Epigram #288

Epigram 11.05.2015

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Council ‘misspelt’ names of Muslim voters In a further blow to University of Bristol Students’ Union (Bristol SU) efforts to increase student registration, Bristol City Council has been accused of incorrectly spelling the names of Muslim voters on the electoral register. This is the latest in a series of ongoing electoral blunders that appear detrimental to the effort to increase student voter numbers. It is not yet clear how many students have been affected.

Labour activists claim that they have come across voters with Islamic names who have had their details entered incorrectly on the electoral register. Some Muslim women have been entered as men, or have had their first and last names inverted, whilst the various spellings of the name Mohammed have been confused.

During the 2010 General Election the council was criticised heavily after an enquiry by the BBC revealed that it had sent thousands of postal voter forms to residents in Bristol West instead of Bristol East. Numerous ballot papers were also found in the wrong ballot box, delaying the final vote.

Bristol City Council has been accused of misspelling Muslim voters’ names

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Labour activists claim that they have come across voters with Islamic names who have had their details entered incorrectly

Bristol City Council, who commissioned the report, claimed that they had learnt from their mistakes in 2010. But this recent development indicates otherwise.

Bristol SU has recently led a push to increase student voter registration. Mistakes like this can only reduce the student population’s confidence in the system and undo the effort of the SU. Jo Woods, Union Affairs Officer said, ‘I think voter registration, especially in Bristol has been really frustrating and had a lot of hiccups this year. As a union we still haven’t been given the data on how many students in Bristol are registered, many students have had to register several times and I still haven’t received a polling card!’

There is a worry that Bristol’s Somali community, which is an underrepresented minority,may become even more disenfranchised by the council’s mistake. Fuad Mahamed runs Ashley Community Housing, a shelter in Easton for the vulnerable homeless and refugees. He said, ‘the Somali community already feel isolated and the last thing we want is for them to not vote and have a political influence.’

The council has insisted that those affected will not have their right to vote violated, but concerns have been raised that the blunder could cause financial problems down the line.

The Electoral Commission has confirmed that those who have been registered incorrectly may be denied credit by credit referencing agencies as they are unable to verify their details on the electoral register. Those affected may contact the council for a letter detailing the situation – but the council may charge a fee for supplying it.

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Alex Green News Reporter

Are staff workloads in More lectures to be the £9k era increasing? recorded at Bristol Sophie van Bercham News Reporter A Times Higher Education survey, which interviewed more than 4,000 university employees around the country, has suggested that the £9K fees era has led to an increase in university staff workloads, particularly among academics.

Many lecturers across departments at the University have ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ to there being a similar tendency at Bristol. A number have expressed feeling a shift in the atmosphere among staff as expectations from both the University and students have increased.

Moreover, acquiring research funding has become even more competitive, which also adds to staff workload. However, growing competition and work seem to be the result of a much larger trend pre-dating the rise in fees.

Dr Kenneth Austin, Senior Lecturer and Deputy Had of Subject in the History department, pointed out that even though ‘fees may have sharpened it [average workloads]’, other factors need to be taken into account.

Dr Ron Johnston, from the school of Geographical Sciences, mentioned the strong effect of ‘the increasing audit culture within universities and the demands for accountability and transparency’.

An anonymous source also viewed the ‘loss of localized administration support’, in the last 10 years, as a major cause of hours of teaching or researching lost.

A number of academics from the campaign to reinstate dismissed lecturers Alison Hayman have also cited concerns about the increasing expecations of lecturers.

The University’s increase in student numbers and concurrent rise in student-staff ratios was another recurrent reason that academics cited when explaining the roots of this now prevalent competitive environment.

Nonetheless, despite the increase of students’ expectations, the general quality of courses seem to be upheld. Scholars’ dedication was wellillustrated in recent students’ surveys.

Increasing pressure on staff here at Bristol does not appear to have gone unnoticed by university management. Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Professor Guy Orpen, stated, ‘We take the welfare of our staff very seriously and have a committee that oversees our work around promoting a healthy work/life balance, which is co-chaired by academic and professional services staff’.

Pressure, workloads and competitiveness are not expected to decrease anytime soon, although the Vice-Chancellor last week told Epigram that student-staff ratios ‘will start to go back down’, following significant rises in subjects including English, History, Law and Economics.

It is widely believed that the approach universities across the country take to regulate change can strongly affect the quality of the courses and the stability of academics’ work environment in coming years.

Rapid technological changes and the increased connectivity between students and university staff has led to the official introduction and full implementation of the Mediasite Project at University of Bristol. According to the University, this initiative ‘offers a significant opportunity to explore and develop these media enriched approaches to learning and teaching’.

The aims of the project are to enrich students’ learning experience in a twofold manner. Firstly it hopes to provide automated recordings of lectures which will allow students to review lecture content easily and effectively. Secondly, it will look to provide lecturers with the opportunities to broaden their teaching techniques with greater teaching technologies.

The project is hoped to allow students to focus on listening rather than frantically taking notes during lectures, use recorded material to help with revision, catch up on lectures they have missed and revisit their lectures on any device anywhere at any time.

On the flip side lecturers will be able to make supplementary content available before or after a lecture, edit any recordings and review the usage

of recorded material to decipher what works best for future recordings.

Alex Bradbrook, the Students’ Union’s Undergraduate Education Officer, told Epigram, ‘I’m really excited about this project and have been contributing to it throughout the year.

Students who have already had their lectures recorded at the University have found it really positive and have given it excellent feedback, and I’m really happy the University have invested in making it available for more students. It means that students will be able to access their lectures at their leisure, for revision and to catch up when they’ve not been able to attend in person’.

The ideas behind Mediasite are not new phenomena at Bristol, however. Various lectures have been recorded and uploaded onto Blackboard since 2009 in the Faculty of Social Sciences and Law. Mediasite hopes to spread this further and offer all students the opportunity to listen back to lectures. This will be the first cohesive Universitywide system for all students.

The project was first initiated after many student requests in January 2014 and piloted last October, with 263 lectures being recorded in the first term of this academic year. In January 2015 it was calculated that these lectures were reviewed 9,383 times.

A new project is to be launched which will lead to more lectures being recorded

British Council Russia

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Many lecturers in various departments have ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ to this being the case.

despite the increase of students’ expectations, the general quality of courses seem to be upheld

Issy May Bull Deputy News Editor

Epigram 11.05.2015

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VC pledges fall in student-staff ratios

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‘You’re quite right in saying those numbers [student-staff ratios] went up… But they’ll be coming back down too.’

‘They’re currently recruiting to put those numbers back to the ratios that went on beforehand. I don’t know how many people have been recruited into the Faculty of Arts in the last year, but it’s very, very significant. So you will see those numbers go back down again, or up, or whatever you want to say. There was kind of a lag phase between us [being] able to appoint the staff.

‘The Faculty of Arts said to us ‘We are a very small Faculty and it’s making it difficult for us academically to compete with the very best. We get hundreds to thousands of fantastic students, and we want to grow’. We went where people requested for more students. We didn’t just say “By the way: oh, you – English – we’ll give you more students”. They said “We would like more”’.

Thomas was also asked whether it had been a mistake to grow student numbers at the speed in which they increased given the accommodation problems that followed. Though it was put to him that accommodation provision could not have realistically been expected to increase in line

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‘I was told that we could manage the accommodation increase.

And the problems that we had last year were a question of completely unusual response to insurance offers.’

‘I was told that we could manage the accommodation increase. And the problems that we had last year were a question of completely unusual response to insurance offers. We’re always trying to land a helicopter on a very, very small landing spot here. What’s happened is that past history of student behaviour, or applicant behaviour, has proved to have no ability for you to foresee what’s happening. We always believed we could accommodate, and the problem was that we had far more insurance offers than we’d ever had beforehand last year. That’s what problem that was. We knew that building up the teaching accommodation would be tight…But we sensed an opportunity to build the University – and Bristol is a small university, massively oversubscribed – that probably wouldn’t come along again. What it has done, of course, has provide us with income to be able to invest more in the student experience, and we have been able to.’

Thomas was candid when pressed about his changing stance on the issue of living costs since Epigram and, later, The Guardian, in November 2011 broke news that the University was set to become the only Russell Group institution to abolish bursaries. He commented, ‘We genuinely believed at the time – and you can only make decisions in real time – that actually, and everyone was talking about it, that the level of fees would be the thing that put off people coming to university. We genuinely believed that. And therefore we started with the fee waiver. Because we thought, you know, if we do fee waivers, people will not be building up debt and therefore that won’t put them off coming here.

‘We turned out to be wrong. It’s as simple as that. What became clear was that the burden – and when you think about this, in retrospect, it’s pretty clear – of spending at the time was actually on living. That’s what you actually have to spend at the time. And that became clear to us. So we basically started in a position where we thought fee waivers would be [better], and then we learnt that it wasn’t and moved over to bursaries and supporting living costs.’

He also responded to allegations that he had ‘avoided’ meetings with University of

The Vice-Chancellor said ‘a portrait is being painted’ but that it was University Council’s decision, not his, ‘I’m not, apart from saying who I’d like to come to the leaving do, involved in any respect’.

‘We turned out to be wrong’ The University in 2011 planned to replace bursaries with fee waivers.

Thomas told Epigram, ‘We thought, if we do fee waivers, people will not be building up debt and therefore that won’t put them off coming here.’

‘We turned out to be wrong. It’s as simple as that. What became clear was that the burden of spending at the time was actually on living.’

Dominique Hooper

Epigram spoke exclusively with Professor Sir Eric Thomas

University of Bristol

University of Bristol Vice-Chancellor’s Professor Sir Eric Thomas has pledged that students ‘will see [student-staff ratio] numbers go back down again’ following sharp increases in departments such as English, History, Economics and Law since 2011.

In an exclusive interview with Epigram, Thomas, whose 14-year term will come to an end on 31 August, also said that ‘We turned out to be wrong’ in reference to university plans in 201112 to replace bursaries with fee waivers. Thomas recently signed a Universities UK letter to The Times criticising Labour’s plans to cut tuition fees, writing that ‘a better way of supporting students, especially those from poorer backgrounds, would be for the government to provide greater financial support for living costs.’

Thomas responded to questions on a number of topics, including hourly-paid teaching contracts, league tables and the challenges that face his successor, Professor Hugh Brady.

When asked about the rise in student-staff ratios of 17 to 21 in History, 17 to 24 in English and 18 to 23 in Law [between 2011 and 2015], Thomas said, ‘Yes, you’re quite right in saying those numbers went up… But they’ll be coming back down too.’

given the constraints of the University’s central location, Thomas added,

Bristol Students’ Union (Bristol SU) elected officers, explaining that, while he had held bitermly meetings with previous Students’ Union presidents, these had not taken place since Bristol SU scrapped the role of President.

‘I had, very unusually, an arrangement by which I saw the President of the Students’Union probably about twice a term. That was a deeply personal relationship, not an operational relationship. That was about a relationship between two people, each at the head of an institution. In many respects, it was my insights into what being head of an institution is to help somebody who for the first time [would be]. That was what it was about. It was not about an operational relationship.

‘When the union decided that they didn’t want to have a President, I said “What do I do about that then?”You’ve got all those operational relationships with the Pro Vice-Chancellor Education, [Deputy Registrar] Lynn Robinson; the whole lot. All of those are ongoing. I had a relationship with the President. Now there is no President any longer so how do I have a relationship?

‘And then a bunch of mixed messages were going to happen. That’s the last thing I want: people becoming confused because people make different interpretations etc. That’s why that happened.’

He also admitted that there would be a portrait painted of him before his departure but said that it had not been his decision, ‘First of all, I don’t make any of these choices.

I don’t. At all. The Chair of [University] Council

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Zaki Dogliani Editor

has decided that a portrait will be painted. So a portrait is being painted. There will be a leaving do. But I’m not, apart from saying who I’d like to come to the leaving do, involved in any respect.

‘A portrait is being painted.

There will be a leaving do.

But I’m not, apart from saying who I’d like to come to the leaving do, involved in any respect.’

‘When we looked at the portrait, there was a feeling that, well, there’s a portrait of every other Vice-Chancellor and there’s a kind of sense of history about it. We were thinking about choosing how it would be painted, and in fact I’ve gone for a very traditional setting, because it’s going to be there for a very long time. But again, I said “It’s up to you whether you want a portrait or not.”’

Asked for his greatest achievement during his time in office, he mentioned how ‘the sector – and the University – has become much more attuned to the students’ needs.’ He also spoke about ‘the sustained investment in infrastructure over 14 years’ and that ‘we still remain a value-driven educational and research establishment’.

Read an extended version of the interview, and a full transcript, at epigram.org.uk.

Epigram 11.05.2015

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Epigram meets Churchill’s granddaughter ‘Every young person should remember Sir Winston Churchill, for that fact that he overcame so many difficulties to achieve what he did’. These were the words of Sir Winston Churchill’s granddaughter, Celia Sandys speaking exclusively to Epigram ahead of her lecture ‘Memories of my Grandfather’ as part of the University of Bristol Churchill Lecture series.

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‘I was to have for myself, the man who the whole world thought they owned and that was very precious for me’ Speaking below the towering portrait of Churchill in the Reception Room at Wills Memorial Building, Sandys discussed at length both growing up with Churchill and what she thought of the man himself. She revealed that she had many treasured memories with Churchill, but her most precious memory was the time she spent holidaying with him.

Sandys remarked that ‘I was to have for myself, the man who the whole world thought they owned and that was very precious for me’.

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Manvir Basi News Reporter

Furthermore, on the idea of any pressure of having Churchill as a grandfather, Sandys remarked that ‘I think the only people in the whole world that took him for granted were his grandchildren’. Sandys, who is currently the trustee of the Churchill Centre was proud of her work there, remarking that she was amazed at the ‘incredible children that come along, and the speeches they make are really good’.

The conversation turned swiftly towards the great man himself.

‘Every young person should remember Sir Winston Churchill, for that fact that he overcame so many difficulties to achieve what he did’

Sandys shed light on the fact that Churchill, despite being known for oratory, suffered from a lateral lisp. This meant that ‘he was not a natural speaker by any means and had to work hard at it’.

However, the most revealing moment was her view on Churchill’s relationship with his father, Randolph Churchill and his mother, Jeanette Jerome (Lady Randolph Churchill). ‘He was influenced by his father in the sense, that he was always striving for his father’s attention

and he really achieved’.

She moved on to state that ‘I think the only two regrets in his life were not gaining his father’s approval and not seeing the end of the Cold War’.

The most fascinating moment was when Sandys stated that Churchill’s American mother influenced him without his realisation, remarking that ‘I think she made him not so much of a toff, as it were, and he didn’t talk in that rather mannered way that he might have done otherwise’.

However, any discussion about Churchill is not complete without a mention of his painting, which Sandys was happy to discuss. She described Churchill’s painting as ‘a great production with all the paints set up along with his soda and whisky, and crowds had to be kept to prevent them from disturbing him’.

As the conversation came towards a sad ending, Sandys’ final words were that the recommended book a young person is Winston Churchill’s My Early Life. She said it is ‘a real rip-roaring story’, full of lessons and inspiration. The funniest part of My Early

Life, is a chapter entitled ‘Examinations’, which I am sure any of us preparing for our exams wouldn’t mind reading to see what the ‘Greatest Briton’ thought of exams. My guess is that like every young person he hated them.

Bristol has the best university ‘Mind Your Head!’ city life in the country Emma Rutter News Reporter

In the week beginning 27 April University of Bristol Students’ Union (Bristol SU) embarked upon ‘Mind Your Head!’ week, raising awareness of the huge numbers of University of Bristol students who are likely to either personally experience mental health difficulties, or know someone who does.

There was an extremely varied array of events, from acapella singing and hula hooping with the finance society, to Student Counselling workshops, which has got students thinking and talking about their mental health.

The Whatuni rankings were based on 20,000 student reviews over the last 12 months

Epigram Epigram

The Whatuni Student Rankings, based on 20,000 student reviews collected over the last 12 months,

best city in which to live and work.

Another Bristol student commented, ‘I certainly wouldn’t change my decision to come to Bristol as it is a great place to live, but the University as a whole needs a lot of improvement. It’s the city that has been voted the best place to live, not the University specifically’.

The University tweeting the result

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Bristol has been recognised as the best city to study in the UK, despite relatively low student satisfaction rankings.

asked reviewers to rate a variety of categories, including city life.

One University of Bristol student said, ‘Bristol is like my second home.

I think it’s where my heart is. The people, the sights and its atmosphere make it such a great place to be young’.

Eliza, another Bristol student, added, ‘The different regions in Bristol give you everything you want; classy Clifton, edgy Stokes Croft, vibrant Harbouside, the relaxing parks and squares, and the city centre clubs and shops.’

Bristol is also currently European Green Capital 2015, the first UK city to win this accolade. Last year, The Sunday Times also named it as the

Charlie Marshall

Martin Rogard News Reporter

Kompania Charlie Marshall Piwowarska Kompania Piwowarska

The Whatuni Student rankings saw Bristol as the best UK city to study in

Mind Your Head! has served as a reminder to students suffering from mental health problems that they are far from alone

Considering the huge numbers affected, it was shocking to many audience members of Thursday’s ‘Question Time’ style panel debate that of all those attending, only one had ever received any education on mental health issues. Seeing that an astonishing one in two GP appointments at the Student Health Centre are for mental health difficulties this lack of understanding clearly needs to change.

Alex Bradbrook, head of the campaign and Bristol SU’s Undergraduate Education Officer told Epigram that the week aimed to ‘help people learn a little more about

mental health, learn to look after their own well being and also break the stigma that surrounds the issue.’

He also noted the great attendance, saying that lots of people ‘found the activities useful, insightful and really positive’.

Indeed, many of the sessions were by no means for sufferers alone.

Some aimed to remind all students that there are steps they can take to promote a healthy mind, especially around stressful exam season, with fun ‘taster sessions’ from various societies reiterating the importance of positively spent free time.

Others were specifically tailored towards those who want to help friends or loved ones suffering from mental illness. ‘Support your Cohort: Looking after yourself while looking after others’, encouraged more open and honest discussions about mental illness between students, and offered support and tips for friends of those who are struggling, and in desperate need of an equipped and educated support network.

Mind Your Head! has served as a reminder to students who are suffering from mental health problems that they are far from alone, and to others that this is a real problem within our student population that deserves attention, understanding and support.

If open discussion can flourish, stigma can die away, and hopefully increasing numbers will feel able to access the support available to them.

On the Friday Bristol SU also signed a commitment to working towards implementing the Time To Change pledge over the next academic year, meaning ‘mental health will be important centrally to the Union and will form part of our activities going forward’.

Epigram 11.05.2015

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NUS denied of Trans Officer while the rest of the world moves on

Amber Roberts Features Writer

Trans issues have been in the news again following Bruce Jenner’s interview, in which he publicly identified as a woman for the first time, and Louis Theroux’s BBC documentary Transgender Kids.

It is apparent in both that there is still a lot of stigma, ridicule and abuse surrounding the idea of being transgender, or going against gender norms. Jamie Cross, president of Bristol SU’s LGBT+ society told Epigram, ‘Transgender people face a lot of problems growing up. They are bullied, marginalized and oppressed to a point where 59 per cent of young transgender people in the UK have considered suicide.’

Society has found it very hard to believe that a once outwardly masculine Olympian, referred to as ‘the world’s greatest athlete’, could identify as a woman. The obsessive media speculation before Jenner’s interview led Russell Brand to post a video asking ‘Is it okay to bully Bruce Jenner?’, and his answer was a resounding ‘No’. Although brash at times, Brand had the impetus to say ‘Stop. Bruce Jenner is a human being.’

Jenner’s humanity was clear throughout his interview, his voice cracking at the very start: ‘It’s going to be an emotional roller coaster but somehow I’m gonna get through it.’

Bruce, like many other transitioning people, said that ‘he’s lived a lie his whole life about who he is’, continuing

that ‘For all intents and purposes, I am a woman.’

In Louis Theroux’s documentary, Camille, aged 5, was assigned male at birth (AMAB), and states the same thing as Jenner: ‘I’m a girl.’ People may wonder how this can be, and this is precisely why we, as a society, need to re-evaluate what defines gender.

Judith Butler’s studies on the ‘performativity’ of gender suggest that ‘gender signifiers are socially constructed and are performed on the surface of the body - they have little to no ontological basis in anatomical sex.’

In other words, the way we see gender, from what we wear to the way we act, is completely socially constructed.

Theroux’s documentary shows how medical professionals in Chicago are helping children and teenagers express this right through hormone blockers and later surgery. Concerns have been raised as to whether children as young as Camille should be allowed to make these decisions.

Cross told Epigram, ‘I think that prepubescent children should be given the freedom to express themselves however they wish to, and I see no harm in self-expression.’ He explained that ‘Hormone blockers are incredibly necessary and useful for young people who have not decided which puberty they think will best suit them. There can be tremendous damage from going through the wrong puberty that can cause permanent and irreversible changes. Hormone blockers do not cause any permanent changes.’ He

added that ‘the age at which oestrogen or testosterone therapy (not hormone blockers) is prescribed should be lower.

Currently it is 18 without parental involvement and I think that that is often too late. If doctors are happy to, in some cases, prescribe at 16 with parental involvement then they should be happy to do so without. If a young person is deemed fine to make their own decisions, then those decisions should be honoured. Their body, their choice.’

S. Bear Bergman, Toronto author and trans activist, emphasises that physical transition is misunderstood by many. ‘It is ‘an idiosyncratic inconsistent process that every single person undertakes differently, that has no fixed end point… Not everyone has all the medical interventions that are available, for a whole variety of reasons, and it doesn’t make you more trans or less trans if you haven’t done all or any of the medical things.’

This is was made abundantly clear in Theroux’s documentary: some people experience body dysphoria with certain engendered aspects of their body, and others do not, but these two people may still both identify as transgender.

The National Union of Students (NUS) held a secret ballot this week in Liverpool to create a Full Time Officer to represent transgender students within the NUS LGBT+ Campaign.

Although a majority voted in favour of the motion, it did not achieve the twothirds majority required and thus did

Bruce Jenner ‘came out’ as a transgender woman on an emotionally charged interview with ABC not pass. Jamie was angry and upset to hear that the motion didn’t pass: ‘I think it is hard to understand as to why a secret ballot was felt necessary.

Delegates are chosen as representatives of unions and we should be able to hold them to account and ask for explanations and reasons as to why they voted a certain way. NUS Transgender conference and Transgender Caucus at NUS LGBT conference both voted almost unanimously for the motion, so to me this seems like another case of not listening to the voices of students who face some of the toughest barriers in education.’

It is easy to see why many people, including Jamie, were angry about

this outcome, and felt that the rights of LGB people were being supported but not of LGBT+. Theroux ends his documentary with these words: ‘The choice to transition involves the possibility of social rejection and a lifetime commitment to medication, but it is also a chance to exercise the most fundamental right we have, the right to be ourselves.’ Society, as well as organisations like the NUS, needs to start to support this right, in every way that it can.

Male pronouns are used throughout to describe Bruce Jenner as this is his wish until he has physically transitioned.

Exclusive interview: George Ferguson More to the Mayor than red trousers?

Holly Jones Features Editor

employer in Bristol, which also has the best graduate retention rate in the UK outside the capital.

‘The universities are absolutely essential to the life of the city, to the economy of the city, and I’ve got real pride that I’m just one of those many, many people who have stayed in Bristol as a result of going to Bristol University.’ Though he was not born here, the Mayor has lived in Bristol since 1965, aside from one year in London, and as such knows how bad the traffic problem can get without council intervention.

About 55,000 cars enter Bristol each day, and about nine out of ten are driver-only. Hence the introduction of much-maligned Resident Parking Zones to discourage commuters parking in residential areas all day ‘Businesses don’t like the idea of it, but actually you go into Clifton businesses now and, although they won’t admit it publicly, they’re actually quite liking the effect of it.’ ‘We’re not London, we can’t have an underground, we’re not Bordeaux, we can’t have a tram, but we need a decent integrated transport system - the problem is, as a result of deregulation in the 80s, it’s now made up of different private organisations, like First Bus and Wessex, over which we have limited control, so we’re having to make the most of what is

TriggerTrap

As Bristol’s first directly elected Mayor, George Ferguson has divided opinion. Students may have seen the red-trousered independent stalking the streets of campus when he opened the new Students’ Union, took part in many discussions in Wills Memorial Building - which he says he mistook for Bristol Cathedral when first arriving in the city - and pallying up to our outgoing Vice-Chancellor, Professor Sir Eric Thomas.

A University of Bristol graduate himself, Ferguson studied Architecture (back in the heady days when Bristol had an architecture department) before teaching part-time in the University and starting his own architectural firm.

A Liberal councillor for only a short time in the 1970s - before the party’s merger with the Social Democratic Party - Ferguson’s lack of experience in public governance made him an unlikely candidate to win the 2012 mayoral race without the backing of any political party.

But win it he did. Prior to the introduction of the mayor, the council’s leadership was faltering, and what Ferguson has done, he says, is allow for change to happen much more swiftly.

‘I don’t think [the council] was operating with great vision, and when I came into office - I have to say there was a management vacuum, in that we had no permanent leadership,’ Ferguson tells me. Many others agree: bitter partisanship and slow progress were holding up the council’s ability to instigate real change to the city, or agree on how best to distribute budget cuts. He now operates with four officers and five councillors who come from the the four main political parties - ‘I have a rainbow cabinet which works, and that may be a lesson for the new government which comes in!’

Inside the student bubble - the Triangle, Whiteladies Road and occasional forays into Stokes Croft most of us are far too preoccupied to think about Bristol’s governance. But, though credit is also due to Make Fares Fair campaigner Daniel Farr, it may also be Ferguson you have to thank for the £1 student fare to Temple Meads on a First bus and for the waterslide on Park Street last year which has since been pinched by San Francisco.

Bristol is fast gaining a reputation for being a ‘smart’ city, praised for its ‘Silicon Gorge’ technology networks, focus on sustainability and the new council’s ability to think beyond party politics. The University plays a big part in this - it is the biggest single

quite a tricky job really.’

20 per cent more people have started using the buses than 18 months ago, including park and rides. 20mph zones are designed to encourage more bikes onto the roads - yes, Bristol is a cycling city, despite all the hills - and the University is following suit by providing more secure storage for bikes around campus.

The second Make Sunday Special in Old Market was somewhat dampened by the weather on the May bank holiday, but he says the Portway - a road on which he was caught speeding and prompted him to subsequently

sell his Smart car - will be closed to traffic every Sunday of the summer, from 31 May, in an effort to bring vitality to the Hotwells and Avon Gorge area. Students, especially those in Stoke Bishop, really have no choice on whether to attend!

I ask him one final, important question: would he intervene if muchloved kebab vendor Jason Donervan’s was under threat? He chuckles.

‘It’s a very clever piece of marketing, isn’t it? I love street food and street life and I think that if that was something which found to be popular I’d be very happy to defend it.’

Epigram

11.05.2015

10

Women in journalism: student papers show hope of end to male-dominated newspaper industry Zaki Dogliani Editor A recent demographics survey showed that 63 per cent of Epigram writers and 68 per cent of the current editorial team is female. This reflects the norm across student newspapers and magazines.

However, this trend does not appear to endure the transition from student journalism to the professional field, where, like in many other career areas, women are underrepresented.

Over 75 per cent of national newspaper bylines are male.

In an article for the British Journalism Review, Eleanor Mills, Chair of Women in Journalism (WIJ), wrote that ‘it is still depressingly common to have major debates on radio and TV in which there are no female voices – a woeful state of affairs nearly a century after women got the vote’.

Her comment brings to mind the recent TV leaders’ debates, in which the women, Natalie Bennett, Leanne Wood and, in particular, Nicola Sturgeon, were widely considered to have performed well, highlighting the importance of equal representation in politics and in society more generally. The photo of the three women hugging, with Ed Miliband and Nigel Farage standing alone on either side, was a powerful visual message, as was the Green Party’s election poster

which featured a photo of Natalie Bennett and Caroline Lucas with the words ‘What are you afraid of, boys?’ above them. Many have referred to politics as an old boys ’club, and 50:50 Parliament is an ongoing campaign ‘petitioning party leaders to debate and take action to make Parliament more gender balanced’.

Meanwhile, there are more chairs and chief executives

“ ‘The average industry ratio of male to female bylines is 78:22’

of FTSE 100 firms called John than there are women.

Mills wrote that ‘The average industry ratio of male to female bylines is 78:22’.

She said, ‘the deep end of most newspapers – by which I mean news, comment, the backbench – is still overwhelmingly male’, and a recent WIJ survey of front-page bylines found that between 75 per cent and 90 per cent were male. Men are at the head of the majority of national newspapers, with The Guardian recently appointing Katharine Viner as their first female editor-in-chief, which seems late for a progressive paper, although there have only been three editors since the war.

When Mills wrote her article nine months ago, there were ‘only three female editors on national titles, all on Sundays: Lisa Markwell at The

Kath Viner, recently appointed Editor-in-Chief of The Guardian upon Alan Rusbridger’s departure

Independent on Sunday, Allison Phillips at The Sunday Mirror and Victoria Newton at The Sun on Sunday’. Although there are significantly more women in slightly lower editorial positions, including Mills herself, who is editorial director at The Sunday Times, ‘when it comes to the prime editorships of the papers that sway the agenda – The Daily Mail, The Times, The Financial Times, The Guardian, The Telegraph, The Sunday Times, The Observer and Mail on Sunday – the chaps remain firmly ensconced’.

To those already listed by Mills as national papers with male editors, we can add The Sun, The Sunday Telegraph, i, The Daily Express, The Sunday Express and The Sunday People.

We might also include the New Statesman and The Spectator, although The Economist has recently appointed Zanny Minton Beddoes, its first female editor in its 172-year-history.

The sole other exception is the Daily Star, edited by Dawn Neesom.

The balance appears to be little better in senior broadcast journalism positions. The BBC has never had a female Director-General, ITV and Channel 4 has never had a female Chief Executive, and Channel 5, until recently owned

by Richard Desmond, formerly owner of The Daily Sport, who

“

Emily McMullin Deputy Features Editor

cent of UK student newspapers have either got a female editor or co-editors whereby one is female.

The current and previous chairs of Student Publication Association, the national body which supports student publications across the country, are also female. This contrasts the nationals strikingly.

64 per cent of student newspapers have got a female editor or co-editors

Epigram has itself produced a number of female role models which it is hoped more can follow in the footsteps of.

Susanna Reid, best-known for her role as co-presenter of BBC Breakfast,was formerly Epigram editor, while our former Music editor Krissi Murison became the first female editor of NME in 2009 and is now Associate Editor of The Sunday Times Magazine.

Professor Suzanne Franks, Professor of Journalism at City University, home of some of the many Journalism MA courses where there are twice

“” ‘Susanna Reid was formerly Epigram Editor’ while our former Music Editor Krissi Murison went on to become the first female editor of the NME”

still owns a number of adult TV channels, appears unlikely to be a particularly femalefriendly working environment.

More encouragingly, the General Secretary of the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) is Michelle Stanistreet, the first woman in the NUJ’s 108-year history to occupy the role.

A trend is clear, however, that with women in journalism already constituting a minority, females constitute an even smaller fraction of editors. It is also worth noting that an even greater proportion of newspaper owners are men than editors.

Epigram’s survey however, and the involvement of women in student journalism across the country, suggests that the situation may be changing. Our research has found that 64 per

as many women as men, claims that more women are becoming journalists than men at present. That appears to be mirrored by our research about Epigram and student publications across the UK. The question is, firstly, whether that will translate into bylines and secondly whether it will eventually lead to more women breaking the maledominated boardrooms at the top of the UK’s best-selling nationals.

The Guardian’s Jane Martinson wrote that newspapers are fairly evenly split at entry level but not when you look towards editor roles.

The trend is not confined to the UK. Martinson added that ‘in the US, women make up 37 per cent of daily newspaper employees [...] but under 10 per cent are in supervisory or

Stats are from 2014/15 academic year Female editor/all female co-editors (24)

One male and one female co-editor (3)

The Boar (Warwick)

Exposé (Exeter)

Impact (Nottingham)

The Oxford Student

Roar News (KCL)

The Student (Edinburgh)

Wessex Scene (Southampton)

Male editor/all male co-editors (16)

The Edge (Southampton)

Epigram (Bristol)

The Knowledge (Plymouth)

Gair Rhydd (Cardiff)

Western Eye (UWE)

Redbrick (Birmingham)

The Gryphon (Leeds)

Bath Impact

Concrete (UEA)

York Vision

Forge (Sheffield)

The Courier (Newcastle)

Le Nurb (Brunel)

The Mancunion (Manchester)

The Rabbit (Essex) Varsity (Cambridge) The Galleon (Portsmouth)

The London Student The Cambridge Student The Saint (St Andrews)

The Spark (Reading)

Cherwell (Oxford)

InQuire (Kent)

The SOAS Spirit

The Stag (Surrey)

Pluto (UCLAN)

The Ripple (Leicester)

The Gaudie (Aberdeen)

The Gown (Belfast)

Palatinate (Durham)

Felix (Imperial)

The Beaver (LSE)

Ellipsis (Liverpool)

Where one editor of one gender resigned and was replaced by one of the other (1)

Medwire (Kent)

The Orbital (Royal Holloway)

The Badger (Sussex)

upper management positions’.

But while that is certainly the case with the UK nationals, at least at student level, women are actually in the majority of those running university publications.

Only time will tell as to whether this will one day impact who occupies editor roles among national titles, but it provides encouragement in what is otherwise a fairly bleak picture for women hoping to go into journalism.

Epigram

11.05.2015

119

We have the responsibility to prevent climate change melting into obscurity Emily Faint Features Writer

Indeed, British political parties are not leading with climate change programs because the simple truth is that money motivates us, the electorate, more than anything.

Before the average person will consider their carbon footprint or the rate at which the ice caps are melting, they will consider whether they have enough money to pay the bills and put food on the table. Our basic needs must be satisfied before we are inclined to think beyond individual desires to larger

“” ‘British political parties are not leading with climate change programs because the simple truth is that money motivates us, the electorate, more than anything.’

for, Professor Peter Wadhams of the University of Cambridge vehemently criticised Green Party leader, Natalie Bennett, for not publicising green issues more at debates. He said to The Independent: ‘Natalie Bennett had a great chance to talk about the issues… but was very disappointing because she came across as just another machine politician, talking about the NHS and unemployment.’

matters that concern us all as a species. However, with the situation regarding climate change only continuing to deteriorate, we cannot afford the luxury of perpetually putting subordinating green policies.

Our politicians must begin to work more closely with our educational institutions to implement effective programmes that will move Britain more rapidly into a sustainable future.

How, then, is University of

“

Bristol contributing to this solution? Situated in the heart of the European Green Capital 2015, University of Bristol is a leading centre for green research and innovation and seeks to integrate this agenda with student life. Students have a wealth of opportunities to get involved with environmentallyfocused activities through schemes such as Get Green and the Bristol Hub, which offer a range of green volunteering projects that students can lead and participate in.

Moreover, the University’s Cabot Institute investigates everything from low carbon energy innovation to food security to even examining design possibilities for our cities of the future through sustainable urban development. Some of the biggest impediments to sustainable living are being tackled head-on by the University’s research teams, involving not just the Science and Engineering Departments, but also the Law, Social Sciences and Arts faculties too. With Epigram’s recent poll revealing that the Green Party is the third most popular party amongst students, coming in behind Labour, and the Conservatives, after the January MyBristol poll had even put the Greens in first place, it is clear that environmental policies are something that Bristol

Not so Green? Natalie Bennett has been accused of not paying the environment enough attention students value. As such, we need to be more rigorous with our demands to our new government, and make it evident that climate change is not an issue that will be

RonF

With even the Green Party having faced accusations from the scientific community over not giving issues of global warming the prominence it deserves, the environmentallyconscious electorate may have found themselves bewildered by the current political, ahem, climate. According to Carbon Brief, an independent organisation that covers the latest developments in climate science and policy in the UK, ‘in contrast to 2010, climate change has barely featured on the campaign trail so far’ which, given its ever increasing urgency, highlights a very grave problem.

The conspicuous absence of climate change policies in political manifestos strongly suggests that politicians do not believe that environmental issues will invigorate the public and earn them valuable votes.

For example, with keynote policies such as the energy price freeze, economic development was clearly the impetus for Labour’s campaign.

Admittedly, the party did introduce the ‘Green Plan’ in late April 2015 which promises to ‘champion increased ambition on climate change on climate change from all

the world’s major economies’ and create a million new ‘green jobs’ , but one can by no means consider it a flagship policy. The Conservatives fare even worse, with Carbon Brief claiming that the party has a ‘climate-skeptic underbelly’ which impedes any significant action in this much-needed direction. Instead, discussion of wages, tax and unemployment continue to dominate the political stage. Indeed, despite the fact that climate change and eco-friendly development is at the forefront of what the Green Party stands

forgotten or dismissed. To do so would be a far more expensive mistake than any our politicians have ever made before.

What are you doing over the summer?

Universities like LSE are notoriously successful at setting their students up with internships... is Bristol lagging behind?

Sean Macatee

Alex Green Features Writer It’s a common question: ‘Have you got something sorted for the summer yet?’

Sometimes the ‘something’ in question refers to a five-week mission of self-discovery to Columbia, but more often than not it refers to an internship or work experience. Internships cause a fair amount of stress

and for some careers, especially those in the city, they can turn out to be almost as important to a graduate as a degree. But this is not true in all cases, and for many an internship is not a necessity, nor is it even helpful.

The cruel paradox that students face is this: to get a job you need experience, yet the only way to get that experience is through a job. This is where the world of the internship rears its head. Internships give your CV with an edge and

provide a taste of a (hopefully) enjoyable career to come. At this time of year, the panic about internships has almost reached levels reminiscent of ‘Black Friday’ and both undergraduates and soon-to-be graduates are engaging in the smash and grab.

For some, the process of securing an internship might be a smoother ride. Those looking for a job in engineering, banking or law receive help from societies and are provided with a series of events with the goal of establishing connections between employers and potential interns. The Bristol Advertising, Marketing and PR Society do exactly that, as does the Banking and Investment

Society. It is probably worth noting that students, and not the University, run these societies and also that many internships of this sort will be highly competitive. By this time, most summer internships of this sort will be taken and an application next year will most likely be the right course of action.

But what about those doing non-vocational subjects, entering careers with a less specific entry path? Without a structured system, students are often left to their own devices, to send out barrages of emails to faceless names found on the ‘contact’ page of a company’s website, hoping that at least one response will be forthcoming.

This method might be the traditional approach, but in the current economic climate with a distinct lack of job opportunities, the chance of a response is even rarer.

Journalism, HR, and nongovernmental organisations are all careers notoriously hard to break into without previous experience, and gaining that experience is now more difficult

than ever.

But it’s not an entirely bleak picture. Paid internships, the Holy Grail to some, are out there and many companies have both official and unofficial schemes in place, providing students with work experience. The key is persistence. Even at this late stage in the year, businesses will be offering internships and accepting interns. The advantage of looking for work outside of the worlds of investment, banking and PR is that informal internships are available all the way up

“ ‘Students are often left to their own devices, to send out barrages of emails to faceless names found on the ‘contact’ page of a company’s website’

until summer. Without a yearly internship intake set in stone, a more flexible arrangement is available to students and for

many companies there is no official cut off date.

Universities like LSE are notoriously successful at setting their students up with internships and this success begs the question: is Bristol lagging behind? Whilst the primary concern of universities is to educate, their role has changed in recent years. It now accounts not just for education, but for the preparation for professional life, an essential part of which are internships and work experience.

Steps in the right direction are being taken, given the activity of current and future student societies aiming to help those at Bristol get onto the relevant career ladder.

But essentially, it is down to the student community to help itself. Through the Students’ Union and the opportunities that its societies provide, students can build relationships between themselves and employers, and start making valuable, paid internships more widely available.

Epigram

11.05.2015

Letters

Editor: Olivia Petter

@EpigramLetters

letters@epigram.org.uk

Question Time?

‘But that’s not my question, Mr Cameron’: a phrase repeated throughout David Cameron’s appearance on the recent Question Time. Repetition has always been a politician’s ally and all the party leaders have dabbled in it to some extent but none has showed mastery like Cameron.

‘You can keep a job, you can keep your own money, you can get that apprenticeship’ was how he described his vision for youth employment. It’s genuinely impressive how closely Cameron sticks to his rule of four. It’s always better to make the same point four times. It’s all well and good that I’ll keep any future job that I have, but Mr Cameron you were meant to be answering whether ending automatic access to adult benefits would lead to young people without a support system, like a family, on the street. I’m sure the provisions he alluded to will solve the problem.

Mr. Cameron didn’t save his powers of verse for only his achievements. He frequently described the prospect of a Labour future in the same rule of four – ‘Even more spending, even more borrowing, even more debt, worse for your children’.

Barely a question went by without a reference to the low tax, low debt and full-time job filled utopia of a Conservative future. Labour is the party of the past: the party of debt and the creator of the debt that the Prime Minister ‘inherited’ (a word used nine times by my count).

Twice asked about food banks, very much in the present, Mr Cameron referred to the future: ‘we’re building a better house for our children’. The metaphor of Britain as a house was

one that he fell back on consistently.

We inherited Blighty Manor in terrible shape, caused by the previous tenants’ years of partying, and we’re getting it back into shape.

After five years in power, the Prime Minister has mastered avoiding difficult questions. Sure, Ed has started to develop a few skills. But, he’s still nowhere near his opponent. Cameron’s traditional technique is to shift the subject of the question from present harm to future benefit: ‘Do you accept that the poorest families in our society have been harmed?’ becomes ‘How will people be better off in the future?’

By doing this, Cameron makes an argument in reverse: ‘we’ve made the future better for our children, because we’ve reduced the growth of debt’.

He doesn’t mention the fall in living standards faced by low-income families that his government has both actively caused and failed to resolve. Let’s not talk about the food banks because the future’s going to be great. The problem is that anything is possible in the future.

There’s no record of it yet. There is one of the last five years. One that Cameron doesn’t want to talk about.

It’s odd that a person, elected in 2010, only wants to talk about the time before he became Prime Minister and what’s going to come after his reelection. It’s as if Cameron’s running as an opposition leader again. He’s not though. He’s the Prime Minister and has been for some time now. He’s got a record of actions, an inheritance of sorts. It’s a legacy that Cameron needs to answer some questions on, if he’s not too busy talking about the future.

Tweets of the fortnight: @ jennyjoya

‘“I kept speaking Latin when I was drunk” classic Bristol students #uobproblems’

@ dettirees

‘This wine tastes like tomorrow’s hangover and it’s great #valuevino #loveubu’

@ ehaybale

‘My degree is really starting to get in the way of Uni’

Alfie Smith

Ryanair: they clearly haven’t changed

At long last, Ryanair have begun to, well, rather than ‘improve customer service’, as has been reported, ‘start customer service’. But I’m still not convinced, and my relief that their shareholders successfully pressured CEO Michael O’Leary into treating passengers slightly better is outweighed by worry at the continuation – and legacy – of some of their practices.

For a long time, they adopted the ‘any publicity is good’ approach, in which they actually didn’t mind it when supposed ‘bad news’ stories about them appeared, such as reports that they were even considering charging for toilets on-board, or confirmation that many flights had removed window blinds and seat pockets to save money. This is because it allowed O’Leary airtime to go on about their ‘low fares and 93% on-time record’ and as it reinforced the perception that Ryanair would consider everything possible to keep fares down for its passengers.

It therefore strengthened the premise that Ryanair would surely be the cheapest and for a long time paid off, as many people I know would assume Ryanair’s flights would be the cheapest and just book without checking competitor prices, which are actually often cheaper even before you consider the sky-high fees for checking in luggage or forgetting to print out your boarding pass.

But, soon enough, almost everyone

seemingly had or heard of friends or relatives who had a bad experience with Ryanair, profits started to fall and shareholders demanded that O’Leary take customer service more seriously.

The airline that would see more daily scrums than a rugby match, as passengers would run, push and scramble for seats in the desperate hope that they might be able to sit next to friends and family, has now finally moved to allocated seating.

The airline that didn’t care for the idea that passengers on their earlymorning or late-night flights might like to get some sleep, but are instead bombarded with incessant adverts has, at long-last, pledged ‘quiet flights’ before 8am and after 9pm. That’s quite a u-turn, given O’Leary once admitted, ‘We bombard you with as many in-flight announcements and trolleys as we can.

Anyone who looks like sleeping, we wake them up to sell them things’.

Baggage and boarding card fees have been cut, and it is now possible to bring a second carry-on bag on Ryanair flights.

They’ve even kept odious O’Leary off the TV airwaves for a good while.

These are welcome improvements which underline that ultimately, customers do hold the power, and do have the potential to get companies such as Ryanair to change their ways, at least to an extent.

But Ryanair remains cited as the only major airline whose customer service

hotline is premium-rate. The company that removed sick bags from planes to save money remains the airline of BYOB (‘bring your own [sick] bags’).

It remains in a minority of businesses that refuses to recognise trade unions.

This says a lot about the scorn that O’Leary, who once said, ‘I’m paid about 20 times more than the average Ryanair employee and I think the gap should be wider’, has for his staff. Employees also have to pay £1400 of their own money for a compulsory training course and pay for their own uniform, as Dispatches reported in 2013. Most of its pilots are employed on zero-hour contracts, especially unusual in high-skilled jobs of this sort and is telling about the disregard Ryanair has for its staff.

It remains accused of safety neglect.

The age-old, ‘if you don’t like it, don’t fly with them’ argument wears pretty thin when nine out of 10 of their own pilots have expressed concerns over safety.

Why should those with less money face flying with an airline with lower safety standards? Is that the society we want to live in? The market may not take into account whether safety practices are thorough, but governments should.

Sadly, EasyJet, although in general my view is that they tend to be cheaper and at least treat passengers like human beings, followed Ryanair in some regards, adopting their divisive enforcement of ‘priority boarding’.

The bus that transports passengers

from the terminal to the plane has a section taped off to guarantee ‘priority boarding’ passengers a seat. There are often excess empty seats (because, let’s face it, in an age of austerity, most people have better things to spend £6 on than guaranteeing a seat on a 2-minute bus journey), while the rest of us are forced to stand, crammed against the windows.

As the bus reaches the plane, doors in the ‘priority boarding’ part of the vehicle open first, while those who lack priority boarding remain on our feet, squashed together like sardines.

The legacy of their approach, regrettably, is not confined to other airlines. What worries me is not only the lack of regulation to protect customers, or to safeguard workers from exploitation, but how it has been praised by some councils and politicians as the future.

Our incoming Vice-Chancellor, rightly or wrongly, has been referred to as ‘The Michael O’Leary of education’.

Ryanair epitomise what can happen when odds are stacked wildly in favour of employers and profits

We should give him a chance and not necessarily believe such a label, but it’s nonetheless concerning in an era in which universities are increasingly being run like businesses.

Barnet Council not so long ago pledged a ‘Ryanair-style’ approach to public services, providing the bare minimum and charging for anything more. Under their plans, householders would pay extra to jump the queue for planning consents, and the size of bins would be reduced to minimize the cost of waste collections.

With Margaret Thatcher, unsurprisingly, one of O’Leary’s heroes, Ryanair exemplify the kind of unfettered capitalism that gives Nigel Farage as many wet dreams as an EU exit.

Their flights may not be quite as unpleasant as they used to be, although that’s starting from a very low base. But Ryanair epitomise what can happen when odds are stacked wildly in favour of employers and emphasis is placed solely on profits. If their approach continues to make inroads into the fabric of British society, maybe I’ll hop on a (British Airways) flight overseas.

I was going to call up their press office to offer them a right to reply, but I then realised that it was an Irish number and, true to form, I would be charged for the privilege. I instead emailed, but they declined to respond.

Zaki Dogliani

Ned Darlington

C U LT U R E

Epigram 11.05.2015

The top line survey results The University is analysing the results to determine which areas need to be improved most to better the student experience at Bristol. These results show which areas the students are happiest with, alongside the areas they have highlighted to address.

Positive messages: 87% agree that staff are good at explaining things 84% agree the course is intellectually stimulating 81% are satisfied with the quality of the course 85% agree they’ve been able to contact staff when needed 88% agree they’ve been able to use their own device(s) to access University IT resources University of Bristol

Areas for improvement: 29% are not clear how their comments on the course are acted on 15% are not sure that their ideas for improvement are taken seriously 19% feel they have not received helpful comments on their work 16% have not found that good advice was available for making choices on careers/further study opportunities

What actions have been taken in the past in response to student feedback?

Mediasite Based on student feedback the Mediasite project will roll out recording equipment which will capture audio and slide content of lectures; this should help students to engage more fully during lectures, review lectures and revise. see page 4 for more information on the Mediasite project Law The School is trialling a new Alumni Mentorship scheme to develop links with current students and alumni within the profession.

Biological Sciences Students provided with a practical class handbook in advance, enabling them to read and plan for practicals and keep a complete record of practical classes.

Veterinary Sciences & Electrical Engineering Assessment calendar developed for students so they can see deadlines and plan work accordingly.

University of Bristol

Computer Science Held student consultations to gather views on what is regarded as effective feedback and what might be further improved.

Archaeology and Anthropology Marking process clearly explained to students (marking, moderating, verification etc.) with a flowchart and via course reps.

University of Bristol

University of Bristol

content sponsored by the University of Bristol

Epigram 11.05.2015

44 30 flickr/ Ma_Co2013

The Falling Film & TV Writer Seb Fayle on how a fainting epidemic in a 1960s girls’ school somehow constitutes one of the most remarkable Brit films in recent memory depths to which it explores the emotional distress of the girls, in particular Lydia, are deeper than I’ve seen in many other films. Lydia’s creepy older brother and his readings in ‘free love’ create an excruciating amount of sexual tension amongst the girls that is very unpleasant to watch, but there is respite from this squalor in romantic and beautiful poetry that coats the film in idealistic sweetness, as well as adolescent hormones.

Lydia’s own feelings for her lecherous brother become themselves more and more worrisome, and delineate her disconnection from the traditional family ethic. Her mother, played subtly by Maxine Peake, solely looks after both her and her brother, never leaving the house, and clearly explains nothing of why to either of them. She infuriates Lydia throughout, so the only solace she can find at home is from her contemptible brother, and let’s just say this goes very, very wrong.

“

Romantic, beautiful poetry coats the film in idealistic sweetness and adolescent hormones The end doesn’t resolve perfectly, and has caused most of the discontent in viewers and reviewers, but it still features sections of brilliance. The falling finally takes on solid meaning, as Lydia reconnects with her dead friend through it, touching for a moment, some kind of spiritual plane where these things make sense. It doesn’t explain it fully, which is good, and in fact the end is destroyed by too much explanation.

This film could really do with giving the end some space, like the classics of Picnic at Hanging Rock and Don’t Look Now do, but even so it doesn’t stop this film being remarkable in many ways.

image.net/ Aimee Spinks

There is a whole lot of falling in this film.

Several varieties of falling, too. There’s literal falling, with which feelings of lightheadedness and/or euphoria we are all accustomed; romantic falling, such as the falling in and out of love, that I hope most of us are at least aware of; familial falling, or the degeneration of family ties and boundaries, which some are all too familiar with; and, most stunningly, transcendental falling, falling out of reality into something entirely inexplicable and strange. This is perhaps a little much for a little film to deal with, and certainly it doesn’t hit all of its flaws (or floors) perfectly head-on as it falls, but it certainly provides you with an exceptional and idiosyncratic film that is well worth going to see.

The premise of the film is based to some extent on real life cases of ‘mass psychogenic illness’, where large groups of people suddenly develop similar symptoms of illness, without any diagnosable cause.

This is manifest in the film through a selection of students at the 60s girls school fainting dramatically after one of their friends dies suddenly. This begins with just the main character, Lydia (played extremely effectively by Game of Thrones’ Maisie Williams) but soon spreads to her friends and further. The cause of fainting is deliberately ambiguous, it could be put on by the students, or just a psychological placebo-effect, or it could be that Lydia is supernaturally causing the others to faint (her enigmatic eye twitch becomes more and more sinister throughout). It reaches a majestic zenith in a climactic assembly scene, where the fainting becomes a chaotic but oddly beautiful dance choreography.

The hallucinogenic folk-pop that scores this scene, courtesy of Everything but the Girl’s Tracey Thorn, melds it into a scene reminiscent of 70s horror classic The Wicker Man. This is a film steeped in late 60s/early 70s cult film nostalgia, with various critics having picked up on links to Picnic at Hanging Rock (1975), If (1968) and Don’t Look Now (1973), but this is doing The Falling a disservice; it is definitely its own film. The

There’s something inherently sinister about this image - just look at those eyebrows.

Avengers: Age of Ultron

“ “

Film & TV Writer Ana Lena Ziegler tells you to switch off your intellect and Marvel at this heroic feat of ego-juggling There has been much talk about the new Avengers movie in the news lately, though not a lot was really about the movie. Jeremy Renner and Chris Evans came under fire for calling Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) a ‘slut’ and a ‘whore’ and Disney for not having enough merchandise with Black Widow on it, for example, she is not featured on most of the t-shirts depicting the group.

While this sparked a valid and important discussion about female superheroes, I am going to leave all of this aside and focus on the movie itself.

While it may not reinvent storytelling it is still an extremely fun movie to watch

flickr/ Ma_Co2013

Black Widow here rather forcefully advising producers on the need for more female superheroes.

When you go to the theatre to watch it, you should be aware that it is a long movie.

It is 2 hours and some 20 odd minutes long, but thankfully, it does not feel like it.

Despite the length, it kept me interested and entertained throughout. The only scene that felt too drawn out was the final battle with Ultron. How many times do you need to kill that guy? Don’t expect an intellectually challenging story though, even if it was written by Joss Whedon. However, while it may not re-invent storytelling it is still an extremely fun movie to watch. It keeps true

to the characters and the colorful look of the comic books and is spiced with Whedon’s typical sense of humor.

Expect a lot of explosions and a mass of superheroes battling for screen time

Expect a lot of explosions and a mass of superheroes battling for screen time.

While the number of superheroes and villains sometimes might seem a little bit overwhelming, there is a great dynamic among the group and some interesting little interpersonal relations can be observed.

After all, it is an ensemble film so it needs a few characters.

Also, James Spader makes a fabulous Ultron and the expressions you can observe on the robot’s face are quite impressive.

He is definitely a worthy opponent for the Avengers both in strength and intellect.

Don’t be fooled though by all the jokes and the colorful look. There are real things at stake here and some changes are coming.

Someone will die. And I am not talking about one of the bad guys. That is all I am going to say about this matter because if you can avoid this spoiler until you watch the movie, it will make it even more interesting.

Epigram 11.05.2015

45

Homophobic Hollywood?

Flickr/canburak

Film & TV Writer Alejandro P. Fernández questions popular representations of homosexuality in Western cinema - clue: they aren’t the best homosexuals from actually establishing an identity of their own, outside of their sexual preference.

Though actual homosexual relationships are rarely portrayed in mainstream cinema, there has been a recent wave of films containing scenes of women kissing other women. American Hustle, for example, featured such a scene, which added nothing to the plot but gained notoriety and gave the film more publicity; a tactical advertisement method. While this may, at first, appear to encourage acceptance, it comes across as a mere ploy to attract more heterosexual male viewers, only objectifying the women involved and belittling real lesbian relationships, inherently suggesting that lesbianism is merely a phase.

Likewise, homosexuals are often depicted as repressed and ashamed, their sexuality often being a ‘twist’ in the film, their relationships often the result of promiscuity rather than real love. The idea of homosexuality as a twist once again

flickr/ Ma_Co2013

The depiction of homosexual characters and relationships in mainstream cinema is problematic and leaves a lot to be desired, doing little but perpetuate negative stereotypes whilst conveying the message that same-sex relationships are doomed.

Homosexual characters in mainstream films are mostly caricatures, walking stereotypes: the effeminate gay man and the boyish lesbian woman, Mean Girls or The Bling Ring are two examples of films featuring such stereotypes. Such characterisation is dangerous, because it fails to separate sexuality from personality.

It generalises all gay men as camp and flamboyant, and all lesbian women as butch and manly, creating the notion that certain characteristics and traits are common among all gay men and lesbian women, whilst also alienating those who do not conform to the stereotype. These stereotypes are not only untrue, but also prejudicial, since they reinforce sexist and homophobic ideals, whilst forbidding

American Hustle - exploitative use of lesbianism? Regardless, it’s an overrated film.

flickr/ canburak

Blue is the Warmest Colour - despite mid-production accusations of ‘moral harassment’, it sets a high bar for LGBT cinema.

reinforces the notion of shame, and involves the characters hiding their sexuality. The Imitation Game or J. Edgar are prime examples. This does little but propagate the idea that any sexuality other than heterosexuality is wrong, and shameful. This is reinforced by the tragic nature of most homosexual relationships in mainstream films, Philadelphia, Brokeback Mountain or Milk are a few examples. Where homosexual relationships are explored, they are presented as doomed, be that because of shame, prejudice or AIDS; yet a strong, stable homosexual relationship is yet to be portrayed in mainstream cinema.

The films of independent auteurs such as Kar-Wai, Almodovar, Ozon or Dolan all feature stories of homosexual relationships, but rather than focusing on their same-sex nature, their films focus on issues such as love, heartbreak or the volatility of passion, which are all applicable to heterosexual relationships. Most recently, Blue Is The Warmest Colour did a good job at creating a film about a homosexual relationship not aiming to be seen as a lesbian love story, but as a relatable one. The politics of samesex relationships are present, but they take

a backseat to the politics of relationships in general. In addressing universal themes which affect both heterosexual and homosexual relationships, Kechiche makes it easier for viewers of all backgrounds to empathise, and helps audiences understand that same-sex relationships are no different to heterosexual relationships.

Whilst gay and lesbian characters are portrayed effectively in many independent films, these seldom get large releases and, therefore, have limited audiences. The power of media cannot be underestimated, and this is why mainstream cinema is important. What is lacking are characters who are gay or lesbian, and are happy and confident, this not meaning overtly camp or flamboyant, but rather, open and unashamed – not characterised by their sexuality, but by their personality; and who are in relationships which last. This is an important message to send out to both homosexual and non-homosexual audiences, to understand that there is no shame. Relationships need not be doomed because they are between two people of the same gender, and that in today’s society, sexuality should not matter.

Editors’ Picks

flickr/ canbuak

Our personal choices of what to watch over the next two weeks Matthew Editor

Hannah Deputy Editor

Manvir Online Editor

Mad Max: Fury Road Friday 15 May

Spooks: The Greater Good Friday 8 May

Danny Collins Friday 29 May

Frankly I’d watch Tom Hardy make a cup of tea, so to see him take over such an iconic character is the cinematic equivalent of a cream tea with ungodly amounts of luxurious, post-apocalyptic double cream.

I could not be more excited to have one of my all time favourite TV shows on the big screen. I really, really hope they do it justice. If you like any kind of spy thriller it’s definitely one to watch.

The Walking Dead, Season 5 Fridays 9pm Spike

Reggie Yates’ Extreme Russia Wednesdays 9pm BB3 and iplayer

Al Pacino stars as an aging rock star who changes his life after discovering a 40 year-old letter written to him by John Lennon. Maybe if I wrote him a letter then he could change his current crop of films and make more Gangster/Mob films in the form of Scarface and The Godfather? Just a suggestion Don Corleone.

Have I mentioned my love of this show too much at this point? Unequivocally the answer is yes, but that won’t stop me. Apparently Spike is a new channel for non-Sky folks, so it’s a perfect opportunity to catch up or re-watch.

Season 5 builds to maybe the best finale yet.

Starting a few weeks ago, Reggie Yates’ documentaries on Russia are both gripping and entertaining. He shows a very real insight into the country, which makes for fascinating viewing.

Newzoids Wednesdays 9pm ITV Ever since Spitting Image left our screens, we have been missing a satire political comedy to mock our leaders and celebrities. But finally that gap has been filled by the hilarious Newzoids.

Epigram 11.05.2015

4725

The Life of a Student Band ‘You’re a guitarist in a band, huh?’ That’s new. Matt Townsend sheds light on the not-so-glamorous yet life-affirming side of student bands.

Of all the clichés associated with being a student, starting a band has got to be one of the most groaned-at examples.

Well for me at least, it was right at the top of my university bucket list. I was lucky enough on my first day of freshers’ to meet three guys who were as enthusiastic as myself about it! It has been an amazing 18 months, but I thought I’d share three things that show life in a student band doesn’t always quite pan out the way you may expect.

Even in today’s world of YouTube stars and Twitter trends, there is still a special place left in the public imagination for musicians. From the dawn of youth culture in the ‘50s, it has been the music and the musicians behind them who have defined successive generations. From Elvis to Hendrix to the Smiths: these figures will always be immeasurably cool and idolized by millions. While emulating such people is aiming rather high for most of us aspiring student musicians, hoping to gain a bit of extra respect from your peers is a realistic hope.

However, in my experience this not always quite the case. Living with two of my bandmates obviously means conversation often turns to things band-related. This has driven my other housemates insane, to the point where such discussion has been officially

“

banned when we have flat meals.

They have even gone as far as to form a fictional rival band of the same name, except the word ‘salute’ has been replaced with ‘f**k’. At least they still come to gigs, I suppose…

We’re still waiting for that call from Sony or Columbia...

Another common connotation of starting up a band is the wild antics you will all get up to at shows and on tour. Or in the university context, playing lots of drunken, euphoric gigs at house parties throughout Clifton and Redland. So far such nights have eluded us. Not to say we haven’t had some absolutely top nights, playing at venues around town and at the inevitable formal or two. But, as for post-gig antics? For us at least, this means spending a good hour hauling down your equipment.

Followed by then waiting outside in the cold to get the taxi home. During which time, everyone else has left to continue the night of endless fun you were hoping for all along…

Finally, there is a great expectation about getting that elusive Holy Grail for aspiring musicians: the record deal. For members of student bands this is a golden ticket. Not only your route to stardom, but potentially offering a reward of far greater joy and jubilation. It may allow you to find a legitimate reason to drop out of your degree and get out of doing that dreaded dissertation! Well, we’re still waiting for that call from Sony or Columbia… So instead with our first EP, we had to do it ourselves. Sounds like a 21st century, cost-effective, brave alternative, right? Well maybe, but having to work through the night burning CDs on our laptops in order to get them ready for our EP launch the following evening was far from the rockstar lifestyle.

Despite all my grumblings, I must make it clear: the core reason my mates and I formed a band was to make music we loved and hoped that others might too. This is not to say we won’t be hoping for some other perks, but it means enduring all the crap at this stage is more than worth it!

Matt Townsend, First year, History

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48

Like most historical musical subcultures, Northern Soul still exists somewhere in the underground today. Its innocent passion resurrected a subgenre of foreign music that would have died out without the scene’s success and feels unique today in an age where a little device you put in your pocket can tell you the name of every track playing at the party you went to last night. Northern Soul is undergoing a mini revival of late. Elaine Constantine’s recently released feature length documentary Northern Soul became one of the widest short-window releases to date in the UK and with a night on every Friday at the Gallimaufry spinning original soul 45s, exclusively Bristol is taking on a little bit of the north too. Just leave the bucket hat at home.

Ben Lock, Second year, Physics

flickr: Dena Flows

The hems of some of the widest trousers to be worn since Woodstock whip about, skimming the polished and perspirationslick sprung wooden boards of Wigan Casino.

The year is 1975, the music is upbeat black American soul transported pan-Atlantic from the mid-60’s and the dancefloor shudders under the feet of young workingclass men and women moving with a sheer audacity that embodies itself in spins, backdrops and high kicks that you might be more used to seeing in a Bruce Lee film.

The movement is Northern Soul, a unique subcultural phenomenon of music, dance and lifestyle that exploded in 1970’s northwest England. Groups of die-hard soul fans were rejecting the transition of Berry Gordy’s Motown label into what they thought was a sickly-sweet commercial variant of the up-tempo express-train beat of a real Northern Soul stomper. The best DJ’s were marked by their collection of rare and unique records that could be heard no-where else except at the nights that they played. Many even spun ‘cover-ups’, blacking out the label, artist and track name of their latest discovery on the vinyl itself so that rival disk jockeys couldn’t easily track down the tune that was filling out the dancefloors of their rival’s ‘All-Nighters’, socalled as they were the first real parties to keep going till the early hours. Northern Soul was also unique in being the first fully-fledged musical culture to worship the records themselves over the artist who produced them. The sound waves of Northern Soul propagated far further than the records themselves. Dancing skill was your currency at an All-Nighter, meaning race, class and gender were discarded at the door. The DJ’s were put on the pedestal and to stay at the top of the game, most made regular trips to America, particularly Detroit, to dig through boxes of mainly discarded and forgotten 45’s in the hope of unearthing the next foot-stomping track to resonate through halls and clubs in Manchester, Wigan, Stoke and beyond.

flickr: Dena Flows

‘The year is 1975, the music is upbeat and the dancefloor shudders under the feet of young working class men and women...’

Epigram

11.05.2015

49 In The Tallest Man on Earth’s fourth LP, Dark Bird Is Home, the Swede’s recent divorce from his childhood sweetheart Amanda Bergmann takes centre stage in an album that is at once hugely ambitious, lovingly crafted and, above all, utterly heartbreaking. With proclamations such as ‘there’s no deeper in the dust,’ and ‘there were no higher mountains, it’s all in your hand,’ we can see that here the Tallest Man – real name Kristian Matsson – is the most desperate and desolate we have ever seen him. Unfortunately for Matsson but fortunately for us, his misery has resulted in what is perhaps his richest effort yet.

Opening track ‘Fields of Our Home’ will be a comfort to anybody who was worried that Matsson would be completely abandoning his signature sound on this fourth effort, with a pleasantly familiar fingerpicked guitar figure still the driving force between his characteristically astonishing lyrics. Many of the songs here do, unsurprisingly, take Matsson’s divorce as their central point, with a far more negative world-view on display in this record than we saw in the joy of, say, ‘King of Spain’ from sophomore album ‘The Wild Hunt.’ Even so, this still makes for some incredibly poetic wordsmithery here, with lead single ‘Sagres’ sure to break a number of hearts as Matsson’s whispered, defeated admission that ‘it’s just all this fucking doubt’ gives way to one of his most lushly orchestrated outros.

Whilst there is still plenty of the requisite lone acoustic plucking going on in Dark Bird Is Home, many of the tracks feature a much fuller, richer sound, with songs such as the fantastic ‘Seventeen’ and

‘Slow Dance’ showcasing a much wider range of instrumentation than we had seen even on the last album, There’s No Leaving Now. There are some tracks that folk purists may feel are too lushly orchestrated: ‘Sagres’ in particular has drawn criticism for its ‘War on Drugs meets Bon Iver’ arrangement, moving away from the tricky acoustic picking patterns which some fans treasure so protectively, but in this reviewer’s opinion the album only benefits from being so much broader in scope, and also so much more sonically varied. The final, title track of the record sports a heartrending, almost unbearably emotional instrumental outro that complements the lyrics in a way that a lone guitar simply would not be able to, and there are many moments throughout Dark Bird Is Home where I found myself internally applauding Matsson’s bravery in stepping out of his more traditionally folksy comfort zone and into a lusher, fuller world of music.

Overall, Dark Bird Is Home is – by now – an unsurprisingly accomplished tour de force in not only modern folk-based music, but also in lyricism; for someone who speaks English as a second language, Matsson’s mastery of words here is honestly secondto-none in a post-Dylan-or-Jacksom Browne world. It may not quite reach the heights that the previous record, ‘There’s No Leaving Now,’ did so consistently, but seeing as that is my favourite album of all time I think it’s still safe to say that Dark Bird Is Home absolutely delivers in spades and continues Matsson’s practically unmatched run of flawless, constantly evolving releases.

The Tallest Man on Earth Dark Bird Is Home Dead Oceans May 12, 2015

Tom Gellatly, Third year, English

Blur The Magic Whip Parlophone April 27, 2015

Joshua Price, First year, Economics In some ways The Magic Whip, Blur’s eighth studio album and first in 12 years, is a compilation of all their previous styles. ‘Lonesome Street’ is the new ‘Tracy Jacks’ from Parklife complete with ‘Ooohooohooohooohs’, ‘I Broadcast’ recalls the American indie of 1997’s selftitled album, whilst the eerie ‘Thought I Was a Spaceman’ could sit happily on 13. This might have made for a disjointed record but the group bring it all together well, building around a base of catchy melodies and sombre lyrics.

One standout of the record is guitarist Graham Coxon’s return after his absence on Blur’s last album, Think Tank. The warm chords on ‘Ghost Ship’ and screeching riffs on the final chorus of ‘Ong Ong’ are two of the LP’s finest moments. The

latter of these songs should be a new highlight in the live setting for fans, and expect to hear its refrain ‘I wanna be with you’ ringing out at Hyde Park and festivals this summer.

‘I broadcast…something from nothing’ Damon Albarn declares mid-way through the album, which could be a nod to how the The Magic Whip first came about - during a five day gap between tour dates in Hong Kong. It may have started life as messing around in a studio, but this spawned a very good comeback record which should please fans old and new. It’s been worth the wait.

Alabama Shakes Sound & Colour ATO April 21, 2015 Matt Townsend, First year, History

Debuting at number one in the US, Alabama Shakes’ Sound and Colour has certainly caused a stir. After their 2012 breakthrough single ‘Hold On’, many looked to them as some rebirth of the soul music of the late ‘60s and early ‘70s. However, with their second record, the Alabama foursome have refused to pander to such calls for nostalgia. The album sparkles with creativity, managing the impossible feat of making, in the 21st century, guitarled music sound fresh and exciting.

The stand out performance throughout is undoubtedly from Brittany Howard on vocal. She announces her entrance in sublime style with the rawest, unholy squeal on ‘Don’t Wanna Fight’, the album’s

lead single. What follows is a wondrous display of one of the most exciting voices in popular music today. The rest of the band are also in fine form, as they display their diverse, musical chops. Moving masterfully between vibes as intricate as the sultry shuffle of ‘Guess Who’ to the punky thrash of ‘The Greatest’, or the delicate swing of the closing number, ‘Over my Head’.

For an album so exquisitely produced, it perhaps suffers from too great a variety of material. The record’s diversity sometimes takes away from its capacity to shine as an overall piece of art. Yet this is really nit-picking. With Sound and Colour, Alabama Shakes have firmly established themselves as one of the world’s premier bands to watch in the coming few years.

Epigram 11.05.2015

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The great sword and the great shield Alfie Smith Deputy Science Editor

“

Its firewall design is really just a means to launch offensive attacks on sites deemed hostile by the government.

is small as it slows down the speed of the connection.

Such a system couldn’t work for a country, and this why the Great Firewall is an outflow system. It stands to the side of the connection making a copy everything passing through; it then reassembles it and inspects it. Crucially,

flickr:USARMYEUROPE

China’s relationship with the internet is complicated. The state is torn between its perceived need to censor information and its desire to be a global economic power. For many years, the ruling party’s main solution to this problem was the ‘Great Firewall’ (GF). However, new research by the University of Toronto, amongst others, has identified a new, offensive, tool they have dubbed the ‘Great Cannon’ (GC).

A firewall is a barrier between two systems that all data must go through.

There are two main types, inflow and outflow. An inflow system is what most people recognize. It stands between the sender and receiver. All data packets are inspected before they are let through. It’s practical to use this kind when the traffic it can’t stop anything already in transit.

If the system finds anything it doesn’t like, then it will inject fake reset scripts that make each sender think the other wants them to stop communicating.

It can’t stop packets that have already been sent. But, it can stop any more from being sent. An outflow system like this is obvious to the sender. However, it seems unlikely that the Chinese government is concerned by the world knowing that it censors web traffic.

The new Great Cannon is special kind of inflow system. It doesn’t attempt to stop and inspect all packets, only those that come from a list of designated addresses. This prevents a bottleneck

and frees up the system to focus on key areas like social networks and advertising.

The GC doesn’t stop the connection from a listed address. Around 98% of the packets are let through. The other 2 per cent, selected at random, are replaced with malicious scripts that are capable of recruiting the sender into a future DDOS attack. These attacks overwhelm a website with so much traffic that it is unable to deal respond correctly and is effectively shut down.

Most of the communications targeted by the GC were those coming through Baidu, a Chinese computer services firm that mainly acts as a host

and a search engine. Interestingly, in all trials the malicious script was only added into the response from Baidu. Researchers at The Citizen Lab discovered this indirectly by checking if Baidu responded in the expected way. Even when they received back the malicious script, Baidu acted in the correct way, meaning only the response was altered.

Further analysis of the all the IP addresses found in several known GC DDOS attacks shows that they primarily come from Taiwan and Hong Kong, with the US, Malaysia and the Australia making up the rest.

The results from other trials

Hamish Hay Science Writer Ever since David Nutt was sacked as the government’s Chief Drugs Advisor, many have become sceptical about whether our government will ever have an evidence-led approach to drug policy. It’s clear that a range of social factors contribute to addictive drug use and that prosecuting users often makes the situation worse. The drugs industry fuels violence around the world. In Mexico, 100,000 people have been killed in in the ‘Narco wars’. It also appears that Islamic State is using

similar funding streams. The supply chain is the main agent of misery, and prosecuting an addicted user who is forced into the situation by societal factors is unlikely to tackle the problem.

We’re finally seeing some progressive policy in this area. The Liberal Democrat and Green manifestos both include commitments to decriminalise personal drug use, whilst clamping down on the supply side for those substances that cause harm.

Sadly, this logic is rarely applied to another industry that has destructive consequences: the hydrocarbon industry. Whilst some of us desperately try to take some responsibility by

changing our personal habits, most of us don’t stand a chance in a world that’s built around oil. A barrel of oil will ultimately be converted into CO2, and thus all oil extracted from the ground is guaranteed to contribute to famine and hardship for the poorest people around the world, as climate change leads to crops failing and sea levels rising.

Meanwhile, the oil industry continues to suck out every last drop with all the techniques it can muster to feed this system. Yet, most countries are still committed to regulation of the demand for hydrocarbons whilst leaving the supply chain, and the gangs of oil extractors, untouched.

Let’s retake control of our oil supply chain, for the long term good of our people and our planet.

Controlling them would be simple.

North Sea oil is extracted by only a few companies and our government could also nationalise the oil fields themselves.

World governments should agree to only allow extraction in keeping with recommendations by the IPCC, accompanied by a huge transfer of resources to the developing world to account for the emissions that

is becoming increasingly difficult to maintain; this frontier of silent warfare is growing closer to spilling into public view with all the countries rapidly developing more sophisticated defensive and aggressive tools to fight in the new cyber war. have got us to where we are today. We could even the costs of environmental damage by taking a large cut of all oil proceeds and placing in into a national savings account.

Norway has shown how this can be done, where the public own 70 per cent of their North Sea oil companies and tax revenues are stored in a sovereign wealth fund, worth over £0.5 trillion.

The ‘fossil fuel divestment’ campaign is persuading organisations to withdraw investments in the hydrocarbon extraction industry. It is an important step in the right direction, but if governments are serious about climate change limiting the supply is next step.

Let’s retake control of our oil supply chain, for the long term good of our people and our planet. flickr:Richardmasoner

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Time to overcome our coke addiction

strongly suggest that the GC system is located near the GF adding weight to the conclusion that it is state run.

Furthermore, the DDOS attacks have focused on sites that officials have declared as seditious, like Greatfire. org. Greatfire is a NFP that records censorship in China. It has suffered several DDOS attacks directly linked to the GC. Citizen Lab claims that the GC’s design does not reflect technology well-suited for performing traffic censorship and that its firewall design is really ‘just a means to launch offensive attacks on sites deemed hostile by the government’. It enlists unwitting foreign computers into taking part in DDOS attacks on sites they consider to be spreading dangerous information to Chinese citizens.

China is not the first state to directly fund these kinds of programs. While not officially confirmed, the US and the UK appear to have capabilities similar to the GC. It is widely speculated that the NSA’s quantum program can also target addresses with malicious scripts. The US and China both claim that the majority of attacks conducted against each other come from rogue agents rather than state-run programs. This false narrative

Sport

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11.05.2015

53

In defence of blood sports

Edward Henderson-Howat Online Sport Editor

Flickr: Kien Pham

careful eye on the wildlife. The work they do to encourage grouse and control deer numbers helps a range of species, especially ground nesting birds.

Annual heather burning is not some trick designed to scar the hillside. It helps fresh shoots spring up, providing fodder for grouse while the mosaic of heather-moorland, grass and streamside trees supports a healthy diversity of habitats.

Campaigners often claim that these areas should go back to their ‘natural’ state but how far back should we go? If the estate were left untouched old heather and scrub would spread across the hillside smothering the open moor and wildlife so many walkers enjoy.

Then when it comes to stalking, deer have no natural predators. If they are left to their own devices they will outgrow their environment and suffer from starvation in hard winters, as well as ending up on roads and damaging crops in lower ground.

As much for the environment and their own welfare, as for sport, deer need to be culled.

Flickr: Bob

In the countryside foxes are vermin, not some cute and cuddly creature So please, don’t demonise field sports if you yourself eat meat.

Don’t dismiss field sports as the pursuit of the posh if you have little understanding of their rural spirit and tradition. And don’t criticise field sports if you can’t appreciate the economic and environmental value they bring to some of the most remote areas in Britain.

Flickr: Bob

Flickr: Moral definition

Shooting and stalking are also the lifeblood of many rural economies across Britain. Without guests paying to shoot at these estates, there is no way landowners could afford to employ so many people in such remote communities.

On the average grouse day there will be 50 people working on the hill. Hundreds of thousands of pounds a year which would evaporate if the land wasn’t used for shooting. Spent in local shops and pubs, these earnings trickle down into the local economy reaping benefits far beyond the hill and heather. All in all, shooting is worth £2 billion to the UK economy and supports the equivalent of 74,000 full time jobs.

But it also takes on a cultural dimension. In many areas, glen life is synonymous with shooting and stalking. Keeping has been a profession in some families for generations.

Restrictions placed on this rural recreation would be the death knell of many remote communities in Scotland and across Britain. Employment would dry up, pushing families elsewhere.

Small primary schools would shut, eroding any semblance of traditional life in the glens.

The whole question of field sports is made out to be a class issue. It isn’t. It is a city vs countryside issue.

Yes, there are some stereotypically posh overweight prigs who shoot, hunt and fish. But many are not and I would challenge anyone to call the keepers where I worked ‘posh’; I’m sure they would tell you where to go.

The 2004 Hunting Act did its best to politicise the issue by framing the debate as a class issue. Why else would they avoid any legislation on angling, more often seen as a ‘working man’s’ sport?

I am sure the majority of those 80 per cent who condoned the

causing real damage to farmers. Growing up in the countryside, foxes were not some fluffy creature. They were the stuff of nightmares, crawling into the chicken run and butchering the lot for fun.

One could just resort to snaring foxes in order to control numbers, a process which traps (but not kills) any creature that passes by - far crueller than hunting. So why not manage species levels by keeping up a bit of countryside tradition and having a good time on the side?

Rural areas, particularly the Scottish Highlands, are so often neglected because there is a total absence of understanding when it comes to countryside economy, tradition and environment.

Flickr: Football wallpapers

Flickr: Real Madrid HD

Flickr: Tim REckmann

When you eat game meat you know where the animal has come from, how it was killed and that it enjoyed a free and wild life – something that cannot be said for much of the meat coming through our industrial abattoirs and supermarkets.

The wonderful thing about shooting is that it can help the environment. Take the case of the Highland estate where I worked as a grouse beater over the summer. The gamekeepers look after 50,000 acres of hill, mountain and moor keeping a

fox hunting ban were city dwellers with little appreciation of the tradition hunting carried for hundreds of years. ‘Just because it’s a tradition doesn’t mean it’s right’ I hear you say, so let’s look at it another way.

To people in the city, who have never come close to anything wilder than a cat, the concept of an aggressive fox seems alien, but in the countryside, foxes are vermin. They terrorise lambs

Shooting supports the equivalent of 74,000 full time jobs in some of Britain’s most remote areas

Sporting estates preserve the great British countryside we know and love today

Where would you rather buy your food from?

Flickr: Beau Considine

“ The whole question of field sports is made out to be a class issue. It isn’t. It is a city vs countryside issue

Flickr: Ben Sutherland

I’m sure many of you will view ‘blood’ or field sports, a category of sports or entertainment that causes bloodshed, as an anachronistic excuse for a hobby with no place in modern civilised society.

But I’m fed up with hearing that urban cry of ‘oh how posh’ or ‘oh how cruel ’.

It’s not hard to testify to the sport’s electrifying thrill but, more importantly, the shooting of grouse, stalking of deer and hunting of foxes are invaluable in preserving Britain’s environment, bolstering rural economy and upholding local culture and tradition.

First, let’s deal with the question of cruelty. I can understand the distaste a vegetarian might have with field sports. What riles me, however, is the dismissiveness coming from those among the 95 per cent of us in the UK who tuck into some form of meat every week.

The League Against Cruel Sports makes out that hunting is something akin to murder, comparing the flight of a fox to that of a human. But why not extend this logic to all animals? Unless you decide to follow your breakfast rashers back to the bacon tree rather than the slaughterhouse surely you too are culpable in this killing?

It would take a better philosopher than me to theorise the exact emotions and feelings of an animal but the next time I go to Burger Joint I won’t need to deliberate before chomping into the burger because I’m willing to say it: animals are not humans.

It is not a question of human rule and dominion but a case of stewardship. I am deeply concerned about the environment – I wouldn’t splash out on free range eggs or endure the seven-hour train journey instead of a flight home if I didn’t – but providing species as a whole are conserved I won’t lose sleep over the death of an individual animal.

And if anything, shooting offers a more honest relationship between man and beast than the average consumer could ever hope to have with their beef lasagne (or was it horse?).

The tradition of marking someone’s face in deer’s blood after their first kill is designed as a symbol of respect, fostering the understanding that you are killing a living thing. The animal will then be gralloched (insides taken out) on the hill, with the venison on the plate before too long.

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Intramural cricket soaks in the sun (and some rain) at Coombe Dingle Unfortunately, the geographers pulled out that same afternoon such is the nature of intramural sport. The Conquerors took the points and an eight-aside friendly was arranged to give the beginners some practice.

Hiatt Baker and Wills look to be the stronger sides in this group and will both be fighting for berths in the semi-finals.

Edward Henderson-Howat Online Sport Editor

The intramural cricket T10 blast is well underway at Coombe Dingle.

The tournament, organised by UBCC (University of Bristol Cricket Club), pits 12 teams against each other with matches running throughout the summer term.

Intramural aims to open competitive sport to a wider spectrum of students who might not otherwise compete at university level, and this competition has undeniably done that. While the brevity of the summer term means the matches can only be ten overs per innings, there is still room enough for players of all ability to enjoy some cricket in the sun.

The dozen sides from across the University are split into three groups of four with the winner and bestplaced second place team advancing to finals day on Thursday 11 June.

As ever, Stoke Bishop make up a strong contingent of the entries but unlike previous editions of the tournament, this year the city centre and Clifton halls are represented.

POOL C - Churchill - Durdham - Epigram - Law

POOL A - Clifton Cougars - Economics - Hockey - Stoke Bishop Martlets Pool A host much-fancied hockey (runners up last year) led by Michael Jones. However, they were beaten by the fresh faced Stoke Bishop Martlets

UBCC committee members umpire every match

– an invitational first year XI – in the opening match of the tournament on Tuesday 27 April.

The Martlets posted a mighty impressive 135 led by an impressive 66 from their number four. Hockey came out fighting but after a controversial stumping they just fell short by eight runs with Deeyam Patel top scoring.

Economics and the Clifton Cougars (Manor Hall and Goldney) make up the rest of Pool A. They also played on the opending day but this time experience proved the key as Economics sauntered to an eightwicket victory.

The sides in this group next meet in early May and will be sure to face an even greater battle than messrs Miliband, Cameron and Clegg.

Hockey will need to make amends if they’re hoping to match last year’s performance but they face stiff competition in the form of Economics. Meanwhile the Martlets will be looking to boost their run rate and make it two wins in two against the Cougars.

Economics vs Martlets on Tuesday 19 May could prove to be the key game in deciding the fate of this group.

POOL B - Geogsoc - Hiatt Baker - Riverside Conquerors - Wills Defending champions, Hiatt Baker, were matched against Wills in their first game of the tournament. This Stoke Bishop derby on Thursday 28 April lived up to expectation with Hiatt Baker taking to the field on a glorious summer’s evening.

Wills superstar and Gloucestershire 2s batsman, Kieran Smith, was the centre of attention as he strode out to the wicket. Hiatt Baker were up for the fight as Jake Clarke struck second ball.

They almost removed Smith moments later but he was dropped at square leg.

Hiatt Baker were soon made to rue this mistake as the batsman struck 32 runs off the fourth over and went on to top score with 77.

Wills chalked up a competitive 128 and this proved too much for Hiatt Baker who finished on 109-6, losing by 19 runs.

Earlier on in the evening, the Riverside Conquerors had travelled up from the City Centre to play Geogsoc.

The journos who spend most of their time writing and thinking about sport will finally get the chance to try and practice what they preach as Epigram enters a team in Group C. They boast the weathered sport editor Daniel Thacker but having not played since his second year in 2013, time will tell whether he can perform again. Rumours are also circulating that guest columnist and UBCC club captain, James Scott, may add his weight of experience to the team.

Law have a strong cricketing tradition with their own tournament on Macfarlanes day. However, the real unknown will be how well the beginners in each team can perform.

Sadly rain on Tuesday 5 May meant that the opening games in Group C between Law and Epigram and Churchill and Durdham were rained off. They have been rescheduled to May 28.

Cricket certainly suffers from the shortness of the summer term.

However, if the weather Gods remain favourable we should see another 17 matches played out at Coombe Dingle.

It is heartening to have students of all ages and abilities coming together from across the university.

The UBCC website has all the latest results and tables.

Ligue 1: Europe’s Forgotten Gem Malik Ouzia Sport Features Writer

clubs have played Champions League football; a telling statistic given that France is only afforded three qualifying berths by UEFA. La Liga is the only division to have put forward a more diverse range of competitors with eight, mainly on account of its larger qualifying quota (only four teams finished in Spain’s top three in the same period).

Such consistency of competition is retained throughout the league

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For a brief period either side of the turn of the century French football was the envy of the world. World and European champions, Les Bleus were the finest national team on the planet. The Champions Leaguewinning Real Madrid of 2002 owed much to the French midfield pairing of Zinedine Zidane and Claude Makelele, whilst on these shores the great Arsenal side of the era had more than a touch of Va Va Voom about it.

Yet for the large part the domestic game, still reeling from the match fixing scandal of 1993, flew under the radar. The crème de la crème

of the national side plied their trade abroad: of the eleven who started the Euro 2000 final only one – Christophe Dugarry – began the following season at a French club.

In recent times only Monaco’s 2004 Champions League final defeat to Porto represents any significant achievement in Ligue 1’s attempts to compete with Europe’s elite at club level.

However, whilst even the petrodollars of Paris Saint Germain have struggled to make a major continental impact, the division itself has been more competitive than ever.

In the six seasons between 2007-08 and 2012-13 six different teams won the title, twice as many as in Spain or England. As a result, since the 200910 incarnation seven different French

too, with the disparity between the top and bottom of the table nowhere near as vast as in some of Europe’s other major leagues. In the Premier League the gap between champions Chelsea in first and Burnley in 20th is 57 points. In Serie A the gulf extends to 63. In Ligue 1 it is 48. As such there is scope for true underdog stories: take Guingamp, for example, currently lying tenth, holders of the French Cup, who qualified for the last 32 of the Europa League. Not bad for a club whose 18,000 capacity stadium could fit the town’s entire population more than twice over.

To some extent this equality is enforced. Average annual income for a Ligue 1 club is £48.3m, a third of that of the average Premier League club, thus few have the means to

import big-name foreign players.

In order to remain competitive considerable emphasis must be placed on the league’s youth academies and it is here that we find another of Ligue 1’s great qualities. With average player age at just under 26 years, the league is the youngest of Europe’s ‘Big Five’ and over a quarter of all players were on the books at their current clubs for at least three years before turning 21. Every fan loves the fabled ‘homegrown hero’ and there are plenty of them - see Alexander Lacazette, Lyon’s own Harry Kane for want of a better comparison.

And then there’s Zlatan…

Epigram

11.05.2015

55

‘I’m pursuing the opportunity to represent Ireland at national level’ Third-year Maths student and water polo extraordinaire Sam Houston was one of only ten Bristol sportspeople to collect the prestigious Reds Award for consistently excellent performances at the ceremony this past 9 May. Tom Gellatly caught up with him for Epigram Sport to chat about, unsurprisingly, water polo and Bristol sport in general, but also about some more unexpected hobbies and techniques he uses to stay at his mental and physical peak.

Hi Sam, thanks for chatting with me today. I feel we should get the obvious question out of the way first: how does it feel to be being honoured with such an exclusive accolade as the Bristol Reds Award?

I guess I’ll give an equally obvious answer and say that it feels great!

I hadn’t really realised just how prestigious it actually was until I properly started reading up about it,

but after I’d done that I feel that it’s a great achievement and I’m very honoured and proud to have been selected.

Were there any performances in particular that stand out to you as showcasing you at your best?

(Laughs) The match I was most pleased with my performance in was actually the only game we’ve lost in my three years on the team! It was against Durham in the BUCS Finals, and they’d been our rivals since last year so it was particularly frustrating to end our streak against them. I felt like I put in one of my strongest performances all season there, and it was pretty disappointing to walk away empty-handed.

What lies in the future for you with regards to water polo? Any plans for even bigger things?

As I’m Irish, I’m pursuing the

opportunity to represent them at a national level. My coach here has helped me to get in contact with their coach, and I’m currently listening out for any news about the next set of trials they have.

Sounds great. If I could pick your brains a little more specifically, then, could you give us any insights into any rituals or secrets to success you may have? Any pregame warm-ups or lucky charms?

It might sound a little weird, but over the last few months or so I’ve yielded a lot of benefits from having very regular cold showers. Since I’ve started with this I’m feeling no muscle soreness whatsoever and I’m getting a lot of psychological benefits out of it in terms of my drive and willpower.

That certainly sounds like it would get you pretty amped up.

Are there any other similar healthrelated tips for the would-be Sam Houstons of the Water Polo world out there?

Well I have stopped drinking over the last six months and I’ve noticed a big improvement in my mental clarity throughout the day, and also the standard of my general performance in the pool after team socials has definitely gone up. But the most important advice I can give to anyone who’s interested in getting into Water Polo is training: make sure to train every day and you’ll definitely reap the benefits.

Interesting. So you don’t drink, but I’ve definitely seen you out a few times - what else do you like to do to have fun?

I’m a very avid cyclist, and I frequently enjoy pulling long stints on the bike, exploring Bristol. I’ve found some of my favourite spots have been in Bath, and as far away as Cardiff.

One particularly funny cycling story was when I spent a day cycling to Cardiff and back, to pick up a monitor I saw going for free on the internet – I actually ended up having to cycle along the motorway on the way there (long story) but luckily the local authorities stepped in and pointed me in a less hazardous direction. It was a pretty memorable experience, but ultimately pretty pointless because I ended up donating the monitor to a charity shop pretty soon after!

and my friend and I hope we can be of at least a little assistance to them in our time there.

That sounds like a great summer!

And finally, one last Water Polo question, how do the horses not drown?!

(Sighs) No comment.

Hmm, still a mystery then. Thanks again for chatting with us, Sam, and best luck for the future, for water polo and everything else!

That definitely sounds like a story I want the full version of at some point - you can tell me later.

I feel I would be remiss if I didn’t ask every finalist’s least favourite question: have you got any plans for after Uni sorted out yet?

Well so far, I’ve organised quite a lot for this summer. Firstly I’ve been lucky enough to land a space as a Court Attendant at this year’s Wimbledon.

That basically means I’ll be able to sit and watch the games from a front row seat, and if it ends up raining I have to spring into action and run onto the courts to cover them up.

I’ll pray for the sunniest Wimbledon in history for you.

Anything else planned for after that?

Yeah, I’m also going to South Africa for a couple of months with my best friend to help out with a local Cape Town charity, called Little Angels. It’s a centre for underprivileged children,

And then there’s Sol Campbell...

Continued from the back page Rugby World Cup 1995

Pasquale Giordano

Footballers’ political adventures

neither Bill Shankly, Sir Alex Ferguson nor David Moyes ever hid their support of Labour, Paolo Di Canio’s admittance of being ‘a fascist, not a racist’ unsurprisingly had a slightly more mixed reception. From Diego Maradona’s admiration of left-wing icons Hugo Chávez and Che Guevara to legendary Brazilian striker

Romario’s criticism of his own country’s World Cup, Latin America has a long tradition of political radicalism. Lilian Thuram and George Weah are two further legends of the game to have stepped into the political arena after ending a playing career.

Twitter: @SolManOfficial

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Perhaps the handshake which defines the inseparability of sport and politics for an entire nation.

Countless words and reels of film have been devoted to what took place at Ellis Park, Johannesburg, the stadium which had been (and was) bastion of the Afrikaaner and his sport, on 24 June 1995. The embrace between Nelson Mandela, the embodiment of hope for millions of black South Africans, and the country’s rugby union captain, Francois Pienaar, after he had led the Springboks to a 15-12 victory over New Zealand after extra time, is the stuff of legend; a moment, a land and a culture beautifully captured in John Carlin’s 2008 book, ‘Playing the Enemy’. Undeniable proof of the power of sport to influence a country’s past, present and future.

The year 1995 was one of collision between politics and sport, as Robbie Fowler gained widespread admiration for his support of striking Liverpool dockers, but his was an isolated, personal foray.

Other footballers’ efforts down the years have received a more mixed reception (as Sol Campbell recently discovered). While