Epigram 337

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epigram

est. 1988

The University of Bristol’s Independent Student Newspaper

Fortnightly 18th March 2019 Issue 337 Celebrating 30 years

Is change coming?

Epigram’s exclusive interview with Director of Student Services Mark Ames asks - are we finally seeing change to student support at Bristol?

Double page spread pages 4-5 www.epigram.org.uk

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Editorial B

efore I start, I’d like to do a quick plug for if you are keen enough to read this editorial, then you are keen and capable enough to apply to be writing this editorial next year and be Epigram’s next Editor-inChief. If you read these every week you can no doubt visualise the stress that Ed and I put ourselves under and I won’t pretend it is not hard work, it is. But it is also amazingly rewarding and I feel so lucky to have had this opportunity to be in charge of a fortnightly newspaper, an opportunity I am unlikely to ever have again. And the job also has its perks. This morning, for example, I was posing with an elephant mask (see photo below) to promote this opportunity, but was the only one in the office so had to balance a tripod and timer to get the shot. I think I did ok. I am now sitting in the office writing this with South African band Mango Groove in the background (aren’t you proud of me, Dad), and it’s really nice to have something else to keep you occupied in Third Year. So please do apply - you can find all the details on our website and Facebook. Plug over!

Another fortnight has passed us by and here we are again, going into the 3rd last issue of Epigram this academic year. I would like to write this week on the culture of our campus and how it seems to have changed dramatically in the years I have been here. This next bit is going to sound like I am 84.

When I joined Bristol in September 2016, each Hall had a warden, deputy warden and team of senior residents and gave introductory talks and chatted over a cup of tea. Bristol wasn’t known for having any worse mental health provisions then other Unis in the UK. Epigram was under the editorship of Ben Parr and was still firmly a print-first organisation, breaking big stories on the pages of the newspaper before they were broadcast online. Bristruths wasn’t a thing, even the original Oxfess was still in its infancy, nor were Briscrush, or Brispets, or the newest member of the over-exhausted online package ‘Brisfood’. A community of students existed through the various facebook groups, and if someone wanted to voice an opinion, they might write an Epigram Comment article about it that would pick up a few likes on Facebook, maybe even a comment on the website. Now, however, it is really quite staggering how quickly the student media scene has shifted, and the shift has been so marked that it is clearly reflected in changes to the student community as a whole.

Issues of mental health, rent prices and teaching and assessment have always been at the fore of student issues. Yet now everyone has a direct outlet for their grievances. An online confessions page has now become such a trusted source of student opinion that one Politics student is writing her dissertation on it. A comment article on Facebook will now get scores of reactions and comments, and maybe even a few tailored Bristruths on it. This has lead to such an increase in scrutiny for us running Epigram - which is good news for our paper, as it thrives, particularly online. However, it is important to keep in mind that we are still (and hopefully always will be) a volunteer run organisation, by students, for students that relies on the articles submitted by our 300+ writers for our content. This includes students who may have never written an article before - and whilst the likes of Owen Jones, Quentin Letts or Matthew Parris may be used to online backlash, most of our writers are not. Just something to keep in mind, I think, especially given that a lot of these online pages purport to ‘care’ about the mental health of students (something on this another time, perhaps).

Well, as we creep slowly (or, for some, far too quickly) towards the end of term, there is definitely space to reflect on the changes we’ve witnessed in our time at Bristol. We are lucky - especially those of us involved in student news - that so much is going on on campus. Then I suppose campus is a microcosm of society, and society isn’t exactly quiet at the moment, so maybe we should expect that! By the time this paper goes out, we will be just a week from Brexit. Who knows what will happen! See you next month (if Brexit hasn’t doomed the entire country to oblivion)

co-Editors in Chief: Ed Southgate & Cameron Scheijde editor@epigram.org.uk Deputy Editor: Nikki Peach

Clarifications & Corrections

Deputy Online Editors: Kate Hutchison & Oliver Cohen Chief Proofreader Ethan Luc

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Sub-editors: Nina Bryant (News), Eleanor Holmes (Features), Phoebe Chase (Comment), Rebecca Scott (Science), Hendrike Rahtz (Living), Anna Hart (Wellbeing), Erin Lawler (Food), Eloisa Griffiths (Travel), Laura Mallinson (Style), Eleanor Gunn (Film & TV), Eleanor Tarr (Arts), Guy Marcham (Music), Kezi James (Puzzles) Managing Director Frankie McNab Director of Communications Tara Lidstone Director of Finance Ben Woods Head of Ads and Sales Joshua Varghese Head of Marketing Ella Swarbrick Epigram is the independent student newspaper of the University of Bristol. The views expressed in this publication are not those of the University or the Students’ Union.

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Cameron Scheijde co-Editor-in-Chief

Epigram strive to be as accurate and impartial on student news as possible. However, should you wish to raise any editorial, commercial or legal issues please email editor@epigram.org.uk with the problem, addressed to the Editors-in-Chief. Please be sure to include the issue number and article headline if the article was in print, or the URL if the article was online. We endeavour to correct any inaccuracies as soon as they are raised with us.

Online Editor: Hannah Worthington

Epigram are recruiting for the 2019/20 Senior Team If you fancy joining the likes of James Landale, William Lewis, Susannah Reid, Hannah Price and many other former editors of Epigram, now is your chance! We are recruiting for next year’s Editor-in-Chief, Online Editor, Deputy Editor and Deputy Online Editor. All of these roles are demanding, but incredibly rewarding and not to mention look great on your CV - especially if you are considering a career in journalism, marketing, public relations, management or design. See our website for details.

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News

Editor: Imogen Horton Online Editor: James Cleaver Deputy Editors: Lucy Downer, Nina Bryant Investigations Editor: Louise Cripps Uni Management Correspondent: Laura Reid Student Life Correspondent: Victoria Dyer SU Correspondent: Zoë Crowther

Got a story for the News team?

Email:newsteam.epigram@gmail.com

Bristol, Cut the Rent call for a rent strike • The group have called for the strike after Bristol University did not respond to their 600 signature petition.

Laura Reid

Uni Management Correspondent

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university accommodation fell into rent arrears and drop-out rates are increasing year on year.

Many students must work whilst at university in order to fund their studies and living costs.

On top of tuition fees, the cost of going to university is growing every year, impacting student mental health and particularly

discouraging those from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Student rent strikes have gained traction in the past, with UCL students gaining a £1.5 million promise from their university in 2017 to improve bursaries and freeze cost of its cheapest accommodation in 2017/18.

Epigram / Zoë Crowther

ristol, Cut the Rent handed in their demands for action against high rent on 27 February during a demonstration outside Beacon House. The university failed to respond by the 8th March deadline, and the society have called a rent strike to ‘pressure the university into listening’.

The petition was signed by over 600 students and included the five key demands which Bristol, Cut the Rent have been campaigning for. The group have been appealing for Bristol to commit to reducing rent by 2022, so that the cost of halls does not exceed 35 per cent of the maximum maintenance loan.

They also ask for 50 per cent of beds to be at 50 per cent of the maximum maintenance loan

by next year, to make halls more affordable sooner. In addition to this, they would like to see an increase in easy-access, free and longterm emergency housing for students facing homelessness and unsafe living conditions.

Bristol, Cut the Rent have also been applying pressure on the university to increase bursaries, and reform the criteria to not include meanstesting or a postcode lottery. Their final demand would see the university publishing termly budgets about the running of university accommodation and increase the transparency of rent payment schemes.

The coalition of students are committed to tackling the inflated cost of Bristol’s university accommodation, where the average rent is £161 per week as opposed to the national average of £131.

They joined other student groups for the People Not Profit: March for Mental Health in November of first term and have been constantly lobbying the university to tackle high rent and its impact on poor mental health.

High rent is a nationwide issue, with the average rent costing 73 per cent of the maximum financial support offered by the government. The Guardian has noted that in 2017-18 more than 17,000 students in

Bristol student victim Bristol MP backs People’s Vote weeks before Brexit deadline to knife attack Zoë Crowther SU Correspondent

O

n Sunday 3 March, police were called to New Bridewell accommodation on Nelson Street to respond to an assault and robbery.

The victim, 19-year-old Bristol student, Evgeniy Turapov, was taken to hospital in a serious but stable condition with a stab wound to his back. He suffered a punctured lung as a result of the attack.

Avon and Somerset Constabulary have since made five arrests in connection with the assault.

In a statement, a police spokesperson said that two 15-year-olds, one 16-year-old and two men aged 18 and 19 were arrested.

After questioning, four of these individuals were released under investigation and the 16-year-old boy remains in custody. He has been charged with wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm and possessing a blade.

The weapon used was a seven-inch kitchen knife. The accused has not been identified due to his age. He has been charged with assault and robbery relating to incidents on Saturday 2 March. He shall

not be released on bail due to the severity of the charges and the case shall be adjourned to the youth court.

A University spokesperson has said: ‘The University is urging students to be vigilant after a student was assaulted in Nelson Street in the city centre on Sunday [3 March]. He was taken to hospital in a serious but stable condition. Thankfully incidents of this nature are very rare, but this has understandably caused worry and concern among students who live in the city centre.

‘Information from the police on keeping yourself safe has been sent to all students living in city centre accommodation.

Students with any concerns are asked to seek guidance from Security Services or our dedicated police officer. In addition, student support services are available to anyone who needs them.’

Knife crime has made national news headlines over the last few weeks, with 42 out of 44 police forces in England and Wales reporting an increase in knife crime since 2011.

The police are investigating the crime; anyone who saw the incident or who has information is asked to call 101, quoting reference number 5219046796.

Imogen Horton News Editor

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ristol West’s Labour MP, Thangam Debbonaire, has come out in support of a people’s vote on the final Brexit deal, with the option to remain in the EU. In a statement released last week, 11 March, Ms Debbonaire said ‘the government must ask the people: is this the Brexit you voted for?’. She continued to say that ‘another public vote on the deal looks likely to be the only way of breaking the deadlock’.

Previously, Ms Debbonaire has been publically critical of the People’s Vote campaign, standing by a manifesto commitment to deliver Brexit. In a Q&A with Bristol University students in December, she announced she was ‘not necessarily supportive of a People’s Vote.’

However, she has blamed ‘the Prime Minister’s incomptence’ for her change in decision.

The Bristol MP said: ‘The government’s approach to Brexit has been a humiliating failure. From my discussions with people in Bristol, it is clear that ‘no deal’ would be a disaster for our city.’

Ms Debbonaire insisted that she still believed that ‘the best outcome for the

“There is no Brexit outcome which is as good as staying in the EU.” Thangam Debbonaire, Bristol West MP

country would be to retain full membership’ adding that ‘if we are successful in obtaining a further public vote I will campaign hard for remain.

‘Part of the government’s problem is that it is unwilling to recognise a simple fact: There is no Brexit outcome which is as good as staying in the EU.’ Ms Debbonaire’s change in stance has been celebrated by local pro-European activists who have lobbied the MP to support the campaign.

James Cox, Liberal Democrat Parliamentary Candidate for Bristol West, who had asked the MP to support the campaign, said: ‘With just 18 days to go until the proposed leaving date, I am glad that Thangam has finally backed our campaign to give the people the chance to break the Brexit deadlock and remain in the European Union.

‘She now has to follow through and use her position as whip to get the Labour Party over the line.’

He continued to say: ‘The news is somewhat bittersweet. I can’t help but wonder what position we would be in now if Labour had stood up for its principles and joined the Liberal Democrat in calling for a final say referendum when we proposed it in 2016.’

epigram 18.03.2019

4 News

Under-reporting of sexual offences a ‘chronic problem’ at Bristol University • Only 41 sexual offences have been reported to the University over the past five years • Student Union survey finds 16% of respondents have experience sexual assault or rape whilst studying at Bristol

Louise Cripps

Investigations Editor

S

ince 2014 only 41 students have reported sexual offences to the University.

An extensive survey last month by health charity Brook, discovered that only 25 per cent of students forced into having sex went on to report it. Meanwhile, nearly half said they were inappropriately touched, but only five per cent reported it.

Epigram has uncovered very low levels of reporting at Bristol University. The paper’s FOI found that from the 2014/15 to the 2018/19 academic year, only 41 students reported a sexual offence to the University.

In all but one case, where the perpertrator was known, the perpetrator was a fellow University of Bristol student.

In 2014/15 ten offences were reported, 6 in 2015/16, an all-time low of 3 in 2016/2017.

Whilst there was a rise to 17 reports in 2017/18 this has dropped again in the most recent academic year, with only five offences reported to the University.

When these low figures are compared to the number of Bristol students who have claimed to experience unwanted sexual behaviour there is a vast discrepancy between offences and reports.

Bristol Students’ Union’s 2018 ‘Let’s talk about sex’ survey, found that 52 per cent of students surveyed had experience sexual harassment while studying at the University of Bristol.

Whilst 16 per cent of respondents had experienced sexual assault or rape.

Bristol’s Equality, Liberation and Access Officer, Sally Patterson calls these figures ‘unsurprising’, telling Epigram that ‘significant underreporting is a chronic problem when it comes to sexual violence’.

She explains that, ‘it can be incredibly daunting for a survivor to come forward and report an incident.’.

In order for Students to come forward Patterson argues that ‘the benefit of doing so must outweigh the risks. Students may feel that they won’t be believed, or that their allegation won’t be taken seriously.’.

Rachel Krys, co-director of the End Violence Against Women Coalition, has said that Bristol should be concerned about these low reporting statistics. ‘In universities with a low number of reports, it would be wrong to think that they are safer places for students.’

She went on, ‘It actually probably means that people don’t know the mechanism for reporting or aren’t confident that something will happen, so it’s a bad sign, and Bristol should be worried.’.

These concerns are not novel. In 2017 Bristol Alumni Hannah Price, founded ‘Revolt Sexual Assault’, after she felt unable to report her rape to the University.

She similarly argued that low reporting is systemic. The group carrying out its own survey on Student Room, found that only 6 per cent of students reported their experience of sexual violence to the University.

Hannah’s campaign aims to ‘bridge the gap’ between victims and their institutions. It has argued for ‘a uniform national response – an enforced and consistent standard of care implemented across the higher education sector’.

Bristol has in recent years reformed its reporting mechanisms. In 2016 the University formally welcomed the establishment of the Universities UK task force which called for centralised reporting systems and welltrained staff.

“I had no idea that I had anyone I could contact. I feel like I’ve been screaming in a room full of people that can’t or won’t hear me.”

Respondant in Student Union Survey Bristol Medical School

However, Bristol has yet to implement a centralised reporting mechanism. Training and specialist courses are departmentally structured and so inconsistent with one another. The system also holds no official first point of contact for people reporting an offence.

Students can reach out to any member of staff or alternatively contact the Students’ Complaints Officer. In recent years Bristol have set up the ‘report and support tool’ which enables students and staff to report anonymously, seek advice and make a formal complaint.

Yet, since its implementation there has been no clear improvement in the number of reported offences; there remains a vast divergence between the number of students who experience harassment and those who report it.

Patterson argues that, ‘until the University drastically overhaul both their practices and their ethos, the rate of reporting is unlikely to improve.’ She went on, ‘survivors must feel that their voices will be listened to, and action will be taken.’.

Students participating in the Students’ Union Survey highlighted the need for better advertised services; a number were completely unaware of where they could access support. One student explained, ‘I had no idea that I had anyone I could contact. I feel like I’ve been screaming in a room full of people that can’t or won’t hear me’.

Another student was upset that they had not been able to report their perpetrator to the University without also reporting to the Police. Other students have urged for a way to inform their department without having to disclose the incident to multiple parties.

It should be noted that the SU survey is expected to be symptomatic of overreporting as the survey was marketed as relating to sexual assault, and thus it is thought victims were more likely to respond.

Comment / Rape culture is alive and real at university - the problem is no one recognises it Imogen Horton News Editor

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n an SU survey, from last year, only 30 per cent of women said they feel safe on campus. Two thirds of women have experienced sexual harassment while studying at the University. I’ve experienced sexual harassment on a smaller scale across campus too. Everyday actions which blur the lines of what is and isn’t acceptable.

Before people jump to conclusions, I enjoy compliments and attention as much as the next girl. But there’s a line. Being told by someone they will bring flowers, prosecco and chocolate to a lecture after I rejected them multiple times only made me want to avoid lectures at all costs.

Maybe I’m just part of a snowflake generation and these boys are just being nice, friendly, and recognising a ‘pretty’ girl. Or maybe my body is mine, my space is mine and I have the right to go to lectures and feel safe on campus. Having spoken to my friends and other girls at university, there is a mutual feeling that not all men on campus respect women

in the way they should. From persistent, unwelcome messaging to being touched up in clubs, the lines of consent are being blurred and abused.

The same SU survey also showed that 17 per cent of women at the University of Bristol have experienced sexual assault or rape. In the #MeToo era these numbers seem outrageously high. We’re supposed new generation where women’s bodies are respected, not used indiscriminately for sexual pleasure or seen only as an object to be used as and when men wish.

I’ve experienced a situation where consent wasn’t present. I didn’t report it and many will tell me I should have done. But with no evidence other than my word, the thought of having to sit down and relive it with a complete stranger was far from appealing. I didn’t know them before that evening and I’m not sure I’ll ever see them again. But I’ve had to live the past year, walking around campus knowing that every corner I turn I may come face to face with them.

I blame myself too. For putting myself out there, being flirty, being too drunk.

However, I’ve come to realise that despite

“If perpetrators don’t realise their wrongdoing, are we teaching consent right?

The short answer is no.”

my actions, my intoxicated disposition, I still should have been respected.

The worst part was that I’m not even sure if the person who did this to me realises what they did. Sexual assault is argued to be a grey area, but surely if you’re not in a position to be able to give consent, the situation is black and white. If perpetrators don’t realise their wrongdoing, are we teaching consent right? The short answer is no.

At the University of Bristol, 44 per cent of students said they have never had education on the age of consent.

The age. Not even what consent is, but just the age. Only 35 per cent agree that their sex education had given them a comprehensive understanding of consent.

65 per cent of students don’t have a proper understanding of consent, and we’re wondering why sexual offences still take place. Last year a group chat at Warwick University was uncovered.

In this, boys had encouraged each other to make jokes about rape and sexual and assault with comments or ‘jokes’ such as ‘sometimes it’s fun to just go wild and rape 100 girls’ being made. To add

insult to injury, the students later created a second group chat where one wrote: ‘Read some of my chats from home. This was literally nothing.’ Although this is just a handful of students, I dread to think how many more chats like this there are. At Coventry University, the cricket team had a group chat where they rated girls they slept with. With drug and alcohol, the lines can be mixed. While consent education is substandard, we need to look out for each other. Know if your friend ‘disappears’ on a night out or if they’re too drunk to consent. We don’t need to micromanage but having awareness can help others from being placed in vulnerable situations.

Universities should enforce compulsory consent education throughout, not just in Freshers’ Week. They should clearly define assault, harassment and rape, not just propel the stereotype of a stranger in a dark alley. I shouldn’t be scared to walk round campus, go out, or even go to lectures because I don’t trust other students know the boundaries of consent.

The solution? Universities need to reform their consent education - and fast.

18.03.2019 epigram

5

‘A broken system’: No suspension or expulsion for students accused of sexual offences • In 38 cases the perpetrator was a fellow Bristol student • A Non-Contact Order was issued in 25 of the 41 cases • Over past 5 years, no students have been suspended due to accusation of sexual assault

Louise Cripps

Investigations Editor

T

he University has neither excluded or suspended any students involved in sexual offences over the past five

years.

Epigram found 41 reported cases of sexual offences since the 2014/15 academic year.

In 38 of these cases the perpetrator was a fellow University of Bristol student. Two cases were recorded as unknown. Only one of the perpetrators was not a Bristol student.

Of these cases no student was suspended or expelled on account of their action. Of those reported, 21 were accusations of rape or attempted rape.

In 25 of the 41 cases, a Non-Contact Order, an act which prohibits the assailant from having any contact with the alleged victim, was issued. Statistics show that the issuing of these orders has increased across the five-year period.

In only two cases did the University implement a punishment more severe than a non-contact order. Both of these occurred in the 2014/15 academic year. In one case, in which the perpetrator was convicted of sexual assault in court, the student was cautioned and excluded outside of office hours. Cautioned in this case meaning, no immediate punishment was imposed, but if the student was found guilty of misconduct on a subsequent occasion, then both offences would be dealt with. In the other case a student accused of sexual harassment and stalking was excluded from the site, but

not expelled. The court decision here was recorded as unknown.

In two further cases, one in 2015/16 and the other in 2017/18, the students accused left the University voluntarily. In one further case in 2015/16 the student left university on account of a court order, not as a result of disciplinary measures carried out by the University.

Equality, Liberation and Access Officer Sally Patterson in a statement to Epigram commented, ‘the University’s procedures for dealing with allegations of sexual misconduct are not fit for purpose. It’s time for significant change, rather than tinkering with a broken system.’

Patterson said that ‘it will take time to regain students’ trust in a system which has let down so many of their peers.’ She notes hope for this change with the introduction of the new Sexual Violence Working Group and partnership with Limeculture. ‘It’s time that the University turned their zero-tolerance pledge into action.’

Sexual survivors responding to the Student Union’s ‘Let’s talk about sex survey’ generally indicated that action taken by the University was insufficient. One student for example, argued that the University should have separated them from seeing their perpetrator every day. Another explained that ‘since the perpetrator was a student on my course, I was unable to attend many lectures, and had to ask that I take my exams in a separate venue’.

Revolt Sexual Assault, a campaign founded by Bristol Alumni Hannah Price, carried out a survey which queried amongst other things, the impact on university life for a survivor. This study indicated the same issue. A quarter of respondents who had experience sexual violence said that they had skipped tutorials and lectures or dropped modules to avoid their perpetrators.

Whilst 16 per cent suspended their studies or dropped out altogether.

In Price’s survey, 8% of student

“Since the perpetrator was a student on my course, I was unable to attend many lectures, and had to ask to take my exams in a separate venue” Anonymous student

respondents claimed they had been raped, which is double the national average. There is surmounting evidence that sexual assault is particularly prominent amongst university students; it therefore raises questions as to what University staff can do to improve how they support the physical and mental wellbeing of such victims.

Students responding to the Student Union survey reported that the presence of their perpetrator had affected their social life.

Several students expressed a concern with going to certain venues for fear of seeing their assailant. More generally students indicated a desire for the University to be more supportive and believe victims when they come forward.

The University holds the right to punish those accused more severely. The Student disciplinary regulations state the power to fine, enforce community service, exclude, suspend and expel (among other actions) those found guilty of criminal conduct.

If cases are reported to the police, as were 26 of the 41 offences, the Vice-Chancellor is well within his right to suspend the student pending hearing or trial. Orders of suspension are used only when the vicechancellor consider it ‘necessary to protect a member of the University community’. This order was issued in none of the reported sexual offences that went to trial. The victims and perpetrators have therefore not been separated in any of the reported cases.

The University also has the power to internally trial the accused by disciplinary committee. However, they are unlikely to take such action on a criminal case if a victim does not want to report the offence to the police. The Student disciplinary regulations states that ‘in such circumstance the University will not normally proceed with internal disciplinary measures for the offence’. Thus, according to procedure, sexual offences where the victim does come forward to the police are unlikely to be internally disciplined.

University to reform approach to ‘endemic issue’ of sexual violence • Univeristy collaborates with LimeCulture to devlier specialist training to staff who handle sexual violence reports • Calls for a cohesive action plan to look at the culture and education and reporting of sexual violence

Zoe Crowther SU Correspondent

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he University is collaborating with LimeCulture, a private company which delivers specialist training to those responsible for dealing with reports of sexual violence.

A survey designed by well-being charity Brook found that across UK universities, only 25 per cent of students forced into

having sex went on to report it and 30 per cent of sexual violence incidents took place on campus, including any unwanted sexual activity or behaviour.

Sally Patterson, Equality, Liberation and Access Officer at Bristol SU, set up a Sexual Violence Working Group with Deputy Vice Chancellor Judith Squires, where she proposed bringing in an external organisation to review the University’s policy.

Working with LimeCulture, the University shall be implementing changes over the next couple of years, including the introduction of sexual liaison officers. These officers will be responsible for offering advice and support to those reporting sexual violence, as well as making students and staff aware of the services available to them.

Patterson told Epigram: ‘I hope that there will be an action plan which looks at the culture and education all the way through

“We are failing

our young people if they dont know that the law protects them from the unwanted beahviours they are experiencing” Helen Marshall, Chief Executive of Brook

to what happens when someone reports a serious incident.

‘At the moment there is no real sense of linked up communication. In some areas there was training and specialist courses but it was all departmental rather than centralised. There hasn’t been a big push for stuff to get done, without someone finding solutions for a way forward.’

A University of Bristol spokesperson has said: ‘We take any form of violence and sexual harassment extremely seriously.

That’s why we are committed to ensuring that everyone in our community - students and staff - have a safe and positive experience at Bristol.

‘We are working collaboratively with our staff, students and independent experts to ensure that all aspects of our approach – from policy, procedures, reporting and support for those affected – are as robust as possible and that all students and staff

know where and how they can access help.’

Helen Marshall, Chief Executive of Brook said in a statement that the emphasis should be on education in order to confront the problem at its core: ‘We are failing our young people if they don’t know that the law protects them from the unwanted behaviours they are experiencing.’

As Chair of Bristol SU’s Women’s Network last year, Patterson said that tackling sexual violence has always been one of her top priorities: ‘It’s a problem across all campuses and it needs to be addressed.

‘My friends have had really terrible experiences dealing with the University.

When I first came to the role, sexual violence was one of the first issues that students came to speak to me about.

‘Sexual violence is an endemic and systemic issue that’s so complex: there isn’t one answer to solving it.’

epigram 18.03.2019

6 News

Director of Student Services ‘very open’ to suicide awareness training for all students • Bristol has published a Suicide Prevention and Response Plan • Lib Dem MP recently urged the University to make ‘zero-suicide pledge’ • The plan sets out changes to be made over next few years

Ed Southgate co-Editor in Chief

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ristol’s Director of Student Services has said that he is ‘very open’ to encouraging all students to undergo online suicide awareness training.

In October, Bristol published a Suicide Prevention and Response Plan, which works alongside the newly-published Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy in a push from the University to improve its wellbeing support.

The plan says that everyone within the university community from cleaners to students to Wellbeing professionals will be trained in suicide-awareness. Students in senior positions, such as Senior Residents in halls, have been given online training, but Mr Ames admitted that there ‘there is not a concrete plan yet’ to focus on giving this to every student.

He said that he is ‘very open’ to looking at the possibilities of expanding the training to the student body to enable housemates, classmates and friends in societies to spot when someone may be struggling.

Such a move would likely be welcomed by those who argue that while Senior Residents are a necessary support for first

years in halls, it might take a housemate of a second or third year student living in private accommodation to first notice if they display signs of suicidal thoughts.

Currently discussions surrounding an action plan that underlies the Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy is taking place with the SU and students.

Mr Ames said that it ‘may well be that one of the things that could easily come out of the current discussions about the action plan is a recommendation that we highlight to students to use some of those open access resources’ that provide suicide awareness training.

The online training is provided for by the Charlie Waller Memorial Trust.

It comes as Bristol is under increased scrutiny for its mental health provision and commitment to supporting student wellbeing. Liberal Democrat MP Norman Lamb recently spoke at a Bristol panel and urged the University to make a ‘zerosuicide pledge’.

Mr Ames questioned what such a pledge would look like. ‘Clearly we are aiming for what Norman Lamb is encouraging universities to aim for’, he said, emphasising that he would ‘have to see what that “zerosuicide pledge” actually meant in reality’.

The Suicide Prevention and Response Plan is intended to work alongside the Student Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy, which was put together with the SU after a consultation where 200 students provided feedback.

It sets out a number of strategic changes the University will implement over the next few years in adopting a ‘whole-institution approach’ to mental health.

“QUote” sPEAKER

Bristol study demonstrates the benefits of mindfulness for students • The study was the first of its kind in the UK to observe the effects of mindfulness based cognitive therapy on students • It found mindfulness beneficial for communication, empathy, concentration and stress levels

Nina Bryant

Deputy News Editor

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university of Bristol led study has found mindfulness to be beneficial for students’ mental

health.

The study was the first in the UK to

observe the effects of mindfulness based cognitive therapy (MBCT) on students.

The study focused on medics in particular, given the high levels of stress that come with a medical degree.

57 medical students were recruited on the basis of having already been referred to an eight-week mindfulness training programme by their GP. The training programme included teaching meditation practice, how to identify signs of stress, coping mechanisms the importance of self-care, as well as offering an understanding of how the mind works and the negative effects of stress.

After the two-month mindfulness training programme participants were

“Our aim is to find effective new ways of supporting students who may be suffering from stress and and anxiety” Dr Alice Malpass, Research Fellow Bristol Medical School

asked to fill out a survey, with six being asked to take part in a qualitative interview.

Those studied noticed improvements in the way they communicated with their patients and the way they approached their studies; they noted they had greater empathy levels and were better able to concentrate. They also expressed finding the mindfulness practices beneficial during stressful situations in clinic, as well as during exam periods.

Dr Alice Malpass, Research Fellow in the Bristol Medical School and co-author, said: ‘At Bristol, we are continuing to increase efforts to find solutions to improve mental health among the student population.

Our aim is to find effective new ways of

supporting students who may be suffering from stress and anxiety.

‘This study has shown how mindfulness can help students who might be struggling, in particular medical students, find new ways of relating to the difficulties that arise in their clinical work, studying and wellbeing.’

Whilst more research may be required for the benefits of mindfulness training to be truly established, they indicate a need for UK-wide research.

Mindfulness training is already part of the medical curriculum in Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the USA; such research could lead to its implementation in the UK curriculum as well.

18.03.2019 epigram

News 7

Student services budget protected for next academic year • The University to implement a new model of counselling • Director of student services aims to reduce the cost of living for students

Ed Southgate co-Editor in Chief

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irector of Student Services discussed student services in an interview with Epigram about its new Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy.

The Strategy makes a number of spending aspirations and commitments. It says the University will ‘actively seek opportunities to reduce the cost of living for students’ which will look at rent, transport and costs of studying - commit to free programmes of physical activity during exam periods, and expand the Student Counselling Service in line with planned student growth.

While there is not thought to be any additional investment to fund these aims, Mark Ames, Director of Student Services, emphasised that the University is in a place to look at using the investment it does have in the most efficient way.

‘There has been a lot of investment, and

“Money is always finite... there will inevitably come a point where we have to make choices.”

Mark Ames, Director of Student Service

we are at a point where we are using that investment in the most efficient way’, he said.

Last term, students marched for the second time since May 2017 demanding an improvement to mental health services. The top demand of the organisers was to increase the funding of the counselling service and to uncap the number of counselling sessions available.

Mr Ames added: ‘Looking further down the road, clearly there may come a point where we have to make additional investment’ but the focus now is on efficiency. He emphasised that ‘money is always finite’ and that ‘there will inevitably come a point where we have to make choices’.

The University will also implement a new model of counselling called One At A Time, a model that has been adopted by a number of other universities. It allows students to see a counsellor and book sessions as needed, rather than booking 4-6 in advance.

Mr Ames said that this would allow students to ‘speak with a counsellor more quickly than they would be able to with the traditional model of booking sessions in advance’.

At the beginning of the last academic year, the University invested an additional £1million into wellbeing services.

Bristol University welcomes new student mental health taskforce • Department for Education setting up new taskforce • Focus on supporting students during their first year • Members include UCAS, NUS and Student Minds

Imogen Horton News Editor

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oinciding with University Mental Health Day, 7 March, Education Secretary Damian Hinds announced a new taskforce set up to support students dealing with the challenges that starting university can include, to preserve their mental health.

The University of Bristol has welcomed the news, a spokesperson saying: ‘It is reassuring that the Government share our concern that mental health is fast emerging as one of the biggest public health issues affecting young people.’

The taskforce, which will be known as the Education Transitions Network, will focus on students moving from sixth-form or college to university looking at how they can be better supported in their crucial first year.

The Department for Education has identified four key areas of risk that can affect the mental health of students: independent living, independent learning, wellbeing and healthy relationships.

They believe that combating issues from managing finances to alcohol and drugs misuse, social media pressure to helping students cope with their workload and develop their own learning style and skills, will help improve the mental health of students.

Members of the new taskforce will include leading sector groups such as UCAS, the National Union of Students, Student Minds, Universities UK, the Association of Colleges and the Office for Students.

Their aim will be to develop measures to help students make a smooth transition into higher education and help maintain positive mental health.

The University of Bristol have identified similarities in the priorities of the task force and their own mental health strategies.

A University spokesman said: ‘Our recently launched mental health and wellbeing strategy aims to support our students’ wellbeing during their transition into university life and throughout their time with us, as well as helping them build life skills and resilience to cope with the pressures they face. This has been developed in partnership with Universities UK (UUK) and Public Health England (PHE) and follows best-practice recommendations and the framework outlined by UUK. ‘Part of this work on strengthening support during transition into university includes an ‘opt-in’ policy, which encourages our students to allow us to include a third party, chosen by the student themselves, in discussions on their mental or physical health where we have significant concerns.

‘We have also played a leading role along with Universities UK and Papyrus, the UK’s national charity dedicated to the prevention of suicide among young people, in the creation of new published guidance to help universities prevent student suicides.’

The idea behind the taskforce was first raised last year by former Universities Minister Sam Gyimah as part of new initiative to improve student mental health.

Other measures suggested include the development of a University Mental Health Charter, led by Student Minds, which will reward institutions that deliver improved student mental health.

Last December, following Bristol University’s implementation of its ‘opt-in’ policy, the Education Secretary urged an expert panel, including Universities UK, to do all in its power to help Universities do more to reach out to students’ emergency contacts when in the best interests of a student’s health.

Universities UK is now leading a task group to explore how students’ families and friends can be involved in mental health support and care, while ensuring the confidentiality rights of students are fully respected.

Features

Editor: Ollie Smith Deputy Editor: Tom Taylor Online Editor: Niamh Rowe

@OllieWJSmith @tomtay10r

Twitter: @EpigramFeatures

Does Bristol University really have a problem with freedom of speech?

Following a failed AMM motion, Epigram Features examines whether freedom of speech really needs protecting at our University

Tom Taylor

Deputy Features Editor

“Isolated incidents of intimidation and disruptive protest, often perpetrated by non-students, are held up as representative of the university environment as a whole” Epigram / Tom Taylor

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Epigram / Tom Taylor

Conrad Young set up a non-Union affiliated free speech group called Bristol Against Censorship.

Conrad tells me the group was ‘created to help highlight issues of censorship on campus’ and provide a ‘place for discussion’.

As it gained traction online, ‘it became more of a pressure groups’, he says, and ‘national publications came to us for comment many times.’ He also set up a public discussion page, where members post media reports and discuss them.

The Free Speech Society informed me that they were founded ‘in response to a motion targeted at de-platforming transexclusionary radical feminist (TERF) speakers and was vague enough that any controversial speaker could subsequently be barred from speaking.’

I attended the meeting where this motion was heard last year and remember the atmosphere growing incredibly heated, with one of the opponents, who is now President

that ‘recent cases of no platforming and the debate around the practice has shown a real conflict between the role of our universities as places of debate and learning and their duty of care to students.’ In reference to the recent Angelos Sofocleous controversy and last year’s TERF motion, the spokesmen stated that ‘free speech is testing all universities and recent events have shown that Bristol is no different.’

Yet the reality of students’ ability to express themselves freely at Bristol University does not warrant such concern.

Bristol SU have stated that they have ‘not refused a platform to any speaker in the last few years’ and follow the University’s Freedom of Speech Code of Practice which claims that the only exception to freedom of speech on campus ‘is where there are serious concerns about public disorder or the direct incitement of violence or hatred.’

The causes of the disparity between perception and reality are multi-faceted

of the Free Speech Society, stopped midspeech because he breached the code of conduct.

A spokesperson for the University Bristol Green Society remembered this heated debate when I asked them for their thoughts on free speech. ‘I personally believe’, the spokesperson told me, ‘that free speech ends when you openly debate the humanity of a person which infringes on their fundamental human right to exist.’

Clearly, some students at Bristol feel like free speech is under attack. A Liberal Democrats Society spokesperson argued

and numerous and I do not claim to have all the answers. Nevertheless, sensationalised media coverage clearly plays a role. When controversial incidents and protests do occur, they are quickly picked up on by media outlets because they are usually dramatic and make for an exciting story.

The Free Speech Society’s discussion group, which can be viewed openly by nonmembers, is a prime example of this. The group is a stream of such articles, posted by members for discussion, and acts as an echochamber and amplifier for the ‘intolerant university’ narrative.

“When controversial incidents and protests do occur they are quickly picked up on by media outlets because they are usually dramatic and make for an exciting story”

Epigram / Ed Southgate

n February, the Students’ Union Annual Members Meeting heard a motion which declared that the Union should ‘make clear their commitment to the Freedom of Speech Code of Practice 2017/18 and ensure that their practice is compliant.’

The motion asked the Union to reaffirm their stance in favour of freedom of speech and referenced a Joint Committee on Human Rights report into the status of freedom of speech on UK university campuses. The report, the motion argued, ‘found several barriers were present, including intolerant attitudes to speech often incorrectly using the banner of ‘no platforming’ and ‘safe space’ policies’ as well as ‘incidents of unacceptable and intimidatory behaviour by protestors.’

After a brief debate, the motion failed to pass. One of its proposers, Sunil Singh, told me afterwards that he felt ‘disappointed’ in the vote and felt that this motion ‘would have been a good way for the Students’ Union to show students who are worried about freedom of speech that they were acting in alignment with their principles.’

Before leaving the meeting, I asked Sunil whether he would consider trying again at the next AMM. He said he would discuss it with the committee and a few students who were sitting around us nodded.

Sunil is the treasurer of the University of Bristol Free Speech Society, a Union affiliated society which claims to ‘protect freedom of expression on campus’ and cites a ‘recent trend of restrictions across university campuses in Britain and America’.

But does freedom of speech really need protecting at Bristol University?

Isolated incidents of intimidation and disruptive protest, often perpetrated by non-students, are held up as representative of the university environment as a whole.

The widely reported protests at Jacob ReesMogg’s UWE speech in February 2018, were ‘caused by outsiders, rather than students

or the university itself’, the parliamentary report stated.

Language and discourse from the American right and alt-right is used to glue these incidents together into a re-tweetable narrative of the “intolerant left”. The result is an artificially constructed problem which does very little to reflect the reality of university education in the UK. The Free Speech Society responded to this accusation by arguing that ‘the reason why language and discourse crosses over the Atlantic is because much of the Western world is facing similar challenges.’

Nasra Ayub, Undergraduate Education Officer at Bristol Students Union, asked Sunil whether he was creating a problem which doesn’t actually exist. She told me that ‘The recent Joint Committee Report on Freedom of Speech’, cited in the original motion, also ‘suggested that media coverage has implied that there is more censorship of debate in universities than actually takes place, and this is something I would agree with.’

The Joint Committee’s report argued that whilst there are a number of factors limiting free speech such as ‘intolerant attitudes’, ‘unacceptable intimadatory behaviour’ and ‘fear and confusion over the Prevent duty’, the ‘extent to which students restrict free speech at universities should not be exaggerated.’

The report stated that ‘The evidence we have taken shows that overall there is support for the principle of freedom of speech among the student population’ and admits that ‘much of the concern about free speech appears to have come from a small number of incidents which have been widely reported (and those reports are often repeated)’.

A representative from the University Conservative Association told me that ‘freedom of speech is still relatively widespread’ and that ‘it’s very hard to get a speaker’s invitation rescinded here. Luckily, as a society we have had no problems with our guests.’ The Association does, however, worry that ‘more radical elements of student politics are trying to gain control of SUs and decide who does and doesn’t speak’.

Why then, if threats to freedom of speech at universities are not a ‘pervasive issue’, do groups claiming to ‘protect’ freedom of speech frequently spring up at Bristol University? In March 2016, ex-editor of the Bristol Tab and Bristol University alumnus

04.03.2019

Features 9

epigram

Stand in SolidariTee: A reflection on student activism SolidariTee is a charity which provides a voice and support to refugees with the profits of selling T-shirts Masters, International Relations

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or the vast majority of us, £10 is an amount we would not think twice about spending on a night in the pub, a ticket for a night out, or an item of clothing, so why not put your next £10 towards an incredibly worthwhile cause?

Solidaritee is an entirely student-led movement established by Cambridge student Tiara Sahar Ataii. As a result of her experience volunteering as a translator and interpreter in Greece, and her recognition of the fall in media coverage of the refugee crisis, she started the SolidariTee campaign.

The organisation raises money that is put towards paying for legal aid and

“The charity has used its social media presence to dispel a variety of myths and falsities surrounding the refugee crisis and present clear information to its followers”

including its founder, or those who work at national level, who voluntarily manage the entire charity and the multiple universities involved.

This year SolidariTee has chosen to support two NGOs, namely, Fenix and Mobile Info Team. Fenix operates in Lesvos and supports all refugees’ legal and administrative needs, such as asylum-interview preparation. MIT operates in Thessaloniki and offers highlyspecialised advice on family reunification through sustainable volunteering.

Using infographics, the charity has used its social media presence to dispel a variety of myths and falsities surrounding the refugee crisis, and present clear information to its followers.

Whilst it is true that both short and long term solutions are a vital part of any relief work, by supporting legal aid, SolidariTee makes a commitment to sustainable change.

By funding a lawyer or a legal adviser, it ensures they are dealing with the problem

at its root, as opposed to just maintaining thousands of people in camps.

To help the charity, students can support their friends who are selling T-shirts this year and look out for stalls in the ASS and elsewhere on campus, as well as several events SolidariTee have planned.

SolidariTee / Ella Siney

SolidariTee / Ella Siney

representation for refugees, and in doing so, shows solidarity. Whilst still a student, Tiara invested her student loan into the making of T-shirts, and the selling began.

It has now spread to over 30 universities in the UK, Germany, the United States, and Australia. The first two campaigns - they are currently on their third campaign - saw student committees amass donations and sales of over £45,000.

The campaigns drew the attention of MPs such as Caroline Lucas, Jonathan Bartley, Jeremy Corbyn, and Tim Farron, among others, who, too, stood in solidarity.

Recently, SolidariTee announced that it has gained charity status.

The premise is simple: each T-shirt costs £10 and that £10 goes directly to funding legal aid in Greece. So that SolidariTee can donate as much of the money raised from the T-shirts as possible, they purposefully keep any administrative costs low.

For instance, they ask students who are already travelling across the country to transport the t-shirts with them to various cities, instead of employing an official courier service. Being entirely student led, nobody is paid for any of their time,

SolidariTee / Ella Siney

SolidariTee / Ella Siney

Ella Siney

“The campaigns drew the attention of MPs such as Caroline Lucas, Jonathan Bartley, Jeremy Corbyn and Tim Farron”

Dream big: 7 famous Bristol Alumni

Following International Women’s Day, Online Features Editor Niamh Rowe provides a selection of homegrown heroines

Nkosazana DlaminiZuma

Slingo is a British meteorologist and climate scientist. She has been the Chief Scientist at the Met Office since 2009. She graduated with a physics degree in 1973 and in 1988 was awarded a PhD, both from Bristol. In light of our worsening climate crisis, Slingo’s role is pivotal in producing the research needed to alert both the public and policy-makers.

In 2012, Slingo said that a reduction in Arctic sea ice due to climate change was linked to colder and drier winter weather in the UK. In 2014, she said that climate change is likely to be a factor in the storms and floods Britain had been experiencing for months. The importance of Slingo’s fact-led climate advice can not be understated, as her research is expedient in countering climate change apathy and denial.

Royal

Getty Images/ Jeff Vespa

Dame Julia Mary Slingo

U. S. Department of State / Wikimedia Commons

Anti-apartheid activist Dlamini-Zuma was exiled from South Africa in 1976. She had a Bachelor’s degree in Botany and Zoology from the University of Zululand and began to train as a medic from the University of Natal. She finished her studies at the University of Bristol after she was exiled for antiapartheid activism. She went on to become South African minister for health under Nelson Mandela, becoming minister of foreign affairs under President Thabo Mbeki and minister for home affairs under President Jacob Zuma. She ran in an internal leadership contest within her party (the African National Congress, or ANC), and thus for the Presidency, in 2017. She narrowly lost out to Cyril Ramaphosa, who is now President of South Africa.

Gaositwe K. T. Chiepe

Emily Watson OBE

Watson, an acclaimed actress, studied both a BA in English (1988) and an MA (2003) at Bristol.

Watson has been nominated twice for the Academy Award for Best Actress, once in 1996 for Breaking the Waves and once for Hilary and Jackie in 1998.

She won the BAFTA TV Award for Best Actress in 2011 for her role ITV television show Appropriate Adult. Her theatre roles can also not be understated, she’s been an active member of the Royal Shakespeare Company, her most notable role in Sam Mendes’ Uncle Vanya was performed on either side of the Atlantic, and secured her an Olivier Award nomination.

Susanna Reid

Jemima Khan

Perhaps the most familiar face, Reid studied Politics, Philosophy and Law at Bristol in 1989 and was an editor of Epigram (dream big!). Reid is a television presenter and journalist best known as a co-presenter of BBC Breakfast from 2003 until 2014, and being co-host of Good Morning Britain since 2014, alongside Piers Morgan and Ben Shephard.

Angela Carter

Carter was a novelist, short story writer and journalist. Carter is known or her subversion of fairy tales, replacing the Knight in Shining Armour figure with defiant heroines, and presents awoken female sexuality, dismantling the passive virgin figure of didactic fairy tales. I tend to avoid the now clichéd title ‘feminist hero’ as it corners-off female talent into its own subtype and defines talented women through their gender, but if there was ever a Society uploader / Wikimedia Commons‘feminist hero’ of UOB, I think Carter takes the role.

Chiepe was born in Botswana (the then UK ruled Bechuanaland Protectorate) and graduated from the University of Bristol in 1958 with a master’s degree. For her thesis she was awarded an honorary degree from Depaul University in the US. She started her career in the Bechuanaland Protectorate Government in the Department of Education and was one of the first of two Africans appointed to an administrative position as Education Officer in the colonial government, when she became the first female cabinet member in Botswana in 1974.

She was later elected as high commissioner to the UK and Nigeria and ambassador to West Germany, France, Denmark, Norway, Sweden and the European Economic Community from 1970 to 1974.

Paul Baichoo / Wikimedia Commons

Khan began her English degree at Bristol in 1993, and has since become a TV, film and documentary producer. She was previously a journalist, and an editor of The New Statesman, and European editor-at-large for Vanity Fair, and a writer and contributing editor for British Vogue, amongst many other publications. Khan is notable for her truth-telling investigative abilities as she’s produced many documentary films, including the BAFTA nominated film We Steal Secrets: The Story of WikiLeaks, a six-part series called The Clinton Affair and a series on the Adam Syed case, which inspired the widely popular Serial podcast. She was also made an ambassador for UNICEF in 2001, and has established the Jemima Khan Afghan Refugee Appeal. Khan seemingly has a distinct flare for ‘doing it all’; she’s dominated pretty much all media industries and is a leading philanthropic figure.

10 Features

epigram

18.03.2019

Student Scouts and Guides organise mammoth event for local children named after the Kohoutek comet On March 9, a group of over 20 University of Bristol students, helped run a day of Jurassic themed activities for over 200 local Scouts and Guides from across the South West

Patrick Sullivan Film & TV Editor

O

Epigram / Patrick Sullivan

ne of the original co-founders of Kohoutek, Bristol alumni Gordon Dutton, who studied Medicine 1971-1976, travelled from Glasgow to be at Woodhouse Park, Almondsey for the second reinstated Kohoutek event, which he started in 1973 and named after the comet first sighted in the same year. In 2017, the University of Bristol Guides and Scouts Society (UOBGAS), headed by then Second Year, Engineering Design student and current President, Shona Allman, resumed the tradition after an 11 year absence.

20 bases were designed and prepared in advance by a committee of five members: Shona Allman (now in her fourth year), Owen Jones (Second Year PhD, Communications Engineering), Amy Holt (First Year PhD, Cellular Molecular Medicine), Dominic Rowe (Fourth Year, Aerospace Engineering), and Freya Upton (First Year, Engineering Maths).

These included excavating from sand and piecing together 3D jigsaw dinosaur skeletons, building catapults to fire water balloons, and creeping through rope mazes without ringing the bells on them.

In 1997, the theme of Kohoutek was also dinosaur themed, but the young helpers, aged 18-25, mixed it up by having each of the teams keep an egg safe throughout the day with the children coming up with names such as Eggbert or Shelley. The venue was two fields about 15 minutes north of Bristol city centre, just off the M5, and the 45 teams of children from different Scouts or Guides groups from Bristol, Bath, North Somerset, and South Gloucestershire were allocated two or three to a base and changed fields either side of lunchtime.

Over 200 children began arriving at 9.30am on a grey and windy Saturday

morning, ahead of the opening ceremony at 10am. They then started rotating round the bases, 15 minutes each, with regular breaks as the sun crept out for extended periods. For each activity, the student base leaders scored the competing teams on not only their ability but their teamwork and communication as well. Around a campfire at the end of the day, the winning team, 2nd Winterbourne Down Guides from the Frome Valley area, collected the trophy. Additionally, there was a special prize, a wooden spoon to match the original Kohoutek 1973 trophy carved by the original co-founder Gordon Dutton himself, awarded to the 62nd Bristol Riders Scouts for their admirable teamwork.

‘It’s lovely to see the event taking place in exactly the same way as it happened 46 years ago!’ Gordon remarked upon seeing the continued running of his conception, based on the Cheshire Hike Scouting event.

He discovered it was still going on after randomly googling ‘Kohoutek Bristol’ earlier in the academic year.

Jenney Rodgers, a First Year Engineering

“The 95th anniversary of the first University of Bristol scouting or guiding society was in 2017, making it one of the oldest societies at the University”

Design student, was running the excavation base and appreciates UOBGAS as a hobby alongside her studies. ‘[Kohoutek] has been really good fun. The kids seem enthusiastic.

It’s nice to escape and get a breather from university.’

Kelsey, who was enrolled as a guide on the day, Rachir, Pepper, Bailey, and Grace (all aged 11-12 and part of the 17th Eastville Park Methodist Guides from the Fishponds area), were in the competition 25 years after their leader, Lorianne, took part herself, aged 14 in 1994. Their favourite activity was the three-legged obstacle course. ‘We needed to listen and communicate,’ Rachir said. ‘Be kind to each other,’ another said. There was a special togetherness on show throughout the groups, and certainly no arguments between these five girls. What had they had named their cherished dinosaur egg? ‘Jeffy!’ they all exalted. ‘...with a silent “S”,’ Rachir added.

So, would that be Sjeffy then?

UOBGAS, part of Student Scouts and Guides Organisation (SSAGO), itself was only established again in 2015 by Georgie Joy and

Harry Bradbury, who returned to help with the day’s event. Joy is currently volunteering at an international campsite in Switzerland, Kandersteg, which is a permanent jamboree.

The 95th anniversary of the first University of Bristol scouting or guiding society was in 2017, making it one of the oldest societies at the University. Allman also formed part of the founding committee.

Kohoutek 2019 was entirely organised by the student committee, but they worked in accordance with the local Scouting and Guiding groups. Graham Brant, Avon Scouts County Commissioner came along to the event and was overjoyed at how UOBGAS had set up the event.

‘For us, it’s really important to involve younger people [students] and to integrate the University societies and get them to work with the local Scouting groups,’ he said.

‘While many third year [students] already work regularly with them [throughout the year], [Kohoutek] introduces the first years who have just moved to a new area [to their local Scouting or Guiding community].’

‘It’s fantastic to get the Scouts and Guides together,’ Avon Scouts Assistant County Commissioner Andrew Phelps and leader of 1st Stoke Gifford Scouts Group noted.

‘It’s been a very well organised event and we’re grateful for the UOBGAS for arranging it for the girls,’ said Karen Butler, Guides County Administrator and Inclusion Advisor, also Leader of 1st Stoke Gifford Guides.

The final word has to be given to the hardworking students who ran the day.

Shona Allman, after a long day started by setting up and camping the night before and ending after 5pm, still had all the enthusiasm in the world. ‘It’s been a busy and rewarding event to run, promoting and developing leadership, communication, and teamwork skills not only in the Scouts and Guides participating in the activities, but also the [student] base leaders and organising committee. A massive thanks to all who helped and participated!’

Kohoutek is a special day, but it celebrates all the values UOBGAS display throughout the year helping in the community. ‘If you would like to get involved in similar madness, you can get in contact with [us]!’

Allman emphasised.

Epigram / Patrick Sullivan

Epigram / Kate Hutchinson

Epigram / Patrick Sullivan

Comment Twitter and Instagram: @epigramcomment

Editor: Will Charley @willcharley1 Deputy Editor: Noor Evers Online Editor: Ffion Clarke Deputy Online: Maia Miller-Lewis

@ffionclarke5 @maiamillerlewis

Epigram is an independent and neutral newspaper, aiming to publish opinions from across the student body. To respond with an opposing opinion, please contact comment.epigram@gmail.com or join our writers’ group on Facebook.

Students should be getting hot under the collar about global warming Epigram/ Will Charley

Maggie Sawant First Year, Law

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could not enjoy the record-breaking warm winter weather. You may think I am crazy – but I was overwhelmed by a sickening feeling of dread and helplessness whenever I saw the clear blue sky.

As highly-educated people, we suspect that the weather is a consequence of climate change. But we refuse to admit it. We dismiss the weather as a freak event, assuring ourselves it will go back to normal.

But the fact is that this bizarre occurrence should never have happened: it is directly related to climate change, as confirmed by the Met Office. It is easier to drink a beer in College Green than it is to confront the horrifying reality of global warming, and by doing so, we are passively accepting global inaction regarding climate change.

Contributing to our lack of constructive action is the feeling that we, as individuals, can do nothing to mitigate climate change.

One cannot stop China building coal-fired power stations in developing nations, prevent Brazil increasing its fossil fuel consumption, or force countries to meet emissions reductions targets. Even at the domestic level our government refuses to declare a climate emergency. It is an international problem – we are merely individuals, in one tiny country:

how can we make any tangible change?

Another factor that explains our failure to act is that we just do not care enough about climate change.

We know it is happening – but as long as it is not directly affecting us, why should we care? It is good for us: we briefly experienced summer in the middle of a bleak winter. But that is not the case for everyone.

Millions of the world’s most vulnerable people are already suffering at the hands of climate change. Farmers in Niger are struggling to feed their families because of desertification. Kiribati islanders face being forced to leave their homes due to rising sea levels. However, to us, their misery seems remote. It is not until there is a real crisis, affecting lives and economic interests closer to home, in a way that seems directly caused by climate change, that anyone will start to act.

But we cannot wait for this disaster to happen. The climate is giving us a warning

“If our generation continues to be so passive about such a great threat to humanity, I have no hope for the future”

that we must heed.

If our generation continues to be so passive about such a great threat to humanity, I have no hope for the future. We know the dangers and we carry on doing nothing because we are de-motivated by the government’s disinterest in tackling climate change, and climate change has not yet had any detrimental effect upon our lives.

But we cannot allow this to form an insurmountable barrier to taking constructive action.

As citizens in a democratic society, we must use our power to pressure government to become more proactive in the fight against climate change. We can attend protests such as the Youth Strike 4 Climate and join ‘green’ societies such as the People and Planet Society.

We can use our unique position as tomorrow’s leaders, the generation responsible for tackling global warming, to end the climate crisis.

Having seen a poster arguing much the same pinned in the ASS library, I am glad that I am not alone. On the issue, People and Planet Society had this to say: ‘Freak weather events like 18° heat in February just weeks after a heavy bout of snow are further evidence of a growing climate crisis. In making these posters, we want all students to know that behind this beautiful weather is a worrying truth - the government is not taking the right kind of action on climate change, and we all need to act now to prevent the disastrous consequences of global warming.’

It is time to use our collective voice to implement change. It is time to put down that beer and join the protests.

Pexels / Anastasiya Lobanovskaya

Last month’s warm weather was a sign that our climate is in crisis- but nobody was listening

Your weekly rant:

Dye me a river: embrace your natural hair colour Euan Merrilees

First Year, Philosophy

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Epigram/ Will Charley

or better or worse, those with luminous hair roam the streets of Bristol. Be it the aqua blue of the Weeb youtuber, the bright pink of the Lazy Town variety, or the lime tennis ball green that acts as camouflage in buildings catered

by Source, I never saw the appeal of bright dyed hair.

My harsh words might be unjust and inflammatory.

Maybe it is just me letting out a long-held prejudice ever since Stephanie from Lazy Town called me a fascist for quoting Adam Smith. Maybe this is merely my jealously of those entitled to a phase of rebellion after missing out on mine. Who knows?

However, it begs the question: what is wrong about one’s root hair colour?

It makes sense that dyeing your hair is an expression of one’s self, but what about our natural expression? Shouldn’t we be proud of that?

I find the concept of Ginger Society inspirational! A whole society dedicated to the just and natural pride of having hair of a certain colour. It is the balance between empty vanity and lack of self worth: just pride in who we are.

If we change our appearance to the luminous degree, are we not trying to change who we are?

Doesn’t this make us unhappy? Wouldn’t we be a whole lot happier if we are proud of who we are? I am not saying that we should not work to change something that we dislike about ourselves, but maybe dyeing our hair should be an option we consider much laterand after we see a nice stylist.

All in all, I do not dislike those with luminous hair, but it makes me think: why can’t we be ourselves, for we can be no one else?

12 Comment

epigram 18.03.2019

Take it or leave it: campaigners and activists across the University’s campus Being pestered by campaigners with leaflets on religion, politics or events is frustrating- but is it a free speech issue?

Robin Connolly First Year, History

I

“People are wasting massive amounts of paper and facilitating littering”

lost in the masses or be easily ignored.

It must be difficult for example, in the case of students launching start up apps, to gain the web-based platform necessary to get your name out there. In our day-to-day lives, we have become so accustomed to internet-style advertising and political rhetoric that we can pretty much screen it out of our consciousness.

Plus, finding spaces on popular social media is very expensive when on a tight budget.

Perhaps this sense of ‘invisibility’ on popular social media sites justifies leafleting on campus.

On first thought, I was highly sceptical about how successful these campaigns truly are, but one fellow student reported to me that having gone to the ‘what if the world has a problem we can’t fix?’ talk at Bristol CU, that the large hall was “packed”.

This could suggest that at least a significant minority of students who were handed a leaflet genuinely took in the information and even acted upon it. Maybe, therefore, it is a relevant and useful way of spreading information to students after all?

It is difficult to deny the fact that when a flier is accompanied by a free snack of some kind- perhaps a flapjack bite, or free coffeethat it suddenly becomes more tempting, and the small talk with whoever is handing it out becomes worth it.

Part of me wants to say that these campaigns are the more successful ones, drawing in our poverty-stricken student population. Or maybe I have underestimated students, and

we genuinely are more switched-on and interested in the world around us than we are so often portrayed as being.

There is currently a university-wide debate about freedom of speech and whether it is being fully accommodated here at Bristol.

In such an environment it seems wrong to criticise leafleting. Yet, I am also unable deny that I, personally, find it rather irritating, and have not yet been inspired enough to join in with the campaigns being presented.

Those campaigns which I have involved myself in, I heard about through other sources. I am only one example, but I am sure others feel the same.

Epigram/Will Charley

Epigram/Will Charley

t should not annoy me, but it does. And I cannot quite put my finger on why.

There is something slightly frustrating about being accosted, while minding your own business on campus, by a twentysomething-year-old brandishing a piece of paper advertising a religious, political or business-related campaign.

In the past couple of weeks, especially while the weather was dry, this was almost a daily occurrence along Woodland and Tyndall Avenue. But is this merely an annoying example of student advertising, or is it an expression of freedom of speech that needs to be protected, if not encouraged?

The first, most obvious problem with this practise that needs to be pointed out is the waste and environmental problems that it causes. I, for certain have been known to discard such advertising in the closest bin on receipt of it.

During the campaign for Bristol CU’s ‘What

If?’ lunch time talks, I was witness to very many people abandoning their red pamphlets in hedges, on the floor and in other convenient hidey holes.

During an age of such environmental awareness, it feels wrong that people are wasting massive amounts of paper and facilitating littering. While organisations should be granted an avenue for advertisement, they really need to find a more environmentally friendly way of doing so.

However, I do also appreciate that a side effect of our generation’s obsession with the internet is that so much information can get

To better the world, STEM students need a grounding in arts subjects Ignorance of arts and humanities amongst the scientists of the future will limit future developments John Stack

First Year, Maths and Philosophy

F

Scientific and technological jobs require more creativity, expertise and so on, but this does not change the fact they are still constrained to a narrow definition of success.

This becomes since narrow definitions of success place a veil over the real consequences of STEM work.

Consider the following. A YouTube engineer will work towards the goal of increasing the time users spend on the site.

This is done by improving an algorithm to keep users engaged.

This goal appears harmless when viewed in isolation. And yet, this goal causes the system to promote animated horrors to children, terrorist propaganda to the vulnerable and conspiracy theories to those most susceptible.

As science and technology continues to play a greater, accelerating role in our society, issues caused by STEM ignorance can only grow larger and more numerous.

Moreover, consider how an Uber

Unsplash / Tchompalov

or millennia, arts and humanities students have been called out for their lack of engagement with science and mathematics. However, today it is the scientists and engineers who must engage with the humanities.

The issues of now and the future are primarily linked to the failure of STEM graduates to engage with the arts.

Overpopulation and Climate Change?

Caused by economists’ fixation on growth.

Global, micro-targeted disinformation? A computer scientist’s naïve ideal of ultraconnectivity. The future genetic decoupling of the rich’s children from those of the rest, via designer baby research? Enabled by the unconsidered research of biologists.

As science and technology continues to play a greater role in our society, issues caused

by STEM ignorance can only become more numerous. This mess is left to be cleaned up by those who work in government, regulators and think tanks- those trained in the arts.

Clearly, the onus is on the mess-makers to get their act together.

The need for engagement is close to home.

A sizeable number of Bristol STEM students without arts and humanities training will find themselves doing work that has negative consequences which they are unaware of.

STEM students will often find themselves relegated to the scientific equivalent of production line work.

Except, rather than packing boxes, they may be working on algorithms that create an ‘enabling environment for the ongoing endorsement and proliferation of human rights abuse’ - a quote from Facebook’s report about its operations in Myanmar.

Production line work is characterised by a narrow definition of success, for example, the number of boxes packed. For STEM jobs, maximising the time users spend on an app is an example of a goal that millions of scientists are set.

“Studying humanities would help scientists be more thoughtful, critical and thus enlightened”

programmer will never realise the implications of the surge system. These implications are especially pertinent to clubbing Bristol students.

In cities where static-fare taxi companies are put out of business by Uber, the surge system will ensure that, on certain days and times, only the privileged can escape the tipsy, dangerous walk home after a night out.

For all, this is an awful outcome. Safety should not only be given to those who can afford it. Scientists should not be unaware of the human effects of their work.

Engagement by STEM students with the arts and humanities will widen their personal idea of success.

With philosophy containing the study of ethics, history containing lessons from the past and politics containing the study of governance, studying humanities would help scientists be more thoughtful, critical and thus enlightened.

This idea is not without precedent. The IB exists to facilitate this very notion and a special advisor of former Education Secretary, Michael Gove, advocated for the idea of a trans-disciplinary ‘Odyssean’ education.

Bristol University itself offers courses such as Mathematics and Philosophy and Physics and Philosophy. Elsewhere, even more niche courses like Computer Science and Philosophy are available.

We can only hope that personal education leads to structural change. Even if it does not, note that the mere discussion of the said issues is an act of the arts and humanities.

Comment 13

18.03.2019 epigram

Bristol’s extension rules worsen mental health issues Bristol’s policies on extenuating circumstances do harm to those who are most vulnerable. It does not have to be this way Matilda Musto

Masters, English Literature

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Pexels / Pixabay

ental health has been a topic at the forefront of minds and discussions around the University of Bristol in recent years - and for good reason.

The Huffington Post reports a 154 per cent increase in students with mental health problems, The Times brings light to the twelfth Bristol student in three years to commit suicide, and many students are part of a three month minimum waiting list to see a counsellor.

The University is by no means alone in the struggle of combatting anxiety and stress but it seems to me, from my experiences at my undergraduate university, that small policy changes surrounding deadlines and mitigating circumstances could have a significant impact on the wellbeing of students.

I, like many others, found my mental health in decline in recent months.

Having recently being diagnosed with inflammatory arthritis and struggling to walk due to excruciating pain, I knew I would struggle to meet a deadline for a summative assignment. I nevertheless did my best to complete the work on time.

There is a real stigma surrounding obtaining an extension, something that

many of my friends and fellow students at the University have expressed.

On the morning of the deadline, after reading through the work, I realised it was in no way ready to be submitted. It was disjointed, full of errors and I knew I could do better. I have suffered most of my life with depression and anxiety, but this had to be the lowest I have ever felt.

I began filling in the extension form, a struggle in its own right. In the midst of a severe mental breakdown, we are tasked with explaining and justifying our situation.

To ask people who are in the middle of a mentally or physically challenging time to clearly articulate, justify and argue why they are deserving of help feeds back into a larger unhelpful narrative with regards to the stigma surrounding mental health.

In this difficult time, I emailed them eight minutes after the essay deadline.

Because of these eight minutes, it was impossible for me to receive an extension.

If I handed an essay in within seven days, I would be capped at a pass mark (50) and after that I would receive a fail (0).

Once I saw this email, I felt completely isolated and wanted to give up entirely.

In my lowest hour, suffering in pain both physically and mentally, I was treated as if I had done something wrong. Quite honestly, it just broke me.

It is my view that the policies Bristol has surrounding extension and deadlines foster an environment of stigma and stress. It does not have to be like this.

King’s College London, where I completed my undergraduate philosophy degree, operates a mitigating circumstances policy, where what is important is the time of your suffering as opposed to when you express that to the University.

If you felt you were not in a position

where you could sit an exam or submit an assignment, you didn’t. You had seven days after the deadline or date of exam to submit a mitigating circumstances form and they would assess your situation to see how they could help. They usually did this by allowing you to take an exam later or grant extensions.

To those that might suggest that this is problematic, perhaps even diminishing the quality or value of the degree, it is important to note that KCL find itself twenty places higher in the QS World University Rankings.

After I went through this process at KCL, I received several calls from my personal teacher, checking on my general wellbeing.

This levelled the playing field and made me feel cared for, allowing me to work to the best of my ability. This contrasts the copied

“In my lowest hour, suffering in pain both physically and mentally, I was treated as if I had done something wrong”

and pasted email I received after suffering much worse in Bristol.

I do not blame my tutor; I believe that policy shapes responses: my King’s tutor was kinder because the policy created that environment.

Bristol could easily adopt such a policy, a small change that would both indicate the University’s intention to combat the issue, and lead to a friendlier, fairer, student focussed environment.

My goal is to create a discussion and ultimately bring about policy change in this area in Bristol. There are many ways to achieve this aim, not only that which I have suggested above. I have seen from my friendship group alone that this is not an isolated issue. We are adults of all ages, and deserve better than institutional indifference.

Student activism is important: use your SU Too often we blame SU representatives for not talking about important issues- yet, the real blame lies with the students who do not use their vote Scarlett Sherriff

Fourth Year, French and Spanish

I

could get a fair shot at getting our property insured and getting travel insurance. These are the kinds of changes that we can enact if we bother to get our voices heard.

In 1973, the NUS won a battle to increase grants for students; one of their strategies was rent strikes. Whatever you think about fees now, the passion is surely admirable.

In 1983, they won a battle to stop the introduction of tuition fees. Under Blair in 1998, that changed. Nevertheless, it shows what collective student power is capable of.

Regardless of how much more complicated the situation now is and regardless of what you think of Corbyn’s last manifesto, history highlights that students have been able to create change and that they still can.

Do not blame student politicians if important issues are not being discussed.

They are not professionals, much of their

“A cult of perfectionism that means everything has to be ranked and measured”

good work goes unacknowledged, and we have the right to choose them. Instead, let us accept that we as a collective body of students are all culpable of not doing enough.

Instead of being despondent with the SU and the NUS if we disagree with their priorities, we should participate, because that is the only way to change them.

For better or worse, I once wrote in favour of leaving the National Union of Students, but increasingly, it seems they are not to blame.

We, as students, absolutely all are, so we need to involve ourselves more, not less.

We do not know what the future of higher education is, and we do not know what the right solution is - but it is clear there are things that we should not blindly accept.

So, vote in SU elections, regardless of how agonisingly repetitive student politics can sometimes be.

Bristol SU

n 1968, the writer and activist David Widgery called the National Union of Students (NUS) ‘the student muffler’ and said it had ‘all the passion of an ashtray’.

It is currently all too easy to agree with him, considering that far too little is being spoken about how higher education has become increasingly marketised.

Certainly, the latest Bristol SU Annual Members Meeting, which took place on the 26th of February, will have proved frustrating for those who wanted to raise issues directly related to our education.

Many motions were not heard in the meeting, in part due to the length of a heated and intense debate on a motion to divest from Israel because of their occupation of the West Bank.

Students always have and still should

raise international affairs as a matter for discussion - stifling all mention of these tense issues solves nothing. However, a similar level of passion should be used to lobby against issues that very directly impact the future of education, like the fact that, across the country, small but vital courses like languages are being cut.

Hull University has stopped recruitment for language courses except for Chinese, which is funded by the Confucius Institute this just one example of the damaging effects of marketisation.

It is futile to blame Bristol SU, or even the NUS, for the fact that these issues are neglected.

It is true that figures like former NUS President Malia Bouattia have notoriously seen themselves as the voice of reason on foreign affairs, and therefore alienated many undergraduates and the national press.

She was widely condemned for describing Birmingham University as a ‘Zionist outpost’.

Nevertheless, students elect the people in these organisations. It is on us all to make the debates we hear more representative, by voting and by taking a stand, whatever we believe.

The history of student activism in the UK shows that it is capable of creating change, for precisely those who it is supposed to represent - students at British universities.

In 1965, Endsleigh Insurance was set up by the National Union of Students so that we

Science & Tech Environment special

Editor: Bethany Harris Deputy Editor: Vilhelmiina Haavisto Online Editor: Caitlin Bromfield

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Bristol pollution plans up in the air Comment / What are Bristol City Council doing to tackle rising air pollution in Bristol?

Carissa Wong PhD Cancer Immunology

“Having failed to meet the initial deadline, a subsequent deadline was given of 21st February 2019, which was also missed.”

What plans have been considered?

Research has shown that bringing a Clear Air Zone (CAZ) into cities is the fastest and most effective way to reduce NO2 levels; London, Birmingham, and Manchester have all made plans to implement CAZs. In Bristol,

Flickr / AJC1 Epigram / Cameron Scheijde

A

ir pollution in the UK is at the centre of a public health crisis and Bristol City Council (BCC) have failed to meet a second deadline to improve air quality set by the UK government. Bristol Mayor Marvin Rees must urgently navigate through the current smog of plans and take action.

The UK exceeds the EU legal limit for nitrogen dioxide (NO2) emissions, which is 40μg/m3 per year as recommended by the World Health Organisation. Exposure to gases emitted from petrol and diesel car engines, such as NO2 and small particulates, increases your risk of cancer, dementia, stroke, premature births, and diseases of the heart and lungs.

While diesel engines emit less CO2 compared to their petrol-fuelled counterparts, which is beneficial for curbing global warming, they produce more toxic gases including NO2 and particulate matter which is estimated to cost Bristol more than £80m in health-related costs per year.

NO2 and particulates can travel deep into our lungs causing harmful irritation, while particulates can also enter the bloodstream.

300 people die annually in Bristol due to dangerous emissions, yet politicians consistently fail to prioritise air pollution policies both nationwide and in our city.

The BCC must undertake a 3-stage planning process in order to reduce NO2 emissions to acceptable levels; all plans require approval from the Joint Air Quality Unit (JAQU). JAQU is a governmental unit

set up by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and the Department for Transport, with the role of coordinating the UK’s response to its illegal NO2 levels. Having completed the first stage back in March 2018, which involved assessing a range of methods to tackle toxic NO2 levels, the BCC was given the deadline of 31st December 2018 to submit their second stage of planning. This second plan is called an Outline Business Case and should outline the preferred plan, which can then be taken to the public for feedback. Having failed to meet the initial deadline, a subsequent deadline was given of 21st February 2019, which was also missed.

Thérèse Coffey, Under Secretary of State at Defra has written a public letter to Mayor Rees expressing her dissatisfaction with these shortfalls, “I am absolutely astonished at your delay in improving air quality for the people of Bristol as quickly as possible”.

She goes on to highlight the third and final stage requested by central government, which is the submission of a final detailed plan by 27th September 2019. Mayor Rees has responded to Coffey’s letter by stating that current options on the table would have “significant adverse impacts on low income groups”, making the delay “unavoidable”.

The BCC therefore requires more time to consider alternative strategies; Mayor Rees notes that they are “urgently reviewing [their] approach”, and emphasises the importance of building “economic resilience for the sake of Bristol and the country”.

five main methods have been considered, four of which involve the implementation of a charging CAZ along with several complementary measures. The last method involves a package of 16 measures.

What is a charging CAZ? A CAZ is an area within a city that is targeted for action to reduce air pollution, while enabling economic benefit and the transition to a sustainable low emission economy. Each city would require its own version of a CAZ; it falls in the hands of the local council to define a CAZ that will benefit the local people. A charging CAZ discourages more polluting vehicles from entering the zone using fees. Unfortunately, this is likely to adversely impact people from lower income areas because they are more likely to own older models of vehicles with more polluting emissions, and may also be more likely to drive vehicles as part of their job. Complementary measures could help to reduce the adverse effects of a CAZ on people

with lower incomes, but the BCC has not yet managed to find a package that works.

Where would the CAZ be?

A CAZ can be small, medium or large. Two of the options considered for Bristol included a small CAZ, containing the city centre, while two others involved a medium CAZ, containing the city centre and surrounding residential areas. A large CAZ was not thought to be required.

What else are the BCC doing to reduce air pollution?

The BCC has cleaned up buses and planted 50,000 trees. They also have plans to introduce new walking and cycling routes using the Cycle Ambition Fund, to introduce a new low emission MetroBus service to encourage fewer car journeys and to increase the number of electric vehicle charging points.

For now, these are just plans; until action is taken, lives continue to be at risk.

February heatwave: freak weather or climate change?

With heatwaves in February I ask: is a winter heatwave here to stay?

Rosie Armond Fourth Year, Biochemistry

I

n the last weekend of February, the UK basked in a winter heatwave, with highs of 21.2°C in Kew Gardens, London. The sunny-spell not only broke the record for being the hottest-ever February day, but was also the first-time temperatures had exceeded 20°C in winter (December-February). As the UK lapped up the sunshine and blue skies, it resembled a scene from Summer.

Sunseekers swarmed to parks and beer gardens, BBQs lit, and ice cream sales boomed. But for many Brits, the winter warmth was accompanied with some unsettling questions: Was this ‘just’ freak weather or a consequence of climate change? And can we enjoy the sun guilt-free? The Met Office explained that the unseasonable heat was caused by several factors. Firstly, a dome of high pressure over Europe gave settled conditions permitting more sunshine to reach the ground. This high-pressure system also lured winds from the south and south east of the country, bringing

“The sunny-spell not only broke the record for being the hottest-ever February day, but was also the firsttime temperatures had exceeded 20°C in winter”

warm air from North Africa over parts of Wales with a greater “land track”.

The further air travels over land the more moisture it loses and the faster it heats up. This in combination with low rainfall, permitted temperatures to climb, as dry soil absorbs and retains less heat than wet soil. Additionally, some areas experienced boosted temperatures due to the “Foehn effect”, a local phenomenon whereby air warms as it flows down the lee-side of a mountain.

However, Green Party MP Caroline Lucas aired her concerns over the high temperatures, “I like spending an afternoon in the sunshine as much as anyone, but it’s impossible to shake the feeling that this isn’t right” and made connections with “climate breakdown”.

One-off weather events cannot be definitively linked to climate change, as weather only describes short-term variations in atmospheric conditions.

Nevertheless, climate models used in the government funded report “UK Climate Projections 2009”, did predict that global warming would bring “changes in weather patterns and increased frequency and intensity of extreme weather”. Talking of extremes, last year’s UK Summer heatwave was made 30 times more likely by rising levels of greenhouse gases heating our atmosphere, according

to a Met Office analysis. The beginning of 2019 has already seen some weird weather that seems to fit this prognosis.

February’s balmy temperatures were a stark contrast to last year’s “Beast from the East” that brought heavy snow and sub-zero temperatures, not to mention other freak weather stories from around the globe from polar vortexes in the US to record-breaking heat in Australia.

Average global temperatures are now 1°C warmer than pre-industrial levels with considerably greater warming in the Arctic due to polar amplification.

There is growing evidence linking Arctic sea ice retreat to increasingly erratic weather systems in the northern hemisphere. In October 2018, a report by the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) advised that “unprecedented” changes are needed in the next 12 years in order to limit global warming to 1.5C. The world’s leading climate scientists have warned that breaching this boundary would be detrimental for many ecosystems with dieback of coral reefs, sea-level rises and extreme weather in many regions.

While picnic-weather in February might sound quite appealing, the unseasonably warm temperatures may have had a detrimental impact on British wildlife fooled into thinking spring had

come and may now be left vulnerable to frosts if temperatures dramatically drop. Moreover, the February heatwaves’ relation to global weather patterns is a greater cause for alarm. Climate change won’t affect the UK as severely as other countries, where more vulnerable people will be hit hardest by the impact of extreme weather such as droughts, fires, floods and crop failures, not to forget the threat to an innumerable amount of other species and habitats.

It’s obvious that international cooperation on global warming is vital, but that does not mean that action cannot be taken on an individual level.

The WWF suggests changes such as consuming less meat, using renewable energy and public transport as well as voting for candidates with more environmentally friendly policies, can make big difference. The general public can also unite and put more pressure on politicians, as seen in the ‘Climate Strike’ on the 15th February when thousands of students took to the streets demanding environmental reform. Unfortunately, this fell on deaf ears in the House of Commons, as during the week of the February heatwave, the first climate change debate in two years was attended by only a small handful of Conservative MPs.

epigram

Science and Tech Environment Special 15

04.03.2019

Palm oil: economically attractive, but at what ecological cost?

Deforestation and habitat destruction are huge reasons to boycott palm oil, but it may not be worth it...

Sophie McDonald Fourth Year Biology

I

Why is palm oil is considered a ‘miracle crop’?

Palm oil is a remarkably efficient crop. In comparison with other vegetable oils, it gives high yields over small land areas (up to nine times more oil per hectare than its closest alternatives). This is due to its unique plant physiology that results in high productivity and efficient carbon assimilation, allowing it to be an inexpensive crop that attracts businesses worldwide. Farming palm oil also requires less fertilisers and pesticides than alternative vegetable oils.

As an asset, palm oil has also demonstrated resilient economic performance over the last

How does palm oil harm the planet?

Deforestation is arguably the main source of discourse surrounding palm oil production.

It is the reason why charismatic animals such as orangutans have become mascots of palm oil boycotting, as deforestation often results in the destruction of these animals’ valuable tropical habitats. In addition to this, deforestation contributes considerably to one of the greatest threats to our planet, global warming.

The vast quantities of carbon contained within plant life are released en masse when trees are felled, either through the process of rotting or burning. Compounding this problem further, deforestation also eliminates a portion of our global carbon sinks (i.e. the CO2 that we release into the atmosphere has even less of a chance of being captured by plants). If you factor in the greenhouse gas emissions associated with the desiccation of peat soils, and fossil fuel consumption used in plantation cropping, processing, and transport, the scope of palm oil’s contribution to global warming becomes dizzying.

Clearing remarkably diverse habitats to generate monoculture plantations (supporting only one type of crop) also inherently causes biodiversity to plummet, and further drives the extinction of vulnerable tropical species.

The ecological cost of palm oil production is calculated from the extent to which its expansion drives deforestation, and the degree of biodiversity it is able to support. Only by closely managing palm oil production is it possible to avoid inflicting further damage on our tropical forests.

Should you boycott all palm oil products?

Boycotts are often admirable and allow

Flickr / Michael Gwyther-Jones

can practically guarantee that you have palm oil in your home. In your kitchen, in your bedroom, in your bathroom, it is everywhere. This is thanks to its extreme versatility, and its ability to be processed into hundreds of forms and derivatives. It is this quality in particular that makes it so challenging to avoid, even if you’re taking the time to look at the ingredients list.

Palm oil is cultivated in tropical, highrainfall, low-lying zones in the most biologically diverse terrestrial ecosystems on the planet, predominantly Malaysia and Indonesia. This means that there is a strong overlap between regions of the world suitable for palm oil growth and areas of extraordinary biodiversity, which fuels much of the debate surrounding this ‘miracle crop’.

Palm oil is the most highly produced and traded vegetable oil, and its demand continues to grow.

century. It has helped to alleviate poverty and uplift the quality of life of people in developing tropical countries, particularly landless farmers in Malaysia. In 2016 alone, the palm oil sector contributed towards 6.1 per cent of Malaysia’s total GDP.

“In 2016 alone, the palm oil sector contributed towards 6.1% of Malaysia’s total GDP.”Flickr /

the consumers to actively demonstrate their beliefs by refusing to financially support poor practices. But is this the best solution when it comes to palm oil? As it turns out, not really.

The modern world demands vegetable oils. Ceasing to use palm oil would only cause a shift to other less efficient forms of vegetable oil, requiring up to nine times more land for growth. Although the damage may be less concentrated around Indonesian and Malaysian tropical forests, the same environmental issues associated with palm oil production would arise elsewhere, and perhaps on an even greater scale.

So, what is the answer? Support the production of certifiably sustainable palm oil, which has been farmed in responsibly managed plantations with full traceability.

In your day-to-day life this can be done

by purchasing from companies whose products are certified by the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO). The RSPO ensures that biologically valuable habitats are protected and that farming communities continue to thrive.

This may seem daunting (especially on a student budget). But, as with all sustainable lifestyle changes, what is important is beginning to shift your behaviour and doing whatever is within your means. To help you out there is an RSPO app to be used on the go, and if you want to see which brands uphold the leading sustainability standards, take a look at the WWF scorecard. It is no easy feat picking apart the greasy mix of facts and opinions about palm oil, but it seems that the best habit that you can incorporate into your lifestyle is not a boycott after all, but rather a shift to sustainably sourced products.

What’s new in science? Virtual reality and environmental Master’s!

Carissa Wong explores a new collaborative virtual reality project.

Flickr / United Nations Photo Flickr / Johan Larsson

A collaboration between the University of Bristol, the University of Bath, UWE and Watershed has enabled three exciting new virtual reality (VR) projects to be commissioned for release this summer. Chosen from more than 150 applicants, the most innovative and original projects form part of the EPSRC (Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council) Virtual Realities-Immersive Documentary Encounters project. The principal investigator of the project, Dr Kirsten Carter from the University of Bristol, said that “Virtual Reality nonfiction is an emergent and rapidly evolving new medium for filmmaking”, through which we can “explore VR’s potential impact and raise important ethical considerations.”

The first project, Transplant, is produced by Oscar Raby and Katy Morrison is set in Chile under the dictatorship of General Pinochet, and has already received warm responses at film festivals such as Sundance. It explores the relationship between our mind and body, asking how we repair a damaged body or society. The other two projects will be produced by artists new to VR. Love and Seawater, to be co-produced by Lisa Harewood and Ewan Cass-Kavanagh, explores the lasting impacts of separation of parents and children during the Caribbean economic migration. The third project, The Waiting Room, follows a woman on her journey dealing with breast cancer. Produced by Victoria Mapplebeck, a documentary-making pioneer, the project explores human reaction to chronic illness.

Researchers will investigate the ethical implications of VR, how the feeling of being there affects the audience’s response to content compared to traditional formats, and business models that can support VR production.

Esme Hedley reports on a new Master’s programme available in Global Environmental Challanges.

The University of Bristol’s Cabot Institute for the Environment is now welcoming applications for a new Master’s programme, designed to tackle the key environmental challenges of our time.

The Master’s by Research in Global Environmental Challenges combines a 12-month long research project with opportunities in leadership, enterprise and innovation to give graduates the skills necessary for a successful career in research or the environment and sustainability sectors.

There are over 40 advertised projects available to apply to, or students can propose their own. Professor Jemma Wadham, Director of the Cabot Institute, says the course encourages “diversity of thought in the way that we approach environmental challenges” and that it hopes to “bring together talented students across all disciplines” to approach some of the largest environmental issues of today.

With the damning IPCC report on the effects of climate change having been published only a few months ago, this new course couldn’t be more relevant. Using interdisciplinary research, the course is designed to prepare graduates with an innovative approach to solving problems and a drive to push policy makers to achieve the 1.5 degree limit on global warming set out by the report. We have 12 years to make “urgent and unprecedented changes” to the way we live in order to reach the target, and the widening gap between science and politics makes food scarcity, rising sea levels and extreme weather events seem even more inevitable. This course is one of many steps in the right direction to equipping passionate graduates with the correct tools to try and tackle this climate crisis.

Postgraduate open afternoons Explore postgraduate opportunities, meet current students and academics, and ask questions about postgrad life at Bristol and our alumni discount.

April – May 2019

Book your place today: bristol.ac.uk/postgrad-visit

MASTER your potential

Wellbeing Living Food Style Travel Issue 10 / 18th March 2019

Living //

Boundaries?

What Boundaries?

What it’s like living in an all-girls house

Wellbeing //

What is it like medicating for mental illness?

Food //

My flat went veggie for a week

Style // In conversation with a Bristol-based eco footwear designer

epigram / The Croft 18.03.2019

Editor Jasmine Burke

Deputy-Editor Luke Unger

@EpigramWB

Online Editor Marina Afzal-Khan Epigram Wellbeing

@epigramwellbeing

What is medicating mental health really like?

Grace Williams and Leah Martindale discuss their own experiences with anti-anxiety and antidepression medication Anti-anxiety meds It is important to remember that this type of medication only treats the

It was only when I had such severe physical anxiety symptoms that I nearly called an ambulance for myself that I realized I should probably go to the doctors about it. I genuinely thought I had a heart problem because of the intensity of chest pain I was feeling. I even had numbness in my arms and hands, as well as heart palpitations. If you google these symptoms – which, by the way, is a big mistake - these are all symptoms of an actual heart attack.

So, I went to the doctor, fully expecting to be told I was dying, and he promptly explained that I was a healthy 20-year-old and did not have a heart problem. He then went on to ask if I was feeling any stress or anxiety, to which my response was to break down in tears. After talking things through and recommending counselling, he then prescribed me propranolol: a beta-blocker that treats the physical symptoms of anxiety.

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This type of medication only treats the physical symptoms of anxiety, not the mental aspects of anxiety

I stopped taking the medication after summer exams because I noticed that I was starting to feel a bit flat. I went to the doctor who told me it was because I barely had any physical anxiety symptoms anymore so the medication was not really needed.

The good thing about propranolol is that it is very fast acting and shortlived so you can take it as a one off (it is a really common medication that people take for public speaking). It is also not addictive so I was never worried about becoming reliant on it. This meant I stopped taking it with the security blanket of knowing I could take it if I suddenly started feeling anxious again. Fortunately, I have never felt the need to take it since, and I feel empowered knowing that I have improved to a point in my life where I don’t need the medication.

Unsplash / @brett_jordan

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I went home feeling deflated and scared. The doctor had mentioned side effects such as dizziness and fainting, so of course my anxious brain focused on all the possible things that could go wrong. I also felt like a failure because even in the depths of anxiety, I always told myself I was not going to take medication because I felt like I needed to recover without taking the ‘easy route’. Looking back I realize this was just another symptom of anxiety and perfectionism. I reluctantly took the first dose and waited to feel an extreme change in my body or mind.

However, after a few days of taking it, I was surprised to realize that the only big difference I noticed was my chest pain had totally stopped and I could walk up St Michael’s Hill without getting too out of breath (bonus!).

physical symptoms of anxiety, not the mental aspects of anxiety. I was also getting counselling at the same time that I started this medication.

I found that because I was less worried about the physical symptoms, I was able to focus on what was really causing my anxiety and it really helped me to feel more in control. I also found that the propranolol helped my panic attacks hugely because they usually started with chest pain caused by stress and escalated into irrational thoughts about dying.

However, it was the counselling, mindfulness and exercise that helped me move from a world of tension and anxiety to a much happier place.

Epigram / Grace Williams

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here is a lot of stigma around mental illnesses in general, but especially in taking medication for a mental illness.

However, I am not ashamed to say I did need it and it seriously helped me to get a grip on my mental health. First and foremost, I recommend counselling, but if you are struggling with physical symptoms of anxiety (chest pain / nausea / headaches / the shits / the list goes on…) please do go to the doctors and consider if medication may kick-start your road to recovery.

Grace Williams Third Year, Psychology

Unsplash / @amandagraphic

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Antidepressants

he first time I took citalopram I went to the Bristol Museum and Art Gallery. I stood in the first floor stairwell, overlooking the old fashioned rotator plane hanging over the atrium and wondered how it would feel to fall over the edge. I wondered if that was my brain, or the tablet, or a strange psychosomatic anti-placebo effect that made my intrusive thought one-up itself once it realised it had been rumbled. After trying three ineffective antidepressants I finally thought I had settled on citalopram. With minimal side-effects and a finally stabilised mental chemistry, it was like a miracle cure. Until it was not. After a few weeks of downward spiralling I was prescribed an added 15mg of mirtazapine a night, alongside my lunchtime citalopram.

E[igram / Leah Martindale

Juiced up on a new concoction, I am drowsy, hungry, and nauseous most of the day, without even the joy of some fun new brain beans yet.

Antidepressants take their time to work, and sometimes they stop working. Sometimes your brain realises and gives up, sometimes you forget to take a few and the withdrawals take over, sometimes it is just wrong.The most common preconceptions I have heard regarding antidepressants are that they are too hard or they are too easy: both wrong.

People say they will turn you into a zombie, drooling with neon smiley faces flying across your vision, drowning in side-effects and a false-you.

That, or that it is the easy way out, the road most-travelled that you take to a quick fix, without any of the hard work.

There is a strange idea in mental health that it is more noble to suffer. It is not. There is no nobility in suffering, especially not in silence. Sometimes that may seem like the only possible road, and sometimes all the things people say about all the things they do not know might just sound like the truth, but the myth that it is better to struggle than to show the cracks that let the light in is one of the most reprehensible in circulation. wBeing depressed is a painful irony. Everything manages to get bigger and more empty in a deafening symphony that is entirely soundless. The light is too bright and the dark is cold and lonely. Your bed is the softest and safest place on Earth, but the second you try to leave it becomes a straightjacket, siphoning off your air and fatiguing your muscles so you could not

leave if you tried.

Taking anti-depressants is a curious phenomenon. It is like being hand washed and slowly noticing the colour of all the world around you seeping back into yourself. On occasion, you may wake up back in a black and white world. You may need another wash, with more detergent, to sap some colour back.It can be hard for friends to see beneath the veil.

The big reveal that I have been medicated for longer than I have known many of my friends can be a confusing spanner in the works for them. It can feel like a deception or a tragedy - a death of the friend you thought you had in the person that you realised they are. It can be confusing or upsetting sometimes when the veil is dropped and the person I am trying so so hard to help slips out.

As Lemony Snicket said: ‘The sad truth is the truth is sad.’ Lemony Snicket is one of the curious creatures that come about when people allow children to be treated like real people. Snicket’s writings are the most accurate on sadness because he writes with the ardent hope that his audience might still be innocent to the tragedies he talks about. They might get to read them with the simple joy of a book and not an awful recognition, like catching yourself in the mirror after a night out.

The sad truth is, the truth is sad. The saddest thing you can do is be sad about it. The truth is, I am depressed, often times very, sometimes not at all. Every day I take little white pills that make colours prettier and conversations easier and laughter realer, and whether I grew the happiness myself or took it from a packet, it makes it happen. The saddest thing you can do is be sad that I am happy. Sometimes the pills do not work. Sometimes I take new pills and I am angry for a few weeks while my body forgets how it was happy before and learns how to be happy now. Sometimes I forget to take them, and the sky gets greyer and the days get longer and shorter in one blink. Sometimes I do not need the tablets at all, but I take them for consistency’s sake.

The sad truth is, the truth is sad. The saddest thing you can do is be sad about it. Let us all smile, even if we are faking it, because eventually we will make it.

Leah Martindale Third Year, Film and Television

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My experience with PTSD

An anonymous student discusses their experience with discovering that they had Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

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I dealt with my accident by not talking about it because, if I didn’t talk about it, it was as though it didn’t happen. I was back riding a week after and tried to continue with teenage life as normal.

The only difficulty with this was that I continued to experience significant problems with my knee. Riding and other sports, which I enjoyed - and still do really enjoy - were extremely painful. This in itself was very upsetting and frustrating.

A few years later, I had a major operation on my knee with a one year recovery period. My ongoing attempts to avoid talking about the accident became much more challenging after the operation because I had to wear a very large leg brace twenty four hours a day for 6 months. People would ask how I was and how my knee was. I hated it. I couldn’t talk about it and attempts to do so would take me to a very challenging mental place.

When I came to university, I wanted to sweep the memories of my accident and operation to the side, and to start afresh. The new people I was meeting did not know about the accident, so I knew that they were unlikely to ask about anything related to it. Thus, I successfully avoided topics related to the accident throughout my first year of university.

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Shortly after this challenging period, I came across the article. I had never really taken the time to acknowledge or to think about my feelings towards what I had been through. After going through something traumatic, you go into survival mode; I had been so focused on getting on and continuing with life as normal. However, a few parts of the article resonated strongly with me.

A few months later, I went to the doctor who thought that cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) would really help me. I am now better thanks to my wonderful therapist. While the process was challenging, the outcome has been so rewarding. After years of avoiding discussing my accident as I was not able to discuss it without draining reactions and, at times, panic attacks, therapy allowed my mind to process what happened the day

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Seeking professional help and talking about my trauma has helped immensely. There are effective techniques for PTSD. While my accident remains a very significant event to me, and it probably always will, it is a daily joy that it now feels in the past and that I can truly move on positively.

Anonymous

Loneliness at university

ne of the most common feelings experienced by students is loneliness. A very different set up to high school, university life leaves you not only with far more free time, but far more pressure to socialise. Depending on your course, you could only have ten hours of contact time a week, which leaves you with countless hours left to fill. And while a fair few of these could consist of Netflix and sleep, eventually we all need to socialise. While for some this may seem uber-easy, for others this is really not the case. And both are completely okay. That’s why, with this article, I hope to address the different types of loneliness felt by all kinds of student, as it is important to know that this feeling is universal.

Having a busy life at university leaves you just as prone to feeling lonely as those without a full schedule and it’s important to acknowledge this

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Epigram / Luke Unger

If you’re like me, you love being busy. Constantly on the go, I’m always off to a rehearsal, a shift at work or a seminar. Despite running around like a lunatic, however, I am prone to experiencing loneliness and again, there are lots of different categories that affect this. It could be that with my busy schedule, I haven’t been able to connect with my family and friends at home and that can leave me feeling lonely and detached from home. It could be that, on a particular day, the same situation happens with friends here in Bristol and they’ve all either gone home or met up without me. Having a busy life at university leaves you just as prone to feeling lonely as those without a full schedule and it’s important to acknowledge this.

so it’s important to learn about this feeling as soon as possible so you know how to cope with it. It is very tempting to battle feelings of loneliness by cramming yourself with societies and meet-ups. This is fun and it’s part of university, but it’s important to know where your limit is, or else you could end up overloading yourself to the point where you don’t have time for yourself.

This brings me to the opposite end of the spectrum. For those students who maybe don’t feel like participating in societies, it is very easy to get ‘cabin-fever’ from sitting in your accommodation all day. Now, my advice for you isn’t going to be to dive into hundreds of clubs all at once as this is most certainly daunting for anyone. What I am going to suggest, however, is that you try just one. If you are a musician for example, there are so many different ensembles worth exploring, some of which do not require an audition, which I know held back so many people from joining the music society this year. If you are into sports, while the university teams have been decided, once again, there are much more relaxed teams that you could definitely use to meet new people. Of course, there are always course societies which I highly recommend everyone joins.

Being a member of my course society has allowed me to strengthen the relationships I have with my course mates and, often, they are more than enough to combat my loneliness.

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I had previously understood PTSD to be a condition which affected people after being in a war. However, this article enlightened me to the fact that PTSD can affect anyone

of my accident. Now, when I choose to discuss the accident or anything related, I no longer have the intense emotional reaction or the feeling of panic in my chest.

Epigram / Luke Unger

I had previously understood PTSD to be a condition which affected people after being in a war. However, this article enlightened me to the fact that PTSD can affect anyone who has experienced or witnessed something traumatic. The article explains that ‘common feelings associated with PTSD include anger at what has happened, guilt, isolation, a lack of confidence, fear and anxiety as well as being unable to relate to others or connect with them emotionally’. A few of these resonated strongly with me.

It became very distressing to think or to try and talk about it. If I did, I would have panic attacks and became emotionally drained.

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I only began to think that I may have PTSD about a year ago when I was in my second year at university. I was scrolling through Facebook one evening and came across an article which a friend had shared, titled: ‘Can riders suffer from PTSD?’. Intrigued, I read the article.

by then, years ago. After not talking about anything associated with the accident for years, it became very distressing to think or to try and talk about it. If I did, I would have panic attacks and became emotionally drained. It was very frustrating.

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had a very serious riding accident when I was a teenager; the accident gave me post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

The stigma about university is of wild freshers and constant activity balanced with a healthy amount of school work. This is not the case

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The stigma about university is of wild freshers and constant activity balanced with a healthy amount of school work. This is not the case.

There are going to be days when there is nothing to do, and it is these days that bring out feelings of loneliness in every type of student, so it is important to recognise this in order to individually learn how to deal with it. My advice is to include the right amount of socialising in your day that suits you. Do not overload yourself with societies and parties; allow time for yourself. Message one person every day and invite them out for coffee and I promise things will spiral out from there. Loneliness is not a feeling that is often talked about and, so, with this article, I hope I have kick-started a conversation into this very real feeling and encouraged others to tackle it.

However, in second year, I began to think about potential careers for after university. I attended a number of different talks and meetings.

In all of these sports and extra-curricular achievements were topics raised. Due to ongoing knee issues and the operation with its one year recovery period, my ability to ride, both for fun and competitively had been significantly hindered. This became an extremely raw nerve and entwined with my PTSD from the accident, though the accident was,

Of course, I won’t be able to give you the ‘magic formula’ that will stop you feeling lonely because everyone does. But hopefully these few tips will help someone combat their loneliness even a little bit. Someone is always around you, even if you don’t notice it.

If I’ve needed to go to a rehearsal in the evening, or work has kept me late, then I experience the common university phenomenon: FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out). FOMO is a really difficult feeling to balance at university

Caitlin McHale First Year, English Literature

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The importance of green spaces in Bristol

Wellbeing Deputy Editor, Luke Unger, discusses the importance of green spaces in Bristol and how they can benefit our mental health

Epigram / Emily Batchford

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ith sunny spells plunging Bristol into a fifteen degree heatwave, we at Wellbeing have compiled a list of the best natural spaces around Bristol that you can use to de-stress and collect your thoughts. Student life, for the most part, is an urban one. Both student buildings and houses often feel sterile and dispiriting. While we may try to infuse our lives with motes of nature, sometimes that spider plant in the corner of your room just isn’t going to cut it. Therefore, getting into nature regularly is imperative for one’s mental health, providing clean air, exercise and the ability to take ourselves out of our own stressed heads.

The Downs

Epigram / Amy Dutton

Hidden away in the heart of Leigh Woods, this spot is a natural haven that can be enjoyed all year round. While it may be a bit of an adventure to find, once there, the peace afforded by the insulating trees is well worth the journey.

Ashton Court Fancy making your relaxing experience in nature a day out? Head up to Ashton Court, either by bike or bus, and enjoy the rolling green grounds of the estate. With 850 acres of woodland and grassland, space will not be an issue. Within the grounds, deer roam free, so grab an ice cream, forget your deadlines and venture into the Disney landscape.

Goats in the Gulley Goats. In a Gulley. What’s not to love??? Although these goats aren’t the most social, sitting down on a log and watching their peaceful existence as they munch on grass can remind us that life doesn’t have to be as stressful as we make it.

Epigram /Luke Unger

Epigram /Sophie Engineer

Epigram / Amy Dutton

Who doesn’t like wandering through a forest, away from the noise of the city, accompanied by the smell of pine and sound of birds. Even

Located in Stoke Bishop, just a short walk from the Downs, this hidden gem contains a variety of beautiful plant species. Wandering round this botanical Eden, this luscious garden transports you away from the hubbub of the city into a landscape of flora.

Iconic for a reason, the Downs has offered a space for students and Bristolians alike to relax on the expansive fields that separate the city and Stoke Bishop. Whether this is relaxing in the sun with an ice cream or smoking barbecue, the memories that the Downs create are timeless.

Furthermore, with its wide spaces perfect for a game of football or a newyears-resolution-run, the Downs facilitates that important connection between nature and exercise.

Abbot Pool

Leigh Woods

Botanical Gardens

Epigram /Sophie Engineer

With the human eyes most sensitive to both green and blue light, natural spaces play a key part in de-stressing a restless mind; whether it’s finding the perfect spot by the river, or wandering through a quiet forest, we’ve got you covered.

better, this forest is right next to Bristol and is very easy to get to. Swap the sterile lights of the ASS library for the soft, speckled light which plays on the trunks of these trees.

Living in Bristol we are spoilt with green spaces that surround us; spaces which can help bring us out of a rut of bad mental health, stress and low mood. If you know your friend might be at a low point, you could do worse to take them to one of these places. It’s hard to have the blues when surrounded by so much green.

Luke Unger Deputy Wellbeing Editor

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Editor Hope Riley

Deputy Editor Imogen Rogers

Online Editor Josie Roberts

Epigram Living Writers 2018-19

Eight women of Bristol worth celebrating

The theme for this year’s International Women’s Day is ‘Think Equal, Build Smart, Innovate for Change,’ and in light of this, Living Editor Hope Riley invites you to remember and celebrate these eight women who lived and worked in Bristol, and their diverse yet remarkable contributions to our city Carmen Beckford (1928-2016) A Filton resident and one of the seven founders of St. Paul’s Carnival in 1967, who worked tirelessly to improve race relations and help disadvantaged communities in Bristol. In recognition of her efforts, she was also the first black recipient in the South West of an MBE, awarded to her by the queen in 1982.

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I never paid too much attention to what other people thought was right or wrong, or whether people thought I should be doing this or that (Carmen Beckford)

Elizabeth Blackwell (1821-1910)

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Bristol-born Elizabeth Blackwell was a physician notable for being the first woman to receive a medical degree from a university in the United States. Throughout her career, she advocated the importance of educating girls and acted as a pioneer for women in medicine. In 1949, the Elizabeth Blackwell award was established to recognise the achievements of women in the medical field.

It makes one wonder when the movement will begin to treat its women as adults (Jessie Stephen)

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When you come up against challenges and adversity, don’t run away; stay and fight if you want to change things (Princess Campbell)

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Nobel Prize-winning chemist known for the development of protein crystallography, as well as the confirmation of the structure of penicillin, who also served as Chancellor of the University of Bristol from 1971-1988. The university-owned Dorothy Hodgkin Building sits adjacent to the Bristol Royal Infirmary and is the home of research that provides radical approaches to the treatment of stress-related disorders, hormonal and psychiatric disease and Alzheimer’s Disease.

Jessie Stephen (1893-1979)

What is marriage but prostitution to one man instead of many? (Angela Carter)

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Jessie Stephen moved from her birthplace of Glasgow to Bedminster, Bristol, after World War II, where she lived until her death in 1979. She was a prominent socialist, trade unionist and suffragette, who worked and campaigned successfully for better conditions for workers (especially women).

Flikr/ John Keogh

Flikr/ Patrick Vickers

The first black ward sister in Bristol. Princess Campbell moved to Bristol from Jamaica in 1962, and worked throughout her lifetime to challenge racial inequalities and represent the voices of those most vulnerable. One of her many notable achievements was setting up the United Housing Association in order to extend access to affordable housing in Bristol.

Author and journalist best-known for The Bloody Chamber (1979), her highly potent collection of neo-Gothic ‘adult fairytales.’ Carter’s subversive work was celebrated in 2017 at the Strange Worlds exhibition at the Royal West of England Academy, and her books, in which a reconstructed feminist model of the fairytale heroine is often at the core, continue to be widely read, studied and enjoyed.

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Princess Campbell (1939-2015)

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Dorothy Hodgkin (1910-1994)

Norah Cooke-Hurle (1871-1960)

An advocate for children with disabilities and learning difficulties who campaigned for inclusive access to proper schools and housing. She also served as Chair on the Statutory Mental Deficiency Committee, and was an active member of the Somerset Association for Mental Welfare.

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Angela Carter (1940-1992)

What you achieve is very much according to your expectations (Diana Wynne Jones)

Diana Wynne Jones (1934-2011)

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The postmodernist fantasy fiction writer is best-known for penning Howl’s Moving Castle (1986), which has since been adapted into a hugely popular Japanese animated film released in 2004. In 2005, following the film’s release, Wynne Jones won the Phoenix Award from the Children’s Literature Association, an award that annually recognises a book published twenty years earlier that was worthy of but did not at that time win - a major literary award.

Hope Riley Living Editor

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Imogen Rogers challenges herself to six things before graduation!

Complete the Ten before Ten The Cori Tap is a must-visit for every Bristol student, and as many know the 10 before 10 challenge involves drinking 10 halfpints of Exhibition cider before 10pm. What I would do to complete this challenge and get the “I’ve been Corried” badge, but alas I know (as do my housemates – sorry girls) what I’m like after only a few drinks, let alone ten, so this may have to stay a pipe dream for me.!

Run in Leigh Woods

Living in an all-girls’ house

Daisy Farrow shares a list of things you are sure to recognise if you live in an all-girls’ house... see if you can relate!

1. Makeup and clothing is shared

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illiam Shakespeare said ‘what’s mine is yours,’ and that is certainly true when it comes to your clothing and makeup when you’re living in an all-girls house. Your new Misguided top?

Mine. Your James Charles Morphe palette?

Also mine. Both a blessing and a curse: it’s like having a huge wardrobe with more cute crop tops and trendy trainers than you could ever imagine, but it’s also very common to find items of your wardrobe missing- only to discover them on the floor of your flatmate’s bedroom after their date last night.

each other’s underwear to a cheeky slap on the bum, you really don’t have any limits with each other when it comes to living in a house with all girls.

Epigram / Daisy Farrow

Bristol bucket list

2. Showers take an average of 40 minutes

One of my resolutions this year was to run a 10K, but for this to become a reality I really need to stop running on dreadfully boring treadmills and get out into the open air. Now that the weather is picking up I may finally have my chance, and it will give me a chance to finally put a photo of the suspension bridge on my Instagram!

Wash. Rinse. Exfoliate. Moisturise. Condition. Shave (everywhere).

Pluck. Trim. Showers in a house with all girls will take a minimum of 40 minutes, which only feels longer when you have just ONE shower in your house. You have to practically schedule them in, letting everyone else at home know by sending a ‘getting in the shower now… full body one so gonna be a while’ text in the group chat. Don’t even get me started on the drains situation… Hair = everywhere.

Epigram / Imogen Rogers

3. Tinder? You betcha Not to exaggerate, but sometimes it feels like your house has a revolving door of Tinder guys. Someone is always getting ready for a date; asking someone to borrow a lippie or quickly adding a last-minute spritz of perfume. That or they are just coming back from a date; sending that text into the group chat to let you know that they’re not coming home alone. Your flatmates become pros at helping you craft the perfect flirty message, or take the best pic for your tinder profile. Nothing says ‘friendship’ like your flatmates helping you out with a last minute legshave ready for your date.

6. Your house will be crazy tidy You’ll have throws hanging over the sofas, a vase of flowers on your dining table, bunting hanging from every possible nook and cranny. (Let’s not forget the fairy lights.) When people come over to visit, you’ll always hear the ‘wow this place looks amazing’ or ‘I love the smell of that candle’. Your living room will look like a Cath Kidston showroom, and you won’t find a speck of dust anywhere.

7. BUT there will be hair everywhere Seriously. Everywhere. You have to vacuum every day to get rid of it.

8. Cosy nights are every night

Go on a Banksy graffiti tour Dressing gowns? Check. Chocolate? Check. Latest reality TV show (for my house it’s currently Celebs Go Dating, but we can’t wait for Love Island to come back)? Check. As soon as eight o’clock hits, you all gather in the living room to settle down for a few hours with a glass of cheap wine and watch some TV. There is nothing better than relaxing with your flatmates and having a cosy night in after a long day of avoiding writing your essay...

Whenever I am talking about Bristol to friends back home, I am almost guaranteed to drop Banksy’s name in the mix (not that my Dad knows who he is) yet I’ve not actually seen that many of his works. You can download the Banksy Bristol Trail App on Apple and Android, and because I am now trying to save every penny to fund my impending Masters degree this is a great way to enjoy Bristol without spending anything.

9. You will become family

Visit Blaise Castle

Epigram / Daisy Farrow

As a History student and National Trust employee I am a shameless lover of heritage sites, and so both Blaise Castle and the Red Lodge Museum are on my bucket list. I accidentally arrived at Blaise Castle when I got on the wrong bus after donating blood in Southmead, but that experience lasted no longer than 30 seconds so I would love to go back and properly explore.

Spend a day in Clifton Village

Win a pub quiz Ever since first-year my group of friends and I have tried countless pub quizzes in and out of the university, but sadly have never even come close to winning. This year we’ve been attending the Green Man pub quiz in High Kingsdown, and one week we did so badly (21/80) that we received a pitiful and lengthy round of applause which masked quite a lot of laughter. Nevertheless I am not giving up hope. I have a few remaining months to brush up on my knowledge and win, although this could be to the detriment of my degree…

Imogen Rogers Deputy Living Editor

4. Arguments WILL happen, and they’ll be passive aggressive It’s been three weeks since one of your flatmates has returned your new skirt. Perhaps someone lost your favourite lipstick the last time they went out. Or maybe one of them even dared to drink the bottle of rosé you had sitting on your fridge shelf. Whatever the cause, there is always going to be an argument which will result in snide remarks and secret bitching, but never a heated confrontation. You wouldn’t dare actually talk to them about it, would you? No. You just hold in your anger, and let it boil until one day you make a not-so-subtle joke about the time someone smashed your wine glasses.

5. Boundaries do not exist You become so close you no longer have any boundaries. You’ll happily brush your teeth whilst your flatmate is on the toilet, or walk around in your towel after a shower for hours on end. From borrowing

Epigram / Daisy Farrow

I am a sucker for pretty buildings, but sadly have never lived in the Clifton area during my time in Bristol, so the most I’ve done is visit the zoo. Really, all I want to do is walk around this elegant village, take some photos and get a coffee – to be honest it sounds like the perfect dissertation procrastination!

It’s cheesy, but true. Living in an all-girls’ house is an experience like no other. Despite the arguments, the casual bitching, and the crazy amount of toilet paper you go through, you love it. Your flatmates become your best friends, and are able to help you out with almost anything from borrowing a mascara to comforting you after a failed assignment. You wouldn’t change it for the world.

Daisy Farrow Second Year English

Editor Laila Freeman @lunchingwithlaila

Deputy Editor

Online Editor

Olivia Critoph

Nicole Abou-Abdallah

Epigram Food 2018-19

@epigram_food

World Water Day: Being mindful of what you eat WorldWaterDaytakesplaceontheMarch22. OliviaCritoph reportsonwhichfoodsneedthemostwatertoproduce

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a lot more water as they require to be fed by grains, which rely on irrigation to grow, increasing their water footprint. Therefore, eating fewer animal products is a great way to reduce the amount of water you consume.

he UN has a list of observance days, to note a varying number of issues, events, or to commemorate. The 22nd of March is a day in which they have declared World Water Day, a day in which we should advocate the use of sustainable management of fresh water sources. Currently billions of people are living without safe water, and the UN’s aim is for this issue to no longer affect people by 2030.

Another sad truth, which many may not be aware of, is that alcohol is incredibly water hungry. Just one glass of wine requires 47.6 gallons of water. This is a fraction of the amount in comparison to meat. However, picturing 2 baths worth of water being needed to create a medium glass of wine is quite shocking.

Epigram / Laila Freeman

Epigram / Laila Freeman

As many people know, some food production requires incredibly water intensive forms of production, and according to Livestrong, 50% of our daily water intake is taken up by diet. Therefore, if you are looking to cut down your water intake on world water day, to support the mission to make sure everyone can access safe water by 2030, here are some ideas on how you can contribute!

Unsurprisingly, meat requires the most amount of water to produce, with one beef steak requiring 675 gallons of water, which according to my calculations is about 27 bath tubs of water! For those of you who just cannot give up the meat, then the least water dependent meat is chicken, requiring 234 gallons of water for a serving.

In general, a good way to cut back on your food water footprint, is essentially to cut back on animal products. Animal products require

Those who have a sweet tooth may also be sad to hear that just one ounce of chocolate, which is about one square, needs around 198 gallons. Another shockingly large amount of water for such a small food. This may be due to its high content of milk (an animal product needing lots of water to produce) and nuts.

Another food source which requires a surprising amount of water is nuts. This is incredibly unfortunate, as many people who may choose to cut out meat due to its reliance on water, choose to get protein from nuts. However, unfortunately, nuts require mass amounts of oil, with one gallon producing just one almond. Furthermore, nuts are often grown in incredibly water scarce areas, such as California which is now in its fourth year of record breaking drought.

Of course, protein is something that our bodies require, therefore if you cannot eat meat, or any other animal products which contain protein, or nuts- what is left? Well, there have been some progressive studies done suggesting we eat insects, or algae. I do understand however that for one’s everyday life it would seem to be a bit strange if you cracked open a box of insects for lunch, and of course many will find the idea of eating insects quite repulsive.

So the most obvious suggestion when trying to eat foods which are not too much of a strain on water resources, it is best to eat plant proteins such as soy, wheat, vegetables, and potatoes.

Olivia Critoph Deputy Food Editor

N-utterly delicious: a spotlight on nut butters VirginiaCampbell writesanodetothehumblenutbutter.Fromitshealthbenefitstoitsversatility,youwouldbenuttynottoloveit Nut butters - in their most basic form, a paste made from grinding a particular nut - are all the rage right now. Whilst the humble peanut butter has lined our supermarket shelves for decades, its pistachio, almond and cashew neighbours, amongst others, have been following in hot pursuit.

But why is the world going nuts over these tasty treats? Well, not only are they delicious, they are also extremely good for you. Proper nut butters - AKA ones without any additives or preservatives - contain a whole host of essential minerals.

For a wider view, a UN report published late last year urged us as a world population to decrease our meat consumption for our own personal health and the health of the planet (rising demand for meat has been linked to increased C02 levels, which contribute to global warming). To replace some of the meat, they suggested that more beans, pulses and nuts should be eaten. Hence, this ode to the humble nut butter.

This is all very well and good, but most people think of nuts as dull and tasteless. If you are one of these people, then nut butters may

There is such a range that it is almost impossible not to find at least one that appeals to your taste buds. Peanut butter has a strong flavour and comes in crunchy and smooth forms. Almond butter is milder in flavour, and particularly great for using in cookie recipes (the good fats in it mean it can be used in replacement of conventional dairy butter).

Cashew butter is extra creamy, so great uses include bulking up creamy soups or smoothies. Pistachio and Brazil nut butters are rarer to find on supermarket shelves, but can be used to give an extra kick to a dish. There are also loads of nut-butter combinations out there, including Maple-peanut butter, and cocoa-almond butter (great as a treat on toast!).

Epigram / Virginia Campbell

If you want to improve your skin and hair, the vitamin E almonds will be your best friend. If you are feeling a bit under the weather, the selenium in Brazil nuts will give your immune system a boost.

Heart-healthy unsaturated fats in nuts will also keep you fuller for longer, whilst their high protein content will mean muscle maintenance is even easier - perfect for all you gym buffs out there!

be just the thing for you.

Unsurprisingly therefore, there is almost no limit to what you can do with nut butters. Eat it straight from the jar (I will not judge), put it on toast with jam in the true American style, or with banana for an extra-healthy alternative.

Still not a fan? Mix it into chocolate cookies for a salty-sweet taste that will leave you hankering for more. Or combine it with chilli and soy sauce to make a delicious satay sauce for tofu. It is a versatile godsend that can be enjoyed by carnivores and vegans alike.

So go out to the jams and spreads aisle; it will be cash-ew will not regret spending.

Virginia Campbell

epigram / The Croft 18/03/19

8

Seasonal Eating for Spring

Just Eat It!

Withtheonslaughtofwarmweather,andtheeveningsgetting longer,thereisnodenyingthatSpringhasofficiallysprung. JosephineMosely sharesheradviceonwhattoeatthisseason

ClaireHargreaves reviewsBristol Hub’s ‘JustEatIt’FoodWasteCafe

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ristol Hub opened its proverbial doors on Febuary 25 at the Multifaith Chaplaincy to students eagerly waiting to tuck into a freshly-cooked meal with friends.

he ubiquitous presence of every kind of ingredient under the sun in British supermarkets these days is amazing. Not so long ago our ancestors relied on the bounty of the seasons to enjoy certain specialities at the table.

But what made the event so special?

A recent study conducted by BBC Good Food, however, revealed that nowadays we have a rather skewed perception of how to eat seasonally. Whilst 86% of those surveyed agreed with the necessity of seasonality and 78% claimed to shop seasonally not even 1 in 10 Brits are thought now to know at what time of year some of the most recognized fruit and vegetables are in season.

All the food cooked that evening was so-called ‘food waste’ which Bristol Hub volunteers had collected from local shops and cafes which otherwise would have been thrown in the bin.

Cooking up soup, stew and a stir-fry, Bristol Hub aimed to hammer home their message of getting out of the student bubble and becoming involved in effecting social change in Bristol and beyond.

Epigram / Laila Freeman

Is it really such a travesty to enjoy a strawberry at the Christmas table or Brussels sprouts in the summertime? With Spring just around the corner perhaps it is the perfect time of year to consider the implications of seasonality and the impact of our own purchasing and eating habits. Springtime is, after all, synonymous with the start of something new - it never hurts to add a bit of variety and creativity into the mix.

Instagram / @beerdbristol

So what should we be looking out for as the Spring sunshine starts to thaw the darker winter days? Highlights include asparagus, purple sprouting broccoli, rocket, spring onions, celeriac, chicory, leek and watercress. In terms of fruits, there are excellent crumbles to be made from rhubarb and Bramley apples that will soon be at their ripest. And from further afield, grapefruits will be particularly good in the coming months.

Collecting 25 bags of food, of which 23 were totally viable to be eaten, a vegetarian feast was served up and fruit and veg was up for grabs to take home by students, all for a good cause: attendees were encouraged to pay by donating how much they felt the meal was worth and Bristol Hub made £170 from students’ donations which will go towards community projects in the surrounding area.

Not only was the food all made from ‘waste’, but it was equally delicious. The menu included soup, stew, stirfry and salad just to name a few. There was also a range of desserts, such as apple and pear crumble and banana bread.

An evening which was as enjoyable as it was empowering, I was very encouraged by how many students came along who clearly have the issues of sustainability and food waste on their agenda.

It was a great example of students taking part in social impact initiatives and I hope the Bristol Hub is on students’ radars as it offers regular ways to take part in volunteering and community projects.

It only takes a brief contemplation of the benefits of seasonal eating to realise just how positive it can be.

Namely, in terms of nutritional value seasonal foods carry a lot of beneficial qualities. The fresher the produce and the shorter the

Above all, this event shows that if more shops and cafes made it easier for local residents to collect food waste at the end of the day, and if legislation was put in place that enabled local businesses to sell out-of-date food at a much reduced price,

Perhaps the most compelling argument for seasonal shopping lies in the fact of supporting local producers, as, more often than not, products in season will be abundantly sourced from nearby.

This works in tandem with the reality that, in buying produce

Facebook Instagram / Bristol Hub / @crumbykitchen

Epigram / Laila Freeman

time between its source and our plates, the more nutritional value it retains. Seasonal, fresh produce is harvested when it is most ripe which can in turn add better flavour too!

sourced locally, we are not only doing our bit for the environment by avoiding the extensive food miles of goods sourced abroad but also engaging with the local community, supporting local producers.

Whilst it is true that students cannot always be too picky given the restraints of the student budget, opting for seasonal produce can be more economical than many would think. According to the simple laws of supply and demand the more something is readily available the greater likelihood that it will not do too much damage to the bank balance. Seasonal goods are cheaper and easier for farmers to produce and require less human intervention.

Bristol is really a perfect place to engage in eating seasonally, we are so lucky to have a wide range of incredible restaurants, food markets and grocers just on our doorstep! In terms of places to dine seasonally, Wilson’s, conveniently located on Chandos Road in Redland, pride themselves on preparing fresh and seasonally inspired dishes. Fishers seafood restaurant in Clifton offers an entire menu sourced seasonally, locally and ethically. Just a little farther afield, The Ethicurean, situated in Bristol’s Mendip hills, offers up a menu inspired around fresh vegetables grown on site in their kitchen gardens.

Joseph Mosely Fourth Year French and German

If you would like to get involved with food sustainability, there are many organisations that would love you to volunteer. These include: FoodCycle, Just Eat It, Bristol Junkfood Cafe, Fare Share South West, and Feedback.

Claire Hargreaves Fourth Year French and German

18/03/19 epigram / The Croft

9

Veggie Week: My Flat Went Vegetarian for the Week AnnieParker sharesherexperiencesofgoingvegetarianforaweekwiththerestofherflat

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Statistics show that animal agriculture is the leading cause of deforestation, air and water pollution and loss of biodiversity. The correlation between the consumption of animal products and many diseases such as cancer, diabetes and heart disease is also clear. So then, why are health organisations and environmental groups so reluctant to advise us against consuming animal products? And for what reason, in a society characterised by obsession with appearance and fitness, manifested in the constant emergence of new weight loss teas and slimming powders, is such a huge threat to our health overlooked?

Epigram / Laila Freeman

the Health (2017) suggest the lack of public knowledge surrounding the issues with animal agriculture is due to economic factors. They claim environmental groups such as Greenpeace are afraid that, by promoting a vegetarian and vegan diet, they will lose support and sponsorship. The government, meanwhile, are reluctant to publish statistics which prove the negative impact animal products have on our health as they wish to preserve the thriving meat and dairy industries. So, in the midst of institutional concealment and secrecy, how can we promote a healthy and sustainable diet?

ackground

Veggie week Although perhaps not the most original nor revolutionary concept, the simple idea of ‘Veggie week’ was born out of a conversation with myself and some flatmates. After discussing the large amount of meat we, as a flat of 25, consume daily, I suggested imposing a week during which participants avoided eating meat and those who did so already, attempted to be vegan.

The truth is, a meat and dairy based diet is something deeply ingrained in our culture, and for this reason it is not going to be an easy habit to shift. We are brought up to believe that the consumption of animal products is essential to our nutrition, but nutrients such as protein, iron, calcium and zinc can also be found in abundance in plant-based foods like pulses, nuts and seeds. Such plant-based diets increase life expectancy and result in minimal environmental damage.

Despite the odd angry react, my proposal on our flat group chat was met with very positive feedback and people seemed excited by the prospect of challenging themselves and being involved in something as a group. I then gave them a two week period in which they could consume any animal products they may have already bought and set out to find new vegan recipes for myself. We established a strike system which dictated that two instances of intentional misconduct would result in the participant not receiving a certificate made on word art at the end of the week… an incentive indeed!

Two popular Netflix documentaries Cowspiracy (2014) and What

Epigram / Imogen Rogers Instagram / @dailycheesedelight

After decorating the flat with garish posters and sharing the various vegetarian and vegan recipes we had found, B3’s veggie week was officially underway.

I was pleasantly surprised by the enthusiasm and commitment with which my flatmates approached the challenge, which for some people meant swapping three meat-based daily meals for ones consisting of quorn or quinoa (God forbid). I regularly received pictures of peoples’ meat-free Sainsbury’s receipts or their new recipes for risotto or stir fry and, despite the odd drunken kebab, people generally succeeded in staying faithful to the task at hand.

Award Ceremony Epigram / Laila Freeman

The week finished with a much-anticipated awards ceremony held in the glamorous backdrop of our kitchen, accompanied by Spotify’s best ‘Award Ceremony Music’. During this time, I asked people to describe their experience of vegetarianism and whether or not it was as difficult as they had anticipated.

Whilst some highlighted the indisputable superiority of the taste

of quorn nuggets, others commented more generally on the economic value of vegetarianism, saying they had saved money during the week. Many people also reflected on the ease with which they found new recipes and cut meat or animal products out of their weekly shop. Fergus, who succeeded in going meatfree for the week said: ‘I guess I’d say it was way easier than you’d expect, just not buying meat in the first place is so simple and it then forces you to think what else you could actually make, away from your standard go-to meals.’

Whilst Clara, who cut out animal products completely said: ‘A lot of the meals that I usually make, such as curry or risotto, were already vegan, and I used substitutes such as almond milk or coconut oil cheese for meals that normally include dairy. This week I have felt a lot better physically, and found that I have more energy when going about my day. I discovered a lot of new ways to use plant based protein, and will definitely use less dairy products and eggs as a result of veggie week.’

I am unsure whether B3’s veggie week will have made a significant difference to the lives of the 19 participants, nor the environment as a whole and I am certain that coconut milk and lentils will not immediately become ingrained within my diet.

However, I would encourage any fellow vegetarians to propose (or rather forcibly impose) a similar notion in their flat. The advantages may not be revolutionary but are nonetheless irrefutable.

People gained a plethora of vegetarian recipes which they can utilise in the future (we just used our group chat, I have recently encountered a website called ‘Trello’ which I would highly recommend for recipe sharing); participants gained an insight into the monetary and health benefits of vegetarianism; and it was a funfilled environmentally-friendly week which slightly contributed

Annie Parker First Year Liberal Arts

Recipe: 89 Pence Savoury Pancakes Pancakedaymightbeover,butIsabellaArmishaw’srecipeisperfectforanybreakfast,lunchordinner Not quite satisfied with the number of pancakes you consumed last week? Well, there is nothing stopping you from carrying on. These savoury pancakes make a great meal and are cheap and easy to make.

Ingredients - 50g self-raising flour 2p - 1/2 tsp baking powder 2p - 2 eggs 16p - 100ml milk 7p - A handful of Spinach 5p - 2 slices of Parma ham 50p

Heat a teaspoon of sunflower oil or small knob of butter in a large non-stick frying pan.

Mix together the self-raising flour, baking powder and a pinch of salt in a large bowl.

Drop a large tablespoonful of the batter per pancake into the pan and cook for about 3 minutes over medium heat until small bubbles appear on the surface of each pancake, then turn and cook another 2-3 minutes until golden.

Beat 1 egg with the milk, gradually add

When all 4 pancakes are cooked throw

Makes: 4 pancakes Method Serves: 1 Time: 20 minutes

the flour mix to the bowl, whisking the mixture until it is smooth.

the spinach into the pan on the one side and crack an egg onto the other side, cook on a low heat and cover the pan if you can.

Once the egg is cooked put the spinach on the pile of pancakes with the parma ham and place the egg on top.

These pancakes can also be served sweet for a tasty breakfast or healthy dessert.

Try toppings such as fresh fruit, yoghurt, maple syrup or chocolate sauce.

Isabella Armishaw Second Year Music

Editor India Harrison-Peppe

Deputy Editor Jemima Carr-Jones

Online Editor Ruby Gleeson

@epigramstyle

@e2style

epigram / The Croft 18.03.2019

Epigram Style 2018/19

Cancelled or commemorated? The controversy surrounding Karl Lagerfeld Miranda Smith dissects the problematic legacy of Karl Lagerfeld in the wake of #MeToo It has now been a month since the fashion world was devastated by the death of Karl Lagerfeld, designer for Chanel, Fendi, and his own namesake brand. Having read many articles regarding his genius and the incredible nature of his designs and his artistic flair, I think it is time to breach the barrier and bring to light some of his less than popular opinions.

Although many deem it inconsiderate to speak ill of the dead, it is important to balance out his positive attributes alongside several that have been swept under the carpet; purely because of the scope of his genius and influence on fashion.

There is no denying that his time at the helm of Chanel, all 36 years in the position, as well as his work for Fendi and the creation of his own brand all attest to his brilliance and his aptitude toward design. There was a dark side to the designer, one which needs to be mentioned to give a balanced review of his life, his work and his attitudes.

In an interview with Numero magazine, he not only talks derogatively about male models, but blatantly shows a disregard for victims of sexual assault within the industry. He is quoted defending Karl Templer, who was accused of pulling down models’ underwear without consent, stating ‘if you don’t want your pants pulled about, don’t become a model! Join a nunnery’. It is the dismissive nature of comments like this that is dangerous as he flippantly refuses to acknowledge the severity of the accusations.

The additional problem is that because of the fame surrounding Karl and his legacy, opinions such as this are ignored by many. There is a kind of ‘Oh Karl’ attitude, where his genius almost allowed him to get away with controversial statements because of the ‘bigger picture’ of success and his extensive influence on the industry.

His statements disregarding sexual harassment alienate those who can not handle that kind of behaviour, by normalizing it and making it seem as though those who spoke up about their experiences were the ones who were in the wrong.

He further appears to negate the importance of women speaking up about assault. ‘What shocks me most in all of this are the starlets who have taken 20 years to remember what happened’, as though if you recount something later in life it diminishes the significance and the problematic nature of the offence, as well as reducing the credibility of the victim. He adds, ‘not to mention the fact that there are no prosecution witnesses’ which highlights a widespread problem in the industry. This kind of incident has been covered up with people either too scared to come forward with their stories, or worried that it might act as a death sentence to their career.

With someone like Karl, who held so much sway, speaking up against him would have done just that. There is, however, a growing interest in the protection of models, with new regulations set in place by Conde Nast regarding the age of models and supervision of them during photoshoots and casting appointments. This comes after a number of photographers, including Mario Testino and Bruce Weber, were accused of sexual assault alongside Karl Templer. All three strenuously deny the allegations made against them.

In terms of what he said about the male models backstage, he suggests that they are not worthy of being assaulted, as though it is some form of compliment to have had that experience. He describes them as ‘skinny things with wonky teeth’ and adds that ‘they certainly don’t run the risk of getting harassed.’ Again we see him discrediting the severity of assault.

It has also been documented that he was disrespectful towards women of different body types, saying that ‘no one wants to see curvy women’ in fashion. It is disappointing to see someone with so much influence speaking so openly and pejoratively about women of different body types.

I think it is important to take all of this into account when celebrating the legacy of someone so prolific. I do not believe that it is in poor taste to state all the facts about someone’s life and opinions upon their death, but justifiable in order to create a balanced view of the person.

Luckily for everyone, Karl has bluntly said that he ‘cannot stand Mr Weinstein’ as if that makes it all better.

Miranda Smith, Third Year, History of Art IF YOU’RE INTERESTED IN WRITING FOR EPIGRAM STYLE OR YOU HAVE A PROJECT YOU WANT TO GET STUCK INTO . GET IN CONTACT WITH US VIA @EPIGRAMSTYLE ON INSTAGRAM OR ON OUR FACEBOOK GROUP. *WE ARE LOOKING PARTICULARLY FOR MEDIA-BASED PROJECTS, FILMMAKERS, ILLUSTRATORS AND ASPIRING STYLISTS*

Can we make WCW #EveryDay? The Style Editors discuss their iconic women in style in light of International Women’s Day

Laura Mallison, Sub-Editor

Image Credit/ Epigram, Indiia Peppe

London based model, stylist and creative Adwoa Aboah has obliterated the stigma that models are ‘just a pretty face’. Reaching beyond the catwalk, Adwoa’s frank and compassionate discussions surrounding mental health, addiction and diversity have had global success. Her podcast ‘Gurls Talk’ provides a community for fierce female chat featuring a unique range of guests and topics. Adowa’s aim? To encourage us all to talk, share and listen as we take control of our lives. I want to celebrate Adwoa’s own boldly public regain of control, reflecting on her own struggles with suicide and addiction.

She candidly admits it’s not always plain sailing, but she’s committed to increasing conversation around these illnesses and pledges to ‘give the unheard a voice whenever I can’. An icon who helps inspire girls to be anyone they want to be, Adwoa is admired on this International Woman’s Day by being recreated as a Barbie ‘Shero’ – like life-size Adwoa, she’ll be a flawlessly beautiful celebration of female power and inclusivity – adorned in the outfit Adwoa wore to collect her 2017 Model of the Year Award. Adwoa’s impact both today, and on the next generation, will help raise girls up, close the Dream Gap and encourage us to celebrate being smart, brave and beautiful.

India Harrison Peppe, Editor

Jemima Carr-Jones, Deputy Editor

Image Credit/ Instagram, @Jameela Jamil

Image Credit/ Instagram, @adwoaaboah

International Women’s day can often end up with us singling out individual women; placing them on a pedestal, enshrining their faces on Instagram stories with a glib hashtag and an emoji. We declare these women as pinnacles of feminism in the fashion industry, ‘this is the face of a stylish and savvy woman’, we roar!

So this month, in a very Cady Heron-esque, sharing out her crown kind of way, I want to celebrate all of us. Celebrate the fact that you navigate the onslaught of images of perfection we get chucked at us, that you get yourself dressed day-to-day. Be happy for the times that you wear trackies, for the times that you wear lingerie, for laughing when they someone implies that body signifies worth, or challenging someone when they say that wearing a provocative outfit means ‘you’re asking for it’.

It’s times like these where, rather than continuing to look towards people in the fashion industry, we can look back at ourselves and feel some sort of satisfaction that as the demographic to which most of this crap is geared towards, we have survived it all. Yet, however we dress or look, we are still all bloody fantastic.

Jameela Jamil, the no.1 advocate of women’s body positivity, has just won the Stylist magazine award for Woman of the Year. From a mere one instagram post that received an insane reaction from women across the platform she has started an immensely successful movement - pioneering the account i_weigh, which now has over 1.3 million followers. The movement seeks to cull body shame and negativity, the message being: You are worth so much more than the number on the scales. The important things in life cannot be quantified in KG. There have been over two thousand posts on this page, showcasing women from all over the world, exclaiming what makes them strong, drawing on their wide range attributes and experiences. Jameela, and in fact every woman featured, are inspiring and each post is a little step in the right direction for the industry.

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18.03.2019 The Croft / epigram

In conversation with Felesha Papa-Adams, founder of Bristol-based eco footwear Zoology student, Billy Stockwell, interviews Felesha Papa-Adams, founder of Collection and Co., discovering how it is possible to be both ethically mindful and stylish, and how slow fashion can suit a student budget

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espite the cliché, the phrase ‘Think Globally, Act Locally’ spearheaded the green movement back in the 60s, coined by Friends of the Earth founder, David Brower. Even though this notion has since grown from grassroots beginnings to a global concept, it is still sparsely applied beyond a canvas tote or reusable coffee cup purchase. We’re often so focused on fixing the bigger picture with even bigger solutions that we lose sight of the drastic ecological impact of buying clothes. With Bristol being the first British city to be named European Green Capital, my search for a sustainable retailer was unsurprisingly rather short-lived. Within a few days I was sat across from the infectiously ardent Felesha PapaAdams - founder of Collection & Co - with my oat latte in hand, ready to explore the emerging world of so-called ‘green consumerism’.

What is Collection & Co.?

Collection & Co. is a vegan, sustainable footwear brand. We started off designing ethical footwear aimed at teenagers, made from a leather alternative. Since then, we’ve moved onto better materials, such as recycled plastics and pineapple leaves. So, we’re not just vegan sustainability is also a core part of our brand.

What do you think is the fabric of the future?

Since 2016 we’ve used a whole range of materials - recycled plastics, pineapple leaves and even hemp - to make our products. But we’re constantly searching for new things. Currently we’re looking into mushroom leather and materials made of fruit, like orange peels, so it’s literally vegan. But you can’t eat it obviously!

For someone that is new to ethical shopping, where is the best place to start?

I think there’s so many great platforms online, but I know things can be expensive. Even I don’t solely shop at ethical stores, because things can range from £100 to £500, but I think charity shops, vintage shops and eBay are great places to start. You can find some great pieces. Equally, think about what you need before you buy.

I’m not perfect, sometimes I will go to a fast fashion brand to get the occasional item, but I never haul. I think that is a very selfish thing.

The key message is: buy what you need.

Collection & Co. is still relatively young, how are you looking to build upon the brand?

The most exciting part is looking into more sustainable materials.

This past winter we made a collection with zero-waste materials, using the off-cuts to make phone and laptop cases, with all proceeds going to charity. This summer we’re going to be recycling old fishing nets, and making them into bags. And a kids-wear brand is in the pipeline as well. We’re always growing, but we still have the same conscious mindset.

————————————————— As I finished the last few lukewarm sips of my latte, and thanked Felesha for her time, my mind began racing with yet more questions.

This topic is definitely something to be revisited. But until then, get yourself down to Broadmead and splash your loan on some pineapple sneakers

As a Bristol based company, how do

So Collection & Co. was set up you go about sourcing your materials? in 2016 - what gave you the idea to set up and environmentally conscious brand?

Most of our materials are sourced within the UK. Some fabric I was working in the London fashion industry, and quickly realised that every single product was unethical, with many being made from snake skins and other exotic animal skins. I was working for multiple brands, and I soon discovered that these products aren’t a by-product of the meat industry, but an entity in themselves. It’s a completely separate industry!

however, like the pineapple material - known as Pinatex - is made in the Philippines, but even then the supply chain is very transparent.

Currently, our shoes are ethically made in Greece in a family-run factory, and we’re in the process of exploring options to produce them even closer to home. We’re not perfect but we’re constantly evolving. Bristol is a fantastic place for us to experiment; it has a span of cultures, open-mindedness and the vegan community is growing, so we really feel at home here.

Alongside this, I was trying to find an alternative for myself. There really wasn’t much out there. So that’s when I decided to design my own footwear collection - literally only six pairs at the beginning which I later launched online with a great response from the public.

In an age of faster and faster consumerism, how do you stay optimistic?

What was the greatest hurdle you had to overcome in the early days of Collection & Co.?

How many collections do you have a year?

We’re a slow fashion brand, so we don’t create too many collections, but we always have Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter. We also have smaller collections in between, because so many regular customers, who don’t necessarily want to shop at H&M or Zara, want to continue shopping with us throughout the year. We like to keep the excitement going with the brand.

Do you think slow fashion is realistic and/or achievable for a student budget?

So achievable. This is slow fashion, so you can take your time doing it.

The key thing is to appreciate what you’re buying, take time in doing so, think about the materials and how it’s going to be made. For me, even though I run a business, this isn’t about money. It’s more about mindset than money; it’s definitely possible for students, and young designers, to become a supporter of slow fashion.

Craig Bennet, chief of Friends of the Earth, described the green movement as a ‘white, ,middle-class ghetto’, do you agree with this statement?

I don’t agree. Regardless of the background you’ve come from, everyone should be trying their best to make a difference. I’ve travelled to many places, and met so many people doing their upmost to have a positive impact. So no, I don’t agree. I think it’s partly a defence system, because when people don’t follow or agree with a movement, they want to blame a particular group. Everyone is trying to make a difference, and it’s definitely not just one group.

Image Credits / Collection&CO

The whole design process can take up to eight months. That’s just for one design alone. And it’s even longer now, because we’re still growing, and we want to make sure that each collection is better than the previous one; but you definitely get a thrill out of it. When you’ve put so much time into something, it’s great to see the finished product.

In my eyes, a lot of people are catching onto the slow fashion movement. I don’t even think it’s a fad like some people say, people do actually want to help. We are still in a world of mass production, but people are starting to recognise that you don’t have to support it if you don’t want to. I love fashion, and looking at different designs, but I don’t necessarily buy the items. When the demand drops, so will the supply.

For someone wanting to break into the arena of ethical fashion as a career, what would be your advice?

Think about it as making a difference, not a business. For a career, it can be slow and frustrating, but that is the point, it’s slow fashion.

Things take a long time to perfect but that’s the beauty of it. You need to source your materials right. You need to conduct quality control checks around the factories. It’s one hundred per cent the way forward, and it’s so rewarding. It’s quality not quantity. I get so excited when I come into work, because for me it doesn’t feel like work at all, and that’s the best feeling.

Billy Stockwell, Second Year, Zoology Student

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Deputy Editor Editor Amelia Edgell-Cole Rachel Evans

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@EpigramTravel

Online Editor Amelia Shoebridge

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Interview with ‘The Wandering Quinn’ Ellie Quinn, the blogger behind ‘The Wandering Quinn’ speaks to Rachel Evans about her travels, how she got into blogging, and some of her top tips and makes me so proud of myself for wanting to go and making it work.

Instagram/ thewanderingquinn

group travel so I don’t really have a niche. One consistent thing for me is that I like to talk about the practical side of travel and I’m very honest, so recently I’ve been making myself stand out in the sense of being the blogger who shows the true side of travel, the good, the bad, the pretty and the ugly.

I’ve been really lucky on my travels and I’ve never had any major issues but there are always times when travel feels and is hard. A low point for me is usually the travelling part, getting from place to place. Travel days are often long and sometimes they can take much longer than expected and be a hassle. Being ill is another low point; I got ill in India recently, it turns out I had a parasite!

I’m fine now, but I felt drained when I was there and part of me just wanted to go home.

Unfortunately, travelling can be hard on a student budget! Do you have any tips for saving money?

That’s something I struggled with, and still do, to be honest. I travel in different ways; my trips that are a few months long are in a ‘backpacker’ style, but when I lived in London I’d go on European city breaks with more of a budget. I love travelling solo but I also love

Travelling always creates some amazing memories.

What do you think has been the best moment of your travels?

Instagram/ thewanderingquinn

Instagram/ thewanderingquinn

I started my blog in 2014, I’d been living and working in Australia for 2 years and was heading to South East Asia for a few months afterwards. A friend randomly suggested that I should start a blog, so that planted a seed in my mind. In addition to that I had been doing lots of research on where to go in South East Asia, and realised the websites I was finding so helpful online were written by normal people like me and these were in fact their blogs.

The blogs helped me so much and once I was in South East Asia I felt like I wanted to give back with my knowledge of how I got from place to place, so I started writing it down too, which started my blog.

Instagram/ thewanderingquinn

We will start with a bit about your blog, how did you get into blogging?

Instagram/ thewanderingquinn

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I have! I’ve seen a lot. For me I would say some of the Middle Eastern Countries like Israel, Jordan & Lebanon - I knew these countries were and are safe to visit but when I told people I was going, I got a lot of questions as to why and wor- ries about safety. When I arrived, not only were they safe, like I knew they would be, but they were even better than I expected in terms of what you can see there, the friendly locals, the good food and of course, no sign of any issues like many people believe there are.

For me, the best moments and memories are visiting the places I’ve been dreaming about for so long and the first time I spot them. I still remember seeing the Sydney Bridge for the first time in between some buildings, seeing the view over Machu Picchu after walking up the steep path, the Colosseum in Rome between 2 streets, the Taj Mahal in India through an archway. We see so many photos of these iconic places as we grow up, and even more so now with the internet, so finally seeing these places in real life is just amazing

Going to so many countries must mean you have eaten some amazing dishes, which was your favourite, and can you make it?

Unsplash/ rickpsd

Instagram/ thewanderingquinn

It sounds like you have had such an amazing life and done so many cool things whilst travelling, so we would love to know more about that! Are there any countries that were completely different to what you expected?

llie Quinn runs one of our favourite travel blogs, ‘The Wandering Quinn’. She offers great advice on pretty much everywhere you could want to visit, from how to survive bus travel in South America, to getting a bamboo tattoo on Koh Phi Phi island in Thailand. She has done it all! Ellie is 28, from the UK and has been travelling on and off since 2010. In this time she has turned her blog into a successful business.

We asked her more about her travels and how she turned doing something she loved into something so successful.

How did you go about finding your brand and making yourself stand out?

My biggest tip is to convert what you’re saving at home into what you’ll spend it on when you travel. For example not spending £5 on lunch out will get you a room in a hostel in many parts of the world. Not going on a night out and saving £40 is a few nights accommodation, an internal flight in Asia or even a return flight to somewhere in Europe if you look in the sales! Travel doesn’t have to be expensive and in many parts of the world money goes a long way. Alongside this is prioritising; I’ve always prioritised travel over buying expensive items, it’s hard when you are saving but worth it when you’re on the trip, whether that’s a weekend away or a backpacking trip.

At the other end of the spectrum, it can also be really hard at times. Have you had any really low points?

Yes, food is always the priority and what travellers plan their days around!

I love Asian food like Thai & Vietnamese. I’m vegetarian and in these countries they cook tofu so well! I love Thai Red Curry & Pho. I have cooked it at home but it’s just not the same!

Which food do you miss the most when you’re away?

Well my ‘going away meal’ and ‘coming home meal’ is usually chips from the chip shop so I’d probably say that! These days in big cities there are so many chain restaurants, so if you do crave some western food you can usually find what you want and settle the craving, but you don’t see any chip shops around!

It’s international women’s day on 8 March.

Have you met any really inspiring women on your travels?

Yes, so many! I love meeting women in hostels, on day trips etc. and hearing their stories. So many women are travelling solo around the world from many countries and it’s really great to see. When you’re at home there’s often this fear around solo female travel, but when you’re travelling you meet so many others doing the same, and you realise it’s so normal and safe to do and that always inspires me to keep doing it and encourage others to.

Finally, Is there anywhere that you would think about moving to?

I’d love to go back to Australia and live there again! I loved Melbourne and would probably go back in a heartbeat if I could.

Rachel Evans Deputy Travel Editor

epigram / The Croft 18. 03.2019

14

Anecdotes & Accomplishments: Travelling as a Woman on International Women’s Day Lily Donnelly discusses her experiences of travelling as a woman.

I

make it impossible for the same line to be drawn in permanent ink, and to make all steps in the right direction move at the same pace.

International Women’s Day may be a global celebration, but that is not to say that it is universally recognised – just like its cultural counterparts.

Language and culture shape mentalities differently the world over. In many countries, in comparison to the UK, men may be more outspoken or forward with their advances without questioning whether its reception.

Proclamations of beauty or attraction may be considered more culturally ‘normal’ in other places, intended with a complimentary rather than a derogatory tone. Bar etiquette (and relatively normal social interaction) aside, cat calling, prolonged staring or even outright beckoning is something most of us will experience at home or away. But when abroad, often away from comfort zone and dialectal understanding, this kind of behaviour can feel much more daunting and dangerous. It is perhaps some cultural differences that

In a foreign country, both men and women become more vulnerable.

Standing on the banks of the Rhone, surrounded by countless people drinking in late summer sun, I waited alone for my friends to join me. In fifteen minutes, four men passed by making noises, gestures and comments on their way. One (seeming at least twice my age) leaned in far enough to ask for a kiss, reducing his bargain to ‘just one on the cheek… please’. A French girl saw my vulnerability and invited me to sit with her and her friends so that I was no longer a target for preying passers-by, quickly changing my reaction from disgust and discomfort to one of reassurance.

Friends have recounted stories of only feeling safe walking down a street with their boyfriend by their side on holiday, others grabbing wandering hands below waistlines and thrusting them in the air to shame wrongful trespassing. But since March 8th is about festivities of female independence, this article is going to put the positives in the spotlight.

turned to running away from two men trying to take advantage of two foreign girls into the safety of another pair of girls who could more fluently fend them away. Where there was harassment and mistreatment, there was support and defence that transcended any touristic boundary.

Women across the globe are standing closer together, ringing ever more true as the world becomes more travelled.

Language aside, cultural differences forgotten, a woman will see another as her comrade and counterpart.

Unsplash / oria_hector

Unsplash / thejoshhoward

nternational Women’s Day, celebrating feminism and woman’s rights since its initial 1909 debut in New York, is a yearly celebration of societal progression and its suppression of sexual inequality. Established as an annual celebration the next year by the Socialist Woman’s Conference and embraced on a more global scale by the United Nations since 1975, the 8th of March commemorates women’s accomplishments, achievements and equilibrium achieved by and for them today.

Nineteen years into the millennium, the female voice is louder than ever with the amplification of conversations on harassment, exploitation and misappropriation.

Nonetheless, solidarity - albeit strong - is not yet universal, and this is particularly pertinent as woman travelling abroad.

The bad should not exist. Its only silver lining is that through it we can somehow appreciate the good. This article is not to say that we need to stop educating and changing mentalities, nor is it to condone the existence of masculinist mistreatment in the face of sisterhoodlike solidarity. But as we continue to shame and change, and society itself continues to reject the normalisation of female harassment, one day on the 8th of March could celebrate the eradication of sexual slurs on the streets and the ability to walk down one – at home or abroad – without fear.

Lily Donnelly Third year. French and Italian

Oh, and my birthday, of course.

On another journey home with a female friend, walking quickly

Book review: Lands of Lost Borders: A Journey on the Silk Road Miriam Szlezinger reviews Kate Hopkins’ enthralling travel memoirs.

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he end of the road was always just out of sight.

Cracked asphalt deepened into night beyond the reach of our headlamps, the thin beams swallowed by the blackness that receded before us no matter how fast we biked. Light was a kind of pavement thrown down in front of our wheels, and the road went on and on. If you ever reach the end, I remember thinking, I’ll fly off the rim of the world. I pedalled harder.’

The book’s imagery transports you across continents, interwoven with historical, scientific and literary knowledge. She details the harder parts of the journey: the freezing weather and searing heat, living off instant noodles, coffee and oatmeal, her exhaustion, aching muscles, illnesses and fear of detention whilst travelling through countries with restrictive tourism policies, however Harris’ awe is

Flickr / Martha de Jong-Lantink

Lands of Lost Borders: A Journey on the Silk Road is a memoir by Kate Harris who details her bicycle trip across Asia along the ancient Silk Road. Harris was originally inspired as a child by her mother’s illustrated book of Marco Polo’s route on the Silk Road, which she studied ‘as it laced and frayed past Constantinople, Trabzon, Erzurum, Bukhara, Samarkand, Badakhshan, Kashgar, Khotan, Cathay, each name an invitation to elsewhere.’ She originally wanted to become an astronaut and travel to Mars and although this dream was never realised, her fascination with otherworldly places remained. She eventually asked her childhood friend Mel to accompany her in cycling the route.

apparent throughout the book. She makes unique observations, for example when the pair reach the lake Pangong Tso that extends

across the border of Tibet and India, Harris describes the water as ‘so vast and turquoise it looked tropical’ and compares it to ‘a remnant of the ancient Tethys Ocean, whose warm blue waters were swallowed beneath the Indian subcontinent when it slammed into Eurasia fifty

million years ago, crumpling the sea floor into the Tibetan Plateau’.

Harris is aware of the human history that taints the natural world and details this in her narrative, from the dictator Timurlane’s slavebuilt domes of Samarkand to the landmines of Tajikistan’s border zones post-civil war.

When asked about the hardest part of the journey in an interview for Explore magazine, Harris responds: ‘Coming home and writing about it. Mel and I spent over a year total biking the Silk Road on two different trips. Writing a book about the journey took me halfa-decade. And while I love the exposure to new places and new people that you get by travelling by bicycle, I find there’s as much (or even more) intensity and thrill and a sense of discovery when I’m sitting back at my desk, trying to put those experiences to words.

Words and the world go very much hand-in-hand for me: I travelled vicariously through books long before I had the chance to travel anywhere myself, so I wanted to write something worthy, I hope, of the books that galvanised me out the door in the first place.’

Harris’ novel focuses on the adventure of exploration but is not only a travel book, it is an empowering account of two women’s determination to travel through some of earth’s most unforgiving territories and, remaining true to its title, is a consideration of borders, both literal and figurative.

Miriam Szlezinger Second Year. English

15

18.03.2019 epigram / The Croft

What I’ll miss about travel post-Brexit Leah Martindale reflects on what she’ll miss the most about convenient European travel after Brexit.

It was an uncharacteristically lovely English summer’s day. I was at the polling station early, as I had a midday train from Birmingham to Edinburgh to visit my (then) boyfriend. The sun was high, birds were tweeting, children laughing, the day was June 23rd 2016. The day it all changed.

The summer before my best friend and I had gone on a stifling, sweltering coach journey from our hometown of Brum to beautiful Cianciana, in darling Sicily. Looking back on the gorgeous scenery, delicious food, and sexy locals, the niggling doubt crept in the back of my mind.

Europe was my second love, but for how long could I keep this affair up?

The April of 2017, nearing the end of first year, my mother and I took on Northern India in a roasting, overstuffed and often feather-ruffling 10 day escapade. As I went through every previous country I’d visited for the extensive Visa requirements, I wept for the future of my travel. Would I have to go through all this every time I wanted to go on a £10 jaunt to the continent? Who knew. Not me. Did anyone know?

As much as I enjoy my fancy Indian stamps in my passport, they hardly equal in novelty the sheer unbridled joy of sauntering up to the EU desk at passport inspection and getting on with your holiday within seconds. The fear of misstepping in my Visa application and accidentally getting arrested on arrival in Asia far overshadows the gut-dropping moment I realised I’d misspelt my surname as “Mart” on a plane ticket to Spain. (Cue a nickname with more longevity than our EU memberships…)

Epigram / Leah Martindale

I’m a cheapskate. I’ll admit it. The thought of shelling out a couple of extra quid for a cheeky European trip fills me with an i n s u r mou nta ble dread. That could go on the trademark disposable camera for some nice t hu m b - ove r - t h e lens shots, some cheap European beers that taste more of barley and hops than liquid, or a big flamingo pool floatie like the boujie insta girls have.

With no real clue how the Brexit vote will affect any of us, debates are flying about our NHS, local economies, farming communities, refugees, Wales and Scotland’s independence, but where’s the talk of the real victims of the vote? Who will really suffer? Me. Never

When the vote finally takes its hold over our tiny, rainy island, I will miss my freedom of travel most of all. Mostly because I am already poor and know little to nothing about how it all works, but also because my little skits abroad are a smiley sun over an otherwise hard and essay-laden landscape.

Epigram / Leah Martindale

I woke up to rain in Edinburgh. It’s like the skies above me, carrying my faithful budget airlines, somehow knew. My boyfriend’s sister Sarah told me solemnly, ‘The vote has passed.

Brexit is happening.’ In a cold sweat I checked the RyanAir website. They seemed unsure what effect this would have on my cheapo holidays. Truly dire times.

again will I sit on the back of a rickety coach with a stinky shared toilet rolling unbothered through the Swiss hills. (Maybe.)

I will miss trawling the Ryanair website for their Black Friday £5+ tickets across Europe.

I will miss snoozing in the airport at 4am, trusty burgundy passport in slightly less trusty bumbag, waiting for the 6am flight that I justified as it was a fiver less than a sane time of day. I will miss remembering about trips a week ahead of take-off and still having time for all the necessary preparations.

Maybe this will be a good thing for the suffering European tourist towns, inundated with monolingual reprobates like yours truly. If I had to fill out a full application ahead of time, maybe I would be more inclined to prepare further than simply learning ‘no cheese’ in the language of choice and calling it a day. That, or I would forget to do anything, and they would be spared my presence all together.

As someone somewhat disillusioned with the British identity, not a royalist, UKIPer, farmer, or ‘yah-yah’ boarding school stereotype, one of my favourite things about my British nationality was our links with Europe. While Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland, and parts of England can prove as exotic as the arctic at times, there’s always been a cheeky joy in being so close and yet so far from so much culture, life, and vibrancy.

I have dreamed for years of skipping out, pulling a Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again and just upping sticks and moving to a beautiful European town to start all over again. Now that ambition seems more pipe than dream, and I am left wondering how many other people’s secret hopes have been crushed by the imminence of bureaucracy, paperwork, and a feeling of self-imposed unwelcomeness.

Perhaps one day my closests will wake up to the news I am now located on the Southern shore of a beautiful Maltese island, growing grapes for wine and getting indecent tanlines. Perhaps one day I will announce the first step of a six month plan to that end goal. Either way, I hope Brexit can be good for our dreamers, island hoppers, and travellers, Britain across.

Leah Martindale Third Year, Film & Television

In favour of Travel Guides

Are travel guides outdated? Amelia Edgell-Cole thinks not.

Google a city, any city. It could be anywhere from Paris to Maza (the least populated city in the USA, FYI), and you’ll be hit by a deluge of information. From the top 10 places to eat/ drink/ stay/ see to the city’s best hidden gems, listicle upon listicle will appear, each with differing notions of what constitutes the ‘best’, ‘cheapest’ or ‘most authentic’ experience to be had in any given place. In fact, Google any location, from a single road to a whole country, and the information will be overwhelming: everyone has their own opinion on what you should be doing there. So how does one decide what information to listen to?

Perhaps particularly necessary in the age of ‘fake news’ (although the extent to which someone will go to the trouble to make up their ‘Top Five Places to Have an Aperol Spritz in Milan’ is somewhat debatable), is the ability we need to develop in order to discern between trustworthy and not so reliable information.

The same is true of travel information. For example, whilst one website might instruct on a certain hostel being the best place to stay, another might sing the praises of a 5-star hotel, but consider the websites’ audience and general tone. One might even be sponsored by said hotel/ hostel, meaning the recommendation you’re getting isn’t entirely reliable, but marketed specifically to you for monetary gain.

What’s more, not only is information sometimes misleading, there’s just so much of it! From travel blogs and vlogs who claim to be the authority on travel matters, to articles informed by nothing other than a quick internet search, the world of travel information is a minefield. Plus, who has the time to search through the first 10 pages of a Google search just to find a decent place to eat when dinnertime is pressing and travellers are getting hangry? Not me.

Which is where the trusty, humble, arguably outdated travel guide comes in. Packed into a pocket-sized amount of pages, they present a definitive guide to the best things to eat, drink and do no matter where you are in the world - no questions asked. They are written by people who have actually visited the destination and as such have a huge influence on travel; a single mention in a Lonely Planet guidebook, for example, can spark tourism on an unprecedented scale. And how can we trust these guides?

Because they’ve been around for so long! In 2011, Lonely Planet had sold 11 million books since its conception in 1972, a figure no doubt significantly greater 8 years subsequent, a sure sign of its reliability. If 11 million people had followed misguided information, I’m sure you’d have heard about it.

I remember the weeks I spent before a planned trip to Florence last year pouring over my trusty travel guide. Wanting to spend my five days there eating the best of Florentine cuisine and exploring its most awe-inspiring buildings, I turned to a Lonely Planet pocket book for a recommendation of the best information - and it did not disappoint. Rather than hordes of conflicting information, the guide presented concise, reliable information, complete with trusty maps and colourful images. I could corner the pages of the restaurants I most wanted to visit and stick postit notes in where the guide recommended nifty tips and tricks, and I can proudly say the book stayed firmly in my backpack for the entirety of my Italian adventure.

And yes, we all have smartphones these days, with apps and websites at the tips of our fingers - but who knows when you might lose internet connection or run out of battery? Surely one of the signs of a meaningful travel expedition is a lack of your phone. So, you can take your travel blogs and online guides, your ‘ultimate explorer’ apps and virtual maps - I’m sticking with my well-worn trusty pocket guide.

Amelia Edgell-Cole Travel Editor

Bristol SU Sponsored Content

Varsity 2019 is coming...

4000 participants, 250 teams, 12 stand-alone events and 125 fixtures - whether you'll be competing or participating this is not to be missed! You can see some of the highlights below, or check out the full events list at varsityseries.com

Friday Night Lights

Netball

In the spotlight as the Varsity week opener, this event very much sets the tone. Lacrosse and Ultimate Frisbee combine for an American sports themed event. Food and refreshments available, a strong alumni presence and an electric atmosphere - come and soak it all in under the floodlights at Coombe Dingle.

The inaugural event last year was beyond electric. A true battle of the titans. You will be hard pressed to find a closer fixture played in the Series… so what you’re going to see is top draw. Tickets are limited, so get in early and whatever you do, get your t-shirts and foam fingers at the ready!

Varsity Day

The sporting equivalent of Christmas day...

5K

With six weeks until the Bristol 10K, and the 5K being free to all 10K entrants, what better way to test your progress?

Not much of a runner? Whether you run it, walk it, 3-leg it, just come and enjoy participating. It's not all about a personal best! there will be food, music and refreshments available. Fingers crossed for good weather!

Since its inception in 2003, this event has gone from strength to strength and has become a massive festival of sport within the City of Bristol. Hosted

by UWE for the first time, with over 1,800 athletes in over 200 teams, competing in 33 sports in what is unquestionably the South West’s biggest one-day multi-sport event.

Come and cheer on your #WeAreBristol favourites!

Ashfords LLP Boat Race

The oldest event within the Varsity series, and this year's series finale.

Come and watch a series of sprint races between UWEBC and UBBC, including Men’s and Women’s Alumni races, as well as local clubs competing for the right to name themselves Best of the West.

Bristol SU Sponsored Content

WHAT'S ON Equality and Diversity Careers Week

Monday 18 March - Friday 22 March, Careers Service Bristol SU and University of Bristol Careers Service are collaborating to bring you Equality and Diversity Careers Week.

It includes talks and events for students who are BAME, LGBT, are widening participation students, have disabilities, mental health conditions and/or are on the autism spectrum. bristol.ac.uk/careers/events Bristol University Vintage KILO SALE Tuesday 19th March, from 11am, Bristol SU

Best of Bristol Lectures: What is a Sustainable Future? Wednesday 20th March, 1pm, Peel Lecture Theatre

Alborosie and Shengen Clan Wednesday 20th February, 7:30pm, Anson Rooms

Browse the seection of vintage clothing, pick what you like and take it to a weigh station, pay for the amount that you've picked and leave happy! Join us for another vintage kilo sale at Bristol SU.

It’s easy to see sustainability as being about guilt, about stopping doing things.

This lecture looks positively at sustainability and the future we want to inhabit. This is about what we want, not what we don’t want. How can we make it fun and achieve a real difference to our university, our city and the world.

Alborosie is a singer, songwriter, multiinstrumentalist, producer, engineer and a dynamic talent in the contemporary reggae scene. Join him on his 25th anniversary tour as he heads to the Anson Rooms.

Ignit10n Thursday 21st March, Royal Fort Gardens

Bristol International Jazz and Blues Festival, 22nd-24th March, Anson Rooms

Ignit10n is back for another year of fundraising over 10 hours. This year Ignit10n will be raising money for Above & Beyond, in aid of mental health services at Bristol city centre hospitals. Come and join the Campus Heart street party.

Global Carnival, Wednesday 27th March, 6pm, Anson Rooms

Proper Jokes Comedy Club, Thursday 28th March, 7:30pm, Anson Rooms Bar

Global Carnival is a celebration of culture from across the International community.

Come and join us for some special performances and some tasty food!

The Proper Jokes Comedy Club continues with our March showcase! Join us in the Anson Rooms Bar for a jam packed night of comedy courtesy of Tom Lucy, Njambi McGrath & Kae Kurd!

For the seventh edition, Bristol International Jazz & Blues Festival will be taking over St George’s, the Anson Rooms, and O2 with a programme of jazz and blues from Europe, US and the UK. There will even be a free stage in The Balloon Bar!

For more information on all upcoming events see bristolsu.org.uk/events

Film & TV

Editor: Patrick Sullivan Deputy Editor: Luke Silverman Online Editor: James Turnbull Deputy Editor: Nora Gunn

The Danish Girl / Focus Features

Cis actors in trans roles deprive trans actors of their few opportunities

Second Year, Film & English

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his is a debate that has gained some traction in recent years, especially after Scarlett Johansson was set to play trans man Dante Tex Gill in Rub & Tug last year. She left the project just a week later after media backlash, but trans characters continue to be played by cis actors with the upcoming release of Berlin, I Love You (2019).

When I speak to people about this issue, I am often met with well-meaning confusion; if, say, an American actor can play a British character, why can’t a cis actor

play a trans one? After all it is acting, and playing someone else is exactly what actors are supposed to do. My response to this is usually to ask them if they can name a trans actor in any role other than the wonderful Laverne Cox from Orange Is the New Black (2013-).

Identifying as trans myself, I am constantly on the lookout for trans representation in the media. Even I struggle to name more than a couple. It is great that trans characters are beginning to appear in Hollywood narratives, but there is certainly still a long way to go for LGBTQ+ representation in all aspects of cinema.

It is the same problem, to a certain extent, as white actors being cast over people of other ethnicities. Part of the reason there was so much controversy surrounding Scarlett Johansson’s casting in Rub & Tug was because she had already been accused of taking roles away from marginalised groups, playing Japanese character Mira Killian in Ghost in the Shell (2017) two years ago.

When it is so hard for trans actors to even get the chance to audition for the same roles as their cis colleagues, it can be very disheartening to see cis people taking some of the only roles trans actors will ever be offered. It is often the case that people who belong to marginalised groups are seen as little more than their identities, especially in the arts. Take, for example, the variety of roles even the most mediocre white, cis-het, male actors get to play. They get nuance; minorities are far too often reduced to lazy stereotypes.

Another layer to this is that it suggests that trans women are ‘really’ men, and that trans men are ‘really’ women. When a cis actor is cast as a trans woman you can almost guarantee that actor will be male.

This is especially the case when the actor is well known, like Eddie Redmayne in The Danish Girl (2015). It is hard to break the associations audiences will already have with that actor, and it depicts trans-ness as something to be performed rather than lived.

“It can be very disheartening to see cis people taking some of the only roles trans actors will ever be offered”

There is starting to be progress, however slow. It was hard to imagine a Hollywood film that centres around a trans narrative even ten years ago, but increasingly trans characters are beginning to appear on our screens. The most promising thing to come from 2019 so far is that Jen Richards, a trans woman, is reprising her role as CIA agent Sabrina Larren in the new series of Blindspot (2015-) on NBC. It is a major part, and the character Richards plays is cis. Her gender is never questioned, and doesn’t even enter into the narrative.

This type of representation matters. The more trans people are given a wider range of acting opportunities, the easier it will be for audiences to see them as just another performer. The film industry is indicative of society as a whole, prioritising the traditional and the majority over the few. We are all responsible in what we choose to consume, and now, as the status quo is beginning to change, it is more important than ever to show support for trans voices.

Netflix / Photo by Jill Greenberg

Trans stories are finally making it to screens, but the continuous casting of cis-het actors is rightly receiving criticism for depriving trans actors Milo Clenshaw

18.03.2018

epigram

Film & TV 35

Do we need more queer sex scenes?

Examples of LGBTQ+ relationships are lacking in intimacy in mainstream representation Esme Hedley

To younger audiences, sex scenes in films are unknown and uncomfortable. It makes sense then that in certain films, these scenes are censored for universality. As we grow up, this prudish attitude to sex leaves us and so does its censorship; instead we enjoy seeing characters bond in scenes that often enrich storylines as they bring in real life, complicated, and often messy sex. But this seems to only really be reserved for straight people, and queer sex is constantly being put back in its box, sanitised for a wider audience or reserved for indie films. Is this fair? Is it more important that by omitting queer sex scenes, these films reach a wider audience to promote acceptance? Or is it doing queer people a disservice, making queer culture more approachable but still keeping it at arm’s length?

Fran Tirado, Deputy Editor of Out, recently published an essay in which he claimed that ‘to be queer is to be sexually free’, and that to be free is to ‘break away from the chokehold of heterosexual respectability politics, [...] sex, and stigma’. He argues that many films are still trapped in this chokehold, including recent box office hits Bohemian Rhapsody (2018) and Call Me By Your Name (2017). Though centred around queer characters, the exclusion of sex from films like these is now a joke in the queer community, one where directors ‘forget’ to put them in. Doing this, it can be argued, removes key moments of joy, political

BFI Institute / God’s Own Country

Second Year, Biology

“Perhaps what we need to see is more same-sex intimacy, where people are not reduced to just their bodies but depict a more accurate, nuanced expression of same sex desire”

identity and accuracy in their portrayals of the queer experience. The Oscar-winning Bohemian Rhapsody has been criticised for its disconcerting attempt to distance Freddie Mercury’s homosexuality from his art, and its framing of his AIDS diagnosis as a punishment for his queerness. The film also shapes Mercury as a one dimensional, promiscuous gay man, reducing his seven year, monogamous relationship with partner Jon Hutton to a single kiss. Its exasperating perpetuation of stereotypes only encourages parts of society to continue viewing queer identity and sex in this negative, reductive way. Other representations are contrasting and confusing; from a more everyday perspective, the reality is that in most teen film and TV, queer men seem to be gentle and sexless - note the trope of the gay best friend, who ‘talks about how hot guys are but never touches one’. No wonder that for so long queer people have found refuge in literature which openly and accurately depicts how it feels, physically and emotionally, to be gay.

If sex does find its way into queer films it is often inaccurate or, as is often the case for women, performed and orchestrated for the male gaze. Blue is the Warmest Colour (2013) is an infamous example and Julie Maroh, the author of the novel on which the film is based, took issue with the film’s sex scene: ‘As a lesbian there was something missing from the set: lesbians.’ While indicative of a wider issue of diversity in Hollywood, instances such as this again fuel the idea that gay sex is a sort of scandalous unknown.

Most frustratingly, ‘raunchy’ sex scenes between a man and a woman have not prevented big films from receiving awards recognition, such as Atonement (2015) and Blue Valentine (2011). In addition to this, less mainstream visibility of gay sex allows porn to be its representative, reinforcing damaging stereotypes such as all gay men having perfect bodies. For women, this is even more confusing, as lesbian sex in mainstream porn is designed for male visual pleasure, fuelling its inaccuracy.

As Tirado neatly summarises: ‘Straight gatekeepers are an unfortunate necessity if you want LGBTQ+ films to be in the mainstream, which means that uncensored queer sex in films remains niche.’ Nobody is saying every queer film must include sex, and it would be refreshing to watch a film about gay people not centred around sex. It is not to say queer sexuality and eroticism can’t exist in circumstances that forgo explicitness to make a bigger point about ideas of gender and sexuality. Critic Kyle Turner, of Paste Magazine, argues there is a long list of such films nobody cares to remember or mention. Perhaps the issue here is the lack of access and education of these niche films, which unfortunately only makes mainstream representation more important.

Accessible queer sex scenes are increasing; recent examples include Moonlight (2016), Disobedience (2017), God’s Own Country (2017) and Tangerine (2015). Those in The Favourite (2018) have been especially praised in how they don’t overpower the movie by reaching too hard for the male gaze, while also being fun and sensual.

Is there a reluctance to show gay sex scenes on screen? Maybe. The frustration lies within the inaccuracy of the sex when it is chosen to be included, or in the reasons behind its omission. Bohemian Rhapsody’s choice to not include queer sex only reinforced the historical inaccuracy of the film, and it was a missed opportunity. Perhaps what we need to see is more same-sex intimacy, where people are not reduced to just their bodies but depict a more accurate, nuanced expression of same sex desire. Nobody is expecting graphic sex scenes in any mainstream film, but the inclusion of queer sex, however brief, would show society that it is not something to be afraid of seeing on screen.

Editors’ Picks

IMDb / Channel 4 Films

Photo by Nicola Dove

IMDb / Icon Films

20th Century Fox / Mary Cybulski

Same sex marriage in the UK became legal on March 13, 2014 so this issue’s theme is LGBTQ+

Patrick Sullivan

Luke Silverman

James Turnbull

Nora Gunn

Editor

Deputy Editor

Online Editor

Deputy Editor

A Single Man (2009)

Pride (2014)

My Beautiful Launderette (1985)

Can You Ever Forgive Me? (2019)

When fashion designer Tom Ford announced he was producing, writing, and directing his first feature film, the whole film world scoffed and keenly anticipated what they expected only to be a failure.

Alas, A Single Man, is a gorgeous film patiently paced and oozing with style and skill; it is also a gay story told by a gay creative, which is not only socially important, but means the narrative feels authentic rather than forced. Ford used his network to assemble a team of stellar talent: young Spanish Director of Photography Eduard Grau executes Ford’s vision sumptuously, Colin Firth plays a 1960s professor who represses his true grief after the sudden death of his long term partner, and Nicholas Firth his admiring student exploring his sexuality.

Seven years later, Ford reaffirmed his deserved place among filmmakers with Nocturnal Animals (2016).

Pride was only a film I saw recently, and to say I’d missed out for not watching it is an understatement.

Based on the true events surrounding the establishment of the Lesbians and Gays Support the Miners campaign, we are treated to a movie about friendships and the struggles of being part of the LGBTQ+ community under Thatcher. The film is made accessible through the creation of the fictional Joe ‘Bromley’ Cooper (George MacKay), who is the audience surrogate. Fantastically supported by Ben Schnetzer as Mark Ashton, the founder of the group, as well as appearances by fan favourites Andrew Scott, Bill Nighy, and Imelda Staunton, the film is not only informative of important gay history, but is also a real feel-good film. If you need a good pickme-up, grab some friends, get under a blanket, and bang this one on - you won’t regret it!

This daring, dizzying and delightfully transgressive work crams so much into its meagre 97-minute runtime it threatens to come apart at the seams. What begins as a coming-of-age story young British-Pakistani Omar (Gordon Warnecke) is tasked by his enterprising uncle with reversing the fortunes of an ailing laundrette in South London rapidly evolves into something far more complex.

Though taking aim at the darker side of Thatcher’s Britain, the contradictions of its characters and the perpetually simmering clash of cultures mean the film’s themes are never one-dimensional. Of course, the film also remains a cinematic landmark for its groundbreaking relationship between Omar and former friend-turned-thug Johnny (Daniel DayLewis), whose journey back from the social fringes is the story’s true beating heart.

The Academy Award nominee Can You Ever Forgive Me? starring Melissa McCarthy and Richard E Grant is a biopic about the infamous literary forger Lee Israel (McCarthy). Set in New York in 1991, Lee is a loner, a heavy drinker and a failed biographer. Under the pressure of Manhattan rent and expensive vet bills, Lee discovers her talent for forging celebrity letters. Lee is not a likeable person, although there are scenes in which she betrays a little kindness, most notably in allowing her friend Jack to move into her place when he has nowhere else to go. Although their friendship is based on drinking and scamming bookshop owners, it is somehow still endearing. Both McCarthy and Grant play gay characters, but refreshingly their sexuality isn’t the topic of the film. It is a story about two complex individuals who just so happen to be gay.

epigram 18.03.2018

36 Film & TV

Favouritism toward gay, cisgender, male stories, and adapting source material are two trends in the onscreen portrayals Siavash Minoukadeh First Year, Liberal Arts

T

he last few years have seen a flowering of LGBTQ+ narratives in Hollywood, beginning with Moonlight (2016) and continuing with boxoffice darlings like The Miseducation of Cameron Post (2018) and Love, Simon (2018).

This move is a marked improvement from before, when these types of stories were less prominent, but given the commercial nature of Hollywood, some crucial aspects of the LGBTQ+ experiences are being lost.

Hollywood is as much a business exercise as it is an artistic enterprise. Therefore, the reality is that the nuances and authenticity of experiences from the LGBTQ+ community are not always of interest to a wider, broadly cisgender and heterosexual audience. In other words, LGBTQ+ films in Hollywood have a tendency to present their characters from

an external perspective. Whilst Disobedience (2017) is a strong film overall, its depiction of queerness, in the context of an intolerant community, feels underdeveloped.

To better illustrate what I mean, the film can be compared to Naomi Alderman’s novel on which it is based. Within the book, the grappling each of the primary characters undergo is far more nuanced. This is part of a wider trend in LGBTQ+ cinema which is taking place - few have original screenplays.

Call Me By Your Name (2017), Love, Simon and Boy Erased (2018) are all adaptations of novels or memoirs whilst Moonlight is based on a play.

The issues with this are twofold. The first is that something as complex and nuanced as LGBTQ+ identity is difficult to transfer from one medium to another without losing its power. This is often exacerbated by having a non-LGBTQ+ production team and director, as was the case in Disobedience.

Screenwriting is an artform and allowing LGBTQ+ stories to be told specifically for the format of film is still rare. Instead, stories of LGBTQ+ people are altered and shaped by non-members of this community.

This then leads to the second issue:

Call Me By Your Name / Sony Pictures Classics

Hollywood is finally embracing LGBTQ+ narratives but are they representative?

“Instead, stories of LGBTQ+ people are altered and shaped by nonmembers of this community”

taking pre-existing LGBTQ+ narratives is in essence Hollywood outsourcing its queerness. Rather than bringing these voices into a conversation where original ideas for films are approved, they are left outside the industry and their experiences appropriated.

This means we are seeing more LGBTQ+ stories, but LGBTQ+ people are not entering the industry at the same rate.

Here the caveat of this whole issue should be mentioned. Gay cisgender men have historically found it easier to enter the film industry and the mainstream LGBTQ+ films with the most media attention have

tended to feature these characters. We should not conflate the increasing support and representation of this specific subcommunity to be a stand-in for LGBTQ+ as a whole. Last year saw four major movies about LGBTQ+ figures released. The subjects were Oscar Wilde, Robert Mapplethorpe, Alexander McQueen and Freddie Mercury: all were cisgender men. Whilst it is still a positive trend, it is unreasonable to expect more marginalised groups of the LGBTQ+ community such as those who identify as non-binary, transgender or asexual to accept this as representing their identities.

However, the case can be made that gay, cisgender, male commercial successes have now encouraged filmmakers to bring in an even wider range of voices. Disobedience and The Favourite (2018), have brought LGBTQ+ women into the limelight and the upcoming Vita and Virginia (2018) biopic will show two women whose relationship and sexuality is more complex. Therefore, while it feels like the current spate of LGBTQ+ films are still problematic, there is hope that these films are only the beginning of a much more diverse and authentic portrayal of the whole LGBTQ+ community.

Vincente Minnelli: the legendary director who hid his sexuality Third Year, Film & TV

V

incente Minnelli is widely known for directing spectacular theatrical and cinematic musicals, comedies, and melodramas, as well as fathering Liza Minnelli with the equally talented Judy Garland, who he met onset for Strike Up The Band (1940) and fell in love with onset for Meet Me in St. Louis (1944). Four times married, with two children, he has a striking second legacy, one as a closeted gay man.

Minnelli is widely recognised in certain circles without debate as a gay man. In others, the assertions are widely disregarded and disputed. Mark Griffin writes in A Hundred or More Hidden Things: ‘Despite the fact that Minnelli was married to Judy Garland and three other women […] it was generally assumed that he was a closeted gay man who, due to the societal conditioning of his era, felt compelled to marry and procreate.’

So where did this legacy come from to begin with, and how has it survived so tenaciously in the years since his death?

One major player in the rumour mill was his aforementioned first wife, Garland. Emerging in other extracts in Griffin’s book are the recounts that Garland was ‘paranoid’ about Minnelli’s bond with Garland’s coworker, the eternally handsome and charming Gene Kelly. With rumours that Kelly had feelings for a male stand-in, this theory seems to have legs of its own. Whether Kelly and Minnelli

had an affair or not, the theories have emerged from multiple sources. Minnelli was wildly flamboyant and adored the stylistic side of dramatics, and his closest confidants purportedly ‘never doubted his true identity’.

While his own autobiography, I Remember It Well, manages skillfully to avoid the topic at all, other authors have taken it upon themselves to lift the veil.

Alongside Griffin, legendary film critic Emanuel Levy delved into the director’s complex legacy with the first full length Minnelli biography in 2009. There seems to be a vast quantity of evidence pointing to the fact that Minnelli was openly gay in New York, before a move to Hollywood forced him back into the closet. Levy characterises Minnelli as having ‘a troubled sexuality’ in an interview with Advocate, as well as stating he believes Minnelli ‘chose to become bisexual’. Despite this interview only being little under a decade old, the latter statement feels centuries more antiquated. As much as we can understand Minnelli did not ‘choose’ to become gay, we must know he did not choose to alter his inherent sexuality to be with the women he was. Either Minnelli was bisexual all along, discovered or changed within himself over the course of his life and career, or the saddest option of all: that a director, artist, and human being adored across Hollywood lived the majority of his life hidden.

Minnelli is known to have reinvented himself from humble beginnings, the son of a ‘tent theater’ musical director and touring performer, into a ‘snobbish’ preconceived image of what it was to be an artist. This reinvention, delving into the flamboyancy he is so fondly remembered for, may also have catalysed his reinvention into the

image of an acceptable straight man. History remembers the careers of men whose image has been shaped by their coming out, Freddie Mercury and Elton John to name just two immortalised recently in biopics.

Levy speaks candidly, perhaps harshly, and with an air of authority, of Minnelli and Garland. This authority with which a man unknown to both can speak on a marriage which ended nearly seven decades ago is exemplary of a common theory, shared by myself, on Minnelli’s potential closetedness.

Jane Fonda notably told Levy, ‘We could do drugs and have orgies and there was no press.’ However, as Levy goes on to note, a studio Minnelli worked with was upset by his wearing makeup, after which it immediately ceased. As easy as it is to believe that in a pre-internet, and, to an extent, pre-paparazzi world an openly gay man such as Minnelli may have found it easier to escape scrutiny, that is a fable.

Born ‘Lester Anthony’, Minnelli came from a family of mixed heritage, FrenchCanadian on his mother’s side and Sicilian revolutionaries on his father’s. Gay rights moved slowly in America, and debatably even slower in central Europe. With the American Psychiatric Association diagnosing homosexuality as ‘a sociopathic personality disturbance’ in 1952, Minnelli not only risked social and familial disrepute, the fall of his career, and divorce as a consequence of coming out - he risked institutionalisation. He spent much of his life avoiding sexuality speculations, and yet they have followed him beyond the grave.

Much as Marilyn Monroe’s life was spent hounded by her mother’s mental illness and trying to avoid it, Minnelli’s life has been stalked by a spectre. The aforementioned

“A studio Minnelli worked with were upset by his wearing makeup, after which it immediately ceased”

Mercury and John’s legacies are irremovable from their sexuality.

As the product of a much older generation, Minnelli’s secrecy at least allowed his legacy to be clouded by doubt, and not the permanent marker of other similar characters. With historians, critics, and amateurs like me alike able to speculate on breadcrumbs, how much would his legacy be changed by the whole loaf? Minnelli’s secrecy allowed his art to speak mostly for itself, which I’m sure was his intent. How many more of history’s giants were forced into the shadows by a society too far behind to catch up with them?

Getty Images / Photo by Hulton Archive

While it remains unconfirmed, the Meet Me In St Louis director was likely gay and unable to express his true self Leah Martindale

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Arts

epigram 18.03.2019

@epigramarts

Editor: Alina Young Online Editor: Gabi Spiro Deputy Editor: Anna Trafford

@epigramarts

Meet the playwrights What inspires you?

Megan Good 3rd Year, English

I’m basically a potato at a laptop.

Facebook / Megan Good

To be honest, I don’t have a set method or an inspiration, it kind of just happens. I’ve had some less than savoury life experience but that luckily means I’ve got a well of stuff and issues that I care about to draw on. I guess I’m a selfish writer and focus on things that interest me and write to express my feelings - audience be damned!

The Seven Second Theory 1st - 18th of August, Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2019

Did you write it all in a short burst or was it a slow grow?

Did you ever hit a writers’ block?

It was initially written in a thunderclap moment of inspiration. I think I sat down for about eight hours, wrote solidly and when I came to my senses again had a play in front of me. The editing and refining has been very slow going though.

ALL THE TIME. I can only write when I’m in the mood or have a spark or inspiration, otherwise

What was it like seeing your work on the stage for the first time?

realised didn’t work?

for the first time? Was it as you imagined?

Broadly speaking, as a person and a writer, I get really influenced by my environment (the people, places and sensory things around me). I also get inspired by songs and images - before I start a new play, I make a playlist and a really rough mood board so I’ve got a reference point for everything that comes after it.

I get inspired by my friends and family - their mannerisms, the way they express themselves, their perspectives, their perceptions. There have been so many times when someone makes a really offhand, random comment to me that I find profoundly moving or interesting or significant and it creates, or comes up in, a script. No one is safe lol.

Yeah, all the time. I think part of being confident in yourself and your voice is accepting that sometimes things don’t work out, and that it’s okay to backtrack, amend, revise or abandon. I suppose the nature of writing for performance is that it’s a very public medium - if it goes badly, it feels very exposing and disheartening, which is why I think safe, supportive environments like scratch nights and R+D’s are so crucial for new writing (and new writers).

I’m very anti-perfect. I think “perfect” and chasing perfection is such a damaging concept and mentality - there are always going to be points of improvement in every script. I don’t think any play is ever finished.

The first time I watched one of my plays staged was when I was about 16. I won a competition called the Julian Battersby Drama Award, which is for emerging writers under the age of 30. As part of that, I went to see the play staged by some actors from The Arts Centre Group. Consequently, I was really removed from the rehearsal process and really excited to see what they did - with quite an abstract, experimental script - and how they interpreted that. I didn’t know what to expect.

It felt no different to how it feels every time - it’s incredibly nerve-wracking, vulnerable, exposing, but simultaneously, profoundly moving, exciting and fulfilling.

Have you ever had an idea that you later

What was it like seeing your work on the stage

Facebook / Clodagh Chapman

Clodagh Chapman 3rd Year, Geography & Sam Jones 3rd Year, English with Theatre Co-Writers of Butterfly 5th-7th March

SJ: The idea for Butterfly came from speaking to an older man in the LGBT community. We chatted about all these important moments in the fight for gay rights, but in a way I’d never heard before. He spoke about his experiences as a person at the time… what he’d eaten for breakfast on the day of a Section 28 protest, the music that Stonewall ‘felt’ like.

It got me thinking that all these events don’t feel so much like stories anymore, so Butterfly came from a desire to find the human stories at the centre of events. I’m really interested in how people work, so finding these really personal stories from across history was super inspiring.

CC: A huge influence for me on Butterfly was our incredible cast. Sam, our director, took them through a whole bunch of improvisations based on the archival material, to try and help

Did you write it all in a short burst or was it a slow grow?

CC: Butterfly is a full-length play which had four weeks from inception to performance, and the first of those four weeks was dedicated to research, so the process of writing it was absolutely manic. But I think the fact that the writing (and everything else!) had to be so so condensed was of benefit to the production, because there could be no “oh I’ll write that tomorrow”; everything had to be done as quickly as possible, which was quite liberating in a way. It gave me permission as a writer to just sit down and bash out a scene, even if I knew it wasn’t quite there, which I think is so much more productive than getting caught up in the intricacies of phrasing a particular line.

What was it like seeing your work on the stage for the first time? Was it as you imagined?

SJ: Terrifying! I just had no idea if the play would work as an idea… whether the audience would stay engaged over eight different stories, whether they’d care about the characters, whether the stories would actually make sense to a fresh set of ears and eyes.

We staged it in traverse, so could see the

Find people who believe in you and everything become a lot easier.

Emma Rogerson 2nd Year, English - Spotlights New Writing Festival 20th March @ PRSC, Bristol - Moody , 19th22nd March @ Oldham Coliseum, Manchester - Ebbing, 26h March @ Bernie Grant Arts Centre, London

audience reactions on the other side of stage, so seeing audiences react to moments was ace.

In lots of ways, seeing the show on stage just showed how much more work there could be done to the play, so let’s hope we get chance to put it on again!

Do you only write plays or other forms of writing too? If you do, do you feel like that affects your style?

that person.

Is there anything else you’d like to tell us about the experience?

CC: Butterfly has been an insane process, but I’ve loved every second of it. And that’s down to the incredible creative team who have been endlessly supportive and positive and kind (and on hand with snacks and coffee).

SJ: I’ve also written short films, which is quite different. With films, the emphasis is often really on telling stories visually, rather than through speech. There’s definitely a different grammar to both, but despite this, I think they share a lot. Making audiences care, revealing information, how people work… they’re all crossovers.

I think film has made me enjoy making theatre more visual, and do think you can still say a lot on stage without any sound, or have both working against each other, so what you’re looking at is at odds with what you’re hearing.

That tension is fun. I think film tends to have shorter scenes, and I think that was mirrored when writing Butterfly. We wanted all the scenes to be roughly the length of a song, and for each to feel like they’re from the same world, but all quite distinct, which I guess is a bit like a cut to another scene in a film.

CC: I occasionally write poetry too, and I dabble in journalism, but I feel like those three voices - play, poem, article - are very separate in my head. Especially because writing for the stage is so much about character, I would only really draw on a more poetic or journalistic voice if that made sense in that moment for

This is just a snippet - check out all the playwrights’ full interviews online, to be released w/c 18th of March

Facebook / Sam Jones

What inspires you?

find each character’s voice, and I’d be sat in the corner, writing as much as possible of each scene live in rehearsal. Sam and I would then refine what I’d written, which was then brought into the rehearsal room the next day, to be chopped and changed in response to new discoveries we made. So it was a real collaborative process!

Is there anything else you’d like to tell us about the experience?

Facebook / Emma Rogerson

What inspires you?

Well I was onstage with the work as I was playing the character based on me! It was amazing to just watch everything come to life and to be able to interact with my own characters. The hardest part was not laughing at my own terrible jokes.

08.03.2019 epigram

Arts 39

The Arts Careers Lowdown Missed Arts Careers Week? Don’t know what internships are even out there, nevermind what you want to do? No fear: we gathered up the best tips, so you don’t have to!

Internships and Opportunities around Bristol Journalism/editorial experience

Graphic Design experience

Art gallery experience Community art space, Spike Island, is recruiting volunteers to help them welcome visitors, support the running of events and talk to visitors about the art and ideas in their programme. You’ll receive complimentary tickets to Spike Island events and gain valuable experience in an arts organisation.

Marketing, Advertising, PR and Communication

► Your previous experienc is as valuable

► Although the old agency format

as your degree: get involved in charities now so you can demonstrate handling volunteers, events and communications.

They want to have proof of your abilities.

of marketing and advertising may be changing, there’s a huge new demand for young people due to the wealth of copywriting needed on the internet.

► It’s especially important in this

► While marketing, advertising, PR and

sector to be led by personal passion. In interview, remember that the people around you are more enthusiastic about their organisation than most - feed off it, and bond with them over how much you care, too!

communication all have distinct roles within media, they share the fundamental purpose of telling a story in a memorable way. If you enjoy being persuasive, playing around with words and being in a people-focussed sector, research on sites like Prospects for how you could fit in.

► While it may not be the most personally

Local online and print magazine, Bristol 24/7, invite applications all year round for their week-long work experience placements. You could be busy dashing round Bristol covering local events for their news pages, reviewing restaurants, interviewing locals or even creating graphics for their website.

To apply, send a short cover letter (max.

400 words), your CV and a link to a piece of your previous work online.

Media company, Wildfire Communications, offers hands-on one to two week work experience placements for aspiring graphic designers looking for an immersive media experience.

You’ll need some experience in using Adobe InDesign, Photoshop and Illustrator.

Applications involve sending in a CV and no more than three examples of your design work.

Charity and Not-forProfit Sector

lucrative career, the professionals consistently affirm how amazing it is to work in an industry ‘of just really nice people’, and the satisfaction from knowing you are doing something worthwhile.

► There are big differences in the

► Remember that working for a small

► Networking is key in this industry,

vs. big charity is huge: in a big charity you’ll need to specialise in a skill or role, whereas small charities allow you to get into a bit of everything.

but it’s easier than you think. People are always more open that you’d expect, and proactiveness will take you far. Be interested in others, and always be nice!

Publishing

► If you know publishing is your thing,

► Keep an open mind about publishing

Recognising the non-academic skills you learnt from your degree isn’t naff; bring it up as evidence that the job would be safe in your hands

environment of working in-house, for an agency or freelance. Consider this when applying, to find somewhere that suits you best.

houses - just because you’re not a scientist doesn’t mean you can’t consider medical journal publishing or a science textbook publisher. You never know what you might love, so take every opportunity.

Consider your skills before your subject.

► Working for a small versus a large publishing house is an entirely different experience. Know what motivates you would you rather do a bit of everything, or have a defined role in a large company?

► Publishing often feels like a tight-knit industry - go to networking events, as the more people see your face, the more likely they are to come up to you.

it may be worthwhile to do a specific masters course, or an evening parttime course. The skills you gain will demonstrate you’re ready for the technical abilities required.

► There is so much more to publishing than just editorial. Do some research: maybe you’ll discover your place in production, distribution, sales or marketing.

► There are many sub-sectors: academic publishing, journals, books, magazines, just to name a few. You will likely find more opportunities to move around within a sub-sector than between them midcareer, so take the time to do internships in order to discover what’s right for you.

AND IF YOU READ ONE THING: The catch-all tips brought up repeatedly by the pros

► Consider what success looks like to you: how do you want to work? In what kind of environment? What do you want from the job or company?

► Never underestimate the power of having a coffee with someone: reach out, ask for 15 minutes of someone’s time, make it as convenient as possible, and show a real interest in them and their job.

► What comes first: the job or the experience? If you find yourself in the paradox of job searching - being rejected from entry level jobs for ‘lack of experience’ - create your own opportunities. Begin a consistent blog, start a new society, build a website, approach smaller organisations and offer to help out for free.

►

Your degree isn’t ‘worthless’: remember that presentation group that was the bane of your life? The extensive research for your diss? Guess what: that’s teamwork, presentation skills, research organisation and personal time management. Recognising the nonacademic skills you learnt from your degree isn’t naff; bring it up as evidence that the job would be safe in your hands.

► Make the most of networking online: Don’t be shy about joining groups on LinkedIn to get an insider view of an industry, and use social media to keep connections going.

► Show your side hustle: companies are increasingly interested in what makes us unique. Be vocal about your penchant for pottery, your cafe reviewing obsession, or your love for filmmaking - it could even become a part of your work.

A couple walks into a bar...

Third Year Chemistry students, Ritu Patel and James Davies, kindled their romance in the lab over the flames of a bunsen burner, but decided to do something a little different last week with a trip to ‘The People’s Comedy’ at PRSC What kind of thing do you usually do for dates?

RP: Normally we go for a pint or six or we go for a walk and explore Bristol.

Why did you choose a comedy night for your date?

RP: To be honest, I thought I’d humour my housemate, who has been trying to

me laugh a lot. There was a lot of audience interaction which I am glad we managed to avoid. It probably wouldn’t be the best choice if you want to chat to your date, but maybe that’s what you’re looking for?

What would you rate it out of 10 as a date destination? Explain your score.

JD: Keep an eye out for the next one. It was so jokes.

JD: 9/10 - I don’t normally find many comedians funny, but I was in tears laughing for the majority of the evening. I think that the red wine maybe contributed a little to how funny I found it...

RP: 8/10 - I was slightly worried that it wasn’t going to be good, especially since I was the one that chose it, but it turned out to be a great night.. Some of the comedians had some questionable sets but they made

Any final comments?

AM: I’d recommend it if you want a chill date. It’s nice to do something different that’s not too expensive. They have comedy every week in Stokes Croft so you should defnitely check it out.

Since they enjoyed their trip to the comedy night so much, Ritu and James have decided to break into the Bristol comedy circuit as a double act telling exclusively Chemistry related jokes. They aim to make it the PRSC stage soon and hope to see other UoB arty daters at their gigs.

Epigram / Ritu Patel

JD: Usually we just go to the pub or something chill one on one.

get me to do an arty date for ages. I opted for the comedy night because it wasn’t too expensive and I thought it would be a nice change to what we normally do. Also, it was in Stokes Croft so I knew there’d be loads of good places to go for our customary pint afterwards.

epigram 18.03.2019

40 Arts

Richard III returns in brutal adaptation Tangible, visceral and terrifying, Epigram reviews Bristol Old Vic’s re-imagining of Shakespeare’s Richard III

First Year, French and German

“Richard’s hyperbolic demise allows the audience to carnally revel in the zeitgeist of bloody revenge”

spectral tormenting of Richard before the Battle of Bosworth Field.

Furthermore, a dystopian royal balcony has been chiselled into the homogenous set - the location of Richard’s wonderfully macabre coronation, in which he gleefully snatches the orb and sceptre, whilst below, the company perform a dark ritualistic choreography to crescendoing Gregorian chant.

Richard (Tom Mothersdale) is acutely aware of the audience’s presence throughout, and it is as if his actions are an attempt to show off to us; he takes sick pleasure in any reaction we grant him. He intimately brings us into the fold so that we become accessories to his murders; Frank Underwood-esque audience manipulation appears to have been an inspiration.

Richard’s soliloquies in the first half are delivered with such impudent irreverence, we acquiesce in his heinous crimes, and

even begin to forgive our anti-hero, such is his debauched charisma. His oneliners evoke a raucous audience reaction, especially in the sizzling repartee between Richard and Anne (Leila Mimmack), which is an exercise in comedic delivery par excellence, as intense hatred transmutes into passionate marriage before our eyes. It is the stand-out scene.

This veneer ebbs during the interval, and we return to a series of restless, fractured vignettes as “hell hound” Richard loses his bony grasp on England’s throat. His previously symbiotic relationship with us changes; he picks on an audience member to whom he delivers his most threatening monologues.

The shifting sands of favour and betrayal are well portrayed by a constant transience of stage exits and entrances. The defection of his previously loyal spin-doctor Buckingham (Stefan Adegbola) sends

Bristol Old Vic / Marc Brenner

“To dream upon the crown” is the twisted mantra to which this expression of animalistic humanity is set. John Haidar’s reworking of Shakespeare’s 1593 play recounts the Machiavellian ascension and pitifully short reign of King Richard III. This play viscerally spouts the proverb ‘you reap what you sow’, and Richard’s hyperbolic demise allows the audience to carnally revel in the zeitgeist of bloody revenge.

Rather than yielding to the temptation of creating a breeches-and-all production with hackneyed RSC receivedpronunciation, Haidar instead places us in what seems more akin to 1980’s East Berlin; smart, androgynous costumes and the copious usage of utilitarian lighting and a contemporary soundtrack evoke an atmosphere of state-secrets and Stasi oppression, whilst also retaining a potently Shakespearian streak. Each scene is rich in strobes and intrigue; a single red flash signifies yet another murder in the spiralling body count.

The set is a single porous artistic installation: a mirrored cage, a warren of seven doors – one for each of Richard’s victims – from which their ghostly forms frequently appear. Most effective is their

Spotlights’ My People Epigram reviews My People, an original tragicomedy about Jewishness, family and coming-of-age

Third Year, History of Art

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alking into The Pegg Theatre, you are transported from the SU to quite a different setting. A place with grape juice instead of wine, matzah instead of bread, and ham hidden sneakily in a Flora butter container. This is Passover, or, at least, Asha’s Passover, a night where she must endure her complex family.

My People, written and directed by Elliot Brett and produced by Jason Palmer, has been promoted as a “dark, proudly-Jewish comedy centred around the relationship between Asha and her mother Debra.”

As such, it could be expected that the play would be awkward, attempting to tread around uneasy cultural jokes and uncomfortable family dynamics. Instead, Brett manages within the first few minutes

“... despite Margolin being a second year, after watching her attempt to marinade a salmon using a Youtube tutorial, anyone would be convinced of her role as a middle-aged Jewish mother”

Facebook / Spotlights

Hudi Charin

of the play to perfectly introduce the key characters and their relationships to each other in such a way that the audience feels instantly acquainted with each person.

Despite many uneasy moments, each situation is so masterfully managed that the play is never too awkward to enjoy. Every Jewish reference and joke is well-placed and never exclusionary.

In fact, it is actually surprising just how funny My People is. Brett’s wit, combined with superb acting from every cast member, means that in many darker scenes, there are laugh-out-loud moments. Dan Sved as Toby was a particularly hilarious device throughout, whilst Bron Waugh’s appearance was short, but perfectly played, and a well-needed laugh in a bleak scene.

The play is a rollercoaster of emotion, with the script and cast steering the journey perfectly. A particularly thoughtprovoking, poignant scene revolved around the traditional song ‘Dayenu’, or, ‘it would have been enough.’ The utilisation of the song’s message and application to the play’s characters was genius.

Spot-on casting meant every character was entirely believable. Eden Peppercorn embodied the troubled 17 year old Asha from her starting monologue and

throughout. Likewise, from the moment Holly Cattle delivered her first cutting line -“don’t gender me, I may be a they-brew”she embraced each quip and remark of snarky Rachel. Oskar House’s Dragon Den pitch as Eli would make anyone want to buy the naked popcorn flavour.

Despite each character being flawed and often troubled, they are written and played with such warmth that they are all likeable. Even Jacob Longstaff as James, perhaps the villain of the play, was

portrayed sympathetically. Ella Margolin as Debra was particularly noteworthy.

Despite Margolin being a second year, after watching her attempt to marinade a salmon using a Youtube tutorial, anyone would be convinced of her role as a middle-aged Jewish mother.

Little more can be said that would give the play justice. The impeccable timing, well-crafted family dynamics and dramatic plot twists cannot be praised highly enough.

MTB / Laura Travis

Bristol Old Vic / Marc Brenner

George Ruskin

Richard further down a manic spiral, which ends in a catharsis to end all catharses when Richard now covered in mud writhes, spits and curses whilst being tormented by his company of victims.

Hyperbole is uniquely harnessed as a reflection of Richard’s megalomania. Blood spurting as Richard bites off Hastings’ (Heledd Gwynn) ear, Hastings’ severed head being exhibited in a bloodied plastic bag or Richard’s writhing stoop: the grotesque often strays into farce.

However, with the exception of the rather amateurish knife fight between Richard and Richmond (Caleb Roberts), these elements serve rather to embellish Richard’s puerile personality. This is expressed sensitively when The Duchess of York (Eileen Nicholas) scolds him as only a mother can. Richard, crazed, still cowers from his mother’s furore.

Richard is a multifaceted character, and this is Haidar’s most successfully reworked element. Richard III views Richard through the lens of enlightened reason - we now call him a psychopath, a phenomenon that didn’t exist in the 16th century. Such a clinical reinterpretation makes the plot more tangible, more visceral and more terrifying.

Music

epigram 18.03.2019

Editor: Alexia Kirov Deputy: Joe Gorecki Online Editor: Bethany Marris @EpigramMusic

epigram_music

epigram_music

Looking back at the birth of trip-hop: When Bristol music went ‘Out of the Comfort Zone’ Epigram Music recently spoke to Melissa Chemam about her new Masive Attack biography which explores the history of the ‘Bristol sound’ Joe Gorecki Deputy Music Editor

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ristol has been returning to its recent musical past twice in the past month. First Massive Attack, the biggest band of the ‘Bristol sound’, brought their ‘Mezzanine XXI’ tour to Filton Airfield to celebrate the 21st anniversary of their band-breaking trip-hop masterpiece, Mezzanine.

The other has been the release of the book ‘Massive Attack: Out of the Comfort Zone’

by Melissa Chemam, which charts the history of the ‘Bristol sound’. A indepth look into artists such as Massive Attack, Portishead and Tricky who all emerged from the southwest to worldwide acclaim during the 1990s.

The book, she says, was only supposed to take six months but four years later, it has finally been published in English by local Tangent Books and PC Press after the French edition came out last year.

I caught up with Melissa, a French journalist and African affairs expert at the BBC World Service currently based in London, before the packed launch of her book at Rough Trade. We met the afternoon after Massive Attack’s first Bristol date at the ‘Steel Yard’, the temporary custom built arena erected especially for their homecoming show on Filton Airfield.

Speaking of the Bristol performance, she came away incredibly impressed but for her it failed to match their sold-out appearance at Paris’ Le Zenith the month before, where the atmosphere, she says, was even better.

While Massive Attack are local Bristol legends, I wanted to ask her how she got into the band. ‘I grew up in the ‘90s so it was almost impossible to miss them’ she answers, ‘and I was big fan of music videos when I was young, and they had best videos. They were so cinematic and very intriguing.

‘They were very ahead of their time at every level: having female vocalists, having different voices on board, the mystery of who they were. I grew up near Paris in the suburbs and at the time we had a very evolving hip-hop scene. Massive Attack were the hip-hop version of the UK scene but so much more. More soulful. More electronic.

‘Now it’s been 30 years, it’s easier to look back and trace the links between all the artists. It’s still a very small scene which all happened at the same time, so it’s all connected unlike Manchester which had some very big bands but years apart.

The book is an intricate historical panorama of Bristol’s music scene from punk and reggae in the 1970s to hip-hop in the

Tangent Books and PC Press / Melissa Chemam

‘I was very surprised to learn that people are still spreading the rumour that 3D and Banksy are the same person.’

1980s and trip-hop and drum and bass in the 1980s. I wanted to ask her why it was that Bristol produced so much talent in such a short span of time. ‘Everyone I interviewed mentioned the size. Bristol is quite small and was always too close to London, so for a long time nothing was happening. The emergence of migration leading to a diverse melting pot in Bristol is important, and that’s what I cover [as a journalist].

‘I lived near the Carribean [in Miami], I lived in Africa and my parents are from North Africa so I thought it was an interesting and very modern story. The migrants are the heroes and this relationship changed the city and made it better. Usually we talk about migrants when they are unemployed or when there are riots but in that situation it’s the other way around.’

What drew Melissa to wanting to write about Massive Attack and their Bristol origins was the same thing that has given the band a renewed sense of purpose: their social conscience. Massive Attack use their light shows to make political statements with their Mezzanine XXI tour making use of graphic footage to raise awareness of the ongoing Syrian civil war and refugee crisis.

‘Before my book was out,’ Melissa says, ‘I was mainly focussed on the refugee crisis. I went to Calais, to northern Iraq, Sicily and the border between France and Italy and then I came here as well. Massive Attack travelled to Lebanon five years ago and visited refugee camps there.

‘They took a journalist from The Independent with them so that they would focus on what was happening there instead of focussing on their shows. [It showed] what kind of band they were, not promoting

anything, no new album. I started my research around that point.’

Over the course of writing the book Melissa managed to interview most of the key players of the Bristol scene and trip-hop movement but I was particularly interested in what it was like meeting the band, duo Robert ‘3D’ Del Naja and Grant ‘Daddy G’ Marshall, seeing as they prefer to remain elusive and rarely give interviews. ‘[It was] surprisingly casual, I came to the studio and they were really cool’.

The bizarrest thing about it, she says was that ‘we couldn’t stop talking – I thought they would be grilling me with “what do you want?” [but] 3D has an amazing memory though and his main worry was about representing [the whole scene] and everyone.

‘I wanted to focus on 3D’s art as well’ Melissa adds ‘he’s a fantastic artist and he’s not displayed as much as some of the great British artists of his time like Damian Hirst. I think his art is very challenging so there was a bit more to say about his journey and how he changed.’

She notes that the band’s reputation for thought provoking visual shows comes from 3D - ‘how the music is performed live came from him: he’s the one who had the idea to change the band from the sound system to a live band.’

The difficulties in writing about the scene, she adds was making sure the structure worked, ‘events happened at the same time, but the book is told chronologically. For example, [Portishead’s Dummy is released one month before [Massive Attack’s second album] Protection and the first single from Tricky’s Maxinquaye. So much happening but none of the bands would have included the other bands in their own story.’

I wanted to find out if there was anything she learnt over the course of writing the book that surprised her or wasn’t expecting. ‘How big the street art scene was from the very beginning,’ she replies. ‘The ‘Graffiti Art’ exhibition [at the Arnolfini] in ‘85 was one of the first, probably the first exhibition of

street art in an respected art gallery and it was basically 3D getting a lot of guys together.

‘At the time the Wild Bunch [Massive Attack’s precursor collective] were being completely revolutionary in the Dug Out and the graffiti scene was so big and it seemed to be happening by magic, so I was trying to find out how it was possible. I wanted to ask them ‘how did that happen?’ but obviously when you’re the ones doing it, it sounds so normal to you.

‘Also, how Banksy and the band work together. I was very surprised how people are still writing about the rumour that they’re the same person.’

I ask her if she’s unconvinced by the rumours that 3D is actually Banksy which was seemingly confirmed by Goldie in 2017.

‘It’s not that I’m not convinced,’ she responds incredulously. ‘It’s obviously not possible.

When Banksy was starting out, he left Bristol for East London and hardly anyone knew him and he was graffitiing intensely. [At that time] Massive Attack were touring the world – they were super famous and best mates with Blur and Kate Moss and were in Japan and America for months, definitely not living in a dump in Hackney’.

At the book launch, Melissa confirmed that she had not knowingly met Banksy personally but that she couldn’t be sure. Before letting her go and begin signing books for her eagerly anticipated launch at Rough Trade, I wanted to ask of all Massive Attack’s diverse output, which album was her favourite? ‘It’s really hard, I love them all but I have a special love for 100th Window, which is funny as it’s not really appreciated here. I think it’s their most experimental and daring, but also their most gentle.

‘It’s also their post 9/11 album and inspired by all the changes [brought by] the internet in politics and society but it’s the redemption album: you dig down and then find yourself again, it’s something really deep.

‘Massive Attack: Out of the Comfort Zone’

by Melissa Chemam is out now.

Below: ‘Teardrop’ during Massive Attack’s Mezzanine XXI show in at the Steel Yard, Bristol (Epigram/Joe Gorecki)

epigram 18.03.2019

Music 42

‘Our sound isn’t particularly fashionable’ In conversation with Drenge Owain Jones

Epigram Music recently sat down with brothers Eoin and Rory Loveless from Drenge to talk punk politics, touring and why their latest album took four years to make Bethany Marris Online Music Editor

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ince 2015, Drenge have stood as a trio comprised of Eoin and Rory Loveless, and their most recent recruit, bassist Rob Graham. Initially, however, Drenge was a completely Loveless project, with the brothers breaking out onto the UK music scene in 2013 and establishing their sound through grungy tracks such as ‘Bloodsports’ and ‘Fuckabout’.

Since their self-titled debut, Drenge have released two more critically acclaimed albums, Undertow from 2015 and this year’s Strange Creatures. I sat down with Eoin and Rory before their intimate ‘Philharmonic, Live and Signing’ Event at Bristol’s Rough Trade.

Conversation immediately turned to the groups’ latest release. After all, the Philiharmonic sessions, which also took place at venues including Rough Trade East, and Rough Trade Nottingham, were an opportunity for the boys to tour and

Epigram / Bethany Marris

‘The original punks are old people now: they’ve got bus passes.’

promote Strange Creatures.

The 2019 record took around four years to produce, a stark contrast to debut album Drenge which was ‘thrashed out quickly over the course of a few weekends’. The pair attribute this to their relaxed approach in conjuring their third album, ‘this one we took a lot more time getting it right’ [R]. Set- backs caused by the band’s producer were also mentioned, yet this isn’t something that they dwelled upon, and brushed off the issue considerately - ‘we were delayed

by our producer, but that’s ok’ [E].

Also on the topic of their Philharmonic session, Eoin reflects on the way in which playing smaller venues and shows to more intimate crowds ‘comes naturally’ to them, as ‘it’s what we set out doing’, regardless of the ‘ego boost’ that comes with playing to a vast audience. Eoin also explained that ‘it’s good to have a bit more of an intense connection’, as ‘you get a greater sense that people come and travel to see you a bit more’.

When the question of festival playing was raised, both members maintained that ‘a healthy balance’ of headline shows and summer performances is necessary. ‘Just as you’re getting seriously sick of it, it finishes, and then you go back into venues and you get vitamin D deprivation and you think “oh I miss being out and playing to loads of happy people”’ [E].

Rory also highlighted the pleasant experience of playing to a slightly smaller festival crowd, fondly citing ‘Knee Deep Festival’ in Cornwall where they put on a ‘tiny show’ for ‘about 500 people in a field’.

On touring abroad, the brothers highlight the ‘surreal experience’ of playing in Japan, where ‘there were people that knew all the words and had been waiting for us on the barrier’. Eoin considers that ‘on the one hand it’s not surprising if people are really into music that they know about it, yet it’s crazy (in the context) of not being able to find work and being a bit confused about what was going on in the world and who we were’., before Drenge took off.

Shifting discussion from the stage to the studio, Drenge are pleased to have ‘broken through a couple of our inhibitions on the record that we’ve just put out’, and are inspired when ‘listening to other artists with the ability to bring jazz, pop, experimental and tribe music seamlessly’ into genres such as ‘metal’ [R]. That said, they understand that ‘you can’t just make a hip-hop album’ as a Punk artist, ‘it’s all about it being right’ [E].

The brothers initially took a great deal of inspiration from bands such as ‘Green Day, The Hives, White Stripes, and even the Arctic Monkeys’, not to mention ‘A lot of American garage rock’.

As they acknowledge, the sound of Drenge ‘isn’t particularly fashionable’, they don’t follow trends, and this has allowed them to amass a following across generations. Eoin explains, ‘we played in London the other day and the people who came to get the record signed were all ages’, ‘it’s a good spread’, affirms Rory, and Eoin takes the subject further, contemplating that ‘the original punks are old people now, they’ve got bus passes. It’s not surprising to see a bunch of old people at our shows because they’ve always been into it’.

Despite their punk politics, the brothers are humble, and remain unaffected by the successes that the last six years have brought them.

Strange Creatures is eerie, eccentric and almost Cure-esque in parts. Drenge are back with their most ambitious project yet, and in the coming months will be embarking on a not-to-miss UK tour alongside Brighton-based Rock band, The Wytches.

The rise of Welsh language music

Third Year, Physiological Science

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ollowing last month’s Welsh Language Music Day, people are really starting to take notice of what’s happening west of the border. Even though many Welsh musicians have risen to stardom through singing in English, like Grammyaward winning Tom Jones, Welsh-language artists are finally getting the recognition they deserve.

Most recently, teenage rock duo Alffa made headlines by becoming the first Welsh language song to hit the one million stream milestone on Spotify, with their Royal Bloodesque‘Gwenwyn’ (‘Poison’) reaching an unprecedented two million streams. Unheard of for a Welsh band, it has certainly caused a hype around the growing Welsh music scene.

I joined a Welsh language band, Hyll, [pictured] as a hobby, but it soon become a passion. I have met some great people, played at venues across Wales, and have watched some exceptional young artists picking up

the reigns from past legends such as Gorky’s Zygotic Mynci and Super Furry Animals.

The annual, Welsh government-led Welsh Music Language Day was a sweeping success again this month through promoting new artists and organising free gigs throughout the country.

Welsh is the first language for many of Wales’ top musicians, but you don’t need to understand the language to appreciate the amazing music that’s coming out of Wales at the moment.

With studio time and equipment being so expensive, a major obstacle for young musicians is money. The Horizons scheme funded by BBC Cymru Wales was launched in 2014, which has been an invaluable platform for new bands in allowing them to experiment with new equipment to find their sound, and more importantly, having the resources to put their music out there for others to listen to.

They have funded over 150 artists across Wales, and have provided opportunity for Welsh bands to play at popular festivals such as Green Man. The band that I play for personally received a grant from Horizons in 2017, meaning that we could finally afford to release our first, eponymous EP. Recently, in January 2019, BBC Wales aired a documentary titled the ‘Rockfield Sessions’, where some of Wales’ hottest new bands had the opportunity to perform at the studios where Queen’s iconic ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ was recorded, among other influential artists

Epigram / Owain Jones

With the annual Welsh Music Day and BBC Cymru’s Horizons programme, ‘Welsh music truly is in full swing’ Owain Jones

such as Oasis, The Stone Roses and Paolo Nutini. Music distributors like PYST are also vital for Welsh bands’ rising success, especially by helping them get onto Spotify playlists to give their steaming figures a substantial boost.

With such a vast variety of styles being

‘Welsh music is finally moving away from being seen as just one genre’

offered, Welsh music is finally moving away from being viewed as simply a single genre, with gig nights becoming tailored towards a certain style of music rather than throwing bands together solely based on the fact that they sing in Welsh.

The beautiful thing about gigging is that anyone can do it – it’s such an exciting time to be a young musician in Wales, with ample resources and fantastic organisations putting on gigs, the stage is set for more vibrant artists to reach the same heights as Alffa.

Welsh music truly is in full swing. I personally realised the sky-high potential it had whilst watching Gruff Rhys (former Super Furry Animals frontman) play a gig in Bristol.

Seeing a packed-out SWX crowd swaying along to a Welsh language song really hit home for me, proving that you don’t always need to understand the lyrics to appreciate great music.

With pioneers such as Radio One DJ Huw Stephens continuously pushing for more recognition towards our music industry, it seems destined to flourish and churn out great new bands for generations to come.

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Email us: music.epigram@gmail.com Join our Facebook group: Epigram Music Writers 2018/19

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Music 43

Review/ The Japanese House - Good at Falling Francesca Frankis reviews The Japanese House’s debut LP Good at Falling, alongside her live show at Rough Trade Bristol Dissonant Rose Photography

Francesca Frankis Second Year, History

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he Japanese House, the project of solo artist Amber Bain, recently released her debut album ‘Good at Falling’. When first arriving onto the indie music scene back in 2015, Bain kept her identity largely shrouded in mystery.

Having little social media presence and no press photos, speculation led people to even think it was a side project of the 1975’s Matty Healy. Yet, Bain has transformed herself from this once wholly mysterious figure, to someone comfortable in attaching her own identity to her work, and exploring an array of personal issues with no uncertainty. Throughout the album, Bain stays true to her earlier sound, mixing intriguing vocal effects with heady layered synths and glittery guitar parts. ‘Good At Falling’ proves itself as a unique record, an archetype of indie dream pop.

‘Good at Falling’ does what any good album should, it takes you on a kind of a journey. Bain hasn’t held back in documenting the emotional turmoil she went through after the end of a four year relationship with fellow singer/songwriter Marika Hackman. Naturally, many tracks deal with this subject. The start and end of the record establish themselves as stark

‘Good at Falling’ is the ideal first album, it is introspective and epic in all senses of the word.’

contrasts; with the intensely electric and autotuned intro ‘went to meet her’ that pours out charged vocals, laid on top of smooth synths. Juxtaposed by the final track, a grounding and stripped back version of her 2016 hit ‘saw you in a dream’; which draws the album together perfectly.

The tracks that come between are equally pleasing and all in all represent a succinct attempt from start to end of making sense of, and the eventual acceptance of a dying relationship. Some of the stand out tracks of the record do this particularly well, including ‘Lilo’ and ‘We talk all the time’. But it would be foolish to suggest that this is just a ‘break

up album’. Bain roots through a number of other important personal themes, like on the track ‘Maybe you’re the reason’ which sees the speaker trying to wade herself through the depths of an existential crisis.

Alongside ‘everybody hates me’, in which she recounts feelings of guilt and alienation after a night out; ‘Replaced all of my friends with A linen sheet, a takeaway box And an incomplete crossword block’ Another track ‘Wild’, which is sandwiched between the upbeat ‘We talk all the time’ and the ironically happy sounding ‘You seemed so happy’, was written when Bain

was only 17. Reflecting back on the angst and confusion Bain says she experienced in her teenage years. Achieved through abstract lyrics overlaid upon an ethereal ambient soundscape, decorated with wobbly electric synths and chopped up vocals. All of the tracks on the album example something Bain is good at; overlaying poetic and poignantly reflective lyrics onto a multitude of different sounds.

On the release day of the album, at Rough Trade, The Japanese House gave a short performance of some of the tracks off the record. Bain followed her keyboardist and bassist onto the small stage before a brief introduction. Some of the standout tracks like ‘Lilo’ and ‘You seemed so happy’ were played alongside the less conforming track ‘faraway’. Fittingly the performance was drawn to a close with ‘Saw you in a dream’, a fan favourite evidenced in the way everybody chanted along to the satisfying guitar melody. After a quick thank you and goodbye she was whisked away off stage. The performance unmistakably revealed how at home Bain is already with performing tracks off of the album.

The Japanese House has changed drastically since the start of her career.

Once a shrouded figure and distorted voice buried behind complicated electronic ballads, to a now somewhat extroverted character, preserving her unique sound as an artist whilst still producing her most accomplished work yet. ‘Good at Falling’ is the ideal first album, it is introspective and epic in all senses of the word. As the listener you are taken on a journey of The Japanese House’s own self discovery. Her contemplative inner voice, truly a reflection of what Bain would have gone through in constructing the album herself.

Good at Falling is out now on Dirty Hit

Ider: We want to make a beautiful sound but we want the content to be real After tours of the USA and the Phillipines, Ider are back in the UK. Zoë Crowther speaks to the duo ahead of the release of their debut album Zoë Crowther Students’ Union Correspondant

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ecently described by The Guardian as ‘ones to watch’ and having completed tours of the Philippines and the US, it is clear that Ider, made up of Lily Somerville and Megan Markwick, are enjoying their new found wave of success.

Ider’s sound can best be described as mellow electronic pop, with enough vocal strength and instrumental creativity to keep the pace exciting and memorable. The most striking element is Lily and Meg’s vocals, with perfectly polished harmonies sung against shimmering cascades of synth tones and percussion.

I asked them how to they came together to form Ider back in 2016: Lily: ‘We met in Falmouth about six or seven years ago. We got thrown into a group together on our music course, became mates and starting making music together.’

Meg: ‘Our friendship is what creates the music, it’s at the core of what we do.’

Their close relationship came across through their performance. It felt like you were watching two friends mess around in their living room, and with casual injections of humour between each song, the atmosphere was warm and inviting.

According to Lily and Meg, their stage presence reflects the way they approach the song-writing process: Lily: ‘There’s no formula, it’s never the same and it’s really quite chaotic in the sense that sometimes Meg’s written a bit of a song and I jump on board and we start writing bits together or I bring some lyrics to the table.’

Megan: ‘We definitely have our strengths and weaknesses as well as musicians, in terms of the song-writing process. A massive strength of Lily’s is writing harmony and I really enjoy chord progression and rhythm.’

Ider’s songs communicate both optimism and melancholy, with the soothing tone of their harmonies in stark contrast to the unsettling issues confronted in their lyrics. ‘You’ve Got Your Whole Life Ahead of You Baby’ speaks to the indecision and pressure on young people to succeed, and ‘Body Love’ was written in the aftermath of a relationship breakup.

I wondered what inspired them to focus on real-life issues:

Flickr / johnharveypegg

Megan: ‘We like to address very brutally honest topics. In our record coming out this summer we’re tackling quite a lot of every day things that we experience as young women today. We want to make a beautiful sound but we want the content to be real and as we know, that often isn’t very pretty.’

Lily: ‘That’s what makes a real connection with people. Because our music is honest and vulnerable, people feel like they can be honest with us. Quite often people come with stories or we’ll get messages from people who

‘It feels like there’s a real friendship made with people who listen to our music.’

open up to us which is quite moving. It feels like there’s a real friendship made with people who listen to our music.’

Their first album is to be released later in 2019, which they have been recording for a year. Following their recent international tours, I questioned whether they felt their fan base was growing faster than ever: Megan: ‘It does feel like it has been building.

Our show in Manchester last night was so wild, we’ve never played a headline show there before and everyone was singing along to every single song.’

Lily: ‘And the Philippines were unlike anything we’d ever done in our lives before and it was amazing! We flew straight to LA from the Philippines, so went all the way around the world.’

Megan: ‘It’s a totally new fan base. The team over there will push it to the rest of South-East Asia then over into Australia… hopefully it will start the fire.’

Having started out as students, I asked whether Ider had any advice for new young musicians trying to get their music out there: Lily: ‘You just have to keep going.’

Megan: ‘You have to work your arse off for the smallest stuff. We have worked so hard and the pay-offs are amazing when they come.

Work hard and work to stay inspired.’

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Puzzles

Editor: Ruby Rosenthal

epigram

18.03.2019

puzzles@epigram.org.uk If you need any help, contact the editor by email or through social media

Jig Crystal

Fill in the four 8-letter words reading downwards around the outside of the grid so that each shares its first and last letter with its neighbours, and fill in the 4-letter words so that one appears in each of the hexagonal groups of four spaces. These can read clockwise or anti-clockwise, and all share at least one of their letters with a neighbouring word.

Digito Place each number from 1 to 9 in the grid so that the sum of the three numbers in each row and column add to the totals on the right of and below the grid.

4 Letters: ALSO ALTO ATOM BEET CAPE CITE ELMS EYED GLOB GRIN IN ON LETS MAIM

ODIN OGEE ORAL OTTO RAMS SEAT SMOG SNAP SOFA TWIT TYPO WETS

8 Letters: FAINTEST FOOTSTEP PANORAMA TASMANIA

Cryptogram Here, the letters that make up a popular quote have been substituted for numbers. To solve the puzzle, you have to figure out what the actual letters are and then use them to make up the quote.

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Solutions will be posted online at: epigram.org.uk/tag/puzzles facebook.com/epigrampaper If you would like to join the Puzzles Team,

46 Sport

epigram 18.03.2019

AeroSoc FC’s awesome intramural season Few other intramural sides have had a season quite like that of AeroSoc FC. Epigram explores their remarkable 2018/19 campaign

Freddie Keighley Online Sport Editor

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rone footage, tours and friendlies versus Bath Spa University Men’s Football might not be what you’d expect a middle-league intramural side to be getting up to.

Thousands of Bristol students take part each week, but some teams go above

and beyond in their enthusiasm for what intramural sport represents.

AeroSoc FC, led by Will Sankey, have been pushing the boundaries of what it means to compete and flourish at intramural level.

Epigram Sport sat down with AeroSoc FC’s third year captain to talk about what intramural represents for his team, their tour and their pioneering use of drone footage on the Downs.

‘For me, IM gives an opportunity to play the sport I love on a competitive level.’

Sankey continued: ‘Having a course-specific Aerospace team is great because it promotes interaction between year groups and likeminded people.

‘It allows people to train weekly and

“Toulouse was decided on as the destination, with a squad of 19 trooping off to France in late January”

AeroSoc FC

play competitively without a huge time commitment.’

AeroSoc FC’s success in the 2017/18 season was the platform for bigger things this campaign. ‘After winning the league twice last year, the only way to top it this year was to improve off the pitch. This included more socials, playing in exhibition matches outside the usual Wednesday league and more regular training sessions.

‘All this promoted a stronger sense of team cohesion. The ultimate combination of these things is a football tour. So, we gauged interest, established a budget and started looking at cheap flights!’

Toulouse was decided on as the destination, with a squad of 19 trooping off to France in late January after somehow finding an apartment large enough to fit them all.

Following a formal dinner on the Saturday evening and a taste of the French nightlife on offer, a match followed against a local university team the next day.

Sankey expressed his delight at the state of the pitch: ‘The fixture gave us an opportunity to play on a full size, flat pitch - not quite the Downs!

‘Despite losing the game 3-0, we held our own and had ample chances to make a mark and enjoyed going toe-to-toe with quality opposition.’

AeroSoc FC maintained a football theme throughout their Gallic travels, watching Toulouse FC play Angers FC in Ligue 1 on Sunday evening.

‘This was brilliant because it kept the tour football-focussed, although this didn’t

prevent a flat party of biblical proportion after the game’, said Sankey. As the old adage goes: what happens on tour, stays on tour. After all, what better way to celebrate seeing a thrilling 0-0 draw at le Stadium de Toulouse.

The next day, an urban football centre was found and AeroSoc went head to head with each other, splitting into three teams and competing in a mini-league.

Sankey added: ‘This was a great chance for the more technical players to showcase their skill and was a great way to end what is hopefully the first of many “AeroTours”!’

Strikingly, over the course of this season, AeroSoc FC have been using drones to film some of their matches.

‘Being aircraft-geeks, it’s no surprise there’s a few drones going around the team’, said Sankey. ‘One of the lads decided to bring it along to our matches and film them.’

Operating a drone on the Downs is no mean feat: ‘As its battery life is quite short, it requires a bit of luck to capture the goal highlights, the best of which came against EFM when we slotted eight goals past them in the first half, capturing four on camera!’

Sankey has big plans for the future: ‘The next step will be filming training and using it to analyse player performances. However, no pun intended, I’m not sure this will take off!’

Perhaps AeroSoc FC’s greatest achievement is undertaking all this whilst never forgetting the ethos of intramural sport here in Bristol: semi-competitive, fun and sociable above all else. Their future is sky-high.

I’m starting with the man in the middle Abuse towards the referee is a plague that infects all levels of football; those in the game should do more to curb this tradition

Henry Edwards Sport Editor

Flickr/ Ronnie Macdonald

V

AR cannot come to the English league soon enough.

Not necessarily because it will eradicate errors, or make the game fairer by forensically determining whether a few strands of hair may be offside. Debates like these are comparatively unimportant when you consider the potentially vital transformation that VAR may well provide the catalyst for.

I am talking about improvements in the treatment of referees. Walk into any pub or living room during match-day, and you will likely be greeted by resentment towards the match officials at some stage. This can vary from minor grumbles, to full-blown tirades of rage.

Football in particular has a rich history of tolerating this kind of thing. The zenith of football hooliganism has always involved resentment towards the man in charge.

However, we live in a more sanitized sporting climate nowadays; the majority of us consume the sport on our devices, and enjoy highlights at the click of a button.

Stadiums are increasingly becoming family friendly – just take a trip to Ashton Gate – which has led to certain self-proclaimed ‘football purists’ to mourn the dwindling force of ardent tribalism.

So why does such vehement disrespect towards the referee persist? The Guardian

reported in April last year that a survey of over 17,000 referees discovered that ‘87% of respondents said that they had suffered from verbal abuse.’ Astonishingly, around one from seven stated that they had been physically assaulted on match day.

A similar BBC article from November gave numerous accounts of amateur referee experiences of abuse. One respondent, Thomas, wished to highlight the lack of respect for grassroots referees, ‘whether that be from spectators, players or managers.’

The behaviour of parents is certainly a deplorable area of concern. Speaking to The Guardian, a referee working in Minnesota revealed that her ‘under-10 matches are the worst. Those parents are the absolute worst.’ Growing up playing football for my town involved numerous instances in which parents and the junior players barked their disapproval at refereeing decisions; often these people were volunteers, giving up their Sunday afternoons so that children could enjoy the game they love.

However, I would hold that much more pertinent is the influence of professionals appearing on TV. Undermining the referee is a popular pursuit for fans, players and managers who appear on Match of the Day. The earlier mentioned Thomas specifically pinpointed this: ‘this is something that is seen week in and week out in the Premier League, yet the referees do not sanction any of the behaviour. Grassroots players, therefore, see this as acceptable.’

Tune into sporting news and you’ll casually see indignant managers lazily blaming match officials for their side’s most recent failure. Pochettino has recently been handed a touchline ban for failing to control himself after Spurs’ title hopes slipped away at Turf Moor. Roma’s Edin Dzeko

“Whether Troy Deeney, likes it or not, footballers and managers are role models”

inexplicably spat at the referee during his side’s hammering against Fiorentina. After calling out the officials after seemingly every match of 2019, Klopp was forced to change it up following a Merseyside stalemate. His most recent scapegoat? The wind.

Whether Troy Deeney likes it or not, footballers and managers are role models.

Their behaviour is watched and emulated by thousands. How they confront and refer

to match officials will inevitably have an impact on football fans, young and old, across the world.

Pundits, players and managers should accept accountability for their failings in this area. In the meantime, hopefully VAR will bring about a greater level of accuracy and shared responsibility to the extent that the practice of lambasting the man in the middle dwindles.

Sport 47

18.03.2019 epigram

Intramural teams prepare for Varsity The scale of the upcoming intramural Varsity events shows that the University’s intramural scene is going from strength to strength

Freddie Keighley Online Sport Editor

Bristol SU

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he scale of the upcoming intramural Varsity events shows that the University’s intramural scene is going from strength to strength.

On 27 March, over fifty intramural teams will take to Coombe Dingle’s courts and pitches to compete on Varsity Day. Epigram Sport caught up with Tom Wallis, Student Development Coordinator for Sport and Physical Activity, about how the Students’ Union is engaging more casual players in competitive sport ‘In recent years, Varsity has undergone a transformation that emphasises greater participation’, said Tom. ‘Simply, we’re trying to get more students kicking, running and competing in the series, so more people experience the thrill of a huge sporting event.’

Tom revealed that this is part of a broader shift within the University’s sport generally: ‘The #WeAreBristol Community is emphasising the participation of all athletes at Bristol, from club members, to intramural players to Fit and Fab session smashers.

‘All forms of physical activity matter and deserve to be recognised.’

Thrillingly, this year’s intramural Varsity is set to be the largest and most highly contested ever. UoB and UWE teams from halls, societies and friends are playing in knockout tournaments to crown an ultimate winner in each of football, netball, basketball and hockey.

Tom continued: ‘Whilst intramural emphasises social and relaxed sport, many

of our teams have an appetite for a game day experience which might not be attainable regularly due to ability levels, course pressures or other commitments.

‘Varsity is their chance to grapple with opposition teams on a big stage with an audience. Simply, it’s how we’re recognising and engaging our more ‘casual’ players in competitive sport.’

Despite intramural sport’s casual nature, some teams have already achieved great things this year. AeroSoc FC drew against Bath Spa’s (proper) football teams and some netball teams won the majority of their matches against Cardiff university teams.

The enthusiasm of all teams competing in Varsity is evident and many individuals wanted to voice their excitement on behalf of their teams before the big day.

Scott Davidson, captain of Chicken Tikka Mo Salah, is looking forward to the highquality surfaces the tournaments will be played on: ‘We are all looking forward to getting onto the pitches at Coombe Dingle.

Training has begun and hopefully we should be ready for a quality game towards the end of March.’

‘Intramural is a class way to get together and play the beautiful game. It’s a great

59%

Increase in number of competing teams compared to last year

“Intramural is a class way to get together and play the beautiful game”

laugh and is also a good standard of football, helping us to keep fit throughout the year,’ Davidson added.

Thomas Prais, of notorious football side BOTK, sees Varsity as a swansong after years of intramural action: ‘For some of us, this will be our last Varsity after four years of service. For others, it’ll be the first and they will be hungry to impress as they look to continue the legacy in the years to come.’

Captain of Past & Move FC, Sam Mills, believes that Varsity is ‘the opportunity to embrace a rivalry and play against a team from UWE, as well as measuring up against teams from different leagues in Bristol.’

Elsewhere, James Bloomfield, of Orbital Athletic, said that ‘intramural Varsity last year was the highlight of almost three years of playing intramural football. It’s the perfect combination of rivalry and banter, and having a referee is fantastic.’

Michelle Louise Farrow is relishing the prospect of competing with her netball team: ‘We are excited for the challenge of Varsity and hope to show off how great UoB intramural netball is’, also adding that ‘Intramural netball is played at good level without too much pressure and it gives us vets a break from intense study. It is always

something to look forward to.’

‘Varsity is going to be the ultimate challenge for Durdham Legends’, said Phoebe Ellis. ‘This fun-filled day is the perfect opportunity for a group of friends to come together, have a laugh and represent our university after years of playing together and developing friendships on and off the pitch’.

Finally, Fernan Osorno, of the North Village Stoke Ballers, sees Varsity as the culmination of playing intramural basketball every Saturday morning: ‘Over the months playing you start to recognise everyone the basketball community. We are looking forward to the Varsity tournament where we can compete and enjoy each others’ company.’

Intramural Varsity promises to be a fantastic day of competition on a bigger scale than ever seen before in Bristol.

Tickets for all other Varsity events can be found online.

If you’re interested in getting involved in intramural sports, you can do so through your halls (ask your JCR), through your society (ask your committee) or with your mates in a group. Otherwise, there will be ample opportunities to show your support.

UBAFC: Men’s football 1s thrash Southampton Bristol 1s and 3s both find themselves one game away from being crowned champions of their leagues

Daniel Dyson

Second Year, Politics and French

A

Sam Pagano providing the only solace by converting a penalty to put his team on the scoresheet.

Despite what captain Jonny Willis described as ‘a disappointing end to a promising season’, the 2s should take no shame losing to a superb Marjons side who have won all of their league games this season.

The final UBAFC team in action was Bristol 3s who are now in a two-horse race for the title against Plymouth 1s after winning 3-0 away at Exeter 4s.

On a difficult surface, the game started evenly with repeated pressure from both sides for the first 30 minutes, before Ryan Tully was able to square the ball to Chris Speed to make it 1-0 to Bristol. Exeter fought back hard and would have gone into halftime level if it wasn’t for two incredible

“Bristol sit in second place on 18 points with one game remaining, one point behind first-placed Bournemouth”

goal-line clearances from the skipper George Mayo.

Ten minutes into the second half, Chris Speed pressed Exeter’s goalkeeper into a mistake before being brought down whilst taking the ball round the keeper. A red card followed and a penalty was calmly slotted home by Tom Ryan.

Bristol controlled the rest of the game and extended their lead through their infamous corner routine, which saw Speed claim his second of the game with a powerful finish into the top corner.

Following this convincing victory, the 3s are now three points ahead of Plymouth with two games remaining for both sides.

Therefore, Bristol are in the driving seat for promotion, knowing just one win will wrap up the title, regardless of Plymouth’s results, due to the head-to-head rule.

Zack Shooter

thumping 7-0 win over Southampton 1s at home on Wednesday Febuary 27 puts the 1s in a commanding position going into the final league game of the season.

This match appeared no easy task for Bristol, as Southampton were also chasing the league title prior to the game. However, they were able to sweep the south coast side aside with ‘some of the best football we’ve played this season’, according to midfielder Ed Mahoney.

Bristol dominated the entire match, blowing their opponents away by scoring four first half goals. Three followed in the second-half, with the game’s goals coming from Jasper Harlington, Matt Hinks, Al Harlington, man of the match Will Gale as well as a hat-trick from striker Cam McEwan.

The win means Bristol sit in second place on 18 points with one game remaining, one

point behind first-placed Bournemouth 1s who have played all ten of their fixtures for the season.

A win in the final league game away at Southampton on Wednesday March 13 is needed. The league is decided on head-tohead results - which Bournemouth have the better of - rather than goal difference in the case of two teams ending on equal points.

The 1s will be encouraged by the nature of this win as they travel to Wide Lane.

There is also a realistic chance of cup glory as the 1s face a BUCS Trophy semi-final away at Bath 2s on March 6. Bristol have won both league fixtures against Bath this season – a 5-2 win away and a 2-0 win at home – so will be hopeful of progressing. On March 27, either Newcastle 1s or Nottingham 1s await the victor of the semi-final.

Meanwhile, Bristol 2s were defeated in the semi-final of the Western Conference Cup following a 4-1 defeat at the hands of Plymouth Marjon 1s.

Having suffered a heavy 5-1 defeat against the same opponents before Christmas, progressing to the final was always going to be a tough ask. The 2s’ task was not made any easier when the coach broke down on the way to the game, leaving Bristol with only ten minutes to warm up.

In truth, Marjons controlled the game and Bristol struggled to make an impact, with

Sport

Editor: Henry Edwards Deputy Editor: Charlotte Greenwood Online Editor: Freddie Keighley Deputy Online Editor: Barney Stone

With the girls and boys all in action, Bristol’s Ultimate club have been in fine form of late. Could this exciting game be the sport for you?

Nathan Sanders

Ultimate Frisbee Captain

T

his week has been one of great success for the University Of Bristol Ultimate Frisbee team, with record high showings as our Women’s First team qualified second in the West of England Region and earned themselves a spot at Division 1 Nationals in a couple of months time. The Men’s first team secured a win at the South West warm up tournament at the weekend followed by a close fought win against Cardiff on Wednesday.

Last weekend the Women’s Ultimate Frisbee squad had an incredible showing: not only did the 1st team finish 2nd in the west region and are now guaranteed a place in division 1 nationals in April, Bristol University were also one of the few in the country to have brought a 2nd team to Women’s Outdoor Regionals.

Bristol started the tournament in 7th place, and it was an uphill battle to the final with scheduled games against dominating teams such as Cardiff, Exeter

and Birmingham. Storm Freya graced us with heavy rain and winds of up to 30 mph, which made the conditions all the more difficult.

Nevertheless, Bristol 1 showed that all those training sessions on the wet and windy downs had paid off, as they remained patient, focused and driven. Bristol 1’s real strengths were, however, in their tactical offence, the infamous “Huck ‘n’ D”, and relentless defence, which enabled them to win universe point in most of their games.

After winning 4-2 against Swansea in the semi-final, they lost narrowly to Bath 4-6 in the final. The promise of a place in division 1 nationals had nevertheless made it an enjoyable final for the girls.

Bristol’s second team are also worthy of mention. Composed mostly of players who had just started playing this year, they grew in strength and finished off the weekend with a well-earned win against Southampton 1st team.

Stay tuned on the girls’ road to nationals this April.

On Wednesday last week the University Of Bristol Ultimate Frisbee team took on Cardiff in the last league game of the season.

Bristol started strongly and took an early three-point lead and were looking strong as the wind picked up and keeping possession became a real struggle. Cardiff put in a strong come back and after taking three points on the bounce they managed to fight

Bristol University Ultimate Frisbee Club

Mighty Mythago: Flying success for Bristol frisbee

“Bristol University were one of the few in the country to have brought a 2nd team to Women’s Outdoor Regionals”

their way back into the game and were able to take the half 8-6.

Bristol’s chances of securing a win were looking in doubt as we started the second half facing into a very strong head wind.

After a very strongly contested point Bristol managed to secure the first upwind point they needed, and the odds edged ever closer to a Bristol taking home a win. The game drew level as Bristol converted a short field turnover thanks to an incredible defensive layout by GB Paintball star James Green, an Ultimate Frisbee rookie for the 18/19 season.

All that was standing in their way of taking home a victory was one more upwind point.

The Boys fought hard and were rewarded when Cardiff turned over their possession close to their defending goal line. A risky throw to the safe hands of Charlie Stockley settled the game and Bristol came away with a well-deserved win.

The win sealed the deal on Bristol’s journey to nationals as they have now finished 2nd in the League and will be heading to Division 1 Nationals in April.

What is Ultimate Frisbee?

Ultimate Frisbee is a fast-paced noncontact passing game which brings together the best aspects of many other sports. It is played on a field that is similar to an American Football Field with a central zone and two End-Zones at either end. The rules are simple; the game is played 7-a-side over 70 minutes, you are forbidden to move

Varsity Is Here!

American sports are on offer on the 22nd of March, including Lacrosse, played under the lights at Coombe Dingle.

Watch both badminton and volleyball on the 25th in the Indoor Sports Centre.

Next day, but same time, same place; watch Bristol take on UWE at basketball on the 26th.

Football is to be played on the 27th at Coombe Dingle, while Netball fans can enjoy their sport of choice on the 27th.

SU ticket prices are very reasonable - the chance to engage in an age old rivalry awaits!

when you have the disc and the objective is to score as many points as possible; to score a point a member of your team must catch a thrown pass in the End-Zone. What sets Ultimate Frisbee apart from all other sports is that it is self-refereed, all players adhere to the rules of the game and all agree to play honestly by the rules as part of ‘spirit of the game’. It is the responsibility of all players to make sure the game is played by the rules and any breaches in the rules result in a fair and just outcome.

How do you get into the sport?

Ultimate Frisbee has been voted the #1 BUCS sport you should try at University, and 98% of our members have never played before they joined Bristol. It’s a great sport to get involved with at University as it doesn’t require a huge time or financial commitment and you can see yourself improving so quickly week after week while still having a lot of fun.

It’s never too late to get involved in the sport, as most people are complete beginners at university it is the best time to get involved, everyone at the club is very welcoming and willing to help you out. When I joined all of the experienced players were really friendly and made me really enjoy being apart of the team, and now I regularly compete with the first team and it has made my time at university all the more enjoyable.

Find us on Facebook at “University Of Bristol Ultimate Frisbee”