. But lately, designers have irrevocably ditched minimalism in favour of a “more is more” approach. This season’s sparklers came in a variety of styles with Miu 24

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

25

Fashion

26

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

Miu and Rochas both opting for pointed pumps adorned with crystallised brooches and rhinestone encrusted ankle straps. Elsewhere though — we’re looking at you, Mary Katrantzou and Isabel Marant — glitter meant the feet did all the talking with spangled twotone platforms and twinkling courts paired with equally sparkly socks. All about having fun, it’s a trend that many of our favourite

high street retailers have jumped on board with too, and just in time for the party season. For the very best of embellished shoes of all kinds we suggest heading to Zara or 5LYHU ,VODQG ZKHUH \RX·OO ÀQG everything from bejewelled booties to studded satin slides. With a diary chock-full of festive dress-up dates, there really is no better time to invest in a pair of shoes that will guarantee to light up the night. The Independent PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

27

Cover story

alone

GOING IT

HOW INDEPENDENT ARTISTS HAVE CHANGED THE MUSIC INDUSTRY

THE RISE OF THE INTERNET, SOCIAL MEDIA AND STREAMING MEANS MUSIC ARTISTS CAN NOW BREAK A SCENE THEMSELVES by Daniel Khalili-Tari

3HK` 3LZO\YY PZ HTVUN [OL HY[PZ[Z ÄUKPUN success without major industry backing. 28

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

T

his year saw the rise of independent music. From Stormzy to Lady Leshurr, the otherwise socio-economically disadvantaged are emergLQJ DV WKH QHZ SURÀWHHUV and, more importantly, owners of their own culture. Previously, black music was owned by big business and its portrayal was delineated by those which it didn’t represent. %XW WKLQJV DUH ÀQDOO\ EHginning to change. The artist born Che Moran and know as AJ Tracey is from Ladbroke Grove: the same area of London where Bob Marley recorded his ninth album Exodus, and where Jimi Hendrix died. In October, Tracey’s ÀIWK (3 Secure the Bag! reached No 13 in the UK album charts, a considerable feat for a 23-year-old independent artist — and a clear example of the liberation of black culture. Fortunately, he’s not the only one.

Birmingham MC Lady Leshurr emerged on the scene in 2009 and has since released nine mixWDSHV DQG IRXU (3V 'Hspite having yet to release a debut album, the artist — born to Caribbean parents — has received over 100 million YouTube views. Her lyrical ability, GHIW ÁRZ DQG UHIXVDO WR rely on her sexual appeal has established her credibility among both new listeners and grime’s esoteric community. And her supercilious approach towards performing has

(1 ;YHJL`»Z ÄM[O ,7 Secure the Bag! reached No 13 in the UK album charts, a considerable feat for a 23-year-old independent artist.

Stormzy pioneered a transformation of the grime genre from a once discredited excursion by the mainstream to an internationally acclaimed genus. PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

29

Cover story

led to her being described as a “queenâ€? of the genre, attracting hundreds of thousands of fans worldwide. The British urban VFHQH DW Ă€UVW VWUXJJOHG to gain recognition in mainstream culture and has primarily depended on independent media to help it reach its audience. Platforms such as Link 8S 79 DQG *50 'DLO\ galvanised the acknowledgement and appreciation of urban music, elim30

inating the various barriers that prevent those from disadvantaged backgrounds in pursuing musical careers. Saquib Butt, 22, is the social media manager DQG $ 5 DW *50 'DLO\ and welcomes the shift in power. “The recent success of artists like 6NHSWD -0( DQG :LOH\ has led to a resurgence in independent black music,� he explains. “They proved that rappers can have successful careers

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

without the backing of a major label. “The growth in technology has helped too. Now artists can stream their music to millions and if they convert just a small percentage into paying fans, they’ve got a credible income. It’s a positive move in many ways. It gets young people off the streets and allows people from lives of hardship to make a change, while inspiring people in the process.�

But, there’s still work to do, he says, noting that grime is currently listed as a subsection on the hip hop/rap page of iTunes: “However, the rise of the internet, social media and streaming means artists can now break the scene themselves.� Music streaming services such as Spotify, Apple, Google and Amazon have revolutionised the way in which artists are able to promote their music. The shift has de-

The recent success of artists like Skepta (left) and Wiley led to a resurgence in independent black music.

Veterans such as AkaOD -0( DQG 6NHSWD KDYH used their position to help the scene’s next generation. In 2012, Skepta took Krept & Konan on tour with him, which led to the infamous Tour Bus Massacre. The duo later thanked him on their WUDFN 0\ 6WRU\ IRU ´Ă€[LQJ us.â€? As well as touring, prominent rappers have explicitly shown their support for upcoming acts like Stormzy, AJ 7UDFH\ DQG 'DYH ,Q D recent interview with The

Independent, AJ Tracey FLWHG -0( DV ´RQH RI WKH gatekeepers who supports people,â€? and reFHLYHG VXSSRUW IRU KLV (3 on social media by other established artists such as Stormzy. Hip-hop artist Akala, meanwhile, described an appearance on Question Time E\ UDSSHU 'DYH as “phenomenal.â€? Both artists have always supported the independent route, using the internet to showcase their talents. 7KH JUHDWHVW EHQHĂ€W RI

Rappers such as Bashy have spoken about not signing a deal as a positive thing.

creased the reliance on more traditional industry methods such as signing record deals, releasing albums and securing radio play. The latest statistics show that 16to 34-year-olds account for the greater part of music streaming in the UK: ideal for the urban scene, as the majority of its listeners also fall into this demographic. Acts like Not3s, Hardy Caprio and US artist Chance the Rapper all accredit their

success to streaming. The urban scene has an abhorrence for authority and a belligerence for the mainstream. Its counterculture lyricism, aggressive rhythms and ability to articulate social issues means it has proven difÀFXOW WR DPDVV PRUH WUDditional and commercial support. This, however, has led to collaborations, the rise of independent labels and media, as well as internal support from other artists. PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

31

Cover story the scene’s grip on independence is that it allows artists to own their culture and to not be subject to the political and social constraints which signed acts have had to abide by. The ever-increasing interest in British rap has led major labels to make concessions in order to get artists on board. Universal Music Group, for example — one of the biggest music labels in the world — created the subsidiary label 54 LonGRQ VR WKDW 6WHIà RQ 'RQ would sign. The deal al-

ORZHG 6WHIĂ RQ WR VLJQ KHU label to Universal, granting her full artistic control over her own music. The shift in power from the corporate world to independent artists has led to many acts openly stating that they’re not interested in getting commercial support. AJ Tracey said he wouldn’t join a major unless they could “do something which he couldn’tâ€?, while rappers such as Bashy have spoken about not signing a deal as a positive thing. Alternatively, Stormzy

— one of grime’s bestNQRZQ Ă€JXUHV ZKR SLRneered a transformation of the genre from a once discredited excursion by the mainstream to an internationally acclaimed genus — partnered with :DUQHU 0XVLF WR GLVtribute his debut album Gang Signs & Prayer, which went on to become WKH Ă€UVW JULPH UHOHDVH to reach No 1 in the UK album charts. However he is still viewed as an independent artist, and recently said majors “don’t know what to do

US artist Chance the Rapper accredits his success to streaming.

with black artistsâ€? in an interview with the London Evening Standard. So, what does it mean to be independent? “Independent basically means that you haven’t got a record deal. So, the artist has to front all the costs,â€? Butt says. “Stormzy doesn’t have the public backing of any major. However, he did arrange a distribution deal for his album and in reality, without it, it would have been difĂ€FXOW IRU KLP WR VHOO VR many copies. That’s not to say that the distribuWRUV GLGQ¡W EHQHĂ€W WRR 2I FRXUVH WKH\ GLG :KR wouldn’t want to distribute Stormzy’s album? “The shift in power, however, has had an effect on labels. Before, majors would primarily offer 360 deals [involving other income streams such as touring, merchandise, endorsements, TV DQG Ă€OP UROHV HWF@ DQG literally take a percentage of everything an artist made. But now, they know that they have to be fairer because artists can do it without them.â€? This year saw GRM 'DLO\ KRVW LWV WKLUG DQQXal Rated Awards, while artists such as Stormzy, 'DYH *LJJV DQG 6WHIĂ RQ 'RQ FRQWLQXH WR VXUSDVV industry constraints. If authorities on urban music are right, this could be just the beginning of a shift in commercial power. Leaving the onus of black culture on those who it’s supposed to represent. The Independent

32

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

HAVE YOUR SAY

BACK TO PAVILION 0DUN +DPLOO·V UHWXUQ WR WKH Star Wars universe is truly UHPDUNDEOH 7KH YHWHUDQ DFWRU has always been associated with the franchise and George Lucas’ decision to reintroduce his character is the high point of The Last Jedi. Nazia Qureshi Sharjah

Let us know what you think via email, social media or good old-fashioned post

SMART SOLUTIONS Most of the alternatives suggested in the Lifestyle story were helpful. The ottoman VWRRO DQG SHGHVWDO PDNH IRU good stand-ins for a traditional nightstand. They occupy very OLWWOH VSDFH DQG DUH LGHDO WR NHHS just a handful of your essentials beside your bed. Kavya Reddy Dubai

CITY WATCH 7DLSHL ORRNV IDEXORXV Especially since I am fond of H[SHULPHQWLQJ ZLWK QHZ IRRG their street food scene will surely blow me. Also I wasn’t aware of the fact that Taipei held the record for the world’s tallest building before Dubai topped it with the Burj Khalifa. Ahmed Al Suwaidi Sharjah

MOVIE MANIA I haven’t watched any of the ÀOPV PHQWLRQHG LQ WKH &RYHU story save for one – Inception. That one was a total bummer for me. I didn’t understand it well maybe because I watched it in my teens. Would love to ZDWFK WKHVH PRYLHV QRZ ZLWK D QHZ PDWXUH SHUVSHFWLYH Shweta Hirani Dubai

LACE UP The Nutritive Steps piece rightly IRFXVHV RQ WKH GUDZEDFNV RI ZHDULQJ LOO ÀWWLQJ VKRHV ZKLOH exercising. My current shoes give me an unaligned grip and on reading the article I realised they suffer from overpronation. I will follow the tips mentioned when buying my new pair. Khalid Tannous Sharjah

POLAR OPPOSITES The Cover story was quite an interesting read. Divisive movies are few and far between and it’s nice to read about movies which were completely divided in opinions by the audience. For a PRYLH DÀFLRQDGR OLNH PH WKLV LV good trivia. Balthazar D’Rego Abu Dhabi

IT’S SHOWTIME! While reading the Television VWRU\ , ZDV TXLWH LQWULJXHG E\ the show Dark. The time travel element in particular is alluring. I love consuming thriller/ horror shows and this one is surely on my must-watch list. Don Cereza Ajman

Email us at tgt@gulftoday.ae X Tweet us at twitter.com/thegulftoday X Write to us at Panorama, PO Box 30, Sharjah, UAE. PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

33

UNITED IN ANGER

A COUNTER-POINT

Michael Jansen

THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION’S MOVE ON JERUSALEM HAS FINISHED OFF VICE PRESIDENT PENCE’S MISSION TO RESCUE THE CHRISTIANS OF THIS REGION AND BROUGHT TOGETHER BOTH CHRISTIANS AND MUSLIMS IN CONDEMNATION

34

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

t the October 24th25th summit convened by a US organisation called In Defence of Christians, the keynote speaker was Vice President Mike Pence. The focus was on the perils Christians in this region have faced, particularly from Daesh, which has targeted Muslims, Christians and others not subscribing to its radical ideology. During his address, Pence said one of the purposes of his mission was to promote policies that would “end the persecution of Christians and all religious minorities,� dismissing the persecution the Muslim majority wherever Daesh was present. He assured the conference that Donald Trump is “committed to helping persecuted peoples reclaim their lands, return to their homes, rebuild their lives, and replant the roots� of their ancient faiths. He also pledged funding for this endeavour. To this end, Pence said he would undertake a mission to the region in mid-January or February with the aim of meeting prelates and policy makers. Thanks to regional uproar over Donald Trump’s December 6th proclamation recognising Jerusalem as Israel’s capital — a renunciation of 70 years of US policy — Pence postponed his pre-Christmas mission to save Christians until February, claiming he had to be present in Washington for the Congressional vote on tax reform. The vice president casts a vote in case of a tie in the Senate. He would be well advised to call his mission off. If his visit had gone ahead he would not have met a single Christian or Muslim prelate or member of the most persecuted nation in

the region, the Palestinians. Pence’s tour was meant to begin in Jerusalem where he would have been received by Israeli President Reuvin Rivlin and Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, addressed the Knesset and visited the Holocaust Memorial and the Western Wall, a remnant of the retaining wall of the platform where Roman era Jewish King Herod build his temple. Since the 7th-8th centuries this site has hosted al-Haram al-Sharif, the compound where al-Aqsa mosque and the Dome of the Rock are located. He would have then visited Bethlehem where he was to meet Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and tour the Church of the Nativity, which, by tradition, stands on the site of the birth of Jesus. He was to be welcomed by the heads of the diverse Christian communities present in the city and to urge Abbas to extend recognition to evangelical churches seeking converts in the Holy Land. While in Jerusalem, it was suggested Pence might visit the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, located on the site ZKHUH -HVXV ZDV FUXFLĂ€HG Pence’s next port of call was to be Cairo where he was to hold discussions with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Shaikh alAzhar Ahmad Tayyeb, the world’s senior Sunni scholar, and Coptic 3RSH 7DZDGURV ZKR KHDGV D Ă RFN of eight million, the region’s largest Christian community. Coinciding with his mission, Egypt circulated a draft resolution in the Security Council, regretting Trump’s shift on Jerusalem. The resolution read: “Any decisions and actions which purport to have altered the character, status or demographic composition of the Holy City of Jerusalem have

9LFH 3UHVLGHQW 0LNH 3HQFH

no legal effect, are null and void and must be rescinded.â€? The draft called on all countries not to open embassies in Jerusalem and demanded UN member-states do not recognise actions contrary to UN resolutions on the status of the city. The resolution, as expected, was vetoed by the US. All 14 other UN Security Council members voted in favour, leaving the US isolated and exposed to further criticism. ,W LV VLJQLĂ€FDQW WKDW 0DURQLWH Catholic Patriarch and Cardinal Beshara al-Rai of Lebanon was among the honoured guests at the October conference where Pence advertised his mission. In response to Trump’s betrayal over Jerusalem, al-Rai stated, it “violates LQWHUQDWLRQDO UHVROXWLRQV GHĂ€HV international and regional will, and is a slap in the face of Palestinians, Levantine Christians, Muslims and all Arabs.â€? He rejected Pence’s mission as unwelcome intervention in the region. “What destroyed us have been the wars provoked by external agents in Palestine, Iraq and Syria..and now, please spare

us the melodrama of Westerners asking us what they can do to save Christians.� Pence’s mission to the Christians of this region was meant to show US evangelicals who constitute a large part of Trump’s constituency that Washington is no longer relying on the UN to defend and provide for Christians in this troubled region. This ploy has not paid off due to Trump’s declaration on Jerusalem and Muslim-Christian resistance his stand provoked. His move is seen within the context of his racist attitude and damaging policies towards Muslims. During his campaign he accused then President Barack Obama and Democratic party rival Hillary Clinton of being founders of Daesh and fought with the parents of a Muslim soldier killed in Iraq. He proposed a temporary ban on Muslim entry to the US and called for a “watch list� to spy on the 3.3 million Muslims living in the US. Muslims constitute one per cent of the population. Critics argue Trump is personally anti-Muslim and exploited

anti-Muslim feelings to win votes from people who agree with him. In March 2016, he said, “I think Islam hates us.â€? On other occasions, the erratic Trump said, “I love Muslims.â€? Whatever the WUXWK LV DPRQJ KLV Ă€UVW DFWLRQV DIWHU his inauguration, on January 27th Trump signed an order temporarily banning citizens of seven Muslim countries — Iran, Iraq, Syria, Libya, Sudan, Yemen and Somalia — from accessing US visas and entering the US. After protests from ally Baghdad, Iraq was dropped. The travel ban was approved by the Supreme court two days before Trump made his Jerusalem declaration. A week before this policy shift, Trump retweeted three anti-Muslim videos circulated by a British hard right faction called Britain First. His endorsement of this content prompted British Prime Minister Theresa May to say Trump was “wrongâ€? to take up the videos, adding that “Britain First seeks to divide communities through their use of hateful narratives which peddle lies and stoke tensions.â€? She said Britons rejected the damaging rhetoric of the far right. Most seem to, at least. A leading US civil liberties organisation, The Council on American-Islamic Relations, reported last September that there has been a nearly 600 per cent rise in anti-Muslim activity in the US since 2014. Last year there were 2,200 anti-Muslim incidents, a 57 per cent increase in anti-Muslim bias and a 44 per cent increase in anti-Muslim hate crimes. The report said antiMuslim activities spiked during the election campaign and have continued to rise. Trump’s campaign and time in RIĂ€FH KDV LQVSLUHG DQWL +LVSDQLF and anti-black racists to surface and take an aggressive part in political debate and carry out racist actions and attacks. Muslims are not alone. PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

35

Special report

F

ifty years ago South Africa stunned the world: A surgeon in Cape Town, Christiaan Barnard, successfully transplanted the heart of a woman into the chest of a dying man. Here is a narrative, largely based on reporting at the time, of the extraordinary details VXUURXQGLQJ WKH ÀUVW human-to-human heart transplant. A terrible accident Ann Washkansky could not have imagined WKDW WKH WUDIÀF DFFLGHQW she comes across on Dec.2, 1967, would bring both life and fame to her terminally ill husband. As Washkansky is driving back from visiting her husband at Groote Schuur Hospital in Cape Town when she sees a vehicle slam into Denise Darvall, a young bank worker, as she is crossing a busy road. Her body ÁLHV WKURXJK WKH DLU DQG her head smashes into a

'U &KULVWLDDQ %DUQDUG

THE

YOUNG WOMAN’S parked car, fracturing her skull. It is soon clear that Darvall is brain dead. But her heart is still beating. Save this man Louis Washkansky, 53, has been told he has only 36

MAN WITH A

HEART

weeks left to live because of severe heart failure. He accepts without hesitation a barely imaginable proposition from Barnard: a heart transplant. Successful transplants of kidneys

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

FIFTY YEARS AGO A SURGEON IN CAPE TOWN SUCCESSFULLY TRANSPLANTED THE HEART OF A WOMAN INTO THE CHEST OF A DYING MAN by Olivier Thibault

and livers have been carried out for years but none so far with a human heart, the core of life itself. The father of 25-year-old Denise quickly gives his consent. “If you can’t save my

daughter, you must try and save this man,” Edward Darvall is quoted as saying in Donald McRae’s 2006 book Every Second Counts: The Race to Transplant the First Human Heart.

It’s going to work! The operation starts in the early hours of Dec.3. Denise’s heart is removed and placed in a 10-degree Celsius solution for transfer to an operating room where around 20 doctors, nurses and technicians are gathered around Louis. The tension is knife-edge, a young intern who was present recounts in a QHZV VWRU\ Ă€OHG WKH following day. “When the last anastomosis (connection) was done, it was the moment of truth. Everyone craned their necks for a better view. In the complete silence, Professor Barnard murmured: ‘Christ, it’s going to work!’,â€? says the intern, whose name is not given. “The anaesthetist then called out the pulse rate: 50, 70, 75 and then, half an hour later, 100,â€? the intern recounts. “The mood was extraordinary. We knew everything had gone well. Suddenly, the professor removed his gloves and asked for a cup of tea.â€? A new heart “I am much better,â€? Washkansky is quoted DV VD\LQJ LQ KLV Ă€UVW conversation, about 33 hours after the operation, with the surgeon he calls “the man with the golden handsâ€?. “I gave you a new heart,â€? Barnard says. The news spreads. At 1:17 pm on Dec.3, AFP’s telex machines rattle out a short piece, originally in French: “A heart transplant, believed to

7KH SLRQHHULQJ RSHUDWLRQ E\ 6RXWK $IULFDQ VXUJHRQ &KULVWLDDQ %DUQDUG SURSHOOHG KLP WR JOREDO DFFODLP

EH WKH Ă€UVW LQ WKH ZRUOG was successfully carried out today at Groote Schuur Hospital in Cape Town.â€? It was a complete surprise as “everyoneâ€? H[SHFWHG WKDW VXFK D Ă€UVW would come from the United States, an AFP medical correspondent writes.

World renowned overnight With a beaming smile, good looks and a way with words, Barnard, the 45-year-old South African surgeon, quickly becomes a media star. “On Saturday,� he says in an interview 30 years later, “I was a surgeon in

$ YLQWDJH HGLWLRQ RI /LIH PDJD]LQH IHDWXULQJ WKH ILUVW VXFFHVVIXO KXPDQ KHDUW WUDQVSODQW

South Africa, very little known. On Monday, I was world renowned.� Four days after the groundbreaking procedure, Louis Washkansky gives a short radio interview from his hospital bed. The microphone has been sterilised and the reporter has to stay at the door of the room to avoid infecting the patient. He becomes known as “the man with the heart of a young girl,� and his vitality and good humour are astonishing. To a visiting French doctor, he says: “Tell the Parisians to make a collection and buy me a plane ticket and I will come over and see them.� But he would not have the opportunity to travel. Washkansky dies from pneumonia 18 days after the transplant, his heart still functioning but his immune system weakened by the drugs used to prevent his body’s rejection of the new heart. Barnard, meanwhile, embarks on a world tour as the latest pioneer of modern medicine. AFP

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

37

Sport

D

uring the morning session of the third day at Perth, Channel Nine tracked down Dani Willis, the ÀDQFHH RI 6WHYH 6PLWK IRU DQ LQWHUYLHZ $V ZHOO DV UHYHDOLQJ ZLWK D UROO RI the eyeballs, that her man occasionally drags her into net practice to feed

balls into the bowling machine — some date, &DVDQRYD Âł :LOOLV DOVR GLVFXVVHG ZKDW 6PLWK LV OLNH LQ WKH HYHQLQJV GXUing a Test match, when he LV QRW RXW RYHUQLJKW “He’s quite intense,â€? :LOOLV VDLG ´+H¡V VWLOO LQ WKH ]RQH Âľ 6PLWK DV LW turns out, is something of a method actor, remaining in character

BATSMAN

STEVE SMITH IS CRICKET’S GREAT METHOD ACTOR WITH THE ABILITY TO EMBRACE BOTH THE ORTHODOX AND THE UNORTHODOX

&

AMBITION

AUDACITY by Jonathan Liew

38

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

like Daniel Day-Lewis HYHQ ZKHQ KH OHDYHV WKH ground and locks the IURQW GRRU DW KRPH But it all feeds into the LPDJH RI 6PLWK DV WKH ultimate cricket tragic, ZLWK D GHYRWLRQ WR WKH JDPH WKDW YHUJHV RQ REVHVVLRQ 'XULQJ WKH World Twenty20 in 2010, WKH $XVWUDOLDQ WHDP ZHUH staying in Barbados,

and would spend their spare time relaxing by the pool, heading out to WKH EDU JRLQJ MHW VNLLQJ 6PLWK RQ WKH RWKHU KDQG was often to be found in his hotel room with the curtains drawn, watching WKH FULFNHW To become a great batsman, you need more WKDQ WDOHQW 6PLWK DOZD\V KDG WKH WDOHQW HYHQ ZKHQ

he was co-opted into an DLOLQJ $XVWUDOLDQ WHDP as a slightly gawky legVSLQQHU DW 1R +H KDG already scored big runs LQ \RXWK DQG VWDWH FULFNHW But it is hard work that KDV GUDJJHG KLP Ă€UVW LQWR the ranks of the excellent, then the world-class, and QRZ WKH DOO WLPH JUHDWV +LV DYHUDJH RI Âł DQG rising — puts him second behind Donald Bradman RQ WKH DOO WLPH OLVW ,W LV D measure of his colossal accumulation that he could get ducks in each of his next 18 innings and VWLOO DYHUDJH PRUH WKDQ -RH 5RRW But to become a great batsman, you need more than talent and KDUG ZRUN <RX QHHG D YLVLRQ WR ZKLFK \RX FDQ DSSO\ WKHP <RX QHHG DPELWLRQ DQG DXGDFLW\ <RX QHHG D GLUHFWLRQ DQG D GHVWLQDWLRQ RI WUDYHO DQG D GHVLUH WR GRPLQDWH Perhaps the single most important quality that has JRW 6PLWK WR WKLV OHYHO LV WKH DEVROXWH FRQYLFWLRQ that he could always get WKHUH ,W LV ZK\ KH JDYH up leg-spin in order to IRFXV RQ KLV EDWWLQJ ´+H¡V SUHWW\ GULYHQ DERXW ZKDW he wants to do,â€? Ricky 3RQWLQJ VDLG ODVW ZHHN ´$QG ZKDW KH ZDQWV WR EHFRPH +H ZDQWV WR be the best player of all WLPH Âľ Comparisons between batsmen of other eras risk straying into the UHDOPV RI WULWHQHVV 6PLWK Bradman, Ponting, Ponsford, Chappell, :DXJK 7UXPSHU" , ZLOO VD\ WKLV LI 6PLWK HQGV his career without a

6PLWK KDV EHHQ RXWVWDQGLQJ LQ WKH WKLUG $VKHV 7HVW

Test triple-century — and this sentence may be redundant within a matter of hours — he will KDYH VROG KLPVHOI VKRUW %XW QHYHU IRUJHW ÀUVW \RX QHHG WKH WDOHQW $QG KLV NQRFN LQ WKH ÀUVW innings at Perth — his 22nd Test century — will stand as one of his YHU\ EHVW ,Q IDYRXUDEOH conditions, perhaps, and against a fading attack, but only because he made WKH FRQGLWLRQV IDYRXU him and made the attack IDGH ,Q WKH VSDFH RI WKUHH 7HVWV 6PLWK KDV PDGH both his fastest and his slowest Test hundreds, to the extent where his 141 not out in Brisbane and 229 not out here may as ZHOO KDYH EHHQ PDGH E\ GLIIHUHQW EDWVPHQ This was the counterpart to his innings at Brisbane, played on a slow pitch where timing WKH EDOO ZDV GLIÀFXOW 6PLWK FXW RXW WKH FRYHU

GULYH OHIW WKH EDOO extremely well, forced England to bowl into his IDYRXULWH DUHDV +HUH LQ Perth, it was the opposite: the ball was coming on to the bat, the bounce was WUXH DQG VR 6PLWK GURYH freely, cut with impunity, stepped across to play his WUDGHPDUN GULYH WKURXJK PLG ZLFNHW What linked both LQQLQJV ZDV DGDSWDWLRQ Each innings was the optimal response to the circumstances, the match VLWXDWLRQ DQG WKH DWWDFN %XW 6PLWK DOVR DGDSWV within innings, raising and lowering the tempo DV UHTXLUHG +LV ÀIWLHV came off — in order — DQG EDOOV +H HYHQ DGDSWV ZLWKLQ RYHUV His perpetual motion at the crease may look like D TXLUN\ WLF EXW , ZRQGHU whether it’s a form of processing: staying loose, VWD\LQJ à H[LEOH VHHLQJ ZKDW IHHOV ULJKW /LNH D

batting computer, but instead of processing operations, he processes PRYHPHQWV 6PLWK LV RQH RI WKH YHU\ IHZ EDWVPHQ LQ the world today who can play shots like WKDW RQ D UHJXODU EDVLV Virat Kohli is another: that ability to embrace both the orthodox and the unorthodox within a single innings, RFFDVLRQDOO\ HYHQ ZLWKLQ D VLQJOH VZLQJ 7KLV , think, is what separates these two from the other two members of the so-called Big Four of batting: Root and Kane :LOOLDPVRQ 1RW RQO\ are Root and Williamson beginning to lag behind in terms of numbers — VLQFH WKH VWDUW RI 6PLWK DQG .RKOL KDYH made nine centuries each, Root and Williamson nine between them — but in WHUPV RI PHWKRG The Independent

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

39

Sport A ROUND-UP OF THE WEEK’S SPORT NEWS FROM AROUND THE GLOBE

Real Madrid win back-to-back Club World Cup titles Cristiano Ronaldo scored with a free kick which went through the defensive wall to break Gremio’s brave resistance and give 9LHS 4HKYPK H ]PJ[VY` V]LY [OL :V\[O (TLYPJHU JOHTWPVUZ PU [OL *S\I >VYSK *\W ÄUHS PU (I\ +OHIP VU :H[\YKH` 9VUHSKV»Z 53rd-minute strike gave Real their second world title in a row, the third in the last four seasons, and ended Gremio’s hopes of pulling off what would have been a huge upset. The European champions, enjoying the backing of most neutrals at the Zayed Sports City Stadium, dominated as expected, with 20 shots on goal to Gremio’s one, but the much more limited Brazilians still made their lives uncomfortable. Overall, it was the Spanish club’s sixth world title as they also won the old Intercontinental Cup — now recognised by FIFA — three times. Real also extended European dominance with 10 wins out of 13 since the club cup was started PU P[Z J\YYLU[ MVYT PU YLÅLJ[PUN [OL YLNPVU»Z ÄUHUJPHS KVTPUHUJL PU [OL ZWVY[ ;OL K`UHTPJZ VM TVKLYU MVV[IHSS TLHU [OH[ [OL best South American, Asian and African players line up against, rather than for, the teams from their own continents, and Real’s side on Saturday included Brazilians Marcelo and Casemiro.

NFL star Kerley raises eyebrows with failed drugs test explanation An American football player has blamed his recent failed drugs test on mysterious supernatural forces, replying “a ghost may have done it” when asked how a banned substance entered his system. New York Jets wide receiver Jeremy Kerley was suspended on Nov. 6 after testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs and was handed a four-game suspension. When he was suspended, Kerley released a strongly-worded statement claiming that he did not knowingly take a banned Z\IZ[HUJL WSLKNPUN [V ¸ÄN\YL V\[ ^OH[ JH\ZLK the positive test” in an attempt to clear his name. /V^L]LY ^OLU ZWLHRPUN [V YLWVY[LYZ MVY [OL ÄYZ[

40

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

Bedene switches allegiance IHJR [V :SV]LUPH

Mayweather-McGregor Ă„NO[ ZLJVUK YPJOLZ[ L]LY Floyd Mayweather and Conor McGregor’s JYVZZ JVTIH[ Z\WLYĂ„NO[ ^HZ [OL ZLJVUK richest boxing bout in history, longH^HP[LK Ă„UHS Ă„N\YLZ YL]LHSLK YLJLU[S` A statement from Showtime sports said [OL (\N\Z[ Ă„NO[ IL[^LLU IV_PUN Z[HY Mayweather and mixed martials arts king McGregor generated 4.3 million pay-perview buys in North America. Only one V[OLY Ă„NO[ ¡ 4H`^LH[OLYÂťZ IV\[ with Manny Pacquiao — has ever drawn more, racking up 4.6 million buys to earn HYV\UK TPSSPVU +OZ IPSSPVU ;OL Mayweather-McGregor pay-per-view total PZ HSTVZ[ KV\ISL [OL [OPYK IPNNLZ[ Ă„NO[ VM HSS [PTL 6ZJHY +L 3H /V`HÂťZ Ă„NO[ with Mayweather, which had 2.48 million buys. Showtime said in a statement that global revenues, including ticket sales, sponsorship and international distribution, Mayweather and McGregor had exceeded T +OZ I “The pairing of Floyd Mayweather and Conor McGregor brought together two ]LY` ZPNUPĂ„JHU[ HUK KPZ[PUJ[ NSVIHS MHU bases in one truly unprecedented event,â€? Showtime Sports chief Stephen Espinoza told ESPN. “The remarkable results are all the more impressive considering that the planning, marketing and execution took WSHJL HJYVZZ H ZWHU VM Q\Z[ KH`Z MYVT [OL PUP[PHS HUUV\UJLTLU[ [V Ă„NO[ UPNO[ š time since his suspension, he raised eyebrows by suggesting the Ghost of Christmas Past had something to do with the failed test. “I don’t know,â€? Kerley said when asked about what had caused him to have a banned substance in his system. “There’s a lot of ghosts around here. Ghost put it in there. You know, the ghost of Christmas past? ‌ I don’t know.â€? Kerley also admitted that he OHK MHPSLK [V Ă„UK [OL [PTL [V HUHS`ZL his results, despite pledging to conduct his own private investigation into the failed substance when the news of his Z\ZWLUZPVU Ă„YZ[ IYVRL

Aljaz Bedene is to switch his allegiance back to Slovenia after two-and-a-half seasons competing as a British player. The world No 49 is chasing his ambition of competing in the Tokyo Olympics, having said at this year’s French Open that it was “a dream for every athlete� to play the at Games. Bedene’s hopes [V YLWYLZLU[ )YP[HPU PU [OL 6S`TWPJZ VY +H]PZ *\W ^LYL KHZOLK I` [OL 0U[LYUH[PVUHS Tennis Federation which prevents players representing more than one country. As such, the player will now return to playing for his come country in the new year. He wrote on Facebook: “I want to share with you that I have informed the ITF (Interna[PVUHS ;LUUPZ -LKLYH[PVU VM T` PU[LU[PVU [V YLWYLZLU[ :SV]LUPH T` JV\U[Y` VM IPY[O from January 1, 2018. “One of my main goals for my career going forward will be to play in the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. I have proudly called Britain my home for the last nine years and so many people there have made me feel welcome both in the UK and abroad.�

- KYP]LYZ \UP[L V]LY MLHYZ [OH[ [OL ZWVY[ could soon be in ‘turmoil’ 3PILY[` 4LKPHÂťZ WSHUZ [V TVKLYUPZL -VYT\SH OH]L [HRLU H [\YU MVY [OL ^VYZL HM[LY P[ LTLYNLK [OH[ HSS VM UL_[ ZLHZVUÂťZ KYP]LYZ QVPULK [OL \UPVU MVY [OL Ă„YZ[ [PTL PU its history due to their concerns about the future of the sport. All of those signed \W MVY [OL JHSLUKHY OH]L QVPULK [OL .YHUK 7YP_ +YP]LYZÂť (ZZVJPH[PVU MVY ^OH[ JOHPYTHU (SL_HUKLY >\Ya ILSPL]LZ PZ ¸TH`IL [OL Ă„YZ[ [PTL PU OPZ[VY`š K\L [V [OL JOHUNPUN Z[H[L VM - ZPUJL 3PILY[` 4LKPH [VVR V]LY -VYTLY - KYP]LY >\Ya KPK stress that recent changes have improved the spectacle of sport, such as the introduction of new wider designs at the start of this year, but admitted that there are concerns among the drivers that F1 is heading for a period of “turmoil.â€? This OHZ SLK [V MLHYZ [OH[ VMM [YHJR KPZ[YHJ[PVUZ JV\SK HMMLJ[ [OL Ă„UHS WYVK\J[ VU [OL [YHJR )V[O YLPNUPUN ^VYSK JOHTWPVU 3L^PZ /HTPS[VU HUK -LYYHYPÂťZ 2PTP 9HPRRVULU OH]L KLJPKLK HNHPUZ[ QVPUPUN [OL .7+( PU [OL WHZ[ I\[ IV[O OH]L ZPNULK \W MVY the 2018 to join the likes of Sebastian Vettel and Romain Grosjean, who have been vocal leaders in the union in recent years.

The Independent/AFP PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

41

Week’s pick

HOUSE ON WHEELS DENISE HARRIS INVESTED

1,700 HOURS OF LABOUR INTO A HANDCRAFTED BACKYARD CARAVAN

by Sandy Deneau Dunham

K

now what we need? We need a soundtrack. We need Van Morrison, and Caravan. Know why? Because if you’ve heard that song (and really; you should), it will loop in your noggin for hours, and then days, once you lay H\HV RQ WKH PDJQLÀFHQWO\ marvellous creation in Denise Harris’ backyard.

42

Denise lives in a fantastic off-the-beatenpath home on Bainbridge Island that she shared with her husband, Bob Cederwall, until his death in 2013. Blessed with an amazing array of artistic VNLOOV 'HQLVH LV ÁXHQW in embossed serigraphs, printmaking, colouredpencil drawing, stained glass and jewellerymaking), the couple

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

really harmonised over woodworking. Bob cut trees from their property and milled them in his shop, and Denise creatively carved art. “I’d say, ‘Bob, I need a piece of maple,’ ” Denise says. Then Denise spoke the innocent-sounding

words that led to 1,700 hours of labour (three or four hours a day in the shop of co-builder Dave Sutter, for three years); an islandwide collaboration of love and talent; and, ultimately, the 13-footlong mobile masterpiece in her backyard: “I said it’d really be neat to build

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a Gypsy wagon.� Inspiration arose naturally from the couple’s love of “carnivals, carousels, colour and woodcarving,� Denise says; instruction was a little harder to come by. “In Making Model Gypsy Caravans by John Thompson, he made models of wagons,� Denise says. “He talks about types and materials. He did incredibly detailed drawings; we used those. That book — this is all we had to work from: drawings and pictures.� Those were models, mind you. This is a fullsize, usable, amazing caravan based on drawings of a Ledge wagon built in England by Dunton and Sons around 1910. “They all had names,�

Denise says. “This one has a ledge overhang. There are other types; the Bowtop wagon is the easiest. But what’s neat about the Ledge is there’s more room inside of it.â€? Her roomy, superauthentic wagon was built “entirely by hand, from the wheels up,â€? she says, out of yellow and red cedar, locust and locally cut and milled wood. “Once we got into it, it was like, ‘God, this is a lot of work,’ â€? she says. ´:KDW PDGH WKLV GLIĂ€FXOW is that it’s all angles. Every piece of wood on it had to have angles. That was certainly stupid.â€? The details are brilliant — decorative wooden buttons, painted gold; a comedy mask on the front, with tragedy in

back; four lions on the corners (rainwater runs out their mouths) — and the colours rich and melodious: yellow undercarriage, red platform and stair trim, burgundy, pops of blue and green. On the other side of the Dutch door (stained glass on top, wood panels on the bottom): a closet and cupboard on one side; a dresser on the other; and, in back, a bed that pulls out to queen size. Blue etched glass centres D FXUYHG Ă€U FHLOLQJ 7KH white part of a high-up moon glows in the dark, and the lamp is set on a timer to glow on its own. “It’s really nice from the house,â€? Denise says. In nice weather, the caravan nestles in a grove of trees as a oneof-a-kind guest room, Denise says; in winter, it’s painstakingly wheeled back into the shed. Those spoked wheels have hit the road, too: Bainbridge Performing Arts borrowed the caravan for a home tour, it’s shared annually at the fall

harvest fair, and Ranger and the “Re-Arrangers� used it as a backdrop for a Gypsy jazz album. It’s a community caravan, for sure (when we told the Bainbridge homeowners we visited right after Denise that we’d just come from a house with a caravan in back, they said: “You mean Denise Harris?�), and a community helped create it. “Bob knew everyone,� Denise says. “Things got done because he was connected.� In addition to shipbuilder/woodworker/ master cabinetmaker Sutter, Denise credits “the exquisite fabric work of Janie Ekberg� and Mesolini Glass Studio (which built windows from Denise’s designs), along with nine other contributors (including “an inheritance from my Aunt Eleanor�). Sing it, Van: “And the caravan has all my friends. It will stay with me until the end.� TNS

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

43

Environment MANY TURTLES ARE FOUND FLOATING, BARELY ALIVE, HAVING EATEN SO MUCH PLASTIC THAT THEY BECOME BUOYANT

G

ently, Kenzo the sea turtle is lowered onto a beach where a scattering of bottle caps, candy wrappers, yoghurt cups DQG GLVFDUGHG à LSà RSV VFDU DQ otherwise idyllic setting. As its human handlers step aside, Kenzo struggles out of the harness, pushes hard with its à LSSHUV RQ WKH VDQG DQG VOLGHV into small waves specked with bits of plastic trash. :LWK D ÀQDO JXOS RI DLU WKH

by MariĂŤtte Le Roux

hawksbill turtle executes a perfect EXWWHUà \ VWURNH DQG GLVDSSHDUV into deeper water — a rare lucky escape for one of Kenya’s sea turtles, increasingly under siege from humanity’s plastic binge. Dozens of the endangered creatures need rescuing every year around the coastal town of Watamu, where plastic litter accumulates in the Indian Ocean DQG WKH EHDFK IURP DV IDU DÀHOG as Indonesia, Madagascar and Yemen, according to the product labels.

THE SAD FATE OF SEA TURTLES

44

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

Most common are bottle tops, but there are also cigarette lighters, toothbrushes, food containers, different lengths of string, drinks bottles and of course, the ubiquitous plastic shopping bag. Turtles confuse these items, bobbing DQG Ă XWWHULQJ DERXW LQ the ocean currents, for MHOO\Ă€VK RU RWKHU SUH\ 7R their peril. “It causes a blockage‌ but they’re still hungry so they keep eating and it compounds, compounds, compounds and they explode on the inside,â€? said Casper van de Geer, manager of Local Ocean Conservation, which runs the Watamu turtle rescue. “Or they are in such pain that they recognise that they have to stop eating and they basically starve,â€? he said, as he repeatedly bent down to pick up one piece of beach litter after the other at Watamu’s Blue Lagoon. Many turtles are IRXQG Ă RDWLQJ EDUHO\ alive, having eaten so much plastic that they become buoyant and can no longer dive into the depths where they live and feed. Once they reach this point, few can be saved. The problem is a global one, affecting all the oceans and hundreds of animal and plant species. According to environmental group WWF, 8.8 million tonnes of plastic enters the ocean every year, the equivalent of a garbage

'R]HQV RI WKH HQGDQJHUHG FUHDWXUHV QHHG UHVFXLQJ HYHU\ \HDU DURXQG WKH FRDVWDO WRZQ RI :DWDPX ZKHUH SODVWLF OLWWHU DFFXPXODWHV LQ WKH ,QGLDQ 2FHDQ

truck dumping a full load every minute. Plastic is cheap, versatile and nighindestructible. And by now it is pretty much everywhere. A shopping bag is estimated to degrade over hundreds of years, and harder plastics could be around for millennia before they are broken down and absorbed in the environment. In July, US researchers said more than 9.1 billion tonnes of plastic had been produced to date, most of it dumped into ODQGĂ€OOV DQG WKH RFHDQV In Watamu, the locals do what they can. Mohamed Iddi, a \HDU ROG Ă€VKHUPDQ proudly proclaims that he voluntarily collects two or three large garbage bags full of plastic along the Blue Lagoon beach every day. “Some plastic is brought from the sea.

Some others is from‌ when people they come for the enjoyment on the beach, for the barbecue, the picnic,â€? he says, pointing to large piles of collected rubbish, divided into categories, with a special heap for shoe soles. ´6RPHWLPHV , Ă€QG (plastic) in the stomachsâ€? RI WKH Ă€VK KH FDWFKHV “Ropes, the small ones. %HFDXVH ZKHQ WKH Ă€VK goes to look for some SUH\ÂŤ ZKHQ LW Ă€QGV something like this‌ it will think maybe it is something to eat.â€? Elsewhere in town, a project called Regeneration Africa melts and treats the plastic gathered by volunteers such as Iddi, and moulds it into paving stones and other materials to sell for funds to continue the antiplastic drive. Fisherman-turnedenvironmentalist Kahindi

Changawa, 40, looks with a smile over the tank for Kai, a green turtle which has been recovering from plastic ingestion at the Watamu rehabilitation centre for nearly a month. Green turtles were once a delicacy in Kenya, but may no longer be eaten under laws to protect the endangered species from extinction. Kai was brought in emaciated, and unable to stay underwater. On top of the laxative, it was given anti-bacterial and anti-parasitic medicines, and appetite-boosting multivitamins. “It has fully recovered, when you take it out (of the recovery tank) it is Ă DSSLQJ LW LV Ă€JKWLQJ Âľ Changawa said. “It’s a very successful story, we are hoping to release it if not today, in the next two days or so.â€? Many others will not be so lucky. AFP

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

45

Science

S

cientists just found a very huge, very young supermassive black hole. As far as we know, it shouldn’t be able to exist, and it just might re-write our understanding of the early universe.

It is the most distant black hole ever seen by scientists. And it is so far away that we are seeing something that formed when the universe was RQO\ ÀYH SHU FHQW RI LWV current age – something that scientists say shouldn’t be able to happen.

SCIENTISTS FIND A BLACK HOLE SO BIG THAT IT COULD CHALLENGE OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE UNIVERSE’S BEGINNING E\ $QGUHZ *ULIÀQ

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PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

Our understandings of the formation and beginnings of the universe suggest that a black hole with such a huge mass shouldn’t actually have been able to form, scientists say. “This is the only object we have observed from this era,” said Robert

O TER

Simcoe, the Francis L. Friedman professor of physics at MIT’s Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research. “It has an extremely high mass, and yet the universe is so young that this thing shouldn’t exist. “The universe was just not old enough to make

WONDER

a black hole that big. It’s very puzzling.” The astronomer who found the strange black hole said that there’s no way of explaining how a black hole would be able to pick up such mass, and that it might challenge out current understandings of

how black holes form. “Gathering all this mass in fewer than 690 million years is an enormous challenge for theories of supermassive black hole growth,” said Eduardo Bañados, the Carnegie scientist who spotted it. Even in the most generous and optimistic

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estimate of the formation of black holes, creating such a massive one in such a relatively short period of time would be impossible. That suggests that another, entirely unknown, process was happening at the same time. “If you start with a seed like a big star, and let it grow at the maximum possible rate, and start at the moment of the Big Bang, you could never make something with 800 million solar masses – it’s unrealistic,” Professor Simcoe said. “So there must be another way that it formed. And how exactly that happens, nobody knows.” To allow the formation of such a massive black hole, the very early universe might have had been able to create very large black holes with masses reaching 100,000 times the mass of the sun. That’s far bigger than any we know today. The black hole is even more puzzling because of what was happening in the universe at that time. It was taking shape just as the universe was undergoing a fundamental switch – one that saw the universe turn from being a misty cloud of hydrogen gas into a space where the YHU\ ÀUVW VWDUV ZHUH switch on. “What we have found is that the universe was about 50/50 – it’s a PRPHQW ZKHQ WKH ÀUVW galaxies emerged from their cocoons of neutral gas and started to shine

their way out,” said Professor Simcoe. “This is the most accurate measurement of that time, and a real indication RI ZKHQ WKH ÀUVW VWDUV turned on.” When the universe began, it was like a very hot soup of extremely energetic but formless particles. As the universe expanded in size, those particles cooled down, and as they did they formed into a neutral hydrogen gas during which it was completely dark. Then gravity began to squash down matter LQWR WKH ÀUVW VWDUV DQG galaxies, then creating light in the form of photons. Stars then switched on and reacted with the swirling hydrogen, beginning of process of re-ionisation. The quasar that made its way to Earth from the black hole began its life at that very important part of the history of the universe. That helped scientists estimate that the stars turned on roughly when it began its journey – about 696 million years after the big bang. “This adds to our understanding of our universe at large because ZH·YH LGHQWLÀHG WKDW moment of time when the universe is in the middle of this very rapid transition from neutral to ionised,” said Professor Simcoe. “We now have the most accurate measurements to date of ZKHQ WKH ÀUVW VWDUV ZHUH turning on.” The Independent

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

47

Travel

L

isbon’s star has never shone brighter: Instagram feeds are littered with snaps of its ubiquitous indigohued tiles, tech startXSV DUH à RFNLQJ WKHUH and a wave of modish restaurants and hotels have opened. Portugal’s so-called city of light lives up to the hype, too, offering visitors a winning combination of culture and cafÊs, a Mediterranean climate and great value

IN THE

IRU PRQH\ :DQW WR Ă€QG out what the fuss is about? Here’s what to do. See the view 7DNH D GHHS EUHDWK and zigzag up the bright limestone cobbled streets to the miradouros (viewpoints) at the top of the seven hills on which Lisbon is built. <RX¡OO HPHUJH ORRNLQJ across the terracottaroofed houses which ramble down towards the mouth of the Tagus 5LYHU Ă RZLQJ LQ IURP WKH north of the country. Spot

ODQGPDUNV VXFK DV WKH Moorish São Jorge castle, then refuel under the shade of an umbrella at RQH RI WKH RXWGRRU NLRVN cafÊs, where the service is breezy, prices are fair and the bica (espresso) is strong. Buy a ticket to ride Gravity-defying 1930s WUDPV FUHDN XS QDUURZ streets all over Lisbon, but the submarine-yellow number 28 offers the chance to see many of the city’s attractions in one go. Board at Campo

LIMELIGHT

de Ourique for your best chance to get a seat — though be mindful of SLFNSRFNHWV ³ DQG VSRW the Baroque architecture in Estrela; the parliament headquarters in São %HQWR DQG WKH UDPVKDFNOH Arabic buildings in Alfama (the only district to have survived the HDUWKTXDNH ZKLFK destroyed most of the Portuguese capital). A KRXU WLFNHW YDOLG RQ trams, metro and buses costs $7.20 (Dhs26), and is available from any metro station.

FROM ART TO INSTAGRAMMING, THERE’S SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE IN THE PORTUGUESE CAPITAL LISBON by Heather Taylor

48

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

Be a bookworm The smell hits you Ă€UVW LQ /LVERQ¡V LQGHSHQGHQW ERRNVKRSV musty paper and leather, mixed with coffee (usually being sipped by a bespectacled cashier). Wood-panelled Livraria Bertrand is the oldest in Portugal, while Livraria Sa Da Costa often plays host to live music and art exhibitions. In an old printing factory in LX Factory, cavernous Ler Devagar plays IRON PXVLF DQG KDV Ă \LQJ bicycles suspended from its ceiling. Keep an eye RXW IRU ZRUN E\ HQLJPDWic Portuguese poet and critic, Fernando Pessoa — English versions of his ERRNV DUH VROG WKURXJKout Lisbon.

&KLDGR YDQLOOD Ă HFNHG FXVWDUG LQ WKH Ă DNLHVW casing, each is three bites of heaven.

*HW \RXU VXJDU À[ 0RQNV DQG QXQV are to blame for the irrefutable sweet tooth of the Lisboetas. Some of those ousted following the 1820 Liberal revolution escaped from the Mosteiro dos Jeronimós, in the BelÊm district (accessible via the 15 or 127 tram from the centre), to set up FDPS LQ D QHDUE\ EDNHU\ 7KH\ à RJJHG SDVWpLV GH nata (custard tarts), and eventually sold their recipe to the building’s owners. Today, customers queue at the PastÊis de BelÊm EDNHU\ WR WU\ WKH original incarnation of Portugal’s favourite pastry-clad treat. They’re dangerously good, though locals whisper that their favourites come from Manteigaria, in

(DW D ÀVK VXSSHU The bountiful Atlantic provides the ingredients for the city’s restaurants. Arrive early at Taberna Da Rua Das Flores — by 6.30pm, this tiny eatery LV ERRNHG XS IRU WKH QLJKW <RXQJ FKHIV FRRN modern interpretations of traditional Portuguese dishes, scribbled daily RQ WKH EODFNERDUG PHQX (the tuna tartare is outstanding). For a taste of oldschool Lisbon, hop on a ferry from Cais do SodrÊ to Cacilhas. Turn right DQG ZDON SDVW WKH ZDUHhouses to Restaurante Ponte Final, a no-frills joint for bubbling pots of PRQNÀVK DQG ULFH VWHZ or bulhão pato (clams FRRNHG ZLWK FRULDQGHU %RRN DKHDG WR EDJ RQH of the tables on the

by British architect Amanda Levete, and encompasses a roof which doubles as a public SDUN SOXV VTXDUH metres of exhibition space VKRZFDVLQJ ZRUN IURP a roster of contemporary artists and designers. Lisbon’s art isn’t constrained to its galleries, however: whitewashed buildings provide a FDQYDV IRU YLEUDQW JUDIÀWL Download the Lisbon Street Art app for tips on ZKHUH WR VHHN LW RXW

/LVERQ V LFRQLF WUDP LV D JRRG ZD\ WR VHH PXFK RI WKH FLW\ V DUFKLWHFWXUH

sandstone terrace: a prime spot to watch the sunset. Get it in the bag %H\RQG /LVERQ¡V WDFN\ WRXULVW VKRSV \RX¡OO Ă€QG D hidden treasure. Hipsters descend on LX Factory every Sunday to browse YLQ\O DQG V IURFNV DW WKH Ă HD PDUNHW ZKLOH RQ Tuesdays and Saturdays, the Feira GD /DGUD PDUNHW WDNHV SODFH LQ $OIDPD Âł LI \RX¡UH ZLOOLQJ WR ULĂ H there’s a huge choice of antiques. In trendy Principe Real, Embaixada is a shopping gallery in a 19thcentury palace, housing concept stores from independent designers. 6RDN XS VRPH DUW The MAAT (Museum of Art, Architecture and Technology), cuts a graphic, undulating silhouette against the EDQNV RI WKH 7DJXV ULYHU Opened last year, the building was designed

Hit the beach The golden sands of Cascais are worth the 40-minute train ride from Lisbon (Cais de Sodre). Once the preferred holiday haunt of the Portuguese royal family, the seaside town blends palatial 19th-century DUFKLWHFWXUH ZLWK ÀVKLQJ village charm. Wander along the coast to watch ZDYHV À]]LQJ DJDLQVW WKH FOLIIV ³ DQG WDNH DQ REOLJDWRU\ VHOÀH DW WKH Boca do Inferno (hell’s PRXWK FDYH ³ WKHQ WXFN into the catch of the day at the family-run institution Mar do Inferno. /HDUQ WR ORYH WLQQHG ÀVK Conserveira de Lisboa VKRSV DUH VWRFNHG with endless rows of ÀVK\ WUHDWV LQ JUDSKLF tins: ideal Instagram fodder. Choose from ZKROH KDQG SDFNHG sardines, octopus in spicy tomato sauce, or salty tuna in oil. The owners ZLOO WHOO \RX WKH ÀVK GHYHORSV LQ à DYRXU WKH longer it’s preserved. The Independent

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

49

Health

S

uperfood trends come and go — but it looks like moringa might be the new wellness additive that’s here to stay. Just like most trendy “new” superfoods,

WKH KHDOWK EHQHÀWV of the moringa tree have been known in various cultures for hundreds of years, but have just recently found their way into mainstream wellness culture — where you

are about to see a lot more of it. According to Google Trends, interest in moringa has been growing steadily for the SDVW ÀYH \HDUV The fast-growing, drought-resistant tree native to the

SUPERFOOD

sub-Himalayan areas of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan is sometimes referred to as the “drumstick tree.” The moringa tree has various healing properties, health

ALERT

THE HUMBLE SUB-HIMALAYAN MORINGA TREE HAS CAUGHT THE EYE OF WELLNESS BUFFS FOR ITS WIDE RANGE OF HEALTH BENEFITS

by Chelsea Ritschel

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PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

EHQHÀWV DQG XVHV according to WebMD, and it is basically capable of curing all your ailments — kind of. According to a study published in the journal Phytotherapy Research, the bark, sap, roots, leaves, VHHGV DQG à RZHUV RI the moringa tree have all been traditionally used to treat a variety of ailments including: edema, swelling, stomach disorders, neurodegenerative diseases, diabetes, asthma, arthritis, epilepsy, thyroid disorder, anaemia and sickle cell disease, and bacterial, fungal, viral, and parasitic infections.

As if that wasn’t enough incentive, the “miracle tree� has also been linked to having positive effects on liver function, skin and hair, bone health, immunity, cardiovascular health, kidney function, eye health, and cancer prevention. Proving it is worthy of its nicknames, the versatile plant has proven to be equally important as a food, especially in parts of the world where malnutrition has been an issue. “Because it can be grown cheaply and easily, and the leaves retain lots of vitamins

and minerals when dried, moringa has been used in India and Africa in feeding SURJUDPPHV WR Ă€JKW malnutrition,â€? the study by the University of Agriculture, in Faisalabad, Pakistan concluded. In mainstream wellness circles, moringa has become popular because the leaves “contain more vitamin A than carrots, more calcium than milk, more iron than spinach, more vitamin C than oranges, and more potassium than bananas.â€? Additionally, the protein in the moringa leaves rivals that of milk

and eggs. And, as if you needed another reason to ditch your kale, moringa actually has a surprisingly pleasant taste which is why food companies have been quick to LQFOXGH WKH EHQHĂ€FLDO WUHH in pressed juices, nutrition bars, kombucha, and other healthy snacks. The super-nourishing moringa oil is also expected to make its way into beauty products in the coming year, so if you’re wondering whether you should incorporate the superfood into your lifestyle, it looks OLNH LW GHĂ€QLWHO\ FRXOGQ¡W hurt. The Independent 0RULQJD OHDYHV FRQWDLQ PRUH YLWDPLQ $ WKDQ FDUURWV PRUH FDOFLXP WKDQ PLON PRUH LURQ WKDQ VSLQDFK PRUH YLWDPLQ & WKDQ RUDQJHV DQG PRUH SRWDVVLXP WKDQ EDQDQDV

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

51

Fitness

I

f you do a regular planned training programme, you may vary the amount of weight you lift or the number of sets and reps, but you probably always do the same exercises, with the same joint movements and the same ranges of motion. Why not get creative with your workout and bring a little ‘oomph’ to your training programme? For example, try using a mover’s dolly to work your lower body. These things have a rotating wheel on each corner. Place your feet and ankles on the dolly, then use your leg power to wheel it from side to side while your hands and torso stay stationary, in a plank position. In addition, you may also use the mover’s dolly to work your arms by placing your hands on WKH ÁRRU WR ¶ZDON· WKH GROO\ from one end of the room

52

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

CREATIVE SPIN JADED WITH YOUR REPETITIVE WORKOUT MOVES? ADD SOME VARIETY TO YOUR ROUTINE WITH THESE TIPS by Wina Sturgeon

7U\ XVLQJ D PRYHU V GROO\ WR ZRUN \RXU ORZHU ERG\ DQG VSLFH XS \RXU H[HUFLVH SURJUDPPH

to the other while your feet are on the dolly. Don’t allow yourself to sag. If it’s too hard to hold your torso up while creating a workout with this item, place it under your knees when starting out. If you belong to a commercial gym, you can also get creative there. Most gyms today have balance balls — or exercise balls as they are sometimes called. Take the ball into the freeweight area and grab one of the weighted bars. It may be good to start with a 5 to 9 kilogram bar until you learn the physical mechanics of this excellent stabilising core workout, even though you may be able to easily lift a much heavier bar. Sit on the ball and place the bar at your feet. Using the bar is done in two steps: ÀUVW SODFH LW RQ \RXU ODS then lift it over your head and rest it on the back of your shoulders, as if you were supporting the bar in a position to do a squat. Next, keeping your spine totally straight, without

bending forward or arching your back, rotate your torso so your shoulders and the bar move from one side to the other. For example, ÀUVW \RXU OHIW VKRXOGHU LV facing forward, then your right shoulder. Never force the movement. If you feel pressure or pain in your back, neck or hips, stop immediately and put the bar down. Your spine may QRW EH à H[LEOH HQRXJK IRU this movement — yet. You may have to work into it. Practice by working with a lighter weight while sitting on a stable bench. Always do this exercise slowly, and with complete concentration. Never do it where anyone else may walk into the area of the bar. The moves described here are for the advanced exerciser, not for beginners or newbies at the gym. But for those with experience in resistance work, getting creative with a workout will KDYH DPD]LQJ EHQHÀWV IRU WKH training of the body. TNS PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

53

Well-being

S

elf-care for those who are depressed is very important, yet it may be the hardest thing for

anyone dealing with depression to actually do. The basics of life can easily be forgotten. Even things like personal hygiene and properly

feeding yourself may EH GLIÀFXOW +HUH DUH some tips to remind you of how to defeat your depression and get back into life.

SEEK OUT YOUR OWN SELF-CARE WHEN IT COMES TO DEALING WITH DEPRESSION

A STEP TOWARDS

HEALING by Barton Goldsmith

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PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

Talk with someone This is a psychotherapist’s obvious answer, but that’s only because it works. When you talk about your feelings and

someone you respect validates how you feel, it starts you on a path to healing. It also helps you see yourself in less limiting ways, so you can get back to being who you want to be.

Intimacy changes your mind-set Physical closeness is all you may need to feel better. I’m not saying force yourself to be intimate, but just be with the person you love and hold each other. For me, that is the most healing thing in the world. And if you are alone, the hug of a good friend is also very good for your well-being. Get out of the house Getting out can be hard if you feel like you don’t want to be around people. That’s okay for now, but at least make yourself get in the car and drive to a nice spot for a view or a place that brings you some peace. You don’t even have to get out of the car. The change of scenery and the fresh air will help you heal. Eat your favourite food

even if it’s junk food Don’t overdo it, but allow yourself to eat whatever foods you love. Maybe the foods you love are actually good for you but you don’t take the time to have them in the house. I know that eating a fresh peach makes me happy, so I make a point of eating one daily when I can. Watch a comedy Norman Cousins, author of Anatomy of an Illness, cured himself of a serious illness by laughing at old movies. I know when you are wrapped in the cocoon of depression, you may not want to make yourself laugh. But the downward cycle must be broken, so you can get back to your life, and this is a very easy way to start. Smile Look at yourself in the mirror and see the

difference between when you express your sadness and when you smile. The act of smiling actually releases chemicals in your brain that make you want to smile more and make you feel better. Practice at home for a little, and then go to a public place and wear that smile. People will smile back, and that will make you happier. You can’t do everything on this list at once, so try one or two ideas, and see how they feel. If the results are positive, then try another. The idea here is to make your life better, and no one can do that but you. Please give it a chance. You’d be surprised at how easy it is to feel better when you let (or even make) yourself do things to help yourself heal. TNS

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

55

Lifestyle

A MASTERFUL

MAKEOVER

HERE’S HOW TO GET THAT MASTER BEDROOM FEEL NO MATTER HOW SMALL YOUR SPACE IS by Gabrielle Savoie

S

ettling into a plush hotel room with no other plans but to completely unwind sounds pretty nice, but what’s even better (as well as budgetfriendly) is a staycation at home. No need to à \ DQ\ZKHUH SXW RQ

56

makeup or even get dressed — all you need are your PJs and a good book. Of course, it can be hard to achieve a truly blissful master bedroom decor setup. Often, nightstand clutter, mismatched sheets and underwhelming furniture can get in the way of

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

complete relaxation. Think it’s time to give your bedroom the makeover it deserves? We’ve outlined a few master bedroom ideas that will help your space feel more layered and comfortable — it may even make it feel larger. No, you don’t need a giant room or perfectly pressed linens to achieve pure bliss at home. Whether you’re in the market for a new bed frame or just looking to upgrade your wall colour, we have the solutions for you. Don’t spend another weekend stressing about the state of your bedroom — give it a well-deserved makeover. Start with a large rug Nothing makes a space look smaller than a rug too small for it. In the bedroom, it’s especially important to have a rug large enough to cover the

area around the bed — not to mention it’s more comfortable to step on when you wake up. Small-space tip: If you FDQ¡W Ă€W D ODUJH UXJ LQ your space, opt for two UXQQHUV Ă DQNLQJ WKH EHG instead. Go all white Want to get that plush hotel look? Try going all white: walls, ceiling, Ă RRUV IXUQLWXUH DQG most importantly, bedding. Play with textures instead of colours by adding cashmere, sheepskin, and linens. Small-space tip: White walls can look dingy in a small room with very little natural light. If that’s the case for you, paint the walls and ceiling a soft muted colour and keep everything else white. Make a chandelier statement

Fill the height of your space with a large statement chandelier, which will also enhance the mood lighting in your space. Just don’t forget to put it on a dimmer in case you want to set a romantic tone. If you have low ceilings, opt for a chandelier that branches out horizontally instead of vertically. Small-space tip: To know exactly how big your chandelier should be for the space, add the dimensions of the room together in feet, and then convert the result to inches. For instance, a room that’s 8 by 10 feet should have a chandelier with a diameter of 18 inches. Add a statement chair Fill an awkward corner with a statement chair. Not only does it look great on its own, but it comes in handy when you want to throw clothes or a bag over

it at the end of a long day. After all, laziness happens to the best of us. Small-space tip: If there is no space for a chair, try a smaller accent like a stool or even a woven basket to handle extra clutter. Try a canopy bed One of the most frequent questions people have for their interior designers is KRZ WR ÀOO D ODUJH EODQN wall space. This problem is especially common in the bedroom, where you often have a large wall behind the bed. A canopy EHG YLVXDOO\ ÀOOV YHUWLFDO space in your room so it looks more structured and layered. Small-space tip: Yes, you can have a canopy bed in a small room. Just opt for one with a thin frame. Go bold with wallpaper $QRWKHU ZD\ WR ÀOO ODUJH blank space, especially in a room with tall ceilings, is to use a patterned or

textured wallpaper. It gives the space a moody feel and keeps the eye interested. Small-space tip: Don’t be afraid to use dark colours in small spaces. Especially if you have little natural light, it can help the space feel cosier. End with a bench In large bedrooms, empty space can feel awkward. Try adding a small living area in your room if you can, or even just add a bench at the foot of your EHG WR ÀOO WKH URRP 1RW only will it make the space feel more layered, but it’s practical, too. Small-space tip: Pay careful attention to the WUDIÀF FOHDUDQFH LQ \RXU space — which should be around two to three feet wide to walk around comfortably. Don’t try to cram too much furniture in, or your space will end up looking cluttered.

worse than leaving large blank spaces on each side of the nightstands. Small-space tip: Sconces work wonders in small rooms because they free up nightstand space. Just make sure you opt for lights that have an appropriate scale for the room. TNS

Supersize your sconces In a large bedroom, don’t be afraid to supersize your bedside tables and sconces. There’s nothing PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

57

Food

A

grilled cheese sandwich is as simple and easy as they come. A favourite amongst almost everyone, it makes for a hearty meal, when served with sides like French fries, wedges or even tator tots. What’s more is that it can be made with a variety of ingredients. A grilled cheese is toasty, hot and heartening. And not to forget, deliciously appetising.

A perfect PANINI TRY THIS SWEET AND SALTY VERSION OF THE CLASSIC GRILLED CHEESE SANDWICH 58

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

by Leah Eskin

PANINI INGREDIENTS 1/4 of a tart apple, cored, skin on 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves 2 slices sourdough bread 4 teaspoons salted butter, softened 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard 2 ounces Gruyere cheese, shredded

METHOD 1. Toss: Slice apple into matchsticks. The mandolin makes quick work of this job. Toss apple and thyme. 2. Spread: Spread one side of each slice of bread with half the butter. Flip and spread the other side of each slice with half the mustard. 3. Fill: Sprinkle half the cheese over each mustard-face, pressing cheese in gently. Heap on apple/ thyme mix. Close up sandwich. 4. Toast: If you have a panini maker, use that. Otherwise, heat a ridged griddle pan over medium heat. Lacking griddle, use a medium skillet. Set sandwich onto griddle (or skillet), top with something heavy (say, another skillet) and cook until bread is toasty and cheese has melted, 3-4 minutes. Flip, weight and toast the second side. 5. Serve: Slice sandwich in half. Munch. TNS

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

59

FRIDAY UNWIND

IN THE STARS

ARIES

LIBRA

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**** You might want to move away from a heavy 21 MARCH - 19 APRIL

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23 SEPT - 22 OCT

TAURUS 20 APRIL - 20 MAY

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GEMINI

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21 MAY - 20 JUNE

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22 NOV - 21 DEC

23 JULY - 22 AUG

23 AUG - 22 SEPT

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CANCER 21 JUNE - 22 JULY

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THE STARS SHOW THE KIND OF DAY YOU’LL HAVE *****Dynamic ****Positive ***Average **So-so *'LIÀFXOW

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20 JAN - 18 FEB

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VIRGO

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19 FEB - 20 MARCH

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HaSSy BirthGay DeFemEer 22 This year you present a strong personality. Others innately know that you are not a person to fool around with. You also have an offbeat quality that draws a diverse group of people toward you. If you are single, you could ďŹ nd several of your potential suitors to be overly possessive. While their neediness might not have bothered you a few years ago, today you have little tolerance for that behaviour. If you are attached, you and your signiďŹ cant other make a major purchase that you both have desired for a while. As a couple, you are emotional spenders. AQUARIUS knows how to present new ideas.

60

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

BORN TODAY

<<<

Singer/songwriter Meghan Trainor (1993) Actor Genevieve Hannelius (1998) Actor Ralph Fiennes (1962)

CHALLENGER

SUDOKU by Dave Green

DIRECTIONS: Fill each square with a number, one through nine. * Horizontal squares should add to totals on right. * Vertical squares should add to totals on bottom. * Diagonal squares through centre should add to total in upper and lower right. THERE MAY BE MORE THAN ONE SOLUTION

Today’s Challenge Our Time 4 Minutes

6XGRNX LV D QXPEHU SX]]OH EDVHG RQ D [ JULG ZLWK VHYHUDO JLYHQ QXPEHUV 7KH REMHFW LV WR SODFH WKH QXPEHUV WR LQ WKH HPSW\ VTXDUHV VR WKDW HDFK URZ HDFK FROXPQ DQG HDFK [ ER[ FRQWDLQV WKH VDPH QXPEHU RQO\ RQFH

LAST WEEK’S SOLUTIONS

1 Seconds Your Time — Minutes — Seconds

Can you ďŹ nd the six differences between the two pictures?

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

61

Books

KEEPING HOPE ALIVE SPY OF THE FIRST PERSON, BY SAM SHEPARD, IS HIS FINAL WORK IN WHICH HE MUSES ABOUT HIS LIFE AND A CHANGING AMERICA by Alasdair Lees

T

he Pulitzer-winning playwright Sam Shepard died of motor neurone disease in July, leaving behind a formidable legacy of nearly 50 plays which often put forward unwaveringly bleak critiques of American ideals. He was working on another novel right up to his death, writing by hand and then dictating into a tape recorder with the help of his daughter and sisters. Friend and former partner Patti Smith helped KLP HGLW WKH ÀQDO PDQXVFULSW Clocking in just over 80 pages, Spy of the First Person is clearly partly autobiographical, narrated by a man in his later years being treated for a crippling illness. Sitting in a rocking chair on the porch of his house in southern California’s Colorado Desert and being cared for by his family, he looks back over his OLIH DQG UHÁHFWV RQ D FKDQJLQJ America. All the while a younger man in a property opposite watches him, fascinated by his enigmatic neighbour. Spy of the First Person captivates in its distillation of many of Shepard’s enduring themes — the death of America’s frontier, identity and ORQHOLQHVV 7KH ROG PDQ UHÁHFWV WKDW LQ

62

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

the surrounding desert “there used to orchards as far as the eye can see.” But even in his parents’ era such a landscape had turned to “black plastic blowing from barbed wire” and “dead pigeons in the road.” In a time when migrant workers added to local colour rather than constituting a threat, even his sick mother, who had immigrated illegally from England, faced deportation for lacking the right papers. Where exactly does any of us really come from, he muses. Spy of the First Person ends with the old man going for a meal at a Mexican restaurant with his family — “the menu had a logo of a lighthouse. Lonely illuminated.” Amid a “cacophony of voices,” they talk Trump, “the country in a Mexican stand-off.” Shepard illuminates loneliness beautifully in this slight but rich and PRYLQJ ÀQDO ZRUN ,Q WKH ÀQDO OLQHV WKH old man sees “the moon getting bigger and brighter ... two sons and their father, everyone trailing behind.” Shepard’s valedictory message is one of hope. The Independent

WE WERE EIGHT YEARS IN POWER by Ta-Nehisi Coates

>OPSL )HYHJR 6IHTH ^HZ THRPUN OPZ[VY` HZ [OL JV\U[Y`»Z ÄYZ[ black president, Ta-Nehisi Coates was becoming one of the premier voices in the country’s conversation about race. His essays in The Atlantic have been personal, historical, intelligent, and angry— full of hard truths that make white people squirm in their seats. Which is why Coates’ words are so important. They teach people. They awaken them. Sentence by sentence, they are capable of closing the racial divide. Coates’ new book, We Were Eight Years in Power, is a collection of 16 essays written between 2008 and 2016. It is a follow-up to Between the World and Me, which was a ÄUHSPZ[ MVY ;OL 7\SP[aLY 7YPaL ;OL LZZH`Z L_HTPUL )HYHJR 6IHTH»Z [PTL HZ (TLYPJH»Z ÄYZ[ black president through various prisms: Race, political power, historical context and impact on people like Coates, who tells his own story — and the country’s.

AN AMERICAN FAMILY by Khizr Khan

It was an afterthought; a 99-cent pocket Constitution that Khizr Khan bought in bulk, so he could give one to each of the Army ROTC cadets from the University of Virginia who came to his home to honour his son, a former cadet like them who was killed in Iraq in 2004. That little book would become so much more for Khan after he pulled it from his jacket at the 2016 Democratic National Convention, held it up and addressed then-Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, who had spoken out against immigrants and Muslims. Now Khan is travelling the US with a book of his own, An American Family, which tells how his life led him from Pakistan to the stage of the DNC, to cities all over the country, where he speaks about immigration, being a Muslim American, a Gold Star father and a patriot. “The book is not our story; it’s the story of every immigrant,” Khan said recently.

FRANCE IS A FEAST

by Alex Prud’homme and Katie Pratt Now it is Paul Child’s turn. The man best known today for his marriage to Julia Child, brought his bride to Paris in 1948 when he took a job as cultural attache for the US Information Service. It was he who knew France, and good food and fascinating art. Julia? Well, she was an eager student looking for her true calling. The pair stopped MVY S\UJO PU 9V\LU VU [OLPY ÄYZ[ KH` PU -YHUJL HUK 7H\S VYKLYLK oysters and sole meuniere. Well, you know what happened next to Julia: That lunch sparked something within her that would ultimately change American cooking, cookbooks and television. A new book France is a Feast: The Photographic Journey of Paul and Julia Child tells the story of that fateful time from Paul’s perspective, as revealed in letters, sketches and, wonderfully, some 225 black-and-white photographs — many of them never seen before publicly. TNS

BESTSELLERS OF THE WEEK Here are the bestsellers for the week, compiled from data from independent and chain bookstores, book wholesalers and independent distributors nationwide.

FICTION 1. Origin by Dan Brown 2. The Rooster Bar by John Grisham 3. Year One by Nora Roberts 4. The Midnight Line by Lee Child 5. The People vs. Alex Cross by James Patterson 6. Tom Clancy: Power and Empire by Marc Cameron 7. Artemis by Andy Weir 8. Past Perfect by Danielle Steel 9. Hardcore Twenty-Four by Janet Evanovich 10. End Game by David Baldacci

NONFICTION 1. The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Come and Get It! by Ree Drummond 2. Leonardo da Vinci by Walter Isaacson 3. Let Trump Be Trump by Lewandowski/Bossie 4. Guinness World Records 2018 by Guinness World Records 5. The How Not to Die Cookbook by Michael Greger 6. Grant by Ron Chernow 7. Andrew Jackson and the Miracle of New Orleans by Kilmeade/Yaeger 8. Promise Me, Dad by Joe Biden 9. Obama by Pete Souza 10. Killing England by O’Reilly/Dugard TNS

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

63

All the goss

A ROUND-UP OF CELEBRITY NEWS AND GOSSIP

Kevin Hart wants to star in 4YZ +V\I[ÄYL remake

Getting dressed shouldn’t feel like torture: Cyndi Lauper Singer Cyndi Lauper says that the inspiration behind her clothing range was to encourage women to feel “graceful and a little funky” and enjoy styling themselves. “I designed clothes for the woman who wants to wear couture. Women could have the opportunity to feel tall, graceful and a little funky. Getting dressed shouldn’t feel like torture. Women should be able to feel elegant and funky no matter their size.” The singer’s SPUL PUJS\KLZ ISHJR ^PKL SLN [YV\ZLYZ H YLK TPKP KYLZZ ^P[O Å\[LK sleeves, as well as a black gothic blouse, and she thinks the “elongation of the lines” in her collection and the silhouette shapes ^PSS IL ¸]LY` ÅH[[LYPUN¹ MVY [OL ^LHYLY She said: “It’s all about the silhouette — the elongation of the lines, ^OPJO THRL P[ ]LY` ÅH[[LYPUN ;HPSVYPUN PZ OV^ 0 ]PL^ L]LY`[OPUN ¹ The vocalist thinks her range will bring a “whole new world” to the fashion industry. Lauper hopes her creations will empower women of all ages, and encourage them to experiment with their wardrobe staples instead of being made to feel “invisible.” “Women of a certain age shouldn’t have to go back into the closet and be invisible — my goal is to make women feel they’re still alive with my clothes. I’m a rocker, I know how to do it for goodness sake,” she said.

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PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

Actor/comedian Kevin Hart says he would like to feature in the remake of 1993 Robin Williams starrer Mrs. +V\I[ÄYL. During a recent interview to promote his new movie — Jumanji: >LSJVTL [V [OL 1\UNSL, Hart was asked what other classic movie he would like to be involved in remaking. “I’ll stay on the Robin Williams train and say that if I could jump into Mrs. +V\I[ÄYL. That was a very amazing performance on both ends for him. I think that’s one I’d love to get to play in,” said Hart. 4YZ +V\I[ÄYL follows a divorced actor who dresses up as a female housekeeper to be able to interact with his children. It also stars Sally Field, Pierce Brosnan, Harvey Fierstein and Robert Prosky.

James Corden almost named his daughter Beyoncé Popular TV host James Corden has joked that he almost named his newborn daughter after singer Beyoncé Knowles. The 39-year-old, who welcomed his third child with wife Julia, almost landed himself in hot water when he pretended to the medical staff he had given his daughter the same moniker as Beyoncé. “After the baby was born, anyone who has been in this situation will know, we were both crying, I

Carrie Fisher’s dog got excited when he saw her on screen Carrie Fisher’s dog Gary attended a screening for ;OL 3HZ[ 1LKP, and it was clear he still misses his mum. Journalist Veronica Miracle tweeted a video revealing she saw ;OL 3HZ[ 1LKP with the famous pup, and that he had the sweetest reaction to seeing Fisher on screen. She wrote, “The late Carrie Fisher’s dog Gary just watched ;OL 3HZ[ 1LKP! He sat on Fisher’s former HZZPZ[HU[»Z SHW K\YPUN [OL ÄST :OL ZHPK OPZ LHYZ WLYRLK \W L]LY` [PTL ZOL was on screen.” The late actress’ assistant Corby McCoin gave Gary a forever home after OLY WHZZPUN -PZOLY ÄYZ[ HKVW[LK .HY` HZ H [OLYHW` KVN I\[ P[ ^HZU»[ SVUN \U[PS [OL K\V ILJHTL ILZ[ MYPLUKZ )LJH\ZL -PZOLY ^V\SK IYPUN OPT [V ÄST premieres and interviews, Gary began to gain a following all on his own. As of last week, he had 163,000 fans on Instagram. Gary had such a big presence that the ;OL 3HZ[ 1LKP’s director Rian Johnson even gave him a cameo as a space creature in the movie. Not too shabby for a French bulldog.

was crying my eyes out, my wife’s crying her eyes out, the baby’s crying and the doctor asked about her name and I don’t know why I said it and I looked at the doctor and said, ‘We’re going to call her Beyoncé.’ My wife did not think that was funny,” Corden said on ;OL 3H[L 3H[L :OV^ ^P[O 1HTLZ *VYKLU. “Especially after the nurse went to the other side of the room and Z[HY[LK ÄSSPUN V\[ OLY MVYT ^P[O [OL name Beyoncé and I had to go over to her and say, ‘There’s only one Beyoncé,’” he added.

Jourdan Dunn thought she was a witch Model Jourdan Dunn used to think that she was a witch when she was younger, and she used to cast spells from behind a curtain. “I used to think I was a witch when I was younger. I used to be behind the curtain and just be doing spells,” Dunn told fellow model Karlie Kloss on her upcoming show 4V]PL 5PNO[ ^P[O 2HYSPL 2SVZZ.” The show will hit the small screen on Dec.28. +\UU»Z HJ[PVUZ IHMÅLK OLY MYPLUKZ ^OV would quiz her on her unusual behaviour. “And everyone would be like, ‘What is Jourdan doing? Who is Jourdan talking to? Oh, she’s in her witch phase,’” she said. This news comes after Kloss told Dunn she thought her school would be like the institution in the /HYY` 7V[[LY franchise’s Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

IANS/The Independent PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

65

SAY WHAT?

A WEEK’S WORTH OF TWEETS FROM CELEBRITIES AND OTHER NEWSMAKERS

Anna Kendrick@ AnnaKendrick47 Kim Kardashian West@KimKardashian DAY 17

Serena Williams@serenawilliams

What an honor it was to chat with @Thasunda & Chase Private Clients about “Investing in Yourself”. Happy to be part of the @Chase family.

“Remember when we all pretended to like mushroom shavings that tasted like feet just bc they were expensive?” -everyone in ten years YL! [Y\MÅLZ

christine teigen @chrissyteigen

5PHSS /VYHU'5PHSS6MÄJPHS

Listening to some Christmas tunes with my Bose #SoundLink Micro speaker ! #BrandAmbassador

Gigi Hadid@GiGiHadid

OK MY TWITTER ANGEL FRIENDS phone’s back on after a week! Felt so gooooooood!!!!!! Update me!

Did Craig David do a thing like U2 where they gave us free music automatically or did I black out yesterday

Lea Michele@LeaMichele

Love me some @CorePowerYoga

Cristiano Ronaldo@Cristiano Campeones

Ryan Reynolds@ VancityReynolds

Apparently you can’t actually blow the Matterhorn.

66

PANORAMA, DECEMBER 22 — 28, 2017

Demi Lovato @ddlovato Happy Holidays

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