Bristol University’s Independent Student Newspaper Issue 247
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Monday 20th February 2012
• www.epigram.org.uk
AGM draws 75% more students
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• After fierce abortion debate, pro-choice stance remains > page 2 • Sabbatical team announce return of bursaries > page 3 • Editorial - A long way to go for student politics > page 16 Alice Young News Editor
Jamie Corbin
Students voted to improve access to Bristol through contextualised offers and admissions targets at the Annual General Meeting of the Students’ Union this month. The motion voted to the top of the priority ballot and thus discussed first called for stronger enforcement of contextual offers of places to students from underprivileged backgrounds. Proposer Josephine Suherman met resistance from some students who questioned whether the motion was useful, with Kyle Mulholland arguing that the motion would, ‘reduce the university’s prestige and reduce the value of your degree’. Suherman, a third year Politics student, responded to these criticisms commenting, ‘We all know the campus would look very different if this policy was enforced’. The motion passed with 68% of the vote. Adam Ludlow’s motion, controversially entitled ‘Ending Bristol’s Silent Private School Bias’, called for the University to publish figures regarding the proportion of state and private school students at the University and set targets to redress the balance.
It sparked a heated debate over the benefits of awarding places based on the type of school attended, with Sophie Mew, the UBU Widening Participation Officer, arguing that it would be better ‘not to end the private school bias but the low-income student bias’. Mulholland, a second year Economics and Politics student, took to the stage again to oppose this motion as well, claiming, ‘Applications from state schools are low in general because state schools are terrible in general’. Ludlow, a third year History student, argued this was not the point of the motion, saying, ‘I don’t agree that state schools are awful’. His motion narrowly passed with 56% approval. A series of motions were aimed at improving availability and access to
existing sport facilities. The ‘Campaigning to Save the Ice Rink’ motion was passed with 70% of the vote with speeches from proposer Paul Charlton and President of Ice Soc James Lumsden.
414
students attended this year’s AGM, 2% of the student body
Rosemary Drummond and Hamish Hay both proposed motions to help more students use the swimming pool and gym, with Drummond arguing flexible and cheaper sports passes would make ‘sport more accessible to larger numbers of students’. Both motions were passed with over 85%
approval and Dom Oliver, UBU VicePresident for Sport and Health, had earlier announced in his annual report that the University Sports Centre would be introducing termly instalments for sports passes. In his report at the beginning of the AGM Gus Baker, UBU President, also announced that the sabbatical team will be working on a widening participation assessment to address the access figures published by Epigram in October. These figures detailed how Bristol University was one of 25 UK institutions failing to meet its own targets on widening participation. The AGM ended on a jovial note, with a motion to force UBU elected officers to wear suits every day of the week.
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Music 23
Chris Ruff, Vice-President for Activities, then proposed an amendment to limit the dress code to Fridays only, arguing that it ‘retains the hilarity of the motion but doesn’t require me to buy another suit.’ Both Ruff’s speech and the passing of the motion were met by roaring applause, with 64% of the AGM in agreement that UBU officers should be forced to wear suits on Fridays. The AGM is held every February to decide on the policies that UBU will pursue over the coming year. Motions are either voted through to become policy or voted out. This year’s AGM attracted 414 students, the highest turnout since 2001 and a 74.6% increase on last year, despite representing just over 2% of the total student body.
Epigram
20.02.2012
News
Editor: Alice Young
Deputy Editor: Jenny Awford
Deputy Editor: Abigail Van-West
news@epigram.org.uk
jawford@epigram.org.uk
avanwest@epigram.org.uk
Inside Epigram Features 11 Big boys don’t cry With male suicide rates three times those of women, many men are suffering in silence
Comment 13 It’s cool to be left, right? Jevon Whitby follows the course of British university students on the political compass
Letters and Editorial 17 Win an iPad 2
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AGM sees return to debate over UBU abortion policy Alice Young News Editor The UBU AGM saw a return to debates about the stance of the university on abortion. At the AGM, Alexander Chau, proposed a motion to repeal UBU’s pro-choice stance, which became UBU policy after the October Student Conference. Chau’s motion called for the AGM to mandate all UBU officers to adopt a neutral position on the issue of abortion. Chau, a first year Law student, criticized the ‘unnecessary divisive meaning that comes with the phrase “pro-choice”’
and called for the AGM to open the debate. James Fleming, supporting the motion, argued that the ‘pro-choice’ policy may leave some students marginalised. ‘I’m worried that the university itself won’t be able to help people in certain positions’, he said. Eve Farren, President of Students for Life Society, also criticized the pro-choice policy for failing to facilitate open debate on the issue. However Michael Paynter, speaking against the motion, argued that ‘pro-choice is not anti-life or pro-abortion’ and that by adopting a pro-choice stance UBU was allowing all
opinions to be heard. Sophie Mew further criticised supporters of the motion for bringing up the subject at Student Council and the AGM, arguing that it was focusing UBU on divisive issues rather than productive debate. This issue was first raised at the UBU Student Conference in October. Sophie Bennett, UBU Vice-President for Welfare and Equality, successfully proposed a motion to make UBU the third Students’ Union in the country to adopt a pro-choice stance over abortion. At the time, opposers to the policy argued that Bennett was attempting to ‘silence’ certain opinions, with these concerns
mainly being raised by the Bristol Life Society. However Bennett argued against opposers who wanted UBU to be neutral on the issue, commenting that the pro-choice stance ‘is a matter of clarification, not of restriction.’ The ‘Support Student Parents’ motion, proposed jointly by the Vice-President of Feminist Society Eleanor Humphrey and the Vice-President of Students for Life Society Annie Howard was one of the few motions of the afternoon to meet no opposers or questions. The motion aimed to widen the university’s support of student parents, and passed with the highest approval rating of any motion, at 93%.
21 Culture 21 Hirst the worst Josh Gabbatiss argues that Damien Hirst’s work is not particularly shocking, just boring Jamie Corbin
Film and TV 27 And the Oscar goes to... Now the nominations are out, Cass Horowitz offers his Academy Award predictions
31 Science 31 Geek chic Why early specialisation at the school level can deter gifted scientists from further study
Proposer Alexander Chau speaking at the AGM
Meetings
Editorial team Editor Editor Tom Flynn editor@epigram.org.uk editor@epigram.org.uk Deputy Editors Deputy Editors Jon Bauckham Jon Bauckham jon@epigram.org.uk jon@epigram.org.uk Hannah Stubbs hannah@epigram.org.uk Hannah Stubbs e2 Editor hannah@epigram.org.uk Matthew McCrory e2 Editor e2@epigram.org.uk Matthew McCrory News Editor e2@epigram.org.uk Alice Young news@epigram.org.uk
Deputy Sport Editor Features Editor Comment Editor Deputy Music Editor Science Editor David Stone Pippa Shawley Tristan Martin Patrick Baker Nick Cork deputysport@epigram.org.uk deputymusic@epigram.org.uk features@epigram.org.uk
comment@epigram.org.uk
Deputy Features EditorEditor Letters Andrew White Emma Corfield deputyfeatures@epigram.org.uk
science@epigram.org.uk
Sport Online Editors Music Online Editor Deputy Science Editor Tom Mordey David Biddle Emma Sackville tmordey@epigram.org.uk musiconline@epigram.org.uk
letters@epigram.org.uk
deputyscience@epigram.org
Paddy Von Behr Film & TV Editor Sport Editor pvonbehr@epigram.org.uk Will Ellis Tom Burrows filmandtv@epigram.org.uk Puzzles Editor culture@epigram.org.uk sport@epigram.org.uk Lily Buckmaster Deputy Film & TV Editor Deputy Comment Editor Deputy Culture Editor Deputy Sport Editor Anthony Adeane Hugh Davies Zoe Hutton David Stone Head Sub Editor deputyfilmandtv@epigram.org.uk deputycomment@epigram.org.uk Emma Corfield deputyculture@epigram.org.uk deputysport@epigram.org.uk Comment Editor Culture Editor Patrick Baker Calum Sherwood comment@epigram.org.uk
Letters EditorMusic Editor Emma CorfieldNathan Comer letters@epigram.org.uk
Science Editor Puzzles Editor Sub Editors Nick Cork Jennifer Hooton Lily Buckmaster science@epigram.org.uk Rachel Hosie music@epigram.org.uk Head Sub Harriet EditorLayhe Deputy Science EditorEmma Corfield avanwest@epigram.org.uk Culture EditorDeputy Music Editor Rosemary Wagg Emma Sackville Zoe Hutton Deputy News Editors Pippa Shawley Jenny Awford deputyscience@epigram.org.uk culture@epigram.org.uk Sub Editors Jenny Awford Photography Editor deputymusic@epigram.org.uk jawford@epigram.org.uk jawford@epigram.org.uk Harriet Layhe, Marek Allen Science Online Editor Kate Moreton, Rosemary Wagg Deputy Culture Editor FIlm & TV Editor photography@epigram.org.uk Features Editor Edith Penty Geraets Hannah Mae Collins Abigail Van-West Will Ellis Tristan Martin scienceonline@epigram.org.uk deputyculture@epigram.org.uk IllustratorIllustrator avanwest@epigram.org.uk filmandtv@epigram.org.uk features@epigram.org.uk Sophie Sladen Sophie Sladen Editor Editor News Online Editor Editor Music Editor Deputy Film & TVSport Deputy Features Web Designer Nathan ComerAnthony Adeane Tom Burrows Amina Makele Web Designer Andrew White sport@epigram.org.uk Rob Mackenzie music@epigram.org.uk newsonline@epigram.org.uk Maciej Kumorek deputyfilmandtv@epigram.org.uk deputyfeatures@epigram.org.uk News Editor Deputy Alice YoungNews Editors Abigail Van-West news@epigram.org.uk
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Epigram
20.02.2012
3
Fight to bring back bursaries finds success Tom Flynn Editor
Jamie Corbin
A victory for hard-pressed students was revealed at the AGM two weeks ago with the announcement by Students’ Union president Gus Baker that the University are set to reinstate bursaries. The U-turn comes after campaigning by the Students’ Union and the revelation in Epigram 243 that the axing of bursaries was set to leave Bristol as the least affordable English Russell Group university for poorer students. The University’s current bursary scheme, under which students from low-income households recieved up to £1,260, is to be axed next year in favour of tuition fee waivers worth up to £5,500. Whilst this system is much more generous financially, many have
expressed concern at the lack of support it gives students while they are attending University. At this point details about the new scheme remain sketchy, and the final decision has yet to be passed by University Council. However, Epigram can confirm that the intention is to create a bursary level of £2,000 for students from the lowest income levels, which will means they will be able to choose to take some of their fee waiver as a bursary instead . Whether the bursary will be at £2,000 for all students or whether there will be several levels has yet to be worked out. Lynn Robinson, deputy registrar at the University, told us, ‘Following discussion with Gus and colleagues, the VC’s senior team has agreed to recommend that students who will in future be eligible for fee waivers should be offered the possibility of taking £2k
of their fee waiver in the form of a bursary. This won’t be separately means tested and currently those with incomes below £25k are eligible. We have had no discussions about the details of how this will work yet
and this will now be discussed through other committees (our admissions and education committees primarily, at which students are represented)’. Details on who exactly will benefit are also still unclear.
Whilst the scheme, if approved, is likely to take effect from 2013, this may still leave Bristol’s 2012 intake with no bursary system once they arrive at the University. Gus Baker told us,
‘Whilst we’re really pleased that the University has listened to us on this crucial issue, we’re concerned that this won’t be rolled out in time for the 2012 intake. They’ll have bills and rent to pay too’.
Student housing row escalates as Bristol Pound squatters move into Kings Arms launch date set Yisan Cheong
The Kings Arms pub, where the squatters are staying
Josephine McConville Head News Reporter A local pub that formed part of controversial plans to develop student housing has been overtaken by squatters, Epigram can reveal. A group of 11 squatters moved into The King’s Arms in High Kingsdown at the end of January. The occupation comes just after local residents expressed strong opposition last month to plans converting the derelict pub into twelve ‘cluster’ flats to house 50 students. As previously reported in Epigram, there was fear amongst residents of the area becoming a ‘student ghetto’. The recent occupation of the abandoned pub, however, has
led some students to express bewilderment at such strong objections to the conversion. A 21 year old student, who lives in High Kingsdown, said, ‘Building a brand new set of flats would make the area look better and would increase the priority assigned to the area and the general footfall of council labour. ‘People are worried about noise, rubbish and general negative atmosphere created by students but if people keep opposing plans then the area will stay neglected. I would have thought residents would prefer to live next to more student flats rather than squatters in an abandoned building.’ A High Kingsdown resident said she was ‘personally not that bothered’ by the occupiers. ‘These squatters are harmless and as long as they
don’t make noise I don’t have a problem. People were against the cluster flats because it meant there would be many more students’, she said. One of the occupiers, Rico, 20, told Epigram he was hoping to stay at The King’s Arms for the summer. ‘Apparently people were not happy with the plans for student housing but most of the local residents we have met are friendly’, he said. This is not the first time The King’s Arms has been used as a squat. Rico was part of a group last year that occupied the local pub. ‘We all point the finger at each other, students, squatters, anarchists,police,there are good and bad people in every scene.’ Nick Boyce, the University Police Officer, confirmed that the occupation was ‘a case
of civil trespass’ and did not come under criminal law. ‘The squatters are occupying the premise using civil law, and it is down to the owner of the property to take legal proceedings to get an eviction. ‘The police will only get involved if there are criminal offences committed,’ he said. Some students have responded positively to the squat, such as Sam Jenkins, a second-year German student. He told Epigram, ‘They seem friendly and I don’t think the squatters will have a negative influence on the area. ‘They’ve been here before and apparently crime in the area didn’t rise then. ‘They seem perfectly amenable and, like most squatters, just want a place to live so won’t want to attract negative attention.’
Katy Barney Senior News Reporter On May 21st the Bristol Pound, a currency specific to Bristol and the surrounding area, is set to launch. The money will have the same value as sterling, but will be used by shoppers, small businesses and traders for transactions remaining in the Bristol area. The scheme as it will function in Bristol is new, and more advanced than its predecessors in places such as Totnes, Brixton and Stroud. Traders and customers will be able to use notes, in the denominations of £1, £5, £10 and £20, but will also be able to bank electronically and use mobile phones to pay for goods. The scheme is being run by the Bristol Credit Union, which has the backing of the FSA (Financial Standards Authority) with the aim being to keep wealth generated in Bristol within the local area, instead of sending it to large international companies. The project is being run by volunteers, and more than 100 firms have already signed up, from the Tobacco Factory theatre to Thatcher’s cider. Stephen Clarke, a lawyer working with the Bristol Pound team, has emphasised how important the scheme is in the current economic climate. ‘We just want to preserve our local independents, and you
can see how hard it is for them at the moment,’ he stated. Support in the community is widespread, but some are sceptical that it will be impractical for traders and cite ease of use as the most important factor determining their backing. The issues of carrying two currencies and potential time wasted whilst learning how to use the system were also concerns among local business owners. Furthermore, some financial specialists suggest that while the scheme will successfully keep money in the Bristol area, it will not generate any further wealth. However Ciaran Mundy, director of the scheme, is sure that the system will work, saying it will ‘Ensure the diversity of our city, which is one of the things people love about Bristol.’ The currency has yet to be designed, and the target of 300 traders and 1,000 individuals has not yet been reached. The scheme is closely linked to the University, as Mark Burton, a doctoral student of Geography, has been instrumental in persuading the Council to accept the proposals. Furthermore, a motion proposing that UBU adopt the new currency, entitled ‘For the Union to Adopt the Bristol Pound’ will be debated at the Student Council on February 20th. The motion was due to be heard at the AGM on February 9th, but fell too low on the priority ballot. It aims to mandate UBU to full ‘endorse’ the Bristol Pound.
Epigram
20.02.2012
4
March against planned ice rink closure Gjeta Gjyshinca News Reporter
The rink is also the place where Olympic gold medallist, Robin Cousins, learned to skate. Cousins also officially reopened the rink in 1992 after an attempted closure in the early 90s due to a fall in the number of users. Olympic gold medal ice skaters Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean have also spoken out against the planned closure of Bristol Ice Rink. Torvill commented, ‘To have a facility where you can begin to skate at a grass-roots level is really important.’ Dean added, ‘The community is closing something, and every time we hear of an ice rink closing we do our best to lend our names to it and try and keep it open.’ Ice rink users will be forced to travel to Swindon, which is
the closest alternative, if the plans to close Bristol ice rink go ahead. Although Unite has said they may include an ice rink as part of their redevelopment, this would not be big enough for ice hockey or competitive skating. If the redevelopment project is approved, the planned student flats could be completed by September 2014. The closure will mean around 25 job losses for staff at the ice rink and suppliers and coaches will also be affected. Bristol ice rink is one of Bristol’s major attractions, offering not only ice skating and dancing on ice lessons. The rink closed for two weeks in 2007 for a £60,000 upgrade, and has since also been involved in various initiatives to encourage a healthier lifestyle among local
Flickr: cmd1084
Around 100 campaigners, protesting against the closure of Bristol ice rink, took to the streets in early February calling for proposals to turn the rink into student flats to be rejected. The ice rink, which opened in 1966, has been part of Bristol for over 45 years. It is owned by student accommodation company, Unite, who plan to shut it down to start a redevelopment project once its lease expires next year. Members of Bristol Ice Skating Club, the Bristol Pitbulls ice hockey team and Bristol Synchronised Skating Club joined the march, which started
from the Frogmore street rink and went through the Centre, Broadmead and Cabot Circus. Manager of the Synchronised Skating Club, Debbie Grimwood, commented, ‘We want the city council to see that we need a rink’. An official online petition against the closure has already reached over 1,000 signatures, and 2,500 more are needed before the council will debate the closure. A number of professional and competitive ice skaters also joined the march. The Pitbulls’ player Richie Hargreaves, who fought to bring professional ice hockey back to Bristol, said, ‘The rink needs updating but it is so well-loved. Up to 400 people come to watch us play and closing it would take away something that is very well used, not just by us.’
Olympic gold medal winners Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean have spoken out against the planned closure
Construction begins on Life Sciences building Lucy Woods Senior News Reporter
VINCI construction
Representatives from the University of Bristol and VINCI construction after the constrcution signing
Major progress has been made regarding the new Bristol Life Sciences building now that construction work has been signed with VINCI Construction UK. The £54m project, to be located in the centre of the University precinct, is scheduled for completion by the end of 2013. The site, among other things, was originally used to house disused ward blocks of the old children’s hospital. University of Bristol Bursar, Patrick Finch, believes that VINCI Construction UK will deliver ‘an outstanding result’, facilitating the University’s ambition to create a new public realm that is ‘a delight for staff, students and visitors alike.’ Managing Director of VINCI
Construction UK, Andrew Ridley-Barker added that the company is ‘delighted to have been awarded the contract’ and hopes to ensure the University ‘is in receipt of a state-of-theart facility in which to carry out this invaluable work’. The project will include a brand new School of Biological Sciences, complete with a greenhouse with approximately 200m2 plant growing space. Senior Lecturer in Molecular Plant Pathology and Fungal Biology, Dr Andy Bailey, commented that the ‘stateof-the-art facilities’ will meet all quarantine regulations, ‘allowing us to look at more plant diseases’ which could impact on crop and food regulations. According to Dr Bailey, the new plant growth facilities will allow ‘very precise control of plant growth, contributing to the understanding of plant
pathology which can impact climate change and rainfall patters’ amongst other things. Professor of Molecular Plant Pathology, Gary Foster, added that the new building will provide ‘outstanding laboratories for science teaching and will enhance the undergraduate experience by facilitating research-led study and staff-student interaction, making Bristol University the first choice for research and teaching.’ With cutting-edge facilities and a central location opposite the Arts and Social Sciences Library, it is hoped that there will be a marked improvement in collaboration between departments. This includes the next-door Centre for Nanoscience and Quantum Information [NSQI], other science departments and the Medical School. The current building works,
particularly drilling, have caused a number of problems for the students working in the NSQI building. Natasha Bennett, who is taking her first year DTC (doctorate training course) in the NSQI building, commented that certain students have been forced to move to Langford (the location of Bristol Veterinary School) to carry out their experiments as the vibrations caused by the building works have disturbed their experiments. Several students who regularly study in the ASS Library have also commented that the construction works are sometimes a distraction, when heavy machinery is used. Dr Bailey maintained that whilst any disruption associated with the construction works was regrettable; this space was always eventually going to be put into good use by the University.
Lakota reopens despite drug controversies Charlotte Woodley News Reporter
‘Until society as a whole stands up and says no to the dealers and no to those in the media and entertainments industry who glorify and trivialise the taking of drugs, we will continue to count the cost in lives lost and families left bereft.’ The club has been the focus of much controversy since the fatality. Lakota was closed for two weeks after the incident and was told by city councillors at the sub-licensing committee to ‘Get its act together’. The Stokes Croft club was reopened again for the summer.
The police’s licensing officer for Bristol, Inspector Keith Rundle, said that this was to a lack of historic issues with the police. The police wanted to keep the club closed for good, but owner Marti Burgess persuaded the council not to after promising to make changes. Burgess insists that the club is looking to get ‘back on track’ to being an excellent music venue rather than a drugs hotspot. ‘We are now reopening and I am taking a more hands-on role to re-establish the reputation of Lakota.’
Lakota has reopened despite outrage following a drug related fatality
Sophia Ho
Bristol nightclub Lakota reopened on 10th February following temporary closure in May 2011. The popular nightclub was forced to close its doors after the death of a sixteen year old from a drugs overdose. The new management are full of fresh promises to crack down on drug use in the club. On the 30th April last year, Joe Simons, an A* student on
track for Oxbridge, collapsed after taking ecstasy powder MDMA at the ‘Tribe of Frogs’ night at Lakota. He was then taken to hospital and died in intensive care at the Bristol Royal Infirmary two days later. His friends told the hearing that the dealers were ‘Openly’ selling drugs at the club. Joe Simon’s father, the deputy head of Prior Park College in Bath, has slammed the club and UK drug culture saying that his son’s death is, ‘An indictment of our failure as a society to tackle the scourge of drugs.
Epigram
20.02.2012
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Epigram
20.02.2012
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Bristol feminists express relief as city’s ‘breastaurant’ Hooters shuts its doors Alex Bradbrook News Reporter
strip club,’ explained Lunnon, pointing out that families, hen parties and women were all amongst the bar’s clientele who enjoyed the venue’s fun and friendly atmosphere. She was also keen to add that staff, far from being ‘slutty’, were mandated to ensure that their tops did not expose too much breast and to maintain a clean-cut, ‘girl-nextdoor’ image whilst working. Throughout its months of trading, the Bristol restaurant attracted much controversy. Last year, Bristol City Council launched an investigation after a birthday cake in the shape of naked breasts was served to a 12 year old boy. While there was insufficient evidence to prosecute, the incident served to further divide opinion towards the establishment. Bristol Feminist Network member Sian Norris called the closure a ‘positive step against the normalisation of the sexual objectification of women’ and
labelled the business ‘sexist’. Georgie Gittens, an active member of the University of Bristol Feminist Society, sees the loss in trade as an encouraging sign that attitudes towards women are changing in society, commenting, ‘I’m glad that people just naturally lost interest in Hooters rather than it being seen as the feminists ending all the fun again. ‘I’m sorry that people lost their employment but I think overall that this is a good development for equality.’ The closure of the restaurant follows a number of other businesses in the area shutting. The Carpe Diem restaurant and Marks & Spencer supermarket, which operated on the same site as Hooters, are two such examples of firms which closed their doors due to lack of custom. It is hoped that a new business will soon replace Hooters at its site, fill the empty premises and provide new employment opportunities for those who were made redundant.
The restaurant has divided opinion since its opening in 2010
Sophia Ho
Hooters, the divisive barrestaurant situated on Millennium Promenade at the Harbourside, has shut its doors for the final time. The closure of the Bristol restaurant, which has been trading since 2010, has caused 39 redundancies, including students at the university. The Bristol branch’s closure was triggered after the bar’s owners, Gallus Management Company Ltd, went into liquidation on Monday 6th February. The principal reason for the closure, according to company director Bill McTaggart, was the poor location of the business. Situated in a fairly quiet area, the restaurant saw falling trade. There are still over 620 Hooters in 44 countries worldwide, of which the first was opened in Florida in 1983.
The concept has scarcely changed since then, with the firm being famed, popularised and disparaged in equal measure for its trademark ‘Hooters Girls.’ Though admitting to cashing in on the sex appeal of its employees, the company denies any allegations of exploitative behaviour, stating on their website that, ‘Claims that Hooters exploits attractive women are as ridiculous as saying American football exploits men who are big and fast.’ This is supported by second year Law student Jodie Lunnon, who worked at the bar since its opening. According to Lunnon, her job as a ‘Hooters Girl’, far from degraded her. She claims that the job, ‘Empowered me as a woman, gave me a thicker skin whilst funding my studies at university.’ Hooters ‘advocated silly, fun, and cheesy dances, yet was treated as though it was a sleazy
Let the Jaeger see the bomb! Take Me Out comes to Bristol
Bristol wheel opens at Broadmead
Kathryn Jessup News Reporter Romance was in the air on Tuesday 7th February, as University of Bristol students hosted their version of the popular Saturday night dating show Take Me Out, raising nearly £2,000 for Unicef. Organised by Alice Hodgson, a third-year History student, 23 single female students competed for the admiration of seven of the University’s eligible bachelors. Bristol’s answer to Paddy McGuiness took the shape of Ross Hughes. Tasked with
keeping the puns flowing and innuendos flying, Hughes responded well to the pressure, with lines including ‘let the hanky see the panky’ and ‘let the sausage see the roll.’ Instead of turning out lights, the girls had to pop love heart balloons, so Hughes coined the not quite so catchy, ‘no likey, pop your balloon.’ In keeping with the same structure as the TV show, the boys were required to provide a video to give the girls a little taster of what they had to offer. Inevitably, the clips involved topless weight lifting, and housemates struggling to be complementary
about their ‘mates’. James Gallagher’s extreme household exercises were a welcome laugh after the Chippendales’ gym sessions. Having successfully impressed with rippling muscles and lad banter, the boys then tried to woo the girls whose balloons were still in tact. Interestingly, the only performance to get a standing ovation was Gallagher’s downing of fifteen jaeger bombs. Thankfully, all seven boys managed to get themselves a date. The event sold out completely, raising nearly £2000 for Unicef.
Marek Allen
Presenter Ross Hughes congratulates one of the lucky couples
Alex Sheppard
The Bristol Wheel has opened in the centre of Broadmead, offering panoramic views across Bristol from 60 metres high. The wheel, consisting of 40 six-people-pods, provides rides of approximately 12 minutes each. It is expected to attract up to 50,000 people in the first month.
Epigram
20.02.2012
7
Squatters evicted from school building Jessica Wingrad Senior News Reporter
caused to many local residents. ‘My experience of squatters at home has been shocking; they leave huge amounts of mess and rubbish and are extremely difficult to move,’he told Epigram. Jon Crocker, the headmaster of OISE Bristol, the school inhabited by the squatters stated, ‘We do understand there are housing issues in the city and clearly this is a problem that needs to be addressed. ‘However, we have a responsibility towards our neighbours and our students, so we now wish to use the property to its full potential again.’ Following the departure of the squatters a security team entered the building to install an alarm system to protect fearful residents against other unwanted visitors as well as securing the roof and windows. There are plans for the building to be converted into flats to house international students who attend OISE Bristol.
Sophia Ho
A group of squatters have been evicted from a former language school building,having lived there for over eight months. Five bailiffs entered the property in Lower Park Row last month after the police had received several phone calls from local residents to complain about noise levels and parties held late into the night. One of the group said to a resident onlooker as he left the building, ‘Have a lovely summer – sorry if we were a bit noisy sometimes’. The resident replied with, ‘A bit late now’, to which he said, ‘Ok, sorry I’m homeless, have a good summer with all your money’. There were between eight to ten people squatting in the building and all left without offering any resistance,
although they hid their identities by covering their faces with scarves. Three police officers were present as the squatters packed their belongings into a white van and a yellow Citroen. Residents expressed their relief at the eviction with one neighbour who wished to remain anonymous saying, ‘They’d been there for eight and a half months and were abusive to everybody. ‘I remember once an old lady asked them to turn the music down in the day and just got abuse. ‘I’d seen them playing loud music, swearing and throwing bottles around. ‘I must have rung the police on at least 20 occasions and environmental health have been up here as well.’ Although undisturbed by the squatters at Oxford Intensive School of English (OISE) Bristol, one second year chemistry student, Matthew Spencer, understands the distress
Between eight to ten squatters were evicted from the school after nearly nine months of inhabiting the premises
Locals fear Tesco will replace 83-year-old pub Stephanie Linning Senior News Reporter
Flickr: gusset
Bristol could soon see another Tesco store open its doors for business, with plans underway to replace a historic Horfield pub with a new branch of the supermarket chain. Although the future of the site has yet to be finalized, a Tesco spokesperson has confirmed that talks are currently underway to secure a lease for the 83-year-old pub, but stresses that no ‘firm plans’ have been made. The Fellowship, which lies on Filton Avenue has been sold by its owners, and its management told they have until April to vacate the premises. The pub, which originally opened as a brewery, has
changed hands a number of times since its 1929 opening, with its most recent owners being Admiral Taverns, the largest independent tenanted and leased company in the UK. Speaking on the decision to sell the site, Andy Clifford, property and strategy director for the company, says that The Fellowship simply did not have a ‘long-term future as part of the business’ and as such had to be sold. The announcement comes in the wake of continued controversy surrounding residents’ resistance to the retail giant’s presence in other areas of Bristol. Last year the opening of a Tesco store on Cheltenham Road, near Stokes Croft, prompted a night of violent riots after the supermarket received approval for the new site despite
The Fellowship first opened in 1929
the Council receiving a petition signed by thousands of local residents opposing the action.
In a similar situation in Knowle, local residents protested the opening of a
Tesco store in former pub, The Friendship Inn, fearing that the supermarket chain would
stop local shops from thriving. Commenting on the future of the site, Mr. Clifford admits that although it would be the company’s ‘strong preference’ that the site remains a pub, the fact is that, ‘the future use will ultimately pass into the hands of a new owner’. The local community has already rallied around The Fellowship, with the Bristol Civic Society launching a campaign in 2009 to have the pub protected as a listed building. Although the initiative was unsuccessful, it would appear that concern for the future of the local landmark remains. One Filton Avenue shop owner, who wished to remain unidentified, said, ‘Everyone around here is talking about Tesco opening in The Fellowship. ‘We don’t need another supermarket on this road.’
Bristol: one of the best places to live in UK Emily Gotta News Reporter Bristol has maintained its reputation as one of the best places to live in the UK according to the latest survey released by Centre for Cities, an independent and nonpartisan research institute. The survey reveals that after London and the South
East, Bristol has one of the lowest unemployment rates in the country and one of the most stable economies. Edinburgh was the only other city, according to the survey, to boast employment rates above the national average. In addition to Bristol’s steady growth in the construction of new houses, Bristol has also seen a higher birth rate than most other cities in the United Kingdom.
Consequently, along with York, Oxford, and Swindon, Bristol was declared one of the fastest growing cities in the UK. This report solidifies reports from 2009 and 2010 which revealed Bristol as one of the best cities in the UK, in which to live. In a OnePoll survey released in 2009, Bristol was named one of the best places to live in England based on a survey of 5,000 people which considered factors as quality
of life, friendliness and pay. The other cities in OnePoll’s
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As a student I feel that there is no better place than Bristol
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top five were Brighton, Oxford, Plymouth and Cambridge. In 2010, Bristol was named by Yours magazine as one of the
top ten places to retire to after looking at amenities, crime rates, public transport and scenery. At the time of the OnePoll survey results, Bristol City Council leader, Barbara Janke, said, ‘Bristol is a relatively small city compared to London, which could mean it still has a community feel, something you would be hard pushed to find elsewhere. ‘Residents have what they need at their fingertips – a
bustling, varied city centre, a great night life and friendly people.’ Katie Pesskin, a third year English student at the University of Bristol feels that Bristol is ideal for students. ‘As a student, I feel that there is no better place than Bristol,’ she told Epigram. ‘It’s big enough to get the city experience, while all the best bars, restaurants and shops remain within walking distance.’
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Marathon effort to support former Bristol Uni registrar
Tower tours raise £7,500 for local charity
Ellie Pierce Hayley Terretta News Reporters
Dr Jonathan Nicholls will be running the London marathon to help a recently retired Bristol Uni registrar
who retired. He had previously been working as Registrar and Secretary at the University of Essex. He has worked at many universities over his career, including Warwick and Sheffield, but was very positive about his appointment at Bristol, which he described as a jewel in the higher education crown. Dr Rich’s own study was undertaken at the University of Manchester where he completed a PhD in African politics. According to Nicholls, Dr Rich is ‘one of the most popular people in higher education.’ He asked Rich to front his fundraising campaign, and the retired registrar gladly accepted. He says he is delighted with his friend’s efforts and is encouraging friends and family
R Flickr: o yMarkle1 a l
University of Bristol alumnus, Dr Jonathan Nicholls, will be running this year’s London marathon, in honour of his friend Dr Tony Rich. Dr Rich is a recently retired registrar of the University, who has been diagnosed with terminal cancer. Nicholls’ fundraising campaign has currently raised over £11,000 for Bristol’s Cancer Research fund. The friendship that inspired Jonathan’s marathon began in the 1980s when the two men met whilst working as registrars at the University of Warwick. After the tragic news of Dr Rich’s diagnosis, Dr Nicholls was determined to take action. Despite never having run a marathon before, Dr Nicholls has begun intensive training. He says, ‘My friendship with Tony will inspire me, as will my debt to the University of Bristol, where I was an undergraduate in the 1970s. This is a huge opportunity to raise significant sums to beat the cancer that is taking Tony’s life’. Dr Rich joined the University in 2011, replacing Derek Pretty
to support his fundraising campaign. Dr Nicholls, who graduated with a degree in English in 1978, is one of eight Bristol alumni chosen to run the marathon in aid of the Cancer Research fund. The other participants include graduates from the last 25 years and one current student reading Maths and Computer Science, Christian Miles. The eight runners were chosen from a large number of applicants and were selected for the enthusiasm they showed for the fund’s work. The University Cancer Research Fund provides funding for early stage research. In order to provide this worthwhile assistance it aims to raise at least £200,000 in the next decade.
Bristol locals and visitors have been donating money in return for guided tours around the historic Wills Memorial building for the past 12 years. Money raised has gone towards Wallace and Gromit’s Grand Appeal, the Bristol Children’s Hospital Charity, who are currently supporting the Special Care Baby Unit. Tour Guide, Dave Skelhorne, commented that ‘We must have had more than 10,000 visitors over the years. The tours have proved very popular.’
Return of ‘Best of Bristol’ Uni lectures Alexander McColl News Reporter
Best of Bristol
Professor Ladyman pictured here delivering his popular philosophy lecture for the ‘Best of Bristol’ University series
The hugely popular ‘Best of Bristol’ lecture series returned to the University of Bristol on 2nd February. The event was initially set up by Bristol undergraduate Tom Corfield in 2010. The lectures celebrate the world class research and inspirational teaching at the University of Bristol. Any member of the university is able to nominate and vote for their favourite lecturer during October through to December last year. The most popular nominees were then approached to deliver a talk. The ‘Best of Bristol’ team registered that 565 votes were cast on the website. Two lectures have already been hosted. The first, given by neuroscientist Professor Andy Levy, focused mainly on the trials and tribulations of inventing products and then transferring the finished products to a particular market. Professor Levy began by asking the audience to challenge
some common assumptions. One was the belief that organic food is healthier and better for the environment. He pointed out that pyrethroids were used instead of chemical insecticides. Another common supposition is that exercising aids weight loss. Professor Levy presented a Canadian study, which found that appetite increases to perfectly match any increase in activity. He went on to deliver a profound insight into the process of innovation in the modern world, from his first hand experience improving medical instruments. Last week the philosophy specialist, Professor James Ladyman, presented a thorough overview of the discipline of Philosophy and argued for its continuing relevance today. Professor Ladyman’s lecture took roughly the same focus of his lecture last year, with some interesting logic puzzles aimed at highlighting the importance of logical thinking that Philosophy, at least analytical Philosophy, teaches. Turnout has been impressive, with about 400 coming to see Professor Levy, and 700 filling
the stalls and balcony of the Victoria rooms for Professor Ladyman’s lecture. This is the highest turnout so far. For those people who are unable to make the lectures, they will all be available as video podcasts of the Best of Bristol website. On the 23rd February, the Economics Teaching Fellow, Gervas Huxley, will be talking on the subject of ‘The balance between teaching and research’. On the 1st March, Professor of International Relations Jutta Weldes will consider the topic of ‘Dressing up and Queening it: Queen Elizabeth II, Dress, and British Public Diplomacy’. The fifth and final lecture of this year’s series will take place on the 8th of March. Professor of Phyisiology and Pharamchology Graeme Henderson will be hoping to inform as well as entertain with his lecture on ‘Drugs of abuse what do they do to the brain?’ All lectures take place between 1.10-2pm in the Victoria Rooms and are free of charge. For more information visit boblectures.org.uk
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20.02.2011
Features
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The objectification of women or ‘banter’? The growth of a misogynistic and predatory ‘lad’ culture is not just a problem for women - it’s a problem for manhood too
Flickr: Dennis Crowley
Patrick Burley Features Reporter Earlier this month saw the temporary closure of online magazine ‘UniLad’ - the selfproclaimed ‘number one university student lad’s mag and guide to getting laid’. The site was pulled down following the widespread condemnation of an article called ‘Sexual Mathematics’, which included this apparently hilarious remark: ‘If the girl you’ve taken for a drink… ‘won’t spread for your head’, think about this mathematical statistic: 85% of rapes go unreported. That seems to be fairly good odds.’ The article was embellished with an equally misjudged editorial disclaimer: ‘UniLad does not condone rape without saying “surprise”’. The magazine specialises in the kind of ‘light-hearted’ misogyny that is flourishing in university campuses throughout the country. For the writers at UniLad, sexism comes with the territory. It is sewn in to the exalted banner of ‘banter’, under which like-minded lads are brought
together in mutual delight at the phallocentric exploits and sexual misadventures of their peers. I’d imagine that it was with the same banterous jollity that the boys behind the UniLad twitter account dished out this razor-sharp double-whammy of misogyny and homophobia to one of their detractors: ‘@ sazza_jay are you a dyke?’ This, along with similar posts from UniLad writers and readers across a number of social networking sites, has severely undermined what was already an unconvincing apology that the lads posted on their website last Tuesday. So how are we supposed to take all this? Is there any credence to the claims made by UniLad’s multitude of online defenders that it’s only ‘harmless banter’? Do we see it as the shadowy but sadly inevitable underbelly of university gender politics? Before researching this article I couldn’t help but think of UniLad as a gang of schoolboys whispering among themselves, sniggering away in excited disbelief at their own unchecked nastiness. Now I’m much less certain that
they’re so easily dismissible. Anyone in doubt that the UniLad brand of misogyny has serious mainstream potential need only be reminded that in September of last year, Topman had to pull two t-shirts from its shelves because of their blatant
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Sexism is sewn into the exalted banner of ‘banter’, under which like-minded lads are brought together in mutual delight at the phallocentric exploits and sexual misadventures of their peers
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sexism and uneasy allusions to domestic violence. UniLad have also come under fire for their own slogan t-shirts that bear a striking resemblance to their banned Topman counterparts. What both Topman and UniLad
have realised is that misogyny has become marketable. If one of the largest and most mainstream high-street fashion stores can see the prevalence and acceptance of extreme sexist humour among its target market, then surely there is a problem, and surely it’s bigger than most of us would care to admit. We have arrived at a point where not only is the trivialisation of sexual violence seemingly ‘fair play’, but at which those who question it are branded humourless and pious by an angry mob of unrelenting banter crusaders. It’s not so much the ‘lad’ part that is objectionable, but more that it should be so comfortably associated with ‘Uni’. The implication is that university, supposedly a place of learning and development, has become the epicentre of a culture that openly objectifies and dehumanises women, and rewards the kind of creepy machismo that would probably go down a storm at one of Silvio Berlusconi’s infamous ‘Bunga Bunga’ parties. Yes, uni affords the all too brief opportunity for carefree partying before we’re herded out into a world
of responsibility and (most probably) financial despair, but does that mean we need to be a community mired in aggressive sexism? The attitude crystallised in sites like UniLad enables sexually liberated women to be demeaned as ‘sluts’ and men less willing to step aboard the convivial lad-wagon to be labelled ‘pussies’. How did that become the social norm? Think about the laddish frenzy that erupted (read: ejaculated) on to our very own netball team’s ‘Naked Calendar’ Facebook group at the end of last year. A majority of the ‘admiring’ comments were confidently sexist, overshadowing the probable good intentions of the calendar’s creators, and showing that the derogatory language of lad’s humour is by no means confined to the pages of lad’s mags. And so we arrive back at the steadiest bulwark of the UniLad defences - that it’s ‘only a joke’. Well, comedy is complicated stuff. What’s humorous banter to one lad may be a bit much for another, and perhaps it’s not such a stretch of the imagination to suppose that a few UniLad
readers might have found the jokey advocacy of rape more uncomfortable than amusing. Maybe we can even think of something like a ‘lad humour’ scale, from guffaws at bums, willies and fannies at one end, to the more discerning, ‘ironic’ meta-jokesters at the other. For those at the high end of the scale, who are allegedly at the vanguard of ‘boundary pushing’ humour (an argument that has repeatedly popped up during the UniLad controversy), it might be worth looking around to see how many of your friends actually get the joke. The shutting-down of ‘UniLad’ is an opportunity to think about the ways in which such jokes might be contributing to something much bigger than the lad’s mags that they fill-up. This is not only for the sake of gender equality, but for the sake of manhood, too. So many lads are playing at manliness as it’s perceived through a skewed vision of masculinity - a bit like a kid (on steroids) dressing up in Daddy’s clothes (if Daddy happened to be Peter Stringfellow). Maybe it’s time we lads got a suit that actually fits.
‘Just banter’ or ‘incredibly creepy’? Have your say at epigram.org.uk The offending Topman T-Shirt
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Debunking the myth of the strong man With male suicide rates at three times that of female rates in the UK, Epigram questions the wisdom of men suffering in silence Tom Vaughan Features Reporter Buzz Aldrin walked on the moon. Stan Collymore scored 251 goals in an 11-year professional football career. Harrison Ford played Indiana Jones and Han Solo, grossing over $5bn of film revenues during his career, and Winston Churchill led Britain through the Second World War. These are the kind of achievements which small boys dream about, and grown men look to for inspiration. Acts of bravado, fuelled by blood, sweat and tears, from heroes gruffly acknowledged and hailed as ‘real men’ over a Stella down The King’s Arms. The fact that these four men have suffered from and very publicly talked about mental illness is apparently something that, as a society, we are less prepared to face. Perhaps their willingness to openly discuss deeply troubling problems doesn’t sit well with our idealized conception of the hard, stoic man; quietly battling his demons by playing darts and bleeding radiators? Today, these mythical, archaic strongmen are few and far between. Men are ever more likely to be sharing domestic responsibilities with
their partners or knocking up a quick soufflé in the kitchen before they head out to the football. Yet, however keen we may be to move away from baseless gender stereotypes, men are still reticent to talk about mental health. Of course, choosing to discuss any form of mental illness is a purely personal choice. To suggest that everyone suffering in silence, male or female, feels compelled to do so by social pressures would be unhelpful and insensitive. The figures, however, speak for themselves; suicide is the leading cause of
death among UK males between 15 and 34 years old – responsible for more deaths than traffic accidents. Three out of every four UK suicides are male. In the 15-24 age group, the number of men killing themselves each year has doubled since 1971. However, women are far more often diagnosed with mental illnesses than men, and are approximately twice as likely to refer themselves to primary mental health services. Why, if men are at such great risk of suicide, are they slipping through the net? Ally Fogg writes in the
Guardian that ‘we tell boys not to cry, then wonder about male suicide’. He’s right. Silence and strength are far too often equated. From our misty-eyed delusion of the British ‘stiff upper lip’ to the (immensely irritating and bastardized beyond recognition) ‘Keep Calm and Carry On’ poster, popular culture seems to prefer that we ‘don’t mention the war’. Cristina Odone displayed an impressive degree of ignorance in the Telegraph last year when she suggested that public men should never show themselves up as ‘blubbing big boys’,
instead adopting a ‘Churchillian’ stoicism. That the man in question wrote extensively on his struggles with the ‘black dog’ of clinical depression was left conveniently unmentioned. I’m not advocating some sort of mass male cry-fest; a cathartic orgy of brotherly love, bonding, and man-sized Kleenex in Trafalgar Square. Even without the social stigma attached, it’s likely that men would still be less comfortable broaching the subject of mental health than women. What we should recognize is that emotional openness among men must not be portrayed as a sign of weakness because when it comes to illnesses such as depression, bipolar disorder and others, silence can kill. Telling somebody that you’re struggling makes you no less of a man. From experience, I know that embarrassment and shame based on a misconceived definition of ‘masculinity’ can be huge obstacles in the often draining fight against the black dog. So, how can the UK’s surging suicide rate amongst men be arrested? The National Mental Health Development Unit notes that the clearly defined national strategy for women’s mental health, which has been
in place since 2003, has not seen a parallel project for men. This must change now. Let’s see a publicity campaign targeted at men, telling them that strength is in speaking up, not fading in silence. Let’s see talking therapies tailored to men which understand the potential difficulties in opening up. Let’s adapt our diagnostic tools so that often-dismissed symptoms of illness prevalent in men, such as anger or increased fatigue, can be recognised and acted upon. The Department of Health calls for a ‘cultural change’ in the way society views women and mental health. Bravo, I say – but what about the men? Jane Powell, head of the excellent Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM) notes that the expectation on men to keep quiet is ‘destructive, selfish, and plain nasty.’ The UK’s suicide epidemic is doubtless a problem which bridges the gender gap, but it disturbingly continues to disproportionately affect males. To have the courage to speak up about mental illness has nothing to do with masculinity, or a lack thereof; it is an immensely tough step to take which, for some, could be the difference between life and death.
Students sleep on streets for asylum seeker campaign Katherine Stansfeld Lorna Whitton Features Reporters
www.star-network.org
Students all over the country will be ‘down and out’ and sleeping rough this month to demonstrate that asylum seekers are still human and still here. From the 20th February, in collaboration with a campaign known as ‘Still Human Still Here’ student led groups across the country and numerous national organisations will be holding an action week. The campaign aims to draw attention to those seeking asylum who, through a lack of government support, are made destitute. Still Human has four main aims including the provision of sufficient support for asylum seekers to meet their essential living needs, a provision of free access to healthcare for asylum seekers whilst they are in the country, the permission of asylum seekers to work if their case has not been resolved within six months, and to improve the decision making process. Raising awareness of this vulnerable group are societies
such as Student Action for Refugees and Amnesty International, who focus attention on the dire need for policy change within government but also a more soul searching and fundamental change within society to remove ignorance and appreciate a refused refugee’s right to existence. Whilst there is provision for successful asylum seekers up to a point, including an allowance of £35 per week, most simply do not receive enough to meet their basic needs, and others have been refused asylum and receive no support at all – this is the group the campaign is especially concerned with. To contrast this, a British citizen in the same circumstances would receive £67.50 – showing a distortion of the value of people from different, and often more troubled, countries. Bristol societies such as Bristol Student Action for Refugees and Amnesty International Society are joining with students around the country and campaigning in advance of the decision being made in April on whether support rates for asylum seekers will be
Students protesting over the rights of asylum seekers and refugees in Manchester
increased in line with inflation. Student Action for Refugees Action Week, commencing on 20th February, intends to incorporate the campaign for asylum seekers’ right to work. Asylum seekers are denied this right by the Government’s
regulations - despite repeated claims in the mainstream press, many asylum seekers want to contribute to British society. The campaign would like to highlight the long-term plight of those who are authorised to stay in the country, as well
as the more urgent need for support for the community of failed asylum seekers. For Action Week here in Bristol, Bristol Student Action for Refugees have joined with Bristol Amnesty International Society to tackle this important
issue and have organised a sleep out. Sleeping outside rough for a night will, according to Mala Savjani, President of Bristol Student Action for Refugees, ‘be paramount to raising awareness about the thousands of asylum seekers who through no fault of their own cannot return to their countries where they would be facing war, torture and political oppression, and yet have been rejected asylum here in the UK and have to face sleeping rough and living in poverty’. In the run up to the government review of asylum rates, raising awareness is of tantamount importance. Olivia Field of STAR said, ‘We will be sleeping out in solidarity with the plight of these destitute asylum seekers, to highlight an issue which is so present in our communities. We hope to be joined by local refugee organisations, asylum seekers themselves, students from the University and people across the city, with music, entertainment and food to fill the night’. The Sleep out will be held on 25th February 2012, 5pm at the Fountains (opposite the Hippodrome), Bristol city centre.
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Republic of Belarus: Europe’s forgotten dictatorship Kate Samuelson Features Reporter
The Belarus Free Theatre are an underground group who can only perform in secret
1994), newspapers are censored, and information filtered to support governmental propaganda. ‘There are some Russian channels you can view’ Alexandr explained, ‘and you can have a satellite, and Internet access, however the majority of Belarusian citizens cannot afford this privilege.’ The Internet has opened doors to the minority with access to it, as has the ability to view opposition websites such as Charter’97 and
use of social networking sites has helped spread information about the country’s situation, along with enabling citizens to gain a greater understanding about life outside Belarus. Of course, the Internet is not completely free – it is often filtered and individuals can find their cyber access being monitored and recorded by officials, particularly if they are seen to be a political threat. The government does its best
Greg Wood
Who knows much about Belarus? Perhaps some people could place it on a map; sandwiched between Russia, Ukraine, Poland, Lithuania and Latvia, a tiny country with a population of only 9.49 million. Others, possibly, are aware that its capital city is Minsk. But aside from these basic facts, we hear nothing of Belarus on the news; neither about its corrupt political system nor the horrendous oppression of human rights. Belarus remains a country ignored by foreign media, despite it desperately needing external help. ‘It’s because we have no oil or gas, so we are not interesting in terms of world economy’ Alexandr Topolev explained to me, a Polotsk civilian I interviewed on Skype, ‘If we had natural resources, other countries would be far more interested in our situation.’ Sadly, this seems true, as while UK politics regularly focus on foreign issues, we hear nothing about Belarus. Even Belarusian citizens have difficulties finding impartial, balanced news about their own country. All public television is government owned, under Alexander Lukashenko (who has been president since
to prevent and thwart any sort of opposition, highlighting the overwhelmingly undemocratic nature of the country. Any action, such as protesting, must be sanctioned by the government. Demonstrators must apply a month ahead, to be presented with a specific time and place where they can protest (of course, somewhere isolated and out of the centre) quelling any chance of spontaneity. These rules have been enforced as a consequence
of the demonstrations held in December 2010, after the Presidential elections, in which Lukashenko received 80% of the vote, leading to civilians stating the result was fraudulent. Many opposing candidates were sentenced to over four years in prison, or house arrest as a consequence of protesting. Freedom of speech is nonexistent in Belarus. The need for sanctions against the Belarusian government extends further than just the political sphere. Any religious event involving more than three people must be governmentally sanctioned and approved. Even Shabbat dinners for Jews, which are often informal and impulsively planned, and the ancient Russian tradition of a priest coming to the family’s home when someone dies, are technically meant to be sanctioned a month before the event takes place, but, as Alexandr explained to me, ‘No one actually does’. It seems that as long as things are done quietly and carefully, the strict and highly impractical rules of Lukashenko’s regimes can be gently avoided. Belarusian lifestyle is extremely difficult. Inflation has led to a 300% increase in prices, higher than in the rest of Europe. Salaries are also lower than the rest of Europe, often
only being $150-200 a week (the average in the UK is about $500). As Alexandr described, ‘Life in Belarus is both economically and mentally difficult’. Along with a challenging economic climate, the literal climate is equally testing, with temperatures often dropping as low as -27 degrees. It is no wonder that so many young people try to leave, emigrating to the USA, Canada, Russia and Ukraine in particular. Clearly it is frustrating growing up in a place where change seems impossibly slow: ‘As a young person, I wanted to believe change would come,’ Alexandr told me, ‘Although there is not much visible hope for the future, I do not believe in running away from problems’. Well, what can we do to help? As Alexandr explained, ‘Even small changes make a huge amount of difference’. Sponsoring and supporting organisations such as Free Belarus Now and the Charter’97 declaration calling for democracy in Belarus can help spread the word about the condition of civilians in Belarus and the virtual dictatorship they live in. We cannot forget Belarus: no matter how small the country is, or how little would be in it for us economically, as free citizens we need to defend and protect those whose freedom is in jeopardy.
Wikipedia and Orange in Africa: spreading free information Nahema Marchal Features Reporter
Dusan Belic
In the first partnership of this kind, France Telecom-owned Orange has struck an agreement with the Wikimedia Foundation, the non-profit organisation that operates Wikipedia, to make the encyclopaedia available, free of data charges, to millions of mobile browsers across Africa and the Middle East (AMEA). Marc Rennard, the Group executive Vice President for Africa, Middle East and Asia commented about the deal: ‘In countries where access to information is not always readily available, we are making it simple and easy for our customers to use the world’s most comprehensive online encyclopaedia.’ As European markets are starting to saturate, the need to open up to new horizons is pressing for the mobile operator. Increasing mobile penetration in AMEA does not only mean the emergence of two buoyant and highly profitable new markets – but also the opportunity to improve lives. So, can this move to make knowledge more available
in developing countries be described as altruistic? What is at stake for both parties? Orange is already widely present in most Frenchspeaking African territories, such as Tunisia, Morocco or Senegal, and in West Africa, and its establishment as a mobile superpower has proved beneficial on several levels.
The company has for instance teamed up with mPedigree, a non-profit organisation fighting pharmaceutical counterfeiting, to allow customers to instantly verify the safety and authenticity of their medicines at no cost, using their mobile phones and a bar code. Moreover, Orange has developed its own mobile banking
initiative, Orange Money, which permits individuals and small businesses needing to pay bills and wages to open a free account with their mobile phone, from which they can deposit and withdraw money: an honorable contribution to the local economy at a time when banks are scarce. However, these health and
financial initiatives cannot be seen as philanthropic in themselves: despite providing indispensable services to customers, they both add to Orange’s image worldwide and do not fail to benefit the company immensely by increasing speaking time and text messages. Sadly, the same goes for Wikipedia. ‘Wikipedia is an important service, a public good – and so we want people to be able to access it for free regardless of what device they’re using’ said Sue Gardner, Executive Director of the Wikimedia Foundation. The reality is that this offer can only be made available to owners of 2G or 3G Webenabled phones – which merely represents 1 in 7 users. The avowed goal of this free service is to increase the proportion of smartphones to 50% of customers by 2015 said a spokesman from Orange. Besides, as of today, the mobile operator has only committed to provide the service over this period of three years. If there is one lesson that can be drawn from Wikipedia’s antiSOPA blackout last month, it is that access to free and relevant information is a linchpin of any society: a fact that we
too often take for granted. Most of us realised that day that we are nothing, without unlimited access to Internet’s banks of knowledge. In that regard, Orange’s move will be undoubtedly be beneficial: it will contribute to the improvement of thousands of lives and to the broadening of public knowledge. The other lesson to be drawn from the blackout, is that knowledge
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As European markets are starting to saturate, the need to open up to new horizons is pressing for the mobile operator
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is not a commodity that can be bought, sold or partially reduced, and should not be viewed as such. If denying citizens access to information that were previously made available to them is called censorship, how then should we qualify obtaining access to ‘a public good’ in exchange for the purchase of a fancy phone?
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Stumbling blocs: Syria left in the dark Al-Assad continues to massacre his own people as Syria is the victim of political posturing Sam Fishwick
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Humanitarian tragedy of global consequence is being reduced to merely uncomfortable politics at the ambassadors’ dining tables
‘Where is the world?’ Printed on a blank banner lifted above the crowds of protestors gathered in the beleaguered city of Homs last Friday, the desperate appeal of the Syrian people was spelt out in black and white. The question is of even greater concern after the issue was fumbled once again at the recent United Nations Security Council. Eleven months of brutal repression by President AlAssad’s government has scarred the nation. Its people have come to feel bitter, abandoned, and alone – and with good reason. The devastation of Homs is being played out on a national scale. Meanwhile, the international community has failed to agree the necessary UN resolution to address a situation which is deteriorating by the day. There is a real danger that a
humanitarian tragedy of global consequence is being reduced to merely uncomfortable politics at the ambassadors’ dining table – a storm served in a teacup – as progress is held back by Russian and Chinese opposition Evidently, this is where the world is: mired in the slow process of ‘doing things right’ while others do wrong. Russia was quick to defend its position on the proposed resolution, declaring it ‘unbalanced’ in its current form. There is little doubt that this barely scratches the surface of Moscow’s concerns. The suspicion remains that Russia is defending its assets in Syria in an effort to prevent the spread of Western influence in the Middle-East. A Russian flotilla including the country’s only operational aircraft carrier was deployed to the Syrian port
of Tartus in the last few days. But there is more to the agenda than post-Cold War posturing. Russia considers itself to have been outmanoeuvred by the West over Libya, having been profoundly disturbed by the perceived transition from a ‘no-fly zone’ to a NATOassisted revolution. And while the first UN resolution only called for an immediate end to government clampdowns in Syria, the latest draft proposes a ‘Syrian-led political transition to a democratic, plural political system’ – in other words, further regime change. The real frustration for the thirteen members of the Security Council united on the proposed resolution is that the direct military intervention feared by Russia and China has been tacitly ruled out anyway. The recent
examples of Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya illustrate the practical, moral and legal difficulties of military deployment in the Middle-East. The surgical removal of a mass murdering autocrat is a fine idea, but in reality is a messy affair. Syria is at boiling point, but it is a completely different kettle to that of Libya less than twelve months ago. Assad’s military is eight times the size of Gaddafi’s, whilst the Free Syrian Army (FSA) is proportionally far smaller. Furthermore, the population of Syria is more than three times that of Libya’s, with a demographic less easily divided into ethnic groups who support and condemn the regime. Divide and conquer is not the easy option here that it was for the Libyan rebels. The United Nations is juggling the enormous cost of
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Flickr: Abode of Chaos
Flickr: GageSkidmore
their proposed response. Stung by the experiences of the last armed support it gave to the region, the west is acutely conscious of even higher projected civilian casualties in Syria were it to become actively engaged in removing Assad, as well as the potentially catastrophic damage the move would have on international relations. Assad continues to enjoy the local backing of Iran, Iraq and Lebanon, whilst the support of Russia and, to a lesser extent, China has become all the more obvious in recent days. But while these factors are mooted by our governments, people continue to die. There is a sense that a trick has been missed with the recent ‘No-vote.’ Strong opposition in the form of sanctions from the international community may have finally turned the Syrian business elite against Assad, and had a similar effect on an army forced to fire upon its own people. As it stands, limited aid unofficially drips into the country in the form of freelance surgeons and particularly diligent aid agencies like ‘Doctors without Borders’, while Russia continues to provide arms to the Syrian government. The United States’ ambassador to the UN, Susan Rice signalled her disgust at the responsibilities shirked by Russia and China in the wake of the veto, declaring that ‘Any further bloodshed that flows will be on their hands.’ And as the Security Council thus bickers and trades blame between member states, the world looks helplessly on. The onus is on the UN and Arab League to settle a resolution swiftly. Time is not on their side.
Left-wing students are way off the Marx Jevon Whitby It is assumed by many that in Britain’s universities, young people will take every opportunity to ‘rebel’ against the establishment. It is imagined that Communist and Blairite students can presumably find some common ground under the vague label of being on the ‘Left’ and will take the chance to rail against authority. So why does the older population assume that all students are raving Marxists? Ask your
own parents where they think you, the student, fits in politically and the answer will be both horrifyingly simple and fascinatingly incorrect. It is of course impossible to properly categorise people’s political views. Other people’s judgement of you is never quite accurate, is it? In reality, Bristol’s student body is not an army of radicals. Indeed, most students would have more in common with the Conservative Party than they would with an ardent Communist. You may well believe that your friend is ‘Centre-Right’ and you are ‘Centre-Left’ but in most cases this is a distinction as meaningless as the difference between your respective
fingerprints. Is it that students are merely younger, open to progressive ideas rather than older principles? Are we sympathetic to the Left because we pay less tax? Or perhaps it is the collective nature of the ‘Left’ that leads to generalisations about hoards of ‘lefty’ students? A cynic could argue that it is the recent Coalition cuts that drive students. This seems unfair: since last year’s tuition fees protests many might believe so, but throughout the ‘60s and ‘70s students were arguably even more notorious for their support of left-wing causes. Prior to ‘the great betrayal of 2010,’ most students were not strongly left-wing at all, but
moderate Liberal Democrats, for high public education spending, sympathetic to nuclear disarmament and against tuition fees. In 2012, Bristol University has its fair share of young Conservatives, Liberal Democrats, the undecided and the unaffiliated who clearly prove that not all students are left-wing. Could it be that the student left has a history of being the most vocal political grouping? Is it a combination of free time and mass-activism that leads to the left-wing stereotype? Students clearly care about political issues and that many often choose left-leaning opinions is hardly surprising: for three years or more we live shared, collaborative
lives and, we approve of a certain odd brand of left-wing optimism that is less cynical about the future we will have to live through. If students come across as overly zealous, perhaps this is because the older generation are less willing to take to the streets to make their point. Regardless, no stereotype hits harder though than the very real notion of many students being completely apathetic to politics. In this sense our loyalty is irrelevant. If we do not vote, we are of little value to the left, the right, or anyone else. Jokes about students oversleeping on election day are all very amusing, but with less than 30% of young people turning up to vote, students
are not so much left-wing as left behind. A week does not go by in Bristol when someone is not offering leaflets for ‘The Revolution.’ Take them and read them, if only because it is valuable life experience. For a few pounds at the fresher’s fair, join the party you most object to. Since the demise of national service, many young people will get few opportunities in life to be thrown together with those who radically disagree with their political views. Confronting the other side is a truly aggravating, and wholly necessary experience that is needed to infuse our generation with political responsibility and university is the perfect time to enjoy it.
Epigram
20.02.2012
14
A very fashionable misunderstanding
Vicky Woolley argues that anorexia derives from much more than an insensitive and corrupted fashion industry
Vicky Woolley
disorders. If you doubt that women are encouraged to see themselves from a physical point of view in this ‘post-feminist’ age, then presumably you have never looked at a news-stand. You have probably never seen a little girl tottering on plastic high-heels under the Christmas tree, covered in play make-up while her brother builds Lego. Not to mention the phenomenon of push-up bras for pre-teens. Perhaps the most damning evidence is the distortion of feminist rhetoric which tells girls they will find sexual liberation only by having their bodies appreciated by men, as strippers, pole dancers or porn stars. This focus on the physique can pervade everything a woman does: have a high-paying job by all means, but do it in a pencilskirt and heels. Play sport? Sure, it’s a great way to lose weight! A woman can even lead Europe’s most powerful economy, but she won’t escape sniping comments about her figure. That some women choose to express their internal struggles through vicious control of their bodies is a consequence of this modern obsession. If you want to control, punish or define yourself - your ‘self ’ being your body - then starvation is hardly a leap away. These issues are far from clear-cut, but one thing is
Flickr: Oleg Ti
We’ve all heard a thousand times that the fashion industry and the media encourage eating disorders in young women. The story goes that freakishly tall, emaciated teenagers are paraded on the catwalk and in magazines causing women throughout the western world to stop eating. This popular narrative, whereby women feel pressured to look like Kate Moss or Lily Cole and opt for a life of painful deprivation, is dangerously over-simplified. It is true that a constant stream of images of stick thin, largebreasted girls does nothing for many women’s self-esteem. The pressure to look like these models and celebrities is real, subtle and pernicious and encourages dieting that can be the first step towards a disorder. However, to explain disorders purely in terms of ‘wanting to look like the women on TV’ is not only patronising, it masks much deeper social factors. Including normally-sized models in London Fashion Week, or in the pages of Marie Claire, is a laudable
aim for a number of reasons. However, we cannot believe that such simple actions will stop young women denying themselves food. One central fact about anorexia is hardly ever uttered in public: this is a disease which has existed, and afflicted primarily young women, for the best part of a millennium. Anorexia is not a readily treatable by-product of the media age, it is a deeply rooted flaw in a culture dominated by an obsession with the female body. Some of the earliest evidence of women deliberately starving themselves comes from the Middle Ages. One of the most famous examples is Catherine of Siena, Italy’s patron saint, who died aged thirty-three following years of deliberate starvation. The Victorian age saw another peak in anorexic behaviour. It became common for middle class girls to express discontent by manipulating the one thing they had some power over: their bodies. The Middle Ages and the Victorian period shared a popular fixation on women’s bodies as sources of virtue, sin and temptation. Although our society has moved on since then, our current body obsession also encourages women to see their bodies as the most important part of themselves. It is in this overly physical,almost dehumanising self-image that we should look for the real roots of eating
startlingly obvious: we need to stop talking about women with eating disorders as if they just really, really want to look skinny in a bikini. If looking like a thin female model was the long and short of anorexia, there wouldn’t be a single male sufferer of the disorder. The powerful sensation of control that self-starvation can give a person is so rarely talked about that it’s almost taboo. For a young woman conflicted about herself, her social role
and the expectations that everyone else has of her body, this sensation can be euphoric. Staring at a thinning reflection can be the first time that many women feel genuine ownership of their bodies and, in turn, of their lives. Extreme thinness can even feel like an escape from a ‘female’ body shape and all of the expectations and pressures connected with life as a woman. We need to take a step back, look at our culture and stop
pretending that the fashion industry and glossy magazines are the only things driving women towards this kind of body obsession. When our bodies are no longer the largest part of our identities, maybe we will no longer damage and destroy them in a search for expression and control. At the very least, maybe dangerously ill women and girls will not be written off and patronised as over-dedicated followers of fashion.
Trouble looming for Bristol’s Arts subjects
Bristol University’s plans to increase their humanities intake will only stretch its resources and harm standards
Jessica McKay After years of calling for a higher status and more recognition, the imminent expansion of the Humanities department is being heralded as a triumph. Last term the University announced that it would increase student numbers in response to the Government’s lifting of the recruitment cap for high achieving students. English and History were granted a 60-70% increase each for 2012, doubling their respective sizes. Although on the surface a massive boost for Humanities at Bristol, this expansion has been met with anger and frustration by many current students.
The issue arises from the fact that although expanding the intake of students, there is little concrete evidence that resources and staffing will be increased accordingly. On the 9th February a staffstudent conference was held to discuss the issue. The large number of students at the meeting highlighted that many individuals care deeply how these plans will affect the quality of their teaching. Even with the current number of students, resources are extremely stretched. Trying to secure a computer in the Arts library is comparable to jungle warfare. So too with books; there are often only two or three copies of books essential for writing a specific essay. The process of requesting, holding and suggesting new books is simply too slow to deal with the demand. With a sharp increase in student numbers, this rigmarole is only going to become more frustrating.
Furthermore, the Humanities complex itself is ill-equipped. Lecture theatres are unable to accommodate the new, larger contingent of first-year students. Their lectures will have to be held in theatres far from the main complex, a practicality which again shows an oversight on the University’s part. Bristol Humanities have always prized themselves on intimacy, selectivity and putting onus on the ‘individual.’ With increased numbers and estrangement from the ‘hub’ of Humanities, the complex itself, will feelings of alienation and inadequacy occur? While single-honours English and History numbers will double abruptly, the already small joint-honours numbers will stay the same. With many joint-honours students already feeling somewhat sidelined, the likelihood is that expansion will only increase feelings of alienation, and leave them overwhelmed by single-
honours students. The majority of first-year English and History students have on average six contact hours a week, including lectures. While this may be excellent in facilitating frequent trips to the triangle and plenty of hours in bed, it also seems at times extremely insufficient. Will the influx of students eradicate the prospect of securing more teaching hours, stretching an already seemingly pressed staff to its limits? The University claims that staffing will be increased along with s t u d e n t
numbers, but where is the guarantee that this will come to fruition? The lack of concrete answers to our many questions, and the lack of clarification from the heads of departments themselves, gives a pervading impression of uncertainty. It is interesting to note that the departments themselves were not consulted prior to news of the expansion, so who is to be held a cco u n ta b l e for the success or failure of the move, and on whose ‘guarantee’ do we place these promises?
Expanding the department could be a wonderful thing. As tuition fees shoot up in price, subjects such as History and English will undoubtedly be neglected in favour of more ‘practical’ degrees offering clearer career-paths such as Medicine and Engineering. A Humanities degree is an extremely special thing and should be recognized as such. If there are intelligent, enthusiastic young people applying to Bristol who have a passion for English or History and the grades to match, the University would only be impeding itself in turning them away. Yet the hopeful prospects of this expansion are insurmountably marred because the faculty simply isn’t ready for such an influx. Even the most basic principles of planning dictate that the resources must match the demand. Without this equilibrium, the expansion is unlikely to be a success.
Epigram
20.02.2012
15
Are the London Olympics worthwhile? Yes
No
Rebecca Pike
Gjeta Gjyshinca
in this fashion is part and parcel of the build up to a major sporting event. But hosting the Olympics is not really something to be judged on number crunching and congestion charges and I am fed up of being bombarded with figures and statistics which try to persuade me either way. This is a celebration, and I think we should not lose sight of the Games for what they are: a once in a generation event. In true British style, there will be some inevitable grumbling about transport problems, parking restrictions and £9 pints, but when the games begin, the atmosphere will be amazing and we will remember it for the rest of our lives. The celebrations will reinstate some national pride and optimism and the inspiration it will provide to a new generation of sportsmen and women should not be underestimated. The organisation of the event has been by no means perfect - I still believe they could have got more tickets to more people in the UK and we must wait to see whether the Olympic size budget really will boost the economy by the ‘billions’ that Cameron says it will. Yet for all the critics’ dutiful and at times ominous number crunching, there is one sum that they have grossly overlooked: pride, legacy and inspiration. These, you just can’t put a price on.
teenager-s.com Flickr: Sangudo
Less than six months to go, 15,000 athletes, 37 competition venues and all this at a cost of £9.3bn. Yet as the London 2012 Olympic Games draw ever nearer, we are still left pondering whether it will all be worth the cost? It cannot be denied that the Games’ whopping budget - that amounts to £350 per British household - is hard to swallow, particularly for a competition that is, we mustn’t forget, a mere 16 days long. There is also the effect that it will have on the capital’s residents. In a city that already heaves under commuter pressure, it is hard to imagine that the tube could get any worse in the summer months without the extra three million journeys a day that are expected to take place. Yet as the Games approaches, supporting officials are pulling out facts by the bucket load which are getting more and more unrealistic by the day. According to a report earlier this year by Visa, the UK economy will be boosted by £750m of spending during the Olympic and Paralympic Games, and £709m from this number will be accounted for by foreign visitors’ spending. However, no other Olympic host has enjoyed such an increase in domestic spending. Even the international visitors in the Beijing Olympics spent little over £93m. Banding about numbers
What shouldn’t you spend money on during a recession? Unnecessary extravagance, perhaps? The current estimate for the total cost of the London 2012 Olympics is £12bn. Never mind the fact that the original estimate in 2005 was £2.37bn – how can the government justify an expenditure of this magnitude when the UK is still struggling to come out of a hard-hitting recession, unemployment is at an alltime high, and the financial pressure on the taxpayer is so fierce? Despite Sports Minister Hugh Robertson’s argument that the Olympics will ‘Benefit the economy and the public and tourism in the long run,’ there is no getting past the fact that a whopping amount of cash is being spent on the opening and closing ceremonies – with extravagant displays of acrobats, dancers and fireworks, money will be going up in flames. The Olympics also has grave social repercussions. With everyone so focused on an inaugural ceremony to outperform Beijing’s, preventing sex trafficking is not a high priority for the London Olympic agencies – yet the illegal business flourishes every time there is a major sporting event. This abuse of human rights means London could be host to victims of
crime as well as high-flying visitors. The government has also claimed this will be the ‘greenest’ Olympics ever. Despite this, the tickets are being flown across the Atlantic, as the multimillionpound ticket-printing contract was recently sold to an American firm. Shouldn’t the government be supporting homegrown companies? The revelation over the tickets came days after it was exposed that just 9% of £1bn worth of Olympics merchandise has been produced in the UK – and there I was thinking that the Games could be used as a showroom for British industry. While tens of millions of visitors are expected to arrive in the UK this summer to boost the country’s economy, this is not a sustainable longterm benefit. What happens once the games are over and the tourists are gone? The money will go with them. The Olympic legacy will be a population of dissatisfied taxpayers, dazed by the vague memory of a fireworks display that seemed louder and brighter than the ones before and was supposedly worth all the spending cuts, the increased taxes and the suffocating hardship for millions of Britain’s poorest.
Companies are cashing in on unpaid internships
Natalie Collins A report from the Office for National Statistics in 2011 claimed that the country’s lack of economic growth is currently reflected in the reluctance of employers to increase their labour forces. In real terms, this means that unpaid internships have become a desirable solution for businesses in the face of the economic decline; giving them the opportunity to run with as little financial strain as possible. For those students and graduates who cannot afford the privilege
of unpaid work experience, many opportunities are denied. Meanwhile, those who do become interns are exploitatively overworked and denied the rights granted to their colleagues. I question whether unpaid internships can be considered not only moral, but legal. The equality of opportunity is a principle that has gradually become a touchstone of meritocracy, guiding the law concerning matters of social mobility. The past fifty years have seen the introduction of numerous laws such as the Equal Pay Act of 1970 and the Equal Opportunities Act of 2004. Both sought to socially reform business conduct as a means to balance the natural economic inequalities within society.Unpaid internships stand in opposition to the enforcement and growth
of the equality of opportunity. It denies to those ‘without means’ vital work experience. In spite of the extensive measures to ensure ethical conduct is upheld in business, it appears that little is being done to protect and support graduates and students who are attempting in vain to advance their careers. This problem has serious consequences; with the numbers of highly-qualified graduates rising, work experience is no longer a bonus to employers, but rather a requirement. A research report by the HECSU (Higher Education Careers Service Unit) in 2011 outlined the importance of attaining work experience by revealing that 20% of the 16 500 graduates, asked whether they had previously conducted work experience at a company, later received a full-time position
there. Many of those who did not work for their work-experience employer claimed that they had established valuable contacts during their time there. This evidence provokes the worry that if certain graduates cannot acquire the necessary work experience, because of their financial situation, then certain career paths are automatically wrenched from their grasp; especially jobs which are often the most desirable, competitive and elitist. This is a vicious circle that traps the poor in a perpetual state of unemployment. Opportunity is handed out to those who can afford it. Unpaid internships are advocated by businesses with an exploitative intention and their use is a hindrance to social equality. Their immorality is irrefutable. It seems necessary to
question why it is that amongst the numerous acts that have sought to establish equality, none has attempted to ban the operation of unpaid internships. The law states that a person is entitled to minimum wage of £6.08 for workers aged 21 and over and £4.98 for those aged between 18 and 20 on the conditions that they are contributing to a company, have a list of tasks and set working hours. It seems that the ambiguity of such phrasing has left the law open to interpretation and, consequently, abuse. Employers can escape incrimination through semantic loopholes and disguising work opportunities as ‘volunteering’; in which case the law seems powerless to protect graduates. Whilst Lib-Dem leader Nick Clegg has demonstrated a level of dissatisfaction with the laws
on unpaid internships in April 2011, his pledges to reform them seem like yet another empty promise. Clegg claimed that the system of acquiring internships as party favours from ‘Daddy’s contacts’ is quite clearly a ‘Bar to social mobility’. In spite of this, unpaid internships are still in operation within the Lib-Dem party itself as within many other sections of government. Sadly, Nick Clegg’s recurrent message can be translated as ‘Do as I say not as I do.’ This patronising hypocrisy allied with immense economic strains has left students and graduates bearing the brunt of the government’s negligence. This has left the gateway open for injustices, like unpaid internships, to creep up silently, with little opposition, leaving those who are affected powerless.
Epigram
20.02.2012
Letters & Editorial AGM still needs to improve
Page 7
Religion and prejudice in the west
In his piece about gender imbalance in mainstream pin-up photography in issue 246, Guy Sephton remarks ‘a transition to a sexy fella regularly on the opening page of a popular newspaper would seem bizarre’ and ‘a page 3 for men seems rather implausible’. In fact, The Sun used to run an occasional Page 7 Fella picture in the 1980s (see http://www.80sactual. com/2005/05/equality-in-80spage-7-fella-and-stor y.html and http://www.facebook.com/ groups/8924854657/). Admittedly, these featured less prominently and more sporadically than the longrunning Page 3 female spot, and ultimately proved fairly short-lived. What this says about attitudes towards and by each gender/orientation must remain, as ever, a topic for endless controversy. Francis Harvey
George Hall’s opinion piece on islamophobia, islamofascism, and Islam in general in issue 246 demands serious scrutiny. I am afraid Mr Hall’s obvious dislike for religion (and like for Christopher Hitchens) got in the way of his making logical arguments. I particularly have issue with his depiction of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) as (merely) ‘a male adult of the species homo sapiens, who existed in primitive Arabia’. This attempt at humour is completely misguided - blinded by bad scholarship on what is the first or second greatest religion in the world today (please understand by great I mean number of followers and influence - I am not advocating sectarianism). Muhammad was indeed fully human (he is not idolised as a god; Mr Hall is correct here) but he lived in Arabia at a time when this part of the world was light
years ahead of the west, which was stuck in the Dark Ages following the fall of Rome. Within the culture of Islam came scientific and mathematical advancements that the west had not re-discovered until almost a thousand years later when the Renaissance was becoming an Enlightenment. Muhammad, being the founder of Islam, should not be put in the same sentence as the word ‘primitive’. This is not only degrading to an entire culture and religion but a blatantly incorrect (and I will add
- giving Mr Hall the benefit of the doubt - misguided) portrayal. I am afraid Mr Hall’s article merely shows how, within the west, and particularly in academia, we are still battling with what we see as a divide between faith and reason. Thus secularism is seen as enlightenment and those of faith as ‘primitive’. This is not a healthy way of viewing religion in this globalised world and especially in multi-cultural, multi-religious Britain. Alex Marra
How the west can help North Korean civilians In the popular imagination of the west, some countries have always been inscrutable. They are the states we place in the vague but potent category of dystopia, in part because it is an image that makes far-away places easy to understand. Everybody’s read Orwell, after all, including George Hall, who invokes 1984 in his piece on North Korea in issue 245 in order to argue that, in the wake of Kim Jong-Il’s death, the west should consider the potential for an intervention to democratise the state. Dystopian imagery makes for good prose, but bad policy. The problem with Hall’s argument is it that it is divorced from political and historical context. Hall is right to detail the inhumane
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conditions under which North Korean civilians suffer, but what would be the best way to help those civilians? Certainly not continuing economic sanctions, which according to writers in the British Medical Journal have led to the collapse of the country’s public health system, exacerbating the malnutrition of the 1990s that left one million dead. This horrific crime reflects a longer history of western involvement in the Korean peninsula: from the U.S.’s client military regime in South Korea, to carpet bombing and napalm attacks on North Korea during the Korean War, to support for despotic governments in the South, to the nearly 30,000 U.S. troops in South Korea today. Rather than ask how the west
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Slightly unexpectedly, a motion concerning abortion made its way towards the top of the priority ballot at the AGM. This controversial subject, which overshadowed Student Conference, sparked a heated debate as Alexander Chau called for a position of ‘neutrality’ to replace the Union’s existing ‘pro-choice’ stance. Whatever your opinion about the issue itself, Chau’s arguments would have been more convincing had he not accused the Union of a lack of focus on ‘more important issues’, while at the same time choosing to prolong the debate simply by bringing it to the AGM. Although the motion didn’t pass, the discussion remained civil, and it seemed as if the student body had sensibly settled a most divisive issue. But when the Anson Rooms also erupts with laughter when someone mentions the high levels of rape on the Downs shortly afterwards, Epigram is not so sure.
letters@epigram.org.uk
Flickr: gilus_pl
The 75% increase in attendees at the AGM is encouraging in a year when it would have been easy for more and more students to be turned off by student democracy. In light of the rise in tuition fees and the disappearance of bursaries, it could have felt like no-one was listening, and that turning up to another meeting at the Union wasn’t worth it. However, with more students in attendance than any AGM since 2002, this year showed that some Bristol students still think it is worth persevering. It wasn’t just the numbers that made the AGM a heartening follow-up to last October’s much less well attended and disappointing Student Conference. Credit is due to the students who proposed motions on everything from widening participation to the availability of sports facilities. Now passed, they have the potential to significantly benefit future students if next year’s sabbatical officers pursue them with enough commitment that they become University as well as Union policy. As ever, this year offered up its fair share of unpopular opposition speakers, novelty motions - suits on Fridays for elected officers anyone? - and people being painted as both class warriors and traitors. At times it felt like the audience was listening to arguments that were more about egos than issues, which only detracts from the important matters at hand and leaves students outside the Union politics ‘bubble’ even less able to engage with the process. The AGM has shown that there is potential for vibrant student democracy at Bristol. But although it may have been much better than in previous years, there is still a long way to go before Union politics is effective, representative, and mature. Though Epigram doesn’t believe that trying to remove the AGM from the hustle and bustle of personality-based student politics is futile, at the same time there is still a tendancy for important issues to get lost in partisan bickering and identity politics long before their merits have been properly considered. Should this stop? Perhaps not. The booing and hissing, along with its renown for being a non-stop 3 hour drinking session, is the only reason that most students ever turn up in the first place.
Editor: Emma Corfield
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should deal with North Korea, perhaps we should ask: why do the U.S. and South Korea insist on continuing to militarise the region? That the Korean War has officially not ended, and that the U.S. and South Korea regularly conduct military exercises simulating assaults, suggests that North Korea’s behaviour, far from the workings of a madman, has had a strategic logic to it. The moral imperative for the governments of the west that George Hall speaks of is not to intervene militarily, it
To get in touch, send an email to letters@epigram.org.uk Letters may be edited for clarity or length
ACROSS 7. Thick slice (4) 8. Expression of amusement (8) 9. Official list of names (8) 10. Monetary unit of Chile (4) 11. To waste (8) 14. Bone in the forearm (4) 15. Be wide open (4) 16. Christmas season (8) 17. 15th March (4) 19. Drink before bed (8) 21. Slope (8) 22. 27 .... Pound, poet (4) 23 25
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is to demilitarise the region and open full-scale diplomacy, as South Korean activists have been fighting for. Direct negotiation with North Korea is the only policy that has worked in the past. Hall says we shouldn’t be afraid of becoming repetitive about 21st century totalitarianism. Fine. And true internationalists shouldn’t fear being repetitive in pointing out the imperial folly of demonising poorly-understood states, let alone invading those countries to ‘liberate’ their citizens. Oliver Kearns
DOWN 1. A hint (4) 2. Renounce the throne (8) 3. Jubilantly (8) 4. Murmering sound of pleasure (4) 5. Fellow (4) 6. Given flavour (8) 12. Difficult situation (8) 13. Make inferior (8) 14. With no name (8) 18. Carbonated water (4) 19. To be in want of (4) 20. Unit of area (4)
Epigram
20.02.2012
17 Scribble by Jen Springall
Why so serious?
Competition: Win an iPad 2
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‘You just don’t get me.’ The words hung in the air like a dead fish. As they sank in, they seemed to permeate the area around us with the rancid odour of one as well. About this time last year, I stood aboard the freezing deck of Thekla, shivering through some vaguely interesting small talk with a boy I half knew from halls about the gap year he spent snowboarding. He dropped this social bombshell into the conversation like anyone else would drop their recently changed relationship status. I nearly spat my overpriced vodka coke back in his face: ‘You just don’t get me’. What are you meant to reply to a statement like this? I ended up, in a stereotypically awkward and bumbling British manner, replying ‘sorry?’, shortly followed by ‘what did you say?’ What I should have done of course, if I hadn’t been so damned socially reserved, was to head-butt the cocky bastard in the face for his cheek. I mean, what was there to ‘get’? Granted, I was probably too sober (still on antibiotics from a refreshers bout of tonsillitis), and he was probably too drunk, but I thought we’d been having a perfectly nice conversation up until that point. At the time I was shocked, hurt and surprised that someone who wasn’t in an American teen drama had actually used the phrase. But now I can safely say ‘yes, sir - I do not get you’. For I don’t ‘get’ anyone who can take themselves so seriously that they could tell an almost-stranger that she doesn’t ‘get’ them. Who are you? WHO? I know Epigrump isn’t the most appropriate place to vent angst over personal grudges, but bear with me. This tale is connected to a series of wider points. On another night, back in halls, this same boy complained that the club we’d just been to was ‘too full of 18 year-olds’. When I laughed at him for making a huge deal over a one year age gap (one year) in front of a group of 18-year olds, he kicked off and stormed to his room. Maybe that’s just how 19 year-olds act. I wouldn’t have known back then, being naught but a young and naïve 18 year old and all. I’ve never been able to understand people who can’t laugh at themselves. Sure, there are days when the last thing you want is a joke at your own expense, but I know I wouldn’t have survived my teenage years without being able to laugh at the fact I was frizzyhaired, overweight and bore an uncanny resemblance to a hobbit. I once played the young William Wordsworth so convincingly in our town’s ‘Georgian history walk’ that when a (close) family friend saw a picture he remarked, ‘Who’s that boy?’ At the (terribly exciting) risk of sounding pretentious, the mindfulness expert Jon Kabat-Zinn once said, in relation to his life’s work of spirituality and practice: ‘It’s so serious it’s too serious to take that seriously. And I am serious’. He went on to say ‘He who dies before he dies does not die when he dies.’ While it is clear someone needs to get him a new thesaurus, he’s making a good point. What Kabat-Zinn is saying, I think, is that life is so much easier if you take it, and yourself, lightly. It is a distinctively British quality, self-deprecating humour and continual sarcasm. The Australians I used to work with thought I had serious self-esteem issues because of the number of jokes I would make at my own expense: ‘Gee Imo, stop being so daark’. But I think it’s an incredibly useful life skill that we’ve developed as a Darwin-esque survival technique. I’ll tell you why. Laughing is dangerous. Comedians are always amongst the first to be persecuted in oppressive regimes because dictators hate being laughed at. Am I making a tenuous link between people who take themselves too seriously and oppressive dictators? Perhaps, but the point is laughter can change things, it diffuses and transforms tension and it stops people getting too big for their boots. Laughing can save lives. Studies on victims of war and crime have shown a strong correlation between a sense of humour and emotional resilience. I’m not suggesting you go around mocking your friends’ woes and problems or to deny yourself a good cry, but if you ever find yourself taking things a bit too seriously, think about how much easier it would be if you took yourself out the situation a little and laughed at it. To my friend from Thekla? I’d tell you to lighten up but, well, I just don’t think you’d get me.
Imogen Palmer
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20.02.2012
18
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20.02.2012
19
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Epigram
20.02.2012
Culture
Editor: Zoe Hutton
Deputy Editor: Hannah Mae Collins
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The Turner Prize: still too cool for school? Inspired by the ever controversial Turner Prize, Ella Tarn asks whether the Art World is prioritising the polemic - and at what cost
Boyce aims to create beauty out of the banal - in this case, a litter bin
In Mother and Child Divided (1995 Turner winner) Hirst took a cow and calf and suspended their halved bodies in formaldehyde
tate.org.uk
Tracey Emin’s infamous unmade bed - shortlisted for the Prize in 1995
loving groupies that come with them. It’s as if anyone who has the audacity to question the ‘edginess’ of Tracey Emin’s used-knicker laden slept-in bed should be carted off to Camden for a re-education in ‘cool’, negating the sacred subjectivity of modern art. In 2010, the Turner Prize hit the headlines, not necessarily for the controversy of its art, but for its pretentiousness and arrogance. Upon entering the exhibition at the Tate Britain, press photographers were asked to sign a form, declaring that their photographs could not be used to give the Turner
Prize or the Tate Britain any bad publicity. Last I heard, press censorship was kind of a big no-no. The Tate needed to realise that they operate in a democracy and not in North Korea. Were the organisers afraid of the backlash for the controversy of their art? Or were they just arrogant enough to think that their presence on the upper end of the artistic hierarchy put them above the principal of freedom of speech? Personally, I think it’s the controversy of their art that got the Tate’s Emin used-knickers in a twist. For me, the value at the
saatchi-gallery.co.uk
part fourteen. My point is that art is supposed to be for everyone, and although the current prize-winner is trying to make art more approachable to the everyday person, snobbery is rife in the modern art world. In the case of the Turner Prize, the criteria for a winner seems to be who can cause the most controversy. With notable past winners such as Tracey Emin and Damien Hirst, it’s undeniable that the prize has an eye for upand-coming artists, but it is not the controversy of the art itself that I have a problem with, it’s the eco-friendly, skinny-latte
tate.org.uk
Martin Boyce’s 2011 Turner Prize-winning light installation
tate.org.uk
Every year the Turner Prize rolls around, and with slight embarrassment I admit that I’m interested to see who has been named the chosen one, who gets to clamber up onto their high horse and dictate what art is today. According to this year’s winner Martin Boyce, we should be seeing beauty in objects that you pass everyday, and if you happen to see beauty in the glistening bristles of a toilet brush, that’s fine by me. But what I take particular offence to is the growing pretentiousness that surrounds modern art, and particularly the Turner Prize. As a History of Art student, I’m more than familiar with the need to prove one’s ‘artiness’; everyday I feel the pressure to stock my wardrobe with overpriced and oversized ‘80s vintage jumpers whilst listening to bands who are so obscure they haven’t even been played at Thekla yet. However, whilst walking around an exhibition like the recently closed Turner Prize at the BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art, Gateshead, I tend to feel like the kid in the playground who brought raisins for break, rather than Monster Munch. Have institutions such as the Turner Prize become detrimentally pretentious, or have I just missed the dubstepplaying boat on what’s socially and artistically ‘cool’ nowadays? The fact that I stick out like a sore thumb walking around many contemporary art exhibitions suggests that other high street wearing, reality TV-watching, art enthusiasts are avoiding such exhibitions, for fear of looking like they accidentally stumbled into the exhibition on their way to the latest release of Twilight
very heart of modern art is its subjective nature. In most cases, it’s supposed to be provocative and to get the viewer thinking. What’s the point of trying to force the public to like something, when what you really want is for them to take from it what they will and make up their own mind. In November, a German cleaner for a Martin Kippenberger exhibition in Dortmund did just that and inadvertently gave the ultimate opinion on modern art. Whilst cleaning the exhibition, the cleaner came across Kippenberger’s sculpture
‘When It Starts Dripping From The Ceiling’, which consisted of a tower of wooden slats composed into a scaffoldinglike structure, standing over a rubber trough that contains a layer of paint, representing dried water. Mistaking the trough for a dirty bucket, the cleaner took to making it as clean as possible, thus removing the carefully applied layer of paint, irreversibly damaging the work, which was valued at £690,000. Although this costly case of mistaken identity was not intentional, it raises the question of where to draw the line between the ordinary and art. Is Tracey Emin’s sleptin bed an irreplaceable work of contemporary art? Or is it something I create every day? Free of charge, might I add. Today, it is possible to pass almost anything off as art, using one’s artistic licence to turn, for example, an ordinary shark into, well, an ordinary shark soaked in formaldehyde à la Damien Hirst and I have no problem with that. If Charles Saatchi wanted to buy my current collection of unwashed dishes, I wouldn’t be complaining either, in fact I’d be advertising my intentionally overflowing rubbish bin as a place to house Tracey Emin’s art degree. But many of today’s pretentious art groupies would persecute the ordinary art lover for not appreciating, or being able distinguish Hirst’s ‘Dots’ from a Dulux sampler. I for one long to see the day when art lovers of all fashions can discuss the latest Turner Prize winner over a slice of humble pie, but until then I must question whether modern art exhibitions such as the Turner Prize have become so edgy, it hurts.
Glitz, glamour and child abuse: Polanski and his shady past taking advantage of his French citizenship to avoid extradition. Carnage has brought Polanski back into to the limelight – the film has garnered positive reviews from the press and award nominations for its stars, but it has also dragged up ageold issues of art and morality, as we consider and the legal and ethical implications inherent in viewing and critiquing his work. What are the ‘consumers’ of his art supposed to think? How are we supposed to feel? Is it immoral for us to enjoy his films in the full knowledge they are produced by a child molester? The issue at hand is whether the morality of an artist should
in any manner devalue their work – whether art can stand alone and speak for itself. Does Polanski’s past detract from the noir brilliance of Chinatown, or render The Pianist any less moving? SNAP (The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests), would argue that it does - calling for a boycott of Polanski’s films, they have expressed concern over the message being sent out by giving free reign over Hollywood to someone who should by all rights be in prison, and questioned the morals of actors who choose to work with him. Should we be funding the jet rides
and champagne dinners of a paedophile? For me, greatness is greatness. But it is important to understand that art in any form and of any worth holds no power to absolve its creator. His filmic talents certainly don’t pardon him of his convictions, but there can be no apology for his mastery. The politics of his escape and extradition are best left to government and the law and though he should be punished, it must be by the powers that be rather than through an ineffectual, moralistic audience embargo. Besides, the Academy has spoken: Carnage is nominated for an Oscar.
Flickr: taumbly
This week sees the release of Carnage, the latest project of controversial director Roman Polanski – his most recent in a career that spans a fiftyyear period of creativity. His films engage with themes of isolation,the occult,perversion, and morality; his influence has been acknowledged by everyone from the Coen Brothers to Park-Chan Wook. Oscar-winning Polanski is an indisputable master of film, but he is also a convicted sex offender. Arrested and charged with a series of offences including rape of a minor in 1977, he fled from the States to France on the day of sentencing,
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20.02.2012
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Size over substance for Hirst Has Damien Hirst swapped controversy for the controversially ugly with Charity? It has become a cliché to say that Damien Hirst’s work inspires controversy. Since his rise to prominence with the other Young British Artists in the early ‘90s, this artist has repeatedly subjected his audience to large, brash works of art which tend to dramatically split public
he does say is done so crudely that it’s amazing that he’s ever been taken seriously. Making art about death out of dead animals or indeed art about charity out of charity boxes strikes me as fairly unimaginative. What Hirst has done here is make us aware that charity is a big issue by making a charity box big. It’s this kind of GCSE-Art logic which stops the work being thought provoking, and just makes it laughable. Size over substance would be a good description of much of Hirst’s work, Charity being no exception. The artist’s courting of controversy and use of large, impressive media is ultimately just an effort to disguise his lack of creativity or skill. Charity is the latest in a line of works which are little more than scaled up versions of existing objects. This habit of appropriation has in the past drawn accusations of plagiarism, further adding to Hirst’s reputation as a man who pushes at the boundaries of
what can be called ‘art’. I’d say that the biggest problem here, however, is not that this piece is shocking or controversial, it’s just a bit boring. The problem is that Hirst can get away with producing this kind of thing because he is held in such high regard by so many. This is a man who, at 46, is getting his own retrospective at the Tate Modern, has sold work for up to $19.2 million and is seen by many as one of Britain’s greatest living artists. The result: he essentially has free reign over the art world and can do whatever he wants, installing enormous sculptures in public places up and down the country while countless artists with less success but much more talent are never given a look in. It would be nice to see an installation at the RWA created by a lesser known artist with interesting ideas and something to say, instead of more of the same from an artist who’s lost the ability to shock. Josh Gabbatiss
let out even a little squeal of resentment for the films chosen in certain categories). For Best Film (now a category containing ten pictures), there is no doubt that most nominees deserve their place. The Artist is for many the best film of the year, while Moneyball, The Help and War Horse all seem to have won over mass approval and commercial success since their release. But in many ways this is the problem. While these films are all certifiably good ones, they are safe bets. Bar The Tree Of Life, all films chosen have been produced with the mass market in mind. Who could not fall for George Clooney playing a conflicted single(ish) parent in The Descendants? No one, apparently. Though this is a subtly understated but not startling turn from Clooney, some people are calling it the
www.foxsearchlight.com
George Clooney in The Descendants, a film described by Heavy.com as ‘the top contender for this year’s Most Overrated list’
best performance of his career. Five nominations later, who can talk about anything else? It is a film that ticks all of the Academy boxes: some sort of broken home, a moment of selfrealisation, the rediscovery of a parent-child relationship, and a reasonably happy conclusion. A case in point: Daniel DayLewis plays an Irishman with cerebral palsy in My Left Foot, and what does he get? Best Actor. Dustin Hoffman is a genius with autism in Rain Man, and he’s granted the same accolade. As Ricky Gervais said to Kate Winslet at the 2009 Golden Globes: ‘do a Holocaust movie, and the awards come flooding in’. In the case of The Descendants, the required ailment happens to be a woman who is both comatose and a cheater. What it will receive for this is unknown as of yet, but bookmakers are
banking on it being one of the Oscars’ big-hitters. It’s not that playing a character with severe mental or physical disabilities will guarantee critical acclaim, but it definitely seems to be a recurring theme for Oscar winners. Problems for the Academy, arguably, have to be portrayed within boundaries. Perhaps it is because of this that certain excellent films released in the past year have been overlooked. Shame was a stunning representation of sex addiction, but was maybe portrayed too extremely for the liking of Hollywood, whereas Drive, offering the insights of a night time getaway driver (Ryan Gosling), was probably too understated - highlighted by it being shunned in all categories apart from ‘Sound Editing’. It seems that in many ways politics suppresses art in the Oscars’ quest for the perfect movie. So what will I be doing on the night of the 26th? Either thinking about Natalie Portman walking along the red carpet or trying to suppress the urge to punch George Clooney in the face if he wins Best Actor. I won’t be watching them in any case, but hopefully the latter won’t occur. Oli Arnoldi
I was initially biased against the whole notion of blogging. To me, the Blogger seemed to be the cyber generation’s equivalent of the Beige Flasher Mac, yelling his illinformed opinions down public concourses, head swollen with self-importance, pockets with four pints of Kestrel - the information super highway’s answer to the ‘Don’t Be a Sinner, Be a Winner’ guy. The slightly unhinged preacher used to haunt the crowded streets of London, condemning passing shoppers to consumerist Hell. Until he was slapped with an ASBO and ordered to refrain from vocalising his unsolicited opinions in public. But on the grimy streets of the interweb, no such intervention takes place; there is no anti-social behaviour order to silence the deafening cacophony of the Ethernet. Admittedly, no one is making me read the Bristolbased fashion blogger who bemoans feeling uninspired because, and I quote: ‘when I’m in London/Paris/NYC, I nearly always put in more of an effort. Unfortunately for moi, fashion-speaking anyway, I am in Bristol, which I personally do not find the most fashionably inspirational place in the world’. Tumblr.com/xesandhugs
On 26th February, millions will flock to TV sets around the world to witness the biggest event of the cinematic calendar: Brangelina rubbing shoulders with Meryl Streep, and Will and Jada Pinkett-Smith discussing LA property prices with their children. Stretch this out over four and a half hours and you have what many call one of the greatest celebrity spectacles. While the Hollywood community can be characterised by talent, excess and an inclination towards social boo-boos, it is now also typified increasingly by an inability to judge what it says it creates and promotes: good film. Perhaps this is too extreme a claim to make, but with the release of the nominations for the 2012 Academy Awards, I found it hard not to soil myself (or, more realistically, not to
Tavi Gevinson, 13-year-old style blogger extraordinaire
Being a dickhead is cool
This has led this poor misused flogger (that’s fashion blogger, for the non-portmanteau savvy) to feel ‘fashionably
depressed’. Get that girl some Valium and a public platform to air her woes immediately. This stuff’s for sharing. And sure, I’m not required to peruse the blog of Karl Bakla (23rd July 2010: ‘I miss my kitty cat’). Nevertheless, the implied arrogance of blogging - the assumption that anyone actually wants to read the unedited, unpublished opinions of a rampant selfpublicist - sits uneasily with me.
Flickr: jamesrlb
Extremely Dull and Incredibly Boring: are the Oscar nominations playing it safe?
A platform for the beige mac-clad weirdos and the cat-obsessed loons - our ever controversial columnist Rachel Schraer guides us through the freaky world of the blogosphere.
stylerookie.com
Marek Allen
Damien Hirst’s Charity stands 22 ft tall outside Bristol’s RWA
opinion. Now Hirst, who was born in Bristol, has brought his work to the streets of this city, installing a 22ft sculpture entitled Charity on the roof of the RWA. The piece is a recreation in bronze of the Spastics Society collection box, a familiar sight throughout the ‘60s and ‘70s, which depicts a young girl with a teddy bear and a leg in callipers. The piece is intended, the RWA informs us, ‘to highlight the erosion of society’s values’, while simultaneously ‘subverting the celebration of nobility and the monarchs who began the age of charity’ (represented by the Victoria Rooms’ statue of Edward VII across the road). Does it do this? The sculpture is not particularly aesthetically pleasing, appearing tacky and out of place on the roof of the RWA, but surely that’s not important if it’s getting a message across? I certainly don’t believe that art exists merely to look pretty, but if it does profess to have a message then that message should be an interesting one. The problem with Hirst is he never has anything much to say and what
Culture Club
But am I just shooting myself in the foot? In a climate of ever-growing online publication, journalism is an increasingly freelance profession. And getting ahead in it is about nothing if not acquiring a following (to borrow the lingo from another social medium, and the topic for another anti-social rant). Perhaps the blogosphere is about earning your stripes, proving your worth before you go on to more gainful publication. And for those who don’t make the cut, I don’t have to trawl through their misspelt verbal excrement until I have a rage haemorrhage. If I want to get my anger fix, there’s always the comment section of The Daily Mail’s website. In fact, blogging might be the ultimate democratiser. The People vote with their mouse as to which blogs make it into the public consciousness and which are consigned to the ‘should have saved it for your feelings journal’ pile. All of this sets up a bit of a dilemma for an aspiring writer with a low cringe-threshold for blogs etc – what’s an angry cynic like me to do? So instead, I’ve avoided the issue. I’ve sidestepped blogocrisy. I’ve found the perfect solution. I’ve set up an Ideas Tap ‘portfolio’.
Epigram
20.02.2012
22
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Epigram
Editor: Nathan Comer
Deputy Editor: Pippa Shawley
music@epigram.org.uk
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20.02.2012
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Not just another on the conveyor belt David Biddle rifles through Nicola Roberts’ dirty laundry, discussing the pop highlight of 2011, Cinderella’s Eyes It is 2012 and by this point it should be obvious to everyone that Girls Aloud are one of the UK’s all-time great pop bands, with five solid albums and some staggering singles (‘Biology’, ‘The Promise’, ‘Love Machine’) under their belts. They’re the best-selling reality TV winners by a ridiculous margin, and proof that a manufactured group can make forwardthinking, intelligent and genuine music. They’ve been on hiatus since 2009, and news of a reunion tour later this year has fans hoping for new material. In the meantime there have been solo efforts but most have been mediocre, with Nadine Coyle’s Insatiable selling fewer than 10,000 copies and Cheryl Cole putting out a series of dreadfully generic will.i.am collaborations aimed at the worst kinds of student nightclub. For a moment it seemed like without songwriting/production team Xenomania calling the shots the Girls weren’t so untouchable after all.
“
I would never want to just jump on the bandwagon
”
Chuff Media
In September last year, Nicola Roberts released her debut, Cinderella’s Eyes, confounding expectations and gathering critical praise from the Guardian, the Telegraph, Digital Spy, NME and even City squares’ Financial Times. Eschewing the usual collaborators – David Guetta, Pitbull, or party-rock dongs LMFAO – she instead chose to work with more diverse artists like Metronomy, Diplo, Canadian electropop band Dragonette and French producer Dimitri Tikovoi, who’s produced for Kate Bush, Placebo and the Horrors. She claims she ‘didn’t want to feel like just another one on the conveyor belt’, and made reference to Xenomania’s groupbased, cooperative songwriting technique – ‘It was important for me. I’m used to working in a team, and I felt that everyone I worked with on the record wanted to be in that team.’ The album was also acclaimed for its highly personal and heartfelt lyrics about Roberts’ past. As a last-minute replacement for Popstars dropout Nicola Ward, and as a pale-skinned redhead, she was marginalised within the band – rarely given solo time on the singles and shoved to the back in music videos. Lily Allen and arch-dick Chris
Moyles both referred to her publicly as the ‘ugly one’; Moyles also called her ‘horsey chops’, and Busted’s Matt Willis called her a ‘rude ginger bitch’. The album’s closer, ‘Sticks + Stones’, is obviously about this, comparing them to playground bullies and standing up to them. According to Roberts, ‘I think that when you’re writing an album it’s like all of the things come from inside you. They come from your emotions or the way you think about certain situations. Because everything is how you see it or what you feel. I think it’s always inevitably going to be perceived as being more personal.’ The last few years have seen her profile increase, appearing at London Fashion Week, and
more confident, especially since the release of Out of Control, Girls Aloud’s fifth LP. She says it ‘happened around the last album - something just clicked. I had had the most amazing summer holiday with all of my friends from Liverpool and I had just become single. I started to go to all the fashion shows and change my mentality about beauty and commercialism, everything. My whole aspect and everything I looked at just changed. Then as soon as it did I just felt looser.’ She also started her own make-up collection, Dainty Doll, aimed at pale skinned women and she has expressed interest in designing clothes. ‘I would love the opportunity to have a collection. I would
absolutely love it. As long as I’m being able to be creative, being able to create things, be it in the studio or working on Dainty Doll it’s where I’m most happy and where I’m the most confident,’ she says. ‘[But] I would never want to just jump on the bandwagon of having a collection; I would have to take it far more seriously.’ Roberts doesn’t seem to do things half-heartedly – everything from her music to her anti-tanning bed activism has been followed through with obvious enthusiasm, and it’s interesting to think where she might bring this passion in the future. There’s the reunion tour for the band’s 10th anniversary already in the works – ‘Yeah we’ll definitely
be celebrating - I am super looking forward to that’ – but she also has solo work in the pipeline. It also seems likely that she’ll do some live shows on her own – so far she’s only played G-A-Y and a couple of festivals. She says, ‘more solo gigs would be something I would love to do. I would be able to perform some songs from the record that I haven’t been able to perform live yet, that would be amazing. I’m just going to have to wait and see what happens!’ She has no concrete plans for a second album but she’s hoping to release one, and she has a wish list of high profile artists she’d love to work with – M.I.A, Kate Bush, Missy Elliot (‘oh my God could you imagine?’,
she enthuses) – and while she admits it’s ‘a little far-fetched’ it certainly wouldn’t be out of the question. Even without them, if Cinderella’s Eyes is anything to go by, Nicola Roberts is fully capable of making high quality pop on her own.
‘Cinderella’s Eyes’ is available on Polydor now
Epigram
20.02.2011
24
The importance of being Ernest
Ernest Greene, alias Washed Out, is a figurehead for the so-called ‘chillwave’ genre. He talks to Rishi Modha Ernest Greene’s life has changed quite a lot since mid-2009. Posting a handful of demos online from a bedroom in his parent’s house in Perry, Georgia caused waves of excitement across the indie blogosphere, and he was soon being championed as the posterboy of the then emergent genre ‘chillwave’, propelling him into the limelight. Just months after posting an initial set of tracks online and subsequently producing two EPs in quick succession after unrelenting demand for new music, Greene was embarking upon his first ever Washed Out show, in New York, which was ‘sold out, slamfull of people - and there was definitely a kind of stage-fright for me’. Being catapulted into the fore wasn’t the easiest of transitions to make for Greene; he explains that ‘there was kind of a dual feeling of being really excited to have people talking about music and coming out to the shows but also feeling some pressure. It’s been a trial by fire, learning on the go.’ Since his initial shows, Greene has gained the support of a band for live performances which comprises Washed Out’s current line-up, ‘I tried playing shows by myself but I wasn’t very happy with it. I’m more familiar with live music. I think it’s much more entertaining for an audience to have five or six people up on stage performing than just me… singing and all that.’ However, Washed Out’s new formation doesn’t distract from Greene’s creative primacy and ambitions, or even alter the lone bedroom producer perspective from which he creates his music. ‘If it takes 50 tracks to do the song, I’ll do 50
tracks, then figure out how to play it live after the fact. It’s in the back of my head when I’m writing, thinking about the different guys in the band. But I feel like my best work is completely outside that way of thinking.’ Attempting to label Washed Out’s music isn’t particularly easy,though self-effacing parody blog Hipster Runoff saved music journalists from arduous longwinded descriptions by terming the simple phrase ‘chillwave’ to describe the genre which Washed Out is now synonymous with. The multi-layered complexity of understated dance music married with elements of revivalism to create the deeply introspective soundscapes of 2011’s masterful Within and Without is surely not so easily defined. ‘I can say that I never aspire to make chillwave music, that’s for sure. I understand vaguely what it is and definitely that the music I was doing a couple years ago fits in with what the genre was about – this kind of lo-fi dance music that has a lot of obvious 80s references, that’s still very pop. Whether or not it’s the music I’m currently doing or not is beyond me, and I really try not to even think about it in those terms.’ Although perhaps there are valid comparisons to be made between bands also labelled ‘chillwave’, such as Neon Indian and Toro Y Moi, ‘It’s probably true that we share similar influences. We’re all around the same age and have grown up in similar situations, either listening to similar music or working with the same software, so maybe it’s not entirely unfair. There’s no doubt that that type of music
has progressed over the last couple of years and has gone in various different directions – which is only natural.’ Escaping being confined to being defined by chillwave alone shouldn’t be particularly difficult for Greene; as he admits that ‘I come from a sampling background’, citing DJ Shadow’s Entroducing as particularly influential due to ‘the heavy psychedelic weight he has to his music’. Another large influence, clearly informing Washed Out’s hazy and introspective aesthetic, Greene explains is ‘Boards of Canada, who do a little bit of sampling, but the
thing that I really loved and took a lot of ideas from is like how their records feel very organic. I hate saying ‘vintage’ sounding but there’s almost the songs decaying like an old cassette tape, which I’ve definitely taken ideas from.’ Influences from 80s synth-pop form a key part of Washed Out’s constructions, but Greene is quick to differentiate this from ‘just pure revivalism’. ‘I definitely don’t want to just rehash ideas. In the best cases, revivalist music is taking ideas from two different generations or two different styles of music and bringing it together, where it’s creating something new.
It’s definitely influenced by the past, but not just repeating what bands were doing back then.’ Further metamorphosis is on the horizon for Washed Out, perhaps not in terms of how they line up, but an evolution in their sound. Greene explains that he creates music and progresses by ‘just kind of challenging myself to do things I’ve never really done before. I think a lot of the time that happens in a very unconscious way and whether it’s a mistake that I stumble upon or via experimenting, something that’s unfamiliar feels to me the best way to go.’ The difficulty in
preserving the sound cultivated and grown over the past two years whilst allowing this level of experimentation is one certainly noted by Ernest Greene and the direction he chooses to take Washed Out in is as yet undetermined; ‘I think there is such a thing as a sound I’ve created and I want to continue to honour that but do different things with it. I never want to repeat myself – it sounds easy, but is quite difficult, having that attachment to the past but making bold steps towards the future.’
Do we really believe that it is ‘all about the music’? A few years ago, a friend of mine had the pleasure of being briefly interviewed by then-Popworld presenter Alexa Chung outside of an early Horrors gig. When asked whether The Horrors were ‘more about the fashion or the music’, he eagerly peered out from under his oh-so-chic-pink cap (it was that heady summer of ‘nu-rave’) and answered gleefully, ‘definitely the fashion’, causing no end of merciless mocking from friends and strangers alike. This statement, spouted by a naïve fifteen year old, goes entirely against the argument of so many ‘serious’ music fans that music and musicians should be judged purely upon their recorded output and that factors such as appearance and aesthetic are the preserves of the vapid medium of pop
music. This was a camp that I used to firmly dwell in. But in hindsight, despite his poorly chosen words, the answer may not have been so ridiculous after all. Rock ‘n’ Roll is much more than just simply what you hear. It encompasses everything The ever-uniformed White Stripes
about the band or artist from how they look, how they stand, what they wear and what they say and this all feeds into the experience of listening to this band or artist. It’s theatre and it all matters. Would The White Stripes have been the same without the strict
red/white/black band uniform and the ‘are they, aren’t they’ sibling/married couple mystique? Or imagine Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds in trainers and t-shirts. It’s a horror not worth thinking about. One unifying factor in so many artists of ‘significance’ over the past sixty years is a coherent vision in both music and aesthetic. From Kraftwerk to The Knife, Franz Ferdinand to The Flaming Lips, PiL to Public Enemy, they all understood the need for a complete package. Of course there are what appear to be exceptions to this rule, from hardcore and grunge through to bands such as Radiohead, and by no means should it be said that excellent music cannot be produced with little to no thought towards presentation. But it is often easier to believe
in something when the entire package is present. An inspired aesthetic tends to signify inspired output where it counts. Ian Svenonius, sometime presenter of Vice ’s musician circlejerk Soft Focus and lead singer of post-hardcore band Nation of Ulysses and 90’s ‘Gospel Yeh-Yeh’ band The Make-Up had his own theories on the importance of a shared band aesthetic in rock ‘n’ roll. In between his usual rants on Marxism, the destruction of capitalism and the ideological failings of Rock ‘n’ Roll he occasionally leaves time to explain The Make-Up’s decision to deck themselves out in matching uniforms on stage. ‘Uniforms are all just ideology and idealism and portraying that in what you wear. That’s why we wear uniforms; we’re submerging ourselves to
Ian Svenonius
join the audience, just like gospel music’s always including the congregation’. Now perhaps the best way to sum this all up is with more from the ever-quotable Svenonius. When asked what inspired the sartorial flair he and his bandmates exhibit in The Make-Up, he answered, ‘I hate a counterculture in sportswear’. Seb Jones
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Up the Junktion ITAL / LIVITY SOUND (Qu Junktions) Take 5 Cafe 10 February 2012
Pomona PR
The thing that’s so satisfying about Qu Junktions’ general approach - centrally, of following their own current interests, wherever that may take them - is that they end up in such unexpected places. That might sound like a banal thing to say, but it pretty rapidly stops being banal or trite as soon as you actually go along to one of their events, or even idly browse through both upcoming and past gigs online. As promoters, they consistently draw together artists that, though superficially different, actually have a lot in common, whether in result, approach, or even just in spirit. It’s not a perfect way of doing things - they have made missteps in the past - but they do reliably deliver the goods. As such, it’s no surprise that Qu have done it again - this time working in conjunction with rapidly ascendant local institution / lab el/collective Idle Hands. On the face of it, pairing one of the luminaries of the 100% Silk/Not Not Fun axis with three of Bristol’s finest producers performing together in a live setting for the first time doesn’t really seem like a goer: the former (i.e., the Ital half of the bill) makes, to put it vaguely, raw house music self-consciously and deeply indebted to technological limitations. The latter half (Livity Sound) comprised of Bristolians Peverelist, Kowton and Asusu. Having never performed live, it was difficult to know what was coming. Having said that, it’s not like everyone entered Take 5’s weird sepulchral basement space totally blind; the recent run of 12”s on the Livity Sound imprint mapped out a rough kind of area to be covered: in short, crosspollination of tropes and tics. Despite an initial technological misfire impeding proceedings
they rapidly got down to the business of the evening: an uncompromising, vocal-less set that also functioned as a pretty good indication of where Bristol seems to sit musically at the moment. Bass weight was present in spades, twisting and turning under the gradual smearing together of Kowton’s house-influenced tracks with Peverelist and Asusu’s tense take on dubbed-out techno, until it became increasingly difficult (or, perhaps more accurately, increasingly pointless to try) to discern where one genre ended and another began, culminating in a resounding, and much appreciated, silence. Much like Pinch & Shackleton’s recent effort, Livity Sound functioned as a collaboration ought to: minds meeting somewhere in the middle, to excellent and unexpected effect. Putative headliner Ital, meanwhile, managed to completely buck the ‘hipster house’ epithets that seem to dog both NNF and the 100% Silk imprint: Daniel Martin-McCormick delivered a hyperactive and ear-crushingly loud hour of fun. Euphoric 8bit synths battled over endless, lolloping grooves, swerving every now and again into a kind of nightmarish inversion of what came before: ‘Doesn’t Matter If You Love Him’ (from debut Hive Mind) features a constantly re-triggered sample, building to disorientating results. Much like avowedinfluence Theo Parrish’s Ugly Edits, Ital’s live set plays fast and loose with source material - set closer, a rework of The Source’s ‘You’ve Got The Love’, simply eviscerated the original, and was brilliant for it. It was, in short, an exceptionally satisfying evening: Qu Junktions again playing the similarities and differences between the two headliners off - both mangle genres, but in radically different ways, and to different results - Ital’s mangling predicated on fun, Livity’s on... well, something harder to pin down, but nevertheless rewarding. Highly commendable stuff. Mathew Pitts
Django Django Unchained Eliot Brammer catches up with Dave Maclean from Scottish band Django Django to talk about their progression from a college hobby to the release of their debut album The words ‘escapist’ and ‘eclectic’ crop up quite a few times as I talk to Dave Maclean, drummer, founding member and producer-in-chief of Django Django, and they’re not a bad starting point in getting your head around his band’s psychedelic glitch-pop. The band first surfaced in 2009 with the single release ‘Storm / Love’s Dart’. At this point, Maclean explains, it was just himself and singer-guitarist Vincent Neff recording, putting it out on ‘a mate’s label in Glasgow, for the hell of putting out a seven-inch’. As the songs picked up unexpected attention, they enlisted two more friends from art school in Edinburgh with the plan to ‘go off and become a band and write songs.’ After relocating to east London, with its obstacles of bills to pay and college to finish, it’s taken three years of ‘mucking about and experimenting’ before this January’s release of the final polished set of 13 songs. The album has picked up rare praise in a barren landscape of new indie guitar music, a genre which Maclean insists he neither understands nor follows. In fact when he talks about influences, he’s keen to stress the importance of music that resists such easy categorisation: ‘whether it be Outkast, or if you go back to
Jimi Hendrix, Bo Diddley, Stone Roses, Primal Scream, The Beta Band, bands that have always excited me use guitars but not in the idea of ‘indie’.’ While making the album, they had in mind albums like Screamadelica that ‘transcended genres’, and in resisting that initial premature hype and embracing all kinds of weirdness in their music, the band hope to have positioned themselves outside of whatever stifling trends and tags the year might produce. Maclean speaks with a modest, rambling Scottish tone and wry sense of humour that sounds as if it would be best suited to enthusing about Chicago house, hip-hop and Spaghetti Westerns over a pint of mild. This enthusiasm infects the band’s music, from the selfpainted artwork to the passion for ‘all kinds of weird escapist film like sci-fi, John Carpenter and Arthur C. Clarke,’ which he suggests ‘always seems to seep into the music.’ The fancy dress live shows, as well, ‘come from being quite an escapist band, a bit tired of our grey London surroundings.’ Fellow Scots the Beta Band are casually referenced before I have chance to bring up the inevitable and potentially pretty tiresome comparison. Maclean is actually the younger brother of Beta Band keyboardist and
sampler John Maclean, and ‘growing up together, sharing the same record collection and talking about music all the time’, he can see how this has contributed to the similar variety in the bands’ sounds, insisting that ‘it’s great that people think we can be compared to them’. He goes as far as to suggest that ‘there hasn’t really been a band between us and them that was so into different types of music.’ Critically acclaimed but commercially unappreciated, the Beta Band’s gloomier experimentations in folk and hip-hop could easily overshadow an upcoming band; but Django Django manage to take on the mantle with an upbeat, refreshing and original (enough) sound. Django Django’s philosophy (the name apparently having nothing to do with Reinhardt but deriving from a 90s rave album entitled Son of Django, although I wouldn’t be surprised if every journalist gets a different answer) is to not ‘sit and think too much about what we do’ and to let the music ‘go where it wants to go and not worry about what people want’. Yet the foursome were insistent on self-producing the album, ‘determined to learn the process and set ourselves up for the next couple of albums, so that we can move quickly on to
the next albums and know how to do things better.’ As Maclean says, ‘you only get to make one debut’, something many bands must come to rue later in their career. For those next steps, he foresees an album with ‘a much more contemporary feel, a bit more minimal, a bit more dance-y’, more in accordance with latest release Waveforms / Drumforms. What was important to the band, though, was ‘making a debut that was full of experimentation and maybe full of mistakes … honest in its song-writing and production.’ They’ve achieved that, with an album of undeniable invention; but it’s early in the year, and there’s sure to be plenty of shiny Next Big Things waiting to steal away attention. Perhaps the Django beast will be best defined by how it can evolve beyond its eclectic collage of chaotic grooves.
‘Django Django’ is available on BECAUSE now
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Reviews UTILITARIAN DELICACIES NapalmMobile Death Disco Simian Century Media November 29 2010 27 February 2012 Delicatessen
How to write about Napalm Death without clichés? The band’s intimidating legacy doesn’t seem to leave much room for saying anything new. Since 1987’s Scum they have been heralded as the flagship band of grindcore - an ugly genre that inverts musical sensibilities and, in a flash-in-the-pan rage, rails against harmony and order. Grindcore is frenetic and chaotic, full of violent caprice and snotnosed aggression; it reflects the world’s brutality and senselessness, and in its deviation from ‘rules’, demands personal, social and political change. So, surely, the sheer length of their career should raise eyebrows. It seems that metal is a volatile and spontaneous thing; to prolong it is to dilute it, to make it redundant. Long-standing metal bands lapse into the starkly rubbish: look no further than Deicide’s disappearance into their own bigoted cavities, or Morbid Angel’s refusal to give up PVC clothing. Utilitarian is Napalm Death’s 14th album how could it possibly have anything to say? The answer lies in their change of sound. Napalm Death in the 21st century lean more towards the pummelling than the caustic, towards a consistent heaviness rather than a reckless destruction. Their songs are longer, and function less through
SWEET SOUR Band of Skulls [PIAS] 20 Feb 2012 If Led Zep were a bunch of Brummies who became the best rock and roll band ever, then why should the fact Band Of Skulls are from Southampton get in the way of us enjoying the ride? There’s definitely a template being followed on Sweet Sour, Band Of Skulls’ second album, and it’s one that will be very familiar to anyone who uses the ‘sign of the horns’ as a greeting method. Hard rocking is never off the menu on Sweet Sour’s first half, even when it looks like we’ve ordered a nice, mellow, acoustic love song – as the middle of ‘Lay My Head Down’ proves. Band Of Skulls have supported both BRMC and The Black Keys recently and it’s obvious the unisex trio would be a top notch support act – all cheap thrills and direct, impressive musicianship. It’ll be interesting to see which of the two Black bands’ career paths Skulls will end up going down - the former appear down and out, while the latter seem to be miraculously giving rock music CPR. On this evidence, it’s hard to say. However, as the pensive, affecting ‘Navigate’, ‘Homecoming’ and ‘Close To Nowhere’ from the album’s second half show, there’s at least one more string to the band’s bow than would first appear. Eleanor Bluth
SOUNDS FROM NOWHERESVILLE The Ting Tings Columbia 27 February 2012
avoidance of melody and rhythmic cohesion than through the manipulation of these elements into something simultaneously unsettling and engaging - check the disjointed melodies on ‘Leper Colony’, or the left-field harmonies on ‘Quarantined’. In fact,there are fantastic bouts of experimentation here. ‘Everyday Pox’ makes for about the most hairraising listening experience this year, as John Zorn flails about with an unhinged-sounding saxophone; surprisingly, perhaps, it is absolutely electrifying. Whilst tracks like ‘Errors in the Signals’ are jarringly erratic, today’s Napalm Death no doubt shines on steamrollering the listener with grooves like that of ‘The Wolf I Feed’ and ‘Orders of Magnitude’. The momentum of these songs, their unrelenting battery, is built to level audiences. A rally for right-wing politician Newt Gingrich was recently interrupted by an underground grindcore band pitching up, plugging in and kicking off before the police intervened; clearly, grindcore is still an active and violent means of expression. Utilitarian proves this. It sees Napalm Death avoiding stagnation as they remodel their sound into something heavier, more ferocious and more vitriolic. Charlie Davis
I AM GEMINI Cursive Saddle Creek 20 Feb 2012 Omaha’s Cursive are a band that have built up a strong underground following over the years. Their seventh studio offering sees no sign of them losing steam. While the words ‘concept album’ normally give rise to alarm bells, Cursive are no strangers to this methodology, with different themes holding court over most of their previous records. I Am Gemini tells the story of twin brothers Cassius and Pollock, who were separated at birth. The album’s liner notes feature the lyrics arranged into a play of two acts, and it has to be said that following the stage directions while listening to the record completely transforms the auditory experience. It is impossible to ignore the underlying concept of the lyrics; however, this isn’t a detriment as the coherence it brings to the chaotic instrumentation definitely adds an extra dimension to the record. A powerful guitar line drives ‘A Birthday Bash’, one of the album’s heavier songs. ‘Warmer, Warmer’ features a moody introduction that gives way to an upbeat track which is one of the highlights of this album. Overall, fans of the band will find that there is much to enjoy here, with the unsettlingly discordant style peddled by the band permeating the album. Rajitha Ratnam
Pop music generally falls into one of three categories: something so wonderful it will live on far beyond the life of the artist who made it; a fleeting piece of fun, or something that generates what can only be described as a feeling of ‘meh’. The Ting Ting’s sophomore album unfortunately falls into the latter category. Each and every single song on the album is so unspeakably dull, it’s hard to pick out specific low or high points. As one housemate described it, it features music ‘only fit for a car advert’. Although the band’s debut record, We Started Nothing, was hardly epic, it was certainly popular, selling more than two million copies worldwide. The Ting Tings made the bold decision to delete their first attempt at a second album (provisionally titled Kunst, because they’re, like, so edgy), after it was received ‘too positively’ by record company representatives. Instead, they went back to the drawing board, hunkered down in a Berlin basement, and produced ten tracks of tedium. In the creation of this album, Katie White and Jules de Martino maintained the repetitive themes of past hit ‘That’s Not My Name’ whilst abandoning the fun qualities that led to their success. ‘Day to Day’ best exemplifies both the duo’s dreary lyrical style and White’s monotonous voice as
MAKING MIRRORS Gotye Island 13 Feb 2012 The problem with the 2009 version of the 80s music was that it celebrated all the tiresome aspects of it. Finally, in Gotye, we have a resurrection of the less audacious aspects of the decade’s soundtrack. Not that Making Mirrors doesn’t arrest, it just happens to pack its pop punch with an intelligence that puts it more in league with Peter Gabriel than Duran Duran. ‘In Your Light’ and ‘Save Me’ utilise Wally De Backer’s disturbingly listenable vocals to rekindle your love for all things uncool, whilst simultaneously astounding with porcelain precision and production value a-plenty. ‘I Feel Better’ makes for unadulterated Motown joy, ‘Smoke and Mirrors’ is like going on a date with a conjoined Kieran Hebden and David Holmes, and ‘Somebody That I Used to know’ is probably already in your browser history – and deservingly so. The list of musical genres that are given the Gotye treatment is one with too many hyphenated terms to bother transcribing. Thankfully though, the mesh of influence is celebratory rather than tiresome, and above all, embarrassingly enjoyable. And it’s still challenging enough for you to feel superior to your friends who won’t like it because it’s not featuring David Guetta. Hurrah! Suzie McCracken
she sings ‘day to day/day to/day to day/day to day/ day to/day to day’. Much of the album is reminiscent of cheap 90s pop (more Samantha Mumba than Britney Spears), from White’s white-girl rapping to the sheer number of samples that sound like the result of someone falling arse-first into a child’s toy box. The album title alone, Sounds from Nowheresville, is incredibly juvenile, and bears more than a passing resemblance to Busted-spinoff band Son of Dork’s first (and only) album, Welcome to Loserville. For a band that owe much of their success to the use of ‘That’s Not My Name’ in an iPod advert, they have at least managed to create another collection of songs which might feature in an episode of Gossip Girl. Current single ‘Soul Killing’ is one example which might see some success in the realms of advertising, but epitomises just how disjointed the album is with its ska beats fading into dance track ‘One by One’. Whilst we usually commend artists for sticking two fingers up at record executives, we can only wonder whether this time the money men may have been right, and the band’s attempts to isolate themselves from other chart music has, in fact, isolated them from everyone. Pippa Shawley
THE SOMETHING RAIN Tindersticks Constellation/Ada 21 Feb 2012 Everything about Tindersticks’s new LP seems stripped back, understated and withdrawn, from the ambiguous album title to the collage of autumnal colours adorning its cover. The songs here saunter along over simple drum patterns and looped guitars. The tempo occasionally picks up, but for the most part, these tracks are a sonic accompaniment to dreary afternoon walks around crumbling tenement buildings and empty parks. An absence of life pervades each echoey chord and dull thud of the bass. The video clip to lead-single ‘Medicine’ explores this theme with haunting lucidity. This visual tour around the band’s studio details its material contents: empty wine bottles, tobacco packets and dusty equipment drift in and out of focus as a log fire roars silently to itself. Similar clutter and detritus must fill the corridors of Stuart A. Staples’s mind. His songs are a bleak depiction of the loneliness of ancient bedsits on grey evenings. But it’s not all doom and gloom; as their name might suggest, Tindersticks’s tracks suddenly ignite with uplifting swells of strings or horns, and hope comes creeping through the cracks in the curtains. Mike Hine
Film & TV
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Airbrushed, but endearing racial drama Director: Tate Taylor Starring: Emma Stone, Viola Davis, Octavia Spencer
As the excitement surrounding the 84th annual Academy Awards heightens, speculation has been intensifying around the nominees; critical camps have been divided, and no film has been more deliberated over than The Help. An adaptation of Kathryn Stockett’s best selling novel, The Help has grossed a staggering £205.3 million so far and has been one of the most commercially successful films of the year. Directed by Stockett’s childhood friend, Tate Taylor, the film is set in 1960s Jackson, Mississippi, and dramatises the battle for racial equality through the tale of a group of oppressed African-American maids who are given a voice by Eugene ‘Skeeter’ Phelan (Emma Stone), a white journalist.
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THE HELP
Skeeter, struggling against pressures of her own, is a young woman whose serious pursuit of a literary career is not akin to the expectations of Southern womanhood, whose focus is purely on marriage above all other aspirations. Skeeter rebels against her middle-class family and stirs up trouble for the elite coterie of snobbish southern belles that hold a dictatorial rule over her hometown. Quite how she manages to get away with this is one of the films many convenient omissions. Convincing two black maids, Aibileen and Minny (Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer), to secretly collaborate with her, Skeeter wants to produce a book in which the maids anonymously expose the suffering routinely imposed on their lives by the wealthy families who ‘own’ them. These emotional stories tell the perspectives of the black women who virtually raise their white employers’ children, yet are treated by those same families with humiliation and exploitation, unfit to share
even a bathroom, much less political or economic power. The connection between these maids and their white charges is the resoundingly agonizing focus of the film:“You is kind,you is smart and you is important”, Abilieen repeatedly imbues courage into the heart of the unloved child of her mistress. The story steers mainly clear of the larger social upheavals and concentrates on the specific personal injustices of one community, predominantly contrived
by the odiously cruel social queen, Hilly Holbrook (Bryce Dallas Howard), a power fanatic who takes pleasure in every exertion of her domination. Indeed, the story, full of engaging, albeit slightly stereotypical characters, is a hotbed of upcoming talent. Emma Stone reaffirms herself as a sincere and assured protagonist whose conviction is delivered without condescension. Jessica Chastain is also particularly notable as the infectiously beguiling
social outcast Celia Foote, whose gloriously seductive curves are a mythologizing celebration of the era. Whilst enormously moving and entertaining, an audience cannot fail to appreciate the almost stage-like humour of Jessica Chastain and Octavia Spencer, their performances have an affability that embodies the entire film. Its aversion to the truly seismic social events of the period, confined to voiceovers or brief interjections in the periphery, and its ignorance of many of the more harrowing hardships black workers faced in these white homes leave it lacking in the integrity one expects of an Oscar winner. The problems of Mississippi are somewhat trivialised and insensitive. Their drama, whilst passionate, has a touch of crudeness where it has been exploited for Hollywood sentimentality. The film is markedly nonpolitical, its characters are held accountable only to the attitudes of the 1960s and its morality is passive, confined
to what conclusions the viewer can draw themselves. Thus, The Help appears to interrogate our perceptions of film and what criteria we value in cinema: the escapist experience constructed solely for our entertainment, or a medium that has a serious obligation to the material it uses? Despite this, Viola Davis, verified by her surfeit of best actress nominations, is what redeems the film’s integrity. Her performance has an earnest grace and quiet dignity so powerful it cannot fail to touch its audience. There is an exhilarating satisfaction in the cathartic revenge of their triumph, perhaps best epitomized by Minny’s delicious act of subterfuge, which, while verging on burlesque, is undeniably gratifying. Airbrushed and safe it may be, as it oscillates between the fantastically comic and poignantly emotive, The Help is still a stirring and effective dramatic success, and firmly established as a contender in the battle of the Oscars. Anouska Wilkinson
Oscar Predictions - what will win and what should win? Cass Horowitz puts his neck on the line and examines 2012’s Oscar nominations - a heady mix of the eccentric and the generic
This year’s Oscars have already been as unpredictable as ever. Many people (including me) were surprised by the 11 nominations for Martin Scorsese’s Hugo. To put this in context, in 1976, Scorsese’s Taxi Driver, a far better film, received only four nominations - this effectively demonstrates the lack of competition this year. That said, films like Clint Eastwood’s J Edgar were completely ignored, whilst actors Ryan Gosling (Drive, Ides of March) and Michael Fassbender (Shame) were surprise omissions. Any year in
which the harrowing We Need To Talk About Kevin is overlooked for Terrence Malick’s love-it-orloathe-it, Palme d’Or winning, The Tree of Life, will be a difficult year to predict Oscar winners. But surprisingly the Best Picture Oscar, with its choice of nine different potential winners, is this year one of the easiest to predict. Surely The Artist will be taking home the statuette, unless Academy-friendly fare The Help spoils the party. Similarly there is little doubt for me over the Best Director category. You could bet your student loan on this one. This
year’s Oscars are all about rewarding films which recognise the values of old-fashioned Hollywood. The Artist is a classy film that deserves the awards it is getting and its director Michel Hazanavicius is streaks ahead of the other nominated films in this category. If Meryl Streep doesn’t win this category then America has officially gone mad. She was extraordinary as Margaret Thatcher in The Iron Lady and her win is more predictable then the 1997 elections. George Clooney has never won a Best Actor Oscar and I
get the feeling this is his year. That said, Michael Fassbender was brilliant in Shame and his lack of a nomination tells us a lot about Hollywood’s strong ties with the status quo. I was very disappointed with the Supporting Actor and Actress nominations as I felt that Ryan Gosling and Tilda Swinton should both have been put forward. Gosling has been excellent this year and deserves at least a nod. Swinton was also persuasive as a distraught mother in Kevin. I imagine Beginners’ Christopher Plummer and The Help’s Octavia Spencer will get the nod. Woody Allen has had more screenwriting Academy Award nominations than any other writer (15), and he looks like he’s done it again with Midnight in Paris. I enjoyed Margin Call, even if it was a little depressing, and would like to see the award going to some new faces. I can’t help but feel that Hugo may win this one as some sort of consolation award. That said, Tinker Taylor is the more deserving. This year, the Oscars are on February 26th and I can’t help but feel that they will be something of an anti-climax. Nevertheless, I will be staying up to watch them, if only to see if I got it right.
Best Director Alexander Payne - The Descendants Michel Hazanavicius - The Artist Martin Scorsese - Hugo Woody Allen - Midnight in Paris Terrence Malick - The Tree of Life Who will win: Michel Hazanavicius Who should win: Michel Hazanavicius Best Picture War Horse Hugo Moneyball The Help The Artist The Descendants Midnight in Paris The Tree of Life Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close What will win: The Artist What should win: The Artist Best Actress Glenn Close - Albert Nobbs Viola Davis - The Help Rooney Mara - The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo Meryl Streep - The Iron Lady Michelle Williams - My Week with Marylin Who will win: Meryl Streep Who should win: Meryl Streep
Best Actor George Clooney - The Descendants Brad Pitt - Moneyball Jean Dujardin - The Artist Damian Bichir - A Better Life Gary Oldman - Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy Who will win: George Clooney Who should win: Michael Fassbender - Shame Best Supporting Actor Kenneth Brannagh - My Week with Marylin Jonah Hill - Moneyball Nick Nolte - Warrior Christopher Plummer Beginners Max von Sydow - Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close Who will win: Christopher Plummer - Beginners Who should win: Ryan Gosling - Ides of March Best Supporting Actress Octavia Spencer - The Help Berenice Bejo - The Artist Jessica Chastain - The Help Melissa McCarthy Bridesmaids Janet McTeer - Albert Nobbs Who will win: Octavia Spencer / Jessica Chastain Who should win: Tilda Swinton - We Need To Talk About Kevin
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Black Pond trio touch down in Bristol
Anthony Adeane witnesses the beginning of two glittering careers, and the re-ignition of one recently blighted by controversy at Tonbridge School, allegedly owing to concerns on the part of parents that his appearance at the school would not be appropriate. With Langham’s name splashed over the headlines once again, the Cube had no difficulties in reaching full capacity for what promised to be a compelling evening. One could have been forgiven for forgetting that Black Pond was the main event of the evening, but happily it proved to be an excellently realised film that more than lived up to the hype surrounding it. Black Pond depicts the events leading up to the mysterious death of a man named Blake (Colin Hurley). He dies in the company of Tom Thompson (Chris Langham), a hapless father of two, and the rest of the Thompsons at their family home in the countryside. The film portrays the deterioration of Tom’s relationship with his wife, Sophie (Amanda Hadingue), in the days preceding Blake’s demise, while also jumping forward in time for interviews with members of the Thompson family in the aftermath of the controversy. A captivating combination of sharply observed comedy and domestic drama, Black Pond
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Bristol’s Cube cinema recently showed Black Pond on three consecutive evenings with the added bonus of a Q&A with writer/directors Will Sharpe and Tom Kingsley and lead actor Chris Langham on the opening night. Made on an astonishingly low-budget of £25,000, the film garnered great critical acclaim on its release in early November, as well as a recent BAFTA nomination for Kingsley and Sharpe. Much of the media attention for Black Pond has centred on the return of Chris Langham after a three-month stint in prison. Langham’s star was very much in the ascendancy in 2006 with a Best Comedy Performance BAFTA for his role as Hugh Abbott in the BBC’s brilliant political comedy series The Thick of It and a Best Comedy Series BAFTA for Help. But in 2007 he was jailed for ten months for downloading images of child abuse, claiming that they were needed to research a new character. His sentence was reduced to three months and Black Pond is his first screen performance since his release in November 2007. Just days before the Q&A at the Cube he pulled out of a similar event
entertained the audience as well as packing an emotional punch. Given that it is their first feature length film, Kingsley and Sharpe direct the intricate plot with impressive assuredness. Langham is superb as Tom and provides the majority of Black Pond’s funniest moments. Enforced absence from acting has not blunted his comic timing, and he manages to invest Tom with enough humanity to keep him from becoming a clownish caricature. He is supported ably by a strong cast, with a persuasive turn from Colin Hurley as Blake,
the enigmatic man at the heart of the story. One aspect that slightly jars is the character of the psychologist Eric Sacks played by former Never Mind the Buzzcocks presenter Simon Amstell. The scenes with Amstell are somewhat out of kilter with the off-beat comedy of the film and seem as if they were perhaps tacked on as an afterthought. But this is a minor fault in what is undoubtedly an impressive debut from Kingsley and Sharpe, fully deserving of the plaudits and award nominations that have been heaped upon it.
The Q and A that followed the showing of the film proved to be an illuminating insight into the process of making a film on a shoestring budget. Kingsley revealed that they shot the majority of the film at his family home while his parents were actually in the house trying to live their lives as normally as possible. Their crew was so small (four members!) that Kingsley and Sharpe were working non-stop, from directing the film to cooking food for the entire cast. It got to the point where one would sleep while
the other directed and then the two of them would switch back and forth until they were fully rested and could direct together. The final question of the evening broached the topic of Langham’s imprisonment and asked whether the only reason Langham agreed to the film was because he could not find any other work. It was a seat-squirming moment but it was difficult not to watch with grim fascination to see how Langham would defend himself. He spoke eloquently about the bind in which he has found himself in the aftermath of his crime. He described himself as a man who cares intensely about what people think of him and defines himself by his work, and how being a disliked man who cannot get a job is not an ideal situation. At some points the bemoaning of his miserable life rang hollow considering the ghastliness of the images that he downloaded. But he found safer ground with his parting words in which he praised Sharpe and Kingsley, calling them ‘two of the most talented people you will ever meet’. And on the evidence of Black Pond this certainly will not be the last we see of them.
Dull Daldry fails to impress Cast thrive in slick adaptation EXTREMELY LOUD AND INCREDIBLY CLOSE
CARNAGE
the World Trade Center – an unnecessary scene and one that seems to have been included because the director, Stephen Daldry, wanted to try out a different camera angle. And therein lies the problem with this movie: it’s too flashy for a film dealing with an issue of this sensitivity. The slow motion sequences serve little purpose and other devices, such as flashback, are overused. The dialogue is extremely pretentious and despite aiming for a deep and meaningful tone, it soon begins to grate. In terms of storyline, there’s very little. Oskar smashes a vase in his father’s room. Inside, he finds an envelope containing a key with the word ‘Black’ written on it. He vows to find the matching lock and, using the phone book, decides to visit people with that surname in New
York. He is helped on his quest by his grandmother’s tenant (Max Von Sydow), a mysterious man who never speaks, but whom Oskar befriends. This friendship forms the most interesting part of the film. Von Sydow’s performance, which has earned him an Academy Award nomination, gives real depth to the character, despite never speaking. Praise should also be given to Thomas Horn, whose portrayal of Oskar is convincing throughout. Although it’s well-acted, I didn’t like Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close at all. Daldry and Roth might as well have called the film ‘I Desperately Want To Win An Oscar For This’. The tragedy of 9/11 is exploited, serving as an excuse to show off innovative cinematographic and storytelling techniques. Michael Hindmarsh
Director: Roman Polanski Starring: Jodie Foster, John C Reilly, Christoph Waltz, Kate Winslet
Roman Polanksi’s new film, Carnage, is a slick satire, adapted from Yasmon Reza’s stage play, which examines the emotional trials and tribulations of the middle classes hidden under the veil of superficial happiness. The film centres on the interaction between two sets of parents, Alan and Nancy Cowan (Christopher Waltz and Kate Winslett) and Michael and Penelope Longstreet (John. C.Reilly and Jodie Foster) as they attempt a diplomatic reconciliation following a schoolboy fracas in which the Cowans’ son whacked the Longstreet’s boy square in the face with a tree branch. The situation is initially awkward but civil as the Longstreets go to great lengths to promote a sense of forgiveness and community, while the high-flying Cowans are eager to leave as soon as they have ticked the boxes of polite formality. However, as the Cowans are kept from
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Isn’t it a shame when a film is ruined by pretentiousness, every single line screaming ‘interpret me!’ at the viewer? This is exactly what happens in Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, which is frustrating because it detracts from some excellent individual performances. I’d been interested in seeing this film, which explores the impact of 9/11 on families who lost their loved ones. Nominated for the ‘Best Picture’ Oscar and written by Eric Roth, known for Forrest Gump and Munich, I was confident it wouldn’t disappoint. How wrong could I have been? The subject matter is obviously delicate, with young Oskar Schell (Thomas Horn) and his mother (Sandra Bullock) struggling to cope with their grief after the death of father and husband, Thomas (Tom Hanks), in the attacks. And yet the issue is not handled skilfully. At times, the film verges on offence. The opening shot shows a body falling from
beyondhollywood.com
Director: Stephen Daldry Starring: Tom Hanks, Sandra Bullock, Max von Sydow
leaving time and time again, the afternoon descends into a slanging match (with a little help from a bottle of whisky) as prejudices are exposed and each character takes the opportunity to vent their personal frustrations. The film’s setting is particularly claustrophobic as the majority of the action takes place in the Longstreet’s sitting room. This sense of physical enclosure allows the tension to escalate quickly, and the behaviour of each character becomes more hysterical, allowing the stellar cast to exhibit their emotional range, and it is in these acting performances where the real strength of the film lies. Waltz is both charming and loathsome as the smirking attorney and the audience cannot help but wince every time he answers
his mobile, utterly oblivious to the indignation of the others who must wait in excruciating tension until he is finished. Equally, Jodie Foster shines as the morally-conscious Nancy, struggling to maintain a courteous demeanour in the face of increasingly trying circumstances - her bulging eyes and frantic mannerisms perfectly conveying her growing agitation. There are elements of Carnage which are slightly difficult to believe - why on earth Nancy wouldn’t insist on leaving after a projectile moment over the coffee table, for example. However, the film has an engaging momentum throughout as the moments of farce and prickly character interactions underpin a picture of middle class angst. Tom Brada
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Scandinavian culture continues to stun
William Miles reports on Borgen, the intricate and cerebral political series, which is a must-see for any admirer of smart television
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Borgen is the latest Scandinvian phenomenon eagerly snapped up by the BBC. Following the successes of blockbuster remakes, Let the Right One In and The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, coupled with the surprise popularity of the Danish show The Killing, it is no surprise that British television has headhunted yet another Scandinavian production. Borgen took Denmark by storm with two million viewers (40% of the Danish population) tuning in to watch the second season. Whilst buoyed by the success of The Killing, Borgen has carried this popularity into Britain with 629,000 viewers tuning in to the first episode of the series and the show receiving 25% more viewers than average for the BBC4 slot time. Spin doctors walk shoulder to shoulder with politicians, journalists circle, eager to pounce at any hint of a story, and politicians stab each other in the back with frightening ease. This is politics with a brutally candid honesty. Borgen translates to ‘The Castle’ and is the nickname given by the Danish to Christiansborg Palace, where Denmark’s Parliament conducts its affairs. An apt name, reflecting the
insinuation, ‘Are the elite of Denmark above the people?’ a debate that rages throughout as politicians battle to keep their private lives secret, even when illegal or hypocritical, whilst journalists strive to expose them ‘in the interest of the public’, not, of course, to sell more papers. Birgitte Nyborg is the series’ protagonist, leader of a small political party, the Moderates. She is strong and determined, confident and beautiful, but also remains honest and genuine. The series opens in the climax of the election as propaganda tools and tenuous alliances are the order of the
day. Scandal is rife; Liberal leader, and present prime minister, Hesselboe, spends £8000 of tax payers’ money on a Mulberry bag to prevent his drug-addict wife from making a scene; Labour leader Laugesen has racist e-mails sent by him leaked to the press and even the Liberals’ head strategist is killed off after a heart attack in the bed of his squeeze, the young, beautiful and ambitious journalist Katrine Fonsmark. It seems there are no viable candidates for the post; déjà vu anyone? Cue Nyborg. The propaganda war between the two major parties reaches its pinnacle
during the televised final debate. Laugesen foolishly brandishes the Mulberry receipt as he accuses Hesselboe of fraud. In the space of a second, he has brought the reputation of Danish politics crashing around him. Hesselboe’s hopes of a re-election are scuppered, whilst Labour’s own popularity is damaged as Denmark grows tired of these factions. The people want change and Nyborg offers this alternative. Her final speech is like a breath of fresh air, openly going ‘off script’, much to the despair of her wily and complex spin doctor, Kasper Juul, and appealing to the nation through honesty
and humility. Promising a new style of government, it seems she is perhaps the one to finally remove politics from ‘The Castle’ elite and back to the people. However, gaining the nation’s support is only the beginning of the struggle for Nyborg as she is faced with party politics, chauvinism and scandals, all whilst trying to balance ambitious ministers, her work and home life and control of the media; challenges which are undertaken with mesmerising hardship. The audience is captivated as writer, Adam Prince, successfully engages us with the trials and
tribulations of everyday life for the major players in the running of Denmark. It seems that nobody’s position is safe, no matter how squeaky clean - in the way, they are simply bulldozed out. As Nyborg’s mentor taught her, ‘You can have no friends in The Castle’. The first series of Borgen reached its finale on British screens this Saturday and the BBC have already booked the second, to be aired come Christmas. With The Killing returning on 19th November and Lilyhammer, the Norwegian comic drama starring The Sopranos star, Steven Van Zandt, just bought by the BBC in an attempt to satisfy viewers’ needs until the winter, it is clear that Scandinavian television is going from strength to strength. The same can be said for their cinema. Having seen The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo remake rake in $200 million at the box office, there is no surprise that Sony has announced its intention to release the sequel The Girl Who Played With Fire in 2013, also starring Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara. It is clear Scandinavia is having its fifteen minutes of fame. How long it will last? On this evidence, a good while yet.
Unleashed Fielding proves hit and miss
Josh Adcock dips his toes into the weird and wonderful world of Noel Fielding’s Luxury Comedy - a decidedly baffling experience ‘surreal’ does not completely capture the style, though: the whole thing is dream-like, a sort of bizarre, imaginative wonderland, which, if you were simply flicking through the channels, you’d be forgiven for thinking was some sort of dramatised acid trip, and in which little attempt is made to disguise the artifice behind the art and special effects. No real change here from the Boosh then, which traded on the same postmodern/surrealist, hyper-real feeling that the whole world of the show was aware of its own artificiality and low-budget atmosphere. Yet, Luxury Comedy surely has a much bigger budget, which is clear in the more expansive use of slick CG and animation sequences. The result is that, although the show keeps its artistic style, it feels, in fact, a little like it’s trying too hard to seem improvised or devised, rough around the edges. One of the appeals of The Mighty Boosh was its dream-like unreality, all the more effective when you could see the sellotape holding paper beards and eyebrows on to the actors’ faces. The basic style is still here, but it just feels a little more planned, a
little too slick and it loses the exuberant, spontaneous feeling that the Boosh had. If it is not obvious by now, surreality reigns in this show, and Noel’s choice of format is further testament to the man’s personal sensibilities: Luxury Comedy is a disjointed sketch show, rather than the Boosh’s more linear, albeit surreal, sitcom. Both Fielding and Julian Barratt proved their respective acting abilities in the Boosh, each regularly taking on two or three bizarre characters, in addition to their main roles, per episode. Luxury Comedy is no different: not only do we have men with colouring pencils instead of facial hair and a Brooklyn cop with intensely yellow skin, but also a blind Mexican monkey-boy, who’s given the gift of sight through the medium of cooking and fried eggs in place of eyes, and that’s without mentioning the slightly disturbing giant French chef whose nose is in fact a pepper grinder. Make of that somewhat queasy image what you will. Despite its scatter-gun approach, the show is rather moreish, and it grows on you as you watch it. If nothing else,
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So, after several years serving as a regular on music quiz show Never Mind the Buzzcocks, Noel Fielding is once again flexing his comedy muscles, first seen on TV in The Mighty Boosh, with his new series Luxury Comedy. The question fans of Noel and of the Boosh will be asking, of course, is whether or not the first episode of Luxury Comedy stands up to its spiritual predecessor, especially as Fielding is doing it alone this time, without Barratt to co-write and co-star. There are several points of comparison to be made. Fielding’s bold, surrealist visual art style is retained, and it’s here in force: we get computerised animations based on Fielding’s frantic drawing style, as well as eclectic costumes, many of which look intentionally improvised and bright colours turned all the way up to eleven. The centre of the show, if it can be said to have one, is Noel’s treehouse, perched atop a cartoon jungle rendered in Fielding’s artistic style. This should not be surprising, as Noel, former student of Croydon Art College, also took charge of creating the look for the Boosh. The word
you’ll probably find yourself so fascinated and boggled with the show’s absurdities you won’t be able to look away. And yet, as the episode progresses, you simultaneously become aware of something rather strange. While the visual style is in the same vein as The Mighty Boosh, the writing is anything but. The Boosh had a sort of delightful sense of glee about it, as if two school buddies simply got together after tea time to have an abstract, improvised chat with one another and then
sent the result out, over the airwaves for good or ill. Much of the magic of the Boosh, both inside the show and behind the scenes, came out of the feeling of playful improvisation between Noel and Julian, riffing off one another, even more apparent in the original radio series than the TV show, as each picked up on one another’s absurd ideas and ran with them. If Noel is best described as a surrealist, fashion-magpie, then Julian was his jazz maverick, balancing him out and keeping
him, if not mainstream, at least sensible. Here though, Noel has no-one to riff with, and, equally, no-one to reel him in when his surrealist jaunts take him to excessively strange and pointless places. Rather than exemplifying abstract humour, Luxury Comedy comes off as being more like some sort of surrealist scrap book for Fielding’s imagination as none of the sketches really go anywhere or build upon one another. This is, perhaps, inherent in a sketch show, but few of the sketches are really funny enough to stand on their own. And besides, Fielding chose to do a sketch show, and so can’t really be excused when his jokes are accused of being aimless. Like it or not, Fielding isn’t going to be able to escape comparison with The Mighty Boosh, and some of its magic, somewhere, has been lost. If you loved the Boosh, you’ll probably at least like Noel Fielding’s Luxury Comedy. But, I’ll bet that you probably won’t love it, and if you were never sold on the Boosh originally, you’ll be left wondering what the hell is going on: it’s a frustratingly directionless show, proving that creativity needs to have limits.
Epigram
20.02.2012
Science
Editor: Nick Cork
Deputy Editor: Emma Sackville
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Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow... Emma Sackville Deputy Science Editor The first proper snow of winter arrived just in time to be a full two months too late for Christmas. As is traditional, the cold snap appeared to catch the UK airport and highway authorities completely unawares – surprising considering recent temperatures and the fact that it’s currently winter. This cynicism aside, the snow provided the opportunity for children and adults alike to engage in some time-honoured winter activities. But what of the science that brings about snowball fights, snowman building and sledging? How are snowflakes actually formed? And what of the oft-repeated claim that each is individual, with no two flakes alike? Snowflakes are typically misidentified – the term is often used in reference to a cluster of snow crystals clumped together. Each individual snow crystal is in fact a distinct and separate snowflake. Molecules of water vapour in clouds condense – change from gas to liquid
– in response to sufficiently cold temperatures, and freeze. The water vapour requires something to condense around, a seed crystal, which is usually provided by a small speck of dust or a tiny ice particle. Once the initial crystal has formed it is able to grow - the way in which it grows determines the ultimate shape of the snow crystal. The temperature and humidity of a cloud affects the
shape and size of the snowflakes formed. In general, classical sixsided snowflakes are formed in clouds at high altitude, with needles forming in middle height clouds and a variety of six-sided shapes from low-lying clouds. Snowflake formation is therefore temperaturedependant at warmer temperatures the crystal grows more slowly, leading to a less intricate and smoother pattern.
In high altitude clouds, where it is usually colder, formation happens quicker, leading to branching and formation of dendrites. Humidity also plays an important role in determining crystal growth. The more humid it is in the cloud, the more water vapour molecules are available to form crystals. Low humidity tends to create simple hexagonal shapes whereas increased branching
occurs at higher humidity. Though there is much variation within the shape of snow crystals, the usual conformation tends towards a six-sided shape. This is due to the fact that water molecules form weak, transitory bonds with each other called hydrogen bonds. These bonds are energetically favourable - the growing crystal will form as many of these hydrogen bonds
as possible, whilst avoiding the repulsive forces that also influence bonding. For water molecules, a hexagonal shape is the best geometrical way of satisfying these pressures. A significant amount of study is being performed into how and why snow crystals form. Though, on the surface, this may not seem like a terribly useful research venture, crystals are used in many modern technologies. Better understanding how they grow can therefore prove useful. The silicon wafers used in computing, for example, are cut from silicon crystals which must be grown. Similarly, artificial diamond crystals are commonly used in machinery. Another interesting aspect of snow crystal formation is that it occurs spontaneously, a phenomenon known as self assembly. This is an important area of research since many biological structures such as DNA and proteins form by self assembly. Understanding this mechanism in further detail could provide a rationale for diseases such as Alzheimer’s - caused by protein misfolding - and generate new treatment strategies.
Food for thought: weighing up your diet Mary Melville Science Reporter Did you manage to keep to your New Year resolution? Mine was to eat more fruit. My flat-mate, in an effort to lose weight, swears by her new tiny fork - a product endorsed by the unfortunately-named though no doubt nutritionally-qualified peer, Lord Sugar. Every year seemingly hundreds of new diets and programmes offer to turn us into healthier, superior versions of ourselves, but is there any science to support these claims? Though the suggestion isn’t for all palates, the basic mechanism of eating less and exercising more should promote a reduction in body weight. Fundamentally, energy intake, if beyond that required to sustain the body’s metabolism, promotes the synthesis and storage of fat. It follows that restricting the calorific content of food, or increasing our energy requirements through physical activity, should go some way to aiding weight-loss. Popular preference however seems to be for comparatively ‘low effort’ diets, often heavily
promoted through celebrity endorsement. One programme that has come under recent scrutiny is the Dukan Diet, which featured in the Channel Four series, ‘Will My Crash Diet Kill Me?’, as well as last year’s top-ten non-fiction bestseller lists in the UK and US. This plan involves an initial ‘attack’ phase where the dieter can only eat proteins. Can starving your body of fruit, vegetables and carbohydrates be beneficial? The British Dietetic Association concluded that any perceived weight-loss is due simply to restricted portion-size. Furthermore, ‘fad’ programmes promote the conversion to fuel
of glycogen stores in the liver, which are required in healthy physiology. Hormonal factors impede further weight-loss when these stores are depleted, as the body deems itself to be in ‘starvation mode’. This is characteristic of many fad diets, where initial short-term losses as measured by reduced body weight on the scales are neither representative of decreased fat storage, nor sustained weightloss. In an overwhelming majority of cases the resultant hormonal imbalance, combined with a return to former eating behaviours, contributes to a regain of the lost weight and then
some – the ‘yo-yo diet’. Recent studies have looked at other factors affecting weightloss, particularly psychological components. Some physiologists have focused their attention on cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) guided by the hypothesis that over-eating can be in response to low neural serotonin levels. Behavioral therapists claim that tackling this imbalance should lead to a decreased dependence on food, with resultant significant weight loss. Another recent Californian paper compared two groups of women who kept diaries
for 15 minutes each day: one group documenting activities they enjoyed, the other producing a more negative daily commentary. The ‘positive’ women lost 3.4 pounds on average over the duration of the study, while the second group gained weight. This highlights an association between emotional state and dietary consumption, suggesting that unconscious food dependence can be reduced simply via psychological means. The diet plan recognized to be well-supported by science, with documented long-term success rates, is Weight Watchers. In a
study of over 700 people on four major diets, participants on Weight Watchers sustained a significant weight-loss and were the only group that had a significantly greater weightloss (2.5 kg) than the control group. Though Weight Watchers may not seem like the most fashionable diet, it combines the necessary food groups required in health whilst minimizing the ‘junk’ foods that overwhelm our metabolisms through highdensity sugar and fat, without providing nutritional benefit. Weight Watchers also provides the psychological support required to sustain new eating behaviours through regular group sessions. Diets fall in and out of fashion, often dependant on newly contrived pseudoscience and varying public acceptance over time. It’s worth remembering that weight-loss products are part of a billion dollar industry. Some final food for thought then: is the quest for ‘health’ an investment in something truly beneficial to our bodies or merely buying into a business ploy? Simply exchanging a mid-morning chocolate bar for an apple for a might be the cheaper and ultimately more effective alternative.
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Help or hindrance? What’s in a name? Are ‘more rounded’ individuals dissuaded from pursuing scientific careers by the ‘geek’ branding of some prominent scientists? Suzi Gage Science Reporter TV presenter and Bristol alumnus Alice Roberts was recently appointed Professor of Public Engagement in Science at the University of Birmingham. On accepting the role, Roberts expressed her negative opinion of the specificity of A Level education in this country and the term ‘geek’ as embraced by ‘a number of scientists’. The two issues are more interrelated than they might at first appear. The UK’s A Level system, although allowing more subject diversity than when I sat mine a decade ago, still forces kids as young as 16
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to, in effect, decide whether they want to pursue careers in the arts or sciences. It is of course possible to do an eclectic mix of sciences and humanities - I can testify from personal experience - but it can influence a student’s prospects of getting onto their course of choice at University. Most stick to closely-related A Levels, and head down either one path or the other. Roberts suggested that those coming through the International Baccalaureate scheme, where students undertake a wider
Flickr: Bob Lee
Does ‘geek’ still carry the negative connotations it did when Roberts was at school?
range of topics right until the point of leaving school, were ‘more rounded’ as individuals, because they weren’t forced to specialise so early. This may be the case, but where does geekery come in to this? Roberts believes a label like ‘geek’ will put off the teenager with a casual interest in science from wanting to learn more. If a teenager doesn’t define themselves by being the cleverest, the most obsessive, the ‘geekiest’, will they pick arts and humanities A Levels, and avoid a STEM - Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths - career? Some say that the emergence of ‘rock star’ scientists like Professor Brian Cox has made science appear less geeky, cooler even. Certainly the term ‘geek’ is still used as an insult in playgrounds, and if it’s at this age that people have to decide where their future lies, could hearing scientists use it to describe themselves potentially put them off? There is also ‘geek chic’ to consider. These days it is hard to tell whether a person in thick rimmed glasses is a [insert typical ‘geek’ occupation here] who still lives with his Mum or a hipster illustrator with a converted loft apartment in East London. Has the acceptance of geek fashion led to an increase in applications to STEM subjects at University? Some commentators have theorised just that, though it’s a hard assertion to assess systematically. A number of social events also utilise the ‘geek’ banner, whether explicitly or by implication.
Brian Cox, Professor of Physics at the University of Manchester and presenter of the BBC series, ‘Wonders of the Universe’
These events, however, are likely to attract those already aligned with science. No bad thing, of course, but this is not the same as engaging with and helping new people to foster an interest. Does ‘geek’ still carry the negative connotations it did when Roberts was at school? Wikipedia, the venerable internet authority, suggests so - phrases like ‘peculiar or
otherwise dislikeable’ and ‘overly intellectual’ leap out of the first paragraph. Of course, this is why people may choose to self-identify as a geek. It is common for repressed populations to reclaim words used against them - in more extreme examples, racial and homophobic slurs have been famously embraced in this way. There’s no doubting though that this is divisive, creating an ‘us and them’ mentality that may indeed turn ‘non geeks’ away from science. And, as with all labels, it’s reductive. Hardly anyone conforms to each
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How many boxes must you tick before you qualify as a geek?
Flickr: Portable Antiquities
Alice Roberts, newly appointed Professor of Public Engagement in Science at the University of Birmingham
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aspect of the ‘geek’ stereotype, so how many boxes must you tick before you qualify as a geek? You can be a PhD student, enjoy knitting and reading, but spend your evenings socialising, performing with your rock band or doing extreme sports. Are you a geek, a rock chick, or a jock? While it’s lovely as a scientist to be a geek and feel as though you belong to an exclusive club with Brian Cox as inspirational poster boy, we should also be encouraging a new generation of future scientists and avoiding the exclusion of anyone with interests outside of the lab. It’s perfectly possible to be interested in high culture as well as cell culture.
Upcoming Events The Best of Bristol lecture series The ‘Best of Bristol’ lecture series has returned for another year. These free lunchtime events offer the opportunity to ‘experience the best teaching the university has to offer’, from some of the most inspirational and engaging lecturers, as voted for by the student body. Below are a couple of talks that might be of particular interest to Epigram Science readers:
‘The balance between teaching and research’ 23 February 2012 - 1:10pm Teaching Fellow Gervas Huxley Huxley also featured in the 2010-11 lecture series - it is a testament to the popularity of his teaching that he has been voted one of the university’s most desirable speakers. The Economics Teaching Fellow has been described as ‘highly entertaining, highly educational and highly recommended’.
Drugs of abuse - what do they do to the brain? 8 March 2012 - 1:10pm Professor Graeme Henderson Henderson wrote the book on his subject area - quite literally - he has joined the company of Drs. Humphrey Rang, Maureen Dale et al to edit the most recent edition of the famous Pharmacology textbook. His students have the following to say about the Professor: ‘His presence tends to involuntarily demand your attention, his knowledge and passion about his topic can be easily seen in his lecture style’.
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‘Box ’em in boys’: A bluffer’s guide to Sunday League football cliches Tom Burrows Sports Editor
1. ‘We’ve gone quiet’ The cardinal sin for any Sunday League side and a sign that all is
2. ‘Straight in’ A simple instruction that can be used only at a very specific moment – namely, the opponents kicking off the game. This chat results in the two Sunday League strikers (yes, they are set up in a 4-4-2 formation), where one is usually rotund and the other a stick-thin beanpole enthusiastically charging after the opposition defenders for the ball. What regularly follows is a clumsy ‘forwards-tackle’ when the podgy one clatters into one of their four defenders leaving him in a heap on the floor. The captain will applaud this commitment with the chat, ‘great hassle (name).’ 3. ‘Box ’em in’ A throw-in has been awarded to the opposition deep in their own half. Almost on cue, a teammate will bellow that famous footballing phrase, ‘box ‘em in’ (or, if their creative juices are flowing, ‘pen ‘em in’/’squeeze ‘em in’). Those fit enough to trot into the opponent’s final third will gallantly do so, knowing that any sort of pressure on the opposition left/right back will almost certainly result in the ball being unceremoniously hacked into the neighbouring garden/ supermarket car park. 4. ‘Two on the edge’ A corner has been awarded to the opposition. Their two centre
halves (who are, of course, big) have already ambled into the penalty area. Their danger has been recognised and they have been ‘picked up.’ Panic strikes though when a team-mate brings to his side’s attention the two unmarked opponents ‘on the edge’ of the box. There is further chaos when an opponent makes a late charge into the area, leading to the desperate cry from a fellow player: ‘Oi, I’ve got two ‘ere.’ The pandemonium is diffused when the corner sails harmlessly into the side-netting. 5. ‘We haven’t turned up yet.’ The match is barely ten minutes underway and the opposition team are, incredibly, already three goals to the good. As the losing team trudge back to the centre circle, a team-mate (normally the goby centre-back) will explain that ‘we haven’t turned up yet.’ A twist on this chat is to point towards the chilly, run-down shack and bark ‘we’re still in the dressing room boys.’
midfielders clustered in the centre circle. However, he is tired after ‘boxing in’ the opponent right-back only a few minutes before and cannot muster the necessary energy to meet the ball with his head. To alert his team-mates to this information, he valiantly wheezes: ‘It’s over me boys.’ 8. ‘Stand up…don’t dive in.’ One of the teams has a tricky winger (who can, incredibly, perform the Cruyff turn). He is giving the chubby left-back a torrid afternoon. As he picks up the ball and prepares to embarrass the corpulent fullback again, a team-mate will scream in encouragement ‘stand up…don’t dive in.’ It is too late though. The fat left-back has
already launched himself at the winger’s knees and he has skipped past him once more.
kick the ball as hard and far away as physically possible.
9. ‘Time’ The ball drops from the air and a player finds himself in acres of space. Pointing this out to him seems like a good idea. It will relax him: he’ll get his head up and pick a pass or go on a rampaging dribble. However, when all ten team-mates cry out ‘time’ together, it only serves to unnerve the player. Instead of coolly controlling the ball, he therefore shins it agonisingly out of play. A team-mate will then add insult to injury by reminding him that ‘you had time.’ In a similar way, the shout of ‘man on’ will create such panic in a player that he will simply
10. ‘That’s Hollywood’ One of the central midfielders (who once had a trial at Stockport County) and is the only player sporting coloured boots attempts another speculative 60 yard cross-field pass. It ends up in the neighbouring garden/ supermarket car park. The captain has had enough of this: ‘Oi, that’s Hollywood. We’re not bloody Brazil.’ His central midfield compatriot (the gritty, spikey one of the two whose nicknames is ‘Chopper’ or something equally fitting) also turns away in disgust and spits ‘what’s wrong with the easy ball?’ ‘I didn’t hear the call’, he replies. ‘We’re too quiet.’
withdraw from tournaments throughout 2006, 2007 and 2008, relying on wildcards to enter major competitions. This led some tennis commentators to question whether Dokic would continue playing professionally for much longer. However, 2009 was a much more successful year. Dokic somehow managed to reach the quarter-finals of the Australian Open, the first time she had achieved this since 2002. Although she was brushed aside by Dinara Safina, this was overall a promising display from Dokic. The question was: would she be able to maintain that momentum? Initially, it seemed that she would. In the French Open, she reached the second round and was leading the world no. 4, Elena Dementieva, by a set.
But to her supporters’ dismay, she was forced to retire from the match with a back injury. Since then, although she is competing far more regularly, Dokic has enjoyed little success in the Grand Slam tournaments, repeatedly being knocked out in the first round. However, her ranking has steadily improved thanks to increased participation in the WTA tour. Her win in the 2011 Kuala Lumpur Cup saw her move to world no. 61. Now 28 years of age, Dokic will be looking to consolidate her place in the top 100. This year, she has reached the second round of the Australian Open and is now planning to compete in the Fed Cup. But it is unlikely she will ever replicate the success she enjoyed early on in her career at the Wimbledon Championships.
6. ‘It’s still 0-0’ While all this is unfolding, a player in the winning side (normally the steady, reliable type and thus one of the few not suffering from the previous night’s excursions) will try to convince his team that the score is, in fact, 0-0. ‘The job is not done’, he says, a point he may return to when the final score is 9-6 or something equally amateur.
Flickr:Gordon Marino
This is an article about Sunday League Football. It will not refer to the chilly, run-down shacks that are the changing rooms or the boggy pitches often filled with inconvenient mole-holes. It will not even elaborate on the hangovers that the majority of the bleary-eyed players inevitably turn up with. The cure for this, incidentally, is to smoke a couple of quick fags prior to kick off. Indeed, there is no need for a warm-up; the ciggies will suffice. No, this article explores the customary chat that occurs at every single Sunday League game across the country. This chat is a hallmark of the English game and goes hand in hand with our other national attributes: passion, commitment, bravery and bulldog spirit. Not talking enough is generally agreed in Sunday League Football to be highly counter-productive. Players are asked before kickoff for ‘lots of talking, especially ‘back there.’ A number of largely useless phrases have thus emerged, which can be called upon whenever it is necessary to fill a period of relative silence. Everyone knows them, everyone understands what they are vaguely supposed to mean, and almost nobody questions them. So, here we go:
not going well on the field of play. The shout might be rounded off with…’haven’t we?’ to offer the illusion of a debate when one is really not available.
7. ‘It’s over me boys’ The goalkeeper punts the ball high into the air. It looks certain to fall onto the head of one the
Whatever happened to Jelena Dokic? Michael Hindmarsh Sports Reporter
Wikicommons: Goran.Smith2
In the first round of the Australian Open in 2000, Jelena Dokic, the Croatianborn Australian, accused her opponent Rita Kuti-Kis of being incapable of ever being a ‘true player.’ Little did Dokic know that she was inadvertently predicting the course of her own career. Despite being tipped to dominate the women’s game, Dokic has failed to fulfil her potential due to off-court problems and injuries. As a teenager, Dokic’s achievements were impressive to say the very least. In 1998, she claimed the US Open Girls’ singles title, as well as winning the French Open doubles tournament with Kim Clijsters.
Her success continued into her professional career. The young star reached the semifinals of Wimbledon in 2001, eventually losing out to Lindsey Davenport. Strong performances in San Diego and Los Angeles followed and she finished the year as the world no. 4. It seemed only a matter of time before Dokic gained her first Grand Slam title. But her career then took a severe nosedive. In 2003, Dokic sacked her Serbian father, Damir, as coach, choosing Borna Bikic to replace him. For many years, there was speculation within tennis circles that Damir had physically abused his daughter on tour. In 2009 the Brisbane Times reported that Jelena had confirmed this in an interview, but Damir maintains that his daughter said no such thing
and that her words were manipulated by journalists. During 2005, Dokic inexplicably took five months out of tennis, which resulted
in her dropping out of the top 100. According to reports, not even her family knew her whereabouts during this period. She continued to
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Cycling cheats must be banned for life Vicky Woolley Sports Reporter
Not even Contador’s lucky mascot could keep him on the straight and narrow
meat that a Spanish mate had driven up through the Pyrénées to France. This just happened to occur during the world’s most physically demanding sporting event. Likely story. Even the Court of Arbitration for Sport, in the same breath that it banned him, offered Contador the shiny new excuse of a possibly contaminated ‘food supplement’. All of this comes in the week that federal
authorities in the USA dropped their investigation into the legendary champion Lance Armstrong, without really explaining why. In Britain there is an ongoing row about whether convicted, though repentant, doper David Millar should race with TeamGB at London 2012. This constant, disheartening off-the-bike drama adds up to one resounding question: what’s the point of being a
theadventureblog.blogspot
It’s a sad fact that professional cycling is known as much for its drugs scandals as for the prowess of its athletes. Just this week, 2010 Tour de France winner Alberto Contador was handed a two-year ban after testing positive for an illegal substance. The most embarrassing thing for the sport isn’t the disgrace of a famous champion, but the fact that it has taken eighteen months for the ban to happen. Contador tested positive on the 2010 Tour. He’s spent more than a year as official winner of a race that he completed with a performance-enhancing drug in his system. He’s gone on to win other important titles, including the Giro D’Italia and made a fortune out of race wins and sponsorship deals. Worst of all, cycling fans have had to put up with eighteen months of far-fetched tales of contaminated steak. Contador has seriously asked us to believe that an elite athlete, a man with one of the most rigorously controlled diets in the world, ate some performance enhancing cow-
cycling fan? There is nothing quite as impressive as the Tour de France, or the other grand tours of Italy and Spain. For weeks at a time, the fittest men in the world race through Europe’s most beautiful scenery. They tackle the steepest, nastiest mountains and the fastest, scariest descents. They race oneon-one in time trials and wheelto-wheel in the intimidating
physical powerhouse that is the peloton. It may not seem it, but cycling is a complicated, tactical sport full of marginal time advantages and fearsome psychological attacks. It is, in short, awe-inspiring. But it would take a naïve person indeed to watch a cycling race without thinking, even once, ‘is he doing that clean?’ You can never be entirely sure that you’re watching a remarkable feat of human endurance and not the handiwork of a doctor.
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It may not seem it, but cycling is a complicated, tactical sport full of marginal time advantages and fearsome psychological attacks. It is, in short, awe-inspiring
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Almost perversely, there is comfort to be taken in the fact that so many cyclists are caught doping. Since 1998, when the Festina team were caught with a car full of pharmaceutical aids, cycling has fought more or less to get its house in order. A pro is obliged to inform the authorities of exactly where
he or she will be and can be tested at any time. The first thing the winner of a race does, even before flaunting sponsors’ branding on the podium, is to take a drugs test. These are not token gestures and they suggest that cheaters will, eventually, get caught. I will still watch this year’s Tour de France and the season’s other great races. If I’ve got to risk a little faith and hope to enjoy such an impressive spectacle, so be it. I’ll try to quiet the voice which asks whether that sprint was a little too fast, or that climb a little too assured. What the cycling authorities need to do is repay fans’ faith with lifetime bans for dopers. The timing of his ban means that, next year, Contador will be in the Tour again. For every piously reformed David Millar there is a gallingly unrepentant doper, such as Alexandre Vinokourov or Andrey Kashechkin. The best deterrent and the surest way to a clean peloton has to be kicking drug cheats out of the sport altogether, not banishing them briefly. The fans who have stood by the side of the road, cheering, through scandal after scandal, deserve no less.
Lansdown acquires majority stake in Bristol Rugby Club Paddy Von Behr Online Editor
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The financial muscle will be important for the Rugby Club, whose situation has been precarious for some time now
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The following year, despite an historic victory over Stade Francais, Bristol failed to qualify from their Heineken Cup group. The club also had a disappointing domestic season, finishing ninth. BRFC didn’t have the financial capabilities to compete consistently at this level, which showed in the 08/09 season. From their 22 games in
the Premiership season, Bristol won just two. The club finished the season bottom of the league, collecting just 17 points during the campaign, exactly half of the total accumulated by eleventh-
So what does the news mean for Bristol City? As the club looks to move to its new home in the near future there will be concerns that Lansdown’s interest and finances will
New owner Steve Lansdown
placed Worcester. In their first season back in the Championship, BRFC topped the table but failed to win an immediate Premiership return, following defeat to Exeter in the playoff final. Middleton won’t want his players to suffer a similar fate come the end of this season. Should Bristol return to the Premiership this year, the financial stability provided by Lansdown could ensure that any early success in the top flight can be sustained and built upon. Along with Booy and Middleton, the new owner will be looking to re-establish Bristol as a Premiership team, both on and off the pitch.
be diminished in relation to the football club. However, a statement has been released by Bristol City, reassuring fans that Lansdown’s involvement with the rugby club will have no negative effect on the way in which the
club is run or financed. After all, the owner has plenty of financial muscle and his role at the rugby club, according to Booy, is one of a saviour as opposed to a heavy investor. The chairman revealed that Lansdown’s arrival came at a time when BRFC’s financial situation was ‘right to the wire… Steve came in when we were considering all sorts of terrible options.’ So Bristol Rugby Club’s future looks bright once again: top of the table and financial stability in the boardroom. The outlook is rather more bleak for Lansdown’s football club, losing record signing Nicky Maynard last month and peering over their shoulders at the relegation zone. However, the message that’s evident is that Steve Lansdown is doing more than his bit for sport in Bristol and both clubs will be hoping that can continue long into the future.
BRFC’s current home, The Memorial Ground
Wikicommons:Kafuffle
It was announced on Tuesday 7th of February that Steve Lansdown, owner of Bristol City Football Club, has acquired a majority stake in another of the city’s sports teams: Bristol Rugby Club. The local entrepreneur takes a keen interest in Bristol sport and has done wonders for Bristol City over the years. In 2009 this included selling a 5% stake in his company, worth almost £50 million, to fund the club’s proposed new stadium in Ashton Vale. This financial muscle will be important for the Rugby Club, whose situation has been precarious for some time now. Chris Booy, BRFC chairman, has spoken recently about their financial worries and the way in which Lansdown has effectively saved the club, stating that, ‘without Steve as the catalyst I suspect the club wouldn’t be here today’. The two of them are BRFC’s only shareholders, with Lansdown holding the majority, and have known one another since meeting at school. Booy is delighted that the club have attracted not only a close friend of his, but also a man with ‘business acumen, sincerity and love for the sport.’ In contrast to Bristol City,
BRFC are having an excellent season on the field, led by Head Coach Liam Middleton. Each in the second tier of their respective sport, City are languishing in 20th, while Bristol Rugby top the table. Middleton’s side are well clear of second placed Cornish Pirates and will already have one eye on the end of season playoffs and a return to the Premiership. BRFC will be inspired by their performance in the 06/07 season. Just one year after winning promotion to the top flight, Bristol finished third, earning themselves a place in the Heineken Cup, Europe’s most prestigious club competition.
Quick Facts Head Coach: Liam Middleton Chairman: Steve Corvett Captain: Iain Grieve Founded: 1888 Ground: Memorial Ground Capacity: 12,100 Colours: Home-Blue & White Away- Purple & Black Last Season: 8th in the Championship Did you know? Following a sponsorship deal in 2001 with Japanese car manufacturers Mitsubishi, the club was renamed ‘The Bristol Shoguns’. This ended in 2005 when the deal ran out, much to the relief of their fans.
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UBWHC eager to end season on a high quarters. After Christmas, the team had two important matches in both the Saturday league and BUCS before the semi-final clash against Durham. Despite holding table topping Taunton for the majority of the game in the Premier Division 1 clash, Taunton’s quality eventually shone through and they ran out 5-0 winners. This was followed by a bitterly disappointing loss to Gloucestershire – a side Bristol had easily defeated earlier in the season. Bristol therefore came into the BUCS semi-final on the back of two defeats, which was far from ideal preparation. Still, the side made the long trip up to Durham full of confidence and with nothing to lose. The team rose at the crack of dawn (nobody was particularly excited about this) for a light jog and breakfast. Both sides
Charlotte Evans Sports Reporter It is fair to say that the Bristol women’s hockey 1st XI have enjoyed a mixed season thus far. The team have struggled in the Premier Division 1 (where matches are played on Saturdays), have fared averagely in the BUCS Premier South League, yet went on a thrilling cup run in the BUCS Cup, only losing to Durham in the semifinal. The season began with a humiliating 7-0 defeat in the Premier Division 1. This was disappointing, as we came into the game on the back of a tough pre-season training programme. However, the team responded in the best possible way by recording a 4-1 victory over Gloucestershire University in their first BUCS game. Unfortunately, Bristol could not build on this impressive victory as they then lost the next two games, firstly in the Premier Division 1 and then in BUCS to high-flying and consistently strong, Exeter. Following this game, Bristol suffered a spate of injuries and this has jeopardised the team’s progress. Emily Barton took a ball to the face, not only breaking her nose but also her cheek bone. She is now forced to wear a full
were rather distracted by the thrilling lacrosse match (also a BUCS semi-final) reaching its climax between the same universities (Bristol emerged victorious in the last ten seconds of the game). In our match, Bristol played admirably in the first half, surprising Durham with their tactics and went in 1-1 at the break. After a rallying cry from Bristol’s coach at half time, the side came out with all guns blazing. Despite taking the game to Durham, a lack of communication in defence led to the home side taking the lead and then, five minutes later, Durham scored again and it was game over. After the gruelling 12 hour bus journey to and from Durham, Bristol’s next fixture was against league leaders Exeter. After losing emphatically to Exeter earlier in the season, Bristol were
determined to make amends. In a spirited performance, Bristol were unlucky to lose the encounter 2-1. Having fallen behind to two first half goals, Bristol dominated their opponents in the second half and pulled one back through Alex Bromley Martin to set up a tense last ten minutes. Unfortunately, Exeter held firm, leaving Bristol frustrated and disappointed. Still, this was a marked improvement from the previous match against Exeter. In particular, Joie Leigh in the centre midfield had a fantastic game, while captain Charlotte Evans coped admirably having stepped up to the unfamiliar centre forward role. With only a handful of matches left in the Premier Division 1 and the BUCS Premier South, Bristol must now start turning their impressive performances into victories.
Charlotte Evans is hoping for greater success in the latter half of the season
facemask in every game she plays. As well as this, Sophie Nehammer, a promising fresher managed to break her thumb in two places and has been absent ever since, while Charlotte Evans and Aliss Farrar also picked up nasty knocks. With
such setbacks, Bristol finished for Christmas mid-table in the BUCS league, yet precariously close to relegation in the Saturday league. The team had, however, made it through to the BUCS Cup semi-final, having demolished Brighton 6-0 in the
Sports club quick fire: Epigram meets Women’s Football XI final, where we unfortunately lost out to Brunel. We will be looking to replicate our success in futsal this year, but recognise that the standard of women’s futsal is improving each year as more universities are starting to do it.
Tom Burrows Sports Editor This week, Epigram caught up with Phoebe Matthews, club captain of the women’s football (and futsal) team to chat about their season thus far, aspirations for the remainder of the campaign and the upcoming varsity match against UWE at the Memorial Stadium. Firstly, how many teams does women’s football have? Well we have one team in BUCS and one development squad. We have about 40 members in our club, of which twenty make up the first team squad.
The girls’ strong team spirit has been one of the reasons for their victories this year
in the division. How is your season going? Well we were doing very well. We were second in the league, but recently lost to Aberystwyth away (which was a trek!). This means that we are back down to second. At the moment, UWIC are top our league, but we beat them earlier in the season so we feel that if we can win our remaining games then we can finish at least 2nd
Moving away from futsal, how much are you looking forward to the Varsity game this year? I’m looking forward to it a lot; it’s always a great occasion. We ought to beat UWE as they are in the league below. In the past two varsity games, we have beaten them both times quite comfortably and so we want to make it a hat-trick of victories!
Is promotion a realistic ambition? I don’t think that we will get promoted this year, but even if we did I’m not sure it would necessarily be a good thing. It is a big step up to the league above (Premier South). At the moment, our league is the right standard for us.
What is the training routine? The 1st team train at St. Bede’s on a Monday night, and then we have a club session on Thursday at Coombe Dingle. This term we also have a futsal session on Saturdays, which is for the most talented 10 girls in the club. How seriously is the futsal taken?
It’s taken very seriously. As I said, our best players make up the futsal side and last year we did extremely well. We won our regional finals (South West), and therefore made it through to the nationals in Sheffield. At the nationals, there were two separate leagues and the top two teams in each league made it through to the semi-final. We came second in our league and so reached the semi-
Who are your coaches and what are they like? Robbie ‘Foxy’ Fox is our futsal coach and he’s excellent. He’s now involved with the men’s football team having played more of an active role with the women’s team last year. Our BUCS coach is Nicky Glanville and she’s also very good. She’s very passionate and knows a lot about the game having played semi-professionally, as well as coaching Gloucester women’s FC who are a very
strong outfit. Moving onto the social side of things, what is your favourite SCORE location? The O2 Academy. What was your most memorable fancy dress? 1980s retro sports wear. How do other clubs view you? Given that we’re the women’s football team, they probably think we’re massive lads and perhaps a bit of a joke! Who is your best player? Alicia Hazard, who represented England up to U14 level. Who is the joker in the squad? Nicola Tan. She can’t really keep the ball, but is a massively important member of the club due to her comedy value! From here onwards, what would be the dream season? For us to win our remaining games and finish 2nd in the league, to try and reach the final of the national futsal tournament and to win our varsity game against UWE.
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Bristol battered in relegation clash Will Jackson Sports Reporter Exeter 59 Bristol 19 Bristol’s slim hopes of remaining in Premier South A next year lay in tatters after a disappointing performance at a bitterly cold Exeter on February 8th. Bristol had travelled down the M5 in ebullient mood. Two weeks previously they had been unlucky not to win the corresponding fixture, having led for much of the game only for full back Michael Simpson’s red card ten minutes from time to precipitate two late tries and a fortunate victory for the visitors. However, given the nature of that performance and the confidence gained from a comfortable Cup victory over Nottingham Trent the following week, they will have been deeply disappointed by
their performance in what was effectively a must-win game against a team placed just two positions above them in the league. As has been the case for most of the season, Bristol’s opponents held the physical advantage in both size and power, but this was little excuse for the ease with which their ball carriers were able to break tackles almost at will, particularly throughout much of a torrid first half for the visitors. Bristol will look back on missed opportunities in the first ten minutes of the game and reflect on what could have been. After an early Exeter penalty, Bristol’s backs twice made clean line breaks out wide only for the final pass to go astray, illustrating a lack of composure which has been an Achilles’ heel throughout much of the season. Then, Bristol had the opportunity to exert pressure with a line-out on Exeter’s five metre line. However, it was
adjudged not straight, and after dominating the resulting scrum, Exeter embarked on a 90 metre breakaway down the blindside. Simpson did exceptionally well to defuse the situation but from the next lineout, Exeter formed
Women’s Tennis update Hetty Knox Sports Reporter Wednesday February 8th saw both Bristol’s first and second ladies tennis teams debut outings of 2012. The first team, consisting of Jenny Awford, Sara Cameron, Emily Crowe, Hetty Knox and Hannah Moran, had the home advantage when playing the Exeter firsts. As with all matches in the Premier Division, it was going to be tough to get a result and with the doubles being played first Bristol were immediately dealt a blow as Exeter took both rubbers. Emily Crowe and Hannah Moran teamed up, putting on a brave fight, but eventually going down 6-4 6-2. While in the other doubles Jenny Awford and Hetty Knox narrowly lost the first set 8-6 in a tie break and Exeter ran away with the second, the pair were unable to reproduce the tennis that had seen them beat Cambridge in their previous match.
Going into the singles it was always going to be an uphill struggle, with Bristol needing to win three of the four singles matches to salvage a draw. This job was made harder when Emily Crowe was forced to retire before her match due to an ankle injury, so Sara Cameron stepped in at number four. Unfortunately the singles did not prove more successful. Numbers three and four (Jenny Awford and Sara Cameron) both went down with 6-1 6-1 defeats. Despite some outstanding rallies, with both players manoeuvring each other from side to side in a manner reminiscent of the 2012 DjokovicNadal Australian Open final, Hannah Moran couldn’t quite sustain her second set comeback against the exceptionally strong Exeter number one, losing 6-0 6-3. Although the final match on court was a dead rubber, captain Hetty Knox salvaged a point for Bristol defeating the Exeter number two with a scrappy 6-3 6-4 victory making the overall score 5-1. Clearly it wasn’t the start the first team had wished for to
so it proved again as first Mike Gammell, then Steve Boatman and finally James Munton all crossed the whitewash. Boatman converted two of three to give the scoreline respectability. Bristol can take a deal of heart from their showing in the second stanza but will ultimately be angry at the way they allowed Exeter to dominate such an important game. However, there is still plenty to play for this season. This Wednesday, Bristol host Leeds University at Coombe Dingle (K.O. 2.15) in the BUCS Cup quarter final. Win, and they are just 80 minutes from going one better than last year’s fabled Premier South-winning team (who lost in last year’s semi-final to eventual winners Durham) and a fairytale appearance at Twickenham. Then on Monday 5th March, Bristol play UWE (who will be determined to avenge last year’s tight defeat) at the Memorial Stadium.
Bristol University Korfball Rosie Drummond Sports Reporter We play Korfball. ‘What-ball!?’ everyone asks. Korfball is a Dutch sport for mixed teams similar to basketball and netball. There are four boys and four girls per team (boys can only mark boys and girls can only mark girls to make it fair!) and the aim of the game is to score by shooting the ball into your opponents korf – a big yellow basket 3.5m high. Korfball is huge in Holland and Belgium and its popularity in the UK is growing rapidly, especially amongst students. Bristol University Korfball Club (or the Bristol Badgers as we call ourselves thanks to our life-size badger mascot!) is a fun and friendly club for all students, especially beginners, who want to try a sport that’s a bit different. We train on Sunday evenings, and every training session is followed by a trip to the pub. There are matches most
weekends for anyone who wants to play against the local clubs, and for the super-keen there’s early morning shooting practice (followed by pub breakfast). And that’s not to mention the infamous socials: The Challenge Bar Crawl, Score Sports Night, The Korf Pub Quiz, Cori-Tap Night... and in December the highlight of the Korfball social calendar: ‘Korfmas’! We go away for some great weekend tournaments – in fact Bristol Badgers are wellknown amongst other university clubs for having the most fun and making the most noise at tournaments– a reputation of which we are proud. Last term we took two teams to the Nottingham ‘Fancy-Dress’ Beginners’ Tournament, where we played the whole competition dressed as Toy Story characters! Other teams didn’t know which end to defend against the two people dressed as the front and back-ends of Slinkey the Dog! I’m proud to announce that of
the 22 teams that participated, Bristol University won the prize for ‘Best Dressed Team’. But it’s not just fancy dress that the korfball team have excelled in this year. Last year, Bristol hosted a Beginners’ Korfball Festival for teams in the South West, and our two beginners’ teams came in first and second place in the tournament. So what’s coming up for the rest of the year? Our First Team are training hard for ‘First Team Nationals – the biggest tournament of the year where our best players take on other University teams at a competitive level to win BUCS points. At the Bristol Festival of Sport, volunteers from our club will teach Korfball to school children from across Bristol. As the weather improves, we will move out of the sports hall to outdoor tournaments, where we play korf in the sun, have a big BBQ in the evening and camp overnight. And there is talk of going on tour to Europe so watch this space!
Rosie Drummond
2012, nor did it reflect the hard work they have been putting in at training sessions. With home advantage in upcoming matches against Cambridge, Bath and UWIC it is hoped that the team can build on their current standing of 5th in the Southern Premier Division. Fortunes were reversed for the ladies seconds team when taking on the Swansea first team. Helena David, Danielle Basiuk, Manuela Amaya and Lara Pearson took the trip along the M4 to Swansea Tennis Centre searching for their first win of the season. In line with BUCS regulations, the doubles were again played first and Bristol wasted no time in asserting their authority, dropping only four games over both rubbers on their way to a commanding 2-0 lead. Bristol continued this domination in their singles matches. With only two courts available Helena David and Danielle Basiuk, numbers one and two respectively, both played with style and consistency resulting in identical 6-0 6-1 victories. Statistically there was now no way back for Swansea. However, not wishing to be outdone, club captain Manuela Amaya and Lara Pearson rounded off the seconds day emphatically, imposing a further two hefty defeats on Swansea, making the overall score 6-0. This remarkable victory has lifted the second team off the foot of the Western 2A division putting them on equal points with Cardiff in fifth place. With their next match crucial, the team face local rivals UWE on home territory.
a rolling maul and ploughed over the line. 10-0 to the home side, and the tone was set for the rest of the half. Bristol stood off Exeter’s ball carrying back row, allowing them to get over the gain line with seemingly little
effort and giving their scrum half an armchair ride. The tries came soon enough, and the halftime score of 32-0 to Exeter did not even flatter the home team. However, in this league matches are decided on small margins, and Bristol will know that if they could have capitalised on their opportunities in the opening period of the game, the outcome may have been different. After some stern words at half-time from captain Greg Nicholls, Bristol produced a much improved second half performance. Although Exeter still breached Bristol’s defence too easily at times, Bristol were at least able to get possession of the ball through the breakdown work of James Stephenson and England Under 16 international Henry Conchie, making a welcome return after several months on the sidelines with a broken metatarsal. With ball in hand this Bristol side has caused problems all year, and
Epigram
20.02.2012
Sport
Editor: Tom Burrows
Deputy Editor: David Stone
sport@epigram.org.uk
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Valentine’s heartbreak for Bristol Stuart Tabberer Sports Reporter UWE Bullets Bristol Barracuda
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Edd Wood
The Bristol Varsity 2012 series kicked off with a clash between the Bristol Barracuda and UWE Bullets American Football teams. Despite a great effort, the Cuda lost 25-12 against a strong Bullets side. Wide Receiver Mike McDowell scored both touchdowns for the Cuda in front of a large number of supporters who turned out in force to witness the local derby. It was a tense start to the match with both teams struggling to move the ball. The Bullets did get into range before the Cuda D halted the advance forcing the Bullets to attempt a field goal. The snap was fumbled and the ball subsequently dived upon by Cuda Line backer Ian Walker. Again, both teams were forced to punt and the Cuda would have got the ball back but for a ‘Roughing the Kicker’ penalty which gave the Bullets that all important First Down. In the very next series a breakaway run set up Bullets Running Back Sam Atakorah for the first touchdown of the game. The PAT was converted and was swiftly followed by a Field Goal kicked by the Bullets wide receiver Daine Robinson. The Cuda offence, now 10 points down, began to run and pass the ball more effectively and things were looking promising. It was the Bullets, however, who scored
next with a neat passing move to running back Ryan Morton. With three minutes to the half, the Cuda offence took to the field and began to move the ball. This series saw Quarterback Toby Rickards begin to distribute the ball more effectively, culminating in a perfectly placed ball for wide receiver McDowell, who managed to break through two tackles and run half the length of the field for the touchdown. The point after this attempt failed making it 6-17 at the half. Half time saw the spectators and both teams treated to an excellent routine by the wellrehearsed Bristol Jets Pom Cheerleading Squad. Fired up by Head Coach Stone’s rallying calls, the Cuda returned to the field
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for the second half. The Cuda defence began to dominate with an excellent hard hitting performance by Club Captain, Chris Bullough. The third quarter was an entirely
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Wide Receiver Antek Wendi won the Cuda ‘Hit of the Day’ award for a fantastic open field block
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defensive feature with neither offence able to function against such an impressive display of defence. But then shortly into the fourth quarter, disaster struck for the Cuda; having been given excellent field position following a punt, the Bullets were able
to drive the ball right to the Cuda goal line. Despite the valiant efforts of the Cuda Defence, Bullets Running Back Jamiel Tinto was able to run the ball in from short yardage for the Bullets third and final Touchdown. The Cuda offence lead by Quarterback Toby Rickards began driving down the field well, with a little luck along the way. A pass over the middle was broken up by the defence and after a little ‘to me... to you’ juggling the ball dropped neatly into running-back Alex Holmes’ hands, who then managed to advance the ball. It was from this impressive drive that the Cuda scored their final points of the afternoon, Quarterback Rickards finding Wide Receiver McDowell in
the End zone for the score. It was now do or die time for the Cuda with only two minutes remaining on the clock to save the game. Another thunderous drive from the Cuda Defence forced the Bullets to punt, forcing the Cuda back inside their own half. Quarterback Arik Denning came in for the Cuda looking to change the game. Unfortunately, a bad snap sent the Quarterback back into the end zone where he was subsequently tackled by Bullets Linebackers Sanchez and Bateman to concede a two point safety. The game finished 25-12 with the Bullets winning through the tough battle to claim the Steve Jones Memorial Trophy. There were excellent scenes after the game as both teams applauded each other’s efforts, even taking part in a mass photograph. The Cuda most valuable player awards were handed out post match to: Chris Bullough for an excellent dominating display for the Defence; Mike McDowell for yet another great game and scoring those essential points; Punter Ian Walker took the Special Teams prize for an excellent performance and Wide Receiver Antek Wendi won the Cuda ‘Hit of the Day’ award for a fantastic open field block. This result now moves the Cuda onto a 3-3 record with two games remaining. The final fixtures see the Cuda take on the Bath Killer Bees (yesterday) and the upcoming home game against the Swansea Titans on Sunday 26th February.
Inside Sport This week in Epigram Sport we focus on the Bristol men’s rugby team, who were hoping this season to remain in the Premier South A division. To do so, they would have had to beat a strong Exeter side when they faced them on February 8th. We also caught up with women’s tennis, as well as learning who and what the Bristol Badgers are and what they have to do with korfball.
Page 35 Halfway through the season, the Bristol women’s hockey team have experienced mixed results. Now they hope to turn their impressive performances into points on the BUCS table. Our Quickfire round this week is with the women’s football team, in which their club captain discusses the year so far, aspirations for the rest of the season and their upcoming varsity game versus UWE.
Page 34 With Alberto Contador becoming yet another professional cyclist to become convicted of drug offences last week, we argue that stricter punishment is needed to eradicate the problem. In local news, Steve Lansdown has recently acquired Bristol Rugby Club, hopefully relieving them of financial difficulty and giving them a chance for promotion this year.
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