Epigram issue 362

Est. 1988

Est.1988

Students to be hit by further strike action next week

Megan Evans News Editor

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taff at the University of Bristol are due to walk out for ten days later this month.

In a continuation of last December’s industrial action, staff from 68 universities, including the University of Bristol, will once again go on strike in an ongoing dispute over pensions, pay, and working conditions.

The dispute primarily concerns the Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS), which the UCU claims could see the average guaranteed retirement income of a university staff member reduced by 35 per cent, and the national pay award for 2021/22, which has seen over a 20 per cent decrease in real terms in the last 12 years.

The planned strike dates are as follows:

•14-18 February: USS pensions dispute •21-22 February: USS pensions & pay and working conditions disputes •28 February – 2 March: Pay and working conditions dispute UCU members are also engaging in Action Short of Strike (ASOS), which has been ongoing since 1 December 2021 and will continue until

3 May 2022. This means that staff are working strictly to contracted hours and not taking on any additional work.

The UCU states that it is also considering the possibility of further action, including a ‘UK wide marking and assessment boycott.’

The final day of strike action on 2 March coincides with the National Union of Students (NUS) strike, which is both in support of the UCU’s demands and calls for further education to be free

at the point of use for students.

The UCU has stated that strike action can only be averted by universities accepting counter proposals to the USS and awarding a £2.5k pay increase to all staff.

This wave of strikes includes an additional ten universities, following a successful UCU reballot at institutions that failed to reach the 50% turnout threshold in November.

Continued on page 3...

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Editorial I

Epigram 11.02.2022

Co-Editor in Chief Co-Editor in Chief Deputy Editor Deputy Digital Editor

To contact the Editors in Chief: editor.epigram@gmail.com

t ’s a cliché to say that January seems to drag on and on, but it’s true. Not just because there’s a feeling of hangover post-Christmas and New Year’s, or because of assessment season (without the automatic extensions!), or because the nights are long and the days are cold. As if January wasn’t already bad enough, there was no issue of Epigram last month – so consider Issue 362 as your reward for pulling through to February and the start of a new term.

And with a new term comes new challenges, so it’s just as well you’ve got some great student journalist content to help you through it. Need some inspiration for a new playlist? The Music section has you covered. If you’re reeling about the University’s extension policies, you’re not alone - have a look at page 11 of Features. And if you’ve

have a look at the Opinion section. Beyond that, we’ve got some content celebrating LGBTQ+ History Month, my favourite being the investigation into queerbaiting on page 25.

started applying to grad schemes or internships (don’t worry, I haven’t either),

reach out to Wellbeing, or whoever your support network are.

Now that we’re in term two, a lot of people are starting to look beyond the end of the academic year. Some finalists are looking for jobs, while keener first and second years are looking for summer internships. I, for one, am worrying about paying full price for clothes when my UNiDAYS discounts expire in July.

But, being serious, all the sorts of anxieties you may be having are understandable: so remember (another cliché incoming) to focus on the present. Most of us will only be in Bristol for a few years, so take advantage of everything being a student here offers you. And, if you are worried or struggling with the pressures of second term and beyond,

Holly Beaumont Filiz Gurer Joseph Marshall Flora Pick

Business Team Managing Director Tim Edwards Deputy Director Joshua Ang Head of Finance Matthew Chang

Head of Marketing Sophie Brassey Head of Ads and Sales Lucas Arthur Head of Alumni Elena Venturelli

In print and online, Epigram is the independent student newspaper of the University of Bristol. We are run for students, by students, and have a combined readership of over 20,000. Our content is not controlled by the University or the Students Union and we remain politically neutral.

Views expressed in this publication are not those of the University or Bristol SU. The design, text, and photography are copyright of Epigram and its individual contributors that may not be reproduced without permission.

Epigram is printed regularly and can be found around campus, in cafes and student accommodation. We have a large editorial and business team who work hard, alongside their degrees, to create Epigram for both print and online.

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Clarifications, Corrections and Retractions

As an independent publication, Epigram strives to be as accurate and impartial on student news as possible. However, should you wish to raise any editorial, commercial or legal concerns, please email editor@epigram.org.uk with the problem, addressed to the Editors-in-Chief. Please be sure to include the issue number and article headline if the article was in print, or the URL if the article was online.

We endeavour to correct any inaccuracies as soon as they are raised with us.

News Epigram 11.02.2022

Editor Co-Deputy Editor Co-Deputy Editor Digital Editor

Megan Evans Roya Shahidi Jess Millson Jack Crockford

Teaching to be affected by strike action in February and March

• UCU members will strike for ten days intermittently between 14 February and 2 March • Members are also undertaking ‘action short of strike’ Megan Evans News Editor

tion to tackle insecure contracts, unsafe workloads and pay inequality, and for devastating pension cuts to be revoked.

Any disruption that occurs will be the clearest indication yet that university bosses don’t value their staff.

‘This wave of strike action is a fight for the future of higher education and staff are proud to stand alongside students in the fight for an education system that treats students and staff with respect.’

In an email to all students, the University of Bristol has stated: ‘We have been trying hard to avoid this and are very disappointed that we have reached a point where

Continued from the front page... n a statement, UCU general secretary Jo Grady said: ‘It is a damning indictment of the way our universities are managed UCU general secretary Jo Grady: that staff are being ‘Any disruption that occurs will be left with the clearest indication yet that univerno option sity bosses don’t value their staff.’ but to walk out again.

‘For a sector that is worth tens of industrial action is going ahead; billions of pounds and enjoys record however, we respect the right of levels of student growth it is beyond our union member colleagues to act disgraceful that in return staff get where they feel strongly about issues vicious pension cuts, falling pay and that affect them. are pushed to breaking point under ‘We also appreciate that you will deteriorating working conditions. be worried about the impact of the ‘Time is quickly running out for dispute on your studies.’ vice chancellors to avert strike acUniversity libraries, study spaction, but it can be done. es, and support services will remain Staff need a proper pay rise, acopen throughout the strike.

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Epigram / Filiz Gurer

Bristol SU election nominations now open

• Nominations are open until 23 February • Results will be announced 11 March • Positions include full-time officers, chairs of networks, faculty erps, and course reps.

Alice Clarke

SU Correspondent

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etween 1-23 February, students have the chance to nominate themselves for a number of full and part-time roles up for grabs.

Every year Bristol students have the chance to elect a group of fellow students to the SU and represent their interests on campus. There

are hundreds of roles to be elected; most roles are part-time and can be undertaken alongside students’ studies, however full-time officer roles are also being voted in.

The key roles students can nominate themselves for are as follows: • Full Time Officers: there are 7 full-time officers who work full-time and act together in place of one Bristol SU president which many student unions have.

They lead the SU and make sure

it is acting in the interest of the members. The offices held are: ELA, International Students, Postgraduate Education, Sport and Student Development, Student Living, Undergraduate Education and Union Affairs.

• Chairs of Networks: network chairs lead Bristol SU networks which represent students at a grassroots level for issues such as Wellbeing or Sustainability to representing other groups such as LGBT+ or Black Students. Chairs speak for

the interests of the students in their network and work to ensure the full-time officers are also working towards these interests.

• Faculty Reps: working as part of the Education Network Committee, faculty reps have a key voice in representing the interests of their faculty. They support their community and work with reps from other faculties to bring issues within higher-education and their field to the Univeristy.

• Course Reps: each course has at least one representing academic issues related to their course.

They are the first port of call and a direct link for any students wanting to voice concerns, issues or views to academic staff, the SU and the University. They support fellow course mates on course level issues such problems with content or assessments.

After nominations close on 23 February, candidates are announced on 7 March. Voting opens a day later until the 10th March with results announced on 11 March.

Staff at Bristol SU will support those who put themselves forward for a role with with a Candidate Training Academy, as well as making sure students are supported and ready for the roles they run for.

Students can view and nominate themselves for roles on the Bristol SU website.

News 5

Epigram 11.02.2022

Colston statue should be displayed in Bristol museum, recommends report

• A report recommends that toppled Colston statue should be displayed in the permanent collection of the Bristol City Museums service Bibiana Lebersorger News Reporter

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fter the statue of Edward Colston was pulled down in Bristol’s Harbourside in 2020, a report has found that public opinion is in favour of displaying the statue in the city’s museum.

In Spring of last year, We Are Bristol History Commission issued a survey to the public to determine the statue’s future.

The survey aimed to find out 3 things: if the public wanted to see the statue in the museum; what should happen to the

Epigram / Rufus Atkins

plinth that remains; how to understand and process the history behind the statue. Out of nearly 14,000 people surveyed, 74% said that they wanted the statue displayed in a museum. Only 1 in 6 wanted to see the statue exhibited vertically, with the rest wanting to see it lying down on its side, with the graffiti preserved, as was displayed in the M Shed museum until

Bristol Uni to invest £16.8m in 400 new PhD scholarships • The scholarships will cover tuition fees in hold and provide a stipend.

Jess Millson

Co-Deputy News Editor

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ver the next four years the University of Bristol will invest £16.8 million in postgraduate scholarships.

A new annual investment of £4.2m (totalling £16.8m over four years) will be used to create 400 new PhD scholarships.

The University of Bristol currently offer 100 fully funded Postgraduate Research Scholarships across the six Faculties and 25 schools.

The investment intends to expand upon the success of current Bristol University scholarships such as the Black Bristol Scholarship Program, which has supported 40 postgraduate students this academic year, the Bristol Bursary and the Sanctuary Scholarship scheme.

The scholarship schemes are vital in supporting a wider range of scholars to carry out invaluable research in fields such as climate protection and medical engineering.

Scholars’ tuition fees will be covered in full, as well as receiving a

stipend to cover living costs and support their studies. Professor Hugh Brady, Vice-Chancellor and President of the University of Bristol said that the announcement ‘is a huge moment for the future of academic research.

‘They are responsible for world-changing ideas and technologies that we may all one day rely on.

Many also go on to teach the next generation of students and researchers.

‘Postgraduate researchers not only push the boundaries of their fields, but also build the world of tomorrow.’

Professor Robert Bickers, Associate Pro-Vice Chancellor for Postgraduate Research, said: ‘The story of research at the University across its history to date has very much been shaped by its postgraduate researchers. We face many challenges globally as we look forward to the post-pandemic world, and these new researchers trained here will be at the forefront in tackling these. I am delighted to see this increased investment for postgraduate research that will build on, and expand, Bristol’s tradition.’

The announcement comes 100 years after the University of Bristol awarded its first PhD.

early January. Of the 16% who advised against displaying the statue, half wanted it returned to the plinth, with the remaining half either wanting it destroyed or did not have a strong opinion on the matter.

Over half of the responses supported the idea of adding a plaque to where the plinth still stands in order to reflect the events of 7 June 2020. The notion of us-

ing the plinth for temporary artworks or sculptures was supported by just under half of those surveyed. This was more preferable than using the plinth for a permanent artwork installation, or removing it all together.

When asked how they felt about the statue being toppled , 56% of respondents said they had a positive feeling about the act and 36% had a negative feeling about it. 5 out of 8 Bristol residents had positive feelings about the removal.

The survey was sent out to both Bristol and non-Bristol residents. The commission group tried to capture a cross-section of the city, taking into account all ages, genders, ethnicities and socio-economic statuses.

Having taken into account all respondents, the commission group has put together a report that includes 6 recommendations for the future of the statue.

Local Mayor Martin Rees will consider the report findings, with any final decisions needing to be approved at the Cabinet meeting in April.

The recommendations can be found

in full on the Bristol City Council Website. In brief, the report recommends that the Colston statue enters the permanent collection of the Bristol City Museums service.

It also recommends that the statue should be presented in its current state, paying attention to ‘presenting the history in a nuanced, contextualised’ way, which involves including information on the legacy of transatlantic slavery.

Finally, it recommends that a plaque should be added to the plinth in order to record the history of the statue’s erection and recent removal. Temporary artworks should be considered, but also there should be periods of intentional emptiness in order to open up a dialogue with the public and the city’s colonial past.

Professor Shawn Sobers, member of the We Are Bristol History Commission, believes that the ‘survey shows that the past matters to people and is relevant in their lives. Honest engagement with the city’s past is something that people want to see happen, whatever their views on the statue’.

Jess Phillips on making it as an MP: “I want power, power to change things” Estelle Nilsson-Julien UBTV Station Manager

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ess Phillips is MP for Birmingham Yardley, serving as Shadow Minister for Domestic Abuse. In an event organised by the University of Bristol’s Politics Society, The Labour MP spoke passionately about her journey into politics, her vision of the Labour Party and shared some wisdom about a career in the field.

Politicized from a young age, Phillips grew up in a family of activists in Birmingham. “At two years old I was making banners for Greenham Common and as a kid I’d watch PMQs every week with my nan. My family was acting so viscerally acting against Thatcher’s policies.” A political upbringing but also the 1980s, an era of great divisions symbolised by Prime Minister Thatcher. Did being exposed to Thatcher, Britain’s first female PM, lead Phillips to dream of becoming PM herself? “Of course I want to be PM one day! I don’t think it will happen but I want power, power to change things. I think a lot of left wing people are scared to say that.”

Phillip’s political fervour tempered during her student days, studying Politics and Economics at the University of Leeds, attributing this mellowing to Blair’s Labour government, when things were “alright”. “It is under a Labour government that everything I hold dear and key advances for ordinary people, such as free childcare, the NHS, right to abortion, minimum wage were enacted.” Be-

coming pregnant shortly after leaving University, Phillips juggled various jobs alongside volunteering in the Birmingham charity sector. Going on to Women’s Aid she worked with refugees, set up services for victims of sexual exploitation, and female offenders. Upon her election to Westminster in 2015, Phillips was hit with a shock, forced to adapt to life in Parliament. Westminster Hall, house of Henry VIII was a marked change from her parents’ garage, where she had spent many weekends making protest banners.

She was also startled by a lack of diversity, a contrast from her years working in the charity sector. The cherry on the cake was realisation that she would have to work with men, after years at Women’s Aid – this too would take some getting used to. However, her fervour for women’s rights did not dissipate, indeed five years on she was appointed Shadow Minister for Domestic Abuse and Violence. This would be her first time on the front bench, serving under Sir Keir Starmer’s opposition. “Parliament is literally everything, there are debates on things like disposable barbeques and glue traps! I have been quite successful in my work and rewritten seven or eight laws in the statute books. My role is also to build up a Labour government manifesto where women’s security is central”. On the topic of the Labour Party’s current standings, Phillips is optimistic, citing a more confident Keir Starmer steadily rising in the polls. Sitting on the left of the Labour party, Phillips emphasises her belief in pragmatic politics. She dramat-

ically throws her head into her hands in a bid to emphasise her desperation at the party’s focus on its failures. “I will dance with the devil if it means that children in my constituency will be fed properly. I’m not here to whinge its about achieving an outcome, the Labour party love to focus on their failures.”

Pragmatism but also cross-party collaboration, as she names Conservative MPs Caroline Noakes and Tracey Crouch as MPs who are dear to her. A fiery politician, Phillips supports the shift towards the end of the idea of safe seats, as seen in the 2019 election when many traditionally Labour seats in the North of England and Midlands turned Conservative - Phillips hates the term the ‘red wall’.

“The end of safe seats has been coming for a long time and that’s a good thing, it makes people like me work harder and be more responsive”.

Phillips’ advice to anyone wanting a career in politics is to jump right in.

She lays out two routes, with one being the well-trodden path reminiscent of the Cameron and Blair years, where students go straight into Parliament post university. The alternative is her route, one that she does not believe rests on formal qualifications. “Go out and do something else, working in politics isn’t just Westminster, it’s local government, charities, etc. The other most important thing is having the gift of the gab, working behind a bar, listening to boring people for ages and learning how to handle a group of drunk people are invaluable experiences.”

Features

Editor Digital Editor Deputy Editor Investigations Editor

Flossie Palmer Allegra Letts Alexander Sampson Billy Stockwell

‘It’s scandalous’: student fees funnelled into fossil fuel sector through pension investments

The USS have made hidden investments into fossil fuel giants using staff pensions.

Billy Stockwell

Investigations Editor t's no secret that Bristol University has an impressive history when it comes to its environmental record. In 2019, it was the first UK university to declare a climate emergency, one year later removing all of its investments in the fossil fuel sector. But what if, hidden in the University accounts, there was a far bigger problem? A problem that meant student fees were still being funnelled into the fossil fuel sector?

These hidden investments are ironically made in order to safeguard the future, for staff members at least, ensuring that they have financial stability into their retirement years.

These investments are pension pots.

Last year, Bristol University and staff members paid over £50 million into the largest private pension fund in letter to the USS asking them to dithe UK, the Universities Superannuvest from fossil fuel companies by ation Scheme (USS). In 2020, this 2024, Davies believes that the USS scheme was estimated to invest £1 shouldn’t be investing in the fossil billion into fossil fuel companies, fuel sector at all. including Shell ‘It's scandaland India-based 45 per cent of UoB staff ous that we're Reliance Indushave had their pensions teaching stutries. invested in fossil fuel dents about cliThis means companies mate change, that around 45 but we're also per cent of all putting money into a fund that inBristol University staff have their vests in companies that are contribpensions invested in fossil fuel comuting in a very major way to climate panies. If you only focus on academchange,’ he says. ic staff, many of whom are involved Very few academic staff know with 'world-leading environmental what companies the scheme invests research”', according to the Univerin, Davies says, and even fewer sity website, this percentage is alhave decided to take action most 100 per cent. Whilst this is not because of this investment a problem specific to Bristol, some in the fossil fuel industry.

Bristol staff have decided that this ‘If you come across anyone issue is too important to ignore. who says that they have optDr Neil Davies, a senior research ed out let me know because fellow at the Bristol Medical School, I'd be very surprised’ Davies has been trying to raise awareness admits. ‘I would imagine about the USS for about 4 years. that almost nobody has He is currently taking legal action chosen not to enrol because of against the USS directors and the these problematic investments … chief executive Bill Galvin for their Historically, you've just given historic lack of climate action. ‘We your money to them and raised about £50,000 to initiate a they've sorted you out.’ legal action against the individuals This is not something who run the scheme to try and get that staff members can easily more accountability for their acchange. Davies is keen to emtions,’ he tells Epigram. phasise that even if staff do know Whilst acknowledging that Brisabout these problematic investtol University has made progress, ments, none of them have control for example, by publishing a joint

Epigram / The Womxn's Disco Collective Instagram Central Epigram / /Flora PickChambers

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Kerse says that they decided to give the USS four years to divest because the scheme needed time to find suitable replacement investments. However, nearly two years have now passed since this open letter was signed and whilst Kerse believes that some progress has been made, the USS have clearly not gone far enough.

‘Around June 2021, the USS committed to divest from companies that are principally involved in the mining of thermal coal, and that is often where institutions start their divestment,’ he says. ‘It's where the University of Bristol started its divestment journey.’

However, the scale of the problem demands the USS to go even further, says Kerse. ‘We feel that USS has a very strong weighting towards fossil fuels which we don't believe are sustainable, either because of their impact on the planet, on livelihoods, on wellbeing and then also because we don't believe they are a sustainable source for the future. There is a very significant risk that those inwithin the University. They are the vestments could become worthless reason that the University is here. If in the future.’ students are concerned about this, In response to these claims, Joel they should raise those concerns as Sawyer, Corporate Communications vocally as they can.’

Manager at the USS, signposted EpRobert Kerse, Chief Operating Ofigram to a blog post which lays out ficer at the University, tells Epigram their committhat over the last The USS invested an ment to be Net five years he too estimated £1 billion into Zero by 2050. has been workfossil fuel companies The blog post ing alongside reads: ‘There are student groups those who believe that divestment, on divestment campaigns. ‘We were particularly of fossil fuel companies, pretty much the first Russell Group would be the answer. However, at institution to fully divest from fossil USS we believe society cannot divest fuel investments. But once we'd its way to Net Zero as, for example, accomplished that we thought if USS sells an asset, another inveswhat next? Where do we tor will simply buy it, making no difneed to go in terms of ference to the carbon emitted.’ those investment activiIn another document, the USS says ties? That took us to the that ‘we believe that the world will USS,’ he says. continue to need some level of fossil In February 2020, Kerse fuels for the coming decades … As a was involved with writing an result, we would rather seek to influopen letter to the USS asking ence those who, at a regulatory or them to divest from fossil fuel corporate level, are playing a critical companies. The letter, which was role in bringing about a lower carsigned by the University, Bristol’s bon economy’.

UCU branch and Bristol SU, So, what's next in this story? Well, reads: ‘We call on USS to Davies says his legal action is ondivest completely from going, but he expects to hear back the fossil fuel industry about the progress of it in March over the next 48 months 2022. Around the same time, Kerse and make investments says that the USS are launching a into non-fossil fuel energy consultation about its investment companies and energy schemes strategy. ‘It's probably best to make that are both economically and envia big splash about it all at that time.' ronmentally sustainable.’

over the pension scheme, not even the Vice-Chancellor. Tobacco companies. Arms companies. Fossil fuel companies. These are just a few of the industries where the USS has invested in recent years, some of which it has now divested from.

Staff earning over £60,000, senior lecturers and professors, and those that make voluntary additional contributions, get more choice about where their savings are invested.

However, only around 10 per cent of Bristol University's contributions are invested in this way, according to monthly payroll data.

‘We need to inform students and staff

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about what these funds are doing,’ Davies believes. ‘Students in particular have an incredibly strong voice

Features 7

Epigram 11.02.2022

73 per cent of students feel university extension policy must change regarding mental health Students struggled to secure extensions during the January assessment period for mental health reasons.

Flossie Palmer Features Editor

Epigram / Will Charley

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etween 10-21 January, students at the University of Bristol endured the infamous post-Christmas assessment period, in which the false sense of security that festive food and drink have lulled you into is immediately threatened by imminent, and often clashing, deadlines. Although it could be argued that some year groups face more academic pressure than others – with the reminder of unfinished dissertations looming on the horizon for final year students – it is inevitable that everyone faces stress and anxiety during assessment season, which can also be are being taken across the university, emphasised by other responsibilities however. One student, who provided and circumstances. This is where the evidence of a positive lateral flow inevitable extension requests form test, still had their extension request comes in. rejected. Students also reported that Despite being made an available even after submitting evidence of option to all students, being granta positive lateral flow test, if they ed an extension on your deadlines mentioned in their explanation that can often be much more difficult they had not yet developed sympthan expected. While requesting an toms, their extension request was extension from the schools of Medalso rejected. icine, Veterinary Medicine, Dentistry In a recent survey conducted by and Chemistry takes just an email, Epigram, 43 per cent of students students belonging to other schools who requested an extension agreed within the University must use an that they found the process of being online form. This granted one dif‘If I couldn't provide requires students ficult. Of these to provide ev- evidence for my extension, students, 78 per idence supplecent applied for it would be revoked' menting their an extension for statement as to reasons other why they need an extension, such than contracting Covid-19, indicatas a GP letter confirming a medical ing that while extensions were being condition or prescribed medication. more readily granted for Covid reHowever, Epigram has recently lated illness, students are still strugbeen made aware of the difficulty gling to meet their deadlines due to students have faced this January asother detriments, which may include sessment period in being granted an mental illness, bereavement, and extension. In one final year group other personal reasons. chat, students discussed how they Epigram have been made aware might be successfully granted an exthat when requesting extensions on tension for mental health reasons afcoursework, some students submitter their requests were denied. Some ted photographs of their medication, suggested they upload evidence of including anti-depressants, as well a positive lateral flow test instead, as scans of death certificates of loved as the University were more readily ones as proof of their academic detgranting extensions to students who riment. had contracted Covid-19 amid the Evelyn, a second year English stusurge in Omicron cases across the dent, highlighted the stress of securUK. ing an extension request for mental It's clear that different approaches health reasons; ‘My medical records

are not with the NHS, I don’t attend counselling anymore and getting a diagnosis is a huge privilege, let alone getting one in three weeks’ time to provide a letter of “proof” for an extension.’

‘I was told that if I couldn’t provide evidence for my extension, it would be revoked and my work would be graded as a late submission.’

This difficulty was also shared by second year student, Max, who was granted an extension two days after applying, but only under one condition; ‘I needed to present proof of me talking to a professional about my mental health by 5 January (the extension was given on 15 December) despite the long wait times for NHS appointments and me never having reached out to any service in the past.’

‘They didn’t accept the prescriptions I am on so I had to resort to providing GP records,’ which Max explained he would rather have not shared.

Respondents to Epigram’s survey shared similar experiences, with an anonymous student agreeing that the University’s process for requesting and granting extensions is ‘so inflexible and doesn’t allow for any mental health issues without a diagnosis.’ Another student stated that ‘it’s hard to get proof for things like going through a bad mental health period,’ highlighting the University’s dependence on proof of a diagnosis for granting extensions for mental health reasons.

Delays in extensions being grantCovid got worse’ in terms of being ed have also contributed to feelmore lenient in granting extensions ings of anxiety, with students being over the January assessment season. left in a state of uncertainty over ‘It would’ve been less hassle for them the Christmas period as to whether to implement something universally, their requests will be accepted due such as the self-certified one-week to University staff being out of ofextensions, rather than granting fice. Dayana Soroko, President of each extension individually.’

The Falstaff Society, applied for an However, with no news post-Janextension during the Christmas peuary assessment season about potenriod after contracting Covid-19, but tial changes to the extension request was not granted one until after the process, the best students can hope University re-opened on 5 January. for is continuing to use the service ‘I understand that staff need their despite its flaws. Dayana advises time off,’ Dayathat all students 43 per cent of students na explained, who have strugagreed that getting an ‘but I was just gled to secure an extension was difficult left waiting for a extension, espereply.’ cially those with Overall, in Epigram’s survey, 73 ongoing mental illnesses or personper cent of students felt that the al struggles, should also, ‘Apply for University’s policy on extension reextenuating circumstances on every quests needs to change. For the acessay – use it to its full capacity beademic year 2020/2021, the Univercause it’s your degree!’ She urged sity implemented a self-certification that, ‘No matter what situation you system, in which all students could are in, use the extension requests apply for a one-week extension that are there'. and were automatically granted one Despite students having to provide without having to provide supporttangible evidence for something ing evidence. as hard to prove as mental illness, Although these measures were Dayana admitted that ‘you have to employed as recognition from the go along with the system sometimes’ University of the impact online and use it to its full effect, even if learning and Covid-19 was having that means submitting photographon students’ work, the recent surge ic evidence of a positive lateral flow in Omicron cases across the UK in test in order to access the support December 2021 brought no such you need. Perhaps, with students kindness. being pushed to these extremes in a Instead, Dayana suggested that desperate bid to gain further support there should have been a ‘safety net in difficult circumstances, something for the University to fall back on if needs to change.

Features 8

Epigram 11.02.2022

Alumni Series: Epigram interviews TieganBingham Roberts the nearby St Nicholas’ Market made up of a multitude of independent stalls, the largest collection in the city. The market is also a short walk from Castle Park, which is the perfect place to unwind and home to Bristol Castle’s ruins as well as the popular Features Columnist & Subeditor Vaulted Chambers Café.

A guide to Bristol would not be he start to a new term can be overwhelmingly hectic, complete without some inspirations so Epigram has put together for your next pint. Whilst The Apsome top recommendations of plac- ple, Steam, or the many branches of es to go to find some peace amongst Wetherspoons dotted around Bristol the chaos and re-discover the city. are well-frequented for a reason, you From unique pubs to relaxing, scenic can also find great deals at The Anchor on Glouceswalks, this guide should offer you The Bag of Nails pub offers ter Road, or The some ideal loa unique pub experience Port of Call in Clifton. For a cations to visit with its resident 14 cats! slightly more with friends as unique pub expeyou come back into the swing of university and so- rience, The Bag of Nails pub in Hotwells has a quaint atmosphere with cial life after exams.

Adding to the familiar student its 14 resident cats lining the bar and favourites and landmarks of Clift- cosy interior.

It's important to take some breaks on Suspension Bridge, Park Street’s shops and cafes, or the views from from the inevitably busy return to Brandon Hill, the new year provides studies, and as an escape from the library or lecture hall, another chance to diversify there are some your knowledge of the lesser-known city. For those living activities in Stoke Bishop, to do in Clifton, or RedBristol land, an ideal that are place to bewithgin would in the be Bristol’s stuHarbourdent side. Along the Brisbudget. tol Harbour For a walk, an 8km burst of loop around creativity in the floating harsie l os F a relaxing enbour, you have the / ram g i p vironment, book chance to see the iconic E into the Flying Saucers SS Great Britain and a variety of pubs and cafes. On your route, you pottery painting café just off of Cliftcan stop by the M Shed or Arnolfini on Triangle and decorate a new addimuseums, which offer free entry and tion to your kitchen cupboard.

Another way to spend an afternoon are open Tuesday to Sunday.

On my last visit, I discovered the or evening off is at the Watershed cross-harbour ferry which takes pas- cinema located on the Harbourside, sengers between the SS Great Britain which shows a brilliant selection of and the Harbour Inlet for the small independent films for a low price. Refresher’s week fee of £1.20.

There are oth- At Flying Saucers, you can and the start of er ferry services paint a brand new addition term is the peravailable at the to your kitchen cupboard fect opportunity to catch up with Harbourside too, friends as we all such as the Bristol Ferry Boat tours down the Avon settle back in, but it’s equally imporGorge or to Beese’s Riverside Bar and tant to check in on your own wellbeing and try something new. HopePark.

If you’re looking to add new shop- fully our guide will inspire a breath ping destinations beyond Cabot Cir- of fresh air amongst the hustle and cus or Gloucester Road, why not try bustle of campus life!

2021 English graduate, Tiegan-Bingham Roberts, speaks to Epigram about her post-grad career Marine Saint

Features Columnist & Subeditor n December, I met with one of the University’s most recent successful graduates, now Policy Advisor at the Department for Education and class of 2021 English graduate, Tiegan Bingham-Roberts.

Despite only graduating last summer, Tiegan’s CV details an impressive number of awards and achievements which contributed to reaching her goals of working to improve inequalities across the UK as a civil servant.

Right from the start of her university experience, Tiegan immersed herself in the various societies and additional activities. In her first year, Tiegan was elected as a Course Rep for English, a role which she kept throughout her time in Bristol and was also elected Vice President of the JCR committee for her undergraduate halls, at No.33 East Village, formerly named Colston Street. In second year, Tiegan was the Director of Marketing for the Commercial Awareness Society, and in her final year she assumed the role of Equality and Outreach officer for The 93% Club Bristol. Founded at the University of Bristol, The 93% Foundation is now a nationwide student-led charity providing a social mobility network for students from a state school educational background.

In addition to Tiegan’s many voluntary positions while at university, she was a Widening Participation Ambassador, Bristol Futures Advo-

I

cate, and worked on various Alumni Telethon Campaigns. Access to higher education is a subject which Tiegan is especially passionate about, and she recognises how there are positive steps being taken towards inclusivity at Bristol with the diverse scholarship schemes available. Tiegan explained how ‘funding is always a barrier to access, and so the University being able to offer scholarships for students is so important. That’s why I really liked working on the telethons, especially as so many of the scholarships help students from lower socio-economic backgrounds.’

Tiegan has worked tirelessly to help young people, raising over 12,000 for charities related to children and education, including taking part in NCS and ICS projects. Her efforts were celebrated in September 2021 as she won two Student Social Mobility Awards awards, including the Government and Public Sector Award, at the social mobility organisation upReach’s annual ceremony at the UK House of Lords.

Attending the ceremony inside the Houses of Parliament gave Tiegan hope for the future of social mobility and caused her to reflect on her childhood, having grown up in a rural community at a school under special measures. Hearing about the charitable work of so many other students was, ‘Very heart-warming and one of those moments that gives you faith in humanity and the next generation, as it reminds you that there are so many people doing good out there.’

At the time of the awards, Tiegan was completing her Government Communication Service internship,

which was open to students from diverse backgrounds. Tiegan acknowledged the uncertainty of graduating, especially during the pandemic. Even with working remotely from her bedroom, Tiegan felt lucky to have the role and to be offered an extension by the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs where she was placed, and because of the awards was invited to speak on podcasts, BBC News, and in various roundtable meetings, including with a Civil Service Director and champion of social mobility.

‘I’m 23 and had just finished university. I’m definitely not an expert on education and social mobility in a qualifications sense, but because of my background and various roles I am in an expert through experience, which informs my work.. Winning the SSMAs definitely gave me more confidence - it was a recognition of all the hard work I’d put in over the years.’

Ending education inequality and helping young people from similar backgrounds to broaden their horizons is Tiegan’s main goal and motivation. It is no surprise that Tiegan has wanted to work in the Department for Education for a long time, and after graduating from the Patchwork Foundation Masterclass Programme where she was able to meet the Secretary of State for Education, Nadhim Zahawi, she is now commencing working in the Curriculum Strategy team. Over the course of our hour-long call, it became apparent that Tiegan is incredibly committed to improving inequalities and is an inspiration not only to those looking to work in the Civil Service, but to all students.

T

Pa lm er

Epigram / Tiegan Bingham-Roberts

A few lesser known Bristol gems to explore during the new academic term Marine Saint

Features 9

Epigram 11.02.2022

A Briscrush love story... does the infamous platform actually work? was hard to meet new people, so the only real option was to look online.’

While dating apps have proved to be the most conventional solution for students who have found it difficult to socialise after two years of restrictions, most of us are aware of the trials and tribulations of online Digital Features Editor & Features dating and the inevitably awkRegular Writer ward scenarios that come lthough many of us are with it. Instead, Briscrush guilty of scrolling through offers a veil of anonymthe famed Briscrush page ity for those who want to catch a glimpse of some familiar to avoid uncomfortinitials, and others have even written able encounters their own in a last-ditch attempt to with their Tinder re-connect with a certain someone matches around (who will of course totally remember campus. the eye contact they made with you For Adam, who in the ASS on Wednesday at 2pm), wanted to get to the vast majority of us can’t claim to know fans of his have found success from it. However, favourite classical a lucky few have managed to meet musician, submitting their long-term partners through a an anonymous post Briscrush post. was ‘I didn't really t h e If you're looking for a expect it to work Briscrush beau, try to avoid b e s t out quite as well way to go. being too vague! as it did,’ ad‘My Briscrush mits Adam, who was basically met his girlfriend of over a year on about wanting to meet someone that Briscrush. ‘During the pandemic it liked Chopin because he's my favour-

Epigram investigates the success stories behind your Briscrush submissions Allegra Letts & Madi James

ite musician, so I figured if someone else liked him that might be a good start!’

‘The first date went really well.

I'm pretty sure Chopin was a topic o f con-

eb o

ok /

Br is

cr u sh

A

ple are expecting to happen there.’ in common too.’

While Briscrush success stories Although Adam’s story may seem wholesome, others have pointed out may be rare, there are certainly some out there - or Briscrush’s probat least the one lematic and even ‘I didn't really expect it creepy potential. to work quite as well as it or two plucked from Epigram’s Attempting to investigation. follow up with someone you met on a night Nonetheless, with the surgency of out is all well and good, but participation in online dating or cerposting a detailed descrip- tain alternatives, Briscrush provides tion of a stranger who an enticing anonymous platform for you have never spoken Bristol students to express their into may give off the terest. wrong impression.

It is also no secret that Briscrush ‘I think may- has almost become a fan page of be there are some sorts for some, with many of the creepy posts but same crushes recurring in multiple it's good that peo- posts. This normally applies to every ple's names aren't man who has worked at a Co-Op in allowed. It's just a Bristol. Ever. bit of fun in the end, So, whether you’re planning to and I think the ad- write up a not-too-vague but notmins do a good job of too-creepy post about your own making sure nothing too Briscrush, or you’re simply scrolling weird gets through.’ through in an attempt to spot yourc However, if you’re looking self as the object of another’s affecFa for a Briscrush beau, you might tion, there is no denying that love want to avoid being too vague. ‘I can be found on the platform - even see a lot of people posting stuff like over a mutual passion for Chopin. 'brown-haired girl I made eye con*Names have been changed for antact with'. Not really sure what peo- onymity!

versation although we had lots of other things

Opinion

Editor Digital Editor Co-Deputy Editor Co-Deputy Editor Subeditor

Twitter: @EpigramOpinion

Why you should run for a Student Leader position As nominations for the next Bristol SU election loom, the question is – should you run for the position of student leader?

Lara Inglis-Jones

Ancient History, Second Year

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to Ecosia — the environmentally conand postgraduates. scious alternative to Google, which This inevitably expands your profesdonates nonprofits that support resional and social network, and forges forestation. social bonds which may prove invalAside from benefitting your own uable when searching for a job or inagenda, being a ternship in the future. student leader It also adds a sparkle Running to become a greatly improves to your CV. Employers student leader means look for transferable the lives of fellow students. The op- getting the most out of skills when hiring, such university life portunity to repreas time management, sent the interests of leadership, juggling students is incredseveral projects, creaibly rewarding. Taking an active role tivity, adaptability and drive. All these allows you to shape the experience skills are refined and developed when students have at university. holding a position of such responsibilBy leading campaigns and orchesity. trating events, you can guide societies As a result, scoring that new in-

t first glance, the idea of running for the president of a society or academic subject can be daunting. University is a stressful place and adding a society to run on top of studies and a social life can be demanding.

However, watching my friends take up leadership roles on committees and societies, I have witnessed the advantages of running for the SU elections, in particular the position of student leader.

One of the greatest benefits of university is the opportunity to bring about change. At its core, university life revolves around freedom of expression — the thought that scholars and pupils should have the independence to express ideas. Being a student leader allows you to transform these to drive change that will benefit you ideas into real, tangible outcomes. and your peers.

Look at the reforms introduced by Perhaps the biggest personal advanprevious Bristage of running One of the greatest benefits for student presitol SU leaders.

For example, is the opportunity to bring dent is the advanBristol stutage of boosting about change dents Hannah your employabilRose and Elspeth Taylor led a camity. A student leader role allows one paign for the University to change the to meet a variety of different people – search engine on university computers such as staff, lecturers, undergraduates

What does Bristol think about ‘Partygate'?

As we awaited the findings of Sue Gray's report (who?), here's what Bristol thought about the recent revelations from Number 10:

‘Should Boris step down following 'Partygate'?

Yes - 95%

No - 5 %

‘Why would a different party in government benefit students, if at all?'

‘Lower student fees, better cost of living' ‘Green Party = tuition free uni' 'Who, if anyone, should replace Boris?'

‘Rishi' ‘Anyone at this point' ‘Hugh Grant'

ternship or job can become a whole lot easier after having been a student leader.

Employers are far more likely to hire the graduate with impressive references and a chunkier CV than the graduate with zero experience.

Running to become a student leader means getting the most out of university life. Most students' time at university is filled with lectures, work, essays and going-out. While this may seem fulfilling, it fails to take advantage of all that university has to offer, which is the chance to reshape yourself, while transforming the world around you.

Becoming a leader of a society or academic subject adds a completely new and exciting dimension to your time at Bristol. You are given the unique opportunity to inspire, change and watch your university evolve.

With the new year starting, there is no better time to run for the position of student leader. Although it will be demanding, the payoff is immeasurable. Begin the new term by shaping the societies you are passionate about and leave university with invaluable experience, which has the potential to last a lifetime.

Mark Ross Charlie Osborne Katie Sowerby Caitlin Palmer O'Shaughnessy Mansi Virmani

Are internships a barrier to social mobility?

Employers need to look beyond internships when hiring Julie Hengen

pay the bills does not carry the same weight as a prestigious summer internship at a renowned firm.

At the other end of the spectrum, many less well-off students end up finding themselves in a catch-22 situation where their lack of experience French and Spanish, Third hinders them from finding employYear ment and their lack of connections n today’s highly competitive job and assets keep them from gaining market, using family relations to experience. secure valuable work experience On that note, the pandemic has only is irresistible. Unfortunately, doing so contributed to impeding social mobildisadvantages those who can’t. ity and increasing the ever-persistent This is why internships should be class gap. According to a report made valued less by employers, and why

by Handshake UK, the uncertainty companies and schools should also focaused by the crisis has led to an incus more on accessibility programmes creasing number of employers relying and diversity for young people. on word of mouth and their personal Receiving a helping hand from networks when it comes to making HR family and friends is common, and decisions. it’s far from a crime. Subtle nepotism This is by no means to say that acpervades all social classes and profescepting a helping hand into a first job sions, from finding a summer job to or a good internship dismantles the excronyism on an inperience’s validity.

Nepotism will never ternational scale.

Anyone who’s got disappear from the jobs a great opportunity Preferential treatmarket ment may even lined up would be have its positive unwise not to take sides; it could open doors for marginit, no matter how it came about. alised groups to industries from which Nepotism will never fully disapthey have been historically excluded. pear from the job market, and while Sofia Coppola’s entrance into the it might not be entirely fair, with all film industry, for instance, is patently the pressure on students these days, it’s nepotistic. And yet, her success marked understandable. an important step forward for women It would be naïve to expect young in a male-dominated industry, allowgraduates to start turning down great, ing for others to follow in her footprofessional prospects on nothing steps. more than a moral basis.

Nevertheless, these cases are the Consequently, it’s important for exception. When it comes to the geninternships and work experience to eral population, practising ‘who-yoube attributed less importance overknow’-ism is a hindrance to achieving all, since not everyone has the same equal opportunities for all. chance to acquire them.

The numbers speak for themselves: Rather than expecting a long list of according to the impressive place'Who-you-know'-ism ments, employers Social Mobility Baprevents equality of rometer, published and schools should by the Social Mobe offering access opportunity bility Commission schemes to assist in 2021, 46 per cent of all adults in disadvantaged students in receiving the United Kingdom expressed the beprofessional opportunities. lief that where you end up in society Luckily, more and more companies is predominantly determined by your have begun to recognise the benefits of background and who your parents are. having a diverse and skilled workforce, And up to 48 per cent of people with but there is still a far way to go. a high level of education claimed that It seems that despite the common their background had been advantanotion that anyone who works hard geous in getting them there. can make it to the top, glass floors and And it makes sense: professional ceiling are still keeping opposite social opportunities largely go hand in hand classes at different ends of the scale of with family wealth. Unfortunately, success. It is up to employers to change part-timing a working-class job to this.

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Opinion 11

Epigram 11.02.2022

Should we make Valentine's Day more inclusive for singletons?

Why do we view Valentine's Day through rose-tinted glasses?

Daisy Wigg

English and History, First Year

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ike many celebrations and holidays, February the 14th has become increasingly commercialised and every year we are bombarded with images of love hearts and romance. Whilst Valentine’s Day promises those in relationships a day full of love, gift-giving, and company, what does it offer to singletons… other than discounted chocolate on February the 15th?

Valentine’s day often provokes images of kindness, appreciation, and affection, but the origins of the holiday are quite different. Some historians place its origins in the Pagan festival of Lupercalia, in which animals would be sacrificed to promote fertility. Fairly different to the heart-clad teddy bears we see in

stores nowadays.

So why can’t we take a day that The 14th was noted as a day of claims to celebrate love, partnership remembrance for the martyred Saint and adoration and apply that to all Valentine by the Romans, with its facets of our lives? romantic links only being drawn The pandemic has presented us much later by the likes of Chaucer with a multitude of challenges, esand Shakespeare. pecially when it comes to our wellSo why, with these fairly morbid being, with a rise in loneliness being and less than uplifting backstories, reported over this period. Therefore, do we view Valentine’s Day through I see no better time to make a day rose-tinted glasses? such as Valentine's much more inIn a world where human contact clusive. Any holidays that single out has been discouraged over the last a single demographic are going to few years and interactions confined lead to isolation. Instead of heightto computer screens, it is no wonder ening this disenfranchisement with people want a day to express apa media blitz of 'perfect’ couples, preciation for the relationships they why don’t we expand our view of have. But this should not be excluValentine’s? sively for couples, as meaningful reMother’s Day can be used to cellationships can ebrate any womYou do not have to be en that has guided, take many difin love with someone to supported, and cared ferent forms. love them Following a for you, so why not prolonged pemake Valentine’s Day riod of isolation, I think many can inclusive to all the people who have agree on the importance of human helped, loved, and comforted you? connection, at whatever level that In a world as complicated and be. For me, friendships became more messy as this, any token of kindness important than ever and their imor gratitude we can give is a helpmense value in my life was noticed.

Unsplash/ Clem Onojeghuo

ing hand. And if you cannot think of someone to extend this to, then extend it to yourself.

Why not shift the focus onto how we treat and value ourselves, rather than our worth being defined by how desirable we are to others?

Why not work to define yourself via your qualities and strengths, rather than what box you tick under ‘relationship status’?

For those who do have a partner on this day, go out and celebrate.

Celebrate each other and yourselves.

But for those that don’t, do not let one day of the year define how you

view your life. Many days come and go without people judging you by your relationship status, so do not let one date define you.

Instead, use it as a time to reflect upon what love and companionship you do have in your life.

You do not have to be in love with someone to love them. You do not have to be legally bound to someone to show them that you care.

Every day offers another opportunity to show the ones we love, and ourselves, that we matter and are appreciated. So why not choose Valentine’s Day to do this?

Why we should re-think student volunteering ‘Make a real local impact’ and ‘Experience the authentic culture’ of the places where students travel to work.

The reality of these schemes, however, has been shown to be far from the altruistic fantasy sold to students in many cases, and, in general, orRadhika Gurnani ganisations both within and outside Spanish and Portugese, Third universities have increasingly enYear couraged students to reflect on the n recent years, the ethics of sogenuine consequences of these procalled ‘voluntourism’ schemes grams before they decide whether to and programs that integrate take part. voluntary work with some form of Online campaigns, such as Notravel experience, have been hotly WhiteSaviours, are carried out contested. through digital platforms and have The majority of these ‘packages’, raised awareness about the exploitawhich can be readily found on webtion propagated by many voluntoursites such as gooverseas.com and ist projects. This includes the danw o r k a w a y. c o m , ger of volunteers offer students on We should acknowledge taking on medical gap years or their and bear in the mind the roles that they are summer holidays benefits we reap from unqualified for, as the opportunity the chance to take part well as the stereoto spend severtypical and reducin these schemes al weeks working tive image of reon projects in the ceiving countries Global South, with many chargoften perpetuated by the industry. ing those who partake hundreds of Specific skill sets, language barripounds. Among these promotions, ers and the necessity for the role to the selling points which are repeatbe carried out by students instead of edly advertised include the chance to those already living there are all fac-

Is student volunteering selfish, or is there more to it?

I

tors that are encouraged to be taken into account before signing up.

That said, in light of the upcoming Student Volunteering Week, the motivations and consequences of voluntary work in the UK, or countries within similarly developed economies, should also be questioned.

According to the Bristol SU website, the key advantages of student volunteering are not only those which benefit the people who the programs intend to help, but also those which benefit the volunteers themselves - namely the improvement of students’ wellbeing, skills and sense of community.

It is worth considering, therefore, the extent to which we can justify these activities if some of our primary motivations are to keep clear consciences and boost our CVs through the belief that we have done a good deed.

After trying to wade through post-Brexit bureaucracy in an attempt to obtain a Spanish internship visa, I was advised instead to look for a year abroad placement at an NGO, seeing as the application process for volunteering visas seemed slightly less complicated.

Thankfully, I was able to find build up our skillsets is not necessarwork at a charity that was not too ily wrong, provided we do not lack far off the internships I’d previousqualifications for the work or exploit ly been considering, meaning I was those involved. able to gain experience in skills such Yet, given that students are motias teaching, translating and video vated to volunteer at least partly by editing, which I wanted to improve self-interest, it does not make sense on. However, while working in an for us to hold these placements in environment where I could assist any higher moral regard than other and interact with people from othforms of unpaid work internships or er backgrounds, was an enriching work experience. experience for me. The supposedly So, if you are looking for a new ‘selfness nature’ we have for taking activity to get involved in, it is defion these voluntary roles still makes nitely worth checking out the varme uncomfortable. ious voluntary positions advertised Indeed, placements at non-profon the SU website. it organisations can offer students If there is a particular cause you amazing opportunities to gain expefeel passionate about, there will rience relevant to careers they hope likely be an organisation you could to pursue, and are far easier to come work for in this area. And if there by than internships in same fields. are particular skills you possess and We should not want to improve, be discouraged this is a great opThe reality of these from participating portunity to do so. schemes is far from the in voluntary work, Nonetheless, we especially as so altruistic fantasy sold to should acknowlstudents many local chariedge and bear in ties in a university mind the benefits city like Bristol rely heavily on stuwe reap from the chance to take part dents to carry out much of their adin these schemes, rather than gloministrative and awareness-raising rifying the impact it may have on work. Taking on voluntary roles to others.

SciTech

Editor Digital Editor Deputy Editor Subeditor

Twitter: @EpigramSciTech

Sarah Dalton Bethany Winget James Emery Isabella Ferguson

The science of attraction Is your Briscrush a declaration of love or just a biological phenomenon? This Valentine's day, SciTech explores the many scientific theories that have attempted to explain attraction.

James Emery & Sarah Dalton

SciTech Deputy Editor & Editor

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ing who you find attractive. The way that animals – humans included – can sense whether a potential partner's MHC is similar or different to their own is through scent, with the natural odour of someone with a differing MHC smelling better than someone with a similar one.

Multiple animal studies have found that when given a choice between a mate which has a similar MHC and one that has a differing one, they prefer the mate which differs. This is because it is evolutionarily advantageous to breed with a mate that has a differing MHC to your own as it will give your offspring more varied MHC genes and thus a stronger and more adaptable immune system. This phenomenon has also been seen in human studies which found people that were partnered with someone with a differing MHC were more satisfied with the relationship, their sex life,

exual attraction between humans is very complex and is influenced by a wide range of factors including our environment, the society we’ve been brought up in and, of course, our biology. Due to this complexity, it is hard to pinpoint exact scientific reasons for why you are attracted to some humans and not others. However, it seems that most of the biological factors that impact how attractive we find someone are related to passing on our genes with the best mate to produce the strongest offspring possible (romantic, I know!).

The biological factor with the most evidence supporting its role in attraction is the and wished to have (more) major histocompatibility children with them. complex (MHC), otherAnother big biologiwise known as the hucal influence is the perman leukocyte antigen.

Epigram/James Emery ceived fertility of a perThe primary function son, with those that are more fertile of the MHC is in immune response. being seen as more attractive. This However, it has recently been shown again buys into the idea of finding that the genetics of your MHC comthe best mate to pass on your genes plex could have a role in determin-

Epigram/Sarah Dalton to the next generation. Studies have shown that men find the scent of women with higher levels of oestrogen and lower levels of progesterone, which is an indicator of female fertility, to be more appealing. Wom-

find more feminine features on men which place emphasis on our 'namore attractive. ture'. One of these which is widely However, the simplification of huaccepted, is the psychological theory man sexual attraction to this basic of self-disclosure., based on the sobiological level doesn’t really capture cial penetration theory. This theory the complexity of attraction, especially places an emphasis on the initial inwhen most of it is about findteractions with a person that extends ing the right person to breed beyond the physical, stating quite with! It also fails to explain simply that the more you feel that same-sex attraction which is a person is opening up to you about quite commonly found in huthemselves, the more likely you are mans, where the factors of to be attracted to them. This gradual fertility and virility as well as process of revealing your inner self finding the best partner to promust be a reciprocal exchange in orduce a healthy child with are der to build trust. basically irrelevant. So, while In a study of dating heterosexual our base biology definitely couples, researchers found a strong plays a role in positive correlation attraction, humans are between attraction Another big biological and self-disclosure intelligent and what influence is the we find attractive is for both partners, percieved fertility of a increasing intimadefinitely much more dependent on envicy, attraction and person ronmental and socicommitment. This is etal factors. only one of the multitude of thoeries There are many 'nurture' explanaused to explain the complex and yet tions to attraction in addition to those everyday phenomenon of attraction.

While our base biology plays a role in attraction, what we find to be attractive is also dependent on environmental and societal factors en with this hormone balance were also rated to have more attractive faces and voices by men. But this also goes the other way, with women finding more masculine features, and therefore high virility, on men to be more attractive, but only when they are ovulating. When not ovulating or on the Pill, women tend to

You asked and we answered...

Ed Deacon, SciTech Columnist

‘How do birds know where to migrate to?'

Migrating birds often return along roughly the same route they followed on an outward journey, so routes can be learned, but some birds can return via a different route to their outward one. It is thought that young birds learn to recognise the sun and stars to help orientate themselves and that certain organs help birds identify which direction is north – this is through a bird's eyes interacting with a specific brain region. In addition to this, researchers think birds may be able to smell flying routes with their beak and that the trigeminal nerve in their head could help birds determine their orientation by sensing the strength of the Earth’s magnetic field. If a route is known, obvious landmarks such as river valleys or coastlines can be tracked, often converging at 'junctions' like mountain passes or narrow sea crossings.

‘Why do humans have an appendix?'

In the past it was thought the appendix was a vestigial organ, meaning it was one that used to serve a purpose, but following the evolution of humans, no longer does. More recently in a 2016 review, scientists assessed that the appendix has an important role relating to the intestines. It contains a ‘biofilm’ which acts as a safehouse for intestinal bacteria so that in the event of a gastrointestinal infection (e.g. norovirus), the gut can replenish its bacteria.

SciTech

Epigram 11.02.2022

13

This February, SciTech are loving our world...

Saved by silvopasture: conquering Colombia's climate crisis A project led by Bristol lecturer looks at the effects of new agricultural practices in rural Colombia, in a bid to help reach their COP26 targets Matthew Jackson Second Year, Biology

S

ilvopastoral farming is a new frontier of agriculture that is being implemented in the Amazonian rainforest. It is defined as a pasture that supports a diverse fauna and flora that are beneficial to both the farmer and the native ecosystem.

By releasing less greenhouse gases than conventional intensive farming, silvopastoral implementation could help Colombia to reach its COP26 targets.

The effects of this new farming technique is currently being explored by BIOSMART, an interna-

a problem created by political and tional project led by Bristol Veterihistorical conflict. nary School lecturer Dr Maria Paula Current BIOSMART findings show Escobar. BIOSMART records the that invertebrate communities in sileffects of silvopastoral methods on vopasture are more like forest habthe economy, environment, and the itats than conventionally farmed people of Colombia. land, helping support biodiversity.

The project aims to understand Silvopastoral farmland also has less the impact of silvopastoral farmplant-eating pests, implying the presing, in the hopes that it will lead ence of greater numbers of predatory to a reduction in poverty, improve species that control the pest popudevelopment in rural areas, reduce lation. This decrease in pests would the environmental impact of current likely improve the yield and reduce agricultural practices and diminish the need for deforestation.

However, Escobar stresses that this can only be undergone with the willing participation of the farmers, and the knowledge of implementers that deEpigram/University of Bristol forestation is

years. Colomthe amount of bia’s emission money spent on budget is the pesticides. amount of emisConventionsions the Colomal farming probian government motes ecosystems has promised to keep consisting primarily of Epigram/James Emery below until 2030. At a single species of a plant, the current rate, deforestknown as monocultures, but in ation alone will reduce the emission silvopastoral land, BIOSMART found budget by 28 per cent. more native plant species than in However, Escobar notes that if traditional pastures.

75 per cent of current farmland in Additionally, Silvopasture emits the region of Caquetá was convert1.8 times less greenhouse gases ed to using silvopastoral practices, than conventional agricultural land. then Colombia’s emission budget for However, silvopastoral plots are 66.5 2030 would save up to 7 per cent of times worse at storing carbon than possible emissions. undisturbed forests, and thus the priThe potential for silvopasture ority is to stop the rate of deforestfarming in Colombia is yet unation. tapped, but Bristol’s innovative reBIOSMART has reported that if search continues to explore whether the current state of deforestation a new approach to farming could be continues Colombia will not be on exactly what the country is looking track to fulfil their COP26 targets by for.

2030, with a predicted 466.6 million This is an abridged article. To read tonnes of CO2 being released into more, visit epigram.org.uk the atmosphere over the next 10

The sound of success: healthy landscapes found in restored reefs A joint project between universities has found evidence that destroyed coral reefs could have their diverse ecosystems revived James Emery

SciTech Deputry Editor

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never before been documented. One of the projects

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esearchers of the latest collaborative project between the University of Bristol and University of Exeter found a vivid and thriving sound scape on restored coral reefs in Indonesia. The project was based around thousands of square meters of restored coral reef which had been grown on reefs which had previously been destroyed by pollution and bleaching.

Upon discovery, it was hoped that these new reefs would be able to rebuild the massive ecosystem that the original reef once supported, but it

was unclear whether that would be possible. However, new evidence from acoustic recordings of the reef taken between 2018 and 2019 give a positive outlook on the reefs future.

The recordings taken from the restored reef were found to be quite diverse, with some sounds that had

collaborators – Professor Steven Simpson of Bristol School of Biological Sciences – stated that, 'Some of the sounds we recorded are really bizarre and new to us scientists. We have a lot still to learn about what they all mean and the animals that are making them. But for now, it’s amazing to be able to hear the ecosystem come back to life.'

When the recordings from the new revived reefs were compared to those of healthy reefs, the soundscapes were not identical but they had a similar sound diversity which implies a recovering ecosystem. The diversity of sounds found in the restored reefs was also much greater than recording of degraded reefs. Lead author of the paper Dr Tim Lamont – of the University of Exeter and the Mars Coral Reef Restoration Project – noted that, 'Restoration projects

can be successful at growing coral, It is believed that this diversity of but that’s only part of the ecosystem. sound found in these revived coral This study provides exciting evireefs is a good indicator that they dence that restoration really works have a better chance at becoming for the other reef creatures too – by self-sustaining due to the sounds atlistening to the tracting more anireefs, we’ve 'It's amazing to be able to mals that can diverdocumented the hear the ecosystem come sify and maintain return of a direef populations. back to life' verse range of This means that in animals.' the future the reefs The restored reefs were built by can hopefully become independent the Mars Coral Restoration Project, of human intervention and survive an organization which is attempting without us. to restore the reef in central IndoneWhen asked about the causes of sia, and consist of hexagonal metal reef degradation and what can be frames called ‘reef stars’ which are done to stop it, Dr Lamont replied: then placed over the restoration 'If we don't address these widzone. When asked about the proer problems, conditions for reefs ject, Mochyudho Prasetya, of the will get more and more hostile and Mars Coral Reef Restoration Project, eventually restoration will become added: 'We have been restoring and impossible. Our study shows that monitoring these reefs here in Inreef restoration can really work, but donesia for many years. Now it is it's only part of a solution that must amazing to see more and more evalso include rapid action on climate idence that our work is helping the change and other threats to reefs reefs come back to life.' worldwide.'

SciTech

Epigram 11.02.2022

14

Latest study suggests coffee intake could reduce cognitive decline Coffee is a firm staple for many students at this time of year, but did you know that it does more for your brain than just an energy boost?

Elizabeth Moulson

Masters, Experimental Psychology

F

rom strong filter coffee to a creamy cappuccino, coffee is a staple in many student morning routines. In the UK, an estimated 95 million daily cups of coffee were consumed in 2017, with an increase of 25 million over the last decade alone. As well as providing a much needed caffeine rush in the morning, recent research led by Dr Samantha Gardener has suggested that a morning coffee may also provide protective effects against cognitive ageing and even reduce the risk of developing Alzheimer’s Disease (AD).

The study recorded cognitive health and regular coffee consump-

er’s Disease. The results revealed tion of 227 adults (aged 60 or over) an association between high coffee across a 10-year span. Participants consumption and lower PACC levcompleted a series of cognitive tasks els, suggesting coffee not only slows measuring their memory, language cognitive decline but may also have skills, attention levels and processpreventative effects against AD. ing speed at 18-month intervals.

Given the prevalence of AD in the This data, combined with the population, these optimistic findCommonwealth Scientific and Inings may hold importance for predustrial Organisation Food Frequenventative measures. Researchers also cy Questionnaire (CSIRO FFQ), linked noted that high coffee ingestion aphigh coffee consumption to slower peared to slow down the aggregation cognitive decline and revealed that of amyloid protein within the brain, the consumption of two cups a day a prime suspect could produce in AD developan 8 per cent Drinking two cups a day led ment. decrease in cogto lower incidence rates of Quite how nitive decline coffee exerts over a 10-year cognitive disorders apparent properiod. tective effects Notably, the in the brain isn’t fully understood, cognitive tasks provided researchalthough its activity at the binding ers with a measure of Preclinical AD site of regulatory protein adenoCognitive Composite (PACC) levels, sine may have a role. Adenosine is which have been recognised to reliaresponsible for controlling several bly measure the cognitive decline in important physiological functions, healthy adults. Higher PACC levels in including memory, cognitive perforan individual across the study would mance, and sleep. suggest the early onset of Alzheim-

Gardener and colleagues theorised that caffeine may mimic adenosine and thereby counteract the typical decline caused by natural aging.

However, this remains a theory.

Although researchers reported several limitations to the research, including potential bias in self-reporting questionnaires and lack of differentiation between different coffee preferences, the research is supported by previous findings.

A 2016 meta-analysis including 9 published cohort studies found that drinking 2 cups a day lead to lower incidence rates of cognitive disorders than one cup.

So, whether you’re a regular Pret-a-Manger goer or caffeinating your way through your studies, rest assured that 2 cups of coffee may be beneficial

in the later years.

This is an abridged article. To read more, visit epigram.org.uk

Epigram/Sarah Dalton

Should COVID-19 studies record women's menstrual changes?

Sarah explores the lack of gender equality in healthcare, and latest Bristol research on COVID-19 and menstrual changes.

Sarah Dalton SciTech Editor

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umerous studies have previously provided evidence to believe that equality in healthcare has not been achieved, and women’s health issues have been traditionally ignored or under-researched. The case of ‘The An-

atomical Basis of Medical Practise’ highlights how the medical view of the male body as the norm has persisted well into the modern era. Just one look at the endless list of possible birth control side effects can highlight the astonishing lack of definitive scientific research surrounding female health products.

Less than 2.5 per cent of publicly funded research is dedicated to reproductive health despite a third of women in the UK suffering from a gynaecological health issue in their life.

Living in a global pandemic, this lack of medical research surrounding female bodies has taken on a whole new challenge. Despite approximately half of those receiving the COV-

studies worldwide that had reported ID-19 vaccine being female, none of on menstrual changes in relation to the vaccine trials to date have colthe pandemic, none of which includlected data on menstrual changes. ed vaccine trials. Anecdotes which Appalled by this lack of informastormed the internet and data from tion, researchers from the universithe MHRA’s Yellow Card scheme ties of Bristol, Edinburgh and Oxford for adverse have joined together to evaluWomen deserve to know drug reactions, sugate the existing more about why these gested that literature on menstrual cymenstrual changes have many people who mencle changes in happened struate have the COVID-19 experienced pandemic. Their disruptions conclusion: all to their cycles due to COVID-19, large scale COVID-19 studies and vaccines or other pandemic-related clinical trials should collect data on factors. menstrual changes.

Although the researchers stressed During their comprehensive rethat these changes are unlikely to view, researchers found only 12

have lasting effects on health or fertility, they emphasised that further research into the effects of COVID-19 on women’s menstrual health is urgently needed.

Dr Gemma Sharp, Senior Lecturer in Molecular Epidemiology at Bristol and lead author of the study, noted that, ‘More recent anecdotal reports of menstrual changes after vaccination for COVID-19 have fuelled vaccine hesitancy or refusal […] Women deserve to know more about why these menstrual changes have happened.’

She added: ‘Without robust menstrual data collection and analysis, menstrual problems will continue to be occult and undermanaged in society.’

The women in STEM who inspired Bristol students Anouska Barrett, Biochemistry Rosalind Franklin inspires me in biochemistry for her work contributing to the discovery of the DNA structure. Despite her work being crucial for the Nobel Prize, only the men she worked with gained recognition and were awarded the prize. Franklin’s resilience and perseverance has inspired me as she is just one example of many women being unrecognised for their contributions in STEM. Unsplash/Monika Kozub

Arts

Editor Digital Editor Co-Deputy Editor Co-Deputy Editor

Twitter: @EpigramCulture

Katie Chalk Greg Evans Oscar Hunter Kate Bowie

In Conversation with theatre-maker Linus Karp Epigram catches up with theatremaker Linus Karp as he prepares to take his insanely genius How to Live a Jellicle Life; life lessons from the 2019 hit movie musical Cats back on the road. We chat about making theatre in a pandemic and the queer joy of Cats Mia Smith Music Editor

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ward. Like all good theatre, the show is constantly evolving: ‘One of the good and bad things about writing it yourself is I keep updating it all the time’, Karp explains. ‘Whenever I rewatch Cats, or if there’s a pop culture moment I think can link to the show, I’ll add it’. There’s even a video cameo from his mum this time.

This will be the second time Karp is touring the show: ‘I just had so much fun doing it this summer – when it was coming towards the end of the tour, I just didn’t want it to end.’ The show has only gotten bigger and better: this time his jellicle message will stretch all the way from Glasgow to Penzance. ‘There were a lot of ven-

ues before that weren’t ready for the summer with COVID, but this time they are’, he explains. ‘Lots of people in Manchester were demanding the show too, and I thought, well, if I’m going to Manchester, I might as well go to a few more places, and then it just snowballed from there and ended up being 22 cities!’

Karp’s quest begins in Bristol at the Alma Tavern & Theatre, from the 11th-13th January. ‘I always have such a good time in Bristol!’, he beams, ‘It’s just such a nice city and Alma is a great venue – the audiences are always some of the most fun.’

After a particularly tricky couple of years for theatre, Karp remains im-

All images courtesy of David Bird

s I sit down with Linus over Zoom, I’m wearing his merch and there’s a poster from his last show that I stole from the Alma Tavern loos behind me.

‘Oh, how fun!’ he laughs, ‘It really means a lot – the show is so weird and niche, I really wondered whether people would actually want to see it and enjoy it.’

He’s right, the show is completely absurd – essentially him delivering a PowerPoint in a cat costume.

But How to Live a Jellicle Life is incredibly funny, and even more smart. Karp teaches us how we can all be ‘jellicle’, considering the wisdom offered by each of the felines from the 2019 flop film. There’s gifs, camp show tunes, and a really good bit about twin cats Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer basically being Jed-

possibly optimistic: ‘It’s hard to see, especially now, the light at the end of the tunnel – but we will get there.

It’s worth remembering that positive things came out of the pandemic as well’, he continues. ‘The theatre community is so supportive, and things like streaming have helped make theatre more accessible.’ Although Karp is able to travel to practically every city in the UK this time, he’s still streaming the show online to aid accessibility.

I’m desperate to get to the bottom of why Karp is so obsessed with a film that scored 19% on Rotten Tomatoes. ‘I finished touring my previous show and I didn’t know what to do next’, he explains. ‘I’d never seen the stage show of Cats, or was even bothered about the film coming out, but I went with my partner to see it and I just–’. He stumbles trying to put his love into words: ‘– it just blew my mind. I couldn’t stop talking about it, thinking about it, listening to the soundtrack. I went back to the cinema to see it a few days later.'

‘It just took over my life’, he says, half-joking, half-not. ‘Then I started thinking I could turn it into a show, but clearly, everyone hates this film!

Then a director friend who runs a scratch night in London got in touch because he’d seen how obsessed I’d become, and he asked if I wanted to perform something Cats related – and then I thought, people are interested!’

The show is a joyous, queer celebration. The stage production of Cats is pretty queer anyway: ‘Mr Mistofolees runs around with rainbows and his sparkly jacket and is basically very gay. The Rum Tum Tugger also sings ‘Magical Mr Mistofolees’, so it hints at them having a relationship. There’s lots of fanfic in that area’, he laughs. Karp extends this queerness, and ensures the show revels in such: ‘It was important to me to create something queer but joyful. So often queer stories are really depressing – it’s conversion therapy, or AIDS, or coming out, or homophobia. And obviously these stories need to be told, but it’s important to show that queer can be joyful too.’

I save the most important question for last – snog, marry, avoid: Old Deuteronomy (Judi Dench), Bustopher Jones (James Corden) and Gus the Theatrical Cat (Ian McKellen).

Karp laughs, ‘I’ll avoid Bustopher Jones of course. The thing is, I want to choose Old Deuteronomy for snog and marry because of the way she kicks her leg up in the air – she still has it. I don’t think a snog with Gus would be that enjoyable if I’m honest’. I let him choose Old Deuteronomy for both, and he says that's just jellicle.

'If you see the show, you'll leave calling everything jellicle too. Maybe 'Jellicle Songs For Jellicle Cats' will be your top song of 2022, as was the case for Karp last year.

Arts 16

Epigram 11.02.2022

Art Spotlight: student digital artist A. M. Amith A Masters student in optoelectronics and Quantum technology at Bristol, A. M. Amith is also an accomplished digital artist. Epigram Writer Takashi Kitano explores the meaning of his work Takashi Kitano

MSc, Social and Cultural Theory

All artwork courtesy of A.M.Smiith

‘I have created most of my art to escape from reality', admits my good friend as we sit down to discuss his plethora of digital art pieces.

Amith's substantial expertise in technology permits him to manipulate a wide range of digitized art from sketching and painting on his iPad and more elaborate 3D art to other digitally-generated imaginary so-called virtual effects (VFX) with use of cutting-edge PC softwares.

His affinity to art traces back to his childhood. He was born and raised in Andaman and the Nicobar Islands, an Indian archipelago at the junction of the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea. He recalls: ‘When I was an elementary pupil, my friends and I often used to sketch and paint at home then-popular anime characters, such as Pokemon, Cars and Transformers.’

'During classes at school, we also

used to depict images of the story in the textbooks secretly from teachers,' he added, nostalgically.

His involvement in art dramatically changed as he matured. ‘Having developed a strong curiosity in biology, I shifted to sketching the human body, animals and plants but gradually stopped creating art as I got absorbed into technological affairs instead of the original imagina-

tive hobby’. At 16 he left the island to study engineering in the southern part of the Indian subcontinent.

His comeback to art occurred at a fairly unfavourable moment. 4 years after his entrance, he decided to drop out of university and then launch several startup projects that progressively aimed at using technology to improve social issues, including medical care and women’s safety. Indeed, he and his teams won a series of successful achievements at both national and global levels. Nevertheless, his mind was exposed to recurrent grave depression while undergoing these new challenges. The gaps between success and failure, team-management and selfishness, romance and heartbreak, disrupted his mental state. ‘I used to be an optimistic person before that … but no longer afterwards’, he said.

‘So after that, when I got down I tried to find something that made myself feel happy'.

He resumed creating art in a style of ‘concept touch that conveys [his] mental climate via some inspired object.’ This approach fits him as his art essentially aims for self-meditation. The ‘old guy’ with messy hair and scruffy beard represented how he conceived himself in a ‘tired and worn-out feeling’, which somehow

helped objectify and relieve himself.

He drew the ‘cute rabbit’ who grabs and bites a USB cable when he felt alone after having been absorbed in studying in his room, which brought a bit of fun and warmth to him. ‘I created these works to escape from reality,' he said.

Often being inspired by his misery and sadness, most of his Instagram collections appear monotone and dark, perhaps not urging viewers to scroll down to watch other works.

However, the meaning of art for him is more than the negation of reality.

He said: 'The meaning of art for me can be best explained by the lyrics of Time in a Bottle by Jim Croce,' which opens with:

If I could save time in a bottle The first thing that I'd like to do Is to save everyday 'til eternity passes away Just to spend it with you 'I have been a big fan of retro music and met the song 7 years ago’ (when he was early university age). Therefore, he has been creating art to save his 'time in a bottle' since he experienced a lot of stigma at approximately age 20. His art neither intended to show off his artistic talent nor humble his misfortunes. ‘I create art to "save everyday like a treasure”… that’s all’, he said, quoting a phrase that comes across in the last part of the song. As the daily project of saving his life, indeed, there are thousands of works that he does not share in public.

Yet, it does not indicate the absolute irrelevance of his art to society. The openness of his art is significantly attributed to the lack of a title. ‘I usually post my work without any names because it allows viewers to make their own interpretations. That means they can make it their own.’ As an audience of his art, I — having also experienced mental disorders in a new environment — have been attracted to his works despite, or perhaps because of, the absence of titles.

He might humbly deny the influence of his art, but spending time admiring his work has the potential to provide great comfort.

Arts 17

Epigram 11.02.2022

Editor's Picks: Stage Shows Photo courtesy of Rhys Coombs

Greg Evans

Sophie Sherman Arts Subeditor

Oscar Hunter

Co-Deputy Arts Editor

Gypsy

Photo courtesy of Katie Chalk

Gypsy is by far the greatest thing I’ve seen on stage! Imelda Staunton gave such a breath-taking performance, it was impossible to forget!

The story and musical numbers were fantastic, as were the costumes.

Milan Perera Arts Writer

LOVE WITHOUT END by Melvyn Bragg Before fictional Romeo and Juliet, there were the very real Abelard and Heloise. This tale of an all-consuming, passionate, and dangerous love affair was no ordinary love story. This is joined with a parallel story 900 years later where Arthur, an English academic is in Paris to put together the jigsaw pieces of the fabled love match of Abelard and Heloise in a novel. His daughter Julia visits to help him out with the Herculean task. She has an ulterior motive as well: to piece together the fractured relationship between her

This musical's stripped-back set, costumes and folk-stlye music was unintimidating and cosy. This did not, however mean the show was not fast-paced, in fact, the one act was PACKED with multiple character storylines and a rollercoaster of emotion with both high and low moments. It was, above anything, uplifting and a testament to community spirit in hard times.

Photo courtesy of Katie Chalk

STARTER FOR TEN by David Nicholls

This 1980s campus romance is the debut novel of Bristol alumni David Nicholls. Brian Jackson, a white working-class teenager from Essex comes across the beguilingly beautiful and privilaged Alice Harbinson when he attends university and becomes infatuated. He even joins the University Challenge trials to be near her, hence the title of the book. In truth he has more in common with the fellow student Rebecca Epstein, a non-religious, non-Zionist, Jewish Socialist. The novel documents Brian’s navigation through the pitfalls of university love life which is replete with humorous and cringe-worthy moments. Ring any bells?

Come From Away

Sondheim’s 1970 comedy-musical Company is musical theatre at its smartest. The wickedly difficult musical score is a challenge for performers, but a total feast for audiences. Marriage, divorce, sex, champagne and the loneliness of single life; what more could you want from theatre?

Romantic Reads After two years without a proper Valentine’s Day celebration, make up for the lost time and fall in love all over again with some inspiration from a book or two

Arts Editor

Company

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime This play has stuck with me since the day I saw it almost three years ago. Based on the 2003 novel by Mark Haddon, one is taken along the journey of Christopher Boone’s investigation into a murder, seeing the peculiarity, as well as the simplicity, of the world through his eyes. I will never forgot the end of the performance; the actor playing Christopher came back after the applause and solved a real mathematical problem live on stage, as if he really was the mathematical genius young boy from the novel.

Katie Chalk

Digital Editor

LOVE IN THE TIME OF CHOLERA by Gabriel García Márquez Can true love withstand old age transcend all impediments? Isn’t it life not death that has no limits? These are the themes explored in this masterpiece by Gabriel García Márquez. The novel begins with the idiom of 'boy meets girl.'

Florentino Ariza is in love with Firmina Daza. They are from different social classes: Florentino is the son of a

Kate Bowie

Co-Deputy Arts Editor

Medea While I may have just missed the original showing of Euripides’s infamous ancient Greek tragedy Medea by a few thousand years, the 2019 production at the Barbican was more than enough for me. Directed by Simon Stone, the modern retelling of the tale of a filicidal mother brought the murders to a realm I could access. Stone’s adaptation of Medea into a modern mother, based on the real case of an American woman imprisoned for the murder of two of her children, encouraged a more nuanced discussion of a seemingly unforgivable crime. Punctuated by unexpected comic relief, the production left me breathless, blistered and brutalized by the central character’s torrid rage.

working-class woman while Firmina is from a nouveau riche industrialist family headed by a domineering patriarch.

When the latter discovers the love birds, he threatens Florentino into leaving his daughter alone.

When Firmina marries a highly respected physician, Florentino Ariza watches her every move from a distance for 53 years! Sounds like stalking, right? But in his defence, he ‘remained a virgin’ for his ‘first and only love’, though he hardly remained celibate. Can they finally get together?

GIMPEL THE FOOL by Isaac Bashevis Singer 'The measure of love is to love without measure.' So goes the much-quoted adage on the measure of love. This gem of a short story by the doyen of Yiddish literature, Isaac Bashevis Singer, gracefully captures this sentiment.

Translated into English by the fellow American novelist, Saul Bellow, this short story brought Singer into a wider readership. The protagonist Gimpel is derided by the residents of his shtisel (Eastern European Jewish community) as a simpleton, including by his own wife. Her dying words with a sly smile was a dagger to his heart. Will he avenge those who lampooned him?

Or will he be magnanimous and rise above the parapet?

BOOK CORNER

Music

Editor Mia Smith Co -Deputy Editor Emma Pope Co -Deputy Editor Theo Kent Digital Editor Josh Templeman Subeditor Chezelle Bingham

Twitter: @EpigramCulture

The Greatest Queer Love Songs To celebrate LGBTQ+ history month, Jake Paterson rounds up some of the best queer love songs Jake Paterson

First Year, English

‘Immaterial' - SOPHIE

To think of love in a world created purely to be your own, in being able to find yourself along a forever shifting plane between the two biological binaries, I think of SOPHIE. ‘Immaterial’, from the revolutionary OIL OF EVERY PEARL’S UN-INSIDES (2018), breathes colour to this grey area.

Through SOPHIE’s expression of art and her mind, gender and love become whatever you choose them to be. Love becomes an emotion unique to everyone that it passes through, and ultimately denies any sense of a universal definition. Sonically, ‘Immaterial’ is overt and present.

It is at once unpredictable and rhythmic, arresting and alarming, and moreover impossible to turn off. Its hyper-pop sentiments recall

the influence of A. G. Cook’s PC Music, but in her own unmistakeable style. Having passed away last year, SOPHIE’s message that you can be ‘Any form, any shape, anywhere’ resonates harder now through every listen: to commit your love to being yourself and to the people who give you the most life possible.

and will always refuse to be held down by the boundaries set around it.

‘On The Floor Perfume Genius

Touching on the obsession and unrequited love that comes with first falling in love, ‘On The Floor’ is an 80s synth pop exploration of the very living and breathing entity of love and its potential to alter both yourself and the partners you hope to find it in. Speaking to Pitchfork, Perfume Genius highlighted that crushes are, ‘Just this buzzing thing’ that keeps you alive to the possibility of solitary desire, but also the possibility for it to still be lit on fire and generate sparks: ‘It’s still love, it’s still care’. It calls him back to being young and closeted: it ‘Feels like love, this feels like what I want and what feels natural, but then there’s this mix of shame and fear'.

There are boundaries to expression, and doubt over the definition of love set by others and not yourself.

Yet the song’s progression shows that self-definition is still possible, to finally break through to genuine connection: ‘The dreaming /

‘Make Me Feel' Janelle Monae

Bisexual anthem ‘Make Me Feel’ is raw, unapologetic, and celebratory.

Sensuality is an ever-present force through its textures – reminiscent of Prince, who contributed to the track before his passing. Monae’s message is clear: ‘Baby, don’t make me spell it out for you’. The energy it exudes is impossible to resist, just as in the music video where she catches the eye of every person in the room. Her love is fluid and adaptable to any temptation that arises – the song offers a place where there is simply no limitation to desire, expression, exploration, and experimentation.

‘Make Me Feel’ is both empowering and intimate, life-affirming in that the scope of love is never-ending,

Bringing his face to mine’ becomes ‘The rise and fall / of his chest on me’.

‘Stay High' - Brittany Howard Staying away from the overtness of Monae and SOPHIE, Brittany Howard places love on an organic scale – it’s not superficial or everchanging, but rather a solid object.

Love involves building family ties and exploring your sensuality. Being the frontwoman of Alabama Shakes, Howard’s ‘Stay High’ is an indie track effortlessly infused with soul and blues – the refrain is impossible to forget, and its layered simplicity is both delicate and irresistible. Just as it finishes you can’t wait to get back to the first line: ‘I already feel like doing it again, honey’. She makes it clear that life and love are all about sacrifice and reward: ‘We work hard and grind and hustle all day […] At night, where we get to play’. The track is grounded in reality and encourages us to take true pleasure in love. Love gives us momentum to continue through life without

faltering, pushing onward to: ‘Stay high’.

‘Comme Si' - Christine and the Queens

Christine and the Queens told Pitchfork that ‘Comme si’ is ‘A carnal call for sensuality and a call to dissolve as a way to exist and mend. It’s also a love song to the pop song format that changed my life, because with music I got to be who I wanted to be’. It is then about exploring yourself completely through others and through music, whether performing and losing yourself in voice or choreography, or just disappearing into the art and work of those who set the precedent before you. Love is cast as an affinity to all the things that give you life, becoming the person of your own desires as well as losing yourself in the arms of another.

It’s unmistakeably her style, and the interweaving of both English and French lyrics again cross this boundary of sensuality, in finding love wherever it chooses to manifest itself for you.

Breakup songs to get you through V-day Ruby Rogers

Third Year, English

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hether you’re in the midst of breakup, dealing with a friendship coming to an end, or simply relishing in the independence of single life – these 5 tracks will liven up this year’s Valentine’s Day.

as a heart-breaking apology to a childhood friend who Bea had to walk away from when their teenage drug experimentation turned into a difficult dependency: 'I never want to think twice with what could have been your life and I’m sorry, I’m sorry.' A sincere, heartfelt apology, ‘Sorry’ is a beautifully raw track that will certainly leave listeners retrospective about past relationships.

Beabadoobee / Underground London

For the more cynical among you

‘Sorry' - beabadoobee The lead single from her 2020 album, ‘Sorry’ is a grungy 90s inspired ballad featuring a range of powerful string arrangements – mellow acoustic guitars at the start, a sonic electric explosion at its midpoint. Beabadoobea explores the heartbreak that ending a friendship can cause – candid about regrets and contemplative about how those mistakes eventually impact both parties: 'I’ve been feeling fine, but it hurts me that you could be the one that deserves this even more.'

Beabadoobea describes ‘Sorry’

‘Somethinggreater'- Parcels ‘Somethinggreater’ is a take on a ‘right person, wrong time’ situation.

As the title suggests, it is an upbeat, optimistic track oozing in groovy basslines. Parcels’ recently released

project Day/Night (2021) is split into two separate albums, with ‘Somethinggreater’ featuring on Day – a series of tracks that, according to the band, encapsulate 'Light, the outside, and all that is coming.' It’s incredibly refreshing to see an artist remodel the conventional doom of a breakup; instead providing an upbeat track that can inspire listeners to look on the brighter side of their situation. If spring cleaning was a track, I’m certain it would be this.

‘Dirty Work' - Steely Dan Released in 1972, ‘Dirty Work’

by Steely Dan is a cynical love song smothered in sweetness. At first it sounds like an AM pop, easy-listening, radio-friendly song, however the lyrics reveal the sentimentality of a lover who is willing to demoralize his self-respect for the woman of his affections.

Exploring the feeling of being used, whilst having a self-awareness of exactly that, the singer struggles to resist the urge to return to his lover, and realises he’s trapped in a vicious cycle of his unrequired love being

exploited, 'I’m a fool to do your dirty work.'

‘Still not over you' - Klyne (Mall Grab Remix) The year 2017 is recognised as a year which pioneered sad-sounding electronic music, specifically deep house. ‘Still Not Over You’ was released that same year, and Mall Grab encapsulates that exact movement, emotional on his bittersweet house remix of the Dutch synth-pop duo Klyne. The type of track perfect for late night drives, Mall Grab manages to beautifully capture the contrast of sad nostalgia and anger, while filtering the melancholy in dreamy electro

synths. Throughout the track, the lyrics explore a sense of innocence and naivety – being blinded by a rose-tinted light when falling in love then having that blissful ignorance shatter soon after: 'See, I was in a bubble over the clouds, then it popped with a bang so loud.'

‘How' - NewDad In their sepia-toned, dreamy track ‘How’, Galway-based quartet NewDad explore the heartache of missing someone despite knowing they aren’t good for you. The track’s ambient melodies and soft composition serve as the perfect remedy to soothe the ache of a breakup. Lead singer Julie Dawson’s vocals rise and fall around the musing guitars and delicate piano, and her hazy melodies are accompanied by crisp and crunchy riffs – creating a sound which can only be described as enchanting.

Lyrically, the track remains within the same day-dreamy realm as its instrumentals, as themes of dreams, sleep, heartache, and nostalgia run beautifully throughout.

Music

Epigram 11.02.2022

19

Billie Eilish, Harry Styles and Queerbaiting

Leather and Lace Stevie Nicks and Don Healy

Passin' Me By The Pharcyde

Chezelle Bingham Subeditor

A true classic from The Pharcyde’s debut project, 'Passin’ Me By' sees the group’s members tell stories of ‘lost love’, detailing the unfortunate tales of how they allowed their love interests pass them by. Over the top of J-Swift’s iconic production, the track is iconic, with infectious sax-infused melodies and soulful rhythms. The track is not only one of the most iconic love songs of all time but also one of the most iconic hip-hop songs of all time.

A duet with Stevie Nicks’ short term lover Don Henley, ‘Leather and Lace’ is a romantic ballad that describes the duality of love – from its fragility to its tenacity. The eighth track on Nicks’ iconic debut solo album Bella Donna (1981), ‘Leather and Lace’s’ delicate melody partnered with its tender lyrics and undoubtedly makes it one of the most enchanting love songs of the 1980s.

Stevie Nicks / Reprise Records

Josh Templeman Digital Editor

Pharcyde / Bicycle Music

The Beatles / Apple Corps

'Anything' is perfect, the guitar what love

Adrianne Lenker / 4AD

No words can do justice. Lenker's voice the lyrics are perfect, is perfect. This song is sounds like.

Featuring on the opening credits of the film Juno (2007), this song was always destined to be good. It is by a mile the sweetest love song I’ve ever come across and it was made sweeter still by the teenage love story between Michael Cera and Elliot Page. The folky track features more cute metaphors than you could count and is simply perfect for a dose of lovey-dovey mushiness.

Juno / Rhino Entertainment

Mia Smith Music Editor

Emma Pope Co-Deputy Music Editor

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Anything Adrianne Lenker

All I Want Is You Barry Louis Polisar

ilish / Insta

For this month's loved-up special, we've chosen our favourite love songs

Theo Kent Co-Deputy Music Editor 'Something' – A Beatles track written by George Harrison at his best – Does exactly what a love song should; it shows devotion and tenderness, but it doesn’t fall into the depths of overly-cheesy, grovelling soppiness.

Instead, the music speaks for itself, with Harrison’s finest guitar-playing, which delicately swoons its subject.

This track is often cited as the best of Abbey Road (1969), at something of a turbulent time for the group.

This is one of the greats.

Harr yS t y l es /T y

Editors' Picks

Something The Beatles

‘ordinary’ life they may be. But how different are the characters written for TV and the branding designed for an artist through media teams and record labels? While it’s true that a thin line divides the artist and the character they play as part of their branding, the branding is a type of character also able to queerbait.

Ultimately, we crave stars like Harry Styles and Billie Eilish, who could validate and elevate queer existence, if only they had skin in the game. But perhaps we need to refocus our investigation into queerbaiting celebs towards the structural factors that work against greater queer representation. After all, if we focus our praise on actual queer artists and foster greater representation for the community, less power lies in the hands of queerbaiting artists who capitalise on our desire for representation on the red carpet.

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rom Billie Eilish to Harry Styles, artists have often utilised a branding tactic known as ‘queerbaiting’. Queerbaiting is essentially when an artist teases a possible same-sex relationship to gain greater publicity, promotion or capitalistic gain from queer audiences. The most common instances of queerbaiting involve artists who hint at being queer in songs, interviews or music videos without explicitly committing to a queer identity. Of course, an artist deciding to exist without labels is their prerogative, but artists who queerbait often foster ambiguity around their sexuality deliberately. And they often aren’t queer. It’s easy to see why fans, myself included, are frustrated.

Queerbaiting means corporations capitalise on queer fans without having to represent LGBTQIA+ relationships and issues, actually contributing further to lack of representation. For young queer people, this can be harmful to their self-confidence in their identity.

I remember the crushing blow of discovering that Panic at the Disco’s ‘Girls/Girls/Boys’ was far from the bisexual anthem marketed to preteen me, and was in fact about the lead singer’s threesome with two

even going so far as demanding he come out. Personally, I believe this seems absurd. Here fans are essentially saying queer expression is only valid if the artist explicitly identifies as queer. This narrative is potentially detrimental to celebrities who might be toying with the idea of experimenting with gender presentation and style. If artists exist under the threat of queerbaiting accusations, we, as fans, might miss out on some funky new styles from mainstream artists. Aside from that, as fans we should allow artists freedom to experiment with gender expression and question their sexualities without getting cancelled - just as we would our friends. In queer communities off the red carpet, we would never demand someone reveal their sexuality and we should hold artists to the same standard of acceptance. That being said, holding an artist accountable for the potentially harmful message they emit is important despite the fact that accusations can potentially deter experimentation in queer expression.

The backlash against Styles begsDrug Store Romeos a more abstract question: can real people actually be accused of queerbaiting?

It seems odd that a critique designed for characters on film and TV can be levelled at real people, no matter how detached from

& ell tc h

Second Year, English and Philosophy

accusations of sapphic queerbaiting.

Ora sings the lyrics, ‘I’m open minded’ before a chorus about drinking red wine and kissing girls. The song is clearly designed to lend a spark to fantasies of the male gaze rather than represent queer communities.

Out singer Hayley Kiyoko, who’s lyrics often tackle LGBTQIA+ issues, tweeted in response: ‘I don’t need to drink wine to kiss girls; I’ve loved women my entire life. This type of message is dangerous because it completely belittles and invalidates the very pure feelings of an entire community.’ While it can be said that Perry’s pop hit was a product of a less educated era, artists like Eilish and Ora prove queerbaiting still remains a problem.

But the question remains: should we, as fans, join the ranks of those fighting against queerbaiting and hurl accusations at our favourite artists? The answer is murky.

Queerbaiting accusations have the potential to force artists to define, and thus, confine their gender and sexuality. Harry Styles has recently faced accusations of appropriating queer aesthetics, eliciting a discussion over whether such accusations are doing more harm than good. After his split from 1D, Styles adorned himself with more flamboyant style, pushing the boundaries of gender non-conformity by wearing a dress for the cover of vogue. The pop star was bombarded with accusations of appropriating queer culture to appear trendy and distance himself from his 1D days. Fans felt entitled to a clarification of his sexuality,

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Bonnie Dowler

women. It was disheartening and left me mildly offended. Discovering that the queer tendencies of your favourite artist have been fabricated to inspire greater publicity is a tough pill to swallow.

In June 2021, a freshly blonde Billie Eilish released a music video for her single ‘Lost Cause’, which evoked an eruption of queerbaiting accusations. The video depicts Eilish lounging in a bed with multiple women. This, along with an Instagram caption ‘I love girls’ for the post promoting the video, led to the accusation that Eilish deliberately provoked speculation around her sexuality to appropriate the perceived edginess of queer identity (where historically, being queer has not been as trendy) to engage queer audiences and expand her fanbase.

Eilish’s blatant branding tactic reopened the discourse on queerbaiting in the music industry, particularly through (usually) straight women teasing potential bisexuality to garner publicity and appeal to the male gaze. There is no denying Katy Perry’s ‘I Kissed a Girl’ earns her the crown for queerbaiting queen.

Perry’s pop-rock, bi-curious anthem that’s been stuck in our heads since 2008 is a lot more problematic than we remember. The song perpetuates a harmful stereotype that sapphic desire is about experimentation, belittling the strength of emotion lesbian relationships are capable of. A decade later, Rita Ora’s 2018 song ‘Girls’, featuring Cardi B, Charli XCX and Bebe Rexha, faced similar

ler

Should we be holding artists accountable?

Bonnie Dowler investigates

Film&TV

Editor Ben Carpenter Co-Deputy Editor Isha Vibhakar Co-Deputy Editor Evelyn Heis

Twitter: @Epigramculture

Did anyone even notice The Golden Globes this year?

Scandal & controversry overshadowed the 79th edition of the annual awards Sean Guumbrell

Second Year, Theatre & Film

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ow did what was once one of the most prolific movie awards ceremonies, second only to the Oscars, turn into something that could have been put in an email?

In 2020, the last pre-covid Golden Globes ceremony drew in just over 18 million American viewers. Last week there was no TV broadcast, no awkward jokes, and no glitzy red carpet. Instead, winners were announced on social media.

The Hollywood Foreign Press Association (the non-profit organisation in charge of the Golden Globes) has long been ridiculed for its mixed bag of members. Their members consist of LA-based entertainment journalists who write for overseas publications, yet many members stretch the definition of ‘journalist’.

Included among them have been a Russian bodybuilder, a Polish socialite and a car salesman. But last year, controversy struck when just days before the 2021 ceremony, a report revealed the HFPA didn’t have a single black member. The lack of diversity, along with allegations of bribery, was condemned by Hollywood and the media.

In the year that followed, the backlash persisted. Shortly after

Belfast (2021)

Jacob Collett

Third Year, Psychology

K

enneth Branagh’s ode to his hometown is a celebration of family, love, and joy in the face of trouble (or more specifically The Troubles), which offers a personal window into a young boy’s childhood in Belfast during the turmoil of the Northern Ireland conflict in the 1960s.

Buddy is a 9-year-old from a Protestant family in Belfast caught in the crossfire of the neighbourhood violence between the local Protestants and Catholics. Burdened with the confusion of a religious battle he does not understand, Buddy’s home life is thrown into peril as his Pa is

the controversy last year, the HFPA responded with plans to widen its membership and increase diversity.

However, the plans were deemed insufficient; Hollywood activist group Times Up described them as: ‘Window-dressing platitudes.’ Stars including the likes of Scarlett Johannsen urged others to boycott the Golden Globes, and Tom Cruise returned his three trophies. Finally, NBC, who have covered the ceremonies in past years, announced that because of slow progress on its plans, it would not be broadcasting the 2022 ceremony. This would be a more significant sacrifice if not for the huge drop in awards show ratings last year.

Determined for the show to go on in some form, the HFPA sought celebrities to present awards, but they failed to secure even one.

To the surprise of industry analysts who predicted it would be cancelled this year, the ceremony went ahead in the usual venue b u t with no audience and no TV cameras. Instead of the usual extravagance, the event saw a socially distanced handful of ‘Select members and grantees’ in attendance, with a focus on the association’s char-

put under pressure by the local Protestant gang leader to support the cause and his parents consider relocating.

Self-described as his 'Most personal film,' Branagh connects to our own childhood memories by showing how the minor problems always seem the most important. Amidst the chaos of exploding cars and Molotov cocktails as he plays outside with his friends, Buddy’s biggest concern is how he can get the attention of his crush Catherine.

Endearing scenes where Buddy relays his worries to his Pop and Granny come across as heartfelt because we know they are rooted in Branagh’s own memories.

Belfast is shot in a stunningly crisp black and white tone, a deliberate stylistic choice open to inter-

ity work and diversity progress.

Many film fans eagerly awaiting the results found out on Twitter.

Perhaps this was a blessing in disguise. A limited presence, and therefore criticism, could benefit the HFPA while they quietly address their faults and revive their reputation by this time next year. Some viewers might also welcome a lighter awards ceremony, especially during the pandemic, when the deification of celebrities becomes a little harder to digest.

As for the awards themselves, the Globes did seem to get it right, if not a little predictable.

pretation. I was reminded of one of my earliest childhood naiveties in thinking that the world was actually black and white before the advent of colour photography. But perhaps the more relevant metaphor is the apparent straightforwardness of childhood in hindsight, which contrasts with the actual stress and confusion of the time.

Branagh may be remembering his past in this black and white sheen, but upon closer inspection childhood is full of shades of grey.

Jamie Dornan shines in his role as Pa, playing the distant but earnest loving father with a tangible sense of pride for his homeland, while Caitriona Balfe is said to have channelled her own experience of being uprooted as a child to play Buddy’s Ma. Jude Hill’s breakout performance

The night’s big winner was the renowned western, Power of the Dog which has been an awards favourite for some time now. It won the Best Motion Picture (Drama) Award as well as a Supporting Actor award for Kodi Smit-McPhee.

Director Jane Campion became the third woman in the awards’ history to win Best Director.

In other categories, the critically acclaimed, yet underperforming West Side Story took three awards including Best Motion Picture (Musical or Comedy), and Succession won big in the television categories.

Winners for acting were Will Smith (King Richard) and Nicole Kidman (Being the Ricardos) in the Drama category, as well as Rachel Zegler (West Side Story) and Andrew Garfield (Tick, Tick…Boom!) in the Musical or Comedy category.

W i t h three o u t of the

four leading actor awards going to portrayals of real people and the semi-autobiographical Belfast winning best screenplay, Hollywood’s love for biopics goes strong. It also continues the trend of favouring more overt acting.

For an example of this, compare the reception of Joaquin Phoenix’s much-acclaimed performance in Joker (which went on to win him Best Actor at the Oscars) to his more subtle and heartfelt role in C’mon C’mon. The latter has been completely ignored by the likes of the Globes.

Usually, the Golden Globes’ purpose is to kick off the awards season and influence Oscar voting patterns, but with such a muted ceremony and lingering controversy, how influential will these awards be this year?

Usually, when a film receives a win or nomination, its Oscar campaign doubles down, along with splashing ‘Golden Globe Nominee’ in big letters all over its posters and trailers to help boost box office performance.

However, looking at the poster for Belfast, there is no mention of either its Globes win or nomination.

Instead, it proudly promotes its People’s Choice Award from the Toronto International Film Festival. If a Golden Globes win doesn’t seem to attract filmgoers, will Oscar voters still look to them for inspiration?

Only time will tell if The Golden Globes have kept their influence over both the Oscars and ticket sales. After all, Hollywood loves a redemption arc.

as Buddy is also full of promise and a sensitivity beyond his years and joyful scenes of family bonding are accompanied by a warm, jazzy Van Morrison score that hovers near the cheesy side but never fully launches itself into musical theatre.

But for all the feelgood moments this is still a highly personal film it’s almost as if we are sitting in on a therapy session where Branagh is evoking his inner child.

He hints at his future career several times with the not-so-subtle nods to Cinema Paradiso (1988) when the family go to watch Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968) and the comfort associated with going to the movies.

But in spite of the whirlwind of strife surrounding his early life in Belfast, the picture he paints is one of a stable, principled family full of

love and affection.

A rainbow of emotions captured in monochrome, Belfast is less about The Troubles and more about a man’s nostalgia for his childhood and love for his family.

Belfast is out now in cinemas

Film&TV 22

Epigram 11.02.2022

Our top 10 most anticipated films of 2022

How They Run (Dir. Tom George)

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Timothee Chalamet , Luca Guadagnino and Michael Stuhlbarg are back working together nearly 5 years after

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Bones & All (Dir. Luca Guadagnino)

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Decision to Leave (Dir. Park Chan-wook) Acclaimed director of The Vengeance Trilogy (2002-05) and more recently The Handmaiden (2016), Park Chan-wook’s new film is another thriller. Set in the rural mountains of South-Korea, the film follows a detective who falls in love with the widow of a man who’s murder he is investigating. Known for his big twists, we can only wonder if Park Chan-wook’s latest film will follow suit.

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N a m e (2017) wowed audiences. The new film, based on a novel by Camille DeAngelis, is certainly a very different one with Chalamet and Taylor Russell playing teenage cannibals who embark on a roadtrip across Ronald Reagan’s rural America.

Could this potentially be the UK’s answer to 2019’s Knives Out? With Saoirse Ronan and Sam Rockwell taking the helm of this mystery escapade, this film boasts a pretty impressive ensemble cast. Set in the glamorous theatres of the 1950s West End, Constable Stalker (Ronan) and Inspector Stoppard (Rockwell) attempt to solve a classic whodunit when members of a theatre production are mysteriously murdered.

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Stephen G r a ham stars as the head chef, a character based around the director’s own experiences of working in stressful restaurant kitchens. Impressive filming feat aside, anything with Stephen Graham in is gold so this film is sure to be special. Released in cinemas on 7 January, watch Boiling Point as soon as you're sure your nerves can take it!

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In a big departure from her 2019 coming-of-age film Booksmart, Olivia Wilde helms this psychological thriller film set in a utopian community in 1950s California. A pretty big thing to note is that it stars Harry Styles in his first acting role since Dunkirk (2017), as Florence Pugh’s husband who is harbouring a dark secret.

Boiling Point (Dir. Phillip Barantini) Filmed in one single take, Boiling Point is a fraught and highly strung drama set in the kitchen of a popular London restaurant over 90 minutes of their busiest night.

endent Film Asc s

The Northman (Dir. Robert Eggers) From the director of 2019’s The Lighthouse, it looks like audiences are

Don’t Worry Darling (Dir. Olivia Wilde)

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X (Dir. Ti West) Set in 1979, Ti West’s upcoming horror film follows a team of young filmmakers who hire a rural farmhouse to shoot a porn film. However the production soon takes a turn. The next in A24’s horror back catalogue, X looks packed full of 1970s slasher nostalgia, giving big Texas Chainsaw Massacre vibes.

Nope (Dir. Jordan Peele) There is not much to say about Jordan Peele’s upcoming film ‘Nope’ simply because it's been kept under very tight wraps. What we do know is that Daniel Kaluuya, Steven Yeun and Keke Palmer star in the new horror film. If his last directorial outing Us (2019) is anything to go by, I think audiences can safely look forward to the film even without knowing the plot!

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Awards season may be just around the corner, but a new year means another 12 months of new films to get stuck into. With long-awaited blockbusters like James Cameron’s Avatar 2 or the new Top Gun and of course a tonne more Marvel films, I present to you the following list of 10 films that may pique your interest in 2022, if big blockbusters aren’t quite what you’re looking for.

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Third Year, History (SU Correspondent)

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Alice Clarke

Red Rocket (Dir. Sean Baker) Red Rocket follows a self-centred ex-adult entertainer as he returns to his small hometown in Texas to a mixed reception. The film was released in the US last year and has already received an array of awards much like Sean Baker’s previous forays into the human experience with The Florida Project (2017) and Tangerine (2015), and so his newest film is unlikely to disappoint.

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From psychological thrillers to classic whodunnits, we have you covered for the year

another intense and pretty grim film from Robert Eggers with The Northman. Alexander Skarsgard stars in the 'Epic revenge thriller' as a viking prince hellbent on avenging his murdered parents. A pretty jampacked cast already, the most exciting name to pop up in the credits is Iceland's very own Björk!

Killers the Flower Moon (Dir. Martin Scorscese) Martin Scorscese’s latest blockbuster follows the FBI investigation into a series of murders of members of the Osage tribe in 1920s America. Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Jesse Plemmons and Robert DeNiro, the film also sees a return for Brendan Fraser in what wellwishers have dubbed the ‘Brennaissance’, which I for one can get behind. The Western looks like it will be a heavy one but will cover some important themes, having been inspired by true events. of

Keep an eye on our Facebook writers group for opportunities to review these films as they are released over the year!

Ev Says: New Years is a great time to catch up on Film & TV favourites

New Year's resolutions are so last year Evelyn Heis

Film & Television Co-Deputy Editor

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t's officially that time of the year again. The New Year. For most, a dreaded time, masked with toxic positivity where one is pressured to transform overnight and leave last year’s self behind.

New Years: the time where you must strive to become a healthier, sportier, more spiritual, and allaround better version of who you were the year before.

For others, however, New Years

is an exciting time, marked by its freedom, as we’re able to completely reinvent ourselves, shape the year, and start off on a clean, new slate.

No external pressures, just our own volition to search for happiness.

No matter where you stand on that spectrum however, the New Year’s message is still the same: last year’s self wasn’t good enough and you need to change that this time around.

Instead of acknowledging every good thing we accomplished that year, we all fall victim to that ‘New Year, new me’ expectation. We convince ourselves we need to do better, become better, and reinforce this vicious cycle.

So, when January 1st comes around, we pull out our diaries, in

a total Bridget Jones’ Diary (2001) fashion and begin to list all of the things we desperately need to change that year. In Bridget’s case, it was to stop smoking and going for emotionally unavailable men. In my case, I made a note of resolutions like going to the gym, exercising regularly, and reducing my screen time.

It is now February and I can confirm that I have not gone to the gym once and my TikTok consumption is higher than ever. The most exercise I’ve partaken in has actually been walking to-and-from my flat to the nearest coffee shop- a lifestyle choice which the Gilmore Girls (2000-2007) would totally approve of.

And yet, I had started this year on a

completely different note. Bewitched by the magic and prosperity of the New Year, I obsessively planned and nit-picked different goals for myself to reach this year. I was filled with a zealous drive and frenzy to become an overachiever, chanting ‘2022 is going to be my year’, convinced that I could conquer the world if I wanted to, that I completely looked over what I had done thus far.

I know this is the case for most people. We tend to take the little moments for granted and focus more on our academic or social achievements, rather than how far we’ve come as a person or how many lives we’ve impacted along the way.

The truth is, New Year's resolutions do not have to be instant, they don’t

even have to be made. We have 12 months in a year and plenty of days, years, and months to reach our personal goals.

You can have as many chill days as possible, spent watching Friends (1994-2004) or binge-watching Gossip Girl (2007-2012) for the umpteenth time, and still have had a successful year. ‘Success’ is subjective but getting through your to-watch list is imperative.

This year, try slowing down and setting yourself some soul-enriching resolutions, like being kinder to yourself, actually showing up to all of your in-person lectures or maybe heading to the cinema more often.

But let’s leave the pressure to stick to them behind - that is so last year.

Film&TV

Editor Ben Carpenter Co-Deputy Editor Isha Vibhakar Co-Deputy Editor Evelyn Heis

Twitter: @Epigramculture

Platonic love in cinema: a Valentine's Day special At a time where romance is rife, it's important to remember all the friends in your life and the love they provide.

Milan Perera

Second Year, English Literature Yes, the dreaded February 14th is fast approaching. How many of us are walking home alone on that day feeling like, to quote the famous words of Bernie Taupin, 'A cloud across the sun?' Why feel sad and lonely when we have strong platonic relationships based on intimacy and friendship without all the drama of infatuation or having to wonder where a relationship is going? It’s as good as a romantic relationship.

Well, almost.

In celebration of all things friendship in a season obsessed with romance, here is my quick rundown of just a handful of films that celebrate the power of platonic love.

The Imitation Game (2014) In this critically acclaimed movie starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Kiera Knightly, the spotlight is firmly fixed on the unsung heroes at Bletchley Park who decrypted German intelligence codes, whom

the wartime PM Winston Churchill hailed for 'Shortening the war.'

But beyond the high-brow world of code breaking, there is a poignant human drama in which Alan Turing (Cumberbatch) suffers at the hands of authorities due to his sexuality.

His colleague Joan Clarke (Knightly) cares deeply for Alan and her heart goes out to him when enduring a series of humiliations after serving his country and the king, presenting a story of loving support that stands the test of time.

A Patch of Blue (1965) This gem of a movie is set against the Civil Right Movement which was gaining fresh momentum as a result of the ever-deepening racial divisions in America. Starring the late doyen of a thespian, Sidney Poitier. The story revolves around the friendship of a well-educated, softly spoken young black man, Gordon (played by Poitier) and an illiterate, blind white woman, Selina (Elizabeth Hartman.) Although technicolour was available at the time, Director Guy Green decided to shoot it in black and white, positioning the piece as an extended metaphor for ‘love knows no colour.’ As Gordon works to help Selina get her life in order, she asks him to marry

her, but Gordon calmly reassures her that: 'There are many types of love' outside of the romantic kind.

An overall wholesome cinematic achievement with multiple Academy Award nominations.

Million Dollar Baby (2004) Winner of multiple Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actress, Million Dollar Baby is a story of an amateur female boxer Margaret

‘Maggie’ Fitzgerald (Hillary Swank) as she navigates through life. Ridiculed by her own family, Maggie finds a purpose and fulfilment in boxing. She trains on her own at the rundown gym, Hit Pit, operated by Frankie Dunn (Clint Eastwood). Despite coming across as a cantankerous old man, Maggie pesters him to teach her to box which is declined as he ‘Doesn’t train girls.’ One day, against his better judgement,

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Frankie takes up the challenge of training her. Surrounded with pitfalls and backstabbing in professional boxing, Maggie finds Frank the only person she trusts. This bittersweet movie is a tour de force of emotions.

Lost In Translation (2003) Written and directed by Sofia Coppola with nuance and tenderness, Lost In Translation tells the tale of a failing middle-aged actor, Bob (Bill Murray) who bumps into a recently graduated young woman, Charlotte (Scarlett Johansson) in a Tokyo bar.

Bob is shooting a whisky commercial, while Charlotte is accompanied by her celebrity photographer husband to the Far East. They bond over their frustrations, unfulfilled ambitions and general outlook on life.

The rapport is immediate and they find a kindred spirit in one another, forming an intergenerational bond that is truly unique.

Love comes in many shapes and sizes and cinema has long spent time investing in such stories. So for something a little different from the typical romances, check out these films for a more well-rounded Valentine’s.

Celebrate the month of love with these classic romances Roses are red, violets are blue, here's a mushy list of romances formed just for your partner and you.

Amelia Jacob

First Year, English Literature

The season of love has arrived yet again, and with it the compulsive need to watch every romance film that has ever been released (or at least for me anyway). To make this choice easier for you, I’ve rummaged my way through the options and compiled a short list of the best love stories to enjoy, regardless of your relationship status.

Sleepless in Seattle (1993) Dir. Nora Ephron Would it be a real Valentine’s Day film list without the mandatory Nora Ephron recommendation?

Sleepless in Seattle’s story of love

at first broadcast is just as charming as Ephron’s writing on When Harry Met Sally (1989), yet arguably showcases Meg Ryan in a far more likeable role.

The film follows the burgeoning romance of Sam and Annie, the former a recently bereaved single father, and the latter a reporter, who happens to come across a radio show on which Sam appears at the request of his young son. Annie falls in love instantly, and a series of near-misses and yearning glances subsequently cements this romance’s status in film history.

But I’m a Cheerleader (1999) Dir. Jamie Babitt A light-hearted pick amongst this list, although out of context Jamie’s Babitt’s irreverent story of a closeted lesbian sent off to a conversion program doesn’t seem like the kind

work well with. Truthfully, But I’m a Cheerleader’s satirical portrayal of Megan Bloomfield’s eventual self-acceptance and romance with Graham (Clea DuVall) despite the difficulties in opposing her conversion therapy, humourously and sweetly dissects sexuality and gender expectations in a way that remains relatable and current.

The film’s highly saturated staging and use of colour has also contributed to its cult status, offering an alternative to some traditional Valentine’s Day films.

Slumdog Millionaire (2008) Dir. Danny Boyle Hear me out, I know Dev Patel’s breakthrough role as Jamal in Danny Boyle’s critically acclaimed Slumdog Millionaire might not be the romantic hero that immediately comes to mind. However, the film is

underscored by the importance of love, and in particular, how the romance between Jamal and Latika (Freida Pinto) sustains Jamal in difficult circumstances.

The film portrays his early years as a child in the slums of Mumbai with Latika, up to his coming of age as a young man, where he gets involved in a gameshow which will permanently alter him and his family’s destiny. The chemistry between Patel and Pinto is the real highlight of the film; I highly recommend you witness it.

Casablanca (1942) Dir. Michael Curtiz ‘We’ll always have Paris’ – Michael Curtiz’s iconic Casablanca has infiltrated pop culture to the extent that its dialogue is immediately recognisable without ever having seen the film.

The timeless romance between Ilse and Rick feels as relevant now as it was at the time of release, with the film marking Ilse Lund (Ingrid Bergman) and her arrival in Casablanca, husband in tow, where her former lover Rick (Humphrey Bogart) now operates a secretive cafe and gambling den.

Set against the backdrop of the Second World War, their reunion re-ignites a passion in both characters that threatens the security of the new lives they have both created.

To finish this list, Casablanca truly provides the best of old Hollywood acting and understated glamour in this deeply romantic story. If you haven’t got ‘As Time Goes By’ stuck in your head by the end of the film, I can’t relate to you…

Sport

Editor Deputy Editor Digital Editor Investigations Editor

Twitter: @EpigramSport

Nischal Schwager-Patel Lexi Bothamley-Dakin Artemis Denton Charlie Wilbraham

There is certainly no love in the air for Bristol City and their South Welsh counterparts.

Jamie Pugh

Third Year, Politics and Sociology

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ristol City triumphed when Cardiff City were the visitors for January’s Severnside derby, recording a first derby double over their fierce Welsh rivals since 2003. In the first half, Cardiff played some of their more expansive football of the season – which, with respect, isn’t saying much – but fell apart defensively every time Antoine Semenyo was afforded any pocket of space. An entertaining contest ended 3-2 to the Robins and when the final whistle blew, it was Bristol enjoying the celebrations in front of their biggest home crowd of the season, no less.

However, in the stands, a different contest was taking place. Bristol fans belted out ‘God Save the Queen’ among many other England chants throughout the afternoon, swiftly returned by a chorus of ‘Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau’ from the visitors.

Inflatable sheep flying about in the home end, questionable chants calling Bristol fans illiterate agricultural workers from the away end. It was

Swansea City FC

No love lost: could Swansea City be Bristol City’s new Severnside derby?

classic Severnside derby stuff. he atmosphere was electric, as expected, but it wasn’t all laughing and joking. There was significant trouble outside the ground as my flatmate and I approached Ashton Gate, and a group of Cardiff fans were seen trashing the toilets, causing damages which the club promptly offered to cover. These rivalries have intensified in recent years, with violent incidents on the rise in football more broadly.

Coupled with the fact that it was Cardiff fans’ first visit to Ashton Gate since November 2017 due to the ongoing pandemic, it was inevitable that there would be more tension and aggravation than usual, on and off the pitch.

Yet a bit further west of the Severn

fairs either. For Bristol fans, Swansea has become one of the most eagerly anticipated fixtures in the calendar, always proving to be hard-fought games with little between the two sides.

Bristol and Cardiff’s rivalry goes back generations. For some older Cardiff fans, it’s even bigger than the South Wales derby. But Bristol and Swansea? This seems like a new development. So, what’s behind it all? Is it just a Wales versus England divide, or is there more to it?

I’ve seen both Swansea and Cardiff visit Ashton Gate since coming to study at Bristol, and let’s just say similar themes came up. As a Welshman sat amongst the home fans, I must admit the atmosphere has gotten a bit uncomfortable at times.

Yet a bit further west of the Severn Bridge, a new rivalry seems to have emerged for the Robins with Swansea City.

Bridge, a new rivalry seems to have emerged for the Robins with Swansea City. With their next meeting right around the corner on 13th February, there is little love lost ahead of the upcoming derby.

In the 2018/19 season, fights broke out between the two sets of fans leading to injuries and even arrests, while the few meetings since then in which fans have been present haven’t exactly been quiet af-

Chants of ‘We all hate Welsh scum’ echo around the ground with an inflatable sheep flying about in my immediate vicinity. I make sure to whisper my armchair analysis to my flatmate to avoid anyone sniffing out my Carmarthenshire accent. It’s all a bit of fun, though, isn’t it?

While they’re certainly not the best of friends, attitudes towards the rivalry divide the two sets of fans.

Some say these games have always

been hostile, citing fiery encounters in the early 2000s, while others aren’t sure that a rivalry exists at all.

tinues to shape up going into the final few months, it’s Cardiff City who find themselves in the direst sit-

Bristol and Cardiff’s rivalry goes back generations.

But Bristol and Swansea? This seems like a new development.

Swansea City season ticket holder Joshua Jones told Epigram: ‘I think it’s a bit more of a hostile atmosphere than most of our games purely because they’re the second closest club after Cardiff. But it’ll never come close to the South Wales derby for me. Maybe some Swans fans would disagree with me, but that’s my point of view.’

Whatever their relationships off the pitch may be, Bristol, Swansea and Cardiff are all experiencing disappointing seasons for clubs with lofty ambitions, all miles off the play-off places they’ve come close to in recent years. At the time of writing, they sit 16th, 18th and 20th in the second tier, with Bristol City the only one of the trio closer to the play-offs than the relegation zone.

They can all safely delay the dream of reaching the Premier League, instead needing to focus on remaining in the Championship. With the Welsh clubs at risk of relegation to League One, they are fighting a battle for survival alongside bragging rights on the River Severn.

As the Championship table con-

uation. Not realistically challenging their rivals either side of the border, a battle for survival could be on the cards if their recent form is anything to go by. The Bluebirds are six points off relegation, though a crucial victory over Nottingham Forest at the end of January saw them earn a first win in seven league outings.

Bristol and Swansea, on the other hand, are constantly breathing down each other’s necks, which has been the case for a few seasons now.

Maybe this explains some of the animosity.

Of the two Welsh sides, Swansea are Bristol’s biggest competitors in terms of the table and, on the pitch at least, the rivalry shows no signs of cooling down. If Cardiff did face the drop down to League One, their rivalry could reach a whole new level.

It’s fair to say that in recent meetings between the two sides, love hasn’t exactly been in the air. But as the Robins prepare for a visit to the Swansea.com Stadium on the weekend of Valentine’s Day, who knows?

Maybe we can all kiss and make up, after all.

Sport 24

Epigram 11.02.2022

Is there still time for the Bears' redemption?

Bristol Bears have work to do if they are to salvage what has been a tumultuous season.

Louis Edwards

Second Year, Psychology

Bristol Bears

I

f you’re a Bristol Bears fan, the last five months haven’t really had too much to cheer about.

The men’s team have taken just four wins from their 12 league games, and sit three places from the bottom of the table. The last time Bristol were coming away with this many wins from their Premiership matches was during the 2016/17 season, when they were relegated at the end of the campaign. But as European rugby turns its eyes to the Six Nations, could there still be a chance for the club to claim some redemption on the pitch and maybe for the trophy cabinet?

A truly poor start to the season, with highlights including a battering from Wasps and a second half capitulation against Harlequins, was characterised by sloppy defensive work, averaging more than 10 penalties conceded per game and consistently being beaten at the breakdown for turnovers. Pat Lam’s men are conceding an average of 27 points per game this season, compared to 16 points per 80 minutes in the table-topping 2020/21 campaign. Just halfway through the season, they have already conceded the same number of tries as they conceded for the entirety of last season.

We know Bristol love to score tries themselves, and we love to watch them do it in style. But giving your-

self the challenge to score 28 points every single game just to have a chance of winning a match, let alone winning it easily, is not a good place to be in rugby.

Although the season started poorly, we can now look back on big improvements that the Bears made in

Stade Français and and Scarlets in the Champions Cup with an average score line of 37-18. This has given them a good qualification spot for the round of 16 and a very winnable home and away double-header against Sale Sharks in April.

If momentum is to continue in

Just halfway through the season, they have already conceded the same number of tries as they conceded for the entirety of last season.

January. Just before the turn of the year, they almost inflicted Leicester Tigers’ first loss of the season if not for Guy Porter’s late heroics, then coming just as close away to Exeter on New Year’s Day. Unfortunate but solid performances against those top clubs were then followed by a bonus point win over Sale Sharks, before two massive victories over

this way and give them a shot at progressing further in Europe than last season, there are a couple of key players who are going to need to step up. Semi Radradra has always been one of Bristol’s most exciting players since he signed for the club after the 2019 World Cup, and his impact coming back from injury has been massive. His first start this season

was the Boxing Day clash against Leicester, and he has started every game since. He has made by far the most offloads of any player in that time (10) and Bristol’s attack and ability to convert their line breaks into tries have really profited.

Bristol won’t be gutted by international selection in the same way other clubs will be, but there will still be some big losses for the next six weeks. England internationals Kyle Sinckler and Harry Randall will be big blows, with the former providing vital physicality and the latter leading the fast-flowing attack from scrum half. For Wales, Callum Sheedy’s selection leaves a noticeable black hole of specialised standoffs in the squad. Selectors may turn, as they did in the Autumn, to young winger Ioan Lloyd to cover 10, but as Lloyd is a renowned running player,

there are legitimate concerns about whether there will be enough distribution into the wide channels.

February and March sees several important league games, and success for the Bears men may rest on how players like Lloyd can step up in the absence of important starting shirts.

Despite the uncertainty for the men’s team, elsewhere in the club, silverware is still a possibility. In a very strong season, Bristol Bears Women have turned around their fortunes after struggling last season, now currently sitting second in the Premier 15s table behind Saracens.

Unlike the men, scoring tries is coming easily to them, with the trio of Hannah West, Courtney Keight, and Phoebe Murray scoring 23 between them. There are growing numbers of stars in the Bristol line up, including Sarah Bern and Abbie Ward who are on unbelievable form for England, and Jasmine Joyce off the back of her outstanding Rugby 7s season.

The number of full-time professional players is also increasing in the squad as Wales just announced professional contracts for six Bristol players including Joyce, Alisha Butchers and Elinor Snowsill.

There is still a way to go before the Bears can even think about the playoffs, as two losses either side of New Year saw them lose their top spot in the table.

But there is certainly a lot of hope for what they can achieve and if they can make that Premier 15s final.

2021/22 hasn’t been a strong season everywhere in the Bristol Bears club so far, but significant growth and big results for the women’s team, and good form and prospects for the men in the Champions Cup, should give something for Bristol fans to be excited about.